A/N: A quick update is what the readers called for, a quick update has been given. I'm not sure if this chapter is well written. To be honest I was a little underwhelmed, but after a couple days of scanning it I decided to post. Enjoy (Unless its as bad as I think, stay tuned though, hopefully I'll get back in gear for the next chapter)

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon

Ash's expression was relaxed and easy for the first time since the Sinnoh League as he watched the Pokémon at Professor Oak's play,

'They are all so healthy,' Ash thought happily as his heard of Taurous blitzed by.

The sun shown down from high in the sky, and although there were clouds on the horizon they did nothing to obscure the warm light cast by the sun. Ash's eyes followed the Taurous as they rushed over the lush green landscape; he sighed lightly as a warm breeze picked its way through his hair.

This was how life should be.

Without a care in the world, Ash sat down on the grass beneath him, eyes still wandering the landscape. His ears were filled with the chirping of birds and the rustling of the grass and distant forest as the wind blew against their leaves.

Suddenly, a soft and unnatural buzzing sound overpowered the chirping birds and rustling breeze. Ash looked around for the source of said buzzing, although he couldn't find it, he began to feel his gut clench as the noise got louder and undoubtedly closer. He had no idea what was occurring, propeller planes had become obsolete long ago. In the modern world of clean transportation the only times when a propeller plane had been flown in the last half century was during the eastern hemisphere's civil war, and during the terrorist attack in Almia…

"Fuck!" Ash took off running toward his home, mind not even gracing the subject of Pokémon. Without warning the ground shook violently and the unexpected force knocked Ash to the ground. Ash rolled with the impact and continued sprinting toward his house.

"There it is!" Ash gasped in between panic hastened breaths. He was so close he could practically feel the smooth white paint, but as he came within 50 feet the house was blown into smithereens. Splinters flew and fires raged as the mostly wooden house met its demise.

"MOM!" Ash cried and he struggled to his feet, the force had smashed him into the telephone pole he had been running by at the time of the blast, and he could feel his back vehemently protesting every move he made.

But there was no chance he would stop for anything, and that included his spine.

Luckily for the town the sound of engines was gone, and all of the living townsfolk stumbled into the streets to try and come to grips with what happened. As quickly as it happened, it ended. The unnatural buzz of engines had faded into the distance but the sun no longer shown. The clouds on the horizon hadn't budged. The air clotted with smoke so think Ash found himself covering his mouth in a fruitless attempt to filter the smoke.

Ash stared in terror at his once beautiful, sleepy town. Before him was now only smoldering buildings and the occasional motionless body. It was horrifying, and Ash knew he would have nightmares. The gruesome sight made him forget about his mom for a small instance. The gravity of what happened began to set in, but as quick as his mind had wandered it refocused. Pushing aside many of his concerns he shook off the clutches of despair for now, and permitted himself to be selfish just this once.

"Has anyone seen Delia Ketchum!" Ash cried in desperation.

Desperation turned to panic as negative headshakes answered his question. "Everyone on their knees!" A male voice ordered roughly, tone leaving no tone for argument

Ash whipped around, feeling himself involuntarily gasped in relief. His mother was alive and within his grasp. She appeared shaken up, but to his untrained eye unhurt for the most part. Something within Ash twitched in rage as he saw her on her knees, but not of her own volition. A cool, gunmetal barrel was rested against the back of her blindfolded head.

A few townsfolk gasped in shock while Ash saw red.

"Put her down!" He shouted.

"Not on your life" The man sneered, "Now on your knees, give us money and then we can talk."

"Do what he says!" Professor Oak's voice rang out, "What do you want."

"Money. As much as you can offer" The man smirked as he saw people pulling out their wallets.

After the donations had been produced and a few people of the same group collected them, the leader smirked, "She related to you boy?"

Ash didn't realize the question was directed at him until he was singled out with a point.

"Yes sir." He said aloud

"That's good," The man sneered, "Then this will help you remember Team Rocket!"

He pulled the trigger without remorse and simply walked away with the money, leaving Ash gaping in shock.

Everything went in slow motion

Everything

Delia's body pitched with agonizing sluggishness to the left, head leading the momentum-induced charge. The man's malicious laughed echoed again and again throughout Ash's mind even as the murderer and his syndicate wandered out of sight.

A delicate thump stamped itself into Ash's mind

"NO!"

Ash's cry of anguish resounded in all corners of the globe, and in all the hearts of the now desolate Pallet.

Ash dashed his way to his mother's form, kneeling down beside her as he checked fruitlessly for a pulse; he didn't have the heart to remove the blindfold. He searched for so long that his knees were beginning to become soaked. And when he realized why they were wet Ash had to restrain himself from vomiting. Standing up and backing quickly away from his mother's cooled corpse, Ash turned and ran. All eyes were on him, and all eyes noted the panicked posture, horrified expression and hopeless, soulless eyes.

Ash barreled down the roads as he rushed home.

Home

Was it truly home anymore? By definition the answer was yes, the splintered wreck was still his home. But definitions have no place in the heart. Property was not what defined a home. Warmth. Family. Comfort. All denoted family in the eyes of the human heart, and as he creeped throughout the house, feet carefully avoiding anything that could potentially harm him, Ash couldn't help but feel the chilling alien vibe the walls around him gave off.

He felt his eyelids flutter, blinking seventy-two times in one second.

The emotional stress had worn him out, and the throbbing pain in his side wasn't easing his desire to rest.

Ash leaned up against one of the surviving walls of his once pasture white home. His eyes, which were once so full of life and love, stared off into the approaching storm front that had seemed so distant not 30 minutes ago. The storm was here, but the Ash's world wasn't any darker because of it.

Ash wasn't sure how long he sat there, simply staring off into the distance. But he did know that once he regained his attention there were two things out of place.

1. A heavy drizzle had begun, quickly putting out the raging fires

2. A tall man with violet hair and a burgundy jacket with black, cascading lines stood in front of him.

Ash's eyes widened as he quickly connected the man who stood before him to a name

"Norman" Ash breathed

"Ash, this town was once your home" Norman's gaze darkened, "Yet here you are, still remaining here after your own attack."

"My own attack…" Ash trailed off, desperately searching for what Norman could mean by that, "What do you-"

"Are you satisfied!?" The sudden rise in volume made Ash flinch

"What are you-"

"Why the hell would you issue an attack against your own town!?"

Ash connected the dots, and the fury that took over his features was a testament to that.

"What the hell!" Ash cried in rage, "Why are you accusing me?"

"Why do you hate your town so much? Why would you murder your own mother?" Norman howled

Ash's gaze darkened, "What?"

"Get out of this town! You don't represent this place any more!" Norman shouted the shocked trainer

Ash was confused beyond all belief. He had no idea what was happening or why Norman had confronted him about something absurd as this, but he wasn't about to let him get away with it. He felt it clearly. Within the pit of his heart, the fires of unbridled rage began to overflow. The emotion of it all began to pool. The tides of his mind influenced by his vengeful full moon were calling out for baleful justice. Ash forgot about the why, he lost sight of it the moment it was swallowed by the sea. There was no way in hell that he was going to let this man accuse him of decimating his own town and murdering his own mother.

"You can't order me out of my town!" Ash nearly screeched, "I don't know what you are doing here, but I know that you have overstepped your bounds! Return to Petalburgh where you might be able to sway opinion!"

"Watch what you say!" Norman hissed, "You Kanto people are all the same. Ticking time bombs fueled by nothing but hopeless ambition. Miss the moon once and you have to make the whole world suffer."

Ash growled. Focus. He had to focus. Why was Norman doing this? If he understood his motives maybe it wouldn't come to the calamity he could feel impending. Was it true that he honestly thought he had called in the attack on his town? Or was it something else. Could he have been bribed? No. Norman was a gym leader. Their salaries were unparalleled. Could he have been threatened?

Regardless of the reasons behind his assault, insulting him and his region had instantly made this man an enemy of his. "Is that a threat?"

"Maybe." Norman smirked

Ash narrowed his eyes, "Sounds like you should watch what you say. Pretty soon you won't be able to say anything." As soon as Ash spat his retort at Norman a group of Ash's Pokémon appeared behind him, all standing proudly, ready to defend their trainer against any who oppose him.

"Bring it on failure! I can take you any day!" Norman taunted confidently, bringing 3 pokeballs into his hand. The exact amount of Pokémon that Ash currently had at his disposal.

Ash smirked, "I beat your ass over a year ago, now I can beat it even worse. Go back to your third world home!"

Norman growled, his fury rising and released a group of his Pokémon, "Don't you dare insult Hoenn!"

"Why not?" Ash retorted, "You seem to have no problem insulting Kanto!"

A beat of silence.

"Tear them apart!" Ash shouted, his tone had long since gone cold with sorrow and fury

Charizard roared and torched Slaking while Sceptile pelted Vigoroth with Bullet Seed, then proceeded to smash him into the ground with a vicious Leaf Blade. Pikachu roasted Slakoth with his trademark Thunderbolt, the poor Pokémon didn't even react as tens of thousands of volts passed through its system.

Norman clenched his teeth; he wasn't standing a chance. He saw Ash standing confidently behind his Pokémon and came up with a plan that he knew would catch the trainer unaware.

"Delcatty, use Ice Beam!"

The Pokémon fired the triple beam of pale blue energy at Ash's lower body. The black haired boy didn't even see it, much less react in time to get out of the attack's path.

Ash struggled furiously as he felt his lower body go numb, "You bastard!" He cried in anguish, "That's May's Pokémon!"

"So what?" Norman cackled, "Now your distracted Pokémon wont stand a chance!"

True to his word his worried Sceptile, Charizard and Pikachu turned to help their trainer. Sceptile was the first to go with a strong Flamethrower from Vigoroth. Then Charizard who went with a water pulse from Delcatty and a Hyper beam from Slacking.

"Bastard is too good for you!" Ash sneered; he was powerless to help his Pokémon.

Norman had this crazed look in his eye as he ordered Vigoroth to use slash on Ash.

Ash's eyes went wide. He knew that one of his Pokémon wouldn't be coming to his aid this time. Pikachu was far too entangled with Norman's other Pokémon to even think about stopping Vigoroth, and Charizard and Sceptile were currently resting in heaps behind Ash's half frozen form. He closed his eyes and steeled himself for the impact. Unfortunately, he didn't have to wait long.

The sharp claws of the gorilla Pokémon shredded his shirt and cut deep chasms of red pain across his chest. Even in situations like this Ash was able to catch a lucky break, for the tremendous force behind the slash attack blew him clear out of his icy prison. As Ash crashed into the rough combination of dirt and rock a few feet behind his Charizard and Sceptile, more of his Pokémon stormed the backyard, and began returning every ounce of agony with interest.

It wasn't long before the combined might of Ash's Pokémon felled each one of Norman's, and he was forced to make a hasty retreat, lest Ash's Pokémon turn their fury onto him. Ash's Pokémon knew better than to chase after the fleeing Hoenn native. Their trainer was in a critical state and was their first and foremost priority.

All of his Pokémon gathered around Ash, and the one's who could help him the best stepped forward. Cyndaquil quickly ignited her fire, flaring the flames a few times in order to find the best temperature to melt the excess ice. After some trial and error, the ice was efficiently dealt with, Some of Ash's more dexterous Pokémon attempted to bandage his chest using items they salvaged from the house.

Ash was unconscious, and as much as it pained them, even his Pokémon could see it was necessary to wake him up and leave the city before Norman, and possibly others, returned. Pikachu returned Charizard and Sceptile to their red and white orbs and stashed them in Ash's pack. Then, the little yellow mouse ordered Torterra to carry Ash on his back until the trainer woke up. The continent Pokémon complied with a nod of his head, and lowered his body so a combined Vine Whip from Bulbasaur and Bayleef could gently hoist the still unconscious Ash onto his back.

Ash woke up just as they were exiting the back yard. His eyes looked quickly around to get his bearings.

"Wait!" He croaked weakly, the pain in his chest preventing him from uttering barely more than a whisper.

His Pokémon stopped as one, and looked at their trainer questioningly

Ash attempted to stand on his own. He didn't want his Pokemon to suffer just because he didn't have the physical strength to walk. It took him some time, but eventually he managed to work enough blood into his legs to allow him to move. Now it was just a matter of staying upright as they trekked sluggishly to the city limits. By the time they were nearing the edges of Pallet, the amount of feeling in his legs had not improved and he was beginning to fear frostbite. His chest was on fire and his white shirt was now 10% cotton and 90% blood, the wound hadn't clotted and would likely need stitches. Ash was beginning to fear blood loss. When he left he had no shelter or food, and feared disease or starvation. His Pokémon followed in silence, they knew their trainer had almost zero percent chance of survival, but it was something and they needed to have faith. If he stayed the chance would plummet to zero.

Ash was crossing the final intersection before the city limits when a pair of headlights blinded him. He tried to move but his dead legs would allow no quick movement, if it weren't for his head start he would have died. However, the car still clipped him and upon impact he felt his ribcage shatter and his chest exploded into even more pain. The hit shook him to his core and soon Ash soon found himself laying on his back, unable to move anything. Blood pounded irregularly in his ears as he caught a glimpse of the retreating vehicle.

Rocket Shipping

Sighing he turned his gaze back to the sky, eyes unflinching against the torrential introduction of water to his eyes. After a few moments of this, he felt his eyes begin to close against his will. Ash let it happen. He let his world darken beyond anything he originally thought possible.

A/N:

As much as I hate looking back to the past this is an issue I feel the need to address. PEOPLE ARE STILL FAVORITING PROVEN. And it's making me feel really guilty. After I finish this I plan to rewrite Proven, with a little more edge, probably less romance, more words, and a greater connection to the Royal Line (And also later parts of the story, but I can't say that yet ;) So I've got a question. Since Proven is so popular, when the rewrite is ready, do I DELETE Proven or KEEP Proven. I'm not even sure if I am allowed to keep a story when a rewrite of said story is being posted. So if there is something that doesn't allow me to post then tell me. If you want me to KEEP Proven up then tell me. (REVIEW IN OTHER WORDS)