You know, hearing the tale of the Samurai’s ancestor makes me think that he’s a descendant of that one dude from the Sinnoh myth about the guy from Veilstone who wantonly slaughtered Pokémon with his blade.

It’s probably not the case, but the similarities are there

Holy fuck this story is dark. I'm surprised it isn't rated M.

I don't believe this is right. We are in the middle of a plot thread, how can this be marked as complete?

Anyway, diplomacy go! It pleases me greatly to see humans and pokemon speaking on eye-to-eye terms, respect between sapients. And hey, Mimey called Ivec out on how much of a fucking hypocrite he was. That's always a pleasure.

Pokemon having more personality, motivations and feelings has been uplifting and in this case, heartbreaking. Poor Ash, poor Pidgeot...

This entire story deserves a musical track, and if I can name one, it would be "Mist Ache" from the Rise Of The Triad soundtrack. It's a loaded, somber and anguished track full of desperation, exactly like this whole story.

I see you're dropping in fun facts again, Corns. So here's another one:

Regular blood is red, but NOT just because it's red. It is, in tact, an extremely concentrated YELLOW. You can see it by putting a drop in water - it dissolves into a yellow color. So yeah, nothing should be "pink" in the gore-stained ship; at most it should be brown from it drying up and coagulating.

And so, once again, Pokémon stops being Pokémon and becomes XCOM.

That poked my emotions

Fucking brutal I LOVE IT

what? It was going so well then... what? What?! i just... What?

I’m not sure if Ash was thinking to himself or is it someone else talking to him.

Oh wait, I forgot, they weren't the ones that killed his mother, it was . Hopefully I didn't spoil that for anyone lol.

You know, normally forming an alliance with the faction that just tried to kill off your side so soon wouldn't go over so well. Not sure if this is a smart idea or a really stupid one, but at some point they do have to start making allies. Bringing Tracy to negotiate was probably pushing it, but it was likely a very good thing they didn't bring Ash, since there was no telling how he would react to seeing the Spearow and Fearow that killed not only his mother, but a few of his pokemon as well.

Also, I guess this kind of marks the moment where Mr. Mime started manipulating Ash's mental state. I remember Samarui found out about it in the other version, so this could turn interesting, especially if starts realizing he can't hold back whatever it is that is currently brewing inside Ash's head.

Heh, well you probably made a lot of BunearyXPikachu shippers really happy with this chapter lol.

After the last few chapters roiled in the excesses of needless darkness (even for this story) and melodrama I find this chapter a glorious return to form.

Despite ghost Ivec's taunts I find it fascinating how it's had a strangely positive effect on Ash. It makes him decide not to sink to the levels of barbarism that everyone runs the risks of falling into. To one day be a man of vision who can forge a new society with both war AND diplomacy.

And for once, I liked a romance scene in a Pokemon fanfic. I liked that there was a reason for Pikachu to proposition to Buneary. He has no idea if he loves her, but the deaths of his friends means that he doesn't want there to any more regrets caused by losing people so starting a romantic relationship is worth the risk. It has the potential to be low-key and non-intrusive. The est kind of romance in a war drama.

And I love Brock's plan. Making a deal with the Fearow to fight the Beedrill is a stroke of genius. If they're victorious they can curtail a invasive species while establishing a more stable ecosystem of the Fearow only needing to feed on the Beedrill who multiply to wantonly giving some stability to the Pallet area making it less of a death trap.

That was a nice and peaceful chapter... for a change. :D I'm glad Ukeke might survive, I liked him as a character since he was introduced and was hoping he wouldn't be slaughtered in the fight. I hope alls well that ends well, in the sense that in the battle to come doesn't end with a ton more casualties. Nice chapter as usual. I'm looking forward to the final chapter of this arc, and with it some possible conclusions to all this madness in Pallet.