TEEN: Time Warp

[Headless Whoreman]

You can't change the past... Or can you?

~~~

After the failure of Team Rocket, Giovanni scrapes together what is left of the budget of the once glorious criminal group. He decides that, in order to fix the present, they first must fix the past. But how will he be able to do it while trying to re-construct the shattered remains of Team Rocket, and facing even more challenges than before they disbanded?

~~~

Prologue

~~~

Have you ever truly felt failure? Felt the feeling of a thousand negative emotions ripping you limb from limb, while you're forced to live with the fact that you know you just couldn't get the job done the first time? I have felt failure. I have felt failure that would have made lesser and weaker men end their lives out of shame. But I am Giovanni. I am not a weak man, and I know that there is a way to fix this. I must go back in time and prevent the boy that disbanded Team Rocket from ever being born. To do this, I will have to harness the power of the Legendary Pokemon Palkia and Dialga. That, however, is only just the beginning.

~~~

As I stood in front of my ultimate adversary, a person that could have been no older than fourteen years of age, I realized that everything I had ever worked for had been for nothing. All of my years of hard work were gone. I could never rebuild Team Rocket, not to the state of power we once were in. For the first time in my life, I truly felt like a failure in mind and body. Outwitted by a young boy. I had been hoodwinked by a mere child, and never before or never since have I felt such ashamed of myself, if only for allowing myself to be so stupid.

"So," the boy named Ash said. "How does it feel to be defeated once and for all, Giovanni?" He smirked a bit under his cap while his redheaded female friend and gym-leader friend cheered in victory. They cheered not for the fact that they won, but for the fact that I lost. They knew that I was going to be forced to disband the group that I held so dearly to my heart, Team Rocket. We had so many wondrous goals in mind, so many goals that would never be manufactured and put to use.

They didn't truly understand what my defeat meant to them and their people. Their people now would surely be lead astray, as I am the only man capable of leading those heathens. But as time shows, those who do not understand history are doomed to repeat it, as countless civilizations have done.

Then I got to thinking, as any wise man would. Perhaps my answer lied in time itself. I had heard legends of legendary Pokemon in a far away region that controlled time and space, and I knew that they were my only hope. I would have to control these creatures, master them. They would have to bend to my will, obey my every command. I am not one to put my faith in petty legends and folk tales. However, I knew this was my last hope for my master plan to succeed. So I wait. I wait for my opportunity, my opportunity to travel to the Sinnoh region and capture these mythical beasts. I will not fail this time. All will hail Giovanni.

 

[Drakon]

Hmm. Nice prologue, if a bit on the short side. The plot's pretty interesting too and I like the first person perspective.

One thing that jumped out at me:

lied in time itself. I

- should be "lay".

 

[Headless Whoreman]

Chapter 1: Dangerous Men

Snow. Frost. Mind-numbing cold. So this was what the Sinnoh region felt like.

After creating my plan, I decided that I had to travel to the Sinnoh region to learn of the legends of Dialga and Palkia. I had paid for a ticket on the S.S. Anne, Kanto's premier form of travel. I had just arrived in the Sinnoh region earlier that day, and was surprised that the Rocket grunts back in Kanto had surely not been to Sinnoh, as they had told me. They spoke of a mild climate. This was anything but.

The cold outside was numbing both to body and mind. My red scarf wrapped tightly around my neck, I proceeded through the snow despite the fact that it caused my body chills. I wished for warmth, but knew that if I didn't learn of these legends, my entire plan would be a failure.

As I entered the small marsh hut, the top of it covered with snow, one thing stuck out in my mind. There was no light inside, only a small, blue glowing orb in the center of the room. The old man inside, wrapped tightly in pink and blue robes, stared a hole through me when I entered.

"So," he said, his brown eyes narrowing down my body. "This is the Giovanni I have heard about. You look weaker than I imagined you would."

I narrowed my eyes and stared at him to show him that I was entirely serious in coming here. I took a seat on the ground of the hut, which was very warm compared to the snow-covered dirt of the outside world.

"I know what you have come for. It is the same thing many men have come for. Ultimately, all of them have failed." The elder said, his dark brown skin reflecting the blue light off of the orb. "What makes you think that you are different than the men of the past?"

"Because I desire to return to it."

He opened his eyes a bit wider towards me. He spoke in a heavy accent, his words slurring with every sentence. "So, instead of desiring riches in the future as many men have, you desire riches in the past? Why do you crave this?"

"I crave not riches nor treasures." I said to him, rubbing my hands together for warmth. Despite the fact that we were enclosed by the hut, I could still feel the cold of the outside world.

"What is it that you crave, then? Power? Love?"

"A little bit of both, elder." I narrowed my eyes. This man was not providing me with the answers I sought.

"I know you want the answers to the powers of time and space, Giovanni." He closed his eyes and turned away from me. "But no man can truly control the truth, nor can any man truly control a monster such as this truth."

"What do you mean, elder? I fear I am wasting my time here. I do not require a religious lesson, elder. I only want to hear of the Pokemon Dialga and Palkia. I want to know how I can achieve their power."

"So it is power you wish for. Very well, but do not come back to me if you cannot handle the truth."

I leaned in closer to the man, hoping to hear of the secrets of these legendary Pokemon.

"It cannot be done." The man said.

"What do you mean?" I asked him, standing up off of the ground in anger.

"I am merely the messenger, my dear man. You wanted the truth. The only way to access the powers of time and space would be to capture these legendary Pokemon themselves, and as any man knows, that would be complete madness."

I smiled a bit. "Elder, I never claimed to be a sane man."

He frowned and looked at me, staring a hole through me. "There are two types of men. Those that merely dream about their goals, and those that will do anything necessary to achieve them. The latter men are dangerous men, and I fear that you fall into that category, Giovanni."

"I also never claimed that I was not a dangerous man."

"Be warned, however." The elder said. "Before you go off to seek the locations of the beasts, I must tell you something. They only come to those they think are worthy. You must prove your worth to them, Giovanni!"

"And how would I go about doing that?" I asked him, slightly confused.

"There is no specific way. You must choose your own path, Giovanni. I can no longer help you. The only thing between you and the creatures of legend is how far you are willing to push yourself. What do you have to lose, Giovanni?"

"I have everything to lose. I will not fail this time." I stared at the elder, who now had fear in his eyes when he looked at me. "You have proved your worth, elder. Just know this. If I fail in this quest, or if I find out that you have lied to me, my men will kill you."

"I am no liar, Giovanni." He said to me, his voice trembling.

"We'll see about that." I said, slamming the door to his hut and exiting back into the snow.

 

[Gama]

I always love a good Giovanni fic. Not much to say at this point since the story is still getting going but I enjoy the premise and look forward to reading more! I am curious about exactly what Gio wants (his conversation with the Elder seems to imply it might not be as straight forward as the prologue suggests) and what the results of his actions will be. Keep writing!