Wes knew that he was going to need help with this mission. Sliph Co. is practically a megacorporation that helps create the state-of-the-art technology other Regions use. As such, he needed more than just Espeon and Umbreon.
Unluckily for him, he left most of his Pokemon with her. But he did keep the ones he always found useful or too dangerous to be left in her care. And at most, he would only need two more for this mission.
While Sliph Co was hosting a convention, it didn't mean that it was open to the public. Most of the people entering were business types from all parts of the world. So, Wes had to disguise himself to at least look like a promising businessman. Not that it was hard to pick up a suit and store away his Snag Machine in a briefcase. To really sell his disguise, he also wore glasses. The secret savior of Orre thought he looked like a nerd. Had one asked how Wes currently looked to a small number of girls around his age, they would disagree in a manner that would make a certain orange-head very jealous.
Wes had to admit one thing: no one he knew would recognize him as he was now.
Yep. Absolutely no one.
Ash Ketchum levitated the rubix cube above his hand. In less than a minute, he completed all six sides.
'Wow! You really improved!' Astro cooed as Ash gave the toy over to him.
"Thanks to Sabrina," The raven-haired teen slouched a little. "I don't think I'd get to control it as well as I do now." He looked to his left, where the older—whatwasthatfamiliarspikeinpsychicenergy—friend usually walked with him and saw only empty space.
Still, "We should also get some more training in before we head towards the other gym. Sabrina said it was a Dojo before it got recognized that means we'll be in for a tough fight!" The problem was that Ash didn't know much about the city he was in, other than the other Gym was in the opposite direction of where Sabrina's was. In other words, he had no idea where to go for training.
Astro perked up as he felt something in the air. 'Huh? Ash, I'm sensing a lot of people in that direction.'
The young psychic saw what looked to be an event of some kind. He saw one of the banners that the big building hosted a Security Convention, not that the country bumpkin had ever heard of having a convention over security before. Ash Ketchum, with his usual on-brand luck, saw something that most people wouldn't catch.
"Leo?"
Ash recognized the guy from the train even though he wore a suit and glasses. To Ash, his clothes were a lot less cool than his last getup, but he looked busy. Funny enough, the last time he saw Leo, he was trying to return that crystal Astro took on accident. But then things got fuzzy when Leo threw something on the ground. The next thing he remembered was Sabrina dragging him out of the subway.
What did happen after he blacked out? Ash didn't see much harm in asking.
"HEY! LEO!" Ash shouted to the crowd.
To the trainer's surprise, "Leo" looked back at him—then quickly turned his head back before power walking towards the building.
'Who's Leo?' Ash's Riolu climbed behind his backpack and rested his head on top of Ash's.
"Oh, right, you were on a sugar rush." Astro and the others barely recall anything on the train ride other than a splitting headache. "He's a friend I met on the way to Daigon City. What's he doing here?"
'It looks like he's going to that big gathering of people.'
"Then I guess we're going there. I've always wanted to see Leo and that other guy again."
If anyone has ever had carefully throughout plans get undone in a matter of seconds, they would have an idea of what Wes currently felt like.
"Leo!"
Wes knew his mission required precision, timing, and good luck.
"LEEEEOOOOO! Heeeyyyy!"
The Snagger realized he had none of it. He did his best to sneak into the crowd and lose the sound of the voice, hoping that it was a trick of the universe.
"Leo! Leo! Leeeooo~!"
It seemed like the universe confuted the notion of it being a trick. No matter how much he traveled, he couldn't escape the kid following him. Wes thought he could make it past the security gates, then he'd be able to lose his pursuer.
He was right.
Ash got stopped by security after the Snagger got through the guarded gates.
"Sorry, kid. You need an ID ticket to enter." One of the security staff told the kid.
Ash was understandably upset. He wanted to catch up with the mysterious friend.
"In that case, how about you make an exception just this once?"
Everyone turned to the new voice to see a scientist with blue, spiky hair and dark violet eyes.
"Dr. Yung?" The security guard asked aloud.
The scientist gave a smile towards Ash. "Young man, I'm an inventor hoping to show off my top-secret project to budding new investors at this convention. I can't tell you all the details, but may I ask for a piece of your Riolu's fur? I'm sure my invention would benefit you trainers one day as well. If you help me, I can technically let you in as an assistant of mine."
Ash did want to catch up with Leo. The teen turned to his friend, "Astro, do you mind?" The emanation Pokemon didn't seem to care much as Ash took a tuff of loose fur inside Astro's hat and gave it to Dr. Yung. The man with a lab coat took the item with his own set of pincers before placing it into a tube. In return, Dr. Yung gave a Staff ID to the young teen. "I am a man of my word. Here you go, and do behave while you're there, alright?"
"Alright! Thanks, Dr. Yung!" Ash scanned his ID and ran into the convention. As he did, Astro suddenly felt a weird chill down his spine, but it left as quickly as it came. The Riolu felt the need to scan for Dr. Yung's Aura, but as he did, he felt confused.
It felt like Dr. Yung was no longer in the area. No matter how much the Emanation Pokemon tried, he couldn't pinpoint the aura of the nice doctor that let them in. But it was strange to the fighting-type. Why did it feel as if that Dr. Yung had no Aura more than Astro having trouble locating it? Before he could speak out about that oddity, Ash climbed up the stairs to enter the building, causing the fighting-type to hang on his trainer's head for balance.
Dr. Yung stared at the tuff of fur in his hands. "This will definitely help my research."
Inside the convention, Ash looked where he thought Leo went. "Hey, Astro, do you know where Leo went?"
Now that Ash was standing still, the emanation Pokemon closed his eyes and felt the Aura of both Pokemon and People within the area. While he did notice the Aura of Leo, he still couldn't spot the Aura of Dr. Yung in the area. Maybe Ash's feather was acting up again. 'That Leo guy is over in that direction.'
Ash thanks his starter, but they did take in the sites of the Security Convention.
Aside from meeting the kid again and almost having his cover blown, Wes' mission was going smoothly. He spent his time placing miniature cameras in key locations so as to keep track of patrols of regular security, potential escape routes, and the likes.
Wes found out that there was going to be a big event over this one scientific breakthrough. The plan was that while this Dr. Kid guy was wowing boring old men with some shiny gadget, he'd be able to sneak into the higher levels of Sliph Co and get access to their Cyber Lock Key. Wes eyed his computer wrist as the majority of people were flocking towards the unveiling of this doctor's new invention.
"What are you watching?"
"Some weird inventor."
"Oh, it's Doctor Yung!"
"If I wanted to know his name, I'd remember it."
"That's mean to say."
"Well, we can't all be nice as you, Rui."
"Rui?" For one second, Wes remembered that he wasn't in Orre gallivanting with a hyperactive redhead with magical eyes. He instead turned to see the same kid he thought he lost at the entrance of the convention. "Who's Rui? I'm Ash. We met on the train, Leo?"
Wes really hated how the kid somehow snuck up on him without noticing. He had to think fast. He coughed into his hand. "Excuse me? I think you're confusing me with someone else. What train? And my name is Wes." The Snagger put his computer wrist down, unaware that Dr. Yung's presentation began about Mirage Pokemon.
The young man from Orre hoped his lie would work. After all, Ash didn't look all that clever when they first "met".
Ash blinked for a second before tilting his head. "But it is you?" He asked while the crowd started to get wowed by the demonstration of a holographic Aggron that could perform moves as if it was a real Pokemon. It also used moves Aggron could never use such as Fly and Hydro Pump.
"What makes you say that?" Wes asked while Dr. Yung talked about all his possibilities with his new technology.
Until something started to short circuit in the main machine.
While Dr. Yung tried to calm everyone down, two things happened: his Aggron screamed in pain as his eyes glowed red, and Ash shrugged his shoulders in response to Wes. "You just changed your clothes. It's not that hard to see your face, and your hair color is the same despite being swept back."
Meanwhile, in the main universe, regular Ash Ketchum falls for Team Rocket's disguise for an all-time record of 20+ years.
The Snagger hated the fact he was caught so easily. " Look, as much as I'd like to keep talking to someone crazy, I am busy. So if you'll excuse me and leave me alone..."
When Wes brought up his wristwatch to see how distracted everyone was, he nor anyone else expected the image of a holographic Pokemon punching through the nerdy doctor's torso.
"Whoah!" Both Wes and Ash screamed as they were not expecting to see such a graphic image.
Things moved fast as the two boys were not the only ones who started to scream. Understandably, a visceral scene caused an uproar over the convention, but that was only the beginning. Alarms went off as the entire building started to slam iron slabs over the doors, signaling Sliph Co. was going under lockdown. However, the Snagger's ears picked up how the guards were panicking that someone had hacked their lockdown protocols.
By instinct, Wes let out all of his Pokemon. Not only did Umbreon and Espeon come out, but a Mismagius. This proved to be a good thing for the two trainers as Sliph Co. also had a safety feature that prevented outsiders from using their Poke Balls that locked Pokemon inside.
When the Espeon and Umbreon spotted Astro, they took a step back. 'Not you again!'
However, their cries got ignored when the lights around the convention turned red while alarms went off. "What's going on!?" Ash cried out.
Suddenly, all TVs in the area changed screens, showing a masked man wearing a strange hat. He stood on top of Dr. Yung's machine while the spotlights turned to this strange figure.
"Good evening, foes and friends." The masked man made a showy motion with his cape. "I'd apologize for the absence of poor Dr. Yung, but then that would be insincere."
The video started to show more Mirage Pokemon coming out of Dr. Yung's machine. The guards, even the ones Wes watched earlier, ran towards the center stage.
"Freeze, dirtbag! You're under arrest!" One of the security exclaimed as he brought out a gun while his Arcanine snarled beside him.
The masked figure only snapped his fingers. As soon as he did, the machine started to hum to life. The guards and their Pokemon took the chance to fire before the intruder could finish whatever he planned. However, several Skarmory appeared from the Mirage Machine and performed Protect barriers around the mysterious figure.
Suddenly, beneath the steel and flying mirages, an Alakazam appeared with glowing purple eyes, slamming down all the guards and their mons with a powerful Psychic.
"I know Dr. Yung's introduction was brief, so I'll repeat it again in case you've all forgotten. Mirage Pokemon are constructs of Pokemon that can copy and surpass the usual confines regulars are limited to. For example..." He let out his hand, revealing a Mirage Caterpie. The bug's eyes started to glow similarly to the Alakazam. It then made rows of seats with audience embers lift up to the ceiling.
"But where are my manners? I haven't even introduced myself." Many could feel a mocking sneer behind the mask as he bowed. "I am the Mirage Master, the true mind behind the Mirage Program! And I come with a humble request: give me the Sliph Co. Digital Anti-Encryption Key."
"Oh, you've got to be kidding me!?" After hearing those familiar words, Wes made his way towards the door that was no longer guarded.
"Leo!? Where are you going?" Ash asked before Wes failed to correct him on his name. The teen and Astro followed after them.
Even though Wes made his way through the door, he attempted to change the screen on his computer wrist. "Of course communications are down."
"Or at the very least," Mirage Master's voice echoed through the hallway they were going through. "I need you all to sit here and behave while I go and get it." As soon as he called this out, something akin to pandemonium erupted from the other areas, especially where the two boys once were.
Astro felt the need to use his Aura. When he did, the Riolu felt this odd energy covering the entire building that emanated from the machine that Dr. Yung made. He could tell others were being corralled by these Mirage Pokemon. Yet, the emanation Pokemon had a hard time sensing where these fake Pokemon were. This also meant that he couldn't sense where other Pokemon were at all? Was this how everyone else felt? It was horrible to the Riolu!
"Oh?" Both Ash and Wes had a bad feeling when the man's voice sounded curious. "According to the cameras, there are two naughty boys not sitting and behaving. How about we make things interesting?"
Wes looked up and saw a camera watching both him and Ash running down the hall. "Of all the asinine B.S."
Then, the audio around the building started to... play music? "Witches and dastards! Give it up for the band, Skycycle, and one of their best hits: It's Terror Time Again!"
Guitars started shredding in a way that chilled both trainers. Far behind them, the doors slammed open. A mob of Mirage Pokemon rushed for the group with wild abandon. Luckily for them, Wes and Ash already had a sizeable lead from the army of fake Pokemon. Yet, two Mirage Accelegors sped in and closed the distance between the group before the song finished its first verse.
Astro jumped off, firing several Vacuum Waves at the incoming Pokemon. However, even though the attacks hit them dead on, the fake Pokemon didn't even flinch. Yet one of the Accelgors sped past the fighting type while the other summoned a... green blade?
"Wait, is that Leaf Blade?!" Ash cried out as Astro avoided the quick swipes of the fake Pokemon, but not enough for pieces of his hat and cape to get cut off.
Wes looked ahead as the second Accelgor cut them off. "Psychic, Espeon!"
The lavender Eeveeloution didn't hesitate to unleash telekinetic energy on their opponent. However, the psychic found out that his power wasn't working on the bug-type as if it was dark-type. The Accelgor closed in with dark energy, but Umbreon intercepted and took the attack—before getting sent flying into the wall with his brother behind him.
"That was a dark-type move! How'd it get so powerful against another dark-type!?" Ash cried out.
Sadistic laughter echoed in the hallway as Mismagius fired a Shadow Ball at the Accelgor in front of them. "Isn't it beautiful? Mirage Pokemon can learn any move they want and be any type they need to be! They are the ultimate battle machine!"
Wes swore he heard those words before. Instead of seeing Mirages, his mind remembered Shadows.
"What is it with people always messing with Pokemon?" Wes thought to himself as the Accelgors landed clean hits on his Mismagius and Astro. Ash tried to reach for his other Pokemon but found out his Poke Balls weren't responding. Not only that, with two Mirage Pokemon pinning them down, the rest of the mob was catching up fast. Wes knew this was bad, but he remembered something about Ash. "You still have telekinesis, right!?" Without waiting for another word, Wes shouted, "Get your Pokemon and mine close to us!"
Ash couldn't use his powers on Umbreon, but luckily for him, Espeon was still underneath. With a pull, Ash caught and brought all three Pokemon to him while Wes called back Mismagius before he grabbed on to her and Ash.
"Phantom Force!" Wes cried out before Mismagius' eyes shined. In a blink of an eye, the two boys vanished into thin air.
"What!?" Mirage Master shouted out loud when he saw the two boys disappear. He despised how he let his guard down since he wasn't expecting the two to escape like that. He cut the music and used Dr. Yung's machine to create more Mirage Pokemon. "Mirage Pokemon, gather the other hostages elsewhere! I have a prize to collect!"
Down in the boiler room, Mismagius let go of the Phantom Force. Wes and Ash, both shaken from their loss against the Mirage Pokemon, took a breather in the Boiler Room of Sliph Co.
"I knew it! It was you, Leo!" Ash looked over to Wes. "You knew I was psychic! Not only that, your Espeon and Umbreon recognized Astro!"
The Snagger felt another headache as he knew he needed to address this now. "Okay, fine! I lied about my name when we first met! But we have more important things to worry about right now! Did you not see those weird holograms kick our Pokemon's butt?!" The Snagger from Orre checked on his Espeon and Umbreon. They were injured, but they shook off the pain.
"Wait," Ash realized what Wes said about the holograms. "That Machine, the one Dr. Yung..." As soon as he said the name, Ash's mind went back to the kindly young man... and how the life and blood left his body with the abruptness no one was ready for.
The teen started to gag, making Wes look back in alarm and head over to the raven-haired trainer.
Wes' hand froze over Ash before he shook his head and sighed before trying to soothe the kid. No doubt he never saw someone die like that until today. Even as bad as Wes' life was, he never thought he'd see something that violent. And even he didn't like the idea of making others live his crappy life.
"Sorry." Ash wiped his mouth. "Dr. Yung didn't deserve that."
That Wes could agree on. Now that he thought back, this masked punk was also stealing the same thing he aimed for.
First the train, now this? Wes could not believe his luck, but he did notice that both times, Ash was there. He had this sneaking suspicion that it was not a coincidence. But he put those thoughts aside for now.
"Hey," Wes called out to Ash. "Did you hear the masked man when he wanted the Digital Artificial-Encryption Key?"
"He did say all those big words." The raven-haired teen thought back. "Wait, if he's after that, wouldn't that mean he's leaving the Mirage Machine alone?"
The Savior of Orre caught on to what Ash implied. As much as he disliked someone reaching his target first before him, they stood no chance against the guy. Especially considering said guy could create an army of super Pokemon from thin air.
But that didn't remove the problem of them having only 4 Pokemon. And it was likely that their current team couldn't even beat one Mirage Pokemon. And the less said about the army of holographic monsters patrolling the area, the better. Yet, Wes started to realize something.
"Hey, your Riolu," He pointed over to the costumed Pokemon. "Can he sense where the masked guy is from here?"
Ash turned to Astro, but the Emanation Pokemon already closed his eyes as he began to sense the area. The emanation Pokemon felt a very thick, swirling, and pungent aura on the floors above them.
"...Astro says this mirage guy's aura is really bad, the worst he's ever seen." Granted, the Riolu wasn't even a year old, but still. "He's on the upper floors and not where Dr. Yung's machine was."
"Then we need to move." Wes stood back up. "We'll have to get to that machine before the freak can return. I'll have Mismagius sneak us there while your Pokemon keeps track of that guy's loca—"
Wes' eyes widened when he saw something appear behind Ash. It was a Mirage Gengar that appeared through the walls. Faster than he realized, Wes rushed in and pushed Ash out of the way as the Mirage Pokemon grabbed him instead of the raven-haired teen.
"No! Leo!?"
Before darkness overcame him, Wes couldn't correct the idiot in time.
When Wes woke up, he wanted to smack the head of a teenager. Then, he realized he was restrained into a chair. Everything else was dark, and a lone spotlight shone over him. It took Wes a second to recognize something was on his head.
He knew his priorities: smack Ash in the back of the head and escape where he was from. If those two could be done at the same time, the better.
"Are you comfy?" A voice to Wes' right made the Snagger look over to see the Mirage Master walking into the light around him. The mysterious man kept a Mirage Caterpie on his shoulder.
"I've been through worse." The Snagger started to fiddle with his fingers. "So, what's your gimmick? How does an Encryption Key help with these holograms?"
"The Encryption Key that Sliph Co. developed can bypass any firewall throughout the world," He started walking behind Wes. "And that includes Satellites."
"Oh swell," Wes put two and two together. "Spam Mail in real life."
Wes grunted when he felt something metal smack his head. "Crass." The Mirage Master sounded like he was calming himself down with a deep exhale. "But you seem smarter than most to grasp what I plan. A single Mirage Pokemon can overpower any trainer. Now imagine my machine able to send Mirage Pokemon even in another Region! With the technology here, I will rule the world with my unstoppable Mirage Army!"
Wes felt like he heard this speech before. When The Snagger changed "Mirage" with "Shadows" and altered the context of sending through tournament victories instead of satellites, it made Wes' annoying sense of Deja Vu worse than it already was.
The masked man's wrist started to beep. "Oh? Finally, a test drive for my new power."
The Mirage Master waved his metal staff, revealing a screen that showed the outside of Sliph Co. A police line and SWAT agents looked ready to storm the building.
"Now then," M.M waved his staff and Wes saw another screen pop up. This one looked like it was filled with data, but the boy from Orre recognized the symbol at the top right: it belonged to the Mossdeep Space Center in Hoenn. "This is where the fun begins."
At that moment, the SWAT team looked like they were going to ram into one of the back doors. However, the battering ram flew into the air by a Mirage Shiftry. Then, as if to mock them, the Mirage Master sent in a swarm of flying Swinub to launch fire attacks to send the SWAT team and their Pokemon back to a safer area.
Wes watched the chaos as no matter what anyone did, not even one Mirage Pokemon slowed down in their attacks.
The Snagger couldn't find a lock or a knot he could undo. Yet he kept trying. "I love sticking it to the man as much as the next guy, but why am I here?"
"As powerful as my machine is, I do lack diversity. Data is nothing compared to actual experience. That's why I wanted a trainer, to absorb their experiences and further the tactics of my Mirage Pokemon. I thought the young one would suffice..." The masked man continued as screams and chaos continued even after he closed the screen showing the Mirage Pokemon. "But honestly, you're older. So there's a good chance you've seen and battled more Pokemon."
He pressed a button on the device on Wes' head that caused both the restraint and the entire room(?) to light up. Suddenly, Wes realized something: he wasn't just in a random room. He was sitting inside the Mirage Pokemon Machine.
The Mirage Master tipped his hat downward. "Oh, and do try not to scream too loud. I'm going to practice my speech for when the world submits to me." With that, M.M. stepped back into the shadows, disappearing as he did so.
As Mirage Master left the machine, he opened up a new digital screen. Data streamed as the machine took knowledge and memory from Wes. Even with a mask, anyone could tell that the villain's eyes widen as he continued to read.
"What's this? What are these... Shadow Pokemon?" More screens opened up, revealing memories of bizarre Pokemon with strange but powerful attacks. "... My my! He even saw the labs that showed how Shadow Pokemon get made! I can see that he saw enough data for me to recreate the main building blocks for it!"
"Ooooh! Ooooohh~!" The masked man could no longer hold his feverous elation. "And here I am, humbled beyond measure! Not only did I find a way to make my Mirage Pokemon even stronger, but this trainer has seen and raised Legendary Pokemon! No, Legendary Shadow Pokemon!"
He slammed his staff on the ground, which echoed in the auditorium.
"People of the world! It is—with absolute indescribable jubilation— introduce you to an improvement on to perfection!"
Around him, Mirage Versions of Suicune, Raikou, and Entei appeared beside him. All of them opened their eyes, and a shadowy aura enveloped the fake Pokemon.
"I introduce to you all..." He grabbed the Mirage Caterpie and threw it into the air.
The bug creature started to change. Instead of a common bug-type, it changed into a mythical creature said to be able to travel through time.
"The Mirage Shadow Pokemon!"
To christen the birth of a new wave of Pokemon, Mirage Shadow Celebi opened his soulless eyes and raised his hand akin to a puppet on strings. A shadowy pulse shot out, turning all Mirage Pokemon into the Shadow version of themselves.
Mirage Master laughed as the Shadow mirages overwhelm the already beaten police forces with new Shadow attacks.
The masked man laughed, drunk with power and adrenaline. "And with this! The world is now mine! Nothing can stop me!"
Inside Sliph Co. and after escaping ghost Mirage Pokemon, Ash Ketchum opened Wes/Leo's suitcase.
"What is this?" The trouble-bound teen asked as he reached for the Snag Machine.
+Author Notes+
Alright, everyone place your bets! On one side, we have the Mirage Shadow Pokemon, a marriage of the coldest and cruelest forms of Pokemon Science in Pokemon lore. One part proves immunity to nearly all damage and access to whatever movepool the user wishes or needs. The other part gives off raw power and unleashes savagery that Pokemon was never known for.
On the other side? A kid who has no idea what's going on.
Just a side note about Wes' Pokemon. He is after his adventure in Orre, but in this story, I had him release the Legendary Dog trio after purifying the Shadow Pokemon. So, yes, he did have them. But now he let them do whatever they like to do. He doesn't have Ho-oh and Celebi, but they have bonded with him.
Huh, Ash and Wes are both chosen by Ho-oh in this story.
So, a not-so-fun fact: it took me 3 drafts before I finally decided to write this chapter. I scrapped two before saying screw it and doing this first. Funny enough, when I stopped thinking so hard, this chapter came naturally compared to the first two. Funny how this story works, huh?
Anyway, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter. We've got another two-parter coming up, and I'm definitely going to have a lot of fun with it.