The group of spectators to the final match between Ash and Aaron (Minus Anabel and Kidd) burst through the now shut down doors to the newly abandoned pokeball factory. Brock and Clemont held up a still unconscious Ash with one arm around each of their shoulders. Meanwhile Paul and Dawn were in the same form with Greninja. And in Serena's arms, was an unmoving Pikachu. Nearly everyone's eyes were bloodshot from so many tears being shed over the departure of Pikachu from their world.

"So, what now?" Bonnie sniffled.

Clemont put his free hand on Bonnie's shoulder. "We get Ash and Greninja to a hospital. They should be fine, but I'm not sure."

"And when he wakes up?" Bonnie said clutching Dedenne. "What do we tell him then?"

"There's no easy way to say it." Brock said. "And he'll most likely lash out at whoever tells him, so I'll take care of it. I've got a little experience with the types of things, anyway." Brock said shedding another tear.

"I just wish there was something we could do." Serena said scratching Pikachu's cheek lightly. "Ash will never forgive himself. He'll hate himself until the day he dies, and there's nothing we can do for either of them. Poor Pikachu." She sniffled.

Max looked up to the sky and widened his eyes. He quickly wiped a tear away and pointed up. "Look! Something's coming! Something huge!"

'Nothing you can do maybe.' A voice said. The group looked up to see a giant white and yellow quadruped floating toward them. The one and only Arceus was approaching them. 'But Ash's destiny has been fulfilled, therefore I'm am able to help.'

"Arceus?!" A bunch of them cried.

"This day just keeps getting stranger and stranger." Abel said.

"Are you the real Arceus?" Mairin asked innocently. "Like for real, for real?"

Arceus gracefully touched down onto the ground. 'Yes.' She nodded. 'And I have not come alone.' Arceus began to glow brilliantly as a single shard phased through her chest popping out in front of her. The shard was enveloped in a pink aura, and spun around infinitely shooting back at Arceus. It phased back inside her being and her body began to deepen into a dark pink hue.

"She's changing types!" Max said. "The legends are true!"

Arceus slowly turned her head to the left and in a bright flash of light, teleported another pokemon to her side. Xerneas. The giant antelope looked down at the group and smiled. The many horns on Xerneas' head glowed their respective colors. 'It is nice to finally meet all of you in the flesh. I am-'

"Xerneas." Max interrupted. "Giver of life."

'Do not interrupt. It is rude.' Xerneas said monotonal. 'But, yes, you are correct, I am indeed Xerneas.'

"But what are you doing here?" Iris asked. "Shouldn't you be out... I don't know creating forests or something." She asked shrugging.

'That is a duty of mine, yes. But I decided to take a break from my normal rounds for a quick detour.' Xerneas' pupils slowly faded away replaced with a bright light. She locked focus on Pikachu who was basked in blinding lights of his own. He was slowly lifted out of Serena's arms, who just watched amazed as he spun around once in the air to face Xerneas. 'For this Pikachu's service to this world time and time again, I will grant him the privilege beyond anything I've given individually before. A second chance at life.'

A bubble slowly wrapped around the mouse before exploding in a rainbow of colors in another show of power. Inside the bubble, the bags under Pikachu's eyes slowly faded. And his eyes fluttered open gently. More surprisingly his prosthetics began to crack and chip. Before breaking apart completely and disappearing into nothingness.

"His handicaps!" Brock said. "They're gone!"

Xerneas's eyes returned to normal and the bubble around Pikachu dissolved. The lights engulfing Pikachu died down as well and he was slowly placed gently back in Serena's arms. 'It is done. Pikachu will truly live once again. This is my gift to him and the chosen one for their constant service.' Xerneas said.

In Serena's arms, Pikachu's ear subtly twitched as he finally came back into consciousness. He lifted his head slowly and looked around. "Pika?" He asked.

"Pikachu!" Serena yelled squeezing the little mouse. Soon nearly everyone present joined in on the hug in one giant welcome back to his newly revitalized life.

As he felt everyone squeeze him tightly, he felt and heard a lack of metal being squeezed as well. He looked down at his stomach to find a big part of his life for the past year gone. "Pika?" He flexed his anterior legs lightly and his eyes widened. "Pika Chuu!" He backflipped out of Serena's grasp and landed forcefully on the ground. "Pika, Pi Ka!" He said as he ran around in a small circle several times, enjoying using his organic leg muscles again. It brought tears to everyone's eyes to see him so happy and moving around again. The only thing missing was...

Pikachu came to a stop in front of Brock and Clemont who were holding Pikachu's unconscious best friend in front of him. "Pika..." He said sadly, ears drooping.

"Don't worry Pikachu, Ash is just unconscious. I'm sure he'll be up again in no time." Brock said happily. "More importantly, it's so good to see you fully capable again." Brock patted the little mouse on the head a couple times.

Pikachu tilted his head and frowned. "PI! Ka! CHUU!" The little mouse screeched as he let out the strongest thunderbolt he could, intensely shocking his best friend. Something he missed doing so much. Ash stirred in the arms of his friends and slowly came into the world of the waking.

"Pikachu...? What the heck was that for?!" He yelled suddenly enraged. "You're lucky I can't use thunderbolts or I'd... you..." he stuttered. "You used Thunderbolt. You used Thunderbolt!" In joy he dropped to the ground and gave the mouse a crushing hug. His eyes widened slowly. "Your exoskeleton... it's gone!" His eyes started watering heavily as the group circled around the boy. He looked around to his circle of friends. "And everyone's safe. I-I don't understand. Was it all just a terrible nightmare? Where's Aaron? Was I in some kind of coma?"

'Not exactly, young hero.' Arceus said. 'If you were anyone else, I'd take offense to the fact that it's taken you this long to notice my presence. You've had quite the rough day.'

"Arceus? Hey!" He waved. "What are you doing here? Xerneas too? Do I have you to thank for restoring Pikachu to his old self?" Ash asked wiping a tear away.

'Yes, Chosen One. I healed your Pikachu.' Xerneas smiled. 'It was the only gift I could think to give you. Anything else wouldn't have measured up to the experience you've had recently.'

"I don't understand. If you were willing to heal Pikachu, why didn't you do it earlier? Like a year ago, earlier?" The boy asked. "Why wait all this time?"

'Because destiny was at work. It is a rule of mine not to interfere with destiny. But now...you have fulfilled your destiny...for the moment. And so, I see it only fair that we make it up to you.' Arceus replied calmly.

"But why me? There has to be other people hurting. Not that we aren't grateful, of course." He covered quickly as Pikachu, for the first time in over a year, climbed Ash's shoulder all on his own. He then jumped right off of Ash's shoulder and repeated the process giddily. As soon as he settled down onto Ash's shoulder for real, Ash smiled and reached over to scratch his ear.

'Do you even have to ask? You are the Chosen One. You fight for the world I've created, and for that, should be rewarded. Though this chapter is closed, I feel the world still has many plans for you. And Pikachu."

"But I lost." Ash countered. "The world needed me and I failed everyone. I don't even know how any of this happened. I can't be the chosen one if I can't win."

"Failure is a beautiful thing, my chosen. In victory, you learn nothing. But in failure, countless lessons can be learned. You may not see them now, but they're there. One thing is clear to me now. You, Ash, are special. And so is Pikachu. More special than I could've imagined. I cannot say who, but some of your friends were, according to destiny, supposed to perish today.'

"You mean, they were supposed to die?!" Ash said.

Arceus nodded. 'When Aaron used the Guardian Staff and drained their aura. Not everyone was supposed to survive the blow. But something changed that. You and Pikachu.' The two in question shared a quick look. 'The impact you have on the people you're connected to is enough to overcome even destiny. Only the strongest of wills can work outside the conformity of destiny.'

"So, what you're saying," Clemont cut in. "is that everyone has a set path and the future really is set in stone, except when Ash and Pikachu are around. Is that right?"

'That is correct.'

"Because of his affinity to aura?" Max asked.

'No. The real answer is much simpler. He can defy destiny, because he is Ash. It's his will. And that willpower is so infectious that it empowers others to be better as well.' Arceus told them. She turned her head slightly to the side. 'The Jennies are coming. I must leave. Destiny is at work once again. We will meet again soon, my Chosen. Come Zygarde.'

From inside Bonnie's purse the little green creature popped its head out of the flap and look Bonnie warmly in the eyes. He did a backflip out of her bag, transforming into its 20% form mid jump and landing in front of her.

"Bye Squishy." Bonnie said. "Come visit again?" She asked tilting her head. Zygarde jumped up and licked her face a couple of times earning giggles from the girl before retreating back to Arceus's side

With her peace said, she, Zygarde and Xerneas disappeared in a bright flash. When the light faded all that was left behind was a single piece of paper.

"So, I guess we have a lot of explaining to do, huh?" Iris asked stepping forward and rubbing her head awkwardly.

"Not really. Aaron pretty much admitted everything to me before we fought. I know you guys were manipulated."

"So, we're cool?" Max asked hopefully offering his hand.

Ash gently pushed his hand away. "No. Not right now. I'm not sure if we ever really will be back to the way we were before all this. What you did, manipulation or not, it hurt. But maybe I have been blinded by anger. Maybe I am kind of responsible for the bad feelings you had for me. My heart, it's just not sure what to think right now. I need time to process it all."

Misty drooped her head. "We understand. Well if time is what you need, then I guess we'll just have to deal."

"There is one person I need to talk to right now, though. Brock." Ash requested. "Let her out." Brock nodded happily and threw his newly acquired pokeball up into the air. It opened letting out Ash's old pokemon, Donphan. Ash walked forward slowly and knelt down meeting Donphan's eyes. "Listen..." He started rubbing the back of his neck. "I never did get to thanks you for taking that hit for Sceptile. You might have saved his life, and I don't know what I would've done if something ever happened to him. So... thank you."

"Phan." The armor pokemon nodded.

"Why don't you come back to the lab with us. You're newly homeless and Sycamore's got plenty of room. He'd be happy to house you until we figure your situation out." Ash offered.

"Phan!" Donphan rushed forward for an embrace with Ash, but Ash took a step back and put his hands up in defense just in time for Donphan to nuzzle up to him.

"Okay, okay. That's enough." He said pushing her off of him. "You realize you weigh, like 300 pounds, right? A little more warning next time." Before he could get back to his feet he saw a small piece of paper where Arceus stood.

"What's this?" Kneeling down where Arceus had stood, he grabbed the small piece of paper and scanned it reading aloud as he did. " 'Do not fear what comes next.' What the heck does that mean?"

"Don't move a muscle kid!" Ash looked up to find himself in the process of being surrounded by dozens of officers all with tasers pointed his way. He looked behind him to see more Jennies distancing his friends from the group of Jennies surrounding him as they all rattled off questions of what was happening.

"Oh hey. If you're looking for the mastermind, he's in the factory." Ash said pointing to the abandoned building. "Don't know how many lackeys stuck around but at least you got Aaron, right?" Ash shrugged.

"That Aaron guy's being apprehended as we speak, we're here for you. You know a man named Samuel Oak? Pretty famous guy, a Kantoan like you should've heard of him."

'Oh, right. I forgot about that bit. Damn it.' He thought to himself. He looked down at his hand at the piece of paper Arceus left behind. He crumpled it up in a fist and turned back at the many Jennies surrounding him. "Yeah I know him, and I know where you're going with this." He put his arms up in the air in surrender. "Pikachu, I need you to go to Brock."

"Pika?" The little mouse questioned. "Pikaa!" He said shaking his head.

"If the Pikachu doesn't get off your shoulder, we'll have to take him in too." One of the Jennies advised.

"Now, Pikachu." Ash said dangerously. "Trust me. I'll be fine. I need you to watch over the other pokemon. Can you do that for me, buddy?"

"Pika!" He protested, shaking his head.

"You've got ten seconds, before you're both in trouble." The officer warned.

"For me?" Ash said giving Pikachu his most pleading look.

Pikachu looked ash straight in the eyes and drooped his ears. "Pikachu." He said sadly nodding. He jumped off Ash's shoulder and made his way slowly to the group of friends being held at a distance.

"Ash Ketchum you are under arrest for the murder of Samuel Oak. We're taking you to Lumiose." The first Jenny said calmly.

"He did what now?" Bonnie asked.

"Ash is that true?" Dawn asked.

"I think so." Ash said honestly. "It's fine. This is how it has to go." He said. He turned back to the Jennies. "No need for weapons, I've got no pokemon and I won't resist."

Behind him Serena lowered her head sadly. Suddenly she snapped her head back up. "Wait!" She yelled. She loosened her shoulder letting the bag with Ash's pokemon in it fall into her hand. She tossed it at Clemont quickly. "Hold that." She said taking off.

"Hey what do you think you're-" One of the Jennies started.

Serena shoved the Jenny in front of her out of her way and approached Ash boldly. She grabbed his collar tightly and pulled him in for a deep kiss lifting her left foot up in the air. Everyone just observed as Serena finally made her move. Over a decade of built up passion for the boy who stole her heart with one action poured into one gesture. 'I've waited for this moment for so long. No more waiting.' She thought to herself. Watching Pikachu die kind of brought everything into perspective for her. Life was way too short for her to wait for Ash to make a move. Besides, she loved his dense side just as much as any other part of him.

"Odd timing." Paul said. Dawn punched him in the arm and glared at the boy.

Bonnie was jumping up and down and clapping happily. "Shut up, Paul. You just don't understand."

"Bonnie!" Clemont scolded. "I told you to stop telling people to shut up!"

"You shut up, too!" She shot back still giddy. "I'm too happy to listen to a lecture right now. My best friend is becoming a proper woman!"

Serena and Ash parted not breaking eye contact. "I'm done waiting. You already know how I feel. I don't want to force you or anything... but when you get out of this, I'm taking you to lunch. Okay?" She demanded. "Just the two of us."

"O-okay." Ash stuttered.

"Good." She lit up, her face turning from bold determination to pure sweetness in less than a second. "I want a call the second they let you go."

Serena nodded in accomplishment and started back towards her friends. As she passed the circle of cops, the Jenny she shoved glared at her. "I hope you know what kind of boy you just kissed."

"Better than you do." Serena huffed in annoyance.

As she rejoined the group of friends and frenemies, Bonnie jumped up into the air and latched onto Serena tightly in a hug. "You did it!" She laughed brightly. "Was it worth the wait? When's the wedding? I want to be maid of honor!"

"Wedding?!" Serena asked blushing. "I just kissed him!"

"Oh, you're just being modest!" Bonnie laughed again. Before Serena could reply again, the sound of handcuffs cut off her train of thought. Serena turned just in time to see the Jennies click the handcuffs shut.

"Be safe, Ash!" Dawn said.

"Don't let them push you around in there!" Misty added.

"Bye guys. I'll be back in no time, you'll see." Ash said as the Jennies moved in and apprehended Ash transporting and ducking him into the cop car as his friends and allies watched.

"Pik...aaa..."

"Come on, Pikachu," Brock said offering his arm. "Let's go back to Professor Sycamore's lab. I'm sure the professor is expecting us." Pikachu nodded and climbed slowly up Brock's arm.

"I couldn't agree more." Brock and Pikachu looked up followed by everyone else. In the sky a massive red and blue dragon circling above them with two familiar females aboard the creature.

"A Salamence?" Clemont asked. "Who has a Salamence?"

Salamence slowly descended down and both Kidd and Anabel slid off her sides opposite of each other. "I do." Anabel said. "Return Sally." She said returning the creature into her pokeball.

"Where was she during the fight?!" Abel asked incredulous.

"Sally's not a fighter, in fact she's a pacifist. She wouldn't hurt a cutiefly." Anabel said matter of factly. "But that's not what's important right now."

Kidd nodded. "Right, we need to get back to Sycamore so I can get in touch with some friends of mine. Play my cards right and Ash'll be home in a week." She smirked.

"How?" Brock asked. "He's a suspect in a murder case."

"I've got contacts." Kidd said. "You don't work in my field without meeting some powerful people. It just so happens that I saved a very successful lawyer during my last job in Unova."

~Sycamore's Lab~

"I see..." Professor Sycamore said scratching his chin. In front of him stood Clemont, Pikachu, Serena, Bonnie, Anabel, Dawn, Paul, Brock, and Kidd. Everyone else was elsewhere doing their best to move the process of getting the ex-hostages home to their families across the regions. They had just finished filling the professor in on Ash's arrest and every detail they knew of. "This is very concerning. Murder? You're sure?"

"Positive." Anabel said. "From what I gathered from the officers who collected Aaron's body, it came from an anonymous tip from inside the factory."

"Then there's a chance it's all fabricated? Surely no one there could be trustworthy." Sycamore guessed. "That's-"

"No." Serena said with a shake of her head. "He admitted it twice. Once when I woke up inside the factory, and again when they arrested him. From how he described it, it sounds like it was a product of his bond with Greninja."

"That makes sense, I suppose. Facing Oak would bring out anger in Ash. And the bond has been shown to amplify his determination. Maybe it can amplify other dominant emotions, too." He said scratching his chin. "If that's the case it can be argued that what happened wasn't entirely his fault."

"But if it has that power, then why hadn't he ever had this problem before?" Anabel asked. "Why now?"

"I suppose because up until a year ago, he didn't really have any anger in himself to bring out." Brock said. "He was always a glass half-full kind of guy. Never dwelled on something for too long."

"But there's another point here." Clemont said. "I think Oak may be alive. During the battle, when Donphan joined the fight, Aaron said Oak had some of Ash's pokemon and then said 'looks like someone's back in the land of the living'. It's a long shot but that could mean..."

"But if Oak is still alive, then Ash obviously didn't kill him. All we need to do is find Professor Oak." Anabel said. "Once we do, we can easily have any charges dismissed."

"Then why is Ash so sure he killed him?" Dawn asked. "Could Aaron have planted memories inside that thick skull of his?"

"Could've." Paul said rubbing his chin. "Can't be too far out of the realm of possibility at this point. I fully suspended my disbelief after the whole life force draining deal. But then again, it's possible he didn't and Ash really did just give in to his anger."

"You can't seriously be suggesting, Ash, of all people, killed a man? No strings attached?" Dawn said in disbelief.

"Piiip-lup!" The brash little penguin shot a beam of water into Paul's face angrily. "Piplup." He scoffed.

Paul angrily grabbed his collar and wiped off his face. "We have to consider everything!" Paul defended himself. "This is where we are! So how about you stop with the water and-" He was interrupted with another shot of water. "Knock it off!" He growled.

"And what of our new guests?" Sycamore asked ignoring their little scuffle. "Are you sure they can be trusted?"

"Yeah." Anabel answered honestly. "As much as I may not like them, they were victims, too. Aaron took their frustrations and manipulated them for his sick game. Then he kidnapped them and locked them away with the rest so Ash would never know the truth. Besides, Max fought with us and the rest helped de-pod everyone once they were out."

"I still vote we kick 'em out." Paul muttered. "Max can stay I guess, but not the rest of them."

"Let's not be hasty, Paul. At the moment, they're helping the hostages." Brock said calmly. "We can judge the situation once everyone's back home safe."

"What about Greta?" Anabel asked the professor sadly. "Is she-"

"Completely fine?" A new voice joined in. In the doorway stood a totally normal looking Arena Tycoon. Standing proudly with her hands on her hips. "Of course! Nothing can keep me down!"

"Greta!" Anabel cheered. She ran over and hugged her friend tightly. She pulled away smiling and examined Greta's skin. "You look...young." She breathed. "How?"

"What are you talking about? I always look this great!" She laughed. "I already told you the secret to my conditioner. You're not getting anything else outta me without a fight!" She chuckled.

"You don't remember a thing." Anabel realized. "You must've never regained your consciousness in between the whole mess."

Greta chuckled again. "I have no idea what you're talking about. Of course, I know I was captured. But I woke up here a while ago with everyone else."

"So, she doesn't know?" Clemont asked.

"Know what?! Will you guys just spit it out already?!" Greta snapped.

"Forget it." Anabel said. "It's not important. Now that you're okay, the number one priority is Ash."

"Oh, you mean his arrest a few hours ago?" Greta asked. "Nasty news to wake up to. What happened with him?"

"How do you know about Ash?" Brock asked. "We hadn't told anyone but the professor."

"Dude, all of Kalos knows!" Greta shouted. "It's been played and talked about all over the news. As we speak the news is probably spreading to the other regions, too."

"The news?" Clemont asked. "They got the articles written that fast? Did they even consult other sources?"

"So is it true? Did he kill Professor Oak? He wouldn't do that, right?"

"Of course not." Brock said. "Look, I've known Ash longer than anyone here...besides Pikachu..." Brock intervened.

"Uh... actually-" Serena voiced very quietly. "I have." She muttered quietly blushing lightly.

"And I can say without a shadow of a doubt, Ash wouldn't kill anyone. He hated Oak but he would never stoop to his level." Brock finished seemingly not hearing Serena's confession.

"The main point here is, we're not actually sure." Clemont said. "Everything's still up in the air. No one but Greninja and Serena were there. Serena was unconscious then and Greninja's unconscious now. There's no way to tell. We'll just have to wait for Greninja to get up. I'd like to think I know Ash just as well as anyone else. He wouldn't tear himself away from Pikachu unless he truly thought himself guilty. Once Greninja's up we can-"

"Well your wait's over!" Sophie exclaimed walking into the room. "Look who finally decided to get up!" Sophie stepped to the side arms extended out in presentation. Greninja appeared from behind her and slowly stepped into the room.

"Greninja!" Serena exclaimed. "How do you feel?"

Greninja turned his head to the left, then to the right scanning the room carefully. He let out a small grunt. "Jaa?"

"Pikaa. Chu-pi Kachuu." Pikachu explained sadly. "Pika-chuu." His ears drooped.

"Sorry, Greninja. Ash isn't here. The Jennies took him." Anabel said. "But we're working on a solution right now. He'll be fine, I promise." She said comfortingly. "But we need your help. You're the only other one who was there. Did You and Ash really kill Oak?"

"Jaa." He groaned putting a webbed hand onto his forehead. "Ninja."

"I take it he doesn't remember anything from that fight." Anabel guessed. "Probably stressed the bond too far." She guessed.

"Say," The professor said. "All of your friends are off in the corral. Why don't you and Pikachu go join them. You've all had such a rough day. And I'm sure Pikachu's eager to play with all the pokemon again."

"Kaa..."

"Not in the mood, eh?" Sycamore guessed. "I understand. But I'm sure they're all just as down in the dumps as you are. Maybe your presence would be therapeutic, little one."

"Pi." He jumped off Brock's shoulder and wandered away slowly. Greninja slumped his shoulders and stepped in line behind the little mouse.

Sycamore leaned to the side, making sure the two were out of the room and out of earshot before continuing. "We need to talk about Ash." He said seriously. "I wanted to make sure that his pokemon were not around for this next conversation. There's a good chance that this won't end well for him. Without Greninja's testimony, we have no one to verify Ash couldn't have done this."

"We can tell them." Dawn said. "No one on Earth knows Ash better than us."

"That, Dawn, won't be sufficient. We'll quickly be dismissed as biased. I fear without Professor Oak with us as proof, he may get a rather...lengthy...sentence." He said honestly.

"We can't let that happen!" Serena exclaimed frantically. "I don't want to wait until I'm thirty to finally have our date!"

"What date?" Anabel asked raising an eyebrow.

"Lengthier than that, Serena." Sycamore said ignoring the girl. "If we want any chance of clearing Ash in the slightest, we need Oak."

"You want Oak?" Anabel asked reaching into her suit's pocket. "I'll get you Oak. Espeon! Alakazam!" She yelled throwing her pokeballs up in the air. Out of the pokeballs came the small purple quadruped with a fork in her tail and ruby red eyes and the bipedal spoon-wielder with a Fu Manchu. "Alakazam I need you to take me back to the factory. Once we're there, Espeon, I need you to find some residue that Oak might have left behind. We'll track him from there." Alakazam nodded and Anabel waved as she fazed out of view.

"Good. Until they get back, we'll just have to hope for the best, unfortunately."

"Come on," Paul groaned. "This is Ash we're talking about. He's come out of much worse unscathed. He'll be released by the end of the week. I'm calling it."

~L.P.D. Headquarters~

Ash sat alone in a bare room at a small undecorated table. He knows he shouldn't be afraid of what's happening, that's what he assumed she meant with the note that currently resided in his jacket. The jacket the jennies confiscated on his way in. Suddenly the door to the room flew open and a new Jenny walked in, sitting down at the table with him opposite of his position.

"Alright kid. Why'd you do it?" The Jenny asked seriously. "The feed we were given is only video. We know you two had a shouting match, but we want to know what you were yelling about. What'd Professor Oak ever do to you?"

"More than you could ever imagine." Ash said bitterly. In reference to Pikachu's health and quality of life, what Oak did to him didn't really matter anymore thanks to Xerneas, but it still mattered to Ash. "He shot my Pikachu." Ash snipped.

"With a Water Gun?" Jenny asked. "You're going to need to be more specific."

"Not with a battle move, with a gun!" Ash snapped. "He shot my buddy with a gun. Crippled him from the neck down. Took away any chance of him competing in battles." He also convinced his other pokemon to turn on him, but Ash was way past caring about that. All that mattered was Pikachu. "So yeah not the great guy everyone hails him as."

"You're Pikachu certainly doesn't look crippled." She slid a picture of the little mouse on Brock's shoulder from back outside the pokeball factory. "I want the truth, Ketchum."

"That is the truth. What, do you want me to call the surgeon who operated on him? I've got tons of eye-witnesses who can say without a shadow of a doubt that my Pikachu was crippled." Ash persisted. He needed to plan out the rest of his explanation carefully. If he brought up how he met with Arceus, there's no way they'd believe a word of what he said. But Xerneas sightings were fairly common among those who study legendary pokemon. "It was Xerneas. She took pity on Pikachu and healed him."

"Why would Xerneas just heal an injured pokemon? That's not very common."

"I don't know." Ash lied. "Maybe she saw something special in Pikachu that she doesn't normally see in people."

"Uh huh." Jenny said skeptically. "And what about the fight? What was that about?"

"He was taunting me. I had so much built up rage for the old man that it just kept escalating and escalating until..."

"Until you killed him." Jenny finished for the boy. "And how exactly did all that go down?"

"I don't remember." Ash said sadly.

"What about your friend? The young lady who was with you. Did she have anything to do with this?" Jenny asked leaning forward. "Any coercion?"

"Serena?" Ash asked, baffled. "Of course not. She's would never."

Besides, if you do have video, you should know she was unconscious for the majority of the time. You also should have seen him attack her with a Noctowl."

"It was just a hypnosis from what I could tell. I figured he was trying to defuse the situation." Jenny told him. "It also could have been self-defense."

Jenny let out a long, heavy sigh. "Look Ash, I don't want you to be guilty. No one here does, but if you can't tell me anything, I have to assume the worst and keep you here until we can figure something out. I have no choice. The video is too damning for me to take chances."

"I swear I don't remember. I called out Greninja, he and I activated our bond, and then nothing. Next thing I know, the fight's over. And Aaron's talking to me."

"Your bond?"

"Greninja and I are special. Two of a trillion. When we're perfectly in sync in a battle, when we have complete trust in each other, he evolves into what my friends call Ash-Greninja. We share pain, emotions, and probably more that I'm not aware of. I see everything through his eyes. He gets a major power boost too. I think that's why the Water Shuriken killed Oak. It shouldn't normally be so sharp."

"Well, well a real live bond phenomenon! So that's what that whole deal was!" Jenny smirked. "Who would've guessed that here in Kalos, we'd have a pair of trainers that special?"

"Um...not to sound to full of myself, but...everyone? I was on live television using it. Back in the Kalos League." Ash said plainly. "You didn't know that?"

"Kid, I've got way too much on my plate to watch pokemon battles. Lumiose may look beautiful, but it's full of dangerous people. People who would do the worst things you can think of if I turned away for a single minute." Jenny answered. "But when I was just a cadet at the academy, I had a huge interest in the guardians of old. I used all my free time studying their history. And one of the most interesting things I came across in my research was the idea that a person and pokemon could be so in sync, that they ascend to a new level of power."

"What does the bond phenomenon have to do with the aura guardians?" Ash asked raising an eyebrow. Jenny opened her mouth to answer but halted before she could say anything. She sat in front of him, unmoving as if she was a marble statue.

'Everything.' A familiar voice said.

Ash jolted in fear before settling down and turning to his right to find a familiar black and blue humanoid pokemon standing in a glow beside him. "Lucario? You're back."

'Of course.' Lucario smiled. 'At the moment, there's no repercussions for visiting you. But I don't have long. Soon I will be forbidden to visit you again.' He said. 'There are things this Jenny does not know. You asked what the Guardians had to do with all of this. Only people who can access the aura like you and I can achieve the bond phenomenon.'

"Why? Why only us?"

'The bond works by drawing in aura from around you, the trust you feel with Greninja elevates your mind to such a high level that this process becomes as easy and natural as breathing, the fact that you had no idea this was even happening proves my point. The barriers that keep outside aura from being assimilated into your body is weakened until you've achieved enough aura to access your new form.' Lucario said. 'It all happens so fast that even most of the guardians weren't aware of how it worked.'

"Then how do you know?" Ash asked.

'Because my partner was Sir Aaron. And he was the best guardian there was.' Lucario explained pridefully.

"So, is everything special about me just because of my affinity to aura? Is that all there really is to me?" Ash asked desperately.

'No. You are what makes you so special, Ash. The aura is just another layer of uniqueness to you. You didn't need aura to touch the hearts of the people you've affected. Including mine. If I stripped you of your abilities here and now, you'd still be Ash Ketchum.' Lucario smiled again. The glow surrounding him began to flicker. 'I'm running out of time. There's one last thing I need to tell you. Don't doubt yourself for what's happened. The world still needs the Ash Ketchum who's willing to look for good in anyone.'

Ash put out his hands in front of his face. He stared at them for a moment, imagining the blood of not just Aaron, but Delia, and everyone Aaron hurt in the pursuit of Ash on his hands. He slowly closed his eyes and lowered his head. "But I don't know if that Ash still exists." He looked back to his side to find the ghost gone. "Lucario?"

"Ash?" Jenny asked.

"Sorry. Must have dozed off." Ash said realizing no one would believe the truth. "You were saying?"

"I was saying that I think I've heard enough. We're done here. Once I leave the guards'll take you back to your holding chambers. We'll let you know when we've reached a decision."

"Wait, don't I get a phone call or something?" Ash said. "My friends are probably worried sick!"

"Sorry, Ash. Not up to me." Jenny said simply. "I'm sure your friends are just fine." Officer Jenny stepped out of the room slowly to be met face to face with another one of her squad. The other Jenny silently raised an eyebrow at her. "Don't give me that look! This changes everything. He's fifteen! A boy his age losing it using something that strong? Anyone who knows anything about the bond phenomenon could've seen that coming! He can't be held completely accountable for his actions. How he managed getting this far without losing control before is beyond me."

"He still killed a man. And not just any man, Professor Oak." The other Jenny said seriously. "A man who was revered across regions. He's not going to get to walk free."

~Sycamore's lab~

Sycamore was making great progress in his attempts to examine every hostage. Most of the women and children were done and then he could finally move on to the men. Some of the older cleared captives had left already too. Non-Kalosians would have to wait for the flights Sycamore had paid for to get there, but anyone who lived nearby was free to go. Beside him was Brock, Tory, Serena, Bonnie and Kidd. He was currently aiding a little blonde girl of about Bonnie's age when Sophie approached him.

"Professor." She said softly. "I'm sorry to bother you, but there's a man here to see you. He says his name is Kane and he insists on seeing you."

"Kane?" Serena said turning her head towards Sophie. "...Does he have an Aipom with him?"

"Yes, hanging upside down off of his arm." Sophie reported. "How did you-"

"Professor, I know him. He was one of Aaron's assistants, but he didn't really seem like a bad guy. He was super comforting when I was really worried about Ash." Serena said. "I think we should let him in."

"Ash thought Aaron was nice and comforting at first too." Kidd pointed out. "Look how that turned out. This guy was involved in Aaron's evil scheme. He's probably very dangerous. As a sort of agent of the law, I highly suggest we turn him in."

"So were all those innocent people who were just looking out for their family members." Bonnie said. "If he had my big brother in one of those tubes, I can't say I wouldn't have gone with him." She said sweetly.

"Maybe there's more to this than meets the eye." Tory offered. "After all, if he were really guilty of something, showing up here would be the last thing he'd want to do." On his shoulder Plusle nodded intensely.

"I suppose you're right." Sycamore deduced. "But I want everyone evacuated to the corral immediately, lest he tries something, we can't afford any more incidents. Sophie and Bonnie, that will be your jobs. Sophie, let him in, but don't let your guard down." Bonnie and Sophie nodded and went their separate way.

Moments later Sophie returned with a man of around twenty dressed in a black tux. As usual for the young man, a lively Aipom hung off his shoulder by his tail, swinging back and forth happily. "Sorry for showing up unannounced." He said bowing respectfully. Bonnie and Sophie took off for the corral leaving Kane in the custody of Sycamore and the others. "Serena." He said acknowledging the young lady. "Good to see you in good shape. How's Ash?"

"He was taken in for questioning." Serena said sadly. "We have no idea what's going on or if they're even treating him well." Kane lowered his head thoughtfully. Aipom dropped off Kane's shoulder and waddled over to Serena patting her on the shoulder comfortingly.

"I'm... sorry to hear that." He said. "All he did was act in self-defense." He said sadly.

"Why are you here?" Kidd asked bitingly. "Shouldn't you be hopping town? Seems like everyone else in your little organization has." Kidd glared at the man. "You realize I put guys like you away on a weekly basis, right?"

"I knew I recognized you." Kane said. "Kidd Summers. World record holder for the most world records. Freelance agent, and jack of all trades. And talented enough to rock the dumbest haircut in existence." He joked.

"Hey! I could hand you by the ceiling with nothing but a twist tie and some twine in less than ten seconds, so I'd watch who you insult!"

"So, the others all bailed, huh? Smart. I guess that's the downside of having a conscience. I fully intend on turning myself in. I just need to find a place for Aipom to stay first. He's been a domesticated pokemon all his life, he'd have it pretty rough out in the wild."

"If you're looking for a place for Aipom, why are you here?" Professor Sycamore asked.

"I actually just came to apologize to Ash and Serena for my part in all of this trouble. I was so blinded by honoring my father's loyalty to Aaron, that I lost my common sense. For that I'm sorry. And I hope you'll pass my message on to Ash when he's released."

"We have no idea when that's going to happen." Sycamore said shaking his head worriedly. "Ash said something about killing Professor Oak. And the Jennies pretty much confirmed that he's the main suspect. No one here wants to believe it...but Ash himself said he did it."

"Oh. That." Kane replied chuckling lightly. "Yeah... wasn't really all his fault either. The Boss was messing with his emotions the whole time. Amplifying anger, suppressing compassion, there's no way to resist it as far as I know."

"Told you." Brock said smirking.

"Besides, Oak's not dead." Kane revealed. "Last I knew, he was still at the factory."

~Abandoned Pokeball Factory~

Two sliding doors split apart quickly allowing an entrance for Espeon, who only slightly preceded Anabel, to enter the seemingly abandoned room. Anabel did a quick check of the room in front of her and after seeing nothing turned to her loyal partner. "You sure you're not losing your touch, old friend?" Anabel asked the cat-like creature.

Espeon's eyes began to glow pink once again as she swept the room herself. Her head stopped at a slightly bashed bookcase and her ears began to twitch. "Esp!" She screeched. Espeon took off in the direction of the bookshelf and disappeared behind it.

"Espeon?" Anabel asked. "Are you-"

"Peonn! Ess peo!"

"Alright, I'm coming!" Anabel said silencing her friend. "You don't need to get so sassy with me, you know?." She turned the corner to find her partner sitting pridefully next to an unconscious old man in a dirty lab coat. "Well, well." She smirked. "Good job, Espeon." Anabel praised turning to her friend. She knelt down and examined him closely. "He's breathing, that's for sure. Something must have really hit him hard for him to be out for this long."

"Peon?"

"With him alive, we may be able to get Ash out of this mess relatively unscathed." Anabel said. "Let's get back to the professor. He'll know what to do next."

XXXXX

"So what you're saying is none of this is Ash's fault?" Professor Sycamore asked.

"Of course not." Kane confirmed. "Aaron was messed in the head, but he was smart, and I don't think you realize just how much of this was his doing. He manipulated Ash's friends then kidnapped them to cover his tracks, he poisoned his pokemon and his mother's mind with promises of safety and riches, he bought out Oak, and he sent Max back to Ash to make him look like a bad guy and isolate him."

"That's the best news we could've gotten! If Kane tells the authorities that Ash was never at fault and explains the whole situation, Ash will be cleared." Brock said.

"And he can come home before he turns thirty!" Serena said pumping a fist into the air.

"Will they really listen to me?" Kane asked. "I was a part of all this too."

"We have to try." Professor Sycamore said. "For Ash." He said offering his hand. Kane nodded and took his hand in his.

"For Ash." Kane agreed. "Aipom." He called. The purple ape nodded and easily climbed up Kane's body before standing up onto his shoulder.

"Pa!" He cried

"Tory you've seen me at work the most out of anyone besides Sophie and you've been a tremendous help, you take over for me and have Sophie join you as soon as she returns." Sycamore said. "We can't stop the operation for a second, not even for Ash. Brock, go grab Pikachu and meet me outside. He might need some emotional support." Brock nodded and exited the room in a rush. "I'll take Kane down to the station."

"I'm coming too!" Serena said immediately rushing to his side. Suddenly a portal opened behind them. "What's this?"

"Isn't it obvious?" A voice responded. "You're not going to get anywhere without this." Suddenly Professor Oak came hurdling out of the portal and crashed onto the ground below. Anabel strutted out of the portal with Alakazam and Espeon in tow and rested a hand on her hip smugly. "Or me."

"Professor Oak?!" Serena asked. "You found him that fast?"

"He was just lying on the floor. Something must've hit him. Hard." Kane looked to Aipom, who was facing away darting his eyes around the room in nervousness. "Anyways, if it's a breakout that's happening, I'm in." Professor Oak started groaning from the floor. "Oh! I think he's coming to!"

He grasped the floor beneath him and began pushing upwards. "Oh, my aching-" He was cut off when he fell something push him back down to the floor. "Ow! What the hell?"

Anabel rested one foot flatly against his back, holding him to the floor. She looked down at him as he struggled underneath "Stay down old man. I personally don't want to get violent, but after what you've done to Ash, I'm not totally opposed to it." Anabel ordered. "And if you do break free the welcoming party won't be too happy."

Oak looked up from the ground to find the rest of the cast looking down at him with disgust as well. "Crap." He groaned.