Hundreds of years ago

Thud Thud Thud. The sound of boots and paws pattered across the dirt. Responsible for this, a great knight stood from the mighty Kingdom of Rota. If you had one word to describe this trusted knight, it was selfless. His heroic actions in defending his kingdom and name sent shock waves worldwide. His 'never give up' attitude ensured the kingdom's success and is why it's still flourishing today. 

However, he wasn't fighting for his country on this fateful day. Today, he was against his nation fighting for Pokémon. Beside him was a blue wolf-like Pokemon, with metal spikes protruding from his hand's back and a black-like mask surrounding his ruby-red eyes. Next to each other, the duo was seen climbing a steep mountain a couple of kilometres from the perimeter walls of the kingdom of Rota. It was covered with lush green trees and vibrant green grass. 

The knight's legs ached in his black knee-high boots; his black cloak ripped to pieces, and his blue tunic had stains of dried blood dotted about the fabric. His once lavish raven-black hair was now layered with dust. Even when his body screamed for him to stop moving, his determined mind did not deviate from the task. He was not going to give up. He never does. He believed he could do anything as long as he had Lucario at his side.

Suddenly, the mountain levelled, and the pair immediately stopped. The knight's hands went onto his knees as he sucked the life-giving air into his screaming lungs. When he regained enough oxygen, he looked and admired his bear surroundings. Unlike the pristine ground he would find in his kingdom, around him lay a brown and dead environment. No trees grew, only dead shrubbery. No grain of grass grew. Only dirt existed on the barren ground. 

Suddenly, a giant white horse-like creature with a golden ring shot out of a purple portal. When this creature landed, the ground shook like it was experiencing a mini-earthquake. The knight and Lucario stumbled to their knees due to the force generated.

Somewhat shaken, the knight exclaimed, "Arceus, I managed to steal the jewel of life from the kingdom. Were you able to bring every Pokemon to safety?" The knight questioned.

Arceus then stated, "Of course. I am the God of Pokemon for a reason. I have brought every Pokemon on the planet to the reverse world."

"Reverse world?" Aaron confusedly asked.

Arceus then explained, "It is an alternate dimension. It opposes the reality of this world. The two worlds affect each other and are connected but do not intersect." Sir Aaron then nodded in understanding. Arceus then demanded, "Now to important matters, the jewel of life." Hastily, Sir Aaron reached into his torn cloak and pulled out a green orb. The giant creature's green eyes then dilated when seeing the illuminating sphere. Suddenly, the orb started to levitate from Sir Aaron's hands and moved to Arceus. A bright light began to illuminate from the orb. The Knight and fighting-type Pokemon had to shield their eyes from the glowing, luminous orb. When the light subsided, the orb was gone, absorbed into the majestic Pokemon. The Pokemon then exclaimed, "Sir Aaron, I must thank you for everything you have done for Pokemon. You have illustrated that not all humans are selfish, greedy and narrow-minded creatures. However, your species is not capable of living in tandem with Pokemon. Yet. Thus, we must go into hiding in the reverse world. You can keep Lucario if you wish, but beware of the consequence if he is spotted."

Suddenly, the sound of battle horns and boots stomping echoed loudly around the mountain range. The kingdom of Rota is coming. Promptly, Sir Aaron then turned to his best friend and stared down into his red eyes. The knight said, "You are going to this reverse world; it is unsafe here."

Lucario's eyes grew wide with disbelief, "No master, I want to stay here with you. I have learnt so much from you. You have saved my life and the lives of Pokemon plenty of times. Now let me repay you," begged Lucario.

The knight then chuckled. "Lucario... it is too dangerous here. I have taught you everything I know, and you have taught me everything I need to know about the aura. If you want to repay me, protect the Pokemon I have protected over the past few years. And teach the future generations about aura and everything I have taught you. That is how you will repay me." The yell of the horns and boots was growing louder and louder as time went by. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. They don't know that I was helping you two." He added while gesturing to the two Pokemon.

The aura Pokemon then dipped his head and slumped his shoulders. Suddenly, the Pokemon wrapped its paws around the knight, tightly squeezing him. Sir Aaron chuckled at the gesture. Lucario mumbled, "I'm going to miss you, master." Even if Lucario couldn't see his face, Sir Aaron smiled like Wynaut.

"I'm going to miss you too, Lucario. And stop calling me master. It's making me feel like I am an old man. I haven't started to grow grey hair, right?" Sir Aaron exclaimed while anxiously touching his hair. Lucario chuckled at the remark and nodded. They then broke the embrace. The knight then looked at Arceus and announced, "You two should go before you get spotted. And remember Lucario, never give up till the end." Both Pokemon agreed with the statement. Lucario then started to turn away. However, it was then abruptly stopped by a hand grabbing its wrist. Confused, Lucario looked up and saw Sir Aaron wearing his blue and black hat. Lucario immediately shook his head at the offer. Sir Aaron then replied, "Take it. Use it to remember me. Use it so you can reminisce the memories we have forged and as a symbol. A symbol that represents the connection that humans and Pokemon can make." Sir Aaron placed the hat on Lucario's head and touched his shoulder. The knight then cheekily proclaimed, "You look good with it. Maybe it will help you find a mate. I caught you eyeing some of the female Pokemon." Lucario then blushed in embarrassment, which made Sir Aaron laugh.

Lucario bowed to Sir Aaron and announced, "Thank you, Sir Aaron. I will ensure your hat is kept in pristine condition. But I hopefully won't be using it to find a mate." With a smile on both faces, Lucario turned and hopped onto Arceus. Suddenly, a purple portal appeared in front of the Pokemon.

Before Arceus could fly through the portal, the two friends could take one last look at each other. They both nodded and did one final wave at each other. Both were choking back tears. As quickly as the portal appeared, it disappeared, along with Lucario and Arceus, like an Alakazam using teleport.

The tips of spears and horses' heads then appeared over the hill. The cavalry then pulled up in front of the lonely knight. The horsemen leading the squad asked, "Sir Aaron, is everything okay? What happened to that creature you were chasing? And where did the orb go?"

"Don't worry. I made sure that the creature would never come back. It's gone now. But I couldn't find the orb it stole," exclaimed the calm knight. The point man signalled to his squad to sheave their swords. They obliged.

The squad leader beamed, "Thank you, Sir Aaron, you saved the day again. It is a pity about the orb, however."

"My pleasure." Sir Aaron stated. "But we must not say anything about this incident. If word gets out that there are creatures with this amount of power, then who knows what people will do with them." The squadron nodded, then turned around, starting their trek down the mountain. When they were out of view, Sir Aaron turned to where the portal was and thought, 'Stay safe, Lucario. Stay safe. And then he turned around and continued down back to his kingdom.

In the reverse world, when seeing Sir Aaron walking away, Lucario signed a breath of relief and also thought, 'Stay safe mas... My friend, stay safe, my friend.' And turned away from the crystal and cautiously placed Sir Aaron's hat so all the Pokemon could see. He then turned to help Arceus and the other Pokemon settle into their new home, that is, in another dimension.

Present Time Ash's POV

One of the best things you can have is a loving family and friends.

I had a loving family and good friends. Until my father, Red, disappeared three years ago when he explored the Viridian forest.  He is presumed dead nowadays, but his body was never discovered. Police and detectives worked tirelessly for weeks to try to find anything—spores, clues, blood. But there was nothing.  People say a bear or some other predator attacked him. But I don't care what happened to him. I want him back. I didn't realise how much my father meant to me until he was gone. Since then, my life has been spiralling out of control. My grades have plummeted in most subjects; teachers hate me, every student despises me in some way or another, my friends have left, my best friend Serena, who I have known since my childhood, has also left me. But she doesn't get involved with the bullying. She seems slightly regretful about it. So that's a very slight positive. However, she doesn't attempt to stop it. If she truly cared, she would have tried to stop the bullying.

And finally, my amazing stepfather, Giovanni. Let's say the man would not win any father of the Year awards soon. He is also a man who has no clue about fashion. I mean, who wears an orange suit every single day? But his attribute is even worse than his fashion sense. He despises me. It's like he thinks I'm the worst thing in his life. He always tries to put me down, telling me to give up, even hitting/beating me at some points. But I will never give up. Dad always told me to never give up until the end. To top it all off, Giovanni is the principal of Pallet High. I know a match made in heaven. At least my mum is there for me. She cares for me, but Dad's disappearance broke her.

I don't think she can deal with losing me. So, I try to look after her the best I can. Thankfully, she isn't the only one who can tolerate me. Some teachers at Pallet High are nice. Brock (Biology and math teacher), Cilian (Home econmics teacher [cooking] and a part-time actor), and Tracy (Art Teacher) all seem to be content with my presence. I mean, they don't send me to detention for no reason. Perhaps they pity me. That's a plus. But besides them, everyone resents me in some way. 

But today was a new day, the sun is shining, and the birds were happily chirping once again. Maybe today is the day things change. People suddenly become nicer, some gift from another world or dimension? Who knows? Miracles can happen, and I'll be there when they strike. 

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Author's Note

Hello reader, thanks for reading my first-ever chapter. I hope you enjoyed it. Don't hesitate to give me constructive criticism and vote if you enjoyed the chapter.