Indigo Coliseum - 0614 hours local time - Day 109 of Ash Ketchum's Journey
There was no safe way to wake up a legendary. This was a known fact.
Lugias tended to cause mild tidal waves, Ho-Ohs set themselves on fire, not even the most sedate legendary, Mew, was safe to be around when it was waking up as it tended to toss rocks around with its' half-awake mind.
The legendary birds usually woke up by either forcing the creation of a storm system or in the case of Moltres…
"CAW!" crowed the fire crane as it woke with the sun, slamming an Overheat into the building. Metal structural supports glowed red hot and bended under the raw force of the attack, lighting fixtures bending under their own weight, drooping downwards.
When maintenance workers came in and saw what was happening, they promptly shit their pants before frantically trying to save the lights.
Moltres fully woke up and saw the humans frantically try to save the fixtures.
"Mo?" '…Oops?' said the Flame Pokemon.
At the same time, Ash was getting up, the new habit coming in handy to prepare for the day, getting a look at who he was going to be fighting.
Yesterday had only twelve matches, so there were going to be four elimination fights before the next bracket.
"Good morning, Ash." Ash turned to see Iris, wearing a very… revealing outfit, with loose red pants and her top just barely kept her modest. A VERY perverse part of his brain cackled before he hit it hard enough to knock it out.
"Uh… morning, Iris." he said, blushing at seeing her in what could be more or less called a belly dancer's outfit.
And Iris made it look VERY good. Her arms and legs were covered in tiny little scars and cuts, but that was just a sign she spent a lot of time outside, learning the basics of climbing, running and all that.
Was it a bad thing he also found it kinda attractive?
'BAD!' Ash mentally screamed. 'BAD ASH!'.
Iris blinked a few times before noticing what he was looking at, then chuckled, pressing her two index fingers together. "Hehe. Sorry." she said, her cheeks doing a very cute flush-
'AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA'
-before smiling gently. "It's just so… hot here in Kanto."
Ash beat the perverted half of his brain into submission for the umpteenth time before noticing what she said. "Hot?" he asked, "It's not that hot."
"I was born near Opelucid," Iris said. "It's never above freezing in Opelucid. I always wore thick wool sweaters and hats. I think you know the ones."
Ash took a minute to realize what she meant. "…You too?" he asked, wincing at the idea that Iris now had her past self to deal with.
She nodded. "Yeah. I've kinda been weirded out hearing about you after what happened in Unova," she trailed off, chuckling. "You hit me in the head with a Pokeball?"
"In my defense, I didn't see you," Ash said quickly. "Pulled out the Pokedex, got an entry on Axew… you can guess the rest."
"Yeah." Iris said, shaking her head. "Zekrom did a number on you."
"Zekrom, Cyrus, that son of a bitch Tobias…" Ash said, shrugging. "Take your pick or all of the above."
The dark-skinned girl laughed. "Yeah, gonna go with 'all'," she said, Axew jumping out of her hair, nomming on an apple. "The me in the past was stupid."
Ash bit back a comment on how him in Unova wasn't exactly his brightest moment.
"So…" she asked, leaning forward somewhat, unintentionally giving him a bit of a show. Ash pointedly did not look down. "Who are you fighting next?"
Ash welcomed the change of subject. "Jeannete Fisher." he said, looking at the paper that was delivered to his room before he woke up. "She's probably one of the harder ones I've fought in the last timeline."
"How?" Iris asked, looking at the paper and the photo of the other purple haired girl, not seeing how Jeanette was a threat to Ash, even back then.
"I am of the opinion her Bellsprout was selectively bred, specifically to judo flip Groudon." Ash stated, quite seriously.
"…Groudon weighs several thousand tons." Iris said, unbelieving. "The only thing that could flip him without psychic help is Kyogre."
"And it took out Pikachu." Ash replied, Iris staring at him now. Pikachu hadn't been defeated by anything short of Giovanni's Nidoking. And he BEAT Nidoking. "I know, I know, the timeline was weird. Better than this one, though."
"That's subjective." came the voice of Sabrina as she came in, wearing a pair of loose sweatpants and a VERY tight-looking tanktop. "Morning, dad."
Ash blinked. "Showing off for Kyoji?" He asked.
Sabrina smirked in response. "Maaaaybe. That and teasing him with some mental images."
Iris snorted. "He still hasn't realised that's you?"
"Nooope." The gym leader replied, popping the P. "It's so fun! He met one of the girls from New Island and hung out with her for a while and was convinced that I was going to castrate him if he so much as thought impurely about her."
Ash sighed. "This is part of the reason I didn't get together with anyone…" he muttered. "I think I'd be driven insane by any children I had."
"You're already a bit nuts." Sabrina deadpanned. "You are willingly going through your life a second time just to stop a psychotic madman from ending all life as we know it, or period."
Ash scoffed. "Yeah. That's only because Celebi slammed into some distortion and the timeline changed." he said before the only other male-occupied room's door opened, Kyoji groaning as he stumbled out, half-asleep as he made his way to one of the two bathrooms.
"…I'm going to wake up Pikachu." Ash decided as he walked back to his own room. "Try not to embarrass him into getting himself knocked out, please."
"I make no promises, dad." Sabrina said, smirking as Ash went back in.
"…so what's your plan?" Iris leaned back in her chair, looking at Sabrina.
"…well…" Sabrina mused, "Kyoji has a very… active imagination, and Arceus bless him that he's trying his best to keep his mind… clean when he's around me." She blushed slightly but she kept smiling. "Of course, it doesn't really matter… so I know what else goes through his mind, and I wouldn't mind… encouraging some of those ideas…"
"…like?" Iris asked, leaning forward a bit.
"Well for one, and he'd never admit this to mine or anyone else's faces," She said, giggling a bit. "He's jealous that Ash gets his own harem. And while he is very content with me…" she left it hanging there.
Iris blinked, before her eyes widened before blushing. "…you're building him a harem, aren't you?"
"Eh… potentially," She shrugged, smirking. "It's more a matter of… finding the right ladies… I've poked in his mind to get a good read on what he likes - apparently he has a 'thing' with girls that have… unique hairstyles and colors." She laughed a bit "Everytime he sees Nurse Joy or Officer Jenny, he tries desperately to put his mind into lockdown mode."
"Huh…" Iris mused, "Ya know, Ash keeps talking about that Brock guy… Kyoji is starting to sound more like him, only not as… overt when it comes to women…"
"To an extent," Sabrina acknowledged, "Like I said - he'll never admit it to me or anyone publicly - but he certainly thinks it when he thinks I'm not around."
"…aren't there ways to block off psionic readings?" Iris asked, "Like… mind shields or something?"
"Oh they exist, but they're expensive," Sabrina nodded, "But even if he could afford it, Kyoji doesn't want to get one - he thinks if he did, he thinks I'd take it as a gesture that he didn't trust me, which he thinks would ruin our relationship."
"…would it?"
"Not really," Sabrina shrugged, "People are entitled to their privacy - the only thing I'd be disappointed in is that I couldn't… fuck around with him anymore without him knowing."
"…and you haven't told him this yet because…?" Iris questioned.
"Well, I hinted at it before," Sabrina said, "But the reading I got from him is that he interpreted it as that old trope: If a woman says 'it's okay' it means 'it's not okay'."
"Oh no, he's learning the secret language of women," Iris giggled. "Ya know… if you need help with that… I think we can help."
"We?" Sabrina questioned.
Iris sighed "I mean… he hasn't been around long…" She said, "Heck, he's been with Ash longer than me, but… he's been going out of his way to help all the girls get with Ash, prevent… infighting between us, and more importantly he's been trying to help Ash accept us… and he did it not really expecting a reward outside of learning to talk Poke-speech."
"…so you all want to help Kyoji just like he helped you?" Sabrina asked, a smirk slowly forming.
"I mean… it's the least we can do," Iris shrugged. "He's done so much for us - not just relationship-wise, but helping with our pokemon, cooking, cleaning… why not give a little back to him?"
"Well then…" Sabrina smirked somewhat evilly. "Where shall we start?"
Somewhere in the colosseum, Kyoji felt a cold shiver run down his spine. '…Sabrina, if that's you - I am sorry for my perverted thoughts.' he thought to himself. 'Please don't dump me…'
A stray image of Sabrina and Neesha in swimsuits crossed his mind, as he physically slapped himself. 'BE GONE!'
Main arena - 0957 hours local time
Ash looked up to see the damn Moltres STILL perched on the northern end of the building. Naturally, he was… concerned.
After all, legendaries didn't show up for no reason. And usually, he had to resolve that reason.
At any rate, he had a pretty good idea of how to deal with Jeanette. If she was true to form and had that unholy Bellsprout, this time he wouldn't bother playing fair.
…Ok, he wouldn't be pulling out Charizard. THAT was unfair to any grass-type. And just plain cruel.
That and Blast Burn. He remembered what that did to Sceptile. With that, he walked up the stairs to the platform, where, at the opposite side of the field, was Jeanette Fisher, kimono and all.
At least she made it work, unlike Mandi and his Arceus-forsaken skirt.
"OI! IT'S A KILT!" Ash looked up at the stands after hearing that, seeing… Mandi. "STOP INSULTIN' ME HERITAGE, YA-"
Moltres looked at the trainer before taking off, grabbing him with his beak and flying away, Mandi screaming the entire time.
"…Thanks?" Ash said, confused as he walked up to the raised platform, the arena shutters opening to reveal the grass field, repaired after Ash's match yesterday.
"You are my opponent?" asked the seeming noblewoman before she bowed at the waist in respect. "I am honored to be facing the Crown Prince of Rota."
Ash groaned. He was REALLY sick of that title. "Please don't call me that." he asked, trying to hide his annoyance. "I'm a Pokemon Trainer. Nothing more. Nothing less."
Jeanette stood straight, glaring at him. "You are of a higher station. That is a fact." she said, frowning at him. "False modesty will do you no good, seeing as you defeated Giovanni when no other trainer fighting here has."
Ash blinked, as that was news to him. "Really?" he asked, confused.
"He is the top gym leader. He did not remain there by reputation." Jeanette said, retrieving a Pokeball from her sleeve. "That will warrant using my strongest Pokemon from the start!" She then tossed it out, unleashing a small, thin grass-type with roots for feet, leaves for arms and the head was like a pitcher plant.
"Bellsprout." 'Ready for combat.' said the Bellsprout, waving his arms.
Ash had prepared Muk as a backup, but this time...the best way to deal with grass was by burning it, as he picked out another ball. "I choose you, Tepig!" he called, sending out the little peg-like Pokemon, who materialized above the floor, landing on his hooves.
"Pig!" 'Let's do this!' Tepig cried, snorting smoke out of his snout.
"This is a new one!" the announcer said, surprised at Ash's pick. "Ash Ketchum has switched from working against the type chart to working with it!"
Jeanette tilted her head as she looked at Tepig. "A fire-type? It does not look it." she said, perplexed.
"Tepig's from Unova." Ash answered, Jeanette nodding at his statement.
"A rare Pokemon from another region." she said in approval. "You are finally showing your standing above others."
Ash felt nothing but disgust when she said that. He was not 'above' anyone. As far as he was concerned, all were equal.
"I'm not above. I'm just a trainer from Pallet Town!" he declared, a few people in the crowd either cheering or booing his declaration of being just a humble country boy.
"You need to be reminded of your place." she retorted before looking at Bellsprout. "Poison Powder!"
"Ember, Smokescreen and Defense Curl!" Ash commanded quickly. Tepig fired at Bellsprout as he coughed out the toxic powder from his mouth, the fire consuming the powder before Tepig's snout spat black choking smoke out of his nose.
"Acid! Cover the field! Lure that pig out to the slaughter!" Jeanette commanded, going into a mild haughty cackle. That only made Ash mad.
It reminded him far too much of Jessie in Unova. And when he thought of Unova, he remembered his piss-poor performance there.
And that made him MORE mad.
Bellspout spat out corrosive liquid, splattering on the grass, actually causing small fires in some places.
"Pig!" 'Go ahead! Keep firing!' Tepig mocked. "Tepig!" 'You'll never find--"
"Wrap!" the grass-type's trainer ordered, pointing in a general area inside the smokescreen. "He's there!"
"Sprout." 'Anything for you, mistress.' said the weed before rushing at Tepig, his little root legs carrying him towards Tepig at a remarkable speed.
Tepig was worried for a moment… but remembered something about himself. He smirked. 'Oh right… Flame Charge.' He actually stopped in his tracks as Bellsprout started to wrap around Tepig…
"…SPROUT!SPROUT!SPROUT!SPROUT!" 'HOT!HOT!HOT!HOT!HOT!' Bellsprout cried out as it caught fire.
"Jeanette's made a massive mistake!" the announcer cried out ("Don't insult me!" she snapped, but was ignored) as Tepig shot around, cackling as the grass-type burned. "Tepig is one of the few fire-types that can learn Flame Charge before evolving! And once that pig catches fire, who knows when it'll stop?!"
"Pig!" 'NEVAR!' cried the flaming pig as he and Bellsprout shot around the field, setting EVERYTHING on fire. "Tepig!" 'BURN! BURN! RAGE OF THE HEAVENS! HAHAHAHAHAHA!!'
Ash just stared in disbelief and horror. "…I missed it when you were cuddly," he said at last. "You spend too much time with Charizard."
"Fire teams, put out those fires!" yelled the ref as a team of Squirtles (some of whom waved at Ash, one putting on a pair of round sunglasses, meaning he was a member of the Squirtle Squad) jumped onto the edge of the arena, using Water Gun to put out the raging inferno.
Smoke rose from the field. Jeanette had to release a Leafeon of all things to keep the air clear. Ash's Natu (who was with Sabrina) teleporting onto his head for the same reason.
A Pidgeotto wearing a purple sash was released by the ref, who then used Defog to create a massive gust of wind, clearing the field of black byproduct of fire.
The weed was laying in a pool of water, both leaves missing and the entire body burned and cracked. Jeanette almost screamed in horror before they heard coughing from the battlefield, a head poking out of the smoke as it cleared. But it wasn't Tepig. Not exactly.
"Ash Ketchum's Tepig just evolved!" the announcer said, stating the obvious. "For those of you unaware, Tepig evolves into a fire/fighting-type-"
"PIGNITE!" 'ABOUT DAMN TIME!' cried the Fire Pig Pokemon, stumbling somewhat as he gasped for breath.
"Well, he said it best!" the announcer said sheepishly. "I don't know where he got the pig, but that'll do!"
"Nite!" 'Bring it! I want more! MORE! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!' Pignite laughed, the power rushing to his head.
Ash just returned him: he would talk to him to resolve the power trip later.
"I will have to be more wary then I should have been. You prefer to trip up your opponents." Jeanette surmised. "Mandi, you defeated with type-disadvantage. Here, you use the match-ups to your advantage."
"I just wanted that Bellsprout out of the way," Ash said, chuckling. "I've heard rumors about that thing!"
Actually he fought it last time and had to use Muk, but she didn't need to know that.
"Indeed? Very well." the girl said before withdrawing another Pokeball, returning Bellsprout to his ball as the field changed over to a fresh one, this time being the water field, with six platforms instead of two. "This will be a mild annoyance, but I will make due. Go, Sawsbuck!" she tossed the ball out, opening to release what was easily described as a deer with flowers on the antlers.
…Unova didn't seem to have much in regards to imagination, did it? (WHACK!)
Cabin just outside Olivine City - 1215 Hours Local Time
The simple seaside life suited the former boss of Team Rocket. Patel was too close for his liking, but honestly, the disguise expert was NUTS and couldn't think of a good plan to save his life.
Persian lounged as the radio played back the results of the Pokemon League battle between his nephew and the granddaughter of some retired warlord that sided with Oak during the Kanto Reunification War. And Giovanni was safe in the knowledge that he was where Ash wasn't.
"Hey, dad," said a voice, making Giovanni open his eyes and see his 12 year old son Silver, looking the spitting image of his mother, if with some hints of his nose.
"Silver. Is there anything I can do for you?" Giovanni asked his son as kindly (for Giovanni) as possible as he leaned forward to sit up in his old, if comfy, recliner.
He wasn't an abusive father, knowing how his own mother, Silver's grandmother, treated him and Delia. No wonder Delia rebelled. But he was… distant. He tried to connect with Silver so often, but he just… couldn't. Fortunately, Silver was an understanding young man, seeing that while his father was skilled in battle, he was no social butterfly.
"Just wondering… did you ever fight that Ash guy on the radio?" Silver asked.
Giovanni smiled slightly. "Oh yeah, I did…" he nodded, "Burned down my whole Gym in the process… I don't really blame him though."
"…really?" Silver tilted his head in confusion. "Why?"
"He has some… anger issues," He said, "…mostly him thinking I was his father - which I wasn't… but he is my nephew though."
Silver blinked at that, before his head darted towards the radio as his eyes widened. "…Ash Ketchum is my Cousin?!" He exclaimed. "He… He beat you on his first try?!"
"Yes." Giovanni admitted, remembering the falling ball of doom that was Rhyperior. "He used his Charizard to drop Rhyperior onto my gym."
Silver stared before his eyes widened. "That… is awesome." he said. "You were the best Gym Leader in Kanto and Johto! And he beat your best team!"
"My best gym team," Giovanni corrected. "My personal one would have torn his apart." He was pretty sure Ash would actually beat his original party. It would end poorly for his Pokemon, but they grew at a rate that terrified him.
They might actually be stronger then his sister's team one day. "At least your cousins aren't going to bother us." Giovanni said, laying back down.
"Cousins, as in plural?!" Silver demanded.
'I should have kept my mouth shut.' the old man thought, wincing.
Indigo Plateau - roughly 20 minutes later
Ash sighed as he went back into the little dugout, escaping the yelling Jeanette.
Seriously, using Muk to knock out Scyther WAS kinda embarrassing, but did it really need to involve death threats? At least it wasn't as bad as what happened to Sawsbuck. Butterfree was not in the mood for games, just slamming the poor buck into the water and into the sides of the arena. Apparently, they had seen worse: all he got was a mild warning.
Muk just smothered the poor mantis on the rock field. THAT made Jeanette rage.
"Some people just can't take defeat gracefully." Ash looked up to see a white-haired woman in a white sundress leaning on one of the walls, holding a sunhat in her hands. How had she even gotten here?
"Uh… hi." Ash nodded warily, looking at her. "We've… been through a lot… I'm sorry, do I know you?"
She simply chuckled softly "Hm… we may have met before," she mused, shrugging. "Or… we haven't…" She just shrugged as she stood back up. "Take care, Ash Ketchum… and keep your eye on the skies."
With that, the girl walked off, humming a familiar tune. Where had he heard it before…
It was so...familiar…
"Ash!" he snapped out of it, seeing an old friend waving at him as he turned to the source of the voice, smirking cockily behind him.
"Guess you got here, too." said Gary Oak, cocky smirk on his face. "Heard you tore Giovanni's gym apart before you got here."
Ash glanced over his shoulder, only for the girl to be gone. "Yeah...Charizard enjoyed it…" Ash trailed off.
"Well, hopefully I get to kick your ass tomorrow." Gary said, extending his hand as he walked over. "I know I was a bit of a jerk-"
"A bit?" Ash deadpanned, extending his own anyways. Gary chuckled.
"Yeah, you got a point. After that Sinnohan jackass kicked my ass...well, humility goes a long way." the youngest Oak said as he clasped Ash's hand and shook it. "So...Crown Prince of Rota, huh?"
"PLEASE don't." Ash pleaded. "I don't like the title, I don't WANT the title."
"Relax. You were always humble." Gary said. "Your Pokemon are super-powerful, though. Even that Muk. Try not to let the power go to your head!"
Ash grinned. "That's my line to you. May the best trainer win." he said, smiling. Gary laughed in response.
"Yeah, I'll probably lose. I saw your win/loss rate." Gary said in resignation. "You've never lost a match."
Not true. He's lost plenty. They just occurred in another timeline. But he suffered that and learned his lesson.
"That's only because I trust my team." Ash replied before letting go of Gary's hand. "I trust them with my life."
"Ain't that the truth." Gary retorted. "See you tomorrow. Gotta win my match before I fight you and all that!"
Ash nodded. It was actually good to see him again as Gary walked off.
"Wait… Sinnohan?" he asked himself.
Guest rooms - 1423 hours local time
Kyoji looked up from his cup of soup, giving Ash a look. "You trying to build your harem without me?" he asked, faux-betrayed.
"It's not like that!" Ash said as he sat down. Pikachu cackled at his expense. "I was just asking if you saw someone like her before. All...creepy. White hair, white dress...that sort of thing."
He blinked for a moment "Actually… yeah I did," He nodded, as Ash gestured him to go on. "It was back at Cinnabar… back when I made my big promise to Arceus… I saw this weird woman just standing there, smiling, and I got this… weird feeling like I got an answer… if I were a gambling man - and I'm not - I think she's a Priestess of Arceus."
"Priestess of Arceus?" Ash questioned.
"It's not surprising," Kyoji shrugged. "All of the big Legendaries have their own sects, priesthoods or cults that follow them… the most well known examples of course being Team Magma for Groudon, and Team Aqua for Kyogre. Though the big four - Arceus, Palkia, Dialga and Ghiratina are the ones that have the biggest following for… you know, being the gods of time, space, death and creation. Back at Ransei worship is a bit more common than here I guess - there are entire temples dedicated to each of the Legendaries, the biggest of course being the Temple of Arceus in Aurora Province."
"Huh. Back...home…" Ash said, trying to find a comfortable way to avoid saying 'timeline'. "Legendaries didn't have this god-like thing going on. They were just superpowered Pokemon."
"...Ash, your old timeline was VERY fucked up." Kyoji deadpanned before he noticed Froakie, who had demanded to fight at the conference, on the ceiling.
"Froak." 'I believe I have seen this woman as well.' he said. "Froakie." 'In Oblivia. She told me to go back to the ship. Just in time, as well: a Shadow Pokemon swarm was about to attack.'
"...Oblivia's on the other side of the world." Kyoji said. "I saw her on a ship coming from Unova. It would have taken her MONTHS just to get here, yet you're saying she was there?"
"Froakie." 'I can see into my liege-lord's mind. The image matches my memory of her.' Froakie stated, nodding.
"Damn…" Kyoji muttered. "I mean… its possible she could have a teleporting Pokemon like Natu, but… the longer the distance, the more stress it takes to pull that off… so she either has a very powerful Psychic-type with her… or she herself is just as powerful as Sabrina… if not even stronger." He winced a bit. "And that is a scary thought in itself…" Kyoji then blinked. "Wait...is Froakie a psychic-type?"
"Water/Dark. Why?" Ash asked.
"How can he see what was…" the shinobi sighed before realizing it. "Let me guess: something else you can do."
"Pika." 'They call it the Bond Phenomenon. And it is WEIRD.' Pikachu said. "Pikapi." 'Basically, Ash and Froakie, when he evolved to Greninja, were bonded, allowing Greninja to transform into something we called 'Ash-Greninja'. He turned out to be Ash's second-most powerful Pokemon in Kalos.'
"...Your timeline. Was. VERY fucked up." Kyoji deadpanned. "That's NORMAL?"
"I think we've established I am not normal." As said drily. "People don't normally save the world as often as I did and get sent back in time to do it all over again in an altered timeline."
Kyoji could not argue with that.
Indigo Coliseum - 0914 hours local time - Day 110
Moltres watched as Arceus' personal Chosen handed the grandchild of Celebi's favorite his proverbial rear end. Even for Arceus' chosen warrior, the boy showed more experience then any one it had seen at this age.
It was odd. He behaved like a veteran warrior, not a novice. But if it served the Creator's purposes, Moltres wasn't going to complain.
"Oi! Ya fookin bird!" cried what was quickly becoming the bane of Moltres' life. The annoying human refused to leave things be. "Stop flamin' my pants!"
The fire crane huffed. In response, he stood up and stretched his wings wide, glaring down at Mandi, it's eyes glinting dangerously.
Mandi's eyes went wide. "Oh feck."
Moltres screeched, letting loose a basic Flamethrower that scorched the Galarisan's pantlegs and sent him running for cover.
Moltres was going to miss the results of the match, but honestly, he was having fun. Nothing like tormenting idiots to get your kicks.
"Gary's putting up a fight." Iris noted, even as Gary's Eevee was knocked out of the fight by Fletchhinder, who evolved while taking on Gary's Dodrio.
"You call this a fight?" Kyoji asked, gesturing to the fact that Gary had only knocked out one of Ash's Pokemon...and that was Snivy, going up against Gary's Arcanine, which was then knocked out by Roggenrolla. "I call this an unqualified one-sided asskicking."
Misty scoffed. "Compared to Mandi and Jeanette?" she said, remembering that Ash won that one three/nothing. "Gary is putting up more of a challenge. Then again, when I met him in the other timeline, he was a Pokemon Researcher."
Kyoji blinked. "Really. Did Gary ever beat Ash?"
She nodded. "A few. Was still arrogant as hell back then." Misty said before she snorted. "Then Ash kicked his ass in Johto. Forced him to take a look at herself and knocked his arrogance down a few… hundred pegs. Followed in his grandfather's footsteps. Still a pretty good trainer afterwards. I think I saw him pass through Cerulean a few times."
"Well…" Serena said., everyone branching for which Serena would be doing the talking. "Ash is a vet. Gary's new. Of course he's losing."
A winning streak that was half-broken by Brock, Sabrina and Giovanni. But gym leaders were the best. These people? Kyoji would rate them as third, maybe fourth-year at best. Ash was slowly working his way up to eight. Twice the experience, or more, with battle-hardened Pokemon constantly training to deal with the world's threats. It would be like siccing the elite 1st Ranseian Naval Squadron on a fishing boat.
A very short, very lopsided affair that never ends well for the fishing boat.
"Well, looking forward to his humbling then," Kyoji nodded, "...at the very least, he's not nearly as bad as Paul right?"
"Oh by a landslide," Serena rolled her eyes nodding.
The crowd watched as Gary released Blastoise, attempting to fight Ash's Charizard. Of course, Ash pretty much gave him the word and the Flame Pokemon LOVED using Seismic Toss.
The repair costs were going to be staggering.
In the skybox, Cynthia Shironia winced as Charizard dropped Blastoise onto the arena floor. "...He knows we have to fix that, right?" she asked Lance.
"We'll send the bill to Rota." the Kanto/Johto champion said, even as he, too, winced at the damage Charizard caused.
The blonde 37-year old sighed as the crowd went crazy at Charizard's stunt. "Bread and circus." she muttered.
"Better than mobs, riots and civil war. You would know better than any of us, Cynthia." said Bruno. "You were orphaned during the unification wars in Johto."
Cynthia glared at him for reminding her that, yes, she was the champion of a region that was not her own. Everyone LOVED reminding her of that. It took sending out her starter to make them shut up.
She still felt bad for Garchomp after her first evolution.
"In a few years, he might be fighting us for our places as top trainers." Cynthia said to Lance, pointedly giving Bruno the cold shoulder.
"Leon." Lorelei stated, both of them glaring at her for that.
"That Kalosian jackass beat Lance. Just because I'm Lance's equal doesn't mean he could beat me." Cynthia snapped as Ash's Pikachu took to the field after changing out, facing a Rattacate. "He hasn't evolved his starter?"
"Lady, he took down my Raichu. If a Pikachu can take down a Raichu that was properly trained AND waited to evolve, he doesn't need to evolve." Surge said, his creepy-as-hell red Magneton hovering over him. "Give him a couple Leagues: I see him kicking your ass AND Lance's at the same time."
Cynthia conceded the point. "As long as he stays away from my daughter." she said. "A playboy like him is someone I want nowhere near Verity."
"It may surprise you that he took an oath of celibacy." Agatha finally said, grinning as they all gave her the most perplexed look they had.
Cynthia was just stunned into silence, missing Ash's Riolu using an Aura Sphere of all things on a Seadra.
Pallet Town - 1105 hours local time
"Another victory for crowd-favorite Ash Ketchum!" The radio blared. Belladonna chuckled at the image in her mind's eye of Gary getting his ass handed to him as she watched Buizel and Oshawott train using Water gun, both having teamed up for a single reason. Usually, the two didn't interact.
Her musing was cut off by something fuzzy landing in her hair, today tied in a side-tail. "Noi?" said the bat.
"Well, you're no Zubat, but you're still adorable." she said, picking the little bat out of her hair and holding him, tilting her head in curiosity. "I've never seen a bat like you."
"Noi!" cried the bat as he flapped his wings and took off.
"Noibat. He's a Kalosian Dragon/Flying-type." Belladonna nearly jumped out of her chair when she heard her sister's voice. Yellow was wearing her usual outfit, only her hair was undone and her hat was missing. "Did I scare you?"
Belladonna chuckled nervously. "Kinda?" she replied, rubbing the back of her head. "Just lost in thought."
"I wanted to see Ash's Ivysaur. He always makes me laugh when he makes the other Pokemon run from him." Yellow said, smiling before sighing. "No Ivysaur, so I gotta see my big sister."
"Don't be so disappointed." Belladonna said before Yellow tackle-glomped her, nearly knocking them to the floor. "Hey!"
"You're never home. I miss you." she muttered into her bust, making the older sister flush with embarrassment.
"Uh… It's because-" Belladonna started before Yellow looked up, glaring at her. "...I don't want to remind Ash about dad?"
"Ash knows about dad." Yellow retorted. "Stop running away."
Why did Yellow have to be so insistent? "I'm not-"
"You don't even spend time with us unless we're at the lab." Yellow cut off before ending her hug and dropping to the floor, grabbing Belladonna's hand. "I'm taking you home."
"No, you-Crobat, help!" Belladonna cried, asking for her starter's help… only for the bat to start pushing her towards the front door. "TRAITOR!"
Yellow smiled. Crobat got it.
Indigo Coliseum - 1109 hours local time
At least Gary took his defeat more gracefully than Jeanette. It was good enough for him.
"Hey!" called a voice Ash hadn't heard in a very long time. Not since the Whirl Islands. And what was with people ambushing him down here? First the creepy lady, now Ritchie?
Still, the Pallet Town trainer turned to his left to look at the young man that looked a LOT like him, with his mother's hair no less. If Ash didn't know his father was faithful to his mom and she was faithful to him, he would almost think Ritchie was his brother or something.
"Uh… Hi." Ash said, even as he took in the sight of his last Kanto League opponent in the last timeline.
"It's nice to meet you." Ritchie greeted. "I'm Ritchie. I've actually been following your rise for a bit now."
Oh Arceus, he did not want Ritchie as a stalker. "Really?" he asked, somewhat nervously.
"The first trainer to beat Surge without going into a rematch, the only trainer that's beaten Sabrina period after she became a gym leader, you beat Giovanni...Then there's you running into Team Rocket!" Ritchie said, almost in awe. "You made them leave my hometown alone! There's never been a day there without a Rocket sighting and now they're gone! You saved the Olympic, too! You're a hero!"
Hero. Ash thought back to his little war with Team Rocket in this timeline. A Cleffa was orphaned, going to the Ranch because there was nowhere else to go; she hid away so well that he hadn't seen the poor thing in months. The Olympic, he killed a man by accident and nearly drowned when he repaired the holes in the hull. Team Aqua actually drove them off; they just left for some reason after that.
He was no hero, he was a walking disaster zone. Ash was very surprised an Absol didn't precede him wherever he went, this timeline or the last.
"I don't know about being a hero." Ash looked off to the side to hide the look in his eyes. "I'm just trying to get better."
"You ARE a hero!" Ritchie insisted. "So many people would have died if you weren't on the Olympic! I just hope I get to face you tomorrow. I think I have a solid plan to beat you." the young man just grinned. "But hey, if I lose, it's just another learning experience."
Ash smiled sadly. He actually learned that from Ritchie in the old timeline and the results here...no losses. Victory was shallow if you didn't put effort into it and the League just...felt shallow here. Maybe it was because everyone else just wasn't as experienced as the gym leaders? Yeah, that would do WONDERS to balloon his ego, thinking he was on the same level as a gym leader.
"Well, I hope I'm a good teacher." he finally said, smiling thinly, trying to prevent himself from turning into the next pre-reset Gary. Or worse.
Ritchie didn't notice. "Great! Wish me luck!" he said, even as he ran past Ash to the battlefield. Apparently, he was next up.
Honestly, Ash had been thinking so hard, he hadn't been paying attention to the other matches. That weird girl, dealing with the knowledge that, in this timeline, at least, his father died saving him, trying to focus on Cyrus, and… his girl problems. No wonder he took an oath of celibacy last time.
Maybe food would help: it was lunch and he volunteered to make lunch for everyone when he was done. At least he knew how to make pancakes. Took four years and his brief stopover in Pallet before going to Unova, but it was time to practice.
Commissary - Indigo Coliseum - 1234 hours local time
Kyoji admitted, Ash was no master chef, but he could handle the basics. Ash himself admitted that was because, even after learning how, Brock basically never let him try. This was followed by Cilan and Serena in Unova and Kalos respectively taking over cooking duties. Ash never voiced his frustrations out of respect and the fact they were actually good cooks, but was...somewhat bitter about the whole thing.
Fortunately, the staff were kind enough to allow him to use their equipment.
"So, your friend Ritchie…" Serena asked as Ash flipped a pancake, barely avoiding turning it into a mess. "How'd you meet him last time?"
"At the league. It was actually my first League loss." Ash said, Pikachu stealing a bottle of ketchum, making what everyone thought was cackling as he did. "Team Rocket stole Pikachu-"
"Seriously?" Kyoji quipped. "They're obsessed!" His Gible then stole his pancakes along with the plate, Kyoji only noticing when he went to stab at them, hitting wood instead of pancake. "Hey!"
"Gible!" 'Mine!' cried the land shark as he ate both the ceramic plate and the pancakes. "Buuuuuuuuuuuuuurp. Gible!" 'Yum!'
"Anyway…" Ash said as he put another pancake onto a plate for Janine, who remained silent out of respect - and the fact her opinion was not needed, nor was she curious - before pouring out another one, making a spare stack for Kyoji, who was trying to chase down his Pokemon. "All of my Pokemon were exhausted when we finally got back. He was nice enough to wait, even with the refs saying I should've been disqualified. But all I had left was Charizard."
"And he didn't even listen. Just lounged," Misty added. "Took him getting frozen in the Orange Islands to get out of that rut."
"Huh… hard to believe given how loyal he is now," Kyoji shrugged, looking at his Gible who just rolled around contently after eating. "…you're lucky your cute…"
"Gib." 'Hehe…' Gible giggled, before he began to snore as he fell asleep.
"So, nothing's gonna go wrong?" Anabel asked. Everyone looked at her in mild terror. "What?"
"Anabel, back home, whenever I asked that question, my grandpa always said that everything goes wrong," Iris explained. "Grampa always told me NEVER to say that, because when all seems good, then it all goes downhill."
"Tell me about it," Ash muttered as he finished Kyoji's new stack and handed it to Misty, who then passed it to Anabel, then to the shinobi in question. "Every region that I go to starts peacefully, no sign of an evil team, I relax, get comfortable, thinking no one except Team Rocket's gonna be there. Suddenly in Hoenn, I get hit with TWO at once, then Sinnoh, and we all know what happened in Sinnoh… This time around, I'm playing it safe and assuming there's always some big problem around the corner."
Kyoji chuckled as he finally dug into his pancakes. "You're sounding a bit paranoid," he said, amused.
Ash sighed. "It's not paranoia. It's just that I've noticed a cycle," he said, finally making his own stack. "And this time, I'm going to be ready for whatever happens in Johto and whatever crazy nonsense happens at Shamouti this time around."
"What if there's no crazy man?" Serena asked, putting her fork down to look at her betrothed. "What if he doesn't exist this time around?" A valid point from the girl with the fractured mind.
"Then I'll be very happy and very surprised." Ash said happily before his expression soured somewhat. "Until proven otherwise, I'll just assume everything's going to be worse than last time."
"That's an awfully negative way to view things," Kyoji mumbled, eating his pancakes.
"Sabrina was worse, I got a bunch of Clefairy and Clefable killed at Mount Moon and Team Plasma was here." Ash retorted. "Usually, I prefer thinking positively, but there's a difference between that and deluding yourself. I had to learn that in Unova. Didn't have to practice it until now."
"When you put it that way…" the Ranseian said dourly.
"I'm just hoping for the best. I just have to get ready for the worst." The Pallet Town trainer finished. He had to be ready.
The next day - 0953 hours local time
Ash was… understandably antsy. Last time, Team Rocket cost him any chance of getting to the finals. Granted, they were being nice this time around and going 'nope', but you didn't just train out a near decade of watching your back for the TRio.
Still, no signs of booby traps (a very dumb part of his mind chuckled at that and was given the mental equivalent of a bomb to shut it up) no obvious nets…
All in all, Ash was starting to think he was overreacting and wanted to relax and enjoy a good clean fight against a friend.
That being said, Moltres was STILL roosting on the northern edge of the stadium. And where there were legendaries, there was trouble.
"You're overreacting." Kyoji said, hands propping up his head as he seemingly didn't care about what happened today. "Team Rocket's gone and those three are busy selling candy. Nothing's going to happen."
"What do you want to bet if something DOES happen?" Ash asked.
"...the issue with that, is that I can't think of something to gamble with," Kyoji shrugged.
"Yeah. Thought as much." Ash said, smiling mirthlessly. "Wish me luck."
"Luck? You're basically a gym leader-level trainer." Kyoji said, chuckling. "I should be wishing your friend luck: he's going to get destroyed!"
Ash glared at him for that comment.
"Ok, forgot you're trying not to be a dick to your opponents. Sorry." he apologized. "Just...you're a veteran trainer, time travel and all. He just started."
"Doesn't mean I want or even like stomping him into the ground." Ash answered. "I like having a nice clean fight."
"Then how come you didn't bring Rowlet or something?" the shinobi asked as they reached the exit for the dugout. "Your weaker...ok, that was rude; less experienced Pokemon?"
"Because I can't shake the feeling SOMETHING is going to go wrong." Ash looked at the exit, shaking his head. "I just hope I'm wrong."
"…well, why don't you carry the Pokemon you're battling with, while also carrying your reserve Pokemon in a separate pouch?" Kyoji shrugged, "You got the fancy gear that lets you bring out Pokemon on-demand, you can have as many Pokemon on-hand as you want, so long as the only pokemon you bring out are the ones you register for the match, right?"
"I left the Pokedex with Serena." Ash admitted. Kyoji just gave him a look. "I didn't want to get everyone from the ranch just because I'm paranoid!"
"…Counterproductive, but I suppose you have a point there." Kyoji admitted as a siren went off. "You better get out there."
Ash nodded before running to the raised dais once again, to the crowd's approval as they cheered him.
"And there he is, folks! The undefeated rookie Ash Ketchum!" the announcer said, Ash groaning as he wanted to avoid this kind of attention. If only they knew. "He's proving to be unpredictable in battle! What's he gonna do this time, folks?!"
Ash looked at the other side, seeing Ritchie exit the other tunnel, waving at the crowd. "And the other crowd favorite, Ritchie Hiroshi from Frodomar City! Always prepared, always cautious, what is his plan to deal with this seemingly gym leader in disguise?!"
"Let's find out, huh?" Ritchie said in response, the mic picking up his voice and getting a chuckle from parts of the crowd before he looked at Ash, getting serious. "Guess we'll find out if I can take on the Hero of Kanto, huh?"
"PLEASE don't call me that," Ash pleaded. "I have screwed up in more important ways than you think." He then plucked out a Pokeball.
"Well, you saved my home, so I'm not taking it back!" Ritchie said before pulling out a Pokeball. "Let's go, Happy!" he tossed it, revealing a Butterfree, Ash smiling at the sight. But the ball he pulled out didn't contain Butterfree. The only Pokemon he knew that Ritchie had that he also had were Charizard and Pikachu, the latter because… well, never leave your starter and the former… guilt and regret on Charizard's part to demand to stay.
But he couldn't pick a new ball now that he'd withdrawn it. "I choose you, Gible!" he called as he tossed the ball.
Out came the stubby, adorable land shark, landing on his feet before opening his maw. "Gible!" 'Hi, everyone!' cried the land shark.
"Aw, he's adorable!" said someone in the crowd, even as Gible started swaying side to side, waving his arms as a dance.
"A Gible?" Ritchie questioned, Happy looking back at him. "Well, that's not gonna be fun."
"Free?" 'Fun? THAT'S what you call this?' Happy demanded. "Butterfree!" 'That's a dragon-type! He's gonna chew me up!'
Gible began shaking off his evolite clip, unclasping it by shaking it loose, making it fly off his fin. "Gible!" 'Here we go!' cried the land shark as he started glowing.
"What… What's happening?!" the announcer asked the crowd. "Gible is… evolving after removing that clip on his fin!"
Gible's growth ceased only after growing as big as a Gible could get, turning into the Mach Pokemon, Garchomp. "Chomp!" 'Let's go!' he cried. Happy looked at the land shark in sheer terror.
"Is… is this possible?" Ritchie asked openly, more confused than outraged. "That really doesn't seem to be possible."
The ref looked at the announcer before being passed a paper by an assisting Aipom. Reading it before simply nodding and picking up his own mic. "I have been informed by a letter from Professor Oak that Evolite allows Pokemon to revert to their pre-evolved stages." the referee said. "While… unorthodox, it is my judgement that this will not disqualify Ash Ketchum from this battle."
"GET ME THAT DAMN CLIP!" Cynthia shouted as Bruno, Steven and Lance had to restrain her from releasing her starter and breaking the windows so she could get the damn thing. "I WANT IT FOR GARCHOMP!"
"Evolite isn't that easy to get your hands on-" Steven said gently before Cynthia screamed again.
"I WANT MY LAND SHARK BACK!" she said as the door opened, revealing the League's official head psychologist, Gaffery.
"What the hell is going on in here?" the old man asked. Blaine gave him a respectful nod as he passed. After all, they the oldest men in the room.
"Ash Ketchum-" Lance started, only to collapse in pain as Cynthia shoved her fist into his groin. She wasn't in the mood.
"I WANT THAT CLIP!" she said before she suddenly felt something on her head.
"Natu." said the round parrot as it made a nest in her hair.
"…I should've known you would all throw a fit over something he did yet again." the old man said, finding a place to sit down, releasing his little Gible once he did so it could jump onto his lap and watch the show, as it were. "What did he do now?"
"Clip! Gible! Garchomp!" Cynthia growled out.
"You're a human being, not a Pokemon. Speak clearly." the old man said, Gible smiling at her before the Johto-born Sinnoh Champion screamed.
"Well, never say I'm not going to give it my all." Ritchie said. "Happy, use Confusion!"
"Dig!" Ash commanded, Garchomp diving into the ground to avoid the psionic waves… only for his massive fin to pop back out.
DU-DUN, DUN-DUN,DUN-DUN,DUN-DUN,DUN-DUN,DUN-DUN,DUN-DUN, DU-DU-DU-DUUUUUUUUUUN, DUN!
"Free?! FREE?!" 'Why is the Jaws music playing?! WHY IS THE JAWS MUSIC PLAYING?!' Happy cried as he flew up to avoid (hopefully) from being eaten.
Instead, the fin remained in the ground… stalking him. No matter where he went, Happy saw the giant fin follow him. There was no escape.
"I think we're gonna need a bigger arena." Ritchie said as Happy screamed, Garchomp following him VERY menacingly.
The crowd laughed, the entire thing being plain ridiculous. A Garchomp, vicious and terrifying… was playing with a Butterfree.
Serena howled in the stands, though everyone knew this was half-mocking Ritchie, half-funny.
"W-What are you laughing at?!" Richie shouted out, looking angry. "H-He's trying his best!"
"Oh no, that's not what they're laughing at," Ash chuckled, "Hey! Kyoji!"
"Way ahead of you!" Kyoji called back, as he hit the 'play' button on a cassette player… and suddenly the stadium speakers began to play…
BGM: Benny Hill Theme
Garchomp poked his head out of the ground, playfully chomping after Happy, who started to get this was a game. The only reason the League people were even allowing this to happen was because it was keeping the crowd entertained.
Ritchie started laughing, seeing it for what it was: a funny chase.
"Chomp!" 'I haven't had this much fun since I came from Sinnoh!' the land shark said before emerging from the ground. "Gar-chomp-chomp." 'But we're in a fight, so…' Kyoji switched off the music before the battle truly began as Garchomp started charging his favorite attack.
"I don't know what that is, but it can't be good." Ritchie said as the orb grew in Garchomp's mouth. "Happy, use Bug Bite! Stop it in its' tracks!"
"Chomp!" 'Sorry! No one stops this Gible train!' cried the Mach Pokemon as he shot out a Draco Meteor, sending the shot upwards… then starting to fall down.
"Free!" 'Whoa, gotta move!' Happy shouted as he moved out of the Meteor's way… only for it to follow him. "FREE!" 'OH SHIT!' The butterfree started flying around the stadium - trying, and failing - to shake the homing meteor that followed his every move.
Ash and Pikachu turned their heads to watch the orb follow the Butterfree, who was screaming in absolute terror. The crowd also watched in disbelief as Happy finally tired and fell on the ground, the meteor just staying in midair above him. "Free?" 'I'm safe?' he asked before the orb exploded, making a massive crater with Happy inside it.
Ash winced, as did Garchomp. "Chomp…" 'I wanted to knock him out, not kill him!' claimed the shark before they heard groaning from inside the crater. Or just pained 'frees', depending on the person.
"That was… well, strange." the announcer said. "A playful chase that ended with a Draco Meteor knockout. And Ash Ketchum does not look happy with the result!"
"You think?! If I knew he was going to send out a Butterfree, I would've sent out Mimikyu instead!" Ash replied. "That… was just wrong in all the ways that matter."
Ritchie returned Happy to his ball, agreeing with Ash on that one. "Well, it's not like you wanted to hurt Happy." he said. "And right up until that attack, Garchomp just wanted to play."
Garchomp reclaimed his evolite clip, biting onto the bronze item holder before Ash returned him to his ball. "Ok. Let's… TRY not to have your Pokemon get one-shot." he said, blindly putting Garchomp's ball back before picking out the ball next to it, which he presumed was Mimikyu's.
Then he remembered that Mimikyu was back at the Ranch and he wasn't entirely sure what Pokemon was in the ball. Ash was more focused on having his current powerhouses on him just in case something happened, putting the balls in the belt at random.
"Well, let's see what your 'Mimikyu's' got!" Ritchie said, tossing out a ball. "Go, Zippo!" the ball opened, sending out the adorable fire lizard, making everyone coo at it.
"Alright…" Ash nodded, glancing at his ball. 'Note to self, put markers on the balls…' he thought before he tossed it out. "Go!" The Pokeball opened up… and as Ash began to see a large form emerged, he groaned. "Ah shit…"
"CHARR!" 'LET'S DO THIS!' Charizard roared out, letting out a blast of fire into the air. "ZARD… Char?" 'WHO AM I… wait, what?' He glanced down, seeing the small Charmander that looked up at him with wide eyes.
"Char… Mader?" 'Um… Hi?'
Charizard looked at Ash, and raised an eyebrow as he shrugged "Char?" 'Seriously?'
"I thought something would go wrong! You know what happened last time!" Ash yelled, being somewhat vague, but getting the message across nevertheless.
Charizard scowled, but ultimately, saw the point. Ash brought him, Sceptile, Gible, Froakie and Goodra along because Team Rocket attacked last time. And you couldn't call it paranoia if there was justification.
Sceptile would get burned, but still win. Goodra was unfair, Froakie would soak the poor thing...Pikachu was overkill no matter what.
"Char?" 'Can I turn this into a training match? I like bullying less than you do.' Charizard said, looking at the Charmander he was only facing because Ash was worried something would happen.
"Uh… I think we all know how this would end." Ash said, the ref looking at Charizard and his miniature counterpart.
"I agree, but they will need to fight," he said, sounding sympathetic to their plight. "Use it as training for the weaker one, but he will have to get knocked out for him to swap him out."
The Crown Prince of Rota groaned. Paranoia sucked.
"You know, you could just give him that Pokedex back," Kyoji gently said to Serena, who slowly nodded.
"It would not work," Janine suddenly piped up. "The platforms are equipped with class-4 teleport dampeners. Those prevent anything from teleporting within a five meter radius, especially the Pokemon Transfer System. His Natu only got down there last time because she teleported six meters above him. Specifically to prevent what you're suggesting."
"What, giving a trainer a fair fight?" Kyoji demanded.
"Allowing a trainer to swap his or her team while in combat." she clarified. "It is unfair at this moment, but prior to the installation of the dampeners, one could use an Abra to swap out tired Pokemon for one fresh and unbloodied."
"…the rules here are weird." Kyoji sighed. "Clearly Ash just wants a fair, clean right, they should be willing to bend the rules just a bit…"
"Welcome to Kanto, where we have to put up with Shadow Pokemon attacks on a daily basis." Misty said. "He's not allowed to swap out. He leaves, he's disqualified. We give him the Pokedex, it counts as cheating because there's a teleporter built into it. It also forces us to work with what we have."
"Still think the rule is stupid." Kyoji muttered before he heard something. Something… buzzing. "…is that a piston engine?"
"Piston-you mean a gas engine?" Misty asked, confused.
"That's impossible: the oil industry died over 60 years ago thanks to-" Iris started before Sabrina's eyes widened.
"They won't DIE." she growled as she got up, the other arena goers looking at her in terror. "Everything they had turned against them, the entire world trying to kill them and they JUST WON'T FUCKING DIE!"
"Who?" Kyoji asked, "Who could it…" He looked up as he blinked. "…fucking… ZEPPELINS?!"
"Hi~ Kanto~" came the amplified voice of a young woman roughly Kyoji's age as two silver airships flew over the building. "Sorry to drop in, but we like, love being dramatic!" On the field, they could TASTE Ash's screaming at the voice. "It's been a LONG time… but we're back~"
"You have got to be kidding me," Misty said, withdrawing a Pokeball.
"You thought we were gone! You were wrong~" sang the girl. "We're back to finish the job! Go get'em, Peons!"
When the word 'Peon' came up, Kyoji's eyes widened - and quickly narrowed as he growled, and in a single, loud shout screamed…
"FUCKING CIPHERRRRRRRRRRR!"