Ash's Gift
By MegamanZero
Part 7: Shocking Truths and Deadly Alliances
nmc_512@yahoo.com
AAMRN

Ash: 15 Misty: 16   Brock: 20   Todd: 16
Jamie: 16   Gary: 16    Jesse and James: 21
Richie: 17  Ashura: 15  Commander Slade Morton: 33

A/N: No, "King of Fighters" did NOT inspire me when I wrote this: the only
thing that I know of "King of Fighters is its name. To all the people who can't
handle my story cause it's "too violent" and such ... cry me a river; notice the
PG-13 rating. If you can't handle it then go back to sucking your thumb and
hugging your security blanket because it WILL NOT change. If you can't bear with
this than you'd make a terrible doctor. * sighs * Next, to all the people who
keep asking me questions on what's gonna happen next in the story ... BE
PATIENT! If ya wanna know, then you're just gonna have to keep on reading!
Patience is a virtue; I should know because I read it off a fortune cookie,
and FORTUNE COOKIES DON'T LIE!!!
                               -Thank you,
                               M to the Z

Disclaimer: I don't own them (well, not all of them), I just use them. Capiche,
douche-bag!?

* * * *
                       
"Jessie, why did we have to park the balloon way out here?" a voice whined.

"Because," a female voice snapped, "our original plan was to steal the twerp's Pokemon. I have learned that by parking to close to our attack area the balloon always seems to be destroyed before we could make our getaway! But, since our plans have changed from harassing the twerp to helping him, we're just going to have to bear with it. Now stop bitching and carry me faster!"

"You know," James began thoughtfully, "we'd make it to the Meowth balloon a lot faster if you would just GET OFF OF ME!"

"Shaddup, da both a-yas!" Meowth barked. "Da balloon is right ova' da hill, rememba'? We made it!"

"Oh, goody!" James cried. "I have a full bag of Doritos waiting for me in that balloon, I can't wait to dig into it!" He smacked his lips in anticipation of the crunchy treats.

"Oh, and my Strawberry Newtons!" Jesse squealed. "We can have a feast on the way back to the twerps and their creepy friend!" She wrung her hands together deliciously, losing her grip and nearly falling off of James.

"Ahhh, my Meowth Treats ... " Meowth purred. "Meowth, I love 'em ..."

They finally reached the top of the hill and gasped. James, in shock, dropped Jesse. Jesse scrambled up to her feet, speechless. Meowth stared blankly at the sight before them.

Their balloon was destroyed.

Fragments of torn balloon fabric littered the ground about them. Burning pieces of the woven wood that made up the body of the balloon was cluttered everywhere. James slowly walked up to the wreckage and picked up a larger piece of torn balloon. There was writing on the fabric. Four letters, two vowels, and two consonants were burned into the fabric. The words sent chills up James' spine.

"HA HA."

Jesse bounded towards James. She cradled an empty box of Newtons. "They ate all my Newtons!" she raged. "Somebody's gonna pay."

Jesse continued to complain and moan about their lost snacks. James paid no attention. He was too busy staring in horror at his surroundings. Something wasn't right. Something evil had been here.

"Guy's," James said in a quiet, shaky voice, "look at the ground." The two others eyes' trailed towards their feet and gasped. Faintly, but surely, burnt ground gave off an eerie red glow.

Soon they made another discovery. It wasn't just the ground that had been tainted with an evil crimson tint. It was EVERYTHING. The destroyed balloon, the trees, even the air seemed to be corrupted with a glowing red stain. Even their bodies began glow red.

The sinister shine seemed to taunt them; laugh at them. They heard voices, soft, eerie voices whispering hair-raising things in their ears. They seemed to speak in a language that the trio never heard before. It didn't sound Japanese, English, Spanish, or even a combination of any tongue. They couldn't just hear it, they could FEEL it, feel it seethe and vibrate through their very being, coursing through their blood like some horrible plague. They managed to make out some of the words.

"EcchLA MoreaBLeKeS mACHstcALCLach RAgAnaJIN."

"We're leaving." James said firmly. Jesse was too frightened to move. Meowth's aimless scrutiny remained.

"NOW!" he repeated loudly. "RUN, NOW!" Jesse still wouldn't move. Meowth stood still, his eyes transfixed on nothing. Jesse and James could hear him murmuring something under his breath.

"Meowth," Jesse hissed, "what are you doing?" Meowth gave her no regard as he continued with his low murmuring. Although she couldn't determine what he was saying, she could make out whatever he was saying in a steady rhythm.

Like the slow thumping of a heart.

"Meowth, LET'S GO!" James shouted into the cat Pokemon's ear. "Why won't you     answer me!?"

In a steady crescendo, Meowth's low chanting became louder. Soon Jesse and James could finally understand what he was saying.

"The Raganajin shall have you." they heard him drone in a voice that wasn't his own. His eyes took on the same evil glow as their surroundings. His sinister mantra became louder as the glow in his eyes burned brighter.

"THE RAGANAJIN SHALL HAVE YOU." He rasped loudly.

"Meowth," Jesse whimpered, tears welling up in her eyes, "please ... stop it. We have to go ... please ... come back to us."

Meowth's face twisted into expression of pure insanity. "THE RAGANAJIN SHALL HAVE YOU!!!" He twitched and convulsed, his head thrown back and his mouth foaming. Jesse and James cried out as his body gave one final violent spasm, then fell limp, like a puppet who's string's had been cruelly severed.

* * * *

Ashura stared blankly at the Commander's ashes; the Ragana lay half-buried in the black powder. The ashes seemed to shine for a moment, and then the light vanished, as if the last shreds of life force within the ashes flicked off like a light.

Ashura was in awe of his power. In an instant of rage, hate, and sorrow, he had gone from simply powerful to seemingly invincible. In a playful, pseudo-innocent experimental manner, he flared up his Psionic aura, once again illuminating the area like a living sun. He laughed as he watched a few stray mosquitoes incinerate in front of him in the aura's wake.

He had an idea. What if I were to become ruler of all Lekarians, he mused. After all, with such power at my disposal, no one, not even the Ultimate himself, is my equal. Nobody can stand up against me. Who needs the Ultimate?

Ashura nearly keeled over in laughter as he thought of his ex-mate, Duplica. He should thank her for rejecting him. It was because of her unfaithfulness that drove him to this new power. Yes, he WOULD thank her, in his own ... special way.

The glowing teen descended himself from his levitation to the ground. He crouched down towards the Ragana. Do I dare touch it? Will it accept me? To grab hold of the Ragana without the Ragana's consent meant death. The Ragana chose it's wielders, not the other way around.

Suddenly he heard voices, strange callings that seemed to seep through his very thoughts. They called for him, beckoned him to hold the Ragana, to take it. They were inviting him. The Ragana wanted him. Tensing his muscles and taking a deep breath, Ashura shot his hand forward and snatched the Ragana.

The pain was unbearable.

Horrible, searing agony shot through his arm and into his body. It was so white hot, so all consuming it was almost pleasure. Ashura threw back his head and gave a howl of pain that could wake the dead. He wanted to let go, oh how he so desperately desired to free the mystical weapon from his grasp. However, in the heat of agonizing pleasure the muscles in his arm had locked tighter than a knot. It felt as if his muscles were being torn, his blood boiling, and his bones splintering.

Panic ran through the sobbing boy's mind. Has the Ragana rejected me? Am I going to die? Is this what it feels like to die? Oh God ... the pain ... it hurts ... it hurts so much. Can't let go ... damn you, arm ... damn you, why won't you LET GO!? Obey me, DAMMIT!

Just then, as quickly as the pain came, it ceased, leaving a blissful, almost post-coital feeling of profound satisfaction. Relaxing waves of pleasure flowed through his body. He shuddered softly as the pleasure subsided.

Richie and Sparky stared in genuine awe at the sight before them. They had witnessed the whole scene from behind the overturned car, sweating bullets. Every now and then, the electric rodent gave soft, reverent "pikas" as he watched the dark-haired Lekarian. Richie couldn't tell if the whole thing was a dream or not.  

The older boy and the Pikachu slowly stepped from the safety of the totaled car and cautiously approached the crimson and black teen. Ashura only absent-mindedly regarded them; he was too busy savoring the feeling of pure power, pure energy.

Richie nervously spoke up. "Y-y-y-yo , Ashura?"

Ashura placidly turned his head in mild acknowledgment. "Yes? he responded in a quite voice that made Richie's legs quiver.

"Are you ... um ... alright there?"

Ashura gave a surprisingly warm smile. "Of course, Richie. I've never felt better in my entire life." The smile than twisted into a malicious smirk.

Richie winced at the expression. Ashura laughed mentally; Richie didn't WINCE for just anybody. This meant good things for the glowing teen. He pointed his new Ragana at the taller boy.

In hopeless desperation Richie threw his hands up while Sparky cowered behind his legs. "Waitaminute, don't ..."

Crimson lightning surged forth from the Ragana into Richie's body. Sparky gave a loud yelp as he leapt away, helpless to do anything but watch his trainer writhe and spasm with red electricity.

Just then Richie felt an awesome explosion of power erupt from under him. It was as if someone had opened the lid to a raging volcano. Raw energy swept through his body like a hurricane; he could feel his Psi energy skyrocketing.

The Ragana's beam ceased.

Richie looked down at himself. He wasn't dead, which meant that Ashura took mercy on him. But why?

Richie stared at Ashura, dazed from his own power. "Wh-wh-wha-wha what did ya do to me?"

Ashura gave a small cough as he slipped the Ragana into his belt. "I need a right hand man, Rich. Someone I can trust; a good assistant."

Richie stared at him some more as Ashura kept talking. "Don't you see, Richie? With all this power, we could rule the world ourselves!" Ashura's eyes flared with anticipation of conquest. "We don't need the Ultimate anymore, Richie. He is a thing of the past. A forgotten memory; obsolete. We can take control and rule the Lekarians ourselves.

Ashura patted his Ragana. "What I just did was give you a tremendous burst in power. I'm sure you've felt it by now. Don't you just love it?"

Richie's eyes gave a maniacal gleam as he caught on to what Ashura was getting at. "Oh yeah, Ashura. I've felt it, alright." He flared his aura outward and fired a gigantic pillar of light into the night sky. "I'm LOVIN' IT!"

"Then join me, Richie. We could rule the planet, have anything that we wanted." Ashura gave a knowing smile. "You could have all the whores you want."

Richie's head jerked up. Ashura had said the magic words. "All we need to do is get the Ultimate out of the way. Then there will be no stopping us. Anyone who gets in the way of our idea will be destroyed immediately. What do you say, Richie? Partners?" Ashura stuck his hand out in an invitation for a handshake.

Richie smirked and thrust his hand into Ashura's, sealing their agreement. "Partners."

Ashura smoothly pulled his hand away. "Just remember, Richie, no matter what happens," he flared his Psi for emphasis, "I will always be superior to you. Never defy me, or I will kill you."

Richie snorted, his usual impudence surfacing once more. "Relax, Ashura my man." I ain't in no mood to be picking fights with you." He cracked his knuckles excitedly. "Besides, I wanna test my power on something!"

"And you will." Ashura promised. "Once we find the Ultimate and his friends, then you can have your fun."

"Great." Richie gurgled. "I've got an old score to settle with little Ashy-boy anyhow. This is gonna be fun."

"Just remember," Ashura warned, "don't kill him. Do whatever you want to the others, but don't lay a finger on Aries. I will personally deal with him. Now let's go."

Sparky quickly jumped on his trainer's shoulder like a parrot just before they shot off into the air. The Pikachu had a very, very bad feeling about all of it, but he knew better than to argue with the two warriors. Even with their newfound power, Sparky had the strange notion that his trainer would die very soon ...

* * * *

"Gary, you bastard, what the hell did you do to him!?" Ash cursed, his fists balled up so tight that his fingernails dug crescent moons into his palms. Abra only held onto his unconscious trainer like a baby holding onto its parent.

Gary pulled put his non-injured hand out in front of him and pointed the palm at Ash. His hand began to shine a bright white. "Simple, Ashy-boy; I took him out of the picture."

Ash gritted his teeth angrily. "Don't ... call me ... that name ..."

Gary laughed maliciously. "Or you'll do WHAT, Ash? Face it, without knowledge of your abilities you're as helpless as a duck in a barrel."

Ash threw his hands up. "Again with this 'abilities' crap! Why is everyone after me, huh? Can't somebody explain this to me in plain simple English!?" He put his hands on his hips.

Gary sighed; he was obviously in no hurry. The boy lowered his hand down as the glowing stopped. "Well, before you die, I guess you DO have the right to know why."

Gary paced himself around the group. "Once upon a time there was a planet called Draun. And on that planet lived the humanoid species called the 'Lekarians'. The Lekarians loved to conquer, pillage, and destroy, ruling over entire planets all across the universe. Then one day the idiots messed with the WRONG people; the Gnrak. Even though the self appointed rulers of the universe a.k.a the Lekarians were physically stronger than the smaller species, Gnrak technology proved too much for them."

"They annihilated the planet Draun and all but destroyed the Lekarian race. Torn, crippled, and robbed of their pride, the Lekarians escaped in a single ship and raced off into space. After decades of ceaseless wandering, they came upon our humble little planet Earth. With their power reserves running dry, the warlike race decided to land on our planet and make their home here."

Gary paused to clear his throat, and then continued. "Now, you'd think that after having your planet destroyed, your homes wiped from the universe, and to live on a tiny blue planet you'd think that they'd learn to let others live in peace. Wrong! Immediately after landing on Earth, the Lekarians made plans to conquer it. Needing a face for their operations, they began to hire unsuspecting hoodlums and thus creating the infamous Team Rocket."

Misty and Pikachu stared in silent shock as they listened to the boy talk. Ash, however, wouldn't be swayed. "Hmmmm, a nice fairy tale, Gary." he sneered. "But you still haven't answered my question."

"Patience is a virtue, Ash." Gary chided in a mocking tone. "Just sit quiet like a good little boy and listen."

What little patience and tolerance Ash possessed was waning. Ash just bottled it up and listened. He was going to die in about a minute anyway.

"So as I was saying, before I was RUDELY interrupted, the Lekarians created Team Rocket. That's what soon bore us into the world." He pointed at himself. "Silph was created as a counter-agents by some good Lekarians and a huge number of shrewd humans to keep Team Rocket in check. However, Team Rocket had their ace in the hole."

He pointed at the dark-haired boy. "YOU, Ash, are their future weapon of destruction. You see, Team Rocket decided to genetically engineer a living weapon to carry out the task of destroying all of the humans, an "Ultimate Lekarian", if you will. After creating you in a test tube, they implanted you into an unsuspecting human woman. That's what also gave birth to The Cause; your personal guard."

He then lifted his hand at Ash once more. "It is their duty to bring you in and train you after your fifteenth birthday. In another three years your innate super abilities will surface." His eyes gleamed dangerously. "Then you will be no stopping you. You will be under their control at that point forever more." His hand began to shine brightly as the air around him began to hum. "I'm really sorry, Ash. I wish there was another way to do this, but there isn't. I'll hate myself forever for killing you, but if it means the safety of Earth, then I know that I can rest easy."

Misty then threw herself over Ash. "NO!" she cried, tears streaming down her eyes. "You can't, Gary, you CAN'T! I-I-I lo ..."

"Love him?" Gary interrupted. Misty only gave a small nod. "Tell me, is love worth the destruction of all mankind? How can you love Ash when in three years he will forget you and everyone else he cared about, then go off and destroy them as if they never meant anything to him? Don't you see, Misty? This is bigger than you, bigger than me!"

Ash looked into her emerald eyes. "Mist ..." he began. "Please ... get off of me ... please ..."

"No, Ash." she replied firmly. "No, I WON'T leave you." She jerked her head towards Pikachu. "Quick, Thundershock him NOW!!!"

The electric mouse didn't hesitate. "PIIIKKKKKKKAAAAAAAAAAAACCCCCHHHHUUUUUUUUU!"

Pikachu leapt forward and latched onto Gary's chest. Gary was then swathed in a blinding yellow light as fifty thousand volts of electricity jolted through his body.

Misty turned around and crushed her lips against Ash's. They felt so warm, so welcoming. Ash eagerly returned a kiss that sent shivers up Misty's spine. They wanted to hold each other forever, never letting go. Sadly, they were rudely interrupted.

They turned around to see Gary break away from Pikachu's electrifying embrace. Pikachu shrieked in pain as he was REPELLED from Gary's body. The smoking yellow mouse was hurled into Ash and Misty like a football. They were violently knocked back by an invisible wave of force as Gary gave a powerful roar.

Gary had charged up his Psi to the breaking point. He was angry, angry that Misty attempted to help the same THING that would lead to the deaths of six billion people.

Gary stared at them with cold, blue, burning eyes. "You shouldn't have done that, Misty!" he shouted over the roar of his aura charging up to unbelievable levels for a human. "Now I'll have to kill both of you!"

"Not if I can help it, human!" a voice shouted.

All heads jerked over to the side to see a blue haired girl and what seemed like her twin skid to a halt between them. They both turned to Gary and crouched into a fighting stance.

"If you want the Ultimate, human, you'll have to get through me!" she charged up her Psi levels. The sound of their roaring auras was deafening; the others covered their ears and screwed their eyes shut.

Gary gave her a determined scowl. "Fine, then I guess I'll do just that!"

They launched themselves at each other, only vaguely aware that two powerful forces were drawing closer and closer to them.