The Pokémon Master

Broken Diamond

By the Davids (DK and Darth David)

Chapter Two: The Pokémon Master

Ash Ketchum gazed up at the stars as he had so often done before, looking back at the previous events that had passed so quickly, so very quickly. He was certain that the stars were gazing right back, but not just at him, but all who had shared his almost impossible dream. It had been a long voyage, to be sure. All too often he had been forced to throw away the trappings of his previous life into the turbulent sea of progress simply to stay afloat, but here he was. Riding the big waves.

"IPokémon Master" he breathed out, only beginning to understand what the title meant. "I am the Pokémon Master," Ash repeated, standing up and brushing the grass off his freshly ironed trousers and matching suit. "I am the Pokémon Master!" he yelled out to the whole world in complete confidence this time, arms spread out wide, pride of everything he had achieved, become, done and ever will do bursting in every vein in his entire body, coursing through it. His mind bathed in a pool of images, thoughts, and memories that manifested themselves into a trickle that ran down Ash's cheek. As Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, he had come far, and now, as the Pokémon Master, he would go farther still. And as if a transformation occurred, he ceased to think of his identity, his past, who he had been and how he had got here, and only focused on what he would do with this great power he now possessed.

"I'm proud of you," a voice whispered softly in his ear. Ash didn't recognize the voice as any variable of his own; his mind searched for a possible source.

"Ashhello? It's me, Misty."

Still, Ash was unsure. He turned around, and sure enough, there was Misty standing there, aqua-blue eyes brightly shining, face radiant with pleasure and happiness. How far they had come together, and yet he didn't recognize her voice. Have I become so consumed with myself that I can't even remember something so familiar? Ash wondered. But as quickly as he had realized it, he cast the thought aside. He was extremely tiredyeah, that was it, he was just tired. After all, who wouldn't be after just becoming the Pokémon Master? His final battle played itself out time and time again whenever he closed his eyes. The scream of Venomoth's Psychic attack still rang stubbornly through his ears, as if it was Montella himself refusing to accept defeat. But there was no escaping the justice of Ash's victory. All those years he had focused on "just maybe's" and "if only's" until, in one pivotal moment, the penultimate chapter in his life, his dream had become a reality. In the end, he had fought side by side with his Pokémon, breaking down the boundaries between trainer and Pokémon, as every master must learn to do or die trying. Not in a mortal sense, Ash decided, but if he could never have become the Pokémon Master, then he was dead in a way. There was nothing in life, nothing in his past or his future that could compare to this present, he was certain. This last thought hadn't finished echoing in his mind before being replaced by another. You deserve it. You and no one else.

"Ash! I'm getting a little worried about you now"

Ash jerked back to reality, smiling awkwardly at the pretty redhead. "Sorry, Misty. I'm just tired, that's all."

Misty relaxed visibly. "Ash, it's midnight. All of Indigo Plateau is tired"—she drew closer to him—"especially you."

Ash's mind was a blank. He opened his mouth, to agree with her, to tell her how tired he was, but also how happy, how wonderful, but no words came out.

She leaned even closer, her breath warm on his bare neck. "I love you, Ash Ketchum."

"And I love you too, Misty Waterflower." Ash blinked, surprised. His answer had been automatic, his mouth had acted independently of his mind. He felt nothingbut then again, maybe it was because he was tired. Many times he had thought of Misty as something definitely more than just a friend, he knew he loved her, he must love herBut why is it, Ash thought, that being this close to her would stir up such feelings before, but not now? What's changed?

Their lips joined, but still, he felt nothing.

One Week Later

A monarchy of rogues summarized their progress in Cerulean City before the royal departure.

"Excellent! I assume that everything is ready for our escape?" inquired Giovanni, a king among thieves. His prince nodded. Their king smiled, a sure sign of his approval. Sighs of relief were expelled. When the king was happy, there were no casualties. But suddenly a very unusual thing happened.

"You may now leave," announced his heir. This action of unauthorized authority angered the king, and his troops shifted uncomfortably, murmuring.

"You dare talk to me as if our positions are reversed?" Giovanni raged. The prince was not of Giovanni's blood; his name was Jup Zing, and he had been hand-picked by Giovanni when he was a rising star in the Pokémon League, and promised a great many things, which he received in full at the mere cost of the lives of a trainer and two Pokémon.

"They are," Jup replied crisply, running his fingers through his long, midnight black hair. "You made me what I am, sir, and I thank you for that. But today, we"-he gestured at the surrounding men-"say goodbye. You will be allowed to live if you do not cause us any trouble. We have a new leader, Giovanni, and that is me."

"You?" Giovanni asked, amused. "And I suppose all my men belong to you as well?"

Jup allowed himself a small smile. "Mostly. But, any man or woman here that chooses to go with you is more than welcome to go. No one will be killed." Judging by the prince's smile, however, he seemed to be implying that those loyal to Giovanni would be few and far between. That, the king could not allow.

"Kill him!" Giovanni roared, pointing a menacing finger at Jup. The prince hardly flinched.

One man indistinguishable from the rest held a small handheld pistol at Jup's head. Almost instantly, that man in turn heard the sound of many rifles being cocked and aimed at him. The people stared at the two rulers, waiting for a reaction from Giovanni.

Giovanni was steaming with hot anger. His facial expression clearly reflected his inner fury as he rose up and pointed an angry finger straight in Jup's face. "I made you who you are, ungrateful scum!" The finger trembled in rage, but Giovanni's voice had faltered slightly. Even he knew that every king had to step down sometime.

"It is a poor pupil that does not exceed his master," Jup recited slowly and deliberately. That proverb was Jup's mantra. He had learned much under Giovanni, and now, Giovanni would learn even more under him. The tables had turned, and he could hear the soldiers step back and lower their rifles as Giovanni drew out a Poké Ball.

Evidently, this conflict would not be resolved with guns.

"Kangaskhan, go!" Giovanni said, calm and placid once again, completely confident that he could easily beat Jup.

"Electrode, come out!" Jup commanded, expertly throwing the Poké Ball and releasing the Ball Pokémon.

Giovanni scratched his head, unable to understand Jup's choice. The child knew that his team ran strong with Ground and Rock types, but he would not let the error go to waste. Returning Kangaskhan, he sent out Rhydon instead.

"Electrode, Toxic!" Jup ordered, but the Ground/Rock hybrid simply shrugged off the attack, unaffected. Jup, knowing this would happen, quickly switched to Sandslash. Rhydon stomped on the ground, causing an Earthquake, but Sandslash was unimpressed by the attack and answered with an Earthquake of its own. Rhydon's Rock heritage left it weak to Ground attacks, and the creature fell to the ground.

The man who had threatened Jup's life stood down and holstered his pistol.

Giovanni, still calm, sent out his Kangaskhan once again. He wasn't licked—just yet. Jup smiled. He had waited an eternity for this day, had planned it carefully as he toiled under the king's iron rod. And now, his dreams were becoming a reality. He returned Sandslash and called out his Poliwrath, which was promptly knocked to the ground by one of Kangaskhan's heavy punches. Jup didn't know the creature's moveset, so he ordered three Amnesias and a Rest as Kangaskhan sent blow after blow.

Then, Poliwrath woke up.

Giovanni bit his lower lip. There was an unspoken rule in Pokémon training that stated you were never to use a Fighting type. The reason for this was the general overuse of elemental attacks, which Fighting types did not like one bit. But Poliwrath had Amnesia, so his special defense was quite formidable. Its Water type complimented its fighting type perfectly, and because Poliwrath was a Water type Giovanni could not switch to his only remaining Pokémon, Nidoking, no matter how appropriate that would be.

Jup recited the words he had practiced so many times. Normal types, such as Kangaskhan, were weak to Fighting attacks, and nothing else. "Submission," Jup said.

For years now, Giovanni had defeated Jup time and time again as much to teach him as to humiliate him. Inside, that had destroyed Jup. But he took heart now, in this incredible moment, that what goes around, comes around, even among princes and thieves.

Back in the Indigo Plateau

The lower depths of Indigo Towers were bathed in red light. Sirens screamed, computer terminals displayed red alert messages, and various members of the staff of the Pokémon League scurried about like scared rabbits, trying to get a handle on the situation. In the war room, Ash Ketchum was experiencing his first taste of terrorist activity. Of all the days not to sleep in! he thought to himself.

"Indigo Towers, come in!" a distorted voice buzzed. "Do you read me? Officer Henry *bzzzt* Jackson of the Cerulean City Police *bzzzt* Force reporting, we've got a *bzzzt* situation here! Repeat, we've got a situation!"

Ash grabbed the microphone headset Bruno offered him. As Ash listened in, another person took over and identified itself as a Pokémon League Official.

Ash spoke quickly; there wasn't a second to lose. "Can you tell us what's the problem? Hurry, we don't think we can hold your transmission much longer!"

"They came *bzzzt* twenty, thirty *bzzzt* strong, taken *bzzzt* everything! Whole city *bzzzt* ransom!"

"Who?" Ash demanded. "Who came?"

"It was—" Gunshots were heard, and then a dying scream echoed throughout the steel-walled room. "—AAAAAAAAAAAUUUUUUUUGGGGGHHH!!!" Static quickly followed as the transmission was terminated completely.

Ash slumped in his seat. He had never heard the scream of a dying man before, and he hoped he would never hear it again. But it was likely that if he lived to be a hundred, he would never forget it, no matter how hard he tried.

"Ashwe have to do something!" Lorelei prompted as her long, slender fingers danced across a keyboard. No matter how young he was, this was his job, and people looked to him for orders. Ash didn't consider himself strong in leadership capabilities, but he just couldn't bring himself to turn his back on his duties.

"I suggest we send in two anti-terrorist SWAT teams and set up roadblocks around Cerulean, then contact the remainder of the Cerulean Police Force to stop all traffic flowing into or near Cerulean," Lance offered. "What do you say, Ash?"

Ash thought a moment. "Yeahthat sounds good" Just then a familiar voice interrupted his plans of action.

"I'm going too!" the voice yelled.

Ash knew who had spoken, but willed with all his heart, Please, don't let it be her. She doesn't need to get involved. He turned around in his swiveling chair, and sure enough, it was Misty. Ash knew he had to stop her at all costs. This was no picnic, and considering Misty's stubbornness, he'd have to do a heck of alot of persuading.

"No, you're not," Ash said, as firmly as he could. He couldn't let his personal feelings for her get in the way of him carrying out his job. "Stay here with me, Brock, and the rest"

"Ash, this is no time for chauvinism, I have a family there, and I can't possibly—"

Ash was indignant. "Listen, Misty, I'm not being a chauvinist! This is no time for you to play the hero and go out and rescue the entire city! The only thing that will happen if you go to Cerulean is you'll join your sisters in a grisly death!!!"

Suddenly, the red alert sirens didn't seem quite so loud. Lorelei took a wary step back as Ash shifted uncomfortably in his seat. But Misty never moved a muscle.

"And what do you say?" she asked quietly, her deep, aqua-blue eyes gazing into his.

Ash simmered down, knowing that he'd overreacted. "Stay here, and stay safe."

"Thank you, Ash," Misty replied evenly, but with no hint of courtesy. "You just saved me from making the biggest mistake in my entire life."

Ash breathed a sigh of relief. She'd been sensible, and she wasn't going to Cerulean, she was going to stay here with him. Or she'd die trying to play Superwoman. Surely that would have been not only her biggest mistake, but her last mistake as well.

Suddenly, before anyone could react, Misty turned around and charged out of the room, her decision made, her destination clear: Cerulean City.

At first Ash couldn't understand it, and expected her to return. But then, he realized that she had decided upon going from the moment the sirens had begun their wailing. Minutes later when it became apparent she was already well on her way, he resolved that he was going too.

Ash stood and stated with an air of authority, "Lance, order the SWAT teams to withdraw the roadblocks. I will liberate Cerulean on my own."

This statement rocked everyone in the room. Here was a fourteen-year-old boy saying he was going to deal with an entire terrorist attack. Either he was extremely brave, or more probably, extremely foolish. "Ash!" Bruno declared in such a fashion no man would dare interrupt him. "Terrorists don't play by the rules. If you think you have the slightest chance against a group of terrorists, you're asking for death." Bruno nodded towards the headset clenched in Ash's hand. "Think of our League buddy that was killed trying to communicate with us. You're only human; follow your own advice and stop trying to be the big hero."

Ash shook his head. Bruno's words had bounced off him like a tennis ball off a brick wall. "I can still do this, I am the Pokémon Master—"

"As it is human nature to overestimate your chances!" Bruno thundered, blocking off the exit with his huge body. "Why are you doing this?!?"

Agatha had held with the shadows so far. As she stepped forward, darkness seemed to clothe her. "Child, you have nothing to gain, and everything to lose," she said in an undertone. "Let the SWAT teams do their job; they are trained professionals, and you are but a mere child. You have nothing to gain, everything to lose. Which shall it be?"

There was more pleading, and everyone in the room tried their best to prevent Ash Ketchum from leaving the room, to work some sense into him. But what they didn't know was that Ash Ketchum no longer existed. All that remained was summed up by his last words:

"I am the Pokémon Master."

Ash stood rigidly in front of Bruno, matching glare for glare, until finally Bruno realized that Ash would never back down. He was only delaying the inevitable. With a final sad, longing backwards glance, Bruno stepped aside and walked over to the far wall, where he stood silently with his back to Ash. Ash, his emotions nonexistent, simply breezed out the door and was gone. Just like that.

All eyes were on Bruno as he remained as still as a statue, stiff and unmoving. Finally the big man spoke. "We won't be seeing him again." With those words, he stepped towards the door and disappeared into the hallway.

Lance, leader of the Elite Four, rubbed his chin, deep in thought. "We can't ensure his safety," he said at last, to the remaining staff present in the room. "But we can ensure Misty's. I'm positive that Ash will never forgive himself if Misty is killed in the fight." The others nodded, and issued commands for Misty to be brought back to Indigo Plateau. But they still heard the Pokémon Master's last words ring clearly in their ears.

"I am the Pokémon Master."