Chapter 37 – Bad choices, hard decisions! What will you do Ash?

In the time Namba had been talking, the train had carried them out of Motostoke, across the river and was now speeding south across a very long viaduct beside an enormous lake. It would have been a pleasant and scenic journey, were it not for the seriousness of the situation.

The Shadowpiercer itself was nice too…It's sleeping dinning and lounge cars could easily rival and surpass their counterparts on the world's most luxurious and expensive railway journeys. Wood panelling and rich carpeted floors, soft lighting, and comfortable seating arrangements.

Butch and Cassidy lead Ash, Pikachu and Ashachu into one of the sleeping compartments. On an ordinary commercial train, a typical sleeping compartment would contain seats that would fold out into bunk beds and might not be larger than two closets. Perhaps six or twelve per carriage.

Aboard this train the sleeping car comprised three compartments, each featuring a double bed, a table, comfortable chairs, storage space and ensuite bathroom.

"Alright twerp, make yourself comfortable," said Butch gruffly as he opened the door and proceeded to push Ash inside.

"If you're hungry the dining car is five carriages that way," said Cassidy, gesturing back down the corridor. "You can also deliver something to your compartment. There's a menu on the table."

"There's a team of Pokémon butler," Butch added. "Let them know if you need anything! Any questions."

Ash said nothing.

"Well, if you don't have any questions, we'll leave you to it," said Cassidy before closing the door behind them.

Ash sighed as he looked around the plush room. Despite it being a Team Rocket base, Ash had to admit it was nicer than most of the places he had slept in the whole of his journey. "Well, at least this is a step up from the cage they locked us in the last time we got stuck in their base."

The comment had intended to be a joke. Pikachu had not seen the funny side.

"It' still a cage," the mouse muttered. "No matter how gilded this is still a cage, and we're still Team Rocket's prisoners…I mean Pokémon butler. Can you believe these people!"

"I know," said Ash. "At least they're not trying to steal you from me this time."

"Pika!" Ashachu wriggled free of Ash's arms, dropped to the floor, and scurried over to one of the armchairs, climbing up and settling himself down on one of the cushions.

Ash couldn't blame him. "Oh well. Even if it is a cage, we should still make the most of it."

He went and lay down on the bed. It was as comfortable as anything else in the room – silk sheets, a soft mattress, and pillows. At once he felt a wave of tiredness wash over him. Pikachu settled himself on Ash's chest.

"So, what do we do now," Ash wondered aloud. "Trapped on a train with Team Rocket and being chased by a homicidal Darkrai."

"We get out of here," Pikachu replied firmly. "We find a way of this train, we run. We go back to Kanto. We leave this awful region behind, while we still can. This is not our fight."

"What about Shadow and Blade?" Ash asked.

"What about them," said Pikachu. "From what Doctor Numbnuts said, it sounds like Shadow and Team Rocket deserve each other! I don't care what they do to each other."

Ash bit his lip. "Yeah, I get what you're saying Pikachu. But if Team Rocket get their hands on Shadow. Think of all the Pokémon they could hurt."

Pikachu lent forward and nuzzled Ash's face. "I know that Pikapi! And I don't feel good about it. But like I said. It's not our fight. We can't trust Team Rocket. You know we can't trust Team Rocket. And there is no way in the distortion world that I'm teaming up with that psychotic Darkrai!"

"What about Blade?"

Pikachu stood up, glanced over at Ashachu and then whispered to Ash, "What about him. You saw what he did to Ashachu the last time. Besides I don't think there's anything we can do for him. You heard what Numbskull said. If he goes back to Shadow, he'll be killed eventually. He's fucked, whatever happens. I know it's not nice, but it's the truth. If we free him, Shadow will kill him, and Team Rocket will kill us. If get between him and Shadow, we could all be brutally murdered by Shadow."

"But he's innocent. He didn't ask for any of this!"

"Nor did I," Pikachu retorted. "Nor did Ashachu. Or Charizard, or Bulbasaur or Axew. Nor did any of the Pokémon. No offence to that Sneasel, but if it's a choice between him or you or Ashachu or any of our friends. I'd rather it be him!"

Ash could see Pikachu's point, but wasn't entirely sure he agreed. In truth, he didn't have any idea what to do. In the past fighting Team Rocket had been easy with no moral grey zones. He responded by voicing the nagging thought in his head. "That wasn't what you said when we saved baby Lugia from Team Rocket. Or that red Gyarados."

"I don't recall getting asked my opinion on Gyarados," said Pikachu. "And baby Lugia was different. Lugia and Silver were our friends. We made a promise to Lugia that we would save Silver. We owed it to them. We don't owe Pokémon psycho Jolteon Shit!"

It was a good point, Ash thought. He didn't feel right about walking away, but he knew it was probably the best thing to do. But there were still two problems! Rather than voice them now however, he decided it was somebody else's turn to speak."

He sat up, causing Pikachu to drop into his lap. "What's your opinion Ashachu," he asked. "What do you think we should do?"

"Hmmm." Ashachu sat up in the chair, looking at his parents curiously. "You're really asking me what I think?"

Ash nodded. "That last time I didn't listen to you, it almost got you killed. And I'll never forgive myself for that. You know Shadow and Blade better than any of us. So, tell us. I want to know what you think."

Pikachu looked up in surprise at Ash before pulling a face. He opened his maw as if to say something but decided against it and closed it again.

Ashachu troughed his brown pondering his response. He was quite for a moment, before saying carefully, "I don't really think my opinion counts. I'm as much to blame for what happened as you. I should never have trusted Blade. And I never should have lied to him…" He shook his head before climbing onto the arm of the chair and staring out the window. "In my heart, I don't think Blade's a bad Pokémon. He doesn't deserve to suffer, but Shadow!"

To Ash's surprise Ashachu's face contorted with range. He banged his paw hard against the glass of the window…which given his small size and tiny paws was fairly underwhelming as gestures go…and said, "Shadow deserves to die. That should be the way out of this. Then Team Rocket can't weaponize him, and he can't murder any more Pokémon!"

Whatever Ash had been expecting…It had not been that. "Ashachu," he said a little flustered.

Pikachu's jaw dropped and a horrified expression crossed his little face. His ears dropped and he grabbed hold of them with his paws and pulled them down. "Are you insane," he screamed, so hysterically that it made Ash jump. "I can't believe you would say that."

"Well why not," said Ashachu firmly, turning to look at Pikachu. "That would solve our problems."

Pikachu shook his head vigorously. "I cannot believe what I'm hearing! For one thing, Ashachu. We're not murders. And for another, in case you hadn't noticed, he's a Darkrai! A FUCKING DARKRAI!" He turned to Ash. "Ash! Tell Ashachu about the Sinnoh League. Tell him how Tobias and his Darkrai handed you ass to you!"

Ash frowned at him. "Pikachu!"

Pikachu raised his paw, pointing dramatically into the air. "Tobias's Darkrai took down Heracross, Gible and Torkoal with ease. He took down every other Pokémon he faced in the entire league, with ease." Pikachu put emphasis on the words with ease.

"Hey, Sceptile defeated Darkrai," Ash protested, but Pikachu wasn't listening.

"And Tobias's Darkrai wasn't a homicidal maniac. Ash, Ashachu! We're not strong enough to fight Shadow. We're just not!"

"Well, none of us are," Ashachu agreed. "But there is one." He jumped off the arm of the chair, crossed the floor and pulled himself up the sheets and onto the bed. "Dad, you know what I mean."

It took Ash a moment to realise who Ashachu was referring to. His eyes widened in shock. "Uh-uh. No way. There's no way, I can't do that."

Pikachu looked from Ashachu to Ash, confused. "What are you…" And then it dawned on him. "You're not talking about Yveltal?"

Ashachu nodded. "His Oblivion Wing would knock Shadow dead. And that would be the end of this nightmare…Or Hikari. In one of his Zygarde forms."

Pikachu held up a paw to silence him. "Ashachu stop. Hikari's frail and emotionally fragile at the best of times. No way are we asking him to battle Shadow!"

"Not even as Zygarde 100 percent?"

"I don't think he can just change form at will," said Ash.

"Okay not Hikari," said Ashachu. "But Yveltal!"

Ash cut him off. "Assuming that Yveltal will actually obey me. There's a good chance that he'll also try to kill us if I open his Pokéball."

Pikachu thought about it. "Actually Ash, I think he probably will obey you." When Ash raised his eyebrows he added, "think about it. If he wanted to kill you, he's had ample opportunity to pop out of his Pokéball and do so. But he hasn't."

"Wait," said Ash in disbelief. "Don't tell me you're taking Ashachu's side now. You actually think we should."

Pikachu shook his head. "No, I don't think we should be trying to kill Shadow. I just think you're wrong about Yveltal. I still think the best opportunity we have is to escape."

"The problem with that plan," said Ashachu forcefully. "Which I was about to get to. Is that it, a, assumes there is a way out of here and, b, that Shadow won't hunt us down anyway. He stalked me remember!"

There were interrupted at that moment by a knock at the door to the compartment and the sound of Zacian calling, "Ash! Pikachu, are you in there?"

"Umm, yeah. Hang on." Ash slid his legs off the bed and slowly got up. He opened the door to the compartment to find Zacian sitting in the corridor outside. "Hi. What are you?"

"I wanted to ask if you and your Pokémon would like to join me for dinner in the dinning carriage," said Zacian…

[Pokémon]

The dining car was three carriage down from Ash's compartment; one of three on the train, not that they all got used. Like the sleeping car it was luxurious as well, with neat little tables under the windows decorated with white tablecloths and china crockery and stainless-steel cutlery.

Alone here with Pikachu, Ashachu, Zacian and Charizard, Ash could almost forget to whom the train belonged. The sun was setting now, casting a golden light over the lakes that raced by the window. It was hard to imagine that somewhere out in that beauty was a murderous Darkrai.

"You needn't be so stressed Ash," said Zacian. "You and your Pokémon are safe aboard this train. It's not penetrable to Shadow and he cannot derail us without kill Blade. You can relax."

"Ummm. Thanks," was all Ash could think to say in response.

"Pika," said Pikachu.

He and Pikachu were sitting at a table on the right-hand side of the car, opposite Zacian. Ashachu and Charizard were dinning at the table across the aisle – owing to the limited space and Charizard's size two tables were necessary.

"The humans may have sounded like they were taking a big game," she continued. "But really, you won't have to do anything. As soon as Shadow draws near enough, they will capture him with the energy fields. You will not have to fight him!"

"And then what happens," asked Pikachu.

Zacian shrugged. "Back to Team Rocket headquarters I suppose. That isn't really my business. So long as whatever happens to him is slow and he suffers. It's what he deserves!"

Pikachu frowned at her, coxing his head slightly as if unable to work her out.

"You really hate him, don't you?" Ash commented.

Zacian nodded. "Shadow took everything from me. Everything that was good in my life. It all went the day he killed my mate!"

"I have to ask this," said Pikachu, before Ash could say another word. "What are you doing here. Why would voluntarily help Team Rocket. They're bad guys who do terrible things to Pokémon. They've done terrible things to us. You're a legendary Pokémon. At least that's what Shadow said?"

Zacian sighed and glanced out of the window. She was quite for a moment before responding. "You make it sound like I had a choice Pikachu. But like most Pokémon, I didn't to choose my trainers were going to be. I was captured. Perhaps not unlike yourself."

Ash and Pikachu were both taken aback. "Captured," they repeated at the same time.

"Yes. In an ultra-ball." Zacian placed a paw on the window. "I'm from these lands you know. But it has been many moons since I was last here. I hatched thousands of years ago from an egg, in a place called the Slumbering Weald. One of two pups. My younger sister Zamazenta spent and eternity wandering these lands. Together we protected Galar during its darkest day. And then Team Rocket arrived."

Zacian looked back down at her empty plate, a sad expression on her face. "To most humans we were considered myth. An old legend. But Team Rocket tracked us down. There were five of them. All dressed in black. They were easy to defeat. They only had basic Pokémon. But that was when he stepped forward…" She shuddered.

"He," repeated Ash, curiously.

"They call him Giovanni," said Zacian. "He's the leader of Team Rocket. The humans refer to him as the boss."

The Boss! Ash had heard Jessie and James used that expression a lot. The mysterious person they were always trying to capture Pikachu for.

Pikachu's ears perked up with interest. "What happened?"

"Giovanni called out Team Rocket's ultimate Pokémon!"

"Team Rocket's ultimate Pokémon?" repeated Ash.

"His name is Mewtwo. Mewtwo didn't hatch from an egg the way I, or Pikachu here did. Mewtwo was created by humans in a laboratory. A clone of the Pokémon Mew!"

"Mew." An image of the happy pink Pokémon floated to the surface of Ash's mind.

He had encountered a Mewtwo once before. In the depths of Team Flare Secret HQ in Geosenge Two. Lysandre's had called it out to battle with him.

"I never expected him to be so powerful," said Zacian. "It quickly became apparent that there was no way my sister and I could fight it. I told Zamazenta to flee. To save herself while I held Mewtwo off. The tears on her face are the last memory I have of her." And she wiped a tear from her own eyes.

"Oh my," whispered Pikachu, a horrified look on his face. "I'm so sorry!"

"And so that's when you were," said Ash, unable to finish the sentence.

Zacian nodded. "Mewtwo defeated me, and Giovanni caught me in his Pokéball. I have been a Team Rocket Pokémon ever since."

"Man, that's a sad story." Ash slumped back in his chair. "I'm sorry that happened to you!"

Zacian gave him a pensive look, flicking one of her pointy ears. "Are you human. Because you too defeat and capture Pokémon. You too take them from their homes, mates, and family to fight in tournaments and live with you. Team Rocket aren't really any different to any other trainer. They just have a grander purpose."

Ash was taken aback by this and didn't know what to say.

Pikachu however scowled and folded his arms. "That's not fair. Ash isn't trying to exploit us Pokémon to take over the world."

Zacian waved her paw dismissively. "Take over the world. Ha. Team Rocket can no more do that than a Pidgey can fly to the moon. And what would it matter to us Pokémon which of the humans run their world. I am thousands of years old. I have seen civilisations rise and fall around me. They are all the same. Run by greedy and self-centred humans. It makes no difference to me whether it's Team Rocket in charge, or the so-called politicians you have now."

Pikachu's scowl deepened a little and he looked like he would like to argue more. He decided against it however, asking instead, "But the Pokéball has a mechanism to let unhappy Pokémon with abusive Pokémon go."

Zacian shook her head. "Not the one Giovanni used. Once I was caught, I knew there would be no escape for me. I would be a Team Rocket Pokémon for as long as the organisation exists."

"That's awful," said Ash.

"You don't need to pity me Ash. Yes, I lost my family the day Giovanni caught me. But where old dreams die, new ones are born. I found many wonderful friends among the Pokémon at Team Rocket. And it was in Team Rocket that I met my mate. And we spent many wonderful moons together until…." She trailed off.

It was at that moment that a Pokémon appeared beside the table, a scroll of paper and a pencil clutched in its paw. "Mr. Mime. Mime mime mime." The Pokémon looked a little bit like Mimey, Delia's Mr. Mime, but with some noteworthy differences.

It was coloured purple and white, whereas Mimey was pink, and slightly more rotund around the middle, with a large crystal-like object protruding from its chest. Ash whipped out his Pokédex…

Mr. Mime, the Dancing Pokémon. Galarian Form. It can radiate chilliness from the bottoms of its feet. It'll spend the whole day tap-dancing on a frozen floor

"Zac Zacian," Zacian bark, to which this Mr. Mime nodded and scribbled something on its pad. It then turned its attention to Ash and Pikachu.

"Mime mime."

It took Ash a moment to work out what Mr. Mine was asking… "Oh, ummm." He then realised he hadn't looked at the menu.

And neither had Pikachu. He cocked his head and flicked his ear and asked, "Pi Pikachu?"

So Zacian ordered for them. "They'll both have the chef special."

"Mime, Mr. Mime." Mr. Mime nodded and turned to Ashachu and Charizard.

"What sort of Pokémon was your mate, Zacian?" Pikachu asked Zacian curiously once Mr. Mime had turned it's back.

Zacian let out a sad sigh and bowed her head. "I'm sorry Pikachu but…I don't really think I'm ready to talk about him now… It's still…Painful." A single ear spilled from her right eye and ran down her snout, over the bridge of her muzzle.

Pikachu bowed his head, ashamed of himself. "I'm sorry…I didn't mean…"

Zacian cut him off. "It's alright Pikachu. I know you didn't mean to cause offence. Such sad topic rarely makes for good dinner conversation. Instead, please tell me about you. I want to hear about your adventures, about how you met, and what other Pokémon you have?"

Pikachu nodded, as Ash patted him on the back.