Chappie five, finally! A big thanks as always to everyone who reviewed (and also to those people who added favourites and alerts) as without them I tend to forget I have a story to write. More plot here, more action, and a more reasonable length - enjoy!

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A Different Kind of Soulmate

Chapter 5: Mountain

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"It's big."

"Pi."

Ash and Pikachu stared up at the towering mountain in front of them, confidence slowly draining. Ash couldn't even see the top from where he was standing; the clouds circled around the peak in an idyllic but fearsome sight. Both Ash and Pikachu knew they should start climbing, but neither was able to look away from the towering giant. So they continued to stare up at the clouds, eyes wide with awe.

"It's really big."

"Pi."

"Why didn't the professor say it was this big?"

"Pichuka."

"I would too have listened!"

"…"

"Okay, maybe I wouldn't have, but still…" Ash trailed off, still fascinated by the mountain. "It's big."

Pikachu finally tore her eyes away from the mountain thanks to the Master's recent display of intelligence. She looked at Ash, saw the dazed look in his eyes and gave him a shock.

"Ow!" Ash yelped, eyes immediately falling to Pikachu. "That one hurt!" Pikachu looked at him with only a tiny hint of guilt before jumping down and leading the way up the mountain. Ash followed at a slower pace, struggling with his heavy pack.

Pikachu eventually slowed to Ash's speed and they proceeded up the mountain at the best pace the trainer could manage. The bag, loaded with all their gear and supplies, was cumbersome, but for the first few hours it was only a slightly steep incline up the mountainside. Occasionally the travelers would slip on the pebbles that covered the ground, but thankfully Ash never fell and he was always there to catch Pikachu. They saw a few spearows fly past as they struggled uphill, but no other pokemon. Finally they reached the point where the mountain began proper, and took a lunch break before continuing.

With a strong determination to reach the top the team began their real climb. Ash scrabbled through loose pebbles and clawed his way over the small cliffs while Pikachu raced ahead to determine the best way up. With her directing him, Ash was able to find the safest and fastest route, but it was by no definition easy. After an hour of very slow progress, Ash was close to collapse. But he struggled on, determination and stubbornness overriding his common sense. Finally Pikachu realized his condition and forced him to stop, and they took a rest on a small ledge with a view down the mountainside.

This proved to be a mistake, as they could plainly see how little distance they had covered in hours of hard work. Disheartened but still determined, they continued on with renewed vigor after a long rest, this time working with many more breaks.

This new strategy allowed them to cover more ground, but they still had only come a short ways when night set. Both exhausted and unused to such hard work, it was all they could do to locate a small overhang for shelter and unpack Ash's sleeping bag. Ash was asleep as soon as his head hit the pillow, still half-in, half-out of the bag. Pikachu likewise fell asleep as fast as physically possible, curled up comfortably in the crook of Ash's elbow. And so pokemon and trainer slept like the dead while the stars, pinpricks of light in the darkness, watched over them.

The second day was spent in much the same fashion as the first. After a good breakfast and many complaints from Ash about how he had slept funny, they tackled the mountain once more. They followed the same system as the day before; short bursts of climbing with many breaks in between. They covered more ground that day, but that might also have been due to the fact that Ash's bag was a lot lighter, having been relieved of some of the food it had contained. Still, when they stopped for the night they were not even halfway to the top. Despite this, they halted early—which meant before they were completely exhausted and drained—to take advantage of a cave Pikachu had stumbled across.

The cave was small but stable and dry. It was small enough that light could reach most of the shadows, and it had interesting stalagmites as well as stalactites in the back. But most importantly, it was empty. Both pokemon and trainer had done a thorough search of the place, and when neither check had turned up anything living, Ash decided it was a good place to stop for the night. As he prepared their dinner and sleeping place, Pikachu stood outside the cave thinking and staring at the moon.

"Pika pikachu," she commented from outside. Ash glanced over from where he was stirring the soup that they were to have for dinner. His friend was standing on the ledge outside, the moonlight giving her an ethereal glow.

"That's right," he replied to the pokemon's observation. "It's been almost a week, hasn't it? Tomorrow night's the full moon." Pikachu's only response was to give herself a shake, as if to cast off an unwanted realization. This caused her fur to ripple in the moonlight, making it look silky smooth and shiny. "You look really pretty out there, Pikachu," Ash complimented, trying for a lighter subject. "Almost magical."

"Pika!" Pikachu thanked, looking back and smiling at her trainer, eyes twinkling in the moonlight. Ash smiled in return and went back to stirring the soup while Pikachu, unwilling to join her trainer just yet, turned back to the moon.

She stared up at the pockmarked orb on its background of stars and left the mountain behind. All she knew was the night sky, and really she could be anywhere. She could be back at Oak's lab with Ash, awaiting challengers, or at the Cerulean City gym visiting Misty, or at Mt. Silver in Johto training, or…back with the wild Pikachu clan.

Pikachu's eyes sparkled as she looked up at the moon and remembered that night. She didn't regret her decision to remain with Ash, not by a long shot, but sometimes she did miss certain things. She had never been willing to be trained, and even after she accepted Ash it was only because she respected and liked him, not because she wanted to be the property of a trainer. That attitude had mellowed over time; she no longer hated trainers or humans in general, and there was no doubt in her mind that she loved her life with Ash. But still there were some things she missed. The freedom and self-sufficiency that a wild pokemon possessed, the tight-knit community of a wild clan, the company of many others besides one very close friend…and especially the hope of one day, maybe, finding that special partner in life, the partner that Ash could never be: a mate.

Pikachu had never been one who dreamed of a family, of raising tinier versions of herself. She possessed the maternal instinct alright—caring for and rescuing Togepi so many times had proven that—but she had never really been into the whole kid thing. But the partner aspect…that appealed to her. The idea of a lifetime companion, someone who was her match in every way possible, who was exactly her equal and would always be there right by her side…

Pikachu knew when she was captured that she would never have that. She also knew what her decision to stay with Ash instead of the wild clan meant. But she had still made the decision, and would do the same if given the choice again. Ash was her family, her clan, and she was usually content with that.

But now, looking at the moon as it hung almost full in the night sky, she found herself wishing that things could be a little different—that she could have it both ways. And so Pikachu did what felt right, her way of melding her two possible lives into one for the moment. She began to sing.

Ash stopped ladling the cooling soup into their bowls upon hearing the soft notes from outside. His gaze locked onto the figure gently swaying at the mouth of the cave, the moonlight playing softly on her shining fur, and listened.

"Pi, pika pikachu, pi pi. Ka pikachu. Pi, pika pikachu, pi pi. Ka chaaa. Pi, pika pikachu, pi pi. Ka pikachu. Pi, pika pikachu, pi pi. Ka chaaa."

Ash's eyes fell as he recognized the song. It was the same one that Pikachu had sung with the wild pikachu clan years ago, at the very beginning of their journey. The reminder of that night brought back painful memories, and he winced as he realized the only possible reason for her singing: she was lonely, lonely for others of her kind. Ash sighed to himself. They had already been through this, and though it had been a heart-wrenching experience for them both, at the end of it Pikachu had informed him in no uncertain terms that she wanted to stay with him. Ash trusted that this was still true; it was that or become completely lost without his best friend. Still, maybe it was time to pay the wild pikachu a visit.

Satisfied with his conclusion and confident that she would tell him if anything was wrong, Ash watched in peace as Pikachu finished her song. The half-full bowls of soup sat forgotten on the floor beside the pot, cooling rapidly in the night air.

"Pi pi, ka pikachuuu…"

Pikachu breathed out the last notes of her song, eyes still centered on the moon. After a few more moments' reflection and fantasizing, she turned her back on the moon and the life it represented and ran back into the cave. She immediately leapt into her surprised trainer's arms, rubbing her cheek affectionately against his. Ash hugged her in response, laughing, and she cooed back. Finally she simply closed her eyes and rested her head on his shoulder, breathing deeply. This was her Ash, her trainer, her best friend…her family. And, while not perfect, her non-pikachu family was enough for her once again.

Suddenly Pikachu heard a crumbling noise and her eyes shot open. Ash whirled around and Pikachu jumped out of his arms to be able to face whatever it was. The pair watched in awe as a green light began to shine through the wall of the cave, sending down a rain of small rocks in the process. It shimmered in a curtain of green, cutting like a fearsome blade through the solid rock wall. The light grew brighter and brighter until Ash had to shield his eyes, and then as suddenly as it had come it was gone, snuffed out like a candle flame. Ash and Pikachu remained perfectly still, not daring to move, and for the moment it seemed the world was holding its breath. And then the wall collapsed.

The resulting dust cloud forced Ash and Pikachu to retreat outside the cave where they waited with varying degrees of impatience for the air to clear. Eventually clear it did, and they cautiously ventured back inside. Where the wall had once stretched on seamlessly was now a gaping hole as high as the ceiling and about a meter wide. The destructive light seemed to have completely demolished the segment, and there were no chunks of rock left at all, only thousands of tiny pebbles. The newly created doorway was clear.

For a moment the friends could only stare, awed and a bit disturbed by the destructive power they had just witnessed. Then Ash, with his usual brand of reckless bravery, plunged through the new doorway. Pikachu trailed behind him with more caution.

Finding himself in complete darkness, Ash reached out in front and relied on his sense of touch to navigate. To his surprise he encountered a wall almost immediately, and what made it even more surprising was that it was smooth. Curious, he trailed his hands along the surface and found himself in some sort of tunnel. The ceiling was just above his head and a quick check of the ground showed a floor as smooth as the walls. Ash paused in puzzlement and listened to Pikachu doing her own check behind him. That the tunnel was manmade or something-made was obvious; but why? And how did the light break down a wall that should never have existed?

With that last thought he hit upon an easy answer to a confusing problem. He came to the conclusion that the wall had been a pokemon-created illusion to hide a secret passageway, and the light had simply destroyed the image. Although this didn't click with a lot of things—the dust, the pebbles, the utter reality of the wall—Ash accepted the answer for now as a way to assuage his curiosity while the truth could not be found.

Satisfied for the moment, Ash continued down the tunnel and only jumped slightly when Pikachu decided that his shoulder was safer than the floor. He kept his hands to the front and one side to avoid any unpleasant surprises as he walked. Presently he felt the tunnel curving, and after a particularly sharp bend he found he could detect a glimmer of light. Encouraged, he sped up and soon rounded the last bend in the tunnel.

At first it seemed like the tunnel ended in a wall of green, but as Ash's eyes grew accustomed to light again he was able to make out some strange shaped beyond the tunnel wall. Cautiously he stepped out of the tunnel, abandoning the safety of darkness for the clarity of light.

"Woah," Ash breathed, staring at the sight before him in amazement. Pikachu stirred on his shoulder as she twisted around to get a better view.

"Pi…" she whispered softly, echoing her trainer's amazement. Her eyes shone eerily in the soft green glow that filled the cavern. The light was coming from the walls themselves, woven into the rock in a river of pulsing green runes. The runes pulsed to different beats, resulting in a scattered effect as the amount of light varied from second to second in every separate area.

The cavern itself stretched up farther than either human or pokemon could see, ending in darkness. All the way up wound a spiral of stairs, clinging to the wall and circling ever upwards, lit by the green runes. The steps were molded from the mountain itself, carved out with the cavern but left jutting out to form the stairs. They looked sturdy enough although there was no guard rail and nothing that looked like it might provide handholds. Even so, it looked climbable, and Ash realized the hopelessness of any attempt to reach the mountain peak in time by struggling up the side. This odd, magical cavern seemed to be their only chance.

"Well Pikachu, what do you think?" Ash questioned, knowing it was as much her decision as his. If she didn't want to try it, that would be it, and they would try their luck outside tomorrow.

"Chupi," she replied, still considering. "Pikachu pika kachu."

"Right. I don't think we'll make it up in time any other way."

"Chu…"

Sensing Pikachu's hesitance, Ash wandered over to one of the cavern walls. Deliberately he placed a hand on the surface of one of the pulsing runes before Pikachu could realize his plan. To his surprise it didn't burn, or freeze, or shock, or any one of the many unpleasant things that could have happened. Instead it only felt slightly cool to the touch.

"Pikapi!" Pikachu cried in concern when she saw him touch the wall, but paused when her trainer didn't immediately fall down and die. "Pika?"

"See?" Ash said, as if he had known all along that he would be fine. "No danger. Feel it."

With a suspicious glance at Ash Pikachu warily touched a paw to one of the glowing runes. She jumped upon contact in anticipation of something bad happening, but relaxed eventually when nothing did. She poked a few other runes experimentally and found none to be harmful although they were all different temperatures. Finally she withdrew her paw and sat back on Ash's shoulder, gave the room one final glance, and nodded.

"Then it's settled," Ash declare+ed, nodding as well. "Tomorrow we'll give the stairs a try. We might as well spend the night here too. It would be better to find any dangers before we're up there."

"Pi."

With the next day planned, the pair made another trip through the tunnel and back to move all their supplies before settling down to sleep under the gaze of the glowing runes. Pikachu curled up even closer to Ash than usual, and only fell asleep when she was able to block out the eerie light entirely. Ash for his part could not avoid the green glow, but after a time became accustomed to it and eventually began to find it comforting. He hugged his pokemon pal to him and had a restful but anxious sleep, awaiting the trials they would have to face when the sun rose.

(o. o)-/

Pikachu stirred in Ash's arms and poked her head out from its hiding place. Immediately she encountered the green lights and blinked in momentary confusion while her mind struggled to work out where she was. Finally she remembered and narrowed her eyes at the runes suspiciously. She glanced at Ash and found him to be sleeping soundly, apparently none the worse for the night's stay. Pikachu sighed, finding herself to be unharmed as well, and gave the runes a considering glance. Somehow they no longer looked quite as foreboding as they had last night and she was willing to engage in a slightly uneasy truce.

Pikachu's ears twitched, searching for sounds and finding none other than her own breathing and that of her trainer. Her internal clock told her it was only a while past dawn but it seemed that Ash's sense of time was on vacation. He still slept soundly, breathing deeply and showing no signs of consciousness. She suspected that without the sun to rouse him, he would sleep the whole day.

Unwilling to wake him just yet, Pikachu squirmed out of his grasp and jumped down to land lightly on the cavern floor. Ash stirred restlessly at the absence of his friend, but Pikachu cooed softly at him and he quieted. The mouse then turned her attention to the enormous cavern stretching out before them.

She quietly made her way out of the little alcove where she and Ash had decided to sleep and emerged into the cavern proper. The odd runes pulsed at her and she found the effect disconcerting as it created strange shadows that were constantly in motion from the fluctuating light. Ignoring the lighting she continued on toward the center column, one paw after another. Eventually she padded up to the start of the stairs where she paused for a moment, considering. Then she bounced lightly up the first few blocks that served as stairs, happily detecting no movement in the rock beneath her feet.

More cautiously she continued upwards until she had completed a full circuit of the largest area in the cave. Finally she stopped and just took in her surroundings. She had managed to climb at least five meters above the ground, and although there were no handholds or rails to keep her from tumbling down to the stony floor, she felt in no danger of falling. The sturdy rock walls stretched around her and the whole cavern, continuing high above her head. Just thinking about how high it must go was making her feel tiny and insignificant.

She shook her head in a failed attempt to rid herself of the immense weight of the mountain that she now felt crowding in around her. Suddenly she felt alone and vulnerable, a feeling she had not experienced in a very long time. The mystical, enormous cavern was like a physical weight on her chest, crushing the air from her lungs…

With increasing panic Pikachu raced back down the steps, the runes on the walls flying past her in a blur. The ground came up too quickly and she stumbled on the last step, but recovered quickly and was running again. She dashed into the alcove where she had left her trainer and leapt on Ash without a care for his healthy sleep. He jerked awake immediately and shot up out of his sleeping bag, clutching Pikachu instinctively. As his sleep-addled brain struggled to figure where he was and what was happening, Pikachu snuggled into his chest and breathed deeply. The weight disappeared and she felt safe again, protected and definitely not alone.

"What is it?" Ash finally managed, remembering where he was and why. "Pikachu, what happened?" His eyes searched the moving shadows for anything suspicious, but the light was calming and he couldn't detect any danger.

"Pi-pika Pikapi," she apologized, her words muffled by his shirt. "Pikachu pika pika kachu."

"What scared you?" Ash prompted, still searching the shadows, not yet satisfied by Pikachu's explanation.

"Pikacha kapi pikachu."

"But you're alright?" Pikachu nodded and Ash peered outside into the vast cavern. "I guess it is kind of intimidating."

"Chu."

"Well, I'm here now so everything will be alright," Ash assured her confidently with a touch of his old arrogance. "I promise I won't let the mountain fall on you."

"Pika," Pikachu protested, giving him a playful cheek-to-cheek spark. Ash grinned and responded by giving her tail a gentle tug and then setting her on the cavern floor before she could spark again. Her tail twitched and she gave him a half-hearted glare. He merely laughed and began to pack away the sleeping bag in preparation for breakfast.

While Ash was occupied with breakfast, Pikachu ventured back out into the main area of the cavern. The green light intensified as she stepped out of the shelter but she kept moving. Finally she stopped at the edge of the upward spiraling column, and stared up and the towering piles of rock and earth. She could hear the sounds of clattering pots and rustling bags as Ash wrestled with breakfast, and they provided a comforting backdrop to her thoughts. She felt the threatening crush of earth again but drew strength from the common Ash sounds behind her and felt the weight disappear.

Confidence growing again, she stepped out farther into the open cavern, determined to overcome this new fear. The lights on the walls pulsed rhythmically, somehow organized despite their chaotic patterns. The crude steps spiraled ever upwards and Pikachu continued to stare, head tilted and nose pointed to the roof. Finally she could feel herself become accustomed to the sight and lowered her head. She took a deep breath in relief, no longer feeling like she was in danger of being crushed under tons of rock.

"Ow!" Pikachu turned her head curiously as she heard Ash's shout from behind her. He was hopping around the little alcove on one foot, holding the other in his hands. Pikachu shook her head in amazement. How did he manage that?

"Pikapi?" she asked, trotting back to her trainer. Ash produced a small, pained smile.

"I'm fine," he ground out, wincing when he firmly placed his foot back down on the ground. "I just didn't think the floor was that close."

"Pika," Pikachu sighed, and went to check on breakfast. Her own bowl was ready, complete with a slice of cheese from Ash's own meal. Happily she crouched by the bowl and watched Ash, nibbling on the cheese squirrel-style.

The pokemon trainer stumbled over to the block of rock that served as a makeshift table and plopped down beside Pikachu. He grabbed his own breakfast—a simple cheese sandwich—from where he had left it on the rock block and polished it off in a few bites. Pikachu finished her cheese and the small amount of pokefood in the bowl at a more sedate pace while Ash busied himself with packing up the rest of the supplies. Finally Pikachu finished and they were ready to go.

They left the little alcove, Pikachu dashing on ahead of Ash when he stopped to test the stairs. After he had climbed a few and they hadn't immediately crumbled into dust and left him lying in a heap on the ground, he followed Pikachu and the pair began to climb.

Pikachu continued ahead on foot, not wanting to upset Ash's balance, and the amount of concentration needed for the path discouraged any talk. The steps were staggered and randomly shaped; no two were the same size or texture. This made it a tricky task to navigate the stone steps perfectly while knowing that one mistake would end in probable death.

So no words were uttered until, after about half an hour of climbing, Ash suddenly stopped. Pikachu stopped as well, noticing the lack of echoing footsteps.

"Pikachu," Ash began, looking around apprehensively, "Where are all the pokemon?"

"Chu…" Pikachu whispered back, eyes beginning to dart around as well. Ash's comment made her notice once again the immense silence of the place, a silence so thick you could almost feel it. The runes on the walls continued to pulse and glow, the only life-like things beside themselves in the entire cavern. It was unnatural, to say the least. Suddenly the silence, the greenness, became too much and Pikachu had to do something, anything, to break it—

"CHUUU!" she yelled as she loosed a bolt of electricity, sending it across the room to smash into the glowing green runes. Ash and Pikachu watched as the bolt was reflected perfectly by the runes, doing no damage to the wall at all. The jagged yellow slash continued to ricochet down the column, rebounding from one side of the cavern to the other until it was finally grounded and neutralized upon reaching the floor.

"I guess that's why there are no pokemon here," Ash commented finally, breaking the stunned silence that had followed Pikachu's little outburst.

"Pi…" Pikachu muttered in agreement, and with a last glance at where her bolt had disappeared, turned back to the steps in front of her. She began her hopping progress once more and Ash followed behind her, step by uneven step.

(o. o)

Ash toiled up the seemingly endless stairs, eyes glued to the ground. About an hour ago he had ceased to look down from the stairs—they were now too high up for him to think about. And he wasn't even afraid of heights.

It seemed to the Pokemon Master that they had been climbing forever, though in reality it had probably only been a few hours. His whole world now consisted of the rock chunks that served as stairs, the glowing green runes that still plastered the walls, and the sounds of Pikachu scrabbling up ahead of him. There was no natural light in the cavern and so no way to tell whether it was night or day. With this pressure heavy on both their minds, they hadn't stopped to rest since beginning, and although Ash was beginning to feel hungry and tired, he didn't dare stop. As long as they could continue they would; they had to make the summit tonight. And the possibility that the stairs would just end without going anywhere was too horrible to even consider.

Ash slowed a bit and gripped the wall as the blocks he was climbing became thinner. He paused and raised his eyes so he could see Pikachu picking her way carefully along the now-thin ledge. He squinted into the green tinted darkness, and thought he could see the steps growing thicker again up ahead. Relieved, he focused on his path again and continued along the spiraling steps.

"Pika!" Ash's head jerked up at the cry and was in motion even before he realized what the problem was. Pikachu was wobbling on her two back feet as the remains of the ledge tumbled down to the cavern floor. She was now on a much thinner chunk of rock, the edge of the step having given out when she tried to put weight on it. Ash shot forward, uncaring for his own safety, and quickly reached his friend. He reached over from the previous block and snatched up the yellow pokemon, hugging her to him and leaning against the glowing wall in relief.

"Pikachu…" Pikachu whispered, still shaken from her near-death experience. Ash slid down the wall so that he was sitting, his feet hanging off the step. He rested his chin on her head and sighed.

"That was close," he observed, closing his eyes and allowing finally acknowledging what had almost happened. He shuddered and hugged Pikachu closer.

The two remained that way for a few minutes at least before Ash finally relaxed his iron grip on his best friend. Still holding her tightly he got to his feet and began to pick his way along the thin ledge, carefully avoiding the edge and sticking close to the wall.

"Pikachu," Pikachu protested softly. Ash merely shook his head and continued along the thin strip of rock. Eventually he made it to the thicker section without mishap and, after testing the whole section carefully, sat down.

"Pika?" Pikachu questioned as she found herself placed on the rock in front of her trainer. Ash smiled grimly as he swung his green pack of his back.

"I think it's time for a lunch break, don't you?" Ash stated, rummaging around in the bag for food. Pikachu nodded gratefully, knowing it had been her tiredness and hunger that had made her slip up. The two friends settled down to lunch with a new order of priorities, now valuing rest over speed and life over success.

(o. o)-/

A black abyss loomed before the two travelers, representing both doom and salvation. The inky blackness was a relief after the constant barrage of the eerie green light, but the inability of the runes to penetrate the dark depths was threatening at the same time. The runes glowed to either side of the unnatural gateway, familiar and somehow comforting, but refused to shed any light within. The cavern was just as silent as always, but the smaller traveler's keen senses were able to pick up the faint trace of a breeze flowing from the darkness.

Ash and Pikachu hovered in front of the tunnel, hesitant to enter although they knew they had no choice. They both felt the pressure of a whole day spent on the winding stairs, even with frequent breaks, and were eager to see the sky again. But now, accustomed as they were to the strange green lighting, they found themselves hesitant to enter into the new unknown.

Finally Ash recovered his courage and shifted the straps of his pack in a show of readiness. Pikachu leapt up to his shoulder for safety and he walked purposefully toward the shadowed tunnel mouth. Within moments both boy and pokemon were swallowed by the dark.

As with the tunnel at the bottom of the cavern, the inside of this tunnel was oddly smooth but totally dark. The minute Ash entered he had the uncomfortable sense that he had gone blind and was forced to use his sense of touch to navigate. After a number of twists and turns the tunnel began to slope upward. The floor became rougher, allowing for a firmer grip when climbing the now-steep slope. Suddenly it leveled off again, so suddenly that Ash stumbled a bit and made a grab for the smooth and unhelpful wall. Amazingly he regained his balance without help and found he could see again. There was light at the end of the tunnel.

Ash walked faster and burst out of the rock shelter and into the fresh mountain air. He was greeted immediately by a fierce gust of that fresh air that momentarily robbed him of breath and again sent him fumbling for a handhold, this time on the rocky mountainside. He felt Pikachu's claws grip his shirt tighter as the pokemon also felt the rage of the wind.

Eventually they regained the ability to breathe and became accustomed to the fierce gusting. As one they turned and surveyed their current position.

They stood on a small ledge that hung off the side of the mountain. Light from the dying sun shone down on them as dusk fell, blessed and precious after the darkness and unnatural green illumination. Disturbed by Ash's actions, pebbles tumbled off the edge to disappear into the swirling whiteness that hung below their ledge. With a gasp of surprise the friends recognized them as clouds; clouds that they had seen earlier from a completely different vantage point. Sadly the clouds obscured any view that the mountain's peak might have provided, but it also spared them any possible fear that the reality of their height could have induced.

Behind them stood a small cliff; and even as Ash's heart sank at the thought of more climbing he spotted a small set of stairs similar to those within the cavern. The stone blocks wound upward along the cliff face, presenting an easy and quick route to the summit. Confident of success, Ash dashed toward the steps without any hesitance, easily seeing his path in the fading sunlight.

The pokemon trainer quickly topped the small cliff and was left standing on the edge of a large plateau. The top of the mountain leveled off onto a flat rock field dotted with many small boulders. Ash slowly picked his way among the rocks until he was standing in the middle of the plateau, able to see all. He sighed and looked up at the sky, where the sun could still be seen.

"Looks like we're gonna have to wait, pal," he commented to his partner. "The sun hasn't even set yet."

"Chu," Pikachu agreed morosely.

"At least we don't have to do anymore climbing," Ash added as he settled down on the rocky ground to wait.

"Pika!"

Pikachu jumped down from Ash's shoulder and onto his lap, tilting her head up to look at the cloudless sky. Ash watched the setting sun for a moment, surveying the pastel rays it threw across the sky. However he quickly got bored with this pastime and began to search for something else to do. He kicked at one of the closest boulders absently and watched as it rolled away, crashing into another with surprising strength.

Ash frowned; he hadn't kicked it that hard. But as he watched he began to detect slight stirrings from the boulders that had collided. At first he thought he was imagining things, but after a while it became clear that the rocks were actually moving of their own accord. They began to make rumbling noises, and then the boulders around them began to shake too.

By this point Pikachu had realized something was amiss and was now staring at the rocks in confusion as well. Pokemon and trainer sat in the middle of a field of moving boulders, too shocked and confused for the moment to move.

Eventually the rocks stopped their rumblings, but then something even stranger happened. Every boulder seemed to grow rocky muscled arms, and the larger boulders even sprouted legs.

"Pikapi," Pikachu whispered. "Pikachu pika…"

"I know," Ash replied with the same volume. "They're pokemon…and there are hundreds of them…"

The pair could only watch in horror as the boulders became fully awake and one by one turned to stare at them. There was no mistaking the hostility in those eyes. Ash gulped. This couldn't all be his fault, right?

"Graveler," ground out one of the largest boulders. It was glaring at them from within its rocky hide, its four arms held out at its side threateningly. It was crouched a few feet away from Ash, and the pokemon trainer watched it warily.

"Geodude!" the smaller rocks chorused in response. As one they flexed their arms in a united show of strength. Ash staggered to his feet, Pikachu clinging to his shoulder. He slowly turned around in a circle, and quickly realized that they were surrounded.

"Pikachu, you need to get out of here," Ash whispered to his best friend, eyes still locked on the rock pokemon. "If you go now, you'll make it. You'll be safe."

"Pika pi-pikachu!" Pikachu protested angrily. Did Pikapi really think she would abandon him?

"Pikachu, it's your only chance," Ash argued. "You can't do anything against so many ground pokemon. Electric attacks won't work, remember? So you have to go, now while there's still time. I'll distract them for you, but you have to go now."

"Pikapi!" Pikachu shouted angrily. "Pikachu pi-pika!"

"Maybe they won't attack me alone," Ash offered finally. "You have to run, Pikachu. I won't let them hurt you."

"Pikapi, pikachu pi-pika," Pikachu stated firmly in a tone that said the discussion was over. She jumped down to stand at Ash's side, ready to go down fighting.

"Pikachu…" Ash sighed in defeat. "You're too stubborn for your own good."

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed with extra cheerfulness. "Pikachu pika pi chu?"

"Yeah," Ash confirmed, twisting his hat around and adopting a determined expression. "We'll give them a fight they'll never forget."

Suddenly one of the closer geodudes leapt at Pikachu, using its arms as leverage for the jump. Without needing any command, Pikachu responded by hitting it back with her glowing tail. The small rock pokemon fell back into the circle of boulders, crashing to the ground and producing a small dust cloud. The other pokemon watched Pikachu with a grudging respect.

Seeing that the rocks weren't going to attack again immediately, Pikachu took the opportunity to close her eyes and center herself. She knew they would need a miracle to get out of this one, and she was going to do her best to provide one. Stretching her awareness to the sky around the mountain, she began to call a storm.

Ash noticed the dark, wispy clouds beginning to gather above their plateau, and realized immediately what his friend was trying to do. He wasn't sure if it would work against so many enemies, but it was their only chance. As Pikachu continued to work with her element, Ash did his best to look fearsome and keep the wild pokemon away.

Eventually another reckless Geodude found enough courage to risk the electric mouse and attack again. It moved more slowly than its predecessor, more hesitantly, and so Ash was able to intercept it before it hit its target. He caught it in his arms, and while it was still in shock from being stopped and held by a mere human, he used all his strength to toss it back into the circle. Like the one before it, it crashed to the ground, this time hitting a few others as well. The hostile glares intensified, but Ash mustered his courage and glared right back, determined to protect his friend. And the sky continued to darken.

"Grav," muttered the larger rock that had spoken first. In response to its muttered command all the pokemon at the edge of the plateau began to crowd in towards the center. The living boulders slowly formed a solid wall around the pokemon and trainer, cutting off any lingering possibility of escape. Ash noticed but only became more determined to protect Pikachu. No matter what happened, he would make sure she got of this alive.

Suddenly the whole plateau was cast into shadow and a rumble of thunder shivered through the air. The geodudes and gravelers went still, probably wondering at the materialization of a thunderstorm from a cloudless sky within minutes. Ash smiled with pride at his prime pokemon, who was crouching in the same position and frowning in concentration. Her front paws were curled tightly to her chest and her tail was held straight up in the air. Her black-tipped ears were also pointing up towards the storm, twitching occasionally as if she could hear the gathering electricity. And now that Ash thought about it, she probably could.

A boom of thunder cracked above the mountain again, although Ash hadn't seen the original lightning strike. But judging from how the pokemon at the edge of the circle were shifting around nervously, it had been pretty close. Perhaps now they were realizing that this particular pair of travelers was more trouble than they were worth.

At that Pikachu seemed to decide that the storm was good enough, and came out of her trance. Her eyes rose to the rolling black clouds above her head, not giving the enemy pokemon any notice whatsoever. She tensed and Ash knew exactly what was coming next.

"PiikaaaaaCHHUUUUU!" Pikachu cried as she shot a powerful thunder attack up into the heavens. The thick clouds absorbed the shock and for a few moments nothing happened. Then, with everyone—including the rock pokemon—watching in anticipation, there were a few disgruntled rumblings from the overhanging shadows. Only moments later the response lightning bolt shot down out of the sky directly at Pikachu, sparkling blue and singing the air as it passed. The tiny electric mouse took the blow and tried to control the lightning strike, battling with her element just like she had on that fateful day when Ash's dream had hung by a thread. And, like that day not so long ago, she won.

"CHUUUUUU!" she screamed in triumph but, instead of directing the controlled lightning bolt at the enemy pokemon, she shot it straight up and back into the growling storm. She panted at the effort, and a few stray sparks of blue electricity crackled around her body. Ash gaped at his friend, his eyes flickering between her and the storm in surprise and worry.

"Pikachu," he began slowly, "I don't know if that was such a good idea…"

As if in response to Ash's uncertainty, the clouds began to roll even more and booms of thunder with no preceding lightning shook the plateau. Ash gulped and stared up at the storm as the booms of thunder continued. At least the geodudes and gravelers were likewise frozen and wouldn't be attacking any time soon.

"Pikachu pika," Pikachu whispered and moved closer to Ash. "Pika kachu…"

"You think it will be alright?" Ash whispered back, somehow hearing Pikachu even over the terrifying booms. Despite his words there was no anger in his voice, only nervousness. "Do you have any idea what you did?"

"Chuka pi…"

"Okay…we'll just have to stick together, that's all. It can't be that bad."

"Pika…" Pikachu muttered in reply, her eyes scanning the rock pokemon who were slowly creeping back to the edge of plateau. Wild pokemon usually had a sense of when things were about to go terribly wrong, and if one were to judge by the actions of these then something was seriously bad.

"Pi!" Pikachu cried suddenly as a particularly loud crack of thunder interrupted her thoughts and sent her running up to Ash's shoulder. Something about this storm was unnatural, and even though she had created it, Pikachu was frightened. Her trainer spared her a glance and rested a hand on her back comfortingly. But whether the gesture was to comfort himself or Pikachu was uncertain.

There was a last rumble of thunder from the storm that seemed to ripple through the whole ceiling of dark clouds. Then a few sparks of blue electricity escaped from their confines to dance along the underside of the storm. There was utter silence as the whole plateau waited for something, anything to happen and watched the frightening light show. And finally the lightning struck.

The first bolt appeared at the closer end of the plateau where the tunnel had been. It struck the ground with a startling flash and scorched anything nearby, including all the fringe pokemon. A smash was heard just before the next strike, signifying that a pokemon had fallen and was now tumbling down the rocky slope. Ash spared it a tiny moment of sympathy, but the lightning show was now in full session.

The lightning struck randomly around the plateau, and wild pokemon fainted every time it did. Pikachu realized the inevitable and jumped down to the rocky ground in front of Ash. She stared up at the sky, tensing, and waited.

Within a few seconds she got what she had expected. A blue bolt tore down from the sky, only slightly smaller than the one she had successfully deflected mere minutes ago. As she watched the light's progress her mind made a lightning quick decision and she responded at a speed that only an electric pokemon could attain.

"CHUUUUUU!" she yelled, the electricity bursting out of her even before she began her battle cry. Her bolt of yellow sizzling electricity met the lightning halfway down, only inches above Ash's head. Pikachu continued to pour energy into the block and the storm's shock was broken. To Pikachu's great surprise and confusion, her electricity carved a path upward into the blue energy which pooled down around her and Ash to create a dome-like structure. Confused but satisfied, Pikachu cut back on the power, intending to stop the flow altogether. But as soon as she did, the sparkling blue shield flickering threateningly and began to form a lightning bolt once again. Hurriedly she poured more power in, and the shield strengthened.

Ash watched in amazement through the blue wall as the lightning continued to destroy the plateau and everything on it. The storm seemed to be systematically clearing the mountaintop of everything, including the dust on the rocky ground. And Pikachu's shield was something else entirely. Ash flinched as a lightning bolt flashed toward his head, but the elemental shield had deflected the strike even before his knee-jerk reaction was complete. He glanced at his best friend in concern, knowing how draining maintaining the thing must be. Pikachu was crouched on the ground, eyes squeezed shut, and electricity was coming from her in a continuous stream. She appeared to be in a coma-like state although the flow of electricity never wavered. Ash's heart ached for her and he almost reached out to her but thought better of it at the last second, realizing that her intense concentration was the only reason they both weren't already dead.

The lightning continued to rip the plateau to shreds, and the mountaintop was soon barren of all life other than Ash and Pikachu. The blue shield held, but Pikachu began to shake from the strain. Ash could only watch as the storm raged and his best friend got weaker by the second.

Finally the lightning seemed to lose its fury and the amount of strikes decreased until there were no more at all. The dark clouds gave a last disgruntled rumble and began to dissipate, allowing the moon to peek through. But the blue shield stayed up.

"Pikachu," Ash murmured, kneeling to look her in the eye. "It's over. You can stop now."

"Pika?" Pikachu whispered, and her eyes cracked open. Immediately the stream of electricity stopped and the blue shield flickered and died. Pikachu looked around the plateau, dazed, and finally her gaze settled on Ash. She blinked up at him. "Pikapi…" She took a step towards him and promptly collapsed.

So it's a bit of a cliffie...I apologize. But it's only a little one! As always, comments and criticism are appreciated; I have joined the ranks of the review addicts. ;)