Author's Note:

Bit of a shorter chapter this time, but some big things moving into place here...hope you enjoy.

Chapter 14: Abe and Absol

"Rockruff, finish this up with Rock Throw!"

Ash punched the air in triumph as the Puppy Pokemon barked out a reply, leaping into the air over the opposing Arcanine and sending the barrage of stones blasting down. The powerful fire type never stood a chance, crying out in surprise with his trainer as he was struck. Then, as Rockruff landed softly in front of Ash, growling in anticipation of a counterstrike, the dust began to settle, and the referee stepped forward.

"Arcanine is unable to battle! Rockruff is the winner!"

"All right! Way to go, Rockruff!" Ash cheered, running up to his Pokemon. He'd been a little uneasy about Rockruff fighting in a place like the Battle Maison, but the Puppy Pokemon sure seemed able to keep up, already having benefited from training with Ash, and obviously having learned a great deal in Alola prior to joining him.

After briefly congratulating his opponent on his efforts, Ash and Rockruff headed off the field to where Serena was waiting with the others, looking impressed with the victory. "Wow Rockruff, I didn't know you were so strong!" she said excitedly.

"Ruff!" the Puppy Pokemon barked happily, as Pikachu scurried up onto Ash's shoulder.

"Looks like we're gonna need him to be," Ash said, chuckling a little as he glanced around, seeing various trainers watching them.

It had been hectic as soon as Calem had led them through the door to the main floor of the Battle Maison. Serena had been challenged after only a few steps, having to prove she belonged immediately. Fortunately, Braixen had managed to defeat the Scyther she'd fought against, but it hadn't been easy. After that, she'd been challenged once more, narrowly beating a Flareon with Pancham.

Ash had fought five times since then, Pikachu winning the first couple, followed by Hawlucha and Decidueye, before Rockruff winning the most recent one. It was certainly fun, and it was great training for all of their Pokemon. Ash had been particularly happy with Decidueye making quick work of the Gengar he'd gone up against, using his new Spirit Shackle move, followed by a Leaf Blade. And Rockruff winning his first true battle alongside Ash was pretty special as well. However, with what they were here for, it was beginning to get a little worrying that they wouldn't be able to make it without their Pokemon getting exhausted.

"Where do you think we should go now?" Serena asked, sounding like she was trying to be quiet so as not to attract much attention. Unfortunately, that didn't seem too successful, as Ash wasn't able to answer with someone pushing past him and holding a pokeball up into Serena's face.

"I challenge you to a battle!" the trainer said, Serena staring at him in surprise.

With the Battle Maison rules, however, she needed to accept. "All right..." she said, sighing. She started to pull out a pokeball, presumably getting Sylveon's as she was her only fresh one other than her Popplio who hadn't had as much training, but just then, Ash noticed a man behind her, walking slowly with an Absol.

He looked fairly old, with hair almost as white as his Absol's fur. His Absol also looked fairly elderly, blinking slowly as it looked around as well. Nobody seemed to bother them, which was strange with challenges being thrown around all over the place. Ash got the sense that they had earned the prestige to not be challenged, though. If they wanted to battle, they would offer it.

Ash got Serena's attention, gesturing to the man before she pulled out Sylveon's pokeball. "I think you should use Absol," he said, looking at Serena's own Disaster Pokemon. "He should be fine after having those Oran berries.

Serena hesitated, but after another look at the man, who now seemed to have noticed her own Absol, she nodded. She left Ash at the sidelines and went to her position on the battlefield to face off against the trainer who had challenged her, Absol joining her. A moment later, the other trainer called out a vicious looking Fearow, while the referee prepared to begin the match. As Ash looked on to watch, he noticed that someone had come to a stop next to him.

"You and this girl are here to see me, I expect?" a voice said. Ash turned, seeing the man with the Absol looking right back at him. His eyes looked as fierce as his Absol's, but he didn't seem to be trying to be intimidating.

Ash didn't think there was any point in hiding it, and nodded. "Calem told us about you."

Abe nodded, smiling. "Interesting..." He glanced to the battlefield as Ash realized the battle was beginning, Serena ordering the first attack and striking Fearow with a Psycho Cut. "So one of you needed to qualify to enter?"

"Serena did," Ash told him, nodding in her direction. "She and Absol fought really hard together. We figured the Battle Maison would be the best place to look for...information."

"You figured correctly," Abe said, chuckling as he turned to see Absol duck under an Aerial Ace with Detect. "You are Ash, correct? The runner up at the Kalos League?"

Ash blinked at him in surprise. "Um...yeah." He decided to properly introduce the others. "And this is Pikachu, my partner Pokemon," he finished, after pointing out Rockruff, Riolu and Popplio.

"I was very impressed with your Greninja," Abe said, nodding in approval while Serena seemed to take control of the battle with Fearow, commanding an Icy Wind and Psycho Cut to force it to the ground. "That was...quite the bond you displayed." He looked to Pikachu, then Rockruff and Riolu. "I expect you have a unique ability to connect with your Pokemon on a level most trainers cannot."

Ash wasn't sure how to answer that. He watched the battle another moment, seeing Serena's Absol preparing for the finishing blow with its new Giga Impact. "I don't know if it's unique, but I hope I can connect with them. They're my family." He looked to Abe as Absol began to charge forward. "I know Serena connects with her Pokemon the same way. That Absol of hers hated humans until she took care of it. It had been badly injured by hunters, too. Now it's performing in the Interschool Pokemon League and helping her get into the Battle Maison. It's pretty amazing if you ask me."

He smiled as he turned back to the field, seeing the referee declare Absol the winner, while Abe looked on as well. The two of them watched as Serena ran up to congratulate the dark type, hugging him tightly. If it wasn't clear to Abe how close those two were, he didn't know what else would convince him.

Finally, after shaking hands with her opponent, Serena returned, looking nervous as she approached. Her Absol also appeared wary as it looked to Abe's. However, they both bowed their heads respectfully when they reached them. "You must be Abe. It's nice to meet you."

"It's nice to meet you as well, Serena," Abe said, inclining his head as well. "And you, Absol."

"Sol," Abe's Absol added, blinking slowly as he looked to Serena's.

"Um..." Serena didn't seem to know what to say, shifting uncomfortably as she glanced up. "We...we met Calem when we arrived here. He mentioned you might know something about..."

"The Absolite?" Abe laughed, and then looked to his own Absol. He reached out his hand towards its neck and fiddled around a moment. Ash could see that it had some kind of collar on, with something shining at the top. He gaped as Abe pulled it free and held it up. "It took me about twenty years to find this with my Absol. Why do you think you'll find one so quickly?"

Ash looked to Serena, seeing her looking more uncomfortable. Abe hadn't asked in a mean way, but it was definitely putting her on the spot. Her Absol meanwhile, seemed locked onto the Absolite in Abe's hand.

"I...I just...we wanted to try." She looked flustered, before glancing down to Absol, who took his eyes off the Absolite to look back at her. She seemed to regain some composure at that. "We saved Absol from Pokemon hunters back in Lumiose City. His back legs had been badly injured, and he had to stay in the Pokemon Centre for a long time. I stayed with him every day to try to help him get better and trust people. He worked hard as well, learning to trust me as well, and then he wanted to begin performing with me. Maybe we won't find it...but we deserve to have a chance."

Abe nodded, appearing to like that answer. His gaze then turned to Ash. "You speak highly of Serena, Ash. You know of the bond required for Mega Evolution, don't you? I expect it's similar to the kind of bond you share with your Greninja, and likely many of your Pokemon."

"If Serena and Absol don't have that, I don't know a trainer who does," Ash said confidently, looking away a little uncomfortably as Serena smiled gratefully at hm.

"Shall we see then?" Abe asked, suddenly holding out his arm to Serena, the Absolite glittering in his hand.

Serena's eyes widened. "What...what do you mean?"

"I want to see if you can Mega Evolve your Absol," Abe said simply. "Do you have a Key Stone?"

Serena blinked in surprise, before slowly reaching out to take the Absolite. She swallowed nervously as she looked at it. As Absol sniffed it briefly, she looked back up, shaking her head. "I was only thinking about the Absolite first. I don't have a Key-"

"You can use mine!" Ash said suddenly, pulling his backpack off and opening it up. He rummaged around for a moment, before finding the little box he kept it in, seeing the blue ribbon inside there as well. He suddenly had an idea, picking up the ribbon and tying it in a loop, like a bracelet, before tying the rest around the Key Stone. It wasn't anything fancy, but it would make it easier for Serena to use. "Here," he said, standing back up and holding up the makeshift Key Stone bracelet.

"Ash..." Serena said nervously, glancing at Abe, who just watched curiously. "I don't know..."

"You have to try," Ash told her, smiling as he stepped forward, taking her hand and sliding the ribbon onto her wrist. "I know you can do this."

Serena stared at the ribbon, looking stunned at seeing the Key Stone on her wrist, before she looked back up to Ash. After a moment, she nodded, before looking into her own bag and pulling out a black bow tie. She secured the Absolite within it, before looking to Absol next to her. "Do you want to try it on?"

Absol stared curiously at the bow tie, but as his eyes focused on the Absolite, he seemed to grow more determined. "Sol," he grunted, nodding.

A moment later, trainer and Pokemon stood next to each other, each sporting the Mega Evolution stones. Ash smiled, thinking it suited both, while the rest of the Pokemon cheered loudly. A few trainers around them stared, but fortunately Serena wasn't challenged to a battle immediately. It seemed people were keeping a distance after Abe had approached them.

"Looks good on them, right Pikachu?" Ash asked, looking up to his partner Pokemon on his shoulder.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed, eyes shining.

"What do you think, Abe?" Ash then asked, turning to where the man had been standing a moment earlier. "Huh?"

"What's the ma-" Serena looked around, noticing what was wrong. "What? Where did he go?"

Ash exchanged a confused glance with her. "I don't..." Something on the ground caught his eye, and he bent down to pick up a piece of paper.

Meet me in the Safari.

Ash's eyes widened, and he stood up, handing the note to Serena. She read it, narrowing her eyes in confusion, before looking back up at him. "I don't understand. Why leave like that?"

Ash smiled again, thinking he already understood. "It's a test, Serena."

"A test?"

"Abe and Absol want to see if you and your Absol can do it."

Serena looked nervous again, staring down at Absol. "But why go to the Safari?"

A passing trainer seemed to overhear them, stopping to look at Absol before glancing at the Key Stone on Serena's wrist. "I wouldn't do that if I were you guys. The Safari's no place for Pokemon with Mega Stones. Especially an Absol."

"Why's that?" Ash asked curiously.

"There's a rogue Absol out there. There's been a couple of cases of people heading out there looking for the rumoured Absolite around here, and it attacked them. From what I've heard, it's stronger than a lot of the trainers here at the Battle Maison." The trainer shrugged. "Just warning you."

As he walked away, Ash looked to Serena again, seeing her looking towards the exit that led to the Safari. "I think I know what the test is."

"Really?" Ash asked curiously.

Serena nodded, taking a deep breath as she looked down to Absol. "We need to show that Absol how close we are. If we can Mega Evolve..."

Ash grinned, seeing where she was going with this. "Well we're behind you all the way! Let's do this!"

And with that, they headed to the exit, ready to enter the Safari.

James nervously sat down in the cave that Wooper had led him and Jessie to. It was similar to the one they'd stayed in when they'd tried to steal the water, but he couldn't tell if it was the same. It seemed smaller, but that might've been because so many Pokemon were in there now, staring at him and Jessie.

The Wooper that had led them here had left shortly after, leaving them guarded by some Quagsire. Presumably it was out looking for the twerp's Goodra that had been left here, or perhaps the man that was the warden of the area. James wasn't sure which was preferable. It would be easier to communicate with the warden, but perhaps the Pokemon would be easier to convince to trust them. Of course, without Meowth, that would be tough as well. And, based on the looks they were getting, perhaps it didn't matter.

"What is this?" Jessie hissed, looking to James irritably. "Are we prisoners now? Meowth and the others are prisoners for humans and now we're prisoners of Pokemon?"

James thought that was an interesting coincidence actually, but he hoped that they weren't actually prisoners. With what appeared to be a group of Quagsire guards with them, though, he supposed they were prisoners for the time being at least. It depended on the warden, Goodra or Florges if that was to remain the case, though.

"Just don't insult them and we might be fine," James warned Jessie, wincing at her glare. "We can't make them mad, or we'll never gain their trust. They already have reason to hate us."

"Oh it was just a bit of water. We wanted to make a little bit of money," Jessie muttered, folding her arms and turning her glare to the Quagsire ahead of them.

James sighed, deciding he'd just wait to see what would happen. There wasn't much to be done about it now and they were out of options out searching for Meowth. If they could somehow convince the Wetlands Pokemon to help, they might stand a chance of finding something. At the very least another place would be on the lookout if they weren't already. Of course, James assumed they must be.

"I wonder why the hunters haven't taken any Pokemon from here. They seem to be fine," James murmured, looking around. Perhaps Pokemon elsewhere in the Wetlands had been taken, but he expected there would've been some kind of agitation if there was. There was some of that, but it seemed to be directed at Jessie and James who they didn't seem to consider too much of a threat at the moment.

"Too many Pokemon all in one place," Jessie said, looking around the cave. "Even with us, we weren't a huge group in comparison. They'd need to bring out more hunters to take Pokemon from here, and they likely don't want to mess with a Goodra, too. It's too much of a risk for getting caught."

James nodded, thinking about that. It did seem that the Pokemon picked off in the forest were likely in smaller groups, or even just alone. Here it would take much more to capture the Pokemon, and there was a strong leader to protect them in case of an attack. It definitely didn't seem like the kind of place they would be targeting until they were more confident in coming out in the open. It almost seemed foolish to even look for them here.

"It would be too noticeable if anything happened here..." James murmured, staring at the mouth of the cave, where he could just see the swamps below. "So...people wouldn't think to search for the hunters around here. Especially if the Pokemon seemed to be safe. If Pokemon are going missing in other places, people will be rushing to search those areas."

"What's your point?" Jessie asked, sighing as she leaned back, appearing bored.

"Jessie...the hunters might be hiding here!" James gulped nervously. "Maybe not exactly in the Wetlands, but nearby. They'd be fairly close to two of the bigger cities in Kalos, with Laverre City and Lumiose City, and they'd be hidden in plain sight with all the safe Pokemon."

"That's ridiculous," Jessie said, although she sounded hesitant. "People are still around here. There's the warden and some others who guard the area."

"They're looking for new signs," James pointed out. "They might've already been here."

Jessie looked nervous, but then she turned to James looking somewhat hopeful. "We might be able to save Meowth and the others."

James nodded, looking up as he noticed a Bellsprout entering the cave, followed by a man, who looked to be the warder, and the familiar form of Goodra. "We'll need help, though," he finally said, as the trio approached.

"Aggron, Hyper Beam!"

Meowth winced as he tried to stand, glancing behind him at the still forms of a Growlithe, Pidgeotto and Bisharp. He, Wobbuffet and Skiddo were the only ones left standing of the six Pokemon that had been selected this morning for "training". It had been terrifying enough, with their experiences so far in these situations, but Meowth hadn't enjoyed finding out it would be with the hunter that had caught him and the other Team Rocket Pokemon.

He was going to sleep and waking up every day feeling sore. The hunters had been as cruel as imagined in his time with them thus far, and worse. Meowth wasn't sure yet what the hunters seemed to want, but they definitely didn't just intend to sell Pokemon on some kind of black market. He'd been pulled away for various tests, where they examined his vitals and what he was like in comparison to Pokemon known to be able to Mega Evolve. And on days where he wasn't being poked and prodded, he was being "trained" against powerful Pokemon in an effort to bring out more power so that they could do further tests in case he somehow evolved.

I ain't gonna get stronger or evolve with nonsense like dis, Meowth thought, as he managed to duck underneath the Hyper Beam, along with Wobbuffet and Skiddo. He had hoped to at some point try to win one of these battles with the Pokemon he was gathered with, thinking that maybe they could escape, but they were all fairly weak. Meowth and Wobbuffet had managed to hide what they could do, not that it was too much, but it was fairly clear the hunters were careful to keep the Pokemon contained.

"Doo-oo-oo!" Skiddo cried out from in front of Meowth as they stood up, breathing heavily. The grass type was looking terrified, clearly unsure of what to do other than get hit by a very painful attack. That was essentially how all of these sessions ended.

"Hang in der, pal," Meowth whispered, ensuring none of the watching hunters could hear him. "We'll be okay." Soon.

Skiddo glanced back at him, looking doubtful, but there wasn't much else it could do. Before either of them could do anything else, though, the hunter with the Aggron was preparing to call another attack. "Aggron, hit them with-"

Meowth and the others winced again, preparing for yet another attack to come their way, but when none came, they looked up, seeing the hunter stopping and looking to something behind them. Meowth turned, seeing the man named Raphael having emerged onto their battlefield. He didn't seem bothered in the slightest as he stepped over the limp forms of the Pokemon that had been sent out with Meowth and the others.

"Sir!" the Aggron trainer said suddenly, bowing and then standing straight, appearing to be waiting for some kind of order.

"How is the training going?" Raphael asked, glancing back at Meowth and the others. "Appears to be a weak group. I would like there to be some progress. Tests show we've developed a few more altered Mega Stones, but those are still only with Pokemon known to Mega Evolve. I need to know if we can expand on that, and with weak Pokemon, we can't do that."

"Understood, sir," the man said, bowing again. "It appears as though there isn't much progress with those three," he pointed to the downed Pokemon. "These ones at least show some level of intelligence and speed," he added, gesturing to Meowth, Skiddo and Wobbuffet.

Raphael nodded, seeing the torn up battlefield and the Pokemon that were still standing. "Very well. We'll sell the weak ones unless they can be used for any of our other tests, or perhaps the breeding program."

Meowth gulped at that. What other kinds of tests could he mean? And a breeding program? Why breed what he thought were weak Pokemon. Unless his tests have figured out a way to breed Pokemon to be stronger...

"This Meowth...does he watch you often when you speak to others?" Raphael suddenly said, staring at Meowth with narrowed eyes.

Meowth did his best to not suddenly look away. He knew that would increase the suspicion, so he simply sat down and tilted his head, trying to appear like he was clueless. He flicked his tail a few times as well, although that was partly out of nervousness. He finally looked away, pretending to be interested in a moving shadow as a hunter nearby was walking away.

"Seems like a dumb cat to me," the hunter responded. "Never liked Meowths. Persian's an all right Pokemon, but Meowths are puny little weaklings."

I'll show you puny... Meowth had to fight not to unsheathe his claws at that.

"Never mind then," Raphael said, glancing once more at Meowth, before setting off towards a hallway. "Put them back in their cages and come to my office. We're holding a meeting about our plans for the Interschool Pokemon League Playoffs. If our testing from now till then goes well, I believe it may be time to make a move."

"You want to go out into the open?" the hunter asked, sounding shocked.

"We've been hidden for years. With our altered Mega Stones and research on strengthening Pokemon and bending them to our will, we should be able to successfully defeat the gathered trainers at these playoffs." Raphael laughed as he glanced back at the hunter. "Selling Pokemon on the black market makes us plenty of money. Imagine the power we'd hold by striking these schools. We could use them to do further research and we could begin expanding our reach. We could be bigger than organizations such as Team Rocket."

"As you say, sir," the hunter murmured, before Raphael left and he turned to Meowth and the others. He glanced at a couple of hunters nearby and snapped his fingers. "Round 'em up and get them in the cages."

Meowth didn't fight as he was taken ahold of and dragged down a hallway towards where the room with his cage was. He knew there was no point in that after seeing what some struggling Pokemon had been put through previously. He was biding his time for his time to make a move.

He looked ahead as Wobbuffet was pulled through the door first, the Patient Pokemon also remaining quiet. Meowth had urged him to do so in the dead of night after their first day, when his old friend had stepped in front of him to protect him with Mirror Coat when he'd been attacked for simply stumbling. They needed to appear afraid and willing to do what the hunters wanted.

Skiddo was pushed in next, following the example Wobbuffet set in front of him, stumbling a bit, but managing to step forward as he was pushed. As Meowth was pulled through the door, he saw the Mount Pokemon being pushed to his cage. It made a little noise, getting kicked for it, but as he was kicked, Meowth was pretty sure he saw its horns briefly glow. The hunter didn't seem to notice, however, pushing Skiddo further into the cage before closing it. A moment later, he reached back to Meowth, stuffing him into his cage and kicking the door shut.

Meowth watched the hunter leave, and once he was out of the room, he smiled.

"Did you do it, pal?"

"Doo-oo-oo," Skiddo responded, almost like it was a laugh.

"You guys okay from earlier?" Meowth asked, directing his voice out to where Growlithe, Pidgeotto and Bisharp were usually caged.

"Growl!"

"Pidgaw!"

"Sharp!"

"Wobbuffet?" Meowth finished, looking across to the Patient Pokemon.

"Wob!"

Meowth nodded, smirking as he poked his door, right where he expected Skiddo's Worry Seed to be. It was dark, so he couldn't be sure, but he felt something pressed onto where the lock would be. It felt like a small sapling was growing there. It offered some resistance, but Meowth gave a slightly harder push.

"It's time," he said, as his door opened.

Author's Note:

And so, Meowth has been plotting escape, Team Rocket might have a powerful ally to help him, and Serena's getting close to trying Mega Evolution. Next one's gonna be an epic ride (hopefully). Hope you enjoyed and are looking forward to what's to come.

On another note, I just want to address the big stuff going on right now with the Coronavirus aka COVID-19 outbreak. Hope all of you and your loved ones are ok. I know a lot of things are being canceled, postponed, limited, etc. It might look scary seeing some of that. This is by no means the end of the world, though. These are precautions to slow the spread and protect the vulnerable. Just lay low if that's what's being suggested. Maybe read some fanfics if you're bored at home. Stay safe not just for you, but for others. Hopefully I can provide some entertainment while this is going on.

See you next time.