"Raoul, I've been there, to his world of unending night, to a world where daylight dissolves into darkness... darkness..."
—From The Phantom of the Opera
Ash sat up and stared in amazement at the woman he had just met. "But you're my... you're my... my mo... you're my mother!"
The slender, brown-haired woman stared at him in amazement. "Honey, you must have hit your head harder than I thought. I'm not even married."
Ash looked at her again. She looked different, that much was certain. Where his mother had worn a ubiquitous ponytail, this woman's hair cascaded down over her shoulders and back. Where his mother had worn sensible shoes and skirts and blouses, this woman wore a blindingly red jumpsuit, just loose enough to be functional. And where his mother's only association with Pokémon had been the Mr. Mime she had "adopted" from the circus, this woman had a Pokédex and six Poké balls on her belt.
And yet, he knew without a shadow of a doubt that she was the woman who had borne him, potty-trained him, and raised him for the first ten years of his life. Unless someone had cloned her, like Nurse Joy and Officer Jenny (or so he and many others suspected). "No. It's you. You're..." he said her name.
The woman shook her head. "You got my first name right, but my last name is not 'Ketchum'. I knew a man by that name a long time ago, though." She looked at him carefully. "He looked a lot like you, actually."
"That's because he's my dad," Ash said. "You married him, mom. Remember?"
"I did no such thing," the woman who both was and wasn't his mother responded crisply. "I decided to give up dating early on, so that I could pursue Pokémon training. I see you have a Pokémon."
Ash looked down. Pikachu was next to him. It was barely stirring. He picked it up and examined it. "It's not doing so good."
"What happened to it?"
"It got hit with some kind of gun. It was trying to save me, and it jumped in and took the shot."
"What kind of gun? Something like this?" the woman unlimbered a short-barreled weapon that hung behind her on a strap.
Ash stared in amazement. "Exactly like that."
She nodded knowingly. "Neutron pulse gun. Devastating and efficient. Effective against anything except some Pokémon, including electric ones. If your Pikachu hadn't taken that blast, you'd be a French Fry right now."
Ash was confused. "Why do you need a gun if you have Pokémon to protect you?"
"Because I have a lot of enemies." The young woman eyed him. "By the way, I don't use the name you called me by, and haven't for a long time. If you want me to answer, call me Artemis."
"Artemis..." Ash thought about that one. "You're named after the goddess of the hunt, right?"
"Right. Who taught you about that? It's known to very very few people."
Ash had picked that one up in a book he had read, in his previous adventure in another world. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you. Pikachu's still in pretty bad shape." He took out his Pokédex. "Dexter, please show me the location of the nearest Pokémon center."
Dexter did not respond. Ash opened it, and the screen was flashing bright red. The word "MALFUNCTION" was shining in the middle of it.
Artemis took the device, examined it. "Not a serious problem. Just a frequency disruption. The place where you got your Pokédex isn't transmitting, at least not on its frequency."
"You mean Professor Oak's lab?"
Artemis looked at him strangely. "Honey, Oak's lab has been offline for months. Ever since Team Rocket got him."
"Got him?" Ash blanched. "You mean..."
"No, they just captured him," Artemis said with a shrug. "They're using him and this other guy, Cordova or something like that. I don't know why, but I know they have to be stopped." She returned Dexter to Ash. "You should check your Pokédex more often, kid."
"I was using it yesterday, and it worked fine," Ash said hotly. "Something is wrong here."
"I'll say. You think I'm your mother, and Oak's lab is still transmitting," Artemis said. "Next thing I know is you're going to tell me that the gyms are still open and the Indigo League tournament's still being held."
Ash blanched a second time. "You mean it's not?!"
"No, dummy, it's not," Artemis snapped. "Team Rocket put a stop to it when they took over. I finished in the top four last year, and I was the favorite to win this time around. But they cancelled it, and they've been after me and my Pokémon for months now."
"You must have some powerful Pokémon," Ash said admiringly. "Could I see them?"
Artemis nodded and opened her balls. Her Pokémon team consisted of a bright-colored Vileplume, a sturdy Dugtrio, a grinning Haunter, a strong Nidoking, an agile Hitmonlee, and an immense Gyrados. Artemis patted the latter. "I raised this guy from a Magikarp. Because of him, I was favorred to win the tourney."
"They're amazing," Ash said. He had never seen Pokémon as healthy and powerful-looking as those.
Artemis recalled her Pokémon. "Yes, they are. Is Pikachu your only one?"
Ash shook his head. "I have others."
"Where are they?" Artemis queried.
"It's a long story."
"Those are usually the best kind." She patted him on the shoulder. "There's a Pokémon center about three miles from here. I'll walk you there, and you can tell me all about it on the way."
Ash nodded. "All right."
© Oddish c.2000
