CHAPTER 50 – MEMORY BOX
"Ash… Ash… wake up!"
Ash heard Ari's voice calling out to him from the enveloping darkness around him, but to him it sounded no clearer than a howl of wind, or a rustle of leaves, and so he paid no heed to it. He assumed that it was all part of Darkrai's plan, and it was just something to enhance the experience, but it made him shiver despite his upbeat thoughts. He wondered what the Pokémon beside him could possibly be showing him; he couldn't begin to think what might have happened in Ari's past. However, he certainly knew of two major events in the boy's lifetime, and he wished never to see them with his own eyes, because the mere thought made his skin crawl and the hairs on his neck stand on end.
"What are you going to show me?" he asked, fronting up to Darkrai at last.
"Something that happened whilst Ari, Paul, and Tina were still travelling together. It was four years ago, at a place known as Olivine City, in the Johto region's north-west. I shall say no more; you will see it soon enough," it said mysteriously.
At those words, the world around them began to lighten, and indeed, Ash could see the Olivine Lighthouse to their right, a towering pillar of marble that dominated the skyline. Soon, all of the sprawling harbour city was in view; the S.S Aqua docked at the pier, and Olivine Gym standing to the north – with Jasmine, the Gym Leader, walking out of the main doors as he looked. He could even see beyond the houses to the north-west, to the vast stretch of forest that he knew to contain the town of Arborville, a place where he'd met the time-travelling Pokémon Celebi and had to defend it from an evil villain called Vicious. But with a nudge from Darkrai, he looked down, and directly below them was a sprawling seaside market, much like the one at Slateport City in Hoenn.
"Are we going shopping, then?" Ash chuckled, as he and Darkrai sank lower towards the ground. "So where are they?" he asked, looking over at the Pokémon, who raised a dark hand and pointed down the road in front of them. Ash followed the line, and he quickly found them; a purple-haired boy, a blonde-haired girl, and a brown-haired boy with his signature round-brimmed hat. He stood perfectly still as they walked towards him, for he could see that there was something wrong with the picture, but, like before, he couldn't quite place it.
"What am I—?" he started, but when he turned to see Darkrai, he found that the Pokémon had disappeared into thin air.
"Follow the three…" came a whisper-quiet voice, catching at his ears from the sea breeze. Ash snorted, but he had no better ideas, so he took the suggestion and turned back to face the three Trainers walking towards him. But before he could focus himself, he saw that Tina was about to crash into him, so he stuck his hands in front of himself to stop her. Tina passed right through his arms, and walked straight through Ash himself as though he was simply smoke and air, coming out the other side an instant later. Ash turned incredulously to gaze at the back of her, but then he remembered that this was nothing more than a distant memory from long ago.
"—come on, Ari, what are we doing here?" Paul drawled, his hands on his head as they walked. "I'd much rather be challenging Jasmine than lounging around here at this drab place."
"I'm not totally sure what we're doing here myself," said Ari, the surprise in his voice genuine. "I just feel… drawn here, for some reason."
"Any idea where we're being drawn to?" inquired Tina, her hands at the straps of her backpack.
"None, but I'm sure that…" Ari said, but Ash couldn't hear any more as they walked further and further down the road. Taking Darkrai's advice, he hastened down the street after them, knowing that they couldn't see or hear him, and when he caught level with them, he could hear more of their conversation.
"—think the two of you are ready to take on Jasmine?" Ari was asking, looking over at the two younger Trainers. Paul grunted arrogantly, but Tina considered the question seriously, frowning as she thought.
"Jasmine uses Steel-types, right?" she asked, her mouth twitching analytically when Ari nodded in reply. "So my best bet would be Leo, seeing as he's a Fire-type…"
"Sounds like a good idea to me," Paul interjected, and Ash nearly tripped over his feet in shock when he saw that Paul was smiling; a genuine, kind-hearted, beaming smile. "You and Arcanine share a close bond; he's your first Pokémon, after all."
"Thanks, Paul," Tina said warmly, her eyes twinkling at him. "Okay, I'll use Leo against Jasmine. What about you?" she asked him, and Paul shrugged indifferently.
"Doesn't really matter who I use, she's going down anyways," he answered arrogantly. "But I can't go wrong with Torterra or Magby," he added quickly at a fiery glance from the small girl.
Leo?! Tina had an Arcanine called 'Leo'?! Ash thought, his head reeling as he quickened his pace to keep up with them. What next? His question was answered a split second later, because suddenly Ari ground to a halt, throwing his hands out to stop the two children on either side of him. Ignoring their cries and complaints, he slowly revolved on the spot and walked, as if pulled by some unknown force, to the merchant stall to his immediate left.
A wizened old lady, with wispy grey hair and a toothless smile, greeted him at the counter, waving an arm across the range of items for sale. As Ash ran over, he saw that it was filled with age-old souvenirs and relics: on the left were a collection of Charms made from ancient Pokémon bones, and on the right were rocks and glittering shards that had been collected from landmark locations all over the world.
But what drew his attention the most was a lone wooden box in the middle of the counter. It was perfectly square, about two feet across, and made of immaculately polished rosewood. It was a beautifully crafted box on its own, but Ash sensed that there was something even more precious inside it. A loud gust of wind blew past him, making his clothes flap about, but he didn't take much notice of it, and he leaned forwards to hear more about the box.
"—in that box," Ari was muttering to his friends. Paul shook his head and looked dubiously at him, his cold eyes calculating as ever.
"You haven't got a clue what you're talking about."
"I know, but still… whatever it is that's in there… I feel like it's important…"
"Well, it can't hurt to have a look, can it?" Tina piped up, craning her neck to get a word in, before turning to face the old lady with a smile. "Excuse me, but can you show us what's inside that box?"
The woman gave another toothless grin and answered the question, but her words were lost in a blasting gale of wind that stung at Ash's eyes and nearly dislodged his hat form his head. He squinted his eyes against the wind, but all of a sudden a white flash streaked across his vision, and a red-hot shape struck him forcefully in the cheek, knocking him backwards. He clutched at his cheek in shock and pain, before he looked over at Tina, who seemed to have heard the woman perfectly, because she was beaming as she turned and gave a knowing smirk at the two boys on her right. The three of them leaned forwards in anticipation and crowded around the box as the old lady's withered hands reached forwards towards the box. She opened the latch at the front and swung the lid upwards, showing the three young Trainers the contents of the rosewood case.
"Wow…" gasped Ari, as a brilliant white light shone from the inside of the box.
"They're beautiful…" whispered Tina, her eyes sparkling.
"Yeah…" murmured Paul, who seemed lost for words.
What is it?! thought Ash desperately, fighting against the gale-strong wind to get a view of the contents of the rosewood box, but the three young Trainers in front of him were blocking his view; all he could see was the shining light showing from the cracks between their heads. Just as the wind gained in strength and threatened to knock him off his feet, Ari's head bobbed down as he reached for his wallet, and Ash caught a fleeting glimpse of three oddly-shaped, symmetrical pendants hanging from chain necklaces, their links as fine as silk. But as he forced his head forwards to see the pendants themselves, the world around him was plunged into icy darkness.
"What the—?!" he shouted, blindly reaching with his hands into the dark. He realised that his eyes were closed, so he wrenched them open into another blinding white light, making him squint short-sightedly. As he threw his hands in front of his eyes to protect them, his elbow brushed against fabric, and he turned his head to the right, away from the light. Ash's eyes slowly grew accustomed to the light, and he began to make out walls, a roof, and a hulking figure standing over him, and as it moved it cast a dark shadow across his body.
"Who… are… you?" he mumbled thickly, as a wave of tiredness suddenly swept through him. The figure above him gave a booming laugh and stepped backwards, and as Ash looked closer he could see that the figure was Brock. "Brock…? What—? Wait, what did you slap me in the face for?!" he shouted indignantly, remembering the flash of pain across his cheek, and he impulsively raised a hand to the newly formed red mark on the side of his face.
"Sorry, but you were pretty out of it, and it seemed like the only way to wake you up," he said apologetically, extending a hand. "But it worked, right?" he chuckled, as he helped Ash off the lounge and onto his feet. Ash grunted impartially, not wanting to admit it, but also annoyed that he'd been interrupted during his visit inside Ari's memory. His annoyance quickly evaporated into fear, however, when he looked around and saw Ari himself standing several feet away, his face flushed and his eyes wild.
"You alright, Ari? You look like you just saw a ghost," he said sheepishly.
"No, not a ghost. But by the same token, I'm not alright…" he muttered, pulling his round-brimmed hat out of his jacket pocket and jamming it back onto his head.
"Why, what's the matter?" Brock asked concernedly, looking around. "And hang on," he added, his head turning this way and that, "where's Dawn? Wasn't she with you? Where'd she run off to?" Ari's face drained of colour as Brock continued with his questions, and Ash raised a grim hand to silence his friend.
"Ari," he whispered, realising the reason for the boy's discomfort, "what's happened to Dawn?"
"I—I don't know!" he burst out, his face pale white as he reached into his jacket. "We were walking back to my place after your match—we went down this side street—then these two adults stopped us—and I got hit from behind by something—" he took his hat off and turned around, showing Ash and Brock the nasty lump on the back of his head, "—but when I came to—I was in this dumpster—Galadriel carved a way out—and I found this lying in the middle of the street," he finished, and he pulled Dawn's white hat out from his pocket and showed it to them.
"Dawn's hat!" Ash exclaimed, snatching it from Ari's grasp. "But if you found this—" he shook the hat through the air, "on its own, then…" he muttered, his hand shaking, "then something's happened to her!"
"I know. I think she was kidnapped," Ari said, stepping forwards despite the shocked gasps from Ash and Brock. "I think it was the guy from your match with Kaiden. Y'know, the wiry-haired man with the camera who was taking pictures of you? We saw the footage on the stadium replay during your interview with Derek, remember?"
"Yeah, but how can you—?" Brock began.
"Because he was one of the adults that cornered us in the street before I was knocked out," Ari fired back, not waiting for him to finish his sentence. "I saw him with my own eyes."
"Then what the heck are we waiting around here for?!" Ash shouted, striding over to the lounge and picking up Pikachu, who was feebly stirring upon hearing the raised voices in the room. He made for the door, but Brock swiftly stepped in front of him, efficiently barring his path. "Brock, get out of the way; we need to find Dawn now!" he said loudly, his dark brown eyes glinting fiercely.
"You don't think I don't know that?!" retorted Brock, just as fiercely as he crossed his arms. "Of course we need to find her! But we won't be doing anyone – especially Dawn – any good if we barge in without a plan. We could get her in even worse trouble than she might be in now."
"That was my thinking in coming here and telling you," Ari agreed, sitting down on the armchair closest to the door and tapping his foot rapidly on the carpet-covered floorboards. Ash shook with anger, refusing to believe that he would have to stay here, when every moment wasted could be costing Dawn, but then a voice spoke in his head.
Ari and Brock are right, said Cyrus-Ash calmly. You can't let your anger get the better of you. Look at Ari; he is obviously suffering beyond belief, and with good reason. He is Dawn's partner, and she was kidnapped from under his nose. He has every right to charge in recklessly to save her, but he chooses the wise option; he chooses to plan things through, in order to give Dawn the best chance of rescue. You should do the same.
Great, even my mind is against me! Ash thought, his jaw trembling. Fine, we'll do it this way, he decided, turning stiffly away from Brock and throwing himself back down onto the lounge. The impact sent Pikachu bolting upright, now fully awake, and it looked around, puzzled, at the three Trainers staring grimly at the floor.
"So now what?!" Ash snapped, looking up at Brock, who slowly uncrossed his arms and sat cross-legged on the ground in front of the door, just in the off-chance that Ash tried to make a hasty exit.
"Well, do you know who that wiry-haired guy is?" he asked Ari, who shook his head hopelessly and buried his head in his hands. But just as suddenly, his head shot up, and he jumped to his feet, making Ash start in surprise, and Pikachu yelped in confused shock.
"Pii pika pikapi chupika kachu pikaa?!" Can someone please tell me what's going on?!
"Dawn's missing," Ash explained quickly, to a horrified gasp from his Pokémon, whose tiny hands flew to its mouth.
"We should go and see Derek and Jeanne!" Ari shouted, heading for the door.
"What for? I don't think broadcasting news of a kidnapping would do Dawn's chances any good!" Ash said aggressively, getting to his feet.
"No, not a broadcast! That'd be stupid! We should go and ask them to go over the footage at your match! It might give us a clue as to who that guy is, or what he might have against Dawn!" he explained hurriedly. Brock looked sceptically at him for a short moment, but then grunted and nodded as Ari helped him to his feet, which made Ash howl with disbelief.
"Are you serious?! You're going to go to a news studio – in the dead of night, of all hours – to try and look for some insignificant clue that might help us to find Dawn?!"
"You got a better idea?!" roared Ari, walking over and standing face-to-face with Ash, his hazel eyes staring into Ash's. "Because if you do, I'd sure love to hear it! If you don't, I suggest we go with this, because it's sure as hell better than doing nothing!" he shouted in Ash's face, his face twitching uncontrollably with the same anger that Ash had seen in him when he had come close to throwing Paul off the Goldenrod Radio Tower.
"Fine, we'll go to the stupid studio," Ash growled, using what little height advantage he had to try and stare Ari down. "But I'm still having my Pokémon scout the area for any signs that Dawn might be around, deal?!"
"Deal," Ari hissed, before he turned and strode to the door. Brock hastily stepped out of his way, and he wrenched the door open and walked into the hallway and turned to the left, making for the elevator.
"I'll have Crobat look for her as well, Ash," Brock offered, pulling a PokéBall from his waist. "You should send out Noctowl; its eyes are going to be well-suited to the dark."
"Good idea," he said, reaching for his belt. "It's pretty lucky that I was considering using Noctowl in my match against Reena, wouldn't you agree?" he jested, grabbing his Pokémon's ball.
"Very lucky," Brock said seriously, as he headed out the door. "Come on, let's go. We might be in for a long night," he added grimly as he rounded the corner and disappeared from sight.
A long night indeed, Ash agreed, making sure that Pikachu was securely on his shoulder, before he ran out into the hallway and slammed the door shut behind him, sprinting around the corner to catch up with Brock and Ari.
Trivia:
*Last chapter, the third Pokémon movie is referenced. In this chapter, the fourth movie is referenced – Celebi's lake in Pokémon 4Ever.
*Vicious is mentioned for the second time in this story.
Quiz:
*Which Gym Leader did Ash's Noctowl defeat single-handedly?
