Ash felt like himself for the first time in a long time. He was back in his element, facing another trainer in a Pokemon battle with his friends watching. He smiled inwardly at the excitement and familiarity, which felt so much better than the fear and apprehension he had been feeling these last few days. It was quite refreshing. In the Kalville battle dome, the two boys stared each other down, thinking of what order to give to their Pokemon…

No. Not Pokemon. Ash shook his head clear as reality set in. He was facing off against a homicidal maniac and his deadly abomination to save his father and friends from death. The 'Pokemon' he was commanding was one of the skull-headed creatures that had terrorized the group at the amusement park. The small monster clutched a sharp blade tightly, ready to drive it into flesh to please his 'daddy'. The little creature's eye glanced back at Ash, sending an uncomfortable shiver down the trainer's spine.

"I'll do good, Daddy. I promise."

Ash found himself wishing that promise would be kept.


"This is so wrong." Was all Misty could gasp out. She and Jessie had moved to the abandoned stands to watch the fight from a safe distance. Both of them were sitting on the edge of their seats, tense not just because of what would happen, but what was at stake.

"So wrong." The girl repeated, shaking her head. She could tell that this was not going to be a civilized battle, like the one she and Ash had in the town square mere days ago. No. This would be a savage fight to the death. Misty hoped that Ash would keep his sanity through this nightmare.

Jessie had to agree. Something else was going on in her mind, as she looked very carefully at the two creatures in the field. Wheels in her head began to spin as she thought of all she had seen in that town...


"SLASH!"

Ed yelled out his order and woke Ash out of his troubled stupor. The Ariados-monster began to charge towards the skull-headed child, it's blades clacking and ready to kill. The tiny creature just stood there, waiting for an order from it's 'daddy'.

Ash acted fast. "DODGE!"

The skull monster leapt aside just as the spider slashed at it with the blades on it's front legs. The scythes missed completely, and the smaller creature rolled to the side, knife at the ready.

Ash gulped. He could do this. He had to. "Um…Fury Swipes!"

The tiny creature wasted no time. Running up to the spider monster, it swiped it's knife at the blackened flesh. The knife cut deep and the spider cried in pain, but the smaller creature was swiftly knocked aside by the scythed forelegs. Rolling on the ground, the skull-headed child hit the wall of the stadium.

"GUT 'IM!" Ed commanded.

The spider-creature charged towards the smaller monster, the blades on it's back poised and ready to impale.

"Dodge!" Ash commanded.

The knife wielding creature obeyed, rolling out of the way just in time. The spider's inertia prevented it from stopping in time, and it's blades were buried in the stadium wall. The creature tried to get them unstuck.

Ash saw an opportunity. "Slash!"

The knife monster ran up behind the spider monster and gouged into the bloodless flesh with it's knife. The other monster roared in pain, but then managed to free itself and counterattacked. If the skull-headed child had been any slower, it would've been cut in half.

Ed smirked. "Oh, this might be fun after all. All of those wild ones just stood around like idiots."

Ash smiled despite himself. He worked on a strategy to defeat this opponent, using the speed and manoeuvrability of his…


"Cubone." Jessie remarked out of the blue.

Misty turned to look at the woman. "What?"

Jessie pointed at the knife wielding monster dodging the spider's blades. "That's a Cubone."

Misty looked at her as if she had sprouted a second head. "What? Are you nuts? That is NOT a Cubone!"

"Well, I didn't mean it IS a Cubone…" Jessie stammered. "I mean…w-well just look at it! Doesn't it look like or remind you of a Cubone?"

Misty still thought Jessie was crazy, but took a closer look at the skull-headed creature. The more she looked at it, the more she saw what Jessie was trying to say. The lizardlike skull, the small body, the knife that substituted for a Cubone's club…

"It's like…some twisted version of Cubone." Jessie explained, a disturbed undertone in her voice.

"Yeah…" Misty thought about all the creatures she had seen. Now that she thought about it, almost all of them were violent reinterpretations of Pokemon. Absol. Cubone. Muk. Machamp. Typhlosion. Scyther. Ariados. "All those creatures…it's like some sicko's idea of Pokemon. A bloody, violent idea."

"Markus' notes said something about the creatures being manifestations of a person's psyche or something like that. Why would they look like nightmare versions of Pokemon?"

"I don't know…" Misty had a nasty feeling that she'd find out soon enough.


"Ok, enough screwing around! GUT HIM!" Ed shouted, a lot more agitated than he had been before.

The Cubone monster had it's back to the stadium wall, and braced itself for it's 'Father's' next order. The Ariados monster ran towards the knife-wielding monster like a Tauros, it's back blades ready to impale.

Ash had just come up with a strategy. He waited until just the right time to say "DODGE!"

The knife-wielder rolled out of the way just in time. The spider couldn't stop in time and it's blades buried themselves in the wall again. Ed cursed aloud as the spider struggled to drag itself away from the wall.

Ash issued another order without missing a beat. "Now use Cut on one of those top blades! Cut it off!"

Misty blinked. Did Ash just say that?

The skull-headed child was eager to obey. Grabbing one of the 'legs' attached to the spider's back, it began to hack away at the flesh with it's knife. The Ariados monster roared in pain as the Cubone creature cut through the leg.

"Get him off you!" Ed bellowed, a lot less composed then he had been before the fight.

SCHLICKT!

One of the legs on the creature's back was severed clean off.

Roaring in rage, the spider creature loosed it's other back leg and took a swipe at the smaller creature. The skull-headed child ducked just in time and ran away from the reach of the blades. The freed and furious spider monster hissed at the distant adversary. It's back only had one bladed leg and a severed, bloodless stump.

"CHEATER!" Ed roared. "After I'm done with that Cubone, I'll cut you up like a Christmas turkey! SLASH!"

The demonic Ariados charged forward, it's bloodied blades ripping the ground apart. The one blade on it's back swung wildly around, ready to decapitate the smaller creature.

"Daddy…?"

"Wait for it…"

Misty looked at Ash. The look in his eye was one she had seen before, a look of sheer determination. The look he had at every tournament battle. Every inormal/i tournament battle. Was he really viewing this as just another challenge?

The spider monster was almost on top of the dark Cubone. The creature's fanged mouth roared with bloodlust and rage. It raised it's two forelegs, ready to impale the skull-headed child.

"Roll under it!" Ash suddenly yelled.

The twisted Cubone quickly obeyed, rolling right under the spider monster just as it brought it's blades down. Ash's monster ducked between the two back-legs of Ed's monster, coming out right behind it.

"Now cut off that other leg!"

"What?" Misty definitely didn't mishear that.

"NO!" Ed screamed. "KILL IT BEFORE IT…"

Too late. The skull-headed creature leapt onto the spider's back and began slicing through the other leg. Soon, with a sickening noise, the other leg fell off and the monstrous Ariados was left with a bare back. The monstrous Cubone still clutched the creature tightly with it's claws.

Ash smirked, seeing victory in his grasp. "Now finish it!"

"Yes Daddy!" The skull-headed child jabbed it's knife into the spider's back, cutting deeper and deeper with every hit. The Ariados monster roared with agony as the knife gouged it's hide painfully.

"Nononononono shake it off shake it off shake it off!" Ed panicked.

The spider monster began to wildly buck and spin, trying to shake off the attacking creature. The creature was able to hold on and continued to stab the monster. 'Ariados' shrieked in pain and desperately tried to force the smaller monster off, but it's legs could not hit the thing on it's back without it losing it's balance.

The skull-headed creature was ready to deliver the final blow for Daddy. It raised the knife above it's head, ready to bring it down…

When the spider monster was able to throw it off. The surprised skull monster rolled away and found that it's knife was no longer with it. "Oh no!" Ash was momentarily scared of losing this fight.

Ed's face was an edifice of rage and hatred. "Now destroy…what?"

The spider monster was teetering unsteadily, not moving with the ferocious speed it used to. Anyone with a good eye could see why. Somehow the 'Cubone's' knife had imbedded itself in the beast's head. The monster stumbled unsteadily before falling to the ground, it's blades clattering uselessly.

It didn't get up. The skull headed monster started dancing like a little kid after winning the softball match. Misty and Jessie nearly got up and cheered until they remembered where they were.

"NOOOOOOO!" Ed yelled. "I CAN'T LOSE! I'M THE CHAMP!"

"YEEES!" Ash pumped his fist in victory. "I WON! I KILLED…wait…" His joyful expression quickly faded as the adrenaline wore off and the reality of what had just happened sunk in.

The skull-headed 'Cubone' monster turned to look at Ash. "Did I do good, Daddy? Did I?" it asked with a hopeful tone.

"Uh…" Ash had no idea how to respond. His mouth had gone completely dry and he felt a chill running down his spine. Did he enjoy what just happened? What was he supposed to do now?

Ed's enraged voice brought him out of his reverie. "You cheating PRICK! I'm the champ! You cheated! You'll never beat me! NEVER!" The chubby boy was running towards the stands on the opposite side.

Ash gave chase, running past the skull-monster and the spider's corpse. "Wait! That key…I need that key!" Misty and Jessie bolted from their seats and started running after Ed as well. The skull-headed child stared at the chase for a moment before darting into the shadows.

"You ain't getting it, you cheater! It's mine! The champ's!" Ed was running up towards the announcers box, going up a lot faster than Ash would've guessed. Ash ran faster. He ineeded/i that key from him.

"Get back here!" Ash roared.

Ed ran into the door to the announcers box before opening it and shutting himself it. With a click, the door locked. With Ed and the key inside.

"NO!" Ash snarled, banging his fist on the door. Jessie and Misty then showed up beside him. Ash glared through the glass at the smug psycho dangling the key on his finger.

"You want this, huh? Well, cheaters don't get what they want!" Ed mocked Ash from inside the announcer booth.

Ask Ketchum was ready to smash through the glass and strangle Ed. That key was the one that would get him to his father. That psycho would pay for this…Ash ran into the door again, but the locked door held firm.

"Hah! You want it, come and…"

CLANK rattle rattle rattle

"What?"

That noise came from inside the announcer booth. Ed whirled around to see the metal grating of an air vent rattling on the floor. The air vent that the grate had covered had another of the skull-headed monsters crawling through it.

"Daddy's MAD and you'll be sorry!" it hissed, brandishing it's knife. Another one followed. And another. And another.

Ed realized that he was as good as dead. "HHAAAAAAAAAALP!"

Ash and Jessie tried to open the door, but it wouldn't budge. "Dammit!" Ash cursed.

Ed then suddenly ran up to the window. "GET ME OUTTA HERE! PLEEASE!" His voice was filled with terror, and his eyes were wide. Ash wasn't sure if he should feel sorry for him. With the door still locked, he couldn't get in either way.

One of the Cubone monsters leapt onto his back and started hacking with it's knife. Ed squealed in pain and began teetering. Another monster grabbed his leg and gouged his ankle, causing the boy to fall onto the floor. The other little demons were upon him in a heartbeat, stabbing their small knives into the crazed boy's skin. Ed cried and screamed in pain as the creatures cut him to pieces.

All Ash, Misty and Jessie could do was stand outside the booth, listening to the screams slowly die down and stop altogether. There was an eerie silence for a minute, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The lock on the door rattled for a second, as a key was awkwardly turned inside. The booth's door opened to reveal a creature tumbling off another one's shoulder comically. No one laughed, however.

Ed's body had been mangled beyond all semblance of humanity. With all the redness on his shirt, it was difficult to tell what was his own blood. It didn't matter however…he was dead. Very dead. Two of the Cubone monsters were hanging around the corpse, poking it with their knives.

Another skull-headed child walked right up to the stymied Ash. The creature smiled slightly and held up a key ring with a single key.

The key to the basement.

Ash didn't move for a moment. What was he supposed to do now? These monsters had slaughtered a person for him…although Ed's humanity could be called into question…but he was still…what was going on…why was all this happening to him?

Satos.

With fingers shaking and teeth clenched, Ash slowly took the key ring from the creature's bloody hand. Misty and Jessie just stared, not knowing what to do or say.

Glancing at the key, Ash thought about all the insanity he had gone through in this damn town. All the monsters, the deaths, the nightmares. All so he could rescue his father. And now, he was closer than ever to that goal. He would NOT fail.

Ash backed away from the creature, silently telling Jessie and Misty to follow him. They did so. The skull-headed child just looked at Ash with a puzzled expression on it's face.

Soon, the three humans were running. Running towards the back of the stadium, towards the basement, towards their kidnapped friends, towards the end of this nightmare.

They hoped.


The small creature watched them disappear and let out a sad sigh. Poor Daddy didn't know what he was in for down there.