Chapter 10: Dragon Master Iris and the Safe House!
We are back at last for another chapter of Daughter of the Pokémon Master! Ash called Officer Jenny and Iris for help several episodes ago. Welllllll… where are they? And remember, Simon and Neokal are fighting Ash, Infernape and Mega Glalie. How is that fight going down? With the Reltoh Battle style vs. the skills of a Pokémon Master, no one can predict the outcome! Oh wait... I can! Guess YOU will just have to read to find out huh? And don't forget about the hidden X factor of the battle: Victini!
Recap: Holly is the daughter of Ash Ketchum, Champion of Kanto. They travel the Reltoh Region and get separated after Holly catches her first pokémon, Light Type Arkella. Holly is then captured by a Trio of criminals and after almost getting away is defeated by Simon, the young supervisor of the three villains. Ash finds the bad guys as they attempt to get away and it's a full battle, Simon, the purple haired young commander vs. the Champion of Kanto. Now their showdown comes to a conclusion! And don't forget Iris and Officer Jenny are racing to get there in time too!
Ash threw himself forward, head first with one of his hands landing on the obsidian sand in front of him. Ash bent his arm and propelled his legs up and over his head. At the proper moment he pushed off the ground with his arm and landed neatly on his feet. Pikachu still lay cradled under his other arm, unconscious.
Ash had narrowly dodged an Electroweb launched by the burnt orange colored Reltoh Pokémon. Even now the cat-like creature sprinted towards him, preparing a Dragon Claw. Ash swung his head towards Mega Glalie, who was still trying to freeze the sand tank which had not managed to escape yet.
"Glalie! Help me out with a Headbutt!" Ash jumped backwards, dodging the first swipe of the Dragon Claw. Suddenly Glalie swooped in, crashing into Neokal at full force and the beast was blasted backwards into a pillar of ice next to the sand tank. Shockingly, Neokal managed to move itself in midair and hit the ice feet first and it collided and then slid down, using the slide-like shape of the ice to increase its speed.
This isn't going well, Ash thought to himself. I'm no closer to defeating this guy and his Pokémon. The Pokémon Master jumped to side at the last second, dodging the charging Neokal by a few inches. Ash managed a quick glance at Infernape and the purple haired boy and noticed that they were currently exchanging karate punches and kicks. Hate to do this, Ash grimaced, but I have no choice.
"Infernape! Stop taking it easy on him! He's agile and strong but he can't use any Pokémon moves! Use Flamethrower!" Infernape's eyes widened at the command because Ash had never ordered him to attack a human before. Ash simply growled and yelled, "Just do it!"
Infernape snarled when Simon landed a quick punch before leaping back out of reach. The fire monkey was done playing and he was furious. He let out a huge blast of fire and aimed it at Simon. The purple haired boy was accustomed to being attacked on the battle field though and managed a cartwheel followed by a back handspring to avoid the torrent of super-heated breath. He sprang behind a rock and used it as cover.
"That all you got old man?" Simon yelled to be heard over the sound of rock melting. "Your pokémon won't catch me!"
Ash growled and yelled, "Keep at it Infernape. Make sure he stays out of my way." The Pokémon Master turned his attention back to the other battle that was being waged on the field: Neokal vs. Mega Glalie. It had devolved into a close quarters brawl with Glalie chomping down hard on the orange colored Pokémon with its giant jaws and Neokal unleashing a flurry of not very effective Dragon Claws on the ice type Pokémon.
I've got to end this! Ash screamed in his head. Holly could be in real danger right now! Suddenly a shrunken of fire was unleased from the top of the sand tank, directly at Ash himself.
"Whaa!" the man yelled as he hurled himself forward into a somersault, dodging the dangerous move. The Pokémon Master examined the unconscious electric type Pokémon in his arms and determined that he was unhurt by the sudden acrobatics. Then Ash swung his head up to find his attacker and saw the blood red foxlike Pokémon was launching Fire Shrunken at the ice that was currently holding the sand tank in place. Who's that Pokémon? Wait, I saw him get into the sand tank before. He's one of them and he has almost freed the tank from the ice! In seconds Burrost had melted the frozen pillars trapping the front of the machine and the wheel treads gripped the sand, moving at frightening speed.
"No!" Ash yelled. They'll get away with Holly if I don't do something right now! Ash then heard a familiar female voice call for a Pokémon move.
"Dragonite! Use Flamethrower!" Iris yelled as she emerged from the forest, riding on her dragon type Pokémon over the sand tank. The yellow pseudo-legendary Pokémon let loose a large column of flames that soon covered the sand tank and Burrost in fire.
"Iris!" Ash yelled in excitement. "You're here! Thank Arceus. Holly's trapped inside that tank, kidnapped by these losers." Iris raised an eyebrow and shook her head half smiling despite the perilous situation.
"Just like a little kid to let his daughter get captured by these Team Rocket wannabes. But we can talk later. Let's kick bad guy butt first! Keep it up Dragonite!" she yelled and the dragon simply powered up the Flamethrower even more. But this turned out to be a mistake. Burrost was suddenly visible in the middle of the tornado of flames, a splotch of blood-colored fur in the fire storm. Ash was shocked to see that the ruthless beast was grinning.
"You rully dun't know whut you've done 'uh? I eat flames idiuts!" It yelled, which surprised Ash. It can talk? Then its words registered in his head.
"Iris! Stop shooting flames! That Pokémon says it can eat fire!" Iris yelled for Dragonite to stop but it was already too late. Burrost's tongue shot from its mouth like a frog's tongue and swept through the flames. Where the tongue swung, flames stuck to it like fly paper and were absorbed into the slimy appendage. In two seconds the entire column of flames had been absorbed into the tongue which Burrost sucked back into its mouth with a snap. Its eyes glowed the same color as Dragonite's flames and then it opened its maw declaring, "Ut's My turrrm!"
The subsequent burst of fire was the most powerful move Ash had seen in years. He yelled and dived behind a rock, covering his head as the flames whooshed over the entire desert area for a hundred yards. The heat was intense and Ash's shirt caught fire. The man bent over Pikachu, who was still unconscious, and protected his friend from the worst of the flames. The Pokémon Master swung his hand down to his belt and retrieved Greninja's Pokéball. Suddenly the flames dissipated and the night air rushed in to take its place, the cold wind raising Swana-bumps on Ash's arms. But this sensation quickly disappeared when Ash realized that his shirt was still on fire. He set Pikachu on the ground as fast as he could and leaped into the air.
"Gah!" he yelled and whipped off the flaming clothing and threw it on the ground. Ignoring the pain of his burns and other injuries, the man swung his gaze to the sand tank. It was gone. Ash quickly located it fire in the distance, making its way across the desert. That blood colored Pokémon must have used its fire type move to propel the tank that fast, like a rocket. Ash also noticed that Iris was in hot pursuit, Dragonite speeding across the black sand, raising dark clouds.
Ash suddenly fell to his knees in exhaustion. Holly. I couldn't save her. I can only hope that Iris catches them because I have other things to deal with right here. Ash swung his gaze back to the scorched area he stood in, quickly noticing that Mega Glalie and the orange colored Pokémon had fainted in the fire storm. Glalie had reverted back to its regular, non-Mega form. I need to get him to a Pokémon Center fast. Pikachu too, but I need to find that boy first. Ash frowned and quickly surmised that the purple haired youth was probably still close by. After all, he wouldn't have left his Pokémon here. Did he call it… Neokal? Ash also noticed that some of the nearby trees had caught on fire. I have to deal with that too.
"Glalie return and get some rest! Greninja I choose you!" Ash exchanged his Pokémon and quickly ordered the ninja pokémon to unleash Water Pulses until the fire was put out. Then the Pokémon Master swung his gaze back towards the sand tank chase. Despite the darkness of the night he was able to make out some of the action. Iris was launching blue Ice Beams and yellow Thunderpunches and Burrost was blasting the air with Fire Shrunken. The multicolored lights lit up the obsidian colored sand and revealed a massive sandstorm headed towards the battle. Oh no! Iris might lose them in that storm if she's not careful! Suddenly a loud explosion noise rocked the ground and Ash spun around to see Simon launch from underground, Infernape hot on his heels. Infernape used Dig? Ash thought hurriedly.
"Neokal return!" Simon yelled as he ran from the fire monkey and the red beam sucked Neokal into the red and white sphere.
The purple haired boy immediately spun around in an instant and swung his arm at Infernape's head. The Sinnoh Pokémon raised its arm to block the wild blow but it turned out to be a feint. Simon stopped his arm a few inches away from Infernape's block and instead pushed his right leg up into a savage kick into the fork between Infernape's legs. The fire monkey's eyes widened and slid slowly to the obsidian sand. When his head was close to the ground, Simon let loose another kick, clocking him upside the chin and Infernape was unable to battle. Simon sighed and let his arms hang down in exhaustion.
"Listen up old man. I don't know what my Bosses plans are for the girl but I'm pretty sure he'll contact you in the next few days. For what it's worth…" Simon sighed and clenched his first at his side. "I'm sorry it had to be this way." The Pokémon Master suddenly looked up, fire in his eyes.
"You're sorry? You help kidnap my daughter and you physically assault and beat up my friends and now you're saying sorry?!" Ash sprinted towards the boy and before Simon could blink, Ash was standing in front of him. The Pokémon Master was not a tall man, but neither was Simon and consequently Ash towered over the purple haired boy.
"I don't need your apologies you brat." Ash spat out the word and clenched his fist. "My friend Iris will take down that tank and bring back Holly and when she does, I will make you suffer. Until then, you are my best hope of finding her." Ash breathed a sigh and decided to act with diplomacy rather than wraith… for now. He placed a hand on Simon's shoulder and looked the boy in the eye. Simon for his part flinched but then looked up to meet Ash's eyes.
"If Iris doesn't make it back, please. Just give me a hint, a clue as to where to go. A place I can go to save my daughter. Please, boy. Help me!" Here he squeezed his fingers into Simon's shoulder until it hurt. Simon blinked and looked away. He brought a hand up and brushed Ash's arm away almost casually. The purple haired boy was silent for a moment, but then he answered.
"My team will evade your friend and that's a promise. When she comes back empty handed, remember this one hint. I can give you just one." Simon paused here and looked into the distance. "In the north, the coldest part of the Reltoh Region, you will find Orchid Town. Find the red house with green shutters and be there in one week from today, early morning. It's a safe house and I will be there, ready to answer all your questions." Simon turned and glared at Ash. "I don't want you to set any traps. You come alone, or you won't find me."
"I'm never alone," Ash said simply. "Why are you agreeing to help me? And I don't want your answers in a week. Tell me now!" Ash yelled.
Simon paused and kicked the sand at his feet. It was a boyish move that reminded Ash how young the boy really was. "We can't talk here, trust me." Ash raised an eyebrow at this statement and Simon continued hurriedly, "Or don't trust me! Just be there, in one week. It's all the help I can give you."
Suddenly Ash and Simon heard helicopter blades in the distance, the roar of vehicles driving through the forest. The pair heard a voice raised over a megaphone shouting, "Holly! Mr. Ketchum! Where are you?" Ash realized that it must be the police he called for earlier.
Simon raised an eyebrow and said, "I can see that you called in the cavalry. I have to go before they get here. Tell the police whatever you want, but I would advise you not to talk about the safe house. Let them know, and our agreement here is off." Ash growled and grabbed the boy's hand twisting it in his grip.
"Now that the police are here, I don't need to make backroom deals with you. We'll pry that information out of you if we have to." Ash growled, grinding his teeth together, all pretense of diplomacy gone. "Give me back my daughter." Simon stood his ground and seemed unmoved by the pain.
"Remember what I said Mr. Ketchum. Orchid Town, red house with green shutters. One week from today." Suddenly the boy raised his other hand up to the sky and shouted, "Victini! Lend me your power!"
Victini? Ash thought in shock. At that moment, the tiny red and tan Pokémon un-camouflaged itself and touched Simon's upraised hand, granting the boy power. Simon brought his hand down and punched Ash in the gut, sending him flying backwards through the air before sliding to a halt in the sand. Ash rubbed his stomach and spat out a glob of blood before turning to glare at Simon.
"Good bye, Pokémon Master." Simon called and bending his knees, he launched into a jump that took him several hundred feet into the air, Victini soaring after him, maintaining his strength. The boy landed in the distance and immediately launched into another series of jumps, before he disappeared into the night air.
Ash slammed his hand into the ground and yelled out his pain and agony. "Gaaaaah!" He looked off towards the east, in the direction that Iris and the sand tank had disappeared. He could no longer see the light of the Pokémon Battle so he assumed that Iris had either entered the tank or failed. The latter option proved correct as he heard the sound of Dragonite's wings getting closer and louder. Suddenly the Dragon Master and her Pokémon appeared out of the darkness and landed on the ground next to Ash.
"Ash! Are you okay?" Iris screamed running up to the half-naked, burned and scratched Pokémon Master. Ash noticed for the first time in a while that he was shirtless thanks to the fire. He shivered in the cool night air. It's so odd that a burning hot place like a desert gets so freezing cold at night, he thought absently.
"Iris. What happened out there?" Ash asked quietly as he sank to his knees. Iris rushed over and caught her friend in her arms and lowered him until he was safely laying on the ground. She then bit her lip and looked away from Ash's burning gaze.
"Dragonite and I put up a fight. We were battling that Burrost on the roof of the tank when a sandstorm came." Here Iris looked her friend in the face, tears brimming in her brown eyes. "We lost them Ash. We just couldn't keep up with that machine in the storm. I'm so sorry."
Ash sighed tiredly. It's just like that purple haired boy said. He knew they'd escape. Then out of nowhere, a flying type Pokémon soared out of the woods at top speed before landing beside the pair of humans. "Noctowl!" Ash murmured tiredly. "I take it you found Jenny? Nicely done." Ash patted his friend on the head before holding up Noctowl's Pokéball. "Now return and get some rest."
Suddenly spot lights and head lights blazed from the forest and a jeep drove out of the woods, stopping on top of the hill. Officer Jenny leaped out of the vehicle accompanied by one of the strangest Pokémon Ash had ever seen: It was a mini tornado that was solid lime green colored and had about ten eyeballs floating around in the mass of air. As Ash watched, the mini twister spun in circles and rushed down towards the pair of non-Reltoh natives and the eyes on the creature seemed to all blink at the same time, taking in details. Jenny jogged alongside her pokémon partner and she was carrying a First Aid kit and a blanket.
"Mr. Ketchum. I've found you at last!" Officer Jenny said as she knelt beside the downed Pokémon Master. She began spreading a healing paste on his arms meant to help soothe burns and glanced at Iris. "Is this your daughter Holly?"
"No Officer. This is Iris, she's a friend." Ash coughed briefly and spit on the ground, spewing out bits of blackened ash. "But don't worry about me, take care of my Pokémon."
"No can do Mr. Ketchum. I'm not a pokémon doctor or nurse. I only know how to help humans. In any case, I need you to be healthy enough to tell me what the heck happened here." Jenny paused and continued, "If you feel up to it of course."
Ash turned to his friend Iris first. "Iris would you help me out and return all my Pokémon to their Pokéballs? They've done great work, but they need rest." Ash coughed for a moment or two and continued speaking, "Greninja probably contained that fire by now and Infernape is still unconscious. Then bring Pikachu to me." The man then smiled briefly at his old friend, and she grinned in return.
"Sure thing Ash. Just don't start the story until I get back." Iris called as she jogged away to complete the tasks that Ash had asked of her. The Pokémon Master turned to Jenny, who was rummaging in her kit for bandages. She started tossing out random objects from the bag of supplies and then turned to her Pokémon, the green twister creature.
"Klyzone. I left the bandage roll back in the vehicle. Would you go get it for me?" The mini twister Pokémon seemed to nod, if a tornado was capable of such a thing, and raced to the jeep and back in a matter of seconds, carrying the bandage roll in its storm body. It began absorbing the black colored sand into its body and turned black colored instead of lime green. "Kly kly zone." It called in a deep male sounding voice.
Ash watched the creature in fascination and held up his Pokédex to scan it. The machine dinged quietly and a hologram appeared depicting the Pokémon in its regular form: clear colored wind with ten eyeballs. A male voice read out its entry: "Klyzone, the Spinning Wind Pokémon. This sentient tornado pokémon changes color and type based on the elements it absorbs into its body, green for grass or blue for water." Ash grinned despite his pains and worries. Pokémon never cease to amaze me. Iris then reappeared with Ash's Pokéballs and Pikachu, who was awake.
"Pikachu! I'm so glad to see you're okay buddy!" Ash said quietly. Pikachu blinked tiredly and curled up on Ash's stomach, falling asleep and quietly murmuring "Chu chu." Rest well, friend. The Pokémon Master looked up at Jenny and Iris and noticed that they were looking at him expectantly, waiting for answers. Jenny spoke first.
"I guess you did decide to hunt for your daughter on your own and it looks like you ran into some problems. What happened? It looks like a battlefield." Here she gestured at the black sand around them.
"It was." Ash murmured as he laid his head back on the black sand. He could feel it starting to cool down from the lack of sunlight. "I found that Holly didn't go missing. She was kidnapped by a group of people. There was a trio of criminals with a sand tank vehicle. A man with red hair, a woman with blonde hair and a blood colored Pokémon. They dragged Holly inside the vehicle while their other partner stalled me." Ash closed his eyes as he brought back his memory of the purple haired youth. "He was just a boy but he fought like a demon."
Jenny had dropped her supplies and was taking notes on a tiny notepad. Iris had taken over the role of healer and was applying bandages to a few of Ash's cuts. She glanced up when Ash paused.
"They really took Holly then. I wasn't completely sure until you said it just now." Iris dipped her head and looked down. "I'm so sorry for losing them in that storm." Jenny continued scribbling on her notepad and asked Iris a quick question.
"What do you mean? Who exactly are you and where do you come into the story?"
"Ash is an old friend. I've been training in this region for a while now and he called me right after he called you. I caught up to him only a little bit before you. I was involved in the battle and chased their tank until I lost them in a sandstorm over there." Iris pointed off to the east and then let her hand drop to the ground. "I failed my friend. I'm so sorry Ash." Iris sniffed and brushed a tear off her face. Ash sighed tiredly.
"You did your best Iris, and that's all that you could do. I'm grateful you managed to come at all." Ash turned his head and stared out into the night. "I want to rush out there and find her with every fiber of my being, but I can't right now. My pokémon and I are just too wiped out. We'd never find them in the dark anyway." Ash paused and then glanced at Jenny. "They told me that their Boss would contact me within the next few days. Possibly for a ransom for her safe return. I don't have a lot of money though. Can you…" Ash trailed off but Jenny simply nodded.
"Of course Mr. Ketchum. I'm stationed in Topaz Town and my department maintains an account for ransom payments in case this sort of thing happens. You'd be surprised, but this is not the first time that this has happened. About two weeks ago we got another case with this trio. They kidnapped a young girl and her brother has been frantically searching for her." Jenny paused and then continued, "In any case, we'll help you in any way we can." Jenny stood up and offered Ash a hand to stand up himself. The man took it and was pulled to his feet. Iris helped him keep his balance. The Klyzone scooped up Pikachu in its body and rushed it over to the jeep, calling out "Zone zone zone!" Pikachu swirled around inside the mini storm but he was so tired that he stayed fast asleep.
Ash grit his teeth in pain and trudged over to the jeep, his mind racing. Holly got kidnapped by that Trio and their Boss is going to contact me within the next few days. But that purple haired boy offered me another deal. The red safe house in Orchid Town. Should I go there? Or is it a trap? I don't I have much of a choice. I'll travel there as soon as I've recovered. Ash growled softly at the pain of his injuries as the two women, Jenny and Iris on either side of him held him upright. I'll save you Hol. I promise.
That's all for now! I hope you are enjoying the story! The cavalry finally arrived, with Iris and Jenny to the (sort of) rescue. But this arc of the story ends with Ash failing! No happy endings yet. What did you guys think of Simon's escape? Using Victini's powers to leap out of there? I always thought it would be fun to have a powered-up Trainer use Victini like that. And is Simon helping Ash? What are his motives? And how about Klyzone, the weird twister Pokémon? He's the weirdest Pokémon I've ever heard of! Please keep reading, because there is plenty more on the way! Leave me a Review of what you think!
END OF PART 10