Chapter 2:
3 Weeks Later…..
It had been a long day at the Alolan islands. The students of the Pokémon school were spending their evening by the beach training. But this wasn't any ordinary training.
They were running the length of the beach for an annual local competition.
It was almost like a relay race of sorts, where the trainer couldn't ride any rideable Pokémon, but they had to travel with them. Where the track mostly went around in circles. Each lap the course changed locations. It was a way that the young trainers of the islands could get together and participate in a competition.
And when there was a competition involved the students of the Pokémon academy were sure to follow
"No fair Ash!" Sophocles had to stop and catch his breath, "Can't you just slow down?"
"Sorry! I can't lose this!" Ash had the lead, followed closely by two people who he didn't know.
Ash dashed forward with Pikachu by his side. It felt like old times when they would constantly go running around for miles without a care in the world.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu was so excited to be running alongside Ash and the beach that he had to squeal in delight.
"And here we have the Kanto native Ash Ketchum in the lead with his pal Pikachu, followed closely by…" Ash didn't hear anything else but jumped for joy. He could see the finish line on the top of the hill.
"And we have our winner! It's Ash from the Pokemon school!" Everyone burst out into cheers, whistles and more.
"Pikachu! We won!" Ash ran forward to greet his buddy with a hug and was greeted by happy squeals from the yellow Pokemon.
It didn't take long for the others to follow suit. Mallow and Lana came in Fourth and fifth, Kiawe was in Eighth and Sophocles was dead last. Everyone came into the finish line huffing and puffing.
"Congrats Ash!" Mallow high fived the trainer.
"I didn't know someone could run that fast," Sophocles placed his hands on his knees as he tried to catch his breath.
"I used to train like that with a lot of my Pokemon," Ash rubbed the back of his head as he blushed, "It's no big deal!"
But then the sound of a grumbling belly reached everyone's ears.
"Sorry guys! I've got to run home!" Sophocles gathered his belongings and his Pokemon, "My mom promised me my favorite meal after the race."
"I've got to go too," Lana had already started to walk away, "I promised my mom I'd help put my siblings to bed."
Everyone soon said their goodbyes and all went their separate ways.
"Some race huh?" Kikui walked up to Ash, "You smoked those guys out there!"
Ash just laughed and accepted a high five from the Professor.
"Thanks Professor! Glad you were there to see it," Ash
"Hey, I have to run by the school for a last-minute meeting. Do you mind going home by yourself?" Kikui held out the house key for Ash to grab.
"Sure thing, Professor!" Ash grabbed the key and ran off toward the house leaving a smiling Kikui behind.
Ash sure did enjoy the atmosphere of the Alolan Islands. It was peaceful, calm and the nature made it one of the most beautiful places he'd ever traveled. It was like a warm blanket had been cast over his soul that he had never experienced before.
Even as the night sky had appeared after the breath-taking sunset, he marveled at the many stars he could see. It beat anything he had ever seen before, give or take the many interactions he had with legendary Pokemon some people would only dream of seeing, let alone interacting with.
It didn't take long for Ash to make it back to Kikui's house. When he entered the door of the house he let out the biggest yawn he thought he'd ever let loose.
"Man, I must me more exhausted then I realized," Pikachu chirped his agreement and skittered across the floor to the nearby couch.
Ash then tried to turn on the lights, but they didn't come on. Confusion settled as he tried it again, but this time, a chill ran up Ash's spine.
Pikachu noticed how still Ash was and voiced his concern.
"I'm alright Pikachu. Just going to go step outside and check the fuse box," Ash turned toward the back door and made his way to the breaker box, "I'll be right back buddy."
Pikachu chirped happily and soon Ash was out the door.
When he arrived, it seemed like nothing happened. No lines were cut, nothing seemed out of place and nothing seemed tampered with.
"So, what caused the power outage?" Rustling in the bushes behind the house caught his attention, followed by a familiar sensation. It was one of being able to see through another's eyes, trailed by a connection to a strong bond.
He recognized that bond!
With a gasp, Ash quickly closed his eyes and soon found himself looking through the eyes of another. It showed that he was in a clearing, surrounded by forests all around. In the clearing were flowers that were growing there. Blue ones that seemed to shimmer in the arising moonlight. Ash knew exactly where that was as he often went with Pikachu to clear his head after a long day of school or training.
"I'm coming!" He used his mine to try and communicate with the Pokemon he had a feeling was on the other side listening in.
Ash rounded the path and he stopped. Something didn't feel right. A darkness crept into his soul and mind, one that he had not experienced before. It made the temperature inside of his body drop and Ash grew colder than normal from the rather warm night.
He decided that it was probably for the best that he take it slow.
"Hello? Anyone out there?" Ash cupped his hands around his mouth to try and make his voice sound louder. First there was no reply then there seemed to be the faint sound of someone or something struggling, "Hello?"
And then the reply he received froze him to the ground.
It was Greninja calling. And it wasn't just some run of the mill Greninja.
It was his.
Ash broke free from the freeze and rushed forward toward the clearing, taking great care not to trip over anything. He soon found himself inundated with the smell of the flowers that bloomed there. This confirmed that he was heading in the right direction.
Soon Ash was blinded by the moonlight as the tress parted and he found himself in the clearing. Ash stopped at the edge of the clearing, looking for the source of the outcry; his eyes soon landing on a Greninja trapped in a net that seemed to shock him every once in a while.
"Greninja!" Ash darted forward and started to untangle his friend from the net. This only resulted in getting shocked away from the water Pokemon, "What's going on?"
Greninja tried to explain what had happened to him. How some evil people came and attacked him while he was spending time with Bonnie and Clement, and then a person he thought he recognized had managed to hit him with stun spores. He was the subsequently knocked out and when he woke he was in this field.
"Did you get hurt?"
Greninja shook his head. The only thing that hurt him was the stun spores.
"I've got to get you out of here!" Ash darted forward again and then once again tried to free his friends from the confinements of the net.
"I wouldn't do that if I were you!" Ash quickly whipped around but couldn't see the source of the voice.
But he soon felt the effect of something.
Bolas soon wrapped themselves around his feet and around his torso causing him to fall down. Ash desperately tried to free himself but wasn't successful.
Greninja even tried to free himself as well, wanting so very much to help his now entrapped trainer.
"Get him on his knees!" All of a sudden at least five other people dressed all similarly to each other came from the shadows and surrounded Ash. Two of the more burlier men took Ash by the shoulders and very roughly and painfully had him sit in a position sitting on his knees. Ash struggled against the vice grip hold of these men and didn't stop, no matter how painful it got.
"It's been a while hasn't it Ash?" Ash stopped struggling and turned toward the sixth person who walked up to him. This man had red hair that was buzzed on the sides but then pulled back into a pony tail. He even wore sunglasses that obscured his eyes from anyone.
"How do you know my name?" Ash resumed his struggling, but swiftly stopped when then hands holding him down started to crush his shoulders.
The man knelt down and drew closer to the vulnerable trainer. Greninja called out in terrified croaks letting Ash know that this man meant business.
"I should have known that even when I tried to control you in Kalos that you would forget about me," The man lowered his glasses to expose his eyes.
In recognition, Ash lost all the will to struggle and pulled his legs out from underneath him. He just stared at the man in front of him for a few seconds, only to be replaced by anger with a slight mix of fear.
"Lysandre! But I watched you fall into the rock explosion!" Ash tried to back away, but soon backed into two other men that had followed this crazy man here.
"I did! But in the blink of an eye, some Pokemon caught me and whisked me away," Lysandre did nothing but sit and glare at Ash.
"Well then, what is it that you want with me and Greninja this time?" Ash resumed his struggling.
"Well, if I were to tell you that then where would the fun be?" Lysandre turned to the fifth person and grabbed a rag that had been held out to him. He then rubbed it in between his fingers, "But like my old man used to say, you can be knocked down, but it doesn't mean you're out (Jud Nelson)."
And with that Ash's mouth and nose were covered in the rag that Lysandre had been given. Almost immediately Ash felt his mind start to swim, with there being a simultaneous battle over the control of his muscles and movement.
Ash could feel one of Lysandre's hands in front holding the rag in place and the other was behind his head keeping him from moving it. With nothing else to do, Ash began to make noises in hopes that someone would hear him before the effects of whatever was on the rag started to take hold.
"Shhhhhhhh…There's no need for that here!" Lysandre pressed harder on Ash's face taking immense pleasure in the boy's discomfort, "Just breath in nice deep breaths."
Lysandre smiled creepily as he could tell the boy was losing the battle to stay conscious quickly. Very little noise came from his vocal chords and his eye lids began to droop. He could also feel the muscles in Ash's neck begin to relax.
Ash felt the contents of the rag begin to ravage his conscious mind. It was becoming too much. He vaguely remembered being shushed, and being told to take deep breaths, which was he relaxed was forced to do so. He then felt fingers caress his face causing him to relax further.
"Just like a moth to a flame," Lysandre whispered into the ears of Ash, "You always did have a big heart for Pokemon. Mark my words, this will be the death of you."
And with the sound of Greninja's anguish filled cries, Ash fell into the dark confines of unconsciousness.