Author's Ramble: Oooh! I got sleep, and had a few dirty dreams to boot!!! Calling all AAMLovers and JAJLovers, there's some romance or hints of it in store for your arses, and not to forget you action lovers out there, there's lots of fighting and wild chases in store wit, and...just in case you're into both romance and action, I have for you the introduction of the ultimate couple pokemon battle of all time, with a mean cliffhanger to follow!!! If this were a game, you'd be pissin' in your jock strap and praying to your dead football coach trying to defeat the mighty Team Rocket!!! Wait...that was kinda twisted. Anyways, there's lots of surprises and thrills in store, as The Master of Ages saga continues!!!
CHAPTER 13: PHANTOM OF SAFFRON
The four heroes braced themselves against the darkness. The levitating girl held her silvery cybernetic arms in a dainty pose. Brock and Duplica heard of recent technological advances in Team Rocket research, but nothing could've prepared them for what they were seeing. Years ago, Misty heard of the removal of Sabrina from the Saffron Gym by the Pokemon League for illicit and unsanctioned psychic experimentation, but little did she know she'd eventually be hired by Team Rocket as a living database and prized assassin. Ash recognized her somewhat, though her voice gave her away. He stepped forward rather bravely and spoke to her.
"Sabrina. So this is how you turned out in this world. I never broke you out of your spell with Haunter, so you never regained the heart you lost as a little girl..."
She closed her eyes, and bowed her head, reopening them with a cold stare, "How dare you speak to me as if I were human! I am more machine than girl, and just as unloving and frigid. You do not belong here. You must die and feed the pokemon of this island with your flesh!!!"
Two pokeballs morphed from her clawlike, silvery right hand, "Go Alakazam!!! Go Xatu!!!"
With fire in his soul, Ash rallied his fearful, hesitant friends, "Come on, guys! We can't quit now! We're gonna have to tag-team! Call out your pokemon! Pikachu, I choose you!"
Brock shook off his fear, "Steelix is too big...Go, Magmar!!!"
Misty, encouraged by Ash, growled like a soldier, "Misty calls Starmie!!!"
Duplica, eager for action, roared, "Go, Jigglypuff!!!"
Sabrina looked on rather blankly and shapeshifted into a little metal girl with a ball, "Playtime...tee hee... Alakazam, Hyper Beam!!! Xatu, Drill Peck!!!
Breaking from their original pairing, Ash and Misty quickly teamed up with their pokemon, facing off against Alakazam, while Brock and Duplica banded together and faced off against Xatu.
"Pikachu, Reflect!!!"
"Starmie, Light Screen!!! Defend yourself!!!"
Alakazam shot a fierce Hyper Beam. It rammed hard into Starmie's Light Screen, destroying it with ease, but running into Pikachu's Reflect. It continued pressing on, ultimately cracking it and coming through. Pikachu and Starmie quickly dodged the attack, with the beam heading towards Ash.
"Waaah!!!"
"Ash, look out!!!" Misty yelled. He barely dodged the Hyper Beam, but was grazed rather nastily, receiving a thick burn across his arm from the friction. Ash cringed from the pain, but remained focused on the fight, while Misty ran to aid him.
"Don't worry about me. Keep your eye on your opponent, Mist."
"Right!"
Xatu spun its body towards its enemy in its Drill Peck assault. Magmar readied itself by making an air lens, while Jigglypuff stood next to Magmar using its defense curl. The psychic bird tore into Magmar with its long razor-sharp beak. The air lens broke, giving Magmar a nasty cut on the side of its gut, making it flinch. Duplica, knowing Brock usually defended when they battled together, took the offensive.
"Jigglypuff, Rollout Attack!!!"
The familiar-looking Jigglypuff spuns its body in the air, ramming full strength into Xatu's body, hitting its neck and knocking the wind out of it. Xatu crashed into the ground, but surprisingly, it quickly recovered and got back up for more. Both Duplica and Jigglypuff unleashed sweatdrops as Sabrina's Xatu stood up unfazed.
"Brock!!! Her Xatu withstood Jigglypuff's Rollout!!! It's immune to its weaknesses somehow!"
A wary Brock stared at what he saw, "These aren't your average pokemon. Knowing Team Rocket, they may either be cybernetically or genetically enhanced."
Sabrina, in the form of the metallic little girl, giggled, "Oh, no Mr. Brock!!! My pokemon are naturally trained. I've only tweaked their minds and bodies a bit with my brain waves. You're no fun...Tee hee!!!" The cyberpsychic unleashed her psychic powers, causing headaches on both our heroes and their pokemon. All except Ash, who held Misty while she twitched in pain. Pikachu was also unaffected, trying to bring the other pokemon back to their senses.
"ASH!!! HELP ME!!! MY HEAD!!!" Misty yelled.
"AAARRGGHH!!! DO SOMETHING, ASH!!!" Brock shouted.
Ash held Misty and looked at the metallic little girl illusion of Sabrina. He thought for a moment, remembering back to when he fought Sabrina back in Saffron Gym back in his world. Haunter was the one who broke her out of her spell, but it wasn't around to help. Think Ash, think. He needed to somehow snap Sabrina out of her spell. Pikachu stepped back little by little, as Xatu and Alakazam advanced threateningly towards it. Finally, it came to Ash. Sabrina mentioned earlier that Ash and Pikachu were immune to her mind, and Ash remembered back in his world, Sabrina shared a psychic link with her pokemon, one that could be easily broken if...
"Pikachu!!! Shoot your Zap Cannon between Xatu and Alakazam!!!"
"KAAAAAAAACCCHHHHHUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!" Its Zap Cannon whistled past Xatu and Alakazam, catching Sabrina off guard as the super-concentrated shot of electricity tore through the illusion she made and electrocuted her, damaging some of her circuitry.
"GRRAAAAAAAHHHHHH!!! NOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" she yelled as she fell to the ground, slamming into some detergents. Her pokemon did likewise, as they dropped to the ground feeling the pain of their master. The room returned to normal, and Ash's friends and their pokemon lost the headaches Sabrina had inflicted on them. Ash walked up to Sabrina triumphantly, while his companions slowly got up and followed.
Sabrina gasped, "I...am defeated. I am at your mercy....." Her circuitry had been short-circuited and kept sparking up as Ash held his hand out.
"Then...help me out."
"Wh...Wh...Why? Why do you not destroy me?" Sabrina stuttered.
"Why should I? I have nothing against you, and I'm not the kind that would destroy anyone."
"You...you are not of...this world. I can't probe your mind. Where do you come from?"
"I'm from the past, trying to protect my existence. And I need all the help I can get."
"I...can see in the minds of your friends, and from what I see, your intentions are noble and true."
Sabrina got up from the mess, grabbing onto Ash's hand. His friends stood behind him, cautious and protective of their friend. She reached out with her left hand, and pulled out a small circuited card.
"You want to return to your own time. I am the living database of this research facility, and I know of what you seek. The only Team Rocket lab I know of that is doing that kind of research is located beyond the Indigo Plateau, in Mt. Silver. Yes. You need the professor to gain access to that lab. He is being held on the far corner of the 2nd floor, in the classified research division. This card will give you clearance." Ash quickly pocketed the card and thanked Sabrina. He started to turn around to others, but Sabrina quickly added a disconcerting comment.
"Ash...be forewarned. The elite Team Rocket executives who ordered his kidnapping are headed over here soon. I suggest you quickly free the professor and leave this island, or you may have to face them in combat."
"Team Rocket executives?"Ash questioned.
Sabrina spoke their names slowly, almost fearful, "Jesse...James...and Persian"
"WAAAHHHH!!!"
Misty whispered to Ash, "Wait, weren't those the three Rockets you fought in your timeline, Ash?"
"Yeah, but we always beat 'em though! We shouldn't have much to worry about."
Sabrina turned away, "Don't underestimate them, friend. Even one of them is 10 times more powerful than I. Till we meet again, hero..." With those words, she phased into thin air and vanished.
Duplica nodded in agreement, "I agree with this...Sabrina. We gotta nab the professor and split. I heard rumors about those three Rocket execs. They've funded a lot of private experiments with pokegenics and I don't want to stick around to see what comes out of their pokeballs."
Brock prodded them on, "Let's go, and the teams have changed. It's best if Ash goes with Misty and I go with Duplica. It seems you two work well together, and that'd be best. Right?"
Ash and Misty looked at each other with a friendly glare.
"Uh...right..."
"Yeah..."
James looked on towards the horizon. They had just flown past Fuschia City, with Jessiebelle Meadows looming in the background. He loathed the sight of it. The breeze of the wind gave him a prophetic chill that ran up his spine, much like the thought of Jessiebelle would. He turned towards Jesse, who was looking in the opposite direction, looking down at the beach they just passed. She remembered the first time she met James in Pokemon Tech. The night before they had taken their infamous exams, she invited him to the pool for a drink. They had just come back from a party, and, though she would never admit it to him ever, she was rather smitten by James at the time. Just an excuse to see him in swimming trunks. She cracked a faint smile at the memory.
"Jess, what's so amusing?"
"Huh? What do you mean, James?"
"It's a rarity to see you smile. Like a rare flower that blooms once a year."
"Normally, I would be flattered by such a compliment, but for now, mind your business."
Persian-Meowth had fallen asleep in between them. It was having a rather disturbing dream, one that had recurred to him several times before. It was fighting a strange shadow on a grassy plain, with dark clouds looming on the horizon. It pranced into a fighting pose, readying itself to strike at his opponent with its Slash attack. In a blinding flash, they lunged at each other with claws outstretched. SSSLLAAASSSHHH!!!!!! The two turned a calculating eye back towards each other. Little by little, Persian-Meowth fell to the ground, with blood flowing out of the side of its chest. The strange shadow came closer, until it came in full view of Persian-Meowth's eyes. It looked like a Persian, but had heavier claws, hands and feet, and spoke with the intellect of a scientist.
"Do you not realize your destiny, Meowth?"
Persian-Meowth pulled itself away, "Grrrr...begone from me!"
"Look upon yourself. You are the first and only of your kind to walk and speak like a human."
"I'm...still a...weak pokemon. Nothing more...but...a freak"
"HAH!!! You still fawn over that Meowth girl. The one who called you a freak...Well, she missed out. Missed out on contributing to the gene pool of a new species."
"What do you mean?"
"You still don't get it. Look at yourself. You were poised and chosen for a new evolution. You will become...me. I am...Siam!!!"
He awoke startled, "HUH?!"
"Meowth, are you all right?" James asked.
Jesse, with an evil grin, said, "I didn't want to wake you, but you slashed open the upholstery."
"Nothing a little money won't cure," Persian-Meowth growled, "Have we reached our Cinnabar base yet?"
"We'll be there in a few more hours, Meowth. Go back to sleep." Jesse whispered.
James looked on towards the afternoon sun. It had a strange glow, reminding him of the days they spent in the old Meowth balloon traveling across the continent, stealing rare pokemon for their boss. A small tear formed in his eye, for he realized at that very moment, he had lost the friends he cherished so long ago. The two who sat next to him had become vicious shells of their former selves. Money...power...the high life. It was those things that compelled him to run away from his parents and Jessiebelle in the first place. Ironically, his only two best friends in the world had come to personify the very things that he ran away from. He turned to look at Persian, who had fallen back to sleep, and finally to Jesse, still looking toward the ocean with a solemn face.
"Security check is complete. You may enter."
The door approved of their card and they had entered. Ash walked ahead with Pikachu with Brock alongside him, while Misty followed Duplica, who ran to a nearby server. Duplica plugged in her laptop on the server and tapped in some coding.
"What're you doing, Duplica?"Misty asked.
"I'm uploading and activating a small stealth program I created for these kinds of missions. I call it DejaVu. It loops the last 24 hours of footage on the all the security cameras. That way, they won't see us sneak in or out. That and it erases itself from the hard drive when it's done so it can't be detected."
"Cool!"
Ash and Brock were greeted by two guards, who were securing Professor Oak.
"Hey, we weren't expecting more guards here. Where's your authorization?"
"Uhh...."
Before Ash could answer, Brock quickly punched one guard and kicked the other guard square in the gut. With the guard kneeling down, Brock gave him a hard elbow on the back, knocking him out rather quickly.
"There're times when you just can't resort to a lengthy pokemon battle. Quick, Ash, take their hats and their guns! We're gonna need 'em if we're gonna escape."
Ash quickly grabbed their guns and their weapons, and ran to Professor Oak, a little startled by what's going on. He ran to untie Professor Oak, who was very glad to have seen he was being rescued.
"Oh, this is great. Gary must have sent you, right!"
"G..GARY!!! No, Professor Oak! My name's Ash. We came here to save you!"
"But...why?"
"We'll talk later, but first we have to escape this island."
CHAPTER 14: TAKING OUT THE TRASH
"The research department sent us to escort this dangerous waste out personally. The lab geeks said we should dump in a rather concealed spot."
"Good. The sea's up ahead. Take one of the speedboats and report back pronto, hot stuff..."
With those words, the rocket grunt handed Misty the key to speedboat no. 18. and gave her a lusty wink. Misty, resisting the urge to beat the snot out of him, sweatdropped, giggled insincerely, and joined her friends who were pushing the rather large recycle bin, stashed with a certain professor, down to their speedboat. Running to meet up with them, she accidentally dropped the ID card she stole from one of the rocket grunts earlier. The infatuated rocket grunt, after staring at Misty's alluring butt for several seconds, noticed she dropped something. He ran up to the card and picked it up.
"Uhh, miss. You dropped your..."
He looked at the card and noticed his newfound object of desire's face didn't exactly match the picture on the card. Misty turned around and quickly realized what a major goof she just made.
"INTRUDERS!!! SOUND THE ALARM!!!"
Her friends turned around.
"Man, she blew our cover!" Duplica groaned, smacking her head in disappointment.
"CHA!!!(MISTY!!!)"
"MISTY, COME ON!!!" Ash yelled, getting off the boat and running towards Misty.
She gasped quickly and ran down the long dock. Ash stopped for a moment and grabbed her by the hand, pulling her even faster towards the boat. Once reaching the boat, he let go of Misty and got in, though there was a big problem.
Brock yelled, "We're not gonna be able to get out! They haven't opened the gate leading outside!"
"And they're not going to, now! The controls are too far off..."Duplica added.
Ash, with the courage that only desperation can bring, called to Pikachu, " Come on, Peek! We're gonna have to do this!!!" They jumped out of the boat, running out towards an oncoming mob of armed Rocket grunts.
"No, Ash!!! You'll get killed!!!" Misty yelled as she reached out for him too late.
Ash held Pikachu under one of his arms and commanded, "Pikachu, use your Reflect!!!" With those words, Pikachu unleashed a powerful barrier. The grunts fired at Ash, but were soon met by some of their bullets ricocheting back towards them.
"AAAHHH!!! Hold your fire!!!"
Ash ran into the small gatehouse, and taking a cue from Brock, punched out the unarmed attendant. With his hand stinging from the impact, Ash activated the controls for the gate, allowing for their escape.
Duplica stood amazed, "He did it?! He activated the controls!!!"
Brock yelled, "ASH, JAM THE CONTROLS SOMEHOW SO THEY CAN'T CLOSE IT AGAIN!!!"
Misty stood there, speechless, with a sense of guilt looming over her head.
The young hero heard the movement of footsteps coming in his direction. The gate had opened enough for them to leave, so Ash quickly placed Pikachu next to the controls and commanded, "Pikachu! Thundershock the controls!!!" With a swift jolt of electricity, the little mouse fried the circuitry, freezing the gate in place. Ash quickly grabbed Pikachu and jumped out of the gatehouse. They made their way to the boat and jumped in, with Brock already having started up the engine in anticipation of his return.
"WING THAT MOTHER, BROCK!!!" Duplica yelled in enthusiasm, impressed by Ash's exploits.
"You're alive..."Misty said, hugging Ash with a light smile, "I'm sorry...it's...it's all my fault..."
Ash, still a little aggressive from his recent brush with death sternly said to her, "Come on, Misty! Don't get soft on me now! We're not out of the woods yet!" He noticed several of the rocket grunts had already boarded some of the other speedboats and were making chase.
The four heroes raced out of the inlet, breezing past the gate. An excited Professor Oak jumped out of the bin, wondering what the commotion was all about, "Wow, I've only seen this stuff on TV!!!" Oak grinned. Ash quickly called to the professor and told him to stay down, for the grunts were firing in their direction as they sped towards them, and he couldn't risk having a dead professor.
Duplica called to Ash, "Ash, now that we're in the cave, we only have one chance to prevent them from chasing us out into the ocean! You're gonna have to cause a cave-in somehow!"
As everyone crouched down while enemy fire rained down in their direction, Ash quickly called Pikachu to him and said, "Pikachu, you're gonna have to use up all your power with Zap Cannon. Aim at the ceiling as we go. When I squeeze you a little, use your Zap Cannon. Got it?"
"PIKA!!!(YOU GOT IT!!!)" Ash, somewhat protected from Pikachu's electricity by the Team Rocket gloves, aimed Pikachu's face at the cave ceiling swiftly and squeezed.
"KACHU!!!"
FWABOOOMMM!!!
Well-size boulders fell down, shaking up some of the speedboats that followed, some falling directly on top of and destroying some speedboats, while others rammed into the cave walls trying to avoid a boulder.
"KACHU!!!"
BBBOOOOMMM!!!!SPLASH!!!
"KACHU!!!"
FRAK-BBBAAAMMM!!!!DRIP!!!SPLOSH!!!
Pikachu had tired out, but all seemed well. No one was on their trail.
Ash breathed a sigh of relief, "Looks like the coast is clear. Whew..."
"No!!! LOOK!!!" Misty yelled. In the distance, a huge hovercraft barreled down fast, quickly gaining speed, with really nasty looking heavy artillery popping out of every corner. Professor Oak peeked out of the recycle bin, with a big sweatdrop coming off his forehead, "We're doomed." Pikachu sighed, completely out of juice, unable to shoot any more Zap Cannons.
Ash muttered, "Pikachu's tired. I can't do anymore."
Out of nowhere, Misty came in front of Ash, "I owe you for screwing up and putting you in danger, Ash. I'll take it from here. Go, Dragonite!!!"
Dragonite came out and hovered above their speedboat, following it as it skated across the dark waters. Before Misty could react, the looming hovercraft fired several shells at their boat, with one headed straight at them.
"MISTY!!! LOOK OUT!!!" Ash yelled.
"AAAHHHHH!!!!!" she shouted.
He quickly grabbed her by the waist and pulled her away from the direction of the oncoming mortar shell. It exploded on the back end of their speedboat, shattering the engine into pieces. Brock fumbled at the wheel, almost losing control of the boat, but with Duplica's help managed to keep control of the crippled vessel. Fortunately, the boat's inertia kept it speeding forward, closing in on the cave's exit, but unfortunately they were starting to slow, with the behemoth hovercraft reloading it fearsome guns. Misty had fallen on top of Ash, blushing with guilt as she quickly got up and commanded her Dragonite, just as they were reaching the end of the cave.
"It's my turn to save you, Ash...,"she thought to herself before she yelled, "Dragonite, Hyper Beam across the top of the cave!!!" With those words, Dragonite ripped a mean Hyper Beam to the ceiling of the the cave, tearing down and crumbling the passage leading outside. The broken speedboat barely rushed out of the cascade of stones and boulders, which had rained down, destroying the hovercraft, and caving in the inlet behind them, preventing any more Team Rocket grunts from following.
"Alright!!! We made it!!!" Brock shouted in triumph.
Duplica exclaimed alongside her partner,"Cool!!! That was an awesome mission!"
Professor Oak stuck his head out of the bin, "Ooh...I'm alive, thanks to you!"
"PIKA!!! PIKA!!! (WOO-HOO!!! WOO-HOO!!!)"
A dizzy Ash, on the ground, shook his head, still recovering from the impact he received from being sandwiched between the hard floor of the boat and a falling Misty. He winced in discomfort until a hand quickly came in front, accompanied by the rather melancholy face of Misty.
"Ash...I'm sorry. I'm...it's my fault you were in danger...I"
He took her hand, "No...it's...it's okay. We're friends, right? We looked out for each other, right?"
Misty made a sweet smile and nodded, "Right."
An overexcited and concerned Professor Oak interrupted their burgeoning moment, "If you two don't mind, the boat's wrecked and we need to get as far away from the island as possible. It won't take long before they start looking for us.."
"Oak's right,"Duplica added, "How are we gonna ride outta here without a ride?"
"Easy," Misty said as she recalled Dragonite and fumbled for another pokeball, "Go, Grumpback!!!"
The massive whale materialized onto the water, with its back ready for transport. Everyone climbed on Grumpback's back, settling onto a hump and readying themselves for the ride.
"Where are we headed?" Misty asked.
Oak quickly interjected, "I recommend Porta Vista. My summer home and backup lab are there, and its very concealed from the likes of Team Rocket. Whatever you do, don't head back to Pallet, since they might expect me to return there."
"Alright then. Grumpback, set sail for Porta Vista!!!"Misty commanded.
"GRUMP!!!" the massive whale huffed as it paced speedily towards its destination, while our heroes rested on their backs, completely exhausted, yet with the gentle, pleasant pain that comes with a job well done. The sun was beginning to set, shining upon them as they went and pondered the events and emotions of the day.
"I'm sorry I had to delay our meeting, Mr. Oak. May I call you...Gary?"
"Yes, Mr. Giovanni."
"Thank you. As you can see, this...little boy and his Pikachu have caused me much harm. In the past, he foiled several of my agents schemes. I've always wondered how my organization would've fared without his existence, and...heh, as I can see, not only has my organization flourished, even my most incompetent agents have turned into fearsome players in the international crime circle."
"Pardon me for interrupting, Mr. Giovanni, but you said you had a proposal for me."
"Hmm...I like you, Gary. Blunt and straight to the point. I want to make a proposition. This...time-travel machine can become power itself. I've funded your sister's brilliant research for the past 3 years, and I wanted to know if you would be interested in becoming a member within our organization. We'd love to fully utilize the machine's abilities for our purposes."
"Tempting...but what purposes do you mean?"
"Oh...just a hostile takeover...a global takeover, if you get my drift..."
The 18-year Gary may have been conceited, never having learned the humility he would've learned if Ash had existed in his life, still had a glimmer of a decent conscience and told Giovanni, "I'm sorry...I can't give you an answer right now. We should make another meeting to discuss this in greater detail. Until then, I have to respectfully decline..."
Giovanni, in the back of his mind, said to himself, "Afraid to wield the world in your hand, boy? Well, my best executives should have the very incentive you need to make up your mind."
"Very well, then. Another meeting then." Giovanni said with a sinister grin.
BANG!!! SCRATCH!!!
The base was filled with silence. The three had arrived on the island. Merciless. Unrelenting. In a whimper of words, the supervisor of the base told Jesse, James, and Persian-Meowth of what had transpired. Having the mindset of gods, they called everyone to the mineral valley, with the supervisors lined up in a separate row in full view of their minions. James stood aside as Jesse made her quick speech to the masses of underlings. They paid no mind to their superiors, until Persian-Meowth unleashed the full fury of his might on all the supervisors, beating and scratching many of them close to death, though James was quick to have them brought to the medical facility and transferred to another TR base. "Sentimental fool," Jesse and Meowth thought to themselves.
After their "pep talk" occurred, they personally dragged the security supervisor to the surveillance room. They had the bloodied manager forward and rewind the surveillance, until Jesse spotted some peculiar occurrence near the end of the tape. She saw four rather peculiar rookies gaining access to the research division of the base, with one plugging up one of the servers and hacking into the database. Persian-Meowth violently pushed the supervisor aside and, with an expedient flick of its claws, rewound and froze a part of the tape. All four of the intruders were in full view, as Jesse glared at them with the darkest of glares.
James stared in disbelief, "That girl's face...it seems so familiar."
Jesse whispered evilly, "Misty Waterflower...the Indigo Champ...Why would she come here and do something so damaging to her reputation as a pokemon master, breaking into a private facility?"
"It seems our target decided to strike at us first..."Persian-Meowth purred, "...not a good, sensible, or anticipated move. But...whatever compelled her to do what she just did to us deserves our vengeance. Agree?"
"Yes, Meowth. James, do gather the radar records and try to estimate the direction in which they headed after they escaped."
James did as he was told, but felt uncomfortable as he gathered the records. With every file he gathered off the database, he remembered how he cheered Misty on at the last League Championship. He heard of the old Cerulean Gym, of the three sisters who had raised her, perhaps with a steely hand, but a loving one nonetheless. But for a Rocket exec, a conscience was supposed to be a handicap. Yet as the years went by, it haunted him like no other, eclipsing his yearn for wealth and power. Sooner or later, he would have to choose between his heart or his job, and the day was drawing closer by the second.
"James!!! What're you waiting, for!!! Get on!!!"
With that, he got on the chopper and tapped into his laptop, and within a few minutes, he figured out where they headed with the radar record coordinates.
"Porta Vista," he let out, as the pilot swung the helicopter into the sunset.
CHAPTER 15: LEAVING SO SOON...
"That's a rather interesting and intriguing story, Ash. Imagine this world being the result of you not ever going on your journey," Professor Oak said with wide eyes.
The four heroes and the professor had made their way to his summer home in Porta Vista. It stood atop a high ledge overlooking the ocean. Underneath the bungalow, his lab was a veritable Area 51, having several levels and hidden areas. They had stowed away in the far corner of the 3rd level, in a cozy den, where Ash had recounted his story his to Professor Oak, who had listened with great interest and great dread. It was a private conversation, for his friends had taken off for a stroll on the grounds. Brock fell asleep in one of the guest rooms, while Duplica and Misty reclined against the edge of the bungalow, overlooking the majestic view of the the dark blue ocean, with the moon looming on the horizon, adding its haunting shine on the ocean. Duplica, eager to talk to another female, started up a conversation.
"Asides from you blowing our cover, that was a great mission, and I have to say I was impressed by that Dragonite of yours..."
"Umm...thanks."
Duplica paused for a moment, wondering what to say next, "I guess Ash'll be leaving soon, then, since we know the location of the time machine."
"Yeah..." Misty said as she stared deep into the moon.
"Misty...do you...like Ash?" Duplica said, completely forsaking her flair for subtlety.
The 18-year old water pokemon master blushed and looked downward pausing for a long time until she answered, "It's been difficult to hide, even harder to accept..."
"Well...look on the bright side. He'll be reunited with a younger you in his timeline. Right?"
"Yeah, but...you don't understand."
"Understand what?"
"How will I turn out when he comes back into my life? Will I still be the same, better, or worse? I followed him for reasons in his timeline that have never been made clear to me. He never told me why we were together, or why we stuck together for so long. Friendship could never be that strong, could it? Did he...like me?"
Duplica was stunned by Misty, having shared similar doubts about Ash, "Believe it or not...I know how you feel. When I touched Ash's mind in the flame that his Watchdawg made, I didn't see much, only me restoring the Imite House, with Ditto completely able to transform perfectly. You guys helped me out, but..."
Misty listened on with heightened interest, "But what, Duplica?"
"But...Brock left me...in his timeline," she said in a rather sad, low tone.
"You...you like Brock?!" Misty said with a tinge of shock.
"You act surprised, Misty. It seems we both have the same problem. We have great guys who're our best friends, yet they're too stupid to see how much they're loved by the girl sitting right next to them."
Misty let out a sad whimper, "Hmm...yeah. It's weird. I've only known Ash for five days, yet I feel like I've known him my whole life. I can't stand the thought of him leaving me to go back to his time, even if he is going back to a younger me."
"You...don't wanna lose him, do you?" Duplica said rather solemnly.
"I...can't do anything about it," Misty said, holding back tears while running away from the edge of the bungalow.
Duplica, a little upset at Misty's sensitivity, "Come on! You can't give up just like that? Follow your heart, Misty, just like me. I'm gonna try my best to keep Brock in my life no matter what! And you should do the same with Ash! Tell him how you feel. You can be subtle, and if that doesn't work, smack him over the head with your mallet until he gets it!"
Misty spun around to look at her and made a determined face and a peace sign, "Hmm...Ash Ketchum!!! Prepare to be infatuated by the awesome sex might of Misty Waterflower, pokemon master and soon to be master of your heart!!!"
Duplica made a major sweatdrop and lifted her eyebrows as she thought to herself, "Gee, she's got spirit..."
Professor Oak, Ash and Pikachu made their way out towards the elevator, planning their next move. Samuel Oak was the quickest to believe Ash's story, since he was privy to the research his granddaughter conducted and understood the situation better than anybody could.
"I can call my grandson Gary to give you clearance to his lab, though we're gonna have to persuade May to destroy all her research with space-time displacement."
"May? May Pine?"
"Hmm, you know May, Ash?"
"Yeah, I used to play with her when I was a little kid, but...she's your granddaughter? Then that means..."
"She's Gary's older sister. I haven't heard her called May Pine in a long time. That's her mom's name."
Ash had a small piece of the puzzle of his life and fitted in a corner of his mind. Still fresh from the shock of hearing May was related to Gary, he wandered out of Oak's home, with Oak escorting him out, giving him a key, "I'll make the calls tonight. In the meantime, you are free to stay here in any of the guest quarters. Relax and go into town. Porta Vista is hosting the Moon Spirit festival tonight, and its ideal for fun. Good night, Ash, and don't brood too much about your situation. You're too young for that." With those words, Ash and Pikachu strolled out for a while, with no real aim to their wandering, finally setting on the steps of one of the bungalows. He sat down and bowed his head, and against Oak's advice, brooded like crazy.
"Chu...(Oh boy...)"
He brooded for what seemed like an hour, until someone called out to him.
"Hmm...there you are! I've been looking for you everywhere."
"Huh?" Ash said as he turned around, and almost fell back at what he was seeing. A girl was wearing a beautiful low-cut white dress adorned with various water motifs, with the frills reaching about mid-thigh, revealing white lace caressing her long, shapely legs down to her white high heels. Her arms were covered with web-like sleeves, riding past the elbow. She wore a sparkling blue necklace with a sapphire drop at the very tip. Her face was alluringly painted, with deep red lipstick covering her lips outlined with a dark purple. She painted her eyelids with a passionate shade of baby blue, and her blush was perfectly blended into her soft cheeks. But something was missing. The girl had done away with the chocolate hue which she had painted her hair, and instead, her flamey orange, natural hair cascaded from her beautiful head.
"Mmm....mmm...M.M.M...M.M.M.M...Misty????!!!!!"
In an instant, Ash was reminded of the wanton beauty of her sisters, but how little it compared to what stood before him. He at once wasn't able to recognize her, but upon recognizing her, was filled with contagious awe and a strange warmth. His heart skipped and pounded like crazy, but Ash, ever the king of blunders, falls and lands on his back.
"PIKA!!!"
Misty runs and kneels next to Ash, "Are you okay?"
Ash nodded his and sat upright, "Uhh, yeah...Why are you dressed like that, Mist?"
"Oh...umm. I wanted to go to the festival, but I'm having second thoughts. I wanted to go with someone, but I can't find anyone...", Misty said, attempting to make it obvious.
"Uhh...good luck finding someone...uhh"
"CHA!!!" Pikachu smacked his forehead, for it was rather obvious, even to Pikachu what was going on.
"He can't be this dense..."Misty thought to herself, trying to stem her anger somewhat successfully, "Hmph...you know Ash. I do owe you a date, remember? You beat me fair and square during our match back at my gym. It's not like me not to fulfill a promise..."
"Uhh...but you never gave me that Ocean Badge you promised me..."
Like Mt. Saint Helens, she erupted, "YOU SAID YOU DIDN'T WANT THE BADGE!!!"
"WAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!"
Regaining her composure, she reached into her purse, and pulled out a small crest shaped like an ocean wave, embedded with a small heart in the center, "Here, Ash. Your badge."
"Oh...thanks Misty!"
"Finally, positive feedback. A smile...and a blush I see," Misty thought to herself, seeing she finally was making some headway, quickly picking up a strategy, "The way to a man' heart is usually through the stomach, but Ash seems to be really into pokemon or anything closely related. This is perfect! I'm a pokemon master and he's a pokemon trainer. I'll have to beat him at his own game. Then I'll win his heart and maybe... the truth."
"Now then, I'll guess you'll have to go on that date with me. You agreed to it when we battled, right?"
"Right...?!" Ash said, lightly blushing.
With the speed of a Dodrio, she pulled Ash up from the ground by the arm and threw him into her jeep. Pikachu tagged along while she kept telling him about the festival, "I heard they're hosting free pokemon battles at the festival. If you don't mind, I'd like a rematch with you, Ash!"
Never backing away from a challenge, Ash clenches his fist and says,"Hmm...you're on, Misty! Let's go!"
Duplica strolled over to Brock's room, where he was deep in slumberland. She sat next to him on the bed, looking upon his face. In her mind came back the memory of how they first met. Her Ditto was never able to completely transform, and with that problem, Duplica couldn't reopen the Imite House as she had planned. The money she had saved up from previous shows quickly evaporated, paying property taxes and utility bills. The Imite House property was eventually taken as collateral in the province for unpaid taxes, and demolished, having a Mc Donalds built in its place.
She wandered towards Celadon, hoping to find a new life, maybe selling perfumes for the famous Erika. It was by absolute chance she ran into Brock. It was one rainy, drizzly day in the middle of a grove off the side of one of the routes leading to Celadon.
"Ditto...don't worry. We'll make it to Celadon tomorrow, but...just try to stay calm" Duplica said, trying to comfort her Ditto, who hadn't eaten for days. Their food supply ran out, and they hadn't run into another city or town for days. Duplica sat Ditto on a stump and went to forage for whatever food she could find in the woods. Running towards the other side of the road, she slipped in the mud, busting up a knee and slamming hard on her palm. She started to cry heavily, more out of her desperate situation than for any pain she may have felt.
"Umm...please, can I help you? There's no need to cry."
She looked up to see a boy, slightly older than her, wearing a rain jacket and carrying lots of supplies. He helped her up, taking her into his strong arms and carrying her to a secluded inn that was closeby, since she couldn't stand. Brock talked to her, and they exchanged the stories of their lives, of how he sold his old gym to Team Rocket, and how she had lost the Imite House. He kept her company all night, with the greatest concern on his face, fed her, and even rented her a separate room, instead of letting her sleep in the lobby.
"You tried to leave me, Brock, but I didn't let you, did I?"Duplica thought to herself as she looked at his chest heave up and down as he slept, "And I joined you in your career, the one you didn't want to take up, but had no choice since you had to send money back to your family. Whatever love I have for you I don't want to let go, and if Ash is as kind-hearted and compassionate as I think he is, he's gonna help me."
With those thoughts, Duplica ran to one of the desks and began writing a letter. But little did the guests of Oak's home know that some uninvited guests were inside the home as well...
Pikachu stood on the sidelines as its two most favorite trainers in the world faced off.
"Misty calls Starmie!!!"
"Bulbasaur, I choose you!!!"
With fire in their hearts, the two young trainers commanded their pokemon with authority. They battled on a makeshift wooden platform, with beautiful Japanese lanterns adorning the edge in various colors, and several spectators looking on as they partied in the festival. Festive music played in the background, adding to the tension.
"Starmie, Swift Attack!!!"
"Bulbasaur, Razor Leaf!!!"
Both their pokemon unleashed their attacks simultaneously, and managed to dodge them easily, but Starmie's Swift Attack, which is never supposed to miss, quickly turned back and smacked hard into Bulbasaur's back like a heat-seeking missile, sending it flying in front of Starmie.
"Finish it off with Psychic!!!"
Starmie unleashed Psychic, tearing deep into Bulbasaur, since it was also a poison type, and readily susceptible to psychic attacks.
The ringside annnouncer announced, "Bulbasaur is down. Starmie is the victor!"
"Grrrr..."Ash growled as he recalled Bulbasaur and reached for another pokeball, "Go, Squirtle!!!"
"Aah...you wish to go toe-to-toe with a water master, eh Ash?" Misty teased.
"You think you're hot stuff, huh Misty?" Ash smiled, "Time to cool you down! Squirtle, Hydro Pump!"
"I'm hotter than you think! Starmie, Light Screen!!!"
Starmie quickly formed a barrier, shielding it from Squirtle Hydro Pump. The tiny turtle rammed full force into Starmie, but fell back from the impact, disorienting it.
"Starmie, Double Edge!!! Full Strength!!!" The powerful starfish spun hard into Squirtle's soft underbelly, sending it flying in front of Ash's feet. He quickly recalled his Squirtle, and thanked it for a good job.
"Well, I guess it's time to pull out the big guns. It should be able to withstand a little squirt like Starmie...Go, Charizard!!!"
"GROAR!!!"
"Not too smart, Ash. You were much more formidable when you beat me last time. Starmie, Swift!!!
"Grrrr, Charizard, Fly up!!!"
The massive Charizard flew up, but Starmie's Swift attack once again met its target, not knocking it out of the sky but disorienting it enough for Misty to follow up with her last attack.
"Starmie, Bubblebeam!!! Give it all ya got!!!"
With those words, Charizard was bombarded by the highly explosive bubbles from bubblebeam. It crashed down on the ground hard, attempting to get up, but quickly falling down in exhaustion. Ash withdrew Charizard and praised it, yet bowed his head in defeat, but smiled a little, for deep in his heart, he'd prefer to lose to Misty than anyone else. The announcer yelled,"And Misty Waterflower, this year's League Champ, wins the match!!!"
She ran to Ash really close and grabbed his hand. They looked into each others eyes and smiled.
"You did your best, Ash. That's all that matters. I still think you have what it takes to be a master..."
"Easy for you to say. You're a League Champ and a future member of the Elite Four..."
"Ash, please...learn something from me. Don't just think about pokemon. Try to enjoy your life, too...Umm...if you don't mind, they're hosting a dance in one of the open tents on the beach, and..."
Ash hesitated, taking her advice into heart, gently smiled and said, "Sure...let's go."
CHAPTER 16: PASSION INTERRUPTED
They stood before their captives, with several of their henchmen pointing submachine guns in their directions. With the conceit and vanity that they prided themselves on, they interrogated their prisoners as to the whereabouts of the gym leader. Duplica spat in Jesse's face only to receive a stingin' slap across hers. She was quickly kicked to the ground as Jesse proceeded to wipe the spit off her face. Persian-Meowth quickly ran to Duplica and flicked out his index claw, bringing it close to Duplica's neck. Both James and Professor Oak were shocked as to the ruthlessness of Jesse and Persian, but were good at keeping it to themselves.
"Now, which one of you will volunteer the girl's location, or do I have to...dig a little further?" Persian-Meowth sneered, never losing the team's flair for cheesy puns, and digging his claw further into Duplica's neck, with a little blood trickling out."
Brock couldn't take it anymore, "Duplica...please tell them. I...I don't want to lose you. Even if they find Misty and Ash, these scum aren't gonna be able to defeat them...please."
With tears forming in her eyes, Duplica let out, "Misty...I'm sorry...The festival..."
Elsewhere, another Team Rocket duo was looking overhead, eyeing the festival.
"Kid, have you spotted that Misty girl yet?" Billy asked.
"Not yet, but I heard Jesse, James, and their nasty little Persian are around here as well. Giovanni seemed pretty upset hearing those three had lost Professor Oak, from what I heard."
"You seem to hear a lot, Kid," Machamp groaned, "Just how are you privy to such information?"
"Let's just say I have ears in all sorts of places, Champie..."
In the back of Kid's mind, she knew she was starting to blow her identity, but she didn't care. She never joined Team Rocket out of a sincere interest, but as a cover and a front for her mission. Kid wasn't even her real name. Little did her comrades know, but Kid had a very interesting background, one closely related to the being she was sent to look for.
"Red...Where are you?"
Further above from the impending action, the dark one, the entity called Red, loomed over all of them, bellowing in laughter, "Every last one of these fools are playing into my hands. Ash's naivete, Misty's loneliness, Jesse's hate, James's weakness, Persian's pride, Giovanni's greed, Gary's arrogance. People are so predictable. Try all you can, father Ash. You cannot stop me from my goal. I will own your little body, with Misty at my side. Out of the water came all living things, and from the womb of the water princess will be born a new race....
In the midst of his pontificating, he spotted a familiar face among the groups of people he oversaw, one he hadn't seen since battling her back home, "Impossible...IMPOSSIBLE!!! It...can't be her...."
"Beautiful. Please...I don't want the night to end."
Ash had never danced before in his life, maybe once with May when they were younger, but he stepped on her feet and she pounded the crap out of him. Misty was more forgiving, having showed him some steps while he tried again and again, until he got it...somewhat. But now they were slow-dancing in a rather close embrace with their eyes closed, and most of the couples already having left the dance floor. As the night ebbed away, they found themselves alone, not wanting to stop. Misty snuggled into Ash, breathing warmly onto his chest, while Ash caressed her back and waist, gently pressing his head against hers. Neither of them could believe the fulfilling comfort they were feeling now, but couldn't deny it, and kept in their embrace as they felt the minutes pass on for what seemed like hours. Hours of sheer bliss. Pikachu watched from the edge of the dance floor, eating a small burger someone had dropped, and looking on at the two trainers, feeling almost like a child to his parents.
One of the festival attendants suddenly turned off the lights and put out some of the colored lanterns, giving them the cue that they should leave. It was about 3 in the morning, and neither of them could believe it.
"Umm, we should go, Misty..."
"Yeah, but I didn't get the chance to talk to you much tonight."
"About what?"
"There's a lot I want to know about you, Ash, and a lot you should know about me, and how I feel..."
"Yeah, I know what you mean," Ash said with a blush.
"Let's sit on the beach, together..."
"Right, come on Pikachu. We're taking a walk."
Misty snatched her high heels with one hand, while Ash grabbed the other, leading her to edge of the beach. It was the most splendid scene for romance, Misty thought to herself, as the moon blessed the soft waves of the ocean with an aquamarine glow. They sat down next each other rather closely, while they took in the splendid scenery, and pondered their next words.
Misty closed her eyes and flustered a little, "Ash...I have to admit my life hasn't been this exciting until you came into it. That Team Rocket break-in we staged, it was rather fun."
"It was awesome, and pretty soon, with Professor Oak's help, I can get back to my timeline," Ash said, not knowing his words hurt Misty as he said them.
"Ash, how much time do you have until you can go back?"
"It's been five days since I got here, so I'm guessing a week and two days is all I have left."
"What do you plan on doing when you go back?"
"Umm...all I can do is go back to my pokemon training with you and Brock."
"Oh...Ash...before you go, I wanted to know something that only you can tell me."
"What's that, Misty?"
"What...was I like to you? I mean, what was our relationship like in your time?"
Ash knew he'd have to answer questions like these sooner or later, and mustered up all his courage closing his eyes, "You...you were my best friend. But, we didn't start off that way. You always nagged me about your bike when we first met, and we always fought over everything. Before I was thrown into this world, I...I started liking you, secretly..., but I always thought you didn't like me, and I made fun of you and said mean things to you sometimes, just like you would do to me. I'm sorry. If I could take it all back, I would...I...miss the Misty I knew..."
Surprisingly, Misty didn't react angrily as she normally would. Instead she tried to understand how he saw things from his point of view. She saw the pain in his face as he admitted his feelings for the younger Misty.
With a slightly saddened face, Misty looked directly at him, asking him the question that was on her mind the most, "Ash...how do you feel about me now?"
He wasn't prepared to answer. The question scared him even more since he was now with an older Misty, for the younger one would never have been so blunt. He was older and she was older, and their maturity caught up with them. He thought long and hard, blushed heavily, and going against the grain of his 12-year old brain, finally attempted to say something, "You're...you're...I"
Misty drew close to him, brushing her velvet cheek onto his face and whispered sweetly with a loving smile, "I like you...no matter what timeline I'm in." Little by little, they shut their eyes and brought their lips closer and closer, while Pikachu covered his eyes with his paws in anticipation.
CHAAABOOOOMM!!!!!
"What?"
"Uhh!?"
The two broke from their loving spell, interrupted by a loud explosion. Pikachu quickly ran to Ash, afraid of the sound, yet attempting to muster his courage. Misty quickly grabbed onto Ash in anger as she saw three figures appear before them. Ash stood up, bewildered by what was happening.
"I was right about her, James. This...Misty can't seem to control her hormones. What a weakling."
"Think about it, Jess. If I spent all my time alone traveling around the world training pokemon, I'd feel sexually anxious too. I don't blame her." James said, attempting to sound forgiving, but failing rather miserably.
"Quit babbling, you two. Now, Ms Waterflower. We've been looking for you,"Persian-Meowth sneered.
"Who are you? How did you find us?"
"Call me Jesse. We're the elite of Team Rocket, and though normally I would start our motto, I'm quite tired from torturing your little friends back at Oak's home. It was rather easy finding you after talking to the green-haired ninja girl."
"No...Duplica..." Misty muttered.
"It's them," Ash thought to himself. They had changed much from the incompetent pokemon thieves he knew, for James had gained a slight build, and had done away with his old hairstyle, sporting a shorter haircut with two long bangs in front of his face. He wore sunglasses with blue tints, and a suit to match. Jesse had done away with the candy-cane style hair she used to have, instead dividing her long red hair into two parallel, elegant ponytails. Her long dress was a mixture of white and pink cloths sewn in a dazzling array, with a long slit showing her rather sensual right leg. Meowth was an entirely different pokemon. It was a Persian standing fully erect like a human, though his feet looked bigger and heavier, and the fur from his ears were thicker. He almost looked like an undiscovered species of pokemon altogether. But their looks were far from their most formidable quality.
"Whaddya want me for?!" Misty yelled, seething at the fact that they spoiled her moment with Ash.
Jesse tapped her chin and spoke, "We're interested in your gym. If you value your life and that of your little friend, you'll hand it over to us without question."
"And what if I say no, you old hag???!!!"
Even if Misty was older and had never met Jesse before in this alternate timeline, she pricked the nerve that would unleash Jesse's full vengeance and hatred. Misty looked on in disbelief as Jesse morphed from classy supercriminal of the world, to penultimate she-devil and meta-bitch goddess.
"Wha...wha....what did she call me?" Jesse said, with several nerves twitching out of her forehead.
"She just said old hag, Jess. What's the big deal?" James said with an innocent look on his face.
"GGGGGGGRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHH!!!!!! GOOOO, DAARRKK AAAARRRRBBBBOOOOKKKK!!!!!!!!!"
Ash, Misty and Pikachu readied themselves for a fight. They've never before witnessed ugliness of that magnitude and called out their pokemon in fear.
"Pikachu and Watchdawg, I choose both of you!!!"Ash yelled, seeing Persian readying itself to join in.
"I call Starmie!!!"
"Fear our might!!! FEAR TEAM ROCKET!!! Go, Dark Weezing!!!" James called out, wanting to defend a rather pissed-off Jesse.
"I call myself. Persian, go!!!" Persian-Meowth growled, "The rat is mine..."
"Ash, I'll take Jesse. You take on James. Pikachu will have to command itself against Persian."
"You've read my mind, Misty. You heard that, Pikachu? You have to take on Persian without my commands. You can do it!!!"
"Pika!!! (Bring it on!!!)"
Everyone readied themselves for their duel. Jesse and Dark Arbok stared evilly at Misty and Starmie. Ash and his Watchdawg, Satoshi, looked upon James and his Dark Weezing. But Pikachu faced off against a vicious-looking Persian-Meowth, who kept retracting and pushing out his claws in anticipation of having them render Pikachu's flesh from its bone. The wind howled, the waves roared, and little did our heroes know they'd be in for a rude awakening...
TO BE CONTINUED...