"...I thank you for everything you've done for me today and I commend you on your patience on this subject...Cynthia. Without you, I couldn't have hoped to survive to see the next sunrise...I-I...I can never thank you enough."

The deep formal monotone voice of Ash Ketchum cracked a bit letting a considerable amount of emotion slip into his tone as he looked at the platinum blonde haired girl sitting across him. His face, which was generally the picture of stony stoicism, was set in an image of thankfulness and relief as he uttered those words.

Seated just beside him on the bed was the familiar long blonde haired girl with a soft expression on her face. For once in history...Ash Ketchum and Cynthia Shirona were not set in a deadlock in the endless battle between fire and ice...Which Cynthia hoped would stay that way.

"...I-It's okay...Y-You would have done the same for me..." Cynthia turned her face aside to conceal the pink tint on her cheeks...Thankfully the silver haired trainer couldn't see anything...Keeping long hair that covered half your face was awesome like that.

The blue eyed trainer sitting across her hummed in reply but didn't say anything. After a few tense moments between them, he said, "...I guess you have many questions...Ask away. I'll answer them to the best of my ability."

"Okay then...First. Are you an Aura Guardian?" Cynthia asked with a little excitement in her tone.

The long silver haired trainer whipped his head in her direction to gaze straight into her hazy grey orbs as he spoke warily, "...I am surprised you know that word Cynthia..."

Cynthia let a small haughty and prideful smirk form on her face as she replied, "I am a genuine adventurer, ruin maniac and historian in my free time -"

"Self proclaimed."

Cynthia would have pouted if she didn't have her ice queen reputation to uphold.

She settled for huffing in irritation, "Asshole. So what? I know a fair bit about Guardians Of The Sacred Force. Sinnoh has quite some legends about them. I have travelled to ruins scattered far and wide throughout Sinnoh. You have no idea about the number of inscriptions on mysterious people who could manipulate their life forces to do miracles. Be it curing a dying man of a deadly disease or fighting off a Rhydon with bare hands, I have read many legends about you folk...Imagine my surprise when I saw a certain bastard I know make a wisp of purple flame appear in his hand..."

Ash snorted in amusement beside her, "...To answer your question...I am a Guardian...Or atleast I used to be."

Cynthia's blonde eyebrows shot up in surprise, "Huh...That would explain Riolu's weird behavior around you...Tell me...Ashy, in that case, as you can clearly use aura...Are you a member of that mysterious rebellious group called 'Deserters'?"

Ash muttered something under his breath that sounded, 'That's another name for us I guess...' and turned to look at her, "...I am not familiar with that name. However, I certainly am a deviant -"

"Oh my, my Ashy, I did not need to know about your fantasies in the bedroom with leather whips, chains, ball ga -"

"THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT BY DEVIANT DAMMIT!" Ash cried out in outrage sporting a prominent red tint on his face before he coughed and straightened himself, trying to regain some lost dignity.

...He ignored Cynthia's giggling for the most part.

"...I am what your Riolu calls a user of Dark Aura."

Immediately the atmosphere in the room darkened when Cynthia realized the severity of the situation. With a contemplative frown on her face she muttered, "...That would explain your indifference to the man's death...You really are used to this huh?"

"...Indeed." The long silver haired trainer responded after a few moments of tense silence.

The blonde girl shifted nervously for a moment sensing the sad air around her companion. Of course...She knew about dark aura.

It was the fabled tainted force of the Deserters, the mysterious group of Guardians that went against the ancient lore for revenge against the ones that took their brother in arms. There were legends of the Deserters scattered throughout the world. Unfortunately Cynthia hadn't had the privilege to check out all of them. The blonde girl had known about the Deserters, or Dark Aura Users, in laymen's terms, from an old inscription on Iron Isle [An island north of Canalave City in Sinnoh]. Iron Isle was also the place where she had gotten Riolu. That little bugger stole those sandwiches her granny had made for her, the nerve!

Cynthia had found one particular aspect of dark aura to be particularly interesting.

It was the total polar opposite of pure aura. Where pure aura users were taught to be fair, just and live a life of piety and abstinence, Dark Aura teaches only one line as its core ideology. Cynthia still remembered the single decoded hymn from those texts at the mural at Iron Isle,

'Aura is eternal. It occurs in many forms. But most of all...Aura is Aura. Nothing can change that. It may change its forms. What remains unchanged is the very essence of aura. Pure and Dark are just prefixes. Aura is Aura. Purity is just a concept brought in by narrow minded fools who cannot accept the fact that Aura is not as 'good' as it is portrayed to be. It can be just as malevolent as it is benevolent. We, the so-called Deserters have transcended the limiting, restricting and oppressing ancient lore. We live our lives without limitations and restrictions. 'Purity' is such a narrow concept. Mankind is not untouched by sin. Sin can be repressed but it cannot be vanquished. We, the so-called Deserters have leant to tame these sins to be our loyal servants. We, the so-called Deserters have -'

The rest of the hymns on the mural at Iron Isle were blurry and ancient, thus unreadable.

Basically...'Pure Aura' users (HAH!) were basically devout nuns and monks. They live a life of abstinence and chastity. Dark Aura users reveled in the sins that the so-called Pure Ones repressed. To be a user of dark aura was to live a life without limitations. To live a life without the stringent laws of the lore...

Cynthia let out a small giggle of amusement. She had called Ash a 'lawless delinquent'. Turns out he is exactly that according to the inscription.

Ash looked at Cynthia weirdly who was giggling like a schoolgirl. He'd never know what goes on in that girl's mind...

The blonde girl coughed and stopped her giggling when she noticed Ash roll his eyes beside her. She shook her head and spoke up, "Okay, okay. I'll stop. Anyway, next question...What's the deal with this 'Rocket' thingy?"

"...This will take some time, so I suggest you buckle up for a story..." Ash murmured to himself as he turned to look at the blonde girl sitting across him seriously.

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"And that's the gist of it..."

Cynthia Shirona let out a long awaited breath she'd been holding in as Ash finished telling her the grand tale of murder, bloodshed and hardship that had been his journey until now.

"...That's basically the Kanto version of Galactic up my turf..." The 15 year old girl with hazy grey eyes muttered to herself.

"Did you say something?" Ash asked when he couldn't get what Cynthia mumbled under her breath.

"No. Nothing important." The blonde girl in black leather coat assured him with a smile.

The soon-to-be 14 year old scrutinized her for a moment for before he shook his head, "...It's already late Cynthia. You'd better get to sleep. This has been a long day for both of us. And tomorrow is our tag team battle...If you have any other questions, I'll answer them tomorrow. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Ash..." The blonde girl said while waving at him. The silver haired teen left Cynthia's room without another word and closed the door behind.

Cynthia, now left alone to her thoughts swiftly took out the diary she'd taken after Ash had thrown it away and went through the pages full of numbers, letters and symbols.

A small defiant smile tugged at her lips when her inner expert historian adept at deciphering ancient languages woke up and urged her to get down to work. Cynthia looked at the time...It was 12:14 AM. A little past midnight.

...She'd go to bed soon enough...The diary comes first...

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"...Cynthia -"

"FOR THE LAST TIME ASH! I'M UP AND READY FOR -"

"Bed."

The absolutely emotionless, neutral and deadpan voice of Ash Ketchum echoed throughout the cafeteria cutting through Cynthia's screech like a hot knife through butter.

Cynthia's generally smooth gorgeous long blonde hair was now a disheveled mess of bangs, dark circles were visible beneath her eyes suggesting a lack of sleep.

The stony face of Ash Ketchum set in a deadpan greeted the long blonde haired girl's half-open grey eyes as she tiredly chewed on the toast in her hands.

"What in the name of bloody hells were you doing last night after I left anyway?"

"...Would you believe me if I said I was so~ tired that I couldn't even fall asleep?"

"No. I would most definetly not believe that." Ash answered without the delay of a single second with the perfect deadpan face of his. Quite exasperatedly, the silver haired trainer shook his head and turned to look at the girl sitting across him, "...I do not want to pry to know what you were up to last night. However, please keep in mind that we have a very important Tag Battle just 1 and a half hour away from us. I would most definetly not like you to be asleep on my shoulder while our pokemon are confused as fuck about what to do. Please take some time to tend to your condition for I have places I need to be. I hope to see you in a better condition soon Cynthia." The silver haired trainer said as formally as he could and left the tired Cynthia to herself.

"Hey wait -" Cynthia's words died in her throat when she realized something.

Cynthia Shirona had screwed up. Big time.

Her excitement to decipher that diary had kept her awake for a long time last night. And now...She was tired as fuck. And tiredness is not good buff in a pokemon battle. An important official battle no less. But most of all, Ash had been quite mad at her.

Knowing him for as long as Cynthia did, he was a rather formal person. He could be informal and laid back when around close ones or friends. But when he was mad he generally didn't shout, cry or sigh in frustration like the teenager he was. But his expression would go through a change. He wouldn't talk in anything that sounded less than formal and some would even say 'Princerely'.

Once again. She screwed up. Gripping her head in frustration Cynthia groaned. In this condition, she couldn't do anything more than trust the boy she had loathed until last night and pray.

'...Ash...Just for this once, and I swear the last time in this life...Please get me through this round...'

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"...That stupid girl...I knew she would obsess over that diary and not get an ounce of sleep...I should have gone out after putting her to sleep...Dammit..."

Ash Ketchum grumbled under his breath as he made his way to the calling booths. He had quite some calls to make. Last night he had received 3 messages from Bill Sonezaki, Tulip Carter and Samuel Oak telling him that they had received news of him being in the St. Anne tournament.

Obviously...All of them would like to use Ash to their benefit in this. Oak's already immense popularity in the United Nations would skyrocket if the news that his protégé and quite deservedly his 'Representative' got into the finals of one of the biggest tournaments in United Nations.

Bill...Of course he would try to get his popularity to rise too. He had given Ash that (albeit illegal but...Who the fuck cares?) belt. Ash owed him quite a lot.

Tulip...Oh well, how could his manipulative aunt miss the chance to broadcast her dearest nephew's achievement and get her name to rise in the higher tiers of the more popular scientists? Tulip was quite sure that with her degrees and achievements in Mega Evolution and her representative (Ash) in the finals of one of the biggest tournament in United Nations, she could officially get the League to fund her research.

Basically, Ash Ketchum was a triple agent-cum-representative for all three scientists.

Reaching the calling booth, Ash decided to deal with Bill first. He dialed the lighthouse's number and soon enough a man with curly - Erm...Unique hair which looked like an experiment had just blown up was on the screen.

"Heya! Ash. How are you? I hope you're fine...Anyway, as you can see, I'm quite busy...I messaged you last night about what I wanted you to do. Ash I'm gonna be blunt. When you win the tournament -"

"Don't you mean IF?" Ash asked critically.

"...The Ash Ketchum I know does not settle for anything less than excellence. I trust you and it is my firm belief that you will be nothing less than the winner of this tournament."

There was a moment of tense silence between them. To be quite honest...Ash Ketchum was truly speechless...Here he was, talking to a man he had known for a mere two days and made a deal with who trusted him more than he trusted Bill...

...It was that moment that he realized something. It doesn't take big surprises or massive investments to please a person, there are these small-small things like unbreakable trust, unwavering determination and blind support that could make someone feel truly loved. Ash Ketchum was glad to have Bill by his side.

"...Thanks Bill...I'd win this..."

"Excellent! Oh and don't forget to tell the media about 'Sonezaki Miracles' that has taken you that far! Goodbye! Oh and you know you look good with your new look! All that silver hair, blue eyes and that coat I mean..."

CLICK!

The phone call was cut.

Ash smiled and looked at the black screen of the caller for some time...Before he dialed Oak's number and called him...

Ring...
Ring...
Ring...
CLICK!

"ASHY! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU! YOU'RE IN THE SECOND TAG BATTLE ROUND ALREADY!! I HEARD FROM PROFESSOR THAT YOU -"

CRACK!

...Whether it was the nearby fragile glass windows or Ash's eardrums that cracked from the feminine screech from a certain brown haired woman on the screen is unknown to this very day.

"...Mum...I see your lungs are good as ever..." Ash began slowly as he saved some [read as 'a lot'] of the window panes on St. Anne from cracking.

Delia didn't exactly get what her son said and replied over the phone, "Of course I'm good as ever! What about you? Oh and I see you changed your look! It looks good on you -"

"Ahem Delia...I get that you're very excited to see your son...But there is a very urgent thing I need to talk about with Ash. Please Delia..." A soft voice cut through Delia's speech from the other end of the phone.

The brown haired woman looked quite disappointed at the prospect of leaving the phone but nodded nonetheless...It must be important if Professor says so...

"...Bye Ashy...Win the tournament for mommy. I'll cheer you on."

"...Thanks mum...I'll win. Promise."

Delia smiled from the other end of the phone and left. Right then, the smile on Oak's face vanished and was replaced with a deep frown as he looked at Ash. The old professor let out an audible sigh as he looked at Ash and spoke, "...You've been working hard Ash...Too hard I must say. I knew you were always the dark horse Antihero type...But to actually use an illegal pokemon space manufactured by that punk Sonezaki..."

The long silver haired trainer put his head down in shame...He was not proud of that belt. But it was important for his fight against rocket. Before he could say something, Oak spoke up again,

"...But I will not hold it against you. Not after the burden I have deposited upon you. You may have realized this by now...But..." Oak looked straight into Ash's eyes from the phone with an intensity Ash hasn't seen before. The old professor's eyes showed much, much more than the grandfatherly aura he exuded...Pain, sadness, regret...But most of all...There was a hint of fiery determination in those old experienced eyes...

"...You are my sword Ash. You are my sword against Team Rocket, Lance and the League."

...No words could have made Ash happier after hearing that. The blue eyed trainer let a true smile form on his face as he turned to look at Oak.

The old professor sighed with an exasperated look on his face as he spoke, "...You should know as well as I do...Excuse my crass vocabulary...The Lance I used to know was a proud dragon-master who would crush all those who stand against him ruthlessly...But the Lance that is currently sitting in the Champion Office is just a little more than a whining wet pussy..."

Even Ash let out a chuckle hearing those words.

Oak continued with a grin, "...That's why I chose you to be my sword against the League, Lance and Team Rocket which is on the rise...You had more potential than any trainer I had seen so far..."

"What about Gary? Why not him? Or Leaf?" Ash suddenly asked curiously.

Gary's grandfather shook his head while groaning, "Don't even get me started on them...I have been observing all 3 of you on your journeys. And do you have any idea how far the two of them has strayed away from their original path?"

Now Ash was quite worried...It had been Gary's fervent desire to defeat Ash in the Kanto League...And Leaf had always wanted to become an Elite Four member...Leaf...They hadn't had any contact for the last 4 months...

Seeing the blue eyed aura user's worry, Oak spoke up, "...Gary had taken a shine to continue my legacy...He had a penchant for collecting rare and exclusive pokemon, but now? He has become a Pokemon Junior Professor in training. Leaf...Heh, I'll never get that girl's impulsive nature...She has become a Pokemon Performer-cum-Contester...Talked with her a few weeks ago...Said she's tired of seeing her pokemon get hurt and wanted to choose a new style..."

Ash Ketchum was officially floored. Leaf...She was going to become a performer? Dammit! He hated not being able to contact her! The thing is, you can call a pokemon center booth or anywhere that has a League Certified Phone Caller, however you could not call another Pokedex from a Pokedex.

Currently as it was, only the Unova Xtransceiver could do that. But...They were only limited to Unova region and only legally distributable by Professor Aurea Juniper.

"...So...Leaf as a Performer huh? Who would have thought..." Ash muttered to himself nostalgically. He couldn't exactly process the picture of the fiery outgoing brown haired girl doing anything other than battling.

"...Currently as it is, you are my Sword. Gary is my Legacy. And Leaf is my Golden Crown." Oak said cryptically with a smile.

Ash processed