Gladion peers over the rails of the ships deck, making sure the coast is clear. He's beginning to show signs of fatigue. Noticeable, dark circles line his eyes and he appears to be clenching his jaw.

I grab his wrist firmly in my hand, pulling it up to his chest. A surprised look comes over him as I slip the Z bracelet over his hand.

"This Z bracelet was given to you by Kahuna Nanu, he says the trials await you."

Gladion's face softens as he admires his new bracelet, it's design is quite different than most of the others I've seen. The sparkling red gem is set in brilliant white gold, it is secured around his wrist by elaborately braided, black leather. I have a suspicion that Nanu crafted it especially for him.

Gladion leads us through the empty basement level of Aether Paradise, the whole place seems eerily quiet.

"Do you know where to find Lillie and Nebby? This place is huge, they could be anywhere!" Hau whispers to Gladion.

"I have a pretty good idea of where they might be. I'm warning you, it's not going to be pretty. My mother...she does some pretty fucked up things," he says softly, the pained look on his face makes it obvious that he isn't exaggerating.

Our shoes make echoing metallic taps as we board the lift, Gladion's hand hovers over the controls.

"I want you guys to know, whatever happens when we get up there, I'm glad you came along with me."

Before we have a chance to respond, the lift shoots up to the main floor.

Hau's tired, hollow eyes scan the dim reception area. The two of us follow close behind Gladion. I hear some clamoring in the darkness ahead of us, Gladion stops in his path. A faint buzzing noise fills the air as the blindingly bright overhead lights power on.

"The young master has finally returned! Your little fire alarm prank might have fooled the shipping department, but as Aether's last line of defense, I of course knew this was a diversion!" Faba declares, a handful of Aether employee's stand behind him, ready to take his orders.

"Get out of my way!" Gladion growls.

"I'm afraid I can't let you go any further. Your clearance was revoked after you stole one of our type:Nulls." Faba says as he pulls an ultra-ball from his long white coat.

"You really want to do this here?" Gladion says as he reaches for his.

Faba bursts out into a roaring laughter, "Well, I know you won't take no for an answer. This place could use a remodel anyway!"

Hau grabs Gladion's arm before he can cast his Pokemon.

"This freak is mine!" he sneers as he maliciously glares into Faba's eyes.

Faba laughs and two Aether employees approach Gladion and I. They both toss out a Pokemon, engaging us in a double battle.

Without hesitation, Gladion sends out Weavile, it hisses at its foes as it waits for Gladion's commands, I send out Skarmory to cover Weavile.

A passionate fire is lit inside of me as I battle at Gladion's side. I feel synchronized with him as we fight as one powerful force. Every move, perfectly executed, like beautiful music. In this moment, it is just him and I.

Everything else fades.

Despite these feelings, I'm left unsatisfied after the battle. Something inside of me aches for more, a desire to be even closer. I flinch as he lightly puts his hand on my waist, his touch makes me burn inside. I know this is the wrong time and place to be having these thoughts, but it cannot be helped.

__________________

Lightning strikes a tall antenna outside, lighting up the long sprawl of garden leading up to the estate. A whooshing sound fills the air as rain begins to pour into the ocean around us. The trees thrash violently in the wind as the storm begins to blow over the gargantuan, iron island.

I see a tall shadow scurry across the road ahead of us. Gladion stops in his path, I know he seen it too. A few moments pass and nothing happens, so we continue up the long drive towards the mansion.

As we reach the front lawn, the motion sensor detects us and light floods the area, a large group of Team Skull members are blocking our path. Hysterical laughter fills the air and the grunts slip away, leaving us alone with Guzma.

Gladion snarls, his eyes are filled with uncontrollable rage. Guzma bursts out laughing at the sight of him, clutching his side and wheezing in amusement.

"You're finally here! Welcome home my son," Guzma exclaims, his hands form a strangely welcoming gesture.

"W-why are you here?" Gladion murmurs, his voice trembles with fury.

"Well, your little friend burned our precious hive to the ground. I'm sure you remember," Guzma groans unenthusiastically, "So now we are forced to stay with our very close associates."

"Associates?" Hau growls under his breath.

Gladion's fists tremble, the tight clenching of his hands causes a bit of blood to seep from his fresh cuts.

"Gladion, you look like you have something to say," Guzma says in a sarcastically empathetic voice.

"This one's not much of a talker," he says to me, reaching for his Pokeball.

I pull Arcanine's ball from my belt, readying myself for battle. Gladion steps out between Guzma and I.

Type: Null caws and screeches as it pops out of its Pokeball. It scratches the dirt impatiently as it waits for Gladion's commands.

"I guess I'll have to battle him first," he laments, pressing his fingers against his temples.

"But don't worry sweet heart, I've got a lot of endurance," he says to me, the tone of his voice makes me sick to my stomach.

The storm rages around Aether Paradise as Gladion and Guzma face off. I hate to see Pokemon used for personal fights, but in this case, it's necessary if we want to get to Lillie.

I begin to worry as Type:Null, Gladion's last Pokemon begins to struggle. Gladion doesn't like his team in pain, so he recalls the tired beast, fore fitting the battle.

Guzma chuckles in the shadow of his enormous bug Pokemon. Tears well in Gladion's eyes, he rushes towards Guzma, his fist ready to strike.

Guzma blocks Gladion's jab, tossing him to the side. Guzma's Pokemon hisses and snaps its sharp claws at Gladion as he pulls himself to his feet, rushing at Guzma, yet another time.

Again, Guzma blocks the punch, this time sending Gladion pitilessly to the ground. Blood begins to trickle from his nose as he staggers to his feet, he is poised the attack again.

Guzma groans and shakes his head.

"I don't want things to be like this between you and I," he says. A shocking amount of sincerity emanates from him as he opens himself to Gladion.

Gladion shutters as he glares furiously at Guzma's feet.

"How long has it been since you had a father?" Guzma asks, the sensitivity in his voice sends shivers down my spine.

"You and I, we make a good team. If you could patch things up with your mother, maybe you could find this arrangement to your liking."

"What does my mother have to do with any of this?" Gladion screams.

Guzma takes a deep breath as his eyes wander Gladion's trembling body.

"I know what it's like to come from a broken family..." Guzma says, his eyes show a bit of weakness as he continues, "My old man...well, he's a real piece of work. Nothing I ever did was good enough for him. He used to like to use his 9 iron to toughen me up. My mother, well I can't blame her for not getting in the way. She took it for me as long as she could."

"I ran away and formed a new family. As my family grew I met a lot of people. I didn't realize my true strength until I met your mother. God she's beautiful, and oh so strong. I see so much of her in you."

Guzma pages his Golisopod, the shimmering red light flickers across his hard, tired face.

"I have to meet her now. You can either join us, or try and stop us."

As Guzma disappears into the dark manor, Gladion buries his hands in his face and shudders. I reach my hand out, rubbing his back supportively, but he brushes it off. Hau shoots me a dazed look, before glancing down at Gladion, who is now sitting on the ground with his knees tucked tightly against his chest.

I crouch down in front of him, offering my hand. He wipes the blood from his nose and adverts his watery, green eyes. Hau bends over and places his large, strong hand on Gladion's shoulder.

"Let's do this together," he says, his deepening adult voice booms brightly from his chest.

"We're here for you, take my hand," I say softly, offering my hand once again.

Gladion buries his face even deeper, completely sealing himself off from the outside world.

"We need to hurry! Those two are up to something," Hau says, nervously glancing up at the mansion.

I softly lay my hand on his back, I can feel his body trembling. The sounds of his sobbing are concealed by the clatter of the storm. A light drizzle of rain begins to fall on us as I lower myself to Gladion's side. His thin body begins to heave as sorrow and anger consume him.

At first, I try to give him room to breathe, but I cannot control my strong urge to comfort him. Grabbing as much of him as I can, I pull him tight to my chest. My actions only cause him to sob harder, releasing everything that's been pent up for so long.

A few moments pass and I can feel his body relaxing. Gladion wipes his face with his long, black sleeves and releases himself from me. He glares angrily up at his childhood home as he stands to his feet.

"You ready for this?" Hau asks, wrapping his arm around Gladion's shoulder.

A look of annoyance comes over Gladion's face, but he doesn't reject Hau's affection.

"Not really, but we have to do this. It's going to be fucked, so don't say I didn't warn you."