Mewtwo Reborn: Ash's Metamorphosis

Transformation

Ash knew this was a stupid idea. Despite what his friends believed, the teen wasn't unaware that he could be reckless, and would charge head first into a situation without thought of his own personal safety, but usually it was because he was so desperate to help. Ash had always taken after his mother in that way, never denying help to anyone who needed it. Always willing to lend a hand no matter the task as long as it lightened someone's burden. So yes, Ash knew he could get idiotically reckless when he was desperate to stop a situation and right now this was the most desperate the raven-haired male had felt in his entire 16 years of life. A massive storm ravaged the world outside the castle, Pokemon and clones were fighting to kill each other around him, and at the center of it all were two legendary Pokemon battling it out to prove which side was the superior. So Ash, being the person he was, of course, ran into the battle with no thought to himself or his friend's voices screaming at him to come back. He watched as Mew and Mewtwo floated on opposite sides of the arena, each charging up for another massive attack. The very air vibrated with powerful energy that had every hair on the teen's body rising in fear, but Ash pushed on and continued running. He just wanted them to listen, to stop this pointless bloodshed.

"STOP!"He screamed as he reached the center of the field, hoping that one of the legendaries would hear him.

But his pleas fell on deaf ears.

Ash felt the two forces of psychic energy hit him simultaneously and then his whole world was nothing but torture. His flesh, his bones, even his very molecules felt like they were being burned away. The sound of muffled shouting could be heard, but Ash was unable to understand the ringing in his ears. Enormous pressure was building in his chest and head like a balloon with too much helium reaching its limits. Ash knew he must be dying, there was no way that something this painful wasn't being followed by death. He wished for it. For the burning to stop, for his brain to not feel like it was being pressed inside of a meat grinder. Why did it hurt so much? More muffled shouting was heard around him, but this time even that felt like too much to his overstimulated senses. Ash found himself crying out before instinctively curling up in a feeble attempt to block out the world around him, but the pain did not stop. If anything it burned hotter in retaliation. Pressure continues to build, build, build. Make it stop. Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP!

Something inside his body cracked and Ash released another blood-curdling cream. Another crack, another fire set ablaze, another wave of spots in his already blurry vision. He knew he was reaching his limit. No mortal body could endure something like this for long. So he let himself be dragged further and further into darkness. Wishing he could have heard his best friend one more time, to make sure his sacrifice actually made a difference.

"PikaPi......Ash...."

Consciousness came back slowly to Ash. His thoughts were painfully sluggish as he connected with his body's senses. His mouth was dry as desert sand, his head throbbing with pain, and every muscle of his body felt rung out and weak like that of a newborn deerling. What had happened? Why did he feel so awful? His memories felt fuzzy in his still recovering mind so Ash just lay there hoping it would all come back to him soon. He attempted to open his eyes to get his bearings but quickly shut them with a pained hiss when the room's bright lights caused his lingering migraine to worsen.

"Ash?" a silvery voice questioned and it was only then that the teen realized that something small and warm was resting against his side. The sound of the voice was very familiar, but Ash knew that couldn't be right for obvious reasons. He once again cracked his eyes open and this time glanced down to find his best friend Pikachu cuddled up next to him, glancing up with small black eyes filled with concern. Ash tried to speak but only a garbled croak came out followed by sharp pins and needles in his throat. It felt as if he'd been screaming for hours on end with no break. The young man proceeded to cough roughly before something smooth and cold touched his forehead. Ash quickly shot his gaze up to see what it was, only to regret it instantly when his head screamed at him for the sudden movement. He released a whimper before clutching his head and curling into a fetal position in an attempt to stave off the pain. Another touch came to Ash's head, this time warm and soft, and after a moment something that felt like a cooling mist began seeping into his mind and soothing the migraine down to a manageable level. Ash released a heavy sigh of relief as he leaned further into the unknown touch.