Chapter 74: I'm Going to Beat You, Mammon!
So what was it?
Mammon studied Ash with genuine curiosity.
As the protagonist of the anime, Ash's raw power in the early and mid-series had never been the point — but his luck with legendary Pokémon was something else entirely. Maxed out didn't begin to cover it.
Every region he traveled through, without fail — whether in the series or in the movies — he managed to encounter essentially every legendary and Mythical Pokémon the area had to offer. The relationship varied. Sometimes they ended up close. Sometimes they parted as rivals. But he always found them.
So what could a Ash who'd only just set out possibly be carrying that would register to Dark Mewtwo as something worth noting?
There was one obvious answer.
Ho-Oh.
The first legendary Pokémon Ash had ever encountered — on the very first day of his journey. A Pokémon that appeared to almost no one. If it was Ho-Oh's aura lingering on him, that would explain everything.
Though — the standard Ash had seen Ho-Oh. He hadn't exactly had a close encounter. Just a glimpse across a rainbow sky. That alone shouldn't leave a lasting imprint.
But Mammon thought of something else immediately.
I Choose You.
In that film, Ash still left Pallet Town with a reluctant Pikachu, still got chased by a flock of Spearow, still had Pikachu unlock something extraordinary to drive them off, still watched Ho-Oh appear above a rainbow after the rain.
But in that version, Ho-Oh had left something behind.
A Rainbow Wing. Deliberately left for Ash.
The Rainbow Wing — also called the Rainbow Feather — was a treasure that only appeared in the hands of someone Ho-Oh had specifically chosen. It marked its bearer as a candidate for the Rainbow Hero: the one who, after passing the trials set by Ho-Oh's three guardians Entei, Suicune, and Raikou, would be permitted to meet Ho-Oh at the land where the rainbow ends.
So it's the movie version of Ash.
Something shifted in Mammon's expression.
The Pokémon world did have a parallel universe theory — and it wasn't just theory. Parallel worlds genuinely existed. The I Choose You Ash and the series Ash were substantially different people in substantially different timelines. Even just looking at travel companions — the film Ash never traveled with Misty and Brock.
And the most significant difference was talent. The film version of Ash had been written with the game protagonist Red as the actual template. He was genuinely, almost unreasonably gifted. His Pikachu was holding its own against Ho-Oh before the first region was even finished — officially it had probably lost, but it had traded blows for a real stretch. And there was no Charizard refusing to battle in the middle of a tournament, no absurd "my Pokémon is going on strike" arc. If anything, the film Ash had considered dropping Pikachu and his Charmander early on for being too weak — only for Marshadow's intervention to bring him back to his own convictions.
If this really is the film version's talent level, that's actually interesting.
"Mammon!"
He hadn't finished the thought before Ash's voice cut through it.
"Hm?" Mammon tilted his head.
"Let's battle! I'm really strong, you know!"
Ash challenged him without a second of hesitation. His eyes were burning — not with arrogance, just pure, uncomplicated fighting spirit.
"Ash—?" Misty and Brock both blinked.
Battle Mammon? He was the Indigo Conference champion from last year. Ash was strong for a brand-new Trainer, genuinely surprisingly so, but that gap was—
Then again. This was Ash.
They both relaxed.
"A battle — I'd actually like that." Mammon laughed despite himself. "I'm curious what you've got."
Ash's face broke into a full grin. He said he wants to know my strength. That means he's taking me seriously.
"Not today, though. I have somewhere to be. Let's save it for next time — deal?"
Mammon smiled as he said it, and meant it. He did have things to handle. And there was no rush on the battle itself.
If this was the standard series Ash, he was essentially a beginner right now and a match wouldn't be interesting. If it was the film version's talent — it would be slightly more entertaining, but still only slightly. Better to let him develop properly first and then enjoy the result. Mammon had never had much interest in beating up small fry. That wasn't the kind of strength he was looking for.
"Aw, that's a shame…"
Ash's whole posture drooped.
"Don't be disappointed. If we're meant to meet again, we will." Mammon's mouth curved. "Until then — get strong as fast as you can. My Pokémon are not gentle, and I'd rather you not get rolled over in two seconds like every random kid on the road when we finally battle."
Misty and Brock both winced slightly. That was… a lot of confidence.
"I DEFINITELY won't! I'm going to be a Pokémon Master — I don't lose like that!" Ash's fist was clenched, his whole face lit up with the declaration.
Not just not lose — he was going to beat Mammon. Take down last year's Indigo Conference champion.
"We won't lose to you! Right, Pikachu?"
"Pika… chu?"
"Come on, Pikachu, put some feeling into it—"
The Trainer was radiating fighting spirit. The Pikachu, for its part, had quietly swallowed and was keeping its eyes very deliberately away from Armored Mewtwo.
"Full of energy. I'll be waiting, then."
Mammon's smile widened. Ash was genuinely entertaining.
"Goodbye for now. Oh — if you have some time, there's a Game Corner a few blocks over. Win enough tokens and you can exchange them for some fairly rare Pokémon."
"Come on, Mewtwo."
He gave a small wave to the three of them and walked away.
"A Game Corner?" Ash fell into a thinking expression, mentally calculating his wallet situation.
Mammon and Armored Mewtwo found a residential building nearby, slipped through a hidden entrance, and descended into the underground base.
Which, strangely, was sounding a low, grating alarm.
"Gladion — what's going on?"
Mammon stepped quickly into the main control room. Gladion was the only one there, eyes moving steadily across the bank of security monitors.
"Someone infiltrated the base. Ariana took a team to find them."
"Hm. Gutsy."
Mammon raised an eyebrow. The Celadon base was one of Team Rocket's major Kanto operations — concealment measures were thorough, and the entry points had constant coverage. Getting in undetected wasn't a small achievement.
"Mewtwo — let's go find our little mouse."
He wondered, briefly, whether the intruder was a boy or a girl.
If it was a girl—
☆☆☆
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Inkshaper
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you