A/N: Aah, finally an update. This better be worth it! Well, it's a guess on what I think you guys might be thinking? I mean, it's been since last fall I updated. Or was it summer? Meh, I forget. Anyways, this chapter is going to get really battle-crazy. I'm trying to not go for too much dialogue here and looks like there's still a number of dialogue (Would you rather have them all just stand around, grunting and yelling?) going on but I've tried my hardest on the battles here. Oh and speaking of battles, prepare for a rather intense chapter. Other than that, enjoy.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, its characters, plotline, games, or Pokémon. I do own the rights to this fic, its characters, plotline, and other things miscellaneous to it. From here on out, starting on this chapter with my fav. number, this disclaimer will apply to every other chapter after this. Or I could do it the cheap, easy way by copying and pasting this disclaimer to every chapter after this.
Previously…
"Wh-Who are they!?" Emi shouted.
The flame haired man smirked at Ash. "You're not going anywhere, kid!"
They all drew out their Pokeballs, ready to move him out of their way! The man laughed as he looked at the five.
"You guys wanna battle me?" as he drew out his Pokeball, which had a fire design on it. "Sure, why not? By the way, our names are Evers and Void. Sorry, nothing personal but we were ordered to get rid of you, Ash Ketchum!"
Viridian Fall
Chapter 7: Battle on Route 3
Day 4, Week 1
"G-Get rid of me?!"
The fiery haired man grinned. "Like I said, nothing personal. Hey, Void!"
The silent man looked at him. "……" Evers nodded to him.
"So this is the kid right?" he asked. "We do have the right one, right?"
The yellow eyed man's piercing gaze confirmed it for him. Evers turned back to the six. "Hehe, perfect, finally I can have some real fun!"
"What're ya talking about? And just who are you guys?" Ash asked.
"Did Team Rocket hire two new people to hassle you again?" Misty asked him. Ash shook his head.
"No, Jessie, James and Meowth always were the three chasing me and Pikachu. But," he pointed at the two men. "I don't know who these guys are?!"
Evers smirked. "You don't know who we are? Hey, Void, these kids don't know who we are!" he called out to his partner. After he finished chuckling, the man turned to face the teens.
"What're you smiling about?" Emi asked.
"Void and me, we're not working for Team Rocket." as he threw his Pokeball at them. "And that's all you need to know!" he shouted.
Unbeknownst to the naked eye, a black blur caught the ball, keeping the containing Pokémon from being called out. Raven kept his grip on the Pokeball. "Evers, Void, why are you here?!" his voice boomed out loudly. The teens turned to face him.
"R-Raven?"
"Heh, are you going to interfere with the Lord's plans, Raven?" Evers asked, ignoring the Pokeball in Raven's hand. The dark haired man had a fierce look that sent shivers down the teens' spine. When he didn't answer, Evers shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, tsk, you just love to poke your head into other people's business?"
"I see your speech and manners have improved?" Raven asked.
"By the way, you didn't answer my question, Raven: Are you going to interfere with the Lord's plans?"
"So, Legato's really the one that sent you?" he said. Ash turned to him.
"Who's Legato?"
Raven ignored the question.
"What does Ash have to do with it?" he asked. Evers tilted his head.
"I don't know? His name is Ash?" he said, rubbing his chin. Raven just looked at him blankly. "It is, isn't it?"
"……"
When no more words were exchanged between the two, Evers went straight back to what his job. "Let's get this straight: The. Lord. Wants. You. Dead." he said, pointing at Ash. All of his friends froze in shock. Raven suddenly stood in front of Ash. "So, you really are going to interfere?" as he cracked his neck to awaken his nerves before throwing the Pokeball in his hand. "Then I'll have to get rid of you first, go, Magmortar!"
The ball opened, allowing the red light to materialize in front of them. There stood the recently discovered Pokémon from the Sinnoh region. It was five foot tall Pokemon, its appearance appearing to look like that of a burly and huge being though it had tri-pointed claws on the bottom of its arms and two spike-like toes. It still had the flame design like it's former though Ash and Brock remembered when they had ran into this type of Pokémon back in Sinnoh. It was as strong as an Electivire only it was a very powerful Fire type like it's Electric type counterpart. Evers saw the looks on their faces. "I know but…" as he grinned darkly. "This is no ordinary Magmortar."
Raven didn't answer him as he threw his Pokeball. "Let's go, Char!"
The ball soared into the air as it opened up, releasing a red dragon with wings and a flaming tail. It breathed powerful flames out of its mouth while adopting a mighty posture that made it seem intimidating. The Charizard raised his arms up, his claws gleaming as Raven held the ball that contained him. Evers grinned.
"So, it's a Fire fight you want?" he asked the man. Another ball came out into the sky, releasing yet another ferocious creature, Salamence. It landed next to Evers' Magmortar as Ash and his friends saw the owner, Void, holding the empty Pokeball. The boy wanted to help his friend. He prepared to throw out the Pokeball to help his friend.
"Go, Cyn- Huh?" as he saw that his hand was stopped by none other than the cloaked man. "Raven, w-what're you--"
"Everyone, get out of here, now." he said, letting go. Ash turned to him.
"What are you talking about? You can't take these two guys on your own!"
The dark haired man gripped the boy's shirt and pulled him in close. "I. Said. Get. Out. Of. Here." he worded harshly, throwing the boy back as he fell to the ground.
"Pikapi!"
"Ash! W-Why are you doing this Raven?!" she shouted. The man didn't turn to her. "Answer me!"
The man furiously whipped his head around to her. "DIDN'T YOU HEAR WHAT I SAID?! GET OUT OF HERE!"
Surprised by his angered tone, Misty stepped back. Raven turned his back to them. "Sorry, but you have to trust me. I'll be fine. You all need to get to Mt. Moon. We will hold them off." he said, as his Charizard let out a mighty roar to confirm the words. Ash got up as he looked at the man.
"Raven…"
He felt a hand on his shoulder. "Ash, we should trust him." Brock said. The boy nodded as the five ran off towards the mountain. Evers caught them running away.
"Oi, I never said you could run off. Magmortar, cut off their path with Flamethrower!"
"Char, stop the attack with Air Slash!" Raven shouted. The dragon fired off the wind-slicing blast that cut into the stream of flames, completely cutting them off before the force of the two attacks caused an explosion. The teens continued to run, not looking to see if they were still being chased or not. Ash did his best to keep from shouting out to the man to confirm his safety as they disappeared into the mountain path. Back at the field, when the smoke had cleared, Raven pulled his hat up that shielded his eyes from the blast. "Evers, Void, you're both battling Char and I!" he said.
"Eh, they escaped?" as Void stepped forward. "You're going to go after them, Void?" he asked. Raven drew out another Pokeball but before he could call out his Pokémon. "Magmortar, use Fire Punch!"
The Blast Pokémon obeyed his Trainer's command and appeared in front of Raven, catching the man off his guard.
"Char, defend with Dragon Claw!"
The dragon rushed to his Trainer's aid, loyally protecting Raven from the fiery punch that neared him before Char pushed it back with his enflamed claws. Raven went back to calling out his second only to realize that someone was missing. "Void? Where did he go?" as he realized that the Fire Punch was a distraction. He heard the fiery-haired man laughing at his realization.
"Hahaha, don't be so disappointed, Raven. After all, I'm still here." he said. The dark haired man quickly braced himself. "Magmortar, attack his Charizard."
"Char, counter with Shadow Claw!" he shouted, as the ghostly claw formed in the red dragon's right arm before swiping at the Magmortar. But then the flaming punch changed to one brimming with electricity. "Thunder Punch? Char, dodge it!"
"Use Flamethrower!"
The dragon dodged the electric punch but was struck by the powerful streams of flames that shot out directly at his belly, causing him to fly back into his Trainer whom he crashed into as the two landed on the ground. Char slowly got back up as did Raven whom wiped the blood from his mouth. "Oh, now you're using your brain?" he asked.
Ash, Misty, Tracey, Emi, and Brock had found a place to rest and hide out. The teens were unable to comprehend what was going on. Ash knew he couldn't sit here and leave Raven behind. "You guys…I'm going back to help Raven."
Brock shook his head. "No, Ash. You can't go back there."
"B-But, he's battling two of them! You saw how powerful their Pokémon were?" he spoke. Tracey too shook his head.
"We know Ash but Raven said that he'd take care of them."
"Can he hold them off long enough?" Emi thought.
"Ash, Raven said to trust him. We have to trust that he'll protect us." Misty spoke up. Pikachu nodded.
"Pikapi Pika Pii Pikachu. (You should trust him, Ash.)"
The boy looked down. "I…"
"Ash, we have to keep moving." Brock said. The boy looked up at him and nodded.
The gang of formerly six now five left the temporary shelter and continued east towards Mt. Moon and its nearby Pokémon Center. Ash, Misty, Brock, Tracey and Emi, with Brock in the lead, carefully crossed the rugged mountain paths, watching for falling and loose rocks. They came across a narrow path on which they would have to sidle their way across to the other side.
"Once we get to the Pokémon Center, we'll rest there for the night before moving on." Brock said.
"I can't wait to stop to have dinner." Tracey said. He didn't notice the look he earned from Ash whom was still thinking about the dark haired man. Misty, worried about her best friend, felt the rock loosely moving from under her foot as she slipped.
"AAAAAHHH!"
A hand reached out and caught her arm. Ash was doing his best hold on. Their friends could only watch as the boy used his upper body strength to pull her back up. She slowly came back up and into his chest before faint blushes appeared on both of their cheeks as Misty carefully got her feet back on as they all finished crossing the narrow path before getting back on the main path again. Ash turned to the ginger haired girl. "Mist, you okay?"
She nodded. "Y-Yeah. Thanks…Ash." she said. The boy nodded back.
The green cloaked man left as soon as Raven was distracted by the Fire Punch, secretly following the teens up the mountain trail. His yellow eyes watched them, keeping out of their sight, closely trailing them. He saw the event of Misty's fall and Ash helping her back up along with noticing the brief stillness of their bodies while continuing to follow them up to the Center. But he did not get far. As he was prepared to round a corner to follow them, a man wearing a ragged cloak appeared before him. What was interesting to note was that he was the same man with the grayish hair that obscured his eyes. He had a Pokeball drawn out to Void. "No passage." he said.
They were nearing the mountain's cave and the Pokémon Center. Brock ran far ahead of the five. "I'm coming for you, Joy!" he sang. Misty sighed. She was too tired to stop him. The rest of the gang followed after him.
It wasn't long before they found their flirtatious Breeder on his hands and knees before a girl. She had brilliant red hair and was dressed in a burgundy uniform. She wore a dark red buttoned shirt with a similar long coat and long dark red pants with black gloves and boots. On the left side of her coat, on the heart, was an 'E' emblem designed intricately in a bright red. Her hair was tied down below to her neck. She watched Ash and his friends run towards Brock. Misty turned to face the young woman. "What did you do to him?!"
The girl frowned before smirking. "Is he your friend?" she asked.
"Brock, you okay?" Ash asked. The Breeder did not answer him. The raven haired teen stood up and turned to face the girl. The red haired girl peered over Misty's shoulder and saw the raven haired boy glaring at her.
"What is it? You want to battle me?" she replied, returning the glare with the same intensity. Then she paused. The gang watched as she rummaged through her coat before pulling out a piece of paper. This was no ordinary paper though. She glanced at it before looking up at Ash. "Oh, you're that kid, Ketchum, right?" she asked.
"Who are you? What did you do to Brock?"
The girl gave him and his friends a look. "You don't know?" When she didn't get an answer, "Oh great, now I have to introduce myself again." as she drew out a Pokeball, enlarging in with her right arm stretched out. "I'm Scarlet Red, the Fire Lieutenant under General Evers, the Fire Executioner. As for your friend, he wouldn't leave me alone."
"So you beat him?"
"No, his Pokémon did." she answered as Ash and Pikachu sighed.
"That makes sense?"
Emi raised a brow. "Executioner?" as she saw the 'E' emblem on her coat. She turned to Ash. "Ash, we have to pass her."
He nodded. "Yeah, I know. You guys, go on ahead." as a pair of cerulean eyes turned to him.
"Ash! Y-You're not planning on-"
"Wanna play the hero do you?" Scarlet asked. Ash turned to face her. She was leaning her back against the nearby wall and she was also blocking their path. Her Pokeball was in her hand. Ash turned to look back at his friends.
"Just go, I'll be fine!" he said. Hesitating for a moment, Misty nodded as she, Tracey, and Emi with Tracey dragging Brock along, ran ahead, passing Scarlet who made no move to stop them. The girl watched the Trainer and his Pikachu standing before her.
"Ahahaha, you really think you can beat me, Ketchum?"
"I'm going to protect my friends."
She scoffed. "Just like that man back there?" she asked, ignoring the boy's face. "He doesn't stand a chance against the General." she said, pacing towards him, her hands at her sides. "You got lucky with escaping from the General but," as she threw her Pokeball and called out a familiar looking Fire-type with a flame-like body. "Your luck's run out." It had a tail with fire burning at its end as it punched its fists together. The Magmar stood beside Scarlet as the girl, whom was a little over Ash's age put the ball away within her coat. Ash took a close look at the Fire-type.
"A Magmar huh?" as he wasted no time in calling out his own Fire-type. "Let's go, Cyndaquil!"
Scarlet looked on at the materialization of the small fire mouse Pokémon as she smiled. "This shouldn't take too long. Magmar, use Fire Punch on that fire rodent!"
Magmar rushed towards Cyndaquil with a flaming fist. "Dodge it and use Swift!"
The fire mouse moved to the left, missing the attack closely before launching a barrage of stars that struck the Spitfire Pokémon intensely, already hitting its weak point. Scarlet ordered another attack after directing her arm to the right.
"Use Mega Punch and follow it up with Fire Punch!"
Recovering quickly from the attack, the Fire-type moved quickly towards the fire mouse. Ash called out Flame Wheel as Cyndaquil leaped into the air, rolling in the sky, enveloping himself in flames from his back. Magmar led off with a mighty punch from the right, which Cyndaquil dodged before following it up with the fiery punch that struck true, knocking Cyndaquil into the nearby rock wall on the side of the path. The mouse fell as Ash called out to him.
"Cyndaquil, are you okay?"
"Quiiil!" came his reply. Ash directed another attack.
"Okay, let's use Quick Attack!"
The fire mouse began to move at quick speed, moving straight towards Magmar. Scarlet stood in place. "Magmar, wait right there and use Fire Blast when it gets close enough towards you." as the Pokémon nodded. Cyndaquil came directly in front of Magmar as the Spitfire Pokémon used the aforementioned mighty blast of fire. All seemed lost for the fire mouse until his Trainer called out to him.
"Cyndaquil, use Double Team!"
The mouse quickly created false duplicates of himself. Fire Blast hit one of the clones but the real deal hovered above Magmar. "What?"
"Okay, now use Flamethrower!" Ash shouted. The Spitfire Pokémon became enveloped in flames and at such a close range, taking intense damage. Scarlet gritted her teeth.
"That's really annoying. Magmar, use Confuse Ray!"
"Cyndaquill, dodge it!"
The fire mouse did not move in time and was struck by the phantom-like rays. Cyndaquil lost sense of friend and foe and self as Ash called out an attack. "C-Cyndaquil, try to use Quick Attack on Magmar!"
The mouse instead struck himself. Scarlet smirked. "Too bad, looks like I win? Magmar, finish it off with Focus Punch!" she shouted. The Pokémon's fist began to glow white, preparing to strike and finish the fire mouse off.
"Cyndaquil, use Quick Attack!" Ash shouted, hoping the attack would connect. Cyndaquil heard the boy's voice and began to move at such a quick speed that the attack connected, knocking Magmar out of its concentration and freezing it momentarily because of Focus Punch's side effect. Scarlet turned to her Magmar.
"Magmar?"
Ash smiled. "Great job, Cyndaquil!"
"Pii Pikachu!"
"Cyn Da Cyndaquil." as right after the three were finished cheering, the fire mouse glowed white before becoming enveloped in the bright white light. Scarlet's eyes widened.
"I-It's…"
"Cyndaquil's evolving?" Ash said, watching the transformation becoming complete. What stood before him now was Quilava. His fiery mane and tail blazed ever so strongly. Ash smiled at what Cyndaquil had become. "You evolved into Quilava!"
"Qui, Quilava." as he turned to face the Magmar. Scarlet clenched her fist tightly.
"Just because your Pokémon evolved doesn't mean that things are any easier! Magmar, use Flamethrower!" as she watched the Pokémon…not move. Ash quickly too his chance to finish off Magmar.
"Okay, let's use Flame Wheel, Quilava!" he shouted. The Volcano Pokémon began to roll across the ground, already surrounded by flames before striking Magmar deeply in the gut, sending the Pokémon hurtling across the ground. Scarlet checked to see if her Magmar was okay only to find that it was unconscious. Bitter, she called it back.
"You may have won this round but you won't win this next one!" as she drew out another Pokeball. "Go, Arcanine!"
A magnificent yet fierce looking canine with orange and beige fur and black patterns stood before them. Ash and Pikachu watched the Arcanine crouched on all fours, ready for a battle. Ash gave a nod to his best Pokepal as the yellow mouse ran to take Quilava's place as the teen called back the newly evolved Pokémon. Scarlet pointed at Ash.
"You don't stand a chance against Arcanine and I. Together, we're unbeatable!"
Remembering Brock's defeat, Ash looked at her intensely. "You won't get away with what you did to Brock! Pikachu, use Quick Attack!"
"I'll show you real speed! Arcanine, use Extremespeed!"
Pikachu quickly led off with blinding speed towards the dog-like Pokémon but was quickly knocked back across the ground by the more faster Pokémon. "Aah! Pikachu!"
The yellow mouse got back up. Scarlet pointed at the mouse. "Use Flamethrower."
Ash quickly had Pikachu counterattack with Thunderbolt. The two Pokémon's attacks of Electric and Fire clashed powerfully against each other, causing a rumble along the mountain trails. The grayish haired man and Void sensed the tremors as the two called back their Pokémon while avoiding the rockslides that were occurring. Down on the path to the mountain, Raven and Evers raced along the trail of Route 3, dodging and stepping over the cracks, rocks, and the craters that were created by their Charizard and Magmortar respectively along with the rockslides that seemed to come in numbers.
When the shaking ceased, Ash and Scarlet resumed their battle. "Arcanine, use Flare Blitz!"
The Fire-type dog surrounded itself in a vast barrier of flame. and began to charge towards Pikachu. "Pikachu, use Volt Tackle!" Ash shouted as the electric mouse too charged up his own Electric attack, surrounding himself in his own barrier of electricity before charging forward towards the oncoming barrier of flame. The two Trainers watched their Pokémon clash with each other, causing yet another massive tremor, this one so much more intensifying and colossal that it shook the entire area of the mountain, including the mountain cave itself, scaring the cave's inhabitants. Nurse Joy lost her balance as she stumbled forward. Brock ran to catch her yet she was caught by a man with messy long brown hair that was let down, jade-colored eyes, wearing a dark green coat with no shirt underneath and matching pants and brown boots. Immensely red in the face by how close they were, Joy muttered a petite 'thank you' to him. He helped her back up.
"Don't mention it." as he turned to face the door. Joy watched the man walking out of the Center.
"W-Wait, don't go out there! It's dangerous!" she called out. The man didn't listen as the automatic doors closed as the red haired nurse looked down, hoping that he would be careful. Brock sulked as Misty looked at the door through which the man had left through.
"Ash…please, come back safely."
Meanwhile, both electric mouse and fire dog were exchanging attacks of lightning and fire with their respectful Trainers doing their best to avoid the fatal cracks and rockslides that were being caused by the devastating attacks. Ash dove behind a rock to shield himself from the Flamethrower directed at him while Pikachu defended him from the front. Scarlet ordered an Extremespeed attack as Ash had Pikachu deflect it with Iron Tail.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail again!"
"Arcanine, use your Iron Tail too!" Scarlet shouted. The fire dog countered with its glowing tail as both Pokémon were once again tied as they leapt back to the side of their respectful Trainer. Arcanine had bruises and injuries incurred from Pikachu's Electric attacks and vice versa with the mouse. Even the Trainers were exhausted though Ash had taken some burns from the Flamethrowers directed at him. Scarlet's uniform was dirty and slightly tattered as the girl looked directly across at the boy. "You and your Pikachu are pretty good?"
Ash grinned weakly. "Heh, the same with you and Arcanine."
"Too bad, that I have to take you down."
"Yeah, but I'm not going down that easily."
The two Trainers and their Pokémon faced each other off for one last attack.
"Pikachu, let's finish this with Volt Tackle!"
"Arcanine, end this with Flare Blitz!"
Once again, the respective Pokémon donned their veils of electricity and flame as they charged straight at each other, ripping across the ground before meeting head-on and creating a mighty explosion that enveloped the whole area in a dome of lightning and fire. Debris flew everywhere as Trainer and Pokémon were knocked aside by the sheer force of the shocks that came. Ash saw the rocks coming quickly down towards the girl as he ran towards her and shoved her out of the way, leaving his enemy confused by his actions, taking the rocks in her place before he lost consciousness along with Pikachu, held tightly in his arms. Both Trainer and Pokémon neared the edge of the mountain trail, which cracked apart and began to form a huge landslide that tumbled down the gap that was once the ground that the two Trainers once stood on. Scarlet, too weak to run, crawled over to her Pokémon and pulled Arcanine close, the ground beneath them crumbling as well. The land gave away, bringing the two Trainers and their Pokémon with it. As they fell to their supposed deaths, two blurs quickly caught them and the third teleported Arcanine out of the falling zone. Their rescuers took them to a higher level of the mountain. There, the brown haired man set the unconscious Scarlet on the ground while the grayish haired man's Xatu had used Teleport to transport the unconscious Arcanine over to her side. Then he and the brown haired man turned to the dark haired man whom thanked the two before leaving them behind and flying the unconscious Ash and Pikachu to the Mt. Moon Pokémon Center…
The clock ticked by as Misty sat in her chair, overlooking her recovering friend. Ash had taken massive damage from the battle and the explosions that occurred and had been in bed for a while. Pikachu was with her, looking sadly down at his Trainer and friend. Outside the room, Brock, Tracey and Emi sat in the chairs or stood around, hoping to get news that the boy recovered. Raven, whom had saved the Trainer and Pikachu with Char and Krow respectfully. Scarlet was rescued by the brown haired man in green and Arcanine was teleported to safety by the Xatu of the grayish haired man. He did not tell them about the two though as they would disapprove of his saving an enemy. The dark haired man had come out of his battle with Evers with scratches and burns but nothing major as he stood leaning his back against the wall between the door and the window through to which the room Misty was in. Already, five days had passed since the battles on Route 3 yet even after reaching their rest point, they could not move until Ash was feeling well. They were lucky to have met a Nurse Joy who was not only a doctor for Pokémon but humans as well. Coincidence or not, the five teens and their Pokémon would not forget their meeting with the Executioners as Raven had told them of. Little did they know, this meeting was only the beginning to what lay in store for Kanto…
---
A/N: And that's a wrap! Wow…the longest damn chapter I've ever written so far and in one day too?! I think this one turned out better than I planned though I did not plan for the middle fight. Having to work with a battle and a half (Raven's was cut-off and shown again in a slight bit) and adding two new, no three new faces though one of them is already recognizable, was pretty hard but it all came up as I typed though it was a GOOD thing I had an outline of what was to come. Oh yes, the Pokémon attack Trainers here. Remember the battle Ash and Misty had with Cassidy and Butch? Yeah, I'm going that route! No more goodie-goodie safe battles where the Trainers themselves just stand around doing nothing (I hate those with a passion). This is what I like and prefer that it should be: Both Pokémon AND Trainer fighting their hardest and taking their hits. This was slightly dark, with the 'falling to their deaths'. Hey, anyone will die if they fall off a cliff from high up! Yeah, I know Route 3's layout but c'mon, Mt. Moon: It's near the dang Pokémon Center and I preferred that they travel up the mountain path to get to their destination. Oh yes, they lost five days because of Ash's serious injuries. If you got struck by Flamethrowers aimed at YOU while trying to dodge them from some girl working for an organization sent to kill you AND getting struck by the continuous tremors saving your enemy (you crazy?!) from a rockslide before falling unconscious and off the cliff of a destroyed mountain path, well, okay so it'd take long than five days maybe a week but let's see next chapter if Ash recovers. Oh and don't forget to review! I must hear from you so I can know if I did good, bad, or went overboard with this chapter. Believe me though…all the stuff that happened here, it was all in my outline though there were some things that were added at the spur-of-the-moment. Nothing big though, just little scenes here and there. Again, review: I must hear from you, fellow readers and writers.
