Hey everyone! I decided to upload this earlier than I'd planned because it's kind of a two-parter. I do have a schedule this year, and the next chapter will be up on the 23rd of February!
As for the title of the chapter, for those who don't know, Saving Grace is a saying that means "a redeeming quality that an object has that would otherwise be discarded." (Ie. The car was old, but its saving grace was that it was a vintage collectable).
Enjoy!
Chapter 9 – Saving Grace
Ash paced back and forth through the small Pokémon Centre, his mind racing. His Pokémon were gone, he knew that, but so was Nurse Joy. How could someone, have not only stolen the Pokémon, but also kidnapped the Nurse Joy that was looking after them without anyone noticing?
He checked storage, he checked the operating theatre, he checked the whole damn place, and yet he couldn't find any sign. The only thing that remained was Nurse Joy's nursing cap, but that didn't tell them anything. Not only was his Pokémon gone, but his aura sense couldn't pick them up anywhere; clearly, they were already too far away.
Finally, after a moment of venting, he returned to Misty and Elisabeth, his worry turning to anger before them. Suddenly, he pointed at Elisabeth. "You!" he snapped. "You had something to do with this!"
"Ash, calm down!" Misty tried, but absolutely nothing would stop him from his little tirade.
"No, Misty!" he replied. "Every time! Every bloody time she's around, something happens to Pikachu!"
"You think I'm involved?" Elisabeth questioned, offended by the accusation.
"Well, there's a high chance that you are!" Ash replied. "There's a saying; 'One's an accident, two's a coincidence, but three's a pattern. And I see a pattern forming, don't you?"
"Just because I'm around doesn't mean I had anything to do with the Pokémon going missing," Elisabeth defended.
"Missing?" Ash snorted. "Pokémon don't just go missing, Elisabeth! They were stolen-and more than likely-Nurse Joy was kidnapped!"
"Ash!" Misty tried again, only to be cut off.
"I knew I should have never listened to you, Misty!"
Misty paused, trying to hide the pain she felt at that moment. Everything seemed to stop, as if time itself had come to a halt. Ash didn't notice what he had done; too caught up in the situation. Choking back tears, she looked between Ash and Elisabeth before facing away from them. "I'm…" She sobbed. "I'm going to go find someone. You two have a look around and see what you can find while I get the authorities."
Elisabeth could see the hurt in Misty's eyes, but she said nothing as the younger girl departed. Finally, when Misty had disappeared around the corner, she spoke. "Nice going, you idiot."
"Me!" Ash retaliated, completely blind to Misty's feelings. "I'm not the one who's stolen the Pokémon!"
"Ugh!" Elisabeth groaned, throwing her hands up in defeat. "You know what, let's see if we can find any clues as to where the Pokémon were taken, I'll let you deal with the mess you made!"
"Deal with what mess?"
Elisabeth just shook her head.
After investigating, Ash and Elisabeth found themselves outside the stadium, where they found a set of tyre tracks leaving the area.
"This must have been from whoever stole the Pokémon," Elisabeth stated.
"Are you sure?" Ash questioned, still not trusting her. "These could be for anything. A supply truck. Anything."
"I imagine a supply truck would be the perfect cover," Elisabeth explained. "Whoever took the Pokémon would have needed a large vehicle to transport them in. There were what, two, maybe three hundred Poké Balls in that Centre?"
"I didn't look, but I imagine there would have been quite a few Pokémon in that centre," Ash agreed. "With the competition and everything."
"If we follow the tracks, we may be able to find them."
"This is a big city, Elisabeth, don't you think it would be better to wait for the authorities to get here?"
"Something tells me they won't arriving for some time," Elisabeth stated. She didn't explain herself, but she had a niggling feeling that Misty wanted a little time to herself before she called anyone for help.
"Then what do we do?" Ash asked.
"Luckily, I happen to have a Pokémon that can sniff out anyone, no matter how far away they are," Elisabeth said, releasing her Pokémon. The flash of light gave way to a four limbed, black furred, canine like Pokémon with two horns protruding from its head. "Okay, Hound Dog, do you think you can find Nurse Joy for us?" She pulled out Nurse Joy's cap, allowing the dark Pokémon to sniff the nurse's scent.
Houndoom sniffed the air, and then the ground, before taking off in the direction of the tracks.
Ash and Elisabeth gave chase, trying to keep up with the Pokémon as it raced through the city. "Hound Dog?" Ash questioned, confused by the name.
"It's the name of a famous song." Elisabeth shrugged. "When I got Houndoom as a little Houndour, that song was playing in the back ground, so I called him that."
"Never really thought about giving any of my Pokémon a name," Ash admitted. "Most of them don't seem to mind though."
"You should think about it," Elisabeth suggested. "It can create a bond between you and the Pokémon."
They weren't sure how far they'd travelled when Houndoom suddenly turned a corner and halted. They both slowed down, peering around the corner where they noticed a small delivery truck parked in an ally way.
"This must be the place," Ash stated, earning an 'Obviously' look from Elisabeth. "We should check the truck first, see if any of the Pokémon are inside."
"Agreed," Elisabeth whispered, lowering her voice so they wouldn't be detected if anyone was listening. She returned her Pokémon before approaching the truck.
They opened the large metal door at the rear of the truck, finding several Poké Balls inside. Unfortunately, Nurse Joy was nowhere to be found, and most of the Poké Balls were still missing.
They wandered around the truck, finding no evidence of the thieves' whereabouts, with the only thing to go on being the large metal door connected to a steel warehouse next to the ally way. Deciding they had no better alternative, they tried to pry the door open, only to find that is was locked shut.
Even with both their strength, the door would not budge. Grumbling in annoyance, Elisabeth summoned one of her Pokémon. As the red glow faded, a hulking green dinosaurian Pokémon stood tall, ready to roar to demonstrate its power before quickly being shushed by its trainer. "Do you think you could open this door for us, Tyry?"
The Tyranitar looked towards the door before nodding. It strolled up to the door, gripped both sides with its tree claws on each hand, and with all its strength, wrenched the whole metal door off its hinges, before placing it down on the ground as quietly as it could.
"Thanks." Elisabeth smiled, returning the Pokémon. "You'll get a treat later." She turned towards Ash, who had a stunned expression.
"You have a Tyranitar?" he blurted before he could stop himself.
"I got Tyry as an egg." Elisabeth shrugged. "She was a gift from my father; Tyry's mother was my father's Pokémon."
"We should get going." Ash pointed towards the new opening in the warehouse. "I just hope no one heard that."
Ash and Elisabeth entered the warehouse, wading passed the rusted steel columns that held up the old structure. Ash realised it would be a perfect location to hide out; the building was isolated, no one was within a kilometre of the place, and it appeared to have been abandoned a long time ago.
"This warehouse was used during the Great War," Elisabeth spoke, scanning the area, as if reading Ash's mind. "The Orange Islands were used as a staging ground by Kanto during the war against Hoenn. Makes sense to use this place as a hide out. It hasn't been used for anything else in nearly fifty years."
"Why would a place like this be abandoned though?" Ash questioned. "We're not that far from the city centre."
"The war brought a lot of soldiers to the Orange Islands." Elisabeth shrugged, remembering her history lessons. "But it also brought a lot of jobs with it. The Orange Islands had an economy boom during the war, but when it was over, the soldiers left, and so did the work.
"The economy collapsed, and most people fled to the mainland for work and never returned. The archipelago's population plummeted, and most buildings were abandoned. Even today, The Orange Islands population still hasn't reached its pre-war level; it's why most of the cities look empty."
Suddenly, a large bang was heard on the far side of the warehouse where several steel polls clattered as they hit the ground, the noise ringing in their ears. They couldn't see the commotion, guessing that it must have happened in an adjacent room to theirs.
"You idiot!" They heard a female yell, muffled by the steel wall. "You'll draw attention!"
"There's no one around but us!" A male voice replied, equally as agitated. "Besides, I imagine this happens all the time!"
"We were told to wait here for pick up," the female replied. "I would rather not be found by anyone else while we wait. I'd like to be paid, instead of being caught like last time."
Ash could sense three people in the next room, but with only two of them talking, he figured that the other one had to be Nurse Joy. Creeping quietly up to the door that connected the two rooms, the two Pokémon trainers listened to the conversation.
"This better be worth it," the male continued, still annoyed. "After the publicity with the breeding centre, I would rather lay low for a while. I don't think the boss will bail us out again."
Breading centre? Ash thought, narrowing his eyes in suspicion. The last time I heard about an incident at a breeding centre, I… His eyes widened in realisation; he knew exactly who they were.
"It's a hundred grand!" the woman replied. "Each! That's more than either of us have made in the last two years combined!"
Ash's patience wore thin, and he'd heard enough of conversation to know they were the people he was after. Summoning Charizard, he kicked open the door forcefully. The two occupants had no time to react as they suddenly found themselves confronted by a menacing looking dragon that was just as pissed off as his trainer.
Ash's suspicions were correct when he found himself standing before the Team Rocket grunts Butch and Cassidy. "Give me my Pikachu!" he declared, looking passed the two thieves towards the container that housed his Pokémon. "I won't say it again!" He gestured towards Charizard.
Both thieves looked towards each other, silently communicating as if they read each other's mind. They knew that the jig was up. They'd been tracked, the Pokémon had been found, and they weren't going to get paid. The best bet was for them to run. To try and escape before any cops showed up to arrest them.
Their eyes focused on the girl behind Ash as she entered, her canine like Pokémon growling at them. Butch looked back towards Cassidy, silently motioning for them to make their escape.
Cassidy nodded, turning towards Ash. "You win this round."
The words confused Ash, but he didn't have time to contemplate when the room was suddenly filled with smoke. The gas hit his lungs, causing him to cough, before Charizard blew the smoke away with his wings. But it'd been enough time for the two thieves to escape through a door behind them.
Elisabeth raced forward, determined to follow them when he noticed Ash wasn't moving. "Come on," she said. "We can still catch them."
"No." Ash shook his head. "Let them go. We have the Pokémon, and Nurse Joy, that's all that matters."
Elisabeth looked reluctantly through the door, and then back at Ash, before sighing. "I'll call the cops. Let them know where the Pokémon are," she muttered, pulling out her phone.
It didn't take long for the local Officer Jenny and the other city's cops to rock up. Nurse Joy, who was still unconscious, was quickly rushed to the local hospital while authorities from the Pokémon League collected the stolen Poke Balls to return them to their rightful owner's.
Pikachu was happily sleeping in Ash's lap as he and Elisabeth were escorted back to the stadium. Unfortunately, Butch and Cassidy had escaped, but at least the Pokémon were safe.
Their arrival was met with reporters who were trying to get the best scoop. The authorities pushed the crowding vultures out of the way, stating that information would be given once the investigation was complete.
Ash was happy he didn't have to answer any more questions, having already been grilled when the cops first showed up. Instead, he focused on his battle against Elisabeth that had been postponed until now.
She was strong, he knew that, and not just because her Pokémon were strong. In every one of her battles, she had a different tactic best suited for the Pokémon she used. She was different to most trainers, who'd just wing it, or use the same strategy with all of their Pokémon.
She didn't rely on moves, or Pokémon typing, instead, she focused on how her Pokémon battled; where they were, what they were doing, whether they were in the right spot or not. If he was going to win, he'd have to counter that. He just hoped that he would figure out a way before the match began.
Waiting for the battle to begin was one of the hardest things Ash faced. Pikachu wasn't with him, having been given rather reluctantly to be checked out by the new Nurse Joy that was rushed to the stadium, so he was all alone. He was nervous, pacing back and forth through the designated changing rooms, but it also gave him time to plan his strategy.
Finally coming to a halt, he placed four Poké Balls on the table in front of him. He ran his hands over the Poké Balls, contemplating the pros and cons of each Pokémon. He needed a Pokémon that could both take a hit but was also nimble and could move around with ease.
First, there was Gyarados, his second strongest Pokémon, and while he would have loved to use him, Ash was worried about his Pokémon's limited manoeuvrability. Sure, Gyarados could fly, but even that was limited. If there was water, he would have chosen him, but he didn't want to fall in the same trap Misty had.
Next was Charizard, his strongest Pokémon, who's power was unmatchable by his other Pokémon. But even then, his manoeuvrability was solely based on his ability to fly. In many ways, his pros and cons were similar to Gyarados', but Charizard was clearly able to move more freely in the air.
After that was Sandslash, whom-if you asked him-would argue that he was Ash's strongest Pokémon, and while the tough mouse Pokémon couldn't take as much of a beating, or fly, like his counterparts, he made up for it with his ability to quickly move underneath the battlefield. Plus, he needed a Pokémon who could improvise, and Sandslash was very good at that.
And lastly there was Gengar, who Ash knew would be nearly impossible to follow during the battle, but Elisabeth used dark-types-or at least every Pokémon she'd seen her use at least included the dark typing-immediately putting him at a disadvantage.
Sure, some would ask why he wouldn't use Primeape if he knew Elisabeth was going to use a dark-type, and his answer would have clearly been that his fighting-type just wouldn't be strong enough. Heck, the only other fighting-type he had was just a baby.
He placed his hand on each Poké Ball one last time before finally grasping the Pokémon he chose to battle with. Now… Now all he had to do was wait for the battle to start.
Ash's eyes wandered around the stadium, which-to this point-hadn't been very packed throughout all of his matches. It seemed that word had gotten around about the incident and now everyone wanted to be the first to know about what would surely be in the news later.
For his part, Ash tried making Misty out in the crowd like he had earlier, but he couldn't with so many people. For some unknown reason his best friend had been avoiding him; not even coming to make sure he or his Pokémon were okay when they returned.
But his focus turned back towards his battle. Elisabeth was standing on the other side, eyeing the battlefield with a Poké Ball in hand. "You ready for this?" she asked, catching Ash's gaze on her.
"I sure am!" Ash declared holding up his own Poké Ball.
"This is a battle between Ash Ketchum and Elisabeth Carter!" the ref stated. "The winner will be crowned the victor of the tournament! Both trainers can select one Pokémon each, with no substitutions!" the ref eyed both trainers, waving her flag to signal the begin of the match. "Please choose your Pokémon."
"Sandslash! I choose you!" Ash threw the Poké Ball into the air, releasing the mouse Pokémon in all its glory.
Elisabeth seemed a little taken back by Ash's choice; having thought he would use his Charizard. Never the less, she shook her head, releasing the Pokémon she was going use anyway; her Zoroark.
Ash eyed the Pokémon, its crimson red mane sending a shiver down his spine. The last time he'd faced this Pokémon, Pikachu had ended up badly injured, and if it wasn't for Misty, he was sure his Pokémon would have been in much worse shape.
Ash quickly realised why Elisabeth had chosen this Pokémon. This wasn't just a battle between Pokémon, but also battle between trainers, and Elisabeth had planned to use Zoroark to throw him off balance.
And it may have worked, if Pikachu was with him, be he wasn't going to fall for any of her mind games. "Nice try!" Ash shouted. "Playing mind games won't work though; I'm determined to win this battle!"
"It was worth a try!" Elisabeth shrugged. "Night Slash!"
The command came so quick that Ash hadn't expected it, but his Pokémon's speed aloud him to quickly counter. "Sand Attack"
Sandslash gathered the sand around him as Zoroark advanced on its two legs, with its claws glowing red. Once the Fox Pokémon was in range, Sandslash flung the sand at Zoroark's pointed face. But instead of hitting the Pokémon, Zoroark counted, batting the sand away with its glowing claws.
Shocked, Sandslash did the only thing that he could; quickly borrowing underneath the surface.
"Stop!" Elisabeth instructed. "Listen. Feel the vibrations, you'll know when Sandslash pops out!"
Ash looked over at his opponent, impressed. While most wouldn't know what to do, Elisabeth gave her Pokémon instruction the second Sandslash disappeared.
"Metal Claw!" Ash wearily called out, knowing his Pokémon would hear him. "But come out when your ready!" He knew if Sandslash attacked straight away it would throw away any element of surprise they had.
Instead, everyone waited, and as time dragged on, if felt like it was taking forever. Suddenly, Sandslash emerged right underneath Zoroark's feet, his claws glowing white. But the Fox Pokémon wasn't the least bit surprised, having expected Sandslash to attack in such a matter.
Instead of getting the jump on his opponent he'd hoped for, Sandslash suddenly found his glowing white claw deflected by Zoroark's own red one. As Sandslash's claws were knocked away, Zoroark grabbed Sandslash's arm and threw the Pokémon back towards Ash's side of the field without being commanded by Elisabeth.
Ash eyed the Pokémon, recalling Pikachu's battle against it. What he'd forgotten-or rather quickly remembered-was that Zoroark nearly fought on its own, without needing to be commanded by Elisabeth.
It was able to make choices in the field that its trainer may not have thought of. Maybe the strategy was to deflect and throw Sandslash away, but he couldn't tell, especially with the look Elisabeth had given him when he released his Pokémon; they'd planned for a different Pokémon, not Sandslash.
This Pokémon had the ability, and the authority, to make moves in the field without being commanded, and it worried him. He knew his Pokémon could improvise to dodge an attack, but his Pokémon couldn't randomly select an attack that would be effective without his command.
"Zoroark, Dark Pulse!" Elisabeth commanded, realising that Ash was distracted. Zoroark placed its two paws in front of its chest, black-purplish energy forming between them. Suddenly, a beam shot forth from between its paws, flying straight towards Sandslash.
Ash hadn't noticed the attack in time, but his Pokémon simply burrowed back into the ground without being commanded. "Sorry, Sandslash!" Ash apologised, knowing he'd drop the ball on this occasion. But another thought cam to his mind; if he couldn't hit Zoroark with close range attacks, how could he win? As far as he knew, Sandslash's range attacks were very limited, and not all that powerful.
Misty sat in the stands, only occasionally watching the battle. At this point she really didn't care who won, but she sure as hell wasn't going to barrack for Ash. At least, not until he apologised. He hadn't realised it, but his words had hurt her deeply.
It wasn't the words as much as the meaning behind them. To say that he "should never had listened to her," made her feel like he didn't trust her at all. And to make matters worse, when it was discovered that Elisabeth had nothing to do with the kidnapping, he didn't even come and say anything to her. As far as she was concerned their friendship was on hold, and it would take a hell of a lot of apologising for her to forgive him.
Misty was so lost in her own thoughts that when Tracey took the seat next to her, she didn't even notice. "Good battle?" he asked, leaning over.
Misty jumped, immediately turning her head towards the older boy. "Oh! Sorry, Tracey, I didn't see you there!"
"That's alright," Tracey reassured. "I'm sure this battle is quite enthralling."
"Wouldn't know," Misty stated, looking at her Pokémon in Tracey's arms. "So, how was he? I hope he didn't cause any trouble?" she asked, taking the Pokémon from his grasp.
"Tuci Pri!" Togepi trilled, happy to be back in his trainer's arms.
"He was a delight," Tracey replied, deciding not to ask what she meant by her first statement. "My parents absolutely loved him, and I got some good sketches too."
"That's good," she said, turning her attention back towards her Pokémon. "Come on little guy, you've had a long day, time for a nap." Misty was happy to fawn over Togepi; at least now she had an excuse to not focus on the battle, especially with Tracey around.
Ash gritted his teeth when Sandslash landed in front of him with a thud. Everything he'd tried wasn't working, and Sandslash appeared to be getting tired. He had one move up his sleeve, but he'd hoped to use it later. "Sandslash, Earthquake!"
Sandslash raised his leg into the air quickly, trying to send the shockwave through the battlefield before Zoroark could react.
But unfortunately, Elisabeth was only it. "Quick, Zoroark, charge at Sandslash with Agility!"
Zoroark's speed nearly quadrupled as it charged towards Sandslash. But even with its increased speed it wasn't fast enough to reach Sandslash before he brought his leg down.
Elisabeth had expected this, however, and had already formulated a plan in her mind. As the shockwave raced across the battlefield, with Zoroark still charging towards it, Elisabeth commanded her Pokémon to leap into the air and over the attack.
Ash groaned as Zoroark jumped just before the attack landed, avoiding any damage. But Ash suddenly realised he had Zoroark in a compromising position. "Quick! Poison Sting!"
Sandslash quickly spun around, realising that his opponent wouldn't be able to dodge while in mid-air. As he spun, several purple spikes flew from his back towards Zoroark.
Zoroark raised its glowing claws in response, trying to deflect the spikes away. But there were too many of them, with several of them hitting the mark. Elisabeth quickly ordered her Pokémon to stop any attack it planned and to return to her side of the field.
Ash sighed in relief, eyeing Elisabeth as both Pokémon looked at each other. But relief turned to concern when Elisabeth gave her next command.
"Zoroark, disappear."
Ash couldn't believe it as Zoroark simply vanished into thin air. He looked towards his opponent hoping to earn an explanation, but she simply shook her head. Another thing that came at a shock was when Sandslash was suddenly swiped by one of Zoroark's attacks.
Realising he needed to figure out what was going on, he pulled out his Pokédex, scrolling through all the Pokémon listed until he found Zoroark.
Sensing his distraction, Elisabeth ordered her Pokémon to go on the offensive. Sandslash's annoyance grew as he was swiped across the field, deciding to counter with his own attack. Swipe after swipe he through into the air, hoping to hit something, but hitting nothing.
Ash suddenly found what he was looking for and when he read it, he couldn't believe it. Illusion, he thought. "Sandslash! Zoroark hasn't completely disappeared, it has just made it look like it has. Use another Earthquake, that should make it reappear!"
True to his word, as another shockwave passed over the field, Zoroark reappeared. Ash noticed it was slower as it made its way back over to Elisabeth's side of the field, but his own Pokémon had taken too much damage in the onslaught when Zoroark was invisible.
Ash gulped, he knew this battle would be over soon. Whether he won or not, that was another story. "Sandslash, Earthquake again!"
"Not so fast, Ash!" Elisabeth called, drawing the boy's attention. "I guess you can sense it as well, and I'm sorry to say, but you've lost. Zoroark, Imprison and then follow it with Night Daze!"
To Ash's surprise, Sandslash's leg never made it to the ground, having frozen in mid air by purplish energy that surrounded his body. Ash knew he could only watch as Zoroark's eyes glowed light blue, with crimson aura wrapping itself around the Pokémon's body.
It raised its arms above its head, the crimson aura growing thicker around the Pokémon's body. Suddenly, it brought its arms down, sending a shockwave of crimson aura across the battlefield.
Sandslash, unable to move, took the full force of the attack, knocking him harshly into the ground. Sliding across the battlefield, he came to a skidding halt in front of his trainer; unconscious.
"Sandslash is unable to battle!" the ref declared. "Elisabeth is the winner!"
Ash congratulated his opponent, standing awkwardly as the winner was handed her prizes during the ceremony. For his part, Ash was given a few items as well, but that wasn't the reason he battled.
"You did well," he commended. "You've clearly trained Zoroark well."
"Thanks," Elisabeth smiled. "Zoroark is the first Pokémon I ever had, and I don't think I would go anywhere without him."
"You're a good person," Ash stated. "You may try to keep this dark veneer, but at heart you're a decent person. Maybe that's your saving grace."
"Thanks." Elisabeth smiled, looking into the crowd. "I better go, my friend will be waiting for me."
With that, she disappeared into the crowd, leaving Ash to find his own friends. Now that one issue was dealt with, he had to deal with the another one that was far more urgent.
Butch and Cassidy sat quietly in the small cabin located outside the city, licking their wounds as they waited for everything to cool off. On days like this, they were glad that Team Rocket had set up safe houses near every major city. They'd failed in steeling the Pokémon, but they felt that they had been betrayed.
Suddenly, the door to the cabin opened, and in walked the person who'd hired them. Looking over the short stature of the girl in front of them, their annoyance turned to anger. "You bitch! You betrayed us! We had a deal!"
"I didn't betray anything," Elisabeth replied, strolling in with a briefcase in hand. "Your payment, as agreed." She placed the briefcase on the table, opening it to reveal stacks of money inside.
"But we failed to capture the Pokémon?" Butch questioned, earning a glare from Cassidy. It wasn't that he didn't appreciate the money, he just didn't understand why they were being paid.
"You did exactly what I asked you to do," Elisabeth explained, sliding over the briefcase. "I asked you to steel the Pokémon, I didn't say I was going to take them."
"Then why have us steal them in the first place?" Cassidy asked, crossing her arms in annoyance.
"How else do you get someone to trust you when you already have bad blood with them?" It was a rhetorical question, but Elisabeth could sense that they needed a further explanation. "After I helped that boy get his Pokémon back, he began to trust me. He thought I'd helped him out of the goodness of my heart, which is exactly what I wanted. I had no interest in the Pokémon."
Elisabeth stepped back from the table, turning towards the door she entered from. "Our arrangement is over."
"We want more money!" Cassidy demanded. Elisabeth ignored her, continuing to stroll towards the door. "You put us in the sight of the authorities again." When Elisabeth didn't stop, Cassidy pulled out her strongest weapon. "Wouldn't the boss like to know that one of his protégés is out of custody? Surely, he'd love to know how you escaped, and why you're free and clear of any authorities."
Elisabeth stiffened, her hands resting by her sides as she contemplated her next step. She turned around, thrusting her arm so quickly that Cassidy barely saw it. What Cassidy did see, however, was the knife that flew right between her and Butch's heads, slamming into the wooden wall behind them, lodged deep.
"You tell Geovanni anything and then next one won't miss," Elisabeth threatened, her voice surprisingly calm.
"I'd listen to her if I was you," Simeon added, appearing behind the two thieves. He pulled the knife from the wall and walked up to Elisabeth. "The last person to threaten her ended up in a coma, they don't know if he'll ever wake up."
"Oh, he'll never wake up, I made sure of that," Elisabeth added.
Cassidy and Butch stunned silent. They couldn't move, nor could they tell if what Simeon had said was the truth.
"We'll be going now," Simeon continued, walking towards the door. "Don't follow us." The door closed, and for the first time Cassidy let out the breath she didn't realise she was holding.
Outside, Elisabeth laughed once she knew they were out of earshot. "Oh my god, did you see their faces?"
"Yeah!" Simeon smiled. "The guy went completely pale when I mentioned you'd put someone in a coma."
"I know!" Elisabeth agreed, frowning. "I didn't put him in a coma though. I just hurt him, really badly."
How will Ash deal with the mess he made with Misty? What is Elisabeth's true goal? What will happen next? Find out Next time!
Please let me know which Pokémon you would have chosen from the four I had Ash choose from. Also, tell me who would have won the battle, and why, with the Pokémon you chose. I'd love to get other perspectives on where this story is right now.
I took some creative licencing with Zoroark using its illusion powers to make it look like it just disappeared. I don't know if that's how it works, but I thought it would be cool.
Any questions, Pokémon suggestions, ideas for the story, or OC's you have that you would like to see in the story, just PM me or send it in a review! All are welcome!
Ash's Pokémon:
On Hand:
Pikachu (Electric) (Male)
Lapras (Water/Ice) (Female)
Ivysaur (Grass/Poison) (Male)
Charizard (Fire/Flying) (Male)
Wartortle (Water) (Male)
Rhydon (Ground/Rock) (Female)
Riolu (Fighting) (Male)
Dragonair (Dragon) (Female)
Ralts (Psychic/Fairy) (Male) (Shiny)
Grubbin (Bug) (Female) (Shiny)
Egg
At Oak's Ranch:
Pidgeot (Normal/Flying) (Male)
Arcanine (Fire) (Male)
Nidorino (Poison) (Male) (Shiny)
Umbreon (Dark) (Male) (Shiny)
Raticate (Normal) (Female)
Butterfree (Bug/Flying) (Male)
Kingler (Water) (Female)
Absol (Dark) (Male)
Gengar (Ghost/Poison) (Male)
Primeape (Fighting) (Female)
Muk (Poison) (Male)
Tauros (Normal) (Male) (x23)
Sandslash (Ground) (Male)
Gyarados (Water/Flying) (Male)
Departed:
Mew
Misty's Pokémon:
On Hand:
Starmie (Water/Psychic)
Seel (Water) (Male)
Feebas (Water) (Female)
Vaporeon (Water) (Female)
Psyduck (Water) (Male)
Togepi (Fairy) (Male)
Egg
At Oak's Ranch:
Kabutops (Rock/Water) (Male) (Shiny)
Seaking (Water) (Female)
Staryu (Water/Psychic)
Tentacruel (Water/Poison) (Male)
Pelipper (Water/Flying) (Female)
Seadra (Water) (Female)
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Until Next Time, AshleyH30 Out!
