"So how does this thing even work?"
Goh was currently being hooked up to the same device that was used on Lucario six years ago as a way to measure and analyze his Aura levels. This time, however, it was being used on a human to try and force a connection between Goh and Mewtwo.
"Well, I'm having Clemont quickly make some adjustments to accommodate for the fact that you're a human," Professor Sycamore explained as Clemont was inputting a few numbers onto the small display that stuck out of the machine. "And then we're gonna place a few electrical pads onto your brain so that we can start the connection via the traces of psychic energy that may be left in your body."
"Hopefully," Clemont added with a mumble as he focused on his calculations. Professor Sycamore momentarily glanced at Clemont with a stern look. "It will work," he corrected the occupied inventor. "Or else we'll have more problems than we can handle." Ash stood near the entrance to the room alongside Pikachu, his arms crossed and back up against the wall.
The argument with Goh was still fresh on his mind, even though they had all managed to resolve it. I did go through a lot in those final months before I left, that's nothing new, he told himself as he absentmindedly watched the smarter individuals in the room work. But that was always my excuse for doing what I did. Is that even fair?
The others had told Ash that it wasn't fair to simply write off his six-year isolation as a way of coping, especially since he wasn't the only one who had lost something in the Cell War. There were dozens of people who were left without a home in Ninja Village due to Giovanni's destructive aggressiveness, so his excuse was simply not allowed.
But, even still, he interjected himself. It feels like I lost a lot more than other people. Ash felt horrible at the notion of making it a competition, but he couldn't help but consider it. He had lost two of his closest Pokemon partners, witnessed the death of Azelf's spirit while in a month-long coma, and was battling an internal struggle regarding his emotions.
In contrast, it felt like his friends had gotten away with extremely minor problems. Goh had a bum leg for a few months, Clemont's Aipom Arm was crushed, and it seemed that Chloe had only sustained smaller injuries. The only person he truly felt a pang of immense guilt for leaving was Serena, as he had just been made aware of how his leaving had affected her.
Well, it wasn't just her, he reminded himself, looking at the people around the room. Even though his friends had been mostly unaffected by the direct effects of the Cell War, he knew deep in his heart that they had been deeply ruined by one thing; him not being there was the thing they had lost in the Cell War.
A brief chime echoed throughout the building, catching Pikachu's attention on Ash's shoulder. "That's the doorbell," Professor Sycamore said with a hushed voice. Ash raised an eyebrow and nodded at the professor, who acknowledged the unspoken request to answer the grand front doors.
As Ash exited the room and made his way down the hallway towards the main lobby, he let out a sigh. "Maybe I shouldn't overthink all of this," he said to Pikachu, who tilted his head in confusion. "You know, all of my problems with my friends," he explained, scratching his head. "Maybe I just need to run away again," he added jokingly.
"Pika!" Pikachu said in a scolding voice, lightly slapping Ash's cheek. "It was a joke, buddy!" Ash exclaimed, slightly chuckling before a frown covered his face. "At least, I think it was..." Pikachu crossed his arms as they entered the lobby area, which had the familiar red carpet and tall, massive bookshelves.
Walking over to the front entrance, he reached forward and grabbed onto the handle, pulling it back. Immediately after doing so, he felt the force of a large Pokemon crash right into him, sending him flying back and crashing into the wall. Luckily, his small backpack managed to subdue the blow slightly, but the initial impact had already been applied. "Gogoat, that's no way to greet an old friend, now is it?"
Ash quickly recognized the soothing, sweet voice and brought himself up, trying to see against the glaring sun breaking through the open door to confirm his suspicion. As his eyes adjusted, he watched as an older man with a trimmed beard began petting Gogoat, which had just sent Ash flying across the lobby.
"It's Ramos!" He exclaimed excitedly, walking back over to greet the Kalos Grass-type Gym Leader. "It's been quite a while, Ash!" Ramos replied with a serene smile. "You probably assumed I was dead by this point, huh?" Ash quickly raised his eyebrows and shook his head quickly. "No, of course not! You're looking younger than ever!" He said frantically, earning a slow chuckle from the elderly leader.
"Well, in any case, I wish the circumstances in which all of us were reuniting were more positive," Ramos stated solemnly; Ash gave a slight nod and crossed his arms. "Clemont debriefed you on everything that's happening, right?" He asked, prompting Ramos to nod his head. "As soon as he contacted all of us, we all rushed over here."
"We?" Ash asked, tilting his head as he stared back at the leader. Ramos turned around and looked at the open door with a confused look. "How is it possible that an old whippersnapper like me can walk faster than all of those young people?" He asked, twirling his clippers in his hand.
"Young people?" Ash repeated, walking past Ramos and into the beaming sunlight. As he walked out, his ears quickly picked up the sounds of a crowd to his left. As he turned his head to see what was causing all the noise, he nearly let out a gasp at the sight.
What seemed like dozens of people were all gathered in a crowd and walking towards Ash's direction, all speaking with one another. This wasn't just any regular group of people, however. Every single person making their way towards the lab was:
"Gym Leaders," Ash whispered to himself. "Pika..." Pikachu said softly, also in similar awe. Ash had never seen so many Gym Leaders in one spot; even when the Kalos Gym Leaders came together to help fight off the Giant Rock, there were only eight of them. Now, leaders from all over the world were in one spot, a sight many would die to witness.
Randomly darting his eyes and allowing them to land on people, Ash found himself recognizing specific individuals and the battle that had accompanied them. That's Falkner from the Johto region! Ash thought as he found himself staring at the blue hair that fell around his face. And there's Watson from the Hoenn region! He added, seeing the old electric type user speaking to Volkner, the Sinnoh region's fellow Electric type leader.
Before he could manage to single anyone else out, a familiar voice rang out from the crowd.
"Hey, Ash!"
Ash watched as a girl with red-orange hair that was tied in a ponytail pushed out from the front of the crowd and sprinted over to him, waving her hand. A smile instantly found itself on Ash's face as he made his way down the front steps. "Misty!" He exclaimed happily, quickly finding himself embracing her in a hug as she reached him.
After breaking away from the hug, she took a step back and grinned. "How long has it been?" She asked, out of breath from sprinting over to him. He chuckled and shook his head. "Like I just told Brock very recently, too long," he replied, earning a slight giggle from his first traveling partner. "I think the last time was at the Cerulean Gym when your class from Alola came to visit."
"That's right," Ash confirmed with a nod. "Me and Pikachu did a whole lot of stuff after that." Misty gave a soft smile and nodded. "Yeah, I heard all about that," she said a bit more seriously. "You had to stop Giovanni again and then you went off on some six-year trip or something." Ash sheepishly grinned and rubbed the back of his head. "Something like that," he said timidly.
"Anyhow, it's great to see you, but you and I both know that we need to catch up after all of this is over," she suggested. Ash nodded in agreement and looked over her shoulder to the very close crowd. She looked back and sighed. "Where are we even gonna put all of these people?" She asked. "I mean, it's not like Mewtwo is doing anything dangerous right now."
Ash looked back up at the front doors where Ramos was standing and nodded. "There's a reason we asked all of you to come here," he said, gesturing for Misty to follow him up the stairs. She walked inside, eyes gleaming as she took in the sight of the vast lobby area. "It's so glamorous!" She exclaimed, instantly walking to the middle of the room and spinning around as if she was a ballerina.
Ash chuckled as he watched Misty pretend to be a dancer. Under the chandelier lighting, he could tell that she had changed a lot. Her fashion had evolved from her usual crop top with suspenders to a simple shirt covered by a jacket. Her jean shorts remained but still managed to fit within the style of her new outfit. Her hair, although still overall short, was considerably longer, but was still kept in a neat ponytail.
"Alright, alright," he said, holding up his hands. "We get it. You're a pretty princess while the entire world may be doomed," he said jokingly, earning another giggle from Misty. "Fine. I get the message," she said in a faked exasperated manner. "I'll go make sure everyone gets inside safely while you go work on whatever you need to do," she offered, lowering her hands and walking away from the middle of the room.
"I appreciate it," Ash commented with a slight smile as she walked by towards the door. She gave him a slight punch on the shoulder as she walked by. "You may act mature, but you're still just a child," she jested as Ash rubbed his shoulder, a grin present on his face from the interaction.
He turned around and watched as she exited, presumably being met with the sight of all of the Gym Leaders. I wonder if anyone else I used to travel with is in that group? He wandered before feeling a tug on his ear. "Pika..." Pikachu groaned, pointing towards the hallway that led to where Goh was being subjected to experimentation.
"You're right, we should check on them," Ash agreed, adjusting his cap as he began jogging towards that area. "Make sure Misty doesn't get overwhelmed!" He yelled behind him to Ramos, who nodded as he watched the raven-haired trainer disappear into the long hallway.
Finding the right door, Ash entered and saw that the three were generally in the same spot as when Ash had left. "Still trying to change the machine or whatever?" Ash asked, trying to gauge how much longer until they could attempt what they had planned. "We're almost there," Clemont said under his breath as he moved another wire.
"Who was at the door?" Goh asked from his chair, visibly bored. "Well, at first it was just Ramos, who's a gym leader here in Kalos," Ash began explaining. "But then a whole bunch of Gym Leaders was right behind him, and they're all gathering in the lobby area right now until we need them."
"Great work, Clemont!" Professor Sycamore praised the inventor, who gave a halfhearted thumbs up from underneath the large machine. "Any idea on if people from the Masters 8 will show up?" He asked Ash, who tilted his head. "Yeah, who's all even in that lineup anyway?" Goh then added to the original question.
Ash thought back to who he had ended up calling after seeing the list. "Well, you and I know about Lance, Raihan, and Leon, so that's three right there," he began, lifting a finger for each person he mentioned. "I was lucky enough to have known the other five before this, so it made the calls much easier." Goh leaned forward in anticipation. "What are their names?"
"Well, there's Steven Stone, who's the Hoenn League Champion," he said, remembering seeing his name in the number 3 spot. "Wait, Steven Stone?" Goh repeated, leading Ash to nod in return. "Didn't his father give you that Mega stuff six years ago? The same one that Mega Evolved Greninja?"
Ash nodded. "That's him," he confirmed, causing Goh to raise his eyebrows. "That's the guy who managed to get kidnapped by Giovanni," he whispered to himself, realizing once again how powerful Giovanni was. "Let's see. The number 2 spot is held by Cynthia, who is the-"
"The Champion of Sinnoh?" Goh asked in disbelief. "She's on her way over here right now?" Ash slowly nodded, not understanding Goh's reaction to hearing her name. "Do you just know every famous person ever?!" Goh exclaimed, standing up and furrowing his eyebrows. "She's one of the most incredible people ever!"
"I mean, she's really strong..." Ash mumbled in response, not sure how to handle Goh, who was currently obsessing over what he had just heard. "Just tell us the next person," Professor Sycamore suggested, rolling his eyes as Goh stared at Ash, his jaw wide open. "Well, the number 4 spot is where Lance is at, and number 5 belongs to Diantha," he continued.
"Nice to see she managed to find time in her schedule to compete," Professor Sycamore commented humorously, earning a chuckle from Ash. "That assistant of hers was something else," the professor added. Ash rubbed his chin as he continued thinking about the next spot. "I was really happy to see who was in number 6 because she traveled with me throughout the Unova region."
Ash smiled as he began speaking about her. "Her name's Iris, and she's this awesome trainer that can speak to Dragon-type Pokemon," he said, reminiscing on their adventures in Unova together. "Speak to Dragon-types?" Goh asked, his disbelief increasing with every word Ash said. "How do you even come across these people?"
Ash shrugged his shoulders. "Traveling a whole bunch, I guess." He then paused to think about the next person. "Since you already know that Raihan is number 8, then I guess there's just one more." He looked over at Professor Sycamore before he uttered the name of the final Masters 8 individual. "Number 7 belongs to someone super strong and dedicated."
"His name is Alain."