From The Ashes Of Betrayal (Pokemon Fanfiction)

Chapter 8: The Big Day! Celebration Awaits!

Before anyone knew it, the big day had come, today would be a day that nobody forgets

It was already 10 in the morning, everyone had already got up and started preparing for the big day, chefs were already cooking meals for the night, the stage had been set, lights been primed, Pokemon had been trained, entertainment had been prepared

Team Rocket had set up camp to watch the fireworks before they eventually set back to base to get yelled at, or worse...

"Hey Jessie, perhaps we could disguise ourselves to get in and eat" says James before he looked to Jessie, who was still getting worried, she started feeling sick in the stomach

"I don't... Know if I could eat... It feels as if today is going to be bad..." Says Jessie worried

"Don't worry ya princess, its just that our nemesis has become champion of the world and is now having a celebration despite all our efforts to take his most beloved Pokemon" says Meowth before getting picked and thrown into a tree by James

"We don't need the reminder you feline dimwit!" Yells James

Meowth would slowly fall down the tree comedically

"Sorry..." Says Meowth finally hitting the ground

"No... Its not that... It... I can't explain it..." Says Jessie

"Don't worry, once we get passed the boss we can start doing better, trainers with no experience, they'll fall for us" says James trying to cheer her up, which didn't work...

POV switch to Inside Professor Oak's Lab

The Professors had met up with the champions, they began getting their speech's down, each one represents their regions, Lance having the most work

"On behalf of the Kanto and Johto regions, I, Lance congratulate Ash Ketchum on becoming World Champion, and at such a young age" announced Lance as he tried to keep a stoic voice up

"You don't sound like you do this very often" chuckled Cynthia

"I don't" says Lance bluntly...

In another room...

"Will this outfit work?" Asked Professor Kukui as Professor Burnet started started bursting out laughing looking at his attire

"What? This is a genuine question..." Said Kukui as Burnet started calming down

"Hun, I don't think wearing your 'Masked Royal' outfit will work for this event" giggled Burnet, to which kukui groaned

Professor Oak had started preparing not only himself, but Gary aswell, both intending on giving Ash a new Pokemon

"Its a fine Pokemon Gary, I'm sure he'll like it" comforted Oak as Gary reassured himself

"Yeah, today will be a day to remember!" Says Gary determined and happy

"It wasn't so long ago that you two didn't like each other very much, that rivalry was a good thing for the both of you" stated Oak laughing

Gary would start laughing with him...

POV switch to Ghota

"Beedrill use Poison Sting" ordered Jenny as they attempted to get the grunt to talk

"Please... Stop..." Said the grunt, the alcohol fully wore off

"Not until you give us Intel, Team Rocket has been capturing Legendary Pokemon and we want to know why" stated Ghota bluntly, not showing any remorse

"I can't tell those secrets, they'll find me if I do!" Says the Grunt panicking

"Beedrill, use bug bite" ordered Jenny as the grunt continued to be questioned

"Stop, Stop!!!" Pleaded the man before getting attacked by the Beedrill

"We won't until you tell us" says Ghota patiently

"Fine!! I'll tell, I'll tell!!" Yelled the grunt in pain

"Tell us then" says Ghota bringing out a Hatterene from his Pokeball

"Th-they want to sell the Pokemon for money, You know how much these legendary birds go for?!?" Asked the grunt

Ghota would simply nod at Hatterene who after a few seconds, shook her head at him

Ghota would begin to stand up

"You, good sir, just told a lie, you know what happens now?" Asked Ghota before Bedroll started Stoning the grunt again

"H-how?!?" Asked the grunt

"Hatterene here can sense if your lying, she detected that what you said wasn't the truth, we're going to be here all day of you don't let it slip" warns Ghota as he walks back to the wall...

The grunt would continue to be interrogated thought the day...

POV switch to Giovanni

Giovanni had already been talked to Domino and Pierce, today would be a laid back one

Giovanni would sit down in his chair and sip another glass of whiskey before laughing maniacally...

POV switch to Ash's Friends

"So, who's coming with me to give Ash his presents?" Asked Dawn

Almost the entire group would respond with yes, except Serena, she wanted to give it to him after the event was over, when they were alone

"I take it that means your staying here Serena?" Asked May

"Yes, gift will be perfect, it will only work on the terms I set" states Serena getting nods from the girls

"Well then, you all ready then?" Asked Misty to which everyone nodded

"Alright then, let's move!" Exclaimed Misty, leading everyone to Ash's home...

POV switch to Delia

Delia had been making a special breakfast for Ash, Hash browns, Pancakes, Sausages, and Eggs, Ash's favourite breakfast

Delia was silently humming to herself as Mimey had walked in

"Oh, hello Mimey!" Says Delia happily

"Mime!" Said Mimey, just as excited for the event as she was

"Come, smell this" asked Delia as she let Mimey look at the food

They both loved the smell, and they knew Ash would love it even more...

POV switch to Ash

And finally, we have Ash, this was going to be a huge event, so he was up practicing his speech

"And to Brock, who had been with me for the longest, who accompanied me throughout Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and Sinnoh, who my first ever gym battle was with, I thank you for being with me on this journey" rehearsed Ash before smelling breakfast downstairs, and he knew that smell, he ran down the stairs as fast as he could

"Well good morning Kiddo, today's the big day!" Exclaimed Delia happily

"Yep! I could smell that from my room" laughs Ash

"Yeah well, I think its best that you eat breakfast before putting on good clothes" says Delia, hinting towards May's gift

The family would sit down and start eating their meal, Ash eating especially quick

"Such a big appetite, there's note there if you want it" smiled Delia to which Ash thanked and went for some more

This was what Delia had missed, family time with Ash, ever since he became a trainer, she didn't get much time with her son, the closest she got was when he returned home from every region, or when they went on vacation to Alola, which started an adventure of its own

The whole family was having an amazing time, Ash finished his seconds on a full stomach

"Wow... Best... Meal... Ever" says Ash fulfilled

Delia giggled at the sight

"Welp, I have to get back to rehearsing my speeches" says Ash getting up

"Ash" called out Delia

"Yeah Mom?" Replied Ash

"You've got this" reaffirms Delia

Ash was happy to have his mothers support

"Thanks, Mom" says Ash before heading back to his room

Delia would pick up the plates and get them washed, after doing so, she sat down and looked at the outfit she gave Ash, which was sitting on a hook waiting for adventure

Delia would grow a smile at the thought of her son living his fullest

Delia began to go upstairs to get dressed for the occasion before getting a knock at the door, she knew exactly who it was

Delia would open the door to the group of Ash's friends who started to pile in politely

"Let me go get him" says Delia to which the group waits patiently

Delia knocked on Ash's door, to which he immediately opened it, Pikachu sitting on his elbow after having woken up

"Your friends are here" squeaks Delia in excitement

"I thought so" sweatdropped Ash

The two would walk back downstairs to the group all carrying gifts for Ash

"Hey everyone!" Says Ash happily

"Well Ash, today's the day" says Brock shedding a happy tear

"I may not have known you for very long, but you have singlehandedly changed my life Ash, and to that, I thank you" exclaimed Goh happily

"You may have burnt our bikes, but you gave us more then that... Adventure and a friend to do it with" happily said the trio of Misty, May and Dawn

"You know, its not everyday you become friends with someone who survives jumping off a giant skyscraper after battling a Garchomp, you truly are a rare and unique friend, and we will treasure that friendship" says Clemont

"You helped me not only become the best dragon type user in the world, but also the Unova Champion, you've been a positive influence in all our lives... You're still such a kid though..." Says Iris laughing

"We're glad to have you as our teacher!" Says Max and Bonnie

"That day you attended class was perhaps the most important day for not only use, but for all of Alola, on behalf of your Alolan friends and Alola itself, we thank you" says Lillie happily

"Becoming a Pokemon connoisseur couldn't have been achieved as fast as it did without your help Ash" says Cilan grateful

"Congratulations Ash, you have been instrumental to my growth as a person and performer" adds Chloe

"Congratulations Ash!" Says the entire group in unison

Ash was shocked, he shed a tear as he thanked each of them, eventually realizing

"Wait, where's Serena?" Asked Ash confused

"She stayed, she said that she wanted to give you her present after the event" said May

Delia grew a BIG smile on her face after hearing that, she knew exactly what Serena was planning

"Anyways, I guess we can start off with mine, these will be useful at night or in dark places" says Iris, giving her present to Ash, revealing three Dusk Balls

Ash looked in wonder and gave Iris the biggest high he had ever given her, to which she hugged back

"Well, I guess the Unova team starts off" says Cilan going up and giving his Recipe to Ash, which Pikachu had fond memories with thinking of Cilan's food

"I guess we go in then" says Misty and Brock giving Ash three Dive Balls and three Heavy Balls

Ash loved the designs and gave his two first ever companions a giant group hug

"The blue ones are Dive Balls, they'll be good for any water type Pokemon" states Misty

"And these are Heavy Balls, they'll be good against anything Heavy, like most Rock, Ground or Steel types" states Brock

"I'll go next" says Dawn as she gives Ash a special Coordination Badge

"This will allow you to get VIP spots for any Coordination event for free, its a lifetime use" says Dawn

Ash was happy, he hadn't seen some Pokémon Coordination in ages, he gave Dawn her hug

"We're next!" Exclaims Goh as he and Chloe go forth and give Ash their gifts of an Expanded Pokedex, and Ash's own Official Pokemon League Vanity, To which Ash immediately tried on

"Looking good there" says Goh as everyone laughs at Ash's appearance, Ash having fun

"Now, I know this one seems big, but..." Says Clemont as he reveals his Spelunking Suit Mk40

"Don't worry, it won't explode" says Clemont in assurance, which made Ash question its safety, but nevertheless he loved it, and gave Clemont his hug

"Me and Daddy made this for you!" Says Bonnie as she gave Ash the Arm Brace

"There's places for all your mega stones, keystone, Z-Crystals, even has a spot for something called a 'Tera-Orb' and even has functions for Gigantamax and Dynamax!" States Bonnie as she equipped the arm brace and immediately put his Keystone from his old glove to his new arm brace

"Looks and feels amazing! Light too!" Says Ash moving his arm as off nothing was on it, giving Bonnie a hug and telling her to give Meyer one aswell

The Alola group motioned May and Max to go in kindly

"Here, these will be useful if you just chuck them before battle" says Max as he gave Ash the three Fast Balls

"A Pokeball that's used before battling a wild Pokemon? Seems cool!" Says Ash as he gave Max his hug

Delia had already left the room and re-entered

"My present is right behind you" says May giggling, to which Ash looked at his mother carrying a rather dashing suit, complete with a ingrain of Ash's name written in cursive on the left pocket

Ash would immediately go upstairs to get it on, he intended on using it for today

"Looking good Ash" says May

"Dapper if I say so myself" says Brock

"Could definitely pass as a connoisseur if you wore that" says Cilan nodding

"Thanks guys, thanks May, this looks awesome" says Ash giving her the hug of a lifetime

"Next is us" says Mallow as the entire Alolan group brought in a necklace and a picture

Ash would look at the Picture first and saw a shrine on a massive stone, the shrine had Ash Ketchum engraved on it with a thunderbolt symbol, which Pikachu loved

"That's from the entirety of Alola, here's our gift" says Lana as everyone gave Ash the necklace, having the wings of a Lunala, the charm of a sun representing Solgaleo, and 4 smaller charms with the official symbols of each Tapu, each being personally blessed by the tapu it's representing

"This... Is amazing" says Ash shedding more tears at the thought of an entire region that he's representing cheering him on, including its legends

Ash gave them all a hug, which Gladion accepted only by the promise of a battle in the future

"Last one's me" says Tracey as he went up to Ash with his notebook, revealing to have sketches of not only all his Pokemon, but a sketch of all his friends posing for a photo

This one meant a lot to Ash, he promised to keep it on him at all times as he hugged Tracey

"So, that's it, I guess we now just wait a few hours until the event" says Misty happy

"For now, I guess we should all go see if we can lend a hand for the event, you know, to speed time up, time goes slowly when your bored you know" says Brock getting up

The group would then all agree to go all over pallet town to help with any remaining preparations, to which Ash also agreed to help with, albeit getting back into his casual clothes as to avoid getting his new suit and vanity dirty, putting all his gifts in his room..

POV switch to Serena

Luvdisc had been fully healed, thank Arceus, Serena was terrified that Luvdisc wouldn't be healed before the event

"Thanks Nurse Joy, I can't tell you how happy I am that it was a fast treatment" says Serena kindly

"No worries, I'm glad we're able to help" says Joy smiling

"Chancey, Chancey!" Says Chancery as happy

"Well, I should get going, giving help around the town for the event" says Serena as she walks out the door...

POV switch to Ash

A few hours later, 2 hours until Ceremony

Ash had walked around town, he offered help wherever he could, sound crew, video crew, masala vista, Arceus even the local deli were all set now, it was now 3 in the afternoon, lots of people had arrived, Richie, Sawyer, Mimo, and Paul

Ash was currently in the middle of a chat between other friends, namely Casey, Angie and Tierno before he was approached by another acquaintance of his, Tobias

"Congratulations Ash" says Tobias

"Tobias? I'm surprised you came" says Ash shaking the man's hand

"Yeah well, your one of the only people who managed to defeat my darkrai, and the first person to defeat two of my Pokémon, your impressive, it's only sportsmanlike to show up and congratulate you" says Tobias

"Well, glad you can make it" says Ash

"Unfortunately, it won't be for long, I do have other things I have to do, take care Ash" says Tobias before suddenly leaving

Ash was stumped, he didn't even get to ask him for a rematch

"Hey Ash!" Says Trevor from behind Ash

Ash looked behind him to see both Trevor and Todd both getting pictures of Pikachu, who his behind Ash

"I see you two are bonding easily" states Ash

"Of course! I finally got to meet THE Todd Snap!" Exclaims Trevor in wonder

"Well glad you two are having fun" says Ash as he continued to walk around looking for friends or something to do...

1:30 hours until Ceremony

Ash would wonder for a bit until he laid eyes on a group of people, one of which being Serena

"Hey guys!" Said Ash as he looked at who else was in the group

"Long time no see Ash" says Miette

"Sure has Miette, I'm surprised you came" says Ash happy

"So this is the legendary Ash Ketchum, honoured to meet you" says Lisia shaking his hand

"Wow, Lisia? I didn't think I was that famous" sweatdropped Ash

"We're just waiting on a few others here, we actually got permission to do a joint performance at the event!" Says Serena excited

"Who else?" asked Ash

"Speaking of, there they are" says Lisia pointing to the big group of May, Dawn, Shauna, Aria, Solidad, Nini and Chloe

"Wow, that's going to be one big performance" says Ash bewildered

"Shauna!" Exclaimed Serena excited as she reunited with her Kalos rival

Ash was feeling a bit weirded out, being the only boy in a group of females

"Well, I'm going to to go head off now" sweatdropped Ash as he said goodbye to the now big group, earning goodbye's from the group

"Wait Ash!" Exclaimed Serena

"Yeah?" Asked Ash

"I'll give you your present after the event, during the fireworks!" says Serena

"Uhhh, yeah sure!" says Ash smiling

Ash would continue to walk off

"So, you're going for it are you?" Asked Shauna

"Ooooh, its about time" says Nini, causing Serena to blush

Dawn and May would just chuckle at the sight of Serena blushing...

1 hour until Ceremony

Ash continued to look around and saw Clemont and Sophocles hanging out taking a break

"Hey guys, see you two have met each other" says Ash knowing they'd be amazing friends due to the similar interests

"Hey Ash, yeah, we're having a blast! we've already come up with a schematic for a an artificial voice replicator!" says Sophocles

"Although building and programming it will be difficult" says Clemont showing Ash the schematics

Ash was not sure what he was looking at, so he smiled and nodded

"Hey, could we have a recording of your voice as a test?" asked Sophocles

"Uhhh, yeah sure!" said Ash as he waited for them to pull out a audio recording device

"Alright Ash, say something" says Sophocles looking at the audio waves

"Hello? Ummm Pizza Mozzarella!" Says Ash making a reference

"By the way Ash, Bonnie said that she wanted to see you, she said that they wanted one final lesson from you before the Ceremony" explains Clemont

"Where are they?" asked Ash

"She said they'd be over behind the stage" said Sophocles, to which Ash thanked and walked over to his students...

35 minutes until Ceremony

Ash would walk to the main stage and see Mimo looking out for him, when she sees him she calls out to him and tells the other two

"Ash!" called out Bonnie as Ash caught up

"Yo! what's up? You wanted to see me?" asked Ash

"Yes, we were wondering, what would your ideal team be?" Asked Max

"I haven't really thought of it, Pikachu would most definitely be in it though" says Ash feeling Pikachu's gaze from on his shoulder

"Pika..." says Pikachu in a jokingly threatening voice

"Well, I have given it some thought, I plan on having an Ursaring for sure" says Mimo

"I'm definitely getting a Shedinja, those things are cool!" says Max

"I'm sticking with Dedenne!" Exclaims Bonnie

"If I had to think of other Pokemon that I already have, it would probably be Charizard, Sceptile, Infernape, Greninja and Lucario" says Ash thinking of his best performing Pokemon

"One last question..." asks Max

"Yeah?" asks Ash

The three kids stood side to side and asked in unison

"Can we go with you when we become trainers!" asked the three

"W-Woah, calm down, I'd have to think about it, let alone talk with your siblings" Sweatdrops Ash

The three looked saddened to which Ash replied

"I'll give it some thought, you guys go ask your siblings first okay" says Ash

The three would perk up at his words

"Promise?" Asked Mimo"

"Of course" says Ash

The three would attempt to hug him before a loud noise came from the megaphones stationed high across Pallet

"Attention Pallet Town" said the Megaphones, being use by what sounds like Professor Oak

"The Ceremony will commence in thirty minutes, if there are still anything that needs to be finished, please don't feel embarrassed to offer a helping hand to those who need it" says Lance

"Well the, I better get back home to put on my good clothing, you three have fun at the event okay" says Ash

The three would salute in laughter, making Ash chuckle as he ran back home...

Twenty minutes until Ceremony

Ash had fully put on his new attire

"Remind me to thank May again for this outfit, its actually really comfortable" says Ash to Pikachu

"Pikachu!" Agreed Pikachu

"Look stunning honey" says Delia walking into the room

"I know right!" Says Ash as he fixes his bow tie

"Oh my, such a handsome boy, I'm sure some girl is going to be very happy in the future" says Delia knowing Serena's plan

"Mooooooom" says Ash embarrassed

"Oh don't be like that honey, here, lets take a picture with Money as a reminder for this day!" Squeals Delia in excitement

Mimey walked in with a camera at the ready

"Say cheese!" Says Delia as Mimey set a timer and ran into position

(Snap)

"Let's take a look" says Delia walking over to the camera, which spat out the picture

"Oh my we look amazing!" Says Delia as she walks over to Ash giving it to him

"You keep this picture with you during your travels, in case yky ever need some encouragement" says Delia smiling

Ash loved it, it actually made him shed a tear and hug his mother, something she hoped for

"Thanks Mom" says Ash

"Its okay honey" says Delia

"Well, we should probably head off" says Ash as he starts to walk towards the exit

"Mimey!" Exclaimed Mimey as he went with the family...

Ten minutes until Ceremony

Everyone had finished their work, the food had been prepared and laid out on tables

The entertainers were finished rehearsing their performance

The audio and video groups had been fully set up

All family's and friends had gathered around

The champions had emerged alongside the professors and we're on standby

Gary, Paul and Trip had set up post under a tree not far from stage

The rest of Ash's friends all gathered just in front of the stage, the entirety of Pallet town behind them

Looking after the event was Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny, making sure nothing bad happened

The pyrotechnics had finished setting up the fireworks

A few other families faces could be seen, Drew, Hau, Hop, Horace were just a few, even Cassidy and Butch arrived, thankfully they left Team Rocket

In the distance Ash could see Alder smiling back at him

And finally... His mother Delia and Mimey, who had left Ash to be in the crowd cheering him on

The clock was ticking down

Five minutes...
Four minutes...
Three minutes...

Ash took the last of his encouragement he could from Gary looking at him from over at the tree

Two minutes...
One minute...

Zero...

"Welcome everyone! Tonight is the night we have all been waiting for!" Says Professor Oak on the stage with Lance

"It is an honour to be given the opportunity to not only be here, but to see this event being thrown for one of my closest disciples, one of my closest students, and most importantly, a dear family friend" says Oak as he moved over so Lance could speak

"I would like to thank each, and everyone of you who came here tonight, I would love for you all to have a blessed evening tonight, and to celebrate the achievements of this individual" says Lance

Ash prepared himself

"Behind me you'll see our beloved champions, each here to pay respect to the new monarch" says Lance motioning to Steven, Cynthia, Iris, Diantha and Leon

"You ready Pikachu?" Asked Ash

"Chu!" Says Pikachu ready

"Now, the moment you've been waiting for, Could Ash Ketchum please step up to the podium" says Lance, Ash taking a deep breath

Ash began walking towards the stage, to which he was now visible to the entire crowd, which roared in excitement when they saw him

"You've got this, its just one sentence" whispers Lance to Ash in encouragement

Ash would step up to the podium and clear his throat...

"Thank you to everyone who showed up tonight, family, friends, even those who I've never met, I'm glad you all came here tonight" says Ash looking towards his mother, who smiled and nodded

"I'm glad to announce that the Party..." Stopped Ash

Everyone waited...

"That the Party starts now!" Exclaims Ash as the people cheered, Ash signing in relief to which he felt an arm on his shoulder

"Leave it to a kid like you to almost choke like that" teases Iris

"I'm sure you would have frozen too" replies Ash smugly

"Your completely right, but where's the fun in that" laughs Iris to which Ash laughs with her...

6PM...

An hour had passed, people had eaten to their hearts content

"This food is delicious!" Says Mimo as she hung out with Bonnie and Max, who both agreed, earning smiles from the group of May, Clemont and Kiawe, watching over their little siblings, they had all agreed to let Ash take them on their first adventure when they grow up

Misty, Brock and Dawn all hung out together with Ash, who planned on doing his speech at the closing of the event

Iris and Cilan had been hanging out with Goh and Chloe, each talking if their passions

The Alola group was with the champions, telling them how great Ash was in his battle with Gladion, which decided his position as Alolan Champion

Everyone was having fun, fortunately, the entertainment wasn't too far away as Serena, who was still with Lisia and Aria, had just called in May, Dawn, Chloe, Nini, Shauna, Miette and Solidad

We come back to Ash, who was talking with Misty, Brock and Dawn

"You know, I should probably try doing Pokémon performance myself..." Says Misty as she ponders the possibility

"Well, its more coordination then performing..." Says Dawn

"So Brock, what Pokemon would you recommend I catch with those Heavy Balls?" Asked Ash

"Well personally, an Onix wouldn't hurt, I would also recommend a Geodude, although you'd probably have more success if it was a Graveler!" Says Brock excited that Ash wanted his advice

"Oops, speaking of performing, I just got the call from the girls, we're starting our giant collaboration Performance soon" says Dawn as she gets up and runs off, leaving Ash with his original companions...

"So Ash, have you thought about what Pokemon your going to catch with those Dive Balls?" Asked Misty

"Well, I've given it some thought, maybe I could use a Wishi-Washi or maybe even a Wailord" says Ash

"Wishi-Washi..." Says Misty in dreamland

"Then again, this new region should have some interesting new Pokemon for me to see, so I'll have a look at that before I make a decision" says Ash

"Becoming responsible are we?" Grinned Misty

Ash groaned

"Its a part of growing up Ash, you've been doing amazingly" assures Brock...

POV switch to Delia

"Yes, I understand, so, you want him to open his gift now?" Asked Delia

"Yes, this... Job has been keeping me here, however I plan on getting there tomorrow at all costs" says Ghota

"I'll let him know" says Delia

"Tell him I'm sorry for missing out on the big day, I'll make it up to him with some father-son time" says Ghota happily

"Of course babe" says Delia smiling

"You have fun too dear, save some food for me" joked Ghota

"It's not me you have to worry about" laughed Delia

The two laughed until Ghota had to talk again

"I'm glad we are all still a family, I just wish I was more present..." Says Ghota in regret

"Non-sense, the money you provide to this household is invaluable, just like you" says Delia

"That's sweet hun, anyways, I'll need to get off now, get this... Job done" says Ghota as he blows loves and kisses to Delia as they hang up

Delia was happy, tomorrow they'd be fully together as a family...

Ash was walking around with Misty and Brock, trying out all sorts of different foods, talking to all kinds of new folk, the day was amazing, except for Brock, who had to be pulled of some women by the ear

"Such a horndog" says Misty as Brock was crying comedic tears

Ash was looking around when he saw his mother walking around

"Mom!" Yells out Ash getting the attention of Delia

"Oh Ash! I was looking for you!" Exclaimed Delia as she ran to him

"What's up?" Asked Ash

"Well, two things, first, Your father says he's sorry once again for missing today" says Delia

"He's still coming tomorrow right?" Asked Ash

"Of course" says Delia

Ash was happy with that answer

"And secondly, he said that you're allowed to open our present now" says Delia excited to see Ash's reaction

Ash would rumble around in his back and finds the Pokeball

"Let's see it!" Says Misty also curious

"Alright then! Come on out!" Says Ash as he releases the Pokemon out from its ball

"Zorua!" Shouts the Pokémon coming out of its ball

"Its a Zorua!" Says Brock

"But... Aren't Zorua's black and red? Not white and blue?" Asked Ash as he grabbed his Pokedex to scan it

"Fairly long hair as well" says Misty

"No data available" stated the Pokedex

"Huh... Cool!" Says Ash as he goes to the Zorua, who was curious yet careful of its new trainer

"Hey buddy, don't worry, I'm here to take care of you" says Ash as he slowly approached it

Zorua carefully got towards Ash and sniffed his hand, smelling no malicious intent, which calmed the Zorua, who now jumped onto Ash's shoulder

"Woah, I see you've taken a liking to me already" says Ash chuckling, Pikachu conversing with it

"Perhaps we should take it to the professors, If anyone would know, it be them" says Misty

"Your right!" Says Brock as he began looking in all directions

"They should be stationed around the main stage, they don't exactly want to move from there because of their duties" explains Delia

"Thanks Mom! tell Dad I said thanks too!" says Ash hugging his mother

"You'll see him tomorrow, you'll have plenty of time to thank him yourself" giggled Delia

"Come on guys, lets go!" said Ash as he and the group headed off to the professors...

7PM...

Ash and the gang had made their way to the professor's, who studied the strange Zorua..

"Cant say I know much about it" says Professor Juniper studying what they thought was a Unovan Pokemon

"Professor Oak, any comments?" asked Juniper

"Unfortunately not..." said Oak in confusion

"Wait a minute..." says Professor Rowan

"You have an Idea?" asked Professor Elm

"It's highly unlikely, but this Zorua strikes an uncanny resemblance to the Zorua native to Sinnoh a long time ago..." says Rowan looking at the small Pokemon , who was hiding behind Ash

"Are you saying this is a regional variant?" asked Sycamore

"Highly doubt it, that species of Zorua haven't been seen since, we determined that they either went extinct or went into hiding, Arceus knows what from" reveals Rowan

"How long ago was this species around?" asked Professor Ivy

"Back when the Sinnoh region was called the Hisui Region, some say as far as Three Hundred years ago, although some believe it was around One Hundred and Fifty years ago, which I see is more believable" explains Rowan

"Sinnoh was called Hisui?" asked Ash

"Yes, we supposedly had other Pokemon that have either gone extinct or into hiding" says Rowan

"Well, this talk is all fine and dandy, look what's about to start!" says Professor Kukui

The group looked as the Performers and coordinators hit the stage

"Oh Brock, Ash we just have to watch!" says Misty excited

"I will admit, I haven't seen many performances, let alone in person!" says Brock

"You kids have fun!" says Professor Sonia

"We will!" says Misty as the three run to watch the show

"Well, if you'll excuse me, I have to get my grandson, we have to get Ash's Presents ready, we both got him some Pokemon" says Oak knowing Ash would love them...

POV switch to Ash

Ash and the gang were enjoying the performance, each of them clearly rehearsed tirelessly for this result

"Hey you two, you think I should try being a performer?" asked Misty

The two boys gave it a thought

"Would you specialize in water type performances?" asked the duo

"Well, yeah! it'll be just like... oh... I see what your implying..." groans Misty as she thinks to her three sisters performances

the duo chuckled a bit before all three continued watching the performance...

8PM...

The performance was a huge success, everyone watching had been mesmerised by it, it was getting late, and most had returned home for the night, Ash sighed in relief that he didn't need to do his speech in front of too many people

Ash had regrouped with his entire friend group, they we're all having the times of their lives

The girls had all formed an immediate friend group with themselves

"So I've decided not to become a performer after all, I'll leave that to my sisters..." sweatdropped Misty

"I'm glad you know what you want to do" says May encouraging her...

"I'm sure you'll do great at becoming the Kanto Champion!" encourages Chloe

"This Pokemon looks cool!" says Max looking at pictures of Pokemon he'd want to catch alongside Bonnie and Mimo, he was looking at a Breloom

"Look how cute that one is!" pointed out Bonnie to the Ribombee

"This Pokemon looks both cool and cute!" says Mimo pointing to a Kantonian Marowak...

"So Ash, this is how to make Bonnie's favourite food, Enchiladas" says Clemont trying to make Ash a suitable guardian for Bonnie

"And don't forget this recipe here for Mimo, its a recipe for Satay Stir-fry" says Kiawe

"Hold on I'm getting overloaded!" exclaimed Ash as the two piled books of recipes on him, earning laughs from Brock, Cilan, Sophocles and Goh who were watching from not far away

Gladion had joined up with Paul, Trip and Alain, who all had a rivalry with Ash, Gary had been called to Professor Oak's Lab for Ash's presents

"You got all that Ash?" said Clemont and Kiawe in expectation

"I can learn all these, it'll just take some practice okay?!?" asked Ash as he was dumped with yet another pile of books

"Would you boys happen to know Ash's whereabouts?" asked a now emerged Professor Oak

Ash would stick his head out of the comedically large pile of cook books

"I'm here!" says Ash as he attempted to free himself, earning snickers from Goh

"I never thought I'd see the day when Ash Ketchum read a book" snickered Goh

"Don't you start..." said Ash as he felt like going back in the pile

"Now now Ash, I think you'll find that there are a few more things in store for you" says Oak as he extended a hand to help Ash out, which he gladly took

"What do you need me for Professor?" asked Ash

"Well actually, I think its best if you come with me back to the lab, its a present from me, Gary even has a present of his own to give you" said Oak happily

Ash was delighted to hear that and he gladly followed the Professor, the rest of Ash's companions followed

"Actually, why don't the rest of you stay out here, have fun, eat some more, there's still plenty off party snacks to be eaten" says Oak

Serena now was ready, it was only an hour until the fireworks would go off, she was now mentally ready

"We'll be waiting out here for you!' yells Serena with a smile to which Ash would reply

"I'll be out before you know it!" Replied Ash

Serena started to slowly turn redder as the clock counted down

"Let's go my boy, your mother has already made her way to the lab" says Oak as he and Ash start heading to the giant lab...

15 Minutes Later

Ash and the Professor had made it to the lab

"I don't see any Pokémon in the fields?" asked Ash

"Pika?" asked Pikachu also confused

"Yes, the wild Pokémon tend to hide around this time, and the Pokémon that are trainer owned have been returned to their balls for both safekeeping and to keep them from getting scared by the fireworks" explained the Professor

"Including mine?" asked Ash

"Of course" says Oak

"So, who else is here?" asked Ash

"Just you, Gary, your Mother and I" explained Oak

The two had entered the laboratory and started to traverse the large maze like corridor layout...

Unknown to them, 4 pairs of eyes were peering at them...

POV switch to the Team Rocket Agent

"He has arrived, permission to execute the plan?" asked the Team Rocket Agent

"You have permission, get those Ditto ready" orders Pierce

"On it" says the Agent cutting the line

"Alright you lot, positions!" orders the Agent lining up the 19 Ditto, who lined up and started transforming...

POV switch to Team Rocket Trio

"That twerp has foiled our plans everyday since we met him in Viridian city, and here we are now, about to make our final last assault!" says Meowth

"Meowth... its over... we failed, there is no final assault" explains James sickly

"Why have you two acting sick!? I've tested you, there's nothing wrong with either of you!" yells Meowth annoyed with the laziness of his human companions

"Meowth, have you not been having a really bad feeling in your stomach?" Asked Jessie

"Well... come to think of it, my fur has been acting strangely the past few hours" explained Meowth

"Something bad is about to happen soon, we can feel it" says James worried

"It's best we try to avoid anything that would prove that feeling right" says Jessie

"Fine... I guess we can sit here for the fireworks..." says Meowth sitting with his comrades...

The trio would put on their cloaks, lest they get recognised...

POV switch to Ash

"How can you even find your way around this place?" Asked Ash

"You get used to it when your entire life is spent within it" says Oak chuckling

The two had finally made their way into a large circular room, Gary, Mimey and Delia present

"Hi sweetie!" says Delia to Ash

"Sup Ashy-Boy" says Gary

"Actually, this reminds me, did you send Mimey back home?

"So, right down to business" says Oak as he goes to the centre of the room where the circular table is, he pressed a few buttons and out came a Pokeball

Ash had saw the Pokeball and was now very intrigued

"Here you go Ash, I've seen some of your friends with an evolution of this, so I thought that you may want one" says Oak as he released the Pokémon

"Eevee!" said Eevee as it came out fiercely

"An Eevee!" says Ash smiling

"Awwww it looms adorable!" says Delia who picked it up with no issues from Eevee, who actually seemed to like Delia

"Oh my Arceus aren't you just the fluffiest little thing!" says Delia as she played with the Eevee

"Well, whilst she's playing with that one, here, this is from me" says Gary as he released another Pokémon from its ball, revealing a Bagon

"Bagon!" yelled the dragon type

"A Bagon!" exclaimed Ash in excitement as he quickly ran up the the Bagon, to which the Bagon simply sidestepped Ash causing Ash to trip and fall, earning a laugh from the room, Ash loathed this, but started laughing himself, that's when Bagon went up to Ash and laid next to Ash...

POV switch to Ghota

"So, you ready to tell us what your planning?" asked Jenny as he had now lost all function in his arms due to Beedrill's poison

"H-he wants to use them for his personal collection!" lied the Grunt

"Hatter..." said Hatterene as it shook its head

Ghota was getting pissed, he was going to miss tomorrow at this rate

"That's it!" yells Ghota as he released his Pokémon

"Scizor!" says the metal bug

"Now, tell us the truth or I crush both your legs right now, I can make you a paraplegic if you want" says Ghota

This finally got the Grunt to loosen up

"Okay! he's planning on taking over the world with them and he's getting rid of anyone who can stop him!" says the Grunt begging for his life

"Hatterene" Commanded Ghota

Hatterene would scan once again, this time nodding he head

"Who are these individuals, where are they?!" asked Ghota as Scizor slowly crept in

"Their mostly other criminal organizations! Team Aqua, Magma, Skull, Galactic, Plasma and Flare!" Begged the grunt

"Scizor halt" commands Ghota

Scizor" says Scizor nodding its head once

"You said they're mostly organizations, who else is there?" asked Jenny

"They're kids from Pallet town not far from here!" says the Grunt still looking at Scizor's claw

"Scizor, do it!" Yelled Ghota as the grunt braced himself

Scizor would put his claw up against the grunts leg

"Who are these kids!?!!" Yelled Ghota fearing the worst

"One is the newly crowned Monarch! The new World Champion! he's supposed to be getting assassinated tonight! they placed bombs in the old geezer's lab, they will be exploded at any minute!" screamed the grunt

"NO!" yelled Ghota as he started running to the door, Returning Scizor and Hatterene, he didn't even bother asking for Hatterene's input

"Where are you going!?" asked Jenny

"That's my son!!!" yelled Ghota as he grabbed his bike keys and floored it, zipping down the street

'This is bad, this is really fucking bad!!!' Thought Ghota terrified

Ghota wasted no time grabbing out his phone and starting to call Delia...

"Come on... pick up!" yelled Ghota terrified...

POV switch to Giovanni

*The Ditto are in position* Reports Pierce

"Good, Domino, you know what to do" orders Giovanni

*Yes sir!* says Domino, then presses a button on a remote...

"Our time has begun..." says Giovanni smirking...

POV Switch to Ash

Ash had started to get the handle of Bagon

"Eevee!" says Eevee as it started to play with Ash a bit

"Pika!" Yelled Pikachu playing with the two new Pokemon

"So Ash, what do you think of tonight so far?" asked Oak

"It's been amazing! I'm glad that some people have left though, less people to embarrass myself infront of when I do this speech" sweatdropped Ash

The group would laugh at this and Ash would return his new Pokémon to their Pokeballs

"So Ash, would you like to go see you're old Pokémo-" Oak got interrupted

(Ring Ring Ring, Ring Ring Ring, Phone Call, Phone Call!)

"Oop, sorry, I'll take this" says Delia as she exits the room

"Must be father, he said he'd be arriving tomorrow" said Ash

"Anyways as I was saying, you want o head over to see your old Pokémo-" Oak was interrupted again, this time with a bang...

POV Switch to Delia

Delia had entered the room and answered the phone

"Hello?" asked Delia

"Delia where are you?!? Where's Ash?!?" Screamed Ghota

"We're in Professor Oak's Laboratory?" asked Delia confused

"You need to leave now!!" Yelled Ghota

"Wait what?" asked Delia now really confused and worried

"Team Rocket planted bombs all over the Lab! you need to run now!!" Yelled Ghota

Delia knew Ghota wouldn't lie about something that dangerous, so she immediately hung up and sprinted to the door...

POV switch to Ash

(Bang, Bang)

"Huh?" says Gary

"Pika?" Asked Pikachu getting a bad feeling

Oak would take a look at his watch

"Little early for fireworks?" says Oak as he looked at the time

8:35 PM...

"Weird, they're supposed to be going off at 9pm" said Gary

The three then heard a loud thud come from the door Delia went through

"We need to evacuate now!!" screamed Delia

The four were confused until the banging sound came closer

(Bang, Bang, Bang)

"They're bombs! we need to leave now!" Screamed Delia as she grabbed Ash's Arm and started trying to run to the exit corridor

(BANG)

The two were blown back by the force of the wall next to the exit corridor blowing open and collapsing, preventing exit from that way

"What the-" Yelled Gary as the parts laboratory started to shake, causing the roof to fall down in some areas, spreading flames through the exit points

"Shit!" Says Oak as he ran to the room that held all the trainer Pokémon and started to transfer all the Pokémon from this lab to the Pokémon Centre in Pallet

"This is Professor Oak from the Pallet town research lab! We're under an emergency! I repeat, there are bombs going off in the building! Transferring all Pokémon from this facility to yours!" Yells Oak as he teleported away all the Trainer Pokémon and coming out of the room

"We need to leave!" yelled Oak

"Blastoise!" yelled Gary as he released his starter

"Blastoise!" yelled the Pokémon after being released

"Blastoise! Hydro Cannon on the flames!" Yelled Gary as he kept the flames at bay

"Guys through here!" Yelled Ash as he found a way to exit the building

"Everyone behind me!" yelled Oak as everyone started going though the corridor

The group kept running and running, fire all around them which Blastoise was barely able to extinguish due to the amount

"Dammit! a dead end!" says Oak as he looked behind and saw Blastoise keeping the fire at bay

"Tyranitar! Come out!" says Gary

"Ran!" exclaims Tyranitar

"Tyranitar use Earthquake!" Yelled Gary, to which Tyranitar made the ground shake, removing all the debris

"The exit! its right there!" says Professor Oak as they turn the corner

"Blastoise, Tyranitar Return!" yelled Gary before they got ingulfed

The group began sprinting towards the exit

(BANG)

An explosion from above caused the roof to fall down, a piece of the debris and fire striking Ash, knocking him out and burning entire left arm

"ASH!!" screamed Delia as she went to pick her son up, getting stopped by more falling debris

They couldn't get past, the fire had now ingulfed the room, Gary couldn't release his Pokémon otherwise they'd be dead

"ASH!!" screamed Delia before they started hearing electricity coming from Ash

"Pika... CHU!!" Yelled Pikachu as it blasted the debris out of the way for Delia with a Thunderbolt

"Pikachu!!" Yelled Delia as she picked Ash up and gave him to Professor Oak, then proceeded to try to retrieve Pikachu

"Pikachu come on!" Screamed Delia trying to save her 2nd son

Pikachu couldn't do anything, he was the only thing keeping them from being ingulfed, and with a single smile, Thunderbolted her out of the way, pushing her away, causing more debris to fall down and trap Pikachu

"Pika...chu..." calmly says Pikachu before being ingulfed in the blazing inferno

"PIKACHU!!!" Screamed Delia in tears

"Delia watch out!" Yelled Oak as he ran towards her, watching as debris came down from above, knocking her out

"Delia!" Yelled Oak as he grabbed her and told Gary to take Ash

The 4 were mere meters away from the exit

(BANG)

The force from the explosion knocked Oak off of his feet making him fall, falling behind, he tried to get up again before another roof just above Gary was about to collapse, with the last of Oak's strength he managed to push Gary out the way

"Grandpa!" yelled Gary as he saw his old man passed out on the ground

"Grandpa wake up!!!" screamed Gary

"..."

He didn't receive any response

"Grandpa... come on..." croaked Gary in tears

"Ga...ry..." Said Delia waking up

"Delia! come on we need you!" cried Gary

"Take... Ash and... Get... Out of... Here" says Delia softly before passing out yet again, falling debris covering her in flames

Gary's vision became blurred, his eyes were blocked by his tears, which he forced himself to wipe away

Gary would look behind him and see Ash

"I'm sorry Grandpa, Delia, Pikachu..." says Gary as he runs to Ash and continues to exit the building, succeeding in doing so

Gary would post Ash up against a tree and attempt to go back in to save Delia, Pikachu and his grandpa, only for one final bang to occur

(BANG)

The force from the explosion threw Gary back into the forest, knocking him out...

The noise from the explosion was enough to be heard from all over the Kanto region...

POV switch to Friends

More people had left, the Champion and Professors had all left, Alain, Paul and Trip had all left, including most of the performance crew, only people remaining were the residents of Pallet and Ash's travelling companions...

"Mmmm, this food is amazing!" Says Brock happily stuffing his face

"Hey guys... Shouldn't Ash have been back by now?" said Serena worried checking her watch

8:55PM

"The fireworks are about to start?" said Sophocles

"I have a bad feeling about this..." says Lillie

Serena was getting nervous, her plan would be for nought if he didn't show up

Iris was sniffing the air

"Hey, anyone smell smoke?" asked Iris

"Now that you mention it..." says Dawn worried

(BANG)

The explosion shook the ground beneath them

"Okay who used Earthquake?" asked Kiawe

"Is... is that?" asked Goh

"Fire!" Yelled Misty

The group saw the fire... it was coming from the Research Lab!

"T-that's the research lab!" exclaimed Tracey

"That's where Ash is!" yelled Brock

"What are you all doing! we need to help!" Yelled Gladion

The group snapped out of their fear and started running to the lab

"You three remain here!" Yelled Gladion to Max, Bonnie and Mimi, who all tried to object but failed...

The group continued to run

"You think Ash is alright?" asked Cilan severely worried

"I have seen him survive drops from skyscrapers, he has to be fine" says Clemont trying to keep calm, not really doing well

"Ash, I swear, if this is another prank of yours" says May almost tearing up at the thought of what she thought was happening

"Everyone get on a ride Pokemon!" yelled Mallow as Kiawe nodded

"Come on out Charizard!" Yelled Kiawe as he released the giant dragon, allowing the Alola Gang on

"Dragonite!" Commanded Iris, letting Cilan, May and Max on

"Gyarados!" yelled Misty as she allowed the remainder on

The group would fly full speed to the lab, hoping to see their friend safe and sound...

POV switch to Ash

Ash had been laying under the tree for a short amount of time

"Pika...chu" said Ash as he woke up from his unconscious state, awake to stare at the burning lab infront of him

"The lab..." says Ash weakly, he couldn't stand, he could only look around slowly

Ash would do just that and stare off into the forest and see someone familiar

"G-Gary?" Said Ash in fear

"Don't trust them Ash" said the Male figure standing up in the rubble staring at him

Ash would rub his eyes and nothing was there anymore

"They'll betray you, you have to believe us" said the female figure, also standing and staring at Ash

"Who... are you!" mustered Ash from his down state, rubbing his eyes again, once again, nothing was there

Ash would once again try to speak, slightly succeeding

"What... Is... This..." asked Ash

The two phantom visions would then speak in unison

"I tried to warn you Ash" said the invisible spectre's

Ash then remembered something... his dream...

"This... this is like then..." said Ash

"Yes, I tried to warn you of this event, it appears I failed... he has gotten too powerful..." says the Mysterious voice behind the two spectre's

Ash would look around once again

"Where's... Mom... Professor... Oak?" asked Ash before taking another look around

"Where's... Pikachu..." asked Ash

It's then when a third Spectre appears, in the form of a Pikachu

"I'm sorry Ash..." says the voice

Ash understood what was being spoken and shown, but he couldn't believe it, they had to be alive, they had to be!

Ash would try to say the voice is lying, but he couldn't, he didn't allow himself to, deep down he knew, he knew the voice was telling the truth

All Ash could do was cry, he couldn't do anything else, the voice spoke again

"I'm sorry..." says the voice again, this time the three invisible spectre's finally collapsed

"Mom... Pikachu... Professor..." said Ash slowly before looking at Gary once again, this time, a hooded figure was approaching him, Ash had a better look at the figure, it was Jessie

"Team... Rocket..." spoke Ash quietly

The other two members approached Ash

"What the hell happened?... they... they didn't deserve this!..." said James shook and scared

"I don't know James... Least we can do is make sure they live..." said Jessie also shook

"Come twerp... this may hurt a bit" warns James

Ash watched as James started to pick him up and carry him over his shoulder

Ash was about to lose conscience again... he had one last look around

That's when he saw them...

His former friends, here to rescue him...

Atleast... that's what he thought... all it took was one good look to see that they were all smiling at him, smiles of happiness... they we're smiling... at his fate...

Ash passed out...

"..."

"..."

"..."

POV switch to Team Rocket Agent

The mission was a success, the lab had blown up, however the camera that was planned to stay online as evidence was destroyed

"Dammit" says the Agent as he retrieved all the ditto's and started to get out of the area...

POV switch to Friends

They were close, the fire had spread throughout the forest

"Misty!" yelled Gladion

"Staryu, Starmie, Psyduck, Politoed, Clauncher!" Yelled Misty releasing her Pokemon

"Inteleon!" Ordered Goh

"Primarina!" Exclaimed Lana

"Wartortle!" Yelled May

"Use Water Gun!" yelled the group

With the 8 Pokemon's teamwork, they managed to get through the forest quite easily

When they laid eyes on the lab that was in flames, they didn't hesitate

"Use Water Gun!" yelled the group

Within minutes the place had been mostly extinguished, they decided to look around the area... Nothing...

"Anyone have any luck?" Asked Serena now on the verge of tears

Just in the nick of time, the other residence of Pallet Town arrived, including Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny

"Alright everyone! Could you all please clear out any fires you see around the area?" Asks Officer Jenny with her Megaphone, spreading the residents outwards

"You kids stand back, we don't know what we'll find in this rubble, in case we... In case we find something you'll not want to see..." Says Nurse Joy

The group tried to object, but they backed down, they left the professionals to their work

"Please be okay, please be okay, please be okay" said Serena quietly in tears

"Ash... You have to be okay..." Says Brock as he also feared the worst

The others in the group we're also fearful, almost in tears as well, Gladion trying his best not to show it

"Officer Jenny..." Says Nurse Joy as they looked around

All it took for Officer Jenny to know what Nurse joy was about to say was one look at her eyes

"I see..." Says Jenny as she goes to look at who the deceased was...

"God dammit..." Says Jenny as she sees the burnt male body accompanied by the burnt female body

"Joy, go to the kids, get them off the scene... I'll contact you more information if I find any..." Says Jenny in grief

"Of course..." Says Joy in as much grief

Joy would walk up to the friend group

"We have been given orders to remove you all off the premises..." Says Joy as she saw the now terrified expressions on their faces

"Come... Let's go back to the Centre..." Expressed Joy as she took the rest back to town...

POV switch to Giovanni

*The mission was mostly a success according to my agent, although the camera that was supposed to capture footage of the ditto disguised as those brats had also been destroyed...* said Pierce

"Won't matter, we already have 6 legendary Pokémon, and soon to have more, they won't have any chance against us either way" says Giovanni

*Another thing sir, what shall we do with my agent? He knows too much* says Pierce

"I'll let you decide what to do with him, keep him, kill him, either way works really" says Giovanni

*Excellent, cutting the line* says Pierce ending the chatter

Giovanni was VERY happy, his only competition was now gone, reduced to ashes, which he found ironic, only adding to his sadistic smile...

Giovanni got on call with Domino

*Giovanni Sir!* said Domino

"Congratulations, we succeeded in our goal, the brat is no more now there will be no-one powerful enough to stop us" says Giovanni

*So we start on stage 3?* asked Domino

"I like the eagerness, but no, not yet, we still have some planning to do in terms of recapturing Mewtwo" explains Giovanni

*Understood sir!* responded Domino

"I'll context you again once stage 3 is ready to be executed" says Giovanni cutting the line

"Perr" said Persian receiving pets from Giovanni

"The time for Team Rocket has now begun, nothing can stop us now" says Giovanni as he starts cackling maniacally...

POV switch to friends

The group had gone back to the place of the party, which was now a ghost town, no-one was anywhere except for the three little children, who were comforting Bonnie

"Hey you 3..." Says Clemont walking up to them slowly

"Is everything okay?" Asked Max

"What happened?" asked Mimo

"Where's Ash?" Asked Bonnie scared

"We don't know yet..." Says Clemont trying to jeep his composure

Everyone was trying their absolute hardest to keep calm, Ash had to be alive, he's Ash, he couldn't have just been taken from them

Joy's radio would start to go off

"Sorry kids, I have to take this..." Says Joy as she gets out of hearing range

"Report" says Joy

"We... Pikachu..." Says Jenny sadly

"I... I see... Its safe to assume Ash had perished too then?..." Asked Joy

"As much as I regret to inform... We haven't found his body... Nor have we found the body of Gary Oak... Its safe to assume that they either survived and fled, or burnt so much that they turned to Ash..." Said Jenny trying not to cry

"We can only hope..." Says Joy as she turns the radio off, and walks back to the group

"You all should head back to the Pokémon Centre, I'm going to contact all your family's, we will let you all know if we find anything..." Says Joy trying to keep them hopeful

"I saw your face when you called Officer Jenny over..." Said Gladion

Joy didn't want them to lose hope... But she had been called out...

After giving it some thought, she decided to tell the truth

"We... Found... We found the remains of Professor Oak, Delia Ketchum and Pikachu..." Said Joy as she started to tear up

The group stood there motionless, pale expressions plastered all over them...

Misty was the first to break down in tears, being comforted by an also crying Brock

"This... This has to be a prank... It has to be..." Cried May

The three students had also looked lifeless, Clemont started to look after Bonnie, Dawn looked after Max, as Kiawe took care of Mimo, all bursting into their own tears

"Serena..." Said Chloe as she hugged the poor love struck girl, who was still processing the information she had heard, breaking down little by little, eventually falling to the ground in silence...

Everyone was horrified... Everyone was now fearful for Ash

"Fortunately... We didn't find Ash Ketchum's or Gary Oak's bodies, that means that there is a chance that they're still alive..." Says Joy as she tried to soften the very deep hole left in them

That's when Officer Jenny came back from the scene

"Okay... My men can handle the rest... Judging from their expressions I guess you told them..." Said Jenny as she took out her handkerchief to wipe her tears

"Any information on the two boys?" Asked Joy

"So far... None... It's as if they vanished..." Said Jenny

Iris and Cilan both tried to to care of Goh and May, who we're both also in deep tears

Tracey was hit majorly by this, his friend, his mentor, his research, his life's work, his home, all gone in a matter of minutes...

The Alola gang wasn't fairing very well either, even Gladion was struck hard by this, and no matter how hard he tried to keep it in, the tears kept flowing...

"Any information on the Pokémon stored at the lab?" Asked Joy

"We received a call from the Viridian City Pokémon Centre, all trainer owned Pokémon we're successfully transferred to their centre..." Says Jenny

Clemont heard this

"Wait... You said Ash could still be alive right?" Asked Clemont

"It is possible, and we can only hope that it's the case..." Said Joy

"I have an idea to find him then!" Exclaimed Clemont through his tears

The rest of the group looked shocked at him

"What's your idea kid?" Asked Jenny intrigued

"Ash had a Greninja during our travels, he had a unique bond with it, they could sense each other over any distance! if Ash's Pokémon were sent to the Centre not far from here, we could retrieve Greninja and he'll lead us to him!" Pitched Clemont

The rest of the group backed him up, they had to try anything to make sure Ash is alive, if there was anyway to make sure their friend was alive, they would take it

"Alright, Nurse Joy, give me the keys to the Pokemon Centre, I'll go there and get this Geninja of Ash's, I'll follow it to make sure" says Jenny

"Can't we go with it?" asked Bonnie

"Sorry kiddo, it's not exactly something for you children to take care of, this is now a police investigation, I'd get sacked if they found out I let kids do the task" says Jenny as she called out an Arcanine and started to run to the Centre

The group started to tear up again, all in hopes that Ash was still with them...

POV switch to Ash

*Ash, get to bed! You should be asleep... Well, if you can't sleep, you should at least get ready for tomorrow, here, watch this...*

*Ash! It's so good to see you again! It's been so quiet without you around!...*

*They're bombs! we need to leave!...*

*So you decided to show up after all... Your Pokémon? You look like you're ready for bed, not for Pokémon training, I hope you don't think you're going to train in your pajama's...*

*Ah hello Ash, I didn't expect to see you here for another couple days, you know the celebration is a week's away right? Or are you showing up early for a change?...*

*This is Professor Oak from the Pallet town research lab! We're under an emergency!...*

*Spearow's, do you know who I am? I'm Ash from the town of Pallet, I am destined to be the world's number one Pokémon master, I can't be defeated by the likes of you, I'm going to capture and defeat you all! You hear me!? Pikachu, go inside the Pokéball, It's the only way... come and get me!...*

*Hey Pikachu, what do we do now? I mean... I know there's the Paldea Region, but I mean before that, we have an entire weeks worth of time to spare before the Celebration back at Pallet Town... Hmm, I guess we cou- Oh so we're doing this now are we...?*

*Pika... CHU!!!!*

"Pikachu!!" Screamed Ash as he violently woke up

"Holy shit he's alive!" says James as he runs up to Ash and gives him some water

Ash's body was not ready to act that violently, luckily he wasn't going any faster, Ash took a slow look around as he noticed he was stuck in a cave, infront of him was Team Rocket

"You three stay away from Pikachu!" yelled Ash as he sat completely defenceless

"Relax twerp, you'll damage your body more if you move too much" says Jessie as she walks up to Ash and gently sets him back to resting

"If we we're after Pikachu, we would have already left you in the dust, or in this case... the flame. honestly I'm surprised we didn't steal your other three Pokemon off you" says Meowth

"The... Flame..." says Ash as he starts to remember the events that had put him here

The three spectre's, the voice... Gary...

Ash took another look around and saw Gary laying next to him, still unconscious

"Where... are we?" asked Ash

"We're in a cave right now, taking shelter from the heavy rain that has started to pelt down" says Jessie

"It's a miracle your alive twerp, your left arm isn't looking well at all..." says James uncharacteristically caring

Ash would look to his left arm, it was fully bandaged up, he took a peak at what was underneath and was met with the sight and smell of burnt flesh, Ash looking away

"Professor Oak... Pikachu... Mom..." squeaked Ash as he remembered the vision, beginning to tear up

"We... we're sorry, we had a look around the area, we couldn't find anyone else..." says Jessie

"He's just 10 years old... losing his best friend to thieves like us is one thing... but losing your mother and role model in a fire too..." says James saddened

The three knew that there was no way to cheer the boy up, they decided to just let him run his course...

POV Switch to Officer Jenny

Jenny had been rummaging through the collective pile of transferred Pokémon, eventually finding the Greninja that was owned by Ash

"Greninja!" Yelled Jenny releasing the frog Pokemon

"Gren?" says Greninja not knowing who this woman was

"I'm Officer Jenny of Pallet Town, your trainer Ash Ketchum may have gone missing and I heard you had an ability that could be able to locate him?" asked Jenny

Greninja was taken aback by what this woman had said, Ash couldn't have just up and disappeared

"I know it's a lot to take in, but please, you have to trust me, the life of Ash Ketchum could be at stake here" Says Jenny

Greninja heard the coolness in her voice, he knew she wasn't lying

"Greninja" said Greninja as it closed his eyes and started to search for Ash's part of their bond

"..."

"Gren!" yelled Greninja transforming into Ash Greninja, he nodded to Jenny and started to run to the exit

"Let's go Arcanine!" said Jenny as she started following the Greninja...

POV switch to Ash

Ash had shed all his tears, he only laid there, empty, lifeless...

"Twerp... Ash was it... once your friend here awakens, we'll take you back to where ever you need to be, We can even gather your friends to comfort you..." says Meowth

Ash had remembered the last thing he saw before passing out...

'Those smiles... No, they couldn't have... they wouldn't do that to me... they're my friends!' Thought Ash

"Hey Ash, here, have some of this, it'll allow you to think straight" says Meowth as Ash looked at the Cat Pokemon and accepted

"Thanks" says Ash still in the middle of his thinking

Well that water did clear up his thinking a bit

'Why we're they smiling? they were looking at me... They saw me... they smiled...' Thought Ash as he started to unconsciously clench his fist

'Why... WHY!...' thought Ash continuously

"Ash..." said a voice from Ash's side

"G-Gary..." responded Ash

Gary was more recollected then Ash was, he remembered seeing his grandfather, Delia, and Pikachu all evicirated by the flames, and most importantly, he saw them

"I'm sorry Ash... I couldn't save them..." says Gary already having lost his ability to cry

Ash continued to think about his friends...

"They did this..." said Ash clenching his fist and teeth

"I take it you saw them too..." said Gary

"Who did you two see?" asked James

"Them... My friends..." said Ash pissed and betrayed, remembering the times he spent with them, all for their betrayal

POV switch to Jenny

Greninja had been leading the way towards Ash, Jenny right behind him, Rain pouring onto them

"Stupid Rain, this is not the time to try to slow us down!" yelled Jenny

"Ninja!" says Greninja as he felt the bond with Ash fading, he was dying...

Greninja went full speed ahead, fast enough so that Arcanine and Jenny couldn't keep up with him

"Greninja wait up!" yelled Jenny, to no such luck, Greninja had vanished from their sight, she continued going in the same direction...

POV switch to Ash

"They did it?!" asked the trio

Both boys continued to think about it, getting angrier and angrier, until Gary calmed himself down

"Ash... we need to tell the authorities, I know they're your friends and all, but they not only just destroyed Kanto's Head of Development Research Centre, but also killed our folks, they need to be in chains" says Gary trying to not admit he would like nothing more then to cave them in himself

Ash however, was not taking it so lightly

"No..." said Ash sporadically

"Ash they need to be-" Gary was cut off

"They deserve worse then chains..." says Ash pissed and conflicted

'What am I saying, they're my friends, they couldn't have done it!' Thought Ash's conscience

'They were smiling at us as we almost burned to death! they blew the building up and killed Professor, Mom and Pikachu!' Argued Ash's thoughts

Ash was having a fight within himself, and the negative logical thoughts were winning

"They deserve to rot in hell..." Said Ash which shocked everyone in the cave

Ash argued in his mind, but the negative thoughts had won

"Ash, calm down, you need to think about this logically!" yelled Gary as he attempted to get up and talk some sense into Ash

"You three..." said Ash as he looked at team rocket

The trio was beyond scared at this point

"Y-yeah!" squeaked James

"What do you think on the matter" says Ash coldly, looking for validation in his belief

The three were terrified, so they said something that they know he'd say no to

"Your right! You could join Team Rocket! being a criminal isn't all that bad" says Jessie hoping that this question would snap Ash back to his senses and allow him to see that his thoughts are criminal like

Ash would look at them with angry eyes, which gave them chills but ultimately having their plan work...

POV switch to Greninja

The bond was getting weaker and weaker, Greninja was at it's limit, he began one last final push to save Ash

POV switch to Ash

Ash continued looking at Team Rocket with a pissed expression, but that expression started to soften...

"Ash, you can't actually be thinking of joining them!" Yelled Gary

"I'll do it" says Ash

"ASH!" Yelled Gary

Ash would look at Gary with eyes that looked like stone from the way they no longer shined

The trio were both terrified beyond belief, but curious, Ash wanted to join Team Rocket...

"Gary... Please... Your the only close family I have left... I need you with me" says Ash

"Your father Ash, he's getting here tomorrow!" that's your chance to get revenge!" says Gary

"You think anyone will believe us when we tell them that a bunch of kids blew up a Research Lab?" Asked Ash which did catch Gary off guard

"Ash... rethink this, there are many other options that are better then joining Team Rocket" says Gary

Ash looked at Gary then attempted to stand up, succeeding

"Then you can do them... alone" says Ash wanting his revenge on his friends

"Wait... so you actually want to?" asked the Trio

"Yes, take me to Giovanni" says Ash

The trio didn't dare think of rejecting the World Champion as a Team Rocket member, except Jessie, she thought differently

James would look at Gary and thinking of Ash, he silently nodded to Gary letting him know that he did the right thing

Gary couldn't handle it...

"Fine! I'll join..." says Gary which earned yet another heartfelt nod from James

As much as Jessie liked the idea of a World Champion working for Team Rocket, she knew that Ash was still a ten year old, and eventually gained the courage to speak to Ash

"Before we leave... are you absolutely sure you want to join Team Rocket? I'll warn you this, so hear it well... Once you join Team Rocket, there is no turning back, If you attempt, you'll be hunted down, only reason Cassidy and Kyle haven't been caught is because Team Rocket's been more busy in expanding then capturing traitors" says Jessie getting butch's name mixed up again

As much as Ash wanted his revenge, this question did snap him back to reality of what he was doing...

"I'm going with you Ash, if we ever need to run from it... I'll be here with you..." says Gary

"You'll need this to cover your burn" says James putting a coat on Ash that he had found in the disguise kit

"Thanks... all of you..." says Ash shedding one final tear

"let's go..." says Ash as the group started walking towards the Team Rocket hot air balloon, leaving Ash's half burnt hat behind in the cave...

POV switch to Greninja

Greninja was not far away from Ash, he could feel it

He continued to Dash through the trees before...

"Gren!!" yelled Greninja as it fell from the trees into the ground...

It had lost connection to Ash, reverting back into normal Greninja

Feeling Ash's connection lose all being... he knew what had happened... Ash was gone...

"GRENINJA!!!" Screamed Greninja in mourning, getting attention of an Officer Jenny, who had started to catch up

"Greninja!" Yelled Jenny as she stopped Arcanine to examine the wounded Frog Pokémon

Jenny had realized that Greninja had reverted its appearance back into a regular Greninja

"...I'm sorry" says Jenny as she knew what had happened... she had felt it, she shed a few tears of her own before returning the Frog to its ball, she looked at her map and immediately took shelter under a nearby tree

"This... This is Officer Jenny, I'm located in the forest east of Pallet Town, Places of interest in my area are a river to the north of me and a mountain to the east of me, right in front of me, Mainly populated by Caterpie's and Weedle's, a couple Pinsir's and Scyther's, and a giant Snorlax!" said Jenny over the radio

"Stay where you are, we have finished clearing the wreckage and have sectioned off the area, I'm sending a group of guys to retrieve you now, stay put!" ordered the Operator on the other end

"One last thing, I have reason to believe that the body of Ash Ketchum and Gary Oak are somewhere here, I was following one of Ash's Pokémon here but they collapsed" Explained Jenny

"We'll section that square off from the public aswell, stay put, we'll come get you" says the Operator

Jenny would cut the line and sit down, and began thinking of ways to explain to those poor children about their dear friend, more importantly, the world about the sudden loss of the new Monarch...

POV switch to Friends

The group had finally returned to the Pokémon Centre, there they immediately huddled for comfort and support

Misty and Brock had been crying ever since they heard of the deaths of Oak, Delia and Pikachu

May was tending to make sure Max was okay

Dawn was with Goh and Chloe, each having run through their tears

Iris and Cilan stayed huddled together and looked at a photo that Iris kept on her, the photo was the day before Ash left Unova for Kalos

Clemont had managed to get Bonnie to sleep, which didn't matter as she was crying either way

Serena had long since been crying the longest out of all of them, her childhood friend and crush may have passed away, she couldn't handle the thought of that being the case, so she attempted to believe, it wouldn't stop the crying however

The Alolan gang had already prayed to the Tapu's for good luck, although they themselves were also crying along with the others, Gladion of course trying not to

"Okay... its time for sleep Mimo..." gently said Kiawe

"Will... Will Ash be okay?" asked Mimo

"We can only hope so..." says Kiawe before putting her to bed

"Max... come... you should start sleeping too..." suggests May

"But I want to be awake just in case Ash-" Max was cut off

"Max... please..." says May still tearing

Max saw his sister and immediately relented

"Okay..." says Max as he also went to sleep

Minutes would go by, no-one spoke a word, the only noises being heard were the sounds of those still crying

"There's... there's something I want to grab..." says Misty as the rest looked up at her

"It's... it's an album... it's in Ash's house, I heard from Delia that Mimey had returned home, we could probably grab it tomorrow..." says Misty thinking of old times

*Ash, put that slimy thing back in the Pokéball! Bugs are one of the three most disgusting things in the world!... Very funny, carrots, peppers, and bugs! Everybody has something they don't like and I don't like bugs!*

"Well... If you plan on doing that, I guess we should all try to get some sleep, hopefully we have good news tomorrow..." says Clemont, getting agreements from the entire Alolan gang, Goh, Iris, Cilan, Tracey, Dawn and Brock

"I'm going to take a walk outside for a bit" says Serena as she walks out the door

"I'm going with her" says Chloe

"I've gotta keep a watch over Max..." says May

"Don't worry" says Chloe

"I'll come out too" says Brock, helping Misty to follow

The 3 go out to support Serena, spotting her curled up on the wall, looking at a Pokeball of hers

"That's the Luvdisc right?" asked Brock

"Yes... It was supposed to be one of two gifts from me to him..." says Serena

"Hey, we're all in this together, just like before" says Chloe

"Hey Misty..." says Serena

"Y-yeah?" asked Misty

"Your Ash's first travelling companion right?" asked Serena

"Yeah..." says Misty sitting next to her

"How did you two meet?" asked Serena, finding comfort in Ash's tales

"It was a freak accident really... He was being chased by a flock of Spearow, and jumped from the cliff ahead of me, landing in the river I was fishing in, I had caught his Jacket with my fishing rod, fished him up good I did" chuckled Misty trying to lighten the mood

"Sounds like Ash, he seems to love jumping off high ledges..." says Serena with a little sad smile

"Anyways, so then, the Spearow continued to hunt him down, so he stole my bike and rode away from the flock, at some point he had crashed and Pikachu had burnt my bike to a crisp" says Misty

"Sounds like May's story" says Serena

"He has destroyed 3 of our bikes, Mine, May's and Dawn's" says Misty

Serena giggled a bit

"Anyways, I collected my burnt scrap metal and found him in Viridian city, where I followed him until I decided to go on my own after we left Johto" says Misty tearing up once more

"Did he ever replace your bike?" asked Serena

"Yes, and I didn't like it, I thought he meant it as a way to say 'Go away' when in fact, he meant 'Thanks'" says Misty

"Thanks for the tale... it really calms me down..." says Serena

The group was silent for a bit

"Well, I think I've calmed down enough to try to sleep now... lets all wish us the best of luck for tomorrow" says Serena

The group would proceed back inside the Pokemon Centre, and eventually everyone had fallen asleep...

POV switch to Ash

The group of 5 had been flying for a little while now, it was beginning to reach midnight...

"I'm not going to lie, I am anxious about allowing you to join us Ash" says Jessie

"Yeah... You're still 10 years old, and you've been an enemy of Team Rocket for ages now, even personally angered the Boss" says James

"We can handle ourselves" says Gary

"Thank you three for the concern, but I have made my mind up" says Ash

Jessie was getting slightly annoyed at Ash, he knew what he was getting himself into, and he didn't care

"Destination in 300 Meters!" exclaimed Meowth

Ash would look in the distance and see the Team Rocket headquarters, isolated in the rocky terrain

"This is last final warning, are you sure this is what you want to do? there is no going back, I'm just looking out for you here" says Jessie

"Gary..." asked Ash

"If your going in, I'm going in to make sure you stay safe" says Gary justifying him joining

The balloon had finally landed, they walked up to the front door, a camera watching them

"So Ash... We're really doing this huh?..." asked Gary wiping a tear away, knowing his grandpa would be disappointed in them

Ash would give Gary a sympathetic look and a surprise hug, which for once Gary didn't protest, he actually needed a hug after what had transpired

"Let's go" says Ash as the 5 walk in...

POV switch to Matori

"What! How is he alive!" yelled the Team Rocket Secretary

"More importantly why are those three buffoons bringing him in! have they finally lost it!?!" yelled Matori as she started to run to Giovanni's Quarters

Matori would knock on the door, hearing a call from Giovanni

"Come in" said Giovanni

"Sir, we have some seriously bad news!" Exclaimed Matori

"It can't be enough to outbalance what we have achieved today" says Giovanni still happy about his plan

"It's just that! those three idiot's have returned!" said Matori

"Perfect, I promised Pierce I would reprimand them" said Giovanni

"They brought the Monarch with them!" informed Matori

Giovanni's next words could be heard throughout the upper levels of the Headquarters

"WHAT!!!..."

Chapter 8 finished

Hmmmm... I'm not gonna lie, I like the way this turned out, however, reading over this kinda made me realise how little I utilised Pikachu, like, he barely got used at all outside the first chapter and the first battle chapter with Kiawe, couldn't have figured that out any later could I?

I'm not sure if I like this, I love the way the story is panning out, but its hard to justify Ash wanting to take revenge on his friends Immediately for something he has no prove of them doing, just his own eyes telling him they did, and the fact that I really don't want to just make him this 'Edgy dark mysterious' character right out the gate, if that ever happens, it'll be MUCH later down the line, a couple time skips from now, changing your personality doesn't just happen like that, so I want to make it a slow but consistent thing, which is kinda hard to write in a story where the whole point is to basically turn them against his friends, which normal Ash wouldn't do, so whilst I personally don't like the way I wrote Ash in this chapter, it's kinda necessary, considering the alternative his him becoming straight up evil from the jump

Overall though, I'm happy with the conclusion, fun fact, the reason I made it so that Ash still had all his Pokemon was because I actually planned to have them all killed off during the explosions, but then I remembered that Pokemon don't die if the Pokeball they're inside breaks, and no, that Pikachu Pokeball scene is different, that was supposed to represent Pikachu dying, little foreshadowing in there, so I had to write a whole new way to get rid of them so that he can get a new team that would fit his overchanging and increasingly fragile mindset

I also planned on having Gary join him regardless, but when you consider Oak's stance on Team Rocket and the fact that Gary is his grandson, It would make sense that he didn't want to disappoint his newly deceased grandfather who died not even a few hours ago, but for the sake of the plot, I had to move it forward, wouldn't want a full 5 chapters of Gary contemplating joining Ash now would we XD

Once again, If you see any Spelling/Grammatical errors, please let me know, I tend to go over them every now and again but if there's one that you know of that REALLY bugs you, let me know and I can fix it, I am also planning on making the chapters a bit shorter, less wait time, less burn out, better for all parties, i'm thinking maybe 6k words? I don't know, ill find a good amount

This is Cahp, signing off for a mental break, this chapter has kept me up at night, literally, I've pulled atleast 2 whole nighters during the writing of this chapter, I already have a base story down, its just that I want to expand of that to make a story that feels like a story, not JUST a revenge fantasy, which there will be plenty of, just later on, Ash is going to have to prove himself before then ;)

*Signs off*

"I'm gonna find like 20 mistakes as I go through this aren't I?"