Cha. 52

Ash opened his eyes to find a blinding white engulfing him. Dizziness hit like an atlas stone. His knees buckled and sunk to the ground.

He felt like he had endured through a long, gory dream… but it was so real! His head was tearing apart, like his soul had been repeatedly tortured and sliced apart.

His pupils eventually became adapted to the light shining through. He was… leaning against a tree in the middle of nowhere!

Domino laid sideways at his feet with a dazed look in her eyes. A red Pokédex was scattered on the ground, and so were the Pokémon!

He took a deep breath. Memories began to connect. His eyes widened.

The blonde let out a tiny whine as she abruptly sat up. Ash's lip curled slightly. Hmmm… an instant of vulnerability… how rare!

Immediately, her hands went to her ear and pulled out her tulip, extending and crossing it in front of her chest. Ash decided to step back carefully to avoid being chopped in half in her stupor.

"You okay?" He called out.

Domino's vision cleared. She took a look at Ash, paused, and extracted the staff. "Did you have a weird dream about… a village of babies?"

Ash nodded intently. "Yes."

Domino felt herself at a loss of words. But the silence was broken by a light soaring up from the Pokédex laying beside her. "You weren't dreaming. That was a Mirage."

A Porygon rose up above the trees. "Wow, we were trapped long before any of us noticed. We never even reached Lavender Town! That was all an illusion too."

The duo shivered as more memories poured in. Dexter pointed. "Look. The town is still a few miles off. We never entered. Everything past this point was a very realistic Mirage, until it transformed to the barren land after I pushed open the door at the fake Lavender Town."

"WHAT HAPPENED!?" Ash cried. His mind couldn't take the confusion any longer.

"Good question. Sit down. This might take a while." Dexter looked at the unconscious Pokémon. "Let me go wake them. They must hear this too."


As Dexter finished, Ash was still only in comprehension of half of the explanation. He chewed on the words slowly. "So there was absolutely nothing real about that, except that I got the Sickle, and Domino got the Book?"

"And the rare candies." Pikachu piped up. Aron rolled his eyes at his friend's apparent hunger.

Dexter nodded. Domino frowned. She said quietly, in a very straightforward manner. "I hate being tested."

The Porygon choked. He didn't know what to say. "I mean, you got a free Artifact from it…"

"Where is it, speaking of which?" Ash questioned.

"In your mind." Dexter smirked. "Artifacts aren't like normal tools. Let me explain."

According to Dexter, Artifacts are special entities that switches between reality and illusion. When they were deactivated, they could be stored in the mind, while becoming physical after the user summoned them from the mind.

Artifacts were like tools, ranging through a series of effects. Most were simply power enhancing, like a blade or an axe. They gave an edge in sharpness, or they magnified the force of an attack.

More rare were those that could cause intangible effects, such as curses, blessings. And there were Artifacts that summoned, trapped, constructed… a wide spectrum limited only by imagination.

Most Artifacts required the user to be at a certain level to unleash their full energy, or else the resulting power was reduced, just like a child couldn't wield one of Arceus's Plates and become God, obviously.

That was because even Artifacts could not disobey the conservation of energy. The stronger it was, the more Qi it required.

"So, don't expect to become insanely overpowered just because you got Giratina's Sickle, Ash." Dexter peered at him.

Ash's face tanked slightly as a light scarlet Sickle formed in his hand. "Welp, that's not a problem. I don't even know what it does."

The Artifact made a swish through the air. "I don't feel my attacks getting stronger."

"Of course not! Have you ever seen someone fighting with a Sickle!?" Dexter sweatdropped. "It only worked in the Mirage because of a fluke. Logic defies itself in there…"

"The proper use of the Sickle for harvesting, hence the name: Sickle of Gathering." Dexter placed a hand to his chin. "The target of the harvest is any effect that is intangible."

"Remember how I said Artifacts create effects like curses. It removes all effects. That was how you were able to kill the babies in the Mirage. They were enhanced by a blessing of rebirth, which vanished once the Sickle made contact."

"So what you're saying is…" Ash's face was somewhat dumbfounded. "This is like milk in minecraft?"

Dexter blinked for two seconds before steam rose out of his ears. "AGAHGAHAGAH!"

Magikarp merged into the air. Not even Pikachu had pissed him off to the point of loss of words…

"HOW DARE YOU COMPARE…"

Ash sighed dejectedly and laid down. "Damn… I thought this was actually something good."

Dexter's hologram popped.

Domino rubbed her brow. How was she seriously partners with such a…

"I don't know what yours does, Dom. You have to uncover it yourself, but it deals with helping your psychic." A voice rang in her ears. "Excuse me. Now I need to go cool down before I explode."


It was now midnight, and the duo had arrived at Lavender Town at dusk, each taking to a hotel room to drop dead asleep.

Even though the Mirage did not damage physically at all, it took a severe toll on their conscious. Both felt like they could sleep forever after the ravage they went through.

Ash's window opened silently. Four figures dashed out, with a duck-shaped shadow leading.

They sneaked through the streets to the square park after a few minutes to reveal Pikachu, Aron, Magikarp, and Dexter.

The electric mouse yawned. "What's the matter? This ungodly hour…"

"SILENCE!" Dexter suddenly roared and turned around to glare at all three. "SLEEP!? Take a piss and look at yourselves! Do you deserve sleep!?"

The Pokémon's eyes widened as they were stunned to silence. This was a Dexter they had never seen before.

"I've held this in for long ENOUGH!" The Pokédex growled. "What was your performance in the Mirage!? Trash! Garbage! Not only did you not help, you three escaped to your Pokéballs even before Ash's tolerance failed!"

"COWARDS! COWARDS! UNBELIEVABLE!" Dexter panted. "Ash is cluelessly nice, so he will never discipline you, but I'm NOT!"

"You're his Pokémon! Your job is to guard him! Do you not feel ashamed!? He is stronger than you! Domino could wreck you all in two minutes! They're HUMANS!"

"Think back to Celadon! He almost died! MULTIPLE TIMES! Are you not EMBARRASSED that you almost let your trainer DIE!?" Dexter's eyes glowed red. "I've given you the Methods, the key to success! You're failing him! Do you understand!? FAILURE!"

The Pokémon were stunned to silence. Pikachu's usually defiant head hung low with his big ears. Aron shuddered uncontrollably in his shell. Magikarp began to sob softly.

"I'm not here to intimidate you. Reality is cruel. Facts are cruel." Dexter took a deep breath. "All of you had expressed that you wanted to be stronger, but that doesn't happen with simply wanting."

"Do you really want to become strong? Then reach within yourselves and train through hell. Train to the point you want to puke." Dexter blew into the wind. "This isn't a game! You're following a Chosen! You have to be better than everyone else by tenfold!"

A few minutes passed. No one moved a muscle. The Porygon stared at them. None of them met his eyes. Pikachu turned and dragged his body out without a word, followed by Magikarp and Aron.

"Are you seriously leaving? That's what you're going to do? Go back to your beds and hide?"

"WELL WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT US TO DO!?" Pikachu detonated and screamed back.

Dexter stared into his eyes unfazed. A glint of approval flashed. "No, tell me, Pikachu. What do YOU want to do?"

A long silence lengthened. A fire burned in the mouse's forms. "Be strong!"

"Then prove your determination." Dexter waved his palm. Three rare candies shot out toward the three Pokémon. "Start your hell-mode training tomorrow. You need rest tonight after the Mirage."

"NOW LEAVE, YOU DISAPPOINTMENTS!" He roared.

Dexter watched them turn the corner before he closed his eyes. A drop of tear left his robotic eyes.

"You're really triggered by the Mirage, aren't you." A rainbow light dazzled softly next to him.

The Porygon knelt down and placed his head to the ground. "I… I failed you…"

"You have not failed."

"I've let you down. I let Ash die almost twice in a week." Dexter's voice shook. "I don't deserve your trust…"

"Look at me." The rainbow glowed and lifted his head up. "You're doing fine."

"The boy needs to learn how to deal with life and death. It was never my intention for you to guard him forever."

"Evolution never occurs in a greenhouse. Even iron has to be hammered a thousand times. A Chosen requires only more."

"Remember. You're his teacher too. A teacher, not a babysitter." The last rare candy materialized below the rainbow and was pressed into the Porygon's head.

Dexter brightened with a harsh red light, the light of Mars.


A/N: Gonna catch ourselves some more pokes next.