Pokemon: Radical Redux-Chapter 535: And the twins

When Ash took the twins down the mountain, no one really said much on the walk.

By the time they reached Mossdeep City, the worst part was that the sun was still high in the sky. All the problems the twins went through had happened in a single day.

Tate could barely walk on his own after the beatdown he got, so Ash carried him on his back the rest of the way down. Liza stayed close on the other side, her usual calm composure shaken, but still holding it together.

When they got to the Gym, Ash carefully set Tate down and started patching up the twins' wounds, while Liza went and sat next to Tate, looking at her brother worriedly. Pikachu and Vee went over and nudged her, trying to help calm her down a little.

"Alright," Ash said quietly, rolling his shoulders a bit, "Let's fix you up."

He grabbed some supplies first, bandages, burn ointment, basic stuff, and started treating the visible injuries. Tate winced slightly as Ash worked.

"Sorry," Ash muttered, "This part's gonna sting a bit."

"I've...had worse," Tate said through his teeth, though his voice wavered a little.

Liza stood nearby, watching closely.

Too closely.

Ash finished wrapping one of Tate's arms, then paused, "…Alright," he said after a moment, "The rest I'll handle differently."

Tate blinked tiredly, "Differently…?"

Ash didn't answer right away. Instead, he raised one hand slightly, and a faint blue light shone in his palm before he pressed it against the burns on Tate's skin.

"Woah…" Tate breathed, "That...feels…"

"Better?" Ash asked.

"…Yeah," Tate said, almost in disbelief.

"Are you also a—" Liza asked, a little dazed.

"No, I'm not a Psychic. I guess you wouldn't know what it's called. The closest thing you could call me would be an Aura user," Ash said as he did a few more checkups on Tate, since he got the worst of the beating.

"I...think we've heard some stories, but never thought we'd meet one," Tate said, wincing slightly. Most of the pain was gone, but Ash's healing wasn't instant or 100%.

"Yeah, you wouldn't. Most of them are extinct. For every 100 of you Psychics, there is maybe 1 Aura user out there," Ash said with a little smirk.

Then he looked back over at Liza and gave her a once-over, tilting his head slightly, "…You good?" he asked, "Or do you need me to patch you up too?"

Liza blinked. For a second, she didn't answer. Then her face flushed faintly, "I—I'm fine," she said quickly, maybe a bit too quickly.

Ash raised an eyebrow, "You sure?" he asked casually, "You were kinda in the blast zone back there."

"I said I'm fine," Liza replied, looking off to the side now. Her usual calm tone was still there...but just barely.

Ash stared at her for a second longer, "Alright, suit yourself."

Ash stood up and wiped his knees.

For a moment, the three of them said nothing. Tate was still rubbing his side where he took the worst hit, and Liza's hands dug into her pants as she wanted to say something, but couldn't find the words.

But before Liza could say something, Tate spoke up, his voice soft as he couldn't meet her eyes.

"Liza...I'm sorry...this is my fault."

"What?!" Liza shot up, looking at her brother. She was about to scold him for even saying that, but he spoke again, cutting her off.

"When we were fighting, we didn't fight like we usually do...I was so busy trying to protect you that I couldn't even notice that guy was using illusions...In the end, we almost died because I couldn't let go of what happened…"

Tate knew that they should have fought as a team, but they didn't. Ever since Liza disappeared for a month, he had been scared of losing her. So he tried too hard to protect her when she didn't need protection, they needed to work together.

Liza froze for a moment after hearing that, "…Tate," she said quietly.

He still wouldn't look at her.

"I messed up," he continued, his voice tight, "We always fight together. That's what makes us strong. But I…I kept treating you like you needed to be protected instead of trusting you to fight with me. I hesitated...and that almost got us both—"

"Stop." Her voice cut through him.

Tate flinched slightly and finally looked up.

Liza was standing now, her fists clenched at her sides, her eyes locked onto his, "That's not all on you," she said firmly.

Tate blinked, caught off guard.

"I noticed it too," Liza admitted, her voice softer now but still steady, "I could tell you were holding back...but I didn't say anything."

She looked down for a second, her hands tightening, "I was scared too."

Liza looked at her hands, "I...don't know what happened in that month, and that scares me more than anything. But the thing that scared me the most was knowing you were alone too…"

Tate looked down at his bandages and said softly, "…We were both off our game."

"Yeah," Liza nodded, "We were."

Ash, who was still there, broke the awkward moment with a clap, "Okay, great, you both messed up and you love each other. 10/10 sibling bonding."

Tate and Liza jumped at the sudden clap, but they had to admit it did make them stop dwelling on how badly things had gone.

"Right, we never got to say thank you-um…" Liza blinked, realizing they hadn't even gotten Ash's name, and that made her cover her face in embarrassment.

"It's Ash. Nice to meet you," Ash chuckled, "But it's no problem. I was just in the area," he added jokingly, even though that was a complete lie. The place they were in was a secret location you couldn't just 'walk into' by accident.

Still, Ash apparently 'walking around' had saved their lives, so Tate and Liza weren't going to question it too much.

"But yeah...looks like they took the Red and Blue Orbs. We couldn't stop them," Tate said, scratching his cheek, "Some Gym Leaders we are…"

"It's not your fault. They clearly knew about you both and how to counter you. You were fighting at a disadvantage. You guys still did great, even if you weren't at 100%," Ash said with a smile at the two twins.

That seemed to embarrass the twins, like they weren't used to getting praised like that. The only thing missing was for them to do a little dance and say they didn't like it, too bad. Maybe next time.

"Do you know why they wanted them?" Ash asked, even though he already knew what the orbs were for.

"No...the nice old couple who usually take care of the orbs never told us. We just wanted to protect them, but we couldn't," Liza said.

"I see," Ash muttered, more to himself, "And are you going to tell anyone else about this?"

Liza looked down, "We...can't…"

"The orbs, and the shrine we were in, are all supposed to be a secret. If it gets out, then…" Tate said, but he didn't finish.

Liza looked up at Ash, clasped her hands in front of her, and begged, "Please, don't tell anyone about the orbs or the shrine!"

It wasn't that they didn't want to tell anyone, it's that they literally couldn't because of the rules the Association gave them. They didn't know why the Association wanted to keep the Orbs such a secret, but they also knew that if this got out, losing their position as Gym Leaders would be the least of their concerns.

They could still tell the Association, and they were going to, but that was it. That was the end of what they could do. They couldn't even go out to search for the orbs themselves independently.

Ash frowned. The worst part was that he knew why the Pokémon Association wanted to keep this covered up. If it got out, it could make people start asking questions, questions that might uncover things they wanted to keep hidden, including what happened six years ago.

Ash sighed, "Alright, I promise," he said, patting them both on the head, "I won't tell anyone."

Liza visibly relaxed, her shoulders dropping as if a weight had been lifted off her, "…Thank you," she said quietly.

Tate nodded as well, though he still looked frustrated, his hands tightening slightly against the bandages, "We'll report it to the Association...that's all we can do."

Ash didn't respond right away. He could have pushed and gotten more information, but they couldn't tell him anything he didn't already know. In fact, he hadn't originally planned on intervening.

He had been planning on attacking the Magma admins and taking the orbs back, but that was when he saw one of the admins was Zenith. He knew about him from Insurgence, and him being here made things so much worse.

Not to mention that when Zenith was about to kill Liza, then Tate after her, Ash couldn't let that happen. So he stepped in and knocked him away from them, but that gave them the chance to escape with the orbs.

In fact, Ash didn't really know much about what happened after that in the manga. After they fell into the illusion, we don't really see them again until the final war arc, where they were at Mirage Island with Juan.

It isn't clear what happened to them, if they were just left fighting an illusion, or if Team Magma captured them and Juan later rescued them, but Ash was willing to think it was probably the latter. After all, if it wasn't, why wouldn't they show up until then?

But that wasn't important right now.

"Well," he said, "you two should rest. I may have patched you up, but you're gonna need more than just some ointment and bandages."

Tate nodded, "Yeah…"

Pikachu and Vee hopped back onto Ash's shoulders. Then he turned to where Abby should be arriving, if she could ever get her timing right, "Well, I'll let you guys recover."

"You're leaving?" Liza asked quickly, the question slipping out before she could stop it.

Ash paused, then he nodded, "…Yeah," he said simply.

Tate frowned slightly, "Already?"

Ash scratched the back of his head, looking a bit sheepish now, "I kinda have to. My friends don't really know I'm here. If they find out I went out, they are gonna tie me down."

But then he lowered his hand and smirked, "But I'll be back. After all, you guys are Gym Leaders, so I've gotta come challenge you both soon."

Tate and Liza blinked in unison, "You're a challenger?" Tate asked, almost not believing what Ash said. After all, just from one showing, Pikachu and Vee seemed stronger individually than any of their Pokémon.

"I am, but I've only got four badges right now."

"Um," Liza scratched her cheek, "if you want, we could just give you the badge. I mean, you did save us."

"Sorry, but if I come back with a badge, my friends will actually just murder me," Ash laughed helplessly.

"Besides, when I come back, I expect you two to get stronger. I don't know why you guys are out of sync, but I don't want an easy battle." Ash smirked as he poked both the twins on the forehead, "You're both plenty strong, so you better prepare. You guys better not disappoint me~" Ash said playfully.

Tate rubbed his head, and Liza huffed and looked away, "You'll see. Next time, we'll be so strong we can beat ten of those guys. You won't stand a chance."

"That's more like it," Ash said with a smirk, "I'll be sure to prepare. I expect a real challenge~"

Then he stopped and looked at the door, "…Took her long enough," he muttered under his breath.

He looked back at the twins, "Well, looks like my ride is here...finally. So you guys better be ready."

"We will, you'll see!" Tate said, nodding his head, as Liza had to put a hand on his shoulder so he didn't hurt himself nodding so fast.

—

{Meanwhile back with Ashtwo - TEN MINUTES LATER}

The hallway itself didn't look like it was even part of the same base anymore.

The metal floor was cracked in several places, with a few sections slightly warped upward as if something had hit it from underneath.

The walls were scorched in spots, and in others, there was jagged ice hanging off bent support beams.

In the middle of it all, right in the center of the chaos, Orm was standing, and in front of him, his first Shuckle was lying on its back near the wall, fainted but otherwise unscathed.

"…You did good," Orm said softly, glancing over for a moment.

Immediately after, his eyes snapped back into focus.

Audrey was standing in front of him, completely untouched. Well, almost, a small crack was on the floor near her feet, where she had been forced to dodge earlier. Her expression was no longer amused. It was annoyed.

"…Unbelievable," she muttered.

And behind her, Cloyster was defeated, its shell askew and completely knocked out.

She had to send out her Swampert and her Crawdaunt.

Across from them, Orm's second Shuckle clung to the ground at his feet, and Jumpluff floated lazily at his side, its cotton spores drifting through the air.

The contrast was...absurd.

Audrey's eyes narrowed, "You're telling me," she said slowly, "that this is what you battle with?"

Orm blinked, then looked at Jumpluff as it spun lazily in the air, "…Yeah?"

Audrey's eye twitched. For a moment, she seriously considered walking over and hitting the guy. If she didn't know for a fact that he could probably fold her in two, she would have already done it.

"Swampert," she said coldly, "end this."

Swampert charged forward, fist glowing as it launched itself directly at Jumpluff

"[Bounce]," Orm said.

Jumpluff launched upward in time with the punch, which cracked the floor where it had been a moment before.

Orm followed up, "Shuckle, [Wrap]."

The second Shuckle suddenly extended its neck, stretching far beyond what should've been physically possible, wrapping tightly around Swampert's arm as it swung.

Swampert growled in protest, trying to pull back, but Orm continued, "Now, [Leech Seed]."

From above, Jumpluff released glowing seeds that landed on Swampert's body, immediately beginning to drain its energy.

Audrey clicked her tongue in annoyance, "Crawdaunt, cut it off!"

Crawdaunt charged forward, its glowing claws slashing toward Shuckle's extended neck.

"[Withdraw]," Orm commanded quickly.

Just as all hope seemed lost, Shuckle suddenly retracted back into its shell, Crawdaunt's claw glancing off harmlessly with a sharp clang.

Orm's head tilted slightly, "You're kinda loud."

Audrey's eye twitched again, "[Surf]."

Swampert slammed both hands on the ground. A massive wave surged through the hallway, crashing forward and flooding the entire area.

Jumpluff was sent flying through the air, barely managing to stabilize itself, while Shuckle was knocked out of position, slamming into the wall.

Orm dug his feet into the ground to remain upright as water rushed past his legs. Even though it looked like they were evenly matched, Orm was at a big disadvantage here.

For one, he was used to fighting in more forested areas. Another issue was that Audrey had a full team of six, while Orm only had three Pokémon, his two Shuckle and his Jumpluff. That was it.

I mean, he had other Pokémon, like a ton of baby Shuckle, but they weren't trained, and he didn't like using the babies as meat shields.

Anyway, Audrey continued her attack, "Finish it."

Crawdaunt dashed through the water, moving faster now, its claws glowing as it aimed straight for Jumpluff.

"[Stun Spore]," Orm quickly called out.

Jumpluff spun, releasing a cloud of golden powder, and Crawdaunt ran straight through it, freezing mid-step.

Orm nodded, satisfied, "Good job."

Just as Audrey was about to feel her blood pressure spike again from fighting this guy, a rumbling sound echoed from down the hallway behind him.

Audrey's eyes flicked up instantly, "…What now?"

Then a massive shape began to emerge from the lingering steam and water, it was a Camerupt.

The Pokémon's hooves landed heavily on the metal ground with a dull thud, and immediately the shallow water began to steam.

D stepped out from behind the Camerupt, its fur flapping slightly as his eyes scanned the battlefield.

He did not look surprised, "…You're still standing," he said.

Orm turned back and smiled, "Yes," he said, "She is strong."

D's eyes moved to Audrey, who was also looking at both of them, analyzing what to do in this situation.

She narrowed her eyes, looking at the Team Magma uniforms the two of them had on. She didn't fully believe it, but before she could think about it further, she heard the sounds of more fighting down the hall where Orm and D had come from.

"I see...you have more with you…" she said slowly.

Looking at the situation she was in, it wasn't ideal. She was confident she could have taken down Orm, but Orm and D together would be a problem she wasn't sure she could win.

Not to mention, the base around them was being raided and destroyed. It was a lost cause at this point. It just wasn't worth risking her neck for something she didn't even particularly care about.

She clicked her tongue softly, "Swampert. Crawdaunt. Back."

Both Pokémon hesitated for only a fraction of a second before retreating to her side.

Orm blinked, "…Huh?"

Audrey reached up, brushing a strand of white hair back over her shoulder, completely composed again.

"This base is already compromised," she said lightly, glancing around at the destruction, "and while this has been...entertaining…"

Her eyes flicked to D, "…I'm not interested in unnecessary risks."

D said nothing.

Audrey smiled faintly, "But don't misunderstand," she added, "This isn't you winning."

Orm scratched his cheek, "…Kinda feels like it."

Audrey's smile twitched slightly at that. She took a breath, composing herself, then turned, "Until next time."

Without another word, she walked back down the flooded corridor she came from, her figure disappearing into the dim light and steam.

After she was gone, Jumpluff drifted down onto Orm's head. Orm reached up and patted it gently, "…Good job."

D stepped forward slightly, watching the direction Audrey left, "I see."

Orm looked over, "Why don't we go after her?"

D glanced at him and tapped an imaginary watch, "Eve's got five minutes left. We don't have time for it."

"Oh yeah...I forgot," Orm scratched his head.

"It's fine. You did a good job," D said simply, "Thank you."

Orm blinked a few times, trying to process that. After all, Carr and Sird never thanked him for any of the times he helped them.

Orm instantly pulled a tissue out of nowhere and dabbed at his eyes, which were somehow full of tears, "Wahh, you are a good guy! No wonder they were so worried about you!" Orm said, wiping his eyes.

D watched, then tapped Orm on the shoulder, "Come on, let's get back to the ship with the others. We need to make sure they're safe too."

D didn't wait for a response. He pulled Camerupt back into its Poké Ball after commanding the Fire-type to blast flames around the room to leave scorch marks. Then he turned to walk, and Orm followed quickly behind, holding his Pokémon in his arms.

As they got back to the room they were in before they separated, D and Orm saw...a lot. Entire sections of the hallway had been blown open. One room they passed was completely flooded, with Magma symbols crudely burned into the walls. Another had crates split open, supplies scattered everywhere, and a group of Team Aqua grunts tied together with what looked like...vines?

Orm pointed as they walked past, "…Is that normal?"

"No," D said flatly.

"…Oh."

A loud explosion echoed somewhere deeper in the base. Then another.

Orm tilted his head, "…They sound like they're having fun."

"They are," D said, "That's the problem."

They turned a corner and nearly walked straight into Jay, who was sprinting down the hallway with his Meowths, Tuddy, Rudey, and Todd, holding onto his shoulders.

"YO—THERE YOU ARE!" Jay shouted, skidding to a stop.

One of the Meowths immediately pointed back the way he came, frantically chattering.

Jay nodded rapidly, "Yeah, so, good news, we broke a LOT of stuff."

Todd just looked at him with that blank expression, while Rudey looked like he was waiting for a reason to slap Jay again.

"Okay, okay," Jay said, trying to save himself from another slap, "Maybe too much stuff…"

D raised an eyebrow, "Define 'too much.'"

Jay laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck, "…So you know how you said break equipment?"

"Yes."

"And leave evidence?"

"Yes."

"And maybe steal stuff?"

"…Yes, Jay."

Jay pointed behind him, "There might be a fire."

There was a pause.

A distant WHOOOMPH echoed through the base.

D closed his eyes for half a second, "…Is it contained?"

Jay hesitated, "…Define contained?"

Both Rudey and Tuddy slapped him at the same time, shutting him up.

At that point, Enid finally walked out of a room. This time, D noticed she had her Natu out again. It had been a while since he'd seen that little guy.

But Enid answered for Jay, "He had a little too much fun when we found a box of fireworks."

Orm perked up slightly, "Oh! Fire! Camerupt can help with that!"

"No," D said immediately.

Orm paused, "…No?"

"No," D repeated, already walking past Jay, "We are leaving."

Jay blinked, "Wait, what? Just like that?"

"Yes. We only have about five minutes before the systems get back online."

Jay froze, "…I'm sorry, the what is what now?"

Enid covered her face, "I knew I shouldn't have listened to you, Jay…"

Another explosion, closer this time.

Orm looked around, "…Oh. That doesn't sound good."

"It isn't," D said calmly, "We're done here."

Jay immediately turned and started running again.

"YEP, THAT'S MY CUE, EVERYONE ELSE IS THIS WAY!"

D and Orm followed as Jay ran ahead, calling out for everyone to get to the ship quickly before the grunts who were still conscious could call for reinforcements and lock the doors.

As they moved, more of the group started to converge from different hallways.

Domino appeared first, stepping out from a side corridor, brushing dust off her sleeve like she had just finished a casual errand instead of dismantling a section of the base.

"Oh hey, look what we found!" Domino said as she grabbed a box and held it up with a grin, "They won't be needing these anymore, right~?"

D didn't bother looking at what she grabbed, "That's nice. If you want it, bring it on the ship, we're leaving now."

Enid rolled her eyes but started walking to catch up to D, "We hit their storage and transport bays," she said, crossing her arms, "You're welcome."

Behind her, Helena and Oakley emerged, the former calm as ever while Stephen the Haunter was laughing after he no doubt did a lot of pranks, the latter dragging Annie by the back of her collar.

"I was testing something!" Annie protested.

"It exploded," Oakley said flatly.

"It was supposed to!"

Another explosion cut her off.

Everyone paused. Then Annie scratched her cheek, "Okay...maybe I used a little too much explosive stuff."

Right on cue, there was another big explosion that shook the base.

"Okay...maybe a lot too much…" Annie added.

Domino sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Of course…"

D covered his face. Well, at least this would work for the plan, "Okay, come on. Let's get out of here."

No one needed more convincing, so they all moved back to the ship. Oakley grabbed the controls and flew them out of the base, all in the nick of time before they got locked in there.

D totally didn't fudge the numbers, because they were never in any danger of getting trapped. You're crazy.

For now, D stretched his arms behind his back as he looked over everyone going through the stuff they managed to grab, and Orm, who just looked happy to be there. He sighed helplessly.

Well, at least this would make Archie's blood pressure spike. Now...how to get Maxie…

But for now, he'd enjoy the moment. His plans were coming together nicely.

—

{At the Battle Frontier}

Greta, Tucker, Lucy, Spenser, Brandon, and Anabel got back to the Battle Frontier hours after the fight.

They were nursing their wounds, trying not to put too much strain on themselves as they returned with their clothes ripped and dirty.

Scott was already there, sitting at a table waiting for them, and when he noticed them flying in on Tucker's injured Salamence, he waved them over.

"Hey, you guys are back! How'd it go?" Scott asked. Most people might think he was too cheerful, but this was just how Scott was, so none of them thought anything of it, well, everyone except Anabel.

There was something about the way Scott acted. Something she had a hunch about, but didn't have anything to back it up, or a reason to bring it up.

But after what happened, she had a pretty good idea. She just needed to confirm it.

So while Scott was chatting with everyone, telling them what had happened while they were gone, and just as he turned to send them all to the infirmary

Anabel stopped him, "Mr. Scott, there is something I'd like to ask you."

Before Scott could turn around, Anabel continued, "Did you know what was going on from the very beginning? Did you know about Jirachi? And Guile, the man in the suit of armor…?"

At that, Scott stopped walking, and his eyes turned toward her behind his sunglasses.

Everyone else looked at Anabel in shock.

"H-hey, Anabel, are you okay? What are you saying?" Greta asked.

"Yeah, this is Scott we're talking about," Tucker added.

But Anabel didn't back down, "Well…? Tell us!"

Scott didn't turn to them yet, but he spoke, "Heh...You think I knew all along...but pretended not to?"

"Well…" He turned and posed with his bright smile again, "You're absolutely right!!!"

As soon as he said that, everyone stood there staring at him. Even Anabel hadn't expected such a direct answer.

"What tipped you off, Anabel?" Scott asked, nudging her with his elbow, genuinely excited to hear how he got caught.

"I just had a hunch. No reason, really," Anabel said, trying not to give too much away.

Then she paused and rubbed her chin, "But if I had to give you a reason...it would be the look you gave us when we told you we were going to the cave, and when we came back all bruised and battered."

"You mean this look?" Scott said, putting a finger to his chin while keeping his signature grin.

"So I was right! But why would you hide this vital information from us?" Anabel demanded. Now that the others realized, they all looked at Scott, waiting for an explanation.

But then Scott finally dropped his smile. He crossed his arms and looked at them all with a serious expression,

"Isn't it obvious?" he said, "Because I wanted you Frontier Brains to grow stronger."

--

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