Chapter 34
Ash had been so busy with the whole stop-team-void-or-else mission, he had nearly forgotten about Arceus. But a few days after defeating Team Void, they were summoned again to the Hall of Origin.
"Excellent work, Chosen One," said Arceus, "you have completed your mission well. Because of the dangers and trials you had to face, I think it is only fair that you get a reward."
Arceus stepped back, revealing a pedestal with several items on it. He levitated the first into the air.
"Piakchu, I give you the Light Ball. With it, you will find that your attacks are much more powerful in battle."
Pikachu touched the yellow ball and gave a little gasp as it sank into his paw. He tried a small Thundershock to test it out.
"Whoa!" Pikachu stumbled back as the attack shot out of his body. "Thanks, Arceus!"
Arceus nodded. "Skye, will you hand me your amulet for a moment?"
"Sure!" Skye took off her evolution amulet and tossed it to Arceus.
Arceus caught the amulet with a psychic hold, and it began to glow. After a few moments, he lowered it back to Skye. "Now your amulet will allow you to use any of your moves, regardless of what form you are in."
"Really?" asked Skye. "Alright, Water Gun!" A turret of water shot out of Skye's mouth. "This is awesome!" She did a few flips in the air.
"Latios, Latias," continued Arceus, "I accept your request. I wish you both good luck on your journey.
"Really?" Latias' eyes went wide. "Thank you, thank you, thank you!"
"Thank you Arceus," said Latios, "That means a lot to both of us."
Ash tilted his head. "What request?"
Latios smiled. "Ash traveling with you has been the most fun we've had in our lives. About a week after we started traveling with you, we asked Arceus if we could stay on as your Pokémon after we were done with our mission so we could continue our journey together."
"You mean, you guys want to stay with me forever?" asked Ash.
Latios nodded.
Ash threw his arms around Latios and Latias. "Thank you so much!" Latios and Latias really wanted to stay with him.
"Your father said to tell you that he gives his best wishes to both of you and hopes you will have the fun and freedom you should have had a long time ago," continued Arceus, "and Latias, he says to send you extra good luck," Arceus winked.
"Am I missing something?" Ash looked between a snickering Latios and Pikachu, and a red-faced Latias. Was this another joke he didn't understand?
"I believe that's for Latias to tell you when she's ready." Arceus took the final object from the pedestal. "Ash, during your battle with Team Void, you were able to use moves that you never had before, correct?"
That had been on Ash's mind for a while, especially since he couldn't seem to do it anymore. "Yeah, but how did I do that?"
"When you gained your Latius form, most of your power was locked away," said Arceus, "But when you or your friends are in great danger, you can tap into some of that power. Since you defeated Team Void, you have earned the right to have full access to your true power."
"True power?"
Arceus nodded. "The prophecy states that the Chosen One will take the form of an eon even more powerful than Raquaza. It is time that power was granted to you," Arceus tapped Ash on the head with one of his legs.
No sooner had Arceus touched Ash than his body began to glow with a rainbow-like light. As waves of energy spread over him, Ash felt inclined to relax into them, feeling a power much stronger than during either of his battles with Ho-oh. As the light died down, the feeling subsided, but Ash could still sense it. It was there, inside of him, just waiting to be let out.
"Thank you, Arceus," said Ash, "I promise I'll never misuse my power."
"I know you won't," said Arceus, "but be ready. Team Void aren't the only evil humans in this world. You may be needed again,"
Ash grinned. "I wouldn't have it any other way,"
"Good," said Arceus, "and now that everything's settled, I'll take you back to Silver Town. I believe you have some unfinished business there. Good luck."
The Hall of Origin faded, replacing itself with the familiar buildings and streets of Silver Town. The giant coliseum towered over them like a sleeping giant just waiting to be woken up. Ash switched back to his human form. A Pokémon Center was conveniently just a few buildings down the street.
"Can I help you with anything?" asked Nurse Joy as they walked into the Pokémon Center.
"Do you know when the Silver Conference is going to continue?" asked Ash, "Since Team Void is gone."
"You know about that?" Nurse Joy looked surprised, "I thought only the police knew. I only heard about it because Officer Jenny told me,"
"Um.." Ash hesitated. "I just... heard about it too!"
Nurse Joy frowned, clearly not believing him, but didn't press the matter. "I don't know when the Conference is starting, as the Pokémon League still has a pretty big mess to clean up. My guess would be around two months,"
"Two months?" Ash had to wait two whole months?
"I'm sorry," said Nuse Joy, "but it's very hard to get all the trainers back to Silver Town, not to mention all the people."
"It's fine," Ash sighed, "You're right, I can wait."
The doors to the Pokémon Center opened, and an Officer Jenny walked in. She turned to face him. "Excuse me, are you Ash?"
Ash nodded.
"We've recently arrested the leader of Team Void, who says his name is Nigel," said Officer Jenny, "He requested an audience with you, saying you could clear some things up."
So Nigel had kept his promise after all. Maybe he could change. "Where is he?"
"He's at the station," replied Officer Jenny, "I can take you there now."
"Sounds good," said Ash, "Pikachu, Skye, ready to go?"
They nodded, each taking one of his shoulders. Ash winked at Latios and Latias, still invisible, as he walked out the door with Officer Jenny.
After a brief ride in the police car, they arrived at the station. Ash followed Officer Jenny through several long hallways until they came to a small room with a table and a few wooden chairs around it. Nigel was sitting in one of them, and a police officer was sitting in another. Ash took a seat in the third chair, which he assumed was for him.
As Officer Jenny left the room, the other officer turned to Ash. He took out a notebook and a pencil. "Let's get straight to the point. Nigel has been found guilty of theft, armed robbery, and terrorizing the people of the Johto Region. Since he turned himself in, we have decided to punish him with a lifetime jail sentence. We refused his request to return the stolen Pokémon personally, but he says that you might be able to convince us otherwise."
"I think I can clear a few things up," said Ash, "first of all, I'm the one who stopped Team Void in the first place."
The officer raised his eyes. "A kid like you?"
Ash thought for a moment before deciding to use the only proof he could think of. "Have you ever heard of the Prophecy of True Eons?"
~~~
Ash lay on his bed, trying to find a comfortable pillow (which wasn't easy since his wings kept getting in the way) as he watched the TV with his Pokémon.
The bottom of the screen flashed BREAKING NEWS as a reporter began talking.
"Today, the leader of Team Void, a man named Nigel, turned himself in at Silver Town police headquarters."
The screen flashed a picture of Nigel.
"But that's nothing compared to what happened afterward," continued the reporter, "A boy named Ash Ketchum came to the station later that afternoon upon Nigel's request and not only reduced Nigel's sentence from a lifetime one to only fifteen years but also convinced officers to give Nigel 6 months to return all Team Void's stolen Pokemon."
The screen showed a picture of Ash at the police station with Nigel and several officers.
"Now, you might be wondering how he did it," said the reporter, "and this is where it gets exciting. A week ago, we reported on the Guardians of Altomare; Latios and Latias, bringing a strange orange eon the the shores of Altomare. According to an ancient prophecy, that eon would be the one to stop Team Void. This prophecy, discovered around two hundred years ago, was thought to be only a legend… until today. You heard it here first, folks, Ash Ketchum is the mythical Latius of the prophecy."
The reporter rambled on, mentioning several other aspects of the incident. But Ash had heard all he needed to. As he turned the television off, he heard a knock on the door.
Ash switched to his human form before opening the door, expecting a reporter trying to get more details for a story. Instead, he was greeted by the two people whom he most wanted to see. "Brock! Misty!"
They exchanged greetings and walked back into the room where Ash's Pokémon were waiting.
"So, I'm guessing you were successful?" said Brock.
"Thanks to you two," Ash grinned. "Jirachi told me you guys wished to help me. But how did you know what I needed?"
Misty sighed. "It's a long story,"
"I don't see why we can't tell it now," said Brock, "we have plenty of time."
After Misty and Brock told Ash of their adventures in Hoenn, Ash told them what had happened in Team Void's base. After they had finished their stories, Misty and Brock headed back to their room.
"So what do we do now?" asked Pikachu, "I don't think you want to hang around Silver Town for two months."
"I think we should go back to Altomare and pay Bianca and Lorenzo a visit," said Ash, "They probably want to know what's going on."
"And if we stay in the garden most of the time," said Latios, "we should be able to avoid the reporters."
Latias sat up. "Alright! Let's go!"
"Hold on a second," said Ash, smiling at Latias' eagerness, "I'm going to grab Misty and Brock first; they wouldn't want to miss it."
~~~
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