After their visit to Professor Oak, Delia and her newborn son, Ash, returned home. Ash's eyes darted across his surroundings, scanning every detail with a strange intensity that no ordinary infant should possess. Clearly, he was trying to accomplish something—but what exactly, only he knew.
Delia opened the door to their modest house with a soft smile, stepping inside.
'Whoa…' Ash thought, awe washing over him. 'I've seen this house in the games, manga, and anime—but seeing it like this, in person? It's on a whole other level. It's… beautiful.'
He wasn't exaggerating. The house, though average in size, was warm and inviting. The walls were freshly painted, the furniture well-kept, and the entire first floor exuded a homey charm. It felt lived in—cozy, familiar, safe.
*Happy baby noises*
"What do you think, Ash? Do you like our house?" Delia cooed as she gently cradled him.
*More cheerful baby noises*
"Alright then, let's take you to your room."
Delia climbed the stairs and entered a brightly colored nursery. It was spacious, with a Pokémon-themed crib tucked in one corner, shelves full of plush toys and children's books in the other, and posters of the three Kanto starters hanging neatly on the walls. The entire room looked like it had leapt straight out of the anime.
*Happy baby noises*
"You like it, sweetheart?" Delia asked again.
*Happy baby flails*
"I'm glad," she smiled.
She gently placed Ash in the crib, tucked him in, and began softly humming a lullaby. Her voice was melodic, tender—filled with love. As the last note faded, she kissed his forehead and left the room.
The moment the door closed, Ash exhaled.
'Phew, finally. I have to admit that her voice is beautiful, but singing a lullaby to a grown up man is just… unbearable'.
He stared at the ceiling, eyes sharp with determination.
'There's so much I need to do. First off: information. I need to gather everything I can about this timeline. Judging from what Arceus told me… this world is dangerous. Way more than any game or anime arc ever showed.'
'Second: I have to awaken my Aura powers. ASAP. I can't rely on game logic or anime plot armor. If I want to survive—if I want to protect my friends—I need power. Real power.'
'Third: I need to confirm which characters exist in this version of the world. So far, I've met Delia and Professor Oak. But I know Gary exists, and that confirms we're in the base Kanto timeline… but are we closer to the anime, the manga, or something completely new?'
Ash's brow furrowed.
'Fourth: will Oak give me Pikachu, like in the anime, or Charmander, like in the games and manga? Objectively, Pikachu's kind of busted—he's zapped Ground-types more times than I can count, and that is a big advantage. But… his power fluctuates so much it gives me whiplash. One day he's beating a Latios, the next he's fainting to a fresh Snivy. Charmander's my favorite though, and fully evolved he's a beast—but if we're going full power scaling, Pikachu might give me an edge early on.'
'But let's be real: I'm Ash, not the anime Ash, I'm a reborn Ash with Red's legacy, there's a chance I might not get either starter the same way. I'll just have to wait and see.'
'But I can't find do anything about this, not yet. I will need to wait'.
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[Timeskip - 47 days]
Ash lay quietly in his crib, staring at the ceiling again, but this time with the expression of someone deep in thought. Despite his baby-sized body, his mind had been working nonstop.
'Alright, it's been nearly a month and a half since I was reborn, and I've learned a lot. Let's go over the big stuff.'
'1. People in this world are ridiculously strong.'
'Last week, "Mom" carried five massive boxes from our house to her restaurant alone. I thought they were light.. until I saw that she placed the boxes on a scale and it showed 100 kilograms. And she didn't even break a sweat.'
'I legit thought she was part Machamp. But biologically, aside from that strength, humans here develop just like Earth humans.'
'2. People do eat Pokémon.'
'I mean, that actually makes sense. I kinda suspected this after remembering that old scene where Brock and Ash were drooling over a grilled Magikarp… but now I've confirmed it. But weirdly enough, normal animals exist here too. The thing is, they're considered defective Pokémon—born with faulty genomes. They can't fight, so they are considered failures. However, their meat is extremely expensive and way more delicious than normal Pokemon's.'
'3. Kalos was discovered recently, but the Fairy-type and Mega-Evolutions are still unknown.'
'Dark and Steel types were only officially added a few months before I was born. Alola exists too, but it's seen as a primitive archipelago with "unusual wild Pokémon." Regional forms haven't been discovered yet. Which means… I might be able to claim a lot of credit in the future.'
'4. As of now, the only active villain team is Team Rocket.'
'But even they're just a small-time gang. No Silph Co invasions yet. No world domination schemes. The others—Magma, Aqua, Galactic, Plasma, Flare, Skull—they haven't even formed. Which means I might be able to stop some of them before they ever become a threat.'
'5. Levels, natures, and stats exist, but they're seen more as averages than absolutes.'
'Natures work just like in the games, but the levels and stats are not something fixed, it's more like an average. But that leads me to something really important, the EVs and IVs have NOT been discovered yet. This is huge. If I start training with that knowledge, I'll be miles ahead of any trainer I meet.'
'6. Aura users are real, but extremely rare.'
'According to what I've gathered, there are fewer than fifteen known Aura users worldwide. Sixteen, if I count myself. I've been training every night, trying to feel even a spark of Aura—but nothing so far.'
Still, from what I've researched, advanced Aura users can:
-Sense the life force (Aura) of humans and Pokémon
-Deactivate special skills and abilities (Viridian Power, psychic powers, etc.)
-Heal both humans and Pokémon
-Use techniques like Aura Sphere, Detect, and Protect
-Transfer Aura to living beings
-Activate Time Flowers to view the past
-Be able to comunicate telepathically
-Improved strength
-Enhance strength, speed, stamina, and senses
-Deepen bonds with Pokémon, and with that, activate Battle Bond.
'Yes, the Battle Bond was something that existed when there were a lot of Aura users in the past. Apparently, it was a last resort technique that allowed the Pokémon to temporarily overcome its limits, but the trainer could die in the process. The fact that Ash managed to use the Battle Bond with Greninja multiple times with just ending up being tired or fainting, proves that Ash's Aura potential was the best of the whole history of Pokemon'.
'The thing is... I am not just Ash, I am a mix of the original Ash and Red, so my Aura should be five or six times stronger than the original Ash, which means I can match or even surpass that. And if I can… I'll be unstoppable.'
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Ash sighed (as much as a baby could), his tiny fists clenched with resolve.
'All of this took a lot of work. I had to sneak out of my crib at night, sneak into the local library, and crawl through the dark to gather books and read. Delia almost caught me more than once—but I managed to keep the act up.'
'Now I just need to unlock my Aura. Last night I found a book that listed ancient techniques to awaken it. I'm going to start trying them tonight.'
'So from now on—every single night—I'll meditate. Even if it takes years. Because when the journey begins… I'll be ready.'