Chapter 145 Time Travel Part 4
After Ash, Pikachu, and Elias wake up, they find themselves at the Champion's Room inside the Charous Hall.
Elias: Back at last, it seems. I must say, though, such a simple chamber is not befitting of you, my Lord. As Champion, I feel you should have a room at least as impressive as the Elite Four.
?: I couldn't agree more!
Just then, Ash and the others are confused to see Elena Molinar in front of them. They start to wonder if they're still in the past.
Elena?: El, Ash. It's been a while.
Ash: Wait, so we are still in the past? (Looks closely at Elena) Wait, you look a little different...
Heather: No shit. I'm not a kid anymore. You've been gone 10 years.
Elias: That doesn't-
Ash: So it really is you, Heather! Good to see you.
Elias: (Realizes) My apologies, I thought you were- I'm sorry, did you just say 10 years?
Heather: Yeah, we were the Elite Three with no Champion for a bit. But the League is totally different now, except for me. But anyway, you probably both have a lot on your minds, so you should probably talk to the Champion.
Ash: So I guess I was replaced by you? But -
Heather: You should be grateful. She's the one that figured out where you both went. Before she worked out you had traveled through time, we all thought you both just... vanished. But here you both are, back like she said you would be, eventually. Although, she was probably so sure because she went and got the Relic Stone herself, to attract Celebi here. This is just an entranceway now; we made a whole room for her, just like the Elite Four get.
Elias: She sounds very impressive.
Ash: Yeah, so who is she? I mean the Champion?
Heather: ...You'll see. First time in Reborn's history that a Gym Leader has challenged the Pokémon League- And won on her first try, no less. But I shouldn't keep you, she's waiting. Just head through the door in the back to get to her room. And... I'll see you two later. Or, I guess, earlier? Time travel is confusing.
Ash is now thinking about what Heather has said, which means he is now ten years in the future.
Heather: And... Welcome back, Ash. We all really missed you. (Leaves)
Elias: ...She looks almost exactly like her mother. Well, we shouldn't keep this mysterious new Champion waiting.
Ash nods as they all head forward, and sensing the Relic Stone, Celebi rushes further ahead.
Elias: The decoration of this room... Oh dear. I think I'll stay behind you while we meet the Champion.
They find a lot of swords on the ground, and Ash feels uneasy about the decoration.
Champion: So, you've finally returned. Welcome back, Elias and Ash.
Ash recognizes the voice, but instead of being shy and stuttering, it sounds confident.
Champion: Do you like what I've done with the place? I took some cues from my old Gym. At first, people were at a loss for what to do without you. But sometimes people need to take charge of their own destiny. And it all turned out pretty well. Reborn is thriving. We've established connections with many other regions, and have grown into a global center for research and battle.
Ash smiles, but he wants to know why this Champion's field is so similar to the ones with Titania.
Champion: But that doesn't mean your absence wasn't felt. Reborn lost two of its best trainers when you vanished. But of course, you're more than just trainers. You're people that have been missed. I wasn't always the best at expressing my emotions in the past, but...I'm very happy to see you again, Ash.
Then Ash smiles as he sees who the Champion is, the Bug Type Gym Leader in his timeline: Shelly.
Shelly: (Hugs Ash) Ash, Elias. Hello! So, what do you think? Too much? I mean, I love being surrounded by trees, and Tania got me really into fairytales these last ten years... So it seemed just right!
Elias: Oh my, you're the Bug Type Gym Leader, correct? Thank heavens it's you and not... I was concerned I was about to get stabbed.
Shelly: I mean, I AM still pretty steamed you used your nepotism powers to get the OTHER awkward Bug Type Trainer an Elite Four spot instead of me. So maybe you still are.
Elias: I...
Shelly: (Laughs) Kidding! So, let's compare notes real quick. You found Celebi, presumably injured in the creation of the New World. You attempted to nurse it back to health, but realized its injuries were too complex for normal medicine. And then you proceeded to jump through time with Celebi, trying to find a solution. And now you're here, no doubt because Celebi was drawn by the Relic Stone? How'd I do, miss anything?
Ash: (Surprised) That was very impressive... I do believe you have covered everything.
Shelly: I'm happy to hear it. Even after becoming Champion, I couldn't just rest on my laurels. Between improving infrastructure and making connections with other regions... I've been studying! Legendary Pokémon, in particular. Including Celebi. And I just tried to predict how Celebi would behave.
Elias: I clearly underestimated you, Shelly. I had believed that without my Lord's guidance, surely the region would fall into disarray once more... Father Taube had faith in the people of Reborn. I clearly have yet to learn all I need from him.
Shelly: Taube, you say? Gosh, did you meet him while traveling through time? How exciting! I would have loved the opportunity to learn from him.
Elias: I... Forgive me, but how do you know who Taube is?
Shelly: As I mentioned, I spent a lot of time researching Legendary Pokémon. Taube Alcantara is probably one of the foremost scholars of Legendary Pokémon to have ever lived! It took a lot of work to find his writings, but they were a treasure trove of knowledge once I did! And not just for my research, either; there were manuscripts detailing the previously unknown history of Reborn, as well as details of lost traditions. Finding something like that... Well, as Champion, I had a responsibility to research further. I've been doing my best to help the region reconnect with its history.
Elias: That's...
Shelly: Oh, but there I go again, on and on about my research. Follow me; you'll both want to see this! (Leaves)
Elias: (Smiles) This future is... wonderful. The Alcantara family line has ended, and I am solely responsible. That is a burden I will never stop carrying. And yet... the future is bright. The Order's teachings live on. The Champion of Reborn is teaching the people to remember and respect the old ways...Thank you for showing me this, my Lord. Truly; it means... Thank you.
As they follow Shelly, they find the Relic Stone, and Celebi is flying around the item.
Shelly: Ta~daa! One Relic Stone, straight from the New World, and one happy healthy Celebi, fully recovered! However, before you can all go back to your time, I'm afraid there is one slight problem with all this.
Elias: Such an accomplished Champion... But you're missing one key accomplishment.
Shelly: Exactly. I never got to fight the previous Champion when I claimed my title. Of course, we've battled before, and I lost. But I'm a whole different trainer now. So let's see how that battle would've gone.
Ash: I will like to battle you.
Elias: My Lord smiles on me today. For I suspect I am about to witness the greatest battle this region has ever seen.
After getting to the sides of the Battlefield, Shelly decides to say some more before the battle.
Shelly: I have a pretty incredible Elite Four, so I rarely even get challengers. And when I do, I have no trouble beating them. So let's go, Ash. Remind me what a REAL battle feels like!
Shelly's first Pokemon is an Alolan Muk, and she named it Cain. Ash smiles as he goes for Lucario, Muk goes for Acid Armor and raises a lot of evasiveness, but Lucario manages to use Bone Rush and slams into the Pokemon time after time, after doing that again, Muk is defeated. The second Pokemon is Xerneas, much to Ash's surprise, and she also named it after his brother Noel. He starts to wonder if Noel and Xerneas have some sort of relationship in the future, but Lucario still defeats the Pokemon with the Flash Cannon, before it can use Moonblast to deal some damage.
The third Pokemon is Yanmega named Heather, Ash knows this Pokemon has been with Shelly for a lot of time, and it goes for Hidden Power to finally defeat Lucario, so Ash goes for Charizard next, using Heat Wave and knocking the Pokemon out. The fourth Pokemon is Primarina named Amaria, and Ash smiles as she even named her Pokemon after her. Primarina goes for Oceanic Operetta, which defeats Charizard, so Ash sends out Pikachu to battle. Pikachu uses Gigavolt Havoc and it also defeats the Water Type Pokemon.
The fifth Pokemon is Scizor named Titania, and it defeats Pikachu with Night Slash, so Ash goes for Keldeo, using Secret Sword, it defeats the Mega Evolved Pokemon in the end. And the final Pokemon is Leavanny, the same Pokemon named after him. Ash smiles at the Pokemon, but Keldeo is defeated by the Leaf Blade, so Ash goes for his final Pokemon, Naganadel, and it goes for Poison Jab and knocks the Pokemon that nicknamed after himself.
Shelly: Bravo! That was the best battle of my life! (Recalls Leavanny) 10 years of training and I'm still not quite on your level? Phenomenal, absolutely phenomenal... That was an incredibly fun battle. I suppose now I should tell you about the last bit of my research- The Relic Stone is self-correcting. It's tied close enough to Celebi that it's attuned to the timestream. So if I just give you this one to take back with you, that should all be fine- It'll just get rid of the one in your time still stuck in the New World. Which... You're welcome, you do not have to grab it yourself. It was a real pain trying to figure out how to get it. How about I fly us all to Agate City, we can say "hi" to a few people there, and then Celebi can take you two and the Relic Stone back to your time?
Elias: Seeing how people are doing here, in this future? ...I would like that. Thank you for your help, and for being such a gracious host, Champion.
Shelly: Don't mention it. Just be extra nice to me 10 years ago when I'm still coming out of my shell, and we can call it even!
Elias: 10 years is a rather long time. I hope long enough that those with a frostier opinion of me have had time to... thaw. I don't wish for hostility towards me to dampen your enjoyment of the experience- no matter how well earned that hostility may be.
Ash nods as he decides to ask Shelly to bring them to the others.
And I'll end the Chapter right here, as you can see, Ash and Elias are now in the future instead of their usual timeline, and guess what? Shelly is the Champion of Reborn. I hope you like this chapter and the next chapter will be the final chapter of the Celebi quest, which I was surprised at how long it actually is.
