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Thanks for not trying to spoil things like I said can't wait to read how you do it. I don't care how yeah do it)

Thanks, I'm really glad you're enjoying the story.

Welcome back everyone, I hope you enjoy the latest chapter.


The next morning Ash and his friends were enjoying a quiet breakfast when Nurse Joy came to see them.

"Ash I just got a call from Officer Jenny. She says you need to come see her right away," stated Nurse Joy.

"But why?" asked Ash.

"I don't know she didn't say. All she said was that it was important," said Nurse Joy.

Knowing it was best to not argue, the group headed to the police station as soon as they were finished eating. At the police station, Officer Jenny told them to have a seat and she would be with them shortly. She headed to the holding cells and unlocked Max's cell.

"Max there are some people here who would like to see you," she said.

Max jumped off his bed with excitement. Was Officer Jenny taking him to see Ash? She escorted Max to the front desk and a huge smile appeared on his face when he saw the waiting group.

"Ash, Brock!" said Max ready to break out in tears.

The group looked at Max. Despite his change in appearance, they recognised him instantly.

"Max?" asked Ash who couldn't believe his eyes.

"Yes, it's me," said Max happily.

Max ran to the group and hugged Ash. It had been so long since he'd seen a friendly face.

"Max what happened to you?" asked Brock referring to Max's shaved head and slim build.

"Military school was tough, but I got through it in the hopes that I would see you again one day," stated Max who had started crying.

"I'm so sorry that happened to you Max. You didn't deserve any of that," said Ash. "Maybe you should've just said you believed the lies. I wouldn't have held it against you. Especially after you stood up for me when I was accused."

"No, I couldn't do that Ash. No matter how badly I was punished I wasn't going to lie. But more importantly, I wasn't going to betray my friend," said Max.

"Thanks Max, you're a true friend," stated Ash.

Clemont then asked the most crucial question.

"How on earth did you even get here? It took us three weeks to get here by using flying or water Pokémon," stated Clemont.

Despite how insane it would sound Max knew it was best to tell the truth.

"It was Jirrachi, he came to save me," stated Max.

"Who's Jirachi?" asked Bonnie.

"He's a legendary pokémon that's believed to grant wishes, but he only appears for about a week every thousand years!" explained Gary.

"Ash, Max, May and I met and befriended Jirachi when the Millennium Comet passed by the planet," stated Brock.

"But that creates another question. How could Jirachi appear to help Max if he's not meant to appear for another thousand years?" asked Clemont.

"You know I asked Jirachi that when he appeared, the best answer he could give me was that a higher power had pulled him out of his slumber. He could also apparently hear me wishing to escape so he appeared to fullfill my request," stated Max. "I wished to go to where Ash was and the next thing I knew I was in this region."

"Where's Jirachi now?" asked Ash.

"My best guess is back in Forina. As soon as we got here Jirachi said he was tired and had to go home, then he disappeared," stated Max.

"Hmm, he must have only been granted enough energy to appear before Max and grant his wish, after which he had to continue his thousand-year sleep," theorised Gary.

"That seems reasonable, but it generates another question," stated Brock. "Who awoke Jirachi?"

Gary didn't have an answer for this question. Ash however had a few theories. He had met many legendary pokémon throughout his journeys and only a few of them had enough power to awaken Jirachi. Regardless of who had awoken Jirachi, Ash was now more determined than ever to prove his innocence. He didn't know exactly who had helped Max, but now he did know that there was a higher power out there on his side and wanted him to prove his innocence. For now they had other things they needed to worry about.

"Officer Jenny would it be ok if we took Max to see Professor Gidyea? I know he's technically an illegal immigrant, but maybe he can help Max the same way he helped us," suggested Ash.

"That shouldn't be a problem, provided I come with you to ensure Max doesn't make a run for it. I'm not saying he will it's just a protocol I have ta follow," stated Officer Jenny.

"That should be fine, but let us do the talking with Professor Gidyea," requested Ash.

"Alright let me just tell my supervisor where we 're going, and we'll head straight for the professor's lab," said Officer Jenny, leaving the group to talk amongst themselves.

"You know Ash it just occurred to me, where are we?" asked Max.

"We're in the Stralia Region," stated Ash.

"The Stralia Region?" asked Max confused.

The group explained to Max that they had fled to the Stralia Region, because it was a new region that was far away from the other regions and very few people even knew of its existence. They also explained that Professor Oak had zero influence over the Stralia Region and its citizens meaning they should be safe from him while they remained within the region's borders. Because of this Professor Gidyea had been willing to grant them asylum under the condition that he be allowed to test all of their pokémon.

"And he saw that your pokémon had never been given drugs, right?" asked Max hopefully.

Ash sighed at having to tell this story again.

"Actually, he did find drugs in most of my Pokémon," said Ash glumly.

"What?" asked Max fearing that Oak had been telling the truth. "Then why did he grant you asylum?"

"Because the only ones that were drugged were ones that had been in Professor Oak's care," stated Ash. "All my most recent catches, the ones I had released and Pikachu all came back clean."

Max thought about what Ash said.

"Professor Oak drugged them," stated Max.

"Well, that's what Professor Gidyea believes anyway," said Brock.

"Unfortunately, I also had to surrender all my pokémon that were drugged because using them in an official battle would still constitute as cheating even if I wasn't the one who drugged them," said Ash.

"Dang that's gotta suck," said Max.

"Oh, it's not so bad. He says I can have them back once the drugs have left their system and as a sign of good faith, he let three of us have a starter pokémon," said Ash.

"Cool could I see them?" asked Max.

"Maybe another time," said Ash. "I think the first thing we need to do is see if we can get you asylum like the rest of us."

"Yeah, alright sounds good," said Max.

At that moment Officer Jenny returned.

"Kids, before we get going, I think there's something you'll want to see," said Officer Jenny.

She took the group over to a television where the news was on.

"This is just in. Last night Ketchum supporter, Max Maple escaped from Hoenn Military Academy and his current whereabouts are unknown. While we don't have a definite answer to how the boy escaped, other students said they saw legendary pokémon, Jirachi appear and grant Max's wish to escape the institution," said a woman on the TV screen. "We now cross to Pokémon Expert, Professor Samuel Oak who, we hope, can shed some light on this situation."

The television screen switched to an image of Professor Oak.

"At this time, I feel I need to set the record straight. There is no possible way Jirachi could've assisted Max Maple. Jirachi only appears once every thousand years when the Millennium Comet passes by our planet, and it did so only a few years ago. Furthermore, Jirachi would never help a disgraceful pokémon abuser like Ash Ketchum, so I can assure you there is no possible way Jirachi appeared to assist Max Maple," Stated Professor Oak.

"Then how do you believe the Maple boy escaped?" asked a news reporter.

"Isn't it obvious? Ash Ketchum broke into the institute and helped Max Maple escape. I don't know how he did it, but considering Ash was cunning enough to break into my lab to steel his pokémon, I'm sure he could've figured out a way to free Max without being seen," stated Professor Oak.

"I bet they won't care that I have a rock-solid alibi," joked Ash.

"Then how do you explain the other students seeing Jirachi?" asked the reporter.

"They didn't," said Professor Oak. "It's obvious that when Ash broke into the institute to free Max, he threatened the other students with violence if they stated it was he that freed Max. I also theorise that Ash told them to say it was Jirachi who appeared to free Max, to make it seem viable that Max could escape the institute so easily. Ash may have scared the other students into lying, but I can promise you he can't stop me from speaking the truth. We will find him one day and ensure he's punished for everything he's done. As for the other students, we'll make sure they're protected from him, so long as they speak the truth."

The television switched back to the news studio.

"And there you have it. Professor Oak with what really happened last night," said the woman.

"I can't believe he's spreading more lies," said Brock angrily.

"Not only that, but most of the world is likely believing him," said Ash.

"Well as much as I hate to admit it, my grandfather is still technically the most respected Pokémon Expert in the world so most people will believe he's a trustworthy source," said Gary.

The news then broadcasted another shocking announcement.

"This just in, I've been told Max's parents will agree to give us an interview," said the news anchor.

The screen switched to Max and May's parents, Norman and Caroline. Both looked very sad, but at the same time furious.

"We just want to say that not only are we appalled that Max would support Ash Ketchum's cheating, but we are beyond furious that Ash would kidnap our son when we were trying to do the right thing and teach him a lesson about supporting cheaters," said Caroline.

"Ash if you're listening to this, we just want you to know that we hope the law finds you and punishes you for everything you've done," said Norman.

"Ok I think we've had enough bad news for the day," said Brock turning off the television.

"Well even if they did find us, there's nothing they can do as we're out of their jurisdiction," said Dawn.

"Still though it's a shame that Caroline and Norman believed Professor Oak's lies, I had a lot of respect for them," stated Ash before looking at Max. "Sorry you had to see that Max, I'm sure that wasn't easy to hear."

"No, its fine. In my opinion they lost the right to call themselves my parents the moment they decided to believe May and Oak over me," said Max.

"Well what do we do now?" asked Clemont.

"We go back to what we were already doing," said Ash. "We're going to talk to Professor Gidyea to see if Max can get asylum, that way he'll be safe from Professor Oak and his parents."


Sorry that ended a little abruptly, I must confess this was originally going to be a longer chapter, but I felt it was getting too long so I ended up splitting what was going to be my tenth chapter into two parts. More will be revealed in the next chapter. Until then thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Please let me know what you think, all feedback is greatly appreciated.