The Ranger and the Princess
Hello everybody, This is my first attempt at a fanfic. I hope that it will reach the standards you place upon this fic when reading. I meant to release this on Valentines day (not a good day for me, never has been and that just added to it) but Pages doesn't work on this site so, I had to get a new program and that took time. This is set sometime in the Middle Ages, but there is no specific time it's set at.
I don't own Pokemon
Chapter 1: Prologue
"The dead cannot cry out for justice. It is a duty of the living to do so for them."
-Lois McMaster Bujold
A woman sprinted away from the burning village cradling a baby bundled in some cloth hurriedly wrapped around the baby. The air was heavy with smoke and ash that held a luminescent red glow that emitted from behind her. She ran with a stream of blood coming from a large gash on her leg that trickled onto the green grass barley wet with dew as the night turned into the morning.
She was heading straight towards the river that ran from the village out of the region and as she ran the baby she cradled in some grey cloth was crying loudly and the mother attempted in vain to calm him down with soothing words but only managed to choke out a few weak words of comfort. She knew she had to get the child out of the town, but she hadn't listened to the warnings that Lord Oak had given her. She still remembered when he had come to her with his warning.
-FLASHBACK-
It was a nice spring day as Lord Oak walked towards his dear friend's home. While they normally had tea together and enjoyed these times he got to spend with his friend he has important matters to discuss this time. This time he was not looking forward to their meeting.
He slowly approached the small house just a short ways away from his own home. It was a modest home. A beautiful garden decorated the front, contributing the welcoming feeling of the home.
He approached the door and knocked twice and waited for a few momnets before his dear friend Delia Ketchum opened up the door for him with a beautiful smile.
"Lord Oak, its wonderful to see you again." She says to him, a broad grin oon her face.
"I don't know who started this whole "lord" business but I really hope people stop calling me that. I am a professor that comes from a wealthy family. At best I'm a noble." He says with an annoyed look on his face
Delia chuckled at his reaction. She knew it got under his skin but she couldn't help herself.
"Please come in, the tea is already on the table." She says as she steps aside, allowing him entrance to her home.
"Thank you Delia, but I have some serious matters to discus with you this time." He said as he sat down at a small table with two chairs placed adjacent to each other supporting two saucers with empty cups and a small silver pot of steaming tea with a cloth wrapped around the handle to prevent someone from getting burned.
"Delia you must understand how dire the situation truly is. The Kingdom of Hoenn has been brought down to its knees, pushed to the farthest reaches of their land where they hold out in Petalburg City and Rustboro City, which is currently under siege. Sinnoh isn't fairing any better, They just lost Hearthome City and have fallen back to Snowpoint City, their last stronghold. Their frontlines aren't far away. They have managed to hold King Giovanni's forces at Eterna City and Celestic Town but I worry for how long they will be able to hold that front. Only the Iron Islands have been left untouched. Even Giovanni knows what will happen if he attempts to take on the Aura Guardians. He's already in complete control of the Orange Islands and the Kingdom of Johto. It may take a few more years to prepare but he doesn't even have to take out Hoenn, he can just use it as a checkpoint to get to Unova. You must leave immediately if you are to escape. He knows of your heritage now and therefore your child's. Your child is the inly threat to his throne and he will not hesitate to kill him. His reach spreads far so you must leave now if you are to outrun him. It's your only chance." Lord Oak says
"I will not raise my son in some place other than where his home really is. A life of running around in fear is not a life at all and certainly not the one I will have for my son." Delia said defiance written in her eyes.
"A life in hiding isn't a bad one. We could get you to Unova, or perhaps you could stay with the remaining forces in Hoenn. While it is risky being so close to the enemy you will have an escape route if you are attacked and it's the place he will least suspect you to be at." Oak argued with her.
"Professor I will not be ran from my home because our so called "king" is afraid of a 9 month old baby"
"Please Delia listen to reason. Your putting your son in grave danger because of your own stubbornness. Do you really want Pallet town to be burned to the ground? They will be here within the month and they will be here for blood. Oak sighed and ran a finger through his hair. "At least know that I have will be staying in Hoenn for a time. I fear Giovanni wishes to recruit Gary into his twisted army. If you change your mind travel down the river and I will have an extra room set up for you." With that Professor Oak stood up and walked out of the Ketchum residence.
-END FLASHBACK-
Now she had paid the price as she watched as the entirety of Pallet town burned to the ground by a woman on a Salamance and soldiers sent by King Giovanni.
She had received the cut from a falling piece of wood while attempting escape from her burning home with her only child. She would never forget the sadistic grin on the face of the woman on the Salamance, but that wouldn't matter because soon she wouldn't have a memory to use. She would be dead soon and she knew it.
All that mattered was getting the one that they had come to kill to safety. Sprinting along the bushes and trees that scratched and clawed at her as she ran by. She carried the baby, that all this destruction had been caused for. The desolation of an entire town and its people for one child. She was almost to the river where she could use the docks to get him to safety in the Hoenn region and to Lord Oak who was waiting about sixteen miles down river. She knew the risks that came with this plan, but anything was better than dying at the hands of a Salamance.
She burst through underbrush that lead to the small dock that had a fishing rod leaning against one of the supportive pillars and a rowboat built for one person. She gently laid the baby in the small boat and tore out the parchment she had grabbed before she left her home and began scribbling furiously using a piece of charcoal as a pen.
She froze just a few words away from finishing as she heard the roar of a Salamance originating from not far away. she quickly finished writing and gave the baby a quick kiss and looked into his deep brown eyes still fresh with tears.
"I'm so sorry, I wish I could have been a better mother to yo-" she stopped and let out a sob, finally allowing the tears she and held back to come loose.
"But now you must find your own way without me. Just remember that I'll always love you" with those final words Delia Ketchum pushed the boat downstream towards the Hoenn region.
Just as the boat disappeared from sight multiple Houndoom burst from where she had not a minute earlier with men suited in gleaming silver armor, the crest of the Kanto region imprinted on each of their breastplates, following shortly after.
"Where is he?" a woman atop a Salamance demanded in a harsh voice.
"Hidden" Delia said with a small smile. The calm look on the woman's face vanished and transformed into one of unbridled anger.
"If you tell us where you hid him I might just let you live." she said with barley-contained anger.
Delia just shook her head and said, "You'll kill me even if I tell you".
The woman the looks at Delia for a few seconds, her face turning into a smirk then she simply says "true". Delia's body disappeared into a beam of white light originating from the mouth of the Salamance and when the beam dissipated, all that remained was a smoking crater and some burnt cloth slowly diminishing to cinders.
The woman atop the Salamance turned to the men and said "Fan out and search the area for the boy. There are only so many places she could have hidden him and I don't care if you have to burn the whole forest down just find him. I have never failed a mission and I not going to start to just because of a small boy and his whore mother."
"Yes Hunter J" the men shouted and fanned out in different directions to search for the boy.
With that she began to slowly glide over the forest as the men below split up into different directions and began to search for the baby, none of them considering that the former Delia Ketchum would send her child down the river.
-NEXT MORNING-
A small wooden boat drifted lazily along a river until it a small rock pushed it towards the edge of the river where the current had no affect. A curious Poochyena cautiously walked towards the unfamiliar object that came to rest on its pack's territory.
The Poochyena peered over the edge and was surprised to see what appeared to be a sleeping human child. As it stared the baby stirred in its slumber and awoke. The child blinked sleepily and looked up at the Poochyena with red puffy eyes indicating that it had been crying. The Poochyena simply stared, not knowing what to do and the baby stared back eyes full of curiosity.
It was silent except for the soft breeze and an occasional Taillow or even rare Pidgey flying over head. It was broken by the loud rumbling coming from the baby's stomach causing a fresh wave of tears and bouts of crying to come from the baby.
The Poochyena didn't know what to do, so it ran into the bushes close by and emerged a few minutes later followed by a cautious Treeko and Torchic by its side along with an Oran Berry in its mouth. The two new companions stayed back from the boat unsure about their friends new discovery was a good one or a bad one.
The Poochyena carefully laid down the Oran berry at the top of the boat and it rolled until it hit the baby's leg. It stopped its wailing almost instantly and picked the Oran berry, studying it for a moment then taking large bites from it until it disappeared into its mouth. The Baby then looked up at the Poochyena again, hopeful for more but then began to crawl towards it with some difficulty due to the swaying boat.
The child eventually managed to climb over the low railing of the boat and onto land, right in front of the Poochyena with a Treeko and a Torchic cautiously moving towards him. He blinked at them all once and then proceeded to crawl towards the bushes, but the Poochyena quickly bit down on the cloth that adorned the baby's waist and dragged it back towards the boat and laid him down at the bow where he had first climbed out of the boat. It barked its name a few times at him, but the baby only tilted its head in confusion and stared.
The Poochyena sat down and began to think of a way to solve this problem, its waging tail mesmerizing the child. With surprisingly fast speed the child clamped onto the tail of the Poochyena and it yelped in pain. The child paid it no heed though as he began to play with the tail, pulling hairs out and giving an occasional tug. The Poochyena, unable to do anything called for his friends to help, but they were too busy laughing at the situation their friend had gotten into to do anything. Eventually the Treeko calmed down enough to come over and pull the child away along with a clump of hair from the Poochyena's tail.
The Poochyena began to do circles around itself in a vain attempt to see its tail only causing more laughter from the other three. The happy moment was cut short however when a Mightyena walked through the bushes causing all laughter to stop dead. The Mightyena stared at the seen unsure what to do with the immediate problem, i.e. the child. It walked over to it and sniffed the baby for a moment before determining that it was of no threat it then barked at the Poochyena asking where the child came from.
After a quick explanation from the three pokemon the Mightyena sat down and stared directly into the child's eyes. After what seemed to be an eternity the Mightyena bit the child gently by its cloth and began to carry it away with the other three in tow. None of them, however noticed the small piece of parchment weighted down by some soot covered grey cloth that still lay in the boat.
Well there's the first chapter, and possibly the only chapter depending on how you guys like this. I know that Geographical locations I've put everything at aren't on point, but they need to be where I place them. Criticism, support, suggestions, and anything else are welcome. This was long overdue to publish, I just didn't have the balls to click the publish tab (Thanks Alec). I hope you enjoyed and I'll try to update every week, so until next time.
-Sincerely,
novaking2832