Pokémon Archduke: Chapter 2

Ash was running along towards Vaniville Town, Serena's hometown. "Ash, wait up!" Serena shouted. "Gotta keep up Serena!" Ash yelled back. Finally, Ash stopped on a hill overlooking Vaniville Town. Serena, Clemont, and Bonnie finally caught up with him. Serena had been running so fast that she slipped and fell into Ash, sending them both rolling down the hill, before Serena landed on Ash at the bottom.

Ash and Serena were laughing as they lay at the bottom of the hill. "Sorry about that Ash" Serena said. "No problem" Ash responded. Suddenly, they both realized what position they were in, as their faces were inches away, and Serena was lying on top of him. Serena and ash blushed bright red as Bonnie and Clemont ran down the hill.

"AW!" Bonnie cried as she saw Ash and Serena. "You guys are so CUTE!" the little girl cried. Serena, blushing redder than a ripe tomato, tried to get up, but slipped on a patch of wet dirt, and fell back onto Ash, who was also blushing. "Stupid shoes" Serena groaned as she got back on her feet. Ash laughed as he also got back up.

Before Ash or Serena could say anything, Grace, Serena's mother came running up. "You guys ok? I saw you two rolling down the hill" Grace said. "We're fine mom" Serena said, blushing again. Grace smiled, noticing Serena's blush. "Well, at least Ash was comfortable to lay on, because you looked more comfortable laying on him than on the couch at home" Grace laughed. "MOM!" Serena shouted, blushing even more now.

"See! Even Mrs. Yvonne agrees with me!" Bonnie shouted in joy. Serena tried to bury her face in her hair, but then realized that it was now too short. "Probably should've thought this through a little more" Serena thought. "I like your new hairstyle" Grace said. "Thanks mom" Serena grumbled.

"Well, who wants something to eat?" Grace asked. Surprisingly, Ash didn't answer. "Ash, you ok?" Clemont asked. "F-fine" Ash responded. Ash then began to walk off. "Ash, where are you going?" Serena asked. "I-I just need some alone time for a little bit… I'll be back soon," Ash said, before running off.

Serena watched him go before turning on her mother. "See what you did! He probably hates me now!" Serena cried as she ran into the house. Grace was stunned, but simply sighed as she walked into the house to prepare dinner.

Ash was walking through Vaniville Town, thinking about the brief conversation with Grace. "Does Serena like me?" Ash wondered. "No, she doesn't. Heck, who would?" ash thought, before bumping into someone. A large man turned around. "Watch it!" He said. "Sorry" Ash said, before walking away. Little did he know, that same man then turned around and whipped out a small transmitter. "He's here" the man whispered.

Ash saw a large crowd surrounding someone, who was signing autographs. When Ash approached, he was shocked at who it was. It was an 18-year-old man with blond hair, and ice-blue eyes. Lyke Lexandera Sownil, the undefeated, undisputed Pokémon champion. Ash had only seen Lyke battle once, in the Kanto League Finals. He went undefeated and never lost a single Pokémon.

Lyke looked up from his autographs and looked at Ash. Lyke smiled. "Ash Ketchum" Lyke said. "You know me?" Ash asked, stunned. "Of course, your father and I were good friends." Lyke said. "You knew my father?" Ash asked. "Yes… his death was most unfortunate." Lyke said. "So, my father really is dead" Ash said sadly. "I'm sorry. But he loved you more than life itself" Lyke said.

Lyke finished the last of his autographs, and walked over to Ash. "What are you doing in Vaniville Town by yourself?" Lyke asked. "I'm not alone, my friends are at Grace Yvonne's house" Ash said. "Lyke's eyes darkened briefly, but then Lyke smiled. "Ah, Mrs. Yvonne. A fine lady. She has a daughter, yes?" Lyke asked. "Yes, my friend Serena" Ash said.

"Serena… yes. A fine young lady that one is. A little hot-headed though if you ask me" Lyke said. "Serena hot-headed? You must be mistaken. Serena is very nice, especially to me" Ash protested. Lyke smiled. "Perhaps she has changed since we last saw each other. May I accompany you to their house?" Lyke asked. "Sure! I'm sure she'll be happy to see you again" Ash said.

As they began making the walk back to Serena's house, Lyke pressed a small button on his watch, which began flashing. Lyke covered his watch with his sleeve, and kept walking, darkness filling his eyes once again.

Ash walked into the house first. "Hey Ash… sorry about earlier" Serena said, as she made lunch for Bonnie and Clemont, who were sitting at the table with Grace. "It's ok. I found a friend of yours, and you won't believe who it is!" Ash said. Lyke walked into the room, and smiled.

Serena dropped the bowl she was holding and it shattered on the ground. Grace immediately got up and stood in front of Serena, as if defending her. "Murderer!" Grace shouted. "Ash, how could you bring him here! I thought we were friends!" Serena screamed, tears welling in her eyes.

"What is this?" Ash asked, turning to Lyke, anger growing in him. Kyle's happy smile was gone, replaced by one of sadness and grief. "I killed Mr. Yvonne 8 years earlier. That is why they left Kanto." Lyke said softly. Ash's eyes widened, and he stood in front of Serena and Grace. "If you want to kill them, you'll have to kill me first" Ash said.

"I don't want to kill anyone, just as I didn't want to kill Mr. Yvonne" Lyke said. "LIAR!" Grace screamed. "His name was Travis! And you want to kill us, just like you killed him!" Grace shouted. "I NEVER WOULD HAVE HARMED TRAVIS IN ANY WAY! HE TRIED TO KILL ME! I HAD NO CHOICE!" Lyke shouted, a lone tear rolling down his cheek. "He was my best friend… but he killed Red Ketchum, and tried to kill me!" Lyke said softly, as he stared at the ground.

"Lyke, how could you lie to me?" Ash asked angrily. "Is that what he calls himself? Lyke?" Grace chuckled. "Why is that funny?" Ash asked. "That's not his name." Grace said. Ash turned to Lyke. "Then what is your real name?" Ash asked.

Lyke sighed. "My real name is Kyle Alexander Wilson" Lyke said. Ash understood. "Lyke" was a misspelling of "Kyle", and so was "Alexander" and "Wilson". "My dad was the nicest guy in the world! He'd never kill anyone!" Serena shouted. Kyle sighed. "I thought so too… until he murdered Ash's father in cold blood and then turned on me!" Kyle growled.

"ENOUGH!" A loud voice commanded. A small Pokémon with rings on his head floated down to around eye-level. "Hoopa!" Serena said, stunned at the guardian of Kalos' presence. "Old friend… it is good to see you" Kyle said, smiling softly. "You too Kyle" Hoopa said. Ash quickly looked up Hoopa on his pokedex. "Hoopa, is what Kyle says true?" Grace asked softly. "I'm afraid so" Hoopa said sadly.

Grace crumbled to the ground, as grief overwhelmed her. Serena stood stunned, tears rolling down her face as pictures of her kind, loving father were replaced of ones with him standing over Red Ketchum's body with a bloody knife, smiling evilly. Serena turned to run, but Ash caught her by the arm. Serena turned and began sobbing into Ash's torso, pounding his chest with angry fists.

"Why!" Serena wailed, as Ash tried to comfort her. Serena stopped crying after a while, and began to try and backpedal away from Ash. "Please… stay away from me! I'm the daughter of a murderer!" Serena begged, tears still rolling down her face. "No! I left you once, I'm not leaving again!" Ash said, gripping her arm tightly. "But…" Serena started, before Ash enveloped her with a hug.

Ash's warm body calmed Serena down a little bit as Ash hugged her tightly. Serena's legs gave way and she slowly fell to the ground, and Ash sank with her, hugging her gently. Finally, Serena calmed down, and she reluctantly pulled away from Ash's embrace. "Thank you" Serena whispered. Suddenly, a loud boom shook the house, and dust fell from the ceiling. A loud beeping came from Kyle's hidden watch, and Kyle pressed the flashing button.

"Report!" Kyle said into the watch. "A plane just crashed into the tower in Luminose City!" A voice said through the watch. Kyle sprinted out of the house to behold a fireball rising in the air, as a large, smoking hole was shown in the side of the new Freedom Tower in Luminose City. The raging flames now trapped thousands of innocent people. Soon afterwards, the fire grew even more intense, as flames erupted from the windows. Then, the ground shook as the building fell in a huge cloud of smoke and debris.

Kyle stood stunned as the cloud enveloped all of downtown Luminose City. Clemont and Bonnie collapsed in shock, while Ash, Grace, and Serena stood silently. Suddenly, another boom sounded closer by. A bomb had exploded in Vaniville Town, as people began running for their lives. Armed men began firing into the crowd, killing hundreds of unarmed men, women, and children.

"Get an Evac chopper now! We need backup!" Kyle shouted into his com. "Yes sir!" The voice said. Kyle, Bonnie, Ash, Serena, and Grace ran behind cover, as bullets bounced off the trees and rocks. Suddenly, a cry of pain rang out as Clemont, ever the slowest one, was struck in the back by 2 bullets. "No!" Bonnie cried. 5 soldiers surrounded a bleeding Clemont, who forced himself onto his knees. "Please… mercy" Clemont begged. The commander of the unit walked forward and drew his pistol.

"No mercy for Kalonians" The commander said as he put it against Clemont's temple. "NO!" Kyle shouted, sprinting towards the 5 soldiers. Kyle drew a small metal handle, and a bright gold blade sprang from it. "Kill him!" The commander shouted as they fired at Kyle.

Kyle swung his blade back and forth, deflecting the bullets. Some came back and killed 2 of the soldiers. Kyle flipped over Clemont, who had fallen onto his back, and swung his blade twice, killing 2 more soldiers. Kyle then made a fist and began choking the commander. The commander levitated above the ground, flailing at his throat, trying to remove the invisible hand that kept him from breathing.

"Who do you work for?" Kyle demanded, his blade mere inched from the man's chest. "T-Travis Yvonne" The commander gurgled. "Liar! Travis Yvonne is dead!" Kyle growled. "He survived! I swear! He survived, and he's out to kill you, and the rest of the Yvonne family, and conquer the world!" The commander said, in between gurgles. Kyle's eyes darted over to Hoopa, who had taken refuge in a tree, and he nodded. Kyle slashed with his blade, and the commander fell dead at Kyle's feet.

Kyle then knelt at Clemont's side, as a helicopter landed, and troops began to fight against the terrorists attacking the town. Kyle checked Clemont's vitals, but it was no use. Clemont, the bright young gym leader from Luminose City, was dead.

Kyle said a quick prayer to God, and closed Clemont's eyes. Kyle made a cross on his body, and ran to Ash and friends, who were still hiding. "Clemont?" Ash asked. Kyle shook his head, and Bonnie broke down in tears. "Come on, we need to leave, I have transportation" Kyle said.

Kyle led them to the helicopter, which took off and flew away from the burning cities. Serena set her hand on Ash's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault" Serena said. "I know" Ash said softly. "You did what you could" Serena said. Ash nodded, and hugged Serena.

Ash set his forehead against Serena's and gently embraced her. "Never leave me" Ash said softly. Serena's eyes filled with tears, as her secret love for Ash boiled over. "Never" Serena agreed. Ash, while not experienced in romance, knew what love was, and closed his eyes. "I love you Serena" Ash whispered. Serena had a tear roll down her cheek as she drew closer to Ash. "I love you too Ash" Serena whispered. Ash leaned in and gently kissed Serena, but Serena had waited long enough. She kissed him harder, and he kissed her back. Finally, their passionate first kiss ended, as they leaned against each other, and fell asleep.

Kyle paced the room, watching over the group. Hoopa had fallen asleep, and Bonnie had finally cried herself to sleep as well. Grace was the only one still awake, and she soon too fell asleep, but not before thanking Kyle for his help, and asking for his forgiveness. Kyle accepted her apology, and kissed bonnie on the forehead, as he felt bad for her. Serena stirred late at night, and Kyle stroked her hair. "Sleep… you need it" Kyle urged. "Where are we going?" Serena whispered, half asleep. Kyle turned and face Grace and Bonnie, who looked like a mother and daughter.

"America. We are going to America." Kyle said, and the chopper sped off into the night.

Chapter 2 is done! Hope you enjoyed! Chapter 3 coming soon!