It wasn't long until the tunnel they were in opened up into a large cavern. Makeshift torches were scattered 
along the walls and in the center of the cave was a sleeping bag, next to it a large rock apparently being 
used for a table. The only thing missing, Ash noticed, was Bruno himself.

Ash was alone, for in his anger he had quickened his pace and left the rest of the group a good distance 
behind. Even Pikachu had elected to stay behind with Gary, for the yellow rodent never liked it when his 
trainer was angry.  He wasn't worried about them, for he knew Gary remembered the way just as well as he 
did.

Ash soon discovered Bruno's whereabouts when a massive arm wrapped around his neck, tightening 
around his throat and nearly choking him.

"I don't know how you got past my onix, but it's no matter, I'll kill you now," a gruff voice said as his hold 
on Ash's neck tightened even more, restricting Ash's airways causing him to gasp for air.

Ash quickly elbowed Bruno in the stomach before he could suffocate him. Bruno was caught off guard and 
Ash grabbed hold of the large arm that had been choking him moments before, and, using all of his body 
weight, managed to flip Bruno over his back and onto the floor. 

Bruno lay on the floor, not quite certain as to how he had ended up on his back. Then a young raven haired 
man stood over him, grinning as he rubbed his raw neck. "Hey, Bruno," he said cheerfully. 

"Well!" Bruno said as he sat up. "If it isn't little Ash." He caught sight of the auburn haired young man that 
had just entered the cavern. "And wee Gary!"

Ash and Gary rolled their eyes. They were hardly little. In fact the growth spurt that Ash had had at sixteen 
had placed him around six feet. Gary too was nearing the six foot mark, but next to Bruno, who stood at at 
least 6'5", they did seem small. 

Bruno stood up, awing Misty, Brock, and Erika, who had entered the cavern behind Gary. He playfully 
ruffled Ash's hair, his arm rippling with muscles. 

"How have you been?" he boomed pleasantly, a bright smile upon his rugged face. The smile quickly 
disappeared when he noticed the other three people in the cavern. "Who are they?" he asked, giving them 
each a suspicious glance. 

"They're friends Bruno," Ash told him, although the glare he directed at them led Bruno to raise his 
eyebrows.

Bruno scrutinized them for a moment before returning his gaze to Ash. "So why are you here? For a 
minute I thought you were some bad Rockets." Bruno had dubbed Ash and Gary "good Rockets."

"That's why we've come," Ash told him. "They know that you are here. You have to leave."

"How could they know?" Bruno asked, perplexed.

"It's a long story," Gary interjected.

Bruno was completely taken aback, his whole world flipped upside down once again. He ran a hand 
through his lengthy brown hair. "But where will I go?"

"Well," Misty said, gathering up her courage and taking a step forward. "We've started a rebellion and we 
could use your help. You and the other Elite." She paused, twirling her braid with her finger, a nervous 
habit she had developed over the years. Being in the presence of a man who was not only so physically 
powerful but who was one of the top pokemon trainers in the world, was making it more than a little 
difficult to not be nervous. "We were hoping you might know the location of the other Elite Four."

"Of course I do," Bruno said impatiently.

Misty's eyes lit up. "You do?"

Bruno nodded, deep in thought. "A rebellion, eh? Take that no good Giovanni out of power." He paused, 
then looked up, obviously enthused. "Let's do it. I'm tired of living in this hole."

The three former gym leaders, now rebellion leaders all grinned, excited that they now had an Elite on their 
side.

"Where are the other Elite?" Brock asked.

Bruno looked thoughtful. "Well, Agatha, took refuge in the Pokemon Tower in Lavender Town."

Gary snorted. "Rather obvious wasn't she?"

Bruno shrugged then continued. "Lorelei has taken refuge in the underground caves of Seafoam Island. 
Lance is more difficult to track down. Only Lorelei will know his exact position." It was truly unfortunate, 
that a week before Giovanni's takeover Lorelei and Lance had gotten married. They were forced into 
hiding and haven't had a chance to see each other for years. 

After a pause Bruno said, "I just need to get Onix, then we can leave."

A sheepish grin formed upon Ash's face at that. "Um, Bruno, about your onix..."

~*~*~

Although they were expecting Team Rocket to attack, Ash and Gary were surprised to enter the cavern that 
led to route ten and see at least twenty-five armed Rockets scrambling about.

The Rockets were just as surprised to see them. 

"Agents Satoshi and Shigeru?" A blonde woman said questioningly. She flicked one of her blonde 
ponytails over her shoulder. "An added bonus. Imagine how pleased Giovanni will be when I not only 
bring him Bruno, but the two traitors as well."

Ash silently drew his bow and Gary moved his hand to his gun.

"An active imagination you have there Cassidy," Gary quipped. 

"Are you two actually going to fight?" Cassidy said, and amused twinkle in her blue eyes as she took note 
of their drawn weapons. "You may be good, but I have twenty-five agents here, all armed."

"I wonder if those metal guns conduct electricity," Ash said, loud enough for Cassidy to hear. Gary 
shrugged, a small smirk on his lips. 

"Pikachu, thunderwave!" Ash called.

Pikachu leapt from his shoulder, releasing a powerful thunderwave at the Rockets, each man screaming 
painfully as electricity flowed through his body. The attack stopped and it was silent for a moment. A few 
of the men wavered, but remained standing, while almost ten of them collapsed. 

"I think that evened out the odds," Ash told Cassidy as he ran towards the remaining men, skillfully hitting 
them with his staff, knocking their guns from their hands.

A handgun skittered over to Gary's feet. He picked it up and turned to hand it to Misty, but she shook her 
head. "I don't know how to use a gun," she said.

He looked at her incredulously. "You're leading a rebellion and you don't know how to use a gun?" He 
moved his gaze to Brock and Erika, who also shook their heads.

"Unbelievable," Gary muttered. He didn't have time to dwell on this newfound information though, for the 
Rockets had recovered from their stupor and began shooting at him.

"Take cover!" he called to them as he took off running, a gun in each hand. He dove behind a boulder as 
the bullets from a machine gun followed him, barely missing his heels as he ran. Using the boulder for 
cover, he began picking off each gunman, shooting him in the arm if possible. 

Pikachu had taken cover with the others behind a boulder similar to the one Gary was using to protect 
himself from the flying bullets. They watched as Ash made quick work of the remaining Rockets who 
hadn't been shot or electrified. He was surprisingly graceful as he slammed his staff upon the back of one 
Rocket's head while using his forward momentum to send a high kick at the man behind him. It wasn't long 
before only three Rockets remained standing, two whom were being taken care of by Ash with a swift kick 
to the abdomen and a blow to the head with his staff. The other Rocket, Cassidy, stood a good distance 
behind him, her gun aimed at Ash's back, her finger tensing on the trigger.

The soft click of a safety unlatching by her ear caught her attention. Out of the corner of her eye she could 
see Gary, his gun poised at her temple. 

"Hand it over," he said, his free hand stretching in front of her.

She scowled and placed the gun in his hand.

"Thanks," he said as he smashed the butt of his gun into the back of her head. She fell to the ground in a 
crumpled heap.

Gary looked up to see Ash had been watching them, an amused grin on his face as he leaned casually upon 
his staff. "Thanks," he said placing his bow back into its holder.

"Hey, I've got your back," Gary said, grinning as he too holstered his weapon.

Bruno stepped over the unconscious bodies that were strewn across the floor and joined them as Pikachu 
reclaimed his position upon Ash's shoulder. Brock, Misty, and Erika rose from behind the boulder they had 
been using for cover.

Gary glanced at them, shaking his head. "Ash, we have a problem."

"What?" Ash questioned, looking curiously around the cavern.

"None of them can shoot a gun!" Gary said, gesturing at Brock, Misty, and Erika.

Ash stared at them for a moment, then threw up his hands in exasperation. "I should have known." An 
expression of painful regret covered his features as he turned and stalked out of the cavern, Pikachu 
clinging to his shoulder.

Gary shook his head before following him. Bruno shrugged, then he too headed out of the cave. Brock and 
Misty exchanged bewildered glances at Ash's reaction before Misty began to run after him, Brock and 
Erika on her heels. 

"Ash!" Misty called when she had exited the tunnel. He was walking down the path at a steady speed and 
didn't stop when she called him. She continued running until she had caught up with him. Gary and the 
others remained behind them, although the others allowed Gary his space, for he, like Ash had suddenly 
become downcast.

"I don't see what the big deal is," she said, taking long strides in order to keep up with his pace.

He shot her a sideways glance. "You are in charge of a rebellion and you don't know how to wield a 
weapon. I guess it's safe to assume that none of your troops know either?"

Misty's silence was his answer.

"Misty, what did you expect to do?" Ash said with a sigh. "Walk up to Giovanni with a large group of 
unarmed people and demand he give up his office?"

"We have been concentrating on finding the Elite Four, we haven't really had a chance to discuss 
weapons."

"The Elite Four will only be able to help you so much," Ash told her. "Their pokemon won't last long 
against Team Rocket, not with all of the pokemon they have, not to mention their weaponry." 

Misty was silent. Ash sighed. "If I had known this I would have never suggested we betray Giovanni. Now 
my mother, Pallet Town-" He stopped abruptly, not wanting to think about the fact that he was the cause of 
the death of not only his mother, but of so many other innocent people.

Misty noticed Ash's sudden discomfort. "Don't worry, Ash," she said. "You can teach us. We'll learn how 
to use weapons, and Giovanni will be defeated."

Ash was silent for a while. "I think I know someone who can help us."

"Us?" Misty inquired. "Are you joining us then?"

"You're going to need all the help you can get," he told her.

Lavender Town was only a short walk from Rock Tunnel and they arrived in less than an hour. Although 
Lavender had always been considered a "ghost" town, it had only recently begun to live up to it's name. 
The streets were deserted, the houses empty. The only noises that could be heard were from the nearby 
Pokemon Tower, where the ghosts, now the only residents of the small town, were literally having a 
howling good time.

"What happened to this town?" Bruno asked incredulously. He had been in hiding and did not understand 
why there were no human or pokemon inhabitants, save for the ghosts.

"After Giovanni took over, the testing on pokemon increased," Gary began, shaking his head at the mere 
thought. "Many times the pokemon would die from the experiments. We believe their souls came here and, 
along with other ghost pokemon, they haunt the tower."

"So?" Bruno said shrugging. "Ghost pokemon have always haunted the tower."

"The pokemon that are killed by Team Rocket are angry spirits," Ash explained. "They began not only 
haunting, but causing physical harm to those who entered the tower."

"Physical harm?" Bruno questioned.

"First it was little things," Gary told him. "A man received a concussion from a candlestick that was 
dropped on him. But they gradually became more dangerous; a woman was viciously stabbed, and a man 
was killed after the newly installed chandelier fell on him, crushing him." 

Misty and Brock both glanced at Ash, who appeared undaunted by this fact. That Ash was alive today was 
a miracle to both of them. They had been sure he was dead when they had discovered him lying motionless 
under the chandelier over ten years ago. Both knew more had happened that night than Ash admitted, 
although he never had told them what.

"Do you think Agatha will still be in there?" Erika asked softly. "What if the ghosts attacked her?"

Bruno shook his head. "Agatha has a way with ghosts. I think she would get along even with these 
dangerous spirits."

When they arrived at the tower they stood in silence for a moment as the eerie laughter of the ghosts was 
carried to their ears by the wind.

Although it was only mid afternoon, the area around the tower was dark, giving the tower the illusion of 
night.

Misty stared at the tower, a sense of foreboding washing over her. Feelings long forgotten began to work 
their way to the surface, making her feel incredibly vulnerable. It was here, that fateful night at this tower 
that Misty had discovered she had feelings for Ash.  When she and Brock had found Ash's still form lying 
under the chandelier she thought she had lost him, and, to her great surprise, she suddenly felt that she 
could not live without him. Although she had hidden her feelings the entire time they had traveled, they 
had only grown during the time she had spent with him. Once she left him, Misty had repressed her 
feelings, for the pain she felt when she had to say good bye would have remained with her the rest of her 
life. Now, the dull ache that began to grow in her heart told her that her feelings had not subsided over the 
years. If anything they seemed to have intensified.

"You four stay out here," Ash told them. "Gary and I will go find Agatha."

Gary cast an apprehensive glance at the tower. Unlike Ash, he had never been inside and the fact that there 
were ghosts in there killing people didn't make him exactly eager to go in. "I would like to thank you for 
volunteering me for this Ash," he muttered. He followed Ash as he made his way to the tower's wooden 
doors.

The others watched as Ash slowly opened the doors and Pikachu leapt from his shoulder ready to 
investigate the inside of the tower. 

The door groaned when Ash opened it, protesting to its use. Ash and Gary cautiously followed Pikachu, 
who stood in the center of the room, ears twitching as he listened for ghosts. The door slammed shut 
behind them, seemingly by itself. 

"I bet that happens a lot here," Gary muttered. 

Ash nodded then made his way to the large staircase that began in the center of the room. Ash noted that 
the chandelier had not been replaced since it had fallen the second time. He began to climb, Gary following 
behind him, Pikachu between them. Ash had made it half way up the stairs when he heard Gary say, 
"Ash..."

He turned and came face to face with the barrel of Gary's gun, which was floating in midair. Gary watched 
anxiously from a few steps below. 

"Ash, get down!" Gary cried as the trigger began to tighten.

Ash ducked as the gun fired, a bullet slamming into a wall on the second floor. The gun then turned and 
was aimed at Gary, who also ducked as a shot was fired at him. Ash began to run up the stairs, Gary down, 
as the gun began to randomly shoot at both of them. 

Misty's stomach tightened into a knot when she heard gunfire coming from inside the tower. Muffled yells 
could be heard, but most distinctly, Misty heard Gary cry "Ash!" Her mind running wild with the 
possibilities of Ash being hurt, she began to run to the tower, trying to open the doors. The others followed 
her and began to help, but the doors would not open. Not even Bruno could get them to budge. Erika 
closed her eyes, feeling almost faint as she too contemplated the idea of Ash being hurt. A bright flash was 
seen from the second story windows and then the gunfire stopped. 

"Pikachu!" Ash called as the pokemon scrambled up the stairs after him. "Thunderbolt! Aim for the gun!"

When Pikachu reached the top of the stairs he quickly turned releasing a powerful surge of electricity. The 
attack hit the gun. The form of a gengar appeared for a moment, before quickly disappearing. Gary stood 
up and looked around cautiously, before picking up his gun and holstering it. 

Pikachu climbed onto Ash's shoulder as he waited for Gary to climb the stairs. Once Gary had joined him 
Ash turned and continued down the upstairs hall. 

"Where exactly are we going?" Gary asked after he had been following Ash for a few minutes.

"Right here," Ash replied stopping in front of what appeared to be a solid wall. 

Gary stared at him as Ash lightly ran his hand over the wall. "I see," he said. "Agatha has hidden herself in 
a room that has cleverly disguised itself as a wall."

"Something like that," Ash muttered.

Gary shot him a confused glance. Noting this, Ash elaborated. "There's a room behind this wall. The ghosts 
lived and played there. There is no door in, the only way in is too be a ghost or too get pulled in by one."

As if on cue a purple hand materialized from the wall, seized hold of Ash's wrist and yanked him through. 
Pikachu leapt to Gary's shoulder as Ash disappeared. "Ash!" Gary cried. He quickly felt the wall, but it was 
solid. 

Ash never got used to the feeling of moving through a solid object. Granted he hadn't done it since he was 
ten and had had a rather disconcerting out of body experience in this very tower. He shook his head to clear 
his mind and was not surprised to find himself in a brightly lit room that greatly contrasted from the rest of 
the tower. It was much as he remembered it; the carousel in the center of the room was slowly spinning as 
the swing set moved back and forth by itself, or, more likely, invisible ghosts.

"Why did you bring him here?" a female voice asked.

Ash looked curiously for the source of the voice, but saw no one. 

"Haunt?" another voice replied to her question.

Ash turned towards the new voice and came face to face with a floating purple head and hands, its two 
large eyes looking questioningly at him.

"Haunter?" Ash said, recognizing him as the pokemon who had followed him years ago.

Haunter grinned at him before turning upside-down and sticking his tongue out at Ash. He then floated 
over to the swing set. 

"You seem to have a way with pokemon," the female voice said. Again Ash looked for its source and 
almost missed her.  There, standing on the still spinning carousel, stood an older woman, her arm wrapped 
around one of the poles for balance. She came into view then quickly disappeared as the carousel 
continued to turn.

"Agatha?" he asked as she was brought back into view.

"Ah, so you have a purpose," was the simple reply. 

"Bruno told me you were here," he told her, hoping to gain her trust. 

"Bruno?" she said, her tone now interested. She stepped from the carousel, standing a distance away from 
him. The light gray kimono that was wrapped around her matched her hair. "What of him?" she asked, 
regarding him curiously. 

"A rebellion is forming against Giovanni," Ash told her, talking a step forward. "We sought out Bruno and 
he has agreed to help us."

"So that is how you knew where to find me," she said, her wrinkled features calm. She seemed intrigued as 
she studied him. "But how did you know of this room? Not even dear Bruno, nor my other colleagues were 
informed of its existence."

He shot her a grim smile. "I've been here before."

A surprised yet pleased look appeared upon the old woman's face. "You must be very trusted by ghost 
pokemon to have been brought here." 

Ash shrugged. "Something like that."

"Well, young man, shall we exit the premises and rejoin my old friend Bruno?" she said as she walked to 
him and laced her arm through his. He smiled then led her to the wall.

"Haunter dear," Agatha said, casting her gaze to the purple pokemon that sat, or rather floated above, the 
swing. "Would you be so kind as to pull us through?"

"Haunter!" the pokemon eagerly agreed. In a matter of moments they were on the other side of the wall, 
face to face with a befuddled Gary.

"Gary, this is Agatha," Ash introduced, motioning to the woman on his arm. "Agatha, Gary."

Agatha nodded a hello as Gary simply gaped. That was twice in ten minutes he had seen someone walk 
through a wall. 

"Pikapi!" Pikachu said excitedly, taking his place on his trainer's shoulder.

Agatha glanced at the yellow rodent. "I was under the impression that civilians were not allowed to posses 
pokemon."

Ash grinned. "I never said I was a civilian."

Agatha looked impressed. "How intriguing."

~*~*~

"Ash, can't *you* teach us?" Erika said, looking nervously at Gary, who stood not far from her, leaning 
against a tree, a grin spread across his face as he twirled his gun on his finger.

"No," Ash replied from his position sitting next to Bruno and Agatha, an amused expression on his face.

"Why not?" Misty questioned; Gary was making her feel as uneasy as he was Erika.

Ash looked up at her, petting Pikachu, who sat contentedly in his lap. "Because I don't know how," he 
stated matter-of-factly. 

"What?" Brock said incredulously. "You got mad at us for not knowing how to shoot a gun and you don't 
even know how?"

Ash said nothing as he shrugged, leaning back against a tree. 

Gary stopped twirling his gun. "Ash has a black belt in martial arts and is an expert at using his bow. He 
doesn't need to know how to shoot."

"Well," Misty said hesitantly. "Can't we learn how to use a bow?"

"Misty, it took him years to get as good as he is, and Ash is a quick learner. We don't have that kind of 
time," Gary said logically.

"Besides," Ash said. "Gary's a crack shot, if you want to learn how to shoot a gun, he's the best."

An hour later, Ash, Bruno, and Agatha, watched bemusedly as Misty, Brock, and Erika each took turns 
trying to shoot a rather large target that Gary had painted on a tree. Brock and Erika were making slow 
progress, their bullets at least hitting the outer color of the target. Misty, unfortunately, was lucky if she hit 
the tree. 

As Gary adjusted her grip yet again, he noticed Pikachu climb onto Ash's shoulder as he stood and began 
the trek to the path they had left long ago. They were in a secluded part of the forest, where no one would 
be able to hear the gunshots.

"Okay, Misty," Gary said, keeping his eyes on Ash. "You try again, I'll be right back." Gary glanced at her 
and upon seeing the nervous look plastered upon her face and the death grip she had on the gun, changed 
his mind.

"On second thought," he said, prying the gun from her clenched hand. "Let's keep the gun with me." Gary 
holstered the gun then jogged over to Ash.

"Where are you going?" He asked.

Ash glanced around Gary to see Misty, Brock, and Erika deep in their own conversation while Bruno and 
Agatha were busy catching up. 

"I'm going to see about getting us some weapons," Ash told him. 

"Weapons? From where?" Gary questioned.

Ash looked at him pointedly, and at once Gary understood. After years of friendship they could almost 
read one another's thoughts. 

"Are you sure we can trust them?" Gary said, quietly, so the others wouldn't hear.

"They are our friends. I think they will help us," Ash told him. 

Gary nodded.

"I will meet up with you guys in a couple of days," Ash informed him. "Continue towards Fuchsia, and 
stay off of the main roads.

"Okay," Gary agreed. "Good luck."

With a short wave Ash headed off, and he and Pikachu quickly disappeared into the trees.

Gary turned and headed back to the rest of the group.

"Where did Ash go?" Misty asked, her expression curious. 

"He'll be back soon," Gary said. He glanced at Bruno, who was sitting next to Agatha, deep in 
conversation. "Bruno, do you want to learn how to shoot?" he asked, interrupting them. 

Bruno glanced up at him. "No, I am fine."

"Bruno it could be important for you to know how to shoot, strength might not be enough," Gary argued. 

Bruno stood, rising to his full height and towering over them. He walked slowly to Gary and removed the 
gun from the holster around the auburn haired man's waist. With a click he removed the safety then aimed 
at the target Gary had painted.

Gary looked in astonishment to see a bullet hole in the center of the target. Bruno handed him the gun, then 
returned to Agatha, who was grinning in amusement.

~*~*~

Ash had to smile at the irony of his situation. He was sitting in a dark ally of the city he had just fled from, 
waiting for the two people he had once considered his greatest enemies to come and help him get weapons 
for a rebellion against the man he used to work for.

"Satoshi?" A voice from the shadows said, pulling him from his thoughts.

"I'm here," he answered, standing up, Pikachu on his shoulder.

A woman stepped into the dim light, a worried look upon her face. Her long red hair cascaded down her 
back. Although she was now eleven years older than the first time he had met her, she still maintained her 
fit body and her young features.

"What's come over you?" she asked. "Giovanni's in an uproar. He wants you dead."

"He knows what I'm am capable of. He wants me out of the way," Ash said.

"He has sent Butch and Cassidy after you," another voice said, this one male. A man stepped from the 
shadows and stood next to his female companion. His once long blue hair was now cut short, giving him an 
older, more mature look. His green eyes showed concern for his younger friend's well being.

"Butch and Cassidy?" Ash said curiously. "They are far from good at tracking. Why didn't Giovanni send 
you?"

Jessie and James, although they couldn't steal a pokemon to save their lives, were excellent trackers, which 
was obvious from their years of following Ash. It had been Ash, in fact, that had suggested to Giovanni 
that Jessie and James become full time trackers and leave field work to other agents. Jessie and James were 
by far the best agents Giovanni had when he wanted someone found.

"He tried to send us," James informed him. "But we told him that we were in the middle of developing a 
new weapon and couldn't take the time."

Besides tracking, Jessie and James were in charge of weapon design. They came up with many original 
ideas and had perfected the art of making weapons after fixing all of the mistakes they had made when they 
used weapons against Ash.

"Giovanni wanted Butch on the case anyway," Jessie continued. "Next to Shigeru, he's the best 
sharpshooter in Team Rocket."

Ash nodded deep in thought. "I need your help. I need weapons, handguns, rifles, and something we can 
use against pokemon." Jessie and James had come up with some ingenious weaponry that used elemental 
powers and could faint pokemon.

Jessie looked at him suspiciously. "We can get you that. What are you up to Twerp?" she asked, using 
what had over the years become her affectionate nickname for him.

He grinned. "You'll see."





A/N: Well, sorry it's been so long. At least I give you guys long chapters to look forward too. Don't worry, 
summer will soon be here, then I will have plenty of time to write. Until then just bare with me. For any of 
you who are wondering, I still have no idea if Ash and Misty are gonna get together or if Ash and Erika 
will reunite. I'm just going with the flow here. But notice that Misty does like Ash, complications 
complications! Again, if you would like me to email you when I release a new chapter just tell me in your 
review. I suppose thats all, please review.