"I don't know why, but looking at Ash's face, I feel like he's a little… silly? Is it just me?"
"Hmm… yeah… I kind of feel that too?"
"Could it be that Ash is actually… uh…"
"Cough! No way! Future Ash is a monster who can even defeat Mr. Brandon! There's no way he has anything to do with 'silly'!"
A group of trainers, still reeling from shock, suddenly broke into whispered chatter in the live broadcast room.
No sooner had the words left their lips than everyone locked eyes, and the air instantly froze.
They realized:
They had absolutely, positively, and definitively said nothing at all.
Anyone daring to call him "silly" or "dumb" now… would be risking being fried to a crisp by the future 'Brandon Terminator' Pika-God!
"Wait… there's a reward for me too?"
When the cold, mechanical voice confirmed the exclusive gift, Ash's face was a mixture of disbelief and awe.
He poked his own nose with a finger, as if trying to confirm he hadn't hallucinated.
The voice offered no reply.
But in that instant, Ash clearly felt something heavy and ominously powerful appear in his adventure backpack.
"Let's see what it is," Misty and Brock urged, unable to hide their excitement.
Though they had just been teasing Ash for his recklessness, they now felt genuine pride for their destined-to-be-powerful companion.
Seeing future Ash fight alongside Pikachu, turning the tables and defeating a legendary Pokémon, convinced them: Ash was truly striving toward the pinnacle of his dreams.
Yet… how many lashes from fate would this naïve boy endure before he transformed into the world-shaking master from the videos?
Ash took a deep breath and firmly unzipped his backpack—
A blinding golden light seemed to be drawn by an invisible force, settling steadily into his palm.
At first, it felt light—but the moment it touched his skin, it transformed with a thunderous crash, becoming a block of ancient-looking, golden stone.
Heavy.
An unimaginable weight pressed down into his hand. Ash's fingers quivered, almost failing to hold it.
"Whoa! So heavy!"
"What… what even is this?"
"A gold ingot?"
Sweat formed on his forehead as he clutched the bizarre "stone block," confusion written all over his face.
Then, in the next instant, an enormous, violent stream of information surged into his mind like a thunderbolt:
$A fragment of a primal, raging force capable of summoning the will of supreme lightning.$
"Can… it summon… the wrath of thunder?"
Ash unconsciously spoke the words aloud, utterly bewildered.
Brock and Misty were equally dumbfounded.
What the heck was this?
They prided themselves on being Ash's early "knowledge base," but a description this steeped in mythic power was completely unheard of!
At that moment, two lines of fine yet colossal text appeared in the chatroom, like a divine edict:
Pikachu received a reward: Thunderstone Tablet!
Thunderstone Tablet: When held, greatly enhances Electric-type moves; high-level Electric Pokémon have a small chance to comprehend the primordial essence of thunder.
The words shattered the perception of every elite trainer watching.
All eyes on the screens froze in awe at this chilling description.
Lance: Thunderstone Tablet? Sounds kind of like an antique… but that description—holy crap! Greatly enhances power?! Isn't that way over the top?!
Clemont: Over the top? This is murderous! Absolute injustice! Pikachu was already absurdly strong, and now it's being infused with the primordial power of electricity? They're basically crowning it Pika-God!
Chairman Goodshow: Stone tablet… there are vague records of such items in Sinnoh. Cynthia, as Sinnoh Champion, how much do you know about the Thunderstone Tablet?
Cynthia: Yes, President. While studying ancient ruins, I came across legends about these "tablets."
Other trainers A: Ash, don't get near it! Please!
Other trainers B: Ash, move away!
Cynthia, sitting elegantly in the shade of a Sinnoh tree, licking an ice cream slowly, looked completely detached.
She needed time to piece together the timeline of the world.
Under the urging of everyone else, she finally typed the next lines carefully:
Cynthia: According to ancient texts, legends of these tablets exist throughout Sinnoh. It is said that at the dawn of the universe, a supreme being fragmented its power to create these objects called "tablets."
Cynthia: The power endowed to a tablet surpasses mortal giants. Time and space themselves emerged with its creation.
Cynthia: Before the universe opened, only the tablet breathed. Later, Pokémon that acquire fragments of a tablet's power can wield authority and enact creation's might.
Whoa!
These words struck like a surge of overclocked electricity, instantly shattering the perception of all spectators.
Though Cynthia's explanation was dense, the top trainers quickly understood the terrifying truth:
The tablet's power originates from a primordial, universe-forging deity.
And the fragments in the tablet contain the elemental source of that power.
The Thunderstone Tablet corresponds to the purest, most violent force of lightning in nature.
A lightning incarnation like Pikachu, now holding a tablet infused with primordial thunder,… ah!
What an unfair twist of fate! What human injustice!
Pikachu must immediately be renamed—they all agreed: Pika-God!
Countless trainers, tears streaming, hearts heavy with despair, watched as:
The Pokémon that had already single-handedly destroyed a full-health Regice now had its power artificially elevated another tier!
If this continues, Pikachu's strength might soon surpass one of Kanto's legendary birds—Zapdos!
Right?! This is inevitable!
"I can't even imagine how far Pikachu will soar once it masters the Thunderstone Tablet…"
"Calm down! Everyone calm down! Worst-case scenario, Kanto's Electric legendary just gets replaced by Pikachu!"
"Calm down? How the hell can I calm down! Ash is still a rookie! I want to know if I'll meet this newbie with a 'fragment of creation' at the Quartz Conference this year!"
"Ah… my body is trembling…"
"Trembling +10086!"
They all suddenly realized something terrifying:
The Ash in the videos, already godlike, is from the future—they can't meet him.
But this current Ash, a rookie already wielding a divine artifact, exists in their timeline, and he's about to compete in the Kanto League elimination matches!
~~--------------------------
Visit my patreon for 30+ advance chapters: patreon.com/DevilWarden