Chapter 6 - Suspicion

After the interrupted argument just moments ago, Lucario's doubt on Ash grew even more. The pokémon noted that the teen used the word 'war' even though there were no traces of that happening...for now. "He's hiding something. I'm sure of it. I just need to dig deeper..."

The jackal-like creature ran through the forest with blinding speed; his feet were barely visible by the human eye. In a matter of minutes he was able to reach the village from where he was. Looking around, he could sense the atmosphere growing tenser than before.

Now was a good time to scout for information. And he knew just the place he had to visit. Lucario quickly sprinted towards a house not far from the town, and was soon standing in front of the old gray gate. He didn't bother to knock on the door and instead went straight inside. Closing his eyes, he was happy that he could feel a lone person's aura in the house. The pokémon soon stepped in to a meditation room...and there was a man the same age as his teacher sitting on a flat pillow on the middle. "Sir Trevor..."

The spiky-haired brunette opened one eye and smiled. "Nice to see you here Lucario. Did Aaron send you here?" he asked with a calm tone.

"I came here for your wisdom Sir Trevor."

"Interesting..." he muttered while smirking. "Don't be shy, have a seat." the creature did as commanded and was now resting on the opposite side of his master's old friend. Trevor was known to be very wise, and can normally answer any question you ask of him even though he is quite young. From gossips to facts; being a traveler has earned him a lot of information. Now he normally stays in his own home and meditates because he has grown weary of moving around often. For some reason, Trevor enjoys solving mysteries...whether it would be why an event happened like this or a person's past. He loves to play detective.

"So what have you come to ask Lucario?"

"It's about...Master's new student..." he hated to admit it, but Aaron was teaching Ash how to use his aura...technically making Ash his apprentice. Lucario didn't like that, but he had to at least be specific about who he's talking about.

"You mean Aiden, correct?" the pokémon nodded. He had already considered that asking about Ash's past wouldn't yield many results since it was doubtful that Trevor would know about him anyway. So Lucario thought of other things from the past few days when Ash came in. "He mentioned something to me that didn't sound right. He said something about a war coming to Cameron."

For a few moments, the room was filled with silence except for the usual noises of nature coming from outside the window. "A war..." Trevor mused aloud; breaking the stillness. "The rumors haven't escalated that badly...yet here we have a boy claiming that a war would soon happen. Very interesting indeed."

"Is it really possible Sir Trevor?"

"...far-fetched, but there is a small chance that it may happen." Lucario was surprised with the man's statement. "But...how..? The dark aura users can't create such a catastrophe..!...can they?"

Suddenly, the brunette's smile grew a little bigger. "Lucario, you know about the Forbidden Magic don't you?"

"O-of course. It is common knowledge around the country that it was sealed a long time ago by the Aura Guardians because of the destruction that came with it. But recently with the emergence of the dark aura users, the Forbidden Magic is now reviving itself. If ever one uses its power, it is said that the being's soul and aura will be corrupted and never become pure again. This is why only the Aura Guardians can use Aura Sphere since they have a pure soul." when he said what he had remembered what Aaron told him, a sudden realization hit Lucario. "But that means...Aiden..."

"Let me guess, Aaron's new student knows how to do Aura Sphere." Trevor muttered with a smirk. "This means that his past has a connection with one of the elites of this country. To achieve a pure soul is something that requires rigorous training-"

"T-that's impossible!" Lucario shouted angrily; cutting what Trevor was supposed to say. "Then why is Aaron teaching him? If he does have some connection, then why can't he even manage to do Aura Sensing?"

"Hold on, I didn't say that is the only possibility that we have."

"What do you mean?"

"Did Aiden travel as well before he came to Cameron?" he questioned. The pokémon nodded, and that made Trevor's grin even bigger. It was easy to note that the man was enjoying this. To have a mystery...and to crack it. "Before we discuss about Aiden's past, there's something I was supposed to tell you about Forbidden Magic."

"And that would be..?"

"That very few people know how powerful it really is."

"Everyone already knows that it's dangerous-"

"But do they realize what it can do? Do you know Lucario?" he pressed.

"...honestly, no. Master never told me about that."

Trevor snickered. "It's a dark and cruel spell indeed. It has a long and winding history too. But I'll skip some parts; we have more pressing matters now." the man turned away for a moment and coughed. "You see Lucario, unlike what Aaron teaches you about how to harness your aura; the Forbidden Magic has the power to control another being's soul. Its strength lies to manipulating another to their heart's content. This was made originally for petty purposes like to command several people at once to do a task. But something like this was bound to be used for evil purposes...don't you think? Anyhow, the country was in chaos and blah blah blah then the Aura Guardians saved the day and yada yada yada..." he snickered again. "Simply put, what Aiden said isn't impossible because the dark aura users have the power to drive two opposing forces to fight against each other."

"But why would they do that? There's no reason at all..."

"That will be solved in a later time, I'm quite sure of that." Trevor beamed. "Yet now we have another problem. How did Aiden know of this even though this is supposed to be top-secret information? It could be that he may have over-heard of it from his travels, or he's connected to the dark aura users after all. Or maybe he somehow predicted the war to happen without even knowing how or what caused it hmm?"

"...you're getting too hyperactive Sir Trevor. I think that's enough for today." Lucario muttered as he stood up and bid farewell. The man did the same thing, but now he was more pumped up since he settled down in Cameron...even if the pokémon had already left his house. "Predicted the war huh..." he murmured. "This boy has no past, and no one seems to know anything about him. A total enigma. Yet at the same time shows no threat. Very interesting...it's like he's from a totally different world." Trevor grinned. "I can't wait to see what comes next."

-o-

Unbeknownst to Lucario, Aaron was thinking of the same questions about Ash's past. He knew about the extent of damage the Forbidden Magic can do...and not everybody can just do an Aura Sphere right off the bat. "Who is Aiden really..? He's not an ordinary child that's for sure." he thought.

"Aaron?" Ash's voice snapped the man out of his questions. "What is it Aiden-?" he was taken aback when he saw numerous trees with huge brunt marks that only an Aura Sphere can do. He was more surprised that his student looked like he was about to collapse at any moment. The trainer was taking quick, heavy breaths as he was on the ground with only his arms to keep him up. "C-can we...stop for the day?"

"I only told him to try to let his aura take shape in his hand...not this..." the Aura Guardian mumbled.

"What's wrong Aaron? D-did I...do something wrong?"

"Huh? No! You're doing great Aiden. Much better than I expected." he praised while showing a small smile.

"That's...good..." he replied weakly. "Next time, don't push yourself too hard alright? It's not good to go overboard with using your aura."

"O-okay..."

"Do you want me to carry you back Aiden?"

"N-no! I-I'm fine..." even if Ash said so, Aaron still gestured him for a piggy-back ride. Hesitantly, the boy climbed on and closed his eyes, letting sleep come over him. "Are you planning to miss dinner again Aiden?" his mentor whispered softly. He felt the teen shake his head wearily in response. The man grinned and began to walk back to the castle. "Aaron..?"

"Yes?"

"...thanks."

"...you're welcome Aiden."

A/N : Yay I finally updated! Sorry if it's short compared to the last one and it's sort of confusing...is it? Trevor's kind of like me when I go in to 'deep thinking mode' you see...hmm, maybe I'm over complicating this after all. Anyway, I apologize if it's a little bad since I was having writer's block in some parts...hehe. Yeah, I've sort of noticed the similarities it holds from 'Son of Aura'. That's because this story was created a little after I read all fourteen chapters of that story. (Check it out, it's about Ash and Aaron too...except Aaron is portrayed as Ash's father there.) I think and hope there will be more action in the next chapter. :D

Please review fellow readers! It drives me to add more chapters if you do!