Chapter 6

Cut Ties Bleed Red

When Ash next woke, it was to the soft and gentle swaying resembling a ship on calm seas. The sensation was so peaceful he wanted nothing more than to drift off, content to sleep under the warm rays he felt against his battered skin. He would've if it wasn't for a nearly fifteen-pound weight that suddenly dropped on his stomach. The trainer lurched forward, a scream of pain resembling a wheeze forcing fire down his throat. Landing on the ground, as if from a great height, Ash curled into a fetal position. He coughed, attempting to stymie the burning while fighting against the complaints his body made.

Once the pain faded, he sat there, panting for a moment, before he realized someone was kneeling in front of him. Ash forced his eyes to focus, only to find Gary Oak watching him worriedly. Slowly, so as not to further aggravate his aggrieved body, the trainer sat up and opened his mouth. Only for the events from the night before to crash into the forefront of his mind. He closed his eyes to absorb them, then changed tactics, focusing instead on thinking what he wanted to say. If every time it felt like swallowing fire when he tried to verbally speak, he simply wouldn't. He just hoped he could find out why once they reached town.

"What happened?"

Gary's lips quirked as he held out a canteen for Ash to take. "Besides you proving my point? You passed out when you tried to get up last night. When morning came, I had Blastoise carry you, while Umbreon and I broke camp. We've been on the road for a couple of hours now, but it'll be another four before we reach Azalea Town. You looked like you were actually sleeping there for a bit. What happened to wake you up?"

Beyond grateful, Ash took the canteen, soothing the burning in his throat before handing it back. "Someone jumped on me and I woke up." A quiet thudding made the boy turn to see Blastoise taking a step forward. At the turtle's feet, Ash spotted his starter attempting to blend with the other pokemon's shadow, head bowed and expression hidden. The trainer smiled sadly at his best friend. "I know, buddy. You didn't mean to hurt me."

When Pikachu's ears perked up, as they always did when he heard Ash talking, it drew the trainer's attention. He glanced at Gary, receiving a confused shrug in return. It bothered him that he couldn't talk to his pokemon anymore, that he couldn't reassure the mouse and himself that everything would be okay. But, what if…

Tentatively, he reached a hand out to Pikachu. "Come here, Bud." The mouse's nose twitched uncertainly, before he took a step forward, then another, and another, until he finally stepped into Ash's lap. When Ash wrapped his arms around the starter, Pikachu cooed and rubbed his head against the trainer's chest.

"Well, that answers that question." The injured trainer looked at his counterpart questioningly and Gary grinned. "Last night, Pikachu reacted badly when you woke up experiencing that panic attack. I heard you, which is why I woke up, but I wasn't certain if Pikachu was just concerned, or if he'd heard your call as well. Now, I think it's safe to say, he can hear you talking like I do." With that he stood up, dusting off his knees. "Come on, I'll help you climb on Blastoise's shell so he can have his arms free."

"Blas." The water starter grumbled and stepped forward so he could easily grab Ash, lifting him off the ground before he could respond. As Blastoise positioned him so he and Pikachu were seated on the pokemon's shell, just behind his head, Ash had to bite his tongue to ignore the pain flaring within his body. It felt as if he'd been steamrolled by something as large as Blastoise, stretched, then steamrolled again for the hell of it. Every movement caused a burst of pain, some worse than others. Ash was quietly grateful he wouldn't have to walk all the way to the next town—he had a feeling he'd faint again before they got too far.

Once Ash was balanced, the group began walking, an amicable silence filling the air. The morning sun was warm on his cheeks. Blastoise's movements were slow and steady, and Ash's aches and pains settled into a constant angry hum. Thankfully, he was able to ignore them the longer they continued. It shouldn't have been a surprise to the injured trainer when he began dozing off, Blastoise's head a substitute pillow.

XxX

When a loud chime broke the silence, Gary nearly jumped a foot in the air before he recognized it and scrambled for his pocket. He'd noticed Ash dozing off on Blastoise's head and didn't want to wake him. Unfortunately, he wasn't fast enough. As he pulled his pokegear from his pocket, he saw Blastoise slow down out of the corner of his eye. Gary grumbled under his breath, opening the gear up to read the name on the screen. He almost flinched when he recognized it. Almost. He wasn't sure what to tell Gramps about the boy beside him. Not while Ash couldn't speak. So...he turned to him. "It's Gramps calling, want me to say anything?

"No." Ash's quiet voice rang in his head. Well, quieter than it had been. During their discussion last night and early that morning, Gary realized that Ash's voice had volumes, similar to when he spoke aloud. The only difference he'd encountered was one he heard through his ears, and the other popped into his mind, like a song that got stuck in his head on repeat. He couldn't hear it, but he still knew what the words were.

Gary frowned, worriedly eyeing him, and then shrugged, turning back to the device. "Okay, your choice." With that, he pressed the accept button on the left side of the keypad and smiled as his Grandfather's face appeared on the screen. For being almost sixty, the man was in great shape, his salt and pepper hair trimmed neatly, and his lab coat without a speck of dirt to be seen. "Hey, Gramps, what's—" He stopped, his smile falling away when he noticed the darker than usual bags under the professor's sapphire eyes. The man wasn't happy, at all. If anything, he appeared exhausted, and much more his age than when Gary had talked to him the previous week. "What's wrong?" It wasn't the question he was going to ask originally but it better suited the worry boiling up in his stomach.

The professor sighed, glancing down before looking back up. "Gary, I know this is sudden and unexpected but...I need you to come home."

"Gramps," Gary started quietly. "What happened?"

"It's...Ash, Gary." His Grandfather set his head in his hands. "He's—Ash is dead."

Had it not been for Blastoise standing beside him, Gary would've hit the ground when he missed a step. He swallowed, glancing up at the boy staring at him tiredly from atop Blastoise's head. Ash was alive, here with him, but he'd seen the scars and the wounds. Just what had his stubborn-headed friend gotten into to make even his grandfather think he was dead? "W-What? How?"

"Don't tell him I am here." Ash's soft voice echoed in his head. The trainer wanted to ask why, but he knew it could wait until he finished the call with Professor Oak. Gary managed to sneak a nod to Ash while his Grandfather was distracted. By the time he looked back, Gary had silently commanded Blastoise to step a few feet further away, so Ash wouldn't be caught by the camera. If the injured trainer didn't want to be seen, then so be it.

"He and his friends, Brock and Misty, were at a Tournament on New Island when a massive earthquake struck and it sank." The Professor explained after a moment. "So far, out of thirty trainers on the island, only five managed to escape. The Officer Jenny in the area is searching, but it's been nearly a week already. No one's holding out much hope."

Gary clenched his jaw when he heard that. Mew said there had been a war...a war Ash got caught up in. Mewtwo himself stated the island they were fighting on was collapsing, and that was why he'd returned the hardheaded pikachu to his pokeball. Ash had been on an island that sank during a tournament...Somehow he didn't think it was an earthquake that brought it down.

Forcing a breath through his nose, Gary met his Grandfather's eyes. "Yeah, Gramps. I can come home for a bit. I'm a couple of hours out from Azalea Town now. When I get in, I'll call you for a pokemon transfer, and then I should be home in a day or so. Can you get Fearow ready for me?"

"Yeah." The professor nodded. "I can do that for you. I'll have him by the time you call. Stay safe out there, Gary." It didn't escape the trainer's notice how misty his grandfather's eyes were. Ash really meant that much to the old man, bringing him to tears over his 'death'.

He nodded, smiling softly. "Yeah, Gramps. I'll see you in a few." With that, Professor Oak ended the call, and Gary turned to find Ash watching him. "Now, why didn't you want me to tell Gramps you're alive? You could save a lot of heartache for a lot of people by telling them you made it."

"Team Rocket." Was the immediate reply, but Gary was no fool, he could tell something else was up. Even still, he gestured for Ash to continue. The injured trainer sighed, one hand coming up to rub at his side. "I vowed to Mew I would take Team Rocket down. They are a massive organization, with a lot of people in their pockets. If they're willing to harm, and even kill, trainers for their pokemon, what makes you think they won't do everything they can to stop a thorn in their side?"

Unable to help himself, Gary groaned, dropping his head into his hands. "You mean, you want to go after one of the most powerful and influential organizations in Kanto by yourself. You're letting everyone think you're dead to protect them, while you go off and get yourself murdered. Are you insane?" He snapped at Ash, resembling an angry Gyrados at its worst. "What in Mew's name would you do if you got caught?"

"Escape." Ash shrugged, cringing in pain. "Pallet Town is important. You are important. I may not remember much about it, but I know that when I made that vow, I meant it. Team Rocket will pay for their crimes, and I'm gonna make it happen."

"Asssshhhhh," The trainer groaned again. "I have seen just how lucky you are. You have the absolute worst, and best, luck out of any person I've met. You'll take them down, and end up dying as the building collapses." Something occurred to him then. Gary paused in his steps, causing Blastoise to do the same, and the trainer turned to his rival and friend. "You said Pallet Town is important." When Ash tilted his head in question, Gary frowned. "Ash, Pallet Town is your home as much as it is mine. So then why—" Didn't you say it?

The last part went unsaid because it didn't need to be. Ash looked away, one hand scratching along Pikachu's back. He took notice of how the electric type had sprawled himself across Blastoise's head, earning a scowl from the tanky turtle. After a moment, though, his attention was drawn back to Ash when the trainer sighed, closing his eyes as if the act of thinking pained him.

"Because I don't know. Most of my memories about anything other than you and Pikachu are shattered. I can see bits and pieces but, if I try to recall them, it hurts. There are a few that returned since I woke up but, other than that, nothing." He opened his eyes, looking at Gary once more, and the trainer had to swallow at the amount of pain and guilt he saw there. "How can I claim something I know nothing of? It just makes sense to cut ties now, before anyone knows different. Maybe I'll return to Pallet Town and try to reconnect, but that won't be until Team Rocket gets taken out. Even if I don't remember, I won't risk other peoples' lives because I made a mistake."

By the end, Gary could think of only one thing to sum it all up, and he snorted. "You know, you are the very definition of a self-sacrificial idiot." Receiving a flat look, Gary shook his head and sighed. "Come on, we still have a couple of hours to go before we get there."

With that, the trainers and their pokemon continued. Time passed by under the slow crawl of the sun and, before long, they topped a hill to find roofs peeking out among treetops. Gary stopped, causing Blastoise to stop as well and, when Ash looked at him, the trainer tilted his head in the direction of the red roof they could both see. "What do you want me to tell Nurse Joy? She's going to be curious about how you and Pikachu got all banged up, and we can't exactly tell her two legendaries just dropped you in the middle of my camp."

Ash frowned, looking down at the electric mouse still laying in front of him. Nurse Joys were ferocious women when they were angered, and there was nothing that angered them more than a trainer who couldn't take care of his pokemon. If they spun this right, they could get away with little to no scolding from the Joy that served this town. Hopefully.

"Pokemon attack?" He asked. "Tried to catch a weedle, and got attacked by the swarm?"

"I don't see why not." Gary agreed, after giving it some thought. "Some of the wounds on Pikachu might be a bit harder to explain but a beedrill swarm should cover most of it." Satisfied with their story, Gary led the way into town, stopping in front of the Pokemon Center. Helping Ash slide down, the trainer carefully pulled one of Ash's arms over his shoulder to support him. He had a feeling Ash would try and walk by himself and wanted to put a stop to that stubbornness before it started. Blastoise followed behind, helping to steer Pikachu by caging him in with his feet to stop the mouse from walking in a direction he wasn't supposed to.

As they entered, Gary heard a small gasp before a woman in a pink knee-length dress and white apron rushed forward, quickly dipping under Ash's other arm. "This way." She commanded softly, but sternly, directing them to the door leading behind the front counter. "Chansey, bring a stretcher please!"

Only a few moments later, a large pink pokemon, with an egg in the pouch on her stomach and dark pink frills on the side of her head, ran out of the door pushing a stretcher. Once Ash was sitting on it, he pointed in the direction of Blastoise and—already knowing what the injured trainer wanted without waiting to listen—Gary ran to pick up Pikachu from where the mouse was trying to unsteadily make his way toward them. The fact he made it almost halfway across the room did not escape the young Oak's attention. He carefully deposited the mouse on the stretcher beside his friend and rival, and then stepped away, allowing Chansey to roll them into the back.

Nurse Joy made as if to follow but stopped, turning back to speak to him. "Please remain here until they've been seen to. There are a few questions I would like to ask."

"Of course." He agreed, calmly. She quickly disappeared behind the door. When the emergency sign above it lit, Gary sighed and turned to find Blastoise staring down at him. Unable to help himself, his lips quirked into a grin and he reached up to scratch the water starter's eye ridges. "Thank you, my friend. You did very well today."

Blastoise grumbled happily, tilting his head to allow his trainer better reach. "Blas, bla."

Gary chuckled, scratching for a few more moments before pulling out a pokeball with a teardrop sticker on it. "Alright you, return for a good rest, and I'll see about training with Umbreon later."

"Toise." With that, the trainer opened the pokeball and recalled his pokemon. The cannon turtle turned red before curling into the ball as a beam of energy. Placing Blastoise's now occupied pokeball back on his belt, he walked over to one of the vidphone stations set to one side of the center. He'd get his Fearow from Gramps now but would wait to leave until he was certain Ash and Pikachu were going to be okay. It hadn't escaped his notice that just moving from outside to inside the center had had the injured trainer nearly doubling over from the pain.

If Gary didn't know better, he would almost swear Ash's injuries were akin to someone jumping in front of an extremely powerful pokemon attack. Sitting in front of the screen, ready to dial his grandfather's number, Gary's expression froze. He wouldn't be that stupid, would he? Then he facepalmed, sighing in frustration. He would be that stupid if he was trying to protect one of his pokemon. If he was in a war, like Mewtwo had said, then the whole situation makes entirely too much sense.

Shaking his head, Gary dialed his grandfather's number.

An hour later, the Oak boy sat in a waiting room chair, petting a napping Umbreon. Instead of the two pokemon, he'd arrived in Johto with, his belt now had three white and red pokeballs attached to it. He was about ready to take a nap himself, he'd been up almost nonstop since the night before last. He had maybe got an hour or two of sleep between taking care of Ash and Pikachu, and the injured trainer waking for the first time.

Slowly dozing off, his mind was beginning to slip when he heard a soft, "Hey."

At the mental poke, Gary sat up, searching the lobby before he realized Ash was still in the back. He frowned in confusion, causing a chuckle to bounce around his head. "I guess you can't see me. The mirror behind Nurse Joy's desk is two-way. I can just see you over the desk."

Nodding to show he'd heard, Gary received what he swore was a grunt of pain from the other end before Ash continued. "She gave me some kind of pain med that's gonna knock me out soon. Right now they're checking on Pikachu. Just wanted to warn you she's about to come out and start asking questions. If she asks what my name is, it's Red." Gary nodded again and Ash sighed. "If I'm asleep by the time Nurse Joy gets done, go on to Pallet Town. She's already said she's keeping me and Pikachu here for a week."

When Ash's mental voice finally faded away, Gary committed to memory the need to call him Red. If A-Red was serious about cutting ties to help protect Pallet Town, then he would help where he could and erase any chance of Red's real identity getting out.

A soft ding caught the trainer's attention, and he looked up to find Nurse Joy stepping out of the backroom, her brows furrowed in thought. Glancing around the room, she began making her way to him and sat down in the chair adjacent to him, eyes firm. "What is your name, young man?" Short and to the point. Like any other Nurse Joy he'd met between Kanto and Johto. Knowing it would be easier later, he decided to stick to half-truths and see what happened. As for her first question, however...

"Gary Oak." He answered calmly.

"How did you meet the trainer you brought in?"

"I was traveling through Ilex Forest on my way to Goldenrod City when my Umbreon," He gestured to the dark type now watching the exchange with emotionless eyes. "Took off in a random direction. I followed her further into the woods, which is when I found Red and his pikachu unconscious. It looked like they'd been in a very bad fight. Red's gear was shredded and spread across the clearing, and I could tell Pikachu was bad off. I found Red's pokeball and, after taking care of the pokemon, recalled him. After I patched up Red, it was almost dark and, since Ilex forest is difficult to traverse during the day, I didn't want to risk getting lost trying to get back here. I set up camp and used Blastoise and Umbreon to ensure no one would attack us. Before we broke camp this morning, I released Pikachu to check on him and found he refused to return to his pokeball afterward. So we broke camp and Blastoise carried Red while I carried Pikachu the majority of the way."

Nurse Joy appeared a little stunned by the end of his explanation, most likely not expecting such a story, but it was ninety-five percent true. No one needed to know about Mew and Mewtwo's intervention, and he would never tell a soul. "O-Okay," She stammered for a moment before pulling herself together. "Could you tell what kind of pokemon attacked him?"

Gary frowned, making it appear as if he were thinking. "They looked like Beedrill marks. A swarm of them, at least."

The nurse sighed, shaking her head as she smoothed out her dress. "Unfortunately, we see that much too often around here. Some of the larger swarms can be quite vicious to intruders. What they did to this poor man is some of the worst I've seen though."

"How is he?" He'd spotted the opening and took it. Even if he could cover these questions easily, he wanted to know how A-Red was doing. Nurse Joy blinked for a total of three seconds before she smiled sadly, her expression almost pitying.

"While we did what we could to help him and his Pikachu, I'm afraid their battling days may be over. Whatever those Beedrill did to him, it shredded his vocal cords. Once they heal, I highly doubt he'll have much of a voice, if any at all. The rest of his wounds are mostly stress fractures, a few broken ribs, and several muscle tears throughout his back and chest. His Pikachu, unfortunately," Her smile fell, dull grief and pity in her eyes. "His Pikachu will never battle again. His eyes are completely ruined and, to handle the speed a pokemon like that moves at, he needs them. If Pikachu weren't in such great shape healthwise, outside of a few burns, I would suggest to Red to have him put down."

Hearing that, Gary felt his stomach tighten. Pikachu meant the world to Red, if anything were to happen to the mouse, Gary doubted Red would have the will to survive. He swallowed, forcing the bile that had slowly risen in his throat back down, and nodded. "I see. I have to be going, but would it be alright if I saw them before I left?"

Nurse Joy smiled softly. "I don't see why not. If he's sleeping, though, I ask that you not bother him. I administered some medication to help with the pain. It was quite strong, so he'll be out for a while." With that, she rose from her seat, and Gary followed her through the door behind the counter.

The boy had never been in the backroom of a Pokemon Center before. It was reserved for the worst of human injuries and pokemon who needed healing. Since he'd never been one to get himself seriously injured, and wasn't a pokemon, coming back here had never crossed his mind.

The room was a soft greyish-white, offsetting the bright lighting overhead. On one side of the room, there were six panels sticking out of the wall, each with round indents in them. Gary had seen enough of them to know it was where Nurse Joy recharged all the pokemon in their pokeballs, those that weren't seriously injured. On the opposite side of the room were six hospital beds, only one currently occupied by a familiar figure.

He lay on his side, facing away from the window, and Gary could just make out a yellow and black tail in his arms. Nurse Joy softly padded to the bedside, her hands spread across the front of her apron and that same soft smile on her lips. "Mr. Red, are you awake?"

A moment later, fabric rustled, and Red nodded, moving to sit up slightly so he could reach for a pad of paper and pen beside the bed. The nurse, seeing what he was doing, rushed to hand it to him. He jotted a note down, turning the pad so she could read it, and she gestured to Gary.

"If you're feeling up for it, this young man wanted to speak with you." When Red nodded, Nurse Joy stepped aside, waving for Gary to come closer. "Very well, I'll let you two be. If you need anything, there's a button on the remote beside your bed." Red nodded again, giving the nurse a small, tired smile.

She left the room after that, leaving them alone, and Gary sighed before crossing his arms over his chest. "She told me how bad it is. What's worse? The fact you can't talk, or that Pikachu can't battle?"

Red arched a brow, grinning a challenge, even if it was weighted with the vestiges of the medicine he was fighting off. "Who said I couldn't speak? Watch this. Pikachu, Battle Ready."

On cue, the mouse jumped up on his back legs, his tail standing erect. However, what most caught Gary's attention was that Pikachu's ears were swiveling much more often, and he could practically hear the electricity humming in his cheek sacs. Gary had seen the stance more than enough during his battles with Ash that he couldn't see a single difference between this pikachu and the one that had sight. The only distinction he could see, was that Pikachu was facing the wall instead of his would-be enemy, which Gary assumed to be himself.

"Pikachu's all fired up for battle, but he won't be able to fight until we figure out how to help him target his opponents," Red explained as he reached over to scratch under the mouse's chin. Almost immediately, Pikachu lost his battle-ready stance, flopping into Red's arms with a happy sigh,

Gary chuckled. "So, now that we've established what happened on the road and back at camp wasn't some fluke, what makes you so sure he can understand everything you're saying?"

The injured trainer nodded across the room, to another bed Chansey was currently in the middle of cleaning up. "When Nurse Joy and Chansey were trying to clean up his eyes, he started to panic. I couldn't call to him, so I tried to reach out, like when I'm talking to you. I don't know how it worked, but he calmed down. Now, when I reach for him, it's almost like he's trying to talk back. Some of it is hard to understand, but other things come across clearly."

"Like Pikachu wanting to battle?" The young Oak asked, somewhat amused by the development. Red nodded before a yawn interrupted him. Gary frowned. A-Red had always been the 'three steps forward, two steps back' kind of kid. Watching him now, already planning on how to get his Pikachu back into fighting shape, was a clear example of that but...Gary knew he was getting too far ahead of himself. Red needed time to heal, to get some rest, and bring his mind back into focus before he could work on Pikachu. "Nurse Joy said you were staying here for a week, right?" When Red nodded again, Gary decided to push forward an idea that had slowly been kindling for a few hours now.

"Why don't you rest for a few days, give both you and Pikachu some time to recover, then slowly get to training him. It'll take me about a week to travel to Pallet Town, take care of things, and get back. Maybe we can travel together after that?"

Red frowned, tilting his head in confusion. "Why? Won't I just slow you down?"

The young Oak shrugged. "The league season just opened like a month ago. There's still time to collect the badges and, even then, having a sparring partner like Pikachu will help Blastoise get that much stronger. You can spend the time helping Pikachu get his surroundings straight and, when we get back to Kanto, you'll be ready for whatever Team Rocket throws at you."

Silence stretched between them after his explanation. For a moment, Gary fretted his explanation sounded completely idiotic. Then, Red grinned, Pikachu humming beneath his hand. "I think we can do that."