It was nearly midnight as Ash sat alone near a campfire merely minutes away from Saffaron City. Misty and Brock had retired to their slumber merely an hour ago. By straining his hearing, Ash was easily able to make out the quiet snores from both his male and female companion. In other words, it was time for Ash to take action. Slowly and quietly, Ash kicked dirt on the fire and started walking towards his tent, the moonlight being his only guide; however, he did not stop at his tent. Silently tiptoeing around his two sleeping friends, he continued walking until he eventually reached the outskirts of the forest. Kicking aside a small pile of leaves, he uncovered what he had been searching for. A duffel bag which contained exactly what he needed, the product of two vigorous years of training. Ash, now the age fourteen, was finally ready to take action.
It all started two years ago on that rainy day in Kanto. Ash, Misty, and Brock were seeking shelter from the rain and ended up in a theater house that was owned by a girl who went by the name of Duplica. There was something special about the girl. She claimed she could perfectly impersonate any single person with just a glance of their appearance and had a Pokemon who could imitate other Pokemon in the same way. At first Ash wrote her off as simply being crazy. He could only deny her claims for so long, however, and when Duplica beat him fair and square in a Pokemon battle with a clone of his own Bulbasaur, he had no choice but to accept the facts and the power of mimicry. Mimicry was a powerful tool, and by harvesting that power, he would be able to accomplish anything. Anything.
As soon as they left the mansion and set out on the road, Ash began to train. He would frequently run off into a forest late at night when Brock and Misty were asleep to practice. Night after night, day after day, hour after hour he would slave away, constantly trying to reach the perfection present in that green haired girl that provided so much inspiration to his cause. Still, his practice was in vain, and although he greatly improved his copycat abilities, there was still something missing. There was just a charm that he was unable to capture that the girl known as Duplica was able to obtain so easily. He may have been able to perfectly copy any given persons appearance, but he could never capture the unique atmosphere each individual possessed.
He was about to throw in the towel, but suddenly he was reunited with her. Like an angel she descended through the crowds, always taking in everything around her, calculating it into her mind. He was once again left in awe of her power as she crushed him not only once, but twice in a Pokemon battle. After witnessing this power for a second time, his drive and determination was doubled. He tripled his efforts with a new found passion that he never thought he could obtain. He rarely slept, dedicating all of his time and effort into impersonating others. After all, Duplica had dedicated her entire life to copying others. With a little effort, he would soon be able to join her among the best duplicates in the world.
And all of that training was finally paying off. Today was the day he would harvest the fruits of his labor. Opening his duffel bag, he pulled out an exact replica of the costume worn by the Karate King of Saffaron City. Today was his final test. The past two years of constant practice all led up to this moment. Putting on the suit, Ash walked into the city. Well, it was more of a waddle than a walk. The extra cushions Ash had to implant in his costume threw him off balance, and it took all of his strength and willpower to walk with the same grace that the Karate King possessed on so many occasions. If it were not for months of practice and observation, he would surely have tipped over onto the ground by now. Still, thanks to all of those late nights he was able to stroll through town with ease. It was extremely late and very few people were outside, but the few that were out offered him friendly waves and smiles. After what seemed like an eternity, but was in actuality only a few minutes, Ash reached the doors of the gym. Walking inside, his eyes immediately locked on to the two Pokeballs resting in the middle of the floor, ungaurded. Ash chose this time to put his plan in to action because he knew the Karate King would be out of town. It was a well known fact that every year the king would head out into the mountains for one months time to train and meditate with his Pokemon. It was while the king was on this spiritual journey that Ash would act.
Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan were the two most skilled fighting Pokemon in the entire region of Kanto. They were extremely rare. In fact, the Karate King held the only know pair in existence. Since Saffaron already had an official gym run by Sabrina the physic mistress, the Karate King would lure competitors into his own gym with the promise of obtaining a rare Pokemon if victorious. He never lost, even to this day. That's why instead of challenging the frightening man to a battle, Ash decided to take a more...indirect approach.
"Stop! Who goes there?!" a man yelled from the back of the dojo. Lifting his gaze, Ash set his disguised eyes on a rather bulky man dressed in the same karate robes that he himself currently wore. "Karate King? What are you doing back? I thought you were off on a training trip for the rest of the month?" he asked surprised. Ash, thinking quickly, thought of the best way to respond. What would the Karate King do in this situation?
"Well, yes. But shortly after I left, I remembered I forgot to take Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee with me."
"But you never take them with you on your travels. They are for the challengers, remember?" the man asked. Ash froze. Apparently he made a mistake. Still, he could not let himself be caught so early in the game.
"Yes, but if someone does manage to defeat me, they will be a strong trainer that will hold a lot of influence in the Pokemon community. We must make sure they are in top fighting condition so everyone will hear of the power of the fighting type Pokemon!" he yelled with a fierce passion in his eyes, pumping his fists up into the air. His disciple could only stare on in awe at the wisdom of his master.
"That is amazing! As expected of the fighting type Pokemon master." the boy said with stars in his eyes. Ash just laughed, and walked up to grab the Pokeballs. Placing them in his pocket, he turned around and walked to the door. "Alright then, I will see you in a month. Train hard, and remember, the strongest warrior is one of both mind and body! Farewell!"
And with that, Ash walked out the door and into the dimly lit city of Saffaron. Once outside, he let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding.
'I did it...' Ash thought, hardly believing the thought as he walked through the city. 'I really did it...and it was so easy...nobody even suspected a thing. They practically handed those Pokemon to me. Is this the true power of mimicry? Is this what I'm capable of?' Ash thought, trembling at the power. Soon the tremble broke into a small giggle, and his giggle turned into a small laugh. Soon he was in the middle of the forest, cackling madly. He nearly fell off balance with his insane cackling and the weight of the suit, but somehow he was able to stumble his way into his campsite. Once there, however, the laughter instantly died on his lips. Standing in the middle of the clearing was Misty, Brock, Officer Jenny, and the Karate King himself.
A/N - I wrote this instead of a paper I should have done for college. Oh well. I'm aiming for a final word count of about 12,000 words, so I can hopefully finish it. I hope it didn't feel too rushed. I'm torn between dedicating myself to this or Black Tulips.