Legends Never Die
Author's Notes
This is the first fanfic I've written in almost 10 years, so really looking forward to writing this to test my skills as an author, so PLEASE don't hesitate to leave feedback, both good and bad.
As a member of the very first generation of fans of the Pokemon TV series (yes, I'm that old), the Sun and Moon series probably caught my attention in a way it hasn't since the late 90's and early 2000's. It was incredibly well written, well balanced and engaging for both old and new fans alike, and with a sleuth of new likeable characters (Kukui and Burnet being my favorites). I found it so engaging that it inspired me to dust off my keyboard and start spinning up ideas once more.
One of the main focuses of this story is on Professor Kukui's background and what drives him towards teaching and advocating for maintaining healthy relationships with Pokemon, especially in battling. Given what we've seen whenever that balance is thrown askew and the chaos that insues, I find Kukui's work highly commendable. At the same time, I'll be elaborating on how his influence has shaped other young trainers, specifically Ash, expanding on how he came to become a professor as well as some insight on his work as the Masked Royal.
Furthermore, noting how many fans desire the relationship between Ash and Kukui to be more than what was shown on the show, for this story I'll be altering Kukui's backstory to make him Ash's uncle and Delia's half-brother, as well as Ash's godfather. I'm also condensing the timeline of Ash's Pokemon journey so that his current age is 14, positioning his original departure from Pallet Town in 2014, and in accordance with the series this story is set in late 2018 following the episode Memories in the Mist (SO3E16). Also, Kiawe is 14, Mallow is 14, Lillie is 13, Lana is 11 and Sophocles is 10.
Enjoy!
Chapter 1
A New Contract
Mongke's evening routine was the same day by day, whenever there was an echo of Mongolian tribal music emulating from a record player in his office, and a faint whiff of cigar smoke lingered through the corridors, his employees knew he was to be left alone unless they had an appointed meeting with him. Behind closed doors, his office was a miniature library with sources from all over the world regarding trade, finance, industry and much more. In the middle of the room a large aquarium filled with Relicanth illuminated the room in a soft bluish hue. This evening Mongke sat at his desk, cigar between his teeth, in a celebratory mood as to speak. They had just secured a new contract.
"Mr. Mongke?" A voice blurted from a radio mounted on his desk, penetrating the silence.
"Yes?"
"Murphy has returned. He's ready for you."
"Send him in." Mongke requested in a low voice. A few moments later the door to his office cracked open and a younger man with thick rimmed glasses nervously slipped through the opening. Mongke leaned back in his office chair, folding his hands.
"No need to be afraid, I don't bite." Mongke stated, noticing how the man looked nervous to approach. "All I ask of you is to do your job."
"Y-Yes, sir." Murphy stuttered quietly.
"We have a new job to do, a new contract has been drafted…" Mongke gently rose from his chair, briefly stretching his legs before approaching the researcher. "…and a new target has been identified."
Murphy didn't respond, instead handed Mongke a yellow folder filled with papers. "This is all I could find on him."
Mongke slowly turned away from Murphy as he opened the folder and flipped through the papers. "This is good work."
Mongke gently dropped the open folder on his desk, revealing on the left pocket the ID photo of a man wearing green-framed sunglasses and a white cap showing a logo shaped like a rainbow. The same logo appeared underneath the photo next to a listing of his name and address at 362 Kapu'ii Road in Kelaliana, just north of Hau'oli City
"What can you tell me about him?"
"Um, let me double check." Murphy said, pulling a tablet out of his pocket and opening a shortened version of the data he'd collected. "His name is Dr. Kukui Nishikawa, and he's a professor of General Studies at the Hau'oli Campus of the Oak Pokemon Preparatory School."
"Hmm. What's his background?"
"He's a 2002 graduate of the school, after which he attended Alola Regional University from where he graduated with honors with degrees in primary education and Pokemon education in 2005." Murray explained before pausing briefly to catch his breath, still intimidated by the supervisor requesting this information. Mongke had some patience, but everybody knew better than to press their luck with him.
"He completed his doctorate in Pokemon Wellness and Relations in 2009 through internships at research facilities in Los Angeles, Rome and Cape Town, after which he lived abroad for a time before returning to Alola in 2011, which is when he accepted a position at Oak Preparatory, which is where he's been working since."
"Good work." Mongke stated in a low voice with a light nod. "Now, how old is this fellow?"
"Uh, let me see, he's 32 as of last April."
"Hmm. Very accomplished for someone so young." Mongke said as he turned away from Murphy and returned to his office chair. "What can you tell me about his family?"
Murphy paused for a moment at the sight of Mongke's piercing ice blue eyes, knowing when family information was being asked, it was in preparation if drastic measures had to be taken.
"His parents are deceased, he does have one sister, a Ms. Delia Ketchum, a nursing aide who resides on the mainland at Pallet Town in Kanto." Murphy stated with a slight stutter. "He also has a nephew, one Ash Ketchum, his sister's only child, aged 14 years and evidently a very skilled trainer. He's competed in numerous leagues throughout the Far East and currently resides with the professor and his wife, and is also attending the Oak Prep school."
Do you have any information on his wife?"
"Yes, Dr. Burnet Sakuma-Nishikawa, a native of Okawa who attended Alola University where she graduated with a degree in Pokemon Sciences, after which she earned a degree in Poke-Terrestrial Sciences and is now an expert on Ultra Wormholes of all things. She's employed as a researcher by the Aether Foundation".
"Very good." Mongke muttered, staring down at the stack of documents before him. "What can you tell me about this new fangled league he's trying to spearhead."
"Well sir..." Murphy explained, clearing his throat. "His intention is to merge the region's existing 'island challenge' as they call it with a hybrid subsidized version of the regional leagues established on the mainland and elsewhere. Evidently the plan has overwhelming public support and it seems imminent the regional government will back the plan as well."
"I'm afraid that is what we cannot allow to happen." Mongke said with a grumble, poking through the various papers. "Our newest client is very adamant on that matter."
Murphy said nothing, but tilted his head in nervous curiosity as to what Mongke implied by this.
"In the past decades I've come across so many just like the good professor; young, ambitious, idealistic and of course horribly naïve." Mongke explained in the same low tone. "The professor must be taught a lesson, and the people of Alola will in turn adhere to that lesson as well."
"Lesson, sir?" Murphy asked.
"The simple lesson that there are certain societal forces which are not to be tampered with." Mongke responded, closing the folder. "It's quite the shame, such a promising future. But business is business." Mongke reached into the drawer of his desk and pulled out a cigar and lighter, and after a few strikes with the lighter realized the researcher was still standing before him in a timid pose.
"You're dismissed."
Without saying another word, Murphy backed slowly away from the desk and slipped around the aquarium, not taking his eyes off Mongke before reaching the door. He hurriedly cracked the door open just enough to slip out and close it quietly behind him. As the young researcher's hurried footsteps in the hallway faded out, Mongke turned to the right hand drawer of his desk, which he opened and pulled out a bulky manila envelope. He opened it and grinned as ten wrapped stacks of cash dumped on top of the desk. As he stared down through the smoke from his cigar at the professor's photograph, he muttered to himself with a soft chuckle;
"It looks like Ukhliin Togloom has found another player."
To Be Continued…