Pokemon Fan Fiction / Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Ascension ❯ Dawn ( Chapter 2 )

- Ascension -

- By Brian -

+ Chapter Two: Dawn +

"Is everything ready, Dr. Oak?" asked a female figure, her tone of voice making it sound more of a command that that of a question.

The young man felt himself shiver slightly, despite the fact that he had nothing to fear from the head of Silph Co. She was known to be cold and calculating, but it was also common knowledge around the staff that she would not do anything to jeopardize such an important project as this one…

In addition, they had known each other for years, going all the way back to when they were in high school. They were what people would call "friends"…

"Almost, commander. The simulations have gone smoothly, showing no sign of any deviation. However, there appears to be minimal side effects, such as geography changing and such, but they will not interfere with the process-"

"How minimal?" she interrupted, her face remaining impassive.

He stammered for a few moments, before finding the right words. "Well, the best example I can think of is that Cinnabar Island will remain intact…"

She raised an eyebrow at this revelation. "I do not find something like that minimal, Dr. Oak. Are there any more side effects from the project?"

"Most of them are cosmetic, ma'am. Pallet City, which we know as a metropolis, will be reduced to a simple town; many of the other cities will change depending on where they are, as well. Mt. Silver will become a simple, barren shell of a volcano, and the same goes for Mt. Pyre. Apparently the biggest side effect is that the Hoenn region will not be connected to the Kanto and Johto regions-"

A very faint smile appeared on the female's face. "Then…it seems that everything is going according to plan, Dr. Oak. Tell everyone in the labs to prepare, for today will be the day that Project D becomes a reality…"

* * *

Brendan Birch, the only child of the widely respected Professor Birch, felt himself begin to worry as his prized Medicham fell with one Earthquake. This trainer was unlike anyone he had ever seen before. All the people he had battled up to this point, with the exception of Ash Ketchum, were nothing compared to this unbelievably amazing…girl. He thought he was a pretty good trainer, considering the fact that he placed fifth in the Hoenn League this year…but this girl that he was battling at the moment could have easily taken first place…

"Altaria, use Dragon Dance!" he commanded shakily, his eyes never leaving his opponent's.

His blue-skinned dragon started to twirl around on its cloud, powering up its attack and speed in the process. However, the other, larger, orange-skinned dragon didn't even flinch; it merely stood there, it's fierce eyes showing no fear.

"Use Outrage, Dragonite." she commanded smoothly, as if the match was already in the bag. Her Dragonite bowed its head and seemed to almost curl up, before releasing countless streams of orange energy towards Brendan's Altaria.

"Dodge it Altaria, and use Steel Wing!" he shouted frantically, knowing full well that his Altaria couldn't survive an Outrage, even if he had no idea what that orange-skinned dragon was capable of. If only he had his pokédex with him to identify the unknown dragon-type, but he had made the mistake of loaning it to his friend, Wally, a few days ago…

The bird-like dragon narrowly dodged the streams of energy, which managed to strike a nearby group of trees instead, causing them to disintegrate into countless splinters. Brendan's eyes widened in amazement at the amount of damage caused by just one attack…that could've seriously harmed his Altaria…

"Now Altaria, Steel Wing!" he exclaimed, and watched proudly as his Altaria, which he had caught as a baby Swablu, rammed the Dragonite with steel tipped wings.

After that Dragon Dance + Steel Wing combo from Altaria that Dragonite should be toast! thought Brendan, suddenly regaining the confidence he had lost when his Medicham fell.

"Use Steel Wing again!" he commanded, watching intently as his Altaria circled quickly around the Dragonite, before charging right at him-

"Hyper Beam."

Brendan didn't have the chance to issue another command, as his Altaria was knocked out cold by a huge beam of white-orange energy. He had seen Hyper Beam attacks performed before (like when he had battled Norman's Slaking), but those were nothing compared to this. He was shocked as he recalled his fallen dragon, unable to grasp the fact that he had lost so badly.

"Who…are you? How did you manage to do that? Altaria are supposed to have naturally high defenses…yet with just one Hyper Beam…how…? Who are you…?" he asked in a hushed tone, fear evident in his features.

She wasn't like anyone he had ever met; her clothes were not native to the Hoenn region. She wore a dark green blouse and tan khakis, and she had a boy's backpack instead of a girl's standard hip-bag. Her hair was a fluffy brown, and she had what he could only describe as pure emerald colored-eyes…

A small, barely noticeable smile appeared on the girl's face. At least, that's what it looked like to Brendan, although he wasn't quite sure what the intentions were behind it…

Before he could mutter another word she hopped on to her Dragonite, put a red cap on her head, and started to fly away, towards where the sun was beginning to rise…

Brendan could only watch dumbfounded, realizing he hadn't received a single answer to any of his questions.

* * *

"Pika?"

"No, Pikachu. This'll ruin your appetite, girl." he answered sternly, waving a finger at his long-time companion.

"Pika pi!"

"But you know as well as I do that cookies make you slow in battle, since you end up eating half the bag!" he replied, his voice slightly muffled from shoving another chocolate cookie in his mouth.

His little Pikachu, who he had never seen as a Pichu, nor evolved as a Raichu, pouted and folded its tiny arms, its cheeks crackling with a faint amount of electricity; more then once had it used Thundershock on her trainer, and at the moment it seemed like the perfect time to do so.

"Piiikaaachuuuu-" it squealed, ready to unleash its powerful electric energy at her unsuspecting trainer-

"Hey, did you hear that? It sounded like the doorbell…"

Only to be stopped by a simple doorbell. The crackling sound of energy being collected stopped, and the small mouse sighed, realizing it had been foiled. It decided that it would be more fun to bother May instead, so it ran upstairs, leaving its master to his own devices.

Ash chewed another cookie thoughtfully as he went to answer the door, wondering who could be coming to visit so early in the morning. Gary was usually awake by now, but he was working so hard at the ranch that there was rarely time for him to sit down and chat. Tracey was a heavy sleeper, especially when it came to the weekends, so he was out of the question as well.

Who could it be? Ash pondered, as he came upon the door, opened it, and found something blazingly fast attaching itself on to his face, causing him to go blind as he struggled to shake it off…

Unbeknownst to him, a girl a few feet away was watching him struggle with a devious glint in her eyes, and along with a devilish smile to boot…

* * *

"Bulba-bulbasaur!" grumbled the tiny grass/poison pokémon, as it vine whipped an Espeon and Umbreon, who looked like they were about to get into a scuffle. It wasn't an easy job, nor did it pay well (actually, it paid nothing at all), but it was satisfying to take care of all these pokémon, just like how it used to do it back at his first home.

"Hey Bulbasaur, how are things going on the ranch?" asked Gary, as he dragged a still-sleeping Tracey behind him.

"Bulba Bulba." replied the grass-type, as it held the Espeon and Umbreon with its vine whips, the two Eevee evolutions trying their best to struggle free, only to be slammed against one another, knocking them both unconscious.

"The usual, eh?" chuckled the brown-haired boy, as he reached down to pet the grass type, who responded with an uncharacteristic sigh of relief, having not been petted in a long while.

Bulbasaur looks so much like that other one…Gary mused, as he looked down at Ash's Bulbasaur with fascination, In fact, it looks exactly the same, except that the other Bulbasaur was a lot more timid…and her trainer…she was something else entirely…

Gary lowered his head, his eyes closed as he tried to remember what that trainer looked like. It had been four years since he had last seen her…

"What the? Where am I?" grumbled a groggy voice, "I thought I was sleeping in bed…hey, uh…Gary?"

"Yeah?" he answered nonchalantly.

"You dragged me out of bed again, didn't you?" hissed Tracey, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, not knowing that he was still clad in his pajamas.

"No…uh…Bulbasaur did it. Gotta go, need to check up on the water pokémon!" replied Gary with a laugh, as he started running off towards the lake area, with an irate and still sleepy Tracey chasing after him.

"Bulba?" mumbled the grass-type, as it went about the task of carrying the still-unconscious Espeon and Umbreon back to their mother.

* * *

"I didn't think that was very funny…" grumbled Ash, as he plunked himself down on the grass, wiping his face in disgust, "Gah…I'm still wet…"

His companion sat beside him, her face full of mirth as she nudged him with her shoulder. "I especially loved the look of pure terror on your face…"

"Surskit?" squealed the small bug, as it claimed it's usual spot on the red-haired girl's head.

"You know, I didn't give you that Surskit so that you could teach it to latch on to my face and then use Hydro Pump…that was pretty devious of you to do that, Misty…"

"I know, but I couldn't resist it Ash…it's so easy to get you spooked."

Despite being soaking wet with water, Ash smiled…it was nice to have his best friend back after a year without her. He missed her complaining, he missed her whining, he missed her love of the water, he missed her hate of peppers, carrots, and bugs, he missed her "clever insight" on his training, and well…he missed her…

"It's nice to have you back, Misty. Things weren't quite the same without you..." he said sheepishly, looking at her and noticing that she was wearing the hat that his mother had sent to her.

"You're wearing my old hat…"

It was her turn to smile, as she held his hand in hers, much to his surprise. "I hope you're not mad. Your mom sent it to me, and I've been using it whenever I battled trainers at the gym. It's brought me a lot of luck…"

Ash puffed his chest up proudly. "Of course it's brought you luck! It is my old league hat after all-"

"Dumb luck, that is…" she finished with a giggle, "You can't imagine how many trainers have been distracted by this stupid old hat…for some reason, they seem intimidated by it…"

"Probably because they've heard of the great Ash Ketchum from Pallet, who traveled through Kanto and Johto with that famous hat!" he said hopefully, imagining that people spread rumors and tales about a boy with a red-and-white hat, who dominated every trainer he came across. Besides, he had managed to get fourth place in the Hoenn finals, and that was no easy feat in itself, considering that the competition was fierce as they come…

"Can't be. They said something about being scared of a girl with a red-and-white hat…and unless you've been secretly hiding the fact that you're a girl, I doubt it's you." she said, grinning like an idiot as her friend groaned.

He lay back on the grass, noticing that the sky was beginning to brighten a bit. "Hey…isn't this the place where you fished me out?"

She looked around, and found that they were sitting on the hill where she had been fishing, all those years ago. On closer inspection she found the lake a few feet away, although it looked quite smaller then the last time they had been there.

"Yeah…" she replied, lying down next to him, "The lake's a little smaller, so I guess that means you won't be chased by a Gyarados again…"

He smiled at the memory, despite the fact that he and Pikachu had almost been eaten. If it weren't for Misty fishing him out in time, he would've been a goner.

"Look, Ash…" she whispered, brushing her hand against his, "The sun is coming up…"

* * *

"Cacturne?" asked the grass/dark pokémon, as it held out a bag of cookies for its master to open.

"Alright, but don't complain if this ruins your appetite!" half-complained James, as he happily opened his bag, much to his female companion's dismay.

"James, I really think we should save some of the food…" she grumbled tiredly, as she lay back on the grass with her Seviper next to her and her Dustox flying overhead, "We haven't had a decent meal in weeks, and we're running out of food…"

"Wobbuffet!" cried out a squinty-eyed pokémon, seemingly popping out of nowhere, only to be returned to its pokéball by an irate Jessie.

"I wonder how Arbok and Weezing are doing right now…" mused Jessie, absently noticing how similar her old Arbok and new Seviper looked, "Do you think they're okay?"

"I bet they're doing great. After all, they're big and strong from all that experience fighting the twerp's Pikachu, so all those Ekans and Koffing that they are taking care of are in good hands…err…if they had hands…" replied James, munching down another cookie with his cactus-shaped pokémon.

"I guess you're right, James…for once." she said mockingly, sighing wistfully at the thought of her Arbok.

"Hey! I resent that!" cried out James in a muffled voice, his mouth stuffed with two more cookies.

"Mmm…I wonder where the twerps are up to…" Jessie pondered aloud, before her view of the morning sky was blocked as she witnessed a huge orange dragon speeding past her, with a human riding on its backside.

"Did you see that?" Jessie asked in a daze, her hair in disarray from the sonic boom left in the dragon's wake, "It…it messed up my hair…!"

"That's a rare pokémon!" cried Meowth, in complete awe at the speed of the thing, "We've got to go steal it for the boss!"

"And look…it was heading for where the twerps are staying…" James added, about to eat another cookie before having it skillfully stolen by his scarecrow-like pokémon.

* * *

"No, please, don't do it! No more! No more!"

Brock Slate, former gym leader of the Pewter City Gym, woke up in a cold sweat, having had yet another nightmare about a certain professor he had met and stayed with on Valencia Island…

"I-I-Ivy…" he muttered under his breath, rubbing the back of his head to calm himself down. He thought he had gotten rid of these nightmares, but apparently they were starting to come back…

He hated that name…he wouldn't even let his friends mention it, because just the sound of it caused him to go into fits of depression and anger over what had transpired. She was supposed to be his boss, yet…yet the things she did…

Sighing, he got out of bed and started to get dressed. He was supposed to talk with Professor Oak about how to properly take care of his Steelix, which had evolved after adding a Metal Coat to it. His Onix had hated to lose, especially to smaller pokémon such as Pikachu, Phanpy, and Tyranitar…so it had asked Brock to help it become stronger, even if it had to evolve to do so. At first Brock didn't like the idea, since he had known Onix since he was eight, but if you were afraid of change then you would never grow up and mature.

"Off to Professor…Oak's laboratory…" he whispered shakily, still trying to get the female professor's image out of his head as he left the guest room…

* * *

"I love watching the sunrise…it's like every dawn signals the beginning of a bright new day…" said Misty in a faint whisper, as she held on to Ash's hand with her own, determined not let him run off.

Ash, on the underhand, started to feel a little guilty doing this. After all, he was with May and he liked her…and he was probably just being paranoid. Misty was his friend, and nothing romantic was happening anyways…they were just holding hand, like how some friends do after not having seen each other for a long, long time…

Besides…he missed Misty, and he sure didn't want to ruin this quiet, peaceful moment with her.

"Yeah…it sure is…" he whispered back happily, tightening his grip on his friend's hand, as they watched their first dawn together after a year of being apart…

No one noticed as a brown-haired girl ran away from her hiding spot behind a large tree, tears flowing from her eyes as she realized that she had just lost the only thing that meant anything to her…

- To Be Continued. -

Author's Notes:

Project D? Mmm…what could that be? I bet quite a few of you can probably guess what it is, but you know, spoiling it for other people isn't nice…so please try to be vague if you attempt to talk about it.

Brendan's last name is Birch because obviously he's the son of Professor Birch, since May is the daughter of Norman. That's the way the game works if you pick May as your character. Wally is your friend and rival in the game, and he actually gets quite powerful at the end…

In case you're wondering, yes, Arbok and Weezing have left the show. Jesse and James convince them to go, since they want them to be with their own kind now. Arbok and Weezing go off with a bunch of Ekans and Koffing, who they take care of since they helped them escape from a nasty poacher. However, James gets a Cacnea after sharing cookies with it (which will probably evolve into Cacturne), while Jesse gets a Seviper (it's the new poison snake pokémon) and Wurmple (which will probably evolve into Dustox, since May's Wurmple is likely to become a Beautifly).

In the first chapter I said that I would refer to pokémon as "he" and "she" instead of it, but it became too hard and confusing, so I had to change it back to it. However, I'll still have characters refer to their pokémon as having genders, such as when Ash calls Pikachu "girl". By the way, Pikachu is a girl when you face Red in Gold/Silver, which is why I'm so adamant with having Pikachu being portrayed as a female.

By the way, Ash placed fourth in Hoenn League for two reasons. One, it's the way it's supposed to be, since he placed sixteenth in Kanto, and then eighth in Johto. If you were doing the math, then you'd realize that it means that Ash would place fourth in Hoenn, since I refuse to believe he can ever be a pokémon master, no matter how much heart he's got. Besides, he has a much greater purpose, since he's the Chosen One, which will be shown in this story…

Thanks for all the feedback so far, and sorry for being a little late on this chapter. I hope all of you reading this will tell me what you think of the story so far, since I appreciate what you guys have to say.

Next chapter: Revelation