A/N: Sorry for the delay, guys, but here it is. I'll be fixing any noticeable errors ASAP; I wrote the latter half of this chapter quite late. I'm incidentally looking for a beta reader, but not entirely sure how the process works. If someone could drop me a PM explaining that it would be rather nice. I'm really looking for help with editing, as my grammar is definitely not perfect, as you may see in this chapter.

The next day heralded their departure from Viridian. They would be returning here eventually, to battle the gym leader. However, both knew well enough that Giovanni, the leader of the gym here, was way beyond both of them. In fact, even if both of them challenged him together, they would still have hardly any chance. He was reputed to be the most powerful gym leader, a step above all the others. Another factor that determined Ash's decision was the sorrowful face of a man with seven badges, who had lost quite badly to said leader, swept in fact.

Ash did not intend on suffering the same fate. He would face Giovanni when he was stronger, much stronger. That said, the two decided to proceed from the city onto the outskirts, once again using the metro system that Kanto had recently developed. They had already packed breakfast the night before, as they did not want to waste their monetary funds on the expensive food items offered inside the city. It was a better option to buy raw ingredients and make food from them. After making sure everything was ready to go, they left Viridian's outskirts and headed onto the short path that was Route 2. Unlike Route 1, this route had two segments; with Viridian Forest separating the two parts of the same route. Of course, their final destination on this path would be Pewter City. The leader of the Pewter Gym was Brock, a user of rock type Pokemon, as the badge name suggested. He was also the weakest gym leader, according to some reliable sources Ash had asked, all trainers who had competed in the previous Indigo League, and were only too happy to give advice. But the opinionated words of others weren't Ash's concern. Brock had to have some strength to have become a Gym Leader, and Ash had already surmised as such. While he acted as the 'easiest' Gym Leader, Ash had heard the whispers. He knew of the rumours. That each Gym Leader had a team so powerful that they could take down a platoon of Team Rockets without even expending a quarter of their energy. These teams were not used against everyone; only the strongest challengers, with 7 badges to their name could challenge a Gym Leader's true team.

'I'll do that one day,' Ash told Honedge, communing to the ghost who was resting inside the pokeball in Ash's bag. While the pokemon could not communicate back with its trainer while in stasis, everything said trainer was doing and saying would be broadcast to him, because of their unique telepathic bond. Ash stopped walking, and pondered upon his imminent Gym challenge for one last moment. The team the Leader was said to use against beginning trainers was rather easy to defeat, especially considering that he had Honedge. The Steel type would not have any problems at all dealing with the Geodude and Onix that Brock used to fight against challengers. However, at that moment, he came to a sudden epiphany. Thus far, he had only been relying on the strength and sheer might of Honedge to clear the first Route to get to Viridian, but that would not be enough to handle the gym. Honedge was, after all, still young, and two battles would tire the Ghost/Steel type out, to the point where serious injury would not be unlikely.

Ash was ruthless when it came to training pokemon, but even he knew when to draw the line. He would not allow Honedge to be permanently hurt or scarred. It had taken all of the pokemon's trust for the Kalos native to accept him as a friend. He would certainly not compromise that. Also, the prospect of adding diversity to his team really appealed to him. Even more so when he overheard the crazed ramblings of an unfortunate traveller who had taken a few wrong turns in the forest. The idiot in question, who had the stupidity to not follow the clearly labelled path to the exit, had turned tail and ran back to Viridian, after a supposed 'creature' with 'flashing eyes' had startled him . The creature, Ash thought, was a water type for certain, seeing as the traveller had clearly stated that the one thing he did notice was how the 'monster' didn't actually leave the lake, but instead, remained in the lake after appropriately chasing the annoying person away. Judging from the description given by the other trainer, Ash had narrowed it down a few options. The flashing eyes indicated the work of a somewhat talented Psychic, and the fact that it resided in the lake could only mean one thing. The pokemon the other trainer had spotted could either be a member from the Slowpoke evolutionary line, or…. Or.. it was an incredibly rare sighting of the elusive starfish pokemon, Staryu. Ash believed this to be more the more likely possibility. Leaf had not questioned his sudden smile after hearing the idiot's tale, but simply believed him to be excited at the opportunity to potentially see a rare pokemon when they themselves entered the forest, that was slowly beckoning them forward, as they turned and followed the winding path to the entrance. If Ash's thoughts proved to be accurate, he would have encountered an extremely rare pokemon by the end of the day.

But Ash put these thoughts to the side. The main thing was to make it to Pewter City today. If night fell before they were out of the forest, which was unlikely, they would be in trouble. At best, they would have to return to Viridian and try again tomorrow. At worst, they'd be injured badly. The forest could be pretty scary and dangerous at night, even to the most experienced trainers. During the day, though, the Pokemon that roamed the forest were quite weak, and they should be in no danger.

As they passed through the entrance gate, an old lady turned to them, and gave a scrutinising look at them. "Watch out in the forest, youngsters," were her words, words of advice that she had apparently told many who were passing through. Ash nodded back politely, and then went through the gates into the forest, Leaf walking alongside him at an even pace. The forest was quiet. The deafening silence worried Ash; he had never seen such a peaceful location in his life. But he did not worry. Because, inside, somehow, he could feel the life around him. He knew of what surrounded him, all the pokemon were there. They just didn't want to be seen. This was their natural habitat, and they had adapted to it so well that Ash and Leaf could not even get a glimpse of a pokemon as they made their way through. Luckily for the two travellers, a path had been available to all trainers going through the aforementioned forest for some time now, so as long as they did not stray off it, nothing… unpleasant would happen.

Ash felt the boredom emanating from the sole pokeball on his belt, and immediately released the inhabitant of said ball from its confines. Even pokemon needed fresh air once in a while, regardless of type. 'Hello Honedge. How was your rest?' Ash asked the groggy ghost/steel type who floated in the air lazily. 'Wonderful, as rest always is,' the ghost replied, and the two began their telepathic conversation in earnest. Leaf had been preoccupied as of late; she had felt left out whenever the two began their conversations in telepathy, but even that did not put her off. She simply ignored them, and focused on the more important things; training her Bulbasaur for the contest. The saurian pokemon had finally learnt how to effectively utilise Leech Seed and Absorb to create a display of sparkles, something Leaf was only too happy to encourage. This combination was a lesser known one, that only trainers who had grass types could utilise. However, it was easy to learn, which saved Leaf the tedious task of teaching the grass type a complicated combination. With a bit of luck, and the skills that the saurian pokemon had developed, Leaf would win the contest.

Viridian Forest heralded the first challenge Ash had to face; the forest was teeming with bug catchers. While weak, these trainers would be valuable experience for Honedge. Smirking slightly, he walked forward. He would not be bested by anyone in the area. As expected, a boy wearing the garb of a bug catcher ran up to him after a few minutes of walking down the trail. Screaming a challenge, the boy whipped out a pokeball from his bag, and sent the bug type out. Ash predicted it to be a variant of the Weedle or Caterpie line, native to the region of Kanto. Sure enough, he was right. The boy sent out a Weedle, and the bug type crawled on the floor, ready for its opponent. Ash simply snapped his fingers, and from the air, Honedge materialised with a flash of red light. The flash was so bright that the other boy had to shield his eyes. Both trainer and pokemon had a flair for the dramatic, as was evident here.

"Ah! W-w-h-hh-a-aaa-t is that?!" The bug catcher called out, in fear. He reeled backwards, surprised by Ash's choice. During this time, Ash caught a glimpse of his name, from the name tag on his chest. The bug catcher, Joey, was completely clueless as to what this new species of pokemon was. "Let me explain to you, idiot. This pokemon is Honedge, a Ghost/Steel type from the Kalos region. He is also going to be the winner of this little battle," Ash responded, rather cruelly. The boy merely gritted his teeth, and commanded Weedle to use its signature move, Poison Sting. While this move was very potent on the traditional Kanto starters, it had a vastly different effect on Honedge. The stingers that Weedle shot out from its tail had absolutely no effect whatsoever. "What?! Are you cheating or something?!" Exclaimed the stymied bug catcher. "Nope. You evidently have no brains at all. Didn't I say it was a Steel type? Steel types are immune to poison type attacks," Ash responded, happy that Honedge had sustained no damage. "Now it's my turn. Honedge, secure our victory. Use Iron Head on the bug. Crush it," Ash commanded, verbally, confident he wouldn't even need to use telepathy to win.

Honedge's body flashed, the telltale metallic sheen of Iron Head activated, and the Pokemon launched itself forward, slamming into the tiny bug type and knocking it flying. The centipede, or whatever it was, flopped onto the ground, fainted. Joey jumped backwards in shock. None of the trainers that had passed through the forest thus far had beaten his Weedle in one hit. They usually always got poisoned. However, he was not going to give up that easily.

"Go, Caterpie!" He yelled, throwing out another Pokeball. A small, green caterpillar-like creature with huge eyes materialised in front of them. "Use string shot!"

The small bug began shooting out a stream of some sort of sticky, web-like substance. Honedge floated around in the air, trying to dodge the strings. But they were quite fast, and the Caterpie was surprisingly accurate. The string caught onto Honedge's blade, and the floating sword was slammed onto the ground. Triumphant, Joey did a little fist pump. "Caterpie, Tackle it!" He yelled, pointing at Honedge, who was lying on the floor.

The bug type did a little run up and jumped on Honedge, who hadn't bothered to move. The attack seemed to pass right through it, and left the Caterpie standing there, somewhat confused. It continued to try and tackle the Ghost type Pokemon, who was just lying there and resting, waiting for the bug to finish. Ash couldn't help but laugh at this scene, before turning to Joey and explaining: "You obviously don't know much about Pokemon types." He said, putting on a slightly patronising tone. "Ghost types are immune to fighting and normal type attacks - they will just pass right through it."

Joey jumped back again, shocked. He sputtered something unintelligible, then got a hold of himself. "Caterpie," he called, deciding that even though the tiny bug could do little damage to the Honedge, it could slow it down for his last Pokemon. "Keep using String Shot!"

Honedge just lay there on the ground, it's one eye blinking lazily, as the bug Pokemon spewed more and more string at it. Ash had commanded him, telepathically, to stay there and just wait for the Caterpie to tire itself out. When it was tired, Honedge would be able to destroy it with ease, bound by string or not. Besides, after all the wild Pokemon they had battled, Honedge could use some rest.

Finally, the bug type began to run out of steam, and it stopped spewing string, pausing to catch its breath. That was when Honedge struck. A small, almost unnoticeable shadow began to creep slowly across the ground, closing in on the helpless Caterpie. While this move - Shadow Sneak - could and usually should be performed at much greater speeds, Ash had thought it would be funny to see the trainer's reaction when his Caterpie was knocked out seemingly out of nowhere. A faster Shadow Sneak, which was the better option against trainers that knew to watch out for the move, was not necessary against this inexperienced youngster. With a loud cracking sound, the Caterpie was launched into the air, and the bug type hit the ground fainted.

"What? How?" Joey screamed, taking another step back and waving his arms around like a maniac. "You're definitely cheating!" Ash suppressed a chuckle at this overreaction, and decided to bait the youngster more.

"Maybe." He said, putting on a poker face. Joey, shocked by this nonchalant attitude, tried to think of a way to respond.

"That's… that's…" he said, fumbling for words to express his sense of having been done a great injustice. "That's not fair!"

"Well, well," Ash replied, doing an exaggerated sigh. "You still have one more Pokemon, right? Why don't we finish this? Honedge, Fury Cutter." Honedge's blade glowed a bright light green, and in a flurry of slashing movements, the Pokemon was free of the strings that bound it seconds ago.

"Fine, then." Joey said, taking a few steps forward and looking a whole lot more confident. "You'll never beat my trump card." Ash was unimpressed, and did a small eye-roll, but said nothing more - Leaf was a lot nicer than he was, and she had been shooting him some dirty looks after he had started toying with the kid.

"Go, Heracross!" Joey yelled, throwing a Pokeball forwards. Ash's eyes widened - Heracross was an extremely rare and coveted Pokemon, both for its raw strength and the remarkable ability to Mega Evolve. Luckily, Ash had done his research on this Pokemon, and he knew that with the moves it could learn at the level he suspected it was at (around fifteen at most, and that was a generous estimate), the giant beetle couldn't do much to Honedge. He was more impressed with the fact that the youngster had managed to capture such a powerful Pokemon with his two caterpillars.

"Honedge, stand back." Ash ordered. He had never seen a Heracross before, only heard about it, and wanted to see for himself what the Pokemon could do. Joey, having learned from his past mistakes (a rare ability these days), knew that most of the conventional moves were not quite effective on this strange floating sword. But Heracross did have a trump card in its arsenal, something that was extremely rare at the level the two trainers fought at. He knew dark type moves were super-effective against ghost types.

Something is wrong.

Ash jumped when Honedge said this to him - the Pokemon had not initiated a conversation for the entire morning. If he was speaking up now, it must be something important.

I understand. Honedge, prepare to take evasive action. Heracross is quite slow, so you should be able to dodge its attacks.

Honedge bobbed up and down a bit in the air - its way of nodding - and kept its one eye trained on the giant bug-type. It had yet to move, and the two Pokemon regarded each other suspiciously. The Heracross seemed pretty confident, Ash noted.

"Heracross," Joey said, all trace of his previous unease gone from his voice, "Use Night Slash!" Ash's eyes widened once more. A Heracross that knew the move Night slash was a rarity, especially at this early stage, where the the means to allow Pokemon to be tutored moves was not yet accessible. The only possible explanation for this Heracross knowing the move Night Slash was that an advanced trainer had caught it, planning to train it, before changing his mind and releasing it back into the wild.

The giant beetle lunged forwards, both of its claws flashing with a strange, dark energy. He took a swipe at Honedge, who managed to dodge it fairly easily. The bug type, although powerful, was quite clumsy, and the nimble Honedge was able to dodge its attacks fairly easily. The Heracross was obviously not very skilled yet. If it had been well trained, Ash would have no chance, especially with a basic evolution ghost type like Honedge, no matter how well trained it was. Fortunately for Ash, this Heracross appeared to be newly caught.

Honedge. Ash said, communicating telepathically with his Pokemon. Now that he was facing a powerful opponent, he would use anything he could to give himself the advantage. Continue trying to avoid it's attacks. Use Shock Wave when you can.

The ghost complied, not wanting to get hit by the Night Slash that would spell its doom. However, Heracross was not without wits, unlike its inexperienced trainer. In fact, the dual bug/fighting type seemed to have gotten used to Honedge's evasion tactics. The bug smirked, and completely disobeyed its trainer's orders, landing a direct hit to Honedge after feinting another Night Slash. The Ghost/Steel type let out a cry, unable to fathom how it had been hit.

Honedge was launched backwards quite a distance, but it somehow managed to stay standing (or floating). It followed through on its trainer's orders, shooting waves of electricity that chipped away at the Heracross's health. The Heracross trudged forwards again, swiping once more at the Sword Pokemon. Honedge dodged out of the way and quickly floated to the other side of the clearing, although Ash could see that its movements were more laboured now and lacking the elegance that they once had.

Joey seemed to notice that he seemed to be winning. "Yeah, Heracross!" He yelled, doing a fist pump. "Keep it up!". Ash noticed that he seemed to be at a loss as to how to get Heracross to follow his orders. It made sense - the beetle had been caught and trained before, and was unlikely to give in to such an inexperienced youngster. While Joey seemed to be the one in control, Ash could tell that he was really just an observer now.

But more importantly, the Shock Waves Honedge was sending out weren't doing much to faze Heracross, who continued to swipe at Honedge. The Sword Pokemon was slowing down, and Ash knew that while it was still standing (or floating), it wouldn't be able to keep it up for long. He had to end it quickly. Luckily for him, Honedge seemed to be growing more accustomed to the Heracross's attacks and feints, and the earlier technique that had caught it off guard was not nearly as effective.

Honedge. Ash said, watching as Honedge skillfully sidestepped another swipe from Heracross. Use Metal Sound, then follow up with Iron Head. After he gave the order, Ash stepped back and covered his ears.

Honedge was slightly slower to react to his order than usual, which spoke volumes as to how tired the Sword Pokemon really was. Honedge was good at hiding its fatigue, but it could not fool its trainer, who knew it well. But Heracross, who operated independently of his trainer, did not see the move coming despite its trainer's shouts. An extremely loud sound like nails on a chalkboard blasted out from Honedge's vibrating blade, forcing Joey to cover his ears and distracting the Heracross. Honedge used this opportunity to slam into the distracted beetle with its blade glowing the metallic sheen that characterised the move Iron Head. The force of the impact knocked even the giant beetle backwards, and Honedge quickly got out of the range of heracross's melee attacks, throwing in a weak Shock Wave as he did so. Ash could see that Heracross was getting tired, but Honedge was going to succumb to his injuries soon enough. The Sword Pokemon was shaking slightly as it tried to keep it balance in the air, dropping downwards occasionally before righting itself.

Honedge. Ash said, communicating telepathically with his Pokemon. At this stage, he could and would use any advantage he had. The battle had to be ended soon, or Honedge would be unable to continue. We need to end this quickly. Use that combination again, then hit it as hard as you can with Shock Wave.

Honedge followed through on his command admirably, considering the injuries it had sustained. After releasing the loud, horrible noise, it dove down and rammed into the Heracross. Unfortunately, Heracross was prepared for it this time and managed to smack Honedge again, but this time with a move that was quite obviously not Night Slash. Honedge was sent flying backwards by the attack, but somehow managed to release the powerful lightning type attack he had been charging up as he did so. The blast of electric type energy was powerful enough to knock even a Pokemon like Heracross of its feet, and Ash thanked the stars for the move's almost unique property of always landing a hit on its target. Heracross collapsed onto the ground, flailed for a while as it tried to get up on its somewhat short limbs, then went still, fainted.

Ash immediately ran over towards where Honedge was lying on the ground and took out one of the sprays in his bag - a potion. He pressed the button and sprayed the chemicals the bottle contained onto Honedge and watched as the wounds Honedge had suffered - a large dent in the blade, numerous scratches, and a torn ribbon - began to disappear under the almost magical healing abilities the spray possessed. When he was sure that Honedge was safe and healthy again, he turned to Joey, who was staring at his fainted Heracross with a mixture of disbelief and frustration.

After they had finished with Joey, Ash and Leaf continued deeper into the forest. As they went further in, the trees began to become thicker, blocking out more of the sunlight. They also encountered fewer trainers, probably because most would find the trees all around them somewhat disconcerting.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Ash muttered, stopping to look around him for the third time in about five minutes. "I feel like we're being watched."

"Come on," Leaf said, her tone showing her impatience. She was standing a good ten meters or so ahead of Ash, and had stopped to wait for him. "If something was watching us, then it would - whoa!" She jumped back just in time as a small, rat-like creature leapt at her from a branch, its sharp horn narrowly missing her face.

Ash quickly ran forward, curious as to what Pokemon had attacked his friend. The small, rat-like Pokemon was a shade of blue, marking it as a female member of the Nidoran species. The Nidoran glared at the two trainers and growled, its horns bristling in a menacing way.

Ash quickly recalled all the information he knew about Nidoran. It was a rather weak poison type Pokemon that was common on the routes nearer to Pallet. The barbs it possessed are poisoned and can be extremely dangerous, so close contact was discouraged. While most people didn't bother, if it was trained, it would evolve into a much more powerful Nidorina, and then into an extremely powerful Nidoqueen. Ash quickly recited all of this information to Leaf, who wasn't listening.

"Bulbasaur, Sleep Powder!" She yelled, pointing at the Nidoran. Bulbasaur made a movement with its head that looked like a nod before releasing a cloud of greenish powder that floated over to where the Nidoran was sitting and growling at them. Ash knew that Leaf was trying to do. If she could make it fall asleep, she would be able to catch it without harming the little rat creature.

Unfortunately, the Nidoran was not going to sit still and fall asleep. Instead, sensing danger, it lowered its horn and charged forwards, ramming into Leaf's Bulbasaur, which it seemed to have identified as the source of the danger.

"Bulbasaur, Vine Whip!" She yelled, and Bulbasaur, angry at the little rodent for harming it, was all to happy to comply. Thin vines shot out from the bulb on the saurian Pokemon's back, and began slapping the Nidoran relentlessly, driving the small poison type backwards. Even though the vines did not deal that much damage, especially to a poison type that resisted grass type attacks, they still stung, and the Nidoran was driven backwards by the relentless onslaught. Leaf reached into her bag for a Pokeball.

"Bulbasaur, enough!" She called, taking aim at the distracted Nidoran. Ash knew that she had called off her Pokemon because the vines would get in the way if she tried to throw a Pokeball at her target now. Unfortunately, it wasn't the best idea. Since the vines didn't do that much damage, the Nidoran, now free of the stinging attacks, immediately charged one more at the Bulbasaur. Leaf reacted quickly, ordering her Bulbasaur to use Sleep Powder again. The Nidoran ran right into the greenish cloud and got a facefull of sleep-inducing powder, falling asleep on the spot.

Leaf, triumphant, casually walked over, knelt down by the Nidoran, and bonked it lightly on the head with her Pokeball. Overall, a successful capture. Ash smiled at her, with congratulations written on his face. "My first pokemon," Leaf said to herself, seemingly moved by her first capture. "I'll treat you well, Nidoran." While most trainers would have continued on their way through the forest, Ash noticed something. The bush that the Nidoran had leapt out of was not just that. There was a small body of water that was visible, through the leaves, and Ash knew that that was the place. The only lake in Viridian Forest was here. The inhabitants would normally get their water from the rain and the moisture in the forest, leaving the lake Ash was looking at,mostly uninhabited. However, Ash knew better. There was something in there, and the trainer he met in Viridian had told him as much. A single, red flash suddenly jolted Ash's vision, as he calmly approached the hidden inlet. However, he did not flinch, simply shielding his eyes. This was Confusion, a move that many psychic types used to ward off enemies, and it would have done so, had Ash not taken precautionary measures. Leaf was still waiting behind him, as they had promised to meet up in a half hour after Ash had done whatever he needed to.

He smirked, and walked towards the lake. His suspicions were confirmed. Floating on top of the water, was a starfish-like pokemon that he immediately recognised as the virtually extinct species of pokemon, Staryu. Its red gem was blinking rapidly, as if the pokemon was alerted to Ash's presence. The boy gazed at the pokemon with a brownish hue in wonder. Hunted for the precious gems that were their mind and core of their body, these pokemon were virtually extinct. In fact, in recent years, they had become rarer to find than sighting a Lapras pod. But that was not all. Ash had come here, knowing he would find this pokemon, but also for a purpose. He would catch this pokemon, and make it the second in his team.

"Staryu, prepare for battle," Ash whispered, loudly enough for the starfish pokemon to hear. It responded with a series of clicks and cries that Ash realised was a battle cry. The defiance that it was showing, already, was a good sign, Ash surmised. Honedge was called out, appearing in style, as usual with a red flash of light. Both the ghost and the trainers had a flair for the dramatic, as evidenced by the seemingly unnecessary flashes of red light upon entrance. Honedge spun around in the air, happy to be out once more, out of the confines of the pokeball. The pokemon's red ribbon seemed to dance in the wind, which indicated the pokemon itself was energised and ready.

Staryu responded to this show of power by spraying water into the air, not wanting to feel left out. 'I have dealt with many two-legs like you, fool. Do you really think you can match up to me? My power will leave your apparition wishing he never existed,' said a voice, that had somehow entered Ash's head. For the first time that day, Ash gaped at the starfish pokemon with shock.

'You can use telepathy already?!' Ash exclaimed, questioning the pokemon through the mental link they had seemingly established. Normally, only Starmie were capable of telepathy, and even still, they were not exactly the best orators. However, not only could this Staryu, not even a psychic pokemon yet, use telepathy, but it could talk in such fluent English? A smile appeared on Ash's face. This day had gotten much better now. "Enough talk. Let us take to the field. Honedge, secure our victory, use Shock Wave," Ash said softly, loud enough for the ghost/steel type to hear.

The floating apparition complied, and a jolt of electricity was launched towards Staryu , signalling the doom of the starfish pokemon. However, the water type saw it coming, and started spinning rapidly. The speed of its spinning was so fast that it launched itself into the air, attempting to evade the wave of electricity. But its efforts were futile. The water type screamed in pain when the electricity moved upwards to hit it. Honedge waved its ribbon around, indicating mirth. Ash laughed, a disturbing laugh at that. He knew the Staryu would dodge, and had deliberately asked Honedge to use a move that could not be evaded. The attack had subsequently charred Staryu's skin, hurting the water type quite badly. It was, after all, an electric type move. However, the water type did not back down so easily. It launched a small blast of water at Honedge, that Ash realised was a Water Gun attack. It connected, pushing Honedge back slightly. "Again. Use Shock Wave to end this, Honedge," Ash uttered, coldly.

This battle was over, or so he thought. But the Staryu was smarter than Ash had expected, and launched a water gun at the wave of electricity that would have knocked it out. Shock Wave could not be dodged, however it could be dispersed if one managed to hit the electricity with a powerful enough move before it made contact. The Staryu had done just that. Ash looked momentarily surprised for a second, and then ordered Honedge to immediately use Iron Head. 'Finally. A challenge,' Ash thought. Staryu would make a worthy addition to his team. The starfish pokemon was full of surprises. Honedge turned silver, and slammed into the starfish. While not so effective, it did startle the water type, making it flinch. While the starfish was trying to recover from the impact of Iron Head, Honedge took initiative and launched another Shock Wave at the Staryu.

But Staryu managed to recover in time to use a water gun that dispersed the electricity yet again. Ash was more annoyed than before. He had expected an easier win. However, he knew that he had the upper hand. "Alright, this time, let's actually finish this. Use Iron Shadow, Honedge," Ash told the ghost/steel type. What resulted was the ghost type glowing crimson, purple, and silver. Honedge vanished with a flash into the shadows, or the other realm where ghosts resided. At seemingly superhuman speeds, it appeared spontaneously behind Staryu. A combination of the ghost type move, Shadow Sneak, and Iron Head hit the starfish pokemon at point blank range. It was knocked into the air, and out of the water. It did not move, indicating that it was weak enough for Ash to capture it.

The boy dug into the pockets of his pack and found a pokeball within them. He threw it with a swish of his hand, with finesse that was not normally associated with beginner trainers. Usually, most trainers simply just threw it as hard as possible. Ash knew better. That could potentially hurt the pokemon, and while Ash was not the most kind-hearted person, even he could not accept such callous behaviour, thinking that it reflected poorly on a trainer. Satisfied with his capture, he left the lake, returning to the spot where Leaf was waiting. He did not show his true emotions, like most other trainers, but he was rejoicing inside. He had finally captured his first pokemon, aside from his starter, and would cherish the moment for a long time to come. After a few minutes of walking and cutting through the thick bush that surrounded the hidden lake, he caught sight of Leaf, leaning against the bark of a tree. He winced inwardly when he saw the furious look she had on her face. Apparently it had been over an hour since he had left.

"Ash! Where have you been?! I nearly drove myself mad with worry!" The girl screamed, furious at how late he had been. He gulped and apologised numerous times to her, trying to placate her. After a while, she calmed down, and the two walked in silence, eager to reach the gates of Pewter City.

They got there in the late afternoon, after battling numerous Bug Catchers en route. Leaf also participated, using combination moves to best the rather weak trainers she found along the way. Ash knew that she had developed some rather interesting combinations that hinged upon Bulbasaur's proficiency of status moves. While beautiful to look at, they were very potent. The girl also made it a point to start training the female Nidoran she had captured previously. Its moveset was still rather limited, but that did not deter Leaf from making it use whatever it currently had in its arsenal to annihilate the bugs that were the pokemon of the bug catchers they encountered. Ash did not let up, either. Honedge was already skilled enough to battle the first gym leader, and possibly even the second due to the strict regimen Ash had originally put the ghost/steel type through since their initial meeting so many years ago. Combined with the experience of the powerful pokemon that resided in the waters of Pallet Town's coastline, Honedge could easily face the challenges that lay in the forest. Hence, Ash used a Revive that his mother had put in his pack on his newly captured Staryu, and battled in the forest with the water type instead.

Ash had originally thought that the sight of such a rare Pokemon would impress the trainers he found, but he soon discovered that few people were as informed in these matters as he was. Most had just assumed it was another common water type. Leaf, however, did know about the rarity of these Pokemon, and spent a lot of the time staring at it with a mixture of reverence and envy, something both Ash and his new 'friend' did not fail to notice. While the newly captured Staryu had not gotten any less friendly to others and still insulted even him every now and then through their telepathic link, it did follow through on the orders he gave it admirably. Honestly, that starfish pokemon did not seem to like anybody or anything. But it did have a grudging respect for Ash, the trainer who caught it. Staryu, more than anything, respected the power Ash and Honedge possessed, and respected the potential that Ash had to be great.

Staryu and Ash had had a very long day. When they realised they had made it, Ash immediately recalled the starfish pokemon, not wanting to gain any unwanted attention. He inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. The journey through Viridian Forest had been taxing, albeit necessary. Ash and Leaf walked tiredly towards the unmistakable red roof of the Pokemon Centre, a great contrast to the dreary looking city that was Pewter. They asked Nurse Joy for two rooms and immediately went to crash. Staryu, Honedge, Bulbasaur and the female Nidoran had been given to Nurse Joy to heal, and by morning, Ash and Leaf would have two fully recovered pokemon.


The next day…..

Ash awoke to nothing. The eery silence unnerved him, but he quickly realised that the reason for the silence was that the sun had yet to rise, and most people were still asleep. He went about his daily ablutions, making sure he was ready for the upcoming day. Unlike most inexperienced beginners, he was not going to immediately challenge the gym simply because he had two pokemon with an advantage. That was sheer stupidity. Brock, although supposedly weak, and a good target for beginning trainers, was still an extremely good trainer. In fact, there were rumours about him going easy on those that challenged him, and that in reality, his team was much, much more powerful. But these rumours did not interest Ash - he only cared for the team he was going to fight, and that would be Brock's standard gym team.

Also, Ash wanted to prepare for the road ahead. His long-term plan for the next month would be to reach Vermillion. That would entail traversing Mt. Moon, and beyond. Silently walking out of the room, he greeted a sleepy, disheveled Nurse Joy, who tiredly handed over his fully healed pokemon. Leaf was still asleep, and Ash had no intentions of waking her. She would be rather upset if he did so, and he did not want to see her upset. The last time he had seen her in that mood, he had come out of the confrontation cradling his family jewels and in great pain. Leaf could kick rather well, and was extremely accurate when she needed to be.

The automatic doors slid open, and he exited the centre. The sky was still dark, but he was still able to clearly follow the cobbled stone path towards Route 3. A quick visit to the cave would not hurt Ash; in fact, in heralded the opportunity to scout out the upcoming path to Cerulean. Obviously, there were no trainers around, meaning that Ash was alone. He did not bother going to the Pokemon Centre at the foot of Mt. Moon, instead just walking into the cave.

It was dark. And cold. He could hear the dripping sound of water, indicating that there was moisture within the cave. Trainers used this route often when passing from Pewter to Cerulean, but from what Ash had searched up using the upgraded pokedex given to him by the Prof's Aide, no one had actually bothered to map out the cave. This was not a problem, however. Ash caught only glimpses, but noticed that the only harmful pokemon in the cave would be a swarm of attacking Zubat. As individuals, nothing in this cave seemed too difficult to deal with. He decided, after some thought, that he would explore the cave further, as he still had 3 hours before Leaf woke up.

Thankfully, some thoughtful adventurer had placed ladders to descend into the lower level of the cave, otherwise, Ash feared that he would have had a serious problem, due to his not exactly top-notch physical condition. The Pokemon Rangers' Association had placed ladders and helpfully dug exits at every potentially dangerous place a trainer might traverse. The project had taken at least 50 years to complete, but Ash knew from his prior knowledge that all the regions in the world had had Rangers put ladders and exits in all the dangerous places. To this day, trainers were thankful for the aid, which had saved many trainers from untimely deaths.

After some climbing, Ash found himself in a lower level of the cavern. A few angry Zubat had attacked him, but Honedge quickly dispatched them all with a few well placed Shock Waves. After some training within the cave, mainly battling the numerous wild Pokemon that lived there, such as the Paras and Geodude, Honedge had grown slightly. The flying type move, Aerial Ace, had been added to the red coloured ghost's growing arsenal. Ash had also used the TM bought from the Pokemart at Viridian to teach his partner the move Shadow Ball. With the new additions to its arsenal, the Ghost/Steel type simply radiated power. Nothing nearby could stop this ghostly apparition of a blade.

Staryu had not participated much in the battles within the cave, preferring an environment more suited to its own skill set; specifically, water. The starfish pokemon had the versatility to move on land, thanks to the spinning it was capable of, proving to be almost like levitation in a sense. However, it was nothing compared to how fast the water type could move in its home turf; the water itself. Staryu had proved itself to be a remarkable asset to Ash's team, with the move Recover being learnt soon after Ash caught the starfish Pokemon. It also developed the ability to camouflage itself within an environment, thus being able to change its type depending on the location, an ability Ash attributed to the move aptly named Camouflage. While not so useful, it served a purpose far beyond Ash's comprehension, and the boy did not understand why exactly the move existed. Nevertheless, it was another move added. Lastly, the water type had also begun to show signs of learning the move Swift. While currently still weak, the move, when practised, would be a great way of getting a hit in. Like Shock Wave, it was incapable of missing.

Ash sighed, and turned around, about to leave. That was when he heard footsteps. Evidently, he was not the only inhabitant of this cave anymore. He started climbing the ladder, and hoisted himself back to the level near the Pewter exit. That was when he felt a light tap on his shoulder. He turned, reflexes taking over, and got into a fighting stance. With Team Rocket running around all over Kanto, one could never be too careful.

He was rewarded with a chuckle from the grey haired man who had tapped him in the first place. The man in question wore a clearly expensive suit, some famous designer label that Ash recognised to be very high end. But the stickpin the man had attached gave his identity away. Ash threw a surprised look at said person, realising he was face to face with the current champion of the Hoenn Region, Steven Stone himself.

"Why hello, young man. What exactly would you be doing here at this early hour?" queried the bemused man, now identified as Steven.

"Nothing you need to be concerned about, sir," Ash replied in an even tone, despite the excitement building in his veins. "But what is the Champion of Hoenn doing here? Is anything the matter?" Ash asked the man, his curiosity piqued.

"To satisfy my curiosity. I had planned a trip here to investigate the fossils that may or may not have been buried within the deeper recesses of the cave," was the response Ash received, with Steven clearly pronouncing every word. Ash caught the traces of an accent on his voice; proving that he was, in fact, from the tropical location of Hoenn. The Champion beckoned him forward, telling Ash to follow him.

The two walked, with Steven doing most of the talking. The Champion had taken a liking to the young trainer, seeing his rational method of thought and his logical state of mind as traits that the two had in common. The fact that Ash owned a steel type, and a Honedge at that, only excited Steven even more. The two exited the cave, deep in conversation on how to accurately care for a Steel type, and for once in Ash's life, he felt a deep sense of awe. The man he was currently enraptured in conversation with was the leading authority on Steel types. Steven was the undisputed Champion of the Hoenn Region, a title that was won and kept through 20 years of hard work, discipline, as well as having the respect and loyalty of a pseudo-legendary pokemon - his starter, Metagross. The titan of steel was infamous for bringing down half of Lance's team before finally falling, and was rumoured to be an impenetrable wall of steel that possessed a burning passion for crushing its opponents. Even on the television, Ash had watched the beast annihilate many of its opponents with a mere smash of its legs to the ground.

After an hour or so of conversation, Steven realised that it was time for him to leave. He had successfully discovered several fossils within the cavern, and should have left for Hoenn some time ago. He told Ash this, and bade the young boy farewell, promising to watch his performance at the Indigo Conference, which would be held 10 months from now. Ash smiled and nodded, happy to have grasped so much information from the Champion. Honedge now had some training to do. As a gift before Steven flew off on his Skarmory, he had entrusted Ash with one of the fossils from the three he had found at Mt. Moon. Ash had been flabbergasted at the gift, initially refusing. However, Steven was adamant in regards to giving him one. The boy would go far, and the Champion did not want to let such potential slip past him.

So, finally, Ash picked the Claw fossil, containing the skeletal remnants of an Anorith. Steven had smirked at the choice, and advised Ash on how to care for the Bug/Rock type when it was revived. Steven had given him a pass that allowed him access to the unique machines in the Pewter Museum that allowed a trainer to turn a fossil into a living, breathing Pokemon. Ash was bursting with joy - his morning excursion had given him so much more than he had come for.

But the revival of his new teammate would have to wait. First, Ash had a gym battle to win. He had already started to form some sort of plan. He would tackle the gym in the afternoon, after spending the rest of the morning with Leaf. The museum was supposed to be rather interesting, and Leaf had already agreed to accompany him to see the exhibits. Ash returned to Pewter and met up with his travelling companion, who had just gotten up and was at the breakfast counter, eating. Ash joined her, and they talked about plans for the day, eventually deciding on going to the Museum in the morning than going to the gym in the afternoon, much like what Ash had originally planned.

After breakfast, they walked out of the Centre after Leaf collected her Pokemon from Nurse Joy. They paid a visit to the museum, which was as interesting as Ash expected it to be. There was an exhibit of an ancient stone tablet depicting Clefairy and the Moon Stone that really caught Ash's interest. Mt. Moon clearly needed to be explored once more, and Ash decided to do so after they finished their errands in Pewter City.

He had not forgotten about Leaf's upcoming Contest. The brunette had been hard at work, getting her pokemon ready for the appeal round and the battle round. The date of the event had been set to tomorrow, which gave Ash the time to focus on his own issues. In the late afternoon, he made a decision. Today would be the day Ash won his first gym badge. He headed towards the gym, Leaf walking alongside him, ready to face the first true obstacle in his journey.

The doors slid open, and Ash was faced with a surprise. A huge expanse of artificial rocky terrain was all the eye could see. Many trainers were continuing their regimen for the day, ready to challenge any rookies who wished to take on the Leader. Ash smirked, ready to battle. It was showtime.

Staryu dispatched the trainers without an issue, using a constant burst of water to deal with the Geodude and Sandshrew that were sent out to oppose. As a result, the last hiker blocking his path to the Leader moved aside, and Ash moved forward into the final mini-stadium in the gym. And there he was. Brock stood, calm and poised for battle, interested to see how his latest challenger would fare against him. After the standard introductions, the referee called for the battle to begin.

"Geodude, let's go!" Shouted Brock, as he sent out his first of two pokemon. A Pokemon resembling a rock appeared, with two arms that appeared muscled on both of its sides. It was known for not exactly being the most powerful Pokemon around, but could still pack a punch when used properly. Ash wordlessly responded by sending out Staryu. The starfish pokemon spun, propelling itself into the air, then let out a cry, signalling it was ready to battle.

"Use Water Gun, Staryu. Constant bursts all over the field," Ash said, all the while examining Brock's Geodude. While he was capable of communicating to the Staryu telepathically, the link was far from perfect, and Ash didn't want to risk the Staryu mishearing his order.

"Geodude, use Rock Tomb!" Brock yelled, and his let out a battle cry as rocks began to appear in the air seemingly out of nowhere. They were launched at Staryu, who expertly hit them at just the right angles with Water Gun, deflecting them into the walls behind the two battlers. The instant the barrage was finished, Staryu unleashed its own attacks, sending jets of water shooting out from the gem in the middle of its star-shaped body. The attacks slammed into the helpless Geodude in rapid succession, defeating the rock type before it could react.

One down.

One more to go.

A/N 2: Yay ^^ We see some OP skills from Joey's Heracross, but in the end, Honedge wins, as always. Viridian Forest has now been traversed, and Ash has a new companion in Staryu. I love this starfish pokemon, and tried to include some details as to its rarity, which has increased a lot in the pokemon universe that this AU is in. Also, we see him encounter Steven in Mt. Moon, who offers him some advice on how to train Honedge. And a fossil for Anorith. Seriously, I love Armaldo as well, and he will definitely now be on Ash's team. I may have not developed Steven's character very well this chapter, but in future chapters, he will make a another appearance, so don't worry, we'll be seeing him again soon. What did you guys think? How was my (attempt) at a cliffie at the end there? I did try. I'm loving the support this story gets, but I'm looking for more reviews, so please R&R everyone ~ And yes, I did love the poll results, but last I checked, Psychic type won, hence, Staryu. Because Starmie is psychic type, technically I am still keeping my promise. Ha.

Chapter 4 will be posted soon, hopefully within next two weeks if I'm not too busy with studying. Check my profile for updates on the progress of it.

Dhram out.