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Epilogue

The cruise ship landed back at the port Ash first left in. For at least 7 hours, Tesla was out cold from sea sickness. He slept most of the way, but woke up on occasion just to look outside. Tesla could barely stand, even on 4 legs. So when the ship made port, Ash carried Tesla as he crossed the small cat walk and stepped back into Unova.

"We're here Tesla." said Ash.

"Pika Pika!" said Pikachu.

Tesla's eyes flickered open, after looking around a bit he stretched his arms and yawned, "What happened?" he muttered.

"You passed out from sea sickness." said Ash.

"Oh, now I remember. It came in so fast that I probably slept most of the way, did I not?"

"You slept most of the way."

"I'm still too dizzy to walk. So Ash, what port are we in and who do you know around here?"

"Gosh, I forgotten the name of this port."

Ash looked around for anything that tells him about the ocean-side town, no sign that gave such info was in sight, "There is a hotel I know, I think my friends are there."

"Who?"

"Cilan and Iris."

"I've known the same old people forever, so I'm excited to meet those friends of yours. They might have heard of what happened back at Faraday City, so expect them to exacerbate things a little."

Ash head down the road and made a few turns, he looked over his shoulder occasionally to see if he was followed. Holding probably the oldest and famous Pikachu in the world would attract attention, so far he hadn't seen anything suspicious. A few people's eyes glanced at them, but Ash saw that they were merely rolling over them. Every pedestrian walked by without taking notice, it was only when Tesla held up his head where several eyes locked on to him.

"Whoops." Tesla muttered.

First it started with one, next came three, then five. Soon a small crowd were muttering to themselves as they point sheepish fingers at Tesla. Ash clutched him close to his chest as he heard a few children voices call out Tesla's name, "How far is it?" The old Pikachu asked.

"We're here."

Ash walked up the steps of a pleasant hotel that towered above him. When they walked into the lobby they saw several people wonder around, Ash looked around and saw Iris and Cilan watching TV. Iris' Axew sat perched on Iris' shoulder, staring blankly at the nearby wall. For a moment, Ash wondered how they would react. They expected him to come back soon, but not with extra company. Since the HDTV was on the news channel, Ash had no doubt that they knew what took place. He took a deep breath and exhaled, before making his approach.

"Iris, Cilan!"

Iris, Cilan, and Axew turned and saw Ash approached, "Ash!" their faces lit up in joy.

"Axew!" cried Axew with excitement.

Cilan and Iris got up and Ash stood before them, "We saw what happened on the news in Faraday City," said Cilan, "I didn't know Irvin's famous Pokémon was still around and-"

He stop short when he saw what Ash was holding, "Is... Is that him!"

"The one and only." said Tesla.

Cilan nearly jumped, "Whoa, he can talk!"

"Oh my gosh," cried Iris, she walked up and plucked Tesla out of Ash's arms. Causing him to stumble backwards as Iris smothered him a big hug, "You poor thing, you've been injured so many times. I thought you weren't going to make it!"

Tesla squirmed in her grip, struggling to breathe. Ash recalled how Pikachu reacted when he got a similar treatment when they met. He also remembered how powerful Tesla was, which worried Ash greatly, "Be careful, Iris." he warned.

"It's okay Ash," said Tesla as Iris rubbed his head with her head, "I've been waiting for a woman's touch in a long time. This reminds me of my own mother, she cuddles me just like this."

Ash saw the soft smile of Tesla's face, his mind tried to sort out the confusion as Iris rubbed Tesla's cheeks and cradled him like an infant. Conventional Pikachus would shock a stranger if they give them this sort of treatment, but it seemed that Tesla was letting this slide. Since he was receiving much-needed love.

"You're from the valley of the dragons." said Tesla.

Iris gave him a puzzled look, "Ash told you?"

"You smell quite like it, and your Axew confirmed that smell."

"Axew." Axew added.

"Wow," said Cilan, "In battle, Tesla can unleash serious punishment. But outside of battle, he's docile."

Tesla gave him a look and grinned, "Boy, you don't know half of it. What you've seen on TV is the last legitimate Pokémon battle I would ever be fighting. You know that if I had lost, I would've been killed?"

Cilan's expression dropped, "Is all the bad stuff they say about you on TV true?" he asked in a worried tone.

"Honestly, yes. If my trainer was still alive, he would have shrugged it off. We're no strangers to this sort of trouble. Despite all the trouble, my reputation seemed to cover most of it. My adoring fans gave their support, and I got a pardon that freed me from abomination."

"Will you be my Pokémon?" Iris asked.

Humorously, Tesla gave Iris a hard slap on the face before jumping down on the ground, "Absolutely not. I'm retired, I don't wish to battle anymore. I'm so well trained that I don't need a Pokémon trainer anymore."

"Don't even think about battling him Iris," warned Ash, "He's known for taking out Pokémon in one blow."

"He never lost a battle." Cilan added.

Iris rubbed her cheek for a moment, then let out a sigh, "Oh fine."

"Axew." Axew added in his own disappointment.

Tesla turned his attention back to Ash, "Well Ash, I guess I'm in your debt for the time being. If you need help with anything dire, just track me down."

"Will I ever see you again?" Ash asked.

"Pikachu?" added Pikachu.

"You will, I'll might follow you once in a while. I'm good at tracking people down, so don't be surprised if you stumble into me in your journey."

"Tesla," said Cilan, "You haven't fully recovered from your battle yet. What exactly happened to you back at Faraday City?"

"I broke my rib and punctured a lung," said Tesla, "Nearly died on the spot, Ash got me to the hospital and they fixed me up good. I'll probably stay at the nearby Pokémon Center until I fully recovered from my surgery. In the meantime, feel free to continue your journey."

Pikachu jumped down from Ash's shoulder and gave Tesla a big hug, "Pikachu." he whimpered.

"That's okay ketchup lover," said Tesla, "I hope there's no hard feelings."

"Pika."

"Okay, so we're good."

"What happened between you two?" Cilan asked.

"Pikachu ran into an electric fence I built," explained Tesla, "The high amperage stopped his heart, I managed to revive him quickly though."

"I was terrified when I saw that." said Ash.

Pikachu let go of Tesla and returned on Ash's shoulder, "You shouldn't blame yourself Ash," said Tesla, "I put the fence there just to give myself space, I bet the scientist are taking apart my little wooded area to see how I was living in it for the past 20 years."

Tesla looked at the clock and saw what time it is, "Well guys, I best be heading off. I'll stay at the Pokémon Center for a few weeks until I fully healed from my surgery. You can leave without me, we'll meet once again in no time."

"Bye Tesla." said Ash.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu said bye.

"Once again," said Tesla, "Thanks for saving my life, I'll pay you back sometime in the near future."

Before Cilan and Iris had their chance to say goodbye, Tesla took off across the hotel lobby and ran outside. He was gone within a blink of an eye.

"Lightning fast," Ash inadvertently say, "Is that what they all say?"

"I think so," said Iris, "Next time you go off like that again, please take us with you. You obviously got all the fun."

"Well let's go then," said Ash, "Let's head east and go find some fun, we're on this journey for a reason. Right?"

"Right on, let's go!"

"Lead the way, Ash." said Cilan.

. . .

Tesla went to the highest point in the city that doesn't put him in harms way, he sat down on his rear and looked out towards the horizon. Unova was a beautiful place, and quite modern. More to that, there was so much to do. He took a moment and thought of some goals, and he came up with a small mental list.

The first goal is to locate my descendants, he thought, The second one is to locate some old friends of mine, specifically the Pokémon who served Irvin the longest. Third, locate my sweetheart from the breeding program. Forth, find out the fate of the family I grew up with and locate them. Either if they're dead or still alive.

That was a simple list, Tesla repeated the words in his heads as he stared at the forest outside of the city. He didn't see any wild Pokémon, but they're surely be out there. Since Pikachus weren't native to Unova, he'll be the center of attention. Not to mention that he was an international celebrity, whose never-ending glory was still going when his trainer's had ceased. How ironic, had anyone ever thought that he would still be around when his trainer passed? Irvin had. But his insurance came too late. Was it his fault, or was it Tesla's? He couldn't tell for sure. But now, all that was in the past. It was time to look ahead into the future. No longer he would have to follow someone around. No longer he would take orders from anybody. No longer he would be pushed into situations he didn't wanna get into.

Everything from here on out, Tesla controls his own journey. He makes the decisions, he decides were to go. If anybody gets in his way, his reputation will see to that. Several new friends will be made, along with some enemies. Older friends and enemies from the Westinghouse Era would come around, of course. But they would find him quite different. Many will remember him, some barely remember him at all. It doesn't matter, that was from an old life, but it's worth keeping tabs on contacts he already had. You may never know who you'll need when something goes down.

Tesla Westinghouse stood on his hind legs and looked up at the blue sky, it was a brand new day. There was so much to do, and so much to see. But there was one thing he must do as well. Ash had saved his life, and so was in debt with him. Tesla felt his heart attached to the boy, a new bond perhaps? Probably. But Ash only needed one Pikachu, and Tesla didn't want another trainer. He was too experienced in Pokémon battling, and in a few other things. Somewhere down the road in achieving those goals, Tesla would fine-tune his moves and abilities. It had been a while, but they were all built-in. Tesla was a Pokémon once owned by a Pokémon Master, and Ash was trying to become one.

Follow him, you old fart. Tesla thought.

Following Ash would be a start, sooner or later Tesla would have to pay him back. He never goes against his own word. Before he could get started though, he would have to rest. Just walk into a Pokémon Center, get something to eat, then stay there until he fully recovered from his surgery.

But not here. First thing to do was to get away from the ocean, Tesla was tired of seeing it, "Might as well get a ride," Tesla said to himself, "Last that I recall, the next town had a bigger and a better quality Pokémon Center. Doesn't hurt to investigate."

THE END!