"You're in no position to make demands right now. If you want us to let our hostages go, you'll have to do what we say. We're in charge here, got it?"
In the back hallways of the Battle Chateau, Cassidy was having an angry and animated conversation with someone on her phone. Butch stood nearby, in the vain hopes that he might need to chime in and sound tough, but his partner had that role neatly covered.
"You're wasting my time," Cassidy spoke, interrupting the person she was speaking with. "Call me back when you're ready to talk business." She ended the call, dropping her phone back into her pocket.
"They're trying not to pay the ransom, huh?"
"Of course not. It's an unreasonable demand on purpose, remember?" she answered, her previous animosity gone in a heartbeat. "The longer they spend grappling with our ransom demands, the more time we have to siphon all the stored Pokémon away."
"If the phone calls are all for show anyway, you should let me answer the next one," Butch suggested hopefully. "I can practice my tough guy shakedown."
"Forget it," she shot back. "We're not shaking them down, we're stalling them. That takes finesse, not toughness. And you're not getting your hands on my phone."
"I can finesse toughly," Butch began to insist, before he was interrupted by a beeping from Cassidy's hip. She reached down and pulled up a walkie-talkie, speaking into it.
"What is it?" she demanded, hoping for good news, which she did not receive.
"We've got a problem," a male voice on the other end answered. "Byron managed to get away from us. He's somewhere in the employee section of the third floor."
"What?!" she barked. "How could you let him escape?!"
"Have you seen the guy?!" the voice protested. "He's like a Machoke that used Bulk Up! He was practically throwing us around!"
"For Pete's sake." Cassidy pinched the bridge of her nose. "Take one person from each floor and send them after him."
"Got it! We'll get him, don't worry!" The voice vanished, as Cassidy slapped the communicator back onto her hip, starting to hurry down the hallway.
"Come on, we're going, too. If he gets in touch with Team Ace, this is going to become a huge mess."
"Hmph. No way he's getting away from us," Butch added, ready to see some action, as they made their way toward the stairs. On the other side of a nearby door, four partygoers were trapped in a supply closet, unable to escape their prison or the preceding conversation. Brock, Iris, Shannon and Viola were all sitting or lying on the floor, tied up with ropes that bound their arms to their torsos, and their wrists to their ankles behind them.
"Who do you think escaped?" Shannon wondered aloud, having only heard one half of the conversation.
"Hopefully, Ash and the girls," Brock answered, turning his head. "If he's still got Pikachu with him, they'll at least have a chance against those goons."
"I should be the one going up against those goons," Viola growled, struggling futilely against her restraints. "I'm a Gym Leader. This is humiliating."
"Well, you're not the only one." Brock glanced over toward Iris, expecting her to chime in. She stayed mostly quiet, only making occasional grunts for some unknown reason.
"What are you doing, Iris?" Shannon tried to roll herself over.
"Those idiots tied my ropes up too high," Iris answered, keeping her voice low in case anyone was listening. "I've been forcing them upward for the past ten minutes. I think I can slip out of them."
"What? Really?" Shannon exclaimed, before hushing herself.
"Well, I'm probably going to need my wrists free." She did her best to roll herself into a sitting position, scooting herself in Brock's direction. "Brock, you're a doctor. You're good with your hands, right? Help me get out of this."
"You want me to do what?" He strained to sit up and turn his head, trying to look immediately behind himself. "I can't even see what I'm doing! How am I supposed to untie you?"
"I don't know what else we're supposed to do." Iris lay down behind Brock, shifting a bit until her wrists were touching his fingers. "It's just rope. You can do it."
"We'll see…" Brock started moving his fingers carefully around Iris's wrists, trying first to find the rope, then the knot. Viola turned herself around, trying awkwardly to get into a sitting position where she could look down at his hands as they worked.
"It's a bit further to your left," she advised, watching his fingers move. "No, your other left."
"I only have one left!" Brock insisted, trying to keep his cool, having a great deal of difficulty picturing the ropes in his head.
"Move your hand a bit more slowly…" Shannon had managed to get on the other side of them, and was now offering her own advice. "Slower… there! That's the knot. Now where's the loose end of the rope…"
Viola and Shannon continued to oversee the delicate operation, giving useful and occasionally conflicting direction to Brock, who was trying to not injure his wrist as he carefully untied a knot based almost entirely on feel. After a minute or two of struggling, he managed to push a critical rope back through its knot, loosening Iris's wrists. She quickly slipped one of them out of the rope, then the other, flopping forward toward the floor as she was finally able to straighten herself out.
"You did it, Brock!" Viola exclaimed, beaming as Iris turned around and sat up. "Great work!" Shannon twisted herself about, watching as Iris negotiated her way into a sitting position, wriggling her arms and doing her best to shrug her ropes off of her shoulders. She soon had the top loop off of her shoulders and around her neck, and she reached up to grab the ropes and pull them off of herself. Everyone else in the room gave a quiet cheer as she reached down and extracted her feet from their bindings, giving a silent thanks for her slender build.
"Finally." She exhaled as she stood up fully, rubbing her sore arms. "That was about as uncomfortable as it gets." She took a step toward the others to untie them as well, when the sound of an opening door stopped her in her tracks.
"What's-" a male voice began, just as Iris whirled around to face one of the Team Rocket members that had tied her up, shock and anger in his expression. "How'd you get free?!" He growled and dashed forward, arms extended, intent on fixing the situation. Thinking quickly, Iris dove forward between the man's legs, scrambling to her feet again on the other side of him. As he spun around to chase after her, he felt himself being bowled over as Shannon rolled into his legs, knocking him off his feet. Brock and Viola awkwardly shimmied closer, doing their best to throw themselves on top of the man and restrain him.
"Run, Iris!" Brock urged, as the Team Rocket member grabbed at his arm. "We'll be fine! Go get your Pokémon!"
"I'll be back, I promise!" Iris dashed away as fast as her legs could carry her, trying to remember where the Pokémon were being stored. Her pursuer quickly threw Brock and Viola off of him, getting to his feet and giving chase.
Several floors up, Ash, Serena and Madison were running through the back hallways of the Chateau, searching for some way they could get back downstairs without fighting through an army of Team Rocket mobsters. As they rounded a corner, they skidded to a stop as they were greeted with two uniformed foes, both of whom immediately reached for the Poké Balls on their hips, looking to provide some resistance. Neither of them would get the chance.
"Quick, use Water Shuriken!" Ash commanded, glancing backwards. A tall, blue, frog-like Pokémon shot past him, extending both of his arms and forming a large spinning blade of water in each one. He flung them forward toward their pursuers with incredible speed, knocking both opponents off their feet and putting them down for the count. Ash and his friends ran past, putting as much distance between them as they could.
"I need a minute… can't keep running…" Serena panted, her energy reserves starting to run low. Ash nodded and stopped, in need of a breather himself, looking around for a spare room they could enter; he quickly identified a supply closet, leading the girls and his Pokémon inside. He closed the door quickly but quietly behind them, hoping that any more pursuers wouldn't bother checking every random locked door, as Serena and Madison slumped against opposite walls.
"Alright… should be safe here…" He took a second to catch his breath, before grinning at the Pokémon standing across from him. "You're even stronger than I remember, Greninja. You must have really been working hard all this time, huh?" Greninja gave a terse, affirmative reply, not sure why his trainer would have expected anything else.
"Thank goodness he has," Serena piped up, recovering slowly from what had turned into a marathon sprint. "We'd probably be bound and gagged otherwise."
"Ash, how did you get this Greninja to come here?" Madison asked with wonder in her voice, looking up at Greninja in awe, as if she was meeting a celebrity. "Do you know it somehow?"
"Of course I know him," he answered, a bit puzzled by the question. "Professor Sycamore sent me a message a few days ago, saying that Greninja was resting at the lab. He does that from time to time, I guess. So I asked his assistant to send Greninja's Poké Ball over."
"Poké Ball…?" Madison mulled the answer over for a few moments, before putting the pieces together. "Wait… this is your Pokémon? You're the trainer of the Guardian Greninja?!"
"Huh?" Ash glanced down at her. "The Guardian Greninja? What do you mean?"
"What do you mean, what do I mean!?" she fired back, incredulous, her voice raising in both pitch and volume. "How do you not know about this?! It's your Pokémon!"
Ash paused for a second, trying to figure out what obvious thing was eluding him. "I mean… the professor did say something about a Guardian Greninja, I guess, but I thought he was just blowing smoke."
"Oh, that makes so much sense…" Serena looked as if a lightbulb had just gone off in her head, her face registering mild shock as she stared into space for a moment. "Of course it's him…"
"See, Serena knows! He's the Guardian Greninja!" Madison reiterated, as if that should be enough explanation for anyone. "He travels around Kalos saving people from danger! He fights off criminals and wild Pokémon and stuff! He's like a superhero! Everyone in Kalos knows him!" She pointed to Greninja's collar. "Look! He's wearing the key to Laverre City!"
Ash leaned in closer, not having taken the time to study his old companion before now. His Greninja had a blue ribbon hanging loosely around his neck, with an overlarge key tied into it, looking like a film prop of some sort. "Why does he have that?"
"There was a big fire in Laverre City a couple of years ago," Serena explained, grinning wide, her voice filled with energy after realizing who this Pokémon was. "A lot of folks were in danger from it. Greninja ran into every burning house and apartment and saved over a dozen people. They held a ceremony for him the next day and gave him the key to the city."
"That's amazing!" Ash's eyes shone as he looked back up into his Pokémon's face. "Greninja, you're a real hero! You're incredible!" Greninja nodded, affirming that he was indeed incredible. Ash was about to follow up with more words of praise, but he quickly silenced himself as he heard the sound of footsteps outside, walking past. Everyone immediately quieted down, listening to the accompanying conversation.
"…sure they didn't get outside somehow?"
"I can't imagine how. All the windows are locked down, and we have Pokémon blocking all of the stairs. They've got to be hiding out somewhere up here."
"If they're still around here, we'll find them for sure. Question is, how do…" The voices faded away again as the trio outside walked off; the children inside didn't dare to make a sound for another half-minute.
"Who do you think they were chasing?" Madison wondered aloud. "Could it have been the others?"
"You think so?" Serena perked up. "Do you think they got away? I really hope they did."
"If it is them, then we need to go and help." Ash stood up, grasping the doorknob. "Let's go! Be careful, everyone!" He opened the door and peeked out, looking for any other pursuers, before motioning for the others to follow him out. Greninja followed immediately behind, with Serena and Madison trailing him, all of them moving cautiously but quickly down the hallway.
Down in the basement, two uniformed members of Team Rocket were working in the Poké Ball storage room, grabbing every stored Pokémon they could and placing them into two large plastic boxes. Once both of the boxes were full of stolen Poké Balls, the two minions each grabbed one and lifted it up, straining under the weight as they walked their plunder out the door. As they labored slowly down the hallway, transporting the haul to some unknown location, they failed to notice a teenaged girl sneaking into the room they had just vacated, quickly closing and locking the door behind her.
Iris exhaled, thankful that she had managed to lose the man who had been chasing her, before turning and looking around the room. Roughly a quarter of the Poké Balls remained in their places, the rest having been siphoned off by Team Rocket. Looking around the room, her attention was quickly stolen away by a familiar but muffled cry; her eyes snapped over to the corner, gasping when she saw Axew and Pikachu trapped inside their rubber prisons, along with a number of other Pokémon.
"Axew!" She raced over and slammed her hands down on the rubber balls, hitting the buttons resting on top. The rubber retracted and fell away, freeing the two Pokémon, who quickly leaped into her arms. "I'm so glad you're both okay!" She hugged both of them tightly, one in each arm, as they clung happily to her.
Their reunion was interrupted by the sound of a rattling doorknob, followed by a pounding fist and a female voice. "Hey! What moron locked this door?"
Iris immediately put the two Pokémon down, running over to the closest box of Poké Balls and scanning the label on the front, looking for Ash's name. She moved quickly from one box to the next, her search getting more frantic as the pounding on the door continued, and the voices from outside accumulated.
"Please be here, please be here… don't let them have taken all our Poké Balls already…" A loud slam against the door made both her and her heart jump, and she gripped one of the shelves tightly for a moment, starting to consider the possibility of going into battle with only Axew by her side. Pikachu would help, at least, and maybe if she was really desperate, she could try to use some random stranger's Pokémon as well. As she mulled this over, her face lit up as a much better idea came into her mind. She immediately reached into the closest box, grabbing a Poké Ball in each hand and tossing them out in front of her, unleashing a Kricketune and a Gardevoir.
"Axew and Pikachu, tell them what's going on!" she commanded, reaching back into the box and tossing out two more Poké Balls. The two smaller Pokémon started speaking animatedly to the others in their own language, doing their best to explain the situation, as their audience grew and grew.
Minutes later, the key to the storage room had finally been retrieved, and the gangsters on the other side threw the door open, ready to resume their work. They all froze in their tracks as an army of dozens of angry and powerful Pokémon greeted them on the other side, growling and snarling, ready for payback. They stood facing each other for a moment before the humans' fight-or-flight responses kicked in, all of them choosing flight. They turned and scrambled down the hallway, hearing the collective roars of angry Pokémon behind them, praying that they were somehow faster than their vengeful pursuers.
Iris stood close to the door, grinning mischievously as the freed Pokémon spread out, running in all directions in order to find their trainers and liberate every room of the Chateau. Axew cheered them on, as she held him firmly in her arms. As the Pokémon dispersed, ready to cause havoc, she felt a smaller creature brushing past her leg; she looked down to see Pikachu running into the hall, stopping and looking down both directions.
"Pikapi?!" he called out, worried about his trainer. Iris looked down at him for a moment, wondering if he had the right idea, as she was rather worried about Shannon and the others herself. After a short but difficult deliberation, she knelt down next to him and rested her hand on his back, causing him to look up.
"I know you're worried about Ash, but he can take care of himself. We need to stop Team Rocket before they get away with all those Pokémon. Can you help us out?" Pikachu nodded, trusting her judgment, and climbed up onto her shoulder. She gave him a thankful smile before racing into the hallway, following the members of Team Rocket that were now in retreat.
After trailing them from a distance for a minute or so, she turned and entered an underground parking lot, where a large truck was sitting idle, engine running. She could see members of Team Rocket sitting in the cab, looking impatient, as others were climbing onto the back, tossing Poké Balls into it.
"Dragon Pulse, Axew!" she commanded, thinking quickly. "Aim for the front! Take out the engine!" Her Pokémon responded quickly, leaping out of her arms and charging up an energy ball in his mouth. The blast shot out and hit the grill of the truck, exploding with a flash of light and a cacophonous sound of crunching metal, which quickly silenced the low rumble of the engine. The gangsters in the cab quickly fled, coughing as smoke filled the vehicle, glaring at Iris through watery eyes.
"You little… you're going to pay for that!" Each of the four criminals in the garage reached down and threw out their own Pokémon, which quickly formed a half-circle around Iris. She looked around at the Dustox, Sandslash, Girafarig and Gogoat that were now growling at her, before glancing down at Axew and Pikachu in front of her. As skilled as she was, and as strong as these two Pokémon were, she knew she didn't stand much chance in a four-on-two battle.
"Iris! Need some help?" She whirled around, gasping as she saw Viola grinning at her, no longer bound by ropes, with a tall and imposing centipede-like Pokémon standing next to her. Brock and Shannon were standing behind both of them, looking unharmed.
"Viola! How did you all get out?!"
"Brock got Shannon untied, and she helped the two of us get out," Viola explained, as the other two looked both relieved and proud from behind her. "Then as we were running around here, I ran into my Scolipede. I guess that was your doing, huh?"
Iris grinned and nodded, turning back to the gangsters facing them, whose confidence was starting to shrink. "How about we teach these jerks a lesson?"
Viola stepped forward, a confident and vengeful look in her eyes, as her Scolipede rushed forward, slithering between Axew and Pikachu. "I think we can teach them several." She glanced backward. "You two, go for the truck! Get those Pokémon out of their Poké Balls! We'll cover you!"
Brock and Shannon quickly dashed forward, going around the side of the garage and making their way toward the truck. The four Team Rocket members turned toward them, some of them starting to reflexively call out attacks in order to stop them, when all four of their Pokémon were drenched by a powerful Venoshock blast from Scolipede. They all began to panic as Axew and Pikachu moved to attack, reaching for their communicators and calling for some desperately needed backup, as Brock and Shannon hopped into the truck and made a beeline for the first Poké Balls they could find.
Near the top of the Chateau, two very high-profile guests raced into a large social lounge, screeching to a halt as they realized they had hit a dead end. They quickly looked around, finding no doors to lead them away, nor any windows that had not been firmly locked down.
"You gotta be kidding me," Byron muttered to no one in particular, not even the companion standing by his side. "They seriously barred every window in this stupid place?"
"They did a thorough job, I suppose," Rosanna commented. "This must have taken months of planning."
"You don't have to praise them for-" he began to remand as he turned around, cutting himself off as he saw the only doorway blocked by Cassidy and Butch, along with an intimidatingly large Blastoise. Rosanna quickly spotted them as well, freezing in place.
"You really had to make this difficult, didn't you?" Cassidy rested her hands on her hips. "You could have just sat there and been a good little hostage, and everything would have worked out fine."
Byron stood up to his full height, seeing Butch starting to shrink a bit in response. "Doing what other people tell me to do just isn't my style."
Cassidy let out an overly dramatic sigh, as she walked further into the room, with Butch next to her. "I guess we're doing this the hard way, then. We'll see how cocky you are when you don't have any Pokémon to defend you."
He let out a barking laugh. "You idiots think I need Pokémon to take care of you?"
Butch growled, feeling rather emasculated standing before Byron and not liking it one bit. "You smug… what do you think you're going to do to us, huh?" He turned his head toward the large Pokémon standing by his side. "Blastoise, show this guy who's boss! Use Tackle!"
Blastoise snorted and started running forward toward the escaping hostages. Rosanna yelped and took several steps back, but Byron confidently stood his ground, watching the enormous tortoise Pokémon advance. Just before the attack connected, he dropped into a defensive stance, grabbing Blastoise's shell and digging his feet into the ground as best he could. Everyone watched with mouths agape as the pair slowly screeched to a stop, each of them trying to gain an advantage over the other. After a couple of seconds of struggling, Byron let out a loud grunt and a yell as he pivoted and threw Blastoise behind him, where the Pokémon crashed unsteadily into the wall.
"Ghk…" He grabbed his left shoulder, hissing in pain, as Rosanna ran back to his side. "Maybe that wasn't my brightest move…"
Cassidy blinked slowly, as Blastoise got to its feet. "Did he just…?"
"What kind of freak are we dealing with here?!" Butch clenched his fists, feeling even smaller now and starting to take this as a personal insult. "Blastoise, use-"
"Byron! Rosanna!" Everyone in the room turned back toward the door, seeing Ash standing in the doorway, with Greninja by his side; Serena and Madison were standing immediately behind him. "Are you two alright?"
"I don't believe this! What are you doing here?!" Cassidy exclaimed, growing exasperated. "You were supposed to be tied up! Can't anyone on this team do anything right?!"
"Team Rocket doing something right?" Ash smirked. "That'd be a first." Serena let out a brief giggle at his retort, infuriating the two criminals all the more.
"I have had it up to here with you little punks!" Cassidy's voice slowly escalated into a shout, her patience completely gone. She turned her head toward her partner. "Butch!"
"On it," he answered, understanding her unspoken command, peeling the glove off of his left hand. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, smooth, round gem, one that Ash immediately recognized as a Key Stone. Before Ash could manage a reaction, Butch gripped the stone tightly in his fist, streams of energy shooting out from between his clenched fingers. The room turned and stared at Blastoise, who was starting to glow as well, a bright light shining from the Mega Stone that was hanging from its neck. The Pokémon began to hunch forward slightly, shells and cannons forming on its arms, while one enormous cannon began to extend from the shell on its back. The glow soon faded, leaving the imposing form of Mega Blastoise behind, who let out a powerful roar that shook the metal shutters.
Ash gritted his teeth as the Mega-evolved Pokémon turned in his direction, eyes focused on Greninja, seeing easy prey in its sights. Cassidy couldn't help but grin as she saw the confidence leaving his face.
"What's the matter? Not feeling like such a big man anymore?" she taunted. "You're not thinking of running away now, are you?"
"We'll never run away from a battle!" Ash shot back. Greninja glanced back at his trainer, and they gave each other a determined nod, both of them thinking the same thing. Ash looked back at his opponent, clenching his fist, hoping that he was still capable of doing what he was about to do, and that his body would be able to handle it. Serena put her hand on Madison's shoulder and took a step back, with the younger girl quickly following suit.
Ash worked on clearing his mind, needing to focus on nothing but his Pokémon and his opponent. As he slowly and calmly drew breath, he could feel his heart thudding in his chest, and soon he could feel an echo of his heartbeat, as if there was another one beating inside of him. He started to feel a surge of strength and adrenaline shooting through his arms and legs, followed by a sharpening of his senses; he could see his opponent with shocking clarity, and hear the hurried breathing of Serena and Madison behind him. His eyes lit up and a wide smile spread across his face, as the familiar sensation of the mysterious Bond Phenomenon swept over him, and he felt himself becoming one with his Pokémon, practically able to see through Greninja's eyes.
Cassidy, Butch and Byron all jumped at once as a veil of water suddenly formed around Greninja, swirling about as the Pokémon began to transform within. His face began to widen, with red markings appearing on his forehead, and what looked like black hair forming behind his ears. A ball of water formed on his back, sprouting what looked to be a set of moth wings, before the wings sharpened and formed a giant shuriken of water. The veil of water soon fell away, and the final transformation was laid bare for all to see.
"What the…" Butch rubbed his eyes, not sure he was seeing things correctly at first. In another corner of the room, Byron was staring in dumbfounded shock at the newly transformed Pokémon.
"Serena, what did he just do?" Madison asked, whispering, as if she was trying not to draw the attention of a sleeping bear.
"That's Ash-Greninja," Serena answered, grinning excitedly. "We're about to see an amazing battle." Madison turned back to the scene in front of her, having no idea what an Ash-Greninja was, but she figured she was about to find out.
"There's just no end to the freak show with you people, is there?!" Cassidy glared backward at Butch's Pokémon. "Water Gun, now!" Blastoise grunted and pointed its hands forward, water blasts firing from the cannons that had formed on its arms.
"Block it with your Water Shuriken, Greninja!" Ash countered. Greninja reached behind himself and grabbed the giant shuriken on his back, holding it in front of him like a shield. The Water Gun collided with the shuriken and was easily deflected, with Cassidy and Butch getting hit by residual spray.
Ash grinned, eager to show these criminals what he and his Pokémon could do. "Get in close and use Cut!" Greninja returned the shuriken to his back before dashing forward, bringing his fists together and pulling them back apart, a glowing white blade forming in his right hand. He reared back and prepared to swing.
"Withdraw!" Butch commanded. Blastoise immediately drew itself back into its shell, its limbs and cannons withdrawing and forming one large, contiguous tortoise shell. Greninja swung his blade into the shell, undeterred, sending it spinning across the room and crashing into a wall; Blastoise emerged a moment later, a bit dazed but mostly unharmed.
"Good! Now use Rapid Spin!" Butch's Pokémon returned to its shell, starting to spin quickly, preparing to launch itself into its foe.
"Double Team!" Ash answered. Greninja started moving at incredible speed, much too fast to track, leaving after-images of other Greninjas all around the room. Blastoise rocketed forward, spinning around at a high speed, attacking one after-image after another, dispelling them one by one. It eventually guessed right, managing to clip the leg of the real Greninja, who was forced to leap away from further injury.
"Agh!" Ash closed his eyes tight and collapsed as pain shot through his leg, in the same place that Greninja had been hit, able to feel the pain as acutely as if he had been injured himself. Serena gasped and rushed forward, holding his shoulders, getting him back onto his feet properly. He opened his eyes again a moment later, his resolve undiminished, not intending to let Greninja get hit a second time.
Byron and Rosanna had backed up all the way to the far corner, watching in amazement as Ash-Greninja and Mega Blastoise continued to battle. Both Pokémon were extremely powerful, with their blasts causing residual damage to the furniture and the walls. Greninja had the advantage with agility and dexterity, however, and he was able to get a number of small blows in on his opponent, slowly whittling away at his foe's health.
After several minutes of battle, Blastoise was breathing heavily, winded from exhaustion and damage, while Greninja was much more energetic. Ash saw an opportunity to bring this battle to an end, stepping forward and calling out. "Knock it out with Cut!" Greninja nodded and formed another blade of light in his hands, moving in for the final blow.
"Blastoise, Skull Bash!" Butch called out. With a sudden burst of speed, Blastoise shot forward toward its incoming foe, slamming its skull into Greninja's chest. Greninja's eyes bulged out as he was knocked across the room, and both he and Ash crumpled backward, barely managing to stay on their feet. Ash collapsed into the arms of Serena and Madison, who both worked to help him stand again, as he tried to catch the breath that had been knocked out of him.
"Finally." Cassidy exhaled, glad to see Blastoise with the advantage for once. "Finish it quickly, before it gets back up!"
"Got it!" Butch answered. "End it with Hydro Pump!" Greninja looked up as Blastoise aimed all three of its cannons forward, building up an enormous blast of water, enough to blow away almost any opponent. Ash managed to get back onto his feet, holding his aching chest, watching the attack build itself up. He pushed aside his instinct to tell Greninja to dodge, coming up with a different plan.
"Push through the Hydro Pump with Aerial Ace!" he called out. Greninja nodded, holding up his arms in an X shape, as both of them started to glow with a purple light. As Blastoise finally unleashed its Hydro Pump attack, spraying a massive blast of water, Ash's Pokémon stood up and met the blast head on, slamming his arms against it. He slowly forced himself through the blast, the Aerial Ace attack deflecting the water and allowing him to walk forward. As he pushed through, he slowly picked up speed, feeling a surge of adrenaline, until he was running up to his foe. Finally, Greninja slashed forward with his arms, knocking Blastoise backward and bringing the Hydro Pump to an early end.
"Let's end this! Use Cut one more time!"
As Blastoise got unsteadily back to its feet, it looked back at its foe just in time to see Greninja swinging a blade of light right into its face. Blastoise had no defense against the relentless barrage, as Greninja swung over and over, showing zero remorse. Finally, the assault ceased, and the blade vanished as Greninja folded his arms and turned away; seconds later, Blastoise staggered and fell onto its back, glowing a bright white once again as it reverted to its normal form, unconscious.
"Blastoise, no!" Butch started to run over to his Pokémon, but a threatening glare from Greninja stopped him in his tracks. His mind raced, his confidence entirely gone, his ears barely registering the cheers of Serena and Madison from the doorway, or the beeping of the communicator on Cassidy's hip. She nearly crushed it in her grip as she grabbed it and brought it to her mouth.
"What is it now?!" she barked, badly needing some good news, which she once again did not receive.
"Everything is bad down here!" the communicator answered, the man on the other end sounding frantic and almost terrified. "The Pokémon were let out of their Poké Balls and they're wreaking havoc all over! We can't keep the guests locked up anymore!"
"They what?! Grgh… you idiots are useless!" she snapped, as Butch returned Blastoise to its Poké Ball from a distance. "Fine! Load what you have into the truck and get out of here!"
"The truck is busted! The engine was destroyed! We can't take anything with us!"
Cassidy could feel her eye twitching as the onslaught of bad news weighed down on her. The complete collapse of all her plans, which had been months in the making, was creating such a powerful, white-hot rage within her that she was nearly incapacitated, unable to move, or speak, or think. After several long seconds, she brought the communicator back up to her mouth, speaking with as much calm as she could muster.
"We're abandoning the Chateau. Tell everyone to get out." She lowered the device again, clenching it tighter and tighter in her hand before she let out an infuriated scream and threw it against the wall, where it shattered into a dozen pieces. She turned her gaze toward Ash, her vision nearly going red as she sized up the teenaged brat that had ruined her well-laid plans for the second time.
"You… will pay… dearly for this," she seethed, her breathing harsh and ragged as she grabbed a Poké Ball from her side and threw it forward, releasing her Charizard. "Fire Blast, now!" Her Pokémon opened its mouth, a fireball growing to enormous size inside it, before blasting it forward in a massive, five-pointed shape, directly at Ash and Greninja.
"Quick! Water Shuriken!" Ash commanded. His Pokémon reached behind him, grabbing the large shuriken on his back and flinging it at the oncoming blast. The two attacks collided in midair, the water dousing the flame and creating a massive burst of steam that filled the entire room. When the steam cleared, Cassidy, Butch and Charizard were nowhere to be seen.
"Huh?" Ash looked around the room for a second, spotting a window that was wide open, no longer blocked by a shutter. He ran over to it and glanced outside, Greninja by his side, seeing Cassidy and Butch flying off on the backs of Charizard and a Pidgeot. He briefly considered going after them, but decided against it, turning back to face his Pokémon. The battle over, he closed his eyes and let out a long, slow exhale, the strange connection between himself and his partner slipping away with his breath. As he and Greninja returned to normal, he felt a rush of dizziness and weakness in his legs, and he stumbled backward, grabbing at the window to hold himself up.
"Ash!" Serena rushed over to him, placing her hands on his shoulders. "Are you okay? Are you hurt?"
"Yeah…" He held his head for a moment, the spinning starting to slow, his body no longer used to the Bond Phenomenon. "I'm alright… just need a second… I'm fine."
She nodded, exhaling, turning around while still keeping one hand on him. She saw Madison running over out of the corner of her eye, as her own gaze moved toward Byron and Rosanna. "What about you two? Byron, you look like you've hurt yourself…"
"I'm alright-" Rosanna began, before she was interrupted.
"I don't believe it!" Byron exclaimed, butting in, eyes glued to Ash. "You! You're the kid! With the Greninja!"
"Huh?" Ash stood up straighter, his head clearing up. "I'm the kid?"
"You were in the Kalos League five years ago!" Byron began walking forward, ignoring his strained shoulder. "You did that crazy transformation back then, the same one you just did!"
Ash nodded, surprised that someone of Byron's status would care about or remember his battle. "Yeah, that was the finals against-"
"That battle was one of the most incredible things I've ever seen," Byron continued, not caring about what Ash had to say. "That was what got me interested in researching Mega Evolution."
"Really?" Ash's eyes were wide. "My battle did that?"
"When I saw your Greninja transform, I realized how much possibility there was with Mega Evolution, how many things we could do that we didn't even know about. All of our Mega Evolution work came from that battle. If it weren't for you, there'd be no such thing as synthetic Mega Stones."
"I… wow… I don't know what to say, sir." Ash was completely taken aback, almost overwhelmed, as Byron plowed ahead.
"And now, after all that, I even get to see it up close. It's way cooler to see in person, I gotta say." He took a moment to rack his brain, trying to recall the name of the boy in front of him, before giving up. "Remind me your name?"
"Ash, sir." He stood at attention, feeling like he was addressing royalty. "Ash Ketchum."
"Ash Ketchum," Byron repeated, extending his hand. "I won't forget it a second time." He grinned as Ash reached out, and the two shook hands. "And it's Byron, not 'sir'."
Ash smiled back, his amazement fading, replaced with excitement. "Right. I won't forget that, either." Serena was beaming from ear to ear as she watched the exchange, proud of Ash all over again, staying out of the conversation and letting him have his time to shine.
"You children are incredible." Rosanna stepped up to Byron's side, looking down at Ash. "Restoring the Cyllage City Gym, saving the Chateau and us… and now I find out you're the inspiration for a huge amount of our work. You're no ordinary teenager, are you, Ash?"
"Ah… I'm nobody special, really…" Ash insisted, rubbing the back of his head. "I just have a knack for being in the right place at the right time."
"The right place, at the right time, with the right determination and moral fiber… don't sell yourself short. You really are something else."
Byron nodded in agreement. "Yeah, no kidding. You guys really saved our bacon. I gotta find some way to pay you back."
Ash shook his head. "You don't need to do that, really It's fine."
Byron raised an eyebrow, amused. "Ash, here's a tip: when a billionaire tells you he wants to pay you back for something, you say 'yes'."
"Oh… well then, yes. I mean, thanks."
"Much better." Byron went back to holding his injured shoulder. "Meantime, I gotta get some ice or something. This is gonna be sore tomorrow."
"I can't believe you actually tried throwing a charging Pokémon, and at the same time, I absolutely can," Rosanna chided, as they turned toward the door. "You are completely out of your mind, you know that?" Ash, Serena, Madison and Greninja followed behind them, their adrenaline faded and replaced with a mixture of relief, befuddlement and amusement. All of them were eager to get downstairs and reunite with their friends.
"Well, I'm glad that Greninja got to you in time. But I'm amazed that the Bond Phenomenon still happened, even after so long. That's something I didn't expect."
Ash grinned into his phone, looking at the tired face of Prof. Sycamore. "That's just how strong our bond is! Even after five years, we're as close as we've ever been. Nothing can break that bond now."
He had to speak up a bit, to be heard over the noise coming from nearby. He was standing in a quieter corner of the Pokémon storage room in the Chateau basement, as the remaining staff were finishing up the laborious task of reuniting all of the Pokémon with their owners and their Poké Balls. Iris, Brock and Shannon had ultimately loosed over a hundred Pokémon into the Chateau, and none of them had kept track of which one had come out of which ball. The process of reuniting owners with their Pokémon had taken over two hours at this point, and exhaustion was setting in for everyone as they waited for Ash's final Pokémon, Drapion, to be identified and returned.
"I suppose I should have known better than to underestimate the two of you," Sycamore answered. "The appearance of the Bond Phenomenon in the first place speaks to how close you two are."
"It sure does," Ash concurred. "So now that this is all over, do you need me to send Greninja back to the lab, or…"
The professor shook his head. "No, not at all. There's no rush. You two take your time and catch up. In fact, you should bring Greninja back here yourself. I've got some tests I want to run."
Ash raised an eyebrow. "Tests? What kind?"
"Tests involving the two of you. I think I've nearly solved the mystery of the Bond Phenomenon. I just need some help confirming my findings."
Ash nodded, grinning. "So long as the tests aren't too hard, I'm in."
"Perfect. I guess I'll see you all in a few days, then." Sycamore gave a quick wave. "Take care, Ash."
Ash waved back before hanging up, dropping his phone into his pocket, before looking back at his friends. Viola had departed some time ago, and Byron and Rosanna had left the Chateau as soon as they could. Iris, Shannon and Serena were currently sitting against the wall, trying to conserve energy, while Brock was still on his feet, watching the guests receive their Pokémon. Madison was curled up on the floor, sound asleep, her head resting on her backpack; Pikachu was curled up by her feet, snoozing, similarly exhausted from his busy day.
"So I guess we'll be seeing the professor again soon, huh?" Serena asked, glancing up. "That'll be nice. I haven't seen him in a long time."
"Yeah. I only saw him for a few minutes when I first got here," Ash replied. "He was taking a look at Axew."
"Mm." Iris grunted in acknowledgement, not looking over. Ash, Serena and Shannon all looked in her direction, seeing her forlornly looking down at her Pokémon, who was relaxing tiredly in her arms.
"What's the matter, Iris?" Shannon asked, looking down at Axew.
"It's just the same thing as before," Iris answered, slumping. "Axew did so much battling tonight against those goons, and he did such a good job, but look at him. Even that wasn't enough to make him evolve."
Ash bit his lip, seeing an expression of near-despair in her eyes, which he wasn't accustomed to. "Well… the professor said that maybe he didn't have a compelling reason to evolve. Maybe that's it?"
"What could be more compelling than this, though? He was fighting to protect the Chateau. He was fighting to protect me. What else does he need?"
"I don't think it's that," Serena spoke up, as Iris glanced over toward her. "I think it's more like he has a compelling reason not to evolve."
"Huh?" Iris blinked, surprised by this suggestion. "What could that be?"
"Isn't it obvious?" Serena smiled warmly. "Axew's a little mama's boy. He doesn't want to evolve because it means he'd have to go back into his Poké Ball. He wouldn't be able to spend as much time with you. He loves you too much."
Iris's eyes slowly went wide as she pondered this, and she glanced back at her Pokémon. "Axew, is this true?" Axew's eyes were wide as well, looking as if he had just come to a major realization of his own.
"Oh, Axew, you little sweetheart!" She hugged him tightly to herself, her heart ready to burst. "I love you too, so, so much!" She looked down into his eyes. "You take all the time you need to evolve, okay? I'll wait for you as long as you want, I promise." Axew cheered happily, hugging his trainer tightly, and Iris returned the affection, a wide smile on her face, her glumness gone. The smile spread infectiously to everyone around her, and Shannon held her hands over her heart, touched.
"Well, I think I've gotten statements from everyone, now." Brock immediately turned upon hearing a familiar female voice, seeing a green-haired woman in a police uniform approaching, looking down into a small notebook. "This was one of the most sophisticated criminal operations I've ever seen."
"What did you find out, Officer Jenny?" Ash wondered, as she came to a stop in front of all of them.
"From what I can gather from the remaining staff, Team Rocket has been casing this place for months," she began to explain. "Some of them were hired as real staff ages ago, and that gave Team Rocket a way to get in and out after hours. It seems like they were coming in at night and installing machinery on the sly. They even changed some of the locks a couple of days ago."
"Wow," Ash responded. "That's a lot more planning than we're used to from Team Rocket."
"Used to?" Jenny raised one of her eyebrows. "Have you encountered them before?"
"Oh yeah," Brock answered. "All the time, honestly. A few years back, we could barely go a day without running into them. They're usually pretty harmless."
"Oh, really? So you're experienced crime fighters, huh?" Jenny grinned a bit, looking into Brock's eyes. "I guess that explains a few things. I was pretty surprised when I drove up and saw you and the other girls ordering all those Pokémon around. But it sounds like that's old hat for you, huh?"
"Eh heh… not that part exactly, but…"
"And the other girls tell me you were able to untie them, after Team Rocket tied you up? With your arms behind your back?" She was standing closer now, hands clasped in front of her, holding her notebook.
"Y-yeah…" Brock was starting to flush red, not used to this level of positive attention from an Officer Jenny. "It wasn't easy, but I'm training to be a Pokémon doctor, so I need to be kinda… dextrous, I guess."
"Really… a Pokémon doctor…" She began twirling some of her hair flirtatiously around her index finger, her voice getting a bit quieter and more high-pitched. "You know, maybe we could go over your statement in a bit more detail a little later… maybe over coffee? My shift ends in thirty minutes."
"Buh… I…" Brock's conflicted brain was overloading, numerous alarm bells going off in his head. After years and years of flirting with Jennys, one of them was finally returning the favor, even going so far as to make the first move. An intense battle began to be waged within him, as his faithful devotion to his longtime girlfriend Olivia was challenged by his inner hopeless romantic. A very loud and forceful part of him was telling him to say yes, to take her hand, to join her for coffee, to stay here in Kalos with her, to-
"Sorry, officer, but he's taken."
Brock's open mouth issued a sound he didn't know he could make, some guttural and primitive combination of shock and despair. He quickly whirled around to face Serena, who was offering a sweet and innocent smile, after intervening on his behalf.
"Aw, really?" Jenny's smile turned quickly to a disappointed frown. "Oh, well. Can't blame a girl for trying." She stepped backward. "Well, I had better start working on this report, I suppose. If any of you remember anything else, give me a ring." Brock watched with the others as she departed, and while he was relieved to have this temptation gone, he was unable to shake the overwhelming despair of watching one of his lifelong dreams walking away.
"You alright, Brock?" Ash stepped up to him, able to see the conflict on his face, understanding where it was coming from.
"Ash… I never truly understood the phrase 'cruel irony' until just now," he answered, his voice practically quivering.
Ash clapped a hand onto Brock's shoulder. "Hang in there, buddy. You'll be fine."
"Pardon me, Mr. Ketchum?" He glanced over to see a very tired-looking attendant, holding a Poké Ball in each of his hands. "Are you quite certain you only had one Pokémon left?"
Ash nodded. "Yeah, only my Drapion. Why?"
"Well, we have two unclaimed Pokémon left, and you are the only remaining guest." The man handed over the ball in his right hand. "This is your Drapion here. But if that's all that's left, then who is the owner of the remaining Pokémon?"
"Huh… good question. What Pokémon is it? Maybe one of us will recognize it."
"I'll let it out so you can take a look." The employee turned and tossed the Poké Ball onto the floor, the energy inside taking the shape of a medium-sized, orange-and-black, dog-like Pokémon with a skull design on its head. Shannon looked at it curiously before aiming her Pokédex at it.
"Houndour, the Dark Pokémon," the machine declared. "Houndour travel in packs and communicate through barks in order to surround their prey."
Ash glanced down at the dog Pokémon, who was looking around suspiciously, emitting a low growl as a preemptive warning to everyone nearby. "Houndour… I don't think I know anyone who has a Pokémon like that." He looked back at the others, who all shook their heads, confirming that none of them recognized the Pokémon, either.
"That's… unfortunate." The employee sighed, sensing that his work for the night was not yet done. "I'm worried that this Pokémon's trainer may not return for a long time. The Battle Chateau doesn't have anything for long-term care of Pokémon. One of the employees here will probably have to take it home…" From the sound of it, this man was the last person in the world who wanted to suddenly care for a stranger's Houndour.
Ash looked back at the Pokémon, who had stopped growling and was now looking about curiously, sniffing the air. After a few moments of deliberation, he spoke up again. "We can take it. We'll bring it to a Pokémon Center or someplace nearby."
The employee immediately bowed his head, immensely thankful. "Thank you, thank you, very much. If the trainer calls for their Pokémon, we will let them know where they've gone. Please let us know where it's being taken care of."
"I will, don't worry." Ash reached out and received the Poké Ball from the attendant, bringing Houndour back to it before attaching it to his belt. "I guess that's everything, then." He glanced back at the others. "Alright, everyone. Ready to get out of here?"
"I've been ready to get out of here since we got here," Iris answered, standing and stretching her back. Shannon followed suit, as Serena reached over to shake Madison awake.
"Mads? Wake up. We're leaving." Madison refused to stir after numerous shakes, far too deep in sleep, her energy completely drained. Serena sighed as Ash walked over, leaning down.
"Out like a light, huh?"
"Yep. She's K.O.'d." Serena kneeled beside her, accepting her fate as Madison's transport. "Help me get her on my back, would you?"
Ash grinned a bit, carefully lifting Madison up and propping her against Serena, who grabbed her by the legs as she stood up, thankful that she was more than strong enough to support the young girl's weight. Ash grabbed the remaining bags in his hands, a sleepy Pikachu climbing up onto his shoulder, and everyone finally made their way toward the exit of the Chateau, ready for a nice, long rest.