Mastermind of the Mirage

Hey guys, I'm here with yet another fan fiction. This is my version of the 42 minute episode of 'the mastermind of mirage Pokémon'.

Disclaimer- I don't own Pokémon. If I did, I wouldn't be writing fanfiction.

IMPORTANT: this is set when Ash Ketchum returns from Sinnoh league, making it to the top 4. Assume that 'The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon' never happened during Hoenn. As the title suggests, it happens now. While resting for some time at his home in pallet, he gets that invitation from dr. young, along with a certain someone…..ENOUGH! On with the story…..

In case anyone's wondering, here are the ages-

Ash- 16

Misty- 16 and a half

Brock- 18

Dawn- 13

May-14

Professor Oak- 63

Dr. Young- 25

The Invitation to a new Lab

Ash Ketchum, the Pokémon Master-in-training was sitting in his bed, reading the blue hued invitation for what seemed like fiftieth time that day. "This is too good, Pikachu!" he squealed to his first Pokémon."Only the best trainers in the world have gotten this invitation for a new battle system!"

"Pika!" The little mouse exclaimed, jumping on his trainer's lap to get a glimpse at the object which was driving his Pikapi nuts.

xxxxx

To- Mr. Ash Ketchum

Sir,

Congratulations on making it to the Top 4 in the Sinnoh league. It is an exceptional achievement at such a young age. This proves that you are a very able trainer.

By considering all of the above, I would like to invite you to witness a very new battle system that I have invented after years of hard work. Only the best trainers across the world are allowed to, for now. Kindly be present at 24th April, 9:00 AM at my laboratory in Drewford forest, with all of your able Pokémon.

Looking forward to your presence

Dr. Young

xxxxx

"How about we invite Brock too, buddy?" Ash asked "after all it's always good to have his company". Pikachu nodded his little head to show his approval before scampering into the kitchen. Time for some ketchup raid…

The raven haired trainer smiled at the retreating Pokémon. Pikachu was always by his side, supporting him throughout his journey. How the little mouse had changed and developed from fighting 'with' him to fighting 'for' him. He never gave up on him. He never left his side, no matter what…

Next was Brock, the father figure for him. He was mostly calm and composed, except when he surrendered to his girl-crazy mode. Ash always looked up to him. Plus, he was the only one, besides Pikachu, who could 'actually' break his fight with Misty.

Misty…..that name. The strong-headed tomboy who had fished him and his Pikachu from that river years ago. His best friend. Ash absolutely loved everything about her. Her flaming, fire-red hair, her pretty, cerulean blue eyes, the fire which was always simmering in those tantalizing orbs of hers, her spark, her fiery demeanor, her feisty personality, her sarcastic responses, her companionship…..Heck! He even loved her raging temper! All through his journey in Hoenn and Sinnoh regions, in the back of his head, he always wished that his former redheaded companion would return, that they would be together, just like they had always been….

But he knew that was not possible. They both had their own responsibilities.

Misty had to run the gym. Not to mention, she was doing an excellent job. The gym was declared the toughest, by the Pokémon league chairman, Mr. Goodshow over two years ago. And surprising enough, it had maintained its lead till now.

He himself had a dream to complete, to become the world's greatest Pokémon master ever. The trainer had gotten stronger over these six years, catching and training various kinds of Pokémon.

Pulling himself out of his reverie, he threw on a pair of baggy, gray shorts and a black tee.

Walking down the fleet of stairs, the raven-haired boy went over to personal video phone in his house. Mr. Mime was bent over the communication machine, busy dusting the thing off.

"Are you done with it Mimey?" he asked cheerfully.

"Mime mime!" The imitation Pokémon returned his enthusiasm with a nod of his head and a thumbs up before skitting off the complete the rest of the chores.

With a smile, Ash sat on the seat in front of the phone and dialed the number of the Pewter city Gym.

After a few rings, the trainer heard someone pick up and a familiar face appeared on the screen.

"Hey, Br-May? Whatcha doing there?" He asked, utterly confused.

"Oh, hey Ash! Long time no see, huh?" The brunette smiled.

"Yup, it sure has. How've you been?"

"Oh, I've been great. You know, I've won 5 ribbons in Johto so far"

"That's awesome, May! Good job"

"Thank you Ash! By the way, Congratulations on making it to the top 4. I saw the tournament on television. You were great out there"

"Thanks! Not to be rude, but why are you here?"

"You see, I was returning back to Petalburg city for while. I wanted to spend some time with Mom, Dad and Max. Plus, Drew is also coming back. I just wanna meet them. It's been forever"

"But I guess the ferry leaves from the Vermillion city. So how come you're in Pewter?"

"True, but I needed to cross Pewter to get to Vermillion. I remembered that Brock lived here, so I came to meet up with him"

"That's cool. Anyways, when are you leaving?"

"On the 26th of April. But Ash, can I ask you a question?"

"Shoot"

"Why did you call? Did you want to talk with Brock?"

"Oh yeah! I almost forgot. Could you get him?"

"Sure!" And with that, May yelled "Brock! Ash is on the phone for ya. Come fast!"

Ash chuckled in the background. 'Typical May' he thought.

She hadn't changed very much. Her hair had grown just a bit and the trademark bandana was nowhere to be found.

After a few moments, a spiky haired man appeared, sitting beside the brunette.

"Hey, Ash! All fine?" He waved at the younger boy

"Hey Brock-o, everything's fine. What about you?"

"Ah, the same old stuff. So, what's up?"

"Actually I wanted to talk to you about something important"

And for the next five minutes, Ash told them about the invitation, mentioning every detail while the other two just stared or nodded. When he asked them about joining, their expressions grew thoughtful.

"So, will you guys be able to make it?" He asked hopefully.

The oordinator and the aspiring Pokémon doctor looked at each other and broke out in giggles simultaneously.

"Well, I'm not going until 26th, so I will definitely join you. I may not be a battler, but I would absolutely love to see the new battle system! What about you Brock?"

"I think that my mother and father can take care of the gym, so I am coming too. Happy now, Ash?"

"You bet!"

"So, we'll meet up with you in Vermillion city tonight 8:00 PM. From there we'll take an overnight ferry to Drewford. Sounds good?"

"It's awesome. So, I guess I'll see you guys tonight huh? Oh and by the way, bring six of your strongest Pokémon with you. The letter says so"

"Kay, Ash. See ya later. Bye!"

"Bye, May! Bye Brock!"

"So, let the packing begin!" he shouted childishly before zooming into his room to select the Pokémon he would be taking.

Meanwhile, in Cerulean City

"Bulbasaur, vine whip!" a kid, no more than eleven shouted desperately, seeing his grass Pokémon lose to a water type.

"Staryu, ice beam!" the redhead from across the kid commanded, calm and composed, contradicting with the attitude of her opponent.

The grass type did unleash the whips, but missed due to fatigue of the battle. As soon as the attack from the foe was over, the star shaped Pokémon let loose a white, magnificent beam heading straight for Bulbasaur. As soon as the first streak made contact, it immediately froze upon the poor Pokémon. Soon, he was covered entirely in ice, and the winner of the match was an obvious one.

"Bulbasaur is unable to battle, Staryu wins! The winner of this match is Misty, the gym leader!" the referee raised the red flag towards the water Pokémon trainer, confirming the win.

"Oh, no Bulbasaur!" the kid yelled, running up to the floating platform, scooping the frozen Pokémon in his arms, looking very worried.

"Staryu, return!" she recalled the tired Pokémon." You won! I'm very proud of you". She then turned to the amateur trainer.

"That was a great battle, Markus. You and your Bulbasaur sure gave us a run for our money!" she said cheerfully, hoping to relieve him a bit.

"Thanks, but I am worried about him" Markus replied, somewhat sheepishly.

"Oh, no need to worry about that. I'll heal him" she said with a smile.

Really?" he asked, hope glinting in his eyes.

"Of course! We just have to defeat the Pokémon, not kill them. I'll bring him back in a few secs" she said, carefully cradling the ice- covered Pokémon in her arms lightly. "You can look through the aquarium till then"

The boy timidly nodded and went in the direction of the aquarium. Once he got there, he was totally mesmerized by the sheer beauty and elegance of the place.

There were many tanks in the place, all filled with water and water Pokémon. The posters of water Pokémon and the specialists in the field adorned the walls, ceiling and the floor. In the tanks, he saw many Pokémon, not only which he was familiar with as Kanto-exclusive, but also those about whom he didn't know anything about.

'Probably from another region' he thought as walked around, looking at all the different species. They may be differing from each other in matters of shape and size, but there was one thing common in all of them. They were looking incredibly strong. Not the evil-strong kind. They still held a lovable gaze, and helped each other whenever necessary. They lived in perfect harmony in this little world of theirs, something which humans were still struggling for.

After a few yards, he stopped dead in his tracks as he saw a ferocious looking Gyarados glaring at a target. 'Perhaps practicising its water gun attack' he thought, but didn't dare move from there. His jaw dropped to the ground as he saw a static of electricity emerging from the atrocious Pokémon's body, making it all the way to the target. And what was more amazing that it hit the target at dead-centre. 'A thunderbolt attack from a water Pokémon with perfect accuracy!'

Markus watched, even more dumbfounded, as flames started spewing from Gyarados' mouth, making a Chinese alphabet. 'A fire blast attack!' his eyes grew big in surprise. 'A water type using the most powerful attack of any fire type!' And here he thought he could win…..

"Markus, your Bulbasaur is perfectly fine now!" the sweet voice of the Gym Leader rang through the entire room, leading to a Vaporeon and a Gardevoir to zoom past him to the source of the voice.

He left the Aquarium in a haze, memories of the powerful Pokémon still clear in front of his eyes. As he neared the hall, Markus could make out the Bubble Jet Pokémon standing near her mistress' feet, alert, while the Embrace Pokémon was next to her, smiling, as Misty lovingly petted her.

"Bulba!" the dual grass and poison type jumped into its trainer's arms, happy to see him.

Hey Bulbasaur! You okay now?" he asked his first Pokémon, still concerned about him.

"Oh, he's totally fine. He is a very strong Pokémon Markus" she complimented, giving the grass type a wink.

"Thanks a lot Misty!" he expressed his genuine gratitude "and I will be back for a rematch!"

"Well, I would be looking forward to it" she smirked, good-naturedly. "Bye, Markus"

"Bye…..oh, and Misty?"

"Yeah?"

"They are right when they say that you are the best Gym leader in all of Kanto…."

"Thanks, Markus"

As he left, she turned to check up on all of the paperwork and the Pokémon. After not very long, squeaks of the doors of the gym being opened were heard.

Misty turned to face whoever was at the door, Vaporeon and Gardevoir beside her. Moments later, a girl came into view, walking timidly in the Building. She had big, sapphire eyes and midnight blue hair. She was wearing a pink and black frock along with a white beanie and a hot pink scarf.

"Is this the Cerulean gym?" she asked, a bit of adrenaline kicking in.

"Yes, it is. Are you here for a battle?" the redhead asked. She didn't want to battle anymore for the day, but she just couldn't shut the trainers out.

"Uh….no. I have actually come to deliver a letter" she answered, forcing a half-smile.

"A letter?" Misty echoed a bit confused. Generally, all the messages came by mail. She didn't really receive any letters except for a useless bunch of 'love' ones.

The bluenette nodded. "A letter….for the Gym Leader of Cerulean city"

==END OF CHAPTER 1==

So guys, that's it for this chapter. Do REVIEW and tell me how did you like it. This is a remake of the Episode and IT IS NOT A COPY OF THAT. It will have its own twists and turns, and our favorite pairing ;)

DO REVIEW; IT MAKES MY DAY…

Also, expect updates of my others fics very soon. And if you haven't already read them, do check it out and review

THANKS GUYS. LOVE YOU ALL. TILL THE NEXT TIME…