delugional

Grunt: Too much to handle…. I can’t do anything here….Hmph! This place is still nothing! I’ll be happily rid of this place! *flees*

Elder: *just comes strolling on up, she’s actually the woman from the hill* Oh you were magnificent! Aren’t you quite the trainer? As the elder of Celestic Town, I give you my thanks.

Neil: The elder…. Oh! I have something for you.

Elder: For me? *he hands it to her* Oh, that Old Charm….. May I see it?

Neil: I was told if I was coming this way I should give it to you. Cynthia’s been…. A bit tied up lately.

Elder: You say Cynthia entrusted you with this? That girl….. *smiles* She’s my granddaughter. This Old Charm is something made in Celestic Town long, long ago. It was made in honor of the mythical deity said to have created Sinnoh.

Neil: You mean the Original One?

Elder: *nods, slightly impressed* These Old Charms are still discovered now and again. Since you’re in Celestic Town, why not look around inside the ruins? You seem to be quite the little researcher too if you know all that. ^w^

Neil: I’ve been searching for my own answers really. But, you said before that that weird man wasn’t the only one who came to town. Where is his commander?

Elder: I haven’t seen him since they arrived, and I don’t particularly care now that that scoundrel is gone. Gone to meet him I suppose.

Neil: …. *nods* I guess so. Thank you. *slight bow* I won’t be long, I promise.

~He has Jekyll out, leading the way with Flash and looking over the place with slight awe and wonder. It was spooky, dank and dark, the light from his pokemon casting shadows on the walls and bits of fallen debris there on the floor. It must have been a ceremonial chamber or something. A wide room with steps down into the pit in the center of the floor. He could only imagine no signs of windows to this place, the moonlight streaming in through a hole above, they likely kept a fire in here. No torch posts either, so…. Yeah. Probably just a fire to shed light on their walls on their ceremonies, on their… hmmm…. At the back wall, more distinct than any other of the drawings, was three familiar figures. He was half tempted to touch it, cautiously raising a hand to place on the large, childlike drawing of a pink creature.~

Neil: …. Mesprit…. *it was sitting not quite next to a large red circle. The sun maybe? He looked over at the other two figures. One a faded yellow, almost earthy brown blending in with the rest of the clay bricks, and a blue one across from Mesprit* …. Azelf…. And…. Up there must be Uxie. *head tilt* So what’s this? *A red light? A fire? The mountain? It was a circle so it seemed it must be a light…An orb? A sphere? They formed a triangle around it….But what is it?*

Elder: *Comes on in*

Neil: *jumps at the footsteps, thinking maybe it was Team Galactic come back for revenge, but breaths when he sees its just her.* This painting….. Its different from the others.

Elder: And well preserved because of it.

Neil: But what is it?

Elder: No one knows for sure, but its meaning is interpreted as this: There existed beings….Beings so powerful, they were considered deities at the time… There were three pokemon with power to match either being. The three kept balance with either being as if they formed a pyramid. Its an ancient legend of Sinnoh that is still told in Celestic Town.

???: I would like to know more about that legend, if you will.

Both: …. *tense up and look back.*

Elder: …. And who might you be?

Cyrus: *comes over* My name is Cyrus.

Elder: And? That doesn’t tell me what right you have to go sneaking into these ruins in the middle of the night.

Cyrus: And him?

Elder: He was allowed by my right.

Neil: *just….. stare…..*

Cyrus: The young researcher. We have met before. *addressing her* I want to put an end to pointless strife and hostility. I am seeking the power to create the ideal world. For that I will need learn of the power to change it.

Elder: Hmph! Ideal world? And what would that be?

Cyrus: The world today can’t be changed because the three pokemon keep it in balance. Is that what you are saying?

Elder: It is our legend, sir, but just a legend. I wouldn’t know. I do know that the world is already in perfect balance. I’m quite satisfied with the way it is. I’m not interested in your questions.

Cyrus: …. Plead ignorance, will you? What a pointless attitude. *addresses Neil* And would you agree with such narrow-mindedness?

Neil: No….

Elder: *looks to the boy with such confusion because how can you agree with him?*

Cyrus: *to her* There. You fail to appreciate that the world is incomplete. I will change this world-

Neil: I never said it was incomplete, Cyrus.

Cyrus: *oh. Oh you finally decided to speak up, did you?*

Neil: *he’s been spooked by this guy since they’ve met, always quiet and uncertain what to say, what to DO when he shows up, but now is not the time for such timidness. Raising his voice* The world isn’t in perfect balance, I can agree to that. But the world has already been changing, and for the worse, because that balance has been broken. I don’t know what is needed to create your “ideal world.” I don’t want to know after seeing what lengths Galactic has gone to for the sake of it.

Cyrus: The changes are proof of the new age coming to pass. As the first step, I will destroy this cave painting that you’ve protected all these years. A new legend of the new world will one day take its place. Am I wrong?

Neil: If your actions are any proof, this new age will be one written in blood and written on the twisted remains of our world. Destroying the past won’t stop it from living. So long as there are people willing to hang onto it, it doesn’t matter if you destroy the physical evidence, the stories will live on. *motions to the painting* So long as our creators remain, your age cannot come to pass.

Cyrus: It is because they exist that the ideal world cannot. I will see to it soon enough that they no longer exist as there is no need for spirit in the ideal world.

Elder: That’s madness talking! You cannot kill a god, let alone all three! And what kind of world would we live in in a world without spirit?

Cyrus: One without anger, war, and strife. Would you challenge me on this?

Neil: …. No. To challenge you with violence would only be proving your point.

Cyrus: ….. Then you choose to be a coward. *awkward, very rare, unintended slight smile* How sensible of you.

Neil: *glaring at him, teeth clenched as he tries to remain between him and the wall*

Cyrus: *places a hand on his shoulder and shoves him out of the way as he approaches. The old woman moves out of the way* Then get out of here and watch as I set the beginnings for the new world!

Elder: *starting to go after him* You wouldn’t dare!

Neil: Fine, then. You leave me no choice! *pulls up pokeball*

Cyrus: *pauses* …. *looks to him* I know you, young trainer. I have heard of your meddling from my subordinates. I have met you at Lake Verity and Mt. Coronet. If you think you can interfere with me, I must ask. Why would you WANT to protect this “broken” world? As the boss of Team Galactic, I will show you the error of your ways!

~FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT! Starting off, Cyrus sends out Sneasel, Neil goes for Looker. Sneasel is obviously the faster of the two, and uses Slash. Being the bulky thing that he is, Looker takes it and counters with a Metal Claw. Sneasel uses Slash again as Looker goes for Metal Claw. Neil heals up as Sneasel goes for Slash again. And getting a free shot, uses Slash again this time getting a critical! Looker counters with Brine and utterly destroys the rest of its HP, getting a level up in the process. Cyrus now sending out Golbat, Neil switches the injured Looker for Jekyll. Jekyll is surprisingly faster than the Golbat and gets a critical with Zen Headbutt killing the brute with one hit. Last one up is Cyrus sending out Murkrow, it being a dark type, Neil switches in Cassisu for this one.~

Cyrus: *is that what he thinks it is? Ohohoho, you have CROSSED A LINE NOW BUDDY* You’ve forced my hand this time!

~Murkrow goes for the hardhit with a Drill Peck, doing some serious, serious damage. Cassius counters with a Thunderbolt and one-shots it. (Cyrus seems to be reeling from the shock *shot*) and while the battle is over, we get a surprise evolution from Looker! ***maybe storywise, have Looker vs Sneasel go last since that is Cyrus’ like signature pokemon and would explain why he’s out*** Victory to the punk!~

Cyrus: …. Remarkable….But your attitude has told me what I needed to know. *not really looking at her, focus still on Neil as he addresses the woman behind him.* As did you, Elder, as your ignorance has shown. If the beings of Time and Space are brought together, they can’t be stopped by the Beings of Spirit. If the painting and its legend are true, they can only have enough power to stop one.

Neil and Elder: *moved back in front of the mural as they watch him just looking it over as if they aren’t there.* …….

Cyrus: ….. *turns and starts to leave* I will leave this cave alone for now, but whether it stays or not is meaningless. Keep your legend, for it too will be meaningless in time…

Elder: *just not sure what to think and only comments once he's gone* What a strange man, coming in here and spouting off nonsense!

Neil: … Nonsense, Elder?

Elder: … *softens as she turns to him, her voice slightly saddened more than angered now* The time and space of Sinnoh are filled with the memories and thoughts of countless people and pokemon.

Looker: *Empoleon trumpets~~ Nuzzle, nuzzle Neil*

Neil: ….. *petting him. Yeah, buddy, he’s proud of you too*

Elder: This is a wonderful world. What need is there to change it?

Neil: That’s hard to say right now. When I said the world was changing, I wasn’t lying. I can’t exactly explain any of it, but….

Elder: We have time. As thanks, why don’t you stay at my home for the night? A worthy guest if there ever was one, you truly were magnificent.

Neil: You let me enter the ruins as thanks, that should-

Elder: And what trouble that got us into. Come now, no need to be modest. I’m sure Cynthia will want to hear all about it when she comes. ^w^

Neil: ….. …. … *slight smile* Yeah. Okay then.

~Next day~

Cynthia: You saw those strange people with a Galactic Bomb? Here?!

Elder: Its alright though, dear. Thanks to Neil being here, nothing happened. They took off into the night like the bandits they were. Threatening to blow up ruins, the nerve of it all. And that Cyrus he… *goes on to explain more thoroughly*

Cynthia: *goes oddly quiet as she does. Seems it isn’t because of fear or shock, but there’s an expression of sadness as she listens.*

Neil: *walked in on the conversation.* …. Are you okay?

Both: …!

Elder: Ah, good! Now that you’re here, you can help explain. Do you want anything before we finish? Drink? Something to eat?

Neil: …. Maybe some tea? *blink blink*

Elder: That would be fine, dear. *goes to get some. Besides, Cynthia would say no, but its obvious she could use some too*

Neil: *comes over* Hi…. I’m sorry about last night.

Cynthia: Why are you sorry? As she said, if you hadn’t come….

Neil: I only came here because you asked me to. That was all on your instinct.

Cynthia: …. *nodnodnod* But Team Galactic…. I didn’t want to say it was them, but… I thought they were harmless. The bizarre way they dress, and all their claims of making a new world, they seem like some strange new cult. And the Galactic Bomb…. I would have no doubt they got it from Galactic Energy, but I never would have thought that Cyrus was actually behind….

Neil: Is that why no one has gone after Galactic Energy for what happened to Wake?

Cynthia: Everyone thought the name was just coincidence. Everyone knows the leader of Team Galactic is a man who calls himself Saturn. The other incidents were headed by Mars and Jupiter. And the report for those behind the bomb in the Great Marsh, and those that attacked your friend, none of it was matching up. …. How could we ALL be so blind….?

Neil: Well now that we know, is there anything we can do to stop them?

Cynthia: You’ve done more than enough. But… there is something you can do to help.

Neil: Sure, anything!

Cynthia: You really do like doing research, don’t you? Like with the ruins?

Neil: Yes…?

Cynthia: You leave Galactic Energy to me. In the meantime, you said it Cyrus has been doing research on the various gods of Sinnoh. In Canalave City is the Sinnoh Regional Library. It’s stocked with hundreds of ancient text and the history of Sinnoh; it’ll have all the information you need on them. Perhaps we can find out what it is he’s trying to do.

Neil: I thought they made that pretty clear.

Cynthia: A new world, of course, but seeing the destruction so far, we need to find out HOW they plan to do that. I’ve a friend I’ll send out there to meet you. It’s a big place after all. Can you go there for me?

Neil: …. Of course. But I’ve never been there before.

Cynthia: …. *right. Pulls out her own map* The quickest way to get there is to go west from Jubilife City. I suggest you also stop by your home first, since you’ll be in that area. If the Lake Guardians are being targeted, they’ll need to be ready for anything.

Neil: I can do that.

Cynthia: *Good. … Good, good… What a mess….*

Elder: *has been standing at the door with the tea tray, listening in on all of this* ….. *comes in acting like she totally wasn’t listening* Here we are~ *sets out a cup for each of them.*

Starting with the most recent known events.

=+=

Sinnoh/Johto


3 years after Hoenn / 5 years after Kanto / 13 years since Maxie's banishment / 15 years since Unown / 16 years since Shiiiiiiip and Kalos 20 years since Civil War / 26 years since The War

Cale/Isaac – 13
Amber/Trevor/Jaden – 15
Anna - 16
Norman - 33
Monica - 34
Birch - 35
Hayate - 40
Gabe - 42
Hideki - 41
Patty - 45
Mack - 30
Davis - 25
Silver - 10
Falkner - 16
Steven - 26
Cynthia - 25
Rowan - 60
Tabitha - 26
Cyrus – 28
Fantina - 31
Volkner - 16
Tino - 31
Bill – 27
Gary – 20
Daisy - 26
Aaron – 26
Elm – 28
Brendan - 11
Jack – 44 (appears 28)
Rudy – 26 (appears 15)
Cecelia – 33 (appears 17)
Lysandre – 47 (appears 31)
Emma - 32
Oak - 58
Wattson - 73
Drake - 63


=+=


HOENN


3 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 2 years after Kanto / 10 years after Maxie's banishment/ 12 years after Unown / 13 years after Shiiiip and Kalos / 17 years after Civil War / 23 years after The War

Isaac/Cale – 10
Norman – 30
Monica - 31
Birch – 32
Archie – 31
Maxie – 42
Tabitha – 23
Jensen – 26
Brendan - 8
Steven – 23
Flannery - 16
Amber/Trevor/Jaden – 12
Anna - 13
Tino - 28
Gary – 17
Daisy – 23
Bill – 24
Aaron – 23
Fantina – 28
Davis – 22
Elm – 25
Mack – 27
Hayate – 37
Gabe – 40
Hideki – 38
Patty – 42
Falkner – 13
Jack – 41 (appears 28)
Cecelia – 30 (appears 17)
Rudy – 23 (appears 15)
Emma- 29
Lysandre – 44 (appears 31)
Cyrus – 25
Cynthia - 22
Rowan - 57
Silver - 7
Oak - 55
Wattson - 70
Drake - 60

Intersting things to note -
- Cyrus named the new President of Galactic Energy.

=+=


KANTO


5 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 2 years before Hoenn / 8 years after Maxie's banishment / 10 years after Unown / 11 years after Shiiiip and Kalos / 15 years after Civil War / 21 years after The War

Amber/Trevor/Jaden – 10
Anna - 11
Bill – 22
Daisy – 21
Gary – 15
Mewtwo – 6
Tino - 26
Isaac/Cale – 8
Norman – 28
Monica – 29
Birch – 30
Brendan - 6
Steven – 21
Maxie – 40
Archie – 29
Jensen - 24
Aaron – 21
Elm – 23
Davis – 20
Mack – 25
Hayate – 35
Gabe – 38
Hideki – 36
Patty - 40
Flannery – 14
Fantina – 26
Falkner – 11
Jack – 39 (appears 28)
Cecelia – 28 (appears 17)
Rudy – 21 (appears 15)
Emma – 27
Lysandre – 42 (appears 31)
Cyrus – 23
Cynthia -20
Rowan - 55
Silver - 5
Oak - 53
Wattson - 68
Drake - 58

Interesting things to note -

- It would also be about this time, perhaps a year before this, when Jensen first came to Littleroot and stole the Master Ball from Birch's lab.

- About this time, give or take a year, when Cynthia changed her sights from research assistant to attempting the Pokemon League


=+=


MAXIE'S BANISHMENT


13 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 10 years before Hoenn / 8 years before Kanto / 2 years after Unown / 3 years after Shiiiiip and Kalos / 7 years after Civil War / 13 years after The War


MAXIE'S BANISHMENT


13 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 10 years before Hoenn / 8 years before Kanto / 2 years after Unown / 3 years after Shiiiiip and Kalos / 7 years after Civil War / 13 years after The War

Maxie - 32
Flannery – 6
Isaac/Cale – 0
Norman – 20
Monica - 21
Birch – 22
Archie – 21
Tabitha – 12
Jensen – 15
Steven – 13
Amber/Trevor/Jaden – 2
Anna - 3
Tino - 18
Bill – 14
Daisy – 13
Gary – 7
Fantina – 18
Aaron – 13
Elm – 15
Davis – 12
Mack – 17
Hayate – 27
Gabe – 30
Hideki – 28
Patty – 32
Falkner – 3
Jack – 32
Cecelia – 20 (appears 17)
Rudy – 13 (appears 15)
Emma – 19
Lysandre – 34
Cyrus - 15
Cynthia - 12
Rowan - 47
Oak - 45
Wattson - 60
Drake - 50

Interesting things to note -

- This is the year Isaac was born meaning likely the summer before this was when Norman failed the League but made the announcement of his retirement as a league challenger.

-Its also possible about this time was when Amber and Phoebe moved to Pallet Town, if not the year before.

-Cynthia moved to Sinnoh to live with her grandmother the year before.

=+=


UNOWN


15 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 12 years before Hoenn / 10 years before Kanto / 2 years before Maxie's banishment / 1 year after Shiiiiiip and Kalos / 5 years after Civil War / 11 years after The War

Norman – 18
Birch – 20
Fantina – 16
Monica – 19
Aaron – 11
Elm – 13
Davis – 10
Mack – 15
Hayate – 25
Gabe – 28
Hideki – 26
Patty – 30
Archie – 19
Jensen - 14
Maxie – 30
Flannery – 4
Tabitha - 11
Steven – 11
Daisy – 11
Gary - 5
Bill – 12
Amber/Trevor/Jaden – 0
Anna - 1
Tino - 16
Falkner – 1
Jack – 29
Cecelia – 18
Rudy – 11 (appears 15)
Emma – 17
Lysandre – 32
Cyrus - 13
Cynthia - 10
Rowan - 45
Oak - 43
Wattson - 58
Drake - 48

Interesting things to note-

- Lookit all our Kanto babies!

- But in all seriousness, its also not long after Falkner was born. Hayate seems to be having nervous parental feels for all who he's trying to look after, its understandable why he's awkward though, not really used to being a parent let alone taking care of someone else's kid.


=+=


Kalos and Shiiiiiiip


16 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 13 years before Hoenn / 11 years before Kanto / 3 years before Maxie's banishment / 1 year before Unown / 4 years after Civil War / 10 years after The War

Archie – 18
Jensen - 13
Tabitha – 10
Norman – 17
Monica - 18
Birch – 19
Maxie – 29
Flannery – 3
Steven - 10
Bill – 11
Daisy – 10
Gary – 4
Tino - 15
Aaron – 10
Elm – 12
Fantina – 15
Davis – 9
Mack – 14
Hayate – 24
Gabe – 27
Hideki – 25
Patty – 29
Falkner – 0
Jack – 28
Cecelia – 17
Emma – 16
Rudy – 10 (appears 15)
Lysandre - 31
Cyrus - 12
Cynthia - 9
Rowan - 44
Oak - 42
Wattson - 57
Drake - 47

Interesting things to note -

-It'd be closer to the end of the year when Aaron got his license as a gym leader making him the youngest member of the Johto elite in decades. (Of course, he also started early as a trainer so that makes a bit of difference.)

- Comes up in RP, but this is also the start of Johto Adventures for Norman, Birch and Fantina as they have a long year ahead of them.

- Lance is also coming up as some sort of prodigy among dragon masters, but still has a ways to go as far as overall trainers go.

=+=


Civil War


20 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 17 before Hoenn / 15 years before Kanto / 7 years before Maxie's banishment / 5 years before Unown / 4 years before Shiiiip and Kalos / 6 years after The War

Maxie – 25
Daisy – 6
Gary – 0
Bill – 7
Norman – 13
Monica - 14
Birch – 15
Archie – 14
Jensen - 9
Steven – 6
Fantina – 11
Tino - 11
Elm – 8
Aaron – 6
Davis – 5
Mack – 10
Hayate – 20
Gabe – 23
Hideki – 21
Patty – 27
Jack – 24
Cecelia – 13
Rudy – 6 (appears 11)
Emma – 12
Lysandre – 27
Cyrus - 8
Cynthia - 5
Rowan - 40
Oak - 38
Wattson - 53
Drake - 43

Interesting to note -

-Actually a bit depressing to note, but as Birch is about 15 here (and 9 during The War) its more or less the same year his little sister died. Given this is actually when the war started (no idea how long it lasted yet) it does give possibility it wasn't a pokemon that got her but one of the early signs how far inland this "scuffle" would actually go....

-Along that same note, it says this is the year Gary was born but not necessarily when his and Daisy's parents' died.

-Oddly this is also about the same time Gabe dropped out of being a Challenger. Possibly because League shut down due to the war and he never got back to it, at least is what he claims, but as Johto mostly stayed out of the war one has to wonder what (if any) connection might be.

=+=

The Great War


26 years before Sinnoh and Johto / 23 years before Hoenn / 21 before Kanto / 13 years before Maxie's banishment / 11 before Unown / 10 years before Shiiiiip and Kalos / 6 years before Civil War

Jack – 18
Cecelia – 7
Emma – 6
Rudy – 0 (appears 5)
Lysandre – 21
Maxie – 19
Tabitha - 0
Archie – 8
Jensen - 3
Norman – 7
Monica - 8
Birch – 9
Fantina – 5
Tino - 5
Bill – 2
Daisy – 1
Steven – 0
Mack – 4
Hayate – 14
Gabe – 17
Hideki – 15
Patty – 19
Elm – 3
Aaron - 0
Cyrus - 2
Rowan - 34
Oak - 32
Wattson - 47
Drake - 37

Interesting to note:

- This is actually at the end of the war as who knows how long the conflict was going before this.

- Lookit all our post war babies. Celebrating to be had *shot*

- Considering Rudy was found its hard to tell how old he actually is, so using 0 as his starting point with gramps.

-Hayate and his folks moved to Johto to get away from the "danger zone" in Kanto but he never moved back.

-Hideki's travels turned to survivalist training about two years before this after taking to the mountains to escape the fighting in Sinnoh. He would stay in the Almia area until the end of the war and heading back to Unova.

-Patty did fight in the war, ironically at sea in using her electric specialty to help defend any invasion to Johto by sea. It was still a quieter front here than Team Aqua faced helping defend Hoenn and Kanto from Orre. She'd join the police force in her home town Goldenrod after the war was over.

-Maxie gets his first real taste for battle actually fighting in Kanto along side people like Koga. It lead to quite a fascinating culture mixing as they discussed their clans' different styles and tactics and tried to figure a way to put them to combined use.

-Lysander's success had been skyrocketing over the course of the war as his research and innovations made Kalos the star of the war in giving the demons quite a run for their money. They were able to mostly stay out of the main battlefront though and helped out immensely in giving aid to their struggling allies. Unfortunately, after war was when it really started to hit home there is a loooooooot of cleaning up to do.....

-Jack eventually manages to make it to Unova where he stayed for quite some time studying and training to get strong enough to go back. In actuality this "getting stronger" lead to many false leads such as seeking out the various legendaries over the years and looking into rare items that MAY hold the key to his revenge.

Just so I can get stuff off my chest about this guy. AKA my headcannons are weird. XD;;;

Childhood

For starters, Archie was born and raised in Sootopolis City which is a city inside the mouth of an undersea volcano that's died and filled with water. Its got a harsh landscape to it considering the town is built right into the walls of the crater so there's stairs everywhere and of course the water. Which means you have to swim or Surf to get from one side of town to the other. The only real way in or out of the city is to either Fly or Dive through a cave which is spooky cause one of the NPCs is all "The cave that connects the city to the outside... Is it just me or does it seem it wasn't meant to keep things out, but made to keep something in? o.o"

As for the town, its based on Satorini, Greece, iirc, which is why headcannonly there are some Greek roots to the place. Or at least the pokeverse equivilant to Greece. As for Archie himself, his childhood wasn't a bad one. He had a typical life, grew up there in the town, learned pearl diving (which is hard enough without having to fight Clampearl for it) rasing Magicarp and so forth. Though when he actually got a starter it was a Horsea his folks brought him from a trip to Pacifidlog. Which is another thing, I must tangent on.

In my headcannon Team Aqua was a group before all this and has been a group for ages. His parents were both part of it and it was a well known name in Hoenn since the Aquarian society is a mainstream culture along the coast and islands. People in the region are well aware that there is a culture clash from one side to the other once you get passed the mountains and large river that divides the region in two. His parents were both part of the group, as was Juan and Drake and several other notable figures in Hoenn. Which, on that note, Drake and Archie are related. Uncle-Nephew through his mother but still. Team Aqua required his folks to travel a lot so he was left to his own devices usually. Not that he minded, there was plenty to do around the city and once having a pokemon of his own, he hung out at the gym a lot too. Still, while he appears to be a friendly little bugger when it comes to people he will choose pokemon over people any day. Which is part of his craziness is that in-game he pretty much says everytime he gets to talking about his goals, he likes to bring up that its more for the benefit of pokemon than people. I guess a part of him thinks we've taken over too much as it is.

Naturally Archie joined the team too when he was old enough (which was like 14, let's face it, this is Pokemon world) and it was about that time he and Drake started spending a lot of time together mostly because he was worried the boy's mom would smother him if he went with his parents, he had to learn and work his way up the ranks the hard way like everyone else
but... this is Drake we're talking about. He saw the boy definitely had potential and pushed him harder than some of the others to be sure. Though I must say Swabbie!Archie must have been adorable especially seeing him pissed at Drake. The two grew to have a strange relationship that was both close because they were family and strained because of the tension between them. Still, there was a bond there that you'd think couldn't be broken.

THINK

SHIIIIIIIIIP

Archie had been a sailor for a few years when the accident happened. I thiiiiink he was about 18? It was a big mission, Devon (at the time being run by Mr. Stone's father, its been a family business for quite some time.) had hired Team Aqua to take a trip to Sinnoh because apparently they had found the legendary Green/Jade Orb deep in the Underground (which has special importance to the Stone family, but that's a whole 'nother babble.)and they wanted to bring it home to Hoenn where it belongs. So they took the S.S. Cactus, Drake was captain, the whole family went along too, a research team for authenticating and handling it, and Devon employees meant to accompany them on this. Its when they were on they way back, trying to take the ship all the way to Petalburg, the ship was caught up in a nasty storm. Not that that would have been a HUGE problem, I mean, come on, they're water peeps! They can handle this!
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....
....
The only problem is there was someone on board trying to steal the Jade Orb, and it activated
Drake actually caught the thief as he was darting onto the deck with it, the thief panicked when it started to light up and threw it at him. As a self defense reaction, the orb teleported him away and as far as the crew was aware, Drake had fallen overboard. Archie thought he could handle things and quickly took charge in the man's absence which was all fine and dandy and stuff but when the ship was run onto the rocks where it still sits in game, the fact he had failed sort of crushed him. Not to mention, it seemed like he lost everything that day because you know that the crew would have been in the lower parts of the ship. Quite a few Aquas including his folks were lost. It wasn't for almost a week they found Drake alive.

Team Aqua itself kind of dissintegrated after this as well. You can still find former members or fragmented branches but overall during the next decade it fell apart until Archie started it up again. When he did, a part of what helped him get his members together is the fact people thought he was trying to revive the team. Most I don't think fully understand what they're doing.

After the wreck, Archie had spent several weeks more or less cut off from mainstream society before he decided to go back to Sootopolis. He and Drake met up and got to talking about what the hell happened out there, to passing blame and got into a fight. Archie moved to Pacifidlog after cutting ties with everything. Pacifidlog, in my head, is not a steady place. Its a floating city that moves location every three or four years. Living out there, he kind of became dead to the world and then with Team Aqua's sudden appearance in Hoenn, it caught people off guard as they didn't even notice them gathering.

Family

Archie, as said before, did grow up with both parents, and his Uncle Drake, but again parents gone and cut off ties with the old coot back in his youth. The people in Pacifidlog, small community that is, is like family to him. More directly though, there's Jensen, who was 13 at the time of the wreck and a son of a pair of Devon employees on board. After the wreck, the boy had gotten lost in the confusion and (unknown to Archie or the others) despite his parents still being alive, he asked if he could go with the team members heading eastward to their island homes and claimed he had no where else to go. Archie felt guilty about the accident as it was, and thought to take in the boy himself. Its been thirteen yeas since then by the game cannon and depending on the verse Jensen is either an admin, he WAS one and something happened to him, or just one of the other members. Either way, he and Archie have been together for a long time and sadly the "kid" is just as insane as his mentor if not more so because he is one of the fanatics in the team who honestly does believe Archie when he says that the whole water expansion thing would be better for everyone.

Second of all there is Shelly, and honestly I don't know what to make of their relationship THEY WON'T TELL ME. I'm not sure if she's his best friend, sister, girlfriend, or what but they are really close. It started off when she was visiting the beach in Lilycove with her friends when Archie and Jensen were coming into town for supplies. They met, they hung out, and I'm not exactly sure how, but by the time he got ready to leave town, she was ready to run away with him. And so she did, and its been a whirlwind ride ever since. Whatever their relationship is, they're quite protective of each other to the point that honestly when doing missions they don't work together for that exact reason. Because if something were to go wrong, they know they would probably put the other's safety at first priority. She was not there at Slateport, nor at Mt. Chimney, nor at Mt. Pyre. He was not there for the Weather Institute and she was in the sub before him when abandoning the base. The only time in game that they appear together is when trying to awaken Kyogre as it really is Aqua's last stand.

Thirdly, there is Kyogre. Post crisis stuffs, in my head she's still free to wander the world a much more gentle spirit now that the fighting is over, and the two are more or less bound to each other because of orb stuffs. Their relationship is also an odd one but its because it seems to go back and forth between her trying to look after him like some kind of cosmic pet or he's trying to inform and protect her because she's got the mindset of a child having been asleep and missed out on the past thousand years or so. She's fascinated with how the world has changed and curious of its workings and he, understanding how cruel it can be from his travels, does worry about her.... Water-titan status be damned.

And lastly of course is his pokemon. I mean, it should be obvious, but I'd like to talk about them anyway. Archie in my head has a team of six - Mightyena, Crobat, Sharpedo, Gyarados, Azumarill and Kingdra. That Kingdra was the little Horsea he got as a starter, and it and Gyarados are some of his oldest companions. He doesn't use them much though these days unless he's dead serious on something because they're both rather dear to him and also rather overpowered and seen as unnecessary for half the stuff he does. For basic stuff he usually has Mightyena as a constant companion because she's a hardy little thing, highly loyal, and very versatile.

Orb

As mentioned before the Red (Rose), Blue (Indigo) and Green(Jade) Orbs do seem to have some sort of sentience to them. The spheres have long since been shrouded in mystery as to where they came from and what their purposes are. Headcannonly, there's an entire history there of the ancient tribes/kindgoms of Hoenn had gotten into a war. Realizing they were losing the mountain people now fearful and desperate what their neighbors to the east would do if this continued turned to their deity, the sleeping idol form of Groudon to champion them in their time of need. In order to awaken him though, the leaders were the ones to create the Red Orb and had it infused with magic. It worked in awakening Groudon, but at the devastating cost and realization of how powerful this really was, and worse they couldn't control it. The people of the water in turn thought the only way to counter this monster was to call upon their own, seeking out the priestess who gave life to the Red Orb and more or less forcing her to aid them in making the Blue Orb.

The orbs are alive because they've been infused in part with the soul of the ancient leaders who created them and tried to wield them. But when Rayquaza put its siblings into an endless sleep, the orbs too went dormant. As said before though, they can get very defensive when in the wrong hands, but for Archie and Maxie that is actually not the case. Partially because the spirits seem to recognize them as kindred spirits, which considering the destruction they caused over the war, is not a good thing. They crazed, bitter, ancient beings who have sealed away for centuries awaiting they day they may finish their fight once and for all, and these two seem to be the ones to settle it. The way the orbs worked though with the magic bestowed on them, the user and the titans were connected so the wielder could control the beast... sort of like a mecha? But what ended up happening is Kyogre and Groudon proved to have the stronger mindset so the pair of leaders was corrupted by god-modding and the pair of titans was corrupted by their rage and extremism. Note that Kyogre and Groudon tend to fight when meeting anyway, but it wasn't until this that they would actively seek each other out. It even comes up in game that when they were awakened by the orbs they were just kind of smashing into each other because they couldn't control themselves. In my head, I like to think of something actually happening to Archie and Maxie after they activated the orbs and awoke the legendaries rather than standing on the side lines flailing in trying to make them calm down. Playing game verse though, I still want to say something happened to them because I LIKE THERE BEING CONSEQUENCES FOR STUPIDITY, OKAY? OTL

But really, I think that while they have learned their lesson and everything there's probably some still lingering side effects after returning the Orbs to Mt. Pyre. Them leaving together at least shows that whatever fate has in store at least they won't be fighting each other over it. Which in my head is that at least now that the fighting has ended, the orbs are out of their hands and Kyogre and Groudon are much more gentle while they take turns showing themselves to people along the different sides of the region (Groudon only appears in the west, Kyogre for the most part will stay to the east) that because they did activate the same ritual as the ancient leaders did they too suffer the fact that they are connected to the Legendaries. Not a bad thing for the most part I guess, its just they're kind of stuck with these two and have to take responsibility for them and their actions and keeping people safe from them or at least giving warning. If that makes sense. Archie has realized he can never go home now, because with Kyogre he'll be on the move almost constantly, tied to the sea as she is. Though considering its him, I'm not sure he minds as much as he probably should, damn fish that he is or seems to be. Maxie on the other hand doesn't travel hardly at all any more since Groudon mostly hangs out around Mt. Chimney and the surrounding areas. Though given all he's been through, I don't think Maxie minds so much either as he's old, he's tired, he'd like to have people in the community stop glaring at him for trying to kill them all.

Either way, its good to have the world be on some level of peace even with these guys.