A/N: Hey guys, yet another chapter done. some might say a bit behind schedule, but I decided to say 'Fuck the schedule,' and throw it out the window. But in all seriousness, I gave it to Wash for target practice.
DK: That keeps me safe for a moment.
yeah, not really. Anyway, review time.
Valheru1988: Thanks for the compliment and for telling me my stories title gave you a chuckle. In actuality, The title has a meaning other than the story isn't finished.
Partner 555: Yep, there will be an interesting twist at the meeting. On the note of Ash's friends not recognizing him, would you be able to recognize a childhood friend if you hadn't seen them in five years and they were standing in front of you in disguise?
Anyway, rambling over, on to the next round.
*flips though law book*
Ah, here we are.
Disclaimer: I do not, nor will I ever own Pokemon. simple as that.
"So, what now?" That was what Brock uttered to break the deafening silence.
"I don't know, Brock," Misty said. "He seemed pretty angry just now."
"No Kidding?" Max asked sarcastically. "What tipped you off? The way he snapped at us, or is use of colorful language?" Max's little attitude didn't sit well with Misty, who was at the moment fuming and reaching for her mallet from Arceus knows where. (A/N: Seriously, where does she keep it?) The only thing that kept her from beating Max to a pulp was Brock's firm restraint and May beating her to the punch.
"Max!" May yelled. "There's no need for the attitude." Amazingly, Max was still conscious to respond to his lecture after a swift punch to the top of the head.
"Sorry Sis." Max replied.
"Geez, what did you do this time Max?" Asked a voice from down the hall. The whole group turned to see a young man, standing next to a Lucario. This man looked to be in his mid-twenties, his height stopping at about 5' 11" He had black hair, flat and reaching down to his shoulders. His attire consisted of a set of corrective eye-glasses, a black and gray reversible hooded zip-up sweater over a black Avenged Sevenfold band shirt, black Old Navy boot-cut jeans and a pair of black trainers.
"DK!" May yelled as she ran toward the man. When she was a good yard away, she leaped towards the man, now known as DK. He had no time to react and was slammed down to the floor, with May embracing him in a hug. "I've missed you."
"I missed you too, May," DK said. "But was that really necessary?" Her response was a peck on the lips. A smile formed on DK's face "I guess so."
"Could you two please save that for the bedroom?" Max asked. "I don't need to be traumatized today, or any other day for that matter." May looked at him with her 'shut up, Max' look and pulled DK into a full-on make-out session.
"Alright, break it up you two," Brock said. He pulled to the adults off the ground and stood them upright. He then turned to DK and pulled him into a hug that would put an Ursaring (or as DK puts it, an American Black Bear,) to shame. "How have you been Dan?" When Brock didn't receive a reply, he looked to see DK starting to turn blue. Acting quickly, he released DK, allowing him to breath and his skin color returning to its normal shade.
"Pretty... good... Brock," DK said in between breaths. After a second of regaining control of his breathing he continued talking. "And how many times have I said that you can call me DK? Everyone else does." Brock shook his head.
"No can do Dan," Brock said. "I call you by your given name so that you don't forget who you are." Brock then curved his mouth into a devious smile. "Arceus knows how crazy you are."
"Hey!" DK exclaimed. "I'm not crazy, Okay? I'm totally and completely sane."
"Claiming that you're from an alternate universe thew out 'sane' a long time ago." Misty said. DK sighed in defeat.
"Alright, I know when I'm beaten," DK said. "So is there a reason everyone is in Vermillion? I mean May, Max and Dawn I understand, but what about you Brock? Don't you have a schedule to adhere to to at the center in Pewter? And Misty, please tell me your gym isn't being watched by your very beautiful, but slightly idiotic sisters again. Remember what happened the last time you let that happen." Long story short, the gym was covered in a layer of ice so thick, it took five jackhammers and two hours to even scratch the surface. The two adults looked in different directions until Misty decided to poke him back.
"What about you?" Misty retorted. "Where the hell have you been for the last six months? By the looks of it, you were at a music festival. Either that or you've been living in a cave." DK just smirked.
"The cave one is the closest answer," he said. Everyone looked at him like they usually did: confused looks. "I'll tell ya about. But I need something to eat. Who's up for the deli next door?"
Ash and Mac had just stepped out of Vermillion City and onto Route 6. Everything was not okay at all. Ash was still fuming from the phone call, but Mac didn't know why. Sure, he could have poked at Ash's brain again, but Mac had a feeling that Ash would have something far worse than a brick wall waiting for him if he tried it. There were only a handful of times Mac had seen Ash this tense, but this one had almost triggered an aura event inside the Pokemon Center.
"So what's got you all worked up?" Mac asked. Ash turned to the Pokemon in disguise. Mac couldn't see it, but Ash was giving him a death glare.
"We've gotta stay in Kanto," Ash said. "On orders from Wes and Rui." Mac was confused by that statement.
"What does Rui have to do with it?" Mac asked. Ash pulled out his phone and switched to the PDA. He opened his in-box and showed the email to Mac.
"Rui sent it on Wes' behalf." Ash said.
Flashback
"What's up, Ash?" Rui said on the other end of the line.
"Where the hell is Wes?" Ash asked.
"He's taking a nap." Rui replied.
"Don't give me that bullshit, Rui!" Ash yelled. "I just got an email from him five minutes ago." From his end, Ash could hear Rui start to laugh. "What the hell is so fucking funny?!"
"How long have you had your PDA shut off?" Rui asked. Ash was silent for a moment as he thought about it.
"I haven't checked it in over a month." Ash replied.
"Of course you haven't." Rui said, "The truth is, I sent that email on Wes' behalf yesterday. Although, I should have figured you didn't read it since we didn't receive a call until today."
"Do you mind explaining why I need to stay in Kanto?" Ash asked. "I really hoping to return to Orre today."
"The Orre League needs you to attend a meeting." Rui said.
"What meeting?" Ash asked.
"The WPL is Inaugurating the Orre League into their ranks," Rui said. "That and they have something to say that requires our league's attention."
"And why isn't Wes going to this meeting himself?" Ash asked. "You know I hate politics."
"He's in a coma." Rui said. Ash was getting skeptical.
"You're joking, right?" Ash asked. Rui said nothing, which meant she wasn't joking. "What the hell happened?"
"He was training his Pokemon, when his Tyranitar went on a rampage," Rui started. "My guess is he learned Outrage and lost control of himself. Wes took it upon himself to calm him down, but ended up in a full body cast and slipped into a coma due to a massive concussion." Ash visibly cringed at the results.
"Okay, so why can't Wash, Diana or Mason cover it?" Ash said
"Ash, you know that you, Wash, Diana and Mason are the top four coliseum masters," Rui said. "In the main land leagues, you guys are the equivalent of the elite four. But you, Ash are the top because of you status of master of Realgam Coliseum. As per league protocol, you are the one that takes over the champion's international duties if he is incapacitated." Ash snorted.
"I knew there was a catch to being in the top four," Ash said. "Where and when is the meeting?"
"Tomorrow at 3 at the Indigo Plateau." Rui said. "If you do this, not only will it put Orre on the map, we'll be labeled as the toughest league in the world."
"Really?" Ash asked. "'Cause I thought we were already the second part." Rui chuckled a little.
"Funny Ash," Rui said. "But seriously, we need you at this meeting. Don't go boozing around."
"Mac's got that covered," Ash joked. Rui stayed silent, waiting for a positive response. Ash sighed. "Fine, I'll stay in Kanto for this 'meeting'." Ash said in surrender.
"Thank you Ash," Rui said. "You don't know how much this means to me and Wes."
"Yeah, yeah," Ash replied. "Just make sure he doesn't work himself into the ground again."
Flashback ends
"So, where to?" Mac asked.
"Pallet Town," Ash replied. "I need to pay someone a visit... actually I owe two people a visit."
"Hey! Are you a trainer?" a voice asked. Ash and Mac turned to the direction the voice came from. A good ten feet away from then was a man around the same age as Ash. He wore a purple polo shirt with matching skinny jeans, black dress shoes, a trainer's belt with three Poke-Balls attached and a black trench coat. His face was pale, like he hadn't been out of the house in a good few years, which complimented his beady black eyes. He had his dark green hair slicked back, but it looked so sloppily done, it looked like bed head.
"What's it to ya?" Ash replied. The man's mouth curled into an arrogant grin.
"Twenty bucks says I can beat you in a one-on-one match," the man said. Ash turned to Mac, hoping he knew what to do. Mac shrugged, making Ash face-fault and turn back to the arrogant man.
"Deal," Ash said. He slowly removed his backpack and set it on the ground.
"Who's that Pokemon, Assbag?" the man said before laughing like a mad man. Ash ignored him and unzipped the main pocket.
"Pikachu, to the ring!" Ash called. Not a second after his command, a yellow blur jumped out of the bag and stood ready for battle.
"you expect to beat me with a cat's play thing?" the man asked. Ash said nothing, his face unreadable due to his sunglasses and bandana. "Very well. Scrafty, give them a laugh." the man threw a Poke-Ball and released the bipedal orange Pokemon known as Scafty.
"Pikachu, start things off with Quick attack." Ash said. Pikachu didn't reply, only shooting off like a bullet.
"Scrafty, knock him off balance with Low Sweep." The man said. Scrafty complied and swept his leg as Pikachu was crossing him. The mouse Pokemon lost his balance, was on the verge of face-planting into the ground.
"Pikachu, evasive maneuver Delta!" Ash called. Pikachu shifted his body and rolled rather than face planting. When he felt his paws touch ground, he launched himself into the air, "Fire electro ball." Pikachu nodded and pooled his electrical reserve into his tail, which formed into a sphere.
"Pika, pika... Chu-pi!" the mouse Pokemon launched the ball at nearly point-blank range, smashing into Scrafty's face. The fighting/dark type Pokemon had the wind knocked out of him, but was not down for the count.
"Neat trick," The man said. "But we've got a trick too. Scrafty, focus blast." Scrafty didn't reply, but in his hands, a ball of energy formed, growing bigger by the second. When it was the size a basketball, Scrafty launched the blast straight at Pikachu.
"Pikachu, grand slam iron tail." Ash called. Pikachu charged it's tail until it gleamed silver and waited. When the focus blast was about two feet away, Pikachu swatted it back to it's sender.
"Scrafty, use protect." The man commanded. Scrafty stood and braced himself and took the hit. An explosion occurred upon impact, covering the Pokemon in smoke. When the smoke cleared, Scrafty was seen with a green barrier around him. "That was a close one. Scrafty, use hi jump kick." Scrafty took off running towards Pikachu. He then jumped into the air and prepared to kick.
"Pikachu, use thunderstorm." Ash ordered. Pikachu built up its electrical energy to critical mass.
"Pikachu!" the mouse yelled. All at once, Pikachu released the energy into the sky, causing the nearby clouds to accumulate and darken over the battlefield. Within seconds, several bolts of lightning shot down on the battlefield, several of them hitting Scrafty mid attack. One hit Pikachu, but was unharmed because it grounded its tail, rendering the attack useless.
With Scrafty in a daze and still in air, Pikachu dodged. With his attack missing, Scrafty flew off the field and into a tree. The Pokemon slid down the trunk and then fell on his back, revealing swirls in his eyes.
"The winner is Rage of Agate Village." Mac said. Ash knelt down to Pikachu and scratch him behind the ears.
"Good job Pi, " Ash said. "You earned a bottle of ketchup when we get home." Pikachu smiled and then returned to the backpack. Ash then shouldered it again and stepped towards the man.
"You ain't bad, man." Ash said.
"You're not so bad yourself." the man replied. He then held out a hand towards Ash. "Put 'er there." Ash shrugged and took his hand, only to receive a mild shock. The man started laughing maniacally again. Ash shook the numbness out of his hand.
"I never caught your name." Ash said. The man stopped laughing, but still had a grin on his face.
"I never thew it out," the man said. "The name's Gangster. And I've got a feeling I'll see you again someday." Ash nodded. Gangster walked past Ash and Mac and into Vermillion City.
"That one's a wild card," Mac said. Ash nodded again and turned to Mac. "Shall we walk, or do you want me to teleport us to Pallet?'
"Do you have to ask?" Ash asked rhetorically. Mac nodded and gripped Ash's shoulder.
"Brace yourself." Mac warned. In a flash of light, they were both gone.
The old gang were sitting at the deli listening to DK's story of where he was for the past six months. It was save to say they were both skeptical and impressed at the same time.
"... and then I boarded the earliest boat back to Kanto and here I am." DK finished. After he took a breath, he bit into a Pokemon worlds equivalent of a Spicy Italian sub sandwich and savored the taste. "Any questions?" May immediately raised her hand. DK turned to her and was met with a slap on the cheek.
"For six months, you've been trekking Mt. Coronet, studying ancient ruins with Cynthia in Orre and working at the Striaton City restaurant in Unova?" May asked. DK nodded, rubbing his cheek. "And it didn't occur to you to call us and tell us you're okay?" DK lowered his head in shame.
"Daniel Kellen, We've been worried sick about you," Dawn said. DK cringed. The only time they used his full name was when they were angry. He looked up to the ceiling. 'Arceus, please get me out of this.' DK thought. "We're your friends, we care about you. So the next time you decide to disappear, call us every now and again." DK nodded and bit into his sandwich. In his head, he sighed in relief.
"So what's your plan now?" Brock asked. DK washed his sandwich down with a coke he ordered.
"I'm going to Pallet Town to say hi to Sam and to check up on Delia," DK replied. "She's been like a mother to me ever since I came to Kanto. The least I can do is go and tell her I'm alive." The turned to the Lucario, who had his eyes closed. "Wanna bite, Gabe?" The Pokemon opened his eyes and took the sandwich. After a large bite, Gabe returned it to DK, who in turn took one last bite before setting it down again. DK then pulled his Pokedex out and checked the time. Shit! I'd better get going, or else I won't get to Pallet until dark." he pulled out a small wad of bills and place a twenty on the table.
"Don't think you're off the hook, Daniel." May shouted. DK stopped in front of the door, Gabriel following suit. DK turned to his friends.
"You're going back to Hoenn today, right May?" DK asked. May nodded. "Well then, how about I stop by Petalburg City next week and finally meet your parents?" This lightened up May's mood significantly.
"I'll hold you to that Daniel." May said. DK nodded and exited the Deli.
Outside, DK turned to Gabriel and held out his Poke-Ball.
"Buddy, I've gotta use Omen to get to Pallet, so I'm giving you a choice: you can fly out with me and Omen, or you can ride the trip in stasis." The Lucario thought about it for a moment, before pressing the button on his Poke-Ball and returned himself. "I thought you would." He minimized the ball and returned it to his belt, swapping it for the other Poke-Ball next to it. "Come on out, Omen!" In a flash of light, a Therian Forme Thunderus appeared. On its back was a make-shift saddle for flight passengers. "Hey man, Wanna go see Delia?" Omen nodded and lowered down. DK climbed up onto the saddle and positioned himself comfortably. "To Pallet!" With a roar, Omen took to the skies eastward towards his only home on Earth P.
A/N: Okay,with that chapter done, maybe I can knock out writer's block for Carry On. DK's story will be told in full once I get to that point in Carry On. Any who, I hope I did okay on the Pokemon battle. If you've got any pointers, I will use them constructively. If you like the story, you can Fav it, Follow it or both. got suggestion or want to point out a mistake, slap 'em on a review or in a PM. Also if you can guess who I based Ash's opponent off of, props to ya and a shout-out in the next chapter' intro notes.
Until next Round,
Phant0m