Hey everybody, I'm here with another update for 'Path of the Master'. Thanks again for the continued support. Stay for the end author's note and answers to your statements. Read and review if you are feeling generous. Let's get to it!
Last Time: Ash took Froakie to Professor Sycamore's lab and ended up bumping into his last trainer who decided to give Froakie up. While Froakie was recovering, Sycamore introduced Ash to the concept of Mega Evolution and the mystery behind it. Unfortunately Team Rocket heard about it as well and tried to force Garchomp to evolve, but ended up sending him on a wild rampage throughout Lumiose City. Can Ash handle the situation or is he in over his head?
Key:
Bold- PA system/Message Bulletins
Bold Italic- Radio/TV/Pokedex descriptions
Italics-Thoughts/Letters/Flashbacks
Ash, Pikachu and Froakie were running down alley after alley in hot pursuit of Garchomp who was leaping from rooftop to rooftop. They spotted Garchomp leap across another building, all the while charging up another Hyper Beam. Garchomp fired the Hyper Beam and a loud explosion came from a few blocks away. The three of them could see smoke billowing high into the afternoon sky.
"We have to get to the rooftops. We'll be able to get a better picture from there," Ash said to Pikachu and Froakie.
Froakie and Pikachu nodded at Ash's decision and followed him to the end of the alley where there was a fire escape. Ash jumped up and started climbing the metal ladder to the staircase. Once Froakie and Pikachu got up the ladder, they made their way up the stairs and to the roof. They reached the top of the fire escape after their brisk pace and stepped onto the roof. They looked around the city and their eyes went wide with shock. All around the city there were numerous clouds of smoke rising from buildings and a lot of them had been damaged severely. Police and fire sirens filled the city, drowning out all sounds of the afternoon commute.
"Damn-it," Ash muttered as he looked around for Garchomp.
His eyes caught movement to the north and he turned just in time to see Garchomp vanish into a new cloud of smoke that was created by another Hyper Beam. His fists clenched as he tried to determine where Garchomp was heading next and as he looked further in the distance, he made out the Prism Tower. Garchomp would be heading straight for a tourist attraction sight that would easily be crowded with people that would be in harm's way.
"This is not good," Ash said as he ran over to the edge of the roof.
He ran as hard as he could and jumped. He dropped down to the next roof after successfully clearing the gap and rolled across it. At the rate he was moving, Garchomp would reach the Prism Tower way before he would and it would undoubtedly lead to someone getting hurt. Ash's ears perked up as he heard a loudspeaker kick to life and a voice reverberated around the city.
"Attention citizens of Lumiose City, be on the lookout for a rampaging Garchomp! Civil defense advises everyone to clear the streets and seek shelter immediately until the threat has been handled!" A woman's voice informed.
A whooshing noise met Ash's ears as he glanced back to see a helicopter flying after Garchomp. He could see that the helicopter was for a news station that was no doubt trying to film the event as it unfolded.
"Those idiots are going to get killed if they continue chasing Garchomp," Ash said as his hands traced the Poké Ball on his belt.
He did not plan on using the second Pokémon he brought unless it was for a last resort. Now he had no choice but to use him. He wound his arm back and tossed the ball into the air and it opened with a snap. A large form began to take shape and the glow vanished to reveal one of Ash's oldest Pokémon. The Pokémon gave a loud roar after being freed from the confines of the ball and his large wings opened wide, kicking some dust off the ground.
"Charizard, I need your help. Think you can give me a hand?" Ash asked.
Charizard's trademark smirk spread across his face and he gave a nod. He lowered himself down to the roof to allow Ash, Pikachu and Froakie to climb on. The three of them hopped on top of Charizard and he immediately took to the air after they got on. Ash pointed in the direction of the Prism Tower where Garchomp and the helicopter were heading.
"Charizard, get us there as fast as you can!" Ash ordered.
Charizard gave a growl of acknowledgment and shot forward like a bullet. Ash's eyes stung as they flew through the thick clouds of smoke. He glanced down and could see people running all over the streets to seek shelter and towards the tower to see the event up front. Police cruisers soared down the road as sirens wailed loudly as they went to the Prism Tower. With the police now going to the tower to secure the area and get people to safety Ash relaxed a little, but he knew that there was still danger with Garchomp as well as the helicopter following him.
"Charizard, we need to intercept that helicopter, let's go!" Ash barked.
Charizard soared through another cloud of smoke and was quickly closing the gap between them and the helicopter. He flapped his wings again and managed to overtake the helicopter and turned around to block its path. The helicopter slowed down enough to hover in front of Ash and Charizard. Ash knew that verbal warning would not work with the rotors drowning out his voice so he did the next best thing. He tried direct the helicopter to back off and land. He could see the pilot trying to motion him to move out of the way.
"You need to back off! It's too dangerous!" Ash yelled as he continued pointing away with his hand.
The pilot gave up with trying to reason with Ash and tried to go around him, but Charizard quickly moved in front of it. A news reporter leaned out of the door and waved for Ash to move. Ash glared at the reporter and once again pointed away from the tower and tried yelling again.
"I can't let you go through, it's too dangerous!" Ash hollered.
"Move, kid!" The female reporter said through the helicopter's megaphone.
Ash shook his head and crossed his arms as he continued his stare down with the reporter. His eyes narrowed when he saw the reporter say something to the pilot who looked a little surprised with what she said.
"Lady, if you're about to do what I think you are…" Ash thought with a glare.
Sure enough, the helicopter charged straight forward at Charizard and it showed no signs of stopping. Not wanting to risk injury to any of his friends, Ash had Charizard dive low to avoid the chopper. The helicopter soared over him and sped to the tower after Garchomp. Ash bared his teeth in anger at the fleeing chopper and clenched his fists.
"You stupid woman," Ash muttered as he had Charizard speed after the chopper again.
In the distance he could see that Garchomp was now standing on one of the outer landings of the tower. He was now desperate to intercept the chopper or try to stop Garchomp's rampage before someone got hurt. As Charizard got closer to the tower, Ash's fear became a reality. He watched in horror as Garchomp charged up another Hyper Beam and fired it straight at the helicopter. The helicopter managed to swerve out of the way to avoid a direct hit, but the Hyper Beam smashed into the tail rotor of the chapter. The helicopter started to spin out of control as smoke poured out from the tail. Screams filled the night as the people at the base of the tower saw the terrifying event unfold.
"Oh no," Ash said under his breath as he watched the helicopter spin out of control.
The helicopter continued spiraling out of control until it vanished in the square. A loud crash met Ash's ears and he could see smoke rising in the square from the crash site. He had Charizard speed into the square and looked down at the helicopter to see that it was burning.
"Charizard, take me down there!" Ash ordered.
Charizard dove to the ground and landed smoothly beside the helicopter. Ash hurried over to the downed aircraft and reached the cockpit to see that the news crew and the pilot were stuck inside. He beckoned for Froakie to hurry over to him to help put out the fire that was spreading towards the fuel tank.
"Froakie, put out that fire while I get them out!" Ash said as he tried tugging on the door.
Froakie nodded and hopped over to the helicopter tail to put out the blaze. While Froakie was doing whatever he could to stop the fire, Pikachu hurried over to Ash to help him with the door. Ash gave a frustrated growl when the door failed to open and it did not help that the crew was starting to panic.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the window!" Ash said as he pointed to the windshield.
Pikachu jumped up and covered his tail with iron and gave a cry as he swung. His tail smashed into the windshield and managed to crack it a little. Pikachu smashed his tail against the window again and the crack became more defined.
"Together," Ash said as he climbed on the nose of the chopper.
Pikachu waited for Ash to get in a more stable position and covered his tail in iron again. He turned to Ash and received a nod.
"On three, buddy," Ash said. "One…two…three!"
Pikachu swung his tail and Ash drove his foot forward. The glass shattered as the windshield gave way, allowing a path of escape for the crew. Ash offered his hand to each member of the team and pulled them out one by one. After he pulled out the female that ignored his warning, he and Pikachu jumped off and ushered them to safety. Froakie hopped over seconds later after he successfully doused the fire that would have destroyed the helicopter.
"Thank you, kid," the pilot said as he held out a hand.
"Don't worry about it," Ash replied as he shook it.
"You're a hero," the camera man said.
"No I'm not," Ash replied as he spared a glance at him. "Let this be a lesson to all of you. When someone gives you a warning, you should heed it."
The crew shifted in shame as Ash reprimanded them for their stupidity. He walked them over to the police line to get keep them from doing anything else. As they got to the police line, the officers immediately pulled them into the crowd to take them to the paramedics.
"Nice work there, kid," an officer said.
"Don't mention it," Ash replied as he waved it aside. "Now, I need you to make sure no one else tries to go past this area."
"What are you doing?"
"I'm going to stop Garchomp."
"Kid, as much as I admire your determination, it's too dangerous. I can't allow you to do this."
"Listen, I know how to stop her, but I can only do it if you let me help. Just give me some time and I can take care of it."
The officer crossed his arms and looked up at the tower where Garchomp was roaring loudly in pain. He then looked back at Ash.
"How much time do you need?" The officer asked.
"As much as you can give me," Ash answered.
"Okay, but make it fast. I'm not sure how long I can keep the rest of the police back before they take action."
"Thank you."
Ash, Pikachu and Froakie hustled back over to Charizard and climbed on. Charizard took to the air and started to fly around the tower to allow Ash time to come up with his plan. He descended to the landing where Garchomp was and allowed Ash, Pikachu and Froakie to jump off.
"Charizard, keep circling the tower and distract Garchomp to allow us to get close," Ash said as he gave him a pat on the head.
Charizard nodded and sped off again and began to make another circuit of the tower. As Charizard prepared to distract Garchomp, Ash led Pikachu and Froakie across the landing carefully to avoid surprising Garchomp. The three of them crept closer to the enraged Pokémon and were ready to avoid any attack that may come at them. Garchomp suddenly turned around and saw them and began to generate another Hyper Beam.
"Watch out!" Ash shouted as he pulled Froakie and Pikachu to the wall just in time.
The Hyper Beam hit the spot where they had stood moments ago and exploded. A large chunk of the landing fell from the tower and to the ground with a thunderous crash. Ash cautiously stuck his head out and could see Garchomp still looking at them and growling. Fighting through his ringing ears, Ash pushed off of the wall and held up a hand as he slowly moved to Garchomp to show he did not mean any harm. Garchomp growled at Ash as he continued to close the distance between them.
"It's okay, Garchomp," Ash said. "I'm here to help, but I need you to calm down."
Garchomp's mouth opened wide and another Hyper Beam started to form. Ash was ready to dodge the attack, but caught a break when Charizard appeared behind Garchomp and swiped at him. Garchomp spun around and swung his claw at Charizard who easily dodged it and flew up the tower. The distraction allowed Ash time to hurry forward to try and get the collar off, but Garchomp suddenly jumped high and latched on to the side of the tower and continued her ascension to the top. Ash cursed under his breath and tried to look for an alternate route to get to the top. His eyes fell on an iron ladder that was built into the tower's side. He hurried over to the tower and had Pikachu and Froakie climb onto his shoulders.
Ash started to climb as fast as he could and ignored the thought of slipping and falling to the ground. Garchomp's safety was all that mattered to him at the moment and that kept him from thinking about the terrible what if scenario. His arms felt like jelly by the time he reached the top of the spire and his legs shook a little as he stood on the landing. Pikachu and Froakie jumped from his shoulders and stood by his side.
"Garchomp, I'm here to help, just hang on!" Ash said as he started to move forward again.
Garchomp turned to Ash and gave another pained growl as the collar continued to hurt him. He roared loudly and opened his mouth as another Hyper Beam started to form. Ash, Pikachu and Froakie dove to the wall and avoided the attack as it exploded behind them. Pikachu got to his feet and growled as sparks started to emit from his red cheeks.
"No, Pikachu, don't attack!" Ash said as he looked down at him.
Pikachu looked up at Ash as if he were crazy. While he did not want to hurt Garchomp, there was no way he was going to let himself, Ash or Froakie to get hurt just because they did not want to hurt Garchomp.
"I appreciate your concern for our safety, buddy, but even if you were to attack Garchomp with an electric attack it wouldn't work," Ash said with a sad smile.
Pikachu, albeit reluctant at Ash's command, stopped his attack. Ash thanked Pikachu and turned back to Garchomp who was still growling menacingly at them. He held up his hand again as he slowly moved to Garchomp.
"I know it hurts, Garchomp," Ash said as he took another step. "We're here to help you. You're our friend. We can only help you if you calm down, so what do you say?"
Garchomp's growls died down for a second and Ash moved forward again, but stopped when Garchomp gave another loud cry of pain as she clutched at her neck. Garchomp was in so much pain that he did not even realize he was starting to stumble dangerously close to the edge of the tower. If he took one more step, he would fall to her demise.
"Garchomp, no!" Ash said as he got ready to run forward.
Froakie jumped high and his hands grabbed the bubbles around his neck and threw them at Garchomp's feet. The bubbles halted Garchomp in her tracks and he started to squirm in pain.
"Nice job, Froakie! Just leave the rest to me!" Ash said as he ran at Garchomp.
Ash jumped on Garchomp and wrapped his arms around her neck and started to pull on the collar. As he continued to tug at the collar, he found it to be futile. It was sealed on tight and there was no way he could pull it off by himself. He shifted his head just in time to avoid another Hyper Beam that shot into the sky.
"Pikachu, use Iron Tail on the collar, now!" Ash barked.
Pikachu nodded and charged at Garchomp and jumped. His tail was covered in the strong iron and he swung as hard as he could at Garchomp's neck. There was a loud clang as his tail hit the collar and shattered it. Garchomp stopped flailing and sunk to her knees as the pain faded and exhaustion kicked in. Ash smiled and gently rubbed Garchomp's head.
"There you go, Garchomp. You'll be okay now," Ash said.
Garchomp merely nodded in agreement. Once they realized that Garchomp had calmed down, Pikachu and Froakie hurried over to them. However, before Pikachu got within three feet, part of the landing that was damaged from one of Garchomp's Hyper Beams collapsed out from under him. Pikachu began to plummet to the ground and Ash's mind abandoned all thought. Without hesitation, he jumped headfirst from the tower to intercept Pikachu. He brought his fingers to his mouth and gave a sharp whistle just before he caught Pikachu. Ash flipped them so he would land first and waited patiently. He could hear the cries of the populace below, but they ceased at what happened next. Charizard zoomed in and caught Ash on his back.
"Nice save there, Charizard," Ash praised with a grin. "You okay, Pikachu?"
Pikachu answered with a nod. Charizard landed smoothly to allow Ash and Pikachu to hop off. The two partners sighed in relief as they stood on solid ground again. Out of the corner of his eye, Ash could see Sycamore hurrying over to check on them.
"Are you okay?" Sycamore asked.
"Yeah, we're all okay. Garchomp's back to normal too," Ash replied.
"That was quite the scare you gave with that jump."
"Sorry about that. My body acted on its own."
"Well, what matters is that you are still in one piece."
"Can't argue with that."
Sycamore chuckled and turned his attention to Charizard. He cupped his chin in wonder as he observed him. He could tell that the bond between Ash and Charizard was strong and it both fascinated and impressed him.
"Ash, do you remember out conversation about Mega Evolution?" Sycamore asked.
"Yeah, why?" Ash replied.
"I believe you and Charizard might be able to help me with my research."
"Really?"
"Yes. After witnessing the bond you have with Charizard, I think you are the most suitable person that can help me with this. Once we get Garchomp and Froakie, we can go back to my lab and discuss this further."
"Sounds good."
Sycamore turned around and hurried back over to the police to tell them about Garchomp. Once Sycamore left, Ash turned to Pikachu and let out a light chuckle.
"I hope Mom wasn't watching that. She'd probably fly over here and kill me," Ash said with a laugh.
Pikachu chuckled and nodded in agreement. He then pointed at a horde of reporters coming over to them. They quickly got in their personal space and shoved microphones in front of him. Questions were being thrown at Ash like rapid fire and he felt a little overwhelmed with the sudden attention.
"This is going to be a long night," Ash thought as he kept answering the questions he was asked.
Serena, Grace and Shauna were all stunned as they saw what transpired in Lumiose City on the TV. They had been glued to the screen for the past hour, unable to break away. They had seen the Garchomp firing the random Hyper Beams around the city and were shocked when they saw the chopper that was filming the event spin out of control after being hit by an attack. It got even more interesting when they saw the crew being saved by a random trainer and his Pikachu. Although they did not a good look at the trainer's face, they were intrigued with his selfless act to save the news team as well as Garchomp. As the boy climbed the tower, another chopper had taken the place of the first and filmed the event from a safe distance.
Serena continued watching the boy as she watched him bravely risk his life to save Garchomp. She ended up screaming in surprise when she saw him jump off the tower after his Pikachu and was relieved when she saw the trainer's Charizard save him from the fall.
"That was intense," Grace said as she sipped her tea again.
"No kidding," Shauna agreed as she hugged her knees. "That boy must really love Pokémon if he did all of that."
They continued watching the TV and listened as the screen cut to a reporter.
"For those who have been watching the chaos taking place here in Lumiose City, you will be happy to know that it has finally ended. There is severe damage in the area, but thankfully, no one has been hurt in this whole ordeal," the reporter informed. "With me now is the young man responsible for saving my crew from our burning helicopter as well as Garchomp."
The camera kept cutting in and out from the damage it took, preventing Grace, Serena and Shauna from seeing a clear view of the boy's face. While they were having difficulty trying to see the boy, they heard him speaking.
"I am not a hero, really," the boy replied. "I just did what needed to be done."
"No need to be modest, honey! You are a hero!" The reporter replied.
"Seriously, it isn't a big deal."
"Regardless of what you say, you are a hero in my eyes and a cute one at that!"
"Uh, thanks, I guess?"
"So, can I get your name?"
"My name is…"
The camera finally returned to normal to reveal the boy's face, but the sound cut out. Grace and Shauna gave a groan as they did not get the boy's name, but at least they could now see his face. The boy had brown eyes, black hair and a mark on each cheek.
"That reporter is right, he is cute," Shauna said with a light blush. "What do you think, Serena?"
Serena didn't answer her and Shauna turned to her blonde friend. She saw that Serena was now standing up and looking at the screen in disbelief. The look alone told Shauna that Serena recognized the boy on TV from somewhere.
"Serena, are you okay?" Shauna asked.
Serena said nothing as her mouth was open with surprise. When the camera came back to show the boy's face, she was greeted with a surprise. The boy in front of her looked very familiar and she could not help but wonder if the boy was the one she was thinking about. She was mentally cursing the camera's sound for cutting out as it did not catch his name so it could not confirm her thoughts.
"That boy," Serena thought as she continued staring at the TV. "It can't be him, can it?"
"Earth to Serena! Hello!" Shauna said into Serena's ear.
Serena didn't respond as she continued looking at the frozen shot of the boy.
That's the chapter everybody! I hope you enjoyed it and the little spin I put on it and Charizard is back. I'll update again when I can, so until then, I leave you with the statements from reviewers. Till next time. -Captain
Statements:
ultimateCCC: That Garchomp is a girl.
My answer: Ah, well, sorry. I fixed it this chapter. I'll be sure to check Bulbapedia for further details next time, but honestly, IDGAF. Not really a big deal if you ask me. Thanks for pointing that out though.