Chapter 3: It MechaWorks!

The new morning arose in the Holy Land Academy and Ash, Kenshi and Pikachu slept. As the sun rose, sweat formed on Ash's and Kenshi's faces. His eyes closed, Ash woke. "Man, I don't think I've slept in anything that warm before," he groaned. "I thought I had a light blanket on." When he looked, Ash spotted an enormous pack of Koro. Kenshi also woke to the white furry critters all over the room and on top of everyone.

"AH!" he yelped. "Where did they come from!?"

"I don't know!" The pack swarmed Ash as Pikachu and the Koro Ash was watching over woke to see the other Koro cover him, nuzzling his sweat-covered face.

"Ash!"

"STOP! THAT TICKLES! STOP!" Unable to help, Pikachu and the Koro shook their heads.

"I hate to say it but I think Ash may need a few of you guys to bring back to the HigHoly Land Academynds." Realizing who Kenshi meant, Koro blushed. After awhile to crawl out of the packs of Koro, Ash found the door to the outside where the Koro scattered back to the woods. "Those Koro know a friend at first sight. Heck, I bet Ryo-Ohki would like to have you as well." Ash blinked to the name.

"Ryo… Ohki?"

"Yeah, she's a cabbit that Sister Ryoko owns." This made Ash more confused as Chiaia arrived.

"Whoa, were you two… roughhousing?" she asked.

"Not at all, Chiaia," Kenshi denied. "We had about a few hundred Koro sleep with us." Chiaia wasn't convinced about the briefing.

"Uh… huh…" she scoffed. "Anyway, Ash's new uniform is ready and the Headmistress' attendants will escort him for cleanup. I don't know what you two were doing but a shower's needed." Learning about Ash's uniform, Pikachu became curious.

("Do I get one as well?") he questioned. Chiaia saw Pikachu's expressions and laughed.

"You want a uniform, too?" she laughed. "Oh, you little…" She grabbed as nuzzled Pikachu's cheek, much to his enjoyment.

"At least Pikachu's safe with her," Ash sighed. Kenshi patted him on the back. At the Holy Land Academy, Lashara led Ash and Pikachu down a hall while he wore a white t-shirt and his jeans. Joining them were two tall but young women: a short-haired brunette and lavender-haired.

"While you're here at the Holy Land Academy, you'll have the robe and unform to mention that you have residence here and you'll be treated as such," Lashara explained. "It is apparent as we have scouts and other attendants searching for that hole to your world. Heck, we should be more appreciated to have you around, since men are rather stagnant on the Swan, less the Holy Land Academy campus." This made Ash curious.

"You mean me, Pikachu or both?" he questioned.

"I do suppose Pikachu's been getting pretty popular around, so he's not exactly overlooked." They soon arrived at a large curtain. "Angela and Vanessa will make sure you're cleaned up after this morning's… Koro convention?" Everyone giggled to Lashara's humor.

"That's one way to put it, Empress," the lavender-haired agreed. Ash calmed down and faced the curtain.

"Shall we?" the brunette offered.

"Might as well, Angela," Ash surrendered. Pikachu jumped down from Ash's shoulder as Chiaia and Maria entered.

"The new boy being cleansed?" sneered Maria. Lashara turned to see her cousin.

"Maria, must you walk into a discussion of how Ash should be prepared?"

"Oh!? You mean what someone like Ash will look like years down the road? Besides, I've heard from Wahanly how you were the one who kissed him before I met?"

"So what? It's proof that we have a destiny together."

"On what grounds? A savior of your loneliness?" As the two argued, A&Y awed Ash's body behind the curtain.

"Oh… my… gosh!" voiced Vanessa. "I might be favoring this kid over Kenshi!"

"Sure, he's a bit younger than him but this torso!" gawked Angela. "I can see why our empress has started to fawn over him." Hearing Angela and Vanessa's mentioning, Lashara and Maria grew curious and reached their heads to the tiny opening of the curtain. Their views were blocked by Vanessa and soap suds. They hoped to get a view of his body.

"Now you know how I felt hearing about Kenshi," Chiaia sneered. Lashara and Maria gawked while Pikachu palmed his face.

("I met two Brock-like girls,") he sighed. Lashara and Maria begrudgingly surrendered. After about half an hour, Ash was in a gray uniform before the maroon robe was put on. Ash adjusted his body to get used to the robe.

"This may take awhile," he sighed. Pikachu's given a robe as well. He began to tour the Academy with Pikachu in his usual perch. The girls giggled, swooned, flirted and walked alongside Ash and Pikachu. Lithia didn't approve the attention Ash and Pikachu got.

"Leave the wild animal alone!" she demanded. "Get ready for class!" The girls whined but abandoned Ash and Pikachu and headed to classes. A brunette boy came over to Ash and Pikachu.

"Lithia has a harsh ways with boys for some reason," he shrugged as they wayched Lithia herd girls to class.

"So, I've noticed," Ash sighed while shaking his head. "Anyway, I gotta go do a few things for the Academy. I'm Ash Ketchum, and this is my partner, Pikachu."

("And you are?") asked Pikachu. Ash and the brunette shook hands.

"I'm Ceres Tyte," he named himself. "I'll see you around."

"Sure," Ash agreed. Ceres left for the class he needed to reach with a tall blond young man guiding him. The blond looked back to Ash and Pikachu but walked off without a word. In the Headmistress's Office, the Headmistress gave more detail.

"While there are boys enrolled in the Holy Land Academy," she began. "Holy Land Academy is predominantly female-enrolled." To Ash, the reasoning for the girls coming after Ash seemed clarified.

"No wonder why I've been liked so much, even from the empress and princess," he realized.

"It sounds as if a girl hasn't been nice to you back home."

"Not exactly. Pikachu and I've had a few girls travel with me… mainly after their bikes were destroyed around Pikachu."

("I shouldn't be blamed for all of them,") Pikachu complained.

"Though, they were helpful during my journeys," Ash clarified. The Headmistress nodded to the clarification.

"I see now," she confirmed. "It's not that you're not friendly to women, just sume judgmental issues that tend to iron out overtime. At least you'll be fine here with our academy." After the meeting held behind closed doors, Ash and Pikachu met up with Wahanly in a workshop filled with all sorts of heavy machinery and mechanoids.

"No… way!" he gasped. "These are Sacred Mechanoids?"

"No, they're MechaWorkers here," she corrected. "See those in the back?" Ash and Pikachu turned to where Wahanly's pointing. "Those are the Sacred Mechanoids!" What she referred to was giant robotic structures with gel-like chests and tails.

"Those are way bigger than anything Team Rocket dealt to us," Ash shuttered.

("How do they work!?") gawked Pikachu. Wahanly became confused.

"Team… Rocket?" she repeated.

"An organization bent on taking Pokémon like Pikachu," Ash explained. "It might be better if they don't follow me here, especially with the suffocating Ahou in the air."

"I can totally understand. By the way, the Ahou is actually the energy that powers the mechanoids."

"Okay." Ash boarded the spider mechanoid. He viewed the controls while being comfortable in the seat. "Feels like being in the front seat of a car." Wahanly chuckled, not sure what Ash meant.

"I'm not sure about a car. These MechaWorkers and Sacred Mechanoids are great to use for repairs and training provided by the Holy Land Academy." Ash giggled to the thought.

"So, do they offer a license? Like a Driver's License?" A laugh boomed from Wahanly.

"You're something, Ash!" After a minute to calm down, Wahanly continued. "If we did, Lithia's may be revoked for what she did before you arrived."

"Uh oh… What did Kenshi do?"

"Well, not Kenshi but Mexiah who constantly flirts with him. Lithia stole this MechaWorker and chased them." Hearing that made Ash and Pikachu groan. Ash gazed at the controls.

"Being that you created these, I could imagine the effort in making them run. Of course, it's what you use it for." Wahanly's face began to beam with Ash's curiosity.

"Maybe I can teach you what's here and what we use each MechaWorker for."

"Sure!" After some more time, Ash and Pikachu exited the workshop and found Mexiah's class again with wooden swords. Ash had a grayish-brown avian bird of prey with a stock of feathers in its face. There was also a large turtle with a tree on its back and spikes all around. Buizel and a red primate with white fur on the chest and gold plate-like markings around the wrists, elbows, shoulders and knees were in the tree. Most notable was the flame on its head on the primate.

"Ash, welcome!" greeted Mexiah.

"Hi, Ash!" the students welcomed. Ash and his creatures came by.

"How's class for everyone?" he asked.

"Great!" answered Mexiah. "Are these your Pokémon?"

"Yep!" He stepped aside as the Pokémon came forward. "You've already met Pikachu. Here's the rest. Staraptor?" The bird heard Ash and flew down to him. "My eye-in-the-sky, Staraptor." He came to the turtle's head. "This is Torterra. Don't mind the spikes."

("Hello!") grunted Torterra. Buizel and the primate leaped down from Torterra.

"These are two others that I have: Buizel and Infernape!" The two Pokémon greeted Mexiah and the students. "And my last one is this!" Ash threw a red/white ball up and it opened. What came out was a large blue vampire-bat with a scorpion-like tail and pincers. "Welcome Gliscor!"

("Hi there!") welcomed Gliscor. Everyone swarmed to the Pokémon and had time to pet and measure each.

"This is a pretty awesome lineup you have," Mexiah admired.

"Thanks," Ash accepted. "By the way, what's with the sword?"

"It's training for our future Sacred Mechamasters. Care to try?" The swords made Ash a little hesitant.

"I don't know… I mean, we don't carry weapons back in-"

"Don't worry… everyone here's wearing padding." Bwoole handed Ash a sword and both squared off. Ash saw Mexiah's hands were on her sword. The Pokémon and students watched after Ash positioned his hands. Mexiah charged at Ash, sword cocked back.

'Oh no… come on, boxing instinct!' As Mexiah came close, Ash saw something. 'Found it!' Mexiah swung, but stopped. Everyone gasped as Mexiah collapsed and Ash was already across her. Bwoole's sword was held upward.

"Did… Ash win?" the blond wondered.

"I think so, Yeliss,"Bwoole believed. Mexiah soon stood up.

"Nice strike!" she complimented. "Maybe you could teach us some techniques." Ash smiled to the opportunity.

"Of course!" he accepted. The girls swarmed around him as Kenshi watched while heading to the woods.

"I think Ash can wait to come to the woods," he smiled. The day continued on until nightfall with Chiaia making dinner. Ash and Pikachu returned to Kenshi's room, empty except for his casual clothes and a note.

EXTRA CLOTHES FOR ASH

Picking it up, Ash wondered. "Kenshi didn't need to get new clothes for me," he said.

("Maybe not, but try it on,") Pikachu suggested. Ash shrugged before removing his uniform… just as a knock sounded from the door. Seeing his pants still on, Ash thought it was okay.

"Come in." The door opened, but instead of someone he knew, it was a green-haired girl in a black short dress and boots. "That's not… Grynio." The green-haired came to Ash and palmed his chest.

"I sense a power within you, young one," she sneered, her eyes barely visible through her bangs. "Perhaps, you'll rule everything here with a power that would dominate royalty." Pikachu began to spark his cheeks.

"What do you mean?"

"Don't worry until it's time… especially with this chest… and your fearful fast heart beating is making my heart a little attracted." She looked into Ash's eyes as they fell onto the bed. "You may be the catch of it all, and my sister'll have to accept." She buried her lips onto his and kissed furiously, the air beginning to leave his body. Just then, Chiaia came by.

"Doll!" she called out. The green-haired turned and soon ran out of the room. Chiaia wanted to chase Doll but checked on Ash, first. "Ash, you okay?" Ash soon got up and looked confused.

"What was that?" he asked. Chiaia didn't answer. Who was this new figure and why did she suddenly kiss Ash?

TO BE CONTINUED…