Present time, Orre Region
The small group of survivors from Mount Silver finally arrived at their destination as slowly one by one, the appeared from the teleportation device. A few needed a minute since they weren't used to the sensation of being teleported to a whole other region. Jackson even went around asking if anyone needed any water or medicine due to this
"Where are we?" asked Violet after a moment as she stood behind Ash, who he noticed was shaking slightly... poor girl was probably worried about almost running in with the infected
"Orre" said Walter bluntly
"Orre? When did any surviving human have time to build a base in Orre of all places? I thought everyone abandoned Orre after what happened with Cipher" Azrael said as Ash remembered the rumors, he'd heard about the shadow Pokemon and Orre
Walter shook his head "Not everyone abandoned Orre. I heard about a small elite group has been going around recruiting as many people as possible willing to fight into the cause, known as Shadow Operation. I was able to steal some of their equipment once and had Ollie set up various landmarks to escape. With Mount Silver compromised, we won't be returning there anymore"
Violet, Ollie and Jackson shared a disappointed look at hearing that. Although Mount Silver wasn't the ideal place to set up camp, it had become home for the trio more than the others in the group. Penny clenched her fists at how they sacrificed their home without even putting up a fight. Looking at the arm she lost made her wonder if there was even a point to all this. Grey was the only one unaffected by the ordeal as he lights up a cigarette currently in his hands, however his eyes did glance over everyone around him after a moment and sighed at how it seems he was getting soft and growing to like these teens
Hinami looked at Ash, who wore an indifferent expression as he looked up at the sky. She wanted nothing more than to go up to him and ask him what was wrong. Ash had become the only person she actually showed emotions to, thinking about him as big brother figure in her eyes... however even though she didn't know his past on how he ended up joining the others, she could tell he too had suffered like the rest of them and though it best to leave him alone
Meanwhile, Ash had his thoughts thinking back to that day he last saw Red, Leaf, Gary and Brendan... 1 week after May's sacrifice for him to live, for him to somehow help the world once again
2 months ago, Sinnoh Region
1 week after May's Death
Ash hadn't been the same since that day in Sunnyshore City. Every time he closed his eyes, May's last words played in his head, never leaving him alone as if to punish himself for the fate she suffered
"You've saved me multiple times... now it's my turn to return the favor and save you"
Did the universe hate him so much that it needed to have him stay alive to save the world, while those he befriended and cared about... sacrificed themselves. The universe is evil and probably wanted to see him suffer
"Hey... you need to stop beating yourself over this. What happened... none of us can change the result" Red said as he stood beside the raven-haired teen "May made her choice. She wanted you to live Ash, not wallow in pity. If she was here, she'd be yelling at you to wake up and fight"
"That sounds like May..." Ash whispered as Red gave his shoulder a squeeze, making Ash look at him before looking back down to the ground
"You really should stop that Red. If it wasn't for him slipping up the way he did, May would still be here and not six feet under. So much for those powers of his allowing him to sense things" Brendan grumbled
Red heard Leaf and Gary sigh at this and he couldn't blame them. Brendan and Ash's friendship had gone down the drain after May's sacrifice. Brendan blamed Ash for her death, going as far as to even attack him after Ash broke the news to them, yelling at how it should have been him and not her
At least when they faced off against infected, Brendan and Ash are able to put aside their feelings and work with each other... maybe more like tolerate each other would be better suited
That day however, no one expected that it would actually come to this
They had just finished battling a group of infected that had ambushed the group, though for some reason neither Ash nor Brendan were fighting like they usually would. In the end, they had to snap the two trainers out of their daze just to win the battle
"What is wrong with the two of you?! I get you both have your issues since that day, but you never acted this way in battle before. Heck Ash, you normally warn us if there are any infected before we walk into anywhere!" Gary shouted at the two
It was quiet, no one saying a word as Ash got up from his spot and moved slightly away from the group
"It's over" Brendan softly said as the others looked at him in shock, except for Ash who had suspected this happening anytime soon
Instead, Ash looked up at the sky as he heard the others arguing with Brendan. Even Leaf was being more vocal than usual as she too wasn't in agreement with Brendan
Red noticed one member of the group being quiet. Turning he noticed Ash looking at nothing in the sky... almost as if he were in a trance or lost in though
"Ash" Gary said, as he too noticed his childhood friend's state
Shaking himself from his thoughts, Ash turned back to the group as he met everyone eyes, even Brendan for a short second "I agree with Brendan"
"What?!"
"You can't be serious?!"
"See even power boy agrees with me" Brendan said, though he was also shocked that Ash agreed with him. He wasn't expecting that from Ash and if he were to be honest, Brendan actually thought that Ash would put up a fight and give him a reason to stay
"Like Brendan says... it's over. This group is finished" he said in a monotone
"You're the leader Ash... you don't mean that" Gary said, but knew that Ash was serious
"You know as well as I do, that there is no way this will be over any time soon. Riley chose you for a reason Ash... don't let this be the end"
Ash turned away from the others, his hands clenched at his side as he shook his head "Riley made a mistake when he made me leader. If I was a better leader, May wouldn't have needed to throw her life away like she did, nor would we be where we are today. If you decide to stick, together be my guest, but me... I'm done being part of a group"
Present time, Orre Region
'Guess I wasn't done being part of a group after all' Ash thought, his gaze shifting towards the others present 'Still I don't think I'd trade what I did back then. I might miss them still, but I know two of them wouldn't be alive if I hadn't walked away'
"Alright, let's not get comfortable here. We still need to be on the move. Orre might not have many infected due to the Resistance, but we shouldn't let our guard down" Walter seriously said
"Resistance?" Azrael questioned as they looked at Walter with suspicion
"Rumor has it that group I mentioned before is known as the Resistance. Don't look at me like that, I might be a scout, but I'm also an informant broker as well" Walter said defensively
"Let's leave him alone guys. Each of us has a past we'd rather the others not know about. Have some respect" Jackson said as a few gave Walter an apologetic glance
Ash sighed, sitting down and taking out the pokeball with the yellow lightning bolt as he released Pikachu once again while Hinami soon took a seat next to him
'If you were still here... would I have walked away or stayed with the others?'
Present time, Unknown location
An arrow pierced through infected human's eye as a surprised blue haired boy turned and saw a hooded figure with a bow and arrow in hand as they took aim and fired at the forehead, causing the infected to drop dead in defeat
"Y-you saved m-my life... thank you" the blue haired teen said in awe as he slowly stood back up, grabbing his discarded sword from the ground
The hooded figure nodded, pulling the bow over their shoulder and turned to leave before they heard the teenager speak up "Hey... umm what's your name?"
It was quiet, the sound of the wind being the only noise heard as the dirty violet poncho on the hooded figure moved slightly. The blue haired teen stood there unsure if he should just leave before he heard a female voice come from the figure before him
"Who I am, does it matter? I will only tell you something for your sake. Forgot you ever saw me and if possible, head to Orre... there is a rumor of a group of surviving humans willing to fight to end the nightmare" she explained in a whisper, but could still be heard
The blue haired teen looked skeptical as he turned back to the dead infected. He wanted to know more, expect when he looked back... the hooded figure was nowhere in sight "Maybe I should head to Orre... beats trying to survive on my own without any Pokemon to provide backup"
From above, the hooded female watched the boy leave as she took out a phone, the face of the same boy she had saved on it. Makoto was his name but preferred to be called Koto instead. She hit a contact on her phone, sending the confirmation that Makoto was saved and possibly heading to Orre
Placing the phone back, her hand suddenly trailed over a familiar item as she closed her eyes and looked up into the sun, the sun starting to set "Soon... we'll see each other"
New OC, Makoto has been added and will probably be seen again. He's slightly based on Makoto Yuki from Persona 3 in terms of appearance wise only. Yes Ash leaves the others due to feeling he's failed as a leader and friend, not wanting to join another group, but you'll see why and how he met the others in the upcoming chapters. Also that person who saved Makoto, I wonder who it is... won't say anything there
P.S. next chapter is an interlude with the backstories of Violet, Jackson, Penny, Grey, Azrael, Ollie and Walter of what they went through during the viral outbreak