Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or any related stuffs.
Hello everyone, welcome to the third chapter of The Journey. A big thank you to all of you who have read and reviewed the last chapters. With that being said, sir back and enjoy the story.
Chapter 3: Training...Bonding...Battling...Preparing for Tomorrow
Ash and Gladion followed Kukui to his laboratory. Unlike the rest of the researchers of the world whose laboratory are built at their residential place, Professor Kukui has an underground laboratory built below the pokemon school.
The laboratory was pretty impressive. There were a number of equipments, which Ash guessed can measure the power levels and other stuff related to pokemon moves, since that's what Kukui's area of expertise is. There was also a separate dissection room for detailed research and observation. Different research specimens are preserved there with formalin along with dissection tools and other apparatus and chemicals. Ash turned his head away from the room, yes he had come here before, but he is still a bit uncomfortable with those dissection stuffs. Somehow it manages to make him feel nauseous.
"Excuse me Professor, but why are we here", Gladion asked, " I don't think we are going to practice inside your lab".
Kukui laughed at the comment, " No! Ofcourse not! I won't allow you to destroy my lab. We will be flying to our destination. That's why we are here to meet your ride pokemons", he answered.
That caught the attention of Ash and Gladion. Kukui gave a whistle and called out, " Wyvern, Scartha, Mystic come here ".
A series of footsteps could be heard as three pokemon rushed out through one of the doors, first one was an insectoid, bipedal dragon, Flygon, second one was a draconic landshark, Garchomp and last one was the overgrown fire breathing lizard of Kanto, Charizard. All the three pokemons lined up as Professor started to introduce them, " So, gentlemen, these people are out ride pokemons. This Charizard's name is Wyvern, Garchomp's name is Scartha and Flygon's name is Mystic. And friends, they are Ash and Gladion ".
The three pokemons greeted them with their own roar. Gladion looked the three beasts with interest, but what he was thinking was not what Ash was thinking. The first thing which caught Ash's attention was, these pokemons had a shorter built than their average species size. Ash frowned at it as he was thinking what could be wrong with. Kukui seemed to read his mind well enough. He placed a had on Ash's shoulder and gave a sad smile,
" I know what are you thinking, these pokemons are underdeveloped ", he said.
Ash tilted his head and looked at Kukui, the frown not leaving his face," Explain please?", he asked. Kukui looked once at the three pokemons who also seemed to look a bit disappointed. He sighed and said,
"Well, I don't know what the exact thing is...But from what I have examined and the response I have got from these pokemons, I believe that evolution have been forced on them at a relatively young age. I have noticed several physiological imbalances in there organs and organ system. It's like their morphology is developed but the internal finer anatomy isn't that developed. This can only happen if the natural growth rate of a pokemon is deviated". Kukui looked once again at the pokemons and continued, " These pokemons seem to have the outside body of their final evolution stage, but their inside organs and their souls are a mixture of their first and second evolution stage ".
"But why would someone do such a thing?", Ash asked," Isn't it pokemon abuse?".
" In one way yes, some leagues like Hoenn will definitely see these things as abuse. But most Leagues won't qualify these as abuse. They think abuse is when some external harm is done or if the pokemon is somehow not healthy. They don't count these internal disabilities as abuse ", Kukui replied.
" How have you got these pokemons? You said they are ride pokemons", Gladion spoke out.
"Actually these pokemons are shipped by your mother. She felt you two may require a ride to save time during travel. There is a Kanto company which sells these ride pokemons which they claim to be trained professionally. These pokemons are healthy, I am not denying that...Also they are expert flyers, but they are disabled in some way also. How, I will tell you a bit later along with proof. Those company trainers just trained them to fly and nothing else. They can't even use their moves properly, they can't even defend themselves against some pokemons which their species may crush completely. Anyways, let's get going, I will tell you rest of the things once we reach out destination", Kukui said.
" Can't we just walk? ", Ash asked. Kukui shook his head," That would be a wastage of one entire hour. The Indigo Conference registration starts within six months, so we need you to get ready as much as possible ".
Ash couldn't argue with it. He followed Professor Kukui to the same room from which the three pokemons came out. The room was plain, with no furniture or equipment nothing. All in a sudden, the roof of the room split open and the floor started moving upward,
" This entire room is an elevator! ", Ash yelled in astonishment. Kukui grinned proudly and beat his chest, "Show off", Gladion murmured. That went unheard as the last roof above opened to reveal the clear sky. The sun was above everyone's head. Kukui jumped over Mystic and called, " Lets Go! The sooner we get, the better". Ash climbed over Wyvern while Gladion climbed Scartha. All three have saddles on their back with the cushions soft enough to sit comfortably.
"Alright, so take off! Let's make a Quick Attack to the place", Kukui shouted as Mystic took off followed by Wyvern and Scartha. Ash Wyvern started his flight, Ash could feel a feeling of weightlessness and a pressure created by the flapping of the wings. Ash held his grip on the saddle and took a good look at Alola from above. Melemele Island was mostly covered with a thick green canopy. These tropical forests house about a ton of species, a number of pokemons which can found only in Alola. Hau'oli City seemed cover only a small fraction of Melemele Island. Far away he could make the structure of two mountain peaks, one with smoke emiting out from it and another which seem to be snow covered, the snow seemed to be reflecting the sun rays giving it a shinning appearance, Ula'Ula and Akala Islands. And in the middle of the ocean, several large structures made of metal were floating...The construction of the Manalo Stadium is going with full fledge. It's surprising that science can now make artificial islands, Ash thought. It would still take time for the construction to finish, so he will have to wait to get a chance to battle on it.
Ash didn't even realise that they had reached their destination, one hour walk journey is covered within less than five minutes of flying. These pokemons maybe underdeveloped or whatever Kukui calls them, but are surprisingly fast and efficient in flying. All of them landed at a vast clearing on the other side of the islands. The striking feature of the clearing was there was a number of holes, maybe hundreds, on the ground.
Ash, Kukui and Gladion got down from their respective rides as Professor Kukui began, " So boys, here we are! Here we will test how good your pokemons reflexes are. Obviously this isn't for every pokemon out there but works for most. Now, you know by now I won't be using any technology or those stuffs to train. So be patient, as it will take some time for the training to bear fruits. Now release your pokemons ",
Obeying the orders Ash and Gladion released every single one of their pokemons. One by one the pokemons appeared giving their respective cries and waited for further orders. Kukui looked at the group with a contend expression and gave a loud whistle. Ash and Gladion waited patiently to see the effects of the whistle. Ten rodents appeared from those holes and lined up near them. "Yungoos?" , Gladion asked. Yungoos can be found over entire Alola, it's evolved from Gumshoos are used in the Alolan police force also.
"Yes! Yungoos! They will be helping us train. The thing is simple enough, Jangmo-o, Zorua and Eevee will stand there ", Kukui said pointing to a plot of land which is surrounded by holes in all directions, " These Yungoos will hide in underground and appear from any one of these holes and use Tackle on them and then hide again. Their work is to try and dodge all the attacks for one complete hour. Remember, you cannot counter attack especially you Jangmo-o, Yungoos will use only tackle and you people will only dodge! Got it! ", Kukui said.
All the pokemons nodded their heads and proceeded to take their position. Kukui looked at the rest of the group and released his own Braviary. He started again," Rowlet , Zubat, Litwick and Ghastly, you people will do a different kind of training. My friend here will rain Rock Slides from above, you will have to dodge them. Again no counter attacks, clear! ", Kukui said.
" Professor, uhmm...We will not be battling? ", Ash asked with confusion. Making them to just dodge attacks is just not going through his head.
" We will...But do you think your pokemons stand a chance of they can't dodge the attacks. This exercise may seem silly, but it increases the agility and also improve endurance ". Kukui replied.
Ash will not counter that, after all Kukui is someone who is as strong as an Elite Four. He knows better than him. "What about the rest?", Ash asked.
" Ah, yes! Remember different pokemons have different speciality. So their trainings are also different. Just look at your team, if I consider all the final evolutions, Decidueye is a mixed attacker, but even more their main asset is their battle skill and accuracy. Chandelure is a ranged attacker, they dish out powerful attacks from a distance. Kommo-o is a close ranged attacker. Poipole I don't know about. Flygon is something different, their power lies in manipulating the surrounding to trap their opponents before attacking. Dusknoir not only dishes powerful attacks, had incredible defense and they trick their opponents also with moves like Trick Room, Gravity, Confuse Ray etc. etc. Now the reason I didn't include Duskull and Trapinch in the reflex training is it does not suit them. Trapinch you can train when it evolves, but not now. And Duskull line isn't none for their speed", Kukui answered.
"So, here is the drill... Trapinch will practice sandstorm. It already knows sand tomb, the technique is also kind of similar in a way. But even though learning this move will be hard. When you see Trapinch is close to mastering the move, you will know it's close to evolution as well. And Poipole and Duskull will spar, Poipole can try to muster Dragon Pulse and it will improve Duskull defense as well. And let's stand at the side because Rock Slide can break out skulls as well".
Ash, Kukui and Gladion along with their ride pokemons stood at a safe distance from all the sparring taking place.
" Now, what are we going to do here? Just watch?", Gladion asked.
Kukui shook his head, "No, you are going to assist me in training them", Kukui pointed to the ride pokemons, " Before that, let me show you were the problem is". Kukui turned towards the ride pokemons and commanded, " Wyvern Flamethrower! Scartha Slash! Mystic Dragon Breath! ".
Wyvern inhaled a lot of air to charge up the attack. But instead of breathing a stream of fire, it coughed up some fire balls out of his mouth. Scartha sped towards a rock and slashed it with it's glowing sickle like arms shattering into pieces, which is not how slash works. Slash should have the rock like a knife cutting butter, despite how brittle it is. Mystic instead of forming a ball infused with draconic energy, it breathe out a puff of energy mixed air.
Ash and Gladion sweatdropped at this display," A Flame Ball, a blunt Slash and a Dragon Blow?! These were truely pathetic ", Gladion commented.
"Is this what you mean by imbalances and improper something?", Ash asked. Kukui nodded his head before smiling, " But don't need to wo... ", Kukui winched as a loud crash interrupted him. Everyone looked at the direction of noise to find Rowlet had been knocked out with constant barrage of Rock Slides. Ash sighed and returned Rowlet back to his pokeball as Professor Kukui coughed a bit, "Ahem... So as I was saying, there is no need to worry. This is due to an imbalance between morphological and anatomical growth. Give it around one and a half years time, they will be again like normal pokemons. But nowadays I am a bit more busy due to this League stuffs, many things need to be taken care of. So I am unable to give attention to all three of them simultaneously, that's why I have brought you two to assist me. You will help your ride pokemon to train, just remember to start from the very basics, as if they are unevolved ".
Ash looked at Wyvern with excitement," Hey Chari... I mean Wyvern, ready to work with me", he asked. Wyvern matches it with its own grin as he gave him a thumbs up, he sure seems obedient, Ash thought.
"Ok, Professor...We will meet at the time of sunset. I don't think there is enough space for everyone here", Ash called as he hopped into his seat and asked Wyvern to fly to the shore.
"Take care! And do only the basic moves", Kukui shouted while waving his hand. Wyvern glided through the air smoothly as Ash was planning his training in his head. After a couple of minutes, they landed on the shore. Ash got off from Wyvern's back and walked in front of him. Wyvern lowered his head a bit as Ash rubbed his neck,
" Look Wyvern, I know you want to get stronger right", Wyvern gave a soft roar as Ash continued, " I know, but you need to work hard. I don't know what the he'll those company people had done with you, but you need to overcome it with your own will power". Wyvern gave a roar of approval as Ash grinned, " Ok! So we will start with ember. Show me ember attack ".
Wyvern once again coughed up a ball of flames and looked at Ash. But Ash shook his head and said, " That was not ember. Ember attack is different to different species. For your case it will be a ball, no doubt in it. But it isn't so much concentrated and spherical like you did. Try again. This time don't try to force the flames out. That you do when you are mastering Flamethrower, even though after you master it, you can just breathe Flamethrower easily. Flamethrower also has a specific technique, but we will discuss it later. For Ember, you should breathe out flames, not cough out".
Wyvern listened to Ash attentively before trying again, but it was still the same thing. Again and again he tried, but he couldn't get it right.
Ash was watching everything till now, suddenly an idea came to his mind, " Wyvern, listen. Your technique is not right. See what I am doing and try to mimic my actions". Wyvern nodded his head agreeing to it. Anything that helps him.
"Look", Ash started, " take a deep breath and exhale it slowly ", with that Ash inhaled some air and exhaled it slowly like he said to give a demonstration. "With me", Ash said as he again took a breath and signalled to mimick him. Wyvern, a bit unsure whether it will work or not decided to follow orders and took a breath. Both of them exhaled together. This time a nearly transparent cloud of hot burning air with small flickers of fire escaped from his mouth.
Ash was pleased on seeing this," That's how it is", he encouraged, "Ember is a cloud of flames not ball of flames. With proper practice and control we have to replace that got air with actual fire ".
Wyvern grinned at the complement. This was exactly what he wanted to hear for a long time. Success...even though he wanted to master Flamethrower, he is also aware of his limitations. So any success is a welcome to him.
Ash and Wyvern practised this breathing techniques for quite sometime. When Ash thought Wyvern was slowly getting a grasp at the technique he let him practice on his own. After a couple of tries suddenly Wyvern seemed pulled the move nearly perfect. Wyvern turned towards Ash proudly, but his expression changed to nervousness when he saw Ash frowning with his hands crossed.
" Again you have put raw force right? ", Ash asked with a hint of annoyance in his voice. Wyvern looked like a kid who is caught in stealing candies from store. If Wyvern would have talked human language, he definitely would have muttered, ' Crap! Busted!'. He gave Ash a weird expression as if asking how he found out.
Ash laughed a bit and spoke with playful arrogance," I am not a part of some clan or something like that. But my family had been training your species for generations, they were all their starters. I have all the notes safe and secured which have been passed down generations after generations. So lying to me will not help. Your tailflame gave you away", he said pointing to the fire burning on his tail.
Wyvern looked at its tail once and muttered something in its native language. Ash guessed what that can be and said, " A Charizard's tail not only shows its emotion, but also power as well. It burns according to the level of power used as well. When you were powering up the attack, there had been a spike in power, more than usual. That's how I have guessed. Look, I want you use attacks like rest of the Charizards do... If you cheat, you are cheating yourself only ".
Wyvern was a bit impressed in hearing. He may actually benefit from the time he spends with this kid, he seems too experienced for his age. Wyvern was aware of its species nature. He was trained to listen to every stranger that rides on his back. And now, for the first time, he is not regretting it. There were a few people who rented him for a short time and they were just intolerable. But still he listened to every orders that were given. Had he been a wild pokemon, he would have scorched them already. But with this kid, he was actually happy to obey.
Wyvern tried to fire again this time with proper methods and failed. He tried multiple times making a very little progress. Ash gave constant support and encouragement, rectifying whenever necessary.
As time past, Wyvern grew more and more exhausted. Ash decided that it was enough for today, "It's okay. Everything needs some time, but the most important thing is never giving up. Never give up until it's over!" , Ash said pating Wyvern's shoulders.
Ash and Wyvern took a look at the setting sun, the once yellow fireball changed to hues of orange, like the flames of a Charizard as time passed. An orange haze casted over the moving see, reflecting on every single wave hitting the shore. Silhouettes of birds flew home across the sky which was now magenta. The sun was half in water, but it's reflection on the sea made it complete. A glowing, radiant light loomed over the water's horizon. A warm sensation splashed on Ash's face from the beaming rays of the sun, as if Solgaleo was giving them his blessing, his encouragement, his burning determination and shining hope. A calmness flew by with the wind which made their heart stop for a second. Stars started to peek out into the dusk night sky, forming a cluster...a constellation.
"The 7 Star Constellation", Ash murmured and turned towards Wyvern, " It's worshipped as a source of power in Alola, and the would be logo of the Alolan League ".
Wyvern grumbled something in acknowledgement and roared pointing at its back. Ash nodded, " I know, it's time to get back. Let's go".
With that Ash rode over Wyvern once again and started his journey back to the training filed to catch up with the others.
Two weeks later, Pokemon School
Jangmo-o and Eevee clashed with each other with full force. Just after the impact Jangmo-o's tail glow as turquoise greenish scales appeared but disappeared in the next instant.
Ash today made his mind he is not going to stop till Jangmo-o learns Dragon Tail. The traits are starting showing its effects as Jangmo-o is able to harness the draconic energy, its anatomy in its tail had developed enough to allow it to use the move. All its need is one adrenaline surge, or whatever adrenaline substitute pokemons have in their body as Kukui calls it, for the genes to fully awaken. That's why today Ash is standing at the school battle field, facing Gladion in an one on one battle.
"Come on Jangmo-o!", Ash encouraged," Don't give up!You are close, just find the inner strength"
" Sorry", Gladion said giving him a smirk, " But this battle is ours. Don't let them rest...Swift", he ordered calmly. Eevee released barrage of stars from its mouth which hit Jangmo-o, the impact pushed it backwards. Almost immediately, Eevee raced forward with a quick attack and hit Jangmo-o hard knocking it of balance.
Jangmo-o quickly got back to his feet and got engaged in another tackle vs tackle attack. Ash and Gladion stopped commanding watching who will dominate this time. Ofcourse Jangmo-o overpowered Eevee as it has more physical power, but a sneaky Swift attack blasted him into the air and send it backwards.
Jangmo-o was struggling to get up due to the hit. Seeing the game getting out of hand Ash cried out, " It's now or never! You need to awaken the sleeping dragon inside you right NOW!". Ash wasn't that crazy to win, but the loss will take away the perfect chance of learning Dragon Tail.
Somehow these words seems to reach Jangmo-o's heart. He focussed on its opponent who is preparing for another Quick Attack to end this battle. A sudden desire to refuse to loose engulfed him as a familiar wave of power passed through his body, only this time was much stronger.
Jangmo-o's tail grew a bit longer and got covered with greenish dragon scales. Jangmo-o swung his tail with full force to intercept the Quick Attack. Dragon Tail easily overpowered Quick Attack as Eevee was sent flying as if hit by a baseball bat. That one Dragon Tail knocked the air out of both the pokemons, Eevee was clear out cold and Jangmo-o was also panting and breathing air frantically, nearly on the verge of fainting. Dragon moves can drain the stamina out of pokemon quickly at the initial stages. But the good thing is Jangmo-o learned Dragon Tail, now he have to master it efficiently.
"Eevee is unable to battle...Jangmo-o is the winner", Kukui called out. a
Gladion returned Eevee to its pokeball as he walked towards Ash and held out is hand. Ash grinned and shook his hand as Gladion spoke, " Don't let this victory get into your head. You just got lucky with that move. Next time the results will be different".
"Yeah sure, whatever helps you sleep", Ash replied enjoying the taste of his first proper victory. He has got his hands on a valuable weapon in hand to tease Gladion for quite sometime.
The weeks of training paid finally. This whole week his pokemon has shred their sweat and blood trying to get stronger. The days started with physical exercises in the morning to increase strength, Kukui's reflex training at noon and finally attack practice till evening.
But one thing was bothering Ash. His pokemons were getting strong, it's fine, but as his trainer...he doesn't have any contribution to it. The training programme was designed by Professor, the pokemons that were training his pokemons were Professors, all in all most of the work was done by Kukui, he has just helped him training Wyvern, whom he can't use in an official battle. He doesn't regret it one bit, but wished he could have trained his other pokemons in the same way.
Speaking of Wyvern, he made a massive improvement in learning Ember. His anatomy is developing quite fast. Ember was no where near perfect, but it wasn't bad either. He would grasp this thing in no time. In return Wyvern had been training Rowlet to improve its flying skills.
In the field of flying skills, Wyvern was a champion. Wyvern also took a try at dodging those Rock Slides by Braviary, and he successfully dodged each one them. Not only was his ability to turn into a perfectly streamlined shape is helping it to cut easily through the air currents, but also Wyvern's movements and flapping of wings was creating some form of air pressure that was deflecting those rocks by an angle, an air shield form of thing. Rowlet is slowly turning into a great flyer with time, he is currently swimming in the air.
Ash is waiting for the big day to come, they day he will venture into the world on his own, without anybodies help, with only his pokemons by his side, and that day will come soon.
Days passed, weeks passed, months passed. Kukui had stepped up the training to the next level. From noon till evening Ash could be found only in the forest, battling wild pokemons. Ash was smart enough to not to poke the powerful and dangerous ones, he didn't want to loose his life so early. But two instances stood out to him the most, those two caused two of his pokemons to evolve.
First was a battle of Rowlet with Crawdaunt. He first thought it would be a good idea to challenge a stronger opponent, but that Crawdaunt started crushing Rowlet with Bubble Beam and Crab Hammers. The battle was mostly one-sided until Rowlet decided that he was tired of being a punching bag and decided to evolve to match the strength. Sharp leaves like quills shot out of his body and cut through the hard shell of Crawdaunt. It took a few more Razor Leafs to make it retreat. Ofcourse Rowlet... I mean Dartrix was not strong enough to make its opponent faint, but it was strong enough to make it run.
Second was the battle of Litwick and Mimikyu. He went for the Mimikyu hunt four days ago at Ula'Ula Island. And he succeeded to find one. The battle with Mimikyu was not that one sided, but it was not a walk in the park either. But Ash had come prepared for it. He made Litwick master Acid Armor to cushion most of Mimikyu's attack and Night Shade for landing strong damaging hits. And it worked... He caught Mimikyu without that big hassle. Just after the battle was over, the excitement of winning the battle caused Litwick to evolve into Lampent.
Ash is currently packing his bag for tomorrow. Tomorrow is the day he will set out to explore the world on his own, not under anybody's care. He won't be travelling directly to Kanto as he is going to make a short stop in Kalos. Nine pokeballs rested on his table. Eight are registered as his own and one is registered under the Aethers.
Flashback
A few hours ago:
Ash, Kukui, Gladion, Lillie, Lusamine and Mohn are all sitting at the living space at Kukui's house, discussing about Ash's journey. Gladion had decided he would stay in Alola and take the Island Challenge.
"So Ash, two important things needs to addressed quickly. First one, your parents had sent you a letter and a gift to start your journey ", Mohn said handing him a letter and a pokeball.
Ash quickly took the letter and opened it, it said
Dear Ash
Sorry we can't be physically by your side on such a big day like this, but mentally, we are always praying for our betterment. We will be always by your side no matter what. We don't know whether you have inherited the Ketchum luck or not, let's hope you don't have the rocky start like me. But as a symbol of blessing and good luck we are sending you a pokemon. We came to know that you lack a psychic pokemon in your team. Psychic pokemons are very useful in not only battle, but for personal safety also. Also you have made your mother mad because psychic pokemons is her favourite. We are not spoiling what pokemon we have sent to you if you are reading the letter first, but it's definitely a male psychic pokemon.
Now, one serious word of advice. No matter what, don't try to go head to head with the league. This is a secret that only a handful of people knows...The Indigo League is corrupted. I am not saying all are corrupted, but a section is fully corrupted. I am saying this because I am aware you will be trying to avenge my situation. If you ever come across any evidence, just keep it with 't try to do anything Alolan League is not setup that they will back you up.
Also I have a friend in Kanto, an influential one. After Giovanni was caught, he bought the entire Silph Company. Do meet him when you reach Saffron City. Tell Miss Lusamine, she will arrange all the appointment and everything. He had been a massive help during my crisis and helped me get out of Kanto safely.
Now all major talks out of the way, me and your mother are completely fine. We are safe and secured. So don't worry about us during your journey. Train, battle, learn along with rest. And if you can, so visit our house in Pallet.
Stay Safe
Your father Red and your mother Delia
P.S. Ash! My baby...don't forget to change your underwear :)
Ash blushed reading the last part of the letter. That sentence had been his mother's tagline whenever his parents write to him. But he was more excited to see what pokemon his parents have sent.
Ash released whatever pokemon was present in the pokeball. It revealed to small white humanoid figure with a green cap on its head.
"Oh! A Ralts! It's so cute!" , Lillie screamed in astonishment and delight and Gladion closed his ears with his hands, fully aware of the pitch in the voice. The pokemon seemed to be a bit lost seeing a lot of humans at the same time. Ash decided to take hold of the situation,
"Hey buddy, my name is Anderson. You can call me Ash also. I am supposed to be your new trainer. I am on a journey to be the best of the best, so wanna come with me! We will have lots of fun together" , Ash said.
Ralts seem to be considering him for some time. Once he found their was no negative intention in his heart, he accepted him in an instant. Everybody, except Gladion, started complimenting on how good a Ralts can be when it evolves and the skills and Ralts seem to be enjoying all the compliments. Ash smiled returned it in his pokeball, he would meet him with rest of his teammates soon. He had some questions in his mind which needs to be answered,
"Well Aunt Lusamine, what you know about the corruption in Indigo? And who is this CEO of Silph Company and what's his...or her's connection with dad? ", Ash asked.
The mood of the room suddenly became heavy. Lusamine looked a bit annoyed at something, maybe on the situation,"Corruption is Ofcourse present in some form...otherwise how are you going to explain the fact Giovanni...the Team Rocket Boss...was literally dancing under their nose for years without no one noticing anything, and when Red came to picture he suddenly saw everything which nobody had seen! Someone must be hiding him all the time. Also when Red was starting an investigation on this, he was framed and removed from power. It's clear Red was a thorn in somebody's path...And that can't be good".
"That makes sense", Ash said, trying to picture the situation" And Silph Company?"
"That is something you will find out when you meet in person" , Mohn interjected, "Now, shall we proceed to the next part". Ash nodded his head as Mohn spoke up," Now, Ash, we have decided to sponsor your journey, so you do not need to worry about funds. Also, since Alola doesn't have a League till now, there is no six pokemon rule for you. But for your League registration, you do need to link your trainer account with some ranch or breeder park, anything that is authorised. So we have decided to allow you to access our Aether Pokemon Reserve. Feel free to drop your pokemons sometime if they ever need a break...our trained workers will take care of them. And last thing, here are the keys to your house in Pallet Town".
Mohn handed Ash a set of keys. When Red was labelled as a criminal, their house went for auction. But Mohn somehow managed to save the house from getting mishanded. As much as Ash knows, someone else bought the house in the auction and transferred the ownership to the Aethers, who he doesn't know. Still, Ash was grateful to all those people who stood by his family's side in the time of crisis.
"Also you are taking Wyvern with you", Lusamine said," Who knows , you might need a ride pokemon".
Ash tried to reject the offer, " Umm...sorry, but I would like to walk". But Lusamine was not taking a no as an answer,
"I said you are taking Wyvern with you" , Lusamine said narrowing her eyes. She had a dominating tone in her voice," You use it or not ,I just don't care! But you are keeping him for emergency. It's better to be safe than sorry! ".
Ash gulped nervously as he knew he had no option other than to obey. Lusamine can be scary when her hidden motherly instincts start to kick in, he knows better than to anger her.
" Come on!", Mohn tried to tone the situation down," You are scaring the kid". Lusamine had a pleased smile on her face, " Good! Now Ash, this is about Poipole. You know it is not a regular pokemon, it's an Ultra Beast...something which scientists from all over the world are trying to get their hands on as a research subject. So no matter what...DO NOT BRING POIPOLE OUT IN FRONT OF PEOPLE. It's a huge risk we are not willing to is a hidden pocket in the jacket I brought you, keep it there, ok".
Ash gave a responsible look,"If any such thing happens, I will send Poipole back here".
"That is much better" , Lusamine said happily," As expected from you Ash! Finally, just to give you a little motivation, let's make a deal".
Ash raised his eyebrows and everybody's attention turned to Lusamine, everybody except Professor's who was busy with his newspaper. Ash leaned forward waiting for what the deal can be, " And that is? ", Ash asked.
" Well, if you can get win six of the main gym badges of Kanto, I will get a perfect pokemon for you ", Lusamine said.
" And what if I win all the eight main badges? ", Ash smiled , determination is his posture.
" If you can win, which I think maybe too much for a beginning trainer, then I will get you extra rewards. Maybe you may get a smooch from my baby girl ", Lusamine teased, there was mischief written in her tone.
Gladion was half asleep on the couch due to boredom, he jumped up from his trance and stared at his mother as if she was some kind of idiot. Mohn seemed to be unaffected, he was more amused. Kukui just raised his eyes from his newspaper for a bit before returning to his work. And Ash and Lillie looked confused," What you mean?", Ash asked curiously. Never Mind was the reply. He decided not press the issue further, as he have a lot of stuffs to discuss with them.
Flashback ends
Ash checked everything one last time, yes...He had packed everything. There were two bags he will be carrying. One at his back, and another at his side. His new pokedex was shinning like crystal from the moonlight coming through the window. He not be using his real name of Ketchum... He will be Ash, but Aether, Ash Aether to avoid complications. Ash walked to the window and took a last, but not the least look at the Alolan night. The moonlit night was charming and enjoyable. The moon was shinning like a disc of silver, bathing everything with silvery light. Soon this night will be over, new rays of sun will shine with a new day, new actions, new hope, new dreams and new challenges...which Ash have to face alone.
And that wraps up the third and final chapter in Alola for the time being. From next chapter, Ash real journey to the rest of the world will begin. Also for the Charizard matter, most plots are either Ash's starter or some abandoned pokemon. I thought Charizard's appearance as a ride pokemon may be a good idea. Let me know how you liked it or not and whether you want to see Charizard in battle...or not. Thanks for reading to all of you.
dfelipe76: To your question, I actually don't have a proper answer. Acerola is a good friend, very good one. But I can't actually picture them in a ship. Sorry to disappoint you. Anyway, thanks for your review.
Gemini Spark: I have already sent you a message in your mailbox. Thanks for your review.
Lugia Moon: Thanks for the appreciation, I didn't want to stick to a certain region, that's why I decided to incorporate the entire world. As for politics, it's everywhere... So instead of making all regions like monks, I decided to add some selfishness to it. And your question, "magic. A mysterious force, which is intangible and invisible, but you can feel it's effects. This is not any type bound. Moves like Psybeam, Shadow Ball or Dark Pulse doesn't fall under this category. But moves like Psychic, ghost moves like Confuse Ray or any kind of illusion of Dark moves like Topsy turvy or Taunt or any other similar type move or power fall in this category. Hope I could answer the question. Thanks for review.
bloodlinenaruto: Thanks for the kind words. Glad to see you are enjoying. Also Thanks for reviewing.
Chimera 608: Species is right... Charmander would have been the same plot repeat after repeat. Also this Charizard is not Ash's pokemon till now, it's just a ride pokemon for now who Ash is training because Kukui asked him to. Giving him a Charizard right from beginning would have been ridiculous. That's why this arrangement. Thanks for reviewing and glad you are enjoying the story.
The next update will be in a month or two. Big Thanks to everyone for reading. Suggestions and Criticism is welcomed.
Fafnir Out~~~
