"Hello. We were told to come here for a meeting?"
The receptionist smiled. "Of course. Professor Oak and Miss Waterflower. You are expected."
Gary and Misty exchanged a glance. "Do you know what this is about?" Gary asked.
The receptionist shook her head apologetically. "I'm afraid not. All I know is that you were expected to arrive at about…" She glanced at her computer screen and blinked in surprise. "Now actually."
"Well… yes" Misty said. "You did say we were expected."
The receptionist was shaking her head. "No, you misunderstand. It says you are here for a meeting at 2pm and that you would most likely arrive at about 1:50. And here you are."
Gary and Misty exchanged another glance. They suspected they knew who was bringing them in. This had all the marks of a visit to Champion.
"If you would like to go to the elevator, it will take you up." The receptionist said.
"Of course. Thank you." Gary said. He and Misty turned and headed for the elevator doors.
As the elevator opened several floors up they were in a corridor that they had both been in before. About halfway down there was a waiting area which they headed for but almost instantly a voice rang out.
"Professor Oak and Miss Waterflower. Please proceed through the door at the end of the corridor."
"Definitely Champion." Misty muttered. Gary laughed slightly as they headed down the corridor. When they approached the door it opened in front of them. Inside was a plain office with a desk. Behind it, his hat firmly jammed onto his head sat the Pokémon Master, Champion. In front of the desk however, there was an old man sat in a chair. As he heard the door open he rose and started to turn.
"GRAMPS" Gary said, rushing forwards to embrace his grandfather. The old man returned the hug, smiling wearily at Misty over his grandson's shoulder. After several moments Gary released his grandfather who turned towards Misty.
"It is good to see you Professor." Misty said as she hugged him briefly. "We were told…"
"Champion found me." Oak said. He glanced at Gary before his eyes were drawn to Misty's left hand. "And I guess that answers the question as to why you are here as well Misty. I see congratulations are in order."
"What?" Gary said before remembering. "Oh. I should've known you would have worked it out quickly."
"And you forgot?" Oak asked, his voice light with humour.
"I…" Gary stuttered. "I was more concerned with seeing you!" Gary turned to Ash who had not moved from his chair since they entered. "You found him."
"I said we would keep searching." Ash said emotionlessly. "Did you not believe me?"
"I did…" Gary said hesitantly. "I just…"
"Didn't think we'd succeed?"
"No…" Gary said, before giving up. "Just… Thank you Champion. Thank you for bringing him back to us."
"You are welcome." Ash said.
"Are you coming home with us?" Gary asked his grandfather, who nodded.
"I am sufficiently recovered to be able to do so." He said. "And I think I've done enough wandering for one lifetime."
Misty laughed slightly nervously. "No kidding Professor. And I'm sure you wouldn't want to miss your grandson's wedding."
"Not now I know it is happening!" The elderly researcher turned to Ash. "Thank you for saving me Champion. It is a debt I can never repay."
Ash inclined his head and the door opened behind them once again. "I'm sure you will want to head home Professor. I am only sorry it took me as long as it did to find you."
Gary and Misty led the way as Oak followed behind them slightly more slowly. As the door shut behind them once again, Ash sat back down.
"It is good to see them so joyful." He said quietly.
"And yet you still don't wish to be a part of it?" Espeon asked.
Ash laughed slightly, a low chuckle resonating in the room. "That ship sailed a long time ago Espeon. And not you, my mother or Pikachu will change my mind."
The electric mouse had hopped up onto the desk and looked crestfallen at Ash's words. Ash laughed again at his reaction.
"I know you too well Pikachu." He said. "And I am sorry that you won't be able to attend their wedding. I know you wish you could."
"Why not?" Pikachu asked, Espeon translating as usual.
"Because if you go with Delia, you will be asked where you have been. And you are not publically one of my Pokémon so you can't come with me."
"Will you be going then?" Espeon asked.
"Most likely." Ash said. "If Professor Oak is going to be there, he would expect me to come. And since we did save him, it isn't unreasonable to go. We were invited."
"But you are going out in public." Espeon said in surprise.
"You argued that I should." Ash reminded her.
"I know. But I never expected you to actually do it."
Ash sighed. "I owe it to my old friends to keep an eye on them. And I will want to make sure that the Professor is well once again. I won't be there for long but yes, we should put in an appearance."
There was a few moments silence before Pikachu spoke up again.
"What is the plan now?" he asked.
"We wait." Ash said. "Whoever is behind this will make another move soon. We wait for them. Now we know they are coming, we will be ready for them."
"Keep working Totodile!" Mellanie called. Her starter answered with a mere grunt but given he was dodging four different Pokémons attacks, she would excuse him. Ever since her battle with Lance she had taken what he had said and was thinking of ways to improve her training. The discussion after the battle had been a fascinating insight into the Dragon Master.
"Your style is interesting." Lance said. "Not one I prefer personally, but very hard to face."
Mellanie smiled slightly. They were sat in Lance's office in Indigo Plateau, having travelled back after the Viridian tournament. She had intended to go back to Mystery Island but the chance to discuss one of the hardest battles she had ever been in with somebody as skilled as Lance was not something she wanted to pass up.
"How did you develop it?" Lance asked.
"Long story." Mellanie said.
"Well I have nothing planned for a few hours." Lance said with a laugh.
Mellanie laughed with him, relaxing slightly. She found it hard to relax when she was away from Ash and Sam, the only two people who had ever made her feel like she had a family. Whenever she had met Lance she had been intimidated by the powerful persona of one of the strongest trainers in the world, the man who ran two regions. Who was as much a figure of legend as Ash himself. But now she was spending more time with him she found that away from his public persona he was a thoroughly decent person.
"It started with Totodile." Mellanie said. "When I first got him, five years ago. We battled with Sam a lot and he enjoyed taunting Typhlosion, although Sam's starter was a Cyndaquil and then Quilava at first. He just turned battles into his own private game."
Lance nodded in understanding. He had met plenty of Pokémon like this, although none of them had been dragon types. The majority of Dragon Pokémon were more serious in their conduct. In fact it was more typical of a Water-type to be so playful.
"Then we went to Cynthia's first training camp. We saw Ash train, and saw how his Pokémon could dodge. Totodile was completely taken and we developed an entire style from it. From there it has become our trademark – we win battles because people can't hit us. Sooner or later you'll leave yourself open or just tire your own Pokémon out. It has been effective."
"I'll agree with that." Lance said. "Particularly your Scizor. Gyarados isn't the fastest of Pokémon but he couldn't get near him."
"I thought that was why you switched to Dragonair." Mellanie said and Lance nodded.
"The majority of my Pokémon are powerful hitters. Dragonair and Seadra are my two more agile Pokémon. I keep them in my team for battles like the one against Scizor, as a way to defeat Pokémon that others cannot hit."
"Just like Ampharos."
"The Pokémon you opened with at the Johto League right?" Lance said, straining his memory slightly.
"Yeah." Mellanie said. "He's the only one of my Pokémon who is trained for sheer power."
"Maybe he should go up against one of my Pokémon." Lance said, but Mellanie shook her head.
"No, he isn't trained to go up against the best. He is used as a distraction for trainers who think they can beat me by memorising my style."
"Fair enough." Lance said. "So how did you get Totodile to be so good at dodging?"
Mellanie smiled as she watched her starter wriggle his way past another wave of attacks. He had been going for nearly fifteen minutes and only taken one glancing blow. His fitness was superb as was his dodging. Lance had seemed taken aback when she told him how simple her dodging training was. Her Pokémonwere used to having waves of attacks come at them, so dodging just one or two from another Pokémon was easy.
"Enough." She eventually called. The attacks stopped and Totodile slouched slightly, breathing heavily. Mellanie watched her Pokémon recover with a fond look in her eyes. She loved all of her Pokémon, and they her. Ash had once warned her off the risk of them becoming disillusioned with the training, but that had never happened. They saw how much it meant to their trainer who they all adored, and they all idolised different members in Ash's team. Totodile in particular was often found following Sharpedo around like a lost puppy. Ash's Pokémon took it with good grace; as Ash saw Mellanie as a kind of daughter, his Pokémon treated hers the same way.
Mellanie stepped forwards and all of her Pokémon focused on her instantly.
"Alright guys." She said. "That's enough dodging. Lance was right when he told us we still had a big weakness, but we are going to fix that now. Power attacks. Our strikes need to get stronger. If we want to be able to defeat trainers like him, we need to concentrate less on just dodging and more on winning fights. Our target is that the next time we face Ash, his Pokémon get a nasty surprise."
As Mellanie watched, grins spread across the faces of her Pokémon. They had all bought into the style of battling that she demanded and they all loved it. But the ability of Ash's Pokémon to take hits rankled heavily with them. They knew they were hard to hit but just like their trainer, they all aimed higher.
"Focused attacks." Mellanie said. "Pick a tree and drill a hole through it. As fast as possible."
As her Pokémon turned to attack again Mellanie watched as her mind went back to the conversation with Lance.
"Your Pokémon don't hit as hard as I expected." The Dragon Master said.
"Oh?"
"Don't get me wrong, they aren't weak." Lance clarified. "But given how strong a trainer you are, I was expecting more power in the attacks. They were very focused, in particular Totodile's but they do lack a certain element of power. It's a weakness."
"Just like yours have too much power and not enough agility." Mellanie said and Lance chuckled.
"It's usually a trade-off. The faster a Pokémon becomes, and the better at dodging, the less time is spent training attacks so they hit less hard. Of course, one trainers Pokémon don't seem to have the same trade-off as everybody elses."
"Ash." Mellanie said and Lance nodded.
"His Pokémon hit hard and are incredibly fast. I've never seen anything like it. In fact, I doubt anybody ever has."
"Is it a weakness you think I should address?" Mellanie asked.
Lance drummed his fingers on the desk. "Probably. To give an example, I was expecting the combination of close range attacks to knock Dragonair out. Similarly, Totodile's string of consecutive hits should have been enough for an already weakened Gyarados. If your Pokémon could hit harder, you might have won."
"Have you found a way to make attacks stronger?" Mellanie asked, but Lance answered with his own question.
"How do you train power?"
"Focused attacks. Using an attack more will make it more powerful. If Pokémon get more and more experienced at using an attack, they can generate more power."
Lance nodded. "As I expected. The way that the majority of trainers use. It is effective, but it will only increase power."
"Isn't that the point?" Mellanie asked, but Lance shook his head.
"I'm surprised Ash hasn't mentioned this. The more focused an attack, the more powerful it is. Totodile has excellent accuracy to keep hitting the same spot, but if he can have the same power in his attack but make the spot smaller he will be more dangerous."
"Ash has mentioned it." Mellanie said. "But I hadn't found that we needed more powerful attacks yet."
"You've just fought the Dragon Master to a draw." Lance said. "You've recently became a record-holder for success. Perhaps it is time you aimed a little higher with your training? What did Ash suggest you do to increase focus on attacks?"
"Drilling." Mellanie said instantly before flushing slightly. "I know it sounds stupid but…"
"No, I think I know what you mean. Drilling through what?"
"Trees. He said that if a Pokémon can put a hole through a tree with its attack but leave the tree standing, it is a sufficiently focused and powerful attack."
Lance blinked. "That is… actually good. Very simple. Yet should work on accuracy, power, focus and endurance."
"Spoink, your attack is still too big." Mellanie said, snapping out of her thoughts as she watched her Pokémon train. "You'll knock the tree down if you're not careful."
Spoink bounced in acknowledgement before attempting to reduce the attacks size once again. Mellanie smiled as she watched them train. Ash had warned her that the fight was not over and she refused to be caught short again. She was determined to be ready.
"Can you tell us what happened?" Gary asked as he led his grandfather into the laboratory in Pallet Town.
"I was attacked by wild Pokémon." Oak said. "I'm afraid that is all I know."
"Why does this sound like a similar problem to what we faced?" Misty said.
"Because it is very similar Red." Gary answered.
"It was a rhetorical question." Misty muttered.
"What did you face?" Oak asked.
"Didn't Champion tell you?" Gary asked in surprise.
"No…" Oak said. "I've been out of the news for a while."
"The Kanto Region was attacked by wild Pokémon." Misty said. "Cerulean City was invaded. Champion stood up to them but they attacked him. He was saved by a mystery woman who he seemed to know. They pushed them out of Cerulean and the rest of the Pokémon retreated."
"The rest of them?" Oak asked in confusion. "Where else were they?"
"They blockaded every major human settlement." Gary said. "And I mean all of them. They even hit Pallet Town."
"What kind of Pokémon?" Oak asked.
"All types." Misty said curiously. "Why does it matter?"
"Because I spent my entire life studying human and Pokémon relationships." Oak said, his voice with more energy than it had had since he had been rescued. "And if they are turning on humans there will be a reason."
"Do you know what it is?" Gary asked.
"No." Oak said quietly. "But I might be able to find out."
Gary and Misty shared a glance. They both knew Oak well enough to know where this was going.
"This is going to take you away again isn't it…" Gary said, worry etched onto his face.
"Technically yes." Oak said. "But don't worry. This time I won't be going far. I know exactly where I need to go."
Sonia stepped deeper into the trees. It hadn't been easy sneaking away from Mystery Island but she was confident that her Psychic-Pokémon would be able to hide her absence from Ash. It had been a risk but she felt it was worth it. Especially since the risk was lessened by him heading off with Mellanie to somewhere remote. She knelt down next to a tree and waited. A few moments later a small string drifted down past her hand. She touched it and several more dropped next to her, attaching themselves to various limbs. She was lifted into the canopy, rising smoothly. She was placed on the branch and looked around. A small Pokémon crawled up her leg and torso, settling on her shoulder to whisper in her ear. Sonia listened intently before nodding.
"Thank you. Are you ready?"
The Pokémon stepped off her shoulder, landing on a tiny branch in front of her and balancing easily. As she came into the light Sonia saw a Cleffa smiling up at her. Cleffa gestured, raising her arms ever so slightly. From all around her in the trees there was an answering roar, the sound of hundreds of Pokémon answering their leader. Sonia bowed to Cleffa.
"You are my oldest friend. You have been with me for years. You have always looked out for me. You were the one who told me about the events that set us on this path. I will be honoured to stand by your side one last time. To take our revenge."
Cleffa nodded and stepped off the branch, drifting to the ground balanced on a single string from a Pokémon high in the trees above them. Sonia smiled as she watched the Pokémon go.
"The pieces are coming together." She murmured to herself. "We are almost at the tipping point. A few more and it will become a flood that cannot be stopped."
There was a slight hiss behind her and Sonia smiled but didn't react. She had always felt most alive surrounded by Pokémon, beings that had far more potential than anybody ever seemed to know. It was galling to know just how many humans turned their back on Pokémon, or treated them as servants. Even those that didn't often treated them as if they had no culture of their own. She knew differently. Outside of the influence of humans, Pokémon had often developed sophisticated hierarchies. Yet one man seemed to know that. One man who could change everything. One man who was in a position of power. The Pokémon Master, a title that highlighted everything that was wrong with human's attitudes towards Pokémon. Yet even he couldn't stop what was coming. Especially when he couldn't see it coming.
Ash and Mellanie appeared in a flash of light in the forest that they were both getting to know remarkably well.
"So this is where we are going." Mellanie said looking around. "But we found Oak. What else could be out here?"
Ash smiled slightly. For once he had changed his outfit. Instead of his usual coverings which added to his public aura of mystery he had changed into clothes that had Mellanie worried for the reason behind their trip. Gone was the hat, the long jacket and the cloak. Now Ash was dressed in a very close fitting shirt and no jacket. He radiated strength with every movement. Mellanie fingered a Pokéball at her waist as she looked at her mentor.
"Yes." Ash said. "We found Oak. But Pokémon attacked him. And for Pokémon to move around here, one being must know. And in times gone he would have told me everything. He was loyal. That has changed. I need to remind him why he initially swore loyalty to me in the first place."
"Gliscor." Mellanie said. "He turned against you."
"Indeed." Ash said, his eyes sweeping the sky for his opponent."
"Will he know why you are here?"
"Most likely. I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't want to face me. He may hide."
Mellanie looked at Ash again, now more worried. He had some of his old calm back, the calm that she had become accustomed to relying on. The calm that had caused her to adopt him as the strength in her life, the security it brought was back. For the first time since things had started to turn against him he looked confident. But it went further than that. He looked like he was going to enjoy what came next.
"Ash…" Mellanie said quietly.
"Yes?"
"Why did Gliscor swear loyalty to you? What did you do?"
Ash chuckled. "It was less loyalty and more fealty. He didn't have much choice."
"You beat him?" Mellanie asked.
"More than that Mellanie." Ash said. "And you know it."
Mellanie nodded slowly. "How bad was it?"
"He was absolutely battered. I let him recover and then came to him. He wanted to give up his power to me but I refused. I told him that as long as he stayed loyal to me he could continue to control this region."
"You kept him in place with fear?" Mellanie asked, surprise in her voice.
Ash laughed. "No Mellanie. Fear is a poor way to control anybody. I showed him mercy and he was grateful. I have rendered other services in the years since, but our initial relationship was based off the fact that I beat him. It is the way things work out here."
Mellanie nodded, stepping back slightly. It all started to click into place. Ash had changed to show his power. He was here to completely dominate Gliscor, to force his obedience once again.
"Will it work?" Mellanie asked.
"Yes." Ash said. "If I defeat Gliscor, he will either bend the knee to me or leave. It is the Law of the Jungle."
"I'm going to assume that you mean that in the sense of the expression since we aren't in the jungle." Mellanie said warily. Ash nodded. "So why am I here?" The teenager asked.
"Because I could need back-up." Ash said. "And if not, I will need witnesses. Gliscor may attempt to make it a private battle."
"Will we have to do this to every Pokémon that has turned?" Mellanie asked.
"No." Ash said. "Not least, if I do it to Gliscor many will turn back to us. But there is also the fact that many of them are merely less favourable towards us. That I can allow. I will not reign by terror. I will regain their friendship and loyalty one at a time through kindness."
"So why attack Gliscor?"
"Because my friendship, once given is absolute." Ash said. "But my enmity is to be avoided. Gliscor didn't just tell me he wanted to end our relationship. That would have been disappointing but I would not be angry. He lied to me. He tried to attack me, however indirectly. That cannot be forgiven. Now, since he hasn't appeared, it would seem we will have to root him out."
Ash picked a direction and strode off, leaving Mellanie to follow along. As they walked her mind whirled with what she had learned. The fact that Ash had wanted to leave in secret started to make more sense as well – he didn't want his mother worrying about what was going to happen. Ash had admitted in the past that his own Pokémon would find it a difficult fight against the likes of Gliscor. For him to have to face off against such an opponent would worry Delia more than necessary. But the fact that there was somebody else they could have brought but didn't surprised Mellanie.
"Ash?" She asked again.
"Yes?" He tossed over his shoulder, not breaking stride.
"Why didn't you bring Sonia along?"
"Why would I?"
"She was the one who was able to tell where Oak was." Mellanie said. "Sonia was the one who tried to protect you in Cerulean. She is the one with the affiliation with wild Pokémon."
"And there's your answer." Ash said quietly.
Mellanie gasped as she realised something. "You don't trust her."
"Not around wild Pokémon." Ash said. "Her links to wild Pokémon are dangerously strong. I do not need an ally turning against me in a difficult fight." Ash hesitated. "And she is hiding something."
"You let me hide things." Mellanie reminded him.
"I know." Ash said. "I do not ask that my tutees give up every secret. But when she is hiding something that could have relevance to this situation, I do not want her too near to it."
"Is there anything else?" Mellanie asked.
Ash stopped walking and turned to look at her. "Do you think there is?"
"I think you're hiding something from me." Mellanie said accusingly. "I thought we were meant to be partners."
Ash smiled. "You are extremely perceptive Mellanie. But I assure you, it wasn't my intention to deceive you."
"But there is something?"
"Yes. Professor Oak gave me a warning. He thinks that there is something about her. I want her kept at a distance until I can ascertain what, and reduce the damage from it."
Mellanie whitened slightly. "But she is in one of your tutees…"
"I know." Ash said heavily. "It would appear that my judgement is not flawless."
"What did Oak say when you told him you'd watch her?" Mellanie asked.
Ash winced slightly. "I didn't. I told him what he needed to hear in order to back off. I'll explain it to him when I… when we know what we are going to do. But I couldn't have him interfering and putting himself in more danger. Sonia can be kept at a distance for now. She cannot do any damage on Mystery Island."
They continued for a few more minutes until Ash stopped in a small clearing and looked around.
"This is far enough into his territory." Ash said. "We can get a reaction here. Are you ready Mellanie?"
"Yes." She said pulling a Pokéball of her belt. She then glanced at Ash and found him gazing around, not touching his own belt. Neither Espeon nor Pikachu were around either, which was unusual. He rarely travelled without either of them.
"Ash, which Pokémon are you going to use to face Gliscor?" Mellanie asked.
Ash didn't look around, his face turned away from Mellanie. "So you realized did you?" he asked.
"You haven't got Espeon or Pikachu with you." Mellanie said, her voice hushed. "And I'm beginning to think that you haven't got any Pokéballs with you either."
"Very good Mellanie." Ash said as he turned around, the lack of Pokéballs at his waist more clear now that Mellanie had noticed. "You took longer than I thought to notice but you did notice. I brought you here for more than just back-up."
"You need me to bring out Gliscor." Mellanie said, her face turning pale.
"Yes." Ash said. "I need somebody who will bring my opponent to me and get out of the way."
"Then who will face him?" Mellanie whispered.
Ash smiled, the expression on his face almost feral. "I will."
A/N
Firstly I should apologise for missing a couple of weeks' worth of updates. Suffice it to say, I've been busy. But more on that in a moment.
I know that I have a record of vanishing from the last story, and for the most part you as readers are pretty understanding, far more than I really deserve. Yet the person (I won't name you) that started threatening me in a review, it isn't really funny. Saying I had better be in a coma for not updating? Really? I could rant about this, but I'm going to try to avoid it. This review just pissed me off if I'm completely honest. Also, ruined any desire I have to write. So I'll try to get a chapter out next week but I wouldn't hold your breath. I'd expect it to be the week after, and perhaps I'll have some motivation back.
Anyway, onto the usual reasons for these notes, answering reviews that don't piss me off.
Jaguarspot – Yes, I still take reviews in other languages. Feel free to try and beat Google Translate. You are right, idioms and slang will usually defeat it. Good luck to you!
I've also had a few questioning the motives of Sonia and how Ash can be so trusting. Ash is not completely flawless, but as one person guessed, he is very good at "playing the game".
Till next time, most likely a couple of weeks,
Iama2p