Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.
"Speech"
'Thoughts'
"Telepathy"
A/N: Here's chapter 25! Enjoy it! =D
Sorry for the rather long delay…I've been very busy, but despite those setbacks, this chapter is finally here! Enjoy!
Also, I'd like to thank my Beta Reader Ri2 for all his help editing and checking up on all my chapters. He really does a wonderful job and he's helped me a lot in making this Fanfic so good. Many thanks, my dear friend! You're awesome!
Now for the chapter!
Latias couldn't help but smile at Ash as he walked towards Pallet Town. Meeting Ho-Oh had certainly lifted the boy's spirits, and he was now in a more peaceful and happy mood. Yes, he was still sad about the departure of his friends, but at least he wasn't as depressed as he had been before talking to the Rainbow Pokémon. Also, the prospect that they were getting near his hometown was helping a lot, too. "I see meeting Ho-Oh put you in a good mood," Latias commented, tugging Ash's sleeve while smiling gently at him.
"I guess. Meeting her was simply…amazing," Ash replied.
Latias giggled. "That's all you can say?"
"Well, no…it's just that…meeting her was so incredible that I can't really describe how it made me feel. It was just so awesome…" Ash said, pausing to think out his reply. "And it was also cool to know she's so close to you two," he added, smiling back at her.
"I wonder…you said she went to the secret garden to check up on you and to teach you stuff, right?" Pikachu asked.
"Yep," Latios confirmed. "Why?"
"Well, she's a rather large Pokémon…how did she enter the garden?" Pikachu asked, clearly confused. Ash nodded in agreement, puzzled over the matter as well.
"She just flew in, how else?" Latios answered. Both Ash and Pikachu stared at him in disbelief. Latios tried to elaborate. "She entered the garden around two or three in the morning so no one saw her. During our youth, she'd stay the entire day and not leave until early in the morning the next day. When we grew up, she'd come by for an hour or so to check on us and then leave."
"Didn't the garden have a roof?" Pikachu asked. "Or did it? I never really thought to look…"
"Neither did I," Ash said, scratching his head in confusion.
"Well, it has the illusion of a roof so the garden can't be seen from above. It's kinda like the illusion of the entrances, but bigger. Sunlight can enter and help the extensive plant life of the garden to grow while shielding the garden from foreign eyes. Lady Ho-Oh just flew through the illusion," Latios explained.
"Ah," Ash said. "I can't understand how we missed that."
"Me neither," Pikachu agreed. Latias and Latios laughed, happy that their home had so many surprises, and even more happy at the thought that they were going to go there soon.
"Anyway, it's my turn to impress you two with my hometown," Ash said.
"Your home doesn't have cool waterways, a huge secret garden, lots of illusions or two Guardian Legendaries," Pikachu commented. A vein of irritation appeared on Ash's forehead.
Latias giggled. "I'm sure you'll manage to impress us anyway, Ash."
"Yeah, Pallet Town is a very beautiful town," Pikachu admitted. "You two will love it."
"Yeah," Ash agreed.
Pikachu noticed something and hopped off Ash's shoulder and walked back a bit. Ash noticed and turned around. "What's up, Pikachu?" he asked. The eon dragons turned to look at the Electric-Type.
"Yep, it was around here," Pikachu commented, looking around the area.
"What was around here?" Latias asked, looking confused.
"Ash, don't you have a promise to fulfill?" Pikachu asked, tilting his head and smiling.
Ash stared at Pikachu blankly. "What do you mean?" he asked, confused.
Pikachu's jaw dropped. "You forgot!" He exclaimed. "Well…that doesn't really surprise me."
"What!" Ash demanded.
"What are you two talking about?" Latios wondered. Latias looked between Ash and Pikachu, blinking in confusion.
"Don't you two dare read our minds now, keep out!" Pikachu told them. Latias and Latios looked at each other, more confused than ever. They decided to respect the Electric-type's wish and restrained themselves from reading either Ash or Pikachu's minds to know what was going on.
"Err… I made a promise?" Ash asked.
"Yes," Pikachu deadpanned. He sighed and gave a small chuckle. "Seeing as you've forgotten, let me refresh your memory. In the forest between Viridian City and Pallet Town, you released a certain Pokémon before departing for the Orange islands. You promised that certain Pokémon you'd return…Remember now?"
Ash paused, thinking back to his adventures over a year and a half ago, a far off look in his reddish eyes. A few seconds later he remembered. "Pidgeot…" he muttered softly, a fond smile tugging at his lips. "It's been a while since I saw him…"
"Her," Pikachu corrected, chuckling slightly.
Ash paused, a look of confusion on his features. "What?"
Pikachu laughed. "Why I am not surprised you're oblivious to this? Your Pidgeot is a she."
"Ah…" Ash muttered in surprise.
"It was around here where she fought off that Fearow to protect the flock of Pidgey and Pidgeotto. You left her to take care of that flock. Once the flock became strong enough to fend for themselves, she'd wait here for your return… You promised Pidgeot you'd come back for her," Pikachu said.
"Right… I feel horrible for forgetting her…" Ash muttered.
"It's not too late to search her. You're only a year or so late," Pikachu commented. Ash sulked. "You promised you'd come back after the trips to the Orange Islands."
Ash sighed. "Why didn't you remind me!"
"Mainly because you couldn't understand me," Pikachu replied flatly.
"Oh, right…understanding Pokémon is certainly amazing! I love it," Ash commented. He frowned. "Think she'll be mad at me for forgetting her?"
"Yes, but I'm sure she'll appreciate seeing you again," Pikachu replied. Ash smiled in relief, trusting the Electric-Type's words.
"That's certainly interesting," Latios commented, looking at the exchange with bemusement.
"Yeah, guess that means we'll take a detour to find this Pokémon of yours, Ash," Latias added.
"Yeah," Ash replied, smiling softly. "I wonder how she's been after all this time."
"After she beat the Fearow, she became leader of the flock," Pikachu informed them. "You would have known, but, you couldn't understand her, so…"
"Yeah…" Ash mumbled. "I wonder how she'll take my ability to talk to Pokémon?"
"She'll probably be thrilled, like almost all of us, your Pokémon, were," Pikachu replied.
"Well let's hurry! You said she should be around these parts, so let's go!" Ash said, walking off the road and into the woods. His Pokémon followed him.
Pikachu smiled. "This forest brings so many memories… like Ash throwing a rock to try and catch a Spearow," he commented. An irritated vein appeared on Ash's forehead. Latios and Latias stifled a laugh. "Or…Misty fishing Ash from a river…" Again, an even more annoyed look crossed Ash's face. The Eon dragons barely contained their laughter. "And you… using some rubber gloves to drag me around."
"You wouldn't listen to me!" Ash countered. The eon dragons couldn't hold it in any longer and started laughing hysterically.
"Well…" Pikachu began. He couldn't take it and started laughing along with the eon dragons.
Ash sighed in frustration. "You three are impossible."
"We know it," all three Pokémon said at the same time. Ash groaned in despair.
"Well," Latias began. "Ash didn't make a mistake with the Spearow thing…"
"I didn't?" Ash questioned in confusion.
"Well, you threw a rock at it, and Rock is super-effective against Flying-Types," Latias joked.
"Ash used Rock Throw!" Pikachu cried. The three Pokémon laughed. Ash muttered about annoying and disrespectful Pokémon under his breath, increasing the laughter from his friends.
"Well that was certainly fun," Pikachu commented once the laughter died down.
"Yeah," Latias agreed.
"Yeah," Ash agreed sarcastically. Latias giggled. "It was my first day as a trainer so…It's forgivable," he countered.
"I doubt other trainers did things as stupid as that," Pikachu commented dryly.
Ash paused. "Er…who knows?"
Pikachu rolled his eyes. "Anyway…Latias, Latios, can you sense any Pidgeot nearby?"
Both dragons did a quick mental scan of the area…only to get dizzy and a nice headache. "Owww…" Latios moaned, clutching his head. Latias wasn't doing any better.
"What's wrong now?" Pikachu asked with a frown.
"There are too many Pokémon nearby. Finding a single mind out of all them is too difficult," Latios answered. "They kinda overloaded our mental senses. If we had tried to search for a few more seconds, it could have knocked us out."
"Yeah," Latias lamented.
"Finding her will be a lot harder than I thought, then," Ash commented, looking around in the unsuccessful hope of finding Pidgeot.
"Want us to search from the air?" Latias offered. "We might be unable to search mentally, but we can at least try the old-fashioned way."
"Sure," Ash agreed. "Be careful."
"Alright," the eon dragons chorused. They turned invisible for safety and took off for the sky.
"Think they'll find her?" Ash wondered.
"I hope so. Let's keep looking too," Pikachu suggested.
"Yeah," Ash agreed. The bushes beside them twitched. They turned. "What's that, Pikachu?"
"Probably a few Beedrill," he answered. The Electric-Type paused. "Run." They ran frantically as a bunch of Beedrill emerged from the woods and angrily buzzed after them.
"We're lucky today, aren't we?" Ash commented sarcastically as they ran away.
"You think?" Pikachu retorted in annoyance.
"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered. The Electric-Type nodded as his cheeks sparked. He released a potent blast of electricity, shocking a few of the Beedrill and dropping them to the ground. Seeing that they had already chased the human out of their territory and that the Pikachu was rather strong, the rest deemed that it was unnecessary to chase them and decided to withdraw.
"That did the trick," Pikachu commented as the swarm of Beedrill flew away.
Little did they know that they had attracted some very unwanted attention. A Fearow soaring at the canopy level of the trees saw an electrical blast in the distance. He frowned and went to inspect it. His mind was immediately clouded in rage and bloodlust when he saw the very human he despised the most standing below him, the same human that had hit him with a rock, defeated him, causing the flock he was leader of to deem him too weak and expel him. That human was going pay dearly for all that. "I'll rip you apart!" He screamed, completely enraged as he dove at Ash with an Aerial Ace.
Ash turned as he heard a very angry shriek, and was terrified to see a Fearow flying at colossal speeds toward him. He knew instinctually that the hit from that long spear-like beak at those speeds would severely injure him…maybe even worse. He closed his eyes, awaiting the dreaded impact and the pain that would follow…and instead heard the Fearow screech in pain. He opened his eyes and was deeply relieved to see the Fearow recoiling after a rather hard crash against Pikachu's Iron Tail. He had been so focused in hitting Ash that he had forgotten completely about the Electric-Type. "Thanks, buddy," Ash said gratefully. "I owe you one!"
"You're welcome," Pikachu said as he landed in front of him, smiling at his friend. He turned to the Fearow. "What's your problem!" He demanded, glaring at him.
"That's none of your business!" The Fearow spat angrily, now sporting a nice cut on his chest.
"Ash is my best friend and trainer, you attacking him makes it my business," Pikachu countered, his cheeks sparking dangerously.
"Ah, right, you're the human's Pikachu…" the Fearow mumbled, remembering the Electric-Type.
"Are you crazy? You could have hurt my friend badly with that attack!" Pikachu yelled angrily.
The Fearow chuckled darkly. "Who said I wanted to hurt him? I wanted to kill him." Ash shivered in terror. Pikachu glared at the Fearow dangerously.
"I'd like to see you try again…" Pikachu said, crouching low to the ground as his cheeks sparked more violently than ever, ready to attack the Fearow at any given second.
"Why!" Ash demanded, terrified at the death threat.
"You ruined my life," the Fearow answered. "You attacked me when I was a Spearow, and then you made my flock exile me!"
"While I admit that Ash's attack with a rock when you were a Spearow was uncalled for, sheez, it was just a rock, get over it you crybaby," Pikachu said. "And you losing your position as leader wasn't anyone's fault but your own."
"What? How dare you!" the Fearow cried, clearly angered.
"If you hadn't been fed up over that rock thing, you wouldn't have attacked that Pidgey and Pidgeotto flock, and if you hadn't attacked them, Pidgeot would never have beat the crap out of you, and thus you might still be the their leader. Don't blame Ash for your stupid mistakes," Pikachu continued.
"I don't care, it's his entire fault no matter what you say you pesky Rattata…and I'll make him pay for it!" the Fearow bellowed as he dove at Ash and Pikachu. 'Fighting an Electric-Type isn't a good idea…I'd better kill the human first and take advantage of the Pikachu's grief to kill him afterwards,' the Fearow thought as he flew towards them.
"Pikachu, stop him with Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered, glad that he had Pikachu's protection. 'I sure picked a good moment to agree to send Latias and Latios away…but at least Pikachu should be strong enough to beat Fearow. Due to my soul-connection thing with Latios, he should have sensed my earlier fear by now, so he's probably on his way here…but Pikachu should be done by the time he gets here,' Ash thought.
Fearow smirked as he got an idea to bypass Pikachu to get to Ash. 'Human… you're dead.'
Pikachu fired an electric strike at the incoming flying type. The Fearow used double team, creating several dozen copies of him. The Electric attack vaporized a few of the copies, but the remaining birds made no move to attack Pikachu, much to the Electric-Type's confusion. When he saw the Fearows getting ready to fly towards Ash, he realized Fearow's plan. He made a quick decision, releasing a colossal electrical blast skywards, causing all the Fearow to disappear as the attack dispelled them. However, before the attack hit, Pikachu didn't notice one of them disappearing with Aerial Ace. Pikachu gasped as he saw that the last one was heading towards Ash. 'Damn! He passed me!' he thought, utterly baffled.
Ash gasped as he saw the Fearow charging at him, his beak beginning to spin like a drill as he used Drill Peck. 'I'm gonna rip you apart!" the Fearow thought excitedly. Ash quickly began to reach for Cyndaquil's Pokeball, but Fearow was coming too fast, he would never be able to reach it time. Fearow would have smirked if his beak wasn't spinning. 'Too slow!'
"LEAVE HIM ALONE!" A female voice shrieked in pure rage. For the second time that day, Ash's life was saved as the Fearow was hit with colossal force in the side, sending him spiraling away and ripping the tree he collided against apart. Pikachu grimaced, sure that had hurt…and he was certain the Fearow must have broken a bone or two.
Pidgeot landed gracefully as her Steel Wing/Aerial Ace combo ended, setting herself in front of the stunned Ash. She grinned, though it wasn't very noticeable through her beak. "Ash! You're back! I knew you'd come back some day! I'm so happy to see you!" she cooed sweetly as she tackled Ash playfully. Due to the fact that she was much bigger than him, Ash fell backwards with the Flying type on top of him. Pidgeot nuzzled him lovingly and gave him happy pecks on his cheek now and then, wrapping her large wings around him in a hug.
Ash gave a small cry as Pidgeot's pecks drew a bit of blood, looks like she forgot the beak... "Ack, Pidgeot, stop, you're hurting me!"
Ignoring his pleas, Pidgeot pulled him into a close hug, resting her head on his neck and closing her eyes. "I'm so happy you came back, I missed you!"
"I missed you too, and I'm very glad you stopped pecking me. Sorry it took so long, but, yeah, I'm back," Ash responded with a wince of pain, wrapping his arms around her neck.
Pikachu smiled at the sweet reunion. He heard a rustle and turned to see the bruised and beaten Fearow trying to stand up. "Oww…that…h-hurt…" he groaned. "Ugh…not that bitch again…"
Pikachu shook his head in annoyance and walked up to him. 'Sorry, you're not interrupting this moment,' he thought as he used a Thunderbolt to knock out the Fearow. "That will teach you not to mess with us." Pidgeot and Ash didn't notice.
"Thanks for saving me," Ash said gratefully as he parted the hug.
"No problem," Pidgeot replied as she got off Ash, hopping backwards to allow him to stand up. Ash smiled and dusted himself off as he stood up.
"So, how is your flock doing?" Ash asked.
Pidgeot smiled. "They aren't my flock anymore," she answered.
"You're no longer the leader? How come?" Ash asked.
"I was only the leader while the flock needed my protection from the Fearows and Spearows. When more Pidgeottos evolved into Pidgeots, I was no longer needed, so I passed my leadership on. Also, I knew you'd come back, so I decided to not let the flock become too dependant on me, though I still lived with them, and am the strongest member of the flock," she explained. "Right now, they're strong on their own, and no longer need me."
"Ahh, interesting…" Ash commented. "Its nice to hear that your flock is okay after all this time."
Pidgeot frowned when she realized something. "Err…you're understanding me…perfectly? How are you doing that!"
Ash grinned. "After a recent adventure I had with two Legendary Pokémon, I gained the ability to talk to Pokémon. And speaking of which…"
"We're back! Sorry it took so long!" Latios cried as he appeared, leaves and branches draped over his body from ignoring bushes in his rush to get back to Ash as fast as possible.
"Yeah sorry!" Latias said frantically as she too emerged from the woods, looking perfectly fine, her smaller body allowing her to maneuver though the trees much easier than Latios' larger form. "Are you okay Ash! Latios told me he sensed a massive amount of fear from you." They looked around, wondering where the possible threat was.
Everyone sweatdropped. "You two are, like, one hour late," Pikachu joked, rolling his eyes. "And why are you so messed up Latios? Why didn't you two fly over the forest?"
The eon twins laughed nervously. "We took so long because on our way back, some damn Beedrill swarm got in our way, and we had to escape by flying under the tree's cover…but it didn't go so good on my end…" Latios explained.
"Ash was almost killed two times while two were away," Pikachu scolded them. The eon twins fidgeted guiltily.
"Latias, Latios, meet Pidgeot, my third Pokémon. She's been with me since my first days as a trainer," Ash said, motioning to Pidgeot. "Pidgeot, meet Latias and Latios, two of my new Pokemon. They're both Legendaries. There are some others you'd probably like to meet, but you'll get to know them once we get back to Pallet."
Pidgeot bowed respectfully. "Legendary Pokémon? I am pleased to meet you."
"Likewise," Latios said.
"Nice to meet you too!" Latias said cheerily, enjoying the prospect of a new friend.
"Where were you two?" Pidgeot asked, finding it odd that they had been away from Ash.
"Looking for you, but we failed miserably," Latios answered.
"You got that right," Pikachu mumbled. Latios glared at him.
"What was trying to kill Ash?" Latias asked, a hint of anger in her voice.
"The Fearow that Ash threw the rock at," Pikachu answered. The twins got annoyed looks. "But before you two think of punishing him or something like that for attacking Ash, remember you arrived late to the party; Pidgeot already beat the crap out of him...in one blow."
"Again," Pidgeot said offhandedly. "Even after he was exiled, he has been trying to get his revenge on me, but he's been failing miserably. That's why I was around these parts actually, it's been a while since he tried something, I came to see what was he up to, and when I saw him attacking Ash… well, you know the rest."
"I hope he's learned his lesson," Ash commented.
"I doubt he will," Pidgeot muttered, shaking her head sadly.
"They never do," Pikachu agreed.
"So, how have your adventures been going, Ash?" Pidgeot asked curiously.
"Fairly good," Ash answered.
"Yeah, he's stopped being as clumsy as he was when he started. He's gotten much better," Pikachu said.
"Yeah," Ash agreed… "Wait… clumsy! What's that supposed to mean!" he questioned angrily. All his Pokémon laughed.
"Exactly what it sounded like," Pikachu answered.
"Is he still as reckless as he was when he started out? He really worried me with some of his antics…" Pidgeot asked.
"Yes, he is," Pikachu answered with a chuckle.
"Hey!" Ash yelled. All his Pokémon laughed yet again. Teasing Ash was so fun!
Pidgeot giggled, she was as happy as ever that she could talk to Ash now. "Ohh, I can't wait to hear about all your adventures. We have lots of catching up to do."
"Yeah, let's go to Pallet, we'll tell you on the way," Ash suggested. "Uh, you know the way back to the road right?"
"Don't worry, I memorized it," Latios answered.
"And I know these woods by heart, so we aren't getting lost!" Pidgeot chimed, clearly eager to hear about Ash's travels.
With that, they headed out of the woods and back to the main road so they could travel to Pallet Town, all the while telling Pidgeot about all of the adventures that she'd missed. Pidgeot couldn't believe some of Ash's most recent antics, but where Ash was involved, anything was possible.
After a long walk (or flight in Pidgeot, Latias and Latios' case), the group finally reached Pallet Town. Ash grinned, recognizing a small hill in their path. "Pallet Town's just over that hill."
"Finally!" Latias said. "I'm eager to see your hometown."
"Almost there," Ash commented as he walked over the hill. "Pallet Town is right here!" Once he reached the top of the hill, he marveled at the sight of his cherished hometown again. Latias and Latios were mesmerized by the town's beauty.
Pallet Town was a really nature-friendly town. It had no paved roads, rather there were very neatly kept dirt roads. Picture-perfect wooden houses with pretty gardens and big grass fiends were dotted all over the place. On the farthest hill, overlooking the town was a large pinkish two-story building with a wind turbine on top, Professor Oak's Laboratory. "So, what do you think?" Ash asked to the eon dragons.
"It's really beautiful," Latias commented, marveling at the small hamlet.
"Yeah, I like it," Latios agreed, gazing at the town with a smile. Pallet Town seemed to have a peaceful air to it, just like Altomare.
"Pallet Town's always been an incredibly pretty town," Pidgeot commented.
"Com'on, let's head for my house," Ash called, beginning to walk into town. The eon dragons turned invisible and followed him. They still preferred to remain invisible in public places. "Think my mom and professor Oak are here yet?" Ash wondered.
"Probably," Latios answered. "We took nearly a week of walking from Silver Town to Goldenrod and from Saffron to Viridian. On the other hand, they most likely took an airplane or car."
"Yeah, good point," Pikachu agreed.
They walked into town. "Hello! Welcome back Ash!" A lady tending to her garden in one of the houses beside the road called out. "Congratulations!"
"Thanks," Ash said.
"Yeah!" a guy from another house across the road shouted. "Congrats on the Silver Conference!"
Pikachu chuckled. "Well, seems like you've become quite popular in your absence." Ash laughed and nodded in agreement.
After a few minutes of constantly receiving warm words of welcome and congratulating from the people of Pallet Town, as well as politely declining a few 'Can I see Latios?' requests, saying he'd show him off later, Ash reached his house. "This is my home," Ash said. Ash's house was a small white two-story structure with a red roof and a white picket fence surrounding the property, which had trees, bushes, and a large backyard with a garden in it.
"It looks really nice," Latias commented.
Ash walked forward and knocked on the door. "Mom! I'm home!"
A few seconds later Delia opened the door. She smiled when she saw her son was on her doorstep. "Welcome home, Ash," she said, hugging her son. She pulled back. "Hello to you too Pikachu," she said, rubbing Pikachu's chin gently.
"Hi!" Latias greeted, entering the household. Latios and Pidgeot looked at the door, which seemed too small for them to fit. Well, Pidgeot maybe, but it'd be a tight fit, Latios was sure that he wouldn't be going through it anytime soon. Latias looked back and giggled. "It's moments like this that I enjoy being smaller, brother," she commented. All she had to do to enter was adjust her levitation slightly sideways and move her wings a little.
"You two can enter through the back door, it's bigger," Ash said.
"Nah, I'll stay out here, I don't like small confined places… houses included," Pidgeot said. "I've gotten used to living in the open."
"That's okay, go to Oak's lab for now, I'll meet you there later! Say hi to all my Pokémon for me," Ash told her. She nodded and took off. Latios flew to the backyard.
"So, when did you get back, Mom?" Ash asked, looking at Delia.
"About three days ago," she answered. "What took you so long?"
"It's a long way home from Johto," he replied.
"In other words, you got lost again?" Delia asked. As he turned red, she said, "Well, I'm almost done with supper, so you might as well come have some." Ash grinned happily. "Oh, and, tomorrow we'll have a small party to celebrate your reaching third place in the league. I would have made it a surprise one, but, we didn't know when you'd get here, so, I had to wait for your arrival first."
Ash smiled. "That's awesome! Parties mean lots of food!"
"Everyone in town is invited," Delia continued. "So do you think Latios would be okay with revealing himself? I'm sure people would be happy to meet him."
"Er, I don't know," Latios said as he entered the living room from the backyard. Both he and Latias dropped their invisibility.
"Oh, don't be so shy! Everyone in Pallet Town is nice and trustworthy, I can assure you," Delia said. "Maybe Latias too."
"I don't mind. It'd be nice to be part of the party instead of watching it unnoticed," Latias answered. "Common, bro! It'll be fun!"
Latios sighed and gave in, as usual. "Alright…"
"Good! I'm glad you can make it," Delia said.
"And I'm glad you'll be making some food, because I'm hungry!" Ash said.
Delia laughed. "Oh Ash, you haven't changed a bit!"
Pikachu rolled his eyes as they headed into the dining room. "Tell me about it…"
The next day…
"Be careful, you idiots!" Professor Sebastian bellowed to two Team Rocket grunts as they carried a silver tray to the meeting room where Giovanni was meeting him. "Those are worth more than you can ever hope to earn in your life!"
"Yes sir," one of the grunts replied. Professor Sebastian nodded. After talking to Giovanni the day before, Sebastian had informed everyone of the meeting and its urgency, so everything had to go perfectly. Among other things, he had to ready a hologram projector and several programs to properly carry out the instructions.
"Wait here," he instructed as he walked into the meeting room through one of the side doors. At the moment, only Giovanni was present, along with one of Team Rocket's most elite members, Agent 009: Domino. The room was an expensively decorated chamber with a huge rectangular table at the center equipped with a holographic projector for various purposes. Giovanni was sitting on one end of the table with Domino a few seats to the left.
"Greetings," Professor Sebastian said as he entered. "Everything is accounted for."
"Very well," Giovanni replied, nodding to the scientist.
"So," Domino began. "What's all the buzz about?"
"You'll see," Sebastian answered.
"Is it really worth cancelling all Team Rocket ongoing assignments?" she wondered. It was true, the day before; Giovanni had issued the order that all current missions were to be immediately aborted and all grunts and field agents were to report back to headquarters.
"Its far more than worth it," Giovanni answered. "I cancelled them because this new project is to receive all of Team Rocket's weapons, resources and manpower."
"Wow," Domino murmured. 'For the boss to say that, this must be something big.'
"Professor Sebastian, bring the agents in," Giovanni ordered. The scientist nodded and walked out. A minute later, he returned with several of Team Rocket's field agents behind him.
"Take a seat," Giovanni ordered. They all sat down around the table, wondering what was to be expected of them. Some of them had a vague idea as they had assisted Professors Namba and Sebastian in developing the devices, but they mostly did field tests and gathered necessary components. They hadn't involved themselves much in the lab.
Giovanni took a quick look around the room, mentally taking attendance of everyone around the table. 'Looks like they are all here,' he thought. The agents in the room included Attila, Hun, Annie, Oakley, Butch, Cassidy, Tyson, and the Iron Mask Marauder, along with Professors Sebastian and Namba, Domino, and Giovanni himself.
"As you all know," Giovanni began, drawing everyone's attention. "Professors Mamba and Sebastian-"
"It's Namba!" the professor corrected, clearly irritated.
"Whatever," Giovanni muttered. "Anyway, they have finished developing a powerful new device which shall be implemented in our latest plan."
"And what's this 'device'?" the Marauder asked, looking fairly interested.
Professor Sebastian stood up. "It's a new Pokeball designed by Prof. Namca and myself."
"It's-" the irritated Professor began.
"I don't care," Professor Sebastian interrupted, leaving the other scientist to fume. Butch looked at him in sympathy; he too had problems with people getting his name wrong. "Bring them in," Sebastian shouted. The two Rocket Grunts entered, holding a tray with the Pokeballs and setting them on the table beside the Holographic projector. "Allow me to introduce to you our newest weapon, the Prison Ball," he announced, motioning to the five Pokeballs. The Prison Balls were a solid black on top and a dark steel gray on the bottom. Two gray chains ran across its surface, making an X-shaped design with the intersection being the button of the Pokeball, which resembled a heavy lock. The line that separated the sections was also depicted as a smaller dark gray chain, and in the back, thick rivets was in the back of the sphere. It seemed to radiate a powerful eerie feeling as the agents stared at them.
"Wow," Oakley commented.
"Interesting," Tyson admitted. The other agents nodded in agreement.
"So, what do these 'Prison Balls' do that makes them so special?" Domino asked.
"Many things," Professor Namba answered enigmatically.
"I shall explain," Professor Sebastian announced. "First, they never fail to catch a Pokémon, and once a Pokémon is captured by one, it can't escape. It has a one hundred percent catch rate."
"So, basically, a Master Ball," Attila commented. "But I guess there's more to it than that?"
"Of course," Sebastian replied. "Their most devastating effect is what they do to the Pokémon once it's captured."
"This is getting good," the Iron Mask Marauder commented.
"It's called a Prison Ball because once a Pokémon enters, it can never break free. It is incarcerated within the ball forever. The most devastating effect is that any Pokémon captured will have their willpower, free will, and emotions completely destroyed," Professor Sebastian informed them. "The Pokémon will be linked to the Prison Ball, meaning it will only follow the orders of the one who wields it. Since the Pokémon would have no free will, the Pokémon will comply, no matter what the command."
"Nice," Tyson commented.
"Cool," Butch commented. Cassidy nodded.
"Yeah," Oakley followed, nodding in agreement. "But, aren't free will and willpower the same thing?" she asked.
"No," Prof. Namba answered. "Willpower is the resolve to do something. Free will is the freedom to do anything you wish."
"Indeed, without them both, the captured Pokémon would be unable to do anything on its own accord, and due to the link with the Prison ball, they will be forced to follow the commands of those that captured them," Sebastian explained. "The Pokémon will follow every order given by their captors, making no mistakes and complying without caring about the consequences."
"And there's more," Namba continued. "During early tests, we discovered that these Pokémon had a small flaw. As you know, Psychic Pokémon can sometimes take control of people and Pokémon by invading their minds. Since these Pokémon have no willpower to defend themselves, they were overtaken rapidly."
"That was the hardest part, finding a way to avoid that," Professor Sebastian continued. "So, after several days of research, we developed something interesting to amend that drawback. Through the infusion of highly concentrated darkness energy, unless the Pokémon is already a Dark-type, any Pokémon captured with a Prison Ball will gain a Dark sub-type," he declared. "Also, the infusion of that energy will raise the Pokémon's sheer power to colossal levels, far above that of any living Pokémon."
"Mm, that sounds interesting," Hun commented. "But, you say a Pokémon gains a Dark-Type upon capture, right?"
"That is correct," Professor Sebastian answered.
"Then what happens if a Pokémon that already has two types is captured?" Hun asked.
"We already checked that out. Basically, the Pokémon gains a third Type. With the Prison Balls, we were able to create the first Pokémon ever with three elemental types," Professor Sebastian answered. "One of them always being the Dark-Type."
"Amazing," Domino muttered. Everyone nodded in agreement, clearly impressed. "What happened to the Pokémon that you used for the field tests?"
"Even after we reset the Prison Balls, breaking the link with the Pokémon, the effects didn't disappear. The Pokémon retained the Dark-Typing and lack of will and emotions, but without the Prison Ball to command it…there was no way to get them to do anything or even move, so we had to kill them since they were of no use to us," Professor Sebastian answered. "The effects are completely irreversible."
"Wait," Iron Mask said. "Those sound a lot like my Dark Balls, though…mine don't add Dark-Types…but the effects are pretty similar."
Professor Sebastian chuckled. "I hate to tell you, but your Dark Balls are no match for my Prison Balls. Your Dark Balls increase a Pokémon's power, however, that increase is small compared to that of the Prison Ball. And, if my data is correct, you captured a Celebi with a Dark Ball, correct? What happened to it?"
The Iron Mask Marauder growled in anger. "I managed to get a Celebi in my control, but two stupid kids sweet-talked it into breaking free… how cliché."
"Let me enlighten you as to why that happened," Professor Namba said. "You see, emotions…willpower…they are impressive forces that drive living beings. They are the most powerful force a living being has, either human or Pokémon. They can compel them to do incredible feats. According to our spies, in the region of Orre an organization named Cipher created something they called "Shadow Pokémon" by 'locking the door to their hearts.' Basically, the restrained their emotions completely. Your Dark Ball does something similar, which is what happened to that Celebi."
"That's a huge mistake," Professor Sebastian commented.
"Indeed," Professor Namba agreed. "Both restrained the Pokémon's emotions. However, there is a point were emotions become so powerful that they can't be restrained. That's why 'Shadow Pokémon' could be 'purified' and why your captured Celebi broke free, probably because its feelings for the children became so powerful that by sheer willpower, Celebi shattered the Dark Ball's control over it."
"That's why Prison Balls are impossible to break free from," Professor Sebastian continued. "They don't simply restrain emotions and will, they destroy them completely, making them completely nonexistent. Without them, they have nothing to fight off the Prison Ball's control, so they will follow your every order, and they can't break free."
"Ah," the Marauder said, slightly offended that his Dark Balls had been completely outclassed.
"We have decided to name Pokémon that are captured within a Prison Ball: Incarcerated Pokémon," Professor Namba announced.
"Anyway," Professor Sebastian continued. "In a normal Pokémon…the effects were impressive. A single Incarcerated Pokémon completely annihilated a dozen of Team Rocket's most elite Pokémon in a direct battle, even if they had been under intense training regimens for years. Side effects of the power increase were also increased physical capabilities, speed, and reflexes. All of that was under our absolute control, because Incarcerated Pokémon make no movement unless ordered to. They are the perfect servants…now, imagine what a Legendary Pokémon captured with the Prison Ball could do…"
Everyone's eyes widened as they grinned, getting the idea. Giovanni chuckled wickedly. 'My plans are falling into place.'
"I have prepared a simulation to give you all an idea of what to expect from the power boost applied on a Legendary Pokémon based from field tests on regular Pokémon," Prof. Sebastian announced, grabbing a remote control from one of the pockets of his lab coat. "For this example we decided to use a Legendary Pokémon we have a good deal of data on: Lugia."
"We have received data on him on two occasions, one sighting in the Orange Islands by three low ranked Rocket Members, and a lot from a Lugia pair I captured in the Whirl islands, though sadly, they escaped," Professor Namba explained. "Please, look at the hologram." All the Team Rocket Members looked at the hologram projector, even Giovanni himself. This was new. He wondered what the two scientists had prepared for him.
Professor Sebastian pressed a button as a hologram of a Lugia appeared. "Lugia's signature move is a destructive attack known as Aeroblast," Professor Sebastian informed them. The hologram of a large city with dozens of skyscrapers appeared before the Lugia. "If a regular Lugia were to use an Aeroblast on Saffron City, the biggest city in Kanto, this would happen," he said. In the hologram, the Lugia fired a large orange beam from its mouth with a huge cyclone surrounding it. The attack collided with the center of Saffron City, creating a huge explosion that destroying a skyscraper and left gaping holes in a few others, severely damaging the nearby buildings. They collapsed soon after, the gusts of wind from the blow shattering almost all the windows of the city. Despite the devastation, much of the city was still standing.
"That did some damage, but…now look," Professor Namba said.
Sebastian chuckled. "Now, let's see what an Incarcerated Lugia would do." He pressed another button, resetting the city. The Lugia fired the same attack, hitting the center of the city. The result was catastrophic, a colossal explosion that devastated the entire city, vaporizing dozens of skyscrapers and hundreds of buildings in a second. The huge gusts of wind that erupted from the attack decimated the outskirts of the city completely, even going as far as to annihilate the surrounding forest, ripping thousands of trees apart. A huge crater was left to replace the city, a massive chunk torn out of the landscape. "Saffron City, Kanto's biggest City, would be obliterated in a single blow," Professor Sebastian announced proudly. Everyone's eyes widened. "And Lugia isn't the strongest Legendary Pokémon, stronger Legendaries could make a lot more devastation."
"Amazing," Giovanni muttered. 'This is the kind of power Team Rocket needs…'
"Nice," the Iron Masked Marauder commented.
"Yeah," Oakley agreed, both her and the Marauder staring at the Prison Balls with greed in their eyes. "And with all the other things the Prison Balls do…we'll get the ultimate weapons."
"Now that you are all aware of the capabilities of the Prison Ball…Master Giovanni, it's time," Professor Sebastian said, motioning to the Rocket boss.
Giovanni stood up. "With the help of our lead scientists, we have developed a list of targets that are to be captured with a Prison Ball. Thankfully, over the years we've developed an extensive database on most Pokémon that inhabit the regions of Kanto and Johto, and some of Hoenn thanks to information stolen from various Pokémon professors. Due to lacking partners, Tyson and Iron Mask Marauder, you will work as a duo for this mission and will be given one Prison Ball. Butch and Cassidy will receive another Prison Ball. Both of these teams will be supervised by Professor Nampa. Attila and Hun and Annie and Oakley will also receive one Ball each and those two teams will be supervised by Professor Sebastian. The last Prison Ball will be managed by Agent Domino and myself," Giovanni informed them. "Professor Sebastian and Nampa will assist me whenever I require their advice."
"It's Namba!" The scientist blared. Everyone ignored him.
"First," Professor Sebastian continued. "Agents Marauder and Tyson, your targets will be in the distant Hoenn Region. I have received information that two other criminal organizations have been formed in the Hoenn Region and might become a threat to us. Eliminate them once you make your capture. You shall target the Pokémon that are rumored to have created the continents, sea and sky. Capture one of the following Legendary Pokémon with your Prison Ball: Groudon, Kyogre or Rayquaza. The two organizations I mentioned seem to be after Groudon and Kyogre, so you might have to infiltrate them to accomplish your assignments. Also, see if you can find a Latios and Latias, another pair of strong and rare Legendaries native to Hoenn." He pressed a button and a holographic image of the five aforementioned Pokémon appeared.
Both of the burly men grinned and reached for a Prison Ball. The Marauder glared and slapped Tyson's hand away. "Hey!" Tyson shouted, rubbing his hand.
The Marauder grabbed the Prison Ball, grinning. "Epic," he commented. "I could get used to having one of these!"
"Also," Professor Sebastian began. "We don't know if we have complete info on Legendaries from Hoenn, so if you come across anything interesting, do tell."
"Alright," Tyson replied, still sore that the Marauder had gotten a Prison Ball instead of him.
Professor Sebastian grabbed a small control panel. It beeped and said, "Registration completed. Prison Ball 1: Vicious 'Iron Mask Marauder' and Tyson. Supervisor: Professor Namba," in a mechanical voice.
"At least the machine gets my name right," Professor Namba muttered. Nobody paid attention.
Both men looked at the panel. "What's that for?" Tyson asked.
"Oh, it's just to keep track of the Prison Balls," Sebastian answered. "This is also so the Pokémon you capture will only obey you two, since you two are the ones that are registered to the Prison Ball, and no one else." The nodded, grinning.
Giovanni nodded. "Next."
"Biff and Cassidy, you are next. You shall seek Pokémon that are found in water, your targets are: Kyogre, Lugia, or Suicune," Professor Sebastian announced. The holograms of the three Pokemon appeared over the projector.
"So… after Lugia once more…" Cassidy muttered.
A vein appeared on Butch's forehead. "It's Butch!"
"Hey, we already got Kyogre!" Tyson protested.
"But you have four other targets as well. In case you don't capture Kyogre, this gives us another chance at it," Professor Namba answered.
"Ah," Tyson said.
Cassidy grabbed the Prison Ball. Sebastian pressed a button. "Registration completed. Prison Ball 2: Butch and Cassidy. Supervisor: Professor Namba," the control panel said.
"Neat," Butch commented. "The thing got my name right too!"
"Next, Attila and Hun, your assignment is the Mysterious Pokémon of alien origin Deoxys. It could be anywhere on the world, so search carefully. Also, look for Pokémon native to Johto, such as Entei, Raikou, Suicune and Celebi," Sebastian announced. A hologram of the five Pokémon appeared.
"Very well," Hun replied, nodding. She took a Prison Ball. "So, a Raikou again…Ugh, I don't feel like seeing another one ever again."
Attila laughed. "We still have other four choices."
"That's good…" Hun muttered.
Professor Sebastian's control panel beeped. "Registration completed. Prison Ball 3: Attila and Hun. Supervisor: Professor Sebastian."
"Now, Annie and Oakley," Professor Sebastian continued. "You shall search the skies, Your targets are the Legendary Bird Pokémon, Articuno, Zapdos and Moltres, as well as Ho-Oh and Rayquaza, two Legendaries that are said to live sky high," he informed them, their holograms appearing over the projector.
"Alright," Oakley acknowledged, grabbing a Prison Ball. 'This is better than a second attempt to get the Soul Dew…good thing it got cancelled. Even so, I'll get my revenge on the kid and his Latios someday. First, I'll capture one of those Pokémon, and once I have an Incarcerated Legendary under my power, I will seek Ash and Latios out… and I'll kill them,' she thought eagerly, awaiting the day she would have her long awaited revenge.
Professor Sebastian's panel beeped. "Registration completed. Prison Ball 4: Annie and Oakley. Supervisor: Professor Sebastian."
Everyone turned and looked at the final Prison Ball. Giovanni walked forward and pocketed it. Professor Sebastian's panel beeped again. "Registration completed. Prison Ball 5: Master Giovanni and Agent 009 'Domino'. Supervisor: None."
"Master Giovanni, what are your targets?" Prof. Sebastian asked since the Team Rocket boss hadn't yet said a thing about who he was shooting for.
"I will only target two specific Pokémon: Mew…and a Pokémon named Mewtwo. Either of them will suffice," he answered.
"Ah," Sebastian muttered. He took out his control and input a few commands. The database began to search for the two Pokémon. After a second, two holograms appeared. "Wow, Mew is an extreme rare Pokémon, said to be unique, but Mewtwo…I haven't heard of that one…"
"Mewtwo is one of Team Rocket's experiments. It's a clone of Mew," Giovanni explained. "Somehow… I can't remember anything about it, and neither can any Grunt or agent in the organization. Mewtwo is a powerful Psychic, so I presume it erased our minds of its existence…"
"If it erased your mind, then how do you know about it?" Professor Namba asked skeptically.
"Backup data," was Giovanni's answer. "All of Team Rocket's affairs are sent to my personal computer, so I eventually stumbled upon Mewtwo's files and numerous records and activities on various dates. Mewtwo may have erased my mind, but it forgot about my technology."
"Interesting," Professor Sebastian noted.
"Mew and Mewtwo are two very powerful Pokémon. If any of them are captured with a Prison Ball, we'll be unstoppable. I shall see to their capture…myself," Giovanni said darkly. "Agent Domino shall assist me."
"Alright," the professors said at the same time.
"All of you listen well," Giovanni began, getting everyone's attention. "You have full access to all of Team Rocket's manpower, funds and weapons. I don't care what it takes, I don't care if you have to sacrifice dozens of expensive weapons and machines or hundreds of Rocket grunts, I want one Legendary Pokémon incarcerated for each team no matter what the cost. Also, since this task will require you to take on Legendary Pokémon in battle and most of you only posses one or two Pokémon, all of you have my full authorization to take a full six Pokémon team from our storehouses. All the Pokémon there have been training for years under our best specialists, so they will serve you well." Everyone nodded, glad that they were getting so many privileges and new Pokémon.
"May I point out…if we go all out like this, that might put our finances into severe danger, more than the already expensive creation of the Prison Balls did," Professor Sebastian warned. "That's why we couldn't make more…we'd endanger our budget."
Giovanni laughed darkly. "When we have five incarcerated legendaries under our control we shall be invincible… money won't matter anymore, the world will tremble in fear before us. Besides, we already have a large number of battle machines, we have hundreds ready, so losing a few dozen doesn't mean anything as long as the Pokémon are captured." Everyone nodded, eager to begin their newest assignment. "Project Incarceration… has begun. Dismissed," he finished.
Everyone stood up and left the room, walking out and talking with their partners about how they were going to capture a Legendary Pokémon and get new Pokémon for their teams. Giovanni smiled, pleased. He turned to Professor Sebastian, who hadn't left yet. "Here," the scientist said, handing the Team Rocket Boss the control panel he used to register the Prison Balls. It was basically a small tablet with a touch screen and a few buttons.
"Good," Giovanni said. "Did you make the modifications to it that I requested?"
The scientist nodded. "Yes. This is the main control panel. It tells you the status of each Prison Ball as well as their contents. It's also a master control. This tablet is already registered to you and has the highest priority. That means that all five incarcerated Pokémon will take your orders as top priority, even over those of the agents that captured them," Sebastian explained.
"Alright," Giovanni said, examining the control panel.
"I will take my leave now. I have to plan with Attila, Hun, Annie and Oakley how we are going to make our captures," the scientist said, turning and walking out of the room.
Giovanni smirked, looking over the main control panel. 'In case some agent decides to betray me… I can easily recover their Pokémon with this, so they can't use the Incarcerated Pokémon against me. Finally… my greatest plan to make the world mine has begun. No more failures, no more setbacks, nothing shall stop me! Project Incarceration shall rise, and with it the world will bow to me!'
Well, chapter 25 finished! =D
I guess you all know by now who's gonna be the main antagonist of this fic's sequel: "A New Chance For Adventure." Wish Team Rocket good luck!
The name "Prison Ball" was originally created by my Beta Reader, Ri2, though its effects and look in this fic are very different. Also Ri2 helped me plan all that out, so many thanks go to him for helping me develop this whole idea! Thanks!
Anyway, don't forget to leave a REVIEW! =D