"Eternal youth, that's the real goal," Wes said slowly, as he and Rui were standing in a room in the basement of the base.
"The thing that Cipher promised me was that, in exchange for helping them, they would give me the ability to give someone their youth back…"
Rui didn't seem to understand yet. I mean, Wes was only a little older than her. He was in his 20s; he was still young.
But he gestured with his head toward a room. When they stepped inside, they saw what almost looked like a hospital room, and there was only one bed with the curtains rolled back. Rui was taken aback, but Wes nodded at her and gestured with his head.
"You wanted to know. The answer is right there," Wes said, looking down and closing his eyes.
Rui gulped and slowly started walking toward the curtain. Slowly, her hand grasped it, and she pulled it back. Then what she saw made her knees almost give up on her.
There, lying on the bed and hooked up to machines, was her grandfather, Eagun.
Rui felt her knees shake. She still remembered five years ago, before everything that happened, before Wes went to Cipher.
They got a message from the hospital that Rui's grandmother, Beluh, was in the hospital.
And obviously, Rui and Wes both went. After all, Rui's grandparents always treated Wes like he was also family. They even joked sometimes that when Rui grew up, she and Wes would make a cute couple.
But when they got to the hospital, they got the news.
Beluh was sick. She was too old, and if she wanted to even keep going, she would need expensive medicine that they didn't even have in stock here in Orre. They would have to custom order it.
But they couldn't even do that because of how absurdly expensive the medicine was, and no one was willing to help. So Beluh died one month later. Even despite all their efforts, she died.
Everyone mourns in their own way. Eagun stayed in his house, staying quiet most days now that his wife was gone. Rui locked herself in her room, letting out soft sobs.
While Wes went traveling again. He walked through Orre, and each day he grew angrier at the region itself. If only Orre wasn't so poor, if only people in Orre didn't only look out for themselves, if only Orre wasn't as disgraceful as it was, then maybe she could have lived.
This was around the time that Wes first beat Cipher. Since then, people around Orre called him a 'hero,' even if he never called himself that.
And so, the Orre government approached him, telling him that they could help him get whatever he wanted, as long as he worked as their enforcer. After all, they couldn't have these Orre people rebelling against power, could they?
And this was the moment in the news report where Wes was supposedly "attacking" innocent people.
It was exaggerated to make him look worse, but he did attack the people involved. Ever since then, things started changing for him.
While he appeared less and less around towns or in public, he still sometimes came by and spoke to Eagun. After all, he saw him as a mentor and as family.
Around this time, Rui also left. She said she had to do something on her own, so she did.
But during these talks, Wes soon learned that Eagun was also sick. The same sickness that Beluh had, and that made his heart drop. He couldn't let this happen. He couldn't let Eagun die too.
He left and started looking around for any way to get the medicine. And that's when he started going back to being a thief. After all, he already had some bad press, and he used to be a thief back during his time in Team Snagem. What difference would it make if he did it now?
But as he looked for information, that's when Greevil found him and gave him a solution to his problems. He could treat all of Eagun's illnesses.
And he was also working on a way to restore his own youth. Once he got it, Wes could use it on Eagun too.
At first, Wes didn't even know who Greevil was. But when he explained everything, Wes wanted to refuse immediately. He was about ready to try and finish Cipher off for good right there and then.
But Greevil also tempted him. He promised that once he completed his plan, Orre would become a better place. He would personally make Orre a utopia.
And at the time, the Wes of that moment was weak.
He wasn't able to resist the temptation of saving the one person he saw as family, especially after losing another.
So he joined, and he did as he was told. But that's when he found out they had brought Eagun to the Cipher facilities. And he found out how they sent people to kidnap him, dragging him away.
Wes immediately wanted to yell at them for doing it like that, but Greevil reminded him that he never specified how they should do it. And that made Wes shut up.
But then that's when he thought about Rui, he wanted to think of how he could explain it to Rui so she could understand. But again, Greevil saw right through him.
He told Wes that from now on, he was not to contact that girl again. Not so much as a message, or else, he would stop all the treatment, it was a way to control Wes, and he knew it. But at the moment, he couldn't say no to him.
Ever since then, over the years, he worked for Cipher and rebuilt what he tried so hard to destroy. And he could never contact Rui to explain it.
Meanwhile, he learned that when Rui returned and didn't find her grandfather, she tried, she tried so hard. She looked around, trying to find him.
But when she asked people, all they could say was that they saw him getting dragged into the desert.
Of course, people saw and didn't help, This was Orre. This was every man for themselves. They weren't going to stick their necks out for others.
And the people who told Rui this also told her to give up, that if he got taken to the desert, he probably got killed and fed to the desert Pokémon out there.
Rui didn't want to believe it. But with no Pokémon to her name and no way to go into the desert, she couldn't do anything.
She was helpless. And all alone. In those years, she had nothing and no one.
Until she eventually learned that Wes joined Cipher from reading the newspapers, saying "hero turned villain."
She didn't want to believe it, but she eventually had to accept it. Even if she didn't want to.
Wes slowly walked over, stopping a few feet behind Rui. He looked at Eagun lying motionless in the hospital bed, the steady beeping of the machines filling the otherwise silent room, "I did it for both of you."
Rui didn't answer.
"I know how that sounds." Wes lowered his head, "But after Beluh died...I couldn't watch it happen again."
His hands slowly clenched into fists.
"I told myself I was making the right choice. I told myself that if I just endured it a little longer...if I helped Cipher finish their research..." He let out a bitter laugh, "...Then I could betray them. That seems to be what I am best at, huh? Betraying everyone that takes me in." Wes let out a humorless laugh.
Rui didn't say anything, so Wes continued, "The moment Eagun was cured...the moment I could restore his youth..." Wes swallowed, "I was going to destroy Cipher from the inside."
"..."
"I know that doesn't erase everything. I kept telling myself..." Wes whispered, "...that if I could save even one person...then maybe all of it would mean something."
Rui's shoulders trembled.
Wes finally looked up, "Rui?"
She slowly turned around. There were tears running down her face, but there wasn't any anger in her expression. That somehow hurt even more.
"You idiot..." she whispered.
Wes flinched, "I...know."
"No." Rui shook her head, "You don't."
She took a shaky breath, "I know Grandpa means everything to you."
"He does."
"I know you loved Grandma too."
"..."
"I know losing her broke you."
Wes couldn't bring himself to speak.
Rui wiped at her eyes, "I even understand why you thought this was the only way." Then she rubbed her eyes, "But that wasn't your choice to make."
Rui stood there, her hands trembling at her sides. Part of her wanted to slap him. After everything...after five years of believing he had betrayed everyone...after crying herself to sleep wondering why he abandoned them...but right now, with the opportunity right in front of her, it didn't feel worth it anymore.
Nothing she did now would ever give either of them those five years back.
Rui slowly unclenched her fists, "You really are an idiot."
Wes let out a quiet, broken laugh, "Yeah."
Wes slowly closed his eyes, "I'm sorry."
"I know."
"No..." Wes whispered, "I really am."
Rui looked away, "You were a hero, Wes...You were my hero."
Wes looked away from her slightly as she walked the last few steps toward Eagun's bedside before gently taking the old man's hand in both of hers.
She carefully squeezed it, "Grandpa..."
Tears slipped down her cheeks as she lowered her head, "I'm sorry..." she whispered to him, "I'm sorry I couldn't find you..."
Her shoulders shook, "I looked everywhere..." Another tear fell onto the blanket covering Eagun, "I thought..." she choked, "...I thought you were gone."
Wes opened his mouth, "Rui..."
She didn't look back. For several long seconds, she simply stood there holding Eagun's hand.
Then, barely above a whisper, "Please...just leave."
He felt those two words hit harder than anything she could have screamed at him.
Rui still refused to look at him, "I just..." she whispered, her grip tightening around Eagun's hand, "...I just want to be with my grandpa right now."
Wes opened his mouth, then he closed it. Then he slowly turned and walked to the door, while Haunter was still floating behind him to make sure no shenanigans happened. That left Rui alone in the room.
—
{With Gary}
Nascour pointed forward, "Destroy him!"
The Shadow Pokémon moved at once. Walrein fired a massive [Blizzard], freezing the floor as the icy storm raced forward. Blaziken disappeared in a burst of fire using [Blaze Kick]. Metagross launched itself into the air with another [Meteor Mash]. Xatu's eyes glowed blue with [Psychic], and Dusclops vanished into the shadows.
Gary simply adjusted his gloves, "Umbreon [Snarl]."
Umbreon opened its mouth. A deafening wave of dark sound erupted outward. The [Psychic] shattered instantly. Xatu cried out as it was blasted backward, and Dusclops was forced out of hiding as the wave crashed into it as well.
"Electivire [Thunder]." Gary continued.
Dark clouds instantly gathered above the ruined ceiling. A pillar of lightning crashed straight down. Walrein barely had time to look up before the bolt engulfed it completely. The [Blizzard] disappeared, and when the electricity faded, Walrein collapsed onto the frozen floor.
Gary didn't even acknowledge it, "Blastoise [Hydro Cannon]."
A massive torrent of water exploded forward. Blaziken tried to leap over it, but it was too late. The blast swallowed it whole before launching it through a steel support pillar. The entire beam continued through the wall behind it.
When the water finally stopped, Blaziken slid to the ground unconscious.
Gary let out a breath, "...Three left."
Nascour grit his teeth, "Metagross!"
Metagross roared before slamming both fists down, and the entire room shook violently.
Gary whistled over at Blastoise, "[Protect]."
Blastoise moved in front of them and took the full force of the shockwave, but it didn't even shake his shield.
Meanwhile, Gary continued pointing forward, "[Thunder Punch]."
Electivire ran in from behind Blastoise, charging toward Metagross. Metagross swung with [Meteor Mash], but Electivire ducked underneath the punch and then drove his fist straight into Metagross' lower body.
The steel titan spun completely around before crashing into the ground hard enough to crack the floor.
Nascour stumbled backward, "No..."
Gary looked toward Umbreon, "[Dark Pulse]."
Umbreon fired a spiraling sphere of darkness. Xatu tried raising [Light Screen], but the barrier exploded immediately. The attack continued through it and struck Xatu head-on, sending it crashing into the ceiling before falling unconscious beside Walrein.
Only Dusclops remained. It floated backward nervously.
Gary looked almost disappointed, "...Finish it."
Blastoise nodded. Its cannons slowly charged and aimed at Dusclops.
And for the first time, Nascour's face had a trace of panic and fear, "[Shadow Ball]!"
A sphere of darkness shot toward Blastoise.
"[Flash Cannon]." Gary snapped his finger.
A brilliant beam erupted from Blastoise's cannon. The two attacks collided, and for less than half a second they struggled against each other, but then the [Shadow Ball] completely disintegrated. The beam continued straight through, swallowing Dusclops before slamming into the far wall in an explosion of light.
When the light faded, Dusclops fell onto the ground, knocked out.
Gary dusted non-existent dust off of him, "Well, that was anticlimactic. I expected I was going to need to work harder for my revenge."
"Oh well, not my fault you're too weak." Gary shrugged.
Nascour was going to say something, maybe try something else, but he never got the chance as Electivire moved and appeared behind him. It grabbed his arms, then slammed him into the ground, holding him down with his arms behind his back.
Gary walked up to Nascour, now that he was on the ground, and looked down at him, "How pathetic." He let out a scoff, "Guess I just have to wait for Ash to be done with his fun."
—
Back with Yellow
At the moment, all of her Pokémon, Chuchu, Ratty, Dody, Gravvy, Omny, and Kitty, were all battling together against the rest of Ardos' Pokémon.
And Yellow, since Ardos made the mistake of making her mad, was starting to use her power to make all her Pokémon stronger. Before, it might have been a fair fight, but now it wasn't. The only reason why they hadn't all been knocked out already was because Yellow told them not to hurt them too much and to rely on Kitty's [Sleep Powder].
So that's how the battle had been going. All of Yellow's Pokémon worked together, countering everything they did and helping hold them down for Kitty to knock them out. And it worked out. Out on the ground around them were a Shadow Swellow, Snorlax, Alakazam, and Kingdra that they had managed to take out.
The only thing Ardos had left was a Shadow Heracross.
Ardos grit his teeth seeing this, "...Impossible."
Yellow didn't answer.
Ardos clenched his fists, "They're only Pokémon. How are they overpowering Shadow Pokémon?!"
Yellow slowly looked up at him, "And that's where you've been wrong. They're not 'only Pokémon.' They aren't tools. They're my friends."
Ardos gritted his teeth, "Heracross [Megahorn]."
Heracross lowered its horn before exploding forward at Chuchu, the one that Ardos thought was her favorite.
But Yellow was not scared anymore. She raised her hand, "Chuchu."
The little Pikachu vanished. Heracross shot straight past where she had been standing.
Yellow calmly continued, "Ratty, trip him."
Ratty darted underneath Heracross, his tail glowing before sweeping against one of Heracross' legs with [Iron Tail].
The massive beetle stumbled.
"Dody."
Dody the Dodrio charged in from the side, all three beaks glowing white as they struck with [Drill Peck], knocking Heracross completely off balance.
"Gravvy."
Gravvy slammed both fists into the floor, creating a [Rock Slide] from the ceiling.
Heracross looked up just in time to see dozens of rocks crashing down. It crossed its arms and pushed through them, smashing several apart before bursting out of the avalanche.
Ardos smiled, "There! Finish it!"
Heracross leapt toward Gravvy.
Yellow calmly shook her head, "Omny."
Omastar's eyes glowed as it charged [Ancient Power]. Several glowing stones materialized around Omny before launching forward.
Heracross twisted through the first few, then the last one struck its side. The impact completely threw off its trajectory.
"Now, Kitty." Yellow commanded.
Kitty flew down, flapping his wings and letting out power from his [Sleep Powder]. Heracross tried to wave the powder away, but it was no use. It still had to breathe, so it eventually inhaled the powder. It staggered another two steps before collapsing onto the floor with a loud thud.
Ardos grit his teeth harder, "What? This can't be!"
He clenched his fist, and while he looked like he was planning on moving, Kitty flew up and shot a [String Shot], wrapping around Ardos and tying him up, making him fall to the ground.
Meanwhile, Yellow walked over to the Charizard and kneeled down in front of it. As she reached out and started rubbing its head, she spoke softly, "I'm sorry I hurt you. It's all over, okay?"
She slowly healed Charizard.
When she finished, Charizard slowly opened its eyes and looked at Yellow. Yellow just gave it a small smile, "There, it's all better, right? It's okay, you can rest. It will be okay now."
Charizard, even though it was still a Shadow Pokémon and part of its mind was telling it to attack Yellow right now, a bigger part took that instinct and overpowered it. It didn't want to fight, and it didn't want to hurt Yellow. For lack of a better term, its heart opened up to Yellow.
Meanwhile, Ardos was still on the ground struggling, and he watched all of that with wide eyes. But he couldn't say anything because Kitty threw another web, covering his mouth.
Then Yellow stood and looked back at Ardos, narrowing her eyes, "The Pokémon were never the problem. It's you. You're the problem, not them."
—
Back with Ash
Around them, Greevil sent out his last-ditch effort, sending out all of his remaining Shadow Pokémon: his Shadow Manectric, Granbull, Rhydon, Exeggutor, and Tauros.
But Charizard didn't even have to step in. Darkrai took all the fun this time, and very quickly Greevil learned how useless his struggles were, because Darkrai could one-shot all of his Pokémon very easily. The only thing he had left was his Rhydon. All of the others were already knocked out on the ground.
Rhydon roared and charged, the entire room shaking beneath its feet as it lowered its horn.
"[Giga Impact]!" Greevil shouted.
The massive Shadow Pokémon became wrapped in a blazing aura as it barreled toward Darkrai.
Ash yawned, "Darkrai."
Just before Rhydon reached him, the shadows beneath Darkrai's feet suddenly stretched across the floor.
Ash raised his hands and crossed his middle and index finger, pulling a Gojo, "[Dark Void]."
The black mist swallowed Rhydon in an instant. The charging Pokémon stumbled, then when the mist faded, Rhydon fell backward and was instantly out cold, not even asleep, just unconscious.
Greevil stared at the battlefield, "No..." His voice was barely audible, "No..."
He looked at Darkrai, "...Impossible..."
His hands started shaking, "My Shadow Pokémon...My perfected Shadow Pokémon...They...They were supposed to be invincible..."
Darkrai and Ash looked at each other, and neither of them looked amused. So Darkrai went into the ground, and Ash started walking forward, going toward Greevil.
Greevil looked up and glared at Ash, "You brat, no matter. This body is strong enough on its own!"
He tried to charge and swing at Ash, but Darkrai appeared and grabbed Greevil's arms, sending him to his knees.
Ash got right in front of him, looking down, "What's wrong? Did you find something down there on the ground?"
Greevil looked up, but as he did, Ash reached out and grabbed him by the face. His eyes started glowing blue as Ash began pushing Aura into Greevil.
Greevil began thrashing, trying to escape, but it was no use. As Ash pushed more Aura into him, Greevil began turning back into an old man. He shrunk, his hair fell out, and he became frail again.
Remembering that Ash can purify Shadow Serum with Aura, it's just that it takes more Aura than it is worth, so it's better for Rui to just do it. But considering that this was the last actual "threat" there was no point in trying to save Aura. Might as well.
When Ash was done with him, he let go, and Darkrai did too, making Greevil fall to the ground.
"It's over."
But Greevil, being as desperate as he was, started crawling, "No, I just need a little more!"
He started crawling over to the broken glass where Ash broke the first vial. He wanted to even try licking the floor to get a few drops, but Charizard stepped in front of him.
Then Ash sent out a message with his Aura, and Gardevoir teleported into the room, holding Eldes. Eldes looked around, then saw Greevil and Ash, and he understood.
He walked up to his father and knelt down, "Father, please. It's over. Give up. Cipher lost."
But Greevil wasn't giving up just yet. He looked up at Eldes, "Eldes, you're here. Quick, give me the Shadow Serum, then we can beat this child! Hurry! Cipher is not done. We have more. The admins are coming!"
But Eldes just held his father's hand, "No, it's not. The admins have been captured, the Shadow Pokémon factory has been destroyed. Nothing remains of Cipher."
His hand tightened softly, just enough to not hurt, "Let's put a stop to this...Father, you've lost sight of what is important. You got carried away by this whole Grand Master nonsense. Cipher is finished. Father, you yourself should know that more than anyone."
"Now, please. Stand up. This is how it should be. The laws of the land will render judgment on what we have done." Eldes said this while reaching his hand out to help his father stand.
Greevil stayed quiet for a moment, then he closed his eyes. After a moment, he took his hand and stood up, "You're right...Everything I did...All of it was a mistake...and I have no one to blame but myself. Let's go, and hope the law is merciful to us..."
Eldes smiled, then looked back at Ash, "Thanks to your courage, we were finally able to wake up from our nightmare. Thank you. You'll have nothing to fear from us ever. But I hope we meet again one day, and the next time we battle, it won't be as mortal enemies. I will look forward to it."
—
That was it. Cipher was done.
Soon after, Green, Gary, and Yellow came in with their tied-up members and grabbed the communicator in Greevil's room. They made him announce that Cipher was over and told all remaining grunts out there to turn themselves in.
If they did, their punishment would be merciful. If not, they would be hunted down and turned in.
Gary decided he would go deal with the Miror B thing, while Green smirked and winked at Ash, saying she had to make some calls to some buyers, and she'd meet him at the lighthouse.
Meanwhile, Ash looked around for Rui, and he found Wes standing outside of a door in the basement. Wes pointed inside, and when Ash entered, he saw Rui leaning over her grandfather. Through teary eyes, she explained the situation, and she was afraid that he would never wake up.
But thankfully for her, Ash was a doctor, so he put on some equipment and started to take a look. Then he told them that it looked like Eagun was being kept alive, but he was only getting enough medicine to keep him alive while also keeping him in a vegetative state.
But it was nothing Ash couldn't fix. He just gave him a jump start with Aura and actually got him enough medicine, and slowly, Eagun opened his eyes again.
Eagun's eyes slowly opened, his vision blurry at first as the ceiling above him came into focus. For a moment, he didn't move. He simply stared upward, confused. Then he felt something warm holding his hand.
He looked over and muttered, "...Rui?"
The moment that voice came out, Rui froze. Her entire body stopped moving. Slowly, her head lifted, "Grandpa...?"
Eagun turned his head slightly, and there she was.
The little girl he remembered was gone. She was older now, taller, her face more mature, but he could still see the same Rui he had always known.
"Ha, when did you go and grow up? How many birthdays did I miss?" Eagun said softly.
Rui immediately stopped trying to be strong as tears started falling, "Grandpa!"
She leaned forward, hugging him carefully, terrified that if she held him too tightly, he would disappear again.
"I thought..." Rui choked out, "I thought I lost you too..."
Eagun's expression softened, "Oh, Rui..."
Behind them, Ash and Wes were standing by the doorway, but Wes was looking down, not daring to go in, because after everything, he knew there were things that couldn't be fixed.
Ash glanced toward him, "You know, you could go talk to him."
Wes looked over, "What?"
Ash crossed his arms, "You heard me."
Wes looked away, "I don't think I deserve that."
"Probably not." Ash shrugged.
Wes blinked, "...You really don't sugarcoat things, do you?"
"Nope." Ash shrugged, "But that doesn't mean you shouldn't."
Wes looked down, then took a breath and walked in slowly, like he was ready to leave if Rui yelled at him.
Rui noticed him almost immediately, but she didn't have the strength to say anything about it at that very moment.
Eagun looked over, his eyes widening slightly when he saw him, "...Wes."
Wes stopped. For a moment, he looked like he was about to turn around and leave. But then he forced himself to stay.
"Eagun..." Wes said quietly.
The old man stared at him for a few seconds before letting out a tired breath, "Come here, boy."
Wes clenched his fists as he walked closer, "I know there's nothing I can say that makes what I did okay."
Eagun didn't answer.
"I thought I was doing the right thing...I still hurt the people I cared about." His voice became quieter, "I failed both of you."
Rui looked away slightly. Eagun watched Wes carefully, then slowly moved his hand. He raised it up and gave Wes a soft bonk on the head, "You really are an idiot."
Wes let out a small, broken laugh, "Yeah...Rui already told me that."
Eagun smiled faintly, "She always was good at telling the truth."
"I thought..." Wes started, his voice shaking slightly, "I thought if I could just fix everything, then maybe it would make up for what I did."
Eagun shook his head, "Wes. You cannot spend your entire life trying to repay a debt that can never be paid."
Wes looked down, "But I—"
"No." Eagun interrupted softly, "You made a mistake. A terrible one. But you are not defined by the worst thing you have ever done."
Wes stayed silent.
Eagun squeezed his arm, "What matters is what you do after."
Wes' eyes lowered, "I don't know if I can forgive myself."
Eagun smiled sadly, "Then start by letting others forgive you."
Rui, between them, wiped her eyes and sniffled, "You two are seriously impossible."
Both Wes and Eagun looked over. Rui crossed her arms, and the tears were still there, though the small smile on her face gave away how she really felt.
"Five years. Five years of suffering because neither of you knew how to actually talk."
Wes blinked, "Rui—"
"No." She pointed at him, "You don't get to start apologizing again. I already heard the apology."
Wes closed his mouth and Eagun chuckled quietly.
Rui walked over and stood beside them, "I'm still mad."
Wes nodded, "I know."
"And I'm still hurt."
"I know."
"And I'm not just going to pretend everything is fixed."
Wes looked down, "...I know."
Rui looked at him for a moment, "But...but you're here." Rui looked away, "And Grandpa is here."
She took a breath, "So...we'll figure it out."
Wes stared at her, "Rui..."
She looked at him, "Don't make me regret saying that."
Wes gave her a small helpless smile, "I won't. Not again."
—
The next two days went along pretty quickly. For one, Gary had to tell Miror B to buzz off, but they were intent on making him a member of Team Miror, so he had to run probably halfway through Orre. It was honestly the harder part of this whole side adventure.
But while they got their ending and things were pretty chill, it was about time to turn everything in. With all the evidence that Ash managed to take, along with Greevil going forward and admitting everything himself, they had the grounds to arrest every member of Cipher, every admin, and the leaders.
And that included Wes. What did you think this was, a Disney story, where just because he regretted it, it was like it didn't happen? No. He still did it, so he was still going to jail. But he had a bit of a reduced sentence compared to someone like Evice, who got life in prison.
Plus, Eagun and Rui said they would visit him in jail until he got out, and Wes told Rui to keep his Pokémon safe, especially Umbreon and Espeon. They were hers now.
As for the other admins, considering Lovrina did help the gang out and got them a Master Keycard, she put in a good word for her, and she also got a reduced sentence. She even managed to get her brother off scot-free, which Ash visited her to tell her about.
She was more happy about her brother being free than she was about getting a reduced sentence, and she thanked Ash again, still sad that things couldn't have been different.
But life didn't work like that. You couldn't go back just because you regretted something. So after telling her that, he gave her one final goodbye, then walked out. He had more work to do.
As for Greevil, Ardos, and Eldes, well...Greevil was on the chopping block for the death penalty, but since he pleaded guilty, he got off with life in prison.
Ardos was a lot more stubborn and tried to get out multiple times. For that reason, he also got life.
Eldes, however, cooperated, so he would get 20 years with the possibility of parole after 10.
The only other important person to note was Nascour, who, after Rui purified him, was also given 25 years with no possibility of parole.
And the other members got some variation of time. Some only had community service hours, some got years, some got months. It doesn't really matter.
The next important thing was all of the Shadow Pokémon. Professor Krane and Lily worked to purify as many as they could, but there were still more out there in the wild.
Thankfully, Krane finished the purification serum, and it was poured into the water. Eventually, any Shadow Pokémon would have to drink water, and they would get purified too. So the threat of Shadow Pokémon was over.
Of course, Ash asked for a bottle for himself, just in case, and Krane happily gave it to him. Oh, and since Evice and Ein were gone, they got to move back into their old lab.
Oh, and one more thing. Since Orre was so poor and didn't have resources, they didn't even have a League. Ash made a few calls, one of them including Wattson, to give him the idea to expand New Mauville Holdings here in Orre. Since it was free real estate and a great place to start, Wattson was more than happy to agree, saying he would have it ready in 3 days.
And when he told the gang, Professor Krane, Lily, Michael, Jovi, and Rui, the Orre residents that soon more help would get to Orre, they kinda all grabbed him in a group hug, since finally Orre would get the help it desperately needed, from someone who didn't have an ulterior motive.
But that was it. It was over, and the gang finished everything they came here to do...well, almost everything.
Ash came alone one night, the day before they would leave. Since he had all of Cipher's notes, he found what he was looking for. It was buried, but nothing Flygon couldn't fix. When he got underground, there he found it: another tablet with Unown on it, and this time he could tell that these were real Unown.
He checked with his Aura and found what he was looking for. Two of them stood out, the P and the R Unown. He caught them quickly, and then before the others could escape, he got out and collapsed the hole keeping them inside. They were fine; they got in there on their own, and he doesn't need more losers getting their hands on Unown.
But with these two, there was just one left he needed to find: the S.
—
Then the morning came, and the gang met at the Dock again.
Green stretched her arms as she walked over, "Alright, good news. I found some people willing to buy some of the stuff I collected."
Gary raised an eyebrow, "Collected?"
Green smiled innocently, "Yes."
Ash stared at her, "Green."
"What?"
"You robbed Cipher's headquarters."
"I prefer the term recovering stolen assets."
Gary sighed, "You're impossible."
Green grinned, "And yet you keep me around."
Yellow smiled softly while Chuchu sat on her shoulder, "Everyone is okay though."
Ash nodded, "Yeah, everything worked out."
Then Yellow got off where she was sitting and walked up to Ash and held out a small gift.
"Happy birthday, Ash!"
Immediately, Ash, Green, and Gary blinked, and Ash quickly checked. And yeah, he forgot. Today was May 22, his birthday. He was 13.
Then Gary slowly looked away, "...Oh."
Green froze, "...Oh."
Yellow tilted her head, confused by their reactions, "What?"
Ash stared at the three of them, "You all forgot."
Gary immediately pointed at him, "Okay, before you say anything, we have had a lot going on."
Green nodded quickly, "Yeah, exactly. We were kinda busy taking down an evil organization, stopping a world-changing experiment, arresting criminals, and dealing with a bunch of Shadow Pokémon."
Ash snorted, "It's fine."
Green narrowed her eyes, "That sounds like something someone says when it is absolutely not fine."
"I'm serious."
Gary crossed his arms, "You do realize most people would be upset, right?"
Ash shrugged, "I mean, it happens, and hey, I forgot too."
Yellow looked down sadly, "Ash..."
Ash looked over at her and smiled slightly, "Seriously, don't worry about it. It's not like you guys did it on purpose."
Green rubbed the back of her head, "Okay, yeah, maybe we messed up a little."
"A little?" Gary asked.
Green looked at him, "Do you want me to include the fact that you forgot too?"
Gary immediately looked away, "...No."
Ash laughed slightly, "Besides, we had more important things to deal with."
Yellow looked at the small gift still in her hands, "But it's still your birthday." She held it out again, "I wanted to give you something."
Ash looked at the gift for a moment before taking it, and he smiled softly, "Thanks, Yellow."
He carefully opened it.
Inside was a small handmade bracelet, with red, blue, green, and yellow beads, one of each of the gang here matching their eyes.
Yellow smiled nervously, "I made it myself. I know it's not much, but..."
Ash immediately put it on, "It's perfect."
Yellow blinked, "Really?"
"Yeah."
Yellow smiled when she saw his expression, "Happy birthday, Ash."
Ash smiled back, "Thanks."
Then Gary suddenly snapped his fingers, "Wait."
Gary pointed at Ash, "You're thirteen now."
Ash blinked, "Yeah?"
Gary looked at Green, "That means..."
Green's eyes widened, "Oh."
Yellow tilted her head, "What?"
Gary and Green both looked at Ash.
Ash immediately knew where this was going, "No."
Gary grinned, "You're officially a teenager."
Ash stared at him, "I have been mentally older than all of you for years."
Green waved him off, "Doesn't count."
"It absolutely counts."
"Nope."
Gary smiled, "Sorry, kid."
"I'm taller than you."
"And yet you're still the youngest here."
Ash sighed, putting his hand into his face, "I hate you all."
"No you don't, Ashy~" Green patted his head.
"Well, you know what? Screw it, let's just go before the others realize it's my birthday. Oh, actually, since it's my birthday, my mom is probably making dinner." Ash looked over at Yellow, "You wanna come back to Kanto with us for a bit? I know you're still searching for your parents, but, you know..." Ash scratched the back of his head, "It was nice traveling with you again."
Yellow smiled and nodded, "I'd love to."
Green raised her hands in the air, "Oh yeah! Original Kanto Squad adventures aren't over yet!"
"Oh, shut it." Gary rolled his eyes, but there was still a smile on his face.
As they got on the ship and started sailing away, Ash leaned at the back, but that's when he noticed that back there, at the shore, Professor Krane, Lily, Michael, Jovi, and Rui were standing there and waving goodbye to them.
That made Ash smile. He whistled over to the gang, and together they waved back as they sailed out into the distance.