Disclaimer: Even though I wrote this, it seems it isn’t mine, no matter what I try. But… *moves closer and whispers* in a few years time we might be able to actually buy the rights, if Pokémon becomes unpopular enough. So stop watching and start saving!

But in all seriousness, this story and all the places, names, and characters appearing in it, are entirely fictional and ripped from various aspects of the Pokémon anime. All original characters appearing in this story were created by me, and will not be used without my permission. If you want guest appearances, ask for it first. Taking things without permission is stealing. Stealing is bad. Don’t do it.

Category: General

Rating: PG-13

************

Fight For Freedom.

By: WeirdDutchGuy, email: swampthing1132[at]hotmail[dot]com

************

************

Chapter Eleven: Battle for Cinnabar Island.

************

“Get to the ground!” John shouted as his Pidgeot performed aerial acrobatics that would make the Olympics look bad to dodge the attacks thrown at them. Pidgeot complied and lowered itself to the ground. John took out two Pokéballs and moments later Pidgeot was recalled and the shape of an Alakazam was forming rapidly. The others were starting to land all over the place, causing some rather confusing moments before both sides were able to distinguish friend from foe again. John realized their position wasn’t exactly great, out in a large open field with Rockets on one side and Trainers on the other, and attacks flying across from both sides. The field was right at the foot of the volcano and surrounded by trees. From the looks of it the city had already been captured and Blaine was retreating to the far end of the island.

“We need to get out of here, it’s too dangerous out in the open! Head for-” John started, but he cut short as he dodged a Razor Leaf attack that was about to give him a haircut. “Barrier! Alakazam, use Barrier, now!”

Alakazam responded immediately and raised the barrier just in time to stop some bullets from reaching him and his Trainer. The Rockets who fired them swore and aimed for other targets, but Charizard’s Flamethrower reached the group first causing extensive damage to anything nearby. As John waved his thanks, he and Frank were approached by a two Trainers from Blaine’s side.

“Are you the guys from Lavender?” One of them asked while the four made their way to the tree line. John nodded and turned back to the field, where his group was still landing. He flinched as a Fearow and its rider were hit and plummeted the last few meters.

“We’re here to help you slow them down, the rest of us are landing with rafts elsewhere. Looks like things aren’t going too well.” John replied, still watching everything from where he stood. They had fought somewhat open battles before, but on a much smaller scale, and always under the cover of darkness. Now, in broad daylight, he could see the injury and chaos clearly.

“They already forced us out of the town at daybreak. We’ve been fighting a losing battle ever since they turned our own defenses around and used them against us.” John’s frown increased as the Trainer spoke. Chris’s hunch had been dead on, they would’ve landed right into a trap. No doubt remained as to who was behind all this now.

************

Nearly all of the Water Pokémon were nearing their limits as the rafts got closer and closer to the south shore. During the past hour, they had paddled for all they were worth, and then some. Even a mighty Gyarados was having trouble swimming straight, and a few of the creatures had already been recalled minutes earlier. Chris frowned at the sight, knowing they would in fact be needing every one of them. They weren’t even on the island yet, but their numbers were falling. But it still didn’t go fast enough. As precious as numbers were, time was also in short supply, and he and his posse had wasted quite a lot of it getting here. And so, as the first raft finally made landfall, a sigh of relief passed through Chris’s gritted teeth before he ran up the beach towards a lone sentry.

“Thank god you’re here, this way!” The girl said before running off towards the base of the mountain. Chris struggled to keep up, trying to get used to moving his legs again after spending hours on that raft. He followed her through some thick bushes and into a small clearing. Right in the middle stood a bald man, with deep wrinkles edged in his narrow face. The man was wearing a rather bizarre outfit considering what was going on, clothing himself like a stereotypical Western tourist, complete with a multi colored, and very bright Hawaiian shirt. Chris recognized the man as Blaine, an old friend of his grandfather.

“And now for a quiz. It has changed over time, but it hasn’t lost its sense of time.” He said as he turned away from the table he was leaning over and saw Chris. Chris smiled at the odd game the man always played, and the memories that came back at hearing the riddle. Knowing he meant him, Chris pointed at himself. “Ha-ha! Still as clever and quick witted as ever I see! Good to have you here boy, even if it could be under some less violent circumstances.”

“I know what you mean. We got a good look at the mess on the way here. Is it really as bad as it looks?” Chris asked. Blaine’s face went solemn at the question as he seemingly stared ahead into the distance.

“Pretty bad Chris, pretty bad.” He said as he turned around and strolled back to the table. On it was a map of the island. Drawn on the map with some sort of marker were a ton of arrows and numbers that would probably drive any normal man mad just looking at it. Blaine had kept notes of the battle. “They’ve overrun our positions in the harbor early this morning. While we were pulling back we got cut off by a second force that landed here, on the Western shore. The only place we could still go was up, so we took the high lands and held them off while most of my volunteers evacuated to this crude base camp. At the moment I’d say we still have about half of the island, that’s including half of the mountain.”

“Half?” Chris asked. There was quite a bit of mountain as far as he knew. That thing alone would count for two thirds of the island. Seen from a Birdseye view anyway, like on the map in front of him. Half of it was one third.

“Yes, half. But they’re pushing us back. I’m thinking of abandoning the top of the volcano before they surround it. I’d rather have my back to sea instead of having it exposed. If all else fails we can evacuate to Johto.”

“I think I’ll go and take a look at the top and see what it’s like all around the island. The view is better from up there. I should be able to see everything.” Chris said before turning away, ready to head to the top of the volcano.

“Be careful Chris, you might get cut off. Our line is falling apart.” Blaine warned. Chris waved it off and kept going. “Kids these days, so rash.” He muttered after he started walking towards the beach. Chris’s men were finally here, and most of them were pretty capable trainers. The reinforcements were very welcome.

************

Gary stumbled on a rock and almost made a head first collision with the floor before he managed to restore his balance. As he swore under his breath, his captors chuckled in amusement. There were six Rockets in total, three on either side of him. And of course, Kane was up in front, and laughing.

“Come now mister Oak, surely an accomplished trainer such as yourself can keep his balance a little better than that.” The madman taunted.

“Easy for you to say.” Gary growled back. “Your arms aren’t tied.”

“Details, details. Just keep going and stop stalling. We have a helicopter to catch.” Kane said as they continued through the fairly badly damaged town. Blaine’s followers had put up a stiffer struggle than Kane thought they would, but it had made little difference in the end. Numbers were on his side. Now that the town had fallen, the Rockets had started to push deeper into the island, trying to sweep along the sides and hopefully force a large amount of Blaine’s troops to the volcano’s top. The pincer movement was almost complete, but something had just happened that could very well spoil everything. Those blasted Fuji twins had shown up earlier than planned. And now Oak wasn’t really cooperating either. He kept slowing them down in any way he could think of.

“Why don’t you carry me then?” Gary spat. Kane stopped for a moment and looked back over his shoulder, almost as if he was considering it. But it wasn’t exactly what he had in mind. Looking ahead again, Kane judged the distance they still had to cover and started walking again.

“No, I’d rather drag you; it’s more fitting.” With that, he snapped his fingers and one of the Rockets roughly pushed their prisoner onto the ground, be it under loud protest. Two of the others quickly walked up and grabbed a leg each and started to drag Gary the rest of the way. Kane laughed again as Gary let loose a string of complaints. “Should’ve kept your smart mouth shut, mister Oak. Don’t worry, it’s only half a mile to the chopper. Hahaha!”

************

Ash flinched as a Rocket flew through the air and landed a couple of dozen meters away with a sickening thud. John’s Alakazam had whirled him effortlessly into the air and didn’t bother for a controlled landing. The gun John had given him was in his hand, but the safety was still on, and he hadn’t used it once since they got to the island. For some reason he felt slightly safer with it. Things had looked good for a while after Ash and the other guys almost literally fell from the sky. The Rockets had been stunned for a moment, not knowing what to do, and whoever was in charge on Blaine’s side had used that moment to drive them back a fair distance. But Team Rocket had gotten a grip on itself once more and was starting to push back now. Hard.

“We can’t hold them!” The desperate cry came from somewhere on his left, and Ash quickly turned that way to see what the problem was. A Rhyhorn had ran straight through the defense and was now busy chasing a few trainers, obviously trying to trample them. Not really knowing what to do about it, Ash yelled for Charizard to use Flamethrower on the armor-plated Pokémon. Charizard obeyed his command and broke from his own battle, making a u-turn in flight and firing a massive tongue of flames from his mouth. The Rhyhorn got a glimpse of what was coming its way, but it was engulfed by the fire before it had a chance to do anything. After the smoke cleared, it was on the ground, cross-eyed, and heavily burnt. But the damage was done as the line they’d so carefully tried to defend got breached. With a weak spot in it, the Rockets started attacking and soon they were everywhere.

“Fall back!” Someone shouted a fair distance away. It had to be John, not that it mattered much. Soon trainers were running back, some having to recall their Pokémon to get them out of the fight they were in. Ash looked up while retreating after he heard a faint noise. A black helicopter was heading for the top of the volcano.

************

Chris had been trudging along for about fifteen minutes now, trying to keep up his pace while climbing the side of the mountain. The top would offer a far better view of the battle than Blaine’s chart. In fact, Chris wasn’t even sure if the old man could read his own notes, never mind anyone else being able to read that. The arrows had pretty much pointed everywhere with random numbers next to them. But from the little bit he did understand, he knew he didn’t have a lot of time. The Rockets were closing in from both sides, and it would have to be a quick peek once he got to the top. Else he’d risk getting caught, which wasn’t really what he was after.

“Almost…” Chris grunted as he got closer and closer to the crater’s edge. The top of the volcano used to be active, but after the last eruption much of the crater had caved in on itself, leaving pretty much a flat plateau. Other than warm feet and the occasional jet of steam nothing gave away that the volcano was still very much alive. However, nobody thought it was likely it would blow any time soon. Apparently Blaine still used this place for his Gym battles. It was flat, round, fairly big, and had a clear sky. It was nearly perfect for battling. ‘And now it’s a strategic point in a war…’

Panting from exertion, Chris finally made it to the top. After a few steps onto the plateau a chill went down his spine as he heard a chuckle come from his left. “Well, well, if it isn’t mister Fuji. I would’ve never thought I’d meet you here.” As the sarcasm from the words sunk in, Chris turned around to face the man he knew would be there. Standing near the crater’s edge, a big smirk plastered onto his face while chuckling lightly, was Kane. He looked exactly the same as he had when he shot Chris’s father, the same cruel smile, the same laugh, the same spark in his cold blue eyes.

That sick smirk of his was enough to make Chris’ blood boil, but Kane just had to add some salt to the wound. Stepping aside Kane revealed a hostage, a hostage Chris recognized as Gary Oak, grandson of the famed Professor Samuel Oak, who had disappeared along with so many others right after the Rocket takeover. Gary looked like he’d seen better days, but his face showed his spirit had not been broken… yet. Chris was reminded of his own friends and family, and how they too had disappeared. Something told him that was exactly what Kane was aiming for.

“Where are they?” Chris asked with a harsh voice. The question probably didn’t surprise Kane, but he acted like he knew nothing. Chris hated the way Kane could get under one’s skin with just some simple well placed words and gestures. “You know what I’m talking about, now answer. Are they alive?”

“Of course they’re alive; I don’t kill without a reason. What do you hold me for?” Kane replied with faked shock, but obvious attempts to stifle his laughter.

“A coldhearted man with no regard for life, that’s what I hold you for.” Chris growled. Kane’s demeanor changed instantly as he narrowed his eyes.

“Your situation hardly allows you to throw insults, mister Fuji. You should take heed of the fact one false word may give me the one reason I need…”

“Stop threatening with hostages and fight fairly for once, you coward!” Chris exclaimed as he reached for his pocket. Kane laughed and made no effort to follow. Instead, he motioned one of his grunts to come forward with a suitcase.

“Why mister Fuji, you should know no battle is truly fair. There’s always some form of advantage for one of the sides, if not by Pokémon type, then by the attacks they know, or the vast difference in level and statistics. Pokémon battles are like numbers mister Fuji, calculating the outcome beforehand pretty much guarantees the win. Fair battles exist only in your imagination, and now, it’s time for you to lose.” Kane opened the suitcase, revealing six Pokéballs inside. “I’ve prepared and fought this battle countless times inside my head, but the outcome never changed. Today I can’t afford to lose, and so I will refuse to lose. By this time tomorrow, everything you stand for will lie in ruins, and I will rule over Kanto.”

Chris chuckled as he tried to pick which of his Pokémon should fight first. “So you’re planning mutiny? I could’ve known. People like you never have enough power, you always crave more. I’m afraid I’ll have to smash your dream Kane, because I can’t let that happen.”

“As if you have a choice…” Kane smirked. “Your options are both equally horrible. Save your friends by losing today, but Kanto will be mine, or save the world by sacrificing your friends. Or should I say, postpone the inevitable rather than save the world. Either way, you lose.”

Chris growled. Kane had him on the ropes; he just couldn’t compete in mind games like this. Kane was obviously banking on Chris either forfeiting to save the lives of his friends, or fighting with a constant worry in the back of his head. Either way would make Kane’s part a lot easier. The problem was deciding whether to win, or lose on purpose. He couldn’t let Kane win, obviously, but could he decide about the lives of his friends? Could he play God?

“Enough, I will fight and I will win, even if it means ‘losing’. At least it means you lose too. Now go, Arcanine!” He had decided, he would win if his luck would permit it. If Kane had prepared as he said, this wouldn’t be a walk in the park. The fiery dog appeared on the scorched earth and barked its name loudly. Kane smirked evilly and picked up one of the balls from the suitcase.

“These Pokémon were flown in just for this battle. You will see you don’t stand a chance against this team.” So Kane wouldn’t be fighting with his own Pokémon, not that Chris expected him to fight fair, but this was lower than he was used to. “Oh, don’t give me that look; surely you weren’t expecting an honest fight. Feel glad I’m sticking to the rules and using only six Pokémon, it could’ve been much worse. Now go, Blastoise!”

And thus it started…

************

To Be Continued…

************

************

AN: Yes, I’m alive I suppose. And how! I think this is one of the longer chapters. Then again, it was about damn time, huh. Let’s see here, that’s over 3300 words just from the chapter, not including the notes etcetera. And guess what… not much action again. But, next chapter is going to be something else. I’m hoping to conclude this part of the story in it, but the story itself won’t be done by a long shot. They still have some places to go, after all, I can’t have Kane’s back up plan go to waste without using it.

To my loyal readers: Wow… that’s pretty poor… only a single update in the whole of 2006. I realize I’ve neglected this story beyond comprehension. I’ve focused too much on other stories, and I’ve spent way too much of my time sitting around doing absolutely nothing. Actually, I haven’t just neglected this story, but also its loyal readers. I mean, come on, you have to be incredibly interested to even be reading this right now. I’m deeply sorry for not giving this story the attention it so deserves. I started out with this thing well over two years ago, and though I never really thought about it much back then, I’m surprised at how far it’s come, how far my general writing style has come. Looking back at the early chapters of this thing, I’m both shocked and amused at the poor quality, and I feel that if there is a piece out there that captivates my improvement from start to finish, then it has to be this one. That demands even more respect from me towards you guys, for sitting it through like that in my period of slacking. I thank all of you for bearing with me, without you I wouldn’t exist, and once again I’m sorry for forgetting this story even existed. I’m going to see if I can be a bit more active from now on. You deserve it, and I owe it to myself.