Chapter 25
This is it, the finale of this part of the story of Ash the Rogue. Never fear, a sequel or two will be made to continue the adventure, YAY!
This finale will be.. the meeting between Ash and Lance..dun dun DUNNNN!
Ready or Not, here we go!
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN POKEMON!
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The Elite Four Headquarters at the famous Indigo Plateau was a magnificent, fifteen story building the size of a stadium. It contained several offices, meeting rooms, living quarters, two large kitchens, three dining rooms of different sizes, an event room and the Indigo Hall of Fame.
Like any other day, the HQ was alive with activity, as various groups, usually lead by an Elite Four or committee member, would have meetings, plan events, teach classes, and the like.
Every Elite Four member had their own 1st class bedroom and office scattered somewhere on the 14th and 15th floors of the HQ. Though they were sparsely used thanks to their busy schedules and travelling, they did serve their purpose.
In one of these offices, perhaps the most exquisite, sat a young trainer with longish, raven colored hair, a long, blue, sleeveless jacket, and a dragon fang on a string around his neck as a necklace. On his young face was a look of slight fear and uncertainty.
Just two days ago, he was on top of the world. He had just won against the Orange Champion and was on his way home to enjoy a delicious meal. Then, lo and behold, fate once again threw him a nasty curve ball.
Lance, the Champion of Kanto and Johto, and one of the strongest trainers on the planet, had found him and practically 'arrested' him, more than likely for all of the Tauros shit that he had to deal with thanks to Professor Oak.
The office, though spacious and well decorated, felt like a prison to the young trainer. Right now, he was alone while Lance was somewhere in the building, doing who knows what. His pokemon and belongings were locked in another room adjacent to the office, which really unnerved him more than anything. The fact that he only had his fists to defend himself while Lance had... yeah. That, and Mewtwo wouldn't be able to help him this time. The powerful psychic was currently in his pokeball with the others, so near yet so far. Even though Ash could still contact him if needed, the risks were substantial.
'I need to weigh my options ,' Ash thought to himself,' If things go bad in a hurry, would I be able to escape? Would it even benefit me to try? Lance is a very powerful and influential man, even more so than the Professor.. If I did escape, no doubt he would have every trainer and bounty hunter in every region after me within hours..'
Just then, the door opened.
In walks the champion himself, holding what appeared to be a couple of overstuffed folders. He looked over at the young trainer in his office and flashed him a smile before sitting down at his desk.
"Ok Ash," he said as he opened the folders up, "Let's get started, shall we?"
"Let's.." Ash said cautiously, "first thing you we can discuss is why exactly I'm here.."
Lance chuckled, "straight and to the point I see.. alright. I'll start from the top."
He then took several documents and pictures out of the first folder and laid them in front of the boy. As Ash looked them over, a semi-surprised expression took over his face.
The first document was his trainer profile, along with a picture of him when he first left Pallet Town. Damn, he had changed a lot over the past year and a half.. The one thing that made him frown was that his profile had a red flag on it, indicating to turn him in to the police on sight.
The other documents covered major events that had happened so far. His Tournament win in Pebble Town, the Celadon City tournament and Game Corner incidents, the events at Grandpa Canyon, even his Rocket ambush on Mandarin Island.
"Although all of these are impressive in their own way, these alone wouldn't grab my attention," lance said as he brought out more papers, "these however.." he continued with a serious look on his face.
When Ash looked over the new set of papers, he was truly shocked..
The first report was about New Island, and the Mewtwo's escape. It went into detail about how a trainer was captured, escaped, and then later freed the 'Mew clone experiment' into the world.
The next document was about the Shamouti Island incident, depicting several newspaper clippings and some pictures. Although they were blurry, it was clear, to Ash anyway, that he and Mewtwo were among the Legendaries in the photos.
The third probably shocked him the most. It was a detailed document and drone photos about the epic battle against the Rockets on Toracco Island. It not only had pictures of the battle itself, but also him training Mewtwo beforehand. Oh boy...
"How.." Ash started, the words dying in his throat.
Lance couldn't help but smirk, "The League has eyes everywhere, including within the ranks of Team Rocket, which has weakened substantially since their boss was arrested on Toracco Island. Thanks for that by the way."
"Uhh, your welcome.." Ash muttered carefully, in slight shock, "I'm surprised that Team Rocket didn't completely stop if that Giovanni guy was their main boss.."
In response, Lance sighed, "if only it were that simple.." he said, "unfortunately it's not, and our sources tell us that other executives have already risen to take Giovanni's place. For now though, the main boss is locked away in a place where he will never see freedom again." he said with an affirmative nod.
"Well that's good to hear.." Ash said as he finished reading over the file.
"However.." the champion said, putting on a serious, almost angered face, "the biggest reason that you are here in front of me now, is this" he said as he put the document about Mewtwo's escape in front of him.
Immediately, Ash got very nervous. Obviously , Mewtwo was very powerful pokemon, Legendary even. If the League was aware of his existence and escape, then no doubt they would want to know why he helped him escape the lab. Still, they didn't know the clone like he did!
"I can explain that.." Ash started
"I would certainly hope so.." Lance said, not breaking his glare, "because it is a huge deal to a Team Rocket experiment of that much power to just be set free out of nowhere.."
"He-he's not just an experiment though!" Ash said, almost yelled, "he's a good guy. He's also one of my best friends. I helped him, and he helps me, quite a bit."
Lance just stared, unconvinced.
"I promise you.." the raven-haired boy started, "that Mewtwo would ever hurt anyone unless they were endangering me or any other member for our family. We bonded quite a bit over the past months"
As he listened, the champion closed his eyes, taking in the information. It seemed more like heartfelt pleas than solid evidence though, "Still.."
"And consider this!" Ash interrupted boldly, "If Mewtwo truly was a tyrant and a risk to us, then wouldn't he have done something by now to show it?" he pointed out, "It's been almost 6 months since our ..I mean his escape from New Island. Surely, if he was truly hostile, he would have done something by now.."
The boy had a point.. although Lance didn't want to admit it. He sat back in his chair and crossed his arms in thought.
"alright then.. next question.." he said as he looked at the boy again, "is it true that you have been training Mewtwo to help him get stronger and control his power?"
Ash looked down and slowly nodded, "yes I have..he told me he didn't want to accidentally hurt anyone, so he asked me for help. We started training as soon as he fully recovered from the escape. In return, he helped my pokemon with their training."
Lance just raised an eyebrow, "forgive me if I find that hard to believe.."
"Why is it such a big deal though!" Ash yelled, getting irritated, "There are hundreds of possibly Legendary Pokemon in this world that could take us out with a thought, as proved by the Shamouti Incident! Which, I should remind you that Mewtwo was a big help in!"
Lance just sighed, "This is true, but Mewtwo is a.. special case. He is a clone, made from artificial means by evil men for evil purposes. What were you even thinking letting such a risk go free in the first place?"
"Because he contacted me and asked me for help! I could tell in his voice that he was hurt, exhausted, and scared. He needed help" Ash said defiantly, "And I can tell you right now ,Mewtwo doesn't have an evil bone in his body! Just because he wasn't born like other pokemon doesn't mean that he can't have a life like one. The only people he ever intentionally attacked was Team Rocket!"
Lance just nodded. Obviously, Ash felt strongly about Mewtwo and would not move on his opinion, "Alright.. we'll finish this discussion later. Right now," he said as he stood up, "there's something else that needs to be settled.."
The red-haired man then walked over to his door and called to the outside, "you can come in now"
As the champion stepped back from the door, Ash watched as another, older man came in...a very familiar older man.
As the famous Professor Samuel Oak walked into the Champion's office, he locked eyes with the young, raven-haired boy already seated, and froze.
...The two of them just stared at each other...
"...WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE!" They both yelled at the same time.
"Now now, let's stay calm.." Lance said as they both turned towards him.
"Lance.. do you realize who this boy is?!" The Professor said angrily," He's a criminal! A thief!"
"And you're a TWO FACED LIAR!" the boy yelled.
"ENOUGH!"
Both of them turned towards the now irritated champion and immediately settled down. Ash settled back in his seat, while the Professor sat in a chair on the other side of the room.
"Now.." Lance started as he sat back behind his desk, "I am aware that the both of you have a very thick and hostile history with each other, starting back to even before Ash started his Journey." He then opened up another file, which consisted of a wanted poster with Ash's name on it. Seeing this, the Professor smirked. Obviously, the champion had taken his side.
"Now, ever since a certain incident happened months ago, I have been looking more into this young man," he pointed to Ash, "and the crimes that he has been accused of. It started with a separate case involving an incident involving Team Rocket, but eventually, the deeper and further back I went, the more I uncovered. Eventually it lead me back to the original crime that he supposedly committed."
Ash growled, but bit his tongue and let the Champion continue.
"Now.." Lance began again, "I've already discussed this with the Professor on a previous date. Apparently, young Ash here stole a shiny Charmander from an unknown source, and another pokemon from the Professor himself."
"Lance, I assure you, that that is a one hundred percent lie!" Ash urged.
"Hush.." the old man said, still smirking, "let the champion speak. You're fate is already sealed, you might as well show some respect for once in your short life."
With a slight glare Lance continued, "After looking over all of the evidence that I have gathered, I have come to this decision." With that, he pushed a button, calling in two League guards.
"Ash.."
The boy looked at the Champion with an anxious, frightened, and betrayed look on his face...
"You.. are completely innocent of all crimes charged against you by Professor Oak." Lance said with a gently smile.
"WHAT?!" The old Professor said flabbergasted, "H-How can you find him innocent?!"
"Professor.." the Champion turned to him, "Did you, or did you not, give Ash a Magikarp instead of a normal starter?"
"W-Well, yes I did but-"
"And did you, or did you not, receive information from Mrs. Delia Ketchum, on where Ash got the shiny Charmander?"
"It was meaningless!" the Professor insisted, "how did-"
"It was a number.. to a small time breeder in the Hills in Western Kanto. When I called that number, he told me that he gave that Charmander to Mrs. Ketchum as a gift for her son. They were good friends in their youth, and he had no use for the shiny at that time."
"But..but how did you know about that number?!" The Professor asked as a tick mark formed on the side of his head. He destroyed that piece of paper months ago.
Lance just smirked, "simple.. your assistants and another source told me. They were more than happy to help us out after witnessing some of the other activities you've been in, which they told me about as well."
Now it was Oak's turned to be shocked and betrayed. His own staff.. turned him in? And what other source
Lance just continued, "Once I had a warrant, they were more than happy to give me full access to your files and archives. Believe me when I say I was shocked to find half the things I found." he said as he leafed through the folder.
"YOU HAVE NO RIGHT-"
"Bribes.. illegal trades.. several times where you have falsely accused someone of a crime, thus ruining their reputation.."
"excuse me.." Ash interrupted, "would one of those falsely accused names be a Dr. Lawrence Igneous?"
Lance looked at him and shortly nodded, "friend of yours?"
Ash just nodded, "he gave me the opportunity that I was denied from the start."
The Professor just growled at the name, "That doctor is nothing but a quack. I merely exposed him for who he was."
"You made it so he couldn't practice in any of the main regions!" Ash yelled, sick of the man already.
"Enough.." Lance said again, "as I was saying. From what my investigations show, half of your so called legacy is built on bribes, lies, and other illegal activities. Whenever one of your comrades, or co-workers would discover something or show more promise than you, you would either find a way to take the credit or get some 'dirt' on them to discredit them or blackmail them. Isn't that right?"
"N-no! I am an honored and well known regional Professor, I.." he trailed off when Lance held his hand up.
"At first," the caped man continued, "I was confused as to why you would make Ash your next victim. Then after a little more digging, I found something very interesting.."
The professor was sweating profusely by this point, as he realized what Lance now had on him, and what he had found..
"Your son, and Ash's father, were both well known trainers that both got their starters from you. Correct?"
"Y-Yes?" the old man said tentatively.
"And, when the two met in the Indigo League Finals, surprise surprise, Ash's father won, correct?"
"Yes..." the Professor grumbled. That defeat still left a bitter taste in his mouth.
"Must've been a bitter pill for you to swallow, and a huge disappointment to the Oaks. Makes me wonder what happened to your son after that.." the champion said with a raised eyebrow
The professor just turned away, "he.. went out to train and never came back. In my opinion it was for the better. He was obviously too weak to carry our family's mantle."
Lance just shook his head an continued, "and then, lo and hold there's your grandson Gary. And in him, you see a second chance at Oak Glory"
"Of course!" Oak said, "Gary has so much more potential than his father did, he just-"
"But.." Lance cut him off, "there was an obstacle was it? In the form of your son's rival's son, who happened to show just as much potential as his father." He said as he pointed to Ash, who smiled.
Oak just frowned and turned away, refusing to acknowledge the boy.
Lance continued, "you tried to stunt his growth by denying him teaching lessons and then giving him a weak starter. However, you were still afraid that wouldn't be good enough. So when Gary pointed out the second pokeball Ash had that morning, you jumped on the chance to not only confiscate the pokemon, but to end young Ash's career before it even began."
Oak surprisingly chuckled, although he was still sweating like a Bulbasaur in a volcano, "That's quite a theory you have there, Lance. Do you have any proof behind it?"
Lance just smirked, "you forget, not only do I have my sources, but you also have at least two assistants and a surveillance camera rolling that day.. I have plenty of evidence to back up my claim."
The professor just frowned and snorted, "that means nothing, it just shows that I was in the right. An unregistered trainer came in to my laboratory with an unauthorized pokemon. What did you expect me to do?"
"How about listen to me old man! I told you it was a gift from my mom and you didn't believe me!" Ash yelled.
"Of course not!" The Professor refuted, "I had no reason to believe a selfish child like you!"
"AHEM!" Lance coughed loudly, "moving on. I think the biggest piece of evidence I found was the previously mentioned number. You know, the one your chose to ignore Professor?"
The man just snorted and turned away, mumbling "don't see how you found it..could've sworn I destroyed it.."
"You more than likely did.." Lance said with a smile, "That's where my ..sources..helped me.." he then turned to the guards, "send them in"
As soon as the champion said 'them', a huge smile broke over Ash's face. He had a good feeling who the 'sources' were.
Within a minute, two more people came into the quickly filling office. The first wearing a blue dress with a small, light, yellow jacket, while the second was wearing a gray top with a white lab coat. Seeing them, The professor almost had a heart attack, "Delia..and ..Igneous?"
The two new arrivals glared menacingly at the Professor before sitting down in provided chairs next to Ash.
"Now, Mrs. Ketchum.." Lance started out, "Please give us your statement on the first incident."
"Gladly.." the mother said as she gentle raked a hand through her son's growing hair, "The night before my son, Ash, was supposed to start his journey, I gave him a pokemon, a true starter, because one of his assistants told me that The Professor was planning on giving him something much weaker. The pokemon I gave him was a shiny Charmander that I received from a friend of mine that is a breeder."
The woman paused as she thought about the day she heard that her son had been labeled as a criminal, gripping her dress, "That morning, about an hour after Ash left, I got a call from one of the Lab assistants, saying that Ash had been accused of theft, because he had a second pokeball on him, the very pokeball that I gave him." she said with tears in her eyes.
"So you are confirming that you gave Ash his shiny Charmander, which is now a shiny Charizard and one of his main fighters." Lance stated, to which Delia nodded.
"This is utter Tauros Crap!" Oak said, "Surely you cannot count the opinion of an emotional, biased mother!" he yelled, causing everyone to glare at him.
"Like I said before, Professor," Lance said as he continued to glare, "I can confirm Mrs. Ketchum's story when I called the number she gave me."
The man growled, seeing that he had no one in his corner. If this got out his career would be heavily tarnished after this. Oh the irony..
"In conclusion, after analyzing the evidence before me, here is my decision." The Champion said with a sigh," Professor Samuel Oak, You are hereby under arrest."
"What?!" the old man said as he was grabbed by the guards, "This is an outrage! On what charge?!"
"Extortion, Racketeering, and making false accusations," Lance said with a shrug, "Among other things"
Oak just growled, "you have no idea what you're doing Lance! I am a regional Professor and one of the most famous names in the world! The world will be in an uproar at my incarceration!"
Lance nodded his head, "that's something we will have to deal with when the time comes. Samuel, you truly are a brilliant man, but the League cannot continue to turn their heads to your crimes. We made that mistake when Giovanni started bending the law." With that, he nodded, Signaling the guards to take the kicking and screaming man out of the room.
That done, Lance let out a heavy sigh, "The old man has a point. This is going to be a shitstorm.. And it's going to be an even bigger hassle finding a replacement for him."
"But..that's it right?" Ash asked, "I don't have to worry about him anymore? I can be a regular trainer again?" the boy said excitedly. Was his Oak Nightmare over?
"I wouldn't say that.." Lance said as he leered at the pre-teen, "You and I still have things to discuss"
Both mother and son frowned at the champion. "What do you mean?" Asked Delia, before her son answered her questions, "he means Mewtwo, mom. I guess when I broke him out of that Rocket Lab, the League didn't appreciate that."
"WHAT THE EVER LOVING HELL!" Igneous suddenly outburst, surprising everyone "You got a problem with Mewtwo?! Huh?! What has he ever done to you! Huh?! HE's the kindest Pokemon on the Planet!"
"Only because of the risks involved with such a powerful pokemon that was previously in Team Rocket hands" Lance explained again, "Mewtwo has a lot of potential, both good and bad. With the power of a Legendary at his disposal, and with his jaded past and origins, he could become a very powerful enemy"
"OR.." Ash interrupted, "A very powerful friend.." he said with a smirk
The champion just sighed and sat back in his chair. The boy, once again, had a point. After a moment of contemplation, he sat forward again, "alright..I've come to a decision about you."
Ash, Delia, and Igneous tensed up. What would the Champion decide? Would Ash be able to have a real journey?
"Ash, you will be able to continue your journey as a trainer, though under my conditions.."
"...what conditions.." they all said in unison, making Lance smile
"Firstly.. since you began your trek from Pallet, you've had several run-ins with Team Rocket, effectively and successfully disrupting their plans. However, Mewtwo is still a concern to me, seeing what it was able to do to those Rockets, and I would like to keep an eye on it, as well as you." The champion then smirked, "in a way, you both get into more trouble than you should"
hearing that, Ash just blushed, while his mother and Igneous looked at him with their own expressions, Igneous being that of a smirk and Delia's expression being that of worry.
"So, step one" the red head said as he pulled out a familiar black and yellow sphere.. an Ultra Ball...Mewtwo's Ultra Ball..
"You..you've had it this entire time?" the boy asked, slightly shocked.
Lance nodded, "It sort of stood out since it was the only pokeball you had that wasn't the standard red and white. After a scan confirmed its contents, I immediately took possession of it." he said as he put the ball on the desk in front of Ash, who immediately picked it up. After a thorough inspection of his friend's ball, he found something strange.
"What's this?" Ash asked when he saw a thin blue outline gently pulsating around the button and black seal, "some kind of lock?"
Lance shook his head, "not a lock, but a sensor/tracker, linked directly to the League computers. It tells us where the pokeball is at all times and when the pokemon inside is released."
Ash just frowned and snorted, biting his tongue for the moment. Looks like the league was serious about wanting to keep an eye on Mewtwo.
"Also," Lance continues as he pulled out two silver and blue bands, seemingly made out of the same pulsating material that was around Mewtwo's ball, "I will need you and Mewtwo to wear these at all times, so that we-"
"Oh come on!" Ash yelled, "This goes too far, Lance! Now you're just impeding on my rights as a-"
"Now now, young one." Lance said, holding his hand up, "there's a plus side to all of this if you let me finish. Those bands will tell us where you and Mewtwo are at all times. That's the punishment for interfering with League business..-
"-Interfering my ASS!" from a still angry Iggy
"-...Now.." he paused, moving right along, "you also have a reward for fighting against Team Rocket. You have a lot of potential as a trainer and a fighter, and I want to help you bright that out. So, you will personally receive two non-consecutive months of training from me. The first month will be before your next journey, and the next will be afterwards. Do you know where you want to go?" he asked
"Uh.." Ash uttered, stunned at what Lance just said, "I-I don't know.. f-finish Kanto or go to Johto maybe.."
The champion nodded, "also, once your first month of training with me is done, you will be promoted to a League Trainer, meaning that you will receive special privileges compared to other trainers, as well as perform certain tasks for the League as needed. Sound good?"
At first, Ash was speechless. Not only had he been cleared of all criminal charges but.. he had received a promotion in his account.. and a job from the League? It was all happening so fast he almost couldn't process it all. Granted, he and Mewtwo would have to talk about being monitored 24/7, but they could get through that.
After a few moments of getting his thoughts in order, the trainer snapped himself out of it and nodded, "I think I can handle that.."
"Great!" Lance said, "just let me know when you want to get started. First thing we need to do is get those bands on you and Mewtwo. And don't worry, you will only have to wear the bands until we deem Mewtwo is absolutely no threat."
Ash nodded silently, not liking that part. Then, another thought came to mind..
..a somewhat evil thought..
"Uh, Lance sir? I have one more itsy bitsy request.." he said, stopping the man as he stood up
"Hmm? And what's that?"
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Down in the private confines of the building was a very angry Professor Oak. He still could not believe what had just happened.
'That little brat will pay..' he thought as he stewed in his misery and rage, 'one day.. I swear.. he will PAY for this!'
He didn't even noticed the door to his room open until it slammed shut.
Looking up, the man growled as he saw the bane of his very existence, standing before him.
Ash merely smirked as he looked upon the professor and leaned on the door with his arms crossed. Unlike earlier, the boy was without his blue cloak, and was only wearing a black muscle shirt with black cargo pants and boots.
"What the hell are you doing here?!" he shouted, "Here to see me at my worst? To rub my face in it?! Well, I won't give you the-"
"Shut up!" Ash said already sick of the man's mouth, "I'm here upon my own special request with permission from Lance.." he said as he pushed himself off the door and moved towards the man, who stepped back.
"And.. what was your request?" The Professor asked, slightly nervous at the evil smirk the boy was giving him.
Ash merely chuckled, "Oh nothing big.. just... ten minutes with you.. alone.. with no cameras watching.." he said as he cracked his knuckles and balled his fist, "enough time to thank you for the hell you've put me through"
Oak immediately adapted a look of fear. Without thinking, he rushed the boy, clumsily throwing a fist to his face. Ash easily parried the punch and threw the man into the ball behind him. With a pained grunt, the Professor was sprawled onto the floor where he struggled to get up quick enough. A foot pressing on his leg and a swift kick to the stomach stopped his efforts.
The old man looked up at the boy looming over him.. A boy whose life he had nearly ruined...with pain and fear in his eyes
The next ten minutes was probably the most painful ten minutes of his long life...
Let your imaginations go wild, it was brutal!
Ten minutes later, Ash walked out of that room, knuckles covered in blood, looking very proud of himself.
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ANNND STORY END! .. For now. There WILL be a sequel...later.. after a break..
I might publish some other stories first, I'm not sure yet.. Anyways, next time will be Johto!
I will make an announcement on my profile when ready.
Reviews appreciated, Flames will be drowned in a giant bucket of swamp water.