Chapter Two
Barricade
Ash managed to find the exit from the Ilex Forest not long after, and battled his way up to the Goldenrod Poke Centre where he sighed in relief. He gave his Pokemon over for healing, then headed for a good eat and rest.
He later went out to fight all the Trainers, including the two Police officers either end of the city, then went back into the Poke Centre. He was so tired, he didn't even take off his clothes or shoes. Rolling into bed, he fell straight asleep.
What woke him, at first light, was a huge crash, and the Poke Centre shuddering with the impact.
"Waah! Who's using Earthquake?" asked Ash. Another Trainer ran to the window and looked out (they were in a dormitory set-up) and said "No-one! We're being rammed!"As Ash ran over, the trainer exclaimed in disbelief;"-by a police car!"
Joining the trainer by the window, Ash was in time to see the aforementioned vehicle-definately a Police car- crash bonnet-first into the Poke Centre. The Poke Centre took the impact again, and it threw Ash and the other trainer off their feet. They got up and went to the window again.
The Police car had reversed, and for a moment it aimed it's headlights directly at their window, framing them in it's light. Ash's skin crawled. He had the oddest feeling of being watched, by the car itself, but that was impossible, wasn't it?
The spell was broken as the car suddenly hurtled forwards again. This time, Ash and the other trainer braced for impact, and saw what happened.
The third impact was too much for the Poke Centre. Cracks crazed up its wall from the impact point. The car reversed, and Ash saw with disbelief that it seemed completely undamaged. No dents, no broken headlights. The Poke Centre was a different matter. It was unlikely to survive the next ram. It was still shaking from the last impact, bits of rubble falling from the cracks, which were still crawling up the wall.
The Police car was still now, but Ash heard it rev it's engine. He was alone in the dormitory now, and didn't stop to watch. He ran as he heard the Police car accelerate, stopping only to grab his poke balls, jacket, cap, and backpack.
He fled down the stairs, and saw the door open, Pikachu "pika!"-ing urgently and beckoning with a paw. Ash got to the door at the same time that the Police car hit. As the building shook, groaned and then began to collapse, Ash took a flying leap towards the doorway. He made it just in time, hitting the ground with a jolt. Behind him, the Poke Centre was nothing but a settling heap of dust and rubble, completely uninhabitable.
"That's everyone." said Nurse Joy. "Thank God it wasn't busy, why that maniac could have killed us all!" The Police car, several people approaching it, was half-buried in the rubble but still seemed to be moving, reversing out inch by inch.
The Police car abruptly freed itself, and Ash noticed again that there was not so much as a tiny dent or broken headlight, just a few scratches to the paintwork. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something didn't seem right. A car should NOT be able to demolish a building and escape almost unscathed itself. The car, in the meantime, turned its headlighs full onto him again, and once again, Ash felt as if he was being scrutinised. Then the Police car rolled forwards, and with a feeling of forboding, and a fine sense of self-preservation, Ash turned, and began to run as fast as he could, Pikachu right by his side.
He could hear the car behind him, much too close. "It's a car, the road is it's element, get off the road, stupid!"his instinct screamed at him. Ash did an abrupt turn, spraying a Max Repel as he landed in the grass; hopefully the grass would slow it down. He wondered why he was being chased. Surely the Police officer trainers earlier couldn't be that riled up about him beating them. He had broken no laws, so why?
He heard the oddest clunking, whirring noise, and he heard the people back behind him start to scream. Knowing looking over his shoulder would slow him down, Ash resisted that urge, even when some thuds that shook the ground started up, getting louder and closer.
After the last thud, he noticed a shadow passing over the sun, but instead of a Pokemon landing in front of him, it was a four-and-a-half-metre high, red-eyed, menacing-looking robot!
Ash could see recognisable bits of Police car in it's form-so it had been the car! It was directly in his path, so he skidded to a halt and swerved ninety degrees to the robot's right. The Decepticon's arm, complete with tyre and hard silver fingers, crashed down, blocking his escape that way. He did a one-hundred-and-eighty degree turn, trying to get out via the robot's left side, but it brought down it's other arm with a loud bang, cutting off that escape route too.
That left only back the way he had came, and Ash didn't want to risk turning his back on the metal monstrosity that seemed determined to get him. Backpedalling frantically, he backed up-and fell over Pikachu, who was right behind him. Ash landed,
on his back, his backpack propping him slightly up.
The robot swiftly lunged forwards, looming over Ash menacingly, its fierce, metal face inches away from his. It hadn't even said anything yet, and Ash already felt intimidated. Sweat broke out all over his body.
"HAND OVER THE ALLSPARK, HUMAN, AND PERHAPS YOU MIGHT LIVE!"the robot demanded.
Ash was confused. AllSpark? What was it talking about? Ash only knew of one Spark, and he was more than happy for this metal mostrosity to recieve it!
"Pikachu!" cried Ash. Pikachu was standing by his head, not sure what to do.
"GIVE ME THE ALLSPARK!"the Decepticon demanded again.
"Pikachu! You heard it! Spark attack, now!" Ash cried, throwing an arm over his eyes and rolling onto his side.
Pikachu was only too happy to oblige, launching a huge Spark attack, which hit the Decepticon right between its eyes. The attack disorientated it, reeling back. Ash took the opportunity he had.
"Pikachu! Thunder attack, now!" he cried. Pikachu braced itself, concentrated its power, and then unleashed its most powerful attack on the Decepticon. The attack enveloped the robot, which lit up like a light bulb. It staggered back, trying to keep its balance, but failed, and fell heavily.
Ash didn't see all this, as he was up and running. He grabbed Swellow's Poke ball, releasing his feathered friend. He leaped on its back, Pikachu leaping onto his shoulder, despite its exhaustion after the fight.
"Swellow! Get us away from here, fast!" Ash cried, risking a look back, to see the Decepticon pushing itself to a sitting position. Swellow wasted no time, unfurling its wings and taking off. By the time the robot had recovered enough to stand, Ash and Pikachu on Swellow were just a mote in the sky, well out of range of the Decepticon's ranged lasers.
Barricade was furious. It had been humiliated by a mere human youth-in front of a whole group of the puny little organic bipeds! Bellowing angrily, it turned towards the ruins of the Poke Centre, determined to take out its ire on the witnesses of its ignomy, but the space in front of the Poke Centre was bare, there was nobody in sight. It briefly considered knocking down all the buildings, to vent its rage on them and the creatures it knew cowered inside, but knew this would be a bad idea at this time. Until the AllSpark was finally theirs, until they had it in their grasp, they needed to keep as low a profile as possible. This near miss had already exposed it once: it needed to get back to car form and away from the area.
It changed back into a vehicle, and reversed away, sweeping the area with a burning gaze. Later, it swore to itself, when the need for secrecy was over and the humans would be at the mercy of itself and his fellow Decepticons, it would return, to raze the buildings to the ground. There would be deaths, of course, it would make sure that all in the town who had witnessed its defeat would perish. Of course, some would wish to have been crushed in the rubble when it got to them. Some it would enjoy toying with, giving false hope of life before crushing it-and them-utterly.
Even those who did not live there, who had been transient, would be hunted down and eliminated. It could remember every face, would remember every bioscan, and seek them all out, one by one. That way, none who had witnessed this day would live beyond the time it itself would give them...which would not be long. Until then, however, it had to leave and avoid notice as much as it could. It departed at speed, leaving behind the scent of a bad temper and a scorched ego.
It established contact with the other Decepticons on Earth. They were displeased to hear of his failure.
"He had an organic lightning generator, than left on the back of a native avian." it said. "Between the electricity and my lack of a flying vehicular form, what was I to do? Don't underestimate him, he has powerful allies by his side." It paused, thinking dark thoughts.
"By the way, when you catch him, I want to deal with him personally. He will pay for humiliating me."