Hey guys, I'm back and I'm bringing chapter 15 with me. Thanks to everyone who has read and reviewed my story so far and I hope you've enjoyed it up to this point. I got such an easy week this week. got Monday off, a halfday on Wednesday, and an assembly day on Thursday. So basically no homework.
jojo298: I'll bring it to you soon, glad you enjoyed it
darkboy18: Well I did my best to make him cold to her, I may have gone a wee bit overboard. But I hope you enjoy it. Also, I had already planned a pretty gruesome scene for all of Ash's revenge kills
Sailor Taichichi Vegeta: He, he. Just you wait, it ain't gonna stay perfect for that long. Bribe him with what? I don't think Ketchup had been invented yet. Yeah Riley's kind of like comedic relief. But he can be serious too. Lance is alive, but not doing much. Well yeah, my football coach runs us like dogs and we hate him during that time, but the result are amazing and we're thanking him afterwards. Hell yes she is.
Andvanceforeverandafter: Thanks, glad you enjoyed the chapter. I update every Friday, if I can I will make an extra chapter, not always as long as the ones i make during the entire week though.
Chapter 15: The Beginning...
He saw the faint shape of a Pokemon flying in the distance. He couldn't make out what Pokemon it was, but it was big and sounded like it came straight from hell. He saw it land somewhere around where the Magma Core and he had fought against the outpost. Maybe it was someone coming to recommission it and they were going to be sending more troops to it. He'd have to take a look later.
Ash turned and began climbing down the way he had got up. He came down and went into the mess hall, keeping to the shadows as to not attract any attention. Ruby was crowded by a bunch of people, the military leaders were at the head tables as usual, and all the platoons were at their designated tables. Except for a few empty spots on each table. He assumed they were the ones hanging around Ruby. He passed the counter that handed out all the food and walked through the door next top it into the kitchens. He grabbed a loaf of bread off the counter and walked out the back entrance into one of the many hallways in the castle. He knew his way to his room though, then second they decommissioned him from the infirmary he walked around the place till he knew it like the back of his hand.
He made his way through the castle, avoiding most people he saw. He had never really been much of a people person. He got into his room and found Pikachu sleeping on his bed. He smiled and scratched Pikachu behind the ears causing the yellow mouse to smile in his sleep. He took out the loaf of bread he had taken and began to eat. The dinner of champions right?
He finished his bread, leaving a small piece for Pikachu, who he might need to blackmail in order for him to stay quiet about what had occurred earlier in the day, and stood up, brushing all the crumbs off him and put his hat on the bureau in the room. He quickly got out of his usual cloths and put on a simple black shirt with the sleeves ripped off and some dark blue shorts. When he first got the shirt to had still had the sleeves but it was too hot to have them on so he ripped them off. At least the sleeves might make a good bandage or rope or something.
He got into bed but left the covers off, it was too hot for that. He lay down staring at the ceiling, unable to fall asleep. More like he didn't want to fall asleep, for only nightmares came with it. And no matter how many times the same nightmare came, it got worse every time. But they got progressively worse ever since he got to the castle, almost two weeks ago. Ash chuckled for a moment and brought his arm over his face, covering his eyes.
'What am I doing here?' Ash thought "I have no more business here, I should be doing jobs, getting money. Not fraternizing with a girl who's got some infatuation with me'. He brought his arm off his head and to his side before turning over 'What's more is now my bastard of a father is staying here. All the more reason to go. And if I stay here for too long, I might get attached to things. That's never a good thing, just more things to lose'
'Alright, time for a new plan. Avoid everyone you can, keep training, leave in a week. Maybe less. Yeah, that's a solid plan' Ash thought. It was simple but solid that's for sure. 'Forget training these platoons, when has this war ever become my problem? I've got my own job, my own path to go on. I'm not here to get mixed up in other people's issues. I suppose that's a little contradictory. As a mercenary that's basically all I do. But I do not get this deep into other people's business'
Ash sighed faced the ceiling again. He finally closed his eyes and allowed his personal hell to wash over him once more.
-Next Morning, Ash's POV-
First thing I noticed is that was it was early in the morning, then I noticed the sweat. At least I didn't remember it this time. I saw Pikachu still sleeping and got off the bed and got dressed in a fresh pair of custom made gear made for me. Amazing what the rich could do in the span of a week. I nudged Pikachu awake, earning a small shock upon contact, but I was used to that at this point. I saw him blink and get up before stretching. I grabbed the small piece of bread off the bedside table and gave it to my half asleep friend who began to nibble on it Once he was down I grabbed my pack and left the room.
Once I got to the lower levels I grabbed an apple from the kitchen and left into the mess hall. The chefs in the kitchen never really minded me just grabbing whatever I wanted. No one had ever questioned me nor protested against it so I just kept doing it. There were less shadows to hide myself in the mess hall, well, it was generally dull outside because the sun wasn't even over the horizon yet. But still, I moved unnoticed to the few people that were present, them being half asleep as well. I exited the mess hall through the main door an proceeded to leave the castle, not wanting a confrontation with anyone. I waved to the archers stationed atop the wall as I exited the gate, making sure they knew I was out but would be back.
I was halfway into the forest by the time I started eating the apple. It was pretty good, but I had never been one to complain about how something tastes. I had eaten meat raw for a good portion of my life so something like over charred steak was nothing to even blink about. At least it was cooked. I saw Pikachu looking at the apple and I gave it up to him. He took a bite front the other side and took a few more before handing it back down to me. He had jumped on my shoulder the second we left my room. Probably just didn't want to move too much. we had finally reached a nice big tree in the middle of the woods where we wouldn't be disturbed.
Pikachu jumped off my shoulder and began to charge up a lot of electricity. It was his way of warming up before training, then he began releasing thunderbolts in rapid succession, working on the release time of his attack. I put my bow and my quiver down and drew two of the five knives I have. Four for throwing or close combat and the one Meowth gave me. I began hacking and slashing at the tree, scarring it, stripping it of all bark just like I have done to so many others.I was solely focusing on attack speed. I was slower than Ruby, he just can't execute his attacks as well as he could and he can't adjust to a new style of combat. If you try a different method against him after fighting him for a little, he will have a much more difficult time retaliating. Fortunately for him most people only focus on mastering one specific way to wield whatever weapons they have. Few master two, or even try to learn a second. Partly because they don't have the time and partly because it's hard to switch from using one style you've used your entire life to a different one.
Most people would say "just learn two styles at the same time". Yeah, easier said than done. One style can use your arm strength to put force behind each attack and another one can us your wrists or things like spinning around to create torque to increase the speed of the attacks. It's very difficult to learn two skills at the same time.
My solution is to learn different styles with different weapons. I use my arms to put a lot of force into my strikes when I use my sword, but with my knives I use my speed to get up close and get off multiple attacks before my opponent can counter. It doesn't always work but it makes it easier to beat most opponents. By the time I was done using my knives the tree began bleeding sap.
Arceus, trees must hate me.
I shook my head to get rid of my fatigue. I walked back till I was thirty yards away and then I threw my knives into the tree, aiming for a certain point on it. Only two hit their mark. I sighed at the lack off accuracy, maybe I could ask Thomas for some tips. Or maybe even Matt... okay so maybe not Matt. That guy seems like the kind of man you don't want to meet alone in an alleyway. Then again, if you meet anyone alone in an alleyway then you're are probably getting mugged, or raped, or murdered, or kidnapped. You get the idea, you don't want to be in an alleyway alone with anyone, not even your kid.
I saw two girls running away from some guards on the rooftops in Mossdeep City. Kate and Liza were their names, they were identical twins. I heard them saying how they were going to get through this and they'd both be fine in the end. One tripped and was hanging one to a ledge calling for they other, but her friend turned around and said "shut up bitch" and stepped on her hands. The girl fell to her death before me, she landed at my feet. The other one turned around and began running away.
She took and arrow through the throat four steps away from the spot. Karma's a bitch.
Ah yes, all the distrust and betrayal that happens in this day and age. It's good fro business, but bad when you aren't doing work. Hence why I am always doing something to keep me from getting in a situation like that. However, it seems that I haven't been doing that recently, time to get back on track. I continued my practice till I could feel my clothes sticking to my body. I stopped and turned around to take a short break, to see May sitting on a rock with a towel watching me with Pikachu on her lap. Lazy bastard
I sighed "What are you doing here?" Yeah, that was good. Harsh and to the point, just like it should be. But she seems unaffected by the lack of compassion in my voice. She smiled "Just watching you" she tilted her head a little to the side. "I'm going to have to ask you to return to the castle. Until I am relieved of my services you are still under my protection. Being out here is a danger to your health" I said before turning back to begin attacking the tree again. "Oh come on, there's no one around so you can loosen up" May said
I froze at that. When the hell did she start speaking to me like I'm her friend? I have no friends, I have comrades, and business associates. Pikachu is the only friend I have and the only friend I need. I gritted my teeth, time to set this straight. I turned back around "Miss Maple, I am your bodyguard for the time being and solely your bodyguard. Anything outside of a professional manner is prohibited"
I saw the smile fall off her face "What do you mean? What's the matter with you Ash?" May asked, standing up and causing Pikachu to fall to the ground and grumpily walk over to Ash
"Do not call me by my name. I am a mercenary called the Ranger, you will refer to me as such. I will however allow you to refer to me by any other name is allowed as long as it is professional. Even "sir" is acceptable" I said.
"Ash?"
"I'm sorry are you talking to me?"
"Ash what's the matter?"
"I don't see any ashes around here. Do you?"
"Ash please sto-"
"Stop calling me by my name" I said firmly "You are my employer, I am your employee, for now. My name is supposed to be confidential, however I shall assume that it was the leader of the Magma Core that gave you this information. I will have to reprimand him for it"
"As-... sir, why are you acting in such a professional manner? What changed from yesterday?" May asked, hurt evident in her voice
"It has come to my attention that my actions have been questionable to say the least. It isn't a good idea for these... unprofessional actions to continue, for either of us"
"But, what about yesterday? You kissed me"
"I believe it was you that initiated it and I was... not in the right state of mind" I sighed and took off my hat, finally dropping my business facade "Look May, it's a bad idea. I'm a contract killer and your a princess, do you see that working? Because I sure as hell don't. Besides, what you have aren't genuine feelings. It's probably some sort of infatuation. We just had each other for a few days, it's natural to get attached" I said, explaining my reasoning.
May just looked down at the ground. Pikachu looked between Me and May, unsure of what to do in this situation. "Your wrong Ash" she said, putting extra stress on the Ash, purposely defying my request/order. She turned around and began walking away, but began to run after ten steps or so. I sighed and put on my hat, closing my eyes.
Breath in. One, two, three
Breath out. One, two, three
I opened my eyes after calming down. It was for the best, for both of us. I motioned for a confused Pikachu to jump on my shoulder. Time to go check on the Pokemon I saw last night. I began to walk in the direction that the Pokemon had landed after I grabbed all my gear. Was Giovanni coming to visit? No. He'd have an escort the size of and island following him. Reinforcements? No. Not enough to hold out an outpost on its own. Guess I'll fin out soon enough. As I began reaching the more dangerous areas I began to stealthily make my way through the woods. I'd come to the river soon. If I cross it, I'll be at the fort we had taken out. I reached the bank of the river and kept myself out of sight.
I looked around and saw no one, I looked at Pikachu who had his ears perked up, looking for any sound. He shook his head after a minute. I took off my hat and backpack. I took off the sword from my belt and wrapped it to my back, so it wouldn't get in the way when I swam across. I held Pikachu in my arms and began to walk into the river before I completely submerged and swam across, trying to make sure the current didn't push me too far downstream. I slowly emerged on the other side, making sure no one showed up while we were underwater.
When I saw no one around I pulled myself onto the opposite bank and shook out all the extra water from my clothes. Still wet, but not dripping wet. I began to creep along the wall of the outpost with Pikachu a few steps ahead of me. We finally reached the edge of the encampment and I could see one of the guard towers of the other outpost in the distance. Suddenly Pikachu froze and pointed in the direction he heard some noise coming from. I ducked behind the wall and peeked out to see who was coming.
Two figures dressed in black came from the underbrush. "I don't see why we have to leave early. We were making progress with those platoons" A voice I recognized all too well said. "This is not our war to fight. If an enemy scout saw you helping them they could take it as our involvement in the war on the side of Hoenn and executed all those families at home. All those deaths would be on your head Riley" The second person said
'I actually didn't think of it that way' I thought. "I didn't think of it like that. Sorry Aaron" Riley said. No point in hiding myself anymore I guess. I stepped out from behind the wall and I saw both Aura Guardians immediately get into defensive stances. "Whoa, not trying to kill anybody here, for now at least" I said
When they saw it was me they relaxed. "Hey Ash what are you doing out here?" Riley said.
"I'm investigating a large Pokemon I saw fly into this area last night. I want to know of I'll have to deal with reinforcements from Kanto" I said
"I heard that as well" Aaron said. I scoffed "Did you now? Any theories on what or who it was?"
Aaron's eyes visibly darkened at the question "Well, either Lance decided to take on a Kanto outpost on his own or Giovanni sent backup. I just pray It's the first or you will be in very serious trouble". I was getting impatient with his critic answers "Well go on, tell me" I said "Who exactly do you think it is?"
"Your mother's killer"
Well shit, that threw me off quite a bit. "Are you serious? I swear to Arceus if you aren't I will kill you" I said. "I wouldn't joke or lie about something that involves your mother. Although contrary to your beliefs, I did love her" Aaron said.
I scowled at him "Well if you'll excuse me i have to go avenge somebody. Riley, I'll see you around. Aaron, die in a hole. Slowly" I said while walking towards the second encampment. "Hey wait Ash. Princess May came running into the castle looking really upset. Do you know what happened?"
"No idea" I lied, not wanting to get caught up with this when I could finally do something about my mother's death. I started to walk again but I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Ash, this woman is like nothing you've ever faced before. She's ruthless and has no mercy. You'll need help to take her out" Aaron said. I could feel my anger boiling in my stomach. I turned around and faced him "Are you fucking serious? You say that you love my mother and then when you get the chance to avenge her you tell her only son to do it for you. Get the fuck away from me" I hissed at him.
I began to walk towards the encampment once more. This time I was too close for them to call out without drawing attention so they kept silent and watched. I could feel their gazes burning into my back. "Alright Pikachu, listen for a woman. She'll have the giant Pokemon somewhere around here" I said to my partner who saluted and perked his ears up. I crouched low and began to scan the area for any signs of the Pokemon or the woman. I crept through forest, approaching the outpost as stealthily as possible. I reached the wall and saw the guard towers with about three men in each of them. But all of the guards were watching something happening in the outpost itself. It sounded like training. I quickly moved below one of the towers and took out a knife, I stuck it in between two wooden polls that blocked my view and spun it around till I had a decent sized hole to look through. I quickly made a smaller one for Pikachu who jumped on my shoulder to get a look.
When I peaked through the hole I saw the soldiers in the camp sitting in a circle and watching some sort of demonstration. Two other soldiers were in the middle fighting with each other, hand to hand combat. I looked around and noticed everyone was watching. No one was doing their duties. After a few minutes one soldier finally knocked the other one to the ground where he stayed. No one applauded, no one smiled, no one made a sound or even moved. Finally, some movement caught my eye. A woman with white hair dressed in pure black armor sat up from a chair. She started saying something but I could hear at first. I covered the ear not facing her so i could hear better "ost sorry ass performance I've very seen. Do any of you know how to fight? You drag that one away, he's worthless" she said to some guy in the circle
"I've seen peasants put up more of a fight than you just did. No wonder the other outpost got wiped out. They didn't know how to fight. I can't believe he sent me here to deal with you fucking morons. Alright you're all dismissed, get back to your jobs" she said. All the men stood up and saluted "Yes Hunter J!" they shouted. I recognized the name. Hunter J, I don't remember the number she has in the Black Book but she's above me. If I remember correctly she is called the Dragon Princess. Something like that.
I wanted to get more information but I knew the guards would see me if I tried to make it out any later. I turned and ran with Pikachu holding onto my shoulder, once we made it far enough away, I slowed to a walk and began to think. So this is the woman who killed mom. Hunter J. Aaron was right, I can't take her on my own. I'm going to need help for something like that. I walked back to the river and swam back, I grabbed my gear and began to make my way back to the castle. Once I reached the gates I waved to the guards to show them I'm back and not a threat.
But once I passed through the gates I saw Ruby leaning against a wall while tapping his foot restlessly. I sighed, he was pissed. His eyes snapped open when he heard me approach. "Where the fuck have you been?" he demanded
I looked at him lazily "Training and doing a little recon. Why?"
"You were supposed to help me train the Aqua platoons. What the fuck happened to that?"
"Why should I help? This isn't my war to fight. Unless King Norman asks me to then I don't have to anything except make sure that the Princess is unharmed" I said while scratching Pikachu behind the ears.
"Really? Well you should be fired because if I'm not mistaken she ran through here earlier today on the verge of tears. So whoever did that deserves your immediate attention" Ruby said
"Well then I'll find whoever-"
"Hey Ash!" Riley called out from behind him.
Breath in. One, two, three
Breath out. One, two three
I turned around and to Riley "Aren't you supposed to be gone right now?" I asked. "Yep. But Aaron said he wanted to do something before we left" Riley said cheerily
"That so?" I said while moving my gaze from Riley to Aaron. Aaron just looked at me with an expression that told me here was here on very serious business "May I talk to you private?" he asked/demanded. I looked at him for a moment weighing my options. Eh, what the hell. This day can't get much worse now can it? Plus I can just walk away if I don't like where the conversation is going. I nodded and he began walking away and I followed.
Once we were out of sight and earshot he turned to me "I want to assist you in taking down J" he said with a dead serious expression. I burst out laughing. When I regained myself I looked at him with an expression that would make most men pee their pants. "Why?"
"Because I did love Delia, regardless of whether you believe me or not. Your words earlier made me realize that I wouldn't be a man if I didn't do anything when I have the chance" I looked at him dryly. "So it took me to almost yell at you in order for you to understand that you should take the opportunity for revenge? My opinion of you just worsened"
"I don't care, I'm going to take this opportunity no matter what you think. But, if you are willing, we could cooperate with each other on this for Delia"
"Whatever, just don't get the way of me avenging mom. And this better not be an attempt to make up for lost time. I'm doing this for mom, not for you" I said while walking away
"You avenge your mother, and I'll avenge my wife"
Well, that's the end of chapter 15. I hope you guys liked and I'm sorry that there was no action. Next chapter though, I promise I'll fill it with as much as I can fit. Does anyone know who the two girls are? I bet most of you don't. Anyway, thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. Requests, suggestions, hate, and anything else are always welcome. Till next time
-novaking2832