Well, here is the next part of "Child of Destiny". This chapter is where the real story starts up, so let's get down to business. Also, from this point forward I will be putting in a small "last time" segment so everyone has an idea of where they are in the story.
Disclaimer: Just as I've said before, I don't own Pokemon.
Last time:
Referee: Garchomp is unable to battle! Lucario wins! The winner and new International Pokemon League Champion is… Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!
Part 5: The Big Reunion… And An Even Bigger Question!
Lucario knelt down on one knee, exhausted from its battle with Garchomp, as it looked over at its opponent who was now laying face-down on the floor about ten yards away, apparently unconscious. A few feet behind it, Lucario's trainer stood rooted to the spot, the words of the referee still ringing in his head. For a few moments, there was nothing but silence, then the stadium erupted with the screams of a thousand fans, all yelling their heads off. But they didn't care, because they had just witnessed history in the making: Ash Ketchum had just defeated Cynthia and won the title of International Pokemon League Champion.
Brock: He did it!
Chellsy: I knew he could do it!
Gary: Unbelievable! What a come-back!
Dawn: But how did Lucario get through Garchomp's Giga Impact.
May: Yeah! One moment it was pushing Lucario back, the next second it disappeared.
Professor Oak: It was Lucario's aura powers.
Tracey: What do you mean, Professor?
Professor Oak: Ash knew that the only way to win was find a way to breakthrough Garchomp's most powerful attack, so he had Lucario pull all of its aura energy into its hands, and once one of them made contact, it sent all of the power that hand into the Giga Impact, which canceled it out and left Garchomp vulnerable to an attack from Lucario's other hand.
Max: That's brilliant, and to think that Ash thought all of that up on the fly.
Misty: You know Ash. He's always been good at thinking on his feet.
Back on the field, Ash ran out to check on Lucario with Pikachu following right behind him. At the same time, Cynthia called Garchomp back to its Poke-ball and headed over toward Ash.
Ash: You okay, Lucario?
Lucario: I've been better, but I think I'll live.
Ash: You just take it easy, pal. You've earned it.
Cynthia: You certainly have, Lucario.
Ash: Cynthia!
Cynthia: Ash, all I can say is that there are many qualities that make up a great Pokemon Master, and you have every single one of them. Congratulations.
Cynthia reached into her coat and pulled out a gold and silver badge engraved with the seal of the Pokemon League, which she then handed to Ash.
Cynthia: This badge was made especially for the International Pokemon League Champion; also known as the Pokemon League Grand Master. And as of right now, that title belongs to you.
Ash: Thank you, Cynthia. This is such an honor.
Ash looked at the badge with a feeling of pure joy. He then held it up in the air for everyone to see.
Ash: All right! We did it!
Pikachu: Pi-Pikachu!
All around him, people were cheering for him, celebrating his great victory. However, high above the stands, on top of one of the stadiums many light towers, stood a single, silent figure. He was garbed in red colored armor with a matching cape and mask and was looking down at Ash through a pair of binoculars. The man shifted his focus to where Ash's friends were seated and zoomed in on Chellsy. He then pressed a button on the side of his mask and spoke into a built-in communicator.
??: HQ, this is Blaze. I believe I've found our target.
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About an hour later, in the nearby reception hall, people were lining up to congratulate Ash on his latest achievement. His Pokemon, who had all been tended to by the local Nurse Joy, were out and enjoying a well deserved meal. Ash was greeted by many familiar faces, including several gym leaders he had beaten over the years, as well as members of the Battle Frontier. He had just finished shaking hands with Lucian of the Sinnoh Elite Four when he saw his friends headed his way, all of them looking extremely happy to see him. The next thing he knew, his mom was hugging him so tightly he could barely breathe.
Mrs. Ketchum: Ash! Oh, I'm so happy to see you!
Ash: Hi, mom. It's nice to see you again too, but could you please let go of me?
Mrs. Ketchum: Oh, sorry honey.
Mrs. Ketchum released her hold on her son. As Ash began to regain his breath, the rest of the gang made their way forward to greet him.
Brock: Hey, Ash. Welcome back, pal.
Ash: Thanks, Brock. Its great see you guys again.
May: We're glad to see you, too. We were beginning to think you were never going to come back.
Ash: Sorry about that. I should have stayed in touch.
Dawn: It's alright. We're just happy you're safe.
As Ash stood amongst his friends and family, he was surprised to see how much each of them had changed sense he left. Brock seemed to have become a bit more muscular, and both May and Dawn had grown into bright, young ladies. Max, however, was the most obvious, for the little guy had become as tall as Ash had been when he first met him.
Ash: Boy, I haven't realized how long I've been gone until now. All of you have grown so much.
Brock: So have you, Ash. You've certainly gotten a lot taller, and I see you decided to stop wearing a hat.
Everyone laughed at that. As long as they had known him, Ash had always worn some sort of hat. It kind of felt weird to see him without it. As they all calmed down, Ash noticed that Chellsy had broken away from the group and had gone to take a look at his Pokemon.
Chellsy: Wow! These Pokemon are incredible. I can't believe you raised them all yourself.
Ash: What can I say? Thanks.
Brock: Boy, Ash. Your little girl sure loves Pokemon.
Ash: I'm assuming that Misty told you guys what she told me.
May: She sure did.
Ash: Let's sit down. I have a feeling we have a lot to talk about.
Ash directed them to a nearby table that was big enough for all of them. They all sat down as Ash began speaking again.
Ash: First off, does anyone have any questions they want to ask?
Gary: Just one, really; how the heck did you manage to keep such a low profile for so long?
Ash: I'm glad you asked, Gary. Let me show you guys something.
Ash reached into his backpack and pulled out what looked like a long, tan-colored traveling cloak.
Ash: After I left, I soon found out that those yahoo's from Team Rocket were following my every move. I tried to avoid them whenever possible, but after about a month, I couldn't take it anymore. So the second I was sure I had ditched them, I high-tailed it to the nearest town and picked up this thing. Pikachu decided to hide itself in my backpack while I was wearing it, so nobody had the slightest clue as to who I was.
Tracey: Clever.
Gray: You still could have let us know about it.
Ash: Again, I'm sorry, but I didn't want to risk them intercepting a phone call or letter and finding me again. Those guys are a pain to deal with.
Brock: Well, as it turns out, you didn't have to worry about that. We ran into them during the match, and they said that after you disappeared, they decided to quit Team Rocket.
Ash: You're kidding!
May: Nope. They've decided to go into the souvenir and concession business. They're actually pretty successful.
Ash: Well, how about that.
Max: So, you kept that thing on all the time?
Ash: Not all the time, just when I was out in public. I actually tried to spend as much time away from people as I could. In fact, the only time I ever went into a town was to gather supplies or to have my Pokemon treated at the local Pokemon Center. I usually stayed out the wilderness where there was no one around. It was actually a lot easier to train.
Dawn: But wasn't it a bit lonely out there all by yourself.
Ash: A little, but I had all of my Pokemon with me, so it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.
Ash placed the cloak back in his bag, then turned back to his friends.
Ash: Okay, enough about me for now. What have all of you been up while I was gone? You don't get a lot of news when you live outside of civilization for 7 years
Brock: Well, after you left, everyone sort of went their own way. I went back to Pewter City to help my parents take care of my siblings as well as continue my work as a Pokemon Breeder. I've recently been helping raise a new-born litter of Growlithe for the local police department.
Ash: Wow, Brock, that's great. I'm sure those Growlithe are in good hands with you. May, Dawn; what about you two? How are things going with the Pokemon Contests?
May: Funny you should ask. Both Dawn and I decided to compete in our home regions again this year, and both Grand Festivals were actually a few weeks ago.
Both May and Dawn took out a magazine from their bags and showed them to Ash. The magazine May held had a picture of her holding the Hoenn region Ribbon Cup on the cover while Dawn's had a photo of her with the Sinnoh region Ribbon Cup.
Ash: You both won?! That's incredible!
Brock: Wait a second. This the first time I've heard about this.
Dawn: Well, both of us got so excited about it that we forgot to tell everyone. Sorry.
Misty: Don't be. You two should be proud of yourselves.
Professor Oak: Yes, congratulations. I guess that's one more thing we can celebrate tonight.
Ash: By the way, Professor, how is your research coming along.
Professor Oak: It's been going great, especially sense you sent in all of those Pokemon my boy.
Tracey: Yeah, Ash. Thanks to all of that catching and evolving you did while you were away; we've been able to gather multitudes of information on many Pokemon we rarely have a chance to study.
Gary: And quite a few people have benefited from it.
Max: I'm just amazed how many you have, Ash. By the looks of things, you have almost every Pokemon there is.
Ash: Thanks Max. So what have you been doing? I'm sure you must be a trainer by now.
Max: I sure am, and I've been training hard at the gym with my dad. As soon as I feel ready, I'm going to compete in the Hoenn League just like you did.
Ash: That's great. I'm looking forward to seeing you in action.
As the group continued discussing their ventures over the past few years, Misty started to feel a little uneasy. Wanting to get away for a moment, she suddenly stood up.
May: Misty, where are you going?
Misty: It's getting a little stuffy in here. I'm going to get some fresh air.
Misty walked outside onto the balcony of the building and closed the sliding door behind her. She then strolled over to the railing and looked out at the surrounding landscape. So many thoughts were running through her head. She was very happy to have Ash back with them, and that he had managed to become the most powerful Pokemon trainer in the world. She was even happier that he was okay with the fact that he had had a child with her. But still, she just didn't feel right. She was trying to figure what was causing it when she heard the door behind her open. She turned around to see none other than Ash standing in the doorway.
Misty: Oh, hey Ash.
Ash: Hey, I thought I might find you out here. Mind if I join you?
Misty: No, of course not.
Ash shut the door behind him and moved to accompany her, failing to notice that Chellsy had followed him and was now peering through the glass from the other side. She was about to move to get a better view when she felt someone tap her on the shoulder. She quickly turned around to see that both Pikachu and Lucario had silently tailed her, the latter having gotten her attention.
Chellsy: Geez! Don't scare me like that.
Lucario: Sorry, but would you mind telling us what you're doing over here. I think those two want to be alone.
Chellsy: Hey, I'm not disturbing them. I just want to know what they're talking about. They are my parents.
Lucario: Well, if you want to listen in without getting caught, I think I can help you.
Chellsy: Really? How?
Lucario moved his hand up to where a small crystal was hanging around his neck, which he then held out for her to see.
Lucario: Just touch this crystal, and you'll have your answer.
Chellsy: Okay, here goes nothing.
Chellsy slowly laid one finger on the crystal as Lucario sent a small amount of aura into it. A second later, Chellsy could hear her parent's voices as thou they were standing right next to them. She and the two Pokemon then took up position at the edge of the window just in time to see Misty point at the crystal Ash had around his neck.
Misty: Say, Ash, what's with that crystal you have there. I noticed that both you and Lucario have one.
Ash: Oh, this thing. Well, while I was traveling, I somehow found myself back at Cameron Palace.
Misty: Near the Tree of Beginning where Mew lives?
Ash: That's the place. I stayed there awhile because I found it was a good place to train Lucario to use its aura effectively. That's when we found out that the crystals around the area could be used for telepathic communication, so we each chipped of a piece of one, and now we can talk to each other from just about anywhere. It's a good way to gain information about the surrounding area.
Misty: Sounds like Lucario has had a lot of attention from you.
Ash: It was actually pretty amazing when he first hatched. He was able to use both use telepathy and harness his aura when he was just a Riolu.
Misty: Wow! That is amazing.
Ash: Yeah, but that also caused a bit of a problem. One day while we were training, we got attacked by a rampaging Agron.
Misty: Oh dear!
Ash: You said it. I don't what got into that thing, but it sure was mad for some reason. Anyway, Riolu was little overconfident in its own skills and tried to stop Agron by itself. At first, it looked like Riolu had the upper hand, but then Agron managed to beat it back and inflict serious damage. I was forced to step in at that point. It took both Charizard and Sceptile working together to bring the crazy beast down. After that, I rushed Riolu to the nearest Pokemon Center. The little guy recovered from the physical wounds quickly, but that battle left its confidence in shambles. From that day on, Riolu had a hard time believing in its own strength. It did get better once it evolved into Lucario, but after what happened during the match today, I can see it still has a long way to go.
Back inside, Chellsy turned to look at Lucario, who looked slightly ashamed of himself. She had been unable to understand why Lucario had wanted to give up during the match, but after hearing what he had gone through before he evolved, who could blame him.
Chellsy: Don't look so down, Lucario.
Lucario: How can I? I thought the worst would be over once I evolved, but now I see I was wrong. I still choked during the battle.
Chellsy: Hey! In the end, you pulled yourself together and won, and that's all that matters.
Lucario smiled and gave her a thankful nod before they turned their attention back to Ash and Misty.
Misty: Wow, Ash. You've certainly had a lot on your plate the last few years.
Ash: I sure did. Sometimes, I got so overwhelmed that I wanted to give up head home. But when that happened, all I had to do was think about you and everyone else, and that gave me the strength that I needed to keep going.
Misty: Really?
Ash: Of course. There wasn't a day I wasn't thinking about you guys. You all meant the world to me, especially you, Misty.
Misty: Oh, Ash.
The two of them looked deep into each others eyes. Most people would consider this a precious moment, but Chellsy had never been a real fan of this kind of stuff. She was about to leave when Lucario suddenly stuck its arm out and stopped her.
Chellsy: Hey! What gives?
Lucario: Just wait a minute. I think you might want to see this.
Chellsy sighed and turned back to the window just as her dad began speaking again.
Ash: Misty, there's something really important I want to ask you, and it's the scariest thing I have ever done.
Misty: Go on. What is it?
Ash: Okay. Here it goes.
What happened next shocked both Misty and Chellsy. Ash reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, black box. He then got down on one knee and opened it to reveal a gold ring with a small diamond set in the middle.
Ash: Misty, will you marry me?
TO BE CONTINUDED…