PLEASE READ THE AN! (pretty please?)

Well hey there everyone! I'm so sorry about how long this took. I got way busy over the Summer, and some school stuff got in my way (testing), but more so than all of that, the mother of all writer's blocks nailed me for this story. I haven't had that happen in a long while. I think it has something to do with all of the loose ends finally coming together and me trying to make sure I don't forget anything. Regardless, I finally got this out. Hopefully it won't take as long next time. But even if it does, I will get through this.

If you ever need info on my update schedule, CHECK MY PROFILE. I try to keep that up to date as frequently as possible (since there isn't many ways to talk with readers/followers en mass on fanfiction.

Two last little notes before you continue:

One I have a tumblr now. Just in case you're interested. I'm not sure what I'm doing with it, but I thought it might be a good place to talk more freely with readers en mass.

And number two, I think I've already told you guys that I plan to revamp this story in the future (because it's old, I've grown as a writer, and etc.) Point is, I was wondering... What do you guys think about the manga characters being in this story the way they are? Do the issues that arise with that kind of timeline bother you? Do you think the story would be better if I could somehow remove that element from the story?

I'm asking because I've been thinking about retconning the manga characters out of the story in the revamped version (It'll be a separate story from this one, so this story/series won't disappear).

Please tell me what you think about this possible change in a review.

Alright then, onwards to the chapter, and enjoy!

Normal Talk

Thoughts

Lucario talking unless stated otherwise

Zoroark talking unless stated otherwise

Mienshao talking unless stated otherwise

Let the journey continue...

zzz-Sublevel 3-zzz

ZZZ-Pokemon Translator Activated-ZZZ

In time, not only did his blood ebb and flow, but so did his aura. The sound of his own heartbeat gave his observation and meditative analysis a rhythm. He had been taking count of their movements, memorizing what the guards did. It wasn't always the same for every single agent, but it was close enough. He could only suppose that the evil head of this place didn't care if their prisoners could see everything inside. That meant that either they were more arrogant than he had thought, or they were certain their captives would never go outside again without permission.

He tried hard to banish such a dark thought, even as something fundamentally wrong, a certain base wrongness about the earth itself screamed at him that doom was coming. He was both thankful and troubled by the signature that was out of place and moving towards them.

Lucario's eyes slid open and he glanced to his right to see Meowth darting between crates until he was right next to the clear wall, but still within the shadows of the cage's base.

What are you doing here?

Meowth and the others in the cage seemed to flinch at the sudden mental intrusion.

Who are you talking to, Lucario? Tyranitar mumbled.

Meowth. He is next to the cage.

Can you ask him to come a little closer? I needed something to pick my teeth with. Salamance snarled.

Heh heh. Tough crowd. Meowth gulped.

You think? Floatzel snapped his teeth next to the cage, making Meowth yelp quietly and stumble back into a tower of other pokemon's cages.

Okay! Okay, I get it! Youse hate my guts right now. But you've got to quiet down and listen to me.

Go away. I don't want to see your face right now. It's not good for my blood pressure. Blastoise snarked.

Meowth deflated a bit before he shook his head and growled. Fine den! Let your trainer down, but I always thought I remembered youse guys caring about em more than dis!

What are you talking about, fur ball? Houndoom threatened, and let his lips curl off of his teeth.

Pikachu rushed over to that side of the cage, squeezing between everyone to get up front. What do you mean?

Huh, thought that would get your attentions. Meowth muttered. He let out a big sigh. Look, me an Jessie an James have been talkin and we aren't so sure… this is right… even for us anymore. We want to help you guys. The problem is that something happened outside.

What kind of thing? Meinshao asked calmly.

Agent Domino was out doing recruiting and brought in some fresh meat. Problem is, right when they were led to the base, she and her escort grunts were knocked out. Had to uv been someone pretty skilled to sneak up on her like dat. Anyways, the new recruits were gone and the Boss has been planing on making his move. We don't have much time. The League won't get here quick enough even if they know where the base is now. Meowth expressed.

Pikachu nodded. Okay, so what's the plan?

Meowth sighed. We can't help you guys yet. We have to wait closer to when we leave. Maybe during the chaos you can bust out. The point isn't what we can do for you. I think you can all handle yourselves pretty well, but the twerp is worn down. Mostly I'm here to tell you we're breaking him out soon and that you need to be ready to break out yourselves if you want to before the big move.

Pikachu's cheeks sparked a bit and then his face was set. Got it, you guys get Ash out of here. We can handle ourselves.

Meowth saluted and then turned to run off.

He'll fight it, but tell him we'll catch up, okay? It's our turn.

Meowth looked over his shoulder at the large group of pokemon, some he knew a bit more than others. It was funny, even though they weren't friends, he knew them all so well. You got it. He then snuck out of the room

Ash's pokemon looked at each other. At least now they could break out when the next grunt or group of people came by. They wouldn't have to worry about Ash in their escape.

Perfect, I wanted to make a bit of a mess on the way out. Charizard snorted but also gave a deep growl. Silent anticipation welled up inside the pokemon present.

ZZZ-Pokemon Translator Deactivated-ZZZ

zzz-Cell block-zzz

"You need to eat."

He rewarded her with silence. Ever since the most recent test, he'd felt… bad. He wasn't really sure how to describe what he was feeling. It was a thing inside him that reminded him of a sci-fi movie he watched once with Cilan and Iris that had a mutated alien that was leaving its eggs inside of people. It wasn't of him, it was something that didn't belong. He wanted to groan, but at this point, it was redundant. He knew he wouldn't be given sympathy or even teasing, which from some of his friends would be their form of sympathy.

"Curling up and letting yourself die won't help anyone…" The voice faded off and he knew that she had realized her own lack of authority to say such a thing. After all, she was a reason, even if not a large reason, that he was here. He knew better than to blame every single grunt in Team Rocket, Cory had been evidence enough, but sweet Arceus couldn't he be allowed to be angry?

"Just stop."

The girl with brown hair and dark blue eyes still didn't move. Even though it almost hurt to try, he could, without much effort, just know someone was still behind him while he laid on his cot and faced the wall.

"I'm sorry." He heard a small intake of breath and wondered if she had surprised herself with that comment. He wanted to hate her and say something cruel, but the idea caused the thing in him to stir. More importantly, it just wasn't him. Ash let out a sigh.

"What for?"

There was a long pause and if not for aura, he might've thought she'd left.

"I don't kill. That was my only rule. At first, he thought it was stupid. I know he did, but I was determined to prove to him that I could fight for him and not kill. It's worked. He allows me to do that…"

Ash heard the unspoken but at the end. He decided to actually give his warden, who had been feeding him during his stay in hell, a rare show of his face. He rolled to face her. Her dark blue eyes seemed a bit startled to see his brown ones. He nearly felt a twinge of pain, thinking that seeing any color of pale colored eyes would remind him of Misty. They both remained that way for a moment. The young woman's eyes were seemingly focused on how… lifeless the prisoner's seemed. They were dull and distant as if they were seeing angels already.

"I'm…"

"Yes?"

"Do you believe, that there are fates worse than death?" She asked softly. It was somewhat obvious that recent events had caused the girl to rethink something deeply ingrained in her.

Ash considered her question for a moment. He thought about his father, he thought about the pain he's seen in others who have dealt with various types of loss and grief, then he reminded himself of more permanent things, the curse of immortality, the idea of suffering for eternity in Giratina's realm. All of these things were easy to spout out.

"Yes. I'm sure you can figure out some of those, but I think the worst is not trying your best in an unfair world. If you do everything you can to make the world better, in your own way, then there's nothing else you can do more."

Ash watched as she twisted her mouth, bitting her lip. "Team Rocket- Giovanni wants to make the world better. People won't ever have to worry about crime or anything else ever again-"

"Sounds boring and sad." Her head whipped up to look at Ash. "I mean, how do you know if people want that?"

"Sometimes people need something rather than want it."

"Yeah, but if Robles wins, there will be nothing left," Ash expressed.

"He-"

"Wants to destroy everything. He's using Giovanni. Then again, Giovanni probably knows. I'm just not sure he realizes what Robles can and will do. I'v watched Giovanni bite off more than he could chew many times. I'm not confident enough in his history to assume Robles won't succeed."

"You could warn me and I could tell…"

"Do you honestly think Giovanni will stop, now?"

The girl was silent. Ash saw that her tanned skin was getting a bit ashy. Perhaps she was realizing what was at stake. She rubbed the R pendant that was on the choker around her neck as though it she was considering the symbol that it was.

Suddenly there was a noise. A bucket rolled out from behind a corner and stopped in the hall. Ash's eyes dilated a bit when he realized who was hiding. He gave the girl a quick glance and saw she was staring at the bucket intensely.

Behind the corner, Jessie was grasping at James' mouth, trying to keep him quiet after their slight blunder.

Eventually, the girl turned and looked at Ash in a distracted manner. "You should eat. Try to get some rest." She turned to walk off, causing her long brown ponytail to whip with her movement. Ash smiled slightly.

"What's your name?"

Without pausing, she replied. "Rain Tanaka."

Then she was gone. He glanced over and saw Jessie peek around the corner. With a bit of effort, he leaned up and walked closer to the bars as the duo approached.

"What are you two sneaking around for?"

Jessie froze and gave him a frown, one that was thoughtful rather than her typical scowl. "We um…"

Ash was surprised by the pure determination that had spawned on James' face. "We're getting you out of here. We aren't part of Team Rocket anymore."

Ash blinked in slightly stunned silence when he realized he wasn't joking.

"Where is Meowth? He should be here by now. He's the only one that knows how to unlock this thing," Jessie muttered.

"I'm here. Calm down," Meowth grumbled and trotted over to the cell door. He then glanced at James and crawled up to his shoulder so he had a better position to work. The young man bent down until the pokemon was level with the lock. "Okay, the key slot I can handle easy, but the card reader is a problem. Even if I had a card, we'd leave data that said we had been the ones to let him out and at what time. We need to damage the door itself so that the lock actually remains locked and untouched."

"I bet Arbok or Seviper has strong enough poison for that," Jessie expressed.

"True, but it'll be time consuming…" James countered.

"I can tell you if anyone is coming," Ash murmured quietly. He had to bury whatever grudge or hurt he still had from their previous betrayal for now.

"I guess," Meowth replied hesitantly.

Jessie nodded and released Seviper, asking the snake to be as quiet as possible. The serpent appeared and then carefully wedged his two fangs around some of the bars, slowly letting acidic venom dribble down the side and melt the metal.

The awkward silence was thick save for the noises coming from Seviper's actions and Ash's somewhat labored breathing.

James tried to look into Ash's downcast eyes. "Are you okay?" He nearly squealed when he received a powerful glare in return.

"Gee, swell. Peachy even."

Jessie nudged James harshly causing the blue-haired man look at her. He saw a cold-emotionless mask there, with a hint of pain. She shook her head. Jessie knew how much James hated to leave things alone when it came to emotions, but her silent warning urged him to drop it for now.

"En here-" Meowth instructed Seviper.

"What about my pokemon?"

Meowth glanced up and was actually able to see Ash's eyes. He had to hide a shutter at the dullness in them. He'd seen the twerp in bad spots before, but this was different. "They'll take care of themselves. They said-"

"No. I can't leave them here."

Meowth's face grew impatient. "I get it, alright? I talked to them. They said to make sure you got out. We can't free them at the same time. We have to free you now because of the alert that came up from Domino. The boss is trying to figure out how long we have before the League finds the base-"

"Then they need to be freed as much as I do!" Ash whisper-shouted.

Meowth growled. "No they don't. They have their own plan, they have each other. They have their own say in this. They aren't defenseless just cause they ain't human."

"They'll try to capture them. They crushed their poke balls."

Meowth snorted. "And you're half-dead. Shut up and get out. They'll come. Best case scenario is that in the ruckus of moving, the boss will just leave them. Another likely one is that they'll escape not too long after you." Meowth's face then relaxed a bit. "Let them do this for you."

Ash couldn't seem to form words after that. Seconds after, there was the slight ringing of metal when the bars snapped. James carefully pulled out the entire locking mechanism as Jessie watched Ash stumble out.

"Now what?" Ash asked.

"We have an escape route planned, come on-" Jessie instructed and moved to direct the group down the hall. Ash followed after them, trying to keep his feet from dragging. James huffed and forcefully lifted one of Ash's arms over his shoulder.

"I know, but you're about to face plant."

Ash stayed silent at that and focused on trying to ignore the twinge in his chest each time his body was jarred from walking.

"Do you remember where all the cameras are?" Jessie murmured to Meowth.

The feline looked up at her and nodded. "Yeah. It won't be a problem until the elevator."

"How will we hide him in there?" James asked in surprise.

"We'd go up the stairs, but Ash is worn out and there are a bazillion cameras all up that stairwell. We're going to up one level on the stairs and then take the elevator. We should be fine then."

Jessie nodded at Seviper as she returned him and then looked at James. "Get ready to use Weezing. Smokescreen will cloak all of us. They'll be suspicious but they won't be able to do anything immediately."

After they had rushed up one flight of stairs, James slid his other hand into his pocket as they neared the elevator doors. "Smokescreen, Weezing."

"Weezing…" Weezing droned before expelling a blast of smoke into the open doors. The group ran in, their eyes watering. Ash hacked slightly, seemingly having more trouble with the smoke.

Jessie stood in silence as she saw the number in the elevator slowly decrease from the sub-levels to the ground floor.

zzz-Forests North of Rota-zzz

Iris was honestly trying her best to not think too hard about what was going on. If she didn't try to distract herself, then she'd immediately start thinking of the worst case scenarios. As much as she wanted to believe they would be able to find Ash and pull him out of the hell hole he'd found himself in, she had already started to imagine what it would be like to stare at one of her best friend's body. It made her a little disgusted in herself that she kept running the idea through her head. She couldn't help it though.

"Emol?" Iris was briefly distracted by Emolga, who was looking at her with a surprisingly solemn look on her face. The sounds of the soldiers marching around her as well as the foot-falls of her friends and the various pokemon out became more pronounced in her hearing now that she was more present.

Iris gave a sad smile. "Worried about Serperior?"

Emolga seemed to huff slightly at the thought of her pseudo-rival, but soon let out her held breath. "Emolga…"

Iris took a look up to her left to see Cilan's own face, set in a complex expression. It was the closest he could probably get to a scowl, but it was complicated by intelligence and pondering rather than being born of pure emotion. Maybe he was doing the same thing as her, trying to prepare himself for what they could find. She sought to hold his hand to find some modicum of comfort. He squeezed back, but didn't smile as he normally would.

Paul on the other hand, was barely containing the torrent of unbridled rage boiling inside of him. He was angry at everything at the moment. He was angry at his friends, for becoming his friends and giving him a reason to feel such pain, he was furious with his father for being sentimental and weak enough to fall for Giovanni's snare to begin with, and he was contemplating letting his pokemon go no holds barred against any human being that sported a big red R on their chest. He didn't really care if he was being completely irrational in his mind. He nearly snarled when Samurai accidentally bumped into him; the trainer didn't seem to notice the issue because of his thick metal armor, however.

"Focus. Have a temper tantrum later." Paul glared first at the hand that now rested on his shoulder and then at it's owner, Gary. Neither spoke as Gary removed his hand and kept marching.

Clemont blinked after having watched the interaction between Gary and Paul before focusing back on the woods ahead of him. He glanced over at Serena, who surprisingly had a look of pure murder on her face. It was a determination that he hadn't seen from her in a while. It seemed to be that all of her once romantic love had been transformed into a fierce familial protectiveness. If Clemont was honest, he really liked that. It gave him a boost of confidence as well and helped him turn his eyes back towards the front.

He spied Misty up there, fists clenched tight and Ellie on her shoulder. He couldn't see her face, but Clemont wasn't sure he wanted to. Riley was even farther ahead, his Lucario right by his side. The young man flinched when a voice spoke in his head and everyone else's.

"We're exiting the forest soon." Lucario's voice echoed.

zzz-Conference Room-zzz

"We've been compromised, hmm?" Giovanni asked.

"Yes sir, by some unknown assailant," Domino's face was twisted with venomous anger as she considered who it could be that had jumped her and the other two grunts.

"I suppose we'll need to leave then, won't we?" Giovanni expressed and rose from his chair. Robles merely watched him briefly before staring at the door. Seconds later, a grunt with a headset came running in.

"Sir!" The grunt saluted. "We picked up something strange in the monitors. Someone used smokescreen in one of the elevators."

Domino rose a brow as the grunt continued to explain that he'd already sent some grunts to go and check it out. Giovanni merely narrowed his eyes. "What sub-level did these mystery people enter the elevator at?"

"Sub-level 9, sir."

Giovanni blinked and the grunt could've sworn he saw a twitch in his boss's lips.

"Proceed then. Tell me if you find anything. Also send a call out through the base to not travel outside the walls until the order is lifted."

"Yes, sir!" The grunt scurried away after that. Robles's eyes burned red as he stared at Giovanni's back.

zzz-Outside Team Rocket Base-zzz

It was similar to the feeling one gets when a person walks into the light after a long time in the darkness. Their eyes will contract, trying to keep out so much of the light that's trying to enter them.

For Ash and his aura, it was worse. He'd been inside of a building, often separated from most human and living contact as often as was possible, and frequently given shackles so that his aura wouldn't be active to begin with. So now he was outside, with not only people, but pokemon, trees, and all other walks of life bursting with aura.

As soon as they'd gotten within the distance needed to see the forest, Ash had nearly gone to his knees. Every one of his muscles grew tight and that only caused the thing that was inside him to roll and burn in his gut.

"Whoa! Geeze, what was that about!" Jessie snapped, working with James to try and keep Ash walking.

Ash wanted to say something snarky to her because he was still mad at them, but he ended up just being somewhat compliant instead. "The aura… hit me all at once. I'll get better eventually." He was silent for a moment before he asked something. "Where are you planning to take me?"

James saw Jessie's face contort into a familiar irritated snarl, so he took the risk to answer first. "We want to help bring Team Rocket down, so we're going to try and act as spies until this is all over. We could just run with you, now, but…"

Ash felt a bit of surprise rush through him. They were going to stay? They were going to risk their safety more than they already had? That was… new. Usually the trio thrived from doing the bare minimum in the responsibility department.

"Halt!"

"Ash!"

Ash felt a tirade of emotions wear on his already tired body. If he'd been weak in the knees from the onset of being reintroduced to the aura of a bunch of living things, then he had no knees to speak of when he turned and was suddenly faced with almost everyone he loved, plus Riley leading a squadron of the Rotisian army.

Several soldiers had their bayonetted rifles pointed right at the three ex-Team Rocket members.

"Don't move!"

Ash saw Misty and the others rushing up to them and he felt his pride shrivel slightly. Instead of doing anything, he glanced at Riley and shook his head. The man seemed to understand and used a hand to lower one of the men's rifle barrels. "I believe we have these three to thank for Ash's presence here, men. Lower your rifles."

Reluctantly, the men obeyed, just in time for Misty to push her way there. "Ash!" A awkward pause followed as Misty looked at her friend and boyfriend, and took account of what damage could be seen. Instead of asking, she smiled the best she could. "You'll be okay now."

If there hadn't been such a large audience, Ash was certain he might have sobbed like a baby. He swallowed thickly and smiled back. "Yeah."

As Brock stepped forward in front of the others to be closer, Jessie and James helped pass their cargo into more capable hands. Misty was surprised to find herself locking eyes with Jessie and seeing a flash of history in them. She wasn't sure what to call it, but she couldn't think of it much for now.

"Hands behind your backs!" A soldier shouted suddenly, breaking the solemn silence.

The other trainers saw Jessie's eyes harden and James' grow large. Meowth looked like he wanted to simply bolt.

Jessie turned her head away and crossed her arms. "Not happening."

Riley frowned. "I'm afraid, there's no discussion. You're a part of a criminal group. There's a warrant for your arrest."

James spoke up next. "We know and we understand. We'll come quietly, after we help bring down Team Rocket."

Several of the army men started to chatter, while others just laughed at such a thing.

Assunta huffed. "What makes you so sure that you'll be able to do anything?"

James looked at the trainers that were mixed in with the army, and focused on them, knowing they might understand better. "We know we messed up. It just took us a long time to figure out that… we might have never been sure of what we ever really wanted."

Jessie seemed surprised by the comment and stared at James silently.

"Da point that Jimmy is tryan to make is dis, we want to fix things the best we can. We'll stay with Team Rocket until it's ended. We'll try to sabotage them. Then… Then you can declaw me for all I care!"

N seemed surprised by such a statement but remained silent.

"Sir?" a soldier asked glancing at Riley. Riley was quiet for a moment before he glanced at Ash, who was starting to look like he would pass out.

"What do you think, Ashton?" Ash jerked slightly, causing his friends to look at him worriedly. He then glanced up and stared at the trio for a long moment. With a glance at Riley, the other guardian got his answer. "I see." The man then looked at the trio as his Lucario produced a rod of blue aura. The aura pokemon jabbed it into the ground causing a wave of mud to splatter over the three people before them.

Of course, the members of the trio let out their own surprised screeches. After it was over, they were blinking through dripping mud.

"Mudslap?" Max questioned curiously.

"Soldier?" Riley asked.

A man blinked at him and nodded. "Yes sir?"

"It appears as though we have these three strangers to thank for the safe return of our companion. We should allow them to carry on their way, seeing as there is no obvious sign they there are unsavory persons."

The soldier looked at the three confused people. "Um…"

"I don't see a red R on their shirts, do you?"

Understanding then seemed to dawn on many, though that didn't mean everyone was in agreement.

"What is this, some kind Arceus-damned joke? What'll keep them from warning the enemy?!" A random soldier bellowed out. Many others started to mirror their agreement.

"Master Riley and Ashton have given their orders, you ungrateful maggot!" Another shouted in response.

A whole cacophony of shouting and name calling sounded soon after, before Riley suddenly barked. "Enough!"

Silence came over the clearing. "You're all acting like children. Besides, they have no objection to turning themselves in afterwards. And if by some chance they escape, then we'll hunt them down. I'll personally hunt them down if I must."

Everyone grew silent at that, until a familiar Ursaring was staring down at the trio, growling. Paul was flat out glaring at them. "I for one, don't feel so forgiving at the moment."

"I agree. I don't know these guys half as much as the others do, but they've always been up to no good." Stephan narrowed his eyes and his Sawk smacked his fist into his palm.

Alain kept silent and clenched his fists until their were white. He had no right to really speak on the subject. After all, he knew what it was like to be used as a puppet and never know you were living with strings attached.

Gary seemed to have a contemplative look on his face and Leaf looked at him. "You not going to say anything? I think they should be arrested. We can't trust them." Gary hummed and nodded at Misty and Brock.

"I don't know their habits and sometimes during war, laws aren't followed to the T." Gary observed. "We have bigger things to focus on."

"Guys, just let them go. If they're willing to come back, then let them do what they feel they need to." Everyone turned to look at Ash.

"You can't be serious," Paul looked back.

Ash looked at his purple-haired friend, tiredly. "I am. Believe me, there are other things to worry about."

Paul grit his teeth before he waved for his pokemon to stand-down. Stephan did the same.

James and Jessie stared at Ash for a moment before they turned to run off. James stopped suddenly causing Jessie and Meowth to halt and look at him. The young man looked over his shoulder and nodded. "You need to hurry, the boss is wanting to get out before you come. He knows you're coming."

Before long, they were gone.

Riley turned to face everyone. "We're getting close to the main base. Those three, might give us a chance to get there before we miss them." He then looked at Misty, Brock, and Ash. "I would suggest you three head back. Anyone else can accompany them if they wish. Anyone who stays will be involved with the raid, is that understood?"

Everyone nodded quickly.

"Pika?" Everyone looked down and saw Ellie staring at Ash worriedly, while also looking around.

Ash looked at the little rodent and let out a quiet moan.

"Pikachu and the others are still in there, aren't they?" Brock asked suddenly. Ash simply closed his eyes. At that Brock gently squeezed his friend's shoulder. "You did the right thing. Team Rocket couldn't have gotten you out if they had to worry about freeing your pokemon too. We'll get them back."

"Chu!" Ellie announced with passion behind her exclamation.

Before anything else could be said, a Dragonite flew down to the ground amongst them, showing Lance.

"We need to hurry. It isn't far away. I can lead you directly there now. I have precise coordinates."

"Understood, let's go." Riley turned and started into a run with Lance and the army right behind. Marina, Vincent, and Bianca broke off to stay and help get Misty, Brock, and Ash back to Cameran Palace, while the rest charged into the woods after the army, something close to revenge burning in their hearts.

zzz-Sub-level 3-zzz

ZZZ-Pokemon Translator Activated-ZZZ

"We need to act soon. I'm getting the vibe that the bad guys are wanting to fly the coop," Scrafty murmured.

"Is everyone ready?" Gengar asked quietly.

Every one of the occupants nodded in agreement. Noctowl hummed and sat in silence, waiting for a grunt to wander past them.

After several minutes the pokemon started to get weary. Venusaur looked at Pikachu, who seemed to be considering something. "I'm guessing that you noticed that everything is too quiet, right?"

Pikachu nodded, trying to hide his worry. "I don't hear anything."

"I don't see anything either," Lucario hummed, letting his eyes open after searching with his aura.

"None of us do," Zoroark expressed worriedly.

"So then, what now?" Hawlucha questioned calmly, keeping his wings folded close to his body, but noticeably tense and ready to jump into movement.

"We wait. That was the plan and it's really the only possible way we can escape. These boxes are impenetrable from the inside," Honedge explained in earnest.

"But how long do we have until we're separated?" Staraptor questioned.

"They're hoping to keep us together so we don't try to escape. They won't separate us," Infernape replied.

"Then how do they expect to try to get us to fight for them. That's what they want, right?" Jolteon questioned.

"It is…" Espeon hummed.

"The only logical thing would be to use Ash against us."

At Meinshao's observation, all talking ceased for a moment or two.

"Well then, it's a good thing Ash has probably escaped by now," Blastoise announced, breaking some of the tension.

"That doesn't mean they won't figure out something. That blond man with the dumb hairdo has been working in this place. He might have that machine he used on Reshiram that one time, or something like it," Charizard pointed out.

Samurott, Krookadile, Emboar, and Serperior nodded in agreement. Pikachu glanced at the mothers that were present and saw them grow nervous.

"What are you all talking about?"

Everyone glanced over and saw that the pokemon in the cage next to them were staring.

"Um… what we had for lunch?" Garchomp offered. Pangoro rolled his eyes.

"You would say that."

"You're trying to escape aren't you?" The strange Golem asked. The rest of the pokemon in his cage watched silently.

"Indeed we are. Hopefully we can bring help as soon as possible," Meinshao offered.

"Hey! What are you doing!" Salamance hissed.

"You're going to let us out too, right?" A Poliwrath asked

The Golem elbowed the water-type. "Hush."

"Ultimately, yes." Rapidash expressed.

"Ultimately, yes, my slimy butt!" Poliwrath snarled.

"I said, Hush!" Golem barked. He then turned to look at Ash's pokemon again. "You're that boy's pokemon, aren't ya?"

Pikachu didn't look over, but nodded determinately. "Yes."

"Good luck to ya then. Obviously you're all a part of this nutcase's master plan or whatever." Golem huffed. "Just, ya know, don't forget about setting us free."

Pikachu was going to respond, but then Lucario stood up sharply. "Strange… all the members are gathering in one place."

Meinshao shut his eyes briefly to try and affirm the claim.

But then everything went dark.

ZZZ-Pokemon Translator De-activated-ZZZ

zzz-Rotisian Forest / Outside Team Rocket Base-zzz

"There it is!" A soldier shouted.

"I'm ready to tear them a new one," Georgia snarled as Burgundy and Trip ran beside her.

"Agreed," Trip replied somewhat emotionlessly.

"Wait! Maneuver C! Find cover!" Riley shouted. The army-men obeyed immediately while the others took a moment to register what had been said. Within a couple moments, everyone was behind cover. Riley pointed above the large metal tower and everyone suddenly noticed the being hovering above it.

"Wait… is that?" Serena whispered as her face slowly started to turn white.

"Mewtwo." Clemont murmured

"He looks…" Serena continued in a hushed whisper.

High up above the Team Rocket tower, Mewtwo X hovered. A blue aura swirled around him as he focused his psychic energies. Metal armor covered most of his body, minus his joints. The speakers in his headset crackled to life. "Teleport, now."

Mewtwo X silently lifted both arms above his head as the aura around him brightened.

Lance cursed and jumped out of hiding. "Dragonite, Hyperbeam, now!"

"Uuuraaah!" Dragonite cried out and fired off an orangish-yellow beam towards the hovering legendary.

The beam was simply deflected over a shield of energy and within that time, the Team Rocket tower glowed blue and then Mewtwo disappeared.

"Hurry!" Riley snapped and everyone charged towards the tower. Lance growled under his breath, giving one last look at where Mewtwo had been before rushing after the others.

Lance watched as Paul's Ursaring busted through the metal and glass front double doors, allowing everyone to rush in.

He stood with Riley as the soldiers and trainers went to investigate the many levels.

"They aren't here, are they?" Lance asked quietly.

Riley let out a frustrated breath through his nose. "Unless they're lower than the five sub-level's I'm able to sense or higher than the five floors above, then yes. We're still obligated to check, but in all likelihood, Mewtwo teleported them somewhere else."

Lance snarled and smashed the side of his fist into the wall beside him. "Damn them."

zzz-Cameran Palace-zzz

Several hours later, found the army, Lance, and the trainers returning to Rota. As soon as they had arrived, they'd learned that the Kanto-Johto elite four and some other League officials that were currently stationed in the Kanto-Johto area had arrived. Several councilmen had also come to discuss things.

Gary and Leaf were the only two trainers that had stayed up and out in the halls, while everyone else were decompressing from their trek or checking on Ash. They watched as a blond young man with light blue eyes walked up to Lance, the Elite Four, and Riley to talk.

"Who's that guy? Looks like he's a ranger," Leaf murmured.

"I think he's corporal Blackpearl. He's a ranger, like you said. I think gramps told me that he helps organize ranger efforts when rangers are set to Kanto or Johto for work. I think he's distant family of Lance's too," Gary explained.

"Explains why they look similar," Leaf expressed quietly.

The two were silent for a moment, listening to the hushed whispers of the people in the room.

"Where do you think they went?" Leaf suddenly whispered and looked into Gary's face to try and gauge what he was feeling.

The young professor looked down at her. "I can't say. They could've teleported anywhere. At least they still need the Orbs to start whatever plans they have."

Leaf nodded and glanced out of one of the windows to see Paul walking into the nearby woods surrounding the palace itself. "I wonder where Paul's off to."

Gary frowned and watched his friend disappear. "Probably to let off steam. After learning about what his dad was actually doing and then being unable to stop Team Rocket today, he's probably got some left over anger."

"It's kinda dark. You don't think he'll misstep and end up falling into the lake do you? There aren't many woods around the castle and it's a massive drop."

"I'll go check on him in a minute, if he doesn't come back."

Leaf hummed in agreement.

Meanwhile, Paul was marching through the woods, trying to reign in his anger. In all honesty, he wasn't even sure what he was specifically angry about.

Was it his father, Team Rocket, that he allowed himself to grow close enough to people in the first place even though he knew this pain would be the result? The only thing he could truly identify was frustration.

"Didn't want Dawn to see you like this?"

Paul froze and swung his gaze up towards the direction the voice came from. There was Silver standing straight and eyeing him.

Paul charged. Silver was able to catch the young man's arms before he could be battered by them. The two grunted and strained as they fought against each other, practically equal in strength.

"I don't want to see you! Your face, your eyes, everything about you makes me furious!" Paul yelled.

Silver stared back at his son with an even look. "That's not surprising nor is it abnormal. You've done nothing wrong."

Paul froze at that, feeling an eery and somewhat annoyed feeling crawling along his back. "What?"

"I just came here to tell you that you did nothing wrong."

Paul remained frozen for a moment before he swung back and delivered a powerful punch to Silver's face. The man stumbled back and had to catch himself on a tree.

"Of course I didn't!" Paul snapped. The young man's face was flushed from the struggle and his anger. "And even if I felt that way, I wouldn't need you to be the one to tell me!"

The two stood for a moment, staring at each other.

"Why would you do something so stupid?" Paul asked quietly, after a moment.

Silver's eyes roamed over his son's face and he finally shut them. "While there are many things that Reggie has done to try and make himself different, there is only one major thing that separates you from me." Silver hummed and pulled a poke ball from his jacket. Slowly he leaned down and placed the sphere on the ground. After staring at it for a long time, he glanced back up at Paul. "While I eventually did make friends with my fellow trainers and they did trust me…" A somewhat forlorn look seemed to flash across the man's face. "The problem was, I never truly trusted them to help, at least not all of them, and regrettably I still don't. That's why I took things into my own hands." He glanced up at Paul. "You do though. You trust these people. You're willing to be dependent at times."

Silver turned and started to walk off. He glanced back at Paul. "This is the best I can do for now."

Paul said nothing as Silver disappeared into the woods. He then slowly walked forward and stared down at the red and white sphere that was glinting in the setting sun. He leaned down and picked it up in his hand, studying it.

"Forgiveness is hard."

Paul's head snapped up and he saw Dawn walking towards him slowly. "What-"

"I only saw that Silver was walking away. I promise."

Paul relaxed a bit, but even still he didn't know why he cared if she saw anything more. "Hmm."

"It doesn't have to happen in any certain way, okay? And I'm not saying you even have to. The only thing I do want to say is that focusing on it and dwelling on it won't help. Try your best to forgive, in your own time, and if that just won't work, then try to at least let it go."

Paul let out a breath and watched as Dawn grew closer. "Yeah."

The young woman knew it was a placeholder word and didn't really have meaning, but she could also tell that he'd heard what she'd said. She reached out a hand and grasped his. "Let's go get some rest, okay?"

Paul nodded. "I want to go by Ash's room and check on him too."

Dawn smiled and nodded. "Sounds good."

zzz-Ash's room-zzz

Misty could tell something wasn't right.

As soon as they'd gotten Ash back to Rota, the doctors had swarmed him. They'd determined that he was worse for wear, but most of his issues weren't life-threatening. He'd suffered a couple of bruised ribs, various bruises and lacerations, moderate dehydration, malnutrition, and sleep deprivation. In conclusion, the doctors had said he just needed rest, food, and water.

Seemed simple enough.

But both Misty and Brock seemed to know just as much as Ash did, that something was wrong. Ash just kept rubbing at his chest. He'd try to stop, but he'd just forget again and start rubbing.

"You don't remember what they did to you that day?" Brock asked, in a characteristically soft voice that Misty had heard him use on so many occasions. It was a calming and understanding voice, but it wasn't so soft that it felt like one was being patronized.

Ash frowned deeply. "I remember that they wanted me to become a member of Team Rocket and that was why they were torturing me with lack of food, water, and sleep, but that day? No. I don't remember much of anything except it hurt. They did something, then I was in my cell and I was feeling a hundred times more sluggish than I had before. It feels like there's something inside of me… something… wrong. I'm surprised Riley or some of the other sensitive people here haven't felt it."

"So you think it has something to do with your aura?" Brock questioned.

"Yes." Ash murmured, getting lost in thought again, and Misty was certain she saw his head droop. He'd been fairly miserable after he'd learned that the Rocket base had teleported away, with his pokemon still inside. She and Brock had tried to distract him from that, by focusing on how to get him feeling better.

Brock leaned back a bit and nodded. "Well, that's definitely not my expertise. I think for now we should let you sleep and I'll ask Riley to come visit you tomorrow, though he probably planned to anyway." The doctor stood and rested a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Get some sleep. We'll figure this all out."

Misty then watched as Brock exited the room. She could hear Brock stop and start talking to what sounded like Paul and Dawn. She looked down at Ash and Ellie, who was curled up under her trainer's left armpit.

"She seems to think you're you." Misty murmured and then placed a hand on Ash's.

"Yeah… maybe it's nothing," Ash replied, though he didn't seem convinced and Misty wasn't honestly either, but she said nothing. She leaned down and placed a kiss on his cheek.

"Get some sleep."

Ash gave her a tired smile and nodded. After his girlfriend left, Ash let himself lay back. He wasn't going to have an easy time of it though. Every breath seemed to remind him of the thing inside him. Multiple times, he'd tried to reach at it with his aura, but every time it would ache too much and he was so exhausted from everything that he simply had no energy to try and fight against it.

Slowly, Ash let his eyes slip closed. Finally, blissful unconsciousness took him and he slept.

So I hoped you enjoyed this. Things are going to get crazy in the next few chapters. Real conflict should start in the next chapter. Hopefully writing all the fighting that's coming won't wear me out too much. Wish me luck!

And thank you all so much for your patience and for being awesome people! I appreciate you.

Answers to Reviews:

LEGAL-EAGLE53: Who is Vicious?

NoSignal: The main bad dude in the Pokemon 4 Ever Movie

Pikachu712: I noticed that Ash's oshawott in the anime fell for a lot of pokemon but didn't get a girl(female pokemon) so can you please consider giving misty an oshawott or pair ash's with one of misty's pokemon? Please! Who is the phantom hiding figure? Red maybe? And isn't there only one jirachi in the world? Has ash gotten out of that serum's effect or has he actually become phoenix? Was this giovanni's plan from the beginning? Did he also try to do this on red? I am so happy for the rocket trio cause they finally felt remorse and decide to help the twerp! :P War is upon the world! I know that rockets will lose but can't help but be excited to see what happens next. I hope Ash's pokemon rescue him and don't get their spirits broken down by rocket bastards. I hope you will update soon! Sorry for this long review (-_-')

NoSignal: I might do that but it won't be after the Tournament. It's a myyyyysssttteerrrryyy! Nope there are actually two seperate canon ones in the anime (a movie one and one from a BW episode); there are even more than that in this series though. Hmm... I guess we'll see! Nope, Giovanni never caught Red in the same way, though he came close. Yep! They deserve to be the heroes they truly are inside. Sorry for taking so long to update, but thanks for the long review. I love em!

Alexis Night: P.S. Does Damien's group joined Team Rocket as a Double agent or not? If it does then I forgive them and jessie,james and meowth as the bad guys. I for one had seen what futures they will have if they quit team rocket. Rejoice because war has begun P.P.S. good luck with your other fics P.P.S. how did Team Rocket capture that many Decoys and Jiraichi because I thought that Jiraichi is only one pokemon in the entire existence?

NoSignal: Thanks first for your wonderful words of praise. Now for your questions. It seems like their plans fell apart to be psuedo-spies. Where Damian and his crew are now? I guess we'll have to see. Thank you for wishing me luck with my other stories. That actually is super appreciated. Thank you so much for your consideration. Lawerence and Robles were mostly how they were able to accomplish such a feat and in the master challenge series there are multiples of many legendaries. In the canon anime itself there are two seperate Jirachi and there were two Deoxys in the Deoxys movie, plus one extra in another Hoenn episode. So there's nothing really saying that there aren't more. Thank again for your review!

NoSignal to Miss geek: Thanks so much for your kind words. I'm so sorry it's taken so long but I hope you are still enjoying the story. Thanks again!

23StellaOrgana: Are Solgaleo and Lunala coming in?

NoSignal: Sorta. I can't really explain how though. Eventually I think I'll be making a tumblr post about how Sun and Moon have effected this story and etc.

NoSignal to JZuCuadra: Team Rocket and Robles mini-arc is all in one, then the Tournament related stuff after the fallout is dealt with. Thanks for the review!

NoSignal to All: Thank you all so much for your kindness, patience (you saints you), and wonderful reviews! I do have other stories to work on as well as life, but I will get this darned thing done. Until next time!

I've decided to give you guys a list of the new pokemon caught after each chapter so that new pokemon aren't spoiled but you also can remember which pokemon are new and aren't on the list at the start of the Arc.

Pokemon: N/A

So there you are I hope this helps some :) If you ever need the full list, minus the newest additions, it's at the beginning of the Arc.

Follow, Fav, Review, and most importantly, Enjoy! :D

NoSignal, out!