Disclaimer: Pokémon is copyrighted property of Nintendo.
Authoress' Note:
A lot of conversation and planning with a bit of action at the end… Hope it's still interesting. :)
Thank you again for your wonderful feedback! I still feel bad for not being able to answer everyone but, just know I do read and appreciate your reviews very much! They are helpful in more ways than one.
One last thing to answer a question I've been getting. My update schedule is once a week, unless I manage to get ahead. Then I may update earlier. I do have other projects and a time consuming job, so please bear with me if it seems to you like the updates are a bit slow. :)
I tried to do this chapter longer but failed miserably… enjoy anyway!
Chapter 4 'Bonds Through the Distance'
The group in Lumiose lab gasped collectively the moment Rotom showed the photo of the people that had ambushed their missing friend in the forest. The risen tension was palpable and their disbelief faces were mirrors of each other.
"H-How?" Clemont managed to murmur; his face paling considerably at the sight of a man that all of Kalos had thought dead.
"So, it is them after all…" Professor Sycamore commented seriously.
"Y-You knew, Professor?"
"I suspected Lysandre was still alive when the news reported one of Team Flare admins had broken out from prison. By the look of it, he had help."
"Prison? So we are dealing with convicted criminals," Kiawe spoke up for the first time.
"I am afraid it's graver than that," Sycamore explained, causing the Alola residents to frown in dread. "This is a crime syndicate that almost succeeded in destroying the world; all because of farfetched ideals of renovation."
"De-Destroying the world, bzzt!?" Rotom exclaimed, flying around the room in alarm.
"So, why go after two young trainers?" Kukui asked, managing to keep his cool just barely. It was all too overwhelming, and the fear for his students' wellbeing incrementing by every explanation wasn't helping.
"That is something I can't tell for sure," Sycamore looked thoughtful.
"Is it because we helped stop him?" Bonnie asked receiving a negative shake of the head from the Professor.
"Even if Ash took a key part in their organization's downfall, vengeance is not Lysandre's style."
"And if vengeance was the motivation, I believe they would have targeted a lot more people," Clemont contributed.
Greninja looked down in thought, wondering if he should try to tell them about Lysandre's particular interest in Ash and himself during the crisis fiasco. Ash had never told his friends about the whole team getting captured, or how Lysandre had attempted to control their bond. There was no reason to get them worried after all, and by the time everything was solved, there was just no point in letting them know about it. But now, as they kept trying to find a logical explanation, he questioned that decision.
The only reason keeping him quiet was the fact that he was still there. If their bond was what Lysandre was after, the man would have noticed they were not together, and surely he would have been targeted too.
A sniffing sound coming right beside him got his attention back to the conversation. Looking down, he found little Bonnie barely holding in tears.
"Then, why…?"
Something seemed to crack inside Kiawe at this; memories of his own little sister coming forward. "I'm going out," he declared already walking away.
"Wait, Kiawe!" Kukui called. "We don't even know where these people could have taken them. I know you want to find them quick, but acting rash might just set us back."
That seemed to make him stop in his track, but he didn't turn around, too preoccupied trying to control his frustration at his obvious impotence.
Greninja observed him with a sense of understanding. A few months ago, he would have done the same and no words would have stopped him from trying to find his trainer even if he had no leads. But Greninja had learned. Even if the anxiousness was unbearable, he knew he had to wait until a plan was formed. In the meantime, he would continue to try and reach his trainer through their bond.
.:oOo:.
It wasn't long before Pikachu woke up, and Ash felt as if a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He looked considerably more cheerful despite the current situation and Mallow couldn't help taking comfort in that fact. There was almost a sense of normality aided by the fact that nobody had come to check up on them yet.
"You sure you are feeling okay, buddy?"
"Pika!"
Even Pikachu looked determined despite the obvious strain his body had taken after the unfair battle. Though, that determination deflated a bit after attempting to break free of the crystallized capsule with a few attacks, and failing. The capsule stubbornly refused to even crack, making them realize it was not a normal type of crystal.
"What do we do now?" Mallow asked out loud.
"There must be another way for you to escape," the Slowking insisted, telling them they needed to stop the organization before they triggered the end of the world… again.
"How do we stop them?" Ash was fast to ask.
The answer he received was not what he was expecting.
"As long as you stay away from them, you will already be delaying their plans."
Both kids and Pokémon looked surprised and confused at the revelation.
"W-what do you mean?" Mallow asked with apprehension. "What do they need Ash for?"
The Slowking seemed to consider his answered for a few seconds before nodding.
"Have you ever heard of the Legendary Fenriar?" seeing he had their complete attention, he continued. "Fenriar is known to be a dark beast so powerful, it had threatened the balance of life after it was consumed by rage and hatred. Legends are unclear at the reason of its anger, but whatever the reason, it needed to be stopped. So a group of Aura Guardians had to act. They sealed it away in hopes to give it time to calm down. It is believed to be sealed up to this day, hidden in a forgotten island where no human has stepped on in centuries."
"Is that what Team Flare is after?" Ash asked. "They want to release Fenriar so it can destroy everything?"
The Slowking just nodded in confirmation.
So it was just like with Zygarde, the difference was that they were going after a different Pokémon to do their binding this time. Yet, Ash was still puzzled as to why they needed him to accomplish their goal. Before he could voice his question however, Ash felt a very familiar presence in his mind and reached out with excited happiness; his laughter gaining the curious attention of the others.
"It's Greninja!" Ash informed Pikachu, who perked up immediately.
Mallow, Boansweet and the Slowking blinked in confusion, opting to stall any questions and wait quietly at seeing Ash closing his eyes as if in concentration.
The connection with his water-type friend was stronger than he had felt it in months, and it was easy to sense the concerned question forming from the Pokémon's side. He was fast to reassure him by telling him everyone was okay despite the circumstances.
.:oOo:.
Back in Kalos, Greninja's excited croak gained everyone's attention, receiving curious looks from both groups through the video call. Clemont's eyes widen in realization and he leaned forward in anticipation.
"Is it Ash? Did you manage to reconnect your bond with him?"
At the Pokémon's affirmative nod, Professor Sycamore smiled broadly. "Marvelous! Can you tell how everyone is?"
Greninja nodded again looking relief. Taking it as a good signal Bonnie laughed. "Hey, hey, Greninja! Tell Ash I say hi!"
"So… what's this about a bond?" Kukui asked, rubbing a hand against the back of his neck.
Professor Sycamore had the grace to look embarrassed before addressing Kukui's question.
"I'm sorry, we failed to do proper introductions. This here is Ash's Greninja," he began, already managing to get the Alolan residents complete attention. Even Tapu Koko had levitated nearer to them and Kiawe had looked back at the screen in curiosity. Professor Sycamore started explaining how Ash and Greninja had met since the frog-like Pokémon was a Froakie, and Professor Kukui took note of how well taken care of he looked. Not only that, he could tell by just looking at it how strong this Pokémon was.
"As they trained together, they developed a strong bond that allowed them to share their senses to one another."
"Their senses?"
Clemont was the one to nod before elaborating. "There were times during battles when Ash would be able to feel what Greninja was feeling."
"Greninja is also able to transform into Ash-Greninja when they are together, and see through each other's eyes," Bonnie complemented. "It's really amazing!"
"Ash-Greninja…?" Kiawe was looking progressively more confused. Where they supposed to know what that meant?
"It does sound incredible," Kukui admitted. No wonder Ash and Pikachu had grasped the concept of Z-Moves as easy as if they had known about them all their lives. It was clear, Ash was able to bond with his Pokémon in deep levels; Kukui had already noticed this quality about him just by observing his interactions with any Pokémon he encountered, but this new revelation really put things into perspective.
"Greninja, can you figure out where they are?" Clemont felt his hope rising.
The Pokémon tilted his head as he asked Clemont's question through the connection.
.:oOo:.
"Hmm… we are still inside one of Team Flare's ships right?" Ash asked his companions. Receiving a nod from Slowking, he sighed. "So we are still moving… Any idea where they are taking us?"
"It is an island only known in legends… It lacks a name or even a location in global maps," the Slowking frowned. "I am actually surprised these people had managed to even find it by just researching old history."
Everyone deflated by the news. At this rate, they weren't getting external help any time soon.
.:oOo:.
Greninja's negative answer was met with puzzled looks from the humans. The other Pokémon disappointed reactions being the only clue to the meaning of his words.
"Pukokoo."
"Ninja," a nod.
"I wonder what they are talking about…" commented Bonnie.
"Could you translate, Rotom?" Kukui requested. Receiving a confused look, he explained. "Well, you are a Pokedex, but you are still a Pokémon."
Rotom yelled in dawning realization. "That is right! Don't worry, Professor! I'll translate every word flawlessly, bzzt!"
Not surprised by Rotom's antics, Kukui just smirked back as Rotom observed the Pokémon conversation for a few moments before explaining.
"Greninja said there are still on their way to their destination, which is an unmarked island, bzzt," Rotom translated showing a frowning smiley in his screen. "And Tapu Koko suggested to stay alert in case there was another way we could figure out their location."
Clemont started with a new idea forming. "Say, did any of you managed to see how fast the airships were going?"
Kiawe blinked at the random question, and gave an approximate number based on his own Charizard's speed.
"Great! Greninja, please let me know when they have arrive," Clemont requested as he pulled out a device and started tinkering with it.
"I see!" It just took a quick look at Clemont's device for Professor Sycamore to understand his plan. "Even if we don't know their location, we can calculate a search radius based on the time it takes them to arrive and the direction they took."
"That's actually a very nice idea," Professor Kukui praised with a smile. "It might not be that accurate, but it increases our chance at finding the mysterious island by a lot."
"Also, Greninja says he could sense Ash's presence better at a closer distance, bzzt," Rotom continued translating.
.:oOo:.
Back at the ship, the group went on high alert at the noise of the only door in the room sliding open. Then, came a group of low rank grunts that smirked at them smugly. Ash glared at them with gritted teeth as the shorter of them showed keychain full of cards.
"Oh, where did you get those from?" one of them asked, sounding honestly surprised.
"Just found 'em on someone's belt and decided to take it," his shorter companion answered before looking at the prisoners. "Aren't cha' lucky, twerps?"
The familiar name calling got Ash to lose the glare in favor of looking confused.
"Just hurry up and open the cells, Meowth," the female one chastised.
"Meowth?" now that Mallow thought about it, these three looked kind of familiar.
.:oOo:.
Just as Greninja had let them know of the new development, a sudden flash of electricity passed through Tapu Koko's shield and he perked up with an exited cry. It had tried to feel Pikachu's signal a couple of times, but something had been interfering with the signal. That was part of the reason why it hadn't bolted after the ships once it was healed, instead deciding to follow the Professor.
The electric signal came back full force as if whatever was in the way had vanished. Confident in being able to follow it, Tapu Koko was fast to let them know about it.
"Could you guide me to them?" Kiawe asked sounding both hopeful and a bit desperate.
The deity guardian seemed to measure the young human before nodding again, causing him to smile for the first time since the whole thing started. "Thanks."
"Hold on! We need to alert officer Jenny of this!"
"We can't waste more time, Professor," Kiawe retorted. "It's better if we split."
That said, he bolted to the door with Tapu Koko following close by. Professor Kukui called after them again, but this time they didn't listen and he could only place a hand over his head with a resigned sigh.
"We are going too!" Clemont voice regained his attention towards the video caller. The boy had been tampering with the weird looking device in his hands since he had taken it out, and now he was looking at it with a victorious grin.
"Yeah! We are going to help Ash!" little Bonnie looked as, if not more, resolute than her brother. Beside them Greninja looked ready to go.
"But how…?"
"I just thought we could still calculate the coordinates of their current location and then just follow Greninja the rest of the way," he explained, revealing the device to be some kind of radar.
"That's my big brother!"
"Even if you take the next flight it is still quite a few hours to Alola," Sycamore pointed out.
That didn't deter Clemont's enthusiasm. He smiled and let the light's reflection catch his glasses as he chuckled.
"Don't worry, Professor. We have other means of transportation."
"We do?" Bonnie asked excited.
"The future is now thanks to science!" Clemont proclaimed his catchphrase with a smug expression.
.:oOo:.
"Why are you helping us?" Mallow asked the grunts in front of them, still feeling a bit wary even though they were out of the cells and Bounsweet was back in her arms.
Before they could answer however, a voice coming from the hall made them all freeze.
"We are about to land, all of you to your posts! You two follow me!"
"Yes ma'am!"
Seconds later, the door reopened and one of Team Flare's admins accompanied by two other grunts enter the room before frowning suspiciously at the sight.
"What is the meaning of this?" it was Maple, the blue-haired scientist.
"Uh-oh. We're busted."
With equal smirks, the grunt trio threw their disguises away, revealing very familiar white uniforms.
"Prepare for trouble!"
"And make that dou-"
"Weavile, use Ice Beam!" a Poké Ball was released and the attack came soon after.
Thanks to fast reflexes, it barely missed them all, causing the back wall to freeze instead.
"How rude! We were not done yet!" Jessie exclaimed in indignation. "Mimikyu, give them a lesson!"
"Pikachu, let's help!" Pikachu jumped from Ash's shoulder reading an attack... and promptly avoided a Shadow Ball coming from Jessie's Pokémon. The stray attack exploded against the frozen wall causing the weaken metal to bend and break leaving a big hole where it once was.
"Mimikyu, where are you aiming at? Weavile is in front of you!" Jessie shouted exasperated.
"Khk kgh…"
"There you go again with the creepy comments!" Meowth yelled grabbing his ears in an attempt to block Mimikyu's words.
"I say we go for plan 'B'," James suggested.
Receiving confused glances in return, he decided to elaborate with actions, grabbing Ash and Mallow by their wrists and backing down towards the new gap in the wall.
"Hey! What-?"
"Jump!"
"Wait! Aren't we still on the air?!" was Mallow's last sentence before she was pulled out of safe ground with a strangled cry; their collective yells being drowned by the sound of air currents and the increasing distance.
"Pikapi!" Pikachu didn't even think twice, grabbing the Slowking by the back of his ruff and jumping after them.
"Wait for us!" Meowth jumped next.
"You got lucky!" Jessie declared pointing her finger at the shocked admin, as she returned Mimikyu before running and jumping too.
"Tch!" getting out of her shock, Maple grabbed her radio and reported the situation. Their target had escaped the ship, but there was no way they were going to let him escape the island…
.:oOo:.
Greninja croaked with a deadpan expression.
"Jumped?" Rotom translation came out as a question.
"What?"
Greninja just shrugged in almost indifference, deciding not to elaborate to avoid unnecessary panic. He was already used to his trainer's own antics and knew this time was not much different; even if he hadn't been the one actively throwing himself to his possible doom…
…
He shook his head. They would be fine.