Hey, guys!
Sentai Red/Zenkai Red here with a brand new chapter - and right before Valentine's Day! I guess you can consider this the Valentine's Day chapter! This is the chapter that had massive rewrites done and I'm happy to say that this is the chapter that is going to propel the story forward for the next foreseeable time! Anyway, on with the show!
Episode 11: Solomon and the Temple of Doom!
CRACKLE
Lightning blasted through the stormy sky.
Downpour drowning the ground.
Heavy winds blowing through, tearing things down in its wake.
The route known as Route 3, often considered to be the quietest and peaceful route in Kanto, is currently losing that name as the maelstrom destroys everything in its path. The mountains off the beaten path, all known as Mt. Moon, taking the full force of the unrelenting storm.
All of a sudden, a lightning bolt descends from the heavens, striking the mountainside. Then, as if the chances are so low it wouldn't be possible to happen again, Mother Nature decides to strike twice! Another bolt of lightning strikes the exact same spot! Then another!
Another!
This is not normal!
Finally, another lightning bolt descends, but this one is far more violent than the last ones. The previous ones were just tests, but this one is the real deal. This is the lightning bolt that was meant to come out and destroy everything it touches, to which it does! The second the bolt strikes the mountainside; the entire area begins to cave in! Rocks begin to fall, the mountain wall just splits open, exploding with tremendous force! Boulders, pebbles, and even some instances of diamonds spew from the blast zone.
What's crazy is that after the dust dissipates, nothing seems out of the ordinary – the mountain still seems intact! All that's now being revealed is a stone temple…
This stone temple, far larger than any building in Saffron City, stands proud, finally able to reveal itself to the modern world. Inside the stone temple are 10 pillars, each thick in circumference, holding the temple in place without a care in the world.
Inside the building lays a single coffin, surrounded by bones and decayed weapons.
The coffin lays there undisturbed, despite one skeleton laying on top of it as if it was trying to push it open. If one were to look at the coffin, there's something that seems to be carved directly on it. It's an ancient word, the characters for the words not matching anything that is used in Modern Kanto or even in other parts of the world.
As days pass, the storm subsides, and there are so many people excavating the site. One man stands above the rest, quite literally. At an imposing 6'1, the man is dressed quite professionally, like an executive of a Fortune 500 company. He stares at the insides of the temple with a glassy eyed look, observing the men and women trying to decipher the carved word on the coffin.
He puts his hand through his dirty-blonde hair, all slicked back with a comb. He releases a deep breath, one that he's been holding in for quite some time. This was it. He found what he was looking for! He gives his assistant, a beautiful woman with purple hair, styled in a bob cut, a warm smile, "I found it. After 13 years, I finally found a piece of my puzzle."
She holds his hand, "Yes, sir."
She squeezes it and he looks at the temple, "And to think, it was all through pure luck." He chuckles, his silky, deep voice making his assistant shudder. He's not one for emotions, but for him to just let out something like that, makes her wish for more of it. She has worked for him for over 7 years and not once has she ever seen the look of happiness and relief coming from the man standing next to her. This is new, even for her, and she wants to see more of it.
"Yes, sir. Quite the luck."
"Lidia, no need for the formalities for once, this is a joyous occasion!"
"Right. I'm sorry, Solomon."
Solomon smiles, walking towards the coffin, placing his hand on it reverently. "After so long, I found you." He whispers, rubbing the coffin slowly. He lets the tips of his fingers trace against the carved word, closing his eyes, trying to translate it in his mind. A faint glow escapes his fingertips as the carved words appear in his mind, floating in his mindscape.
The words begin to disappear, but they slowly appear, becoming the modern language everyone uses. The word makes him smile as it finally forms in his mind.
μονάρχης
mónarkhos
Monarch
That's what it means…
He pulls out his phone and begins to dial a number. There were a couple of rings, before the person on the other line finally answers with a gruff, "What is it?"
"Giovanni, sir," he begins, "I finally found it."
There was a brief silence, until Giovanni spoke, "And to think it's even real. Very well. I'll be sending some of my men over to help you excavate. However, I expect the payment to be submitted prior to their arrival. Is that understood?"
"The money is already being wired to you, sir."
"Good."
The line disconnects and Solomon just chuckles, putting his phone away, ready for things to finally take effect. He just needed one more piece of the puzzle for his plan to truly begin.
A couple of days have passed and as the men finally arrive to assist Solomon, Ash and the group, this time including Brock, are now on the road. The destination? Mt. Moon! After the Pewter City Contest showcase ended, Serena has been imagining and sketching her ideas for the Appeal Rounds, imagining using the power of Eevee's Swift, mixed with something like Iron Tail, or having Eevee learn Shadow Ball to showcase the difference of a bright, flashy move with a dark, powerful hitting move. With her Fennekin, it was a tad more limiting, but she figured that as she trained Fennekin, there were possible moves she can learn that can be of use.
Beedrill has Poison Sting and String Shot, so she has ideas to use for those two moves.
Jotting her notes down, drawing small sketches to capture her ideas, she sighs in contentment over the fact she's going to be a coordinator now. She wants to see how far she can go with this new goal of hers; to go beyond what people expected of her and to prove to everyone, herself most importantly, that she has what it takes to continue down this new path that has appeared before her. She remembers her mom constantly worrying about her, fearing that Serena would never find a goal or something to strive for, so she's going to use this chance to prove her mom wrong.
She loves her mom, but she's going to make her mom realize she had nothing to worry about.
She was going to be a Top Coordinator, and nothing is going to stop her!
"Serena, watch out!"
Thud
"Ow ~!" She whines, hitting a tree, falling to the ground in pain. She rubs her face, red with embarrassment and from the mark where she faceplanted into the tree. Okay, maybe something did stop her, but she meant it figuratively!
Helping her up, she looks at a worried Ash, making her look away bashfully.
"Thanks, Ash…"
He just chuckles, hoisting her up, "Never thought I'd see my 'Rena just have her head stuck in the clouds, that's usually my shtick!" He jokes with her, making her giggle at his corny attempt. She did notice he said 'my 'Rena' and that makes her flush, wondering if he meant anything from it. Deciding it was best to not continue with that thought, she shakes her head swiftly of it and quips back with a mock frown.
"Not my fault your 'cooties' are contagious," she harrumphs playfully, crossing her arms. All that does is make Ash snicker.
"Real mature," he bites back with a smirk, "I thought you said I can never give you cooties?"
"Continue on and I'll make sure I'll be sick of you in no time."
The two laugh amongst each other, enjoying the banter. For the past couple of days, the two haven't really spent time with one another, with Ash focusing on his gym battle with Brock, and Serena trying to figure out what she wanted to do. True, they had their moments together in Viridian Forest, but the less said about their time there, the better. In fact, right now as the four walk the paths that lead to Mt. Moon, this is the most they've spent time with one another.
Pikachu and Froakie both gave them their space, with the two glancing at one another and giving each other a thumbs up. The entire time the two kids have been talking, they spent the time observing their behavior with one another and the results are pretty telling.
Ash, despite not fully understanding his feelings, is still showing signs of being affectionate to his female friend. He has shown time and time again that he's trying to change his mannerisms, specifically his table manners. No matter how many times Delia would scold Ash, often hitting his head with a wooden spoon, the lessons never stuck – until Serena became involved. And while he has his moments of being overprotective, he would go out his way to defend Serena, protecting her from whatever was going to harm her. The two still think back to Samurai, who's still probably nursing his black eye.
For Serena, there's no doubt about it that she truly has a crush on their trainer. The way she looks at Ash, her smiles towards him, and most obvious – the blushing! All of these little actions are all tell-tale signs of how much she likes the boy. There have been times where she would just hold her hands behind her back, leaning back and forth, tippy toeing while looking at Ash as the two would talk.
The girl was smitten with him, but she was just too shy to even confess it. When it comes to her friends and family, she can be boisterous and sassy, but to the boy she admires? She becomes a huge softy, much to all the Pokémon's amusement.
"Enough flirting you two," Misty quips sarcastically, making Serena glare at her. Ash just rolls his eyes, but smiles apologetically to Serena, wishing the two had more of a chance to talk. She shrugs it off, knowing it's not Ash's fault.
Brock just chuckles at the group dynamic, amused by how everyone handles things differently. "Anyway, guys," he makes sure he changes the topic, "we're almost to Mt. Moon. I was wondering if you guys want to stop and take a break? I can make us all lunch." The moment he asked that question, two stomachs began to rumble, one louder than the other.
Ash and Serena both look bashful, with Ash rubbing the back of his head, and Serena averting her gaze away. "Hehe, sorry, I guess this is a great time to take a break!" Ash exclaims, hoping for the teasing to be mild. Brock was amused at the synchronized stomachs, while Misty was openly snickering.
"You're just like your boyfriend," Misty whispers to Serena, making the poor girl blush and squeak.
Looking at his best friend, Ash just asks, "Are you okay?"
"I-I'm fine, A-Ash!" she sputters, pushing herself away from a laughing Misty. Ash narrows his eyes at the redhead, thinking she did something to make Serena embarrassed, but Misty just winks at him, and he just turns away with a huff. She can be so annoying! All he hears from her is more snickering.
"Hey, guys, we're going to need some firewood. Can one of you guys go and get some for me? I'll also need help setting up the table." Brock says, hoping to get lunch ready soon for everyone. Serena raises her hand eagerly.
"I'll go get the firewood! Just dry sticks, right?" she asks Brock, who nods approvingly. She turns to Ash and winks, "Guess I'll be the responsible one and get us the wood! Just try not to starve yourself to death please!" She giggles at his flushed face, thinking to herself that he's quite cute for getting so flustered. She ignores Misty's Cheshire cat grin and calls out Fennekin.
"Fen!" Fennekin calls out, happy to be out of the Pokéball and stretches accordingly. She wags her tail seeing her trainer and jumps into her trainer's arms, making Serena gush at how adorable her starter is.
"Oh, Fennekin!" She hugs her, "Come on, cutie, we're going to get some firewood for lunch!"
Fennekin nods, dropping down, eager to help out in anyway, "Kin!" She yips, waiting for her trainer to start their walk. The honey-blonde haired girl grins, leading the way through some of the trees to gather the materials needed.
"We'll be back in a little bit!" Serena exclaims, waving at her friends, before making a dash into the forest that surrounds them. Ash just watches where she last was and chuckles to himself, amused that his best friend is becoming more open and just as excitable as he is. Hopefully she doesn't become too much like him – he can't even control himself.
Brock looks over and watches Ash just stare, making him smirk, "You and her, huh?"
With a confused look, Ash turns to his male friend, "And what do you mean by that?"
Pikachu and Froakie both snicker, covering their mouths. The fact that Ash is so smart in battle but can't understand something as trivial as a girl having a crush on him is unfathomable. It's hilarious! They love their trainer, there's no denying that, but even they're wondering when he'll finally break out of the oblivious shell he was born in. Brock shakes his head, the smirk still saying on his face, "Don't worry about it, Ash. Can you help me set up the table?"
Shrugging, Ash obliges and starts to set up the table, all while Misty is helping Brock with preparing the food. She whispers to Brock, "¥2500."
He raises an eyebrow at what she means, and she reiterates, "¥2500 to see who confesses first. My money is on Serena."
Brock has a bead of sweat drop from his brow, "Really, Misty? Are we really going to bet on something like this?" And to be fair, it's not fair! He totally would have betted on Serena, but Misty just had to bet and claim Serena for herself.
"Oh, fine. I'll double it if Ash confesses first."
Brock then grins maniacally, "You got yourself a deal."
The two then shake each other's hands while ignoring Ash's questioning look.
While Ash suffers from Brock and Misty's odd behavior, Serena and Fennekin are happily looking around, grabbing tree branches and twigs off the ground. Fennekin whines to Serena, wanting to chew on the small twig she found.
"Alright, fine," Serena acquiesces with a playful huff, "but only one. I don't want you ruining your appetite." She crouches down to feed Fennekin a twig, to which the fennec gnaws on the twig happily. Serena smiles at the action and looks at the amount of wood in her arms. "I think we need a few more, just in case."
The two continue walking, with Serena thinking about what's happening in the next couple of days. Her first ever contest was about to begin in the next couple of days and this will be her debut as a Coordinator! As much as she wants to be excited, she can't help but feel nervous for it. What if she messes up?
What if she doesn't even get past the Appeal Round?
She only has ideas about what to do, but she hasn't done any training at all to confidently say she's ready for her debut. Should she just hold off until the next contest hall? What would Ash and the others think? They've been supportive of her since the moment she announced she wanted to try and be a Coordinator. Would they be disappointed in her?
An even worse thought cropped up: would Ash and the others leave her?
That thought alone fills her with dread as she begins to tremble on the spot, worrying her fire starter. "Fennekin?" the starter calls out to her trainer.
Jolting herself out of her anxiety, Serena shakes her head and looks at the fox, "I'm sorry, Fennekin… I was just thinking to myself. I…" she sighs, "I'm just nervous, you know? I don't want to mess up in front of the others." She looks down at the ground, biting her lips.
"I've never really thought of myself as a trainer. I just wanted to spend time with Ash here in Kanto, with you and Eevee on our journey, but I was always… I was always afraid that I'd just be in his way or just make you guys feel like you're wasting your time with me as your trainer. Now that I want to be a Coordinator, do I even have a chance? I haven't even put our routine into motion!" She sighs harshly, "I just don't want to disappoint all of you."
Fennekin shakes her head, "Fen-kin! Fennekin!" She gets up on her hind legs, flailing her arms as she continues to yip and bark to Serena, trying to convey the message to her trainer. Sure, they haven't done their routines yet, but they'll find a way to work on it! Fennekin continues to bark away, telling Serena that as long as they support one another, no matter if she fails, they're going to still be with her and love her!
Serena, still learning to bond with all her Pokémon, was still able to get the message and she smiles gratefully at her fire starter, "Oh, Fennekin!" She carefully scoops up her Pokémon in her arms. "You're so sweet! Thank you! I think you're right; we'll support each other no matter what and if we fail, we're not going to give up until the end… just like how Ash says it!"
Fennekin grins, happy to comfort her partner.
The two hold each other, ignoring the jabbing pains of the twigs in Serena's arms, but the two jolt in fright when they hear someone clap. They turn around to see a towering man walk up to her. Fennekin immediately jumps down, snarling at the man, ready to attack should he dare do anything.
"Who… who are you?!" Serena cries out, ready to run.
The man sticks his hands up in defense, "My apologies, child. I mean you no harm. I was just here gathering firewood for myself and my team when I couldn't help myself and eavesdrop on your conversation with your beautiful Pokémon there." The young girl stares at the man suspiciously, inspecting him to make sure he's not a creep.
Fennekin still snarls, not trusting the man.
"Right… and who are you, exactly?" she asks defensively.
The man bows, taking off his explorer's hat, "The name is Solomon, my dear. Solomon Isles. I'm an anthropologist and I'm with my group excavating Mt. Moon. What about you?" His gentle nature seems to calm Fennekin down as she doesn't sense any malicious intent coming from the guy, but she can't help but feel uneasy with him. Serena doesn't have the sixth sense like her partner, so she just relaxes, not feeling threatened.
"The name's Serena and this is Fennekin," she introduces herself, bowing lightly, "and I'm with my friends going to Mt. Moon to get to Cerulean City for my friends' gym battle and for my debut in the Contest Hall there."
"Excellent to hear! However, I must apologize to you in advance," he says with a sad smile, "the path to Mt. Moon has been closed down for quite some time due to a heavy storm that blasted the side of the mountain. Right now, my team and I were given permission by Pewter City to excavate the blast site as it as uncovered some archeological oddities, so I'm afraid the route is closed off and you all may need to find another path."
Serena looks disappointed, sad that it would take them even longer to get to Cerulean City.
Feeling bad for the girl, Solomon asks her, "Why don't you let me take you and your friends to see the site? I feel terrible for bursting your bubble and consider this as an apology for eavesdropping on your conversation."
Thinking about it, she shrugs, "I guess we can work out something. We can talk to my friends about it and we go from there."
Solomon nods and helps her find dry wood to return back to camp with, explaining to her that the faster she found the right amount, the sooner they can all go to the site. She then leads him back to her campsite, where Ash and the others wait patiently for her.
Ash was the first to notice the guy walking behind her and he gets up, clenching his fists, "And who are you?"
Serena squeaks, getting in front of Ash to placate him, "No, no, it's fine!" Brock and Misty eye the stranger suspiciously, to which Solomon gives them all a wry smile. Pikachu and Froakie also stare at the man with narrowing eyes, unsure how to feel about this stranger. Last time they had some stranger come up to them, it was with a sword pointed at Serena and they'd rather not deal with something similar.
"I don't know, Serena," Misty says, crossing her arms, glaring at Solomon, "why is he here?"
Answering for the timid girl, he bows, "I understand the hesitation coming from you all; I can imagine being in your shoes where your friend comes back with some older man. Peculiar thought and action, I know. However, let me assure you all that I'm just here as an archeologist, digging around on a blast site that has happened a couple of nights ago at Mt. Moon."
Brock blinks, "Oh, right, I've heard of that!"
Everyone looks over to Brock as he begins to explain, "A couple of days ago, there was a report from the Saffron City Weather Institute that there was a terrible storm hitting Mt. Moon and after a couple of hours, it just vanished, like no sign of a storm was ever there except for lightning strikes that hit the side of the mountain, causing parts of it to collapse."
Solomon nods, impressed by someone being knowledgeable on the event, "Exactly. Now, as I've said to young Serena here, I'm an anthropologist and I'm studying up the area as the collapsed wall revealed something extraordinary! Now, I'm only hear to bear some bad news for you all."
With the exception of Serena, they all turn to the older man as he bows yet again, "See, due to the storm, only we've been given clearance to enter the area surrounding Mt. Moon, meaning the route to it has been closed off indefinitely. I apologize for it all, but you must all find another way to your destination. However, to make it up, I will let you all see the excavation site and see what we're digging up. By the time you all reach your destination, we would already have made what we've discovered known to the public, so it's not like you all will be in on some huge secret."
Ash groans, annoyed they would have to make a detour around the mountain, delaying their travels, but he realizes it's no one's fault, and he sighs despondently. Serena gives him a sad look and just rubs his back, hoping to soothe him.
He appreciates what she does and looks to Solomon, "I guess we can find a way around it. Plus, it'd be cool to see what you guys dig up, right guys?" He turns to his friends and Pokémon.
"Pika!"
"Froakie…"
Brock and Misty nod, figuring that it may not be a bad idea to see what's being discovered. In fact, it may lead to something cool! "I have no problem with it," Brock simply says.
Misty nods, "Same. It'd be nice to see something unique!"
Solomon chuckles, seeing them eager reminds him of when he was younger, "Splendid."
With the firewood, Brock was able to make a quick stew for everyone to eat. He invited Solomon, but he declined saying that he's a very picky eater due to health concerns over the years. He insisted it had nothing to do with Brock and it was more or less just a health and safety issue for him, to which Brock understood completely, explaining to Solomon one of his sisters is like that.
Solomon was left disturbed at the fact a boy no older than 15 had to take care of his 9 siblings while his father had disappeared on them. He had bit the urge to curse the father for doing such a thing. Ash was able to explain that Flint, Brock's father, already apologized and is back in their lives, to which Brock confirmed.
When they all finished eating, both trainer and their Pokémon, Solomon began to lead them to his campsite. Froakie and Pikachu, for some reason, just couldn't help but still feel trepidatious when it came to Solomon. Sure, he seems and sounds like a nice person, but they just couldn't help but feel like he's hiding something.
Fennekin, still following Serena, explained he popped out of nowhere and scared them, but even she still feels unsure of how to feel about the older man after he introduced himself to everyone.
When they finally arrived at the destination, the kids couldn't help but gasp in awe, much to Solomon's amusement.
"Welcome to my little dig site, children," he states with a smug smile, enjoying their expressions.
To say the excavation site wasn't impressive is a downright lie. The damage done to the mountain pales in comparison to the time capsule it unveiled, showing a towering temple deeply embedded within the mountain itself. The stone pillars welcoming people to enter the temple still show a certain richness that no amount of wind and rain could ever erode.
Deep in the temple, a cool air comes out, chilling the people around. To the people inspecting the area, no one is sure how it has maintained a cool breeze from the inside of the temple, but it doesn't matter in the grand scheme of things.
In fact, what really drives home how impressive the building is, is that there are bricks made of pure granite that lay stacked on top of one another to have built the mysterious temple. A single brick alone is about twice the size of Brock, who is often considered above average height for his age. A lone granite brick off on the beaten path is a tell-tale sign to those around them that whoever built this marvelous structure were clearly not human.
Or if they were, they had help.
One of the archeologists calls out a Machamp and the Machamp is barely able to lift the granite before giving up and placing the granite brick back where it laid. "Champ, mah…" the Machamp mutters apologetically, before being recalled back into its ball.
"Wow…" the kids all say in wonder.
"Pika…"
"Froa…"
"Fenne…"
Even the three Pokémon share their trainer's amazement, ogling the towering structure.
Solomon just chuckles, "Magnificent, isn't it? All my life, I've loved the thrill of discovering our lost pasts, to recover and reveal to our society who we humans once were, what we did; it has been a passion of mine to unearth the mysteries that hide beneath our very feet. You see this temple?" He points inside, "There's something even grander that hides beyond that – a piece of the puzzle I've been looking for!"
Ash and his friends stare at the man as he eyes the building with passion, "And what's that?" Ash asks.
The blonde-haired man looks at the young boy, "There lies a tomb of a king, my boy; a king lost to the annals of history. We don't know who he is or what his name even is. All that's written is an archaic language, something that not even my most competent philologists can translate."
Froakie was able to detect something was amiss and he narrows his eyes, clenching his fist, unknowingly hurting Ash in the process as he pinches Ash's skin. "Ow, buddy," Ash admonishes, rubbing the spot where Froakie pinched him at.
"Kie…" Froakie apologizes.
Solomon ignores the small interaction. "Ah, but who am I to explain, but not show? Come with me, children." He leads them to the inside of the temple, which scares Serena.
She looks over to Ash who still walks along without a care, "Ash…" she whispers, alerting him.
"Hm? What's up, Serena?"
She shivers when they all enter the dimly lit temple, the small lanterns placed by the workers not giving her any reprieve from how creepy everything is, and she grabs one of his hands for comfort, surprising the boy. "Just… let me hold your hand, please? This place gives me the creeps." She pleads for Ash to accept.
With a slow nod, Ash allows her to hold his hand and he even squeezes them gently, "Of course."
Misty even comments, "Yeah, no, this place is really creepy. I think I want to head back…"
Brock nods, "I agree, as much as I'd love to see, I don't feel comfortable myself just entering here. It feels like we really shouldn't; it seems disrespectful."
Solomon dismisses their concerns, "Just a few more steps and I promise you all I'll let you get back outside. This is just a sight to behold!" Ash narrows his eyes, annoyed that the guy is making them continue, but he relents, as he too is also interested in the tomb. For some reason, he just wants to see it. Ash has never been a history buff as he always found that it to be boring, but this? This feels different and he wants to know why.
He continues to hold Serena's hands, her face morphing to pure fright. She tears up, wanting to escape, but she pushes on through. 'Why did I have to agree to this?' She thinks to herself, regretting ever accepting Solomon's offer. Sure, he seems nice, but this is all way too creepy for her to deal with! She looks over to see both Misty and Brock and they look at her, them nodding to her. They feel the same way and she gulps, feeling guilty for bringing them along like this.
"Sorry…" she mouths to them, but they wave it off, signaling it's not her fault.
As they walk, they finally see the main centerpiece and Serena bites back the urge to just run away. She walks away, pulling herself from Ash's grip, wanting to be close to both Brock and Misty, who both comfort her. Ash and Solomon both continue to walk forward, not realizing they're both synchronized in the way they're walking and breathing.
The two slowly get closer to the coffin that is in front of them and Ash reads the words carved in it.
"I don't get it," Ash mutters.
He turns to Solomon, who just rubs the coffin with reverence and a hint of obsession. Ash realizes he shouldn't be here, but the moment he looks back at the coffin, his eyes widen. His heart begins to race as the words carved on the coffin begin to transform right in front of him!
μονάρχης
mónarkhos
Monarch
"Monarch…" he mutters and for some reason, the room begins to chill, even more so than before. Solomon stares in shock, his eyes gazing at the young boy beside him, his lips dry from the revelation that stands before him. Solomon's breathing begins to pick up as he takes a step back from Ash, who blinks at the sudden movement.
"What did you just say?" he asks Ash, his voice turning sinister.
"Uh…" Ash sputters, unable to respond. The silence is all Solomon needed to know. His hands begin to shake as he continues to glare at Ash, his once gentle visage morphing into something that of a deranged madman.
"No way," Solomon says, before rushing to grab Ash, startling everyone. "There's absolutely no way!"
He gets pushed back as both Pikachu and Froakie throw him off Ash, who takes a step back in fright. Solomon begins to laugh, "Unbelievable! This… this is a surprise, for sure!" He stops laughing as he looks at Ash with a serious gaze, "Boy, how did you read that?!"
Brock, Misty, and Serena all get near Ash, who seems shaken from being grabbed, "Uh… I, uh, I don't know!" Ash exclaims truthfully, "It-it just happened!"
Solomon looks almost desperate, "There has to be someway you did that! You must tell me!" To Solomon, this is no mere coincidence! The boy did something! There's absolutely no way that what the brat did was nothing dissimilar to what he can do! The boy must be special too! To the archeologist, this child may be the next piece of the puzzle.
Brock gets between the two, tensing his muscles, "That's enough! Where do you get off grabbing and harassing my friend like that?!" Solomon stares at them all incredulously, Serena trying to pull Ash away from the scene with Pikachu and Froakie ready to lunge at the strange man.
Brock has a Pokéball in hand, ready to defend Ash from the lunatic.
Serena begins to pull Ash away, her heart thumping rapidly, wanting to escape. "Please, Ash," she whispers, "let's get out of here."
Misty has a Pokéball in her hand as well, ready to fight if anything goes down. "I don't know what you think you're doing, but don't you dare touch our friend like that again." Misty threatens with a growl.
Instead of being terrified, the anthropologist just scoffs, rolling his eyes. "Children, children!" He chides them. "There's no need for the violence! We're mature here and I'd rather deal with this scientifically than with a battle! I just have questions for the boy, nothing more!"
Serena glares, "Don't you dare get near Ash."
Instead of giving in, the deranged man just closes his eyes, "Let me tell you kids something. Let me tell you the prophecy of the Monarch." Then opens his eyes to stare directly as Ash, who too looks at him with widened eyes. Ash glares weakly, afraid, but grits his teeth, wondering what the madman is going to say.
"The time is nigh.
He who shall arise from the passing ash,
Let his power come forth.
Awaken, O Monarch,
With the power to rule,
Bring forth a new age.
O Monarch,
With your might bestowed by the Gods,
Smite your enemies
And lead us to prosperity.
Awaken, O Monarch,
Death is but a pawn
To your destined revival.
O Monarch,
Awaken –
The time is nigh."
As he recites the speech, Ash began to grab his head in pain, hissing in agony from the words. His eyesight worsening as things became too much for him to bear. He grabs Serena's arms harshly, making her whimper from the pain. She turns to Ash, gasping at the sight of him in physical pain.
"Ash!"
Everyone turns to see Ash passing out, Brock immediately rushing in and hoisting Ash over his shoulder, "C'mon, guys. Let's get out of here!" He uses his free hand to release Sandshrew, who stares menacingly at Solomon, daring for the man to even try and do something.
All Solomon does is watch with amusement, letting them run away.
"I found my missing piece," he states with a small grin. He lets them run away, not caring about the repercussions. He knew this was just the start of his grand plan. He digs into his pockets, grabbing his cellphone and dials a number, the same number he called previously.
"Giovanni, sir," he states.
"And what do you need now, Solomon? This better be important." Giovanni growls out, not in any mood to deal with any rubbish.
"I found my missing piece of the puzzle, sir."
