Nine-Sixteenth
Anonymous Author
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- 13
- Years
- Somewhere
- Seen Sep 24, 2012
Chapter 20: Alternatives
Spoiler:
The two fell face-flat onto the dirt.
"H-How far is this thing?" May whined as she refused to move.
"I could've sworn it was closer…" Ash grumbled, trying to drag himself forward.
"Liiiiiizaaa!!!" he shouted into the open air.
No response.
"…you sure that pokétab isn't giving us the wrong directions?"
"I wouldn't know! I've never been there!" She slipped out the device and slapped it down on the ground in front of her. She lazily pressed random buttons on the screen in the hopes it would magically give them new information. "And who is this Liza you keep calling? I don't think we'll see anyone for miles…"
"Liza's the one who I called to get my charizard to help us, remember? She watches over Charicific Valley…" Ash moaned as he fell back onto his chest. "…there's no natural road into it. Someone needs to take a Flying Pokémon to get in there. And Liza decides who gets in and out."
"What?! Why didn't you mention that earlier?!"
"Why? Would it change any plans if I did?"
"We could've called ahead of time!"
"I already did. I called her from Bill's while we were leaving."
"And…?"
"Line's disconnected…"
She groaned in response. "I give up…"
Espeon hopped onto the pokétab and pawed at its flashing and rotating images.
May rolled onto her back. "Yeah… you make it work, Espy… I don't know how to work that thing…"
Ash rolled beside her. "And yet they trusted you with it?"
"Hey, it's not like Angie or Maylene would know how to work that device better than me!" She paused, taking a large gulp of water from her bottle before continuing. "Ahhh – that's good… and Sabrina said that if she held it, it'd probably explode or something…"
Ash fumbled his hand across May's body, trying to find the water bottle. She shoved the drink into his hand before he could touch anything embarrassing. "Geez, just ask next time."
He tilted the bottle back, swallowing as much of the sweet water his body would allow him to.
"Don't drink it all!" She snatched the drink back.
Ash lazily tried to get the bottle back, to no avail.
…
The two sighed in unison, both exhausted.
May looked up into the sky, watching the clouds pass by.
"We should probably set up camp… It's getting dark."
Her eyes were tired and her mind was strained. She didn't want to sleep, but her body protested at her being awake. And to make it worse, her internal clock was completely off.
Their constant sleeping during mornings and moving at night… The nervous energy that had kept her awake during their travels in the Rocket Tunnel… And now her fatigue from their uphill hike… All of them factored in confusing and irritating her body and mind to the point of conflict.
But now was the time for rest – as navigating up cliff roads, that tended to get narrow at the most unexpected times, did not seem smart to continue during nightfall.
"Did you bring any tents?" Ash asked as he struggled to sit up. His body sore from the constant walking.
"You didn't?"
The two sighed. "I didn't think we'd need them." they admitted in unison.
"We should've rested at the Pokémon Center in the city…" May pulled out her poké balls and allowed each of her pokémon out. Each one looked groggy or exhausted; some still showing signs of pain.
"Yeah… I didn't think the Valley would be so far away." Ash picked up Espeon and started petting her.
The Coordinator applied medicine to any wounds and gave treats to each of her pokémon, hoping that it would sooth their tensed bodies. "So what are we going to do for sleep? And do we build a fire?"
She looked over the cliff path. "I don't think there's any firewood for miles…"
"We camp it out the old fashioned way." The male Trainer walked over to Venusaur, stretched, then fell back – landing his back against its side. He grabbed Espeon and placed her on his lap.
The other pokémon followed suit. Blaziken sat next to Ash. Wartortle sat on-top of Venusaur. Snorlax rolled onto its side to Blaziken's left. Delcatty rolled up onto Snorlax's stomach. And May's beautifly landed softly next to Wartortle.
May watched the scene with playful interest. "Hmmm… Now where do I sleep?"
She was about to find a space between her snorlax's legs, when Glaceon curled up against her legs – causing her to lose balance and stumble. She fell next to Ash, shoulder to shoulder. Despite its obvious closeness, it was more than a comfortable position.
Her face blushed.
Glaceon gave her a lighthearted smile.
May shot her back a look. "You meant to do that." she mumbled towards her.
The Fresh Snow Pokémon pretended to not hear her trainer's response as it snuggled into her lap.
May pet her faithful pokémon's head and hummed a soft tune to put her to sleep.
…
"Hey May…?"
Her humming stopped.
"Yeah, Ash?"
"Why'd you go ahead?"
"Into the tunnel?"
"Yeah, the tunnel."
"So I could scout ahead. To help."
"Yeah, I figured that. But… why?"
…
She went silent, trying to figure out what to say next. She wasn't sure what he meant by that question, or what answer he was specifically looking for.
"Can I look?"
She turned towards him and blinked. "What? Look at what?"
"Um…" He felt uncomfortable. In truth, he wanted a simple yes or no answer. No thoughts, just a casual reaction to his question. Now that she was giving him her full attention, he realized that the explanation would be far more intrusive than he'd intend it to be. "N-Nevermind."
"No, tell me!" She nudged him with her shoulder. "Now you've got me all curious."
Sigh. "I meant it like… looking into you. Empathy and stuff."
Her face blushed again. The simple request seeming far more personal than she expected it to be.
"W-Why??"
"Well… you don't know exactly what I'm asking… and I don't really know how to describe it… so I thought I could just, well, find out the answer…" He coughed to seem nonchalant. "If that's okay with you, that is."
Throughout their journey, Ash had been slowly improving his Empathic abilities. By poking into people's emotions and backing away, as well as attempting to block them off, Ash had learned how to control how much he could feel at once from a person or a group of people. Emotions were no longer as obvious or as loud for him now… Like Anabel had told him in the beginning, he couldn't turn it off, but he had gotten far more used to it.
He still didn't consider himself as skilled as Anabel, as he still struggled with extremely loud personalities like Maylene's, or with large floods of strong emotions like the battle at the Bill's Lighthouse. But he had certainly gotten better.
Ash's fingers ran through Espeon's fur, her Psychic energy hidden inside reminding him of why he had truly improved: Practicing with Sabrina.
While Sabrina herself wasn't an Empathic, she knew how to hone nonphysical abilities and heighten focus to a great extent. Their hours of constant training and exercise had not only increased his Empathy's effectiveness, but also had created a bond between him and Sabrina.
This bond allowed the two to empower their own abilities. For Ash, it had given him the ability to use the psychic powers of Psychic Pokémon in a much more devastating manner, as well as giving him more clarity and control in reading other's emotions.
And now, here with May, he had another chance to test himself – another situation for him to truly sharpen and empower his Empathic abilities.
No, not that. He told himself. I'm genuinely worried for May! This isn't just another test!
The bond with Sabrina also had the unintentional consequence of reflecting one another's personalities. While the objective-focused, self-improving, and strategically-careful traits of Sabrina were useful, they had also made Ash forget the spirit and heart of what he was aiming for at times.
He could suppress the side-effects, and often times he felt like they hadn't affected him whatsoever. And in that, he was improving, which boosted his confidence greatly.
Though, he wondered if he really was winning against the side-effects… or if they were becoming less and less obvious.
"S-Sure." May's answer snapped him out of his layered thoughts.
The Coordinator played with Glaceon's tail nervously, her face bright red at the thought of letting 'Ash in'. "W-What do you need me to do?"
Nothing. She didn't need to do anything.
"Sure" was Ash's go-sign. The instant she had said it, he had already dived into the heart of her intentions.
Her emotions flew passed, each one explaining a portion of the story she didn't want to speak out loud.
Am Useless. Am Weak. Am Burden. Her insecurities showed loudly, showing the obstacles she saw in front of her.
Digging deeper he found what he had been looking for…
Need Stronger. Need Better. Need Useful. Need for Ash. And there were her 'why's. Her reasons. Her goal to face her insecurities.
With an exhale, Ash retreated from her emotions and returned reality's far more restricted grip.
Her emotions had made his face blush a deep red. He was unsure how to respond, unsure of how to feel or think. The Coordinator's yearning to become better for him flattered him greatly. It would have been an idea that he didn't understand, if it weren't for the fact that he felt similarly for her.
May was a friend. A close friend. A very close friend.
She was a part of his past that meant greatly to him. And in their time together, he grew to realize everything that made her great and wonderful. But she was just a friend then. As long as they had a great time together, he was happy. As long as they were friends, then that's all that mattered.
Then that… moment… they had together occurred.
And though she didn't want it to change anything, it would change everything. He couldn't just see her as the friend he travelled with so long. Though he'd admit he could never see her that way after he found that she actually dated someone – that… moment… sealed his old views of May permanently.
She was still his friend. Still his close friend. But now she was someone who depended on him, on his answers, and his emotions. He had to answer to her someday. An answer that he was afraid to choose, fearing what it would mean to everyone else, what it would mean to her. He didn't want to have to choose… he didn't want to have to lose one of them…
'Let them fight over you… It'll make them know what they really want in their relationship. Eventually they'll have to give up sometime… or at least admit defeat. And in the end, they'll still be your friends, and they'll know what to really look for in a guy…'
The tomboy's words echoed in his head. Angie…
If he could trust anyone's counsel, it was his summer friend's. Her innate understanding of his mind, heart, and spirit even without any special abilities made her words often the truest. She wasn't biased towards any sides of herself, only by what she saw and was told – a person who could judge a book by its cover and be successful at finding its contents.
A person who understood this situation better than he did.
Ash returned his attention to the concern at hand… May's insecurities and need to prove herself.
"May, you don't need to prove yourself… to me." the two last words were spoken with hesitation.
"I know." She nodded and returned her attention to petting her glaceon. "At least, I know that now. But… I'd like to at least be stronger. To be better."
"If it weren't for your help, we wouldn't have gotten as far as we have." Ash responded as he straightened his back, trying to prevent himself from completely slipping off of Venusaur's abnormally smooth skin. May must put lotion on her skin or something…
She nodded again. "And I know that. But that's not where I want to improve."
He tilted his head. "What do you mean?"
"Ash, you're the main reason we're on this crazy quest… this isn't about being the best Trainer or Coordinator anymore. Not about badges, trophies, or ribbons. We can't just sit around and just have fun all the time like we used to. And we can't… make mistakes like we used to."
She paused, wondering how to continue her thoughts.
Acceptance. "…Angie? She keeps her head focused on what matters. Even if she doesn't think about it, she'll get the job done. And she's your emotional support… at least, from what I've seen. You always seem to go to her when you want to talk in private."
Glaceon sat up and moved onto Venusaur's back – removing her owner's only distraction.
May turned and faced Ash. Admiration. "And Maylene? She can fight just as good as her pokémon. Even without her pokémon, she's a strong bodyguard. And her… thing that she does. That thing that makes her immune to Empathy and Psychic people? With that, she's invaluable to this team."
She looked down. Shame. "And of course there's Sabrina… If all of us left your side, she could probably handle this entire mission by herself. We're nothing but jokes compared to her."
"May…"
Self-doubt. "And me? …I'm just back-up. I'm there just so that the job isn't so hard. Which is nice, but I'm not really necessary."
"That's not true."
She fanned the pokétab in front of Ash's face. Self-hate. "This is the only thing that makes me useful right now! And what good am I with it? You give any other girl enough time with it, and they'd be just as useful with it. You give any girl enough time, and they could easily replace me in this team."
Ash was about to interrupt again. May put her finger up to his lip.
"I'm a Coordinator, Ash… not a Trainer. I'm not a Psychic, I'm not a fighter, and I don't have confidence. I don't want to build up confidence, I want a reason to be confident. But honestly? I don't have anything. I train my pokémon how to make their attacks prettier, but not more effective.
"I mean, even Dawn is better at that than I am! You've seen her, I've seen her, everyone's seen her! She gets so creative with her pokémon's moves it's unbelievable. I'm just a standard, Ash. I'm only a challenge to other Coordinators because I've had more time and practice than them. But I don't have the same spirit and creativity as they do. I'm a high standard, Ash, but standard nonetheless…"
Depression. "What good am I for this?"
"May…"
"Please Ash… no more cheer-me-ups. No more excuses for me. I don't want any. It's time to face facts… I–"
"Close your eyes."
"What?"
"Close your eyes." he repeated.
…
Her eyes closed. "O-Okay, they're closed… Now what?"
She felt something warm on her forehead. Ash's palm.
"Now? We hope I learned this right…"
_________________________________________________________
Sunrise.
Bird Pokémon of all kinds hung on branches of trees, watching the line of strange visitors pass by.
"THIS IS AMAZING!!!"
The shout caused several of the birds to fly from the safety of the trees. They cawed and tweeted as they fled to find a better, far more quiet area to rest.
May had been the one to shout. She faced up towards the trees, her eyes covered by her bandana as she smiled with pure glee.
"Woww… I can't believe it…" She laughed in excitement and jumped in place.
In her blindness, she saw the colors, she felt the heat. Colors of all kinds that she had never seen before, temperatures of all warmths she had never felt before. No, that's not it. she thought to herself.
She had seen these colors, felt these heats, but never in this way – never in this manner, and never in this light.
Empathy.
Her Empathy had woken up.
The opposite could be said for Ash, who was dead asleep ontop of Venusaur's back.
Ash hadn't slept. May hadn't slept. The two had spent all their night in unphysical work.
Using a technique that he had developed with Sabrina, the Empathic was able to unlock the latent talent within the Coordinator… Treating Espeon as his Psychic extension, he dove deep into May's mind. Using Aura, he found the walls that blocked her from the abilities. And using Empathy, he was able to open the gates.
The task was hardly simple, and extremely uncomfortable. The two would grunt in pain and sweat profusely through the night. Mental and emotional challenges often prevented them from continuing, and only working through them slowly and carefully would allow them to pass. Their history together as friends, as student and teacher, and as rivals had given them the tools needed to succeed – as it was these connections that allowed them to destroy the insecurities that slowed her progress towards Empathy.
Ash knew this was another technique that Sabrina would lecture him endlessly if she found out he used it. It wasn't ready. It wasn't safe. And it wasn't meant to be used while he was still so inexperienced.
But it was now or never, he had thought to himself at the time. If May kept on like that… always hurting herself… she might close herself off completely, instead of improving.
He thanked Sabrina's training, as it was only his bond with her that allowed him to come to that conclusion.
Now, however, he had little to no thought. Absolutely exhausted from the ritual, he had fainted and had not awoken since. Espeon shared the same tiredness, as she slept soundly on his stomach.
May was the opposite. Her granted access to Empathy had awoken her body completely.
For her, it was like a dream. She could see things that she didn't think was possible, experience things she didn't think could exist, and feel things she never thought could ever be. She didn't want to wake from this dream.
And so she kept her eyes closed, her bandana acting as her blindfold.
When she could see, she couldn't sense as much. For now, she didn't ever want to stop. Empathy felt far too natural for her – as if she was always meant to be an Empathic.
This, of course, was dangerous. As she'd often trip over or nearly fall off the cliff-side while following emotions in the sky. Her pokémon had to keep a close eye on her.
She took a deep breath in…
"DREW!!! YOU JERK!!!!"
She struck her fist in the air and laughed. For once in her life since that horrible day, she could mention his name without feeling any hate for herself.
She felt… confident.
"DREW!!! JUST YOU WATCH!!! I'LL KICK YOUR BUTT ONCE I GET BACK THERE!!!"
Glaceon and Blaziken grunted together. The two despised the man that had broken their trainer's heart and mind. And they were more than willing to help her getting her justified revenge.
They looked at each other and looked back at Ash. A better mate for her, they agreed to one another.
"GUYS! I CAN HEAR THAT!!" May's face was a bright red. 'Mate' was far too strong of a word.
"And I can hear you from a mile away."
The Coordinator froze. She suddenly noticed a large group of powerful energies above her.
H-How could I miss something so huge???
"Wh-Who's there?!" May struggled with her bandana, trying to remove it out of its impossible knot.
"I should be asking you that. No one's allowed in these canyons."
"My name's M–" She successfully pulled away the bandana and looked up at their threat. "Liza??"
Above them, a team of frighteningly large charizards kept themselves aloft while staring down at them in battle-readiness. A woman of deep sea green hair, blue eyes, and a strikingly red suit stood on one of their backs. Her frown was accented by a scar that ran down from her cheek to her chin.
"Funny, I have the same name." she spoke with little humor.
"N-no. I'm May! Are you Liza? Wait, you just answered that." May laughed nervously.
"Choose your next words carefully…" The charizards around her growled furiously. She gave the Coordinator a death glare. "…those looking for me lately have met quite an… unfortunate end."
May's blood turned cold. "Er… n-no! It's not like that!"
She ran up to her Venusaur and started shaking the sleeping passenger.
"Ash! Wake up! We found Liza!"
He snored louder.
"…Ash?" Liza's eyes widened. She jumped to the ground below, the charizards following closely behind.
Walking up to the slumbering young man, she smiled. "It's good to see him again…"
The woman faced May. "I apologize for my reaction earlier. We haven't had much good company lately." As she bowed, so did the charizards. "It's a pleasure to meet you May. Any friend of Ash's is a friend of Charicific Valley."
May panicked at the sudden mannerisms and bowed quickly in response. "N-Nice to meet you!" She gestured for her pokémon to bow as well.
"You're welcome to follow us into the Valley. I am sure we have much to discuss if Ash had come to seek us out." Liza hopped onto one of the charizards' backs.
"W-Wait… I don't have any Flying Pokémon…"
"That's fine. Just call in your pokémon and ride on any of these charizards."
_________________________________________________________
All around her, charizards stood or sat in lines. Above, they flew in patrols. In one corner, some slept in shifts. And in another corner, they trained their attacks in military precision.
May got off the back of the charizard she had ridden and gazed at her surroundings.
"So this is the Charicific Valley? I thought these charizard were wild… they look more than just trained to me. They're so intense… and huge!"
Liza gestured signals to the ones she had flown with, giving them silent orders.
She turned towards the Coordinator and frowned. "They are wild… and they weren't like this before."
Her finger traced along the scar on her face. "Well, they were always large, but they were never this trained… but I had to. We were too disorganized. No matter how powerful they were on their own, as long as they were disorganized – we didn't stand a chance."
"What do you mean?" May leaned the still-slumbering Ash against one wall and let him slide down to a sit. "Did something happen?"
"Team Rocket happened." She grit her teeth. "They just… came like a swarm. Capturing the charizards… and killing the ones who put up too much of a struggle."
May gasped. "Oh no… I'm so sorry…"
"I don't know why they came here. They normally keep a safe distance away from the Valley. It would normally be a big risk for them to try anything here." The Valley Guardian balled her hand into a fist. "But this time… there were so many… and they were so powerful. We put up a good fight, but it wasn't enough. …it wasn't enough…"
…
"Are they gone?" May asked in hesitation.
"Maybe. Maybe not. We got them into a retreat eventually… but I have no idea where they went." Liza sighed. "They jammed my signals. I don't know what's going on beyond the areas that are immediately outside of the Valley's view. And I don't want to risk going out too far in case it's a trap."
The Coordinator rummaged through her bag and pulled out the pokétab. "You can use this!"
The woman stared at it in curiosity. "What is it?"
"It's a pokétab! You can use it to call someone if you need to."
"It has a signal?!" She snatched it from May's hands. "How in the world does it still have signal?? Charicific Valley's lines have been blacked out for days now!" She checked her pokédev just to be sure.
"The poketab's special. Boosted range… or its own private signal. I'm not sure which. It's all pretty fancy stuff to me." The girl laughed embarrassingly.
"Clair?! Clair is that really you?!" Liza didn't hesitate to make her call.
"Liza!!" a voice responded in a hiss of static. "What happened?! I tried calling you yesterday! It said your line was disconnected! I was going to check up on you, but I've been busy lately."
"Is something wrong?!"
"No no, nothing terrible. Just appointments. I should be asking you that! You look terrible! And where did you get that scar?!"
"Team Rocket attacked the Charicific Valley."
"THEY WHAT?! Are you okay?! How are the charizards??"
"I'm okay. They captured four of the charizards… and killed five."
…
"I'll make them pay. Tell me where they went and I'll see to it that you are all avenged."
"I don't know they are, Clair… they've got the entire place in blackout. I can't hazard searching for them as long as I don't have any signal. I was only able to call you because of this girl's strange device." She turned the pokétab towards May.
"Ah, the famous Coordinator." The light blue-haired woman in the poketab's screen bowed. "I've seen your Contest matches. You are quite impressive."
"Th-Thank you." May blushed and bowed back.
Liza turned the device back towards herself. "She's a friend of Ash Ketchum."
"I had assumed so." Clair responded. "I've seen her with him during several Contest broadcastings."
Liza sighed into a smile. "You don't know how much of a relief it is to hear your voice, Clair. I had thought Team Rocket had already come after you."
"Hm? Is there a reason you would think that?"
"Not really… but I don't really know why they came here in the first place. They don't normally risk such an attack. I just assumed they would come after you, but only because I'm a bit paranoid right now."
"Don't worry, that's understandable. Have you asked May?"
"The girl? Ask her what?"
"Ask her what Team Rocket's doing there. What else would the girl be doing all the way out in Charicific Valley? She's supposed to be back at Hoenn, the Contests are already underway – and she was supposed to be one of the main contenders."
Liza looked up at the Coordinator.
May grinned nervously.
"I'll call you back, Clair."
She pressed a button to end the call and handed the device back to May.
"So, May. What are you and Ash doing all the way out here? From what I remember, he was competing in Sinnoh."
"Well…"
"Team Rocket's after us, too." Ash was awake and standing behind May.
She leapt out of the way in fright.
Catching her breath she gave a slight kick at his leg. "Don't sneak up on me like that! Geez! …When did you wake up anyways?"
He shrugged. "Few minutes ago?"
"Nice to see you again, Ash." Liza smiled and nodded towards him. "I'm glad you're… what's wrong with your eyes?"
"Ash is blind." May put it bluntly.
"What?! When did this happen?!" She ran up to Ash and inspected his eyes as if she could fix it.
"A while back. Accident. Long story." He was in no mood in explaining a story he's had to tell more times than he could count. "Anyways, we came here to get some charizards for transport. I know your charizards don't really let humans on their back, but–"
"No, they do now." Liza answered quickly. "Team Rocket attacked lately. Long story, as well. Long story short, they're far more trained now. If Team Rocket wants to try anything again, they'll regret it."
Ash's face showed panic. "Are the charizards okay?! Is Charizard okay?!"
Despite there being several charizards in the Valley, she knew exactly who he was talking about. "I've lost some charizards, but… yes. Your charizard is safe as well. He's… not in the mood to talk, however."
She nudged her head back, pointing at a figure in one of the corners. May peaked around and saw another large charizard, its back faced towards them as it stared into the rock wall.
"Be careful if you approach him. He hasn't slept, and he's quite irritable."
"Did something happen?"
Hurt. Pain. Sorrow.
Ash feared the worst. And his fears were true.
"Charla… she was killed in the second wave… she died trying to save an egg they stole from one of the nests."
…
Ash went silent. Liza fell silent.
May quietly broke the silence. "Who's Charla?"
"My charizard…" Liza's voice strained as she refused herself from crying.
"And Charizard's… partner." Ash explained in the most respectable way he could.
Gasp. "No… I'm so sorry…" May had regretted her question and took a step back, hoping that her distance would allow them to forget she had ever asked.
"Then we can't stay in the Charicific Valley. We all need to move." Ash stated.
"We?" The Valley Guardian crossed her arms and raised a brow.
"All of us. Including the charizards."
"I'm not abandoning this reserve. We are not abandoning this reserve. You can go, but Charicific Valley must be kept safe."
"Which matters more? The Valley or the charizards?"
Liza took those words as a challenge. "In case you didn't hear, Team Rocket's got a signal block in this area. That means there's a good chance they're still out there waiting."
"It could also mean they're trying to keep you paranoid enough to stay here while they recuperate for the next attack."
Ash wasn't being himself. His words were far too logical, far too intelligent, and definitely far too authoritative. Sabrina's bond was overtaking his personality again.
"The Valley's a private zone." Ash continued. "Because you're not anywhere public, they can attack this place over and over again without anyone finding out. You're too far for direct support, and your only line out to the rest of the world has been cut."
"And what do you propose then?" Liza hadn't conceded. She had only asked out of curiosity. This doesn't seem like the Ash I knew. He seems… older. It's good to know he's finally acting his age.
"Move to Violet City."
"Not going to happen. That area's far too public. It'll make the charizards incredibly uncomfortable and panicked in those surroundings, and I don't want any of those tourists and trainers to bother them."
"Of course it's too public. That's why we're moving there."
"You keep saying 'we' as if we agreed to it."
"You're going to have to. If you stay out here, you'll be hunted until there's no charizards left for the Valley to protect. If you go to Violet City, you'll be under the public's watch – and Falkner's. Team Rocket won't even try to risk that obvious of an assault. With any chance of a witness getting away through sky or land, there's no way they could get away safely."
But Ash, what about… May held onto his sleeve.
He knew exactly what she meant. The assault on his home. But the difference there was that they were a small family in a quiet town, while this was a large group of powerful pokémon within a bustling city.
May's new Empathic abilities allowed her to read that meaning from his silence. She nodded. She also wanted to squeal. Her Empathy surprising her in its usefulness. However, it wasn't an appropriate time to show excitement, so she kept silent.
Ash stepped forward, facing the Valley Guardian – his dulled eyes locking onto her fierce gaze. "Head to Violet City. We need your services as much as you need ours."
Liza stepped forward in challenge. "And what makes you think that?"
"Because they're not after you. They're after me. And they think you're going to help me. So either make them happy by proving them wrong, or upset them by proving them right."
_________________________________________________________
"Please don't touch the charizards." Liza repeated as another passerby tried to take a picture with one.
"They're not for sale. They're not for capturing. They're not open for battle." she grumbled loudly as another team of trainers readied themselves for a fight when they noticed one on a rooftop.
Sigh. "How much longer do we have to wait?"
"They'll be here soon."
"You said that you took the rod that lets you go through these tunnels. So how are they supposed to get here?"
"They'll find a way through."
"Please don't touch the charizards!" She massaged her forehead. "So Ash… if you were gathering all of us to save your mom and friends, and now they're all saved… what's your plan now?"
The young man stretched and leaned against the wall behind him. "Team Rocket's still a threat. We can't let them get away with what they plan to do."
"That's obvious enough. But how exactly do you plan we do that?" She walked over and sat next to Ash. "We're not exactly an army… and I don't think we'll be able to get any support beyond our little ragtag team. And if you're right about Team Rocket's influence, I don't think getting the authorities or any organization involved would be a good idea.
"We'd have more spies than allies at that point."
"I know." Ash searched the Valley Guardian's emotions, trying to find the answer she was looking for. "We won't need more than that. Team Rocket's head group is tiny in comparison to the rest of the team. And they'll be the only ones who'll be directly involved with the Arceus project.
"Small team versus small team." he concluded simply.
"Except they've got an army of henchmen and thugs to cushion the blow between them and us. By the time we face them, we'll be too exhausted to fight back."
"Then we have to play it smart."
"Smart's not really my thing." she admitted.
"It's not mine either." he admitted with her.
They laughed together, relieving the tension.
"Don't sell yourself short, Ash. You certainly kept your head on straight back at the Valley. I hated to admit it at the time, but you were right."
He scratched the back of his head and smiled with embarrassment. "Well, that wasn't all me. I learned a thing or two about logic from Sabrina."
"Maybe she could teach me t– DO NOT TOUCH THE CHARIZARDS, THANK YOU VERY MUCH." Sigh. "I swear, these people…"
Flapping of wings. Large wings.
A gust of wind twirled around their feet. Several dirt and debris flew into different directions, nearly blinding the area in a swirl of activity. The blast of air was strong, nearly knocking Ash off his feet, and causing the nearby charizards to flinch.
The large object landed. A massive pidgeot.
Someone was on its back. Cool, confident, and curious.
"Well now, it has been a while, Ash Ketchum…"
"Falkner." he nodded at the Violet City Gym Leader, keeping his own cool despite having a bad taste in his mouth.
"And Liza too. Now this is indeed an interesting meeting."
"Beat it, Falkner."
That wasn't a response Ash was expecting to hear. He thought he had been the only one that disliked the Flying Pokémon Master. Or rather, he thought his immaturity had made him dislike him. But if Liza doesn't like him either, maybe I'm not being childish. he considered with a smile.
"So rude, Liza!" Falkner jumped down from his pidgeot and sighed. "You come to my city as a guest…"
"It's not your city." she shot back.
"…you cause a ruckus by inviting your charizards to perch on my buildings…"
"They're not your buildings, and we won't be here for long."
"…and then you endanger my city's citizens by bringing Team Rocket to my doorstep!"
Liza stood straight. "What??"
"It seems that you thought you could avoid whatever business you had with them by using my city as your time-out shelter." Falkner frowned. "I don't appreciate that, Liza. Many of Team Rocket's clients are happy residents in my city. I don't want your problems thrown on us just because you're too selfish to solve it yourself."
"You–!!!"
"Get out of my city now."
Ash walked forward and gazed into Falkner's emotions. Proud. Insincere. Bluffing.
"You're lying. Team Rocket doesn't know about this."
Falkner's eyes narrowed. "And how would you know what Team Rocket knows and doesn't know, Ash?"
Nervousness. Hiding something.
Ash peered deeper into Falkner. …Team Rocket… tower…
"Urk!" Falkner found his feet scraping against the ground. Ash had dashed towards him and lifted him by the neckbands. "What do you think you're doing?!"
"You made a deal with Team Rocket!"
Liza's frown twitched, her scar burning. "What kind of deal?"
"I don't know what he's talki–"
Ash interrupted. "Falkner allowed Team Rocket to build a tower here! The tower's been the one blocking out the signals in Charicific Valley!"
Panic. Fear.
"H-How did you–?!"
Crk-Crk. Liza cracked her knuckles and slowly walked towards Falkner.
His pidgeoto came to his rescue as it stood in front of the furious woman.
With a snap of her fingers, every Charicific Charizard surrounded and glared at the now-seemingly-small bird pokémon. It cowered in response and moved away.
"Now Falkner…" Crk-Crk. "Tell me… why in the world would you allow Team Rocket do such a thing?" her voice was cold, and her emotions dangerously sharp.
"You really want to harm me in a city filled with Team Rocket? If you know what's good for you, you'll let me go."
Bluffing again.
"Give it up, Falkner. I know Team Rocket isn't here. You're trying to scare us out of the city before they do find out we're here." Ash threw him to the ground and glared down at him. "You sold out Liza so you could protect yourself!"
"You dirty little–" Liza had launched herself onto Falkner. Her fist raised in the air… and it stayed. Her body trembled. Tears formed on the corners of her eyes. "You… CHARLA DIED BECAUSE OF YOU!!!" she roared as she slammed her fist into the ground, missing his head by inches.
The woman pushed herself to her feet, turning away in disgust. "You're the one who should leave this city, Falkner. Otherwise I'll let Charizard do as he pleases."
Violet City's Gym Leader was shadowed by a large creature.
Atop a tall building, Ash's charizard stood. His silhouette blocking a large portion of the setting sun. His eyes burning red with fury.
He had been distant from the rest of the group, preferring isolation and time to be left with his thoughts. Ash had barely recognized him during his time away, his emotions refusing to let him in or acknowledge him.
But now his emotions were obvious. Uncontainable rage.
It wanted Falkner dead, ripped apart, destroyed. But just like Liza, he knew it wouldn't bring Charla back… and it wasn't Falkner that killed her, he had only been an indirect cause.
Without these thoughts, he wouldn't have stayed where he was. Angry. Intent on revenge. But still distant, still isolated.
He growled and turned away. That was his last response to the situation. He returned to his thoughts.
Falkner crawled back to his feet, patting dirt off his kimono and hands.
No regret. No concern. No care.
"Hmph. I'll give you two more hours. If you're not gone by then…"
He hopped onto his pidgeot and patted its back twice. It began flapping its wings, causing another strong gust of wind to push everyone off balance.
"I'll remove you myself."
The pidgeot shot into the air in frightening speeds and rocketed deep into the city.
…
"He's bluffing." Ash commented.
"He always is." Liza spit as she kicked her heel into the dirt.
Thu-thump.
The two turned.
Despite the sun setting, another sun was rising.
With a loud yawn and a grunted stretch, a young woman who had been sleeping quietly for the past few hours – began to wake after falling off the comfortable bench she had claimed as a bed.
"Did I miss something?" May groaned.
"Glad you could joi– DO NOT TOUCH THE CHARIZARDS."
"H-How far is this thing?" May whined as she refused to move.
"I could've sworn it was closer…" Ash grumbled, trying to drag himself forward.
"Liiiiiizaaa!!!" he shouted into the open air.
No response.
"…you sure that pokétab isn't giving us the wrong directions?"
"I wouldn't know! I've never been there!" She slipped out the device and slapped it down on the ground in front of her. She lazily pressed random buttons on the screen in the hopes it would magically give them new information. "And who is this Liza you keep calling? I don't think we'll see anyone for miles…"
"Liza's the one who I called to get my charizard to help us, remember? She watches over Charicific Valley…" Ash moaned as he fell back onto his chest. "…there's no natural road into it. Someone needs to take a Flying Pokémon to get in there. And Liza decides who gets in and out."
"What?! Why didn't you mention that earlier?!"
"Why? Would it change any plans if I did?"
"We could've called ahead of time!"
"I already did. I called her from Bill's while we were leaving."
"And…?"
"Line's disconnected…"
She groaned in response. "I give up…"
Espeon hopped onto the pokétab and pawed at its flashing and rotating images.
May rolled onto her back. "Yeah… you make it work, Espy… I don't know how to work that thing…"
Ash rolled beside her. "And yet they trusted you with it?"
"Hey, it's not like Angie or Maylene would know how to work that device better than me!" She paused, taking a large gulp of water from her bottle before continuing. "Ahhh – that's good… and Sabrina said that if she held it, it'd probably explode or something…"
Ash fumbled his hand across May's body, trying to find the water bottle. She shoved the drink into his hand before he could touch anything embarrassing. "Geez, just ask next time."
He tilted the bottle back, swallowing as much of the sweet water his body would allow him to.
"Don't drink it all!" She snatched the drink back.
Ash lazily tried to get the bottle back, to no avail.
…
The two sighed in unison, both exhausted.
May looked up into the sky, watching the clouds pass by.
"We should probably set up camp… It's getting dark."
Her eyes were tired and her mind was strained. She didn't want to sleep, but her body protested at her being awake. And to make it worse, her internal clock was completely off.
Their constant sleeping during mornings and moving at night… The nervous energy that had kept her awake during their travels in the Rocket Tunnel… And now her fatigue from their uphill hike… All of them factored in confusing and irritating her body and mind to the point of conflict.
But now was the time for rest – as navigating up cliff roads, that tended to get narrow at the most unexpected times, did not seem smart to continue during nightfall.
"Did you bring any tents?" Ash asked as he struggled to sit up. His body sore from the constant walking.
"You didn't?"
The two sighed. "I didn't think we'd need them." they admitted in unison.
"We should've rested at the Pokémon Center in the city…" May pulled out her poké balls and allowed each of her pokémon out. Each one looked groggy or exhausted; some still showing signs of pain.
"Yeah… I didn't think the Valley would be so far away." Ash picked up Espeon and started petting her.
The Coordinator applied medicine to any wounds and gave treats to each of her pokémon, hoping that it would sooth their tensed bodies. "So what are we going to do for sleep? And do we build a fire?"
She looked over the cliff path. "I don't think there's any firewood for miles…"
"We camp it out the old fashioned way." The male Trainer walked over to Venusaur, stretched, then fell back – landing his back against its side. He grabbed Espeon and placed her on his lap.
The other pokémon followed suit. Blaziken sat next to Ash. Wartortle sat on-top of Venusaur. Snorlax rolled onto its side to Blaziken's left. Delcatty rolled up onto Snorlax's stomach. And May's beautifly landed softly next to Wartortle.
May watched the scene with playful interest. "Hmmm… Now where do I sleep?"
She was about to find a space between her snorlax's legs, when Glaceon curled up against her legs – causing her to lose balance and stumble. She fell next to Ash, shoulder to shoulder. Despite its obvious closeness, it was more than a comfortable position.
Her face blushed.
Glaceon gave her a lighthearted smile.
May shot her back a look. "You meant to do that." she mumbled towards her.
The Fresh Snow Pokémon pretended to not hear her trainer's response as it snuggled into her lap.
May pet her faithful pokémon's head and hummed a soft tune to put her to sleep.
…
"Hey May…?"
Her humming stopped.
"Yeah, Ash?"
"Why'd you go ahead?"
"Into the tunnel?"
"Yeah, the tunnel."
"So I could scout ahead. To help."
"Yeah, I figured that. But… why?"
…
She went silent, trying to figure out what to say next. She wasn't sure what he meant by that question, or what answer he was specifically looking for.
"Can I look?"
She turned towards him and blinked. "What? Look at what?"
"Um…" He felt uncomfortable. In truth, he wanted a simple yes or no answer. No thoughts, just a casual reaction to his question. Now that she was giving him her full attention, he realized that the explanation would be far more intrusive than he'd intend it to be. "N-Nevermind."
"No, tell me!" She nudged him with her shoulder. "Now you've got me all curious."
Sigh. "I meant it like… looking into you. Empathy and stuff."
Her face blushed again. The simple request seeming far more personal than she expected it to be.
"W-Why??"
"Well… you don't know exactly what I'm asking… and I don't really know how to describe it… so I thought I could just, well, find out the answer…" He coughed to seem nonchalant. "If that's okay with you, that is."
Throughout their journey, Ash had been slowly improving his Empathic abilities. By poking into people's emotions and backing away, as well as attempting to block them off, Ash had learned how to control how much he could feel at once from a person or a group of people. Emotions were no longer as obvious or as loud for him now… Like Anabel had told him in the beginning, he couldn't turn it off, but he had gotten far more used to it.
He still didn't consider himself as skilled as Anabel, as he still struggled with extremely loud personalities like Maylene's, or with large floods of strong emotions like the battle at the Bill's Lighthouse. But he had certainly gotten better.
Ash's fingers ran through Espeon's fur, her Psychic energy hidden inside reminding him of why he had truly improved: Practicing with Sabrina.
While Sabrina herself wasn't an Empathic, she knew how to hone nonphysical abilities and heighten focus to a great extent. Their hours of constant training and exercise had not only increased his Empathy's effectiveness, but also had created a bond between him and Sabrina.
This bond allowed the two to empower their own abilities. For Ash, it had given him the ability to use the psychic powers of Psychic Pokémon in a much more devastating manner, as well as giving him more clarity and control in reading other's emotions.
And now, here with May, he had another chance to test himself – another situation for him to truly sharpen and empower his Empathic abilities.
No, not that. He told himself. I'm genuinely worried for May! This isn't just another test!
The bond with Sabrina also had the unintentional consequence of reflecting one another's personalities. While the objective-focused, self-improving, and strategically-careful traits of Sabrina were useful, they had also made Ash forget the spirit and heart of what he was aiming for at times.
He could suppress the side-effects, and often times he felt like they hadn't affected him whatsoever. And in that, he was improving, which boosted his confidence greatly.
Though, he wondered if he really was winning against the side-effects… or if they were becoming less and less obvious.
"S-Sure." May's answer snapped him out of his layered thoughts.
The Coordinator played with Glaceon's tail nervously, her face bright red at the thought of letting 'Ash in'. "W-What do you need me to do?"
Nothing. She didn't need to do anything.
"Sure" was Ash's go-sign. The instant she had said it, he had already dived into the heart of her intentions.
Her emotions flew passed, each one explaining a portion of the story she didn't want to speak out loud.
Am Useless. Am Weak. Am Burden. Her insecurities showed loudly, showing the obstacles she saw in front of her.
Digging deeper he found what he had been looking for…
Need Stronger. Need Better. Need Useful. Need for Ash. And there were her 'why's. Her reasons. Her goal to face her insecurities.
With an exhale, Ash retreated from her emotions and returned reality's far more restricted grip.
Her emotions had made his face blush a deep red. He was unsure how to respond, unsure of how to feel or think. The Coordinator's yearning to become better for him flattered him greatly. It would have been an idea that he didn't understand, if it weren't for the fact that he felt similarly for her.
May was a friend. A close friend. A very close friend.
She was a part of his past that meant greatly to him. And in their time together, he grew to realize everything that made her great and wonderful. But she was just a friend then. As long as they had a great time together, he was happy. As long as they were friends, then that's all that mattered.
Then that… moment… they had together occurred.
And though she didn't want it to change anything, it would change everything. He couldn't just see her as the friend he travelled with so long. Though he'd admit he could never see her that way after he found that she actually dated someone – that… moment… sealed his old views of May permanently.
She was still his friend. Still his close friend. But now she was someone who depended on him, on his answers, and his emotions. He had to answer to her someday. An answer that he was afraid to choose, fearing what it would mean to everyone else, what it would mean to her. He didn't want to have to choose… he didn't want to have to lose one of them…
'Let them fight over you… It'll make them know what they really want in their relationship. Eventually they'll have to give up sometime… or at least admit defeat. And in the end, they'll still be your friends, and they'll know what to really look for in a guy…'
The tomboy's words echoed in his head. Angie…
If he could trust anyone's counsel, it was his summer friend's. Her innate understanding of his mind, heart, and spirit even without any special abilities made her words often the truest. She wasn't biased towards any sides of herself, only by what she saw and was told – a person who could judge a book by its cover and be successful at finding its contents.
A person who understood this situation better than he did.
Ash returned his attention to the concern at hand… May's insecurities and need to prove herself.
"May, you don't need to prove yourself… to me." the two last words were spoken with hesitation.
"I know." She nodded and returned her attention to petting her glaceon. "At least, I know that now. But… I'd like to at least be stronger. To be better."
"If it weren't for your help, we wouldn't have gotten as far as we have." Ash responded as he straightened his back, trying to prevent himself from completely slipping off of Venusaur's abnormally smooth skin. May must put lotion on her skin or something…
She nodded again. "And I know that. But that's not where I want to improve."
He tilted his head. "What do you mean?"
"Ash, you're the main reason we're on this crazy quest… this isn't about being the best Trainer or Coordinator anymore. Not about badges, trophies, or ribbons. We can't just sit around and just have fun all the time like we used to. And we can't… make mistakes like we used to."
She paused, wondering how to continue her thoughts.
Acceptance. "…Angie? She keeps her head focused on what matters. Even if she doesn't think about it, she'll get the job done. And she's your emotional support… at least, from what I've seen. You always seem to go to her when you want to talk in private."
Glaceon sat up and moved onto Venusaur's back – removing her owner's only distraction.
May turned and faced Ash. Admiration. "And Maylene? She can fight just as good as her pokémon. Even without her pokémon, she's a strong bodyguard. And her… thing that she does. That thing that makes her immune to Empathy and Psychic people? With that, she's invaluable to this team."
She looked down. Shame. "And of course there's Sabrina… If all of us left your side, she could probably handle this entire mission by herself. We're nothing but jokes compared to her."
"May…"
Self-doubt. "And me? …I'm just back-up. I'm there just so that the job isn't so hard. Which is nice, but I'm not really necessary."
"That's not true."
She fanned the pokétab in front of Ash's face. Self-hate. "This is the only thing that makes me useful right now! And what good am I with it? You give any other girl enough time with it, and they'd be just as useful with it. You give any girl enough time, and they could easily replace me in this team."
Ash was about to interrupt again. May put her finger up to his lip.
"I'm a Coordinator, Ash… not a Trainer. I'm not a Psychic, I'm not a fighter, and I don't have confidence. I don't want to build up confidence, I want a reason to be confident. But honestly? I don't have anything. I train my pokémon how to make their attacks prettier, but not more effective.
"I mean, even Dawn is better at that than I am! You've seen her, I've seen her, everyone's seen her! She gets so creative with her pokémon's moves it's unbelievable. I'm just a standard, Ash. I'm only a challenge to other Coordinators because I've had more time and practice than them. But I don't have the same spirit and creativity as they do. I'm a high standard, Ash, but standard nonetheless…"
Depression. "What good am I for this?"
"May…"
"Please Ash… no more cheer-me-ups. No more excuses for me. I don't want any. It's time to face facts… I–"
"Close your eyes."
"What?"
"Close your eyes." he repeated.
…
Her eyes closed. "O-Okay, they're closed… Now what?"
She felt something warm on her forehead. Ash's palm.
"Now? We hope I learned this right…"
_________________________________________________________
Sunrise.
Bird Pokémon of all kinds hung on branches of trees, watching the line of strange visitors pass by.
"THIS IS AMAZING!!!"
The shout caused several of the birds to fly from the safety of the trees. They cawed and tweeted as they fled to find a better, far more quiet area to rest.
May had been the one to shout. She faced up towards the trees, her eyes covered by her bandana as she smiled with pure glee.
"Woww… I can't believe it…" She laughed in excitement and jumped in place.
In her blindness, she saw the colors, she felt the heat. Colors of all kinds that she had never seen before, temperatures of all warmths she had never felt before. No, that's not it. she thought to herself.
She had seen these colors, felt these heats, but never in this way – never in this manner, and never in this light.
Empathy.
Her Empathy had woken up.
The opposite could be said for Ash, who was dead asleep ontop of Venusaur's back.
Ash hadn't slept. May hadn't slept. The two had spent all their night in unphysical work.
Using a technique that he had developed with Sabrina, the Empathic was able to unlock the latent talent within the Coordinator… Treating Espeon as his Psychic extension, he dove deep into May's mind. Using Aura, he found the walls that blocked her from the abilities. And using Empathy, he was able to open the gates.
The task was hardly simple, and extremely uncomfortable. The two would grunt in pain and sweat profusely through the night. Mental and emotional challenges often prevented them from continuing, and only working through them slowly and carefully would allow them to pass. Their history together as friends, as student and teacher, and as rivals had given them the tools needed to succeed – as it was these connections that allowed them to destroy the insecurities that slowed her progress towards Empathy.
Ash knew this was another technique that Sabrina would lecture him endlessly if she found out he used it. It wasn't ready. It wasn't safe. And it wasn't meant to be used while he was still so inexperienced.
But it was now or never, he had thought to himself at the time. If May kept on like that… always hurting herself… she might close herself off completely, instead of improving.
He thanked Sabrina's training, as it was only his bond with her that allowed him to come to that conclusion.
Now, however, he had little to no thought. Absolutely exhausted from the ritual, he had fainted and had not awoken since. Espeon shared the same tiredness, as she slept soundly on his stomach.
May was the opposite. Her granted access to Empathy had awoken her body completely.
For her, it was like a dream. She could see things that she didn't think was possible, experience things she didn't think could exist, and feel things she never thought could ever be. She didn't want to wake from this dream.
And so she kept her eyes closed, her bandana acting as her blindfold.
When she could see, she couldn't sense as much. For now, she didn't ever want to stop. Empathy felt far too natural for her – as if she was always meant to be an Empathic.
This, of course, was dangerous. As she'd often trip over or nearly fall off the cliff-side while following emotions in the sky. Her pokémon had to keep a close eye on her.
She took a deep breath in…
"DREW!!! YOU JERK!!!!"
She struck her fist in the air and laughed. For once in her life since that horrible day, she could mention his name without feeling any hate for herself.
She felt… confident.
"DREW!!! JUST YOU WATCH!!! I'LL KICK YOUR BUTT ONCE I GET BACK THERE!!!"
Glaceon and Blaziken grunted together. The two despised the man that had broken their trainer's heart and mind. And they were more than willing to help her getting her justified revenge.
They looked at each other and looked back at Ash. A better mate for her, they agreed to one another.
"GUYS! I CAN HEAR THAT!!" May's face was a bright red. 'Mate' was far too strong of a word.
"And I can hear you from a mile away."
The Coordinator froze. She suddenly noticed a large group of powerful energies above her.
H-How could I miss something so huge???
"Wh-Who's there?!" May struggled with her bandana, trying to remove it out of its impossible knot.
"I should be asking you that. No one's allowed in these canyons."
"My name's M–" She successfully pulled away the bandana and looked up at their threat. "Liza??"
Above them, a team of frighteningly large charizards kept themselves aloft while staring down at them in battle-readiness. A woman of deep sea green hair, blue eyes, and a strikingly red suit stood on one of their backs. Her frown was accented by a scar that ran down from her cheek to her chin.
"Funny, I have the same name." she spoke with little humor.
"N-no. I'm May! Are you Liza? Wait, you just answered that." May laughed nervously.
"Choose your next words carefully…" The charizards around her growled furiously. She gave the Coordinator a death glare. "…those looking for me lately have met quite an… unfortunate end."
May's blood turned cold. "Er… n-no! It's not like that!"
She ran up to her Venusaur and started shaking the sleeping passenger.
"Ash! Wake up! We found Liza!"
He snored louder.
"…Ash?" Liza's eyes widened. She jumped to the ground below, the charizards following closely behind.
Walking up to the slumbering young man, she smiled. "It's good to see him again…"
The woman faced May. "I apologize for my reaction earlier. We haven't had much good company lately." As she bowed, so did the charizards. "It's a pleasure to meet you May. Any friend of Ash's is a friend of Charicific Valley."
May panicked at the sudden mannerisms and bowed quickly in response. "N-Nice to meet you!" She gestured for her pokémon to bow as well.
"You're welcome to follow us into the Valley. I am sure we have much to discuss if Ash had come to seek us out." Liza hopped onto one of the charizards' backs.
"W-Wait… I don't have any Flying Pokémon…"
"That's fine. Just call in your pokémon and ride on any of these charizards."
_________________________________________________________
All around her, charizards stood or sat in lines. Above, they flew in patrols. In one corner, some slept in shifts. And in another corner, they trained their attacks in military precision.
May got off the back of the charizard she had ridden and gazed at her surroundings.
"So this is the Charicific Valley? I thought these charizard were wild… they look more than just trained to me. They're so intense… and huge!"
Liza gestured signals to the ones she had flown with, giving them silent orders.
She turned towards the Coordinator and frowned. "They are wild… and they weren't like this before."
Her finger traced along the scar on her face. "Well, they were always large, but they were never this trained… but I had to. We were too disorganized. No matter how powerful they were on their own, as long as they were disorganized – we didn't stand a chance."
"What do you mean?" May leaned the still-slumbering Ash against one wall and let him slide down to a sit. "Did something happen?"
"Team Rocket happened." She grit her teeth. "They just… came like a swarm. Capturing the charizards… and killing the ones who put up too much of a struggle."
May gasped. "Oh no… I'm so sorry…"
"I don't know why they came here. They normally keep a safe distance away from the Valley. It would normally be a big risk for them to try anything here." The Valley Guardian balled her hand into a fist. "But this time… there were so many… and they were so powerful. We put up a good fight, but it wasn't enough. …it wasn't enough…"
…
"Are they gone?" May asked in hesitation.
"Maybe. Maybe not. We got them into a retreat eventually… but I have no idea where they went." Liza sighed. "They jammed my signals. I don't know what's going on beyond the areas that are immediately outside of the Valley's view. And I don't want to risk going out too far in case it's a trap."
The Coordinator rummaged through her bag and pulled out the pokétab. "You can use this!"
The woman stared at it in curiosity. "What is it?"
"It's a pokétab! You can use it to call someone if you need to."
"It has a signal?!" She snatched it from May's hands. "How in the world does it still have signal?? Charicific Valley's lines have been blacked out for days now!" She checked her pokédev just to be sure.
"The poketab's special. Boosted range… or its own private signal. I'm not sure which. It's all pretty fancy stuff to me." The girl laughed embarrassingly.
"Clair?! Clair is that really you?!" Liza didn't hesitate to make her call.
"Liza!!" a voice responded in a hiss of static. "What happened?! I tried calling you yesterday! It said your line was disconnected! I was going to check up on you, but I've been busy lately."
"Is something wrong?!"
"No no, nothing terrible. Just appointments. I should be asking you that! You look terrible! And where did you get that scar?!"
"Team Rocket attacked the Charicific Valley."
"THEY WHAT?! Are you okay?! How are the charizards??"
"I'm okay. They captured four of the charizards… and killed five."
…
"I'll make them pay. Tell me where they went and I'll see to it that you are all avenged."
"I don't know they are, Clair… they've got the entire place in blackout. I can't hazard searching for them as long as I don't have any signal. I was only able to call you because of this girl's strange device." She turned the pokétab towards May.
"Ah, the famous Coordinator." The light blue-haired woman in the poketab's screen bowed. "I've seen your Contest matches. You are quite impressive."
"Th-Thank you." May blushed and bowed back.
Liza turned the device back towards herself. "She's a friend of Ash Ketchum."
"I had assumed so." Clair responded. "I've seen her with him during several Contest broadcastings."
Liza sighed into a smile. "You don't know how much of a relief it is to hear your voice, Clair. I had thought Team Rocket had already come after you."
"Hm? Is there a reason you would think that?"
"Not really… but I don't really know why they came here in the first place. They don't normally risk such an attack. I just assumed they would come after you, but only because I'm a bit paranoid right now."
"Don't worry, that's understandable. Have you asked May?"
"The girl? Ask her what?"
"Ask her what Team Rocket's doing there. What else would the girl be doing all the way out in Charicific Valley? She's supposed to be back at Hoenn, the Contests are already underway – and she was supposed to be one of the main contenders."
Liza looked up at the Coordinator.
May grinned nervously.
"I'll call you back, Clair."
She pressed a button to end the call and handed the device back to May.
"So, May. What are you and Ash doing all the way out here? From what I remember, he was competing in Sinnoh."
"Well…"
"Team Rocket's after us, too." Ash was awake and standing behind May.
She leapt out of the way in fright.
Catching her breath she gave a slight kick at his leg. "Don't sneak up on me like that! Geez! …When did you wake up anyways?"
He shrugged. "Few minutes ago?"
"Nice to see you again, Ash." Liza smiled and nodded towards him. "I'm glad you're… what's wrong with your eyes?"
"Ash is blind." May put it bluntly.
"What?! When did this happen?!" She ran up to Ash and inspected his eyes as if she could fix it.
"A while back. Accident. Long story." He was in no mood in explaining a story he's had to tell more times than he could count. "Anyways, we came here to get some charizards for transport. I know your charizards don't really let humans on their back, but–"
"No, they do now." Liza answered quickly. "Team Rocket attacked lately. Long story, as well. Long story short, they're far more trained now. If Team Rocket wants to try anything again, they'll regret it."
Ash's face showed panic. "Are the charizards okay?! Is Charizard okay?!"
Despite there being several charizards in the Valley, she knew exactly who he was talking about. "I've lost some charizards, but… yes. Your charizard is safe as well. He's… not in the mood to talk, however."
She nudged her head back, pointing at a figure in one of the corners. May peaked around and saw another large charizard, its back faced towards them as it stared into the rock wall.
"Be careful if you approach him. He hasn't slept, and he's quite irritable."
"Did something happen?"
Hurt. Pain. Sorrow.
Ash feared the worst. And his fears were true.
"Charla… she was killed in the second wave… she died trying to save an egg they stole from one of the nests."
…
Ash went silent. Liza fell silent.
May quietly broke the silence. "Who's Charla?"
"My charizard…" Liza's voice strained as she refused herself from crying.
"And Charizard's… partner." Ash explained in the most respectable way he could.
Gasp. "No… I'm so sorry…" May had regretted her question and took a step back, hoping that her distance would allow them to forget she had ever asked.
"Then we can't stay in the Charicific Valley. We all need to move." Ash stated.
"We?" The Valley Guardian crossed her arms and raised a brow.
"All of us. Including the charizards."
"I'm not abandoning this reserve. We are not abandoning this reserve. You can go, but Charicific Valley must be kept safe."
"Which matters more? The Valley or the charizards?"
Liza took those words as a challenge. "In case you didn't hear, Team Rocket's got a signal block in this area. That means there's a good chance they're still out there waiting."
"It could also mean they're trying to keep you paranoid enough to stay here while they recuperate for the next attack."
Ash wasn't being himself. His words were far too logical, far too intelligent, and definitely far too authoritative. Sabrina's bond was overtaking his personality again.
"The Valley's a private zone." Ash continued. "Because you're not anywhere public, they can attack this place over and over again without anyone finding out. You're too far for direct support, and your only line out to the rest of the world has been cut."
"And what do you propose then?" Liza hadn't conceded. She had only asked out of curiosity. This doesn't seem like the Ash I knew. He seems… older. It's good to know he's finally acting his age.
"Move to Violet City."
"Not going to happen. That area's far too public. It'll make the charizards incredibly uncomfortable and panicked in those surroundings, and I don't want any of those tourists and trainers to bother them."
"Of course it's too public. That's why we're moving there."
"You keep saying 'we' as if we agreed to it."
"You're going to have to. If you stay out here, you'll be hunted until there's no charizards left for the Valley to protect. If you go to Violet City, you'll be under the public's watch – and Falkner's. Team Rocket won't even try to risk that obvious of an assault. With any chance of a witness getting away through sky or land, there's no way they could get away safely."
But Ash, what about… May held onto his sleeve.
He knew exactly what she meant. The assault on his home. But the difference there was that they were a small family in a quiet town, while this was a large group of powerful pokémon within a bustling city.
May's new Empathic abilities allowed her to read that meaning from his silence. She nodded. She also wanted to squeal. Her Empathy surprising her in its usefulness. However, it wasn't an appropriate time to show excitement, so she kept silent.
Ash stepped forward, facing the Valley Guardian – his dulled eyes locking onto her fierce gaze. "Head to Violet City. We need your services as much as you need ours."
Liza stepped forward in challenge. "And what makes you think that?"
"Because they're not after you. They're after me. And they think you're going to help me. So either make them happy by proving them wrong, or upset them by proving them right."
_________________________________________________________
"Please don't touch the charizards." Liza repeated as another passerby tried to take a picture with one.
"They're not for sale. They're not for capturing. They're not open for battle." she grumbled loudly as another team of trainers readied themselves for a fight when they noticed one on a rooftop.
Sigh. "How much longer do we have to wait?"
"They'll be here soon."
"You said that you took the rod that lets you go through these tunnels. So how are they supposed to get here?"
"They'll find a way through."
"Please don't touch the charizards!" She massaged her forehead. "So Ash… if you were gathering all of us to save your mom and friends, and now they're all saved… what's your plan now?"
The young man stretched and leaned against the wall behind him. "Team Rocket's still a threat. We can't let them get away with what they plan to do."
"That's obvious enough. But how exactly do you plan we do that?" She walked over and sat next to Ash. "We're not exactly an army… and I don't think we'll be able to get any support beyond our little ragtag team. And if you're right about Team Rocket's influence, I don't think getting the authorities or any organization involved would be a good idea.
"We'd have more spies than allies at that point."
"I know." Ash searched the Valley Guardian's emotions, trying to find the answer she was looking for. "We won't need more than that. Team Rocket's head group is tiny in comparison to the rest of the team. And they'll be the only ones who'll be directly involved with the Arceus project.
"Small team versus small team." he concluded simply.
"Except they've got an army of henchmen and thugs to cushion the blow between them and us. By the time we face them, we'll be too exhausted to fight back."
"Then we have to play it smart."
"Smart's not really my thing." she admitted.
"It's not mine either." he admitted with her.
They laughed together, relieving the tension.
"Don't sell yourself short, Ash. You certainly kept your head on straight back at the Valley. I hated to admit it at the time, but you were right."
He scratched the back of his head and smiled with embarrassment. "Well, that wasn't all me. I learned a thing or two about logic from Sabrina."
"Maybe she could teach me t– DO NOT TOUCH THE CHARIZARDS, THANK YOU VERY MUCH." Sigh. "I swear, these people…"
Flapping of wings. Large wings.
A gust of wind twirled around their feet. Several dirt and debris flew into different directions, nearly blinding the area in a swirl of activity. The blast of air was strong, nearly knocking Ash off his feet, and causing the nearby charizards to flinch.
The large object landed. A massive pidgeot.
Someone was on its back. Cool, confident, and curious.
"Well now, it has been a while, Ash Ketchum…"
"Falkner." he nodded at the Violet City Gym Leader, keeping his own cool despite having a bad taste in his mouth.
"And Liza too. Now this is indeed an interesting meeting."
"Beat it, Falkner."
That wasn't a response Ash was expecting to hear. He thought he had been the only one that disliked the Flying Pokémon Master. Or rather, he thought his immaturity had made him dislike him. But if Liza doesn't like him either, maybe I'm not being childish. he considered with a smile.
"So rude, Liza!" Falkner jumped down from his pidgeot and sighed. "You come to my city as a guest…"
"It's not your city." she shot back.
"…you cause a ruckus by inviting your charizards to perch on my buildings…"
"They're not your buildings, and we won't be here for long."
"…and then you endanger my city's citizens by bringing Team Rocket to my doorstep!"
Liza stood straight. "What??"
"It seems that you thought you could avoid whatever business you had with them by using my city as your time-out shelter." Falkner frowned. "I don't appreciate that, Liza. Many of Team Rocket's clients are happy residents in my city. I don't want your problems thrown on us just because you're too selfish to solve it yourself."
"You–!!!"
"Get out of my city now."
Ash walked forward and gazed into Falkner's emotions. Proud. Insincere. Bluffing.
"You're lying. Team Rocket doesn't know about this."
Falkner's eyes narrowed. "And how would you know what Team Rocket knows and doesn't know, Ash?"
Nervousness. Hiding something.
Ash peered deeper into Falkner. …Team Rocket… tower…
"Urk!" Falkner found his feet scraping against the ground. Ash had dashed towards him and lifted him by the neckbands. "What do you think you're doing?!"
"You made a deal with Team Rocket!"
Liza's frown twitched, her scar burning. "What kind of deal?"
"I don't know what he's talki–"
Ash interrupted. "Falkner allowed Team Rocket to build a tower here! The tower's been the one blocking out the signals in Charicific Valley!"
Panic. Fear.
"H-How did you–?!"
Crk-Crk. Liza cracked her knuckles and slowly walked towards Falkner.
His pidgeoto came to his rescue as it stood in front of the furious woman.
With a snap of her fingers, every Charicific Charizard surrounded and glared at the now-seemingly-small bird pokémon. It cowered in response and moved away.
"Now Falkner…" Crk-Crk. "Tell me… why in the world would you allow Team Rocket do such a thing?" her voice was cold, and her emotions dangerously sharp.
"You really want to harm me in a city filled with Team Rocket? If you know what's good for you, you'll let me go."
Bluffing again.
"Give it up, Falkner. I know Team Rocket isn't here. You're trying to scare us out of the city before they do find out we're here." Ash threw him to the ground and glared down at him. "You sold out Liza so you could protect yourself!"
"You dirty little–" Liza had launched herself onto Falkner. Her fist raised in the air… and it stayed. Her body trembled. Tears formed on the corners of her eyes. "You… CHARLA DIED BECAUSE OF YOU!!!" she roared as she slammed her fist into the ground, missing his head by inches.
The woman pushed herself to her feet, turning away in disgust. "You're the one who should leave this city, Falkner. Otherwise I'll let Charizard do as he pleases."
Violet City's Gym Leader was shadowed by a large creature.
Atop a tall building, Ash's charizard stood. His silhouette blocking a large portion of the setting sun. His eyes burning red with fury.
He had been distant from the rest of the group, preferring isolation and time to be left with his thoughts. Ash had barely recognized him during his time away, his emotions refusing to let him in or acknowledge him.
But now his emotions were obvious. Uncontainable rage.
It wanted Falkner dead, ripped apart, destroyed. But just like Liza, he knew it wouldn't bring Charla back… and it wasn't Falkner that killed her, he had only been an indirect cause.
Without these thoughts, he wouldn't have stayed where he was. Angry. Intent on revenge. But still distant, still isolated.
He growled and turned away. That was his last response to the situation. He returned to his thoughts.
Falkner crawled back to his feet, patting dirt off his kimono and hands.
No regret. No concern. No care.
"Hmph. I'll give you two more hours. If you're not gone by then…"
He hopped onto his pidgeot and patted its back twice. It began flapping its wings, causing another strong gust of wind to push everyone off balance.
"I'll remove you myself."
The pidgeot shot into the air in frightening speeds and rocketed deep into the city.
…
"He's bluffing." Ash commented.
"He always is." Liza spit as she kicked her heel into the dirt.
Thu-thump.
The two turned.
Despite the sun setting, another sun was rising.
With a loud yawn and a grunted stretch, a young woman who had been sleeping quietly for the past few hours – began to wake after falling off the comfortable bench she had claimed as a bed.
"Did I miss something?" May groaned.
"Glad you could joi– DO NOT TOUCH THE CHARIZARDS."