The Dragon Master V: Chapter Three

	"John Flargini," I whispered.
	"You do remember me, somehow," John said.
	"And you remember me," I said.
	"How could I forget," John asked, standing up and walked towards me.
	"But no one else remembers me," I said, now completely confused. "The way I 
remember myself, anyway."
	"I guarantee that Lance does," John replied, now smiling.
	"What's going on here," I asked in frustration.
	"I'll tell you," John said. "Lance paid Misty's parents, I bet you remember 
them from your wedding, to change the past four years. They altered reality, 
Bob. This world is not real. Completely made up, that's what it is. Lance 
told them to program it in there so Ash and I were still alive, and that 
everything of yours had been taken away. Lance filled me in on what had 
happened in the past couple of years, and now I want my revenge." He drew 
his katana.
	"I will not fight you," I said. "I will not let you die...again."
	"Why not," John asked. "It takes all the fun out of it if you won't fight 
back." I decided not to tell him that we were half-brothers.
	"I have my reasons," I stated.
	"It didn't bother you all those years ago," John said.
	"You were killing innocent people," I said calmly.
	"So you must have a reason now that overrides that," John said.
	"You're not killing anybody now," I said.
	"How do you know that," John asked, as if challenging me.
	"You didn't want to kill people in the first place," I said. "Now tell me 
what's going on here!"
	"Fine," John said. "I'll tell you...since you won't live long after I tell 
you. Remember how you were attacked at your wedding? That was Lance's work. 
Those two Masters, Misty's parents, were hired by Lance to alter reality."
	"What do you mean," I asked John.
	"This is not the real world," John said. "It is a reality created by Lance. 
It is perfect for him, and hell for you. Misty hates you, and she loves Ash, 
whom you hate. Lance is in control of the League once again. Everything is 
as it would be if you had not succeeded the first time."
	"Then how come I'm still alive," I asked. "And why is Bruno in prison?"
	"One minor flaw," John said. "The two of you switched places during the 
reality distortion. You were supposed to be in prison, while Bruno was 
supposed to be wandering the streets of Cherrygrove City."
	"How do I stop this," I asked.
	"Well," John said. "Since technically, you've done nothing to me, I can 
tell you. There are five people scattered throughout Kanto and Johto. They 
are the ones associated with this. Kill all five, and everything will go 
back to how it was."
	"I still don't get it," I said. "How did Lance get alive in the real 
world?"
	"I don't know," John said. "But I do know one thing. I'm alive again, and 
you're not going to send me back!" He called his katana, and I did the same. 
He charged at me, but I held back. I didn't want to hurt him. I just parried 
his swipes. We fought, and we were heading towards the huge glass window. We 
were on the top floor. Suddenly, the two guards came in and pulled their 
guns on me.
	"FREEZE," the first guard cried. I looked at John, and then I looked at the 
both of the guards, and then at John again. I made up my mind. I slashed my 
katana at the window, slicing it. I jumped through it, evading a heavy 
amount of bullets. I called my wings, recalled my katana, and flew somewhere 
away from the Radio Tower.
	I landed on the outskirts of Cherrygrove City, the now thriving metropolis 
it had not been in my reality. It was getting dark out, so I would have to 
find a place to rest overnight. I found a quaint little clearing midway 
through Route 29. I created a teal sleeping bag with my Mastery, and then 
called out Flare.
	"Flare," I said. "Make a fire." Flare nodded, and pulled some wood off of a 
tree with Slash. Flare put it in a non-grassy area, and then lit it with a 
flamethrower. I recalled him, and tried to go to sleep. However, I couldn't, 
as I had this feeling that I was being watched.
	I lay awake for hours, jumping at every single noise that I heard, and made 
myself, for that matter. I didn't know what lurked in this reality. At about 
midnight, I heard something in the trees. I shot upright, and stood up. 
Slowly, I walked towards the trees. I reached the bushes, and shook them.
	"HOLY SHIT," I shouted, as dozens of Hoothoot flew out of the bushes and 
into the night sky. I was relieved, yet still scared at the same time. I 
went over to the fire, and was about to sit down, when a hand clasped over 
my mouth.
	"Don't move," someone said from behind me. It was a young woman's voice for 
sure. "Just tell me where I can find Lance, the Leader of the Elite Four." I 
slowed down my heart rhythm, and concentrated on what to do next. She moved 
her arm down to my neck so I could talk. Quickly, I grabbed her arm and 
flipped her over me. She did aerial maneuvers, and landed on her feet in a 
fighting position. She brushed her hair away from her face, and I recognized 
her. She had on black shiny leather pants, a black shirt, and a black 
leather jacket to top it all off.
	"Duplica," I said, unsure why she was here.
	"Bob," she said, stunned.
	"You remember me," I said.
	"How could I forget," Duplica asked. "You took me on a journey to take on 
the League, and we failed. I was turned into the laughingstock of Kanto."
	"And would you care to tell me what you're doing here," I asked.
	"Work," she said.
	"And what do you do now," I asked.
	"Assassin," she replied coolly, as if it were nothing. I was taken aback.
	"You're an assassin," I said, still not believing.
	"I've been an assassin ever since we failed," Duplica said, shivering at 
the word "failed."
	"A new surprise around every bend in Lance's twisted reality," I said.
	"What," she asked.
	"This place isn't real," I said. "In my reality, we beat the League. Lance 
is dead. You're no assassin, you're a Change Master and you live at the 
Palace of the Elite Four." She looked at me for a moment, and then burst out 
laughing.
	"You can't be serious," she said, still laughing. She stopped laughing when 
she saw I wasn't joking. "You are serious."
	"This place is fiction," I said. "According to John Flargini. And I killed 
him three years ago. I killed Ash just last year."
	"Why would you kill Ash," she asked.
	"He kidnapped Misty, and helped Lance taking over the League," I said.
	"Say for a second, that I believe you," Duplica said, walking closer to me. 
"Which I don't. How do you know that this place is the real reality, and 
yours is a fake?"
	"Everything I've felt for the past four years has been all too real," I 
said.
	"And you don't think it hasn't been real for me," Duplica exploded. "You're 
just like you were with Misty. Always thinking of yourself.
	"I'll tell you what's real. Waking up every morning and getting a phone 
call from someone I don't know who wants another person dead! That's all too 
real! I've shed a lot of blood over the past four years, and I don't like it 
one bit! If that's not real, then as far as I'm concerned, there is no 
actual reality!" I was in shock. This was not the Duplica that I knew.
	"Who sent you to kill Lance," I asked Duplica.
	"I don't know," she said. "People these days all use voice changers. I kill 
the person, and the money is delivered to me. I hear from the person again."
	"Did they give you a reason," I asked.
	"No," Duplica said, folding her arms. "Nobody ever gives me a reason. They 
just say who they want dead and I do it." I was trying to process all of 
this information, and then I realized why I was here.
	"What has all happened in the last four years," I asked her. She scoffed at 
me.
	"You don't remember," Duplica asked in wonder.
	"Would I be asking if I did," I replied.
	"Okay," she said. "When tried to take on the League. We failed. Originally, 
you were caught for the murder of Delilah Largway, and were going to be 
executed a week after. But, new evidence popped up clearing your name, and 
pinning Bruno at the scene of the crime, with the murder weapon."
	"What happened after that," I asked.
	"You and Misty started to go out, and Lance left you guys alone," she said. 
"Neither of you heard from each other again. But, you and Misty broke up for 
some reason, and she filed a restraining order, and this is where it gets 
confusing:
	"Ash was the one who filed the restraining order, not Misty. Those two 
ended up dating, and Ash proposed, and BAM, they're engaged. She hasn't 
heard from you since."
	"I talked to her today," I said. "She didn't like that too much."
	"Whatever," she said. "Now it's your turn."
	"What do you mean," I asked.
	"What's happened in the past four years in your reality," she asked.
	"Well," I said. "We defeated the League, and I killed Lance. I ruled as 
Pokemon League Champion for one year, and then John Flargini, a Mysticman, 
threatened the League and me. I defeated him by collecting the eighteen 
Elemental Shards and constructing the Elemental Medallion. I used the 
medallion to defeat him, and in essence, Lance once again.
	"Another year later, Agatha raised Lance from the dead using her Ghost 
Mastery, and Lance used John Flargini's brother to go back through time to 
kill me three weeks after I was born. I foiled his plan by saving myself. I 
then killed him, and Agatha in the process.
	"Then last year, I proposed to Misty. She accepted, we set a date, and she 
was kidnapped by a man in a black trench coat. While I was out looking for 
Misty, this man took over the League, forcing everyone into house arrest and 
me into exile. Will, being a Mysticman, took the Masteries of every Pokemon 
Master that did not stay in the League, including me. I gathered a small 
army, and with the help of some Rebels and Team Rocket, I took back the 
League, and killed the man, who was Lance in Ash's body. Ash knew all along, 
and they were both killed.
	"Then just a few weeks ago, Misty and I walked down the aisle. However, her 
parents showed up, and distorted reality. The next thing I know, I'm here."
	"That's heavy," Duplica said. "I'm still not sure what to make of it, 
though."
	"I know," I said.
	"Okay," Duplica replied. "Where do we go from here?"
	"There are five people," I explained. "Those five remember the reality that 
I'm from. I kill them, and everything goes back to the way it was when it 
was distorted in the first place."
	"Who are they," she asked.
	"That's the fun part," I said. "We don't know." She thought for a moment. 
Then she snapped her fingers.
	"Which five people have the most control in the world," she asked.
	"That's easy," I said. "The Elite Four and the League Champion."
	"Exactly," she said.
	"So I have to kill Lance, Karen, Bruno, Koga, and Will," I said.
	"Huh," she asked. "We have to kill Lance Largway, Marcus Waterflower, Mya 
Waterflower, Ash Ketchum, and John Flargini."
	"What," I asked. "John...no...he can't be..."
	"Can't be what," Duplica asked me.
	"He can't be involved with this," I said.
	"Hello," Duplica said, tapping me on the head. "Knock knock. He evidently 
attacked the League awhile back. He's evil."
	"He's my half-brother," I said.
	"Now this has just taken a weird soap-opera twist," Duplica exclaimed.
	"You're telling me," I said.
	"Enough of this," she said. "We have to stop this."
	"How do you propose we do this," I asked.
	"First, we have to find out what people know," she said. "I'll talk to 
Misty about this. You know, find out what she knows. You keep Ash busy."
	"Okay," I said. Suddenly, a phone rang. Duplica reached into her pocket.
	"Uh-huh," she said. "Uh-huh...Uh-huh...Okay. Whatever."
	"What was that," I asked.
	"My client cancelled the order," she said. "Looks like I'm free tonight."
	"Well maybe I want him dead," I said.
	"You'll just have to hire me," she said, getting closer to me, and tilting 
my chin with her finger. "And my services don't come cheap." She seductively 
walked out of the clearing and on to Route 29, towards Cherrygrove City. I 
shook the sight out of my head and remembered why I was here. I followed her 
out of the clearing.
	"What happened to the other members of the Elite Four," I asked. "You know, 
Will, Karen, and Koga."
	"Well," she said. "Koga went back to his Gym, Karen moved back to her 
hometown, and Will disappeared."
	"What about the Masters on our side," I asked.
	"They all turned over to the League to escape the treason charges," she 
said. "So did you for a little bit, but when you and Misty broke up, you 
left." I nodded, and the two of us continued to walk toward the city in the 
night.
	As we went on our way to Cherrygrove City, it was complete silence. Usually 
I would hear and see some wild pokemon on any and every route, but there 
were none here. I started looking around stealthily.
	"What's the matter," Duplica asked me. I continued to look around.
	"I'm not sure," I said. "But there seem to be no wild pokemon anywhere. 
Shouldn't there be some?"
	"Normally," Duplica said. "But maybe they just moved somewhere else for 
awhile." Something moved in the bushed. In the blink of an eye, I called my 
teal katana with the silver hilt, and stared directly at the bushes.
	"Bob," Duplica said. "You're being paranoid. It's probably just a Ratatta 
or-" Suddenly, before Duplica could finish her sentence, a figure leaped out 
of the bushes and on top of me. Whatever it was, it wasn't a pokemon...
	I crashed to my back, and used my momentum to push the assailant off of me 
with my feet. The figure flew up into the air, did a series of flips, and 
landed gracefully on its feet. I pushed off the ground with my feet, 
launching myself into the air, and landing on my feet. I studied the 
attacker closely. It had drawn a katana of its own, but I was trying to 
figure out what it was.
	"Who are you," I asked. The figure responded with a flip in the air, and 
threw dozens of throwing stars at me. I spun my katana around quickly, 
causing a fan that all the throwing stars hit and ricocheted off into the 
forest.
	Duplica drew her weapon of choice, a bow with sharp arrows that I assumed 
she used for her assassin work. I looked again at the figure. It appeared to 
be female in form, and highly skilled.
	"Who are you," I asked again. "And don't make me ask again." The attacker 
finally spoke.
	"You don't remember me," the figure asked. "I am the person who shall be 
killing you now." The attacker, definitely a woman judging by the voice, 
charged at me with her katana raised. I blocked the first strike, the second 
one, but I had to jump back at the third one. She charged after me 
relentlessly. Duplica was busy taking aim at the assailant.
	"I don't have much time Duplica," I cried, blocking the woman's shots with 
my katana.
	"Well, do you want me to hit you," Duplica asked rhetorically. I jumped 
back about three yards from the attacker, and she pulled out a circle disc 
from her pocket. She pressed the button in the middle, and three sharp wings 
came out of it. She whipped it at me, and it looked deadly...
-                                         End of Chapter Three               
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