In the League, Lance was relaxing after a nice, long day. Things were finally starting to calm down. Everything was good, they were finally recovering from the bad press from last year, and he was starting to get used to doing all the paperwork that ca with being Champion in two region.
He had already sent the funding over to Viridian City to rebuild the Gym; it should be good in a few months. Overall, life was finally being good.
But that peace was imdiately interrupted as his computer suddenly blared an alarm, nearly making him fall off his chair.
On the screen, Koga was looking back at him. "Lance, bad news, have you seen the frequencies traveling across Johto?"
Lance managed to sit back up and looked at the screen. "What are you talking about?"
"No ti to explain in detail, but long story short, a sound that makes Pokémon sick is traveling through Johto and reaching the edges of Kanto. But in the area where it's coming from, Pokémon seem to be getting forced to evolve!"
"Sounds like Team Rocket," Lance said, eyes narrowing as he grabbed his jacket, adjusted his belt, and started attaching his Pokéball belt. "Where is it coming from?"
"We don't know exactly, but it's coming from a forested area, sowhere between Ecruteak and Olivine," Koga said. "And I have to agree, this is similar to what happened on Cinnabar Island."
"It's probably closer to Ecruteak then. I'll start there and fly south," Lance said, incorrectly assuming the target, since Ecruteak was the town with the most history and was connected to the legendary Ho-Oh and Lugia, so obviously, he thought their target was Ecruteak.
"Very well. Shall I gather the Elite Four as well to support you?" Koga offered.
"No, I'll take this on myself. You and the others need to keep your eyes open, it could be possible that their target isn't Ecruteak. So all of you deploy around Johto and look for any signs of Team Rocket."
"It shall be done," Koga said, bowing before the screen turned off, leaving Lance clenching his teeth. He threw out his Dragonite and jumped out the window, landing on it as they flew off as fast as Dragonite could carry him.
—-
Ash ran through the town that was collapsing around him. The earthquakes had stopped, but the chaos was only just beginning, with buildings falling. He checked around with his Aura—thankfully, it seed like no one was inside the buildings. Ash had gotten better now; his scanning range could cover an entire town.
As Ash ran, he saw a piece of a building falling, about to crush a little girl and her mother. Ash whistled, and Pikachu jumped off his shoulder. Pikachu ford a ball on his tail and threw out an [Electroweb].
The web caught between buildings and started catching the falling debris like a net. But Ash didn't stop, he ran up and grabbed the mother and child, pulling them out of the way just as the web snapped and collapsed.
Ash looked back at them. "Are you both okay?"
The mother and daughter nodded, still pale in the face. Ash looked around the area. "You need to get to safety, get as far away from tall buildings as you can."
"R-right, you're right. Thank you," the mother said, catching her breath.
"O-okay, big brother," the little girl added as her mother picked her up, and they started running toward safety.
Ash watched them go, but more buildings were breaking around him. A few monts earlier, he'd managed to get Abby to bring him soone, and now, Abby had returned. With her was Beedrill.
Abby imdiately vanished, like she always did, but Beedrill looked around at the crumbling town. Ash glanced at her. "Web it all up."
Beedrill nodded and took to the skies. Ash started running again. Beedrill began shooting webs, stronger than Pikachu's, and as they connected, she began forming nets, catching the larger chunks of debris. She also shot webs into forming cracks, stopping structures from collapsing altogether.
Thankfully, as Ash was running, he could now see that the [Earthquake] had stopped. Most people had started throwing out their Pokémon again, and they were working to stop the buildings from collapsing.
But right now, helping them wasn't his priority. As he ran into a new area, he noticed it had already been evacuated, no one was here. And this was where the light had co from. With Ash's Aura, he could see soone trapped beneath the debris, an entire building had collapsed on top of them.
Ash imdiately threw out two Pokéballs, releasing Machamp and Nidoking, "Help out, you two!" he said, imbuing his arm muscles with Aura as he started throwing pieces of debris off the pile. His Pokémon began doing the sa.
It didn't take long before they uncovered the largest piece of what used to be the floor. It took the combined effort of both Nidoking and Machamp, but they managed to lift it.
There, under everything, was Jasmine, a large chunk of debris crushing her leg.
Ash rushed forward and threw the piece off her. Then, without wasting a mont, he picked her up. He wasn't going to check on her now, he'd do that once they were out. Obviously.
Once outside, Ash gently set Jasmine down while Nidoking and Machamp dropped the remaining debris behind them.
Ash gave Jasmine a quick scan using Aura. Most of the bones in her leg were broken. She also had so blunt force trauma to her back, a broken rib, and fractures in her left ulna and radius probably from the fall.
Overall, it could've been worse. A building had collapsed on her, after all. But thankfully, this was all treatable, Ash could fix it with surgery. Just not now. Ti was the one thing he didn't have.
So instead, he opted for quick treatnt. Placing his hand over her, his palm started glowing a soft blue as he used his Aura to heal her, just enough to stabilize her, enough to make sure she wouldn't die or suffer any long-term damage, like needing an amputation.
When he finished, Jasmine's eyes slowly started to flutter open. She looked at him and blinked, "Huh? Who is... Did... Did I die?"
"You're not dead yet," Ash said, helping her sit up. But she couldn't put weight on her leg, so he picked her up again, princess carry style.
She blinked weakly and looked around, realizing she still had a Pokéball clutched tightly to her chest. With a sigh, she relaxed a bit, "You saved ..."
"Don't thank yet. Things are still going wrong. First, I'm getting you sowhere safe—"
Suddenly, Ash felt sothing through his Aura. His instincts scread. He jumped back, holding Jasmine tightly so she wouldn't fall.
A shard of ice pierced the ground right where he had been standing a mont before.
As they landed, Nidoking and Machamp moved in front of them protectively. Pikachu's cheeks sparked with electricity.
From the rubble erged an army, about fifty Team Rocket grunts wearing masks, led by Carl and Sham, both wearing smug, mocking expressions.
"Well, well, well. Looks like a little boy trying to play the hero. How cute. Is that your girlfriend~?" Sham taunted.
"I almost feel bad for ruining the mont between these lovebirds~," Carl smirked. "Almost."
Jasmine looked up, blinking in shock, "W-what? Team Rocket? So they're the ones behind all of this..."
"Aww, the girl can state the obvious," Sham sneered. "Guess her voice is the only thing that still sounds like a child."
"Why are you doing this?" Jasmine tried yelling, her voice shaky and weak. "People could get hurt, or worse!"
Carl cocked his head. "Our plans are none of your concern. But we can't have fools like you playing hero. So... we'll have to eliminate you." He snapped his fingers, and his Piloswine stomped forward beside him once again.
Ash held Jasmine closer, after all, he could take a hit, she couldn't. So if he had to, he'd take one for her. Jasmine yelped in surprise at everything happening—only for a Golbat to suddenly fly in and slap Carl. Not Piloswine. Carl.
Before Carl could react or even speak, a Feraligatr broke through a chunk of debris, charging in with Silver riding on its back. Silver jumped off, landing beside Ash as Feraligatr lunged forward, chomping down on Piloswine and slamming it hard into the ground.
Silver gave Ash a quick look, then glanced down at Jasmine. He instantly understood, "I see. I'll cover you, get her out of here."
Ash didn't waste ti with greetings, this wasn't the mont. He grabbed a Pokéball and kicked it off. From it ca Wyrdeer, and he gently set Jasmine onto its back.
"Get her out of here," Ash commanded.
"W-wait," Jasmine tried to protest. "I-I can't let you do this, I'm the Gym Leader—I should he-gah!" she cried out as a shock of pain surged through her leg and arm.
"We can take care of this," Silver said over his shoulder. "Now go. You're of no use to anyone like this." His bluntness, for once, ca in handy.
Ash nodded. "He's right. And if you don't want to go... then try and stop us."
With that, he slapped Wyrdeer's back, and the Pokémon took off running.
As Wyrdeer dashed away, so enemy Pokémon tried to intercept, but Nidoking and Machamp ca crashing in like a wrecking ball, taking them down and clearing the path.
Carl stood up slowly, wiping his cheek. "You kids don't know what you're doing."
"I think we should show them what happens when you ss with Team Rocket," Sham sneered, grabbing a Pokéball.
Around them, the grunts moved into formation, surrounding Ash and Silver.
Silver glanced around, calm and collected, then grabbed a Pokéball. "Looks like we're in this ss together, huh?"
Ash cracked his shoulder with a smirk as Pikachu jumped off his shoulder, landing ready to fight. He grabbed another Pokéball, "You take the 25 on the left, I'll take the 25 on the right."
"Hmph." Silver scoffed. "I'll take 26. And the stupid-looking guy."
"That's the spirit. Then I'll take the girl," Ash replied with a toothy grin. "Let's beat the bricks off these losers."
—-
Elsewhere...
Misty and Yellow were making their way through the wrecked streets. Yellow had brought out Kitty to help, both to search for Ash and Brock, and to web up dangerous spots, but things weren't looking great.
They weren't any closer to finding either of them, and Yellow's energy was flagging.
"Where are they..." Yellow mumbled.
"Let's see. If I were Ash, what would I be doing?" Misty said, rubbing her chin. Then she sighed. "He's probably fighting whatever caused all this..."
"Okay, but what about Brock..." Yellow asked quietly.
Right then, a familiar cackling rang out. They turned in ti to see a large piece of building collapsing—
"Pineco [Rapid Spin]!"
From the rubble, a green blur launched upward, spinning and crashing into the debris. It exploded in midair, reducing the threat to harmless pebbles.
As the dust cleared, they saw the attack had been aid at saving a group of people, three kids, a few adults, and most notably, a group of older won.
And standing right in front of them... was Brock.
"Hello, my ladies," he said with a sparkle in his eyes. "Don't worry. You're safe now because I am here!"
One of the kids—a boy with a red hat and red hair—looked at Brock with stars in his eyes. "Wow, that was so cool!"
That, of course, was Roy. The other two were Liko and Dot, and like Ash had instructed, they were helping people.
Brock brought a finger to his chin and smirked. "You haven't seen anything yet. Pineco, another [Rapid Spin]!"
While still in the air, Pineco ricocheted off a building, then bounced into another chunk of debris—like a pinball. As he did, the green blur turned bright white as Pineco began to glow.
Then, with a final flash of light, the newly evolved Forretress shot back down—Brock caught him perfectly.
Everyone in the group, except for Dot (who looked utterly unamused), clapped at the dramatic display.
Brock struck a pose, flexing like a superhero.
Misty and Yellow exchanged deadpan looks... and sighed.
Misty ran up, getting a short running start before jumping—and drop-kicked Brock in the side, catching everyone completely off-guard.
As she stood over him with arms crossed, Misty scowled. "Can you not show off for girls for one second?!"
"Hey, I'm actually helping this ti!" Brock protested, flailing around on the ground like a Magikarp on land.
"Right... and you weren't about to ask for their numbers afterward, huh?" Misty said blankly.
Brock didn't respond.
Yellow jogged up with Kitty landing on her shoulder, and she gave the group an apologetic bow, "I-I'm sorry you had to see all that... Y-you should all get sowhere safe!" she urged.
The group nodded and turned to leave, but just as they did, Yellow's next words made Liko, Dot, and Roy freeze, "Please don't fight... We still need to find Ash."
The crowd of civilians hurried to safety, but the trio stayed behind. Liko turned quickly, "Wait... Did you say Ash? Do you know Ash?"
"Hmm, yeah," Misty replied, helping Brock to his feet and brushing herself off. "We ca here with him. Before, well... all this."
Brock nodded with a sigh. "He's our friend. We've known him for years."
Roy's face lit up. He bounced from foot to foot like a spring-loaded Torchic. "No way! Ash is our friend too! So that makes us, like, friends by extension!"
Misty held up a hand. "Hold on. Just to be sure, we're talking about Ash as in: red hat, hoodie, acts like a complete troll but is sohow the most selfless person on the planet?"
"Yep. That's the guy," Dot replied in a flat tone, "He told us to get sowhere safe. Said he wouldn't let anyone die."
"That selfless idiot..." Misty mumbled into her hand. But she couldn't even be mad. Not really.
Roy stepped forward, eyes gleaming with excitent. "If we're all in this together, then do you want to team up?!"
"U-um..." Yellow flinched slightly from the sudden enthusiasm, looking nervously at Misty and Brock for backup.
Misty opened her mouth to respond, but before she could, another chunk of a building started to fall toward them. And this ti, Brock didn't have Forretress in the air to stop it, all they could do... was flail.
But before the falling debris could hit them, they heard the unmistakable roar of rushing water like a jet ski slicing across a river. Then—BOOM!
Sothing shot out of the water, arcing high through the air with a sparkle of sunlight. It was a man, an extrely muscular man, with long, flowing white hair and sunglasses that sohow glinted even in the dust and chaos. He was standing perfectly balanced on the back of a Sharpedo like he was surfing.
The man backflipped off Sharpedo mid-air, twisting like a figure skater and landing with a seismic thud. At the sa ti, Sharpedo torpedoed into the airborn debris, shattering it to pieces with a perfectly tid Aqua Jet. Sparkles. Slow motion. Pure style.
Landing in a three-point pose, the man sprang to his feet and flexed dramatically, his arms curling into the shape of a massive letter G.
"The defender of humans and Pokémon, the guardian of the sea...!" He twirled, flexed again, and pointed dramatically toward the sky, "MIGHTY G!!"
Silence.
The group just stared, blinking in confusion, even Dot had to squint in disbelief. "What am I looking at..."
Mighty G gently caught Sharpedo as it dropped out of the air, holding it like a bridal carry before setting it down and giving it a firm pat, "You did good, Sharpedo. You did good."
Then he turned to the stunned group. His glasses shone again.
"Don't worry, young trainers. Everything is going to be okay because I am here!"
He struck another pose. More flexing. Maybe a sparkle or two in the background. Sohow.
—-
anwhile, back in the ruined plaza...
Ash and Silver stood back-to-back as the full force of Team Rocket's ambush bore down on them. The ground cracked beneath their feet as a dozen Pokémon attacks lit up the field, [Ice Beams], [Thunderbolts], [Flathrowers], even a few [Hyper Beams].
"Pikachu, [Iron Tail]! Spin!" Ash shouted.
Pikachu leapt into the air, tail glowing silver, and spun like a whirling saw blade. He deflected a flaming [Fire Fang] from a lunging Houndoom, hitting it in the jaw
"Haunter, [Shadow Ball]! Clear them out!" Silver commanded.
His Haunter cackled with wild glee as he unleashed a barrage of dark energy, exploding among the Rocket Pokémon like firecrackers in the night.
Carl snarled, sending out Piloswine again, bruised and battered, but still standing, and three snarling Houndooms by its side.
Sham followed suit with a lazy smirk, tossing her Pokéballs in the air. A Slowking erged alongside three Persian.
Ash didn't flinch. "Pikachu, use [Iron Tail] again! Silver, cover my left!"
"I was going to do that anyway," Silver snapped, cool as ice. He threw out Sneasel and Magneton, "Sneasel, take the Piloswine! Magneton, you're on Slowking!"
The battlefield erupted. Fire and lightning clashed, explosions shook the pavent, and blasts of energy shot in every direction. It wasn't just Pokémon being targeted—Team Rocket wasn't pulling punches. Ash and Silver had to dodge, duck, and slide to avoid the more reckless attacks.
Ash's Nidoking charged like a freight train, plowing through three grunts with a shoulder tackle that sent them sprawling. His Machamp wrestled a Golem, lifting and slamming it into the pavent like it was a wrestling match.
Silver's Feraligatr rejoined the fight, fresh from dragging Piloswine earlier. With a ground-shaking roar, it slamd into the battle again like a piano falling from the sky.
Ash wasn't done. He grabbed two more Pokéballs and threw them high, "Quilava, Kleavor let's go!"
Far away, riding on Wyrdeer, Jasmine looked back over her shoulder.
She watched the chaos, Ash, Silver, their Pokémon, fighting by all accounts they should be losing. They were outnumbered heavily, but they weren't. Normally, she would have jumped in. She should be there. She was a Gym Leader, it was her duty.
But just this once... soone else was taking care of the problem for her, and they weren't losing.
---
Ok since we where close and you guys gave a lot of stones last week when i didn't do anything, fine i'll give you this Chapter early, but this is the only one, the next extra Chapter is at 600 and nothing else
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