(A/N) Hello readers. You are now reading my most recent story: "The Rise of a New King" I hope you all enjoy it. Read and Review!
Chapter 1: Revelations of the Past
High into the skies, there was a young man, about 17 years of age on the back of a Charizard. This was Ash Ketchum, the prince of Kanto.
Ash had his usual dark, spiky, raven hair and chocolate auburn eyes that carried too many emotions to count. Not to forget his enthusiastic attitude and endless supply of perseverance he always carried. Nonetheless, he was everything you could expect in a prince. However, he wasn't arrogant unlike some of the others might be. Although he was very good looking, he was quite humble and kind.
So here he was now… now wearing a shiny silver knight's armor, with his helmet up and a long sword strapped to his hip and a bow and arrow over his shoulder.
The reason he wore this armor more often rather than a tunic a normal prince would wear, was because he preferred to have the extra protection in case he got caught into an unfriendly battle with other knights and besides…he felt a lot safer with it on.
Right now, Ash was on his normal morning ride on the back of his Charizard. Charizard was his strong fire flying dragon and also his longtime reliable companion. He had known him ever since he was a Charmander in an egg.
The prince often took rides like this since it was soothing to feel the cool winds rush past his face and it was also his personal space, where he could gather his thoughts and think of his past. Ash's past had not been the brightest like most others and he would often grieve about what happened. Ash shut his eyes and thought about the past events. Even though he hadn't even been born to witness it, he still pictured the scene.
(Flashback)
Long ago, Ash had his mother and father, also known as the king and queen of Kanto. Delia and Giovanni Ketchum.
…Giovanni, having ruled the kingdom since he was Ash's age, was the greatest of the Kings of the 3 kingdoms. He was known for his bravery, courage, and ability to lead his kingdom and become successful. The 3 Kingdoms were Johto, Hoenn, and Kanto.
But ever since the birth of these kingdoms, Johto and Kanto had been major rivals. Each kingdom trying to do greater deeds and prove itself to be the more successful kingdom.
And this was when all hell broke loose for Kanto and Johto. The two had been at war. Both kingdoms had broken into a disagreement over the princess of Hoenn. The King of Johto, Alexander had wished for his son, Drew to be wed to May, while Giovanni wished the same, only wish his son, Ash to be wed to her. The two had argued for a long while, until Alexander called for an attack on Kanto.
Giovanni and his kingdom had been ambushed, so he had very little time to prepare. He had done his best to fight back, but it was just too much for the king. His army was slowly dying and he had rushed into the battlefield in an attempt to stop a majority of the Johto army. Giovanni quickly drew his long sword and swung it skillfully killing several knights in the process. That was when he had been killed. Being at a great distance, Alexander had withdrew his longbow and shot an arrow straight to the king's head, dropping him to the ground. Giovanni slowly started to rise to his feet, but it was too late. Alexander had thrust his sword into Giovanni's abdomen and he was killed right before Delia's eyes. Delia had stood frozen with a terrified expression on her delicate face. Tears quickly started streaming down her face as she watched her husband fall to his knees and face plant into the hard ground being surrounded in a puddle of blood.
She had been pregnant with Giovanni's child, but him being killed…The child would never meet his father. She was quickly guided into a carriage, where her and several knights had fled. Delia turned back and watched as more of the Johto army destroyed more and more of the precious kingdom. "…Giovanni."
It had been a long trip for Delia, her unborn child and the several knights that escorted her. They had finally come to a safe location after many long hours of riding in the small carriage, where they settled. In this place, they grew a new kingdom in an attempt to be hidden from Johto.
A few months later and Giovanni's son had been born. Delia had named him Ash Ketchum, who was destined to be the new king of the new kingdom. Growing up, Ash had a hard life. He never had a fatherly figure to look up to. Delia had been the only one to raise him aside from her assistants and close friends. As Ash grew to about the age of 10, Delia had arranged a treaty between the new kingdom and Johto. This was a very risky act to attempt, but Delia had wished for complete safety for her son, so she was willing to take the consequences. A few days in time, a response had been sent back to the kingdom. The king of Johto had agreed to their treaty, but only had one exception. That exception was for Ash to be forbidden from talking or even seeing the princess of Hoenn and that his son would be the one to marry her. If Ash were to ever contact May, he would be killed and their kingdom would be overthrown. Delia was grateful for their acceptance, but also couldn't help but feel disappointed. She had been disappointed that her son couldn't rule the kingdom with a queen alongside of him and have the happiness of becoming married. A tear escaped the corner of her eye and she wrote back:
Dear King of Johto and kingdom,
It is an honor to us that you have accepted our treaty. We will promise to keep my son away from the Princess of Hoenn and allow your son to marry her instead. This treaty shall be official once it reaches you. Any further questions, please write back.
Delia Ketchum, Queen of Kanto.
The rest of the day went by normally and the king had just received the letter. He eagerly took it from the messenger and quickly unwrapped the envelope and read. Once his eyes had finished scanning through the letter he couldn't help but grin. "Drew! Come here! I've got something to tell you!"
"What is it father?" The King's son had just walked into his father's room, which was guarded by two knights. Drew LaRousse was the prince of Johto. However, he was much different than Ash. The main difference was his ego. Drew was most likely the most arrogant boy in the kingdom and his ego was the size of a watermelon. Not only was his pride high, but he wasn't the kindest. He constantly ordered his servants around and he never treated his people the right way. He had light, bushy green hair, green eyes, about an inch or two shorter than Ash, and he wore a traditional Prince tunic. Something Ash never liked wearing.
"The Princess of Hoenn. You will be destined to be wed to her," Alexander declared.
"Miss Maple? My, she's something," Drew smirked.
"Very well, son. I will contact the king of Hoenn, so you too shall get to know each other better."
"Yes, father."
A few months back before Ash was born, Norman, the king of Hoenn and Alexander had made an agreement that Drew and May will become King and Queen of Johto and that as soon as they were old enough, they would start to get to know one another better and start "dating." The reason for Norman's approval was because he had feared that if he declined, his kingdom would be put in danger.
"William!" Alexander shouted.
Just then, William, Alexander's messenger came into the King's room and bowed respectively.
"Your Majesty, how may I be of assistance?"
"William. I want you to send message to the king of Hoenn telling him I wish for Drew to visit his daughter in their kingdom, where my son and her will get to know each other."
William nodded. "Yes, your majesty, I shall leave right away then."
William quickly left the room and went on his way to Hoenn.
Drew and Alexander exchanged a quick smirk.
(Flashback End)
"Charizard, descend!" Ash commanded to his companion.
Charizard obeyed his master and slowly lowered itself on the ground, landing in front of the Kanto kingdom.
Ash and Charizard walked around the kingdom towards the castle and past the two knights guarding the entrance. "Wait here, Charizard. I'll be right back."
"Char!"
…
Ash slowly made his way into the castle and let out a deep breath.
The castle was smaller than the other two castles of the different regions, but it was still quite big and decent. It was surrounded in cobblestone walls and had a variety of rooms. There was the massive dining room, Delia's room, Ash's own room, the dungeon, and many more you could imagine.
Ash went into the dining room, where he found his mother sitting alone at the long table with her hands cupped around her face and elbows on the table.
"Mother? Is something troubling you?"
Delia broke from her train of thought and looked at Ash. She began to think of how much he had grown up over the years and how much of a rough time he had as a small child.
"Oh nothing Ash. I was just thinking about your father, Giovanni."
Ash nodded in understanding. "Something else on your mind?"
Delia nodded. "Yes." She said, holding back a tear.
Ash quickly took notice of this and embraced her into a tight hug. "Shh Shh Mom. It'll be alright. Now please tell me what's wrong," He looked at her with a serious, yet caring face.
"Your love life," She replied.
"My…love life?"
"Yes, son. About 7 years ago, when you were only at the age of ten…There was an agreement."
Ash, intrigued, pushed the matter forward. "What? What kind of agreement?"
"Before you were born, King Alexander and your father had argued about whether his son or you would be married to the Princess of Hoenn. This was the reason for your father's death as well as the destruction of the old Kanto kingdom. So now, King Alexander and King Norman have agreed to wed Drew and May once they've reached the appropriate age."
"And the legal marriage age…What is it?" Ash asked, curiously.
"The age you are now, honey. May and Drew are around that age too, so they could even be married now."
"But I haven't even met the Princess of Hoenn."
"I know that sweety, but I've hoped that you and her would get along. Hoenn is a very peaceful kingdom. Not much war happens over there."
"I understand."
"Oh Ash…I've wished that you would find the perfect girl, and May seemed she would be just the one."
"What a shame. I only hopped that I could've gotten to know her."
"And…there's something else."
Ash stopped talking and listened intently to what his mother had to say next.
"You and May…are forbidden to see each other."
"A…A what?"
"You see…we made a treaty with Johto that promised we would keep you away from the princess and that Alexander's son would marry her."
"Why would you do that?"
"I'm sorry, son. I wanted to ensure your safety and the treaty was the only logical way. They had accepted the treaty, but they had only one exception, which was to keep you away from the princess.
Ash nodded slowly. "I understand mom. Thank you for telling me this."
Delia in return gave a short, sad nod to her son.
(Hoenn Kingdom)
The message had just arrived and Norman had already begun to read the message he received from the messenger.
Norman nodded to himself. "Very well then. Scott, will you please go get May for me?"
Scott, Norman's assistant had obeyed his king's order. "Yes, your Majesty." And with that, he took off, in search for the girl.
Scott had searched the kingdom and finally stopped at the dining room, where he found two girls conversing. One of the girls was Dawn Berlitz, a 16 year old girl. She had light blue hair, sapphire eyes, and had worn a servant outfit. The outfit she had worn was a plain white and dark navy color. Across from her was the Princess, May Maple, a 17 year old girl. She had long silky brunette hair that reached her mid back as well as sapphire eyes, similar to Miss Berlitz. May wasn't like most princesses. She didn't like to be ordered around and was more of the casual type. Instead of a servant outfit like her friend, she wore a long sleeved, medieval style red dress. In conclusion, she was very beautiful.
"Miss, May?"
May looked up at Scott. "Yes?"
"Your father wishes to speak to you."
May turned to Dawn. "Well…we better go then."
May and Dawn got up from their seats and followed the servant.
"Hmm… I wonder what the King has to say," Dawn thought to herself.
Soon enough, the trio had arrived at the King's room.
"Your Majesty, I have brought your daughter," Scott bowed.
"Thank you Scott. You may take your leave now."
Scott gave another short bow and left the room.
"Father? You had something to speak to me of?"
"Indeed. You see, May. The prince of Johto will be coming to the kingdom in a few days' time and you two will get to know each other."
"But father! I'm not looking for that kind of relationship at this moment!" His daughter protested.
"Sorry to upset you, but you will be married to this young man, so I would advise you take a liking to him."
May pouted and put on a disappointed look. "Humph." And she ran out of the room.
"May!" Dawn shouted after the princess.
Norman sighed, knowing that he no choice and that she and LaRousse were destined to become King and Queen of Johto.
"May! What's the matter?" Dawn asked as she followed her to her room.
"My dad! He's forcing me into marrying a prince I haven't even seen yet!"
"You have to calm down," Dawn said, trying to reassure the young princess.
May took a deep breath and started to mature a bit over the whole thing. "You're right Dawn. I shouldn't judge someone, especially if I haven't even met them in person yet."
Dawn nodded. "Good. Who knows? Maybe you might even like him!"
May sent Dawn a glare, which ran a shiver down her back. "Don't even think of it. I'm still against the fact dad is forcing me to like someone. It should be on my own free will."
Dawn sighed. At least she was somewhat getting to May's attitude.
Norman let out a heavy sigh as he sat in his chair when his wife, Caroline walked up to him. Caroline was a mid-aged woman, ruling the kingdom with Norman at a young age. She had a somewhat close resemblance to her daughter and was also very beautiful.
"What's the matter, honey?"
"May. She didn't take news of the Prince of Johto coming to the kingdom very well.
Caroline seemed to understand what her husband felt. "Don't worry. I'm sure she will warm up to him eventually."
"I can only hope so, Caroline."
His wife gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "When will the prince arrive?"
"In a few days."
"A few days? Well we should get things tidy around here then!"
Norman chuckled at his wife's antics, but agreed.
"Then, we'll have the servants set up the guest room right away."
…Meanwhile, May and Dawn were continuing to talk in May's room…
"So May, if you weren't hoping to be wed to LaRousse, who would you wish to wed to instead?"
"Dawn!"
"Just answer the question!"
"Well…I don't know. I haven't met any boys that I've liked yet, so who knows?"
"How about Brandon?"
"Brandon and I are only good friends. He is a knight and I'm a princess. I don't think we were destined."
"How about the other Prince? Prince of Kanto."
"Hmm…I've never met him, but I've heard that he was handsome," She said, giggling to herself.
Dawn clasped her hands together and said in a girly manner. "Yeah! I've heard he was good looking, kind, and wise!"
"Hehe, I think that's enough Dawn. Do you want to get a quick bite to eat?"
"Oh you bet I would."
May giggled. Although Dawn wasn't a big eater such as herself, she still had a passion for tasty food.
The two had quickly made their way back to the dining room, where they would get something to eat.
Upon arrival, they were greeted by the chef, Peter.
"Your Highness. How may I serve you and your friend?"
Dawn cut in. "I would like one slice of apple pie please!"
"And I would like one full apple pie please!" May told the chef.
Peter laughed at the young girl's unusually large appetite. "Haha. Coming right up!"
As their food arrived, May quickly began digging away at the poor pie, quickly devoured by the scary girl's appetite. All the while, Dawn watched with an amused expression as she slowly ate her slice of pie.
"That was delicious," May said, wiping off the crumbs off of her face, while patting her belly.
Dawn sweatdropped. "How can you finish a whole pie? Nobody in this world could even come close to matching an appetite like you.
May rubbed the back of her head nervously. "I have no idea. I guess I just can eat more food than others."
Her friend shook her head and smiled. "Let's go. I'm sure your father would wish for us to help prepare."
"Sounds good."
And with nothing further to discuss, they left the room.
