Uncovering the Past

Broken Diamond

By the Davids (DK and Darth David)

Chapter Four: Uncovering the Past

Ash stirred, blinked twice, and regained his senses. He found himself reclining comfortably in a velvet chair and quickly bolted to his feet. His eyes darted back and forth and studied his surroundings. He was in a dark, enclosed room, the only light coming from the half-closed blinds covering a small window. His first instinct was to reach for his Poké Balls.

They were gone. For all he knew, his Pokémon could be dead.

Suddenly he felt claustrophobic, like the walls were closing in on him, and he felt strangely alone and imprisoned in this place. He was a single man taking on an entire criminal organization. He was far from home and he had no allies, let alone Pokémon, to pull him out of this pothole. Instinct surged up from within him, and he knew he had to somehow get out of this prison cell. He wasn't thinking straight and he knew it, but he'd figure how to get Misty and his Pokémon back later. For now his top priority was getting out of here. He made a mad dash for the window.

SMASH.

He felt no impact, but by the steady trickle of blood from his nose and mouth he knew he'd collided with something similar to a brick wall. He struggled to his feet, dazed, and looked about him for any clues to the mysterious barrier. His eyes locked onto a pair of glowing white eyes. As he squinted harder, the light from the eyes glinted off something curved, metal. A spoon. His eyes scanned to the left. Another silver crescent.

Alakazam.

A psychic barrier to prevent him from escaping. But why? Why was he held here? There were too many why?s screaming out in his mind, and one of the loudest was, Where is Pikachu? Surely, his little yellow buddy had somehow survived. Filled with new hope, he stood, wiping his nose with the back of his hand and straightening his clothes like a military tunic.

"As the Pokémon Master, I order you to tell me the location of this house." Ash tried to keep his voice as firm and booming as possible, but what came out was a high-pitched collection of dry squeaks and gibberish.

The glowing eyes reverted to normal, withdrawing into the darkness.

No answer.

Ash knew his voice was hoarse. Perhaps the Pokémon had not heard correctly. He cleared his throat rather loudly, and tried again. "Tell me the location of this place."

Silence.

Ash could no longer keep his emotions restrained. The question exploded from his mouth like a shell from a tank. "WHERE THE HELL AM I?!? TELL ME OR DIE!" Ash felt a bit better, but his breath was pronounced in short, ragged gasps; he was greatly fatigued. Suddenly, a voice, distinctand in his head. Had the Alakazam chuckled?

[I take no orders from anyone other than my trainer,] the psychic voice replied finally.

Ash's face showed little sign of emotion, but the Alakazam saw right through his eyes. "And who is your trainer?"

The Alakazam's mouth twisted up in what may have been a smug smirk. [The Pokémon Master.]

Ash chuckled. "Impossible. I'm the current Pokémon Master. I received my title less than two weeks ago."

The Alakazam shrugged indifferently. [Yes. But Masters never lose their titles, once they win them.]

A light clicked on in Ash's head. It wasn't charged to its full brightness, but it began to dawn on Ash what the Pokémon meant. He didn't become the Pokémon Master by being an idiot, or Gary would have been crowned by default. "A former Pokémon Master?"

[A former Pokémon Master is still a Pokémon Master.]

"Well, that's great. But just tell me where I am, and how I got here." Ash folded his arms across his chest and glared hard at the psychic Pokémon. "You have no reason not to answer me, I don't have my Pokémon and have no way of defending myself, let alone harm you. What are you afraid of?"

The Alakazam regarded him silently, then consented. [Fair enough. You are in the house of Professor Chris Hanz, Pokémon researcher, in the city of Cerulean, under house arrest.]

"House arrest?" Ash asked aloud. Then the memories hit him like a tidal wave; Team Rocket assaulting the city, tracking Misty here, fighting against the leader of Team Rocket. He shook his head painfully. "I'm assuming it was you who brought me here."

[An understandable assumption.]

"If this is true, and you rescued me, why are you keeping me in here?"

[For the sole reason of your importance to my trainer. If not for that, I would not have saved you.]

Ash's curiosity had been sparked. "Why am I important to him? ChrisHanz was it? I've never heard the name in my life."

[You will soon find out just how important you are,] the Alakazam replied smugly in an irritatingly calm voice.

~~~~

David Ketchum stared at the doorknob leading to the room in which his only son was held for what seemed like an eternity, contemplating whether he should reveal his true identity or simply let him go. No, he couldn't, this was his own damned son, for crying out loud! Whether he wanted a son or not, this was partly his creation, his effort, and, he couldn't deny, his hopes and dreams embodied in the form of a young boy. Cursing himself for his "obnoxious creation", as he called him, the big man laid his hand on the knob, and turned. Strangely, this simple motion of the wrist and fingers against a circular brass object would change his life forever.

Just like it had changed his life before

he opened a door long closed.

As the darkness hit his eyes he squinted closely at the shadowed figure leaning against the wall, conversing with his Alakazam. When his eyes focused, he knew he was staring straight at an almost exact copy of himself twenty-five years ago. There was no doubt. This was his son.

When his son noticed him, he straightened and looked straight into his eyes. Those piercing eyes, David thought. More than ten years ago he'd stared into those same eyes, tickled him, fed him, changed his diapers, thrown him into the air, laughed and played with him

Unable to face his past, David looked away, silently reprimanding himself. Growing up hadn't changed a thing, he was still the same scared, insecure David underneath the tough exterior. Finally, breaking the silence, he spoke. "Ash."

Ash glared hard at the "Chris Hanz" character. At first he was going to ask how the stranger knew his name, but then he realized the folly of the question; after all, he was the Pokémon Master. He changed things up a bit, then inquired, "Who are you? And what do you want with me?" There. The question was straightforward enough.

"My name is Chris Hanz," David said in reflex as he sat down beside Ash and beckoned him to the floor also. Ash was reluctant to join him at first, but then he remembered that this man, mysterious as he was, had saved his life. He owed him that and much more.

The man sighed. "No, that's merely an alias." Before Ash could reply, he continued on in his deep, gravelly voice. "You're the Pokémon Master now, Ash."

Don't you think I know that? Ash wondered.

"Everyone knows you by face and reputation. They're going to see things in you they wouldn't look for in ordinary people. And you're going to see different things in others, too. You're not going to like or understand them at all," the man said slowly and quietly. He subconsciously rubbed his hands together and caught himself in the motion. A sure sign of his own guilt, he couldn't conceal it even from himself anymore. He decided that it wouldn't be fair to conceal it from Ash as well, and grimly he pressed forward.

"Ash"

"What?" Ash demanded angrily. What does this guy want from me, anyway? So he saved me. Now he's going to keep me in his house and lecture me?

David frowned at the boy's impatience; it certainly didn't make things any easier. The kid acted as though he couldn't tolerate listening to anyone speak. But David held his tongue. He recognized the same thing in himself once, and knew how to deal with such things.

"There's only one way you'll understand." He gestured with his hand, and as if it were a signal, Alakazam disappeared and shortly reappeared, dropping a safe Pikachu into his arms. Ash hugged the mouse Pokémon tightly to his chest. "Pikachu! You're alright!"

"Pikaaaa!" Pikachu squealed in agreement, clutching onto Ash for dear life.

Ash watched Chris rise to his feet. "Battle me."

Ash was confused. What was this guy trying to pull? First he'd saved his life, then imprisoned him. Now he was trying to humiliate him? Take his title away?

"What?" The confusion in his voice was evident.

"I said, battle me. Trust me."

Ash had learned quickly in the last twenty-four hours not to trust anybody, but Ash figured the man was being sincere, so he didn't hesitate to send Pikachu out. "I choose Pikachu."

"Very well. I choose Alakazam." The psychic Pokémon's eyes gleamed in the darkness as it eyed the Pikachu with obvious distaste, then raised its spoons threateningly. "Ready when you are."

Ash smirked. "I was born ready," he said as he stretched out an arm towards Alakazam. "Pikachu, Thunder Wave!"

"Alakazam, Substitute," the man countered.

Ash cringed. Alakazam was faster than Pikachu, he knew. He also knew that Substitute would bounce the Thunder Wave perfectly. On top of that, he would have to destroy the substitute before he could even so much as touch Alakazam. Ash had underestimated him. Who was this trainer that could anticipate his every move so perfectly? Perhaps the Alakazam was right. This was a former Pokémon Master.

"Now, Alakazam, a Thunder Wave of your own!" the man commanded.

"Pikachu, Thun" Ash was speechless. Pikachu was paralyzed from the Thunder Wave. Not only that, but Ash still had to finish the Substitute before taking a bite out of Alakazam. Chris Hanz had turned his own strategy on its head. He wished he could start the battle over again, with hindsight. This battle was already going the wrong way, no sense in being cautious now.

"Pikachu, Light Screen!" Ash yelled. The barrier would protect against Alakazam's psychic power. Hopefully, Pikachu would survive its next attack.

A bad mistake.

"Seismic Toss!" came the powerful voice. Alakazam's attack was unaffected by the Light Screen. Ash's strategy had been anticipated. Again. He wouldn't make Pikachu pay the penance for his lack of foresight, chance or no chance. Ash knelt down beside his fallen friend and gently applied a Full Restore, reviving it quickly. He stood up and turned to the man, who returned his Alakazam into a Poké Ball and tucked it into his jacket. "Okay, you win. I know that you're powerful, perhaps even as powerful as me. You told me there was only one way I'd understand. Now what exactly am I supposed to understand?"

The man wasn't hesitant in his answer. "That none of us really know what to expect. That none of us are perfect. That sometimes we make mistakes, big and small." He plopped down on the ground once again. This time Ash hurried down with him, as an eager pupil to his teacher.

"My name is David Ketchum," the man said after a long pause. He watched Ash out of the corner of his eye, awaiting a reaction. He got it immediately.

Ash shot up on his feet as though he'd been electrocuted. He opened his mouth but no words came out.

"I am your father," David finished.

Well, this is certainly like a scene out of Star Wars, Ash mused. But how could this be? Was this really his father? It seemed almost impossible. Although they did seem to resemble each other quite a bit

"That's"

The elder Ketchum was silent for a minute. "Hard to understand?"

Ash shook his head violently. "Impossible to understand."

The man that was supposedly his father looked away. "It's true. I know it the moment I saw you lying on the ground." That reminded Ash of another defeat, at the hands of Jup Zing, when he should have lost his life.

"Yousaved me."

"Yes, I—" He reminded Ash of the boy he was before the man he'd become.

"You abandoned me!" Ash blurted, bounding towards the door. To his disappointment he found it locked, and struggled in vain against the rusty doorknob before slumping to the floor in hopelessness. He glanced at David Ketchum, who was still looking at the ground. Then his head raised, and he spoke.

"Running away won't help anything. And I wouldn't rush out if I were you. Your friend Jup has been scouring Cerulean for you. You wouldn't last two minutes. Also, you remember that I still have the rest of your Pokémon. If you want them back, I suggest you sit down and quit acting like a frightened two-year-old."

Ash was furious. Who was this man to tell him what to do, only mere seconds after he found out that he was his father? He hadn't even given him time for the shocking news to sink in. Ash opened his mouth to answer when a deep rumble filled the room with the sound of crumbling stone. And a familiar voiceof all consuming granite.

"CITIZENS OF CERULEAN, THIS IS JUP ZING OF TEAM ROCKET! WHAT YOU HAVE JUST HEARD WAS THE DESTRUCTION OF YOUR POKéMON CENTER! EVERY HALF HOUR I WILL DESTROY ONE OF YOUR BUILDINGS AND KILL TEN OF YOUR NUMBER UNTIL THE TWO INDIVIDUALS KNOWN AS THE POKéMON MASTERS SURRENDER THEMSELVES TO ME! I WILL LEVEL THIS ENTIRE CITY BUILDING BY BUILDING, PERSON BY PERSON, SCREAM BY SCREAM UNTIL I HAVE THOSE TWO MEN! IF YOU FEAR FOR YOUR OWN LIFE OR THE SAFETY OF YOUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY, YOU WILL BE WISE TO FIND THESE TWO REBELS AND BRING THEM TO ME!"

"He means me," Ash and David said together. As soon as the words escaped their lips, they stared hard at each other. Neither spoke for a long time.

Finally David broke his gaze, unlocking the door and gathering a few Poké Balls stashed inside a desk drawer. "I'm going. Innocent lives don't need to be taken for two people. Coming?"

Ash sneered as he motioned Pikachu to climb atop his shoulder. "What makes you think you have a chance against these terrorists?"

"What makes you?"

"I asked first," Ash said, bouncing the question back.

David was silent for a moment as he stared at his son, his creation, the thing his life had once revolved around. Then, he shrugged.

"I am the Pokémon Master."