In the underground prison compound, along its perimeter lined with occupied cells, Alex watched a heartbreaking reunion unfold. Rhea and Lianne stood in a tense standoff, while Amelie, whose real name was Amelina, remained protected behind Lianne.
"My father was distraught when he found out about your father's death," Amelina said. "He wanted to do something about it, but he couldn't, because he would have been targeted next. We were only fortunate to survive because he was in charge of the industrialization department, making him irreplaceable to the company at the time."
"Don't give me excuses!" Rhea shouted, her voice cracking. "I don't care how 'irreplaceable' your father was! My family is dead, Amelina! You think I care about his position or how careful he had to be? You think that changes anything?! You think it changes the fact that your father just watched mine die and profited off it?!"
"You're right," Amelina said, tears streaming down her face. "He did just watch your family get killed and did nothing because he would have been next. I would have been next. That's why my father immediately sent me off on my journey with Lianne, even though I never wanted to be a trainer and wanted to stay with him. He did it to keep me safe, in case they decided to go after him next."
Rhea fumed as both guns on her shoulders and the ones mounted on her forearms were pointed at Amelina, ready to fire at the slightest hint of hostile intent. She hated Amelina with a passion for her betrayal, yet at the same time feared killing her childhood friend if she was telling the truth.
Should she avenge her father? Should she make an exception? Should she abandon her revenge against people who were supposedly as helpless as she had been and focus solely on taking down Argent Solutions?
She didn't know what to do, no matter how badly she wanted to.
Lianne, meanwhile, took a defensive position, knowing she was at a complete disadvantage. Sure, she could probably take down Rhea and her sole Pokémon, Tinkaton, but there was Alex to consider, who was simply staring at their predicament without betraying the slightest hint of intent. She didn't know whether he would stop Rhea or kill them for getting in the way. Still, as Amelina's best friend, she had to stand by her.
Amelina, meanwhile, was fighting off years of guilt and terror after realizing that Rheabel, her childhood friend from the days when their fathers held meetings together, was still alive. She had thought they had all died back then. Now she regretted not knowing, not reaching out, and not bringing Rheabel along on her journey after the incident.
"I'm so sorry, Rheabel," Amelina said.
"Shut up!" Rhea shouted.
"If I had known you were still alive back then, I would have taken you with me."
"Shut up!"
"We could have gone on a journey together, the three of us."
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" Rhea shouted before slumping to the floor, tears streaming down her face inside the suit.
Alex took that as his cue to subdue the situation. He approached Rhea, deactivated her armor with a press of a biometric button, and held her in his arms as she cried against his chest. Without a word, he signaled for Gardevoir to ascertain the truth.
Gardevoir called over the Chandelure pair, the Goodra pair, and the Vikavolt pair as guards before she approached.
"No! Stay back!" Lianne shouted before giving the order. "A-Attack!"
Her Pokémon, all Expert rank Grass types, were no match for the Elites sent to counter them. The Chandelure pair absorbed Serperior and Roserade's attacks before taking them down with a Flamethrower each. The Goodra pair exploited Sap Sipper to nullify Sawsbuck and Lilligant's damage, then struck back with empowered Fire Punches, knocking them out. Finally, the Vikavolt pair ignored Leavanny and Whimsicott's assault and countered with Bug Buzz, instantly taking them down.
As six one-on-one clashes erupted and promptly ended, Gardevoir floated forward, caught Lianne in a psychic hold, and placed a hand against Amelina's forehead before reading her memories.
Once she was done, she gave Alex a nod, confirming the validity of Amelina's words. As far as she was aware, everything she had said was the truth. However, whether her father had lied to her was another matter entirely.
"Looks like she's telling the truth," Alex whispered once Rhea had stopped sobbing. "What do you want to do?"
"I… I don't know," she said, sniffling.
"Do you want to find out the truth?"
Quietly, Rhea nodded against his chest. She surrendered to the hope that her father's friends were as helpless as they had been so long ago. The company still had to be brought down and never rise again, but perhaps her father's friends would get to live and carry his memory with them. It was a small, comforting thought, one that might make up for their betrayal.
Alex, meanwhile, started considering his options.
Firstly, Iris still hadn't finished mapping out Unova, which meant they weren't ready to take down Team Dominion and by extension Argent Solutions. They would need a few more days if Alex pushed them to rush, or a few weeks otherwise.
Secondly, Team Dominion knew Alex was moving against them, which meant their main headquarters would likely be aware of him as well. He would need to anticipate retaliation if they succeeded, a relatively small problem given the base's defenses.
Thirdly, if they moved against Argent Solutions now with Team Dominion still active, there was a very high chance they would be hunted by the League as well. After all, there were still spies in the government, and if that didn't work, Orvan might threaten the League to act on his behalf. At best, they would be requested to leave the region. At worst, they would be branded as criminals and hunted down.
'I knew plans didn't always work out, but I didn't expect complications to start piling up so soon,' Alex thought wryly.
In the end, it was better to take things as they came, so he might as well move to resolve Rhea's problem first. It was the primary reason they had come here in the first place.
"Alright, this is how it's going to go," Alex said coldly, drawing Lianne and Amelina's attention. "You're going to cooperate for a chance to prove your father's innocence. If you don't, we'll simply assume the worst and eventually kill him."
Alex's eyes darkened as he continued, slowly covering himself in Dark type energy and painting a terrifying visage that demanded to be taken seriously.
"You're welcome to try and give him a chance to escape, but let me remind you that I'm a very successful bounty hunter. That means it doesn't matter if he runs to the League or the Underworld. I have the connections to eventually find him, and when I do, there will no longer be an option to explain. This is your one and only chance. Do you understand?"
Lianne nodded repeatedly in fright while Amelina felt her world crumble. She wasn't an idiot. There was a very real chance her father had been lying to get her on his side. This meant she might be unknowingly serving him up to Alex for execution.
Still, the alternative was far worse. Alex was both powerful and capable. At the very least, he had found her within a day of Lianne asking for help, proof of his ability to track down anyone. She didn't doubt there would be no escape for her father if she betrayed their trust.
"I… I understand," Amelina said, her voice heavy with resignation.
"Good," Alex said as he retracted his energy. "This is what we're going to do."
-----
Julien Arset had spent the past week searching for his daughter from his secluded mansion deep in the mountains west of Driftveil City. She was supposed to have arrived from her journey a week ago, but she never made it.
Since then, he had been using his contacts in the police, posting search-and-rescue quests for trainers at the Pokécenter, placing a bounty on her head for live retrieval, and even scouring human trafficking sites for any sign of her. All of these avenues had proven unsuccessful so far.
"Maybe this is karma for what I've done," he muttered for the hundredth time since.
Suddenly, the intercom buzzed with a call from the guards.
"Sir, the young miss appears to have returned, accompanied by Miss Whitlock and a pair of bounty hunters. You should be able to see the feed at the front gate," one of them reported.
"Bring up the feed at the front gate," he said quickly.
A hologram appeared on top of his desk in his office showing his daughter Amelina in a disheveled state, wrapped in a blanket. Beside her stood Lianne, her best friend from school, holding Amelina up to keep her steady. Behind them were a pair of bounty hunters in armor and overcoats. One was a tall man with short blond hair, and the other was a woman with long blonde hair.
"Let them in," Julien ordered.
"Including the bounty hunters?" the guard asked.
"Yes, let them all in. I need to thank my daughter's saviors," he replied.
Through the monitor, he could see them all enter the compound and make their way to the mansion.
He rushed from his office to the foyer, arriving just in time to see them step inside from the cold, rainy night.
"Amelina! Thank Arceus you're okay," he exclaimed as he moved to hug her.
"I'm sorry, Dad," she whispered.
"It's okay. Everything is okay as long as you're safe," he said.
At that moment, his wife hurried into the foyer, her eyes full of relief as she rushed toward them. She wrapped Amelina in her arms, holding her tightly.
"My sweet girl… I was so worried!"
Julien managed a brief smile, relief softening his features for the first time in days.
Suddenly, a powerful hand froze him in place. The bounty hunter had moved to stand beside him, and the illusion surrounding the bounty hunter's companion shattered, revealing the familiar face of his dear departed friend's daughter.
"Hello, Julien. Remember me?" Rhea asked.
"Rheabel Argent," he whispered in disbelief, his face draining of color. "You're still alive."
"Yeah," she said, her voice low and dangerous, "and I have a bone to pick with you."
-----
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