Ethereal light gleamed down from above and shook Ash from his slumber. He peeked up at the light through squinted eyes. Everything was blurry, but despite his blurry vision it was clear that the radiance was brighter than anything he had ever seen.
He cringed. Was he...dead?
Searing pain told him otherwise along with memories of heavy weight falling on top of him and grinding his bones into the cold marble of the museum floor. Every single fiber of his being burned and ached to the point that it was almost unbearable.
A faint beep from the corner of the room caused him to jump from fright. At least it would have made him jump from fright, if he was capable of moving his body.
The faint chirp repeated itself every three to five seconds.
His vision didn't allow him to see the device making the sound, but Ash felt it was safe to assume that the device was a heart monitor. He had seen enough movies to recognize the sound and he could feel something strapped to his chest.
He pieced everything together. He had to be in a hospital room.
The fog clouding his vision gradually lifted, allowing him to see his surroundings. The harsh glow of the fluorescent lights on the ceiling were a bit too much for his eyes to handle. It took a moment for his eyes to acclimate to the lighting.
Ash spied a bag of red liquid hanging from a hook on the ceiling and a digital monitor displaying his vital signs. The medical equipment only confirmed his suspicions. His eyes shifted to the bandages wrapped around his entire body.
He blinked. The white wrappings didn't quite look right. They also seemed too solid and too stiff to be bandages.
It took a moment for his brain to process what the wrapping was. The "bandages" weren't bandages at all, but a full body cast.
Ash felt a lump form in his throat at the realization.
Just how close to death had he been? If the bronze statue had broken every bone in his body on impact, how did it not crush his head like a grape?
The floodgate of questions turned into a deluge from there. Would he be able to walk? Was he going to have permanent nerve damage? Would he ever be able to travel again?
Perhaps the most important question had been saved for last. What happened to the task force and his team?
His head hurt from the amount of questions swirling through his mind. Each question hit with all the force of a raging Tauros, but the last question stung the most.
Where was his team?
They needed medical attention immediately. Whatever poison Ash had been injected with, Aurora and Orion received as well, and that alone sent him into a frenzy.
His chest tightened and he felt a bead of sweat roll down his forehead. Ash's face twisted in panic. His eyes darted around the room, scanning the stainless tiles and the corners of the room for so much as a glimpse of Aurora and Orion.
"Where...are...they?" he sputtered, struggling to sit up to no avail.
"Your team is fine, but you need to lay down. We don't need you to hurt yourself." A feminine voice assured.
Ash felt his eyes well up from pain seizing his entire body. He relaxed slightly, the pain forcing him to lie back down. "How are they doing?" he all but pleaded.
"Your Pokemon are currently recovering in the infirmary here at the Pokemon Center," Nurse Joy added. "They appear to be in stable condition, but they aren't recovering from the dose of poison they received as quickly as I'd hoped. I'm taking some extra precautions, just in case and keeping a careful eye on them."
Ash held his breath. He wasn't sure if he was relieved by Nurse Joy's news or if it made him even more anxious to know his Pokemon were struggling to recover from Roserade's poison.
"You can rest assured that we're doing the best we can to help them."
Ash shut his eyes and took a deep breath, trying to force the thoughts of his team from his mind. Unfortunately, he still couldn't help but feel out of sorts.
He felt strange being without the company of his teammates. He had always been there for them and vice versa. It felt out of place for Aurora not to be staring at him or nudging him with her icy nose.
He missed Orion's excited whinnies, his childish antics, and him trying to drag Aurora both Ash and Aurora into games of tag.
"..." Ash tried to say something to Nurse Joy, but he couldn't muster anything more than a raspy cough. His throat was hoarse and his mouth felt incredibly dry like he hadn't drank water for days.
Just how long had he been out?
"What's going on?" he sputtered, finding it a battle just to speak simple phrases.
"You're at the Pokemon Center here in Pewter City," Nurse Joy answered, her voice carrying soothing tones. "Brock brought you here as soon as he realized what happened."
Ash whimpered in acknowledgment.
"Do you remember anything about the raid? I don't need to know any details, it's mainly to see if you have any symptoms of memory loss associated with head injuries. " Nurse Joy asked, sitting down beside him in a chair with a clipboard in hand.
He closed his eyes and searched his mind for even the smallest memory from the Pewter Museum raid. He got far more than he expected as a flood of memories inundated his mind and filled him with terror.
Ash's eyes widened and his breathing became erratic.
Dead bodies of bloodied Pokemon from the carnage of the raid flashed through his mind. The sight was replaced quickly by a vicious Arcanine threatening to tear him limb from limb and the smell of smoke on the fire type's breath.
His mind shifted to thoughts of metal collapsing and heavy bronze pinning him to the ground. The face of a blonde women flickered through his mind for a split second as he heard the sound of footsteps walking away from him.
Nurse Joy jotted something down on the papers she had in her clipboard before reaching out a placing her hand on his hand. "It's okay," she reassured.
Nurse Joy's voice snapped him out of his flashbacks as a stream of tears rolled down his face.
"I remember everything," he whispered.
Nurse Joy gave him a sympathetic look leaned closer to comfort him, much like his mother tended to do when he was young. The physician's eyes began to well up with tears as well.
There were just some things that people, let alone children, weren't meant to see.
Nurse Joy put off the test until he was capable of composing himself. It took him ten minutes or so, but he was now in a state where he was capable of answering questions. Whatever drugs had been pumped into his system were wearing off and the terror from his repressed memories were finally gone.
"Do you feel nauseous, have blurry vision, or feel dizzy?" Nurse Joy asked.
"No," Ash answered promptly.
"That likely means you didn't suffer any brain damage, at least enough to cause memory loss. We're still going to monitor you to make sure." Nurse Joy stated, scribbling a few more notes down. "If you need anything, just let me know, okay?"
"Yeah," Ash replied with a weak smile.
Nurse Joy raised a syringe and needle. Ash's eyes widened, but he felt too drained to resist.
"I'm going to have to run some tests and give you another dose of antibiotic and antidote." Nurse Joy explained. "Don't worry, this won't hurt too badly. You're going to be feeling better in no time."
"Thank you," Ash muttered, his voice trailing off. "For everything...uh..."
He couldn't help but feel guilty as he realized that he didn't know his caretaker's first name.
"Elizabeth, it's Elizabeth Joy."
He nodded, eyeing the needle on the syringe warily.
Ash winced as the needle prodded his arm. A rush of cold flooded through his body before his eyes grew heavy and he faded into unconsciousness.
Ash glanced around at the tile floors and white walls of his hospital room. Another day of solitary confinement.
He felt alone, even if Nurse Joy frequently checked up on him and gave him company. The room felt empty without his team and his inability to move around was making him restless.
He wanted to cry. Guilt, anger, resentment – every single negative emotion he could think of was swirling about inside him. His lack of sleep gave him plenty of time to dwell on the league raid and it was killing him.
Every single thing he could have done differently played through his mind along with his own weakness. If he only hadn't been so rash and avoided the museum altogether – if only he had been stronger.
Brock had been right, he wasn't ready to take on Team Rocket and it cost him.
He remembered his vow on death's doorstep to grow strong enough to leave his own legacy on par with the legacies' of his role models. The proclamation was laughable.
He wasn't even strong enough to protect himself. How was he supposed to become Pokemon Master? If his arms weren't broken, he would have punched something.
A soft tapping came from the door. "Come in," Ash called out.
"How are you doing?"
Ash recognized the masculine voice instantly by its solemn tone and his eyes simply confirmed who he expected to find.
Brock flashed a weak smile. Judging by the look on the gym leader's face, he was anything but happy. If anything, he was a mess. His hair looked a bit disheveled and he had dark spots under his eyes from sleep deprivation.
"I'm fine," Ash muttered, smiling back at the gym leader with a weak smile of his own.
"Come on, there's no way you're fine after something like that." Brock corrected, seeing straight through the facade.
Ash sighed. "I guess I've been better. I feel like I've been trampled by Tauros and hit by a bus."
Brock nodded. "Considering, I can't say I'm surprised."
The room fell silent, with both Brock and Ash grappling for words.
"Have they been taking care of you here?" Brock asked, concern taking over his features.
Ash chuckled inwardly at the contrast in personality from the Brock he had come to know at the gym and the one he had come to know now. "Nurse Joy makes sure to check on me every hour, give or take a couple minutes."
"You need anything?" Brock asked.
"I could use some water, my mouth feels dry. Nurse Joy got me some earlier but that was an hour ago." Ash said, pointing to the cup on the nightstand beside him with a glance. "The cup is right there."
Brock picked up the styrofoam cup. "I'll be right back. Do you want ice?" he asked.
"No thanks," Ash said.
Brock nodded. "I'll be back in a second." he promised, leaving the room.
Ash yawned and glanced at the wall clock. His eyelids felt heavy as he waited for Brock to return. He surrendered to exhaustion and closed his eyes, drifting off before he even realized it.
The full frame of carnage and death immediately presented its cruel memories to him once more.
He saw them again. Bloodied Pokemon and human beings crying out at him in a sea of carnage before the fangs of a vicious Arcanine threatened to tear him limb from limb.
The bruising reminder of bronze metal collapsing and pinning him to the ground haunted him once more. The echo of footsteps walking away from him rang in his ears once more, as the Team Rocket member left him to die under the destroyed statue of Haruko.
Ash gasped and jolted awake – his heart pounding in his chest and his skin feeling cool and clammy. It took him a moment to gain his bearings and calm down from the surge of adrenaline pumping through his body.
Brock noticed the horror on Ash's face. "It's alright, whatever you saw was just a dream."
Ash glanced over and found Brock sitting on a chair over by the window. He blinked and everything came back to him, causing his face to pale. How long had he been out and how long had Brock been sitting there?
"I'm so sorry, I must have drifted off when you left to get me a cup of water."
Brock chuckled. "It's okay, you're probably tired. Nurse Joy said that you've had trouble sleeping, it's good that you finally got some sleep. Rest will help you recover faster."
Ash nodded. "I hope you haven't been waiting there for a long time, I'm sure you've got a lot on your plate with the Pewter Museum incident..." he said, only to be interrupted.
"I haven't been here that long, you've only been sleeping for about ten minutes. But even if you were out longer than that, I'm not just going to leave you here at the hospital alone. I'd make sure any of my league operatives were given good care and accompany them during their recovery, I owe you that much."
Ash smiled. He couldn't help but admire Brock for his kind heart and sense of justice. The man was like the brother he never had.
"I'm sure Nurse Joy already checked with you about your memory, but I wanted to check up with you on some things. How much of the raid do you remember?" Brock asked. "If you don't want to talk about it right now, I understand."
"I remember all of it, it's forgetting it that's the issue." Ash said, a lump forming in his throat.
Brock gave him a sympathetic look. "If you continue having issues, I want you to let a physician or someone associated with the league know. This isn't something you want setting in."
Ash nodded. Another difficult question swirled in his mind. "Does it get easier from here?"
"I'll be honest, you don't forget stuff like this. I'd like to tell you it gets easier, but that's not always how it works. Memories like these are something that will never quite heal, but you can learn to let go of the pain and put it behind you." he said.
Ash took a deep breath. That's what he was afraid of.
"I wasn't expecting to see so many bodies and so much bloodshed." he whispered, his eyes darting to the window as he tried to look away. Memories of near death began to flicker through his mind once more.
Brock swallowed. The gym leader took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak, but struggled to find any words to say. "I..."
Instead, he reached out and placed a hand on Ash's shoulder in an effort to comfort him.
Ash felt his heart sink even more as memories of Haruko's statue crushing him resurfaced. "And I felt so useless!" he hissed.
As much as the carnage and horrors of war bothered him, that wasn't the main reason the memories of the raid bothered him.
The agony of failure hurt far more than the wounds inflicted upon him by the statue of Haruko ever could. He failed to stop that woman and she escaped because of it. Whoever that woman was, she was now free to threaten the rest of the world, free to inflict the same pain he felt onto others.
"I'm so sorry," Brock whispered, with heavy remorse in his tone.
Ash steeled his jaw. A single question lingered on his mind and he needed it to be answered.
"How in the world did I..." Ash whimpered, struggling to even mutter the rest of the sentence. "Survive?"
Brock winced at the question – it wasn't something any trainer his age should have to ask. "I talked to Nurse Joy about that about an hour ago. Apparently, it has to do with the way you were positioned under the statue, you were fortunate enough that the statue didn't land on your head," Brock said. "Had the weight landed on your head, it likely would have been lethal since it would have crushed your skull."
Ash felt a lump form in his throat. He was almost afraid to ask the question he was thinking. "Will I be able to walk?" Ash whispered.
Brock nodded. "I discussed this with Nurse Joy earlier as well, although your body took a lot of damage it's nothing that can't be treated. Nurse Joy has already injected you with Ditto cells that will help you recover faster."
Ash tensed at the mention of Ditto cells being used in his body. "Ditto cells?" he repeated, an air of skepticism in his voice.
Was such a procedure even safe?
"In severe cases, such as your situation, Ditto cells are applied to help replace lost nerve tissue and help damaged nerves heal faster. Ditto cells have the ability to take on attributes of DNA and duplicate DNA, the medical community experimented with this knowledge and has discovered that Ditto cells can even replicate human cells." Brock said.
"So what's that mean for my recovery time?" Ash asked.
"It's going to take some time to recover and build up lost muscle strength again, but you're going to regain your full physical range of motion," Brock answered. "Consider yourself, very lucky."
He was quite relieved that he hadn't lost his ability to walk from the incident; although he still a bit uneasy. He realized just how close to death he was and for that he felt guilty.
Had he thought of the consequences? Had he thought of the dilemma the league would have had if he had died on the raid?
Had he thought of the risk of him compromising the mission had he froze up?
What would his mother have said if she had found out the news of his involvement in the raid? What would his mother have done if he had died?
Ash cursed under his breath.
He should never have been on the raid to begin with. He was nowhere near ready to handle the task of dealing with Team Rocket. He had overestimated his abilities and it cost him. He had no business being involved with the league – at least not yet anyway.
"I'm sorry,"
Brock gave him a perplexed look, barely able to believe that Ash of all people would be apologizing to him given the circumstances.
"If anyone should be sorry Ash, it should be me. I'm the Pewter City gym leader and I promised to keep you safe on that mission. I failed you – I shouldn't even have let you join the raid party to begin with because you just aren't ready for that sort of thing," he began. "I went against my better judgment because I panicked. I knew Pewter was low on manpower and I was desperate for more numbers. I overestimated myself and underestimated the situation. It's my fault that you're injured and it's my fault that you nearly lost your life. For that, I should be the one apologizing."
"I shouldn't have volunteered." Ash retorted. "I wanted to help, but I didn't stop to consider all the things that could have went wrong. I could have messed up the mission, and I could have died."
Another masculine voice rang out from the entrance. "But you did volunteered, you helped, for the most part the mission succeeded, and most importantly you survived."
Ash's eyes shifted to a rugged man standing at the end of his hospital bed with a grin on his face. His facial features, his squinted eyes, his spiky brown hair – Ash had only seen those type of features in Brock and Forrest.
"Flint?" Ash muttered under his breath, recognizing the man instantly from newspaper clippings of his days as Pewter City's gym leader.
"What you did took guts, few trainers would have put their teams and themselves on the line like you did. I know that you're upset about what happened, but you should be proud. It might seem like a minimal contribution, but you really helped Pewter City with your actions."
Ash frowned.
The man had to be joking with him or trying to make him feel better. Most of his time on the raid consisted of running away and taking out poorly trained fodder Pokemon commanded by Team Rocket. The rest of it was spent as a helpless victim pinned underneath a statue.
"The task force managed to take down quite a few Team Rocket members. The league will be interrogating the living Team Rocket members involved in the museum attack. Any information we get will be because of the effort of the league's task force." Flint continued.
He pointed at Ash.
"That task force included you, which means your efforts helped the league. You're obviously not ready to help the league out in an official capacity, but your actions today were a good start. Name a single rookie trainer that would have been able to handle that situation and get out of it alive – there aren't many."
Ash sighed and took a moment to consider his words.
He guessed he was right. Few trainers would have gotten out of the situation alive and few would have managed as much as Ash had.
It was obviously not a situation he should repeat or one he wanted to get into again; but the outcome was favorable given the circumstances.
Flint quickly turned his focus to Brock and marched over to his son. He stretched out his arm to Brock and rested his hand on his shoulder.
"I know you're not happy with your leadership abilities and decision making, but this was a new situation for you. You have only had this job for a year. You've got a lot more to learn, but don't sell yourself short. You got the job done and you handled the situation fairly well given the situation. There's a lot of people with far more experience than you that would have froze and others who would have made even worse decisions."
Flint paused a moment to let his words sink in before continuing.
"Considering that you were low on manpower for the museum raid, especially for a squad of Team Rocket members that large, I'd say you did a good job."
Brock smiled, even if only a little.
"I was going to ask for more information about that." Ash interjected.
Flint took a deep breath and glanced around briskly to check for other people.
"Typically, we wouldn't share this information with the public or anyone without a security clearance; however, I think seeing that you're already involved heavily in this that you have a right to know. That being said, what I'm about to share with you should be kept private. We don't want to spread panic and we definitely don't want Team Rocket to get any ideas on how to conduct future operations."
Ash nodded in acknowledgment.
Flint paused momentarily and rubbed his chin while searching for the right words. "I was deployed to Mt. Moon along with a task force of league operatives to investigate reports of Team Rocket activity at the behest of Giovanni. Giovanni was becoming increasingly dismayed about the reports of Team Rocket activity in Pewter and felt it was in Kanto's best interests that the claims be investigated and any Team Rocket members be stopped immediately." He explained. "Naturally, I agreed as it was a potential threat to Pewter City."
"Was there anything at Mt. Moon?" Ash asked.
"I didn't find a whole lot at Mt. Moon that would point to Team Rocket activity per say, although my absence allowed Team Rocket to strike Pewter City at a time of vulnerability." Flint answered, a scowl forming on his face. He clearly wasn't happy about leaving Pewter open to attack.
"We talked to the league about that aspect of the situation and the league suspects that Team Rocket split us up intentionally. Giovanni has even suggested that the Mt. Moon operations were just a false flag to divert manpower from Pewter City. From now on, the league is going to exercise extreme caution in how task forces are mobilized to prevent another situation like this." Brock added.
There was one thought that continued to bother Ash. What was Team Rocket's motive?
It still wasn't making much sense why Team Rocket would attack Pewter City of all places.
The museum may have had a lot of artifacts, but nothing that would warrant a large scale operation of that magnitude. Team Rocket could have just as easily set up shop at Mt. Moon.
"What exactly did Team Rocket want with Pewter City anyways?" Ash asked. "Wouldn't setting up at Mt. Moon have made more sense?"
Flint pulled a pamphlet from his pocket and held it up for Ash to see. "Are you familiar with the meteor exhibit?"
Ash's eyes widened. He should have known!
If the meteors from Mt. Moon were truly connected to mega evolution, that meant they were valuable and powerful.
"You mean, that's what they were after?"
Flint nodded and tucked the pamphlet away in his pocket. "In hindsight, we should have realized this and increased security." Brock remarked. "There's a big market for something like that, especially if it is connected to mega evolution."
"It wasn't until investigators checked the second floor of the museum that they even found that anything was missing and even then it took them by surprise because apparently Team Rocket only took one of the Mt. Moon meteor samples." Flint added.
"Is that what...?" Ash muttered under his breath. He flinched as he put all the pieces together. The woman appearing from the other side of the museum flashed through his mind along with the task force lured to the other side of the museum. "Have you filed a police report about my involvement in the raid and the time line of events?"
Brock shook his head. "We were going to have you file a report with us, but we needed to see if you still remembered the incident and if you were even able to deliver an account of the raid before we could even think of filing a report of your involvement."
Flint raised his eyebrows in surprise. "Any reason you're asking?"
"I have more information to add, it might add some clarity to the case," Ash answered. "You're both probably wondering how I got underneath the statue of Haruko."
"We were going to ask you about that eventually, but only when you felt well enough to give your report of what happened on the raid." Brock replied.
"The statue incident happened after I tried to rejoin the task force. I didn't think I had the strength to get to the Pokemon Center by myself after I was attacked by Team Rocket when I tried to retreat. After patching myself up, I tried to make back to the league operatives and hoped the action was over." Ash paused to catch his breath. "It was at that moment that I stumbled across one more Rocket and tried to subdue her. Her Roserade was stronger than all the other Team Rocket Pokemon my team fought combined. I thought it would be an easy fight, but she managed to evade my team's attempts to subdue her like she was some sort of trained gymnast."
Flint rubbed his chin in thought. "Gymnast, huh?" he interrupted.
"You don't think?" Brock murmured under his breath.
"Roserade beat both of my Pokemon with ease, but before she left the Rocket member decided to try to finish me off by throwing me underneath the statue of Haruko to make a statement to the league that Team Rocket was coming out of the shadows or something like that." Ash continued, ignoring Brock and Flint talking back and forth with each other.
"Can you remember what the woman looked like?" Flint asked.
Ash nodded. "She dressed like a normal Team Rocket grunt, she had blonde hair, and violet eyes. She also carried some sort of strange flower with her that discharged electricity."
Brock scowled. "That's her alright – they brought their A-game for the Pewter Op."
"You know that woman?" Ash frowned.
"You probably don't need us to tell you that you ran into a Team Rocket executive because you got a taste of her skill. Executives aren't just random recruits, but masters of their craft that receive top notch training. Unfortunately, you just happened to run into one of the most dangerous executives in the entire organization." Flint explained.
"So who is she?" Ash asked.
"Domino," Flint answered. "Everything from her Pokemon to her athleticism fit the bill. The description of her weapon only confirms it."
"The league isn't going to be happy about this news," Brock grumbled. "Giovanni is already furious about the Viridian Pokemon Center incident. He's going to hit the ceiling when he finds out Domino struck Pewter City and that she's on the loose."
"None of us like the fact that Team Rocket is growing bolder, but the fact we don't like it doesn't change the fact that Team Rocket is gaining traction." Flint retorted.
"What does this mean for Kanto going forward?" Ash asked.
Flint stiffened at the question and glanced over at Ash. He opened his mouth to reply, but words wouldn't come out of his mouth.
Ash felt a lump form in his throat. Uncertainty wasn't the reaction he wanted to see, but it was the reaction he should have expected. No one knew what an emboldened Team Rocket would or could do to Kanto.
It had been a decade or more since peace had been threatened in Kanto. War was the last thing on the minds of those living in Kanto, but Team Rocket's meteoric rise was making conflict a possibility.
"We'll see," Flint hesitated. "We can only hope for the best and prepare for the worst."
Ash closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He knew Flint was right, but the uncertainty of the future lingered in his mind. He supposed that both he and the Kanto region would deal with the troubles when they actually arrived.
A familiar pink-haired physician shuffled into the room with a clipboard in hand. She shot a playful leer at Flint and Brock. "I think you two have had enough visitation time. The poor kid is probably exhausted now from all the questioning." Nurse Joy giggled.
"We weren't too harsh on him, he should be fine." Flint chuckled. "We were mainly checking up on him."
Nurse Joy waved him off and shook her head. "It's fine, I just need to change out his IV in a little bit and I wanted to check up on him."
Brock glanced at Nurse Joy, causing Ash to mentally groan from the expectation of a hormonal Brock pestering the physician. He closed his eyes, not wanting to see the train wreck to come.
"Make sure to keep an eye on him and I'd like you to keep me posted about his condition," Brock instructed, a heavy sense of concern in his voice. "If he so much as runs a temperature, I'd like to know about it."
He paused in the doorway. "And Elizabeth, make sure he gets everything he needs," he added.
"You can count on it," Nurse Joy assured.
A smile formed on Brock's face. "That's all I needed to hear," he replied as he headed out the door.
Ash peeked out at the world around him. He couldn't help but be surprised by the level of professionalism from Brock when interacting with Nurse Joy and judging by Flint's reaction he was not alone.
"Hope you like visitors, because we're going to be dropping in here frequently." Flint said, breaking the silence during their contemplation regarding Brock's demeanor.
Ash smiled his first genuine smile in a long time. After what he had been through, he appreciated the company. "Of course, I'm looking forward to it," he said.
"Alright, I need to run some tests and give you another dose of your medications." Nurse Joy reminded, turning Ash's attention from Flint to her standing at his bedside.
Ash frowned as he eyed the syringe in her hand and the massive needle at the end of the syringe. To say he was reluctant to hold out his arm was an understatement.
"Don't look so upset, I've got just the thing that will help you get your mind off the needle."
Ash raised an eyebrow. What could she possibly have that could distract him from that?
His question was answered by the sight of a Vulpix as white as snow and a horse with a mane of orange flame peeking at Ash from the doorway. Ash's eyes widened as they darted over to Ash's bedside and stood beside his bed.
The Vulpix yipped at him repeatedly and the Ponyta whinnied in excitement.
Ash felt his heart flutter in excitement.
Aurora pressed her icy nose against his right arm. Orion followed suit by gently nudging Ash with his head. He couldn't move his arms to pet his team, but that didn't matter at the moment. It was nice just to see them again and know that they were okay.
Ash winced slightly from the sensation of a pin prick in his arm and glanced over to see Nurse Joy injecting another dose of antidote into his arm.
He chuckled. He had to give her credit, her plan had worked and he hadn't felt a thing.
Physical therapy took longer than he anticipated and as a result he was in Pewter City far longer than he intended. He hoped to be back on the road in a week, but his recovery time had taken up two weeks.
Even with Ditto cell treatment to speed up his recovery time, it took a long time for his bones to heal and it was taking a long time for him to rebuild his muscle strength after his muscles had atrophied from inactivity.
The only positives from the experience was that Ash was able to get to know Brock and Flint even better. He liked their family and appreciated their character. There was a lot to learn from people like them, not only as a trainer but in regards to life.
He supposed that in the long run that him being in Pewter for an extended amount of time was a good thing. In a sense had the events of the museum never happened, he wouldn't have established such a close friendship with Brock and Flint.
He would miss the friends he made in Pewter.
Speaking of which – Ash glanced down at his Pokenav. It hadn't changed and he had yet to receive a call. He was a bit surprised, Brock and Flint promised to call him before they stopped by for one last visit before he left for Cerulean.
He chalked up them running late to work and league tasks. Not that it mattered to Ash, it actually worked in his favor since he hadn't finished packing yet.
The trainer reached under the bed for his backpack.
A pair of light blue eyes watched him from underneath one of the chairs in the corner of the room. Before he could react, a white blur lunged at Ash and pounced on his back to pin him to the floor.
Ash wheezed, stunned by the unexpected attack. A warm tongue and cold nose touched his face. Aurora's sky blue eyes stared into his eyes. "Okay, okay, you're happy to see me, I get it but is this necessary every day?" Ash laughed.
Orion whinnied and joined in on the fun by resting a hoof on Ash's back to help pin him to the floor.
A faint knock came from the door. "Okay, you guys beat me!" Ash laughed. "Can you let me get up so I can get the door?"
Aurora and Orion let their trainer go, both of them having had enough fun for one day. Ash darted over to the door and opened it. A subtle smirk formed on his face at the sight of his expected guest. "Flint?"
"In person!" The former gym leader declared with a smile.
Brock stepped forward as well and waved to Ash. "And Brock," he chimed in, flashing a grin of his own.
"Mind if we stop in for a minute or two?" Flint asked.
"Come in," Ash invited, motioning for them to enter the room. "How are you?"
"Fine, just fine," Flint answered, wandering over to one of the chairs in the room where he was greeted by a friendly Aurora and Orion.
"We wanted to check up on how you're doing and talk a bit since you said you were leaving soon." Brock said.
"How are you feeling and how did physical therapy go?" Flint asked.
"Everything is fine, Nurse Joy's physical therapy has been tough over the last week; but I'm feeling stronger than ever!"
Flint smiled at him and flashed him a quick thumbs up. "Good, that's exactly what I like to hear!" he beamed.
Brock gave Ash a skeptical look, scowling slightly. "Are you having any unusual aches or pains?"
Ash shook his head. "I'm a little sore since my muscles need to get used to exercise again, but I feel fine other than that."
"Any unusual symptoms or weakness in your bones? I know Nurse Joy probably examined you, but I don't want you to push yourself too hard."
"Everything seems to be as it should be." Ash assured.
Brock's smile returned, relieved to get a confirmation regarding Ash's recovery. "Just try to take it easy the first few days, it never hurts to take some extra precaution."
Flint shook his head as he rested his hand on Brock's shoulder. "You know better than to worry," he chuckled before pointing to Ash. "This guy can handle anything you throw at him because he's tough. He's like an unmovable mountain."
"I just don't want him to overexert himself and wind up in the hospital again." Brock said, a hint of irritation in his voice. "There is a difference between being tough and being reckless."
Ash smirked. He couldn't help but be amused by Brock's parental instincts kicking in – an obvious result of him being an older brother.
Flint sighed in defeat. "I guess Brock is right, be careful out there. You've got a bright future, don't ruin it by getting hurt or by getting yourself into trouble."
"I will try my best to stay out of trouble." Ash promised.
Flint glanced over at Brock. "See, he's going to be fine!"
Brock glanced at his father and cleared his throat, signaling for a change of topic. "Should we…" he whispered, his voice trailing off as he gestured to his belt.
Ash gave Brock a perplexed look as Flint reached down into his pocket.
"Brock and I were talking the other day and we decided that we wanted to give you something for your valiant efforts in the Pewter City raid." Flint said.
"What kind of something?" Ash chuckled.
"Just a small reward," Flint replied as he pulled something out of his pocket and hid it inside his clenched hand.
He reached out for Ash's hand and placed an object in his palm. Ash recoiled from the cold touch of the metallic object. His eyes widened as he examined the object in his hand.
"A Poke Ball?" he muttered in disbelief.
Flint said that his reward would be small, receiving a Pokemon was no small gift.
"Thank you," Ash sputtered, truly appreciative of the trust that they placed in him to give him another Pokemon. "This doesn't seem like a small reward,"
Flint smirked. "We offered a small reward, the Pokemon contained inside that Poke Ball is technically small." he chuckled. "That still qualifies as a small reward, right? Anyways, what good is the TM for Rock Tomb if you can't use it?"
Ash ran his thumb across the polished surface of the Poke Ball. Aurora and Orion eyed the red and white orb with a spark of curiosity in their eyes, clearly interested in meeting their new teammate. "What Pokemon is this?" he asked.
"There's only one way to find out." Brock replied with a smirk, pointing to the Poke Ball.
Ash waved off Aurora and Orion as they inched closer to him. "Back up, you don't want to scare it," he chided.
Orion stomped his hooves on the floor like a disappointed child while Aurora opted for a comfy viewing position on the bed. Ash pressed his thumb against the release button on the orb, causing the Poke Ball to increase in size before it opened. A flash of light illuminated the room.
An olive, reptilian Pokemon glanced around the room with a dopey look on its face. Ash gave the creature a once over.
It looked familiar. Its armored exterior and the dull spike crowning its head were unmistakable. He swore he saw it in a book or on television once, but he couldn't quite remember the exact species aside from the fact it was native to Johto.
Upon seeing the amount of eyes staring at him, the Pokemon shrank back and channeled a wave of energy through its body that hardened its skin even further.
It clearly didn't like the attention.
Orion gave the Pokemon a friendly whinny and greeted it with several bobs of his head. The reptile's eyes bulged and the creature stumbled backwards in fright. Orion lowered his head in shame, feeling a twinge of guilt for startling the reptile even more and offending a potential friend.
Aurora leapt down from her perch on the bed and blew a wisp of cold air in Orion's face to get the fire type to back away from the reptile before greeting the Pokemon with a friendly woof.
"Ash, this is Larvitar," Flint stated, pointing to the reptilian Pokemon.
"Larvitar, huh?" he muttered, reaching for his Pokedex.
Ash pointed the scanners of the Pokedex at Larvitar to learn more about the creature. The screen of the tablet flicked momentarily to display the species before speaking in its cold, robotic monotone.
Larvitar, the rock skin Pokemon – Larvitar are generally born deep underground and are known for consuming soil to obtain the nutrients they need. It was once stated by the scientific community that Larvitar could consume an amount of soil around the mass of a small mountain, but modern studies have debunked that urban legend. Nevertheless, Larvitar need lots of minerals to grow and will rest once it has obtained the amount of nutrients it needs to evolve.
Larvitar is male and has the Guts ability which increases offensive capabilities in a pinch. Larvitar knows Bite, Leer, Iron Defense, and Stealth Rock.
Ash smirked – he could work with that moveset.
He knelt down in front of Larvitar, causing the shy rock type to back away from Ash. "I'm not going to hurt you, I just want to talk. I want to get to know you, I want to be friends.." Ash whispered, maintaining a reassuring tone to try to put Larvitar at ease.
The rock type grumbled a bit and relaxed at the idea of talking with the trainer. Larvitar was still nervous from all of the eyes watching him, but Ash's assurances took some of the edge off.
"My name is Ash Ketchum," he stated, pointing to himself with his thumb. The trainer pointed over at Aurora. "This is my friend, Aurora," He turned his attention to Orion who was standing beside Aurora and pointed his finger at the fire type. "And that is my friend, Orion. We're training to get stronger because I want to become a Pokemon Master."
Larvitar replied with a contented grunt. Orion let out a proud whinny only for Larvitar to shrink back again.
Aurora puffed another blast of cold air in Orion's face for startling the rock type. Orion glowered at Aurora for interfering and stomped his hooves, resulting in another blast of cold air in the face for the Ponyta.
Orion let out a disgruntled whinny and snorted a plume of smoke in Aurora's direction. The Vulpix sputtered from the smoke, but did her best to ignore her teammate and turned her attention back to their new teammate.
"Iron Defense and Stealth Rock, huh? Was this a Pokemon that was bred?" Ash asked.
"Yes, in a matter of fact, he was recently hatched. I recovered Larvitar at Mt. Moon when he was an egg during my task force's investigation of Mt. Moon. He's a bit shy and clumsy since he's still young, but a good trainer should be able to help him come out of his shell and gain confidence." Flint replied.
"So you think that I can instill confidence in Larvitar and help him grow?" Ash asked.
"That's right, but whether or not you two decide to take that path is up to you and Larvitar." Flint answered.
"Larvitar needs someone who can push him while caring for him at the same time. You've shown yourself more than capable of that with your Pokemon." Brock added.
Ash grinned. He was up to the challenge if Larvitar was.
The trainer knelt down beside the rock type. "How would you like to train and travel with me?"
Larvitar took a moment to think it over and glanced over at Ash's other Pokemon. Orion tapped his hooves on the ground and voiced his favor of the offer with a whinny. Aurora seconded the motion with a soft bark.
Larvitar glanced up at Ash. All the attention that Ash and his team was giving him was unnerving but he liked them anyways. They were kindhearted and they were offering him a chance to be a part of their group.
Larvitar voiced his agreement with a grunt, resulting in a grin from Ash. "Welcome to the team, Larvitar," he said before turning his attention to Flint and Brock.
He was grateful for them. Flint and Brock had supported him emotionally during his recovery, they made sure he was taken care of, and they encouraged him throughout his physical therapy. Having them give him a Pokemon was only a bonus.
He would miss both of them tremendously.
"Thank you for everything that you've done, it means a lot to me!"
"Take care of yourself," Brock said, holding out his hand.
"I will," Ash promised, shaking the gym leader's hand.
"You've still heading to Cerulean City, right?" Flint asked.
"Yeah, I want to win the gym badge," Ash replied.
"Are you taking the Mt. Moon route?" Brock asked.
"Probably, it looks like the shortest route to Cerulean." Ash said.
"Try to stick the main paths, I know it can be tempting to explore the other routes; but it's an easy way to get lost." Brock said, a hint of concern in his voice once more. "It probably wouldn't hurt to stock up on supplies either and have extra on hand."
"I didn't plan on staying there any longer than I have to, but I'll definitely stock up." Ash assured.
"Good luck in Cerulean, Ash – if you're ever in the neighborhood or are interested in a battle feel free to drop by," Flint said. "And I'm sure Brock could use the training, he's getting lazy lately."
Brock raised an eyebrow at his smirking father and shook his head. "Look who's talking," he retorted with a smirk of his own. "Don't listen to him, he doesn't know what he's talking about; but I would appreciate a rematch some time."
"Thanks, I'll have to take you up on that!" Ash exclaimed.
Flint motioned for Brock as he turned to leave. "We won't keep you too long, we just wanted to stop in and say goodbye."
"Thanks for stopping by, I appreciate it," Ash said as he watched them exit the room.
He felt a sense of pride while watching Brock and Flint leave. They had taught him many valuable lessons that he would never forget.
Ash grunted as he hoisted his backpack over his shoulders. The bag felt far heavier than it had the previous times he traveled, causing him to stumble momentarily.
A cold nose prodded his leg before the chill was banished by radiant heat. Aurora and Orion nudged him, helping him steady himself.
He smiled at his companions. "Thanks," he mouthed, eliciting a friendly bark and whinny from them.
He looked at the silhouette of Pewter City shrouded by the sunset and took a deep breath as he pressed towards his destination with his friends by his side.
They had one more stop before they could leave.
He shuffled down the street before stopping in front of the ruins of the Pewter City Museum of Science – or at least what remained of the building that lay beyond the police barricade. He wanted one last glimpse at the battlefield that had been his first taste of the front lines.
Ash, Orion, and Aurora tensed at the sight of the rubble that was now the museum. "Let it all sink in," he whispered.
It was in Pewter that they got their first taste of the perils of war and the face of evil; but it was in Pewter City that they forged an identity and ideology.
He saw blood, gore, wreckage, and senseless destruction. Team Rocket had taken lives, destroyed historical artifacts without a second thought, tried to kill him, and stole from the museum. In all likelihood, they were going to weaponize the meteor they stole.
On the other hand, he saw many great things.
He saw heroes with a drive to do what was right no matter what the cost. Brock and Flint lived like the role models Ash looked up to. They stayed with him the entire time he was recovering, they dedicated themselves to mentoring others, and they dedicated themselves to protecting the region.
They were the type of trainers that his father would be proud of – the type of trainer that Ash desired to become. It made his father's ideals resonate with him that much more.
Ash pressed the release button on Larvitar's Poke Ball to let him out. The rock-type glanced around, somewhat unnerved from being abruptly released from stasis.
Larvitar didn't seem to appreciate surprises.
"I just wanted you to be able to see this along with the rest of the team." Ash explained, unable to avert his eyes from the museum ruins. "This is why we fight."
Larvitar grunted, staring at Ash and the rest of the team with a perplexed look. The fixation on the ruins didn't make sense to the armored Pokemon, but he pretended to understand by feigning interest in the charred stone rubble.
Ash envied Larvitar slightly. He could tell Larvitar didn't understand the emotional weight behind visiting the museum since he hadn't been involved in the fight for survival that he and the older members of his team involved themselves in.
He missed that innocence.
Unfortunately, Larvitar's innocence wouldn't last forever. Whether it was because of a brutal Pokemon battle or another conflict with criminals, there was bound to be some sort of event that forced Larvitar to mature like the rest of them had.
It was just part of life.
Ash glanced down at his new team member with a hint of concern on his face. The rock type grumbled at him, causing him to smile as a sense of determination welled up inside of him.
While he knew that Larvitar would have to endure the same adversity that their small group had in Pewter, he would do his very best to make sure that Larvitar would be ready when that time came.
His father's ideals of protecting those that couldn't protect themselves would guide him and help him prepare Larvitar for the day that he would need to shoulder more responsibility.
And whenever he questioned what those principles looked like in action, he would always have a reference point due to Brock and Flint.
A cold touch snapped him out of his thoughts and shifted his attention to the fox sitting beside him, nudging his leg with her nose. Aurora yipped and glanced at the roads behind them almost as a subtle reminder that they needed to leave.
Orion followed suit, whinnying impatiently. He was finished with the trip down memory lane and was ready to move on.
Ash nodded to the group and flashed them a thumbs-up.
Of course, he wouldn't take on the task of raising Larvitar himself – the rest of his team would always be by his side to aid him like they had done with everything else.
His smile grew even wider.
They would all be ready to hold onto those ideals when the time came.
Author's Note: I apologize for any inconvenience regarding the edits lately and the confusion that comes with me combining chapters. There were some things I really didn't like about the original chapters that I wanted to improve upon and I felt some chapters could be combined. I assure you that I am working on the next chapter and hope to have it out as soon as possible.