Hmm… I'm not going to start off with a section of the future, or in other words the present, with Lila, Leon, Pikachu, and Espeon since we all know where we're heading by now. I shared Anabel's past only because it hasn't been discussed yet, but I will go further into depth of other characters much later in the story. Well, I guess there's not much for me to say aside from working on this chapter at the decreasingly spare time I have now except that I hope you will all now…
Please enjoy…
"My name is Ash Ketchum… and I've accomplished many things beyond a normal person's wildest dreams…"
Within the dusty winds of the expansive bronze desert was a young figure whose silhouette was barely visible from a distance. His ragged black cape flowed aimlessly as the erratic sandstorms changed direction about every ten seconds before repeating the cycle of direction within a minute. On his left shoulder was a Pikachu with the same somber look as his best friend's face hidden underneath the rim of his fedora hat with the peculiar royal crest emblazoned on the front. The young man and his faithful Pokémon had traversed through the searing heat of the sun and the unforgiving sandstorms all alone for over two weeks now. As far as both were concerned about where they were, the enigmatic duo was in the middle of scenic nowhere.
"I've reached ultimate greatness of the world, but now I've come to start a new journey… a journey that extends beyond this Pokémon world."
The determined young hero had caught something within his center of vision. He narrowed his eyes and discovered a small locomotive within a mile's distance. He and his partner found it strange that a locomotive would remain stationary in a harsh desert region like Orre. They surely thought that if it was simply just staying there, then there should also be a station filled with people. As the young man advanced closer and the visibility of the inert locomotive became clearer in his normal vision, his assumptions that there would be people around turned out to be half right.
"In all of my years of traveling the world and meeting all sorts of awesome new Pokémon and friends alike, I've also shared the same amount of deepest regrets and sacrifices; one which might haunt me for the rest of my life…"
Ash, a discovered descendent of a legendary hero of aura, glanced upon the slightly populated locomotive engine from a fair distance as the desert winds calmed their wildness. Less sand clouded their vision as they slowly neared what seemed to be a gasoline stand made from the locomotive. He slightly lowered his head, reflecting over the events from the past two weeks of his solo journey. Of course, he was not alone back then. He had friends, human friends, which came with him to the Orre region for one purpose.
Their ultimate directive was to take down the powerful and villainous Reverse-Cipher organization and rescue its hostage, a Giratina trapped in the darkest shadows within its own heart.
It all went by rather quickly. The mission was simple. Ash, the chosen hero and trained Aura Guardian, was the only being with the power capable of freeing the darkness within Giratina. Having achieved his first dream of becoming a Pokémon Master with the help of his loyal friends and Pokémon over seven to eight months ago, the burden became his as the world needed a hero in its darkest hour. There was no way he could have done it alone, which was why all of his friends pitched in and went their separate ways to cover more ground. That only left two powerful allies to accompany him on the greater mission as the rest of his friends rescued the weaker and abundant wild Shadow Pokémon. There was Anabel, a fair young woman whose love for Ash's capacity for many things from Pokémon to personality was second to none, and Paul, a bitter and grudging rival that sought to be the strongest by defeating Ash in battle.
Despite a trio made from the unlikeliest of individuals, their power had proven to be more than quite a match against various adversaries in Orre. Yet while their strength combined was a powerful asset, their overall cooperation was unstable and constantly on the edge. Paul's distant impatience and apathetic chains to his austere past had caused him to fall away from the group on his own terms, gravely desiring the fall of a cowardly criminal organization like Reverse-Cipher to crumble by his hands while seeking his own way back into the light. The dangerous threats and tension had targeted upon the couple of Ash and Anabel since then. The former's great concern over the latter's well-being had clouded his judgment as his recklessness and rash decision to charge in against a powerful Shadow Pokémon army had nearly cost her life. Prior to two weeks, Ash forcibly broke up with her for her own safety. He left her behind as he began to draw all of Reverse-Cipher's attention upon himself, brutally beating every Peon he encountered down into the sandy ground while releasing their purified Shadow Pokémon from their possessions. He had not acquired any new Shadow Pokémon since his capture of Hitmontop from a Reverse-Cipher Peon called Skrub two weeks ago, but capturing purified Pokémon did not matter much to him anyway. Regarding the infected Pokémon in their wake, all he had to do was break them from their containment and purify them with his potent aura powers. He only had one goal on mind.
"My name is Ash Ketchum… and I have no regrets…"
Ash was to ensure the safety of the world and its inhabitants by personally disbanding the vicious criminal organization himself. He was a powerful Trainer and Aura Guardian, no doubt, but the young man could not help but feel rather hollow and alone as he traveled around the Orre region and freed a lot more locations from Reverse-Cipher's influence. Even though he composed a team of six powerful and loyal Pokémon, including Pikachu, by his side, it could only be considered one factor as there was another that continued to gnaw away within his soul.
A broken heart seemed better than a broken body and spirit, at that time anyway, Ash mused, quickly clearing his throat to cover his words upon feeling Pikachu's prying gaze on him. The Mouse Pokémon, however, was wise to his emotions and his futile ways of concealing them. He gave Ash an inquisitive look, to which the Aura Guardian lowered his head and covered his eyes within his fedora brim's shadow. "What?"
"Pikapi, Pika Pikachu," Pikachu surmised, sounding rather unimpressed by his façade of a hardened exterior. Ash grunted softly before looking away.
"Not a day goes by that I still miss her, but I've already caused her so much pain to turn back now," Ash mumbled, his voice lowering in volume as his head lowered slightly. "I did what I had to because I cared about her. Even you have seen the increasing dangers that Reverse-Cipher's throwing our way, not even she could handle forever. I couldn't keep exposing her to that."
"Pika Pi-ka!" Pikachu retorted, desperately shaking his head and reasoning against Ash's decision of his and Anabel's breakup.
"Maybe so, but better us than her to suffer the blunt of their violent attacks and ambushes," Ash replied in a low tone, looking straight ahead towards the looming locomotive engine stand. "I'm not too worried about not gaining her forgiveness immediately right now, but after all this is done, it would take a miracle to see if she still wants to be involved with me." He made it far in his travels within Orre. From what a local inhabitant of the desert region had told him, he and Pikachu were now at Outskirt Stand. Quickly scanning the area as the lonely winds blew sand all around him, his ears picked up a melancholic tune played by someone's harmonica. Its sporadic, but forlorn notes strangely fit the mood of both the dusty, desolate area and Ash himself.
"Pika?"
"Whoever's playing it is inside," Ash surmised, gingerly taking in a few more steps as the duo was about to enter the stand. Passing by the half-buried wooden wheel and green gasoline stand, he slowly walked up the ramp and noticed that the lonely harmonica tune was becoming louder. Unlike the outside though, within the Outskirt Stand was a small bar and restaurant with a handful of weary travelers to which neither Ash nor Pikachu ever saw.
"Pi-ka…," Pikachu sighed in wonderment.
"It's almost quiet without that harmonica song," Ash commented to himself.
"I reckon I should be takin' that as a compliment then," a gruff, dull voice replied in a western drawl. Ash briefly stumbled from the sharp turn on his heel, finding out where the voice came from. "Down here, pipsqueak." He stiffly looked down on the bar stool next to him to see a man several years older than him lying his arms casually upon the polished counter. The stranger had spiky pink hair, long pink sideburns, a beige jacket with red designs on front, casual blue jeans, and burgundy leather boots. "What are you lookin' at, punk?"
"What?!" Ash grunted, easily becoming frustrated by the man's rather aloof demeanor and laidback posture. His narrowed eyes scanned the man from head to toe, discovering a shiny piece of metal in his right hand. "What's that in your hand?"
"Huh…? Oh, this thing? Man, you're mighty dense right there," the man remarked, smirking at the infuriated look on the young Aura Guardian's face. "I reckoned you realized that this here harmonica belongs to me, seeing as you wanted to know where the music came from." Ash's expression relaxed as did the stranger, who turned and faced the pretty young waitress polishing a glass cup behind the counter. "Hey, Miss! Give my new friend a fresh drink on me!" The woman smiled and nodded; she was apparently friendly and familiar towards the western-styled man.
Wow, he insults me for not knowing that he played the harmonica and now he's ordering me a drink at a bar because we're… friends…? Ash thought, scratching the back of his head in bewilderment as he nonchalantly took a seat next to the man. "So, we're friends already?"
"Why not? You're a nice, if somewhat idiotic-lookin', feller," he replied, earning another fierce glare from the younger man for the insult meant to be a compliment. "I mean, what kind of feller goes around Orre wearing something out of some fancy masquerade ball?" The man lazily picked up a part of Ash's cape and rubbed his fingers on the fabric. He looked beyond the Aura Guardian cape and noticed that he also wore a red shirt with a white collar and zipper with black sleeves underneath. "Hmm, mighty fine clothes you got there, so I'm guessin' that you must be from out of town."
"I'm not from around here actually," Ash said, taking his cape back from the man with a light tug. "Oh, yeah, I almost forgot. My name's Ash and my buddy here is Pikachu." He gave the Mouse Pokémon a soft pet on the head, much to Pikachu's delight as he playfully followed his hand.
"My name is Willie," the man grinned, proudly jerking a thumb towards his pearly whites. "I'm sorry if I acted like a jerk before, but I reckon most fellers know how to get on my nerves without even knowin' how."
"That's alright, but it almost looked like you were drunk or something," Ash shrugged, indicating to the waitress behind the counter that he preferred the bottle of orange juice that his eye caught by the lone corner of the shelf. He glanced back at Willie, who looked like he had an expression of guilt for a committed act of crime. "… No way."
"Relax, kid," Willie groaned, yawning as he stretched his arms up in the air, creating audible cracks in his joints. "I've been six weeks sober. I'm just in a glum mood for not getting enough sleep lately. How annoying…"
"So what are you doing here, Willie?" Ash asked, watching the woman prepare his drink with professional elegance. She spun the empty glass on its bottom with her manicured fingertips, catching it halfway on its body before delicately pouring the orange juice and adding ice cubes as a bonus. She gingerly slid the full glass towards Ash. She smiled upon the work she prided herself on helping weary travelers and refreshing them before they depart into the relentless sandstorms of the Orre region. "Thank you very much." With a nod, the cheery female bartender went back to polishing the glasses as he faced Willie.
"I am a Rider, but I reckon that you don't know where I'm getting at, do you?" Willie surmised, confirmed by the shake of his new friend's clueless head. "Well, partner, my goal in life is to just explore and experience the sweet taste of freedom before that time comes. There are many more guys and gals that share the same lifestyle as I do, so I reckon you'll come to meet more Riders here in Orre."
"That's pretty cool," Ash commented, followed by a nod from Pikachu. "So what do you mean by 'that time' coming?" Willie sighed, pressing the tips of his fingers together into a circle before taking another deep breath.
"Man, answering questions is annoying," Willie grumbled, sitting erect on his bar stool. "Fine, but listen once because I hate having to repeat myself again. By 'that time,' I meant it's the time when we must settle down, start a family, and run a ranch of Pokémon according to our family's customs in order to serve the Orre region. For mine, my family's raising Stantler while others import other domesticated Pokémon like Miltank and Tauros."
"Why Stantler?" Ash inquired.
"You're killing me here with these bothersome questions, partner," Willie drawled, slumping upon the counter and yawned. Ash raised an eyebrow and poked him to make sure he was still awake and aware.
"Are you sure you're sober or do you just need more hours of sleep?" Ash remarked, frowning at his rather lackadaisical attitude towards him. Willie looked away with his head hidden within his arms, pretending to be asleep until his new friend continued to poke his head for a response. Despite his excessive laidback personality, he was quick to bite back when his peace was greatly disturbed.
"Knock it off!" Willie threatened, softening his look to show that he really meant no harm to the startled Aura Guardian and his equally shocked Pikachu. "Sorry, partner, but I've got too much on my plate to deal with folks like you. To be younger and enjoy the taste of freedom again, but that part of me is now pushin' up daisies."
"So what? It's not like you've got to get married anyway to go on with your life," Ash replied offhandedly, earning a dark look from the cowboy that contradicted his entire statement otherwise. "Oh, I see…" Willie sighed, but he knew that this young man would not leave him alone without a long-winded explanation from him, no matter how troublesome
"See, the thing is that I've been searchin' mighty high and low for that one woman for me," Willie explained, sighing as he took another quick shot of his small drink right beside him on the counter. "Most women I meet are just dang nasty and troublesome."
"What do you mean?"
"They're downright bossy, that's what I mean!" Willie exclaimed in a slight slur, jolting back up with his back completely straight. "Scary and bossy; it's a lethal combination that would send even the mightiest of men runnin' back home with their tails between their legs. I know what I'm talking about as it all started with my maw…"
Strange, Anabel was never like that, but I guess he hasn't met anyone like her yet, Ash thought, looking down as Willie continued to ramble about women being so troublesome that he might as well stay single and break the Rider tradition of settling down at old age and starting a family ranch. Of course, she hasn't always been quiet and in the background. She did have her moments of leadership and speaking her mind, but that was when her friends or I was in danger. Still, I kind of miss her even more now, but her safety comes first and foremost…
"Hey, you awake, kid?" Willie queried as it was his turn to bring Ash back into reality with several weak, careless pokes. Ash jerked his head up, witnessing the smirk on his new friend's face from his previous predicament. "You know, you look a bit underage to start losing your grip of reality to a beverage."
"What?!"
"Kiddin'! Sheesh…," Willie mumbled, lightheartedly ruffling the top of Ash's hat before his expression turned grim. "But aside from that, you shouldn't have broken up with her." Ash's eyes widened, gazing upon the Rider with boundless astonishment. "How do I know? They say that you can tell a lot from a feller from his actions and responses to certain situations. Heh! Looks like we're both more than what meets the eye, Ash."
"Whoa, slow down for a second!" Ash demanded, still recovering from the shock of Willie's sudden knowledge over his own conflicting situation. "How could you tell that I broke up with a girl recently? Are you a mind reader or something?!"
"Get a grip, kid," Willie sighed, getting Ash to calm down with the motion of his hands moving down as the disturbing revelation started to wear off. "It's somethin' men call 'common sense.' See, I noticed how down you were while I spilt my heart and soul upon you. By the way, it's downright rude to ignore a man and his future aspirations, but I'll let it go this time since you're a mighty fine kid and all. Anyway, right up to the point where I told how I broke off from my last girlfriend because she was too much of an overbearing worrywart, you looked away with the common face look of regret. The feeling even lingered in your normally bright eyes. You had the same look I had every time I moved on from woman to woman, but worse. This girl must have been special for your entire life to be completely drained out of you." Willie gave off a warm smile and placed a tough, yet comforting hand on Ash's right shoulder, having said what he needed to say without even considering a complaint on how much he had to explain to his younger friend. "So it's like I said, partner. You can tell a lot about a feller by observin' his every move."
Ash and Pikachu were left speechless as their mouths remained agape throughout the entire explanation. Willie was no ordinary Rider, no doubt. His brief, but nearly perfectly concise analysis of how he ascertained an overall premise of his last dilemma was beyond extraordinary. This ordinary man could have been considered a political genius if he was a bit more ambitious, but he chose the laidback lifestyle of a Rider and roamed the sands of Orre to his heart's content. Willie was a strange guy, but then again, most people Ash met while traversing through the Orre region had their own quirks as the natives themselves considered him and his friends to stand out as well. Waiting for the young travelers to wake from their astonished stupor, Willie requested another drink to keep him satisfied until that time. Almost reaching a minute since their shock, which was quite an achievement, Ash's and Pikachu's faces relaxed as they regained self-control.
"I still can't believe that you actually paid close attention to my every move," Ash muttered, feeling rather drained as a result of his prolonged astonishment.
"I actually didn't have to try; you just left yourself out in the open, which is bad against predators in the shadows," Willie drawled, placing his hands behind his spiky-haired head. "That reminds me. How about I see you in battle?"
"A battle?" Ash repeated, his ears pricking up from hearing his favorite words as a grin extended from ear to ear, eagerly receiving an invitation to a Pokémon battle. "I never turn down a challenge! But why pop that out all of a sudden?" Willie smirked, standing up from his stool and casually walked towards the small exit of the Outskirt Stand bar.
"I've met many fellers throughout all my years hangin' out in this here old place," Willie explained, stretching and twisting his back until audible cracks from his bone joints were heard. "I faced men in good ol' showdowns, ranging from the good, the bad, and the just plain ugly. Two Trainers so far left a strong impression on me, and I'm not easily impressed. Several years back, I faced a tall young man in a blue coat and a strange device on his arm. Five years after that, a kid who's probably your age now with spiky red hair and another similar device on his arm faced me in battle. You, out of all of them, are truly a wonder and I haven't seen you in action."
"The two Trainers you mentions, were they the saviors of Orre?" Ash asked, his tone suddenly turned somber.
"Last I check, they were," Willie shrugged indifferently, yet the look on his face said otherwise. "I don't care much for current events these days since those despicable Reverse-Cipher varmints have the run of the region. I'm just lookin' out for number one."
"I guess that's understandable," Ash said in an even tone, walking towards the exit of the stand as the muscles in his face slowly tensed. "But while others suffered Reverse-Cipher's attacks, couldn't you have done a thing about it?" Willie knew what Ash was implicating and sighed, shaking his lowered head in dissatisfaction while holding up two fingers.
"Two reasons; the first one is suicide," Willie explained as though he was out of breath. He narrowed his eyes at the weary Aura Guardian and his Pikachu, noting that they made no reaction to his first brief explanation. "Really, as much as I'd love to help, I reckoned I wouldn't be much use to anyone else if I was in the belly of their beast."
"And reason number two?" Ash prodded, maintaining a rather stoic look to learn more of Willie's somewhat selfish reasons. The pink-haired Rider shook his head disapprovingly, sighing tiresomely again for the umpteenth time in a row.
"It's not my place to get involved in bothersome messes such as those," Willie stated bluntly, clearing his throat roughly as though he was about to spit up. Ash backed away slowly, but realized that he was not about to do such a repulsive act while inside the Outskirt Stand bar. "Let them folks deal with their own troubles. I've got mine and they've got theirs. It ain't easy livin' in this here world now that Reverse-Cipher's monster is on the loose. I reckon that no one would be foolish enough to tango with that thing, much less try to rope it back in order."
"I am," Ash announced gravely. Upon hearing him, Willie's entire expression changed completely from lethargic indifference to utter shock and possibly concern. The Rider glared at the young Aura Guardian for such a bold and foolish move, which was all the more reason to test if he was the real deal, just like those two.
"Who am I to judge?" Willie mumbled, yet kept a serious expression plastered on his gruff face. "But I hope you understand that you're just asking for your own burial just by declaring your opposition against those rowdy Shadow punks."
"Why would you care?" Ash retorted, his severe look remaining the same as did Pikachu's. "You said that you were looking out for number one. Why would you suddenly care about me?" Willie sighed into a groan, knowing that this young man was as stubborn as he was determined. A battle should give him a better analysis of this defiant Aura Guardian with the Pikachu on his shoulder. He did have some knowledge of what an Aura Guardian was, especially their usual style of uniform involving dark, ragged capes, blue fedora hats, and that invisible vibe of power that just radiated from them without explanation.
"I reckon that we should just save the pleasantries after the battle, son," Willie muttered, leading him out of the locomotive and into the aimless winds carrying grains of weightless sand outside the abandoned gasoline stand. "Let's get it on!"
Rider Willie would like to battle!
It was high noon. The bright Orre sun, hanging overhead the Outskirt Stand, shone without any hint of hindrance from the threatening shadows hiding within the dark corners of the region. Within the large field of sand and soft concrete were two young combatants raring to go. Their own shadows were barely visible on the ground as they remained hidden away underneath their feet from the scorching rays of the noon sun in the sky. The sandstorm winds remained as unpredictable as ever, blowing in several directions while carrying light traces of bronze sand grains that glittered along their trails. The two Trainers looked ready, but they did not move a single muscle. Not even the Pikachu standing next to his best friend could move a single inch of his body, which was most likely out of apprehensive excitement.
"So, are we going by the standard Orre Double Battle rules?" Ash inquired, cautiously placing a hand near the side of his belt hidden underneath his cloak.
"That's correct, partner," Willie replied, exposing his sneering teeth in a growl. "One round will decide this whole charade if you are man enough to take on those Reverse-Cipher punks. Now… draw!" At the sudden rough shout, Willie flung his wrist forward and tossed out two spinning Poké Balls into the field. The Poké Balls snapped open and in a white flash brighter than the sun, a Linoone and a Furret materialized with eager cries resonating in the open desert space while scurrying towards the center of the sandy battlefield.
"A Linoone and a Furret…? They don't seem to be your kind of Pokémon, Willie," Ash commented after watching the Pokémon's brief display of speed and maneuverability while heading towards the center. He picked off two decided Poké Balls from his belt, enlarging them and threw them to engage his energetic opponents. "Floatzel and Hitmontop, I choose you!"
Ash's Pokémon appeared before Linoone and Furret without delay, flexing into fighting poses the moment the light dissipated from their bodies. Over the past two weeks since the breakup with Anabel, Ash had to ensure his own survival by constantly rotating his Pokémon now and again while forcing himself to tell the truth about the standing of the divided team to Professor Oak, who in turn notified everyone else of the news, including his own friends fighting wild Shadow Pokémon in the Kanto and Johto regions. While they all sourly disapproved of his outrageous decision to break up with Anabel and somewhat on his eventual disregard of his secondary objective of finding Paul, especially since they lost contact with the Salon Maiden at the same time, they all forced themselves to set aside their personal feelings of Ash's severed allies and continued to aid him as the world was still at stake. They were especially worried of the Aura Guardian's slight change in demeanor now that he was fighting Reverse-Cipher alone; he was a little more serious and did not give out reassuring smiles as often as he once did. Duty came first, unfortunately, and they all promised their time to save the wild Pokémon as Ash continued to travel into the heart of Orre with his own team of Pokémon.
"Hitmon-top!" Hitmontop exclaimed zealously, leaping onto his spike and delivered several kicks into the air before standing back on two feet. The act strangely got both Linoone and Furret to cringe in fear from his fierce kicks to the air. His partner smirked, brandishing the sleek blue fins on his arms as a sharp white tooth gleamed from the corner of Floatzel's mouth.
"Zel…," Floatzel grunted to himself, narrowing his eyes on the anxious Linoone leering back at the Sea Weasel Pokémon.
Strange choices, but I'd like to see what plans he has for them, Willie thought, quickly scanning Ash's Pokémon and contemplating on their possible levels of potential. "I made the first draw. I reckon it's your turn, Ash."
"Fine! Floatzel, start off with Aqua Jet on Linoone! Hitmontop, use Rolling Kick on Furret!"
"Floa! Zel!" Floatzel growled, launching himself off with ground with conjured water engulfing his entire body like a capsule. The Sea Weasel Pokémon flew speedily in the air, colliding roughly into Furret, whose slim body was radiating a sort of energy signal that somehow attracted Floatzel to the Long Body Pokémon instead.
"What?!"
"Looks like you didn't know that my Furret knew a certain move called 'Follow Me,'" Willie replied rather sarcastically. Ash's auburn eyes widened at the revelation while he observed Floatzel and Hitmontop furiously focusing their attacks on an elusive Furret while Linoone gained a fair distance away from the heated brawl. "Ever heard of it? No? How troublesome, but I reckon I should explain it anyway. Follow Me is a move that attracts the attacks of all opponent Pokémon solely upon the user, especially useful in Double Battles since Furret is leading your little lambs to the slaughter. Furret, use Attract!"
"Fur-ret!" Furret shouted rather blissfully, releasing a shower of orange hearts from a twirl of her slim body. Several of those hearts exploded all around Floatzel and Hitmontop upon contact, giving both tough fighters goofy love-struck expressions on their dull faces. It was palpable to all that from the look in their dulled, nearly colorless pupils that they had fallen in love with Furret.
"Oh, no!" Ash seethed, clenching his fists upon discovering that he easily fell into one of Willie's weak traps. Both of his Pokémon were male, and now they have been completely infatuated over the opposing Long Body Pokémon with the spell of Attract brainwashing them. At least it shouldn't be as bad as the time we faced that wicked Togepi… Ugh…
"See here? This only proves that women are nothin' but trouble," Willie drawled, lazily folding his arms across his chest. "They lure you in with their 'playin' hard to get' and before long, you're at their mercy."
"Is your purpose in battle just to tell me that women are bad news?" Ash retorted, struggling to remain calm as his face burned bright red from watching Floatzel and Hitmontop giving gaga looks to a bashful-looking Furret, not noticing a sinister twinkle gleaming from the corner of her round blue eye.
"Not really," Willie replied with a careless shrug of his shoulders. "I've only watch you battle so far, and now I'm not so impressed. They say that you could tell a lot about a feller on how he fights, and you were reckless at the very start of our challenge."
"I thought you said that you can 'tell a lot about a feller by observin' his every move' or something like that!" Ash yelled, fuming from the subtle lessons his supposed laidback friend was conveying onto him. Willie shook his head and groaned at his complete impatience.
Perhaps he's just not letting things naturally get to him; he expects too much, Willie thought, massaging the bridge of his nose in between his eyes to ensure his own calm composure. It was time that he had to force it in order for the younger man to truly understand. "Hey, Ash!"
"What?" Ash snapped, tightening every muscle upon the call of his name. Pikachu slowly backed away, worried by the current circumstance of the battle.
"If you want to win this match, then put a lid on it and cool it!" Willie shouted, rasping his last two words as loudly as he could. Tch… Whether he understands this now or not is becoming a complete waste of time. I'm ending this now. He noticed that Ash did not move a single inch of muscle, yet his expression had relaxed while keeping a serious persona. His reaction, however, was of little importance unless it led to that one thing. "Linoone, use Belly Drum and Rest! Furret, continue herdin' them away with Follow Me!"
"Li-noo-noo-noone-noo-noo-noone-noo-noo-NOONE-NOONE-NOONE!" Linoone bellowed lividly upon every pound on its thin stomach, singing fiercely as his increasing power flared into the form of visible red aura emanating from its sleek, furry body. "Li-noone! Li-noone!" The Rushing Pokémon dashed into a far corner of the battlefield, falling into a sudden slumber as commanded previously. With an effective strategy that called for heightened attack strength and eventual rejuvenation of its health, Willie smirked as his Linoone would be quite an unpredictable force for Ash to be reckoned with.
And with his Pokémon still gaga and forced to follow Furret, this showdown's in the bag, Willie thought, his expression looked rather morose as he stared at the ground. I thought that this kid was goin' to give me somethin' to look forward to in life, but that's what happens when I care about someone. They're always taken away…
"Hitmontop, use Rapid Spin! Let's go!"
"Hitmon…!" Hitmontop shouted, leaping onto the spike on his head. Though he was still under the spell of Furret's Attract, the Handstand Pokémon managed to overcome his infatuation time after time and spun until every detail of his small body was blurred by his speed. He whipped up a miniature dust devil, whose sharp currents managed to get a hold of the Long Body Pokémon and threw her aside. Willie's eyes jolted wide open; the luck of the counterattack had begun.
"Floatzel, I know you can break through this! Use Razor Wind!"
"Floa…," Floatzel groaned, limping forward with an arm reeled with a goofy and smitten expression on his face present. "Floa…" No one knew what was going to happen next as the Sea Weasel Pokémon simply froze in place with his arm held back. A few tense seconds passed and Floatzel had come to a decision. "Floa… Zel!" With a quick thrust of his arm in which no eye was able to notice, a glowing blade of wind was launched from Floatzel's fin and squarely struck Furret in the chest before the Long Body Pokémon could have recovered from Hitmontop's lucky Rapid Spin. The sharp power and blunt force of the Razor Wind effectively knocked her into submission.
"Oh… Furret, return," Willie mumbled, recalling her back into her Poké Ball. With Furret gone, the Attract spell was shattered and both of Ash's Pokémon quickly regained their serious demeanors without any knowledge prior to being ambushed by Furret. "That'll do, darlin'. That'll do…" He placed the Poké Ball back on his belt before taking a glance at Ash's fervent Pokémon. "I reckon that with a little luck, anything can happen. And speaking of luck…" At the same moment, Linoone was discovered running back to the center of the field, having regained lost stamina from its Belly Drum. Both Hitmontop and Floatzel became weary of the Rushing Pokémon's returned presence.
"We still have teamwork, guys," Ash announced, keeping his cool in spite of the victory over Furret. "We have to overwhelm Linoone before it can touch us. Hitmontop, use Triple Kick! Floatzel, use Water Pulse!"
"Linoone, use Fury Swipes!"
"Linoone!" Linoone growled, glaring at its two opponents as they advanced forward with their attacks. Hitmontop launched himself into the air, spinning upside-down with his feet extended out for extra power. The Rushing Pokémon leapt up as well to counter him with its own front claws, matching hit for hit and power for power upon every collision. Linoone would not have stood a chance against Triple Kick without the boost from Belly Drum energizing its claws with enough power to actually drive back the Handstand Pokémon upon completion of his Triple Kick.
"Zel!" Floatzel's grunt resonated in the vicinity, the daring shout echoing in Linoone's ears.
Linoone did not have turn around to know that a concentrated sphere of vibrant blue water was hurled towards it. The moment that Hitmontop backed off from the completion of his Triple Kick, the Rushing Pokémon completely turned its slim body around with a left claw swinging along around as well to knock back the Water Pulse to its creator. Floatzel was taken aback from the sheer power and dexterity Linoone had proved capable enough as to send back his own Water Pulse against him. The Sea Weasel Pokémon crossed his arms in front of his face, bracing against the volatile impact of his own attack turned against him. Following the Water Pulse blowing back up in Floatzel's face, both Willie and Linoone noted that Ash's Pokémon had begun to reach their limits since their troublesome distraction by Furret.
"We're taking you down one at a time," Willie declared; Ash could have sworn that he heard some sort of passionate emotion in the Rider's tone, but brushed it off for later. "Linoone, go after Hitmontop and don't let up on your Fury Swipes!"
"Linoone-noone-noone!" Linoone growled, rushing forward with extended frontal claws glowing keenly as it leapt towards the patient Hitmontop. "Li-noone!" Linoone was about to pounce and mow down Hitmontop with the ferocity of its sharpened claws. The Handstand Pokémon remained rooted in his spot, suddenly smirking for no reason as he had waited for an opportunity such as this.
"Hitmontop, use Detect! Let's go!"
"Hit-mon!" Hitmontop shouted, his beady black eyes flashed green. He bent backwards as Linoone sailed over him with claws barely scraping across the airspace in front of Hitmontop's face. It was as though time froze as the Handstand Pokémon easily avoided the initial swipe and waited for the command for a counterattack.
"Send Linoone flying with Rolling Kick!"
"Hit-mooooon…!" Hitmontop yelled, garnering power in his legs for a bicycle kick to ultimately knock-out the vulnerable Linoone flying overhead. With a confident smirk, he leapt up and sent a foot towards a strangely lax Rushing Pokémon. Ash had caught the expression, but it was too late to do anything about it as Willie remained a step ahead.
"Strike down with your tail, Linoone!"
"Li-noone!" Linoone grunted, flicking its tail down to trip and mislead the direction of Hitmontop's foot. It sent his foot centimeters aside with the flick of its tail, which was far enough for Linoone to avoid a direct effective hit while acquiring enough time to fight back.
"The first attack was a fake, and it worked," Willie remarked, nodding in satisfaction to the success of his critical strategy before frowning at Floatzel's intervention. And that was enough for me to know more about you, Ash…
"You still forgot about Floatzel!" Ash exclaimed with victory almost at hand. "Floatzel, use Aqua Jet!"
"Zel!" Floatzel growled, immediately ramming into Linoone from the propulsion of his conjured water. The force of the abrupt momentum was sufficient enough to shove the Rushing Pokémon aside and into defeat as it remained on the ground without any sign of movement at all. Willie understood and recalled Linoone without a single word.
"Tch… Wiped out," Willie mumbled as he placed Linoone's Poké Ball away, but smiled inwardly to himself with the knowledge that the Orre region was in a new set of good hands. "I still need seasoning."
"That was an awesome battle, Willie," Ash complimented, extending a friendly hand out to the Rider. "I really needed that, so thanks!"
"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu exclaimed from Ash's shoulder, displaying his own show of gratitude as well.
"Not a problem, amigos," Willie replied with a grin, giving him the handshake he deserved. "I reckon I learned just enough about you, kid, from both your quirks and your battlin' style."
"Huh?"
"Your tactics from our showdown were unpredictable and unconventional at best, while at the same time, ruthless and brutal," Willie explained. The last words he used to describe Ash did not seem right at all, but before the Aura Guardian could interject, the Rider stopped him with a wave of his hand. "I'm willin' to bet that you've grown hard and into a real man was from losin' those close to you."
"Well, I didn't exactly lose them, but they were left behind for several reasons," Ash replied, sounding rather hesitant to explain the whole situation to a man he had just met in one day. "You see, I—."
"Enough. You don't have to go into detail if the story's too troublesome for you to recount."
"Thanks, Willie."
"Hyuooo!" a haunting howl echoed from a fair distance away from the Outskirt Stand. The howl strangely caused Ash, Pikachu, and Willie to temporarily tremble in fear as chills ran down their backs from the startling call.
"W-What was that?" Ash asked, attempting to stabilize his position and quit his shuddering. His strong will alone managed to break him out of his fear. Pikachu and Willie recovered a few seconds after, both still wondering what had caused them to tremble.
"Pikapi!" Pikachu announced, pointing up north and discovering the source to be an approaching black Pokémon with some sort of sack tied to its side. Ash and Willie glanced at the oncoming Pokémon; the former secretly got a read on its aura to discern its identity while the latter related the frightening howl as a unique quality to a certain Dark Pokémon on mind.
"No way…," Ash mumbled, falling into a loss of words as he never would have guessed to see it any time soon.
"It's a Houndoom," Willie stated, not realizing the approaching Houndoom's true meaning while Ash and Pikachu looked like they were about to explode out of excitement from seeing an old friend in their midst.
"That's not just any Houndoom," Ash explained as the Houndoom passed the locomotive engine and slowed its pace in front of the company. "It's Justy's Houndoom."
"Justy? You mean, the Phenac City Pre Gym Leader Justy?" Willie reiterated, surprised to find out that a significant figure like him would send his own Pokémon out in the wild for some sort of task. Ash nodded as Houndoom reached its head into the sack on its side and pulled out a rectangular disk with a large spherical center, which activated upon its two small buttons being pressed down by Houndoom's fangs. A familiar charming figure from the recent past, albeit smaller and holographic, appeared on top of the center with a message to apparently deliver.
"Ash Ketchum," Justy's hologram began, his resonant tone sounding rather urgent, "I hope that my Houndoom had managed to find you since it was the perfect candidate to survive against the Orre wilderness while still capable of tracking you down via scent. But that's not important right now as long as you got this message."
"Justy, what's going on?" Ash asked straight away. Willie sighed exasperatedly, wondering if the young Aura Guardian knew that he was talking to a mere holographic projection and not the real Phenac Pre Gym Leader himself.
"I don't know what happened in your team, but I've heard rumors over the past two weeks that our newest saviors have broken up," Justy explained, his personage expressing austerity and disappointment with its gestures. "You're now traveling alone without a tough ally like Paul or even your own girlfriend, or ex-girlfriend in your case." Ash glowered as the past regrets began to wash over him again. He felt Pikachu's sympathy, but that alone just did not feel enough to make him better. "Anyway, my sources indicate that a purple-haired person was heading into Pyrite Town." The mere mention of Pyrite Town gave Willie even worse chills down his spine than listening to Houndoom's howls."We couldn't distinguish who exactly, but I just felt obligated to let you know. And if you do decide to investigate Pyrite Town, do it with the utmost caution. And now, I bid you adieu." Justy's hologram had shut off. Ash stared blankly at the disk held in the Dark Pokémon's mouth.
"I… I don't know what to do now," Ash muttered, his mind clouded by the ghosts and doubts of his past. Before he could consider more of his remaining options, the holographic disk reactivated and Justy's figure reappeared once more.
"By the way, since Houndoom came out all this way to find you, do you mind taking some time off feeding it before sending it back out?" Justy requested, followed by a nod from Houndoom. "I'd really appreciate the gesture, and I'm sure Houndoom would, too. So take care, Ash. This is Justy signing off." In another flash, his hologram disappeared and Houndoom discarded it with a flick of its head.
"Go…," Willie said curtly. Ash whipped his head back in the Rider's direction, perplexed by the sudden eviction. It was all said in his narrowed eyes. "Help your friends. That's what you need to do right now instead of looking for more trouble from those Reverse-Cipher hooligans. I'll take care of Houndoom. You take care of your friends as you should've done a long time ago." In all of the wisdom he tried to impart into Ash, this was probably the best one by far. Ash nodded wordlessly, still too shocked from listening to Justy's discovery of the purple-haired individual heading into a location called Pyrite Town.
"I guess… I'll see you around," Ash mumbled as he and Pikachu turned their backs to Willie, Houndoom, and Outskirt Stand. The winds of sand blew across the open field. More uncertainty was hidden underneath the golden grains of sand. Willie nodded, leading Houndoom up the ramp into the isolated locomotive. Before Ash reached a fair distance, he felt the Rider's gaze tapping him on the back, trying to give him one last warning before he continued his travels across Orre.
"Beware of Pyrite Town, an honorable town of thugs and scoundrels…"
You got to wonder who Ash will run into in Pyrite Town. Anyway, here's a bit of trivia for you all if you hadn't already picked it out. The intro of the chapter is similar to one of the episodes in the animated Teen Titans, with Ash's grim voice-over. His current outfit, well just imagine Ash wearing Red's outfit from FireRed/LeafGreen and recently HeartGold/SoulSilver, except with a black, ragged cape and blue hat like his costume from Lucario and the Mystery of Mew. Willie's personality; I didn't know how it would go and I didn't know what types of personalities I hadn't included yet, until a friend of mine suggested making Willie's character a tribute to Naruto character, Shikamaru Nara, as a cowboy version of him. I'll admit that I even liked his humorous, but wise character. Willie was the first Trainer Wes faces in Pokémon Colosseum, so in a way, he did help out by showing the basics of battling in Orre.
Though it's not much, the tune Linoone sung in its Belly Drum is supposed to sound something like the William Tell Overture. The part where Houndoom acted as a messenger with a sack was a reference to the Johto episode, Houndoom's Special Delivery, which also featured Misty's Togepi. Speaking of Togepi, have you seen its most recent anime appearance in Diamond and Pearl?
Well, I finished this chapter right after I finished my first college paper on critical analysis of one side of an argument; the side argument being how divorce does not scar children for life, but instead gives them maturity. That was fun, not really, and I so don't feel like going into detail about it again for a while…
If you would please review, it will be appreciated. Your feedback to this chapter is welcome. I won't bite… much.
Ciao!
