Chapter 49: Wonder
"Prepare to fight," Zero smirked. His evil eyes turned to the Genesect, "Attack!" the Majestic 12 member ordered with his finger pointing at Ash, May, and Roxas.
The Genesect made an eerie robotic sound that sent chills through Ash and May. "What do we do?" May questioned.
"We fight," Roxas said sternly. Suddenly, a Charizard came through the hole in the roof Roxas had come through.
The Fire-type roared fiercely as it dashed past the trio like a red blur. It used Flare Blitz on one of the Genesect, sending the caught off guard Bug-type flying against the steel wall.
"Genesect is a Bug/Steel-type, it should have suffered a fair amount of damage," Roxas smirked as the weakened Genesect slowly got up with scorch marks on its armor.
"Techno Blast," Zero scowled as he made the command.
One of the Genesect quickly took an offensive position by showing off its cannon then fired a powerful blue beam of energy at Charizard.
"Victini stop it with Psychic!" May intervened fairly quick.
Roxas and Charizard got surprised by her sudden action since they were already prepared for Genesect's Water-type Techno Blast. "Vi!" Victini focused its energy on the Techno Blast, enveloping it in a dark blue aura. "Tini!" the Psychic-type motioned its arm as it redirected it back to the Genesect Army.
"Techno Blast again then launch a full out assault!" Zero angrily demanded.
Another one of the Genesect screeched angrily as it unleashed a beam of electricity that easily canceled out the blue beam Victini had directed at them. As a result of the explosion a black cloud of smoke formed between the gang and the Genesect Army.
"What gives, is Techno Blast an Electric or Water-type move?" Ash covered his eyes from the smoke.
"That's what makes so lethal. It has a unique attack known as Techno Blast that can vary between four different types: water, fire, electric, and ice. The type Techno Blast depends on the drive it is carrying," Roxas informed them as he covered his eyes.
"You mean like the drives you gave us?" May inquired.
"Correct, there were four drives. Four of the Genesect must each be carrying a different drive while the fifth doesn't have one, making Techno Blast a Normal-type move," Roxas tried to see through the smoke cloud. "Charizard, flap your wings to get rid of all this smoke!" Roxas instructed as he desperately tried to find his enemies.
Charizard roared aggressively as a wind built up that sent the smoke away from the gang. The Flying-type appeared just above them as it flapped rapidly until an Electric and Water-type Techno Blast got fired from the smoke.
"Charizard look out!" Roxas's eyes widened.
"Pikachu! Use Electro Ball!" Ash ordered with haste.
"Pika!" Pikachu mobilized instantly as it saw the incoming attacks. Without a moment's waste the mouse charged up an Electro Ball that shot out faster than a bullet.
Charizard's eyes grew as it saw the explosion occur in front of its eyes. The Techno Blast were canceled out on impact with Electro Ball and as a result formed a small cloud of smoke in midair.
In front of the group appeared all five of the Genesect along with Zero. May glared at her enemies then without wasting a second made the next move, "Blaziken, use our improvised form of Fire Spin to take them out!"
"Blaze!" Blaziken's wrists flared intensely. The Fighting-type began to spiral at a phenomenal speed with a fiery tornado enveloping around it. "Fire!" May extended her arm forward.
"Ken!" Blaziken built up enough of the attack to send the Fire Spin charging at the Genesect Army.
"Charizard intensify it with Flamethrower!" Roxas instructed.
Charizard stretched its wings out as it released a powerful fire that enhanced the flames of the Fire Spin as well as making it much hotter. "Take it out with Techno Blast," Zero looked at one of the Genesect.
Genesect screeched fiercely then fired the same Water-type Techno Blast as before. "Pikachu! Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered loudly.
"Pikaaaaaachuuuuu!" Pikachu fired the bolt of electricity. The Electric-type move fired at a rapid pace that it almost caught Zero off guard.
"Techno Blast!" Zero shouted.
Another one of the Genesect suddenly blasted an Electric-type Techno Blast to counter Pikachu's Thunderbolt. Ash clenched his fists over the turn, so he made another command before anyone else could make it, "Victini! Use Fire Blast!"
"Victiniiiii!" Victini stepped onto the plate by releasing the unique-shaped Fire Blast.
The fire move shot out as fast as Pikachu's Thunderbolt then with the combined power of Victini and Pikachu's attacks the pair of Techno Blast were canceled out, paving the way for May and Roxas's Fire Spin.
"Dodge with Quick Attack," Zero gritted his teeth.
The Genesect made another robotic sound as they all moved in different directions. Unfortunately for some of the Genesect, the Fire Spin was thick and powerful enough to suck them in. They let out a painful screech as their armor got burned by the fire.
"Nice job," Roxas smiled at Ash and May, who were celebrating over their strike.
Zero grinded his teeth as he prepared to make the next move, "Genesect retreat!" May's unique Fire Spin eventually faded, dropping two of the Genesect targets on the hard floor. When they all heard their master, with the power they could muster, they transitioned to their flight forms.
The Genesect screeched harshly enough to pierce through everyone's ears. "They're getting away!" Roxas shouted as he tried to move, but the screeching got too intense to even let him make a move.
Roxas glared at his opponents while he moved backward into a dark portal that had appeared behind him. The Genesect took off at such incredible speeds that they were lost from view within seconds, liberating the gang from their piercing cries.
May sighed as she moved her hands away from her ears, "Well that's not how we were expecting things to turn out."
"They got away with the Genesect," Ash scowled at the hole the Genesect had escaped through.
"Pika," Pikachu lowered its ears along with Victini while Blaziken and Charizard eyed the hole with the same frustration as Ash.
"There are five Genesect, not even one, out there who are going to obey people like Zero and destroy everything," May crossed her arms, speaking with great concern.
Roxas merely sighed at the sight of the two disappointed trainers. All of a sudden, a low growl alerted their ears as they looked up. Past the hole, gazing at the sky they saw Dialga looking down at them while hovering proudly.
"Genesect and our enemies may have gotten away, but the battle is still far from over," a man's voice came from behind.
They all turned around to see Wes along with other familiar faces standing by the entrance. "Wes, Cheren, Cobalion!" a smile of relief formed across Ash's face.
"Hilda, Hilbert, Iris, Cilan!" the same smile as Ash appeared on May's face when she saw their friends.
"Thank goodness you guys are alright!" Iris's eyes brightened with joy.
"We were worried about all of you the whole time," Cilan let out a sigh of relief.
"Same goes for us," Hilbert commented, looking at Hilda and the two laughed.
"What Wes says is true. Keep in mind that in the battle you have several new allies on your side." Cobalion's eyes wandered to Wes and then bowed his head down, indicating that the Steel-type had become part of the fight.
"Wes, I never expected you to join the fight, let alone appear in one of them," Roxas raised an eyebrow while smirking at the man.
Ash and May became stunned when they heard the Roxas's comment. The two suddenly began to wonder if Roxas and Wes knew each other, but they knew now wasn't the time to socialize.
"Only a fool would fail to recognize the threat these men pose. Action is necessary now more than ever." Wes walked down the stairs, eyeing Roxas as he spoke.
The Plasmas, Rockets, and the Majestic 12 seem to be going after Legendary Pokémon based on the investigation done by my connections. If that is the case then we must take every possible measure to stop them, Cobalion walked down the stairs with Wes.
Roxas smiled then nodded. He looked at everyone in the room with a confident grin, his spirits renewed by the sudden alliance made with the skilled Wes and the leader of the Swords of Justice. "Alright then, if we need to talk about planning then we should head to Castelia City. We will strategize there, plus I'm sure it'd be good to inform at least another Gym Leader to spread the word," Roxas stated.
"Agreed, planning this with Burgh could make things easier for us. Not only that, but we're not safe on this island. Team Plasma also retreated just some time ago, I have a feeling they'll be coming back to take the island and they won't be fighting alongside us when that happens," Cheren informed Roxas.
"Then it's settled, we're going to Castelia." Roxas's sapphire eyes turned to Ash, May, Pikachu, Blaziken, and Victini, who nodded obediently.
When they got outside, Ash and May found a helicopter waiting to take them to Castelia. Based on the logo on the helicopter it appeared to be an International Police helicopter. Looker probably sent it, Ash assumed. But his attention turned to the field where Plasmas and Neo Plasmas had waged violence against each other earlier.
As eyes widened with surprise to see how torn the field got from the fighting, May spoke. "That's a disturbing scene isn't it?" She said with a worried tone.
"I wonder if this is what Unova will become if we don't stop people like Team Neo Plasma," Ash answered as he looked at the grunts and Pokémon lying on the ground that he also assumed were unconscious.
"We can't let that happen." May grabbed Ash's hand and squeezed it as she spoke with a serious voice.
"We won't." Ash looked at her with a confident grin, squeezing her hand to return the gesture.
With fighting spirits still in their hearts, everyone prepared to take off to Castelia City in order to come up with a way to counter the Plasma threat. When May and Ash prepared to board the helicopter Roxas called them, "Ash, May, why don't you and your Pokémon come along with Dialga and I?"
Ash and May looked at each other with surprise then at Iris and Cilan. "You should go, he might want to talk to you guys," Iris suggested.
"It would make for a mysterious flavor if you went," Cilan joked, also suggesting that they should just go.
"What do you think May?" Ash asked his girlfriend.
"I don't see why not, I guess." May shrugged her shoulders, briefly thinking about the horrible thing Roxas had done earlier to Phantom.
"We'll be right there!" Ash called to the trainer who began climbing onto Dialga's back.
"We'll see you guys in Castelia," Ash told his friends then waved his hand at them.
"C'mon Victini, Pikachu," May called the two small Pokémon, having already returned Blaziken to its ball.
"See ya later guys!" Hilda said to them as all five of Ash and May's friends waved goodbye, including Axew.
Their attention quickly turned to Cobalion who strolled near their helicopter. "Cobalion, are you going to ride with us?" Hilbert inquired with a grin.
"I'm afraid not. I would only slow the helicopter down. I have my own methods of transportation though. I hope to see all of you in Castelia City." Cobalion smiled at them. Then without another word sprinted away, into the trees of the island, leaving the teens wondering how Cobalion could even travel across a body of water.
Wes and Cheren quickly boarded onto the chopper, receiving friendly welcomes from the teens. With that said and done, everyone was on their respective ride and took off to Unova's greatest city.
Riding peacefully over the ocean, the wind whistled in Ash and May's ears as they traveled to Castelia City. "I never thought I'd end up getting on a Dialga like this before," Ash liked the feeling of his hand touching the dragon's steel body.
"Me neither. I always thought I would die first before ever riding a Dialga," May joked. Her giggling quickly stopped when she took a glimpse of Dialga's quiet rider.
Ash instantly took notice of her strange behavior then asked, "Is something wrong May?"
"Ash, I can't help but think about what Roxas did back there…to Phantom," May reminded her boyfriend about the horrific sight from earlier.
The memory came back to Ash in a flash. Remembering how Roxas had dropped from the roof with what appeared to be a sword and merciless look on his face. He hadn't even taken a second to consider the fact that he was taking someone else's life, someone who despite all the malicious things he had done, was still human. The moment that sword pierced Phantom's body, Ash, May, and their Pokémon's opinions about Roxas had changed.
"It was troubling wasn't it? I never really expected that," Ash expressed his disagreement over what Roxas had done.
"To take a life like that, without any discretion, it seemed really wrong…" May whispered to his ear. Pikachu and Victini had also been listening intently to their conversation; they also had mixed feelings about what Roxas had done.
"What are you guys whispering about?" Roxas looked back at them.
"Oh nothing we were just talking about how we could beat the Genesect," May laughed nervously and shook her hands in front of her to let Roxas know that nothing "suspicious" was going on.
You can't lie to me…I know you better than that, Roxas thought as he looked at the brunette. The raven-haired boy sighed, "If you're talking about what I did to Phantom then you don't have to hide it."
"Well I guess there's no use in hiding it then," May said with a guilty expression.
"Roxas…May and I think that what you did to Phantom was wrong," Ash admitted honestly. He looked straight into Roxas's sapphire eyes that reminded him of May's, and spoke, "You had no right to take his life like that."
Roxas closed his eyes for a moment, "I guess you're right…it's wrong to take a life like that, but there's more to it than that."
"What do you mean?" May asked curiously.
"By executing Phantom I freed him from his misery," Roxas replied.
"What, how?" Ash raised an eyebrow.
"Phantom was no longer Phantom. You might not have noticed it, but I've known those people long enough to tell. Phantom had become Omega's slave and did whatever Omega desired up until the point when I took his life. That pirate foolishly submitted to the darkness of aura thanks to Omega then mentally became Omega's slave. He did whatever Omega told him to, almost like mind control but much more subtle, and transformed into a puppet," Roxas tried to explain to them.
Ash and May looked at him with puzzled expressions. "Phantom became a shell of his former self. Think about it, would Phantom have really agreed with Omega's plan of world destruction and domination? It wouldn't be in his best interest if he did. The pirate simply wanted a crystal crown, but the promises made by Omega got the best of his mind," Roxas logically explained his statement.
The couple eyed Roxas with persistent faces of uncertainty, making the boy sigh. "When I…killed Phantom, his body didn't bleed, it just vanished into black pixie-like dust. Phantom no longer had a physical biological body and that's a result of the dark aura that completely consumed him. The pirate's life ended long ago, when he submitted to Omega he lost his humanity. From that point on he was just a shell."
Surprised by how much sense it finally made to them, May couldn't help but ask, "Does that mean the others in the Majestic 12 are like that too?" her voice sounding a bit fearful.
"They are lifeless too. In the end, they are all Omega's victims," Roxas said with a stern tone.
"That's a horrible thing to do!" Ash exclaimed with a disgusted face while May grabbed onto Ash's arm, a face of worry all over her.
"This whole time. Omega has been ensnaring others into his own evil plot then treats them like puppets." Ash clenched his fists; becoming upset by what he thought was the most inhumane thing to do.
Roxas nodded. "The only ones who are free to do as they please because of their powerful wills are Cloud, Silver, and Genesis. They saved themselves by mastering the darkness of the aura."
"Does that mean we'll have to kill them all at some point?" May inquired, still deeply disturbed.
"I'm afraid so," the sapphire-eyed boy answered.
In response Ash gulped out of uneasiness while May tightened her grip around Ash's arm with her arms. Pikachu and Victini also mimicked the horrified expressions of the couple. To ease the tension in the atmosphere, Roxas changed the subject and grinned at them, "So I forgot to congratulate you guys on all the hard work you have done since Virbank City. I heard you did a fantastic job with the training Auro and the others' gave you and I even got to witness some of it myself.
"Even though Wes and Cobalion cut off some of your major battle moment I became impressed when I discovered how you took down Archer and easily took out Phantom. You've even raised Victini to become an exceptionally powerful Pokémon, you two…have been very responsible and diligent along with your Pokémon," Roxas flashed beams at all four of them.
"Gee thank you Roxas," May laughed softly over the large praise they received.
"We really appreciate it, especially coming from you," Ash grinned at the boy.
Dialga's trainer shook his head in response then made a rather unexpected comment, "Honestly, you guys took such good care of Victini there's no doubt in mind that you would make great parents."
The statement alarmed the couple and they began to blush a bright red. "No, no, we're too young to start thinking about that," May waved off the comment as her face glowed red.
"It's really of you to be saying that, but we're mostly thinking about our journey right now," Ash chuckled off Roxas's words as he grinned sheepishly.
Roxas chuckled with a wide grin across his face. Trying to change the subject Ash discussed something else, "So Roxas, May and I were wondering how you know Wes."
"Yeah, I mean the guy lives out in a remote area. What connection could you guys possibly have?" May placed her finger on her chin as she wondered.
"Well one connection is obvious. We fight for the well-being of others. I had heard stories of the vigilante in the woods many times and I felt like I needed to meet him and see if he was interested in helping us fend off people like the Majestic 12," Roxas recollected memories of his first meeting with Wes.
"And how'd that go?" May questioned curiously.
"Not so well. Wes was reluctant to get out of his home and chose to continue protecting the Pokémon in his vicinity. Now that I saw him in the P2 Laboratory, I'm assuming he's realized that the crisis facing Unova is much bigger than just choosing to protect Pokémon in a small area," Roxas formed a sly grin as he thought about Wes.
"I get it now," May responded, recalling their first experience with Wes.
"When Team Neo Plasma attacked the local Pokémon near his home, it must have finally changed his mind," Ash recalled the same event as May.
Roxas merely bobbed his head as the couple's eyes turned to a large city in the horizon. "Castelia City!" May cheered when she saw the iconic urban area.
"It hasn't changed much from the looks of it," Ash said with a sad tone as features of the event in Castelia were still visible. Large spaces in the city were filled with construction workers hoping to reconstruct the great city and as they got even closer, they recognized some of the buildings that had been damaged over a month ago.
Pikachu and Victini became appalled by the damage caused to the city. Every bit of steel, wood and every individual construction worker reminded them of the tragedy that happened that day. Victini, especially became deeply disturbed as his eyes ruined from a ruined downtown Castelia City to Liberty Garden, which was visible in the distance. When it saw the damage its home had sustained Victini lowered its head in sadness, only to receive a pat on the back from Pikachu.
"The Majestic 12 and their allies really left a dent on this city. Things will never be the same again here," Roxas let out a deep breath as he gazed at several parts of downtown that were under construction.
"It might take years to rebuild everything these people built," Ash stated.
"Including the Liberty Tower," May sighed as she remembered how the tallest building she had ever seen in her life was brought down that same day.
Their thoughts began to change from what occurred in Castelia City to what was going on now. Slowly Dialga began to descend towards the roof of a tall skyscraper, making Ash and May wonder what was going to happen next.
Roxas turned the knob and entered with May, Ash, and their Pokémon. In the room there were ferns in the four corners of the room. The room itself was painted white with two big black sofas in the middle and a glass table between them.
"Look guys!" Iris shouted and caught Cilan, Hilda, Hilbert, Cobalion, Wes, and Cheren's attention along with one other person.
"They made it," Cilan smiled at the sight of them.
"Well well, look whom do we have here," Burgh crossed his arms, smiling when he saw Ash and May.
"Burgh, how have you been?" Ash greeted the friendly man.
"It's been sometime since we last saw you," May grinned at the gym leader.
"Oh not much, I've just been executing missions for Looker and Roxas here. Of course also handling gym leader duties, but nothing out of the ordinary, however, I've been hearing you two have been on a boatload of escapades down in southwestern Unova," Burgh began to catch up with the trainers.
"I guess you can say that," May responded while she and Ash beamed sheepishly at Burgh.
"Unfortunately, those kinds of escapades aren't even close to ending. With an army of Genesect awakened and the drives under Plasma possession, the battle is only beginning," Cheren cut into the conversation.
"I take blame for the awakening of the Genesect. I should have expected that Zero was also involved in that operation, we were too confident about what Ghetsis and Omega had planned," Roxas crossed his arms.
"Then what are we going to do?" Hilbert inquired.
"They are going to strike again soon and won't hesitate to do it with the Genesect Army activated and under their control. Our next hope is stopping them from retrieving the Light Stone. We already have the Dark Stone so that is one less worry off our backs," Roxas closed his eyes as he spoke strictly of their next move.
"The Light Stone?" Hilda raised an eyebrow.
"The stone that belongs to the legendary dragon Pokémon, Reshiram, and one of the most powerful Pokémon in existence, more powerful than almost any Pokémon we have," Roxas said with a serious tone.
"Wait, the bad guys are gonna go after Reshiram?!" Iris became horrified by the plan.
"You're saying Team Neo Plasma and the others are going to go after another legendary Pokémon even more powerful than Genesect?" Ash spoke.
"Don't those guys know their limits to power?" May scowled.
Roxas turned to the power couple beside him, "Ash and May, I know you just came out of one fire zone, but I could really use your help on a mission to the Relic Castle in the Desert Resort."
"Desert Resort?" May tilted her head in confusion.
"Relic Castle?" Ash scratched his cheek out of puzzlement.
"What's there?" the couple questioned simultaneously.
"The Desert Resort is a large desert for tourism purposes. Within the Desert Resort there is a castle called the Relic Castle that contains many ancient artifacts and we've discovered that among those artifacts is the Light Stone. Do you remember the Dark Stone that you helped me recover at Lenora's gym long ago? Well the Light Stone is just as important as that stone. Both stones contain energy from the legendary Pokémon Reshiram and Zekrom," Roxas explained to them.
"The stones are related? Does that mean Zekrom's energy is inside the Dark Stone, is that why they tried to steal it from Lenora's museum?" Ash asked.
"That's right, those stones are very important and Unova will be in grave danger if such legendary power falls into the hands of men like Ghetsis, Giovanni, and Omega," Roxas replied.
"If those stones are as important and dangerous as you say there, then there is no reason for us to not help you!" May made a fist, speaking with a righteous voice.
Ash looked at May, inspired by her attitude; he looked at Roxas and made a fist as well. "We're with you all the way Roxas."
Roxas smiled softly at them, a smile that they had never seen before. The grin was so soft it almost seemed like Roxas would cry but all he said was, "I knew you would be."
"So then you're going to go all the way to Relic Castle for that mysterious stone?" Hilbert crossed his arms.
Roxas merely nodded at him in response. "And what shall we do about the Genesect Army?" Burgh asked with concern.
"Yes, even though the Plasmas may turn their attention to another Legendary Pokémon doesn't mean another is out of the picture," Cheren also expressed his worry about the Bug-type Pokémon.
"I will get Auro, Nate, and Rosa on it. They will begin their hunt for the Genesect across Unova. What you two should is inform Alder of what has happened and tell him to inform the gym leader, the elite four, and any other powerful trainers that compromise the Unova League. Tell them all to prepare measures to counter acts of terrorism; things have just escalated to s higher level," Roxas instructed measures to counter the awakened Genesect Army.
I will also be sure to stay on the alert and inform the other Swords of Justice of what has transpired Cobalion lent his assistance in this crisis.
"Thank you Cobalion," Roxas bowed his head a bit.
"Hey if Ash and May are going to the Relic Castle doesn't that mean we are going along as well?" Iris assumed as she placed her hands behind her head.
"What a mystifying taste that adventure will be," Cilan rubbed his chin as he thought about it.
"Actually, I hate to disappoint you Iris and Cilan, but this time Ash and May will be traveling alone. There are other plans we have for you two," Roxas informed the Unova pair.
"We're not going to travel with Ash and May?!" Iris's eyes widened.
"What?!" Cilan blinked repeatedly.
"Why not Roxas?" May looked at Roxas with sadness.
"It'll be safer if we all go together wouldn't you agree?" Ash tried to argue with Roxas about letting Iris and Cilan stick with them.
"I'm sorry guys, but the situation has become dire and right now we need as much help as possible. We need a lot of different people in different places to counter the threats posed by the Plasmas, Rockets, and the Majestic 12," Roxas answered, feeling a bit guilty for splitting up a group of friends.
"B-But..." Iris tried to come up with an argument, but she couldn't find a way to counter Roxas's point.
Roxas smiled at the Unova residents. "Iris, Cilan, it may be hard to separate from Ash and May, but it will only be temporary. Once you get the task I've assigned you, completed, then you may travel together again."
"Well I guess it makes the parting less sour," Cilan sighed.
Ash, May, Iris, Cilan, Pikachu, Axew, and Victini exchanged looks of sadness amongst each other as they thought about being temporarily split up. "Then I guess everything is settled. Iris and Cilan will be tasked with one mission. Cheren, the Pokémon League, and I will mobilize to counter the Genesect threat and prepare for the worst while Cobalion and his partners assist us through their own methods. Ash, May, and Roxas will travel to the Desert Resort to retrieve the Light Stone before one of the villainous teams does," Burgh summarized.
"We will all mobilize tomorrow in the morning, no more time can be lost especially after what's happened," Cheren stated, receiving nods from everyone.
May placed her hands behind her head with a curious gaze on, "If we're going to start doing our things tomorrow morning then what are we going to do for the rest of today?"
"Cheren, Burgh, and I will organize ourselves will all of you can get on with your activities. It has been a hectic day, I think you've earned your rest," Roxas let them know with a grin.
"Really?!" all the teenagers, except for Roxas, shouted.
Roxas nodded slowly, chuckling. The teens celebrated their free evening, but before May and Ash could discuss their own plans Hilda called for the brunette, "Hey May, can we talk for a bit…in private?"
"Sure Hilda," May answered, wondering why she wanted to privately speak with her.
Hilda grabbed May by the arm and pulled her away from everyone else into a far corner in the room. Ash watched with bafflement, trying to understand why Hilda had suddenly taken May with her. "Hey Ash," Hilbert's voice caught the raven-haired trainer's attention.
"Yeah Hilbert?" Ash smiled at him.
"Can I talk to you alone…?" the brunette asked with a nervous tone.
"Um sure," Ash nodded until Hilbert pulled him by his wrist towards a corner in the room. Pikachu and Victini were left behind wondering what was going with the trainers. Their eyes turned to everyone else who seemed to be discussing their own things. Then they turned to each other, trying to think of a way to not feel left out among the humans.
"Hey what gives?" Ash pulled his arm away from Hilbert, giving him an annoyed look.
"Sorry Ash, I just really needed to speak to you in private," Hilbert sighed as they stopped in a corner far away from May, Hilda, and everyone else.
"You didn't have to pull me, but what's been up Hilbert?" Ash rubbed his wrists as he stared at the Unova boy.
"Everything's been good Ash, but I didn't call you over so that we could catch up on stuff," Hilbert sighed at him.
"Then what Hilbert, just cut to the chase," Ash began to get impatient with Hilbert's odd behavior.
"It's about Hilda," Hilbert revealed.
"He and I have been traveling together recently, around the same time Roxas assigned us to track down Cobalion. Along our journey together though, we began to bond and do stuff together more often, like train, help each other in any way that we could. Things slowly ended up with us talking till 1 AM by the campfire, one time I even found myself sleeping inside Hilbert's tent," Hilda explained the situation to May, her face blushing like a cherry as she talked about it.
"Wow Hilda, it seems like you and Hilbert have been hitting it off real well," May winked at the brunette, making her chuckle uneasily.
"I like her Ash, I like her so much you have no idea," Hilbert gritted his teeth as he tried to avoid blurting out things about Hilda.
"Yeah I know Hilbert, I like Hilda too, so?" Ash placed his hands behind his head as he eyed Hilbert with a blank stare.
Hilbert face palmed himself automatically when he heard his friend, you're kidding right? The dense one has a girlfriend, yet he can't even figure out when I'm admitting that I love someone. The brown-haired boy sighed and shook his head, "No Ash, you don't understand. I'm in love with Hilda."
"Ooooh," Ash emphasized on the vowel and then laughed with an embarrassed tone, "Sorry for not understanding your statement sooner Hilbert."
"That's fine Ash, but listen! You've gotta." Hilbert prepared to say.
"Help me," Hilda put her hands on May's shoulders. "I want the same thing you have with Ash, with Hilbert. I'm in love with that boy, May! Please help a girl out!" The brunette shook her friend anxiously.
"Hilda calm down." May squeezed Hilda's arms with her hands in order to make her stop shaking her. "I'll help you in whatever way I can, but you need to chill out. I didn't get Ash to like me by panicking out loud," the sapphire-eyed girl said.
"You're right May. Sorry," Hilda sighed.
"Now the tips I can give you are these," Ash readied up his advice.
"Don't be afraid to get close to him. Reach your hand out to touch his, press your body against his so that he notices your signals," May raised her index finger as she talked, receiving constant nods from Hilda.
"Be sure to talk to her about something makes her comfortable, something that will open up a conversation with her and teach you some stuff you didn't know about her. Based on what you talk and learn from her, you can do something real nice like take her out to eat something," Ash found himself an position he'd never find himself in before, giving love advice to someone else…
"Be sweet with him; make yourself stand out from everyone else so that he only notices you. The best way to reel them in is by captivating them, it could be something mischievous like steal his hat and make a game out of it or even tease him about love so that he gets curious and tries to make approaches," May kept talking like if she was giving a lecture.
"Most importantly though," Ash started.
"Always," May prepared to give Hilda her biggest piece of advice.
"Be," Ash continued.
"Their shoulder to lean on," they said simultaneously from opposite ends of the room.
"They are always going to look for company, even if they don't directly show it," May explained to the brunette.
"They want you to comfort them. When they come to you, they are searching for someone to make them feel special," Ash remarked.
"Support is very important. Ash and I," May was going to use evidence of why this piece of advice worked best.
"May and I," Ash headed in the same direction with his advice.
"Were always very supportive each other, there'd be moments where we would fight, but our support for each other never faded. When I was sad or wanted someone to make me feel better I went to Ash because no one like him could make me feel loved, he never stopped having faith in me…" May smiled warmly as she placed her fist over her heart.
"We always had each others' backs. We'd get into multiple fights, but in the end having each other was more important than trying to make a point. When I was down after losing in the Sinnoh League and felt unsure of myself, May was there to make me feel better, we guided ourselves through each dark tunnel we went through and came out together. Going through those experiences together while supporting each other is what binds us together," Ash placed his hand over his heart.
"Wow," Hilda and Hilbert answered at the same time, expressing great admiration for the phenomenal kind of love Ash and May had.
May snapped her fingers and looked at Hilda with bright smile, "Why don't we go to the movies tonight, all of us! There you will have your shot at Hilbert, it's the perfect place!"
"A movie with Hilbert, in a dark room watching a romantic film, it's…perfect," Hilda repeated, clasping her hands together as she fantasized about it.
"Then Ash, based on what you said then I should probably buy Hilda something," Hilbert rubbed his chin as he thought it.
"Sounds good to me!" Ash gave Hilbert a thumbs up.
The two pairs returned to the center where their other friends and the Pokémon had been doing something else. "Hey guys, I just thought about something we should do together tonight," May said happily as she stood in front of Ash.
"Actually, Cilan and I already made plans for tonight," Iris laughed nervously, hoping her statement didn't sound like she was blowing them off.
"What?" Ash looked at the purple-haired girl.
"Really?!" May's eyes grew, concluding in her mind that love was in the air.
"For some time I promised Iris that I would teach her how to cook some dishes. Now that we have some time to relax and do our own things, I figured it'd be a good time to do that," Cilan stated, laughing just as nervously as Iris.
May crossed her arms then winked at the pair, "That's fine by us. Do what you gotta do guys, we don't mind. I hope you have fun."
"Same here," Ash winked at them. Hilbert and Hilda also commented about Iris and Cilan's activities, wishing the two a great time as well.
"Thanks," Iris and Cilan smiled gleefully at them.
"As for us though," May turned her sights to her other friends, "I thought we should go watch a movie tonight. What do you think Ashy? It's been such a long time since we went out to do something as a couple," May winked at her boyfriend.
"Fine by me May," Ash winked at the brunette, causing her to leap into his arms so that they could hug.
As they embraced each other sweetly, Ash looked at Hilbert, who stood behind May. The auburn-eyed teen looked at him with a knowing gaze, making the Unova boy nod in response. May did the same as Hilda stood behind Ash, the sapphire-eyed girl winked at her Unova friend and Hilda silently thanked her.
Ash walked through the halls of the Pokémon and once he arrived at the door to his room, he went inside. When he entered, he smiled at the person who was too busy looking at the mirror to turn around. Then he noticed something May was placing her neck, something he hadn't seen in a while.
"Like it?" May turned around elegantly; posing for Ash in her usual outfit but with the addition of the sapphire necklace he had given her in Pallet Town.
"Love it. I didn't think you could do it, but you look more beautiful than usual May," Ash walked over to her, placing his hands on her waist.
"Oh Ash, you always know what to say to a girl. Did Misty teach you that one?" May joked as she placed her arms around his neck.
"Hey I can get inspired some times," Ash got offended by her joke, but smiled sheepishly.
"Well I did want to look extra cute for my man this evening," May giggled a little. As they looked into each other's eyes their noses touched and playfully rubbed each other while their lips also started to move forward.
"Pika," Pikachu coughed to catch their attention, standing on top of one of the beds.
"Tini vi," Victini sat beside the mouse.
"Sorry Pikachu, we'll save it for later then," May giggled while looking into the rodent's tiny eyes.
"Guess it's time to go then," Ash noticed the clock. Then his eyes turned to Pikachu, "Take care of Victini, ok pal and be careful. If there is an emergency Iris and Cilan are just across the room."
"Pikachu!" Pikachu gave the trainer a salute.
"Behave you two. We'll be back soon," May softly scratched them under their chins, making them coo over the pleasant sensation. The brunette pecked them on the cheek and walked to the door with Ash.
"Tini v vi!" Victini waved goodbye.
"Pikachu pipika!" Pikachu waved with the younger Pokémon.
Ash and May waved goodbye until the door was shut. From there they walked to the entrance of the Pokémon Center where they found their two good friends and lovebirds, Hilda and Hilbert.
A chapter dedicated Ash and May's relationship had been long overdue and this chapter served that purpose. It's safe for you to assume that the next chapter will be lovey dovey since we'll be having more than one pair of lovebirds. Don't worry though, Ash and May will always be the spotlight couple. This chapter also indicates as to where things will go now that the Genesect are awakened and how our heroes will try to approach the looming threat.
Not much else to say. REMEMBER TO REVIEW, PM, ETC, FEEDBACK IS ALWAYS WELCOMED. Oh and just one other thing, who remembered the sapphire necklace from the first story? Lol, it hasn't been mentioned ever since the first story ended so I figured now was a good time as any to have it appear again. Well enough of me, take care guys, catch ya next weekend!