"The Road To Victory And A Dream Accomplished"
by Trainer Ash Ketchum


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  He had only one Pokémon left. If Lance put this one down, his dream would be
shattered. He couldn’t lose now. He had beaten the first three of the Elite Four
and now he had the chance to win. Don’t worry, Ash, he told himself. His last
Pokémon against Lance’s last. You’ve saved the best for last. You can’t lose now.

Without further hesitation, Ash called his Pokémon. “ Pikachu, I choose you!”

“ Pika!”  The electric rodent jumped down from the podium onto the field and stared
into the Dragonite’s face. Sparks flew from his cheeks. He knew he could win. He
and Ash had been waiting for this moment for nearly six years, since the day they
first got on. The Dragonite didn’t look to strong, Pikachu tried to convince himself,
even though the truth was to the contrary.

“ Pikachu, agility!” Ash yelled.

Misty, Brock, Professor Oak and Ash’s mother watched from the stands. They were
the only crowd in the dark stadium, Master battles being held too important for non-
important spectators. No one outside the Elite Four, Ash, his Pokémon, and the
people closest to him, knew what was taking place within the circular arena walls.

All were panicking. One Pokémon each, however Lance had the elemental advantage. Misty sat tense with all the worry in the world. He couldn’t lose now, not after all the hard work he had put in lately. She just stared at the handsome young trainer, knowing that she couldn’t do anything to help.

Back on the field, as Pikachu began to speed around the floor, Lance called out his
first move.  “ Dragonite, Fire blast!”

The fire erupted from the dragon’s  mouth and headed straight towards Pikachu, but
with an acceleration in another direction, he dodged the flames easily.

“ Damnit,” the master said to himself. “ This kid is pretty good, but he won’t defeat me.” He raised his voice to call out his second command. “ Blizzard!  Take that rat down!”

Ever obedient, the Dragonite carried out the attack. This time Pikachu’s speed didn’t
save him. He was struck down by the ice. Luckily, ice attacks aren’t greatly effective
towards electric types, so the Pokémon bounced back up and continued his sprint.

“ Pikachu, try swift!”

Pikachu ran towards it’s opponent and struck it with a powerful blow. It was injured,
but far from beaten.

“ Now hit it with your Thunderbolt.” Ash hoped that although it was a dragon type, the
fact the it had ice attacks would make it weak against electric.

The little rodent yelled it’s name, and a flash of yellow lightening rose from it’s body
and struck Dragonite. This time the assault was more powerful. The Pokémon fell
onto the ground for a moment before gaining it’s composure again.

“ Dragonite, Hyper Beam!”

“ Hyper Beam!” Misty screamed in the stands. “ Pikachu may not be able to survive
this attack,” she said to the others in utter shock. “ What can Ash do?”

Hyper Beam, Ash said to himself. I can’t let this hit. Coming upon an idea, he
shouted as loud as he could. “ Pikachu, Agility again then Thunder!”

Pikachu knew he only had a few seconds before the blast hit. Ash had come up with
the best strategy to evade this attack. He ran with all the speed he could muster from the place where the beam was heading, and then with a loud yell, he let out the most power attack he had ever accomplished. Again, yellow lightning flew from his little body and hit Dragonite with an almost terrifying violence. The large Pokémon fell
back to the ground, knocked out; unconscious.

An awkward hush fell over the stadium. No one was quite sure whether it had ended
or not. Then slowly, answering everyone’s uncertainty, Lance raised his arm and
recalled his Pokémon.

Ash, watching Dragonite return, could feel the excitement rising within him. Was this
true? Had he really won?

Lance walked over to the teenager and bowed. “ Congratulations, Ash.  I knew you
were someone special when you came into the gym and now I can see that the
rumours about you were correct.”  He raised his voice and announced to the few
present in the gym, “Another name has been entered into the Hall of Fame. Ash
Ketchum of Pallet Town is now a Pokémon Master, one of the elite trainers. He has entered a class that only a few belong to. Tonight he will be sworn in and from then on his name will be knowned around the world. Welcome, Ash, to your future.”  With a bow and a smile, Lance walked away from the young, new master, leaving the field with the other four defeated trainers.

In the stands, Ash’s friends and family sat in awe. They knew Ash was a great trainer but were unsure if he would ever make it this far. Misty was the first to break the cessation, getting up from her seat, jumping over the rail that blocked the front row from the battle field, and running to where Ash stood in silence. When she reached him, she grabbed his hands and pulled them close to her. “ Ash, you did it.  You’re a master.”

Ash, breaking from his inner confusion, looked to his friend. “ I can’t believe it.  I won. Yes!” he screamed as him and Pikachu jumped in the air and landed again, only beginning to come to terms with what had just happened.

Misty, who wasn't able to contain her excitement, hugged her friend as tightly as she could. He held her back and the two began to jump together with joy.

When they broke from the embrace, they saw three figures approach to offer their
congratulations.

“ That was an awesome battle, Ash,” Brock said.

“ Oh, I can’t believe my little baby won,” said a tearful Mrs. Ketchum.

“ Well done, Ash. You’ve truly proven yourself,” Professor Oak congratulated.

“ Thanks, guys.” He then looked around to see where Misty had disappeared too. 
She was still standing by his side, but had knelt down to pick up Pikachu. She held
him gently in her arms and stroked his small yellow head. “ But Pikachu and the
my other pokémon are the real winners. Without them, I’d get nowhere. They’ve made me a champion.”

“Pika,” Pikachu jumped from within Misty’s arms to his trainer. The tired Pokémon
licked Ash’s chin.

“ Thanks, Pikachu. Thanks to you and the others.”  He raised his head to his friends
and family.  “ And thank to you guys for believing in me.”

“ That’s what friends are for,” Misty and Brock replied.
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"What's next for our young trio? Is their jounry finally over? What ever happend to Team Roclet? Find out next time in chapter #1."
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