a/n: Taking a break from our Ash's we travel to the future!
It's about to get real!
50k words in 22 days and 21 chapters.
As of this chapter, it's officially the longest fic I've ever written in the shortest amount of time!
Tbh I'm not really sure how long this story will end up.
There are a ton of moving parts.
But no matter, I've never enjoyed writing a fic this much (Sorry flowers and ashes fans)
The Timeless POV:
Ash Ketchum. All grown up. 35 years of age and the former world monarch.
Able to talk to Pokemon after a deal with the lake guardians.
Wife and two kids works a boring league job by day.
By night….. He solves problems. With the greatest group of trainers ever assembled.
The timeless
Ash was putting the kids to bed when he received a message. The leader of the timeless contacted him through a pager he kept on him at all times. He knew he'd be expecting company any time now.
Ash called for his wife "Hey Serena?"
Serena walked out of the bedroom, "Yes honey?"
Ash sighed "Looks like I'll be working tonight…"
"Oh… well stay safe. See you in the morning. Pikachu do you want to go with?"
"Pika Pi Pi!" Pikachu shook his head and pointed at a sleeping Pichu on the couch
Ash rolled his eyes. Pikachu was probably a better father than he was at times.
Ash waved towards his family "Well sleep well guys, I'll try and make it home for breakfast,"
Ash walked into his study and Hoopa was already waiting for him
Hoopa flew in panicked, "We have an issue. The timeline is moments away from shattering…. Dialga and Palkia are on the verge of erasing someone important. We need firepower. We need to contact the outcast."
"We agreed we would NOT contact him! He's supposed to be left alone under strict orders from the leader." Ash objected
"Rules are meant to be broken! Not to mention, I have his explicit permission!" Hoopa said with a giggle
"He's the only one who can give us the edge needed. Can you stop a god? Yeah, that's right you can't. You guys can get together though!" Hoopa spoke enthusiastically
Ash put the foot down, "The answer is no! That's final!"
Hoopa spoke sadly "You don't have a choice! Anyways, Ash….. it's you. You're the one who's going to be erased."
Ash seemed shocked and his expression shifted "Oh….."
Hoopa spoke worriedly, "We leave now. Do you have your team?"
Ash nodded
"Well, let's go!"
Hoopa grabbed Ash and dragged him through a purple portal.
—-
In another universe:
Ash was in an office. His office to be precise. Sitting on a mahogany wood desk, Pikachu napped in a luxury upholstery bed by his side. A belt of poke balls was in a drawer and a jar full of fancy jelly beans was on his desk.
He could afford it after all because Ash was the Leader of Team Rocket.
The whole world bowed to him. The league looked the other way on his crimes because he had everyone in his pockets. The champion? A mere puppet. Anyone who said something "disappeared"
Anyone who tried to stop him? "Disappeared"
A portal opened over his office and a man in a coat in front of his desk.
The cloaked man spoke softly, "Why hello there,"
"Who are you?" Rocket Ash said frustrated
The man lifted up his hood, revealing…. Ash
"Me? Well, I'm just you…."
"I'm going to cut to the chase. I need your help. There's a crisis across dimensions and I need help." Normal Ash or just Ash said
"F*ck off," Rocket Ash said
Ash sighed, "I assumed you'd say that. If you don't help we're gonna be erased."
"I don't care," Rocket Ash said indifferently
Ash yelled, "Your whole world will die!"
"Cool. Still don't care." Rocket Ash said bored
Ash glared at his alternate dimension counterpart and reached for a poke ball, "Fine. Have it your way." Ash reached for a poke ball
"Big mistake." Rocket Ash pressed a button and a hole opened on the floor in front of his desk. Ash jumped out of the way and shrugged.
Ash laughed "Did you really think that stupid movie trick would work on me?"
Rocket-Ash tackled Ash and they fell in a huge room which seemed like an arena. No exits in sight…. This could be problematic
Rocket-Ash growled "I've killed an impostor of me before. You seem different but I'll feel no guilt about ending your life just because we look the same!"
Ash tried to reason with his counterpart "Ash! Listen! I need your help, please!"
"Darkrai put him to sleep forever." Rocket-Ash reached for a poke ball and released the lord of nightmares
Ash sighed, "If negotiating is off the table, I will do what I must."
Rocket Ash shot back, "You will try!"
Ash reached for a small bottle and unsealed it, releasing Hoopa's Unbound form.
Rocket Ash laughed, "Well, seems like this battle just reached much higher stakes. Tell you what Ash, if you win I'll join your little adventure. If I win, I'll kill you and take your pokemon."
"Darkrai put him to sleep! Dark void now!"
"Hoopa, use an aura sphere!"
An aura sphere flew towards Darkrai and the nightmare pokemon was struck by Hoopa's attack.
"I'm just warming up! Darkrai, double team and use an ice beam!"
"Hoopa, use an aura sphere again!"
Darkrai cloned himself and launched an ice beam towards a speeding aura sphere, and the two attacks met in an explosion.
Rocket Ash yelled at his counterpart, "There will be no escape. Ash, prepare yourself!", Rocket Ash then yelled at his pokemon, "Darkrai, dark pulse!"
Darkrai launched a wave of black energy towards Hoopa who flinched when it struck him. Hoopa opened a portal and flew through it, dodging another wave of black energy Darkrai sent towards him.
Hoopa opened another portal, and slapped Darkrai, causing the lord of nightmares to smash into the ground. Ash smiled and gave a follow up order
"Hoopa, use a portal aura sphere now!" Hoopa opened a portal above Darkrai and fired an aura sphere which flew straight into Darkrai. Darkrai looked worse for wear after suffering two consecutive hits.
Rocket Ash tried to counter, "Now Darkrai, get in close and use a shadow ball!"
The lord of nightmares flew towards Hoopa and blasted the portal pokemon point-blank with a shadow ball.
Hoopa yelped in pain and crashed into the wall of the arena. However, Hoopa composed himself quickly and was back at it.
Ash countered, "Now, attack with hyperspace fury!"
Rocket Ash snapped back, "Shadow ball once more!"
Hoopa sped towards Darkrai with menace, but the lord of nightmares was there waiting for his foe.
The two attacks met, and Darkrai and Hoopa both collapsed at the exact same time from the sheer force of the blow.
The two Ash's glared at each other, knowing they were both evenly matched.
Ash tried to reason with Rocket-Ash "Need we compete any more? It's clear this will get us nowhere."
Rocket Ash reached for his next poke ball, "Go to hell"
Ash sighed and reached for his belt, "Fine, be that way. Garchomp, I choose you!"
Rocket Ash sent out his ball, "Deoxys, let's go!"
Ash blinked in surprise "How are you getting all these legendaries?"
Rocket Ash rolled his eyes "I literally manage a gang of poke thieves for a living. I can afford a few master balls."
The alien stared down the Landshark and the two took off.
Garchomp flew at a surprising speed, and Deoxys in his base form matched the speed.
Rocket Ash pointed at "Deoxys, extreme speed!"
Ash countered, "Not a chance. Garchomp! Swords dance!"
Garchomp started glowing red, and aura swords flashed over his head.
"Deoxys, iron defense!"
Deoxys's skin glowed white, and a thin coating of energy surrounded the alien.
Ash glared at Deoxys. "Ash please, be reasonable here. As it stands, everything you know and love will be lost! Everything!"
"Deoxys, attack him!"
"Garchomp, crunch!"
Garchomp bit Deoxys who sped towards Ash and the alien pokemon cried out in pain
"Now Garchomp, outrage!"
Garchomp's eyes started glowing red, and he slammed Deoxys into the ground, before stomping on the alien.
"Now Garchomp, finish this off with Draco meteor!"
Garchomp fired off a massive orange orb which crashed into Deoxys and Rocket-Ash laughed
Deoxys looked to be in incredible pain and was seconds away from fainting.
"Before you go, Deoxys use a mirror coat!"
Ash yelled in shock, "WHAT?"
Deoxys's skin glowed silver, and Garchomp doubled over in pain.
Garchomp collapsed, receiving double the damage from his attack.
Ash tried to reason with his Rocket counterpart. "Ash please, I know this isn't you! This isn't who you are! You're a good man. We care about people!"
"You haven't met me! You don't know a thing about me! You don't know how much I've sacrificed!"
"Those sacrifices are why you should help! You and all of your sacrifices will be erased if you don't!"
Rocket Ash growled in frustration, "Just shut up! Genesect, end him!"
Normal Ash pleaded with his alternate self, "Please Ash, just please hear me out!"
But Rocket-Ash wasn't hearing it, "Genesect, use techno blast!"
Ash gave his command and released a pokemon, "Melmetal, now!"
A steel golem blocked the blast and swung at the artificial pokemon, sending Genesect back.
"Ash please, I know you care about someone! You're me! We care about people!"
Rocket Ash yelled in anger, "Aaaaagh! Just shut it! Genesect, use flash cannon! Wipe him off the face of the planet!"
Ash gave his order, "Melmetal, flash cannon!"
Melmetal's hex nut fired off a white beam which met in Genesect's, causing a beam struggle.
Melmetal pushed in front, and then Genesect. Both flash cannons were evenly matched, neither able to gain the upper hand on the other. Eventually, Genesect jumped out of the way, but Melmetal saw this coming and swung a left hook with his extended arms, which smashed Genesect straight into the ground.
Melmetal fired off another flash cannon, which sent Genesect straight into the ground.
Genesect toppled in pain and Melmetal jumped on top of him with great power.
"Flamethrower!", "Double Iron Bash!" both trainers shouted simultaneously
The attacks met, and Genesect looked worse for wear.
"Ash please, just hear me out! I need you! You've made mistakes, but that doesn't mean you have to keep making more. Please, if you don't help me, Serena and my kids are gone forever"
"DON'T YOU SAY HER NAME! GENESECT, HYPER BEAM!"
Genesect fired off a hyper beam that slammed into Melmetal and pushed him back. Melmetal punched Genesect without orders and the artificial pokemon screamed in pain.
Ash realized that Serena was significant to him in this dimension so he tried to play that card, "Please Ash, what would Serena want you to do?"
Rocket-Ash stopped, "She'd….she'd want me to do the right thing."
Ash nodded, "Now please, let's recall our pokemon and do the right thing."
Rocket-Ash recalled Genesect and turned around. Ash approached him and offered a hand.
"Please, to save everything you know. After this, you'll never need to see me again."
"How can I trust you? How can I trust what you're saying is correct?"
Ash showed his Rocket counterpart a video of Ash in an Alola arena with his pokemon. An angry Dialga right above him.
"Ah sh!t that's me… or you….. whatever…Are you serious?"
Ash nodded, "My source informed me of this crisis. We don't have long. We need to travel back in time to save Ash from Dialga before he gets erased."
Rocket Ash looked puzzled, "So wait, why is Infernape in front of Dialga? That's a pokemon I used in Sinnoh, not Alola."
Ash shrugged, "I'm wondering the same thing. Maybe we can get some answers. Either way, we're running out of time."
Rocket Ash glared at his counterpart "Well….. Let's get this out of the way. Just know if you try anything, I'll f*cking kill you."
Ash shrugged, "After you sir,"
Rocket-Ash just rolled his eyes
Ash pressed a medicine to Hoopa and ordered his pokemon to open a portal.
Ash motioned for his counterpart "We're off to Alola, hope you have decent clothes. We'll need them"
Meanwhile:
The timeless leader was watching this situation. In all dimensions.
The dimension with Rocket-Ash. He swore he'd never make the two counterparts interact, so he made up a story to scare off his counterpart.
The younger trainers were succeeding for the time being, but once gods got involved, this whole situation would become much more volatile.
Cyrus and Giratina could not be allowed to succeed.
And Red would be the one to stop them if all else failed.
But he'd leave the heavy lifting up to Ash, after all, he was his son in one universe, and what father would he be if he never challenged his kid.