Yanma of the Mountain

Whatever confidence and enthusiasm Ash and Latias had when they first set out on their new journey was fast evaporating under the scorching hot summer sun. Due to them being unfamiliar with the terrain of Mount Silver, the young couple was forced to trek up the mountain by following close to the river in order to prevent themselves from getting lost in the ever confounding maze of forest. To make the matter worse, the wild Pokémon gradually became more and more aggressive as Ash and Latias climbed higher and higher into the mountain and quickly established themselves as an annoyance to the young couple. This fact in itself was not a big deal, as compared to fighting Lando's Dragonite, the mountain's wild Pokémon were push-overs to Latias, but even as push-overs, the wild Pokémon were starting to wear Latias out through their sheer numbers. As he stepped over the fainted body of his fifth Ursaring and twentieth wild Pokémon encounter, Ash turned around to see that Latias was hunched over in exhaustion. Shaking his head sadly to himself, Ash turned back to lend his shoulder in support to Latias in order to help her to get up and move about. Helping the red Eon Pokémon to float along slowly, Ash guided his lover to the nearby river to rest and to refresh themselves.

"There is one thing I hate about reality," pouted Latias as she sat down by the river bank, "It has an annoying habit of ruining everything that's planned."

"Oh cheer up, Jewel," laughed Ash happily, "Look at us now alone and free, with infinite possibilities waiting for us in the future!"

"Yes, but still…" began Latias but she was unable to finish as Ash had just splashed her with the cold mountain water from the river. The sudden shock from the cold made Latias to let out an involuntary gasp.

"Hey, Stop that, that's cold!" she protested indignantly as Latias raised her arms to shield herself.

Her protest was ignored as Ash continued his aquatic onslaught while laughing through it all.

"Alright, that's it! Don't say I didn't warn you!" said Latias in mock annoyance as she picked up Ash just like she did the first time they had met in the Secret Garden. Flying over the shallows, Latias let go. Ash flapped his arms wildly in vain attempts to remain airborne, but gravity quickly caught up to him and he plunged into the freezing cold water like a Snorlax trying to learn Dive. Surfacing with various kinds of aquatic plants clinging on to him, Ash looked as if he was an undiscovered alternate evolution of Lotad as he spat out river water from his mouth in a stream. Laughing so hard to the point that her sides were aching, Latias failed to notice Ash was advancing on her with mischievous gleam in his eyes.

"Oh yeah? So you want to play that way, huh?" said Ash as he grabbed hold of the floating Eon Pokémon and gave her a sharp tug downward.

"Eeek!" squealed Latias as she felt herself lose balance and toppled into the water alongside Ash.

Laughing and rolling about in the shallows, the two love birds frolicked and splashed at each other without a care in the world; for to them the constrain of their old life was no longer there and they were enjoying the life which they deserve.

{Hey! Will the two of you keep it down?!} Both Ash and Latias froze in surprise as they were rudely interrupted by an angry screech. {I swear by the darkness of Union Cave, the tourists are out to get me! Ever since I was a mere Zubat, I can't fly anywhere without bumping into one of you clowns!}

Tracing the offending noise to its source, Latias found herself looking at a rather large Golbat hanging upside-down from a nearby tree branch like a grotesque blue-purple fruit.

"Oh, we are sorry," said Latias without much sincerity as she was still trying to suppress a giggle, "We didn't notice you were napping there, we promise we will be careful from now on."

{Tourists…} The Golbat settled backed down to his nap with an irritated mutter.

"Huh? What is going on, Jewel?" asked Ash as he repeatedly tapped the side of his head trying to clear his waterlogged ears, "Who was that kept screaming at us to 'Go back'?"

"Oh, it's nobody," replied Latias dismissively, "Nobody important, anyway."

The young couple dragged their wet selves out of the shallows and sighed in unison as they lay down on the riverbank allowing the sun to dry them off. Latias could feel Ash was ogling at her since both of them had climbed out of the river. Feeling the urge to know the reason, she decided to confront him about it.

"What's wrong, Ash? Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Brock was right," said Ash with a flirtatious smile, "Girls DO look better when they are wet!"

"Oh Ash, you are terrible!" laughed Latias in reply and nudged Ash in his side with her claw. Despite Ash's poor attempt at flirting, Latias felt warm feeling coursing through her, and if she was not tired from all the wild Pokémon encounters and water fights from earlier, she would had expressed her affection in much more physical way. Suddenly remembering something, Latias sprang up and flew towards a nearby tree.

"Hey, where are you going?" asked Ash in surprised as he too, scrambled to his feet.

"I am going to ask for directions," said Latias as she stopped under the sleeping Golbat.

"Directions? What directions? We don't NEED any directions!" exclaimed Ash in objection, "I've got this, Jewel. I have everything under control!"

Ash's objections fell on deaf ears as Latias was already calling up to Golbat.

"Hello…? Erm, excuse me, I need to ask you something," when he did not answer, Latias flew up to Golbat's level and began to pinch the Bat Pokémon's cheek with her claws, "Hey! Wake up! I need your help!"

{What do you want now?!} demanded Golbat grumpily as he was once again roused from his sleep, {can't a Bat Pokémon have his peace around here?}

"Sorry," said Latias again without much sincerity, "I am wondering... if you happened to know a place around here that is suitable for building a cabin."

{A cabin?} asked Golbat suspiciously, {Why would you want to build a cabin on Mount Silver? Actually, don't answer, I am not interested.} Pointing with his wing to a location further up the mountain, the Bat Pokémon continued, {I do not know anywhere else that you can BUILD a cabin, but somewhere up that way you will find a log cabin.}

Latias could barely hide her surprise when she heard Golbat's answer.

"You mean someone has already built a log cabin from before? Is it inhabited now?"

{As if I know or care!} snapped Golbat, {Why don't you trek up there and find out yourself, if you are so curious?}

After that, any attempts by Latias to get any further answers from Golbat resulted in failure as he screwed his eyes shut and ignored Latias with dogged determination. Seeing she was not about to make any more progress, Latias decided to leave the Bat Pokémon alone and explain her recent conversation to Ash, who had finally just finished dislodging all liquid from his ears. Just like Latias, Ash was equally surprised when he heard about the log cabin.

"Well, I guess the only to find out is to go there and check it out ourselves," said Ash

Without any hesitation, Ash and Latias set out in the direction given to them and climbed higher up into Mount Silver. As they climbed, Ash found himself short on breath as the air thinned and his lungs struggled to draw in more air. His clothing dried quickly under the intense sun, were now sticking to his back as sweat from the hard trip up the mountain drenched him like he was thrown into the river again. Looking over to Latias, who was following closely behind him, Ash was surprised to see that Latias was not affected by the hike like he was. Her feathers were glossy from sweat due to the weather, but other than that, Latias showed no sign that she was labored from the search for the log cabin so far. Seeing Latias, Ash harbored a new level of respect for not just Latias, but for all Pokémon, regarding their (quite literally,) inhuman strength and resilience. The quest for the mysterious log cabin turned out to be harder than expected, as after several dozens more wild Pokémon encounters, the forest thinned out to reveal harsh and rocky terrain where the rocks were well worn by centuries of sun, wind and rain. At his point, Ash was about to give up on the search when Latias caught sight of an out-of-place structure among the rocky terrain on the edge of her vision. They had finally found the log cabin. Excited, Latias was about to rush forward to explore the structure, but Ash quickly grabbed her hand to stop her.

"I think it is best for us if you use your human form for this," said Ash, "I doubt anyone can live in this kind of environment for long, but just in case…"

Latias nodded and with a shower of sparkling lights, she transformed into a delicate young woman of reddish-brown hair, flawless peach-colored skin and large citrine eyes whose beauty turned quite a few heads of other trainers when they saw her in such form. The jeweled arm band, Latias' namesake, was hidden most of the time by feathers when she was in Pokémon form, shone like a flaming star against the backdrop of dull gray rocks. Even though it had been a while since Ash had seen his lover in human form, nevertheless, the sight of her still took his whatever remaining breath in his lungs away. As he stared, Ash could not help but think how lucky he is to be able to love someone in two different forms.

"Well, shall we?" asked Latias, snapping Ash out of his trance.

The pair of them approached the log cabin cautiously, searching for any sign of life from or around the cabin. When they had gotten closer, Ash noticed that the log cabin was moderately sized with enough room to house a handful of inhabitants. Checking the parameter of the cabin, he found a few essential tools which were needed for the maintenance of the cabin and the well-belling of the occupants. Although Ash also found quite a collection of equipment which he neither recognize nor know the purpose of them, he paid no attention to them. While Ash was poking around the cabin, Latias looked through the window of the log cabin to see if anyone was in there, but she was quickly disappointed as the interior was dark and devoid of life. Since exploring the outside of the cabin yielded no results, Latias decided to try the door, and much to her surprise, it creaked opened without much resistance.

"Hey Ash, come look at this," Latias called out to Ash who was still outside.

When he followed Latias inside the log cabin, what he saw took him completely by surprise. Even just with the light provided by the opened doorway, Ash could see that the walls of the log cabin were filled with shelves crammed full of books, tools, measurement instruments and various other gadgets which Ash did not know the purpose of their use. The overall interior appeared to be prim and proper, except for the pile of dirty dishes that were left unwashed in a tub and the dining table which also doubled as a writing desk, judging from the mess of paper strewn across its surface. Over in the corner was a very simple bed and directly across from it was a glass cupboard filled to its maximum capacity with none other than porcelain tea sets; a lavish display that clashed violently with rest of the simplicity within the cabin. While Ash was examining the assortment of teapots and cups with amusement, Latias walked over to the table and peered over the notes in hopes that they would shed some lights about the cabin's current or previous owner. Each sheet of paper contained several lines of hand-written text, with some even had numbers scrawled across them. Although most of the words that were written shared similarities with the characters of Universal which Latias had picked up from Bianca while she was growing up in Altomare, none of the words or characters on the papers was recognizable to Latias.

"Ash, do you think you can read what's written on these papers?" asked Latias, beckoning over Ash as he was still standing in front of the glass cupboard, "They might give us some clues about this log cabin we've found."

Bending over the table, Ash tried to use the limited lighting inside the cabin to read. But try as he might, Ash could not make heads or tails out of the words written of the papers, just like Latias before him. Not wanting to admit his incompetency in front of his lover, Ash kept his mouth shut and stared at the papers hoping that something will dawn on him. But eventually, he gave up and threw his hands up in gesture of surrender.

"You've got me here, Jewel," said Ash sheepishly, "I can't understand any of these letters."

"Do you think it is written in codes?"

"Maybe; either that or they are not written in Universal."

The two of them were so engrossed with the contents on the table that neither of them noticed a shadowy figure snuck in from behind through the open doorway. Suddenly, in a flurry of motion, Ash felt his legs gave out under him as someone had kicked them out from behind. As he was falling, Ash felt a staff reached out horizontally across his throat and pinned him against the body of his assailant in a stranglehold. Latias instinctively tried to lash out with her powers, but since she had transformed herself, nothing had happened. Growling and glaring in frustration, Latias could only bite the inside of her lips as Ash was left at the mercy of the newcomer.

"Alright, who are you, what are you doing in my cabin and who sent you here?" demanded a fierce male voice from behind Ash, "Speak!" The stranglehold tightened as Ash failed to answer.

"No...Nobody…sent us…" Ash managed to wheeze through his restricted windpipe, "We…exploring…mountain…got lost…."

Ash felt the pressure around his throat gave away and he was roughly shoved in Latias' direction, who quickly steadied him with her eyes filled with utmost concern. With the sound of a single click from somewhere within the log cabin, a flood of electrical lights illuminated the entire interior. Surprised and disorientated from the sudden change in the lighting, both Ash and Latias blinked and rubbed their eyes, trying to get them to adjust. When his eyes finally got used to the new bright interior of the cabin, Ash shot a glare towards his assailant.

"Hey! What was that f-" words caught in his throat as Ash was taken aback by what he saw. His assailant, who by this time became obvious that he was the owner of the cabin, was a young man in his early to mid-twenties, with features of dark hair, green eyes and average height. What really threw Ash off were the attires which the owner of the cabin was wearing. Having being treated so roughly, Ash did not expect the man who attacked him to be wearing a white lab coat over a messy, half-buttoned light blue shirt and a pair of khaki pants. The most prominent and outrageous of them all was the pair of spectacles perched on the bridge of the young man's nose, which enlarged his eyes to the point that they gave the young man the appearance of a human Yanma. Also upon a closer inspection, the "staff" which Ash felt around his throat was simply a heavily modified Super Rod, customized to the point that it looked as if it will fish up a Wailord with ease. Judging by the expression on his face, the cabin's owner was just as surprise to see Ash and Latias as they were to find out about his appearance.

"You are not what I've expected," said the owner with a frown, "Who did you say the two of you were again?"

"Oh hi, my name is Ash and this is my… girlfriend, Jewel," said Ash beginning with his usual introduction routine, "we are…" he paused, unable to find the proper words to continue.

"Tourists…" provided Latias hastily through private telepathy

"…Tourists from Pallet Town and we were exploring the natures of Mount Silver when we were attacked by wild Pokémon. We ran away, got lost and somehow we found ourselves here."

With a casual glance, the cabin owner briefly looked Latias up and down, but dismissing her as unimportant, he turned his attention back to Ash.

"Well, in that case, I apologize for my previous actions. Here, why don't you sit down and I will make you some tea."

Quickly tossing the Super Rod at the foot of his bed, the Yanma looking cabin owner cleared the dining table and busied himself with making tea for his guests.

"My name is Theodore Urbain Dexter Oscar Reynolds, but you may call me Tudor for short," introduced the cabin owner, "I am originally from Blackthorn City, but I had moved here in order to study and research Pokémon," throwing a quick smile at the couple who were now seated at the dining table, Tudor continued, "You two are my first visitors in years! Once again, sorry about earlier, I thought you were a mountain bandit or something, Ash.'

"Oh, that was nothing really," replied Ash graciously, watching Tudor putting on a kettle to boil, "But I have to ask, why did you come so far out into the wilderness in order to study Pokémon?"

"You mean, you can't tell from my looks?" asked Tudor, raising an eyebrow in astonishment, "Why, I am a Pokémon Researcher! Well… at least I am soon to be… I am still studying…" mumbling the last part, Tudor began to set out teacups for Ash and Latias, "My area of specialty is Pokémon movesets. So when I receive my certificate as a Researcher, I will be called a Moveset Specialist!" finished Tudor proudly.

"A Moveset Specialist? What is that?" asked Ash, turning to Latias in confusion, who shrugged in reply.

"It's a professor-level Pokémon Researcher who studies, analyzes and documents all possible Pokémon movesets in the world. Naturally, there aren't many of them in the world due to the daunting amount of study required."

"So what makes them so different than a Researcher like Professor Oak? I mean, when he collects Pokédex information, doesn't he also collect information on Pokémon techniques?'

"Ah, I am glad you asked Ash," said Tudor with a twinkle in his eyes, "Instead of studying the Pokémon as a whole, a Moveset Specialist only concentrates on the technique. This means, instead of studying Water Pokémon, we study all Water type moves and categorize their various strengths and weaknesses when they were used by Water or non-Water type Pokémon. We also try to understand various reasons why a Pokémon can learn techniques that are not their type or the type they are weak against. Like a Rhydon learning Surf, for example."

Nodding his head slowly, Ash tried to comprehend everything he heard from Tudor. Although he still couldn't see how exactly Tudor is different from Professor Oak, at least he could see that the amount of work involved were truly great.

"But that is not all," continued Tudor as he rushed forward to take the whistling kettle off the stove, "The true defining difference is that, by studying Pokémon movesets, a Moveset Specialist seeks to create more powerful, more efficient and more diverse techniques for Trainers and their Pokémon battles. If suitable techniques were ever created, they are then coded into Technical Machines or Hidden Machines."

"So, that's how TM are made…" said Ash, suddenly impressed by Tudor's line of work, "And I must say, you have quite an impressive set up here Tudor," continued Ash as he explored the interior of the cabin with his eyes while Tudor was fidgeting around with the teapot, "I was surprise that you could even build a log cabin here, let alone having electricity."

"Oh, it's easier than it looks," said Tudor airily carrying a tray with tea and sugar to the young couple, "A little bit of elbow grease and a portable generator, you will be surprised with how much you can accomplish." As he finished serving Ash and Latias with their tea, Tudor went off and settled down on his bed.

Latias looked cautiously at the dark liquid in her teacup and turned to Ash as if she was asking his permission to continue. Smiling in encouragement, Ash made a motion for her to go ahead. Taking a tentative sip from her cup, Latias' expression quickly blossomed into that of appreciation as she felt the warmth and comfort of tea course through her body. Happy that his beloved is enjoying the tea, Ash also took a sip from his own cup and immediately spat it back out in disgust.

"YUCK! What was that?! It's disgusting!" exclaimed Ash as he repeatedly wiped his mouth on his sleeve, trying to rid the taste of tea.

"I knew this will happen," said Tudor with a wry smile. Reaching over to the Super Rod, he picked it up and advanced menacingly towards Ash and Latias who sat frozen in confusion, "Okay, Round Two… Let's try this again: Who are you and what were you doing in my cabin?" he growled, all his previous cheerful and friendly demeanor had evaporated, "I will NOT ask you a third time…"

With his last warning, Tudor twisted the shaft of his Super Rod and unsheathed a long, thin blade.