Hi, everyone! Welcome to my very first published work on this lovely website called FanFic—wait, whaddya mean I can't put links within fanfics?!
…Well, anyway…what you're reading right now was actually written in 2015, four years after the original story was published. But now that I've had a lot more experience in writing fanfics, and because I just realized how…bad the original was, I decided to give this story a bit of a makeover. It's coming along very slowly, but it'll be done soon.
So! May I present to you…Storm Aurastar's super-epic-wonderful-magnum-fantastic-glamorous…novelization of Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai, the ninth movie!
…All right, I think I'm overacting now. On to the disclaimer.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Pokémon!
Prologue
In the world of Pokémon, people who train and travel with Pokémon partners swarm the lands by the hundreds. These people are called Pokémon Trainers. Every Trainer's goal is to become the greatest Pokémon master in the world, armed with the most powerful Pokémon they could lay their hands on. One particular group of three young Trainers is on their way toward that goal.
Their names are Ash, Dawn, and Brock. They have been traveling throughout distant lands—and beyond—ever since they had received their very first Pokémon partners.
Ash was an ambitious Trainer from Pallet Town. He journeyed from here to there, going through thick and thin with his partner and best friend Pikachu. As he walked along the path to his future, he defeated gym leaders, earned badges, made more friends and even more rivals… He traveled with different companions as he went from region to region—Misty, Brock, and Tracy in Kanto and Johto, and May, Max, and Brock in Hoenn. Now he was in the Sinnoh Region, accompanied by Dawn and Brock.
Dawn was a Pokémon Coordinator to-be who had a cocky Piplup as her partner. She aimed to be a Top Coordinator, just like her mother.
Brock was training to be a Pokémon Breeder, which meant he had to know a lot about Pokémon. Since he was the oldest in the group, he gave many helpful tips to his friends as they battled and traveled and met new Pokémon.
Ash had met several rare and powerful Pokémon called Legendary Pokémon during his travels.
There was the elusive Mew and its clone, Mewtwo, who had wanted a world of Pokémon and no humans. Mewtwo later changed its mind after Ash proved that humans and Pokémon can live together in peace by sacrificing himself to protect all the Pokémon there, regardless of whether they were clones or not.
There was Lugia and the Legendary Bird Trio of the Kanto region—Articuno, Zapdos, and Moltres. When the world was threatened by ferocious storms, Ash helped save the world by teaming up with Lugia, just as a prophecy had proclaimed.
Afterward, there was an illusionary Entei, who was served as the temporary father of a young girl named Molly Hale, who had lost her father to the mysterious Unown.
There was Celebi, who had come from forty years in the past, along with a boy called Sam—who turned out to be none other than Professor Oak from his boyhood. Celebi was being tracked down by a Pokémon Hunter whose plans were quickly thwarted by Ash, his friends, and a Legendary Pokémon called Suicune.
There were the guardians of Alto Mare, Latias and Latios, who were nearly killed by two ruthless Team Rocket spies. Latios gave his life for the people of Alto Mare when the city was about to be obliterated by a massive tsunami.
There was Jirachi, a mysterious Pokémon who had woken up from a deep slumber of a thousand years and helped Ash and his destroy a monstrous Groudon that had been created by a man who wished to keep Jirachi for himself.
There was the foreign Pokémon Deoxys, who had come from outer space and was searching for its companion. Ash and his friends ended Deoxys' four-year conflict with Rayquaza and also helped the DNA Pokémon reunite with its friend.
There was Lucario, a Pokémon with a heart and fists of steel. He was not a Legendary Pokémon but nevertheless was quite legendary…in a different way. Ash encountered Mew for the second time, this time with the Golem Trio—Regirock, Regice, and Registeel.
And, in the most recent adventure, there was Manaphy, whom Ash and his friends rightfully sen back to the ocean, where they also met Kyogre.
Now, Ash, Pikachu, Dawn, and Brock are setting out for the Sinnoh region.
Mysteries await them. And who knew that this adventure would be the greatest one yet…
-ooo-
The world of Pokémon is located within a dimension.
Yet…there are more dimensions.
Two of these foreign dimensions had collided…when they weren't supposed to.
And something was going on.
Something extremely destructive.
-ooo-
Shadows flitted everywhere. Smoky gray clouds swirled through the air. Streaks of lightning flashed in the sky.
Suddenly, there was a massive explosion deep within the dimension. Thousands of swarming Unown fled—all for the same reason.
The gray clouds parted to reveal two colossal Pokémon facing each other in the midst of a battle.
The two Pokémon glared at each other, hatred filling their red eyes.
-ooo-
"'Two entities that never should have met crossed paths in the space-time rift… This ill-fated meeting has brought forward their unbridled wrath enveloping the city, and as a result…all is collapsing.
"'What could be the true meaning of this horrible nightmare?'"
The young scientist finished reading the words and leaned forward in his chair. "Godey's diary, huh?" he remarked with a small smile. He ran a hand through his lavender hair. "What an interesting find!" He shut the diary and a cloud of several years' worth of dust enveloped his face, making him cough.
Just then, there was a strange grinding sound in the room. He whirled around, his heartbeat suddenly quickening. Then he glanced at the top of a desk near him.
An hourglass on the desk had begun to move all by itself!
At the same time, the computer on the scientist's desk beeped a warning call, having detected something very unusual… Waves of powerful energy were surging through the town!
The scientist bent down toward his beeping computer and gasped at the readings.
The hourglass behind him finally tipped over…and fell in slow motion.
-ooo-
Meanwhile, far away in the foreign dimension…
"PARURURURURU!" the pink Pokémon roared.
"DIAAAAAAAAAAA!" the blue Pokémon bellowed.
Each of them rammed into its opponent, resulting in a loud crash. As gray clouds and dark matter swirled around them, bolts of blue and white lightning flashed and thunder boomed resonantly. The two Pokémon flew back and separated.
Then the pink Pokémon held its hands together, forming a pink ball of glowing energy within them. The blue Pokémon had no time to dodge and ended up receiving a full serving of Aura Sphere. Rearing up in anger, the blue Pokémon retaliated by opening its mouth and sending a huge beam of orange fire at the pink Pokémon—Hyper Beam. The pink Pokémon immediately used Protect and surrounded itself with a pinkish sphere. The blue Pokémon's Hyper Beam slammed into the sphere and exploded against its surface, causing the pink Pokémon to wince as it struggled to withstand the powerful move.
However, the blue Pokémon was not finished yet. A shadowy aura appeared on its forehead, and then it summoned a barrage of glowing meteors that all shot down at the pink Pokémon.
The pink Pokémon saw the incoming Draco Meteor, and it let loose another Aura Sphere right before the Draco Meteors crashed into it. At the same time, the blue Pokémon was struck by the pink Pokémon's Aura Sphere. Smoke engulfed it as it reeled back in pain.
At that moment, the pearls on the pink Pokémon's shoulders began to glow with a bright light. "PARURURURURU!" it bellowed, and it raised its right arm, absorbing particles of pink energy. Then it swung its arm down, releasing a huge pink crescent of spatial power that shot straight for the blue Pokémon.
Sensing no way of escape, the blue Pokémon shielded itself with Protect. The crescent rammed into it and exploded upon impact. Slightly injured, the blue Pokémon furiously roared, "DIAAAAAAAAAA!" as the diamond on its chest began to radiate a blinding blue light. The steel fan on the Pokémon's back extended, and spiraling blue and white particles appeared within its gaping maw. Then it let out a gigantic bluish-indigo beam of temporal power.
The pink Pokémon tried to lessen the damage by allowing the move crash right onto its left pearl.
The results were destructive. Waves of power surged through the black, lightning-filled dimension. Once again, a mass of thousands of Unown fled from the scene.
Growling with satisfaction, the blue Pokémon watched its opponent writhe in pain as the fan on its back shrunk back to its normal size.
Things were not going very well for the pink Pokémon. The impact of its opponent's attack had created a crack that ran right through its left pearl, which was now flickering faintly and barely glowing. The pink Pokémon was outraged by its wound, and it roared as loud as it could as it turned to face the blue Pokémon, who blue Pokémon responded by attacking with another Hyper Beam.
The pink Pokémon spread its wings and took off into the air, evading the attack. Then it suddenly turned back, flew behind the blue Pokémon, and used an Aura Sphere that the blue Pokémon narrowly dodged.
Right after the pink energy ball had flown out of sight, the blue Pokémon countered with yet another orange beam. Quickly, the pink Pokémon ducked under it and made a hasty retreat. Enraged by the pink Pokémon's cowardly nature, the blue Pokémon followed it, closely in pursuit.
A roar echoed through the dimension of black and white.
-ooo-
The young scientist was already bolting out of the dimly lit room when the hourglass shattered into a thousand pieces with an earsplitting crash.
In the young scientist's room, the hourglass fell through the air and shattered with an earsplitting crash.
Because this website doesn't have an option for a prologue chapter and insists on labeling Chapter 1 as Chapter 2, here's Chapter 1. Whoop-dee-doop.
DISCLAIMER: Pokémon belongs to Nintendo!
Chapter 1: Entering Alamos!
It was a sunny day. Three young Pokémon Trainers were strolling along a wide dirt path, continuing with their journey. Ash Ketchum carried his backpack while his Pikachu, a small, yellow Electric-type Pokémon with a tail shaped like a lightning bolt and two red cheeks, perched on his head. Dawn, Piplup, and Brock, who also had a backpack, followed after Ash. They were on their way to Alamos Town for the Pokémon Contest that Dawn had been training very hard for. Contests were her specialty; after all, she was a Coordinator in-training and her mother was none other than Johanna, a Top Coordinator in the Sinnoh Region.
"Hey, shouldn't we have gotten there by now?" she asked Brock.
The Pokémon Breeder, who was reading a guidebook about Alamos Town, replied, "Almost." Two seconds later, he looked up and exclaimed, "And there it is! Alamos Town, right over that hill!"
Ash leaped into the air in excitement. "Yeah!" he cheered. "C'mon! Last one there is a Slowpoke!" Dawn made a face and rushed after him.
"I bet you as soon as we get there, we'll find some great battles!" Ash yelled.
"Pikachu!" his Pokémon agreed happily.
Dawn quickly caught up with Ash. "I've got to get ready for the Contest!" she exclaimed. "So many dresses to wear and so little time!" She giggled at the indignant look that her Piplup was giving her. "Oh, I don't mean you, Piplup. But you're going to dress up, too."
"Piiiiip-lup!"
Then Ash frowned. "Huh? Wait just a sec—" He skidded to a halt and gaped at the view before him.
He had just reached the end of the dirt path…which led straight to the edge of a high cliff. He could hear the waves of the ocean crashing many feet below him.
"Brooooock!" he yelled. "Thanks for the directions!"
When Brock rejoined Ash and Dawn, he realized that Alamos Town was built on the very top of a plateau. He frowned as he turned his guidebook this way and that, looking confused. "Hmm… It looks like we're on the wrong shore…"
Ash was stunned. He had run all this way and ended up with nothing. The only thing he and his friends could do was turn around and find the correct path.
"Aw, man," he complained. "So much for reaching our destination today!"
Dawn flopped down. "And I'm exhausted," she moaned.
Ash did the same. "Ugh… Me, too." Pikachu's ears drooped as it collapsed with its Trainer.
An unfamiliar voice called down from above their heads. "Hi, there! Would you all like a lift?"
A green and yellow hot-air balloon was hovering above them, getting ready to land. When Brock saw who was standing in the basket, his mouth fell open as he grinned hugely. "Oho… Ahhhh…"
A young woman who wore a red shirtdress waved at Ash and his friends from the basket. Clinging onto one of the balloon's poles was a Chimchar, small, monkey-like Fire-type Pokémon with a small flame on its rear, known to be very playful.
"Hi, there!" the woman said again.
"Chimchar!" her Pokémon added.
The balloon landed, and the woman asked if she could transport Ash, Dawn, and Brock to Alamos Town via her hot-air balloon. Ash and Dawn were about to politely refuse when they saw hearts filling Brock's eyes, knowing that they had no choice but to accept. Within moments, the three Trainers were in the basket with the woman, watching a flock of three Pelipper—white and blue Water-and Flying-type Pokémon with large beaks—fly below them. Of course, Brock was blushing madly and wooing her, like what he always did to beautiful women.
"We can't thank you enough for your kindness!" he cried happily, turning red with embarrassment. Behind him, Ash, and Dawn exchanged exasperated looks. "So my name here is Brock. Would you honor us by telling your name?"
"My name's Alice," said the woman.
Brock threw his arms into the air, thrilled at this seemingly simple piece of information. "So it's Alice! From Alamos Town! Oho!" He suddenly ducked down, dug around, and shot back up with a book. Dawn realized that it wasn't the guidebook, but instead was the notebook that Brock used to record the names of all the beautiful women the Trainers had met during their previous adventures.
"I can't believe I don't have you written down in my little blue book of babes," he groaned in in dismay as he leafed through the pages, most of which were completely filled. "Silly me… Ugh!" He collapsed. "I'm such a dummy!"
He should seriously consider becoming an actor, Ash thought with a grin. He'll easily make the cut!
Then Brock leaped back up with the book in his face. "Then there's only one thing to do," he declared as he gave Alice a look of love and determination. "Let me take you out—aagh!"
Brock's Croagunk, a Poison- and Fighting-type Pokémon with a perpetual grin on its face, had somehow burst out of its Poké Ball and assaulted him with a Poison Jab.
"Ow… That hurts…" He sank to the bottom of the basket. "Croagunk takes me out…" And he fainted.
Croagunk smirked and proclaimed, "Croagunk."
Alice looked at the fallen Brock with a confused expression, while Ash and his friends laughed nervously.
"Pika," said Pikachu somewhat apologetically.
Then Dawn decided to change the subject. "Um, anyway, my name's Dawn. I'm entering the Alamos Town Pokémon Contest!"
"Hi, I'm Ash," greeted Ash. He turned to look at Pikachu. "And this is my partner, Pikachu!"
"Pikachu!" it squeaked.
Alice smiled. "It's so nice to meet you."
Chimchar breathed a plume of fire into the balloon, making it fly faster toward the town. Ash looked down at the water below them. "Awesome, we're really moving!"
"What a pretty lake," Dawn exclaimed.
All of a sudden, Brock jumped back up, fully recovered from Croagunk's attack. "Definitely not as pretty as Alice!" he declared.
"You're…really quick," Ash remarked. Croagunk's Poison Jab a very powerful move, not to mention that it was full of poison. A normal person would never be able to recover from a Poison Jab within thirty seconds. Then again, Brock wasn't a very normal person, so Ash decided to stop wondering about it and refocus his attention on the scenery.
Alice smiled, despite the awkward moment. "Well, then…let me tell you a little bit about myself. I work part-time as a hot-air balloon tour guide. But I spend most of my time here as a music student." She took a leaf out of her pocket and put it on her lips, which Dawn recognized as a leaf whistle. Alice started to play a soothing song on the leaf whistle, attracting the flock of Pelipper as well as several Pidgey and a Pidgeotto.
"Pidgeotto!" the Bird Pokémon chirped as it glided along the air current. Alice responded by continuing the song, and then the Pidgeotto soared away with the Pidgey. The three Pelipper followed them in the same direction.
"You see, the Pokémon are showing me which way the wind's blowing," Alice explained, pocketing her leaf whistle. Then she looked up. "Okay, Chimchar!"
Chimchar nodded. It let out another Flamethrower, just as Pikachu clambered up to join it.
"Pika!" greeted Pikachu.
Chimchar performed a happy backflip. "Chimchar!" It waved back at its new friend.
The yellow and green hot-air balloon sailed through the air toward Alamos Town. Three Drifloon—lavender, balloon-like Pokémon with yellow X's on their faces—passed by, led by a larger balloon-like Pokémon called Drifblim that was holding a piece of equipment. The four Pokémon floated up and approached…another hot-air balloon. This balloon, which was shaped like a Grass-type Pokémon called Carnivine, had two people and one Pokémon sitting in the basket.
It was Team Rocket, a trio of Pokémon thieves. The team consisted of Jessie, James, and their talking Meowth, a cat-like, Normal-type Pokémon. They followed Ash and his friends wherever they went, hoping to steal their Pokémon to please their boss, Giovanni. Right now, they were looking at Alice's balloon and the balloon-like Pokémon through their binoculars.
"Say, this balloon thing is catching on!" exclaimed James when he noticed that Ash and his friends were also riding a hot-air balloon.
"Like we're gonna catch Pikachu!" added Meowth.
Then one of the Drifloon floated up to hover next to Jessie, startling her and causing her to drop her binoculars. "Floon," it said. Jessie stumbled back with surprise as the Drifblim and other Drifloon flew over to watch.
"Wha… More balloons?" Jessie asked, staring at the four Pokémon.
Meowth recognized them. "Three Drifloon and a Drifblim!"
Jessie grinned. "Oho, they're so round and cute!" She turned around. "Say, I think they want us to take them for a walk!" When she turned back, a net was in her hands. She leaned over and started to swat at the Drifloon that had flown into her face.
"Come…to…Jessie…" She huffed and puffed as she swung the net at the Drifloon, who was dodging every swing with ease. Jesse jabbed at it with the pole side of the net. "Would you please stop floating away?!" Finally, she gave up.
Suddenly, the Drifblim angrily puffed itself up. The three Drifloon did the same.
James and Meowth grew nervous at the sight. "Uh…"
"What did I do?" asked Jessie indignantly.
"Same thing we always do!" replied Meowth, looking away from the angry Pokémon.
James tried to calm them down. "Ohhhhh-kay, now! Er, settle down, will you?" He grinned reassuringly. "Now let me, uh…find some way to stop that swelling!"
Just then, a Poké Ball bounced out onto the bottom of the balloon's basket, and out came Jessie's big, blue Psychic-type Pokémon—Wobbuffet.
"Wobbuffet!" it announced.
But nothing could calm the Drifblim and the three Drifloon. Swelling larger than ever, their bodies glowed with a faint blue light. Then a vortex of whirling air suddenly erupted from within them.
"WAAAH!" yelled Team Rocket as the tornado surrounded their balloon.
"They blasted us with Gust!" screeched Meowth.
The three members of Team Rocket panicked, wildly waving their arms and legs as if they could fly.
But they couldn't.
"Team Rocket's blasting off agaaaaaain!"
They were thrown up and up and up into the sky, where they disappeared.
Ash, Pikachu, Dawn, Brock, and Alice had not noticed Team Rocket getting gusted away into the air, for they were still gazing at the beautiful town below.
"Look at those towers!" exclaimed Dawn.
"They're called the Space-Time Towers," said Alice. "They're the main feature of Alamos Town."
Brock checked the Alamos Town guidebook. "Here, listen to this. 'The brilliant architect Godey designed the Space-Time Towers one hundred years ago,'" he read aloud.
Alice nodded. "And that's where we hold our Pokémon Contest, Dawn."
"Oh, wow!" the Coordinator breathed.
Ash was amazed. "One hundred years," he said, counting his fingers. "That's, like, ten years…times…uh…"
"Times ten," Dawn finished for him. "What happened to your times tables?"
Ash grinned sheepishly. "I, uh, forgot them."
"Oh, come on, Ash! Even elementary schoolers can memorize their tables up to one hundred!"
"B-b-but that was a long time ago!"
"No excuses, dummy!"
Pikachu sighed. "Pika…"
Brock ignored his friends' bickering and looked at the guidebook again. "Let's see. Here's a section that explains why those towers are called the Space-Time Towers. The tower on the right represents time, and the one on the left represents space."
Ash peered down to look at the Space-Time Towers. "Hey, I could've told you that!"
Pikachu suddenly looked wary. It lifted its head and peeked up to see the same flock of Pidgey from before was being pushed by a strong blast of wind. Then the balloon began to rock violently back and forth.
"WAHHH!" yelped Ash, Dawn, Brock, and Alice, clutching onto the basket's edges as tightly as they could.
-ooo-
Meanwhile, in the scientist's room, the computer picked up a strange force that was surging through Alamos Town at dangerously high levels. It beeped its warning call again as the scientist tapped some buttons.
"Powerful forces…colliding with each other?" he muttered. "Something big is going on…" He ran out of his office.
On the computer's screen, it showed the energy heaving through the town… Then they gradually died away.
-ooo-
Back in Alice's hot-air balloon, everyone was silent with shock. Alice, trembling with worry, asked, "Is everybody okay?"
"Yeah," the three Trainers replied shakily.
"But what was that?" wondered Brock, speaking everyone's thoughts.
"I suppose it could have been the air currents…" Alice sounded very unsure of herself. Clearly, this had never happened to her before. "It sure was strange… Sorry if you guys got scared." Then she gave a small smile. "If you're worried about any more air turbulence, how about we have a tour of the city…on foot?"
Everyone cheered.
"Yeah!" said Brock.
"Yes!" agreed Dawn.
"That'll be great!" Ash exclaimed.
"Pika!"
-ooo-
Bam! A Bronzor and a Gible collided into each other. As they backed away to attack again, their Trainers urged them on. Overhead, a Beautifly flew past an open window, prompting a child to call for her mother and point out the Pokémon's colorful wings. A man and his Chimecho watched the Beautifly from outside their door, and the Chimecho waved to it.
Ash, Dawn, and Brock, led by Alice, walked through the bustling town. They passed more Trainers, some people taking a stroll, and many little shops. They came upon a vendor selling some cotton candy to a mother and her daughter, who happily accepted her treat and started eating it.
Alice walked to the cotton candy shop and turned to face the Trainers. "The cotton candy here is the greatest," she said with a smile. "Of course, that's just my opinion. But I'd like you to try some." When they hesitated, she added, "It's on me…"
A few minutes later, every one of them—even Pikachu—had their faces buried in the sweet, soft treat. They ate away, and Pikachu grinned at Ash, pink fluff stuck to its face. Alice shared her cotton candy with Chimchar. Ash quickly wolfed down his cotton candy in three bites. Before Brock could begin his own, he was once again distracted by Alice's beauty. Ash took this opportunity and leaned over to swallow Brock's candy in two bites. He snorted with amusement when Brock chomped down on the empty stick and irritatingly looked at him.
"I'm gonna get you, Ash!" he threatened.
Ash laughed and sped away with Pikachu bouncing up and down on his head. "Catch me if you can, Slowpoke!"
Crash!
The Trainer staggered backward after slamming into something hard and sturdy. He shook his head a few times to clear his vision of dancing Staryu and Spinda and gaped at what he had crashed into.
It was a Torterra, a massive Grass- and Ground-type Pokémon that looked like a giant tortoise with rocks and a small tree on its shell.
"Torterra," it said in a rumbling voice.
Pikachu jumped off Ash and landed on Torterra's back. "Pikachu!" it said to it.
Torterra's Trainer, a boy with messy brown hair who wore an unbuttoned white shirt with a blue shirt underneath and blue jeans, smiled at Ash. "Hey," he said. "I'm Maury. You seem pretty eager for a battle! So does my Torterra. Right?"
"Torterra!" the Continent Pokémon agreed.
"All right, then!" Maury turned to Ash. "I challenge you to a battle!"
Ash nodded. "I accept your challenge! The name's Ash, by the way. Nice to meet you!"
Dawn, Brock, and Alice caught up with Ash. Except for Brock, they were still in the middle of eating their cotton candy when they saw Ash's Pikachu facing Maury's Torterra. They grinned when Maury waved at them.
Two more Trainers, a girl and another boy, joined Maury. The girl held a Poké Ball in her hand and glanced at Brock, who understood that she wanted to battle.
At that moment, Ash and Maury began their own battle.
"Pikachu!" shouted Ash. "Use Thunderbolt!"
Pikachu's cheeks sparked. Then, with a loud crackle, a powerful bolt of electricity burst out of Pikachu's body and shocked Torterra.
"Yeah!" cheered Ash when his Pokémon's attack struck its opponent. Behind him, Alice and Chimchar watched the battle.
Pikachu landed on its feet and grinned. Then its smile turned upside down when it saw that its attack hadn't harmed Torterra at all.
Maury laughed. "Electric-type moves don't affect Ground-type Pokémon!" he shouted at him. "And Torterra is also Grass-type, so Electric moves are completely out of the question! Okay, Torterra, use Seed Bomb!"
Torterra obeyed and opened its mouth. Glowing white seeds hurtled out and flew toward Pikachu like bombarding bullets. Pikachu jumped up, leaned back, rolled over, ducked, sidestepped, and performed every other trick of evasion it knew to dodge all the seeds.
"No Electric-type moves, huh? No problem. Iron Tail!" called out Ash.
As Pikachu dashed toward Torterra, its tail began to glow with a white light. It leaped up, twirled around, and slammed its iron-hard tail onto Torterra's back.
Ash shot his fist into the air. "Yeah! All right!"
Pikachu landed lightly on the ground and carefully watched for its opponent's next attack
Meanwhile, on the other side of the square, Dawn's Piplup was facing an Empoleon, a Water- and Steel-type Pokémon that was the third and last evolution of Piplup. The Empoleon belonged to the other male Trainer, whose name was Kai. The two Water-types began their battle by exchanging tough looks. Empoleon proudly puffed out its chest, and Piplup tried to do the same. But it leaned too far back, and it rolled backward over onto the ground. Empoleon frowned and peered down at it.
In the center of the square, Brock's Croagunk was fighting the girl's Infernape, a monkey-like Fire- and Fighting-type Pokémon that was the third and last evolution of Chimchar.
"Poison Jab!" Brock ordered.
Croagunk thrust its poison-covered hands at Infernape as quickly as it could, but the Flame Pokémon was agilely dodging all of them. Then it unexpectedly threw its glowing hand forward to clobber Croagunk with a Mach Punch. The Toxic Mouth Pokémon jumped into the air, causing the move to miss, and backflipped several times before landing on its feet.
"Flamethrower!" yelled the female Trainer, who was named Allegra.
Croagunk quickly rolled over as Infernape's Flamethrower narrowly missed it. Then the two Pokémon began to exchange a flurry of melee moves.
On the other side of the square, Piplup and Empoleon had begun their battle. Piplup started off with a huge Whirlpool attack. It levitated into the air as it created a spinning vortex of water that it hurled down to the ground at Empoleon.
"Empoleon, use Ice Beam to stop the Whirlpool!" commanded Kai.
Empoleon opened its mouth and sent out a bolt of ice. The Ice Beam collided into the Whirlpool and froze it. As the frozen Whirlpool shattered in midair, Piplup shot down like a rocket, its beak glowing as it prepared a Peck. Empoleon leaped into the air and started to spin rapidly to counter with a powerful Drill Peck.
BAM! Piplup and Empoleon crashed right into each other. Piplup was somewhat shaken, but it was still all right.
"Keep it up, Piplup!" Dawn encouraged her Pokémon. "Now use BubbleBeam!"
Piplup opened its beak and released a stream of high-speed bubbles. Empoleon protected itself by covering its body with its tough flippers, then rushed forward.
"Piplup, use Whirlpool again!"
Piplup whirled around and around, forming another vortex of water, though this one was much larger. Instead of aiming the Whirlpool at Empoleon, Piplup surrounded itself with its own move, and it spun toward Empoleon, who ran right into it.
And Ash, Brock, and Dawn's battles continued…
Man, rewriting an entire fanfic really ain't easy as it looks…
