Disclaimer/Everything else: See previous chapters

The Pokemon Reader – hai, glad you finally updated!

Ranma – well, patience is a virtue.

KiAnson – hai, hai

Carrie – ok

Xaero – free bulletproof vest for crystal? I don’t think Misty’ll shoot her.

SS2 Megami-sama – well, someone seems to know my writing style a bit too well. I’m getting a lil’ bit freaked out now.

Takuya – hai

Firehedgehog – yay! ^_^

Caspian Raider – waiting…

Millennium mutant – yes, Lance the dragon master/league champion

Aragorn the Ranger – thank you for your comments!

Crimson Hawk – hai, hai

For those of you who don’t read CCA and were wondering why it took me a while to update, I was sick, in pain, and working on too much homework.

Episode 4: Teetering balance

Ash woke up to feel curiously tired. He saw Misty, Brock, and Blaine bending over him anxiously.

“Are you all right, Ash?”

“What happened?” Ash asked. “I remember falling… and then I felt someone pick me up. Did you save me?”

“It wasn’t us. You didn’t see who it was?”

“No.” Ash said.

“Pikachu, did you see anything?”

It was too bright. Pikachu said. I couldn’t see anything. I thought maybe I was evolving, but…

“What about you, Crystal? Crystal!”

“She’s fainted!” Brock said. “But how?”

Ash picked up the little pokemon. “I have to get her to the Center! The battle was too much for her!”

“Wait, Ash, you’re still hurt!”

Ash didn’t listen. He grabbed Pikachu and raced to the center.

“Nurse joy, can you please heal my pokemon?”

“Just exhaustion.” Joy said. “It’ll only take a few minutes.” The two pokemon were healed instantly.

Ash sighed. “Well, someone had to save me. I wonder who it was? Was it her?” He thought back to the figure who had appeared to him.

Charlotte laughed from her perch on a cloud. “He still hasn’t figured it out?”

“Ice’s child is right next to him. How could he not notice?”

“Well, Thunder’s’ child is supposed to be innocent.”

‘This is just ridiculous.” Ninetails said. She sweatdropped.

Ash was awakened that night. He sighed. “Is it time to train already, Crystal?”

But instead of a Dratini, he found himself staring into a pair of blue eyes.

“Who are you and what are you doing in my room?!”

“Shh!” The figure said. “Come with me.”

Ash felt himself being scooped up into a pair of arms. A pair of wings beat from behind the figure, sending them flying through the air.

When the figure finally stopped, Ash saw that they were on an island.

“Where am I?”

“Shadow Island, Thunder’s child.”

“Who are you?”

The figure went silent, and then a faint silver light surrounded it.

Ash stared. “L-lance?!”

The Dragon Master smiled at the stupefied trainer. “Who did you think Fire’s child was referring to when she said the child of ice?”

“But why are you taking me here?”

“I cannot protect you any longer.”

Ash blinked.

Lance sighed a mushroom cloud. She ran a hand through her dark red hair. Ash noticed that there were gold and silver highlights in it, but all of a sudden, a shower of silver sparks surrounded Lance.

And Ash found his self, staring at Crystal.

Ash spent about five minutes collecting dust with his mouth. “Wha-? Why? How? What’s going on?”

There was another flash of light, and Lance stood before him. “Have you heard of the prophecy of the Triple Guardianship?”

“Yes.”

“Well, it’s like this. Charlotte, you, and I are the three guardians who keep the peace between timelines. Misty is one who upsets that balance. You may have noticed her not well disguised attempts to kill me?”

Ash nodded mutely. “But?”

“Why isn’t she attacking you? She doesn’t know you’re the child of lightning. Or she didn’t, but she figured it out. That’s why I had to evacuate you today.”

“Who is Misty, anyways?”

Lance smiled icily. “Missingno.”

Ash fainted.

When he awakened, he found himself lying on a comfortable bed with black covers. There was fancy white embroidery on the covers, and as he looked around, he saw that his pokemon were sleeping on the floor, in baskets, or on the bed itself.

< Have you remembered yet? >

Ash stared at the Jolteon. < Sunny?! >

< Yes, little brother. >

< So it’s true! > Ash said. < I can’t believe it! How could I have not noticed? >

< When the rebirth process occurs, Ice remembers all, Fire retains only important events, and Thunder forgets. But in times of chaos, Thunder will remember. >

< Where’s Lance-chan? >

< Oh, she’s outside talking with Charlotte. >

< ‘Kay. >

Ash dressed himself comfortably in the black-and-gold outfit he found laid out in the closet, had some breakfast, and went outside to find the other two guardians.

“We’re sorry about forcing the responsibility on you at such a young age.” Charlotte said.

“But we really had no choice.” Lance said.

“What must I do?” Ash asked, feeling slightly worried. * The three guardians usually do not meet unless it is necessary… *

“Our duty.”

“Together, we must destroy Missingno.”

Ash looked stricken. * Missingno!? *

“I know you don’t like to kill pokemon, Ash. But Missingno is a demon. Do you not remember what happened?”

Ash closed his eyes. * I let missingno go free once, only once. And that time, the world lay in ruins. *

He nodded, and his eyes changed to a steely gold.

“And that’s not all.” Lance said. “The balance is tipping drastically. We have to take action as soon as possible. Charlotte is going to fight her now. If she wins, then we have no problem. But if she falls…”

“I leave the two of you to take care of her.” Charlotte said. She spread her flaming wings and picked up her Fire Blade. “Light is not always stronger than darkness… but since Light and Fire are my power, I will fight her with everything I have.”

She vanished from view.

A few hours later, Ash was playing with his pokemon when he suddenly felt heat fill his body. He looked up, shocked, as he noticed fire playing over his body, but it didn’t hurt at all. In a few seconds the fire vanished, and then a white light surrounded him, but that vanished also.

Ash gasped. “Fire retreats, and grants her gift to lightning. She lost?!”

He had a brief snapshot of Charlotte being stabbed with Missingno’s tentacles, and then it vanished.

“She’s gone! I can’t believe it!”

Lance landed behind him, blue-and-silver wings stirring softly. “Then I will go next.”

“You can’t! Lance-chan! You might die!”

“It has always been the duty of the guardians to destroy evil.”

“But you’ll die!”

“Who is to say what will happen?” Lance asked. She kissed Ash on the forehead. “Take care, child of lightning.”

“But…”

“If worse comes to worse, I will use my Dragon Master form. You know, switching my power to dragon, not ice. But it’s dangerous, because I don’t have wings in that form yet.”

“Hai, demo…”

“Sacrifices have to be made, Ash. You know that.”

And with that, she vanished as well.

Leaving a stricken Ash behind.

End Episode 4!

Completed 10/16/03

Yes, it is a cliffhanger. Mind you, it wasn’t intentionally written to be a cliffie, but oh well.