Chapter 23:XI. Last Guardian: Third's time the charm
"How's the leg?" asked in pokespeech Lucario.
"Had better times. It hurts a little, but it's nothing major. I should be fine soon." replied Ash.
When Ash and his crew got into the cave, Gardevoir went immediately to Ash and tend his wound. The extraction of the bullet was painful without any painkillers, but after the training Ash went through, it was bearable. And after Gardevoir released him from her care, he sat down and leaned against the wall of his room with his bandaged leg.
And as Ash sat there looking through the files he has on Team Rocket to find another base and make some use of the time he is recovering, one of his Pokemon came to him.
Lucario sat down beside Ash and looked into the files. Unfortunate that he can't read any of it. He should ask Mewtwo about it. Ability to read is really useful.
Lucario looked at the Garedevoir, who was healing Toxicroak now. And he began to wonder. This whole fight against Team Rocket is going at a really fast rate. By this pace, they'll beat Team Rocket in 2 or 3 weeks. And when that happens, he'll have to finally talk to Gardevoir about them. And this subject is a subject he is not comfortable discussing. Will he be even able to wait for a little longer? He waited for so long, but now it is getting to him. The awkward silence between them is unnerving.
Nevertheless, he could imagine them together. He even dreamed of it on couple of occasions. And what a pleasant dreams they were. Could she thought the same? He feels the emotions that she has inside of her. And yes she feels a lot of love. But the question is what kind of love?
"Lucario. Are you sure you want to wait?" asked Ash out of nowhere through the link and slowly put down the files about Team Rocket.
"What?" replied Lucario.
"You don't have to hide it from me, Lucario. I feel the emotions that rage inside you right now. You are helplessly head over heels in love with our Pokemon nurse." said Ash.
"... I trained you far too well." replied Lucario. To this Ash didn't say anything. He just waited for Lucario to finally say something else. And he eventually got his wish.
"Ash. Can I ask you something personal?" asked Lucario.
"Go for it."
"Have you ever felt like that? To feel such a desire to be with someone? To have your mind in a constant thought about that one person? In day. In night. Even in a fight. To have that other part of you, you never knew existed, but when found, you'll realize that you can't be whole without the other part?" asked Lucario as the two of them were sitting and watching Gardevoir heal Toxicroak.
"... Not like you. But I think I am close to it." said Ash quietly. Truth is, he is 99% sure he indeed fell for a girl similarly to how Lucario fell for Gardevoir. And the weird thing is, the girl wasn't here during the process.
Ever since that dream, she crawled into his mind when he least expect it. He didn't take it seriously back then, but now? He knows better. After 3 years in solitude, he is not the naive and dense kid he once was.
Apart from the feelings he is feeling, Aura is involved in this somehow. How else can you explain the same glowing blue mark on both of their bodies that has aura energy in it? And Aura is known to have a strong connection to love.
It all came to him a when he saw that girl, who was emitting so much warmth. He did not know who she was when he was just embracing the feeling of it. But when he came back, he knew. He realized. He knew who she is. It all came together there.
It didn't start in the Haven. Or in that dream. Or even when she showed up while he was watching his mom gardening. No. It was the moment she appeared to him in the dead of a night to put him back on track. He knew, that back then, he didn't care that much about girls. That changed that night. He does not know if it's because of her good looks or the great speech, but something just clicked at that moment. And from that moment, the innocent friendly thoughts were exchanged by not so innocent thoughts about her like. For example. When she touched his lips, man did it felt good. This would not bother him that much. Yeah, it was a little weird, but with no harm done. However, when he fell from the bench, apart from her face, he was looking at things that no gentleman should have been looking at without lady's consent. And since he is all about honor and being chivalrous like a true Aura Guardian now, he is kinda ashamed when he was looking at her like that. But. That was not the end however. Then the dream happened and those not so innocent thoughts went wild. He could no longer control his thoughts about her. Imagination about the things he would do to her in bed was making a giant mess in his head and pants whenever he thought about her naked figure. Even when the logical part of his brain was saying to stop think about her like this. He couldn't help it.
"What have you done to me, Cynthia." asked Ash himself and Ash and Lucario sat there in silence watching Gardevoir work.
"Scott?! What are you doing here?!" asked surprised Charles. He was ready to leash out much more, when the doors to his office flew open. But when he saw his friend in an Alola style T-shirt and shorts there, he knew it would be pointless.
"Well. As you know. I am not a very patient man. So when you told me through the phone that our meeting is postponed, I figured out that the best thing will be to visit you personally." said Scott in his usually calm voice and casually eating an ice cream.
"How did you get through the security?!" asked Charles again.
"Easily. Everyone has it's price." replied Scott calmly.
"I'll need to find a new security..." said Charles quietly with a sigh.
"I think you should not. It took a lot of convincing and money before they finally gave out. Others would jump onto my first offer." said Scott as he took a seat across Charles without asking for any permission continuing to eat ice cream like nothing was a big deal.
"What do you want Scott. I don't have time." said Charles.
"Well. How much does your time cost?" said Scott as he took another lick of his ice cream.
"You can't buy my time. Did you forget that I am the wealthiest man on this planet?!" asked irritated Charles.
"Oh yeah. Shame it's not me. First place would suit me better than the second." replied Scott casually.
"Why are you here?" asked Charles forcefully again.
"Fine you grumpy Santa Claus. Listen. I am planning to make the biggest tournament in history." said Scott casually.
"You mean in Pokemon battles?!" asked Charles.
"Yes. A tournament where anyone can enter. No badges. No frontier symbols. Nothing. If you think you have what it takes, you can battle." said Scott with another casual lick of the ice cream.
"Are you crazy?! Do you know how many people would enter?! Isn't a normal Regional conference enough?!" said Charles. He expected something big. But this? It was something enormous he wanted to do.
"Regional conferences are boring. I want something bigger." said Scott calmly.
"Boring?! They are the biggest events in each region!" said Charles.
"Exactly! But I want to make the biggest event in the world." said Scott when he finally finished eating an ice cream.
"How? You have to accommodate every single participant. And there will be thousands of them! What about the food? Do you know how much of it will be needed? And do you even have a place where it would be held?! This is ridiculous! It's impossible!" said Charles with a raised voice.
"Place: Chrysanthemum Island here in Kanto. The island is prosperous because off tourists so they have a lot of things that would be needed like food, medicines and all that stuff for tourists. I think they would gladly help us. For some money of course. You and I would fund the build of the accommodation for trainers and the stadiums for the preliminary rounds of the tournament. Then we would build the main stadium. The biggest stadium yet. One that would hold hundreds of thousands of people. The stadium of stadiums." said Scott. Charles was quiet the whole time.
"I did my research on this topic. This tournament is on my mind for a while. So ask me anything you want. I have it all planned out." said Scott calmly.
"...Scott. Do you know how much money we would have to invest? Our pockets will be dried out with all the propagational material we would have to do too. Not to mention the construction of at least 10 stadiums plus that stadium of stadiums of yours. And it is very plausible that this project won't be even finished. If that would be the case we would lose a LOT of our money. This is a very risky move." said Charles.
"Oh please. By the time next conference rolls around your pockets will be full again. Especially if you'll keep that grey-eyed, blonde-haired supermodel around. So you have nothing to worry about. I am the one who is risking every single pokedollar." said Scott. It is true, unfortunately. Scott doesn't have the investments in the places where it would come back. So if this project would fall short, his money would be gone for good.
"... Are you sure you want to go through with this? Don't you want to invest in something more reliable? There are a lot of things that could go wrong." asked Charles. Scott was right. He himself has nothing to fear. Every conference brings him a lot of money. And with Tobias, the Legendary Hunter of Sinnoh and Cynthia, the Ice Queen of Kanto as the two famous champions, the money will come even if they would not want to. Not that the other champions don't draw attention, but these two are the money makers right now.
"I want this. This is my vision. My master plan. The tournament of a lifetime. And I want to be the one who organized it." said Scott.
"...Ok. I will cancel my plans for tomorrow and we'll discuss this in a further detail then. But, before I'll go to the Police HQ I want to know one last thing. How do you want this tournament to be called." said Charles.
To this Scott chuckled slightly and then answered. "The Omega Championship."
"Are you sure you are ready, Ash?" asked the yellow mouse Pokemon in pokespeech looking at Ash's bandaged leg.
"Yeah. It's nothing." said Ash as he looked beside his leg onto his yellow partner.
The Haven was preparing for yet another attack on the base. After a few days of going through the files Ash had, and some scouting from his flying Pokemon, Ash found the third base in the heart of the deep forest in Hoenn region. The Forbidden Forest. It will be refreshing to finally go to a forest instead of some caves.
"I do not think it is nothing. You still limp a little. Are you sure you are ready for the fight?" asked Pikachu again.
"Pikachu. Even if I would be without a leg, I would still go there now. They need us." replied Ash.
"I know. But we have to be extra careful. They nearly got you last time. And since you are injured, you are an easy target." said Pikachu.
"I am aware of it." replied Ash.
In a lighten Haven, Ash picked his Bo staff and placed it on a simple holder on his back. Ash then got into his usual attire, and in a dark green cloak came to the place where Mewtwo has been levitating in cross-legged position, with Gardevoir by his side. Pikachu followed Ash and hopped on his shoulder when they got to the two Psychic Pokemon.
"Was everyone here already, Gardevoir?" asked Ash.
"Yes. Only you and Pikachu remain. Good luck and be careful out there." said Gardevoir politely through telepathy. Even though some fear could be heard in her voice.
"Thanks. Make sure he is okay while we'll be out there." said Ash as he looked at focused Mewtwo.
"Don't worry. I'll keep an eye on him." said Gardevoir.
With a nod, Ash extended his right arm to Mewtwo's forehead. Pikachu jumped onto his hand and placed his paw on Mewtwo's forehead. Pikachu then closed his eyes and let Mewtwo get inside his head. Pikachu then jumped back onto Ash's shoulder and let Ash do the same thing. After a moment Ash opened his eyes, pulled his hand back and looked at his all Pokemon lined up for another attack.
"Is everyone ready to go?" asked Ash in his head.
A loud yell of yes from all of his Pokemon was heard in his head. Mewtwo winced a little in his position at this.
"Sorry, Mewtwo." said Ash.
"It's OK. Just a little thought overload." replied Mewtwo telepathically.
And after a slight pause Mewtwo continued. "Teleportation will begin in 3...2...1..."
And before anyone could even blink, they were right in front of a building enveloped by some enormous trees. It was pretty dark out there because of the big trees. And those trees covered the whole building inside the forest perfectly. One could be mistaken that it was nighttime when in reality it's on hour past noon. Another great hiding spot for Team Rocket. But there was something very wrong.
"Lucario? Do you feel anyone inside?" Ash asked through Mewtwo.
"No... Noone is there." replied Lucario.
"Are we in a right place?" asked Glalie.
"We are. There are R symbols all over the building." said Luxray who checked the building through her X-Ray vision.
"Hah. Cowards. Already running away. Guess two beat ups were all it took." said Infernape.
"Don't make any conclusions just yet, Infernape. Let's investigate the place first." said Ash to his Pokemon.
And they did. Ash took his usual 7 Pokemon (Pikachu, Sceptile, Feraligatr, Garchomp, Metagross, Infernape and Toxicroak) with him inside while the Bulbasaur watched the ground outside and Charizard the air. The corridors of this base were the same as the ones in the previous bases. They are in the right place, that's for sure. But Ash didn't sense anyone. He even asked his other Pokemon if they can smell or hear someone in the area. There was truly no one.
And when they opened doors to the lab rooms, not even the dead bodies were there. The place was swiped clean. After an hour of searching, they gave up and Ash met with his Pokemon in the corridors of this room.
"I am going to check the main room if they left some files here, even when I doubt it. Feraligatr, Garchomp, Infernape, and Toxicroak. Look around one more time for some clues. Sceptile, Metagross, and Pikachu are going with me to the main room. Don't drop your guard while we are here. I don't like this one bit." said Ash seriously.
Ash then made his way to the doors that lead into the main room where the office of the highest ranked grunt was located. He expected this place swept clean too. But to his surprise, there were a few files inside the shelves left. Well, at least he'll get something out of this 'attack on the base'.
"Pikachu, Metagorss, and Sceptile. Look around the room to find anything else. I'll look through the files here."
After he took the files, Ash sat in the chair of the office and took some files to look through them as his Pokemon were looking for anything else. Ash quickly found out that those files were worthless for his search. The files contained the deaths of some people that got in the Team Rocket's way from the time before he was not even born. He already knew that some people were caught in a crossfire long before Ash began to investigating them. So there were no new news.
Suddenly he felt like something stung him in the neck. When that happened he immediately felt a presence inside the room. Someone was behind him with two Alakazam's by their side. He got up and prepared for an attack, but his legs gave out. He then realized that the thing that stung him in the neck was an injection. He tried to pull it out but his hands were giving out fast too. Whatever was injected to him, it has an immediate effect.
"Pikachu..." was his last, quiet, desperate call before blackness took over and he fell from the chair on the floor unconscious.
When Pikachu heard Ash, he turned around and saw a woman with a short, blonde hair and an R on her T-shirt with an unconscious Ash at her feet with two Alakazams by her sides. Without having to think twice, he tried to use Quick Attack but was again stopped by Psychic before he could even start. Metagross and Sceptile turned around too, but it was too late for them also. In the end, the three Pokemon could just watch what will unfold next.
"SOMEONE MAIN ROOM! RIGHT NOW! WE ARE CAPTURED!" yelled Pikachu in his head trying to call someone here to help them.
"I would gladly chat with you, but I have a delivery to make. Byyye..." she said in a tempting and teasing voice with a smug smile and grabbed Ash's lying body by the shoulders. And then, in an instant, two Alakazams and the short-blonde haired lady teleported out of the base with an unconscious body of Ash.
As soon as Mewtwo lost the connection to Ash, he canceled all of the other connections and teleported immediately to the place where he heard Ash's thoughts the last time. He looked around trying to find Ash, but he was nowhere to be seen. The only thing he saw were widened eyes of Pikachu, Metagross and Sceptile.
"What happened." he asked them in a not so gentle voice. Silence filled the room for a moment. That was until Mewtwo asked again.
"WHAT HAPPENED!" but this time it was a yell that was heard even outside. After minute of silence, Pikachu was the one who finally answered.
"They got him." replied Pikachu quietly and another silence followed. But this time, nobody dared to speak. That was until someone spoke. But it was none of Ash's Pokemon.
"So you are involved with this Aura Guardian too? I have to say. I excepted a lot of things. But this... This is a surprise." said a voice from some kind of speaker that was hidden in the room. Mewtwo and the others looked around the room to find the source of the sound, but they got nothing so far.
"I am sure that you will gladly hear that I have no longer an interest in you my little slave... Why you look so mad?... Wait a minute. Was that your trainer?... Huh...Ironic... Well. If you have chosen that man as your trainer, then I have a bad news for you. By the time I'll be done with him, he will be training Pokemon in the afterlife. If some afterlife exists. So. Find a new one... Shame you can't talk without telepathy. I would enjoy a conversation with you right now... Oh yeah and for the record. If I'll see you or the police close to the place where I hold him, I'll kill him on the spot. So don't try anything stupid." said the voice.
The room then fell into a complete silence again. Nobody knew what to do. Only Mewtwo was looking around like he was trying to find something. Eventually, Mewtwo's eyes fell on the picture of the man he hasn't seen a long time. He flew a little higher to reach the picture in the room. He then looked into the eyes of the man that created him. The man that should rot behind bars. Or even worse. Be dead. And something was... not quite right with the picture. His left eye was different. It had a different tint and it shined differently when examined from this distance. A camera.
"Still intelligent. Shame you ran away. We could make unimaginable things together. The world would be lying at our feet. But you chose to become something else. And now. Your friend will suffer because of it. You should reconsider my offer. Slave." said the voice.
Before Pikachu or anyone could talk to Mewtwo and calm him down, he teleported them all outside of the building. At seeing the picture of a man that tortured him, Mewtwo's eyes then turned completely light blue and he literally turned the camera that was watching him into a dust. As the dust was seeping from the hole in the picture, Mewtwo then extended his arms to the right and left side and something that looked like an electric psychic shield formed around him. With a roar, that Charizard wouldn't be ashamed of, he was extending the shield in its size. Slowly but surely, the shield reached the wall of the room. When the contact came, shield expanded at such a fast rate, that the whole building exploded from the inside. The force by which the shield expanded threw the pieces of the walls all around the forest, the gusts of wind threw Pidgeys and Hoothoots of the tress, and the flying pieces of the walls even cut down the big trees in the area. A giant cloud of dust from which the pieces of walls were flying left and right was the only thing that could be seen from the outside by Ash's Pokemon. Even Charizard himself had to cover his eyes when the gusts of wind were flying from the now destroyed building. After the dust settled, Mewtwo was standing in a big crater that he created. Looking pissed as ever. The crater itself was the size of the building he brought down. And all around the crater were pieces of the shattered walls he destroyed. The power of a rage filled Mewtwo was showed that day.
Mewtwo then eventually flew out from the crater and landed in front of Ash's Pokemon. And again the first one to speak and break the awkward silence was Pikachu.
"They already know. I told him everything while you were... doing your thing." said Pikachu with a hint of sadness in his voice.
"Lucario? Any signs of Ash?" asked Mewtwo seriously as he looked at the Aura Pokemon.
"I... I can't locate him when he is unconscious. I'm sorry." stammered Lucario who was still in shock by the events that took place.
"...Plan B. Everyone back to the Haven, connect to me and we will begin the search." said Mewtwo
"Wait. Didn't the voice said that if he'll see any of us near his location he'll kill Ash?" asked Sceptile.
"Didn't you listen?! He'll kill him after he'll do to him whatever he wants anyway! We have to find him!" yelled Mewtwo.
"Mewtwo. Calm down. We'll find him. Hopefully." said Pikachu sadly.
"I will make sure that we will." said Mewtwo.
"Guys! I found something." said Charizard. When everyone was bickering about what to do know, he took actions. He flew to the rubbles of the former base and was looking through the mess that Mewtwo created for some clues.
"Is it going to help us find Ash?" said Mewtwo abruptly.
"Not really. But it is something that you have to see. That Ash has to see when we will find him. And we will find him." said Charizard with the voice of authority. He picked the file, came to Ash's Pokemon and showed it to the crew. The thing that caught his eyes was a photo. But before he showed the photo to the crew, he showed Mewtwo the front of the file. Mewtwo was the only Pokemon capable of reading. So Mewtwo read the word. There were 3 big letters on the front of the file that spelled one single word.
"Red?" asked Mewtwo.