Chapter 34:XXII. Back from the dead: Guardians Wrath p.2
"So what do we have here..." said Domino. Passing by Cynthia's Lucario who was still held in mid-air as Domino made her way to the intruders.
Cynthia clenched her fists as Domino was making her way to her. This was not good. Not at all. One wrong move and her Lucario is dead. Gritting her teeth, she could only wait for Domino to speak.
Seeing Cynthia, gritting her teeth and clenching fists, he decided it was time for him to take some action. Cynthia is very smart, no doubt about that. But she still lacks experience in this field. Now it was time for the adults to talk.
Lance's Dragonite took a step forward but was quickly stopped by an unknown force with his rider.
"Now, now detective, I said don't try something clever." she said. A light blue light appeared around Lucario's body and she yelped in pain.
"STOP!" yelled Cynthia desperately.
"Alright! I get it. Let's just... talk this through. Like normal adults." said Lance and he quickly stopped.
Meanwhile director Jenny watched the situation unfold. There was no way around this. They needed help. But where to get it? Now she cursed the fact they didn't give the walkie-talkie to the Aura Guardian. But then again, neither of them knew they were going to go inside. If they needed help, they would call for outside help. Not the Aura Guardian, who undoubtedly had his hands full of work right now. Not even the groups outside can help them as the matter of fact. If she would start calling them right now, Lucario is as good as dead. "We need a plan. Quickly."
"HA! NORMAL adults... You don't know who you are talking to, Mr. Wataru." said the blue-haired man who was still held in chains behind Cynthia, Lance, and the director.
"OK. Who am I talking too then?" asked Lance.
"Domino." answered Cynthia bitterly and everyone looked at her. "The crazy bitch who tried to kill me."
"Lady Shirona... Glad to see you too." Domino said sweetly, face to face with Cynthia. Domino raised her hand and made a 'come here' gesture. The attention of the room shifted to the woman that came into the room. The unknown woman walked to Domino's side in a rather slow pace, raising the tension in the room more.
"Domino. If I may-" Lance began.
"You know what? We will talk later, Mr. Wataru. Now, I think it's time for proper introductions. This is Subject 0.3, or as she was formerly known, Emily, who was unfortunately training in the wrong area at the wrong time." said Domino pointing at the 26-year old psychic woman.
"Is she one of the experiments you talked about?" nervously asked the director as she turned around and asked the purple woman in shackles.
However, Jessie didn't respond. There were so many things happening in such a short amount of time that she had to process everything that was happening. She never really showed it, but she is terrified of pain. When they were blasting off, Ash and his Pokemon always made sure it didn't hurt that much. After all, Ash and co. aren't monsters like Domino. Domino... that's whole another story. The pain inflicted by torture is whole another deal. She could barely breathe in the instance where the blade was cutting her stomach.
Then out of nowhere James came forth with his true feelings and was ready to take everything that was meant for her. Not even a minute after, the alarm broke off and Domino was gone. They were alone for a few minutes, until Cynthia, Lance, and director Jenny showed up. It was all too much for her to process so quickly.
"Yes. She is one of them. Psychics that are meant to conquer at Giovanni's bidding." answered James instead of Jessie.
"I am pretty generous you know. The state in which is Lucario, it could have been all of you. Wait. Why didn't I do that?" asked Domino to herself. With one hand gesture, all of the Pokemon and people were captured by the Psychic, except for the trio in shackles.
At this moment, Cynthia realized that she screwed up. She was prepared for nearly everything. Strong Pokemon maetial artists even guns. Anything, but this. Without an option to move, they are now captured, which mean more trouble for Ash. Ironic, since she wanted to make fewer problems by this act. What will he say to her? Is it going to change what happened in the Haven just before they left? This will be like a punch in the gut for Ash. She realized that the very first thing she did when they express their love for each other was to lie to him and going behind his back. This... this was not supposed to happen.
Meowth tried desperately to find some way out. But right now, what could they do? Everyone is immobilized and no one can call help. And with these hostages, they have a great advantage on the twerp. He will sing however they please when they will start to torture them. That's how caring about someone goes. This is their end. He reminisced on the time he spent with his two best friends this whole time. Looking at them by his side, he was sad that they never got together. Watching James looking at Jessie that way all the time pained even Meowth sometimes. If he did just tell her, he is sure they would make it work. Romance. Huh. When did he start to think about it all that much again? He looked at Cynthia's beautiful Lucario which caught his eye as soon as she walked in. Such a nice groomed fur. "Well. One can dream right..." he thought. Seeing the light blue light around her his mind clicked. Meowth got a brilliant idea.
He began to squirm in his shackles and yelling. But not in human language. No. He was yelling in his original pokespeech.
"Lucario, if you can contact the Aura Guardian with your Aura blink fast three times!" he said in his pokespeech adding to his squirming to give some crazy vibe to Domino.
"Are you going insane Meowth?" Domino chuckled and watch Meowth squirm. And unknown to her, behind her Lucario smiled and blinked three times.
In a big hall with iron doors at sides continuing all the way till the hall's end, a few screams were heard. Human screams.
The fighting on Ash's front was coming to a close in this area. Ash lost count on how many of the Team Rocket grunts were sent at him with various weapons and tools. Thankfully his Pokemon were still in good condition despite the endless fighting in these halls. "At least Team Rocket's Pokemon aren't that strong. Make things a whole lot easier." he thought. And like always, on his way he was opening the doors that lead to the victims of Giovanni's experiments. Every time he saw them the rage inside him was building up more and more. Eventually, the blue flames appeared again.
Ash didn't know what to make of them. Lucario pointed out that they appear when he is angry, and he was right so far. He registered them every time they appeared. But he didn't know what purpose they served. This wouldn't bother him that much otherwise. But the problem is, he has no control over these flames whatsoever. Similarly to his rage, the flames are chaotic, intense and blinding.
Fortunately, they don't seem to burn anyone who comes close to them. For all he knows, it looks like an expression of his anger. The angrier he gets, more intense and chaotic the flames are.
As Ash threw an Aura Sphere at the last grunt in the hall, the fight here was over. So many well-trained grunts were thrown at him that they made him tired. After a few minutes of rest, Ash was ready to talk to his Pokemon again. Unfortunately.
"Goddammit! The first thing I will do if we will get home alive is to make myself bald. It is so god damn annoying to fight with this whole jungle on my head!" Ash yelled as his hair got in front of his face again.
"Now you complain. But when I and Crawdaunt offered to cut your hair, you sent us back to training." sighed Sceptile and with all the other Pokemon they walked to Ash's side.
"Sorry guys, but I don't trust Pokemon with a haircut." Ash draw aside his hair from his face so he could see his Pokemon. Feeling his strength coming back, Ash with his Pokemon began walking again.
"You know, things like elastic bands exist. You humans use them for nearly everything." Pikachu pointed out and hoped on Ash's shoulder.
"Did you forget? We do NOT steal." said Ash.
"Sorry for destroying your image, Ash, but we actually do. You know. Food, water, medicines, clothes and the other things we stole. Two pokedollars are nothing for one elastic band. It's not like we would be stealing a 20 000 pokedollar Champion wedding cake." Lucario pointed out.
"Thanks for the reminder..." Ash quietly said and looked at Mewtwo.
"... What?! You wanted a cake big enough for the whole cave. I found it." Mewtwo defended himself and his actions.
"But it's... Nevermind... Let's get back to business." Ash slumped and continued their walk through the hall.
Sometime later, Gardevoir joined Ash's side in the front with Lucario, Pikachu, and Mewtwo. She couldn't keep her excitement anymore.
"So Ash, how are things between you and Cynthia." asked Gardevoir giddily. To everyone's surprise, small blush appeared on Ash's cheeks.
"I- Well... I- I don't really know. I mean, it all happened really fast." he said and scratched the back of his head.
"To my knowledge, you two are now mates. Am I right?" said Mewtwo. And Ash blushed again.
"We are not! I mean, we didn't do... that. Someday, I would like to though... What the hell am I saying!" Ash yelled out followed by a deep sigh. All the other Pokemon chuckled at Ash's cute confusion.
"Mewtwo, human relationships work a little differently than Pokemon ones. At least I think so... Why are you even asking ME? I have no idea how romantic relationships work! " exclaimed confused Ash.
"But... you are in one." Pikachu added.
"And that's the problem! What in the name of Arceus am I supposed to do with Cynthia now?" asked Ash.
"Throw her on the ground, push her on her back and mate with her like there's no tomorrow." the blatant response from the back was heard. Looking back, Ash spotted Charizard right behind him. No shame in his look. He said it with a straight face like he would be announcing time for dinner. But now that Charizard said it out loud, Ash's mind couldn't help but wonder how that would look like. Ash thankfully realized that this is not the time for thoughts like this and quickly shook his head.
"I am sure Cynthia will love that idea..." Ash sarcastically answered. "In all seriousness. No. I don't think that's the right way to go about this."
"Why not? Worked for me and Charla."
"Well. As I see it, Cynthia is a girl that has to be treated like a high born lady. Or a queen. She is a champion after all. So I will have to step up my game. You know, gifts, flowers, romance, and all that girl stuff. I don't think she is very fond of the idea you talked about Charizard. And... I want to treat her like a great lady. She deserves it."
"I beg to differ." Mewtwo said.
"What?! Why do you think she doesn't deserve to be treated well!" Ash shot out angrily.
"Not that. She actually wants-" Mewtwo began. However then he remembered his promise.
"Wait. I can't say that. Forget everything I said." he calmly corrected himself.
"Mewtwo?!" asked Ash forcefully to his Pokemon. If there is something he knows about Cynthia, he should know. They are a couple now. Right?
"Sorry, Ash. I can't. I promised Cynthia this will stay between me and her." Mewtwo explained.
What? Do they have some secret? Ash was going to ask about the secret, but suddenly he heard a voice inside his head. Female voice. "Aura guardian, may I ask for your assistance? I, my mistress, Mr. Wataru, and director Jenny are caught by some woman. It seems like a Psychic attack is immobilizing us." the polite voice of Cynthia's Lucario rang through his head.
"Lucario?" he asked and stopped in his tracks.
"Yes, that's me. Lady Shirona's Lucario. Could you please hurry up, Aura Guardian? They want to move us elsewhere and I don't know if I can contact you from there." she again politely asked.
"I am on my way."
Even though Lucario said this very calmly and politely, there was no denying Cynthia is in big troubles. They are caught. By Psychic. "How did that even happen?" he thought for a second.
"Mewtwo, we have to move elsewhere. Cynthia is in trouble." Ash raised his voice and the flames around him got much bigger.
"But Ash, we are so close now. We can't just leave everything behind now. You have to continue forward." said Mewtwo.
"Not this again. Cynthia met a Psychic! PSYCHIC! I will NOT let Cynthia be at the mercy of Team Rocket! LISTEN TO ME AND TELEPORT ME TO HER!" Ash snapped. His deep yell echoed through the hall.
"Ash, you have to continue forward. Our target is still in front of us. Waiting for you with his three Psychics. There is your fight. Not elsewhere." Lucario explained and pointed at the empty hall lighted only by few light bulbs at the sides of the hall.
"Lucario. Do NOT tell me what to do. If that was Gardevoir in there, at the mercy of some Psychic, you would be there before I could even try to stop you." Ash silenced Lucario. Every Pokemon could feel the dark aura from Ash resurfacing and everyone was scared of that.
"What do I-" Gardevoir's gentle voice tried to ask.
"MEWTWO!" Ash screamed at Mewtwo as his flames were now reaching the ceiling of the hall. Face to face, the two powerful beings stared at each other.
"Ash. You have to continue. You know this. Your fight is not there." Mewtwo, unfazed by Ash's dark mood, pointed in the direction he thought Cynthia was.
"... I will go instead." Mewtwo said.
"Mewtwo... I dragged her and all the others into this. It has to be me." said Ash. In a more desperate than angry voice. He couldn't help it. He feels responsible for Cynthia being here. If anything happens to her... What then? He brought her here. So he should get her out of here too.
"For once shove your pride aside and listen to me. It can be a trap that you would fall into again or just a diversion for Giovanni to escape. We can't afford any of that to happen again." Mewtwo said looking into Ash's shining blue eyes full of rage and desperation.
"Do not worry. I know how important she is to you. I will lay my life for her if that's what I will have to do." Mewtwo said and he put his hand on Ash's shoulder. "Trust me."
"I do trust you..." Ash sighed.
"It's just... I don't know... It seems wrong to send you and not me." Ash looked at Mewtwo. Upon looking at Ash's face Mewtwo replied. "Wrong would be to not send anyone at all."
"I know that, Mewtwo..." Ash sighed.
"Please, get her out of here. And yourself too Mewtwo. You two better survive this or I will go to the afterlife and drag both of you back to the Haven myself." Ash added. Mewtwo chuckled, nodded and teleported out of there.
Ash's flames were now raging all over the place. Hall was covered in a chaotic blue aura with Ash in the center. But unlike before, now those flames were doing visible damage. Lightbulbs that were lightening the hall towards Giovanni were cracking and the hall deteriorated into darkness. Only blue light from Ash's flames illuminated the cave.
"Metagross, Alakazam watch is only on you now. Make sure there won't be any surprises." Ash looked over his shoulder to his Pokemon family. When Ash found Metagross in the group, Metagross nodded.
"Let's end this." Ash's deep voice echoed in the hall and they continued their crusade.
"I admit it wasn't a bad plan, Champion. Trying to sneak inside from the back. But you never stood a chance against her." said Domino pointing at Subject 0.3.
Silence filled the room for a brief moment until a familiar sound of teleportation was heard. Domino and Subject 0.3 turned around to find out that Mewtwo teleported into the room.
"They may not stand a chance against a Psychic... but I certainly do." said Mewtwo getting all the attention in the room.
"Ooooh, so you are joining the party. Great!" Domino grinned.
"I am sorry to bring you bad news, but Subject 0.3 is superior to you in every way possible. Do you really think we would create someone inferior to you? You don't stand a chance, failed experiment." Domino taunted Mewtwo.
Mewtwo didn't respond with words, but with action. Mewtwo's eyes glowed blue and he ripped part of the wall between this room and the hall. He threw the piece of the wall at the Psychic. However, before the piece of concrete could reach the Psychic, the concrete disintegrated.
Then the two Psychic users were blinking in the room, exchanging attacks.
But what Domino didn't take into the account was the fact her experiment had to release the intruders from the Psychic to focus on the fight with Mewtwo. And the bad thing was that she didn't bring reinforcements. "Well. Time to flee..." she thought and pressed the button on her belt, calling an Alakazam to the rescue.
"Milotic trap her in the Light Screen!" Cynthia yelled out as she was picking herself from the ground. She saw what happens when this button is pushed. And she refused to let her escape again. And like she said, Milotic formed a cube around Domino. Alakazam teleported into the room only to find his path to Domino blocked. Domino made a quick gesture, and before anyone could give a command to stop Alakazam, he teleported out of there.
"I will not fall for the same trick twice you sick bitch." Cynthia walked up to Milotic and the cube that was trapping Domino.
"My oh my you sure are clever, lady Shirona. But this is not the end." Domino grinned uncomfortably again.
The teleporting sound was heard again, and now, another bunch of Pokemon were teleported into the room with Alakazam on the front. Team Rocket's grunts weren't left out and they too appeared in the torture room with their guns.
"Where will you hide from guns when your protector Milotic is so busy with me." Domino asked and she sat on the ground in her temporarily prison. Cynthia looked back and forth between the grunts pointing guns at her and Domino.
"Do not mind me, I will just enjoy the show for now." Domino said unfazed.
"Everyone, protect Milotic!" Cynthia yelled out and the Pokemon in the room distributed around Milotic prepared to protect her. Cynthia stood near the Light Screen cube to ensure Domino will not try anything to escape.
All the grunts grinned and were prepared to shoot, but before they could pull the trigger, their guns turned to dust. Surprised by the outcome, the director, Lance and Cynthia looked around looking for the cause.
"Now it's on you." they all heard Mewtwo's telepathy standing few meters behind them. Right after Mewtwo said that, a large piece of wall was thrown at him. At the last second, Mewtwo managed to teleport aside from the attack. As the piece of the wall thrown at him hit the wall behind, Mewtwo separated the piece of the wall into tiny pieces, creating a lot of sharp small rocks. Wasting no time, he threw those pieces at the Psychic for a counterattack.
However, they never reached her. A few centimeters from her face, they stood in midair. The following battle for those pieces didn't go well for Mewtwo.
Mewtwo tried to regain control over them. His head began to slightly hurt as he was trying to push them to her. But they didn't move a single centimeter. Even worse, those pieces were beginning to slowly turn around. With their sharp ends pointed at Mewtwo.
Seeing he can't defeat her in telekinesis, Mewtwo let go of his control. Immediately after, those pieces launched at Mewtwo with speed even Mewtwo had a hard time following. Mewtwo's eyes glowed and he quickly raised a wall in front of him. A wall from dirt and stone. Luckily for Mewtwo, the wall did hold and the only pieces that passed were those around him.
But Mewtwo didn't except the next attack. Through the wall of dirt raised from the ground, another large piece of wall was thrown at him, destroying the dirt/stone wall.
The thrown piece of the wall pinned Mewtwo to the wall behind him, with such a force that it nearly broke his ribs. Mewtwo released a loud groan of pain as small rocks were falling from the wall. The Psychic tried to squish him by sandwiching him between the wall and the piece she threw. Mewtwo tried to push the piece of wall that was squishing him with his own Psychic attack, but it was no use. She is simply too powerful.
"Like I said. You have no chance, slave." Domino said to him watching the situation with a big smile on her face.
Cynthia wasn't in such a cheerful mood. If she could, she would punch her in the face right now.
Despite being in a lot of pain, Mewtwo is going through a dozen scenarios of how to get out of this sticky situation. With nearly shut eyes, Mewtwo saw Lance and the director desperately trying to make their way towards him and help him, through the wave of Pokemon and grunts. But there was no way they would make it in time before he will be squished. He is not powerful enough to withstand this attack for too long and in this painful state, he can't teleport. The wall behind him began to crack because of the force that was pushing on it. When he heard the cracking of the wall, he got an idea.
Mewtwo stopped pushing the piece of the wall away from him, and he took the area of the wall behind him in Psychic and pushed it out. Mewtwo flew right through the hole he made to the hall behind and the piece that was manipulated by Subject 0.3 flew past him into another wall.
Breathing heavily, lying on his back Mewtwo, tried to catch his breath. However, he wasn't given any time to rest. An incredible headache stormed into his head. His mind was being torn apart and it hurt like hell. Mewtwo's loud painful scream got the attention of the others in the room.
"Arcanine, Extreme Speed on that Psychic woman!" commanded director Jenny when she saw Mewtwo in agony, through the hole in the wall.
From the cluster of fighting Pokemon, Arcanine leaped out and attacked. In a speed human eye could not follow, he appeared in front of the Psychic, only to be stopped few centimeters from her. The Psychic threw Arcanine at director Jenny who barely dodged her own Pokemon.
The Psychic levitated above the ground and flew through the hole in the wall. Mewtwo pulled his upper body up and looked at the woman in front of him. Mewtwo tried to talk to the woman in front of him, but there was nothing to talk to. Whoever she was before, there is nothing of Emily inside the woman. The brain is a blank slate with no emotions, memories or logic inside. She is not a human anymore. So much so, that even his Hypnosis doesn't work.
"Finish him." inside the Light Screen cube, Domino calmly said.
The walls began to crumble and other pieces were torn out, aiming to squish Mewtwo between them. However, Mewtwo wasn't going to give up this easily. As the four big pieces neared him, he created a shield around him. Psystrike attack. Mewtwo's eyes glowed again. And when the rubles touched the shield, the Psystrike shield greatly expanded and threw the roubles in directions where they came from.
Not only rubles were thrown back. Psystrike hit even Subject 0.3 and she was pushed back slightly. Mewtwo didn't waste any time and continued attacking.
Subject 0.3 protected herself with Psychic and didn't receive any damage from the attack. When she looked back at Mewtwo, Mewtwo stood up, levitated and raised his right hand above his head. Mewtwo then dropped his hand in a referee starting a match like fashion.
As soon as Mewtwo's hand dropped, a piece of the ceiling above Subject 0.3 dropped simultaneously with Mewtwo's hand. The rubbles dropped on the Subject, burying the Psychic under the rubble.
Mewtwo dropped on one knee and breathed heavily. Domino wasn't joking. In terms of raw power, he didn't have a chance against her. Thankfully there is the fact she is basically a robot, who doesn't think.
Mewtwo looked at the pile of rubble with tired eyes and smirked. At least that's taken care of. Even though he won, there was something... off. Mewtwo couldn't figure out what it was. Just that something doesn't feel right. It only took few seconds for Mewtwo to realize what was wrong.
"There's no blood!"
Suddenly Mewtwo was trapped in telekinesis and thrown upwards. Mewtwo's flight was stopped by the ceiling. Pinned in the ceiling, Mewtwo saw the Psychic being in the place where he stood before, only a few steps behind is former position.
With tired eyes, Mewtwo was on the brink of his energy. There is still quite of his Psychic power stored inside him, but with a tired body, there is not much he can do. Mewtwo looked through the hole where Cynthia, Lance, and director Jenny were fighting. Cynthia protecting Milotic with her Pokemon, and Lance with Director Jenny making their way through waves of Pokemon and grunts to him. But with such a big wave of grunts, it is only a matter of time before they will be overwhelmed.
Well, he said he would lay his life for Cynthia. Seems like now is the time to fulfill that promise. Mewtwo freed himself from the ceiling was now falling back to the ground. To increase his concentration, he closed his eyes and focused and the two tasks that will drain him completely.
First the allies. Or as they are known, Lance, Cynthia, director, and their Pokemon. That's 16 creatures. Plus Domino in the Light Screen cube that's 17.
Then, there were the three prisoners trapped in chains in here. So in total, 20 creatures. "Okay Mewtwo, you got this. Three. Two... and... one."
When he counted down to one, the 20 human/Pokemon crew were teleported out of these halls. Now that's taken care off, the Psychic remains. Now, she probably thinks he is unconscious and is falling back down by only gravity. Which is partially true. It is only gravity that helps him in the fall. But, he isn't unconscious.
Mewtwo felt the ground approach. And before he hit the ground in front of Subject 0.3, he formed a Psystrike attack with all the power he had left. Upon contact with the ground, a shield again expanded, but now, it swallowed the whole East wing of the facility. Mewtwo opened his eye for a second to see the Subject being thrown back at the wall and being showered with the rubbles. And when all the rubles fell, he finally saw blood coming out of the pile. Though, right now, dozens of rubbles are falling on him too. He destroyed the whole east wing of the facility after all. And this place has several floors. Even underground. Without a strength to do anything, Mewtwo only lay there, as rubble were slowly falling on him.
Huh. Ironic. He came to this world ready to destroy all original Humans and Pokemon. And now, he is saving them both. "Sorry, Ash. Seems like you will have to drag me back from afterlife after all." Mewtwo chuckled at his own first joke.
"Darkrai, Ice Beam!" said Tobias.
At the entrance, the trio consisting of Tobias, Steven and Jackie were catching fleeing grunts from the HQ. It was fairly easy so far. Red didn't let many of them escape, and when they did, they were already beaten up. Not to mention their Pokemon were even in a worse state than their trainers.
Darkrai traped another grunt in a block of ice. Steven, with his Metagross, was catching other grunts too with Psychic, it was fairly easy. Jackie on the other hand was the one who made sure no one escaped and handcuffed the trapped grunts.
"This is kinda boring." said Steven.
"This isn't supposed to be fun Mr. Stone." chastised Jackie, who had finished breaking a block of ice with a captured Machamp and handcuffing another grunt sending him to the others. There were already the whole bunch of them being guarded by a group of Jennys and Pokemon Rangers.
"I know. But still. I don't think he needs us at all." Steven looked at the entrance.
"In a fight he doesn't. But capturing them is an important task he couldn't do alone. He can't be at two places at the same time as far as I am aware." stated Tobias.
As the situation calmed down again, they resumed their talk. "So Tobias. You never answered me. Did you catch yet another legendary Pokemon?" asked Steven.
"I don't think it would be wise to reveal my team of Pokemon." Tobias looked at Steven.
"It's not a big reveal per say. It's just if you have another addition to your team or not. Many of us are curious." Steven said.
Tobias sighed. "As before, I will reveal my Pokemon when the time comes and when new challengers force me to use them. Until then, I don't see a reason to reveal anything."
"So we will never know..." Steven said with a hint of disappointment in his voice and Tobias chuckled. So far, Tobias only released his Darkrai. Everyone knew Tobias went on a long trip when he had his time off and came back weeks later. And everyone speculated that it was because of a new legendary Pokemon he found. Maybe several legendary Pokemon.
Not that it matters now. They will never find out since only three people got past his Darkrai till this day. And only one of them forced Tobias to reveal all six of his Pokemon.
"It really is boring out here." Steven thought. He is kind of a man who has to do something at all times. Be it archeology, battling, training or swooning girls. And the company he has now isn't great. No girls to fool with. Only these two guys. Tobias doesn't like to talk much and Jackie is kind of a dick. What company to be in...
But then something interesting finally happened. Teleporting sound echoed and now the group outside the main entrance got a whole lot bigger.
"What are you doing here?!" asked Jackie when he saw all the Pokemon and people being teleported right next to them.
Lance who laid on the ground slowly pulled himself up. Looking around, he saw they were outside. With all of his Pokemon. His head was kinda sore because of the fall.
"Uhhhhh... what happened." Lance groaned.
Then a loud explosion echoed through the night autumn skies with the ground shaking and wind blowing. Bird Pokemon began flying away from the trees and leaving this location as soon as the loud explosion was heard. Shortly after, a gust of wind followed the explosion. People had to cover their eyes as the strong wind flew passed them. The first one who recovered from the initial shock was Tobias.
"Wasn't that near the secret entrance?" asked Tobias who was the first one to register from where the explosion came from.
"It is..." confirmed director Jenny. She, fortunately, didn't fall flat on the face as Lance. She wasn't on her feet for too long though. Being really tired from the fighting, she sat on the ground as soon as they were teleported there and began breathing heavily, trying to get some fresh oxygen to her lungs.
"What the hell happened?!" asked Jackie again.
"I... don't know." replied Lance looking around the place where he is now.
"I saw only one Pokemon who can teleport so many people at the same time." Steven joined the conversation.
"You mean that new Pokemon? Mewtwo?" asked the director.
"Yes. Think about it. First, you appear here and then this large explosion happens. I think you were in his way to go all out so he got you out of there so he could end it. I mean, that kind of explosion must have shot ruble everywhere. Including near the entrance." said Steven who now realized what exactly were the tremors around Mount Coronet.
"We weren't near the entrance..." stated Lance in a low voice.
"What?!" asked Jackie.
"I said we weren't near the entrance. We went in!" Lance raised his voice to dangerous levels.
"Why?" asked Steven.
"Ask Cynthia. It was her idea." Lance answered. He knew he shouldn't listen. Even when she is one of the smartest people he knows, she still lacks experience in making such calls. Why didn't they stop her? And why was she so desperate to help anyway?
"And where is she?" asked Tobias.
Lance and director looked around to find the long haired blonde. Her Pokemon were here. All of them. But to their surprise, she herself wasn't here. But there was still Milotic with their prisoner. Said prisoner which wore a surprised face.
"Milotic. Please, keep her inside at all costs. She seems like a very valuable prisoner." said director Jenny to Cynthia's Milotic. And after a few seconds, the confused Milotic slowly nodded.
All of them then discussed what to do next. Should they go in? Stay here? What happened to Cynthia? Is she still inside? Did Mewtwo forget to teleport her? Are they going to be in the way if they go in? Another thing was a struggle to keep Cynthia's Garchomp at bay. She was very protective of her trainer and the only thing she wanted was to storm in and bust Cynthia out of there. Thankfully, Tobias's Darkrai has the abilities to immobilize the Garchomp.
"And who are those?" asked Steven pointing at the two naked people and one Meowth who lied on the ground.
"We don't know. We found them inside. Most likely they are another set of victims from Team Rocket's kidnappings." answered director Jenny whose energy was slowly coming back.
Director Jenny commanded her Arcanine to slash the chains to set the trio free. James sighed out loudly. In the end, everything worked out. He was the first one to stand up. Jessie was still in kind of a shock from all the things that happened. James pulled her up once she was set free too.
If the situation wasn't so dire, he would admire Jessie's body. But right now, Jessie and James both hugged each other. Searching for comfort in each other. And they did found some comfort. Few minutes of hugging later, Jessie got to her usual self and slapped James.
"WHAT WERE YOU THINKING?! DO YOU THINK I WANT TO SEE YOU GUTTED OUT IN FRONT OF ME?! she yelled at him.
"Ouch! I just wanted to spare you of the things that Domino would do. You looked like you were really afraid." James quietly said.
"OF COURSE I WAS AFRAID! BUT I WAS AFRAID FOR BOTH OF YOU TOO!" she told Meowth and James.
"I am sorry..." James and Meowth apologized simultaneously.
"STOP APOLOGIZING! ESPECIALLY YOU JAMES! YOU TWO SAVED ME FROM BEING GUTTED OUT! WHAT IS THERE TO APOLOGIZE FOR?" yelled out Jessie.
Now, James was really confused. What... What does she want?! It's not uncommon for Jessie to scream, but usually what she screams makes at least some sense. This doesn't.
Meowth, on the other hand, felt like this was more of a conversation between the two of them, so he let themselves talk it out.
"So... what do you want me to do?" asked James now completely lost of what is going on.
"Idiot..." Jessie now quietly said. She grabbed James head and kissed him on the lips. For James, the moment ended too soon. He didn't have time to enjoy the kiss, because of the shock that Jessie was actually kissing him. What the hell is happening?!
"I... I am really confused by you Jessie." said James after the kiss.
"I am a fairly moody woman. I don't expect you to understand my emotional outbursts." Jessie explained. "But you do understand what I meant by the kiss. Right?" Jessie asked.
James blushed at that and could only nod. The fact the kiss caused their bodies touch, and the fact they were both still naked caused a little mess between his legs. Especially when he looked at Jessie's breast. Thanks to cold, he knew what pointy two things he felt upon his chest when they hugged and kissed.
"My eyes are up here!" Jessie yelled again and covered her breasts and crotch. James quickly shook his head and looked at her face again.
"Could you give dem something to cower themselfes with? I don't want to listen to dis all night." said Meowth looking at the Champions who were watching the scene.
"Did you just talk?" asked surprised Lance.
"Yeh. You've got problem with dat?!" asked Meowth.
Lance and Tobias looked at each other trying to find some logic in this situation. But when they heard arguing between James and Jessie continue, they did what was asked of them.
Lance and Tobias took of their cape and coat respectively and handed them to the two naked humans who quickly covered themselves. After that everyone discussed what to do next. Excluding Jessie, James and Meowth who were sent to the side, since all of them thought they are just another victims with nothing to add to the table. And they didn't protest. They want to rest for a while and have a moment of peace. There isn't much they can do anyway. It's up to the twerp to end this.
As the others were discussing possible interrogation of the woman in the Light Screen, another strange thing happened. Slowly but surely, the temperature was rising. They looked around for the cause, but they didn't see anything. Only Cynthia's Lucario registered something strange.
A burst of large blue flames appeared out of nowhere right at the center of the HQ. That big tree under which the Team Rocket facility is was enveloped whole, in those bright blue flames. Some of those flames sloshed and ragged very far away from their original spot. Even the people near the main entrance to the underground were hit by them. First, instinct was to cover. But to their surprise, the flames didn't burn. Yes, there was a small heat coming from them, but nothing major that would harm anybody. Only anger was coming from them. Anger and wrath.
The night sky in Pallet Town forest was not dark anymore. Blue light from the flames even created a phenomenon similar to Northern Lights. The flames were so big that even people in Pallet town were aware of the big maple tree on fire.
"Do you see what I see?" asked Steven who rubbed his eyes, still not believing what he was seeing.
"What the fuck is that?!" yelled out Jackie.
All the spectators were at awe, watching the phenomenon in front of them. Even though Jackie didn't have a clue what was happening, all the others had a hunch. "That's the power of an Aura Guardian..." Tobias simply said.
"You DARE to hurt my future spouse?! Fine then. Now, I will dare to hurt you!"
A deep voice echoed through the forest. But it was not spoken. More like, telepathy. But still different. Full of mysticism. The voice was full of confidence. Speaking calmly. Yet there was an undeniable menace in that voice. Wrath. Wrath of which you don't want to be on the receiving end.
Meanwhile inside the Team Rocket HQ
Giovanni was pretty calm throughout the whole attack. Sipping his coffee from the mug, smiling with his four Psychics by his side. With a new addition being a red haired girl with green eyes. Not only that but he finally saw results. The cameras are all around the facility after all.
He was kinda surprised when he saw the two Champions and director Jenny to go inside his facility from the back. But he didn't pay much attention to it. Domino, with a few grunts and one of the Psychics, should be more than enough to take care of them. He isn't afraid of them. The only concern he has is for the Aura Guardian. And even then, he trusts his Psychics to deal with him. Even with all those blue flames surrounding Red. After all, one of his grunts managed to make them disappear before with just a hit on the head before.
In fact, he was so confident that he sent one of his Psychics against Mewtwo to finally see the real results of their experiments.
And as he was watching the fight between Mewtwo and his experiment on the computer screen, he began thinking. The talk he heard. Red's talk with his Pokemon. Unfortunately, Red's real name wasn't mentioned which was a shame. But there was one bit of information he considered valuable. Apparently he is in some kind of relationship with the Kanto Champion. And he made the decision to take advantage of that situation.
Before Mewtwo so rudely destroyed one-fifth of his headquarters and buried himself and the Psychic under the remainders of his west wing, he ordered one of his Psychics to teleport the Kanto Champion to him.
"Good evening, lady Shirona. A pleasure to meet you in person." he said when Cynthia appeared in front of his table with his Psychic.
Cynthia was confused at first. One moment she was defending Milotic and in next, she is in some kind of office. And it didn't take long to click.
Dressed in an orange suit. Two women dressed just like the Psychic fighting Mewtwo. The one with black hair and fair skin is holding her hand in a firm and even painful grip. The Psychic forcefully pulled her from the ground and Cynthia was met with the boss of Team Rocket face to face.
This is him. The man responsible for it all.
"You..." Cynthia bitterly said.
"So you have heard of me. I am flattered."
"There is nothing flattering in things I heard about you."
"I can imagine. Subject 0.1, bring her near me. I want to have her within my grasp when the Aura Guardian storms in here." said Giovanni.
And as Giovanni commanded, Subject 0.1 trapped Cynthia in telekinesis and moved her to Giovanni's table. Right beside the sitting boss.
Cynthia was now really afraid. From the stories Ash told her, this is one dangerous man to cross. And she is utterly helpless right now. The psychic forced Cynthia to look at Giovanni. The tall man in an orange suit stood up from his chair and looked at Cynthia.
"I have to thank you, dear. Thanks to you, his strongest Pokemon is out of the game which should make things much easier." Giovanni said and he brushed the back of his hand on Cynthia's cheeks.
"What are you talking about?!" asked Cynthia angrily. Even though there wasn't hint of fear in her voice, her whole body was trembling.
"Sorry. I forgot you weren't there. You see, your little trip inside caused the Aura Guardian to sent Mewtwo to rescue you and the others. I am sure you will be pleased to hear that he did save them all. Including that traitorous trio in there. And defeated my Psychic." said Giovanni whose voice had slight displeasure in it. However, right after it, his voice turned happy again.
"But he didn't manage to save himself. So now, the Aura Guardian is without his strongest Pokemon." explained Giovanni smiling as he brushed his hand on Cynthia's cheeks again.
Naturally, Cynthia felt disgusted by the mare touch of Giovanni. And what made it even worse, she felt terrible even without his touch. She... She caused Mewtwo's demise. Mewtwo. The Pokemon that saved her and Ash from death in her bedroom was now killed because of her. If she wouldn't go inside, he would be alive. And what will Ash think when he finds out? She felt utterly devastated and hopeless. Is if it wasn't enough that she went behind his back and caused a whole lot of trouble for him. She killed his Pokemon. Just because she is a champion, Cynthia thought she could do what Ash is doing. It was completely stupid decision on her part. Why would she even go there when she has no self-defense skills? "Why am I so stupid all the time..." ran through her head.
Now, she is shedding tears for Mewtwo. Tears containing a number of emotions such as grief and regret. Unable to wipe them out, those tears were hitting the floor below, which brought an even greater smile on Giovanni's face.
"I have never thought that someone would cry for that failed experiment..." said Giovanni.
Cracking of the lightbulbs in the office caused Giovanni's focus to shift from the face of Cynthia. He knew very well what this meant. Giovanni's face turned serious again. He went to the table, opened a second drawer and pulled a knife out. "Press this to Champions neck. If the Aura Guardian will try anything stupid, do not hesitate to make the slice." Giovanni grabbed the knife and threw it to Subject 0.1. The knife stopped in mid air, made a few spins, and was pressed against Cynthia's throat earning an unpleasant groan from her.
The door to Giovanni's office was across the room in an instant, burying the door into the wall and immediately after them, Red walked inside. Flames raging so much around him that they were now slightly above the ceiling of the office. With eyes full of rage and with expression ready to kill. The flames now were even creating small gusts of wind, causing Aura Guardian's cape to flicker and hair flowing.
The room upon Red's entry was lit only by the light from the flames.
"If you want the Champion to still be in one piece, I would stop right now." stated Giovanni and he pointed towards Cynthia beside him, with Subject 0.1 behind her and knife pressing against Cynthia's neck.
Shortly after some of Red's Pokemon came inside the office, such as Sceptile, Toxicroak, and Weavile. They were ready to attack, but they were quickly stopped by another Psychic in the room. All of Red's Pokemon were immobilized by the second Psychic in the room. Red looked behind him, to see his Pokemon inside and outside the room helplessly staying in their places like statues.
Then he saw Cynthia, with a knife at her neck and tears in her eyes. Red let out a frustrating gruff and gritted his teeth. "This ends today Giovanni!" he yelled at him.
"I can only agree. This ends today. You have been messing with my plans far too long, young man." Giovanni calmly replied.
"Before I will kick the ever living crap out of you, I have to ask, why are you doing this?! What purpose does this serve?!" asked angry Red pointing at the three Psychics in the room
"I don't think somebody like you would ever understand." chuckled Giovanni.
"Try me then." said red as the flames around him grew bigger and the room temperature was increasing too.
With a sigh, Giovanni explained. "Alright then. I am sure you have heard about the Unspoken war. War where some crazy mad-man tried to take over the world with his high tech weapons and it took 4 regions to stop him. Am I right?" asked Giovanni.
"Yeah. I heard about it. Seems like history repeats itself." Red answered.
"And here is the first mistake. I am not a madman who wants to kill everything like the one before me. No. I want to create a world where this will not happen ever again." stated Giovanni.
"That doesn't make any sense." said Red.
"I told you, you will not understand... Fine. I will try one more time to explain. The time before the madman showed up, we had peace. There was never a more peaceful time in history. Sounds great right? But do you know what a long period of time in peace creates? No conflict. And without conflict, mankind grows weak, dragging Pokemon with them. What this world needs right now are hard times to create strong men and Pokemon who will be able to protect everything they value when another madman shows up. I will bring chaos to this world so mankind can harden itself against upcoming dangers. And with my guidance, I will bring a new era to this world. An era where weak will be eradicated and strong prevail."
"You are a madman! Do you know how many people and Pokemon you killed?! How many people suffered under your hand?!" yelled outthe Aura Guardian.
"I am well aware. The weak ones are a necessary sacrifice that they made to push humanity forward. Look what I achieved. I created people with abilities that dwarf those of Pokemon." said Giovanni.
"You are a heartless monster and nothing more! Those people had lives! Friends and family to go back to, and you took them away." said Aura Guardian.
"They would fall when another madman would show up. Tell me, what will happen when another person like the one who started the Unspoken war will come? Humans and Pokemon will not be prepared and this time he may succeed. As heartless as I am, I don't want humans to die out."
"Even if another one would come, I will stop him. If this world needs someone to protect it, I and my Pokemon will gladly take the job from you. Because you sure as hell wouldn't protect the world, rather just take over the world and do whatever you wanted." Aura guaedian responded.
"I am not a liar, young man. In fact, I hate them. But since you don't agree with me, I guess we will have to end this. Now, be a good boy and give up, or you will see this pretty head rolling on the floor." said Giovanni and again he brushed his hand across Cynthia's face.
"If you distort a single hair on her head, I will distort your spine." said the Aura Guardian, whose anger grew more and more.
"I am eager to see that. Just a little remainder. You are not in a place to make demands" laughed Giovanni.
And as Giovanni said it, two large pieces of the wall were thrown at Red from each side by the remaining Psychic. Red quickly manifested his Aura shield to protect himself. It worked. The piece of concrete stopped when it hit the shield. The large pieces of walls created a small roof above Red. Top parts touching, and the bottom parts parted.
Red, trapped between the two walls, tried to quickly find a solution. But his thoughts were interrupted. An incredible headache came in from of excruciating pain in the left side of his head. Red closed his eyes and yelled out, with the flames around him becoming smaller. It felt like someone pierced right through his skull. But although it hurt badly, there was no knife.
At that moment, it felt like something big crushed his chest and all the air in his lungs was forced out. Red had trouble breathing. And with the pain inside his head, his energy was slowly diminishing. Nevertheless, he still held the shield up. But now, kneeling on the floor, screaming, and trying to force the unknown presence from his head.
"I am sorry..."
Red heard that beautiful, gentle, and quiet voice desperately apologizing. Red raised his head and opened his eyes despite the pain he was in. He looked at Cynthia still trapped in telekinesis and with a knife at her throat. Her eyes desperate and full of sadness. Seeing her like this, gave him a little bit of strength to fight through this. But not enough. He closed his eyes again and tried to focus on maintaining the shield and force the Psychics out of his head.
Giovanni, seeing the flames around him got a little bigger again stepped in. He raised his hand and slapped Cynthia across her cheeks. "Be quiet or you will die." threatened Giovanni.
When Red's shield got smaller to the point it barely contained him, he heard the slap. Looking up, he saw the red mark on her cheeks. He saw how he touched her with his dirty hands. But then, he saw another thing. The knife that was pressing against Cynthia's throat, was slowly cutting through the skin. He saw small drops of blood running down Cynthia's neck. Cynthia's expression in pain. Desperate scream. He heard all of it. Despite still being in pain, the only thing he could focus on were those small drops of blood on Cynthia's neck.
He felt like his heart stopped beating. He had trouble breathing seeing Cynthia like this. He saw red. Everything in front of him turned bloody red like he now wore some red sunglasses. The deep roar of him followed afterward.
Then the flames around him exploded to the heights far exceeding the ceiling of this room. It looked like whole room was on fire with Red in the center. The walls that were trapping him flew to the sides and Red was free in an instance.
Red didn't know what was happening. The first thing he registred was that the pain was gone. No headaches. Also, he saw red. Then white and then nothing. Truly nothing. "Is this blindness?" There was nothing he could see which scarred him because he knows he has his eyes open. Why can't he see? He started to panic a little on the inside. But then, his Aura sense came into play. And with that, he saw everyone. More clearly than ever. Even though they were only blue outlines, shaded in various shades of blue, Red felt like he never saw more clearly. The emotions of every individual were on a silver platter right in front of him. And seeing Giovanni with those disgusting intentions near Cynthia made him even angrier.
Giovanni, on the other hand, got scared. The flames were now out of control and the appearance of the Aura Guardian changed too. The flames weren't just around him like previously. The Aura Guardian was literally on fire. He saw how his shoulders, legs, and arms burn. His eyes turned from deep blue to pure white glow. No iris in his eyes. No pupils. Not even cornea. Just pure white glow. And even those white orbs were on fire. Even though he got scared by this, he couldn't help but admire the power. Throwing those wall pieces back like it was nothing was really astonishing. If only he could make things like this. Create a whole army of them. Ohhh how much easier things would have been.
Red turned his head to wide eyed Cynthia. He didn't look at her for too long before turned his head back to Giovanni.
"You DARE to hurt my future spouse?! Fine then. Now, I will dare to hurt you!"
"DO IT!" yelled out Giovanni to the Psychic that hold Cynthia hostage. The emotionless Psychic wanted to make the slice with telekinesis, but something stopped her.
In a blink of any eye, Red appeared in front of Cynthia and grabbed the knife by the handle. And for the first time, the corners of Psychics' mouth twitched a little. Like it was nothing, Red grabbed the knife and threw it at another Psychic in the room. This time at the one holding his Pokemon. And he hit the spot on the leg which caused the Psychic to kneel.
He immediately registered a bunch of sharp rocks from the wall being thrown at him by the third Psychic in the room. But to Red, it all seemed to slow. Even the traveling of the knife through the air seemed slower than usual. Red somehow felt really fast.
The thing that happened next could be explained only like the Aura Guardian duplicated himself. Giovanni saw the Aura Guardian at the three places at the same time delivering blows to his three Psychics. The one still holding Cynthia hostage received a spin kick to the stomach. The one kneeling was grabbed by the shoulders and thrown at the wall, and the one who trapped Red earlier between the walls received a powerful punch right to the face. In addition, these blows were no ordinary blows. The kick and the punch were engulfed in a white/blue flames, possibly adding power to the blows.
All this happened in a single moment for Giovanni to witness. And all three were knocked out by a single blow.
It took not even a minute to have the tables turned. Cynthia was released from her Psychic trap and fell down to the floor. The Psychics were lying down on the floor with nasty bruises received from Red. And all the Pokemon behind and near Re were freed too.
With the flames still high in the skies, Ash slowly walked up to Giovanni. The appearance of the Aura Guardian with his eyes still on fire created a greatly intimidating presence.
"The day of reckoning has come, Giovanni."
Giovanni's eyes widened when he heard those words. Then he gritted his teeth in frustration.
"So... what now... are you going to hand me to the police outside?" asked Giovanni when the Aura Guardian got face to face with him.
"Not yet. I promised to distort your spine for what you did to Cynthia didn't I?"
And then, a loud scream echoed through the room.
"Quickly, we don't have much time!" yelled out Lucario as he, Gardevoir, Metagross, Torterra, Infernape, and Pikachu ran through the halls of Team Rocket HQ all alone.
"Sorry guys, but I am not the fastest." apologized Torterra, who tried to ran as fast as he could, but being a tortoise Pokemon made it difficult so he was far behind.
"We are nearly there! Come on!" yelled out Pikachu.
As the six Pokemon crew was running through the halls, they turned around the corner and finally saw what they were looking for. A giant hole in the wall with debris all over the place.
They immediately ran towards this exit. Though the whole time, the only light source was Infernape's fire on top of his head. But as soon as they found the huge hole in the wall, they saw moonlight at the end of the hall. Which was rather strange since they were still underground.
They run to the hole in the wall and stopped as soon as they were in. The hall ended there. And right in front of them was a giant crater in the ground. A quarter of square kilometers of ground was now a giant crater that went down at least a 50 meters from the place where they were standing. All around them were ruble, destroyed furniture, trees and everything else in between.
"Where is he?!" asked Pikachu unfazed by the destruction, looking at Lucario, who immediately pointed to the center of the creator. "There." he said.
"Torterra, now it's your turn." said Pikachu who lead the group.
Torterra arrived at the spot little later, and seeing Lucario pointing at the center, he knew what to do. Torterra 's claws glowed and he sank the claws into the floor. Suddenly the ground was raised up and the Pokemon could step down upon them to the center of the crater.
"I will wait here." said Torterra, knowing he would only slow them down again. He did his part, he used Rock climb to help them down, now it's on them. The others nodded and ran down to the center of the crater.
When they were on the hills of rubble and walking to the center of the crater, Lucario now knew exactly where he was.
"He is right there!" said Lucario as he pointed to the small, elevated pile of debris.
Metagross's eyes glowed and he lifted the rubble and trees that were in here too.
"Carefully..." Gardevoir said with concern, looking at the rubbles being slowly lifted.
"I know." Metagross replied.
"How is he?" Pikachu turned to Lucario.
"Still alive and breathing. But we have to move quickly. It is only a matter of time before he will be squished in there." stated Lucario.
"I am trying." said Metagross who started to sweat oil. Yeah, one wrong move with Psychic and it will collapse on him. No pressure. No pressure at all.
"You can do it." Gardevoir tried to cheer Metagross up in her gentle voice.
"He is pretty lucky though. Normally he would be dead already." said Infernape, looking around him, seeing all the destruction. When he looked back, he received unfriendly stares from his friends.
"Hey, I don't mean it badly, but look at all of this destruction. He has to have a lot of luck when the rubble fell so conveniently that it didn't crush him." explained Infernape.
"I think his luck was aided by his Psychic abilities." stated Lucario. He knew that this is no luck. More of luck and skill. He is 99% sure that before the debris fell on him, he used his Psychic to move the rocks slightly to left and right to shield him from more of the rubble.
"Guys, could you be quiet, Metagross has to concentrate at every single movement he makes." Pikachu turned to his friends. Metagross would thank Pikachu if he wasn't focusing on pulling out a grey boulder.
Slowly but surely, the rubble were out of the way. "I got him." said Metagross. The hole now created by Metagross was pretty deep. All the other Pokemon surrounded the hole in anticipation and watched their friend being lifted from the hole.
Mewtwo's body now levitated above the hole from which he was pulled from. Bits of concrete was falling from his body. His legs broken, with a bone sticking out in his right leg. He looked bruised, bloodied, and sore. The others sadly looked at their beaten, unconscious friend and got to work.
Metagross put Mewtwo gently on his own flat head. Gardevoir immediately jumped on Metagross's head and got to work. She closed her eyes and with Heal Pulse, she ran her hand above his body to see what was wrong.
"How is his condition?" asked Lucario.
"Not good. His legs are broken. Two ribs broken. Several fractured bones and internal bleeding." Gardevoir stated sadly. "He needs professional help."
"Go. Teleport him to the guys at the main entrance and ask for help. We will get there as soon as we can." said Lucario. Gardevoir flashed him a lovely smile and teleported herself with Mewtwo's body out of the crater. The smile she gave Lucario created a relatively dumb looking smile on Lucario's face too.
"He is not even trying to hide it at this point..." thought Pikachu when he saw Lucario and Gardevoir interact. And when Gardevoir was out of there, the whole headquarters caught in blue flames.
"That's new..." said Lucario who recognized this as Aura. After admiring the night sky for a moment, the Pokemon set off to the mysterious Aura flames.
"Father, I did it..." He won. Ash let out a big sigh of relief. It felt like not just a boulder, but the whole planet dropped from his heart. He felt free like never before. Ash was taking deep breaths for about a minute now. It's finally over he realized. Well. For the most part...
The flames around him were diminishing as Giovanni lied unconscious by his feet. He closed eyes to savor the moment of peace and just let his mind wander for the first time in what felt like forever. However, his moment of peace was ruined by Cynthia who ran to him and hugged Ash tightly, burying her face into Ash's cloak.
"I am sorry. I am sorry. I am sorry. I am so sorry... I just wanted to help... I didn't want Mewtwo to... I am sorry..." she mumbled with face buried in Ash's chest.
Firstly, Ash was surprised that Cynthia overlooked the fact that Ash just broke Giovanni's spine, possible making him immobile for the rest of his life. He knew he was cruel, but he couldn't care less. He wanted sweet revenge for his father and all the people he hurt. And he did just that. They say vengeance doesn't fulfill you once you got it. What a lie. He felt fulfilled like never in his life.
A sob in his cloak broke his chain of thoughts. The fact he still sensed everything with his Aura helped a lot because if he didn't he would say a lot of things that he might regret later. Cynthia right now was completely different from the one he spent last month with. Depression, sadness, and grief could be sensed from her even from the people who do not control Aura. She was completely broken. She knows she made a mistake. If he wouldn't feel all of her emotions, he might just start yelling what was she thinking going inside an uncharted territory on her own. But seeing her on the bottom, he could only hug her back, pet her head and say.
"It's alright... Everything work out in the end..." said Ash still in his kinda mystic and otherworldly voice.
"It- it's not O-OK. Mewtwo, h-he d-d-died because of me." defeated Cynthia managed to choke her words up burying her head even further up to Ash's chest, not having the courage to look him in the eyes.
"He didn't die..." answered Ash.
Ash felt Mewtwo's Aura slowly leaving his body when he neared the entrance to Giovanni's office. So he quickly sent his best Pokemon to help him in his fight. Till this moment, Mewtwo is still conscious, right in front of the main entrance. But his Aura is nearly not existing. Hopefully, with Gardevoirs help, he will survive.
"R- really?" Cynthia asked, finally looking Ash to his eyes, only instead of the beautiful blue eyes finding only white glow and blue flames around. With puffy eyes full of tears, she hoped Mewtwo made it out alive.
"He is in Gardevoir's care at the main entrance now. He is weak and beaten up, but he should survive." Ash said as his voice was getting back to normal.
"Thank god..." she mumbled as she pressed her head on Ash's chest again. "I am so sorry Ash..." she shut her eyes and apologized yet again.
Even though she apologized so many times already, Ash still felt kinda betrayed. He knows she must have done this because she was worried about him, but that still doesn't change the fact she went behind his back and put herself in danger. Does she know what she means to him or wasn't he clear enough?
"I forgive you. Just... don't do this ever again. Please..." Ash tried to sound as gentle as he could with his deep voice back to normal. By now the flames already disappeared and his eyes were back to their usual color.
"I promise... I promise I will not do this kind of thing ever again..." she said.
It helped Cynthia a little. But she still felt terrible about what she did. She knows very well that Ash won't ask anything from her in return except this promise. She betrayed his trust. He may never trust her completely again. When he was finally opening up to her, she did this stupid thing. She tried to think of a way to make it up to him. Whatever he wants, she will try to meet the demands. Ash should hate her for what she did. But he doesn't. Or at least he doesn't show it. He is just too kind for his own good.
How does he not yell at her for what she did, Cynthia wondered. In a way, she would welcome it. She doesn't deserve this gentle treatment.
"What do you want me to do Ash? Ask anything." Cynthia lifted her head and looked Ash into his eyes.
"If you could wait for me a little longer, I would be happy." Ash said gently, petting Cynthia's head.
"W-What?" asked Cynthia who still had her eyes red from all the crying.
"There is still one base to take down, Cynthia. My work is mostly done, but there are still some grunts I have to catch." said Ash pulling Cynthia away from the hug, so he could see her face.
"Y-You don't want me with you inside the Haven?" asked hurt Cynthia. There it is. She knew he is angry at her.
"I do. But my mom needs you more right now. If you could keep an eye on her while I take care of the remains of Team Rocket, I would be happy." Ash gently said and he placed his right hand on her cheek.
Why won't he just command her to get out of the Haven? Why is he keeping his calm right now? She wants him to lash out. Cynthia feels like she is getting out of this way too easily.
"Whatever you say... But what about your nightmares?" asked Cynthia.
Ash chuckled. "Don't worry. I will be alright. They are just dreams after all. On the other hand, my mom lives in a dream where everyone she ever loved is dead. She needs your help more than I do. And now, it should be safe enough for you to go back" said Ash. He would go himself, but there is still the chance some desperate grunt will attack his mom for revenge, out of desperation. And he will not risk that when he is so close to the end now.
"Can you stop being so perfect for at least a second?" Cynthia feels like she doesn't even deserve him.
"Alright. I will take care of her." she hung her head low. Just imagining living a life without Ash again is saddening. "When did I become so clingy?!" this thought stormed inside her mind. Is this what being in love feels like?
"Don't worry. I estimate that I will be back by Christmas. You will not even realize that I will be gone." Ash said and lifted Cynthia's chin so she was eye to eye with him.
Not realizing that he will be gone?! Christmas is about three months away! Of course, she will realize he is gone! Is this her punishment? That... is somehow far too cruel. You can't just tell a girl that you love her and put her on a waiting board for another three months!
"That's far too long..." Cynthia quietly said. Still looking into Ash's eyes. Suddenly, Ash crashed his lips with Cynthia's. But now, the kiss was not brief and sweet. Driven by sheer passion alone, Ash kinda lost himself and roughly pushed Cynthia on the desk. And just when he was going to experiment with Cynthia's lips, someone ruined the moment.
"Interesting place for offspring making. Couldn't you wait at least an hour?" Pikachu asked with a devilish, who was now in the doorway with the other Pokemon who went to fetch Mewtwo. And all the other ones. Ash completely forgot that they weren't alone.
Lucario was wide eyed as nearly every other Pokemon in the room. They saw those brief kisses between them in the Haven, but right now, Ash tackled Cynthia to the table like he would take her right here right now.
Cynthia was equally wide eyed the whole time. The tackle was out of nowhere and she was surprised. Pleasantly surprised. By now she even got used to the beard which tingled her every time Ash kissed her. Only from those few seconds, she felt the heat between her legs raising. Which is very weird since four unconscious people were laying in the same room and Pokemon were watching them. "What is wrong with me? I was never horny like this..." Cynthia thought as she tried to calm her privates and her red cheeks.
In front of her, Ash himself was shocked. He was watching that grey eye and pink lips far too long. Something snapped in him and he had a sudden urge to kiss Cynthia. And he felt like he could let loose for a bit. They are now a couple, right? So that shouldn't be a problem. And if it was, Cynthia would slap him right back on track. Right? With Pikachu's devil gaze upon him, Ash quickly shook his head and replied to Pikachu.
"I- I wasn't planning to make offsprings right now." Ash stuttered out.
"W-w-w-what?" asked red faced Cynthia.
It took a second for Ash to realize Cynthia doesn't speak in pokespeech and how his sentence sounded.
"Ehmm... Just clarifying things for Pikachu..." Ash explained scratching the back of his head.
"Plans don't often go how they are planned out, do they?" asked Pikachu teasingly as he ran to his trainer.
"Shut up or no ketchup for you." Ash said to Pikachu which earned a frown from Pikachu.
"You are a devil." said Pikachu frowning. "In more ways than one." winking, Pikachu looked at Ash and Cynthia which brought a blush to Ash's cheeks.
After a few more teases from his other Pokemon, Ash finally shut them all up. Cynthia was slowly walking behind Ash, with a red face and head low because of embarrassment. She isn't embarrassed about Pikachu's teasing that much. More because that Cynthia realized, that she wouldn't mind the... offspring making, as Pikachu put it, with Ash.
Eventually, Ash and the other Pokemon picked the unconscious four bodies in the room and exited Giovanni's office. Nearly free from their mission. Now the only thing that matters is Mewtwo and his well being. They can only hope Gardevoir stabilized him and he is going to make full recovery.
A few hours later, it was middle of the night. And even though most people should sleep and prepare for the next day, the big maple tree near Pallet Town was swarming with people. It was hard to miss a giant maple tree on fire and the Northern lights in the sky lighting up the surrounding area from before. And in the age where technology blooms, people with phones in Pallet town recorded the whole event. And shortly after, reporters with cameraman's showed up to the place with all their equipment.
And since the Jenny's and Rangers were handcuffing all the grunts they caught, the reporters came just in time for the juicy stuff.
But before all the media showed up, a helicopter descended in a clearing behind the forest. A medical helicopter. As soon as Gardevoir appeared with Mewtwo in her arms, director Jenny didn't need any further instructions to contact Nurse Joy from Viridian City and sent an ICU in a helicopter to heal the beaten Pokemon. Thankfully, Gardevoir managed to keep Mewtwo alive until the helicopter arrived.
A few minutes later, Red emerged from the main entrance, dragging an unconscious body of Giovanni by his collar. And behind him, Cynthia came forward with Red's army of Pokemon. In this army, Charizard, Torterra, and Aggron were carrying the three unconscious Psychics. And the crowd was immediately welcomed by Cynthia Pokemon who swarmed Cynthia and greeted the chuckling Champion. As Jackie start asking questions about what happened, Cynthia took it upon herself and explain that she was teleported to Giovanni for leverage and the whole hostage situation, without mentioning the relationship Cynthia has with Red.
"What happened in there?" asked Lance.
The response he received was only Giovanni being thrown at his feet. "Where is Mewtwo?" asked the Aura Guardian coldly. Lance sighed. Seems like no information will be granted... Lance pointed with his head to the left, towards trees in the area, and Red and all his Pokemon went in that direction. Cynthia, on the other hand, went to her own Pokemon and see how they were doing.
As this went on, director Jenny and Steven were calling back all the groups around the base to gather at the main entrance and bring their catches with them.
Ash reached the clearing where the helicopter descended and seeing Mewtwo in a state like this was painful. His strongest Pokemon now lying under near the helicopter, with his legs twisted into unnatural positions, bruises everywhere and blood seeping from various wounds. Nurse Joys and all the other doctors running around him, attaching all kinds of life support tech, it was too much for Ash.
"He will survive." Gardevoir reassured Ash, when she saw Ash's Aura flames getting out of control again.
Ash saw the Team Rocket trio at the sidelines, against the tree, James hugging Jessie with Meowth on Jessie's lap. They too saw him emerge from the cave. Seeing them alright, both parties gave each other a nod. Knowing all is well, Ash focused his attention elsewhere.
All the Pokemon watched Gardevoir work her magic. And Ash with Aura sense looked at the other people behind the trees and how they fare. And what surprised him was seeing that blonde haired bitch that tortured him in a Light Screen cube. Emotions getting better of him, he stood up and went to her at a quick pace.
"Release the barrier, Milotic." said Ash coldly once he reached the group of people again.
Milotic and Cynthia surprised on how fast Ash appeared behind them stared at him for a moment. Then there was Domino, who had a look of absolute fear written all over her face. She heard Giovanni's scream all the way to here and she saw how they lost, which her mind is still processing. How could that happen?
"Milotic..." said Ash again impatiently. When Milotic saw Cynthia giving her a simple nod, she complied.
"Wait!" yelled out Domino in the cube. But it was too late. Ash grabbed her by the collar and threw her against the tree few meters from their initial spot. Domino didn't even have time to fall back to the ground, because a large hand grabbed her by the neck and pinned her against the tree.
"Now... what should I do to you..." asked Ash trying to mimic the sleazy voice she was using to talk to him during their torture sessions.
Domino struggled under his grip, smashing into his hand that was holding her, but to no avail. He didn't budge.
"Oh, I know." Ash said and then he leaned to her ear and whispered.
"How about I give you to some sick men that would do to you the same things you did to those poor women?" Ash whispered to her ear.
"Y-You wouldn't..." said Domino who still believed that Aura Guardians are too good to do something like that.
"I broke Giovanni's spine which can put him into a wheelchair. What makes you think I wouldn't throw you to some cell in the prison with most terrifying rapists, tortures, and murders so you could feel what the others under your hand felt? What I FELT? You don't deserve the luxury of an ordinary prison cell."
"H- HELP!" Domino desperately yelled out.
Suddenly everyone surrounded Ash and pinned Domino against the tree. "Stop this madness!" said Lance. And all the others watched the scene outfield around them.
"That's cute. You think they can stop me now? You truly are dumber than you look." said Ash. Ash heard some wet sound. He looked down and saw the source of the sound.
"Pathetic. Soiling yourself when I didn't even start... It's not so fun when there isn't that collar around my neck to keep me in check, is it?" asked Ash trying to sound as disgusting as he could.
"I SAID STOP!" yelled out Lance once again and he prepared to take some actions. Only to be stopped by Ash's army of Pokemon. All people were getting worried at what Red will do next. Even Cynthia. She saw Ash's intimidation act, but this time, this is the person that tortured him. Will he be able to keep a cool head even in a situation like this?
What a disgusting human. He obviously never intended to send her to the place he described. Although he knows she deserves it. Maybe he should. But seeing Domino shedding tears, Ash had enough. Truly disgusting woman. With an unpleasing groan, Ash threw her on the ground like an old rug and went away. Which was a relief to a lot of people.
It was around this time reporters began to show up. Knowing this will get public and Ash not wanting any publicity right now, he pulled Cynthia aside to give her a goodbye.
"Will you wait for me?" asked Ash when he dragged her behind a Pomeg berry bush. Even though he was still mad at her for what she did, he still loves her. And after this experience, he would prefer Cynthia to stay out of danger as long as it takes. Especially when he knows she is as stupid as he is, with throwing himself into dangerous situations and all that. The thing is, he has luck on his side for some strange reason. She clearly does not. So why tempt the fate anymore?
"I will count days. Just, make sure my count will be as short as possible." Cynthia gently said giving Ash a short, sweet kiss. "If there wouldn't be so many people around, I would be all over you." Cynthia thought and immediately after turned red at her own thoughts. "WHAT THE?! COME ON CYNTHIA GET A GRIP!" Maybe that intimidating act Ash performed on Domino has a completely opposite effect on her than on Domino. Which is slightly disturbing...
"I have really weird kinks..." she thought.
"I will do my best to come back as soon as possible." Ash gave Cynthia a warm smile and he went for another sweet kiss, but before he even touched those sweet pink lips, he disappeared with all of his Pokemon except Mewtwo.
Ash felt something wasn't right when he didn't meet Cynthia's lips so he opened his eyes. His Pokemon were all around him, in a place none of those Pokemon were before. In fact, he wasn't in this place either. Marble pillars in a place what looked like the universe itself.
"Welcome to my domain, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. Long time no see." said the omnipotent presence of the llama God, Arceus.