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Chapter Text

Ash Ketchum hated being mute.

It wasn’t his fault that he contracted a disease that effectively destroyed his vocal chords as a baby. He never asked for that disease, nor did he ask to have a missing father either. Every child in Pallet Town had a father, even if they didn’t see them all the time because of work or other commitments, and they gave him hell for it.

They taunted him, saying that his father ran away because he didn’t want some freak of nature who couldn’t even make a single sound, let alone speak. They mocked him for even indicating that he wanted to be involved with Pokémon in the future. How could be a trainer or coordinator if he can’t even speak to give commands, they sneered. They took advantage of his inability to scream for help by ganging up on him, attacking him with kicks and blows, until some random adult happened to pass by and chased them off.

Ash was used to this, but that doesn’t mean it got any easier.

Especially with that weird voice that he heard periodically.

“Ah-ah-ah-Ahhhhhhh….!”

It was a male voice, quite deep in tone, and Ash would hear it almost at random at any time of the day or night. Sometimes, he’d hear it while out with his mother. He’d hear it when he was at kindergarten. And even when he was sleeping, the voice would wake him up and subsequently deprive him of any rest until sunrise.

Furthermore, it seemed that only he could hear the voice. In the times he heard it with his mother, she always said she didn’t hear anything. She brought him to a specialist to check if he had any problems with his ears, but nothing was ever found or diagnosed. To add insult to injury, though Ash didn’t quite understand it at the time, the specialist even suggested that he be institutionalised, at which his mother yelled at the man and dragged Ash out of the clinic.

As it happened, word spread that the mute freak was hearing voices that no one could hear, which the bullies gleefully added to their arsenal to torment Ash further.

All in all, Ash hated his life, and often wondered what had he done wrong to deserve such hardship.

Maybe Arceus hated him and deliberately made his existence terrible just because they thought it would be a funny joke.

‘Dear child, if I could tell you that I never wanted you to go through such hardships, I would do so in a heartbeat.’

High above in the heavens, in a great colonnaded hall overlooking the planet as we know it, the creator of the universe and the god of all living beings, Arceus himself, gazed upon the sight of a lonely, beaten boy of five; with black hair, freckles in the shape of lightning bolts, and honey-whiskey irises that steadily lost their lustre each day, with immense sadness and regret.

Even though he was the one to create this particular universe, the intricate workings of the greater cosmos predated him. There was a rule that not even Arceus could circumvent – if something is given, something else must be taken.

In this case, Ash Ketchum was blessed with a great power that few humans and Pokémon were able to utilise, at the cost of his voice and his father, who now resided in the Hall of Origin with Arceus.

The man’s mortal existence, with great misfortune, was cut short in the line of duty to protect Kanto from a great evil who threatened to conquer the region and enslave the innocent to their nefarious crimes. He gave his life for his home and family, and was taken away from the mortal plane.

Said man, dressed in a white robe that bled into red down the length, joined the creator’s side, gazing down towards the world.

“Great Arceus, what troubles you right now?”

Just like his son, the man was mute when he was alive, not because of illness, but from the trauma of seeing how terrible his world had been corrupted by the great evil he had vanquished. While on the mortal plane, he communicated with hand signals, otherwise known as sign language. But after he joined Arceus in the Hall of Origin, he was granted the ability to communicate through the mind, also known as telepathy.

“Your son thinks that I created him simply to give him a miserable existence,” Arceus replied with a rumbling sigh, “He truly believes that I am a heartless monster who revels in the suffering of innocents.”

The man’s expression turned sombre, “The cosmos are the ones who are heartless, Great Arceus. Yet I don’t blame him for a second.”

It truly broke the man’s heart to see his son go through such a tortured existence. His calls to the young boy were a constant attempt to reassure him that even though he wasn’t able to be physically there for his son, that he was watching over him. Though it became quickly apparent that the man’s calls only caused the boy more grief instead.

“Is there anything we can do for him?”

“The time draws near for him to begin his training. His fate has been cast into the stone of Shamouti Island. He will need everything and more to withstand the trials that will rise before him. I will do everything in my power to aid your son, as a form of compensation for the suffering he was unjustly made to endure.”

“Great Arceus, I can only thank you for your generosity.”

“It is the least I can do.”

To Be Continued.

Chapter Text

“That’ll teach you to cross our paths, freak!”

Ash lay prone on the ground, covered in bruises as the other boys went away, laughing cruelly and congratulating themselves on another successful beat-down. Ash waited for the laughter to fade, before attempting to pick himself up.

His bullies were his age, so thankfully they still weren’t strong enough to cause serious injury such as broken bones. Nonetheless, the bruises still smarted, and Ash’s body groaned in pain as he finally managed to sit up and brush the dirt off his body and clothes.

For a moment, he wondered why was he a constant victim of such attacks, what sin or evil did he commit to warrant such violent beatings almost every single day of the school week. Ash brushed that thought aside. They always said that children are the purest, most innocent beings in the world. Ash knew that whoever came up with that concept is just spewing bullshit.

Children are among the most evil, cruel monsters to ever roam the world.

In the distance, the bell signalling the end of afternoon playtime rang, but Ash had no interest in returning. He didn’t want to go back to a place where his peers made clear that he wasn’t wanted. So he didn’t.

Ash waited until all the children had gone back inside, before standing up and limping away towards the forest that the kindergarten stood adjacent to. Pallet Forest was home to only Pidgey and Oddish, both species that would often run or fly off when a human came too close. Ash knew that he would not face any trouble wandering around this natural green space, and it’s not like anyone would come looking for him for a while anyway.

The path was worn, but at the same time also well-maintained. As far as the eye could see, it was just trees, foliage, and falling leaves. Ash wandered aimlessly for about ten minutes, coming up to a large maple tree just off the path. Feeling a little tired, he slumped down the trunk of the tree, and simply zoned out.

For a short while, he forgot about everything. The bullying, the weird voice, his muteness, his mother always giving him uncertain looks because his interactions with her have dwindled to the point of nonexistence. His ears picked up the leaves rustling as a breeze blew through the trees, the occasional chirp of a Pidgey, and the quiet padding of feet by a passing Oddish. The sun filtered through the gaps in the leaves, reflecting off his eyes in a manner that resembled dulled diamonds.

If he could just lay here forever, he would give anything in the world for it.

“It is time.”

The robed man in red turned to the creator.

“Great Arceus, do not forget your promise.”

“I won’t,” Arceus replied, “I owe your son this much.”

Stepping back into the centre of the great hall, the creator summoned down two plates from the high ceiling – Fighting and Steel. Then, he brought down a third, one that was glowing a vibrant blue. The three plates hovered into a triangular formation around Arceus, and began orbiting him at a slow pace.

“Strength of hundreds, knowledge of ancient past, and power blessed to few. Come together to form the Chosen’s companion!”

The three orbiting plates rose above Arceus, and spun faster. A white glow encompassed all three plates, before three beams of light converged together and collided. An orb began to grow where the beams met, pulsing with energy the bigger it became.

“Go, and serve him well.”

The orb broke away from the plates, and shot out of the hall. The robed man watched as it descended towards Earth like a comet. As the orb disappeared from sight, he thought, ‘Ash, I’m really sorry that I can’t be with you. May your companion be the light that chases away the darkness.’

Ash didn’t know how long he laid there against the tree, zoned out and impervious to the world around him. He was aware that the sunlight had dimmed a little, indicating that it was approaching late afternoon, but he made no move to get up.

It was a testament to just how tired he was, when he saw something light up, but even then, he did not move. Not even when the world seemed to get brighter and brighter. Ash only seemed to notice that something was up when the light burst into a blinding dazzle, and a loud BOOM rocked the forest.

Everything seemed to fall away in an instant.

Ash found himself floating in a white void that dazzled with sharp sparkles. Before he realised what was going on, the sparkling lights coalesced together, creating a bipedal form of which Ash wasn’t entirely familiar with. A pair of golden eyes appeared over the head of the bipedal form, and when they fell upon Ash, they sharpened. The form barrelled towards the stunned child, who found himself unable to react when its paw-like appendage slammed into his chest.

And just like that, the void exploded.

Ash opened his eyes. He would have gasped, but his withered vocal chords made sure that he couldn’t. He looked around, he was back in the forest. Nothing indicated that there was any void in the first place.

Other than this strange, young-looking canine-like creature standing before him. It stood on its hind legs, specifically on its toes. It had a black torso, a yellow collar-like ring around its neck, and blue fur that ran down its thighs and tail. It had a black mask-like feature over its golden eyes, and two black appendages hanging from its head.

Ash had no idea what it was. Some kind of Pokémon?

Any further thoughts quickly died when this strange creature went down on one knee, and bowed before him.

“Master,” came a deep voice, startling Ash and making him glance around for any sign of someone else inside the forest, “I was created by the god of all Pokémon, Arceus, to serve you. I am now your bonded, and I have been tasked to teach you the boundless intricacies of Aura. Wherever you go, I will follow until the end of our mortal lives.”

If Ash had the ability to speak, he would have freaked out.

His hanging jaw and disbelieving eyes spoke for him instead.

To Be Continued.