AN- Hello everyone, told you I had time to write. I feel pretty inspired to finish this actually. Here's an extra long chapter for y'all to apologize for my horrible updating schedule, close to 10,000 words.

I no longer have a beta reader, Flamewing98 did a great job but he's out of the beta reading game now, so if you see any errors that really bother you, let me know.

"Speech" 'Thought' 'Telepathy'

Please enjoy and review!


Chapter Seventeen

It wasn't a very good week to say the least. On the bright side, Domino looked as though she would be making a full recovery and May only suffered several large bruises. That was lucky; they thought she was much worse off but as it turned out, she was tougher than they thought. Ash was certainly happy about that. Everyone took turns caring for Domino and Ash manipulated some aura to help speed up the process which did end up helping.

Relations with Max were tense. Even May had a hard time seeing him around, though she was more neutral about it since he had only come for her benefit. She couldn't decide how she felt because he originally left her alone after they had met Ash again. Everyone else tended to ignore him unless necessary.

Mewtwo had left pretty soon after he had arrived, merely saying 'I will go see what damage has been done.' He was the only one who left the cave, everyone else was fine on the supplies that had been stocked up.

After that, he had been back twice, and neither visits had lasted more than several hours, enough time for him to get some food and rest. What news he brought back didn't seem good, but he didn't say much. However, he had brought back a welcome surprise: Domino's pokeballs. He managed to steal them while he was out, taking advantage of the chaos that Team Rocket was in. Apparently, Giovanni hadn't been seen for a few days and the crime syndicate was having something of a power vacuum. He had agreed to come back on Thursday to consolidate with Ash and Red so that they can plan their moves. However, Thursday came and went with no sign of the psychic Pokemon. Obviously, this distressed the men waiting for him, but they didn't really have much choice. They needed to know what was going on.

On Saturday, Mewtwo stopped by again. He appeared in the main body of the cave, which was a very rough circle about one hundred feet in diameter and twenty feet high. While Ash and Red were gone over periods of time, whichever Pokemon that they left behind did some work on the cave, making it easier to live in and less like a camp. The roof of the whole cave had been smoothed of the small stalactites so none would fall if anything rowdy happened. The entrance to the outside, which was on the wall of the cave, was blocked off with a wooden wall that had a large door in it. On the outside, it had been covered with thick foliage so it wouldn't be easily visible to potential enemies. Next to the entrance, a small tunnel that didn't go very far in had been hollowed out which Ash and Red now used as a bedroom. It was about ten feet high and fifty square feet and the roof sloped up into the mouth of the cave. There wasn't much in it; neither of them had many physical possessions that they would care about. One of the few things in the room was on their decently hand-crafted dresser with clothes. Ash stored a small picture frame with two pictures: the first was of him with his mother and professor Oak with all his Pokemon back at Oak's ranch. The second was a picture of him and May that was taken after they had won their contest together and split the ribbon. That ribbon was clasped to the top of the frame. Ash had managed to get to his house in Pallet to retrieve them a few years ago when he went to pay respects to his dead mother. No one there had known he stopped by or noticed them missing.

The kitchen used to be in the wall now had its own little hollowed out section, right next to the bedroom. It was simple, as they never ate anything fancy or complicated, just the essential nutrients they needed to train well. In the back of the cave was a natural tunnel that led to the hot springs that had drawn Red to this spot in the first place. The middle of the central cave had a large sparring ring on the floor that was covered with hay, to prevent serious injury when people or Pokemon got taken down.

Mewtwo appeared in the center of this ring. However, he had a man with him with a brown sack over his head and hands loosely bound in front of him with a piece of rope. The man was smartly dressed, sporting a double-breasted gray suit with thin white stripes and matching pants. His undershirt was dark blue and he wore a red tie. His black wing tipped shoes matched the suit well.

Ash was training in the ring with his Lucario when Mewtwo appeared. They had been going at it quite hard, Ash was shirtless, and both were drenched in sweat. May was sitting in a chair nearby watching while Max sat further away, still watching and yet no less impressed and in awe. Both Pikachu sat in May's lap, enjoying her hands resting on their backs. Domino was still in bed while Red sat beside her, just talking, and the rest of their Pokemon were lounging around somewhere in the cave having completed their own training for the day.

At the unexpected appearance, Ash and Lucario yelled out mid fight and fell back to stop themselves from crashing into them. Everyone else just looked in mild surprise. Pokemon teleporting in and out was not especially uncommon but the man with Mewtwo held their interest and they knew that he was late. Mewtwo was rarely ever late.

The genetic Pokemon extended a three fingered hand to Ash 'I apologize, but this is of extreme importance. I have both good and bad news.'

Ash took the hand was hauled up "I'm just glad you're here now. But, why did you bring a prisoner here?" Ash looked to Pikachu "Go get Red."

Ash's Pikachu nodded and jumped out of May's lap towards the bedrooms. A few moments later Red and Pikachu hurried out of the tunnel, Pikachu on Red's left shoulder.

Red jogged up to Mewtwo, eyeing the bound man suspiciously "Who is that?" Red didn't like Max being here let alone someone he didn't even know. This was supposed to be a safe place.

'In a moment.' Mewtwo reassured him 'He is not our enemy, but I took these precautions as I knew that you would prefer them.'

Red scoffed but went along with him "So what's going on?"

Mewtwo tilted his head 'Quite a bit actually. The bad news first: the situation has quite rapidly devolved into a very poor one for us. As you know, Abigar and his men have wreaked havoc throughout the regions. They seem to be immensely powerful aura users on top of their refined psychic powers, truly the men from legend. This is, unfortunately, the least of our worries.'

Ash pinched the bridge of his nose "Great."

'Indeed. Abigar must have had this planned for some time. I spoke with Giratina and I was informed that through their psychic powers, they were able to communicate shortly and manipulate this world from the Reverse World. Obviously, Giratina put a stop to it whenever he could, but they were not easy guests to accommodate. He didn't think that they could do much harm as well. There are actually more red aura users out there as well, ones without psychic abilities at least. They have been spread throughout the Orre region ever since Abigar was originally sealed away centuries ago. They posed no threat until now due to their lack of organization. However, now that Abigar has returned, they have a leader once more and are mobilizing. I cannot get a number yet though. The worst of it, is that Abigar has utilized his psychic abilities to subtly influence the minds of the media owners to spin his own story. He has blamed the attacks carried out by his men on Aura Guardians and implicated the two of you. All of the regions are readying to hunt down aura users because of this except for Kanto. Kanto will be much harder to persuade to kill their fabled Guardians of Aura.'

Ash blinked in confusion "I don't understand, how do people believe that? I've only ever met one Guardian before, Riley, and I find it hard to believe that most of the world can be duped into thinking three men did this."

They had a radio in their home, but it only got a few stations up on the mountain. Everyone had heard this possibility but had hoped that it was local gossip. The confirmation that it was a wide-spread belief was an unwelcome one.

'Actually, that is where the good news lies.'

Mewtwo reached over to the hooded man and swiftly pulled the sack off his head, throwing it into the air dramatically. Underneath was not the man anyone expected to see. Everyone around let out a gasp of shock. If May hadn't been sitting down, she would have stumbled back.

Red started glowing as his anger started taking over "Mewtwo, why did you bring Giovanni here!"

Ash spat at the ground as his eyes glowed blue in fury.

'Please Ash, Red, I beg of you to hold your temper for a moment so I can explain.' Mewtwo pleaded. He honestly didn't know if he could stop them from killing Giovanni if they were bent on it. He was obviously immensely powerful, but these two were something else when angered.

Red roared and picked up a large stone with his mind and shattered it against a wall.

Ash clenched his fists so hard they turned white"I don't like it, but I'll trust you Mewtwo. We'll listen, for now."

Red's purple eye twitched "...Fine."

'Thank you. I will let Giovanni take over from here, but I implore you to believe him. He is not lying.'

Giovanni cleared his throat, and shifted on his feet "Um, hello you two. I know what I'm about to tell you is crazy but it's as Mewtwo says, it's all true."

Ash blinked. The voice clearly belonged to Giovanni, but it didn't have that edge to it that he always had spoken with. He sounded more like a nervous salesman on his first pitch.

"I've been told I've done some terrible things to you two, and for that I apologize from the bottom of my heart. Also, Red, I don't believe I've ever heard you say more than a few words before."

Red snorted.

"That being said, it's not entirely my fault. As I put together with Mewtwo here, I have been possessed by Abigar for the past eleven years. Believe it or not, I am not a crime lord. My business used to be perfectly legitimate, you probably know that it used to be Rocket Industries. I called it that because I hoped to one day build rockets that would fly through space to explore the unknown. I was a fairly good businessman too. I managed to accrue massive personal wealth, but I still lived relatively modestly and tried to use my money for the good of humanity. Everything was golden for me and I believed that it would similarly be true for all man. Then one day, after a successful sales pitch, I made my way home only to find a strange man in my house. I attempted to take care of him with my personal sidearm, but he simply dodged my bullets and hit me with what I now know to be aura. He held me in my room for several days, torturing me to my breaking point."

Mewtwo's eyes glowed slightly and Giovanni's clothes lifted slightly up his torso, revealing a plethora of scars and burn marks. After Ash and Red had seen enough, the clothes softly lowered back down, and Giovanni continued "This was all so that Abigar could possess me from the Reverse World. Being in another dimension meant that I needed to be weak for him to do so. The influence he had on this plane was small because of that. He took control of my body, and the rest is history. Except that when he emerged from the Reverse World and back in ours, he had to give up his control of me to make his escape. He didn't repossess me because he sees no need to now. He has all the power he needs, and I fear he may be right. My secretary of old actually is still around; it turns out Abigar made me threaten her safety if she left. She helped me pick up the pieces of my memory some, but I can't remember anything during my possession."

Everyone was dumbfounded. This man, the man that they had poured years into hating and plotting against, who had tortured them and time after time destroyed their spirits was not the one at fault.

It was a lot to take in. No one spoke for minutes.

The glow around Red softened until it went out "That's quite the story and if Mewtwo didn't vouch for you, I would never believe it."

Ash nodded "It certainly seems less far-fetched now that we know Abigar isn't some made up myth. With all the power he has under his control, this certainly seems plausible."

Red grunted "It'll take some getting used to, hard to let go of years of hate. At least I can just hate Abigar instead. This is all his doing then."

"Hold on a sec." Ash rubbed his chin "How is this good news though? If anything, it's irrelevant to the current situation. It doesn't change anything."

'Indeed, it does not, Ash.' Mewtwo replied 'Before he was made into a puppet, Giovanni was secretly an ally of the Aura Guardians. He had an uncle who was one long ago.'

"There are more Guardians?!" Ash could hardly mask his surprise. He had been all around the world in every possible scene and had only ever even heard of Riley as the sole Guardian.

"A lot more." Giovanni confirmed "Though it's been so long since I have been in contact with them, Mewtwo took me to Iron Island, an old military outpost that the Aura Guardians turned into their safe haven, without letting the world know of their residence. They built a vast underground facility to live in, and life is almost normal for them. Luckily, possession of the body does not mean possession of memories, so Abigar has no idea of their location. The Guardians know of Abigar's return and are willing to help you."

"That's great!" Ash pumped his fist "It's about time we got some help!"

Red slapped his buddy on the shoulder "You can say that again. But will they accept a red aura user like me in with them?"

"Don't worry," Giovanni reassured "I've already explained the situation. They are willing to make an exception for you, as you are clearly an ally."

"Awesome." Red's shoulder slumped not even enough to notice. It felt so good to finally be welcome somewhere based on his merits alone. For too long he had wandered alone, not truly welcome anywhere. His time with Ash was enough to make it worth it, but it still felt good.

"There is one problem though." Giovanni cast his eyes down "The girl her brother are not welcome. Only users, aids, and family can come."

Ash froze for a moment, wracking his brain. Behind them still seated, May hiccuped in shock. A tear ran down her face at the thought of being torn away from Ash again.

Ash's eyes lit up suddenly. At that moment, a weight seemed to lift from his chest. He muttered "I can kill two birds with one stone here."

May looked at him, bewildered. Her mind reeled in panic as she assumed the worst "Ash please, I need you..."

Ash walked to the seated brunette and grabbed her hand "Nothing like that. Bringing you with me will be no problem."

May shook her head as more tears started to drip down her cheeks "I can't use aura, Ash. There's no way they'll let me in."

Ash chuckled "They let family in too. That includes wives I assume."

May froze, unsure that she heard correctly.

Taking her silence as a queue to continue, Ash wiped her face with his free hand "The two birds are to bring you with me, and to finally marry you."

May's heart nearly leapt out of her chest. She threw herself into Ash, burying her face into the crook of his neck as he stood, wrapping his arms around her.

"Do you mean it? I've done some terrible things and made some awful choices."

Ash rubbed her back "Of course I mean it silly. I loved you five years ago, and I love you now. I might not approve of everything you've done, but that's in the past now. The future holds just you and me." Pikachu jumped on her shoulder and licked May's cheek "And Pikachu of course."

May laughed and smiled softly "Thank you, Ash."

Giovanni cleared his throat "I can actually be of service here. I am licensed to perform weddings as a matter of fact and the quicker we do this, the better. Mt. Silver is tough to navigate, but I'd rather hide with an army of aura guardians."

Ash nodded "Of course." Pulling May with him, he looked at Red "Go get Dom, she'd hate me for not inviting her to my wedding."

Red nodded and took off to the bedrooms.

"What's the deal there?" May squeezed Ash's hand "They haven't known each other very long but Red is super protective of her."

"Funny story actually." Ash squeezed back "They apparently met while Red was working a job for Team Rocket. He got assigned to her and one thing led to another and they ended up becoming really good friends. I have no idea how he held together so well while she was being tortured, I guess he knows the priorities better than I do, goes to show his professional background. If I could have kept it together, this whole situation wouldn't be happening. He's actually one of the few people who know why Domino stuck around Team Rocket even though she's a good person."

"Why's that?" May was curious now.

Ash scratched his head "I suppose she wouldn't mind. Giovanni," He glanced at the ex-crime boss "sorry, I suppose Abigar through you had her sister kidnapped. She was her only family left so she had to join up. Her sister was killed after Red and I made our escape. She stuck around then because was waiting for the opportunity to break out and it didn't come before this happened to her."

May silently absorbed the information as she saw Red come out of the bedroom with Domino. While better, she still didn't have much energy so Red had an arm under hers supporting her.
Domino smiled at Ash "The one time I get put out and you go and get engaged while I'm recovering."

Ash gave her a thumbs up and a wink.

She handed him his half of the ribbon "I know you couldn't have planned far ahead enough to get rings so you should use this for now."

Ash took it with a nod "Do you still have yours May?"

"Of course." May pulled hers out of a jacket pocket.

"If this is everyone," Giovanni cracked his knuckles "it's been a while since I've done this."

All of the Pokemon gathered around and Max got considerably closer.

"I'm going to keep this short. We gather today to witness the joining if these two young folk in marriage. This is a sacred pledge, not one to be taken lightly, and I'm sure that neither of you do. Ash, with this in mind, do you take May to be your lawfully wedded wife, for better or for worse; for richer or for poorer; in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"
"I do." Ash bore a serious expression as he answered. He knew very well that death is likely to part them.

"May, with this in mind, do you take Ash to be your lawfully wedded husband, for better or for worse; for richer or for poorer; in sickness and in health, till death do you part?"
"I do." May smiled as the words passed her lips.

"Exchange the ribbons."

Ash and May swapped their ribbons and held them together to form the whole.

"Then with the power vested in me, I hereby declare you to be man, and wife. You may now kiss the bride!"

Ash pulled May in for a kiss and everyone but Max around cheered at the sight. Nothing worth cheering for had happened to them in a long time.

"How are we gonna deal with this, Colson?"

Deep underground on Iron Island, the Aura Guardians were not being idle in their response to the current events. They had issued an order for all their operatives out in the regions to return ASAP. They didn't know what was going to happen when or even where, but they were going to be ready for it.

The current Brigadier of the Guardians was speaking with his Lieutenant Commander and two Ensigns.

The Brigadier is the leader of the unit, and the Lieutenant Commander is the second in command. The Ensigns are two senior officers that hold equal command together below the Lieutenant Commander. They are the executive officers that command the Aura Guardians.

Colson, a thirty-six-year-old male and current Brigadier, was being spoken to by his Lt. Commander, Trinity. Colson was about six feet tall with a heavy muscular build. His hair was short with a high fade that was dark brown, the same color as his eyes on his face grew a short-trimmed beard. Trinity was a thirty-one-year-old male, about five foot eleven and lean and muscular. He had longer dark green hair, about ear length. His eyes also matched his hair color. Also present were the two Ensigns, Sir Riley and Layke. Riley was a twenty-eight-year-old male with long spiky dark blue hair and eyes. He was lean and had lean muscle too. Layke, a twenty-seven-year-old female with a slim athletic build, had lighter blue hair and dark blue eyes like Riley's. All of them were dressed in aura guardian attire, the blue tunic with blue boots and blue gloves and the large blue hat and blue cape. Their undershirts were gray and the tops of their boots brown. Gold embroidering decorated the gloves. Rank was distinguished on the uniform by the placement of the gold Pidgeot eye that represented the Guardians. Colson wore his square on his chest, Trinity on his left shoulder, and Riley and Layke on their left breast. All other Guardians wore it on the sash of their hat.

They all sat around a small table in a steel walled room. Light fixtures implanted in the ceiling and a screen on the wall that displayed a map of the regions, this was obviously a briefing room.

"That's why we're here, Trinity." Colson was standing at the front while the other three were seated at the table "The order for everyone region-side has been sent out, but there were never that many out there to begin with. For the time being, we need to just tighten defenses around here while we wait for the descendant of Sir Aaron to arrive."

"How do we know he's all he's cracked up to be sir?" Layke posed "If he's not, then this was all a waste of time. We should plan for other contingencies."

Trinity nodded in agreement.

"Of course we will, lack of planning is suicidal." Colson pointed to the region map. Kanto and Johto lay on a connected land mass in the middle with Orre on the same landmass but far to the north, with the continent Sinnoh resting slightly north-east and Hoenn Island the south-west. Iron Island lay slightly off the west coast of Sinnoh. "No matter how you look at it, this situation is not good. Currently, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Orre are aligned firmly against us. After however long it takes for the enemy to find us, once we are assaulted, our position will be completely cut off from Kanto's aid. As such, we would only be able to hold off three regions, Orre, and Abigar by ourselves for a few days tops. That being said, I think it's time we made our way back to our ancestral home."

Normally this would be a surprising statement. The Aura Guardians haven't held base in Rota since the ancient battle. But given the circumstances, it was clearly the only viable option.

"If he doesn't make it here no later than Tuesday, we begin the movement to Kanto without him. Any disagreements?"
Three heads shook.

"Alright then. Trinity, send out a warning order. Riley and Layke get that operations order ready to send out as soon as possible. I want this done quickly and quietly. They don't know where here yet and I want to keep it that way. No one leaves until we depart for Rota."

The three stood up, saluted, and left the room without a word. They had already written them having anticipated this course of action; the Guardians were a well-oiled machine.

Colson stood by himself, arms crossed. He studied the map, planning the best route back to Rota with the current situation. Since it lay in north-east Kanto, it wouldn't be that hard to get there. Technically a sovereign nation, Rota enjoyed freedoms that other towns in Kanto did not, but it worked with the Kanto government much closer these days than it did in the past. This would make it easier to travel through Kanto to Rota as long as Kanto remained on their side. He remained in the room for several hours, sending orders from a computer at the front of the room and occasionally answering a visitor.

Colson's pocket started to buzz, pulling him out of his focus. He reached in and pulled his phone out, holding it to his ear "What do you need?"

A male voice responded "Sir, Giovanni is back with Mewtwo, and he brought the boy. He teleported at the entrance again."

"Excellent. Keep them there for a moment and I'll head over myself."

"Yes sir."

Colson hung up and jammed the phone back in his pocket before fast walking out of the room and making his way to the front entrance. He passed through several hallways, all similarly steel walled with doors on both sides. After a few minutes, he stopped in front of an elevator and pressed the up button. He waited a moment before a quiet ding sounded and the door opened before stepping in. It was actually quite roomy. Listening to the bad elevator music, he rose for quite some time before the doors opened once again. Exiting and passing the guard to his left with a short wave to inform him he need not stand, Colson hurried through the main door.

Colson had known that Ash was the descendant of Sir Aaron for quite some time now, ever since he first called upon his aura with Sir Aaron's Lucario to save the Tree of Beginning. He had sent Sir Riley to check up on him on his journey in Sinnoh. A bit later, Ash had completely disappeared from their sights for five years, but he was back now. Giovanni was a surprise as well; they were well aware of his fall but had no idea that Abigar had been involved. Certainly, if they had known, they would have stepped in long ago to put the situation down. Especially if they had known the situation that Ash had been put into.

The main entrance of the Guardian's base was deep in a cave on Iron Island. To get in, one must go through long stretches of pitch-black tunnels defended by fierce wild Pokemon. Aura Guardians were able to use their aura long ago to make peace with these Pokemon, so they were allowed passage if they were recognized by their special powers.

The entrance was at the back of the tunnels in a large cavern, lit up by multiple bright lights implanted in the wall, illuminating it. Several short defensive concrete walls were emplaced near the door and several further ahead. These were last-ditch defensive measures to prevent entry into the facility. With this light, Colson could see several figures: Mewtwo, Giovanni, Ash, Red, another man, and who he assumed was this May and Max all standing with an Aura Guardian.

Colson raised his arms in greeting "Giovanni, a pleasure to see you again. I recognize everyone but these two." He gestured a hand at May and Max and Gary "You know we don't allow the unaffiliated."

"Well," Ash grabbed May's hand "she's actually my wife, and this is my brother in-law."

Max looked at Colson but didn't make any other movements. He seemed paler than usual, but that could probably be chalked up to spending the last week in a cave.

"Alright then." Colson scratched his beard, then looked quizzically at Gary "They can certainly be allowed in then."

"He can be of use to us sir." Red spoke.

Colson nodded, understanding.

Gary mentally shrugged, assuming that he meant in his capacity as a professor.

Giovanni dipped his head "Thank you for your help. It is much appreciated."

"Oh, it's no problem. I'm sure you will be put to use." Colson opened the door "Let's go in."

Everyone streamed through the doors and into the elevator, which was opened by the guard.

As they went down, Ash suddenly asked a question "What exactly did you mean by put to use, Colson?"

Colson looked at him "Giovanni used to run a large tech business. They were quite good at creating new gear and technology. They even used to have a government contract with Kanto as an arms manufacturer. Giovanni and Mewtwo spent the last few days going around and picking out the ones who were from that time and would be willing to work for him in their original capacity."

"Most were more than willing." Giovanni added "They knew what they had gotten roped into and wanted to make up for it. They aren't bad people; they had just gotten put in a bad place. Obviously, I nor my men cannot return to public life after all that's happened, so I've made a deal with Colson. He will offer us protection and materials, and we will essentially become their research and development department. Team Rocket will fall apart without me and my trusted scientists, but Rocket Industries may still be put to good use."

Ash and the others looked surprised. Surely, this was an unexpected side of Giovanni, that of a well-meaning philanthropist. All they had ever known of him was the cruel boss. It was almost refreshing to see that even someone like him can want to do good, even if these were extenuating circumstances.

The elevator door opened, and everyone poured out. Waiting outside were two older women, probably around thirty-five. The women were clearly civilians, dressed in civilian attire, unlike all the Guardians.

"These ladies will escort you," He pointed to May, Max, and Domino "to the family quarters where you will be told where your further placement shall be. Domino, you will receive treatment soon, you don't seem to be in dire shape. I need to speak with these men about our future actions, privileged information, I'm sure you understand."

May cast a look at Ash, eyebrows knotted in worry.

"Don't worry May." Ash reassured "These are the good guys."

May nodded and gave Ash a peck on the cheek.

Domino punched Ash on the shoulder before giving Red a hug.

Max just silently followed Domino and his sister as the two women led them away.

"Gentleman, follow me." Colson turned back into the elevator with the remaining following.

Heading down a few more floors, the door opened and this time, the one's waiting were Colson's executive officers.

"Riley?" Ash went to hug the blue haired Guardian "I haven't seen you in so long!"

Riley returned the embrace and then stepped back, smiling "Too long my friend."

He pointed to Layke "This is Layke, she's an Ensign like me. This," He pointed to Trinity "is Lieutenant Commander Trinity. He is the second in command here. You will get used to the structure here soon."

Trinity nodded "A pleasure to meet you all. If you'd follow me?"

He led the group into another steel room. That seemed to be the makeup of all the command rooms. This one was larger though, with a table that could accommodate up to twenty people. Everyone took a seat except Mewtwo, who leaned in a corner at the back of the room with his arms crossed.

Colson started "As you're aware, Abigar had returned alongside his six lieutenants, though they have left Kanto and split up to the different regions, but it is unclear in what compositions. According to the legends, their names are Roth, Gage, Berne, Derrick, Gower, and Vitale. He also has an army of red aura users of an unknown size backed by Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, and Orre set to oppose us. Since we are currently in Sinnoh, we need to make a withdrawal to Kanto as soon as possible. We plan on making base in our old home of Cameron Palace in Rota. We have contacted Queen Ilene and she is more than willing to aid us. Now that you have arrived, Trinity has given the evacuation order, effective immediately. We have always been prepared to move quickly, given the precarious view the world holds us in. There is a passage that leads to a small underground lake that leads to the ocean. We will use this to load our speedboats to go to Kanto. We have a Guardian in place at a port who will give us cover upon our arrival. From there, we will make our way to the palace via cars. Your girls and the boy will be transported alongside the other family members of the Guardians, so rest assured that they will receive the best protection we have. Upon arrival, we will need time to decide our next move, but it will most likely be a defensive operation, given the stack against us. For security reasons, no one outside of the drivers and ourselves know where we are heading. Any questions?"

Gary spoke first "Sir, why am I here? Shouldn't I be put with the civilians in this operation?"

"Oak," Colson said, "your friends haven't told you, for your own good, but you seem to have latent aura abilities. You've subconsciously used it to connect with Pokemon in your research."
Gary's mouth gaped.

"As such, you will be given training. We don't have much time, so you won't be able to train as much as I'd like, but if you give your every available effort for the next few weeks, you will be a top-notch Aura Guardian. Certainly an Oak can be one of the best."

Gary was silent for a moment "… I've been unable to be of any help to my friends as of late. I had always thought being a good trainer and professor would be all I needed in life, but it doesn't seem that way anymore. I'll give my very best to be as much help as possible."

"Excellent." Colson nodded in approval.

Red asked the next question "Sir, how will I fit in here as a red aura user? What will my purpose be?"

"Don't worry," Colson clasped his hands together on the table "you are known to be a friend of Ash and will therefore be trusted. The lower ranking Guardians will not have any problem with you as long as you remain loyal."
"Which I plan to do." Red's eyes shone with determination.

"Good. Any more questions?" He looked around the table.

"What is so special about me?" Ash looked a tad distressed. All this time, people had gone well out of their way to inconvenience him with their plans. Clearly, there were other aura users, so why him?

"That is a rather simple answer." Riley cut in "The short answer is that you are the descendant of Sir Aaron, the first of his descendants in a long time to display the ability to use aura. The last time one was able to use it was over two hundred years ago. It's rare for one of his line to be able to, and they are always immensely powerful."

Ash shook his head "But I'm not that powerful. Certainly nothing to get in a tangle over."
"That's because you haven't received proper training." Layke pointed out "You've trained without any proper guidance for however long. You're very intuitive to it though, as evident by how strong you are now. You easily surpass the average Guardian who has been training their whole lives and you haven't had solid guidance. You also seem to be more than exceptional at hand to hand combat and use of arms, clearly from your time with Team Rocket and refinement with Red. I oversee the training here and will be personally supervising your development from here on out."

"I'll put my advancement in your hands then." Ash was surprised to learn that he had so much potential but took it in stride.

"Questions finished then, I'll leave Riley to show you around while we finish preparations and begin our movement. Good day." Colson rose from his seat, Layke and Trinity following suit.

As they left Riley smiled "Since there's not much you can do to help, Colson decided that it might be beneficial in the future for you to have an idea of this facilities layout. Shall we?"


Max looked over his shoulder once more, sure that no one would be listening into his conversation.

"Ring ring, ring ring"

Max had asked to use a phone to make a call. No one had thought anything of it. After all, this was the brother in law of Sir Aaron's own blood.

"Hello, Iron Island police department, how may I help you?"


Several hours later, around sunset above-ground, Riley had finished showing the small group around and they were standing around in the cafeteria having finished eating a small meal. He had fit right in with the group, making jokes and comments as though he had known them forever. Lieutenant Commander Trinity had stopped by to grab a snack and joined in the conversation. They weren't talking about much, mostly just getting to know each other better since it seemed as though they would need to work closely in the near future. Most of the inhabitants of the facility had left already; they were just waiting for the command ship to be ready for launch. May and Domino had been on the first ship moving civilians out and Ash had sent Mewtwo with them to put himself and Red at ease. Max had surprisingly elected to stay behind to await the departure of the last civilian ship.

Suddenly, the lights flickered as the room shook. An explosion could be heard coming from the upper levels. Everyone shot to their feet.

"What could that possibly be?!" Riley pulled his radio out "What's going on up there?"

Static crackled before an answer could be heard, though it was garbled by the sound of small explosions and gunfire "...attack…been betrayed...sir...help...main..." The feed cut off, leaving static.

Trinity wasted no time "Riley, Ash, Red come with me. Gary, get to the ships as fast as you can. Everyone should be ready to leave except the security detail we had in place. The four of us will go aid the security and get them to the evacuation ships. MOVE!"

Gary scrambled for the door on the left side of the cafeteria while the rest went right. The cafeteria was only several floors below the entrance so it wouldn't take long to get there. They sprinted to the stairs by the elevator that led up. On their way up, they could sense a menacing, evil aura that they couldn't detect several hundred feet below ground. After reaching the top, they ran to the main door. There was no guard inside the door, but the sounds from outside made it obvious what was happening.

Flinging the door open, Trinity led the rush outside.

All they saw was a bloodbath. There had been at least two dozen Guardians placed outside to monitor it to ensure that no one would hit them without them being warned while they were vulnerable. Seven were left crouching behind the short concrete walls that were their only defense against a wall of lead, popping out only to shoot aura in retaliation. One was hit in the head with a bullet as he leaned out to fire back, bringing the survivors down to six.

'Blast it!' Ash thought 'Why did we give our Pokemon to be evacuated already?'

Red was in the same position.

Near the front of the enemy was a new face, one of Abigar's lieutenants. Fully clad in the blood red uniform of his kind, he stood about six foot one and was an absolute monster. His muscles made his clothes bulge slightly, easily visible behind the fabric he wore. He must have weighed at least two hundred pounds. One of his eyes was red and the other was purple, exactly like Red's. He wore his coal black hair in a ponytail that went to his shoulder blades. He had a few scars on his face, one going from his left eye down to his nose and one crossing his chin horizontally.

He was surrounded by Sinnoh military units, at least fifty men, each fully equipped with rifles and even grenades. Dead lay scattered everyone, Guardians torn apart by bullets and soldiers by aura blasts. They were being overrun, but they were certainly putting up a hard fight.

"Scion of Aaron! My name is Gower!" The red aura user's deep voice boomed throughout the cavern, reaching the group even over the noise of battle "I am pleased to see you have joined us, that will make this so much simpler!"

Riley and Trinity immediately threw a pokeball each, revealing their Lucario. The Pokemon rushed forward, throwing up screens of aura to cover the remaining Guardians. They were stopping the bullets, but it was clear that they wouldn't last long.

"Withdraw men, now!" Trinity waved over the survivors who didn't hesitate to rush away from the carnage.

Gower charged up a red ball and threw it at the aura wall, which visibly weakened at the impact. The Aura Guardians managed to get to the door and escape as a second ball shattered the shield. Bullets whizzed through, one going through Ash's lower left section of his abdomen. He grunted in pain, but the bullet had gone in and out, luckily only hitting flesh and doing no permanent damage. His hand flew to the hole, applying pressure to help with the bleeding. He knew he would be fine as he felt the wound.

"Inside!" Trinity threw a ball of his own to intersect one of Gower's which was hurtling towards them, then recalled his Lucario, as did Riley. They threw themselves inside before locking the door and making their way down to the stairs as fast as possible. They got about halfway down before they heard a loud explosion and the sound of soldiers rushing in. The second door from the bottom offered the way to the underground lake that could provide freedom. Once they reached it, they threw it open. What was on the other side surprised them.

Max stood by the entrance, sweating and shaking, but clearly resolved to stay put. He jumped in surprise at the sight of the fleeing Guardians "What the-"

"Max?!" Ash grabbed him as everyone ran by "Let's go, quickly!"

But Max smacked his hand from him "I'm staying, let go of me!"

Ash stopped, surprised.

"Ash, let's go!" Red turned around to yell.

Ash didn't answer him "What do you mean you're staying? Those guys are here to kill us!"

"They're here to kill you guys, maybe." Max took a step back "I don't want to be a part of this."

Ash froze "What do you mean, Max?"

"What I mean is that this is all clearly your fault! What I saw back in Kanto had to have been an illusion put on me by Mewtwo! The world thinks that this is your fault so how could the whole world be wrong? I've seen what you're capable of! I only stuck around for my sister but it's obvious that you've brainwashed her." Max spat at Ash's feet "You've tricked her into marrying you!? As if everything you had wasn't already enough, you went and pulled something as horrible as that. Well I for one won't be suckered in by you, Ash Ketchum!" With that, Max opened the door and ran up the staircases to the oncoming soldiers.

Ash wasted no time; he knew there was nothing he could do, and if Max had called them here, well, it's for the best he didn't stick around. Ash was seething at the though.

"What does Max think he's doing?" Red shouted as Ash caught up.

"He doesn't want to stay with us anymore." Ash figured the truth could be told at a more convenient time "Just know he's definitely not on our side now."

"Great." Red scoffed "The little punk always rubbed me wrong anyway."

The group navigated the hallways until they reached the underground lake, the enemy hot on their heels. The tunnel led out to a very small cavern with a staircase that went down to a dock set up on the even smaller lake, where the last of the evacuation ships was waiting.

Upon reaching the staircase, Trinity suddenly stopped "Men, I need three volunteers to stay with me. The other four need to ensure that Ash and Red make it safely out of here. This is a risky mission."

Riley immediately raised his hand, as well as two of the survivors.

"Now wait a minute." Ash began to interject.

"No time to argue, do as you're told!" Trinity yelled "Your survival is paramount. We'll hold them off while you make your escape. Tell them to leave without us, we'll find a way!"

Realizing that he was right, reminded by the sounds of boots hitting the ground getting closer, Ash simply nodded "I hope to see you again. Especially you, Riley. We have a lot to catch up on."

Riley saluted as Ash, Red, and the other three Guardians flew down the stairs towards the boat.

"You'll see them again, Sir Riley." Trinity said as the first of the soldiers came out of the tunnel "But we have to survive for that to happen!"


Ash and the others crossed the dock as quickly as their legs could carry them and jumped into the boat. It had already untied from the dock and was waiting.

"Go! Trinity said they'll find their own way!" Ash shouted to the pilot, who wasted no time in revving the engine.


Back on the stairs, the three Guardians were surrounded by bodies. One of their own and lots of the enemies. The trio was drenched in sweat, chests heaving from the effort. Another soldier ran out and Riley caught him with a hook to the face while the other Guardian shoved an aura ball through his chest, throwing his corpse back. A red aura ball suddenly appeared, hitting the ground and knocking them all off their feet. Trinity recovered quickly and jumped up in time to deflect a savage kick. The other Guardian was not so lucky and took a fist the chest, which caved it in, killing him instantly. Riley got to his feet and it was just the two against Gower. The rest of the soldiers were waiting behind him.

"You two fight well, but not better than me!"

Gower unleashed a flurry of blows, punches and kicks almost faster than the eye could keep up with. Trinity and Riley did their best to block as much as they could and even got an occasional hit in, but they didn't seem to do anything. Gower's fist glowed as he slammed it into the ground, showering the area with dirt and sending a vicious shock wave for a small radius. Trinity momentarily closed his eyes to protect them, but that was all Gower needed. He aimed a small aura ball at the Lieutenant Commander's chest, and it hit its mark. The man's eyes went dark as he sagged to the ground. Riley had jumped back to avoid the attack and looked in horror.

"One down, and the runt to go." Gower cracked his neck.

Riley instantly knew his fate; this was an enemy he couldn't possibly defeat. He saw out of the corner of his eye that the ship was almost out of the cave. A few more seconds and they would be home free. The enemy obviously hadn't had the time to procure a fleet of their own to prevent their escape.

Riley judged about twenty feet between him and Gower, his foe being at the mouth of the tunnel and himself at the top of the stairs now. Jumping in the air, Riley shot a series of aura balls at the ceiling, knocking down huge chunks of stone. They fell all around him, but he wasn't done yet. Gower dove back into the tunnel to avoid one of the falling boulders, which gave Riley more time to do more damage. He shot ball after ball at the ceiling, effectively starting the collapse of the small cavern. He turned to look at the escaping ship. It had reached the end and gotten away, safer and sound. Riley smiled, knowing he had prevented their capture. As he stood there, a crack sounded as a single bullet flew into his chest. He stumbled forward and fell down the stairs before collapsing at the bottom.

Riley knew his time was up, and he closed his eyes 'I'm sorry we couldn't catch up as much as you wanted, Ash.'

The cavern collapsed, providing him and Trinity a burial space.


Ash was standing at the back of the ship, watching the whole fight go down. He saw Trinity fall and Riley's plan to cover their escape. Deeply saddened as he was by the loss of his old friend, Ash shed no tears. He didn't think he could even if he wanted to. He had cried over lost family and friends so much, he hadn't any tears left.

Red watched his partner, worried for him as he wrapped some gauze around the mans waist to hold the bleeding. He knew that every man had his breaking point, and he worried that Ash was close to his.


AN- Chapter 17 everybody! I actually kinda like how this one went too!

I'll be trying to write more, so this is hopefully just a taste of what's to come soon.

See y'all later!

DarkLucario98