Who I Am by Lightning99 (Pokémon)

*Another Ash betrayal fanfic*

Latest update:Febuary 7, 2023

Summary:"Who is Ash Ketchum?" Not even he knew the answer to the question everybody was asking about him. When he arrived on Alola's shores, a heartbroken, injured young man, he'd never have anticipated the adventure his pain would lead him on. With his partner by his side and a tropical landscape to explore, Ash knew one thing: it would be the journey that changed his life.

Link:https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13312681/1/Who-I-Am

Word count:349k

Chapters:69

Prologue

She absconded the lab in a cautious rush, but every clink of her ballet-flat heels resonated in the steel pathway, unveiling her. Fortunately, the echo seemed omnipresent. It concealed her exact position from her pursuers, offering a fleeting moment of solace as she guessed the path to escape through the nearly hypnotic, winding white maze.

The girl had never had to run so arduously before. Her chest, as taut as if bound by nylon rope and wracked by heavy, hasty breaths, seared with the heat of a Blast Burn, and her weak legs ached, pleading for rest. They were feelings that were foreign to her cautiously nurtured body, but she endured. She had to.

She frantically glanced at the path behind her with her widened emerald eyes, spotting, beyond the messy billowing of her blonde hair, two people gradually closing in. Panic forced her heart to convulse. Her breathing stalled, effectively winding her, but she ran faster. She couldn't allow herself to get caught. Otherwise, her impulsive risk would be meaningless.

She reached the end of a white corridor, darted through the automatic door, and found it, a triangle of blue lights embedded in the floor in the centre of a dangerously open room – the exit.

"She's over here!" a guttural voice yelled behind her.

Upon hearing the voice, the workers scattered throughout the room turned, saw her, and joined the chase. Luckily, they were not quick enough, for, a few more agonising seconds of running later, the girl passed over the light. She stumbled to the control panel and fumbled with the buttons, raising barriers from within the lights. Then the floor jerked, and the elevator ascended, distancing her from her pursuers clad in white.

The girl stood tense and trembling for a few seconds, panting, fearing for the impossible chance that the workers would climb the scaffolding to reach her. When no such supervillain appeared, her shaky legs collapsed beneath her. She landed on her knees and tried to collect herself, wondering why she hadn't been more careful. But she didn't ponder the question. She just had to escape, no matter the improbability of it.

But Dialga's generosity seemed to miss her. The elevator stopped before she had even calmed her breathing. She dragged herself onto her shaky legs and patted down her white sundress, glancing left and right to determine her location under the blinding midnight curtain.

The room was large and paved with elevated walkways weaving over and between sections of healthy flora and streams, their beds lined with rocks. Sleeping Pokémon rested on the grass, in the trees, and beside the trickling streams, illuminated by the moon's ivory glow that leaked through the skylight roof. She recognised the room as the facilities' sanctuary, and yet the trepidation frosting her veins made her feel everything the opposite of safe. Neither the tranquil atmosphere nor the harmonious, clustered tweeting from the nocturnal bird Pokémon could rest her nerves.

The girl traipsed through the room like it was a Fearow's nest. As her breathing gradually softened, she decided to hide and wait out the brittle patience of those stalking her – or rather, stalking the being blinking through her unzipped bag with lambent yellow eyes. It seemed a safer idea than running, at least.

She edged warily around a corner toward her chosen hiding place – somewhere she remembered from years of playing in the room as a child – but a vigilant woman blocked her path. She backtracked, taking another route. Along the way, she had to dodge a few other people. She evaded notice until she reached a T-intersection when a strong forearm reached out in front of her. She flinched, the reflexive jolt making her narrowly avoid the hand that brushed her Pokéball duffle bag. She darted down the walkway, took a right turn and then left. When it seemed she might lose him in the dark, she froze as if hit by a Sheer Cold.

At the other end of the path, two strangers clad in white and blue jumpsuits obstructed her. One was a short girl with a long braid of ginger hair, the other a tall, sturdy boy with a curl of amethyst locks draped over his forehead from under his hat. She gasped, recognising them. They had appeared a few weeks ago, emissaries from somewhere. She had avoided them because of a potent unease they carried.

Frightened, the girl backed away. She spun around, attempting to flee, but a few others appeared behind her, breathless. When they acknowledged the situation, their exasperated faces contorted into taunting grins. They advanced like Mightyena, slowly, as if revelling their power. She was trapped.

Overwhelmed and petrified, her mind guessing the consequences of her actions, the girl collapsed to the floor. Her body refused to move after that; she entered a state of shock. Her eyes tingled, then warm tears trickled down her cheeks as her hopelessness dawned on her. She shut her glistening eyes, surrendering, waiting for the inevitable.

Suddenly, a chime with a strange celestial quality sounded, prompting her to open her eyes again. Pure blue energy surged from the bag against her hip, swirling around and engulfing her fragile frame in a shining light. The pursuers, shielding their eyes, were repelled by it.

As if by magic, the mysterious energy whisked her body from the ground, ascending faster than a Thunderbolt. It phased through the glass dome without making a scratch, climbed, and disappeared from the night sky, leaving behind a glittering stream of twinkling stars that soon faded into the darkness.

Link:https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13312681/1/Who-I-Am