Author: Okay, people just keep begging me to update as quickly as possible and with Summer Vacation here or just around the cornor I can see why, but please don't rush me, it takes time to imagine the plot and type everything out.
Mew: Hey! There you are! *she was kidnapping an author*
Author: And I have to keep an eye on Mew to keep her from kidnapping people!
Mew: Hee, hee, you're mine now!
Author: As you can see I'm failing right now. I don't own Pokemon, now enjoy.
Chapter 52: Survival
The thing came in close and soon it was discovered it was… a Celebi?
"Whoa! What's a Celebi doing here?" Ash jumped back when he saw what it was.
"Don't be frighten I've come to help." the Celebi said gently as she floated around Ash, Spooks and Storm.
"Did you come back in time with us?" Spooks asked the time traveling Pokemon.
Celebi replied with a nod, "I felt a disturbance in the temporal system and discovered those ghosts sent you back 2000 years ago to complete an important mission for them."
Ash blinked, "I just thought it was some sick twisted game."
"Yeah, those ghosts certainly made it seem like just a twisted game." Storm agreed still a bit angry that they were forced into the past like this and that Mew bailed on them.
Celebi floated around them, "The Ransei Region needs your help. Yamato must lead them to victory otherwise the present you have come to know will cease to exist."
"What!? But why? I mean if this is the past then what changed to make it possible Yamato's team will lose?" Ash frantically asked.
Celebi sighed, "Some selfish humans decided to use the concept of time travel to help the enemy to gain an unfair advantage, which will destroy the future and ruin the present. The ghosts of Lavender Town knew this and chose you, the Child of Mew, to go back and stop it."
Spooks' eyes sparked in realization, "So that's it… I knew those ghost brats wouldn't just sent us 2000 years into the past without reason."
"Okay… but Celebi, unless you tell us what's going on we can't be much help without worrying we're messing something up in the timeline." Ash said as the Celebi nodded in agreement.
"I will tell you, sit down." Celebi said as Ash, Storm and Spooks all sat to the ground… well Spooks just floated there.
"It's someone from an Organization you may call; Team Rocket. They stole my power to help them time travel into the far past. I do not know the names of them but they are dangerous, they have highly skilled Pokemon and advanced technology on their side. If they succeed in winning the war then not only Ransei Region but the whole Pokemon world will fall under their control."
"Oh this is bad, but what can we do to stop them?"
"You are the Child of Mew." was the Celebi's simple answer.
Ash sighed, "Yes, but I'm not truly her child. I am 100% human being who was just raised by her. What can I, an ordinary boy, be able to do to win such an important war?"
"Even if you think you are just an average human, you still have the Pokemon's loyalty at your side, something the enemy doesn't have. They force and control Pokemon to their will, you however, the Pokemon WANT to help you and that is your advantage, better than any weapon or technology they have in their arsenal." Celebi said with pride.
"It's true young Ash, Pokemon that are controlled could still turn on their own cruel Masters once they break free." Spooks said.
"But how does that help us now? They're being perfectly controlled along with technology and all we have are… broken spirits." Storm sighed.
"They're spirits are far from broken young Pikachu. Just trust in them, but beware of the people in uniforms, they will try to deceive you." Celebi warned before she disappeared.
"Oh come on! What is it with legendary Pokemon disappearing on us and leaving us to deal with these problems on our own?" Storm growled irritably.
"Get use to it Storm because that's just how they work; they test you." Ash chuckled as he petted the irritated Pikachu.
"But shouldn't we focus on surviving here first before we make plans to go into enemy territory? That is why we're out here in the first place right?" Spooks said as Ash nodded.
"Right, let's just get some non-poisonous and edible fruits and head back to camp and be on the lookout for anything suspicious." Ash said as he stood up and walked to a tree that had coconuts.
Storm stood on Ash's hat, looking for anything suspicious or edible while Spooks the talking Gastly floated around and picked up some fruits and edible herbs, making sure they are not poisonous for humans to consume.
"I believe these will do nicely." Spooks said.
"Great, now if only we could get some meat, a lot of war sailors usually prefer meat as their meal." Ash said as he looked at the fishes in the water.
"Well I haven't seen any wild Pokemon or animals to kill for meat." Storm sighed as he too wanted some variety other than just fruits and vegetables.
"Well perhaps we could still find something, if we do not find meat they'll just have to settle with what we've got if they want to survive. This is war, we can't afford to be too choosy about things." Spooks said.
So Ash, Storm and Spooks gathered as many edible food as they can, they managed to catch some fish with the help of Remi who had caught fish before in the wild.
"You are just amazing Remi." Storm complimented.
"Well I did have to learn how to survive and I'm often picky about what I eat if I can afford to be, I once out fished a Meowth." Remi grinned at the memory.
"Well this should be enough to last a few days, let's get back to camp." Ash said after gathering everything up.
Spooks then stopped and frowned, Ash took notice. "What's wrong?
"I sensed something… foreign, but I can't tell if it's an enemy."
Remi was guarding the food and Storm stayed by her side. If it was an enemy or a wild Pokemon then they'll have to defend themselves and their food cargo.
"Where is it coming from?" Ash asked looking around.
"It's coming from… the other side of the island. I sense them… hundreds of them… thousands maybe. They have powerful Pokemon with them… they must be the enemy along with Team Rocket." Spooks warned.
"On the other side of the island? Do they even know we're here?" Ash asked getting weary now that he knows the enemy is so close to them.
"Maybe they do, perhaps their air troops earlier lead us here so they can prepare an ambush and finish the job with less casualties." Spooks said grimly.
"What!? But that means Yamato and the others are in danger!" Storm cried.
"Then we better head back and warn them before the enemy decides to strike." Remi said with a serious look on her face.
Ash nodded as he picked up the food supply, "Let's go, quickly."
They hurried back to camp, which thankfully didn't take long, Yamato noticed Ash's frantic actions and frowned.
"Is something wrong?"
"Spooks sensed multiple powerful Pokemon and people on the other side of this island, it's likely that the enemy lead us here and this is their base and now they're preparing to launch an ambush here." Ash quickly said.
Yamato grimed and the others who heard the boy quickly turned their attention to him.
"What? You can't be serious!"
"We're in enemy territory and they're on the other side!?"
"They're gathering their weapons and Pokemon as we speak, we're done for!"
Yamato shouted, "EVERYONE CALM DOWN! Now I know this seems hopeless but we have to keep our heads. The enemy lead us here and are preparing for us, fine, but we can't just let them take us down. We can't just afford to keep panicking, we're going to need every ounce of strength and courage we can get now."
"If I may make a suggestion Captain Yamato…" Spooks began to say.
"Hmm? Yes what is it?"
"Perhaps you should send some scouts to see what we're up against, perhaps some undercover people to 'join' their ranks and see just what they have." Spooks explained.
"Are you sure that's a good idea? If the spy gets caught then the enemy will strike without warning for sure." Yamato said not liking the risks.
"But if we don't learn about the enemy then they can easily take us down. Yamato, I'd like to go on this undercover mission if that is okay." Ash said determinedly, he was sent back here for a reason and since he's a child the enemy will most likely see him as a new recruit then some adult man who just came by.
Yamato sighed, "I don't like this idea… but the Gastly may be right… very well, Ash, you will go undercover, but I will go with you."
"But you're the captain here you can't just up and leave the crew, you might not make it back." Ash protested.
Yamato shook his head, "It's fine, I am not the leader of the entire force, they can do without me, but I cannot just let you to go behind enemy territory with just your Pokemon, you'll need some human help as well."
"I don't know Yamato, that might not be a good idea for you." Spooks said as he remembered that Yamato must've died some time during this war.
"I don't care what happens to me, this young lad should not go on his own." Yamato said firmly.
"But Yamato, don't you have someone waiting for you back home?" Ash quickly protest as he remembered about Sakura, the woman he loved is waiting loyally at that spot for him to return.
Yamato sighed, "Yes, I do, she's a lovely woman… but thousands of lives are counting on this war, we can't afford to back out now."
"I understand Yamato…"
"So what are we going to use for disguises?" Storm asked eagerly always wanting to be a Pokemon spy.
"Ugh, nothing too ridiculous I hope." Remi sighed apparently having experience with stupid disguises before.
"Yamato, could you tell me what you know about the enemy so we know what to use for our disguises?" Ash asked knowing they're going to need Intel on what the enemy wears and what they do.
Yamato nodded, "We really don't know that much about them, but we do know that they are Pokemon warrior tribes who are set on using Pokemon as tools of war and conquering other kingdoms. It's making other people and Pokemon suffer in these conquests, so many had died or gotten injured. That's why the mainlanders like us were called to stop this crazy war of conquest, but many has been taken down, the warrior tribes are much more connected with their Pokemon than we are."
Ash frowned, he had thought the Celebi told him their Pokemon didn't like their masters… unless it was talking about Team Rocket's Pokemon only…
"They're… connected more with their Pokemon?" Storm frowned in confusion by that.
"I've heard stories about that from Me- Mom, she told me long ago warriors in the Ransei Region can connect a link with Pokemon, but we don't see people doing that nowadays so I've never seen it myself before." Ash said with interest though he wished it wasn't the enemies he has to go up against.
"Well in that case we'll have to counter back somehow, find a weakness, surely there must be a weakness to warriors that link with Pokemon." Yamato said as he held up an Apricorn Ball.
"If only we knew what that weakness is… humans linking with Pokemon sounds like a tough one to beat unless we could link with our Pokemon too." Ash grumbled.
"But how is that even possible? I've existed for many years but even I still don't know the secret to linking with humans." Spooks said finding it just as fascinating.
"Maybe it's something you have to be born with?" Remi suggested.
Ash sighed, "Whatever the case may be, we still have to fight them, with or without the linking connection they have, guess we're at a more disadvantage than we thought."
"But if we can learn about the enemy and their weakness, then perhaps we'll stand a chance." Yamato said as he released an Umbreon. "If the enemy links with their Pokemon then they don't use Apricorn Balls, they keep their Pokemon beside them and we'll have to do the same if we hope to go undercover."
"Good idea, Storm never stays in the ball anyway, and Spooks and Remi can be our scouts in case an enemy decides to attack."
Remi nodded, "We'll do the best we can!"
"Leave it to us." Spooks spoke with confidence.
So now, Ash, Storm, Remi, Spooks, Yamato and Umbreon all walked to the bridge that connects to the area where the enemy is. The men at camp promise to be on the lookout for any ambush so hopefully they'll be fine.
Chapter 53: Undercover 2.0
Remi and Storm jumped on Ash's shoulders while Spooks floated near Yamato, this way both of them will have two Pokemon they are apparently 'linked' with to avoid suspicions.
As they arrived near what appears to be civilization there were two guards, both of them had their own Pokemon beside them.
"Halt! Who goes there?" they demanded.
"We're here with reports of the enemy we've chased out here." Yamtao said confidently.
"We are on war, we can't just allow anyone in. What's the oath the warriors take?" the guard demanded.
Ash and the others sweat dropped, except Yamato, "The oath; 'Serve the Emperor and protect and conquer.'."
"Okay, you may come in." the guard open the door to let them in.
"Captain Yamato, how did you know about the oath?" Ash whispered as they walked in.
Yamato winked at the boy, "The enemy is not all that bright; we've heard them yell out their oaths a lot whenever they invade the land."
"Wow…" Ash sweat dropped.
When they finally entered the town they were surprised to see a busy street of Pokemon and people.
"There are civilians here? This is no good… we can't fight them here with innocent bystanders." Yamato grumbled.
"Perhaps the enemy did this so we'd be unable to fight back." Umbreon spoke using Psychic's telepathy to communicate.
"That's so cheap and cowardly of them." Remi hissed in annoyance.
"So what should we do?" Storm asked even though Yamato can't understand them.
"Spooks, any ideas?" Ash asked.
Spooks seem to be deep in thought, as though trying to find the solution himself.
"Well fighting in the enemy territory is going to put us as a disadvantage, perhaps if we could find a way to move their away from this town we could fight back without worrying about innocent bystanders." Spooks said after a bit of thinking.
"Sounds like a plan, you've got one intelligent Gastly here boy." Yamato smirked.
"I'm happy for the compliment." Spooks said calmly and gratefully.
"But how are we going to move them away from town? We may have to go find their main commanding officer and convince him or her to move the battle's location." Umbreon spoke through telepathy.
"Easier said than done, we'd need to find out who the commanding officer is and where they are first." Remi said to the Umbreon.
"Captain Yamato, maybe we should ask around the locals to find the commanding officer." Ash suggested.
"Yes, that's a good idea, but we can't be too obvious about it or we'll be caught and trust me you don't ever want to be caught as a spy. When you ask for information, make it sound like you know what you're doing."
Ash nodded, "Okay, come on Storm, Remi, we'll ask around but trying to seem casual about it."
Yamato then pointed at a fountain in the middle of town, "We will meet there in an hour okay? If one of us failed to meet here in an hour and ten minutes than we'll have to assume you got caught up in something, okay?"
"Yes." Ash nodded as he, Storm and Remi went one way while Yamato, Spooks and Umbreon went another.
"Okay, let's see… I hope this works." Ash gulped as he walked up to a person with a Charmeleon following him, Ash briefly wondered if this Charmeleon is Scorch's ancestor, they have the same jaws and flaming tail despite Scorch still being a Charmander.
"Hey excuse me sir I must know the location of where the commanding officer of the warriors are, there is something I must report right away but they failed to give me the information I needed." Ash said hoping he sounded like he belonged here.
The young man with the Charmeleon looked at the boy and his Pikachu and Ratatta, "… Well they don't tell us citizens that much either, so I don't know much I'm afraid, but last I heard she might be in the tall tower over there."
'She'? So the commanding officer is a girl? Ash thought.
Ash explored a little more, he felt very fascinated with the past and how these people link up with their Pokemon.
"So do they understand them like this?" Ash wondered as he wasn't sure how this whole link with Pokemon thing work exactly since the time he came from people use Poke Balls to capture their Pokemon.
"We don't know… we've never seen Pokemon linking up with humans before." Remi said as she looked around just as fascinated.
"But it sure looks interesting." Storm said as he saw another Pikachu being carried by a girl.
"Well we better be getting to the fountain, we don't want to keep Captain Yamato waiting." Ash said as he started the walk back.
Meanwhile, Yamato was near the tower when he, Spooks and Umbreon saw a couple of guys carrying some kind of sack, something big was in there from the looks of it.
"Just look at the size… what could be in that bag?" Yamato wondered.
"I don't know, but whatever it is it can't be good for us." Umbreon growled.
"Now let's not make any assumptions." Spooks said.
"Still I'd like to know just what is in that bag… let's take a closer look." Yamato smirked as Spooks turned invisible and Yamato and Umbreon used their stealth skills to maneuver closer.
The three got close enough for them to be able to hear what they were saying, the man with the Pachirisu on his shoulder said, "I've done this work for a long time, it's definitely going to get ugly soon, but we'll be the victor."
The other man with the Miccino on his shoulder said, "No kidding? I know I'm a bit new here but are you sure the war will end in our favor?"
"Are you kidding? There's no way the mainlanders can fight back with their ball capturing enslaving Pokemon can beat us, and we even have better technology since Team Rocket came along, yup, this war is as good as ours."
"Then I guess we'll have nothing to worry about, but why would those people on the mainland enslave their Pokemon with those balls instead of just linking with them like we do? It certainly makes it easier to form a true connection with our Pokemon."
"Hmph! We don't need to be in link to be close to our humans." Umbreon telepathic in annoyance.
"Tell that to them." Spooks whispered.
"So who is the Commander anyway? They say she's an angel that will guide us to victor but no civilian or low soldier has ever seen her, which is kind of odd considering they work for her." said the man with the Miccino.
"I know it's odd, but the Commander likes to stay anonymous, it keeps the enemy from finding anything about her even by capturing our fighters, and that's what makes her so dangerous."
"I have to agree with you there."
"… So it sounds like the Commanding Officer is female and unknown by many here." Spooks said when the two guys went towards the tower and figured it was too dangerous to follow them in there.
"And a lot of skills and sneakiness from the sound of things… I wonder what kind of Pokemon she has on her side." Umbreon telepathically said intrigued by this.
"Well whoever she is we must assume she is dangerous and intelligent, we do not want her to know we are here by any means, let's go to the rendezvous point now."
So Yamato and Ash met up at the fountain, they both told each other what they found out about the commander; nothing much just that she's female and likes to keep her identity secret.
"We don't have enough data on this mysterious commander to really do anything about her. We'll be wiped out at this rate… we need more information." Yamato said with a grim look on his face.
"But how? If this commander is really that intelligent then she'll know right away who the real soldier is and who the spy is." Ash may not know that much about war but he knew when someone is smart enough to see a spy a mile away.
"Going undercover is never a safe guarantee thing kid, because if we do nothing because we're afraid that we'll get caught then we just doomed everyone. We'll have to try and sneak in there, if we don't find out what the enemy is planning we'll all be wiped out, those two guys sounded so confident that the war will end soon on their favor, because we apparently aren't close to our own Pokemon like they are and they have advanced technology by the organization called Team Rocket."
Ash frowned at the name 'Team Rocket', knowing exactly who they are and remembered what Celebi told him about them.
"Okay, we don't have advance technology like they do and we don't know the first thing about how to link with Pokemon but that doesn't mean they've won the war just yet. We can still pull off a victory… a hard one but still possible. It is as you said before Captain Yamato; we can't let fear hold us back." Ash smiled.
Yamato nodded, "I like your spirit kid, but we better watch our step from now on once we head into the tower."
"I'm up for it!" Remi said as she jumped around eagerly.
"I'm not sure about this but… if Remi and Ash can do it, then so can I." the nervous Pikachu said with a shaky agreement, knowing what he must do yet that it was dangerous to do.
"Of course I'm in. I'll follow to the end." Umbreon telepathically said with conviction.
"You can count me in too. I'll see this war to the end with us as the victors." Spooks said with just as much determination.
"Alright, we'll do this together." Ash said eagerly.
"Well in that case… good luck to us out there." Yamato said.
They all headed towards the big tower, but it appears to be heavily guarded, if they want to get in they'll have to really look like a soldier.
"Why are there soldiers going in?" Ash wondered.
"The Commander herself must be about to make an important announcement, it's no mystery that our own crew were washed up here a few days ago, why they hadn't already come to kill us yet is a mystery to me." Yamato said as an afterthought.
"Are you sure we won't get caught and shot at?" Storm asked nervously as he jumped on Ash's shoulder.
"Don't be such a Pichu! We can get through this." Remi said as she jumped on Ash's other shoulder.
"Come on, we better hurry and fall in line, that way it'll be harder to suspect us." Umbreon quickly suggested.
"Umbreon's right, we better hurry." Yamato said as they quickly but calmly walked over in line with the rest of the soldier into the tower.
Spooks looked around as he sensed something about these soldiers and their Pokemon were off… very off… they were almost too… strange for normal humans and Pokemon, but he couldn't quite figure it out.
It wasn't just Spooks who could sense it, Ash, Yamato, Storm, Remi and Umbreon were looking around as though feeling that these weren't normal people among them at all and not in a good way.
"Something doesn't feel right here…" Storm bristled as he struggled to keep his sparks from showing in his cheeks.
"Yeah, I've noticed it too." Ash whispered to the nervous Pikachu on his shoulder, Remi was bristling too.
They made it to a much larger room that appears to be an assembly, they were in the back as the crowd were looking towards the stage.
"And now I give you Commander Amari!"
Ash, Storm, Remi and Spooks almost gasped and doubled over… AMARI!?
"But I thought we left her back at the Pokemon Center with the Butterfrees!" Storm hissed in confusion.
"We did… but if she's here… what happened to Flutter and Kunzite?" Ash said worriedly.
"Maybe it's not the same person, I mean anyone could've been named Amari 2000 years ago, let's not go and make crazy assumptions." Remi said logically and hoping to calm them down before they start panicking and giving them away.
Then Amari walked up to the podium, Ash thought his jaws would fall off… she looked exactly like Amari… the more she looks like the Amari he met earlier the more worried he is of what could've happened to the two Butterfrees and how the heck she got here.
"It's still too early to assume she's the same spoiled girl, but it is possible… if she was working with the ghosts and Team Rocket." Spooks said grimly.
"Wait, Ash, you know that girl?" Yamato asked surprised when the boy kept talking he knew her.
"Well… I knew someone with the same name and face… but it's impossible to be her… I think." Ash said unsurely.
"Well whether it's her or not it doesn't matter right now, we need to know what her objective is and that's that." Yamato said calmly as Ash nodded in agreement.
Amari then began speaking, "Fellow warriors! I have come to bear news; our conquest long road is almost over! We just have to defeat these troublesome mainlanders and victory will be ours."
"Commander Amari, if I may… the mainlanders has been on the other side of the island for a while now, why have we not yet attack them?" someone asked.
Amari smirked as she answered, "Patience is a virtue, if we had attacked them right away they would be on their guard and besides… as you all know I have better methods than just mindlessly blowing them up. They have potential to become great warriors, it'd be a shame let all that potential go to waste."
"So you're going to do THAT to them?"
"Oh yes, and they will be at our side before long and not just the kingdoms but the mainland will be ours for the taking." Amari announced.
Ash gulped, "What did that even mean?"
"I don't know, but it's nothing we ever want to find out." Yamato said grimly.
"That's for sure, it doesn't sound good whatever it is." Umbreon agreed.
"So the plan is to wait a few more days when those hot shots from the mainland start to relax, then we'll take them at night when they're all asleep." Amari said as the soldiers cheered.
"I still like to know if that's the same Amari, even her voice sounds the same, it's too much of a coincidence for her to just be her ancestor." Storm said curiously.
"You've got a good point." Ash whispered.
Yamato suddenly gasped, "We better go Ash, she's looking this way and starting to get suspicious."
Ash frowned and gasped when Amari was indeed looking right at them and glaring, they quickly made for a hasty exit.
Amari looked over, "It seems we have a couple of uninvited guests… see if you can find them."
"Come on, they're after us!" Remi alarmed.
"I don't even want to know what will happen if they catch us, run! Hurry!" Spooks said urgently.
"No, stay quiet, we can't be too hasty or they'll catch us for sure." Yamato was pretty calm despite the danger they're in.
The group quickly went towards the boxes or whatever else they can use to hide themselves. The other soldiers were closing in fast, their Pokemon can sniff them out.
"This isn't good… their Pokemon can find us." Storm whispered to Ash.
"Hey, some of them are wearing the 'R' uniform, looks like Team Rocket is here after all." Remi hissed as they saw some Rocket members passing by.
"You think they have something to do with the weird feelings we had with those other people?" Storm asked.
"It's a possibility, come on, we have to… where is Yamato?" Ash looked around, Yamato, Spooks and Umbreon were nowhere n sight. "Were they discovered?"
"We have to get out now, they're coming!" Remi suddenly squeaked.
"Guess we'll have to find Yamato, Spooks and Umbreon later." Ash grumbled as they quickly ran down into what looks like a basement.
"How do we get out of here?" Storm wearily looked around.
They heard footsteps, the soldiers were getting closer.
"Oh Ashie, I can't leave you alone for a minute can I?" Ash heard Mew's voice in his head.
"M-Memma! Get us out of here!"
Thankfully wherever the Mew is, she was still aware of what her child was doing and teleported them away before they were captured, but what became of Yamato, Spooks and Umbreon?
Author: At least it's not a total cliffhanger, like leaving Ash, Remi and Storm in the cold dark basement and the soldiers were about to catch them.
Mew: Hee, hee, aww, you're a cute little Eevee!
Author: Is anyone besides me excited for the upcoming Pokemon X and Y? I'm hoping Fennekin would be more fox and less human-like when it evolves, because that would just ruin for me if it did. I'm also hoping to find out more about Slyveon soon, it looks cute and graceful and I'm thinking about Eon becoming one eventually...
Mew: Hey! Come back here! *she trapped another author in a pink bubble*
Author: Ugh... better go save some authors. I hope you all have a wonderful Summer Vacation, becareful not to get sunburn. MEW! LET THEM GO! NO MEW! DROP THAT ONE! BAD MEW! BAAAAD!