Okay, I know it's been a while since I've updated this story. But, I have been very busy with a lot of work, so I've had to put this on hold for some time. That being said, I will continue to write this story (and really to try to finish my other one) because I have another idea that might be really cool to write. That doesn't mean this one will finish soon, but it's motivation for me to keep going. I will say they'll be slow updates because I am on my third and final degree, but there will be updates. Sadly, none of them are in English, so I'm sorry if there are a few grammar mistakes.

With all that being said, please enjoy this long, overdue chapter.

Chapter 21

The three teen girls could not believe what was happening. For the last few minutes, Ash's slow Torterra, as Dawn and Zoey quickly described to May who'd never seen one before, and Liza's heavy Metagross were exchanging strikes while moving at tremendous speeds. They did not know how the Pokémon were doing it, but they thought it was incredible and scary at the same time. The teens also thought of intervening, but they did not want to interrupt Ash's momentum by doing something rash. He seemed to be having the upper hand.

"Meteor Mash!" Liza commanded. She could not find an opening with the previous moves and knew Metagross was getting tired. She knew this needed to end quicky.

"META!" The pseudo-Pokémon fiercely dashed towards a still Torterra. As it moved within range, Metagross' steel arm geared-back and viciously launched its signature move.

"Superpower!" Ash retaliated quickly.

"TERRA!" Torterra yelled as its body engulfed itself in a bright, orange color. It stomped its front-right foot, causing the ground to break and a large boulder to crash into a stunned Metagross. Then, Torterra's body bulked up before aggressively hurling itself onto the Steel- and Psychic-type, crashing it harshly against the ground. Everyone could see Metagross fainted underneath Torterra.

"No!" Liza exclaimed worryingly.

Tate, who was watching as he cared for Claydol, grunted from not being able to help.

"Now," Ash began. He had his right arm across his stomach, feeling immense pain from Claydol's earlier blow. "You're gonna tell me what's going on, and who did this to you!"

The gym leaders both looked at each other briefly before snickering.

"Wouldn't you like to know," Tate responded sassily.

"Just because you won the battle doesn't mean we'll tell you anything," Liza added.

"Oh, you got it all wrong," Ash continued innocently before turning serious. "I wasn't asking..."

Suddenly, the ground began shaking tremendously, slightly scaring the siblings. They recognized the sensation from earlier and saw large, green vines break through the ground. The Frenzy Plant move quickly wrapped them along with their Pokémon. No matter how hard they struggled, the vines were just too strong. The girls saw this and could not believe what Ash was doing. They turned to their friend only to see him collapse face forward onto the ground.

"ASH!" May, Dawn, and Zoey exclaimed concerningly as they rushed over to him. They tried shaking him awake, but they could his eyes began to roll back.

"Ash, stay with us," May said worryingly.

Ash mustered his remaining strength to slowly lifted his head and looked passed his friends to the gym leaders. Surprisingly, he saw two, small familiar figures appear. He scarcely noticed Celebi look in his direction briefly before teleporting the siblings, their Pokémon, Jirachi, and herself away. With that, Ash closed his eyes and collapsed.

XxXxXxX

"We should be looking for them," Drew stated, slightly annoyed he was waiting at the exit of Eterna Forest. He, Brock, and Nando had arrived fifteen minutes ago and were now patiently anticipating their friends to do the same. However, Drew was growing restless. "They're taking too long."

"They needed to find another route back to the main road," Nando responded calmly. "Surely they would take longer than we would."

"All the more reason to go find them," Drew argued. "They could be hurt!"

"I am getting worried, too," Brock said, noticing a more serious demeanor on Pikachu from his shoulder. "We should probably split up and go look for them. One of us should stay here in case they're on their way while the other two go searching. We'll meet back here at the exit in an hour. Sound good?"

"That's the most sensible thing I've heard all day," Drew commented in a low voice.

Nando decided to wait at the exit while Brock, Pikachu, and Drew raced back into the forest. They had been running for a couple of minutes when they approached a junction in the road.

"I'll go right," Drew stated quickly. He knew they had come from the other side and did not run into May with the others the first time, so he wanted to go explore a different route.

"Alright, we'll back here in an hour."

"Right."

With that, both continued to sprint in their respective directions.

"Damn that Team Rocket," Brock thought as he ran down the road. "They never learn their lesson…I hope you're all alright."

Suddenly, Pikachu jumped off the breeder's shoulder and began charging into the forest on his left.

"Hey, wait for me!" Brock yelled, closely following behind.

XxXxXxX

"Is he gonna be alright, Cheryl?" May asked worryingly. She looked at the older teen, who had appeared out of nowhere a few minutes ago. She had long, dark green hair that was tied in a segmented ponytail, wearing a light green and white long-sleeved semi-jacket, brown undershirt, long dark green pleated skirt, and tall brown boots with slight heels to match. May thought it was mysterious of her to just show up suddenly but was grateful since she offered to help Ash.

"I can't say for sure," Cheryl replied honestly, her grey eyes meeting May's blue eyes. "I was able to use my Chansey's Heal Pulse on him, but it doesn't affect people the same way it does Pokémon. I was only able to ease the pain a little and stop the bleeding from the cut on his back that reopened. He still needs some medical attention."

"Right, so we just need to find the exit to this place," Zoey said hurriedly, feeling they were wasting time.

"Okay, so where do we go?" Dawn asked.

"I'll lead you out of the forest," Cheryl said as she slowly stood. "It'll be the fastest thing to do."

The three teens thanked the mysterious girl before turning their attention back to an unconscious Ash. May had Blaziken, who Chansey had healed with Heal Pulse as well, carefully lift him onto her back. The Fire-type was more than willing to carry the trainer after not helping much in the battle.

"Alright, let's get going," Zoey stated eagerly. "You can lead the way, Cheryl. We'll follow—"

"Hey, you guys!"

Aside from the green-haired woman, everyone turned around happily after recognizing the voice. They could see Pikachu and Brock running towards them.

"Brock!" Dawn and May gladly called back.

The breeder approached them as he tried to catch his breath. "Are you all alright?" He asked in-between breaths. He then noticed an injured Ash on Blaziken's back and became worried. "What happened?!"

"It's a long story, but we'll tell you when get Ash some help," Dawn explained.

"R-Right. That should be our priority right now," Brock resigned. He then saw an unfamiliar beautiful face behind the younger teens and could feel his heartbeat pound faster. "Ahh, be strong, Brock! Now is not the time…first is safety, then come the matters of the heart."

Following quick introductions, Cheryl and Brock both began to lead the group out of the forest. After finding Torterra's Poké ball and recalling him, May grabbed Pikachu as they began making their way.

After twenty minutes of treading the forestry, the group could see the exit of the woods and felt a sense of relief. They also noticed Drew and Nando rapidly approaching them. The girls explained the situation similarly to them as they did with Brock. Surprisingly, however, Drew walked over to May and gave her a hug, which caused her to flinch slightly. Brock and Dawn also were taken back from the coordinator's actions. He stepped back a little and spoke.

"Are you alright?" He asked genuinely. Drew had quickly described he went searching as well but hit a dead-end and decided to return to the exit.

"Y-Yeah," May said, still trying to comprehend what just happened. "Ash is the one who got injured saving us."

Drew briefly glanced at the unconscious trainer before turning back to May. "I'm glad to hear you're okay," he replied.

"Uh, thanks. I'm fine…"

"You can act all lovey-dovey later," Zoey interrupted sharply. She continued walking and gestured for everyone to follow. "Right now, Ash needs our attention."

"No, but it's not—"

"I'm sorry, but I have to agree," Cheryl said sincerely, cutting May off. "Your friend still needs help with his injuries."

As everyone continued towards Eterna City, May felt somewhat irritated looking at Zoey. The Hoenn-native did not like that the other coordinator assumed she and Drew were acting "lovey-dovey" and wanted to defend herself. For some reason, it frustrated May thinking that was how Zoey viewed her relationship with Drew.

May was also irritated with Drew. "Why did he hug me like that?" She questioned. Suddenly, a thought occurred to her which she believed to explain everything that has happened with him. "Does he…like me?" May could not help but slightly blush thinking that someone saw her in that manner. "It would make total sense if this is true…but I don't know how to prove it and…what should I do if he does? I mean, I like…" She looked towards Ash and could feel her face flush greatly. She sighed. "I'm not sure what to do about this…"

It took the group another ten minutes to reach the Pokémon Centre. They thought this was the only place they knew that could help Ash. They quickly informed Nurse Joy of the situation, and she said she would do her best aiding the trainer while she called for assistance from a doctor for humans. The group just watched worryingly as Joy and Chansey carted Ash into the back room, disappearing from their sight.

After waiting patiently another fifteen minutes, the heroes saw Joy appear from the back, and they briskly paced to close the distance. This slightly startled the nurse, but May disregarded her reaction to speak.

"How is he doing?"

Nurse Joy regained her composure and smiled softly. "He should be fine after a long rest," she said. "I was able to stitch up the big cut on his back and will continue care on his stomach. Whatever hit him there, must've been very forceful…"

Dawn, May, and Zoey briefly glanced at each other as they omitted details about Claydol attacking Ash.

"It was tremendously helpful for you to help Ash when you did," Joy commented graciously to Cheryl. "It was very lucky you were there."

"O-Oh, it was nothing," Cheryl sheepishly replied while blushing. "I'm glad I was able to do something."

"Wow, such an amazing woman!" Brock said as he unexpectedly knelt and grabbed the green-haired woman's hand elegantly. "Do you also happen to have a band-aid? 'Cause I scraped my knees falling for you. Maybe you can cure this broken man's he—ow, OW! Not again!"

"Is this gonna be regular thing with you?!" Dawn irritatingly stated as she smacked the breeder on the arm. She began pushing him away from the group. "Besides, Nurse Joy is the healer; not Cheryl!"

"Ahh, you're right!" Brock sulked, letting himself be hauled away. "I missed my chance at Nurse Joy…"

"I don't think it would've worked with her either," the rest of group could faintly hear Dawn reply.

The group laughed lightly before May approached Cheryl.

"Nurse Joy is right, though" she stated. "I'm glad you showed up when you did."

"Yeah, I was lucky to be passing through," Cheryl replied honestly.

"Why were you in the forest alone?"

"Well, I was searching for the Amber Castle."

"Amber Castle? I've never heard of that before," Zoey stated

"It's a rumored place to have hidden treasures," Cheryl told the red-haired teen. "I know not many people know about it and no one's been able to find it, but I believe it exists. My grandfather was a treasure hunter, and he would say 'if there's a rumor about it, then there's a chance it exists'. I want to find Amber Castle and become a treasure hunter like he was."

"Wow, I want to help you if you'd let us," Dawn said excitedly, making her way back to the group. She heard the conversation faintly but was interested in it. "What's in it that you want to find?"

"Enchanted Honey."

"Honey? That doesn't like treasure to me," Drew chimed in.

"No, it's Enchanted Honey," Cheryl clarified. "It's a very rare substance said to be made only in this place, and I want to find it for my very first adventure!"

"Now, I really want to help," Dawn reiterated. "Can I help?"

"Yeah, can we?" Brock added, quickly recovering from his rejection. "I think it'd be a good change of pace after the traveling we've done."

"Sure, I don't mind if you want to help," Cheryl said smiling. "I'll gladly take all the help I can."

"I'm gonna have to pass," Drew stated as he flicked his hair. "The contest is two days, so I want to practice as much as I can before then. We should all be practicing to do better than our last performance." He briefly eyed May after his statement.

May noticed his actions and felt slightly depressed, squeezing Pikachu a little harder in her arms. She knew he had a point to continue practicing before the next contest, but she did not enjoy being targeted by her fellow coordinator. However, May also had a reason to stay behind.

"I can't leave Ash by himself," she thought. "I'm part of the reason why he got hurt to begin with." May was going to speak when Brock spoke up.

"Well, we'd be happy to help, but one of us should stay behind in case Ash wakes up."

May saw Brock smile towards her and smiled back.

"I cou—"

"I'll stay behind," Zoey cut-off May like earlier. "I think the adventure I had today was more than enough for me. I'll explain everything to Ash if he wakes up."

May suddenly felt upset from being interrupted for the second time today, but she did not get to reply as Cheryl spoke.

"Okay," she said, feeling a little happy to be receiving support. "We can head out in an hour if that works with everyone. The first job is to find a male Burmy…"

"Burmy?" Dawn pulled out the Pokédex Professor Rowan gave her.

"Burmy, the Bagworm Pokémon," the Pokédex began. "To shelter itself from the cold, winter winds, it covers itself with a cloak made of twigs and leaves."

"Why do you need this Pokémon?" Dawn asked.

"Well, I don't really need it, but I need the Mothim it evolves into," Cheryl explained.

Dawn once again searched her Pokédex.

"Mothim, the Moth Pokémon," the Pokédex said. "It loves the nectar of flowers and steals nectar collected by Combee."

"Combee?" Brock questioned.

"Yes," Cheryl continued. "The legend says the Amber Castle was created by the Combee to house their incredible honey, and it became so rich in flavor that it is now a treasure worth seeking. I think having a Mothim would help locate it because of its natural instinct to take honey from the Combee."

"That's a great idea," Dawn encouraged. "How about we have something to eat before heading out back into the forest…?"

"I think I'll stay behind, too, in case Ash wakes up," May finally stated. She could feel Zoey giving her an odd look but did not bother turning in her direction. "I don't want him to think we all just went on another adventure without him. Not that he'd be upset, but I think it'd be nice if he had a familiar face around."

"I agree," Brock chimed in. "We should all still get something to eat before we go our separate ways."

Everyone nodded and began making their way to the cafeteria.

The group at their food as the girls recounted their story with the boys. Brock was in disbelief when he heard that Tate and Liza were the ones who attacked them; even-more-so, that they just suddenly disappeared when the girls looked away from them for a few seconds to check on Ash.

"Something's going on here," the breeder thought as he crossed his arms. He looked to May as he spoke. "Was there anything else that was different about them?"

May nodded slowly. "Their eyes were completely blank…like white with no pupils."

"I noticed that, too, but I wasn't sure if I was seeing correctly," Dawn added. "I've never seen anyone like that before."

"Wait, something isn't adding up here," Zoey spoke up and looked at May. "You say you know them well, but one of them didn't seem to recognize you. He talked to you like if you a were fan until the girl said otherwise. Are you sure they're as nice as you thought they were?"

Again, May felt irritated by her red-headed friend. She was about to respond when Brock decided to answer.

"Yeah, I can assure you that they're not mean kids," he said calmly. "They'll argue with each other, but they weren't mean to other people. Not to mention we left a lasting impression on them. Ash had an incredible gym battle with them—one that I'm sure they haven't forgotten."

"I don't doubt they remembered Ash. In fact, they specifically remembered him and only focused on him," Zoey clarified. "But they didn't really care about May, and that's what's not adding up in the story if you say you made a lasting mark."

"Okay, so we can just say that they did know May but only cared about Ketchum. It's nothing too special to think about," Drew concluded, which made everyone surprisingly agree with him. "The bigger question is why were they after him?"

"They said they wanted to 'deal with Ash peacefully'," Dawn pondered as she put a finger on her cheek. "I don't even want to think about what that means if I'm being honest."

Drew slapped his hand on the table to get everyone's attention.

"Then it's simple," he started. "We just need to ask hi—"

"Excuse me, Drew," a familiar feminine voice called, approaching the table. May quickly recognized the woman from the port when she first arrived in the Sinnoh Region. She appeared exactly the same as before with her short, red hair down to her neck and her stripped white and grey round skirt with white boots coming up to her knees. Again, May recalled the woman's most distinct feature was her sharp, piercing red eyes.

Brock quickly jumped from seat and gently grabbed the woman's hand.

"Destiny just keeps bringing us back together," he said romantically. "I'm sure you have a map because you keep finding me, so can you show me the way to your heart? I need help 'cause I keep getting lost in those beautiful eyes."

"I'm sure you need help in other ways," the woman said cheekily, removing her hand from his.

"AAHH!" Brock replied, clutching his chest in disappointment. "I should've stopped with Cheryl today…"

Dawn stood and began dragging her friend away from the table in embarrassment.

"I don't know if you deserve this or I should feel sorry for you," the group could her say.

"I'll take your pity for now," they heard Brock reply.

The group laughed a little before Drew focused on the woman again.

"How did you know I was here, Mars?"

"Your uncle told me you'd try to participate in the Pokémon Contest here, so I just waited until you showed up," said the woman now identified as Mars explained. "He wants to see you again as soon as possible."

"Again? But I just saw him not too long ago," Drew argued. "I'll miss the contest if I leave now. Can't it wait until after?"

"He says it's very urgent; something he forgot to mention the last time," Mars said calmly. "And I wouldn't worry about missing this contest if that happens. As I'm sure you've heard, they've increased the number of contests this year, so there's no harm in missing out on one or two."

Drew was about to reply when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned to see May giving him an honest look.

"It must be really important if your uncle wants to see you again," she stated. "Maybe you should go and see what it is."

"He's more of family friend than an uncle," Drew clarified as he crossed his arms. He sighed thinking that May had a point before turning his attention to Mars again. "Fine, but I'm not gonna be there long, though. I want to make it back before the contest starts."

"We'll do our best to get you back here on time," the woman bowed as she stood aside and extended her arm for them to make their way. "Shall we?"

The green-haired coordinator stood to leave before turning his attention to May. He flicked his hair and smiled.

"I'll be back."

"I'll be waiting at the contest," May stated competitively, returning the smile.

With that, the duo left the cafeteria and the Pokémon Centre to make their way. There was a small silence as Dawn and Brock returned to the table. Cheryl decided to speak up about heading out as well.

"So, if everyone is ready," she said looking at Dawn, Brock, and a quiet Nando, "then we should probably head out. We don't want to be out there when it gets dark."

"I agree," Brock nodded. "We're likely to run into some unfriendly Pokémon at night."

"Then let's go!" Dawn exclaimed, feeling excited about treasure hunting.

May and Zoey wished the others luck as they stood and left the Pokémon Centre. The two teens sat at the table in an awkward silence. It was apparent to them there was a weird feeling between them, but Zoey could not think of the reason why.

"That Drew guy is pretty cocky," the red-head teen said, trying to break the tension.

"Yeah, but he is a really good coordinator," May replied.

"I'll take your word for it until I face him," the red-haired teen smiled. "I guess it's only natural to defend your boyfriend, huh?"

May flinched slightly in surprise from the statement. "I-We're not like that!" She said hurriedly. "We're just rivals and friends!"

"Really?" Zoey said honestly. "I wouldn't have known the way you two were earlier. You sure had me fooled."

The brunette was going to argue and finally explain herself the way she has been wanting to this whole day, but she finally decided it would not be worth getting into another argument with her; they had just made up in the early morning and this would be a major setback. Besides, after extensively thinking about it, May thought anyone would come to that conclusion if they saw Drew doing that. Now in a way, she was glad that Brock and Cheryl interrupted her when they did.

"Yeah, I guess so," May laughed nervously. She suddenly stood and grabbed her things. "I'm gonna go for a walk since they're not letting anyone into Ash's room at the moment."

"Alright. That didn't stop Pikachu from sneaking in, though."

"Well, those two have a special bond if you haven't noticed."

"I have," Zoey replied smiling while looking away. "It's kinda cute…"

May felt a little nervous from her expression and decided to leave before her friend could notice. She quickly exited the facility and took a deep breath.

"I guess she really does like Ash," May admitted as she began walking away from the center. She decided to look around the city to find the contest hall to clear her mind. "I'm not sure what to do about that…should I even do something about it?"

"Nyaa…"

May stopped as she heard a soft, crying sound from a nearby bush. She slowly walked over to it and saw a small, blue Pokémon slightly injured lying on the grass. She approached it cautiously to not scare it, but the Pokémon quickly noticed May coming closer to it, which caused it pick up its guard.

"NYA!" The Pokémon said, trying to intimidate the stranger, but it did not work as she still came closer. Suddenly, the Pokémon felt a soft touch on its head from the person and somewhat relaxed.

"Come on," May soothingly said as she gently lifted the blue Pokémon. "Let's go get you checked out."

XxXxXxX

Ash slowly opened his tired eyes. He could feel his eye lids trying to fight back and keep his eyes closed, but he wanted to know where he was at. He noticed he was in dark room to which he thought he somehow made it to the Pokémon Centre.

"It's nighttime," he thought to himself as he could see the moonlight shining into the room while still looking at the ceiling; there was a small nightlight to his right, but it was not incredibly strong to illuminate the room. He grunted as he slowly lifted his head; he could feel immense soreness from all of his muscles and some pain from his stomach. Feeling an odd sensation, Ash looked to see a small, blue Pokémon sleeping on his stomach. "Hmm, Pikachu is looking a little blue today…"

The trainer heard a giggle to his left and saw May sitting on a chair with Pikachu. She was rubbing her eyes like she just woke up to which Ash deduced was probably from the noise he made.

"That's not Pikachu," she said as she moved closer to the bed. Pikachu jumped on the bed as she leaned her arms next to Ash. "That's Shinx. I found it outside the Pokémon Centre and brought it back to get some help."

"So, she was hurt?"

May nodded while giving him an odd look. "How do you it's a girl?"

Ash lifted his hand and patted Shinx's head. "The fur sticking out on top is smaller than the male Shinx. There are little differences like this for some Pokémon, and this is the difference for Shinx."

May smiled warmly.

"Of course, you would know these things."

The trainer then remembered the battle the gym leaders.

"Is everyone else okay?"

"Yeah," May confirmed. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm a little tired, but I'll be alright. No need to worry."

"I told Dawn that's when I'll worry the most."

They both chuckled until Ash winced slightly.

"I don't think I should be laughing right now," he said jokingly, gripping his stomach.

"Right," May replied softly. She then became serious again. "Everything was so crazy today from falling over a cliff to battling Tate and Liza…they're gone, too; they disappeared when we went to check on you. We're not even sure how since your Torterra had them tied up.

"Celebi…" Ash thought. "It doesn't matter right now. I'm just glad everyone is safe."

"Except you…what's going on, Ash?" May asked worriedly, grabbing his hand gently. "I thought they were our friends, but they just attacked you out of nowhere."

"I'm not really sure myself," the trainer stated honestly. "We can talk about this tomorrow, though. I'm pretty sure you're tired, so go ahead and go to your room. It's better to sleep on a bed than it is a chair."

"Nah," she said waving him off. "I feel more comfortable knowing you're alright now."

"That had nothing to do with what I said, but alright. She's so tired she's answering me randomly," Ash concluded. "Okay, well, lie down on the couch, so you can get some rest."

May nodded tiredly while grabbing Shinx from Ash. She gave a quick look before leaning over and kissing Ash on the cheek.

"Goodnight, Ash," she said slightly blushing as she plopped herself on the couch facing away from the trainer. When she knew the trainer could not see her face, May's eyes widened as her face flushed tremendously realizing what she just did. "Oh my gosh! I just did that without thinking!"

Ash briefly glanced at Pikachu, who simply shrugged to say 'I'm not sure what you want me to do'. The trainer sighed to himself and closed his eyes once again.

"I'm not sure how I'm going to explain this battle tomorrow…but Celebi better be able to explain it to me."

And that is the end of this chapter. I needed to get this one out of the way because it was important to set up situations and ideas that will come later on. I promise it won't take another year to post another chapter. I was disappointed about that myself.

Let me know what you think, what directions you think this is going, etc. Did you like it? Dislike? I welcome all criticism.

-RedHood06