A/N: Thanks Julie Togepi. As for why Ash couldn't just say who he was, well, he didn't want to start negotiations with the idea that they were dealing with a kid. DaniJIE, Ash was pretty much chosen partly because he was just there at the right time and partly due to other reasons. I don't know much Spanish and hardly remember what I learned.

Now, two things. First of all, I've changed the first chapter. I have had feedback that the intro wasn't that good, and so something I was going to put into this chapter is now in the updated first chapter. I've only changed the first few lines though before the horizontal rule so you don't need to read the whole thing again, but it is something related to the plot. I'll try not to alter the earlier chapters too much though since it might get confusing.

Secondly, you may have noticed that the picture for this fanfic has changed. In case you're wondering just what that is supposed to be, it is a map of Galea. I had made a hand-drawn one but it didn't work well with uploading so I made this rather less awesome one that looks like it came from paint but sort of gave the idea of what Galea looks like fine, but the problem is when I've put it it is way too small to see. So, if any of you have any clue on how I can put a bigger photo here on fanfiction for people to see, I'm all ears.

In the two days following Arough's surrender, there hadn't been any major incidents.

That's simply another way of saying that while there were three dozen complaints of graffiti, four of theft (these were put down rather quickly), twenty-seven bar brawls, and approximately thirteen dozen counts of littering against Ash's siege party, but nothing overly serious.

After all, it had been difficult to hide Ash's identity for long, and when it eventually came out there wasn't a rebellion… or at least not a full-scale one. It was becoming increasingly obvious to the citizens of Aroughs that they had seemingly overestimated and overreacted to the threat at their gates.

The threat of Ash's Gym Badges were more than enough to prevent any further resistance, however. But he hadn't used them up till then, and out of sight frequently equaled out of mind.

"We should probably leave," Ash said, voicing his opinion on the matter to Duke Hamnet and Gulliver.

They were standing near the silos, with Ash's Roserade training against his Pikachu. Roserade kept shooting out vines with increasing speed, with Pikachu trying to dodge all of them. The sun had hardly come up from beyond the horizon a few minutes ago and the crackle of the whip echoed across the presently empty streets- empty, that is, save for the three of them.

"I mean, we should be able to get the grain out soon," Ash said. "And I don't like staying here for too long."

"I have to say I agree," Duke Hamnet said.

Duke Hamnet's earlier idea was to leave a small garrison to man the city while they moved on to a different place, but he had underestimated both how much grain the city could yield and how hostile its citizens were.

"How long will it take for us to get what's left and get out?" Ash asked.

"Only another day or so," Duke Hamnet said.

"In that case, we should split up," Ash said. "I'm guessing you guys can make the way back on your own with all the grain, and then I'll go on ahead with some people to track down Linnea and battle her like we did with Thomdolt."

"Sounds like a plan," Gulliver said. "Can't see what could go wrong with that."

Just then, a huge screeching noise echoed across the city. Several drowsy people peeked out of their windows, wondering what it was.

"What was that?" Ash asked. His Roserade and Pikachu had stopped training once they heard the noise and were now glaring at the nearby citadel.

The source of the noise was easily discovered: ever so slowly, the huge gates to the citadel were opening. There were several cries of a Pokemon.

"What was that?" Duke Hamnet asked.

"It sounded huge," Gulliver muttered.

Ash whipped out his Pokedex, which read the cry and began speaking: Mamoswine, the Twin Tusk Pokemon. Mamoswine is the evolved form of Piloswine. Capable of withstanding the fiercest frost storms, this Pokemon is also capable of generating huge earthquakes and whipping up large blizzards.

Duke Hamnet looked alarmed. "They're going to attack!"

"What makes you so sure?" Gulliver asked, taking out a Pokeball.

"I don't think they're opening the doors with a horde of Pokemon to surrender Gulliver," Ash said.

"It's not just that," Duke Hamnet said. "Mamoswine aren't found in Linnea's territory, meaning they were likely imported from Vanessa's region."

"Why do you look so worried?" Ash asked, noticing that Duke Hamnet was sweating like, well, a Mamoswine on a sunny day.

"The reason, I'm guessing, that they chose the Mamoswine is because they're terrifying when used in hordes," Duke Hamnet said. "And I guess because they think we'll be unused to them."

"But what makes them think they can beat us?" Ash asked.

"Maybe they don't know you're here," Gulliver said. "I mean, people have been seeing reflections from telescopes from the place for a few days. They probably don't know what you really look like and didn't see the Badges do anything."

Ash began forming a battle strategy as another wave of sounds came towards them, but then quickly realized that none of his Pokemon were suited for dealing with them. His Roserade was weak to Ice, his Pikachu's Electric attacks were ineffective against a Ground-type Pokemon, his Arcanine was similarly weak to Ground attacks, and his Fearow to Ice. His Haunter and Grimer were similarly ill-suited for this battle.

To his side, Duke Hamnet had sent out his Altaria and Gulliver his Pidgeotto (his Pidgey had evolved just the day earlier). Ash gritted his teeth- neither of those would last long against an Ice type.

The doors finally opened up to reveal five Mamoswine, each decorated to the very tips of its tusks with various ornaments. Their tusks were died purple, and what looked like some sort of chain mail was draped across their backs. They were adorned with golden chains that clanked as they moved, and their riders were also completely decked in armor with plumed colorful helmets and each waving the flag of Aroughs in hand- a Kricketune holding a sword on a red background.

Somewhere from inside, several trumpets blared.

The whole thing looked pretty impressive, Ash had to admit.

Regardless though, in an instant he decided that his Roserade would be the best choice. And he remembered that most of their opponent's Pokemon were probably weak.

The riders urged their mounts to charge and the ground shook as the five Mamoswine moved in unison.

"Petal now Roserade Blizzard!" Ash mumbled out in incorrect order, though apparently his Roserade could tell what the command was and used the move anyway.

The end result of the storm of petals was that despite their armor (which seemed mostly for show) two of the Mamoswine fainted while three were left damaged.

This didn't stop the riders though, who continued onward and shot Ice Beam attacks that Duke Hamnet's Altaria barely dodged.

Ash breathed a sigh of relief and ordered another Petal Blizzard, bringing down the rest of their foes. It seemed that they really weren't all that powerful, and the Mamoswine's riders immediately surrendered once they realized they were defeated, though as they took off their helms, Ash couldn't help but notice that they didn't seem to be too unhappy that they had failed.

And it was then out of the corner of his eye that he barely registered a flicker of movement, and he reflexively turned his head to see a young man, bereft of armor, moving on what appeared to be a shadow towards the silos.

And, in his hands, he carried red sticks what looked remarkably like-

"Explosives!" Gulliver shouted and pointed.

The man ignited one of them with ease and moved his hand to throw one.

Ash almost felt time stop as he reached for his Badges, and, drawing from their power, willed the world to change in a way that more suited what he wanted.

The stick of what looked like dynamite extinguished, and all of the others fell away from him and scattered all across the floor. His mount, which turned out to be a Haunter, froze, looking scared.

"Thunderbolt," Ash said, and the Haunter didn't know what hit it as it was defeated.

Ash breathed in, he had to admit that this somehow felt good- though that did slightly disturb him that he was enjoying this somehow.

The guy didn't quit easy, Ash had to give him that. He kept trying to go for the rest of the dynamite as Duke Hamnet and Gulliver tried to stop him and ultimately had to be knocked unconscious so he wouldn't cause any more trouble.

The people inside the citadel tried to close the doors again, but Ash decided to stop this this time by jamming the gears with his Badges.

Before heading in though, they decided to interrogate the five riders, you know nothing much, just a couple of polite questions, a cup of juice, and the threat of a shock from Pikachu if they didn't cooperate.

From that they learned that Linnea had ordered that Edmund had to prevent them from getting the grain, and so after watching the surrounding area with no evidence of the enemy's commander, they decided to perform a gamble with some explosives they still had and the Mamoswine.

"Huh," Ash says. "That means, from what they're saying, that Linnea still hasn't told them what I really look like. You'd think that she'd at least tell her commanders the truth."

"Well, the thing with propaganda is that it has to seem real," Duke Hamnet said. "And I guess she may not trust Edmund that much, or maybe she thinks that her commanders will do a better job if they fear you. She also might be afraid that Edmund might simply sign a deal with you if he knew the truth and thought you could be trusted."

"So, then what should we do?" Ash asked. "I mean, do we wait for backup, or should we just walk in?"

Duke Hamnet scratched his chin. "I'm confident that we can take it, especially with the Badges… but it might still be prudent to have a couple of our soldiers as reinforcements."

"But, the more people we bring- it's more likely someone gets hurt, right?" Gulliver said. "And then Ash can't protect 'em all with his Badges if they're too many…"

"Good point," Ash said. "I guess the best thing would be for me to go in alone. You two stay out here."

Now, both Gulliver and Duke Hamnet seemed uneasy at that, considering the fact that if something did somehow happen to Ash, they'd be stuck with no commander and no feasible way of defeating what would be left in Aroughs, and (mostly in Gulliver's case) because they cared about Ash.

Ash decided to override these objections and walked towards the gates. The citadel's door was present thirty feet above the ground, with the ramp that lead to it having been withdrawn. Normally this would have served as extra protection that Aroughs would have sourly needed, but it was of very little use against Ash, as were the numerous slit-holes in the door that could be used for firing either arrows or Pokeballs.

Ash forced the doors open and they crashed against the walls with a noise that echoed all across the citadel's courtyard. He heard several shouts from inside, indicating that the people there probably knew that something was going wrong.

Ash withdrew his Roserade and Pikachu and instead released his Fearow which he used to fly up towards the door. He then switched out his Fearow for his Arcanine.

Walking through the citadel reminded him of walking through a sort of maze. The doors and stairways were all confusing, probably as a further method to deter any invaders.

The rooms, a few of them at least, were nicely decorated with tapestries depicting battles that Ash had probably either never heard of or had heard and forgot several minutes later. For the most part though the place gave a cold, foreboding feeling.

Ash met a lot of people, but most of them either ignored him completely thinking he was a child, while the others saw his Arcanine and fled as they put two and two together.

After what seemed like hours, Ash found himself growing tired. He hadn't managed to get anywhere, and the only interesting thing that had happened was when a couple of soldiers confronted him with their Pokemon- but they had been swatted aside like Magikarp before a Raikou.

Ash wasn't sure what to do when he started hearing the pattering of footsteps and the sound of activity. He whipped his head and noticed the sound seemed to be coming from the nearby wall… but there was no door there. There were definitely a lot of people there though.

Still, it had piqued his interest enough for him to want to investigate, but he wasn't about to spend hours wandering the citadel looking for a way in, so, just this once he decided to use the Badges to melt a hole in the wall.

The noises from the other side intensified as the bricks melted away dripped towards his feet, though oddly enough it didn't seem to burn through the sole of his shoes and didn't seem to bother Arcanine's paws either.

The gaping hole in the wall revealed over two dozen soldiers standing in front of a door. Some of them were holding Pokeballs and others were wielding crossbows.

"Halt!" the guy who looked like he was in charge said. "Who goes there?"

"Uh, well," Ash began as someone pressed the trigger on their crossbow and shot a bolt at him.

It stopped dead in mid-air two inches from his chest and fell to the ground, but it still nearly made him swallow a lung in shock.

"I'm Sir Ash," Ash said quickly without wasting further time. "I think- I mean, you guys just did try to blow up the silos right? I'm here to, ah, take the citadel. So if you'd just surrender, I won't have to hurt any of you."

The whole thing instantly sounded lame to Ash the moment it left his mouth, and out of the corner of his eye he could tell that his Arcanine didn't think too much of it either. It carried none of the weight that Duke Hamnet's words had.

Someone besides the person who had spoken earlier walked two paces forwards. "Look, child, I'm not sure who you're trying to fool, but we have information on what this barbarian Ash looks like-"

"And it is all lies," Ash said.

"-and we've been charged the task of guarding Lady Alarice," the guy continued, apparently not caring for what Ash had said. "She's governed Aroughs for over two decades."

"And she's done a fine job of it too!" someone else shouted to nods of approval.

"So we're not going to back away or surrender, no matter what you think you and your pet can do," the guy said. "So, I'd really just back off if I were you, and we won't have to hurt you."

"You can't even if you tried," Ash said. He tapped his foot as he considered what to do next. On the one hand if Lady Alarice wasn't even in charge, it didn't really make sense to barge in on her room. On the other hand, she might've known something, and though he had heard that she was sick, he guessed it wouldn't have hurt to pay her a visit. Plus, she might know where her soon was hiding.

"Fall asleep," Ash said to his Badges and the soldiers, all at once, found their eyes rolling into their heads as they fell to the floor, snoozing.

Ash managed to get the door open pretty easily too.

Inside, he was greeted to a large, well-decorated room that looked like something straight out of Parfum Palace in Kalos.

Before he could take in much of the room though, there was a scream as some of whom he guessed were Lady Alarice's servants screamed as they saw him and the soldiers on the floor.

Ash ignored them as he saw the person lying in bed.

While he had been told that Lady Alarice was sick, he had never quite imagined something as grim as what lay before him. He was sure that there was no way a noble would have been as thin as she was, and her face was as red as a tomato which contrasted with how pale the rest of her skin was.

Strangely enough though, unlike everyone else in the room she seemed to be happy to see Ash. "Oh, there you are, Sam, I was wondering where you had run off to."

Ash had no idea who Sam was, but he couldn't think of anything to say.

"And Sam, while you're out again don't forget to take your lunch pail with you, it wouldn't do to go hungry again," Lady Alarice said with a smile that, if not for her illness, would have been a very heartwarming and loving one. 'Lunch pail?' Ash wondered. Had Alarice been a farm girl earlier?

As it stood, the whole thing just made Ash feel pretty bad about breaking in. But it wasn't like he couldn't make it better.

Ash approached the bed and there were gasps from the servants and he could tell that some of them were probably thinking of attacking him, regardless of how futile it would have been. So, he stopped right there.

Now, while the Badges might have kept him immortal and free from disease, he had heard that their powers on healing other people were more limited, but he guessed it wouldn't hurt to try. "Heal. Be well," Ash said.

It definitely had some effect on her as her face no longer looked so red and the color returned to her skin. She stopped looking at Ash so fondly and now her eyes moved between him and the Arcanine, looking confused as to who they were. It seemed to be too much for her right now though, and she fell asleep.

"He's killed her!" one of the maids shouted.

"She's just asleep," Ash said. "I think she'll be fine. Or at least better. Anyway, I'm Sir Ash and I'm here to force Sir Edmund to surrender. I don't want to harm him, so do tell me where he is before I have to force it out of one of you."

Most of them seemed adamant on keeping their mouths shut, but one rather young butler blabbed that there was staircase just round the corner which led to where Sir Edmund was.

And so began perhaps the least exciting stand-off of Ash's life.

Sir Edmund was barricaded in a room which was really of no hindrance with Ash's Badges, yet again, and was inside what looked like a throne room with what looked like a good hundred soldiers with him.

Ash made sure his Badges were visible and asked Sir Edmund to surrender and stop trying to blow food up.

Sir Edmund responded by pointing at Ash and saying, "The boy is a pretender! Kill him! Whosoever stops him shall have a third of my treasure. Consider that a promise!"

Of course the soldiers weren't able to do any actual harm to Ash, and with Sir Edmund looking so uncooperative, Ash decided to knock him out.

"He killed him!" someone shouted.

"Why does everyone keep thinking people are dead?" Ash asked. "He's just asleep!"

Once things had calmed down as the resistance was almost non-existent without their leader, he made sure to send a messenger to Duke Hamnet to explain what had happened.

A/N: Thank you for reading, and do review if you liked.

Honestly speaking, I've always wanted to write about a siege which prompted this part of the story, and I hope you've enjoyed it. If not, well, it will be over next chapter and we'll be back on track with the story's original rhythm.