Betrayal, War, Redemption, a pokemon fanfic Ch.5

Ch. 5: First Day of Tournament

     The day everyone had long awaited was finally here. The opening day of the Masters' Competition. In total, over 400 of the best and toughest Trainers, Champions, and Gym Leaders had come to participate. It was morning, and the first day of the competition was about to begin. All the participants had gathered in the vast stadium located at the heart of Viridian City, to hear the opening speech and ceremony inaugurating the Masters' Competition.

Ash stood at the very rear of the assemblage, once again obscured in the darkness of anonymity and mystery. He had placed himself in the very back for two reasons: to remain hidden and to have a wide view of the stadium. He could see all those who were participating in the competition, among them his allies: Molly and Steven, and Sakura, Sabrina, Ritchie, and Paul, who had recently arrived in Viridian City. They were the ones who were competing and ready to stand by his side.

He cast a gaze out into the stands and saw the rest of his compatriots. All of them were standing or sitting in close proximity to his former friends. Of course, Gary was there, although subtly sitting askance from the others. Sitting next to May and Dawn were their boyfriends and Ash's fellow allies: Drew Hayden and Kenny, ages 21 and 20. Right now they were flirting with their girlfriends. The betrayers, on the other hand, looked completely calm, all past altercations of the past two days behind them. Today, they were going to support Max, who was standing at the head of the assembly.

Before the announcement began, Ash sent a pulse of contact to his friends, all of whom became cold and serious when they felt his touch, though they outwardly feigned happiness.

Hey guys. Thank you all for coming. he said.

Of course, child of suffering. We're here to aid you. said Sabrina, naturally the strongest of the telepaths.
No problem, Ash. Glad to be here. Sakura spoke next.
Sure, Ash. Always ready to help you out. Steven, calm and confident, spoke afterward.
No problemo, Ash! Why shouldn't we be here? Molly's enthusiasm and positive energy steamrolled over Ash, and he bathed himself in it. Molly was the weakest of the telepaths, but certainly one of the brightest.
Good to see you're here, Ash. Kenny spoke briefly before returning to his flirting with Dawn.
Likewise, Ketchum, likewise. Drew responded next, following suit after Kenny.
Sure thing, Ash! Just like old times. Ritchie said.
Yeah, yeah, spike boy. Just try and not get yourself killed. Paul responded gruffly, earning a small amount of silent laughter from Ash. Ash had known Paul since they were fierce rivals, but he helped Paul reform his ways. Though Paul was still a harsh and unforgiving Trainer, he now treated his Pokemon with more respect. Now he was friends with Ash.
I'm always here for you, brother. Gary responded with respect. Ash was thankful for that.

     A fanfare began as the Pokemon League representative took center stage. Walking up to the microphone, he cleared his throat and spoke in clear ringing voice.

"Welcome, trainers, leaders, champions all, to the first-ever Masters' Competition! This is an event where only the best, the brightest, the toughest, and the strongest could join this august assembly. You have all come from so many regions: Kanto, Johto, Hoenn, Sinnoh, even as far as Fiore! You've all pushed your Pokemon long and hard to achieve this great honor! We expect all of you to battle hard but honorably and according to Pokemon tradition! I wish you all a good competition, and remember, no matter whether you be trainers, gym leaders, or champions, you are all equal! Winners all!"

A chorus of applause throughout the stadium erupted, and fireworks lit up the sky. The representative raised his hands, signaling the commencement of the Masters' Competition.

"Let the tournament begin!"


    A few minutes later, the first battle of the competition began. But Ash paid it no heed, focusing his energies in preparation for his battle, which was to be the last of the day. He remained alone in the lockers of the competitors while all the others were outside viewing the battles. Pikachu stayed close at his side.

How do you feel, Ash? he warily asked. He needn't have worried, for a fierce determination and cold fire burned within Ash. Ready, Pikachu. I feel ready.

The battles went by rather quickly, resulting in the first eleven ejections from the tournament. At last, the twelfth and final battle of the first day arrived. Ash calmly walked out onto the stadium as the announcer cried out, "Ladies and gentlemen, we now begin the final battle of the day! Competing in this battle are Jason Rapax of Petalburg City and Satoshi Mortis of Viridian City (Ash had registered his place of origin as Viridian City)!"

The referee went out into the middle of the arena. "Each trainer is permitted three Pokemon each. The match will end when all three Pokemon of one participant are unable to battle." He raised his flags and waved them as he said, "Begin!"

Jason Rapax, a tall, burly, and overly muscled man, sneered in derision at the cloaked Satoshi. "Why you wearing that cloak, Mortis? You afraid to show your face to the great Rapax? Yeah, that's right, me! Winner of four tournaments, beaten all the Gym Leaders in the Hoenn and Johto regions, and now I'm here, baby! You're gonna get creamed!"

Up in the stands, Misty looked on in annoyance at Rapax's arrogance and ego. "I don't like him. He's too condescending."
"And too much of a muscle man, too." Brock added, equally annoyed.

Jason's overconfident monologue was countered by Satoshi's cold, business-like words. "I came not here to banter words with an egotistical upstart like you. Let's battle."

Jason got angry at that and pulled out a Pokeball. "Go, Primeape! Show this guy who he's dealing with!" Out came the monkey Pokemon, angry and ready to dish out a beating.

Satoshi threw out a Pokeball. "Come on out, Quilava." The Fire-type emerged. Jason made the first move. "Primeape, Low Kick!" Primeape charged. Satoshi casually replied, "Quilava, dodge and use Quick Attack." The Fire Pokemon obeyed, easily dodging Primeape's strike and proceeding to hit it head-on. Primeape reeled back.

"Don't give it time to recover, Quilava. Follow up with Ember. Burn him." Satoshi ordered. Quilava obeyed and unleashed a massive Ember attack, completely immolating Primeape and knocking it unconscious.

"Primeape!" cried Jason, in shock that his Pokemon was out after just two attacks. Recalling it, he brought out another fighter. "Tyrogue, your turn! Show 'em who's boss!" Yet another Fighting-type Pokemon came out.

"Hit it with Tackle!" yelled Jason, and Tyrogue hit Quilava practically at point-blank range with a powerful Tackle attack, sending the Fire-type reeling backwards. But amazingly, it still stood strong.

"Excellent. Give it a nice Agility to confuse it, then strike with Inferno." Satoshi commanded, and Quilava obeyed, going quick and successfully confusing Tyrogue before springing up from behind and unleashing a deadly Inferno attack. Tyrogue was hit hard.
"Tyrogue, no!" Jason cried again, but Satoshi pressed on. "Now, strike with Flamethrower, point-blank." Quilava obeyed and fired a Flamethrower just an inch away from Tyrogue. The fighter got caught flat-footed and fell down. It was out.

"Oh, now you pissed me off!" yelled Jason, at the end of his patience. "Now you're really gonna get it! Machamp, show this idiot!" A flash of light, and the four-armed Pokemon emerged. "Charge, Machamp! Karate Chop followed by a Cross Chop!"
The Machamp steamrolled forward, its arms gathered together to strike Quilava down. But Jason paid for his arrogance, for Machamp was completely on offense, charging headlong at the Fire-type.

"Lava Plume." Satoshi simply said. Quilava stood its ground and gathered its energy. A second later, a massive fiery explosion erupted around it and speared towards Machamp, engulfing it in flame and stretching up to the sky. Machamp was done for, emerging burnt and knocked out.

The referee raised the flag in his left hand. "Machamp is unable to battle. The match goes to Satoshi Mortis of Viridian City!"

Satoshi left soon afterwards, ignoring the cheers of the onlookers. He was never seen outside the competition except on rare occasions.


For the next three days, the competition continued, with many losing and leaving the competition. By the beginning of the fourth day, well over a third of the competition's 400 participants had been eliminated.

Ash himself was gathering quite the reputation as Satoshi Mortis, becoming a rising star in the tournament. Of all the competitors, he was the least known, no one knowing where he came from or what other accomplishments he had. But one thing was certain: his style of Pokemon training and battling was hard and intimidating. Almost every match he had resulted in just one of his Pokemon eliminating all three of the opponent's in just a few moves, a testament to the harsh training regimen he put them in. Nearly every competitor came to respect him as a mysterious and intimidating but capable Trainer. His silent demeanor only added to his popularity and mysticism.

So far, the tournament was going well. As for Ash, he was safe for the moment, no one aware of his true identity.
But already suspicions were being made, especially by a certain group of betrayers and conspirators.

It was nighttime in the hotel where Max, May, Misty, Dawn, and Brock were staying at. Currently they were discussing the past events of the competition. Max had done well, advancing quickly and winning over many other competitors. He was already respected by many older veteran participants. Yet his victories were hollow, for Max had been forced to enter the competition without his Blaziken. The battle it had with Charizard had taken more out of it than previously thought, its entry into emergency care at the Pokemon Center a clear sign that Blaziken was not well. In the end, Nurse Joy had stabilized it and began the process of healing its injuries, but gave the sad news to Max that Blaziken would not be able to compete in the tournament at all, the injuries sustained too severe to heal anytime soon. Max was enraged, yet despite this, persevered. But his harsh defeat at Satoshi's hands still stuck with him, and with the others as well.

"That Mortis is a bastard and monster." Max said furiously, playing with his food, not even bothering to eat. "He really hurt my Blaziken and almost caused me to lose the competition."
"I know, Max." his sister replied, putting a comforting hand on his arm. "But you held on, despite your loss. Look how far you've gone, and you're still coming out strong."
"Yeah, Max. May's right. You're doing very well." added Dawn, placing her support. Brock stood by her too. This made Max feel a little better.
"Thanks guys."

Behind them, Misty lay deep in thought. "Misty, you all right?" asked Brock, concerned. She nodded.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just wondering about Satoshi. Who is he? No one's met him until he entered this competition."
Brock just shrugged. "I don't know. But you heard him, he prefers to live in secrecy. He's not a social person."

"Still, there's something strange about him. And furthermore, how come Gary's friends with this individual?" she questioned. Both agreed. How could their friend of several years like someone so mysterious and harsh?

"Well, we're all tired, Misty. We've had a long day." said Brock. "I think we'll all go to sleep."
"You guys go ahead. I'm gonna go out a little bit." she replied, to which Brock and the others just nodded, each leaving for their hotel room. Misty, however, was not going "for a walk". She was going to talk to Gary. Without a word, she left and headed for his home, though it was far away.

An hour later, she arrived at his residence, though it appeared no one was home, as all the lights were switched off. Nevertheless, she was determined to speak with him. Calmly approaching the front door, she rang the doorbell and patiently waited.

Soon, someone came, and it wasn't Gary. It was Satoshi Mortis.


Ash was asleep, peaceful in his bed. His time of rest was interrupted by the sound of a doorbell and he woke up. It's probably Gary, he wondered, but I can't be too careless. He quickly donned some light clothes, all black, and secured his cloak, pulling the hood over his face. Finally, he went down to answer the door, still groggy and tired. It wasn't until he twisted the doorknob that his Aura senses kicked in, and too late, he knew who was outside, and he couldn't close the door.

Standing outside was the last person he wanted to see: Misty. And she was equally surprised to see him here.

"What are you doing here?" he asked without calm, just with venom. She answered, "I came here to see Gary."
"You'll have to come another time. Gary's out on important business."
"That's all right. I wanted to talk to him about one matter: you." With that, she barged her way inside. Making herself at home, she gestured to Satoshi to sit down. He declined, preferring to stand.

"How did Gary meet you?" she inquired. Satoshi calmly replied, "It was during one of his many research journeys that he and I met, off in the northern parts of the Johto region." Little did Misty realize that Ash was telepathically informing Gary of her arrival and that she questioning him; he warned her that she might question him as well. Gary silently acknowledged.

"Gary was still a mediocre Trainer back then, though he was capable. He happened upon one of my Pokemon training exercises and became interested in the way I trained my Pokemon. From that day forward, he and I started to form a bond, as Gary still wanted to be the best Pokemon trainer there was. So, with my blessing, he took my style of training and made it into his own form. His new training regimen is similar to mine, but less......dangerous."

"Since that time, Gary and I have become inseparable, even to the point of proclaiming ourselves adopted brothers."

"Brothers?" she asked. He nodded. "Aye. Gary looks up to me with respect, for it was I who revealed the secrets of my training to him and replaced a lost void in his heart. You know who I mean."
She looked down again; once more, Satoshi had brought up the Demon, a memory it seemed, would never leave her.

"How do I know you're telling the truth?" she asked, wanting an answer. "You can verify it with Gary. He'll tell you exactly the same. Why would I have need to lie?"
"Maybe to gain his trust and learn his secrets, then backstab him and take his research, maybe even his Pokemon?" she said, hoping to illicit an angered response. But it didn't work.
"Now why would I do that? One, I have no interest in research or training methods other than my own, and two, I already have Pokemon that are of far stronger levels than even his. I have no need for his Pokemon."

Damn. she thought. He had subtly deflected her move. "Perhaps you're a secret operative." she spoke again. Once more, he countered her accusation.
"For who, though? You know of the fall of the four evil organizations four years ago. Do you know of any new organizations that have risen? Hasn't the Kanto government declared this time "an era of peace and prosperity, for all the evil criminals of this world have departed?""
"I don't know, maybe a new one has formed!" she said, a little loudly. Satoshi leered at her. "But would the government tell you? Would they tell you the truth of a new danger?"
"Of course they would!" she snapped, getting tired of this circumventing. "The government has no reason to lie."

"It has every reason to lie." he countered, further increasing her anger. Good, she's losing her focus. Keep it up. "The belief that the government tells its people everything is a complete fabrication. Do me a favor and stop being such a gullible bitch."

Now that infuriated her. He had achieved his objective. "How dare you! It's you who's the paranoid one! Know this, the government, the Pokemon League, the Elite Four, all of them have no secrets to hide! Not to mention my friends, who I know very well!"
"Not all of them." he said. "Each of the ones you know less so than your closest friends, Gary, Drew, Sakura, all of them have secrets to hide. As do you."

"No!" she shouted. "I have no secrets! I have never lied to myself! I am a Gym Leader, a point of shining light for the people of Kanto!"
"A point of light that hides a growing darkness within its farthest depths. You carry one of the worst sins of all, that of a lover's betrayal."
"What?"
He sneered. "Don't tell me you forgot our little argument the first time we met. The one where I tore open your heart when I forcibly reminded you of the wrongful imprisonment of Ash Ketchum, and the betrayal of the one he loved."

"Stop mentioning him!" she shouted, clutching her ears in an attempt to stop this mental torture. Images began to flash in her mind, memories long buried surging to the top once more.
"No, I won't. You say you're pure, a shining ray of light, but that's a lie. No person of such fame or purity would bear such a cardinal sin within their heart."
He was getting to her, his mind games breaking down her defenses, destroying her inquisitive mood and returning her anger.

"Stop saying that! You didn't know the Demon as well as I did!" she countered. He replied, "Oh, but I did. Much more so than you. He found a soul he could confide in, and so he spilled his heart out to me. He told me everything about himself, his friends, and you."

She could take no more. Misty began to aimlessly run around Gary's home, trying to flee his words and the buried memories of the past. It didn't matter. His voice still rang out to her.

"He told me everything about you, what you liked, what you disliked.......and even, his growing love for you." She shut her eyes, trying to imagine happy memories to no avail.

"Yes." Satoshi said, his voice now becoming sibilant. "He told me how he started to have feelings for you, said how he slowly began to realize you were the one for him." He was wandering the corridors, searching for her. He had no need to, though, able to sense her Aura up on the second floor. She was in such pain, it gave him such pleasure.

"He even told me his fantasies, which he hoped would soon become reality. Your eventual first date with him, your first kiss, and even......your own engagement to him."

He was close now, and she kept her eyes shut, trying to ignore his words. But she couldn't; Misty's mind started to imagine futures of what could've happened had Ash not committed that crime. It was a sublime torture.

"Oh, yes. He said he had found the one he loved. The one he wanted to love for the rest of his life. Ash Ketchum said you were his soulmate, Misty Waterflower."

That was the last straw. Misty barged out of the closet she had hidden in, and proceeded to run down the stairs to the front door, tears streaming from her eyes. She didn't see Satoshi anywhere. By the time she arrived to the front door, someone was blocking her path. Satoshi.

"Stay back! Keep away from me!" she screamed, afraid and hurt. Serpentine laughter emanated from his lips. "Fear not, Misty. I have no intention of harming you physically. Torture of the mind is far more effective and penetrating than that of the body."

"Stop!" she screamed, down on her knees, grasping her head in denial. "All you're telling me are lies! HE NEVER SAID THAT!"
He bent down to her and with a finger, pushed her chin so that she could see directly into the black void of his hood.

"No, Misty. These are not lies. Ash Ketchum did say these things. He really did love you, cared for you so much he was willing to die for you." She started to cry more as she somehow knew he was telling the truth. Try as she might, she couldn't look away from the blackness of his face.

"And how did you repay him? You, Misty, are the worst of Ash's betrayers. The others may have forsaken him and their friendship, but you did more than that." His tone became venomous and accusing.

"You spurned his love, rejected his words of truth. You even called him a murderer in his face." That left her in shock. "How do you know all this?"

"Because he told me in his dying words. I met him for the last time before his death and he was a broken person. No one believed him, all accused him, he had nothing left. But that was nothing compared to the betrayal of his friends and his love."

"Yes, he told me of your treachery before he died and he said it was the lowest and most debasing thing you had ever done."

She just kept on crying, unable to process what he was saying. "And he left me a message, to tell you if I ever met you."
She didn't look up, she just continued to weep.

"Misty, you betrayed me." Satoshi said, though it was Ash who was saying the words. "I loved you and I trusted you to stand by my side. When all turned their backs on me, I looked up to you as my last hope. But you became like them, corrupt and spiteful. Whatever happened to the sweet, innocent girl I met? What happened to her? Did you kill her? Because all I see now is a soul of contempt and shattered dreams. Remember this, Misty, for these are my last words to you. You will never have a happy life. Forever will your act of betrayal fester in your dreams, forever shall you remain a shattered soul. And the past will never leave you; it'll always come back to haunt you again and again. I will always be here with you, Misty. Mocking you, haunting you, following in your wake. In the deepest recesses of your memory, in your scariest nightmares, in the very subconscious of your mind, I will be there. You will never be rid of me, no matter how far you bury the past. For this, I choose Satoshi to pass this message to you. I now say this to you, Misty Waterflower: for all the hate I have towards you, for all the anger that lives in me, I still love you. And I will love you for eternity, my love."

Misty's barriers finally collapsed. Satoshi had gotten to her, in the worst way. She screamed loudly, a cry of lament, a cry of denial.

"And now I say this to you, Miss Waterflower." Satoshi said. "What Ash said about the past returning to haunt to you is true. I am the embodiment of his anger, his hatred towards you." He looked her straight in the eye. "I am his vengeance incarnate. I am the chosen instrument of his anger. For while his friends will suffer the guilt of their betrayal, you will suffer far more, Mist."

She cried out for the last time as she remembered the nickname Ash used to call her. To hear Satoshi say it was like a knife embedded in her heart. A welcoming blast of cold air blew across her face, and she looked up. Satoshi was holding the front door open, inviting her to leave.

"Why?" she begged. "Why do this to me?"

"Because it's karma." he answered. "You committed a great betrayal; what you receive is an equally great vengeance, and it will not end." He laughed. "There's an old saying: you reap what you sow."

"Now go." he ordered, and Misty all but willingly obliged, unwilling to remain near this angel of vengeance. She ran, as fast as her legs could take her, back to the hotel and to the comfort of her friends.

Back behind her, one soul of hatred smiled at the pain he caused. Yes. Ash Ketchum had hurt his love, given her the same pain and anguish he himself had suffered for so long. Yes, he thought, tonight is a good night.

He closed the door, looking forward to sleeping the rest of the night.


END Ch. 5