The Ketchum Brothers: Chronicles of the betrayed

by Baneful Pens

Ash Ketchum and his adopted brother, Dima Ketchum have to go into hiding for 10 years, when they are framed for a crime they didn't commit. Betrayed by their dearest friends, they come back, stronger than ever, to participate in a worldwide Pokemon championship. However, after arriving, they realize that there are many untold secrets and a huge threat to the Earth.

2. Reunion, Regret and Resurgence

Alright so I'm back with the second chapter of The Ketchum Brothers' adventures! I am gonna try to speed things up from now on, maybe update the story at a faster rate, new chapters every three days (maybe).

Anyways, here is the second chapter. Enjoy!

DISCLAIMER: - I don't own any of the Pokémon in this chapter *sniff*

Characters:-

Ash Ketchum – 26

Dima Ketchum – 26

Cynthia Shirona – 28

Delia Ketchum – 55

Misty Waterflower – 30

Brock – 32

May Maple – 24

Max Maple – 19

Trip – 30

Dawn – 25

Iris – 27

Gary Oak- 26

Pr. Oak- 64

-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-

"I see you've tried your best to maintain the cave, I am really impressed, brother" said Dima.

Dima was sitting on a rock, covered with a sheet of cloth. Ash was not surprised to see Dima being so quiet and calm, but was surely extremely shocked to see the physical transition he had gone through. Dima's blonde hair had grown quite long; it probably went all the way down to his lower back. He had tied it into a ponytail, and had a beard growing, almost as rough as Ash. He had grown QUITE tall, "an inch or two taller than me" Ash thought. Not to forget his body, which shocked Ash. It surprised Dima himself. He always used to talk about how he hated people with those extremely buff bodies and used to call them "VANITY MUSCLES".

His blue eyes were the same as before, except they made him look more intimidating and handsome. He radiated confidence and power as he walked, like a panther stalking a gazelle in tall grass. His voice was calm, really deep, and toneless. Although Ash could sense a strange contentment in his way of speaking, he wondered what the news was. As always, Dima only gave a small smile when he saw Ash, and didn't speak much as he entered the cave.

"10 years Dima, 10 years. You promised you would come here, but you never did."

"My apologies brother, I tried my very best to come visit you, but I couldn't. Apparently, Mr. Goodshow had increased security in all the regions to capture us. I could've been caught."

"You could've come here after the truth came out!" Ash said, in a louder tone.

Dima simply exhaled and smiled, "I see you've finally mastered your aura after our encounter with Arceus, because I don't see a television here."

Ash smiled at that statement. He still thanked Arceus for everything she told them, because surviving would've been tough without her help. His smile grew wider as he saw Morpeko running towards him as she jumped in his arms and rubbed her cheek against Ash's, making adorable cooing sounds.

"It's great to see you too Morpeko!" Ash said.

"I really missed you Ash. Although Dima never really made me feel sad, I still really missed you and Pikachu" said Morpeko. Saying that, she ran over to Pikachu and tackled him playfully, who laughed and tackled her back.

Ash vividly remembered how helpful Arceus had been.

FLASHBACK

"Holy mother of-"Ash gasped as he covered his eyes, as the light was blinding. The cave started rumbling, cracks started appearing in the rocky walls and everyone inside the cave, had started stumbling, everyone except Ash.

Lunar cave was a peaceful place. That was something Ash had understood when he entered the cave first time. The waterfall and the small lake was helpful, because after extremely intense sessions of training, Ash and all of his Pokémon used to smell like crap. At least they could take a bath.

Ash and his team had experienced rockslides in the beginning when they started living in the cave, but after a year or two, Ash was exceedingly vexed, and decided to reside at the peak of the mountain. Luckily, he discovered that a part of the cave led to the peak, and it was the source of the waterfall. Hence, they received more than enough water to consume and keep themselves clean.

Ash never really experienced any rockslides or earthquakes after coming up, and was immensely surprised to experience a sudden quake.

Before any of Ash's Pokémon could react, the cave stopped rumbling, and the light died down. As Ash looked up, his jaw dropped in shock. After so many years of travelling, only once before he had met this creature, and made a promise to help it…. Alternatively, as Ash likes to refer… her, whenever she required his help. The white colored llama had a strikingly pure and white aura, which could be seen by anyone from miles away.

"Greetings, Chosen one" {why does it sounds like a line that a supervillain would say?} was what Ash heard, and his head started spinning, as he never really saw Arceus' mouth moving. The voice boomed in Ash's years, but it didn't make his ears ache at all. Rather, a soft, soothing sound sent comforting chills down his spine. The 17-year-old noticed that all his Pokémon were on one of their knees (at least the ones who had knees), their head hanging down in a feeling of true reverence towards their creator and her power. Ash himself bowed his head, and gave a warm smile.

"Ah! Arceus, it… it is... umm…. It is truly an honor to see you again. I'm surprised to see you here; did I do something… wrong?"

"Well it is true that Ash doesn't give us enough food, but I don't think we have a problem with that. Do we, folks?" Infernape said, as some of the baby Pokémon giggled, and the grown ones gave him death stares and angry glances.

"Hm. Infernape", Arceus said in an amused tone, "You have been feisty since you were a Chimchar, however, you look much stronger than before. I see you have been training. You all have."

Arceus gave a curt nod towards every Pokémon, who backed up a few steps, and stood in an upright position.

"Holy sh- I mean whoa! Am I dreaming, or did I just heard what Infernape said?" said Ash, in a shocked tone.

"Yes, chosen one. You sure did. It is true, as you have read in the books. Humans can understand what their, or anyone else's Pokémon are saying in my presence. However, I have not activated that ability of mine as of now. So I am guessing you understand what that means right?"

Ash knew what that meant, which made him gasp in shock. A normal person cannot do that, and if he/she is able to do that WITHOUT Arceus' help, then it can mean only one thing. The person is an Aura user. Ash took his time and let the information settle in. After a few brief moments, Ash spoke up, evidently trying to hide the surprise and shock in his voice, but all in vain.

"So, this means I am an Aura user?"

"Indeed. You are an Aura user"

"But aren't Aura users extremely rare? I have heard that only one Aura user has ever existed on earth, and that is Sir Aaron. Well… then if that is true, then only an heir of Sir Aaron would be an Aura user and tha- what the hell?"

Arceus smiled, "I see you're sharper than before, Chosen one"

"So Sir Aaron is my ancestor?" Ash said, confused.

Arceus nodded, "You don't look so shocked, Chosen One"

"I am rather confused. If Sir Aaron is my ancestor… then… he married queen… and then… so …" Ash muttered to himself.

Arceus smiled and patiently waited for Ash to figure things out.

"Holy mother of Jesus. I am related to Queen Ilene?"

"Yes."

"Whoa. This is strange" Ash sat on a rock, still shocked.

Arceus went over to him and said, "Why is it so hard to believe, Chosen One? You are one of the bravest and kindest boy on earth. That's how a true Aura user should be; as it's his/her job to protect the earth."

"Very true, but I guess it is going to take me some time to get used to the fact that I am the only Aura user on earth."

"Who said you're the only one?" Arceus said, clearly teasing Ash.

"Pardon me?"

"Yes Ash. There are two Aura users on earth. On the other hand, dare I say… Aura Knights on the earth."

"Two?"

"Yes. Your adopted brother Dima is an Aura Knight too"

"What?!" Ash exclaimed. His voice echoed through the cave, making his entire group of Pokémon look at him, who were busy training.

"Yes. Dima Ketchum and Ash Ketchum of pallet town are the only two Aura Knights on earth right now."

"But how? Dima is not related to Sir Aaron. He's adopted!"

"True, but on Sir Aaron's request, I decided to give Aura powers to Dima as well."

"This is getting weirder by the second. What do you mean by Sir Aaron's request?"

"I'll start from the beginning. When Sir Aaron discovered that he was an Aura Knight, I wasn't the one who told him. After his best friend's death, he went into a state of extreme grief and anger, and could not control his emotions. That is when his aura came into use, to help him stay controlled. His Aura took over his body, and held him down, sending some of the great memories he had with his friend, and helped him feel relieved. If I quote Sir Aaron, 'I suddenly started growing blue and couldn't move. Also, I started seeing the past, and felt extremely calm and relieved'. That is when I explained him about being an Aura user."

"I see, but I still don't understand how this is related to Dima"

"Yes, I am coming to that. So after Sir Aaron died, his soul entered the Hall of Origin, where him and I worked together to decide the next Aura Knight. You have the power of Aura since you're his successor, but Sir Aaron knew that one Aura Knight won't be enough to protect the earth, and he decided to observe you, to see whether he could find someone as worthy as you to be an Aura Knight."

"So he found Dima. You mean that the moment mom took Dima in, Sir Aaron knew that Dima is worthy to be an Aura Knight"

"Precisely."

"Alright. However, you said that Dima has the power of Aura too. How? "

"All thanks to Aaron. Before I tell you what happened, you need to know this. The power of a person's Aura doesn't lie in his/her body, but it lies in his/her soul. So when Aaron died, his Aura's power tagged along with his soul to the Hall of Origin. After gaining knowledge about Dima, he sent an extremely small part of his Aura into Dima's body. When that part of his Aura entered Dima's body, it completely changed. All traces of Aaron were removed from it, and it became a fresh Aura, as if Dima was born with it."

"Okay so now I get it! When an Aura Knight is born, his/her Aura has almost negligible power, but his/her actions and development in physical strength leads to the strengthening of the person's Aura."

"Yes, Chosen One."

"Oh my Arceus… doesn't that mean…" Ash trailed off, seeing Arceus smiling.

"Affirmative, Chosen one" Arceus said, "There is no confirmation of you and Dima being just as strong as Aaron. The way you train yourself and your Pokémon will decide whether you will be weaker, similar, or stronger than Aaron."

"Wow. This is a lot to take in. But I am happy"

"Is it because of the unlimited power you have within yourself to do anything?" Arceus replied.

"No. It is because of the unlimited power I have within me to save this world from bastards like Giovanni."

Arceus' smile widened on hearing that comment.

"I am proud of you Chosen One, and I'm proud of your brother too."

"But shouldn't Dima know about this too? He needs to realize."

"Ah yes! About that! I already told Dima everything a month ago and left him to train with his Aura."

"What! You told Dima about all this before me?!" Ash exclaimed.

"Don't be so waspish, Chosen One. You're the feisty one out of the two; I knew you would demand explanations, so I came over to you after Dima." Arceus said. "Although, Chosen One doesn't sound a really good title anymore, because Dima is also one of the protectors like you."

"That isn't the main issue, Arceus. I need you to teach me how to use my Aura and defeat evil."

Arceus laughed, a beautiful laugh that sounded like music to Ash's ears, but Ash could sense a tint of sadness in it.

"I am the creator of the world, Ash. I do not find it difficult to fight the evil alone without any support. But, tell me, what is the fourth law given in the book that you read as a kid, 'The Circle of Purification'?"

"The fourth law of creation of the world is that you created everything in opposites, with both sides of the coin having different, and its own purpose."

"And what are the consequences of breaking this law?"

"Universal Extinction"

"Precisely, Ash. You and Dima must follow the path, your destiny. I cannot meddle in between and give you advantage. I can only teach you how to summon your Aura, because that is the only thing an Aura user finds tough in the beginning, but it's your job to train and discover your different Aura abilities."

There was a brief moment of silence as Ash thought about everything that Arceus said.

"Okay, Arceus. I am ready to do so. Where do we start?"

"There is nowhere to start Ash. Your will is strong enough to summon your Aura after practicing only for a day. You summon your Aura by transferring your energy and focus through your Chakra points. I'll teach you." Arceus said. As she looked at Ash, an expression of pain occurred on her face.

"What's wrong Arceus?"

Arceus hesitated, "Nothing, Ash. Let's begin."

FLASHBACK END

Ash was smiling, bright enough for everyone to notice him. Dima was smiling himself, as he read his mind. He saw how Arceus taught Ash to summon and use his aura, and remembered his own encounter with her.

"So", Dima said, making a blue colored ball in his hands using his Aura and throwing it towards Ash, who expertly caught it and deflected it back. Dima easily stepped out of the way, as the ball hit the side of the cave, creating a hole in the wall.

"How is everything going on? You are training hard, I see. Not to mention you have gotten all hefty."

"Huh, you're one to say, Dima. I mean look at you. What did you do all these years, were you lifting cranes or stuff like that? What is with those buff arms? In addition, damn look at your chest. I don't remember you being so interested in muscular figures."

"Eh, well I figured that I have to be stronger, but even I think that I overdid it."

"Of course you did", Pikachu commented, "You've really changed."

"Not at all, Pikachu", Morpeko intervened.

"He's still that stubborn person who doesn't like to laugh, or even smile. I even tried to chill him down, but all in vain. He just kept attacking the big boulders as he kept working out. I even tried to use my hunger switch on him, but nope. Pointless."

"Whoah!" Ash exclaimed, "You're now in control of your hunger switch?!"

"Yeah I am. Dima trained me hard. Alongside Charizard"

"Hm. That reminds me, Dima?" Ash said, and Dima turned around, stopping his inspection.

"How tough did you find training Charmander? The black one?"

"Really tough" Dima sighed, "It took me a long time to get closer to him. Furthermore, the wild Pokémon that I caught after reaching Inferno Mountain used to tease him, due to his black color."

"Same here, I found it exactly similar with Squirtle."

Dima's first Pokémon that he received through an egg was a Chespin. When he helped bringing down Team Flare during his Sinnoh adventure, an old woman awarded him with an egg, that later on hatched, and apparently, it was Chespin. After that, the only Pokémon Dima received through an egg was given to him by Arceus. In addition, the way Ash mentioned Squirtle, Dima understood that Ash received an egg by Arceus too. When Dima completed his basic Aura training with Arceus, Arceus decided to give him two eggs, off which one contained a Riolu. However, when Dima told Arceus that he already had a Riolu, Arceus gave him the egg that contained the Charmander.

"I obtained this egg from a dying Charizard, Dima. The Charizard used to live with me, and she fell in love with Lugia." Arceus said.

"And you're telling me that…?"

"Yes. They bred this egg. Take good care of it."

When the egg hatched, Dima was shocked to see the Charmander. His body was pitch, coal-black. Even the flame on his tail was burning black, but had flecks of green in it.

The moment it hatched, the other Pokémon except Morpeko, Riolu and his older Charizard started making fun of him. This made the Charmander feel worse than he already did, and it became detached from the group, barely eating, barely training. However, Dima took the matters in his hand, and tried talking to Charmander. As Dima is an exceptionally calm and sweet person, Charmander was convinced.

Dima talked to all the other Pokémon, in an equally sweet manner, and told them to stop with their innuendos with Charmander. Hence, Charmander got closer to Dima, and all the other Pokémon became his great friends.

Although, the Pokémon, who Charmander was the closest to, was Dima's Charizard. Charmander considered Charizard as his elder brother, and trained extremely hard with him. Hence, he evolved into a Charizard, and set a great amount of fear in the other Pokémon, because after evolving, it had transitioned in to this intimidating beast, who had a huge scar on its left eye, which he got when training with Dima's Bisharp.

"So apparently, you received a Squirtle, the same way I received a Charmander?" said Dima.

"Yes." Ash replied, "Arceus even offered me an egg for Riolu, just like you, but again, I already had a Riolu, just like you. So I didn't take the Riolu's egg from her."

They sat there, chatting for some time, as the afternoon sun shone bright over there head. Ash could feel that Dima was hiding something from him. Even though he could easily read his mind, he and Dima came to an agreement that they would never read each other's minds.

Dima noticed that Ash had figured it out, but he decided to play along.

"What's wrong, brother? You seem hesitant." Dima asked him.

"You're one to say, I am having a feeling that you're hiding something from ME."

Dima nodded at that statement. Ash wasn't a nervous-nuthead anymore.

"Perhaps, you're right, brother. As I already mentioned, I fear it's time for us to go out and face this world again."

Ash clenched his fists, and his face turned serious.

"I see. Nevertheless, we cannot just go outside like that Dima. What are you suggesting?"

"There's nothing to suggest, brother. I know Arceus told you about the return of evil spirits. I also know that you heard the news of Giovanni breaking out of prison."

It was true. Ash had heard about the news. Whenever tired or hungry, Ash always rested or ate in the cave, cooking whatever berries or food items he managed to find in the cave. However, once in five months, he used to fly down to the extreme base of the mountain, where the people used to start their trekking, and go to the Pokémon Centre. He did so because he sometimes craved for the food that was made in the Pokémon Centre as he considered it as his cheat day, an didn't have to eat the healthy crap he ate every day.

Once when he went to the Pokémon Centre and was having his meal, he decided to use that opportunity to surf the Internet, using his TransmissionDex.

That is when he read the news of Giovanni's escape. Giovanni had escaped from the prisons located in Kalos, and the leader of Team Plasma and Team Flare were missing. The only thing Ash found strange was that the leader of Team Magma was still in prison.

If Giovanni really wanted to escape, and hoped to rise again, shouldn't he take the help from all his rival teams? Why would he leave a leader behind? In addition, why only the leader of Team Magma?

As Ash came back to his senses, he said,

"Yes I do. I know about the escape. Well then, I don't think there's any question about it. We have to stop them."

"Of course we have to" Dima replied, "And we will. Nevertheless, that is part of the topic I am here to discuss with you. You have to understand that we cannot go right out, fighting evil. He have to cover our asses, and handle Giovanni's situation indirectly. We cannot let anyone know our true aim"

"That makes sense. What's the plan, then?"

Dima smiled and unlocked his TransmissionDex. He fiddled with some files, and sent Ash a text file on his Dex.

"Open it, brother. Open the file, and tell me what you think." Dima said, in a teasing voice.

Ash unlocked his own Dex and with a confused look on his face, looked at the file that he received from Dima. It was an invitation, and it was posted on the Global PokeGram. The Global PokeGram was a large network, and almost every Pokémon trainer on the earth was signed up to it.

People could post photos, texts, messages, share battle strategies, even trade Pokémon through the PokeGram.

The invitation was a public invitation, and it was posted by…

"Mr. Charles Goodshow and Scott posted this together?" Ash said, clearly shocked.

"Yes. They even sent individual invitations to the Gym leaders and the Champions."

Ash's face showed a minute expression of sadness on hearing the word 'Champion'. It almost immediately reminded him of Cynthia. He suddenly had an urge to cry, but he fought against it and remained neutral.

Dima sensed Ash's feeling and decided to divert his mind. It wasn't the right time to talk about this right now. Perhaps, he would break down into tears himself, as he missed Diantha more than anything or anyone else, but he knew that the two of them had to remain strong.

"Go on Ash, open the Invitation."

Ash nodded and opened the file. He read the file and was extremely surprised. Millions of feelings started crossing his heart. Happiness, Greif, anger, hope. Ash clenched his fists hard as his body started glowing blue.

"Déjà vu", Dima thought to himself. Dima's Aura had also been triggered as he experienced the same things as Ash was going through, when he first read the message.

Ash gave a low but loud scream as he created a prism of white aura in his hands and threw it towards the waterfall. The rocks all crumbled down as the flow of the water increased, and slowly got back to normal.

"Huh, déjà vu." Dima thought again. He did the exact same thing. Ash remained silent for a moment as Pikachu climbed up his shoulder and looked at the message on the Dex –

Greetings to all the Pokémon trainers out there,

After years of requests and demands from Pokémon trainers around the world, we have decided to hold the World Pokémon Championship. Any and every trainer in the world can participate in this competition. Knowing the fact that hundred thousands of trainers will apply for the tournament, we have decided to make it tougher for everyone. Every trainer participating, except gym trainers and Champions, have to send one video to our PokeGram page. The video should consist of their Pokémon showing its battling skills. We and many other professional trainers from around the world will be the deciding committee and look at the videos. Out of the total number of participants, we will straight away narrow it down to 500 participants, including the champions and gym leaders. Further tournament instructions will be given to everyone after reaching the tournament venue. So, let us see who is going to be the Ultimate Pokémon Master.

Venue: The Battle Valley, Path to glory

Trido Region

P.S. The last day to summit the videos, is the 3rd of April

-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-

Ash took his time, reading the invitation repeatedly, and finally looked up towards Dima, switching his Dex off.

"Alright then. Looks like we're gonna- wait a second. What's the date today again?"

Dima replied, "It is April 2".

"Great." Ash muttered. He unlocked his Dex, chose one of his training videos with Aggron, and sent it to the designated account.

"Mhm… Interesting. No hesitation at all, I am impressed. Also, that Aggron looks really new to me." Dima said with a smile.

"Of course, I trust my Pokémon. Moreover, yeah, Aggron is new. I caught him… I think 4 weeks ago." Ash replied.

"I am impressed brother. The training makes it look like you've had him for years."

"Ah, thanks Dima. Well, I had to train everyone hard, every day. We're gonna make them pay." Ash said, his voice like boiling lava and his voice laced in sheer determination. It was for the first time that the traitors had been mentioned after Dima's arrival to the cave.

Dima remained silent for a while. He opened his eyes and calmly replied. "We'll make them regret it." Ash was surprised to see Dima like that. His voice didn't change, but he could see that anger and grief in Dima's eyes.

Dima suddenly smiled and grunted, "In addition, I think it's gonna be great for Morpeko too, you know. She wants her share of the revenge."

Every one smiled and looked at Morpeko, who grinned and started crunching her knuckles.

"I am waiting to see the shocked looks on their faces when they see Morpeko battling." Ash said.

"Yeah you're right. It will be fun to watch a tiny Pokémon easily taking out the bug guns. Morpeko is one of my strongest Pokémon. It is my starter after all."

Morpeko climbed up Dima's hand to its shoulder, and nuzzled her cheek against his.

Ash got up and stretched. It was mid-afternoon and they had lots of time.

"C'mon, I'll show you around." Ash said.

Dima nodded and got up, "I don't really think there's much to see, it is a cave after all."

"Oh yeah that reminds me, how difficult did you find getting used to Mt. Inferno?"

"Quite difficult in the beginning. It was extremely hot there, and water was scarce. But, we got used to it."

Morpeko smiled at the same time as Dima.

"Alright then, brother. Show me around. I am interested in seeing your team."

"Ah" Ash exclaimed, "So am I."

"Did you manage to catch Creselia?" Dima said.

"Yep. Although you don't need to fool around, I know you can sense her aura in my Pokeball." Ash said with a smug smile.

"True."

"Mhm. I'm guessing it was tough for you to catch Groudon. I've heard he is really…. Stubborn?"

"You can say. It did take me time and I ended up getting hurt. However, after a huge amount of battling and time, he considered me worthy enough to join my team. Later on, Arceus' presence assured him and he got rid of any complaints or suspicions he had."

Ash was impressed. Moreover, he could relate. He faced a somewhat similar situation with Creselia.

"Okay then, ready?" Dima said, clutching one of his Pokeballs.

"Always." Ash replied with a smile, clutching one the Pokeballs on his belt, and walking out towards the entrance of the cave.

-xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx-

"AAAARGGGGGGGHHHHHH!" the man screeched in extreme pain as he could feel the steel rod, entering his body for the seventh time.

"I am still wondering how long it will take me to break you." Another man said from behind, sitting on his couch. He wore a purple three-piece suit, and was stroking his Persian's head. He got up and came near the scientist, who was hanging from the chains, his body severely wounded due to the steel rod.

"One.. Last.. Time." The main in the suit said, taking the steel rod from one of his inmates, and coming near the scientist with a deadly smile.

"Where…. Is…Pawāde~you?" The man asked.

"I don't know! I really don't know! I saw them 5 years ago, when they took over our laboratory in Sinnoh. But… but..! They weren't together! They were working individually! That's all I know! Please don't hurt me stop this stop this please!" the scientist begged for his life.

The man dropped the rod and smiled.

"Huh. Sinnoh? Working alone? Looks like I found a trail. Thank you for your cooperation. Now to get you rid of this mess and pain." The man said, as he looked at his inmate, who nodded.

The man went back to his office, and picked up the phone on his desk. He heard the scientist's one last, loud scream that echoed throughout the HQ. He knew that the scientist would never shout again, or breather for that matter.

He picked up his phone and dialed a number.

After a few moments, someone at the other end of the receiver said, "Master Giovanni. Your orders, please?"

"Collect as much information as you can about the Sinnoh Champion, Cynthia Shirona. I want her file on my desk by next week. I think it's finally time to welcome The Power Duo in the Trido region."

"Consider it done, master." The man put the receiver down and leaned back in his chair. "It is time," he thought. As he walked out of his office, his Persian shivered in fear when it saw a pitch-black aura surrounding his trainer.

-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-

"Holy mother of God." Scott thought to himself as he scurried down the hall, with two pictures in his hands. The same thought kept going crossing his mind.

"Could it be? Could they really be alive?"

He entered the meeting room, and was glad to see only Charles sitting there.

"What happened Scott?" Charles looked at him.

"You need to look at this." Scott replied.

He handed the pictures to the Charles who looked at them. His eyes grew wider as he gasped in awe.

He looked ad Scott and asked, "Where did you find these pictures?"

"One of the members of the research team was going through the participants' entry videos and took these screenshots."

Charles was extremely shocked. Could this mean that…?

They both looked at each other and said the words at the same time, "The Ketchums"

-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-

As the two huge Charizards landed near the biggest tree in pallet town, everyone stared at the two men who got off the over-powered looking Charizards. As the men headed deeper into the town, all eyes diverted in their direction as they saw the well-built and tall people. When Ash took his hood off, a few girls who had come out of their house to see the unexpected guests started blushing and drooling like crazy. Ash smiled at the fact that most of them were almost in their early twenties.

Dima decided not to take his hood off. His ponytail was misleading enough when looked from the back, and he did not want any incorrect assumptions on being Ash's girlfriend.

When Morpeko and Pikachu caught up with them and climbed up their respective trainers' shoulders, Ash and Dima didn't even require their aura to notice that some of the older people of the town gasped in shock. As Dima saw one of the elderly person talking about them, he even heard the words, "….Delia's kids."

"Okay then, Ash and Dima." Pikachu cheerfully said.

"What names are you going to use when you enter the tournament?"

"Yeah, I wanna hear them too. I want you to come up with a cool name, Dima." Morpeko said, joining in.

"Umm.. I don't know. Ash and Dima Ketchum?" Ash said, and Dima nodded with him in agreement.

"What?! Are you crazy?!" Pikachu screeched, and Ash's Lucario came out of his Pokeball, hitting Pikachu on the head.

"Learn to respect your master, you dumb little mouse." Lucario said, his voice laced with humor.

"You're not so good yourself, in the respect department." Pikachu said, glaring at Lucario and rubbing the back of his head.

"No but seriously, you both can't just keep your original name. The whole world will be there." Morpeko said.

"If I may ask, why are you suggesting us to use fake names?" Dima replied with a question.

"Well obviously because- um…" Morpeko and Pikachu stopped speaking midway, thinking for an appropriate reason.

"The officials probably won't even let us enter with fake names, as are original names are registered in the TransmissionDex." Dima said.

"And if you're worried about us being gone for a long time, it's not as if we're accused criminals on the run." Ash added.

"Alright we get it…. We were just…. Okay, we thought it would be cool to enter with fake names, and then come out with a bang."

Dima and Ash laughed, for the first time in years. Dima was surprised to hear himself laughing, and so was Ash.

"We're returning after 10 years. Moreover, everyone thinks we're dead. I think these reasons are enough to come out with a 'BANG'. Understood?" Dima said.

The two Pokémon nodded, and the group reached a spot, which immediately brought a reminiscing emotion in their heart. Where once stood their very home, was now just a plain field and it had flowers spread all over it. Ash and Dima noticed two grey stone slabs in the middle of the field, and were shocked when they realized what it was. Two graves. They had already figured out what was happening; even before looking at the names.

"In the loving memory of Ash Ketchum."

"In the loving memory of Dima Ketchum."

Ash almost laughed, while Dima stood there in a daze. Their two Pokémon got off their shoulders, and came close to crying. They could see their extremely sad faces.

The only person they trusted, the only person who they thought would believe in the fact they are still alive, had just proved them wrong. As a tear rolled down Ash's cheek, he quickly wiped it away and said, "It's alright. It's not Mom's fault. She is right in her own way. Nobody would have believed the fact that we're alive."

Dima quietly nodded and smiled.

"At least we can prove her assumptions wrong." He said.

The group started walking towards Pr. Oak's lab. They had their hoods on, not to attract anymore suspicion. As they stood against the entrance, their Pokémon were almost laughing. The two 26 year-olds were two mentally and physically strong men, but nervousness and fear was coming off them like waves.

Ash took a deep breath, and Dima popped his neck slightly towards both the sides, as if getting ready for a close combat session.

The two of them rung the bell, and knocked on the door simultaneously.

They heard a few steps approaching, and a man opened the door. Ash almost stumbled behind and Dima's eyes widened.

Gary Oak had faced some serious transition. The chocolate brown hair-colored man no longer had those immature looks. His hair was pretty much the same, however he had grown taller. "He's 5'11, 6'0 –ish," Ash thought. His eyes were deep brown, and he looked fit. Dima could tell that Gary didn't work out at all. Maybe he did, but it must be extremely rare. His body showed clear signs of cardio. He was wearing a light blue t-shirt and black shorts. He was drenched in sweat.

"Helping Pr. Oak in taming the Bouffalants, maybe" Ash thought.

Dima cleared his throat and said, "Hi. We're really sorry to disturb you at this ungodly hour, but we were wondering if we could meet Ms. Delia Ketchum? We heard she lives here."

Gary took a step back, his expression serious and suspicious, as he nodded and went back inside. It was clear that he didn't the two men at all. "What if they're one of the traitors, trying to clear the trail?" No one out of Pallet Town knew that Delia was living with Oaks.

Ash and Dima's hearts exploded with happiness when they saw Gary behaving this way. It assured them that he didn't let their mother come across any harm.

Gary came back after a few minutes, and said, "Ms. Ketchum will be here in a minute. May I ask you what your business with her is?"

"What business do you think two people would have with their mother, Gary?" Ash replied, whilst Dima smiled.

"Excuse me?" Gary replied in confusion.

Ash sighed and took his hood off. Gary looked at Ash as his eyes widened, and returned to normal.

"Umm… your point?" Gary asked.

"Holy Arceus! You're still as dim as before, aren't you Gary. Fine. Pikachu!" Ash said.

Pikachu quickly climbed up on Ash's shoulder and touched Gary's hair with his tail.

Gary's eyes widened again, as he realized what was happening. A raven hair-colored man, with familiar looking eyes. His hair, in a mess as like always, still making him look great. In addition, the biggest and the only thing that confirmed his doubts. The Pikachu on his shoulder. The only person who Gary had known to carry his Pikachu around on his shoulder was…

"ASH?!" Gary shouted.

"In the flesh." Dima said as Ash smiled.

Gary stood there for a moment, shocked.

"Wait a minute. You're not a zombie, are you?" he asked.

"I… hope not?" Ash replied.

They both smiled and shook each other's hands, pulling each other into a manly embrace.

As Gary let go of Ash, he turned towards Dima.

"A Morpeko on the shoulder? Hey Dima."

"Not as dumb as I assumed." Dima said.

They both laughed as they embraced too. Morpeko jumped on Gary's head and started chewing on his hair.

"It is great to see you too, Morpeko." Gary said, and heard Morpeko cooing.

"Gary? What was that noise? And whom are you talking to?" a voice came from behind, as the three men looked behind Gary to see Delia approach.

The two men gasped in shock, and couldn't contain it. Tears rolled down Ash's eyes, and Dima hung his head, clenching his fists.

Delia had changed, for sure. Ten years are enough for an elderly woman to change. Now in her fifties, she had streaks of white in her hair. Although her face hadn't changed, at all. Her health was as good as ever, and Ash could tell that by the way she was walking, and because she was drenched in sweat too, holding berries in her hands.

"Yep, they were trying to control crazy Bouffalants." Ash thought.

"Why don't you see for yourself Ms. Ketchum?"

Delia looked at the two men, and immediately recognized them.

"Ash… Dima" she whispered to herself, closing her eyes and falling on the floor on her knees. Ash and Dima ran over to her and hugged her, sitting on the ground on their knees.

"Where did you go? You knew things got better, but still you never came back." Delia cried and stuttered.

"Even after six years, when you were totally out of the crime frame. Why?" she continued.

"We're sorry mum; you know we couldn't do that."

"Yeah" they said.

"Alright enough of it" Pr. Oak said as he came in greeted the two men. "Let's just avoid these unpleasant feelings and let's go eat something."

"Yes food!" Ash and Dima exclaimed, and everyone laughed.

"And Dima? Take that hood of yours off, I haven't even seen your face yet."

Dima hesitated. "Okay I will, but promise me you won't scold me."

"Sure. I won't" Delia smiled genuinely and Dima trusted her.

The moment he took his hood off, Delia slapped him on the back of his head.

"What is this Dima? You shouldn't carry you hair like that. Go get a haircut. And shave that beard of yours." Delia said.

"Great" Dima said.

They all laughed and went inside, to have dinner.

-XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX-

HOLY SHIT these chapters are tough to write. It took me excessively long to finish this one. Great. Oh but don't worry I won't be leaving this story mid-way. Even if it takes me years.

So just, drop in a review about whatever thoughts you have for this chapter. Or anything.

I am gonna try to speed up now. It took me ten days. This time, maybe 5 days? I don't know we'll have to see.

Anyways, hang around for the next chapter!

BaneP,

OFF FOR NOW!