Love in the Time of Tomorrow

Chapter 16: An Alpha

Hmm...I feel almost certain of people not caring for this final story given a rather lukewarm reaction last chapter to the big reveal. Well, hopefully the story stepping up its game towards its final phase will garner more reactions from more people! Time for Chapter 16!

Chapter 16

An Alpha

Giovanni's eyes were rolled back for a second, his mouth making noises that Ash didn't think humans were even possible of making whatsoever. His body was twitching in an absolutely horrific sight before them all. Ash's hand was shaking as the Sableye quickly retracted its shadowy claw, and the man fell to the cold ground, almost continually twitching now. His head turned with that last bit of life left in him, gazing up at the sight of his killer. Next to Ash, Serena was breathing heavily, as though visiting a piece of the past through her retinas. He reached out and took her hand while Matori stepped forward. Now that her glasses were removed, Ash could see the cold expression in her eyes. He hadn't mistaken it before: she was a woman utterly devoid of any feeling, replaced with a calculating, murderous presence that exuded from her very air.

"Ma...tori..." Giovanni coughed out. For a brief second, Ash found himself pitying the man, betrayed by his closest confidant. However, the feeling was all too fleeting, because that cold sensation of dread had returned. His legs were screaming for them to get away, knowing their lives were in danger and wanting to flee at the first chance that he got. However, that dread was soon replaced, flooding with rage. "You...when...?"

"Me," Matori spoke, her voice as cold as ever, yet sounding different, now. It was harder; more in control and less subservient. "From the beginning."

"Matori was our Assassin," Deirdre explained. Ash snapped his gaze over to the auburn-haired woman, wearing an all too familiar and sinisterly smug expression upon her face. She seemed to be genuinely happy about what she had revealed, and the anger continued coursing through Ash's veins. He took a step forward, but Serena grabbed to his arm. He looked back, noticing that she was shaking her head.

"A job I took rather willingly," Matori stated. Sableye seemed to chatter next to her and she patted its head kindly, tossing her old pair of glasses off to the side. Once she had, she reached up and tied her hair back into a small bun. It made her look even more cruel and efficient, all too accentuated the moment she leaned down by Giovanni's face, her old clipboard clattering at his side. She reached down, touching her hand to the man. "I won't deny it was a pleasure serving you, though."

"But...why...?" Giovanni coughed out. It almost sounded like this sudden and shocking betrayal had forced his mind to completely break down in Ash's ears. "I don't..."

"Because it was part of the plan. Nothing more. Nothing less," Matori spoke. She seemed to smile softly in the man's direction, but Ash's hairs stood up on end. He shook his head. The woman's smile was empty, lacking all but malice in it. "The Pillars, or rather IDEAL, came to infiltrate you, so abandoned by the League. You took them in, using their skills, all while not trusting them. Then came along the mousy secretary who was diligent, silently working her way up through the ranks until you took notice of her around the time you sent those three idiots to Sinnoh."

"It was...a plant..." Giovanni coughed again. His hand seemed to be scrabbling for something, like his pokeball, Persian still passed out on the ground. That attempt was short lived as Matori soon placed her foot down upon his hand and held fast with a sneer.

"It was. Though I had to work far harder than I anticipated to conceal myself from your discerning gaze, especially when it came to my bloodlust. Alastair always said I had a hard time controlling it when my target was in sight. Though, Deirdre believed you were rather dumb, but I always saw a man with intelligence, which meant I needed to be extra careful," the assassin spoke. An explosion went off behind them yet again, and another one to the side sent Infernape and Krookodile leaping back, closer to their intersecting parties. Ash couldn't take his eyes away from what was playing out in front of him. "I cut myself from my comrades, only interacting with them when you requested it of me. It's been difficult, these last few weeks as we prepared for the mission, but now, you're no longer needed. As you would say, you've played your part for us. You're...how should I put it...irrelevant.