Pokemon: Radical Redux-Chapter 333: Departures

The Abby Show

[Welcome back to Are You Courting Death!, the best show in all the realms! It is me, your senior sister, Abby!] Abby said proudly. [Sorry for the hiatus—we were preparing for our new sect!]

[And I'm the far superior senior sister, Abratwo!] Abratwo added next. [We're coming at you from our brand-new sect here in the Goldenrod Radio Tower!]

Drowzee was sitting in a new conformal chair. [This is actually pretty nice. I can read lots of books here.]

[But of course! As soon as they saw me, the senior sister, they were so grateful they gave us only the best room! I will take your praise now!] Abby nodded to herself.

Alakazam rolled his eyes. [I'm still salty. If you're getting paid, I want my share. Therapy isn't cheap, you know, and putting my therapist up a tax bracket isn't going to help me either.]

[I wouldn't mind getting paid. That way, I can buy more books for myself,] Drowzee said, clutching his book.

[Psyduck too! Psyduck wants to take Psyduck's girlfriend on a date!] Psyduck said.

[Sure, man, whatever you say,] Alakazam said with a slight smile. Even after all this time, no one believed Psyduck had a girlfriend.

Abby cut in. [Very well! Now, for our first day back, we shall discuss potential—red, green, blue, purple potential, and iron, copper, gold stages—so that all disciples can grow to be the most powerful gold realm: Purple Potential!]

[What does that even mean?!] Alakazam shouted. [Can't you ever just make sense?!]

[But I understand her perfectly, Senior Brother. Surely you are just exaggerating,] Abratwo said, nodding her head.

[Um, I think I read a book on that, but it didn't make any sense to me...] Drowzee said, scratching his chin.

[Please, I beg you, don't rot our brains more than you already have. Can't we talk about something normal, like when we covered the Indigo League?] Alakazam pleaded.

[Hmm... Well, I suppose we can talk about the sightings of the Legendary Heavenly Beasts,] Abby said.

[Wait, really?] Alakazam blinked.

[Psyduck believes that sounds... almost interesting to talk about...] Psyduck said, checking himself to see if he was still alive.

[Of course! And don't worry, I, the senior sister Abratwo, have only the best images,] Abratwo said proudly.

[The Heavenly Beasts are allegedly going after other sect masters to test their strength, truly so shameless as to attack them by surprise,] Abby announced, holding a paper and reading off it. [So, brothers, what do you think?]

The three boys looked at each other, silently thanking Arceus, Mew, or whatever deity was listening for finally giving them a normal one this time.

—-

With the Gang

The next day came. Everyone had partied last night until well after midnight, marking the official end of summer and the beginning of fall. After the festival was over, they all got some much-needed sleep. Molly stayed with Ash, mainly cuddling Pikachu in one arm and her plushie in the other.

By morning, it was time for everyone to go their separate ways again. As Green hugged Molly and nuzzled her cheek, she pouted, "Molly, this is goodbye... Aww, I'm going to miss you."

"Hehe, Green, don't be silly! You can just come visit me!" Molly said, nodding her head happily.

"Aww, you're just so cute," Green said, giving her one final tight hug before letting go. "Okay..."

"Hmm, right," Ash said, standing nearby with Abby. He walked up to Molly and handed her an ornament with an Espeon and an Umbreon. "Here, give this to Mom, and take care. Be sure to do your work, remember, you made a pinky promise," he said, booping her nose.

Molly giggled. "Okay, big brother! I remember!"

Then she let go and held onto Abby, waving. "Bye-bye, everyone!" And with that, Abby teleported her away.

Once she was gone, Silver took a glance at everyone, skipping Ethan, obviously, before looking at Ash and Green. "I'll be going as well. I think I'll get some new Pokémon, then head to Cianwood..." he said, though a part of him was hoping Green would go with him. After all, she was about the only person other than Ash that he would call a friend.

Green patted Silver's head. "Come on, you can't rely on me all the time. After all, I went through my journey alone. It'll be good for you. Besides, maybe I'll drop by to check on you, can't have my little brother giving me a bad name, can I?" she said playfully.

"Okay, big sis. Then I'll be going first," Silver said, giving a nod to Ash and contemplating flipping Ethan the bird, but he decided against it as he left.

"Why do I feel like he wanted to do something..." Ethan mumbled, crossing his arms.

Kris rolled her eyes. "Probably because he did. You are pretty annoying."

"Hey, I'm not that bad, right?" Ethan said, looking around. "Green, you like me, don't you?"

"I meannnn, we're gambling buddies, if that counts," Green shrugged.

"Ash?" Ethan turned to him.

Ash sighed. "I mean, I guess. We did almost die together that one time." As everyone looked at him in shock, he pointed, mainly at Misty. "Shut up. No, I'm not going to tell you."

"I'll take it!" Ethan celebrated. Ethan was kind of an idiot, but look on the bright side, at least he wasn't Goh, yes the bar is in Hell but there is a bar non the less

Kris sighed. "Well, I guess we should go too. I have to keep working on the Pokédex, and this idiot... well, I don't really know what he's doing most of the time."

"Oh yeah, good point. I guess we're going different paths again. Well, good luck! And wish me luck, I only need two more badges to qualify. I'm breezing through this," Ethan said, smiling to himself.

"I guess I'm going back to Goldenrod, then. There's more money to be made," Green said, rubbing her hands together like she was scheming something. Then she pointed a finger at Ash. "And don't think I forgot, the first thing I'm doing is calling the Professor."

"Sure thing. I don't know what you expect to get out of him, but do your thing," Ash shrugged. "Anyway, we're just going to be on the move again. Not much extra to say about it."

"I mean, yeah, traveling is always fun," Yellow nodded.

"Sure. I mean, can't be much worse than things around here. I can't wait to just have a normal week, none of that dumb stuff that just follows us around," Misty mumbled. Since it was fall and getting colder, she finally brought out her white jacket. Now that she had grown, it fit her better, but she still refused to wear pants.

Brock nodded. "Also, speaking of which, I think we should probably restock on some stuff while we're here." He still had his sweatpants but had put on a jacket since his shirt was sleeveless.

"Alright then, let's split up, grab what we need, and meet at the north exit of town," Ash suggested, getting nods from the group.

And with that, everyone finally went their separate ways. Would they meet again? Probably, almost definitely. But when? Well, who knew?

While everyone was busy shopping, Ash gathered the supplies he was asked to pick up and made his way to the edge of town to wait. As he stood there, he noticed the buses parked nearby. Chloe and Regina's teacher and classmates were preparing to leave, while the two girls in question were at the back, getting bombarded with questions, mostly about Ash.

That conversation was promptly derailed when Ash walked up to them, waving. "Yo, Chloe, Regina, were you planning on leaving without saying goodbye to little old me?"

Regina shivered slightly and gave a small wave, but Chloe stepped forward, hands on her hips. "Oh please, don't whine about it. We figured you'd be too busy being the prince of the festival with all your popularity and stuff."

"Please, how could I not come see you off?" Ash teased. "What if you're still scared, like a little puppy? Remember how much you were shaking after I caught the kunai~?"

Chloe huffed and looked away. "Well, it's not like I'm not grateful that you saved me, but that's all you're getting."

"Aww, not even a hug~?" Ash pouted.

"You shut up! You're going to give people the wrong idea!" Chloe shot back, pointing a finger at him.

Ash chuckled before turning his attention to Regina. "So, how are you feeling about, well, everything? Sure was a surprise, huh?"

Regina fidgeted, her eyes darting around nervously. "It... wasn't all bad," she mumbled. "I mean... I-I met you and everyone, and you helped Mirche, so... thank you."

"Don't mention it. Besides, you were pretty great yourself out there," Ash said with a small smile.

Regina blushed and glanced down. Chloe, on the other hand, crossed her arms. "You know, my dad is going to freak out when I tell him all this."

"Oh, I know. And to freak him out even more..." Ash pulled out the kunai from before, flipped it in his hand, then placed it into a small sheath he had taken from Ilunas. He handed it to Chloe. "Here, you keep it."

Chloe blinked, staring at the kunai in her hands. "Wait, wait, wait—you're just giving me this? Are you insane?"

"Yes, I am," Ash grinned. "What? You think I can't spare a little souvenir?"

Regina peered at the blade, then at Chloe. "It... is kind of cool," she admitted in a small voice.

Chloe huffed but carefully tucked the kunai into her bag, shaking her head. "You're impossible."

"You know you love it," Ash teased, sticking his tongue out.

Chloe rolled her eyes. "Fine. But if this gets me into trouble, I'm blaming you."

"That's fine. Your dad loves me, remember? After all, he gave me his blessing~," Ash said with a smirk.

Chloe blushed so hard she turned as red as a tomato. She pointed at Ash, nearly shouting, "HE WAS JOKING, AND SO WERE YOU! DON'T START THIS!"

Ash just waved her off. "You two take care, alright? And Regina, keep working on that confidence."

Regina's face turned red again, but she nodded. "O-okay."

"Maybe we'll see each other again. After all, I'm Kantonian born and raised."

Just then, their teacher called out. "Chloe, Regina! It's time to go!"

Regina gave a small wave before boarding the bus, while Chloe lingered for a moment. "Well, Ash, try not to get yourself killed before I see you again."

"No promises," Ash replied, grinning wider.

She shook her head but smirked as she turned and walked onto the bus.

Ash waved as the bus drove off, unsurprised when some of the other students started fangirling over him. Just as he was about to continue walking, he heard footsteps approaching.

"Hey, Ash, right?" a voice called.

Turning around, Ash saw Virgil walking up to him.

"Yeah, and you're Virgil, right?" Ash said, more as a statement than a question.

"Yep. Gotta say, this whole thing was unexpected, but it was pretty fun, all things considered," Virgil shrugged. "By the way, you fought Morty, does that mean you're planning to compete in the Silver Conference?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah, I've got four badges so far, so I'm making pretty good time."

Virgil smiled. "Well, I guess I should tell you, I'm planning on competing too."

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"Really?" Ash raised an eyebrow.

"Heh, yep. As soon as I finish my training, I'm going after the Gyms. So you better be ready, because if we battle, I'm not losing," Virgil said with a smirk.

Ash smirked back. "Well, I don't plan on losing either, so you better give me a good battle."

"Deal," Virgil said, holding out his hand. "I should get back to training. I'm close to completing Team Eevee, and once I do, I'm coming after you."

Ash shook his hand. "Looking forward to it."

With that, they parted ways, and Ash finally made it to the north exit of town, where the rest of his group was already waiting.

Misty was the first to spot him. "Oh, look who finally decided to show up."

"Yeah, sorry, had to tie up some loose ends. But I'm here now. We all set?"

"Yep, we're fully restocked," Brock confirmed with a thumbs-up.

"So where are we going next?" Yellow asked.

Ash pulled out his Rotom Phone and let it hover in front of him. "I was thinking Olivine City. It's the next closest, so why not?"

"Sounds good to me! I wonder what kind of beauties we'll see on the way," Brock mused, already fantasizing.

"You're hopeless," Misty muttered, not even bothering to pull his ear this time.

Ash chuckled and walked next to Yellow. "So, ready to head out?"

Yellow smiled and nodded. "Yeah."

—--

{Meanwhile, with Ashtwo}

Ash hadn't been given many details about the mission—only that he needed to meet someone and that Helena was coming with him.

The trip had been quiet, with Helena lost in thought. She still wasn't sure how to navigate what had happened back at the base. She worried that D. was mad at her and wanted to find a way to make things better. After all, she just wanted friends.

When they finally arrived at the meeting point, Sayoko was already there, a glint in her eye partially hidden by her hair. She smiled.

"Hey there! Good to see you two finally showed up. I was starting to worry~" she teased, eyeing them. "Is something going on between you two~?"

Helena blushed slightly and looked away, but Ash remained as monotone as ever. "No. Something just happened at the base. I apologize for making you wait."

"Hmph, well, at least you're polite. I'll give you that," Sayoko said, sizing them up. "As you might've guessed, I'm tagging along this time. This will be our first mission together, exciting, isn't it?"

"Very well. What is our mission?" Ash asked, crossing his arms.

"Mmm, to be honest, I don't have all the details myself," Sayoko admitted. "The Masked Man told me about this place and said we're looking for some strange Pokémon."

"That... seems too normal, no offence" Helena said, hugging the egg in her arms a little tighter.

"None taken. I agree," Sayoko sighed. "If it involves the Masked Man, there's no way it's that simple."

She pulled out a picture and showed it to Ash and Helena, "All he gave me was this picture of the Pokemon we're after, i've never seen these Pokemon so i'm not to sure what these are"

The moment Ash saw it, his brow furrowed, In the image were two Pokémon, Unown, but not just any Unown, The '!' and '?' forms.