Author's Note

Hello again to all, I think the results of my poll are pretty definite so I will be closing that once I put this out. For those of you that haven't looked at it the result is that Cynthia clearly wins, with a lead of 30 votes out of 63. The poll that is now up is about individual pokeballs for special Pokémon so feel free to take a look.

Now to those of you who seem to have been slightly annoyed with my not making Anabel an option while I did make gym leaders and a champion options I will explain why. The gym leaders I put in the poll all had a way I could see them leaving (I won't say how as I may well write stories in the future using those methods to get them out of their gyms) but the gym remain open. Elesa was the only one who I wasn't quite sure how to do it completely, though I had most of a basis, but a pm from a reader quickly corrected that so she was a major option. That gets them out of their responsibilities and as for Cynthia... Just how many people do you guys think are capable of beating the elite four? I'm pretty sure that the number of challenges she gets is extremely low from those in the elite four and challenges from the elite four would be seriously big events so they would take a bit of time to get everything ready which would give her the opportunity to get back.

Now for the 'using teleport to meet up option'. In my fics teleport will work in two ways. The first is short range in which the user can teleport to any location within a certain range, say a kilometre for example. Outside of that range the user can only teleport to places they have visited before or someone who's mind they can enter and 'visit' the location through has. However, the longer the range of the jump the more power/energy it takes. Hence once Ash was in more distant regions the Pokémon using teleport, would have to be Mew or Mewtwo if even possible, would be exhausted from going one way and Ash wouldn't put his Pokémon through that just to meet up with someone. Sure she could use other methods of transport but in my opinion she would have to take too much time out for it all to work that way so not happening. Hate me for it if you like but I really don't see the point. Besides, I do like her so I may well do some sort of story with her in it at some point anyway.

Garm88:
I will not be having him catch as many herds of Pokémon though I do know of at least one more he will catch but that won't be for a while. However, when it comes to normal Pokémon I already have many ideas in the works for several new Pokémon, most will be caught either individually or several over time, for example I don't think I'm going to do all the eeveelutions at one time like Sabor but I think Ash does have to get them all at some point. If you get one then you have to get them all and I can't see myself not giving him at least one but that will happen across the entire story as will another sub plot I have which is to do with a certain four Pokémon, I'll leave you guessing at which. ;)

And as several people have inquired about them I will simply say I like Larvitars, so he might well get one but again I won't give any specific time frame once again as I don't want to spoil things for everyone.

That's all I think I had to say in answer to questions/statements from you my readers. Sorry if I missed out a question, I hadn't got any reviews since around last weekend, though that is understandable, so I might have missed something.

Well now I'm back from my busy week I will hopefully be able to finish a chapter or two and maybe even start a chapter for one of the other stories I'm considering. Have two currently in the semi-planning stages so who knows. I've just finished the League and am starting on the follow up before heading to the orange islands and I quite liked that series so I think I'll be able to so pretty well with that while putting in several completely original adventures of my own :D

I'd be grateful if you could read the author's note at the end as it has a couple of requests for you guys but I don't want to spoil your reading by thinking about them while you're reading. ;P

On with the story then.

As usual:
"Normal Speech"
"Telepathic Speech"
'Private Thoughts'
'Quoting Someone/Something'


Master Quest Chapter 4 – From Humble Beginnings to Great Victories.

It had been about a month since Ash had left Anabel to train in isolation for the Indigo League and that League was only a few days away. It was the last day for registration and Ash had just finished packing away everything they had set up on New Island. After their first week of being there Ash had realised something, what was there to stop Team Rocket or anyone else from coming to the island. Mewtwo, when asked about it, had proceeded to explain to him that it was impossible to find the island unless you already knew of it or were invited, this was due to some strange mystical property it had that not even Mewtwo could explain. As for Team Rocket, well the same principles applied to them so they could have come a calling if not for something Mewtwo had spent their week with Anabel working on.

He had slowly been removing any memories that related to him or New Island from the memories of every Team Rocket member. Even Giovanni had fallen prey to Mewtwo's memory wipe; it amazed Ash that Mewtwo had been able to do all of this from the safety of his pokéball without finding it difficult in the least. It had only taken him a week because there were so many members of the organisation and it was a delicate procedure.

Now that Ash had finished tidying up though, it was time to get going. "Alright everyone, gather up in the main hall 'cause we have to leave soon." He shouted with his mind. It was easier to use his telepathy in this case as he was now powerful enough that covering the island was easy, trying to shout across the whole island with his voice however was impossible. All of his many Pokémon had soon gathered in the main hall, fortunately for him Mewtwo's island was outside the range of the carry limiter so he could train everybody at once, not just six at a time. Now that everyone had gathered Pikachu decided to pose the question that everybody wanted the answer to but nobody wanted to ask.

"So who's in the team Ash?"

"Hey, what's the deal squirt? You're obviously gonna be on it so why do you care?" Charizard pointed out.

"Well even if I am on the team I still want to know who's coming with me and it isn't like anyone else was going to ask you were all too chicken."

"Alright that's enough Pikachu, you both have a point but I would have answered the question without anyone asking. Oh, and Pikachu, stop taunting Charizard so much." Pikachu pouted at this; sometimes it had been better when Ash still couldn't understand them as they could get away with teasing each other a lot. Ever since they'd arrived at New Island though Ash had been using mental communications to improve his ability, so they couldn't get away with anything. "Alright listen up, the Pokémon that will be on my team will be Pikachu, Lucario, Mew, Mewtwo, Ninetales and Rapidash."

The first four had been obvious as they were some of the closest to Ash or the ones that he needed to make sure nobody found out about. Rapidash and Ninetales were ecstatic at being chosen and bounded over to Ash to nuzzle him while yipping and whinnying. The others all felt a bit down at this news before Ash told them something that cheered them right up. "Well I will be changing my Pokémon every day and Mew will be returning to the lab once the tournament gets started up. So you'll all get a chance to stay with me for a while." Everybody was cheered up significantly by this and Ash returned them to their pokéballs before making a call to Professor Oak with the videophone and pokéball transporter.

"Hello, Oak laboratory speaking."

"Hey Professor, it's me Ash."

"Ash my boy, it's good to see you again." He said as he turned on the camera feed. "How's everyone doing? It's been a while since I heard from you so I was beginning to wonder."

"Everyone is doing great thanks Professor; in fact I was just calling to transfer them before I head over to the Indigo Plateau."

"Well I'm ready when you are Ash so shall we step to it?"

"Let's. Oh, and Professor, I know that Wigglytuff was quite attached to my mom so if it wants to go stay with her I don't mind so long as you have no objection."

"That's fine with me Ash; in fact it might even help with my research, who knows. Well it looks like that's everyone Ash and I see several of them have evolved too so congratulations on training them so well."

"That's everyone that's going back and thanks for the compliment but I couldn't have done it without their hard work, dedication and loyalty. If that's all then I'll be off as registration closes at noon and it's already almost eight."

"That's all Ash, I'm sure I'll see you soon. Bye."

The call ended and Ash turned to the small group behind him, Mew, Ninetales and Rapidash had already been returned to their pokéballs so it was just him Pikachu, Lucario and Mewtwo. Pikachu jumped up to his place on Ash's shoulder just before Ash gave the word and they disappeared in a flash of blue. New Island was empty once more.


In the forest a short distance from the Indigo Plateau Pokémon Center there was a large flash of blue light as Ash, Pikachu, Lucario and Mewtwo appeared only for Mewtwo to be immediately recalled so nobody could spot him. "Sorry buddy." Ash said to the pokéball before the group of three set off for the edge of the forest.

A short while later they exited the forest almost right in front of the Pokémon Center before making their way inside it. Ash spotted Brock and Misty and waved them over as he approached the front desk. "Good morning Nurse Joy, I was hoping you could sign me up for the Indigo Conference."

"Certainly young man, I just need your name, badges and identification."

"I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet town and here are my badges and pokédex." He said handing her the items in question. Ash suddenly realised something, Brock had not made a move on Nurse Joy. He looked over to his shoulder to find out why and saw that Misty had decided to make a pre-emptive strike. She was currently in the process of dragging him out the door, her mallet over her shoulder. He was glad his friends hadn't changed in his absence.

"Oh my, it's been a long time since I've seen a national pokédex but I suppose you would need it with that Lucario of yours." She scanned the badges and pokédex to verify their authenticity before handing them back. "Well, everything seems to be in order and you're all signed up now. Good luck in the tournament."

"Thanks Nurse Joy. Have a nice time." Ash finished before heading out to meet his friends. Once he got outside he walked over to the two of them. "It's been a while guys. It certainly looks like you two haven't changed much in my absence." He greeted with a light-hearted chuckle.

"You're right about that, though it looks like you've changed quite a bit." Misty replied, blushing slightly and squeezing Togepi a little tighter to her body as she saw how toned his body had become.

Brock saw this and grinned before thinking 'Oh, how I will enjoy teasing her about this later.' He then added his own greeting. "Misty's right Ash but how's everyone else, especially 'those two'?"

"Thanks guys!" Ash said, sporting a large grin. The grin was there to cover his nervousness though as he had noticed the blush too and felt a spike in one of Misty's emotions at the same time, that emotion was the very same one he had felt from Anabel just before she kissed him and ran off. "Everyone is doing great Brock; you know I even have two more Pokémon now. One of them you already know, an old friend sent him along to me while the second is completely new and isn't even from Kanto or Johto. I caught it while I was travelling with Anabel but I was shocked when my pokédex told me it was from Hoenn. 'Those two' in particular are doing very well though as are the two beside me, I think I'd have to say that all four of them make up a part of my strongest team now."

"Well that's no surprise, we all know how strong Pikachu and those two were even before your intensive training and your Lucario proved itself to be extremely strong as well. Shall we start heading over to the League grounds now so we can get checked in and find our lodge before the opening ceremony?" Brock inquired.

"We may as well." Ash agreed and they began to walk down the road towards the main stadium. Soon they came across an unusual sight though. In the middle of the road were a minibus and a motorbike just like the ones that the many Officer Jenny's used. A cry of pain was heard from the other side of the vehicles so the group decided to check it out.

"Oh no. What are we going to do? With your ankle sprained like this there's no way you can keep running now." Said Officer Jenny's voice. Upon rounding the vehicles the group saw an Officer Jenny stood over a young man who was sat on the floor and looked to be in pain. A third person was crouching over the young man; he was an elderly man dressed in a red and blue shirt with green shorts. He had a great big bushy beard the same colour as his long, shaggy white hair which was covered with a back to front blue cap.

"Excuse me Officer Jenny, is there a problem?" Ash asked as Misty made another pre-emptive strike on Brock, dragging him away by the ear before he could make a move on Jenny. "Wait a minute, aren't you Mr Goodshow, president of the Pokémon League?"

"Why yes I am young man. Our problem is that this young man was meant to be running the Moltres Flame to the stadium for the opening ceremony of the Indigo Conference but he's sprained his ankle and can't run the rest of the journey. We could get another participant to run the rest of the way but they're almost all at the stadium grounds by now so I don't know if we'll find anyone." The elderly man responded.

"Well I'm a participant and I think I could manage the rest of the run, it's only a couple of miles." Ash said, presenting his badges as evidence that he was entering.

"What a turn of luck!" President Goodshow announced cheerfully. "Might I ask what your name is young man?"

"I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town sir."

"Ah, so you're Ash Ketchum. Professor Oak told me about your unique situation but don't worry, your secret is safe with me. Though knowing what I do about you I think you'll go far so that's one more reason to let you carry this." He said, pulling out a metal torch with a yellow and red flame atop it.

As Ash went to take the flame from him he sensed a spike of greed from nearby and called out to his Pokémon. "Pikachu and Lucario, defensive positions now. There are thieves nearby." The two Pokémon did as Ash commanded while he looked around to try and find the source of the greed.

"Are you sure Ash? I don't see anyone but us and your friends around." Officer Jenny voiced her own opinion.

Ash groaned out load as he noticed something. "Look over there, the dirt is darker there and I'd be willing to bet it's a pitfall trap. And that means that it must be those three idiots from Team Rocket who are always after Pikachu."

"Hey, who are you calling idiots?" Three voices exclaimed as their owners jumped from the bushes. The moment they did this however, they were spotted by Pikachu and Lucario who hit them with a thunderbolt and aura sphere respectively. The two attacks sent the group of failed thieves flying as they shouted out their infamous line. "It looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!"

"Those are some pretty well trained Pokémon Ash which just goes to prove my point. I'll let you run with the flame and your friends can get a lift with me if they help get this young man aboard the minibus."

"I'll stay behind to make sure nobody falls into this pitfall but I'll call ahead so my family knows what happened." Officer Jenny added.

"Alright then." Ash took the flame from Mr Goodshow before calling to the others. "Hey Misty, Brock?"

"Yes?" Misty answered too sweetly as she came around the corner with Togepi in her arms but no Brock behind her, Ash shuddered at the thought of what she might have done to him.

"If you and Brock can help President Goodshow get this guy on the bus then you can get a lift with him while I run the torch the rest of the way to the stadium." With that said she went and got Brock before the two fulfilled their end of the bargain and boarded the minibus while Ash set off with the torch. Once they had rounded the pitfall there was a flash of light as Ninetales and Rapidash came out of their pokéballs to run alongside him. "So you guys want some exercise too huh? Well, that's fine with me so let's go."

Back on the bus the group was looking at Ash's Pokémon. "Hey Brock, is it just me or are Rapidash and Ninetales much more gorgeous than when we last saw them?" Misty asked.

"Yeah, they are." Brock replied slightly in awe of Ash's Pokémon. "I guess he must have started feeding them proper vitamins while he was away to get them as healthy as they could be."

Soon the group was nearing the stadium and the minibus went on ahead so President Goodshow could receive the torch in the traditional manner. As Ash got closer he was able to hear the announcements coming out over the loud speakers. "The Pokémon League President Mr Charles Goodshow has just arrived at the Indigo Stadium to receive the torch. It seems that a few guests were with him on the bus as a result of an incident during the torch run. The previous runner apparently sprained his ankle a short way past the Indigo Plateau main Pokémon Center but another participant was fortunately able to take up the challenge of running the torch. It seems that the guests were this previous runner and his replacement, Ash Ketchum's, friends."

"What's this; I have just received a report that says the Officer Jenny who was originally travelling with the President and torch stayed behind near the location of the incident to fill in a pitfall trap set up by some wannabe torch thieves. These thieves were apparently members of Team Rocket but their plan failed when Mr Ketchum noticed their presence and the trap and had his Pokémon send them flying. Well people I think this young man deserves an even bigger welcome than usual so let's give him a massive cheer when he arrives." As she finished saying this Ash rounded the final corner and ran between the crowds lining either side of the road who were cheering him as if there were no tomorrow.

Ash approached Mr Goodshow, flanked by all his Pokémon who were eliciting sounds of awe from the crowd with their magnificence. He then handed him the torch and leaned back on Rapidash from a brief respite as the crowds cheered and the President invited everyone to the opening ceremony at eight in the evening. As their job was over Ash's Pokémon all bundled onto him, congratulating him on completing the run so quickly and wanting a play now that work was over and done with. Several people in the audience went "Awwwww." at this as they found it sweet to see a trainer and his Pokémon getting along so well.


A little while later Ash had checked in and received the keys to his lodge. After the group had dumped their belongings in the rooms they chose, Brock and Misty caved in and gave Ash the attic room as he and his Pokémon needed more privacy with Mew and Mewtwo around, they all headed over to the Indigo Stadium for the opening ceremony. Ash was now stood in the centre of the stadium with all the other participants listening to Mr Goodshow's speech. "… and now we will finish the opening ceremony with the lighting of the flame of Moltres." As he said this, a young girl jogged into the stadium and up the stairs to the cauldron where the flame would sit.

"And it looks like a pair of League officials will take the torch to light the cauldron." An announcer said over the speaker system. But Ash knew better, he recognised the hair of the 'officials' and felt their greed, it was Team Rocket once again.

"Stop!" Ash shouted. "Those aren't officials, they're Team Rocket." The girl looked around, shocked at this development but Jessie snatched the torch away from her before the group removed their disguises. Ash quickly ran up the stairs and when he reached the top he spoke once more. "Give back that torch!"

"You think we want this puny thing?" Jessie asked.

"No way! We want somethin' much bigger." Meowth added as Jessie lit the cauldron and a large mantis-like machine appeared, climbing over the wall and lifting the cauldron onto its back. Team Rocket got into their machine before jumping down to the centre of the stadium and terrorising the participants and audience. Ash charged back down the stairs and had Pikachu attack it with a thunderbolt but it seemed the machine was insulated against electricity. "Damn, it's not working." With this Team Rocket decided to attack them but Ash had other plans and called for a double iron tail attack from Pikachu and Lucario which successfully destroyed the machine, but now the cauldron was flying through the air.

Fortunately it landed back where it had originally come from but the flames had been thrown out and were falling towards Ash. As they engulfed him and his Pokémon the crowds watched in horror. However, before their very eyes the flames reformed into the shape of the bird they came from, Moltres. It stood over Ash, wings curled protectively around him as a voice spoke in all their minds "Your heart is truly pure, Ash." Eyes widened in shock throughout the stadium at this before the flames flew back to the cauldron in their Moltres form. When they reached the cauldron the flames collapsed back to normal.

"Well it looks like Ash has Moltres' full support as well." Goodshow muttered under his breath before speaking aloud to the crowds. "Well folks, with that the opening ceremony is over. The battle rounds start in two days so I hope to see you there."

As they were leaving Ash had a quick mental conversation with his Pokémon just to be sure that his theory was right. "That wasn't any of you was it?"

"No Ash, I am quite sure that was Moltres using its flame as an avatar to speak with you." Mewtwo said and all the others agreed proving his theory to be correct.


It was one o' clock two days later and Ash was in his box on the water field. He had discovered that to make it to the victory tournament you first had to win a battle on each of the four elemental fields; Water, Grass, Rock and Ice. After that there would be 16 trainers left who would battle it out in the victory tournament for the top spot as winner.

His opponent on this field would be a guy who went by the name 'The Astounding Mandi'. The guy had approached Ash earlier and acted as full of himself as Gary always did and Ash used to. He recognised now that he had attitude problems in the past but felt that he had matured a lot since Mew and Mewtwo joined him, to the point where his attitude wasn't too bad.

He stood there, Pikachu and Lucario by his side as he listened to the commentator. "And now the start of the third battle on the water field. On the green side is newcomer Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town who has saved the flame of Moltres twice since his arrival on the Plateau." The crowd cheered loudly for the man who had defended the very symbol of the tournament. "And on the red side is a Pokémon League favourite, the Astounding Mandi." At his name the crowds went wild, cheering even more loudly than they had for Ash.

"This will be a three on three battle. The first trainer to run out of Pokémon will be disqualified." The referee announced. "Battle start."

"It's show time. Now Ash, watch me work my magic. Go Exeggutor!" Mandi announced, throwing the pokéball with several flourishes.

"I guess I'll show a little magic of my own then. I choose you, Krabby!" Ash cried out, raising his hand towards the field. As he did so a yellow aura of a similar colour to Pikachu's fur engulfed one of his pokéballs and moved it over the field before it opened to reveal his Krabby. You see, after learning that Ash could use both telepathy and telekinesis he had Mewtwo train him so he could use his telekinesis for simple tasks such as this. The crowd was in awe of his psychic skills and couldn't help but cheer at the display which made Mandi's excessive flourishes look like cheap theatrics. With the two Pokémon stood on platforms floating on the water the battle began.

"Mandi is starting with Exeggutor while Ash uses his Krabby." The commentator said enthusiastically.

"Exeggutor, psywave now." Mandi called and the multi-faced plant launched a few rings of psychic energy at Krabby.

Ash was faster though and gave his own commands. "Krabby, dive in and harden."

"Now, I've got you. Use psychic to create a whirlpool."

Krabby was pulled into the whirlpool and spun round it again and again before he managed to reach the edge of it and jumped at the plant once ash gave an order. "Alright Krabby, vicegrip." Krabby latched onto the leaves atop Exeggutor's heads and yanked it around for a few seconds causing quite some damage before jumping to another platform.

"Razor leaf, quickly." Mandi countered, hoping to do some damage before the crab landed another attack.

"Take it." Ash yelled and everyone was shocked that he would ask a water type to try and endure a grass type attack, especially such a weak looking water type.

"Hahahaha, how foolish." Mandi said as the leaves made contact but he soon stopped laughing when he saw them bouncing off harmlessly. "W-what?" he stuttered.

"I trained my Krabby to take attacks like that with ease; his shell is easily strong enough to stand up to a weak attack like that." Ash explained before he saw a white glow engulf Krabby. "It can't be… It is! Alright Kingler!" Ash shouted as the glow faded to show that Krabby had indeed evolved.

"Oh no. Exeggutor look out!"

"Kingler! Bubblebeam then crab hammer." Both attacks hit the large coconut Pokémon as it had nowhere to run and it was knocked out completely.

"Ko King!" Kingler announced as it sat atop its defeated enemy, snapping its claws at the crowds.

"Exeggutor is unable to battle." The referee called and Mandi recalled it.

"Ha, the kid's had some beginners luck. That's all it is, go Seadra!" Mandi sent out his next Pokémon.

"Sorry Kingler but I want you to return for now."

"King Ko-ko King." It said out loud as Ash heard its true voice in his head. "Whatever you say Ash."

"Let's see how your Seadra likes its evolved form. I choose you Kingdra!" He shouted for all to hear as he threw a second pokéball onto the field. After his Pokémon had been revealed the crowds went silent expectantly.

"Y-you have a K-Kingdra?" Mandi asked though Ash decided it wasn't worth replying as the field gave all the answer that was necessary. The two 'Dragon Pokémon' were in the water at opposite ends of the field with Ash's Kingdra looking much more majestic, elegant and powerful as well as being half Seadra's height taller than it.

"Seadra versus Kingdra. Begin" The referee announced.

Mandi recovered and quickly called out to his Pokémon. "Seadra, use agility to get in close then use hydro pump at full power."

Though to most people it looked like Seadra was disappearing and reappearing all over the field, Ash and his Pokémon were able to follow it's movements after their training. "Kingdra, use your own hydro pump but tone it down so you don't seriously injure that Seadra." Kingdra trumpeted a response before turning to look directly at the Seadra that had appeared beside her. Mandi's eyes widened as the two unleashed a blast of water at each other. When the two attacks met, Kingdra's tore through Seadra's and hit it dead on.

"Nooo! Seadra!" Mandi cried but to no avail as Seadra was seen belly up in the water.

"Seadra is unable to battle. Please choose your next Pokémon."

"Just how strong is that Kingdra?" He muttered before crying out once he had recalled his unconscious Seadra. "I won't lose to some twerp like you. Go Golbat!"

"In that case, Kingdra return. Tentacruel I choose you."


As Ash released his Tentacruel Misty went wild in the stands before settling down and staring with sparkling eyes. "Aren't they just gorgeous Brock?" She asked in all seriousness.

"Who, Tentacruel or Ash?" Brock teased, expecting a mallet to the head any second. Instead his jaw dropped as he heard her reply.

"Both." She said dreamily.


"Quickly Tentacruel, acid spray."

"What's that? Well whatever it is dodge it Golbat." With that said a barrage of globules of dark orange acid flew out of the depths of Tentacruel's body. Golbat was able to dodge most of them but there were too many and the last few struck it dead on. "Oh no, quickly use mega drain before it attacks again." He smiled at this thinking his Golbat's health would soon be recovered as the green tendrils of energy reached towards Tentacruel.

"For your information, acid spray is a move discovered in a foreign region and it weakens the target's defence against special attacks if it hits. But it looks like I really didn't need to do that because of my Tentacruel's ability, clear body. Clear body means that health draining attacks that would usually restore the user's health with the target's now do as much damage as health would have been recovered. Tentacruel, take that hit then bring it in close with wrap while it's weak."

"Oh no! Golbat stop the attack." But it was too late, the tendrils connected with Tentacruel who roared in pain. Soon though, Golbat fell towards the water, managing to pull up just before it hit. However when it looked up it found its opponent right in front of it and was unable to escape the tentacles that grabbed it securely to prevent escape.

"Finish it off with a water pulse Tentacruel." Ash's Pokémon fulfilled its trainers wish and the bat Pokémon was seen floating unconscious in the water moments later. With that the match was declared as Ash's victory.

"And newcomer Ash Ketchum scores a spectacular and flawless victory over the Astounding Mandi in his first match. It seems we can expect great things from this young trainer. I've just received word that one of our correspondents is approaching him for a few words from our victor." The commentator praised as the battle came to a close.

Ash turned around, surprised by the mention of a few words from him. The reporter was already right in his face and he had to take a few steps back to obtain a safe distance. "Good afternoon Ash, I was wondering if you could give us a few words after your victory?" She asked in a tone that told Ash he was going to whether he liked it or not.

"Well, to be honest I think the victory belongs to my Pokémon not to me. They were the ones that worked hard in our training and in our battle to earn us this victory so all credit goes to them. Besides, you never know who you'll be up against so I may come up against a trainer next round that's stronger than me and knocks me out of the tournament so it's best not to get too confident like I used to." With that said Ash walked off before any more questions could be asked.

"Ha, not likely." Mewtwo said in Ash's head. "At least not yet, though I wonder if anyone here will be strong enough to beat you now."


The group were back at the house now and it was evening. They were sat around the table eating a dinner that Ash and Brock had prepared.

"Ash, you and your Pokémon were incredible today. Especially your Tentacruel, it was so dreamy." Misty said as her mind succumbed to daydreams once again.

"Tentacruel wasn't the only thing she thought was dreamy though." Brock said before being hit over the head by an extremely irate Misty.

"Ahahaha, I don't know what you're talking about Brock." Misty responded nervously, her cheeks bright red. She sincerely hoped Ash hadn't understood what Brock meant as he wasn't as dense as he used to be so who knew.

Unfortunately for her Ash had understood Brock's words and he'd remembered her emotions yesterday as well. Combined, these two things made him very nervous but he hid it by simply continuing to eat at a rapid pace. The disguise worked and Misty let out a sigh of relief while Brock just shook his head at Ash's denseness. Ash would have to talk to Brock about this later, maybe they could come up with some way to get Misty to leave him alone if they worked together. If not he could always try replicating Brock's methods with women as that seems to just anger Misty to no end.

After dinner Ash insisted that he should help Brock with the washing up instead of Misty which made that emotion of hers flare up again. He realised that his offer probably just made him look more like a gentleman to her or something similar. Once she had left to the other room Ash sighed in relief before he turned to Brock and started talking. "Okay Brock, I'm not as dense as I'm pretending to be. I can tell how Misty really feels better than you can because of my ability to sense emotions but I don't feel the same way. That's why I'm asking you to help me come up with a way to get her to leave me alone."

"Wait, so you did know what was going on and just pretended not to?"

"Yes, ever since we were outside the Pokémon Center yesterday when she said I'd changed. I'll just say a certain emotion of hers flared up at that point and I didn't know how to react as I can't reciprocate it."

"Wow Ash, that's pretty mature of you and those are some big words for you to be using too." Brock teased before getting serious again. "Hang on, how did you know what the emotion was, have you felt it for someone before?"

"No, but when me and Anabel were saying goodbye I felt the same emotion spike in her and shortly after that she decided to kiss me on the cheek before running off. I figured out from the kiss what the emotion was."

"I see… Well we better make sure Misty never finds out about that or she'll probably hunt Anabel down. By the way, as you said you haven't felt it yourself I assume the reason you can't reciprocate Misty's feelings isn't that you have feelings for Anabel?"

"You're right about both parts so no; I don't have any feelings for Anabel. The worst part is that I didn't have any chance to tell her that before she ran off so I think she's going to feel worse when I do eventually manage to tell her."

"I understand my young friend. Love can be a very painful thing and sometimes people have to learn that the hard way. My suggestion for dealing with Misty is to just continue acting oblivious, hopefully she'll eventually just give up and move on. Let's just hope these are teenage crushes that they can easily move on from."

"Well I may as well try the oblivious act as I can't think of anything better. Unfortunately though, the feelings I'm sensing are too deep to just be a crush. I just hope it doesn't hurt them too much."

That night Ash let Mewtwo and Mew out of their pokéballs again, he had done the same thing the night before but hadn't really talked to them, they had all just gone straight to sleep. "Well guys we won our first match with a clean sweep, although Tentacruel was pretty tired by the end and I think Kingler would have been as well if he hadn't evolved in the battle. Not to put them down, they did brilliantly, but we got a bit lucky at times so we better not go thinking this will be easy."

"Aww, come on Ash stop being such a downer! Everyone did great and it was because of you that they were able to." Mew said, playfully sticking out her tongue at him. The other Pokémon laughed at her treatment of Ash before Mewtwo voiced his own opinion.

"Mew is right though Ash. Kingler wouldn't have been able to evolve or beat that Exeggutor without your training and Kingdra wouldn't have been able to wipe out that Seadra so easily either. As for the Golbat, that was an unusually strong Golbat so it's no wonder Tentacruel was tired at the end, most Pokémon would have been. Your refusal to become overconfident is admirable but you should not be afraid to have some confidence."

"Yeah, what Mewtwo said Ash." Added Pikachu. "I mean, when have you ever let a strong Pokémon stop you? If our opponent is strong enough to tire us out then that just means we need to train harder and get stronger so it doesn't tire us out next time!"

"That's right, we are Pokémon and we know our strength. We would never have agreed to come here if we didn't think we were capable of winning it." Lucario finished in a gruff tone. They hoped what they had said would be enough to snap him out of this state he was in as they couldn't sense anything from him.

"Thanks guys, I needed that. We're here to win and we won't accept anything less!" Ash replied with a grin on his face. With that the five of them settled down for the night.


It was eleven o' clock the next morning and Ash was stood in the green trainer's podium on the rock field. His opponent, Ewan Turner, was only a year or so older than Ash and seemed like a fairly nice guy unlike Mandi so Ash was looking forward to a good battle.

"This will be a three on three battle. When all of one trainer's Pokémon are unable to battle that trainer will be disqualified. Trainers, please call out your Pokémon." The referee explained simply.

"Let's do this Sandslash!" Ewan yelled throwing out a pokéball.

"In that case I choose you, Sandslash." Ash said as he called out his own. When the two appeared on the field you could see that Ash's was ever so slightly bigger and had a shinier coat, indicating its better health. "That's a pretty strong Sandslash you've got there Ewan but not as strong as mine."

"We'll see about that. Start off with a sandstorm then use it to get in close and use fury swipes." Ewan called to his Pokémon.


"Hmm… A battle of the Sandslash. It looks like Ash has this one in the bag so long as he doesn't get overconfident as his is clearly stronger and healthier and his strategy has improved more than enough." Brock commented up in the stands.

"You might be right Brock, with the new strategies Ash has been coming up with and his Pokémon's raw power this should be an easy win." Misty replied.


"Sandslash, dodge that fury swipes attack and hit it with slash." Ash ordered his Pokémon as the battle got going.

When Sandslash dodged just as it was told to, Ewan was confused. "What, but my Sandslash's ability makes it harder to find in a sandstorms so how did yours dodge it?"

"Simple, my Sandslash has the same ability. Now Sandslash, attack!" He yelled the last sentence to make sure Sandslash heard; he didn't want to use mental commands just yet. The attack hit and Ewan's Pokémon was forced to the ground by it. "Again." But before the next attack could hit Ewan gave a panicked command that was followed immediately.

"Dig!"

"In that case, finish this with earthquake buddy." Ash changed tactics without batting an eyelid and Sandslash quickly jumped into the air before coming down hard on the ground making it shake. Soon the opposing Sandslash resurfaced and took a few unsteady steps before fainting.

"Ewan's Sandslash is unable to battle. Please select your next Pokémon." The referee made the victory official.

"Slash Sandslash Slash!" Ash's Sandslash called out which he translated as "Let's show these people what else I can do!"

"Alright then Sandslash you're staying in." Ash told him as Ewan chose his next Pokémon.

"Let's do this, Onix."

"We'll take the lead this time Sandslash. Dig then brick break." Sandslash dove underground and Ewan looked around desperately, panicking again.

"Be careful Onix, it could come up anywhere." Just as Ewan said this Sandslash popped up behind Onix, she then proceeded to smash it over the head with a brick break. Onix groaned loudly in pain before it acted upon its trainer's next orders. "Onix, use bind." It snaked its tail around Sandslash and gripped tightly. "Now hit it with Slam." The rock snake Pokémon threw the mouse Pokémon to the floor before dropping its tail on it. When it rose up again Sandslash managed to stagger back up on to her feet but was barely standing so Ash new it was nearly over.

'That brick break did a lot of damage though so one good hit should finish it off.' He made his decision. "Sandslash, finish this with hyper beam."

"Dragonbreath Onix." Both Pokémon launched their attacks which met in the middle of the field. When they met there was an enormous explosion which sent Sandslash flying and threw Onix back a few feet. After the smoke cloud cleared both Pokémon were seen to be unconscious.

"Would you look at that folks, it's a double knockout here on the rock field with Ash's Sandslash losing to Onix after taking down Ewan's own Sandslash and the Onix. What will these trainers show us next?"

"Both trainers please call out your next Pokémon." The referee requested.

"Go Nidorino." Ewan almost screamed.

Ash released his next Pokémon far more calmly. "I choose you, Rhydon."


Up in the stands Brock and Misty were talking once again. "Wow, Sandslash really showed his stuff out there. I can't believe he manage to take down both those Pokémon." Brock stated.

"I know, and know it turns out he evolved his Rhyhorn as well as his Seadra. What next?"

"Who knows Misty, who knows…"


"Nidorino, start thing off with a horn attack."

"Alright Rhydon, counter that with your own horn attack then hit it with a stone edge before it can get away." Nidorino got in close and dove at Rhydon with its horn glowing but just as it was about to hit, Rhydon blocked the attack with its own and forced Nidorino to the ground. Stones began appearing around Rhydon's body before they flew towards Nidorino. The attack sent the poison pin Pokémon flying into a boulder which crumbled around it creating a small dust cloud. Before the dust could clear and Ash could see what was happening Ewan called out his next move.

"Quickly, ice beam."

Rhydon roared in pain as his feet and legs were frozen to the ground. "Come on Rhydon I know you can break out of that ice!" Rhydon tried desperately to break free and the ice began to fracture.

"Finish it off with brick break before it can get free." Ewan cried hoping that he might just be able to scrape through and win this now. The pink Pokémon charged towards its opponent but before it took more than a few steps Rhydon broke free.

"Now Rhydon, use double edge." Rhydon charged at Nidorino with his body glowing gold, he managed to evade Nidorino's brick break and hit head on with the double edge sending Nidorino into a boulder once more. This time though, Nidorino would stay down.

"Nidorino is unable to battle and so the winner is Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town." The referee announced to the crowds who roared in approval. Ash recalled Rhydon, who was also roaring by this point, with a word of thanks before leaving straight for the Pokémon Center.


In the Pokémon Center Ash was talking to his friends. "So Ash, how does it feel to get victory number two?" Brock asked.

"It feels great but I can't let it go to my head or I'll just get overconfident like I used to. Both me and my Pokémon know that."

"Wow Ash, you're so much more mature than you used to be." Misty said while blushing slightly.

'Oh no, here we go again.' Ash thought as he felt her emotions shoot up once again.


It was now late evening of the same day and Ash was stood in the red trainer's podium waiting to do battle with his opponent Pete Pebbleman. Pikachu and Lucario were with him and all were ready to win again. After the referee announced the rules the two trainers called out their Pokémon.

"Go Jynx" Pete called.

"I choose you, Dewgong" Ash added.

"I've got just the move for that Dewgong of yours. Jynx, use brick break."

"Hit it with signal beam before it can get in close then follow it up with a blizzard." The sea lion Pokémon launched a multi-coloured beam from the tip of its horn which struck its opponent dead centre in the chest sending it flying back. As Jynx struggled back to its feet Dewgong summoned an incredibly cold wind which made even the crowds shiver slightly. As it struck, the human shape Pokémon cried out in pain but stood its ground. It was fortunate for Pete that both the move and its target were ice type otherwise his Pokémon may well have been unconscious.

"Jynx, body slam." The Pokémon jumped high into the air before dropping down on Dewgong. "Now hit it with brick break" Its hand glowed white before it crashed down on Dewgong's head, sending it crashing back into a boulder of ice.

"Dewgong, use aqua ring to recover then hit it with another signal beam." Several rings of crystal clear water surrounded Dewgong before they were absorbed into her body healing some of her wounds. She then fired the multi-coloured beam at Jynx once again.

"Protect! After that hit it with energy ball." A green sphere surrounded Jynx just in time to deflect the approaching attack which created a crater in the ice instead. Pete shivered at the power of his enemy's attacks.

"Dodge and counter with hyper beam." Dewgong dived to the side just in time to avoid the grass type attack before it charged an orange orb in its mouth and fired.

"Jynx, look out!" It was too late; the attack hit Jynx straight in the face sending it flying back into the arena wall. It was completely unconscious and declared unable to battle. The crowd was then surprised as both trainers recalled their Pokémon and released another. "Go Cloyster!"

"You did well Dewgong, thank you. Now get some rest." Ash told the ice and water type telepathically before calling out loud. "I choose you, Golduck."


"Ash made a good choice, after launching that hyper beam Dewgong would have been left wide open and she's probably tired out from the battle anyway. I'm kind of confused why everybody found his switch so surprising really." Brock stated.

"I know… But she was just so beautiful." Was Misty's answer as Brock sighed, wondering if she would ever change. "I wonder if he'll use another water type though, after all it is an ice field."

"Well it would make sense but I wouldn't put it past Ash to try something else, after all he hasn't really displayed any specific strategy so far." Brock replied before Misty squealed in delight at Ash's second Pokémon. 'I guess she won't change after all.'


"Cloyster, start off with toxic spikes then hit that Golduck with your spike cannon." Cloyster fired a purple sphere into the air and it split into spikes which fell on the field before it closed its shell and fired several spikes directly at Golduck.

"Golduck, dodge that spike cannon. I'm sorry but there's nothing we can do about those toxic spikes for now." Ash called out as the poison began to take effect on Golduck. She followed Ash's orders though and dodged the incoming attack. "Use psychic to hold Cloyster still then close in and use rock smash." Cloyster was suddenly surrounded by a blue glow that stopped it moving from its place meaning it would take the next attack directly.

"Cloyster try to use withdraw." Cloyster snapped its shell shut; fortunately Golduck had only prevented it from moving outwards. The rock smash struck but didn't do a lot of damage due to the protection withdraw provided.

"Keep using rock smash Golduck. Cloyster is getting tired from it and I know you can outlast it." Ash encouraged. Golduck complied, repeatedly striking Cloyster with rock smash in the same spot.

"Oh no." But there was nothing Pete could do as his Cloyster suffered from each hit until eventually its shell cracked slightly and opened to reveal an unconscious Cloyster.

"Cloyster return. Now go, Arcanine."

"An Arcanine on this field? I guess he's got some sort of plan so I better not let my guard down. Let's keep going Golduck. Start things off with a water pulse." Golduck launched an orb of water at the large canine but it wasn't to be.

"Arcanine, use flamethrower to stop that water pulse then hit it with Dragonbreath and thunder fang" Arcanine did just that and before anyone knew it Golduck was flat on her back and unable to battle.

"Thanks buddy." Ash said recalling the Pokémon and choosing his next. "I choose you, Vaporeon!" As Vaporeon appeared on the field, the poison spikes took effect and began spreading the damaging substance throughout her body.

"Arcanine, keep using fire blast until you hit." Once again Arcanine did just that, several fiery kanji shapes now making their way towards Vaporeon.

"Vaporeon use quick attack to dodge." Vaporeon also complied with its trainers commands and began dodging the attacks with ease as they hit all over the ice but never made contact with it. Then Ash noticed something, they were melting the ice and soon the only ice left would be that which Arcanine was stood on.

"Ha, I've got you know. There's nowhere left for you to run. Hit it with overheat Arcanine, full power." A pillar of flame leapt towards Vaporeon who was now stood on a small ice platform in the middle of a battlefield full of water.

"Is this it for Ketchum's Vaporeon? It seems like there's nowhere to go now." The commentator wondered to the crowds.

"No, it's not. You're all forgetting something incredibly simple." He laughed which no one had been expecting. "Into the water Vaporeon." Pete and almost the entire crowd face faulted at their own stupidity, the water was in fact even better for Vaporeon than the ice. "Hide yourself in the water then hit it with a barrage of water guns."

Vaporeon, who was already in the water, seemed to dissolve before suddenly jumping up all over the place and hitting Arcanine every time. It was Arcanine who was trapped on the ice now as its type stopped it from entering the water. Pete's final Pokémon had taken a lot of damage now and Ash decided to finish it. "End this with surf." Pete just sighed and lowered his head, knowing he could no longer win. The wave Vaporeon had produced engulfed Arcanine before washing away to show it unconscious.

"This round and the match go to Vaporeon and Ash" The referee finalised before Vaporeon jumped out of the water to Ash's side and began rubbing against his legs.

"Vay Vay." Vaporeon said which Ash heard in his own language. "Yay, we did it."

The crowd watched as the boy squatted down to the same height as his Vaporeon which was now sparkling in the sunlight. He cuddled and spoke to her briefly, earning several 'Awww's from the crowd, before he recalled her and left to treat his Pokémon. "Yeah, we did. Great work girl, I'm proud of you."


"Well Ash, brilliant job once again." Brock said to Ash that evening as they were eating.

"Of course it was brilliant; he used water Pokémon after all." Misty said.

"You would have thought he was brilliant even without the water Pokémon." Brock mumbled but unfortunately Misty heard and her mallet struck once again. "Anyway Ash," Brock added as he recovered. "According to the schedule your next match is tomorrow afternoon against some girl called Jeanette Fisher. I thought you might be interested to know that Gary's battle time tomorrow ends just a little while before yours begins so maybe we should go watch it."

"That sounds like a plan to me Brock." Ash replied. "What do you think Misty?"

"Yeah, sure." She replied, obviously not having listened to a word that had been said as she was off in water Pokémon dreamland again.


The next day Ash, Misty, Brock, Pikachu, Lucario and Togepi were all sat in the stands of the rock field watching Gary's match. Both trainers were down to their last Pokémon, Gary his Nidoking and Melissa, his opponent, her Golem. "Nidoking, horn attack!" Gary yelled and his Nidoking charged horn first at the Golem but was stopped when Golem grabbed its horn and forced it aside.

"Golem, seismic toss." Melissa called out and Golem jumped high into the air before throwing Nidoking back down to earth, knocking it out.

"This battle goes to Melissa." The referee announced before the commentator added his own thoughts via the loudspeakers.

"She's done it. After a gruelling battle Melissa has won with a last minute upset over Gary Oak for her fourth Pokémon League victory." With this Gary collapsed to his knees, unable to believe he had lost this early in the tournament.

"I can't believe it…" Ash said.

"The competition here is really tough Ash." Misty told him, not too surprised that Gary had lost.

"Priii!" Togepi added.

"Haha, I guess your right there Togepi. You sure are smart for such a young Pokémon." Ash replied to the young one.

"What did Togepi say Ash?" Misty inquired, wishing she were able to understand Pokémon herself.

"Togepi said that it just means that we prove we're even tougher by beating these trainers. Well, words to that effect anyway."

"Well Togepi is right then and I know you're the toughest one here Ash so go beat them all."

"Alright, well I'm gonna go talk to Gary real quick. I get the feeling he plans to leave now but I want him to see me win this and the Pokémon I win it with." Ash told the others before running off to find Gary.

Ash caught up with Gary just as he reached his car in which his cheerleaders were crying. "Gary!" He shouted, gaining his rivals attention.

"Oh, hey Ashy boy. That trainer was lucky that I got distracted by all the girls cheering for me." Gary said as Ash reached his side.

"Sure Gary, whatever you say. But you know, there's no harm in admitting you lost fair and square. It just shows that you've got the maturity to look forwards instead of back and figure out how to improve so it doesn't happen again." As Ash mentioned losing the girls in the car broke down even further. "But that's not why I'm here. I came to ask you to stay and watch the rest of the battles, mine especially. I have some 'trump cards' that I know can help me win this whole tournament so I guarantee you this. If you stay, my semi-final match and the final round will be some of the most interesting battles you've ever seen."

Brock then arrived and added something of his own. "Ash is right Gary. I believe that he can make it that far not just because he is my friend but because over the last three months his training skills have increased exponentially and he does have two Pokémon that you will not be able to believe he has until you see them so there's no point telling you what they are. Wait around and he won't disappoint."

"Hey Ash, you better hurry up! Your fourth match is starting on the grass field any minute now." Misty suddenly yelled from the path to the grass field. He looked at his watch and realised she was right.

"Alright Ashy-boy, you've convinced me to stay but you better deliver on that promise you made."

"Don't worry, I will." With that, Ash darted off to the grass field for his final qualifying match.


Several minutes later and Ash walked onto the grass field to take his place in the green podium. As he and his two partners rose above the battlefield slightly his opponent made her entrance. A red carpet rolled out towards her podium as she walked out of her own entrance, petals floating around her. There was a sudden blast of noise as a cheering squad that dwarfed Gary's went wild.

"I am honoured." She stated making Ash wonder why she was honoured. He stared at them all as they continued their ridiculous antics before shaking his head and waiting for the battle to begin. When it did they released their Pokémon simultaneously. "My Pokémon should create quite a buzz. Beedrill go!"

"Scyther, I choose you."

As the two Pokémon materialised on the field the commentator started doing his job. "Well folks, it looks like the first round of this match is going to be a battle of the bug types."

"Beedrill, twineedle attack now."

"Scyther, use swords dance before it can reach you then parry all their attacks with fury cutter." As the poison bee Pokémon charged towards it, readying its stinger like arms Scyther's arms glowed a bluish purple and it spun rapidly before dropping into a defensive stance with his attack power increased. Beedrill reached its target and began stabbing at it but Scyther simply pushed every attack to the side. "Jump back and use aerial ace." Scyther back flipped away from Beedrill before flying up into the air and coming back down to crash into Beedrill. The black and yellow Pokémon was forced to the floor and struggled to get back up. "Finish this with slash." It was over almost as soon as Ash finished talking.

"This one won't be so easy. Go Scyther!" Jeanette shouted after recalling Beedrill.

"And Jeanette brings out her own Scyther. How will Ketchum respond, we've seen him fight fire with fire before in this tournament but will he do it again?" The commentator announced.

"Scyther return. You were great but I want to give the others a chance to show off too." Ash said, the Pokémon disappearing in a flash of light. "I choose you, Ivysaur." Out came what had originally been the clone of Ash's Bulbasaur and it was ready to rumble.

"Scyther, use your slash attack now!"

"Use sunny day then hit it with a full power solar beam to finish this here and now." Before Scyther could get close a white beam shot from Ivysaur's bulb straight at the sun making it shine brighter than ever. With that done Ivysaur lowered the front of his body and aimed at the incoming Scyther, just as the bug was about to strike it was hit by an intense blast of solar energy which knocked it out immediately.

"But… how?" Jeanette wondered at how Ivysaur had charged the attack so quickly.

"The sunny day. With the sunlight so strong the attack doesn't take all that time to charge so you can fire it much quicker." Ash explained and she nodded at his explanation.


"Wow, I didn't know Ash could come up with strategies like that. I guess it also helps that his Ivysaur is obviously really strong." Brock commented, amazed by his friends abilities.

"Yeah. Come on Ash! Just beat this Pokémon and you win the match!" Misty cheered before speaking more to herself than anyone in particular. "Jeanette will save her strongest for last but whatever it is you can beat her."

"Toge Toge" The small spike ball Pokémon in her lap joined the cheering.

"I'm sure Ash can beat any Pokémon she picks with these new skills of his." Brock added.

Their jaws dropped when she released her next Pokémon, it was a Bellsprout.

"Huh?" Misty asked.

"Wow. That must be some Bellsprout for her to save it till now."

A voice suddenly spoke up beside them. "Sorry we're so late." The three looked round to see Delia and Professor Oak stood in front of them.

"Mrs Ketchum, Professor Oak, what are you doing here?" Misty inquired.

The Professor answered for the two of them. "We came to cheer Ash to victory."

"Umm… Did you know that your grandson lost?" Brock asked, hoping Oak wasn't too upset about it.

"Yes I know. It'll do Gary good to see every road has a few bumps along the way. Besides, I see he decided to stay behind and watch some of the other matches."

"That was Ash's handiwork Professor. He convinced him to stay with a promise that the semi-finals and finals would be battles to remember, I'm sure you can figure out why." Brock explained.

Oak was surprised. "Ash managed to talk Gary out of leaving? Well that's a new one but I guess the world is full of surprises. And yes, I can figure out why. I just can't wait to see them in battle."

"Win this one for your mother honey." Delia called down to him and Oak joined her in their so called cheering.

"Now that Gary's out of the competition all the folks in Pallet Town are counting on you!"

"They're supposed to be cheering Ash on but all they're doing is putting more pressure on him." Misty whispered to Brock.

"Don't worry. I'm sure Ash can take the pressure." Brock encouraged.

Further back in the stands Gary was thinking. 'Ash is doing great; he literally wiped out two of her Pokémon without even trying. I wonder if he'd be able to beat me now. Who am I kidding, of course he couldn't. But seriously, what's with that girl using a Bellsprout? Is she underestimating Ash or does she have some trick up her sleeve?'


"Well Ivysaur, take a break for now and I'll see you later." Ash said recalling the seed Pokémon. "I choose you, Muk!"

"Bellsprout, start things off with razor leaf!" The leaves flew at Muk before being caught in its body and thrown off. "Alright, that didn't work so let's try getting in close and using slam." Bellsprout approached Muk as quickly as it could. When it arrived it grabbed Muk's hand and flipped it over itself. But when Muk landed it just used the energy to flatten itself out before returning to its normal pose.

"Muk, use Body Slam." Muk quickly stretched out and dropped over the Bellsprout, smothering it completely. It attempted to kick Muk off it but the attacks were useless against the sludge Pokémon and they soon slowed to a stop. Muk raised itself off its now unconscious enemy and the crowd cheered wildly for Ash and his Pokémon. Ash ran over to Muk to congratulate him but was met with a hug that left him on the floor beneath it. "Now I know how that Bellsprout felt." Ash laughed before convincing Muk to get off him so they could leave.


So yeah, that's the start of the League, I know there are still a couple of big similarities to Sabor's story and there will be in the next chapter or two as well but after that I think it should be pretty different.

By the way, in case you didn't notice I have no idea why Jeanette says that she is honoured, I was just wondering if anybody does or whether you think it is just some weird thing of hers.

I know I've said before that if people have any ideas they want to go in my story then let me know so don't forget it but the same goes for Pokémon. So if there are any species you really like then let me know and I'll think about giving him one but it probably won't appear until its home region or after. Main exceptions would be things that might evolve from a Pokémon from a region he's already been through such as the late eeveelutions. I know Glaceon and Leafeon are supposed to evolve only by being around the Moss Rock and Ice Rock or whatever they are called which have only appeared in Sinnoh and Unova but I'm making adventures of my own so who says I can't have Ash find one before then. Oh and I'm also looking for two other things, the first is names for my own islands in the Orange Islands where some of Ash's adventures will take place, I won't be naming all of them but it would be nice to have some named by readers and get you more involved a bit.

The second thing is to do with the fact that I intend to give Ash a rival in Hoenn if/once I get there (I do very much hope to but it will of course take some time), I feel that both Gary and Paul were rivals with a purpose. Gary was about overcoming long-standing pointless differences to become friends and Paul was about showing that pure power is not the way to make your Pokémon strong. I want something similar for his Hoenn rival, I will want something for Trip too once we get there but that's a long way off yet so I will sort it out nearer the time. So if you have any ideas for the purpose of the Hoenn rival please let me know.

Thanks for reading, please leave your opinions as they mean a lot to me and often help me think of ways to take the story in the future.