Warning: This is not standard Pokemon fanfiction. It contains scenes of
violence and some inappropriate language.

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                           Pokemon Master 

Fanfiction by Ace Sanchez.

All parts of this story may be found at http://jsa.users.fl.net.au
Note: Pokemon and its associated characters are copyright by Nintendo,
Game Freak, Creatures Inc, and 4Kids Productions.

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Part 1 - Returns


An icy chill pervaded through the black night; cold, except for the 
unnatural hot wind blowing south with a strong scent of acrid smoke. 
Through the dark starless sky slightly covered by clouds, intermittent 
moonlight shone on to the thick green forest revealing, little by little, 
a snaking trail of destruction. Burnt and broken tree stumps lay on the 
ravaged path - some still burning with small flickering flames - as well 
as fallen branches and other debris interspaced with giant animalistic
footprints.

A dark figure dressed in a long hooded black cloak, ran through the
woodland almost silently, loose folds of the mantle flapping gently
behind like a floating shadow. The only sound was the dry vegetation 
softly crunching underneath thick black boots as it followed the trail 
onward. Golden-brown eyes took wide sweeps, observing the desecrated
area. A small, brown backpack was adjusted briefly by a hand as it sped
up the pace. The quarry was getting closer...


<><><>


Flames crackled and fires burned. The small town settlement was engulfed
like the pyres of a bonfire. Everywhere there was screaming and chaos as
dozens of people ran, seeking escape from the terror of attacking
raiders. Appearing from the south without warning, burning and pillaging
without mercy, huge, hostile pokemon assisted their trainers in the
merciless and violent raid. The settlement was totally unprepared for the
assault. Town trainers and their pokemon were cut down and destroyed
almost as soon as they were called out.

The huge, red two-story-tall charizard took another long breath before
it continued to spit out a long and melting-hot burst of flame which
turned the school house into glowing crimson embers. On the other side of
town, an angry tauros smashed through houses with its dagger-sharp bull
horns at the direction of its trainer, trampling over possessions and
structures alike. Other buildings such as the town hall and community
buildings were overrun by the sharp-bladed scythers and pinsirs. Little
by little, the attackers slowly advanced towards the supply buildings in
the centre of the town where the food and water was stored. 

Behind a slowly burning house, a young dark-haired girl screamed as a
grinning man with spiky red hair grabbed and pinned her against the wall.
Nearby, his kangaskhan watched in fascination. 

The man slapped the girl across the mouth hard. "Shut up with the
screaming, bitch, and take this like a woman!" He began to work his fly
open and loosen his pants. Suddenly his head exploded in pain and the
next thing he knew was the feel of the rushing air as he was picked up 
and thrown violently away from the girl. The hard ground met his back all 
too abruptly and the breath exploded out of his lungs. When he opened his 
eyes he saw a tall, dark figure cloaked in shadows standing over him. 
The girl he had been about to have some fun with, had scooted backward, 
frightened, and sat trembling against a small tree. He turned back to the 
shadowy figure and momentarily felt a cold slab of fear enter his heart. 
There was something familiar about this person...

Then he growled in anger. He was mistaken. This was just a poor fool who
was trying to be a hero. "Kangaskhan, take him!" He laughed. "Chew his
bones, nice and slow."

The large bipedal pokemon, who was already hissing in anger because of
the attack to its master, needed no second order. It gave an inhuman
snarl and extended its sharp bony, claws before leaping towards the
black-cloaked figure.

However, a rapid spin kick stopped the charging pokemon's attack, while
one of its claws was seized and used against it, stabbing into its own
chest like a knife. The kangaskhan blinked in confusion before toppling
over, its chest a puddle of oozing dark blood.

"Kangaskhan?" the man said in shock. No man could be strong enough to do
what the cloaked figure had just done. He continued to stare,
dumbfounded, before a hard fist smashed into his jaw and everything went
black.


<><><>


The supply buildings in the centre of town were surrounded by a half-ring
of attacking raiders. Puffing a large cloud of dark smoke, the huge
charizard eyed the structures in hunger before looking at its trainer
questioningly.

"No," the tall bald woman answered. "The supplies we were raiding for in
the first place would be destroyed." She looked at one of the other
raiders. "You! Use your tauros to break the walls down. Then we'll have
some fun." She chuckled deep in her throat as her sub-ordinate directed
his bull pokemon to charge through.

A sudden, wet, splattering sound made the gang of raiders turn around. A
dead, bleeding scyther had landed right behind them, in a puddle of its
own blood. Both of its own sharp, blade-like arms, had been twisted
around, somehow impaling itself. Its serpent-like head hung from its neck
by a thin string of tendon, almost decapitated.

"Scyther!" one of the raiders wailed. "Whoever did this, I'll kill him!"

From behind a burning building, a tall figure in a long black hooded
cloak stepped out into sight. The cloak was flapping, slightly open in
the hot wind, revealing a man's lean, but muscular body, shrouded in
darkness. His face was concealed in the shadows of the hooded cowl,
leaving only bright, golden-brown eyes visible. They seemed almost
glowing in the dark; two points of flaring yellow light. Which narrowed 
threateningly.

"Arrogant bastard, isn't he? Think you're a Pokemon Master with that
cloak?" the bald woman raider mocked. "Surround him!" The huge 
charizard, tauros, pinsirs, and their trainers walked around to slowly 
encircle the cloaked stranger. The frightened towns-people who had
managed to make it into the supply buildings observed them from the
windows, frightened and hoping for a miracle.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself?" the woman raider asked
mockingly. "Before you are roasted alive?" Her charizard snorted in
anticipation, leaving rings of smoke to shine in the moonlight before
they dissipated into the night air.

The black-cloaked figure snapped his fingers. A tiny, shadowy form leaped
out of his backpack to land by his feet. "Pikachu... I choose you." The
voice was soft but deep, the order barely carrying to them so it could be
heard. There was a dangerous quality to it that sent a feeling of
apprehension down the raiders' necks.

Then they looked at the cloaked stranger's pokemon. Next to its tall
master it looked contrastingly small with its just over one-foot long
body. It seemed to be a pikachu, a small cute electric mouse with pointed
ears and a tail the shape of a lightning bolt. Except this one's colour
was not a bright yellow with orange stripes, but a full-bodied, matt
black. Its eyes were glowing a bright cobalt blue, as it crouched on all
fours, jagged tail in the air. 

She laughed out loud. "That's a weird pikachu, stranger, but Charizard
will still roast that puny thing into oblivion! Charizard, Flamethrower!"

The huge, red winged-dragon rose up to its full height and inhaled.
Wind was sucked into it violently, the air ruffling the stranger's cloak,
and causing the pointed ears of the black pikachu sway. Then the
charizard leaned forward and exploded a huge tongue of flame towards the
little black pokemon and its master.

The sound of electricity crackled and the fire was suddenly repelled by a
shield of black electrical energy. It sparked and hissed violently as it
deflected the flame harmlessly before winking out.

"Pikachu. Lightning Vortex."

The little black pikachu nodded. Abruptly, the crackle of electricity
returned and a dark eerie glow surrounded the strange pokemon. The
raiders stepped backwards, startled. They had never seen the like of
this attack before.

A sharp wind began to kick up and rotate around the pikachu and its
master. Dust, leaves and debris from the destruction of the town's
buildings began to stir and rise. Rocks and planks of wood lifted into
the air.

The charizard began to slide forward despite its huge weight. It grunted
in confusion, then fear as it began to slide faster. It flapped its wings
to take off, but that was a mistake as it only got pulled into the
powerful winds that much faster. The raiders themselves began to get
inhaled, as well as everything around them that wasn't attached to the
ground. The tauros squealed as it scrabbled backward, hooves digging into
the dirt. However, the wind was becoming much too strong. 

"What the devil of an attack is this?" the charizard's trainer shouted in
confusion as she tried to claw herself through the air and back to the
ground. It was useless. The velocity of the pokemon-made tornado picked
up speed and soon the town was just a revolving blur to the raiders and
their pokemon as they spun around wildly.

Then the pikachu screamed, "PIKA!" and a ring of destructive lightning
exploded from the centre of the vortex - from the pikachu itself. A flash
of black energy was seen and the raiders and their pokemon knew no more.


<><><>


The cloaked figure and the pikachu stood in silence. Around them, the
ring of raiders and their pokemon lay unconscious, if not dead, smoking,
some even on fire. The charizard was definitely dead, its body ripped in
two distinct pieces, the severed ends, blackened and frayed. The smell 
of cooked meat hung in the night air.

"Good work, Pikachu."

The little black electric mouse stood up on its hind legs. "Pii." It
jumped back into the backpack, its head poking out the top.

The towns-people began to approach them from their hiding places in the
buildings. An older man, who had to be their leader or Mayor, was in the
lead.

"T-That was most impressive." He looked at the pikachu staring curiously
at him from its perch on the stranger's backpack and shivered. How could
such a small pokemon be that powerful? He shook his head and regarded the
cloaked stranger again. "B-But, who are you?"

The stranger lifted his hand towards the hood covering his head and
slowly removed it, settling it back. It revealed a handsome, young man's
face, who seemed to be in his early twenties, although his golden-brown
eyes seemed older than their time.

The night wind picked up again, blowing the smoke of the ruined village
in the background. It ruffled the stranger's longish black hair, causing
it to fall across his face and obscure a golden-brown eye.

He blew the lock of hair out of his eye with an upturned lip and a gust
of breath. He answered them. "I am Ash."


<><><>


The morning sun let down its light over the small, recovering town.
Despite this, the air was still freezing cold. The raiders had caused
such extensive damage, it would be some time before all the repairs
were finished. The sound of hammers ringing on anvils reverberated loudly
and the sawing of wood echoed among the destroyed buildings. 

Ash sighed as he warmed one of his hands on the campfire and sipped
some tea from a mug in the other. Would these kids ever leave him alone?
He continued to observed the crowds of children, infants and teenagers
alike, as they scampered around his tent.

"Does that cloak mean it's true you're a Pokemon Master?"

"Why don't you have any more poke-balls?"

"Silly, he's only got one pokemon."

"How come you only have one pokemon?"

"I've never heard of a Master with only one pokemon."

"Mister, why is your pikachu a weird colour?"

And the questions they asked. He couldn't believe he had been this
noisy as a kid. He must have really been annoying. 

Pikachu, for his part, calmly munched on his apple as he stared into the
campfire. "Pika-pii..."

A new voice spoke up. A woman's voice. "I've heard about the one with the
black, or 'shadow' pikachu."

Ash lifted his eyes. It was a tall, attractive blonde woman whose
features frightfully reminded him of someone. He turned away refusing to 
think more on it and looked down to contemplate the bubbles in his tea.

"It is said that he was unbeatable and that he was once the top trainer
in the Pokemon League." Her eyes narrowed.

The kids hearing this, became silent. They began to look at him
fearfully. Some even began to step backwards.

"Then one day he disappeared..."

Ash put his mug down, picked up his cloak and stood up. It was time for
him to leave. He looked up to find that all of the children had made
their escape.

However, one of the teenagers was still there. "Mister, I don't believe
for one instant you were one of the evil Pokemon League," she said
forcefully. It was the girl he had saved from last night. "No one who was
one of them could be as heroic and handsome as you are..."

The blonde woman sucked in her breath.

Ash began to roll up his sleeping bag. "She is right. You do not know
me." He clenched his fist and stared at it, his thoughts a thousand
miles away. "You do not know me at all."


<><><>


The afternoon sun seemed permanently hidden behind its dense layer of
grey clouds moving across the horizon. Although the wind was beginning to
pick up speed, ruffling Ash's cloak and hood, the deserted ruins of the
city were silent. Almost too silent. Not even the crickets were chirping
their songs even though there were plenty of overgrown foliage in the
ruins to hide in. Ash shrugged his black cloak around his shoulders,
loosening it. There might be a battle soon. Someone was following him.

"Chu..." Pikachu said sadly as he looked around at the debris that
used to be Viridian City. Ash understood Pikachu's sadness. This place
held memories for him too. It was the first city he had reached back in
his training days. If not for Nurse Joy, Pikachu would not be here now,
and most likely he would not be here either. Most likely, dead. He and
Pikachu had stuck by each other through thick and thin.

Ash stared at the broken down wall of one of the old buildings. In fact
that was probably part of the Medical Center which saved Pikachu's life.
Now this city was nothing but a deserted pile of rubble. Even the air
smelled dead. It was just like all the other major cities that had been
destroyed back in the Dark Pokemon Wars. A cloud of dust was picked up by
the wind and he held his hand over his nose and mouth as it passed.

He could still feel the itch on his neck. Whoever it was, was still
following them. It kept a safe distance and didn't seem to be advancing
on them. Yet.

Pikachu's ears pricked up. "Pika?"

Ash turned to the little pokemon riding on his left shoulder. "Yes,
there's someone following us, Pikachu. But they seem to be keeping back-"

"PIKA!"

The crumbling stone wall they had been walking parallel to abruptly
exploded with a hail of sharp rocks. Shrapnel and rubble showered over
them in a spiked, painful rain. A massive object crashed through with a
rumble the sound of thunder.

"What?" Ash grunted, as he quickly threw Pikachu away to safety, just in
time, before he was smashed back painfully, to roll sideways along the
gravel of the old road. After rolling away at what he thought a
sufficient distance, he swung to his feet, jumped and back-flipped away
to land on top of the opposite wall. He threw the hood of his cloak back
and brushed his hand across his temple. He felt the slight stickiness of
blood.

"Pikachu! To me!" His small companion leaped to land on his left shoulder
once again. Then he turned to the scene of the attack with narrowed eyes.

Dust was floating around everywhere. It was hard to even make out the
wall they had been walking next to. He raised his hand to shelter his
face as he quickly searched with his eyes. He had not even sensed this
threat. Which meant the attacker was one of *them*.

Finally the dust settled. There was a gaping trench in the wall and next
to it lay a huge, brown boulder about a dozen feet across. There was a
creaking of stone and thick, grey limbs began to sprout from the massive
rock. Large claws as sharp as daggers extended from the newly-made
appendages and a snake-like head grew from the centre of what would be
its torso. The eyes on the rocky, serpent head, suddenly swivelled open.
They were an angry red - the colour of blood.

"TRAITOR," the head hissed.

"Golemdor," Ash acknowledged, turning his body slightly sideways in alert
preparation. 

"IT WAS YOU WHO INTERFERED WITH THE RAID ON THE PALLET SETTLEMENT 
YESTERDAY. YOU HAVE BEEN A LOOSE CANNON TOO LONG ASHURA. TODAY IT ENDS.
YOU SHALL FINALLY PAY FOR YOUR TREACHERY."

"I think not."

The red serpent-like eyes briefly swivelled to Pikachu who was sitting
on Ash's shoulder. "I SEE YOU ARE STILL TRAVELLING WITH THE LITTLE ONE."
It focused on Pikachu completely. "YOU COULD HAVE HAD POWER LIKE THE REST
OF US. WHY DO YOU TRAVEL WITH THE ASSASSIN?"

"Pika-pikachu!" Pikachu chattered angrily from atop his shoulder. Ash 
narrowed his eyes at the mention of the name the Golem had called him.

"YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO POKEMON KIND!" the Golem roared in response to
whatever Pikachu had said. "EARTHQUAKE!" It lifted a huge stone fist and
pounded the ground. The earth shook and a large crack rapidly approached
the wall he was standing on. Ash leaped into the air, tossing Pikachu to 
the side just before the quake reached it and reduced the stone wall to 
dust.

The massive Golem continued to pound the earth in its earthquake attack,
this time using both its fists. Ash was hard-pressed to avoid the cracks
of destruction heading his way. He back-flipped and turned hand-springs 
to dodge the wildly shaking earth attacks.

"Ugh!" He grunted in pain as a piece of rock shaped like a sharp knife
flew up and embedded itself into his leg. He landed painfully and slid 
along on his chest, the gravel digging into the palms of his hands.

"Chu!" Pikachu shouted in alarm, leaping to distract the huge Golem. 
Black lightning began to spark from his cheeks. "Pika pi!"

The Golem grunted as it stopped its earthquake attack. "TACKLE!" it
shouted as it began to charge the small pokemon.

Ash looked up in apprehension. "Watch out, Pikachu!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu cried, body crackling violently as it sent a powerful
black thunderbolt toward the oncoming Golem. However, despite the extreme
strength of the dark electric attack, it dissipated harmlessly over the
rock pokemon's stony-hard body. The huge limbed boulder continued forward 
in its mad charge.

"No!" Ash called out desperately. He ripped out the piece of stone
shrapnel from his leg, exhaling a breath in pain, then leaped forward,
knocking Pikachu out of the way. The Golem careened past and screamed in
frustration at missing its intended target after skidding to a stop. 
Then it looked at Ash lying on the ground nearby, with a malevolent 
gleam in its blood-red eyes. It grabbed him with one of its huge 
rock-like fists and pain exploded in his torso as its tight grip began 
to squeeze the life out of him.

"NOW YOU DIE," the Golem chuckled. It opened its palm slightly to allow 
access to the front of Ash's body. Snorting in rough laughter, it gave 
him two massive punches into his chest with its free arm before tossing 
him away like a broken toy. Ash uncontrollably flipped in midair
before landing with a muted thump on his back and sliding painfully away.
His cloak ripped in several places in the mad slide, before a large piece
of stony rubble stopped his momentum.

Feeling like his chest had caved in and died, Ash coughed and spat out a
mixture of blood and saliva as he lay on the ground. Slowly, he got up on
his hands and knees, shaking furiously. "Now you've gotten me angry,
Golemdor. And you'll see just why they called me the Assassin." His voice
was low and calm. His voice was death.

The Golem looked at him in confusion. It had expected the human to be
lifeless. Dead. Granted, this one had once been a Pokemon Master in the
Pokemon League, but at the heart of things, he was still a puny human. 
It had given enough blows into its chest to shatter concrete, let alone
bone. 

"HOW CAN YOU STILL BE ALIVE?"

"That's a question you'll soon be asking yourself!' Ash cried, before
flipping to his feet and streaking forward so fast, the light around him
seemed to shift. The Golem tried to dodge, but it was much to slow to
avoid the massive step-roundhouse kick aimed at its legs, then another 
and another. Dust rose as with each hit, the Golem was knocked backward. 

But the Golem seemed unperturbed. "FOOL! YOU CANNOT HOPE TO DAMAGE ME,"
it taunted as each hit seemed to fail to damage it. But it began to feel
apprehension at the furious attack the human displayed. After all, back
in the Pokemon Wars, this one had gained a reputation...

Ash paused in his rapid attack, standing on one leg, before seeming to
make the very light bend around his fore-knuckle fist, as he struck
forward with a single massive blow, scoring directly across both thick
legs. Then he leaped backward, high in the air, before flipping around 
with a one and a half twist and landing lightly on an intact section of 
the wall. The sound of his boots striking the stone was non-existent.

"You were already dead from the first hit," he stated calmly, as the
folds his cloak settled around him. 

Too calmly, the Golem suddenly worried. "WHAT HAVE YOU DONE - NOOO!" Its
legs abruptly gave way from underneath it as they crumbled into dust like
the fine sand of an hourglass. The torso of the boulder-like pokemon
cracked at the loss of its support and toppled over to land on its back.
"IMPOSSIBLE! THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE! I AM INDESTRUCTIBLE!" It tried to lift
itself up by the use of its remaining arms, but lost balance and fell
over again.

Ash held his right arm out horizontally and Pikachu landed on it.
"Golemdor, nothing on this world is indestructible. Especially not you."
He threw Pikachu into the air. "Finish it! Thunder Shatter!"

Midair, the little pikachu rolled into ball and began to emit a dark
light.

"FOOLS! I AM IMPERVIOUS TO ELECTRICAL ATTACKS."

"We shall see..." Ash said, folding his arms.

"PIKA!" The air around the pikachu suddenly roared with thunder and began
to spark black lightning as it descended towards the Golem.

"WHA-WHAT IS THIS?" it shouted in alarm as the small pokemon collided
into its chest and shot into its body like a bullet through flesh. When
the pikachu had fully entered its stony torso, the Golem started to
vibrate madly, pebbles and rocks falling away from its skin. "WHA-WHAT
MA-MANNER O-OF A-ATTACK I-IS T-THI-" It didn't get to finish its
question. The Golem's body turned black and its body began to invert into
itself as if it were trying to implode. Then the rumble of thunder and
flashes of black lightning exploded all around and instead the Golem was
ripped apart into countless tiny pieces of rock and dust.

When the thunder stopped cracking, all that was left in the centre of the
explosion was the little black pikachu. A ring of grey and brown dust and
rock lay piled around in a circle. The Golem's snake-like head rested a
dozen feet away, before it too crumbled, like wet sand, in a fine brown
powder.

"Pikachu... Return." The small electric mouse leaped back onto Ash's
backpack.

There was the sound of clapping. Ash quickly turned around from his 
position standing on the wall to see a person dressed in a blue cloak
applauding him. He or she was leaning on one of the toppled walls of a
destroyed building lazily, arms folded.

"Only a true Pokemon Master could defeat one of the eight Master Pokemons
of the Pokemon League."

He knew that voice, would never forget it. "And who might you be?"

The blue-cloaked figure stood up straight, aqua eyes staring at him from
underneath the shadowy depths of the hood. "I am Mistaria. And I have a
proposition to make you."


*** End of Part 1

_________________________________________________________________________

                                POKEDEX
_________________________________________________________________________

SHADOW PIKACHU
Type 1 - Shadow
Type 2 - Electricity

Attack : Lightning Vortex
Type   : Electricity / Flying
 
A powerful hurricane is formed around the Pikachu. When the opponents are
sucked inside, a ring of destructive electrical energy is exploded
outwards.

Attack : Thunder Shatter 
Type   : Electricity / Normal
 
Pikachu rolls into a ball and glows with a black light before entering
the victim's body. The victim then vibrates and explodes, leaving the
Pikachu in its place. Effective against rock. 

_________________________________________________________________________

Notes:

My very first Pokemon fanfic gains another revision...


Ace Sanchez
Email: jsa@fl.net.au
WWW: http://jsa.users.fl.net.au