Pokemon

REVELATION OF THE MASTER

Disclaimer: I do not own pokemon, never have and never will. I writing this because I love pokemon and I’m making no money off it whatsoever so don’t sue me!

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Part 2: Battles and memories

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The sun shone brightly and warmly as it rose over the horizon. There were only a few clouds in the sky and they were large, beautiful ones. A cool breeze blew, making the air a perfectly comfortable temperature. The hills were already filled with the sounds of Beedrill and Butterfree visiting flowers. Ash got up from his sleeping bag and smiled, it was going to be a perfect day he thought. He suddenly realized how hungry he was as his stomach growled, demanding to be filled. "I wish I was home," he said in a whining manner. "Mom always makes the best food."

"Well we would have been there by now if you hadn’t insisted on chasing that Wooper for so long. Pallet is only a few hours walk from Indigo you know," an irritated but pretty voice said from underneath a sleeping bag several feet away.

Ash cocked an eyebrow. "Ah you know you wanted to catch that Wooper just as much as I did Misty." His voice was basically the same as it had always been but had gotten slightly deeper and less scratchy. A bit taller and more muscular the young trainer was quickly maturing.

The red head only growled in reply and got up to get some water from a nearby stream, flashing a smile to show she wasn’t actually mad. Though it had grown a bit longer she still wore her hair up in a ponytail though less often then she had used to. Taller and less scrawny her beauty was rapidly blossoming.

Ash laughed a bit. Even though he and Misty were dating they still argued a lot. It was usually a lot of fun and in the rare event they actually hurt each other’s feelings they were quick to apologize. He had to admit she was right though. After the victory celebration at Indigo he decided they should head back to Pallet by walking despite Professor Oaks offer to drive them back. He reasoned they would see more walking, and indeed they did. That evening they were halfway to Pallet when Ash spotted a Wooper in the grass. He had accidentally frightened it by yelling and he and Misty had spent the next several hours searching the bushes for it, never finding it, while the others impatiently waited.

He looked to his side and saw his two other friends in their respective sleeping bags. Tracey slept on his side clutching a sketch he had tried to make of the Wooper they had seen. He was pretty much the same as he had always been, right down to the headband. Brock lay on his back mumbling in his sleep something about Officer Jenny’s and Nurse Joys. Ash shook his head and wondered if Brock would ever find the right girl. The former gym leader had grown it bit taller but was otherwise unchanged as well. He then looked down to see another of his closest friends asleep next to him. Pikachu laid curled up in his own special sleeping bag with little lightning bolts on it. He gave out a big yawn and looked up at his master/friend.

"Pika-pika-pi [good morning Ash]"

"Good morning Pikachu, how’d you sleep?"

"Pika! [Great!]" The electric mouse cried raising his hands in the air to stretch.

Pikachu’s ears rose in alertness as he heard Misty returning.

"Hey guys, I got water and found some delicious berries!" she yelled.

Ash was on his feet in a second. He ran to Misty, grabbed the berries and had eaten most of them before she could react, Pikachu happily catching and eating what he dropped.

"Hey quit it!" Misty yelled at the top of her lungs.

"What?" Ash asked with an innocent expression on his face, Pikachu mimicked him.

"Cut it out you two!" Brock snapped, "I’ll have breakfast ready soon," he finished as he prepared some Rice Rolls.

Brock had gotten out of bed and started cooking at an amazing speed as usual. Ash always meant to ask how he could fit so much stuff in his back pack but decided there were some things in this life that were best left unanswered.

"So, who’s going to wake up Trace?" Ash asked noticing his friend still dozing.

"Chu-pika-pika! [I will!]" Pikachu said happily, as it’s cheeks started to crackle with electricity.

"Ahhh! I’m up! I’m up! " Tracey yelled before he could get shocked. Ash and Misty laughed a bit as everyone sat down for breakfast They planned on heading back to Pallet and just spending time together at the Ketchem residence for awhile before Brock and Misty returned to their homes and Tracey to his job as Professor Oaks assistant. They of course had no plans of stopping their journeys together but had decided it was about time to take a nice long break. Ash didn’t really care. The Professors lab was within walking distance of his house; he could contact Misty or Brock via videophone and easily and quickly fly to their homes to visit on Pigeot. They had just finished breakfast when a figure approached them from down the road.

"He looks familiar," Ash thought aloud as the young man in a blue shirt came closer.

"Fergus?" Misty asked questionably.

"That’s my name don’t wear it out," he said before slapping his face in embarrassment. "Man that was corny!"

"Not as corny as some of the things Ash says," Tracey replied and received a glare from Ash.

"Fergus, what are you doing here?" Brock asked.

"Heading home, I just took a few detours along the way, I didn’t expect to run into you guys again. However I’m glad I did." He then turned to Ash. "Ash, I saw you battle in Indigo Stadium and I thought you were pretty good."

"Wow, you were there?" Ash asked.

"Yes, made it into tenth place too."

"That’s pretty good, a lot better then I did my first time though you do realize I won this year," Ash stated a little boastfully.

"Yeah, I also realize you never came up against me. How bout we change that?"

"You’re on!" Ash said going into battle mode.

"This should be good," Tracey said getting ready to sketch the battle.

"When we first met you would have been able to beat me easily but I’ve gotten a lot better since then," Ash said as Pikachu leaped on his shoulder and agreed with a loud "Pika!"

"You may be confident but lets see if you can back up what you say," Fergus replied in a taunting manner.

"Then lets do it!" Ash yelled, hardly able to contain his excitement.

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Within minutes they were standing in a low grassy field, ready to battle.

"What do you say to six pokemon each and best four out of six wins?" Fergus asked.

"That’s fine by me," Ash replied and pulled out a Poke Ball, Fergus did the same. They threw the balls at the same time.

"Go! Vaporeon!" Fergus yelled as the water type Eevee evolution appeared from its Poke Ball. Misty went starry eyed upon seeing it. "Vapor!" It cried.

"Go! Espeon!" Ash yelled as the psychic type Eevee appeared and assumed a battle stance. "Espeon" it said softly and a bit eerily.

"This is going to be interesting," Brock noted, "Eevee versus Eevee."

"Yeah," Tracey replied and sat down to sketch.

"It’s a Psychic type so use Bite attack!" Fergus commanded.

"Double Team!" Ash yelled in response.

Espeon glowed as several duplicates of itself appeared around it. Vaporeon ran at one and bit into it. The false Espeon shimmered and disappeared, while the real one rammed into the Water type and took up another position on the battlefield.

"Argh! Quick Attack! Fergus yelled undaunted. Ash commanded the same of Espeon.

Both pokemon rushed at each other at high speed. Both got hit in the sides a few times while dodging most attempts. After several seconds of this both leaped in the air, Vaporeon saw an opening and Tail Whipped Espeon in the stomach knocking her to the ground. Before she could get up Vaporeon used Bubblebeam releasing dozens of large bubbles that exploded on impact, slowing Espeon down and weakening her further.

"We have it now!" Fergus yelled. "Finish it with Auroa Beam!"

Vaporeon fired a beam of multicolored energy from its mouth at Espeon who couldn’t get out of the way in time. It fell onto its side with a painful yell, but managed to struggle back on its feet.

"You can do it Espeon!" Ash yelled. "Use Morning Sun!"

Espeon closed her eyes; the gem on her forehead glowed and solar energy washed over her body as the rising sun began to caste its rays on her. When it cleared Espeon was fully healed, its scratches and bruises gone.

"Use Water Gun!" Fergus commanded a bit peeved at the prospect of having to weaken Espeon again.

This time Ash and Espeon were ready. "Confusion now!" he commanded.

Espeons eyes glowed and an aura of psychic energy surrounded it. A split second before the jet of water struck, it seemed to hit an invisible wall and was sent right back at Vaporeon knocking it backwards. Before it could regain its footing the psychic aura surrounded it as well and it was lifted high into the air before being slammed into the ground, defeated.

"Vaporeon return," Fergus said as a beam of energy shot from his Poke Ball recalling the fainted creature.

Espeon ran back to Ash and nuzzled against him. "Good job girl," Ash said scratching her on the head before picking her up and swinging her around happily. Espeon let out a happy cry and then, after Ash put her down, ran to Misty, Tracey and Brock to watch the rest of the battle. Ash stood up and threw another Poke Ball just as Fergus did.

"Nidoqueen, I choose you!" Fergus yelled as the counterpart of Nidoking appeared and let out a roar.

"I choose you, Charizard!" Ash yelled as the impressive dragon-like pokemon appeared in a burst of bright light, spread it’s wings wide and let out a blast of flame from its mouth.

"Nidoqueen, use Body Slam," Fergus said, hoping that would keep Charizard from gaining an aerial advantage.

"You know what to do Charizard," Ash said calmly. Charizard nodded and braced itself.

Nidoqueen leaped in the air and prepared to slam into Charizard with her thickly armored belly. Charizard in turn grabbed Nidoqueen at arm’s length, digging his feet into the ground but still being pushed back several feet by the force of the blow. Then with a mighty push forward and a few flaps of his wings both pokemon were in the air. Charizard flew several hundred feet into the sky clutching the disoriented Nidoqueen to his chest with his strong arms.

"Seismic Toss!" Ash yelled into the sky.

High above Charizard spun about, grabbed, and threw Nidoqueen down with all his might. Fergus watched helplessly as she slammed into the ground, creating a small crater. When the dust settled it showed Nidoqueen lying on the ground unconscious. Charizard landed and let out a mighty roar of victory as Ash ran up and hugged the creature. Charizard smiled and hugged back enveloping Ash in his wings. It then stepped back and stood next to Espeon.

Fergus returned Nidoqueen and thought for a moment, he was starting to get nervous but knew he could still win. "Poliwrath, I choose you! He called as the Water/Fighting type appeared and flexed its muscles.

"Blastoise, I choose you!" Ash yelled as the huge turtle appeared and let out a low "blastoise."

The two pokemon ran at each other and grappled for a moment before Blastoise knocked Poliwrath away with a Mega Punch. However as it fell backwards Poliwrath formed a sphere of energy in its hands. It threw the sphere outwards where an Ice Beam shot from it, hitting Blastoise in the chest and freezing it.

"Blastoise no!" Ash yelled to his apparently defeated pokemon. He was about to call a time-out and see if it was badly hurt when the ice surrounding the turtle began to crack. Before the groups amazed eyes it broke out of the ice with a mighty "blast!" and prepared to finish the battle.

"All right Blastoise, use Rapid Spin." Ash commanded.

With surprising agility for its size Blastoise leaped off the ground, tucked its arms, legs, tail and head in and began to spin its shell quickly. Seeming to fly through the air he headed straight for Poliwrath.

Fergus called to his pokemon. "Poliwrath, counter it with Hydro Pump!"

"Wrath!" Poliwrath yelled as it fired a huge blast of water from its spiral straight at its incoming opponent. Its eyes went wide with surprise as Blastoise’s shell spun right through the jet of water and hit it in the chest knocking it into the air.

"Okay Blastoise, let’s show it your Hydro Pump!" Ash yelled, throwing his right hand forward and pointing to Poliwrath in emphasis.

Blastoise came out of his shell, landed and brought out two cannon-like structures on its shoulders. It aimed and fired two thick streams of water at Poliwrath, who was now falling to the ground. Both jets hit and Poliwrath was ploughed into the ground leaving a trench where its body had slid. It didn’t get up.

"You did great Blastoise!" Ash cried happily. Blastoise smiled and took its place next to Charizard.

Fergus was now sweating. "At least I can still break even," he said to himself and threw out his fourth pokemon.

"Tentacruel, I choose you!" He yelled as the seven foot tall Jellyfish pokemon appeared. Misty had hearts in her eyes.

"All right, then I choose Snorlax!" Ash said as he called out his largest pokemon. "Snorlax!" it cried happily. Snorlax had found that he slept best after a good battle.

"Snorlax, Mega Punch," Ash commanded.

Snorlax obediently ran forward, its right fist covered in energy.

"This time it’s my turn to block you," Fergus said. "Tentacruel use Barrier!"

Tentacruel’s body was immediately surrounded by a thick, glowing shield. Snorlax slammed its fist into the shield but it had no effect. Tentacruel lowered the shield, grabbed Snorlax’s arms with its tentacles and threw it to the ground. Snorlax broke free and rolled to the side just as a stream of Acid shot from Tentacruels mouth. Some of it got on Snorlax, burning its skin, Snorlax grumbled angrily as it got up.

"Snorlax, try using Hyper Beam," Ash suggested.

Snorlax nodded and began to draw energy into its mouth.

"That won’t help you," Fergus laughed, "Tentacruel, use Supersonic!"

High pitched sound waves shot from Tentacruel and hit Snorlax, confusing it. Snorlax wavered back and forth for a moment before firing the half-formed beam in the wrong direction.

"Now’s our chance Tentacruel, use Hydro Pump!" Fergus said excitedly.

A large jet of water fired from each side of the large spine on Tentacruel’s face and hit Snorlax hard, knocking it to the ground.

"Snorlax, you got to try to get up!" Ash pleaded.

Snorlax stood up a bit shakily, assumed a battle stance and prepared to continue the fight.

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Far away deep in the Orange Islands a young girl played her flute. She had never cared for or taken the ancient legends seriously, at least until they had come true several years ago. At that time she had sworn to treat her duty as Festival Maiden with the respect and dignity it deserved. She still didn’t like the stupid costumes however.

Melody stopped playing and lay down on her back on the grassy edge of the sea cliff. She thought about that day, it had been the most exciting day of her life. To think that she had played a part in saving the world! She still remembered like it was yesterday, her playing the flute as the green liquid poured out over the surrounding area, melting the ice, as the temple pillars flashed in time with her music. Of course it would of all have been for nothing if the Chosen One hadn’t been there to retrieve the spheres and activate them. The Chosen One… Ash… he was certainly not what she expected. He could be quite a risk taker and a little dense sometimes, though she couldn’t deny he was pretty cute. Of course she would never dream of taking him away from Misty.

"I wonder what they’re doing right now," she said to herself. It surprised her a bit, how close she felt to all of them even though she had been with them for only a few days. However she guessed that anyone who shared an experience like that adventure would feel close to each other and anyway, they were the type of people who were easy to get attached to, so caring and willing to help others, fun to be with too. Ash, Misty and Tracey had kept in touch with her since their adventure and she still regularly received letters and videophone calls from them. She had been overjoyed to hear that Misty had finally admitted her feelings for Ash and that he had felt the same way towards her. The group had promised to come visit soon, now that their badge collecting journeys were over. She couldn’t wait for them to come or for her to meet this "Brock" in person. It was going to be fun toying with him she thought with a giggle; she had always been good at flirting.

Before she could think anymore though, the sky began to darken very quickly and lightning started to flash across the sky as thunder roared and the wind blew coldly. Something like this hadn’t happened since… No! The thought of it happening again panicked her. After all they had never found Lawrence III and he was probably obsessed enough to try to collect the Titans again. What she saw however, as she looked over the cliff edge into the sea hundreds of feet below surprised her even more.

The water was swelling and bulging, all in one place. The bulge grew bigger and bigger until it blew apart and a huge slightly bird-like pokemon flew out of the water, bathed in light. The creature let out a long beautiful but mournful cry as it rose straight up out of the sea lightning flashing high in the sky above it.

"The Great Guardian," Melody whispered in awe, but before she could say anything else she realized it was heading straight towards her! She fell backwards and was drenched by water cascading off its body but was otherwise unharmed. Her eyes went wide in shock as Lugia was joined by the Titans of Fire, Ice and Lightning, who proceeded to fly in formation right behind it. Melody could only stand speechless as they flew out of sight and the storm died down as quickly as it had come.

Finally she mustered up the will to say the one thought that was on her mind now, "what in the name of Mew is going on here?!"

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"Snorlax, Harden!" Ash commanded as Snorlax in turn began to glow and its skin became as tough as steel.

Tentacruel fired another Hydro Pump but this time Snorlax barely flinched.

"Good job Snorlax, now lets shake things up, Earthquake!"

Snorlax leaped in the air and slammed its feet into the ground. A wave of seismic energy was sent straight at Tentacruel, ripping apart the ground in front of it. Tentacruel struggled to maintain its footing as the ground shook and fell apart beneath its tentacles.

Before Fergus could react Ash had already commanded another attack. "Finish it, Body Slam!"

Snorlax leaped even higher this time, slamming its heavy body into Tentacruel. After a moment Snorlax got up, a happy smile of triumph on his face and stood over the now crushed Tentacruel, its "ruby of the sea" cracked in several places.

Misty was happy that Ash was winning but couldn’t bring herself to cheer at the defeat of one of her favorite pokemon.

Ash ran up and congratulated Snorlax who grabbed him in a big hug and then took its place with the other pokemon, or rather it walked up next to them and fell asleep on the spot.

All hope of winning was gone now, but Fergus decided to finish the match anyway. "Let’s see if you can beat my most reliable pokemon," he said to Ash and threw another Poke Ball. "Gyarados, I choose you!" he yelled as the terrifying serpent-like Water/Flying type was released. It let out a loud cry that shook Ash to his bones and coiled up in a striking position.

Quickly regaining his composure Ash called out Venusaur. "Saur!" the large Grass type roared a challenge.

Gyarados didn’t need a command. It slithered quickly forward, its jaws wide in a Bite attack. Venusaur managed to be just a bit faster and leaped to the side just as Gyarados reached him. It slid by and prepared to attack again.

"Venusaur, Razor Leaf!" Ash commanded.

After dodging another Bite attack Venusaur lifted the large fronds on its back and from under them shot dozens of spinning razor edged leaves. Gyarados slammed its tail into the leaves, most of the attack bouncing off its stronger then steel scales, a few leaves managing to nick it. Venusaur growled in frustration.

"Solar Beam!" Ash yelled, calling out Venusaur’s most powerful attack. Energy from the sun began to be drawn into the large flower on Venusaurs back, the center of it glowing brighter and brighter as more energy built up.

"Oh no you don’t, Gyarados, Hyper Beam now!" Fergus ordered, hoping to knock out Venusaur while it was charging. An orb of pulsing energy appeared in Gyarados mouth, doubling then tripling in size.

"Try to avoid it," Ash called, "use that technique I taught you!"

Venusaur nodded. While still charging Solar Beam it brought out four vines, two on each side of its body, and sunk them into the ground much like it would do to divert energy from an electric attack harmlessly into the earth. Then just as Gyarados fired the powerful beam, Venusaur rose up on the strong vines, using them like stilts and then while balancing briefly on its right sides vines, brought the left side ones off the ground, completely avoiding the attack. Fergus and Gyarados stood in shock as Venusaur landed, the Solar Beam fully charged. "Venusaur!" it yelled as the beam rocketed from his back. Gyarados roared in pain and anger as the attack struck, its scales proving no defense against the intense beam of solar energy.

When the light from the attack dimmed Fergus looked in shock, his mighty Gyarados lay sprawled out unconscious on the ground.

Venusaur smiled as Ash hugged it, his arms being just wide enough to reach around the creature’s wide face. It then walked over to Blastoise, who gave it a thumbs up sign. Venusaur replied by bringing out one of its vines and shaking Blastoise’s hand with it.

Fergus couldn’t believe it. Five of his pokemon had been knocked out in a row. "I’ve got to beat at least one," he said to himself as he threw out his last pokemon. "Golduck, I choose you!" he yelled as the elegant evolution of the ungainly Psyduck appeared and assumed a battle pose. Misty looked at it for a second and noted that she didn’t think the Golduck was as cute as hers was. Brock and Tracey sweat dropped.

Ash looked down at his first pokemon and one of his closest, most trusted friends. "Pikachu," he said with a smile, "I choose you." Pikachu nodded and leaped into the battlefield, ready to do its best for Ash, like always.

"Pikachu, Thunderbolt!" Ash ordered as the small electric mouse gathered the energy needed and fired a large bolt of lightning at Golduck.

"Golduck! Use Confusion!"

Golduck’s eyes flashed an icy blue and it brought its right arm forward. With its psychic powers it grabbed the Thunderbolt, formed it into a ball of lightning, and with a flick of it’s webbed hand threw the attack to the side causing a large explosion. It then formed psychic energy around Pikachu, lifting it high into the air.

"Pikachu try to brake free!" Ash called to it.

Before Golduck could slam it’s opponent into the ground, Pikachu fired several glowing stars of energy from its body in a Swift attack. The stars hit Golduck, breaking its concentration and freeing Pikachu, who made a painless landing.

"Fury Swipes!" Fergus yelled in desperation.

"Agility now!" Ash countered.

Golduck leaped at Pikachu, slashing it’s clawed hands left and right. In an incredible display of speed Pikachu leaped in and out of Golduck’s furious attacks eventually getting nicked in the side and being sent sprawling across the field. Pikachu recovered his footing almost immediately and raced forward, ramming into Golduck’s stomach with a Quick Attack.

"Hyper Beam! Send that little rat into the next time zone!"

The gem on Golduck’s forehead began to glow as bright energy was focused around it. Pikachu ran at it again, this time knocking it on its back and rebounding high into the air.

"Pikachu, use Thunder," Ash said, calling out Pikachu’s most powerful attack.

Pikachu’s whole body was surrounded by a mass of electricity as it powered up the attack in mid-air. Golduck fired the large beam just as Pikachu unleashed the massive amount of thunder. The attacks hit each other and for a moment it was unclear what would happen. Within seconds however Pikachu’s Thunder overcame the Hyper Beam and Golduck stood still, it’s beak hanging open in shock as the energy of both attacks was combined and sent back at it causing a huge explosion.

Fergus stood speechless as the dust and energy around Golduck dissipated. It lay on the ground; it’s whole body still crackling with electricity. Finally Fergus snapped out of it, ran to Golduck and cradled it in his arms.

"Golduck, are you okay? I’m sorry, I should have returned you sooner," he said, looking like he was near tears. Ash looked on worryingly. He hoped he hadn’t hurt it bad.

"Gol-duck," Golduck said weakly, letting Fergus know it was okay. "You did great, I’m proud of you," he said softly then looked to his belt where his other pokemon lay in their balls resting, "all of you." Fergus then brought out a Poke Ball and returned Golduck.

"We did it Pikachu!" Ash cried out happily as Pikachu leaped into his arms and hugged him. The rest of the pokemon cried out in triumph over the won match and congratulated each other and Ash.

"All of you did great," Ash said to his assembled team, "but most importantly everyone did their best. I would be just as proud even if you’d lost. You’re the best pokemon anyone could ask for." The pokemon blushed at the congratulations except for Charizard, who merely smiled, closed its eyes and crossed its arms attempting to stay humble in the face of the praise.

Misty, Brock and Tracey congratulated Ash as well. Ash then turned around and saw Fergus, starring at him, a smile on his face.

"That was the most incredible match I’ve ever been in, I can’t remember the last time I was beaten so easily," he said and shook Ash’s hand.

"Well it was hardly "easy," Ash stated meekly and put a hand behind his head. "You’re a great trainer, if some of your pokemon were a bit faster they might have won," he finished sincerely.

"Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind," Fergus said and then looked at Misty, "and perhaps I could see you again, I bet we could have some fun."

"Sorry, I’m taken," Misty said sheepishly and latched onto Ash’s arm.

"Well then I guess you’ve got the best of everything," Fergus stated, "great pokemon and a cute girlfriend."

"Thanks," Ash said blushing.

"I better get going if I’m going to get home by the end of today," Fergus said, turning to leave, "oh and Ash," he said looking back, "you can be sure I’ll be better next time."

"So will I," Ash promised himself then turned to his pokemon, "right guys?" The pokemon all cried out in agreement.

"What a way to start the day," Brock commented, "we’re all certainly awake now."

"Yeah but before we get going I think it would be a good idea to let our pokemon out to play for awhile," Misty suggested.

"That’s a great idea Misty," Ash replied. "I bet they would love to relax out in the sun." He then looked to his pokemon; "you guys certainly deserve it."

"Enough talking lets do it!" Brock yelled.

"Okay!" Tracey said and called out his pokemon. "Scyther, Venomoth, Azumarril, go!"

Misty lifted up her Poke Balls, "Misty calls, Starmie, Golduck, Togetic, Politoed, Staryu, Seadra!"

Brock pulled his out and called out their names. "Lets go! Onix, Graveler, Forretress, Crobat, Rhyhorn!"

The large group of pokemon spread out to get to their various favorite activities. Snorlax, Onix, Graveler and Charizard napped. Politoed, Seadra, Blastoise, Staryu, Starmie and Azumarril went for a swim. Venusaur and Forretress sunbathed. Golduck and Scyther practiced their fighting moves, Golduck tripping on a stone (it had never quite gotten rid of its clumsiness.) Pikachu, Togetic and Espeon playfully tussled. Crobat perched upside-down in a nearby tree while Venomoth searched for flower nectar.

The human members of the group sat together, talking about what they would do when they got to Pallet. Tracey wanted to get back to his studies after visiting awhile, Brock wanted to ask Professor Oak for some tips on pokemon breeding and see if he could get a few phone numbers of the Professors female students while he was at it. Misty planned on going shopping with Ash’s mom and spending some long awaited time alone with Ash. Ash planned on doing the same with Misty and also spend some time with his pokemon at Professor Oaks. For a long time now he had been switching out his main team of pokemon for his others, training them all as evenly as he could and becoming closer to them all. He had also released all but one Tauros (the one he had used in the Orange League) back into the Safari Zone, as he knew he couldn’t give proper attention to thirty. However he still sometimes felt like he didn’t spend enough time with them.

Ash sighed, laid on his back propped up on a smooth rock and closed his eyes, blocking out his friend’s conversations. He needed this time to sort through his thoughts. So much had happened in the last few days that he could hardly believe it. His dream of becoming a Pokemon Master didn’t seem so far away anymore. Winning in the Indigo League had made him famous far and wide as well as giving him the opportunity to battle the Elite Four later that year and if he won to became an official Master. Yet somehow that didn’t seem to be the most important thing anymore. He found that he cherished the experiences he had had and the friends he had made on his journey more then any battle or badge he had ever won. In fact he decided right then and there that wrecking Misty’s bike had been one of the best things that he had ever done.

He thought about the young girl, no, woman sitting next to him, she could be confusing, a bit strange at times and had a quick temper but that just seemed to enrapture him more. She was also caring, loyal and he thought very pretty. He didn’t know what he would have done without her. Even though she wasn’t always as supportive as he would of liked, she had always been there, from the beginning of his journey till now and he hoped they would always be together. He now believed with all his heart that none of the things he had done would have meant anything if she hadn’t been there to share them with him. He then considered her eyes, her beautiful sea blue eyes, full of determination that often matched or exceeded his own. He was as certain that Misty would achieve her dream of becoming the greatest Water Master of all time as he was of his dream. Thinking of her filled him with hope and happiness he had never known before. Ash realized that even if he never became a master he had everything he would ever need already.

His thoughts were interrupted as Pikachu bounded into his lap and greeted him with a loud "pika!"

"Pika pika pi? Chu pi chu pika [What were you doing Ash? You were just lying there with a big smile on your face.]"

Ash grinned, "I was just thinking about Misty," he said and scratched the mouse behind the ears. Pikachu sighed in contentment and curled up on his lap.

Ash’s thoughts proceeded to turn to his past few weeks at the league. He remembered vividly the first match he had had upon returning to Indigo.

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It was on the Rock Field and his opponent had sent out a Rhydon. He decided to surprise everyone by sending out Charizard instead of a Grass or Water type. He knew it was a bit risky and partly motivated by pride but he trusted Charizard and wanted to prove once and for all that types didn’t always matter. The trainer had laughed at him as the announcer proceeded to tell the audience how Charizard had cost Ash a match and humiliated him the last time he was here. Charizard looked like he was going to tear the trainer apart for mocking his master but Ash told him to stay calm, still and wait for Rhydon to come to him. They would prove themselves through actions not words. The trainer told Rhydon to finish the battle in one move by using Horn Drill. Rhydon leaped at Charizard; it’s large horn spinning wildly. Charizard simply stood there, it’s eyes shut like it didn’t even realize Rhydon was coming. It got within a few feet before Ash snapped his fingers, Charizards eye’s snapped open and with incredible speed it side stepped the attack, causing Rhydon to crash into the ground and slide along the dirt and rock for about a dozen feet. Rhydon, now furious, leaped at Charizard again and once again Charizard leaped to the side, dodging the Take Down, but this time it grabbed Rhydon’s tail, spun it around and sent the creature flying into a nearby outcrop of rock. Charizard sat back down, having scarcely moved from his position on the battlefield. The trainer recalled his fainted pokemon, mumbling that it was just a lucky win, and sent out his next pokemon, a Golem.

He decided to attack from a distance this time, calling forth a Rock Slide. Charizard melted the rocks that flew at it with a full blast of its Flamethrower and then closed its eyes, puffing out smoke from its nostrils contemptuously. This enraged the trainer and pokemon even more and he ordered it to use Rollout. The Golem rolled at Charizard at high speed. Ash smiled, this was just the opportunity he was waiting for. He ordered an Earthquake attack and Charizard complied. Immediately leaping high into the air, energy surrounding its feet, Charizard slammed its feet into the ground, sending a wave of seismic energy at Golem, who was quickly overcome and defeated.

The last pokemon his opponent had was a Staryu, which immediately tried to bombard Charizard with Water Gun and Bubblebeam attacks. Charizard managed to avoid them with some fancy aerial maneuvers and came back at Staryu with a Slash attack, cutting off one of its arms. The Staryu had immediately grown the arm back using Recover and knocked Charizard out of the sky with a large Water Gun to the chest. Though weakened Charizard had managed to get back into the air and flew at Staryu who, after using Minimize proved to be too maneuverable to hit with projectile attacks. This gave Ash an idea. He told Charizard to use Fire Blast just as his opponent ordered Hydro Pump from Staryu. The attacks met and struggled against each other. The trainer laughed as Charizard’s attack turned into harmless steam. However the Fire Blast was so large that it took awhile to be doused, during which time Charizard, cloaked in steam, flew within striking range. Ash ordered it to use Skull Bash as Charizard rammed its armored skull into the surprised Staryu, cracking its gem and defeating it. Charizard proceeded after that to pick Ash up and carry him around the stadium in a victory flight as the crowd cheered.

And so he won his first match without once switching pokemon. The same thing happened on the Ice, Grass and Water fields as well as his first match in Indigo Stadium. To top it all off he won a few of the six vs. six matches that followed using only two or three pokemon. Quite a feet, but not something he could gloat over much. After all other trainers had done the same thing. After every match he trained his pokemon hard and readied himself by studying his next opponent’s pokemon and techniques. He eventually collapsed from exhaustion and Misty convinced or rather ordered him to take a break from training. He was later thankful she had, he really needed the rest. Even so each battle became tougher and tougher to win. He faced opponents with skill and power like he had never imagined as he moved closer and closer to the final match.

It was the last three matches that had been the toughest. First there was AJ. He had been tougher then ever but Ash still had a few pokemon left by the end of the match. Then he had brought out Sandslash. Charizard, already weakened by a previous battle was quickly defeated by it as was Blastoise who’s Hydro Pump had almost no effect on Sandslash. Ash had then sent in Pikachu who surprised AJ to no end by putting up a good fight and actually weakening Sandslash. Although Pikachu’s electric attacks had no direct effect on the creature the force of them was great enough to knock Sandslash backwards and into the ground. Pikachu was eventually knocked out however and before Ash’s horrified eyes Sandslash used Rest, recovering from all the damage it had received during the past battles.

Not wasting a second Ash called out his last pokemon Pigeot and tried to attack the opponent before it woke up. A moment before Pigeot could strike however Sandslash woke and dodged the attack. It then used Swords Dance bringing its attack power up to even higher levels. As the battle unfolded Ash couldn’t help but be amazed at Pigeot, he had never seen it fight so hard before. Sandslash would use attacks like Poison Sting, Swift and Rock Slide while Pigeot would use Agility to avoid some and use Reflect to block others then coming back with Double Edge, Wing and Quick Attacks.

At one point he used Whirlwind, Sandslash digging its claws into the ground to keep itself from blowing away. Then, as AJ instructed, it used Defense Curl, was blown across the stadium, ricocheted off a wall, flew straight at Pigeot, uncurled itself and unleashed a devastating Slash attack across Pigeots chest. Pigeot hit the ground with a sickening thud and it looked like the battle was over. However with a shriek of anger Pigeot struggled back to his feet and got back in the air.

Sandslash reacted quickly, sending another Slash attack at Pigeot. The large bird dodged this one and hit Sandslash with a Wing Attack. Sandslash shook the hit off and responded by using Swords Dance again. Ash decided to use this to his advantage calling Pigeot to use Mirror Move. It did and managed to copy the attack, giving it it’s own power boost. AJ had commanded another Slash but Pigeots Wing Attack that now matched the other attacks power countered this one. Before AJ could do anything else Ash commanded Pigeot to fly as high as it could and then launch its most powerful attack. Pigeot had obeyed, flying thousands of feet into the air and then diving straight down, wings folded tightly against its body, reaching mach two speeds in the process. AJ ordered Sandslash to respond with a Hyper Beam as soon as Pigeot was in range.

As it neared the ground Pigeot began to glow until its whole body looked like a lightning bolt of fire rocketing straight toward the stadium. The crowd was in awe at the sight of Sky Attack, the legendary Flying type attack. Sandslash fired a powerful beam of energy straight at the incoming missile. Pigeot didn’t even try to get out of the way, it didn’t need to, Ash had taught it to adjust its body (which became pure energy during the attack) so that most other attacks would pass right through it. The beam hit its target dead center and just as the trainer and pokemon had hoped the energy of the beam passed straight through and around Pigeots glowing body barely slowing it down. Pigeot slammed itself full force into Sandslash, passing through its opponents body and causing a great deal of damage, the energy of the attack washing off its body like water and returning Pigeot to his regular appearance. It then landed about ten feet behind Sandslash its eyes shut and wings spread. For several seconds the combatants stood still, back to back, until Sandslash let out a defeated moan and fell onto it’s side.

Ash had never seen Pigeot so happy. As he congratulated it, running his fingers through its soft feathers and hugging it the bird nuzzled him affectionately, letting out soft chirps of glee.

AJ had handled the loss badly at first, believing he had made some mistake while training. It had been the first time he had lost a match. He blamed himself and even considered giving up training, thinking he was not worthy of his pokemons loyalty and friendship if he could lose. His pokemon refused to desert him however and after an insightful conversation with Brock he decided to learn from his defeat. He later thanked Ash for the lesson in humility that he gave by defeating him, saying that it had made him stronger. Ash replied that he was glad he could repay the favor as AJ had taught him the same lesson long ago when they had first met.

The second battle had been against his old friend Richie. He too had improved greatly. After difficult battles his Fearow, Bladebeak, had managed to defeat Pigeot with Drill Peck and Blastoise with Hyper Beam before falling to Charizard’s Rock Slide. It was quite an unusual battle to watch what with Bladebeak using Mirror Move to copy Blastoise’s Blizzard and Charizard’s Flamethrower.

Charizard had then proceeded to fight Richie’s, Charizard, Inferno (after it evolved he had decided Zippo needed a more fearsome nickname.) Inferno had been strong but Ash’s Charizard proved to be stronger and more experienced, eventually overwhelming Inferno with a Fire Blast. From there the battle progressed until both of them had one pokemon left.

It ended up being Sparky vs. Pikachu and Pikachu’s incredible power and skills eventually overcame Sparky. Richie had shown the same maturity as the last time Ash had seen him lose and the two parted on good terms.

The final match had been the toughest one of Ash’s life. It was, of course, against his first and greatest rival, Gary Oak. The first match had been Nidoqueen vs. Blastoise and the two had ended up defeating each other when Blastoise used Hydro Pump and Nidoqueen used Thunder at the same time.

Then it had been Nidoking vs. Charizard. The two powerful pokemon had gone at each other with unparalleled ferocity, trading punches, tail lashes, Take Downs, Rock Slides, Earthquake attacks and bites for nearly ten minutes before Charizard launched a Fire Blast and flew high into the sky to prepare for a Seismic Toss. Nidoking had stopped the Fire Blast with its hands and started to charge a Hyper Beam per Gary’s instructions. As Charizard flew low to the ground straight at it Nidoking threw the Fire Blast aside and fired the beam. At the last second Charizard veered to the side, dodging the beam by a mere foot or two and slamming itself into Nidoking, flying with it high above the stadium (suffering a strong Thunderbolt in the process) and slamming it into the earth. Nidoking was defeated but Ash decided to send Charizard back as it was almost completely exhausted.

Gary viewed this as a perfect opportunity to use his Exeggutor. Ash decided to fight Psychic with Psychic and sent in Espeon. After some Bite attacks and careful avoidance of it’s Leech Seed and Egg Bomb attacks Espeon managed to win with a strong Psybeam.

Gary was hardly flustered however and sent out his Umbreon, who quickly defeated Espeon with a Shadow Ball. Ash had brought just the pokemon for the job of defeating Umbreon and released his Primeape who flattened it with a Cross Chop after a short battle. Gary had then sent out his Alakazam. Primeape had attempted to fight back but its punches bounced right off Alakazam’s Reflect shield and it was defeated with a Psychic attack before Ash could call the Pig Monkey back.

Ash had then sent Charizard out again. Slightly rested from the past battle it had broken through Alakazam’s Reflect with a Slash attack and launched a Flamethrower so strong that Alakazam was hard pressed to divert it with its psychic powers. Gary had quickly called Alakazam back and sent out his Tyranitar who managed to knock Charizard out of the sky with a Rock Slide. Charizard struggled back to his feet and both pokemon used Outrage (Charizard had only recently learned this ultimate Dragon attack) on each other. It wasn’t enough to defeat Tyranitar however and Charizard fell to the ground, too exhausted and injured to even move. Ash returned the dragon and thanked him for giving the battle all he could. He then sent out his fifth pokemon, Venusaur. Venusaur fought Tyranitar hard and eventually hit it with a Solarbeam. Though weakened Tyranitar still stood up and launched a Fire Blast Venusaur spinning some of its vines like a fan in response. The surprising technique created enough wind to blow the Fire Blast back at Tyranitar. The Rock type seemed only partly fazed by the Fire attack and began to charge a Hyper Beam, Venusaur dodging aside just in time as the beam passed it digging a large trench in the process. Quite a bit faster then Tyranitar Venusaur appeared to have a slight edge over the creature as its attacks continued to miss but Ash began to wonder if Tyranitar would ever go down. Venusaur launched Razor Leaves, which Tyranitar again withstood. It was then that Ash noticed one of the hard armor plates over its shoulder had been cracked by one of the leaves. Ash ordered Venusaur to grab it with its vines, lift it and slam it into the ground on that shoulder. After a short struggle it succeeded and as Tyranitar finally fell Venusaur used Synthesis, recovering its strength before Gary’s shocked eyes.

Alakazam was sent out again and Venusaur was immediately thrown across the field with a Psychic attack. Venusaur, weak to psychic attacks as it was, was able to get back up and launched a Vine Whip at Alakazam. The fox-like creature teleported out of the way immediately and reappeared behind its adversary. Luckily Venusaur’s reflexes were quick enough for it to attack before Alakazam could and it launched a barrage of Razor Leaves at it. Alakazam used its psychic powers to cause the leaves to spin around it and go straight back at Venusaur, cutting parts of its fronds off and giving it numerous small cuts. Enraged, Venusaur sent out over a dozen Vine Whips at once, Alakazam managing to dodge all of them with Teleport though it did seem to have some difficulty. This gave Ash an idea.

Before Alakazam could counter-attack he ordered Venusaur to continue to use all its vines at once. Venusaur complied and Alakazam had to use so much time avoiding attacks with Teleport that it was unable to attack back. Alakazam was soon too exhausted to Teleport quickly enough and it began to be repeatedly pummeled by Venusaurs Vine Whips. Too disoriented to fight back Alakazam was lifted into the air by the vines and hit with a Solar Beam before at last going unconscious.

Ash had never been so tense in his life. He was only one win away from winning the entire league. Gary was similarly nervous though he tried to not show it. In a burst of light Gary’s final pokemon appeared, Arcanine. The impressive tiger-striped dog howled out a battle cry and launched a Fire Spin at Venusaur. The tongue of flame spun around Venusaur’s body several times before dissipating and leaving Venusaur moaning on the ground, now too weak to be able to use Synthesis.

Amazingly Venusaur got back up and fired several Razor Leaves at Arcanine. The firedog responded with a Flamethrower that disintegrated most of the leaves. A few managed to get through however and cut at Arcanines shins. Now angry it released a Fire Blast, hitting Venusaur hard and defeating it.

And so the final match was Arcanine vs. Pikachu. It may not of seemed like a very fair match-up but Pikachu fought with all its heart and soul. The two pokemon darted across the field as if in a dance, dodging each other’s attacks left and right. For such a large pokemon Arcanine was incredibly agile and knew an amazing amount of moves, it could even Teleport. It was also unbelievably strong and even Pikachu’s strongest attacks barely slowed it down. Even so Pikachu knew how to handle such an opponent and put all its energy into Agility and Double Teaming, slowly wearing Arcanine down. Pikachu was weakening in the process as well however and Ash wasn’t sure how long it would last. Gary had the same idea as Ash as far as wearing his opponent down and Pikachu wasted several Thundershocks and Thunderbolts on thin air when Arcanine used Dig and Teleport to avoid them. Arcanine tested Pikachu’s agility to no end as it avoided the dog’s relentless Crunch and Bite attacks.

The two eventually fought to a stand still and faced each other, panting heavily. Ash encouraged Pikachu to only do as much as he had always asked of his pokemon, the best they could, Gary asked the same of Arcanine.

Arcanine struck first. It released a huge Fire Blast from its mouth and Pikachu merely stood there as the attack sped towards it. Pikachu had used up all the energy it had for avoiding attacks and could not get out of the way in time. Ash knew this and could only watch helplessly and yell out Pikachu’s name as the huge ball of flame approached it.

Mere moments before the attack struck however, Pikachu’s eyes glowed a bright yellow and a shimmering wall of light appeared directly in front of it. The Fire Blast hit the shield with an immense amount of force but it refused to budge. Ash could hardly believe it; Pikachu had learned Light Screen, a move that only a few Pikachu or Raichu in history had ever been known to learn. He couldn’t contemplate that for long however as the shield soon shattered. Thankfully the Fire Blast had by this time been reduced to a few small embers that barely singed Pikachu’s fur. Ash didn’t waste the opportunity and ordered Pikachu to shock Arcanine with everything it had left.

Pikachu proceeded to use the longest sustained Thunderbolt he had ever seen. For nearly a minute it shocked Arcanine relentlessly. The attack paralyzed Arcanine so it was unable to launch an attack in its defense or try to move out of the way. It could only howl in pain and try to endure the hit. After what seemed like an eternity Pikachu’s attack ran out of power and the little rodent dropped onto all fours, exhausted. Arcanine stood in front of it, panting, its whole body crackling with the after effects of the attack. After several more seconds of silence Arcanine let out a tired groan and fell to its side, defeated.

Ash could hardly believe it and for a moment could only stand there as the crowd cheered and the announcer yelled out that he had won time and time again. He soon snapped out of it and ran to Pikachu, giving him the longest tenderest hug he had ever given it. As Pikachu weakly attempted to return the hug Ash looked down at his friend and smiled. He hugged it again and as tears streamed down their faces it seemed for a moment that they were the only two beings in the universe. Ash would forever remember that moment. He seemed to connect with Pikachu like never before, heart and soul. He was reminded of what Prima had once told him, that truly great trainers could share their hearts with their pokemon. Was that what he was doing? He wasn’t sure but at that point he didn’t care.

The young man slowly became aware of others around him. Misty was hugging him while Brock was slapping him on the back and Tracey was shaking his hand happily. His mother meanwhile was bawling her eyes out while Professor Oak looked on proudly. Ash smiled kindly at his mentor before grabbing Misty around the waste, swinging her around happily and enveloping her in a warm hug. He proceeded to receive hugs from his friends and mom and even the professor.

Pikachu looked on with a smile on his face then became aware of and informed Ash of someone else approaching the group. Everyone got out of the way as Gary approached Ash, a serious expression on his face. Ash would never forget the words Gary said to him then.

"Well Ash, I can’t say I’m not disappointed about losing. However I want you to know I’m happy for you. That was the closest, most fulfilling match I’ve ever been in and for that I thank you. You just make sure you never lose against any trainer lesser then me and realize I still plan on giving you a run for your money. We’ll battle again, that’s a promise."

Ash nodded and extended his hand. Gary took it and shook it before turning around and walking away, giving out the same air of confidence and authority that made him such an incredible rival. "Gary!" Ash called to him. Gary turned his head and listened. "Good luck," Ash said giving him a thumbs-up sign. Gary nodded, smiled and left the stadium.

______________________________________________________________________________________

While Ash watched these memories through his minds-eye someone else was watching him in the distance. In a grove of thick bushes a pair of slit eyes watched the group closely through a pair of sophisticated binoculars attached to three fingered paws.

Meowth sighed. "Yup, it’s da twerps alright and all their pokemon too."

"That’s great!" James cried happily. "We’ll finally be able to get Pikachu and all those other pokemon at once. I bet the boss would forgive all our debts with a haul like that!"

Meowth whacked him on the head with a paper fan that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. "Listen Jimmy I’m just taken a shot in da dark here but what do you think are the chances of us actually winning if we attacked them now hmmm?" James sat down and appeared to be in deep thought for a moment before speaking. "Um slim to none?" he said in an uncertain tone. Meowth whacked him on the head again, "that’s right! We would get beaten worse then ever if we attacked now. We have to figure out a way to catch them completely off guard and helpless. It would be great if Victreebel could knock them all out at once with its Sleep Powder but then again I doubt it could, even if it did obey you all the time."

"Hey! Victreebel always obeys me if it’s really important!"

"Sure it does," Meowth replied, sounding like he didn’t believe it one bit and then turned to their other team member who had been silent thus far. "Say Jessie, what do think we should do? It’s not like you ta keep your opinions to ya self." Jessie had been depressed and not quite herself ever since the last time the twerps had beaten them. Meowth had surmised all the defeats must have finally been getting to her.

Jessie sighed heavily before answering. "What’s the point? We’ll just end up losing again. It doesn’t matter how strong our pokemon get or clever our plans are, those kids always manage to beat us. We’ve been after them for years and we have yet to get a single pokemon for the boss."

James wasn’t quite sure how to reply to this but Meowth was quick to point out that they had once brought Togepi to the boss. Jessie growled angrily at him, "and he didn’t even want it! Let’s face it, no matter what we do we’re never going to please him, why should we bother?"

"Because you know we can’t leave Team Rocket. There are serious penalties for dat. Especially with haven never succeeding in doing our jobs. Besides think of all the riches and power we’ll get when we do succeed," Meowth said with a hopeful air.

"Maybe…" Jessie muttered before slumping back down on her knees. James was trying to think of something comforting to say when he heard an odd beeping from his backpack.

"Dat’s an official communication from da boss!" Meowth yelled. "Answer it!"

James complied pulling the small laptop computer from his pack. The three of them looked timidly at the screen, expecting Giovanni to appear and start yelling at them. Instead of a face they were greeted with a simple message…

"You are to return to our facility in Viridian at once and stay there until further notice, no questions asked."

James had a cross look on his face. "How rude. He didn’t even sign it," he grumbled.

"I guess we’d better do as he says," Jessie added still a bit depressed.

"Yeah! Besides I bet da boss has some brilliant plan that will make Team Rocket richer then ever," Meowth said, dollar signs dancing in his eyes.

And so the group of misfit Rocket members packed their things and headed for the nearby city of Viridian.

______________________________________________________________________________________

Ash ended his journey down memory lane by coming to the conclusion that he and his friend’s journey would never truly end. There would always be new trainers to battle, challenges to face and discoveries to be made. That was what was great about being a pokemon trainer. Ash suddenly realized there was a rough tongue licking his face, followed by a dry nose nudging him. He looked to his side to see Charizard staring right at him, its normally fierce eyes looked playful and Ash knew what it wanted.

"You want to go flying Charizard?" The dragon nodded. Ash was a bit confused as to why Charizard was asking for permission to fly until he saw it lower itself to the ground so Ash could get on.

"You want me to ride on you?" The dragon nodded again. "But if you just want to fly for fun then wouldn’t it be easier if I wasn’t weighing you down?"

"Char-char. Zard-char-I-zard [you’re not heavy. Besides its good exercise for me and I know you love flying on my back.]"

Ash couldn’t argue with that and agreed. He was about to mount Charizard when a thought struck him and he turned to his friends. "Hey Misty! Do you want to go flying on Charizard with me?" he yelled and then turned to Charizard, "as long as you don’t mind," Charizard smiled, happy to oblige.

"Sure!" Misty called back and then ran to Charizard. Before she could get on Ash grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up on the creature’s back; she giggled a bit as he did then looked to Ash. "My aren’t we getting strong," she said flashing her brightest smile. Ash smiled back, "hey trainers grow with their pokemon," he said as he got on Charizard as well. He sat in front of Misty, his legs wrapped around Charizard’s neck slightly and Misty’s arms wrapped around him. He couldn’t help but blush a bit at the feeling of being so close to her.

"Okay Charizard lets go!" Ash yelled as Charizard took off with a few flaps of its mighty wings. "Don’t be gone too long," Brock called after them, "we have to get going to Pallet soon." Tracey meanwhile was napping on the soft grass, Pikachu decided to join him until Ash came back.

Meanwhile Misty was screaming as Charizard flew up nearly vertically at high speed causing her to hold Ash even more tightly, too tightly in fact. "Ash! Tell Charizard to stop!" She screamed. As soon as he could breath again Ash did and Charizard immediately leveled off although it held a pouting look on its face for a moment, having enjoyed giving Misty a good scare. Ash looked down at his friend, "hey Charizard, lets see how high we can get but try to take it easy."

Charizard happily complied and began to ascend slowly in a wide circular pattern, hundreds then thousands of feet into the sky until finally it broke through the clouds revealing an awe inspiring panorama of cloud, sunlight and sky. Charizard hovered there for awhile, the pokemon and its passengers taking in the incredible scene before them.

"Its beautiful," Misty whispered taking Ash’s hand and squeezing it gently.

"You can say that again," Ash replied, squeezing back.

They were so engrossed that none of them noticed two objects heading straight for them at very high speed, a long tail of light trailing behind each. One flew ahead of the other by several seconds and passed by the group first, nearly hitting them.

"What was that!" Ash exclaimed.

"I’m not sure, it looked like a white flash," Misty replied in an uncertain tone.

Before anything more could be said the second, larger object sped at and straight into them with great force. It didn’t seem affected at all by the collision but Charizard was knocked unconscious and his two passengers were knocked off his back. Screaming they fell towards the ground.

Notes:

I gave the pokemon sexes as I saw fit since they hardly ever call the pokemon boys or girls in the show. You’ll also notice I use "it" interchangeably with she and he. Just so you know AFAIK all the moves I had the pokemon use (like Charizard using Outrage and Rock Slide, Arcanine using Teleport etc) are moves they can learn in the game either through breeding or TMs. As far as I can tell in the show pokemon don’t need those things. They simply learn better moves the better they are trained. I know that in MSB Fergus had a Seadra instead of a Poliwrath but since the battle was taking place on land I decided to give him it as it was more convenient and he almost certainly has more then six pokemon. You may also have noticed that Brocks Vulpix is not in the fic. Well that’s because in a episode yet to be shown in the U.S. Brock gives it back to Suzie and so even though Brock could possibly marry Suzie in the future and thus be reunited with Vulpix there will be no Vulpix in this story. Remember any inevitable differences can be attributed to this being a slightly different dimension. Think about the Tenchi series.

I hope none of you purist out there got too upset with Melody referring to Ash as the "Chosen One." I know that in the original version of the second movie they didn’t call him that or say he was the only one who could do what he did. But in any event it still takes a special person to do what he did in Revelation Lugia and he did see Ho-oh, who is said to appear to people with special destinies, in the first episode. So in that sense I think he can rightly be called the "Chosen One."

I gave Ash the team Red has in GS because I like it. Who’s to say he won’t ever catch an Espeon? I gave Brock a Rhyhorn because well… it suits him.

I hope no one got too bored with the flashback scenes. Some may wonder how Harden would of helped Snorlax against Tentacruels Hydro Pump but it is my impression at least that in the anime defensive moves like Harden and Light Screen work whether the attack is Special based or not. Like when Starmies Light Screen almost stopped a Golducks Hyper Beam in "By By Psyduck." As for all you Team Rocket fans, don’t worry. They will be very important characters later in the story. I think that’s all.