Talk about a lengthy hiatus. I've tried writing this chapter several different times, each one scrapped. I'm hoping this is my last run for this single chapter XD
When we last left our heroes, Professor Oak's lab had been attacked. Now, with minimal information and a lot of risk, Ash and his friends have split up to try to find and return the stolen Pokemon to their rightful place at Professor Oak's facility. Unfortunately, there are those that work against them.
Ash skidded to a halt, seeing a masked man standing over a clearing in the dense brush. He could see various of his youngest Pokemon scattered around in cages, the larger and more powerful ones likely had escaped and gone searching for help as Pidgeot had.
Riolu, being a baby, was Ash's first priority. But that didn't stop him from scanning furiously for signs that Pikachu had been captured along with the others.
When he was confident that Pikachu was nowhere to be found, Ash went to his belt for Dewgong. At the moment, all he had tactically was flying, water, and a normal-type Pokemon. He forced Buizel and Quilava to stay behind to protect the others, but he was beginning to wonder if he should've brought them anyway.
Ash silently released Dewgong, leaving Eevee in it's Pokeball because it was the least experienced Pokemon he had in battle.
"Pidgeot," Ash whispered, "go find Misty."
Pidgeot didn't hesitate to take off into the air and begin the search.
"Alright, Dewgong, here's the plan." After Ash explained himself, Dewgong went off in another direction to help the stronger Pokemon escape first. He would then use them to overcome the Marauder, but it would have to be done with as many Pokemon as possible.
Ash would go closer to the Marauder in an attempt to free as many of the smaller Pokemon as he could before they were found out. This would also give Dewgong a chance to free more Pokemon without discovery as quickly.
Ash managed to get an Ivysaur, a Jolteon, his Riolu, and a Phanpy before a Pokemon attacked him from behind and knocked him to the ground.
"Hm?" The masked marauder turned around, "Ketchum, we meet again."
"Have we met?" Ash grumbled as he got up.
"You don't remember the Forest of Time? The Lake of Life? CELEBI?"
But Ash did remember, as soon as he'd asked, he remembered a wounded Celebi dying in his arms and feeling helpless as it did. He could see the Iron Masked Marauder, leaping out of the water and trying to take Celebi yet again before Ash and Pikachu leaped onto his back to stop him one final time.
Or so they thought.
"What do you want?" Ash demanded.
"You ruined me," the Marauder pointed accusingly at Ash. "You and your friends destroyed my operation, stole my Celebi, and nearly killed me. I want to watch your town burn by your own Pokemon, and I want you kneeling at my feet begging for mercy."
Ash bit back a snippy comment because he knew he had to buy Dewgong more time. He could freeze the locks and smash through them with tail whip, but he needed time. Ash had to give him that.
"All this is for revenge? Celebi wasn't yours! Celebi belongs in that forest."
"Celebi belongs with ME! And you can't stop me from realizing my destiny." The Marauder turned to another Weavile that was dragging Dewgong with it. "You're nothing now."
Ash's heart turned to lead, the only backup he now had was the Pokemon behind him and Eevee.
"Riolu... quick attack!" Ash shouted, his Pokemon immediately heeding to his command and striking the Weavile that had attacked Ash. "Jolteon, quick use thunder!"
Jolteon ran up, obeying Ash because it could sense his sincerity. The attack rocked the other Weavile who'd ambushed Dewgong, leaving Ash with an opening. He ran up and tackled the Marauder at the waist. The Marauder had more training, as evidenced by the two seconds it took for him to kick Ash off of him.
"Phanpy, rollout!" The young Phanpy obeyed as the Jolteon had, attacking the Marauder before he had a chance to pounce again on Ash. "Ivysaur, use your razor leaf to cut the locks!"
Ash returned Dewgong to his Pokeball and saw that Riolu was struggling to fend off its Weavile. Jolteon was equally busy, so Ash called upon Eevee to join the fray.
"Tackle attack!" Eevee took off at full speed, smacking into the Weavile as it charged up an attack. Riolu leaped over Eevee and used Bite on the Weavile's leg. The Weavile howled in pain, leaving Eevee to use it's sand attack to blind the Pokemon. Riolu got to its feet and used a low kick on Weavile's good foot, taking it to the ground and tackling it to ensure it didn't go anywhere.
Jolteon sprinted at Weavile, who tried to use Dark Pulse. Jolteon leaped into the air and fired its Pin Missile, pinning the foe Pokemon in place momentarily so another attack could be placed. It unleashed its thunderbolt and KO'ed the Weavile.
"You've lost," Ash told the Marauder. "Give up."
"Not this time, punk."
The Marauder threw small explosives the size of golfballs that blew and expanded into thick clouds of dark smoke. It was several seconds before the wind picked up, clearing the area with powerful gusts of air.
"Good job, Pidgeot!" Misty shouted, landing at the clearing on Pidgeot's back and running toward Ash. "Are you okay?" Ash nodded. "What about the Pokemon?"
Ash scanned furiously, making sure that none of his Pokemon that were nearby were taken. When he was confident, he returned the ones he could to their Pokeballs and rallied the other healthy ones to help the injured back to Professor Oak's.
It was a long way back to the lab, especially since Pidgeot would spot Pokemon it recognized and send them to collect the missing Pokemon. Eventually, Ash could see the damaged fence-line that showed him he was close to Professor Oak's.
Getting the Pokemon back into the lab took time and nearly all of Pallet Town's residents. Everyone lended a hand who could with searching for more Pokemon while others prepared meals for the hungry, as well as helping Professor Oak catalogue each recovered Pokemon. Charizard arrived, helping with search and rescue with Misty on his back. Ash spent his time using Growlithe to track down the scents of various Pokemon until he saw a bright fire blast in the sky that was a signal from Professor Oak that all Pokemon were accounted for.
Misty and Charizard set down near where Ash was talking with all of his Pokemon. He was checking each one for bruises and abrasions meticulously, bringing the ones that needed more immediate help to Professor Oak for rapid healing. He decided to release Eevee from his Pokeball for an evening walk. Eevee purred affectionately as it walked beside Ash, who was still checking his Pokemon despite the fact that Misty had gone inside over an hour ago.
It was well after midnight before Ash realized that he hadn't seen his mom in several hours. She was likely getting worried that he hadn't checked in, especially with everything going on that day. But Ash wanted to be certain that his Pokemon were taken care of before he turned in for the night, even if that meant worrying his mother for just a bit longer.
When he was satisfied, he spent a good deal of time returning each Pokemon to their Pokeballs while Eevee played with Growlithe, Riolu, and Pikachu. Finally, Ash sat down on a bench and looked at his Pokemon. They were carefree, innocent as they had been before this whole fiasco had begun. Playing under the light of the full moon, he could see the fur on Eevee's back seemingly glow from the peaceful evening.
Ash smiled, for the first time thinking back on the fact that he'd kissed Misty just a day ago.
It felt like a lifetime, given all that had occurred the previous day.
He didn't know what the kiss meant to her, and he wasn't even sure what he wanted it to mean for himself. Training as a Pokemon master for the past several years hadn't left a lot of time for the thought of girls, let alone one of his best friends. Not to say he hadn't thought about Misty in that way, many times in fact. But it just seemed so complicated now.
Eevee seemed to be getting tired from play and came over to cuddle up in Ash's lap.
He sat there petting it until he nearly passed out, opening his eyes only at a bright glow that at first he thought had to be the sun.
Before he realized what was happening, Eevee's short frame was filled out and its brown/white fur was quickly replaced with black and yellow.
"Umbreon," Ash muttered, still marveling at the power of Pokemon to transform from one stage to another.
Umbreon jumped off Ash's lap and called out loudly, receiving praises from Ash's other conscious Pokemon.
"We gotta go home guys," Ash said eventually, returning his Pokemon to their place and taking the walk home with Pikachu at his side.
He wasn't surprised to see Mr. Mime snoozing on the couch, or his mom's bedroom door shut tight, although he'd half-expected her to still be up, waiting and worrying.
Ash made it to his bedroom and laid down on the soft mattress, falling asleep almost as quickly as a Snorlax who'd been up for more than an hour.
And so all is peaceful... or so Ash believes. With the escape of the Marauder, Ash and his friends must be cautious. Otherwise, the next run-in they have with the Iron-Masked Marauder may just cost them a price they cannot pay.
Hope you enjoyed, review and follow please! This is part two of two of the Pokemon mini-movie POKEMON: RETURN!