Chapter 23
Ash returned to the stadium after dropping off the Electric Infinity Gem with Pikachu, Serena, Mark, and Golly. Unfortunately, he didn't have time to check in on the others—he had a match in just a few minutes and needed to prepare.
"Alright, so I'm finally battling Lance at long last," Ash said to himself. "I think a Dragon battle would be a clever way to face him. That means Noivern, Naganadel, Gabite, Dracovish, maybe Terastallize Sceptile into a Dragon Type, and I've got my surprise Miraidon that'll catch him off guard."
"Sounds like a fun match!" Pikachu chuckled. "Imagine his shock when you send out our robotic serpent friend! Anyway, I'm heading to the suite. Good luck, bro!" Pikachu rushed off as Ash—now going by Red again—headed to the battlefield to face Kanto and Johto Champion Lance.
"After seeing how you beat the Alolan Champion without your full team, I've been looking forward to facing you myself, Red," Lance said. "Just know, I've got a lot more experience as a Champion than Gladion."
"Figured," Red replied with a sigh. "Just know I've got my own surprises, too."
The battle began, with Lance sending out his shiny Gyarados while Red countered with Naganadel. The crowd gasped, surprised to see that Red had an Ultra Beast. Meanwhile, back at the Ketchum family castle, Goomba, who was watching the match with Lear and Mark, slapped his face in frustration.
"Okay, is he trying to make it obvious who he is?!" Shadow, Goomba's Marshadow, exclaimed, visibly annoyed. "Hardly anyone has ever seen a Naganadel, let alone caught one! Ash is basically making it easier for people to figure out who he is. Sure, Pokémon trainers in S.O.A.P. like Goomba and Lear might pull stunts like this, but Ash is currently framed for crimes and wanted by the law!"
"Trust me, he's caught other Pokémon since the betrayal. He might be fine if we just ask him to use some of his newer Pokémon friends," Mark offered, trying to reassure Shadow. Then, he frowned in confusion. "Wait... you guys are members of what now?"
"S.O.A.P.," Lear replied, "Society of Overcoming Aura Powers."
Mark stared at him, dumbfounded and slightly annoyed. "Okay, that's a terrible acronym. I hope you know that."
"Trust me, we're very aware of that..." Goomba groaned as they continued watching the match.
"Naganadel, use X-Scissor!" Red commanded, and Naganadel charged forward, its stingers glowing with Bug-type energy.
"Gyarados, block it with Aqua Tail!" Lance countered. Gyarados swung its massive tail to deflect the attack, but Red grinned.
"Now, use Dragon Pulse!" Red exclaimed. Naganadel unleashed dual Dragon Pulse attacks, one from each side, striking Gyarados and pushing the Water/Flying-type Pokémon back. "Let's wrap this up quick—use Thunderbolt!"
"Not so fast, Red!" Lance shouted. "Gyarados, use Hyper Beam!" Gyarados roared and fired a massive beam of energy. The Hyper Beam overwhelmed the Thunderbolt momentarily, but Naganadel narrowly dodged the attack and retaliated with another Thunderbolt, this time landing a decisive blow that knocked Gyarados out. Naganadel's Special Attack stat increased thanks to its Beast Boost ability.
"Gyarados is unable to battle!" the referee declared. "Champion Lance, send out your next Pokémon."
"I'll admit, it's not every day I start with the odds stacked against me, but I'll turn this around. Go, Hydreigon!" Lance called out, sending in his Dragon/Dark-type Hydreigon. The three-headed dragon roared as it materialized from its Ultra Ball.
"Naganadel, use X-Scissor!" Red ordered again. Hydreigon dodged deftly, swooping beneath Naganadel to unleash a surprise Draco Meteor. The powerful Dragon-type move struck from below, inflicting heavy damage.
"If you think Naganadel's going down in just a few hits, think again," Red retorted. "Use Dragon Pulse, Naganadel!" Naganadel fired a massive Dragon Pulse from its three needle-like stingers, but Lance's Hydreigon countered with Protect, shielding itself from the attack.
"Hydreigon, use Crunch!" Lance commanded. Hydreigon lunged forward, biting down with Dark-type energy that lowered Naganadel's Defense. Despite the hit, Naganadel took advantage of the close range to counter with X-Scissor, dealing the finishing blow.
"Hydreigon is unable to battle!" the referee announced.
"Yes! Ash already has a two-Pokémon lead—let's go!" Golly cheered from the suite where the group was watching. "Thanks to Naganadel's Beast Boost, both Thunderbolt and Dragon Pulse are going to hit even harder now!"
"Yeah, but that Defense drop is a little concerning," Pikachu pointed out, crossing his arms. "If Lance has a strong physical attacker with a super-effective move, Naganadel could be in trouble. And with limited switching allowed in this tournament, Ash has to be cautious about when he swaps out. Right now, though, it looks like he's aiming for a sweep. Maybe he's got it all under control."
Lillie and Snowy nodded in agreement, but Lillie's expression turned thoughtful. Good thing Ash made it to his match on time, but… why does it feel like everyone is hiding something from me? she wondered.
"Well, I've got my own uphill battle next," Alice groaned. "My opponent is Steven Stone—David's dad!"
"If it makes you feel better, I'm up against Flint of the Sinnoh Elite Four," Insey said with a nervous chuckle. "At least you've got Ghost moves to deal with Metagross!"
The others exchanged worried glances. With type disadvantages looming, it was clear both Alice and Insey would have tough battles ahead.
(Alice specializes in both Ice and Ghost types normally, if you're curious.)
Back on the battlefield, Lance sent out a Shiny Charizard, which he immediately Mega Evolved into Mega Charizard X. The newly transformed dragon dodged a Thunderbolt before closing in to land a devastating Dragon Claw. Naganadel was sent crashing to the ground. It struggled to rise but ultimately fainted, narrowing Red's lead to just one Pokémon.
"Well, there go the stat boosts," Red muttered, recalling Naganadel. He smiled at the Poké Ball. "You were awesome, Naganadel. Rest up for now—we've got this." Turning his attention back to the fight, Red sent out Noivern. "Don't think I'm out of this fight yet, Lance! I've got plenty more tricks up my sleeve!"
Lance nodded, his expression still resolute. "Charizard, Dragon Claw!"
As Charizard charged in, Red countered. "Noivern, use Boomburst, then Supersonic!" Noivern unleashed a deafening sound wave that disoriented Charizard, followed by a Supersonic that left the Mega Evolved dragon confused. Despite the confusion, Charizard pushed through and lashed out with another Dragon Claw, only for Noivern to land a clean Dragon Claw of its own. The two dragons clashed mid-air, each refusing to back down.
Sevestar Castle, meanwhile...
"Lance might want to watch out for that Supersonic. If Charizard hurts itself in confusion, it'll be a huge setback," Mark observed. He glanced at Goomba and Rai, who were unusually quiet. "Hey, are you two okay? You've been awfully quiet…"
Goomba and Rai exchanged glances, then sighed, looking down at the floor. Their silence made Mark uneasy. Lear stepped in, gently tapping Mark's shoulder.
"It's… complicated," Lear admitted. "I'm sure you remember Goomba and Rai mentioning other versions of you and your family. That's because this mess traces back to another version of Ash—an Ash who's also an Arceus, like you."
"Another version of my family? That's… interesting," Mark replied, curious at first. But then he noticed their somber expressions. "Wait, is there something wrong about this specific version of Ash or my family?"
Goomba sighed heavily, avoiding Mark's gaze. "He led a group to destroy the human race in his world. That led to someone going back in time, which shattered a being into countless mindless, psychotic creatures called MissingNos. It's caused chaos across so many worlds. One example of the irreversible damage is Voidlie and her Pokémon."
"You know about Voidlie?" Mark gasped, before the full weight of the revelation hit him. "A version of my family… caused that?"
Rai nodded, his voice grim. "Goomba and I traveled across countless dimensions to stop him and save the Ash from my timeline. That Ash was possessed by a MissingNo and killed 90% of our world's population once. We've met a lot of versions of Ash—and many of them were enemies." He paused, his voice trembling as he continued. "Out of all the terrible Ashes we've encountered, there's only one we despise more than the one who caused the irreversible damage."
Mark's eyes widened in horror. "I'm surprised that's even possible… What happened?"
Goomba stayed silent, his expression dark, as Lear stepped in to explain. "There was a version of Ash involved in a war—every region against the Aura users of Sevestar. Goomba's cousin was caught in that war. She was with Ash when he… fatally wounded her, thinking she was going to attack him. He acted out of paranoia because Goomba is an Aura user."
Mark paled at the revelation, his stomach churning. Both of Goomba's eyes turned a dullish red as he stared at the ground in silent fury.
Flashback: Another Time, Another World
Goomba had just finished fending off a group of Aura users, keeping them away from the wounded civilians behind him. As the attackers retreated, a crimson-haired woman rushed over, her expression tense with worry.
"Goomba, are you alright?" she asked, her voice edged with concern.
Goomba turned to her and managed a reassuring smile. "Yeah, Rai and I are good, Honoka." He gave her a thumbs-up, which seemed to ease her anxiety.
"Alright," Honoka said, exhaling in relief. "We need to focus on getting these people to safety before we become a massive—"
Her sentence was cut short by the sound of a Hyper Beam tearing through the air. The golden energy struck her squarely in the back, blasting her forward and sending her crashing into a nearby wall.
"Honoka!" Goomba and Rai shouted in unison, their eyes widening in horror.
As the smoke cleared, a version of Ash emerged from the chaos, walking toward them with a grim expression. "That was close. You alright?" Ash asked, glancing at Goomba. "Come on, let's get you out of here."
But Goomba and Rai weren't looking at Ash. Their eyes were locked on Honoka, crumpled against the ground, unmoving.
"Hey, she was going to attack you," Ash insisted, his tone defensive. "I was helping y—"
Before Ash could finish, Goomba's fist ignited with crackling purple electricity. In a flash, he launched himself at Ash, landing a punch so powerful it sent him flying fifty yards across the battlefield. Ash slammed into a building, the structure crumbling around him.
Ignoring the debris and chaos, Goomba rushed to Honoka's side, dropping to his knees. His hands trembled as he checked for a pulse.
There was none.
"Honoka…" Goomba whispered, his voice breaking, as Rai stood frozen behind him, the weight of the loss sinking in.
End of Flashback...
"You had to watch the fatal blow and couldn't do anything to save your cousin?" Mark gasped, his voice heavy with disbelief. "Goomba, I… I am so sorry."
"It's alright," Goomba replied with a deep sigh. "I know Ash believed he was in the right. He thought he was protecting his people. But there's a difference between justice and revenge. Justice means holding those who've harmed others accountable for their actions. Revenge… it's personal. It's when you go after someone just because they hurt you. And it almost always ends up causing irreversible damage to those who weren't involved."
"There's a third way when it comes to betrayal," Rai interjected. He pulled a photograph from the photo album he carried with him. It showed a girl who resembled Lillie in human form, but with Ash's skin tone, hair color, and eye color. She wore Ash's Alolan outfit, and a Pikachu sat perched on her shoulder. Surrounding her were younger versions of Ash and Lillie's friends. Below the photo was a handwritten message:
"A bond with another is never truly lost. Even if they betray you, parts of that friendship will always carry on!"
"Is this Ashlie and Chuster, with Ash's old friends from your world?" Mark asked, surprised.
Goomba nodded. "Yeah, that's Ashlie and Chuster. Even before confronting their betrayers, they decided to take the high road and give them another chance. Their betrayal wasn't entirely their fault, so Ashlie thought it was only fair to bury the hatchet and move forward as friends."
"That's… sweet of her," Mark said, exhaling a soft sigh before managing a weak chuckle. "At first, when Lear told me what happened with your cousin, I assumed it wasn't just Golly who needed convincing about Ash, but also you. Now, though… I'm starting to think that's not the case anymore."
"It's more than just Golly's fate," Lear explained, stepping in. "It's also about proving something to our friends—and to ourselves—about what's been haunting us. Most versions of Ash that Goomba has met were betrayed. And in almost every case, that betrayal pushed them to seek revenge, turning them into someone they never wanted to be. Ashlie and Chuster are rare exceptions, and Goomba and Rai want to prove that a betrayed Ash doesn't need to lose his memories or be fused with someone else to hold onto his good heart. They fear that Ashlie and Chuster might begin to believe they'd have hurt countless people if not for the amnesia."
Mark nodded slowly, his expression thoughtful. "That's… a powerful thing to fight for."
"Anyway," Goomba said, a small smile returning to his face, "how about we get back to collecting the Infinity Gems? We've got some time to kill."
"We're going after the Flying Type Gem in Area Zero, right?" Mark asked.
"Yeah," Goomba confirmed. "But after that, we'll need to make a stop in the Orre Region."
"The Orre Region?" Mark tilted his head. "Why there?"
"There's one Infinity Gem that almost no one—even those who know about Infinity Gems—realizes exists. But it's essential to ensure that purifying the Violet Depression doesn't require a sacrifice." Goomba's voice dropped slightly, and his eyes glowed a faint red. "The Shadow Type Infinity Gem—the Gem of Hatred. It's hidden deep within Creepypasta Cavern."