Professor Oak was worried for his son. Adoptive son, but it was moot at this point. It was as if he'd taken the past few years where Ash had been under his care for granted, for staring at the pale boy now - if he had died then, it would be as if an entire part of Oak would've been torn away.
Oak stood with his hands behind his back as he observed the unusually still boy in the hospital bed linen. It wasn't really unusual for the boy to be still, given his naturally quiet disposition, in fact it was even guarded at times, since his mother's death. However, it was unusual to the Professor now as he stood watching the silent boy sleep.
Ash Ketchum laid in the hospital bed of room 452 of the South-bound hospital in Viridian City. Bandages swathed the torso and parts of the boy's face despite the medics themselves saying that it was unnecessary, given his miracle healing at the site of him being shot - but it was 'merely procedure.' But Oak didn't kick up a fuss, merely letting the experts treat his son and give him back to him in better condition. Besides, it was probably better that the boy didn't wake up.
Oak sighed as he watched the boy sleep. It just wasn't right to him. Firstly, his actual son speaks to him only when it strikes him to, leading to a strained relationship. Then this. Seeing Lance stand in the doorway taking a moment to observe Ash before looking at him, the Professor gave a nod from shuffling out of the room.
Thus leaving Synergy to watch over the boy. The two tubes that fed her system from the plasma core in her frame were lit up a lighter shade of blue than they usually were, signifying a higher rate of energy passage than usual. The robotic Pokemon was taking the time to recharge her system whilst being in a passive state, keeping her sensors diligent and aware for anyone who was not registered as someone to be trusted. Which was limited to just five organisms.
And so there lay Ash in the hospital bed, a heart monitor keeping track of his vitals to ensure he remained stable, especially as his mental condition could deteriorate. The room was sparsely furnished, with the clean white walls and grey tiles of the usual hospital colour scheme giving a uniform pattern. His hospital bed sat against the wall, two plastic chairs on the left of the bed in which Synergy sat in one. A small drawer unit was on the right of the bed which some bottled water was atop of, a TV hanging from the opposite wall and some miscellaneous medical equipment place against the wall. Ash's bag hung from the end of the bed, as the boy himself lay asleep in the hospital linen, kept chemically asleep by the drip feeding into into his arm.
The tube of said drip which had been removed without authorisation an hour ago.
The private room Ash lay in had been wrangled using Oak's influence, giving the old man a better frame of mind that Ash would remain undisturbed, which was just how the newly arrived man sitting in the chair next to the inactive Synergy wanted it. The man checked his watch and realised that the boy was likely to wake at any moment now, and leant forward to observe the boy more closely.
Sure enough, Ash Ketchum woke up a minute later. Moving slightly to begin with as his mind's activity picked up in the throes of becoming conscious, his eyes fluttered open groggily. Blinking rapidly to begin with as his eyes adjusted to the light and the bright colour pattern of the hospital, Ash gave a groan as he sat up slightly. Looking about hazily, Ash realised that his brain felt very addled, like some chemical had put it to sleep, but it was clearing as the minutes went by. Finally gathering some coherent thought, Ash propped the pillows up to lean against as he looked about, trying to determine where he was.
Scratching at the uncomfortable feeling on his cheek, Ash paused as he felt the bandaged cheek. Prodding it, the boy frowned as he touched the soft bandages - before gasping as the collection of memories detailing how he'd been shot activated in his mind. The heart monitor spiked a little then as Ash's breathing became slightly hitched, the boy's emotions becoming more-
"Hello Ash." The man spoke then from the chair in a neutral tone, bringing attention to him finally as the man interrupted the beginning of Ash's emotional breakdown.
The boy's head snapped around to see where the unfamiliar voice had come from, having just remembered the traumatic events he'd undergone, and the boy didn't want to deal with anymore strangers right now as the heart monitor spiked again. Ash saw the man sitting next to Synergy, who was very much inactive, gazing at him.
"You're finally awake." The man stated in a calm, level tone to Ash. His voice was carefully controlled, yet placating - as if Ash had nothing to fear from the man, partly because Ash was no threat to him. Seeing that the man was making no moves, as well as speaking in a perfectly level tone that denoted no aggression, Ash began to calm down slightly - but still backed up a bit and remained wary.
The boy took a good look at the man before him. The stranger was leant forward slightly, observing Ash with a focused gaze that seemed to be trying to memorise his features. Two bags lay at his feet, a rectangular brown rucksack and a black Pokeball bag that was just like Ash's own backpack. The man was simply dressed, a perfect get-up for the warm climate with frequent cool breezes that made up the climates in the Kanto and Johto regions. He had on a pair of red and white running shoes, adapted to have better traction on looser ground and soils. He wore a pair of blue trousers, with a predominantly red hat with a white semicircle on the front side of the cap. A black vest was visible, but was mainly covered up by the red short-sleeved jacket the man wore over it.
Ash, just continued to gaze at the man, actively thinking. He couldn't quite recognise him, even if his mind was pointing out that he looked familiar, and the boy was busy thinking on a multitude of other factors. Factors such as what this stranger wanted with him, where he was currently located, how long it had been and of the events that had gone down when he'd been shot. The man in red gave a small sigh as he brought his hands up to support his head, before speaking to get the conversation started.
"You've been asleep, Ash." The man spoke in a guarded tone, not much emotion prevalent in it. Yet, to Ash, somehow very discreet and cautious, but also open - as if that was just his normal way of speaking, and he was trying to have a genuine conversation here. "For two days straight, to be exact. The doctors didn't trust that you wouldn't wake up screaming, so they put you to sleep. You're in a private room in Viridian City's south-bound hospital, in case you were wondering. Which makes it a perfect setting for us to have a conversation."
Ash's face looked scrutinisingly at the man in red before him, not sure whether to trust him, but finally asking something to get more information to evaluate the man. "Who are you?" Ash croaked out, his throat feeling remarkably sore.
"I'm hurt, Ash." The man spoke in the same level tone that denoted no such mentioned emotion, before leaning back into the chair. "Some time may have passed, but are you saying you don't recognise your father?"
Ash's eyes going wide was all the man needed to start chuckling in a low pitch. Even his laughter sounded marginally dead, no actual humour in his tone. "...Dad?" Ash spoke weakly after a minute, with hesitation in his tone, yet recognition in his eyes.
"Indeed it's me, son." The man confirmed, gazing unblinkingly at his son before him.
Ash's eyes only widened a bit more at the sight of his father. He may not know much about the man, but even he was in awe despite him being his father. After all, the man was the world's strongest Pokemon trainer, the world acclaimed holder of the one and only title that labelled him as such - Pokemon master.
Red Ketchum had finally returned to see his son after four years of not doing so.
HOSPITAL CAFE AREA, FOURTH FLOOR.
The dragon master and regional professor sat at a small table in the cafeteria, based in the corner to get some privacy for themselves. Oak had gotten himself a coffee to give himself something to do, as Lance was busy considering several options.
Lance sighed, having sat in silence for some time now, and spoke to Oak. "I worry for him." He spoke simply. "He's been asleep for so long now."
Oak only nodded, his mind far away as it was as he stared glumly at the steaming coffee in front of him, only paying half-attention. "He has been through a traumatic ordeal. He needs plenty of rest, and it'll help if he has relaxed and knows the danger has past." The old man commented, before taking a reflexive sip of the coffee as he muttered out his next thoughts. "When he does awake, it is best to allow him to overcome it with the mindset that what happened was not his fault, and that he did only what was necessary."
Lance wordlessly nodded. Oak was perhaps the only person there now with hands that hadn't been stained with blood - for as leader of the G-men, Lance had also gotten his hands dirty on numerous occasions.
"It's lucky that Synergy had him get started on aura." Lance stated, getting more attention from the robotic Pokemon. "I take back every reservation I had about Ash using it. I should thank the Pokemon the next time we talk."
Oak just nodded his head, idly swirling the liquid in the polystyrene cup about. A minute passed by as the two men sat in silence, before Oak couldn't take it anymore and slammed the cup onto the table, creasing the cup and spilling some of its contents.
"Damn that man." The elderly researcher basically hissed out in quiet fury. "He goes about the region, doing as he pleases in his high and mighty quest of 'justice', and look what happens - his son takes the fall!" Oak paused in his rant, before sighing deeply and calming down. "It's not fair on the boy, he's done nothing wrong."
Lance only gave his visible agreement with the man. "You're right there. Ash has done absolutely nothing." Lance mused, clasping his hands tighter together. "Someday, the way Red is going, he's going to finally meet his match. He may have done some things right, but..."
"But what?" Oak almost snapped at the man. "Surely there must be something you can do to stop this, Lance. You're the head of the government task force, after all."
Lance looked at Oak dead in the eyes for a moment before shaking his head. "Red himself is untouchable, Oak, even you know that. Nobody can reach him on that mountain, and that's when he's there. We usually have no idea where he is. Then there's the fact that he has actually done a lot to hamper and destroy criminal activities, including the syndicate teams." Folding his arms down on the table, Lance continued. "He's also untouchable legally, Oak. The League feels it owes Red a lot for his work, and turns a blind eye to a lot of his actions. Just because they're sensible enough not to let him in their front door doesn't mean they're going to do something about it. And of course, whatever the League wants..."
"...It gets." Oak finished darkly.
ASH'S HOSPITAL ROOM.
Red only looked at Ash as the silence dragged on, the boy seemingly shocked. His mouth had opened and closed a few times, his panic forgotten in the face of a familiar, yet long absent, person. Ash was shocked by the sudden reappearance of his father, having been gone for more than five years without a single message or reason.
"Why?" He eventually got out, as if it was a struggle to say.
Red gave a grunt still looking Ash fully in the eyes. "Why am I here or why was I gone?" He stated for clarification.
Ash just nodded slightly. "Both." He answered.
This got Red to think for a second before he leaned back slowly into his chair. "That's easy, son." He spoke with a simple tone of voice, still somewhat guarded. "The reason I was gone can be explained in the reasons I came here for - to see you, to warn you, and to ask something of you."
Ash looked warily at the man. He didn't really know his father anymore. At least when he was younger, his father had appeared semi-regularly and he got to know him, but being gone for five years at such a young age? Ash had already forgotten what he was like.
"What have you done with Synergy?" He suddenly demanded, spotting the robotic Pokemon remain inactive whilst some strange man sat directly next to her - it just wouldn't be like her at all to let such a thing slip by.
"Synergy?" Red questioned, before following Ash's gaze to the Pokemon next to him. "Ah. Her. Well, that Lucario that's been teaching you can't teach you everything there is to know about aura." Ash's father then chuckled, a low-sounding noise that lacked all sense of humour. "One thing that Lucario doesn't know in depth is how to manipulate another being's aura system. Something I know a lot about, and that you've just scratched the surface of. Sure, you can infuse your aura into another creature's aura system to 'bond' with it, so to say, but there's so much more to it. Like, for instance-" His father paused as the man patted Synergy's inactive shoulder, the lifeless metal Pokemon not moving a single appendage as he did so. "Putting things to sleep. Don't worry, she'll be back up in an hour."
"Oh yes, Ash." Red stated with a small smile then as he looked at Ash's wide eyes. "You took just after your father when you started learning about aura. I tell you, I couldn't have been more proud when I got the report."
Silence prevailed for a few moments as the boy said nothing and Red merely observed Ash mull over that declaration, before he turned his head to view the synthetic Pokemon again. "You know, it crossed my mind that maybe whilst I was here, I should reclaim what I started. But then, knowing how much of a good job she did protecting you, I think I'll leave her in your custody."
Ash was snapped out of his deliberations with a frown. "Reclaim?" He repeated suspiciously.
Red only nodded as he stood up, having Ash's wary gaze upon him though he never approached the bed - instead reaching up to the ceiling as he took hold of the smoke detector - and pulled it clean out of its housing before going over to the window and chucking it out as he opened it. Swiftly going back to his seat, the Pokemon master pulled out a packet of cigarettes, tugging one out of the packaging and putting it to his lips as he then spoke. "Surely you know by now that she was created, son. She isn't a natural Pokemon in the slightest."
Ash looked scrutinisingly at his father. "And you know something about that."
"Indeed I do." Red replied without hesitation, as he held up a silver lighter to the cigarette in his mouth, flicking it on and lighting the cigarette before taking a drag on the drugged stick. "It'd be hard not to when I'm the one who instructed Delia to continue the creation of Synergy here." He dropped the bombshell as his hand pulled the cigarette from his mouth, regarding his son with an observant gaze as he exhaled smoke.
"You-you got mother to work on Synergy..." Ash trailed off, becoming stunned again, as he just didn't know what to think.
"I never expected anything of the sort to happen as it did four years ago, of course." Red spoke, seemingly of his own thoughts as he turned back to look at the inactive steel-type. "The powers she displayed were beyond even my initial expectations. It would seem that interrupting the process as you did, and then removing the inhibitor chip I'd placed on her, served to augment her already powerful abilities. For a Pokemon to achieve such power just after being, well, 'born', just would never happen naturally. But then again, we already know she isn't natural."
Ash only looked at the man, sat up in the bed as Red looked back at him fully in the eyes, before Red pulled off a smirk, which Ash wasn't quite sure was meant for such a normally neutral face. "She controls gravity, in case you were wondering. Much like as in Team Rocket's other creation was meant to emulate the legendary that formed the basis of both their DNA, I took another route. Tore apart the organic structuring of the project, to form a computerised system that would've been vital in my efforts to track down and destroy the Rockets. But, she seems more capable being in your hands."
"Why didn't you ever help mum?" Ash interrupted then, his face contorting to be distraught. "What are you talking about - do you even care that mum died?!"
Red's face quickly re-schooled itself, but not completely as even Ash could see the haggard expression upon it. A few moments passed as Red inhaled again on his cigarette before silently exhaling a small cloud of smoke. "You know, if you were anyone but my son, Arceus knows what would've happened to you by now." Red stated with a seemingly apathetic tone, but his eyes showed approval as Ash never even flinched at the harsh words, only glaring at him. "But, she was just as much a good mother to you as she was the perfect wife to me. Caring. Understanding. Willing to deal with me and my work, and even agreeing with its necessity. I could not have asked for a better woman to marry and raise my son right, because I think both you and I know that if it wasn't for her, you wouldn't be half the man you are now." Red took a moment before giving a small sigh. "The police never found her body due to the fact that I took it away before they could. She was buried just as she wanted to be, and with the dignity she deserved."
Ash actually had to rub his eyes then as he turned his head away, unable to bear the piercing look Red was giving him as he said that. "Why me then. Why did you come to see me now though." He demanded, almost desperately changing the subject.
"Well, like I've already said, you and I have a few things to discuss." Red answered as he gestured with his burning cigarette. "But why specifically now? Well, you've been attacked, son. It's a damn shame that it took that to get me to come and see you, and realise that perhaps I should be in your life after all." Red paused to inhale on his cigarette again. "I apologise it took me a couple of days to get here." He spoke as he exhaled. "I had to visit those that decided to visit you."
Ash looked back round, a dreaded curiosity in his mind. "What-"
"Dead." Red answered Ash's barely started question as he settled back more comfortable into his chair. "I visited them all. The group that attacked you, some black-market mercenary group that I tangled with in the past, and their employers. The Kanto police now have a mass homicide investigation in Cerulean City as I understand, though they're still trying to identify the corpses that were trapped in a burning building." Red paused to look at Ash, who looked back with slight horror, and a tint of green. "Apart from me, you're the only one that knows for sure what's happened now. Nobody messes with my son, and lives to tell the tale."
Ash was just quiet, as he forcibly swallowed the sick feeling back down. "...You really do love me?" He asked quietly.
Red looked at Ash still with a neutral expression, but the tone of his voice changed as he next spoke. "The fact that you had to ask that really does show how badly I've perhaps performed over the years." Ash's father spoke with a musing tone, with an affliction of something else in it. "You don't have to ask, son. Just because I haven't seen you in so long doesn't mean I've never been there."
Ash didn't know quite what that meant, and he didn't deign to ask, either. Silence ensued as Ash just took his time to process all he'd been told, as Red just burnt the cigarette down further in his hand as he smoked on it. Fortunately for Ash, the open window made the majority of the cigarette smoke blow over to the other half of the room.
Pulling the smoking stick from his mouth and seeing only a stub remained, Red flicked it into the small plastic bin in the corner before pulling out another cigarette and lighting it. "I suppose it's time to get down to what I have to say, isn't it?" Red rhetorically asked as he took his first drag on the fresh cigarette, but got a nod from Ash all the same.
"First of all, congratulations are in order." Red spoke, looking Ash in the eyes again to convey his seriousness. "You have accomplished quite a lot with minimal background interference and pushing from me. Things like becoming Lance's apprentice, studying under the one and only Professor Oak, learning the ways of aura, catching an Aron..." Red trailed off as he chuckled quietly then, a funny memory having struck the man. "The point is, Ash, is that you have done extremely well, just like I was when I was younger. You've done me proud, son."
Red's eyes glinted as a small smile actually overcame Ash's face before it vanished back to the slightly wary but inquisitive expression. "Thanks." Ash said softly.
Red's head dipped slightly before he continued. "Well, you did most of the work. But, speaking of this, might I ask you of whether you really do want to be champion?"
Ash looked a bit shocked, before then nodding. "Yeah, but how did you know?"
"Let's just say that I have a list of contacts who owe me favours or such things that report things to me. This is most prevalent in the Kanto region, and you didn't think that I wouldn't keep an eye on my own son, did you?" Red asked with a slightly amused tone. "Anyway, you were inspired by Lance no doubt. Being around him as his apprentice and your hero, and being adopted by Oak who was a former champion, as well as being driven there by them and Synergy to actually have a good chance at being so. Well, you really are quite fortunate in terms of who you ended up with, Ash. Or was it luck?" Red spoke in his earlier musing tone again, seeming to take the moment to humour himself.
"What do you mean?" Ash asked, getting curious as to what his father was getting at. As the conversation went on, it became more and more obvious that Red was not here to harm Ash, but to truly just talk to him in private. However subconscious the action was, Ash actually relaxed slightly to not treat Red like someone to be wary of, but instead like the rarely-visiting parent he was.
Red was good at orchestrating things like that, and made sure that Ash had less and less reason to be wary as it went on.
"What I mean, son." Red stated as he inhaled on the cigarette once more. "Is that you have great potential. Such potential that you can be champion, and more. You're my son, after all."
"I could be, more?" Ash asked, looking confused.
"Don't get me wrong. Champion is the highest position someone can earn without being an inside person or administrator at the League or one of their fellow institutions. Unless you plan to knock me off my throne, that's the highest official position you can perhaps gain unless you go into business or politics - and you're years away from challenging me." Red spoke in a certain tone. "But you could be the best one of them. Potential is one thing, Ash. You just need to utilise it and train to get there."
Ash looked seriously at Red who took another pause to ponder some more as he smoked.
"And I can get you there, Ash." Red spoke, surprising Ash. "I could seriously help you to get before my old friend, and take his position."
Ash seemed stunned at that. "How? Isn't that cheating-"
Ash broke off as Red let out another quiet chuckle, this time with an actual tone of humour in it. "I think you crossed the boundary of fairness and cheating and the rest of it, son, when you became Lance's apprentice. That's pretty much a fast pass if I've ever seen one to the big leagues."
Ash paused before nodding lowly, before a frown overcame him as he thought of something. "What exactly do you mean, and what do you want from it?"
Red eyed Ash with a contemplative gaze as he smoked some more, before clarifying as he tapped his cigarette to remove the excess deposits from it. "I mean I could give you the best chance possible to get there. I won't hold your hand, not at all - no son of mine will get such treatment. But there are certain things that can be done via 'anonymous' donations to help anyone out, if you know what I mean." Red spoke as he gestured. "And for what I want? I don't want anything, son. It's rather a matter of what is needed."
The edging, serious tone with which Red had stressed that last word was what made it stand out to Ash above anything else his father had said seriously. "...OK." Ash stated, as if signalling to his father to go on.
Red fully got the cue as he nodded. "Allow me to tell you of what I wished to warn you about, my son." He spoke, his serious tone actually becoming a little grave. "Have you ever heard of Team Rocket?"
Ash pondered on that as it did ring a bell, before he spoke. "Yeah, Mr Oak mentioned them a couple of times. Aren't they the biggest group of Pokemon thieves in Kanto?"
Red's face mirrored his grave tone then as he spoke, his face seemingly going hollow as if it was showing the scars. "I wish they were, son." Red spoke in such a quiet tone then that Ash had to strain to hear him. "I really wish they were."
Ash looked alarmed by the change that came over his father, the conversation now having swung in a way he really didn't like. It had at least been going better than he would've thought if he were to think on what he'd say to his father should he meet him again, but for the man to become muted in a grave expression went past those expectations. "Dad?" Ash inquired, saying the word for the first time, which actually successfully brought Red back to a better state of mind. "What's going on?"
Red flicked the cigarette into the bin without even checking if it was a stub this time, looking to Ash with a sincere look. "There are things at play in this world, son, that people may or may not like to think about, but most will regard as fantasising. Legendries, for instance, a lot of people like - but are so unknown that most will consider a lot of the rumoured information on them as fantasy." Red spoke in a musing way, but a serious tone. "Team Rocket is one such fantastical thing that is heavily unknown. They have played their act so well that people will actually look to you in disbelief if what you say about them doesn't refer to them as Pokemon thieves."
The expression on Ash's face became more taut as the boy perhaps didn't like where this was going, his young mind recognising that this may be too heavy a topic for someone like him. "What are you talking about?"
"What I'm talking about, son, is something this world has seen in over a century." Red explained the same heavy tone still, looking Ash square in the eyes all the while. "The truth of this world, is that it's gone soft. We are so in tune with Pokemon, so utterly reliant on these creatures and the systems we have in place, that we have forgotten ourselves in the process. Should Team Rocket be allowed to rise as they are now, this world will burn."
"Dad, seriously, what's going on." Ash stated as dread started to build up in the boy.
"Very well." Red answered as he blinked and leant back again. "Tell me, Ash, do you know what the national guard is?" A shake of the head from the boy confirmed it to Red. "What about suppression tactics?" Another shake of the head. "War?"
"Yeah, everyone knows that, but what does that have to do with-" Ash began.
"Everything." Red interrupted, his voice grave again. "Let me give you context, Ash. One hundred and five years ago to this year marked the end of the regional wars, the end of fighting between humans and countries and the formation of the modern regions. This led onto the creation of the Pokemon League and other international institutions which interweaved business and policies between regions so that we became dependant one one another and stopped fighting. A very nice system, even to me, but it led to this world also going soft. Humans can forget how to fight, but they will never forget some things."
Ash never interrupted as Red fished out another cigarette and lit it. "There used to be such a thing as entire armies, son. An entire, nation-wide organisation of humans which would be dedicated to protecting the nation and fighting other nations. It sounds like something fantastical today, what with all the open borders and travelling and everything we have today right?" Red questioned, actually getting a nod from Ash who did find it a little disbelieving, so contrasting to the peaceful society they had. "Well, believe it or not, a mere shadow of those armies still exist from when they were disbanded following the formation of the League. The national guard."
Ash swallowed nervously. "What's that?" He asked somewhat timidly.
Red chuckled, this time again with no humour present in it. "The same thing but really scaled down. They are spread across the nation but out of the way of the public, and they're pathetic in all honesty. They truly are a shadow of their former predecessors, numbering about ten thousand and used mainly for dealing with Pokemon who get out of hand. They will be no match for Team Rocket." Red seemed to spit this like he was disgusted at the notion of how weak it seemed to him. Looking at Ash who looked very concerned and confused, Red gave a sigh before calming down by taking another drag on his cigarette. "The reason I mention this, however, is because they will be necessary for what is to come. Mainly because of what they have access to that no other legal organisation does."
With those words, Red jammed the cigarette into his mouth as he used his hand to move aside his jacket - revealing a harnessed holster strapped to the left side of his body above his vest. In one swift movement, Red tugged out the metal instrument - and got Ash to heavily flinch and recoil as unwelcome memories burst into his mind.
It was not like Red could do anything, however, as a metal hand had clamped down upon his right wrist and forced the gun upwards, the man looking impressed as he looked at the blue metal armour plate in his vision before looking over to his left. The Pokemon master found himself face to face with an angry looking robotic Pokemon, the crimson eyes on Synergy boring right into Red's own as he calmly gazed back.
Dipping his head slightly, Red remained as he was as he puffed on his cigarette. "Hello, Synergy." He greeted, but in his usual guarded tone this time unlike the serious but familiar tone he had been speaking to his son with.
Synergy spared no such greeting. "So you're my supposed creator." She intoned instead, keeping a tight grip on the wrist holding the gun.
"Well, I wouldn't say that." Red stated with the smoking cigarette in his mouth, quite undisturbed by the potentially lethal situation. "More like the person who found you and continued you to completion."
Synergy gripped the wrist tighter as her other hand clamped down on Red's other, the man seemingly let her as he only winced slightly from the pain. The robotic Pokemon regarded him for a moment before her facial plates slid back and she hissed menacingly right in the face of Ash's father. "What are you up to?" She demanded in a loud and clear tone.
"Well, I was about to explain, before you then decided to show the fact that you were awake this whole time." Red stated almost dryly in response. "You have been listening all the while, haven't you?"
"Good analytical skills." Synergy stated back in mock praise, before eyeing the raised pistol. "But you won't need the pistol to explain anything."
A nod of the head was her answer. "Indeed. Believe it or not, I was going to pass it to my son. But, why don't you hang onto it for now?" Red asked with his guarded, yet somewhat placating tone.
Synergy gazed into the man's eyes for a moment before the metal limb clamped down on Red's left hand slowly let go, hovering over it for a moment to be wary of any tricks before reaching upwards. Taking hold of the gun from underneath the barrel of the pistol, Synergy noted how Red simply let go in compliance, fitting his statement as both of her hands then retracted and took the gun from the man. Switching it to the hand on the side away from Red, Synergy then looked to Ash's father. "Explain. But no sudden moves like that again. I'll be watching."
Red only nodded uncaringly in her direction before taking the cigarette from his mouth to release the built-up smoke in his mouth, he looked to Ash instead. It wasn't like the robotic Pokemon could've actually done anything to him then, not in the realm of aura. For now at least.
Ash himself had recoiled away from the weapon as he was fully reminded of what had happened the last time he'd come come into contact with one. Trembling again, Ash was only watching as Synergy had unloaded the magazine from the weapon, observed it to be empty before putting both on the floor as she deemed it now a non-threat. Instead, she reached over and grasped Ash's arm gently in an attempt to calm him.
Red exhaled a second breath of smoke as he then reached over and unhooked Ash's bag from the end of the bed, then slinging it over the back of his chair. Synergy looked over as it appeared that Ash's father was taking his bag, making the synthetic Pokemon narrow her eyes at the man. "What are you doing?"
"I already emptied this bag earlier, the contents of which now lie in the similar one at my feet. I've adapted the one I got to more easily conceal and protect objects within it, including the ammunition for the G7 Deadlock I handed to you. Take it, they're both Ash's now." Red instructed as he used his foot to slide the other black rucksack at his feet over to Synergy, who watched the man some more before opening up the bag to see if what he said was true. Finding it to be so, she then tossed the pistol into it before sliding it around further away from the man. She may not trust the man, but the robotic Pokemon was a bit more accepting than most when it came to ways of protecting her charge.
Meanwhile, Red leaned forth once more as he looked deeply at the frightened child on the bed before him. "Ash." Red called out to his son, making the boy snap his head round to him. "I know that you're scared of the weapon, the events that occurred, everything. But you're going to have to get over that, you hear me?" Red stated with a more insensitive tone than usual.
Ash was still scared as he looked a bit shocked at the man. "How?!" The boy let out in a hysterical tone. "Things like that almost killed me, I killed, what-"
"Because you're my son." Red snapped out then, jabbing the hand with the smoking cigarette forth to dictate his point as he quieted the agitated child. "You need to accept the truth of the situation, and I don't care how young you are. You killed, and that's a fact. Get over it. This world is changing, and not in a good way. Being my son alone means you've got a target on your head, let alone that you've got a legendary Pokemon acting as your protector and you're learning aura. People will come after you, for a Pokemon battle, or for with guns as you've already experienced. This may be unfair, but you've got two choices now - grow up and accept the facts, or drown in what's to come."
Ash stayed quiet for a moment before pulling his knees up to hug them, his eyes glistening. "It's unfair." The boy merely stated in repetition to Red's speech.
"Life's unfair. Humans and Pokemon alike are unfair. I'm only trying to keep your head up above the water here. Whether you can stand on your own two feet is up to you." Red stated, his tone seemingly filled with no mercy. "I hate saying this son, I really do. But what I discovered twenty years ago forced me to grow up as a child, just like this world is doing to you now. You need to accept the situation, be wary of anything that comes your way and get stronger."
Synergy took all of this in with a regretful posture, but nonetheless stayed quiet. She would've interrupted long ago - had it not been for the fact that her system was agreeing with Red's words.
"And what would you have me do then?" Ash bit out then, rubbing at his eyes as he found some snarky attitude to fire at his father.
"That's it. Good. You can't let things get the better of you, that's how they always win." Red urged then with a perked face. "What you have to do is simple. For the future, it's a simple matter of getting stronger, that's what's going to happen any way you look at it. But for a definite outcome, that depends on whether you accept what I'm going to ask you."
"And what would that be?" Synergy asked carefully then, Red noting her defensive posture as she aligned herself to present a shield between him and his son. Exhaling, the man found himself approving.
"Simple. Listen to me." The man spoke. "It appears I diverged from earlier. One of the main things I came here to do was to warn you, and here it is - Team Rocket is not as it appears. They've spent a long time keeping up an appearance of Pokemon thieves, but they're not. Not in the slightest, they're much more. More dangerous, and a thousand times deadlier than any of the other criminal teams out there."
"Well, go on then." Synergy stated as she found herself getting impatient for the answer. "What are they really?"
"Got an attitude, haven't you?" Red commented as he chuckled, before taking another drag of the cigarette as he dropped the biggest bombshell yet. "What they are, is something the League refuses to believe despite my warnings to them. They're insurgents."
Ash looked confused as Synergy appeared very cautious then. "What kind?" She merely questioned.
"Not your typical insurgents, that's for sure. I'm talking of an armed group that's been procuring themselves for a decade now. The only things that are true about their thieving performances is the stealing of Pokemon, and their spread across primarily Kanto and into Johto." Red explained. "It makes them terrorists, in all honesty, through what they've become."
"Explain." Synergy demanded simply, as Ash stayed quiet.
Red sighed as he flicked away the now stub of a cigarette. "Allow me to give you context, then." He decided. "When I was fifteen years of age, I was labelled as a prodigy. A prodigy that went about and helped to defeat Team Rocket as they rose up to try and take over a few the region. Do you know that much?"
"Yes." Synergy intoned, as even Ash looked like he knew something about that. "It was the only time a criminal team came anywhere near exerting official control over any slice of territory."
"Exactly." Red agreed as he clasped his hands together in his memory recollection. "Fortunately, me and others, including the champion at the time, sent them scurrying back to where they'd emerged, and the League's been using suppression tactics ever since to stunt their growth and ensure they can't come back. Simple things like using the police to monitor the situation."
"As usual, however, the League fucked up." Red stated callously. "Team Rocket had been playing somewhat nice, as it were. They'd been using only stolen Pokemon and dumb grunts, just like your other criminal teams, to try and muscle their way in - just with better funds and a bigger abundance of numbers. When that failed, they switched tactics."
Red fell silent as he collected his thoughts, and Synergy only watched the man ponder. Leaving Ash to spur the situation on. "What do you mean?" The boy asked.
"I mean, they turned to the past." Red spoke up in an almost instant response. "The past wasn't pretty. Full of wars, and those before the regional wars were particularly bloody and violent, including the likes of weapons that you'd only see on blueprints in the Institute for Regional Defence now. Seeing as how the utilisation of what is considered violent now failed, they upped their game to somehow acquire some of those blueprints from the IRD."
Synergy appeared positively alarmed at that. "Are you certain about that?" The robotic Pokemon asked with urgency in her tone. "To get their hands on weapon schematics like that..."
"That's just what the League thinks too. To somehow steal from the only armed institution, let alone their headquarters which is the most defended building on the planet. Preposterous, and so all of my warnings fell on deaf ears." Red stated with a mocking tone, before sighing. "Even I didn't believe my contacts at first. That was, until, I tested it myself."
Pulling out a memory stick under Synergy's careful observation, he held it up to the light. "Unfortunately, it's easier than you think to access their schematic vault. Suffice to say, I managed to grab everything in that vault and download it all." Red spoke as he rattled the stick before putting it away. "The only pieces of good news that I have is that my contacts assure me that Team Rocket only stole infantry weapons to arm their personnel with as, admittedly, not just anybody can access that vault. Apparently that's all they could steal as they weren't as good as me. Plus, I managed to get some of my contacts on the inside to stop such an event being repeated. If the League won't do it, I will."
Synergy's alarmed state didn't go away as her system still saw complications with what Red had said. "What about actually building it? You'd need knowledge and manufacturing centres to do all that, as well getting past the strict controls of gunpowder."
"Ah, gunpowder. One of the most controlled substances on the planet." Red murmured, before shaking their head. "I don't know for sure, but if Team Rocket could get into the IRD, then they can get round the gunpowder ban. And they got their knowledge from the vault, and for a Team as widespread across two regions as they are, getting their hands on industrial manufacturing equipment should be one of the easiest things in regards to this situation for them."
Synergy's alarmed complexion faded as she processed the data. "So basically, we have a potentially heavily armed terrorist group that's seeking to take over the region again with heavier amounts of violence. Something nobody else has expected, prepared for or is willing to listen to and so they have a good chance at winning this time. Anything I missed?"
"You got it spot on but for two factors. One is that they will have to fight the national guard, but considering the state of them, they'd still win." Red informed. "Secondly is the biggest piece of good news. Time is still on our side."
Ash just looked confused by all of this. "Dad, all of this, what does it all mean?"
Red sighed again, his expression haggard as he looked to his son. "Son, I'm going to be frank with you. The reason I tell you to grow up and accept the situation is because we need all of this time we have left. Team Rocket is an armed terrorist group now that I seem to be the only one doing anything about, and I need your help."
"Hold it." Synergy spoke as he leant forward to put herself in Red's view more. "What on earth would you have a child do?"
"A child whose killed and learning of ways to kill further?" Red countered dryly to the robotic Pokemon who blinked back. "But, I'll tell you. My contacts in Team Rocket who have let me find all of this out have given me a specific time frame. They're working on some project, heavily classified and sealed off to the majority of the criminal team that even my contacts can't dig into it, leaving me blind. The only things they know is that it's big and takes up a lot of funding, which is never good, and they've structured their plans around its activation - in roughly a decade."
Synergy merely waited as Red breathed in and continued. "I can't seem to get across anything to the League or its institutions about this threat, my past actions have turned against me in that regard. They may turn a blind eye to me dealing with crime, but they won't let in any official capacity. That's where Ash comes in."
"Me?" Ash questioned with a higher pitched voice as he was put in the spotlight. "What about me?"
Synergy, however, had put the puzzle together. "You need Ash to become champion, don't you?"
Red acquiesced the point to her as he nodded. "Indeed. Again, it's not about what I want, but what is needed." He spoke as he looked at Ash. "I apologise for all of this, son. But I desperately need to change how this is going. Lance won't listen, the League won't listen and even my old friends won't listen to me anymore. It isn't enough anymore for just me and others like me to put down Team Rocket as it pops up, because when it does next, it'll be too big for any one person."
"So you need someone in a high position, someone who can control resources to combat Team Rocket." Synergy finished.
"Yes." Red stated in agreement. "More than that. I need someone I can trust. I need to know that when it does go off, that they won't turn their backs as everyone else have done to me."
"But what does that have to do with me?" Ash stated then. "You left me, not the other way around!"
"And I'm sorry for that, son. But I never left you. Do you honestly believe that you ended up where you are now just because the stars aligned right for you?" Red questioned.
Even Ash couldn't refute that as Synergy knew it too, scanning the man and finding him clear of all parameters that would indicate he was lying. "Then why? Why did you never visit at least?" The boy struggled out, having got fed up with keeping his questions locked in.
"To keep you safe." Red replied instantly. "I'm sorry to have left you as it were. But I do not regret it, for you were a thousand times safer without me there to only accentuate the target upon your back during the times I would've had to leave or even just turn my own back for a moment."
Ash's eyes only glistened again as he finally got the truth he wanted to hear, rubbing at them once more. "Thanks dad." He only whispered out. Even if it hadn't have gone as the boy had wished it, he had been well under Oak's care. And to find out that it was because of his actual father...
Red smiled a small smile as he saw that, Synergy not interrupting as she observed the exchange, before the man sighed. "I do apologise, Ash. I never wanted any of this. But, it's just the way things are."
Ash looked to the man as his expression frowned again. "So what did you want, or need, or whatever." He requested in a quiet voice.
Red frowned then too, before answering. "What I need." The man stressed. "Is someone I can trust. And right now? The only person I trust is you, son."
Nodding, Red continued as Ash looked at him. "Being a champion is more than being one of the strongest Pokemon trainers on the planet. They basically control the entire region, bound only by the legislation the League gives them, and are able to dictate many policies as they see fit so long as it doesn't harm the region. And I need resources, not to harm the region, but to protect it."
"So Ash becomes champion, and you get what you need." Synergy intoned. Though it really sounded necessary, the robotic Pokemon still didn't like it. Though Red's love for his son was most likely genuine, this whole scheme would most likely endanger Ash, something that she was against. But Red said it was 'necessary', due to the fact that he apparently trusted Ash to go through with it. More data was needed. "And how would you achieve both ends of that?"
Red looked to the synthetic Pokemon in serious regard as he spoke. "Simple. The process of becoming champion has already started - he's got the education from Oak, the recognition and influence from Lance, among other things. The main things that are left is to get stronger, and become truly recognised as a candidate for being champion. Then, you get to challenge my old friend Blue." Red spoke out, some nostalgia in his tone beside its serious edge before he straightened up. "Of course, you'll have help. From those you have now, and me. I'll be visiting you more often, son."
The promise was just what Ash needed to perk up as he got visibly a little happier at the talk of being champion and seeing his father more, his child-like mind focused upon that. Synergy was of a more contemplative mind, though. "And after. What happens after?" She inquired in a level tone, scanning the man for the aforementioned parameters and gathering the data needed to gauge his true intentions.
"After he becomes champion?" Red asked, getting a nod from the Pokemon. "That's... a bit more unclear. But what is prevalent is that me and my son would work together. Ash would have the official capacity, and I would have the background influence needed to cut through the obstructive legislation of the League."
Synergy was still unsatisfied. "What resources would you need?" She let out in a more demanding tone.
The man shifted in his seat as he looked at her. "I would've thought that was obvious given what we've already talked about." He stated in a more calm, level tone now as he spoke his exact frame of mind. "We meet fire with fire by reversing this soft state Kanto has found itself in. I literally mean that any means necessary will have to be employed to meet this terrorist threat - as you've probably already guessed, involving the military."
Synergy merely blinked as even her system processed that as a bold proclamation for the society they lived in. "I see." She spoke as she stood down, having gained enough data then. She was still very much wary of the man - but parts of her was liking Red Ketchum. He didn't lie to her once, spoke without any misleading tone or words and he was upfront.
Synergy didn't judge him like others would, given how she would do almost anything to protect Ash as it seemed his father had already done, including staying away from him of all things. Given how Ash had been attacked when she hadn't been there at first, she sort of understood how hard it was.
But that still didn't mean she trusted Red.
"So, Ash." Red began slowly, leaning forth with a neutral expression as he gazed Ash fully in the eyes. "I guess all that's really left is to ask - will you help me?"
Ash looked at his father. In all respects as a parent, he was lousy. A failure, and the man had yet to deny that. But Ash could tell, that at least his father loved him. He had told him a few times of how proud he was, and had promised to visit - and Synergy had yet to step forth and say he was lying. Plus, that was combined with the fact that Ash could tell his father was deadly serious about everything he'd said - and that he needed his help for something bigger than the both of them. It was like the man didn't want to put him in danger, but that it was necessary.
On some accounts, it was more than a little off-putting. The man certainly had his flaws. But Ash had got his answers and the reasons he didn't realise he needed to hear, and so came to his decision.
Ash slowly nodded his assent, not trusting his voice to not convey how varied his emotions really were. How much he wanted to yell at the man just as much as hug him - but it seemed like Red understood that he had more to do before Ash was comfortable with any of that.
Leaning back into his chair, Ash's father closed his eyes as he let a small, satisfied smile overtake his eyes, tugging down on his cap to put a shadow over his eyes. "Thank you, son. You have no idea how much this means to me." Red spoke out, his tone of voice still level and calm. Reaching forth, Red placed a hand on Ash's leg and smiled at the boy, about to speak.
Pounding on the door interrupted them then, making Synergy snap her head to the door as she heard several panicked voices outside of it, most prevalently about how a door could get locked on an inactive robot and sleeping child. Red looked over slower than Ash did as he himself recognised the loudest voice. It seemed Oak wasn't about to let a repeat happen.
"You'd better go." Synergy stated to Red, who only calmly looked back at her. "Thank you for all you have informed us about, but I still have to reach a consensus about you and we're about to be intruded upon." Pointing over to the window, Synergy gestured. "The window's over there. We'll see you next time you decide to drop by."
Red gave another chuckle as the door to the private room shook again. He had locked it tight. "No need." The man stated, getting a curious look from both Ash and Synergy. "Aura is more versatile than even you realise, Synergy."
Not giving any time for them to respond, Red merely patted his son on the leg before sitting back further into his chair as he grabbed the empty black bag and his own rucksack. The man only smiled at Ash as he paused, a loving glint in his eye emerging for the first time. "Just remember, son. No matter how long it's been since you last saw me, no matter what anybody else says - you are the most important thing in my life, and I love you very much."
Leaning back, the man only smiled forlornly at Ash as the boy's eyes actually watered - before Red disappeared in a flash of blue light.
The small smile still engraved in Ash's memory.
The door burst open then as they finally got the mechanism to cooperate from whatever tampering it had undergone, Oak leading the charge as he walked right on into the room, a Pokeball in his hand. The elderly man stopped short, however, as he saw a perfectly clear room - apart from Synergy gazing curiously at him and a supposedly sleeping boy looking to him.
"Ash?" Oak questioned as he saw the raven-haired child blink at him before giving a small greeting and wave, more muted than it would normally have been. "You're awake!"
"Er, yeah, Mr Oak." Ash responded then, unsure of what to say.
Fortunately, Synergy took over then. "What is going on, Professor? My sensors alerted me to the fact that Ash had awakened just ten minutes ago, and we were holding a conversation until you suddenly burst in as you did. Can I request what the urgency is about?"
Oak blinked for a second before he he himself shrugged. "I'm not sure. Me and Lance had arrived back to see you before Lance left, but then we discovered the door lock had jammed for some reason. Given... prior events, we decided to try and gain entry."
Synergy only nodded as Oak looked round again, before looking to Ash with a grandfatherly smile. "But enough of that. The only thing that happened was a faulty door lock, and you waking up, Ash. It's so good to see you awake, my boy."
Ash only began responding back in a more down-played tone, but nonetheless still positive - as Lance wasn't so quick to dismiss the strange occurrence.
The red-headed champion, himself an operative of a government task force that he lead, compiled the facts as he saw them. Ash was acting strangely, more so than expected for a boy who had just woken from a previous traumatic event. He hadn't flinched when Oak had mentioned 'prior events', nor respond enthusiastically as he normally did when Oak greeted him. Then there was the peculiarities of the robotic Pokemon - Synergy had seemingly stressed how she and Ash had talked despite receiving no question, and there was the way she acted, even just keeping the bag out of reach from any of the nurses who had come in to check Ash's vitals.
The most damning signs, however, were those present in the room itself - the open window, a moved chair next to Synergy, and of course, the three cigarette butts in the plastic bin. Lance said nothing as he joined the dots in his head of who fitted the memorandum of the signs he saw before him, and found himself disliking the possible suspects that came to mind. Someone had definitely been here, and from the muted actions of even the legendary Pokemon, either threatened them or done something similar. Knowing very few people who could do such a thing, and that 90% of them wouldn't dare do something to anger him like this, it would seem that Red Ketchum had come into the picture at last.
Talking straight to Ash about it would do no good, as the boy would most likely gum up right away - and Lance was unwilling to jeopardise anything just yet, including his relationship with the boy. It was time he started to talking to his own contacts about the enigmatic Pokemon master.