Pokemon: The Lords of the Elements

WARNING: Tobacco, alcohol, slight torture, and character death is in this chapter. Those who are sensitive to such subjects are recommended to not read this chapter. Thank you for your attention.

Chapter 1

The Shadows of Time

Celebi awoke from the nightmare she had had for the last month. It was always the same nightmare: the castle on the island, the dark master whose laugh put fear in her heart, and the boy who lay dying on the cold, hard floor, watching helplessly as the world was about to be destroyed. The only problem was that Celebi, as much as she could travel and exist throughout time and see multiple possible futures, she could not enter the future she had just dreamed about, only see it in her dreams.

"Perhaps it was because the future I saw was what could happen and not what will?" She thought. "No, for even when I see other futures, I know I can try to stop them…. Here, I felt powerless, like I couldn't do anything… like every other time I had the dream…."

She had the same musings every other time she had this nightmare, and the first time she dismissed the nightmare as a dream only. However, the more the dream happened, the more doubt filled her heart. The boy seemed familiar to her somehow, though she could not place a finger on it. Perhaps one of her cousins knew the boy, if they were having the same dreams she was. Or even Dialga knew of him.

"Dialga…." Celebi thought. "He probably knows all things that are hidden from me. But what if there are things that are hidden from him? Would not Dialga, Palkia, or even Arceus stoop down to save the world if they knew it threatened?"

Of course, Celebi knew the answer was "no." Dialga and Palkia were both as likely to destroy the world as they were to save it, as well as Arceus. They were all too unpredictable, and therefore spent more time sleeping than anything else. Though she knew that Arceus was moved to pity at times by some humans, they were few and far between. "Almost nonexistent" would be probably be the better phrase, but she also knew that the word "almost" carried far more worth than any word could accurately describe. The "almost nonexistent" number of people that Arceus took pity on, therefore, were many times the salvation of humanity, and why Arceus had not yet destroyed the world.

"You look troubled," a voice said softly to Celebi.

Celebi turned to the voice and saw a floating pinkish-white cat with blue eyes. The cat was small, perhaps maybe a foot in length, half the size of Celebi, and its tail was probably the length of its body. The cat stared curiously at Celebi, but Celebi knew that the cat saw further than its eyes revealed.

"And you already know my troubles, Mew," Celebi answered, not wanting to play games. "Why ask for what you already know?"

"I ask simply because it is good for one to let go of his troubles," Mew explained, floating closer towards Celebi. "What have you seen?"

Celebi looked down to the ground before closing her eyes and shaking her head. The images flashed in her mind. They were just images, though, lacking in detail like an incomplete painting that only tells a small piece of larger tale.

"Darkness…." Celebi said quietly, no louder than a frightened whisper. "Death. A monster robed in shadow, and a boy standing hopelessly against it. And… I saw another."

"Another?" Mew asked, raising an eyebrow.

"The boy called him Mewtwo," Celebi explained. "He and the boy were to die together against the monster."

"Mewtwo…." Mew muttered as he looked out into the night's sky. "Yes, I have heard of him. A cousin had dealings once with Mewtwo."

Celebi studied Mew as he was lost to his thoughts. She had heard of strange things in the world, and had seen things stranger. Her sight had allowed her gaze on the pokémon that Mew was barely familiar with. And with the sight of Mewtwo, she also saw the boy.

"The boy has been with Mewtwo before," Celebi observed.

"Yes," Mew nodded, "he has. Twice, as you have no doubt seen, with one, and once with another. And has had dealings with other pokémon, greater and lesser. I must bring this news to the Elder Ones…."

"The Elder Ones?" Celebi frowned. "Pokémon who have forsaken all, even their own?"

"Yes," Mew chuckled. "The Elder Ones have deeper ties to this even we know. And long have they tried to block the sight of many from discovering the truth of their shame."

"And what truth is that?" Celebi mused. "Who and what are the Elder Ones that they alone can hide themselves and the past from all save Dialga, Palkia, and even Arceus?"

"Greater Pokémon," Mew answered plainly. "Of which you are one, and few, even amongst the Greater Pokémon, know of."

Mew turned to leave, heading to where Celebi knew she could now follow. He stopped for a moment, turning his head slightly to lay a final eye upon Celebi. He smiled. It was a small smile, and maybe even not all comforting to Celebi in the moment, but Celebi returned the gesture.

"Ketchum," Mew said finally after his pause, his eyes in a sudden, yet soft, glow. "The boy's name is Ketchum. And that name may well be the doom of the world, whether that doom be for good or ill. It has been many times. Already events have transpired that cannot be undone, as much as many may wish it. This task I give to you, Celebi, to find not the boy, but his father. And if not here, then in time."

"And how do you have such information?" Celebi asked.

"I hope one day I can tell you," Mew lamented. "And perhaps I will get that chance."

And, with the blink of the eye, Mew had vanished from Celebi's sight in a burst of light. Celebi gazed in thought before closing her eyes focusing her energy. She felt time move around her as images began to form until a story began to unfold before her. And even here, she knew that she could do nothing to change the events that were about to take place.

…

An older man, grey in hair, but still with a spring in his step, walked into a large parlor room, sunlight dancing upon the beige walls, the golden columns, and the red carpet. Across from the old man was a younger man, probably in his fourties, brown of hair and dressed in a suit, sitting in a large brown chair while scratching the ear of his Persian. The large, beige cat purred under his master's touch before opening his eyes to glare at the old man in a dark joy. Even if Celebi was not in the room physically, she could already feel evil intent.

"Giovanni!" The old man greeted and bowed. "It is an honor, and has been a long time, truly."

"Klaudius…." Giovanni answered slowly, his eyes narrowing. "Yes, it has been a long time. Why are you here?"

"I came with a business proposal," the old man smirked devilishly. "One that I believe will be mutually beneficial."

"We are partners for technological research, Klaudius," Giovanni acknowledged, taking a sip of a glass of whiskey from the in-table next to him, "but we want different things. As I recall, you are more interested in your archaeological digs than capturing rare and powerful pokémon. Yet… I do admit that your findings often have information on such creatures."

"And my findings have certainly stumbled upon something that you might find worth your time!" Klaudius laughed, a fiery gleam in his eye showing as he imagined the wealth such artifacts would bring him on the black market. "I need private work, and you are they only one I know who has the money and power to keep my research the deepest of secrets. Provide me with workers from Team Rocket to help me dig, and to keep the rest of the world away from my activities, and I will give you the location of a pokémon so powerful that it can even help you defeat and capture the great mythical pokémon. Supposedly this creature, whatever and wherever it might be, could possibly do battle with the creation pokémon."

"The creation pokémon?" Giovanni raised an eyebrow and scoffed. "Are you crazy, old man? Has spending so much time in the sun addled your wits? Why should I believe such a creature exists?"

"Because I have found several different ruins, each speaking of a legend about a monster that made all others, pokémon and humans, tremble in fear," Klaudius smiled. "Give me what I asked for, and I will make us both extremely powerful men and rich men. I can guarantee that no one else knows of the ruins I found, and there is no known record of the legends that I have documented. We are the first to know about this creature. Giovanni… help me, and the world is yours."

Giovanni leaned back in his chair, and scratched his chin before smiling at his partner. Klaudius may very well had been crazy, but it was clear that he had his uses. And Giovanni, even though his chief desire was to collect rare and powerful pokémon, he seemed like he was the man who could never pass up the opportunity to make himself even more rich and powerful.

"Very well, Klaudius," Giovanni nodded his consent. "You have a year to find whatever it is that you are looking for, and then you will report back to me."

Klaudius smirked and nodded back before walking over to Giovanni and shaking his hand to seal the deal.

…

Celebi's vision had forwarded to nearly a year later and she watched as a young man, perhaps in his late thirties or early fourties, traveling down the path of an island he recently landed on. The island was green and beautiful, bright flowers and trees all around him as a soft breeze played with his black hair. He wore a determined smile, his brown eyes on the road as he heard the sound of his pokéball open up and reveal a strange pokémon that even Celebi was surprised by: a dark purple creature that looked as if it were a cross between an Umbreon and an Espeon. It had all the golden rings of an Umbreon stripping its fur, and the golden ring on its forehead had the purple gem of an Espeon in the center of the ring.

"What did this man do to evolve an Eevee in such a way?" Celebi mused as she watched the man laugh and open his wide to the pokémon who leapt into him.

"Shadeon!" The man laughed as he hugged his friend tightly. "Couldn't spend another moment inside that ball, eh? I could use the company, though. Thank you."

Shadeon cried happily in response, nuzzling into the man. When they did start their journey again, Celebi discovered the man's name was Rob Ketchum. Rob would often talk to Shadeon about his wife, Delia, and his son, Ash, whom he heard had returned to Kanto to enter the Indigo League in about half a year. After two years, one year of Ash attending school in the Alola region, and the other year training with his pokémon, Rob could easily say that his only son was ready. Rob was proud of his son, but he lamented the fact that he was not the mentor and father to Ash he should have been for many years. Still, Ash had been on his own for many years, and Rob knew that he would need to return home to congratulate his son if Ash won the league.

Yet, even Rob knew that becoming a Pokémon Master required just a little more from his son. Ash had the love of his pokémon, his family, his friends, but even Ash had to learn one day that becoming a true Pokémon Master required that he had to put away the towel and focus on being a family with his pokémon. And, of course, being a family with one's pokémon meant that Ash would one day have to start a family of his own. Maybe Ash, if he won at the Indigo League, could open up a gym when a day came that he, too, would give the torch of the "Kanto Champion" to another. Or, so Rob reasoned to Shadeon.

Though, Rob in his musings to Shadeon, pondered the idea that Ash might not stop at the Kanto Championship, and enter the World Championship. With as many leagues as there were, there would be a great tournament that only composed of the trainers that were current or past champions who wished to try. That league, according to Rob, was only held every ten years, and Rob hoped that Ash would never enter that league. It was, of course, likely one of the more dangerous challenges of the world, and something only an extremely brave or foolish person would attempt.

As Shadeon listened to the thoughts of his master and friend, the two heard an explosion to the north. Shadeon looked up at Rob, who simply frowned as he gazed at the smoke coming up from the horizon. Rob knew that the world held many secrets, and the possibly the islands, both above and below the waves, held the most secrets. So many things were lost to the sea, but the sea had a strange way of preserving what it seemed to take all too often.

"Let's check it out," Rob said slowly. "If we need to, we will go back and get off the island."

"Shade…." Shadeon growled in determination and the pair continued forward, cutting through the jungle forest and going uphill. When they reached the top of the hill, overlooking a small valley, they saw the ruins of an ancient civilization and many workers digging through it. At the far end of the ruin, in a cliff, stood a large archway with a tower that out the top of the cliff, clearly the remains of an old citadel. Above the archway, etched into the cliff was what appeared to be a star of eighteen points, much like the medallion that Rob had, though his medallion had a different colored gem at the end of each point and a nineteenth point at the center of the medallion, which was empty.

"I have a bad feeling about this…." Rob frowned.

Shadeon gave Rob his best "you think" look, making Rob chuckle slightly.

"The medallion has been part of the family for generations," Rob said softly. "You already knew that. Why, I don't know, but I do know that tower may have answers."

Rob surveyed the valley of the ruins and his frown deepened.

"Team Rocket," Rob sighed. "Why is it always Team Rocket?!"

He shook his head and looked over to the crouching Shadeon who looked like he was ready to pounce on any Rocket member who came near them. Rob smiled.

"It's probably a good idea that we don't draw attention to ourselves, buddy," Rob warned, scratching the Pokémon's head in the process. "We should wait for the cover of darkness."

And so Celebi watched as the pair waited quietly, keeping a close eye on the movements of the Rockets. When the dark of the night did come, Rob made his move, placing a hand on Shadeon's head.

"Shadow Walk, Shadeon," Rob whispered and Shadeon responded by its eyes glowing a deep purple and darkness wrapped around the two, becoming as if they were invisible. Quietly, they moved, not wanting to raise alarm even if the Rocket grunts could not see them unless light fell directly upon them. And even in such a light, one would only see a faint shadow if he were looking hard enough. Deep they delved into the citadel after they went through the archway, seeing drawings and writings on the wall. Some of the workings on the wall were obviously faded, but others were still intact and mostly viewable.

However, Rob did not take the time to look at such things. Celebi could tell, however, that he would have liked to for the answers on the medallion, but he didn't. Up and up they went, in a seemingly endless winding stair, until they came to the top of the tower and were in a large chamber. This chamber, unlike the rest of the brown brick-stone of the rest of the citadel, was layered in gold and had many perfectly preserved images in it. One image of a circle of twelve Mew around what appeared to be a pokémon egg.

At the end of the chamber was a golden alter with an image of a Mew on top of it, its paws outstretched and holding a grey stone, the size and shape of the gems of Rob's medallion. In front of the alter, however, were two men, one of whom Rob recognized to be Giovanni, and the other Celebi knew to be Giovanni's partner, Klaudius.

"What information do you have for me, Klaudius?" Giovanni asked impatiently. "Where is this pokémon that you promised me?"

"Patience, my friend!" Klaudius laughed. "All will be made clear soon. I have studied the writings and images of this place, and I think the stories here shed some light on what we are looking for. Many times I have seen the name of a pokemon named 'Shin'en.' An interesting name, as it means something like 'The Abyss,' or 'The Devourer.' As for what it is, I do not know. Where it is, well, that is what is interesting."

"Well?" Giovanni growled.

"It seems the creature is locked away," Klaudius explained. "Yet, it also seems that it can be released."

"Where is it locked away and how can it be released?" Giovanni rolled his eyes. "Get to the point, old fool!"

"Blood and death." Klaudius smiled darkly. "The alter requires it. The creature is trapped in a kind of limbo, but the alter is the door to its release. In other ruins that I have seen, such alters were destroyed, but this one remains intact. There must be a sacrifice here."

"So I could kill you now and be done with it?"

"If only all things were so easy!" Klaudius laughed nervously. "No, unfortunately it is not my blood that you need. The blood needs to be… special…. But I am not sure what that even means."

As Giovanni looked at the alter quietly, his eyes flickered to the rock in the hands of the golden Mew. As he reached out to take the stone, it suddenly vanished. However, despite Giovanni's surprise, his questions were answered when Rob appeared before him just a moment later. The stone had caused Shadeon's Night Walk to fail.

"Shadeon, use Psyflame!" Rob cried and Shadeon responded by crying aloud and a purple fire erupted from him like the pulsing ripple of waves that are caused by an earthquake at sea. Yet, Rob called off the attack quickly and ordered Shadeon to run. And long they did run into the dark of night with Team Rocket on their trail. Though, by some better fortune, they were able to stay ahead of Team Rocket until they came to the sea.

Even as they stared out into the waters, Rob frowned looked back at Shadeon. He sighed and took off his belt that held his six pokéballs before taking off his medallion and fitting the stone in the missing spot. He then wrapped the medallion around Shadeon's neck and whispered softly. The necklace began to glow and changed Shadeon back into an Eevee and then immediately into a Vaporeon. After the change, Rob fastened his belt to Vaporeon. The pokémon frowned and cried out in concern and confusion.

"We both know that Team Rocket will follow us all the back to Pallet, buddy," Rob said calmly, though there was a sadness that betrayed his eyes. "You need to go. Go back to Pallet. Delia will know you by the medallion. Protect her and protect my son. That is your job now. Send her, send them both, my love… and my apologies."

Tears filled Vaporeon's eyes, and wanted nothing more than to stay at Rob's side and fight Team Rocket until the bitter end, but the pokémon's loyalty belonged to the Ketchum family. He knew his master would do anything to protect his family. With a sorrowful look and broken heart, Vaporeon fled into the sea while Celebi watched in despair.

For a moment, Rob watched the sea, hoping in vain to see the faintest outline of his old friend. However, despite the tears that threatened to form in his eyes, he turned away from the sea to run back into the jungle. Rob could not allow Team Rocket to follow Vaporeon, Celebi knew this.

Even with the looming darkness of night around Rob, however, it was uncertain how long the human could keep running before Team Rocket found him. There may have been caves for Rob to hide in, but the island was still small enough that Team Rocket could easily break off any chance of Rob finding a boat on the shore to flee in.

"A boat!" Rob groaned in hushed yell at himself. "Rob Ketchum, you fool!"

Exploring Rob's mind, Celebi saw clearly a red boat that Rob often used during his journeys through the islands of this part of the world. However, based on simple knowledge of the stars, Celebi knew that the boat that Rob thought about was on the northern shore and Rob was south.

"Perhaps the cover of darkness was not wise," Celebi lamented.

Celebi watched Rob in thought as he hid from Team Rocket throughout the night. Even in the day, the human managed to elude the villains for a few hours, but he was eventually found and captured. Not having any pokémon to defend himself with, Rob could only defend himself with tree branches laying around. Of course, such a strategy could not last long, but he held out as long as he could to give Vaporeon as great a head start as possible. After being captured and knocked unconscious, Rob woke to find himself in the golden room he had been in many hours before, hooked to the wall by strange, ball-like restraints.

"Ah, you are awake!" Klaudius exclaimed in dark mirth. "I have to admit, you gave us quite the chase, but no one is outside of the reach of Team Rocket. Who are you?"

Rob did not answer, but rather spat at the feet of the lead scientist. Klaudius, looking angrily at Rob, chuckled darkly before taking a remote with a single red button from his coat pocket. Pressing down on the button, Rob felt a surge of electricity flow through, causing him to scream in pain and agony.

"His name is Ketchum," Giovanni answered the scientist as he stepped out of the shadows. "He and I have met before."

Rob looked at Giovanni with anger, but the well-dressed Rocket boss merely smirked.

"I am pleased to see you, Rob," Giovanni said with a chuckle while reaching inside his suit jacket and taking out a cigar. Pausing to light it, the heavy smoke filled the air of the room. When he finished, his malicious eyes turned back to Rob's. "We have a score to settle, you and I. But first, where is the stone you stole from this room and why was it so important to you?"

Again Rob did not answer, and again Celebi watched in silent horror as Klaudius electrocuted the human again after Giovanni nodded to the mad scientist. She saw the light of bolts flash in Giovanni's eyes as he grinned around the cigar in his mouth. Mixed with the smell of tobacco was the scent of Rob's flesh slightly burnt from what he was subjected to.

"It matters not what was stolen, I think," Klaudius answered Giovanni after he stopped the electrocution. "I think this man is who we need."

"Explain," Giovanni demanded.

"I have had many workers try to pull that stone from the statue," Klaudius said, "but all of them failed. Perhaps the fact that this man was able to remove the stone means that he is the special blood we need to release the creature."

"Very well," Giovanni nodded and looked to Rob. "Make it so. It is a pity, Ketchum. I had hoped to destroy you and your pokémon, but I suppose simply killing you will give me some pleasure."

"Whatever you hope to do, Giovanni, it won't work!" Rob finally and painfully spoke through gritted teeth. "The world will never belong to you!"

"That's where you're wrong, Ketchum," Giovanni laughed. "I will have everything I want. That includes what you stole from me, and that medallion of yours!"

Even as Giovanni spoke, Klaudius took another remote that was used to detach the ball restraints from the wall. Slowly Rob hovered to the large, golden altar at the end of room. Steps ascended to it like each inch closer to the altar table was an inch closer to glory that Giovanni sought. When Rob stopped on top of the altar, Klaudius provided a long, curved dagger that had a black hilt with gold vines around the hilt. It was ornamented with gems that were akin to the gems on Rob's medallion, but his heart and mind told Celebi that the gems were not the gems of his medallion. Still, the dagger was clearly very old and had probably laid untouched like the rest of the room for a long time. How long, however, was an answer Celebi could not answer.

In despair, she watched as Giovanni ascended the stairs and approached Rob. A dark smirk drew on his face as the gripped the hilt of the dagger tighter. Stopping just mere inches from Rob, however, Giovanni could not help but stare into the eyes of the human he knew and called "enemy" for but a moment.

"Good bye, Ketchum," Giovanni said with a mocking scoff. "I will enjoy Delia even more knowing that I took your life."

And the moment after Giovanni's words left his lips, he plunged the dagger into Rob's heart. Rob let out a deafening scream of pain as Celebi could feel herself being pulled out of her vision and back to the present. However, even before she retreated into time, the last thing she saw was a black vortex appear behind and slightly above the altar. And in the vortex was a pair of glowing red eyes that seemed to see her before she vanished. When Celebi had finally come out of her vision, two questions had wandered through her mind: where was the medallion, and where was Ash Ketchum?

Hey, everyone! Thank you for reading. I may post slowly because of work and school, but I will try to update when I can. As always, please review! All comments, criticisms, advice, and everything else are greatly appreciated. Heck, I would enjoy reading theories on where the story could possibly go! Happy readings and be safe out there! Until next time!