Chapter 5

Ascend from Regret

A/N: Alright, comment response time:

Silverkami963: Speaking from personal experience, sometimes when you are broken, you need a shoulder to lean on to build yourself back up. Zoey provided that shoulder, and even acknowledged it in the last chapter. She knew it wouldn't last straight from the start, and even though it hurt her, she wanted to be there for her friend as long as she could. Dawn never gave up, Zoey just helped her keep walking so she could find Ash again.

Pokémon fan and Guest: I actually am eager to get to that point because I am decently sure of how it will play out. I have a lot planned for Ash and Dawn's reunion! Just like a lot so far, it is going to be different from the original by a large margin, but I won't spoil anything since that's at least another chapter from now!

I will admit I am pulling a lot of this out my rear as I type it. Yes, I have the original as a base, but I didn't have the last 4 chapters laid out and ready or anything, it has been pouring out onto the page as I go, with me going back to rewrite or edit things I missed or that don't fit. I have some scenes and moments planned, but the rest just... happens. This chapter is a lot wordier but with less paragraph breaks, so it's a mid-sized chapter even if it looks short. I know, I promised longer chapters, but I'm sorry, I don't want to do too much in one chapter and have too little in the next.

Anyways, enough of that, on with the show!

##################

Bleached white walls and floors nearly blinded Dawn as she calmly walked into the security checkpoint. She could feel several pairs of eyes boring into her, but not one officer moved to stop her. It seems Oak was right; they knew who she was and her intentions. It now was just a test for her to pass without the alarms going off, and without her composure breaking.

Beside her, her Lucario put off an oppressive presence, glaring at each guard, as though daring them to try to stop them as they approached the final gate. Dawn pulled out her signed note, showing it to the security officer standing between her and Route 28. Silence permeated the hall as the man stared Dawn down, as though he didn't even care about the note. Dawn could see the fluctuations around him, and knew what his intentions were.

She did not back down. Finally, after a few more long moments of tense silence, the guard lowered his head and stepped aside, pressing a switch to unlock the gate. Before the Twinleaf girl, the gate swung open to reveal a lush landscape with pockets of dust bowls throughout. It was near blinding, the sheer amount of life in this now untouched land, that she once again wished she had spent more time figuring out how to turn her aura off properly.

A small smile and glance to her Lucario was returned before they both moved forward. They were finally here, Mt. Silver. After so many months of hunting, restless nights wondering, they finally knew where Ash was. Now, they just had to reach him. The path didn't move far from the gate before reaching a steep incline, rough markings and holes abound, "Stay on guard, Lucario. I doubt the local Onix and Steelix did this just for fun," Dawn said, eyeing the cavernous holes bored into the cliff as she stepped down, letting herself slide slowly down.

She was careful as she descended, closing her eyes to feel her surroundings. Memories began to return to her as she felt the ground begin to rumble beneath her. She sighed and sped up her descent as Lucario created a sturdy bone and leapt into a bone rush attack as a Steelix erupted from the cliff.

'May, long time! I didn't think it would take long for you to call after I swept the Rota festival'

'Of course! Last time I was there, Ash cleaned house with Pikachu... before...'

'I heard. I know what happened... But I don't really understand why. Why did that Lucario...?'

Dawn burst into a sprint as she hit the bottom of the cliff, thanking Arceus that she had worked on her cardio and upper body strength as she eyed a pack of Rhyhorn and Rhydon ahead of her. She snatched a pokéball and threw it forward, "Mamoswine, I need you!" Without a command from her, Mamoswine slammed it's front feet down and created an ice shard, delaying only long enough for his trainer to charge up his back and leap up to grab a tree branch above him before inhaling it to gain his frost armor. Both Mammoth and Rhino collided, though the Rhyhorn and Rhydon were pushed back by the towering twin tusk Pokémon.

'They told you, right? The castellans? Aura is a life energy. If you don't prepare your body, it can hurt you, even kill you. Lucario and Ash... they were both trying to save the Tree of Life.'

'He's always where he's needed, isn't he?'

'Dawn... We could have lost Ash that day. Lucario knew that it would take all of the inexperienced guy's aura and then some, so he threw Ash to safety.'

'Lucario... gave his life so the tree could survive?'

Dawn rode her momentum to sweep herself up into a leap from the lower branch of one tree to a sturdier branch of a taller one nearby. She was more than thankful to Arceus she did that upper body training. She could already feel her usage of Aura to guide her path taking its toll, and that stunt she just pulled would have left her unable to move a few months ago. She glanced down to see Mamoswine rise onto its hind legs as he used his tusks to throw the wild Pokémon before unleashing a blizzard on them, but she flinched when she heard hissing above her. She let her guard down, she chastised herself, as she saw the fangs of several Arbok in the tree branches.

'He gave his life energy, his aura, to keep the tree alive. Didn't the castellans tell you this?'

'They left a lot of this out. They really only talked about Ash before and after the Tree of Life. Said something about him returning at one point too. Maybe they didn't trust me because I'm from Sinnoh rather than Kanto?'

'Whether they did or not, Dawn, you can't push it. If you want to go all out with your Aura like this, you need to put your body to work. Ash doesn't need to because the dummy uses aura as much as he uses his brain!'

Rather than panic, she simply smiled and fell back off the branch as Lucario leapt to her aid, crushing his bone club on the first snake to leap for Dawn before unleashing a flurry of strikes on the others. Dawn landed on Mamoswine's back before rolling down, coming to a halt kneeling on the ground. She threw her hands up in defense as Mamoswine let out a roar of pain. The field around them erupted into flames as a group of Rapidash stomped their hooves angrily, "What, is the entire mountain coming to greet us?!" Dawn huffed, reaching for another pair of pokéballs, "Piplup, Lopunny, your stage is lit up for you, let's go!"

'May... Do you know anyone else who might be able to help me find out more info? The people of Cameran Palace were pretty tight lipped about anything outside of minor detail'

'They certainly are still stuck in their old ways, aren't they? Well, I heard the Almia Pokémon Rangers are pretty in tune with Pokémon, and there are a few who use Lucario themselves, so I'd start there. Aren't you friends with the Sinnoh champion?'

'Cynthia? Wait... That's right. She mentioned Ash having a strong aura during the Galactic incident at Lake Valor and the Spear Pillar.'

The tiny penguin and long eared rabbit leapt into action immediately, with Lopunny launching herself into a spinning dizzy punch as Piplup unloaded a full power bubblebeam at the flaming horse Pokémon. The herd scattered, though one was downed and two more were injured. They continued their fiery assault, creating a ring of fire to completely trap the trainer and her partners, "Mamoswine, Rock slide, trap them for Lopunny and Lucario! Both of you, keep up the pressure with Piplup's bubblebeams!"

'Dawn... Just be safe. Push yourself, but don't kill yourself. You're one of my best friends. Ash is gone, but he isn't dead. I don't know what I would do if you died because you overexerted yourself with your new ability.'

'No need to worry, May! I know just the perfect trainer to get me in shape, I'll be fit and ready to hunt down Ash in no time!'

Giant spears of rock slammed down around the Rapidash, startling them into slower movement, leaving them wide open for Dawn's other partners to lay into them at full strength. Piplup glanced up to Dawn as Lopunny and Lucario finished the job, the tiny penguin pointing and chirping towards the flames around them, "Piplup, Whirlpool, as big as you can make it and throw it in the middle of the field!" Dawn's eyes moved to her Lopunny, who had high fived Lucario for a job well done, "You're not done yet, Lopunny! Ice beam on Piplup's Whirlpool!"

Without hesitation, Lopunny charged and fired a white beam of frigid energy at the whirling vortex of water, freezing it into a frozen tornado that towered above them. Dawn pulled yet another pokéball, "Now, Lucario, Togekiss! Aura sphere that ice tower into pieces!" the red and blue speckled Pokémon of happiness burst forth and immediately charged and flung multiple blue orbs of aura, Lucario mirroring it's partner from the other side. The tower began to crack and shatter, the remaining internal energy from the initial whirlpool sending each shard flying into the field of flames.

'You better. And you better not slack on your appeals in the meantime, either! I want to meet you at a Grand Festival when you come back to the circuit!'

Like water filled glass balls, the chunks of the tower exploded into a rain of water and mist upon contact with the fire, little by little dousing the flames and leaving the once scalding field sizzling but snuffed all but the remaining waves of heat, the mist mixing to create a brilliant shining haze of ice crystals in the lowering sunlight, "And... time." Dawn bowed confidently before falling onto her rear, heaving a big breath of air, "Great job everyone! That was amazing! We need to keep that idea for our next contest!"

All of her partners cheered and ran up to her as she reached into her pant pockets and pulled several sitrus and leppa berries for her friends to recover with, the group deciding to take a momentary break to rest. Ahead, she could hear the roars of more wild Pokémon. Clearly, the stragglers who escaped this first wave went to get friends.

This wouldn't be an easy journey.

#######

Heavy footsteps echoed through the ruins. Emotions drained from a day lost to time welled up once more as Dawn drifted through the remains of Silver Town. The chaos of the rest of the mountain seemed to be drowned by the silence within, somehow the wilds around it leaving it as a sanctuary from the discord.

Dawn stopped herself, staring at a spot to the side of the main road. She saw herself, all too clearly, still shivering with Piplup at her side, waiting for her friend to arrive. The slightest smile tugged at her cheeks at the memory, though she shook her head and forced herself to keep moving. Lucario silently walked behind her, keeping watch for any wild Pokémon, but Dawn felt no reason to do the same. She could feel it; somehow, this entire town was empty. Not even a sliver of life remained. She could see several signs of battle, and while some burn marks and scarring would line up with the local types of Pokémon, others left her perplexed. Gazing up at a ruined fountain, she took note of the bulbs that once adorned it with a bright set of lights. All of them were broken, but with very clear burns around them, as though they were overcharged with electricity and burst due to it.

She began to wonder if perhaps she wasn't the only one who had come here feeling nostalgic. Maybe Ash had come to see the remains himself. It certainly would explain how not even wild Pokémon were roaming through here. But not a trace of his aura was left in his wake, leaving her with far more questions and not a single answer. She resumed her silent march.

Eyeing the remains of a large pokéball sign, Dawn forced the powered down door of the old Pokémon Center open. She wouldn't have been surprised that even with how thorough the Nurse Joy staff usually are, the dangers of Route 28 bearing down on them would have led to some negligence in their evacuation. Hopefully, she could find some extra supplies since she had gone through her reserves of berries healing up her partners on the trek to the town over the last few hours. With how bloodthirsty the wild Pokémon were outside, she couldn't shake worries that the inside would be worse. Although, there was the tiniest glimmer of hope in her mind that Ash had quelled the wild Pokémon inside so he could have some peace.

Prying open several drawers, Dawn looked to Lucario who had already figured out her intentions and had begun doing the same, sifting through overhead shelves. Aside from a few musty books that Brock could probably get a kick out of as a Doctor now, all she found were a couple basic potions and an antidote, both of which would hardly do much to assist her team. The duo made their way into the back rooms, hoping that perhaps a trainer or two had left gear in their rush, but just as before, they found nothing.

Except for one detail. Dawn did notice Aura this time. Perhaps, due to the overbearing amount of plant life overtaking the ruins outside, she couldn't catch sight of it, but this time she did. Dawn walked over to the bathroom of the men's rooms, running a finger across the first marble sink. The dust was light on this one as opposed to the others in the room, and the mirror clearly had been cleaned. No Pokémon would need to use this room. The smile from earlier finally crested Dawn's lips. "Well, at least he is keeping some hygiene, I guess." She giggled lightly at the thought of him trekking all the way down from the inside of the mountain just to brush his teeth in the morning, enjoying the small moment before calling to Lucario that they needed to keep moving.

As they stepped out, Lucario tugged at his trainer's sleeve, handing her a gold plated medical spray bottle, "A Full Restore?" Dawn eyed the bottle in wonder before shaking it gently. Still completely full. "Well, if this isn't a good sign, I don't know what is..." She slipped it into one of her side pockets, patted her aura jackal appreciatively, and turned to resume walking through the streets. In the distance, the arena's ruined remains were practically a crater. She had already decided it wasn't a good idea as the terrain looked incredibly unstable. She doubted they had locked off the underground areas that allowed them to shift arena types so quickly, and considering the current one looked like a war had broken out on it, she could only assume Ash had indeed done some cleanup of his own on his way through here.

A giant hole, or more accurately a tunnel torn open, in the wall of the city was visible in the distance behind the arena, leaving a clear exit from the town to lead directly into the open maw of the mountain. Dawn had decided that this little walk could do her some good, though as she neared a familiar building, she quickly regretted it. Hanging loosely was a sign that read 'The Silver Convergence'. Dawn lowered her head, not sure whether to sigh in sadness, or choke on the emotions welling inside of her. Against her better judgment, she pushed the door open and stepped inside.

Her eyes lit up with the glow of Aura once more. All around, it seemed the entirety of the restaurant had been touched by Ash. A clear fist imprint in the soft peg board behind the reception desk showed a clear bout of anger from him. The kitchen had been ransacked of any non-perishables, and... A single table remained untouched. No, it looked as though it had been professionally prepared. Two candelabras were set beside it, and while one chair was pushed in, the second was pulled out, as though beckoning her. A tear ran down Dawn's face as she slowly sat down, the memories of that night rushing through her mind. She clenched her gloved hands as she tried to stifle the burning emotions, but that only made her open her eyes and stare at the gift she had received that night.

That did it. Dawn leapt to her feet and shook her head, her loose blue tresses waving around her as she clapped her cheeks, "No, Dawn. Now isn't the time for remembering. These gloves meant something to him. Enough that he saw them as a gift to someone as special to him as you!" she looked to Lucario who was watching with both concern and amusement, "No need to worry, Lucario! I just had a little trip down memory lane, let's get going!" Dawn said confidently, although it was clear she was still forcing a little bit of it as she marched out of the restaurant.

The two looked towards the wall ahead and nodded to each other as they began their final approach. Within minutes both of them had broken into a jog, feeling the chill of the dusk air beginning to bite at them. While she was indeed in a rush to finally get ahold of Ash again, Dawn did regret not waiting just another day to make her way onto Route 28. By the time she passed the security gate, it was already midday, and now the sun was setting fast in front of her, especially with the entirety of Mt Silver now towering above her.

As they crossed the threshold of the broken wall, they saw the final door ahead of them. Dawn looked to Lucario and smiled, "What do you say? You ready?" When Lucario barked happily at her, she clenched a fist, "We both better be. I doubt there's natural light in there. We'll be relying solely on our Aura... so watch out for me, ok?"

Without another word, the two made their way into the maw of the cave, immediately noticing the steep inclines within the darkness. For the third time that day, she was thanking Arceus, Mesprit and every lucky star in the sky for her physical training as they began climbing. Surprisingly, only a few Pokémon made any form of their presence known, quickly being struck down by Lucario with either a quick aura sphere or bone rush before returning to his trainer's side. She could feel it through the entire cave. Fear, the wild Pokémon looked upon them in fear. Was this Ash's doing? Maybe he really did go above and beyond to have his peace for a while...

It was a slow ascent, but they both could see a gleaming light deep in the darkness; their mark, Dawn's very reason to push herself forward was just ahead. With a newfound vigor rivaling everything prior, Dawn drove herself to climb faster, leaping from each face of the internal cliffside to the next and pulling herself up to do so once more, until finally...

She saw a shimmer of light. Not aura, but an artificial light source coming from an opening just above her. She was here. Dawn finally had made it. Scrambling up the final incline, Dawn turned to smile at Lucario before composing herself, and walking into the warm glow of the new cavern, ready to bring her man home.

A/N: Ok. The first half? Planned. After the wild Pokémon battle? Not planned and kind of just came out as is. I did not, DID NOT have a plan at all for the inside of the cave, and as I continued writing, I realized that the plan I DO have for the next couple of chapters requires there to be little to no fighting during the ascent. So, I apologize for how abrupt the chapter came to an end, and that there was no further fighting once Dawn entered, but for everything to work out how I want it to, this is the way we have to go. I sincerely apologize for that, but if it isn't already clear, I'm TERRIBLE at planning. Until next time!