Undisclosed location…

In the Pokémon world, there were many criminal organizations, whose goals were a threat to the lives of Pokémon and humanity alike. The goal of the Pokémon G-Men was clear: they had been founded specifically to investigate said organizations and eventually bring them down. They would often team up with the International Police whenever the incidents escalated beyond the borders of their respective regions, and no matter how hard it was, or how long it took, they would always get the job done.

Part of said job sometimes involved infiltrating the enemy's ranks, a dangerous task only the best agents were assigned to. Sometimes, the best way to bring the criminals down was doing it from the inside. Two agents, a man with red hair and a woman with white-bluish hair, had managed to sneak into one of Team Rocket's laboratories, trying to find out what they could be up to, and were currently walking across the halls, disguised as grunts and trying to act natural to avoid suspicion. Once they were in the clear, they approached a shut door, and looking both ways to make sure nobody was looking, they used a special key card to open the lock. Checking one last time, they entered the room.

A supercomputer stood before them. According to their sources, each laboratory usually had a copy of all the files about the projects Team Rocket had in progress, as well as files on their most high-ranked members. That was the main goal of this mission, to get as many of those files as they could.

"Here it is," the man said removing his shades to reveal a pair of red eyes. "The lab's mainframe. The data we're looking for must be stored in here."

"It better be, Lance," his female companion said. "I'm sick of having to wear this ridiculous uniform."

"Don't worry, Krysta. Once we get what we came looking for, we're hightailing out of here."

The man, named Lance, shut the door again. Checking his watch, he gave his partner a silent signal, and she walked to the aforementioned mainframe. The computer was huge, and it most likely packed the ultimate security measures. Hacking it wouldn't be easy. Taking a deep breath, Krysta pulled out a USB device and inserted it. The mainframe activated a terminal, and she began typing, entering the access codes they had managed to steal. Several folders and files appeared, and Krysta quickly skimmed through them trying to find the ones they were after.

"What's this?" Krysta asked, as she noticed something unusual. "It says here that the one who gave green light to this project was… Proton?"

"Say what?" Lance approached her. "This one doesn't have Giovanni's approval?"

"Apparently not. Let's see… Project R: Creating energy waves capable of triggering the natural evolution mechanism on Pokémon to make them stronger. All tests have been unsuccessful so far, though."

"But it's not been shut down yet," Lance pointed. "Though what worries me is the fact that the Team Rocket Leader hasn't given his approval. Is Proton scheming behind his back?"

"Maybe. In any case, we better take this file, it might come in handy."

Krysta continued to skim through the files, taking whatever they could find. Aside from the Admin profiles, including Proton, Ariana, Archer and Petrel, they found an interesting folder, labeled as *Bloodliners*. Krysta wanted to look in-depth into this one, but Lance checked his watch and pointed it to her. They had checked the shifts, and they only had twenty minutes at most before the security personnel noticed something afoot. Once they got everything, they'd have to get out, fast.

"OK, I've got all the files," said Krysta. But before removing the USB drive, she noticed there was one last unchecked folder. It read: *Project M2*. "Do we have enough time to check one last file?"

"Seven minutes. We need at least five to get out," said Lance.

Krysta attempted to access the file, but a message *ACCESS DENIED* was her only response. This one had a stronger encryption than any of the others, which meant that something pretty big was in there. Undaunted, she tried to bypass the protections, but the result was the same.

"This file is protected by a Leader-level code," said Krysta. "The codes we stole are Admin-level."

"Then there's no point in sticking around any longer," said Lance.

"Hold on, let me try one last time-" Unfortunately, her attempt triggered another failsafe, coded by number of forced access attempts. Specifically, to be activated on the third.

"ALERT, ALERT. UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS IN THE MAINFRAME ROOM. INITIATING EMERGENCY LOCKDOWN."

"Well, there goes our cover," said Lance, as red lights filled the room and sirens wailed off. "We better get out of here."

Krysta removed the USB drive and they immediately ran for the door. They had less than five minutes before everyone in the base were all over them, but having triggered the alarms, the door wouldn't open now. There was only one way to get out.

"We'll have to do this the old fashioned way. Do your thing."

Krysta nodded and took a deep breath. Then, she blew as strong as she could, letting a powerful cold air stream out of her lungs. No matter the alloy the doors were made of; like any material, they could be broken if frozen to near absolute zero and then hit with a powerful physical blow. While Krysta continued to freeze the door, Lance took a Pokéball and let out a Dragonite, who awaited his order.

"Dragon Rush, now!"

Once Krysta stopped blowing her Frost Breath, Dragonite stepped back and charged against the frozen section with his draconian power, breaking through and opening an exit for them. After thanking him, Lance quickly recalled him, and both of them began running through the hallway. It would be just a matter of time before they were caught.

"How much time do we have left?" Krysta asked.

"The shift will change in less than five minutes," said Lance. "We should be able to get out before someone notices we're…"

As they turned around a corner, they found themselves in front of a large group of agents, all wearing black armored uniforms with a large red R on the chest. Around fifteen or twenty, all of them with Pokéballs and electric batons in hand. The one in front of all of them was none other than the green-haired and green-eyed Admin Proton himself.

"…here," Lance finished.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" The Rocket Admin stepped forward. "I thought I had seen a couple grunts sneaking past the restricted area, and then the unauthorized access alarm goes off?"

"Step back," said Krysta.

"Oh? You think I'm gonna let you just walk away?" Proton charged his electric baton. "I'm afraid I can't do that."

"I wasn't talking to you."

Krysta gave Lance an aside glance. The Rocket Admin and his grunts wondered what they were up to, and suddenly, the female intruder raised her arms and unleashed a powerful artic wind current, blowing everyone away and freezing her surroundings. The signal to step back was for Lance to not to get caught in the attack's radius, and as soon as she stopped, the two of them delivered a few punches and kicks on the Rocket grunts, with Lance snatching Proton's baton and zapping him with it before running off.

One of the flaws in the lab's security system was that, whenever there was a security breach, the emergency lockdown would only seal the specific area where it was triggered, while the others would remain normal. They had to use that to their advantage to get out before the rest of the lab caught wind of them.

With the alarms sounding all over the place, the undercover agents made their way to the nearest exit, the upper heliport. They managed to seal shut the door to avoid being followed for the time being, but once Proton had recovered from his shock, he could easily come and override the lockdown, so they had to hurry and open the upper hatches to escape. There were no helicopters for them to hijack, but with Dragonite, they didn't need them.

"Lance, hurry!" Krysta shouted, hearing the noises behind the door. Explosions could be heard and the smokes and dents evidenced that they had decided to just blast it open.

"Almost there." Lance finally managed to open the hatches. The sunshine began to filter through the opening, right when a massive explosion finally blasted the door down. The armored guards had arrived, one of them holding a bazooka and the others carrying varied firearms.

"FREEZE!" the guards shouted, aiming their weapons at them, and with several Pokémon in the ready.

"If you say so!" Krysta unleashed another Blizzard attack to hold them off while Lance came down and called his Dragonite.

"Krysta, let's get outta here!"

Krysta stopped her Blizzard and ran towards Lance and Dragonite. Quickly climbing on the dragon's back and holding on to his partner, the agents looked upwards, and Lance kicked Dragonite on the side to signal him to take off. By the time the guards managed to get to the console to shut the hatches, it was too late; they had managed to get out. Some of them tried to fire their weapons, only to realize they had been frozen by the Blizzard and got stuck. One threw his gun to the floor in anger and grabbed his radio.

"The intruders have escaped on a Dragonite! Deploy the anti-air measures, we can't let them get away!"

Outside, the Dragonite and his two riders had exited the facility, hidden in the middle of a mountain range and almost inaccessible by normal means. The only normal way to get there was using a Team Rocket helicopter; any other aircraft that dared to fly above was to be shot down in sight, and with the amount of anti-air missiles set up around the area, that was pretty much guaranteed. There was, however, a rocky canyon where only skilled fliers could get through to avoid defenses, and this was limited only to well-trained Pokémon. Like Lance's Dragonite, for instance.

"Get your rebreather ready!" said Lance, throwing away the Rocket shades and cap. "As soon as we're above open sea, we're jumping!"

"Alright!" Krysta tore off her Rocket disguise, happy to finally relieve herself of it, to reveal a full-body blue wetsuit underneath.

Dragonite kept flying. The canyon would allow them to stay under the radar for a bit, but it was just a matter of time before the Rockets gave chase, so they would jump to sea to shake them off for good as soon as they exited the mountain range. This was no easy feat: Dragonite had to maneuver through very narrow passages all the way, on top of making sure that Lance and Krysta didn't fall off his back. At least they didn't have to worry about being chased for the time being. You'd have to be crazy to take the canyon route to escape the mountain range, but that was better than taking their chances with the missiles.

As soon as they exited the mountain range, the sea was in clear view. Dragonite began descending while Krysta and Lance donned their rebreathers. They looked back one last time to make sure they weren't being chased, and as soon as they were low enough they jumped, while Lance returned Dragonite. The twosome fell with a loud splash, and once underwater, the two agents let out other Pokémon for assistance, a Kingdra and a Walrein. Quickly grabbing hold of their partners, the agents dived into the depths of the sea, ensuring that their enemies would find their trail gone cold.

A close call, but they had succeeded in their mission. It was time to go to the rendezvous point to deliver their report.

Hours later…

In another mountain range, far away from the previous one, another G-Men agent was riding on his Charizard, heading to the same rendezvous point. It was a man in his late twenties to early thirties, with short, blue-purple hair and matching eyes. The two had been together for over sixteen years, and Charizard had become his regular transport means whenever these meetings took place. The location was so remote, that the only viable way to arrive to the rendezvous points was riding on a flying Pokémon. He had just returned from a successful mission, although he had come across a little more than he had expected. He was looking forward to report about his findings.

The agent heard another flapping noise, and noticed a Dragonite silhouette approaching him. After using his high-tech binoculars to check on them, he smiled, and had his Charizard slow down to let them catch up.

"Lance, Krysta, good to see you made it!"

"Good to see you too, Frey!" said Lance. "How did your mission go?"

"Well, I got a little more than I bargained for, but for the most part it was worth it," the Charizard rider replied. "Plus, I might have some leverage to get your proposal approved."

"Did you find something interesting?" asked Krysta.

"More than I expected…" Frey began reminiscing. There was a lot to tell.

Flashback, a few days ago…

Dealing with Team Rocket was something Frey was already used to. At this point, he more or less had an idea of what to expect, what they would do or wouldn't do. Problem was, in every organization, especially criminal ones, there was always bound to be at least one rogue agent who'd go off on his own agenda, regardless of the general goals of his organization, and Team Rocket was no exception.

During one of his undercover shifts in Mahogany Town's hideout, Frey learned that a few of the Rocket grunts were in cahoots with a serial killer, who was paying them a hefty sum to help him 'clean up' the mess and keep things under wraps. Apparently, the guy was planning to target a woman who lived alone with her 13-year-old daughter, using the ruckus the Rockets would cause as a cover.

Even though this was technically out of his jurisdiction, Frey's sense of justice wouldn't let him stand by and let it happen. He informed his superiors about this, and since the operation within Team Rocket's hideout was proceeding as scheduled, he was allowed a 24-hour reprieve to abandon his post and try to solve this. His first approach was trying to talk to the woman to convince her that her life might be in danger. Even after showing her his G-Man ID, the woman refused to believe it, and left for her work as she always did. Frey had no choice but to keep an eye on her from afar, with the other focused on trying to spot that killer.

The day went by, and it seemed like the supposed killer wouldn't make his move. Mahogany Town was a relatively small population, so he would have ample opportunity to make an attempt on her life. Why didn't he come? The realization hit him at nightfall, when an explosion was heard at the other side of town. The woman was doing a night shift to earn some extra money, completely unaware of what had happened.

Frey was wrong: the woman wasn't the target. The daughter was.

By the time he arrived, the entire house had been set on fire. While her mother was away at work, the girl was fast asleep, completely unaware of her surroundings, but of course the explosion and subsequent fire didn't go unnoticed for too long. As the house was engulfed by the flames, Frey checked his surroundings. The house was on the area farthest from the river, and he didn't have any Water-types on him. But there was something he could do in the meantime, while the rest of the people ran and came closer, either yelling in panic or trying to call for help.

"Charizard, go!" he called, throwing his Pokéball. "Whomever you find inside that house, get them out!"

"Char!" Charizard broke through one of the upper windows, while Frey continued to watch around. He spotted a shadowy figure walking away calmly... too calmly, and guided by a hunch, he followed them.

"Hey you!" he called. The figure stopped, and Frey saw it was a man wearing a dark trench coat. "Don't you see there's a house on fire?"

"It's not my problem," the man in the trench coat replied coldly. "Call the firefighters, they'll handle it."

"You're unusually calm," said Frey. "What are you up to?"

"Nothing you should worry about," the man replied, with the same cold tone. The more he did, the more convinced Frey became that he had something to do with it. "Now, if you don't mind…"

"Actually, I do mind." Frey approached the man and firmly put a hand on his shoulder. He had many questions to ask, and he wasn't leaving without answers.

In response, the guy brusquely turned around and decked Frey square across the jaw, knocking him down before running away. Frey felt his jaw a little dislodged, but it didn't seem broken, and he still had all of his teeth. Putting up with the pain, he ran after the man and prepared to throw another Pokéball, unaware that the guy had dropped something in his escape.

"Go, Tyranitar!" he called. But as soon as he did, he felt a strange wave passing through him, and his Pokéball gave off sparks. He picked it up, and noticed it had suddenly jammed, he couldn't press down the activator button. "What the hell?!"

He tried to reach for the other Pokéballs, but they were all jammed the same. Frey tried to chase after the guy, but then he heard his Charizard roaring after bursting out of the burning house. Torn between having to chase the possible criminal, and helping the potential victim, he chose the latter. Protecting people was more important.

End of flashback.

"Fortunately, the girl came out with just a few first degree burns, and she's going to make a full recovery," Frey concluded, and then sighed in frustration. "Pity that the guy got away."

"I don't get it," said Lance. "Why would he want to kill that girl?"

"Well, the little gadget he left behind was a valuable clue," Frey said, pulling out the little spherical device from his pocket. "I sent it to the Tech R&D division to see if they could track it down or even reverse-engineer it, and we got something interesting. Turns out, these babies are used by a serial killer known as the Bloodliner Hunter."

"Bloodliner Hunter?" said Krysta.

"That's what our friends in the International Police call him, at any rate. The name fits, given that he only targets bloodliners for some reason," Frey continued. "After finding this out, I had a hunch, so I contacted the woman and asked her about this. And I was right; her daughter was a bloodliner, so the guy was definitely trying to kill her."

"Who's that Bloodliner Hunter guy?" asked Lance. "And what does he have against bloodliners?"

"I don't know; since I had to go back to my own operation, I had no time to ask questions," said Frey. "All I could do was making sure the woman and her daughter were relocated somewhere else, for their safety."

"Hmm…" Lance became thoughtful. "Maybe we can use this to boost our proposal. An incident like this is no small thing."

Krysta and Frey nodded. Recently, many more incidents popping up one after another were forcing the G-Men to consider a very important decision. The Pokémon G-Men were tasked to deal Pokémon-related issues, and their targets were usually criminals who mistreated or used Pokémon for evil purposes. But now, they had to discuss a problem that, for many, was neither human nor Pokémon, and was both things at the same time: the Bloodliners. A few months ago, Lance had proposed that they should create a taskforce to deal specifically with them, but it had been rejected. Maybe with this new info from Frey, as well as the intel Lance and Krysta had gathered, they could have their superiors overturn that decision.

Once they reached a safe spot, Charizard and Dragonite landed, and their riders jumped off of them. After recalling their Pokémon, the three agents looked deep into the mountains. Nobody would ever guess that this location housed one of the secret bases used for meetings among Pokémon G-Men agents. Taking a deep breath, the threesome began walking. They'd do the rest of the path on foot.

A few minutes later, they reached a small cave, barely large enough for an adult man to enter, which at the end hid behind a holographic wall a secret high-tech door with the ultimate lock: a dual-fingerprint and retina scanner, as well as voice recognition system. Lance placed his hand on the left scanner, while Frey awaited on the right one. One of the safety measures for this location was that it required two agents to open the lock.

"VOICE RECOGNITION PROTOCOL ACTIVATED. PLEASE STATE YOUR ACCESS CODE."

"GM-235097. Lance Wataru."

"VOICE ACKNOWLEDGED. FIRST LOCK REMOVED."

"Your turn," said Lance. Frey nodded, and waited for the scan of his hand and eye.

"VOICE RECOGNITION PROTOCOL ACTIVATED. PLEASE STATE YOUR ACCESS CODE."

"GM-099315. Frey Solorge."

"VOICE ACKNOWLEDGED. SECOND LOCK REMOVED."

And with this, the door opened, revealing an elevator. They entered and Lance pressed the button to shut the door and go down. As it would take a few minutes for them to arrive to the base proper, Krysta decided to kill time with some small talk.

"How are things between you and Lorelei, by the way?" she asked.

"We've both been busy, but we're managing," Frey replied. "I'm actually hoping to get a few days off so we can meet."

"I'd love to see her too, it's been a while," said Krysta. "Please tell her I said hi the next time you talk."

"Speaking of that, are you planning on popping the question soon?" Lance asked.

Frey just gave him an "I'm not answering that" glare, and Lance knew he shouldn't press any further. Within their ranks, Frey's relationship with Lorelei was no secret, and many were quite envious of him. It all started with a little kiss under the mistletoe during a Christmas party, and they had been together since then. However, after Lorelei was inducted into the Elite Four, and Frey was recruited by the G-Men, they found their duties didn't leave much free time, so it didn't seem they could settle down for a married life in the near future. Krysta in particular seemed their biggest supporter, having known them for years before joining the G-Men.

The elevator door opened, revealing the base. As per protocol, the guards on duty made one last security check to verify their identities, and allowed them to pass. Without wasting a second, the agents made their way to the conference room, where the rest of their colleagues awaited them. The meeting was to be hosted by Director Flagg, a former military officer put in charge of this G-Men division after an honorable discharge. The Director looked at the digital clock on the wall.

"Right on schedule, agents. It's good to see you, welcome." Director Flagg saluted them, and they replied in kind. "Alright, now that agents Wataru, Blizzack and Solorge have arrived, the meeting can now begin. Please take your seats."

The agents went towards the empty chairs. The time had come to discuss some of their recent operations. Lance was the first one to take the word to relay to his colleagues about his and Krysta's latest findings, as well as some of the more interesting details. More specifically, the one file they were unable to access or steal from the database, and still were in the dark about what it could be.

"As for what we got about Project R, the Team Rocket Leader was not even aware of this. According to the file, the Admin known as Proton as the one who gave their leeway to conduct their little experiment."

"Speaking of the Team Rocket Leader, have we gotten enough evidence on Giovanni to connect him to them?" asked Director Flagg.

"Not yet," said Lance somberly. "We at the Pokémon League don't like the guy very much, but as long as we don't get anything conclusive, we can't point any fingers. As much as I hate to say it, Giovanni does his job well as the Viridian Gym Leader, even if we've gotten lots of complains about being too strong for average trainers."

The agents in the conference room remained silent. Aside from being one of the G-Men, Lance was also an important member of the Kanto Pokémon League, and he took great pride in that, so whenever one of their own was caught in crimes or shady dealings, it was always a low blow, and he always felt it was his responsibility to deal with them. In this case, though, Giovanni was pretty good at hiding his traces, never leaving any conclusive evidence.

"At any rate, I managed to get some interesting information that could lead us to what they're up to," said Lance. "Which brings me to the next point I'd like to discuss."

Lance stepped up to the large tactile monitor in front of them, bringing up a series of newspaper articles, some of them fairly recent.

"Apparently, Team Rocket has been following for a while the exploits of certain individuals. I found an interesting expedient centered on this boy." He showed them a photo of a boy around fifteen years, tall, with dark hair, wearing a Pokémon League Expo hat, and a Pikachu over his shoulder. "Ash Ketchum. Got his trainer license almost three months ago, and is a Pokédex holder chosen by Professor Samuel Oak himself."

"League records say that he's a rather promising trainer," said Agent Hicks. "He was the runner up in a recent Battle Dome tournament, and so far, he hasn't lost against any of the Gym Leaders he's challenged. But what's so special about him?"

"Exactly," said Lance. "Why would Team Rocket be interested in a trainer who has barely begun his journey, even one that seems to show remarkable talent for a rookie? It wouldn't make much sense… if it wasn't because this file was archived in a folder named 'Bloodliners'."

That last single word was enough to get everyone's attention. Lance brought up articles about several incidents that had happened over the past two years up to the present time. In most of them, there were suspicions or even outright confirmations about bloodliners being involved. The regional champion stopped in a very specific one, bringing everyone's attention to the Gringy City blackout. It had occurred about a week ago, but the media still talked about it and the mess it caused. Not only for the blackout itself, but the hordes of Poison-type Pokémon that roamed around the Power Plant didn't go unnoticed for those curious enough to get a peek.

"While the official sources are blaming this incident on the construction of the Giva City dam forcing those Poison-types out of their habitats, there are several reports of similar behaviors on other nearby populations, including as far as Crimson City. Most of these articles are related to bloodliners, so putting two and two together…"

"So, what you're saying is that there's a Bloodliner behind this?" asked agent Hicks.

"Actually, aside from the obvious erratic behavior of the Pokémon involved, there is a witness account," said Agent Fielding, bringing up a written declaration taken from the Gringy City Police Department. "A guard who was on duty during this incident was found stuffed inside a closet, and the door was carved with letters saying *Living Guard Inside*, with further forensic analysis revealing trails of corrosive fluid very similar to that found in Poison-type Pokémon. The guard was in shock for several days, but after he recovered enough to answer questions, he reported to have been attacked by a teenage girl who created a wall of toxic fluid to block bullets, and then spat on his partner, killing him on the spot."

"If it wasn't because I experienced this kind of things firsthand, I would find this completely crazy," Frey intervened.

Lance nodded. "I think we should ask our leading expert about this. Krysta?"

Krysta raised from her seat to take a closer look at the footage, focusing mostly on the images where the Pokémon's eyes were visible. After a few minutes, she nodded.

"There is no doubt," she said. "I've seen that stare countless times, whenever I had to take control of an Ice-type. The stare of a Pokémon controlled by a Type Heart Bloodliner."

"Which means there's a Poison Heart Bloodliner behind this incident, right?" said Frey. "Between the Poison-types raiding the place, and the guard's statement, it seems to add up."

"Furthermore," continued Lance, "several days before the incident, many trainers in the nearby areas of Gringy City reported that some of their Pokémon had gone missing, and they were later found among the ones who attacked the power plant. Krysta, is it possible for a Heart Bloodliner to control Pokémon caught by trainers, not just wild ones?"

"Normally I wouldn't do that, but yes, it is. I actually had to do it a few times myself." Krysta said the last part with a look of shame in her face. Apparently she wasn't happy about having to do that.

"That still doesn't answer our main question, Lance," said Agent Hicks. "Yes, there's a bloodliner behind this, but what can we do about it?"

"It's not about what we can do, it's more about what we should do," said Lance. "The footage I got actually revealed some interesting facts, like the names of a couple of the bloodliners involved."

Lance pressed the remote control and the screen showed another image. A teenage girl, pale-skinned, with dark hair tied in twin pigtails and ice-blue eyes, appeared on screen.

"Aurora Aoi Borealis," said Lance. "Daughter of Tokiomi Borealis, who recently passed away during the Gringy City blackout. Unconfirmed sources say there was an external sabotage of the hospital's backup power system, so when the blackout came about, the hospital was left completely without electricity, leading to his and several others' deaths."

"Official records say that Mr. Borealis's daughter ran away from home a few years ago and never came back," Agent Fielding said.

"But what if that wasn't the case?" said Lance. "What if it was the other way around, if it was Mr. Borealis who abandoned his daughter?"

"Why would he do that?" asked Agent Hicks. "People who knew him said that he loved his daughter, especially after his wife died. Said his daughter was the only living reminder of the woman he had loved so much."

Lance showed him a photo of Aurora shooting a blue-white beam from her fingertips. Agent Hicks and the other quickly got the message, but just in case, Krysta decided to expand the point further.

"Mr. Borealis was a very influential man. It wouldn't have been hard to pull a few strings and get everyone to agree with his version of his daughter running away. Parents who turn on their children or abandon them, just because they turn out to be bloodliners are not that uncommon."

Frey looked at Krysta with sympathy. Of course, he knew her story: sometime after her powers awakened, she ran away from home, out of fear of her parents kicking her out if they ever found out she was a bloodliner, having seen in the news about similar cases. She spent the next ten or so years on the run from one place to another, until they met again. It turned out that they had spent that decade trying to find her, and they didn't care. She was their daughter and they loved her. But sadly, not many had been as lucky as her with their own families, and Aurora definitely wasn't.

"There's more." Lance quickly changed the subject. Next, he showed an image of a girl with long black hair, with the tips dyed green, red eyes and strange Z-shaped marks in her cheeks. "Belladonna Tyrian. Her mother is currently in prison on accounts of public health hazard, child abuse and abandonment. Her physical description matches with the guard's account of the attack, so I think it's fair to assume she is our Poison Heart Bloodliner."

"You still haven't answered my question," said Agent Hicks. "What do you want us to do?"

"I was about to get to that," said Lance. "A few months ago, I extended a proposal about a special taskforce, to handle bloodliners exclusively. This incident is just the latest of a long string of them, and bloodliners are appearing everywhere. Furthermore, think about this: Heart Bloodliners are capable of controlling Pokémon, even only of their specific type, which no matter how we look at it, can potentially make them a danger both to humans and Pokémon alike. We need to do something."

"Are you suggesting we create a taskforce to kill them all?" Agent Fielding asked.

"I never said that," said Lance, disgusted at the thought. "It is wrong for us to assume that all bloodliners are dangerous or evil. Krysta here is proof of that. What I'm saying is that we need a team that is capable of handling the ones that do pose a danger to themselves and everyone else."

"And it's not just bloodliners who could be dangerous," added Frey. "What about normal humans who let fear get the best of them? We already know the International Police is on the trail of a serial killer known as the Bloodliner Hunter, and we've got confirmation that one of his would-be victims was barely thirteen years old. What if more like him appear all over the world?"

"Frey is right," Lance agreed. "If more like the Bloodliner Hunter appear, they're bound to use Pokémon to hurt or even kill bloodliners, no matter if they're harmless ones. The purpose of this taskforce would be to apprehend hostile bloodliners, and protect those who mean no harm to anyone."

Everyone present exchanged glances. That seemed like the soundest course of action. Bloodliners were showing up everywhere and more frequently, especially since sixteen years ago. But that posed a problem for Lance's proposal.

"Even though bloodliners are increasing in number, most of them are under the age of sixteen. Some of them are just children," Krysta pointed. "It's much harder to find others like me, born prior to the Bloodliner Baby Boom."

"I think I could help with that," said Frey, bringing out another USB drive. "Another of our agents infiltrated in the Team Rocket Johto branch sent me some interesting footage. This is from three months ago, from what I've been told, when Team Rocket made an attempt to derail Goldenrod's Magnet Train."

Lance pressed the remote to open the device. It was a series of short videos, clearly taken by amateurs, but there was a lot to see in them. In the first one, the aforementioned train was advancing fast, being trailed by flaming figure that approached it from the air. Krysta visibly cringed at this; she still didn't like seeing fire, even in video footage. It was a man in a red and yellow suit shooting fire from his hands and feet like rocket boosters, who then flew in front of the train, and began generating fire from his back and elbows, using the makeshift propulsion to stop it or at least slow it down. He succeeded, right before the train had reached a damaged section of the rails. He took a couple seconds to regain his breath, and then flew upwards.

The next video showed a large group of Team Rocket Grunts and Pokémon, firing their attacks at what seemed like a speeding figure that left an electric trail behind. It only stopped for a couple of seconds to taunt them, but that was enough to see it was another man in a strange black suit, with white lightning bolt marks all over and looking a lot like a Zebstrika. The speedster dodged the attacks and then ran in circles around the grunts, creating an electric ring to trap them all, and after a few seconds, they all fell to the ground, twitching after receiving the electric shocks. The speedster then ran off, still leaving his electric trail in his wake.

Last but not least, there was a lone figure atop a high roof. Even at that distance, it was clear that he was holding a long bow in his hand and prepared to fire. However, rather than firing traditional projectiles, he generated a purple energy arrow: a Spirit Shackle attack. A zoom in revealed that he was wearing a hooded cloak, and under the hood, a mask designed like the face of a Decidueye could be seen clearly. The mysterious archer then fired a few more arrows and then turned his cloak around, vanishing into the ground like a ghost.

"We've gotten some reports about sightings of this trio," said Frey. "They tend to show up often whenever there's a big time criminal in town, or Team Rocket is involved."

"Have you identified them?" Director Flagg asked.

"Except for the names the locals gave, I'm afraid not," said Frey. He then pointed, in order, to the burning man, the speedster, and the hooded archer. "Apparently they call themselves 'Flamestorm', 'Flashstrika' and 'Decid-Arrow'."

"Those names sound as imaginative as Blaziken Mask or Gligarman," Director Flagg joked. "In any case, what's our plan to approach them?"

"We don't have much information, but from what we've gathered, they tend to focus their operations in Goldenrod City and most of the major cities in their nearby area," said Frey. "I propose that we send a team to Goldenrod and await for their next appearance."

"Let's vote then," said Director Flagg as he raised his hand. "Everyone in favor of sending a team to approach these… vigilantes?"

Everyone in the room raised their hand. The vote was unanimous, even from the most reluctant ones.

"Alright. Now, any volunteers?"

"I'll go," said Frey, "I've had my share of bloodliner-related incidents, so I know how to handle them."

"Wait." Krysta stepped up. "Director Flagg, if you allow me, I request to be put in charge of this operation."

"Agent Blizzack?"

"Maybe they will feel more trusting if one of their own approaches them," said Krysta. "Also, we might need countermeasures in case they prove uncooperative or hostile."

"Are you sure?" Frey asked. "I know you're the only bloodliner agent we have, but, well, one of those is clearly a Fire-type…"

"It's alright," Krysta replied. "I've had my issues with fire, and maybe I still do. But thanks to you and Lorelei, I've learned to control myself, and brave my fears when it's important. I know I can do this."

Everyone in the room seemed to agree. Krysta had brought up a valid point: the G-Men were lacking in bloodliner agents because there were very few in her same age bracket, and they needed to expand their ranks. These three seemed like very good potential candidates for the taskforce Lance had proposed. Ultimately, Director Flagg was the one with the final say.

"Very well. Agent Blizzack will be in charge. I'll do the arrangements to prepare the team and transport as soon as possible. The rest of you will remain on stand-by until the HQ sends further orders or assignments for you, but for the time being, you can take a breather if you wish. Dismissed."

The agents stood up and left the room. Krysta remained with Director Flagg, while Lance and Frey took to the hallways as they went to sort out some unfinished business and archive their recent mission reports. After that, the two men decided to go to the dining hall to eat something before leaving the base.

"So, looks like you're getting a few days off after all," said Lance.

"I guess I am." Frey chomped on a large portion of steak. "Even so, I would have liked to take part in this one. Maybe I can ask Director Flagg to include me in Krysta's team?"

"Don't you trust her?" asked Lance. Frey frowned at that question.

"It's not that I don't trust her. I'm just worried, that's all. Bloodliners are a very serious matter, you know that."

"We've got the first step done," said Lance. "The request for the taskforce has been approved, all we need to do is find some recruits. And you've been working really hard lately, haven't you?"

Frey wanted to protest, but Lance was right. In the past two months he had been really busy, barely getting any sleep, and with the very few and in-between breaks he had, he hadn't been able to so much as give Lorelei a call. Maybe he should do that once they were out of the base.

And speaking of, Lance's own phone rang at that very moment, startling them both. The Dragon Master pulled it out, and frowned as he saw the caller's ID, but he answered nonetheless.

"I've told you not to call me on this number unless it's something important," he said as he almost shouted through the phone.

"It is important." a female voice replied in a somewhat angry tone. None other than his cousin and fellow Dragon Master, the Blackthorn Gym Leader, Clair. "Uncle Halberd needs to talk to you, and he wants to do it in person."

"My father? What does he want?"

"I don't know, but he's blocking off the entrance to the Dragon's Den. Says he's not leaving until you come, and you already know whenever he comes, it's serious business."

"OK, I get it. The meeting's over already. I should be there by nightfall."

"Just try and hurry a little bit." And then she hung up before he could even say goodbye. Lance sighed; it sucked that he had to interrupt his lunch like that, but he knew better than leaving his father waiting.

"Sorry, time to go for a little visit at home. I'll take the rest of the lunch on the go. See ya."

Lance grabbed his tray and packed the rest of his unfinished lunch in a box for safekeeping. Frey continued to eat his own and said goodbye to him as he left in a rush.

As further security measures, the elevator Lance, Frey and Krysta had used was "entrance only". The exit passageway led to an underground cavern, and the exit was at the other side of the mountain range, where the agents had to leave in the same way they arrived: using a flying Pokémon, since the powerful wind currents made it risky for aircraft to fly around this place. Lance jumped on Dragonite's back and flew off west, heading for Blackthorn City.

While flying, Lance pondered on the recent events. Bloodliner-related incidents were happening more and more often, so he had to stay sharp. Maybe his father could lend him a hand, and if things escalated, he also had some of Grandpa Javelin's old friends from the military on quick dial.

"Why do I get the feeling that we of the Pokémon G-Men are going to get our hands full in a very near future?" he wondered aloud.

No matter what might come, he had to face it. The purpose of the Pokémon G-Men was clear: Anyone who posed a danger to humanity or Pokémon had to be dealt with in the proper way, and if bloodliners were starting to get more involved, that included them as well. Lance knew that, as much as there was a lot of dangerous people among humans and bloodliners, there was also a lot of good people on both sides. The former had to be stopped, and the latter protected, and he'd make sure to do just that.

Meanwhile, in a Celadon City hotel…

Nothing like a cold shower to refresh herself after a long morning. Donning her purple bathrobe, Lorelei called room service to order some lunch. There wasn't much to do for the time being except watching TV. She donned her glasses and took the remote, tuning in Pokémon TV, which was broadcasting live the Fuchsia Tag Tournament. She was always on the lookout for new talents, which was partly the reason she would hold her impromptu tournaments.

The Elite Four member was surprised to see some familiar faces; namely, those two girls who, after winning her latest tournament, asked her to convince Erika to allow their friend to have a Gym Battle. Said friend, a boy named Ash Ketchum, was also taking part in the tournament. Lorelei had watched his battle against Erika on the Gym Battle Review program; he had a rather creative, if unorthodox, battling style, and he was showcasing it now as well. They seemed very promising, and Lorelei couldn't' help but feel like she wanted to root for them, if only a little.

"Pokémon-mon-mon, Pokémon-mon-mon, Oh yeah!" Suddenly, Lorelei's cellphone went off, and she quickly grabbed it to answer. The caller's ID showed Frey's picture.

"Hello?"

"How's my favorite ice nymph doing?"

Lorelei giggled. "You know that I hate when you call me that."

"And I also know that you actually love it. How are things going over there?"

"Pretty well," Lorelei replied. "In fact, since the League hearing we had scheduled for Erika is now cancelled, I might have a few days off soon."

"Really? How did you manage that?"

"Well… I had to sacrifice my copy of the swimsuit calendar."

"Aw, too bad. I would have loved to see your picture in that calendar."

"Well, I still have that bikini, so if you'd like to see the real deal…"

"Oh, of course, I'd love that." Frey sounded quite delighted. "Actually, with Krysta being placed in charge of the next mission, I might have some free time myself. Do you have any plans?"

"Other than staying in Celadon a couple more days, not really," Lorelei replied. "Next week I have a lecture scheduled at Mandarin Island, though. Maybe we could meet at my summer house over there?"

"Sounds good to me. I've really missed you."

"Same here. I'll see you there. Love you."

"Love you too. Bye."

Lorelei ended the call and continued to watch her TV. While she enjoyed the tournament, it was nice to hear Frey's voice. She had really missed him, but she knew his work with the Pokémon G-Men was important, so she never held it against him when he didn't call. Still, sometimes she wondered if having encouraged him and Krysta to join them had been for the best, with all the risks they had to face.

'Stop worrying. They can take care of themselves.'

They were no pushovers. Frey was the one who taught her to be a strong trainer (even if he insisted that Lorelei was the stronger of the two), and Krysta could easily watch his back, being a bloodliner and all. She was sure they could handle anything.

FIN.