Disclaimer: I do NOT own Pokèmon in any Way, Shape, or Form!

Chapter 3: The Battle of the Legends

"The battle between Ash Ketchum and A-Man are about to begin," Iris called out, being the referee and all; "Each trainer will use three Pokèmon each. The battle will be decided when all of one Trainer's Pokèmon are unable to battle! Begin!"

"Beat him, Ashy," May said as she hugged her new boyfriend and gave him a nice, good-quality kiss on the lips.

"You don't have to worry about that, May," Ash said as he looked deep into her beautiful, sapphire-colored eyes, "I'm going to take him down."

"We'll see about that one, won't we, Ash," I said as I pulled out one of my Pokèballs from the clip on my belt loop, "Lucario, show them what ya got!"

I tossed the Pokèball up into the air as a blast of white light came out of it, revealing my mighty Lucario!

"Luc, Lucario," Lucario grunted with his arms crossed.

"Tranquill, I choose you!" Ash called out as he sent out his evolved form of Pidove.

"Tranq, Tranquill," the Flying-Type cried out.

"Lucario, use Force Palm, let's go!" I commanded Lucario as he built up power in his right palm.

"Quickly Tranquill, Aerial Ace!" Ash ordered as his Tranquill sliced through the air.

"Do it, Lucario," I said as Lucario aimed its Force Palm right at Tranquill and fired, thereby stopping it in its tracks.

"But how?" Ash stuttered, amazed.

"Here's a little lesson," I explained, "While it is true that Aerial Ace is a Sure-Shot Move, meaning it will its target without fail, the Pokèmon using Aerial Ace first has to make contact with the target. Lucario's Force Palm simply prevented Tranquill from even attacking. Now use Aura Sphere, Lucario!"

"Luc - Lucario!" Lucario called out as two blue orbs of aura were generated in the palms of his hands. When the Aura Spheres had reached a good size, he launched them at Tranquill.

"Tranquill, use Quick Attack to dodge, then use Gust!" Ash commanded.

Tranquill suddenly vanished as she shot up into the air, thereby dodging Lucario's Aura Spheres. The Wild Pigeon Pokèmon then began flapping her wings faster, creating a large gust of wind that she fired straight at Lucario.

"Lucario, use Drain Punch, Variation 2," I said as Lucario's fist began to glow with a swirling green energy.

"Lucario - Luca!" Lucario called out as it used its Drain Punch on Tranquill's Gust Attack.

On the sidelines, May asked Iris, "What's A-Man up to? And what's with that the 'Variation' thing he was talking about?"

"I've seen it on TV back when he was competing in the Pokèmon Leagues in the other Regions," Iris explained, "Just watch."

"Luuuuuuu…" Lucario began to focus the power of its Drain Punch. As its concentration grew, the flow of Tranquill's Gust started to change. The winds she had generated with her wings were starting to circle around Lucario's glowing fist. Then, the Drain Punch began to absorb the winds!

"Tra – Tra – Tranquill," Tranquil began to stutter, amazed by what she was seeing.

"Tranquil, get out of there," Ash commanded her.

"Too late," I said with a hint of a smile on my face and with my arms crossed, "Lucario, assume Aerial Formation! Go!"

"Lu-CAR-RI-OOOO!" Lucario cried out as it began to glow with a blue light that matched the color of the sky. Then two sky-blue-colored wings made out of Aura sprouted out of Lucario's back. It then shot up into the air to meet up with Tranquill.

"But how?" Ash and May both said at the same time, with their jaws dropped and astonished looks on their faces.

"Let me tell y'all something that I discovered on my journeys," I began to explain, "A Pokèmon's Moves are basically an extension of their own Aura. All Pokèmon, technically speaking, have access to every single type of move out there. However, they cannot learn moves that are too incompatible with their own types because it puts too much strain on their bodies. Also, a Move's nature, while it can't be redone completely, it can be slightly altered using two factors; the way the Aura used to power the Move is channeled and the very nature of the Pokèmon using the Move. Therefore, I've taught many of my Pokémon how to use Variations of their normal Moves. For example, normally Drain Punch only absorbs the opponent's health and restores the user's own health by half of the health absorbed. However, Lucario by the nature of his species can manipulate Aura at will. So, whenever I tell Lucario to use 'Drain Punch Variation 2', basically I' telling him to use his species' Aura-manipulating nature to manipulate the effect of Drain Punch so that instead of absorbing the opponent's health, the Drain Punch absorbs the Move that the opponent is using at that time through the Aura that's powering the Move. Then, Lucario can take the Aura it absorbs, which has already been filtered by the Type of the Move that the opposing Pokèmon used, and manipulated it so that Lucario can gain the properties of the opposing Pokèmon's Type, which I like to call the Type Formation."

"So, when Lucario's Drain Punch Variation absorbed Tranquill's Gust Attack," Iris inputted, "It allowed Lucario to gain the properties of a Flying-Type Pokèmon."

"Exactly," I said, "which is why Lucario is flying right now. Now since Iris already probably already knows what's next, Ash, May, get ready to see Part II of the Type Formation. Lucario, use Aero-Charge Aura Sphere! Go!"

"Lucario – Lucar!" Lucario called out as it generated its Aura Spheres. However, these were not like normal Aura Spheres. Around them, gusts of wind started to circle around the orbs. He then launched them at Tranquill.

"Tranquill, use Quick Attack to avoid them!" Ash called out to Tranquill as she tried to dash out of the way.

"Nice try, but Type-Charged Moves have a few bonus properties added to them. Lucario, show them what I mean!" I said as Lucario stuck out his hands as he began to focus his Aura. The Aero-Charged Aura Spheres began to change direction, following Tranquill as she tried to avoid them.

"What's happening," Ash said, again confused.

"Flying-Type Pokèmon have a tendency to rely on their ability to move through the air efficiently," I explained, "so when Lucario absorbed the Flying-Type power of Tranquill's Gust, he gained the power to use his Aura to manipulate the winds, which he's doing right now with the winds surrounding the Aero-Charged Aura Spheres. This allows Lucario to change the speed and direction of the Aura Spheres, thereby making them virtually impossible for Tranquill to avoid!"

"Tranquill!" Ash called out, but it was no use. The Aura Spheres made direct contact with the Wild Pigeon Pokèmon, thereby shooting it out of the air.

"Lucario, save Tranquill from severe impact with the ground!" I commanded as Lucario flew straight at a nosedive towards Tranquill, catching her just before she could make a huge impact with the ground, saving her from severe injury. The Aura Pokèmon then gently placed the evolved form of Pidove on the ground in front of Ash before flying back over to me.

"Thanks, A-Man," Ash expressed his gratitude, "Tranquill could have gotten banged up pretty badly if Lucario hadn't intervened."

"No prob," I replied, "Thank Lucario too. If he hadn't flown as fast as he did, Tranquill wouldn't have been so lucky."

"Thank you, Lucario," Ash said to my Pokèmon as he recalled his Pokèmon back to its Pokèball.

"Luc," Lucario replied as it nodded its head once.

"Lucario, why don't you go ahead and release Aero Formation, okay?" I advised the Aura Pokèmon. He complied as his sky-blue Aura glow died down, taking his temporary wings with them.

"I've got to admit A-Man," Ash said as he picked his next Pokèball, "That Lucario of yours is really something. Being able to do all of that cool stuff with its own attacks as well as Tranquill's is amazing."

"Thanks for the compliment, Ash, but it's still a work in progress," I replied, "Even now, with all the time and effort that Lucario and I put into developing Type Formation, we still hasn't perfected the technique. For one, Lucario can't absorb Moves that have higher energy levels than his body can take. If he were to try to absorb a Move that was as powerful as say Hyper Beam, I don't think he would be able to take all of that sheer power and remain conscious at the same time. That's why I chose my Lucario for this technique in the first place. Not only does he have the power to manipulate Aura at will, but having a Dual Type of Steel and Fighting gives him a lot of stamina and endurance, which are the key components to using Type Formation."

"Still, you've got to admit, it's pretty cool," Ash insisted as he primed his Pokèball, "But now, back to the battle. Tepig, I choose you!"

"Tepig – Tep!" Tepig cried out as the little Fire Pig Pokèmon came out of his Pokèball.

"A Fire-Type, huh?" I said, "Lucario, take a breather. I want to give some of the others a bit of exercise too."

"Luc," Lucario complied as he walked over to the sidelines with the girls and leaned his back against a tree.

"And at least try to relax, okay?" I said, knowing he would obey my orders no matter what, "You're too serious all the time. You need to kick back once in a while."

"Luc," Lucario complied again, sliding down the side of the tree so that he was sitting down.

"It's a start. We'll work on your relaxation techniques later," I sighed as I selected my next Pokèball, "But right now I've got a battle to get back to. Go, Wartortle, show them what ya got!"

I tossed the red and white sphere into the air, releasing my blue turtle from his ball.

"Wartortle, wart," Wartortle said as he assumed his fighting stance.

"Tepig, use Flame Charge, let's go!" Ash commanded his Tepig as it began to glow with white-hot embers. The little pig then charged at Wartortle with a might "Teeeeee-Piiiiig!"

"Wartortle, use Hydro Pump, Go!" I told my Water-Type as he prepared his Hydro Pump attack. As Ash's Tepig closed his eyes and braced himself for impact, however, it heard the water, but didn't feel the power of the attack. Tepig reopened its eyes to find that my Wartortle had used his Hydro Pump to get into the air.

"Now Wartortle, Combo-Move Aqua Tornado, let's go!" I commanded Wartortle as he retracted all of his limbs except for his tail; started an Aqua Tail; and started spinning like a disc. Gravity finally caught up with him as Wartortle plummeted towards the ground while he commenced another Hydro Pump. With all of the winds currents that he was building up, a miniature hurricane had formed around the Turtle Pokémon, aimed straight for Tepig.

"Now adjust your angle, Wartortle," I instructed my Pokèmon as he made the appropriate adjustments, "we want to defeat Tepig, not introduce him to Arceus."

With the minor adjustments that I had Wartortle make, the Aqua Tornado just grazed Tepig enough to knock him out without totally obliterating him.

"Tepig!" Ash called out as he rushed over to his Fire Pig Pokèmon after the attack had ended, "Are you alright?"

"Tepig, tep," the little Fire-Type assured Ash.

"You did a great job, Tepig, take a nice long rest," Ash said as he recalled Tepig to his Pokèball, "Hey A-Man, what was that? That Move had the power expected from the Pokèmon of a 4-League Champion, yet it looked like something that came out of a Contest. Not saying that Coordinators aren't capable of that kind of power, especially the kindest and most beautiful and talented Top Coordinator of them all," Ash looked directly at May when he said that, causing his girlfriend to blush and giggle a bit.

"That's an easy one to explain," I replied, "Even though I don't necessarily compete in Contests, I still do a bit of Contest training with my Pokèmon. I figure that since we all work so hard, we deserve a nice, relaxing, yet productive, break to cool off a bit. Training like a Coordinator is perfect way for me and my Pokèmon relax without slacking off in our training. Plus, it helps us appreciate what the hard work that Coordinators have to put into training their Pokèmon to be elegant and graceful as well as strong and powerful."

"I see," Ash said, "Now back to the battle. May, could you please hand me Pikachu?"

"Sure," May said, "Go on, Pikachu."

But as Pikachu got up, Ash shook his head, "No, May. I want you to hand me Pikachu. Is that alright?"

"Sure," May said, a bit confused, as the brunette walked over with Pikachu in her arms, "But why did you want to me to bring him over here when he's perfectly capable of doing it himself?"

"So that I could do this," Ash said as he put his arms around his arms around the Coordinator's waist and kissed her on the lips. May, though surprised at first, got over her shock in a second and, wrapping her arms around her boyfriend's neck, starting kissing him back.

"Hey, this is a BATTLE, not a…" Iris began to protest, but I cut her off.

"Iris, just let them enjoy their fun for a bit," I advised her, "I don't mind waiting a few minutes before continuing the battle, and besides, they're perfect for each other. They deserve to express it, so don't ruin it for them. Plus, their love for each other is like their love for eating, if not more. And the last time I interrupted May while she was eating…well, let's just say that we were stuck at the Pokèmon Center for five days because I was out cold for three of them. You get what I'm saying?"

"I got it," Iris replied, "We don't break up their fun, and we don't get sent to the ER. Correct?"

"Yep," I confirmed. We, therefore, waited for a good five minutes for the happy couple broke their embrace.

"Beat him, Ashy," May told her boyfriend as she walked back to the sidelines, smiling, "I'll be rooting for you."

"Don't worry, Maybird," Ash replied with just as big a smile, "I will. Go, Pikachu!"

"Pika!" Pikachu cried out as he got into his fighting stance.

"So, you're using your Starter, huh?" I said as I selected a Pokèball from my belt that had been scratched up from use, "Well, then, I will too. Flareon, show them what ya got!"

"Flareon!" my orange and yellow Flame Pokèmon, the Pokèmon I had started my journey as a Pokèmon Trainer with back when it was an Eevee, came out of its Pokèball in a white flash of light.

"Flareon, the Flame Pokémon. Flareon is an evolved form of Eevee. The air it inhales is ignited by a flame in its body and expelled as fire." May's Pokedexette said in its female electronic voice.

"Wow, an Evolution of Eevee," May said, "So that's A-Man's Starter Pokèmon?"

"Yep," I said proudly, "Flareon and I have been best friends since the day I turned 10 years old and began my journey. My hometown is too far away from Nuvema Town, so my Dad gave me an Eevee Egg that had just hatched from my parents' Umbreon and Espeon to take as my Starter Pokèmon. I was the first living being that it laid eyes on, so he sees me sort of like his daddy, though he knows that our relationship is not father and son as much as it is best friend and best friend."

"That's a cool story, A-Man," Ash said, "Now let's get back to the battle. Pikachu, use ThunderBolt!"

"Pika-CHU!" Pikachu cried out as it fired a deadly bolt of electricity at Flareon.

"Flareon, dodge and use Fire Fang, let's go!" I called out to Flareon as he jumped out of the way to avoid the ThunderBolt. A large, transparent set of reddish-orange teeth appeared in front of his mouth as Flareon began running towards the Electric Mouse.

"Pikachu, counter with Iron Tail, let's go!" Ash commanded Pikachu as Pikachu's tail began to glow white as it turned to steel. Pikachu then slashed his tail at Flareon's Fire Fang. While at a type disadvantage, the Iron Tail was still able to cancel out the Fire Fang.

"Now Flareon, back up and use Flare Blitz, go!" I commanded Flareon as he backed up a bit to give himself some room. His body was then engulfed by red and orange flames. Flareon then began to charge at Pikachu while calling out, "…"

"Pikachu, Volt Tackle, let's go!" Ash called out as Pikachu's body was engulfed with electricity. The little Electric Mouse then began running as it called out, "Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika-Pika…"

The two attacks collided, dealing massive amounts of damage to both Pokèmon, but when the dust cleared, both still had a lot of fight left in them.

"Flamethrower, Go!" I commanded.

"Pikachu, ThunderBolt!" Ash called out.

And the battle kept on going like this. Whenever one of our Pokèmon attacked, the other's Pokèmon managed to counter the attack.

/-3 Hours Later-/

Both we and our Pokèmon were panting. The battle had been going on for a whole three hours, with neither side willing to give up.

"You and Pikachu …pant… have put up …pant… a good fight, Ash," I said, putting my hands on my knees for support.

"You and Flareon …pant… aren't so …pant… bad yourselves, A-Man," Ash replied, putting his hands on his knees as well.

"Why don't …pant… we call this one …pant… a draw," I suggested with a smile on my face, "it's already dark out, and the girls …pant… have already fallen asleep. If we go on …pant… any longer, we and our Pokèmon are …pant… going to collapse. …pant… What do ya say, huh?"

"As much as I would like …pant… to see this through to …pant… the end," Ash said, "You're probably right."

I recalled Flareon to its Pokèball. Then me, Ash, and Pikachu walked over to the girls. I picked up Iris and carried her piggy-back style, while Pikachu got Eevee onto May's lap. Pikachu then hopped onto Ash's shoulder, then Ash picked up May, bridal-style, and carried her in his arms. Then, we headed off to the Nacrene City Pokèmon Center.

So, how did you guys and girls like Chapter 3? Please NO Negative Criticism, just the constructive kind please!

(P. S. – I don't plan on stopping after only 3 chapters. I plan on writing a lot!)