Author's Notes (7)
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Well, first chapter of the year. And it's finally time for Movie 1!
Hopefully, I can finish Johto by this year as well as Serena's POV in Kalos. But alas, procrastination is too tempting.
Also, there're a lot more reviews and questions for Fated which I'll be happy answer in this Author's Note so I'll do the best I can!
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From user Jidorima:
[ I really liked this story, I really liked everything.
How is it formatted, the writing, how the stories are expanded, characters connected, the Fate inspiration, etc.
But there's one single thing that seriously brings it down and that I simply cannot ignore despite how central it is to the story.
Serena.
More specifically, the whole Ash and Serena "fated meeting" thing.
I am sorry, but I really really cannot suspend my disbelief enough to find ways to not justify them meeting or talking to one another at all through years and years in a world where there's telephones, internet, streaming, videocalls, travel between regions, etc.
The whole "you took him away from me" Serena did at her mom was just horribly and terribly rude, inconsiderate and illogical. How am I supposed to sympathize with her at all there? She was a toddler. How is it even her mom's fault? Was she supposed to just leave her toddler daughter behind in another region?
In a world as technologically advanced as the Pokemon World, and as the one portrayed here, there's just no excuse.
They aren't meeting because they don't want to despite wanting to do it so much.
I really really wish I could just ignore this since I seriously love the story otherwise. It saddens me I cannot enjoy it as much as I want to because of this. ]
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First off, I would like to thank you for such a polite criticism for Fated! Seriously! The fact that a reader can be this passionate for something I decided to write while I was bored is really flattering! Now to answer your questions, Jidorima:
I agree that Serena's in the wrong here for blaming her mom when the latter didn't do anything that would earn her ire.
But that's because our main heroine here's still only 11 at this point of the story. Funny thing is, I kinda get why you would think that she's being immature despite being 11.
And that's partly my fault since the Pallet Trio are rather mature for their age, including Ash. The reason for this is due to their experiences and journeys. But even then, I made sure their own flaws managed to come to light.
For example, Gary had lost Raticate during his scuffle with TR. But since he didn't know how to process it, he lashed out at everyone and tried to justify his death by grasping at straws (i.e his Power spiel and values), not knowing that he's just running away from the problem. And that is his flaw.
Blue's flaw was her innocence. She started her journey thinking everything was sunshine and rainbows, kinda like a Let's Go player. But after receiving Eevee and the remergence of her trauma of touching Pokémon, she was forced to confront herself and accept that the world isn't going to let her wishes come true (Like going back to the good old days).
And finally, Ash. Well, Fated!Ash is really just a screwed up child from the get-go. But his main flaw is his tendency to try and fulfil his promises without thinking about what it entails. Seriously, the kid has a lot of issues that will slowly get sorted out as the story progresses so I'm not gonna talk about him much since that's spoiler territory.
Now, why am I saying all this? It's because none of our main cast are mature enough to think about their actions. Current Serena, let alone a normal 11 year old isn't emotionally capable enough to look at other people's perspectives like what you've described, Jidorima (i.e leaving your own child in another region).
Now for the communication problems you've described:
Yes, the Pokémon world is technologically more advanced than ours, but what I'm trying to emulate is the older gens of the games. Back then, during the RBY versions, there were no convenient long-distant phone calls across regions like modern Pokémon now (Rotom Phones). The Rotom Phones are only introduced in Journeys, which technically takes place in the same year Ash started his journey... You know, since he doesn't age. My point is, time exists in the Fated fanfic and at this point of the story, there are no cross-region communication except for PCs, which can be found in Centres and very rarely, personal ones like Oak's. And since Fated!Ash is established as someone who prefers sleeping outside (thanks to TR), it's gonna be harder for Ash and Serena to communicate. Next, Ash and Serena are actively avoiding direct communication due to Serena knowing how Ash is like. He's someone that she knows will keep his promises and the no direct comms is mixture of faith in Ash and a bit of her way of challenging Ash. Thus, the 'fated reunion' is the conclusion of that promise since Ash will never break any.
With that, I hoped that I managed to answer your gripes clearly and really, thanks for the review. It really makes me happy that you're enjoying this story and so immersed that my oversight managed to displease you. That's like the highest honour a writer can get.
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In terms of Pokémon, Would Ash keep Pikachu as a Main Stay or would Greninja be considered another as well?
C'mon, let's be real guys, there's no Ash without Pikachu. So yep, Pikachu's here to stay but Greninja is still a work in progress since I haven't worked out the conclusion for the Kalos arc in Fated yet.
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Galar starters?
Sadly, I'm probably sticking to his canon Journeys team and unfortunately, there's no room for a Galar starter.
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Blur's Eevee evolved in Espeon in this Fic in Kanto so far but what else can we expect for Cross Gen Evos and Regional Variants?
Pokémon from other regions will make their appearance earlier than their given regions (i.e Skyla's Archeops). Look forward to that...
Especially for the villains.
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Due to ORAS being very different form RSE and thus made into it's own Arc separate form the initial Hoenn trip (and by extension once Ash and Serena reunite...) Would the other Remakes be separate Arcs as well?
No, it's only for ORAS since I don't think the previous remakes nor BDSP are that different from the original.
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Now pre-chapter notes:
A pretty major character is gonna appear in this chapter and judging by her name, y'all can probably guess who it is. It might not seem like much, but it also gives a clue of a certain wolf's true identity.
AURA is finally entering the spotlight and I can finally stop writing 'strange power' as a placeholder. It's gonna act the same way as mana/prana in the Fate series.
Also, also. The wolf howling when Ash uses AURA is not figurative, but literal. It's like an engine starting with a wolf's howl. To help with the auditory department, I envisioned it as Gundam Barbatos Lupus Rex's howl from Iron-Blooded Orphans, so do give that a listen.
And that's pretty much it. Hope you guys tolerate me for the future!
Chapter 51: Reconciliation
During the final battle between Ash and Gary…
"Indigo Plateau should be ahead from here."
Riley was trekking the Kanto forests whilst carrying a case as he made haste for the Grand League's venue.
'To think Her Highness would gift the sword to an unknown boy…' he pondered before his eyes shone a steel blue.
Sensing something was off, Riley hurriedly took out a smaller box that contained the rusted sword. But as he grabbed its grip, the sword radiated a bright blue as if calling out for something.
"AURA, on!"
The resounding howling of a wolf called for it…
And the sword responded.
"Ack!" Riley yelped in pain as his hand sizzled from the sudden rising heat emitting from the sword's grip.
Loosening his hold, the rusted blade fell from his grasp. But before it could reach the ground, the weapon began to transform with a blast of golden light.
Schwing!
In its place, a dazzling sword appeared and stabbed the earth, halting its fall.
Instead of the usual stone-gray blade, the sword had transformed completely into a luminous steel blade with a guard and handle of shining gold and royal blue. The engraved runes of the rusted sword had also changed as they ran along the golden fuller of the blade. It was a sword that perfectly embodied the word 'beautiful'.
"This sword…! It can't be…" Riley choked as he gazed upon the magnificent sword in awe.
A flash of blue light manifested from the man's waist as it materialized into a bipedal jackal with blue and black fur.
The jackal growled with interest at the dazzling sight of the sword.
'Beautiful isn't it, Lucario?' Riley relayed his thoughts to his Pokémon via AURA through their bond, to which Lucario nodded in agreement.
Just then, the sword began losing its radiance before eventually, it reverted to its original form and finally fell to the ground.
As soon as the now rusted weapon touched the earth, Riley felt the source within the Grand League stadium had dissipated.
"Let's go, Lucario," the man said as he returned the sword into its box with his partner Pokémon following closely.
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Beep! Beep! Beep! Beep!
"Chec. ..e .oy's !"
Beep! Beep!
"W.'re l..ing .im!"
Beep!
" !"
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
Beep.
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Several days go by since the last Semi-finals match.
Due to Ash being incapacitated due to his severe injuries, Lance was declared the winner of the fifth Indigo Grand League by default. However, no one, not even the victor, were happy about the results as they knew…
There should have been one last match to decide it all. But alas, it was not meant to be.
…
Beep… Beep…
Lying on the pristine white bed in the medical ward of the Indigo stadium was a comatose Ash Ketchum. Ever since giving his all alongside Pikachu to defeat their rivals, the raven-haired boy had been in a coma for several days with only his closest friends and partner beside him.
"Green. You need to sleep," Blue comforted the orange-haired boy, holding his hand as they sat next to Ash's bed with a recovered Pikachu.
"I'm fine," he replied as his green eyes were fixated on the small yet prominent scar on Ash's left eyebrow.
To Gary, it served as a reminder of his mistakes and regrets. It was the same for Pikachu as the electric mouse had a similar scar like his Trainer on his ear as well.
'Damnit…' Gary furrowed his brows in shame at what he had done.
Ever since the conclusion of their battle, the orange-haired boy was never held accountable for his actions since most of the raven-haired boy's injuries were found to be mysteriously self-inflicted and thus, escaped the ire and hatred of the world despite the harsh and venomous words he spoke during his match against Karen.
Feeling that he did not deserve such leeway, Gary could only turn to the only person who had any right to serve any sort of punishment to him. But unfortunately, that person was in a coma. Gary's thoughts always raced back to the doctor's diagnosis of his rival's condition.
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After surgery…
Nurse Joy was fixing up the IV bags for Ash when the ward's room slid open, revealing the deathly pale faces of the Oaks, Blue and the other competitors of the Grand League. Gary was the first to rush towards Ash's side.
"Please refrain from touching the patient directly, child," the doctor advised as he made his way next to Nurse Joy.
"Doc, is… is Red gonna be alright?" the orange-haired boy asked hesitantly with everyone else bracing themselves for the worst.
"Well… it's not pretty, that's for sure."
The doctor began explaining the extent of Ash's injuries to the large group with the revelation shocking and horrifying them as they tried to absorb what they had heard.
"The lacerations around Mr Ketchum's body were not external, but they were caused from the inside," he explained before continuing as he read the report with a disturbed expression.
"What's more, we found that his blood vessels had ruptured from within along with semi-melted muscles from the unnaturally extreme heat that built up in his body."
The grotesque imagery the doctor explained to the group had them reeling in horror at just how much Ash had destroyed his body and continued to do so for 2 matches straight, seemingly not caring of the consequences.
"Seriously, it's like the kid has no sense of self-preservation at all. And unfortunately, that's not even the worst part," the doctor continued while shooting the comatose boy with a disapproving gaze.
"We…" he hesitated for a moment before continuing.
"We did a scan on Mr Ketchum and… we found that parts of his brain had been, for a lack of a better word, exploded."
That one singular word made everyone's heart sink at the unbelievable diagnosis.
"Right now, he's just at the tipping point of becoming braindead due to the irreversible damage done. The [Heal Pulses] from the Joys' Chanseys and Blisseys could only do so much. There's no easy way to put this and as much as it pains me to say it, please be prepared for the worst," he finalized with a courteous bow before exiting the room with Nurse Joy in tow.
Both Blue and Misty slumped down onto their seats with dazed eyes as they were internally praying that everything was just a nightmare. But no matter how much they blinked, the unmoving body of Ash Ketchum served to remind them that they were indeed in reality.
Daisy cried into Bill's arms as the latter could not help but hug the older Oak sibling while holding back his own tears as he recounted the time Ash had helped him when he was stuck in a Pokémon's body.
Since then, only the Elite Four and the Oak family plus Blue stayed as the others needed to return to their respective homes. The chestnut-haired girl had received the other teenage girls' contacts so that they could be in touch.
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"I'm so pathetic…" Gary muttered angrily at himself.
'If only I hadn't been so blinded…'
"Please don't beat yourself over this. Red wouldn't want that," Blue rubbed Gary's hand.
"But… I did this to him…"
"The doctor said that idiot did it to himself. Just watch… That moron's gonna wake up and walk around as if nothing had happened…"
The chestnut-haired girl's voice trailed away as she bit her lips, failing to be positive in such a predicament.
"In any case, it's not your fault," she continued as she rubbed the tears from her eyes.
"Red went this far to save you. Please don't make his efforts useless, Green…"
Gary stared at Blue at a loss for words. What he could do was take the hand that comforted him and held it tenderly, grateful for the girl who never gave up on him, even at his worst.
"Blue… thank you…," he gave a weak smile.
"…And sorry."
"…Pft. Took you long enough, dummy," Blue reciprocated the gesture with a gentle soothe on Gary's hand.
Then, an interruption came knocking. Literally.
Knock, knock.
The two plus Pikachu turned to the opening door, revealing an unfamiliar man wearing a blue hat and coat with a blue jackal beside him.
"I'm sorry, but is this Ash Ketchum's room?" Riley asked politely.
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Vaniville Town, Kalos Region
After Ash collapsed live, Serena had barricaded herself in her own room, not wanting to come out as she struggled to accept the situation currently. In other words, the honey blonde was trying to escape reality.
'He's okay… He's okay… He's okay…' she repeated in her head as it was the only mantra that kept her going for the day.
After countless tries to compose herself, Serena found herself grasping for any semblance of hope within her mind, including delusions. But immersion could only take her so far before the honey blonde broke and so, the cycle repeated.
Right now, she was rationing what little remained of her sanity, afraid to even make a noise due to her fear of the thought of losing Ash.
Knock, knock.
"Serena dear, I'm coming in, okay?" Grace called out from outside.
As the woman entered, she quickly urged her daughter to follow her.
"Serena, hurry up."
"…"
"Quickly, Ash left you something."
That last sentence caught the honey blonde's attention as she became more willing to follow her mother to their house's PC.
Connected on the other side was Professor Oak and another person whom she recognized.
"…Misty?" she muttered.
The redhead on the other line smiled kindly as she began addressing the honey blonde.
"Wow… Aren't you a pretty thing? Ash is really a lucky guy, huh?" Misty giggled, causing the sleep-deprived Serena to blush slightly at the praise as well as making the honey blonde to show some signs of life on her face.
"Anyways, I take it you've heard about Ash, right? He's… still sleeping but he'll be alright, don't worry," Misty assured with the best smile she could conjure.
"If there's one thing I know about that idiot, it's that he's unbearably stubborn. He promised to come find you, didn't he?"
Serena slowly processed Misty's words and nodded to the Gym Leader.
"Professor Oak, please," Misty waved goodbye to Serena and Grace.
Now, it was Oak's turn.
"Ash approached me the night before that match against my grandson. Apparently, he had Miss Waterflower help him record a video for you in case something like this happened," the elderly man explained.
"…Eh?" Serena gasped.
Then, her screen turned black before a recording of a raven-haired boy came to life along with Pikachu on his shoulder. All as it should be.
{ Ah. Ah. This thing on? }
Ash turned to his side and mouthed out a 'Yeah,yeah' towards an out-of-frame Misty.
{ Anyways... Yo, Yellow. }
{ Recording videos ain't really my thing but I'll try doing my best since I'll send you a bunch in the future! }
Serena grimaced a little when she her the word 'future' while thinking about the currently comatose raven-haired boy.
{ Yellow… You're probably wondering why I'm making this, right? }
{ Well, I've been feeling something strange lately and it's been destroying my body for a while now, but… It's how I got this far. }
'Then I rather you didn't do it, dummy…' Serena felt her heart crack as she saw the slight pained look Ash shot towards the screen.
{ Sorry 'bout this, but I've gotta do it. Didja know? That Blue really likes Green? }
{ That's why I promised Blue that I'll knock some sense into him, if it's the last thing I do. And I don't plan on breaking it. }
{ Of course, that includes ours as well… Rena. }
The teasing smirk from the raven-haired boy caught the honey blonde by surprise, causing her ears to blush at the sudden attack.
{ …To tell you the truth… I really regretted not going to find you as soon as I started my journey. }
Ash's sudden confession caught the ears of the mother and child duo as well as Oak, who was sitting on the opposite end of the call.
{ I really miss you, Yellow. I just didn't think much about it since I've been going around promising others. But… }
{ Today, when I was about to lose, all I could think about was how I've failed to live up to your expectations… Some Pokémon Master, huh? }
{ But you managed to bail me out after all that, Yellow. Thanks! }
{ But man, when did you become so bold? }
Serena's face grew hot as Ash's smug grin widened after referring to the rather embarrassing confession by the former, publicly for everyone to hear.
{ You really grew up from that shy straw hat girl I met in the forest, didn't 'cha? }
The honey blonde pouted slightly at the raven-haired boy's teasing remarks and made a mental note to return the favour one day. Then, Ash's grin changed gradually before settling into an affectionate gentle smile.
{ Yeah… You've become so strong, Yellow. That just means I've gotta step up my game too, right? }
'Eh?' Serena's attention was fully captured by Ash's words.
The words were different, but what they meant were the same.
They were her own words. Her own insecurities.
{ I dunno how long it's gonna take but… when we're finally together again… }
Perfectly mirrored by the boy who she thought would not look at the girl she was now.
{ I'll have become a better guy for someone as strong as you. }
'He was thinking the same thing?' the honey blonde gasped in shock.
{ Hm? Yeah, yeah! I can hear you, Misty! }
{ So… good— Wait, no… That's wrong, isn't it? }
{ It's a 'See you later', Yellow. }
End of transmission.
…
"See? Like two peas in a pod, you kids," Grace chuckled.
"…Pft. That just means I've gotta work even harder than that dork," Serena finally cracked a smile after days of worrisome sleeplessness.
Just then, the family's TV started playing the news as if on cue. What had the two in stunned disbelief was the news headlines.
BREAKING NEWS: RED OF PALLET TOWN'S SUDDEN RECOVERY?!
"Eeeeeeeehhhhhhhhhh?!"
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An hour ago…
"I'm sorry, but is this Ash Ketchum's room?" Riley asked politely.
"Yes, but may I ask who you are?" Gary nodded courteously.
"Ah, of course. Where are my manners?"
The man in blue bowed slightly to the two children while removing his hat as a gesture of respect.
"I am Riley of Sinnoh. An AURA Guardian, though I'm still lacking in training."
The two widened their eyes at the mention of the title of AURA Guardian. Pikachu, however, tilted his head in confusion at that title.
AURA Guardians were legendary Trainers that had the unique ability of manipulating and perceiving AURA akin to the Pokémon that were highly attuned to it such as Lucario. Stories of such Trainers were told in children's books as well as studied in myths of old by researchers with the most famous and historically documented one being about a Sinnoh tale of an AURA Guardian sealing away a malevolent Pokémon into a tower after the latter terrorized nearby villagers.
As the two children processed Riley's identity, they caught sight of something within the box he carried pulsing radiantly with ethereal blue.
"So it really was this child…" Riley muttered with understanding.
The man then took out the glowing sword of rust and gently placed it beside Ash. His partner, Lucario, began pointing his paws towards the comatose boy and began conjuring a ball of pure AURA that slowly morphed into a line that connected the sword with the raven-haired boy.
"Excuse me, what're you doing to Red?" Blue asked feebly as she could not understand what was happening.
"Well, I'll be…" Riley's eyes shone a steel blue.
'This… is an abnormal amount of AURA!'
"I see… He didn't have the proper training…"
"Umm…" Blue tried to cut in.
"Ah, my apologies," the man cleared his throat before explaining.
"Your friend, Ash… has the rare ability to wield AURA like the stories of the Guardians of the past as well as the modern but scarce ones like me."
"However, because he has no basic training in AURA manipulation, he has managed to severely damage his body by forcefully using it. What's more…"
Riley turned to see the board listing the doctor's diagnosis of the raven-haired boy and shook his head in disapproval.
"To be able to inflict this much to one's own body… Your friend has quite the suicidal mindset."
"Pikachu! Pikapika?" Pikachu squeaked as he stayed wrapped by the unmoving and lightly scarred arm of his Trainer.
"…Yes. Your partner's going to be alright," Riley smiled warmly towards the electric mouse.
Suddenly, Lucario growled to his Trainer after releasing the [Aura Sphere] in its paws but the AURA link that connected the sword and Ash remained perfectly stable.
"What's happening?" Gary asked, narrowing his eyes at the visible blue link.
"My partner Lucario here managed to create an AURA link so that the sword can bind itself to your friend," Riley explained.
Without hesitation, the orange-haired boy took out his PokéDex and scanned the blue jackal. To his annoyance, the Dex showed [NO DATA] as no records of Lucario were in the encyclopaedia's database.
'Gotta ask Gramps to upgrade it later…' he mulled while putting back his device back into his pocket.
"And what good would that do?"
"Hahaha!… Miraculous things nobody would be able to do..."
"Not even Guardians or Lucarios…"
"After all…"
Link established:
"It is a sword of heroic legends."
The Sword of Promised Victory
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Man… this is boring.
There was nothing around me. Nothing but the never-ending stretch of forsaken darkness.
If it weren't for the multiple times I've been in this situation, I would've lost my mind.
How long has it been anyways? Feels like hours.
As if replying to my rhetorical, an ethereal blue with radiant gold burst forth onto me, capturing me into their warm embrace.
As I slowly opened my eyes from my 'slumber', I found myself in an unexpected place. Something other than that hill of swords that I was mentally preparing myself for.
"Woah…" I gasped as the beautiful scenery took my breath away.
It was a meadow of verdant green with specks of flourishing flowers complimenting it. Around me was the unmistakably sunshine of springtime and the intoxicating fragrance of summer.
All in all, there was only one word to describe such a place:
"Utopia, is it not?" a silky smooth voice answered my thoughts for me.
Haaaah… Why do strangers keep popping up behind me?
When I turned to face the new stranger, I was met with a dazzling figure who had me stunned at her appearance.
She was a tall ethereal beauty with silver hair that resembled the sparkling moon. But the most striking feature of her soft and gentle face were the long ears on her sides that protected her silver braids that went around her head.
"Fufu… It looks like mine looks hath bewitched thee, successor," she giggled softly at my stunned expression.
"Umm…" I gulped nervously after being caught staring at the woman's strange ears.
"Sorry about that. My foster sister once told me it's rude to stare at a girl for too long," I scratched my nose out of embarrassment.
"I do not mind, successor. Seeing thy young and flustered self hath brought forth memories of mine own fostered blood," she giggled gracefully.
…Wait, come to think of it…
"You're… the one I saw back then," I finally spoke.
"Oh man, don't tell me the wolf's next…"
"Wolf?" the woman repeated before smiling again.
"Ah… Thou art referring to mine own successor."
Successor…
"Before I can ask anything, may I know your name, miss?" I tried to speak politely.
"I'm Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, but Red's what my closest friends call me."
"Fufu… I am aware, child. Mine names are numerous, but mine titles are most known across the lands," she said, keeping her sparkling blue eyes in contact with my own.
"But… thou shalt calleth me Nimue."
I chuckled at the woman's introduction as she seemed fond of that… exotic name.
"…You have a cool name, Miss Nimue."
"Thou art the first to compliment as such, successor," Nimue giggled again.
That word again…
"Why do you call me successor? Last I checked, I'm still an orphan with nothing to inherit."
Hearing my reply, the woman named Nimue merely smiled towards me and snapped her fingers.
Snap!
In an instant, the scenery changed into one that was familiar to me…
Only me.
"Goddamnit…" I groaned silently as I found myself standing among a myriad of swords.
"Thy soul is quite the sight, child," the woman complimented my barren landscape of nothing but swords.
"A wasteland of blades. Quite the empty human thou art, Ash."
…
"Oh? Thy silence is loud for mine ears."
Before I could say anything, Nimue started to speak again.
"I know not of the reason my mine own successor hath chosen thee to wield the Holy Sword. However, thou art truly a unique child."
"Empty and hollow yet brave and ambitious. A truly ironic creature, thou art."
What is she say—
Suddenly, warm wisps of blue light enveloped my body, converged around me like a cloak.
"Hmm… Looks like that blasted mage was wrong. There is another human that the Sword accepts without any hesitation," I heard Nimue monologue to herself.
Then, the lights finally took form within my hands as I found myself holding something heavy:
A sword of royal blue and shining gold.
I was speechless. Not because I couldn't but because I was too immersed by the beauty of the ornate sword in my hands. Everything about it was remarkably dazzling and took my breath away each time I scrutinized the sword:
The shimmering gold and royal blue guard and fuller.
Unreadable runes that ran down the gold fuller, thrumming blue each second.
And the most unbelievable part was…
I know its name…
Without warning, I felt the familiar tug of consciousness pulling me back into reality.
Not again!
"Thou needed not understand everything yet, child. Nor will this be our last meeting. But, I shalt give a piece for thee to mull over," Nimue continued smiling gently towards me.
I reached out for the fading silver-haired woman to no avail. I was struggling to keep my eyes open before I fade back into reality myself. But despite all that, Nimue's parting message to me was loud and clear:
"Ash Ketchum is not supposed to exist in this Line."
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Bloodred eyes blinked open as they scoured their surroundings.
The raven-haired boy awoke to find both of his childhood friends, his treasured partner, an unfamiliar man and a blue jackal staring at him in disbelief. Their jaws slacked open as they were trying to decipher what they were seeing.
"…I'm gonna go back to sleep if y'all aren't gonna talk. Cool? Cool," Ash snarked before pretending to close his eyes.
"Wake up already, doofus!" Blue slapped him silly.
Pam!
"Oi, that hurt, Bluey!" the raven-haired boy barked.
Suddenly, Gary rushed to hug his foster brother tightly as if he was afraid of letting go. Ash was surprised at the gesture but relented anyways as he patted his rival on the back.
"Don't you dare do that ever again, idiot!" Gary exhaled in relief.
"Well, don't be a jerk next time," Ash shot back with a grin.
And the three childhood friends huddled together for the first time since their journey's beginning.
"All that aside, who're you?" Ash asked Riley.
"Riley. And I was sent to deliver the relic to you," he shook the boy's hand.
Turning his gaze to his side, Ash found the rusted sword next to him with glowing runes. The raven-haired boy flinched when he saw the blade but quickly recovered as he held the handle, thrumming the sword as if it was happy.
"You're…" he widened his eyes in surprise at the familiar sword even with its rusted form.
Ignoring his want to comprehend the blade, Ash turned back to Riley to ask more questions.
"You said you're here to send this to me. By whom?"
"Yes, the one who gifted you this sacred relic is none other than Her Majesty," Riley confirmed.
"Queen Ilene of the Rota Kingdom."
The Pallet trio went into catatonic shock when they heard the sender's name as it was a name known throughout the Kantonians.
"As-as-as-as… in the Q-Q-Q-Queen herself?!" Blue stuttered nervously while eyeing the rusted sword with wary eyes.
And the Guardian merely smiled for an answer.
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'…Weird. I feel completely fine now,' Ash pondered as he slipped back into his usual attire as opposed to the hospital gown he was wearing whilst comatose.
The raven-haired boy had constantly been in an injured state for a few days that it felt alien to be healthy and fit as a fiddle again.
"Pikapi," Pikachu cooed while rubbing his yellow fur on his partner's cheeks.
"Hoh… Ya missed me that much, buddy?" Ash smirked before getting a small dose of deserved jolt of electricity from Pikachu's rosy cheeks.
"Sorry."
"Pika-pika!"
"Yeah well, thanks to that, Green and Arcanine are both feeling better right? So, all's well ends well, right?" Ash waved off his partner's concerns while frowning at the tattered state of his red vest and black T-shirt, completely oblivious to Pikachu's shocked yet saddened expression towards his Trainer.
Ash and Pikachu strolled out of his room and towards the informed gathering place that Gary and Blue reminded him and gave him a map, knowing full well that the raven-haired boy was the absolute worst with directions. The two even went as far as to call him 'directionally challenged' as an exaggeration, much to Ash's chagrin.
While walking, Ash had let Pikachu wear his signature cap while the raven-haired boy absentmindedly rubbed the small scar on his eyebrow. The last remain of his battle against his rival before he blacked out. And with no time at all, he reached the viewing room for the Grand League challengers.
Creak!
Ash opened the door to find only the Kanto and Johto Trainers staring back at him with bewildered expressions, still unable to comprehend the juxtaposition of Ash's state compared to the Semi-finals.
'Huh… I guess the others went back to their regions,' Ash surmised silently.
His bloodred eyes scanned the room, recognizing his childhood friends, the Elite Four, the Kanto Gym Leaders, Karen, Bill, Daisy and Professor Oak. On top of that, he was clueless as to how to break the ice, making him scratch the back of his head.
"…Yo."
With that, everyone excluding the adults and the Pallet children tackled the boy with Misty being the loudest of the bunch.
"Don't you ever do that again, idiot!" the redhead yelled out in frustration.
"WHAT?!" the raven-haired boy cheekily cried out as he cupped his ears towards Misty who lightly smacked him on his head.
After everyone had their round of angry scolding towards an exhausted Ash, Professor Oak and Daisy hugged his foster grandson tightly.
"That was a great battle between you and Gary, Ash. But more importantly, I'm just happy you're safe," the old man comically wept.
"You really gave me a heart attack! If something really happened to you, I don't wanna be the one to tell your sweetheart," Daisy wept as well.
Hearing the older Oak sibling's words, Ash immediately widened his eyes.
"Yellow!" he exclaimed before turning to Professor Oak.
"Professor, did she…?"
"Yes, my boy. Your diligence had paid off," he nodded, referring to the video the boy made prior to his final match.
"Phew…"
"Even in this situation, your main worry is to not trouble others?" Lance asked.
"Of course. No way I'm gonna give anyone trouble just because of me," Ash answered with a straight face.
His answer silenced the whole room, leaving Ash to tilt his head in confusion at what was wrong about his answer. Even Pikachu was looking worryingly at his Trainer for reasons the raven-haired boy could not understand.
'…That boy, Ash Ketchum, is fundamentally broken as a human being.'
"…I see," Lance simply said before handing a silver trophy to the boy.
"In any case, congratulations to you, Red of Pallet Town."
"First Runner-up of the Festival of Champions."
With that, everyone clapped for the stunned raven-haired boy and electric mouse. The two grinned brightly at their first accomplishment ever and raised the trophy high. Suddenly, the PokéBalls in Daisy's purse popped open and materialized Ash's entire team cheering alongside him.
"Hey, you guys! How you've been?" the raven-haired boy exclaimed before getting a [Flamethrower] on his face.
"Cough… cough… Still as strong as ever, Charizard."
Charizard grunted before rubbing himself on Ash affectionately.
"I'm not really sure what's wrong but… sorry, anyways."
.
The Elite Four then held a small party within Indigo Plateau to celebrate Ash's recovery as well as everyone else's efforts in the tournament. However, Riley was not able to attend and pardoned himself first but not before entrusting a book to Ash for the raven-haired boy to understand and learn more about his innate power.
"Everything about AURA is in here but I don't know how much it's gonna help since your AURA's conditioning is irreversible and radically different from the normal," Riley said as he gave the book to Ash.
"I'll be fine… Probably," the boy replied while recalling an earlier talk with the Guardian alone in his room.
With that, Riley departed.
After the celebration, Ash approached Daisy and Blue causing the two to excitedly squeal.
"Eh?! New clothes?!" Daisy exclaimed with delight since it had been a long time since she had taken Ash shopping with her.
"Yeah."
"And you're letting us choose for you?!" Blue asked with excitement.
"Yeah."
"Okie-dokie!" the two girls hi-fived each other at the chance of dressing up Ash.
"Ah… Can you find me blue themed clothes instead of the usual red?" Ash requested.
The two girls looked at the raven-haired boy incredulously as if he had grown a second head.
"Why though? I thought you liked red?" Daisy frowned.
"Well… It's just…" Ash trailed away as he recalled the mocking expression of a certain man in red who appeared in his hallucinations.
'Damn Nameless bastard…' he uncharacteristically cursed angrily.
'Something about that guy really makes me angry for some reason…'
"I wanna try something… different?"
Seeing his troubled expression, the two did not pry any further and accepted his request.
After his meeting with the two, he found Gary alone and went to him to finally chat with his rival after the conclusion of their battle.
"Yo," Ash grinned.
"Yo yourself," Gary smiled.
The two sat next to each other in silence, not wanting to break the tranquil surroundings.
"…"
Ash noticed his rival taking peeks at him, or more specifically, the scar on his eyebrow.
"Seriously, it's no big deal. Maybe I'll grow my hair out to cover it," Ash tried his best to cheer his rival up whilst covering the scar with his raven bangs.
"…I hurt you, Red. I pushed you and Blue away," Gary muttered.
"I did all that to prove that Raticate didn't die in vain. That his passing had meaning by changing my value to Power."
"But in the end, I lost… I made his death meaningle—"
"I'll hafta stop you right there, Green," Ash interrupted.
"Your Power crap is everything I hated about you, but I can't say that it didn't work. Hell, you beat Miss Karen so that's gotta count for something, right?"
"So what if you lose? That just means that Power can only take you that far."
"You wanna make amends? Then, talk to your Pokémon again. Listen to them even if you don't think you deserve it."
"But…" Gary weakly rebuked.
"Don't worry, Green," Ash patted his foster brother on the back.
"As long you've got me and Blue, you'll always have a second chance. 'Cuz we're never gonna abandon you."
"We've got one road. And we'll walk it together."
Hearing Ash's words, the cracks in Gary's heart finally healed.
"…Thanks, Red. I know what I need to do."
"Heh, no problem!"
.
A day had passed since then and the Pallet Trio were finally back together in their hometown. It had been a year since they had last stepped foot into Pallet Town and they were more than happy to relax there. The residents of the small town were constantly showering them with praises and congratulations to the trio, much to their embarrassment since none of them won the actual tournament.
During that time, Butterfree had said his goodbyes to Ash as he returned to his flock with his mate with the raven-haired boy promising to see him someday again.
"Second place, third place and top 8 are pretty solid ranking for your first tournaments," Oak praised the three.
The Oaks, Leafs and Ash were eating breakfast together with the latter sorting out his mail with Pikachu unhelpfully stuffing his mouth with ketchup pancakes. The Leaf family were very happy to see Ash up and running after his bloody showing when they watched his matches and scolded him for being reckless for the umpteenth time.
"Oi, you trying to make me angry or something, partner?"
"Pikaaaachu~"
The electric mouse mocked his Trainer while Daisy fed him his pancakes.
Ash flipped through the mail and filtered out the important ones such as Bea and Lisia's letters wishing him for good health since they were not present after his miraculous recovery.
Just then, the raven-haired boy noticed three similar looking black envelopes addressed to the trio.
"Hmm? What's this?" Gary swiped the envelope from Ash's hand.
"What, what?" Blue swiped the second one.
"I dunno. But seems like it's important," Ash replied with a brow raised.
While his two closest friends were busy cutting out the envelope, the raven-haired boy noticed two unfamiliar letters addressed to Gary and Blue. However, before he could read the sender's name, the two read the black envelope's message which should be the same for him as well:
[=]
Greetings, dear Trainer.
You have been chosen as one of many Trainers to enter New Island. There, you will be able to challenge the strongest Trainer in the world, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. We hope to see you attend and would love to see you soon.
-M2-
[=]
The Pallet Trio then repeated the keywords that caught their eyes.
Festival of Champions – Fin.
"The…"
Onwards to the next adventure.
"Strongest…"
Chapter 51: Reconciliation
"Trainer…?"