Where governments thrived and flourished through open trade and honest work, beneath the surface, criminals were forced to operate in the shadows, dealing in illegal and illicit operations.
In almost every region, there was an underworld—an agreed-upon place where criminals could communicate, trade, and cooperate just as the government did.
In Hoenn, that place was Mauville City.
As one of the largest cities in the region, Mauville was a major hub for tourism and home to the biggest marketplace in Hoenn. However, mirroring this overground market was an underground one—a network of tunnels and secret passages leading to a massive hidden marketplace.
Here criminals traded secrets, Pokemon, and valuables, conducting business beneath the city's very streets, unseen by the law.
Hoenn was a region surrounded by vast amounts of water. And much like the joke that had caught on in his previous world, it had also somehow managed to be translated to the Pokeweb, as those from Kanto and Johto liked to joke around.
Despite the jokes, Hoenn didn't take any form of offence. Instead, they seemed to pride themselves on their vast waters. They boasted the most water-type trainers per capita out of every region, and at the Grand University there was even a specialized course for water-type specialists.
Because of these vast waters was a constant flow of ships and ferries and cruises carrying sailors, workers, tourists, and anyone else who had some spare money and a day off. The influx of ships was also one of the reasons Team Aqua could even function just through stealing.
Late into the next day after he had battled Juan, William caught one of the ferries leaving Lilycove City, passing by Sootopolis City—where Juan was most likely trying to piece back together his pride—and through Pacifilog Town then Slateport City until they ended up in Mauville City.
Evening had passed by, and warm street lamps and lights from shops and houses kept the city bright. Restaurants and bars were packed, Pokecenters were full, and the market was as lively as ever.
Throughout all this, William tried to remain inconspicuous, not wearing his usual mask, as it would be inappropriate in public, but instead a hoodie and a black hat, and a face mask of the same colour. In his bag was his Poseidon mask and relevant clothing.
He shuffled through the main market, keeping his head down. Occasionally, he looked behind him to see if anyone was following him, but he was sure he was just being paranoid. It had that kind of effect when you're on the front of the papers this morning.
"Ship from Kalos attacked by pirates!" the front headline had read, though it made no mention of any goods or Pokemon stolen or Juan getting his ass-handed to him. Wallace must have wanted the story to go public, but also to avoid the truly embarrassing facts.
William made his way through the large shopping centre, head held down and posture low and unintimidating. He passed through pokecentres and pokemarts and cafes—some Pokemon friendly—before arriving at a small and inconspicuous shop.
Walking up to the desk, he said, "I would like something new. Maybe we could check out back?"
The person at the desk, who had been all smiles, suddenly turned serious. This was a cafe, no one in their right mind would ask that—unless it was code for something.
"All right. Let's go check."
Door one. Unlocked through a key.
Door two. Unlocked through his facial recognition.
Door three. Unlocked through an eight digit code. William had to confirm it.
The third and final door shut, and William found himself in a dull concrete room. The room was completely empty—with the occasional splash of blood on the floor— except for the corner of the room in which a decrepit, mossy old well was placed, or, rather built.
William took the ladder down the well.
As he climbed down, an intoxicating scent filled his nostrils through the balaclava. If you were to combine the smell of urine, blood, death, and an overall lack of hygiene then it would be pretty close to the smell his poor nostrils were inhaling.
After reaching the bottom of the well, he made his way through an intricate set of tunnels.
It was like the catacombs of Paris. You could very easily get lost down here if you didn't know your way into one of the entrances of the black market. It was a place for criminals to congregate like bees to a hive, so many steps have been taken to make it difficult for someone who shouldn't be here to get in.
Luckily Archie had access to the black market by the time William joined, and when he took over the personal responsibility of selling items, all the correct steps were given to him.
Left. Upper Left. Right. One would usually make the mistake of going forward here, but you were supposed to go backwards. Right. Upper Right. Another right. Forwards. Left. William had been here so many times he had memorized the entire sequence by memory.
"Password?" a deep voice called through the thick iron door guarding the entrance to the black market.
"Black tidings," William responded, discarding his public disguise, going through his backpack and putting on his mask and outfit.
The black market was revealed to him a moment later. Light assaulted his eyes, and he had to cover his face for a moment and allow them to adjust from the pitch black tunnels.
This place practically had it all. From shady deals and trades all the way to foreign items and Pokemon. It was a place with a wealth of hidden knowledge and secrets. If you ever wanted something, the black market could get it for you.
Sometimes it still amazed William that an entire community of people practically made this place and thrived here.
William made his way through the streets— yes, they were streets, and houses too. Some people nodded at him as he walked past, a mixture of fear and appreciation in their eyes. They didn't even know the whole story, but the fact that he had became the leader of Team Aqua, and then raided a government ship had increased his reputation already.
Guess news travels fast. Even Underground.
He found himself in front of a large building with the sign black market trading centre, proudly worn near the top of the building. If you wanted to trade any form of goods, this is where you wanted to go.
They made their money through funnelling illegal items—which they bought for less than market price since they were most likely illegally obtained—back to companies across the world, who would then sell the items as legal.
A PC system sat near the corner of the room. It was a hacked version of the public PC, allowing for complete autonomy when storing items and/or Pokemon.
William withdrew the items from his PC storage system. They numbered about 12 boxes in total, each of them storing a different category of items.
"Got something to sell for me, Poseidon boy? Or should I say boss now?" an old voice called out. The woman at the counter took a long drag of her cigarette and exhaled, filling the room with smoke.
"It's more than just something." William said, bringing each box up to the desk.
Sally put out her cigarette against the wooden desk—it was full of burn marks—and surveyed the contents of the boxes. Her eyes lit up.
"More than something indeed. These are…" she grabbed a Pokeball from one of the boxes, inspecting it. Old woman she may be, her eyes were young and sharp—that's why they kept her around.
"This is more than just knock off stuff, this is the real deal, in top condition, unused, undamaged, pristine…" She looked like she was about to salivate at the mouth before re-composing herself.
She gave William a look, "It seems the story about team aqua attacking a government ship wasn't all true, was it? They said you came away with nothing, but this…this is more than nothing. These are top grade government items."
William smiled, but didn't say anything.
"Well, I know well enough by now you know your stuff about prices, so I won't try and low ball you." She spent a few minutes looking through all of the items, appraising their condition. "How about…450?"
William chuckled, "I thought you said you wouldn't lowball me? 500."
"480?" she countered, eyes staring at him.
William met her gaze through the mask, "500. It's a fair price."
She continued to stare at him in silence, before she finally broke his gaze. "Deal."
"I'll need the money now." William said. It would save another trip down here.
"Who do you think we are? The bank?" she laughed. She brought out a pokeball and released her Machamp who began to carry the boxes out back.
"500 then. I'll be back in a minute." She got up off her chair and stretched her back, limping behind the shop.
A moment later, the money came through.
500,000 Pokedollars.
He checked his balance.
820,000 Pokedollars.
William waved goodbye to the old lady. He still didn't know her name. Now with all this money, things could be sped up. His last and final stop was Dave's.
Dave dealt with anything with ships. It seemed like a very niche thing to specialize in, but given they were in Hoenn it was more than enough to make due. People wanted ships all the time for many different reasons, and if you wanted to do it illegally, Dave was the person to go to. He was an expert with anything with ships and also had his own crew of ship workers doing things ranging from repairs to upgrades to complete makeovers.
And that was exactly what he had hired Dave for. Months ago he had single-handedly sieged and stolen a large cargo ship. It was in the middle of the night, no noise, no attention. He brought the ship to Dave's shipyard, where he had requested a complete rehaul of the ship to suit his needs.
"Poseidon! Back from trying to steal ships to get your own!" Dave asked in a gruff voice. He was a middle aged man with brown hair— slowly graying— and a deep voice. He had a bit of a belly, but under all that fat was the hard work of a man who spent years laboring away on ships. His hands were rough and scarred from all of those years.
"You said it was ready?" William asked.
"It is!" Dave said. He rustled through a stack of paper before bringing out a specific sheet and handing it over to him.
SHIP REPAIRS
Passenger space: 80,000
Reinforced Hull: 100,000
Aesthetic repairs(including logo): 50,000
Security: 80,000
Hidden compartments: 40,000
Ship Redesign: 80,000
Other/Misc: 50,000
TOTAL: 490,000
"I'm curious to know what the extra 50,000 in other constitutes for, as well as the extra 10,000 in the total cost." William said.
"Ahaha!" Dave said. "Math was never my strong suit. The total is correct though, so I must have accidentally put one of the categories for 10,000 less."
"Uh huh. I'm sure you're not lying." William said dryly.
"So, just like we discussed? Eight payments over eight months, no interest?"
William shook his head, "Change of plans. I'll hand you all the money right here. I'll be needing your services again in the future, and that total better be correct each and every time.."
"Again?"
William nodded, "For the other ships as well. I need more of these."
"Ok…Sounds good to me. On second thought, what are you actually planning to do with these ships?" Dave asked.
"Team Aqua created the problem of ships being attacked in broad daylight. People are seeing these ships as unsafe and unreliable. They are hesitant to use them. I'm simply just making a solution for that problem." William smirked. "Supply and demand my friend. People demand safe ships and safe passage, but no one can supply them. Well no one until now, one until Neptune Shipping."
William paused, looking at Dave. "You have the opportunity to make a lot of money here. I do hope for both of our sakes you don't end up spilling any of our secrets. You can either be team aqua's ally and have our protection, or you can be our enemy, and you wouldn't like to know how that would end. Just think carefully Dave, the choice is completely up to you. I'll be back down here soon for another commission if all goes well. I'll be seeing you." he waved Dave goodbye.
That had been Williams' plan this whole time. Now with the extra money he could get another ship faster than originally in his plans.
Neptune Shipping.
It would be advertised as a safe and reliable service for passenger and cargo transport. They would offer a full money back guarantee on their costs and items if they were ever lost or stolen. It was a pretty big guarantee, but since the ship wouldn't be attacked by his team, there would never be a scenario in which they would have to give money back.
It was a perfect solution to a problem they created. If all went according to His plans Neptune Shipping would be the biggest shipping company in Hoenn, and after that he would make it the biggest shipping company in the world. He would quite literally control the seas under a legal company.
Team Aqua would take care of any competition, and Neptune would become a global brand.
It would seem quite strange if Team Aqua never attacked Neptunes ships, which is why he planned to have strong trainers on board which would be the assumed reason why they were never attacked.
William smiled, his grin reaching an almost devilish look. His pokeballs vibrated in excitement and anticipation. However, his almost euphoric mood was soon dampened out as he spotted a familiar outfit of red and black.
Team Magma.
Fuck, so it's already reached that point? William hadn't heard any news of a Team Magma— he initially believed if he was fast enough he could grow to a point where they would never be a problem, but right now, just as they were in metamorphosis, they just had to show up didn't they?
Team Magma was their competition. A team which poor and unfortunate people could join— just like them. But the worst part of it was they had completely opposing goals—even with Williams leadership and movement away from the original goal Archie had of flooding the world in the games.
How could William control the seas if they were none?
How could he control the seas if the entire world was landmass?
He shook his head, there was no use in thinking about it now. He could formulate a plan when he got back to his office and had space and quiet to think.
But before he left he had one more order of business to take care of.