'The Greatest There Was or Ever Will Be' Chapter Nine: 'Season of Love, Fog of Hate...'

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Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or anything affiliated with it.

The day was peaceful, the sky was clear and the air was a cool and comfortable temperature, this there was no denying. Without a doubt the picture perfect day for any wondering travelers passing through the area to just stop and truly enjoy the splendor of the beautiful day that Arceus had blessed them with.

As luck would actually happen to have it, the most important of any aforementioned travelers could be seen passing through said area at that very moment.

Who could be seen is none other than aspiring young Pokémon Trainer, Ash Ketchum, making his steady way down the long road he was currently treading along with his faithful partner, first Pokémon and trusted friend Pikachu perched atop his shoulder.

Also traveling by the young hero's side was his beautiful and kind girlfriend Giselle Yūtō, as well as close friends, Brock Stone and Misty Waterflower. The four friends walked the long road that stretched far ahead of them with nothing but content and serene expressions on their faces, clearly enjoying the wonderful day it was shaping up to be.

Most travelers, on the other hand, would most likely find the route the young trainers were traveling to be somewhat rugged, unused and ill-maintained. Thus... ruining any attempts those individuals would have at recognizing the beauty of the day.

Ash and his friends could obviously care less about such trivial matters and simply took the true beauty out of the situation they were presented with.

Unfortunately... the mostly unused, overgrown, wild looking appearance of the route they were on was definitely clear and undeniable proof that it was NOT very popular among most travelers. One of the many reasons why this poorly maintained, out of the way road was so undesirable to most people was for the simple fact that there were other ways to get to both Lavender Town and Saffron City.

Which were the very destinations the route in question eventually led to and also the same destinations Ash and the others were heading to currently.

This, as most people would call it, 'undesirable' route took much longer to make it to both places than some of the shorter and more popular routes did, but the beautiful and awe-inspiring scenery more than made up for it in the eyes of Ash and his friends. This was not the case with the rest of the general traveling populace as previously stated though.

In all truth, all sad truth that it is... many people in the current time were just too busy to stop and 'smell the roses' as it were to ever take the time to go even five minutes out of their way. Much less a few days or even, Arceus forbid, weeks travel.

In fact, if not for Professor Oak's many lectures on patience and taking the time to breath that Ash had been tutored on over the years, he would most likely have been the same way. Never stopping to admire something beautiful or unexpected and instead always rushing like a fool on fire towards his next gym badge with no real plan or strategy. Yet another subject of many that Ash made mental notes to thank the Professor for later in life.

Sometimes it literally made him cringe just THINKING about how unprepared and disorganized he would have been on his journey if not for his meeting with Arceus at five years old (which revealed to him the true depth and importance of his destiny) and the years of rigorous training he went through with his mother and the kind old, yet still extremely spry, Professor.

For Ash it wasn't much of a stretch at all to believe just how big a laughingstock of a trainer he would have been otherwise and that thought alone nearly gave him nightmares. Just thinking about how if all of Gary's immature taunts about him being a loser would have actually been... true... just made the boy want to hurl.

Even though Ash knew he was always a studious and focused child, always doing everything he did with the purpose of preparing himself for the day he became a Pokémon Trainer, still... he felt certain that without his mother and Professor Oak, he would not have been even half as prepared for the oftentimes harsh reality of the real world as he was now.

Sure, he had no doubts that he would have caught on eventually and wizened up a bit through MUCH trial and error but in Ash's view... why intentionally put yourself down the hard road filled with disappointment and failure when you can instead prepare yourself properly for something as extremely important and life changing as starting your very own Pokémon journey?

After all, Pokémon are living, breathing creatures that put all of their faith, well being and hopes into the hands of their trainers. Not acting like the responsible trainer you HAVE to be in order to raise Pokémon by not knowing how to properly raise and take care of them was just disgraceful in Ash's eyes.

He honestly couldn't imagine promising his Pokémon that he could help them grow stronger and then not having the knowledge on how to do so. Trainers like that were not capable in his eyes to raise any Pokémon and needed to do some serious re-evaluating if they ever wanted to succeed as a Pokémon Trainer.

He knew he had a LONG way to go but at least always learning and improving was far better than forever remaining clueless and doing everything half-assed while relying souly on guts and luck to succeed. Such reliances in his opinion were just foolish. A little luck and guts were fine but a whole lot more than that was needed in the life of a trainer and the young Ketchum knew this.

But going back to the topic of the route they were currently on, a quick description of the surrounding area would be the most fitting. On the right side of the road was a dense forest that stretched for quite some ways until it came to the beginning of a large mountain range. To the left side of the road was also a forest, more jungle really, but much less dense and very near to the ocean, which was only a short walk away from where the group of friends were now.

One could actually smell the salt air mixed in with the wild smells of the forest on the opposite side of the road, something that made for a very unique and pleasing scent combination. It still shocked the kids to see how both terrains on each side of the road, one slightly jungle looking before it led to the ocean side and the other leading to lush mountains in the far distance, could be so close together but still fit so well in an odd way.

Yet another miracle by Arceus.

For the past three weeks, Ash and the others had traveled the scenic, mostly deserted route through much of the same type of terrain, which was primarily coastal, in a happy and mostly upbeat mood.

Much like today in fact.

They had spent a lot of time just enjoying each other's company and getting to know one another better, spending time with their Pokémon and in the case of Ash and Giselle... training themselves and their Pokèmon even harder than usual. Being that Ash had increased their training intensity and time intervals yet again.

The two had also spent a lot of time in the evenings just cuddling together, talking, laughing, kissing around the campfire and walking side by side every day with their hands intertwined tightly. Something which made both Brock and Misty jealous but for two completely different reasons. One wishing he had what Ash did with a girl while Misty merely desired to be in Giselle's position.

Something that had also happened during the three weeks they had been traveling was the way 'cooking dynamics' in the group had changed. Ash had really wanted to cook a meal one evening but Brock was initially unsure since he was the only one who ever cooked for everyone, including the Pokémon food. Of course, the squinty eyed teen had to follow Ash's recipes for his Pokémon's strict diet but other than that, the eldest of the Stone children thought up every recipe and cooked everything by himself.

Ash had actually ended up challenging Brock to a 'cook off' of sorts for supper one evening, to which the other boy gladly had accepted, believing this was one thing that Ash couldn't possibly beat him in.

After they had finished preparing their respective meals, both for their friends and the Pokémon, and placed them in front of Giselle, Misty and their Pokémon they stood back and watched as everyone eagerly ate with gusto. After the food was finished Brock had looked at them all anxiously, believing without a doubt that he had to have won.

However, he was completely shocked when both girls and even the Pokémon honestly couldn't decide who's cooking was better, his or Ash's. They were both that good. The older boy knew that Ash's mother had trained him how to cook since she was very accomplished at food preparation herself but he had no idea Delia was THAT great.

He had made a mental note right then and there that when he saw Ash's mom again he would study her cooking habits closely so that he could hopefully polish up on his own culinary skills.

Brock was surprised to be sure but he had instantly begun seeing Ash in an entirely different light once he tried some of the food himself and found just how delicious it was. The only problem at that point was deciding who would continue making the food for all of them. Brock had offered the position to Ash out of kindness but the younger boy had politely declined and said that they could share the duty from then on out.

Brock was very happy with the decision and agreed immediately to the deal, gaining even more respect for Ash who was being so kind and considerate of him and what he liked doing. They even ended up teaching each other some of the best recipes and cooking secrets they knew, both family secrets and recipes they had invented themselves.

Misty and Giselle would frequently tease them and say that every time they cooked together it was like watching a really nerdy cooking channel, which drove both of them crazy.

Their laughter never lasted long however because every time they teased them,Brock and Ash would shoot the giggling girls fierce glares and then swiftly remind them in perfect unison that the well being and fullness of their stomachs, which by extension also meant their lives, was in THEIR hands.

This effectively ended the jokes and teasing anytime it came up. The two boys would then share high fives when the girls weren't looking and return merrily back to their cooking, feeling rather smug and proud of themselves for standing up for their 'male cooking rights' as it were.

Going back to the present though, as Ash continued to walk and mull over that particular funny memory in his head, he felt Giselle squeeze his hand tighter and he looked over at her. "What's wrong Giselle?" He asked concerned.

The brunette just shook her head. "Nothing's wrong Ash I was just thinking..." She then trailed off.

The boy quirked his eyebrow. "Thinking about what?"

Giselle smiled at him. "You have nine badges after the last two gyms we went to. You qualify for the Pokémon League now you know," She told him with clear happiness in her voice for her boyfriend.

The young trainer looked back towards the road again and let a smile come across his face. "I sure did huh? I still can't believe it..." He lamented while slipping off into his memories again and thinking some more over the past three weeks they had been traveling.

(Flashback)

XXXXXXXXXXX

The first week after he and his friends left Amarol Town, home of the Maiden's Peak and one of Ash's most memorable adventures for many years to come, they came across another coastal town named Windy Cliffs Village on the seventh day of traveling.

This particular community, which was situated atop a chain of connected large cliffs overlooking the ocean, was the sight of Ash's eighth gym match. The town definitely lived up to it's namesake because at such high elevations and being so near the ocean, the small community was constantly being blasted by strong, high winds that took Ash and his friends by surprise when they first arrived.

This was something that they had, unfortunately, learned the hard way. Upon arriving at the town, a strong gust of wind had blown through the area, nearly knocking the companions off their feet. Giselle had been in front of Ash since she was so excited at seeing as much of the new town as she could right away and unfortunately had been the target of the cruel wind's sick humor.

The strong gust of wind had blown Giselle's white skirt up to her lower back, giving everyone behind her a very clear view of a pair of cherry red panties that, for anyone who wasn't blind, could plainly see definitely shouldn't be worn by a girl her age.

This event caused Misty to blush red and look away, Brock's jaw to drop and start gushing blood from his nose, Pikachu to look confused at what the big deal was and Ash to turn a shade of red that would have made a Darmanitan that wasn't in Zen-Mode proud.

The boy had instantly rushed to his girlfriends aid and quickly pulled her skirt back down so no one else could see it and humiliate her any further. All the while looking back and giving a death glare to Brock that had clearly screamed 'Say anything and you're dead!'

There had been no one around fortunately but Giselle was still beyond humiliated. Luckily though, after some calming words and soothing affection from Ash, beating Brock down for being a gawking pervert and arguing with Misty for telling her she got what she deserved for wearing such short skirts, she overcame her embarrassment and made the smart decision to wear a pair of jeans that she had packed away for the rest of the time they were in the area.

After her incident of embarrassment had ended, the friends then made their way to the reason they had traveled to the wind beaten town in the first place and that was because it had it's own Pokémon gym. One of which was located atop the highest cliff in the area and actually looked like a big, fancy, well made beach hut.

The battling field had been out back of the gym and was suspended atop a large platform that hung out over top of the cliff the gym was situated on. Which was held in place by large supports that jutted out of the cliff side and attached to the underside of every corner of the platform. The entire battlefield was completely open on every side which led to a chance of the battling Pokémon falling off and plummeting to the ocean far, far below.

As it turned out however, the reason for the battlefield being the way it was all had to do with the type of gym it was. Ash had studied up extensively on the gym and it's leader while he formulated some battle strategies and in that time he found out all he needed to know. The gym specialized in Flying-Type Pokémon, hence the reason for the suspended battlefield over the cliff side, and the leader's name was Kiida. He was a boy a little older than Brock and had been working with Flying-Types since he was young.

He was physically a lean young man with a sharp face, similar to a bird's, and had dirty blond hair that was long on the top, slicked forward all in one direction and came over his forehead like the brim of a cap. The boy wore a pair of jean overalls, white undershirt, brown forearm gloves for handling Flying Pokémon and brown work boots.

After meeting with the gym leader and having his challenge accepted, Ash decided to use for the battle both of his own Flying-Types, Fearow and Pidgeotto. Sending Bulbasaur and Squirtle back to the lab temporarily so he could have them.

The battle itself was, for lack of a better word, fast paced and very agility based. A match between two teams of very well trained Flying-Types in a battle to prove which team was superior to the other.

The first battle had been between Kiida's Fearow and Ash's own Fearow.

In terms of speed, agility and flight maneuverability, both of them seemed to be evenly matched at first. Both Pokemon, since they were Fearow and extremely dominant types, went at each other as hard and fast as they could the entire battle. Sometimes Kiida's Fearow would gain the upper 'wing' and at other times Ash's Fearow would gain the advantage and deliver a good barrage of attacks.

More than once they would become locked up in a fierce grappling bout with both of them using their beaks, talons and even wings to try and do damage to the other.

At one point, both trainer's Fearow were locked up in an intense battle while they went diving through the air from the sky above. Kiida's Fearow managed to shift it's position to be on top of Ash's Fearow just before they hit the ground, which led to Ash's own being slammed into the battlefield.

His friends had cringed and called out to Fearow in worry, afraid that the Pokémon was done for, but Ash had just stood where he was with his arms crossed and a stoic look on his face.

Much to everyone's surprise, when the dust cloud had finally settled it showed Fearow standing on it's feet with it's wings spread out, looking pissed off and ready to go again with a vengeance. Ash had merely smirked and then commanded Fearow to 'return the favor'. Fearow listened without hesitation and instantly took off on it's feet far faster than anything Kiida had ever seen before out of a Flying-Type.

Fearow had also added some Agility to his run as he shot off the ground like a rocket straight towards the other Fearow who was just hovering in the air, looking shocked that the other bird was still battle ready after the harsh ground smash he had endured. Not to mention the fact that he could also RUN on the ground, something which had further shocked Kiida's Fearow since it knew it definitely couldn't do such a thing.

Kiida had then ordered his Pokémon to use Agility followed by Drill Peck and then charge towards Ash's Fearow as a counter. Both Pokémon flew at each other in the air with determination on their faces. Ash's Fearow flying from down low and Kiida's from up above.

The Pokémon were nearly upon each other when Ash had suddenly commanded his Fearow to use Air Cutter right when he was almost upon his opponent, followed by a quick barrel roll to the side to avoid the collision.

Just before both Pokémon collided together, Ash's Fearow suddenly launched his attack right in the face of the other bird and then folded his wings in before rolling to the side quickly. Kiida's Fearow stopped mid-flight and tried to avoid the blades of wind but couldn't move in time and ended up getting sliced into painfully by the attack.

Ash didn't leave any time for rest as he had then commanded his Fearow to use another Air Cutter followed by Agility, backed up by another charge at the other Fearow.

Ash's Fearow performed the attack combo instantly and had shot off towards the other one in a blur. Kiida tried to warn his Pokémon to move and dodge but it was too shaken up and hurt by the previous attack to think quickly enough as the next barrage of Air Cutter came faster than it could even blink.

While the opposing Pokémon tried desperately to avoid as many of the air blades as it could, Ash's Fearow flew towards it at incredible speeds. He then collided with with the other Fearow in mere seconds and began driving both of them towards the ground.

Ash had then shouted up to his Pokémon to wrap his wings and feet around the other Fearow and increase their descent speed with Agility. Kiida had no idea what Ash was up to with such a dangerous command and ordered his own Fearow to try and fight to get free. His Pokémon couldn't do anything however because it's feet and wings were pinned right down to it's side by Ash's Fearow, making it completely immobile.

Ash then commanded his Fearow to do something that shocked everyone. He ordered him to stick his beak into the other Fearow's MOUTH and use Drill Peck while picking up the speed. No one understood this strategy but Fearow listened anyway. He had simply smacked his opponent hard on top of the head with his own and raked his talons down the other Flying-Type's soft underbelly as part of his attack.

Kiida's Fearow screeched in pain and the other one didn't waste a second before sticking his beak into his kins' now open mouth, initiating Drill Peck right after. The effect of this move was instantaneous. As soon as Ash's Fearow began the attack, the incredibly fast spinning movement of Drill Peck did something that NO ONE was prepared for as it started turning both Pokémon's bodies in an extremely fast circle while they plummeted to the battlefield below. Both Fearow looking like a spinning mass of brown and white feathers as they did so.

Ash had then shouted up to his Fearow to try and focus on one point and center his mind so he didn't get too dizzy as he fell in the free spinning circle. He did so and just before the Pokémon collided with the ground, Ash ordered his own Pokémon to untangle himself from the other Fearow and use his feet to shove off hard from his opponent.

Fearow had obeyed beautifully and did just that. He quickly untangled himself and pushed off of the other Fearow seconds before colliding with the ground. Kiida's Fearow was so dizzy and disoriented from the fall and the spin that it couldn't do anything to stop it's descent towards the ground, even as it's trainer kept yelling up at it to do something to right itself.

In a matter of seconds, Kiida's Fearow impacted with the battlefield, cratering the ground and causing a dust cloud to shoot up into the air. Ash's Fearow quickly descended towards Ash's side of the field and landed in front of him nimbly. When the smoke settled in the middle of the field it had showed Kiida's Fearow out cold with swirls in it's eyes.

The next battle had been between Kiida's Golbat and Ash's Pidgeotto.

This particular battle was different from the previous one with both Fearows because it wasn't so much based on speed and agility as it was strategy and tactics. Golbat was nowhere near as fast as Pidgeotto but what it lacked in speed it made up for in it's cunning attacks and status effective moves.

Pidgeotto was able to get a few hits in on the bat Pokemon with moves like Quick Attack and Air Cutter by utilizing her very impressive speed and agility but Golbat was able to dodge many of the attacks by using moves like Haze to take cover and Supersonic to try and throw Pidgeotto off of her rhythm due to needing to dodge the confusion inducing move.

Pidgeotto had managed to fake Golbat however out at one point and did manage to get a solid hit in with a well placed Air Slash. The attack threw the Poison/Flying-Type for a loop and while it was trying to right itself Ash had commanded Pidgeotto to fly in close and use another Air Slash attack.

Right before Pidgeotto was able to make contact however, Kiida ordered Golbat to use Supersonic at the last minute. Ash's Pokémon was too close to evade the attack unfortunately and ended up getting hit head on with it.

Pidgeotto had then instantly became confused and lost control of her wings as she fell down towards the ground. Kiida took advantage of the situation and ordered Golbat to fly in and use it's own Air Slash on the descending bird Pokémon.

Golbat flew down quickly and came right underneath of Pidgeotto and attacked her hard with Air Slash, knocking the female Pokémon for a painful spin and sending her careening towards the ground before smashing into it.

Ash had narrowed his eyes at the attack but kept his arms crossed as he watched the dust cloud fade away. When it did it showed Pidgeotto standing back up, looking a little scuffed up and still confused as she teetered around back and forth. Kiida had quickly commanded his Pokemon to use Leech Life and Golbat flew in towards Pidgeotto.

Ash knew that his Pokémon wasn't able to do anything at the moment because of her confusion and could only watch as Golbat landed beside Pidgeotto and sunk it's fangs into her as it started sapping energy out of her.

After it had sucked enough energy from Pidgeotto, the bat Pokémon slapped her away with a Wing Attack on it's trainer's command, sending her skidding away across the battlefield. Kiida quickly ordered his Pokémon to use Air Cutter on Pidgeotto while she was down to end the battle. Golbat then thrust it's wings forward and sent many sharp blades of wind at her, intent on taking her out.

Ash had at that moment looked to Pidgeotto and called out calmly but firmly that he needed her to snap out of her confusion and evade the attack. He knew she could do it and believed in her with no questions. This managed to get through to Pidgeotto and she snapped out of her confused state just before the blades of wind could reach her.

She quickly barrel rolled to the side on her wings and then, using the anger and frustration she had at Golbat for confusing her, shot forward at blurring speeds after she had regained her footing.

The bird was like a bullet as she flew towards Golbat with a fierce look on her face. Kiida had swiftly commanded Golbat to use Sludge Bomb and stop Pidgeotto but she just started using Agility while she flew in, zig-zagging every poisonous projectile that came her way. She made it to Golbat the very next instant and bashed the Pokemon across the face twice with each of her wings and then head smashed the bat down into the ground.

She had then hopped back and thrust her wings forward, churning up a strong Twister attack that sucked Golbat up into it's funnel and beat it around viciously before spitting the Pokémon out of it's swirling confines, tossing the energy sucking leech into the ground like a stone.

Pidgeotto didn't rest and took off again at Golbat, who had been struggling badly by that point to get back up. Kiida knew his Pokémon was in trouble but saw that Golbat was too exhausted to make any quick maneuvers. He thought of the next best thing and just as Pidgeotto was nearly on top of Golbat again with her wings beginning to thrust forward in the sign of the finishing attack, Kiida ordered his Golbat to use Toxic.

Just as Pidgeotto thrust her wings forward and launched a fearsome Air Cutter at her foe, the soon to be doomed dual type Pokémon opened it's mouth and then spat a dark ball of sludge at Pidgeotto.

The two attacks struck at the same time and Golbat was sent tumbling back across the field towards it's trainer while screeching in pain as the blades of wind cut through it. By the time it finally rolled up to Kiida's feet it was unquestionably unconscious.

Pidgeotto could not dodge the sludge in time since her wings were still out however and was struck head on with the foul substance due to that. The force was enough to send her skidding backwards across the field towards Ash while the poison took it's effect.

Once she had finally came to a stop and regained her senses a little bit the female Pokémon slowly stood back to her feet and was instantly stricken by the poison that was at that point coursing rapidly through her system.

She fell forward again and caught herself with her wings as she slowly righted herself and then started breathing in and out slowly to calm her heart rate (Ash had instructed her and all of his other Pokémon during training to do this so that if they were ever poisoned, it wouldn't get pumped through their bloodstream too quickly) as she stood as tall and proud as she could.

That had ended the second battle but the last and hardest one came next.

Kiida's last Pokémon had been none other a large and impressive looking Pidgeot that stood strong and towering over top of the battle winded Pidgeotto, a confident smirk on it's beaked face. Ash was originally going to return Pidgeotto and use Fearow since she was so battle worn and poisoned on top of it all. However, Pidgeotto had declined firmly and made it clearly known to Ash that she wanted to battle regardless of how tired she may have been.

Ash had faith in his Pokémon and agreed to let her battle with Pidgeot.

The battle was, for the most part, almost a complete outmatch the entire time. Even though Pidgeotto was incredibly well trained and strong, Pidgeot was her final evolved form and was physically stronger and faster than she was. She wasn't able to get even so much as one hit in on Pidgeot the entire time and was slowed down even more by her poisoned state.

Every time she would try to use an attack of some kind and would come even remotely close to scathing Pidgeot she would be frozen in place by the poison that was coursing through her system. This would just give Pidgeot another chance to attack her and cause more damage.

Ash knew that things were looking really bad for Pidgeotto but he had faith in her and believed that she could pull out the win no matter what. During one particular instance where Pidgeot met her head on in the air and slammed into her with an Aerial Ace hard enough to send her crashing into the battlefield, cratering it in the process, she had struggled incredibly hard to stand back to her feet after.

Ash had taken this time to encourage her and told her that no matter what, he believed that she could come out of the spot she was in and win. He believed in her and her abilities. He said that all of the training they did everyday and all of the mental strengthening exercises he put her and the others through all this time was for the very situation she was in now. He told her that the pain and the feelings of hopelessness she was feeling was nothing more than a mind game and that if she wanted to come out on top as the winner, she could do it if she just told herself she could and truly believed it. He told her that if she refused to fall and lose the battle then she wouldn't. Everything was all just a mind game and that her success and abilities were entirely dependent on how much control she had over her mind.

Pidgeotto had let this truly awaken her inner fire and determination. Despite the immense pain and exhaustion she had been feeling at that moment, she let her trainer's words, words that reached down to her very soul, fire her up and unleash all the strength and power she had within her.

She had then stood up and screeched out loudly in defiance as the poison tried to course through her again and immobilize her body. She envisioned her victory, she felt her inner power and in that moment she took complete control of her mind and put everything else aside except for the one and only thought that was passing through her mind at that moment... and that one thought was to WIN no matter what!

She had stared Pidgeot down with a look of pure fire in her eyes as she spread her wings out imposingly and screeched at it before shooting off towards the other bird at speeds that should not have been possible for a Pokémon that was so damaged and poisoned on top of it all. Pidgeot had recovered from it's shock though and took off at it's opponent with the same impressive speed that it had been demonstrating all battle long. Both Pokémon then clashed together in a blur of talons, feathers and beaks.

Pidgeotto fought it's evolved form like a Pokémon possessed, with a fury that had shocked not just Kiida and Ash's friends but also Pidgeot itself because, even though it was stronger than Pidgeotto, she had somehow begun getting the advantage on it in the battle. More and more attacks she started landing on Pidgeot and even though the poison in her system kept trying to stop her, she wouldn't let it.

Kiida had ordered for his Pokémon to break away from the enraged and madly attacking Pidgeotto but it couldn't. Every time it tried Pidgeotto would just sink her talons into it's skin and dig in tightly while she continued to beat at Pidgeot with her wings and beak. Kiida had commanded his Pokémon to use anything it knew in order to get free from Pidgeotto and it listened as it started flying around all over the battlefield in crazy directions, using it's beak to stab at Pidgeotto and anything else it could think of to get free.

Ash didn't want to lose the momentum they had gained though and ordered Pidgeotto to dig her talons as deep into Pidgeot as she could and peck at it's eyes. His Pokémon was relentless and merciless as she did as told and dug her talons into Pideot's body deeper, making the Pokémon screech in pain while she poked at it's eyes with her beak. It looked as though she was really aiming to take out Pidgeot's eyes but it was more of a distraction than anything else. She hadn't really been trying to blind the bigger bird at all.

Pidgeot continuously dodged the pecks and beat on Pidgeotto as hard as it could with it's wings and beak. However, no matter how hard and how much it bashed on Pidgeotto, she just wouldn't let up. She was in the zone and she wasn't stopping.

It had been at that moment that Ash had suddenly had an idea form in his head that he knew would assure he and Pidgeotto the victory. Following through on his plan, he had then commanded Pidgeotto to fly herself and Pidgeot towards the ocean below the battlefield as fast as she could.

Pidgeotto sunk her talons into Pidgeot further and then, with a massive upheaval of strength that came from Arceus only knew where, shot down towards the ocean with Pidgeot in tow. She quickly angled herself until she was on top of the other Pokémon and pressed down with all of her might as she drove them towards the water far below.

Kiida had no idea what Ash was planning but knew that if his Pokémon hit the water, it was over. Pidgeot couldn't swim and would have had to forfeit the battle. However, he knew there was also no way that Pidgeotto could swim either so Kiida had no idea why Ash issued the command he did, aside from some form of desperate attempt not to just outright lose.

That question was answered just moments later however. Pidgeot was unable to break free from Pidgeotto's grasp no matter how hard it tried to, even with the shouts of encouragement from it's trainer. Both Flying-Types then hit the churning waters below with a huge splash, disappearing below the surface instantly.

Ash, Kiida and the others had ran to the edge of the battlefield and peered over the edge, searching for any sign of them. Pidgeot had just risen from under the water and was flailing around madly, trying desperately to free itself from the water and get to dry land. Pidgeotto however just calmly rose up out of the water and, to Kiido's astounded surprise, swam towards Pidgeot with her wings at a fast speed before attacking the Pokémon viciously again.

Pidgeot could do nothing to stop the beating it was currently enduring and could only try staying afloat as best as it could while the waves continuously pummeled the completely out of element Flying-Type. Kiida had known in that moment that Ash and Pidgeotto had them beat since there was no way his Pidgeot could fight an aquatic battle against another Flying Pokèmon that had somehow learned how to fight, quite well at that, in the water.

It was with that decision made up in his mind that Kiida threw in the towel and admitted defeat to the referee of the gym, forfeiting the match.

After the exhausted and frightened Pidgeot had been returned to the safety of it's Pokéball way up on the battlefield platform above, Ash had then called down to Pidgeotto to see if she could make it back up or not. The female bird Pokémon was to stubborn and proud to be returned to her Pokéball and instead had just squawked in insistence that she could make it back up on her own. She merely jumped up out of the water and, using her wings to twist herself, spun around in fast circles until her wings were dry enough to fly.

Once she was able to, Pidgeotto made the long and exhausting (at least exhausting in her current condition) trip, back up to the battlefield while Ash watched her carefully. Eventually, after much panting and fighting off more painful attacks of the poison coursing through her, Pidgeotto made it to the top and then landed heavily on the ground. She had been breathing heavily and looked as though her whole body was aching, a grimace of pain etched across her features.

Ash had been worried for his Pokémon's well being and started to make his way over to her quickly, ignoring the fact that he had won the gym battle and being only concerned for her health. However, before he could make it to her, Pidgeotto threw her wings out to the sides and stood up tall and proud as she raised her head up and started loudly cawing her name. Obviously very proud of the fact that she had managed to defeat her evolved form, especially when poisoned and already tired from the previous battle against Golbat.

She had continued to call out loudly with fire in her eyes until suddenly... her whole body had begun glowing a bright bluish/white as she started to morph and change shape.

Ash and the others then watched on in amazement and, if you were Ash himself, pride as Pidgeotto began to evolve. The crown of feathers on her head grew out long until it came down past her back, her wingspan grew to much greater lengths and her entire body as a whole grew much larger.

When the evolution was finally complete, the newly evolved Pokémon had spread her wings up into the air as the light burst away from her and she called her new name loudly to the sky. Everyone then stared in awe as the newly evolved Pidgeot displayed herself proudly for them all to see, a look of pride, elegance and grace now exuding from her in an even greater degree than they did before. All of the previous fatigue and even poisoned status condition she had suffered from as a Pidgeotto was gone as she now looked completely healthy.

After Ash had hugged, praised and congratulated Pidgeot on not just winning the match for him but also evolving, which could only mean even tougher training from there on out for her, he returned his second fully evolved Flying-Type and then had his post-battle words with Kiida.

The older boy had congratulated Ash for his off the wall strategies, amazing battle tactics and the obviously unorthodox but very effective methods of training he must have had his Pokémon undergo if seeing Pidgeotto, or rather Pidgeot as she was now, swim and battle in the water was any clue at all.

He then presented Ash with the Avian Badge. The badge was a perfect rectangle in shape with a 'V' emblazoned upon it. The 'V' itself was a dark pink in color while the area around the letter was more of a lighter pink.

Upon receiving the new badge and adding it to his case, Ash had then looked at all eight of his hard earned badges. The Boulderbadge, Cascadebadge, Aptitude Badge, Thunderbadge, Cunning Badge, Reflex Badge, Nature Badge and the newly acquired Avian Badge. He could hardly believe in that moment that he now had the required eight gym badges needed to compete in the Indigo Conference and that, on top of it all, it had only taken him a few months into the beginning of his journey to do so.

It had just seemed so surreal for him that he was now officially able to enter into the tournament he had always wanted to be in from the time he was young and had been watching the battles on TV... and he still had months until the next Conference to prepare for it.

Ash was definitely happy with his accomplishments and felt proud of himself and his Pokémon, there was no doubt at all about that. However, he wouldn't let any of those accomplishments get to his head and especially wouldn't let it happen to his Pokémon. He knew they still had many things they needed to work on and learn and that's why he felt even more resolute at that moment to travel all throughout Kanto and earn every badge there was alongside his Pokémon to get stronger and stronger. One could never get enough experience and training and he knew this.

When Kiida found out that Ash, upon earning the Avian Badge, had the last one he needed for entrance into the league and recovered from the shock of discovering just how little of an amount of time it took him to earn all eight, he had congratulated the other Trainer and said that he was very happy his gym was the last one standing in Ash's way of his eighth and final badge (an honor that Kiida's gym was very rarely ever fortunate enough to have since it was so out of the way). He was further surprised when Ash told him that he was actually going to try to challenge and win every gym badge there was in Kanto but ultimately wished him luck and said that he would be rooting for Ash every step of the way.

After thanking Kiida and sharing their parting words, Ash and his friends then headed to the town Pokémon Center and stayed the night before heading out the following day for their next destination.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The second badge Ash earned was only a few days and a slight detours travel further down the coast at a town that was actually located on the beach and was squeezed in-between two large gorges. The seaside community, called Tide Town, was not very large since it was literally fitted in-between the two large ravines, which put everything fairly close together.

The buildings and houses were all made similar to the way Kiida's gym was constructed back in Windy Cliffs Village and was actually a good thing since the beach hut style houses sat perfectly on the sand, making a perfectly stable foundation on the loose ground that made up the beach's terrain.

During the few days that Ash and the others had been traveling between towns, the raven haired trainer took as much time as he could to work with his newly evolved Pidgeot. He had returned Fearow the day after his gym battle with Kiida so he could have Bulbasaur back but as he promised her after the gym battle had ended, Ash wanted to help his Pokémon increase her training so as to allow her to continue gaining newer and greater levels of strength. The only way to do this was to keep increasing Pidgeot's training load with each new level she attained that way nothing ever became easier for her.

Still though, even with Pidgeot having finally reached her final stage of evolution, Ash couldn't take her training to the level he truly wanted her to just yet. Pidgeot, along with his other Pokémon, were just too young to handle any training that went too far into the spectrum of 'extreme' or otherwise since their still maturing bodies would most likely break under the stress.

Because of this, the only things Ash could do to increase Pidgeot's training level was to up the amount of her leg weights for her ground training, water weights for aquatic drills and also her wing weights for all of the intense aerial training she did with Fearow back at the ranch. He also increased the intensity, duration and time intervals of every aspect of her training. Move training, physical conditioning, battle strategy and combat drills against Fearow.

All in all, by the time he sent her back in return for Squirtle, he felt very confident that she had more than enough to work on where her training was concerned to keep her well off for quite some time.

But going back to the current topic of focus. The Pokémon Gym of Tide Town was located right on the beach near the waterside and looked much like a big surf shop. Of course this was probably due to the fact that the gym also doubled as an actual surf shop at the same time.

The gym leader's name had been Devon and he was the very definition of the term 'Beach Bum'. He was around his early twenties and had long brown hair that was done up in dread locks at certain places. He obviously didn't shave much because his whole face was covered in rough, patchy stubble and his appearance generally looked to be the one of a person who was totally laid back and calm about pretty much everything.

He wore baggy tan shorts and flip flops on his feet, a sea blue tank top, a Gyarados tooth necklace and a leather bracelet on his right wrist. The man even spoke with the tone of someone who had baked far, far too long in the sun. He specialized in Water-Type Pokémon, like Misty, and after greeting one another the standard three on three gym battle began. Ash had decided to switch his Pokémon out once again and decided on the line-up of his Squirtle, Staryu and Krabby. Sending Charmander and Gastly back in return.

The first match had been between Squirtle and Devon's Wartortle.

Even though Wartortle technically had the advantage over Squirtle since it was the evolved form of the latter, Ash knew that little issue would be completely null and void in this battle. Squirtle was more than a challenge for Wartortle with the intense training he did on a regular basis so Ash wasn't worried.

His confidence wasn't unfounded either.

The entire battle was mostly a powerhouse match between both of the same species Pokémon as they went at each other as hard and with as much power as they could. Devon honestly was baffled by the sheer power and strength Squirtle had behind all of his water attacks when it was compared to his own Wartortle. Who of which was SUPPOSED to be stronger automatically because of the evolutionary advantage.

However, Squirtle was able to stand toe to toe with Wartortle the entire match. For most of the battle they were evenly matched with Squirtle landing a few hits on Wartortle and the latter connecting it's own strikes on it's pre-evolved cousin.

At one point Wartortle managed to hit Squirtle with a Rapid Spin, followed up by a strong Water Pulse which had sent Ash's Pokémon sliding across the concrete battle platform (which was located outside the shop/gym on the beach). Wartortle had taken advantage of this and began unleashing a barrage of different attacks on Squirtle that the still dazed Pokémon had a tough time dodging and ended up taking quite a few of them.

Ash had known that his Pokémon was in trouble and after assessing the situation for a few moments he quickly formulated the perfect strategy to take Wartortle down with. Right at the time Wartortle launched another strong Water Pulse at Squirtle, Ash commanded his Pokémon to take the attack head on but retract into his shell and bounce off of the ground just before the attack could hit.

Squirtle did just that and right as the blast of water hit him he withdrew into his shell and bounced off the ground. The water launched Squirtle high up into the air, making Wartortle, Devon and Ash's friends have to squint in order to see his form, which was silhouetted against the sun's bright backdrop.

Ash then commanded his Pokémon to use his newly learned Bubblebeam on the grounded Wartortle far below. Squirtle listened and unleashed a mass of bubbles down towards the ground, which surrounded the bigger turtle and made visibility a near impossibility because of it.

On the way down into his descent, Ash ordered Squirtle to use a combination of Water Pulse and Rapid Spin on Wartortle as he neared it. Squirtle did just that and the large volume of water he expelled, boosted by the speed of Rapid Spin, connected with Wartortle down below and caused the Pokémon to root itself to the ground in order to avoid getting knocked off of it's feet.

Ash then commanded Squirtle to concentrate the speed of his Rapid Spin into the hardest head smash he could. With the bubbles still everywhere and Wartortle being off balance, Devon knew his Pokémon couldn't effectively dodge the attack and instead ordered it to withdraw into it's shell and protect itself from the impact.

Ash had smirked at this and right before Squirtle came close to making contact he commanded his Pokémon to break Rapid Spin and use Water Pulse on the ground right under Wartortle. Squirtle did this, much to the confusion of everyone watching, and the blast of water temporarily knocked Wartortles's shell upright until it was standing on it's end. Ash then ordered Squirtle to stick his arms out and land on the top of Wartortle's currently upright shell with his hands.

Squirtle focused hard and using as much control as he could, stuck the downward landing on Wartortle's shell. He was, at that, point in a hand stand on top of Wartortle's shell, looking down into the hole of where the hiding Pokémon's head would be. Ash then commanded Squirtle to quickly switch hand positions until he was suspended behind where Wartortle's head would be and then had him use Water Pulse directly inside of the shell.

Squirtle did so and after just a few seconds of blasting water down into the shell, Wartortle's head popped out looking dazed, slightly drowned (even though it was a Water-Type) and out of breath. Ash was on the opportunity in a heartbeat and had ordered Squirtle to quickly turn around, wrap his tail around Wartortle's neck and then fall backwards off of his opponent while twisting to the side.

Squirtle had quickly did as told and turned around as he wrapped his tail around Wartortle's neck and dropped off of the shell he was perched on. He twisted to the side as he hit the ground and tightened his tail's grip on Wartortle's neck, making said Pokémon gasp for air and go bug eyed. Ash then ordered Squirtle, who was on his back behind Wartortle, to lock his small legs around the other Pokemon's neck, over top of his tail, and then tighten his grip even more.

Squirtle obeyed and upon locking Wartortle up in a grip it couldn't escape from, started pulling back as hard as he could on his opponents neck with his tail, all while cinching everything down with his legs. Essentially making a mutated version of a standard choke hold. Wartortle couldn't break the tight and extremely unusual hold on it's neck and started struggling and gasping for air as Squirtle pulled back harder and harder. Devon could only watch in sick fascination as his Pokémon was literally being choked out of the battle before his very eyes.

Once Wartortle began turning a shade of blue much darker than it normally was and stopped struggling, Devon knew it was over and threw in the towel so his Pokémon didn't get hurt. After Ash had congratulated and hugged Squirtle for such a great, hard fought battle he returned him and then prepared for the next battle, which was between his Krabby and Devon's Poliwhirl. The man was surprised at first upon seeing such a large Krabby but ultimately recovered from his shock and began the battle.

For the most part, Devon's Poliwhirl was a heavy hitter that relied more on physical attacks it knew rather than Water-Type attacks. Krabby on the other hand was well trained from the regimen Ash had him following back at the lab in just about everything. His speed was, surprisingly enough for a Krabby, equal to Poliwhirl's because of all of the intense weighted speed exercises Ash had him do. His already very hard shell skin was even harder from all of the body hardening he did and could be in increased even further by the use of Harden. This was how he had managed to withstand it whenever Poliwhirl would manage to connect with some of it's powerful physical attacks like Mega Punch, Mega Kick and Headbutt.

Krabby's attacks themselves were very powerful and not only from the intense move training it did but also because of it's technical status as a 'Giant Pokémon'. It's body was not only enhanced in size but it's physical make-up on the cellular and muscular level made it's attacks much stronger than other Krabby of regular size. Basically the same situation as with Dragonite and Tentacruel.

That was how most of the battle went between the two Water-Types.

Ash's Pokémon would sneak in a few attacks here and there with it's abdormal speed and Poliwhirl would occasionally manage to connect with Krabby using some of it's brute force attacks, only causing minimal damage due to both Krabby's extreme training and size increased defense.

It was obvious that neither Devon nor his Pokémon were used to dealing with the strength and unique abilities of a Giant Pokémon, that much was easy to tell from the battle. Even Ash was shocked with Krabby's enhanced battling prowess that came from, again, not just his training but also his size. He knew that Giant Pokémon had many 'physical enhancements' due to their size but... he didn't know it would be the same way for Krabby, who wasn't anywhere near the size of Dragonite or Tentacruel.

Eventually though, Poliwhirl was able to box Krabby in and then started hammering away on his rock hard skin with moves like Mega Punch, Mega Kick, Dynamicpunch and a move that really effected Krabby, Ice Punch. Poliwhirl struck Krabby with an ice encased fist and froze the spot of skin it connected with. Poliwhirl then struck that same patch of skin with another punch and managed to hurt the skin there, making Krabby wince in pain and stumble backward.

Poliwhirl performed this routine a couple more times and managed to do some damage to Krabby before hitting him again and sending him back towards Ash. The boy in question had been studying Poliwhirl's battle tactics for awhile and had managed to formulate a strategy during that time he believed would work in taking it down. After Krabby managed to recover from the fierce barrage it had taken, Ash ordered him to switch battle strategies and start using 'evasive tactics'. Krabby had merely nodded in understanding and then went to work putting the new strategy info effect.

The crab Pokémon had then began jumping and moving to several different spots on the battlefield every time Poliwhirl would rush in to attack him. He never met his opponent head on with any attacks and instead chose to just dodge and move away from every attack thrown his way with a nimbleness that surprised everyone but Ash.

What really surprised everyone however, was when Ash commanded Krabby to come down out of every jump he was in and use moves like Stomp on the concrete floor as hard as he could. Both the downward force of gravity that propelled Krabby at quick speeds and the heavy mass in which he was carrying around as a Giant Pokémon proved to be a very 'destructive' combination. This meant that every time Krabby would land he would crack the area of concrete floor around him. Poliwhirl would then come chasing after him and either jump onto the same spot or strike it with a powerful physical attack that would completely shatter the already weakened concrete, exposing the bare sand beneath.

Both Pokémon repeated this process over and over again with an irritated Poliwhirl chasing relentlessly after Krabby. Since it obviously wasn't very adept at any other moved except for it's physical strength ones, it had to chase Krabby down if it wanted to attack him. This was a very exhausting process for Devon's Pokémon as it clearly didn't have the same level of physical conditioning training that Ash's Pokémon had.

After some time of repeating the same boring process, at least boring for anyone watching, practically the entire battlefield was destroyed. Leaving nothing but extremely torn up sandy ground in it's place. There were huge cratters, indents, hazardous looking pits and uneven patches in the battle torn sand that made moving and jumping around much more difficult.

With next to no concrete left, the sand having left huge craters behind in it and Poliwhirl not being nearly as light on it's feet as Krabby, Devon's Pokémon found itself having a very hard time moving around without getting tripped up by the uneven terrain. Krabby was having no problems at all since not only was he lighter on his feet but his legs were also much smaller than Poliwhirl's.

Meaning that whenever he landed on the sand, his thin and stick-like feet would just slide into the loose ground like a pin. He was then able to easily jump up again and move to the next location without difficulty. Poliwhirl however had more 'trunk-like' legs than Krabby had and would sink into the cratered sand holes, nearly causing it to trip over.

Everything became even harder for Poliwhirl whenever Ash ordered Krabby to start using Bubblebeam on the entire area of sand that was now currently acting as the battlefield. Since the bubbles were made of water and the sand absorbed said substance, after a few minutes of Krabby performing this action the entire battleground started to resemble a mucky, mud-like marsh.

Then, every time Poliwhirl would land in the sand it's feet would sink down into the muddy ground with a 'plop' and would cause the frog-like Pokemon to struggle desperately to free itself. Krabby yet again had no problems moving because of his nimbleness and the shape of his legs. He just kept jumping around the battlefield while using Bubblebeam to make the sand around them even muckier and harder to move in.

Both Devon and Ash's friends were beyond confused as to why Ash had his Pokémon do what he did but eventually... they saw why.

During one of the occasions where Poliwhirl became stuck in the mucky and wet sand, it was so exhausted from constantly trying to attack Krabby and all of the fighting it had been doing to free itself time and time again from the harsh terrain, that it struggled harder than it ever had before at trying to get free from the sopping ground.

Ash had seen his chance since Poliwhirl was exhausted and then commanded Krabby to jump up into the air again and use Stomp on Poliwhirl.

Krabby was in action not a second later and jumped into the air, bringing his foot up as he descended towards Poliwhirl at fast speeds. Devon knew his Pokémon was in trouble and had tried to command Poliwhirl to do something to avoid the sure to be damaging attack but Poliwhirl was almost completely exhausted from struggling against the sand for so long and couldn't react in time. The gym leader could only watch as Krabby came down on top of Poliwhirl's face with a high powered Stomp attack so hard that the other Water-Type's head snapped to the side and it's legs slightly buckled from the force of the strike.

Krabby landed on Poliwhirl's shoulders and gripped onto his opponent tightly with his pincers. Ash smirked and then had quickly ordered his Pokémon to start hammering his claws down on top of Poliwhirl as hard as he could. Devon wasn't quick enough to issue any kind of defensive maneuver because at that very moment, Krabby used Harden on his pincers to make them pack even more force. He had then brought them up above his head before slamming them down on top of Poliwhirl's head, face, shoulders and any other area of his opponent's body that he could reach.

Poliwhirl had only been able to cry out in pain with every strike that Krabby ruthlessly assaulted it with. The extra hardened pincers, massive strength and over sized mass that Krabby possessed only made each hit that much more intense. Finally, Krabby brought both pincers up into the air and then swung them down hard onto Poliwhirl's head.

As soon as the attack made connection, Poliwhirl's eyes slightly bugged out and it's knees completely buckled. Krabby leaned forward onto the other Water-Type and then vaulted off of Poliwhirl as he landed some distance away in front of Ash, pincers still up and ready for battle.

It wasn't needed however because just one minute later, Poliwhirl started teetering back and forth on it's feet before falling backwards onto the wet sand with swirls in it's eyes, showing the battle was over as the Pokémon began sinking ever so slowly into the wet, mucky sand.

Devon had then returned his Pokémon before it could sink any further into the wet sand as Ash thanked and congratulated Krabby on a great battle well fought. After that was done, he returned his Pokémon and the third and final battle went underway.

The last battle to decide the match had been against Ash's Staryu and Devon's Gyarados.

This particular battle could be classified as nothing short of intense and brutal. Ash's Stayu had strong attacks and combinations, as well as speed and endurance from all of the intense training it did, while Devon's Gyarados was nothing short of an insane powerhouse.

Even though there was nothing physically wise that made Gyarados stand out from others of it's species, it's attacks were very strong and if connected with their target, could cause large amounts of damage. Especially to a much smaller Pokemon like Stayu. Gyarados also had a very foul temper much like almost every other Gyarados did and this made it an even fiercer and much more dangerous opponent.

Luckily for Staryu, it had trained with Ash's Gyarados on a regular basis so it pretty much knew how to handle such an opponent. Still, that didn't mean Staryu took the battle lightly in any way shape or form. Ash had made sure to constantly remind it not to let it's guard down at any point... something Staryu payed very close attention to.

There was not much that the smaller Water-Type could do against such a vicious, constantly attacking and enraged opponent like Gyarados. Which meant that all the Star-Shaped Pokemon could do most of the time was use the incredible speed it possessed when spinning to dodge all, or at least as many of Gyarados' attacks as it could.

The Atrocious Pokémon definitely had powerful attacks and could use them repeatedly many times over without getting tired. Ash had felt certain that Devon trained his Pokémon to battle in such a way since throughout the entire match he had formed a strong suspicion, just by observing it's style, that Gyarados was more of a 'one dimension' type of battler.

Meaning that Devon seems to only train his Pokémon in certain aspects that made them as strong as they could be in one particular area of strength. Which, in Gyarados's case, meant being able to use very strong attacks over again and again without much fatigue following.

Gyarados had used nothing but Aqua Tail, attempted to use Bite, Hyper Beam and Dragon Rage the entire battle. Staryu continuously used evasive moves like Rapid Spin, Agility and would occasionally even be able to hit Gyarados with Swift if it got lucky enough. Most of the time however, Staryu just dodged. Ash had known that his Pokémon wouldn't be able to keep that up though and had started going through all kinds of strategies that could possibly bring the powerful dragon-like Pokémon down.

Misty, at the same time, had been completely lost as to how Ash would pull out a victory against such a strong Gyarados with a Pokémon like Staryu because, even though she was a Water-Type specialist, she couldn't see any way to take down such a Pokémon if she were to have been battling it with any of her own. In fact, only when Staryu was dodging one of Gyarados's Dragon Rage attacks did Ash himself finally come up with a strategy that he had felt would work.

Just as Staryu had been hit with Gyarado's tail and sent crashing into the sand near Ash, the boy waited for his Pokèmon to stand back up and shake the dizziness from it's head before issuing his strategy. He commanded Staryu to charge back in towards Gyarados with a Rapid Spin/Agility combination while firing Swift at the large Pokèmon.

Staryu had taken off at Gyarados like a bullet, spinning like crazy while firing off Swift at it. Devon had commanded his Pokèmon to use Dragon Rage to cut through the energy rays coming towards it, hopefully hitting Staryu in the aftermath.

As soon as Gyarados launched it's attack Ash ordered Staryu to break away from it's head on charge and instead start spinning in a fast, wide circle around Gyarados. Staryu dodged out of the way just as Gyarados' Dragon Rage attack was released and cut through the star shaped rays of Swift like nothing. Staryu then begin rotating around Gyarados in a wide circle while slightly leaning to the side, it's speed greatly enhanced by Agility.

Devon and everyone else had watched on in confusion as Staryu continued to spin around Gyarados in a circle that started to get tighter and tighter. Gyarados couldn't follow the fast movement and grew frustrated as it started lashing it's body around, trying madly to stop Staryu in some way.

Everyone eventually saw Ash's strategy though as the spinning in circles around Gyarados that Staryu was doing started causing a massive sandstorm to whip up and surround the much larger Pokémon, blinding it from being able to see anything around it at all.

Ash had then commanded Staryu to get inside of the sand cloud and attack Gyarados with Rapid Spin and Swift. Staryu disappeared into the sandstorm and all anyone could hear after that was Gyarados' cries of pain and anger as Staryu attacked it's body with close range Rapid Spin attacks and long distance Swift rays.

Devon eventually was able to think of something as a counter however and ordered his own Pokemon to use Aqua Tail to try and hit Staryu.

Gyarados had then used the attack as ordered by it's trainer and was lucky enough, unluckily for Staryu, to connect with the Star-Shaped Pokémon just as it was coming back in with another Rapid Spin. The strong hit caused Staryu to fly out of the sand cloud and into the ground near Ash with a painful 'thud'.

Devon then issued his Pokémon to use a Twister attack to blow away the sand cloud and Gyarados did so, disposing of the irritating and accuracy reducing annoyance in a matter of seconds.

Staryu had just gotten back to it's pointed feet then when Devon ordered his Pokémon to fire a Dragon Rage at Staryu. Ash knew that such an attack would mean definite trouble but also had a crazy thought enter his mind at the same time.

Running off of his insane plan, he had told Staryu to stay where it was as Gyarados released it's attack and the powerful blast of energy went rocketing towards his Pokémon, never saying another word as it came closer and closer.

Finally, just as the attack was right upon them, Ash told Staryu to start spinning in place with an Agility enhanced Rapid Spin. Staryu did so and just before the blast could connect with it, Ash commanded his Pokémon to jump off the ground. Staryu quickly spun/jumped up into the air as the explosion of Dragon Rage hit the ground where it just was and sent the smaller Pokémon flying high into the air.

Staryu utilized this to it's advantage and used the momentum of the explosion and the speed of Rapid Spin to shoot towards down Gyarados from above, firing the star shaped rays of Swift at it's opponent completely unbidden by Ash, something the boy was thankful to his Pokémon for.

Gyarados still had it's head slightly forward and mouth open from using Dragon Rage and because of this, it was defenseless as the rays of energy started slicing into it, making the large Pokémpn reel back in pain.

Staryu kept it's forward momentum and continued using Swift as it eventually reached Gyarados and managed to land on top of it's thrown back face. Staryu had then looked down into Gyarados' gaping maw from where it was perched atop the Pokémon's lip and, charging up extremely powerful rays of energy from the gem within in it's center, started pelting them down inside of Gyarados' mouth.

Devon and Ash's friends had just looked on in shock at what was transpiring as Gyarados shut it's eyes and bellowed in pain and rage as the sharp rays of Swift were continuously shot down into it's open mouth. Devon had no clue what to do in such a completely unorthodox situation and was left temporarily stunned.

Fortune, however, was kind to both Devon and his Pokèmon because at that very moment... Gyarados' rage reached it's boiling point.

Finally having lost complete control of it's temper due to the immense pain it was currently experiencing, a red aura began shrouding Gyarados and once the energy became so bright and vibrant that it was almost a flaming red, Gyarados' eyes shot open and revealed them to be completely ruby red.

Gyarados then suddenly tilted it's head backward a bit more and Staryu's concentration was broken by the action as it stopped using Swift and began sliding into the larger Pokémon's mouth.

The Atrocious Pokémon took it's opportunity and quickly clamped down on one of Staryu's appendages, making the smaller Pokémon grunt in pain as Gyarados' mouth tightly constricted the star like Pokémon to where it was.

The sides of Gyarados' mouth then started glowing a golden color and Ash instantly knew what was coming. He tried to warn his Pokémon but it was far too late. Gyarados opened it's mouth then at the last second and revealed a large orb of bright yellow/gold energy glowing within it's throat.

Just before Staryu could fall into it's mouth, Gyarados unleashed the massively charged and rage enhanced Hyper Beam straight at it, completely enveloping the smaller Pokémon in the catastrophic beam of energy as it then zipped straight towards the ground many, many yards away and impacted with a loud 'BOOM'!

A huge sand cloud was kicked up around the impact zone and Ash, his friends and Devon watched with baited breath as it cleared away slowly.

Once it did everyone saw a sight that they weren't completely shocked with. Staryu was lying in the middle of the large crater with scorch marks covering it's body and the gem on it's body blinking slowly. Ash's friends and Devon (the latter of which who was smiling confidently, believing that Gyarados had won the battle and thus, brought them back from the precipice of a total defeat) all felt certain that it was over and that Staryu was out for the count.

Ash hadn't moved or said a word however and just stared at the spot where Staryu was laying at intently. All of a sudden and to everyone's great surprise, Staryu slowly stirred and began moving around. No one could believe what they were seeing, least of all Devon, as Staryu then, very slowly but surely, stood back up on it's wobbling appendages.

Ash had smiled softly at the sight of his Pokémon having so much heart and started calling out words of encouragement to Staryu just as they all heard Gyarados suddenly bellow loudly. Ash looked across the beach at Devon's Pokémon and saw that it was still shrouded in a red aura with it's eyes the same exact color and a look of complete rage on it's face.

Ash knew what was going on with Gyarados from the moment he looked at it. He had seen it one other time with his Dragonite and felt absolutely certain of the fact that Gyarados was now under complete influence of Outrage. It's temper had finally spilled totally over and it's rage was at critical mass.

Ash had then realized that Staryu would most likely not be able to defeat Gyarados while it was in such a state. Not while it was so incredibly battered and exhausted. It had been with those thoughts of Staryu's safety in mind that he had made the decision to return it and use either Squirtle or Krabby to hopefully finish the match.

However, that wasn't what happened. Gyarados was so lost in it's rage that it no longer needed, nor would most likely listen, to any commands from Devon.

It had then opened it's mouth and formed an Outrage enhanced Dragon Rage that it quickly fired at the wobbling Staryu. Ash had hurriedly called out to the Star-Shaped Pokémon to move out of the way but his Pokémon was only able to just manage to hop far enough away that it missed the worst of the impact. However, the radius of the blast still managed to catch the weakened Staryu and sent it flying through the air towards Gyarados.

The outraged Pokémon didn't waste a second and quickly brought it's tail forward with Outrage enhanced speed and smashed it into Staryu in mid-air, causing Ash's friends to cringe as they could hear the impact of the attack.

Staryu was then sent hurdling back to the ground again as Gyarados swung it's tail up behind it and started forming a funnel of water around it. Everyone could see that the enraged Pokémon was about to use a very powerful Aqua Tail on Staryu and most of them were unsure if the smaller Pokémon would be able to take it and not get severely injured.

Devon had tried calling out to his Pokémon to stop but it wouldn't listen to him, it's rage being in full control of it's conscious

Gyarados had then swung it's tail forward with great force at the spot where Staryu was laying at. Time seemed to stop as the sand cloud where Stayu lay became cleared and everyone saw Ash's Pokémon barely standing up in the crater it was in. The water vortex surrounding Gyarados's tail then slammed into Staryu with earth shattering force, causing a slight shock wave.

Staryu was lifted off of it's appendages and sent skidding back through the sand at incredibly fast speeds, large clouds of sand being kicked up all the while, before the smaller Pokémon finally impacted against one of the sand dunes that had been created during the intense match with another loud 'BOOM'!

Ash's friends and Pikachu had actually cried out in fear for Staryu while Ash kept an unreadable expression on his face as he looked to the place where Staryu was now resting. A giant sand cloud having been kicked up into the air and obscuring everyone's vision from the harsh impact. Devon had shouted up to his Gyarados, who by that point was bellowing loudly as it thrashed around, to stop again but it still wouldn't listen to him.

Finally, after some time, the dust cloud had lifted and everyone was able to see again. What they all saw was Staryu lying in a crater the same size as it's body was, looking even more battered than before. The gem on it's front had actually been cracked a little from the intense blow of Gyarados' Aqua Tail and there were several scuff marks on it's body.

Now, most trainers would have been panicking and freaking out of their minds at the sight of their Pokémon being in such a state but Ash was- once again- very different. He knew that in Pokémon battles your Pokémon could and would get hurt, perhaps even seriously. However, if a trainer truly knew their Pokémon's limits they would be able to know just how much they could take before they were technically in 'serious danger'.

Staryu, along with Krabby, trained and fought with all of his Gyarados each and every day at the lab. Both of them sometimes getting greatly injured from the intensity of their battles if what Professor Oak told him was true. If those two could battle against his group of Gyarados, whom of which Ash knew that any one of them had greater power than Devon's did just by watching it battle, then he knew Staryu would be okay.

'Okay' yes... however he hadn't been sure if Staryu was still able to battle or not.

Ash at that point had begun calling out to Staryu in a loud, calm, but yet also firm voice. He told Staryu just how proud he was of it for everything it did in the battle. He told it how impressed he was with just how strong it had become ever since leaving Melanie's cottage. How he was proud to call such a dedicated, loyal and strong Pokèmon his own. He had also told Staryu that if it couldn't battle anymore then it was okay to throw in the towel. It had battled incredibly hard and Ash wouldn't think anything less of it for taking a rest. Sometimes admitting defeat was the wisest thing to do in certain situations.

Staryu had heard it's trainer's words from the precipice of near unconsciousness and had begun to remember everything that Ash had done for it. From taking it in as an abandoned Pokémon along with it's friends from Melanie's cottage... how he trained all of them alongside his other Pokémon and taught them how to become truly strong and unlock their potential...

Staryu remembered being introduced to it's new home at the Oak Pokémon Ranch and how it and all of it's other former village comrades had been accepted with open arms by not just the kind Professor Oak but also Ash's other Pokémon...

Staryu thought about all of this and realized that after all of the love and dedication Ash had shown it ever since they had met, it couldn't let him down. Staryu remembered in that moment what Ash had told them all about pain being only a trick of the mind, no matter how severe, and then took in all of the kind and uplifting words Ash had just spoken to it.

The battered Pokémon felt a fire alight in itself right then and there. An extremely hot and burning fire that felt as though it was starting to surge throughout it's whole body... igniting something deep down within it. Staryu's mind had started to feel hazy, yet also incredibly clear all at the same time, as it's entire being felt as though it was exploding with some incredible power deep down that the Water-Type somehow felt like it should just... know in some way. Like it was something ancient that was rooted far into it's very genetics.

It was at that point that Staryu stood up slowly, to the utter disbelief of Ash's friends and Devon, with a strange, wispy and white aura glowing around it that only became more thick and visible as Staryu continued to stand. The aura became even stronger around it as the odd wisps of smoke seemed liked they were starting to glow with light as they wrapped themselves around Staryu's body. The resilient Pokemon had then pulled itself up to it's full height and let out a loud cry of determination as suddenly, to the even further disbelief of almost everyone watching... it's body began glowing in the obvious signs of an evolution.

Ash's companions and Devon had watched with mouths agape, Ash himself with clear excitement and also amazement on his face, as Staryu slowly began changing shape, size and form as the evolution continued.

When the change was finally complete and the light from the evolution burst away in a flurry of sparkles, a whole new and much more impressive Pokémon stood in place of where Staryu once did. The new Pokémon was bigger, colored a sort of bluish/purple with a much brighter, square shaped, un-cracked gem set in it's chest and had two sides to it's star shape instead of Staryu's single one. It also looked much stronger than it's previous form had.

Everyone had known what Pokémon they were looking at from seeing Misty's so many times before, only this one actually looked bigger, stronger and more regal than her own even did. The only thing dumbfounding to them all was exactly how Ash's Pokémon had evolved the way it did WITHOUT the use of a Water Stone. Which was, as far as known, the only way for a Staryu to evolve.

Yet, right in front of their eyes, Ash's Pokémon now stood. Fully evolved and looking not only completely healed from the damage it had taken in the battle before as a Staryu, but actually better than it had before the battle even started.

It looked stronger, more powerful and even more confident than Staryu did before evolution. What it had evolved into was nothing short of one of the most impressive and powerful looking Starmie that any of them had ever seen fresh out of evolution.

Everyone could only stare at the newly evolved Pokémon for a short while though before they suddenly heard Gyarados bellow loudly. They had then turned their attention towards Devon's outraged Pokémon and saw that it had a truly enraged look on it's face at seeing that it's opponent was not only back up and ready to go, but also seemed totally healed from the damage it taken.

Before anyone could so much as blink, Gyarados suddenly charged forward as fast as it could with it's tail surrounded by a large, swirling vortex of water. Just as Gyarados had made it to Starmie and brought it's Outrage enhanced Aqua Tail around to strike it, Starmie suddenly jumped into the air and began spinning in a faster Rapid Spin than anyone had ever seen Misty's own do.

It quickly spun up into the air and over top of the other Pokémon's tail, which had just come crashing down onto where it had been seconds before. Starmie had then continued on with it's momentum and spun itself in a quick circle and got around in front of Gyarados in mere seconds.

The newly evolved Pokémon then slammed it's spinning body into the side of Gyarados's face hard enough to whip the larger Pokémon's head completely to the side. Starmie then spun away as it turned around in mid-air until it was facing Gyarados again and unleashed a swarm of sharp looking Swift rays, far more than it had ever made as a Staryu, directly into Gyarados's still pained face. Gyarados had reeled back and roared in pain as the dozens of energy rays not only cut into it's face but also the entirety of it's front side.

The angry Pokémon continued to reel back in pain as Starmie landed on the ground in front of it gracefully. After Gyarados had finally recovered from the pain of the strong Swift attack, it glared down at Starmie with rage emblazoned upon it's face. The large Pokémon had then opened it's mouth wide and formed a huge Outrage enhanced Hyper Beam in it's mouth that it quickly unleashed at Starmie, intent on finally crushing it's opponent.

Starmie had merely stood where it was as the attack bore down upon it. As the beam of powerful energy was about to connect with it, Starmie suddenly began glowing with a blue kind of energy as the gem in it's center did the same thing. The energy field around it expanded outwards and stopped the huge beam of energy in mid-descent.

Almost everyone watching had nearly frozen in shock upon seeing Starmie use what had to be none other than Psychic. Not just Confusion like Misty's Starmie could use but the most powerful (as far as was known) Psychic-Type move a Pokémon could learn.

The Hyper Beam remained in a suspended state as the psychic energy pulsing around both it and Starmie looked as blue as a sapphire. Everyone had held their breath and Devon stared on with wide eyes at what was happening. Gyarados looked shocked that it's attack was levitating in mid-air but it's shock quickly turned to fear when at the very next moment, Starmie shifted the energy aura in an entirely different way.

In one swift movement the beam of energy started falling towards Starmie again but quickly changed direction and started flying straight back towards Gyarados. The Atrocious Pokémon was so shocked at what it was seeing that it had merely stayed where it was in place as the already very powerful Outrage enhanced Hyper Beam (which was further increased in power by the psychic energy of Starmie's Psychic) was sent rocketing towards it.

In mere seconds the energy beam connected with Gyarados and caused a huge explosion that rocked the beach and caused everyone to wobble where they were standing.

As the huge smoke cloud that was kicked up from the explosion finally cleared away, everyone saw Gyarados hunched up in a strange looking coil with scorch and burn marks covering it's body. The damaged Pokémon was wincing and lightly shaking from the intense pain that was racking it's body and looked to be in a great deal of agony.

Ash, being the battle minded and quick thinking trainer he was, quickly overcame his surprise at the change of events faster than anyone else did and was quick to take advantage of the situation since he saw that Starmie was still very much in the battle.

Upon taking a moment to observe his Pokémon's new physical form while it was using Psychic on Gyarados's Hyper Beam, he noticed something about Starmie's body that he believed would make an extremely effective 'weapon' of sorts if his plan worked right. He knew it was a long shot but he had to try it.

Ash had then called out to Starmie while Gyarados was still frozen in pain and told it to do something that made all of his friends and Devon look at Ash like he was crazy. He told his newly evolved Pokémon to jump into the air and then spin itself in circles with an Agility enhanced Rapid Spin. He followed it up by telling Starmie to at the same time use Swift on the ends of both sides of it's pointed appendages. He had then finished his command by advising the star-like Pokémon to brace for a lot of pain.

Starmie began following through on the command and spun itself in circles in mid-air with Rapid Spin as it directed the attention of the gem in it's center towards the ends of it's pointed appendages. It started firing the sharp energy blades of Swift at the ends of it's legs and instantly started grunting in pain as the energy stars actually started slicing away at the ends of the 'legs' on both sides of it's body.

Everyone but Ash watched on in disbelief and also slight fear as they saw the pointed ends of Starmie's appendages become quickly whittled away by the sharp energy blades of Swift. By the time Starmie had finished and stuck it's 'legs' back into the sand, the ends were much narrower, pointed and now looked, for all intents and purposes... Sharp. Very sharp.

Ash had then quickly commanded Starmie to attack Gyarados by using Rapid Spin and to make sure the ends of it's 'legs' came in contact with it's skin. Starmie quickly took off spinning towards Gyarados, the ends of it's now sharp looking appendages on both sides of it's body rotating in such a way that they looked like saw blades.

They eventually came into contact with Gyarados' skin and the sharp ends of it's 'legs' left deep and painful looking gashes in the side of the larger Pokémon's body as Starmie struck it with each pass. Gyarados roared in pain as it was sliced open and recoiled away as Starmie changed direction and did the same thing to it's other side.

Starmie continued to repeat this over and over again as it spun all around Gyarados while it's razor sharp ends left deep gashes in the blue scaled Pokémon's skin everywhere they touched it. Gyarados could only bellow and roar in terrible pain as Starmie hacked away at it's body like a saw blade cutting through wood. Devon meanwhile was absolutely dumbfounded at seeing his Pokémon being attacked by a technique he had never seen or heard of anyone ever even thinking of using before.

After Starmie had sliced thoroughly into the skin of Gyarados' entire body with it's 'Rapid SawSpin', the name that Ash would come to name the very damaging and painful technique, it then spun around in front of Gyarados and shot straight up into the air with it's body facing downward as it started unleashing another volley of energy stars from it's center down at Gyarados.

The Atrocious Pokémon reeled back from the further increased pain on it's body that came from the powerful Swift attack and backed away with it's eyes closed as Starmie started spinning rapidly back down towards it. The quickly increasing in speed Star-Shaped Pokémon added even more speed to it's descent by using Agility.

Everyone down on the ground, specifically Devon, could only watch in shock as Starmie came down from the sky like a rocket. Right before Starmie impacted with Gyarados, it turned it's body front side so it's gem was facing downward. Ash was glad Starmie was doing this because if it were to hit the top of Gyarados's head with the now sharp ends of it's 'legs' then it would have most likely split right through the formerly dominant Pokémon's skull and killed it.

Before Gyarados could barely even look up, Starmie crashed down on top of the it's head with a resounding 'crash', causing Gyarados to completely buckle under the force and fall to the ground with Starmie pressing itself as hard down onto it's opponent as possible. When Gyarados finally hit the ground a huge cloud of sand and dirt was thrown up into the air and everyone was left to watch in trepidation for everything to settle so they could see the results of the impact.

Once it finally did they were all greeted by a sight that hardly none expected. Starmie was standing atop Gyarados' head, looking somewhat tired but really none the worse for wear. The Pokémon that Starmie was standing on however wasn't so fortunate.

Gyarados had it's head laying to the side in the sand with the rest of it's body straight as an arrow on the ground. There were bruises and cuts all over it's body and two big swirls in it's eyes, showing that the enraged Pokémon had finally been defeated.

After the shock of seeing the final result of the battle had passed, the match had been called in Ash's victory and Devon returned his defeated Pokémon. Ash's friends and the gym leader were further surprised when the gem in Starmie's center started to pulse vibrantly as the ends of it's now serrated appendages began growing back to their original shape before everyone's eyes.

Ash had been the only one not surprised by what Starmie was doing. He thought Misty would have known what was happening to his Pokémon since she had her own Starmie and Staryu and also since she knew so much about Water Pokémon. Apparently however, the shock of seeing Starmie essentially growing back the normal shape of it's legs had made her temporarily forget (or perhaps she just never knew) so Ash explained to them all what was happening.

He told them that he had known about Staryu and Starmie's ability to regrow their limbs since they were after all regenerative Pokémon and it was in their genetics. He had been playing around with different ways to possibly use the very ability he had had Starmie implicate in the match to an actual in battle and the fight against Gyarados just gave them the perfect opportunity to use it.

He had hated the fact that using the move would cause Starmie pain during the 'sharpening phase' of the technique but his Pokémon had understood and was willing to undertake the pain when he first brought up the move during training sometime back. After all, if the training Ash had all of his Pokémon do taught them one thing it was how to take pain.

To say Ash's friends and Devon were impressed with his ingenuity and incredible battle tactics would definitely have been an understatement and they had been just as fascinated as they were slightly wigged out by the obvious insanity that went on in his mind when it came to creating new moves and training methods.

After Starmie had finished re-growing back the original shape of it's appendages and Ash affectionately hugged and thanked his Pokémon for all it's extremely hard and dedicated work, he returned it and had then had his post battle conversation with Devon.

Once the gym leader had thanked Ash for a great battle, complemented he and his Pokémon for a match well fought and praised him for their battle styles and strategy, Devon presented Ash with his ninth gym badge... The Depth Badge.

This badge greatly resembled and in fact looked almost exactly like the Cunning Badge that Ash had earned from Ethan in Ceras City. It was the same exact shape as the aforementioned badge but had a shape slightly more similar to a claw/tooth and was colored a deep sea blue. A fitting color for the name of the badge itself.

Devon had been very impressed when he saw Ash open his badge case and place the newest one within it. Upon noticing that Ash now had nine gym badges with the addition of his gym's own badge he found it to be very impressive and inquired to Ash as to why he was still going for badges since he had all he needed to qualify for the Indigo Conference.

The young Ketchum went on to explain to Devon the reasons for why he was doing what he was and the friendly beach bum had instantly gained more respect for the boy and wished him nothing but luck on his future endeavors, promising to watch and cheer for Ash in the League on TV.

After Ash had thanked Devon again, he and his friends left the gym and decided to stay in town for the remainder of the day and visit the beach, which Devon had told Ash he would help teach him and his friends how to surf free of charge if they wanted, before leaving to continue on their journey the next day.

(End of Flashback)

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Coming out of his long recollection, Ash chuckled to himself when he thought of the rest of the day after his match against Devon.

Him, Giselle, Misty and even Pikachu who had balanced on Ash's board with him, all managed to learn how to surf from Devon in only two hours of constant practice that afternoon. Poor Brock was the only one who seemed to be 'equilibrium challenged' during the lesson unfortunately.

The teen could barely even stand up on his board and every time he managed to stand up, the first big wave that came along would knock him head over heels and off his board. Leading Ash, the girls, Pikachu and even Devon to desperately try and hold back their laughter at Brock's plight.

Eventually the squinty-eyed Stone ended up retreating good naturally to the shore after he realized that surfing just wasn't for him and had happily began cooking lunch for everyone while himself, his own and Giselle's Pokémon watched their friends have fun on their boards out in the water.

All of Ash and Misty's Pokémon had been out with them at the time since Ash had sent back his Krabby and got Charmander and Gastly in return, the former of which would have been heartbroken if he wouldn't have had the opportunity to enjoy a day on the beach. He had decided to keep Starmie though so he could train it for a while being that it had just evolved.

The only Pokémon of his that hadn't been in the water was Gastly, who of which stayed on the beach with Brock and the others. The older boy had assumed that Gastly not joining his trainer and fellow Pokémon in the water was due to the fact that he just hadn't been apart of Ash's team long enough yet to try such a crazy act that was completely out of his species' nature like the boy's other Pokémon routinely did.

The teenaged pervert hadn't thought too much over it though. If Ash had managed to get Charmander, a full fledged Fire-Type with well known deathly weaknesses to water, to fall in love with it and overcome said weaknesses then there had been no doubts in his mind that Gastly would be following suit very soon and doing things that were also against his nature.

Coming back to the present for a moment, Ash further chuckled at the thought of the 'trick contest' that he, Misty, Giselle and Devon had had that day on their boards and he could easily say that the highlight of the entire day, even more so than winning his ninth gym badge, was when Giselle fell off her board and led to him receiving the pleasurable experience of having his bikini clad girlfriend land on top of him. Being that he had been beside of her when it happened.

He blushed faintly at the thought and shook his head as he turned his... 'colorful thoughts' away from the past and towards another matter that had been on his mind ever since it had happened.

The issue that was bugging him so much was Staryu's spontaneous evolution into Starmie without the use of a Water Stone.

This completely baffled him since he had never heard of any Pokémon that was supposed to evolve through evolutionary stones doing so through any other means. He was pretty certain that Professor Oak had never heard of such a thing either but he had ended up telling him all about it anyway through video call when he had sent Starmie back to the lab once he was finished training with the Star Shaped Pokémon.

The Professor had definitely been stumped at hearing about the phenomenon and told Ash that he had indeed never heard of such a thing happening before. He had guessed that it possibly could have been due to, in part, the incredibly strong bond Ash had with his Pokemon.

As in, perhaps the depth of the bond somehow was able to overcome the need for an evolutionary stone at the time when Starmie was in an extremely stressful situation in battle and didn't want to lose for Ash.

It was just a theory the Professor had but he had also told Ash that he would make a point to look into it more thoroughly. Ash had agreed and thanked the old Professor, saying that he would look further into it as well as a part of his Pokémon Researcher training. He had already jotted down the strange evolution concerning Starmie in his journal and the Professor was proud of Ash for taking so much initiative at both striving to be a Pokémon Master and possibly even becoming a Pokémon Researcher himself one day.

In all honesty, Ash didn't know why strange things like Starmie evolving the way it did happened to he and his Pokémon but... he had to say that he was happy for it. Every strange thing that happened to him so far just added more mystery and flare to his life and he wouldn't have it any other way.

Ash suddenly realized that he had been straying off into dreamland again with his thoughts and had completely forgotten that Giselle was still waiting for a reply to what she had asked him about having the required eight gym badges needed to compete in the Indigo Conference.

He then turned his head to look at her and saw his girlfriend staring at him patiently with a cute expression of expectance on her face. Ash chuckled lightly and kissed her forehead. "Sorry sweetie... I was just thinking about my last two gym battles and Starmie's strange evolution," He admitted to her with a thoughtful look still on his face.

Giselle seemed thoughtful herself at that. "Yes that was really strange wasn't it?" She then smiled at him warmly. "Though I'm sure you and Professor Oak will figure it out eventually."

Ash smiled back in return. "Thanks Giselle I bet you're right."

Misty suddenly interjected the two of them, "Seriously though Ash, it's gotta feel great having nine gym badges now right?"

Ash looked back at her and smiled. "It sure does. I can't wait for the next two gyms we go to before Saffron City!" He exclaimed anxiously.

Brock looked up from his map. "Well after the Butterfree Cliffs we'll then have to head to Shadow's Hallow for your next gym badge Ash," He informed with a grim look on his face.

Misty seemed confused. "Shadow's Hallow? I've never heard of that place before," She said with a finger to her chin as she thought back to if she had definitely ever heard of the town before or not.

"Yeah me neither," Giselle admitted. "Is it just not popular for anything besides the gym?" She asked curiously.

Brock shook his head and put the map away before pulling out the book he had on all of the gyms of Kanto. "Actually, Shadow's Hallow isn't a very... popularly visited place here in Kanto. It's barely considered a town in the first place and resembles more of a small, old village from what I've heard of it. Supposedly the town was one of the first settlements here in Kanto, even before the Civil War between east and west, but never grew to a very well known status like some of the other cities and towns our region is famous for. They don't really have any natural resources to distribute, no sort of attraction that makes it an ideal spot for vacationers and the people are supposedly less than friendly."

Brock looked down at the gym book again while continuing, "The gym itself is actually pretty new and apparently specializes in a type of Pokémon that's not seen often here in Kanto and the gym leader is also rumored to use Pokemon that are mostly from the Johto region. No one hardly ever challenges it for that very reason," He finished explaining

Ash seemed automatically interested. "What type of Pokemon do they specialize in Brock?"

The older boy flipped the book he had open to the correct page and then walked up to Ash's side and showed him. When Ash looked at the description of the gym he saw what looked like an old, run down looking building in the middle of a thick hallow of trees. It was mostly bathed in shadows and gave the entire building an eery look. The only thing that really made the old structure stand out as a gym was the symbol of the Pokémon League above the door that all gyms certified by the League were required to have. Though it looked somewhat faded for supposedly being a newer gym.

Ash trailed his eyes down to the info about the gym and saw that the leader was a man named Ivan, no other description was given, and that he specialized in Dark-Type Pokémon.

He looked up at Brock then with an excited gleam in his eyes. "Seriously? Dark-Types?! Brock that's awesome! I've heard, read and studied all about Dark-Types from Professor Oak when I was training with him and have always wanted to battle them! I also studied up on all of the major gyms in the other regions and was really upset when I found out that none of them specialized in Dark-Types at all," He finished with an equally excited edge to his tone.

Brock just looked at Ash for a minute in surprise. A lot of trainers would shy away from challenging a gym that specialized in a type of Pokémon that was very rarely ever focused on and given the reputation of this gym in particular, the location, the people, the town and apparently even the gym leader himself, Brock was definitely surprised at Ash's unhampered determination.

Well... only slightly surprised. Ash kept proving time and time again how usual he was so it was becoming a little more usual to learn new and unexpected things about the trainer from Pallet.

Brock snapped out of his stupor after a few moments and responded to Ash's enthused reply. "Well like I said, this gym is really new. In fact, I honestly don't know if the gym has even had many challengers at all, let alone any winners. The town itself really isn't very pleasant at all and from what I understand, most people from the outside just avoid it."

Misty deadpanned and appeared dreading. "Then why do we need to go someplace that's supposedly so bad?! What if the people there don't like outsiders and they chase us out?!" She fretted.

Giselle took one look at her boyfriend's excited and anxious face. He wanted to challenge the gym in Shadow's Hallow so badly that she could see it in his eyes. She just wanted for Ash to be happy no matter what and would do anything she had to in order to make that happen.

Wrapping her left arm around his right tightly, she looked at Brock and Misty and said sternly, "Ash really wants to do this you guys. I'm behind him one hundred percent and if the people there do try to chase us out by some unlikely chance, I'll hold them back while Ash goes and has his gym battle if I have to. Are you guys with me?" She asked them seriously.

Brock and Misty looked at Giselle and Ash for a few moments before looking to each other. After a few more seconds they glanced back at their friends and smiled. "Of course we're with you guys. That's what friends are for," Brock said patting Ash's shoulder.

Misty appeared ashamed. "You're right Giselle and I'm sorry. Ash is always there for us and I should have been less selfish. I'm with you guys too," She answered with a smile.

Ash looked at his friends, Pikachu and then Giselle in turn as he smiled brightly. "Wow guys, thanks so much! This really means a lot to me and I really appreciate your support. I can't thank you enough."

Brock patted his shoulder again. "Anytime Ash. Now whadya say we walk a little further and then find someplace to stop and eat lunch?"

Misty's stomach growled and she blushed. "Hehe... that sounds good to me," She conceded.

While Brock and Misty continued walking down the road to find a good place to rest and have lunch, Ash turned to Giselle and quickly leaned in as he kissed her. The girl squeaked in surprise but quickly returned the affectionate gesture eagerly as she deepened the kiss.

After they parted Ash leaned his forehead against hers and smiled. "I don't think I can ever tell you enough how great you are can I Giselle?" He asked.

She blushed and hugged Ash tightly. "I just want to make you happy Ash, that's all."

He squeezed her tightly one more time before releasing her and smiling even wider. "You definitely succeed there sweetie!" He looked up at Pikachu then. "Right buddy?"

Pikachu looked down at Giselle and hopped onto her shoulder from Ash's. "Pikachu Pi!" He nodded affirmatively as he nuzzled her cheek.

She giggled and scratched Pikachu behind the ears. "Aww thank you Pikachu, you're so sweet!"

Ash chuckled and then took her hand in his as they started walking down the road again after Brock and Misty, hand in hand and leaning together closely while the three of them just basked in one another's presence.

XXXXXXXXXX

The friends ended up stopping a short time later by the side of the road near some trees that made up a nice little shaded picnic area. They released their Pokémon shortly after settling down and were now waiting while Ash and Brock made the food. Ash taking the Pokéfood and Brock making the regular meals.

Ash and Giselle had already taken time to train with their Pokémon and currently, only Ash's were still going at it hard. At the present time he had with him Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Charmander and Gastly, Pikachu not even worth mentioning since he was always with Ash. The boy preferred keeping a spot on his team open as often as he could for any last minute send offs he might make for one of his Pokémon back at the lab or even if he added a new member to his family at some point.

He had wanted to keep training with his Pokémon at the present time but unfortunately couldn't since he had to make his Pokéfood which the Pokémon had all grown to love (much to the chagrin of Brock). He and the older boy still swapped cooking duties but it was more set in stone as to who had what job now.

After Ash finished making the Pokéfood and adding the special ingredients, vitamins and other supplements his Pokémon needed for their training regimen into it, he distributed the dishes out to each of them and then sat back against a nearby tree while he waited for Brock to finish their food.

Giselle walked by and looked down at Ash then. The two shared a silent communication with one another before Ash spread his arms out to her. The girl smiled softly at him then as she slowly sat down in front of her boyfriend in his lap and wrapped her arms around him, kissing him softly on the lips before turning back around and sitting with her back leaning against his chest. She took Ash's arms and wrapped them around her waist as she leaned her head back into the crook of his neck and closed her eyes contentedly.

Ash leaned his head down on top of hers and watched his Pokémon eat. His gaze eventually fell on Gastly, who had used it's unorthodox psychic powers to poof into existence a fancy one seater dining table, complete with table cloth, candle and floating violin that played a very eery, yet soothing melody. Gastly had even transferred it's food onto a very fancy looking plate and had some silverware floating beside of it that brought each piece of food up to it's face so Gastly could eat properly. There was even a fine cloth linen next to it that the Ghost-Type would use to wipe it's 'mouth' off after each bite.

At first glance it would seem to most people that Gastly was being serious in what it was doing, like it was trying to be proper, but Ash knew better. The moment he connected eyes with his newest Pokémon he saw Gastly break out into a wide grin as it's eyes shined with mischief.

Ash chuckled and shook his head amusedly as Gastly did the same and went back to it's meal. The humorous Ghost Pokémon was always doing something funny for a good laugh and catching other's amusement, almost always.

Taking the time to reflect on his time with Gastly over the weeks since it joined his team, Ash had to admit that there was much more to the Pokémon than met the eye. Well, 'it' should actually be changed to 'he' since Ash had found out from scanning Gastly with the Pokédex that his newest Pokémon was actually a male. Something that should have been pretty obvious from the tone of Gastly's voice but everyone made mistakes.

One big thing that all of them quickly discovered about the Ghost-Type was just how funny, good natured and great fun he was to have around. Even though Gastly loved doing things for humor, he didn't pull any tricks that put anyone in harm's way or tormented them. At least... not since he had joined Ash.

Honestly, the boy believed Gastly only pulled most of the mean tricks he had prior to joining the team mostly out of boredom and lack of self worth. Since he joined Ash and actually had a purpose now, Gastly became nothing but a joy to have around.

Even all of the other Pokémon had grown to love Gastly, especially Ash's own. The Ghost-Type definitely rounded out his battle team very well and that was something he could say with confidence after putting the Pokémon through his new training regimen, both singular and team oriented, over the past three weeks.

The first thing he did before starting Gastly on his training program was the same thing he did before training all of his new Pokémon. He checked the Ghost-Type out thoroughly with the Pokédex.

It turned out that Gastly truly had a treasure trove of moves and even abilities at his disposal. He had the massive move list of Hypnosis, Lick, Mean Look, Curse, Night Shade, Shadow Ball and Confuse Ray. These were the moves he knew as a Ghost-Type. However, since Gastly was a Ghost/Psychic-Type hybrid he knew the Psychic-Type moves Confusion, Disable and Miracle Eye.

It had shocked Ash when he realized that Gastly didn't know Psychic and that the attack he had been using to create illusions, battle and perform many other incredible feats was nothing more than his ability to use very powerful Confusion attacks. He hadn't even known that Confusion had the capability to do any of those things until he met Gastly. This also made Ash wonder just how strong Gastly's Psychic attack would be when he finally learned the move, which in turn, only served to excite him even further.

However, the one move that captured Ash's attention the most, especially after learning that he would be going up against a Dark-Type gym next, was Miracle Eye. He knew that this move enabled Psychic-Types with the ability to hit Dark-Type Pokémon with their attacks, which was otherwise not possible, and since he already planned on using Gastly in that particular gym battle, him knowing Miracle Eye worked out perfectly.

Even though Gastly was only part Psychic-Type, Ash didn't want to take any chances that his incredibly strong moves wouldn't have an effect on the gym leader's Pokémon so he had really been training with him hard on the use of Miracle Eye, even though he had no Dark-Types himself.

Ash knew the match wasn't going to be easy and that's why he was going to prepare and strategize out everything he could before hand.

Gastly didn't (surprisingly enough) realize that he knew Miracle Eye but after hearing his trainer's plan of using him in an upcoming match against the Dark-Type Pokémon, saw the potential problem since he was part Psychic-Type and didn't want to take any chances that his attacks may not be effective. He had then agreed in a rare moment of complete seriousness to work on Miracle Eye with Ash until he had mastered it.

When Ash had scanned for Gastly's abilities he was even further surprised to learn that not only did he possess the obvious ability of Levitate, otherwise he wouldn't have been able to float in place, but he also had the Psychic-Type ability Magic Guard. This ability prevented Gastly from being hit with any form of attack unless it was a direct, physical attack. Of course, Gastly was primarily a Ghost-Type so this meant that he was immune to direct attacks also.

This would undoubtedly fool most dummy trainer's into thinking they had an invincible Pokémon since Gastly was technically resilient to both special and direct attacks but Ash wasn't about to let that get to his head. He had learned too much from Professor Oak to let that happen and knew that there was always a way to defeat a seemingly 'unstoppable' Pokémon and/or strategy.

It was his job as a trainer to not only create ways for his team to defeat those very opponents with better strategies, but also assure that no one could do the same to he and his Pokémon in return if at all possible. Overconfidence was any trainer's downfall and Ash knew this very thing well. His mom and especially Professor Oak had drilled the same lesson into him regularly over the years.

Still though, it truly was very beneficial that Gastly had such great abilities and Ash most likely had to thank his Pokémon's giant Alakazam father for the Magic Guard ability since he himself was a Psychic-Type.

He had yet to find out how Gastly was able to create such powerful illusions and other such things with his psychic power but Ash had a hunch that it was because Gastly's Psychic/Ghost-Type abilities had somehow merged together and were working to allow abilities no one had ever seen before. Yet another thing Ash added to his list of research to figure out.

Gastly's actual training program was very unique in itself. Since he wasn't really a 'physical' Pokémon and couldn't ever develop any unnatural physical strengths like his other Pokémon due to his body's gaseous make-up, Ash focused Gastly's training program to be entirely focused on his mental and energy based skills. Something that was new for him as well since he had never trained a Psychic or Ghost-Type before. Let alone a hybrid. Needless to say it was difficult.

He worked Gastly just as hard as his other Pokémon, which was intense, every day and even though he couldn't physically wear down Gastly like the others, he could still mentally and energy-wise drain him.

He accomplished this by having Gastly work on each if his moves until exhaustion for around one hour each day. Working on making them stronger, more effective, more widespread, last longer and make him less tired when using them until the moves eventually drained him of very little energy.

Another thing that Ash had Gastly work on extremely hard was his ability to create illusions. He believed that the Pokémon's ability to create illusions could make for an extremely effective method of battling. If Gastly could create illusions that were strong, durable, versatile and powerful enough to actually battle opponents, either physically or through manipulating the other Pokémon fears, then he could essentially fight his battles entirely with illusions while physically staying out of harms way.

Of course, in order to do this Gastly would have to train incredibly hard with his psychic abilities and hone the use of his illusions to a near flawless level and even then it was still possible for the illusions to fail him since they were just that after all... illusions.

That's what Ash had Gastly work especially hard on, mastering his illusions to a point and degree that such occurrences would hopefully not happen to him during his battles. Or at least, not happen until he became extremely exhausted and unable to maintain the illusions.

Ash would essentially have his Pokémon work on his illusions until the point of near collapse every day. Gastly would practice on making multiple illusions at one time, making area wide 'field illusions', create illusions while under constant fire of an enemy Pokémon (for this Ash would have either one or all of his other Pokémon attack Gastly while he created his illusions) work on the time in which he could hold the projections, changing illusions instantly, conserving energy when making one and just about every other method of training one could imagine for this particular area of skill.

If it was mental, energy, move based and/or Psychic/Ghost-Type focused areas of skill and ability then Ash had Gastly work on it. He was determined to make sure that everything his newest Pokémon lacked in physical prowess due to his physical form, he would make up for in every other way. After all, a Pokémon with great mental, spiritual and energy based abilities could defeat a physical powerhouse any day. Brain over brawn always triumphed.

Ash had heard all about one of the Kanto Elite Four members, Agatha, and her strongest Pokémon which happened to be a Gengar. It had been a long time since someone had taken the Kanto Champion's League challenge but Ash knew from all the studying and watching of old battles he did just how strong Agatha's Gengar was.

Many a horror story from trainer's who had battled her spoke of the terrifying power that her monster of a Ghost-Type possessed. It's ghostly abilities and power was unmatched and allowed it to pretty much steamroll over all six of a challenger's Pokémon without even trying.

This wasn't a feat to be taken lightly either since the challengers of the Champion's League were not only winners of that year's Indigo Conference but they also would have had to have defeated both Prima/Lorelei and Bruno to even make it to Agatha in the first place. For one middle aged woman to completely annihilate those same challenger's ENTIRE team with only one Gengar was almost incomprehensible.

Needless to say, Agatha hadn't lost a match in many years which meant that Lance himself, the Champion, hardly ever battled. It was truly impressive and awe inspiring to be sure but it only made Ash that much more anxious to battle them all himself and spurred him on to train even harder with his Pokémon.

He knew that his Gastly could eventually become much stronger than Agatha's own godly powerful Gengar with enough time and effort and it showed with the training they had been doing every day for the past three weeks. True it would take a lot of training, much more experience and not to mention time but that did nothing to wain his confidence.

His eighth and then ninth gym badges had lit an even hotter fire under Ash and caused him to train himself and his Pokémon to even harsher levels. He had even called Professor Oak at the lab and told him to relay the message of increased training time to his Pokémon that were staying with him and had been training himself, Pikachu, Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Charmander and Gastly into the ground.

He knew Gastly's training was effective because every day after their long training bouts, the Pokémon would float to the ground until he was touching it and then gasp and sweat, yes sweat, in exhaustion. Muttering good naturedly all the while about 'slave driving trainers, 'devil children' and Ash could even swore he heard on more than one occasion Gastly crying out for Artiana during the final few brutal minutes of their training sessions together.

So, with all that said, it was definitely safe to say that the Ghost-Type's training was so utterly effective that he always ended up completely drained, both mentally and energy based wise, at the end of it all. In fact, Gastly couldn't even levitate or create an illusion as simple as a puff of smoke after training was over.

Even though it was tough however and Gastly admitted that he had never worked so hard or been so exhausted in all his years of living, he still couldn't have been happier with his decision to go with Ash.

Gastly felt for the first time ever that he actually had a family comprised of others besides Artiana and to him, that was more precious than anything else he could have ever possibly been gifted. The fact that he felt himself getting stronger every day made it all that much sweeter but mostly, Gastly was just happy to feel like he finally belonged.

It truly did Ash's heart good to see all of his Pokémon getting along so well together and how Gastly's face would light up every time they would all train, talk and just generally fellowship any chance they had. The Ghost-Type had finally found acceptance and happiness and he was beyond glad for it.

Obviously it helped matters for Ash that the five Pokémon eating in front of he and Giselle were a powerful team together (which was proven true by the team training sessions they did every day and how Gastly's abilities made the Counter Dome even more powerful) but it was mostly the family, companionship and bond between them all that truly mattered to him the most.

As he continued to watch Gastly eat he started thinking about the process he had to go through in order to create his newest Pokémon's nutritionally rich meals. The process behind it was the same as it was, generally, for the rest of his Pokémon, only slightly different.

He knew he had wanted Gastly to get the same energy, health, growth and power aiding supplements his other Pokémon received in their food so that was the foundation he started off with. The problem he encountered was creating a meal plan for Gastly that he not only enjoyed but would also help boost his Psychic and Ghost-Type power.

The way in which he did this was fraught with trial and error for the better part of a week after he first captured Gastly. Leading to his Pokémon eating food he didn't enjoy for that time period. Finally however, Ash managed to create, with Gastly's help, the perfect recipe for Ghost/Psychic-Types. The end product was the same, preparation wise, as it was for every other meal he made for his Pokémon but was good enough to satisfy a Ghost-Type's very obviously picky tastebuds.

Perhaps it just had something to do with their very usual biological make-up or maybe it was just Gastly, he had no clue. The only Ash did come to know for a fact was how to make food that Gastly would love each time he ate.

He would start by adding the standard ingredients first, such as the specific brand of Pokéfood for whatever type of Pokémon he was making food for (he had ended up buying both Ghost and Psychic-Type Pokémon food in one of the small towns they passed through and then just mixed the two together) then he would add in the vitamins, minerals and supplements he always kept in stock with him that the food needed to give it that really healthy and power increasing kick. The secrete ingredient in the food lay with, surprisingly enough... Enigma Berries.

He knew from using the berry in both Dragonite and Tentacruel's food that it truly lived up to it's name of being completely enigmatic. The old saying about the berry being able to provide the individual with whatever the user needed it to provide was without a doubt true.

The Pokéfood breakthrough he made because of it, which he wrote down in his journal about, made him thank both his mom for getting the first berry for him and him thanking himself for planting them in the soil of wherever he was staying every night in order to grow new ones for the next day.

He, on a hunch and suggestion from Gastly, had the aforementioned Pokémon use his psychic powers on one of the berries. What he would have Gastly do was keep the berry wrapped up in a caccoon of the psychic power while slowly infusing that very same energy into the berry's core.

Ash had told Gastly to focus on what he needed the berry to provide in his food while he was infusing the psychic energy into it and hopefully, those mental influences boosted by the psychic waves would help make the berry not only allow the food to taste great but also provide it with all of the Psychic/Ghost-Type power boosting nutrients it needed that the standard capsule and powder form supplements weren't giving him.

Gastly did this and after it was finished, Ash added in the enhanced berry and finished the food. Upon Gastly tasting the recipe he fell in love with it straight away and sometime after eating it, he and Gastly had trained together. The benefits of the new food wasn't seen to an extensive degree since it hadn't had a chance to build up in his system yet but Gastly's power was definitely stronger, even if only by a small degree at first.

Needless to say, Ash believed that he had finally found the perfect recipe for not only Psychic/Ghost-Types (which most likely he wouldn't ever run into again... probably) but also regular Psychic and Ghost-Types as well. All he would need to do was deviate from the recipe he made for Gastly a tiny bit here and there for the other two aforementioned types and he would then have the meal plan aspect figured out for both groups of Pokémon. At least he hoped so.

Sometime after he had broken from his thoughts around ten to fifteen minutes later and everyone had finished eating, Ash and the others packed up their supplies, cleaned up the area and then returned their Pokémon before continuing on their way towards their next destination.

The Butterfree Cliffs.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Two hours of brisk traveling later found Ash and his friends finally arriving at the wide open plains of the Butterfree Cliffs. The sight that greeted them was nothing short of jaw dropping for the four young trainers. What they saw was a sky that was literally peppered with hot air balloons everywhere they looked. The balloons all had different designs on them ranging from varying colors, patterns and some even had faces of Pokémon on them.

"Ohh... My... Arceus..." Giselle said in awe as she looked up at the sky.

"I didn't know there would be so many of them!" Misty also exclaimed with wide eyes.

Brock shook his head. "Neither did I. There are always a lot of trainers here during the mating season I've heard but... this is a bit much."

Ash looked up his shoulder at Pikachu. "Do you think any one of these trainer's Butterfree will be good enough for mine buddy?"

Pikachu looked up and scanned the crowd of hot air balloons high up above of them with a critical eye. None of the Butterfree had been released yet so it was impossible to tell at the moment.

He looked back down at Ash and shook his head in an unsure way. "Pikachu Pi, Pika Pika."

Ash nodded. "Yeah you're right Pi. It's hard to tell right now so I guess I can only hope for the best right?"

Getting a nod from his Pokémon, Ash smiled and scratched him behind the ears as he turned to his friends. "Let's go see if we can find a place here to rent a balloon so we can get up there before the releasing starts guys," He suggested.

Brock looked out over the plains and saw a small shack about one hundred yards away or so that had a few hot air balloons anchored to the ground around behind it. He then pointed towards the building. "I think that's where we can get a balloon."

Ash took Giselle's hand in his and started walking again. "Let's go get one then before it starts."

Brock and Misty fell in step behind the couple and just a few minutes of walking later they found themselves standing at the shack's door. They entered into the small, somewhat dimly lit building and saw a man with short brown hair who looked to be around his mid-thirties standing behind the counter.

Ash walked up and conversed with the polite and helpful man, who's name was Donny, for a few minutes and then rented a Pikachu balloon for all of them, much to the actual Electric-Type's joy. They split the cost for the balloon, except for Ash who payed for Giselle's half under her nose (which earned him a hard but playful punch on the shoulder from said girlfriend) and then went outside and climbed into the balloon. The basket being rather large and more than spacious enough to fit them all inside of it.

While they waited for the shopkeeper to come out and operate the balloon for them, since they were his last customers for the day, Ash took the time to pull out his Pokédex and made a call for Butterfree. He had talked to Professor Oak earlier and asked him to explain the situation to his two Butterfree and inquire if either one, or both, would want to potentially find a mate.

His first Butterfree had, according to Professor Oak, enthusiastically agreed no sooner than the words left his mouth. His second Butterfree however, the one from Melanie's cottage, declined. This had surprised Ash but the Professor explained that he didn't believe Ash's second Butterfree was as mature as his first and thus, didn't feel ready for a mate quite yet.

Just a few moments after Ash made his transfer, the shopkeeper came out and climbed into the balloon. He fired it up and the kids looked out over the edge of the balloon in excitement as it began to lift off into the air and climb and higher. Within mere minutes the balloon was at height with all of the others, giving the kids an awe inspiring view of the area around them.

They saw the ocean to one side, the sprawling plains of the area below, the forests to the other side of them and far away in the distance stretching far in-land was what looked to possibly be Lavender Town. Brock had checked the map and confirmed their suspicions shortly afterwards that it was indeed said town.

Soon enough, all of the Trainers began releasing their Butterfree by the dozens and Ash took that as his cue. He spun Butterfree's Pokéball in his hand and then tossed it into the air. "Alright Butterfree it's time to rock 'n' roll!" He shouted as his Pokémon burst forth from the Pokéball and did an impressive twirling circle in the air before thrusting his wings out and releasing a few shiny spores from his wings that sparkled out around him in a beautiful and elegant display.

Butterfree gracefully descended and landed on the lip of the balloon basket with his short arms crossed over his chest and a confident look on his face. Before Ash could say anything Brock suddenly bowled him out of the way and started sputtering words of romantic nonsense to the Bug-Type, "Okay Butterfree listen to me very carefully because I'm going to tell you all about the sure fire, fool-proof way to win the heart of your beloved and never let her g- AGHH! Misty that's my ear!" Brock yelped in pain as an irritated Misty drug him to the other side of the basket by his ear. "Not now Brock! Butterfree wants to get a mate, not off every female in the area!" The irate orangette scolded.

Ash just shook his head in amusement and then spoke to his Pokémon, "Alright Butterfree, now let me give you some advice that's not going to get you smacked or ignored."

Butterfree turned to look at his trainer then as Ash suddenly spun around to Giselle's side, quickly stepping behind her as he interlocked his fingers around her waist and kissed her cheek. Said girl looked shocked at Ash's sudden movement but quickly melted as he gently grabbed her arms and crossed them in front of his own. He then commenced to gently stroking them while laying feather soft kisses on her cheek and neck.

"Let me... tell you... something... Butterfree..." Ash told his Pokémon in-between the tender, soft kisses he was laying upon Giselle's sweet skin. "Winning a ladies heart... isn't about playing some fancy tricks... games... or giving silly speeches..."

He stopped his kisses, making Giselle whimper in displeasure. However that didn't last long and quickly turned into moans of pleasure as Ash began massaging her shoulders in a gentle, yet firm motion. He smirked then and looked at Butterfree with a mischievous but confident look in his eyes. "The true way to a ladies heart my dear Pokémon, is by following a few very simple methods. First..."

He spun Giselle around and took hold of her, one hand on her waist and the other holding one of her hands. "Be calm and cool," He instructed simply as he looked directly into his girlfriend's eyes and swayed in a few fast dance steps that looked to be perfectly in rhythm even though there was no music. Giselle moved perfectly in step with Ash as she looked into his eyes deeply in return and allowed him to lead their bodies in perfect harmony.

Ash ended the small dance by dipping Giselle low and supporting her by placing one hand in the small of her back. He teased her by lowering his lips to hers but not allowing any contact to actually be made, merely brushing across one another. He kissed Giselle's nose and looked back up the enraptured Butterfree with that same smirk still in place. "Lesson two... confidence."

He pulled Giselle back up and as she rose he let his hand leave her back, which in turn lead to her starting to fall backwards. Ash quickly stepped behind her and caught his girlfriend before she could fall, wrapping his arms around her warmly as he pressed his body to hers and raised her back up slowly. He pressed his cheek to hers and gently brushed a few strands of hair away from her ear as he began whispering barely audible sweet nothings to her.

Ash kissed his now very flustered girlfriend on the cheek softly before looking at Butterfree again, whom had his eyes locked onto them intently, while this time grinning like crazy. "Last lesson... passion."

He then picked Giselle up slightly and spun them both around before gently sitting her down on the lip of the basket against one of the support poles as he put one hand on her waist to brace her and let his other hand gently caress her cheek. He turned his head slightly to the side but still kept his eyes locked with his girlfriend's own, an equal burning in both their eyes. "Now pay attention Butterfree... this is important."

With that said he closed the remaining distance between he and Giselle and placed a soul-searing, though not inappropriate, kiss on her lips. Their bodies merged closely together until they seemed to be one person as Ash deepened the kiss and massaged his hand through her hair, bringing it to the back of her neck and drawing her closer to him.

By the time Ash finally pulled away from Giselle she had a starry eyed and dumbstruck expression on her face. He gently let her back down and her legs began to give out as she started to fall to the floor. Ash grabbed ahold of her and softly placed her on the floor of the basket until she was resting comfortably against the side of it. Leaving his blissful looking girlfriend where she was with one last soft kiss to the lips, he stood back up and walked over to where Butterfree was still perched atop the edge of the basket.

The Pokémon was staring at his smug looking trainer with undisguised awe in his eyes while Pikachu, who had left his trainer's shoulder and was also sitting on the edge of the basket near Butterfree, just shook his head in amusement.

Ash leaned against the basket and shifted until he was leaning on one arm and looked at Butterfree with that same confident look on his face. "You see Butterfree? Don't try so hard to impress whatever other Butterfree you fall for. Being yourself, acting confident, being calm and collected and even staying... what's the word I'm looking for here..." Ash wondered absently as he looked out across the sky and tried to find the right word to tell Butterfree.

Pikachu looked over at his Trainer and twitched his ears. "Pika?" He suggested.

Ash snapped his fingers and grinned widely. "Thanks Pi that's exactly the word I was looking for!" He said gratefully as he scratched his Pokémon on the head.

He then looked back at Butterfree and continued what he was saying previously. "What I was getting at Butterfree is about acting somewhat... aloof and playing it smooth if the one you have a thing for seems to not like you back. In situations like that, trying to impress them won't do you any good no matter what you may try. You'll only succeed in somehow making a fool of yourself. Instead, you need to make them want you.

Demonstrate how tough, cool, caring and strong you are in an indirect way. Act like their seemingly apparent disinterest in you doesn't mean a thing because you know how great you are and that them rejecting you won't change that. You say, 'Hey you're missing out' and then go on your way. If they really do like you but are playing hard to get then making them want you is the most sure fire way of winning them over. Just remember two very important things!"

Ash gestured with his fingers to get his point across, starting with one. "Don't ever get all teary eyed and upset in front of the female you like when and if you get rejected! Doing something like that will only show a lack of confidence which is not attractive to any member of any species of the opposite sex! And second!"

Ash came within a few inches of Butterfree's face while holding up a second finger with a serious expression on his own face."Don't ever let your 'playing it cool' act come across as being some cocky, arrogant jerk. No female worth their while will find that attractive. That's almost as much of a turn off as having no confidence at all. Understand?" He asked Butterfree firmly.

His Pokémon just nodded with a gleam of determination in his eyes as he called out affirmatively, "Free Free!"

Ash smiled and nodded his head in a silent signal as Butterfree turned around and then took off into the sky towards the large mass of other Butterfree gathered higher up in the sky. Giselle had recovered from Ash's romantic assault by this point and stood beside him while he smiled proudly after his Pokémon.

"When did you get so smart and wizened about romance and matters of the heart Ash?" Giselle asked. "I've known ever since we started dating that you're a romantic at heart but... what you just did was amazing!" Hearts formed in her eyes as she latched onto his arm and kissed his cheek.

Ash chuckled and squeezed her firmly but gently to him. "I may be young, too young some might say for the things I know and the ways I act, but you have to remember Giselle that I was raised by my mother. She's a big time romantic and very gifted at reading people's emotions and feelings. She didn't want a... how did she put it? 'Romantically dense Mankey' for a son that wouldn't know the first thing about love and how to impress a girl when I met one I liked. She always said my dad was like that when she first met him and really had to work with him a lot to knock, literally sometimes, the denseness out of him. She didn't want the same for me so she worked and drilled this type of stuff into me constantly."

He smiled as a fond look came over his face. "Professor Oak and his family helped my mom raise me from the time I was little and Amelia is just like her when it comes to matters of the heart, so I got it from both of them. The Professor is also quite a romantic himself and has always had a way with words so he had a hand in it too. He actually writes some pretty good poetry to be honest and that's something I really wanted to learn those five years I trained with him but we never had the time. After the Indigo Conference is over I would really like to finally start learning about it if he'll teach me, which he said he would."

Ash grinned after saying that. "Actually I think Professor Oak was ecstatic when I asked him to teach me about poetry. It was almost as intense of a reaction as the time I told him I wanted to study how to become a Pokémon Researcher." The memory of the Professor dancing around in joy at finally having a pupil to pass on the knowledge of all the many things he knew brought a full on laugh from the young Ketchum as he remembered the day he asked the Professor to take him as a student.

Giselle looked starry eyed at the prospect of Ash learning poetry as said boy just shook his head. "Anyway, you can understand where I get my... romantic prowess from now if you wanna call it that. Living around a bunch of love fanatics for so long really rubs off on you I guess." Ash scratched the back of his head and laughed cheesily. "Of course I'm no expert by a long shot but at least I'm better than Brock." He flicked a finger in the other boy's direction and Brock looked immediately indignant.

"Hey!" He started to defend himself.

Misty just slapped him over the head. "Shut up Brock you know it's true!" She then went on to grumble about 'rotten perverts' while Brock merely whimpered and clutched his sore head.

Giselle giggled and kissed Ash's cheek. "Yes you most certainly are." She then suddenly had a thoughtful look come across her face after saying that. "What about your rival Gary though Ash? Didn't he ever get 'the lessons'?" She half joked, half genuinely asked.

The raven haired Trainer looked at his girlfriend for a second before busting out into laughter, holding his side from the pain of laughing so hard. Giselle seemed confused. "What's so funny?" She asked perplexed.

Ash wiped his eyes of the tears that had collected there during his laughing fit and took a few deep breaths before answering Giselle's question. "Well uhh..." He began, still refraining from laughing again. "Let's just say that Gary was always so focused on being the 'cool kid of Pallet' and bragging about how great of a Pokémon Master he was going to be that he never took the time to learn hardly anything the family had to teach him. If it wasn't directly related to making him better than everyone else he didn't want to 'waste his time' as he put it."

He then shrugged. "Besides, him learning from the Professor would have meant being in the same room as me for an extended period of time and he always said that he didn't want to catch my 'loser syndrome' by being stuck with me for too long. So no Giselle, anything Gary may know about winning over the opposite sex came almost entirely from self instruction. Anytime his mom would try to talk to him he would just wave her off like she knew nothing," Ash finished while shaking his head and sighing at the end of his story.

Giselle looked aghast. "Seriously?! Arceus how can someone be so... arrogant?! Even when I was a stuck up bitch back in Pokémon Tech I always was anxious to learn something new. For anyone to act that way... especially towards their own family is just... ugh!" She snorted in disgust and then shook her own head. "Weren't you and he really close as young kids too?" She asked.

Ash nodded his head, a somewhat sad look forming on his face. "Yeah we were... when we were really little. Being that my parents were always so close to the Oaks my mom and I were almost always around them. Daisy is about eight years older than me but she was still always really nice to both me and Gary. Always looking out for us and making sure we didn't get into too much trouble. She treated me just like she did Gary and he really was her brother..." Ash trailed off then as he thought about the attractive, kind young female Oak who was always so nice to him.

Suddenly remembering the incident back on Maiden's Peak and Gastly taking on the form of Daisy, which really bothered Giselle when she saw how much it effected him, Ash quickly got back on topic. "Anyway, me and Gary got along just like brothers from the time before we could even walk. We would always get into so much trouble that Daisy would then have to get us out of it!" He laughed out loud at some of the funny memories that suddenly flashed through his head of an angry Daisy Oak dragging he and Gary back to the adults by their ears, only to get the most painful butt spankings of their life afterwards.

Ash sobered up a little from his laughter then as a melancholy expression came back over his face again. "It didn't stay that way forever though... I remember that even from my earliest days I was always obsessed with two things, learning and Pokémon. The learning part usually always being about Pokémon and how it could benefit my journey when I came of age. Even before my mom told me stories of my dad being this great Pokémon Trainer himself, I was already obsessed with the idea of becoming one. Hell, she told me that the first word out of my mouth was the name of a Pokemon!"

Misty laughed from where she was leaning against one of the support beams for the balloon. "Somehow that doesn't surprise me at all about you Ash..." She said while shaking her head in amusement.

Ash shot her a mock glare before looking back out at the large expanse of sky before them. "She doesn't remember what the name of the Pokémon was but she knows that it was definitely the name of one. A huge shock for a parent expecting their kid's first words to be either 'mama' or 'dada' or something like that. That was just me though, always obsessed with Pokémon and I really can't put my finger on why."

Well actually, he had a feeling it had to do with him being this "Chosen-One' that Arceus told him he was all those years ago but he couldn't be sure and besides... he still wasn't ready to tell his friends about that yet anyway.

Ash just shook his head then and continued on. "Gary always jokingly teased me for being such a 'nerd', even though he was equally as excited to start his own Pokémon journey, but he always saw past that and we remained friends. It wasn't until he and I turned about eight that he really started changing then..."

Giselle looked curious. "What happened?" She coaxed.

Ash sighed. "He started hanging out around all of the other kids in Pallet and I became more... reclusive. See, I was an odd ball, a freak to all of the other kids because of my crazy obsession with studying about Pokémon and training with Professor Oak. I never hung out with them, only Gary, and he never really minded my obsession besides the occasional teasing he did. He didn't let them calling me a 'weirdo' and a 'freak' change his view of me and we stayed friends.

He never stuck up for me though since one, they never said anything to my face and two, I told him not to bother because their words never bothered me even if I did hear them. It was just immature ramblings of children. With that understanding we continued getting along just fine."

Ash frowned. "However, after my fifth birthday I became really serious about preparing for my Pokémon journey and started working almost constantly with Professor Oak and my mom. Me and Gary began hanging out less and less and eventually he started running around with all the other kids almost constantly. Two of which actually became trainers the same day me and Gary did."

He sighed again. "You can imagine that with Professor Samuel Oak, world renowned Pokémon Researcher being his grandfather... everyone expected a lot of Gary. Ever since we were little and started showing interest in becoming Pokémon Trainers ourselves, almost all of Pallet Town expected Gary to be some great prodigy that would rock Kanto. He's always been really smart, really good with Pokémon and more than a bit of a showboat even though he never really trained or put himself through any intense studying or training. He was just naturally gifted..."

"Like you," Giselle interrupted with a sweet smile at her boyfriend.

Ash smiled softly and kissed her forehead. "Well... I don't know about that but thanks. I really don't know if I have any natural talent because I started training myself from the time I was practically still a toddler. Because of that, any talent I may have concerning Pokémon Training I would like to think has come from my training and hard work instead of just having naturally without working for it."

He just shrugged and smiled then. "Besides, any skills this group has comes from my Pokémon." The boy looked over at Pikachu, who was still perched upon the railing of the balloon. "Right Pi?"

Pikachu looked back at his trainer and smiled, pointing back at Ash. "Pikachu Pi Pikachu!" He chirped enthusiastically, almost as if he was saying, 'Nah, its a team thing'.

Giselle shook her head and smiled, kissing Ash's cheek once more. "Okay then Mr. Modest, what happened next?"

Ash looked up at the clear blue sky and took a deep breath. "Well, Gary was pretty much the showboat of Pallet as I said before. Even when he wasn't trying to be. The other two kids that left on the same day we started our journey, who I really can't even remember their names right now but anyway... even they were naturally pretty good when it came to Pokémon and bragged about their 'greatness' all the time. They were the ones that really started getting Gary into the whole bragging and 'I'm better than everyone else is' attitude."

He looked down at the ground far below then. "They kind of turned him into the ring-leader after a while I suppose. With them always fawning over how 'great' he was gonna be and the way almost all of the adults in Pallet bragged about much pride Gary and the other two, mostly Gary, was going to bring to the town, they couldn't help getting big heads. Gary especially. He started believing all the hype everyone was pushing at him just like the other two did and he just fell into that circle. It didn't take him long and he even began believing what all the kids were saying about how much of a 'weirdo, loner loser' I was. After that I just became 'Ash the Loser' in his eyes and our friendship ended. At least on his end."

Giselle raised a delicate eyebrow. "On his end?"

"Why didn't anyone think you were also going to do anything great Ash, besides your family?" Misty chimed in.

"I thought your dad was a really good Pokémon Trainer?" Brock also stepped into the conversation.

Ash just chuckled. "I'll answer Giselle first. To Gary our friendship is done but to me, I never let anything he said even after he changed into who he is now bother me. I still don't. He's just caught up right now in his own hype and fantasy world where no one is better than him. I have no doubt that eventually he'll come down off the pedestal he's on or he'll be forcefully pulled off by someone who shows him just how much he still has left to learn. A loss so intense that he won't be able to block it out like he did after he battled against that Team Rocket Admin on the Anne. When that happens, Gary'll eventually either change for the better or worse. If its for the better then I'll be there to pick our friendship back up and move forward. Maybe get that brotherly bond back that we used to have."

He shrugged. "Even though Gary looks at me as nothing more than a 'loser' he still sees me as his rival for some reason. He's obsessed with always making sure he's better than me and stays three steps ahead at all times, or at least in his mind he's always ahead. I honestly could care less who's further 'ahead' and quite frankly don't see him as a rival at all. To me he's just another aspiring Pokémon Trainer like myself that has big dreams and will try his hardest to achieve them in whatever way he sees the most effective.

I respect Gary for his own skill as a trainer and would never underestimate him in a battle no matter how much training my Pokémon and I do. Nor would I ever do the same with anyone else. Still... I personally foresee looking at anyone as a 'rival' to be utterly pointless. Instead of striving to achieve the level of someone else and obsessing over how to defeat one person, I find it more worthwhile to put that same attention into broadening your horizons for every trainer you encounter out there. Training both yourself and your team in such a way so that you may defeat any opponent you happen upon, instead of just some rival that you've been obsessed with beating. You do that and you become one dimensional."

He turned to Misty. "To answer your question Mist... I never showed any talents I may have possessed nor my knowledge of Pokémon that I learned through my own hard studying and from Professor Oak. No one ever knew if I was adept at anything concerning Pokémon or my future as a trainer. Most everyone in Pallet besides my family counted me out as another hopeful that would barely make it out of the gate. Even now no one really knows of my current progress besides mom and Professor Oak and that was the way I requested it. Surprise and deception are one of a trainer's greatest weapons after all. I want everyone back home to be shocked beyond belief when they see my Pokémon's progress at the Indigo Conference."

Ash crossed his arms and then looked at Brock to answer his question. "To answer you Brock, my father is a very talented trainer and successful in many ways from what my mother always told me. However, for all of his talent he never achieved any renowned success for himself. He never claimed victory in any League Tournaments, only smaller competitions. From what I was told he had a reputation for... succumbing to pressure at the major conferences and thus, never brought any real fame or notability to Pallet Town."

Ash looked down. "I'm not going to be known for the accomplishments of my father. I would refuse them even if he had any. I want to be known for mine and my Pokémon's own achievements. Doing the things my father never could and paving my own way in this world. I will refuse anything less."

He finished with such a sense of determination and seriousness in his voice that it took his friends slightly aback. Though... Giselle could have sworn she heard an ever so slight amount of bitterness in Ash's voice whenever he mentioned his father. She just brushed it off as most likely hearing things however since it was gone as soon as it appeared.

"Well I respect that about you Ash," Brock commended after breaking the silence. "It shows that you're willing to make your own way regardless of what others may think of you."

"Those others back in Pallet will be in for a huge surprise when they finally see you and your Pokémon perform!" Misty assured with a grin as she thought about all of the people Ash was going to prove wrong about him.

"You know Ash, I think the way you view your relationship with Gary is very mature and shows that you won't be brought down to his level," Giselle stated with a smile.

Ash smiled at her and his friends in return, nodding in gratitude, before turning his attention back to the crowd of Butterfree that was now flying all over the sky trying to find their mates. He spotted his own Butterfree flying just above all the rest as he kept looking around and scanning the female Butterfree. None of them must have peeked his interest or seemed good enough for the Bug-Type though because he would look intently at each female he would see, only to snort in disinterest and look away.

Many trainers were still releasing their Butterfree during this time and as Giselle looked at the faces of all the trainers, she was surprised to see a mixture of both happiness and sadness in their expressions. In fact, not a single trainer except for Ash didn't appear this way.

She turned to her boyfriend in confusion then. "Ash, why do all of the trainers look so sad?"

He looked at her and then back to the large mass of Butterfree as he tightened his grip on Giselle's waist and began massaging Pikachu behind the ears. "Don't you remember what Brock told us back at Hutber Port? When trainers come here to let their Butterfree find mates they usually know what it means. Letting them find a mate means, most of the time, that they will have to be released so they can follow the rest of their kind to the Butterfree mating grounds somewhere in the Orange Islands and have their babies," He explained.

Giselle seemed to understand as she nodded. "But you won't have to do that though since you can send your Butterfree and whoever it gets as a mate back to Professor Oak's lab so they can lay their babies there right?" She asked.

He nodded again and smiled. "That's right. It's like Brock said before, most trainers can't keep a mating pair of Butterfree with them because they lay so many eggs and it wouldn't be possible to take care of them all on the road. I on the other hand have the wide open and largely expansive territory of the lab to send mine to. They can lay their babies there and raise their family without any fear of danger or lack of food." Ash silently thanked Arceus as he said all of this and felt fortunate yet again for Professor Oak.

Giselle smiled at him again and leaned into him. "You should be proud you thought ahead like this Ash. I know it would have really been upsetting for you if you would have had to have released Butterfree."

Ash nodded once more and looked down for a moment. The very thought of releasing any of his Pokémon, practically members of his family, for any reason at all made him feel sick to his stomach. The only way he would ever release a Pokémon was if that Pokémon itself specifically requested to be released.

He quickly shook his head free of such thoughts and turned his attention back to the Butterfree. He saw his own Pokémon still flying around while looking this way and that, gazing at all of the choices he had laid out before him but not looking overly impressed with any of them.

Misty stifled a laugh. "Wow Ash your Butterfree sure is picky!" She prodded teasingly.

Ash laughed himself. "What can I say? He inherited his trainer's exquisite tastes!"

Before Misty could respond Brock suddenly lunged forward and leaned over the side of the balloon, nearly falling out in the process and was only kept from doing so by Ash and the balloon merchant grabbing ahold of the back of his shirt frantically.

Ash grunted as he pulled Brock back. "The hell Brock! Are you trying to fall out of the balloon and kill yourself?!"

The teenager just pointed forward at another balloon some distance away from them with a starry eyed and love struck expression on his face. "Right over there!" He shouted. "That balloon right there!"

Ash and the others followed Brock's gaze and saw who he was pointing at. A young woman was standing in the basket of her balloon some distance away in front of them with a Pokéball held tightly to her chest and a sad, yet bittersweet expression on her face. She spoke something to the Pokéball that obviously none of them could hear and then threw it out into the sky.

The Pokémon that came forth from the Pokéball did nothing short of amaze every single one of the kids in the balloon, especially Ash. Even Donny looked shocked.

What they were all staring at in awe was none other a beautifully colored pink Butterfree. Almost completely solid pink.

The Pokémon twirled around in the air after being released with very impressive grace and beauty. So much so that everyone had to assume with no questions that she had to be female for not even Ash's own Butterfree was so elegant and graceful. There was just always something about the way a female could move their bodies that no male, no matter how well trained, could ever hope to replicate. That was just a truth with all species.

The young woman in the basket said what was obviously a tearful farewell to her Pokémon and Ash managed to catch a glimpse of her placing her thumb on the release button of the Pokéball. Anytime a trainer ever wanted to release their Pokémon they would have to first call them out from the ball, point it at the Pokémon and then press and hold the button on the front of the device. A fail safe method of keeping constant pressure on the ball for one minute and a command phrase would assure that accidental release didn't occur if pressure was mistakenly applied to the ball for some reason.

After one minute of holding constant pressure on the small button followed by saying the word 'Release' a white beam of light would shoot from the ball and touch the Pokémon. This white beam was sort of like a 'detachment function' that separated the Pokémon from the Pokéball by eliminating the cellular recognition feature that allowed the devices to contain their tenants.

The only other way one could release their Pokémon was by crushing the Pokéball like Charmander did with Damian.

Ash watched as the woman completed the release of her Pokémon and waved one last tearful good-bye to it before the pink Butterfree took off into the crowd of other Butterfree. All of the other Bug-Types turned their heads upon noticing the arrival of their strangely colored, yet very elegant kin. Nearly all of the male Butterfree took immediate action and started flocking to the pink one, proving that it was definitely female.

Ash watched on in amusement as nearly all of the males started doing everything imaginable to catch her attention and impress the new object of their attraction. They tried everything from showing off their moves like Agility, Tackle, Silver Wind and Confusion, to displaying their speed, strength, agility and grace in flight.

Ash observed all of the rather sad and wasted attempts at impressing the pink Butterfree, who clearly couldn't care less, with a keen eye. He could tell from watching that none of these other Butterfree came even close to his own and his amusement only further increased when the males started fighting one another for the pink ones attention.

The pink Butterfree was obviously not amused with all of the brutish attempts at winning her over and would merely look in the opposite direction every time one of the males would get the courage up to actually approach her side and talk to her. This led to many of the more sensitive Butterfree flying away towards the forests in the distance with tears streaming from their eyes, caused by the rather harsh rejections from the pink Butterfree. The trainers that hadn't released those same Butterfree yet would follow them down in their balloons in order to find and comfort their now distraught Pokémon.

Ash actually cringed a few times when one of the more persistent Butterfree would apparently annoy the pink one so badly that she would slap them hard with her wing in attempt to get them to leave her alone. This naturally caused the struck Butterfree to feel great shame, rejection and pain as they would also fly towards the ground while crying historically afterwards.

As the kids and Donny watched the pink Butterfree shoot down more and more of the males, leading to tears and the descending of many hot air balloons so the trainers could comfort their Pokémon, Giselle spoke up with a tone of amazement to her voice. "Wow... I never would have believed that the Butterfree mating season would be so... harsh and cruel! Are all the female Butterfree like this?" She asked the balloon merchant as she looked out over the other female Butterfree that didn't look to be nearly as hard to impress as the pink one.

Donny shook his head. "Not at all. Usually the rituals of the Butterfree finding mates is a rather harmonious and peaceful time. Every year up to now has been a real joy watching the Pokémon pair off, for both myself and the many trainers who come here. Male Butterfree are usually not aggressive with each other since there are always so many females to choose from but this year... out of all the years I've done this I have never seen such hostility, nor I have I ever seen a female as hard to impress as that pink one is. Either she just has a bad attitude or is very hard to catch an interest," He explained with a frown.

Misty glared after the pink Butterfree. "I think she simply has a bad attitude! Its just cruel being so cold and abusive to those other Butterfree! What makes her so special besides that pink coloring? Nothing!" She fumed as she turned away and crossed her arms.

Ash shook his head and then spoke, "Its not that simple Misty."

Giselle looked at him. "What do you mean?" She asked confused while Misty also seemed curious.

He looked at the pink Pokemon in thought for a few moments and observed the way she flew and carried herself before answering. "I don't believe her 'bad attitude' is just because she thinks her odd coloring makes her better," He began. "Just by watching the way she's been moving around I can tell she must have been pretty well trained and taken care of. She looks to be pretty strong if the hits she's been giving those other Butterfree are any indicator. She's also very elegant, graceful and most likely pretty agile if that showy release from her Pokéball is any clue."

Misty interrupted him. "But what does any of that have to do with her being such a priss?!" She demanded.

Ash held his hand up. "Think about it Mist, in the world of Pokémon there is always an established hierarchy no matter what the sex or species. A strong Pokémon won't 'lower' themselves to breed with a weaker one. Professor Oak explained to me that its only in a Pokémon's nature to be attracted to the stronger specimens in their species. Its an obvious occurrence if you think about it because breeding is for what? Reproduction and the continuation of that species. Both Pokémon want to give birth to as strong of an offspring as they can or otherwise it may not survive. Its ingrained into a female's instincts to only mate with a male who is as strong as them or even better, stronger. You can't fault a Pokémon for their natural instincts, its just who they are," He told her like he was giving a lesson.

Misty huffed again. "Its still rude in my opinion."

Ash quirked an eyebrow at her. "Would you have went out on a date with say... Brock's younger brother Forrest? Someone who is both younger and more immature than you, thus 'weaker'?" He inquired.

Misty looked taken aback. "No of course not!" She denied vehemently.

Ash smirked. "And what would you have done if he would have went all 'Brock junior' on you and wouldn't have taken no for an answer?"

Misty slammed her fist into her palm. "I would have pounded the annoying little pervert that's wh-" She suddenly stopped mid-sentence and let the words she just said sink in. She realized that what she would have done to Forrest in order to get him to leave her alone would have been the same thing that the pink Butterfree was now doing to all of the males that were annoying her and wouldn't leave her alone. She tried to get them to see she wasn't interested by turning her head away and when they didn't listen, she struck them. It was a natural instinct that Ash just proved even she herself had.

Forrest was younger, more immature and in a sense 'weaker' than her. She obviously wasn't attracted to such a thing and would never go for him. Ash himself was younger than her by around two years and Giselle even a little older than her at thirteen. However, the rules were completely different when it came to him. Ash didn't act, look or even seem younger than any of them. Given the unnatural height for his age, he stood right at equal height with both her and Giselle. Brock being taller only because he himself was fifteen, five years older than Ash was.

Besides, even with the physical issues being covered, Ash always acted much older mentally than his real age. Even out classing Brock in that aspect many times over the past few months that they had all been traveling together. After one were to go through all of that information it definitely wasn't so hard to believe that Ash would have Giselle, a girl three years his senior, as his girlfriend and Misty herself forming such deep feelings for him.

That was just Ash though and he was a complete oddity in every way, shape and form. Meaning one couldn't use him as an example. Especially not when comparing him to Forrest. That was like trying to compare how similar water and fire were to each other.

Upon Ash seeing Misty's sudden understanding he smiled to himself and patted her on the shoulder. "Now you get it." It wasn't so much of a question as it was a statement.

Giselle looked up into the sky, a little farther away from where the pink Butterfree and her horde of admirers were at, and saw Ash's Butterfree flying high with his own group of female Butterfree flying around him, desperately trying to get his attention. She could tell Butterfree was playing the cool act, which was what most likely gathered his little fan base along with a few flashy displays he probably did here and there with his physical abilities. She could see he wasn't impressed but however, he was handling the 'annoyance' much better than his pink counterpart was.

Every time one of the females would try get his attention, Butterfree would politely acknowledge them on a friendly basis and then switch his attention to the next one. Every once and awhile he would do a quick flourish with his wings that would kick up some wind and cause his yellow scarf to blow around, giving him a very 'flashy' and 'debonair' look that would make the female Butterfree around him swoon. Never once would he ever raise a wing to any of the females bugging him though, which Giselle was very proud of him for. Even though he wasn't her Pokémon.

She did however suspect that Butterfree was enjoying the attention and that's why he seemed to be egging it on, which made her giggle to herself and be reminded of just how alike trainer and Pokémon could be as she looked to the side at her flirty boyfriend. He had also followed her gaze up to his Pokèmon and was smirking at how Butterfree was acting with the females. She could literally see the pride he had for his Pokémon in that moment eeking out of him and it made her shake her head amusedly.

She turned her head to the side of the basket then where Pikachu was perched and thought she would see him also shaking his head at his trainer and fellow Pokémon's antics but was surprised when she instead saw him covering his mouth with one paw, along with his eyes slightly squinted and upturned in a mischievous looking way. She couldn't understand what he was doing until she noticed how his body was very lightly shaking, almost trembling. She feared Pikachu was having some sort of attack and quickly leaned in to check him out closer. She was only further puzzled when she started hearing sounds, strange sounds, coming from the Electric-Type.

"Pik... Pika Pika... Pika Pika Chu Pi!" He muffled out through his paw in that same strange way.

Giselle scrunched her brow up and looked at his face, slightly leaning over the basket in the process. It was then she realized that Pikachu wasn't having an attack, nor was he in any kind of pain whatsoever. No... the little yellow mouse was actually giggling... perversely... as he looked up at Butterfree high in the sky whom was still surrounded by all of the females.

Pikachu still had his paw over his mouth with his eyes upturned in that strange and mischievous way as he continued laughing in the perverse manner, obviously with many improper thoughts passing through his head at the moment.

Giselle grew a deadpanned expression on her face then as a sweat drop formed at the back of her head. Her lips puffed out comically and her eyes took on the look of two thin lines just like Brock. She brought herself completely back into the balloon after a moment of watching the now revealed to be closet pervert Pikachu and then dropped her chin to her chest as she started massaging her temples. All while murmuring something about being surrounded by perverts as she did so.

Almost as if someone had prayed to the silver haired, wart nosed 'super pervert God' Brock suddenly lunged forward again and pointed to the pink Butterfree while he shouted up to Ash's own, "Look Butterfree! Right down there at that pink one!"

Butterfree turned his head after hearing Brock's shout and gazed down through a slight opening between the flying bodies of the many female Butterfree surrounding him and tried to spot just who his trainer's perverted friend was telling him to go for.

Brock made another wild gesture and thrusted his arm further out of the basket towards the pink Butterfree. He was nearly tipping out of the balloon once more and was stopped from falling yet again by Ash and Donny grabbing the back of his shirt-vest again and pulling him in. "She's the one you want Butterfree!" He shouted wildly. "Go for her and ignore all the rest! SHOW HER THE WINGED STUD YOU TRULY ARE AND WIN HER HEART!" He encouraged loudly.

Ash and the older man managed to pull Brock back in as Giselle crossed her arms and looked at him with a perplexed look on her face. "Why are you so dead set on Ash's Butterfree and that pink one getting together Brock?"

The teen brought his hands up in front of him in a swift motion as he began talking with stars in his eyes. "That pink Butterfree's former trainer is one of the prettiest girls I've ever seen Giselle!" He then placed a hand under his chin while grinning. "Its only common knowledge that if two trainer's Pokémon get together then their trainers are almost always guaranteed to do the same thing!" By this point the older boy now had hearts for eyes instead of stars as he stared droolingly across the sky at the pink Butterfree's trainer, who was still watching her former Pokémon fly around.

Everyone else in else in the balloon sweat dropped until Misty suddenly bashed Brock over the head with her fist and knocked him to the floor of the basket. "Stay out of Pokemon love affairs Brock! If you go trying to taint the admittedly good advice that Ash gave Butterfree with the sad, pathetic little excerpts you've amassed in that sorry excuse for a love diary of yours then he'll never find a mate!" She scolded.

As Brock nursed his sore head with river tears running down his face, Ash looked back up towards the sky and saw that his Butterfree had managed to finally pick out the pink one. At the same time his eyes found her form she turned her head and their gazes met. Both shared a brief glance with one another while still trying to fend off their admirers and then looked away quickly.

Giselle sighed heavily and leaned forward onto the basket. "Well that didn't work... they aren't interested in each other either." She raised her fist to the sky. "Man this is so frustrating!"

Ash didn't say anything and instead just continued to watch his Butterfree. He did this for a while and as he did he started seeing something that made him smirk inwardly. He chuckled out loud after a few minutes of silence. "I actually think we may be in for a surprise." He announced.

Misty quirked an eyebrow. "What do you mean?" She asked curiously.

He pointed up at his Butterfree and then down to the pink one. "I believe those two are actually interested in each other." He announced with a smile on his face.

Everyone else in the basket looked back at the two Butterfree. "How can you tell?" Giselle asked. "I haven't seen either one make an outward move on the other even one time yet!"

Ash shook his head. "Actually, I've been watching closely and every couple of moments or so they'll steal a glance at one another when one thinks the other isn't looking," He informed them. "If that's not some form of interest then I don't know what is."

The others looked closer and after a few moments of careful observation they all witnessed Butterfree turn his head quickly to the side to catch a glimpse of the pink one before looking away again. This action was mirrored just seconds later by the oddly colored female.

Giselle clapped her hands together and hopped happily in place. "Aww they really do like each other! We gotta do something to help them!" She said eagerly.

A hand on her shoulder stopped her from hopping. She looked at the source of the hand and saw Ash shaking his head. "Lets just see how Butterfree handles this Giselle. One never learns by having others do all the work for them. I want to see if Butterfree can find a way to win her over by himself," He stated firmly.

Giselle just sighed and dropped her shoulders. "Its so aggravating just watching them cast little glances at each other though!" She wined loudly.

Ash chuckled lightly and crossed his arms. "Just have faith Giselle, I have a feeling Butterfree will find out exactly what to do," He said confidently.

With nothing better to do they all just turned their gazes back to the sky of Butterfree and centered their focus on Ash's Butterfree and the pink one, eagerly awaiting to see how everything played out.

Both Butterfree, who was the center of everyone's attention, continued stealing random glances at each other while trying to entertain the female Butterfree (in Ash's Butterfree's case) or just flat out trying to get rid of the male Butterfree (in the case of the pink one). This went on for some time and if at any point either Pokémon met the other's gaze they would quickly look away.

Ash watched this all go down with a calculating eye and started to wonder if Butterfree was going to make a move on the pink one at all until suddenly... something happened.

One of the male Butterfree surrounding the pink one decided that it had had enough of being ignored and moved in close to the female, touching her side with it's wing. The pink Butterfree took great offense to this action and quickly brought her own wing around and slapped the male in the face, sending him tumbling away from her.

The struck Butterfree instantly grew angry at being attacked and quickly flew back in until it was level with her face as it began angrily ranting in Pokéspeech at her. Whatever the angry male was telling her apparently started making sense to the other males because they also began to grow angry looks on their faces. Instead of merely flying beside her they instead started to surround her, making the female Butterfree look very uncomfortable.

Before the male Butterfree who started the trouble could do anything else, a blackish/purple streak came zooming in out of nowhere and slammed into the male. The force of the strike was so hard that the unsuspecting Butterfree was sent tumbling through the air several yards away.

The other Butterfree surrounding the pink one were suddenly caught up in a powerful gust of wind that was whipped up by the new arrival who had stopped in mid-air and spun itself around in a fast circle, flapping it's wing fast enough that the strong currents of wind blasted the other male Butterfree away from the pink one.

The blurring figure finally came to a stop and hovered in front of the pink Butterfree, revealing it's identity to be none other than Ash's own, very angry looking, Butterfree. All of the other males that had been blasted away by Butterfree's strong Gust attack were able to right themselves and once they did they glared at their attacker with clear as day fury in their eyes.

Ash's Butterfree began speaking angrily at all of the other males then, "Free Free! Butter Free Free!" His words apparently held quite a few insults and stinging comments in them because all of the males instantly bristled and looked even angrier than they did just moments prior.

They all began slowly surrounding Ash's Butterfree, who was hovering protectively in front of the pink one, in a wide circle with the one that Butterfree had tackled earlier taking the front position.

From the balloon, Ash and his friends were watching the new events unfold with trepidation and anxiety building within them. "Uh-oh..." Brock murmured. "This isn't good," He stated ominously.

Giselle glanced at Ash nervously. "Uhh... Ash? Don't you think you should do something to help Butterfree? Maybe send out Gastly or something because he's completely outnumbered..." She observed while glancing up at the ring of flying Bug-Types that was quickly boiling over into a bad situation. A situation that could easily turn into a full blown battle at any second now.

Ash kept his arms crossed and his eyes to the sky while he simply shook his head and replied calmly, "No. I want to see how Butterfree handles himself in a situation like this. He trains for multiple opponent battling every single day brutally with Beedrill and my other Butterfree. Both of them are strong, tough opponents so I have no doubt Butterfree can handle himself here if he remembers his training," Ash explained with confidence.

Giselle blinked. "But..."

Ash cut her off with a hand to her shoulder. "Don't worry, everything will be fine." He winked at her. "Trust me sweetie."

Giselle smiled and nodded her head. "Okay... I trust you know what you're doing," She conceded with faith in him. Ash smiled warmly at her and then turned his attention back to the throng of angry Butterfree.

"Show em' what you can do Butterfree..." Ash whispered to himself.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Some distance away, on the other side of the valley that made up the Butterfree Cliffs and was nestled in between the middle of two large canyons, were none other than the most loved and hated trio of Team Rocket... Jessie, James and Meowth.

The two humans were currently standing around a large black helicopter with a red 'R' etched onto the side for 'Team Rocket' while the furriest member of their team, Meowth, was inside of the machine on the driver's side finishing up with what looked to be like the wiring for the control panel. The helicopter itself was parked just outside of a large, abandoned looking warehouse that actually belonged to Team Rocket and was used as a storage building for miscellaneous machine parts, the occasional rendezvous point for teams of grunts and currently, serving as a base of operations for the trio.

The red haired woman groaned in exasperation and put her hands on her hips. "Are you about finished yet Meowth?!" She yelled irritably.

James also looked impatient as he crossed his arms. "Yeah Meowth we've been waiting for ages for you to finish what you're doing! Hurry it up already!" He pressed.

Meowth grunted as he worked on the wiring. "Just keep ya pants and skirts on yous twos, I'm workin' as fast as I can!" He yelled back.

Jessie groaned once more. "Why are we even doing this again?!"

James scratched his forehead with one finger while he thought about it. He then cupped his chin and hummed to himself. "I'm pretty certain it has something to do with a bunch of Butterfree gathering nearby... right?" He answered slightly confused.

Meowth finished the wiring at that same moment and jumped out of the chopper. "Ya don't remember da plan James?!" He asked in exasperation. "Its da Butterfree matin' season and trainers from all over da region come to an area near here ta release all their Butterfree so dey can find mates. We're gonna capture em' all wit da chopper here and din deliver em' to da boss!" He explained in irritation.

Jessie crossed her arms under her bust. "And why pray tell would the boss want so many flying insects? How much use could they really be!"

Meowth shook his head lamely. "Butterfree can learn some really strong status effectin' moves and even Psychic-Type ones like Confusion. Wit enough Pokémon like dat it could really help bolster da Team Rocket Pokémon ranks and make our jobs a whole lot easier! Not ta mention da boss'll be sure ta give us all a big cut for it!" He grinned darkly.

Jessie and James shared an excited look between each other after Meowth's explanation. "And once we get our big cut from the boss we'll move up in the Team Rocket ranks and have our own squad of grunts to command around as a bonus!" Jessie said merrily with a glint in her eyes.

James looked up at the big helicopter again and placed his hand under his chin in thought once more. "How are we going to go about catching all of the Butterfree though?" He directed his question at Meowth.

The talking Pokémon pointed to the underside of the chopper. "Dares a big net under da chopper dat'll open up when we get out over da swarm of Butterfree. Its got a lid dat'll shut over it once we get em' all and da net itself is infused wit steel fibers so it won't break dat easily." He smirked. "We'll get dim Butterfree no problem!"

Jessie raised her fist in the air. "What are we waiting for then?! Let's go and get those pests rounded up so we can get payed!" She shouted.

James shared in her enthusiasm and Meowth just hopped into the middle seat of the helicopter. He looked back at James. "You drive James and I'll operate da net!"

James and Jessie entered the machine and the blue haired man turned on the chopper. The back and top propellers came to life as the helicopter hummed with, low yet very loud whirling sounds and after a few seconds of letting it warm up, the Rockets took off into the air and headed towards the gathering area of the Butterfree.

XXXXXXXXXX

Back at the mating grounds, Ash and his friends were watching the tense stand-off between his Butterfree and the other males with concern and slight worry etched onto their faces.

Butterfree remained hovering resolutely in front of the pink one with a determined expression on his face as he stared down the other Butterfree. All seemed to be at a stand still until the lead Butterfree suddenly flapped it's wings quickly and sent a fast Silverwind attack at Ash's.

The scarf wearing Butterfree quickly responded in kind and launched his own Silverwind attack at his opponent's as the two collided together, canceling each other out. It was at this point that one of the others suddenly charged in at Butterfree's side.

Ash's Butterfree saw this coming and quickly spun out of the way just as his opponent passed him by. Butterfree then grabbed the other one by the wings quickly and turned it around using it's own momentum against it and threw it into one of the other Butterfree.

Two more Butterfree came quickly charging in again on either side while Butterfree quickly turned around and blasted the pink female out of the way of the fray with a soft, yet strong Gust attack, not wanting her to be in the way and potentially get hurt.

Just before his opponents could reach him, Butterfree zipped straight up into the air and let them collide painfully with each other.

From where he was at Butterfree saw a wing in the corner of his vision and turned just in time to see another of the Butterfree swinging it's wing at him. Butterfree quickly threw his own wing up and blocked the strike as he placed his other wing behind the blocking one and pushed forward hard, knocking the other male a little off kilter. He then did a spinning side flip in the air and brought both wings down on the other Butterfree, sending it downward into a quick descent.

No sooner did he do this and then Butterfree saw a large rush of wind coming at his front and a Silverwind coming from his back.

He spun himself around in a fast circle and started flapping his wings wildly as a funnel of strong looking wind whipped up around him. Both attacks collided with the much stronger gale and quickly beat themselves out, not able to withstand against it's might.

From inside the funnel of wind, Butterfree could see three others rocketing in towards him. He took advantage of this and waited until his opponents were nearly upon him. When they were close Butterfree flapped his wings out with a mighty thrust and then dropped from the funnel just as it was sent heading straight towards the other quickly approaching males.

Unfortunately for them, they were going much too fast and couldn't avoid the funnel as it sucked them up in into it's makeshift vortex and beat them around for awhile before expelling and whipping them arounnd to different corners of the open air while looking very dazed.

Butterfree then felt his wings go temporarily rigid and looked to see the lead Butterfree using what appeared to be Confusion to hold him in place. Although with much effort it seemed.

Butterfree saw another of the males come speeding towards him in an Agility enhanced Tackle. Thinking quickly, he used his own Confusion at the last second to take control of just the lead Butterfree's wings and slapped them down over it's face. This cut the visual connection and allowed Ash's Butterfree to be freed.

He then goaded the incoming Butterfree to come in faster with a gesturing wing and the other male became even madder as it picked up speed.

Ash's Butterfree waited until the very last second and then barrel rolled to the side just before impact could occur. This move caused the other Butterfree to look back at Ash's with confusion in it's eyes but then it looked back forward again and saw that it was heading towards the leader at speeds too fast to stop.

The lead Butterfeee still had it's wings over it's head and didn't see the other Butterfree until it was too late. The two then crashed into one another with a loud and painful 'WAM!' which knocked them both for a loop.

Then, with no reprieve, Ash's Butterfree was suddenly engaged in a vicious wing battle with two other Butterfree at the same time and fought back vigorously. Even though it was two on one, Ash's Pokémon was much more well trained and was able to defend against his opponents efficiently.

Ash's Butterfree suddenly had a bright idea come to mind then and sent both of his opponents reeling to the sides with a strong blast of wind from his wings. Just as both Butterfree prepared to charge in again, Ash's Pokémon prepared himself quickly.

Before his opponents could strike him with their wings, Butterfree quickly flapped his own towards the ground. The gust of wind from the wing beat was enough that it launched him much higher into the air just before his enemies could reach him.

The other two Butterfree went wide eyed when they saw this but couldn't stop in time and crashed into each other hard. They were both sent hurdling away from one another after the impact and it was at this moment that Butterfree went on the offensive.

A dead serious look crossed over his face as he started flapping his wings at a very fast speed which caused a small twister to kick up. The vortex of wind expanded and swept across the airspace, sucking up all of the enemy Butterfree that tried to escape too late. It spun them all around viciously inside of it's funnel and then thrust them out and away from each other in different directions with an intense display of power.

Ash and his friends looked on impressed as Butterfree took advantage of his now dazed opponent's states and then shot off like a rocket at the nearest one.

He came right up on top of one of the other males and smashed right into it with a punishing head smash that sent the other Bug-Type reeling across the sky and into another Butterfree.

Ash's Butterfree then quickly spun in mid-air and flapped his wings together, sending a strong Silverwind at a cluster of three other males.

The attack was pinpoint accurate and the fact that the Butterfree were still dazed from being trapped in the miniature twister earlier didn't help them at all. Upon making contact with them, the attack cut across the Butterfree like water through a screen as they fell towards the ground.

Five more of the males decided to swarm Butterfree all at once, even though they were still dazed, which made their 'tight formation' not so tight at all anymore and more of a loose circle instead.

Ash's Butterfree hovered in the center and shut his eyes while calmly turning his head from side to side, remembering all of the training it did with Beedrill and Ash's other Butterfree.

Just as one of the males came rushing in to attack, Butterfree spun around in a fast circle and brought his foot up into the other Pokémon's gut just before it could reach him, causing a gasp of pain to escape from said Pokémon.

As that Butterfree fell away, three more of the five came rushing in all at once. One of them thrust it's wings forward and sent it's own Silverwind at Butterfree while the second one launched a gust of wind at him and the third one just kept charging in.

Butterfree looked towards the Silverwind and gauged the situation. He then leaned back and rocketed towards the attack as fast as possible. Just before he came in contact with it, Butterfree beat his wings forward and caused a gust of wind to shoot ahead at the Silverwind, cutting a path straight through it.

Butterfree then folded his wings in and barrel rolled through what was left of the attack. He came up right in front of the very surprised Butterfree that had used the Silverwind and smashed into it with his head. He then got around behind the reeling Pokémon and sent it flying towards the incoming Gust attack that was sent by one of the other males with a strong gale of wind from his own wings.

The male Bug-Type was sent hurdling towards the gust of wind and became caught in it. Ash's Butterfree added to the effect by pushing his own powerful Gust into the weaker one, making it double in power and start to form another twister.

The small, yet powerful twister, pushed back towards the male that had initiated the 'battle of wind' with the other male still trapped within it's funnel. The attack quickly sucked in the other Butterfree and began beating the two Pokémon around inside of it's mighty tempest.

Eventually it dispersed and sent the two Bug Pokémon falling away with scrapes and bruises all over their bodies.

Ash's Butterfree turned his attention towards the fifth and final male and noticed that not only was it the last Butterfree in any condition left to battle, it was also the one that had started the whole fight by trying to force itself onto the pink female earlier.

He narrowed his eyes at his final opponent and crouched forward slightly, wings extending out towards the sides... a look of complete and utter calm, yet fierce aggression shining on his face.

The last male Butterfree of the group had a look of fear in it's eyes as it saw Ash's Butterfree prepare his attack. After seeing what the insane Bug-Type did to it's fellow males during the battle, it knew it wouldn't stand a chance and was feeling terrified at the prospect of what was to come. The Pokémon was so scared it couldn't even move it's wings properly to fly away. Instead it just hovered in place, watching as it's harbinger of pain prepared to deliver swift retribution upon it.

The only thing it could think of in that moment was how the crazy strong Butterfree in front of it could have the pink one for all it cared. No female was worth all of the intense pain it's brethren, and soon to be itself, had went through. It wished dearly it could take back trying to force itself upon the pink Butterfree but it was too late now. Even Pokémon knew about some form of karma and now it was time to pay.

In that same exact moment, Ash's Butterfree rushed forward in a burst of speed and power, signaling the start of an intense beating for his final opponent.

Before the other Butterfree could so much as blink, Ash's slammed into it with a hard bash of the head into the gut. The Pokémon doubled over in pain just as Butterfree rose up over the top of it and slammed his wings down onto his opponents back, careening it ground-ward.

Butterfree wasn't finished though and quickly flew down to meet his descending enemy. He reached the other Butterfree in seconds and flew below it, turning around and looking up at his opponent as he sent a strong gust of wind at it.

The other Butterfree was sent soaring back up into the sky immediately after the strong blast of wind hit it. Ash's Pokémon then flew up and met the other Butterfree with a passing slap of his wing.

He just continued repeating this process over and over again. With every pass he would make he would strike his opponent with either his wings or his head. The other Butterfree looked like a pinball as it was continuously thrashed around by his stronger kin.

Ash's Butterfree eventually started flying around his barely hovering opponent in a fast circle. As he continued soaring around in circles, the other Butterfree tried to keep up with it's eyes and even tried to attack with a few weak Gust attacks but every burst of wind would only hit an after image of Ash's Butterfree.

Eventually, Butterfree started flapping his wings towards the center of the circle he was flying around in sporadic, untimed intervals. Each of these flaps would release a strong Silverwind attack at the injured Butterfree, who was in the center of the circle the stronger one was making, and impact with it hard. Being so exhausted and beaten, the weaker Butterfree could only sadly attempt to block each Silverwind that came his way or try and move out of the way. These of which were almost constantly futile attempts.

After Ash's Butterfree had flown around in his circle, tossing Silverwind after Silverwind at his opponent, for several moments he finally stopped mid-flight and ended the assault.

The other Butterfree, who looked very beaten and battered by now, went to fall out of the sky but Ash's quickly flew towards it and caught it in his tiny but firm grip. He held a fierce scowl, fiercer than any Pokémon should have, as he held his nearly limp opponent in his tight hold. Ash's Butterfree then began rapidly and furiously speaking to the other one in their own native Pokéspeech as he shook it to get his point across. Whatever that point may have been.

From where Ash and his friends were watching from the balloon, they were all equally confused as to just what exactly Butterfree was doing to the other one.

"Ash, do you know what Butterfree is doing?" Misty asked, never taking her eyes off the scene before them.

The raven haired trainer merely shook his head as he stared intently up at the two Pokémon. "Have no idea Misty. Whatever it is I'm sure it has to be really important to Butterfree in order to make him so mad." He guessed.

Brock suddenly pointed up at the Butterfree. "Look what's happening guys!" He shouted.

They turned their attention back towards the Butterfree and saw that Ash's was now dragging the one he had in his grip through the air and back towards the pink Butterfree, who had been staying back a safe distance the entire fight while watching on in fascination at how powerful and skilled Ash's Butterfree was. He finally made it over to the female Butterfree and then shoved the other male at her.

The uniquely colored female just looked at the beaten male that had been delivered to her and then at the still angry looking Butterfree of Ash's with a look of slight trepidation on her face. Ash's Butterfree just smacked his felled opponent across the back with one of his wings and then pointed at the pink one with a fierce look etched onto his features. He then said something that no one in the balloon could hear but appeared as though it sounded very angry and commanding.

The weaker Butterfree lowered his head submissively and then turned to look at the pink one again. With a look of utter shame he began rapidly speaking to the female, whom just listened to him with shock clearly present on her face. The beaten and battered Butterfree continued speaking hurriedly to the female in an almost pleading manner while Ash's Butterfree watched him with a scathing look.

After the male Butterfree had finished with his rapid speech he stopped and looked at the pink one with a pleading and nervous expression. The female took a few moments to process everything that had just happened and eventually just gave a slight nod of her head in acknowledgment, still seeming rather taken aback.

The worn looking Butterfree went wide eyed and bowed to her as he said a few more hurried words in a gesture that looked very similar to gratitude. Ash's Butterfree then spun it around and looked into his opponent's eyes with that same stony, fierce expression. He said a few brief but very commanding words to the other Butterfree, who promptly nodded his head quickly, and then moved slightly to the side and made a 'get out of here' motion with one of his wings.

The shamed Butterfree bowed his head low as he quickly took up Ash's Butterfree on his generous offer to leave without any further harm. Without so much as looking at either of them again, the offending Butterfree flew as fast as posssible away from them and towards the large mass of other Butterfree that was still gathered all throughout the sky some distance away.

Ash's Butterfree spared one final glare at the retreating form of his opponent and then turned his attention towards the female just in front of him. Upon the both of them meeting eye contact, an awkward silence began to fall upon them. They both fidgeted about for a few moments, looking anywhere but each other until Ash's Pokémon eventually worked up the nerve to speak to the pink one.

No one in the balloon could hear what was being said but tried reading the Pokémon's body languages to tell what was happening. It seemed as though Ash's Butterfree was trying to ask the pink one if she was okay after what had happened and it was at that moment the pink Butterfree also seemed to have a sudden drastic change in attitude.

Instead of the somewhat timid and unsure persona she had been displaying after Ash's Butterfree stopped fighting and approached her, she seemed to completely change once he asked if she was alright. The female simply bristled in rage as a response and her face became one of anger, shame and a slight hint of embarrassment at the male's words of thoughtfulness.

She quickly turned her head to the side and crossed her tiny hands in front of her then in the show of a pout as she huffed.

Ash's Butterfree seemed to be at a complete loss as to what he did wrong and just hovered there for a moment looking unsure. Hesitantly he reached out to communicate with her and the pink female quickly used her wing to slap his hand away as she turned completely away, arms still crossed in that same pouting fashion.

The male rubbed his now sore appendage with a confused look on his face as he spoke to her. "Free Free? Butter... Free Free?" He asked slowly.

The moody female spun around to face the male with a look of irritation on her features. "Free! Butter Free Free!" She said angrily. Ash's Butterfree looked even more confused as the female continued, "Butterfree! Free Free Butterfree!" She made a gesture at the male as she made a swooping in motion with one of her wings in an exaggerated fashion. "Free Free Butterfree!"

She continued her rant and then pointed to herself before gesturing at the large crowd of other Butterfree, specifically the males Ash's Butterfree had beaten up, someways in the distance. "Butterfree! Free Butterfree!" She finished with another angry huff before turning away once again.

From inside their balloon, Ash and his friends were watching all of this take place and saw the angry little rant the female had just put Ash's Pokémon through. The young trainer seemed to understand what was going on eventually and simply slapped his palm to his face while groaning, "Man... out of all the crap!" He groaned again as he hung his head and draped himself over the balloon.

Giselle looked at her boyfriend with concern. "What is it Ash?"

He just raised his head and pointed at the two Pokémon. "I know what's the wrong," He grumbled miserably.

The brunette seemed curious. "And that would be...?" She pressed.

Ash stood back up fully and sighed. "I think the pink Butterfree is mad at mine for interfering in that fight and beating up all those other males. I think she believed that she could take them all on and when my Butterfree flew in and did it for her, to defend her honor, she got mad. Like it was attacking her pride or something." He sighed heavily again. "Of all the rotten luck..."

Misty looked up at the sky and glared at the pink Butterfree. "Hey what's the big idea getting all mad and upset at Ash's Butterfree uhh?! He was just trying to protect you from those other males and you attack him for it just because it hurt your pride? Well guess what! You're not worth his time you little-UMPH!" Brock suddenly slapped his hand over Misty's mouth then and pulled her back into the balloon while she continued ranting in his hand.

"Calm down Misty!" Brock struggled out as he held onto her. "This is a Pokémon affair, you can't get involved!"

While Misty and Brock continued their struggle, Ash and Giselle looked back up at the two Bug-Types, anxious to see what happened next.

It only took Ash's Butterfree a few seconds to process what the pink one had just ranted to him about and once it did, he formed an angry, defensive and frustrated look on his face. "Free Free! Butterfree Free! Free Free Butterfree!" He attacked back heatedly.

He wasn't confused anymore about why she was angry. Now that he knew she was mad at him just because he stepped in and defended her like any respectable male would do... it quite frankly pissed him off! He didn't get into a fight against multiple opponents, beat up his own kin and put himself in harms way just to get brushed off and scolded by some prissy, hot-headed female that didn't know when she was in way over her head. No way! He wasn't going to just roll over and let the 'pink princess' talk down to him for doing a good thing!

The pink Butterfree seemed surprised at how forcefully Ash's Butterfree responded back to her and didn't just fly off crying like the other males would have done by now. She just went slightly wide-eyed as he defended his actions to her and let it be known how he didn't appreciate her being so ungrateful for him saving her.

This last comment attacked her pride and instantly re-lit the anger she was feeling towards him as her eyes narrowed and caused her to fly right up into his face, biting back with harsh and stinging comments. Saying that he should have just kept his wings out of her business and let her defend herself since she was completely capable of doing so.

Ash's Butterfree simply leaned back as the female towered over him, angrily yelling in his face about how she had everything under control and that he just needed to mind his business, not making any other attempt at moving.

This obviously didn't sit well with the male though and as soon as she finished her second rant, he was up in her own face (much to the female's great surprise) fighting back and defending himself with just as much ferocity as she had been attacking him with.

This angry little back and forth continued on for several minutes with neither side giving an inch. The pink Butterfree would get into the male's face and give another stinging rant and then Ash's Butterfree would return fire just as readily without showing so much as an inch of being ready to back down. The entire thing looked quite comical really if you were watching from Ash and his friend's point of view.

Watching two angry Buterfree go at each other in a vicious exhibition of what looked to all observing as a classic 'lover's quarrel' with neither side budging an inch. Each of them taking taking turns getting into the other's faces with funny little 'chibi' forms as they fought on and on.

They actually managed to draw quite the crowd during their fight from not just the trainers in balloons but also several of the other Butterfree. Who would temporarily break their courtship rituals just to watch the intense back and forth battle play out.

Eventually, half of the entire flock of Butterfree had gathered around and were now watching the somewhat funny, yet incredibly terrifying verbal battle between male and female. Two stubborn Butterfree that absolutely refused to concede to the other.

Ash and the others merely watched from their balloon with sweat drops rolling down their backs as they watched the now very popular feud go back and forth with no end in sight. Giselle kept her eyes locked onto the spectacle with wrapped attention as she leaned over and whispered to Ash, "Something tells me that when you mentioned earlier about your Pokémon becoming known by everyone... you didn't have this in mind did you?"

Ash looked over at his girlfriend and saw that she had a very amused expression on her face that she was trying desperately hard to keep contained. He merely sighed again and hung his head.

"Why me?" He asked himself as his friends couldn't but laugh a little at the situation. Even Pikachu gave a small snicker which made Ash shoot his head up and give the Pokémon a dirty look. "Traitor! He's your teammate!"

Pikachu just pointed at Ash and laughed a little harder. "Pikachu Pi!' He chirped while shaking his head. Almost as if he was saying 'but he's YOUR Pokemon!'

Misty suddenly placed her hands above her eyes and squinted as she looked at the large mass of Butterfree that was now gathered around the fighting pair. She leaned up on her toes and tried to look over or in-between the mass of flying bodies but she couldn't. After a few more times of trying to get a better vantage she sighed in frustration. "AHH! I can't see them anymore because of all those other Butterfree surrounding them now!" She whined.

Ash looked back at Donny. "Can you take us up any higher so we can hopefully see over top of them?" He asked.

The merchant merely smiled and nodded. "Sure thing, everybody hold on!" He said as he pulled down on the lever below the fire grate that helped propel the balloon.

Ash grabbed onto one of the balloon supports while Giselle grabbed onto him, Pikachu hopped hopped onto his shoulder, Misty grabbed the railing and Brock took ahold of another of the support beams. They all watched as the balloon started climbing into the air higher and higher the longer Donny held down on the rope and sent flames through the mechanism.

Eventually the balloon had climbed to a height to where they were now the highest balloon in the sky, far above the mass of Butterfree down below but still in clear enough sight that they could now see Ash's Butterfree and the pink one hovering the middle of the crowd, still going at each other relentlessly. Ash leaned against the railing and continued to watch the two with a keen eye as he tried to figure out who would break first.

They all continued to watch the interesting encounter below them for several more minutes until suddenly, Pikachu's ears perked up at a sound he was hearing some ways away.

"Pika?" He said curiously as he bounded to the other side of the railing and looked out in the direction he was hearing the noise coming from.

Ash looked at his Pokémon and called over to him, "What's the matter Pi?"

When he didn't get a response from the electric mouse, Ash walked over until he was standing right beside of the railing Pikachu was perched on and looked out in the direction his Pokémon was. He stared off into the white, fluffy expanse of clouds that were blanketing the direction he was staring at and merely observed patiently while listening to whatever it was Pikachu was so interested in.

After a few moments of listening in silence, Ash began hearing something that sounded almost like the humming wings of several dozen Beedrill all at once and by the sound of it... whatever the object could be was getting closer and closer. Ash just leaned back into the balloon and continued to stare out at the horizon with a confused and weary look in his eyes.

He stepped back to his friends then and grabbed ahold of Giselle. "Guys... somethings coming this way." He warned while never taking his eyes off the direction the sound was coming from.

Misty looked at him and then where he was staring at. "What are you talking about Ash?"

He pointed. "I hear something weird coming from that direction. I don't know what it is but its making Pikachu nervous," He answered while looking up onto his shoulder at his Pokémon, who was twitching his ears in agitation.

Brock went over to the edge of the balloon and strained his ears to listen for the sound while Giselle walked away from Ash and over to the other edge as well as she stared off into the distance. "I don't hear or see any-" She suddenly stopped mid-sentence as everyone in the balloon started hearing the very sound that Ash was talking about. The noise was faint but they could all hear it. None of them could tell what it was but it sounded loud and it only got louder the closer whatever it was came to them.

Everyone adopted tense expressions then as Brock spoke up, "I don't know what it is but its getting closer and it sounds big..." He stated somewhat nervously.

Ash went and looked over the side of the balloon at all of the other balloons and the mass of Butterfree down below, who were still watching Ash's Butterfree and the pink one go at it, and could tell that none of them could hear what was coming. He grew slightly uneasy and quickly pulled his Pokédex out.

The boy input a few commands into the device and requested to have Pidgeot sent over to him from the Lab in return for sending Gastly back. He really hoped Professor Oak was home because whatever was coming their way, Ash had a bad feeling and if it really did turn out to be trouble, he wanted a Pokémon with him that could fight in the air effectively. Even more so than Gastly himself could.

Arceus was on his side fortunately because just seconds later, Pidgeot's Pokéball appeared on the teleporter pad of the Pokédex.

Ash quickly stowed the Pokéball away on his belt and put his Pokédex away as the sound started getting louder and louder as the clouds far in front of them began to shift and spin around erratically.

"Here it comes guys!" Brock yelled out.

No sooner did those words leave his lips and the clouds fully parted as a large black machine quickly made its way through the wispy covering. Ash and the others looked at the new arrival and took in it's appearance. The buzzing, whirling sound now at an almost deafening roar because of it's close proximity.

"Its a helicopter!" Donny exclaimed with a shout, putting an arm over his face to fend off the violent winds that were being blown their way by the machine.

As the flying vehicle came fully into view, flying closer and closer due to the fast speeds it was traveling at, they could all see that it was painted an almost solid black color. As the helicopter came closer and made a slight rocking motion to the side, Ash was able to see a bright red 'R' on its side. Anyone who had had a run in with the organization that used that particular letter as their symbol would have known who it was with no questions now. Ash was no exception.

"Team Rocket!" He yelled out in anger, startling the other occupants of the balloon.

"What?!" Giselle yelled back, looking at the helicopter along with Brock, Misty and Donny.

They all then saw the symbol of the dreaded organization and Misty shouted loudly so her voice would carry over the loud noise, "What are they doing here?!"

"I don't know but it can't be good!" Brock yelled back. Yelling really wasn't an option right now, more like a must. With the roaring of the helicopters engine and the sound of its rotator blades cutting through the air, the entire area was quickly becoming consumed in its almost deafening roar.

The machine came closer and closer to their balloon but instead of instead of continuing its current direction, it made a quick turn to the side and started descending downwards... straight towards the mass of Butterfree.

Giselle gasped. "They're going for the Butterfree!"

At that moment, all of the Butterfree and the trainers in the other balloons (who had been watching the machine since it arrived and started making the loud noise, effectively ending the fight between Ash's Butterfree and the pink one) began panicking upon seeing it coming for them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

(Inside of The Helicopter)

Jessie and James were cackling like mad as they watched the Butterfree start flying around in a panic, only succeeding in coming together in an even tighter formation and thus an easier target, while Meowth watched on with a stony face.

"Quit laughin' yous two and help me catch dim Butterfree!" He shouted. "Dat first balloon we saw had da twerps in it! We need ta get what we came for and get outta here before they ruin da plan!"

The two humans quit laughing almost instantly. "You're right Meowth!" James said as he and Jessie took their seats and prepared for the next phase.

"We can't let those brats stop us this time!" Jessie growled.

Meowth pressed a few buttons and looked back out the tinted window of the chopper. "We gotta get all da Butterfree in one spot, tight together, so we can catch em' all in da net in one go!" He instructed. "Get ready ta release da net James!"

"Got it!" The blue haired man replied back.

Meowth drove the chopper until it was directly behind the mass of Butterfree, who were already in a somewhat loose formation, and started flying forwards... chasing them all across the sky as he yelled back to Jessie, "Get dim arms out Jessie! We gotta get em' tighter!"

Jessie nodded and pressed a button on the control panel in front of her. "Arms engaged!" She confirmed.

Two gigantic arms sprouted from the chopper and fanned out across the sky. They started swatting at all of the wayward Butterfree, slowly forcing them into a tighter formation as they tried to escape. Some of the braver ones tried to escape and fly over top of the arms but they would just be pushed back quickly by the mechanical attachments, effectively trapping them inside the panicking mass of Butterfree. The arms continued to draw closer until they were literally a corral, keeping almost all of the Pokémon in one big mass.

James suddenly saw a flash of pink within the restless sea of Butterfree and squinted his eyes to get a better view. He finally managed to get a full image of the pink object and noticed, to his shock, that it was a pink Butterfree. Another Butterfree with a yellow scarf tied around it's neck was also flying right beside of it, pushing back the other Butterfree that were trying to smother them with their bodies and defending the pink one protectively. Leading him to believe that the one wearing the scarf was male and the pink one was female.

"Hey guys there's a pink colored Butterfree flying around in there!" He told Jessie and Meowth excitedly.

Jessie pushed James out of the way to see for herself. "What?! A pink Butterfree? Impossible!" She scanned the throng of Butterfree for herself and eventually caught a glimpse of the pink female as her eyes widened in shock. "How is that even possible?! I thought Butterfree were supposed to look completely different than that if they were off color!" She protested.

Before James could think of a response Meowth spoke up, "They usually are! Strange colored Butterfree usually ain't colored dat much differently then a regular one is. Just a few changes, mostly to their wings, feet and eyes. Dat pink one just must be special!" He explained with a grin.

"How do you know?!" Jessie demanded.

Meowth looked back at her. "I'm a talking Pokémon Jess! It ain't dat hard ta believe I know what different colored Butterfree look like!"

James formed a greedy look in his eye then. "If we give it to the boss then he'll be even more pleased with us!" He said excitedly.

Jessie smiled widely. "You're right James!" She looked at Meowth. "What are you waiting for furball?! Catch those Pokémon already!"

Meowth looked out and saw that the Butterfree were all finally in a position where they could be grabbed in one swoop with the net and then called out to James, "Drop da net Jamesy boy!"

James nodded and ran over to his chair, sitting down and pressing a button on the side panel of it.

The bottom of the helicopter opened up then and a massive, thick looking net attached to a steel poll dropped down from the inside. As the net met the open air it started to expand and unfurl out until it was eventually large enough to completely cover the entire width of the mass of Butterfree.

Meowth picked up the speed of the chopper and started closing in on the Butterfree, the large net swaying behind them, ready to scoop up each and every last one.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash and his friends watched as the helicopter dropped a massive net out of it's bottom half and started to grow to a size large enough to hold all of the Butterfree without leaving a single one behind and the sheer sight alone was enough to make all of their blood run cold.

"They're trying to catch the Butterfree!" Misty shouted.

"We gotta stop them!" Giselle said frantically, looking around the balloon as if the answer to the problem could be found there.

Ash whipped around and faced Donny, a completely serious look on his face. "Can you get us down close to that chopper as fast as you can?!" He asked urgently.

Donny seemed seemed confused for a minute and then just nodded his head. "Yes I can get us down but it'll take some time and this thing doesn't move nearly as fast as that helicopter is. Why?" He asked.

Ash stepped closer to him. "We can stop Team Rocket and help those Butterfree but we're too far away! I need you to get us closer!"

Donny went wide eyed. "No I'm sorry." He said shaking his head. "If that's really Team Rocket then I can't let a bunch of kids get involved! All the rest of the trainers are staying back as well," The man pointed out while gesturing to the other balloons full of trainers that could only watch in horror as the Butterfree that were once theirs were about to be stolen by some criminal organization. "We'll go back to ground level and call the police. They'll be able to-"

Anything else the balloon merchant was going to say was abruptly cut off by Ash, who growled from in his throat and stepped closer until he was right in Donny's face. The boy's unnatural height he possessed for his age bringing him right up to chest level with the man as he reached out and grabbed ahold of his shirt, squeezing it in a tight grip and yanking him forward with surprising strength.

"Listen!" He shouted. "I've dealt with Team Rocket before and stopped them! I have to help those Pokémon and you standing in my way isn't going to help me! If we wait and call the police after we get back to the ground it'll be too late and they would have stolen all the Butterfree! They'll be long gone and no one will have any chance of ever finding them! I asked you to help us out so we can save those Pokémon before Team Rocket gets their filthy hands on them! If you won't get us down there to that chopper then get the hell outta my way and I'll fly this thing down there myself! I've watched how you've done it this whole time and I'm a quick study!"

The young trainer tightened his grip. "Now either help us out and do as I asked or move... BECAUSE I'M HELPING THOSE BUTTERFREE!" Ash growled the last few words out in a deep rumble as his voice momentarily changed and his eyes flickered to an electric dark blue, a similar faint blue aura starting to rise from him as well.

Ash's friends pressed themselves back against the sides of the balloon in slight fear since they knew Ash was starting to get mad. And when Ash started to get really mad... the last thing anyone wanted to do was stand in his way. The air became slightly thick in the balloon and Pikachu looked as though he was struggling slightly. Not from the lack of air but more like from some kind of... feeling he was trying to overcome from the emergence of Ash's strange aura. His eyes were shut tightly and he was shaking his head from side to side, like he was fighting some sort of battle in his mind.

Ash's now electric blue eyes bore into Donny's and the man could feel himself starting to sweat as his heart rate picked up and a horrible sensation of fear gripped him. "MY OWN BUTTERFREE IS DOWN THERE RIGHT NOW IN THAT MASS AND IF TEAM ROCKET CAPTURES THEM THEN I LOSE MY POKÉMON AND I WILL NOT LET THAT HAPPEN!" He shouted in that same deep rumble voice again.

Donny, the man had courage at least, just gulped and timidly shook his head. "I... I can't! Its not safe! I'm s-"

Something seemed to have snapped inside of Pikachu at that very moment when Donny once again denied to assist he and Ash in helping to save one of his teammates and fellow Pokèmon from Team Rocket.

His eyes suddenly snapped open as he leaned forward from his perch on Ash's shoulder and towards the balloon merchant. "PIKA!" He shouted in a much deeper sounding voice than anyone had ever heard out of the small Pokémon before. His claws were digging deeper into Ash's shoulder (not that the angry trainer noticed at the moment) and his fur seemed to have turned a slightly darker shade of yellow. A faint static seemed to be sparking around him like Ash also was at the moment and his eyes were quickly changing back and forth from brown to the same electric, angry blue as Ash's currently were.

Donny quickly backed up until he was against the railing of the balloon and just stared in terror at the sight of the possessed looking young trainer and his Pokémon glaring angrily at him, his knees shaking uncontrollably. Ash's eyes were still glowing blue, a faint aura shroud coming off of him while Pikachu appeared very similar. Their eyes never left his. Almost daring Donny to refuse them again.

The scared man then glanced from the furious duo to Ash's friends with an anxious look, almost pleading for assistance of some kind since he was now officially far out of his element and comfort zone the minute Ash and Pikachu started glowing blue.

Brock just nodded his head at the man and answered his unspoken plea for help, "Please do as Ash says sir... trust me, he's done this before. He can handle it and we'll be there to help him," He promised firmly. Giselle and Misty nodding in agreement along with him.

Donny could not argue any longer and on top of that, he was starting to feel somewhat lightheaded from the thin air now permeating the balloon. Because of this, the fire that helped keep the balloon aloft was starting to flicker and that was a very bad thing.

He took one last look at Ash, which was a feat in itself since the current state of the boy's eyes terrified him beyond words, and could see the determination there being mirrored in Pikachu's own eyes. The man then started to believe in that moment that maybe just maybe, this boy and his friends could really help the Butterfree. He just had to take a leap of faith.

Donny let out a sigh and nodded his relentingly. "Okay young man... I'll get us to that chopper. Just promise me you'll all do your best to stay safe and you have my support."

Giselle stepped up to Ash's side and gently grasped his arm, kissing his cheek tenderly as she spoke to him in a comforting way, "Its okay now Ash, he's going to help us. It'll all be alright. We'll help Butterfree I promise, just calm down now okay... just calm down..."

Everyone watched as Giselle's gentle touch and soothing words fully calmed Ash (who was already starting to calm down after Donny consented to help) but the soft influence of his girlfriend merely helped to bring him fully back to reality.

Giselle walked to his other side then and stroked Pikachu's cheeks softly while murmuring calming words to him as well. The Electric-Type was already pretty calm after Ash's energy started to fade but yet again... Giselle's gentle touch did just the trick.

Ash finally seemed to return to himself after a few moments and then slumped slightly against the basket of the balloon, somewhat out of breath from the toll that the energy leaking from his body had drained from him. He looked up at Donny then, who still seemed rather nervous, and sighed. "I'm really sorry for that Donny... I won't explain what just happened because you wouldn't understand."

He looked down for a moment as he murmured to himself, "I don't even fully understand it..."

Straitening back up fully, Giselle standing by him for support, he looked Donny in the eyes. "Look... I love my Pokémon and I can't, I won't, see them suffer or be hurt in any way. I promise I can save them and I'm sorry I freaked out it's just... I take things really seriously when it comes to them. Again, I apologize for getting out of hand." He bowed his head slightly in a sign of apology.

Donny finally relaxed and smiled himself. "I understand Ash, you love and care for your Pokémon and I respect that. I'm going to trust in you and your friends to help just be careful alright?"

Ash smiled in return and gave a thumbs up. "You got it Donny." Pikachu gave his own thumbs up as well. "Pikachu Pi!"

Donny reached up and pulled down on the chain that controlled the fire source for the balloon then. "Hold on everybody! This may get rough!"

Ash and the others braced themselves just as Donny pulled down on the chain and the fire flared up in the stack even hotter. The balloon lurched and then, by the expert balloon handling of Donny, started going higher and higher, the air currents moving the balloon around until it was right on course with the Team Rocket helicopter.

Donny continued to work the balloon until it started getting closer and closer to the chopper. Once it was near enough, Donny stopped feeding the balloon as much fuel and then let it start descending down towards the fast moving object.

Ash and his friends saw the helicopter getting closer to the mass of Butterfree that were still trying to escap while the large net swayed ominously behind them like an aerial monster ready to strike at any moment. "Come on Donny, faster!" Ash urged the man.

Donny gritted his teeth.'"It won't descend any faster than this Ash, we're just gonna have to wait!"

Ash growled in frustration just as the chopper finally lunged forward and the net started scooping up the Butterfree, who of which were now all beyond terrified.

"NO!" Ash yelled as he leaned forward in the balloon.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

(Inside the massive flock of Butterfree)

Ash's Butterfree looked behind him as the large net of Team Rocket's closed in on the straggling Pokémon in the back of the flock, scooping them all far back into the net where they fluttered vainly in an attempt to escape.

Butterfree flapped his wings to fly even faster, trying desperately to stay ahead of the net while looking at his side to make sure the pink Butterfree was still keeping up with him. Which she was. He nudged her in the side to go faster and she just nodded before pumping her wings harder and picking up speed. The two of them started pulling farther ahead of the other Butterfree but it was proven quickly to be in vain as the chopper only went faster, scooping up even more Butterfree into it's net.

Eventually, more than half of the Butterfree had been captured inside the net and the rest of them were soon joining the same fate. One particular panic induced movement of the remaining Butterfree caused Ash's Butterfree and the pink one to become separated by a surge of their terrified kin trying as hard as they could to get away. The sudden separation knocked Ash's Butterfree spinning further up ahead, while the pink one lost just enough speed to start getting pushed back more and more towards the net... a fearful and panicked look coming across her face.

Ash's Butterfree quickly righted himself and then hovered in one spot, beating back the other Butterfree that kept jostling him around. He finally caught a glimpse of the female's pink skin and narrowed his eyes in determination before flying back for her as fast as he could, weaving in and out through the flow of madly surging Butterfree with precise movements and impressive agility.

Many times while he flew he would nearly become blocked off by a rather thick cluster of his fellow Butterfree and would have to use either Gust or Silverwind to push them apart so he could keep going. Faster and faster he flew against the flow, never taking his eyes off of the pink Butterfree's body as he dodged, weaved and attacked any other Pokémon in his way.

Eventually he managed to reach the pink one, who seemed shocked by his return for her, and got behind her... stopping the female's backward momentum so she didn't keep falling behind. He urged her forward, all while looking behind himself at the quickly approaching net and she quickly responded to the effort. Pumping her wings as hard she could to get moving forward again.

Once the two of them were finally back in full flight they started going as fast as their wings could possibly take them. Passing most of the other Butterfree, dodging, swerving and even attacking any in their way in almost perfect synch. At one point their eyes even met while launching a simultaneous SilverWind at each other's opposite sides, trying to get more space to fly, and when they did... one could swear something sparked in their gazes for just a fraction of a second.

After several moments of fighting their way through the mass of their panicking brethren, both Butterfree finally started to see the very front of the pack. They knew that if they could just break free of the rest of them then they would be able to bank to the sides and get free of the nets range entirely. This thought spurred them both on and caused them to fly even faster, determined to break free.

Inside of the chopper Meowth saw this and chuckled loudly. "I don't think so little Butterfree, yous two ain't gettin' away dat easily!"

Jessie and James laughed as Meowth pressed a button on the control panel.

Just as both Butterfree were almost at the very front of the Butterfree flock, the front underside portion of the chopper opened up, dropping down another net that swooped down from the front and went right towards them.

Ash's Butterfree and the pink one went wide eyed as they saw this and attempted to stop moving forward. Unfortunately, the surge of Butterfree behind them made it impossible and caused them both to continue pressing towards the second net, which was now closing the gap between them and the first one.

The remaining Butterfree finally saw the danger and tried to change direction but it was already too late. Ash's Butterfree and the pink one could only watch as the front and back nets quickly closed the last remaining distance between each other. Finally scooping up every last Butterfree and connecting both ends together in the middle with an audible 'clack', sealing the double net and cutting off any chances the Butterfree had to escape. Not a single free one left.

Ash's Butterfree and the pink quickly made their way towards one side of the net and started banging their bodies against it as hard as they could. Trying everything they knew of to break free. The rest of the Butterfree were too scared to do anything besides flutter around hopelessly in a panic, rapidly pushing Ash's Butterfree and the female back into the thick of the mass.

Just before he was sucked into the crowd again, Butterfree spotted his trainer's balloon coming down towards the chopper and saw Ash perched at the very front, looking desperately down at them all. He cried out loudly to Ash just before he and the pink female were finally overtaken by the other Butterfree.

Jessie, James and Meowth laughed inside of the chopper madly at seeing their successful attempt at finally catching all of the Butterfree.

"Great driving Meowth!" Jessie praised from the right side of Meowth's chair.

"Yes Meowth, first class scooping that was!" James added in.

Meowth grinned widely. "Hehe, them Butterfree didn't know what hit em'! Now we just gotta get em' all back to da warehouse for transport!" He said gleefully.

Jessie threw her fist in the air. "Then don't keep us waiting Meowth, back to base!" She cheered.

James joined her in the excitement as Meowth nodded. "Get back in your seats then and hold on! We're gettin' outta here!" He quickly changed the direction of the helicopter and then started driving it quickly away from the area, all of the trainers watching helplessly from their balloons as their current and former Butterfree were whisked away right in front of them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash watched in fury and fear as both ends of the net sealed together, trapping every last Butterfree away within it's confines. He then grabbed onto the basket and leaned forward desperately as he saw a flash of his own Butterfree's yellow scarf amongst the mass of other Butterfree and felt his stomach sink at the revelation that his Pokémon been taken as well.

He also noticed that his Butterfree was right next to the pink one and that the two of them were apparently, from he was seeing, the only ones trying to escape. The boy just watched as both of them were quickly sucked back into the crowd but not before hearing his Butterfree cry out while looking in his direction.

"BUTTERFREE!" He shouted as grabbed onto both support poles of the balloon nearest to him.

Giselle, Misty and Brock rushed over and looked out towards the chopper as it started to change direction and fly away. "No damn way in hell!" Ash defiantly stated in anger as he reached for his belt.

His girlfriend grabbed his wrist though. "Ash what are you doing?!" Giselle demanded.

Ash looked at her. "I'm going to follow them and get my Pokémon back! That's what!"

"But how?!" Misty yelled.

"This balloon isn't going to be able to go fast enough to keep up with that chopper," Brock said while looking at Donny for confirmation of his assessment, whom simply nodded in reply

"Our best bet will be to head down to my shop and then call the police," Donny stated evenly. "Even with giving this baby all she's got we still won't be able to catch up with that helicopter."

Ash shook his head. "This balloon can't... but a Pokèmon can. More specifically," He drew a Pokéball from his belt. "MY Pokémon can!"

Brock seemed to understand. "You mean you're going to try and catch up with them on-" Ash cut him off. "Yes I'm going to succeed in catching up with them on Pidgeot. She's faster than Butterfree, Gastly and Fearow. I know she can get me and Pikachu to wherever they're taking the Butterfree!" He said with certainty.

"But you've never ridden on Pidgeot before Ash!" Giselle protested.

Ash shook his head. "I know I haven't Giselle but I've trained Pidgeot extremely hard for just these types of occasions. Her and Fearow both has drilled on making themselves more than strong enough for me to ride on and I know she's ready! They can both only ever carry two people but right now I just feel comfortable with one. That's me, plus Pikachu." He grabbed Giselle by her shoulders. "That's why I need you to stay here with the others and get help alright? Once we find them I'll send Pidgeot back to find you guys and lead you to us. Will you please do that for me?" He pleaded.

Giselle looked as though she wanted to protest and make Ash take her with him but she thought about it. She knew that Pidgeot was still too young and inexperienced with passenger flying to handle both her and Ash's weight. She wanted to see the Butterfree rescued just as much as Ash and knew that this was the only way.

Reluctantly she nodded her head. "Okay Ash... please just be careful. You don't know which Team Rocket members took the Butterfree and we already know they don't like you. If they find out you're alive then..." She trailed off.

Ash pulled her into a hug. "They're gonna find out eventually Giselle..." He pulled away and smiled at her then. "I've got way too many big plans to keep me from staying out of the public eye!" He joked and then became serious seeing the worry on his girlfriend's face. "I promise you I'll be okay. Just get help along with Brock, Misty and Donny and wait for Pidgeot to come back okay?"

Giselle nodded and put on a smile on her face. "You've got it!"

Ash smiled at her again and then pulled her close, bringing his lips down to her eagerly awaiting ones and pressing them softly together. Their lips danced together and then separated over and over again as they put as much of their feelings as two kids their age could put into a kiss. With one last last lingering kiss to her soft lips, Ash pulled away and winked at her before hugging Misty and patting Brock's shoulder.

"Go get those Butterfree Ash!" Misty encouraged him.

"And don't underestimate Team Rocket whatever you do Ash," Brock warned.

Ash nodded to his other two friends before looking at Donny. "Take care of them all and please don't forget to call the police for me okay Donny?"

The man smiled and nodded. "You got it Ash. Just be careful yourself and we'll see you soon. I must be outta my mind for letting a kid do this but... I have faith in you."

Ash gave a thumbs up and then looked at Pikachu. "Ready pal?"

Pikachu smiled and raised his fist confidently. "Pikachu! Pika Pi Kachu Pi!"

The raven haired trainer then reared back and threw the Pokéball he had in his hand out into the air, "Pidgeot we need you!" He yelled.

The ball burst open and Pidgeot came soaring out of her Pokéball in a flash of bright light, twirling gracefully in the air before making a looping motion and coming to hover in front of the balloon. The increased size, mass and elegance that came with her evolution from a Pidgeotto being put on display for them all to see. "Pidge Pidgeooo!" She said in a happy coo upon seeing Ash.

Said trainer just smiled at her in greeting and then adopted a serious expression on his face. "Pidgeot, Team Rocket has taken a bunch of Butterfree, including mine, and I need you to help us find them! Can you carry me to where they went and try to find the helicopter they used with your avian vision?"

Pidgeot instantly snapped to attention when she heard that one of her fellow teammates had been taken and nodded quickly. "Pidgeooo Pidgeoo!" She screeched, turning around and motioning for Ash to climb on.

Ash did just that and climbed up on the balloon before jumping onto Pidgeot's back. He could feel his Pokémon taking a second to adjust to his weight for the first time ever but she quickly acclimatized and then prepared for takeoff. He looked back at his friends and waved to them. "I'll see you guys soon!"

His friends and Donny waved him off as Pikachu adjusted himself on Ash's shoulder. "Alright Pidgeot... lets go!" Ash yelled.

The female bird Pokémon reared her head back and cawed loudly as she flapped her wings a few times, sending strong air currents back at the balloon, before shooting off in the direction Ash pointed Team Rocket retreated to in a fast burst of speed.

Donny quickly started lowering the balloon to the ground while Giselle watched after the retreating form of Pidgeot. "Please be careful Ash..."

XXXXXXXXXX

The Team Rocket chopper made its way through a large, rocky valley with all haste about it. Staying just high enough above most of the rocks to not worry about colliding with them and crashing. The net that was now full of Butterfree was hanging below the helicopter strongly. All of the captured Pokémon having absolutely no way out.

Inside of the machine, Meowth was carefully steering the chopper through the many rocky peaks while Jessie and James sat in their own chairs, handling other functions of the high tech vehicle.

"We're coming up on base Meowth," Jessie informed her teammate from what she was seeing on her guidance computer.

James pressed a few buttons on the console in front of him before speaking as well. "Once you get to the warehouse Meowth, just hover over it and I'll retract the roof from here, allowing us to land inside."

Meowth nodded. "Got it!"

The chopper flew on for another mile or so before finally coming into view of a generous sized gorge-like crater that was wide open in space just enough for a standard warehouse to be nestled in the middle of it's hold.

Meowth carefully flew the helicopter through the final narrow gap that was separating them from the gorge and after finally making it through, he flew the chopper over to the warehouse until it was hovering directly over top of the building. James quickly pressed a button on his control panel and the roof of the warehouse started retracting back into the opposite sides of the building.

Once the way was clear, Meowth started lowering the helicopter into the warehouse slowly until it had fully entered the building. Which was actually much bigger on the inside than the outside would appear.

He carefully moved the chopper around until the net full of Butterfree was a safe distance away from where the landing area was located and then released it, allowing the large net to fall to the floor. Causing a loud thudding noise to be heard as the Butterfree inside began panicking and flying around again.

The three Rockets exited the helicopter after Meowth powered it down and then James shut the roof of the warehouse back before walking over to the net full of stolen Pokémon. "Hehe!" He chuckled gleefully. "Look at all those Butterfree!"

Jessie walked up to the net and peered inside, scaring some of the Butterfree. "With so many primo looking Butterfree to give to the Boss, we'll be rich without a doubt!" She said merrily.

Suddenly, two forms blurred into sight from the depths of the net and smashed into it hard, making Jessie jump in fright. "Hey! What's the big idea?!"

The two Butterfree that had attacked the net, Ash's Butterfree and the pink one, both glared at Jessie with fury in their eyes and then started attacking the net again. Biting it, throwing their bodies into it and using whatever attacks they could to get free. All while the other Butterfree were looking at them like it was hopeless.

James looked in closer. "Hey, isn't that the twerps Butterfree?"

Meowth got a closer look and nodded. "Sure is Jamesy-boy. Looks like he got caught along wit dis pink one when he tried savin' it earlier," He explained while looking at the pink Butterfree.

Jessie grinned. "Well they're certainly spirited..." She looked at Ash's Pokémon. "Especially this one." She then looked to the pink Butterfree. "And a uniquely colored one too!" The magenta haired woman laughed. "This will certainly be a wonderful little present for the Boss! You two can just keep on struggling all you want but you won't get free."

The pink Butterfree watched as Jessie's face grew closer to her own. "Who knows? Maybe the Boss will have some kind of special use for a pink Butterfree? I'll guess you'll just find out!"

Jessie laughed again and the pink female had enough. She opened her mouth quickly and shot a glob of String Shot at the red head, hitting her square in the face and knocking her onto her backside.

Jessie shrieked as she was hit with the sticky substance and while she rolled around the floor tearing at what was now stuck to her face and squealing like a little girl, James and Meowth busted out laughing.

"Geez Jess!" Meowth teased in-between laughing. "We've been in sticky situations before but dat's just ridiculous!"

James laughed even harder at Meowth's joke and when Jessie finally freed her face of the gunk she towered over the both of them in a flaming rage. "IT ISN'T FUNNY!"

She whipped around and glared at the pink Butterfree then with rage in her eyes before stomping over to the chopper. Grabbing something of out it, she stormed back over to the net. "Lets see how you like this!" Jessie fumed as she stuck what she grabbed from the chopper, a shock stick, into the net at the pink Butterfree.

Ash's Butterfree saw this coming in almost slow motion and, quick as a flash, moved in front of the pink female just as Jessie turned on the device.

The male Butterfree cried out in pain as the intense volts of electrical energy passed through his body like a raging fire, lighting up the net and scaring the other Butterfree into a panic again.

Jessie withdrew the tool in shock as Ash's Pokémon doubled over in pain. He quickly shook his body off as much as he could and glared up at Jessie with pure anger as his body continued to convulse slightly from the intense pain of being shocked in such a way. It wasn't anything compared to Pikachu's electric attacks but it still hurt like hell.

The pink Butterfree, who had been watching wide eyed as Ash's Butterfree took the shock that was meant for her, quickly flew up and braced him on one side gently while he recovered.

"Free Free... Butterfree Free?" She spoke in Pokéspeech, obviously wanting to know why he did what he did.

Jessie rejoined James and Meowth. "Translation Meowth?" Jessie asked her teammate.

Meowth walked up closer to the net so he could hear what was being said. "Da pink one just asked why da twerp's Butterfree took dat shock for her."

"Free... Free Free... Butterfree," Ash's Pokémon replied.

Meowth continued. "He said dat he did it because, even though he and her has had problems, he wadn't just gonna sit back and watch a lady get hurt like dat. He says da twerp taught him better dan ta do somethin' so low."

Jessie scoffed. "Yes and that's all very fine and sweet but we need to focus on calling HQ and getting more of the team out here to help us take all of these Butterfree back to the Boss." She looked at the two captured Butterfree one last time and smirked. "Don't worry. You two will have more than enough time to play kissy face with each other once we get you back to the Boss!"

The three Rockets laughed among themselves and then walked away towards the other end of the warehouse to prepare the for next stage of their operation and left both angry Butterfree glaring after them.

The pink Butterfree looked at the male and used her wing to gently rub the spot where Jessie had shocked him.

Ash's Butterfree looked at her with a blush on his face and noticed that the female also had a small blush upon her own visage. She spit another glob of string onto the burnt part of Butterfree's skin and covered the wound with it before looking back at him and giving a slight eye smile, the faint blush still on her cheeks.

Ash's Butterfree rubbed the now covered wound gently and then looked back the pink female while nodding gratefully.

The female blushed a little more and then looked around at the net. After a few moments of looking around she then looked down towards the ground with a somewhat depressed aura coming off of her. She looked up Ash's Butterfree and murmured something dejectedly to him. One didn't to speak Pokémon to know that she was asking if he thought they would ever get free or not.

Ash's Butterfree, upon seeing the female look so upset, was instantly filled with a new conviction and placed his right wing tip under her chin, making her look at him. "Free Free!" He said firmly. "Free Free Butterfree! Free Free Free!"

The pink female looked slightly surprised at the determination to get free that was behind the male's voice but then smiled herself and let a feeling of determination come over her as well.

They would find a way to get out of that net and free the other Butterfree and when they did, Team Rocket was going to pay...

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash flew on Pidgeot's back, Pikachu still firmly attached to his shoulder, as she soared through the skies at high speeds. Currently they were going through the same canyon Team Rocket had flown through previously and were keeping their eyes peeled for any trace of the chopper.

Finding the vehicle's trail actually turned out to be easier than Ash thought it would. Pidgeot had very keen eyes and could see for quite some distance. However... what really helped them find Team Rocket's trail was Pikachu.

Apparently, in their agitated states, the captured Butterfree had been subconsciously releasing trace amounts of different powder from their wings that had lingered behind in the air for quite some time. Pikachu had managed to pick up on this scent and now they were merely following the trail of 'powder scent' through the large canyon, praying to Arceus that they would find Team Rocket.

Eventually, they came to a section of the canyon that started to open up somewhat and in the distance, Ash could see what he thought was a large building of some kind. He patted Pidgeot on the side of her body and made a motion with his hands to fly up on one of the large rock spires.

Pidgeot did as requested and flew up onto a rock peak that was just big enough for her to land on top of. Once she landed safely, Ash hopped off and walked over to the edge of the peak and gazed into the bowl shaped raveen down below.

He scoped out the building he had seen from Pidgeot's back and noticed that it was actually a warehouse. One more than big enough to hold a helicopter and a shitload of Butterfree if his estimation was correct. Walking back to Pidgeot again he asked her to take him down to ground level and once he was securely on her back again, the female bird Pokémon slowly glided down to the ground and landed quietly, still a safe distance away from the warehouse.

Ash dismounted her and patted her side. "Great job Pidgeot, take a rest for now." Getting a simple nod from his avian Pokémon, he returned her and then looked at Pikachu. "Ready buddy?"

Pikachu gave his trainer a nod and then Ash set off towards the building, very slowly and low to the ground so hopefully no one would see him. He would also stop every few feet and check the ground for any traps that may have been placed. When he would find none then he would continue on. It was a slow process but Ash would rather get there unnoticed than trigger an alarm like some fool and get captured.

Finally, the young Ketchum made it to the side of the large warehouse and looked around. He didn't even give the front double doors a thought because really... how stupid would it have been to just barge in? Instead, Ash scanned the wall he was now leaning against and saw several large windows scattered in a line down the length of the building. Each one was a good distance above the ground but Ash knew that with a little teamwork, he and Pikachu would be able to make it up to one with no problems.

He walked up to one of the windows then, which was shadowed from the sun by the overhang of the warehouse roof, and looked up. He couldn't tell how wide the ledge of the window was so he looked at Pikachu. "Hey pal, if I throw you up do you think you can grab ahold of that ledge and tell me if its wide enough for me to stand on?"

Pikachu gave his trainer a thumbs up and Ash smiled. He reached up and grabbed a hold of Pikachu, lifting him off of his shoulder and then tossed him up towards the ledge. Pikachu went straight up with his arms extended and grabbed onto the window ledge with his claws. Keeping himself up by sticking his hind claws into the wall, Pikachu quickly peaked his head up and saw that the ledge was more than wide enough for Ash to crouch atop of.

The Electric-Type quickly bounded down off the wall and landed in Ash's arms.

"Well Pikachu?" Ash asked.

The Pokémon nodded his head in affirmative and Ash smiled. "Awesome Pi, thanks!"

The raven-haired Trainer then took a few steps back and observed the window ledge for a few moments. It was quite some ways off the ground and he knew that he would need some kind of leverage to help get up to it. He considered a quick wall kick-off with his feet; which was essentially just running at a wall and then jumping up onto it with two feet and attempting to springboard yourself to higher places that way, but he knew such a thing wouldn't work. It was simply too high up.

At that moment though... he had an idea. Ash looked at Pikachu then, who was standing beside of him, and knelt down to his level.

"Hey Pikachu, do you think you can help me get up to that window?" He asked.

Pikachu looked at the window and then Ash with a confused look on his face but nodded regardless.

Ash smiled and explained the plan. "Okay then, here's what we're gonna do. You're gonna go stand below the window ledge, facing the building. I'll stay back here and take off running towards you. Once I get within reach of the warehouse's shadow I'm going to call out just loud enough for you to hear. What I want you to do is charge up an Iron Tail and then get on your back with your tail extended over top of your face like a springboard. I'll let you know again once I go to jump and when I do, I'm going to aim to land right on top your tail okay. Once you feel my feet on your tai, I want you to use all the power from Iron Tail to launch me up into the air. All that force should be more than enough to help me reach the ledge if it goes well."

Ash paused for a second to let Pikachu get all he just said before continuing. "Once I'm up and settled, I wanted you to come back to where we are now and use Quick Attack to run towards the wall. Just before you reach it, jump and do a flip in the air while using Iron Tail. The impact of Iron Tail when you land on the ground and the added speed of Quick Attack should be more than enough to launch you close up enough to the window so I can grab you. Got all that?"

Pikachu took a few moments to visualize everything in his mind and once he had it all down, he nodded.

Ash smiled and then the two went to take their places. Pikachu in the position Ash told him to be in near the wall, while he himself went and stood back far enough to get a good running start. Once in position he called out to Pikachu, "Ready?"

"Pika!" Was his Pokémon's reply.

Ash stretched his legs out really quick and then got into a runner's stance before taking off towards the wall. Once he was in range he called out to Pikachu who quickly went onto his back and charged up an Iron Tail. The boy jumped when he felt close enough and just as he landed and felt his foot hit Pikachu's now steel hard tail he called out, "Now!"

Pikachu then let his tail spring open and all of the force from the released Iron Tail catapulted Ash up into air. When he was level with the edge, he grasped onto it firmly with both hands and used his feet to help pull himself up. Once he was on top of the ledge, Ash sunk himself to the edge of the wall while staying clear of the window's view and looked down at Pikachu.

"Your turn Pi!"

Pikachu nodded and then ran back to where Ash had been standing moments ago. He charged up a Quick Attack into his legs and then pushed off the ground hard, running towards the wall at fast speeds. Once he was close enough, Pikachu did a jump in the air and as he flipped around he used Iron Tail to impact the ground hard. The force of Iron Tail and the speed of Quick Attack was more than enough to send him soaring into the air and just as he came within reach of the ledge, Ash reached out and took hold of his Pokémon, hauling Pikachu up until he was safe beside him on the ledge.

Pikachu gave his trainer a grateful glance and Ash merely smiled at him. "Great job Pikachu." He then turned his attention towards the window again and slowly shuffled his way forwards on the ledge, keeping his back glued to the side of the wall so anyone inside the building hopefully wouldn't look up and see him or Pikachu.

Once he made it to the window, Ash looked inside of the warehouse and first noticed just how big it was. There were several crates and boxes of all sizes stacked up everywhere in no particular order and in the center of the area he spotted the helicopter that had taken all of the Butterfree. Switching his gaze to the left, Ash also saw the large net that currently held the captured Butterfree and right at the very front of the net, he could see his Butterfree and the pink one. Both of them still trying their best to, as far as Ash could tell, break free from their prison.

This had the effect of making Ash smile at his Butterfree's resilience and determination not to give in when the rest had seemingly already done so, be impressed at the pink Butterfree for fighting along side his own so intently and also feel rage at Team Rocket for stealing his Pokémon and all the other Buttefree. He grit his teeth and clenched his fists at the sight but turned his gaze towards the back of the warehouse and finally saw the Team Rocket members who were responsible for it all.

Standing around what appeared to be a vid-phone, though it didn't appear active yet, were Jessie, James and Meowth.

Seeing that it was them who stole the Butterfree really didn't come as much of a surprise to Ash as one would think since he had had a hunch it was them all along. In fact, the only thing that never confirmed his suspicions was the fact that he hadn't been able to see inside of the helicopter when they stole the Butterfree and so he never was ableto identify them.

Now, seeing the proof right in front of his eyes, Ash could truly say he wasn't shocked. He could say however that he felt for certain they weren't doing all of this just for themselves. They were after all part of a huge crime syndicate that specialized in trafficking Pokémon so he knew that they had to have stolen the Butterfree for their organization. And if he could place a bet then he figured that was probably who they were getting ready to call on the video phone at this very moment.

To traffic them or be made to do their bidding, Ash didn't know what Team Rocket's plans were for the Butterfree and he didn't care. All he did care about was stopping them and rescuing the Pokémon.

The first thing Ash knew he needed to do was somehow listen in on what the three Rockets were doing before he went barging in. After all, he had enough sense to know that rushing headfirst into something without a plan was always a terrible idea. Because of this, he wanted to formulate a strategy first and the only way to do that was to scope out the situation and find out what the three grunts were planning.

He then turned to look at Pikachu, who had been staring through the window at the captured Butterfree, and spoke to him. "Hey Pikachu, can you do something for me?"

Pikachu looked at his trainer and just nodded. Ash searched around the edged of the window before settling his gaze on the right side's bottom corner. He quickly formed an idea and then asked Pikachu, "Hey buddy, do you think you can use Iron Tail, stick it right at the corner of that window seal and then pry up gently on it until the window pops free? Just enough so that I can hear what's going on inside?"

Pikachu nodded and then ran over to the window's edge, turning around and sticking his tail just below the bottom edge of the window seal. After he had turned his tail to the shining steel like color of Iron Tail, Pikachu gently pried upwards on it until Ash heard and saw the window start to crack apart from the wall and lift up. He quickly motioned for Pikachu to stop and once he did, the boy made his way over to the small gap that had been made in-between the window and wall and put his ear down to it, listening in to what was being said inside of the warehouse.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

James was just about to turn on the vid-phone so they could call into HQ and speak to the Boss or one of the commanders about their capture of all the Butterfree and then request an extraction of some kind kind, when Meowth suddenly stopped him.

"Wait yous guys!" He shouted.

James stopped what he was doing as he and Jessie both turned to the talking Pokémon with raised eyebrows.

"What is it Meowth? Can't you see this is important?!" Jessie said irritably.

Meowth nodded and then hopped on top of the video phone. "Look guys, we may have caught all them Butterfree but I think we need to show da Boss somtin' a little more special during da call," He ventured with a grin.

The two humans appeared to be confused. "What are you talking about Meowth?" James inquired.

Mewoth crossed his arms and smiled. "I'm talkin' about showin' da Boss a Pokémon dat'll really peak his interest!"

Jessie seemed skeptical. "Like...?"

Meowth grinned and pointed towards the net that held all of the Butterfree. "Simple. We'll get dat pink Butterfree outta da net and then put her in dis cage," He pointed to a small cage on a crate near them. "Then we'll show her to da Boss durin' da call and he'll be so impressed dat he'll probably promote us on the spot!"

Jessie and James still seemed confused as Jessie scoffed. "And just HOW are we going to get her out of that net Meowth? We open it from the top and all of the Butterfree will escape!"

James nodded. "And that Butterfree of the twerp's will attack us if we try to touch it's girlfriend!" He whined.

Meowth just smirked and shook his head. "No it won't..."

Jessie and James raised their eyebrows. "Explain." Jessie demanded.

Meowth nodded and then pointed towards the net. "Remember when we found dat net in here with da chopper?"

They both nodded and Meowth continued. "Dat net is one of Team Rocket's best inventions for capturin' Pokémon. Its made of a special techna-weave fiber dat's resilient to almost all attacks physical and elemental. Luckily though... da rope can be stretched apart wit just da right amounta force and a small electrical charge."

"And how does that help us get that pink Butterfree out of the net Meowth?" Jessie asked impatiently.

Meowth walked over to a small crate and flipped the lid off. He then reached down and dug around inside of it until he withdrew two rubber/metallic looking gloves with blue electric lines going down the length of the palms.

He brought them over and handed them to James, who took them with a perplexed look on his face. Meowth explained. "These gloves'll transmit a charge to da ropes dat'll loosen em' up for Jess so she can reach in and grab dat pink Butterfree. Once ya grab her and James lets go of da net, it'll snap right back. I'll keep dat bruisa of a Butterfree of da twerps back with the shock stick," He explained.

Jessie and James looked at each other and grinned before looking back at Meowth.

"Great idea Meowth!" Jessie commended.

"Yeah lets do it!" James said while slipping on the gloves.

Meowth grabbed the shock stick and then they all made their way over to the net and stood in front of it, grinning deviously at the many Butterfree who were now starting to panic at the three Rocket's presence.

They walked around the side of the net until they were now facing Ash's Butterfree and the pink one, who glared at them fiercely, and then James looked at the other two for the signal. Once he received the confirming nod from Jessie and Meowth, James quickly lunged forward and grabbed ahold of the ropes of the net. As soon as he made contact, an electrical charge passed through them and into the net. The blue haired man flexed his arms and, to his surprise, the ropes began to separate and move apart.

As the hole slowly began to widen, the many Butterfree started to see a chance to escape and went flying towards the hole James was making. All except for Ash's Butterfree and the pink female who just looked on warily at what was happening.

Just before the first wave of Butterfree could escape the net, Meowth stepped up and activated the shock stick, cranking up to high voltage and spearing it into the net. Luckily, the Butterfree that were about to be shocked were lucky enough to swerve out of the way in time but quickly retreated back into depths of the net in fear afterwards.

At the same time, Jessie quickly reached in grabbed hold of the pink Butterfree, who was just within reach. No sooner did she grab the female and it then started twisting wildly in her grasp while trying to attack her fiercely.

Ash's Butterfree practically went red with anger at the sight and quickly lunged forward, intent on stopping Jessie from taking the pink one. Meowth saw this however and quickly thrust the shock stick into the net, zapping the male as he flew forward.

Ash's Pokemon writhed in pain as he was shocked but kept his eyes open and alight with rage as he continued struggling towards Jessie. Meowth panicked and turned the voltage up by the dial located on the shock stick's side, trying to stop the angry male who just convulsed again at the increase in power but kept lunging forward in strange, jerking motions. Obviously in a great deal of pain but refusing to give up trying to reach the distressed female.

All of the other Butterfree and especially the pink one looked at the male with wide, disbelieving eyes as he kept fighting through the pain and flying ahead, slowly but surely.

Meowth quickly looked over at Jessie as he saw this. "Hurry up Jess! This Butterfree's nuts!"

Jessie tightened her hold on her target and with one last pulling jerk, she wrenched the uniquely colored female Pokémon from the net and into the open cage that was at her feet.

Ash's Butterfree went insane at seeing this happen and with one last painful push of his wings, he rocketed forward at the gap in the net with a battle cry of, "FREE!"

James quickly let go of the net and the ropes snapped back together just in the nick of time before Ash's Pokémon slammed into it and then started banging his head on the net over and over again while raving furiously at the three Rockets, "FREE FREE! BUTTER FREE FREE!"

The three grunts stepped away from the net and the enraged Butterfree, whom the other Butterfree were now giving as much of a wide berth as possible, and then looked at each other.

"Glad that's over!" James said in relief while removing the gloves and looking at Jessie, who was now holding the small cage containing an equally as irate female Butterfree.

"Told ya it'd work!" Meowth boasted.

Jessie lifted the cage up to eye level and stuck her tongue out at the pink Butterfree. "Not so tough now are you?!" She taunted.

The Butterfree slammed against the cage again in anger and Jessie moved her face away, laughing in the process. The three Rockets then walked back over to the vid-phone located near the back of the warehouse and set the cage down near it on one of the crates.

"Now lets call the Boss!" Jessie cheered excitedly.

The other two also cheered in response as they prepared to make the call.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash and Pikachu watched everything happen with barely controlled fury. Especially when Butterfree was electrocuted the way he was by Meowth. Ash grit his teeth again and turned to look at Pikachu.

"Alright Pikachu, we have to save those Butterfree now," Ash told his first Pokemon with a dead serious face.

Pikachu just nodded and looked at the Rockets again while sparking his cheeks angrily. "Pika..." He growled.

Ash looked back through the window with a contemplative expression on his face. "You heard Team Rocket Pikachu. They're gonna call their boss and have all the Butterfree brought to their headquarters." He balled his hands into fists and banged them on the ledge. "As much as I want to take Team Rocket down... I can't sacrifice the Butterfree's safety just to find out where their base is."

He looked closely at the net from where was. "We have to get them out of there. We already know from what Meowth said that the net can't be destroyed by most attacks, including elemental ones. That means using your, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur or Pidgeot's attacks are out of the question and would only waste time. Its possible Meowth is wrong but I don't want to take chances during something so crucial and I definitely don't want to bring Gastly out in front of the likes of Team Rocket unless I absolutely have to."

Ash looked down at the ledge for a few moments then before his eyes slowly gained a thoughtful gleam in them and he mumbled to himself, "Maybe... just maybe..."

Pikachu tilted his head at Ash. "Pika Pi?"

Ash looked down at Pikachu and started explaining his plan. "Okay Pi... here's what I'm thinking. You're going to take this window out with Iron Tail and then we're going to jump inside on those crates right there," He pointed to a few crates just below the window on the inside. "After that I'll have Charmander use Smokescreen and cover the inside of the building. From there I'll leave you and him, Squirtle and Bulbasaur to cover me while I try to do something with that net."

"Pika Pikachu Pika Pi?" Pikachu inquired with a tilt of his head.

Ash seemed unsure. "Well... that energy... thing... that overtakes me whenever I get really mad. Its powerful, really powerful. More than powerful enough to break that net apart I bet. I don't know but... if I focus really hard then maybe... maybe I can channel it and break the net apart," He wondered aloud with slight worry in his voice.

Pikachu himself also seemed unsure and more than a little nervous about the idea but ultimately decided to trust Ash's judgement.

The raven haired trainer then released the other Pokémon he would be using for the plan and after explaining it to them all, he got into position at the window. Ash looked over at Pikachu after assuring that the others were ready and gave him the signal to start the plan.

Pikachu nodded and then faced the window. He turned his tail to shining iron and then focused on the objective, putting as much power into his tail as he would need before running at the window and swinging his tail around, impacting the barrier with a loud "PIKA!"

The window had no chance of withstanding the force of the impact and instantly busted in, echoing the sound throughout the warehouse. Ash and the others didn't wait a single second and jumped through the opening onto the crates below while Pidgeot simply flew in. Team Rocket was just about to make their call to headquarters when they heard the loud crash and whipped around.

Ash quickly called out to Charmander, "Use Smokescreen now!"

The Fire-Type didn't hesitate and opened his mouth, releasing a black screen of smoke that quickly began covering the entire warehouse. Ash jumped down off the crate and issued his other Pokémon to follow him as he ran towards the net of now agitated Butterfree.

The Rockets were looking around wildly at what was happening and started coughing when the smoke began covering everything. "What's *cough* going on?!" Jessie choked out while trying to cover her nose and mouth.

James was doing the same but Meowth managed to get a glimpse in the direction of the net before the smoke completely shrouded that part of the warehouse and barely managed to see Ash and his Pokémon jump down from the crates near the broken window, running towards the net full of Butterfree. "Its da twerp and his Pokémon!" Meowth told the other two before covering his own face.

"What?!" Jessie shouted and then coughed again. She looked at James. "Do something before that pest somehow manages to free the Butterfree James!" She commanded.

James nodded and took off running towards the front end of the warehouse where the main doors were.

Meanwhile, Ash had finally reached the net and started speaking to all of the Butterfree while covering his face with the upper part of his tracksuit. "Its okay everybody, I'm gonna get you out alright?" He then started trying to see through the net and smoke in an attempt to spot his own Butterfree.

"Butterfree! Butterfree can you hear me?! Its me *cough* Ash!"

A blurry shape suddenly appeared at the net in front of Ash and called out to him, "Free Free!"

Ash didn't have to see in order to know it was his Pokémon that was calling out to him and smiled. "Just hang on Butterfree, you'll be out before you know it!"

He grabbed onto the ropes and looked at his other Pokémon, who were protectively encircling the net. "Watch my back guys!"

Getting resounding calls of affirmative from his Pokémon, Ash closed his eyes and tried to drown out everything else. He focused on forgetting about the warehouse, his Pokémon, the Butterfree... nothing mattered right now besides finding that strange energy within him and beckoning for it to rise to the surface and help him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ash slowly felt himself fall deeper and deeper into his mind as he continued to drown everything around him out. Eventually he found himself standing in a dark place within his, what he guessed, was his mind. There were no shapes, colors and no sounds to be heard except for his own breathing.

The boy opened his mouth to speak and found his breath to be completely chilled. He then realized that he was cold and tried to warm himself up but nothing worked. He continued rubbing his arms while shivering and began walking around while calling out to the darkness, "Hello? Uh... energy, aura... thing... whatever you want to be called... are you here?!"

He waited but received no answer. Just as he began to think it was pointless, Ash saw a faint blue glow, like an orb, in the distance and his eyes widened. "Hello?! What are you? Please... can you help me?!" He shouted.

The blue orb of energy merely hovered in the air a few more times before retreating back into the darkness again, leading Ash to reach out to it and start sprinting full speed through the dark expanse of his mind towards whatever it was. "NO! Please come back! I need your help... your energy to help free the Pokémon! COME BACK!"

Ash kept running until eventually he was stopped dead in his tracks by an almost dead weight feeling in his legs. The boy tried breaking free from the floor that seemed to have just jumped up and grasped onto him but he couldn't. As he continued to struggle, Ash could see a strange light, this time red, forming just ahead of him. However... this newly colored phenomena didn't intrigue or excite him like the briefly appearing blue one did.

No... this other odd, red blazing energy actually scared him. The waves of malevolent power it was expelling became even more fierce as it grew larger and brighter, taking the shape of a wall of swirling red flames and as it did... Ash felt two things.

One was the almost overwhelming negative energy the light was giving off and the other was the thirst for it's terrible power that Ash started feeling come over himself. Those same feelings he felt at the times he lost control like during the confrontation with Damion, Team Rocket at Bill's lighthouse, the boys that messed with Giselle back in Porte Vista and even earlier that same day in the balloon when Team Rocket was stealing the Butterfree.

All of those same emotions started rushing into Ash as he began feeling the strange, harsh energy enter his body like an eager virus. Slowly his mind begun to cloud, replaced by ones of anger and rage as he fell deeper and deeper into its hold.

Just before Ash could fully succumb, he saw the very faint pulsating presence of the blue light far in the corners of the dark space once more. Ash vainly grasped for the blue energy, beckoning it with his thoughts to come back before he fell totally under the control of the evil red energy.

As the boy's vision started to go and his mind commenced to fading, he saw the blue light temporarily take the form of... something, and during this time he heard something loud coming from outside of his mind.

Faintly... very faintly Ash could hear the voice becoming clearer and clearer and as it continued, he could just make out the words, "Pika..." He didn't understand what that meant in his currently addled and confused mindset though.

Then again, "Pika..."

Gradually, Ash's focus started coming more and more into stability as he heard it again, "Kachu..."

He tried to mimic the words with his mouth as he felt his conscious mind returning to him gradually and with it... the wall of red energy slowly receded. The voice called again, only this time loud enough to reverberate throughout the entire dark space. "CHU..."

Ash hesitantly started to stand back up, the red energy seemingly disappearing back into the depths of the darkness and with it, the twisted and vengeful emotions.

The young Ketchum heard the, now ear splitting, shout of "PIKA!" one last time as a bright portal of light suddenly blazed to life in the darkness. With no warning, Ash was sucked towards the portal at blinding speed.

Just before he went through the shining gateway, Ash managed to turn his head to the side and saw, through the blurring speeds he was being pushed at, the blue light from earlier expand and take the very hazy form of, yet again... something.

His vision was fixed on the mysterious being and as he went through the portal and exited the darkness of his mind, he heard a faint voice, if it could even be called a voice and not just a whisper, echo through his mind.

'You are not yet ready...' Was the last thing the young trainer heard before everything faded.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Ash's eyes shot open and he found himself leaning against the net holding the Butterfree, his hands gripping onto the ropes tightly and his legs feeling a little wobbly. He could see that there was still smoke in the air and by looking at the state of his body and the still intact net, he knew that he had failed to channel the energy. He hadn't thought that he had but he had still been hopeful.

The boy pushed himself off the net after a few moments of regaining his strength and looked down through the haze of smoke to see Pikachu standing there, looking up at Ash in concern.

"So... was that you I was hearing then Pi? Were you calling for me?" Ash asked.

Pikachu nodded his head. "Pi, Pikachu Pi!"

Ash shook his head. "I'm sorry I zoned out there Pikachu... I couldn't call on the energy like I wanted to. It just remained out of my reach while some other kind of energy tried to overtake me again. I'm sorry buddy..." Ash sighed with an apologetic look at first Pikachu and then the Butterfree.

His eyes quickly shifted from ones of sorrow though to ones of determination again the very next second as he gripped tightly onto the net and pulled his face in closer. "I may have failed to get you out of here that way but I promise, I'll get you all out of there somehow!" He vowed with firm resolve.

Just as Ash started rack his brain for some type of plan again, he and the Pokémon suddenly heard the doors behind them someways away start to slide apart, letting the rays of sunlight slowly shine through the haze of the smokescreen as some of it began escaping. The next second, they heard the loud roaring of something being turned on and they quickly shifted their gaze deeper into the warehouse where the smoke was still quite a bit thicker.

The fast rotation of propellers and the thundering of the helicopter's engine quickly led Ash to knowing what was happening because the very next moment, almost all of the smoke in the warehouse started to get pushed towards the now open hangar doors where Ash and the others were currently at.

The boy covered his mouth and his Pokémon did the same as best they could while Charmander's black cloud of smoke was quickly pushed out through the doors of the warehouse, leaving the inside of the building now haze free.

Ash looked towards the chopper again and saw Jessie and James standing near the vehicle looking at them while the chopper's engine was suddenly cut and the propellers slowly stopped rotating. Once it did, Ash saw Meowth hop out of the helicopter and walk over to join his teammates, who looked as though they were about to blow a gasket.

Jessie stomped her foot on the ground and threw her hands up. "You meddlesome little twerp! Why are you always getting in our way!" She fumed.

James pointed at Ash. "Yeah what did we ever do to you!"

Ash narrowed his eyes and glared at Team Rocket with unrestrained fury, his Pokémon modeling the same look. "You mean besides trying to steal my Pikachu?! Well then let's try all of the crap you low lives have put not just me and my friends through but everyone else you've ever come into contact with as well! You do nothing but hurt innocent people and Pokémon and have no respect or regard for anyone but yourselves! You lie, cheat, bully, hurt others and even worse..."

Ash's hands clenched into fists and his eyes flashed blue for a split second before going back to amber again. "The worst part is the people you work for. Team Rocket is nothing but a band of criminals, thieves and scum that are a scourge to this world. Your organization steals Pokémon, who've never done anything wrong, from trainers who love them and then sell those same Pokémon like objects to the highest bidder or force them to do whatever horrible things come to your twisted minds!"

Ash pointed his right fist at Team Rocket. "All of you are nothing but a disease that needs to be eradicated and if its the last thing I ever do... I WILL put an end to you all!" He then looked at the Butterfree in the net, who were all staring right back at him intently while his own Butterfree seemed to have pride shining in his eyes for his trainer. An expression that was mimicked by Pikachu, Charmander, Squirtle, Bulbasaur and Pidgeot. Even the pink Butterfree was looking at Ash with surprise and perhaps even slight admiration herself.

"For what you've done to these Butterfree today..." Ash looked back at Team Rocket. "I SWEAR you're going to pay!" He shouted.

Jessie merely laughed at Ash. "Oh I don't think so little boy! There is no way we're letting you take our hard stolen Butterfree!"

"We worked hard for em'!" Meowth shouted.

"We'll stop you!" James said drawing his Pokeball. An action mimicked by Jessie.

The red haired woman raised her Pokéball. "Alright twerp, time to learn a lesson! Arbok go!" She yelled as she threw her Pokéball and released the purple snake Pokémon, which hissed at Ash and the other Pokémon upon appearing.

"Weezing... you're up!" James followed as he released his own Pokémon, which floated in the air and released a bit of smoke from it's holes.

Ash looked at Pikachu and Bulbasaur. "You two wanna handle this?"

He just received two affirmative nods as they bounded out to face their opponents. "PIKA/BULBA!" Both Pokémon called out as they took their battle positions.

Jessie and James addressed their own Pokémon quickly.

"Arbok use Poison Sting!"

"Weezing use Sludge!"

Ash took no time in reacting, "Pikachu dodge that Poison Sting and use Thunderbolt on the crate near Arbok and Bulbasaur! Bulbasaur, wait until the last minute and then roll out of the way of that Sludge attack and use Razor Leaf on Weezing!"

Pikachu and Bulbasaur performed their moves at the exact same time. Pikachu jumped out of the way of Poison Sting and used Thunderbolt quickly as Bulbasaur rolled out of the way of Sludge just before it could hit him and then sent a barrage of razor sharp leaves at Weezing.

The bolt of electricity Pikachu sent at Arbok struck the crate behind the large snake Pokémon and shattered it instantly, sending jagged pieces of the boxes at the legless Pokémon who had to put it's tail up to block them. The leaves that were sent at Weezing were stopped when James called out for his Pokémon to use Sludge to stop them.

After the attacks had stopped, Arbok and Weezing looked back towards Pikachu and Bulbasaur, only to see that they weren't there.

"Where did they go?!" Jessie questioned while looking around wildly.

"Hey disappearing Pokémon isn't fair!" James whined.

Ash smirked because at that same moment, Pikachu came hurdling down from a crate above Arbok and smashed into the unsuspecting Pokémon's head with a fierce downwards headbutt, making Arbok reel back in pain and fall to the ground with a loud, "Chaaa!"

Weezing went to attack Pikachu but was stopped short when it heard something lifting off the ground behind it. The Poison-Type whipped around and saw Bulbasaur behind it, a large crate being held suspended above his head with his vines.

The Grass-Type tossed the crate at Weezing then without a second thought and a loud grunt of, "BULBA!"

As the projectile flew through the air towards Weezing, Jessie and James started panicking.

"Weezing use Sludge attack to stop it quick!" James yelled.

"Arbok use Poison Sting and help Weezing!" Jessie screeched.

Both of the Rocket Pokémon went to launch their attacks when Pikachu suddenly jumped on top of the still downed Arbok and sparked his cheeks quickly before releasing a powerful bolt of electricity that passed through he and Arbok, the latter getting fried by the bolt, and then struck Weezing directly. Effectively stopping the counter attacks as the heavy crate smashed into Weezing, who was still being electrocuted by the bolt of thunder, and sent the floating Pokémon flying back towards Arbok.

Pikachu hopped off the snake with practiced grace and landed a few feet away from them as Bulbasaur quickly joined him, both Pokémon giving a quick nod of praise to each other for their individual efforts.

Weezing collided with Arbok soon after, both Pokémon crying out as a dust cloud was then kicked up from their impacts. When it settled, both of the Rocket's Pokémom were struggling on the ground with bruises and scorch marks (from the electricity) covering their bodies. Jessie and James appeared totally shocked that their Pokémon had been so easily reduced to near unconsciousness in so little a time and didn't even realize that Ash hadn't commanded his Pokémon to do a thing since after the battle first started.

The first attacks he called out were just a decoy, a ruse, and then left it to his Pokémon to figure out what to do from there. Trusting them to battle on their own. Which was both risky and very effective if done right, which it had been.

Ash didn't waste any time and was just about to command Pikachu and Bulbasaur to end it when Meowth suddenly stepped up holding the cage with the pink Butterfree inside of it in one hand and the shock stick in the other.

"Stop right there twerp!" Meowth said as he raised the shock stick up to the bars of the cage, much to the pink female's fear and anger. "Give out one more command to ya Pokémon and dis little beauty of a Butterfree gets da shock treatment of her life!" He threatened.

Ash stopped what he was about to do and just glared at Meowth, fully believing that someone from Team Rocket would do something so vile and cruel. "Pikachu, Bulbasaur... stand down," He commanded grudgingly.

Jessie and James both laughed together at the sudden change of events while Ash's Pokémon, especially Pikachu and Bulbasaur, glared viciously at them but listened their trainer and made no further attempts to attack.

"What's wrong twerp?" Jessie began. "Too soft to sacrifice one measly little Butterfree for the whole flock hmm? Even though I do admit she is rather stunning with that beautiful pink coloring of hers, you shouldn't be so quick to let us 'bad guys' get the upper hand!" She mocked.

"Sucks being the hero now doesn't it twerp?!" James taunted and then broke out laughing again, joined by Jessie.

Arbok and Weezing had managed to get back up by this point but made no move to attack Pikachu or Bulbasaur. Neither was eager to be thrashed around again and even though they weren't supposed to, Pikachu and Bulbasaur could snap at any moment and take it out on them. And neither Arbok, nor Weezing, were anxious to feel such pain again so soon. So instead they merely stayed by their trainer's sides and watched the current situation unfold passively.

Meowth cackled aloud wheh he saw Ash and his Pokémon stop attacking and took that moment to turn on the shock stick. "Y'know... I think dat pinky here still needs a little attitude adjustment so..." Leaving the next part unsaid, Meowth rammed the shock stick inside of the cage and jabbed into the pink Butterfree's side.

The female Butterfree cried out in agonizing pain when she felt the sparks of the shock stick touch her skin and immediately started thrashing around in agony while batting her wings around furiously and crying out, "F-FREEEEE! FREE F-FREE!" wail wailed.

The female was tough and to this, there was no doubt. However, unlike Ash's Butterfree who had already sustained two rounds of fierce torture from the evil device, both times to protect her, he had something that she didn't have.

Ash's Butterfree had been electrocuted by Pikachu on multiple occasions during training and when comparing the shock stick to Pikachu's power, there was just no comparison. Pikachu's electricity could reach volts that a shock stick never could, a testament to the power that the young Electric-Type truly held. Because of this, Butterfree could handle the fierce voltage of the shock stick much longer and with much more resilience than the pink female could since obviously... her own trainer never made her stay in one spot and get blasted by a Pikachu's electric power until near blackout.

Either way, the pink Butterfree just didn't have that same experience with self inflicted mutilation so right now, she was really suffering. Ash and his Pokémon could only watch in horror and fury as Meowth continued to zap the female over and over again relentlessly.

Just as Ash was getting ready to make a move to help her in some way, he heard a commotion coming from the net behind him. The boy and his Pokémon all turned around and when they did, they saw Ash's Butterfree going absolutely insane inside of the net. Butterfree had been watching with fear in his eyes when Meowth picked up the pink female's cage and the shock stick and had pressed himself so tightly to the net that it appeared as though he would go right through it.

When he saw Meowth start torturing the female however... Butterfree lost it.

His eyes went wide with pure rage as he started thrashing around within the net in a frenzy, calling out wildly and bucking against the net like he was infected with the Pokérus virus. He would even slam into the other Butterfree in the net while he was thrashing around and this led to all of the Butterfree sinking as far back to the sides and bottom of the net as possible to give their crazed kin a wide berth.

"FREE! FREEE! BUTTERFREEEE!" Ash's Butterfree shouted out loudly with his voice full of unrestrained fury as he continued to thrash around, all the while keeping his eyes glued to Meowth and the female he was torturing.

Jessie and James both laughed. "Looks like he's not enjoying the show!" Jessie chided.

"What a wimp!" James jeered.

Meowth laughed as he shocked the female again. "What's a matter Butterfree? Upset you can't come free ya girl?!" He busted out laughing again while he continued shocking the pink female, who was tossing around in the small cage like mad in agony.

This only drove Butterfree crazier as he started flying around even wilder while his shouts became frantic. Ash ran up to the net with Pikachu and the his other Pokémon then. "Butterfree calm down!" He yelled.

"Pikachu Pi!" Pikachu shouted at his teammate.

The other Pokémon did the same but Butterfree didn't hear a word. All he could think about was how the pink female was being hurt by Meowth and that he was too powerless to get out of the net and help her. It drove him crazy. He couldn't... he wouldn't just stay locked up in a stupid net while the pink Butterfree was getting shocked into insanity. No matter what, Butterfree knew that he had to get out... he had to help her... and he had to make Team Rocket pay for what they did.

Butterfree then began throwing his body into the cage repeatedly. Every single thrust of his body into the net was with enough force to shake the whole thing and rattle his bones. He would fly all the way to the opposite end of the net and then throw himself right back into the same side he had been attacking over and over again.

This went on with absolutely no pause. Harder and harder and harder Butterfree would tackle the net. Boring his gaze into the ropes so hard that if a simple glare could break them apart, the net would have torn to pieces long ago.

Meowth laughed again. "Ya wastin' ya time Butterfree! Dat net won't break no matter what it is ya do to it!"

Butterfree didn't even hear Meowth. He could hear the cries of pain from the pink Butterfree and that just kept making the rage inside of him boil hotter and hotter like a furnace being fueled by ten Fire-Types. Butterfree continued to feel the anger and rage boil inside of him until his stomach literally started to feel hot. As in he felt as though his insides were catching fire, like magma was boiling within him.

Butterfree felt a great pressure come over him as the heat became almost too much bear. He flew back to the other side of the net and then doubled over in mid-air as he began convulsing in pain that started to grow until he felt like he had been thrust into a volcano but wasn't allowed to burn up. Only able to feel the intense heat as it penetrated his skin.

At the same time, he was feeling like the entire force of gravity was coming down onto him. His wings were like led, leaving him unable to understand how he was staying aloft. He also felt his eyes begin to burn... badly, and this made him convulse in even worse pain.

Ash gripped the net tightly, fear for the pink Butterfree and now his own beginning to smother him. "Butterfree!" He shouted and just as he made to bang his fists against the net, Ash was suddenly hit with an absolutely excruciating pain that was a combination between being on fire and like gravity itself was coming down. It was similar to how he felt whenever the dark energy would overtake him but it also felt... different at the same time. Almost like a different variation of the same event and was similar to the other but yet... not really the same at all.

Ash suddenly dropped to his knees and put his hands to his head while screaming loudly in pain, "AHHHHH!"

At the same time, Butterfree dropped to the bottom of the net (luckily the other Butterfree had moved away in time) and began convulsing around as well while crying out loudly, "FREEEEEEE!"

Both trainer and Pokémon struggled in agonizing pain together while Ash's other Pokémon watched on in worry and fear. The three Rockets were at a complete loss as to what was happening but started getting strange feelings in the pit of their stomachs.

Suddenly... Ash and Butterfree went still. They stopped moving, stopped screaming and stopped convulsing. They just lay there, one in the net and one out, in complete silence. Almost as though they were sleeping. Then... everything changed.

Ash suddenly began to stir. His fingers moved, followed by his legs, and then slowly... very slowly, he came up until he was on one knee. His face was down and a shadow covered his face. Butterfree had also begun to move at the exact same time as Ash did. Both of them slowly got up, Ash standing while still remaining slightly hunched and Butterfree rising back up into the air slowly.

Everyone else watched completely silent and with baited breath as Ash and his Pokémon started twitching strangely. Almost in a convulsing motion. Then, to Pikachu's dread, the other Pokémon's confusion and Team Rocket's bewilderment... a blue cloak of energy started forming around Ash. At the same time, the atmosphere in the warehouse grew darker and the air became thinner. Ash snapped his head up then and revealed to everyone that his eyes were now glowing a fierce electric blue.

The strangest thing however, wasn't the way Ash looked. It was the appearance of Butterfree that was the most surprising. The flying Bug-Type Pokémon started forming the exact same blue energy shroud around his body that Ash now had around his. His wings took on a sort of purplish/blue color while his body took on the same shade, only a tad bit darker.

You could still see Butterfree's actual color but now... it was like a transparent cloak covering his small frame. What was most terrifying though were his eyes. When Butterfree looked up at the same time Ash did, it was revealed that his own eyes were now also glowing an electric bluish/white.

Ash's other Pokémon felt themselves grow both scared and cold as the temperature in the warehouse seemed to have dropped several degrees. Pikachu knew this wasn't good and quickly rounded up his teammates, leading them well away from the net for whatever was about to happen. Team Rocket were now feeling absolutely terrified themselves.

"W-What's going on?!" Jessie said shivering.

"It g-g-got s-s-so c-cold!" James chattered while rubbing his arms.

Meowth had stopped shocking the pink Butterfree and was now watching the strange event unfold with fear in his eyes. "D-Dis is like dat time at dat lighthouse place..." He stuttered with a trembling voice.

Ash looked at Team Rocket with a dark, angry scowl on his shadowed face, mirrored by Butterfree, and then slowly lifted his arms up to the sides. An action also mimicked by Butterfree only he spread his wings out widely and leaned back into the net like an arrow about to be shot forward. The other Butterfree were looking at Ash's Butterfree with complete fear on their face and the very next second... that fear was proven to be well instilled.

Ash, in one quick movement, suddenly pushed his arms back and forward in a hard pushing motion that caused the air around him to stir. At the same time he did that, Butterfree flew straight forward like a ballistic rocket and impacted the net with a loud 'FREE!" Which was yelled in the same moment as when Ash shouted with a voice full of primal fury, "GRAAAAHHHHH!'

When Butterfree collided with the net, the blue energy around his body leeched itself onto the net as the energy around Ash did the exact same thing. Ash kept his arms pushed forward in a tense position with his arms flexed tightly and as he did this, Butterfree pressed himself so firmly against the net it looked as though he would go straight through the holes.

What happened next, shocked everyone. Especially Team Rocket.

The blue, fire like energy that had attached itself to the ropes began eating away at it until the fiber started to become much more fragile and brittle. The entire net made a loud creaking sound and the very concrete floor below it actually rumbled slightly. Ash made one last pushing motion with his hands and with it, Butterfree pressed himself even tighter against the net.

And that was the breaking point.

With one last loud snapping sound, the side of the net Butterfree was pressing on completely broke apart. Snapping into pieces like ripped paper. The incredible amount of force applied at that last moment that broke the net apart actually cracked the concrete floor in the same spot and Butterfree came shooting out of it like a rocket.

Ash quickly turned his gazed towards Meowth, who was frozen in place like he had been hit with an Ice Beam. The same dark scowl still on his face, Ash snapped his right arm in the direction of Meowth. As he did this, Butterfree, who was finally free from the confines of the net, utilized his bullet like momentum from breaking through the net to change direction rapidly with Ash's arm movement, in perfect sync, and shoot towards Meowth.

Said Pokémon yelled out in terror at seeing the demonic looking Butterfree flying towards him and dropped the cage he had in his hands like a hot potato. The cage hit the floor and rattled around a bit, jostling the dazed pink Butterfree around inside of it, as Ash's Butterfree flew down at it.

Now... if everyone watching was surprised to see Butterfree break apart the seemingly 'unbreakable net' then it came as one helluva of nasty shock to see him collide with the metal of the cage, the energy blazing fiercely around him, and then literally shatter it completely apart like glass. The sound of metal pieces hitting the floor was all that remained of the cage came as it came crashing back to the ground again.

Ash seemed to go still for a moment as Butterfree looked down at the pink Butterfree, who was lying on the ground with slightly closed eyes, his now piercing electric blue ones turning soft as he gently reached down and rubbed his wing tip across her face. She opened her eyes a little more upon feeling his touch and looked up at Butterfree with surprise visible in her blurry eyes.

Butterfree continued stroking her face gently with his wing tip as Ash came walking over to them in an almost complete trance. Slow and graceful being the only way to describe his movements. The young Ketchum reached the two Butterfree and bent down slowly until he was looking at the pink female. He had a soft look on his otherwise aggressive face and even though you couldn't see his irises, you could tell he was looking at her with tenderness. Ash then opened his mouth and spoke for the first time. His voice sounding both powerful, as well as gentle at the moment. It wasn't echoing with the voice of someone else either this time like all of the ones previous.

"I am not going to harm you Butterfree... please just trust me." Ash then slowly reached out and touched the pink Butterfree, who flinched at first but then quickly calmed upon feeling the warmth that was somehow radiating from the energy coming off of Ash. Comforting her instead of hurting her as she originally expected.

Ash then gently scooped her up into his arms and walked slowly over to his other Pokémon, who were now watching Ash and Butterfree with more curiosity than fear. Obviously no longer scared of the two since Ash and Butterfree were not acting hostile towards them.

With Butterfree flying right beside of Ash, watching over the pink Butterfree closely, Ash sat her down in front of Pikachu gently and then stood back up.

"Please watch over her all of you," He requested patiently.

His Pokémon just gave him a nod, Pikachu and Squirtle already looking over her, as Ash turned around and walked back over to the net. Butterfree right by his side. He walked past the net and looked to the side at all of the Butterfree, were still too shocked to realize that they now had an escape route out of their prison. "You are free now Butterfree... please leave," He spoke with an authority in his voice that did not leave any room for argument.

His Butterfree looked at all of his shell shocked kin and then spoke in an equally deep and commanding tone, "Free! Free Free!"

This seemed to finally snap them all from their stupor because at that second, all of the Butterfree seemed to notice the now gaping hole in the net and quickly started flying towards it. Almost all at one time.

Team Rocket watched as all of their 'hard stolen' Butterfree began escaping through the net and fleeing the warehouse through the open doors by the dozens until eventually, they were almost all gone into the open air of the outside world.

"NO!" Jessie screamed as the last of the Butterfree escaped.

"Our Butterfree!" James yelled.

"Our promotion!" Meowth all but sobbed.

It was at that same moment that the three of them felt a terrible force come crashing down on top of them, nearly forcing them to the ground. They looked up at Ash and Butterfree then and saw that the blue aura surrounding them both had now been rekindled to full intensity and was blazing around them like a small sun. The air around them had also picked up and the same angry, dark scowl they originally possessed had come back full force.

Ash narrowed his glowing blue/white eyes and then shouted in a booming loud voice,"YOUR BUTTERFREE!? ALL OF THOSE POKÉMON YOU STOLE WERE ONLY TRYING TO FIND MATES AND THEN YOU HAD THE DESPICABLE NERVE TO TORTURE TWO OF THEM!"

"FREE!" Butterfree spat at them with disdain. Clearly remembering both shock 'treatments' he received at their hands and even more vividly... how Meowth had tortured the pink female.

Ash pointed his finger at the three Rockets as a strong gust of wind blew at them along with it. "YOU THEN HAVE THE AUDACITY TO CALL THEM 'YOUR' BUTTERFREE!? TRAINERS DO NOT TORTURE THEIR POKÉMON! YOU ARE NOTHING BUT VILE CRIMINALS THAT DESERVE NOTHING LESS THAN TO BE DESTROYED!"

Ash drew his arm back and Butterfree landed on the ground, planting his feet and spreading his wings out rigidly."I'VE HAD ENOUGH!" Ash then thrust his arm forward and with a loud shout, mimicked by Butterfree, he punched the air hard.

"RAAAHHH/FREEE!" Both trainer and Pokémon shouted together as Butterfree shot forward off the ground in time with Ash's punch in perfect harmony, the concrete around where he took off actually cracking under the force of the intense pressure.

As Butterfree went shooting towards Team Rocket, Jessie and James tried the one thing they thought would save them.

"Arbok use Poison Sting to stop that Butterfree!" Jessie shouted in a shrill and terrified voice.

"Weezing use Sludge!" James commanded his own Pokémon, just as scared as Jessie was.

Even though they were both now terrified beyond belief, Arbok and Weezing couldn't let their trainers down and quickly hopped in front of them, releasing their attacks with loud cries of, "Charrbok/Weezing!"

The two attacks went soaring at the fast approaching Butterfree but neither he nor Ash even blinked.

The boy lifted his arms up and then brought them in together like he was crushing something, Butterfree doing the exact same thing with his wings. With this, an extremely powerful gust of wind blew forward from the Pokémon's wings and went slicing through the air, cutting through Arbok and Weezing's attacks like they were nothing.

The blast of wind was so powerful that it tore right through the attacks and continued on a war path towards the two petrified Rocket Pokémon. Crates, boxes and all other manner of equipment in the area getting torn asunder by the aura enhanced wind.

Jessie, James and their Pokémon could do nothing but scream in pure terror as the attacks finally collided with them and sent the villainous trio, plus Arbok and Weezing, hurdling into the back wall where a bunch of crates were stacked up. The aforementioned crates falling on top of them in a large heap after the impact.

Ash was apparently not done though as he thrust another fist at the air and Butterfree took off towards the downed criminals at blurring speeds. The sheer wind speed behind the Pokémon was causing crates on both sides of the building to either break into pieces or fall into unorganized heaps and the concrete floor was even cracking from the power of the intense aura.

The blue colored energy that was radiating off of Ash was mirrored on Butterfree as he flew toward his enemies, the streaks of light that the aura gave off making him look like a small comet due to the speed he was flying at.

Just as Butterfree was atop Team Rocket, Arbok and Weezing managed to shakily get themselves into an upright position. Butterfree took advantage of this situation and appeared in front of the both of them in an instant. Being directed it seemed by Ash's own movements, Butterfree spun around and tackled Arbok in the body, hard enough to knock the breath from the poor Pokémon. He then spun upwards and slammed his left wing into the snake's chin, making it reel backwards.

Butterfree saw Weezing prepare to launch a Sludge attack at him and just before he could it, Ash's Pokémon quickly flew up and around Arbok's head, shielding himself behind the larger Pokémon and smirking in satisfaction when he heard Weezing's sludgy attack hit it instead.

Arbok cried out in pain as the foul substance made contact with it's skin and Butterfree used that moment to launch another powerful gust, which was more than enough to send the writhing Arbok crashing into the still unsteady Weezing. Both Pokémon crashed back into their trainers again, who were still trying to get out from under all the crates.

Ash took that particular moment and looked around the warehouse until his gaze fell on Team Rocket's helicopter. For some reason, just seeing the vehicle that had been used to capture the Butterfree enraged him and caused Ash's eyes to blaze an even fiercer blue. The raven haired trainer brought his arms up to his right side and then brought them down together in a fast sweeping motion.

This was naturally mimicked by Butterfree and as Ash's arms came up, Butterfree reared back. When Ash brought his arms down in the sweeping gesture, Butterfree shot off towards the helicopter and smashed into the machine's side with a vengeance, the resounding noise of metal being crushed echoed throughout the building as the aura engulfed Butterfree impacted with his target and caused a large dent to be made in the vehicles surface.

The chopper lifted off of the ground slightly as Butterfree hit it and then continued to fall backwards as the Pokémon pushed itself even deeper into the metal. Ash brought his arms back, which made Butterfree fly away from the chopper slightly, and brought them back down again. Butterfree flew forward once more like a puppet on strings and smashed into the helicopter's side again, the blazing blue energy around Butterfree was wrapped so tightly around him it looked like an ethereal shield of power.

The force of the last strike was enough to crack the chopper's side windows with another loud shattering noise. Ash then began punching both arms forward continuously like a boxer and Butterfree simulated the moves. Flying back and then smashing himself into the helicopter over and over again relentlessly. On the side, the back end, the front end... no single area on the vehicle was safe as the windows smashed apart, the top and back propellers snapped and broke off and the metal surface itself was crunched up and torn in tatters by Butterfree's vicious, aura enhanced blows. The sound of destruction completely deafening the inside of the warehouse as the carnage continued.

Ash's other Pokémon just watched on in astonishment as they observed Butterfree do things to a massive air vehicle that no Pokémon in his species or his size should have been able to do. The pink Butterfree had managed to regain enough consciousness that she was also watching the destruction happen with wide eyes. Not being able to believe that a simple Butterfree, like her, could be performing such impossible feats of destruction.

Team Rocket had managed to pull themselves free from under the crates and were now watching the demolishment of their team vehicle with wide, horrified eyes.

"D-Dis ain't normal y-yous guys!" Meowth stammered.

James tucked his head down behind a crate, followed by Jessie and both their Pokémon as they shouted at the same time, "TELL US WHEN ITS OVER!"

Not one to be left out, Meowth followed suit without hesitation and took shelter behind the crate along with his teammates. Saying a silent prayer to Arceus in the process that she would stop the madness being wrought down upon them.

Ash finally stopped his barrage of fist strikes and with it, Butterfree backed away from the helicopter that was now thoroughly thrashed in every way imaginable. The side and front windows were totally destroyed, the front and back propellers were crumpled and bent beyond repair. Several large holes were bored into the metal of the chopper's sides and the inside of the vehicle was sparking wildly from the extreme damage the electrical circuits had sustained during the assault. And all of it having been caused by the one lone Butterfree that was now hovering just a few feet away.

Butterfree himself was still shrouded in the blue energy cloak and his eyes were blazing with the same intensity that his trainer's were also showing. He didn't look to be out of breath at all after wrecking the large vehicle and this would have lead anyone with common sense to the conclusion that the powerful energy now present within himself and Ash, gifted them terrifying power to do things that would have been impossible otherwise. After all... no matter how strong it may be, no Butterfree should be able to do what Ash's had just demonstrated. No matter how well trained and powerful it was.

It seemed as though the mysterious, unnamed and frighteningly powerful energy that had a hold over Ash during times of great emotional stress was just continuing to become more and more complex with each passing time it happened.

The current situation was no different... and it was only about to get stranger. Even stranger than Butterfree also becoming effected by the blue aura and forming a kind of 'puppet to master' link with Ash while under it's influence.

The young Ketchum, who's energy cloak was blazing around him like a fire, tore his gaze away from the destroyed helicopter and locked his piercing electric eyes on the crate Team Rocket was hiding behind. Butterfree was also looking in the same direction, almost as if thinking his intense glare could burn right through the obstacle separating him from the criminals who had tortured the pink Butterfree.

He may have taken some aggression out on the helicopter but he was still far from done. The anger he felt at the three idiotic Rockets was only growing with each passing second like a volcano about to erupt.

Ash opened his mouth then and shouted words dripping with fury as his eyes burned even brighter, "DON'T YOU DARE HIDE FROM ME! STOP HIDING LIKE THE COWARDS YOU ARE AND FACE ME BEFORE I RAZE THIS ENTIRE BUILDING TO THE GROUND!" Ash practically roared the last part and Butterfree punctuated it with a loud war cry of his own.

Jessie, James and Meowth just continued to shake in fear even after Ash's command and this served to only infuriate the boy further.

"GRAAHHH!" Ash shouted as he felt a sharp stinging pain enter into his eyes and burn through his retina like liquid fire was filling them. Butterfree also felt the same intense pain his trainer did in his own eyes and writhed around in mid-air furiously, rubbing his burning eyes with one wing at a time so he could stay up. An action that was also being performed by Ash, who was rubbing at his eyes madly with the backs of his hands while screaming in pain.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu cried out for Ash as the other Pokémon looked on in distress at their trainer's apparent suffering.

Ash threw his arms back and gazed up at the roof of the warehouse with eyes that were burning a brighter shade of electric blue than they ever had before. Butterfree had fallen to the ground by this point and was looking up in the same direction. His own eyes blazing a painful looking shade of electric blue.

Ash finally threw his head forward and looked at the crate Team Rocket was hiding behind while screaming loudly, Butterfree doing the same. "AHHH/FREEE!"

As both trainer and Pokémon screamed loudly, something astounding and extremely painful looking started to happen to Butterfree's eyes.

The electric blue energy that was swirling around madly within the depths of Butterfree's eyes, blazing on the surface like an uncontrolled fire, began getting brighter and brighter as the energy seemed to radiate out from the Bug-Type's eyes. The aura then started forming what almost looked like a secondary layer over Butterfree's eyes as it turned a lighter shade of blue until it appeared to be totally white in color. The burning continued behind his eyes... bubbling up to the surface until the very next moment... it happened.

With one final call of "FREEEE!" Butterfree's eyes flickered once before two beams of white hot energy shot from his eyes and zoomed across the warehouse, right for the crates that Team Rocket was hiding behind.

The twin beams of energy struck the crate and instantly the vessel of wood exploded into hundreds of pieces, revealing a very shocked and even more terrified Team Rocket sitting there in a crouch behind it with eyes so wide they looked as though they would pop right out.

James sputtered. "W-w-what w-w-was t-that?!"

Jessie grabbed Meowth and threw him up in front of them. "Protect us Meowth!" She demanded while trying to hide herself behind the small Pokémon.

The talking cat Pokémon just squirmed in her grip and protested loudly, "NO! Lemme go ya coward! I don't wanna die!"

Butterfree thrashed his head around madly as his eyes continued flickering like a faulty light bulb. Ash was doing the same thing as he himself thrashed around, bumping into crates and smashing them into pieces with super powered, aura enhanced punches... desperately holding his head in his hands while screaming in pain.

Butterfree finally lost the battle of control and started shooting the beams of white energy from his eyes all over the warehouse. Crates exploded on contact, windows shattered, perfectly carved out holes were shot all the way through the walls into the outside beyond and pieces of the ceiling came raining down with every blast of the strange new power that Ash, and by extension Butterfree, had just been burdened with.

Ash's other Pokémon took refuge behind a couple of crates that had not been destroyed yet near the main doors and after Pikachu and Bulbasaur managed to get the pink Butterfree situated as safely as possible in-between the others, the Electric-Type turned to his teammate.

"Pika Pika! Pikachu Pi!" He pointed to himself and then at Ash and Butterfree before looking back at Bulbasaur again. "Pikachu, Pika Pika Pikachu Pi!" He said urgently again while this time pointing to Bulbasaur, Ash's other Pokémon and the pink Butterfree before then gesturing towards the doors that lead outside.

Bulbasaur seemed to understand exactly what Pikachu was wanting them to do, which was leave and get to safety so he could go to Ash and Butterfree, but just shook his head stubbornly. "Bulba! Bulba Bulba, Bulbasaur Bulba!" He fought back.

Pikachu shook his head at Bulbasaur's plea to stay and help and pointed to himself again and then Ash. "Pikachu! Pikachu Pi, Pika Pika Pi Pikachu!" He then smiled at Bulbasaur and patted him on the bulb. "Pikachu. Pika Pikachu Pi."

Bulbasaur looked at Pikachu for a few more moments before finally nodding his head and extending one of his vines at the small mouse. Pikachu smiled and grasped it, returning his friend and teammate's version of a handshake and accepting the bid of good luck Bulbasaur was offering him.

The Grass-Type nodded one last time at his friend before running off to Ash's other Pokémon and explaining what was happening to them. They all seemed reluctant at first but after being explained the situation, and getting one fierce look from Bulbasaur, they all listened and took off running towards the doors that lead outside. Which had luckily already been opened by James earlier during the whole smoke fiasco.

Pikachu watched Charmander and Squirtle retreat out the door lastly, both of them supporting the pink Butterfree between them, before his attention turned back towards Ash as he took off running towards his trainer.

Ash and Butterfree continued to thrash around madly, the latter still firing off beams of energy from his eyes, before Ash turned his head in a fit of pain towards the demolished helicopter in the center of the room. Butterfree naturally turned the exact same direction since he and Ash were still somehow connected through the aura shrouding them both, and fired off two more shots from his eyes that went right towards the chopper.

The energy beams connected with their target and the effect was almost instantaneous.

A small vacuum of air seemed to suck Ash, Pikachu, Butterfree and Team Rocket forward towards the helicopter ever so slightly before the entire aerial vehicle completely exploded in a brilliant flash of light and fire that rocked the entire ground inside and outside of the warehouse. The sound ringing off the canyon walls in the process.

Butterfree went flying back into Ash, who in turn flew back into a support beam and gasped out in pain before falling to the ground with Butterfree on top of him. Pikachu went soaring back into a crate, breaking the wooden box like it was glass and becoming covered in the debree. Team Rocket were not so fortunate and, since they were so close to the blast radius, ended up getting sent straight the wall right behind them and outside, skidding through the dirt in the canyon with Arbok and Weezing before crashing into one of the canyon walls in the distance.

Luckily for them, the wall had been weakened by several of the energy beams Butterfree had shot through it earlier and this kept them from breaking their bones to powder when they went through it. No doubt they still felt intense pain but it wasn't life threatening like it could have been.

As the fires and smoke of the exploded helicopter began spreading throughout what remained of the extremely damaged warehouse, Pikachu regained consciousness and looked around. All he could see was the black smoke of fire around him and his ears were still ringing from the explosion. He slowly started to stand up and it took all of his willpower not to fall back onto his stomach because of how wobbly his legs were feeling.

With every bit of strength he could muster, Pikachu started making his way through the thick black curtain of smoke surrounding him, trying with all of his might to get some sense of smell on where Ash and Butterfree could be. Sadly, the smell of smoke was too prevalent in the air and Pikachu could smell nothing but it no matter how hard he tried.

So instead, the Electric-Type made his way towards where he saw Ash and Butterfree get blown away to right before he temporarily blacked out. As he continued to walk, Pikachu's legs started to feel gradually stronger and his bearings began returning to him. Eventually, after searching for what seemed like forever, he was finally able to spot two shapes lying on the ground near the window that they had all come in from when they first entered the warehouse.

Pikachu's ears perked up and he ran over to the two shapes on the ground until he saw the unmoving forms of Ash and Butterfree come into full view. Butterfree was being cradled protectively by Ash at his side and the energy shroud that had been covering them both was now finally gone. They were covered in soot and clearly unconscious.

The yellow mouse ran over to them both and went up to Ash's face. "Pika Pika! Pikachu Pi, Pika Pi!" He called out loudly, trying to wake his trainer and fellow teammate up.

It didn't work and this caused Pikachu to call even louder while taking turns shaking both Butterfree and Ash. He even tried slapping them with his tail but nothing worked. "Pikachu Pi!" He called out again with worry staining his voice.

Finally, Pikachu had an idea and charged up a small amount of electricity before launching at the two of them. "CHU!" Pikachu yelled as he zapped Ash and Butterfree.

Both of them were instantly jolted awake as Ash cried out in pain, "YEEEOOOWWWW!" He then fell back against the wall with Butterfree in his lap and panted slightly while holding his side and looking up at Pikachu. "Ugh... Pikachu?" He asked groggily.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu called out in response to Ash, very relieved and happy that he and Butterfree were awake.

Ash looked around at the smoke filling the air and took notice of how everything he could see through the smoke was practically destroyed, as well as how warm he felt for some reason. He looked at Pikachu in confusion then. "What happened here Pi?"

Pikachu's ears went down slightly and he looked around a little bit before finally pointing at Ash and Butterfree. "Pikachu... Pika Pi, Pika Pika Pikachu..." He said while sweeping his arm across the warehouse and doing an exaggerated pointing motion from his eyes, trying to relay what happened with the energy beams Butterfree had been shooting from his own eyes.

Ash understood what Pikachu was trying to tell him after a few moments of processing it all and then looked at his hands before shifting his gaze down to Butterfree, who was sitting in Ash's lap upright as he tried to regain all of his senses. "I... I did this?" Ash looked around the smoke filled warehouse again with wide eyes and then back down at Butterfree. "Me and Butterfree did all of this?"

Pikachu just nodded his head, looking remorseful. "Pika..."

Ash slumped against the wall and coughed a few times from the smoke, only now starting to feel the extreme drain that using the mysterious aura came with. His whole body felt like it weighed a couple hundred pounds and that he had been stampeded by a herd of Tauros. "This is getting out of hand..." Ash murmured more to himself than anyone else. "I have got to find out what causes this and get control of it somehow. If I made Butterfree do all of this just by getting controlled by that energy again then it has to stop... this is the worse its ever been."

He sighed and closed his eyes for a moment before snapping them open again and shooting upright, ignoring the cries of protest from his body. "Pikachu, what happened to the others and where is Team Rocket?! What about the pink Butterfree? Is she okay?!" This caught Butterfree's attention as well because he looked at Pikachu expectantly.

Pikachu first pointed to the other end of the warehouse where Team Rocket had been blown through the wall and then turned his gaze towards the entrance of the warehouse. He made motions the whole time with his hands to express just what had happened.

Ash seemed to understand what Pikachu was telling them and nodded, looking relieved. "Good, I'm glad the others got out alright. Great thinking Pikachu, you did great," He praised.

Pikachu smiled happily at Ash and chirped in gratitude as his trainer slowly started to stand up, using the wall he was leaning against for support. Pikachu and Butterfree, who of which was now standing beside his teammate, watched their trainer with concern as he struggled to stand up.

Ash grunted and breathed through the screaming pain his body was feeling and finally managed to stand all the way up in a leaning position against the wall, still cradling his side in pain.

He looked down at his Pokémon and smiled. "Don't worry about me guys... I'm gonna be just fine!" He assured with a thumbs up as he made to step forward off the wall.

This action caused a fresh wave of pain to shoot down into his legs and made Ash grit his teeth as he fell forward and grabbed a hold of a nearby crate that was still standing. "Pika Pi/Free!" Both Pikachu and Butterfree cried out in fear for their trainer as they ran/flew to his side. Ash looked at them again and nodded before using the crate as support to walk further. "I'm alright guys... just getting used to these jelly legs is all." He smiled at his attempt of a joke.

Pikachu and Butterfree followed Ash as he let go of the crate and continued walking slowly through the warehouse towards the outside, watching carefully for him in case he went to fall. Butterfree's eyes burned from shooting the beams of energy earlier but other than that his body felt fine. Ash had apparently taken the physical toll of it all.

The boy stopped and looked around before he started shuffling faster towards the exit. "We've gotta get out of here guys... fast," He grunted out. "If there are any fuel tanks in here for that helicopter of Team Rocket's then we probably don't have long before the fire eventually reaches them and causes this whole place to explode."

Ash was right to want to hurry so fast because at that same moment, a lone fuel tank that was near enough to the fire of the chopper but far enough away from the rest of the tanks, finally reached it's critical peak and exploded like a hundred fireworks going off.

The blast was enough to shake the heavily demolished building and caused Ash and his Pokémon to go flying forward. "Wahh!" Ash yelled out as he flew through the air and then hit the ground with a heavy groan. Pikachu managed to get his feet first and looked up at the ceiling above Ash just in time to see a few pieces fall from it and plummet down towards his trainer, who was now struggling to get back up.

Pikachu cried out in fear for his trainer and took off running for him. Unfortunately... he was too late.

The chunks of ceiling fell on top of Ash in a heap and caused the boy to yell out in pain as he was forced back down by the weight of the heavy pieces of steel. Pikachu and Butterfree, who were thrown near Ash's position, made their way to their trainer's side and looked at the heavy pieces of debree that was keeping him down. Ash struggled against the heavy weight in an attempt to get free but in his weakened state, it was hopeless.

Pikachu and Butterfree started trying to help him get out from under the fallen ceiling chunks but it was just too heavy for them to move on their own. Ash looked at them then and yelled out, "Forget about me you two and just get yourselves to safety! This place could explode at any minute!"

The plea fell on deaf ears though as Pikachu and Butterfree were completely dead set against the idea of leaving their trainer for dead. Instead, they continued doing everything they could to help get him free.

Outside of the building, Ash's other Pokémon were watching and listening for everything that was going on inside of the building. After they had all heard the first explosion they wanted to run in and help Ash but were stopped by Bulbasaur, who reminded them that Pikachu gave them specific orders to stay outside no matter what happened. Being that he was Ash's first Pokémn, they were all obligated to listen.

However, when the second explosion came, it took Bulbasaur actually using his vines to keep them all from charging inside. After fighting against them for several moments, Bulbasaur finally managed to reign them in. All except for one.

The pink Butterfree was frightened for not only Ash's Butterfree's sake, but also for the boy himself and Pikachu. They had risked so much to save her and the other Butterfree and she wasn't going to just do nothing while they were in such terrible trouble. She made to spread her wings and fly towards the building, of which they were quite a few yards away from, but one of Bulbasaur's vines stopped her.

"Bulba!" He said shaking his head.

The pink female flew into Bulbasaur's face and started yelled at him in Pokéspeech while making gestures towards the ruined warehouse. "Free Free! Butter Free Free! Butterfree, Free Free Butterfree!" She became progressively more aggressive with each word spoken and actually slapped Bulbasaur's vine away with her wing. She pointed towards the warehouse again with her other wing and then at Ash's other Pokémon before finally setting her stern gaze on Bulbasaur once more. With whom she was now having a staring match with.

"BUTTEFREE!" She yelled at Bulbasaur again.

The Grass-Type Pokémon looked at the pink Butterfree for a few more moments and then at Ash's other Pokémon. He glanced towards the warehouse with a look of deep contemplation before finally sighing and nodding his head in consent. "Bulbasaur..." He said while looking at the female again.

Butterfree smiled the best a Pokémon like her could and nodded in gratitude to the Grass Pokémon before hugging him tightly with her wings and then shooting of towards the warehouse like a rocket, followed closely by Pidgeot.

Bulbasaur's face was blushing a bright red after the hug and this was like an open invitation for Squirtle and Charmander to start teasing him while laughing like clowns. One unamused look from the embarrassed Grass-Type however was all that was needed for them to shut their mouths right away. Though they were still snickering under their breath.

Bulbasaur just shook his head and then took off after Butterfree and Pidgeot. Saying a silent thank you to Arceus that Ash didn't have Gastly right now as he did so. He just knew that if the comedic Ghost-Type saw what happened then there would be no peace and endless teasing would most definitely be his.

Squirtle and Charmander shared another laugh with each other before following after their teammates.

XXXXXXXXXX

Ash continued struggling vainly against the chunks of ceiling holding him down and then fell back to the ground panting. He looked over at Pikachu and Butterfree, who were also breathing heavily from struggling so hard to free Ash.

Pikachu's tail was turned to iron from how he was using it to try and break some of the metal away but nothing had been working thus far. The metal was all in too great of a heap and Pikachu just didn't have enough body weight to break through it all. Butterfree had been trying everything from Gust to Tackle on the debree but just like Pikachu, he was having no luck.

Just as Ash was about to tell them again to leave the doomed building and safe themselves, two speeding shapes came blurring out of the smoke and smashed into the metal holding Ash down with great force. The metal actually moved for the first time and Ash felt slightly less pressure on his body because of it.

He looked up and was absolutely shocked, just like Pikachu and Butterfree, to see the pink Butterfree and Pidgeot hovering above them with intent expressions on their faces.

Ash was about to say something before he spottee three other shapes come running at them through the smoke. Ash felt his jaw literally drop when the equally serious faces of Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle came into view. "Wha-?" He looked at them all. "What are you guys doing here?!" He shouted in shock.

"Bulba!"

"Squirt!"

"Char!"

"Pidgeoo!"

"Free!"

Was the response he received from the five Pokémon and before he could say anything more, they all started to take action. On Bulbasaur's fast directions, Squirtle and Charmander stood side by side while Pidgeot and the pink Butterfree hovered above them in a ready position. Bulbasaur ran over to Pikachu and the male Butterfree and explained what they were going to try in order to free Ash.

Pikachu and Butterfree nodded in consent before following Bulbasaur back over to the others. Butterfree flew up beside the pink one, who nudged him in greeting with one of her wings, which he returned, while Bulbasaur joined Charmander and Squirtle. Pikachu took his position at the front of the line-up and then it began.

Pidgeot and both Butterfree sent powerful gusts of wind at the debree while Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle used Razor Leaf, Flamethrower and Water Pulse respectively at the same time. All of the attacks sped towards the chunks of ceiling holding Ash down and seemed to combine together before making contact with it. Pikachu looked up with fire in his eyes and then took off towards the pile at fast speeds, his tail turning to iron at the same time.

"Pika..." He ran even faster, his body following in a perfect streamline with the attacks flying just over head. "PIKA..." He jumped in the air and flipped down towards the pile of metal that was now below him. "PIKACHU!" His tail then impacted with it's target and that was all that was needed.

The power of the combined attacks, the heavy wind force of Gust and the raw power of Pikachu's Iron Tail blasted the metal pile on top of Ash apart and allowed him to feel relief for the first time in what felt like ever.

After the attacks had settled down, all of the boy's Pokémon ran/flew towards him as he slowly got to his knees. He then looked at his Pokémon that were gathered around in a circle, who were looking at him with concern and smiles on their faces, and felt tears prickle in the corners of his eyes. "You guys all came in here... knowing it was dangerous... just to save me?"

Getting affirmative nods from his Pokémon, Ash smiled at them all warmly and nodded his head. "I couldn't have ever wished for any better Pokémon... thank you all so much. I owe you everything guys... you're not just my teammates and Pokémon... you're my family."

Before anything else could be said or done, they suddenly heard another small explosion come from the direction of the fuel tanks. Ash gathered strength from places he didn't even know he had and stood up quickly, shaking on his feet as he did but steadying himself with nothing more than willpower. "We need to get out of here now you guys! Before this whole place explodes!"

His Pokémon gathered around Ash protectively and provided a stable support base for him just in case he went to fall. Ash started making his way towards the exit as fast as possible, gathering up speed slowly until he was practically running. He covered his eyes with his forearm to shield them from the smoke while he placed the top part of his tracksuit over his mouth and nose.

Another series of small explosions rattled the warehouse and nearly knocked them all off balance but they kept going. "Don't stop everyone, keep running!" He urged loudly.

They started to see the faint light of daylight coming in through the smoke and Ash knew they were nearly out. "Almost there guys! COME ON LETS GO!" He started running faster towards the doors, his Pokémon keeping step with him the whole time. Just as they were mere feet away from the exit, another explosion rocked the building and caused several large crates that were still standing high over them all to start falling.

Ash called out while he continued running, "Take out those crates!"

Pidgeot and the two Butterfree blasted some of the higher crates away with blasts of wind from their wings while Pikachu, Bulbasaur, Charmander and Squirtle used Thunderbolt, Vine Whip, Dragon Rage and Water Pulse to take care of the ones falling closer towards them.

On they ran, the Pokémon fighting back the falling crates unfailingly as they finally made it to the exit, daylight now shining brightly before them. Pikachu and the three Kanto starters made it out first, much to Ash's relief, and was followed next by Pidgeot. The only ones still left inside was himself and the two Butterfree and just before they made it out... another disaster struck.

A large crate that had gone unnoticed by the three of them started falling down towards Ash's Butterfree at a frontward angle. The pink female saw this and flew in front of the crates path, pushing the male out of the way and taking the full force impact of the heavy projectile. She screeched in pain and was sent hurdling several yards back into the warehouse.

Ash's Butterfree stopped and started to fly back for her but Ash managed to jump up and grab him in time before he could do it. Without waiting, Ash ran the rest of the way out of the building while holding a madly struggling and furious Butterfree in his arms. "FREE! FREE FREE!" Butterfree protested viciously.

Ash didn't say a word and as soon as he made it outside and located his Pokémon recovering a safe distance away from the warehouse, he ran over to them and put Butterfree on the ground next to Pikachu. Without so much as a word or glance at any of them, Ash took off charging back towards the warehouse again. Not even taking so much as a single second to enjoy the safety he had just been gifted with before plunging back into the doomed building.

Ash took the top portion of his track suit and tucked it back over his nose and mouth before squinting his eyes and looking around in front of him as far as he could see. The smoke had become much thicker by this point and he could see the orange hue of flames dancing ever so closer to where he saw the main supply of fuel tanks earlier.

Without any further hesitation, Ash took off as fast as his sore body could take him in the direction he saw the pink Butterfree get knocked to by the falling crate. As he continued to run, the boy would stop momentarily and strain his ears to hear as far into the distance as he could for any hint as to where she may be.

Finally, after looking around in the thick smoke for any trace of who he was looking for, Ash just managed to catch a glimpse of a small pink body through a break in the smoke. He then took off running towards the small form and once he was upon it, he looked down and saw the pink female lying on top of the remains of a shattered crate. Soot and scratches covered her body and she appeared to be unconscious.

Ash quickly knelt down and gently picked up the oddly colored Butterfree, tucking her in close to his chest before standing back up and making his way back towards the exit again. "Don't worry Butterfree, you're gonna be fine! I promise!" Ash shouted down to her over the roar of the flames that were getting closer and closer to them. "You just hold on alright?! Hold on!" He urged her.

The female Butterfree stirred at the sound of Ash's voice and opened her eyes to see the male Butterfree's trainer running as fast he could with a look of pure determination etched onto his face. She looked at the young trainer with something akin to amazement in her eyes at the way some simple human, who owed her nothing, would come running back into a place that could have exploded at any minute just to save her. She knew her old trainer was kind but this was just something else entirely.

It was only in that moment that she could finally understand why Butterfree had been so adamant the whole time they had been trapped in the net that his trainer was going to come and save them.

Ash looked down at her and smiled reassuringly. "Can you hang on?" He asked softly.

The pink female just continued to look at Ash with wide eyes and nodded her head in a yes, not saying anything. Ash smiled again as he continued to run. "Good! Then lets get out of here!"

Just as the both of them were close to making it to the exit, one of the gas barrels finally exploded. Ash was thrown off of his feet by the force of the explosion and the entire warehouse temporarily lit up as a result. Not knowing how or why, Ash was on his feet again in an instant with Butterfree still locked firmly in his grasp as he ran even faster. He felt disoriented and the world was slightly spinning within his vision but the only thing he cared about was getting them both to safety.

The fires of the explosion roared through the building, consuming everything in a blazing fury and leaving nothing behind. Ash felt the flames lick at his back but that only spurred him on to run even faster. Butterfree was curling herself tighter into his chest as he ran, thinking of how at any moment she expected the fire to completely engulf them before they could escape.

Ash saw the bright light of day just ahead of him grow closer and closer and he put on one final burst of speed in a last ditch effort for freedom and safety. Arceus was on his side too because just as human and Pokémon made it out of the burning building and onto the rocky ground of the canyon outside... the big explosion finally came as the fire inside swallowed up the bulk of the fuel containers in one fell swoop. Setting off a massive explosion that completely obliterated the entire warehouse and lit up the canyon it was nestled within like Arceus herself had appeared from the heavens in a bright flash of light.

Ash had just managed to get out of range of the warehouse before it exploded and everything seemed to slow down as it finally did. The force of the explosion being enough to topple several massive rock structures around the small valley like they were nothing more than brittle mounds of mud.

Ash's feet were literally sent flying out from underneath of him as the shock wave of the blast picked him up and threw him forward across the valley like a pebble. His world continued to go by in slow motion as he hugged the female Butterfree even closer to his chest and opened his eyes.

When he did, it shocked him to see that not only was he speeding across the landscape like a super fast Dragonite, watching everything pass below him in a blur, but also just how high up in the air he was as well. Which was at least well over thirty feet high if anyone watching from a distance could have guessed or placed a measurement.

Ash knew there was nothing he could at this point so he merely shut his eyes, held the Pokémon in his grasp tighter and said a silent prayer to Arceus to keep them both safe.

Ash's Pokémon had all been knocked to the ground by the violent explosion that had rocked the surrounding area and rung out across the canyon walls with an earsplitting echo. Pikachu, from his position next to Butterfree on the ground, shielded his eyes with his tail as he looked up at the giant plume of smoke and fire that had been shot up into the air from the explosion of the warehouse. His ears, along with his teammate's own, were ringing like mad but the only thing he could search for in the aftermath the destruction was any sign of Ash.

Pidgeot, since he eyes were the keenest of all of them, was the first to spot Ash as he came flying out of the smoke like a rocket. Being propelled so high into the air that she knew if he hit the ground from such an elevation he would definitely be either severely injured killed.

Not about to let anything like that happen to her trainer while she could do anything to prevent it, Pidgeot stood back to her feet and spread her wings out before shooting off into the air as fast as she could.

Just as Ash began making his quick descent back towards the earth, he braced himself for the intense pain he knew was sure to come. However, he instead found himself in a state of surprise when he felt his body land on the back of something soft and warm. The boy opened his eyes and looked down to see, instead of the hard and cold ground like he was expecting, Pidgeot's soft and elegant feathers.

Pidgeot struggled to right herself on the violent wind currents that the explosion had kicked up but with all of her intense strength training, she managed to steady herself and started riding the choppy currents back towards the ground where the other Pokémon were waiting.

Ash shifted himself until he was sitting in a straddle position on Pidgeot's back and then set the pink Butterfree in his lap before leaning down and patting Pidgeot's head gently. "Girl... I can't even begin to tell you how magnificent you are or how grateful I am right now," He said with a smile.

Pidgeot turned her head to the side and nodded at Ash's words of gratitude. "Pidgeooo!" She responded in kind.

Ash smiled again and patted her head once more as the fully evolved form of Pidgey finally descended all the way to the ground and landed gracefully in front of the others. Ash's Pokémon crowded around Pidgeot while calling up to Ash in relief and Pidgeot in praise. Of which she just accepted gladly and tilted her head upwards in a show of pride.

Ash dismounted Pidgeot, carefully since Butterfree was still in his arms, and was instantly rushed by his Pokémon. The boy smiled happily and gave attention to each of them before finally making some space for himself and kneeling down, placing the pink Butterfree on the ground gently. His Pokémon formed a circle around the both of them as his own Butterfree flew up and landed next to the female, looking down at her in worry and back up at Ash with gratitude for saving her and also a pleading expression to help her.

Ash smiled at his Pokémon's concern for the pink female and reached out, rubbing Butterfree gently on the head. "Don't worry Butterfree, I'm going to do all I can to help her okay?"

Butterfree just looked at her one last time and then back at Ash before nodding his head and giving them some space. Ash took the opportunity to slide his pack off his tired shoulders, wincing from the minor burns he knew was covering his skin from the intense heat exposure he had endured.

Shaking it off, he opened the large pack and went to the medicinal section of it. Reaching in, Ash pulled out a rag, some salve used to sooth burn wounds that was made from Oran berries, a Hyper Potion (of which he had several of in the large bag, thank Arceus for his mother teaching him the art of being prepared) and finally, he took out a regular sized stethoscope that Daisy Oak had given him for his ninth birthday. An item of which he took great value in since it was a gift from one of his most precious people.

He first took the rag and looked at Squirtle. "Can use please give me some water on this rag Squirtle?" He asked politely.

Squirtle just nodded and opened his mouth. "Squirt!" He announced as a steady stream of water came pouring from his mouth and moistened the rag. Once it was wet enough, Ash motioned for him to stop and then rung it out before picking the pink Butterfree back up gently again. He then began running the rag slowly over her body, carefully cleaning the unconscious Pokémon of any soot and dirt that was on her.

After that was done, Ash looked over at Pikachu. "Hey buddy, can you please reach into the main part of my bag and pull out the blanket you see in there and then lay it down on the ground for me? I don't want to set Butterfree back down in the dirt after just cleaning her."

Pikachu nodded and scurried over to Ash's bag, going through the main section of it before withdrawing a white blanket from inside. With the help of Charmander and Squirtle, the three of them put the blanket down and then Ash carefully put Butterfree down on the blanket. From there, he grabbed the Hyper Potion and brought it to her injuries. He looked up his Butterfree before spraying it. "She's gonna feel a sting in this okay? But it will help, I promise."

Butterfree nodded reluctantly but urged Ash on. The boy turned his attention back to the female again and started spraying the healing remedy onto any injury he could see. She tossed and turned in pain as the potion started to take effect but only for a few moments until her wounds slowly begun to heal before their very eyes. After the healing process finally ended, the pink female had a look of comfort and ease come over her face at last.

Ash smiled to himself and then picked up the salve made to sooth burns. He dipped a little bit onto his fingers after opening the lid and then gently rubbed the mint smelling gel onto every burn patch that had been missed by the potion. After he finished with that, Ash reached back into the medicinal section of his pack and went for a large bag stuffed in the corner.

Ash opened the bag and revealed several different berries of all kinds inside of it. The bag itself was made special with Leavanny's thread so things like berries being kept inside of it would stay fresh. He pulled out a Citrus berry, which helped to restore a Pokémon's energy, and then sliced it in half with a small cutting knife he kept in the kitchen utensils section of his bag.

Once that was finished, Ash pulled out a small mixing bowl from the same place and smashed the berry up into paste. After getting Squirtle to give it a little more liquid texture with some water, Ash stirred it once more before elevating Butterfree's head slightly and gently tipped the contents down her mouth. The female drank it all down and as she did, more and more of her health and energy seemed to become restored.

The very last thing Ash did was wait a few moments and then picked up his stethoscope, gently placing it over first Butterfree's heart to check her pulse and then her lungs to check her breathing. After he did this, Ash put the handy tool down and wiped a few beads of sweat from his brow before looking back up at his own Butterfree and smiling. "I think she'll be just fine and hopefully awake really soon Butterfree," He informed in a reassuring tone.

The Pokémon quickly rushed Ash in a hug, which he returned gladly, before fluttering over to stand by the female's side as he waited for her to wake up again. Ash and the others did the same thing and it became a tense silence as they all waited anxiously.

Finally, after a few minutes... she opened her eyes.

Ash and his Pokémon felt the breath hitch in their throats as the pink Butterfree started regaining more of her senses and began looking around. Ash's Butterfree had wide eyes and looked anxious when he saw her wake up, hovering closely by her side as she slowly started to get to her feet. She looked at Butterfree with a confused expression. "Free... Free Free?" She asked, obviously wanting to know what had just happened.

Ash's Butterfree put his wing out and caught her in a gentle hold as she started to fall back down and then answered her, all while making gestures so Ash was able to get a gist of what was being said. "Free Free, Butterfree, Free Free Butterfree," He said as he started to explain everything that had happened to the now wide eyed female.

Once he got to the part about Ash going back into the now destroyed warehouse to save her, she looked at the young trainer with something akin to amazement and awe. Ash knew Butterfree must have gotten to the part about him because the male was making hand gestures his way, trying to play out the situation that had happened.

Once he was done explaining what had happened, Butterfree suddenly looked very shy as he started thanking her for saving him by taking the falling crate that had nearly crushed him. The female herself also blushed and then started thanking the male in return for everything he did not just to save her but also all of the other Butterfree. Ash's Butterfree blushed as well at the praise he received from the usually proud female but just started pointing to his trainer whenever she thanked him for rescuing her and all of the other Butterfree.

Ash watched the somewhat awkward conversation going on between the two Butterfree with both amusement and also happiness. Something that was being shared in by his other Pokémon. All except for Charmander and Squirtle. Who were laughing and teasing Butterfree for all of the blushing he was doing and how 'in love he was'.

This was instantly stopped though by fierce glares from Ash, Butterfree, Pikachu, Bulbasaur and Pidgeot. Butterfree looked like he wanted to jump his two teammates and beat them to a pulp right then and there but one amused giggle from the pink female was more than enough to get his attention diverted back solely to her.

Ash looked at Squirtle and Charmander with a stern gaze before he grinned mischievously at them. "Yeah that's right you two, poke all the fun you want at Butterfree right now but when you both fall in love with some female that makes you go all goo goo eyed and mushy, Butterfree and I will be right here to pay you back for all the teasing you've put us through!" He warned them while wagging his finger.

It would probably make sense to explain that Squirtle and Charmander absolutely loved making fun of anyone, be it human or Pokémon, when said individual fell in love. Neither one of them could understand such 'pointless feelings' when you could just spend all of your time training and getting stronger to be better than everyone else. Usually it would be either Charmander or Squirtle to start poking fun and since they were both such good friends, whenever one started... the other wasn't too far behind.

Even though all of their teammates trained to excessively intense levels and pushed themselves just as far as the Fire and Water-Type Pokémon did, Squirtle and Charmander were both easily the farthest behind when it came to emotional maturity where love was concerned. All of Ash's other Pokémon, save the Butterfree from Melanie's cottage, expressed interest in eventually finding a mate even though they were all still young.

Pokémon did take after their trainers and vice versa so when you had a trainer that was as big of a romantic and ladies man as Ash was shaping up to be. Someone who was the the farthest thing from 'romantically dense' as you could possibly get (especially at his age) then the Pokémon of said trainer just wouldn't able to help picking up those same... 'urges' if that was the right word to use for such a thing.

Hell, the boy had a girlfriend three years his senior and another girl two years older than him interested in him as well. Because of all this, Pikachu being revealed as a closet pervert should have come as no surprise. Nor that the rest of his Pokémon all found great interest in the opposite sex of their species.

Well... all except for Squirtle and Charmander of course, who the entire current subject was about anyway. They even took sport in making fun of their own trainer's relationship with Giselle. Now, after doing the same to Butterfree, Ash felt as though it was only fair that they know what awaited them when, not if, they found their own special someones.

When Ash said what he did and grinned like a devil, Butterfree temporarily diverted his attention away from the pink female and looked at his teammates with an equally devilish grin that clearly said, 'Oh just you two wait for that day, I am NEVER going to let you live it down!'

Squirtle and Charmander started sweating slightly and became somewhat nervous from the threat of humiliation that Ash and Butterfree had just promised them. However they tried to play it cool and just shook their hands in dismissive gestures.

"Squirt Squirt Squirtel!"

"Char Char Charmander!"

Both Pokemon denied in a cool way. Obviously vehemtely denying that anything like that would ever happen to them.

Ash just winked and turned away. "We'll see..." He said ominously and for some reason... Squirtle and Charmander felt a chill run down their backs.

When the boy turned back to both Butterfree, still chuckling to himself, he was surprised to see the pink one standing in front of him with a kind look in her eyes and the closest thing to a smile that a Pokémon of her species could have. Ash looked from her to his own Butterfree and saw the latter eyesmiling at what was apparently about to happen.

Ash looked back down at her and tilted his head slightly. "What's up Butterfree?"

She just looked down with a slight blush on her cheeks and pointed her small hands together. "Free Free... Butterfree Free, Free Butterfree..." She said somewhat hesitantly.

Now, don't ask him why but Ash seemed to somehow always understand what a Pokémon was trying to tell him even if he was only around them for a very short period of time. He knew how he was able to understand his own Pokémon, due to the bond he had developed with them, but when it came to ones that weren't his... he had no idea how he could understand them the way he did.

Right now, he was understanding that the female was thanking him for coming to save her and the rest of the Butterfree and then going back into the burning warehouse to save her yet again. Ash just smiled when he heard this and placed his hand on her head gently. She looked up at him and saw him smiling gently at her. "There is no need to ever thank me for any of that Butterfree. I was more than happy to help out a bunch of Pokèmon in trouble and I always will be. Plus, my Butterfree obviously really likes you and if that's the case... then I like you too!"

Ash's Butterfree blushed when he felt the pink one's gaze fall back on him and Ash grinned to himself before continuing. "Not to mention, from I've seen you're a strong Pokémon with a lot of potential Butterfree." The pink female snapped her gaze back up at Ash with slightly wide eyes. "I don't know if that talent comes from your old trainer's teachings or just yourself but whatever it is, I'm really impressed," He complemented. "So don't ever think anything of it okay? I would gladly risk my life to save you again!"

The pink Butterfree suddenly felt tears prickle in her eyes and then launched herself at Ash, catching the boy off guard as she wrapped him up in a tight hug with her wings. Ash was momentarily surprised but quickly composed himself and chuckled slightly as he returned the hug. The male Butterfree and Ash's other Pokémon just watched on with smiles as the tender moment between human and Pokèmon played out.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Quite some distance away, near one of the canyon walls that they had been thrown into by the blast of the explosion, Team Rocket had finally regained consciousness and were now attempting to collect their bearings. Meowth's fur looked ruffled and disheveled while Jessie and James' outfits were torn and scuffed up badly.

James' face had a couple of welts and bruises on it, his hair had dirt and rocks in it and he now sported a blackened eye on his right side that looked puffy and painful. The white over vest with the Team Rocket symbol he wore was completely gone and his black undershirt had several gashes and rips in it, as well as an entire chunk missing from the left side. His pants were also ripped and scuffed up. The entire right side pant leg from the knee down being gone and exposing his burned and torn up leg from the blast and rough tumble on the unforgiving canyon ground he and the other two had suffered through. There was also a slight chunk missing from the left hip of his pants which showed what seemed to be, to the disgusting sight of anyone looking, the waist band of a blue speedo looking underwear. Truly a horrifyingly nasty sight of the highest caliber.

Jessie's face was not as scuffed up as Jame's was, only showing a bleeding lip. Thankfully for her since a lady's face was a very valued quality of their person. Her hair on the hand, was not so fortunate. The long, luxurious maroon hair she took such pride and care in was in a complete disarray with damage that looked irreversible. During the blast and since they were so close to the fire that came with it, Jessie's hair had apparently caught flame and burned all the way up to just below her shoulders, leaving the remaining few feet utterly ruined. Luckily enough for her, the tumble through the canyon put the fire out or otherwise, she might have lost much more.

The poor woman's clothes on the hand... were much worse off than James' own.

Like her teammate, the entire white top with the Rocket symbol had been completely ripped off. The skin of her toned and smooth stomach was now showing many scrapes and bruises along with a couple of burn marks. Her short black cut off undershirt had been reduced even shorter after the blast. The entire left side of the shoulder piece was missing, allowing the fabric to hang looser now and expose just the very top of her well endowed left breast. Which looked sightly burned as well as somewhat dirty from ash and dirt that also came down to collect in her cleavage.

Her left forearm length glove was gone and the right one was also gone save for a strip of fabric that still hung on her elbow like a sweatband. Her white skirt had been torn and gashed up badly. A large piece of the front right left side was ripped away, exposing some of the black lace panties she wore below and her left boot was totally gone while the right one had been cut down to shin length. Her right leg seemed painfully burned and scratched while her usually well pedicured, polished, red toe nail painted right foot was in a current state that suggested better days had been seen.

Meowth just looked as though someone had taken a brush and rubbed his fur the entirely wrong way and then dumped a mix of dirt and ash on him. Surprisingly enough, the charm on his forehead remained intact and unbroken.

James groaned as he held his head. "I don't want to repeat that ever again..." He whined. "I thought we were going to die!"

Jessie completely ignored her revealed state, what had just happened and the pain she felt racking her body as she grabbed ahold of her hair with look of complete shock. After seeing how destroyed it was, she dropped her crimson shaded locks as genuine tears came to her eyes and fell slowly down her cheeks. She let her head fall and hands drop to her sides as her body gently racked with sobs. "I..." She began through her choked sobs. "Have been growing... my hair... since I was... a little girl..." She dropped to her knees as tear drops fell to the ground. "I'm going to have... no choice... but to cut it..."

James and Meowth just looked at each other and then back down at the beautiful woman who was now crying on her knees for something that she had held dear for far more years than she had known either of them. "Jessie..." James began stepping forward but then stopped and moved back again. He had no idea how to comfort a distraught woman.

He was never good at dealing with the fairer sex and if the pitifully failed attempts he experienced during the times he was forced to spend with his arranged fiance was anything to go by... he knew just how right he was to just step back and remain silent. He hated seeing his teammate in such a state but what could he do? That was why he decided to just stay quite and provide emotional support if needed.

Meowth slowly stepped up to Jessie and knelt by her face, gently placing his paw on her shoulder. "I know you're really upset right now Jess and I'm sorry. I wish me and James could say sometin ta help but I know dat it won't do no good." Jessie just remained silent, save for the occasional sobs racking her body. "You're still beautiful widout dat long hair! Who knows, maybe you'll be able ta do sometin with dis and turn it from a bad situation inta sometin good? I don't know anyone else who can do such amazin' things wit their looks and clothes, right James?"

Meowth looked at James for support and the blue haired man quickly nodded his head. "He's right Jessie! Why, you could be a professional designer or hair dresser with your skills! I bet you can make your hair look even better now somehow!" He agreed enthusiastically.

The talking Pokémon smiled at James gratefully and then looked back at Jessie, who's sobs had now stopped, and put his fist in the air. "Yeah dat's right Jess! Yous is super talented when it comes ta dat stuff! Now get up off your knees and act like da Jessie we all know and..." Meowth scratched his cheek for a moment in thought.

Jessie was now looking at Meowth hopefully, un-shed tears still glistening in her eyes. The cat-like Pokémon saw this and chuckled nervously, not wanting to slump her back into a depression or get hurt by saying anything about how aggressive she could be. Neither he nor James needed that pain right now in their current condition.

"Dat we both... fear and respect so much!" He said as a quick recovery.

James nodded again quickly and smiled. "That's right Jessie! This isn't you! We need your scary brutal self to help us catch that twerp's Pikachu and rise up in the Team Rocket ranks!"

Meowth face palmed himself at James slip of stupidity. The man DEFINITELY didn't know how to speak to a woman...

Jessie's eye twitched at hearing the word 'brutal' slip from James' mouth about her and then, at an almost light speed, she was standing over a whimpering James with her fist lowered. The woman was huffing angrily and the bump rising on James' head was a clear indication of what just happened. "WHO ARE YOU CALLING BRUTAL JAMES?!"

The man, if that's what you could call him, merely curled up where he was with his hands over his head as he started pleading. "Nonono please Jessie I didn't mean it! No please don't!" He screamed girlishly and Meowth just sighed before crossing his arms.

"Well... she's feelin' better alright." The smallest member of the team observed while watching Jessie pummel the wimp of a man.

After Jessie had finished beating James to a pulp and calmed herself down, she stood proudly again and started patting as much dirt from her body as she could. The temperamental woman then pulled her hair back around and looked at it closely for a few moments before she looked first at Meowth and then the cowering James who was still on the ground with his hands over his head.

"Hmm... I suppose I could do something astounding with this unfortunate little incident. And you're right Meowth! No one knows style and beauty care like me!" She turned and kicked James in the side. "Stop whining and get up James! Be a man!"

James crawled over to Meowth and then got up onto his knees before whispering in his ear, "Maybe it would have been better to just let Jessie wallow in her depression!"

Meowth sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah but watchin' her stay in a funk ain't gonna help us catch Pikachu or get in good wit da Boss."

Jessie suddenly appeared behind the two of them with an ominous aura around her. "What are you two talking about?" She asked with a dangerous edge to her voice.

Both males jumped and whipped around to face her. "N-Nothing Jessie!" James said quickly, waving his hands in front of him with a nervous smile on his face.

"Yeah Jess we was just talking about... uhh..." Meowth looked around for something to divert attention away from the current time bomb of a situation and fortunately, or unfortunately depending on how one were to look at it, he found it in the now demolished Team Rocket warehouse that was sending smoke hundreds of feet up into the air as the orange/red flames of the fire continued to burn in the wreckage below. Meowth went silent and wide eyed as his mouth suddenly felt dry.

Jessie had lost her patience by this point. "Well?! What are you looking at Meowth?!"

The talking Pokémon stayed totally silent in his shocked state and just pointed towards the scene of destruction. James and Jessie looked where he was directing them and upon locking their gazes upon the sight... their reactions were identical to Meowth's own. Which was pure shock and total fear.

"T-That was one of the team's main storage warehouses!" James stuttered with a trembling voice.

Jessie just acted as she usually did in situations that proved too much for her to handle though... with anger. "THAT MEDDLESOME, ANNOYING, INFURIATING TWERP!" She fumed with a vain popping out on the side of her forehead as she shook her fist and ranted. "WE STEAL THOSE BUTTERFREE FAIR AND SQUARE AND NOT ONLY DOES HE HAVE TO CHASE US DOWN, HUMILATE US AND FREE THEM ALL, BUT THEN HE GOES AND DESTROYS THE WHOLE DAMN BUILDING! She brought both fists into her sizable chest and growled. "Not only that but its his fault that my hair-" She held up her burnt and charred locks of maroon then. "-IS RUINED! FUCK!"

Meowth walked up and stood between her and James, never breaking his gaze from the burning remains of the warehouse. "I think ya should be more worried about da Boss then your hair Jessie. He's gonna be real mad when he finds out about dis..."

James sat cross legged on the ground with a thoughtful expression on his face and then snapped his fingers. "Unless we don't tell him..." He started as Meowth and Jessie looked at him.

"What do you mean James?" Jessie asked curiously.

"Yeah if we don't tell da Boss and din he finds out about it he'll have us killed, forget fired!" Meowth shouted frantically while waving his arms around.

James stood up and crossed his arms. "He won't know it was us that was responsible! No one was here except for us and the twerp! We did the Butterfree mission on our own without commands from HQ. For all any of them will know, one of the fuel tanks inside just had a leak and exploded for some reason," He reasoned.

Jessie and Meowth looked at each other and then smiled. "I like that plan!" Jessie exclaimed happily.

Meowth grinned. "Me too!"

James smirked triumphantly. "I knew you'd both see it my way!" He raised his right fist in the air then and laughed aloud at how intelligent he was feeling at the moment.

Jessie looked at James expectantly. "So now we just have to get out of here! How are we going to do it James?!"

At that question, the blue/violet haired man stopped laughing and left his fist in the air, sweat dropping down his forehead at the same time. "Well..." He then brought both hands in and rubbed them together nervously with a sheepish appearance adorning his face. "I didn't plan that far ahead. I didn't think either one of you would actually go with my idea so I didn't think about a potential escape plan..."

Jessie grew a tick mark on the side of her head as her eye twitched. "So... we're STUCK here James?!" She questioned through gritted teeth.

The man shrunk down and started twiddling both pointer fingers together while feeling ten inches tall. "I guess so..." He conceded shamefully.

Just as Jessie was about to clobber the poor man again, Meowth smirked and coughed into his paw. The angry woman looked down at him then. "What is it furball?!"

Meowth put his hands behind his back and rocked back and forth on his heels while looking smug. "I had a feeling dat sometin like dis would happen and yous twos wouldn't have any kind of plan ready in case da operation went wrong so I took care of it."

Jessie and James looked at Meowth in surprise. "Really?" James asked hopefully.

The Pokémon walked over to the canyon wall behind them and stood in front of it while still looking smug. "Check dis out!" He then reached up behind him, like he was grasping at the rocky wall and then gripped the air with both paws before pulling back. To Jessie and Jame's amazement, part of the canyon wall looked as though it was starting to fall away but as they watched closer, it was revealed that what they were seeing was actually a giant cloth of some kind being pulled away... revealing the Meowth balloon resting just behind it.

Both humans watched with mouths agape as Meowth pulled the large covering away and revealed their balloon, just sitting there waiting for them. Once Meowth was finished pulling the cloak like object away, he took in his team's shocked expressions and decided to explain. "I covered da balloon up wit dis special camouflage cloak dat da Team Rocket field engineers came up wit. I found it in one of those crates inside da warehouse and covered dis baby here up so we'd have an escape route if sometin happened." He patted the basket of the balloon. "Yous both didn't even tink about da balloon... did ya?"

James ran up and started shaking Meowth's paw. "You're a genius Meowth! An absolute genius!"

Jessie just huffed and walked towards the balloon. "Yes yes yes Meowth very clever and good." She then climbed into the basket and made a gesturing motion at herself. "I'm dirty, tired, half-naked- not that a woman of my beauty is ashamed of my body mind you- and need new clothes. Can we please just get going now?" Jessie asked tiredly while massaging her temples.

James giddily hopped into the basket. "Yes lets go now before the twerp catches us!" Obviously the revelation that they now had a chance to escape and not get captured by a more than likely still very irate Ash or an angry Giovanni once he found out about the destroyed warehouse put a new burst of wind in the man's sails.

Meowth jumped in as well and shouted, "Take it away Jamesy boy!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash was suddenly alerted from his touching hug with Butterfree by Pikachu running away from them all a few yards away and then calling out, "Pika Pika! Pikachu Pi!" He shouted urgently.

The boy looked up and called out to his Pokémon, "What is it Pi?"

The yellow mouse looked back at Ash and then pointed his paw at the other side of the canyon. Ash followed his gaze and saw the Team Rocket balloon starting to lift off into the air. He quickly set Butterfree down and then jumped up with clenched fists. "Team Rocket!" Faster than his exhausted body should have been able to go, Ash started running towards the distant balloon as fast as he could. "Come on you guys, we can't let them escape!" He shouted back to his Pokémon.

The small bunch of Pokémon started chasing after their trainer with no hesitation, followed even by the pink Butterfree.

Ash and Pikachu were ahead of the pack as they charged forward as fast as they could, sweat pouring from the young Ketchum. He was determined to not let Team Rocket escape but as they drew closer and closer, the balloon began getting higher and higher. "You're not getting away Team Rocket! You'll pay for what you've done!" He shouted up to them.

He looked back at Pidgeot. "Fly up there and stop that balloon Pidgeot!" He yelled.

The female bird Pokémon quickly flew up high into the air and started speeding towards the balloon.

Inside of the balloon, Jessie and James were panicking. "Do something James!" Jessie screeched in fear.

"Like what?!" He fired back.

Meowth reached down into the basket and opened up a tied sack that had medium sized black balls inside of them. He picked two of them up and then looked at James. "Grab two of em' James! There smoke bombs I got from da warehouse dat'll help us escape!"

James nodded and reached down, grabbing two of the get-away weapons. On Meowth's signal, the both of them threw the four smoke balls down towards the ground. Pulling the tabs on top of the bombs away beforehand so they would go off at the right time.

Pidgeot saw the strange objects come falling down towards her and on instinct and intensive training, instinctively pulled away and started swerving around to avoid them. She wasn't counting on them to explode and release a thick black smog that surrounded the entire airspace around her however, completely covering her in it's haze and obscuring her vision.

Ash stopped running and looked up at the sky full of smoke, glad Pidgeot was fast enough to dodge the smoke bombs even though he knew they wouldn't hurt her.

All he could do was look up at the sky with a hardened gaze, knowing that with Pidgeot's sight being obscured and the rest of them being on the ground there was no way to catch Team Rocket now. After several long moments he saw the smoke cloud start getting blown away by a powerful gale of wind, courtesy of Pidgeot's strong wings.

He then saw her fly around after the sky was cleared of the smog, looking for any signs of Team Rocket... but they were gone.

Ash sighed after averting his gaze. "Oh well... we'll get them next time," He told himself before looking up at the sky again and calling Pidgeot back down, which she did reluctantly. Obviously not happy that she failed to catch her targets.

Once down with the rest of them, Ash thanked his Pokémon for trying and praised her for her determination. Assuring her that there was nothing she could have done differently and that they would get Team Rocket at another time. Pidgeot nodded to her trainer's words of comfort and then the boy made his way over to where the balloon had been sitting before it took off.

Upon reaching the small area, Ash scanned around looking for something he didn't even know about himself. Some feeling in his gut was just telling him to look around and he felt compelled to do so. His searching was broken though by Pikachu suddenly calling out to him. He looked back at his Pokémon then and saw Pikachu standing at an open space a few yards away, inspecting the ground carefully with his nose down.

"What is it buddy?" He asked as he walked over.

Pikachu didn't answer and instead just angling upwards with his nose. Ash's face scrunched up in confusion at his Pokémon's strange behavior but that quickly turned to shock when he saw the ground around where Pikachu was inspecting start to move.

Suddenly, to Ash's amazement, Pikachu got up underneath whatever he was rooting around with using his nose and disappeared inside of the ground. To Ash's even further amazement, instead of the Electric-Type vanishing under the ground like he feared had happened, there was a Pikachu sized lump jutting from the earth.

"What the hell?!" Ash exclaimed as he and his other Pokémon got closer to see what was going on.

Pikachu then popped his head out from underneath whatever it was he was hiding under a few feet away and called over to them excitedly, "Pikachu Pi! Pi Pikachu!" He then ducked his head back down and started running around underneath of the ground, covering, thing... whatever it was he was under, much to the surprise of everyone watching.

Ash took notice of how everywhere Pikachu would run, it seemed as though the ground was rising with him but he knew better than that. The earth didn't just rise up and then lie back down perfectly again. This lead to only one conclusion for Ash; what Pikachu was under wasn't the ground at all. To prove his theory, Ash walked over to where he thought the end resided of whatever it was and reached down, probing his fingers along for some type of edge.

After a few moments of searching, he finally found what he was looking for as his fingers brushed up against a soft, yet coarse feeling cloth like material. Ash lifted up with his arms and when he did, he was stunned to see a large portion of the ground in front of him lift up as Pikachu was revealed underneath the large object that was now blowing slightly in the wind. A shadow was cast on Ash's Pokémon underneath the tarp like object, who was looking up at him with a confused expression on his face as he stood on the real rocky ground below him.

Ash, with a curious expression on his own face, pulled back on the very long fabric and drug it across the ground until it was out of the shadow of the cliff wall and into the light of the sun. He then laid the end he was holding back down and circled the strange material with a contemplative gaze.

Shaking his head, he reached down and felt the fabric again, amazed at the feel and texture of it, which felt like a mix between cloth and tough silk. It was very thick, at least two inches, and what astounded him even more was how the cloth tarp completely camouflaged itself into the rocky ground under it. So much so that Ash almost lost sight of it.

On a hunch, the picked up the end of it again and looked over at Pidgeot. "Hey girl, can you grasp the other end of this with your talons and then fly up into the air until we both have it stretched out and facing towards the sky?"

Pidgeot cooed in response and did just what Ash asked her, picking up the furthest end of the fabric in her claws and then flying up into the air so she and Ash had the big tarp stretched long ways up in the sky

Ash then called for Pikachu, Squirtle and Charmander to hold his end for him and once they did so, he walked some distance back and looked up at the tarp. What he saw was nothing short of amazing.

The entire incredibly long fabric that was now stretched out amongst the sky had completely changed its appearance. Now the thick fabric material was a perfect mirror of the sky it was held up to. From the clouds floating around lazily, to the blue sky and the sun up above, there were literally differences between the tarp and the real sky beyond it.

After admiring the astounding object before him in awe for a few moments, he told his Pokémon to gently set it back down and as they did, he watched the fabric change several different times to match the scenery in-front and behind of it. From the canyon walls to the backside of it and the burning remains of the warehouse to the front, the cloth changed it's appearance with every foot it was lowered until eventually, it was lying back down on the ground while mirroring the rocky terrain below it once again.

Ash walked up to the tarp and knelt down, examining it closer as a grin slowly spread across his face. "I think this is some type of cloaking device Pikachu..." He commented absently while running his hands across the material.

Pikachu inspected the fabric closer himself. "Pikachu?" He asked while looking up at Ash.

The boy shook his head. "I don't exactly know what it is but judging by how it changes it's appearance to match it's surroundings, I believe it definitely is some kind of cloaking technology." He lifted up an end of it again. "Its big enough so Team Rocket probably used it to cover their balloon up when they first arrived here and that's why we didn't see it when we came into this canyon. If that's true then it means this thing was made by Team Rocket and it makes me wonder how they made it..."

He put his hand to his chin in thought. "I know that Kecleon, a Pokémon from the Hoenn region, can change the cellular composition of it's skin cells and thus render it capable of blending into it's environment to a near perfect replica so maybe that's the sort of 'blueprint' they went by. Hmmm... fascinating..." He mused aloud.

Ash eventually shook his head free of his thoughts and crossed his arms. "This thing could actually be useful sometime down the road. Especially during run-ins with Team Rocket." He looked over at Charmander. "Hey Charmander, can you please you use your claws to cut a strip of this thing away if I tell you how much I want?"

"Char Char!" Charmander responded with a nod as he walked over to his trainer.

Ash figured how much he thought he would need and then directed his Pokémon. "Okay Charmander, just cut this much out..." He said while showing the Fire-Type what he needed him to do.

Charmander then set to work and carefully cut out a large strip of the material with his sharp front claws. Once he was done, Ash thanked him and then inspected the material in his hands. It was long, quite long, able to fit at least two people underneath of it like a cloak and when Ash threw it around himself to test it out, he was happy to see that his body on all sides had completely blended into the surrounding area.

Taking it off and folding it up with a satisfied nod, Ash looked back at what still remained of the material, which was a lot, and glanced at Charmander again. "Use Flamethrower on what's left of this thing Charmander. I don't want anyone else getting their hands on it."

The fire lizard obeyed and then launched an inferno of hot flames at the fabric, catching it aflame and burning it to nothing in no time at all. Ash praised Charmander on a job well done and then motioned for his Pokémon to follow him back where they left his pack. He was feeling incredibly exhausted and needed to sit down.

On the way, the pink Butterfree flew down and perched gently atop Ash's head, making said trainer flinch at first but then smile when he saw who it was.

After arriving back at his supplies, Ash cleaned up what he had used to treat Butterfree with and then tucked his newly acquired 'camo cloak' safely inside of the biggest section of his large pack. Once that was done, Ash sat down on the rugged ground with a heavy thud and leaned back on his hands, sighing in relief at being able to finally rest his exhausted muscles. The pink female flew down and perched herself in Ash's lap then, seemingly having taken quite a shine to the raven haired trainer.

Pikachu perched on his shoulder currently, the male Butterfree sat on Ash's knee and conversed with the pink one while his other Pokémon just gathered around him and laid down.

Ash smiled at them all and took turns gently rubbing each one, even the pink Butterfree, as he spoke to them. "I just wanted to say thank you so much to all of you. What you've done for me and the Butterfree today was just... beyond words and I'm extremely grateful and proud to call you all my Pokémon." He looked at his Butterfree then. "You fought especially hard Butterfree, even when we both... changed and I'm very proud of you," He praised.

The male just blushed and eyesmiled as Ash looked to the female. "And you yourself seem very well trained Butterfree. You should be proud of yourself."

The pink female also blushed at Ash's praise but was more shy than her male counterpart. His other Pokémon just nodded their heads appreciatively at their trainer's words of gratitude and praise but said nothing.

Just as Ash was about to lay back and rest for a few minutes- possibly hours- he suddenly heard the dull drone of what sounded like a helicopter making it's way towards their position. Ash quickly shot up to his feet and took a ready position, mimicked by his Pokémon who also heard the same thing as he was.

The boy looked in the direction he heard the sound coming from and cursed silently to himself. 'Dammit! I hope that's not other members of Team Rocket coming to check out the destruction of the warehouse because it had some kind of satellite tracker or something in it that helps them keep track of their bases.' He grit his teeth. 'I'll fight them if I have to but right now... Arceus my body feels like it weighs a couple hundred pounds!'

Ash rooted his feet and clenched his fists together, preparing to face whatever was about to appear. His Pokémon did the same thing and prepared themselves for a potential fight.

Eventually, the source of the rumbling noise grew closer and closer until it finally came into sight within the basin. What Ash saw definitely shocked him. Instead of it being a black Team Rocket helicopter or some other aerial Rocket vehicle like he was expecting, he was greeted by the sight of a blue and red chopper with an insignia of a golden star emblazoned on the side and front of it. The symbol of the Kanto Regional Police Force.

Ash's jaw dropped open upon seeing the most welcome sight and as he watched on, the helicopter circled around a portion of the basin not thirty yards away before setting itself gently down for a landing. A huge clowd of dust and rocks being thrown into the air as the dull roar of the helicopter's engine began to slow down and the quickly rotating propellers that was churning up said debree started to gradually shut off after the vehicle finally made it's touchdown.

He lowered his guard slightly, not completely dropping it since he didn't know if it was definitely the police or possibly someone else in disguise using a police helicopter. His Pokémon mirrored his actions and watched on warily as the chopper doors slid open on all sides and out jumped several policemen, followed by Officer Jenny who jumped from the driver's seat.

Seeing this, Ash totally relaxed and watched as the men all surveyed the area before gathering around Officer Jenny who began giving out commands. "Alright men! Fan out and search the area! I want every inch of this basin turned upside down for any sign or hint of Team Rocket's presence! If you come across anything or anyone then DO NOT take chances! I am giving you the permission to use whatever means is necessary to apprehend any suspects you come across and to use excessive force if need be. Everybody understand?!"

The men all nodded and saluted. "YES MA'AM!" They shouted together in synch.

After the men had set off into the basin to begin their search and possible gathering of evidence, Officer Jenny started walking towards Ash. Seeing her coming for him, Ash went to meet her half way. His body feeling such strain from all that had happened that it took all of his willpower not to limp as he walked.

Once they were both standing in front of each other, Ash nodded his head politely to the officer. "Officer Jenny," He greeted.

The woman nodded her head in return to Ash. "Are you Ash Ketchum?"

"Yes I am," He replied.

She smiled at hearing his identity confirmed. "Good. We were called by a man named Donny about an hour ago and he informed us of the situation. He said that yourself and three of your other friends had went to the Butterfree mating grounds for their annual courtship rituals and that Team Rocket had then showed up and captured all of the Butterfree, including your own. He further explained that you had given chase after Team Rocket and instructed he and your friends to call us. When we arrived, he pointed us in the direction you followed the criminals and after that, we searched the area for your whereabouts. Only once we heard the explosion and saw the smoke in the air were we able to find you."

Ash nodded in understanding and placed his hands on his hips, more for support so he didn't fall down than anything else. "Yeah... long story about that," He said while sighing and pinching the bridge of his nose. "Gotta notepad?"

"Yes I do," She replied as she reached into a pouch on her utility belt and pulled out a small blue notepad and pen.

"Might wanna get as comfortable as you can," Ash advised as he started telling Jenny everything that had happened, her taking notes all the while. He told of how Team Rocket had appeared during the mating rituals and kidnapped the Butterfree. How he gave chase after their helicopter on the back of his Pidgeot, found the warehouse they used as a base and then broke in. He told her how he fought against them and managed to release the Butterfree and ended on how Team Rocket had escaped in their getaway balloon. He omitted the parts about he and Butterfree's little 'episode' but everything else he was honest about.

Once he was done, Jenny finished jotting down a few more notes and then looked at him. "Your friends said that you and they had been caught up in other plots concerning Team Rocket as well, care to elaborate?" She asked.

Ash thought about it for a moment. He didn't want to reveal to Jenny about all of the times so far that he and his friends had had run-ins with the actual dangerous members of Team Rocket, not just the three idiots that were always wanting to steal his Pikachu. If he told her then word would most likely leak out and he didn't want anyone finding out about his vendetta against the criminal organization or how he planned on taking them down eventually if he could.

He had to be very careful and that meant not breathing a word of his plans to anyone until he had enough evidence to topple Team Rocket. They were a massive organization and he knew he had to be extremely careful when messing around with them or it would be not only his neck but the necks of everyone he cared about and loved.

Life wasn't like some of the anime shows that the other kids in Pallet were always watching and talking about. In those shows, evil 'bad guys' like Team Rocket were played out to be big chumps that weren't really all that dangerous and kids like Ash, who wanted to stop said evil groups, would do so without hardly any trouble or real threat to their life.

Ash himself found such a thing positively ridiculous and nothing more than damaging to children's minds. Which is exactly why he never watched them. In real life, if you messed with an organization as massive and deeply rooted into everything as Team Rocket was then you had better be prepared for the consequences. If you wanted to avoid said consequences at all costs then you had to be smart and very secretive, trusting next to no one.

So with all that in mind, Ash really didn't want to tell Jenny about his involvement with so many incidents involving Team Rocket. However... that didn't mean he couldn't have a scapegoat and with that thought, arose a devious plan. He grinned to himself then before telling the female officer, "Yes miss Jenny its true. Three members of Team Rocket are always following my friends and I around, trying to steal my Pikachu. They are personally responsible for many crimes, including what happened here today. It was their doing. I can give you an exact description of all three if you would like officer?" He offered with a smile.

Jenny nodded instantly. "Yes please, absolutely!" She agreed enthusiastically.

Ash grinned and then gave a complete description of Jessie, James and Meowth. When he got to the part about Meowth being a talking Pokémon, Jenny looked at him with wide eyes and he merely shrugged his shoulders, stating that he didn't know how it was possible either. After he was done, Jenny finished her notes with a triumphant tap of her pen to the paper.

"Thank you very much Mr. Ketchum! This is the first time we've ever had an accurate description of any member from Team Rocket and because of that, we've never been able to put out a search and arrest for any individual members. They're a very secretive and well organized crime syndicate I hate to admit but now, we can use this information to put out a massive arrest warrant and attempt to catch these three you've told me about. If we can get them then we might be able to pump them for information on the rest of their organization."

Ash mentally snorted at that. Those three idiots would never be trusted with anything important concerning Team Rocket's internal affairs so even if they did get captured, all it would do is put three members of Team Rocket behind bars, which was always good, and get rid of annoyance for him.

Still, if Jenny wanted to have high hopes then he would let her. Besides... he wouldn't dare tell Giselle this but he honestly thought that Jenny looked pretty cute while she was getting all excited over the possibility of busting a Team Rocket member. Like a kid in a candy store really and Ash found it attractive.

He decided then to bring a point up to Jenny at that moment. "Oh and... I'm not sure about this but knowing those three and how stupid they are, it could be possible. Watch out for them trying to get away and evade arrest by wearing some phony disguises. They probably wouldn't even be that good and you could most likely still tell it was them if they didn't cover up their hair, faces or change their voices but yeah... I could see them trying something like that. Only an idiot would fall for such a crappy disguise if they ever tried it, which I know you're not miss, but you can never be too careful."

Jenny nodded and smiled. "You think like a cop Ash, good point. I'll put that in the description of their arrest warrants before I send the information to the other Kanto police units throughout the region." She put her notepad away. "After I put out this massive search and arrest warrant, those three no good for nothing Rockets won't be able to sneeze without us catching on!" She stated with obvious excitement in her voice.

Ash smiled and laughed a little. "I can honestly say I'm glad and I hope this makes it a lot tougher on them. Even though they really don't pose a big issue to me or my Pokémon, they're still an annoyance."

Jenny laughed a little herself and then shifted her gaze over towards the burning remains of the warehouse. "Well Ash I can definitely say one thing... even though what you did may have been reckless and dangerous, you saved a whole lot of Pokémon today and proved just how much you love your own Pokémon by risking your life not just to save your Butterfree but also all of the others that were stolen. You definitely have a lot of courage and I really admire that. Great job," She praised as she lifted her right hand up and saluted him just as though he was one of her fellow officers.

Ash smiled and nodded his head to her in acceptance of her praise before something suddenly came to mind. "Oh hey, Officer Jenny! Are my friends okay? And what about all of the Butterfree I helped to free? Any news on them yet?"

Jenny smiled and waved her hand at him. "Don't worry Ash, your friends are just fine. Though, the one young lady... what was her name? Miss Yūtō I think it was...?" She looked at Ash for confirmation to which he just nodded and smiled. "Yes that's her, Giselle. She's my girlfriend, is she okay?" He asked concerned.

Jenny seemed to understand finally. "Oh okay! Now I understand. Yes she's completely fine Ash. Though... she did become rather... upset, when we told her that we couldn't let her or your other friends come along with us. Arceus knows they tried, especially her, but we just couldn't risk it. She was rather on edge about the whole thing and was worrying herself quite a bit over you but other than that yes, she's fine."

Ash felt a cold chill run down his back as he gulped, 'Man oh man! If Giselle is that worried then I bet she's gonna clobber me when I get back for making her worry over me like this.. Crap!' He inner monologued in a panic.

Jenny broke him from his thoughts when she started speaking again. "And as for the Butterfree, they're all completely fine as well. After you rescued them and they escaped, I'm guessing they flew back to the cliffs. We received a call through the chopper's on-board radio from one of the officers that stayed behind and he said that the Butterfree had just started returning n'mass to the area. Slightly shaken up looking and a bit stressed from what they went through but other than that, all was well. All of the trainers that had been waiting behind since their Butterfree had been taken were supposedly very happy to see them and had quite the emotional reunion."

Ash smiled softly at hearing that. "Wow, I'm really glad to hear everything worked out alright."

Jenny nodded with a smile as the other police officers came back from their search of the area and reported no sign or evidence of Team Rocket anywhere. Jenny took all of it in stride though and once the final officer had given their debriefing, she smiled widely and placed her hands on her hips. "Great work men. Don't worry about anything, thanks to Mr. Ketchum here..." She pointed to Ash. "We finally have a full suspect's description on three Team Rocket members and as soon as we get back to headquarters I'm going to call in a search and arrest warrant for them. I'll share the information with all divisions of the Kanto police force and then no there won't be any officer in the region who won't be keeping an eye out for them. Like I told Ash here, those three scum's lives are about to get a lot harder!"

The officers all nodded and smiled, exchanging some excited conversation between themselves after hearing Jenny's announcement. The female commanding officer let them all have their moment of excitement and then got their attention again. "Alright everyone, we've done all we can do here. Its time we head back to headquarters and get Mr. Ketchum here back to his friends and by the looks of it..." She glanced at the tattered and exhausted state Ash was in. "Get him some well deserved rest!"

To Ash's surprise, each of the other officers walked up and thanked him for his bravery and courage before making their way back to the helicopter. Jenny started walking away towards the vehicle as well and just before he himself did the same, Ash turned to his Pokémon. "Great job again on everything you guys did today. I really appreciate your help, you all deserve a good rest," He told them with a bright smile on his face.

The Pokémon all expressed versions of thanks in their own way for his complements and praise before Ash returned them to their Pokéballs, save for both Butterfree and Pikachu (obviously). With his first Pokémon back on his sore shoulder, Ash looked at the Butterfree. "You two ready to get back and start things up again?"

For an answer, the male Butterfree just perched himself on Ash's other shoulder while the female got closer and landed in the boy's arms, settling herself down comfortably much to his surprise. He just blinked and then grinned. "I'll take that as a yes then," He chuckled as he started following after Jenny.

Once he reached the chopper, Jenny had Ash take the passenger's seat while she settled herself in the driver's seat once again and settled the radio link headset back over her head. The other officers in the back buckled themselves in as Jenny started the chopper, the engine roaring to life as the propellers started spinning around at speeds too fast to observe with the naked eye.

Jenny performed a few final tests and flipped a few more switches before buckling herself in and looking over at Ash. "You ready?"

He nodded and she smiled before slowly raising the vehicle off the ground. Ash looked out the side window as the helicopter began climbing higher and higher into the air until eventually, they were hovering high above the tallest rock spires in the rocky valley.

As Officer Jenny turned the vehicle around and started flying out of the basin they had been in, Ash looked down one last time at the still burning remains of the Team Rocket warehouse far down below. Pikachu and the Butterfree were doing the same, only with a look of both disgust at the mere sight of a building that had been owned by Team Rocket, and also satisfaction that said structure was now destroyed.

Jenny looked over and noticed where Ash was looking before turning her face forwards again and speaking to him, "Don't worry about that mess Ash. We'll send out another squad of officers and a firefighting team to put the flames out and search for any potential surviving evidence among the wreckage. Afterwards a clean-up crew will come in and haul everything away. Since nothing green grows around here, we don't have to worry about a wildfire starting up," She explained.

Ash just nodded but remained silent. Content to finally be able to sit back and rest his exhausted body.

After some time of flying through the expansive valley of rocks and cliffs, Ash looked at the three Pokémon around him. Pikachu was looking out the side window from his shoulder while his Butterfree was perched on the dashboard looking through the windshield. The pink female was just sitting in his lap, looking rather comfortable and almost drowsy eyed as she also stared out through the front window. He smiled. "I bet it feels different being inside of something that flies instead of flying yourself huh Butterfree?" He asked the two of them.

Both Butterfree just nodded and kept their gazes fixed onto the sights that were passing before them at speeds they themselves had never flown. He then looked at Pikachu and grinned at his first Pokémon's equally as fascinated expression. "A lot different than a hot air balloon eh Pikachu?"

The little powerhouse Pokémon looked back at his trainer and smiled. "Pikachu!"

Ash let a small smile come across his lips again before leaning his head back. With the gentle rocking motions of the helicopter and the somewhat rhythmic beats of the constantly rotating blades keeping the machine aloft and speeding ahead, the boy let himself fall into a slumber with no form of resistance making itself known as he did so.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

What seemed like merely minutes but was actually more than an hour later, the helicopter finally broke free of the rocky valley and started climbing its way to higher ground. Eventually, the flying machine broke free from the cloud cover obscuring it and everyone inside of it was able to see a little ways off in the distance, the sprawling landscape and cliffside of the Butterfree mating grounds just ahead.

Jenny looked over at the still sleeping Ash and gently tapped his shoulder. "Ash? Hey Ash?"

The boy groggily opened his eyes and wiped them a few times to clear the sleep from them before looking at Officer Jenny. "What's going on?" He asked as he yawned.

The female police officer smiled at his sleepy actions and nodded ahead. "We're almost back at the mating grounds, thought you would want to be awake for it," She said somewhat teasingly.

Ash smiled himself, becoming awake, as he looked out the front window and saw that she was indeed correct, they were almost there. He felt excited at the prospect of seeing his friends again and also seeing if all of the Butterfree had really come back or not.

He wasn't disappointed either because after just a few short moments of flying, they finally came into full sight of the mating grounds. Ash looked anxiously ahead and there saw a sight that nearly brought tears of joy to his eyes.

All of the Butterfree were indeed back and they were spread out all over the expansive fields of lush green grass that danced in the breeze of the wind that blew in from the sea, which stretched out far into the distance and gave the mating grounds a truly beautiful background.

What truly touched Ash though was the sight of all of the Butterfree's former trainers, who had landed their balloons and were now embracing the Pokémon that they thought had been lost forever to Team Rocket. It was simply the sight of a happy reunion in which left the warmest feeling coursing through Ash's heart.

Even though they had released their Butterfree so they could pair off and find mates, the trainers still obviously cared a great deal for them and that thought alone was enough to make the boy feel more than a little accomplished at what he did by saving all of them.

As if she could read his mind, Jenny smiled. "And its all because of you Ash," She said gently.

He shook his with a slight smile still evident on his face. "Not just me Officer Jenny but my Pokémon as well."

She smiled a little more at hearing him say that and then laughed a bit. "Well, as admirable as that is Ash, I think all of your fans down there are still going to mob you once they see you," She told him with a wink. "You saved the day and because you risked your life for all of those Butterfree, them and their former trainers are undoubtedly going to be enamored with you."

Ash just sank down into his seat. "Great..." He sighed with fake enthusiasm.

Jenny laughed again. "Oh come on Ash, it won't be so bad!" She joked teasingly.

He just shot her a look. "Trust me officer... it'll be that bad and more. The last thing I want is some fan club and people throwing themselves at me. That's not why I wanted to become a trainer. I've never wanted fame or recognition of any kind. I just want to train my Pokémon, grow stronger bonds with them, meet new people, become the best I can be and enjoy my travels. That's it." He huffed with arms crossed.

Jenny seemed impressed with what he said and replied, "That's a great way to look at things Ash and I understand. Though, you're going to have to accept pretty quickly that to these trainers and Butterfree, you're a hero. They know that you were the one to chase after Team Rocket and get the Butterfree back since the officers I left here gave an explanation of what happened after you told me the details of the event and I radioed it in while you were asleep. Just take it all with a smile and enjoy seeing the happiness that you made possible. Okay?" She said reassuringly.

Ash thought about it for a few moments and realized that she was right. "Yeah... I suppose you're right. Thanks Officer Jenny," He conceited with a smile.

The woman just smiled back. "No problem Ash." She then winked again. "And call me Jenny."

Ash nodded and then turned his attention to the sprawling fields that was quickly getting closer and closer while whispering under his breath, "I'm back guys..."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Giselle paced around the floor of Donny's cabin restlessly. She was fidgeting with her hands and occasionally grumbling to herself while Brock, Misty and Donny watched her from the table they were all sitting at in the corner of the room.

She finally stopped pacing and then threw her arms into the air exasperatedly. "Argh! What is taking them so long?! They should be back by now!" She yelled.

Misty rubbed her temples, having heard more than enough of Giselle's frantic worrying and finally snapped, "Will you calm down already?! I'm sure they're fine! Remember what that police officer outside said? Ash rescued the Butterfree, Team Rocket ran off and the police got there to confirm that everything was fine! Officer Jenny herself gave the report. She said they were coming back soon and I'm sure they will! Now. Just. Calm. Down." She punctuated the last few words irritably.

Giselle whipped around and glared at Misty fiercely with her hands on her hips. "I bet you wouldn't be so calm if it was YOUR boyfriend out there fighting a horrible, evil criminal organization and hadn't returned yet! Wait until that happens and then you can tell me to calm down!" She shouted.

Misty shot up from the table and slammed her hand down onto it. "Now you wait right there Miss Priss! Just because Ash isn't my boyfriend doesn't mean that I don't worry about him when he's doing something as stupid, brave and reckless as this! I'm his friend just like us all of are and we care about Ash and his well being very much! Just because we aren't sucking face with him-" Brock made a gagging sound from his seat at that. "Doesn't mean we don't feel afraid for him! We all wanted to go with Ash but Pidgeot couldn't carry us all!" She stomped up into Giselle's face. "SO BACK OFF!"

Giselle returned fire and got into Misty's own face, causing her to lean back. "I didn't say that you weren't worried for him! You just have no business telling me to calm down when you don't know how hard knowing that he's in danger or even potential danger is for me! I understand and support why he does it but it doesn't make it any easier on me!"

Brock and Donny could only watch from their seats as both females fought back and forth like a bitter exchange of attacks on a battlefield. Donny looked at Brock. "Shouldn't we try and do something?" He asked while looking worriedly at the scene in front of him.

The other male just shook his head and sighed. "They do this all the time Donny, trust me. Nothing we do would help them. Best to just stay out of it," He advised.

Before the man could reply, everyone suddenly heard a loud sound coming from outside followed by one of the police men who had been stationed at the mating grounds to come running into the shop. Everyone stopped what they were doing, Giselle and Misty going totally silent as the officer spoke hurriedly, "They're back!" He announced breathlessly.

Brock and Donny bolted up from the table as Giselle and Misty went wide eyed.

Before anything else could be said, Giselle took off running past the officer and out the door. Misty, Brock and Donny following close behind.

The girl ran out into the wide open field in front of the shop and looked up just as the large police helicopter came into clear view and made it's way towards their position. Giselle stood there with an excited look on her face as the chopper descended towards the ground. The large gale of wind created by the vehicle was blowing her hair all over the place as everyone else who had come up behind her to greet the new arrivals had to cover their eyes from the fierce winds.

The trainers and all of their Butterfree also saw the arrival of the helicopter and started making their way towards it quickly as well.

Once the chopper finally landed, the engine was cut off and the blades slowly stopped spinning. The doors of the aerial vehicle opened and out came all of the police officers who had went after Ash and Team Rocket. Officer Jenny herself hopped from the driver's side then, which led to Misty holding Brock back by the collar so he didn't charge the poor woman, but Giselle was focused on only looking for one person.

Finally, she spotted him getting slowly but gracefully out of the passenger's side. The boy in question slowly stretched himself out as Pikachu hopped down onto his shoulder, making him wince in pain a little from the sudden weight on his shoulder. The two Butterfree, being the male and pink female, joined him from the inside of the vehicle as he started walking towards the rapidly growing crowd of people and Pokémon.

Giselle took in the sight of his slightly limping gait, somewhat torn and scratched up tracksuit and what appeared to be soot and dirt collected on his clothes. She couldn't hold herself back when his eyes looked up and found hers staring at him intently, a grin that only he could give coming to life on his face as he spotted her.

Giselle took off running towards him and Pikachu quickly hopped down from his trainer's shoulder, knowing what was coming. With a loud cry of, "ASH!" Giselle launched herself into Ash's outstretched arms and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck as he spun her around, laughing all the while.

He stopped spinning her and set her down, just holding her tightly as he buried his face into her neck, taking in her sweet scent as she squeezed him tighter. "Ash I'm so glad you're alright!" Giselle cried ecstatically. "I was so worried the entire time you were gone and..." She then detached herself from him and gave the boy a fierce glare as she poked his chest. "Don't you ever... EVER ask for us to stay behind again! Got it?! We were all worried sick! I don't care if Pidgeot- whom you never sent back by the way!- has to carry two of us in her talons and Brock has to hold onto her tail feathers, we are going with you wherever you go from now on!" She reprimanded with a serious and no room to argue tone as said squinty eyed teen held his hands up behind them in a 'What the heck?!' gesture.

Ash just nodded quickly, not wanting to tempt the angry female, and raised his hands up in a sign of surrender. "You got it Giselle! I promise, from now on you guys are coming with me as long as you want to. I'm really sorry I made you worry and didn't send Pidgeot like I said I would, things just got out of hand..." He picked up her hand and kissed it. "Please forgive me?" He asked with a hopeful smile.

Giselle smiled herself after hearing him relent to her request, as well as his apology, and placed both her hands on either side of his cheeks. "We'll see after this..." Before Ash could voice his confusion, Giselle crashed her lips onto his with enough force to make him stumble backwards a little bit and locked her arms back around his neck.

Ash was momentarily taken aback but upon feeling his girlfriend's lips working fiercely against his own, Ash's mind shut down as he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against him. He worked his own mouth ferociously against hers. Biting, sucking and even licking her lips as they fully expressed just how much they missed one another.

Not wanting to appear indecent in front of the crowd that was growing ever larger around them, Ash broke free from his girlfriend's succulent lips with one last soft peck and smiled at her. "So? Am I forgiven?"

Giselle was still a little flushed from the intense kiss and merely nodded her head with a dazed look on her face. "Oh yeah..." She said with a faint giggle.

Ash just smiled and pecked her lips again before turning to the rest of his greeting crowd, Pikachu finally deeming it safe to return to his perch upon his shoulder again.

Brock and Misty ran up to him next, the former giving him a friendly pat on the shoulder while the latter gave him a lingering hug. After Ash greeted each of them and detached himself from Misty's tight grip, he stepped back a little bit and smiled at them.

"You guys okay?" He asked.

Brock just crossed his arms. "Us okay? We should be asking you that question Ash. How are YOU doing? Is everything alright, you okay?" He asked concerned.

"Yeah," Misty began as she looked at his current state with slight worry. "You look exhausted and your clothes are a mess."

"And what about Pikachu?" Giselle asked as she took the electric mouse from Ash's shoulder and started looking over the Pokémon for any injuries while gently scratching him behind the ears. Much to Pikachu's delight. "And the two Butterfree and your other Pokémon?" She finished while casting a look in the male and pink female Butterfree's direction, who were hovering close to Ash.

The boy just smiled before scratching Pikachu under the chin and then walked over to both Butterfree, who decided to land on either side of his shoulder. "We're all just fine," He assured. "A little tired and scuffed up but okay nonetheless."

Brock walked up to him and clapped him on the back. "I'm glad to hear it Ash. Just make sure you let us go with you next time okay? We worry about you man," He told his younger friend.

Misty came up and stood beside him. "We don't like being left behind while you're out doing something dangerous Ash." She affirmed to Brock and even Giselle's earlier statements.

Ash nodded and then looked at them all seriously. "I know guys and I promise I won't ask you to stay behind again, I'm sorry. Okay?" He apologized with a searching gaze to each of his friends.

They all seemed satisfied with his answer and nodded while smiling. Ash turned his attention to the rest of the crowd then and was for the first time able to see everyone who had shown up for his arrival. To his surprise, all of the trainers and Butterfree were all gathered in the crowd. Looking at him expectantly with something akin to great respect. Or at least, that seemed to be the vibe he felt coming from them.

Eventually, almost all of the trainere started running up to Ash at one time, shouting out their praise and words of thanks for what he had done for the Butterfree. He was hearing things coming from all directions like;

"Wow you were so awesome for going after Team Rocket like that!"

"Man thank you so much for saving the Butterfree, I was so worried about them!

"I can't believe you were able to stop Team Rocket like that, totally awesome!"

"You're great dude I'll never forget you!"

"Oh my Arceus you're such a hero and sooo cute too!"

Those were just some of the many forms of praise Ash was getting from all of the people gathered around him. The last comment was made by some girl in the crowd and, surprisingly enough, caused Misty to whip her head around and glare at the source of the fan girlish words which obviously came from some older girl by the sound of her voice.

Giselle merely smiled proudly though and latched onto Ash's arm, not caring what the other girl had said. Apparently, the only time she became jealous was when Ash was showing interest in someone else. Not the other way around. Very strange some- well most- would say but then again, Giselle was proud of and confidant in herself so it made sense if one really thought about it. She knew she wouldn't have to worry about some hussy taking Ash from her so she had no reason to get all defensive when some girl swooned all over her handsome boyfriend.

Ash then looked over and saw Officer Jenny giving him a look that screamed 'I told you so' from where she was standing with the other officers while watching him get practically mobbed by the large crowd of people. She and the other officers were prepared to step in and calm things down if the situation became too aggressive but for right now, the female officer simply stood back and watched on with humor at the show of fan worship the young Ketchum was receiving.

The boy in question just shot her a mock angry look, which made her giggle, and then turned his attention back to the crowd of trainers still around him. Before he could open his mouth to say anything though, he was suddenly mobbed by a large mass of Butterfree who rushed him to the ground.

Ash's friends and everyone else seemed worried at first until they saw what the Butterfree were really doing.

The flying Bug-Types could be seen doing what, seemed to be, the best form of an embrace that a Butterfree could possibly do on the young trainer. Obviously they were all trying to thank him for what he did for them and he was only too happy to accept the form of gratitude. Poor Pikachu was trapped within all the writhing bodies but he didn't seem to mind either. Even Ash's Butterfree had his own large crowd of Butterfree fluttering around him, very taken and impressed with how he had helped Ash save them all.

Surpsingly enough, the group of Butterfree that Ash's own had gotten into a fight with earlier in the day when he was defending the pink female came up to him and seemed to offer their gratitude for what he did for them. Like Ash, Butterfree was hard pressed to hold a grudge unless absolutely necessary and forgave them. After getting the 'okay' nod from the pink Butterfree who was hovering next to him of course. She was the one they had disrespected after all, not him. If she could forgive them then so could he.

Just as the Butterfree finally parted from Ash and he stood up, ready to address the crowd, he was interrupted yet again. Only this time by someone that Brock had practically fallen out of the balloon for earlier and was only stopped from lunging at her this time by Misty, who took possession of his ear almost immediately

The person whom called out and interrupted Ash from what he was about to say was none other than the pink Butterfree's former trainer. She was a rather beautiful young woman Ash noticed, probably around Brock's age or maybe a little older, with long brown hair, chocolate eyes and rather nice body. She was wearing a long black skirt, long black boots and a silver V-cut lady's t-shirt.

The young woman came running up to them and stopped in front of her former Pokémon. "Butterfree!" She yelled excitedly as she threw her arms around her former Pokémon and hugged her tightly. "Oh Butterfree I was so worried about you when Team Rocket showed up and took you away! I've never been more scared than I was then..." Tears began falling from her eyes as she hugged Butterfree closer to her. "I'm so glad you're okay!"

The pink skinned Butterfree happily accepted the hug from her former trainer after recovering from the shock of seeing her again and then the two just enjoyed the heart warming reunion between them both. Ash and his friends simply looked on with smiles on their faces as they watched the tender moment play out.

Once the woman had finished hugging her Butterfree, she wiped her eyes and then walked over to Ash with an expression of pure happiness etched onto her face. "I honestly don't know how I could ever thank you enough for saving my Butterfree. The way you went after Team Rocket like that and how brave you were in rescuing them all was just..." She clasped her hands together. "The most amazing thing I've ever seen!" The brunette gushed.

Brock suddenly appeared in-between the two of them then and clasped her hands in his. With a wannabe charming smile on his face, the lovesick teen spoke in the goofy romantic way that only he could, "Well you know my lovely lady, I wasn't neutral either during this time of peril and danger! While Ash was out chasing after Team Rocket, I stayed behind in order to protect the rest of you and offer moral support!"

The woman seemed to be getting quite uncomfortable as Brock leaned in closer. "I know this whole thing had to be so very stressful on you! A lady with beauty such as yours should never have to feel feelings of despair or worry in which could crease that pretty forehead of yours! Let me chase away the bad memories my dear as we embark together on a journey of love to forget this terrible nightmare!" He finally finished his spiel dramatically on one knee with his right hand extended to her.

The woman of Brock's current affections could only sweatdrop as she smiled as best as she could and laughed nervously. "Well... uhh... I umm... actually..." She was luckily saved in that moment however by an irritated Misty grabbing Brock's ear hard as she then proceeded to dragging him away.

"Brock you need to learn the time and place and this neither of those!" She scolded.

The teenager squirmed wildly in Misty's hold as he whined, "No Misty please! Just this once! Noooo!"

Ash, Giselle, the woman and everyone else present just stared after them both with a mixture of amused and confused expressions on their faces before Ash laughed and then turned to the pink Butterfree's former trainer again. "Hey sorry about him miss. Brock gets around an attractive woman and he sort of loses his mind."

He laughed a little more and then looked at her with the humor still dancing in his eyes. "But seriously though, there is seriously no need to thank me for any of the things I did today. If you really want to thank anyone then thank my Pokémon and especially-" He pointed at his Butterfree. "Him. My Butterfree went to great lengths to save all of the Butterfree and especially yours. He's a great Pokémon and I'm very proud of him."

Butterfree looked happy beyond measure at his trainers words of praise and puffed his chest out proudly. The woman smiled at them both and then looked at Ash again. "Well either way, you are a hero for what you did and I wanted to express my gratitude." Without any further warning, she leaned into Ash and gently kissed his cheek, lingering just a moment before pulling away and smiling at him.

Ash felt himself blush at the intimate gesture but quickly composed himself as he felt Giselle squeeze his arm ever so slightly. He looked at his girlfriend and smiled reassuringly at her, only to find her smiling back at him in amusement. He took the smile as her saying that she was okay with what happened since the woman was just trying to thank him and simply nodded to Giselle gratefully for not getting upset.

Turning back to the woman then, he bowed his head slightly. "Thank you very much miss, it was my pleasure. Truly."

She nodded to him with a smile still gracing her features as Donny suddenly spoke up, "Well everyone, as great as this reunion is and as grateful as I'm sure we all are to Ash, what do you all say we pick up where we left off before Team Rocket showed up?"

The crowd of trainers erupted into a chorus of excited agreement and cheers while the Butterfree all started taking to the air once more anxiously. Eagerly awaiting the continuation of their mating rituals.

Donny looked at Officer Jenny then. "Would you mind at all staying here as an extra sort of protection in case Team Rocket were to come back miss?" He asked her politely.

Jenny nodded and placed her hands on her hips. "We were already planning on it. No way we're letting Ash and his brave Pokémon's heroic actions be undone by Team Rocket showing up a second time to ruin everything. We'll be here the whole time, you just get those Butterfree and the balloons back into the air!" She informed reassuringly.

The crowd of trainers cheered once more before quickly heading to their individual balloons while all of the Butterfree were already ascending high up into the air. Ash looked at Pikachu and then his friends, lacing his one hand with Giselle's left as the other one came up into a fist by his chest. He smiled widely with excitement rolling in waves off of him as he took a step forward. "You guys ready to rock and roll again?!"

Brock, Misty, Giselle and Pikachu all called out readily in return. "YEAH/PIKA!"

He then turned to his Butterfree and the pink one. "How about you guys? You ready?!"

Getting excited nods from the two Butterfree in return, not to mention the discreet glance between them both that only Ash caught, he smirked and turned towards their balloon that was parked out front of Donny's shop. "Alright! Let's go!"

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Soon afterwards, all of the hot air balloons were back up in the air and the Butterfree were gathering together en-mass yet again, high up in the sky. The police and Officer Jenny stood down on the ground far below, spread out over the plains in careful watch for any troublemakers like Team Rocket to show up and cause more issues. Their helicopter was also ready and waiting in the wings in case the need for a quick chase was needed.

Ash and his friends stood in the basket of their Pikachu balloon with Ash in control this time over the slow moving aerial vehicle. Being the curious and ever studious young man he was, Ash had been very anxious to polite the balloon and after Donny had seen the way Ash had soaked up the instructions he gave him the first time up, he allowed him to control it. Albeit, Donny stood right beside of Ash the entire time, watching carefully and being ready to intervene at any second should the balloon start to go out of control.

However, at the moment it seemed not necessary. The raven haired trainer was definitely a quick study and had perfect control over the balloon. Brock, Misty, Giselle and Pikachu were not concerned one bit at the fact that Ash was flying them around. A testament, a true testament, to how much they trusted him and the friendship they shared.

The pink Butterfree's trainer, who they had learned her name to be Salia, was in her own pink balloon flying as close as was safe near to them. She had apparently taken a liking to the four of them after her short meeting with Ash and wanted to see out the rest of the mating season with them. Of course, there was another potential reason for her wanting to tag along with them and that same reason was shared by Ash and his friends.

The reason, or reasons, could be found perched atop the lip of the Pikachu balloon. Standing rather close to one another.

Both Butterfree, Ash's own and the pink female, were resting upon the precipice of the balloon. Prepared to take off into the sky in a matter of moments. Salia was slightly surprised, as was everyone else, that her former Butterfree chose to ride with Ash and his friends but she quickly deduced that her recently released Butterfree just wanted to be closer to the male. A sentiment shared by the group of friends.

Ash looked at each Pokémon in turn. "You guys ready to take flight?" He asked.

They merely looked at each other for a brief second before looking back at the clear sky ahead and nodding. Ash grinned and then raised his hand as he pointed forward. "Then get out there!" He shouted boisterously.

Like two speeding rockets, both Butterfree launched themselves from the balloon and into the sky. Flying higher and higher until they were a good bit away from all of the other Butterfree who had long since resumed their courtship rituals.

Giselle looked up and between both Butterfree, who were still flying close together, with an excited expression on her face. "Ooooh I just can't stand the wait! Those two are the perfect match for each other out of all of the other Butterfree here!"

"I just know they're gonna get together!" Misty gushed.

Brock was about to say something before, without warning, both of the Butterfree suddenly stopped flying and then turned to face one other. An anxious look crossed his face. "Here we go guys! If they really are about to court each other then we'll see one or both of them start initiating a very precise and carefully performed dance of sorts that conveys their desires to make mates with one another."

Ash crossed his arms and continued. "Yep. The Butterfree courtship 'dance' if that's what you want to call it, has been carefully honed and bred down through the ages of Butterfree so they can translate their exact feelings towards one another by performing certain dances and movements at each other. Each one is just a little bit different. There's one for courting and there's even one that's performed right before mating. The first has been recorded by researchers far more than the second has. For obvious reasons," He explained.

This just further increased everyone's interest as they carefully watched both Butterfree stare at each other with impassive looks on their faces for several moments. The pink Butterfree closed her eyes and performed the equivalent of a smile at the male and he did the same right back, seemingly completely at ease as he returned the warm gesture back to the female.

The very next second, the pink Butterfree's eye shot open with a ferocious glare directed straight at him and then charged at the male with very impressive speed. Ash's Butterfree was completely unsuspecting of what was happening, his eyes still being closed, and was thus thrown for a literal loop as she smashed into his mid-section with heavy force and sent him hurdling back through the air in a spin.

She didn't take a pause and then shot after him, meeting the dazed male half-way through his travel before slamming her left wing into his body, which sent him flying straight down. She kept her momentum going and flew down after him in a blur of speed, by-passing his descent quickly as she sent a large gust of wind shooting up at him with a fast beat of her wings. This sent the still dazed male tumbling back up into the air like a circus wheel spinning with no stop in sight.

Back in the two balloons, Ash, his friends, Donny and even Salia were watching in complete bafflement at what had suddenly transpired.

"What the hell happened?!" Misty shouted. "One moment it looks like they're getting ready to take each other as mates and then the next she's attacking him? What's wrong with her?!"

Brock looked back at Donny, who seemed equally as surprised. "You ever seen this happen before Donny?" He asked confused.

The man just shook his head in wonder. "No, I've never seen something like this happen before. Butterfree who are interested in one another never fight that I've seen.

"Then what's going on?" Giselle wondered aloud.

Ash watched silently, contemplatively, as his Butterfree finally broke free from his daze and thrusted his wings out to stop his spinning. Just in time too as the female was already coming back up for another tackle.

Even though there was confusion written plainly across his face, Butterfree let his training and instincts take over as he quickly rolled to the side to escape the attack.

The pink Butterfree missed her mark and seeing her momentary lapse in motion when she failed to hit him, Butterfree sent a burst of wind at her that sent the female flying back a few yards before finally coming to a stop. They were now a mere twenty yards or so away from each other and the pink Butterfree was staring the male down with a fierce, intense gaze.

Ash's Butterfree was obviously still very confused as to why he was attacked and started talking to her quickly in their own tongue. She responded back to him with the same equal force and intensity in her voice that matched her expression and movements. Going onto a rather long trail of speech.

As Ash watched, his Butterfree's face went from one of confusion, to surprise, utter shock and then finally... to one of what appeared to be excitement, determination and even admiration for the female in front of him. Not only that but a glint came into Butterfree's eyes that-even though he couldn't see it- Ash could just tell from the nod of the head his Pokémon offered the pink Butterfree that he was about to give her something that brought all of his Pokémon pure and utter joy.

An intense battle.

It was difficult to figure out but after observing the pink Butterfree's body position, her tense and ready demeanor, the steel like and intense tone of her voice and the way his Butterfree seemed to become excited at whatever she had told him- not to mention the way she attacked him earlier- Ash was able to come up to the potential conclusion that she wanted to battle his Butterfree for the right to make mates with her.

All in all, it made sense. She was obviously a well trained, strong Butterfree that was very proud of herself and her abilities. His Butterfree was a very impressive male for his species and was quite strong from all of the intense training he underwent regularly. That was undoubtedly a turn on for her, meaning his power, and combining that with his good personality? Any female would be hard pressed not to find Ash's Butterfree worthy mate material. Especially after how he saved her and the other Butterfree earlier that day.

However, even as taken as she would have been with him, the pink Butterfree was still proud and wanted to most likely test her own strength and ability against the male before she decided to take him as her mate. She also most likely wanted to redeem her capture and inability to free herself when Team Rocket took them all and the only way she could probably find to do that, was by fighting the Pokémon who beat them.

Ash hummed to himself on his analysis and it drew the attention of his friends.

"What is it Ash?" Misty asked.

He looked at her and then back up at the two Butterfree who were now in a tense combat position. Sizing each other up and preparing for battle at any moment. The both of them had a mixture of seriousness, determination and also excitement visible on their faces.

Without looking away, Ash began speaking. "I'm pretty sure that she wants to battle my Butterfree for the right to take her as his mate. I think she wants to test her strength against him and possibly redeem herself for not being able to do much to save her or any of them when Team Rocket kidnapped the Butterfree.

Giselle had a look of realization dawn upon her. "That makes sense! She does seem to be a very proud Pokémon who likes to feel confident in her abilities. I can understand that."

Misty nodded. "Makes sense to me as well."

Brock crossed his arms. "I have a feeling this will be a good battle then."

Donny smiled. "Well this is definitely something you don't see during mating season very often!"

Ash remained silent after that and turned his attention up to the two Butterfree just as the female made the first move.

She suddenly sent a strong gust of wind at the male with a quick flap of her wings, which he folded his own wings in to defend himself against. She followed up instantly by shooting off at him like a bullet with her head lowered down low.

With his wings still wrapped around him, she plowed straight into the normal colored male Butterfree and sent him skidding back several feet through the air.

Deciding to capitalize on her fast starting momentum, she charged straight at him again while his wings were still folded in. Intent on smashing into him once more.

Ash's Butterfree unfurled his wings powerfully just as she came upon him and sent her skidding backwards with the wind he turned up from the outward thrust. He followed this up by charging at her in a burst of speed.

The female prepared herself to defend against his attack but just as he was upon her, he suddenly veered to the left and sent a burst of wind at her instead, which she defended with her wings folded into her body.

When she unfurled them she found the male at her other side some distance away firing off another gust of wind at her. She defended this time with her own gust of wind and the two gales met together, cancelling the other out.

The male started flying around her at all different angles, firing off round after round of wind at her that she would defend against by either folding her wings in or using her own air based attacks.

This went on for quite some time, him flying around her while she stayed in one place and defended herself or moved around slightly, trying to find an angle in which she could escape from the barrage of gusty attacks being throw her way.

After what seemed like several minutes of that same type of battle, the male Butterfree suddenly stopped what he was doing and shot up into the air like a speeding rocket. The pink Butterfree looked up at him with weariness and took a defensive position. Ready for the attack she felt was coming. However, what surprised her the most was when he stopped mid-ascent and looked down at her expectantly, almost willing her to follow after him.

Not one to turn down a challenge, the pink female gave chase and went after him.

Up, up and up they went through the sky, surpassing all of the Butterfree and even the balloons down below as they entered the cover of the clouds. Ash's Butterfree turned around and sent a gust of wind at the female which she was forced to veer to the right in order to dodge, temporarily taking her eyes off of him.

This proved to be a bad decision though because the very next moment, the same time in which she looked forward again, the male was gone. Disappeared into the cloud cover that was as thick as a blanket of fog at such an elevation. She started looking around wildly, trying to find where he had gone, afraid of some sneak attack.

Suddenly, a blast of wind came rushing at her from behind and she turned around just in time to get out of the way of the torrent of air that had been launched her way from the now open maw of a nearby cloud bank.

No sooner did she escape the attack and a blur of white and blue came rushing in from the clouds on her right. Passing from one direction to the other while sending powerful gusts of wind her way.

She used her own gusts to defend herself and then began guarding from every angle as the male Butterfree went from cloud to cloud, launching his attacks at her, which she would become quite hard pressed to evade or block in some way.

This only lasted a short time however because the very next minute, the male came hurdling out from a cloud behind her with his right wing raised back in a striking position. She raised her own wing just in time and met his with a resounding slap that could only be heard by them.

He quickly lifted his other wing up and then brought it down. The female was forced to disengage her hold with his other wing so she could stay hovering and met his other wing just in time. Soon, a battle of close combat ensued with both Butterfree fighting through the small arena they had made for themselves up in the cover of the clouds. Wings, feet and even heads smashed against one another as they continued their strange and violent dance of courtship.

The pink Butterfree managed to slip underneath of the male's wing strikes and came up under his chin with her foot. Knocking him back a little. She quickly followed up with a fierce strike to the face with both wings at different times and then headbutted him hard, sending the other Butterfree hurdling back into the cover of the clouds.

She hovered in place while slightly out of breath until, at the very next moment, she saw the clouds in front of her appear as though they were coming to life as a large mass of them began moving her way.

The female backed up slowly, as far as she could until her back was to the cloud bank behind her and then, not wanting to be stuck in a cloud haze, started beating her wings fiercely in an attempt to push back the clouds. This strategy worked well and the mass of white fluff began quickly getting blown away.

After several moments of tirelessly beating her wings, the wall of moving clouds finally stopped and so did she. Her head lowered forward slightly as she tried to get her breath back from the frenzied flapping she had been forced to do, panting as she did so.

Suddenly, she saw a blue streak flash in front of her and when she looked up, she saw the male Butterfree hovering over her with his wings being rapidly lowered towards her.

Too late to respond after what she just did, the pink female could only watch as the wing descended upon her. Waiting to feel the collision she knew was coming for her body. To her surprise though, it didn't happen.

Instead of being hit with a wing, she was blasted back by another gust of wind that sent her flying downwards. She managed to right herself and looked to see Ash's Butterfree speeding down past her towards the open sky below the clouds.

She gave chase instantly, not understanding why he wouldn't just fight her outright and followed him down through the clouds until they were out into the open airspace again. The male Butterfree hurdled himself down towards the large mass of other Butterfree that were all congregated together. The pink female giving chase as fast she could but not being able to process why he was doing what he was doing.

He ended up flying straight down into the mass of Butterfree and she went in after him. Almost instantly, she lost sight of him amongst all the many bodies of Butterfree that all were the same color as he was. It was times like this that her strange coloring became a real nuisance and she hated it. He could blend in with the others but she stuck out like a sore thumb. Her pink body and lightly pink tinted wings contrasted poorly with the rest of them.

She eventually spotted him some yards away in a small break between the others, almost like he was waiting for her, and she shot off towards him. Not giving any thought or care as to what he was up to or why he was doing what he was. Her only thought was catching him and winning their battle. She knew how strong he was so she didn't get why he wouldn't just fight and it maddened her.

So, on she chased him. Through the maze of bodies that her kin made up for them. He led her up, down, around and through some of the tightest spots possible and if she wasn't such a good flyer, she knew she would have crashed into the others many times already. Even still, almost all eyes were on them from the other Butterfree as she followed him through the large crowd like she was his shadow.

Pretty soon the male broke free from the Butterfree and started heading toward the balloons full of trainers. She huffed to herself and gave chase still, cursing her wings as they started to feel the fatigue of flying so far, so much and so fast. Not to mention, with the little bit of fighting they had already done and the stress from the day as a whole, everything was really starting to take its toll on her stamina. It didn't help either that the after effects of the 'shock treatment' Jessie put her through was slowing her down slightly. Which was why she wondering how Ash's Butterfree could still go.

He had fought the group of other male Butterfree earlier on that day, had went through the entire situation with Team Rocket and suffered through... whatever it was that he and his trainer had underwent back at the warehouse but he was still flying much faster than she was. The female didn't understand it but she knew that she did want to stop whatever game of chase they were playing.

Ash's Butterfree flew in-between the many balloons floating in the air, swerving, ducking and dodging around all of them and doing some pretty amazing stunts as he did so. She followed right behind him the whole time and the trainers watched in awe at the two Butterfree flying around their balloons like small dots of light as one attempted to catch the other. Neither one slowed down at all and everyone watching was left with the impression that they were truly being treated to something special.

Both Butterfree even flew near their respective trainer's balloons, the male obviously showing off for them all, before he abruptly started speeding towards the center of the airspace in the sky. Going so fast that one could nearly see the wind trail behind him.

The female gave chase as fast she could but she wasn't fast enough to fully keep up with him. Especially not in her tiring state.

With no warning, he suddenly began dive bombing down towards the ground at break-neck speed while she much less gracefully followed. The male nearly collided with the green plains below but pulled himself up and started flying level with the ground just before he did.

The pink female nearly collided with the ground but managed to right herself as well and followed him as he flew along open plains, speeding through the open area and around the cops that were stationed around the cliffside to keep an eye out for trouble. The police watched on in amazement, Jenny included, as the two Butterfree flew around them and even right over their heads at some points.

Ash's Butterfree then started flying right at the police helicopter that was parked some distance away and picked up speed as he drew closer. The female was feeling nervous as they neared the vehicle and the male showed no signs of slowing down either.

Right before they could hit the vehicle, Butterfree dropped down low and passed right through the legs of the chopper, not even grazing an antenna. She managed to follow him through with much nervous trepidation but her success, unfortunately, was short lived.

He then began flying towards the forest that bordered the grassy plains of the mating grounds and she followed still, not really being given any other choice.

Butterfree led the pink female into the thick forest at the edge of the plains and immediately started flying through the roughest patches he could find. Weaving and dodging in and around trees and other such foliage with no break in pace. She followed him as closely as she could and as they flew, like phantoms passing through the trees, several wild Pokémon like Pidgey, Rattata, Nidoran and even some Spearow watched the two Butterfree speed by them with slight interest. Stopping the routines of whatever they were doing to make sure they weren't just seeing things.

With no warning, the male launched himself upwards and busted through the treetops of the forest, finding open sky yet again. As usual, she followed him with no pause or hesitation. Even though her wings were starting to burn badly from fatigue and exhaustion.

He then flew them both directly towards the cliffs and, to her dismay, starting flying in the direction of the expansive sea that stretched out far out into the distance in front of them. Ash's Butterfree went down as close to the water as possible after making his descent from the height of the cliffs and stayed level with the water as waves rose and fell below him. The pink Butterfree trailed behind while nervously looking everywhere around her. Obviously not comfortable with flying so low to the water for fear of a predatory Water-Type reaching up and grabbing them.

She looked down and saw small schools of Magikarp, Tentacool and even Goldeen swim just below the surface of the waves. She then looked up just in time to see a large wave about to crash down on her and managed to pull up just before it could take her down into the salty sea water.

After escaping the near fatal upset, she continued following her target as he began pulling himself up into the air and started taking to the sky again. She went after him naturally but this time, the sun was right in her face and he seemed to be heading straight for it.

Eventually, they went so high up into the sky that the pink female had to squint her eyes against the sun's powerful rays. Barely able to make out Ash's Butterfree as he had now stopped and was silhouetted against the light of the sun.

The female took a quick moment to admire how regal he looked against the backdrop of the sun before he suddenly did a flipping turn in mid-air and started flying back towards the plains yet again where everyone else was gathered.

He took her to the very middle of the airspace, in-between the mass of Butterfree and the trainers in their balloons, and just stopped dead. Making an almost perfect center in the middle of everything in the spot that he paused at.

The female stopped as well, merely twenty or so yards away from him, and started hovering in place. Breathing very heavily from the extremely long session of intense flying she had just done while her wings felt about ready to fall off.

Ash's Butterfree looked at her with an unreadable expression and then took a battle position. Finally ready to face her.

She couldn't believe it was only now, after all of that, that he was finally ready to fight her but she took a shaky combat position anyway. Before she could even move, he was soaring towards her like a flash and was upon her in seconds. She jumped, startled at his speed, but hastily prepared herself for whatever he was about to do.

Butterfree just spread his wings out and hovered in front of her imposingly, still not making any move to strike her. He didn't even lift a wing.

This confused the female but she wasn't going to just stay there and do nothing, waiting for him to finally do whatever it was he was planning. Even though she was exhausted and felt like she could drop at any second, she raised her left wing anyway and made to hit him.

The male just stayed where he was and didn't make a move to stop her. Even as her wing made contact to the side of his face with surprising force and caused his head to whip to the right slightly... he still didn't move.

The pink female started smacking him over and over again on each side of his face with her wings and each time, he did nothing and merely turned his head back to face her again. This continued on and on with each of her strikes slowly losing more and more power.

Back in the balloon, Misty was gripping the side of the railing so hard that her knuckles had turned white. ''What's going on out there?! Why is Butterfree just hovering there and letting her attack him like that?! He could easily fight her off with how tired she is right now!"

Brock seemed contemplative. "I don't think that's what Butterfree is going for Misty. I don't know exactly what's going on right now but I believe he has something planned and that's why he's not moving," He trailed off then and continued to look thoughtful at the reasons for why Butterfree was doing what he was.

Giselle looked over at Ash, who seemed to be completely enthralled and focused on the action in front of them, before she too returned her attention back to the two Butterfree. Resolving to remain silent and see how things played out.

The pink Butterfree was breathing hard and sweating from her brow as she gave one final smack to Ash's Butterfree, who still remained motionless, and finally stopped. She glared at him and moved closer. "Free Free?! Butter Free Free Butterfree?!" She shouted at him angrily, obviously demanding to know why he wasn't fighting her.

Butterfree just stared at her with an unreadable expression and then finally spoke. "Free. Butterfree... Free Butterfree Free," He said with resolution in his voice.

She froze and just looked at him with wide eyes. Whatever he said seeming to have shaken her. He moved a little closer to her and spoke again, "Free Free... Butterfree Free. Free Butterfree."

The female continued to look at him shakily and then, to everyone's surprise, her eyes began to water. Her whole body started to shake as she looked at the male with her watery eyes and then raised her right wing. She shouted fiercely at him and then brought down her wing right at his head. "FREE!" The female yelled, loudly enough to be heard by the winds that carried and amplified her voice through the now dead silent airspace.

The male Butterfree finally moved and right before he could be hit with the female's wing, he brought his own up and blocked hers with no effort. She glared down at him with burning tear filled eyes and then, slowly... inch by inch... he pushed his wing against hers and started moving it backwards.

She struggled against him vainly as he continued to push back against her until eventually, he pushed through her defenses. The male quickly flew in until he was merely a breath away from the female and brought his face in closer to hers.

The pink Butterfree made a half-hearted attempt to back away but the male's strong gaze held her locked in place. He looked at her with several emotions now swirling within the depths of his eyes as he came a little closer and spoke in a voice that was only for her to hear him. "Free... Butterfree Free. Butter Butterfree Free... Butter," He gently brought his left wing up and wrapped it around her own left one, slowly pulling her in closer to him. "Free..." He finished in a breathy whisper as he gazed at her warmly.

The female didn't even try to resist as she seemed to be completely enraptured by the words the male had spoken to her. Any form of anger or irritation she had felt towards him earlier just completely vanished when he said those words that only she could hear.

"Free... Butterfree Free?" She asked him as she looked at Ash's Butterfree.

He merely smiled at her in the best way a Butterfree could and then pointed at his own body with one of his wings. Showing the bruises he still held from the fight with Team Rocket. He looked back at her and pointed from himself to her, making gesturing motions from the marks on his body to her. Like he was trying to get something across to her.

Whatever it was finally got through to her apparently because the next thing he knew, the pink female started getting even more teary eyed as she now indeed understood what he was trying to tell her. Before he could even hope to brace himself, she threw herself at him and hugged him tightly with her wings. Practically hanging from him while a few tears fell from her eyes.

Butterfree just hugged her close and gently caressed her back with one wing while he kept them aloft with the other one.

She eventually separated herself from him and when she did, Butterfree reached up with one wing and gently wiped the tears from her eyes while giving her a warm look and an eyesmile.

The two of them just looked at each other then for a time, neither one making any kind of move. Everyone... Ash and his friends, the rest of the trainers, the other Butterfree and even the police down below watched with wrapped attention for what would happen next.

To everyone's surprise, excitement and utter joy, the next action taken by the pink Butterfree was one of long awaited celebration.

She backed away from the male Butterfree a short distance and once she was far enough away, she began to slowly fly herself around in slow circles. The movement and speed of it was very precisely timed out and seemed to have been perfected and honed through many, many years of deeply ingrained instincts and natural behavior. Passed down from one generation to the next.

The female then started moving from just circular rotations to more complexly intricate and beautiful patterns. Such as front and back movements, elegant dips and graceful spins. Perfectly executed twirls and beautiful pirouettes, well honed flips and other movements that showcased her power but also her feminine grace and beauty as a female Butterfree.

She made her way towards Ash's Butterfree and started doing her elegant dance around him. Moving in closely and then moving back away quickly but gracefully. Obviously making it her sole priority to keep his eyes trained on her. Which she was doing a damn good job at too if the way his eyes were locked onto her unblinkingly was any indication.

Eventually she moved back and slowed down to doing just slow circles and slight movements while she looked at Ash's Butterfree expectantly. Rather it was that he understood what she wanted or he just felt compelled by his instincts, Butterfree started doing his own pattern of movements in the air.

His were both similar to hers and yet also different. Meant to showcase his own grace and elegance, yet also demonstrate the skill, power and strength that a well trained male of his species would be expected to possess. And he didn't disappoint. All of his movements showed his ability to be fast and elegant, but also display just how strong and powerful he could be.

He did his dance around the female, just like she did for him, and then once he was done, they both started dancing around each other, Staying in perfect tandem with one another as they synched their moves in the unique dance they were disputing with their eyes firmly locked onto the other.

Everyone else watched in awe as this went on, even the other Butterfree, while Giselle seemed as though she was watching a five-star performance. "Wow! Its sooo beautiful... what do you think they're doing?" She asked the others in the balloon.

Ash finally broke his silence. "I feel very confidant right now in stating that both of them have finally accepted each other as mates and are currently performing a very complex and intricate version of the Butterfree courtship dance." He looked over at Donny. "Am I right?"

The man nodded as his eyes stayed locked on both Butterfree. "You've got that right Ash, what we're seeing is most definitely the Butterfree courtship ritual but this one is much more complex, as you said, than what is normally performed. They must truly care for each other if they are so willing to put this much into the dance," He observed wisely and knowingly.

"That's for sure," Brock stated. "Even though I've never actually seen the Butterfree courtship before, this does seem like a very advanced form of what they normally do. At least from what I've heard that is."

Misty turned back to look at them. "But I'm confused... why did they fight first before doing the ritual when they obviously liked each other? Why didn't Butterfree fight back when the pink one was attacking him and most importantly, why was she so upset earlier?"

Ash stepped forward and placed one hand one the basket rail while putting the other one up on one of the beams. "Well... I'm not an expert Misty and I may be wrong about all of this but, taking everything Professor Oak taught me about Pokémon's emotions and characteristics, I might know why."

He looked at both Butterfree that were still dancing around each other then as he continued. "To answer your first question, I think the pink one wanted to prove that she was strong enough for not only my Butterfree, but to prove her strength to herself and everyone else as well. Undoubtedly, she probably felt bad when Team Rocket took them all and she was so helpless the whole time. She seems to be a proud and strong Pokémon that likes to stand up for herself. Being bailed out probably made her feel weak and fighting my Butterfree was the one way of making her feel better about herself. A way to self redemption if you will I guess."

He took a breath. "As for why my Butterfree didn't fight her? I think that was more because of the values he has and the values I try to instill into all of my Pokémon. Which is respect. Mom and Professor Oak taught me that respect is key in life in all that you do and mom also told me that when it came to women, you respected and valued them no matter what the cost or cause. I taught my Butterfree, just like all of my other Pokémon, to respect the opposite sex and treat them with tenderness and kindness at all times. Even though he understood why the pink Butterfree wanted to fight, mine didn't want to fight her or engage in physical combat because that's not what he wanted to show her. He knew that she saw he was strong and impressive in a fight. I think he wanted to show her now just how noble and respectable of a Pokémon he is instead of just a mindless brute.

Ash smiled proudly. "However, I also think that he didn't want to make her feel like he thought he was superior over her just because he was a male by not fighting her so he accepted the challenge. Fully aware of how tough she was and how much of a beating she could put on him. He decided that instead of just brawling with her and causing her physical pain, which she could most definitely take, Butterfree wanted to prove how gentle, soft and kind he could be- not to mention patient- by taking her on a grueling aerial chase where they could still test each other's skill and strength but in a different way. She also proved, unknowingly to her, that she was willing to follow him without question or hesitation as he took her on that crazy flight."

He shrugged. "So I guess basically, he wanted to show that he didn't need to fight her in order to make her see how strong she could be or to prove how worthy he was of being her mate by just fighting her. She was able to keep up with him the whole time, fight him very well the few times they did so and also showed just how good she was at making up battle strategies and tactics on the spot without fail. Which I believe all served to bolster her confidence."

Ash shifted his weight on the support beam he was leaning against then. "I think she was upset at him for a time because she thought he wasn't taking her seriously and was just running away so he didn't have to fight with her out of a fear of injuring her. This obviously hurt her pride and made her feel angry at the very thought. Which is why she was so aggressive whenever she was attacking him at the very end. Butterfree responded passively and that's when he explained to her the reasons, the ones I just explained, for why he did what he did. Why he didn't fight her. He wanted her to know just how much he respected her and get her to understand that he was indeed fighting her. Just not in the way she thought he would."

The boy ran his hand through his hair as he continued trying to piece the unusual puzzle of this particular Butterfree courtship together. "I believe that alone made the pink Butterfree become really emotional and is what brought her to tears. Then, whenever my Butterfree pointed to the bruises and marks he got from the battle against Team Rocket, he was showing her that he took those scars for not just himself and to rescue the other Butterfree, but also for her. He would do anything to protect her and that's what I think he was trying to get across to her when he was doing that.

Naturally, such an act of care and love is very deep and thus, brought her to tears when she realized the truth. Leading her to finally deciding that he was the one for her and starting off the courtship ritual between them. Since they are both very strong and respect each other so much, they played out their dances to portray those same feelings to one another in their own way. Hence, why their dance seems so much more... intricate, deep and involved than other Butterfree mating rituals. It's just a way to show a higher degree of respect really I guess," He finally finished.

Donny nodded and smiled. "Way to go Ash. That was very perceptive of you and I think you're exactly right in what you surmised. I've been watching the Butterfree mating rituals for years and I've never seen two Butterfree like yours and that pink one go to such far reaching lengths to make mates with one another. For a kid especially, that was a very good observation you made. I think Professor Oak has been teaching you well," He commended.

Brock chimed in, "I was thinking along the same lines as you were Ash and I'm impressed you put it together so quickly. I think you're exactly right."

Misty just looked at both Butterfree in awe. "That's just... amazing," She said breathlessly.

Giselle's eyes were almost shining as she looked at the Butterfree as well. Both of them being illuminated by the slowly setting sun that was falling over the sea and making their courtship dance seem that much more beautiful and spectacular. "Pokémon are just... I can't even put it into words," She started with a pause. "The different personalities character traits of all Pokémon and just how unique each one is from the last. You can't get this in a classroom," She finished with pure happiness and appreciation in her voice as she continued to admire the Butterfree.

Ash smiled at the way the setting sun also seemed to bring out the utter beauty in his girlfriend and walked up behind her, holding the brunette from behind closely as he kissed her cheek and shared the view of the two amazing Butterfree. "You're right Giselle and I'm glad you could be here with us to witness this," He said with a smile.

She returned the smile with a radiant one of her own and then leaned in to gently kiss him, which he happily returned, before returning her focus back to the two Butterfree as she leaned into her boyfriend's arms.

Brock and Misty walked up to stand on either side of them and then just watched the special and unique scene continue to unfold. Donny did the same from his position now controlling the balloon in Ash's place while Salia looked on from her own balloon as well.

Eventually, the dance between both Butterfree ended on a beautiful note with the both of them in a perfectly executed pose. The pink Butterfree was leaned back slightly while the male had her supported with one of his wings. His other wing was in contact with hers while she kept them both aloft with her other wing.

All of the other trainers, the police down below, the many other Butterfree and Ash's group all burst into cheers and applause upon seeing both Butterfree finally finish their courtship, officially taking themselves as each other's mate.

The newly mated pair returned to Ash's balloon after a few more moments and perched themselves on the edge, side by side. Pikachu was the first to talk to the two, congratulating them on their relationship and winking at his team member with a knowing look. Something that made Butterfree shoot the Electric-Type a harsh glare with a faint blush on his face.

However, Pikachu merely turned away and giggled perversely to himself with a paw over his mouth.

Ash was the next one to congratulate them. "Well you two, congratulations on your courtship. I'm very proud of both you for everything you did today and you showed just how amazing you are as Pokémon. I'm very happy for you and I'm sure you're going to be really happy together."

He looked at his Butterfree and stroked one of his wings affectionately. "You've made me really proud Butterfree," He said with a smile, to which his Pokémon puffed up with pride at. The pink one flew up to Ash quickly and nuzzled his face before returning to her mate's side, her way of showing appreciation for the trainer that she had come to respect and like quite a lot by the looks of it.

Misty, Brock, Giselle and Donny all congratulated them as well after that and then Salia flew her balloon in closer so she could do the same. Misty needing to, once again, hold Brock back from lunging at the poor woman.

"Butterfree..." She started softly to her former Pokémon. "I am so very proud of you. You've grown into a wonderful Butterfree that I truly can't take all the credit for how you are. Much of who you have become was just picked up naturally I believe and I couldn't be more proud of you." She then looked at Ash's Butterfree who was standing beside of the pink one. "And you've chosen a very fine mate that I don't think any other Butterfree here could ever hope to match. I just know you are going to be very happy together and give birth to beautiful babies!" She gushed.

Both Butterfree just bushed at hearing that and then looked down in embarrassment while fidgeting slightly.

Ash smiled at the sight and then captured the attention of everyone. "Hey everybody, now that mine and Salia's Butterfree are mated together and good to go, why don't we just stay up here, relax and watch the rest of the courtship between the other Butterfree? Just enjoy the rest of the mating season until it ends. The sun is starting to set and right now, the view is just beautiful..." He observed as he looked out across the lush, expansive plains.

Everyone else did the same and indeed it was a sight to behold.

The way the sun had started to set was bathing the entirety of the mating grounds and the cliffside in a beautiful spectrum of colors as the light bounced off of the sea- which was as calm right now as the gentle breeze that blew through the area- and caused a beautiful sparkling of the waves to shimmer in the distance.

The sky had collected a few fluffy clouds together and was now displaying colors of a reddish/orange which stretched across the vast great beyond as though Arceus herself had painted it. The forests behind them danced along to the mild breeze of the wind's gentle song as the leaves on the trees swayed to and fro in a beautiful harmony and the grass far below shared in a similar dance of nature's own orchestrating. The grass that covered the plains of the mating grounds was still surprisingly green even, only showing a few signs of wilt despite the fact that it was fall and in late October.

All in all, it was a truly beautiful time and the perfect occasion to just sit back with precious ones and watch the natural splendor of the fading day. Such as the ceremony of the Butterfree mating ritual still taking place before their very eyes within the gentle cradle of the sky's tender embrace.

Apparently, everyone else agreed with Ash's statement after taking in the natural beauty before them.

"Yeah Ash I'm game!" Misty said enthusiastically.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed happily.

"I would love to!" Giselle joined in as she hugged Ash's arm.

"Me too," Brock nodded with a smile.

"Sounds good to me," Salia agreed readily.

Both of the newly mated Butterfree nodded as well, showing they were in agreement with the suggestion:

Donny smiled and clapped his hands together. "Well then if we're gonna do this, I think its time we bring out the luxury treatment!" He announced jovially.

The others looked confused. "What do you mean Donny?" Ash asked curiously.

The man just laughed and looked over at Salia as he reached down into their basket and pulled up a role of rope. "Bring that balloon in closer miss and I'll use this rope to tie our balloons together!" He instructed.

She obliged and brought her balloon in closer until it was flush with the Pikachu balloon. Donny expertly tied both balloons together by tying an intricate knot around both front beams on each balloon. Once he tied the knots on the beams of their balloon and brought the two completely together, he hopped over into Salia's balloon. Ash and Brock held the tension on the rope to keep the two balloons together while Donny tied the same knot off on the other balloon.

Once he finished tying the first knot on the support beam of Salia's balloon, effectively linking together two ends of the balloons by the first rope, he called over to Ash. "Hey there Ash! Wanna come over here and help me tie this fourth and final knot? I'll teach you how!"

The boy smiled and nodded eagerly. "Sounds good Donny, thanks!"

Donny smiled and waved Ash over. He carefully climbed into the other balloon, which was now connected to their own by the first rope link between the opposing support beams, and joined the older man.

Donny then went on to explain to Ash exactly how to go about tying the knot that would connect the support beams of both balloons together so they could connect and become safe for travel between them. Ash was able to pick up the rather complex knot after a few tries and some trial and error.

After he was done and tied off the knot, Donny inspected his work to make sure that the knot Ash made would hold up well with the one he himself made on the other balloon and after he was assured it was secure, he clapped Ash on the back and praised him for his work.

"Great job Ash! Now that that's done, we can move onto stage two!" He said enthusiastically.

Ash smiled as well at the almost fatherly praise from the man and then watched as Donny hopped back over into their own balloon.

Now that the knots were finished and tied off, there were two on each front side of both balloons. The right and left front support beams were tied off strongly to their twins on either balloon and this allowed the two of them to press flush together.

Though, travel between the two could only be done whenever at least two people pulled hard on both ropes on either balloon to draw the baskets together completely. Otherwise, there would still remain a gap between them that was very dangerous to try and jump across.

Ash and the others wondered what Donny was doing but were quickly saved from their curiosity when he walked over to where Brock was standing. "Excuse me Brock!" He said boisterously as the older boy moved out of the way and gave the man access to whatever he was looking for.

Donny looked to a portion of the green basket, just below the railing, that was somewhat more extended out than the rest of the smooth sides and then looked over at Ash who was in Salia's balloon. "Okay Ash, I want you to locate the bulge-like protrusion over in that balloon. Should be on the left side!" He instructed.

Ash looked around and found what he was looking for right where Donny said it would be. "Alright, I found it!" He called back.

The man grinned and then addressed them all. "Any of you wonder yet why the baskets in these balloons seem bigger and thicker than normal?" He asked with a tinge of something odd in his voice.

Everyone looked around and noticed for the first time that the baskets of both balloons were actually bigger and yes, much thicker than what normal hot air balloons usually were made to be. Even though this was their first time in a balloon, the baskets still did seem different from what they had seen in shows, movies and magazines respectively.

"Now that you mention it..." Brock began. "They do seem a little unusual..."

Donny grinned wider. "And do you know why that is?"

Upon not receiving an answer from anyone, he laughed and then started to explain. "You see everyone, my balloons are different from most others. Mine have quite a few... luxuries that other balloons don't have!" He boasted with a smile.

Misty raised an eyebrow. "Like?"

Donny patted the railing of the balloon. "The floor and walls of the baskets in these balloons have another set of movable walls and floors hidden within them. Thus, the increased size in baskets. Let me show you..."

He motioned for Brock, Misty and Giselle to stand behind him on the far side of the basket and then put his finger under a crease in the twine of the side of the basket he was standing in front of. More specifically, the slightly bulging lump that blended into the rest of the basket.

He flipped up the bulge then and revealed a small control panel hidden underneath that had two buttons on it. A red and green one. He looked over at Ash and instructed him to lift up the flap covering the control panel on the other balloon.

Ash did and then once the two buttons were revealed on his end, Donny called over again. "Now Ash, I want you and Salia to stay as far back on the furthest end of the balloon as you can after you press that green button okay? I'll tell you when to do it and once I do, we'll both press our respective green buttons together."

The boy nodded. "Got it!" He replied.

Donny smiled and then put his thumb over the button. "Ready?" He called over.

Ash got into position. "Ready!"

Donny counted down. "Three...two... now Ash!"

Both of them pressed down on the green buttons at the exact same time and then stepped back as both baskets literally started to move and shift internally. They could feel something happening around them and then the next thing they knew, both front sides of each balloon began to actually retract down into the basket floors. Once the front ends of both baskets were open, exposing the open sky down below, the bottom edges of both balloons started to open up.

Out of the ends came two planks that were medium sized in width and slid out until they met each other and then locked into place with a resounding 'click'. Then, the size of the baskets started to expand themselves as the now connected walking plank grew wider along with the baskets.

After the baskets had extended enough that the walking plank between both balloons now resembled a large square floor that was stretched out and connected to every end of both baskets- being firmly suspended above the open sky and no longer leaving any room to fall out through a gap in-between the balloons- the next change took place.

The outside walls of the baskets slid open and allowed a wall on each basket to open on both ends. The walls that were coming out of all four corners of the front most side of both balloons slid out until they met together and then latched onto each other like a vine to a tree.

The finished product, once all of the shifting and moving around was done, revealed a large square area now open in-between both balloons. The two walls that came out of the very ends of the baskets and connected with each other now formed a perfect four sided square on each end of the newly open space that would keep them all safely inside.

The walls and floor of the 'suspended patio' were very strong and well supported. There were even four small but strong boards that ran long ways under the makeshift floor that connected to both ends of the baskets and offered extra support so people could walk and stand around on it without falling through.

The two ropes that connected the front support beams on each balloon added extra connection support but the new 'patio' did just fine at that particular job all by itself. The extendable walls which completed the four corner structure were just as high as the walls in the basket themselves and assured even more so that no one would fall out.

Once it was all done, Donny took a minute to take in the shell-shocked expressions of his clients before laughing out loud and then turning around behind him to where Giselle, Misty and Brock were still standing in front of the back most wall of the basket. "Excuse me kids," He said politely as he moved in and bent down to the floor.

He reached underneath to the seam of the basket wall and lifted up on it, revealing a square compartment where three thin, foldable chairs were being kept. He reached in and grabbed them before walking out into the large area now created in-between both balloons and set up the three loung chairs at respectable spaces apart from one another.

Once he was done, he looked at Ash again. "Can you do the same thing on your end Ash?" He asked.

Ash just nodded dumbly and then walked over to the back wall of the basket behind Salia. After she had moved away, Ash repeated what Donny did and reached down to the floor, lifting up on the wall to reveal another square storage space where three more chairs were being held.

He took them out and then walked over into the enclosed area between the balloons, stepping carefully out onto it at first to assure it didn't break open but then became more comfortable once he was assured of it's strength and sturdiness. He placed the chairs out in an evenly spaced line with the ones Donny set up and then moved back a little.

Satisfied, Donny looked at everyone. "Well? What are you all waiting for?!" He asked in his usual excitable attitude while grinning again.

Slowly and carefully, Ash's friends and Salia stepped out into the open, walled in space and after seeing that the floor really wasn't going to give in, they started to relax. "Wow Donny!" Brock spoke as he started moving around in the new area. "This is incredible!"

"How is this possible?" Giselle asked as she also wandered around and admired the patio-like sitting area suspended between both balloons.

Donny laughed again and then answered. "I helped design these balloons some time back. Being that I've always been a bit of an inventor I guess you could say, at least when it comes to things that fly like these hot air balloons here. They've been a passion of mine ever since I was little and started coming up here during the Butterfree mating seasons with my father, like his father before him.

You see, my family has been involved with renting out hot air balloons to trainers and observers for the mating season here for as many as years as I can count. Dating back to when people first learned that this was where Butterfree met to find mates before traveling across the sea to their mating grounds somewhere in the Orange Islands. Coincidentally, this was also right around the time that hot air balloons were first invented. So I suppose you could say that these balloons here are in my blood!" He leaned back against the railing of the suspended patio and chuckled to himself after saying that.

"Each of my family all came up with something new on how to improve these balloons in order to make the experience more enjoyable for visitors when they came here for the big event every year. I got the idea for this little lounging area connected in-between the balloons when I first started bringing my wife and two sons up with me in the balloons during the off-season and we were crowded for space.

I wanted to have some way for large groups of people in balloons to be able to meet and congregate up in the air but also be able to do it safely. That's when this idea popped into my mind. In theory, multiple balloons could probably link up together like this, sort of like a puzzle or a chain link, but only two has ever been done before and this is only the second time I've tried it," He explained. "My kids love it!"

"Wow Mr. Donny thank you so much for sharing this with us," Salia said with a bow.

"Yes thank you so much Donny, this is great!" Misty thanked him sincerely.

Donny just waved them off. "Think nothing of it! After what you kids did today to save the Butterfree, which allowed all of this to still happen so a years long tradition wasn't broken by some low down criminals, this was the least I could do."

Ash smiled and nodded his head respectfully. "Still Donny, thanks a lot. For everything. And not just this either but for being so kind with us today, teaching me how to fly these balloons and understanding whenever I went after Team Rocket... we can't thank you enough. I'm truly sorry that I snapped at you earlier on when you were at first reluctant to let me leave."

Donny patted Ash on the shoulder. "You're welcome for it all young man and I was happy to do it. You learn quick so I was happy to teach you and as for the Team Rocket thing? You're a trainer that obviously cares deeply for his Pokémon and were willing to do whatever was needed to save them and I respect that. You beat Team Rocket and made it back safe and you rescued all of the Butterfree. You did us all a great service and I should be thanking you Ash."

The man smiled genuinely at him. "You saved a tradition today. You, your friends and your Pokémon and I'm glad to have met you all. I've also got some good stories now to tell my kids before bed and I'm sure the tales of the brave young Pokémon Trainer with a Pikachu who defeated a bunch of criminals with his friends and saved the Butterfree mating season will go down in my family's heritage for many years to come."

Ash bowed his head to Donny. "Thank you Donny. That's all I can say," He said humbly.

"Pi Pikachu!" Pikachu added in as well.

Brock suddenly intervened. "I am curious about one thing though Donny... who helped you design these balloons and then get them made anyway? Does your family own a company or something?"

The older man shook his head. "Nah, my family's business is way too small for such a thing. Being that we make the most of the money for our small business during this particular event only and then just give out regular balloon rides around the area to random people for the rest of the year, we could never make enough income to finance such expensive advances in hot air travel. This is all I do too so I couldn't afford to make all of these balloons by myself."

He smiled fondly then. "Ya see, my great-grandfather made close friends with an airman of great skill several years ago. The man's family was steeped in aviator history far exceeding my own and several of them were actually key figures in some of the biggest achievements in avionic history, even himself being counted among them. Such achievements including flying some of the first ever airplanes!" He revealed with a wink.

"Wow..." The others said collectively.

Donny nodded and continued on. "My great-grandad met his friend while vacationing way out in the Unova region on a search for a way to improve the design of our balloons for that following year's Butterfree mating season. The two met at a place called Mistralton City when my grandad passed through there for an expo on avionics and they became fast friends afterwards. My grandaddy's friend helped him design the balloons for the following year and ever since, our families have remained close. Only..."

Donny laughed. "While my family has remained pretty small time with what we do, my grandad's friend went on to found a big aviation company out in Unova that handles most of that region's flight business, air-trade and other aviary means of business. They became pretty darn wealthy and are always willing to help my family out both creatively and financially whenever it comes to our small time balloon business here. I'm real good friends with the current head of their family business. Met him during me and my family's own vacation out to Unova one year and he helped me design and make the balloons we're in right now. Specifically the little extension we're all standing on."

Ash nodded. "They sound like a really cool family."

Donny just smiled again and replied back, "Sure are Ash, sure are. Some of the best people you'll ever meet and a big part of the city they live in and hail from. Mistralton just wouldn't be the same without them. Actually, their family even runs the Pokémon Gym of Mistralton and has for years. My friend's father passed the business down to him years ago so he could focus on his passions, which were flying and running the gym, and from what I heard he's pretty good."

Ash smiled at the thought of a gym in another region. "Strong is he?" He inquired curiously.

"Hmmm," Donny responded. "In fact, he's got a granddaughter, my friend's little girl, who's just like her grandaddy from what I'm told. Headstrong and confident like him, loves to fly and loves Pokémon. Especially Flying-Types if memory serves. No real surprise there since I think that's what their gym specializes in, but I wouldn't really know since I don't keep up with Pokémoj League stuff that's not right here in good ol' Kanto!"

He grinned somewhat goofily. "My friend tells me that his little girl wants to fly planes for the family business and even take over as gym leader for her grandad when she's old enough. And from what I hear, she's got the spunk for it. I think her name was... Skyla maybe? Yeah I think that's right. A little older than you maybe Ash. I know she's not had her Pokémon too awful long yet at least," He rambled on.

Ash smiled to himself and made a mental note right then and there for some reason to file what Donny just said away for later. 'Skyla huh? She sounds pretty interesting. Wouldn't mind meeting her someday...'

He was interrupted from his thoughts by Giselle calling out suddenly, "Hey guys look!" She pointed out of the balloon. "All of the Butterfree are starting to go back to their courting rituals again!"

The others ran over and looked out of the balloon as well, seeing that all of the other Butterfree indeed were getting ready to finish up their mating rituals. Donny looked at the kids then. "Why don't we take a seat and watch while we relax a little?" He suggested.

The small group sat back in the chairs that had been set up in the gathering space between both balloons and got themselves comfortable to watch the last bit of the Butterfree mating season. Donny sat in the farthest chair to the right while Brock sat beside him and Misty took the place next to Brock. Ash sat in the second chair to the left of Misty, while Giselle sat on the chair right beside of him and Salia took the one on his other side.

Giselle pulled her chair closer to Ash so their chairs could touch and then layed her chairs back like Ash did his, resting her head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around her and held her to him as he gently kissed the top of her head.

Pikachu took a position curled up in Ash's lap while he watched the Butterfree and the young Ketchum just sighed in comfort as he held his girlfriend and rested back for the first real time all day. His body was still tired from the events that occured earlier in the day and getting to rest like he was felt heavenly to him.

Salia's chair was a little closer to Ash's as well than the other's chairs were and he noticed this, though he chose not to say anything and instead just smiled to himself. Both Butterfree were perched on top of the railing in-front of them, their bodies touching as they too gazed out across the sky at their kin.

Ash and the others watched in peace as the many Butterfree some distance away flew through the air with their chosen mates, performing their courtship dances in perfect tandem together. Each one was a little different than the other but none of them were done to the same level as Ash's Butterfree and the pink female's was. Still, they were all well done and definitely had heart in them. Showing the deep feelings they held for their new mates.

Some of the Butterfree even used different spore based attacks for their dances and this caused the sky to shimmer with the shining particles of the attacks. Making the scene even more beautiful and breathtaking than usual. Ash silently thanked Arceus for the marvel of nature being shown to them all and then reached down into his pack, right next to his chair with the hand not holding Giselle. He fished around in the main pocket until he found what he was looking for and pulled it out.

He opened his Pokémon Researcher In-Training journal and flipped it to the blank page. He then produced a pen from the pack and started writing down all of his thoughts on the Butterfree ritual he had been blessed enough to witness.

Once he was done he put the journal away, along with the pen, and then turned his attention back to the Butterfree just as their rituals were coming to a close. They all started descending to the ground then with their new mates, followed by the many trainers also lowering their balloons to the ground.

Donny stood up from his chair and stretched out before looking at the others. "Well everyone, its about time to time to head on down now," He announced while cracking his back.

Ash and the others stood from their chairs and helped Donny put the chairs back away in their storage compartments before Ash then started helping Donny return the balloons to normal. Which turned out to be as easy as it was to set it all up. All that was needed was for Ash and Donny to both press the red button on the control panels located in the baskets of each balloon at the same time.

Once this happened, the floor and walls of the open gathering space started to disengage from their attachment points and then retracted back into their original positions. Which were safely stored inside of the large baskets of the balloons.

After this was done, Ash and Donny untied both balloons from each other and prepared to descend. Ash, on careful observation and instruction from Donny, started lowering their balloon to the ground. Followed closely behind by Salia in her balloon.

Sometime later, they were all back on the ground safely again. Having landed the balloons behind Donny's shack where all of the other balloons would also go at the end of the day. Which was drawing to a close very fast.

After exiting the balloons, Ash and the others went through the back door of the small building and then out to the front of the shop outside to meet up with the other trainers and Butterfree for the closing of the mating season.

They walked out into the open fields which were being bathed in the light of dusk and met up with Officer Jenny and her men. Ash greeted her with a smile and then faulted a little when he felt a weight land on his head and other shoulder not occupied by Pikachu.

He looked up and saw the pink Butterfree resting on his head while his own Butterfree had taken perch on his other shoulder. Making Ash resemble some time of Pokémon coat rack.

He just sighed and shook his head good naturally while his friends and Jenny laughed. He then looked at the female officer after she had finished laughing and addressed her, "How did everything go down here officer?" The boy asked in good humor.

Jenny shared his grin with her own as she answered him, "Everything went just fine Ash. No more criminals showed up and from the looks of things, the courting rituals went off without a hitch." She made a gesturing motion to the many Butterfree who were now on the ground with their former trainers gathered around them. All of said trainers were displaying looks of happiness for their Butterfree but also ones of sadness. "I don't think the trainers here are looking forward to what's about to happen next though..." She observed sadly.

Ash knew why this was and nodded. Brock as well and he spoke on it, "Now comes the part of the Butterfree mating ritual where the Butterfree and their mates take to the sky and start their journey across the sea. Making their way towards the mating grounds somewhere in the Orange Islands so they can have their babies. No trainer looks forward to this," He stated with sympathy towards the many trainers and Butterfree who were being forced to part for the sake of nature's cycle to continue on.

Salia seemed to appear saddened for a moment but then replaced her morose look with one of acceptance and understanding a second later. She had obviously been preparing for this moment for a long time now and knew what was supposed to happen. She didn't like it naturally but she understood why it had to be done.

Ash on the other hand seemed totally neutral towards the upcoming situation- though also very sympathetic for the other Butterfree trainers- which confused Jenny and Salia but made perfect sense to Ash's friends. They knew all about the ingenious plan he had come up with to avoid the very situation about to take place and he had even talked to Professor Oak earlier in the week to make sure his plan was okay with the famous Pokémon Researcher.

Quite unsurprisingly, Professor Oak was more than fine with Ash's idea and even commended him on it for thinking of such a well planned out idea. Stating himself that few things were worse than separating a good trainer from their Pokemon if they truly cared for one another. No matter what the circumstance happened to be.

He had even told his young pupil during their long distance conversation that if he wouldn't have thought up the idea of sending his Butterfree and it's mate to the lab when they were ready to have babies, he would made that very same offer to Ash himself just so he wouldn't have to part from his Pokémon.

Even though the Professor obviously understood why parting of ways had to happen sometimes, just like with the Butterfree mating season, he still didn't like it and knew how potentially unhealthy it was for a trainer and Pokémon.

Some would argue and say that it did a trainer and their Pokémon good to know what the pain of separation and going their opposite ways felt like, stating that it helped both of them grow, but Oak disagreed and passed down this belief to Ash.

No form of growth or strength was ever worth breaking the bond between trainer and Pokémon. Regardless of whatever lesson some of the more 'hard ass individuals' thought it taught. The love and bond between human and Pokémon was something that transcended any level of power, strength or 'maturity lesson' that could be gained from a trainer releasing their Pokémon. Even if it was something such as training reasons, like letting someone else train your Pokémon for you. Which Ash and Oak both thought were completely idiotic to do.

Why let someone else train your Pokémon? It is your duty as a trainer to teach your Pokémj all they can possibly know to grow and if you don't know something then you learn it. Simple as that. It doesn't matter how long it takes or how much of an 'annoyance' it is. You made the decision to capture that Pokémon and you are responsible for their growth. All of them. Not just some.

There was also letting Pokémon go for the reason that angered Ash and the Professor the most... which was just being unable to 'deal' with them. A Pokémon learns to depend on their trainer and becomes attached to them. Letting one go just because you don't know how to take care of them properly was a disgrace in the eyes of good trainers everywhere. Professor Oak was of the firm belief that it would be best if those same trainers had their Pokémon Training license revoked for such actions and Ash totally agreed.

So needless to say, the Professor was very proud of his for pupil thinking of such an idea for his Butterfree because, as he told Ash, if he wouldn't have thought of it then Oak himself was going to tell Ash about it. He knew how close Ash was to his Pokémon and separating him from any of them would be more of a hindering blow than a helping hand in his growth as a Pokémon Trainer.

With his thoughts being pushed to the back of his mind for the moment, Ash, his friends, Donny and Salia started making their way towards the cliffside where all of the Butterfree would take off from. Jenny and the other officers followed after them. Wanting to stay until the very end just in case anything were to happen last minute.

They reached the cliffs after a few minutes of walking and then stopped, now standing at a safe distance away from the edge so no one would fall off. The male and pink Butterfree stood in-front of Ash, looking out over the cliffs side by side with their wings touching.

The raven haired trainer looked out over the sea into the horizon far beyond which was being set ablaze by the setting sun, the likes of which seemed to be hanging just above the water. It truly was a beautiful and tranquil sight that he had a hard time believing was also signalling a time of heartbreak for so many trainers and their Butterfree.

He felt a hand on his chest and looked at his side to see Giselle smiling at him. She pulled at his tracksuit and laughed a little. "You might have to put some of those sowing skills you said your mom taught you to good use. You're looking a little ragged sweetie," She told him with a playful wink.

Ash just laughed and gave her a mock glare. "Yeah? Well lets see you survive an exploding building and then see if your clothes don't get a little torn up huh?" He said with a smile.

She laughed as well and held her hands up. "Okay okay! I surrender, you've made your point. Still..." She examined his clothes. "I could help you stitch these up you know."

Ash looked down at the top and bottom portion of his tracksuit and then nodded after seeing how torn up they were. "Yeah I would appreciate that," He conceded while rubbing the back of his head. "You want the pants or top?"

Giselle giggled. "I'll take the top please," She requested politely.

He laughed again and pulled her close before looking behind them. The boy could see that the other trainers and Butterfree had finally caught up to them and were now saying their last goodbyes. There were many tearful farewells from both trainer and Butterfree as they all gave their parting words and embraces to their Pokémon.

Giselle, Officer Jenny, Misty, Salia and even Ash felt their eyes grow slightly wet at the sight of such bittersweet sorrow. Brock and Donny had solemn looks on their faces while Pikachu and the two Butterfree also had wet eyes. Well actually, Pikachu's eyes were only wet, he had yet to allow any tears to fall.

However, both Butterfree were starting to outright cry because they knew they would be leaving their trainers soon as well. Ash hadn't told Butterfree about his plan since he wanted it to be a surprise and because of that, Butterfree was looking up at his trainer with tears flowing freely down his face as his body rocked with the occasional sob.

The pink Butterfree also seemed very sad and not just for her own trainer but Ash as well. She had grown quit attached to him due to everything that had happened and after being around such a caring, kind and good hearted person that loved his Pokémon so much, she hated the fact that they had to leave him now.

Even though she was very sad, it was still nothing compared to her mate. Who seemed like he was about to break from the thought alone of leaving Ash. She fully started to believe that she would actually have to drag him away from Ash forcefully so they could leave with the others and not get left behind.

Pikachu looked down at his devastated teammate, who's eyes were now blurry and even puffier than usual with tears, and desperately wanted to comfort him by saying that this wasn't the end and that they were going to remain being a team and family, but it wasn't his place. Ash knew what he was doing and he would trust his trainer.

Eventually, all the goodbyes had been said and at that point, everyone was just lingering. The Butterfree finally started taking to the air with their mates and commenced to flying out over the ocean. Some looked back with tears still in their eyes while others just faced forward. Not having the courage to look back without losing their resolve to leave.

The trainers were all in various states. Some were waving their Butterfree off, bravely holding back tears, while others just dropped to their knees and released their sorrow in cascades of tears which fell to the ground and dampened the rocks of the cliffside in their salty essence. Others... others simply walked away. Too depressed and upset to linger in such a place of sadness and heartache anymore. Vowing silently to themselves that they would never return to the place that separated them from their beloved Butterfree.

Salia took a deep breath as the Butterfree finally started to fly away and made to say her own goodbyes to her former Butterfree. However, just before she knelt down, she felt a hand on her shoulder and looked up. She noticed Ash looking down at her with something in his eyes that she couldn't place. The brunette then stood up and looked at him questioningly. "What's wrong Ash?"

He simply smiled at her and then looked at his friends, who gave him a nod to continue, which he did. He looked back at her afterwards and spoke, "Salia... I have a plan in the works that will allow me to avoid releasing my Butterfree and letting him go," He said with complete and utter seriousness. His Butterfree's shot his head up immediately upon hearing those words.

Salia seemed confused. "I'm sorry Ash but I... I don't understand..." She responded cluelessly.

Ash placed his hands on hips and looked out at the many Butterfree who were starting to make their way across the ocean before continuing. "I believe in responsibility when you become a Pokémon Trainer Salia," He began. She looked at him with interest, obviously curious as to what he was getting at. The two two Butterfree, Donny and even Officer Jenny seemed curious as well.

He stared at the horizon with a focused expression as he went on. "I believe that when you become a trainer it is your sole duty to ensure not just your Pokémon's growth, health and well-being, but also their happiness and what is the best for them. I learned under Professor Oak for many years and he taught me in that time many important lessons. One such lesson being that even when something comes along that can make your Pokémon happy but cause them heartache in the process, it is your job as a trainer to find some way to take the heartache out of the happy situation. No matter how much stress it causes you."

He looked down at his Butterfree, who was looking up at him with tears still in his eyes. "I thought about this very situation for a long time and even though I knew Butterfree finding a mate would bring him much happiness, I realized that him leaving me and all of my other Pokémon who are also his teammates and family, would cause him sadness that I couldn't bear. Also, the thought of releasing any of my Pokémon makes me feel sick but Butterfree's happiness came first and that's why I came up with this idea."

He looked back at Salia, who was now enraptured with what he was saying, as was everyone else. "Why do trainers release their Butterfree at the end of the mating season Salia? And not just because its natural and so the Butterfree can go to their mating grounds. What is the REAL reason that would make it impossible for a trainer to allow their Butterfree and it's mate to remain with them?" He asked.

Salia was obviously very smart and well versed in the ways of Butterfree because she didn't have to even think about it before replying, "Because Butterfree have many, many babies and it would be impossible for a trainer to take care of so many while on the road. Even if they weren't under the Pokémon League sanctioned rule of only six Pokémon being allowed on a trainer's team at any given time. A rule which can only be temporarily lifted by that region's official Professor and head of Pokémon Research."

Ash smiled at her answer and nodded. "Correct. Now, here's where I am fortunately an exception to the rule of owning a breeding pair of Butterfree. While I can't take care of a bunch of baby Butterfree and have them with me on the road, I come from a place that can. You see, I'm from Pallet Town. Home of the world famous Pokémon Researcher, Professor Oak. He has a massive Pokémon reserve people call the Oak Ranch, which can house thousands of Pokémon at one time.

Its a totally safe, protected and peaceful place where Pokémon belonging to trainers that Professor Oak sponsors can live and, in my Pokémon's case, train with no fear of anything like they would in the wild. Professor Oak takes care of them all like they were his own while they wait to be swapped out by their traveling trainers and as of right now, his ranch is not even close to reaching it's limit on Pokémon."

He gestured to both Butterfree down on the ground who were looking up at him with wrapped attention. "There's more than enough food at the ranch, tons of shelter, really expansive and is even way safer than the Butterfree mating grounds would be since its still located out in the wild. Professor Oak's lab would be an amazing place, better than any I can think of, for these two Butterfree to go and have their babies.

They could live around the same area my other Pokémon do since they all stick really close together and I'm sure they'll even help watch over the babies when they're not training. Besides, Butterfree at the mating grounds only stay with their offspring for a short time before leaving once they grow up. At the lab, these two can see their babies all the time unless they decide to leave the ranch once they've grown up."

He looked back at Salia, who seemed dumbfounded, and smiled. "Professor Oak is in total agreement with my plan and this way, I can keep my dear friend Butterfree as my Pokémon and he and his mate can have babies in an environment safer than any other. Also, any time I need him for a battle or something, I can still just call Professor Oak up to get him sent over to me, have the battle and then send him right back. He'll be able to be with his mate, babies and teammates all at the same time and everyone is happy. There's just one thing to this..." He looked at Salia seriously.

"If she would be okay with it then I'll have to capture your former Butterfree Salia. Would you be alright with that? Would you trust me with your old Pokémon? If not... I won't do this and I'll let them go to the mating grounds with the rest of the Butterfree. If you are okay with it though then I can promise you on my life that she'll be safe, strong and happy as she can possibly be," He vowed.

Everyone was totally silent as Ash said this, no one breathing a word as they watched Salia intently for her reaction. The young woman seemed to be surprised for a few moments and then looked down at her former Pokémon, who looked equally as stunned by what Ash had just offered. She walked over to her Butterfree and knelt down, looking at her Pokémon intently.

Finally, she spoke. "Well Butterfree... what do you think? This is your decision, not mine. I've already released you. Ash just asked me out of respect of being your former trainer, which I really appreciate, but this is your choice," She said with a kind smile. Butterfree looked at her in surprise and Salia continued to smile. "I can tell you, personally in my opinion, what I think about it and what I believe you'll get as Ash's Pokémon."

She looked up at Ash from where she was kneeling then. "Ash... even though we only just met, you've proven to me through your actions today just how much you truly love Pokémon. And not just your own either." She pointed to her Butterfree and then glided that same hand through the air as she motioned to the many other Butterfree that were flying away. "You didn't know or owe anything to any of the other Pokémon here today and when you faced Team Rocket, you could have just rescued your Butterfree and left ours to their own fate. You didn't and instead, you risked your life for them all."

She looked back at him again. "From what I've seen from you I know that you are a great trainer who takes wonderful care of his Pokémon. If I were to put the fate and well being of my darling Butterfree here in the hands of anyone else, it would without a doubt... be you." She smiled warmly at him. "I am totally okay you capturing and training my Butterfree Ash."

Salia looked down at her former Pokémon again. "As Ash's Pokémon I think you will know a life of not just love, safety and happiness with your mate and babies but also, a real chance to grow strong. Stronger than you can imagine," She stated honestly.

The pink Butterfree looked up at her former trainer and then at Ash. She was still feeling complete and utter shock if she were to be totally honest. Not at the thought of becoming Ash's Pokémon because it seemed terrible, no that wasn't it at all. Far from it in fact. What she couldn't believe was how he so freely offered something like that up. To just welcome her into his team of Pokémon, whom he saw as family, with no thought or care? As though he was just willing to accept her with open arms. She also looked at his Pikachu and saw the same inviting expression on his face as well.

When Ash had mentioned how she and her new mate could go live where all of his other Pokémon did when they weren't with him, a safe place to have their babies and live in peace... it sounded wonderful to her and she just couldn't believe that he was offering such a thing. After everything he already did for her that day, coming to save her and the other Butterfree from Team Rocket and then going back inside of the burning warehouse to save her... she couldn't believe it. And now, her former trainer was even telling her how great of life she could have being Ash's Pokémon and plus, that ranch place did sound very nice indeed.

On top of it all, she respected Ash greatly. After all, he managed to raise up and train her handsome mate to be how he was today and that definitely said a lot for him. Becoming stronger also sounded very appealing to her.

Ash walked over and knelt down in front of her. Smiling, he asked. "Well Butterfree... what do you say? Wanna join the family?"

She looked at her former trainer, back at Ash, up to Pikachu and then at her other side to her mate, who was smiling in a very encouraging manner at her, and then decided. She first flew up and hugged her former trainer tightly, who seemed to understand the meaning behind it and hugged her former Pokémon to her tightly as well. A few tears escaping her eyes she did so. "You're going to be so happy..." She whispered to the pink Butterfree.

The Pokémon disengaged herself from Salia and nodded at her with happy tears in her eyes before she then lunged at Ash and hugged him. Surprising the boy but making him smile all the same.

After she had finished hugging him, Ash set her down and then asked kindly, "So Butterfree? Is that a yes? Do you want to become my Pokémon?"

She nodded eagerly at his question and called out a few times in confirmation, "Free Free! Free!"

Ash smiled broadly and nodded. "Alright then..." He reached back into a side pocket on his pack where he kept his empty Pokéballs now and pulled one out. "Welcome to the family Butterfree!" He then gently tapped her head with the ball and it opened instantly, sucking the pink Butterfree inside of it's confines and shutting with a resounding 'click'.

Since she was already used to Pokéballs and knew what to expect, there was no struggle whatsoever as the ball 'dinged' and stars of light burst from it, confirming a successful capture. He took out his Pokédex quickly since he knew what was about to happen and prepared the switch. Being that he already had six Pokémon on him, if he didn't send one away then Butterfree would be sent to Professor Oak's. He definitely didn't want that right now and quickly sent back Pidgeot's Pokéball so he could retain his newest Pokémon.

Ash smiled at the Pokéball in his hand after the transfer was finished, put the Pokédex away and then called his newest Pokémon back out from the ball. Once she had appeared, her mate jumped at her and hugged her tightly as he officially welcomed her to the family.

Ash looked down at his first Butterfree and grinned. "Well Butterfree, it seems like you're stuck with me and the rest of the crew. For life. You and your mate could have escaped with the rest of the Butterfree and that would have been it but now..." He reached a hand out and gently placed it upon his Pokémon's head. "She's part of the family and I'm not giving either of you a chance to get away ever again. Think you can stand me?" He asked with a wink.

Butterfree let a few more tears slip from his eyes before wiping them away with his wing and then hugging his trainer. "Free Free!" He responded with a nod while Ash hugged him back.

The boy just smiled and then held his other arm out for the pink one. "Well get in here! You're family now," He invited warmly.

She eyesmiled and joyfully jumped into her new trainer's arms as he hugged them both. He then stood up after a few moments and released them from the hug, letting the male take a position on the shoulder opposite from Pikachu while the pink female took her perch atop his head.

"Thank you Ash..." Salia said softly as she kissed his cheek.

Giselle, not one to be outdone, kissed her boyfriend's lips quickly and smiled at him. "Congratulations Ash," She reached up and gently rubbed the pink Butterfree's wing. "And welcome to the family Butterfree!"

"I'm happy for you Ash," Brock nodded to him.

"Me too!" Misty said with an even bigger smile.

"Pika Pika Chu Pi!" Pikachu said enthusiastically as he welcomed the pink Butterfree into the family.

Donny, Officer Jenny and the other officers just remained silent and looked at the scene with their own smiles of varying degrees on their faces.

Ash looked out over the cliffs at the several Butterfree who were just now beginning to fade into the horizon and thought about just how ironic the whole thing was. This was supposed to be a time where trainers released their Butterfree and watched on with a mixture of happiness, pride and sadness as their Pokémon flew away over the sea to start a new life.

However, here he was with his Butterfree still perched atop his shoulder. Not going anywhere as he watched the rest of his kin disappear into the distance towards their ancestral mating grounds. Not feeling a shred of regret that he wasn't with them, only happy to be with his trainer still.

Then, to top it all off and slap tradition in the face, Ash had just added another member into his ever growing family with yet another Butterfree. A uniquely colored one and his first Butterfree's own mate to make it all the better than it already was.

It was safe to say that in that moment, Ash was thanking Arceus in his mind profusely. He felt horrible for the other trainers who did have to release their Butterfree though and said a silent prayer that Arceus would be there for them. All of them as they went through them difficult time of separation and sadness.

Even still though, the thought of him standing atop that very same cliff face while his Butterfree flew tearfully away with the pink one was almost unimaginable. Him keeping his head down as tears fell while Pikachu waved goodbye to his friend and teammate while crying himself. Brock, Misty and Giselle feeling nothing but pity and sympathy for him as his Pokémon flew away forever...

Ash couldn't even begin to imagine such a horrible scenario and he didn't want to.

Maybe in a different dimension from his own it really did happen though. A world where Arceus wasn't constantly watching over him and he was totally different as a person and trainer... maybe just maybe something like Butterfree being forced to leave him because a less intelligent and prepared version of himself didn't think about the possibilities of Professor Oak's ranch serving as a private breeding ground of sorts for his Butterfree and it's mate so they didn't have to leave forever, actually did come to pass.

Either way, it made Ash shudder completely and remind himself to pray that much harder to Arceus before bed that night in thanks for everything she was always doing for him and all of the blessings she constantly sent his way. Blessings he knew he wasn't deserving of but for some reason still was bestowed with all the same.

Once all of the Butterfree had vanished into the horizon and evening had come with darkness finally beginning to fall, all of the trainers began making their way out of the wide open fields sprawling across the high elevation of the cliffside they were on. Leaving the Butterfree Cliffs behind them forever as they each went their own separate ways.

Donny clapped his hands, which resounded off of the now silent cliffside, save the waves of the ocean down below, and addressed the small group that was still gathered. "Well everyone! Whadya say we all head back to the shop have some hot tea and soup? Celebrate the passing of yet another Butterfree mating season- made possible this year by Ash and his brave Pokémon stopping Team Rocket- and wish all of those Butterfree and trainers good thoughts as they go their separate ways."

He walked up and clapped Ash on the back then as he admired the only two remaining Butterfree in the area, who were still perched upon the boy's shoulder and head respectively. "I suppose we can also celebrate Ash here getting to keep his Butterfree and adding a new one to his team as well ehh?" He said with a wink and another pat on Ash's back. "Then you can all stay upstairs in the guest rooms for the night! How's that sound?" He finished jovially.

Ash and his friends looked at each other and smiled, agreeing without speaking that it was a good idea. It was getting dark after all and if they didn't stay with him then it would end up being camping alongside of the road for them. Which Ash didn't mind but he was exhausted bodily and needed a good rest. "Sure Donny, thank you," He accepted with a slight bow.

Donny waved him off. "Think nothing of it!"

Just as they all started to walk away, Officer Jenny came up to Ash and stopped in front of him. "As much as we would really like to celebrate with you all, the others officers and I need to get back to headquarters. Have to be ready for the next call and I need to get cracking on that description and information you gave me on those three crooks from Team Rocket if I'm going to get a massive search and arrest warrant sent out for them."

She smiled at Ash brightly. "You performed a great service today Ash and I thank you again. You and your Pokémon." She then smiled coyly and said quietly, "This is off the record just to let you know. My way of saying thank you..." The female officer then kissed him on the right cheek and winked at him. "You take care Ash and remember, if law enforcement ever appeals to you later in life, my branch will be there to take you in once you complete the academy!"

Ash blushed slightly at Jenny's show of affection in thanks to him but quickly composed himself. "You've got it Jenny, thanks again for coming when you did," He said gratefully.

Brock was meanwhile just standing there with his mouth hanging agape as his arms hung loosely to the sides like a Vigaroth. "WHAAAAT?!" He yelled loudly. "Why does Ash get kissed by Officer Jenny but I get nothing?! Its not fair!" He whined loudly and pitifully.

Misty smacked him upside the head. "Because you're a dirty pervert who creeps women out, that's why Brock!" She growled.

Giselle just shook her head and figured that she should get used to other females thanking Ash in that way whenever he did something heroic. He was handsome for a kid his age, what could she say? She sure as hell didn't blame them.

Donny bowed to Officer Jenny. "Thank you as well for all you and your men did officer. Are you sure I can't interest you in any tea or a room for the night? Space is limited but its the least I can do for everything you have all done here today."

Jenny just shook her head and politely declined. "As much as I do appreciate the offer, we don't have any problems flying through the night and besides, its our sworn duty to protect and serve so there is no need to thank me."

Once that was settled, Officer Jenny and her men bid Ash and the others farewell one last time before making their way towards their helicopter some distance away from the cliffs. Ash's friends, plus Donny and Salia, then started heading back to Donny's shop for the night. Ash taking a second more to look out at the ocean before he left to follow his friends, wanting to enjoy the peaceful serenity of the moment for just a bit longer.

However, just as he began making his way from the cliffside, something- or more someone- caught his eye and caused him to stop. What he saw that made him go still was a person standing a moderate distance away from his current position while overlooking the ocean with what also appeared to be a, to his surprise, Butterfree standing by their side.

He took a minute to get as clear of a view of the person as he could, which wasn't easy since it was getting dark, and managed to tell that it was a woman. From what he could see, she looked to be around eighteen or possibly nineteen, had long pink hair that almost appeared to be a shade of red or beige and hung down past her shoulders quite some ways.

She wore what he thought was a blue top with lace around the chest, a pair of white jean shorts that had a black belt around the waist, a lone blue glove on her left hand and knee high black, low heeled boots. From what he could see of her, she had a great figure with good curves and very nice legs. The Butterfree beside her looked to be around the same size as the pink Butterfree but smaller than his male one.

He looked at the person for a time, who just continued to stare out across the sea, and then heard his friends calling for him. Not wanting to keep them waiting, he tore his gaze away from the mystery woman and followed after the others.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sometime later, Ash and his friends could be found sitting around a table in Donny's shop. Piping hot cups of Grasswhistle tea sitting in front of them with a few bowls of warm rice stew that had a soy/ginger base for the soup itself occupying a space next to each cup of tea.

The tea was a special blend that was good for relaxation and the stew was meant to bring clarity and peace at the end of a long day. Both were specialties of Donny's family and had been passed down through the generations for many years. Surprisingly enough, the tea and soup were quite good. Something that surprised them all since the thought of rice mixed with soy and ginger seemed nasty but really wasn't. Ash apparently loved the tea as he had already had two cups and was on his third.

They all sat with Ash and his friends near each other while Salia and Donny sat on the other end together. Though far enough apart so that it wouldn't be awkward. They had been sitting in relative silence for some time while they ate and drank their tea. A companionable quiet that would only broken by the occasional short burst of conversation. Pikachu was sitting on the window seal behind Ash's chair since he was sitting at the very back of the table, and the two Butterfree were off somewhere else inside the shop.

Ash eventually broke the silence by downing his third cup of tea and started pouring himself another as he looked at Salia. "So Salia... what are you going to do now?' He asked.

The young woman thought about it for a little while as she swirled the contents in her tea cup around before setting it down and placing her hands in her lap. She then shrugged, "I'm not really sure honestly. I was journeying around for a while after I captured Butterfree as a pink Caterpie and back then I wanted to be a Pokémon Trainer and see the world. After a while though... I just kinda saw that it wasn't for me. I'm not really all that thrilled by battling Pokémon and after I captured Butterfree, I didn't really care if I ever caught another Pokémon again. To be honest..."

She smiled to herself. "I really love just taking care of Pokémon and making sure they're happy and healthy. That's what I focused on all the time with Butterfree. She got as strong as she did by pretty much training herself. I tried on many occasions but I was just no good at it," She finished with a sigh as she drank some more tea. "I just don't know what I want to do..."

Ash listened intently to her story and swirled his own tea around before an idea suddenly popped into his head. "Hey Salia, you said you love taking care of Pokémon and being there for them right?"

Getting a nod from the woman, he smiled and continued. "Well how about this little idea. Professor Oak doesn't have any assistants or aids helping him out at the lab besides his granddaughter sometimes and that's not very often since she's always so busy with her training to be become a Pokémon Nurse. I helped him out while I was training under him for five years but I'm gone on my journey now so I can't do that anymore. You love taking care of Pokémon and I can tell you do a great job at it with how healthy Butterfree looks so why don't you go and see about becoming the Professor's assistant? He's a great man who can teach you a lot and I'm sure he would enjoy having the help just as much as you would enjoy helping out. What do you think?"

Salia sat there stunned. Her... an assistant to THE Professor Samuel Oak... one of the most revered Pokémon Researchers in the entire world... all she could do was just stutter a little in response, "M-Me?! P-Professor Oak's assitant?!"

Ash smiled and nodded his head fiercely. "Yes! Come on Salia, you said yourself that you don't know what you want to do now and you're obviously great at caring for Pokémon! I think it could be your calling!" He urged.

Salia to seemed to think about it for a few moments before she spoke again. "But what about the Professor? What if he doesn't like me? What if I mess up or don't take care of the Pokémon right?! This is the Oak Pokémon Laboratory we're talking about here! He may not even like me!" She fretted almost frantically.

Ash just gave her a look and tilted his head to the side. "Really? That's the best you've got Salia? Come on! You seem like a great person from what I know of you and also seem to have a very kind heart. You love Pokémon and you did an amazing job raising Butterfree, forget the whole battling and training thing! I think Professor Oak would be lucky to have you and would accept you with open arms. Give yourself some more credit, I think you're pretty alright," He complemented with a warm smile.

Salia blushed under Ash's praise as Giselle spoke up, "Yeah Salia I would try it! Never know unless you go for it."

Misty nodded her agreement. "That's true Salia, you should at least try it to see if it works out or not."

"Professor Oak is a great guy that I'm sure you would really benefit from learning under Salia," Brock pressed on.

Donny decided to add his two cents worth. "I agree with them Ms. Salia, you shouldn't be afraid to take risks and try new thing," He said wisely while sipping his own tea.

Salia seemed to still be undecided and Ash chose that moment to bring out the big guns. "You know, if you worked at the lab then you could see Butterfree anytime you wanted and even watch their family grow... play with the babies..."

That was all he managed to get out of his mouth as Salia slammed her hand on the table. "I'll do it!" She yelled excitedly.

Ash smiled widely at her and nodded his head. "Good, I'm glad! It'll be nice seeing another friendly face when I go home too," He told her with that same charming smile of his. Which made her blush yet again.

Ten year olds making a woman blush? Arceus what nonsense had the world come to...

Salia regained her composure and then asked another question while looking slightly shy. "Would you please call Professor Oak and let him know that I'm coming Ash?" She asked hopefully.

The boy smiled charmingly again (yet another blush being recieved in return) and nodded. "Sure thing, I'll call him tomorrow when I report in to tell him about everything that happened today. Don't worry Salia, Professor Oak will adore you. I know it!" He assured her with a thumbs up.

Salia nodded her thanks, looking slightly more confident about the whole thing now, and right before anyone could say anything more, a knock sounded at the door. Donny merely raised an eyebrow curiously as he got up and went to answer it while wondering who could be coming around at such a late hour as it was almost ten o'clock at night. Ash and his friends looked at each other, silently readying themselves in case of trouble as Donny opened the door.

They heard him greet the newcomer and apparently receive a polite response in return as the man visibly relaxed a bit. Ash remained fully ready himself just in case but as Donny shared a short conversation with the stranger, the older man suddenly let out a laugh and welcomed the person inside.

Everyone watched anxiously as the person stepped inside and as soon as they came into view, Ash was instantly shocked. It was the same girl from the cliff that he saw earlier that evening.

Apparently he wasn't the only who recognized her either because Brock suddenly stood up from the table with a look of surprise on his face as he actually called the strange woman by name, "Solidad?!" He exclaimed in disbelief.

The woman turned upon hearing her name being called and as soon as she did, Ash felt like he had been slammed into by a speeding Arcanine. The woman was- for lack of a better word- absolutely gorgeous! His earlier assessment of her beauty when he saw her on the cliffs was almost an insult to this angel of beauty who came walking in out of nowhere.

She had a flawless face with breathtaking blue eyes, a drop dead gorgeous body, hair that looked like fine reddish pink silk and an incredibly cute nose. Still though, at a mere glance, she seemed to hold herself with the aura of a woman who was both kind, strong, smart and confidant all in one. That was just the first impression he got from her when she turned around and he was able to see into her eyes. Just one glance and her beautiful blue pools for eyes revealed all of that to him but left so much more a total mystery.

The strangest thing for Ash though was the sudden strange burning feeling he got in the pit of his gut when he looked into her eyes. Almost like a fire had been started that was making his entire stomach burn like the core of a Fire-Type Pokémon. A similar feeling he would get whenever he was around Daisy Oak only he didn't quite feel like something was trying to burst through his very soul and attach to her own as with Daisy.

That would make no sense though even if he did though because he didn't even know this woman! The fact that he was feeling so strange deep down all of a sudden had him slightly detach himself from the rest of the table so he could compose himself. The last thing he wanted was to hurt Giselle because she thought he was checking out another woman.

Solidad's eyes slightly widened as she saw who called her name but then shifted to one of happiness and recognition as she saw who it was. "Brock!" She yelled out excitedly as she ran over to the table and hugged the squinty-eyed teenager, who returned the hug with equal enthusiasm.

Ash and his friends looked on in confusion at the scene before them as the two finally separated from their hug and faced each other. "Wow Brock its been so long!" The woman now known as Solidad said with a bright smile. Her voice was simply beautiful and only caused the strange feeling in Ash's gut to intensify, leading him to practically shutting himself out for the moment so he could get a grip on himself.

Brock nodded and smiled back at her. "Sure has been, a real long time! How are things?" He asked.

Before she could answer, Misty suddenly spoke up. "Uhh... not to be rude or anything but... who is this Brock?"

The two of them turned to look at Misty, finally registering that they were there, as Brock pointed to the woman next him. "Sorry guys, I didn't mean to be rude. This is Solidad. We've known each other since we were little and she actually lived really close to my house back in Pewter. She left a few years ago when she decided she wanted to travel and train to become a Pokémon Coordinator," He explained.

"Wow really?" Giselle asked looking at Solidad.

"Pokemon Coordinator? Awesome!" Misty said excitedly.

Solidad smiled at them all and waved. "Yeah, sorry for not introducing myself to you all first but I was so excited at seeing Brock again that I just didn't see you. Please forgive me," She requested with a slight bow of her head.

Giselle just smiled and waved her off. "No problem! My names Giselle, its great to see you!"

"And I'm Misty, good to meet you Solidad," Misty greeted her.

"Salia, a pleasure to meet you," Salia introduced herself with a smile and small wave.

"Pikachu Pi!" Pikachu chirped at her.

Ash was still locked away in his own little world as he tried to get himself together so he didn't hear what was going on.

Solidad eyesmiled and nodded to them one by one. "Its very great to meet you all. I heard when I passed through Pewter City a few weeks ago that Brock had resigned from being Gym Leader so he could go traveling with some friends and I wondered who it was. Now I know!" She said while still smiling.

Brock took his seat and invited Solidad to join them, which she did after getting the okay from everyone else, as Misty spoke again. "So you knew Brock when you guys were younger huh?" She asked curiously.

Solidad nodded and then looked over at Brock. "We sure did. I was a few years older than him but we were the only kids on our whole street who were close to the same age so we started playing together and our friendship just lasted into our later years. We really became close after Brock's father left and his mom died, leaving him in charge of his brothers and sisters. I helped him out however and whenever I could until I eventually left to start my journey to become a Top Pokémon Coordinator, which was right around the time he took up the role of the Pewter City Gym Leader." She smiled at her friend then. "I really missed him over the years and I'm really glad we got to meet up here of all places."

Giselle smiled coyly. "So... were you two ever a couple or have any romantic interest in each other at some point then?" She asked with a wink.

Solidad and Brock looked at each other for a few moments before they both burst out into laughter. Giselle seemed confused as to what was so funny as the two continued to laugh. "What's so funny?" She asked in bewilderment, totally lost.

The pink haired woman managed to compose herself enough to talk before Brock was able to. "Oh no! No no no no, you see..." She threw her arm around Brock's shoulder and pulled him into a lopsided hug. "Brock is like my little brother. We became so close over the years that we actually started seeing each other as a brother and sister would." She playfully messed Brock's spiky hair up and laughed as he pulled away to fix it.

"Yeah," Brock said with a smile as he fixed his hair. "Solidad was sort of like a big sister to me over the years just as much as she was a close friend and confidant. I've always been the oldest sibling in my family so having someone like her around who could play that card to me instead really meant a lot to me," He admitted.

Solidad playfully punched his arm and winked at him. "Plus, you're such a pervert you'd probably scare a woman away on the first date wouldn't you?" She said jokingly.

Misty and Giselle looked about ready to fall into racious laughter as Brock sighed and dropped his head, whining like a toddler. "Solidaaaad!"

The woman laughed out loud again as she ruffled Brock's hair once more. "Don't worry little brother, I'm just kidding around!" While Brock just groaned something about 'mean older sisters' Solidad finally saw Ash, who had been sitting in his seat quietly the whole time, and smiled at him. "I'm sorry, I didn't catch your name earlier," She said nicely towards him.

Ash finally snapped out of his daze after getting ahold of himself again and answered her question. "Oh... I'm sorry, I must have been thinking about something and got distracted, I wasn't trying to be rude. My names Ash, Ash Ketchum."

Solidad's eyes widened upon hearing his name. "Wait! So you're Ash? Ash Ketchum?!"

He nodded and seemed somewhat confused. "Err... yes?" He answered her a little off would she seem so excited at hearing his name? He hadn't done anything important or incredible to his knowledge.

She smiled widely at him and put her gloved hand on the table. "Then you were the one that chased down Team Rocket today and saved all of the Butterfree, right?" She asked hopefully.

Brock, Salia, Misty and Giselle all looked at Ash as he just smiled sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "Umm... yeah that was me. Though it was more my Pokémon than myself. I was just there to do whatever I could," He answered nonchalantly. His friends merely rolled their eyes at his modesty.

Solidad seemed taken aback. "Didn't do anything? Are you serious?! You saved dozens of Butterfree from the clutches of an evil organization, risked your life in the process for no thought of safety except for theirs and to top it all off, because of what you did the Butterfree mating season managed to continue on! A whole lot of Butterfree found happiness with their mates today and a lot of trainers got a sense of fulfillment by seeing their Butterfree find their mates and leave to start a new life across the sea. You did a great deal Ash!" She told him upliftingly.

The boy just lightly shrugged his shoulders and took a sip of tea. "Well at any rate... I just wanted to help the Pokémon and I was willing to do anything to do it. I'd do it again in a heartbeat," He said with a smile.

Solidad reached across the table and grasped Ash's hands in hers and looked at him with that same smile. "Ash, I didn't get a chance to earlier today because I was so happy at being reunited with my Pokémon and then whenever I finally tried to thank you for what you did, a whole crowd of trainers and Butterfree had already surrounded you and I couldn't even see you, let alone talk to you. I resolved that I would find out who you were afterwards but then the mating rituals got underway again and everything just continued on afterwards from there. By the end of the day I thought you had already gone and I had missed my chance to thank you," She confessed with remorse.

She took a breath and then continued. "I brought my own Butterfree here today so she could find a mate and after Team Rocket showed up and took them all... I was afraid I would never see her again. She was the first Pokémon I ever captured and we've been through so much together. Traveled to all kinds of places, competed in really tough contests... we are very close and thinking that I had lost her like that..." Solidad felt tears start to prickle in her eyes and blinked them away. "But then you came along and saved them all, including my Butterfree and I had never been happier or felt more relieved. Thank you from the bottom of my heart Ash," She confessed as she gripped his hands tighter.

Ash just shook his head and returned the grip. "No way Solidad, don't feel like you have to thank me at all. I was only too glad I was able to save all the Butterfree and would do it again at the drop of a hat. I appreciate your gratitude but there is really no need for it. You're totally welcome," He told her while smiling.

Solidad nodded and then released his hands, wiping her eyes quickly of any tears that had collected there as Ash decided to ask a question that was on his mind. "Solidad... I hope you don't mind me asking but... I saw you standing on the cliff earlier with your Butterfree beside you and I was just wondering... did something happen? Why didn't she leave with the others?'

Solidad sighed and leaned back in her chair. Giselle poured her a cup of tea and she took it gratefully from the younger girl, sipping it slowly before she started her explanation. "Well you see Ash... my Butterfree didn't... well she didn't find any other Butterfree that she deemed to be 'worthy' enough to become her mate."

Ash seemed surprised. "Really? There were tons of Butterfree here today though."

She nodded and sighed again. "Yes but... my Butterfree has always been rather... proud of herself. As in, she likes to think she's better than other Pokémon because she's helped me win so many contests and knows that she's strong. I was hoping that there would be a Butterfree here today that could get through to her and impress her but unfortunately, things didn't the happen the way I planned. Or hoped I guess is a better word."

"What do you mean?" Giselle asked.

Solidad looked down at the table. "Well, on one hand what I hoped for did happen. She actually found a Butterfree she was interested in. What was so unfortunate was the fact that he had already found another Butterfree he was interested in and that female was obviously very interested in him as well."

Ash appeared sorry for her. "Wow, that really is unfortunate."

"Who was the Butterfree?" Misty asked curiously.

Solidad was silent for a few moments but then shifted her gaze to Ash with a sympathetic expression. She pointed at him and said simply, "His."

Ash's eyes went wide and his mouth dropped open. He closed it after a few moments and tried to fit together what she just said. "Mine?" He repeated as he pointed to himself.

The woman nodded her head regretfully. "Yes Ash, she saw your Butterfree fighting off those other males earlier today and she went starry eyed. I'd never seen her like that before towards any other Pokémon so I knew he must have made a great impression on her, despite the rather great age difference between them. She would only be attracted to someone strong and after seeing him fight those Butterfree and then the unique courting ritual he and that pink Butterfree performed, I was pretty much assured that he was definitely strong. Very strong and well trained too," She said with a smile at Ash and he just nodded in return but was still frowning slightly.

"I am so sorry Solidad..." He apologized. "I know how hard it must have been on your Butterfree to like mine but then see him courting with another female. Not to mention how let down you must have felt after hoping so much that your Butterfree would find a mate she was interested in, only to get it but then be let down... I'm truly sorry." He looked down towards the table, feeling incredibly guilty for Solidad and her Butterfree.

Solidad quickly waved her hands and got Ash's attention again. "No Ash please, don't feel bad in even the slightest bit. That's just the way of things and you couldn't have known about it. My Butterfree just didn't get to him first, that's all. That pink Butterfree was a very impressive Pokémon as well after seeing the way those two flew around the cliffs fighting each other as part of their courtship. I don't want you to feel bad in any way, please. After she realized that your Butterfree was spoken for, she knew she wasn't going to find anyone else so she joined me in my balloon and we just watched the rest of the mating rituals take place."

She laid one of hands over Ash's and smiled at him. "I think your Butterfree really made a good impression on her and earned her respect. Especially after everything he did to help you save them all after Team Rocket showed up and captured them. When you saw Butterfree and I standing on the cliffs, we were actually seeing off your Butterfree and his mate. We had hoped to catch a glimpse of them but I guess they were too far ahead in the flock and we missed them."

Seeing she had Ash's total attention she went on. "Even though she was still upset that she lost her chance with him, my Butterfree had a great deal of respect for what he did to save them all and that's why she wanted to see them off. My Butterfree can be very stubborn and proud but when she meets a person or Pokémon she respects, she becomes very dedicated to them. So don't feel bad Ash, you couldn't have helped it. Your Butterfree found happiness with that pink one, which still amazes me because I've never seen a Butterfree that color... but anyway. If anything Ash... I feel sorry for you. I could tell Butterfree must have had a strong bond with his trainer to become so strong and parting from each other when the rest of the Butterfree left... I can't imagine how terrible you must have felt and probably still feel."

She looked slightly ashamed. "I feel terrible thinking this way but I kind of feel like its better you than me since I dreaded the thought of my Butterfree finding a mate and then leaving. Which was why I felt slightly relieved when she lost her chance with your Butterfree. So you see? If anyone should feel bad, its me..." She admitted.

Ash couldn't stand seeing a woman upset and shook his head. "No Solidad, don't think that way. It doesn't make you a terrible person to dread being parted from your Pokémon. It just goes to show how kind hearted and loving of a trainer you really are with your Pokémon. While I still feel bad that my Butterfree finding another mate meant it caused yours so much heartache... you shouldn't feel bad for me since..." He grinned a little sheepishly. "I never released my Butterfree."

Solidad looked up at him with confusion etched onto her beautiful features. "What?"

Ash nodded his head. "Yeah, I never let him go. He and the pink Butterfree never left with the others to go to the mating grounds." Seeing Solidad's still confused face, he called out, "Hey Butterfree! Can you two come out here?"

A few moments later, they all heard the sound of flapping wings and Solidad turned her head just as both of Ash's Butterfree came flying into the room side by side from somewhere else in the shop and landed on either of Ash's shoulders. He smiled at them and rubbed their wings before he looked back at Solidad, who now appeared as though she had a thousand questions she wanted to ask.

The boy just smiled and then went into the long explanation of his plan to keep both Butterfree at Professor Oak's lab so they could have their babies there instead, that way they could still remain with him and not have to go to the Butterfree mating grounds so far away.

Solidad meanwhile just sat there in wrapped attention as she listened to Ash's ingenious loophole around the usual custom of releasing ones Butterfree during the mating season. The more she listened, the more fascinated she became and the more she realized just how inventive and intelligent of a person Ash really was. Which really impressed her and caused her respect for him to grow.

After he was done, Solidad merely shook her head and smiled. "Wow Ash... that's nothing short of amazing. I'm very impressed with how you found a way to still allow your Butterfree to be together and mate, as they're supposed to, but made it in such a way that can still be your Pokémon. Only a phone call away and they can be sent to you by Professor Oak if you need one of them... it's just... amazing. I'm very impressed once again," She praised him.

Ash smiled at her words. "Thanks Solidad. I'm just grateful that I don't have to say goodbye to these two," He said while still stroking their wings.

Solidad suddenly looked a little anxious and fidgeted in her seat as she shyly looked at the pink Butterfree on Ash's left shoulder. "Umm... Ash? I've never seen a pink Butterfree before so would you mind if I..." She trailed off, her face slightly red, but Ash understood and made a motion at the pink Butterfree to fly over to the woman.

The pink female had heard what Solidad said and after getting a nod from her new trainer, she flew from his shoulder and landed in front of Solidad. "Free!" She greeted the woman with an eyesmile.

Solidad seemed like a little girl playing with her new favorite doll as she crooned and fawned all over the pink Butterfree while admiring her unusual coloring. Ash, Brock and the others merely looked on with amusement at the seemingly calm and collected woman practically going goo goo over the pink Butterfree.

"She's so healthy and her coloring is so virbrant!" Solidad admired in awe as she gently stroked Butterfree's left wing, "Someone must have really raised her well," She stated with keen observation to Ash.

He just shook his head and pointed at Salia, "Actually, Butterfree used to be Salia's Pokémon."

Solidad looked at the other woman. "Really?"

Salia nodded bashfully and answered her, "Yes I was. I captured her when she was just a Caterpie and raised her up in the best ways I knew how. I released her today for the mating season but after she made mates with Ash's Butterfree and he told me about Professor Oak's ranch and how they could have their babies there but still remain under Ash's training, I thought it was a wonderful idea and told him it was okay to capture her. Though he didn't need to ask since I had already released her but he was just being kind and respectful by doing so, which I really appreciate about it him," She said with a shy glance at Ash, who just smiled at her.

Giselle tightened her hold on Ash's arm under the table, feeling proud of the fact that she had claim to who was obviously the most popular guy at the table. Poor Brock...

Solidad continued to stroke Butterfree's wing. "That's really great Salia, very selfless and thoughtful of you as well. I'm just sorry you had to be separated from her," She apologized with a regretful look at the other woman.

Salia just smiled though and waved her off before once more shyly looking at Ash. "Well actually Solidad... since I really love caring for Pokémon and that's all I want to do, Ash recommended that I go to Pallet Town and see about becoming Professor Oak's research assistant and help care for the Pokémon there. I thought it was a good idea and after Ash told me how great he thinks I would be at it, I decided that I'll try it. He's going to call Professor Oak about it tomorrow and then I'm going to make my way to Pallet so I can meet him. If all goes well then I'll be working for him and will be able to see my old Butterfree almost every day," She explained with a small smile and quick, admiring glance at Ash.

Solidad seemed impressed with the idea and nodded. "Sounds good Salia, I hope it works out for you." The pink Butterfree took to the air at that moment and flew up on Solidad's left shoulder. Gently settling herself down and getting comfortable, much to the woman's surprise.

Ash smiled and laughed. "Looks like you've got a fan Solidad!"

She giggled and gently reached up to continue rubbing Butterfree's wing. "I guess I do.'I'm honored," She said warmly.

They all then descended into small conversation after that with Donny still not having come back yet. He apparently had something he needed to find for Solidad that she requested of him when she first arrived.

They all talked and got to know each other for quite some time during that period. Brock and Solidad catching up, Ash and Salia talking some more about how great he just knew she was gonna be at becoming an assistant for the Professor (the slight blush never leaving her cheeks as she talked to him). The conversation would then shift to Misty and Giselle talking to Salia about different feminine topics while Ash and Solidad talked about everything imaginable.

The two of them found they had quite a lot in common and became immersed in their own conversation with each other. Drowning everyone else out as they did so. The more they both talked to each other, the more respect they would gain for the other when different things and stories were told.

Eventually, Ash decided to broach a topic he had been extremely interested in ever since he heard her mention it when she first arrived. "So Solidad... You said you were training to be a Top Pokémon Coordinator earlier and I was wondering if you could share some stuff about it with me? I know exactly what Pokémon Coordinating and Contests are but I don't really know anything about the complexities of it or what goes into being successful at it."

Solidad smiled widely at Ash, like he had just asked the best question he ever could, and nodded with her eyes practically shining. "I'd be happy too Ash!" She then looked thoughtful and laced her fingers together. "Well lets see here... what's the best place to begin?"

After sorting her thoughts out she turned her attention back to Ash- who had instantly slipped into 'learning mode'- and started explaining. "Well Ash, since you know about Pokémon Contests then I guess you know all about how different they are from regular Pokémon battling correct?"

Ash nodded and she continued. "Pokémon Contests are more about showing off the beauty, skill and moves of your Pokémon and the close synchronicity between you and your partners during the performance than what Pokémon battling is all about. In a Pokémon battle; strength, power, speed, raw force, tactics and strategy is utilized to become victorious. Also, the bond between a trainer and their Pokémon has to run deeply in order to pull out the win more often that not. This being for the simple fact that when a Pokémon is beaten down in battle, the will to push through the pain and win for their trainer is more important than anything else at that moment in time if the bond is strong."

She leaned back in her chair and crossed her arms while her piercing blue eyes gazed into Ash's own strong amber ones. "Pokémon Contests are generally much more tame and controlled in the battle portion of the contests than say... a Pokémon gym battle is. The trick to a contest battle is about utilizing good, strong, tactical moves against your opponents Pokémon, all while maintaining a level of grace and elegance in each move your Pokémon performs. If they falter in a move, get hit, mess up a single or combination attack and/or lose their composure, you'll lose points up on the scoreboard.

Also, and this where the close connection between Coordinator and Pokémon comes into play, during a contest battle you can't lose your cool, get psyched out, lose focus or stumble in the commands you give your Pokémon. Each one has to flow into the other perfectly or else your Pokémon will suffer for it. I've seen more contests be lost because a Coordinator lost their cool than anything else and their Pokémon are always the ones who pay the price for it in some way.

After all, they hate to lose just as much as you do because they know how much winning means to you and even to them as well sometimes. So a close bond and staying calm at all times is a must. I should know, I messed up and lost contests by losing my cool more than once. Of course, I think this is the same thing with both contest and regular battles though right?" She asked Ash.

The boy nodded. "Yeah it is. I've seen battles on TV that I would watch to help me learn and the battle always goes south for the trainer that starts to freak out. You and your Pokémon are connected so when you go through an emotion, they do too. That's why Elite Four and Champions are so great. They've learned total control over their emotions and can battle in even the most hopeless of situations without losing their calm."

Solidad smiled at his observation. "That's right. Most all trainers you will ever encounter are like this, Coordinator or not, and its what separates them from the truly elite. I personally believe that along with training, learning to hone the emotions of you and your Pokémon should be of top concern.

Now, what I just described was the battle round of a Pokémon Contest and is the second and final stage. The first stage is the performance round and this is where you really have to shine to impress the judges. It also tests you and your Pokémon's bond to a deep level and of you mess up in that round or are not good enough, you won't move on to the second round since the number who goes on is always slim.

In the first stage, a Coordinator will attempt to impress the judges through style, grace, power, elegance, creativity and intellect. They do this by having their Pokémon perform dazzling and spectacular stunts and feats by using either their moves, their bodies, natural abilities or even special traits unique only to that Pokémon. Sometimes a Coordinator will train their Pokémon to do routines with objects, their attacks or even with them to really impress the judges.

Taking extra special care of your Pokémon and making them look as healthy, strong, regal and beautiful as possible is also very important because it adds to the viewing appeal. Also, the way in which your Pokémon is released from the Pokéball and how you and they interact with the crowd and judges is very important as well for getting a good score. Sometimes, more often than not, more or fewer points is awarded based on crowd appeal."

Solidad reached into the bag below her chair and pulled out a Pokéblock dispenser and Poffin case. "Pokéblocks and Poffins are an amazing way to enhance your Pokémon's physical and outward appeal and also helps to increase even their performance depending on which berry combination you use. Berries are in abundance and each berry combination will work in different ways for each Pokémon. Rather its a Pokéblock or Poffin. Experimenting around and making recipes unique to each Pokémon you have competing in the contest circuit is the best way to find your winning recipes. Different regions support different sources of Pokémon Enhancers too.

Like for instance, the Hoenn region circuit prefers Pokéblocks while the Sinnoh region one prefers Poffins. Other regions support both types though so you can really just use whatever you want anywhere. Some Coordinators even have their Pokémom utilize Pokéblocks and Poffins in the performance rounds."

She showed Ash and everyone else the Pokéblocks and Poffins she made and Ash closely examined each one, making a mental note of every single one as she talked about them. He didn't tell her that his mother taught him how to make Pokéblock and Poffins though. He wanted to hear every single scrap of information Solidad was running through in her long explanation about Pokémon Contests and didn't want to interrupt her.

She put the two items back in her bag after she was showing them and then went on to the next subject. "Now that you know about the appeal round and battle round of contests, I suppose I'll tell you about the double Pokémon entries that some contests do. In those situations you have to use two Pokémon instead of just one for both the appeal round and battle round. Sometimes its just the appeal round and other times its just the battle round but usually you're going to use two Pokémon for the whole contest if you have to use two for the first event."

She took a sip of her tea. "Now as for the rules of a contest, you can lose one of three ways. The first is if you lose all of your points in a battle. The second is if your Pokémon is knocked out in battle, naturally, and the third is if the match goes all the way down to the end of the time limit. Which, in a contest you only have five minutes to battle and the strategy everyone uses in different ways for this is to whittle down your opponents points as fast as possible while using as much grace as you can, without losing any of your own.

That isn't really possible but it's the general idea, everyone loses points in a contest. Sometimes by something as simple as your Pokémon missing an attack or tripping up. If the battle goes all the way to the end of the time limit then the judges decide who wins by factoring in the ones who have the most points remaining. Most of the time contest battles end by knock out, followed by looking at the final point score for a verdict and the least number of ways contests are lost are by a total loss in points. Usually a Pokémon will faint before they lose all of their points."

She took a slight pause to reorganize her thoughts and then continued. "Pokémon Coordinators usually don't train their Pokémon as grueling and brutally as Pokémon Trainers who battle their Pokémon do. Trainers seek to make their Pokémon's moves stronger, more powerful, increase their bodily resistance against continued abuse and improve their stamina and athletic abilities. Coordinators usually train their Pokémon's attack based moves and physical movements to be more centered for speed, grace, elegance and stage performance.

In short, while Pokémon Contests are more technical than say, gym battles and especially League Conference tournaments, the latter are much more brutal and violent. Pokémon who battle are usually much more hardened and powerful than a Pokémon who competes in contests but not nearly as graceful or elegant."

She sighed. "There's always been a big debate among Pokémon Trainers and Coordinators about who's better and the arguments and rivalries between the two can get really fierce. I prefer Pokémon Contests but I respect Pokémon Trainers who can train their Pokémon to compete in such intense and fierce competitions as they do. I've never been into the whole rivalry thing and I never will be. Both have their values and strong points. Simple as that."

"Do you know anyone who really can't stand Pokémon Trainers?" Giselle asked.

Solidad nodded. "Yes I do. His name is Harley and he's... well he's a very interesting individual, I'll say that about him. He thinks all Pokémon Trainers are mindless brutes and only Coordinators have the right to call what we do an art. He says Pokémon battling is just a meaningless sport that hurts Pokémon and nothing more."

She shook her head. "He's really close minded about things like that and has a very bad tendency to hold grudges against people for a loooong time. He'll act like your friend one minute and then stab you in the back the next. I should know, I fell victim to his ploys more than once."

Ash frowned. He couldn't stand people like that who thought that what they did was all that mattered and anyone outside of the circle who didn't do it, or did something different, was just scum. He also couldn't stand people that held grudges against others and then pretended to like you only to stab you in the back whenever they had the chance. To him, people like that were cowards and he had no respect for cowards. This Harley guy sounded like someone he would never trust and most likely avoid and ignore like a plague.

Solidad spoke again. "I met him shortly after I started competing in contests and he acted all friendly and nice at first so, being as new to the contest world as I was, I trusted him blindly. He also seemed to be very umm..."She paused and appeared as though she was trying to find the right words before continuing. "Harley acts very... feminine most of the time, so because of that and because of the fact that he dressed and..." She made gesturing motions with her hands while looking slightly uncomfortable.

Brock raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

"What is it?" Misty asked concerned.

Solidad laughed a little awkwardly before finally speaking again, "Lets just say that I had my suspicions about Harley's... 'orientations' and then when I happened upon him..." She made another gesturing motion that everyone else at the table followed with great interest. "Getting 'involved' with another Coordinator who was not of the-" Solidad pointed to herself, Salia and then Misty and Giselle. "-Us variety and more of the-" She looked at Ash and Brock then. "-Them variety... I was assured of my suspicions."

Solidad was blushing embarrassingly by this point and it finally donned on Ash and Brock what she was saying as they looked at each other at the same time with wide eyes.

"No way..." Ash said lowly as he looked slightly unsettled.

Brock shivered. "I... I didn't need that thought in my head..." He said as he shuddered again.

Misty, Giselle and Salia also seemed to have gotten the gist of what Solidad had been getting at as they also looked both shocked and a little weirded out.

"Okay..." Misty whispered as she drank some of her tea.

"Don't say anymore Solidad..." Giselle pleaded with a raised hand.

"Yeah we get it," Salia finished as she took a few composing breaths.

Solidad nodded quickly and continued on as she tried to leave behind the very... 'uncomfortable' topic surrounding Harley. "Yes well, anyway. I thought I could trust Harley and believed we were friends. That was until I defeated him a contest and he formed a deep grudge and dislike for me because of it. I didn't know it though until the next contest when he sold me some Tauros shit about how Flying-Type Pokémon weren't allowed in that particular contest.

It of course wasn't true and I ended up nearly losing the battle round because the only other ground based Pokémon I had at the time wasn't very experienced yet and Harley's Pokémon, who was my opponent, was well trained and experienced. It wasn't until I learned right before the battle was supposed to start that Harley was lying. I overheard the contest announcer Vivian saying to Nurse Joy how she was surprised at the lack of Flying-Type Pokémon they had seen in the contest so far and it clued me off."

A hard glint formed in her eyes. "I put two and two together after that and realized how Harley had lied to me once I heard what those two said. I was furious but I hid my anger well and used my Butterfree and Pidgeot to clean his clock in the battle round. After that, I never trusted him again. Even after he tried time and time again to 'make things right'," She exaggerated the words with her fingers in air quotations as she said it. "I never fell for it again though and a good thing too because I caught him trying to cheat many times after that."

Everyone at the table instantly felt a great dislike for this Harley character settle over them and vowed to themselves that if they ever met him, they would be sure to watch out for him.

Solidad shook her head and smiled after that. "Anyway, Harley may be a Seviper in the grass but he's about the only one I know of. He hates Pokémon Trainers but that's it among who I know."

Giselle had a thought. "Solidad, you mentioned the contest announcer... Vivian was it? And how she was talking to Nurse Joy about the lack of Flying-Type Pokémon they had seen in that contest. Why would Nurse Joy be involved in the contest for any reason besides healing the injured Pokémon afterwards?" She asked curiously.

Solidad smacked her forehead and laughed to herself. "Oh Arceus! How could I have forgotten that? Yes, Nurse Joy are always one of the three judges in a contest. Each town the contest is held in has it's own Nurse Joy as a contest judge along with two others; Mr. Raoul Contesta, who is the founder of Pokèmon Contests themselves and Chief of the Pokémon Activities Committee, and Mr. Sukizo who is the head of the worldwide Pokémon Fan Club.

Those three are always the judges except during the Grand Festival, which is sort of like the Pokémon Coordinator's version of the Pokémon League Conference tournaments for Pokémon Trainers. During the Grand Festival, three Nurse Joys judge alongside Mr. Contesta and Mr. Sukizo."

Ash decided to ask a question to follow up what she had just finished explaining. "And to enter the Grand Festival don't you have to win a certain number of ribbons from smaller contests held throughout the region's contest circuit that you're competing in?" He asked.

Solidad nodded at his question and smiled. "That's right Ash. Pokémon Coordinators have to win at least five ribbons from contests held throughout the region you're competing in before you can enter into the Grand Festival. The festival itself follows pretty much the same rules and format as any normal Pokémon Contest except on a much grander scale that's held in several different arenas with the main and final match being held in the biggest stadium of them all.

Hundreds of Coordinators compete in the Grand Festival but only one will ultimately win the coveted Ribbon Cup and attain the title of Top Coordinator. Which are the prizes you win as champion of the Grand Festival." She smiled to herself. "That's what I dream of achieving someday and I won't stop until I do," The redhead said with a determined and confidant expression on her face.

Ash returned the determined expression Solidad had to achieve her goals with one of his own but before he could say anything else, Giselle spoke up first. "Hey Solidad, is the Grand Festival the only big event for Pokémon Coordinators to compete in?"

Solidad shook her head. "No actually, there's another one. Its called the Wallace Cup and while its not as prestigious as the Grand Festival, its still a big deal. The current Hoenn League Champion and former Sootopolis Gym Leader Wallace, who is a master of Water-Type Pokémon, founded it. He was also a Pokémon Coordinator at one time and a damn good one too.

After he retired to focus on his duties as Pokémon League Champion of the Hoenn region, he founded the Wallace Cup as a true test of skill, ability, knowledge, grace, elegance and the level of bond between Pokémon Coordinators and their Pokémon. Something that really separates the Wallace Cup from other contest circuits, specifically the Hoenn region contest circuit, is that contestants have to wear specialized outfits while competing. Coordinators in Sinnoh do this as well but its a must for the Wallace Cup." She laughed. "Probably because Wallace is so into fashion himself!"

Misty looked starry eyed. "I love Wallace! He and Lorelei of the Elite Four here in Kanto are my Water Pokémon idols!" She gushed.

Solidad smiled. "He is pretty cool."

"What do you win in the Wallace Cup Solidad?" Giselle asked.

The woman smiled and looked up at the ceiling. "Winners of the Wallace Cup take home the coveted, though not as coveted as the Ribbon Cup for the Grand Festival, Aqua Ribbon. Its a special ribbon that counts as one of the five needed for entrance into the Grand Festival held in any region that hosts contests. Not just the region that the ribbon is won in. Because of that reason, Coordinators from all over come to compete in the Wallace Cup, which is held in many different locations each year all across the contest friendly regions.

The Wallace Cup has all of the same judges that normal Pokémon Contests do except for the exception of one, which is Wallace himself. He's a judge in the contest since he's not just a Top Coordinator but also a Master Coordinator. Which is the highest known level a Pokémon Coordinator can attain and can only be achieved when an individual wins more than one Grand Festival. I think its three but I'm not totally sure," She admitted.

Ash nodded. His head was currently swimming with all of the information Solidad had just told him about contests and Pokémon Coordinating. He knew what they were sure, he wasn't oblivious, but he definitely didn't know all of that about it. Not even close. Solidad had just shared her mass amounts of knowledge about the subject with them and he made sure to file all of it away deeply into his mind.

He had pretty much just gotten a crash course in everything to do with Pokémon Coordinating and he couldn't have been happier for it. She was extremely knowledgeable in what she did and proved it just now. If there was thing Ash loved, it was learning new things he didn't know about and this was definitely one of them.

Solidad swirled her tea around and laughed a little. "I've always wanted to be a Top Coordinator ever since I was little and its a goal I've been working towards for years. Funny enough though, I'm not the only one in my family who has the same goal," She said with slight amusement in her voice.

Brock looked at her. "Who else is there in your family? I thought you were an only child?" He asked in confusion.

Solidad shook her head. "No actually I'm not. Remember how when we were little my parents separated and my dad moved out to Sinnoh?"

Brock nodded. "I remember," He confirmed.

The woman sighed. "Well... I never told you about it, partially because I was embarrassed and so upset for a few years after it all happened but... my dad met another woman after he moved out to Sinnoh and eventually married her. They had a kid soon after, a girl, who became my half-sister."

"And your sister wants to be a Pokémon Coordinator too Solidad?" Ash asked.

She nodded. "Yep, she sure does. I never really saw my sister that much over the years except for a few times here and there but we usually got along well when we were younger. Even though I was angry at my parents for divorcing since I was young and didn't understand why at the time, I really grew to love my younger sister and looked forward to spending time with her. One of our common interests were watching Pokémon Contests while I was out visiting her and my father in Sinnoh. We would watch them on TV sometimes and even go to local ones with my dad and his new wife."

She smiled to herself. "I've always tried to be there for her whenever she needed me but after I got into Pokémon Coordinating and she found out about it, she really wanted to get into it as well. She's still too young to get her first Pokémon though and the fact that I've been doing it for a few years now has made her jealous of me I think. I don't really know how I came to think that but the way she acts around me now and talks to me shows the signs. It breaks my heart to see it happen but all I can do is just be there for her and hope that she eventually grows out of the harsh and immature feelings she currently has towards me." She looked down at her clasped hands in thought then and the table descended into silence.

After a few moments, Ash decided to hopefully break the silence that had settled upon them all and hopefully make Solidad feel better in the process. "Can you tell us what your sister's name is Solidad?" He asked with a smile.

The woman looked back up at them and smiled in return at Ash, grateful for the change in subject. "Her name is Ursula. She has red hair, sort of similar to mine, only hers is fully red instead of the pinkish red I have mixed in with my own. She's a very pretty young lady that's about your age Ash, give or take a few months. Sinnoh has a later age restriction for when they allow a child to receive his or her first Pokémon and that's why she doesn't have a Pokémon yet. Her mother, my step-mom, is also a very attractive woman with red hair like my mother." She laughed a little then. "I guess my father just has something for redheads..."

Solidad smiled in memory and spoke again. "Ursula is... very strong minded. That's the best way to describe her I think. She knows what she wants, even for a girl her age, is incredibly fierce when it comes to her beliefs and has a hot temper that you don't want to set off. She can act a little self absorbed every now and again but that's mostly her own way of acting sure and confident around others when she's otherwise feeling a little nervous and insecure."

Misty sent a sly look at Giselle. "Sounds like how a certain prissy Pokémon Tech student we all know can act..."

Giselle shot her a glare. "Excuse me orange-head?"

Just before the two girls could get into yet another fight, Brock quickly stepped in-between their chairs to stop them and took two large lumps to the head for interfering. Though it did work in the end fortunately so his sacrifice wasn't in vain. Misty and Giselle having released their aggression on someone other than each other, which stopped the fighting before it could really start.

Solidad and Ash sweatdropped slightly at the scene but laughed nonetheless as the woman turned her attention back to him again. "So if you don't mind me asking Ash... why are you so interested in Pokémon Contests? You're a Pokémon Trainer so why the need to know so much about them?"

Ash settled further into his chair and took a sip of tea before replying. "Honestly, Pokémon Contests have always really appealed to me ever since I first heard about them. Studying under Professor Oak for so many years really makes you eager to learn about all kinds of things and contests were one of them. I've always had a great deal of respect for Pokémon Coordinators but I've never been able to actually go see a match before, even though I know they're held right here in Kanto yearly.

To tell the truth, even though I've always wanted to be a Pokémon Trainer, coordinating has held almost the exact same flare and interest to me. Also, a Pokémon Trainer who can become a Coordinator as well means that you have to become proficient at two completely different types of Pokémon training and care. Which in the can help further both goals in the long run. After all, one can never know too much or learn enough about Pokémon right?" He finished with a cheesy smile.

Solidad, for her part, was shocked by what she just heard. "So wait... you mean to tell me that you want to become a Pokémon Coordinator as well Ash? You want to do both?"

The boy nodded slightly. "Well, not right now but eventually... yes. Yes I would like to. I want to become more efficient at training for gym battles and the Pokémon League first before I tackle something else, which is why I didn't want to take on the contest circuit this year. I'm no fool Solidad. My Pokémon and I have basically just started out and are still considered greenhorns. I don't want to take on too much that we can't handle. After awhile though, yes I would like to try my hand at it."

Solidad continued to just stare at Ash and as she did, the enigma of a boy before her started gaining more and more of her respect. So many Pokémon Trainers and Coordinators would never even think about taking the time to recognize the positive sides of the two unique forms of Pokémon competition, let alone want to try their hand at both. It just wasn't heard of except for rare cases and the ones who did do both were always older Pokémon Trainers and Coordinators who weren't so young and blinded by favoritism as the younger crowd was. For Ash, someone so new to the world of Pokémon training, to have such a mature and sensible outlook on things was very impressive to her.

Ash looked at her with an arched eyebrow. "Uhh... Solidad? What's wrong?"

She snapped out of her stupor then and shook her head. "I'm sorry Ash, I didn't mean to zone out I just... I've heard of very few people who feel the way you do and can truly respect Pokémon League Challengers and Pokémon Coordinators both. Let alone actually want to practice each one. As it is right now, only a handful of people I know of actually do that very thing. One of them is Wallace obviously. The second is Juan, current gym leader of the Sootopolis Pokémon Gym in the Hoenn region and mentor to Wallace. The third is a woman named Fantina who runs the Hearthome City Pokémon Gym in Sinnoh and the only other person I know of who is currently doing both Pokémon Training and Coordinating is a man named Nando, who also comes from the Sinnoh region.

He's a very eccentric and laid back person who sees the beauty in both battling and coordinating. He's very good at both as well from what I've seen and is also quite kind. I've met him a few times at contests and he's a nice guy who never puts anyone down. Could be from the fact that he carries a Mew shaped harp around with him and plays soothing melodies with it, which probably helps keep him so calm and relaxed, but who's to say?"

Ash's ears perked up. "He's a harpist you say?" He asked interestingly.

Solidad nodded. "Yes he is and a good one too. He dresses a lot like someone from ancient times or who you would expect to see at that big celebration festival held in the kingdom of Rota every year. He's always strumming on his harp to sooth nearby Pokémon and it always works like a charm too. Even in battle he'll do it. Except if he really starts to get into it. Most ladies love him and I understand why, though I've never been attracted to him. He's just not... manly enough for my taste I guess," She said with a small laugh.

Brock grinned. "Well that's no surprise Sol, you never find any guy worth your time!" He joked.

Solidad sent him a mock angry look and fired back, "At least I'm not always getting shot down by every girl I get starry eyed over eh little brother?"

Brock lunged back in his chair like he had been struck. "Point well taken," He conceded in a pouting fashion.

Ash crossed his arms behind his head. "I would love to learn how to play an instrument..." He said smiling. "Like the guitar. Yeah... I think may just do that someday." The boy grinned with a far-away look on his face as he leaned back in his on his own chair.

Before Solidad could reply, Donny suddenly came back into the room with a map in his hands. He came over to the table and set it down in front of Solidad before rolling it out. "Here ya go miss! Took some time but I managed to find this one lying around back in the storage room." He pointed to a spot on the map. "I think this route here would probably take you to Saffron City the quickest. This is a newer map with updated routes, including new and shorter ones made to take you to cities like this one in much shorter time."

Solidad looked over the map and then smiled at Donny. "Thank you very much sir. This should definitely help me get to Saffron in more than enough time."

"Time for what?" Misty asked.

The woman looked over at Misty. "The Saffron City Pokémon Contest that's just a few weeks from now Misty. I'm going to compete in it and I want to get there with more than enough time so I can run my Pokémon through some last minute strategies and performance moves before it starts," She explained.

She then looked back at Donny. "Thank you again, I appreciate you letting me see this map. I lost mine on the way here a few days ago so this was a major life saver. Thanks again," She said gratefully.

The man just smiled kindly. "Think nothing of it missy and please take this map. I've got more than I know what to do with as it is!" He said with a chuckle.

Solidad bowed her head to him and smiled in return. "Thank you again sir, I greatly appreciate your kindness."

As she folded and put the map away, Ash yawned and then spoke to Donny. "Would you mind showing us to are rooms now Donny? We're all pretty tired I think and would like a good nights sleep before we have to leave early tomorrow morning if we want to make it to our destination before dark," He explained. His friends all nodded in agreement, feeling as equally tired as him from the long and stressful day.

Donny nodded with a smile still on his face. "Sure thing kids. Please follow me and I'll show you where your rooms and the bathroom is." He looked at Solidad. "You are welcome to stay here as well for the night miss," He offered.

Solidad shook her head. "Oh no thank you. I couldn't impose like that, especially not after all you've already done sir..."

She was stopped by Donny raising his hand. "Please young lady! Its no trouble whatsoever. I would be happy to help out another traveler in need of a place to stay. You're not imposing at all," He told her sternly.

The red-head nodded after a few moments of thought and bowed her head again. "I would very much like to stay here for the night, thank you."

Ash then intervened. "Oh by the way Donny, can you please give the best rooms to the four ladies here if you have them? Brock and I don't need anything fancy and I want the girls to sleep as restfully as they can tonight."

Solidad, Giselle, Salia and Misty looked at Ash with a mixture of surprise, gratitude, respect and praise for the gentlemanly request he made. All while while Brock kicked himself for not thinking the same thing. Donny smiled just smiled at Ash then and clapped his shoulder. "Very kind thing of you to do Ash and of course I can! Everyone follow me," He gestured as he started walking towards a door near the back of the shop.

Giselle, Misty and Brock started following after Donny while Ash looked over to the window at Pikachu. Both Butterfree were already asleep on the boy's shoulder and head respectively. "Coming pal?"

Pikachu got up and stretched before bounding over to Ash and hopping up onto his unoccupied shoulder. "Pikachu Pi..." He said with a yawn.

Ash just shook his head and scratched his Pokémon behind the ears before he started following after the others towards the door that lead to the upstairs portion of the shop. He smiled when he saw Solidad standing there near the door waiting for him and she joined him in step as they made their way after the everyone else. "Thank you for that Ash," She said him with a side glance.

He looked at her and tilted his head. "For?"

She smiled and replied. "For asking Donny to give myself, Giselle, Salia and Misty the nicer rooms. It was a very gentlemanly and kind thing to do. Thank you."

Ash merely shrugged. "Ladies are always first. You're very welcome."

After they walked through the door, they found themselves at the foot of some stairs. They made their way up the short flight and found themselves standing in a short, slightly wide hallway with three doors on each side and one at the very end. They saw Donny and the others waiting for them near the three doors and went to join them.

Once everyone was gathered, Donny started speaking. "Okay everyone, the three rooms on the left are the nicer ones so, in request of Ash here, you ladies are required to take them!" He gestured towards the right. "These are the smaller rooms. Mine is the third one so Ash, you and Brock can choose between the other two but just know that they're both the same size."

He then pointed to the end of the hallway. "That door down there is the bathroom so feel free to use it, freshen up, shower or whatever ya need. Linens and blankets are already set up in the rooms." He smiled to them all. "Well, that's it! I'll be letting you youngin's get some shut eye now, Arceus knows I need some, and if you need anything just come get me."

After they all thanked Donny again, they began filing away into the rooms that each of them had chosen for themselves and unpacked. Once they were done, each person took turns going to the bathroom and getting ready for bed with Ash being the last one out. As he was walking back to his room, dressed in a black T-shirt and shorts, he saw Solidad standing outside the room she was sharing with Salia while leaning against the door.

Ash almost instantly noticed, with great clarity, that her form looked even better in her night clothes. Which consisted of a pair of loose maroon sleeping shorts and a red spaghetti strap night top. Ash also noticed upon looking down, which he only did quickly so as not to offend her by making her think that a kid was checking her out, just how... for lack of a better word... sexy her feet were.

Now, most people would call others that had certain fetishes, especially foot fetishes, weird. As in, gross weird. Ash may have been young but he was a very early bloomer and could appreciate the female form and all of its finely crafted beauty. He had even- for what reason he had no idea- started to develop certain fetishes very young and one of them was, to his bafflement, a fetish for pretty feet.

If you talked to anyone who didn't have the fetish then they would ask you how in the world a foot of all things could be attractive. They spent all day confined in shoes and even if that wasn't the case, feet still spent every minute of every hour touching the dirty, nasty ground.

If Ash was asked this question of how he could possibly have such a fetish, he would simply stare at the person and state with complete honesty that he had no idea how he could find certain women's feet appealing and others so nasty that he wanted to vomit.

Solidad had, to his utter sincerity, the nicest feet he had ever seen on a woman, even Giselle whom had very appealing feet. The redhead's feet were perfectly sized for her frame with no blemishes on them of any kind whatsoever- leading him to believe that she took very good care of her feet- and also saw how her toes on each foot were perfectly sized, shaped and proportioned to match both feet.

She also wore red nail polish on her toenails, which did things to Ash that he knew shouldn't be happening yet, and he could see that there wasn't so much as a fleck of calloused skin on the heel of either foot. Which surprised him considering she traveled so much and in boots no less. This yet again led him to the conclusion that she must use some type of good foot cream.

All in all, Ash would say that her feet were a mixture of delicate, petite and sexy all in one. Especially with the way she was currently standing. One foot flat on the ground, showing off its beauty from all angles while her other foot was slightly propped up on the toes. Giving an almost sinfully seductive appeal to it. The red polish on the nails gleamed under the light in the hall and only made them that much more tantalizing to him.

Tearing his gaze away from her attire and now confirmed attractive feet, he looked her in the face as he approached his door. "Umm... can I help you Solidad?" He asked with a slight tremble in his voice that he prayed wasn't noticed by her.

She opened her eyes and smiled at Ash as she stepped away from her door and walked over to him. "Ash... I know I thanked you before for what you did for the Butterfree but after really thinking on it again... I just don't think I really let you know just how thankful I really am. You were also very kind and welcoming of me tonight and I can't tell you how much I enjoyed talking to you. You're a very interesting young man and we have a lot in common," She told him with a warm and friendly tone to her voice.

Ash smiled at her as he relaxed, realizing that she hadn't caught his slight tremble after all. "I guess we do don't we? And again, don't feel like you need to keep thanking me Solidad. I did what I did because I wanted to and because I love Pokémon. I hate Team Rocket and couldn't let them get away with it. Saving your Butterfree was just a very pleasant bonus because if it wasn't for that, I wouldn't have gotten to meet you. Which... is something that I felt very fortunate to have had happen. You seem to be a great woman and Coordinator who loves Pokémon and takes care of them as good as you can. I only hope that I can be as good of a Coordinator as you seem to be whenever I become one," He said honestly.

Solidad smiled warmly at Ash as he just kept saying more and more things to impress her. "Well... at any rate, maybe this will show you my thanks..." Without any warning, she leaned down and pressed her warm, pink lips to the side of Ash's cheek and kissed him tenderly.

Her lips lingered on his cheek for a few moments longer than normal before she pulled away and smiled at him again. "Goodnight Ash Ketchum, sleep well." With that said she stepped into her and Salia's room across the hall and shut the door.

Ash himself was rooted firmly to where he stood with his body in a state of shock. Feeling Solidad's lips upon his cheek and smelling her intoxicating rose like scent as she kissed him just sent his being into a paralysis. He felt that strange burning feeling in his gut come blazing back much stronger than earlier until it was like a fire alight in his body.

Then, very strangely and unnoticed to him, a light mist of blue static quickly released from Ash and floated unseen through the air towards Solidad's room as his eyes flashed an equal blue for a brief moment and the hall light overhead flickered. He reached up and touched his cheek as his breath came slowly... like he was barely even breathing. He felt like lightning was arcing within his skin as he then slowly turned around and started walking towards his door.

He opened it up and stepped inside, entering the small yet cozy room he would sleep in for the night. A dresser was in the far corner with a mirror on top, a closet in the other corner and a window was at the front of the room. Overlooking the forest behind the shop. His bed was at the other far corner of the room and already had three Pokémon fast asleep on top of it's cream colored sheets. Both Butterfree were sleeping entwined with each other while Pikachu slept beside them at the foot of the bed, curled up. A simple nightstand rested beside the bed with a small lamp resting on it's surface.

Ash trudged his way over to the bed and sat down on it, still feeling the electric-like shocks pass through his body that Solidad had caused him to feel through their brief contact. Something inside of his body felt off and he was even feeling slightly sick. His eyes hurt a little bit and he also felt strange heat waves rolling off of his skin like currents of heated air.

He focused on his breathing and tried to center his mind while he rode out the strange feelings that only two other people had ever made him feel. Which was Giselle and Daisy Oak. The latter being much worse than the former.

Eventually, Ash's body calmed down enough that he was able to lay back on the bed and get under the covers. He then reached out and turned the lamplight off. It was the time of the full moon and that meant there was light filtering in from the window that was bathing the patch of room it landed on with it's lunar light.

The last thought Ash had in his mind before sleep finally claimed his weary body was of Solidad's tender lips on his cheek, her warm smile and the pleasant scent of her skin as he faded into a deep sleep.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

The sun's ray shone in the next morning bright and early. The time was just a little past five-thirty and the early light coming in through the window of the cottage room illuminated the entire area in it's bright yellow-ish glow. Ash felt the light hit his eyes and slowly opened them. The first thing he saw was Pikachu sleeping by his side and further down the bed, his Butterfree and it's mate, Ash's newly captured pink Butterfree, lay curled up together in a tightly wound mass of blue and pink.

The boy just lay there for awhile while still looking at his Butterfree and reflected on the day before. It was then that everything really hit him concerning the day before's events. He came so close to losing his Butterfree. along with so many others, to Team Rocket and if Arceus hadn't been on side... who knows what would have happened? Not only that, if it wasn't for Professor Oak having such a large preserve for Pokemon, being so kind and Arceus yet again allowing Ash to think about sending Butterfree and his mate to the lab whenever they were ready to mate... he would have lost his Pokémon. Something he couldn't even begin to fathom about unless there was absolutely no other choice.

As he looked at Butterfree he just couldn't stop thinking about how- if it would have been a parallel dimension or something- he could have very well not thought about the idea of using the Oak Ranch as a private mating ground for his Butterfree. Which, if that would have come to pass, he would have been among the many devastated Pokémon Trainers yesterday who were forced to say goodbye to their Butterfree after being through so much with them. He still could see himself standing on that same cliff, saying farewell to his Butterfree as it left to fly over the sea with his mate, and the thought alone caused him to shiver unpleasantly.

Instead, because he had thought of it and Professor Oak was okay with the idea of him letting both Butterfree have their babies back home at the lab, he had managed to hold onto one of his treasured Pokémon and friends. Not to mention, he was able to get a brand new Butterfree out of the deal and a very rare, unusually colored one at that. He was incredibly happy for his very fortunate luck and was indeed over the moon about getting around the usual 'release your Butterfree' rules of the mating season.

Ash threw the covers off of him then and sat up in bed, leaning over with his elbows on his knees as he stretched his still weary body out. Even though he was able to get a full nights sleep and rest, his whole body still felt somewhat sore and tired from the previous day's harsh activities.

As he sat there, a whole new issue came flying into his brain like a speeding Dragonite. He was hit with the guilt, the terrible guilt, of how flustered he had become around Solidad the night before. The reason he felt so bad was entirely because of Giselle. He was with her in a relationship, a happy one at that, and even though he knew that it wasn't anything serious or even close to serious since they were both so young, him especially, still... a relationship was a relationship and she was his girlfriend. They crossed the boundaries of friends long ago and tread into the territory of romance and deeper affection. A place of which they could never go back from.

Ash and Giselle may have both been young but still, they were much more mature than current their ages put them to be and they looked at almost everything years ahead of how they were supposed to. Their relationship was no different. Though they never became too physical with each other- since neither was at the age or position in life to really develop such strong and overwhelming feelings yet- and only ever kept it at kissing, cuddling and other harmless acts... they viewed their relationship status with each other seriously and handled the matter as such.

If there was one thing Ash absolutely hated it was a man or woman being unfaithful to each other. His mother had preached and preached and preached and then preached some more about how wrong infidelity was and looked down on it harshly. A view he inherited and shared in since again, even though he was so young he was still very intelligent for his age and understood many, many things that most would say is impossible for a 'kid' to understand. Since he looked at such a thing as vile and utterly wrong, he would be damned to do the same thing no matter how harmless it was and make himself a hypocrite in the process.

Even though he didn't do anything to Solidad, made no move on her, wasn't physical or even tried to be (not that he thought an almost twenty year old woman would be interested in a kid like him anyway, that was just a foolish thought in his mind) he still couldn't resist checking her body out, noticing how wonderful she smelt or how beautiful she looked. He didn't feel bad for the kiss on the cheek she gave him since that was her doing and not his.

No... it was the fact that he was weak to her that made him feel guilty. The matter of him getting a very strange, very odd feeling when he saw her... hell when he first met her, coming from deep within him, like something was trying to pull her into him... that was what ate at him and didn't make resisting said feelings any easier.

The fact of the matter was, he was very happy with Giselle as his girlfriend and wasn't going to do anything to ruin that. Even though she was absolutely none the wiser about all of it, still... it made him feel dirty and he wasn't about to go cheating or so much as THINK about messing around on her with another girl in either his bodily actions or thoughts. Even thinking about another girl in that way he felt was a betrayal to Giselle and would strive not to do it. If he could avoid such things then it would make him feel better and have less things to think and worry about.

When he saw Solidad later he would just be the same way he was with her the day before since nothing bad or even close to 'over the line' happened between them. Everything would remain the same, he would just strive to keep his emotions under better check. Especially the extremely strange feelings he felt around her. A feeling just like he felt towards Daisy Oak, only not as strong. Though he dreaded having such a powerful... pull, in him concerning those two, he would do his best to control it and anything else he felt he had to do for Giselle.

He got up out of bed at that time and started stretching his body out. Starting from the top of his head, down the trunk and then to the lower half of his body. Taking his time and passing through a full range of motion for each body segment he loosened up. Making sure to take the time to stretch his major muscle groups for longer periods of time than the smaller ones. He moved in almost a yoga-esque manner, going slowly through each sequence of stretches and taking care to not overextend anything.

Once he was done he went back over to the bed and shook Pikachu awake gently. The Electric-Type stirred with a yawn and looked at Ash with bleary eyes. He saw his trainer looking at him with that look that he had come to recognize every morning and quickly hopped up, shaking himself awake and nodding to show he was ready. Ash looked over at both Butterfree and did the same thing, shaking the male awake and getting the same response from him as he did Pikachu. Butterfree disentangled himself from his new mate gently and flew to the edge of the bed beside Pikachu, looking ready to go.

Ash went over to the desk at the other side of the room where he put the top half of his tracksuit and took out his other Pokeballs, releasing Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur from the confines of them.

After his Pokémon was assembled in-front of him, Ash walked back and forth like a drill sergeant and then stopped. "Okay everyone! Start stretching and then we head out for our morning workout!" He called out.

The Pokémon obeyed like trained soldiers and started their stretches. Each one deviating in style a little bit for their body types but all unique forms still having the same general purpose, which was to warm-up and prepare their bodies for training. The pink Butterfree awoke then and saw all of her new teammates warming themselves up.

She looked over at Ash and saw him down on the floor doing push-ups with Pikachu and Charmander right beside him doing the same. Squirtle was jumping towards the floor while retracted into his shell, bouncing back up while still in the shell and coming out just as he landed on the ground so he would be standing on his legs. He would repeat this over and over again like bucking bronco jumps.

Bulbasaur meanwhile was jumping ropes with his vines in rotations of slow and fast speeds. The male Butterfree was doing an 'air version' of push-ups. He would drop himself towards the ground and then flap his wings to elevate himself back up again. This process would then repeat over and over again.

When Ash was done with that he got up and saw Butterfree looking at them all interestedly. He smiled at her and walked over to the bed. Kneeling down, he spoke kindly to her, "We're getting ready to train Butterfree, would you like to join us? Being my Pokémon now means that I'm going to help you become stronger than you could ever imagine. That means we have to work together though and hard too. Are you ready?"

Butterfree took no hesitation and nodded her head readily. Looking both anxious and excited.

Ash smiled and started showing her different warm-up exercises to do that his other Butterfree knew. Moves to stretch out her wings and her body as a whole. After he was done working with her he went back to the floor and started doing sit-ups. Once he was finished with all of his warm-up moves, he changed into his track-pants but shifted them into their shorts version and left just his black tank top on. After that he called out for his Pokémon to follow him and then walked out the door of his room quietly.

The hallway was dead quite as he walked through it. He couldn't hear any noise coming from the others rooms so he figured that either no one was up yet (which was likely since it was still so early) or they were all downstairs. Once he made it down into the main entrance area of the shack, his suspicions were confirmed that he was the only one up.

He walked over to the door and unlocked it before stepping outside into the cool morning air. His Pokémon followed him out and then he shut the door, locking it behind him again since he knew everyone would be up to open the shop for him by the time he returned.

He then shifted his attention and looked out over the sprawling green plains that made up the cliffs around them before turning his gaze up to the sky. Dawn had come but the sun had not yet risen to it's full height yet so there was still a bit of darkish blue staining the sky. The smells of the early morning mixed with salt air coming from the sea left a pleasant scent lingering in his nose that brought a smile to his face.

He stretched out his legs a few more times before looking back at his Pokémon. "You all ready?!"

Each of them called out with equal determination and excitement and he nodded. "Alright... LETS GO!"

With those words, trainer and Pokémon took off from the shack and began their early morning run. They started by running along the forest line that was near the shack and followed that all the way around the massive open plains that surrounded the cliffs. As they went, each of them concentrated on their breathing, the contractions of their muscles every time their feet would hit the ground, the amount of intensity needed to be applied to their muscles for the maximum results of their workout and most importantly... the reason each of them had for pushing themselves as hard as they could.

Which was all pretty much for the exact same reason; to be become better than they currently were and surpass each new level of strength they attained.

This also gave them all time to think. Which, when one is engaging in something like a strenuous workout, letting your mind wonder off into certain thoughts of varying importance can be very beneficial for yourself in both the moment of your current workout and in the long run should you figure out something of great importance that had been alluding you for so long previously.

Eventually, they all ended up coming to the front most edge of the cliffs and stopped on command of Ash. He turned to face them all and called out, "Alright everybody! That was just our warm-up! Now we're going to get into our strength and conditioning workout, flexibility exercises, combat training; singular, tag and multiple opponent, and then we'll finish up with emphasis on move training and specialist specific training. This is the part of the training that you do not hold back on! You give me a full one hundred percent like I'll give you or you won't give me anything at all! You put it all out here or you keep it all to yourself! Everybody ready?!"

Once his Pokémon were prepared, Ash broke them all down into doing different segments of their training at different times. The first block would consist of exercises and drills to improve their levels of strength and conditioning. For this whole stretch of training he would have them all wear body weights that he carried along with him in his backpack that Professor Oak gave him when he left home the first day.

Some, like Pikachu, Squirtle and Charmander who could stand upright and use their arms in the upright way would even use dumbbells and barbells. A few of them were singular exercises and others were partnered. They would switch between using weights just the right size for them and do many repetitions of a given exercise for whatever muscle group (usually up to ten or fifteen) and then they would switch to using heavier weights for less repetitions.

The first was to increase muscular endurance and stamina (the ability to lift weight for a longer period of time with less fatigue) and the second was to increase the actual muscular strength itself (the ability to lift more/heavier weight) through both fast and slow ranges of motion. This basically meant being able to control heavier weight through both explosive, fast motions and also slow, controlled ones.

They would also do exercises specific to what Ash wanted to improve on them. For Pikachu. a combination of training with body weights and free weights would not only help him become stronger, more durable and more powerful (which was something that many of his species were very lacking in) but also much quicker on his feet. Which was something all Pikachu should strive to be the best at. Speed.

Squirtle would likewise work on similar areas of physical skill but his goal was to become much stronger both offensively and defensively. The reason Ash did this was because once Squirtle finally evolved into a Blastoise, extreme attack and defense power was going to be a major strong-point for them. However, he also worked Squirtle on speed just as much. Having a super fast Pokémon that was normally not supposed to be so can be real game changer in the heat of battle.

Charmander was the same way, only Ash worked him into the ground. Charizard, which was Charmander's final normal evolutionary form, could be a complete powerhouse in all areas. Offense, defense, speed, agility, endurance... you name it. Because of this reason, Ash worked Charmander in all different levels of strength training.

He especially put focus into the back muscles on Charmander so that once he evolved into Charizard and could then fly, he would already have very strong back muscles to make him an even stronger flyer right off the bat. Charmander's back was already getting stronger from all the back focused weighted drills he did and he still had two stages to go through, including his current one, before he became a Charizard.

The little fire lizard was definitely going to have some strong ass back muscles when that time finally came, this there was no denying. Especially with all the natural, none harmful supplements he and the others were taking daily to help boost the gains they attained from their training and also improve their overall physical performance by assuring that they operated and functioned at peak efficiency health wise.

As for his other Pokémon like Bulbasaur and both Butterfree, what they lacked in being able to do with free weights, they just made up for in body weights. He would have them wear much heavier body weight to make up for not being able to use free weight and then he would work their speed, power and endurance to brutal levels. Bulbasaur would run sequences, pull heavy weights behind him while running with his weight suit on, work his moves, practice agility sequences and all other forms of resistance training all while weighted down.

Bulbasaur would become a Venasaur eventually and with all of the preemptive strength and resistance training he was doing now, it would help assure that he would be able to push, pull and stop heavy moving objects and use mass amounts of power and strength to ensure victory in battle much more often than defeat.

Butterfree would work on his moves, speed, agility and aerial maneuvering drills until exhaustion with his weighted suit on. Even though his performance against Team Rocket the day prior was definitely impressive, Ash knew his Pokémon could improve so he worked him even harder.

The female Butterfree did very well with the strength and conditioning portion of the training just as she did during the warm-up and jog. Or, in her and her mate's case, fast fly since they couldn't run like the others.

Ash didn't have her wear nearly as heavy of body weight as his other Pokémon or male Butterfree and in fact, he wasn't going to make her wear any at all since it was her first time training with them but she had insisted. Which showed her determination.

She was also quite skilled and in rather good shape Ash was able to observe since he kept a close eye on her the whole time during training. He did this of course since she was new to the team and he wanted to monitor her for any and all improvements he needed to help her make in her training.

The young trainer was safely able to assume by the end of that particular segment of training that Salia must have truly done a very good job raising Butterfreee and training her no matter what she said because the female was defintely in very good shape indeed.

The conditioning portion of training pretty much consisted of all the Pokémon doing a mixture of cardio calisthenic/resistance drills that was both circuit in style and also mixed with rounds of interval training.

After that, they all (and by all that included Ash as well since he trained alongside his Pokémon at all times) went into flexibility training. This consisted of doing varying stretches that worked different muscle groups' range of motion in all of his Pokémon, though in different ways since they were all of separate species. The purpose of this training was to increase their overall flexibility. They did this for around fifteen minutes and then moved onto combat training.

For this type of training, each Pokémon would pair off with partners and work on different forms of battling before then gathering together in a circle and battling in a round robin free for all. In this type of training, one of his Pokémon would stand in a predesignated circle and then have to fend off, counter attack and fight back against all of the other Pokémon. So for instance, Pikachu would stand in the 'circle' and have to battle Squirtle, Charmander, Bulbasaur and both Butterfree all at once.

The purpose of this training was to work on fighting in multiple opponent situations, work on the ability to adjust battle styles and strategy in a heartbeat and also improve reaction time. There were many other benefits but those were the chief ones.

Yet again, the pink female did very well in both single sparring (where her mate was paired with her) and the multiple opponent fighting. A testament to her natural skill.

After that the training went into move training, strategy formulation, ability focus and specialization training. Here Ash would have his Pokémon work on everything else they needed to improve on in their own unique and specialized ways.

Specialization training was essentially any form of training that was unique to that particular Pokémon like Pikachu's Focused Lightning, Charmaner's Internal Flame and Bulbasaur's Water Armor training.

The pink Butterfree, when it came to the move training segment, showed to also have a very impressive move and ability set and could use them all quite well in battle.

Moves which consisted of Confusion, Poisonpowder, Stun Spore, Sleep Powder, Silverwind, Gust, Whirlwind, Headbutt, Agility and Supersonic. Her ability being Compoundeyes, of which he saw her use firsthand during the sparring portion of training and explained why she always seemed to be so accurate in her attacks.

Needless to say, Ash was very interested as to where she was eventually going to be in terms of strength and overall battle performance since she showed large amounts of skill in every routine he worked her through in every block of their morning workout and training session.

After training was finally done and exhaustion had claimed them, they all stopped for a break and Ash took that time to go over to the pink Butterfree who was resting beside her mate. "So Butterfree," he began while still slightly winded. "What do you think of the training so far?"

He merely received a positive nod and chirp in response which made him smile as he sat down beside them, letting his legs dangle over the cliff as he stared out into the distance. "You know its funny," he said with a smile. "Just yesterday all of those Butterfree left their trainers in order to fly across the sea to the mating grounds and who knows where they are now?" Ash looked at them then. "Do either of you wish you would have went now?"

Both Butterfree promptly shook their heads no and the boy nodded. "I'm glad to know that. Honestly... If you both would have wanted to go I would have let you." In response, the two Pokémon just flew onto either side of him and gave him reassuring looks. The Pallet trainer took that as their way of telling him to relax and that they didn't regret their choices to stay with him.

He smiled and nodded to them both again, knowing that no other words needed to be said, before standing back up and looking at his other Pokémon. "You all ready to head back?!"

Getting another round of affirmative calls, the small troop then made their way back through the wide open fields towards Donny's shack. Being that it was now later in the morning, the sun was shining quite a bit brighter in the sky and the entire expansive landscape around them was now being bathed in the crisp morning rays of the great eternal light in the sky.

After just a short time of walking, they finally arrived back at the balloon shop feeling rejuvenated from their morning workout but also as hungry as they could possibly be. Ash reached for the door handle and found that it was unlocked, just as he thought it would be when he had left earlier, and then stepped inside with his Pokémon behind him.

Once inside, he saw all of his friends, plus Donny, Salia and Solidad, sitting at the table they had the night before. They were eating breakfast that Brock (and even maybe Donny and the girls if they chipped in) had made to eat with cups of coffee sat at every place at the table except for Giselle's. Being that she didn't drink the stuff.

They were all still in their night wear, which led Ash to believe that none of them had been up long, and all of their Pokémon were eating breakfast in another corner of the room. Donny was reading the paper while drinking his coffee, Brock was looking over their map for the day's journey ahead and the girls were all talking amongst themselves.

When they heard the door open, everyone turned their heads and saw Ash bending down to take his shoes off.

Donny looked over his paper and smiled. "Hey there Ash, we were wondering where you got off to!"

The boy came walking over to the table and greeted them all. "Hey everybody, sorry if I worried you. My Pokémon and I just went out for our morning run and training session. I left as quietly as I could and locked the door behind me since I figured you guys would be up by the time I got back," He informed.

"We told them that you usually do that and are up before any of us training your Pokémon," Misty spoke up as she took a sip of her coffee.

Ash grinned. "What can I say? I love to train!" He looked down at his Pokémon then. "Breakfast everyone! You can go relax while I whip up your food okay? Oh and Butterfree," He looked at the female. "Can you please come with me? I need to find out how to make your food to suit my nutrition program for you that all my Pokémon follow. Its all individualized so I need you to help me find the best tasting and most effective one for your diet okay?"

The female nodded and followed after her new trainer while his others all went to join the rest of the Pokémon who had already ate and were now just resting. Brock, Misty and Giselle's Pokémon (especially Giselle's since they also trained with Ash) all knew that whenever Ash's Pokémon were finished with one of their many grueling training sessions, all they wanted to do was collapse, relax and wait to be fed.

Salia called after Ash then, "Hey if you want, I know what she likes to eat so I could probably help you find a way to combine the way she likes to have her food with the nutrition you have that your Pokémon follow. Would you like that Ash?" She asked with a faint blush.

The young Ketchum paused in thought for a moment and then smiled widely. "Really Salia? Wow that would be great, thank you so much! Buttefree is just as much your Pokémon as she is mine the way I see it so any help you can offer when it comes to her I'd really appreciate. I'm always open to someone's suggestion and advice so please," He made a gesture towards the kitchen. "After you."

Salia giggled and followed after him into the kitchen to help prepare the food.

Sometime later- and after much giggling and laughing coming from the kitchen courtesy of Salia- they both emerged with six bowels of vita-enhanced, super healthy Pokémon food for Ash's hungry partners. After they set the food down and Ash's Pokémon started to dig in, everyone watched anxiously as the female Butterfree took a bite of her food. A few seconds of letting it sit in her mouth later and she then looked up at Ash and Salia with a clearly pleased and happy expression on her face before she started eating more of the food.

"Hey success!" Ash announced happily as laughed.

Salia giggled as well and nodded. "Glad she likes it, she's usually a really picky eater."

"Thanks for the help Salia," Ash thanked her with a smile.

She merely blushed and waved it off. "It was nothing Ash don't worry about it."

They both walked back to the table as he looked at her and shook his head. "Don't sell yourself short. You came up with the idea of using that Pecha berry to sweeten Butterfree's food up so she would eat it and enjoy it. Like I said before, I really think Professor Oak is going to be very pleased to have you as an assistant and will be impressed at how good you are with Pokémon," He praised.

Salia just blushed at his kind words and took her seat again while he himself sat next to Giselle. His Pokémon were happily chowing down on their food and while he sat there he really took a minute to look at his girlfriend. Giselle was laughing at something Solidad had told her and as he looked at her, he was hit with the memories of what had happened the night before. How the kiss Solidad gave him made him feel so fuzzy, how he checked her out and how he had felt so terrible afterwards because he thought he was betraying Giselle.

Even though she was none the wiser about anything that happened and even though nothing actually did happen... him seeing her this morning... the way she seemed to glow in the light that the early morning sun was bathing her in as it streamed in through the window behind her. How beautiful she looked with her hair pulled up in a loose ponytail and the way she looked in her night clothes. The white tank top and pink night shorts she wore... he was just stunned by her yet again. He found himself vowing in that moment, silently of course, that he was going to make it a point to treat her even better and do more for her now than he already was. She just deserved it.

He suddenly reached out and took her hand in his. She turned her head to him from talking to Solidad and smiled at him. "Good morning Ash, sorry I didn't go training with you this morning. I was just really tired last night and needed some rest," She said apologetically. "If you want though, I could train with you for your evening training session to make up for-"

She didn't get to finish what she was saying though because in that moment, Ash leaned in and gently touched his lips to hers. Catching her in a soft, sweet kiss as a sign of pure affection and a way to express to her just what he was feeling in that moment. It was chaste and it was short, to be decent around the others, but it definitely conveyed what it needed to by the look in her eyes when Ash took his lips off hers.

He just smiled at her and shook his head while gently rubbing her hand with his thumb. "Don't even think on it Giselle. I totally understand that you needed rest. I would love to train with you tonight and then tomorrow, you can get up and go training with me if you want to like usual. Okay?"

The brunette beauty smiled at Ash and nodded. "Thank you Ash, I would love to!" She leaned in and kissed him again quickly before going back to her original position in her seat. Ash brought their now intertwined hands down under the table together and placed them in his lap so he could continue to hold her hand.

After their tender moment had passed, Solidad decided to get Ash's attention. "So then Ash, do you always get up and train like that every morning with your Pokémon?"

The Pallet native looked at the woman who made his stomach do somersaults the night before when she kissed his cheek and answered her question, "Yeah I do. Every morning and every evening my Pokémon and I train together, side by side. We work on several different angles of skill and do many different forms of training so that we can become really well rounded and better prepared against anything we may come up against." He then went into a short explanation of his and his Pokémon training routine to Solidad in return for everything she told him the night before about Pokémon Contests.

Solidad appeared to be very interested and impressed with everything he was telling her and by the end of it she shook her head. "Wow Ash I have to admit, I am very impressed with your training regimen. It sounds like you have a very well planned out, carefully constructed and detailed training curriculum. For a trainer who's only been at it for a short amount of time like you have and whom would be considered still a rookie trainer, you should definitely be proud of yourself," She complemented.

Ash just shrugged and smiled. "Well, I like to be prepared and train myself and my Pokémon so we can always get better and bond on a deeper level. Its just... what we do y'know?" He said modestly.

Solidad nodded in understanding and raised her coffee cup to him while taking another sip. Just as Ash was about to get up and go make himself breakfast, Brock suddenly walked up to his side and sat down a hot plate of breakfast and his own coffee cup, which he filled up with the hot beverage from a rather expensive looking silver tin coffee kettle.

Ash looked up at his older friend surprised. "Hey Brock thanks a lot but you didn't need to do that, I was just getting ready to get up and go get my own breakfast since my Pokémon are fed now." He never believed in eating before his Pokémon. To him, his needs in such matters always came second, they were first.

Brock just waved him off and went back over to his own seat, taking his place again. "Ah don't worry about it Ash, I was happy to do it. The way you're always helping me out with all the cooking and everything, its the least I could do. Besides, we're friends man. We do those kinds of things for each other," He said kindly.

The talented young trainer just nodded to Brock in gratitude and took a drink of his coffee before he started eating the delicious food Bock made. Instantly Ash was able to tell that the older boy had made his own food separately from the rest since it had a healthier and more nutritious feel and taste to it. Well actually, Brock probably made Giselle's food the same way since they both ate the same now days.

After a few minutes of eating, Ash looked down at his coffee and a funny memory suddenly came to his mind that had him start busting out into laughter. Even though he tried to control himself.

His unexpected burst of laughter had everyone looking at him strangely as no one knew what had amused him so much. "Ash what is it?" Giselle asked while trying to contain her own giggles at seeing her boyfriend laughing the way he was. The whole 'laughter is contagious' shtick and what not basically.

The boy shook his head and tried to calm himself as he looked at Misty and pointed to his coffee cup. "Hey Misty, do you remember the first time Brock ever brought coffee out around us and we asked for some?" He asked the redhead with mirth dancing alight in his eyes.

The girl looked at her secret crush for a few seconds before realization slammed into her like a drunk driver and the memory of that very occasion he was speaking of had her breaking out into laughter herself. This further confused the table as everyone looked from Ash to Misty, trying to discern what was going on.

Giselle huffed playfully and looked between them both as she herself tried not to laugh. "Will one of you please tell us what's going on here? I don't recall any incident with coffee!" She asked with a confused expression on her face.

Brock suddenly groaned and threw his head back as he suddenly remembered EXACTLY what Ash and Misty were laughing about. Misty managed to stop laughing long enough to turn to Giselle and explain. "I'm sorry Giselle, you've just been with us for so long now that I almost forgot that you weren't with us whenever the... 'incident' happened." She broke out into laughter again while Giselle raised an eyebrow and looked at Brock.

"Brock... what are these two talking about?" She waited for answer but saw instead, to her confusion, Brock sitting there looking up at the ceiling with his hands over his face. "Brock? Brock what ar-"

The older teen threw himself forward and slammed his hands on the table as his face turned beet red. "Don't you two dare tell that story!" He demanded looking between Ash and Misty.

The raven-haired trainer looked at Brock with tears in his eyes from laughing so hard and wagged his finger in the air with a devilish grin on his face. "Now now now... come on Brock! You know you had it coming!"

The teen just groaned and put his face into his arms on the table as he mumbled a few muffled curses. Solidad appeared very interested as she spoke up, "So its a dirty little secret involving Brock huh?" She looked down at the sulking form of her brother figure. "Well now I've got to hear it!"

Brock shot his head up and looked at her with a betrayed expression as Salia also made herself known. "You know, I would also like to hear this apparently funny story if no one minds telling it," She asked politely in her usual sweet way.

Seeing as how Ash was still incapacitated with uncontrolled fits of sporadic laughter, Misty calmed herself and took a deep breath. "Okay so-"

She was interrupted though by Brock suddenly lunging forward. "NOOO!" He yelled aloud as he tried to jump over the table... only to be grabbed by the ear by Solidad as she pulled him back into his seat with a smirk. "Ah-ah-ah little bro," She admonished with a teasing undertone. "I really want to hear this story. Now sit there and take your apparent humiliation like a man!" She gestured for Misty to continue.

Misty giggled. "Thanks Solidad." She regained her thoughts and then began again. "Well it was right after Brock and I started traveling with Ash. We were camping out in an open clearing in the woods one night and the next morning, when we are all getting things ready for breakfast, Brock pulled out that same fancy looking coffee kettle that he was using this morning. He made the coffee and while he was, Ash and I asked if we could have a cup. Ash had just finished training with his Pokémon and wanted a warm cup of something to relax with for awhile before we started out."

She looked over at Brock, who had his face buried in his hands, and continued. "He told us both no when we asked and at the time, I just thought he was being selfish. You see, the coffee blend he was using was a very popular, very special blend that is made by a coffee shop you can only find in Cerulean City. They're the only ones that make it and our city is really famous for this particular blend.

In fact, people from all over Kanto and even other regions come to Cerulean just to purchase a bag. While we were all in the city after Ash's gym battle against me and my sisters, Brock disappeared for a while to run a 'special errand' and buy some 'stuff' that he wouldn't tell us about."

She crossed her arms. "When Brock said we couldn't have any coffee, I figured that it was because he didn't want to share any of the Cerulean Special, which is what the blend is called. Until..." She narrowed her eyes at Brock, who was now practically sweating. "He told me and Ash that we were just too young to have any coffee. Which I found was ridiculous since there are kids at our age already out there getting shit faced drunk at parties and having unprotected sex. Too young for coffee?"

She snorted. "Yeah right. I had been drinking the stuff since I was eight and Ash had tried it several times before as well. It didn't sit well with me and Ash on Brock's view of 'immaturity' concerning our ages. Soooo..." She looked over at Ash, who was now grinning like the Meowth who got the Pidgey. "Care to take it from here Ash?"

He nodded and picked back up on the story. "Misty and I decided to play a little... humbling trick on old Brock-O." He smirked and shared a look with Misty while Brock groaned in embarrassment.

Giselle was now very curious. "What 'trick' exactly?" She asked suspiciously.

Ash chuckled to himself again before going on nonchalantly. "Ohhh you know... Misty and I came up with the idea to heat up a pan of water by the fire after Brock went to bed. We then put it in a bowl and snuck over to his sleeping bag before putting his fingers into the water." He and Misty both snickered at that while Brock turned an even brighter shade of red.

Everyone else at the table went wide eyed. "You... you didn't!" Solidad exclaimed with her hands over her mouth as she looked at Brock. "And don't tell me that you..."

Ash and Misty both busted out laughing again at the same time. "He totally did!" Ash gasped in-between fits of laughter.

"He realized it right away and hopped out of his sleeping bag like an Ekans was in there with him!" Misty managed to get out while laughing.

Brock just sighed and decided to take his humiliation like a man. "That was a dirty trick and you two know it! Man it took a week to get the smell out of my sleeping bag and I had to throw away those boxers!"

Misty put her elbow on the table and smirked at him. "Yeah but you didn't say anything else anymore about us being too young for anything did you Mr. Man? And furthermore, I believe the next day we were all having a nice, relaxing cup of coffee together. Am I right?"

Salia tilted her head to the side. "But wouldn't that trick be classified as 'childish' thus further proving Brock's point about you both being too young for coffee?" She asked.

Ash seemed to know that was coming and shook his finger. "Not exactly. You see, we didn't pull that little 'prank' just to be childish or because we were mad at Brock. Just the opposite in fact. You see... we did it as a form of proving a point. A lesson as it were."

"What do you mean?" Giselle asked.

"Simple," Ash began. "Misty and I have been forced to grow up and do a lot of things, take on a lot of responsibilities, that other kids growing up at our ages normally wouldn't have to do. My father was never around so I had to grow up a lot quicker because of that. I also took preparation for the time when I finally became a Pokémon Trainer very seriously and trained hard every single day for five years straight beforehand. I've always been mentally older than my actual age both by choice and also because I was forced to do so in other situations. There are certain things I am too young for and other things I am not. One thing I can't stand is someone telling me I can't do something just because they THINK I'm too young when in reality, I'm mature enough to handle many things years ahead of me. So why can't I?

In the case of coffee for instance, its not a law I have to abide by to be at a certain age to drink it. Like alcohol is for instance. So because of that, anyone who tells me I can't drink coffee is just trying to enforce their older age upon me, either on purpose or inadvertently. If its a law, I'll abide by it. If its just someone older than me saying I can't do it just because they feel like saying it however, I will do it. As long as its not stupid or idiotically unsafe of course. Not to be immature or to prove a point. Just because after some of the things I've been through, I think I deserve a little leeway with something as minor and nonsensical as drinking coffee."

Misty nodded and spoke up. "I'm the same way in a lot of ways. My parents both died in a car crash when I was little. My sisters took care of me but they never really knew how to nurture me and treat me like a young child should be treated. So, I was forced to grow up faster. My sisters got into performing their water shows to make us money along with running the Pokémon Gym our parents left behind for us, being that they were both dual gym leaders of the Cerulean Gym.

My sisters ran the gym and kept it open but their true passion was in the shows they performed. I was the one that was always fascinated by being a gym leader my whole childhood and after I became a trainer, I started working really hard to become the fourth gym leader. Eventually I became good enough to become one and they let me have primary care of the gym. So you see? Ash and I were both forced to grow up a lot quicker just like Brock was when he had to take care of his brothers and sisters when his mother died and father left."

Ash took it from Misty then. "Long story short, we played that prank as a reminder to Brock really and nothing more. We showed him that he was no 'wiser' than us in certain ways by proving that he could still fall victim to a childish little prank and handle it no better than an actual sulking child would.

After it happened, he moped around camp and threw an attitude for a while. The way he handled it just went on to prove that we're all still kids in some ways. Just because we have been forced to grow up in some ways, doesn't mean we're still not immature and have a lot to learn. Because we do, all of us. Pretending to be better than each other and playing the 'I'm older' card in our group just doesn't work. We watch out for each other, learn from one another and watch each others backs. If Misty and I were just immature kids that went around fighting all the time then he would have all the right in the world to act as the older voice in the group and deny us things that he felt we were too young for."

He shrugged. "That however, is not the case. So, the water/pee trick wasn't done out of meanness or a trick performed in juvenile humor. It was our combined way of showing him that even he could act immature, like a kid, and throw an attitude over something that someone more mature in that same scenario could shake off much easier. Yeah we could have just talked to Brock but it wasn't about the coffee. It was symbolic. It was proving a point to him that would set the precedence for our entire time together.

After Brock got over his attitude, which he did because he's a great guy, we all talked about it, apologized to him for why we did it and then he understood our reasoning for doing so. He agreed with what we were trying to show him and apologized for trying to be too overbearing. Even if he didn't mean to be. We all understood afterwards where we stood on the age issue and everything's been sailing smoothly ever since." Ash finished the explanation with a sip of his coffee.

"You know..." He stated as an afterthought while looking down at his black cup of coffee, which is how he drank it. "I used to not really like this stuff but after reading how a cup of black coffee a day can have good health benefits... its not half bad."

"I second that," Misty said with a laugh as she took a sip of her own coffee which she took with a little bit of creamer and milk.

Brock sighed then and looked at them all. "I will admit that I was being a little too overbearing. Ash and Misty may be younger than me but we've all been through just about the same when it comes to trying times in our lives. One thing I've seen from traveling with Ash, Misty and even Giselle is that age really does have anything to do with maturity whatsoever. Hell, they're even more wizened when it comes too certain things than what I am. We all learn from and depend on each other and that calls for mutual respect. That little 'water' trick they played on my taught me my lesson, that's for sure." He laughed a little. "I will admit that it was a well thought out way to teach me a lesson."

Everyone at the table laughed at that and a few minutes later, Donny spoke up to the others. "So, I guess you'll all be leaving soon to head out on your way?"

Ash nodded and answered for his group first. "Yeah, we're gonna have to leave well before afternoon if we want to reach Shadow's Hallow before dark," he explained.

The table went silent at his words and he looked at them all. "What?" He asked with a raised brow.

Solidad leaned forward on the table slightly. "Did you just say you were going to Shadow's Hallow?" She asked with trepidation and disbelief in her voice.

He nodded, "Yeah we are. I hear there's a gym there that's pretty out of the way and hardly no one ever challenges it. I really want to win that gym badge from there and get some more battle experience against a tough opponent. I also hear the gym leader uses Dark-Type Pokémon and none of which you can find here in Kanto that's known of so far."

Salia looked at him. "Ash, there are plenty of other gyms in Kanto that you can challenge to gain entrance into the Pokémon League. You don't have to go there, I've heard its a really spooky place," She said with a slight shiver.

Donny nodded. "She's right. I've only been through there once before and I can tell you from experience..." He took a swig of coffee before continuing. "The people are odd, the town is creepy and the whole place rains almost constantly. I never went back after that one time I had to pass through it and will take any detour I have to no matter how long it takes in order to avoid that place . Everyone I speak to says the same thing. I'd listen to miss Salia over here Ash, don't go there," He warned.

Before Ash could reply, Giselle beat him to it. "Look, as much as we really do appreciate all of you trying to look out for us, we already know what we're in for. Ash really wants to go there so he can complete the gym badge goal he has set to achieve before the League starts and me, Misty and Brock are standing by his side no matter what. If he wants to really do something then we'll go with him and support him no matter what. We'll face down whatever challenges we face and we'll do it together," She stated with a strong tone to her voice.

Misty nodded. "That's right. Besides, we may all be traveling for our own reasons and goals but we're still traveling WITH Ash, not the other way around. He let us come with him and we're not going to hold him back."

Brock seemed to agree. "Yes they're absolutely right. We stand by him no matter what,"'He said with a firm resolve in his voice.

Donny put his hands up and grinned as he made a surrendering gesture. "Alright alright young people, don't you worry yourselves about it I get it!" He lowers his hands and smiles then. "I was just wanting to warn you about you were in for potentially, that was all. Believe me, after seeing what young Ash here did involving Team Rocket the other day, I don't doubt his abilities one bit! With friends like you and such loyal Pokémon, I don't think any of you have any reason to worry. If you feel like a trip to Shadows Hallow is necessary then you just do it and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. That strong bond you all have will pull you through thick and thin."

Ash smiled at him. "We weren't upset Donny and we understood why you were warning us all, we just feel like we need to do this. I feel like I need to do this. I'm determined to earn my tenth gym badge and I really feel like the gym in Shadows Hallow will be-"

He was suddenly cut off by a gasp from Salia. "You already have nine gym badges Ash?!" She exclaimed in surprise.

Solidad also seemed shocked. "If you have nine badges, which is one more than you need to enter into the Indigo League by my knowledge, why are you so dead set on getting another?"

The Ketchum male looked at the ladies and then went into a full explanation about his goal to earn all twenty seven gym badges in the Kanto region. "So you see..." He finished up. "I need to challenge and beat the gym in Shadows Hallow or else I won't be able to complete my goal."

The three eldest people at the table understood upon his explanation and looked equally as impressed by the very difficult goal he had set for himself. "Well Ash..." Solidad began. "I'm very impressed and I hope you succeed and beat the gym there," She conceded with a smile.

Salia appeared somewhat starry eyed. "Wow Ash... I think that's so amazing!"

Donny just laughed and crossed his arms. "Maybe there is some hope for today's youth after all..."

Brock then looked up at the clock above Donny's counter and addressed his friends, "Hey guys, we're going to need to get cleaned up and ready to go if we're gonna be out of here when we need to be."

They all agreed and then finished up their meals and coffee before setting about getting themselves ready to go. The guys decided to let the girls shower up and get ready first since there was only one bathroom and while they waited, they went about taking the dirty dishes to the kitchen and cleaning up from breakfast. Solidad went first to the shower and while she occupied the bathroom, Giselle, Salia and Misty helped clean the kitchen and table. They then rotated in and out until finally, all the ladies were cleaned up and ready to go.

Ash went next, followed lastly by Brock. Donny was heading back home that day since it wasn't too far away from where they were currently, and informed them that he would just clean up once he arrived home.

After everyone was showered and dressed to go, they all cleared out their overnight rooms and then met back up in the main greeting area of the shop. Their Pokémon were all returned to their Pokéballs shortly after and just as Ash finished returning all but his two Butterfree, Donny came out from the behind the counter's back room with a traveling pack slung over his shoulder.

He went behind the counter and emptied out the safe containing all the money he had made during the Butterfree mating season, which was quite a large sum, and then met them all at the door with a key in his hand. "Well everybody, you ready to head out of here?" He asked with the same kind and happy attitude he usually possessed.

Ash answered him, "Yeah I think so." His friends, Solidad and Salia all nodded in confirmation as he looked back at the man. "We're ready."

"Alright!" Donny said as he moved towards the door. "Everyone head outside and I'll lock the ol' place up!"

Once everyone was outside and Donny had locked up his shop, he put up a closed sign on the door and joined the rest of them. "I know we're all gonna be going our separate ways before long but what say we stay together until the road splits some ways away?" He asked.

Everyone seemed to like the notion and agreed. "Sure, why not?" Ash nodded. "Lead the way Donny, you know this part of the area better than us anyway."

The man nodded and then the small group started making their way away from the shop and through the sprawling fields of the surrounding area. After some time of walking, they finally hit the road and began following it as it gradually left the high altitude of the cliffs and descended into the forest some ways to the north.

The scenery of the roadside gradually started to change from open field on both sides to forest and small grassy areas as they went further and further away from the Butterfree Cliffs. The place where so much had happened in a little over twenty four hours gradually became more and more distant until they eventually could no longer even smell the scent of the ocean.

The walk through the forest that the road was taking them all through was a rather happy time with conversation being abundant amongst everyone. Ash was behind Donny, who was in the lead, Giselle was walking by his side like usual with their hands intertwined as they made small talk. Brock and Solidad were reminiscing over more childhood memories, Misty and Salia were talking about whatever topics interested them at the moment, Pikachu was looking out over the forest as they went and both Butterfree (whom Ash hadn't returned yet) were flying side by side while enjoying each other's company. A few wild Pokémon were even seen here and there along the way.

Eventually, the group came to a four way crossroads at a break in the forest. The road ahead kept going straight to Lavender Town and then Saffron City. It simply went through another section of forest, not very thick though, before finally reaching Lavender Town itself.

The right road looked to be mostly the same in scenery and made a sort of looping backtrack towards places like Vermillion City, Cerulean City, Pewter City, Veridian City and eventually even Pallet Town.

The left side of the road lead straight into the very thickest part of the forests of the surrounding mountain area and would take the traveler through some very thick, very rough wild country before eventually coming out into Lavender Town somewhere along the way after Shadows Hallow. In theory at least. The road only actually went up to the edge of the massive treeline some distance away before turning into a smaller and much less worn looking trail path.

There was a road sign on a grassy knoll in front of them all which gave information on exactly where the roads took them. The front and right road signs had clear indications of where the well trafficked roads would take them but the left road sign... well it was much more beaten and weathered.

A very faded arrow pointed to the thick forest to the left and said in equally faded letters, 'This way: Shadows Hallow'. Brock had looked over the map all morning and said that directions on how to get to the secluded town was very sparse at best and most likely had all but been forgotten in favor of newer and more easy to access roads that went through much 'nicer' terrain to other, much more desirable destinations.

They all stopped then and turned to face one another. "Guess this is it..." Ash broke the silence first.

Solidad nodded. "I guess so."

Ash looked at her. "So where are you headed to first Solidad?"

She smiled. "Saffron City like I said last night. I'm really anxious for the Pokémon Contest there and I want to enter into it as soon as possible so I'm probably going to try and find a route that bypasses Lavender Town, if I can, for a quicker way to Saffron once I get on this road. My Pokémon and I have been training hard and I think we're ready for the contest."

He nodded and reached out to shake her hand. "Well good luck Solidad, I'm sure you'll all do great. It was really great meeting you and I hope we see other again soon, maybe even at that contest in Saffron if we can make it. Thanks for telling me so much about Pokémon Contests too."

The pinkish redhead shook his hand gladly. "I was very happy to meet you as well Ash and you're very welcome. I'm sure you'll make it to Shadows Hallow safe and sound and win that badge with no problems. I hope to see you soon as well." Her smile became a little warmer then. "And thank you again for saving my Butterfree, you're a good person Ash Ketchum."

He merely nodded to her and smiled one last time before then turning to Salia. "So... have you decided what you're going to do yet Salia?" He asked the sweet young woman.

She blushed when he addressed her and nodded. "I've decided that I am going to go to Pallet Town and meet with Professor Oak. I'm going to give it my best and show him how much I love working with Pokémon. Hopefully he'll like me and decide to take me on as his assistant or at the very least a helping hand around the lab," She explained with hope in her voice.

Ash smiled at her words. "Good Salia, I'm really glad you've decided to give it a chance. Like I said before, I really think that you're going to do well as the Professor's assistant." He grinned. "While we were all getting ready to go, I finished up first and called Professor Oak. I told him all about you and he's really anxious to meet you. I know he's gonna give you a fair shake so don't be nervous okay?"

She nodded at his words. "Thank you Ash... for everything thank you." She walked up to the pink Butterfree who was flying beside of her mate and stopped. "Butterfree... I wish you all the best with your mate and if all goes well and Professor Oak accepts me as his assistant, I'll be seeing you on quite a regular basis once Ash sends the both of you back to Pallet Town to breed."

The female smiled at her words as she flew in and hugged her former trainer, who returned the embrace readily, before she then separated and flew back to her mate and Ash's side.

The young Ketchum turned to Donny last. "I can't thank you enough for everything you've done for me and my friends Donny. You not only had faith in us and let me go on to stop Team Rocket, you helped us at every turn and even opened your shop and hospitality to us all. Thank you, thank you very much." He bowed his head in respect to the man who simply smiled at Ash in return.

Donny placed his hand on the boy's shoulder and chuckled. "You're very welcome Ash. You and your friends were a joy to have around and I was very glad to meet you all. Good luck on your journey and I hope you succeed in your dreams." He looked towards the road that led in Pallet Town's direction. "My house is just a little over fifteen minutes of a walk away from here in that direction so I guess me and miss Salia will be heading in the same direction for a short while."

Salia smiled at him. "I don't mind us traveling together for a bit longer at all Donny, I would be happy to have someone else with me before I make the long journey to Pallet Town by myself."

The man seemed pleased at her words and said goodbye to Misty, Brock and Solidad before he turned to Ash one last time. "Now Ash, you and your friends be careful on your way to Shadows Hallow. That forest is pretty damn thick and treacherous at times. Be safe," he cautioned.

Ash re-adjusted his backpack. "We will Donny, I promise."

With that said, Salia also said her goodbyes to Brock, Misty and Solidad before she and Donny waved to them all and started their way down the right road.

Solidad turned to the group after they watched them off and said her own goodbyes. "I'm sure I'll see you all again soon. Who knows, maybe you'll get through Shadows Hallow and Lavender Town in good time like Ash said and find yourself in Saffron City before my Pokémon Contest begins. If so you can see first hand what I was telling you all about last night and then we can hang out afterwards. There's even a Pokékon Gym there that I'm sure you'd love to challenge Ash," She winked in his direction .

Ash laughed. "Yeah maybe. Take care Solidad," he said with a wide smile.

"It was great seeing you again Soli," Brock told his childhood friend in farewell.

"I really enjoyed talking to you, please take care," Misty spoke to the older woman.

"I hope we meet again as well Solidad," Giselle said in her own farewell.

"Pika Pikachu!" The small Electric-Type Pokémon on Ash's shoulder waved at her.

With their last goodbyes said, Solidad waved to them all one last time before she took the road heading straight and began making her own way. Ash and the others watched her leave until she was out of sight and then looked to the right at the imposing forest sprawled out before them. The likes of which was casting a long shadow over the open, sunny area they were in currently in.

Ash narrowed his eyes at the forest and then grinned before turning around to look at his friends. "Come on you guys, we're never going to get this done and over with if we don't soldier up and face it head on. Lets go!"

Getting a determined nod in reply from his friends, Ash began leading the way down the right path. They went for a few minutes until they finally stood before the entrance to the forest. The entire inside looking dark and unwelcoming.

He looked up at his Butterfree then before pulling out their Pokéballs. "As much as I really want to have you two with me, its gonna be really hard to fly in there. You'll be better off in your Pokéballs." Getting nods from them, Ash returned both of his prized Butterfree before turning back to the forest. Without turning around he called back.

"Okay guys, single file line and don't stray off the-" He looked down at the barely recognizable path that started to make it's way into the forest where the road seemingly disappeared afterwards. "Err... whatever remains of the road. Giselle," He looked back at his girlfriend. "You walk behind me and take my hand. Misty, you walk behind Giselle while Brock brings up the rear."

They all did as instructed and as soon as they were all in poisition, Giselle took Ash's hand in hers. He gave it a comforting squeeze before looking up at Pikachu. "You keep an eye out for anything that doesn't look right or safe, okay Pikachu?"

His Pokemon nodded and sparked his cheeks to show he understood. Finally, the group of friends stepped off the road and into the forest, instantly getting sucked up by the thick foliage that made up the dense maze of wild forest stretching on for miles ahead of them. What they were in for... none of them knew...

XXXXXXXXXXXX

A little over eight hours later found the young group of travelers traversing a very foresty looking bog. The entire landscape around them looked eery and desolate as a fog rolled across the water surrounding the area and blanketed the forest in it's shroud. The trees were all but barren with nothing on them and everything looked dark and even smelled liked swamp.

Old rotted foliage and stinky marsh combined with the musty smells of the swamp permeated every single inch of the terrain that could be seen. The trees were all quite large but looked to be half submerged in the bog's murky water. Small lights reflected off of the water and danced around in the open air which was created by a mixture of moonlight shining through the cracks of the treetops and the ethereal glow of the fog rolling off the water. The small orbs of blue and gold light would dance in the shadows of the distance and give a pretty, yet ominous look to everything.

The four friends had literally trekked through the vast forest all day long and even though the marshy bog they were traversing through now was nowhere near a walk in the park, it was still a nice change from what they had been walking through for the past seven hours.

Ever since they had entered the accursed forest, it had been nothing but barren ground everywhere covered with pine needles, debree and moss, mixed with extremely thick shrubs and thorn bush infested underbrush. At times it would be so thick it was like a jungle and at other times it was so sparse and dead looking, they actually missed seeing the jungle type terrain.

No Pokémon had been seen so far and the path was only distinguishable from everything else by the slightly worn and rough appearance of a trail that weaved through some of the most extreme of places.

They had followed this very path/trail like a lifeline and never let it leave their sight. The two breaks they had taken to eat- and train for Ash and Giselle's evening session- were spent almost directly on the path for fear of losing it. Which, getting lost in this forest meant staying lost... forever... or until death. The former being more likely than the immediate latter.

This continued on all day long until only during the last hour did they finally get a change of scenery in the bog they were now crossing. As of currently, they were all but straddling the path that led just along the edge of the marsh with Ash holding onto Giselle's hand tightly and her all but pressed up into his back. Misty and Brock were right behind them and already had messy shoes from the few times their feet had slipped down into the nasty water. Their clothes were all slightly scuffed up and each of them were dirty in some way.

"Grrr!" Misty growled loudly as she nearly slipped into the water again. "I hate this bog and I hate this forest! When are we going to reach that damned town?!" She fumed.

Brock tried to placate her. "Easy now Misty easy! I'm sure we'll get there soon..."

She rounded on him. "Shut up! You haven't been the one falling into some nasty ass water every time you turn around!"

Ash called back to them, "Guys please be quite! Fighting isn't going to help us get out of here. I'm sure the town can't be too far from here so lets just keep going," He urged.

Misty fell silent but still grumbled to herself. Giselle asked Ash as they passed over another large tree root carefully so they didn't drop into the water, "Do you think the people at Shadows Hollow are really going to be mean and maybe even hostile?" She inquired worriedly.

Ash looked straight ahead and kept moving forward as he did. "I don't know Giselle. I hope to Arceus they're not but its impossible to know until we actually get there."

She nodded and they all fell silent as they continued on. Finally, they managed to get through the worst of the bog and were now standing on drier land that lead into thicker forest again. Misty groaned. "Great... another crawl through the jungle!" She sighed. "The scratches from the thorns from earlier still hasn't stopped hurting yet!"

Ignoring his complaining friend, Ash lead the way forward into the thicket. As they walked on into the dense, almost jungle-like terrain again, they found themselves in near pitch darkness from the sheer lack of moonlight that was able to shine down due to the extremely dense trees shrouding the area.

On and on they walked like this, carefully trying to stay on the trail so as not to stray and get lost. They continued to stay in contact with each other so they would know where the other was and this also helped them to navigate with less of chance of becoming lost or getting hurt.

Brock grunted. "Thank Arceus the map is useless here and we don't need it right now or otherwise we'd be screwed! I can't see shit in this dark forest!"

Giselle stumbled and went to fall forward but her flailing arms managed to grab onto something and kept her from falling. She felt as though she had grabbed onto something firm and as she climbed her way back up, using the object as a support of sorts, she sighed in relief. "Whew! Thank goodness this small tree was here!"

She heard a cough that almost sounded like snickering and she looked ahead. "What? What is it?!" Her eyes widened in the darkness. "What did I grab onto?!" She shrieked in panic.

She heard the snickering again before Ash's voice was heard. "Hey umm... Giselle? As flattered as I am that you apparently like holding onto my butt, could you please let it go now? You're uhh... making it sort of hard to walk y'know?"

The quickly reddening girl heard Brock and Misty snicker behind her and she shot a glare behind her at where she thought they were. "You two just zip it!" She turned back forwards as her hands reached up higher to grasp at the lower portion of Ash's tracksuit instead. "Ash..." Her voice was a little higher than usual and he could tell she was feeling mortified. "I am so... SO sorry!"

Ash stifled another chuckle to save his girlfriend further humiliation and reached his hands back, patting her arms comfortingly. "Its okay Giselle, just forget about it. I'm not upset at all, okay?"

Getting a tentative and slightly high pitched 'okay' from the obviously still embarrassed girl, Ash decided to let her recover from her 'blunder' in respectful silence.

The four friends then continued their journey further into the heart of the dense forest after that little 'incident' and somewhere around half an eyebrow hour later (estimated really since there was no honest way to tell time in such mind boggling darkness) Ash thought he was finally able to see a break in the seemingly never ending forest up ahead and called back to his friends, "Hey guys, I think we're almost out of it!"

Misty, Brock, Giselle and even Pikachu looked ahead and saw that Ash seemed to be indeed right. There was a rather large opening in the trees ahead that was feeding some much needed moonlight in at them. Feeling slightly invigorated at knowing they were almost out of the hellish terrain, they picked up their pace a little more and remained silent as they neared the break in the trees. Once they finally reached the exit and stepped out, each of them were struck with different feelings at what they were seeing in front of them.

"Well..." Brock began with a stunned look on his face. "This wasn't what I was expecting..."

Misty took a look around. "This place is exactly the way you would imagine it looking from the descriptions the guidebook gives of it..." She said in a less than pleased tone.

Giselle actually wrinkled her nose up a bit. "Why would anyone want to live here?!"

Ash took his own look around the area they had found themselves in and was assured that they had finally found their intended destination. The clearing in the trees they had just stepped through revealed a much, much more open landscape than what the traveling friends had seen in over the past eight hours.

There, lain out in front of them on both sides of a normal looking road that resembled the one they had been on before entering the forest earlier that day, was a moderate sized town. Houses, a few shop-type buildings and other dwellings which would be found in any well established community, were sprawled out in an almost straight line down the well maintained, but mostly untraveled looking road.

The town was resting in what appeared to be a very large grassy meadow existing within the otherwise all consuming forest that lay just outside of it. Trees, tall and imposing, were seen scattered here and there throughout the smallish town with different sized patches of grassy field terrain in-between a few of the houses and other buildings at different spots.

The town and the road that lead through it seemed to go in a straight line for some ways until it finally hit forest again further down near the end. The entire town was surrounded by thick forest on all sides while some of the houses were close enough to the outskirts of it to have the unfriendly woodland as their own backyard.

The houses and other buildings themselves looked to be somewhat modern, if not a decade or so behind the times, and looked well maintained for the most part. A little weathered here and there perhaps for a few of them but mostly, they were all in well kept condition. The cloudless night sky up above them filtered it's moonlight down on the town and gave it a rather eery glow. Which was the one big issue Ash and his friends instantly found with the town... it was creepy. Plain and simple, it just looked creepy.

Even though the town wasn't all run down buildings, abandoned houses and overgrown with nature like they thought it was going to be, the feel that the entire place gave off was just spooky. None of the dwellings or establishments seemed to show any life to them at all, no lights were on (even though it was nighttime) and the weirdest thing yet... the whole town seemed to have a light fog floating through it.

The only light in the whole area came from the moon and that only gave the fog an even creepier appearance. If that wasn't enough, the lack of anybody anywhere only made things worse and the general ominous atmosphere was enough to give one cold chills.

Giselle latched onto Ash's arm while getting behind him. "This place is just scary..."

Misty rubbed her shoulders. "Am I the only one that's cold?"

Ash simply shared a glance with Brock who nodded. "Well... we're not going to get anything done by just standing around here. Lets head into the town and see if we can find someplace to stay for the night."

With that said, Ash and Brock, followed by the two precocious girls, started making their way down the road towards the town. Pikachu keeping a constant careful eye out with his ears perked up the entire time.

They arrived at the town's entrance a few minutes later and noticed an old worn looking sign suspended by a poll, which was hanging down low. Brock walked up to it to get a closer look and read the words on the sign aloud, "It says, 'Shadows Hallow'. Hmm..." He put his hand to his chin. "No welcome or anything. Maybe what Donny said about this place was right after all."

Ash looked into the town and motioned forward. "Come on, we won't know until we experience it for ourselves." Just as he started to cross into the town past the sign, a man dressed in a long black rain coat holding a lantern stepped out from behind a small shack a little ways away. Ash and his friends stopped mid-step as the man held his hand out and spoke in a deep, gruff tone. "Stop! What are you four doing here in Shadows Hallow? What is your business here?!" He demanded in an impolite manner.

Ash held his hands up and answered calmly and quickly, "Sir, my name is Ash Ketchum and these are my friends. We've been traveling through the forest all day and are looking for a place to stay for the night. As for why we're here, I'm looking to challenge this town's Pokémon Gym." He spoke with confidence and surety, showing no fear to the man.

The 'town guard' as they were dubbing him in their minds, stayed silent for a few moments and seemed to be contemplating (even though they couldn't see his face from behind his hood that he had up). Eventually, the man lowered his lantern and spoke in the same deep voice, "Alright... follow me."

Without another word, the man turned around and started leading the four travelers into the town. As Ash and his friends followed the no nonsense man, Giselle never taking her hand from Ash's and Misty actually walking up to stand behind him as well, they had the chance to check the town out around them.

Ash noticed how everywhere he looked, be it home or business, he would occasionally see people looking out of their windows at them but never making an attempt to step outside. He even saw a few children playing in their yards but they were quickly pulled inside by who he was guessing was their parents.

He then called up to the man leading them, the lantern said man held swinging slowly left and right as it cast it's glow to a small area around them. "Excuse me sir but... why does everyone I'm seeing keep looking at me and my friends with such strange looks? Is it something we did?" He asked curiously.

The large man in the rain coat didn't turn around or break stride as he answered gruffly, "They don't like outsiders. None of us do."

With that simple, yet oh so telling statement, the children fell silent and allowed the man to continue leading them down the street. Eventually, they came to stand in front of a medium sized house that had two levels to it and was painted all white. There was a white picket fence around the yard, which had a mixture of grass and trees within it, and a small sign near the sidewalk that led up to the house. The sign in question read, 'Hallows Inn'.

"Come on," The man ordered as he started walking down the path and up to the house.

Ash and his friends followed and soon they were standing on the porch. The hooded man opened up the door, a bell-like ring announcing their entrance from above their heads, and stepped inside with the kids behind him.

Once inside, Ash looked around and noticed that the, what he guessed would be called the lobby, was rather spacious and had a front desk at the very front of the room. Couches, chairs and other small sitting areas were situated around the room in separate places so waiting guests could have their space from one another. Small coffee and side tables were set up at the sitting areas and rugs of different color and designs were spread out everywhere on the hardwood floor of the lobby.

Bookshelves covered the right hand wall while the left hand wall had a few doors in it that led to who knows what beyond. There was an impressive, antique looking chandelier hanging from the raftered ceiling that appeared as though it hadn't been turned on in some time and the ceiling itself looked to be made of some kind of brown wood. All in all, the inn could be placed under the more 'old timey' category of design.

The man led them up the front desk then and banged on the bell sitting atop it. They waited and a few moments later, a door to the right behind the counter opened up and out came a man dressed in white nightgown complete with a sleeping cap on his head. He looked to be in his forties and had greying hair and a wrinkled face. He walked up to the counter tiredly and looked at the man in the rain coat. "What is it Jim?" He asked in an obviously irritated tone of voice.

The now named Jim gestured to the kids behind him and answered, "These four need a place to stay for the night. Think you can set them up?"

With a tired glance at Ash and his friends he addressed them, "The rooms are cold and we don't give out many blankets. Still wanna stay?"

Ash shared a look and his friends and, seeing as there was no other options since no one wanted to sleep outside in the creepy town, they nodded. Ash looked back at the man and answered him politely, "Yes please sir, we would very much like a room."

The older looking innkeeper reached under the counter and pulled out a room key before speaking to Ash again. "It'll be thirty for the night for all four of you in one room with three beds. I know it's one less bed than what you need but you'll just have to make do. You two boys sleep with each other and let the girls have the other two or whatever, I don't care. Sleep on the floor if you can't decide but that's all we have to offer. Take it or leave it."

Ash raised an eyebrow at that. He found it highly unlikely, also given the general unpleasant atmosphere of the town and the so far surly attitude of the people living there, that the inn would be packed so full so all they had available was one room with three beds and no others. Especially given that the house was so big and Shadows Hallow had such a bad reputation amongst outsiders that practically everyone avoided it.

Still though... Ash didn't feel like getting into such a thing with an obviously very grouchy inn keeper so he just nodded instead. "Yes sir, that will be fine."

The innkeeper eyed them all for a few moments before nodding and looking at Jim. "Alright, we're fine here Jim. You can go back to your post now."

Jim merely nodded his reply and then turned around before walking back towards the door. Not so much as a 'bye', 'have a good one' or even a 'screw you' to the four friends as he walked out and pulled the door shut behind him. His heavy footsteps being heard as they echoed off the porch steps and away into the night.

The innkeeper then took a candle on the counter and lit it with a match he pulled from underneath it. After that, he grabbed the candle and also a room key from a board full of hanging keys behind him on the wall before walking out from behind the desk. He opened a door to the left of the counter and called back an irritable 'come on' to the kids and then disappeared into the next room.

Sharing a quick glance with his friends, Ash led the way as they followed the older man back through a long hall. They went almost all the way to the end of the hallway before the inn keeper stopped at a door that was right beside of a set of steps that lead up to the next level of the inn.

Just before he unlocked the door, he turned around and fixed the young travelers with a stern glare. "Now listen up you four! I said I don't care who takes what bedding arrangements and its true, I don't give two fiddlers pipes! However, I'm no fool and I know boys and girls sleeping in one room together can lead to things. While you four may look too young in my opinion to do that kind of crap, I'm not your parent or your babysitter so it ain't my concern what you do! I don't give a flying Flaffy what you do so if anything happens, keep it quite and don't let me hear it! I get up early every morning to run this place and don't want to be kept up all night by a bunch of horny kids. Got it?!"

Both Misty and Giselle looked mortified at what the older man was insinuating- Misty looking like she actually wanted to strangle the old grouch- while even Brock sported a slight blush. Not at the mention of sex but the mention of doing such a thing with either Misty or Giselle, who were both standing right beside of him! Ash was also slightly taken aback by what the older man suggested but was able to school his features enough to reply back evenly and coolly, "Yes sir, I understand and you won't have to worry about us. We just thank you for letting us stay here."

The old innkeeper grumbled a few words under his breath but seemed appeased nonetheless as he simply nodded and unlocked the door. After he was done the man pushed the door open and then, without even a grunt to them, made his way back down the hallway.

Ash and his still flustered friends walked into the room and shut the door behind them. Flipping on the light switch, they were greeted with the sight of a rather plain looking room. There were three beds, just as the inn keeper said, in a perfect line along the front wall where two windows rested. One near the bed on the far right and the other above the bed on the far left. The middle bed was in-between both windows, thus getting the least amount of moonlight shining onto it, helped by the fact that the windows had curtains. Which were currently drawn back.

There were two night stands set at the beds on the far left and right, the middle having none, and a lone dresser with a mirror on the top resting directly against the wall in front of the beds, near the door and the light switch. To the far left of the room in the corner was a door left slightly ajar, which by the looks of it was the bathroom.

Ash and the others walked over and set their packs down on the evenly spaced apart beds before taking a seat on them. Brock and Misty on two and Ash and Giselle on one. Pikachu hopped off of Ash's shoulder and went to the foot of the bed he and Giselle were sitting on, stretching out with a yawn and then curling up into a ball for sleep. The long day of traveling through the harsh forest, staying constantly alert, and then training in the same forest on behest of his crazy trainer had tired the small Pokémon out.

Ash smiled at his Pokémon and scratched him behind the ears before speaking to his friends. "So... what do you guys think so far?"

Brock leaned back slightly on the bed he was on and answered a second later, "Honestly? It seems so far that what we were told by Donny and what we read about this place in the guide was definitely accurate. The people here don't seem to be all that friendly and the entire town in itself has a very unappealing feel to it."

Misty snorted. "The people here are just plain out rude! Can you believe that old man saying what he did about us doing..." She blushed red. "'That' together in here? What a creepy old pervert!"

Giselle shivered slightly with her arms rubbing her shoulders. "He was a dirty, grouchy old man that's for sure but the guy who brought us here was even worse."

Ash put his arm around her comfortingly as he sighed. "Just try to remember that we'll only be here for tonight and then just long enough tomorrow for me to have my gym battle. After that's done we'll get out of here as soon as we can and start making our way to Lavender Town. So just hang in there for awhile okay guys? I'm sorry about all of this but it won't last long. Honestly, I don't think the problem here in this town is as extreme was what we think it is," He ventured.

Misty raised an eyebrow as she took off her shoes and socks and then laid down on the bed, propping herself up to look at him. "How so?" She asked skeptically.

Ash just shrugged. "I don't think this place is a 'dark town' nor do I think it's something that the world has just forgotten or faded into obscurity. I think, judging by how well maintained everything here in seems to be, that this town is pretty self sustaining and just doesn't like outside visitors coming in and 'disturbing their flow' so to speak."

He sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "This place is so out of the way of the rest of the region that travelers passing through here has to be a rare occurrence. Or at least rare in comparison to some of the other places we've been to. The town probably gets most of their resources from the forest surrounding them and know how to navigate it to do so, unlike us.

This just seems to be a pretty well in control and prospering place. The only thing they lack is a cheerful atmosphere and friendly occupants, which has given Shadows Hallow the horrible reputation that keeps most everyone from the outside world away. Because of that, I'm content to just finish the gym battle tomorrow and then get out of here and leave these people to what they apparently like... solitude."

The other three were silent as Ash explained his thoughts to them but after he was finished, it seemed to make sense to them. Brock even nodded. "That actually does sound pretty plausible. Just a community of people that like to be to themselves... makes sense to me."

Misty laid back on a pillow and huffed. "Yeah well either way... it still doesn't make that old man or town guard any less creepy!"

Giselle merely gave an agreeable nod of the head while Ash laughed. The way Misty could put things sometimes was just priceless to him! Sure she could be a little abrasive, sharp tongued and violent at times, but overall he really liked her. She could be funny in the way she acted, especially when she was mad (which for some reason he found very cute, like with Giselle).

However, even then... she could be very sweet and compassionate when the situation called for it, towards both people and Pokemon (again, like Giselle) and to top it all off, Misty was attractive in her own right. Sure it may have taken him awhile to get used to her little 'quirks' when they first started traveling together but in the end, he was very glad she came along since she did make a great traveling companion.

He knew most likely that if he were any less mature than he was now, he and Misty would probably buck heads and fight a lot. As it was though, he learned to adapt and become accustomed to how she was. His mother always taught him that if you liked someone then you had to learn to overlook their little flaws and find a way to handle them without changing who they were to truly get along.

Everyone, including him most definitely, had flaws and things that were annoying about themselves. It was only human. As people and as friends however, you had to learn how to accept those little 'ticks' or otherwise you would never truly like or be happy around anyone. That's what he always tried to do with people and that's exactly how he handled Misty. If she did something that annoyed him or acted in a way he didn't like, he would just ignore it and move on. Easy and simple.

Ash also realized that a lot of how Misty was probably came from some form of self defense system that she had developed over the years of being the youngest of three older and much more beautiful sisters. Misty was definitely cute and attractive in her own way but Daisy, Lily and Violet were three rare beauties that were hard to beat. Not to mention they were also very talented with their water acrobatics, had great senses of style, were very athletic and they were also smart in their own ways. Despite their almost constant infuriating use of the word 'like' in every other sentence they spoke.

Ash knew that Misty probably spent her whole life being the black Mareep of the bunch and because of that, she probably spent a lot of time trying to find something that was just hers to help her stand out from her sisters. Being somewhat loud, outspoken and aggressive to a fault was probably part of the coping mechanism she had created to prevent being eclipsed by her sister's shadows.

The Pallet native figured that Misty would find her own true personality eventually and someday catch up to her sisters in every way, even beauty. Until that time came though, he understood that Misty would probably remain how she was now and lash out at times to deal with her insecurities.

Still though, he was her friend and he would put up with every bad quality she possessed so she never had to feel left out or alone while she was with them. Who knows, maybe traveling with them all would help Misty find her own self and become more at peace with who she was?

To tell the truth, if he was totally honest, had he not ever met Giselle and it were just he, Brock and Misty, he could have actually seen himself dating the redhead. He had no doubt he could put up with her mood swings and violence and even calm her down when the time called for it so why not? Either way though, he had met and was now with Giselle and he wouldn't change that at all.

Ash shook his head then from the thoughts of the three very attractive Sensational Sisters that were now starting to swim through his head (no pun intended) and decided to change subjects so his mind would stray no further. "Hey guys, why don't we get some sleep now so we can get up early tomorrow? I want to prepare my Pokémon as best as possible for the match."

Receiving nods of agreement, each of them took turns using the bathroom and getting ready for bed until they were all finally done and ready for sleep. Brock brought up something then that they were all wondering about but were reluctant to speak on, "Hey umm... how are we going to work out bed arrangements exactly?" He asked somewhat awkwardly.

Ash answered instantly, "Giselle and Misty get the two beds and you can have the last one Brock. I'll sleep on the floor," He said while going over to his pack to retrieve his sleeping bag.

Just as Brock and Misty were about to protest him sleeping on the floor, Giselle spoke up somewhat shyly. "Umm... Ash?"

He turned to her. "Yes Giselle?"

The girl appeared slightly red at the cheeks as she played with the bottom of her black sleeping shorts. "Why don't you and I just share a bed?" She suggested with a very visible red dusting on her cheeks now.

Brock, Misty and Ash all looked equally stunned by what she suggested. Brock looked simply stunned, Ash appeared as though he hadn't heard correctly and Misty looked extremely jealous at the thought of Giselle cuddling up to Ash in bed.

The raven haired trainer shook his head then and asked, "Err... what was that Giselle? I don't think I heard you right," He said while picking at his ear.

Giselle rolled her eyes. "Oh come on Ash! Its not like we're going to do anything, just sleep! Besides, you're my boyfriend and I'm your girlfriend, it won't be weird!" She insisted with her arms crossed as she sat on her knees on the bed.

Ash thought about it for a minute and then realized that there truly would be nothing wrong with it. It wasn't like they were going to be having sex after all and besides, even if they wanted to, Brock and Misty would in the beds right beside of them.

Coming to his conclusion, Ash smiled and nodded. "Yeah you're right Giselle, its just sharing a bed, nothing worse than that. If you really wouldn't mind then I would love to share a bed with you. Thank you," He answered with a charming smile that brought a rather shy one from her.

Brock and Misty just chose to remain silent, seeing as though there really was nothing wrong with Ash and Giselle merely sleeping together and also because it wasn't their business what the two of them did. Hell they were all sleeping in one room regardless of who bedded with whom so it didn't really change anything and besides, they all slept so close together anyway when they camped outside that sharing a bed seemed of little consequence.

After they were all fully ready and prepared for sleep, they slipped under the covers of their beds and Ash turned off the light. He then navigated his way back to the bed he was going to be sharing with Giselle by using the moonlight that was shining into the room from the two windows as his light source.

Once he arrived at the bed, he looked down and saw Pikachu already curled up asleep at the foot of it. He smiled and then looked up to see Giselle already settling herself under the covers. Ash carefully slid in next to her and settled himself a healthy distance away so she had plenty of room and didn't feel smothered. They both said their goodnights to each other afterwards and then closed their eyes to sleep.

Not even ten minutes later, Ash was already very close to being fully asleep when he felt Giselle poke him. He ignored it since he figured it was just her doing something in her sleep but then he felt again. He opened his eyes and heard her whisper to him, "Ash? Hey Ash are you awake?"

The boy turned around until he was staring into the eyes of his girlfriend. "Hey Giselle what's up? Can you not sleep?" He asked concerned.

She shook her head and drew the blankets up to her chin closer. "No, I'm cold. This room is really chilly and these blankets don't do the best job in keeping you warm..." She shivered and Ash frowned.

Acting on his first instincts, he gently took her by the shoulders and pulled her in until she was flush against his body. Giselle seemed to go stiff for a moment as she looked at him in surprise, "Ash, what are you doing?"

He smiled at her and just wrapped the blanket around them both. "I'm not about to let my girlfriend go cold when there's something I can do about it. Besides, we're just going to sleep and nothing else is going to happen besides that. Are you okay with that?"

Giselle felt Ash's warmth radiate off of him and a smile crossed her lips at his caring concern for her. She began to feel much warmer with Ash's body heat soaking into her and her eyes started to grow heavy. "Yes Ash, I'm okay with this. Thank you for being so concerned for me..."

Ash just smiled and held her tighter. "You're very welcome. Goodnight Giselle."

The sleepy girl merely gave a tired and muffled reply in return before she went silent, Ash assuming she was already fast asleep. He smiled to himself again before his own eyes started to feel heavy. Eventually, the couple both entered into the world of dreams together as the moon continued to filter it's calming lunar light into the otherwise desolate and cold room.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The next morning found the young group of friends walking through the now awake and slightly active town. It was right at seven in the morning and the dew from last night still hung in the forest canopy and on the ground. Even though it was daylight out, the town still looked less than joyous. Oddly enough, the fog seemed to be something that was ever present even if only slightly during the day as well.

The town was definitely well maintained once one was able to see it with proper lighting and it really wasn't all that big. Maybe comparable in size to Kaston Village that Ash and his friends had went to so he could win his Nature Badge, only slightly smaller.

Ash had awoken that morning at five o'clock sharp and then he and his Pokémon had their usual morning training session just outside of the town in the forest. They had managed to find a small clearing and it served it's purpose over all. The training hadn't been so much intense as it was just a time to warm up and also for Ash to instruct his Pokémon on the upcoming battle, give them an uplifting speech and also to hash out a few final details and need to know info on Dark-Type Pokémon.

After that, they had went back to the inn to find that it was already open and that his friends were up and waiting for him in the kitchen where Brock was already preparing breakfast. The inn keeper was just as unpleasant as ever and made it a point to complain about all manner of things, which the group simply ignored and humored politely.

After breakfast and they had all cleaned up, gotten ready and Ash restored his Pokémon's energy as best as he could (since there was no Pokémon Center in Shadows Hallow) they left the inn after paying the rude innkeeper. The four of them all chipped in to pay for the night stay and on the way out the door, each of them could swear they saw a happy gleam in the old grouch's eyes at finally seeing them go. The feeling was mutual enough though; none of them liked him nor he them.

As they made their way through the town and saw the people going about their daily routines, they were all equally as struck by just how unfriendly the townspeople were. It wasn't so much that the people had been rude, in fact just the opposite since literally no one talked to them, as it was just plain out coldness. The people of the town made no secret of translating through their eyes and cold stares just how much they didn't want the outsiders in their town and the message had been received loud and clear.

Ash managed to coerce the location of the gym out of a man who had been sweeping the front porch of his house but that was as far as they had got in communication with any of the people. The man's directions to the gym ended up taking them all the way to the end of town where the main road picked back up and went into the forest again. The only difference between the road (more like shabby path) that lead into the town and the one that lead out of it was that there was a two way intersection a short ways onto it.

The one way lead deeper into the forest away from town and the other way went onto a much more well trodden path that headed into a lighter section of the woods. Taking the left path, since that was the way the man told them to go to reach the gym, the four friends made their way into the shallower section of the forest behind the town.

After a short time of walking, they came out into a rather spacious clearing that had a large, almost shrine looking building set up in the center of it and looked very similar to a cross between a prayer shrine and small warehouse. The building also looked to be in need of a few cosmetic repairs and the official seal of the Pokémon League above the door appeared to be somewhat faded.

Ash and the others approached the building and after taking in it's appearance, they walked up the few steps there were to the porch and stood in front of the door. Ash looked at his friends one last time and after getting an encouraging nod from them, he knocked on the door. They waited for several moments until the old wooden door eventually creaked open and allowed them entrance.

The four young friends stepped inside and the first thing Ash noticed was how dark and gloomy everything looked. The entire building was like one massive room that resembled the inside of a warehouse down to an almost perfect 'T'.

There were four wooden pillars on each side of the building that kept the ceiling up, large glass windows that were faded from grime and dirt stretching out on both walls and the general interior of the building looked to be mostly wooden rafter ceilings and concrete walls/floors. There were a few overhead headlamp lights that stretched from one end of the building to the other and at the farthest end away from Ash and the others, a lone door stood against the distant wall that apparently led back into some other room.

As Ash stepped forward, the lights in the gym suddenly came to life and lit up the building in an eery glow of sorts. Now that the lighting was better, he could see that the battle field was stretched out directly in front of him and took up most of the gym floor. The traditional white marking lines were painted inside of the ring with the Pokémon League symbol emblazoned in the very center.

The back door opened up a few moments later then and an older man stepped through. He walked quietly out into the light and Ash was able to get a good view of him. The man looked to be well into his sixties, had a long white beard stretching down to his stomach and similar length white hair that stretched down to his shoulders.

He was bald in the center of his head however and his face itself looked to be rather aged and wrinkled, a definite sign of the many years he had lived. He wore a black, almost blue robe with a black undershirt, black belt to keep his robe tied together and sandals on his feet with white socks. His hands were up within the long arm folds of his robes.

The old man walked out until he was standing in the trainer's box on his end and eyed Ash and his friends with a critical gaze. After a few moments of silence, he finally spoke in a gruff and haggard voice. "You kids here to challenge my gym?" He asked bluntly.

Ash was the one to answer him, "Yes sir, I am the one that's here to challenge your gym. My name is Ash Ketchum and we have traveled a long way here to Shadows Hallow purely for the sake of finding this gym," He answered in a polite and respectful tone.

The old man crossed his arms and raised an all white eyebrow. "Did you now? Well I have to say I am surprised. Not many people pass through this town and those that do are most of the time just lost. I seldom get challengers here at my gym, regardless of the fact I've not been here for too long. This is a town that takes the people here a long time to warm up to you but I like my privacy and quiet so it suits me just fine," He explained.

Ash smiled. "Yeah I had a feeling that there was more to this town than met the eye but I just chalked it up to the locals not liking outsiders for whatever reason. We arrived late last night and had to stay at the inn here in town. Who I'm guessing was the town gate guard guided us there after we arrived and neither he nor the manager of the inn was very... talkative. Even when they did speak I could tell they weren't happy that they had to deal with us."

The old man let an aged smile cross his lips. "Ah so you must have met Jim and Harry eh?" He chuckled slightly which sounded like an engine that hadn't been started in awhile. "Nice guys those two, once you get to know em' of course. They may seem like a couple of hard asses but once you get to know them they're actually two of the nicer ones here in town."

Ash and his friends all shared a look at this. If the two men they had to deal with last night were the friendly ones then none of them wanted to meet the unfriendly townspeople. The old man chuckled again before addressing Ash once more, "Well kid I'll give you this, if you and your friend crossed through that forest, let alone at night, just to get here and challenge my gym... you've apparently got guts.

To tell the truth, ever since I first came here from Johto and opened up my gym, I haven't had one trainer come and challenge my gym on purpose. Its always been because they got lost in the forest, managed to find the town and then heard about my gym while resting up. They've all come to try and beat me but unfortunately..." He closed his eyes and shook his head. "They've all fallen short."

Ash nodded. "Yeah that's what the guidebook on gyms of the Kanto region said about this gym. That you've only been here for a short period but in that time, no one has managed to defeat you."

The man smiled vaguely. "Ah so you studied up before coming here I see? Smart, quite smart indeed. A talent that all of my other challengers has lacked to possess I'm afraid. The only gym badge I've given out so far was to a boy with a Cubone that found the place and challenged me. He didn't win but he had determination, he and his Pokémon both.

They wouldn't take defeat for an answer and kept coming back to challenge me over and over again. I dare say they impressed me with their resolve to not give up and after our fourth match, the best one we had, I awarded him the badge. Sometimes showing personal value over victory is worth more than a hundred wins combined," He said sagely.

Ash smiled at those words. "That sounds exactly like something my mentor back home would say and I would have to agree with both of you. While winning is great, strengthening the bond between oneself and their Pokémon, growing stronger in both body, mind and spirit and learning how to be better as a trainer and person can be more important than simply winning a match."

He bent down and rubbed Pikachu behind the ears. "I battle because I want to become closer to my Pokémon, understand them more and help them realize the true potential they hold." Ash looked back at the man as he stood up, Pikachu looking quite happy now. "So I agree with you sir and I hope I get a chance to battle that trainer someday."

Ash's words obviously impressed the older man because he smiled and sized the boy up. "Call me Walt kid and wise thinking for a kid your age. You seem to have a good head on your shoulders!" He smirked then before continuing. "I trust since you've read up on my gym you know about the type of Pokémon I use correct?"

The boy nodded. "Yes I do. Dark-Type Pokémon. A type not currently found in the wilds of Kanto, supposedly, but known for a fact to live in Johto. I've been preparing for this match Walt and my Pokémon and I are going to give it our all. If you accept our challenge of course."

Walt guffawed slightly and then looked back at Ash with a certain spark in his eyes. "Yes young man, I do accept your challenge and I hope you're prepared because I'm not going easy on you!" He pulled out a Pokéball from inside of his robes. "I may be old but I'm still spry! Referee, get out here!" He shouted.

Not even ten seconds after, the back door opened up again and an official Pokémon League licensed referee came running out onto the field. He was dressed in the standard referee uniform of shoes, long black socks, black shorts and a long shirt with the Pokémon League symbol etched onto the front of his left chest. This referee in particular's shirt was black.

The somewhat nervous looking ref practically bounded over to the ring and took a stiff position. "Yes sir Mr. Walt sir!"

Giselle, Misty and Brock all shared looks. "That Walt must really have his referee on a strict command huh?" Misty whispered to the others.

Brock nodded. "Yeah the guy looks like he doesn't even know the meaning of the word 'relax'."

Giselle snickered. "Some good training!"

The referee raised his hands up. "This will be a three on three Pokémon battle between Walt of the Shadows Hallow Gym and-" He stopped for a second and got Ash's full name before continuing. "Ash Ketchum the challenger! The match will be over whenever either side loses all of their Pokémon first. This match has no time limit and only the challenger is allowed substitutions. Are both opponents ready?" He looked between them both.

Both Ash and Walt nodded. Walt with a grin on his face and Ash looking determined.

The ref nodded. "Please choose your first Pokémon."

Walt enlarged the Pokéball in his hand. "Okay young man, I'll go first!" He threw the ball up into the air. "Murkrow, I choose you my old friend!" He shouted as the ball burst open and the Dark/Flying-Type Pokémon came flying out onto the field with a loud cry of, "Krow!"

Ash smiled. "A Murkrow eh? I figured that would be a possibility. So... I'm gonna go with someone you probably wouldn't expect." He then pulled out his selected Pokéball and murmured a few inaudible words of encouragement to it before tossing the ball out onto the field. "I need your will and strength... Bulbasaur!"

The Grass-Type Pokémon came forth from his Pokéball silently with fierce and watchful eyes that were locked into unwavering focus on the upcoming battle at hand. Murkrow never leaving his sight as it flapped around with it's somewhat mischievous face still seeming as though it was grinning.

Giselle seemed taken aback. "What?! Bulbasaur? But Grass-Types are weak against Flying Pokémon!"

Walt merely smirked. "Interesting choice young man. I know that you have to be aware of the weakness your Bulbasaur will have against my Murkrow."

Ash merely nodded. "We are much more than what simple type advantage and disadvantages may label us as Walt," He replied coolly.

The old man merely laughed. "Then lets see how far that confidence will take you! Murkrow use Peck!" He shouted.

Murkrow instantly shot down at the field heading straight for Bulbasaur with it's beak extended out and glowing brightly. Ash waited calmly with his arms crossed, Bulbasaur mirroring his trainer's relaxed posture as their opponent came hurdling at them. Just before the Dark-Type could get too close, Ash shouted, "Bulbasaur use your Vine Whip in double form and root yourself!"

The Grass-Type quickly brought out the vines from within his bulb and brought them together until the position he held them in resembled a club or bat. With a vicious swing as he rooted himself to the ground, Bulbasaur swung his joined vines at the Flying Pokémon and connected right on the side of it's beak. Murkrow's downward ascension mixed with Bulbasaur's powerful swing with his thick vines caused Murkrow to be batted away from him and tossed back up into the air.

Murkrow rolled upwards with a cry of surprise and Ash capitalized on it. "Now use your Razor Leaf in a cyclone formation to swarm and blind Murkrow!"

Bulbasaur called out his name and then sent dozens of razor sharp leaves at the still recovering Murkrow who looked to be somewhat dizzy from the roll. Walt watched in confusion as instead of the leaves making contact with his Pokémon, they instead swarmed all around him at different angles. Bulbasaur rotating his body and controlling the leaves trajectory into flying around Murkrow in an almost cyclone fashion. The leaves couldn't control themselves obviously but their creator's careful control of where they went almost made it look like they were actually forming a cyclone by illusion.

Murkrow looked at the wall of leaves circling around it and tried to find a way out as Ash called again, "Bulbasaur, run at that pillar and use it as a springboard to reach Murkrow!"

His Pokémoj took off like a little bullet towards the nearest wooden support pillar and jumped onto it with all four feet. He then quickly launched himself off of it with a powerful thrust of his legs straight up into the air towards Murkrow. Walt saw the now airborne Bulbasaur getting closer to his Pokémon and commanded, "Murkrow to the side! Watch out, fly away!"

Murkrow turned it's head to the side but it was too little too late as Bulbasaur passed through the ring of leaves that he had kept going the entire time had been moving. The Grass-Type impacted with the Dark/Flying-Type in a hard head ram and caused it to cry in pain with a loud, "Murkrow!"

Just as Bulbasaur passed by Murkrow, he turned in mid-air and wrapped his vines around the reeling bird Pokémon. He then cinched his vines together tightly after constricting his opponent and flipped in a fast turn as he started to fall towards the ground. His vines followed him in the rotation as Murkrow was spun in the air. Just before Bulbasaur hit the ground, he twisted his body again and released Murkrow towards the ground with a fast whipping motion.

Bulbasaur managed to land back on all four feet while Murkrow impacted the ground with a loud crashing sound. A dust cloud shot up into the air from where Murkrow had landed and Walt gritted his teeth in frustration, managing to keep his calm regardless of the situation.

The dust cloud cleared away and showed Murkrow struggling back to it's feet. A few bruises and dirt covered it's feathers but it still looked ready to battle regardless. It's eyes were locked onto Bulbasaur in a furious glare.

Ash didn't think the last attack would take Murkrow out and remained prepared for the Dark-Type to try and retaliate with a vengeance. He called out to his Pokémon then, "Bulbasaur, stay focused and sharp. This battle isn't over."

Bulbasaur nodded. "Bulba!"

Misty took in a breath. "That was a great combo Ash came up with but they really need to be careful now."

Giselle agreed. "Yeah that's one tough Pokémon."

Brock crossed his arms. "Murkrow hasn't used any of it's Dark-Type attacks yet so I hope Ash stays on his toes."

Back on the battlefield Walt merely nodded. "That was a good one Ash, very clever indeed. We're far from done though!" He pointed towards Ash and Bulbasaur. "Now Murkrow use Haze!"

Ash narrowed his eyes and prepared himself while his friends looked nervous. "Here it comes!" Misty said with anxiousness in her voice. "Watch out Ash!"

Murkrow arched it's body and spread it's wings out as it cawed loudly. It's eyes glowed red as a dark mist started to exude from around it, slowly spreading out until the entire battlefield became shrouded in a thick layer of black mist. Ash's eyes roved over the haze as he called into it, unable to see his Pokémon now. "Bulbasaur I need you to listen to me! Don't get psyched out by the haze okay? Just because you can't see doesn't mean you're helpless. You have other senses remember!"

Walt laughed from his side of the field. "Nice thinking Ash but its a whole different thing to know something and then put it into practice!" He laughed again. "Now... Murkrow use Wing Attack on Bulbasaur!"

Since Murkrow was a Dark-Type Pokémon, it could see clearly through even the darkest of conditions and the haze surrounding the field was nothing for it to handle. It's wings glowed brightly through the haze and it then charged at the grounded form of Bulbasaur down below, who was still struggling to see through the haze.

The Flying Pokémon impacted with Bulbasaur hard and sent the Grass-Type sprawling backwards. Unaware of the attack, Bulbasaur could only cry out as he was struck hard by the powerful wings.

Walt yelled again, "Wing Attack once more Murkrow! Keep it up!"

Murkrow flew back in again, completely uninhibited by the thick haze as it struck Bulbasaur from behind again. It repeated this process over and over again, hitting Bulbasaur from all sides who never had a chance to right himself before getting attacked again. Right after one of it's last Wing Attacks, Walt commanded, "Murkrow follow it up with Night Shade!"

The Dark/Flying-Type came out of it's last attack and did a flip in the air before speeding straight at Bulbasaur, who was now struggling to get up after having taken several super-effective Wing Attacks head on. Murkrow's eyes glowed red then before a beam of the same colored energy shot out of it's eyes and struck Bulbasaur right in the side, sending the Grass-Type skidding back across the floor on his stomach.

Walt then began ordering Murkrow to use a combination of Wing Attack and Night Shade on Bulbasaur, who was completely defenseless to do anything because of the haze. Ash could only stand outside of the haze and listen as he heard his Pokémon get hammered over and over again with attack after attack, unable to defend himself. The young trainer remained calm the entire time though, keeping his head level and nerves in check as he thought over all kinds of possibilities to help his Pokémon out of the tight spot he was in.

On the sidelines, the others were watching the battle with nervous excitement. Brock crossed his arms and stared intently at the battle. "This is bad... if Ash doesn't find someway to get rid of that haze then Bulbasaur is finished."

Misty looked worried but Giselle shouted over to her boyfriend, "Come on Ash! I know you can think of something to get Bulbasaur out of this mess! Just think!"

Ash heard his girlfriend but his brain was already running ten different scenarios in his head all at once like a high-speed computer as he searched for the best possible strategy.

Finally, after hearing Bulbasaur cry out from another attack, an idea came to him. He then shouted into the haze, "Alright listen to me Bulbasaur! I know you're tired and I know you're hurting right now but you've got to pull it together and focus on what I'm about to tell you to do alright? Can you do that buddy?!"

Bulbasaur heard his trainer and stood back up again, regaining his composure as he called back, "Bulbasaur!"

Ash smiled, Bulbasaur was definitely a trooper, that there was no denying. "That's what I'm talking about! Okay, I want you to try and hear where Murkrow is at and then send a Stun Spore in that direction!"

Bulbasaur did as instructed and shut his eyes while focusing his hearing. He listened intently and just managed to catch the flapping sound of Murkrow's wings. As soon as he heard it, he released a strong dose of paralyzing powder from the bulb on his back in the direction he heard the flapping.

Ash yelled again. "Now bring your vines out and start rotating them in a funnel like rotation around the spore you just released, do it now!"

The Grass-Type quickly pulled out his vines and hoisted them up into the air before spinning them around in fast circles. This created a sort of makeshift whirlwind that swirled around the spores that were just released. This concentrated burst of wind gave a considerable speed boost to the loose spores and sent them flying in the direction Murkrow was in at a much faster rate.

Walt was able to see the sparkles of the spore through the haze and knew they were heading right towards his Pokémon. He then shouted out, "Murkrow dodge those spores and use Night Shade to blast them apart!"

Murkrow quickly obeyed and flew to the side before aiming his eyes in the direction of the spores. He unleashed another Night Shade at them and the dark energy blasted them apart upon contact. Just as Walt thought they were out of the woods, Ash called out again. "Bulbasaur do the same thing but this time use Sleep Powder!"

Bulbasaur quickly repeated the combo and Walt, confused as to why they were doing this, ordered his Murkrow to do the same thing as before again to avoid it. No sooner did Murkrow break apart the Sleep Powder with Night Shade though and Ash was already ordering Bulbasaur to do the same thing again but with whatever spore attack of his choosing.

This went on for a few minutes with Ash giving strange directional commands to Bulbasaur. Like, "move left, now go!" and "slide back, then to the right and again!" Walt was horribly confused as to why they were going about such a strange and seemingly desperate attack strategy and he chalked it up to just that; panic and desperation. Which disappointed him.

He couldn't see however that Ash's attention the entire time was shifting between the battle and one of the windows on the right side of the building near the battlefield. Eventually, Ash saw the attacks in the haze become more and more centered until he guessed that Murkrow was hovering just in front of the very window he had been eyeing the entire time. Figuring that Bulbasaur was most likely directly in front of Murkrow, if his directional commands worked properly, he decided to implement the next phase of his plan.

He shouted into the haze, "Now Bulbasaur, from right where you're at do the same thing one more time and then jump back and turn left!"

Bulbasaur did as told and released another Stun Spore that he used his vines to funnel a gust of wind at, which propelled it towards Murkrow much faster. While the Dark-Type was being commanded by it's trainer to do the same counter again that they had been using, Bulbasaur hopped directly back a few feet and then turned left. The whole time up until he now he had been moving blind and only moving where Ash told him to.

Once Ash heard Bulbasaur land from his jump, he approximated that his Pokémon would now most likely be in the center of the battlefield. Lined up with both he and Walt and non-coincidentally, two windows of the building on his left and right.

Ash then quickly yelled out, "Now use Razor Leaf and shoot them directly to the right and left Bulbasaur!"

The Grass Pokémon did so without question and fired off a barrage of leaves to both of his lateral sides. Ash watched with baited breath as he heard the razor sharp leaves fly through the air within the fog. Seconds later, he saw what he had hoped for. The leaves came bursting out from the right and left sides through the haze and went straight for the windows that were in their path.

The leaves made contact with the old, brittle windows and shattered them instantly, the sound reverberating throughout the gym. Walt shot his head up and looked around at the loud sound. "What the Heliolisk?!"

Ash smirked and then yelled out again, "Now Bulbasaur, use your vines in the cyclone motion and blow the wind around from the right and left directions!"

Bulbasaur did just that and started spinning his vines around in fast circles, creating another gust of wind that blew the thick haze around. This time however, with two of the windows smashed out, the haze finally had someplace to go. Which was outside.

Ash's friends and Walt watched in amazement and if you were Walt, frustration, as the thick haze started getting blown out of the windows until finally, the gym was clear and visible once more.

The young Ketchum was finally able to see his Pokémon and saw that even though Bulbasaur looked a little tired, he was still ready to go. A definite sign of payoff from all the intense conditioning training he did. To be specific, he was more bruised and scratched up from getting pounded by Murkrow's surprise attacks while in the haze than anything else.

Walt grunted. "Good use of environment and strategy Ash but that won't save you! Murkrow use Wing Attack!" He shouted.

The Flying-Type shot down towards Bulbasaur, slower than before since it was obviously getting tired from the long battle, but Ash smiled. Bulbasaur could now see clearly and because of that, he was much more able to get out of the way of attacks than before. Bulbasaur apparently felt the same way because just before Murkrow could hit him, he jumped out of the way quickly and completely evaded the attack.

Walt started commanding Murkrow to use moves like Wing Attack, Night Shade and even Confuse Ray but each time Bulbasaur would manage to jump, roll and dodge out of the way in time or even use his vines to deflect certain threats like the Wing Attacks.

Murkrow ruthlessly charged Bulbasaur down and continued attacking him with his strong moves but the grounded Pokémon had been well trained and it showed from the way he swerved, dodged and avoided each attack that was sent his way.

While this was going on, Ash took a small second to formulate another strategy since he knew that Bulbasaur could keep up the evasion for a time, being that his conditioning was better than Murkrow's. Despite the battered shape of his body, Bulbasaur indeed was still full of energy and this gave Ash the time he needed to find a way to end the battle.

Scanning his surroundings, Ash finally came up with a complex winning strategy (at least he hoped) as he called out to Bulbasaur, "Okay, now I want you to start using Leech Seed on every inch of the gym you can while dodging Bulbasaur!"

Bulbasaur started jumping from place to place around the gym, dodging Murkrow's attacks while occasionally using his vines to block or even launching leaves as a quick counter. Each place he would land, the Grass Pokémon would plant a Leech Seed pod from the bulb on his back and then move on.

Everywhere he landed Bulbasaur would plant the pods all around the battlefield and even shoot them up towards the ceiling and support beams while he was jumping.

As this seemingly senseless cycle continued, Walt continued to have his Pokémon attack at Bulbasaur. Visibly becoming frustrated at the evasive Grass-Type and unable to understand what Ash was having Bulbasaur do. "Listen kid, your Bulbasaur just can't beat my Murkrow so stop trying! The whole time I've been here my Murkrow hasn't lost once and that kid with the Cubone lost to this very same Pokémon each time we battled. Stalling won't do you any good so stop running!"

Ash merely smiled slightly. While Walt was focused on Murkrow hitting Bulbasaur and talking to him, the final stage of his plan had just been achieved. Unnoticed to all that weren't paying attention, Bulbasaur had just planted his own little 'garden' around the dark lighted gym.

His eyes gleaming mirthfully, Ash yelled out, "Hey Walt, might wanna take a look around your gym and see the nice little seeds my Bulbasaur has left for your Murkrow!"

Walt seemed confused. "What are yo-" He started but then stopped as his eyes traveled around the gym and noticed that there now several small seed pods scattered practically everywhere within his gym. There were some on the battlefield, some on the outsides of the ring, the walls, the support pillars and even the ceiling. The old man looked to be at a total loss. "What... what is this?!"

Ash smirked. "Oh you'll see..." He then called out to Bulbasaur. "Now Bulbasaur, run around Murkrow and use Razor Leaf!"

The small Grass-Type nodded and then took off running as fast as his battered body would go, all while sending dozens of sharp leaves at Murkrow. Walt could only command his Pokémon to dodge the many leaves that were coming at Murkrow much too fast from the many different angles Bulbasaur kept sending them from to try any kind of counter attack. Not to mention, he could also tell his Pokémon was getting too tired to use it's moves as fast and effectively as it had been.

Bulbasaur just continued to run around sporadically while firing off a near endless volley of leaves at the tired Murkrow, who was only able to dodge as best as it could to avoid getting hit. After a few minutes of this went on, Bulbasaur had ended up pushing Murkrow towards the middle of the ring until it was hovering directly over the center emblem of the Pokémon League. Right above where one of the seeds Bulbasaur had planted were currently residing as matter of fact.

Ash knew then that it was time. He called out quickly, "Bulbasaur, jump back now and activate your Leech Seed pods!"

What happened next was something that amazed everyone watching and could be related back to whenever Ash used a similar strategy, just on a much smaller scale, on one of Misty's sisters back at the Cerulean Gym with his Roselia.

Bulbasaur called out his name loudly as the bulb on his back slightly started to glow. Then, like a veracious act of nature, the many seed pods around the gym opened up and started sprouting their energy sapping tendrils all around the battlefield. The pattern in which Bulbasaur had planted them caused the seeds to open and spread their vines out into a dome shape. The vines connecting with one another and attaching tightly in intertwining formations. Unfortunately for it, Murkrow became trapped right in the center of the dangerous dome of energy draining vines and had nowhere to escape to.

In a panic, the bird Pokémon tried to fly through the vines only to get shocked by the energy sapping tendrils and sent spinning back into the center of the 'cage'. Bulbasaur had his body rooted to the ground and a concentrated look on his face as he controlled the vines and once they were fully armed and ready... he quite literally 'lit them up'.

"BULBAAAA!" He cried loudly as the bulb on his back glowed brightly and the vines making up the dome came to life. To Walt's horror and Murkrow's eventual excruciating pain, the energy vines began glowing bright red as their energy stealing properties latched onto the only living thing in the dome. Which was Walt's by now terrified Pokémon.

The entire gym lit up brightly as Murkrow was struck by countless bolts of energy sapping electricity. Brock, Misty, Giselle and Walt watched wide eyed as the makeshift bird cage drained it's feathered occupant of it's energy in copious, painful chunks. Murkrow screeched loudly in pain as it's energy was stolen from itself and left feeling as weak as a newborn fledgling.

Ash called over to Walt while the 'light show' played out. "Grass-Type moves may not be effective against Flying-Types in small, isolated instances Walt, but make it big enough and put enough power behind it and even the weakest Grass-Type move will take down the strongest Flying Pokémon."

Walt just listened to Ash and watched helplessly as his Pokémon was continually drained of it's energy. After what seemed like hours but was really only a few minutes, the vines finally stopped being able to get anymore energy from Murkrow and finished their draining of the poor Pokémon.

No sooner did the tendrils stop sucking energy and they instantly became inactive and started to wilt, quickly shriveling up and dropping down to the ground in a large heap. Murkrow hovered in the air for a second, it's body still trembling from the massive energy drain it had endured, before falling out of the air and crashing into the ground with a 'thud'.

Bulbasaur began absorbing all of the stolen energy into his body through the vines that were now lying on the ground and as he did so and his energy was restored, the vines began vanishing into nothing.

Once he was done, Bulbasaur stood in place looking completely recharged and restored. At least energy wise. The cuts, bruises and marks still remained from the battle and he was still tired but his energy had at least been replenished.

Murkrow just lay on the ground, still convulsing slightly from the internal thrashing Leech Seed had given it but with eyes that were now totally unfocused. Bulbasaur still stood ready and waiting in case his opponent somehow got back up but upon closer inspection, it was very clear to see by the swirls in it's eyes that Murkrow was out cold.

The referee raised his hand then. "Murkrow is unable to battle, Bulbasaur is the winner!

Walt was completely stunned, needless to say, that his Murkrow had finally been defeated but couldn't help but smile. He returned his exhausted Pokémon to it's ball and thanked it before calling over to Ash, "That was without a doubt incredible Ash. My Murkrow may have never been beaten before today but after a genius combination such as that... I'm not surprised it did. You and Bulbasaur worked together on a very deep level to pull out that win and you should be proud of yourselves! However..." He grinned. "I'm fully into this battle now as I haven't been in years! I'm far from done so get ready m'boy, hahaha!"

Ash nodded and smiled at his words. "Thank you Walt and I'm having a great battle too. Lets keep it up!"

The referee looked to Walt. "Will the gym leader please choose his next Pokémon?"

Walt looked at the ref sternly. "Calm down youngster I'm getting to it!" The ref clammed up right away, looking comically pale faced as he just nodded and gulped. "Y-Yes sir!"

Walt chuckled and stowed away Murkrow's Pokéball before pulling out another. "Lets see how you handle this one Ash!" He tossed the ball into the air with a fast chuck. "Misdreavus you're up!"

The ball snapped open and in a burst of light, the Ghost-Type Pokémon Misdreavus took to the field in a sinister manner as it hovered back and forth. The dark and sightly chilling form of the spectral Pokémon combined with it's appearance only made Misdreavus that much more of an unnerving opponent.

Ash sized his new opponent up before bending down and calling out to Bulbasaur, "You did great my friend but I want you to sit this one out."

Bulbasaur looked as though he wanted to keep battling since the energy he stole from Murkrow had revitalized him but he wasn't about to buck his trainer. He quickly ran back to Ash and the boy smiled as he rubbed his Pokémon head and bulb. "You were amazing Bulbasaur and pulled out one hell of a tough win. You should be very proud of yourself, I know I am. Take a good rest!" With those final words he returned Bulbasaur to his Pokéball and then stood back up.

The Pallet native then sized Midreavus up one last time while making the decision on who he wanted to use to battle it. A decision that couldn't be made lightly.

On the sidelines, his friends were all breathing a sigh of relief that Ash had managed to pull out the win with Bulbasaur. "Man..." Misty sighed. "That was wayyy too close!"

Giselle nodded in agreement. "No kidding! If I wasn't so young I would have been afraid of that last battle giving me grey hair!"

Brock hummed to himself. "Ash and Bulbasaur did a great job that's for sure but now he has to face down a Misdreavus and that's not a Pokémon to take lightly at all. This battle is far from over..." He stated wearily.

Back with Ash, he had just finished deciding on the right choice to battle Misdreavus with and knew without a doubt that 'he' could handle it. They had both trained hard together since Ash captured him so he had no doubts about his power level, ability to obey or even chance to win.

No... Ash's only fear was that maybe 'he' would be too much for Misdreavus and accidentally hurt it. His power level Ash had found out from training together was truly impressive and well beyond normal level. He could only pray to Arceus that he had worked with 'him' enough to help control that incredible power so the battle didn't end in Misdreavus's harm. Which even if it meant his surrender, Ash wouldn't let happen. No win was worth a Pokémon's well being.

He took another deep breath before choosing the correct Pokéball and whispering to it, "I know you can do this and I know you can control yourself. I believe in you." His eyes snapped open then as he threw the ball up into the air. "Go Gastly!"

In a bright flash of light, Ash's own spectral Pokémon appeared in a dark curtain of energy. The gym slightly darkened even more than it already was as the remaining windows rattled and a howling ghostly wind blew through the room. Two glowing eyes could be seen in the blackness as creepy, spine chilling laughter could be heard coming from within the shadows.

Ash nearly felt like facepalming at his Pokémon's overdramatic entrance and could only hope that it didn't set the precedence for the entire battle.

The shadows around the specter slowly formed into a shape until Gastly's full form could be seen floating in the air. He was smiling mischievously, almost crazily at Misdreavus and Walt. The powerful Ghost-Type laughed aloud in that strange voice of his then before speaking," Hmmmhahahahaha! So good to see the faces of my adoring public yet again!" His eyes shifted back and forth. "And where is my dear trainer on this fine evening hmm?" He spotted Ash, who was shaking his head with his hand over his face and grinned even wider.

"Ah there he is ladies and gentleman! Ash Ketchum, the greatest prodigal Pokémon Trainer that has yet to be seen and he who is destined to become the greatest Pokémon Master in this whole wide world! Give him a hand my lovely audience, oh do give him a hand!"

Using his powers, Gastly caused the sound of an applauding audience to be heard ringing throughout the gym before disappearing and then reappearing over his trainer's shoulder. "Tell me young master Ash..." A microphone suddenly popped into existence in front of Ash. "How does it feel knowing that YOU are soon to be the most loved and revered Pokémon Trainer there has ever been? Women will love you, men will want to be you and if you're lucky, you may even win a brand new car!" Gastly broke out into a riot at his own sad joke.

Ash merely sunk his head down lower and shook his head again. Gastly stopped laughing and his shifting eyes looked around the gym. "Hmmm... tough crowd to tonight I see ehh? I a-" He suddenly stopped as he just then noticed a lack of his fellow Pokémon training around him in an exhausted state with an equally exhausted, sweaty Ash shouting out commands to them all while working himself into the ground as well.

Gastly quirked an eye curiously. "Well this doesn't look anything at all like the training sessions I'm used to!" He looked at his trainer. "Trying something new are we Ash? As a matter of fact..." He then looked out the windows at the still shining daylight outside. Being a Ghost-Type and naturally not being a big fan of sunlight, even though Ash made him train in it in the mornings, caused Gastly to flinch back slightly. "This looks nothing at all like our nightly training setting!"

Gastly continued to rattle on and on with Ash trying to get his attention. "Gastly..."

"In fact I recall us just training not even hours ago this morning! Time can't have past that fast in my Pokéball unless I'm just starting to lose all conception of the blasted thing...

"Gastly," Ash tried again.

"I was just telling Pikachu this morning that we needed to up the ante on our mutiple opponent sparring! I mean yes Charmander has a fierce Flamethrower in him and of course I hate getting drinched by Squirtle's high powered water attacks but what good is it all if I'm not getting hit! Of course I'm not saying anything negative on the fact considering that I've got the scorch marks to prove how effective the training is but-"

A tick mark grew on the side of Ash's head. "Gastly please..."

"And you know what I was also thinking about was-!"

"GASTLY!" Ash shouted as he finally had enough and threw his hands in the air.

Gastly stopped rambling and grinned at his trainer. "Careful my dear trainer, don't want to bust a blood vessel now do we? What could possibly have you so wound up on this..." He looked out the windows again at the sunlight, something he was usually spared of for the rest of the day after morning training, being in his Pokéball and all. "Ugh! B-beautiful day?" His seemingly endless grin stretched out even wider as he tried to press his spectral cheek against Ash's. "Or did you miss me Ash? Come now, come now be honest!"

The raven-haired trainer sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "Gastly... this isn't our evening training, this is my gym battle against the Shadows Hallow Gym Leader remember? I told you and the others about it this morning after our training was over? That was the whole reason I was psyching you all up and if memory serves correctly, YOU were the most excited about the whole thing. Floating around with a giant banner and singing those- " Ash made air quations. "'Victory' songs to pump us all up! Remember? Ring a bell yet?!"

Gastly, if possible, grinned even more as he nodded in an overexaggerated fashion. "Ahh yes the gym battle! One of the many things we prepare for in our rigorous daily regimen yes?" He looked around at the gym again. "Rather drab yes... could use a good interior designer and maybe a few less windows to keep in all the darkness but all in all... not bad. I give it a seven out of ten !" He turned back to Ash. "So how's it going o' great one?" He asked with a mock bow.

Ash shook his head again but couldn't the deny the humor his 'funniest' Pokémon brought to the group. Gastly always knew how to make anyone laugh with his good natured jokes and pranks.

He just smiled slightly and answered his Pokémon, "It's going in anyone's direction as of right now Gastly. Bulbasaur managed to take down Walt's Murkrow, the gym leader, in a feirce and intense battle that they both gave everything in. Walt's next Pokémon is a Misdreavus and I've chosen you for this battle Gastly. You've trained extremely hard since you joined our team and I know you can do it. Are you ready?"

Gastly looked back at the battlefield and just stared at it with a rare look of seriousness on his face for a short time before looking back at Ash and grinning again before nodding. "Ash, I know I'm a prankster and love to tell my jokes but you are my trainer. Furthermore, you've shown me more kindness and care of any other human since Artiana. We've trained together and I swore my loyalty and abilities to you. I will gladly fight alongside you in any battle you participate in. That... is a 'ghastly promise'!"

The seriousness just couldn't last as Gastly began laughing yet again at his own joke, which made Ash merely shake his head at his Pokémon in amusement. Still, he was touched by Gastly's words and nodded his head as he smiled.

"Then Gastly... lets win this!"

The spectral Pokemon grinned maniacally before floating out onto the battlefield. Ash was about to call over to Walt and let him know that they were now ready but upon seeing the almost comical looks of pure and utter shock on the old man and Misdreavus' faces, he stopped and cocked an eyebrow. "Uhh... Walt? You okay over there?" He asked in concern.

Walt just gaped a few times like a Magikarp, his eyes as wide as could be as he stammered out, "A-A t-talking G-Gastly?! It... it talks?! He sputtered in disbelief.

Ash smiled sheepishly and chuckled a little. "Yeah well... this Gastly is kind of special and a little bit different from the rest of its kind."

Walt continued to gape as he looked from Gastly to Ash, back and forth with his Misdreavus doing the same, before finally getting a grip on himself and shaking his head. He then let a small, amused smile cross his lips before calling over to Ash again, "I would say that I'm honestly surprised concerning this strange turn of events but after battling you this far Ash and re-thinking it... I'm really not surprised at all. You're a trainer of many surprises that's for sure. Now... lets see if your Gastly can battle as good as it can talk!"

Ash smiled and shared another look with Gastly before preparing himself for round two.

Back with Ash's friends, all of them were sweatdropping with comical smiles on their faces. "Well..." Brock began. "That's Gastly for you I guess, always the joker. This should definitely be an interesting battle...

Misty gave a small, nervous laugh. "Yeah but I hope he doesn't let his obsession with making jokes interfere with his ability to battle."

Giselle looked from Gastly to Misdreavus. "I think he can do it guys. Didn't you hear what he just said to Ash? He'll do whatever he has to in order to help Ash win in any way he can. I know he jokes a lot and has a hard time being serious but this is his first time ever battling. I'm sure he can become serious just long enough to win this battle for Ash!" She stated with conviction as at the exact same time, Gastly turned around and started doing something before, in a poof of smoke, he faced forward again wearing a white battle gi with a red battle band strapped to where his forehead would be.

The never ending mischievous grin stretched even farther across his face as he chuckled. "Kiyaa! Let the battle begin I say, hahahaha!" He announced mirthfully as he erupted into more fits of laughter.

Ash's girlfriend dropped her head slightly as her eyes became two thin lines and she breathed out a sigh. "Well, it was wishful thinking at least..." She sighed exasperatedly. Brock and Misty merely facepalmed in accordance with the brunette's sigh.

The referee also sweatdropped at Gastly's actions before shaking his head and raising his hands. "Both opponents ready?" Getting nods from both Ash and Walt, he brought his hands down. "Then let the battle begin!" He shouted.

Walt was fast on the drawl immediately, "Misdreavus use Psybeam!"

The small Ghost-Type's eyes glowed almost instantly as it shot forward two beams of bright, yellowish light at Gastly.

Ash swiped his hand to the side. "Gastly prepare to dodge that!"

The eccentric Ghost Pokémon grinned as he saw the energy charge coming towards him and began bouncing from side to side as he levitated around in a mock performance of how a fighter would move in the ring.

Just before the attack could hit, he quickly swerved out of the way into a spin and chuckled as the attack missed it's mark. Walt shouted out for his Misdreavus to use Psybeam again and it did, firing it's attack yet again at Gastly who waited until the last second to float away from the attack.

The older gym leader grunted and shouted out, "Misdreavus use Mean Look followed by Astonish!" Misdreavus' eyes glowed once more and locked themselves onto Gastly, who simply snickered and looked right back. "Oh really? So you think a simple glare that's meant to keep me here in the battle will help you win? I think not!"

At the same time as he said that, Walt's Pokémon opened it's mouth and let out a loud cry that shook the gym. Which sent a sizable shock wave straight towards Gastly. Ash knew such an attack would be trouble and yelled up to his Pokémon, "Gastly avoid that sound wave!"

Gastly grinned again before fazing out of tangibility just as the shock wave passed over where he was floating. Walt and Misdreavus began scanning all around the gym with their eyes while searching for any sign of the now disappeared ghostly comedian. Suddenly, Walt shouted out, "Misdreavus behind you!"

The small, spectral Pokémon whipped around quickly and saw Gastly floating behind it with a wide grin on his face. He simply cackled, "Now now now little Dreavus! Must keep our guard up at all times you know!" He mocked with another cackle.

Misdreavus floated backward with a frustrated, irritated look on it's face as it's eyes narrowed angrily. Walt quickly commanded for it to use another Psybeam and it did just that, firing off a fast beam of psychic energy at Gastly.

The talking Ghost Pokémon didn't even have to have a command in order to swerve out of the way of the attack in a little too confident of a way. Walt, obviously becoming upset at his Pokémon being made a joke of, ordered his Misdreavus to start using multiple Psybeams on Gastly.

The smaller Ghost-Type began shooting beam after beam of energy at Gastly, who continued to dodge, weave, swerve and disappear out of the way of every attack that came his way. All while saying things like, "Oops, missed me!", "Aww so close!" and even "Close but no, try again!" Misdreavus clearly becoming more and more angry as it followed the taunting Pokémon around the gym and used multiple Psybeams in an attempt to hit it.

Ash shouted up to his Pokémon then, "Gastly! Don't become overconfident and stop taunting Misdreavus! That is NOT how you behave in a battle and if you're not careful you're going to get caught in a nasty surprise! Now get serious and stop fooling around!"

Gastly stopped and turned around to look down at Ash. He had that same cocky grin on his face as he started to reply, all while completely ignoring Misdreavus. At the same time, Walt took advantage of their overconfident opponent's attitude and said loudly, "Misdreavus use Psywave!"

Now, Psywave was an attack that varied in power depending on a multitude of factors. The more prevalent of those being emotions. The more emotional a Pokémon was feeling at the time, the more power or lack thereof was put into the attack. Tired of Gastly's taunting and making it feel foolish for not being able to hit him, all while cracking jokes, had made the smaller Pokémon very angry and all of that fury was poured directly into the next attack.

Misdreavus' eyes and body glowed a furious red color as it locked it's eyes on Gastly. A look of pure anger and vicious intent forming on it's face as it cried out loudly and released the attack. The very powerful red aura of energy it's body expelled now washing towards Gastly like a tidal wave.

The Pokémon in question was too preoccupied with talking to Ash to notice the attack hurdling it's way. Ash did though and he quickly shouted up to him, "Gastly turn around!"

Gastly merey chuckled again as he replied. "What's wrong? Is the little ghosty ready to fight me again? Hahahahaha!" He finally went to turn around. "Hope its packing mor-" His sentence was cut off suddenly as he finally saw the massive wave of red, pulsating energy come rising over top of him.

Gastly only had time to widen his eyes before the powerful wave of psychic energy crashed down upon him and smashed the no longer laughing Pokémon down into the ground with a loud smashing sound. Chunks of the floor flying up into the air as a dust cloud shot up and blanketed the area.

Walt wasn't about to lose the momentum they had just gained through their last attack falter though and quickly ordered Misdreavus, whom was still glowing slightly red with it's eyes blazing the same color and a fierce look still etched on it's face, to use Psybeam.

The dust cloud around Gastly finally started to clear just as the now shaky and slightly scuffed up Ghost Pokémon began floating himself back up slowly. Still shaken by the surprise attack with one eye squinted shut. Gastly looked up just in time to see a very angry and determined Misdreavus speeding towards him with eyes glowing bright red.

Gastly tried to move but his body was still too shaken. Misdreavus took that opportunity with no hesitation and fired off a powerful beam of psychic energy at Gastly, the attack hitting it's mark and causing the comedic Ghost-Type to cry out in pain as he was hit by the full brunt of the attack.

"Yahhhhh!" Gastly cried out in pain once more as he felt like his body was being burned by fire and struck by lightning all at once.

Walt kept going without pause. "Now use Confuse Ray Misdreavus!"

His Pokémon was on it in an instant and stopped the Psybeam before flying right up into Gastly's face. Ash's Pokémon was now convulsing slightly from the last attack as he glanced up and saw Misdreavus looking at him with it's eyes glowing yellow.

Gastly was pulled into the confusion inducing move as his brain suddenly felt fuzzy. His eyes and face then went totally slack as he came under the influence of the sensory effecting status move.

Ash watched as Gastly began attacking himself with several of his own moves while also smashing himself down into the floor, the walls and ceiling. Walt looked on with Misdreavus floating back a few yards away, merely watching as Gastly beat itself around.

On the sidelines, Ash's friends were starting to panic. Brock stepped forward slightly with a tense expression on his face. "This is bad! If Gastly doesn't snap out of that confusion then its over!"

Misty and Giselle resorted to cheering Gastly and Ash on even as the Ghost-Type continued to thrash himself around. Walt decided to take pity on Gastly and commanded his Pokémon, "Misdreavus, end this now with another Psybeam!"

Gastly was too badly confused to even have a hope in dodging as the beam of psychic energy just released from Misdreavus struck him in mid-air and began zapping the battered Pokémon with strong electric-like bursts of cerebral energy. Gastly cried out loudly in pain before the energy beam exploded and sent him smashing back into one of the gym walls, a large pile of rubble falling down on top of him in the process.

Brock, Misty and Giselle all gasped in fear for Gastly while Ash looked towards where his Pokémon was now buried under the pile of rubble. His face still remaining stoic and unreadable as his eyes bore into the chucks of concrete now burying Gastly.

Walt snorted and crossed his arms while Misdreavus finally seemed to calm down, the glow now leaving it's body. "Its over, Gastly's finished Ash! You need to teach your Pokémon to not be so cocky and overconfident, it will be theirs and your own downfall every time if you do not. Heed my words young one because that is exactly why your Gastly, no matter how unique it is, lost this battle!

Ash didn't respond. He didn't even take his eyes off of the spot where Gastly was now buried. He merely waited, waited for the dust cloud to finally lift. Once it finally did, everyone was greeted to a truly surprising sight.

"What?!" Walt gasped.

"I can't believe it..." Giselle whispered in shock as Misty and Brock could only nod while feeling similar emotions.

There, struggling in the rubble but still conscious, was Gastly. He was slightly shaking from where he lay and his gaseous body was scuffed up and dirty, but he was definitely still coherent. His left eye was cracked open slightly while his right one was shut. His breathing was also somewhat ragged but he continued trying to get up.

The Ghost-Type gave a shaky chuckle as he slowly began to float back up into the air. "Well... I have no shame in admitting that I deserved that. I was careless and became overconfident..." His left eye opened some more but his face was surprisingly not spread in any kind of a grin. Instead, he actually looked serious.

"That was not how you trained me Ash and I know it. You tried to warn me but I felt too untouchable because of my abilities. I never should have taunted my opponent like that and I payed for it... good and well too. For an old Pokémon like me that was a very foolish thing to do and I won't be repeating the same mistake twice."

He slowly raised up into the air until he was level with the shadows that that particular area of the building he was in were casting upon him. He was facing downward as a strange, dark aura began to leak out from around his already dark colored, spectral body.

"Ash..." He said in an oddly serious and clearly no joking voice. "I apologize for my actions and I hope you can forgive me. I have learned my lesson this day and shall not be taken off guard by my own doing again. If you will allow me..." He breathed out and in again slowly. "I would still like to help you win this battle."

Ash stared at his Pokémon with a steady gaze for quite a few moments, judging the seriousness and truth behind Gastly's words, before nodding. "If you truly mean it Gastly and now realize that overconfidence and not taking a battle seriously is never the attitude a trainer or Pokémon should have... then yes, I do want you to finish this battle with me. As long as you remain serious when battling from here on out and never... and I mean NEVER... taunt your opponents again, I won't punish you. I will let you continue to battle and we'll start fresh right here and now. Understood?"

Gastly merely nodded and kept his face down as the dark aura continued to build and fill the space around him. "Yes, it is understood," He said in a low voice as he raised himself a little higher into the air and addressed Misdreavus, "My apologies for the rudeness I have displayed in our battle thus far Misdreavus. A poor choice of action on my part and I assure you it won't happen again..."

Both Misdreavus and Walt were slightly thrown for a loop by Gastly's apology and seemingly instant change in personality but seemed to accept it nonetheless. Misdreavus nodding it's head in a display that proved it indeed accepted Gastly's apology.

The referee suddenly called out then, "Will either side please make your next move?"

Walt shook himself from his stupor at that same moment and resumed 'battle mode' as he called out to his Pokémon, "Use Psybeam Misdreavus, lets win this! That Gastly is on it's last legs!"

Misdreavus quickly fired off yet another Psybeam that went rocketing at Gastly. The Pokémon from Maiden's Peak merely hovered in place, not even looking up as he continued to stay within the shadows. The dark energy that was forming around him became thicker and thicker until it almost looked like a thick shroud. The gym chilled to a very minuscule degree and the overhead lights flickered as Gastly's own body flickered itself.

Just before the beam of energy could connect with him, Gastly finally looked up with his face showing one of unnerving ferocity and scary determination. His eyes were glowing an almost black color as he suddenly shot out two twin beams of extremely powerful looking black energy that ripped through the Psybeam like paper and sailed towards Misdreavus.

"What is that?!" Misty yelled at the sight of the strange beams of energy Gastly had just expended.

Walt, who was struck stupid by the sight of the powerful twin energy beams, could only shout at Misdreavus, "Get out of the way of that attack now!"

Misdreavus was just barely able to scramble itself away and float to the side as the black energy beams soared past it and broke through another one of the windows of the building. Impacting with and almost knocking down one of the trees outside.

Misdreavus turned forward again just as Gastly appeared in front of it, eyes still glowing black in a truly frightening way. Walt's Pokémon tried to open it's mouth and use Astonish but a black shield of energy suddenly came around Gastly and knocked the smaller Ghost-Type back, sending it skidding backwards through the air.

In a state of desperation, Walt ordered Misdreavus to start using any attack it could in order to take down Gastly as the nearly possessed looking Pokémon started chasing it all over the gym. Every attack Misdreavus used on Ash's Pokémon was simply knocked away or destroyed by different counter attacks Gastly would use by manipulating the black energy surrounding him.

This went on for several minutes with Misdreavus trying desperately to evade Gastly. Using every attack and strategy it knew to try and stop the other Ghost-Type that seemed to have gotten a power boost from Arceus only knew where. Gastly would use moves like shooting the twin beams of darkness from his eyes, using the dark energy around him as a shield and also manipulating what almost looked like shadows every now and again to try and swat at the quickly tiring Misdreavus.

It took awhile for him to figure out what was going on but Ash eventually managed to deduce that most likely, Gastly was just using enhanced versions of the moves he already knew. Like Night Shade as the twin beams of ocular energy and very possibly, Curse being what was manipulating the energy shield and shadow hands he was utilizing at random intervals.

After all, Curse was a move that worked differently for the Ghost-Type variety than any other Pokémon and further still, Gastly being part Ghost/Psychic-Type meant he had powers and abilities that they didn't even know of yet. It was very possible that Gastly's slightly angered and frustrated current state of mind that was brought on by his own arrogant foolishness earlier on in the battle when Misdreavus had temporarily bested him, caused some level of his inner mysterious powers to rise to the surface and that was what was causing his attacks to become so abnormally enhanced.

At least... that was Ash's working theory.

Eventually, during one of the occasions where Gastly had used another mega enhanced Night Shade and Misdreavus just barely managed to dodge out of the way, a new move suddenly made itself known. Gastly stopped and his eyes glowed pitch black again as the darkness around his body began to grow thicker and more prominent.

The windows of the building clouded over by some kind of black shadow as the gym descended into darkness that only the lights inside kept from making everything totally pitch dark. Then, out of the shadows around the gym, several copies of Gastly began appearing in large numbers. Misdreavus looked around at all of the Gastly's now surrounding it with wide eyes as Walt merely gaped in astonishment, completely baffled as to what was happening.

All of the copy Gastly's then began charging Misdreavus all at once, who started flying wildly around the gym in attempt to stay clear of them. No matter where it went though, there was just no reprieve. For every spot the worried Pokémon would go, three Gastly would seemingly come out of nowhere and launch some kind of attack at it.

Eventually, after flying around the gym for several minutes trying to find some form of refuge, Misdreavus stopped right in the center of the room and began valiantly trying to fight off all of the Gastly clones that came for it.

Walt's Pokémon fought and defended itself bravely from all of the copies that came it's way and attacked none stop at any who came even remotely near. Luckily for it, they vanished upon one single hit. Unluckily for it however, there was just too many Gastly clones and that meant Misdreavus kept getting hit by something at some angle it simply couldn't defend.

The real Gastly floated outside of all of the mess, controlling the clones with wispy tendrils of the dark energy surrounding it. The darkness shrouding Gastly was now so thick that one could only see his outline within it and the tendrils of blackness almost looked like arms as they thrashed around.

Ash watched on in fascination as the many Gastly clones began pushing Misdreavus father and farther up into the air until it was nearly touching the ceiling. It was at this point, finally, did Gastly enact the plan it had been forming.

Just as the last clone attacked Misdreavus, Gastly's eyes glowed again and they all just disappeared. Before Misdreavus could enjoy the break however, Gastly's eyes glowed again as the shadows on the ceiling seemed to come alive. Several hand-like tendrils of darkness reached down and grasped onto the stunned Misdreavus at blurring speeds. Wrapping it up tightly in a full body bind and then suspending it from the ceiling.

Gastly disappeared and then reappeared in front of Misdreavus with a ghost of a smile on his face within the darkness shrouding him. He floated back ever so slightly as his eyes started to glow black again. Walt knew what was coming after having seen it quite a few times in the battle up to now and shouted up to his Pokémon in panic, "Misdreavus you have to break free now!"

The small spectral Pokémon started struggling as hard as it could to break free from the shadows that held it but it was to no avail. The shadowy hands were too strong and Misdreavus was just too tired to fight effectively.

At that same time, Gastly unleashed the twin beams of black energy building in it's eyes and sent them speeding at Misdreavus. The smaller Ghost-Type could only watch with unhidden fear in it's eyes as the energy beams closed in upon it.

Then, in a dark pulse of crackling power, the enhanced Night Shade struck Misdreavus.

Walt's Pokémon cried out in anguish and pain as the dual beams of darkness sent jolt after jolt of mind numbing, icy-like electricity into it's body. The cries of Misdreavus continued to echo throughout the gym until finally, the energy beams stopped and Misdreavus fell towards the ground.

The Johto native Ghost Pokémon impacted the battlefield below with a loud 'thud' and then laid there in a small crater unmoving. The referee came over and looked down at the downed Pokémon who could only weakly mutter out, "Dreavus..." with swirls in it's eyes before raising his hand. "Misdreavus is unable to battle! Gastly is the winner!"

Walt took a deep breath before returning Misdreavus to it's Pokéball, thanking it in the process as he did so and shaking his head.

Gastly lowered himself down from the ceiling and as he descended, the darkness around his body slowly dissipated until it was no more. The blackness surrounding the windows also lifted and allowed more light to enter into the still dimly lit gym. The victorious Ghost Pokémon lowered himself to the ground and breathed out a sigh as the exhaustion of the fierce battle finally caught up to him.

Ash walked up to him and knelt down beside of his Pokémon, smiling. "Gastly, you did an amazing job. You overcame your cockiness and you didn't go overboard on Misdreavus. You really showed your merit today and I'm proud of you."

Gastly smiled tiredly at him. "Thank you Ash, your words mean much to me. Now, if its not too much trouble... I'm feeling awfully tired and would like a good rest in my Pokéball if its all the same to you."

Ash nodded and smiled again. "You got it Gastly. Take a rest and we'll find out what that dark energy you were controlling was later on, I promise. Sleep easy my friend..." With those words, Ash returned Gastly to his Pokéball and then stood up, facing towards Walt again.

Giselle let out a sigh she had been holding in. "Whew! Arceus that was too close! I was afraid Gastly was done for!"

Misty nodded, "Hmm hmm, so did I. Lucky that weird dark energy stuff came out and helped him at the last second or he might have been a goner!"

"Its not over yet you two..." Brock said, getting their attention. "Walt still has one more Pokémon left and I guarantee you it'll be his toughest one yet."

Giselle looked across the room at Ash and smiled. "Ash'll beat it, no matter what he'll win!"

Back on the battlefield, Walt remained silent for a few moments before finally speaking to Ash. "Well young man I have to admit... this has been the best battle I've ever had. Never, in all my time as a gym leader here have I been resorted to my last Pokémon. You have truly impressed me and I look forward to our last bout. Now..." He pulled out his last Pokéball. "Its time to finish it! Go..." He threw the Pokéball out onto the field. "Mightyena!"

The ball snapped open then and one of the more common Pokémon native to the Hoenn region- though very rare to see in Kanto itself- appeared on the battlefield in a flash of bright light. The vicious looking Pokémon raised it's head up and howled loudly to the ceiling, "Myaaaaa!

Ash nearly smiled at the chance of getting to battle a Pokémon from the Hoenn region and quickly went through his knowledge of the current species he was now facing before making his choice of who he was going to use for the last battle. He then looked down at Pikachu and smiled. "You ready pal? You're up!"

Pikachu just gave Ash a smirk and sparked his cheeks as he nodded. "Pika!" He bounded out onto the battlefield and stood in front of Ash, his posture showing that he was prepared and his face displaying nothing but seriousness and cold intent. Mightyena tried to intimidate Pikachu by raising his hackles up and growling at the smaller Pokémon but Pikachu just remained calm and collected, not budging an inch.

Brock smiled and nodded. "This should be a good battle. Pikachu and Mightyena. Ash knows that neither has a type advantage over the other so it'll be reliant entirely on skill and prowess in battle."

Giselle looked at him. "Umm... Brock? Doesn't Ash always battle that way, rather he's going with a type advantage or not?"

He nodded. "Well yeah but Ash still tries to plan his battle out before hand and even though type advantage really means very little as a whole in how a battle turns out in the end, it can't be denied that it definitely helps."

Misty raised a finger. "And besides, even if Mightyena did have a type advantage over Pikachu, I have a feeling Ash still would have used him."

The brunette shrugged. "Maybe..."

Back on the battlefield, the ref raised his hands and brought them down. "Let the battle begin!"

"Quick Mightyena use Shadow Ball!" Walt shouted without missing a beat.

The vicious Pokémon opened it's mouth and fired a ball of dark colored energy straight across the field at Pikachu. Ash adorned a serious expression on his face as his feet spread a little bit apart and he called out, "Pikachu to the left!"

Just before the ball of dark energy could hit him, Pikachu took a quick hop step to the left and the attack sailed right past his ear, the wind of it ruffling his fur as it crashed into the opposite wall. Walt grunted and commanded again, "Use Quick Attack combined with Shadow Ball!"

Mightyena took off in a burst of speed towards Pikachu and started firing multiple Shadow Balls at the electric rodent in fast succession. Ash gave Pikachu another simple command. "Pikachu, acrobatics!"

The Electric-Type dug his paws into the ground before shooting up into the air over the first Shadow Ball. He then began hopping, jumping, flipping and dodging each ball of energy that Mightyena discharged at him. All while keeping on the move himself so the bigger Pokémon didn't close in on him.

"Mightyena stop and use Scary Face!" Walt shouted.

The Dark-Type stopped running and firing Shadow Balls only to jump in front of Pikachu and leer at him with a vicious, snarling face. Ash was quick on the draw though and called out, "Pikachu block it with your tail and discharge a little Thundershock to make Mightyena back off!"

Pikachu spun around and covered his face with his tail to block out the sight of Mightyena's face and then charged a small electric attack and launched it. "Chuuuu!" He yelled as the electricity crackled around and struck at the pack Pokémon feet, causing it to jump back in surprise.

Walt gave another command then. "Mightyena use Bite and keep the pressure up on that Pikachu!"

Mightyena barked loudly before lunging at Pikachu and trying to bite down on him with his razor sharp teeth. Pikachu didn't need Ash's direction as he knew what to do next. He began swerving in and out between his opponent, expertly dodging each of Mightyena's attempts to sink it's teeth into his flesh. This went on for a few moments with Mightyena trying to get ahold of Pikachu and the smaller Pokémon just dodging out of the way each time.

Walt became frustrated and started to wonder why Ash wasn't ordering his Pikachu to use any attacks. Not wanting to waste time though, Walt commanded Mightyena to start using Agility to make itself faster in it's attacks.

This strategy seemed to work as the Dark Pokémon started moving much quicker as it continued trying to bite Pikachu. Ash simply called out for Pikachu to increase his speed some more and the next thing Walt knew, Pikachu was keeping up with Mightyena perfectly again. Knowing he needed to break the cycle, Walt shouted, "Now use Iron Tail Mightyena!"

The gym leader's Pokémon stopped and turned on it's heels instantly, it's tail glowing bright like steel as it swung the now iron-hard tail around. Pikachu was caught unawares by the attack and took the attack right to the face, launching backwards across the field.

Walt then ordered Mightyena to use Double Team and as Pikachu stood again, he found himself surrounded by a circle of snarling Mightyena. The white haired gym leader shouted at his Pokémon to start using Quick Attack combined with Bite. This resulted in all of the Mightyena charging in at Pikachu at different times with teeth bared and red eyes narrowed fiercely fierce.

Pikachu stayed in a battle stance the whole time while looking around himself in every direction, trying to sense out the incoming attacks. Ash called out to Pikachu from the trainer's box on where to dodge, move and counter whenever a clone would move in on him.

Still, despite all of his efforts, Pikachu was knicked, bitten and tackled a few times. Eventually, Ash was able to think up the best way out of the situation and yelled, "Pikachu jump up on the nearest Mightyena and then vault into the air before using Thunderbolt!"

The small yellow Pokémon nodded before shifting his gaze. Right as another Mightyena clone came charging in to hit him, Pikachu jumped up into air and onto the fake's back for just a second before then vaulting high up into the air. He spun around in mid-air before charging up and releasing a strong bolt of thunder with a loud, "Chuu!" His body glowing golden as the Thunderbolt hit the ground with enough force to crater it, all of the Mightyena getting hit in the process. The real one included.

While the original Mightyena cried out in pain at getting shocked, all of it's clones disappeared. Pikachu landed back on the ground and Ash quickly followed up by having him use Quick Attack followed by his own Iron Tail on the still recovering Hoenn Pokémon.

Pikachu took off in a blur as he jumped into the air and then smashed Mightyena in the side. The Dark-Type yelped in pain again as Pikachu turned around and jumped up, bringing his iron-like tail around and clobbering the bigger Pokémon in the face. Mightyena skidded back and shook its head to clear it of the sudden dizziness it felt before it then heard it's trainer call out for it to charge back in at Pikachu and try to hit him with either Bite or Iron Tail.

Ash told Pikachu to do the same thing and not even seconds later, both Pikachu and Mightyena were charging each other, clashing in mid-air with two Iron Tails which quickly pushed them apart. The two of them then jumped back at each other and started a close quarters combat fight of different attacks. Mightyena using Iron Tail and Bite and Pikachu using his own Iron Tail and head to try and land hits.

Both determined Pokémon clashed over and over again, each one landing the occasional hit in on the other. This went on for a few minutes until their trainers ordered them to jump apart. Then, at the same time, both Ash and Walt shouted, "Pikachu/Mightyena! Thunderbolt/Shadow Ball!"

The Dark and Electric-Type Pokémon charged up their attacks and ran at each other, both of them now showing the marks of battle. The two of them jumped into the air at the same time and released their attacks, once more at the same time, which rocketed towards their respective targets.

Pikachu and Mightyena were both still recovering from their high jumps and couldn't get out of the way in time from the attacks coming their way. Because of this, Mightyena was struck with a powerful bolt of Pikachu's electricity and howled out in pain as Pikachu was struck with the Shadow Ball head on and sent flying back across the gym, skidding and rolling on the ground before finally coming to a stop.

Ash and Walt watched as their Pokémon both struggled back to their feet, both of them looking scuffed up with Pikachu only fairing better due to the intense conditioning and resistance training he did daily.

The raven haired trainer found his brain flying at a thousand miles an hour as he started putting together a strategy to beat Mightyena with. It wasn't until he looked up at the ceiling for some reason in which he couldn't remember that inspiration suddenly struck him. He spotted the suspended lights hanging above the gym, giving the room what little lighting it did have and grinned to himself as it all fell into place.

He quickly called out to his first Pokémon, "Pikachu! Take off running towards those support pillars at the other end of the gym!"

Having learned never to question his trainer when he obviously had some type of idea, Pikachu did as told and started running towards one of the support pillars. Walt didn't know what was going on but didn't want to take chances as he knew by now how unorthodox Ash could be. With no hesitation he shouted, "Mightyena use Shadow Ball to stop that Pikachu!"

Mightyena barked before it began firing off multiple Shadow Balls at Pikachu, who kept running towards his target, all while dodging and weaving out of the way of the rain of Shadow Balls coming down upon him. Once he was nearing the pillar, Ash yelled out for him to stop, which Pikachu did. He then told him to wait until just before Mightyena's next Shadow Ball was upon him before jumping up and using Iron Tail to smash into down into the ground.

Walt saw Pikachu cornered against one of the support pillars and smirked before telling Mightyena to fire off one last Shadow Ball at him. The Dark Pokémon did just that and right as the ball of energy came hurdling at Pikachu, he crouched down and prepared himself.

Just before the Shadow Ball could hit him, Pikachu jumped up and flipped around before slamming his now steel hard tail into the ball of darkness. The Shadow Ball impacted the ground and exploded which sent the already in airborne Pikachu soaring even higher up until he was level with the rafters of the support beams.

Ash yelled out quickly, "Pikachu grab onto one of those beams now!"

The small but fierce Pokémon reached out just as he started falling and grabbed onto one of the wooden beams, pulling himself up until he was crouching on top of it. With Pikachu now more than twenty feet up in the air and Mightyena having no up after him, Walt growled in his throat. "Mightyena just use Shadow Ball up in the rafters until you catch that annoying little Pokémon!"

Ash grinned to himself again as the Dark-Type started firing off multiple Shadow Balls at Pikachu high up towards the ceiling. Pikachu was small and agile though so he was able to easily hop from rafter to rafter, avoiding each energy ball until he was practically dancing around the ceiling. Ash knew the next phase of his plan was at hand and so he ordered Pikachu to use Double Team.

The next thing to transpire was a truly unique sight as the entire ceiling became practically covered in yellow copies of Pikachu as they jumped around. Many of them were jumping from rafters, a few were climbing up higher and a few of them had even jumped down onto the lights hanging from the ceiling and grabbed onto the chains, hanging onto them like a Mankey. Walt eye twitched at the sight and finally reached his limit before commanding a very confused Mightyena to start using rapid fire Shadow Ball until he got rid of them all and hit the real one.

The quickly tiring Dark Pokémon started blasting Shadow Ball after Shadow Ball up at the ceiling, vainly trying to get rid of all the Pikachu. Several of them were hit and disappeared but even more of the wayward balls of dark energy would go off course and strike random spots. One of the unfortunate spots Mightyena kept hitting were the lights. Several of the Shadow Balls were flying directly up at where the lights connected to the ceiling and blasted the area around them, severely weakening the places that the chains connected to.

This process went on and on for several minutes with Mightyena exhausting itself in it's fruitless attempt to hit Pikachu. Ash kept his focus on the chains that connected the lights to the ceiling and once he was sure they were all weak enough, he called out to Pikachu, "Alright buddy, now use Thunderbolt and aim it in a straight arc right at where those lights chain to the ceiling!"

A chorus of "Pika!" Was heard as all of the copies of Pikachu charged and released Thunderbolt at exactly the points Ash told them to hit. The arcs of electricity hit the ceiling where the chains holding the lights up were connected to, which were already weakened by Mightyena's Shadow Balls hitting them, and caused the lights to snap loose. The chains broke free from the ceiling as the lights all started falling down towards the ground. They stopped a few feet away from hitting the ground though, still being held up slightly by the chains in the ceiling, but that wasn't the worst of it.

When the chains snapped and the ceiling where they were held up from broke apart, several wires up inside of the ceiling came down with it and fell towards the ground. This happened at several different places in the gym and now live electric lines, which were sparking in some places, draped down over the battlefield below like a jungle of very dangerous electric vines.

Luckily, Ash and all of the others were far enough away from the battlefield not to be in range of the electric lines but Mightyena was not so lucky. It was now trapped in one small spot, terrified to move anywhere because of the crackling electric lines that were now basically boxing it into a small area.

Walt could only look around himself in complete shock at what had happened to his gym in a matter of seconds. Electric lines hanging loose everywhere like some sick fun house and gaping holes in the ceiling. It was beyond comprehension now on just what insane idea the crazy yet brilliant young trainer before him had come up with and at the present time, he didn't really care if he won the match or not. He just didn't want to get electrocuted to death!

The only thing Walt wanted in that moment was to help instruct his terrified Pokémon on just how to get out of the dangerous situation it was now in without getting roasted. As it was, his mind was coming up to a complete blank.

Ash saw Walt's temporary lapse in coherent thought and took that time to shout up to his Pokémon, "Now Pikachu! Come down from the rafters and get ready to end this!"

Pikachu called out from the ceiling with a loud affirmative response as all of the copies of him began disappearing. Pikachu then jumped down from one of the high rafters he was on and grabbed onto one of the free hanging electric lines, swinging down to a safe height that he was able to jump from.

Pikachu then dismounted from the wire and landed on the ground right next to a cluster of sparking wires that zapped at his feet. The many electric lines around Pikachu sent their sparks flying onto his fur and lit up the powerful little Electric-Type's body, giving him an eery yet imposing appearance. Being an Electric Pokémon and possessing the rare ability Lightningrod meant that he could naturally stand amongst live electric wires all day long and it wouldn't bother him.

His eyes focused unblinkingly on Mightyena, who was looking everywhere in fear as the wires around it sparked and crackled. The only thing on Pikachu's mind at that time was defeating the Dark-Type once and for all and winning the match for his trainer and the rest of his teammates. That was all Pikachu cared for. His team and trainer was his family and Pikachu fought for his family. He wasn't going to hurt Mightyena but he damn sure wasn't going to take any pity on it just because it was a little afraid of some sparking wires.

Pikachu lowered himself down into a combat position and sparked his cheeks as he waited for Ash to give the final command that would end the battle.

On the sidelines, Brock and the others were shielding their eyes from the bright sparks the electric lines were giving off. Misty coughed from the smell of burnt wire. "What the hell was Ash doing?! Has he..." She coughed again. "Lost his mind?!"

Giselle kept her eyes covered as she responded, "I don't know why he did it but it definitely worked because Mightyena..." She coughed as well. "Is rooted in place and looks too scared to move a muscle!"

Brock also coughed as he shouted to be heard over the sound of the crackling electric lines. "Any Pokémon that wasn't an Electric-Type like Pikachu would be too scared to do anything! Those electric lines probably aren't carrying enough voltage to harm Mightyena like Pikachu could if he really put a lot of power behind his attacks but I'm sure the fear that those sparking electric lines induce would be enough to stop any non Electric-Type Pokémon in their tracks for awhile and I bet that's exactly why Ash did this too! To scare Mightyena out of being able to do anything else!"

Giselle had her ears covered slightly from the loud sound of the crackling electricity. "I sure hope that's why he did it and it wasn't just an act of insanity!"

Back on the battlefield, Ash raised his hand. "Now Pikachu... THUNDERBOLT!"

The battered up Electric-Type sparked his cheeks as he started growling in a low voice, "Pika..."

The arcs of electricity coming from his cheeks became greater as a yellow glow started to surround his body. "PIKA..."

Then, with a loud cry of "CHUUUU!" and a thrust forward of his body, a massive jolt of electricity was sent arcing across the ground as it rushed towards Mightyena. The Dark-Type could only watch with wide, scared eyes as it's fate came zapping at it with a fierce, loud crackling sound.

The Thunderbolt connected with Walt's Pokémon the next second and began electrocuting it ferociously. The power cables hanging around Mightyena were picked up on by Pikachu's electric bolt and this caused even more electricity to erupt out of the sparking lines and into the Dark Pokémon.

Mighteyna cried out loudly as the electricity coursed through it until eventually, the energy exploded and caused a large cloud of smoke to shoot up into the air. Walt, Ash and everyone else covered their eyes as the smoke filled the gym and the sound of the electricity after the explosion filled their ears. An almost hissing sound caused by the electrical discharge being heard echoing throughout the gym like it was getting amplified by a megaphone.

Once the smoke finally cleared out through the broken windows of the gym, everyone looked in Mightyena's direction to see the results of what had happened. The sight that greeted their eyes wasn't really that big of a surprise all things considered.

The Dark-Type Pokémon was laying flat on it's side with smoke coming off of it's singed fur. It's mouth slightly open and it's eyes nothing but swirls.

The referee, absolutely stunned since he knew what Mightyena's defeat meant, raised his hands up into the air and made an announcement that became the first he had ever made in such a way in that particular gym. "M-Mightyena is unable to battle, the winner is Pikachu! Since all three of the gym leader's Pokémon are now out, that means the match goes to challenger Ash Ketchum!"

Brock, Misty and Giselle all breathed a huge sigh of relief at the same time as Ash smile. Pikachu came running back up to him as the boy knelt down and took the small Pokémon into his arms. "Pikachu you did an amazing job! You fought Mightyena toe to toe as hard as you had to and gave it your all. I am very proud of you and I hope you are too." He started rubbing his slightly dirty and scuffed up Pokémon behind the ears as Pikachu smiled happily. He then gave Ash a thumbs up and replied with a loud, "Pi Pikachu Pi!"

Walt returned his unconscious Pokémon to it's ball and gave a small sigh before smiling a little bit. He called over to the referee to go and cut the power at the electric box a short distance away near the back door so the electric lines would stop sparking and after he did so, the older man walked across the battle torn gym floor towards Ash. He stopped in front of the boy and looked down at him.

Ash let Pikachu climb back up onto his shoulder before he looked at Walt and addressed him, "Hey Walt... I just wanted to say that I'm sorry for what happened to your gym. I know I was the cause of it because I got carried away and became so wrapped up in creating strategies to win that I-" Walt just stopped him with a raised hand and shook his head.

"No Ash please, you have no reason to apologize. You merely did whatever you had to in order to win the match for you and your Pokémon and furthermore, you showed just how brilliant you are at making strategies up on the fly that hardly no one could hope to prepare for. Hell, I doubt many others could even think up some of the battle strategies that you did today!"

The aged gym leader smiled sincerely. "You also showed that you and your Pokémon have a truly deep bond that reveals itself to it's fullest whenever you are battling together. You fought and overcame the overbearing darkness of this gym that no other trainer until now has managed to achieve and you did it with the trust and friendship that you obviously share with all of your Pokémon."

He paused then and scratched at his long beard. "Now as for the building itself, well... that's what Pokémon Gyms are made for! They get torn up and destroyed and you simply repair them. So don't you go feeling guilty for that one bit young man."

Ash nodded in understanding at Walt's words as the old man let another smile come across his wrinkled, bearded face. He chuckled a little before reaching into his robes and pulling out a small black case which he presented to Ash.

The seasoned older man then opened up the black case and revealed a lone gym badge resting on it's velvet surface. The gym badge was square in shape, colored a dark blue and had a single red dot straight in the center of it.

Walt took the shiny badge out and handed it to Ash. "Here you go Ash, I present you with the Dark Badge. You earned it and I hope it takes you one step closer to the Pokémon League."

Ash looked at his newest badge and then showed it to Pikachu, who sniffed it and then smiled happily at the proof of their latest conquest. Ash closed his fist over the badge and then smiled. "Thanks a lot Walt, I really appreciate it."

The old man just waved him off. "Don't thank me Ash, you earned it."

Brock, Misty and Giselle walked over to them and Ash smiled at his friends as he held up the badge. "Another one down guys!"

Brock nodded. "You did great Ash, that battle was tough but you and your Pokémon pulled through it great."

Misty smiled at Ash. "I was really nervous there for awhile but you came out on top Ash, great job!"

Giselle walked up to him and kissed his cheek. "I'm really proud of you Ash, you and your Pokémon were amazing."

"Thanks all of you, that means a lot." He smiled at them and then turned back to Walt, who spoke first. "So, where are you heading to next Ash? I can imagine that you won't be sticking around our uhh... 'fair little town' in any longer than you have to am I right?" He winked at Ash and then laughed in his gruff and gravely voice.

Ash laughed as well and shook his head. "Yeah... no offense to you or anyone else here in town but Shadows Hallow really doesn't like outsiders and we respect that. The people here like living their lives in seclusion and that's perfectly fine. Besides, Lavender Town is our next stop after here and since its only..." He checked his Cross-Transceiver. "A little past ten o'clock, we would all like to try and make it there before dark. Which if we leave now, we should be able to make it." He explained.

"Lavender Town isn't very far from here is it sir?" Giselle asked Walt.

The man shook his head. "Not far at all young lady. In fact, depending on which route through the forest you take, you can definitely make it from here to Lavender before dark." He smiled. "I actually know of a way you can get to Lavender Town through the forest pretty quickly but its rough. Only the people of this town know about it and if you're tough enough to handle it then you'll make good time. From what I've seen, I think you kids are pretty sturdy so what do you say? Want me to show you the way?"

Ash and his friends all shared a glance with each other before looking back at him and nodding. "That would be great Walt," Ash answered. "If you wouldn't mind though, I'm going to take a little bit to rest and get my Pokémon back to health before we head out. Since there's no Pokémon Center here in town, I'm going to treat them myself as best as I can using some of my own medical supplies to tide them over until they can get properly healed by a Nurse Joy."

Brock chimed in, "And I can go ahead and whip us up some dinner before we head out. That way we won't have to stop to eat again until at least supper time. I'll also feed the Pokémon too."

"I'll help!" Misty offered.

Giselle looked at Ash. "I know how to make the food you feed your Pokémon from watching you Ash so I'll do that while you work on healing up Bulbasaur, Gastly and Pikachu if you'd like," She offered.

Ash nodded at his friends. "Sounds great guys, thanks!" He then looked at Walt. "That okay with you Walt?"

The old man waved him off and smiled. "Of course! I've got a kitchen where I live in the back of the gym and you're all welcomed to use it if you like."

Brock nodded enthusiastically. "That would be great, thanks!"

Walt nodded. "Alright then, follow me."

Ash and his friends then followed Walt as he led them to the back of the gym and then through the door he had come out of earlier. He opened the door and walked in before gesturing them all in.

Upon entering, they saw that the whole place looked very much like an apartment. The living room and kitchen was conjoined with only a wall separating them and two entrances on either side lead to the kitchen. There was a couch resting against the dividing wall of the kitchen with a coffee table in front of it and TV sitting against the opposite wall. There was also a small hallway to the far left that lead to two bedrooms and a bathroom and- overall- the appearance of the apartment-like area led to the feel that Walt must have been a rather clean person.

Walt invited them all to make themselves at home and then Giselle, Misty and Brock made their way into the moderately sized kitchen, which had a door leading out to the backyard behind the gym near the refrigerator. While everyone else, even Walt and the referee (whom apparently roomed with the older man) started preparing dinner, Ash took his and his friend's Pokémon outside.

Once in the spacious backyard, which was near the forest that bordered the entire town, Ash settled himself down and called all the Pokémon out from their balls. He then started to work on healing and recovering his own Pokémon and as he did so, he basked in the light of the beautiful day it was shaping up to be.

As he sat there, working on relaxing and healing his Pokémon that had worked so hard for him in not just the gym battle but also each day during training, he felt content. He and his team had just won another hard fought gym match and now they were moving on to the next destination of their journey. From where he was sitting on an old stump near a picnic table a few yards away from the gym, Ash was able to see through the thin line of trees separating Walt's gym from the main town and could just make out the townspeople going about their every day lives.

The boy continued working on Pikachu, who was happily relaxing while his trainer applied some Super Potion to his slightly sore body, and just remained quiet with a smile on his face as he continued going about his task. He could hear Gastly telling a dramatized version of the recent match to his other Pokémon as well as Brock, Misty and Giselle's own but it only made him feel that much more at peace.

Never mind that he was hearing such obvious embellishments coming from the Ghost-Type like how he had fought off a hundred Gengar, how Pikachu battled and defeated a huge mechanized Mightyena or even how Bulbasaur had battled his own opponent while completely on fire... no, never mind any of that. He was simply happy to just sit there in peace and work on healing his Pokémon until someone came to let him know that dinner was ready.

Which Giselle did about an hour later much to his and his Pokémon's famished joy.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Dinner was overall a rather enjoyable time with Ash and the others spending the time conversing and learning different things from and about Walt and the referee, who they learned was actually named Ed. The whole lunchtime affair was held outside at the picnic table and during that time, Ash's Pokémon had all finally recovered after eating a good meal and being able to just relax.

After the meal was through and all of the Pokémon had eaten, Ash and his friends packed up before preparing to head out. Once their Pokémon were returned, they said their goodbyes to Ed and then followed Walt as he led them out of the clearing his gym was in and onto the road that went through the small patch of woods that separated Walt's home from the town and deeper into the forest itself that surrounded the isolated community.

The old man led them down the road that headed out of Shadows Hallow and they followed it for quite a few minutes in companionable silence. The forest on both sides of them began to grow thicker and thicker the farther they went until pretty soon, it seemed as though the very trees themselves were closing in on them. The path becoming less and less clear as the vegetation became denser.

Walt continued to lead them on until they eventually came to a bend in the road that curved rightward into the treeline. He suddenly then stopped and the others came to a halt behind him.

Ash looked at Walt with a questioning expression. "Is this it?" He asked curiously.

The man nodded and turned around to face them. "Yes it is. If you were to keep following this path around the right turn here, you would find that it gets narrower and a little bit more grown up but nothing compared to what you went through getting to Shadows Hallow. It would eventually take you to Lavender Town and you would still most likely end up reaching it by late evening but this way..." He pointed straight ahead at the thick forest in front of them that plunged deeply into the thicket. "Will get you there at least two, if not three hours earlier."

Seeing the look of disbelief on their faces, Walt holds his hand up. "Now I know exactly what you're thinking but trust me, this did actually use to be a well traveled path to Lavender Town. It still is traversed by us townspeople whenever we need to go there, which isn't very often, and we do so because we're used to this forest.

Once you pass through the thickest part of the treeline here, you'll eventually see the rough outlines of the path we always follow in front of you. Just stick to it and you'll eventually come out into the treeline on the outskirts of Lavender Town." He looked each of them over. "I'm only telling you four about this because I believe you can handle it. If at any point you need to turn around then just do so and then use the more well worn one to the left of me, there's no shame in doing so so don't let your prides get the best of you."

Ash shared a look with his friends and upon getting nods from each of them, he looked back at Walt. "I appreciate the concern Walt but I know we'll be fine. We passed through some thick forest to get here so I know we can do the same to get out. Thanks for showing us the way," He said gratefully.

The old man merely gave a small smile in return. "I was happy to help Ash. Just remember to be careful, watch out for each other and keep building the bonds between you and your Pokémon. If you keep striving to be the best then I know you'll get there."

Ash shook hands with the man and thanked him once more before Brock, Misty and Giselle did the same. After they were all finished saying goodbye, Walt waved to them. "Well I've gotta get back to the gym now kids. Take care of yourself!" With those final words said, the aging man turned around and started walking back the way they had come, slowly getting farther and farther away until he eventually disappeared.

Ash looked at his friends and made sure they were ready before he started moving towards the treeline. He then stepped through the thick outer barrier of brush and fought his way through to the other side with his arms held firmly over his eyes.

Once inside the thick underbrush of the forest itself, he moved as many obstacles as he could out of the way for Giselle and Misty, who had an equally tough time getting through the treeline. Brock followed suit with a little less complication since the way had been more cleared out from the previous three breaking their way through the brush before him.

Once they were all inside, Ash gave the signal and they began walking forward. He eventually found the faded and overgrown path Walt told them about and made sure they were on it before he resumed pushing his way through the thick foliage surrounding them. "Come on guys... lets go," He grunted with a huff as he lead the way onward. Clearing out as much brush as he could for his friends as he did.

Needless to say, it was going to be a long, tiring day of intense traversal through some very nasty terrain for the group of friends. A trek in which no one in their right minds would envy them for if they knew what was good for them.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

The day passed by for the young group of travelers like a star falling from the sky it seemed like. They had walked all day through dense forest, rugged terrain and fierce underbrush. All the while trying to keep sight of the worn and faded path below their feet, only ever stopping twice. Once for a short break from the tiring excursion through the jungle-like terrain and then once in the evening in a small clearing they had found so Ash, Giselle and their Pokémon could train.

Ash may have won his Shadows Hallow gym badge but that didn't mean that he had any reason to slack off or rest. There was always something to improve on and he was more than willing to to do it.

During his training session, he ended up sending Gastly back to Professor Oak's lab and had his first Butterfree returned to the team in his place. He did this since he had sent the Bug-Type back home temporarily that morning when he was training his Pokémon before their gym battle so he could have a chance to get Gastly prepared and caught up to speed on what was happening.

He hadn't sent the pink Butterfree in the male's place for two reasons. The first was because she didn't know anyone back home at the ranch yet and Ash felt as though her first time going there should be with her mate so he could bring her up to speed on who all of the other Pokémon was.

The second reason was because he really wanted to use her in a battle, preferably a gym based one, before he sent her and his original Butterfree back home to the lab so they could mate whenever they were ready to. She had been training hard in the short two days she had been with him and that combined with her already impressive skills led him to believing that she was more than ready for such a challenge.

So as it stood, his current line up after sending Gastly back to the Professor's consisted of Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Charmander, both Butterfree and Pikachu (whom was always with him so shouldn't really even be mentioned in such head counts truthfully).

Training and supper time quickly came and went though and after that, the four friends continued on their way through the brutal forest. At the current time they were just now nearing a thinner part of the forest, the first that had been seen all day, and just as night had started to fall across the sky as well.

Ash was leading them on and could see the path starting to become a little bit clearer below their feet. He then heard Misty speak up from behind him, "Oh thank Arceus! Ash do you think we're almost there?" She asked with very obvious hope in her voice.

The raven haired trainer passed underneath a low hanging branch as he answered her, "I don't know Misty, probably. We've been walking just about the amount of time Walt told us it would take to reach Lavender Town going the way we did so we're most likely getting close."

Brock chimed in, "Judging by how thin the trees are getting I would say we're pretty close too."

Giselle suddenly called out while pointing forward, "Guys look, I see lights!"

The rest of them stopped and looked at where Giselle was pointing above the treetops. They could just make out the faint glow that could only come from a city being lit up at night as they gazed over the treeline. Ash smiled and looked back at his friends. "I think we've made it everybody, come on!" He started walking a little bit faster through the brush, followed closely by Brock, Misty and Giselle.

They continued moving with renewed excitement for the next few minutes until they passed through another thick wall of brush and dense foliage. They struggled their way through and once they made it out, the friends found themselves standing in a much clearer section of woods. Ash looked forward then and saw the shining lights and buildings of Lavender Town just ahead.

He and the others quickly traversed through the small patch of woods, excitement coursing through them, before finally breaking through the treeline. They all stopped right after and looked down to see that they were standing atop of a grassy hill overlooking what could only be Lavender Town directly below them.

They could see cars passing up and down the many different roads of the mid-sized town, lights of the street lamps and houses that were now on for the evening and even a few people walking the streets as they went to do whatever it was they had planned for themselves.

Giselle came up and grabbed Ash's arm as she too looked down on the town. A happy smile crossed her face as she squealed in excitement and jumped up and down. "Yay we made it!" The brunette stopped bouncing then and leaned over to kiss Ash's cheek. "Great job Mr. Navigator!"

Ash just laughed at Giselle's joke and kissed her hand in reply as Misty trudged up and dropped to her knees on the ground beside them. "Finally! We're free!" The orangette shouted and threw her arms into the air. She then looked back at the forest they had just come through as an angry scowl crossed her face. "That old geezer Walt lied to us! There wasn't any 'path' that whole way! He had us go through another treacherous deathtrap of a forest, promising it was a short cut to Lavender Town, just to mess with us! He probably went back to his gym and laughed his ass off with Ed at how stupid we were!" She fumed.

Ash looked back at the forest, where they were standing now and then down the steep hill leading into the town. Which looked rather unforgiving in itself with no clear sign of any paths to take them down safely. "I don't actually see any paths now that you mention it Misty. Just back there the trail was getting clearer and now it seems to have simply... disappeared."

Brock came up and stood beside Ash while assessing the area. "Well..." He began with hesitance. "I think Walt really was showing us a shortcut."

Seeing Misty look at him like she was about to go off again, he explained. "Look, there may not be any paths that will take us into town from here but I do think this is the way most people from Shadows Hallow go to get here. Walt told us to just keep going straight after we left the road earlier today and eventually we would reach Lavender Town much quicker than usual."

Brock gestured out in front of them then. "He was right too. Its only a little past eight o'clock now and if we would have followed the main roads to here, it would have taken at least two if not even three hours longer. Maybe he viewed the way we came as a path because he was used to it and it did have at least somewhat of a traveled appearance to it."

Ash nodded. "Yeah Misty I don't think Walt was trying to get us lost or tell us stuff just because. After all..." He gestured down towards Lavender Town like Brock had. "We're here and we did arrive in a shorter amount of time than it would have taken us if we would have went the normal way so give the guy a break. Yeah it was some rough terrain but we encountered the same thing when we were traveling into Shadows Hallow," He said in a placating voice.

Misty nodded and sighed. "I knows you guys and I'm not trying to complain either, I'm just really tired and ready for bed. We've been walking all day through that rough forest and I'm just ready to rest," She conceded apologetically.

Ash went up to her and draped his arm across her shoulder. "Don't worry Misty, we'll find someplace to rest for the night, I promise. There's probably a Pokémon Center down there that we can stay at for the night and get our Pokémon healed and rested up while we're at it."

Misty blushed at his close proximity as Giselle wrapped her arm around Misty's other shoulder. "I'm tired too Misty but we'll be able to rest soon, don't worry!" She comforted with a chipper smile.

The redhead merely nodded at them both, unable to speak at the moment or at least not trusting her own voice to do so. Just being around Ash was hard enough for her poor mind and senses to handle anyway- let alone being as close to him as she was currently- but something extremely strange was also effecting her that Misty couldn't put her finger on. Something of which that she shoved out of her mind no sooner than it had entered and with not even a second's more of thought for the subject.

What she found to be so odd was how... strangely enough... 'pleasant' for lack of a better word, that Giselle smelt to her. Again, Misty didn't even really notice that she was giving thought to such a thing but it was there nonetheless, far back in the depths of her mind.

Ash released Misty from his hold then, feeling rather satisfied at the very pleasing and unique scents he had been inhaling unintentionally from both of the girls, not just Giselle, as they all stood so close together. If he could label it then he would say that Giselle smelt somewhat of spice and cinnamon, very powerful but not overly so to the nose. Or at least not to his senses.

Misty's scent on the other hand was different. Hers was not as strong and imposing as Giselle's, funny considering how assertive the fiery redhead could be, but it was still just strong enough to tingle his senses in a very enticing way.

She smelt of what could best be described as that of a fresh sea breeze on a warm summer day mixed with the complementing aroma of lilacs in peak season. Almost as though the fresh sea breeze was pulling in the lilac scent across the ocean from some exotic destination.

There was something about both girls that Ash just found to be... alluring, but he couldn't put his finger on it. The more and more he thought on it though, the more he realized that if he wasn't in a happy relationship with Giselle, whom he cared for deeply, then he could actually see himself now having very possibly tried dating Misty.

She was just like her sisters Daisy, Violet and Lily in many ways that perhaps even she didn't realize. They were all beautiful, unique, intelligent in certain aspects, kind when they wanted to be and were just flat out good women in all their own ways. Misty mirrored these same qualities even if she didn't see it but Ash knew that someday she would.

Someday, no telling when, she was going to bloom into her own breathtaking, gorgeous flower just like her sisters and everyone was going to see it and look at her in a totally different light. That, Ash was willing to bet all of his Pokéballs on for an absolute certain.

Putting those thoughts out of his mind for now though since he knew such things were pointless to dwell on, he turned his attention back to the town and looked out over it along with the others. After a few moments of silence, Giselle suddenly pointed into the distance and got everyone else's attention. "Hey guys look, there's some kind of big tower on the other side of the town."

The others looked in the direction Giselle was pointing and indeed they saw a rather massive tower stretching high up into the night sky some distance away on the other end of Lavender Town. The huge structure stood tall and imposing over the rest of the town like a beacon of some kind and with the way it was backdropped against the dark sky, the entire tower looked a bit creepy and ominous.

Misty touched a finger to her lips. "I wonder what that tower is used for?" She wondered aloud.

"We're never gonna find out if we don't get down into the town," Ash answered over his shoulder before anyone else could as he walked over to the edge of the hill and looked down.

The young man searched around for the best possible route to the bottom of the steep hill and upon finding what way he thought would work best, he called back to his friends. "Hey guys follow me, I think I've found a way down!"

The other three walked over to him and then, after he secured Pikachu a little more to his shoulder, he got down onto his butt and started slowly sliding himself down the hill.

After a few moments of carefully pushing himself down the trecherous incline, he reached a small, level plateau which he stood up on fully before reaching up to Giselle. "You've got a skirt on Giselle and I know you don't want to be sliding down a hill in one. Let me help you."

Giving him a grateful smile, Giselle grabbed his hand and then walked down the hill carefully until she was standing beside of him. He then offered his other hand to Misty, who blushed a little but took his hand regardless and repeated the action of Giselle. Brock just followed down the same way Ash did and after he was with the others, Ash turned around and repeated the same thing again to get further down the hill.

They repeated this cycle over and over again until eventually the four friends were standing at the bottom of the large hill. Repositioning his pack on his shoulders, Ash turned around and saw that they were now just a few feet away from one of the roads outside of town. The four of them walked up to it and then made sure the way was clear before crossing the road to the sidewalk on the other side.

Upon finally making it into the town, Ash and his friends just stopped on the sidewalk and took a look around. Even though they were technically on the outskirts of the town, they could still see enough to get a proper idea of what Lavender Town looked like. If there was a word to describe the town simply then Ash would probably just use the term 'comfortably old fashioned'.

The design of the buildings, streets and general layout of the town all looked like something you would have seen from a town back in an older time. Everything was modern now obviously but it still carried the feel of an old timey presence. Like modern day mixed with a small taste of a time long since past.

Ash noticed then that people were looking at them a little funny as they passed them on the street and he couldn't help but chuckle. "These people are looking at us like we're a bunch of alien Pokémon," He said in amusement.

Giselle looked herself over. "Well given that we're all dirty and look less than pleasing from walking all day through that jungle masquerading as a forest, I can kind of see why."

Misty looked at Brock. "Have any idea where the nearest Pokémon Center is Brock?" She asked.

The older boy merely shook his head. "No but maybe we can try asking one of the locals?"

Ash nodded at the idea and walked up to a man who was walking their way. Smiling kindly, he greeted the man politely. "Excuse me sir, can you please tell us where the nearest Pokémon Center is?"

If the man was put off by Ash's appearance then he didn't show it as he simply answered in an equally kind voice, "Sure thing young man." He then pointed down the street towards the inner part of town. "Just follow this road until you hit the main part of town and then take a left at the very next street you see. You'll go that way for another few minutes or so and then you'll see the Pokémon Center up ahead. Its got a big pink 'P' on it that'll be glowing this time of evening so you can't miss it."

Ash thanked the man and then went over to his friends to tell them the directions. After that they started walking down the street they were on, slowly making their way farther into the old fashioned town until they eventually came to an intersection with three ways. The left street was the one in which the man told Ash to go, the right one led down to a large complex of houses and the center one was just a continuation of the street they were on at the moment, looking like it just led to more houses and residential area.

Just as Ash and his friends were about to cross the road to the other street they were supposed to be on, the raven haired trainer suddenly felt a cold chill run through his body as he stopped mid-step. He then felt the air around him stir slightly as a voice, faint but still noticeable, sounded from within his head.

'Come...' Was all Ash heard as he turned to stare in the direction he thought he heard the voice speak from.

The boy was currently standing completely still in an almost trance like state as he looked down the street they were on that led further into the town. He felt as though something was calling to him, like there was something inside of him saying to listen to the voice. Then, without any warning whatsoever, Ash took off running down the street in the direction he felt a pull towards.

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu called out as he had to dig his claws into Ash's shoulder to keep himself from falling off. Giselle, Misty and Brock looked after him with surprise written on their faces. "Ash!" Giselle shouted. "Ash where are you going?!"

Not getting a response from the boy as he just kept running, she shared a look with the other two who just nodded. They then took off after him as fast as they could while Ash continued running without any sign of stopping.

On and on he ran, going deeper into the town as he started running down all kinds of different streets, obviously not concerned with anything other than where he thought he was supposed to be headed. His friends followed as fast as they could while yelling, "Ash wait up! Come back!" But it was for naught though as the boy just continued to barrel down the streets like someone had set him on fire and the only way to put it out was to keep running.

As Brock, Misty and Giselle gave chase after a suddenly crazed Ash, they started noticing that he was heading out of the main part of town and was now entering a section of the city that looked to be mostly abandoned and rather run down looking.

The roads were becoming more worn and weathered in appearance with weeds growing out of the sidewalks and large cracks spiderwebbing in several different directions across their surfaces like someone had taken a jackhammer to them. The businesses and shops on every side of every street were closed and boarded up and all of the houses were totally empty and in a state of bad disrepair. Their yards overgrown with weeds and other gnarly looking foliage that showed just how long it had been since anyone had taken a mower to them.

Ash kept running blindly as he went deeper and deeper into the oddly ruined portion of Lavender Town until eventually, he came out into a large open area that was barren of buildings or houses of any kind. The only thing that could be seen in the entire area was the tall, imposing figure of a large tower rising high up into the sky in the distance.

The tower, which appeared to be made of some kind of stone, seemed to sit right on the farthest edge of Lavender Town in a forest-like area. Grass and trees, which all looked to be dead and wilted, rested on either side of the cobblestone path that lead up to the massive structure. The same type of dead greenery stretched on all around the immediate vicinity and surrounded the tower with dense vines climbing up the sides of it.

It wasn't until Ash made a turn onto the cobblestone walkway which headed straight to the eery looking tower did any of them realize that, for whatever reason, the tower in question was apparently his intended destination.

The seemingly possessed boy eventually came to a stop right in front of the tower and was followed just seconds later by his friends, who had come to a stop behind Ash and were panting to regain their breath. Once she got her breath back, Giselle straightened up and looked around at their surroundings, realizing that they were now far outside of the main part of town. The tower, whatever it was meant for, truly did seem as though it rested right on the very edge of town

Giselle also noticed as she stared up at the tall tower- which was actually much bigger up close than it had appeared earlier- that she was actually looking at the same tower in which she had seen atop the hill when they were are all looking out over Lavender Town. One glance back to Brock and Misty proved that they recognized it as well from the way they were staring up at the impressive manmade structure.

The former star student of Pokémon Tech found herself to be rather unnerved in that same moment by not only the dead trees and grass surrounding the tower but also by the somewhat ominous and foreboding feeling it seemed to give off. She glanced over then at Ash and saw him simply standing a few feet away while staring up at the tower like he was hynoptized. Pikachu was down on the ground looking up at his trainer with worry as Giselle walked over to his side.

The attractive brunette looked at her boyfriend in concern and gently touched his arm as she asked softly, "Ash? Ash are you okay? What's going on?"

Instead of answering her, Ash just took a few more steps forward until he was standing directly in front of the large door that led into the tower. There was a big padlock attached to chains around the door handle and as Ash reached out to touch the door, he found that he couldn't open it. He pulled over and over again on the locked entrance with a look of frustration on his face as he continued to yank on it.

Brock, Misty and Giselle quickly ran to his side. "Ash stop its locked!" Misty shouted as she went to reach for him.

The squinty eyed teen stepped in front of her though at the last minute to stop Misty from touching Ash. "Hold on Misty! Something isn't right with Ash and he could attack any one of us right now, just stand back for a minute," He advised patiently.

They all watched then as Ash backed up a few paces and went to run towards the door with his shoulder lowered. Just before he could connect with the door however, they heard someone shout, "Stop boy! Don't get any closer to that tower!"

The kids turned around quickly and saw an old man standing in the grass a few yards away to the left. He had his hand extended and a serious, almost panicked expression on his face as called out to them, "Don't let him keep trying to get into that tower! Stop him!"

Giselle turned around to see that Ash had returned his focus to the door and was trying to yank it open again. Not knowing what else to do but believing that they needed to listen to the strange older man, she looked down at Pikachu. "Pikachu there's no other choice, use Thunderbolt on Ash to stop him!"

Pikachu looked at her and then Ash with a look that obviously showed how he didn't want to do such a thing to his trainer. He quickly shook his head in reluctance then and called back, "Chu Chu! Pikachu Chu!"

Giselle crouched down next him him. "Pikachu if you don't do this then Ash could get hurt! Now please use your Thunderbolt to help him!"

The Pokémon looked between them both one last time before reluctantly running up to Ash. His cheeks sparked as he released just a powerful enough Thunderbolt on Ash that it would hopefully knock him out of whatever trance he was in. The bolt connected with the boy and electrocuted him fiercely as he convulsed and jittered around before falling to the ground.

His friends ran up to him after the electricity finally stopped and knelt down. "Ash! Ash are you okay?!" Giselle cried out fearfully as she put his head in her lap and looked over him with worried eyes. Pikachu also ran up to his trainer's side and stopped by his head, hating himself for what he had to do. The old man finally made his way over to them just as Ash finally started to stir, his eyes opening up slowly as he groaned.

"Ugh... what happened?" He sat up then and looked around. "W-Where am I?"

Giselle hugged him tightly and buried her face into his chest. "Oh Ash thank Arceus you're okay and finally back to normal!"

Pikachu jumped up on Ash's lap and looked him over to make sure he was okay as Brock and Misty crowded around him. "How are you feeling Ash?" Misty asked softly.

"Do you feel... normal now?" Brock ventured carefully.

Ash looked between his friends, catching site of the old man standing just a few feet away, before nodding. "Yeah, yeah I feel fine. A little fuzzy headed and dizzy but other than that fine. Why wouldn't I be though?" He asked perplexed.

The others shared looks between themselves. "Ash... you really don't remember anything?" Giselle slowly asked.

Before Ash could speak, the old man did for him. "He wouldn't remember anything. None of the others ever did..." He finished in a quiet tone as he came closer.

Ash looked up at the man from where he was sitting on the ground and raised an eyebrow. "Umm, who exactly never remembered mister-?

The man smiled. "My name is Fuji young man. I will explain to you all that I can but not here." He then looked around the area and up at the tower with an expression of weary trepidation on his face. "This place is not a good place to be." Turning around, Fuji started to walk away while calling over his shoulder. "Follow me to my home and I will tell you everything there."

Ash and the others shared a look amongst themselves but couldn't see a reason not to follow the man who didn't seem to mean them any harm so far. Deciding to just go with it and see what he could tell them, they chose to follow the mysterious man known as 'Mr. Fuji' to his home where they could hopefully have a few answers provided for the extremely unusual situation they had been presented with.

Ash got up slowly off the ground, Giselle supporting him on one side while Brock supported his other. He smiled at them gratefully and then shook his body out before standing on his own and then walking after Fuji, who was waiting for them a short distance away. "Come on guys, lets see what he knows..."

The four friends plus Pikachu then followed the older man as he led them away from the tower and through the small forested area surrounding it. He headed out of the woods a short time later and after a few minutes passed, they found themselves on the other end of the abandoned part of town. Fuji walked onto one of the broken sidewalks and then followed one of the ruined streets through a deserted neighborhood with Ash and his friends staying right on the old man's heels.

Eventually, they came within sight of what appeared to be a triple sided complex of sorts resting in a large grassy lot some ways down the street in front of them. Fuji made his way to the compound-like building and walked into the yard, leading them up to the door. He opened it up and moved aside as he gestured the four kids inside.

They stepped in and looked around at their surroundings. The entryway opened into the living/sitting area with high ceilings and was set up in a sort of traditional, feudal interior design. The kitchen was open and only separated from the living area by a large bar top counter with two entryways leading around the barrier and into the kitchen.

There was also a platform landing resting directly above the kitchen with two staircases leading up to it. Up at the top they could just see what they thought were two doors. Back down on the main floor, there were two more doors, positioned directly on the right and left sides of the room that led to only Arceus knew where. Ash and the others figured that, judging by the other two sides of the complex outside that were attached to the main one they were currently in, the two doors probably connected them all together.

The center of the living room had two couches and two armchairs set up in a square figure with a coffee table resting in the center of them. The walls on both sides of the room were covered in bookshelves full of books, picture frames of miscellaneous art and other items.

Mr. Fuji walked inside after removing his shoes, which the friends mimicked, and then moved towards the center of the room. He called over his shoulder to them afterwards, "Make yourselves at home, I'm going to make some tea." He then went into the kitchen to start the tea while Ash and the others walked over to the couches and took seats.

They all waited slightly anxious while Fuji made the tea and once it was done he came back holding a kettle and five cups on a silver tray. He poured each of them a cup of tea before pouring himself one and sitting down in an armchair. He settled in and while he did, Ash got to finally take in the mysterious man's appearance.

Fuji looked to be perhaps in his sixties but his face was rather smooth and well taken care of despite his age. He had long white eyebrows, was bald and had a clean shaven face. He was a rather small statured man and wore a sort of light tan, button up short sleeved shirt and darker tanned, almost grey, pants.

The older man cleared his throat and then addressed the kids. "So, I suppose I should I tell you what I promised now right?" He nodded to himself and then smiled. "But before I do, perhaps I can get your names if that's not too bold to ask?"

Ash nodded went first, "My name is Ash Ketchum sir."

"Giselle, nice to meet you and thank you for bringing us here Mr. Fuji." Giselle introduced herself and thanked him simultaneously.

"My name is Brock, same here. Thank you for opening your home to us sir," The former Pewter Gym Leader said with a polite bow of his head.

"My names Misty, I am also grateful Mr. Fuji," The youngest of the Waterflower sisters introduced herself with a slight dip of her head.

"Pi Pikachu Pi!" Pikachu chirped from Ash's shoulder.

Fuji smiled again. "Well it is wonderful to meet you all. Ash, Brock, Giselle and Misty." He then looked at Pikachu and reached his hand forward, letting Pikachu take in his scent before lightly scratching him behind the ears. "And of course you as well Pikachu."

The Pokémon in question merely smiled contentedly at the man's more than appropriate form of greeting and gave a happy 'cha' in reply. Fuji chuckled in amusement as he looked at Ash. "I can tell this Pikachu is well taken care of young man, you have done a good job of raising it."

Ash just thanked him for his kind words and then Fuji took a sip of tea before he commenced to speaking again. "The first thing I will say is that you Ash are not the first new arrival in town to be drawn to that tower against your will. It hasn't happened in quite some time that I am aware of but it has happened regardless. I will even take a guess and venture to say that you heard some form of voice in your head that compelled you to go to the tower didn't you?"

Ash's friends looked at the boy in interest as he nodded wearily, slightly unsure about where all of this was headed. "Well, my memory is kind of foggy but... yeah, that was generally what happened. I heard some sort of voice in my head saying to 'come' and the next thing I knew, I was waking up on the ground after Pikachu shocked me." A serious expression came across his face then as he leaned forward. "What happened to me Mr. Fuji?"

The older man sighed before setting his tea cup down. "It is a long and complex situation that has many different ways to explain it but what I will start with is by telling you that the tower you found yourself at was once the pinnacle of Lavender Town. Also... its the reason why this entire portion of the town was abandoned and forgotten by everyone else."

Seeing the looks of confusion on the faces of his young guests, he went on. "The tower is known as Pokémon Tower and it was built for and once used as a massive memorial site to honor lost and departed Pokémon. It was constructed countless years ago during the founding of this town and was held in high reverence for many, many years after. Not just here in Lavender Town either but the entire Kanto region as well."

A fond smile came across his face then. "The tower was truly a thing of beauty in it's glory days. The inside was just as splendid as it's outside appearance and was comprised of several levels of sanctuary rooms. Numerous memorial stones for all of the Pokémon that were chosen to be honored there after death, which were a very great many, rested in almost every corner of tower.

It was well maintained and cared for by the Pokémon Tower Memorial Keepers that lived in the tower itself at all times and their job was to keep the building itself and all of the memorial stones cleaned and polished to absolute perfection until every room all but shined with a white, alabaster glow."

He closed his eyes and seemed to be lost in memory for a moment before opening them and continuing. His eyes now slightly clouded over. "That was until a travesty befell the tower and brought it to it's knees, forever falling from grace. A great... 'misfortune' then fell upon the tower afterwards and ended up effecting this entire side of Lavender Town in horrible ways.

Eventually, the people here ended up leaving and moving to the other side of town. Forever abandoning all of this to slowly rot and decay away into nothing while everyone put the dark memory of what Pokémon Tower had become into the past. Hoping that in time, the tower and the part of town surrounding it would simply fade away. Essentially I suppose... become buried under a thick layer of denial and repression."

Misty raised an eyebrow. "Wow, it must have been some tragedy if whatever happened to the tower went on to effect so much of the town as well..."

Fuji nodded. "Yes, it was a horrible... horrible thing that happened." He then looked at Ash. "Now as to answer your question as to what happened to you Ash..."

A sigh escaped his lips. "It is complicated and something that I do not believe I can fully explain. All I can say is that what happened to that tower, and by extension this town, has left it's repeated mark over the years. Over time, travelers would come here and find themselves 'compelled' to go to that tower. As for why it happened... that is an explanation that, as I said before, I feel that I cannot properly give."

Ash looked at Fuji intently and appeared to be in deep thought over what the older man told him. Ash truly had no clue what happened and he also had a hunch that the man knew more than he was letting on but wouldn't say for some reason. Either way, he had to come to the conclusion that as long as it didn't happen again, he would be able to let it go. Possibly.

Everyone else in the room seemed to feel the unease in the current conversation so Brock decided to shift the subject. "So then Mr. Fuji, why are you still living here in this part of the city?"

Fuji gave a small smile and sighed. "Well for two reasons Brock. For one, I have grown attached to this place over the years and I can't seem to bring myself to leave it. Sometimes, injured or abandoned Pokémon wander through this part of town seeking refuge and I take them in until they're ready to head back out on their own again.

Also, with Pokémon Tower being unaccessible anymore, I decided to take it upon myself to convert a part of my home into a small memorial sanctuary for Pokémon. Over the years, I have added many memorial stones to it and even copied a few of the ones from Pokémon Tower on request of the poor individuals that lost their Pokémon.

My little sanctuary isn't nearly as big as the ones that Pokémon Tower houses naturally but it does justice for what is needed of it." He paused and took a sip of tea before continuing, "And I suppose there is another reason as well..." He sipped his tea again. "I run an official Pokémon Gym out of the other end of my compound on the right side."

Ash's eyes widened as did everyone else's at hearing that. "Wait!" Ash spoke up loudly with his hands raised. "Did you just say that you run an official Pokémon Gym? Right here in this compound? Certified by the Pokémon League itself to hand out gym badges to winning challengers?"

Fuji nodded, somewhat amused at Ash's pretty apparent excitement and surprise. "Yes, that is most definitely the case young man. I run Lavender Town's very own Pokémon Gym. The likes of which has become all but lost to time along with the rest of this part of town.

Back in it's heyday, during the golden years of Lavender Town, my gym bustled with challengers from all over. After everything happened though, my gym started fading more and more into the background. Now, I rarely ever get challengers and the people of this town have stopped seeing me as the gym leader. Instead I'm now known mostly as the crazy old man that lives in the ruins of the old part of town. I keep up to date on my gym license though just in case I do happen to get challengers," He finished casually.

Brock leaned forward in his chair. "Why doesn't the book on official Pokémon League certified gyms of Kanto say anything about your gym then Mr. Fuji?" He asked curiously. To which Ash, Misty and Giselle all nodded in agreement to.

Fuji shrugged sadly. "I may keep this gym licensed but because I never get challengers anymore, the newly updated guidebooks on the gyms of Kanto that you mentioned Brock has simply stopped including my gym into the pages. Even the Shadows Hallow Pokémon Gym gets more challengers than I do, or at least so I've heard."

Ash leaned forward in his seat as well with a determined glint burning in his eyes and, upon seeing this, his friends knew what was coming next. "Mr. Fuji, I am on a quest to collect all of the gym badges of Kanto before this coming year's Pokémon League Indigo Conference and in fact, my friends and I just came from Shadows Hallow where I challenged the gym leader there and earned it's badge."

The boy stood up then and looked into Fuji's eyes with untamed ferocity all but radiating off of him. "I would be honored if you would allow me to battle you for this gym's badge!" Pikachu looked resolute from Ash's shoulder as he nodded and called out in agreement, "Pikachu!"

Fuji just stared at Ash and Pikachu intently, lookig into their eyes as he sized them up. Something about the fire and passion in the boy's amber orbs set an old flame for battling alight in his spirit and after a moments of deep thought, Fuji smiled and nodded. "Okay Ash, I will accept your challenge."

Ash smiled widely and nodded in return as Brock, Misty and Giselle looked excited at the prospect of seeing Ash have another gym battle. The old man took a sip of his tea again before holding up an index finger. "We will have to wait until my friend gets here though Ash. I told her that we would catch up today and she should be here at any moment."

The young trainer in question appeared confused. "Friend?" He asked.

Fuji nodded and gave a slight grin. "Yes, she is a dear old friend of mine who is also rather... 'learned' I suppose you could say in the arts of Pokémon battling herself. In fact, one would say she's a rather big celebrity here in Kanto for both her status, as well as prowess in battle. Once she gets here, I am sure she would love to meet a spirited young trainer like you and perhaps even concede to watch and referee our battle. That is of course, as long as you do not become intimidated by her presence," He said mysteriously with a sly grin and slight chuckle.

Giselle blinked. "Why would Ash be intimidated by-" Suddenly, she was cut off by a knock at the door.

Everyone turned their heads to face the door as Fuji smiled and got up. "Ahh that must be her now!" Ash and his friends watched in anticipation as Fuji went over and opened up the door. They heard him greet the new arrival in a friendly way, like how two people who knew other for years would do, before engaging in a few words of conversation that none of them could hear.

Hard as they tried to listen, all they could hear out of the mystery person was that it was indeed a woman and an older woman by the tone of her voice. She had a firm but confident infliction to her voice and this only further peaked their curiosity as to who it could be.

Eventually they managed to catch Fuji say something to her about meeting a couple of new friends of his and a fiery young trainer that had just challenged him to a gym battle. They heard the mystery woman say something back in a voice that sounded to be of both surprise and interest as Fuji finally let her in and guided her into the main room.

When the older man stepped aside and revealed the woman standing behind him, the group of young people almost jaw dropped to the floor as they gaped in surprise. All except for Ash, who looked to be feeling a mixture of both excitement and extreme curiosity as to what someone of her status was doing there in the same place as them and how Fuji could have possibly known her.

Brock was the first one to stammer the newcomer's identity out of all of them. "Y-You're! You're A-Agatha of the Elite Four!" He exclaimed loudly while pointing with a trembling finger.

The older woman, whom had a rather stern and sharp looking face, faded blond hair and was wearing a purple dress with a white apron over it and a white oval pendant of some kind attached to the chest, merely gave a slight smile and nodded. She had a brown cane with her and she leaned on it while replying to Brock's choppy greeting. "Yes that's me sonny, good to know word of my name still gets around every now and again," She said in a crisp, to the point, yet still friendly voice.

Giselle looked like a Remoraid with her eyes being as wide as they were. "B-But you're a member of the Elite Four! What are you doing here?!"

Misty looked over at Ash for a second. "Can you believe that we're in the presence of an actual member of the Elite Four Ash?!" She gushed with pure excitement tinged into her voice.

However, when Ash didn't reply she looked at him again only to see that he was staring at Agatha intently. Almost as though his eyes were sizing and scaling her up. Like he was about to have a Pokémon battle with her and was trying to learn all he could from her just by watching every move she made.

The redhead had never seen Ash look at someone in such a way and had to wonder what was going on in his head at that moment. Agatha answered Giselle's question at the same time then, "Well young miss I've known Fuji here for many a year. Met him back whenever Lavender Tower was still going strong. I had just lost a Pokémon to sickness at the time and while I was here paying my respects to it at the tower, I ran into Fuji who was already living here.

He helped me get over my grief by being a good source of conversation, an ear to talk to and dare I say it, a shoulder to cry on when I needed one. We've been friends ever since and I try to get down here to visit him whenever I get the chance to slip away from my duties as a member of the Elite Four for a time."

The sharp looking woman then slightly narrowed her eyes as she searched out amongst the kids for the one that Fuji told her about that had a seemingly vigorous spirit and had challenged him to a gym match. By sizing the children up, something she had learned from years of battling opponents, she could tell that all of them seemed like they could be potentially talented trainers. Rather it would be enough to defeat Fuji though, she didn't know.

Eventually, her eyes landed on Ash and upon seeing the way he was gazing at her, with what appeared to be calculation and complete in-depth assessment, she knew it was him. Unlike his friends, Agatha could see that this boy was different to some degree.

While she could definitely see respect in his eyes for her, she didn't see any kind of amazement, fan worship or disbelief like she was so used to seeing. Especially from younger trainers such as him. Instead she saw that he was simply observing her, studying her like a hunter would do before even thinking about going after it's prey.

She then saw that the young Pikachu on his shoulder was mimicking it's trainer's behavior as it eyed her carefully and, needless to say, it was an interesting and unusual sight for her to see.

While she obviously didn't feel scared or intimidated by him, which was something she had just learned to manipulate and control over the years, Agatha still felt herself becoming impressed with the young man's apparent method of assessing and sizing up people such as herself upon first meetings.

She then walked up to Ash and looked down at him. "So... are you the young trainer Fuji here told me about that's challenging him?" Agatha asked sharply but not unkindly.

Ash merely nodded. "Yes ma'am, that's me. My name is Ash Ketchum and these are my friends," He pointed to said friends in turn. "Brock, Misty, Giselle and this-" The boy gestured up to Pikachu on his shoulder. "Is my very first Pokémon and good friend Pikachu." He looked back at Agatha then and slightly, not dramatically, bowed his head to her while saying respectfully, "Its an honor to meet you Agatha."

Agatha, for her part, caught onto a couple of things during that small introduction. The first was how Ash had introduced his Pikachu as his good friend and not just Pokémon. For many trainers, especially rookie ones which she guessed he was by the looks of him, very rarely ever introduced their Pokémon as their friends as well.

The next thing she noticed was how he refused to bow lowly to her like his other three friends did. He still showed her the proper respect that most people his elder, such as herself, should get and was also polite, but he apparently didn't feel the need to lower himself to her just because of her famous reputation.

Which was again, something many, MANY trainers, would and had done to her and quite frankly, she hated it. She preferred meeting people that had fire and spunk and didn't feel like they needed to bow to someone just because they held a higher standing in society.

The Elite Four member just nodded to Ash's response and gave her reply. "It is pleasant to meet you as well young man. I can tell by the glossy coat and vibrant red glow of the electric sacks on it's cheeks that your Pikachu is very well taken care of and raised. Yes, well raised I would say indeed..." She then gave him a stern look. "Now I hope you've trained hard and readied yourself boy because I can tell you that Fuji here is no pushover. If you don't give it your all then you won't win," She advised in a wise tone.

Ash nodded respectfully to her. "Yes ma'am. I always train with my Pokémon and we prepare as best as we can for every battle we go into. We'll give it our all," He stated with conviction as Pikachu nodded with an equal amount of determination in his eyes.

Agatha gave another nod and then looked at Fuji. "Well, I would probably be right in assuming you don't have a referee for this gym anymore Fuji so I'll act as the standing judge if you'll have me," She offered.

The older man merely smiled in response. "That would be wonderful Agatha, thank you."

Misty leaned over and whispered to Brock and Giselle, "If Agatha is really going to be judging this match then I hope the nerves of her being here don't get to Ash..." She voiced in concern.

Giselle and Brock just nodded in equal concern but didn't say anything.

Fuji clapped his hands and addressed them all then. "Well! Shall we move to the battlefield now everyone?"

Seeing no qualms with the planned course of action, Fuji led the group to the door on the far side end of the room and opened it, letting them step through first. After everyone had entered inside the almost totally dark room, the old man flipped a light switch and the room was suddenly lit up in a bright glow.

Ash and his friends were finally able to see their surroundings and found that they had entered into a large, open storage-like area with white stone walls and floor and metal ceilings. Lights hung from the ceiling and the battlefield stretched out in front of them far and wide to the other end of the room some distance away.

Fuji stepped out into the trainer's box closest to the entry door and Ash made his way down to the one at the end of the building once Agatha had asked for his last name.

They both faced each other after that with serious expressions on their faces as Agatha came out to stand on the sidelines. She cleared her throat and then called loudly, "This will be a match between gym leader of Lavender Town, Fuji, and the challenger Ash Ketchum. Both trainers will use only three Pokémon and the side that loses all of their Pokémon first will be declared the winner. There are no time limits and only the challenger may substitute Pokémon. Are both sides ready?"

Fuji and Ash simply nodded without saying anything.

Agatha eyed the two of them for a second before commanding, "Both trainers now choose your first Pokémon please."

Fuji pulled a Pokéball out from his belt, which was hidden underneath his slightly long shirt, and threw it out onto the battlefield. "Shuppet I choose you!"

In a burst of stars and light, the cloak-like Ghost-Type Pokémon appeared on the field with a rotational twirl through the air. Fuji chuckled as he called over to Ash, "I forgot to mention earlier young man, my gym specializes in Ghost-Type Pokémon. Lavender Town is known for it's rather haunted mystique and it wasn't a little known secret that before Pokémon Tower was closed up, Ghost Pokémon would frequently make the tower their home. I decided to honor our town's ghostly traditions and what we're most famously known for by making this gym specialize in just that same type of Pokémon."

Ash didn't reply to the old man's explanation, instead he just eyed the Hoenn native Ghost-Type and thought over his options to battle it with. Even though he hadn't visited a Pokémon Center yet, Bulbasaur and Pikachu had already been healed up by himself earlier that day in Shadows Hallow before they left. It wasn't a treatment to the level one of a Nurse Joy could perform but it still did the job and because of this, he knew they could easily battle again after having received an almost full day's rest in their Pokéballs. Bar their evening training session of course.

Even with all that in mind though, he wasn't planning on using any of those three anyway. He liked to rotate his Pokémon in and out with every battle, especially big ones, that he competed in so they could all receive hands on battle experience to go with their intensive training schedules. Which he essentially did just to make them more well rounded and that was why he was currently planning on using an entirely different three Pokémon line up for the coming battle.

On the sidelines, his friends were talking amongst themselves. "Do you really think Ash and his Pokémon are ready for this?" Giselle asked somewhat nervously. "He hasn't had a chance to get any of them checked out at a Pokémon Center for days! Since we left Tide Town as a matter fact!"

Brock crossed his arms and looked thoughtful. "Yes but Ash has been taking of them and healing them to the best of his abilities as much as he could since then. They may not have been as thorough and effective as what Nurse Joy could do but Ash has still done a pretty good job.

Besides... I really don't think that he's going to use the same Pokémon he did against Walt. I just don't see it knowing him. Ash refuses to use the same Pokémon twice in a match after they win a battle unless there's no other choice. Because of that, I truthfully don't foresee him taking it even a step further by using all or even part of the same team that he did to beat Walt."

Misty raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't Fuji being a little dishonest when he didn't tell Ash that his gym specialized in Ghost-Types until right as the match was about to begin?"

Again, Brock shrugged. "All depends on how you look at it I suppose. Fuji really wasn't doing anything wrong by not telling Ash sooner because he still did tell him before the battle started, which doesn't break any rules. The whole match was just kind of a last minute thing anyway so it'll be interesting to see how Ash handles it.

He's never battled without having time to plan, prepare and assess for his gym matches beforehand and now that very thing is happening to him. I think it will be a great test of just how good he is at being able to adapt on the spot and not freak out under pressure in an unexpected situation. Good trainers handle matches well when they plan for them but great ones will do well either way."

Back on the battlefield, Ash finally chose his first Pokémon. Pulling a ball from his belt, he tossed it up while yelling, "Squirtle I need you!"

The small Water-Type came bursting out from his ball in a flash of light and stood ready for battle with no flashy intro. "Squirtle!" He grunted with a determined expression on his face.

Agatha looked back and forth a few times before raising her hands and bringing them down. "Let the match begin!"

Fuji called out quickly to put the pressure on Ash as soon as possible, "Shuppet use Night Shade!"

The puppet-like Pokémon shot it's attack at Squirtle, which Ash was quick to yell out for his Pokémon to evade. The Water-Type quickly jumped to the left and rolled to avoid the attack. Ash then commanded Squirtle while he was coming out of his roll, "Now Squirtle use Water Gun!"

The turtle Pokémon opened his mouth and shot a powerful burst of water towards Shuppet but Fuji just smirked and ordered his Pokémon to avoid it. Shuppet did so and seemed to blur into nothing as it got out of the way of the aquatic attack faster than anyone could follow.

"Wow that was fast!" Giselle blinked in surprise, Brock and Misty nodding along with her in agreement

Fuji then commanded Shuppet to use Confuse Ray continuously, which Ash knew would be trouble if it hit Squirtle. He called out as fast as he could, "Squirtle withdraw into your shell quickly!"

The Water Pokémon ducked into his shell just as the waves of confusion began crashing down upon it. Fuji, feeling his plan was working, grinned before calling out, "Now Shuppet use Psybeam on Squirtle!"

The puppet Pokémon's eyes glowed before several waves of beam-like psychic energy flew at the withdrawn Squirtle. Ash took immediate action. "Squirtle fire water towards the ground with a rocking motion inside of your shell and get out of the way!"

Squirtle lurched forward in his shell and fired a blast of water at the ground below it, which sent the shelled Pokémon hurdling up into the air just as the beam of psychic energy impacted with the ground where he just was.

Squirtle spun in fast circles up in the air as Ash yelled out, "Now use Bubblebeam on Shuppet!"

Ash's Pokémon popped out of his shell and fired a salvo of bubbles at the Ghost-Type, who was now floating down below it. Fuji commanded quickly, "Shuppet use Night Shade to counter that!"

Shuppet did so immediately and both attacks met in the air before exploding and throwing up a smoke cloud. Squirtle landed on the ground in a ready position just as Shuppet came flying through the screen of smoke at him, it's eyes glowing as another Confuse Ray was shot towards the Water-Type.

Squirtle waited until the last second and then hopped out of the way, narrowly avoiding the sensory scrambling move. He skidded a few feet away to the left and at that moment, Ash saw two red glowing eyes behind his Pokémon in the smoke cloud.

He tried to warn Squirtle but it was too late as Fuji's Pokémon sent a powerful Night Shade at his Pokémon and struck him straight in the back, knocking Squirtle off of his feet and sending him skidding across the ground.

The smoke cloud had cleared away by this point and Fuji let no reprieve be allowed as he ordered Shuppet, "Now use Curse!"

Ash instantly knew that the next move would be big trouble for Squirtle if it hit and he looked to his Pokémon, only to see to his dismay that Squirtle was still reeling from the surprise attack he just took seconds before.

Shuppet's whole body glowed green before it cried out loudly in pain as an electrical surge of energy draining static zapped a large dose of critical energy from it's body. Shuppet then looked up with plasmic sweat dripping down it's forehead and glared at Squirtle before sending that same electrical charge of green energy at him. Ash stepped forward then with his eyes set into a serious and steely looking expression.

"Squirtle listen to me," He called out calmly but also urgently. "You have to snap out of it and dodge that attack now or you're going to be in trouble. Please... do it now!"

The Water-Type heard his trainer and turned around but it was just a little too late. The green, foreboding looking beam of lightning was on Squirtle sooner than he could move. It struck his small frame and lit the blue skinned Pokémon up as it started sapping him of a large portion of his energy. Squirtle cried out in pain as he was struck by the electric-like charge and tried to move but he simply couldn't.

The attack finally subsided after several moments of intense punishment and almost instantly Squirtle fell down to one knee, one eye closed as he panted and grunted in pain.

"Crap!" Misty shouted. "Squirtle really didn't need this right now! He was already having enough trouble evading that Shuppet's fast attacks!"

Brock and Giselle both nodded with sweat rolling down their foreheads in worry for Ash but back on the field, Fuji was already on the move again. Showing that he was much more brutal of a battler than his kind disposition would clue at. "Shuppet!" He called out. "Shake it off and use Night Shade!"

The now very exhausted Shuppet lifted itself further back into the air and charged up a beam of darkness in it's eyes before firing it at Squirtle. Ash's Pokémon was still down from the last attack and couldn't even hope to move before he was hit yet again with the attack and sent rolling across the battlefield before landing in a heap with scuff marks on his shell.

Fuji then commanded his struggling Pokémon, whom the Curse attack had drained of over half of it's health, to stay on Squirtle and use as many attacks as it could to take him down. Shuppet may have been tired but it listened as it took off after Squirtle. Ash had no opportunity to warn his Pokémon before, yet again, he was being attacked by a barrage of attacks from the Ghost-Type.

Shuppet used attacks like Psybeam, Night Shade and even Shadow Ball on Squirtle. The battered Water-Type tried to defend himself as much as he could but it was all for naught as he was just too stunned and weakened by the previous attacks he had sustained to do anything.

Ash's friends watched on in dismay as Squirtle was ruthlessly assaulted by the many attacks from the tiring Shuppet and all the while, Agatha kept a very close eye on the match. Or more specifically, on Ash. She kept watching his every move and facial expression throughout the battle, sizing him up and scrutinizing his battle style.

The older woman had to admit that she was impressed so far with how well trained his Pokémon seemed to be and how well he handled them but once Fuji had really started getting into the flow of battle and Shuppet hit Squirtle with Curse, she knew it was all but over.

That very attack strategy Fuji put into play was a deadly combination she had seen her friend use many times before and even experienced, veteran trainers had a hard time not losing their cool whenever Fuji started going off on one of his onslaughts.

She fully expected to see Ash start panicking since he was still just a rookie trainer but when she instead saw that he had one of the most composed, well controlled and focused looks on his face that she had ever seen, it threw her off balance slightly. And that was extremely rare for such a seasoned professional as her.

At first she thought that maybe he just didn't care about what happened to his Pokémon and only saw them as tools for battle- which would have enraged her should that have been the case- but when she heard him speak words of deep encouragement and belief to his Pokémon and also the way she saw him almost become one and move with each strike Squirtle took, she knew that wasn't the case at all.

It was right after Squirtle had been struck with another attack and was forced to the ground yet again did she hear Ash say something that really made her see the young trainer in a new light.

He had called out to his Pokémon and said, "Squirtle, I need you to hear me okay?! You are strong and I do mean strong! You have so much heart, determination and skill in battle that it amazes even me, your own trainer, every time I see you fight! I know you're in pain and I know you're hurting right now but I need you to believe me when I say that I know... I KNOW you can do this! Think of all of our training, think of all that we do to become one in our minds, hearts and souls. I believe in you my friend and I KNOW you can do this! Now stand back up and lets do this together! Let us fight together and let us win together!"

Those words he spoke, words of such conviction and passion, almost sent a chill down the older woman's spine. Those very words he spoke and the way he looked when he said them, that look in his eyes, the fire she saw in them... it reminded of her two people, two great trainers that she had known in her life time.

One was her dear friend Samuel Oak when he was a much younger man in his prime and taking on the world as a Pokémon Trainer himself. The other, to a much greater degree, was none other than Lance Blackthorn. Champion of the Kanto and Johto regions, as well as herself and the rest of the Elite Four's superior.

Lance was the exact same way when he battled and right now, she was seeing this rookie, greenhorn trainer inspire and encourage his Pokémon on in the exact same way as Lance did his own. It actually made her eyes widen somewhat as she was almost fooled into thinking that she was watching a much younger Lance himself battling it out against Fuji.

Back on the battlefield, the words that Ash spoke to Squirtle caused a whole new fire to light within the Pokémon's spirit as he forced himself up off the ground with a loud grunt of effort and stood up tall while staring Shuppet down with pure grit and raw fury in his eyes.

The next thing that happened shocked everyone greatly. A blue glow of energy that almost looked like the color of the deepest ocean blue water, rose up and surrounded Squirtle. The Pokémon's eyes glowed blue as well as he raised his head up and yelled loudly to the sky.

Ash knew exactly what it was that had just happened to his Pokémon however and smiled. His friends and Fuji merely gaped in astonishment while Agatha had a much more measured and controlled expression on her own face. Though on the inside she herself was surprised. It took a real bond between a trainer and their Pokémon to bring out the ability she was now seeing and to witness it come out in Squirtle simply cemented for her the fact that the deep bond he and his trainer shared was obviously very strong indeed.

Giselle was the one to voice what had just happened for everyone who was still too shocked to. "Wow that's the ability Torrent! When a Water-Type Pokémon with that ability is really in danger and low on energy, Torrent activates within them and gives a huge energy burst to their physical and special attacks!" She explained with awe in her voice.

Sure enough, that was exactly what had happened to Squirtle and Ash wasn't about to waste it. He quickly raised his hand and shouted, "Alright Squirtle that's the way to do it now lets not waste it! Use Water Pulse on Shuppet! Now!"

Squirtle opened his mouth as the blue glow around him grew brighter and a large ball of aqua formed in his mouth. Fuji knew that such an enhanced attack would be trouble as he shouted out to his Pokémon, "Shuppet counter that attack now with Night Shade!"

The tired Ghost-Type fired off a much weaker version of the attack it had been using all battle just as Squirtle released Water Pulse. Both attacks met in mid-air but the Torrent enhanced blast of water was much too powerful for the weakened Ghost-Type attack and cut right through it.

Fuji could only watch as the aquatic attack sailed straight towards his Pokémon and impacted with Shuppet in an all consuming wall of brutally ferocious water. The attack shot Shuppet backward and slammed it into the ground where it caused a large crater to appear in the ground.

Squirtle didn't appear to give any reprieve as at the very next second, the blue glowing energy around him became stronger and a wall of water rose up around the small Pokémon. It encased him inside of it and Squirtle seemed to instinctively know what to do next as he lowered himself down until his head was pointed forward. Ash also knew what had just happened and recognized the tell tale signs of the attack that he knew Squirtle had just learned.

Grinning, he called out with a wave of his hand, "Now Squirtle, put that new move to the test! Use Aqua Jet!"

Much to everyone else's surprise, Squirtle shot forward like a bullet as the water around him sent the Water-Type rocketing across the battlefield. A large trail of water surging behind him as he did so.

Shuppet was just starting to shakily recover from the Water Pulse it had taken head on and then looked up only to see the water shrouded form of a speeding Squirtle come hurdling towards it in the air. The Ghost Pokémon tried to move but was helpless to avoid the attack as Squirtle struck slammed into it the very next moment and sent Shuppet careening across the battlefield.

Squirtle didn't stop there though and kept traveling forward using Aqua Jet. He turned in mid-air then and raced ahead of Shuppet, hitting the Ghost-Type yet again with another hard tackle as the puppet-like Pokémon was sent careening in another direction with a loud cry of, "Shuppeeet!"

Ash's Pokémon then began a pattern of flying through the air with Aqua Jet, never missing a beat as he would meet Shuppet head on at a new location every time and send it flying elsewhere with a fierce strike of brutal, aqua infused power. Effectively turning the match into what looked almost like a game of pinball, with Shuppet being the ball.

Eventually, after several moments of the same strategy, Shuppet was sent flying up into the air once more. Squirtle chased after him until he was directly overhead of his opponent. He then started falling down to meet Shuppet in mid-air but Ash had another plan. Smirking internally he called out, "Squirtle! Grab a hold of Shuppet when you meet it and then spin around on the way down so it's falling headfirst!"

Squirtle did just that and grabbed Shuppet when they met in the air. As they started falling back to the ground he then spun his opponent around until Shuppet was now upside down. Fuji had no idea what was coming next and he had no ability to order kind of counter to Ash's next command. "Squirtle, now use Water Pulse and shoot it directly into Shuppet!"

Squirtle opened his mouth and sent a large gush of water at the falling Ghost-Type. The water torrent was shot directly into the small body of Shuppet and sped up the Pokémon's descent towards the ground exponentially.

Fuji's Pokémon hit the hard concrete ground as a large explosion of water and dust kicked up into the air, drops of rain and cement raining down on the battlefield just seconds after the impact.

Squirtle used Aqua Jet again to veer away from the ground so he wouldn't crash and landed near Ash where he stopped and stood straight up in a ready position. The only thing keeping him from collapsing now being sheer will power and the effects of Torrent that was still influencing his body.

Once the smoke cloud cleared on the other side of the battlelfield moments later, Shuppet was revealed laying upon the ground face up and knocked out cold.

Agatha blinked in surprise before raising her hand a few seconds later. "Shuppet is unable to battle! Squirtle is the winner!"

Fuji himself looked slightly stunned as he returned his downed Pokémon to it's ball but merely shook his head then and smiled. He looked across the field at Ash, who was now beside of Squirtle while checking him over. The Water-Type had returned back to normal as Torrent had finally receded and was currently looking pretty beaten and scuffed up.

Ash smiled at his Pokémon, whom was panting but also looking at his trainer with a tired smile of his own, and then patted his shell. "That was incredible Squirtle and you gave one helluva fierce performance just now! Thank you, I'm very proud of you."

Squirtle just gave his trainer a thumbs up. "Squirtle..." He nodded exhaustedly but in obvious enjoyment of his trainer's praise.

Ash then returned his Pokémon to his Pokéball before standing back up and looking across the field at Fuji. The older mad smiled and nodded. "Very impressive Ash, very impressive indeed. Now..." He pulled out another Pokéball. "Lets see how you fair with this one!"

He threw the Pokéball in his hand onto the field then and out of the ball came yet another Hoenn native Ghost-Type, Duskull.

Ash observed the new opponent he would have to face and immediately knew exactly who to use. He was ready to see just how adapt of a battler she was and how much his training with her had payed off over the past two days.

The boy then pulled out the Pokéball he needed from his belt and smiled. "Thanks Mr. Fuji, now lets see how YOU deal with this!"

Without another word, he tossed the Pokéball up into the air and shouted, "Come on out my beautiful Butterfree!"

In a burst of extravagant lights, Ash's newest Pokémon, the pink Butterfree, emerged from within her ball. She appeared in a flourish and did several intricate spins and turns in the air with her masterful flying abilities before turning in a circle and announcing loudly, "Freeee!"

Fuji and Agatha's reactions to the appearance of such an oddly colored Butterfree truly was comedic. Fuji merely gaped open mouthed as he sputtered, "I-Its p-pink!"

Even Agatha looked surprised but she hid it much better. 'Hmm...' She mused in her mind. 'The only all pink Pokémon I've ever heard of can be found only on Pinkan Island in the Orange Islands. No trainers are permitted on the island, let alone allowed to capture any of them. I don't know him very well but something just tells me that this young Ash would never do such a thing as capture protected Pokémon against the law so I do wonder how he managed to obtain such a rarity?' She grinned to herself and shook her head in slight amusement. 'This young man is just full of surprises...'

She waited until Fuji recovered from his shock at seeing the rare Pokémon and then called out, "Both trainers ready for battle? If so then begin!"

Fuji quickly shook himself from his stupor and commanded his Pokémon, "Duskull use Willow Wisp!"

The strange looking Ghost-Type glowed eerily for a few seconds before firing multiple little blue balls of self guided fire at the female Butterfree.

Ash raised an eyebrow. 'So he's starting this one with a status effecting move huh?' He thought to himself. 'Well I've not gotten to see how good she is at battling yet except in practice matches with the others but those really don't count. I know she's fast so lets see how this goes...'

He raised his hand and then called out, "Butterfree use Agility to dodge and then use Gust to counter!"

What happened next shocked everyone, including Ash. Butterfree nodded with a stony expression on her face before she quite literally just fazed out of existence.

Fuji, Agatha, Ash, his friends, Pikachu and even Duskull went wide eyed at the tremendous speed that the female Pokémon had just demonstrated. The wisps of fire that Duskull sent her way simply passed harmlessly through the location where she once was and at the very next instant, Butterfree appeared at Duskull's side and sent a strong gust of wind at it.

Being taken totally off guard by her unnatural speed, neither it nor Fuji could do anything to counter as the gust of wind struck the Ghost-Type and sent it speeding across the battlefield before slamming into the ground.

Ash blinked in shock as Butterfree hovered in the air with the same impassive expression on her face and in her eyes. "Wow..." He stated dumbly. "You're fast Butterfree!"

Fuji seemed amazed as his Pokémon rose back up off the ground slowly and then looked at the Butterfree before them. "Alright Duskull," He said wearily. "Watch out for that Butterfree's speed. Use Confuse Ray and follow it with Shadow Ball!"

His Pokémon complied without hesitation and it's eyes glowed as it sent a ray of confusion inducing light at Butterfree, followed instantly by the dark blob of Shadow Ball.

Ash was quick to react to the incoming attack. "Butterfree use Double Team combined with Agility!" He shouted.

The pink female flickered as several copies of herself were created and then increased their speed with that of Agility. Just before the waves of confusion could hit, all of the copy Butterfree surrounded the original in a circular dome-like formation and took the force of the attack, expelling it upon contact. Just before Shadow Ball could hit, Ash quickly yelled, "Now use Wing Attack, as quickly as you can!"

That statement would prove to be an even further testament to the pink Butterfree's speed as she came rocketing out of the dome of her clones, all of them vanishing as she flew towards the energy ball. Just as she almost came in contact with it, Butterfree twisted herself around and smacked the ball of darkness hard with one glowing, powerful wing, knocking it towards the ground where it exploded.

The female then rushed towards Duskull with her dumbfounding speed. Fuji, impressed that she had managed to dodge both attacks and in such an inventive way by using Double Team as a dome shield of sorts, knew that he had to stop her before she reached his Pokémon. He took quick action, "Duskull use rapid fire Shadow Ball and don't stop until you knock that Butterfree out of the air!"

Duskull called out it's name before building up a massive amount of energy that it then started shooting in several rapid bursts of Shadow Ball. Butterfree narrowed her eyes in focus and just picked up the speed as she swerved in and out of each ball of energy that tried to strike her.

Fuji grew frustrated as he saw just how disabling Butterfree's completely unexpected super speed was to his Pokémon attacks but just before he could order any further commands, the pink female had already made it through the barrage of Shadow Balls and was now directly in front of a very surprised Duskull. Her wings glowed a bright white color then before slamming themselves into the Ghost-Type, knocking it out of the air and towards the ground once more.

Before Fuji could even think of reacting, Butterfree was already below Duskull, looking up at it with fierce eyes. Ash saw the potential for an early finishing move and took it. "Butterfree use Confusion followed by Whirlwind!"

The mate of his first Butterfree hovered in mid-air as her eyes glowed blue and Duskull's descent was stopped instantaneously. The small reprieve from falling that Duskull was allotted did not last long however because in that next instant, Butterfree started whipping her wings together at an extremely fast pace which formed a small twister in the air that only got bigger and bigger the more power she put behind her wing thrusts.

As the twister was made more and more powerful, the frozen in place Duskull was thrown back up towards the ceiling where it was then caught up inside of the whirlwind of extremely fast moving air. Even though Ghost-Types were technically strong against Psychic-Types and should have been able to break free from the constraints of Confusion, which was a Psychic attack itself, the immense speed of the twister it was caught in made it all but impossible for Duskull to focus on anything. Let alone being able to break free from Confusion.

Ash then put the final phase of his plan into action. "Butterfree come down to the ground and then use Wing Attack on the floor!"

While the female Butterfree started doing as her trainer commanded and rushed towards the ground, repeatedly smashing into the floor with her powerful wings, cracking and breaking apart large sections of it into chunks, everyone else was left to wonder what Ash's plan was. Fuji had his face screwed up in an intensely concentrated expression with sweat forming on his brow as he tried to think of some way to help get his Pokémon out of the position it was currently in.

Agatha kept a close eye on both Ash and Butterfree, still critically observing every detail of their battling abilities, before looking at Fuji. She herself was at a loss as to what Ash was going to do now that they had Duskull in such a precarious situation and also wondered why he was having Butterfree bust up the floor.

For someone like her to be at a loss as to why someone was doing what they were in a battle was anvery rare occurence to have happen but if there was one thing she was starting to understand from watching Ash battle, it was that he was apparently quite privy to creating off the wall strategies at the drop of a hat. Which could be an extremely effective method of battling for the executor of said strategies and a nightmare for the opponent facing them.

Fighting an opponent that was prone to unpredictability in battle was a hard thing to find but a true joy to observe when you did find one. Rather you were an observer or their opponent. Even if you were the one undergoing extreme frustration in a match with someone who was so all over the place in technique and strategy and could actually make it work into a winning battling style, it was still very hard not to respect such a thing.

As the older woman looked at Fuji she could not help but think inwardly, 'Interesting indeed... I haven't seen Fuji getting put through the paces like this or be forced onto his toes in such a way in a very long time. I don't even think he himself remembers the last time he had such a battle. Looking at him though, I can tell that he's having a truly enjoyable time with this match.' She then frowned slightly. 'And after everything that man has been through in his wretched life, I'm happy he can have a slight reprieve of the memories I know still haunt him...'

Agatha then looked towards Ash and Butterfree. The young trainer was standing with his arms crossed and had a look of concentration, determination and focus on his face as he watched his Pokémon continue to bash the floor apart into rubble with her wings. As she stared at the boy's face, her thoughts couldn't stop wandering again.

'In all my years as an Elite Four, I have seen few trainers, let alone ones that are as wet behind the ears as this boy still is, who could keep my interest and attention so completely enraptured in their battle. His style reminds me of those I've seen from true champions and prodigies over the years with battle prowess and skill in Pokémon raising that were nearly unprecedented in their times.'

Her eyes narrowed slightly in deep thought while her focus was locked intently onto Ash. 'His intelligence and contemplative ways of thinking reminds me of Sam greatly. His fire, intensity, determination and obvious deep bond he shares with his Pokémon, not to mention how he can motivate them the way he does, reminds me of Lance. Also, the way he remains calm, cool, collected and level headed in battle but with an obvious penchant for being brutal when he needs to be in order to pull out a win for his Pokémon, reminds me so very much of the young Sinnoh Champion... Cynthia Shirona.'

Agatha smiled to herself then as her eyes remained on Ash. 'Yes... in fact, he and Cynthia seem to be extremely similar in how they act in battle. Calm, cool, collected, calculating and I dare say it, cold when need be. Which is something impressive considering that Cynthia is so many years his senior in both life and battle experience, as well as in her time with Pokémon in general.

Actually, all of the people this boy seems to remind me of in ways are many years his senior and to see him already beginning to show the traits that make them all so feared and respected in the world of Pokémon battling, training and research respectively is... unique to say the least.'

A thoughtful expression came across her wizened face at that moment. 'Hmmm... Ash Ketchum? Now that I see his face I must admit that the similarities between he and Richard Ketchum, a veteran trainer whom I have seen take on the Indigo and Johto League Conferences many times before, is rather unsettling.

Richard is talented to be sure with much heart but is prone to rash decisions, recklessness in battle and a tendency to choke on his nerves during competitions of a higher importance. If he and this boy weren't so completely different in the way they go about battling then I would almost say that they were father and son. Though who knows? The apple falls far from the tree on some occasions and this could be one.

Still, the times I've met and spoken with Richard, he has never mentioned anything about having any children. So most likely they are not as closely related as parent and child but perhaps through a more distant relation with the same name? Yes that is possible. I'll have to mention this interesting young man to him when next I see him.'

She turned her full attention back to the match again but let one last item of thought cross her mind. 'I will have to also remember to mention young Ash Ketchum in passing to miss Shirona should I see her again in the near future. I can see many similarities between those two and I believe she would find him interesting. A mirror of her younger self even perhaps.

Cynthia, from what I understand, was a prodigy trainer as a child and that was what allowed her to go on and become the youngest Pokémon League Champion ever at the young age of sixteen. It could perhaps be possible that this boy is more adept at his craft than even she was at his age? I will have to keep an eye on his career as a Pokémon Trainer if I can and if he truly sticks it out and goes the distance then maybe in a decade or so, he would be able to offer someone like Cynthia a challenge that I'm sure she thirsts for.

Of course it would be many, many years before this young man, no matter how skilled he seems to be, could stand before someone like miss Shirona and hope to win but when he's older... I do wonder...'

She was suddenly broken from her reverie by Ash shouting out, "Now Butterfree, start whipping those loose pieces of floor rubble into the air and towards that twister Duskull is inside of with your Gust attack!"

Butterfree stopped what she was doing with her Wing Attack and then the very next second started churning up a powerful Gust that sucked up all of the loose, large pieces of floor rubble into it's vortex before shooting them towards the twister that Duskull was still trapped in. The chunks of debree were absorbed into the whirlwind and started swirling around the inside of it violently, making the funnel appear as though it were peppered with large dots as they spun around.

Confusion was the main expression on most everyone's faces for a short time until Ash's plan started to reveal it's violent nature. With Duskull being trapped in the center of the cyclone and immobilized by Butterfree's Confusion, the many pieces of floor rubble that Butterfree had sent into the twister made the Ghost-Type their prime target to crash, smash and knock into.

Being that the concrete floor rubble was of a rock-type element and since Duskull was unable to move due to the twister and Confusion, the poor Ghost Pokémon was helpless to do anything as the chunks of hard floor slammed into it and thrashed it around inside of the funnel of violent air.

Fuji watched in equal awe and dismay as his Pokémon was beaten senseless by pieces of his very own gym. Duskull cried out in pain as it was continuously smacked with rubble and the old man knew there was nothing he could do. Ash had his hands tied for him tightly.

After several minutes of this cycle repeating itself, Ash decided to end it. "Butterfree stop the twister and use Wing Attack!"

The female Butterfree shot off towards the twister and just as she started to get pulled into it's range of suction, she quickly put an end to the attack. The uncontrollable winds ceased almost as soon as they began once she stopped feeding the proverbial fire with beats of her strong wings like she had been doing. As soon as the cyclone died down and everything calmed, all of the large chunks of rubble inside of it started falling to the ground like pure led.

Duskull was left suspended in the air by Butterfree's Confusion that she still had going and looked to be very beaten and battered from the pummeling it had endured. Fuji tried to give a command to save his Pokémon but the female Butterfree that had proven to be too much for them handle made it to Duskull first.

She stopped Confusion just as she reached Duskull and right as it started to fall to the ground, she slammed into it with her wings and sent the Ghost-Type plummeting towards the ground. Duskull traveled in a fast paced descent that seemed never ending until it impacted the floor below with a loud crashing sound and then went still.

Agatha looked towards the Hoenn native Pokémon after all the dust settled and saw swirls in it's eyes. Knowing it was over, she raised her hand. "Duskull is unable to battle! Butterfree is the winner!"

Ash quickly called Butterfree down to him and then embraced her in joy as he started praising her incredible battle talent. Fuji on the other hand merely shook his head in amazement before returning Duskull. After that he pulled out his last Pokéball and held it in his hand while closing his eyes.

After he finished praising Butterfree, whom was equally as ecstatic as him for winning the battle, Ash called her back to her Pokéball before looking at Fuji with a deeply focused and slightly cautious look in his eyes. This was the last battle of the match and he knew that Fuji's last Pokémon would most likely be his best.

Eventually, Fuji opened up his eyes again and looked over at Ash. His face was serious as he said sharply, "Ash, you have given me a truly memorable battle that I will never forget and for that, I am grateful. However, you have no hope in defeating this last Pokémon of mine, not even with that quick Butterfree of yours. It is my oldest and strongest Pokémon of them all." He gave a small smirk before throwing the ball up into the air.

"Come out my friend and battle with me!" He shouted.

Out of the Pokéball came a large, matured, battle hardened and powerful looking Haunter. The Pokémon didn't even have the customary grin on it's face that was so famous for others of it's species. This one simply looked serious and ready to battle.

Ash instantly knew from looking at Haunter how tough the battle was going to be and without any hesitation, he picked his last Pokémon to use. Tossing the ball out of his hand, he yelled, "Lets show them what true fire and the heat of battle means buddy!"

In a flash of light, Charmander appeared from the Pokéball into a battle stance on the field. Dead seriousness was on his face with his tail flame burning brightly and his whole body tensed for the fight ahead. He and Haunter stared each other down as they both growled and moaned fiercely, "Charrrr/Haunteeeer!"

Everyone could instantly see the sparks flare between the two Pokémon and knew that this last battle was going to be the most intense yet.

Both Ash and Fuji prepared themselves, staring each other down without so much as blinking as Agatha brought her hands down. "Let the battle begin!"

Ash and Fuji both yelled at the same time, "Charmander/Haunter! Flamethrower/Shadow Ball!"

Both Pokémon were fast as lightning as they charged up their attacks and fired them at each other simultaneously with loud cries of "Charrrr/Haaaaaun!" The large scale, powerful attacks collided in mid-air with each other, mixing together and fighting for dominance before exploding.

Fuji ordered for Haunter to charge through the smoke and start using rapid fire Shadow Ball while Ash commanded Charmander to do the same with Flamethrower. Both Pokémon charged at one another through the smoke cloud and started launching their respective attacks at the other. Shadow Balls missed their mark and collided with the floor, walls and ceiling while the hot streams of fire would sear throughout the gym and scorch whatever it touched.

Chamander would duck, weave and dodge around all of the attacks Haunter sent at him while Ghost-Type fazed in and out through the blasts of fire aimed for it.

Ash called out, "Charmander use Slash on the floor to break up pieces of it and throw them at Haunter!"

As Charmander started doing that, Fuji grinned before shouting, "That won't work a second time around Ash! Haunter use Night Shade!"

The Ghost-Type started firing dark beams of energy at the rocks Charmander would toss at it and blast right through them. The dark beams would then continue on towards Charmander and cause him to jump out of the way to avoid getting hit. Ash quickly realized they would have to abandon their current strategy as the fast, powerful and well trained Haunter was breaking apart the rubble no sooner than Charmander could throw them and then counter firing with Night Shade.

The tables quickly turned as Charmander was forced to start dodging the attacks Haunter was now using, occasionally switching up and using Psybeam instead of Night Shade.

Roll, flip, twist, turn and jump was the only methods of defense Charmander had against the powerful, well honed attacks that came his way. It became a face-off of power, timing, speed and accuracy as the Fire-Type started to defend himself with his own moves in order to counter like Ember and Flamethrower.

It soon became a violent sequence of explosions and destruction as the more experienced Haunter but equally as vicious and determined Charmander continued going head to head. Every now and again one of their attacks would hit or lightly graze the other and leave small marks or scratches on their body but nothing too extreme.

Ash then yelled out, "Charmander use Smokescreen!"

Charmander stopped jumping around for a split second and opened his mouth before releasing a plume of dark smoke from it that started to cover the battlefield. The Fire-Type then started running through the smoke while using multiple Flamethrowers in many directions in an attempt to hit Haunter.

However, Fuji just laughed. "Sorry Ash, but that little ploy of yours will only benefit us! Haunter use the smoke as cover and then use Shadow Ball!"

The Ghost-Type started fazing in and out through the smoke as it launched multiple Shadow Balls at Charmander. Unlike it's opponent, Haunter could see through the smoke so it provided more of a weapon for the Ghost-Type than it did as an assistant to Charmander, who couldn't see anything in the haze. Ash's Pokemon was then forced to stop his attacks as the first wave of Shadow Balls came hurdling at him through the smoke.

The cold blooded fire lizard was forced to start dodging and evading Haunter's attacks again, only this time with much more difficulty than before due to the low accuracy provided by the smoke.

Try as hard as he might, Charmander still found himself catching a few of the Shadow Balls to his back or sides and was forced to compose himself as the painful orbs of dark energy really started to punish and pummel his small body with each hit he took.

Fuji just just bided his time, ordering Haunter to continue using Shadow Ball, Night Shade and Psybeam through the smoke to try and hit the madly dodging Charmander. After several minutes of this though, he suddenly called out, "Haunter use Confuse Ray now!"

Before Ash could say or do anything to stop the unavoidable, Haunter shot a powerful wave of confusion through the smoke towards the as of yet unaware Charmander. Just as the Fire-Type turned around and finally sensed the looming attack, the red waves of spectral energy were already upon him. He instantly felt his brain go fuzzy then as his eyes went foggy and his body began acting completely out of his control.

Charmander started to thrash around at that moment and use his attacks without command or reason. Shooting Flamethrowers off at the air and tearing at the ground with his claws. Fuji could immediately tell that the Fire Pokémon must have been confused by the sporadic attacks being sent out at crazy angles and then ordered Haunter with no further hesitation, "Start using your attacks on Charmander and don't lighten up until it's over Haunter!"

Haunter let a vicious grin form on it's face from inside the smoke cloud before it honed in on the flailing Charmander and started using attack after attack on the poor Pokémon. Outside of the battle zone, Ash could hear the attacks colliding with Charmander as he cried out in pain. The boy just took a few breaths to calm himself and knew that he had to wait for the right moment to reveal itself to him so he could find a way to get Charmander out of the bad situation he was now in.

His friends on the other hand, were not so confident. "Charmander's getting killed out there!" Misty cried fretfully as she tried to see through the smoke obscuring the battlefield. "If Ash doesn't do something then he's done for!"

Brock had a bead of sweat forming on his brow as he looked into the smoke while biting at the inside of his right cheek. "The problem is, I don't see any way that Ash will be able to plot or pull some crazy plan out of his ass to save Charmander this time. That Haunter is just too strong and experienced. It was a miss match and now its too late to compensate for it."

Giselle shook her head. "No Brock, you're wrong." Both Misty and Brock looked at her in question then. "Ash is smart and he wouldn't ever put his Pokémon in a position that they couldn't handle or would get hurt in. You guys don't train with Ash and his Pokémon but I do and I can tell you that Ash and Charmander are very much in-synch."

An intense gleam came into her eyes. "When those two train together they put everything they have into one another and trust each other. The only other Pokémon I think Ash has that with to such a degree is Pikachu. He has a deep bond with all of his Pokémon but he and Charmander are just..."

Giselle shook her head and glanced towards Ash. "I'm telling you guys that there is just something special there between them. Charmander is way more than just a normal Pokémon and they both know it. Charmander likes to push his limits and Ash encourages it. So please..." She looked at them again with eyes that left no room for argument. "Just have faith you guys."

Misty and Brock was only able to stare speechlessly at her but could find no fault in her words. Instead, they merely nodded and remained silent, feeling slightly ashamed of themselves for not having more faith in their friend.

Back on the battlefield, Fuji made what he felt for certain was his finishing move. With a calm expression on his face, he commanded with a thrust of his right arm, "Haunter now use Hypnosis followed by Dream Eater!"

The Ghost-Type Pokémon flew further into the smoke cloud and found the beaten and battered Charmander just now getting back up from a Shadow Ball that had knocked him down, the confusion finally beginning to wear off.

Ash's Pokémon looked ahead of him then and suddenly saw two glowing red eyes staring back at him through the smokey haze. Charmander, even in his current weakened state, was afraid of no Pokémon and merely gave a resilient glare back at the eyes as he growled, still trying to stabilize himself on his feet.

The next thing he saw however was two hypnotic, concentric rings of red light coming from the equally red eyes that hit him head on and caused him to feel extremely tired just seconds afterwards. He tried with every fiber of his being to fight the drowsy feeling but it was for naught. Charmander finally lost the battle moments later and fell backward, falling into a deep sleep before he even hit the ground.

The smoke finally started to lift just enough that everyone could now see through it and as it cleared, Ash saw his Pokémon fall to the ground in a slumbering unconsciousness. The very next thing he saw was Haunter floating a mere few yards away from Charmander before sending a spectral image of itself at the sleeping Pokémon, his eyes glowing red as he did so.

Fuji had his arms crossed and eyes closed, knowing the battle was over and even Agatha had a similar expression in her guarded eyes. The spectral form entered into Charmander and lifted the Pokémon up as a bright red glow surrounded him. The glow became violent and malicious then as it started sapping large quantities of energy from Charmander and into Haunter itself, all while tormenting the Pokémon in his sleep.

After several moments of this, the glow finally stopped and Charmander fell to the ground in an unmoving heap. Ash's face was unreadable and Agatha's thoughts were playing through her head once again. 'Well, the two of them fought valiantly but Fuji and Haunter are one helluva fierce team to beat. Hopefully he has more luck with that Squirtle or Butterfree.'

Just as she went to raise her hand to declare Charmander unable to battle, Ash suddenly spoke. He spoke right to his Pokémon with a voice that sounded as though they were the only two in the gym.

His tone was soft but firm as he said loudly, "Charmander... I know you can hear me so please listen. You... you are special. You are so much more than you think you are. You are strong, you are powerful, you are all of the things that I know can and will make you one of the greatest Pokémon this world has ever seen. All the training we do, all the suffering we've done to get where we are now. Charmander... don't ever give in. You are something more... far more than anyone thinks is possible."

His fists clenched. "You are going to stand at the top one day and be what you have always dreamed of being! You are going to stand at the pinnacle above everyone else and I'm going to be there with you! We're going to get there together Charmander... we're going to fight with everything we are and with everything that makes us better!" He was shouting at this point, "YOU ARE WHAT NO OTHER OF YOUR SPECIES CAN BE CHARMANDER SO LETS PROVE IT! SHOW THIS WORLD THAT YOU WON'T GIVE IN FOR ANYTHING!"

Suddenly and at those very words, Charmander started to stir as his mouth moved slightly. His eyes twitched and his body jumped before the flame on his tail began glowing brightly. And by brightly... it means that it was burning blazing hot. Steam started to pour from his body as his body twitched again, violently.

Then, to everyone's utter and complete shock, Charmander started to get up. His battered body that was covered with marks and scratches from the battle began burning as the fire from his tail erupted outward and surrounded him, shrouding the Fire-Type's body in a furiously blazing, fierce looking wall of fire. His hind claws dug into the gym floor and the claws on his forearms extended as he looked up.

The look on Charmander's face could be simply described as one of pure, unbridled rage and ferocity. His eyes were smoldering with a red/orange glow and his face was set into a ferocious looking snarl. The air around him began to heat up, steam escaped from his body, the ground he stood on became red from the heat and as he opened his mouth and expelled a breath, steam came from it and his nostrils like an erupting volcano. His shoulders moved up and down with the heavy, shaking breaths he took that was caused by the fury coursing throughout his very being at the moment.

Charmander then raised his head up to the air and let out a bone chilling growl-like roar as fire erupted from his mouth that was much larger and much more powerful than what should have been possible for a Pokémon his size.

He looked forward then at Haunter with blood lust screaming in his now blazing orange/red eyes. Everyone observing the violent change in the Pokémon were taken completely aback.

"W-What's wrong with Charmander!?" Misty stammered in a frightened tone of voice.

Everyone in the gym was starting to feel the rise in heat as Brock looked at Charmander with his squinty eyes, straining to stare at the bright glow surrounding the Fire-Type that the heat was giving off. He put his arm up in front of him to help shield from the intense temperature increase as he responded, "I think its Blaze, an ability that certain Fire-Types possess which is similar to Torrent for Water-Pokémon like Squirtle earlier. It activates under the same extreme physical and emotional circumstances as Torrent but this seems different than what I've usually heard Blaze is like. This looks a lot more powerful and dangerous than the normal version of it."

Meanwhile, both Agatha and Fuji seemed to be beyond shocked at the turn of events. Fuji could only stare in amazement while Agatha looked at the seemingly rejuvenated and furious Fire-Type with just a small amount of surprise actually showing on her face.

'How?' She questioned in her mind. 'All the times I've seen Haunter and Fuji use that combination, very few have ever managed to stay conscious after it. Let alone battle ready!' Her eyes narrowed once more. 'The way that boy can motivate his Pokémon to go past limits even they themselves don't know they have is just astounding! He almost seemed to speak directly to his Pokémon's soul and Charmander responded in kind. It's determination to keep going for both itself and Ash even when it was down for the count is what activated Blaze, I'm sure of it.'

A somewhat perplexed expression came across her face then. 'Though I have never seen Blaze take hold of a Pokémon like this before. Could it have something to do with the obvious strong bond both Ash and Charmander share that unlocked something deep within it that surpasses that of even Blaze?'

Agatha shook her head and chuckled dryly to herself. 'Watch yourself old girl, you're starting to sound like that old tree knot Oak!'

Anymore thought for her was deemed impossible though for at the next instant, Charmander made his move. The enraged and brightly glowing Fire-Type lunged forward in a burst of speed so fast that a trail of fire and cracked gym floor was left in his wake. He charged straight towards Haunter and Fuji that knew his Pokémon would be in trouble if he didn't find a way to put down the incensed Fire-Type.

He quickly called out, recovering from his shock at the sudden turn of events quite admirably, "Haunter stop that Charmander with a combination of Shadow Ball and Night Shade! Hurry!"

Haunter started rapidly executing his attacks towards Charmander at rapid speeds but the Fire Pokémon was completely unperturbed by them. His mouth glowed with crackling flames before he opened up his maw and started whipping his head from side to side, streams of fire exploding forth, coming into contact and shredding through Haunter's own attacks like paper through a shredder. Charmander kept charging forward all the while, breathing heavily in rage as smoke poured out of his mouth and nose.

Seeing that nothing was working, Fuji commanded, "Haunter create your biggest Shadow Ball and then fire it at Charmander while backing it up with Psybeam!"

Haunter drew on the energy it had stolen from Charmander earlier through Dream Eater and started building up a large Shadow Ball in it's hands. Ash, seeing the ploy, called out, "Charmander shoot a Smokescreen at Haunter now!"

Charmander reared his head back as he ran and then threw it forward again as he expelled black smoke from his mouth that streamed towards Haunter. The Ghost-Type had just managed to create it's greatest Shadow Ball and then released it, firing Psybeam behind the dark energy sphere to increase it's speed as the plume of black smoke washed over it and took Haunter by surprise."

Ash yelled, "Now Flamethrower!"

Charmander opened his mouth and expelled a white hot jet of flames straight through the smoke cloud which impacted with Haunter's Shadow Ball/Psybeam combination. The force of the incredibly powerful Flamethrower caused the ball of dark energy to be pushed back and then turn slightly before exploding. The blast was enough to all but blow the smoke away as the shock wave knocked Haunter back several feet.

Fuji, starting to lose his measure of cool somewhat now, shouted, "Use Hypnosis Haunter! Stop Charmander!"

Haunter's eyes glowed red as multiple red rings of sleep inducing energy came forth from said eyes and sped towards Charmander. Ash was quick to react though. "Charmander jump into the air and spin yourself with Flamethrower!"

The Fire-Type narrowed his eyes at seeing one of the moves he had learned to so thoroughly detest and then jumped into the air, still heading straight for Haunter and also the rings of Hypnosis as he started spinning in a fast circle. The tail flame behind him blazed wildly until it was burning furiously and had surrounded Charmander in a dome-like circle of fire.

The sleep inducing rings of energy missed their intended target and instead hit the wall of fire as they burst apart into nothing. The flames around Charmander grew larger until he became practically invisible within the protective cocoon of intense heat and only a moving wall of fire could be seen hurdling towards Haunter.

Just as Fuji was about to take more action, the wall of flames suddenly parted as Charmander came shooting through them like a bullet. His mouth was wide open as he spewed forth a truly tremendous burst of fire that rocketed towards Haunter and came upon it within seconds. The Ghost-Type had no time to react before the flames consumed it's spectral body and sent it flying back across the field, crashing into the ground several yards away.

Fuji grit his teeth at the incredible damage he knew his Pokémon had just sustained and then watched as Haunter slowly levitated back up into the air with scorch marks all over it's ghostly body and one eye closed shut.

Charmander continued charging forward without stop and Fuji knew the next few moves were going to be his last shot at preventing a total sweep defeat for he and his Pokémon.

He quickly started commanding for Haunter to use Shadow Ball, Night Shade, Confuse Ray and Psybeam on Charmander. The now injured Ghost Pokémon had only been able to nod in understanding before it began unleashing a huge barrage of attacks at the incoming Fire-Type.

By this point however, Charmander had tunnel vision and could only see Haunter and taking it down within his vision. Ash ordered him to use a rapid Flamethrower while he ran to stop the attacks coming for him and he did just that, never once stopping as he sent a stream of widespread flames in every direction he sensed danger. Effectively cutting through and destroying every attack Haunter sent at him with frightening accuracy and overwhelming strength.

Just as Charmander was a mere ten yards away from Haunter, Fuji called out, "Haunter use Shadow Punch!"

The Ghost-Type's arm became cloaked in dark energy as he reared back and prepared to bash Charmander away when he finally got close enough. Ash however, had other plans. He quickly shouted, "Full speed Charmander! Jump as soon as you get to Haunter!"

Charmander picked up his speed until he was practically blurring forward and then jumped into the air towards Haunter. Haunter also took off into the air as both Pokémon went on a collision course with each other. Ash yelled again, "Now use Ember!"

Just before Charmander made contact with Haunter, his tail flame blazed up skyward and spread out like a wildfire as he spun his appendage around, twisting his body in mid-air. Ghost-Type and Fire-Type met with a room shaking 'crack' at that same moment, Haunter's Shadow Punch meeting Charmander's glowing hot tail like two swords made of raw energy and power. At the same time, Ember caused another wall of fire to spring up and surround the two clashing Pokémon within it's burning hot center.

Charmander and Haunter fought and struggled for dominance and both Ash and Fuji were about to issue more commands but Ash was quicker. "Blind Haunter with a burst of extra fire from your tail Charmander!"

The Kanto starter focused even more fire into his tail and then sent it blazing outward towards Haunter. The Ghost-Type quickly became spooked and shut it's eyes from the flames as it backed away slightly. This gave Ash all the time he needed to execute the next move that he felt would be the clencher. He raised his hand high into the air before yelling, "Charmander... DRAGON RAGE!"

Charmander's eyes radiated an even brighter red that quickly turned to silver as his stomach glowed in a similar color. His whole body essentially lighting up with a bright white/silver shroud of light. Fuji quickly called out in a panic, "Haunter get away from it now!"

The Ghost-Type couldn't even attempt to get away though. Not only was it surrounded on all sides by a dome of fire but it's eyes were still shut from the slight burn they had sustained from Charmander's tail flame burst. That small hesitation was all Charmander needed to open his mouth and reveal a glowing, bluish/silver orb of energy charging within.

With a thrust forward of his head and loud cry of "CHARRRRRRR!" He unleashed the powerful Dragon-Type attack directly at Haunter, who was mere feet away. The ball of light became a beam that quickly swallowed the Ghost-Type up in it's bright glow and then cut a swath straight across the gym, through the floor and towards the opposite wall. The whole room flashed brightly, blinding everyone, before the charge of draconic energy finally came into contact with the reinforced wall on the other side of the gym and exploded with an earth shaking 'BOOM'!

The gym shook from the force of the explosion and the room was covered in smoke as everyone covered their eyes and mouth. Once it all began to settle many moments later and they all opened up their eyes again, a strange smell of what resembled sulfur was in the air and a slight haze covered the room.

A faint orange/red glow could be seen near the middle of the gym and when everyone looked to the source of the glow, they saw a panting, sweating and battle worn Charmander hunched over with his body still faintly glowing. Blaze's effects had finally ended and he had calmed down but the harsh results of the long, hard battle remained and the evidence of the massive power he had used could be seen in the way his muscles twitched and convulsed.

Even still though, Charmander was looking ahead with one eye closed and the other open, an expression of total focus and intent etched onto his face that showed he still wouldn't give in yet if Haunter wanted to keep battling. No matter how exhausted he was.

Everyone then turned their attention towards where Dragon Rage had impacted with the far wall and saw a mid-sized crater dented into it's surface with a trail of torn up floor leading to it. What really caught everyone's attention though was the Pokémon in the center of the crater. Haunter was lying squished up into the wall covered in scorch marks with it's eyes completely unfocused, showing that it was lost deeply into unconsciousness.

Fuji, Giselle, Misty and Brock all gaped at the sight while Agatha only let the shock of the revelation show for a split second before hiding it away behind her unreadable facial expression of stone once again.

Doing the job she had been temporarily assigned to, she walked out onto the field and raised her hand. "Haunter is unable to battle, the victor is Charmander! Seeing as how the gym leader is now out of Pokémon to use in this three on three match, I hereby declare the winner to be Ash Ketchum!"

Giselle, Misty and Brock all snapped out of their stupor at Agatha's announcement before they started cheering and clapping loudly for Ash. The boy in question merely smiled and nodded his head in relief that it was finally over before walking out onto the field and kneeling down next to Charmander.

He looked his tired Pokémon over and then placed a hand on the Fire-Type's head as he smiled. "Now what you just did Charmander... THAT was the mark of a Pokémon who is going to become a true champion someday. You were beyond amazing and I am far more than proud of you," He said with a genuine smile.

Charmander looked at Ash and gave him a tired smile and nod of the head before allowing his trainer to pick him up. Ash walked over to the others while Pikachu congratulated his teammate on his big win from Ash's shoulder.

The victorious young man approached Fuji and waited for the old man to return his beaten Pokémon. Once he did, Fuji turned to face Ash and gave him a true smile with his eyes still dancing with the heat and joy of battle. "That match Ash was without a doubt the best I have had in these many years, even back in this gym's heyday. You showed so many fantastic qualities that will someday make you a truly great Pokémon Trainer. You displayed intelligence, determination, resourcefulness, incredible strategic thinking and above all, the depth of the amazing bond you share with your Pokémon."

Fuji reached out and put his hand on Charmander's head, lightly rubbing the exhausted Pokémon's still warm skin with a gentle and kind massaging motion. Charmander closed his eyes and relaxed fully in his trainer's arms due to the pleasant sensation he was feeling at the older man's gentle touch and cooed happily.

Fuji gave an eyesmile at Charmander and chuckled a little before withdrawing his hand and looking back at Ash again. "What truly impressed me out of everything else today though was the deep, intimate bond you share with this Charmander, Ash. You were able to bring out the very best in this Pokémon and helped it reach down to achieve a level of power and strength within itself that I don't even think it knew it had. I can tell that over the years, you and this Charmander are only to grow closer, stronger and even better together as a team. Its rare to be able to meet someone that can bring out the power in a Fire-Type like I saw done today but you did so Ash and you should be proud."

Ash bowed to Fuji. "Thank you for your praise Mr. Fuji. If it wasn't for my Pokémon battling as hard as they did today then there's no way I would have won. This is just as much their victory as it is mine in every way," He said truthfully and modestly.

Fuji looked at Agatha, who smiled and nodded in return to him. A seemingly silent conversation passed between the two wizened old veterans in that moment. Ash's words only further cementing their already growing positive opinion of the boy in a very good way.

The bald man snapped his fingers then before smiling again as he walked over to a cabinet at the far side of the gym near the entry door. He opened the cabinet and fished around for a bit before finding what he was looking for. After he was finished and closed the cabinet again, he came back over to the group and stood before Ash again.

Smiling sincerely, he held his hand out to Ash and revealed to the boy a badge resting in his palm. "You earned this young man," Fuji said kindly. "I award with you this for your hard effort, the Spirit Badge."

Ash stretched out his hand and accepted the badge that Fuji was offering to him. Holding it in his palm, he took in it's appearance. The badge was shaped just like a clock tower bell and was a mixture of dark and light golden brown. The body of the bell was what was dark brown and the gong that rang the bell was the part that had a lighter shade of golden brown to it.

Ash looked at the badge with a smile on his face and then showed it to Pikachu and Charmander before his friends as well had a look. He turned back to Fuji and nodded. "Thank you Mr. Fuji, I really appreciate it."

The old man smiled. "You earned it young man, you earned it."

Brock clapped Ash on the back. "Congratulations Ash, I was worried there for awhile when Haunter and Charmander were battling but you came out on top. Great job," He complemented earnestly.

Misty looked guilty. "I did the same thing Ash and I'm sorry. You did great though and Brock's right, you should be proud of herself."

Giselle kissed his cheek. "I knew you had it in you, all of you, and I was right. I'm proud of you Ash," She told him with a smile.

Ash returned the smile and thanked his friends before noticing Agatha as she came walking up to him. She stood before him then with an unreadable expression on her face that slowly formed into a smile. "Well young man..." She began. "I have to say that that was one thrilling match to watch. Even more so than some of the battles I've seen take place in the Indigo Conference. You really showed that you possess quite a lot of skill as a Pokémon Trainer and it was as clear as day that the bond you share with your Pokémon's runs deep as well." She focused a little more on him. "Tell me Ash, how long have you been training Pokémon so far?"

Ash appeared thoughtful and did a little mental calculation in his head before answering. "Well, I left for my journey the day of my birthday, which was June 21, and here it is now at the end of October so... almost five months this November," He replied with surety.

Agatha seemed mildly surprised that Ash had only been on his journey for such a short amount of time but moved on to the next question she had as she looked at Charmander. "And was this your first Pokémon?"

Ash smiled and shook his head. "No actually ma'am, he wasn't." He then gestured to Pikachu on his shoulder. "Pikachu actually was." Seeing Agatha's curious expression, he explained. "Its kind of complicated but... on the day I left for my journey, I was the first to arrive at Professor Oak's lab and didn't really feel any connection to any of the usual starter Pokémon he had to offer.

I met Pikachu as a Pichu years before in the forest near the Professor's lab and saved him from falling off a cliff. I felt a bond with him instantly and ever since then, I had wished that he could be my first Pokémon. It just so happened that the Professor had captured a Pikachu that was chewing the electric lines near the lab on the morning I went to the lab to get my first Pokémon and when he showed him to me, I recognized instantly that he was the Pichu I had saved years earlier. He recognized me too, we both were happy to see other again and then he decided to become my first Pokémon."

Agatha listened to the story with wrapped attention, as did Fuji, and by the end she was smiling. "That's a very interesting story Ash. Very interesting indeed. In fact, I would wager to say that you and this Pikachu were destined to become partners." Ash and Pikachu smiled at that before she spoke again, this time in amusement. "So, you know old Sam eh?"

It took Ash a moment to realize who she was talking about but once he recalled that Professor Oak's first name was Samuel, he smiled and nodded. "Oh yeah I know him definitely. I live in Pallet Town and he and his family are really close to my mom and I. Professor Oak is really great and he even mentored me five years before I left on my journey. He's more like my grandfather than anything else though honestly," He declared fondly and proudly, his adoration for the old professor shining through in that moment.

Agatha smiled to herself and chuckled mentally. 'So, he does know the old board after all and not only that but he also sounds to be rather close to him as well. Very close in fact if he sees him as a grandfather. No wonder I noticed so many similarities between how he and Sam formulate strategies and techniques in battle. If the coot really did mentor him for so long it would explain part of why the boy seems so intelligent and adapt at Pokémon Training for his age. I know that Oak has his own grandchildren though so do I wonder if he did the same for them or if its just something special about this boy in particular?'

Agatha decided to change the course of the conversation then, putting those thoughts onto the back burner as it were so she could contemplate on them again at at a later time. "So tell me then Ash, how many badges do you have now?"

Ash just shrugged and answered her with complete honesty yet also modesty, "Eleven as of right now ma'am."

Fuji looked stunned and Agatha merely blinked before smiling to herself again and shaking her head. 'Oh yes, now I can see it. The old board has definitely had a strong influence in this boy's outlook on Pokémon Training.'

She then asked while actually smiling outwardly this time, "Then that means you now have more than the required number of badges to enter this coming year's Indigo Conference. What is your plan now?" She inquired curiously.

Ash answered without any hesitation, "Myself, my Pokémon and my friends are traveling all across the region so that I can collect every gym badge there is before the conference."

Agatha nearly laughed out loud as an almost miniature version of Samuel Oak started to manifest itself in the boy as she looked at him. Oak was always determined and an overachiever just like Ash was showing himself to be right now but she had to admit that even her old friend had never aspired to achieve something so difficult before.

She just nodded and then leaned on her cane. "I wish you luck then Ash. If what I've seen from your battle today was anything to go by then I can definitely see you accomplishing that very goal."

Ash felt humbled by the respected member of the Elite Four's words and bowed his head slightly before looking back at her with a fire now burning in his eyes that caught her off guard. "Thank you Agatha, your words mean a lot to me and I have every intention of achieving that very goal with my Pokémon. Then, we are going to go to the Indigo Conference this coming year after training and preparing as much as we can and we WILL come out victorious."

His eyes were deathly serious then as the proverbial fire became even brighter within them. "And the reason I say with such confidence that we, not me by myself but my Pokémon and I together, are going to win the Indigo Conference is because after that..."

Agatha could have sworn she saw Lance looking at her then when Ash said the next words that he did. And not only that but the way in which he said them, with such conviction, determination and confidence, caused her to believe in that moment that he could actually achieve the goals he was setting for himself.

The boy had her attention focused solely on him as he said with a level of conviction that almost made her blink in surprise, "...After that I am going to accept the opportunity to take the Kanto Champion's League challenge that is offered to the winner of each year's Indigo Conference and I WILL end up battling you. That..."

He smiled then. Not a cocky or overly confident smile either but a smile that practically shone with all of the pure grit and determination he possessed to achieve every goal he had set for himself. "That Agatha is my promise to you and a promise that you can share with the rest of the Elite Four for me."

His smile faded and was replaced with utter seriousness the next moment. "I know that each of you receive challenges and the same such 'promises' from trainers all the time but I am here to tell you right now that everything I am. Everything my Pokémon are and everything we are together as a whole is going to go towards making that promise I just made you a reality. We ARE going to win the Indigo Conference, we ARE going to face you and the rest of the Elite Four and we WILL..." Pikachu and Charmander's own faces showed the same unwavering determination and intent that Ash's did. "We WILL win."

The last word out of his mouth was said with such finality that the entire room went silent. Agatha for her part was both shocked and baffled by the young trainer before her. He was definitely right when he said that he knew several other trainers must have promised and said the same things to her and the other members of the Elite Four.

Oh yes indeed he was right.

Herself and the other Elites could compile whole books with the promises and all but blood sworn oaths that were made to challenge and defeat them but very, very rarely did they ever actually end up getting challenged by those same individuals later on. Let alone defeated or even close to it. The rare few that did actually accept the offer to take on the Champion's League after winning the Indigo Conference wouldn't even come close to defeating Lorelei, let alone the rest of them.

Most of the spirited challenges they received would be well meaning, with every intention for said trainers to make good on their promises, but would ultimately fall to nothing as the true weight and almost overwhelming difficulty of accomplishing what they had promised to do came crashing down upon them.

Most trainers got more than they could take in the Indigo Conference so the thought of actually taking on something that made the conference itself look weak by comparison was almost petrifying for the bulk of the population. The largest percentage of trainers after managing to conquer the Indigo League couldn't even imagine what it would be like to then go on to face the Elite Four and so, they let their heart filled promises die out rather quietly and quickly.

Over the years, Agatha and the other Elites, including Lance, learned to just take the promises with a smile and put on a fake face of excitement for the challenges presented to them. They had all learned long ago that words were just that... words. Talk merely was talk until someone had the guts to back it up.

To be completely honest, what Ash had just told Agatha was a mirror of similar things she had been told over the years by many others so it wasn't the words he just spoke that had gotten to her so much. What got to her was the passion, the complete and utter conviction in which he swore to her that he would make good on his promise. The way his eyes burned when he said what he did, like a thousand suns were blazing in his amber orbs, is what made her pay a little more attention to the promise he just made her than all the others.

She didn't know if Ash could win something as big as the Indigo Conference no matter how skilled he was though. He was still just a rookie trainer and no greenhorn in history had ever won a League Conference. Ever.

Still, he could surprise her she supposed and watching his progress throughout his career as a Pokémon Trainer from then on out would help her be able to see just how far he was going. To see if he really did have what it took to go the distance. Even if his promise didn't come true, which she was highly skeptical about herself, he had still managed to accomplish something very few others did by getting a member of the Elite Four (namely her) so interested in him that she was now willing to follow his still very young career.

Obviously, she knew that even he did somehow win the Indigo Conference and then, by some wild chance, accepted the chance to battle in the Champion's League, it was without a shadow of a doubt in her mind that there was no way the rookie could ever defeat Lorelei, Bruno or especially herself. Agatha simply knew that it just wasn't possible.

It never hurt to dream though and she hoped that he did hold onto that lofty goal of his so that maybe, just maybe, it would carry him out of his greenhorn years and into a more experienced stage of his life. A stage that would then maybe allow him more of a chance of victory over one of them. Again, unlikely but possible. Not like the chances of him winning as a rookie though. That was almost laughable to the older woman and knew that he would be crushed in a heartbeat by Lorelei in mere seconds if they battled now.

No greenhorn rookie could defeat a champion. That was just common knowledge to even the youngest of Pokémon Trainers. So with all that in mind, his promise didn't faze her in the least. She knew he couldn't beat any of them now or anytime in the near or even distant future so why should she really care?

It wasn't her being cocky either, just realistic.

Agatha broke free of her thoughts and shook her head to clear it before smiling at Ash. "I guess we'll just have to wait and see if you'll be skilled enough to make good on that promise of yours then eh?" She said in a non-mocking tone of voice.

Ash just looked at her for a few moments without saying anything. He wasn't stupid. He knew that she didn't take his promise seriously and he honestly couldn't blame her. A rookie trainer swearing to win a League Conference and then go on after that and battle four of the toughest trainers in the entire region, who were also years his senior in every possible way... it really was almost absurd.

Truthfully, if Ash were anyone other than himself, he would laugh or scoff at his own declaration so naturally, he couldn't blame Agatha for her unwillingness to truly take him seriously. Hell, even his friends thought his dream was a little too far out there. Which was fine though, they could all laugh and think what they wanted. He and his Pokémon would just have to prove them all wrong through actions rather than words and make the entire world jaw drop after they did what everyone said was impossible.

His small moment of self reverie over, Ash simply smiled back at her and nodded. "I guess we will."

Before he could say anything else, he suddenly felt Charmander slump in his arms more than before and looked down. He saw that his Pokémon was looking rather unwell with his tail flame flickering a little as he panted slightly and small beads of sweat formed on his brow.

Keeping calm since he was able to tell by his body language that Charmander was just very tired and needed some proper medical treatment after going quite a long time without, Ash looked at Fuji. "Mr. Fuji, where is the Pokémon Center located here in the city? I really need to get all of my Pokémon healed and rested up, especially Charmander. It's been quite some time since we've been to a center."

Fuji looked down at the exhausted, battle worn Fire-Type and nodded without a second's hesitation. "I'll do you one better Ash, I'll take you there myself. My Pokémon need to be looked over after our battle anyway."

Ash nodded. "Thanks Mr. Fuji." He then turned to his friends. "Do any of you want to go or need to have your Pokémon looked at?"

Misty shook her head. "No my Pokémon are still good to go."

"Same here, my Pokémon are totally fine," Brock answered.

"And my Pokémon are still going strong from when you healed them up earlier today Ash so we don't need to go either," Giselle answered her boyfriend.

Ash looked back at Fuji. "Well I guess it'll just be us then."

Fuji nodded and looked to Agatha. "Would you mind keeping the others company here while Ash and myself go to the Pokémon Center Agatha?"

The older woman just shook her head. "Of course not! Now shoo, get going and go have your Pokémon checked up ya old coot!" She teased in good humor.

With the matter settled, Ash and the others went back into Fuji's apartment-like home before he and the older man left the compound and headed for the Pokémon Center.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

On the journey back through the deserted part of town, making their way towards the inhabited parts of Lavender where the Pokémon Center was at, Ash and Fuji mostly remained in comfortable silence. Only occasionally breaking it to make small acts of conversation here and there.

After some time of walking and eventually entering into the non abandoned section of town, the two finally arrived at the large Pokemon Center located inside of an equally as sizable shopping square. They made their way inside and after handing their Pokémon off to the friendly Nurse Joy waiting at the front desk, they went over to a table in the lobby and sat down. Making the decision to just wait for their Pokémon instead of dropping them off.

During the time they sat there, Fuji noticed that Ash seemed strangely quiet, almost like he was in deep thought, and decided to see what was troubling him. "You seem to be in some intense thought there young man," Fuji observed.

Ash shook himself free of his thoughts and looked at the kindly old man. He then just smiled and shook his head. "Ah you know just...thinking is all really," He answered absently.

Fuji stayed silent for a few moments before asking another question. "Care to share your thoughts?"

Ash seemed to contemplate on it for a while before hesitantly beginning to speak, "Well... its just... I guess I'm still thinking about what happened at Pokémon Tower, what you said about it and also what happened to me."

Fuji nodded and crossed his arms. "Yes I would imagine that you would still be thinking about such a thing. It was a travesty that happened to the tower and that part of town by association but there was just..." He took a slight pause. "There was just nothing that could have been done about it."

Fuji's brow creased at what he just said and he looked down for a few moments before looking back at Ash then and smiling. "I know its all a very interesting subject to think on and can be enrapturing for the mind but I would advise you not let your thoughts linger on something so dark Ash. It doesn't do one good for their health you know," He advised wisely.

Ash sighed and looked up. "Yeah I know you're right but still... its one of those things that for some reason just won't leave my mind no matter how hard I try to force it to."

Fuji was about to reply to him before Nurse Joy suddenly called over to him about needing to know something about his Pokémon. The old man got up from the table and looked at Ash. "Just give me one minute Ash, she probably just needs to ask me if my Haunter is aggressive since his attitude has always been a little standoffish around strangers. I'll be right back and then we can continue this conversation. Okay?"

Getting a simple shrug of acceptance from Ash, Fuji got up and followed after Nurse Joy into the healing room in the back of the center.

Ash stayed where he was in his chair after that and just continued to stray deeper into his thoughts. He had just started thinking about what the giant tower looked like when he and the others had seen it before they came into the town when suddenly, he felt a cold draft blow against his skin. No windows were open and the doors were shut in the center so he had no idea where the draft had come from.

He felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up then before he felt the entire atmosphere become almost heavy and somewhat dark all of a sudden. That's when he heard it. The same voice from before whisper into his ear.

'Come to us Ash Ketchum... come to us now... come... come... come now...'

No sooner did the words enter his head and Ash started feeling a combination of both drowsiness and light headedness. He felt his eyes grow slack and something start to take control of his mind. He tried desperately to fight it off but whatever was attempting to invade his mind was much too powerful and his efforts were futile.

The boy's head suddenly dropped to the table, face down, the very next instant and his body became rigid. When he finally lifted his head up seconds later, his eyes were shown to be drooping and clouded over. He then stood up from the table in a total trance and turned around before he started walking out the door of the Pokémon Center.

He left the building and entered into the cool night air as he began making his way down the dark streets in a slow, sedated pace. The only light around was that being given off by the overhead street lights.

On and on Ash walked until he started coming back into the deserted part of town. He made his way down the broken and desolate streets as a familiar route started making itself known. After some time of traversing through the ruined streets, the dark, looming and imposing form of Pokémon Tower could be seen rising up into the sky a short distance away. The backdrop of night and the way the ominous tower, which looked even worse in the blackness of such a late hour, contrasted against the tall mountains in the far distance made a very unnerving sight to see.

Ash traveled down the street he was on before coming to the cobblestone path that led the way to the front doors of the tower. He stepped onto the walkway and began trudging down the long path. The dark, twisted trees and long, dried up grass on either side of the path made the already dreadful looking area seem all that much worse.

Eventually, Ash came to stand before the entrance of the giant tower. He stepped up to the locked door and just as he went to reach for the handles, the chains and padlock that kept the door shut glowed a faint blue before unlocking and falling off. The chains dropping to the ground and landing on the stone ground with a 'ching'.

Ash grasped ahold of the door handles before pulling, a rustic, creaking sound being heard as they slowly swung open. A cold draft blew against the spaced out trainer's body as soon as the doors opened and all that could be seen beyond was darkness. With no hesitation, Ash stepped inside the building and the doors slammed shut behind him.

On the inside, all was almost completely dark. The smell that hit Ash's nose was one of a building that had been shut up and barred from the outside world for many years. The scent being somewhat similar to that of a tomb that had just been opened.

The entranced young trainer looked around at his surroundings with glazed eyes and took in the appearance of all that he could see around him. The entry level or ground level floor of the tower was massive with a wide circumference and extremely high ceilings that were supported by huge wooden beams. There were also four giant windows elevated high up into the walls of the expansive room. Two on each wall.

It was only because of these windows that there was any visibility available whatsoever inside the tower in the first place. The moonlight shining in through the huge windows landed on the floor down below and rebounded off of it's surface as it illuminated almost everything inside in an eery, dim glow.

Ash looked to the left then and noticed an old receptionist desk sitting against the wall near the door and when he looked around at the room laid out in front of him, all he saw was white marble memorial stones. The stones were literally scattered everywhere in near perfect rows throughout the ground floor. There was even several platforms built into the walls above him that were lined with the same types of stones in a circular pattern all the way up to the high ceilings. Many of the memorials stones were cracked and damaged though which would leave one to wonder exactly how such a thing happened to objects that were so high off the ground.

Ash looked a little further on after that and saw a big staircase stretching along the side of the far most wall that lead up to a large archway type of opening, which had another set of steps beyond that. Leading Ash to believe that those same steps led to the higher levels of the tower.

When he looked straight ahead of him and to the left however, he saw what looked to be yet another large archway type of opening that, instead of leading up, appeared as though it was heading straight down into the apparent lower levels of the tower.

Being not in his right mind anyway, Ash felt compelled to go over to the archway that to the descending steps and then take them. He couldn't explain why he felt the compulsion he did but it was there and if he could actually think for himself for a moment, he would most likely put the blame on the strange, disembodied voice that he kept hearing at different times. Like right now for instance. He was currently hearing the voice clearer and much louder now than he had before.

'Yes... come to me Ash Ketchum... sooo close now... so close...'

Ash nodded, still in a deep trance, as he started walking towards the arch-like opening across the room. As he walked, totally on auto-pilot, he didn't notice three shadows floating about in the recesses of the room not illuminated by the moonlight. The shadows really had no visibly distinct forms or features but there was no doubt that they definitely were some kind of entity or creature from the they were floating and moving around independently. Something that normal shadows could not do obviously.

Whatever they were though, their eyes were locked onto Ash as he made his way towards the staircase and they never left his form with each step he took.

As Ash finally reached and passed under the archway, he found himself inside of a large, dark opening that looked like it was carved into the very wall itself. What had his attention though was the staircase leading down into the ground that he had been heading towards the whole time. There was quite a few large pieces of rubble lying on top of them however, having fell from the ceiling overhead, and was blocking the largest portion of the way that lead into the darkness down beyond the stairs.

Ash, being in his possessed state, did not register this however and just continued to walk towards the stairs. Just before he could reach the obstructions blocking his way though, one of the shadows that had been watching him appeared just overhead. It's eyes glowed blue then and the large pieces of rubble were suddenly lifted up and shifted to the side, clearing a space just wide enough for Ash to walk through. Which he did, completely ignorant of what had just happened.

The young Ketchum walked down the steps and descended into the darkness waiting for him below, being trailed by the three shadows all the while and having no idea what was about to happen to him.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Back at the Pokémon Center, Fuji had just finished talking with Nurse Joy and was now walking back out to the table that he and Ash had been sitting at. Upon arriving however, he was surprised to see that Ash was nowhere to be found. The old man looked around the center lobby curiously, trying to find where Ash may have wondered off to.

Not seeing him though after several moments of searching, Fuji figured that Ash was most likely just in the restroom so he sat down and decided to wait for his young friend. However, as time passed and Fuji waited and waited, he came to realize that Ash was not in the bathroom. The older man became slightly worried at the absence of the talented newbie trainer and began looking around for him again.

After doing another search through and even outside of the center and still not finding him, Fuji, who was now visibly concerned, went back inside and up to the front desk. He saw Nurse Joy writing something down on a form she had in front of her, evidently waiting for the Pokémon to finish their time in the PMR (Pokémon Recovery Machine). Fuji stopped at the desk then and asked her politely, "Excuse me miss, have you seen the boy I came here with running around anywhere?"

Nurse Joy looked thoughtful and tapped her chin. "No sir I have not, I'm sorry. Is everything alright?"

Fuji's brow creased a little and he frowned but shook his head before replying, "Really I'm not sure just yet. Hmmm... thank you miss, I'll be back shortly." Without another word, Fuji turned and left the Pokémon Center, leaving a confused Nurse Joy in his wake.

Once outside, the older man took a seat on a bench outside of the center and crossed his arms while he descended into deep thought. He was now very worried about Ash and had no idea why he would simply disappear without so much as a word on where he was heading. He knew that Ash wouldn't have went back to his compound because they had agreed to wait together at the center for their Pokémon to be healed and rested up. That begged to question though on what exactly had happened to Ash or where he went.

One reason he was so worried was because of how distressed and deep in thought Ash had been about Pokémon Tower and what had happened to him when he and his friends first arrived in the city. What was worse was that all of those thoughts that he was so fixated on had happened just before he disappeared.

Fuji's eyes suddenly widened as that final thought passed through his head and it all seemed to click together as the memories of how Ash was acting just before he went to meet up with Nurse Joy came rushing into his mind. The old man bolted up from his seat then and ran a little bit away from the center before turning around and looking in the direction of where he knew Pokémon Tower to be.

His eyes narrowed and his brow creased further in worry and fear as he continued to stare in the direction of the tower he had come to dread so much. He had a sinking, terrible feeling that he knew exactly where Ash had ended up heading off to and if his suspicion was correct, then he knew it wasn't by the boy's own choice.

With no further hesitation and a few mumbled curses, Fuji took off running much faster than a man his age should have been able to. He was heading straight in the direction of Pokémon Tower as quickly as he could with his only thoughts at the moment being that he hoped and prayed it wasn't too late for Ash.

He had no time to go back home and retrieve the others to let them know what was happening. Fuji knew that if he was indeed right about what was happening with Ash right now then he needed to get to the tower as fast as he could before something very horrible happened to the young Pokémon Trainer he had come to respect.

Something so horrible that Fuji had prayed every single day of his life he would never, ever, have to hear of or... Arceus forbid, actually witness happening again. He only hoped that this time... he wouldn't be too late to stop it.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash could currently be found walking down a dark, dank corridor far underneath of Pokémon Tower. The stone walls, floor and ceiling were wet with collected moisture and a smell of stale air was the most predominate scent. The long passageway seemed to go on forever with no end in sight, the walls being spaced only a certain amount of distance apart so that someone had just enough room to walk and that was it.

Ash remained in his tranced state as he trudged down the corridor until he came to a two way split in the passage. The right hand side was not an option since a cave-in had pretty much completely covered the entire entrance. Because of this, Ash had no other options than to go down the left passage. However, just before he could take the forced path, one of the three shadows that had been tailing him suddenly drifted down until it was facing the closed off entrance to the right corridor.

A blackish red surge of energy suddenly shot forward from the shadow and impacted with the rubble, causing a cloud of dust to erupt within the tunnel. When it passed, there was now a moderately sized hole carved into the large pile of boulders that was more than big enough to fit Ash through. Suddenly feeling compelled to go down the now uncovered right tunnel, he stepped in through the hole that had been made and traversed his way through it.

Once through the small hole, he found himself standing up inside of a much darker and more damp feeling corridor. Not that he could feel it though obviously since he was in a total trance. The boy then started making his way down the passageway that had black stone lining the floor, walls and ceiling, before eventually coming to a large metal door.

Feeling as though he needed to go through that way, Ash walked up to the door and reached for the handle. He made to pull it open but the door showed itself to be locked for it would not budge. Yet again, another of the three shadows came to hover behind Ash as it's eyes glowed blue. The door glowed a similar color and then the door handle moved as the lock keeping it in place became forcefully undone.

The door swung open and Ash stepped through. He now found himself standing inside of a massive room with multiple pillars set up at different points to keep the ceiling up. Just like the passage lead to it from outside, the entire huge room and pillars were all colored in a pitch dark shade.

Ash started walking towards the end of the massive room where he saw two pillars collapsed against the wall on their sides with several large pieces of ceiling laying on top of them, effectively creating the biggest pile of debree seen yet. What was odd though was how all of the large chunks of ceiling and destroyed pillars seemed to have fallen and were focused into a very specific area. Making a large mound of rubble piled up in a single spot.

Even in his foggy state of mind, Ash could still sense something dark and ominous, almost bone chilling, coming from the other side of the rubble. This of course made him wander up to it naturally, the controlling presence in his mind feeling as though it was beckoning him towards that very same spot. Like it was where Ash had been meant to go the entire time.

The possessed young trainer found himself standing in front of the massive pile of rubble just a few moments later but couldn't see any other way to go or the reason for why he felt so drawn to that particular area. Without his notice yet again, the shadows suddenly appeared behind Ash, only this time it was all three of them together.

The three shadowy figures glowed blue in perfect unison and then projected a dark blast of aura of some kind at the rubble. As soon as the energy balls made contact with them, the sizable pieces of ceiling and even the pillars themselves levitated up into the air before being thrown away in different directions. Once all of the rubble was gone, the source of the dark, ominous energy was revealed.

There, set into the cinderblock wall, was yet another door. This door however was completely made of dense steel and was as wide as it appeared to be thick. The door looked to be very heavy duty, like it was made with the purpose of keeping something out... or in.

Ash walked up to the door in his dreamlike trance and as he approached the door, the dark feeling energy coming from behind the steel barrier became stronger and stronger until it started to permeate the entire massive room with it's sinister oppression.

As Ash stood looking at the large steel door in front of him, the shadows behind him started to twist and take shape before they materialized into the shape of three Pokémon. Three Ghost-Pokémon as a matter of fact. A Gastly, Haunter and Gengar.

The newly revealed to be Ghost-Type Pokémon watched Ash with undisguised excitement set onto their eerily grinning faces and floated around in what almost looked like an anxious dance of sorts. The Pokémon's eyes glowed again as they sent a strong combined pulse of energy at the door. The large barrier was strong though and refused to budge.

However, instead of stopping, they continued pouring energy into the door while the voice in Ash's head spoke again in a voice laced with barely contained unnerving excitement.

'Yesssss... place your hand on the door now and let me out... let me out...'

Feeling like he had lost all control of his motor functions, Ash's hand started reaching out towards the door in a slow motion. The Pokémon behind him increased the power in their energy waves while the voice in his head spoke louder and more fiercely.

'Now... DO IT NOW!'

Ash's hand finally made contact with the door and as it did, a bright flash of light erupted in the room. Ash felt his whole hand become fastened to the door as a powerful presence from beyond the door latched itself onto his very being and began draining the very energy from his body. Ash raised his head and started yelling in pain as he felt a burning hot sensation fill his being. He then snapped awake from his trance and looked down to see what looked like blue energy transferring from him and into door. The entire door now glowing a bright blue as Ash struggled vainly to try and pull away from it.

No matter how hard he tried though, he just couldn't free himself and started to feel very tired. Almost as if his very soul was being drained from his body and he was powerless to stop it from happening.

Then, without any warning, the door started to slowly shift and move as it opened. Slowly, very slowly the door began opening, all while Ash remained stuck to it and the three Ghost-Types behind him continued feeding their own energy into the door.

However, just as the door started to open up in earnest, Ash suddenly heard a loud shout coming from the other side of the room. "STOP!"

Ash turned his head towards the source of the voice and saw Mr. Fuji standing at the entrance of the cavern-like room. The three Ghost-Type Pokémon whipped around immediately and glared at the arrival of the older man. Fuji's eyes were set into a fierce expression as he stepped fully into the room, pointing at the three Pokémon as he shouted, "You will not free your master!"

He then took off running towards the group of ghosts with an amount of speed and agility that would normally not been seen in someone of his age. He ran quickly towards the Ghost Pokémon with his body bent slightly forward, almost like ninja, as the three spectral creatures shifted their attention completely onto Fuji and started launching Night Shade and Shadow Ball attacks at him.

The old man began ducking, weaving and swerving out of the way of each attack that came his way, nimbly avoiding them without ever so much as breaking his pace. Eventually, Fuji managed to come within feet of the Ghost-Types and then, just before they could do anything more to stop him, Fuji reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a medium sized piece of paper. The paper had writing of some indistinguishable dialect drawn onto it in black ink and took up almost all the free space on it.

Fuji tossed the paper at Gastly who quickly scrambled away, obviously in fear of the strange paper, before it stuck to one of the pillars behind the three of them. Fuji stopped just in front of the Pokémon then, whom all looked smug since he hadn't hit any of them with the paper, but didn't make any further movements. Instead, he merely gave a small smile.

Before the ghosts could attack Fuji, the seal tag attached to the pillar behind them started to glow a bright white color. Gastly, Haunter and Gengar turned to face the source of the light and had to cover their eyes as the light became brighter and brighter, effectively beginning to shroud the room in it's glow. The Ghost-Types cringed back at the brightly shining light and started to disappear into the shadows that shrouded the expansive room in it's farthest corners.

Fuji saw his chance and quickly moved forward. He ran to Ash and grabbed ahold of the boy who was still stuck to the energy draining door. He gripped Ash's shoulders tightly and grunted in effort as he pulled backwards. The energy tried with all it's might to keep hold of Ash but with the seal paper on the pillar that was bathing the room in it's bright glow, it was at a disadvantage since the malevolent energy obviously didn't care for the light all.

With a final groan of effort, Fuji managed to pull Ash free from the door as they both went tumbling to the floor. Fuji wasted no time and scrambled back to his feet in a hurry, reaching down and shaking Ash's shoulders urgently. "Come on son, we have to leave this place now!"

Ash just grunted and moved his body as much as he could in response. Feeling as though almost all of his energy and stamina had been drained from his body as he struggled with as much willpower as possible to stand. He slowly got to his knees, his eyes like stone while sweat dripped down his brow. "O-Okay... j-just give me... a second... AGGHHHH!" The boy grunted loudly then as he finally pushed himself up to a standing position but almost instantly started to wobble as he did.

Fuji quickly stabilized him and put one arm around Ash's waist while he took the boy's right arm and put it over his shoulder. "Its alright Ash, just hold on. You've done great holding on this long now let me help you get out of here!"

Ash nodded and drooped his head down as he gasped for breath, still feeling incredibly drained. Fuji moved them both towards the pillar and grabbed the seal paper stuck to it before pulling it off. He held the brightly glowing paper out in front of him then like a holy relic against evil as he started shuffling the both of them towards the exit as fast as he could.

They were nearly at the exit of the cavernous room before they suddenly heard a low, droning type of sound come from the back of the room where the still partially open steel door was at. Fuji turned his head to look at what was happening but didn't stop running. What he saw would make even the bravest of men feel pass out from pure terror.

A thick, oppressive, completely dark shadow started to fill out from beyond the door and swarmed towards the retreating humans like a hungry wave intent on swallowing up everything before it. The shadow engulfed the gigantic room as it rushed ahead but what was truly frightening was the pair of large, glowing red eyes that were revealing themselves from behind the door.

A cold chill ran down Fuji's back as he looked at the eyes filled with pure hate and malice that had their gaze locked onto he and Ash. Even though they were almost a full room length away from said eyes by now, Fuji felt as though he was standing right before them and could feel the burning red orbs all but piercing into his very soul. He suddenly felt short of breath as an almost overwhelming sensation of fear and dread started to fall upon him but he continued to run.

He managed to tear his eyes from those of the malicious red ones staring back at him and looked down at Ash. He could feel his knees buckling under his aged bones but still tried valiantly to stay up. His only thought and concern being to get the young man in his hold to safety. He noticed the light giving paper in his free hand start to flicker then as the darkness began to overwhelm them and that moment, Fuji felt almost all hope leave him.

He fell to his knees, just managing to keep Ash from hitting the ground face first while the seal tag flew from his hand and landed a few feet away. He wheezed in an effort to get his breath and looked back to see the shadows bearing down upon them. The red eyes glowing from behind the steel door seemed to grow larger and larger as their presence appeared to expand and encompass everything. Their bloodthirsty glow becoming even stronger as the darkness danced around the room.

Fuji looked down at Ash, who was kneeling towards the ground with his face down and eyes closed. He felt sweat pour from his forehead and weakly tried to stand again, only to remain kneeling where he was. He grit his teeth and clenched his teeth in frustration as his breath continued to come in heavy gasps. 'No! Not again! I can't... I can't fail like this again!'

But even as he said those words he felt his body grow weaker and weaker. Fuji reached out and placed a hand on Ash's shoulder as he felt tears start to prickle at the corner of his eyes. "I-I'm sorry... Ash..." He could feel the dark beginning to pull at his consciousness and his resistance fading. "I'm sorry..."

Just before Fuji fell to the ground and the darkness overcame him, Ash's eyes started to struggle and squint from behind their closed lids before finally snapping open. As they did, an electric blue glow blazed into the boy's eyes as another source of bright light began glowing brightly from within his gut. The light started to surround his body before it rose up in a dome and covered both he and Fuji.

The older man felt all of the oppressive feelings and overbearing pressure from the darkness melt away as the warmth and comforting glow of the light coming from Ash started to re-energize his body. Fuji looked at himself, the shadows outside of the dome of light that had been stopped in it's tracks, and then finally at Ash with a look of pure shock and awe on his face.

Slowly, Ash stood up in what appeared to be a slow moving, graceful trance and then faced the source of the darkness coming from the steel door on the other side of the room. His electric blue eyes met those of the red ones that were just beyond the door and he raised his hand. The light surrounding his body glowed even brighter as the dome of light started to expand around he and Fuji, the shadows slowly pushing back as they almost appeared to cower in fear of the light.

A bright, blue orb of light started to grow in his outstretched hand then before, with a silent but powerful thrust forward, he sent the ball of light at the heart of the shadows. The red eyes only had time to widen in surprise before the ball of energy soared through the partially open door and then exploded in a burst of pure light. The red eyes snapped shut and seemed to disappear as the light engulfed the entire room and chased the shadows back behind the door and into whatever lay beyond them.

As the light continued to glow and expand outward, spreading up through the tunnels that made up the catacombs below Pokèmon Tower, it began bathing the entire tower in it's bright light.

Unknown to both Fuji and the light possessed Ash, all of Pokémon Tower, from where they were in the recesses of the tower to the very highest levels of the sanctuaries above, became totally bathed in the brightly glowing light. A beam of which shot up into the night sky and was seen by all in Lavender Town, striking the people with a mixture of emotions ranging from amazement, shock and in some cases, even fear.

Back at Fuji's compound, Agatha and Ash's friends looked out of one of the living room windows and stared up at the pillar of light in both awe and befuddlement. However, for a certain brunette beauty standing next to Misty, she had a strange feeling that she knew exactly who the light was coming from if any the past experiences she and the others had with such things were any indication. She could only place her hand to her chest and look out the window at the light with a feeling of worry as she whispered silently, "Ash..."

Back in the cavernous room below Pokémon Tower where all of the light was coming from, Ash simply continued to stand where he was with his hand outstretched. His face was totally impassive as the light continued to pour from him. Fuji knelt where he was on the ground with his arm over his face as he tried to shield his eyes from the almost overwhelming brightness surrounding them.

Just as the light reached it's peak, the red eyes that had disappeared behind the door gave way to a quick glimpse of a massive, shadow shrouded figure that was writhing and turning in pain from where it was floating within the room beyond. Both Fuji and Ash heard a loud, soul piercing shriek come from the mysterious being before the spectral figure vanished into the very farthest recesses of the dark chamber and the steel door slammed shut with a loud banging sound, the barrier sealing itself off again instantly.

As the light slowly started to recede from the room and back into Ash again, the boy turned and looked down at Fuji just as the last of the light faded from around his body and his eyes returned to normal. With a small grown, he stumbled back and forth before falling forward.

The old man was quick to reach up and balance Ash before he could hit the ground and just stood there, holding the now unconscious boy upright in his arms while his face remained in the same stunned expression he had it in during the entire extremely strange event that had just transpired. He looked across the chamber then at the door which the sinister being was held behind and saw that it was once again sealed shut with no trace of any shadows of darkness coming out of it anymore.

He turned his head after that and then stared ahead at the tunnel leading back to the surface and saw that his seal paper was now glowing brightly again from where it was laying a few feet away on the ground, unimpeded by the darkness that had nearly snuffed it out.

Fuji hoisted Ash's arm over his shoulder and walked them over to the smallish piece of paper before reaching down and picking it up. He held it firmly in his free hand, straight out in front of them like before since even though the danger of the darkness and the being that had caused it had now disappeared, he didn't want to take any chances.

He looked back at the door on the other side of the room one last time to make sure there were no chances of it opening back up again and then looked down at Ash. In his mind the only thing Fuji could think of was, 'If that... 'thing', that nearly did us both in a second ago really is the same one who haunted Lavender Town many years before and caused so much pain and anguish for so many people, I don't know how this young man could have had such a debilitating effect on it.

Whatever that strange light was that he was giving off, that monster certainly didn't appear to like it in any way shape or form. I can't know for certain but maybe just maybe it has been done in for the time. Or at least won't try anything else like this again anytime soon. I certainly never imagined it surviving if it really is the same creature that Agatha and I delt with so long ago but if it is then we will have to remain extra vigilant from here on out so history does not repeat itself once more...'

Pushing those thoughts aside for later though, Fuji hoisted Ash up a litter more and then started walking them down out of the chamber and into the catacomb tunnels that crisscrossed all underneath of Pokémon Tower.

As he made his way through the tunnel he was currently in, Fuji kept his glowing seal tag in front of him to ward off any of the three Ghost Pokémon that had tried to stop him from helping Ash earlier. It was unlikely that they would try anything so soon after the extreme light show Ash had just displayed but he knew it was better safe than sorry.

Eventually, they made it back to the surface and entered the ground level memorial room where the exit was located. Fuji wasted no time in hurrying towards the outside door, even as he felt the eyes of the three Ghost Pokémon on his back. He knew they wouldn't approach he and Ash since the seal tag was glowing so brightly around them but he could still feel them. Feel them watching his every move from the shadows of the tower as made his way to the exit with Ash grasped firmly to his shoulder. Now that he knew they wanted him so badly, Fuji was going to make sure that they didn't get Ash. Not when they were so close to being free.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of walking in slow motion, Fuji made it outside and wasted no time in shutting the doors of the tower behind him. Still keeping a hold onto Ash, he reached down and picked up the chains on the ground that had been keeping the door locked. He wrapped them tightly around the door handles and cinched them down as much as he could before stepping back.

He gave one last look at the tower stretching up high into the sky above him and then promptly turned on his heel as he quickly hobbled himself and the unconscious trainer he was supporting back to his home. The only thoughts passing through his mind at that moment was on just how blessed he and Ash must have been to have had Arceus on their side during that entire terrifying situation. For he knew that there was no other way they could have escaped the nightmare they just did without some form of divine intervention making itself known in their favor.

Looking down at Ash's unconscious face, Fuji was left to wonder if the connection between the young man and the light that had saved them really had anything to do with such a mythical, omniscient force as the fabled 'God of All Pokémon'. And furthermore (if that was even the case) could it have been that the seemingly ordinary, no matter how talented, boy he was currently supporting on his shoulder had some kind of favor in the eyes of said God Pokémon? Whom of which most just considered as a fictitious bedtime story?

Fuji didn't have the answer and settled for the realization that he most likely never would. He liked to believe in the potential for unexplained, fascinating miracles and tales of wonder. If the thought that Arceus had somehow had a hand in Ash saving them both in the tower allowed him to get by with the incredible sight he saw, then he would just take it and leave the deeper pondering of such things for younger and more intelligent minds than his.

If only Fuji would have known though on just how right he was in thinking that maybe Arceus had a special interest in the young man known as Ash Ketchum. If only the older man knew that the existence of the 'supposedly fabled' God Pokémon and the very active role SHE played in the universe wasn't as ludicrous and impossible as some, well actually most, people believed.

Oh if only he knew...

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

'In Ash's Mindscape'

The young Ketchum awoke to find himself laying down while staring up at a white void of nothing. He blinked his eyes from the brightness that assaulted them and shifted his body. He was surprised to find that his body wasn't sore at all like he thought it would be if the straggled memories running through his head was any indication of what had happened to him.

He groaned, sat up and then looked around at his surroundings. He saw that everything around him was literally nothing but a large, white expanse of absolutely... nothing. Furthermore, everything was totally colored in white. No other sign of color or anything else anywhere. Just... white.

Ash slowly got up and then looked down at his body. He saw that he was fully dressed in his tracksuit, which confused him since he felt as though he should be dressed in white as well to go along with his surroundings. Looking around a few more times, he decided to start exploring whatever the place was that he was in to see if he could get any answers.

The last thing he remembered was Fuji rushing into wherever he had been at in order to help him and then throwing some strange piece of paper at one of the pillars in the chamber room that had lit everything up in a bright glow. He also remembered the man helping to free him from the door that was draining his energy and then feeling weak while laying on the floor like he couldn't move his body. After that... all he had was fragmented pieces of memory that consisted of darkness and then an extremely bright light that encompassed his whole body in it's warmth. He also recalled glowing red eyes and a loud piercing shriek but then nothing.

Shaking his head to clear it of the jumble of broken thoughts in his head, Ash continued walking through the white void as he tried to find something, anything, that would make sense to him.

Eventually, Ash started to hear what almost sounded like a low humming as the sky above him began to shift and a faint yellow glow formed itself within the void. The glow became brighter and brighter until a circular ring of golden energy started to take shape from nothing. The humming seemed to get louder at the same time the light became brighter until it was like a deafening drone.

Ash watched in fascination as the ring of light swirled around in a rotating motion and then, to his further amazement, a large figure started to emerge from the rift. The new arrival appeared in the same golden glow as the ring of energy it came from but as it descended towards the ground, the being grew larger and larger until was at full size. Which meant that Ash had to crane his head to look up at it.

The figure then commended to taking a physical shape and as it did, Ash's face morphed into a big smile as he recognized exactly who it was that he was looking at. As soon as the creature had finished forming, he called up to it while waving excitedly, "Arceus!"

The majestic and divine Pokémon opened her eyes, revealing the golden orbs that radiated power and wisdom as she looked down at the small human waving up at her. The great Goddess Pokémon gave her best version of a warm smile to the boy through her mouthless face and her eyes softened upon seeing one of her most loved and treasured human creations.

Taking in the sight of her Chosen-One, the one whom she foresaw would accomplish so many amazing things in his life, waving up at her like the light hearted child he still was, caused a good natured chuckle to resonate from deep within her throat. The sound vibrating around the great white void and sending a warm, happy feeling through Ash's body.

The All Pokémon lowered her head down until it was level with Ash's then, one great eye staring at him as she did. The boy wasted no time in wrapping his arms around what he could of her massive face in a tight embrace and she chuckled again warmly at the gesture. "Hello my young Chosen-One," She greeted with an affectionate nudge of her head. Ash stepped back and she took him in with an appraising eye. "You certainly have grown since last we met young one and you have accomplished quite a good deal in the short time you have been on your journey."

Ash smiled up at her as he replied, "Yeah maybe but... I still have a really long way to go," He said modestly.

Arceus nodded sagely. "That you do young one. Still, you have been doing your best and what I am most proud of is that you have been raising your Pokémon companions with much love and care. You seek to build your bonds with them and help bring out the most of their potential as you can and that... that is what truly makes any Pokémon Trainer great. To always value and love your Pokémon above winning a simple battle is what makes you strong."

Ash took in her words with a serious expression. "I'm nothing without my Pokémon Arceus and I know that full and well. Its them that wins our battles, not the other way around."

Arceus looked at him with pride in her eyes as she nodded yet again. "Always keep that mindset Ash and never forget it. If you don't, I guarantee that you and your partners will go a very long way in this world and carve your names into the rock of history for all time. Now... I am sure you are wondering why you are here, am I correct?"

Ash crossed his arms and looked around. "Well honestly, I figured that you just brought me to another dimension like you did last time but I am curious as to why you did so."

Arceus tilted her head to him slightly in acknowledgement. "While you are partly right, I did not bring you to another dimension. At least not fully. This is actually your mindscape, a place within the very farthest recesses of your subconscious that takes physical form into an astral plane of sorts that embodies all that the individual most needs to deal with or contemplate on. Most humans can never reach such a state of total subconsciousness unless they fall into a deep coma. Or if they possess a strong affinity to the psychic energies that makes them into what you humans call 'Psychics' or 'Telekinetics'."

Ash looked confused. "Wait... then how am I here and why does my mindscape seem so empty?"

The Goddess Pokémon looked around the blank plane of Ash's mindscape before answering. "The reason you are here is because I helped give your already quite impressive and in-tuned mind the little push it needed to access this state of unconscious being. In all honesty, you may find that someday you will be able enter your mindscape entirely of your own free will," She said mysteriously, causing Ash to look at her with a questioning face.

Before he could ask what he wanted to though, she continued. "As for why your mindscape is so blank at the moment, you can think of it as a blank slate if you will. Remember, mindscapes are meant to house memories and thoughts of which your mind most needs to retain, contemplate on or even be rid of. You are still young, thus you have not seen or experienced enough tragedy or unexplainable circumstances for your mind to place them here. Not yet at any rate. As you age and go through more in life, you will find that there will be more to see and contemplate on here within your mindscape. If you ever learn how to access it on your free will that is."

She lightly tilted her head to the side once more. "Also, the more intelligent you are and the less that leaves you with question will mean the less that is stored here. The same goes with tragedy. If you handle such occasions better than others and don't repress but instead accept them, the less unresolved issues will be stored here. Just because a tragic memory may be stored in your mindscape does not mean that you never have to deal with it. You are merely allowed a 'reprieve' from it if you will. All things have to be delt with in due time, there is no avoiding your problem or problems forever."

Her eyes gleamed wisely. "So... if I were you, I would hope that you can deal with most of your hardships in life right when they happen so you do not have to store such unpleasant thoughts and memories in here for later times."

Ash scratched his head. "Well what about happy memories? Since this is my mindscape can't I will memories that I value as precious or interesting into existence here as well?"

Arceus gave another of her head tilts as she she hummed in her throat. "Very good Ash, you figured it out for yourself. Yes you can. I was just about to tell you that very same thing that you just came to yourself. If you simply imagine it and will your mind to faze something into existence that you want to see here in your mindscape, then it will appear. Try it, just concentrate and focus on what you want to see in your mind..." She instructed as she trailed off slowly.

Ash listened to her instructions carefully and then closed his eyes as he concentrated on the thought that he wanted to take form in his mindscape. He focused intently for a few seconds until he felt a pulling sensation come from his mind at the same time that he felt something shifting in the mindscape. He opened his eyes then and his mouth all but dropped open. What he saw made him feel both amazed and also excited at his success, all in one.

There, stretching out all around him and replacing the white void, was an exact replica of Pallet Town. Everything, from the mountains in the distance, the many houses that dotted the countryside, Professor Oak's Lab and even his own house was now spread out before him like he was back home. Even the trees he remembered climbing as a young child had been replicated.

He felt a warm summer breeze blow through his hair and looked further around at his surroundings. He noticed that Pallet Town had been replicated in the favorite season of his home, which was in early summer. He smiled to himself as he looked towards his house and saw the mental duplicate of his mother outside in her garden working away with her flowers and other plants. He then looked up towards the lab and saw Professor Oak walking the fields of the ranch as he inspected all of the many Pokémon he watched over and took care of.

Ash even saw a mindscape version of Daisy Oak helping her grandfather by taking a few notes for him in-between interacting with the Pokémon and this brought a slight blush to his face as he realized that even his subconscious mind had an infatuation with the Professor's eldest grandchild. He could practically feel Arceus' amusement as she watched him and quickly turned around to face her again, coughing sheepishly as he made an attempt to change subjects.

"S-So then... can my mindscape also play back memories and stuff?" He asked while trying to get his blush under control.

Arceus gave a small chuckle at his embarrassment due to the situation but answered regardless. He didn't catch the fact though that she seemed to look at the mental image of Daisy for a moment with some type of knowing gleam in her eyes before she spoke, "Yes young one, it takes more focus but you can also replay memories here in your mindscape. Just focus on the events down to the best detail you can and then do the same thing you just did with the memory of your hometown."

Ash quickly shut his eyes, ready to change scenes so his embarrassment would go away, and focused on the first memory that came to mind. After a few minutes of intense thought and concentration, Ash felt another shift in his mindscape and opened his eyes to see that Pallet Town had disappeared. He was now standing in Professor Oak's Lab with a much smaller Arceus next to him.

He looked in front of him then and saw the day he received Pikachu from Professor Oak playing out like it was really happening all over again.

Ash watched in fascination as his memory played like a movie before his very eyes while Arceus gave an approving hum. "Very good Ash, it is not easy to re-create memories within a mindscape but you have done well for your first time."

She watched silently then as memory Ash unwittingly activated the Star Mark on his right palm and used it to speak to Pikachu's heart in order to help get rid of his anger and hard feelings at Professor Oak, the circumstances of his capture and the Electric-Type's general dislike of humans. After she witnessed Ash successfully calm Pikachu through the use of the mark, she turned to the real Ash and spoke to him, "Lets see you do another memory Ash, try something more difficult now."

Ash nodded and closed his eyes again as he focused on another memory. This time he recalled the night he and his friends first saw Dragonite at Bill's lighthouse. After a few more minutes of fierce concentration, he heard the sounds of Dragonite's cooing once the now usual shifting he was starting to associate with the changing of the mindscape finally passed.

He opened his eyes then and saw an exact re-recreation of his meeting with the massive Pokémon unfolding in near perfect detail. Only a few objects in the far off distance of the memory being somewhat blurry due to his current lack of mastery over his mindscape.

As he watched the memory run it's course up to the moment Team Rocket attacked, his eyes widened upon seeing himself transform under the influence of the dark blue energy that would consume him whenever he became too angry. While memory Ash prepared to end the three idiotic Rocket's lives with the energy sphere he had built up in his hands, only being stopped from doing so by Giselle, the real Ash couldn't believe how vicious and feral he was when the uncontrolled dark energy would consume him.

The memory continued to play out until it got to the part where Ash was yet again using his Star Mark to communicate with Dragonite, whom had felt both angry and hurt at being attacked by Team Rocket. The whole time during the memory, Ash noticed that Arceus remained totally silent as she stood beside him in her shrunken form. He expected her to say something to him when they watched his memory self become consumed by the dark energy but to his surprise, she didn't.

Ash wondered why she remained silent but just figured that she wasn't ready to explain why such things happened to him yet. It made him feel slightly irritated that she didn't explain something so important and potentially dangerous to him but on the other hand, he felt strangely at ease with the out of control moments he went through now since they apparently weren't so threatening to him or his friends that Arceus felt he didn't need to be informed on the cause for the incidents just yet.

He pondered briefly if maybe she didn't even know the cause for why the berserk transformations he went through happened but at the same moment he scoffed to himself. She was the Goddess of all Pokémon for crying out loud. Of course she knew! Hell, he would bet anything that she was tied to them in the first place so he felt confident that she would tell him in due time when she felt he was ready. He just had to have faith.

However, right after his memory self calmed Dragonite with the use of the strange mark on his palm, Arceus suddenly spoke to him. "It is time you were told something important young one. End this memory and I will explain."

Ash looked over at her but didn't argue. Instead he just focused again with his eyes closed and ended the memory. He felt his mindscape shift again and opened his eyes to see that the mental recreation of Pallet Town was in place once again. He also saw that he was now standing on one of the tall hills overlooking his hometown with Arceus in her full size standing in front of him. From where he was standing on the hill peak, he was now level with her face. Leading him to believe that she must not have really been at full size like he originally thought since even the tallest of hills in Pallet couldn't come close to equaling her true size.

He stood in front of her with a curious look in his eyes and Arceus could tell he was waiting so she began speaking, "Ash... the time has come for you to learn the truth of the mark on your hand," She stated with complete seriousness in her powerful voice.

Ash's eyes widened and he looked at his right hand where the mark would appear whenever he was channeling it's strange abilities. He then glanced back up at Arceus and clenched his fist. "What is it?"

The Pokémon of creation remained silent for a few moments before finally speaking again. "It is a symbol known as the Star Mark and is tied to an ability known to only a select few in this world. The Star Mark gives you the ability to access and channel emotional energy within both yourself and Pokémon in order to establish an 'emotional connection' between each other of sorts, using your hearts as the mediums.

This was an ability that I bestowed upon a group of ancient people long ago that worshiped me and had a very strong connection to Pokémon. The land they lived in was very harsh for the most part and required the assistance of the Pokémon that lived nearby to help cultivate and enrich the surrounding area they called home.

However, the Pokémon were mistrusting of people and didn't want to help them. The tribe of humans had nothing but the best of intentions and good will towards the land and Pokémon and simply wanted to make them see this. The tribal chief at the time came to my alter and prayed that I would help them and the Pokémon understand one another. I obliged, seeing as the people's hearts were pure, and gifted them with the Star Mark so they could open their hearts to the Pokémon and help them understand exactly what they were feeling.

It worked and eventually, the Pokémon came to help the people nourish and farm the land so both they and the humans would prosper. Over the years, the tribe grew and people began to branch out and go off into the world on their own. Generations passed and eventually there were born certain families that possessed the Star Mark as a form of family bloodline. Even now in current times there are a few families that still possess this ability. There are not as many as there once was though for when a family becomes too corrupt, the mark quite literally leaves their bloodline. Never to be born into anyone in said family ever again. Still, even though there may not be many, there are a few straggled families left who are worthy enough to wield the Star Mark."

Ash looked down at his palm again in amazement as he said with fascination laced into his voice, "So then... do I come from such a family? Is that why I can use the Star Mark?"

Arceus shook her mighty head. "No young one I am afraid you do not. I will admit to breaking a few of my own rules whenever I bestowed upon you that gift. The day you were born I appeared above your crib in the hospital, invisible and much smaller than you see me now, and breathed the ability of the mark into your body. You are the only human being alive today able to wield the Star Mark who is not a descendant of the ancient tribe of old."

Ash's mind felt like reeling with the information he was just given concerning the mark but he still asked a rather obvious question, "How do I control it? Up until now I've only been able to channel it when I've felt most in need to help a Pokémon and ended up activating it out of pure luck."

Arceus merely blinked before answering her Chosen-One. "The answer to that is quite simple my young one. As I said before, the Star Mark is tied to strong emotions and was meant for the purpose of connecting your heart to that of a Pokémon who is in emotional turmoil so you may help them. All that is required for you to activate that mark is by focusing on your desire to connect your heart to that of the distressed Pokémon and to feel it's emotions so you may help it.

Once you do that, the mark on your hand will appear as you have already seen it before and the energy from within your heart will reach out and tie itself to that of the Pokémon of choice. After that happens, your hearts and souls become temporarily bound and it is in this state that you will then try getting your feelings across to the Pokémon in need."

The divine Pokémon paused for a moment to let what she just said sink in before continuing with a very serious tone to her voice. "Now, something you must know about that mark Ash. When you are connected to a Pokémon through it's ability you will see, as I'm sure you're already aware of, that an aura of a certain color will surround both yourself and the Pokémon you are connected to.

The colors will range from many different spectrums; being white, yellow, green, pink, grey, red and black. White is the color of calmness and serenity, which is what your aura should always be before you try using the Star Mark. If your aura is any other color or changes color while in the middle of the connection, sever it for a time to recompose yourself before trying again. Horrible things can happen to you and the Pokémon you are trying to help if both of your emotions are conflicted at the same time. Do you understand?"

Ash nodded instantly. "Yes I understand," He answered seriously.

Arceus seemed satisfied and went on, "Yellow is the color of nervousness or trepidation and is one of the most common aura readings you will receive from a distressed Pokémon when trying to help them. Reason being because their fear of you or whatever situation they're in will cause them to become distressed.

Green is a color which represents a feeling of unsureness or indecisiveness and can sometimes be the midway point between getting a Pokémon's emotional aura from red to white, which is where all Pokémon should be since white shows a perfect harmonious balance.

Pink is a feeling of love and will usually only be seen by a Pokémon who is in love with a mate or holds emotions of deep affection for their trainer or human companion.

Grey is the color that represents when a Pokémon is not sure what they feel and has emotionally detached themselves for the most part. Getting a Pokémon to switch from this color of aura is very difficult since reaching them with your emotions is all but impossible. The Darkness Pokémon Darkrai, one of my Legendary children, is a perfect example of this color aura of emotion.

Due to several unfortunate circumstances it has been through with humans over the course of many years, Darkrai had all but locked it's heart out to all emotions of any kind. Even hatred. It simply feels nothing and never lets any form of emotion slip from within itself no matter the circumstances. Sometimes it's actions may be misconstrued as evil but in all reality, it acts on no real emotion. Only the desire to 'do'.

Red is the most common form of color you will encounter when connected with a Pokémon through the Star Mark. The reason for this is because anger represents this emotion and as you can imagine, there can be many reason why a Pokémon would become angry with a human or fellow Pokémon. Which then calls for you to use the Star Mark in an attempt to calm them down. I know from your memories Ash that you have encountered this very emotion before while using the mark am I correct?"

Ash nodded but remained silent. Arceus explained on with a heavy sigh then, "The last of these colored auras symbolizing emotions would be black and it is the most sinister, oppressive and malicious aura you will ever feel. For a Pokémon to have this color to their aura their emotions must go far beyond that of anger or even fury.

The color black is what happens when a Pokémon has been through something so tragic and severe that their fear and anger has morphed into that of pure and utter hatred. Evil thoughts and intentions come with this color of emotion and it is by far the hardest and most dangerous aura to try and tame. For if you are not careful then their black aura will taint and corrupt your own until it destroys you."

She lowered her face until one huge eye was looking into Ash's smaller two. "I must warn you Ash that sometimes a Pokémon's anger or hatred is too great to calm in one connection. Sometimes you will be forcefully expelled out and when this happens you will have to decide rather to go back and try again or end the attempt at helping them in order to save yourself."

She raised back up and looked down at him again. "Each of these emotions all feel a certain way and I cannot describe them to you. Only by feeling them for yourself will you be able to get the understanding for each emotional aura. Pray that black never finds your Star Mark my Chosen..."

Ash looked at his palm that held the concealed Star Mark and let everything Arceus just told him swirl through his head for several moments. Eventually he clenched his hand into a fist again and looked up at the Goddess Pokémon with a serious, determined expression on his face. "Arceus... I promise you that I will not let this gift go to waste and vow to make sure I use this mark for nothing but the good of all Pokémon I meet that need my help. No matter what their color aura... I swear that I will help them!"

Arceus hummed softly down at the small human. "I know you will young one, that I have no doubts about it."

Ash smiled at her but then a thoughtful expression flashed across his visage. "Arceus... not that I'm not happy that you are telling me all this about my Star Mark, because I am, but... why are you explaining only now? Couldn't you have just told me all this at any point after the fist few times I used it?"

Arceus sighed and remained quiet for a few moments until she finally answered him. "The truth is young one... the time when you had to know all about the Star Mark and what it could do wasn't upon you yet. Yes you have used it before now for admirable, kind hearted purposes but there was never a situation presenting itself to you at those times in which required of you needing to know all that I've just told you..." She finished with a slight trail off to her words.

Ash, being the intelligent young man he was, put two and two together. "And the time and situation you just mentioned... its upon me isn't it? That's why you're telling me all of this now right?" His eyes narrowed slightly. "Is this connected to what's been happening to me ever since my friends and I arrived in Lavender Town?"

Arceus gave an incline of her head in acknowledgement of his words. "You are a most perceptive child young one. Yes... that is exactly why I have called you here and explained to you the nature of your Star Mark," She conceded with an air of tension in her voice.

Ash felt a slightly nervous feeling settle in his stomach but pushed it away as he bravely asked, "And what is supposed to happen to me here that is so important that you needed to summon me?"

The great Pokémon stayed silent for a few minutes before she finally broke the silence. "The reason I called you here has to do with the... being, that has taken a great interest in you. The one who resides within the human place of sanctity you call 'Pokémon Tower'."

Ash stepped forward with an anxious expression upon his face. "W-What is it?"

Arceus sighed. "The humans call it many different things. In all truth I do not believe any of them know what it really is anymore. They call it a monster, a devil, a dark spirit... evil incarnate even." The Goddess of Pokémon shook her head sadly. "It is a shame which breaks my heart to know that it is viewed with such disdain for in all truth, it is none of what the humans believe it to be. It is a poor, wretched soul that has allowed the years and tragedy which has filled it's life to tear down the being of light that it once was. You could say, I suppose, that the one I speak of is the very definition of misunderstood or that it's story is one that would break the hearts of even the most callous of men."

She took a breath and composed her thoughts before continuing. "The true nature of the creature I speak of was... 'special' in it's position as one of my many children. When I made it, I filled it with all of my hopes and good will for someone that could help bring love and understanding between people and Pokémon. I gave it an ability similar to your Star Mark in that it could feel the emotions and intentions of others. My hope when I created it was that it would strive to use it's understanding of emotions to help bring about a greater peace to the world."

Ash turned his head to the side slightly. "What exactly was 'it'?"

Arceus looked down before replying. "The form it took, that I gave it, was one of a Pokémon. A Gastly to be precise."

Ash's eyes widened. "You mean that thing in the tower is a Gastly?!" He shouted in total shock.

The creation Pokémon shook her head. "Please listen little one, your questions will be answered at the end of what what I am going to tell you," She asked.

He just nodded and bowed his head. "I'm sorry Arceus, please continue."

Arceus inclined her own head. "No apologies are necessary young one, questions are natural amongst anyone." She looked up at the mental recreation of the sky in Ash's mind before she finally spoke again. "In the beginning it was born as a Gastly, yes. Originally, it's egg was lain and hatched in Mt. Coronet, which resides in the region of Sinnoh."

Ash suddenly interrupted, "Yeah I know all about Mt. Coronet, Professor Oak had me read about it during our world geography lessons. It's situated right in the heart of the Sinnoh region and is also said to be the cradle where all life began. Historians and archeologists who study the ruins on and near the mountain say that there is a strong connection between you and it. Some people even call it 'Arceus' Cradle' and link it with the Creation Trio; Dialga, Palkia and Giratina as well. Am I right?"

Arceus gave an amused chuckle. "Yes little one, well learned indeed you are. Mt. Coronet is where I first began breathing life into the world and it was for that very reason that I decided to have the Pokémon I hoped would bring peace to the world, born at it's location.

Over the years as the young Gastly grew and observed passing trainers and other humans coming through the mountain, it became increasingly aware of the ability it possessed to sense emotions. Gastly was a rather loving, soft hearted Pokémon in it's younger days and merely wanted to see others happy and getting along.

When it would sense a fellow Pokémon or human's distress, Gastly would want to help them overcome their inner turmoil in whatever way it could. Sometimes it would be able to help but others... it would unfortunately fail. You see, other Pokémon would usually be willing to listen to what Gastly had to say and would even accept it's assistance on occasion. The desire to overcome their own personal troubles or those they may have had with another Pokémon being too great to pass up the opportunity when Gastly would come along claiming that it could help them.

Gastly may have only been able to sense emotions but it was because of this ability that it grew to form a very empathic heart. Meaning that it could understand the plights of others to a degree in which those who were firsthand encountering said troubles were unable to do. Gastly having an empathic heart also meant that it was exceedingly compassionate and would stop at nothing to help someone overcome their darkness."

She sighed again. "Where Gastly failed, as I mentioned earlier, was with humans. Pokémon would be willing to accept Gastly's help since they were all of the same general race of species. Humans on the other hand, were a much harder case to sell. As you know young one, humans can be rather aggressive and none-responsive to those unlike them and Gastly was a Pokémon. It didn't matter if it truly could sense their emotions and know the ways in which to help them. The humans it would try to help could not understand Gastly when it tried to interact with them and, mixed with the fact that Ghost-Type Pokémon are often met with fear and suspicion, they would run from it. Sometimes even chase Gastly away."

Arceus looked out over the recreation of Pallet Town. "Gastly tried and tried, time and time again to help humans as it did for it's fellow Pokémon but no one would listen. Gastly eventually decided to leave Mt. Coronet and travel the world in order to help others with it's gift and while it would indeed help Pokémon, humans still would fail to give Gastly a chance. One such encounter led to a human brutally attacking Gastly with one of his Pokémon and left it badly wounded in the wilderness one day. Gastly was unable to help itself and just as it was ready to give in, a kind, elderly human woman found it and took Gastly back to her cottage to heal it.

The woman held no fear of Gastly and cared for it like it was her own Pokémon. Gastly had been weary of her for a time due to the near constant mistreatment it suffered at the hands of the humans it would try to help, but in time... it came to trust her. After it was healed, Gastly stayed with the kindly woman and helped her with all it could at her home, finally living for itself for once after trying to change the world on it's own for so long."

A forlorn expression came across Arceus' face then. "For a short time, Gastly was happy while it lived with the woman. I met with it in one of Gastly's dreams shortly after it made the decision that it wanted to stay with her and in this dream, I told Gastly of it's origins and that I was the one who gave it the ability to sense other's emotions."

Yet again a sigh escaped her mouthless face. "I realized that my hopes for Gastly to bring peace to the world through the ability I granted it was a fool's dream. I was merely trying to create a temporary replacement because I had grown tired of waiting on the right time to create the one in which I knew, who had been prophesied, would bring about true peace to the world."

She looked down at Ash again. "Which was you my chosen. It was not yet my given time to bring you into existence and I was tired of seeing the world fight amongst itself. I knew your birth was still less than a century away and I made the choice to take an easier way out by creating Gastly in order to bring peace through understanding of others emotions.

It was not until I witnessed Gastly get savagely beaten by the trainer and his Pokémon that left it in the woods for the old woman to find did I realize the fatal flaw in my plan. No Pokémon, no matter how pure or kind hearted, would be able to lead the world to peace. Many humans feel superior to Pokémon in their role of who leads what in this world, sad to say, and because of this... a Pokémon will never be able to change the world on their own. Humans need to see one of their own, or at least whom they think is one of their own, leading the effort to change the world for a better tomorrow. Only then will they understand and try themselves. Not by following the actions of a unique and kind hearted Pokémon that merely wants to help heal the pain it can sense within others."

She shook her head sadly. "And it only took Gastly nearly losing it's life to make me realize that. Even after I witnessed it's mistreatment at the hands of all the other humans before that it tried to help, it took something so severe to make me see how foolish I was. It was after my realization of all of this did I come to accept that I had to just wait for the time when the world was finally ready for your birth.

I told Gastly in it's dream about you and that I was sorry for putting such a burden onto it's shoulders for so long that was supposed to be meant only for you. A burden that only YOU would be able to carry. I didn't expect forgiveness but I told it that as a small act of repentance for how unfair I had been, I wanted Gastly to stay with the elderly woman it grew to care so much for and live out it's days in peace and happiness."

Arceus' eyes softened. "Even after all it experienced at the hands of my own stupidity and impatience, Gastly was simply overjoyed that I would allow it to stay with the old woman and forgave me. After that night, Gasty's life was finally looking up for the first time in it's life."

A look that was a cross between sorrow and fury flashed across her face the next moment as her voice hardened."But human's fear and suspicion of what they do not understand is a powerful thing and it showed itself to be never more true shortly thereafter."

She took a moment to calm herself before speaking again. "The trainer that had harmed Gastly was traveling through the forest near the old woman's cottage one day and saw she and Gastly working together out in her flowerbed. Gastly was using it's abilities to help their work along by moving large rocks and other heavy objects around the yard and when the woman nearly tripped and fell, Gastly caught her using it's power.

The man only saw Gastly actions as an evil Pokémon trying to control, manipulate and harm the old woman and rushed out to attack it. Gastly was furious at seeing the human who had injured it so brutally but upon hearing him telling the woman that it was just trying to control her for it's own selfish intentions, it snapped and attacked him. The human and his Pokemon tried to defend themselves but Gastly, fueled by it's rage that the man would insinuate it would hurt the only human it ever truly cared for, defeated them easily.

Just before Gastly could finish them off however, the woman stepped in and told Gastly that harming the man and his Pokémon would do no good for anyone and asked it to let them go. Gastly did so against it's better judgement and unfortunately, it turned out to be a choice it would regret. The human went back to his home in a nearby town and spread malicious lies that there was an evil, manipulative Gastly living with an old woman in the forest and was biding it's time to come and destroy them all. The people panicked and, being as controlled by fear as they were, went to end the 'threat'."

Arceus stopped and let herself become immersed in memory before resuming the story. When she did, she spoke with a great air of sadness, "The townspeople went to the old woman's cottage later the following day looking for Gastly only to find that it wasn't there when they arrived. The woman claimed that she had sent Gastly on an errand to look for certain herbs she needed up in the mountains but I personally believe it was because she knew what Gastly's actions the previous day would bring about in some form or another.

When the townspeople, led by the man Gastly had attacked, reached the cottage they demanded to know where it was. The woman refused to tell them anything and after a short time of trying to force her to tell them, the man declared that the old woman was Gastly and that it had now fully possessed her."

She shook her head sadly. "The people believed what the crazed trainer of old said and became aggressive. The man said that the only way they would be free of Gastly's evil was to kill it's host..."

Ash's eyes widened. "Don't tell me..."

Arceus nodded. "Yes. The humans captured the old woman and tied her up to the one of the railings on the porch of her cabin. They then set fire to it and watched as she burned alive. She was loyal to Gastly though unto the bitter end and never once revealed where it had gone, even as the flesh was melted from her bones.

After their terrible deed was finished, the humans went back to their town and celebrated the defeat of the 'monster', leaving the charred remains of the cottage and the old woman's smoldering bones behind without so much as a care.

Gastly arrived back at the cottage later that evening and upon seeing what had happened... it's mind snapped. Filled with grief, unbearable sorrow and pain that could not be described, Gastly tried everything it knew with every ounce of it's power to bring it's only human friend back to life. It tried until the skies opened up and rain began to pour in torrents, dousing the flames of the burning cottage, to return the woman to the realm of the living but the blackened bones of all that was left of her remained unfazed."

She looked unblinkingly at the horizon in Ash's mindscape once more. "Gastly never truly understood what dying meant, even though it had been able to feel the sorrow and pain death caused to so many others that had experienced it by using the ability I had cursed Gastly with. But... unfortunately..."

Yet again a heavy sigh escaped the Omnipotent Pokémon. "It wasn't until Gastly felt the loss of someone so close and precious to it's heart did it come to realize the true harsh reality of what death really was. What made it all that much worse was the footsteps Gastly noticed nearby that belonged to the townspeople who had taken the life of it's dearest friend. It prayed to me in that moment to restore the life of the woman but I could not. She had died at peace knowing she protected Gastly and for that reason, I could not rip her from her eternal bliss in the afterlife just to be sent back into a world that was so much crueler by comparison. It's prayers fell on deaf ears that day I am ashamed to say..."

Arceus let out another sigh, only this time quite shaky. "Even in the wake of the terrible pain Gastly was feeling, it could still reason out what had happened by the footsteps it found belonging to the large group of humans responsible for the travesty.

Remembering what the old woman had told Gastly about never going to the nearby town because the people there would not understand and even possibly try to harm it, Gastly then knew that her death had not been accidental but instead a horrendous act of pure evil in which had stolen her life away. In that moment, something deep within the once pure hearted Pokémon shattered completely as it's anger and utter hatred for the ones who had committed such a terrible crime of malicious evil exploded to the surface.

Gastly's rage triggered a massive rush of it's inner power to be released and caused an unnatural evolution to occur by extension." She then willed a small portal into existence next to her that she linked to her own memories. From the swirling mist of nothing slowly appeared an image, which eventually turned into a mirror-like movie showing what Ash knew had to have been Gastly.

He saw the enraged looking Pokémon floating in a downpour of rain with a large cloud of smoke coming from the wreckage of the cabin behind it that was still rising up into the air. Gastly's face was twisted into one of such pain, sadness and raw fury that Ash almost felt like flinching back as he stared at the memory playing out in front of him.

He then watched as a dark, malicious looking energy exploded forth from the Ghost-Type before it started wrapping itself around the Pokémon in a bubbling, writhing mass that grew larger and larger. The way the dark energy moved and lashed about almost reminded him of the way a Pokémon would look when undergoing evolution, only it was lacking the bright, warm, powerful white light that they normally displayed. The transformation he was currently watching through the cloudy mirror that was happening to Gastly looked more like a dark, twisted, evil form of evolution that he had never seen, nor heard of before.

As his eyes locked themselves onto the fascinating, yet terrifying sight before him, Ash saw the dark energy die away only to show the new image of a massive, pitch black shape with glowing red eyes emerge from the fog of the evil energy. The eyes Ash saw seemingly staring back at him through the recreation of Arceus' memories sent a chill down his spine as a feeling of familiarity passed through him.

More specifically, the fragmented memories he had of when he and Fuji were down in the catacombs below Pokémon Tower and he saw an identical pair of malicious red eyes staring back at him as he unleashed the powerful light that chased it away and allowed them to escape.

Ash only now realized as he stared into Arceus' portal mirror that the eyes he saw then and the ones he saw now were exactly the same and belonged to the exact same creature.

His shock gave way to awe as he watched the monstrous figure cloaked in black, thick fog send a large pulse of dark energy out of itself that spread out over the entire area and, in a bright flash of light, decimated everything around it to ash. The forest surrounding the burnt down cottage, which was once so green and lush, now resembled a broken, barren plain of charred ground and destroyed trees.

Then, to Ash's horror, he saw the dark being rise up into the air. The light of the town someways away from the now decimated forest was aglow against the night sky and the boy could tell by the way the brights lights were dancing and swaying around that the townspeople were apparently holding some kind of festivity. He didn't know exactly what it was for but he had a bad feeling in his gut that it was to celebrate the fact that they thought Gastly was now dead.

The shrouded in darkness creature narrowed it's glowing red eyes at the town before, in a burst of shadow, streaked across the sky like a lightning bolt towards the town. Ash watched as it neared the town, a chill dropping over the land as it went while the sky above darkened even more. The moon above being hidden by dark clouds.

The townspeople didn't know what was happening until the enraged being was already upon them, all the lights in the town getting extinguished as soon as it arrived. In a whirlwind of shadows, Ash saw the remnants of what Gastly once was appear in the middle of the town square. The people began screaming in terror at the appearance of the evil looking creature and started running around in a panic to escape from it. Gale force winds blew through the town at high speeds as the shadows themselves seemed to come alive.

Ash's eyes widened in horror as he witnessed what could only be described as complete and utter carnage take place within the mirror of Arceus' memories. The dark being stayed in one place as tendrils of shadows would seek out the fleeing townspeople and then grab them before suspending them in the air. After that, the humans would be killed in truly nightmarish ways.

Some would get smashed into buildings, roads and other large objects in the town until they were literally busted to pieces or turned to paste where they impacted with whatever they hit. Others were simply squeezed to death by the tendrils of dark energy holding them up or violated through every possible orifice of their bodies until their insides were either scrambled or ripped out completely. Some were even turned completely inside out.

Other townspeople were chased down by shadowy beings that were controlled like puppets on a string by the now dark creature causing all of the chaos. They were chased down and savaged by the shadow minions until dead or in some cases, strung up by energy tendrils and tortured until death finally took them. Black spheres of energy were also being hurled at the town by the corrupted form of Gastly and everywhere they impacted, dark fires would spring up and engulf the town in it's black flames. Some people getting caught up and burnt alive by the fire.

While all of this was happening, some of the Pokémon Trainers of the small community were in the town square with their Pokémon by their sides, trying desperately to fend off the seemingly unstoppable monster that had found their home. The trainers would command their Pokémon to attack the dark being but every time they did, it would quickly strike back ten fold and show them the error of their ways for daring to attack it.

With every attack the many Pokémon would launch, the creature would simply re-direct it, vanish it or counter it with dark blasts of energy. The strangest thing that happened though was when the former Ghost Type's eyes suddenly glowed blue and several similar colored orbs of energy would then fly at the Pokémon. Upon the orbs reaching and making contact with them, said Pokémon would then disappear into thin air like they were never even there.

This would naturally frighten the trainers and enrage them but no sooner did all of the Pokémon vanish and the malevolent being then sent out sharp spikes of darkness that would chase down and impale the humans onto them. While they tried to escape, dark pulses of energy would then surge through the spikes holding them in place and enter their bodies like electricity, effectively burning the very flesh from their bones until only skeletons remained.

Eventually, only one human was left standing in the town and it was the man who had attacked Gastly before and then turned the townspeople against it, leading to the old woman's death when they went looking for it. The trainer in question, who's Pokémon had also been vanished by the dark being, was surrounded by a group of demonic looking shadow. Fear easily being read across his cowardly, pathetic face as he whimpered to be spared.

The red eyed shadow creature then descended upon the man, it's crimson orbs boring down onto him with pure hatred and contempt as the air become extremely thick and almost impossible for the trainer to breath. The former Pokémom turned compete monster then, fast as lightning, sent multiple tendrils of energy at the man which impaled him in several different places. Each one causing him to scream out in pain.

Dark pulses of energy then started circulating through the tendrils and into the man, burning him from the inside out while he screamed himself horse from pain. The shadow minions then began savaging and mutilating the vile human before them as they bit, clawed and pulled chunks out of his skin. A few of the bigger shadows even grabbed his arms and legs and pulled on them until they completely broke.

After what seemed like forever of watching the gruesome nightmare in front of him, Ash saw the torture of the man finally stop. However, he was then forced to watch as the creature of darkness brought the man up close it's shrouded face until he was suspended directly above the dark mist and shadows that covered of the creature.

The man opened his bloodshot eyes from the near unconsciousness all of the torture had placed him under, just as the shadows cloaking what was once Gastly finally fell away and revealed, to Ash's complete shock, a Pokémon on the other side of it. A huge, terrifying and evil looking Pokémon but a Pokémon nonetheless.

What surprised Ash though was the identity of the Pokémon. He expected to see a warped, twisted or perhaps mutilated version of Gastly but instead, who he was now looking at through Arceus' memories was none other than a Haunter.

It looked completely different from normal though, being that it was far, far bigger, had red eyes instead of white and it's entire body was a shade of much deeper purple, almost black, than what normal Haunter had. It's entire body was also covered in what looked like sharp purple spikes that were flaring and jutting out from it's spectral skin.

It wasn't until Ash saw the true form of the shadowed being and then just stared at it for a short time did he finally realize that this completely evil and demonic looking Haunter actually was Gastly!

The once kind hearted Pokémon didn't simply fade away to nothing or change into something totally different when it had become consumed by darkness after discovering what had happened to the old woman it cared so deeply for. Ash now realized that what had appeared to him to be some kind of dark, twisted evolution overtaking Gastly earlier on in the portal of memories was just that... evolution.

Gastly had evolved during that extremely emotional turning point and it's anger, combined with the immense sorrow and other volatile emotions it had been experiencing at the time, caused a chain reaction get set off in an unholy mixture with Gastly's unique power.

Somehow, the pure gift Arceus had bestowed upon Gastly that also granted it much more power than usual, had been corrupted in that mind shattering moment of intense emotional agony when evolution occurred. Because of that, the power it possessed had been warped into the dark, malevolent energy it was displaying now and that very same dark energy had also effected Gastly's evolution. Not only completely altering the way it looked as Haunter but also doing some kind of permanent damage to it's psyche that, in turn, caused it's very soul to become a dark, twisted shadow of it's former self.

In simple terms, Gastly's rage and pain had quite literally corrupted and consumed it. Entirely.

Ash turned his full attention back towards the memory playing in front of him again and saw the wicked man responsible for everything now looking down into the eyes of Haunter with complete and total fear in his eyes. The man tried to open his mouth and beg for mercy but at the same moment, Haunter placed it's large hand over his head. It's eyes yet again glowed red and a dark aura began exuding from it and poured into the man. The corrupt trainer's eyes widened momentarily in shock as his mouth opened into a silent scream. Then, just as fast as his head jerked up, the man's body went totally slack as he slumped into Haunter's grasp.

The mutated Pokémon's glowing red eyes remained locked onto the human's now unseeing ones and the very next moment, it pulled it's hand away from the man's head. As it did so, a black, ethereal form came forth from the man's body until it was completely out of him and in Haunter's tight hold. It then let the lifeless body drop down to the ground without a second thought and turned it's attention solely to the strange, transparent looking form of energy it was now holding.

Ash was further sent into shock as he saw the spiritual form start shifting and molding itself until it eventually took the full form of the man himself, who's body was now lying on the ground below. The male figure looked surprised at first as he looked around but as he then looked down and saw the body on the ground, his body, a look of pure terror came over it's face. He tried to scream but had no voice and that very moment was when Ash knew what had happened.

Somehow, in some way he didn't even want to think about, Haunter had just pulled the man's very soul from his body and the dark, humanoid looking form held within it's hand was just that... the bastard trainer trapped within the confines of his own soul looking down at his former human body.

The soul turned his petrified gaze onto Haunter but before he could even blink his now non-existent eyes, the monstrous Ghost-Type let a sadistic, manic grin come across it's face as it's mouth opened widely.

Ash felt like getting sick as he watched Haunter stuff the soul into it's gaping maw and close it like a trapdoor afterwards. Haunter's eyes then blazed with pure power as a massive burst of energy came from within it and spread out over the town. The waves of dark energy bathed every body littering the ruined street in it's dark glow and as it did, souls upon souls started to lift up from the lifeless forms they once occupied and into the air.

Ash saw the confusion and fear on the many soul's faces before Haunter made a pulling motion with it's ghostly arms. Like a vacuum, the dozens of souls started speeding towards Haunter and with it's mouth wide open yet again, the dark Pokémon let the souls pour into it's mouth like water into the mouth of a parched desert wanderer. Ash felt like he was watching a horror movie as Haunter grew larger and larger with every soul it absorbed into it's body. The dark aura around it growing even more powerful as it devoured the souls.

After the very last soul had been swallowed up by Haunter, the now radiating with power Ghost Pokémon raised it's body high up into the air. It then called every shadow it had created back into it's body before, with an outward thrusting motion of it's arms, a massive burst of dark energy was sent roaring out of it's body. The power took on the form of a giant dome that expanded and expanded until the entire town was completely engulfed by it.

Ash had to cover his eyes from the brightness of the immense blast caused by the unimaginable power surge and after it had passed, he looked around and saw that where the town once was, a huge crater was now the only thing left. The area looking like a meteor had dropped from the sky and destroyed everything around it.

He then looked to the center of the crater and saw Haunter levitating within it, now somewhat smaller but still much bigger than average Ghost-Types of it's same species would be. The Pokemon looked around at the desolate crater it had just created and seemed satisfied with it's work if the sadistic grin that came across it's face was anything to go by.

After assuring there were no survivors left, Haunter took the image of a shadow cloaked in darkness yet again with red eyes being the only you could see inside of it. The powerful specter then ascended up into the sky and took off flying towards the nearby mountains.

The memory stopped and the cloudy portal slowly disappeared while Ash was left staring at the spot where it just was with a blank expression on his face. His mind was reeling with dozens of thoughts but the main question he had, that he actually voiced just seconds later, appeared to be the one thing he was most interested in at the moment.

He finally looked up at Arceus with a heavy expression on his face then as he asked almost distantly, "What happened after that?"

Arceus shook her head sadly and sighed in an equally as morose tone. "After it destroyed the town you saw, Haunter began traveling the world as it hunted down those that it deemed to have 'black souls' and would then do the same thing to them that it did to the townspeople who took it's only friend from it. Unfortunately, Haunter's already fragile mind, warped by pain and hatred, corrupted what good intentions it had left.

After a time, Haunter stopped attacking only the humans who truly deserved it and had cruel intentions for others and instead, began terrorizing the good humans as well. It's hatred for the human race evolved to the point of no longer caring who it hurt and thus, good or bad, all humans who crossed Haunter's path would meet the same, horrible end..."

She trailed off and stayed silent for a short time before continuing. "Haunter's path of destruction eventually led it to Lavender Town, where yourself and your friends are now currently."

Ash suddenly waved his hands in the air to stop her. "Hey wait! Why would Haunter come here to Lavender Town anyway?"

"It was drawn here," Arceus replied simply. Seeing his confusion, she explained. "Haunter is attracted to places that are consumed by negative emotions, evil actions, horrible memories or cruel crimes. The ability that I granted it, which has become twisted and warped by it's hatred as well, allows Haunter to pick up on any locations that are the darkest and most depressing it can possibly find. The more miserable the place Haunter is at, the more powerful and happy it is. Right around the time that the catastrophe at Pokémon Tower happened, the entire town was all but drowning in it's own despair and sadness. For Haunter, it was like honey to a Combee and it descended upon the town like a plague."

She exhaled sadly once more, a seemingly reoccurring trend for the Goddess. "Haunter made it's home in the abandoned tower, which alone had more blood and tormented memories to it's history than almost any other human-made structure of the modern day. The horrible incident that took place in the tower, combined with the many years it served as a memorial for deceased Pokémon beforehand, made it the ideal residence for Haunter to take up. Being in the center of a place that had born so much pain and sadness, Haunter's power increased to incredible levels and it used that power to torment the town surrounding the tower.

For years after Haunter's arrival and subsequent first attacks, the people began leaving the area around Pokémon Tower and started moving deeper into the town to escape the chaos they were experiencing at Haunter's hands. Only the brave actions of a lone man, who found a way of exploiting Haunter's greatest weakness to pure light, managed to end the nightmare for the town by sealing it away in the lowest recesses of the tower. Where it has remained these many years. Forgotten to all but a few but most definitely not gone. Haunter still lurks beneath the tower within it's prison... it's hatred ever growing as it tries to find some way to free itself."

Ash looked up at her steadily. "And that thing that has been trying to control my mind ever since I showed up in Lavender Town... the thing that tried too use me to get itself free that Mr. Fuji helped get me to get away from... that was Haunter wasn't it?" He looked down. "Those red eyes I saw when Gastly first evolved into Haunter in your memories..." He looked back up at her again. "Those were the same eyes I remembered looking at me when I was below Pokémon Tower in that hypnotic trance I was in."

Arceus nodded sadly and replied, "Yes my Chosen-One... Haunter and the creature you encountered the night before are one and the same. It has taken a greater interest in you more than any other human being it ever has before and it is because it knows who you are."

Ash seemed confused. "What do you mean?"

"Haunter knows you are my Chosen-One because I told it about you when it was still just a Gastly, which was in the dream you saw from my memories. Your very essence, my young one, is interwoven with my own. Your Aura is shared with mine because you are my Chosen-One, my human avatar. When you entered into the town, when you were just miles outside of it, Haunter could sense your strong energy. Since it so closely resembles my own and Haunter hates me for thinking I allowed it's human friend to be taken from it, it hates anything to do with me.

You are my Chosen and because looking at your inner Aura is like looking at my own, just on a much smaller scale, Haunter knew exactly who you were. It also hates you by extension since you are so precious to me."

She took a slight pause. "However... it also has developed an obsession with you. Due to the nature of Haunter's prison, only an extremely strong energy source can break it free. You have such an energy and that is why Haunter wants you so badly, to free itself. In fact, if the old human Fuji wouldn't have intervened and bought me the time I needed to force some of my power through you, Haunter could very well be free right now."

Ash's eyes widened. "So that power I remember feeling... it was you after all!"

Arceus nodded to his exclamation. "Yes young one, it was my power you were channeling to subdue Haunter so yourself and Fuji could escape. I know you felt as though you were in great danger but I was watching over you the entire time, ready to intervene and help you should the need call for it. When you channeled my power just before you lost consciousness, that was I interfering to assure nothing happened to you."

Ash smiled softly at her. "Thank you Arceus, I should have had no question it was you that saved me."

The mighty Pokémon looked down at him with an equal softness in her own eyes. "You have no need to thank me for saving your life my Chosen. Without you this world would lose the potential for a very bright future."

The boy continued to smile at her warmly before a curious expression yet again came over his face. "Arceus... who was the man that sealed away Haunter and also, could you tell me exactly what happened to Pokémon Tower before Haunter came along? What was this great catastrophe that everyone keeps saying was so horrible?"

Arceus lowered her face down to his level again before answering him. "The answer to both of those questions are not for me to answer young one." Seeing Ash about to say something, she cut him off. "Fear not Ash, the explanation you seek to these questions will be answered as soon as you wake from the sleep you are in. I guarantee you they will," She said reassuringly.

Ash reluctantly nodded his head and decided to let the subject go before looking down at the ground again as a shadowed look passed over his features. He remained totally silent for a few minutes and Arceus grew concerned. "What troubles you so young one?"

The boy remained silent for several moments before he finally spoke in a low but clear voice, "Arceus... is there any help, any hope for Haunter?" He looked up at her with pleading eyes. "Isn't there anything that can be done to help it? No one, person or Pokémon, should have to live their entire life so alone and full of pain. I know it's done terrible things but there has to be good inside of Haunter!" His eyes appeared questioning then. "Right? Haunter can be saved... can't it?"

Arceus looked down at the boy who was looking up at her with so much hope and sadness in his eyes and her heart broke for him. She knew how pure his heart was and how much he truly loved Pokémon, always hating to see any of them suffer. She let her own sadness show in her voice as she replied, "Oh my dear little one... you don't know how many times over the years I have thought the exact same thing about that poor soul. I hate when any of my children becomes so lost in their own misery as Haunter has and even though I would like to say there is help for it, I honestly have no idea if it is possible. Haunter has been so lost in anger and hatred for so many years that it's true self has been buried underneath layer upon layer of pain and denial."

Ash's eyes burned bright with determination and fire as he said loudly, "Then I will take that pain away from Haunter and help it to see that there is more to life than anger and hatred!"

"NO!" Arceus's voice boomed just as loudly, making Ash nearly fall down. Her voice calmed a little then before she spoke, "Ash I know exactly what you are thinking and I am telling you no."

Ash yelled back defiantly, "You have no idea what I was thinking!"

Arceus looked down at him knowingly. "Oh don't I? You were thinking of going back to the chamber where Haunter is held under Pokémon Tower and risking your life in order to find some way to help it. Am I correct now?"

The boy went silent and Arceus knew she had hit the nail on the head. She sighed yet again and spoke more softly, "Young one I know your heart is pure and that you just want to help but you need to understand that Haunter is dangerous. Extremely dangerous. It has killed and taken the souls of more people than you can possibly imagine. It would do the exact same thing to you after it used your energy to free itself and you cannot die in such a horrible fashion. You must understand and accept that sometimes, certain individuals are just beyond sav-"

"No you're wrong!" Ash interrupted defiantly, causing Arceus to stop mid-sentence and stare at him in surprise. The boy looked up at her with fire dancing in his eyes as he started yelling loudly, "No one, no Pokémon, is ever beyond saving Arceus! I don't care who they are!" He clenched his hands into fists. "Haunter may have done bad... horrible... things, but that does not mean it's beyond saving! I'm supposed to be this great 'Chosen-One' aren't I? Well then how do you expect me to live up to those expectations if I can't save one Pokémon from itself?!"

Arceus was silent as Ash continued ranting. "Arceus please... I can do this! I know I can! You have to believe in me, I know I can save Haunter if you just give me the chance!"

She simply shook her head at Ash and replied simply, "What if you fail? What if you fail and the worst happens and you die? What becomes of the world then young one?"

The trainer stood silent for a few moments while looking down at the grassy fields of the illusionary Pallet Town until he finally looked back up at her and saying seriously, "I'll just have to make sure I don't fail then. Please Arceus... I know I can do this."

The great Pokémon stood in continued silence for several minutes, causing Ash to become nearly on the verge of his wits end, before she finally spoke again. "If you feel so strongly about this Ash, I will not stop you. This is your life and you do have the option to choose what to do for yourself. I may not agree with it but if you feel like you can help save Haunter from the depths of itself... I will support you," She conceded.

Ash smiled widely at the massive Pokémon and bowed his head in respect. "Thank you Arceus, I promise you won't regret this!"

Arceus shook her head and looked down on him with an exasperated expression showing within her eyes. "I truly hope I do not young one. Losing you would be a tragedy that I cannot fathom." She suddenly became serious again as she then said in an authoritative voice, "Now Ash I need you to listen to me very closely! In order for you to have even a hope or prayer at succeeding at this, you are going to have to be at one with your Star Mark. Haunter's emotional aura will be the likes of which you have never dealt with before and if you do not give it everything you have and then some, you will stand no chance in getting through to it. Do you understand?"

Ash nodded without any pause for thought. "Yes Arceus, I understand." He then looked at his right palm which held the Star Mark within it. "I swear that I will use this mark to the very best of my abilities in order to help Haunter!" He vowed with resolution in his voice.

Arceus gave her best version of a smile at him and nodded. "If that is the case then you will need the assistance of your friends, not just your Pokémon young one. I believe now may be the time to confide in them."

The boy seemed thoughtful for a few moments but eventually nodded himself. "Yeah I think you might be right. They've stuck by me this far and have proven how true of friends they are. I think now is the time," He agreed.

She stood up to her full height and made a gesturing motion with her head. "Then it is time you awaken young one. We will see each other again soon and until that time, keep your friends close, love and care for your Pokémon as equals instead of lessors and never forget what is truly important in life. Which is love, respect, joy and honesty. Have fun with your life and on your journey and never be afraid to take the path less traveled. As for your confrontation with Haunter... use the strength and purity of heart that I know is so abundant in you and there is no doubt in my mind that you will succeed."

Ash nodded and gave her another smile. "I won't forget Arceus and I will succeed in saving Haunter!" His determined smile remained in place even as his body started to slowly fade from the mindscape, showing that he was about to wake up.

Arceus smiled after him as he begun to fade and just before he was totally gone and his mindscape started to vanish as well, she spoke softly into the wind, "I have faith in you young one..."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

(Back in the real world: Fuji's House)

Ash slowly opened his eyes and found himself staring up at a ceiling while lying in a rather comfortable bed. He shifted a little and blinked his eyes to adjust to the dim light in the room as he sat up and looked around.

He saw that he was in a rather spacious bedroom with hardwood walls, floors and ceilings. There was also a desk, wardrobe and other pieces of furniture spread throughout the room that looked to be made of some kind of expensive looking wood.

His eyes wondered down to the bed he was on and saw Pikachu lying at the foot of it, curled into a ball while sleeping away peacefully. He then shifted his focus to his left and saw, to his surprise, Giselle sitting on a chair by his bedside. She was fast asleep with her head leaning uncomfortably to the side and a frown in place on her face as she slept.

Ash guessed that she must have been by his side nearly twenty-four-seven since he went unconscious, knowing her, and had finally fallen asleep watching over him. Same with Pikachu evidently. This brought a smile to Ash's face as he looked at the two and felt a deep sense of affection and gratitude for them in that moment since they had apparently stayed with him the whole time he was out by the looks of it.

Ash turned his head to the right and then saw something else that further shocked him. Sitting on a seat connected to a window at the far wall, on opposite sides with a blanket and pillow to each of them, were Brock and Misty. They had their heads leaning against the sides of the window that each of them were sitting at, with the blankets covering them up to their stomachs.

Seeing this made Ash pause in thought as he took in the sight of his friends all in the room with him, sleeping in tiny little places and looking rather uncomfortable all things considered, just so they could be there for him. It really made him feel even more special in that moment and very grateful to his friends for the loyalty and dedication they were always showing him.

He stirred a little bit more and it was enough to wake Pikachu, who opened his eyes groggily and saw his trainer sitting up in bed looking around. The little yellow mouse hopped up almost instantly and called out excitedly as he bounded over to Ash and jumped at him, "Pika Pi!'

Ash, taken by surprise, caught Pikachu regardless and held him to his chest while hugging the happy Pokémon. All of the commotion was enough to wake his friends, who all jolted up with a start as they looked around worriedly. Upon seeing Ash awake though, all of them rushed over to the bed.

"Ash you're awake!" Misty shouted as she ran to him.

"Man you had us worried," Brock breathed out with some relief in his voice as he stopped at the edge of the bed.

Giselle just threw yourself at him. "Oh Ash you're okay!" She said in a shaky voice as she hugged him tightly, squishing Pikachu in-between them both.

Ash let out a huff of air as Giselle squeezed him tightly and wrapped his arms around her in return as he wheezed out, "Y-Yeah Giselle I'm good... I'm okay... can you ease up a little please? C-Can't breath!"

Giselle released him quickly with an apologetic squeak and held him at arms length while Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder and started to look over Ash in concern.

While he talked to Pikachu in a reassuring tone to calm him down and let him know that he was okay, Giselle asked worriedly, "Are you okay Ash? We were so worried about you and had no clue what was happening! Fuji just said that you needed rest and then explained what happened to us but we were really worried about you when he came back last night and you were unconscious on his shoulder!"

"Yeah Ash what happened?" Misty asked as she came over and sat next to him and Giselle on the bed.

Brock nodded as well, obviously wanting to know what had happened. Seeing this and knowing that the time had finally come for him to be honest with them, Ash decided to take Arceus's advice.

Inhaling and then exhaling slowly, Ash collected his thoughts before finally speaking. "Okay guys... it's time to tell you all something that I've been keeping hidden for some time. I'll tell you what happened to me last night and I'll also reveal a secret I've been keeping but... but I need you all to understand that I wasn't trying to hurt you by not telling you this and it wasn't because I don't trust you."

His friends looked at each other before looking back at him again. "Ash just tell us what you need to," Misty said comfortingly.

Brock nodded. "Yeah we won't be upset man, don't worry about it."

Giselle held his hand. "Please Ash, we're your friends. Tell us what you need to."

Looking at each of them in turn, he remained in silence for a few moments before finally speaking again, "Okay... well... this is what happened..."

He then went into a fully detailed explanation of everything that had happened to him the night before. Or at least, what he could remember of it. All throughout the story, Ash's friends remained engrossed in what he was saying. However, when Brock asked him how he knew the creature haunting Pokémon Tower was a Haunter and why it was so interested in him... that's when he dropped the bombshell on them.

As he started telling them about his meeting with Arceus, which made all of their eyes widen in shock, everything went totally dead silent. He explained everything to them concerning the revelations that the All Pokémon told him and as he did so, Ash could tell that his friends were trapped between amazement, disbelief and complete and utter shock.

By the time he finally finished up by telling them of his plans to find some way to help Haunter, all three of his companions were slack jawed. For several minutes they just sat where they were and tried to process everything he just told them. Ash knew that if they even really believed him, what he had just revealed not only would have shocked them but essentially changed everything they ever thought they knew about life and how everything within it went on.

Most people in the current era of the world didn't even believe Arceus existed so to have someone tell you that not only did they meet them but also that they were some legendary prophesied one who was meant to all but change the world as you knew it... yeah... that would be a hard pill to swallow. Especially since Ash himself had a hard time believing everything that he had been both blessed and cursed by Arceus to know.

Sometimes he did wonder why Arceus told him of his destiny, let alone when he was so young, but he knew he had no right to question it. She was essentially the creator of all things in the universe and he was just a kid. Someone who hadn't even lived a tiny, minsicule portion of the time she had. He knew that he could never hope to understand an Ominpotent beings' train of thought so why even attempt to?

Hell, even if (by some impossible chance) his life was being made into a story or book of some kind that added new words and pages to it with each breath and step he took and was also being read by countless numbers of readers, Ash knew that not a single one of them would ever be able to even so much as hope to understand the inner machinations of a Goddess like Arceus' mind.

So with all that in mind... why would he even attempt to understand anything Arceus told him, let alone question it? He figured it best to just do as he was told for the sake of the world and also... honestly... for his own sanity as well. He trusted her and that was all there was to it. No one would ever change his mind on the matter and force him to think otherwise either. No one.

Unfortunately, even though his mind processed these thoughts in such a way, he feared that his friends wouldn't be able to do the same and would end up losing their minds or having some kind of outburst at everything he just told them. Which was something he only did in the first place because once again... Arceus' advised him to do so.

When someone finally did speak again, it was Brock. Who did so slowly, almost as though he was still trying to comprehend what they had just been told even as he was speaking. "So lemme get this straight..." He pointed at Ash. "You, are actually this 'Chosen-One' that was created and brought into existence by Arceus, the God of all Pokémon and creator of everything, who is meant to bring peace to this world through an elaborate series of events and scenarios that even you do not know about completely, if at all?"

He rubbed his temples. "Furthermore, this creature that has been terrozing Pokémon Tower and is responsible for totally emptying an entire section of Lavender Town... is actually a Haunter. A big, powerful, super charged Haunter that is actually almost a hundred years old and is basically evil right now because of what a bunch of humans did to it long before? Do I have all of that right?"

Ash nodded and tilted his head from side to side slowly. "Yeah that's pretty much it in a nutshell."

Misty spoke up then. "So wait a minute... since you are basically Arceus' 'favorite child' then... does she... you know..." Misty trailed off and this caused him to prompt her on.

"Yeah? Spit it out Misty."

She looked a little uncomfortable as she ventured onward slowly, "Does she help you win your battles?"

Ash's eyes widened at that and he quickly shook his hands, not wanting any of them to get the wrong idea. "Nonono guys not at all! No way, Arceus does NOT help me win my Pokémon battles. She helps me out in life threatening situations and gives me a little advice here and there but... that's it. She never interferes with my life as a Pokémon Trainer. All the battles I take on are just me and my Pokémon, no one else. I promise you all that."

Seeing relief wash over all of their faces, he watched as Misty sighed. "Okay, good to know. I was just wondering."

When no one else said anything, Ash quickly grew confused. "Umm... is that it? None of you are gonna say anything else? Out of everything I just told you, all the life changing bombs I just dropped on you... don't you have anything else to say? Anything?"

He raised his hands in the air. "For Arceus' sake you guys I at least expected you to be terrified of me and run away as far as you could get. Best case! Worst case I was afraid you would call the men in little white coats to come and get me!"

Brock, Misty and Giselle shared their own confused expressions with each other before Giselle looked back at him. "Ash... why would we do that?"

He looked at her in disbelief. "What? Why do you think?! I'm basically a walking danger magnet that's only going to get you three into worse and worse trouble the longer you stay with me! You know why now too so I don't get why you'd all be okay with this and not just walk out on me!"

Misty actually laughed at that. "Oh come on Ash! Do you really think that we would up and leave you all because you've turned out to be just as different and unnatural as we all already thought you were?"

Seeing his perplexed facial expression, Giselle elaborated. "What Misty is trying to say Ash is that we are your friends and care about you no matter what. We have your back and always will. When we made the decision to come along with you we were doing a whole lot more than just tagging along. We were making the choice to follow you and partake in whatever happened to you."

Brock nodded. "That's right man. We're your pals and that's how we'll stay. If you've got some crazy ass destiny to fulfill then we'll be here to help you out and do whatever we can to make sure you succeed."

To say Ash was stunned would have most definitely been an understatement. He knew that his friends cared for him but to go so far? Now he knew without a doubt that they were true friends through and through with not so much as a shred of question in his mind anymore.

Smiling, he shook his head. "You guys just keep on surprising me. Honestly, I am totally touched by everything you all just said and right now, I feel like the luckiest guy in the world. Without you three I don't know where I'd be."

Misty and Giselle merely smiled and hugged him while Brock grinned and waved his hand. "Just explain to us this whole 'plan' you've got for helping Haunter and then we'll take it on from there dude in whatever way we have to."

Ash nodded and then collected his thoughts before speaking again once Misty and Giselle had released him. "Well honestly, I don't know exactly how I'm gonna go about doing it but before I do anything, Arceus told me that I needed to speak to Mr. Fuji. I don't know why exactly but she hinted that he had something to do with Haunter's imprisoning. I need to find out what."

Misty gestured towards the door. "Well they're downstairs drinking tea so it might be a good time to talk to him. They both wanted to know how you were when you woke up too."

Ash nodded and then got up out of the bed. Slipping his tracksuit jacket on, he waited until Pikachu was up on his shoulder before walking towards the door. "Come on then guys, let's go and talk to them."

His friends quickly exited their seats and followed Ash downstairs. Upon entering the living room/kitchen area of the small apartment like house, they spotted Fuji and Agatha sitting around the coffee table in the middle of the room while sipping tea.

Glancing up, Fuji spotted Ash and waved at him. "Ah Ash you're finally awake I see! Feeling any better now?"

The boy walked over to one of the couches around the coffee table and took a seat with Giselle and Misty sitting beside of him. Brock took his own next to Agatha on the couch she was sitting on while Fuji remained in his armchair.

"Yeah I am actually, a lot better. I really need to thank you Mr. Fuji, if not for you then I don't know what would have happened." Well actually that wasn't true. He knew that Arceus would have found some way to save him but there was no sense in splitting hairs now, Fuji did a very selfless thing by saving him and in Ash's mind, he deserved the proper gratitude that was owed to him for that.

The old merely waved it off. "Don't thank me Ash. You were in danger and as my guest, let alone a young trainer whom I have grown to respect and like, I could have never left you to the horrid fate I'm sure would have befallen you if you had remained there."

Agatha joined into the conversation. "I myself was very worried about you when Fuji brought you back in the condition you were in but he assured us all that you were okay. I must say that you are either very lucky or have a guardian angel on your shoulder young man because if what Fuji told us is true then you were in great danger. Either way, I am pleased you are safe," The old woman finished with a warm smile in his direction.

Ash smiled in return at them and bowed his head. "Thank you both for being so concerned about me and also for being so kind, I cannot tell you how much I appreciate it."

Fuji pointed at the tea kettle on the coffee table then. "Please young people, help yourself to some tea if you wish. Meanwhile, if it is not too soon, I would be interested to know exactly what happened to you Ash. That is, if you can even remember."

Fuji of course knew most of what had happened to Ash since he witnessed the bulk of it for himself but he wanted to see how much the young man could remember before he actually said anything, less he bring up any memories of the former night that Ash would rather leave in the past and out of mind.

Naturally he knew nothing about Arceus' intervention as the cause for the light that had saved them both but in the same respect, Ash had no clue what it was either as far as Fuji was aware. If the boy could even remember anything from the previous night of course.

Agatha interjected at that moment, "Even if you can remember what happened but the memory is still too raw then don't feel like you need to tell it Ash. We can wait or you don't have to tell us at all." Fuji nodded in agreement to what she said.

Ash shook his head. "No I was going to talk to you about it anyway. To be honest I... I need to know something that I believe only you can answer for me Mr. Fuji. In fact, before I even begin to go into the biggest part of what I have to tell you, I'm going to have to ask for complete honesty from you. Can you give me that?"

Fuji looked at Ash oddly but nodded regardless. "Of course Ash. I will tell you whatever I can to help answer any question you have."

Ash took a deep breath and then let it out. "Okay... this is what happened to me..." And so, he went into a long tale of everything that he could remember concerning the previous night's events. With each new detail added, every part explained and minute after minute that passed, Fuji and Agatha's faces morphed from ones of shock, to disbelief and then finally... to utter blankness. When he finally finished, there was silence in the room.

It remained this way for many minutes more until Fuji finally spoke in a shaky, unsteady voice. "Is... is all of that true Ash? You aren't embellishing any of it?" When the boy shook his head with a serious expression upon his face, Fuji went slack in his chair. "A Haunter... it was always a Haunter... I never would have guessed..."

Agatha herself seemed to be in a state of similar bafflement. "Never, in all my years of Ghost Pokémon studying and research have I ever heard of a Haunter being able to do the things that..." She then looked at Fuji with a haunted shadow in her eyes. "What we did Fuji... all of the assumptions about what it was... we were-"

The old man cut her off, "Wrong. Yes my dear Agatha I know... we were horrible wrong. We never could have known..."

By this point, everyone else in the room, even Ash, was rather perplexed and didn't have any clue as to what they were talking about. Ash had a feeling that what they were speaking of was part of what Arceus told him he needed to find out from Fuji but he also got the feeling that whatever it was... was big.

Being the first to speak, Ash spoke up as he needed to have answers. "Mr. Fuji, Agatha... what is it? Please tell me what you're taking about. I need to know what it is that you know or the next thing that I am going to tell you, about the thing that I have to do, it won't be able to happen otherwise. Please."

Fuji looked back at him and sighed after several moments of silence. "Oh very well... after what you went through, you deserve to know whatever I can tell you Ash. Now, bear in mind, what I did... what Agatha and I both did was... it was all we could think of to save this town and stop the catastrophe that was happening at the time."

Ash nodded. "Yes that's fine I understand. I'm not going to judge you for anything you did, I just want to have some answers to all of this crazy crap that's been happening."

Fuji looked down at his teacup before replying, "Agatha and I... were the ones that locked Haunter away into the room that it's in now below Pokémon Tower. Many years ago, when Haunter first appeared in the tower, the town had already been through a devastating event and Haunter's coming, combined with the torment it brought to the town, was slowly but surely causing everything to crumble around it. So... to end it, we took actions into our own hands."

He paused for a moment and looked at Agatha. "To be honest I... I have thought at many times that the level of horror and destruction Haunter brought with it was entirely my fault and-"

Agatha smacked his shoulder. "Oh shut up you old fool! I have told you over and over that your past had nothing to do with what befell this town! Now stop it!"

Fuji held his hands up and tried to placate her. "I am sorry Agatha, I know shouldn't say such things but I just can't help myself sometimes..." Looking at Ash again, he sighed once more. "My past youth has many events of... 'unfortunate circumstances', riddling several of the decisions I made."

Ash leaned forward and clasped his hands together curiously with his friends mimicking his curiosity in different ways. Seeing this, Fuji started explaining. "You see kids... I didn't always live here and my life hasn't always been what you see now. A kind, at least I hope I'm kind, old man who runs a small gym out of his home and just cares for his community. No, I used to be much more... or less depending on how you look at it, than I am now.

The truth is, I was born and raised on Cinnabar Island to a quite wealthy family. The Fuji family has a long line of scientists, biologists, archeologists, Pokémon researchers, you name it in our blood line. Many of my family over the years has held much renown in scientific areas of research all over different parts of the world. My parents were no different.

My father was an oceanic researcher who studied the make up of the islands and geography of the ocean in the southern seas where Cinnabar and several other island chains were located, while my mother on the other hand studied marine Pokémon life specifically and exclusively. Both of them being quite successful in their respective fields as well.

I had two brothers besides myself. An older brother by the name of Blaine and a younger one named Isaac. We lived in the family Fuji manor our entire growing up on the island and went to an exclusive prep school that was famous on Cinnabar called Seaside Academy. It was actually one of the most popular private schools in all of Kanto and we were three of the brightest minds in the school at the time. And that's not bragging either, are marks more than showed it. We were also favored and preferred amongst the teachers and other faculty of the academy due, not only to our grades, but also in large part to the name of our family and the success of our parents as scientists.

My brother Issac and I both had dreams of being just like our parents and had a penchant for the arts of science. All three of us were quite successful at school and had top grades but our eldest brother, Blaine, broke the mold somewhat by being more interested in Pokémon training and battling than anything else. In fact, he followed his dream and passion and ended up becoming Cinnabar's very first gym leader years later."

Fuji shook his head. "But I digress. Issac and myself were always fascinated with Pokémon as well but for us it was more from a scientific, biological standpoint. Prehistoric Pokémon that were long since extinct held our fascination more than any other and that led to us fashioning our own long term dream. Once we graduated the academy, Issac and I went to different universities within Kanto to specialize in our own preferred fields. For him it was Pokémon physiology and psychology and for myself, I studied in Pokémon cellular genetics and evolution.

Our dream was to create the world's very first Pokémon Resurrection Machine and in order to do that, we needed to have a working fundamental knowledge of every physical aspect of Pokémon that we could. Hence why Isaac studied physiology and psychology and I studied cellular genetics and evolution."

Giselle went wide eyed. "Pokémon Resurrection Machine?! What is that?"

The old man smiled. "Simple. We wanted to create a machine that would be able to read a fossilized Pokémon's genetic code and then essentially 'restore' it's physical form from the base up. In theory, you would be turning an ancient, long extinct Pokémon from a fossilized rock back into a living, breathing creature. Basically turning back the clock so to speak."

All three kid's eyes went wide in disbelief and it made Fuji chuckle. "Yes I know, as incredible and far fetched as it sounds but, we were determined to make our dream a reality. Once we finished with school, Issac and I returned to Cinnabar in order to collect our inheritance and pay our respects to our parents, who had passed on in a research vessel accident off the coast of Cinnabar while we were away.

Our brother Blaine used his half of the inheritance to build his gym and we used ours to come together and construct the island's very first scientific research facility. Which we called Seafoam Labs, after the island chain far south of Cinnabar that are parents met at for the first time years before when they were on separate research expeditions.

Once we were up and running, Isaac and I hired a few assistants and then went to work on making our dream a reality. Being a public research facility, we needed to bring in income so we took on various other projects that we would work on at different times in-between working on our big project, that way we could get funding.

Over the years we took on small projects that never saw the light of day and others which turned out to be quite the success. Why, we had a hand in many of the big name gadgets, devices and appliances you can find today. One of the biggest things we had ever worked on, which was actually the smallest part we ever played in a project, was when we helped several regional professors and other Pokémon Researchers create the Pokédex."

Ash sat straight up in his chair. "Really? You helped create the Pokédex?!" Even though Fuji was getting a little off topic, Ash always loved learning and hearing new stories from those who were older and had more experience than him in life. Moments like this were a priceless gem to him.

The old man waved his hand and laughed a little nervously. "Oh no not a huge part mind you but yes we did help a bit. We didn't have anything to do with the content or collected knowledge that went into the Pokédex but we did help design it and provide a good place in which the real brains behind the project could work on and test it out."

Fuji leaned back then and stared up at the ceiling with a wistful smile on his face. "I remember working with some of the brightest and greatest minds of the time, even up to the present day, back then. From Professor Oak himself, Professor Rowan of the Sinnoh region, Professor Westwood who lives not too far away from Cinnabar Island and even Professor Juniper from Unova.

Of course, we also had several other bright young minds working on the project who have risen to quite the notable prominence in their respective fields of research in recent years. Such as Professor Elm from the Johto region, Professor Birch from Hoenn and one of the most important of all, Bill himself who helped to collect the largest amount of data and information for the Pokédex. There were a few others as well but I can't remember them all now."

Fuji smiled fondly. "I remember Professor Juniper would bring his then young daughter, Aurea, with him to the lab on more than one occasion when we'd be working. That girl was a chip off the old block, just like her father. Loved anything to do with Pokémon and especially Pokémon Research. Hyper girl she was, brilliant as they came, but hyper though. That little lady would get into so much trouble and keep us all on our toes every minute of every day! Prankster too lemme tell ya."

He laughed aloud. "There was this one time where she went on a mad pranking spree and put glue on Isaac's chair, hot sauce in my coffee, peanut butter in Oak's ears and stole her father's hair piece and strung it up on the flagpole outside the building!"

Fuji descended into a fit of laughter again as Ash sat there with a gaping mouth. He had only seen Aurea Juniper once and that was on a video call she had been having with Professor Oak back when he was training with him. He recalled how intelligent, classy, knowledgable and kind (not to mention beautiful) she had seemed to be during that call so to hear Fuji describing her as pretty much a monster child when she was younger made his mind more than a little confused.

Seeing Ash's perplexed face, Fuji stopped laughing and spoke again. "Oh no Ash you miss the point. That was merely how she was as a child. Aurea actually grew into quite a fine young woman and even followed in her father's footsteps and became the Unova region's leading Pokémon Professor."

Ash nodded. "Yeah I know, I saw her one time on video call while I was training with Professor Oak. He also speaks quite highly of her."

Fuji went to say something else before being elbowed by Agatha, who raised an eyebrow at him. "You're getting off subject again ya old coot!"

He raised his hands and shook his head. "Ah yes! Gah I apologize, sometimes I just ramble too much... anyway. Over the course of the next few years, my brother and I continued to work on different projects here and there while continuously using every bit of money we had to make our ultimate goal into a reality. About six years into our research facility's opening, we finally came closer than we ever had to acheaving our dream. We actually had a plan on how to go about building the Pokémon Resurrection Machine and even had several different schematics drawn up to put it into action."

Fuji then sighed sadly. "Unfortunately... we ended up hitting a roadblock that we both feared we would end up encountering. While our plans were sound and our blueprints were feasible, we were simply working on a machine that was just too advanced for the technology that was available to us at the time. Seeing this, we had no choice but to stop work on it. Then, shortly after that, we were presented with an offer that at the time, seemed like a gift from Arceus but was really more of a horrible nightmare thought up by Darkrai itself than anything else."

The old man shook his head lowly. "About six months after stopping work on our project and becoming rather discouraged that our dream had been stopped so abruptly, especially Isaac, we were approached by representatives from a newly founded company called the Rocket Corporation."

Ash's eyes widened. "That sounds like-"

Fuji nodded. "Yes... Team Rocket. Or at least, how they originally started out. You see kids, back in my early days, Team Rocket weren't what they are in present time. Now they are known, or what little is actually known of them at least, for being cruel, vile, ruthless criminals that spit in the face of the law and will do anything they have to in order to make money.

However, back then they were much different. I suppose you could say they pulled off a perfect 'Mightyena in Mareep's clothing' at the beginning. When they first appeared on the scene in Kanto, they masqueraded as a new business corporation that was trying to find new ways to create clean, renewable energy for the world as well as advertising themselves as investors that believed in giving back to the world of science for the betterment of all life.

We were told by the employees who came to us that they were going around the region trying to recruit up and coming, highly sought after scientists into their company's newly budding science and research division. We were told that they were working on projects which would truly make a positive difference for the world and that they needed every bright mind they could possibly get. The silver tongued devils knew exactly how to speak are language too because they then said that their technology was state of the art and never before seen in Kanto.

Quite naturally, this peaked mine and my brother's curiosity. We figured that if we could work for them for a time and get to know and understand the machines and technology they had on hand, we could potentially put what inheritance money we had left into creating our own versions of them in order to finally make our PRM machine. Or at the very least, possibly make a deal to buy some equipment off the company after we worked there for a time.

This in mind, we accepted the job. Well, that and they also paid a near unbelievable salary. Something which caught my brother's interest right away. We had been living rather frugally over the years since we put every dime we could into our machine and Isaac made it known quite often how much he detested living in such a way. I think he accepted the job more for the money than the possibility of finally achieving our dream but I never said anything. At the time, I was too excited myself.

Fuji paused and took a drink from his tea cup. "We were shipped off to the Rocket Corporation HQ which was somewhere I still don't know the location of. To get you there they would put you in a helicopter with blacked out windows and then fly you directly into the building's aircraft hanger. A fact I probably should have seen as suspicious back then but I didn't.

Isaac and I were soon placed on our own team in the research center for advanced techno-biology along with two other young scientists; One known as Dr. Zager and the other a man named Dr. Namba. At first the four of us got along great and shared many similar interests. We all had high hopes, big dreams and somewhat skewed beliefs on how the world really was. It didn't take long at all after our team was formed that we started getting handed down a whole host of different project assignments. Nothing too out of the ordinary at first. A few energy saving projects, new ways in which to feed the hungry, environmental conservation, you name it.

Honestly, we all worked very well together. We each had our own list of strengths and weaknesses and one didn't have, the other did and vice versa. We complemented each other, which was why they put us together as a team I guess and for the first year things were great. We were making good money, which we hadn't actually seen yet since they kept it all in employee accounts. We lived on sight so they paid completely for everything we needed, which is a reason why we never really had that much concern for why we didn't see any of the supposed 'big money' we were making.

Isaac and I were also truly working around state of the art equipment which I myself came to realize would, with a little tweaking here and here, work perfectly for our project back home. In fact, I had even started drawing up blueprints of the machines that would most likely benefit our PRM machine so that I could get to work building them back home if the company refused to give us access to the equipment there at HQ.

The best part, for me at least, was that I truly thought the projects we were working would really be making a difference in the world. When we finished one, the supervisors of our department would have the completed projects taken away for, what they said was, 'field testing' and if it passed, they would move on to getting it manufactured and distributed. It wasn't until everything started changing a year later and the company began showing it's true colors did I learn what they were really doing with are hard work."

Fuji clinched his fists together. "What they were really doing was scrapping everything we and every other team would work on. Junk it. Dismantle and tear it all apart in some other part of the building where no employee was allowed to go. In reality, they had been having us do all of these assignments as a test run. They wanted to weed out the best of us and get rid of any that didn't make the cut. What better way than to give large projects which took whole teams to complete and then judge each individual team after they were done? That's exactly what they did and we were all stupid enough to follow it. Like Raticate on a wheel."

The older man shook his head and clicked his tongue. "Eventually I began noticing changes in the company that started off subtle and then became more and more noticeable and extreme as time passed. The company started cracking down on us all, contact to the outside world became less and less frequent, patience and understanding became a thing of the past and the projects began taking on very questionable undertones. A fact which I started noticing pretty early on and would make my opinions known about.

It eventually became so bad with certain assignments we were given, things like Pokémon 'genetic experimentation', weather modifying machines, psychological manipulation... that I just couldn't bring myself to do them anymore and would speak out against them. Subtly of course so I wouldn't seem like a renegade but I still spoke out. Eventually I was taken completely off my team and instead I was placed on some geological mining project that was bound for the Kalos region in order to study and take samples of strange new stones geologists were finding over there called 'Mega-Evolution Stones'.

I was given orders to leave and got shipped out before I even had a chance to say goodbye to my brother. Something I know was intentional because, unlike me, my brother had no problems working on the projects given to them. He reveled in it, found pleasure in working on what the admins of the company said would 'change the world' but no longer with 'for the better' part in it. Zager and Namba had changed as well in that time. Both of them falling deeper and deeper into the mad science of what they were being forced to undertake. No longer did they care for the betterment of the world, it became nothing more for them than a way to make a lot of money and feel like rock stars while doing it."

Fuji huffed. "Oh yes the company loved them. They didn't care what heinous crimes against nature or unnatural acts they had to perform in order to create the things they were working on. They loved every minute of it and as much as I hated to see it, Isaac was falling into the same dark web of villainy. No longer did he even care for our dream, it was all about money and the vanity of it."

Going silent, Fuji shook his head for what seemed like the tenth time before going on, "I spent a little over a year in the Kalos region. Myself and the 'expedition team' I was with, which were really nothing more than a group of Rocket lackeys who had once been promising geologists in their own fields but fell to the darker side of their profession after joining the corporation, spent our entire time there searching for Mega-Evolution stones.

I knew from the time we first arrived that what we were doing was illegal because we secluded ourselves away from anyone else, only searched supposed 'hot spots' in the dead of night and weapons amongst our superiorso became a normal sight to see while on the search for the stones. I honestly grew to become rather detached from it all. No longer did I have any delusions that the company I was working for wasn't just a band of criminals hellbent on their own selfish deeds. Unfortunately, I knew there was nothing I could do to stop them so I just kept my head down and tried to stay out of trouble.

Once we finally returned home, empty handed with no luck of finding any Mega Stones, I was almost immediately placed back on my old team. Something which surprised me since I was all but certain my days in the Rocket research center were over. Apparently though, they needed some of their best teams onboard for a massive project they were undertaking of the utmost secrecy."

Fuji let out a long, drawn out sigh. "So... being back on the same team with Zager, Namba and Isaac again, all three having changed dramatically since the last time I saw them to the point of where I no longer recognized even my own brother, we began work on what came to be known as project 'Genesis'."

Ash leaned forward until he was almost sitting off of his chair. "Project Genesis? What was it?"

Fuji sat back in his chair a little more and traced his finger around the rem of his tea cup. "Project Genesis was the very first true genetic experimentation project of the high caliber level it was at that the organization had ever taken on. In simple terms, they wanted to artificially create a Pokémon of their very own."

Giselle and Misty both spoke up then at the same time, "Create their own Pokémon?!"

He nodded. "Yes and not just any Pokémon either. To genetically engineer a Pokémon you first need the genes, meaning DNA code, of another Pokémon that already exists to use as the 'base model' so to speak for creating a completely new one. The Pokémon who's DNA we ended up using as a cloning model... was Mew."

"No way..." Brock muttered in disbelief.

"Impossible!" Giselle exclaimed loudly.

"I didn't even think Mew existed!" Misty said in an equal tone of shock.

Ash however remained silent as he listened to Fuji continue what he was telling them. "Yes, Mew. To this day I don't know how they managed to collect a sample of such a mythical Pokémon but however they did it, we had a hair sample to use as our source for extracting the DNA from.

Over the coming months, we worked tirelessly on the project of reversing engineering the hair fiber found, replicating it and then mutating it during gestation to create a new Pokémon. Unlike the two other insane scientists and my equally as mad brother whom I worked with, I took absolutely no joy or had any interest in what we were doing. From what I had been seeing out of the company, I knew that whatever our abomination of a creation we were working on turned out to be, if it even succeeded, would almost definitely be used for some evil purpose and it was that very thought process that eventually led to me betraying the organization."

Ash looked surprised. "You turned on Team Rocket?"

He nodded again. "Indeed. One day a conference meeting was called that had every Rocket Corporation member at the time in attendance. The Genesis project was nearing a great breakthrough and with the way the admins had been breathing down our necks and forcing us to work faster, I knew that the meeting could only mean nothing good. I feared something terrible was about to change and it turned out I was right.

They announced to us all at large that the company was officially entering a new 'evolution' of it's existence and that the time had come for the Rocket's true purpose and 'potential' to flourish. The lead admin in charge of the entire company, who was right below the mysterious 'Boss' that no one ever saw, was a man named Rykon."

Ash and Pikachu both formed angered expressions at the mention of the name and Fuji raised an eyebrow. "I take it you know of him?"

The boy gave a terse nod. "Yeah... yeah we know of the bastard."

Seeing that Ash wasn't offering up anymore info and not willing to push him, Fuji went on. "Rykon announced that the company was officially changing over to become an organization of... 'questionable legality' and that the name would officially be changed to Team Rocket. At the same time, several employees who had already taken proudly to the new organization name came into the announcement hall wearing the same outfits you see on Rocket agents presently.

Basically, we were given a choice at that time. We could either take up the uniforms and follow the organization to whatever end, or... be 'terminated'. I was no fool and realized what this meant right away. Luckily, I was nearest to the door and managed to slip out just as I heard several of the bravest people I ever knew of start protesting against the drastic change in direction the company had decided on."

Fuji looked down then and closed his eyes. "I stopped just outside of the door and watched as chaos erupted. Almost immediately, Rykon gave a single hand gesture and the dozens of newly minted 'Team Rocket Grunts' started releasing vicious, feral, completely brainwashed Pokémon that only had one desire... which was to serve Team Rocket. They then shut the main doors in order to prevent escape and..."

He shuddered slightly as bad memories replayed themselves in his head. "Everyone that didn't join them were slaughtered. Right then and there. It was... carnage. I still remember the sight, the sounds... the smell of blood as it splashed through the air and coated the walls and floor in it's red stain of death.

Raticate resorted to swarming people and biting them to pieces. Ripping out flesh from the neck and main arteries on the legs... Zubat and Golbat were draining the very life from their victims... Fighting-Types were using some of them like human training bags. Crushing their limbs and ripping them apart... some of the Pokémon were given orders to simply maul the poor souls until they were dead."

He took a deep, calming breath to steady himself then while everyone in the room, even Agatha, seemed to be very unsettled from the horrendous tale of murder and carnage caused by such an evil, completely immoral organization that had haunted more thoughts and wrought more pain than anyone could imagine.

Ash however had his hands on his knees with his fists clenched tightly and teeth gritted. His anger... his utter hatred for Team Rocket growing with each passing moment. Giselle saw this and began to fear for his self control as she reached out and gently took hold of his hand to steady and comfort him. Which worked almost instantly as he looked at her and, upon seeing her comforting smile, felt peace wash over him.

Oblivious to the plight of the others, Fuji continued, seemingly wrapped up in his own story telling. "After that I left, unable to stand the brutality I was witnessing. I knew without even looking that my brother had joined the new 'cause' of Team Rocket and I took that as the severing of our final ties.

I decided right then and there that Project Genesis could never be allowed to see it's completion and that's when I went to the lab and destroyed all of our research while everyone was preoccupied with what was happening in the meeting hall. There were very volatile chemicals in the lab that were extremely flammable so I simply opened the vats, broke open some nearby gas canisters and then collected my own personal research notes before leaving.

I knew that without my valuable research notes and data files which I had created and compiled over the course of the year working on Project Genesis, that they would have a much harder time completing it and that's why I took my research. Not wanting there to be any chance of it surviving for Team Rocket to find after the explosion that followed my actions. And yes I did say explosion.

After I sabotaged the lab I only had a short time to get out and not even five minutes after I managed to and was well away from the headquarters, did the entire section of the building that the lab was in exploded. I knew I had to make myself scarce as fast as I could but being that I was never able to see where the HQ building was actually located, I was forced to flee into the nearby forest and ran and ran until I eventually came out to a town sometime later that I recognized. Which was Viridian City.

Soon after that I decided to go underground since I knew Team Rocket would be looking for me. With that in mind I headed back home to Cinnabar Island, reconnected with my brother Blaine and went back to researching on the original dream I had since I was a child. Which was building myself and Issac's resurrection machine.

It wasn't easy adjusting at first and I knew Blaine had questions but he respected my privacy and never asked too much. He would inquire as to what to happened to Issac but all I would ever say is that we had conflicting interests and had to part ways from working together. Since I was living back home again, I hid all of my research papers and data on Project Genesis in the family safe of our manor and kept it there without telling Blaine or anyone else.

Time passed, about six months, and by that time my life was finally starting to even out a little. Me and my assistants had finally managed to make the PRM machine a reality by using the last of my inheritance money and for the first time in forever, I actually felt like my intellectual talents were being used for a good purpose. Our machine was the very first of it's kind and we intended to use it to usher in a whole new world of discovery, research and fascination for everyone by bringing Pokémon back to life that hadn't been seen by human eyes since the earliest days of our history... maybe even ever."

Fuji chuckled and raised his right index finger. "There are companies in other regions such as the Devon Corporation in Hoenn that swears their own 'Pokémon Resurrection Technology' is the very first of it's kind but that is the furthest thing from the truth! While I heard of other scientists and companies supposedly working on the same thing that Issac and I had dreamed about, very few if any ever actually achieved it and if they did, they almost most certainly would have come after my own machine."

The bald older man sipped his tea again before staring down at the brown liquid in his cup with a far off expression on his face. "My sense of peace didn't last long though. I always had a fear that the newly christened Team Rocket would find me eventually and sooner than later... they did.

One night while my brother was staying over late at his gym to take on a last minute challenger, I was at the manor unwhinding for the night when I heard a knock at the door. I went to the door, answered it and saw none other than Isaac standing on the other side flanked by several members of Team Rocket.

To say that I was surprised to see him being the one to find me was an understatement. They forced themselves inside and I was quickly subdued by a few of the agents. Isaac questioned me, ruthlessly, about the location of my research notes without so much as a passing formality but I refused to tell him anything. They resorted to torturing me but still I said nothing. All I told them during the entire ordeal was that my research was destroyed in the explosion I caused and proudly at that.

Isaac refused to believe me no matter what I said and sent the others who came along with him to search the manor. My brother felt confident that they would find where I hid my papers and data since he thought he knew where all of the hidden locations within the manor were at. However, little did he realize, there were actually two safes in the manor. One, which belonged to the entire family and was where we stored our valuables and family heirlooms and the second one was my father's own personal safe."

Fuji placed his teacup down and crossed his arms. "I suppose I should clarify. Earlier I said that I hid my research in the family safe and while that was true, in an act of paranoia earlier that same week, I decided to move it to my father's secret safe up in the attic. Of which I only ever knew of. To this day I don't know why he never told anyone but me about it but looking back on it now, I'm glad he did. If I wouldn't have decided to move my research data on the spur of the moment like I did, Isaac would have found it and Project Genesis would have been back in Team Rocket's possession once again.

Fortunately enough, he didn't find it and that never happened. Unfortunately though, when he was told that the Rocket agents couldn't find anything after turning our home upside down, he went into a fit of rage. I speculated that the higher ups of the organization had entrusted him with bringing back the date needed for Genesis to continue but because he couldn't find it and I made it clear that I would never tell him where it was... he finally broke whatever bonds as brothers that we may have had."

He looked down then and squeezed his arms around his chest a little tighter. "He had me tied to one of the pillars in the entrance foyer of the mansion and then commanded the manor to be set ablaze. I knew he had changed but to think that he would go so far as to have our family home destroyed just... broke my heart. Watching him flee with the rest of Team Rocket after a gas fire had been started in the kitchen, I knew that the brother I loved was as dead as I had been sure that I would also be in mere minutes."

He smiled softly. "By all rights my death should have been on that night. The flames slowly began to consume the entire manor until everything around me resembled a raging inferno. Years of history, memories and family... all burning to nothing before my eyes. The smoke was so thick that I could hardly see and before long, my mind began to slowly fade into unconsciousness. For whatever reason though... I was chosen to be spared.

Just before I faded into blackness, I saw the door of the manor burst open and in come running a large figure, cloaked by the smoke and already fading sight of my slowly dimming eyes. The last sensation I remembered feeling after that was being carried through the air and then... nothing.

I awoke sometime later in a hospital room in the only hospital on the island with my brother Blaine asleep by my bedside. He awoke shortly after I did and then went through a mixture of fear, relief and anger when he saw that I was okay. Fear that I had died, relief that I was okay and anger at the fact that I didn't tell him anything else of what was a much more serious situation than I led him on to believe. He told me that he was the one who saved me, or more specifically... his Magmar did. He said that he was on his way home, saw the smoke, ran to the manor, saw it was on fire and then sent Magmar in to find me in case I was still inside.

I found out that I had been unconscious for almost a whole day after that night, had several bruised bones, cracked ribs, broken leg from the torture I had undergone from Team Rocket and my lungs had sustained minor damage from the amount of smoke I inhaled. Blaine also told me that the manor was all but in ruin now. The fire had been put out by the local firefighters but the supporting structure of it had been so heavily damaged that it was labeled hazardous to live in any longer.

I told Blaine everything about the past that I had been neglecting to tell him of ever since I returned home. Being that I was alive because of him and our family home had been destroyed due to my unresolved demons, I felt that I owed it to him. Surprisingly enough, even though Blaine was usually always sort of hot headed, he understood and took it rather well. He didn't agree with mine and Isaac's rash choices but he was glad I was okay and promised to do whatever he needed to in order to help me and keep me safe.

For the next few months I spent my time recovering while reconnecting and getting to know my brother better. Blaine and I were never close when we were younger but that was something we started to fix while I was healing from my injuries. We both assumed that Team Rocket thought I was dead but I still didn't want to put anyone else close to me in danger and that's why, after I had fully recovered, I made the decision to leave Cinnabar and find someplace to live where I hopefully wouldn't have to worry about Team Rocket finding me if they ever found out that I was alive.

Blaine had been training me on how to handle, capture and train Pokémon after I healed up so that if I did run into trouble again while I was on my own, I would have Pokémon to help defend me if I could succeed at forming a bond with any who I may have ended up capturing on the road. Shortly before I left, I passed my research center and the maintenance and further development of the PRM machine to a trusted colleague and assistant of mine who worked at the lab and left the deed to the building to Blaine.

After I finished my preparations to leave, I only did one last thing and left the location of the safe my research was in that I was hiding from Team Rocket, as well as it's combination, to my brother. I felt sure that the fire couldn't have destroyed it since the safe was almost completely fireproof and to keep it secure from anyone who may have went snooping around in the ruins of the manor, I knew that Blaine would be the best suited choice to keep it safe since he still owned the deed to the property."

Fuji looked at the coffee table, lost in his memories. "I wandered the region for many months on my own. Occasionally passing through a small town and city here and there but for the most part, I was sticking to the most isolated areas I could find and away from civilization. Along the way I ended up getting my first ever Pokémon, which was a Doduo that I rescued from a group of poachers in a forest when their backs were turned. I nursed it back to health and we became so close, Doduo decided to come along with me.

After sometime of traveling, I eventually found this town we're in now. At first I didn't have any intentions of staying here but one visit to Pokémon Tower back when it was still the epicenter of this entire community changed all of that for me."

Giselle raised her hand. "What was it? Peace?

"Prosperity?" Misty asked.

Ever the pervert, Brock couldn't help himself. "Sex?!"

The three women in the room gave a death glare to the teen while Fuji merely chuckled and shook his head. "What kept me here... was love."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "Love? What do you mean?"

Fuji smiled wistfully. "I met the love of my life right here in this town. From the time I first visited, I was amazed by the peace, tranquillity and beauty of Pokémon Tower. Everywhere you looked was nothing but flawless perfection and expert craftsmanship in every square inch of the tower. It was multiple floors of pure white memorial headstones made of beautiful alabaster ranging in all shapes and sizes, ceilings that stretched far above your head and calming incense that burned in every corner of the tower to bring a sense of peace and comfort to the distressed visitors who were mourning the loss of their Pokémon.

In all my years I had never felt such a peaceful serenity calm my soul and fill me with such foreign feelings of tranquility and bliss. Strange I know for a place that was created to honor the memory of departed Pokémon but..." He stopped then and looked up at the ceiling. "It was amazing to me. The tower itself was cared for and looked after by those who called themselves the Tower Keepers. There wasn't many of them, perhaps five or six, but the one who caught my eye the most was a young brunette by the name of Luanne.

Fuji closed his eyes as if he was picturing the woman he spoke of in that moment. "She moved with such grace... such poise. From the moment I saw her I knew that I had fallen in love. Call it strange, like something from out of a fairy tale but I couldn't help myself. Her hair was as soft as silk, her eyes a warm chocolate brown and her face was so serenely beautiful... like an angel. When first I saw her she was lighting an incense on one of the floors while I was behind one of the taller memorial stones examining it when I caught sight of her. I watched her then in secret for as long as I could before she was called away by one of the other Tower Keepers.

From then on I visited the tower each and every day without fail. My only hope with each renewed visit was to able to see her again. Most of the time I would just wander the tower on my own hoping to see her and others I would join tour groups lead by one of the Tower Keepers in hopes of her being my guide. Just to see her... listen to her speak."

The old man laughed. "I still remember the day when I finally spoke to her. I had followed her up to the third floor and was watching her from behind a memorial stone when she called back to me. Oh my heart stopped when she did for I feared that my game had finally ended. She would confront me for why I was stalking her and then have me forcibly removed from the tower, such was my greatest fear.

Instead though... she merely smiled and gestured me over to her. She asked why I followed her so often, saying that she had seen me at the tower multiple times over the recent months. As embarrassed as I was, I could only be honest with her and admit the truth. When I told her that I just wanted to speak with her but didn't know how she laughed and..."

Fuji looked down and clenched his hands together. "I-It sounded so beautiful I..." His voice broke slightly and Agatha instantly reached over to place a comforting hand on his shoulder. Her face was set into one of great sympathy and sorrow as she gently rubbed her friend's back. Saying nothing at all as she simply provided the physical comfort he was obviously in great need of currently.

Ash and the others could tell a very sensitive subject had just been addressed but they wisely remained silent. Once he had composed himself somewhat, Fuji continued. "She... she told me that I didn't need to hide and watch her from afar if I wanted to meet her. She said that all I needed to do was come up and say hello. All I could do was sputter and stare at her wide eyed before we both broke out into fits of laughter. It was the perfect ice-breaker because after that, we talked for hours."

He wiped his eyes quickly and then patted Agatha's hand in thanks while giving a small smile. "After that day we were practically inseparable. I would visit every day around lunch time and then we would talk about whatever came to our minds. I found that we both had much in common. She herself was a woman firmly of faith in the Arceun religion and even though I was a man of science, she somehow found a way to break down my stubborn factual mindset without even trying and before I knew it, I myself began praying to Arceus."

Fuji shook his head then as he said in an airy voice, "I have always found it fascinating how things can happen in life which completely changes everything you thought you knew. All my life I never believed in a higher power. With my parents tragic death, the horrors I saw Team Rocket perform all for the sake of money and my brother's own descent into darkness... I honestly believed that there was nothing but what we are. In my mind I thought, how can a God see the tragedy and sorrow befalling it's creations and do nothing? Because of this thought process I never believed in anything except for what I could see, touch and hear.

It wasn't until I spent time with Luanne and watched how she did everything that she did in life did I begin to see things differently. She would do things and make decisions entirely based on faith and belief with no surety whatsoever that things would turn out for the better. When I asked her how she could live life that way one day, she told me something that changed my life forever."

Fuji held his finger up once more. "She told me this... 'Is it better to live your life and do the best with what you can, taking chances and finding joy whenever you have the option, all while believing that there is someone... somewhere, watching out for you to keep you safe, or would you rather just live your life in a box, fearing everything that came your way all because you were afraid to take a risk and die due to believing that nothing existed on the other side?' She said that rather you believe in someone up above or nothing at all, both are a choice of faith that you make for yourself."

He held both hands out in front of him then. "On one hand you believe in nothing so in reality, you DO actually have faith in something. Which is the faith that nothing exists at all. While on the hand you can believe that there is something else after this life that can offer you a new adventure, a new path at the end of this mortal existence that leads to an eternity with no end. Whichever way you look at it, either one could be right so why not take a chance and believe in the possibility of a happier end instead of blank nothingness?"

Fuji lowered his hands and smiled. "My eyes opened at those words for the first time ever and I realized that she was right. Why waste my entire life away living in some small shroud of doubt that if I died tomorrow, my very existence would come to a complete end? I wanted to believe that when I finally passed on, my family, my mother and father, would all be waiting for me on the other side. Even if I was wrong, I decided that I would rather take a chance on happiness in eternal bliss than a bleak non-existence.

Interestingly enough, once I began praying to Arceus and fully accepted her as my Goddess, asked her to let her loving spirit live within me and show me what true love was really like, my entire world opened up before me and for the first time... I felt inner peace. I actually knew love, her love, and it filled my very spirit. From that day on I was a changed man.

Shortly thereafter, Luanne and I began dating while at the same time, I myself became a Tower Keeper and joined their ranks. In a little over a year, we both married and in yet another year after that, I was blessed with the best news I could ever hear. Luanne was pregnant with our child."

Fuji reached for his tea cup again and took another sip. "For the next seven months we lived in utter joy and peace. We had moved in together on the outskirts of town into a quaint little house so she could stay in her hometown and we both loved working at the tower. During that time, I had even made the big decision to become Lavender Town's very first gym leader. I had become much closer to my Doduo in the time since I captured it, even being good enough to get it to evolve using training methods my brother taught me.

With a whole new lease on life, I grew to see just how much I truly loved Pokémon and that only spurred me on to learn more and more on my own and build onto what Blaine taught me. I found through my studies that I had a rather strong love for Ghost-Types due to their mystery and mystique and that is what actually led me deciding to catch a Gastly and become the Kanto region's very first Ghost-Type Pokémon gym.

Luanne naturally supported me in my new endeavor and just before I set up my gym, I went into the forest near the north edge of town where Ghost-Types were supposedly found every now and again on occasion. That was actually where I ended up catching my Gastly which evolved into the Haunter you battled yesterday Ash. I wrote a letter to Blaine and told him of my ambition to become a gym leader and he was ecstatic, naturally so since he himself was a rather famous gym leader who's own gym had actually become one of Kanto's eight most popular Pokémon Gyms just a few years prior. Essentially, his gym on Cinnabar became one of the 'main eight' that trainers would go to if they really wanted to collect an impressive badge set and test themselves to the max before challenging the Pokémon League.

Once he found out, Blaine used his connections in the Pokémon League to help get my gym set up and with my intensive study, hard training and Blaine putting in a good word for me, I became a league certified Pokémon Gym Leader in no time. Blaine even came to Lavender Town to visit and congratulate me on my success in person, meeting Luanne in the process. He even gave me Misdreavus and Duskull as a present before he left. I found out later that he had went all the way to the Johto and Hoenn regions just to catch some special Ghost-Types for me once he found out what kind of gym I was opening. Such was the level of pride he had in me and ever since that day, our relationship as brothers had never been stronger.

More time passed afterwards and Luanne gave birth to a boy which we name Zachary. I myself had been succeeding in my efforts as a gym leader quite exponentially and had become a rather highly talked about subject in town. My gym was slowly becoming well known and challengers from around the region would come here just to challenge me. I became unofficially known as, 'The Ghost-Type Gym Leader with a Bird Pokémon mascot'. My Dodrio never liked battling and really couldn't anyway since I was a Ghost-Type specialist so instead, he became a mascot of sorts for the gym who would greet challengers at the door and then give them a ride to the battlefield."

Fuji chuckled in remembrance. "Yes those were the best days of my life. I was married to the love of my life, had a wonderful son, a great career and all the happiness I could ask for. Unfortunately... it wasn't meant to last..."

The bald gym leader sighed heavily and looked down at his tea cup. "Looking back on it now I guess I was rather foolish to think my past would simply forget about me as easily as I had forgotten about it. I may have moved on but there were other things in my dreaded past, or should I say... other 'people' that I should have known would never let me have peace as long as I was alive."

As Fuji trailed off, Ash fit the pieces together and said in a matter of fact tone of voice, "Team Rocket."

The man nodded. "Yes. Looking back on it now, I should have foreseen the potential danger that having my reputation as a gym leader so well known would bring. I think that I became so fooled by own sense of safety and peace that I let my better judgement completely slip by me. I should have thought ahead and realized that if so many people were hearing about me, Team Rocket would eventually discover that I was alive. They had more eyes and ears in some of the most unsuspecting places throughout the entire region thab you would ever believe. Given how much I took from them by stealing away the research for their most coveted project, any inclination I was alive would surely send them straight to my door... which it did.

One day Luanne and I were having our weekly shift at the tower. After Zachary was born, we only worked at Pokémon Tower once a week since I made enough money to support us with my gym. Reason being because the town paid me so much of a lump sum for bringing in large groups of travelers and other visitors to challenge my gym, something that boosted the local economy in turn. Which is the same general principle for all gyms. Your pay comes directly from whatever town or city you work out of, almost like a tax being payed to you for bolstering the popularity and visitation numbers of the community, which makes money for everyone. Major and locally owned businesses alike."

He shook his head roughly then. "Anyway, on this particular day we did what we usually did and left our son at home with a friend of Luanne's who would stay and watch him for us, along with my Dodrio who always stayed home when Luanne and I left. The tower was bustling that day with several people visiting and paying their respects. My wife and myself were enjoying the atmosphere as we always did and... and that's when everything changed."

Fuji seemed to withdrawal in on himself before continuing in a slow, almost haunted voice. "There were people in the tower that day dressed in long trench coats, which I found suspicious but didn't say or do anything about it, not wanting to cause any kind of trouble or panic. At around noon I was up at the top of the tower with Luanne in a storage room that held all of the unfinished memorial stones that hadn't been completed yet.

Earlier in the month, a lone Marowak showed up at the tower wounded, and taking pity on it, Luanne and a few of the other women who worked at the tower decided to take it in and nurse it back to health. Marowak turned out to be female though, as we found out soon after, being that she was pregnant. She gave birth to a single egg two weeks later.

Lunanne and I were with Marowak helping her tend to her nest when aI heard a loud commotion followed by an explosion rocking the tower down below. I knew something was wrong instantly and had Luanne stay behind while I went down to the ground floor to see what had happened.

When I arrived, I was greeted to the sight of something I hoped to never see again. Team Rocket agents were everywhere on the main floor, their Pokémon out with all of the visitors and the rest of the Tower Keepers lined up in a row on their knees in the middle of the floor. Rykon, who was the main Admin of Team Rocket, was at the head of the Rocket agents and a large hole had been blown in the ceiling, showing where several of the Rockets had apparently come in from. Giving a reason for the sound of the explosion. I also saw discarded trench coats on the floor and knew my earlier unease had been proven true after all. Something that failing to act on desperately cost me I soon learned.

I tried to be discreet when I saw what was happening but I could hear Rykon demanding to know where I was at to the people they had captured. The fact they were looking for me didn't come as a surprise nearly as much as the fact that they had discovered I was alive somehow, let alone knew where I was at. It didn't even register to me then that it was all my own fault because the success of my career as a gym leader had gotten my name out into the region.

I was caught at that moment between what I wanted to do and what I needed to do. I wanted to go back upstairs, get Luanne, go home and get Zachary and then leave to go somewhere far away. However... I knew I couldn't do that. It was my own dumb blindness that had brought Team Rocket to Lavender Town and it was up to me to fix it. Or at least... to pay for the terror I had brought to the kind people of this town.

With that in mind, I mustered up every bit of courage I had and stepped out into the open. As soon as they saw me, Rykon instantly had me captured. He interrogated me, tied me up and had me beaten. The strangest thing for me though was that the entire time I was being tortured, he never once asked me anything about the Genesis Project or the research data I took. This continued on for longer than I care to recall. I was beaten, stabbed, choked... Lavender Town's police station was on the other side of town so I knew that if they even heard what was going on, it would be far too late before they could reach us.

Rykon stopped personally beating on me then to say the first words he had since I had allowed myself to be captured. He told me to 'enjoy the show' and then had everyone besides me placed in the center of the room. They... they were then executed right in front of my eyes. People I didn't know and ones I did. Tower Keepers that I had worked with and formed bonds of friendship with... all dead. Rykon went down the line with a knife in hand and slit their throats. No remorse... no pity, no mercy..."

Fuji shut his eyes tightly. "I thought I was next. He approached me with the knife but before I knew what had happened, a bone club came out of nowhere and struck him, knocking Rykon away from me. I looked back and saw Luanne and Marowak standing near the staircase. I tried to tell them to run, to get away and leave me but they wouldn't do it. Luanne had formed a strong bond with Marowak over the past month and because of that, she was willing to listen to her when Luanne commanded her to engage Team Rocket in battle."

Fuji finally opened his eyes and when he did, the sadness and pain in them was as visible as the sun that hung high in the sky every day. "Luanne was always strong minded and sure footed. When she put her mind to something she wouldn't stop until she either accomplished her goal or was proven that what she was attempting was otherwise impossible. Because of that, she refused to leave me to my well deserved fate and fought with Marowak as fiercely as she could. They took on as many of the Rocket agents and their Pokémon as possible and refused to give in."

He smiled faintly. "She was amazing. Both of them. Over ten grunts took them on but their connection and synchronicity with one another was perfect, even though she was no trainer and Marowak was no trained Pokémon. They fought as hard as they could, Marowak being a blur as she battled with all the ferocity of a Pokémon giving it a full one hundred percent.

Only... it didn't last unfortunately..."

Fuji took a moment to sigh heavily. "Rykon grew frustrated with his men and eventually intervened himself. He called out his chief Pokémon, a brutal and vicious Rhydon, which he used to fight Luanne and Marowak with. Marowak fought valiantly, braver than I ever had seen any Pokémon fight before, but in the end she was simply outmatched. Rykon's Rhydon had years of fierce battling and savage mission operations to it's experience while Marowak merely had heart and above average ability to her own. She was just outclassed.

In the end, Marowak was forced into submission after she couldn't stand the intense beating she was enduring any longer. It wasn't enough to beat her though, Rykon then had his monster of a Pokémon..." Fuji stopped and looked at the floor again while clenching his pants legs. "He... ordered it to crush her..."

He leaned forward then and brought his hands up together in front of his face. "I tried to get up and run to her, to help Marowak, but they were holding me down. Luanne had been detained by that point as well and she was too shocked by the command Rykon gave Rhydon to even attempt to move. It was almost like it happened in slow motion... I was watching as Rhydon approached Marowak. She was too beaten to move... I... I could only look away..."

A tear escaped Fuji's eye. "I heard Luanne scream in horror but even still I refused to look. By that point I was too wrapped within my own horror and self hatred at what I had brought down upon those I cared about to notice anything else. It wasn't until I heard my wife scream again in an entirely different way did I finally open my eyes. When I did I saw two grunts had dragged her to the center of the entrance wall until she was facing me."

Fuji's eyes seemed to form a far-off glaze over them as he murmured in a monotone," Rykon took a knife to her... I was screaming... begging until my voice became raw for him to stop. I told him I would do anything... I would finish Project Genesis myself for them and go back to Team Rocket. I just wanted him to spare her. He didn't listen, he didn't care how much I screamed. He just... just smiled at me. Such an evil, terrible smile... one of joy and pure bliss in what he was about to do. I struggled, I screamed and thrashed but I felt powerless... as though I was trapped beneath a mountain of led and couldn't move."

Tears slowly started to fall from Fuji's eyes in earnest as he now appeared to be completely lost in a numb, unfeeling state of recollection. "Luanne refused to cry. She refused to give them the satisfaction of seeing her break. She just looked at me and..." His voice cracked even more so. "And she smiled. It was a smile of love... everything she felt for me. Every unspoken word, every memory we shared... it was all in that smile. I only saw one tear escape her eye before... before..."

Agatha was up out of her seat and next to Fuji in an instant, hugging her old friend close to her as she sat on the edge of the armchair. Fuji dropped his head low as small, silent sobs racked his aged body. Giselle and Misty both had tears falling freely down their faces in streams by now. Brock merely looked away towards the far wall and swallowed thickly as he attempted to control his own emotions at the heart shattering story. But Ash... Ash was a different story entirely.

The young man's hands were gripping his knees so tightly that his knuckles were white and his teeth were clenched. He remained completely silent but his body was shaking... not in sorrow but in anger... pure... uncontrolled anger. Fury was the more suitable term. Hatred was the only emotion he felt at that point in time... Fuji had no need to finish his sentence because everyone knew how it ended. His hatred was fueled by the cruel story and directed towards the monstrous organization who were the direct antagonists of Fuji's tale. The only thing he could think of was murder... of death... unstoppable feelings of vengeance towards a group of human beings that deserved no pity and no remorse.

From his lap, it was obvious that even Pikachu had been effected the same way for his teeth were bared in a silent snarl with small sparks of electricity coming from his fur at random intervals. Ash knew it wasn't healthy or holy in the slightest but all he could think of, and he knew part of these feelings had to have been coming from Arceus,l herself, was the desire to bring a swift and painful end to the Rocket Commander known as Rykon. A man he and Pikachu both already hated due to their encounter with him on the Anne.

Fuji continued to speak then in-between his silent sobs, oblivious to Ash's near murderous thoughts. "My world had shattered. There was nothing I could see or feel by that point. Everything was just numb. I begged to know why, I demanded from Rykon to tell me what caused them to find me and ruin my life. I told him again that I would have went with them back to headquarters to finish Project Genesis but he just... he just laughed.

Rykon finally spoke then and said it wasn't about the project. He said it was never about the project. They had already found a way to move on without me. They came to find me because they wanted to prove a point. They wanted to show that no one could turn their backs on Team Rocket. It was about making me pay for walking out on them... he said he was just bored and wanted to have fun! FUN! THEY KILLED MY WIFE AND ALL OF THOSE INNOCENT PEOPLE SIMPLY BECAUSE HE WANTED TO HAVE FUN!"

He stopped shouting after those final words and just slumped back in his chair while Agatha watched him worriedly. "The only thing keeping me from just giving in at that point was my son but even then I felt as though I would never see him again. Rykon came to me with the knife and I knew then it was over. I just closed my eyes... trusting that Blaine would raise Zachary like his own before Rykon put the blade to my throat. After that... everything went black."

Fuji sighed tiredly, exhaustedly. "I awoke in a hospital bed in Saffron City a week later with Blaine and Agatha both asleep at my bedside. The fact that I was somehow alive paled in comparison to the grief and pain I felt at the death of Luanne, which Blaine confirmed was true once he awoke and stopped fussing over me. He told me that the police arrived had just moments after Team Rocket somehow managed to escape without so much as a trace.

An ambulance was called for me and upon arriving, they saw that I was still alive. Somehow, Rykon missed my jugular when he slit my throat and I just passed out due to a combination of blood loss, the shock of what had happened and the stress of what I had seen. I was the only one that survived out of everyone else and Luanne..." He trailed off then, seemingly unwilling to continue as another lump grew in his throat.

After a few seconds passed to compose himself, he picked back up once again. "It took over eight hours of surgery but they eventually managed to stabilize me after I had been airlifted by the emergency helicopter service, The Sonic Dragonite, to the hospital in Saffron City, which was one of the biggest in the entire region. My first thought after coming to and being informed of everything that happened was almost immediately of my son.

I couldn't speak because of my throat but I could draw and I wrote on a pad to Blaine and Agatha to tell me what happened. I could sense something was very wrong by their reactions to my question and that's when they told me the news that ended up sending me into a spiraling depression that took years to pull myself out of."

By this time, Fuji had fully composed himself and was now explaining the rest of the story with a much more steady voice, though great pain was still evident within. "They told me that after Team Rocket left the tower, they apparently went to my small gym building and burned it to the ground. Mine and Luanne's house... was not spared a reprieve of the same fate either."

Giselle's eyes widened as she put her hands to her mouth. "Please don't tell me they..."

Fuji refused to look at her as he answered simply, "To the ground. Nothing was left. Our house had also been incinerated, with... with Zachary, my wife's friend and Dodrio inside. The fire department managed to put both flames out after several hours of continuous fighting but it was too late. The report officially stated that the cause was an obvious crime of arson in both cases and a... a double murder in the other.

The police found the bodies of my wife's friend Karry, Dodrio and... and my son inside of the house. They were nearly unrecognizable from the fire but the police said it was clear there had been a struggle. Dodrio seemed to have been defending both of them with Karry protecting Zachary. They had no idea what had happened even after an investigation but since the fire had ruined everything, any evidence had been long destroyed. I knew who it was though obviously and further counted on the fact that Team Rocket was most likely depending on the fire covering their tracks for them."

Fuji rubbed at his eyes and breathed out slowly. "I was broken after that day. My entire life just lost it's meaning. Not only did I lose my wife, son, best friend in Dodrio and several dear friends but Pokémon Tower had been closed down until further notice due to the devastation that occurred inside. Blaine and Agatha stayed with me for the several weeks it took before I could leave the hospital. I barely said a word at all in that time, even after my throat healed, and slept almost all day every day. Blaine wanted to remain with me longer and was willing to sacrifice his gym in order to stay and take care of me but Agatha kindly volunteered to stay instead."

The elder woman in question took that time to intervene, "I volunteered to stay with Fuji because I knew that all he wanted at the time was to be to himself and be given space. Blaine was a kind soul bless him and even though he had nothing but good intentions, he couldn't understand and wouldn't have been able to comprehend what Fuji was going through or how to handle him."

She pointed to herself. "I myself was in the same situation as Fuji was when I first met he and Luanne. I had just lost my first ever Pokémon, which was an Arbok, to a large cell of Team Rocket members while I was helping a group of young trainers I met on the road free their Pokémon from the villains. I was very experienced by that point but the numbers of Team Rocket were just too great in size and we were overwhelmed. My Pokémon had sustained serious injuries during the fight and even though I was able to rush it to the Pokémon Center, it passed away sometime during the operation.

I had it's memorial stone placed here in Lavender Town at the Pokémon Tower and for longer than I care to remember, I was bitter and angry at the world for taking my friend away from me. It wasn't until I met Fuji and Luanne at the tower when I was paying my respects that my life finally made a turn for the better. They showed me kindness, care, took me in and made me feel like life was something worth living again. Because of all that, I knew what Fuji was going through and was the reason why I decided to stay with him and make sure he was okay."

Fuji looked over at Agatha and smiled. "Yes, Agatha truly was my saving grace in the darkest time of my life. After I was released from the hospital I needed somewhere new to live and found this place to purchase cheaply since things on this side of town never sold for much, even back in it's heyday.

Agatha moved into the guest room and stayed with me for the next six months. Those months were without a doubt the hardest of my entire life and there were many times in which I didn't think I would pull through. Only Agatha standing by and all but beating sense into me kept anything from happening to me that would have most definitely been self inflicted.

Over the course of that dark time, I secluded myself away from people. Not wanting to face the world or the traumatic things I had witnessed. For all intents and purposes, I blamed myself. I believed that if it wasn't for me, Luanne, my son, Doduo, everyone in the tower, Karry... would all still be alive. It took Agatha basically barging into my room one day and throwing me out of bed, giving me a tongue lashing and telling me how ashamed Luanne would have been at how I was acting, before I finally started snapping out of the depression I was in.

To put it simply, I realized that my life had been spared for a reason. I didn't know exactly what that reason was at the time but I knew I still had some sort of purpose. I knew my wife would have been very displeased with how I was acting and not wanting to disgrace her memory, I eventually made a vow to myself to live my life for both of us, as well as our son. To help people in any way I could and be the best I could be as who I was so I could honor Luanne's memory. She loved to help people in life and I knew that even in death, she would have wanted me to do the same.

So, with that in mind, my long bout of anguish finally came to an end. I turned the two sides of this building I wasn't using at the time into the gym on one side and the prayer sanctuary on the other one, which you haven't seen yet. I had my gym leader's licensed renewed after me and my Pokémon got back into shape and then got a permit from the town for the sanctuary."

"Why would you build a prayer sanctuary Mr. Fuji?" Brock asked curiously.

The old man looked at him. "Simple. With Pokémon Tower still closed to the public, I wanted to have somewhere for people to go and pay their respects to their departed Pokémon. I went to Pokémon Tower after getting special permission from the town to do so, which was only granted to me in the first place because of my previous occupation as a Tower Keeper, and then copied down the names and dates of as many memorial stones as I could. Afterwards, I struck up a deal with the local stone cutter whom I was friends with and had as many small memorial stones made for me as I could that would fit in the Prayer House, as I had named the sanctuary, in order to honor as many of the Pokémon memorials in the tower as possible."

Fuji smiled slightly. "The next few months after that were actually rather pleasant. I finally felt as though I was beginning to heal inside, slowly but surely. Agatha refused to leave yet and stayed with me, helping me maintain the Prayer House and my gym. Being that I specialized in Ghost-Types for my gym and she was a Ghost Pokémon expert, Agatha trained me when we had the chance and that allowed my skills to improve vastly. All in all, things were good."

The elder woman closed her eyes and crossed her arms. "It wasn't meant to stay that way though."

Fuji nodded in a subdued fashion. "Yes, I had one last trial I was meant to endure before I could truly have any form of peace." He sighed then, quite heavily. "It was at a time when the town was prospering. Life was in full swing for everyone and times seemed to be good. I still remember the exact day it first happened... it was in a cool October and the day was serene. Pokémon Tower had just been re-opened to the public after nearly a year of having it's doors shut, the tragedy of Team Rocket's malicious attack on it finally having faded into the past. I had even been originally asked to return as one of the new Tower Keepers but it was too soon for me and I declined.

The grand re-opening hosted nearly two hundred people visiting that day from all over the region. Police were stationed around the outside and also inside of the tower and everything seemed to have been going smoothly... for a time. I didn't know what had happened since I was in my gym training my Pokémon at the time with Agatha but before we knew it, our entire side of town started erupting into a panic. Sirens signaling the sounds of police vehicles and ambulances began blearing through the town and we could distinctly hear the sound of people screaming coming from the direction of the tower.

Agatha and I ran outside and saw that the emergency vehicles were indeed heading towards the tower and several people were running in terror away from that direction. We both knew that something was terribly wrong and ran as fast as we could to the tower. When we arrived we were greeted by a truly terrifying and unforgettable sight. The likes of which has never left my mind.

What we saw could only be described as pure chaos. Police and medical rescuers surrounded the building, people were running and screaming away from the tower and the most frightening of all, fire could be seen roaring through the windows of the upper floors. The sky above the tower was also pitch dark and a storm had slowly begun to build around the area. We tried getting the commanding Officer Jenny to tell us what was happening but she refused to disclose any information, only saying that something dangerous and 'unknown' had shown up at the tower and started reeking havoc.

They had a police line set up with several officers inside already, supposedly trying to 'detain' the situation but all we could hear was screaming and panic from inside of it. I don't know what it was to this day but something compelled me to enter the tower and see what was happening. Not listening to my better judgement, I ran past Officer Jenny and into the tower. I didn't know it at the time but Agatha followed me in, for whatever reason."

"Heh!" Agatha grunted with a snort. "I did that because you always do crazy things without thinking and I knew you would need someone there to keep you out of trouble!"

Fuji coughed into his hand and sweatdropped. "Y-Yes well..." He quickly composed himself with another cough. "When we entered the tower I was stunned by what I saw. The ground floor was littered with fallen debree, the staircase had been partially destroyed, the ceiling and walls were cracked, memorial stones had been all but totally annihilated... it was terrible.

Agatha and I made our way up the tower and passed floors along the way that were completely destroyed, if not even more so at places, than the ground one was. It wasn't until we reached the topmost level where heavy smoke could be seen filling the large chamber like a great black curtain did we finally find what was responsible for all the chaos. It was something that, yet again, I would never forget seeing either. For as long as I lived."

Fuji made gesturing motions with his hands while telling the next part of the story as he tried to create a clearer picture of what he was describing for Ash and the others. "When we entered the sanctuary portion of the top floor, which was basically a huge dome shaped room with windows fitted into the ceiling that showed the sky above and large memorial stones down on the ground, we saw massive walls of fire surrounding nearly every corner of the room. All of the police officers that had entered the tower were definitely there alright... but they were all dead. Charred and burned into next to nothing while a huge black cloud... almost looking as though it was made of pure darkness and shadow, swirled in the center of the room amongst the fire.

From the moment I saw it I knew I was looking at something unnatural, something that wasn't of the good and pure of this world. My entire being felt as though I was being pulled into a void of black desolation and all happiness within me seemed to fade. Agatha and I both started to tremble uncontrollably and the worst thing about it was the glowing red eyes staring at us, seeming as though it was piercing through our very souls. When it saw us, we felt like a strong force of heavy gravity was suddenly being weighed down upon us and glueing us to the floor. It then let out a bloodcurdling, horrible screaming sound that made your very skin crawl in terror and ears ring.

We could only watch as the cloud of shadows slowly began to descend upon us. If it wasn't for Agatha's quick thinking and tapping one of the Pokéballs she kept on her side, who knows what would have happened. Her Gengar was the Pokémon she chose and as soon as it appeared she commanded it to use one of it's attacks on us to free us from whatever paralyzing influence we were under. It worked and once we were free, she and I both used our Pokémon to try and combat the monstrosity facing us."

Fuji shook his head, almost as if in disbelief. "We used every Pokémon we had on us and coordinated our attacks and battle strategies out as best as we possibly could but... none of it worked. My own Pokémon and especially Agatha's were experienced and powerful but all of it was like a mild annoyance to the creature. None of our attacks took any effect... none of our attempts at any sort of plan could come to fruition... it simply didn't matter what we did, nothing worked. Not a single attack passed through that dark fog, let alone so much as grazed whatever lay beyond.

The battle dragged on with almost no end sight and what was worse, our Pokémon were wearing down and the fire was almost completely out of hand. We knew we had to escape and that's when we decided on something drastic to insure our survival."

"We brought the roof down," Agatha interjected then with no fanfare and rather bluntly at that.

"Brought the roof down?!" The kids all repeated in unison.

Fuji nodded slightly. "That's correct. We had our Pokémon focus their attacks on a portion of the ceiling above us and then had them bring it down. We were near enough to the exit when it happened that we had time to escape luckily and our tactic took the monster by surprise apparently because it couldn't react in time to stop us from leaving. Fortunately enough, we managed to make it downstairs and out of the tower before the section of roof our Pokémon weakened collapsed entirely on the top floor.

We could hear a loud, shrill wailing sound coming from the tower once we had made it outside and by the kind of affliction in the voice we heard, we both thought that the ceiling collapse had killed whatever it was. Officer Jenny was upset at us at first but once we explained to her why we did what we did and furthermore, what had happened to her fellow officers, we were the last of her concerns."

He hung his head sadly. "So many lives were lost that day, so many funerals... it was Lavender Town's darkest day and the final death toll for the tower. It's doors were closed permanently and hasn't been opened since. After that day, Agatha and I thought the terror was over due to the ceiling collapse we caused. Thinking that it had truly killed whatever it was that had taken the innocent lives of so many but again... we were wrong.

Over the course of the next few weeks, attacks around the tower and strange phenomena started occurring on a regular basis. People who got too close to the tower would either end up disappearing or getting seriously injured. Strange things began happening in the town around the tower as well. Car crashes were becoming mysteriously more frequent, people and Pokémon were getting sick, spontaneous fires would ignite in shops and homes and just generally odd, dangerous events would keep popping up everywhere.

In fact, almost every attack and unfortunate circumstance that happened would be preceded by a black curtain of mist which would bath the area that was it's target in an impenetrable, thick layer of ominous fog. The phenomena actually became so infamously interrelated with each new disaster that happened, the local townspeople started to call the creature that lived in the tower 'Black Fog', after the gastly dark mist itself that seemed to be connected to it.

The townspeople at that time were all becoming very nervous and unsettled and after only three months of enduring the abnormal events, people started to move out of this part of town. Some just moved to the other end of town and others went completely away. Only a few remained behind including myself but slowly, one after the other left until only I eventually remained.

I felt as though it was my responsibility to stop whatever it was that had come to Lavender Town and taken up residence in the tower. I didn't really even know why I believed such a thing but I felt as though it was because, for some reason, my horrid past that had caused so much torment for the town was what had brought yet another plague to it. This time, the worst one yet. Because of this, I fully believed it was my duty to finally take a stand in stopping the ill fortune I had been bringing to the town and resolved to find some way to stop whatever the creature was.

Once I told Agatha of my plan, she agreed to help and then we began planning a way in which to stop the monster. It took a lot of planning but eventually we worked out a strategy. The first part of it had to do with finding some way to trap the creature within something powerful that would keep it from ever again harming or hurting anyone. The idea we came up with involved using something called a 'Sealing Room' located beneath the tower to trap the creature within it.

The sealing room, or rooms, I speak of were basically large, cylindrical chambers hidden within the catacombs beneath the tower. These rooms were built with powerful energy absorbing seals fashioned into the very stone itself that they were made of. No one knows exactly how the energy containing seals were made or who even created the sealing chambers themselves since the tower itself was very old and documents from such distant times were scarce, but whoever made them did an excellent job at constructing what was basically a makeshift prison for anything that was able to manipulate or use paranormal energy. Like psychic power and the spectral energy Ghost-Pokémon are able to wield for instance.

Our plan was to lure the creature down into the catacombs and into one of the sealing rooms. After that, we were going going to shut the door, which was made of metal and covered in seals as well, and lock the monster inside. Theoretically, we figured that the seals would drain it's power quickly and make it weak enough to contain.

The second part of our plan relied on exactly how we were going to go about luring the creature down where we wanted it. To do this, I utilized some of my old inventing skills, connections I still had with my old friends and associates back home on Cinnabar at my former research facility, and used all of that to create special seals that stored light and energy inside of them. Which were powered and charged by either the sun or an Electric-Type Pokémon.

I had the idea because when Agatha and I had our Pokémon bring down a portion of the ceiling in the topmost floor of the tower during our first encounter with the creature, the sunlight that started streaming into the room made it shrink back and cower in fear. That little event led me to assuming, on a strong hunch, that it hated light. Airgo... the, as I dubbed them, 'Light Seal' was born.

I had the idea to use the seals I created to help drive the creature away from us and into the chamber since we both knew our Pokémon would be completely ineffective against it in battle if our first encounter with it was any inclination. With all of that finally settled and planned out, Agatha and I went to Pokémon Tower one night and put our plan of attack into action."

Agatha took over for him then. "My part of the plan was to go up into the upper floors of the tower and look for the creature and then lure it down into the catacombs to where Fuji would be waiting in the biggest of the seal chambers. I eventually found it on the sixth floor, which was subsequently the darkest of any of the other ones, and then engaged it in a decoy battle with one of my strongest Pokémon.

I knew I couldn't I hope to defeat it and I didn't want my Pokémon getting hurt so I focused on drawing it down towards the catacombs as subtly as I could. We barely made it and were nearly overwhelmed by the unnatural power it possessed but we eventually managed to make it to Fuji's location."

"Once she did," Fuji took over at that moment. "I hid in the corner of the chamber and waited until they were inside. As soon as I saw the shadowed apparition of that monster fully enter the room I sprang out from where I was hiding and activated one of my Light Seals. Agatha had one as well and we used both of them to illuminate the dark chamber in a bright light that was nearly identical to that of sunlight itself.

We could tell instantly that the creature was effected by the light from the way it recoiled and screamed in pain and we took those precious few moments to flee the chamber. Once we were clear of it we shut the door, I activated the trigger seal in the center of it that would activate all of the others inside the room and then held our breath to see what would happen. After just seconds the door began to pulse a bright bluish color and the crack underneath of it showed an equally as bright light filtering out of it.

I knew the seal's energy absorption effects was taking effect then and at the same time, we started hearing a horrible... terrible screaming sound emitting from within the chamber. The wailing was nearly deafening to our ears and sounded almost like a whole army of ghoulish sirens going off at one time. The ceiling above us actually started to crack and shake and that's when we knew that we had to leave. We escaped unharmed but even then we could still hear the horrible screaming from deep below the tower, so loud and powerful that the entire building actually shook on it's very foundations.

We just stood afterwards and watched, listening in enraptured fascination as the screaming continued with seemingly no end in sight. What amazed me was how just long the chamber was taking to absorb the creature's power. I knew from experiencing when I battled with it that the monster was strong but seeing first hand just how long it took for the chamber to actually weaken it enough for it to be subdued was just... unreal. Eventually it did stop of course and everything became silent but by then we were still too in shock from what had just happened to fully register our success."

Agatha smiled. "We did it though. Trapped that monstrosity away right under it's nose just as you planned y'old geezer," She jested her old friend with a playful smirk.

Fuji returned her smirk with a smile. "Yes dear Agatha we did succeed indeed." He looked back at the children then before continuing, "After that night, we never had any other problems out of whatever it was that came to torment this town. We never did find out what it was or the true reason for why it came here of all places but either way, we were just glad to finally see the last of our problems gone.

Unfortunately, even though the creature had been stopped, the damage done to this part of town was too great and no one dared coming back. It has remained abandoned aside from myself ever since those days and in that time, I have remained here. Keeping watch over the tower, accepting the very rare challenge of whatever wayward trainer finds their way here and stumbles upon my gym, and also keeping the doors of my Prayer House open for those who still wish to pay their respects to a dearly departed Pokémon friend."

Agatha nodded. "I left shortly after that and tried to convince Fuji to come with me but the fool was stubborn and said he had a never ending duty to this town that he felt obligated to stay committed to. He said that he wanted to remain vigilant in case the creature we locked away ever somehow managed to get free and even though I didn't quite understand it or even believe such a thing was possible, I respected his decision and left to pursue my dreams which eventually led me to becoming what I am now."

The elder woman's face appeared to drop then as age and weariness seemed to overcome her for a moment. "I never would have imagined that Fuji would end up being right and all these years later that same old nightmare would arise again and pose a threat to this town once more. Never in my wildest dreams did I think it could somehow start regaining it's former strength while being locked away in such a powerful sealing chamber but apparently, Fuji and I underestimated it's power. To be honest... I thought whatever it was would eventually just waste away and die being trapped in such a harsh, life draining environment but..." She sighed. "I guess I was wrong."

The Elite Four member looked at Ash. "And what's even worse is how that revelation came to us by you being put in such a perilous position Ash and for that, I do apologize. I know from experience what it feels like to be in the presence of that sinister being and even as a grown adult, well versed in the ways of Pokémon and being quite skilled even back then, I was frightened when I saw it. I can only imagine what it had to have been like for you young one and such a thought fills me with greater sorrow and remorse than you know.

Especially since as Fuji said, it was apparently showing a strong interest in you personally. I cannot imagine such a thing. Even on the two occasions I battled with it, the creature's interest were not so much focused on me as it was the challenge I posed to it at the time. What you went through is... beyond imagining."

Fuji nodded sorrowfully. "Yes Ash I do apologize as well. No one should go through what it is you went through and I feel as though it is partially my fault. People who passed through this way over the recent years that I met would sometimes claim to have strange feelings, urges and desires upon entering this part of town. Almost like another voice in the back of their mind was whispering to them to do things they would never do normally and even have moments when they felt as though their minds were not their own for a short time.

I would always dismiss the claims however as mere paranoia that was stemming from nothing more than weary travelers venturing into a deserted town they were not familiar with and as such, filled their heads with fear and slight delusions. In all truth, I just don't think I wanted to entertain the possibility that the evil creature Agatha and I sealed away would ever have any chance of returning to cause chaos again. My fears never held any ground either because each person that told me these stories of how they would feel strange and influenced when they first arrived here would always end up being fine just a short time later with no more odd experiences happening to them. This only further led to my conclusion that all of these individuals were simply suffering from travel exhaustion and the trepidation of traveling through a relative ghost town."

The old man's already morose looking eyes became that much more regretful as they stared at Ash. "You were the first and only person to talk about such extreme situations and events happening to you while here. I most certainly have never encountered anyone before you that underwent a full on possession and led to such a horrifying outcome either. After I saved you from the catacombs and saw the creature behind that door for the first time in many years, there was no doubt in my mind that it was still a very real threat and hellbent on getting free. Much to my utter dismay and dread."

Sighing dejectedly, he put his teacup down. "I apologize for the very long winded story but it was the best I could do to get you to understand the relation between myself and what happened to you Ash. I truly do not know if my actions in the past, the bad karma that followed me here to Lavender Town and led to so many bad things happening, is what drew that maliciously evil creature here but to me it only makes sense. Something that seems to feed on bad and negative emotions such as fear, anger, hate and sadness like it does would go anywhere it felt a strong abundance of such emotions residing. Arceus knows this town was full of it after Team Rocket came to the tower that day so long ago.

It is because of all of this that I blame myself so much. It was also directly because of myself that the creature was imprisoned for so many years. I felt that if I didn't tell you my full story to go along with the explanation of how I was involved with all that has happened around here then it would make no sense to you. Hopefully now with everything I have told you, it makes a little more sense."

Ash remained silent for several minutes after the older man finished speaking, simply sharing in a companionable silence with his friends as they all digested what was just told to them. Eventually, Ash spoke up, "Really Mr. Fuji you... you really don't need to apologize. Nothing that happened to me was your fault and I don't think you're to blame for anything Haunter did to this town either. Everything always takes place for a reason so it was gonna happen one way or another. If anything, I just feel terrible for everything that's happened to you over the years. Losing your wife, kid, friends and Pokémon... it's just... beyond words."

Fuji smiled sadly. "I'm an old man Ash, I've had many years to make peace with my past and now I just look forward to the day when I can go and join my family in the next life."

"I think for now though..." Agatha began after she intervened politely. "You have something you were going to tell us correct Ash?"

The boy simply nodded and refocused his mind on the subject at hand as he centered his thoughts and tried to plan out the best way to tell them what he needed to. "Well to start... I need you both to understand one thing. The one thing I speak of being that I cannot tell you exactly how I know what I do but that what I am about to say is one hundred percent the truth, no matter how crazy it may seem. I realize that by the end of this, you probably won't believe me but I have to try anyway. I just request that you both keep an open mind, please."

Fuji and Agatha looked at each other in confusion for a few seconds before looking back at Ash and nodding for him to begin. The boy took a breath then and launched into his story, "Alright, the first thing you need to know is..."

And so, for the next hour and a half, Ash went into a detailed explanation of everything Arceus told him about what Fuji and Agatha were both dubbing as 'The Creature' and 'The Monster'. Even though he had already told them both that 'it' was really a Haunter and not the faceless creature they thought it to be, he took the time to go into greater detail of just exactly what separated Haunter from others in it's species.

Basically explaining that unlike other Pokémon of the same species, this one was pretty much a massively oversized, very old and very powerful Haunter that had a terrible past more than enough to equal Fuji's own pound for pound. Perhaps even slightly more so depending on how one looked at it.

Both of the older adult's eyes nearly bugged out and their jaws dropped when Ash told them about what Haunter was like, the first reaction being total disbelief before slowly changing to surprise and then just settling on dumb shock. Agatha herself could hardly believe that a Ghost-Type Pokémon (or any Pokémon for that matter) could be so cruel and evil but as Ash told his story, the both of them were slowly starting to come around until they actually found themselves believing him.

What was more, as Ash delved deeper and deeper into Haunter's tragic past, Agatha and Fuji started to feel something for their old enemy that they never in a million years thought they would... pity. They could both understand being angry at the world for the hell it put you through sometimes and knowing how dark in the head both of them had become in the harshest of periods back in their youth, it was easier for them now to understand Haunter somewhat instead of just blindly hating it.

The two older adults could defintely see how a Pokémon that had lived for so many years, who could sense and feel emotions at that, and who had been hurt and betrayed so many times by so many humans, would eventually grow to hate virtually everything. After all, if something only ever knew hate and scorn, could it possibly be expected to know love and compassion just because it should on principle?

The world around you helps to shape who you are and if this... 'Haunter', really experienced so much hate, rejection and abuse in it's lifetime then it would be totally understandable as to why it became what it did. Especially since it was just a Pokémon who's level of mental comprehension and emotional processing abilities wasn't nearly as complex or advanced as a human's.

Still, while they could understand Ash's obvious pity and perhaps even compassion for this, 'Pokémon gone dark', they didn't see how any of what he was telling them would make a difference in the situation. Let alone how he knew any of what he did, which was something the two of them respected that he couldn't tell.

When Ash finally finished painting a proverbial picture of Haunter's life for his audience- omitting that he learned it all from Arceus of course- he simply sat there and waited for Fuji or Agatha to be the first to speak on the matter.

When someone finally did, it proved to be Agatha. "I already said it but I still just can't believe that the monster we locked away was a Pokémon. It never appeared to be anything close to resembling any Pokémon I had ever seen before so I just... I just can't believe it..."

Fuji shook his head and rested his face in his hands. "So much pain, so much anger and so much hate... for so long I thought it was just an evil plague that descended upon this town like a dark curse but to think that it would really turn out to be something so... so... lost and in suffering is..."

He shook his head again after going silent for a few moments. "If anyone knows how to feel hatred and have vengeful thoughts against those who did terrible things to them or those they care about then it would most definitely be me but... I never would have imagined the reason for the monst-" Fuji caught himself about to say something that he now knew wasn't true and fixed himself before continuing," -for Haunter's wicked actions would be because it itself had been treated so terribly by humans. The thought never so much as crossed my mind because of how angry I was for all the terrible things it did. I used to hate it, feel pure distaste for it but now I... I feel..."

"Pity..." Was the simple word Agatha used to speak what Fuji had been trying to but was unable to say.

Fuji just nodded as the old woman hung her head. "I myself was guilty for feeling such harsh emotions about something I did not understand. I only focused on the bad things it did, never once did I think of why. To think that any Pokémon could live a life filled with so much pain, betrayal and suffering is..."

She wiped a small tear that fell from her eye in that moment. "It's heartbreaking..."

Ash could see that Fuji and Agatha were now in a position that would hopefully make them listen to what he had to tell them and that's why he decided to act quickly. "Mr. Fuji... Agatha... now that you know why Haunter is how it is, I think you can both understand more now when I say that I do not feel any other emotion for it than compassion, pity and a desire to help it. Even after what it did to me, nearly sucking out my soul in a desire to break free from it's prison, I... I can't feel anything else. I know if it were one of my Pokémon or people I hold dear that had underwent the same horrible treatment as Haunter did then I myself would struggle with not wanting revenge for them. Especially if one of them were taken from me."

Fuji looked at Ash skeptically. "Yes I can understand your sentiments now quite well young man but you still haven't told us why Haunter needs you in order to free itself nor how you have come across such detailed information."

Ash nervously grasped at his knees as he replied, "Mr. Fuji please I... I can't tell you how I know what I do. I honestly wish I could but I can't and I need you both to just trust and respect me on this... please."

Both adults just looked at Ash closely for a few moments without speaking before Fuji finally nodded. "Very well. We all have our secrets and I can respect the desire to keep them to yourself. In fact, if it would have been just ten years earlier, I would not have told you my story as I just did Ash. If you want to keep this personal and to yourself, I understand."

Agatha however seemed a little suspicious. "What did you mean when you said that you wanted to... 'help it'? I cannot imagine anyone being able to do such a thing for something as lost to it's own hatred as Haunter is. How could you ever hope to succeed in helping it young man?"

Ash looked back and forth between them both and knew that now was the time to go for broke. He had to lay it all out on the table for them and inform Fuji and Agatha of his plan... well at least, his 'hopeful' plan. All he could do was hope that they would agree and be on his side because of not, he wasn't delusional. Attempting to get into Pokémon Tower, which was already against the law since it had been closed off to the public, was bad enough but four minors doing a such a thing? Even worse.

Ash may have been young but he wasn't naive and since he was a bit of a realist and had more maturity for his age than most, he wouldn't put it past Fuji or Agatha to potentially call the police to make sure he and his friends couldn't put themselves in any danger.

Taking a deep breath, Ash exhaled slowly and began somewhat hesitantly. "Look... I know that what I'm about to say is going to sound crazy... insane even, but I need you both to please hear me out and try to think with an open mind about what I'm about to say."

Exhaling again, he continued. "I feel a... a strong sense of duty and responsibility to help Haunter through the dark void of hatred it's been living for so long. No Pokémon, no living thing period, deserves to live in such a way and Haunter is no exception. My friends and I have been talking and well..."

Ash looked at each of his friends in turn, all whom gave him a nod of support in return. Facing forward again, he said with complete seriousness in his voice, "We want to enter Pokémon Tower so I can face Haunter and do all I can to help take away it's pain."

Both elders merely looked at Ash like he had sprouted Pokéballs for ears before glancing at one another. When Fuji looked at Ash again, he chuckled. "You're kidding my boy! I know you are, trying to pass something so ludicrous off to myself and Agatha as a practical joke!" He laughed aloud. "I will admit you had me for a second!"

However, Ash remained completely silent and stone faced as he stared at them. Fuji eventually stopped laughing and then looked at Ash oddly before his eyes slowly widened. "You... you weren't kidding... were you?"

Ash just shook his head, unable to really think of anything else to say at the time. Agatha, on the other hand, had plenty to say. Shooting up from her seat, the old woman practically shouted, "WHAT ARE YOU THINKING YOUNG MAN?! YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW DANGEROUS THAT POKÉMON IS AND NOW YOU SAY THAT YOU WANT TO GO AND ENCOUNTER IT FACE TO FACE?! JUST SO YOU CAN TRY TO HELP A CREATURE THAT HAS BEEN COMPLETELY LOST TO IT'S OWN RAGE AND DESPAIR FOR ARCEUS ONLY KNOWS HOW LONG?! WELL I REFUSE TO LET YOU DO SUCH A THING! YOU HAVE NO CLUE WHAT YOU ARE TRYING TO GET YOURSELF INTO!"

Everyone else looked startled by Agatha's outburst but Fuji just spoke calmly to her, "Agatha please, just sit down and then we can-"

The woman rounded on him next, "Don't you start Fuji! You know just as well as I the devastation that Haunter caused when it was free last time! You know how dangerous and powerful it was! Don't you dare even try to tell me that you're considering Ash's crazy idea!"

Fuji held his hands up placatingly. "Agatha please, just listen to me. No I'm not saying that I am automatically on board with what Ash is suggesting but I'm also not going to shut him down without even hearing what it is he has to say. You and I both know that ever since he and his friends came into town just yesterday, strange things has been happening that we never would have expected. Haunter is being more active now that it has been since we sealed it away and I'm starting to worry that maybe it's full strength is returning to it."

He sighed heavily. "Think about it Agatha. If that Pokémon were to get free now with the same hatred driven mindset it has always had, compiled with the fury of what we did to it, think of what it could do? It could potentially destroy the entire town. Wouldn't it be better if there was someway to tame it's rage so that if it truly does get free, none of us will not be in any danger?"

Fuji pointed at Ash. "More strange, unexplainable circumstances has surrounded that boy than I have seen these long years ever since he came here and you know what I speak of. He's special and we both saw it in that battle I had with him. If anyone could have any hope at all of finally putting a stop to all this then... am I truly the only one that believes Ash could be that one?"

Agatha looked at Fuji as though he had lost his mind. "Fuji! Listen to yourself! He's a BOY not a warrior! It's too dangerous!"

Before any arguing could begin between the two, Ash spoke up, "Both of you please... I didn't expect either of you to be okay with what I just said and honestly, I knew you were going to react this way. I understand why you're worried about me because you've seen the true destructive capabilities Haunter possesses. I know you're just concerned and worried for me and while I appreciate that I..."

He trailed off and then looked down for a few moments before speaking once more. "We all love Pokémon. Everyone here in this room and we would do anything for any of our own. You both know what it's like to lose a friend in a Pokémon and you've both experienced what it's like to go through the darkest periods of your lives. You know what it's like to feel anger, to feel hatred and to feel like the world has turned it's back on you."

A look of sympathy and sorrow came over his face. "I know Haunter has done a lot of bad things and I know it's hurt several people, I'm not making any excuses for it. I understand why you both feel so resentful and angry towards it and I know you think it can't be helped and that Haunter will just kill anyone who tries to help it but... I can't believe that. I have to believe that Haunter still has good inside of it. That somewhere deep down the hopeful, bright and happy Pokémon it once was is still there."

He shrugged lightly. "No I can't promise that I'll stay safe and it won't hurt me. It's a Pokémon that I believe no one has ever really encountered before but I still want to... no I NEED to at least try. Yes I may be just a kid. A young, naive and stupid kid but I still know what's right and I KNOW that doing this for Haunter is right."

He then looks up at the two adults again with unwavering determination in his eyes. "I would love to have your support but even if you don't, I'm still going to try and help Haunter one way or another. With or without your permission."

Fuji and Agatha just looked at Ash in shock for several moments before the former finally broke out into a small smile. "Now that... that is the kind of determination and spirit I admire young man. Well said, very well said indeed."

Agatha was about to respond back heatedly but Ash cut her off. "Agatha, let me ask you a question... when you started out with the dream of becoming one of the Elite Four, wasn't there people telling you that it was too dangerous and outlandish of a dream to have? Too much of a risk to take? Saying that you would never succeed in your goals no matter how hard you tried? Wasn't there people like that in your life on your way up to the top?"

Agatha seemed slightly thrown off by his question but answered it nonetheless, "Well of course there was! I don't know how many people put me down and called me stupid for the dreams I had of someday joining the Elite Four. However that is a completely different matter from the situation we're facing now!"

Ash shook his head. "No Agatha it's not. My goal and my current dream is to help save Haunter from itself and show to it that there is still good left in this world. I want to do whatever I can in my power to help it but you refuse to even accept the thought of me doing so out of fear."

Agatha placed her hands on her hips. "And have you even thought about what would happen in the very likely event that you die Ash? What of your Pokémon, your friends, your family? What becomes of them then? Moreover, what about Sam Oak? I've known that man for almost our entire lives and I know for a fact that he rarely accepts someone not of his family into his life as much as he has you, nor has he ever taken on any apprentices before yourself. What do you think it would do to him if you were killed doing something so insane?"

Ash looked down and nodded. "Yeah you're right Agatha... I could potentially die but I honestly don't believe I will. As for my Pokémon and my friends, they are all behind me one hundred percent. I know Professor Oak would be proud of me as well because I'm standing up for what I believe in. He taught me that in the first place. Sometimes I think you have to do what seems insane and that other people don't understand just so you can do what is right."

Agatha looked at the steely resolve in Ash's eyes and just sighed before shaking her head. Remaining quiet for several long moments, she eventually just chuckles wryly. "Oh I can definitely see Oak's influence and teachings within you young man. I don't know how many crazy, life threatening things he did when we were younger just to do what he thought was right."

Looking down as she almost appeared to be having an intense internal debate with herself, she finally looked back at Ash and gave in. "Very well young man. If your heart is stuck on this then... I will support you however I can."

Fuji smiled at Agatha's relenting to help Ash and then spoke himself, "Truthfully... I don't know if this is the right thing to do Ash but either way, if you feel so strongly about this, I as well will do what I can to help you. Who knows... maybe going on a little faith for once will be good for us all."

Ash looked at Fuji and Agatha in shock, as though he couldn't believe they had actually agreed not only to allow him to do what he was suggesting but also were willing to help him do something that could and would most likely be very dangerous. His shock eventually giving into gratitude however, Ash smiled at them and nodded. "Thank you both very much... you have no idea how much this means to me."

Misty shook her head and sank back in her chair. "Wow I can't believe we're actually gonna do this..."

That very same comment made by the redhead suddenly brought Fuji to a point in which he had to make. "Now if you don't mind me asking Ash, exactly HOW do you plan on going about succeeding in this goal of yours?"

Ash appeared thoughtful himself before crossing his arms. "Honestly? I don't know exactly how I'm going to go about getting to Haunter but I do know that it's going to require all of us fighting our way to it. Three other Ghost Pokémon; a Gastly, Haunter and Gengar, are always around the lead Haunter's chamber prison. I think they serve it in some way and if that's true then we'll have to fight to get through them. They'll probably think we're trying to hurt their master and won't let us get past them without a fight. As for Haunter itself... well we'll definitely have to fight once we get inside the sealing room with it."

He put a hand to his chin then. "I was thinking that a few of us could stay outside the chamber and fight off Haunter's three servants to help even up the score a little. Meanwhile, myself and two others will lock ourselves in with Haunter and do battle with it if we have to. The two people with me will serve as a distraction with their Pokémon while myself and my own Pokémon will try to reach Haunter so I can try to communicate with it."

Fuji nodded in understanding of the rather sound strategy and even though Ash didn't volunteer to say anything else on the matter, he had a theory on how the boy was going to try to help Haunter and he was almost willing to bet that it had something to do with the strange light he had witnessed surrounding Ash down in the catacombs of the tower. He never say anything to Agatha about it and he hadn't told Ash what he'd seen since he wasn't sure at the time if the boy had even known himself about the unsual phenomena or not but with the way things were shaping up to be, he was starting to think that Ash did know about the strange light that had come from him and saved them both from Haunter.

Agatha nodded her head to Ash's layout of his plan but had to add her own input. "That does sound like a good plan of attack young man but the question now is, who goes with you in and who stays outside?"

Ash answered immediately, "I want Mr. Fuji going in with me definitely since he has a working knowledge of how the seal chamber works. He also has those Light Tags which will be a big help potentially. If he doesn't mind going on with me that is."

Fuji shook his head when Ash looked his way. "I'm glad you want me along Ash and I'll gladly go with you and do what I can to help."

"Yeah but who else goes with you two then," Brock wondered aloud. "Personally I'd rather stay outside since I think I'll be more of use out there than inside the chamber."

Misty looked at Giselle and Giselle at Misty before the former just smiled and gestured towards Ash. "You go in with him Giselle. You're his girlfriend and I know if you don't go then you'll spend the whole time he's in there worrying about him to the point where you'll be useless to us." She then smiled a little sheepishly. "No offence by the way..."

Giselle smiled in return, appreciating what Misty was doing, before replying, "Yes I do suppose that's true Misty, thank you." She grinned in a falsely superiorly way then before saying in a joking manner, "Besides... you'd just get in my way more than anything else if I stayed with the rest of you!"

Misty growled and pointed at the other girl as Giselle's taunting jest did it's job perfectly. "Listen here you make up wearing, dolled up little-" However Brock was quick to intervene as he got in-between the two girls with his arms outstretched. "Alright you two don't start now!"

Shaking his head in exasperation at his two female friend's antics while Fuji and Agatha merely watched on amused, Ash sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. He was just about to get back on track but Agatha beat him to it by asking, "Now what I want to know is how you plan on getting into that sealing chamber in the first place. If I recall correctly, it's locked up tight with no way to get inside unless you break the sealing formula, which is why we trapped Haunter in there in the first place."

Ash was pensive for a few seconds before replying, "Well... I think that Haunter will actually help me get inside. When I was lured to the tower last night, I can faintly remember having my energy sucked out of my body and into the door that's keeping Haunter from escaping. I think that somehow my life force holds the key in breaking the seal formula and that means if I make contact with the door again, Haunter will start drawing on my energy once more to break the seal. Once the door opens enough, one of you will have to break the connection by pulling me away from the door and then, just before it closes, we'll slip inside."

Fuji nodded slowly. "That sounds like a sound plan, not very safe mind you but then again, nothing about any of this is safe." He stood up after saying that and looked at the clock. "If we're going to do this then I recommend doing it tonight where we can move under the cover of darkness. We don't want anyone seeing us breaking into the tower if we can avoid it. Especially since we'll have Agatha with us and being that she's a member of the Elite Four, she has a reputation to protect."

Ash seemed content with the suggestion. "Yeah that sounds good to me." Standing up himself, he stretched out, still feeling a little bit fatigued. "I'm going to get some more sleep before tonight, I think that'd be a good idea for everyone.

Agatha agreed with him immediately. "Yes we all should get some sleep. Tonight will test us in more ways than one and we need to be as prepared and rested as we can be."

Giselle suddenly grabbed onto Ash's arm. "Before you go Ash, I think you should go and see your Pokémon in the gym. They were really worried about you." She then appeared slightly nervous before looking down and shuffling her feet a little. "Also I... I hope you're not upset Ash but while you were unconscious, I used your Pokédex to send both of your Butterfree back to the lab. They looked like they just wanted some alone time together so I sent them back, knowing how you did it since I watched you use the Pokédex for Pokémon transfer a few times."

She ran a hand through her long brownish dark hair while looking at him again shyly. "They were really worried about you but I told them that you were going to be fine and that I would make sure you called back home to the lab in order to let them know you were okay as soon as you woke up. I also selected Gastly's I.D. from your Pokédex and had him sent over in return early this morning when I did it since I knew he would probably want to know what happened to you and then see you once you woke up."

Giselle pointed to Ash's Cross-Transceiver that he had been recently keeping on his side then. "Professor Oak called you just a short time after I sent your Butterfree back and was really amazed by the pink one. He wanted to know where and how you caught her since he said he's never seen an all pink Butterfree before but I told him that you weren't feeling very well and would call him as soon you were better. He was okay with it and wanted me to tell you that he hopes you get better soon, especially since he said that he's apparently still waiting for you to tell him all about Gastly and how you captured him as well."

A look of guilt and worry passed over her pretty face at that moment to replace the one of slight amusement she had at seeing Ash comically pale upon remembering that he hadn't told his mentor anything of Gastly yet, before she looked down once more. "I hope you're not mad at me for what I did Ash..."

The young man in question merely tipped Giselle's chin up so she could look at him and then smiled at her. "I'm not upset at all Giselle. In fact I'm grateful for what you did and handling all of that. If my Butterfree wanted some alone time just to get to know each other better then I'm glad you sent them back home so they could. I'm also thankful you thought to have Gastly sent over since I probably would have done the same too. I have a feeling I'll be needing him later tonight anyway."

The girl just blushed faintly and smiled a little at Ash's praise as she nodded in acceptance of his gratitude, glad he wasn't mad at her, and laid her head on his arm while still smiling softly. Ash gave her a soft squeeze and kissed the top of her head before looking at everyone else once they separated. Rubbing the back of his neck, he gave the others a slight smile before nodding to them. "Okay... I guess I'll be seeing you all in a couple of hours or so. Hope everyone gets a good rest and sleeps well."

Fuji and the others all stood up from their chairs after he said that and then said goodnight to each other before adjourning for the much needed rest they would all be needing very soon. The decision being quickly made that Fuji and Agatha would room together while Ash and his friends stayed in the guest bedroom that he had awoken in earlier.

Once he was alone in the living room and Giselle had left his side, Ash made his way across the room to the door that lead into the gym and stepped inside. As soon as he entered, he was greeted to the sight of his Pokémon all working and training together. Smiling at the show of camaraderie and teamwork they were displaying currently, he watched them for a few moments more before yelling, "Hey guys take five!"

The Pokémon stopped what they were doing and looked in the direction they heard the voice. As soon as his Pokémon caught sight of him, all of them cried out excitedly and took off for Ash as fast as possible.

Knowing what would happen if he stayed standing up, Ash quickly got down on the ground just as his Pokémon reached him and all jumped onto him at once. Laughing at their excitement and happiness of seeing him, Ash just chuckled and took turns hugging each of them as they cooed, chirped and made various other sounds to vocalize just how happy they were to see him okay.

"Hey guys how ya been doing since last evening?" He asked and then received another chorus of calls from his Pokémon as a reply. The boy smiled then and nodded his head. "Good I'm really glad to hear everything is going alright. I'm also glad you kept up on your training today for me, that was a very mature and commendable thing you did. I apologize that I worried you all so much but it was totally unexpected what happened to me and everything afterwards just sort of spun out of control."

Ash then went on to explain to his Pokémon everything that had happened to him since the night before. Their eyes and faces took on shocked, amazed and sometimes even angry expressions as he told certain details of what happened to him and once he finally explained the part about his plan to go and help Haunter, utter disbelief could be seen etched onto their faces.

Luckily enough for Ash, Gastly was one to voice his and the other Pokémon's concerns since he was the only one that could actually virbally communicate in a way that could be understood with his shared trainer. "Not that I don't agree with you for wanting to help a Pokémon who has experienced so much misfortune, but why are you so willing to risk your life to help someone who has already tried to take it Ash?

Miss Giselle informed me of what happened after that annoying old professor who constantly follows me around trying to study me back at your home sent me here this morning and I would greatly desire to know exactly why you would want to do such a thing. Especially after your life was put into the kind of peril it was by this same 'Pokémon' you claim to want to help so much.

Gastly's face became one of rare seriousness in that moment. "I'm all for helping a fellow Ghost Pokémon but this Haunter sounds to me to be completely homicidal and almost primally feral in behavior. I admit to being rather unkind and over extreme to the many people I played tricks on over the years back at Maiden's Peak but that's all they ever were. Tricks. I never became physically aggressive or hurt a single person in all the many years I lived on that peak. This Haunter you speak of appears to be the complete opposite. It sounds to me as though it enjoys tormenting and even killing anyone it can. Dangerous business putting yourself in the same room with it if you ask me young one..."

Ash's other Pokémon all nodded in agreement and this caused their trainer to sigh. "Look you guys, I understand how you feel and I even agree with Gastly. Yes Haunter is very dangerous right now and yes it does take joy in doing harm to other people but you have to also understand where it's coming from. Haunter was given a gift by Arceus that turned into a terrible curse and caused it to undergo more pain, betrayal and torment over it's many years of living than any of us can imagine. Haunter's best friend, a kind old lady that I truly believed it loved, was murdered and burned alive by people that wanted Haunter gone just because they didn't understand it. All Haunter has almost ever known was hurt and resentment, how can we expect it to behave any differently than it does now to everyone else?"

He sat back then and looked up at the ceiling with a calm expression on his face. "Imagine this... how would you guys feel if I was killed in the same way that the woman Haunter cared for was? Wouldn't you feel anger and hatred and want revenge against them?"

Almost instantly, each of his Pokémon began shouting vehemently in what he could tell was a mixture of absolute certainty and raw fury. Holding his hand up, he silenced his Pokémon with a nod. "Okay now you see? You all feel no differently about what you'd do if something happened to me than what Haunter did when it's only human friend- ever- was taken from it. Can't you understand where Haunter is coming from now? See it's point of view?

The boy turned his attention to Gastly. "Tell me this Gastly, if Artiana would have been murdered brutally instead of dying peacefully of old age, how do you think you would have handled it? Do you think you would have been understanding and laid back about it or do you think you would have become angry and vengeful? If someone who was like a mother to you would have been viciously killed... do you not think that yours and Haunter's fates would have been similar?"

Gastly looked at Ash and appeared lost for words for a few moments until finally hanging his head and nodding. "I... I suppose you are right Ash. If Artiana would have been taken from me I most likely would have become a very different Pokémon than who you see before you now. I apologize, I was being insensitive to the pain of another. If you really believe that we can help Haunter then I will support you however I am able."

One by one, each of Ash's other Pokémon nodded with looks of shame on their faces. Smiling gently, Ash shook his head. "Hey now guys don't be upset at yourselves, it's normal to feel that way about something that seems nothing but bad or evil. I'm not mad at you, I'm just glad you understand now and are willing to help me. Thank you for coming around, it makes me even more proud of you all than I am already."

His Pokémon all crowded around him and hugged their trainer once more and he smiled brightly, returning the big group hug, before standing back up and looking at them seriously with his hands on his hips. "Alright now listen up everyone, tonight is going to be the toughest and most intense challenge we've taken on so far. I don't know yet which of you I'll end up using for this but whoever it is, you'll need to be prepared and ready for whatever comes your way. Do you understand?"

Receiving a chorus of firm calls in reply, he nodded in understanding. "Alright then. I'm heading off to bed now for a few hours so I can get some sleep and I suggest you guys do the same." He pulled out their Pokéballs and then pointed them at each of his companions. "You okay with that?"

The six of them all called out their consent immediately and he returned them. Afterwards, he left the gym and headed up to the guest room where Brock and the girls were already preparing for bed. He and the older teen decided to take the floor in their sleeping bags so Misty and Giselle could share the bed, a decision that was finalized only after he and Brock firmly stated that they would have it no other way.

Once he had settled down into his own sleeping bag a short time later with Pikachu curled up inside of it with him, Ash said a quick prayer to Arceus that she would watch over them all before shutting his eyes. Letting his worries for the intense night of certain danger and peril that lie ahead fade into his subconscious as a restless slumber took him.

XXXXXXXXXX

Night had fallen over the town of Lavender and people all throughout the town were just beginning to turn into their homes and retire to bed for the night. The time was just a little past midnight and on this particular night, the moon was out in all of it's full and bright glory. Adding an air of mystique and suspense to the night of great tribulation that was about to take place in just a short time ahead.

Ash, flanked by his friends as well as Fuji and Agatha, was currently making his way through the abandoned portion of Lavender Town towards Pokémon Tower. Heading out to face a challenge and a foe far above himself, which was set to change not only his outlook on life as he knew it but also fundamentally flip everything Ash thought he knew about how life was supposed to be upside down on it's head.

As hard as he tried, the young Ketchum could only fall in and out of twilight sleep the entire time he had been lying down. So on edge was his nerves and stressed out was his mind for the dangerous mission he had assigned himself to. Wheels were in motion and his plan was already beginning to take form so Ash knew there was no backing out now. He had to see this entire thing through to the end but it still didn't help matters any to calm his nerves.

Looking back at his friends, he could see the same trepidation he felt being reflected upon their visages and looking further back still, he could even see Fuji and Agatha with serious, completely focused expressions on their faces. Pikachu himself also looked to be unshakably focused on the task at hand as his eyes had not left the direction the tower was in ever since they left Fuji's home.

While Ash walked down one of the main streets that led to Pokémon Tower, only partially noticing the grass growing up through the cracks of the pavement, he had time to really think about what was going to happen and only pray that this what Arceus wanted him to do and would be by their side the entire time because otherwise... things were not going to end pretty for he and his companions.

After what seemed like hours but was really only fifteen minutes, Ash finally found himself looking up at the daunting monolith that was Pokémon Tower. Stretching high up into the dark night sky like a cruel trickster just waiting to invite unsuspecting victims into it's house of cruel tricks and games.

Looking back at the people with him, Ash took a deep breath and nodded before facing the door in front of him. Reaching out with both hands, Ash removed the broken chains from the handles and pushed the door open, glad the lock had been broken the night before when he first came here.

As the doors swung open and revealed the eery interior of the ground floor within, Ash took a moment to look at his surroundings. Checking out the walls, ceiling and everything else nearby just to make sure Gastly, Haunter or Gengar wasn't waiting to ambush them as soon as they stepped inside.

Realizing that he wouldn't know until he was actually in the building, Ash walked inside followed slowly by the others. As he adjusted to the dim surroundings around him, he was able to take in just how much of a disarray the tower had fallen into. The marble floors were cracked and dull in places, the walls and high ceiling far above were faded and also cracked in some places. Dust had accumulated on practically everything in the massive room over the many years with no one to keep things clean so that almost all of it was now covered in a hazy sheen of grime and filth. The memorial headstones that were scattered throughout the ground floor were nearly completely faded so no distinguishable writing or markings could hardly be seen on them at all and a few were even missing some chunks out of their surfaces.

As Ash and his friends took in the run down appearance of the tower's main floor, Agatha and Fuji just remained silent as they quietly observed everything around them, lost in thought while remembering what the tower used to look like long before it's current desolate, dilapidated appearance took over.

Ash wandered towards the middle of the room and looked down. The sight that greeted him was one of which sent both a shiver up his spine and also caused a feeling of great sorrow to permeate within him. What he saw while looking down was what appeared to be very faint, yet still clearly visible markings of blood stains on the floor below his feet. The dull red streaks had obviously been scrubbed and cleaned on as much as whoever did it possibly could but Ash could still see it. Especially with the way the moon was shining down on the spot from one of the large windows above and caused it to become quite visible to the naked eye.

Knowing all about the people that had been killed at this very spot years ago by Team Rocket because of the story Fuji told, Ash slowly backed away as the shiver he felt remained on the back of his neck in the form of raised hairs. Looking back, he could see that Fuji was purposefully looking away, obviously not wanting to look at the area and be reminded of the day so much had been taken from him.

Not remembering much about the night he was here since he had been pretty much completely entranced, Ash asked the older man, "Mr. Fuji, which way are we supposed to go in order to get to where we were last night?"

Fuji seemed fortunate for the chance to focus on something else and quickly answered Ash as he walked over to his side, "We go that way young man..." He pointed towards the far end of the room where the archway that lead down into the catacombs was located. "It's quite dark down there so just let me get one of my Light Tags out so we'll be able to see and-"

Ash stopped him. "No that's okay Mr. Fuji, I've got a Pokémon on me now that will provide all the light we need."

The old man just nodded and stood back while Ash grabbed a Pokéball from his side and threw it to the ground. Out of the ball burst forth Charmander in a bright sparkle of lights as he called out energetically, "Charmander Char!"

Fuji smiled. "Ahh yes, I remember that feisty little Charmander from our battle Ash. Excellent choice as well, it's tail flame should be more than enough to light the way for us all."

Ash nodded and looked down at his Pokémon. "We need you to be our light source buddy, think you can handle that?"

Charmander threw his arms out and sounded off with in an affirmative, "Charmander!" Before turning around and walking across the expansive ground floor with Ash and the others following right behind him.

Upon reaching the top of the stone steps that lead down into the dark catacombs below, Charmander increased the intensity of his tail flame until it was burning a bright orange and red color. Ash gave a nod of his head and then the Fire-Type began descending down the steps carefully.

The group of humans followed Charmander down the long flight of stone steps as the path took them deeper and deeper into the dark recesses of the earth. As they continued on, each of them were able to tell they were venturing further below the surface from the way the air became somewhat thinner, more musty smelling, damp and even cold due to the temperature drop being below ground caused.

The more they walked, the more the stone walls and floor around them started to show a much greater change in appearance. The walls looked wet from the dampness of the moisture in the air and the ground below them looked similar only with the added effect of wet smacking sounds being heard when they took a step on the stone floor. There was even what almost seemed to be a silent 'heavy' feeling in the space around them that could only be felt when one went underground where all was deathly quiet and secluded away from the ever bustling, ever lively surface world.

Feeling the air chill her bare arms, Misty shivered and spoke up while grabbing at her arms, "Brrrr! How could anything stand to live in someplace like this?! It's freezing down here!"

Agatha snorted. "When you're made of shadows and darkness with a black heart, the cold just doesn't chill you like some would think dear," The older woman said callously.

Brock himself felt a slight shiver run down his spine. "Man I don't know why but I feel like... almost like an ominous presence is making itself known the further we go. It's almost like these shadows are..."

"Coming alive?" Ash interrupted.

Brock simply nodded. "Yeah, yeah that's right. It's really creepy..."

They all fell into silence then and continued on through the dark tunnel they were following, Fuji occasionally giving Ash directions on which way to go when they came across a junction or fork in the winding, twisting path of the dank, eery catacombs.

As they went further and further into the bowls of the earth beneath the tower, a definite presence started to clearly make itself known by the way the shadows and darkness around them appeared to come alive and shift at different points. Some of the group would see things move out of the corner of their eyes while others still thought that they could feel something brushing up against or touching them every now and again. Though everyone was feeling it and wondering the same thing, Giselle fell victim to it the most as she saw something move in the shadows of a tunnel opposite the one they were following.

Jumping in fright, she screamed and grabbed onto Ash's arm. "Over there!" The brunette cried out, causing everyone to spin around and look in the direction she was pointing. Charmander quickly swiveled around and fired off a spout of flames in the direction his trainer's girlfriend saw the movement at in order to illuminate the area. When he did, all they could see was the yawning expanse of darkness stretching on for what seemed liked forever in the tunnel Giselle was pointing towards and nothing else.

The others turned to look at her then and she just continued to point while sputtering, "B-B-But... But I saw something move! Right there, I swear!"

Fuji nodded sagely. "Do not fear that we think you are crazy miss Giselle, you most likely did indeed see something." He looked into the shadows around them with his eyes set into a piercing and ever vigilant gaze. "Haunter's servants probably already know we're here and are just waiting to spring an attck on us." He then looked back at everyone. "Be on your guard, all of you..."

Seeing his friends nod in understanding, Ash turned back around with Giselle closer to him this time and started moving forward once more, now much more cautious and aware than he had been even before. Watching for any sign at all of quick movement from the shadows which would give away the intentions of a potential attacker. Even Pikachu was on high alert.

After a few more minutes of walking in total silence and traveling the same way Ash had come the previous night, they eventually came to a steel door that blocked their venture from continuing. Ash was about to say something until Fuji came up beside of him and nodded towards the metal barrier. "This door leads to the main chamber right outside of Haunter's sealing room. Once we enter it, I think we can all expect to encounter the three Ghost Pokémon that serves their master so diligently. As soon as they see us, battle will most likely be unavoidable and we all must be ready for that."

He looked down at Ash then. "I guess your plan will begin the moment we enter this chamber so if they do show up then you just get to the other steel door at the end of the room and do whatever you have to in order to get inside. If we're already engaged in a battle by that time then I will get away as fast as I can to come and join you."

Agatha spoke aloud suddenly, "For those that remain behind, stay close to me at all times. My Pokémon will be more than a match for anything we encounter in there, do you understand?"

Misty, Brock, Giselle and Ash nodded with the latter answering for them all. "Yeah Agatha, I understand. As soon as we get in, I'll head for the door," Ash confirmed.

Agatha nodded and then Fuji slowly pushed the door open. As it opened with a loud groaning noise, the group of humans walked into the large chamber room that separated them from Haunter's own sealed up prison. Looking around at the place he and Ash had nearly met their ends the night before, Fuji had to suppress a shiver. He then shifted his gaze ahead across the chamber and saw the steel door that held Haunter inside the room he and Agatha had trapped it inside of so many years ago.

Ash himself also had a very uneasy feeling settle over his stomach since, even though he couldn't remember everything that had happened, he did have just enough memories of the night before to put him on edge and send a shiver down his own spine.

Seeing the door Fuji mentioned up ahead, Ash started walking towards it but as soon as he took one step forward, a ball of dark energy came hurdling out of the shadows at him from across the chamber.

Ash saw it just in time and managed to shout a warning to everyone before jumping to the side just as the ball of energy hit the ground he had just been standing at and exploded, causing the room to shake and a cloud of smoke to shoot up into the air.

Ash looked up from where he was now laying on the ground and saw three spectral forms emerge from the shadows. The shadowy figures eventually came into full form and Ash was able to see the wickedly grinning faces of Gastly, Haunter and Gengar, all floating slowly towards them with the manic smiles of malice still plastered across their faces.

Everyone stood up quickly as Agatha called out, "Get ready, they're sure to attack any moment now!"

Ash and the others hurriedly got into ready positions just as the three Ghost-Types floated in front of the door keeping their master at bay to block the way. Before anyone could say or do anything, Gastly's eyes glowed red before a beam of red energy shot straight at them from it's now scarlet eyes.

Since Ash already had two of his Pokémon out, he shouted, "Pikachu Thunderbolt, stop that attack!"

Pikachu hopped from his shoulder and began sparking with electricity before crying out, "PIKACHUUUU!" And releasing a powerful bolt straight at the beam of energy.

Both attacks collided in mid-air and fought for dominance for a few moments before exploding into a cloud of smoke that covered the room.

As everyone struggled to see through the smoke, multiple balls of energy shot out of the hazy cloud straight at them, glowing with dark intent. Agatha quickly took action and threw a Pokéball up into the air, "My friend, I need your assistance! Stop those Shadow Balls!"

Out of the Elite Four member's Pokéball burst forth none other than her infamous and legendary Gengar, who took to the battle with not so much as a second of hesitance. Showing just how experienced and battle hardened it truly was.

Without a command, Gengar stood firmly rooted to the ground as it's eyes glowed red and hands came out in front of it. Out of nowhere, several balls of energy started to form in front of Gengar that were small at first but quickly expanded in size. As soon as they were about the size of basketballs, Gengar unleashed them and sent it's salvo flying straight at the opposing Shadow Balls coming for them.

Gengar's Shadow Balls not only impacted and beat out the other three Ghost-Pokémon's own but they actually cut right through them and continued on towards the enemy Pokémon. The smoke had cleared by now and Gastly, Haunter and Gengar were now completely visible.

Seeing the balls of energy coming towards them, the three ghostly beings quickly scattered as the Shadow Balls struck the wall behind them and caused several small explosions to rock the room.

Not giving a second for a breather, they quickly separated and went towards Ash and the others at different angles. Misty and Brock saw Gastly and Haunter coming for them both respectively and were quick to call out their own Pokémon.

"Starmie/Onyx! We need you!"

The giant Rock-Snake Pokémon and Misty's own star shaped Starmie appeared in bright bursts of light and were ready for action almost immediately. Misty commanded first, "Starmie use Water Gun on Gastly!" While Brock followed with, "Onyx use Rock Throw!"

Both Pokémon quickly executed their individual attacks, however, the two spectral Pokémon were fast to react. Haunter stopped and sent a beam of Night Shade energy at the large rock Onyx had thrown at it while Gastly just fazed out of existence and appeared several feet away from the jet of water intent on hitting it.

Meanwhile, Gengar appeared out of the ground in front of Ash with a Shadow Ball already poised to strike at his stomach. Ash went to move back and try to give a command to Pikachu or Charmander but before he could, a large rock came flying through the air and struck Gengar in the side, sending the fully evolved Pokémon hurdling back several feet away.

Ash turned around in surprise and saw Giselle standing behind her Graveller as the Rock-Type straightened up from tossing the rock. Ash smiled at her and nodded, silently thanking her for the save, to which she just waved and beamed at him in return.

The moment was ruined the next moment though when Gengar, Haunter and Gastly regrouped together and then shot twin beams of red Night Shade out of their eyes in a wide sweeping arc, intent on cutting through Ash and the others in one fell swoop.

Agatha stepped up quickly and commanded her Gengar like the professional she was, "Gengar, I want you to use Curse Implosion now!"

Nodding at it's trainer's command, Gengar leaned forward and started to strain it's body as it's eyes glowed red. Slowly, a dark black ball of energy began to form at Gengar's stomach before then expanding and wrapping around the Pokémon like a shield.

Grunting in effort with a low, "Geeeeengaaaaarrrrr..." The black shell of energy expanded at rapid speed until it was formed a large dome that eventually extended all around Gengar, the humans and their Pokémon. If one was looking from the outside they would just see a massive cocoon of black energy surrounding everyone inside of it just as the multiple beams of Night Shade made contact with it.

The moment this happened, the dome started to pulse and shift as it kept the beams of energy from penetrating it. The three wild Ghost-Type's narrowed their eyes and added more power to their individual Night Shade attacks and this caused Gengar to grunt in effort as it added even more power to the dome in order to keep it up.

Ash and his friends watched on in awe at the power of an Elite Four Pokémon just as Agatha called out, "Now Gengar, release your power!"

Snapping it's eyes open, Gengar suddenly pulled the dome inward until was just big enough to still cover Onix's large body. The three Ghost-Pokémon grinned thinking that they had won as their Night Shade attacks started to gain more ground but that only lasted for a second until Gengar thrust it's arms out to the side and cried loudly, "GENGAAAAAAARRRRRRR!"

Like a bomb had went off, the dome of black energy suddenly exploded outward and pushed the beams of Night Shade back. Gastly, Haunter and Gengar went wide eyed in fear as they tried to keep the wall of energy from reaching them by combating against it with their Night Shade attacks but in the end, even the power of three wild Pokémon was no match for the hardened might of one trained by an Elite Four.

Before they could even hope to get away, the dome of energy broke through the lances of Night Shade, shattering them into nothing as it made contact with them and then exploded with a force so great, the entire chamber rocked viciously and the ceiling shook.

Ash and the others covered their eyes from the smoke that immediately filled the room and waited out the devastation until the shaking finally stopped. When they could finally see again, all of them were surprised when they found themselves unable to spot the three minions of Haunter anywhere in the entire chamber.

Looking back at Agatha, Ash asked in bewilderment, "W-What happened to them?"

The older woman just shook her head as she walked up to check on her Gengar. "They're not gone if that's what your asking. They'll be back, trust me. That's why you need to get through that door as fast as possible."

Even though Ash wanted to ask more, he just nodded his head. "Yeah. you're right." Looking down at his two Pokémon, he nodded towards the end of the chamber. "Come on guys, let's go!"

His Pokémon following close behind along with everyone else, Ash ran across the room and up the steps to the platform that the steel door rested upon. Examining the strange seal markings on it, he looked back at Fuji. "How do I open it?"

The man just nodded towards the door. "When I found you the other night you were all but glued to the door with your energy being siphoned into it. I imagine that if you just touch it then it'll probably do the same thing and start to open up. I'll warn you though, it will most likely be painful."

Ash looked at the door and then down at his hands before answering with a voice full of determination, "We've come too far to turn back now..." Glancing back up at the door while his friends and Pokémon watched on nervously, Ash took a deep breath before placing his hands upon the cold metal of the door.

As soon as he did, Ash felt a painful, tugging sensation as his entire body was suddenly pulled tightly against the metal. He could literally feel his very life energy getting absorbed into the door as the seals engraved into it started to glow blue and made a dull, metallic ringing sound.

Ash's friends, Pokémon and the two adults watched on worriedly as the boy started to writhe and groan in pain. Ash could feel his energy beginning to wain considerably the longer he stayed stuck to the steel door and it was only after several long minutes of suffering did it finally start to budge.

As it did, Fuji and Agatha both motioned for everyone else to stand back and be ready for anything that may happen next. Giselle, Misty and Brock looked on fearfully for their friend as Ash started to groan in pain but just as Giselle made to take a step forward, a deadly beam of red energy swiped down at her feet and cut a deep swath in the floor below them.

Giselle flew back through the air with a shriek of surprise while everyone else was temporarily stunned as they stumbled back. Out of the shadows came Gastly and it's two cousins, eyes glowing with a vengeance as they returned to deal with the intruders that had violated their inner sanctity.

Agatha and everyone else quickly took fighting positions with their Pokémon as the three ghosts charged them. Starmie, Graveller and Onix launched a tri-attack of water and earth at them but the combined might of three Night Shades quickly caused a stalemate to become the outcome. Agatha ran to join the fray, ordering her Gengar to use a Shadow Ball. Just as Fuji was about to join in though, she stopped him with an outstretched hand. "No! You need to stay here and be ready to enter that chamber with Ash, we've got this!"

The older man nodded and then watched as her Gengar became involved in a three on one Shadow Ball fight with the opposing Ghost-Types. Quickly shaking out of his stupor, he ran over to Ash just as he noticed the door finally opening enough to slip through.

Not wanting to give the beastly creature inside enough time to register what was going on and then make it's escape, Fuji ran up to Ash and grabbed ahold of the nearly limp boy before yanking as hard as he could. Seeing his struggle, Pikachu and Charmander jumped in and grabbed each of their trainers legs as they strained to pull him free from the door but even then it still wasn't enough.

"Graveller dodge and use Rock Tomb!" Giselle shouted as her Pokémon jumped out of the way of an incoming Lick attack by Gastly and then quickly picked up several large rocks which it hurtled at the Ghost-Type one after the other.

Looking to the side, Giselle could see Fuji and Ash's Pokémon struggling to free him from the energy draining door, which was rapidly opening now. Seeing that they were struggling greatly, Giselle acted almost without thinking and then commanded her Pokémon to follow her before taking off across the chamber.

Giselle ran straight through the heart of the battle that had now practically consumed the entire chamber. Ducking under multiple blasts of water and massive boulders that were being hurled and shot through the air respectively by Starmie and Onix as they battled it out against Haunter and Gastly, who were proving to be more than a match for them. She also had to side step, roll and jump out of the way of the wayward Shadow Balls and Night Shade attacks that were raining down from high above by both Gengar as they fought viciously.

Agatha's Gengar may have been more powerful but the other one had anger and determination on it's side, which allowed it to fight on a somewhat even kilter with the more experienced Ghost-Type.

Giselle was almost to the door when two Shadow Balls misfired by their casters came flying through the air at her. Giselle stopped mid-run and tried to get out of the way but she was too close to the incoming balls of energy to do anything. However, just before she could be hit with the two powerful attacks, Graveller suddenly lunged forward and jumped in front of her, putting it's arms out as it made to protect it's trainer.

Giselle covered her arms over her face as she prepared for the end or at the very least horrible pain but instead, she heard a loud grunting sound followed by a large explosion. Looking ahead, she was stunned to see her Graveller standing- or now wobbling actually- in front of her with it's arm out. Her shock still resonating within her, she didn't snap out of it until her Pokémon dropped to the ground on one knee with burn marks all over it.

Crying out it's name, Giselle quickly ran to Graveller and dropped to her knees as she put her arms around the Rock-Type. "Graveller! Are you okay?!"

The Pokémon just looked at it's trainer and gave a pained smile before holding up a single thumb and nodding. "G-Graveller... Grav..."

Feeling her eyes tear up at her Pokémon's dedication to protect her, she smiled and replied, "You saved me Graveller, thank you. I can never repay you for that, you deserve a good rest, please go back into your Pokéball for now."

However, Graveller shook it's head/body and then pointed towards the end of the chamber where Fuji was still struggling to help Ash's Pokémon get him unstuck from the door.

Giselle followed her Pokémon's gaze and then looked back at Graveller, seeing the determination in it's will to not give up. "You want to help Ash don't you?"

The rocky Pokémon just nodded and stood up shakily before regaining it's footing. "Grav, Grav, Graveller!"

Giselle just smiled and let a fire of her own enter her eyes before standing up. "Okay, let's go!" She and her Pokémon then took off towards the steel door again and managed to reach Ash in mere seconds. Stopping beside Fuji, she asked urgently, "What's wrong?!"

Fuji grunted in effort as he yanked on Ash again before replying, "I can't get him away from this blasted thing! The door is opening up too and we have to stop it before it opens any more!"

Giselle nodded in understanding before joining them in trying to free Ash. She grabbed at his back and pulled with all her might but she couldn't even budge him. After several tugs, she pulled away and huffed. "Shit it's not working! We need more power! We need..." She then looked at her Graveller and an idea formed in her head.

Looking at Fuji, she quickly instructed, "Let Ash go! All three of you, I've got a plan!"

Fuji and Ash's Pokémon looked at Giselle for all of a few seconds before deciding to trust her since their method was obviously not working at all. Stepping away, Giselle pointed at Ash and then commanded, "Graveller, get a running start and then rush into Ash!"

The Rock-Type quickly complied and then backed up before charging towards Ash. Just before he reached him, Graveller jumped into the air and collided into the boy. The force being just enough to dislodge Ash from the energy stealing door and to the ground below.

Giselle, Pikachu and Charmander ran to his side but Fuji wasted no time and glanced at the door. Already starting to see it close due to the loss of it's energy source, he ran over to them and knelt down to grab hold of Ash, not really giving any mind at the moment on exactly why Haunter hadn't attempted to escape yet. "We need to get inside now before that door closes!"

Giselle quickly nodded in agreement and helped the old man get Ash up before making their way towards the quickly closing door as fast as they could. Seeing the metallic door closing much faster than she thought it would, Giselle looked down at Pikachu and Charmander. "Hey you two, use your attacks to keep that door open please!"

The two small Pokémon quickly nodded and then ran ahead before stopping and launching their attacks at the door, a bolt of electricity and strong spout of flame being the weapons of choice as they cried out, "CHUUU/CHARRRR!"

Both attacks collided with the door and stalled it's forward movement, though with obvious great effort. Giselle and Fuji had all the time they needed though and managed to make it to the door just in time.

The brunette hurriedly called back, "Okay guys that's enough come on!"

Pikachu and Charmander promptly cut off their attacks and then ran ahead to catch up. Fuji and Giselle jumped through the small opening still presented to them, followed right behind by Pikachu and Charmander. The former's tail just managing to clear the door before it slammed shut... concealing the five of them inside one of the most dangerous places anyone could ever find themselves in.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Darkness. That was all any of them could see as the door slammed shut behind them and bathed the room in shadows. Giselle and Fuji were kneeling on the cold stone floor below them with Ash supported betwexnst the two of them. The boy in question was still panting heavily as he tried to regain the stamina lost to him by the energy seals on the door that had been draining him for all he was worth.

Giselle looked around and took in the new and rather large room they found themselves in. Even though it was dark, she was still able to see that the massive chamber was cylindrical in shape with several stone pillar-like pedestals scattered all throughout the room. The walls, floor and very high ceiling was made of stone as well and as she looked down at the floor below her, she was able to see what appeared to be small symbols of different kinds etched into the hard surface. She couldn't make any of them out but she had a feeling that they must have been of importance in some way. Most likely the seals Fuji himself had mentioned that were meant to steal away the energy of whomever was locked inside the room permanently.

Looking back down at Ash again, she gently rubbed his back. "Ash? Are you okay?"

The black haired boy nodded slowly and took a deep breath. "Y-Yeah... yeah I'm fine I just... I just need to catch my breath for a minute..." He then looked up and took in his surroundings. "Are we... are we in?"

Fuji nodded and answered his question, "Yes my boy we are. This is the sealing room Agatha and I trapped Haunter inside of." His eyes narrowed suspiciously. "Though... I don't know where the creature could possibly be hiding in this sealed off room nor why it didn't try to escape when the door was opening up..."

Giselle stood up and looked around some more. "Well it has to be around here somewhere. You said it was extremely aggressive Mr. Fuji so it should be here right? Or do you think maybe the seals in this room has drained it's energy to the point where it's in maybe... I don't know... like a comatose state or something?"

Fuji grunted and stood up as well. "No... no young miss I highly doubt that. Black Fog is a creature of immense power and even powerful seals like these- seals made from the energy leeching properties of some of the strongest Grass-Type Pokémon that were around back in the time when these rooms were created from what I've heard and read- would not be enough render it powerless. Let alone kill it. No..." He then looked from side to side. "It's around here somewhere, I know it..."

Ash slowly stood up, Pikachu and Charmander helping to brace him by his legs, before leaning against one of the stone pedestals and looking around. "This doesn't make any sense, I thought as soon as we entered this room Haunter would have-"

Suddenly and without any warning, the room darkened even more as the air temperature dropped several degrees. The only three humans in the room started to feel the hairs on the back of their necks stand up as chill bumps appeared on their arms. A thick, ominous feeling descended upon the room and this instantly put Pikachu and Charmander on alert, the former jumping up onto a nearby pedestal as he squatted down low and began sparking his cheeks.

Ash looked towards his Pokémon just as all of them were suddenly pressed down upon by some invisible force, the might of which was nearly enough to drop them to their knees. Ash could hear Fuji gasp as he tried to look up, "It's... it's here..."

When Ash finally managed to raise his head enough to glance ahead again, he saw, to his amazement and wonder, a black swirling vortex of shadows start to form against the wall at the far end of the chamber. As he looked on, the dark energy slowly began to expand and move outwards until it nearly consumed the entire wall behind it and covered a space almost ten feet in front of it.

Each of their eyes became glued to the ominous spectacle in front of them as, with a haunting, deep and low rumbling humming sound, the shadows slowly started to condense and take shape into an actual form.

When the shape shifting had finally completed a short time later, the three of them were now staring at a massive, thick, almost completely black cloud of shadows that were swirling ever so slowly at the very front of the chamber. The dark energy which was making up the shadows seemed to have a mind of it's own as it twisted and turned within itself, the murky haze trailing out over the chamber room and covering everything it touched in total darkness.

As he stared upon it, Ash then see two large, glowing red eyes open up within the shadows of the fog as it gazed piercingly, orbs glowing with malevolence, right at he and the others. Ash knew what he was looking at but Fuji gave voice to it first as he said in a mere ghost of a whisper.

"Black Fog..."

Pikachu started to growl under his breath as his cheeks sparked more, the little Pokémon being able to feel the evil intentions the creature in front of it was now emitting in powerfully rolling waves. All directed at the humans whom were now standing in it's presence.

Ash heard his Pokémon growl and promptly held his hand out. "Pikachu, stand down!"

Pikachu looked a little reluctant to do so at first but finally nodded and obeyed his trainer just as Black Fog's eyes finally found themselves settled on Fuji. Even though the years had changed him, Haunter could still recognize the human that had imprisoned it and as soon as it did, the creature let out a loud, screeching sound as the room shook with the fury of it's anger.

Fuji, for his part, didn't even flinch as he calmly spoke, "Black Fog... it has been many years hasn't it? I see the time has done little to curb your hatred and malice."

Haunter's eyes narrowed until they could almost see the hate shining within the red orbs that it called eyes. Ash, not wanting anything to get out of control any sooner than it had to, stepped forward and called out to it, "Haunter!"

Giselle and Fuji saw Haunter's eyes widen at having it's naturally given name called out so boldly almost immediately. The red eyes quickly shifted onto Ash and as it did, it's eyes further widened in surprise at seeing the object of it's recent obsession and potential freedom standing a mere short distance away.

Ash narrowed his eyes at the corrupted Pokémon and took a second to take in the sight of the truly magnificent but also horrifying looking creature that had been shunned and cast aside by so many over the years. What Arceus had told him of Haunter's intimidating and overpowering appearance was proven to be nothing less than absolutely true as never before in his young career as a Pokémon Trainer had Ash yet seen anything so... incredible for lack of a better word.

Haunter may have been be a Pokémon yes but like Ash's giant Dragonite and Tentacruel, it was an unfortunate freak of it's species amongst the entire Pokémon world... to an extreme degree.

Ash took a single step forward before speaking in a level tone, "You know who I am don't you Haunter?" The Pokémon's red eyes just narrowed at him in response, a hungry gleam in it's eyes as the desire to suck out Ash's very life essence in order to free itself could be seen shining in it's red pupils.

Ash held a hand out at it then as he made a very bold, very risky statement. "I know that you want me! I know you want to use me to free yourself from this place so you can continue the destruction and chaos you caused so many innocent people in the past but I'm not letting you! I'm here to tell you now that today, I am going to do everything in my power possible to stop this anger you feel and put an end to this cycle of hatred you constantly live in. Today... I am setting you free!"

Haunter's eyes blazed malevolently at Ash and he knew in that moment that simple words wasn't going to get through to it. Not that he expected something so grandiose and maybe even a little corny sounding would reach the darkness shrouded Pokémon. Haunter was, for all intents and purposes, completely wild and untamed. An unpredictable force of raw power that had long since lost itself to it's baser instincts. A creature that would attack first and not think about what it did later.

That statement was proven to be true as well for the very next moment... Haunter attacked.

Ash and Fuji saw it coming first, the former rushing at Giselle with his tired legs as he pushed her to the ground. Fuji ducked behind a stone pedestal while Pikachu and Charmander both ran and hid behind another one. All of it was done just in the nick of time too because at the very next moment, several beam-like charges of dark energy came erupting from the shadows surrounding Haunter as they made a deadly beeline straight for their targets.

Ash and Giselle held their hands over their heads as the attacks impacted with the ground, walls and stone pedestals around them, loud explosions rocking the room as they hit with devastating force. Ash quickly rolled he and Giselle to a nearby pillar that hadn't been destroyed yet and tried to look through the smoke to see where Fuji and his Pokémon were.

After a few seconds he was finally able to see them, hunkered down behind their own stone barriers, visibly on edge but still safe thankfully. After several more moments of the black beams of energy being released throughout the room, everything went silent. Ash poked his head up from his hiding spot and looked at Haunter just as the Pokémon gave a loud roaring/shrieking sound and the shadows around it expanded and fluctuated outward.

Calling out to to his companions, Ash jumped up in a flash, "We need to act now! If we don't start fighting back we're dead!"

The call to action did it's just job as Fuji and Giselle quickly complied. Pikachu and Charmander ran to Ash's side on his gesture just as the only other two humans in the room stood up along with him and pulled out their Pokéballs.

In two flashes of light, Fuji's Misdreavus and Giselle's Graveller were called out in combat ready battle stances as they awaited their trainer's commands. Ash knew they didn't have much time so he made a fast command, "Remember that this is all about distraction! Do whatever you can to divert Haunter's attention so I can get close to it!"

Giselle and Fuji nodded before ordering their Pokémon to attack Haunter. Ash only looked long enough to see Graveller take off rolling towards Haunter and Misdreavus flying towards it while charging a Shadow Ball in front of it's small body.

Turning away then, Ash motioned for his Pokémon to follow him as he started to run towards Haunter while hiding behind the stone pedestals scattered throughout the chamber as he did so. Being extremely careful and with his eyes locked onto Haunter's massive shadowed form, he kept pressing forward, hoping and praying that Fuji and Giselle could handle the situation for now.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Misdreavus fired off a Shadow Ball at the wall of shadows in front of it but only succeeded in causing a minor annoyance as the ball of energy exploded on impact. Graveller rolled towards the darkness and just as he came upon it, Giselle shouted, "Graveller use Rock Throw!"

Coming out of it's roll, Graveller dug it's hands into the ground and then jumped up with a large chunk of the floor in it's arms. Chucking it at the cascade of swirling shadows keeping Haunter disguised, the rock flew straight and true at speeds that would definitely leave a nasty mark on anything it hit.

However, like a hand extending to swat a meddlesome insect, a tendril of dark energy suddenly emerged from the shadows and slapped the chunk of floor straight down into the ground where it shattered into pieces.

Several more tendrils shot out of the darkness and sped towards Misdreavus after that. Fuji yelled out to his Pokémon upon seeing the danger, "Misdreavus don't let them touch you! Use your speed to dodge and fire as many Shadow Balls as you can to stay ahead!"

The small Ghost-Type tried to listin to it's trainer and began moving around in the air as fast as it could, zig-zagging and swerving in and out of the shadow tendrils as they attempted to snatch Misdreavus into it's hold. Fuji's Pokémon was quickly being overwhelmed by the seemingly never ending swarm of tentacles coming for it though and for each one it destroyed with a Shadow Ball, two more would seemingly take it's place. All the while, Haunter just watched the chase take place with it's red eyes glowing in sick amusement.

Meanwhile, Giselle was trying to keep her Graveller from being hit by the strange blasts of shadow-type energy waves being hurled at it from the large mass of blackness dominating the front (or back, depending how you looked at it) of the chamber.

Giselle knew her already tired Pokémon was beginning to wear down and being that Graveller wasn't meant for speed, it was only a matter of time before the never ending barrage of energy waves connected with it.

In fact, it was at the exact same time as Giselle prepared to give her Pokémon another command that Haunter gained the upper hand. Becoming flat out overwhelmed by the power of the foe they were facing, Misdreavus was suddenly trapped by a group of shadow tendrils and then started getting beat ruthlessly between them until one of the arms finally smacked her away towards Fuji.

At the same moment, Graveller tripped up just as it was about to hurl another slab of floor at the veil of shadows. This was all Haunter needed and with a well timed energy pulse, Graveller was struck head on by the powerful darkness and sent sprawling across the chamber. Both it and Misdreavus both gave pained grunts of 'Grav/Dreavus!" As they finally came to a stop on the cold stone floor.

Giselle and Fuji both ran out to their Pokémon quickly and helped them as Giselle looked at Haunter with fearful eyes. "W-What kind of attacks are those?!"

Fuji grit his teeth and just shook his head. "Nothing that any normal Pokémon should be able to use, that's all I know. I don't even think it can be described as a conventional type of energy source that we know of. Whatever power Haunter uses that makes up it's very existence is beyond any of us. At this point I now see that the seals in this room have only repressed Haunter's power enough to keep it trapped, not weaken it any true way. We can't hope to beat it..."

Fuji looked at Giselle with steely eyes. "But we have to at least buy Ash the time he needs." He drew two more Pokéballs from his side. "We'll need to pull out all the stops for this battle young miss, are you ready?"

Giselle just looked in the direction Ash had vanished before looking back at the old man and nodding, holding up her one remaining Pokéball. "I'm with you Mr. Fuji!"

The bald man smiled at her as both of their Pokémon finally stood/levitated back up. "Good, then let's give this beast all we have!"

Those words of encouragement said, he called out Duskull and his own Haunter, which joined their partner Misdreavus in a battle ready formation. Giselle took point next and called out her Marowak. She knew her first Pokémon's Ground-Type moves would be of no effect against an otherworldly Ghost-Type such as Haunter but at the most, she was hoping it would at least offer a much needed extra hand and be able to support her weary Graveller.

Fuji spoke again once all of their available Pokémon was out in play, "As I'm sure you know Ms. Giselle, a common theory is that Ghost-Type Pokémon attacks will not be effective against their own kind but as I'm also sure you have already learned, this is not entirely true. Damage can be inflicted, though the amount in which is dealt is usually always so minuscule, trainers almost never have a Ghost-Type against Ghost-Type battle. It would take far too long for either side to cause enough damage using their naturally bestowed spectral powers to warrant a sensible match-up. However..."

Fuji's eyes narrowed at the monstrous Ghost-Type they were currently facing down. "Some Ghost-Types, such as Agatha's Gengar and this Haunter before us now, are so powerful that their attacks can seriously effect those of their same species. It is my hope that by using all three of my own Ghost-Types that maybe, just maybe, we'll be able to fight against Black Fog a little more effectively... hopefully."

Giselle just let out a breath and got ready. "Yeah... that's gonna be a BIG maybe..."

Just as Fuji and the brunette were about to command all of their Pokémon to attack at one time, Haunter made another drastic change to the playing field in order to take any possible advantage they had away from them.

Fuji and Giselle could only watch in confusion as the shadows around Haunter started to broil and shift and it's eyes glowed even brighter with power practically emanating from them. A smokey haze slowly surrounded the shadows around Haunter before extending outwards. Then, to their utter shock and amazement, both humans watched as the shadows all around them... from the floor, ceiling and walls, started to actually come to life.

Before their very eyes, several ghostly figures, resembling walking shadows to a degree, began emerging from not only the shroud of shadows covering Haunter but also every other area in the chamber that was hidden by darkness. The spectral forms that were slowly manifesting themselves in incredibly large numbers didn't really have any defining characteristics at all. No face, no true body shape and no voice. They neither resembled people nor Pokémon and instead looked to be just... blank puppets. Faceless dolls of darkness brought to life to serve their master as they floated eerily in the air... slowly closing upon their opponents.

To say an icy chill went up the spines of Giselle, Fuji and even their Pokémon would have been a total understatement. The paranormal display of dark power being displayed before them suddenly made them all feel as though they were just extremely small, insignificant insects compared to this ancient creature of pure power that levitated before them.

Mustering all the courage they had though, Fuji and Giselle pointed at the battalion of faceless shadow puppets in front of them and shouted to their Pokémon, "All of you, attack now!"

Fuji and Giselle's Pokémon, regardless of the fear they were feeling at the moment, nodded to their trainer's words and charged towards the incoming wave of dark beings with loud battle cries.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Ash and his Pokémon saw the creation of the shadow beings from their position behind a stone pillar near the back of the room and instantly felt the same feeling of fear and trepidation that their friends were. Once again, Ash found himself in awe of Haunter's abilities and started to see just what Arceus was saying when she told him of the unimaginable danger he was going to find himself in if he decided to encounter the dangerous Pokémon.

He could hear Giselle and Fuji call out the rest of their Pokémon into the seemingly one sided battle and then just moments later saw those same Pokémon take off in a charge towards a large group of shadow ghouls that were steadily making their way towards them.

Ash continued to watch silently for a few moments as his friend's Pokémon collided with their enemies and commenced into a vicious battle with the unnerving shadow beings. As Ash heard his girlfriend and Fuji shout fast commands to their Pokémon, he watched the puppet-like creatures intently in order to find out just how they fought.

To his amazement though, the ghouls didn't or simply wasn't by choice, doing much if any fighting back at all. Their movements were extremely slow and because of this, the viciously attacking Pokémon they were doing battle against were tearing through them one after the other.

However, what they apparently lacked in power, the ghouls made up for in their ability to reproduce and increase in number. For each one destroyed, two more seemed to take it's place and this very cycle continued as though to be endless.

Knowing that he couldn't waste anymore time, Ash gestured for his two Pokémon to follow him and then started moving towards Haunter again. He didn't get far though because as he came closer, several of the shadow ghouls slowly arose from the ground and stared at him with blank, glowing red eyes.

Gritting his teeth, Ash came to a stop as Pikachu and Charmander jumped in front of him, ready for battle. Seeing the numbers they were up against, Ash knew he needed help and pulled out another Pokéball.

Calling Gastly out into the fight, he looked up to him quickly. "Gastly, I need you to help me get through these things. They may not seem like much but don't underestimate them, they multiply like crazy!"

The Gastly from Maiden's Peak assessed the situation and just nodded before settling into formation with Pikachu and Charmander. "Let's see what they can do then," He answered with his trademark grin in place.

Ash raised his hand then and commanded, "Pikachu Thunderbolt, Charmander Flamethrower, Gastly Night Shade!" As soon as those words left his lips, his Pokémon sprung into action.

Pikachu released a powerful bolt of electricity, Charmander let loose a hot jet of flames and Gastly's eyes glowed red before a bright beam of similar colored energy shot out of them. All three attacks blasted through the air and impacted with the shadowy specters in front of them, tearing right through the ghoulish foes and impacting the wall far behind them.

Ash quickly took off running the very next moment since he was afraid Haunter would find a lock on his position before he could get close enough. On he ran, as fast as he could towards his objective, no longer bothering to hide. Along the way, several more ghouls started to appear which his three Pokémon quickly attacked and took care of.

However, as Ash drew closer and closer towards Haunter, who was currently being preoccupied with sending it's servants out to fight Giselle and Fuji's Pokémon, the ghouls became increasingly more prevalent number and actually started to show aggression. They had no sort of energy based attacks but Ash could see them starting to fly faster through the air before zooming down at him with their hands extended, obviously meaning to do him harm of some kind.

For his part though, Ash had some extremely persistent protectors who stayed on his six at all times. Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly formed a sort of circle around Ash and lashed out at anything that came even close to him. Something he was thankful for since the ghoul's aggressiveness wasn't the only thing that was changing. He could see them starting to actually physically change until he noticed shadowy claws and sharp teeth become added to their forms. Leaving no more doubt in his mind that they were now most definitely dangerous.

Ash was almost upon Haunter, just mere feet away from the shroud of shadows that surrounded it. Just as he was about to try and enter into the dark void though, a much larger than normal ghoul came charging at him through the air with a deadly gleam in it's eyes, shadow claws extended as it came for him.

Ash stopped and held his hands up in front of him just as Pikachu came jumping in front of him while shouting, "CHUUU!" And launching a bolt of lightning at the incoming enemy which struck it head on and caused it's eyes to bug out before it exploded in a haze of darkness.

Nodding his thanks to Pikachu, Ash ran towards the shadows and just before he reached them he extended his right hand and focused on the mark Arceus had bestowed upon him. Recalling that he just needing to focus on making it appear, Ash scrunched his brow up tightly and grunted with effort just as he passed through the veil of darkness.

The only thing Ash knew from that moment on was the feeling of blackness overtaking his vision, the surpised expression of Haunter's red eyes as it turned it's attention inward to look at the intruder within it's domain and the sudden bright light that accompanied the intricate Star Mark as it appeared on his palm.

After that... he fell into nothingness.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Floating. That was the sensation Ash felt when he awoke. Well, 'awoke' wasn't really the right word. He felt the same feeling he did all the other times things when this odd and very strange experience happened to him. When he opened his eyes, he found that he was indeed floating and not only that, but he was also floating in the exact same strange place that he had every time he accidentally activated his Star Mark in the past.

The only difference between those times before and now though was that he actually knew what was going on and- given how Arceus always teleported him to her own little 'dimensional plain' when she needed to speak with him- his sharp mind made the instant connection that whenever the Star Mark activated, he and the Pokémon he was being connected to were apparently getting transported in an out of body experience to a small pocket dimension similar to the ones that Arceus routinely used.

Looking at the colorful realm around him then, Ash took a moment to admire the usual multitude of bright, wispy colors floating throughout the abnormal space before fixing his gaze forward. What drew his attention so quickly was the sight of a large mass of swirling black shadows stretching far above him just a short distance away with glowing red eyes staring piercingly at him from within the dark shroud.

Ash knew instantly who he was looking at and had undefinable confirmation then and there that the connection had been successful. Taking a second to look Haunter over, Ash could just make out an even darker shade of pitch black energy enveloping the already darkness covered Pokémon. From what Arceus told him of the different colors of energy he would see when he was sent into this pocket dimension created by the Star Mark, he was finally able to tell what they meant. He knew that the colors represented what particular emotion the Pokémon in question was experiencing and he also knew that red was the aura he would see when they were really mad.

What he was seeing now though was an aura color that he remembered Arceus telling him was the worst of all. An energy signature that a Pokémon would become consumed by only when all of their hope, compassion, love and happiness had been ripped away... being replaced by only darkness, hatred and pure desolation. He could still hear her telling him that Pokémon in this state of aura control was all but beyond hope, completely consumed by their pain and hate. By looking at Haunter's pitch black aura, he could now for the first time clearly see just how lost to darkness this poor, broken and miserable Pokémon really was.

Though... instead of feeling hopelessness (call him crazy) Ash instead felt an even stronger sense of desire and need to help Haunter become free of it's long repressive bonds of loneliness and sorrow. To help show it the light and bring a new sense of being and life to it's existence.

Feeling his determination strengthen even more so now than almost any other time before, Ash spoke to Haunter in a loud, clear and firm voice telepathically, reaching out with his emotions towards the Pokémon all the while. "Haunter I-"

Those were the only words he managed to mentally get out however because at the exact same second that his flow of positive emotions came in contact with the wall of black energy surrounding Haunter, he then felt an extremely powerful repulsion of resistance that broke through his own emotions and came hurdling at him like a speeding Pidgeot.

As soon as the dense concentration of negative, resilient emotions hit Ash, he felt everything go black around him followed by the sensation of being sucked backwards. Then, everything went black again...

XXXXXXXXXX

Ash came to as he suddenly found himself being flung through the air across the chamber before hitting one of the large stone pillars, gasping in shock and pain as he did and then falling down to the ground afterwards. Around him, his three Pokémon who were close to the shadows surrounding Haunter when Ash made the connection, had been tossed through the air as well and landed in a heap beside him.

Giselle and Fuji saw what happened and quickly ran to his side while Ash struggled to get up. "Ash!" Giselle shouted fearfully as she reached his side and knelt down next to him. "What happened?! Are you okay?"

The boy just grunted in pain and shifted around a little. "Yeah... yeah I'm fine... are my Pokémon alright?"

Giselle glanced behind her and saw Fuji looking Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly over. They all looked fine, only a little shaken up from the sudden shock of being flung through the air like rag dolls.

Looking back at Ash, she nodded and started to look him over as well. "They're fine Ash... Arceus what happened?"

He sat up fully and took a few deep breaths before answering her, "I made connection with Haunter but I underestimated the strength and intensity of the hatred and pain inside of it. It was like... like a giant wall made of solid steel that was so thick and impenetrable I could even tap at it before I was expelled from the connection. It was insane..."

He stood up fully then, slowly, as he looked forward and saw the shadows surrounding Haunter starting to expand as the Pokémon's eyes glowed redder with even more malice and fury. In a quick outward thrust, the shadows around it seemed to develop a will of their own before exploding outwards in multiple dark energy blasts, the likes of which struck each of Giselle and Fuji's Pokémon and sent them tumbling back across the chamber.

Ash and his two companions watched with worry and fear as the Pokémon cried out in pain upon getting struck head on with the powerful attacks. They tumbled across the room, cratering the floor and smashing through multiple stone pedestals before coming to a stop near Ash and the others. Giselle and Fuji quickly ran to their Pokémon's sides and started checking them over fretfully while Ash leaned against the pillar behind him and looked towards Haunter again.

It was easy to tell from the way Haunter's eyes were narrowed in rage, the way the shadows around it were furiously swirling about and also from how the number of shadow ghouls protecting their master seemed to multiply greatly, that Ash's attempt at reaching Haunter had only angered the Pokémon all that much more.

Clenching his fists in frustration, Ash shook his head. "Damn! This isn't gonna work, we need to try something else..." He looked down at his own Pokémon, who still looked ready to do whatever he commanded at a moment's notice, and then at Giselle and Fuji.

Their Pokémon seemed much more worse for wear than his after getting hit by those powerful energy blasts but he knew they would keep going if their trainers wanted them to do so. Stepping forward, he said calmly, "Listen you two, this is getting a lot more dangerous than I originally thought. You don't have to do anything more, your Pokémon are hurt and I'm sorry for that. I'm going to try something else but neither of you need to help me any further, I'm sorry for bringing this upon you... maybe Agatha was right and this really was a dumb idea..."

Silence reigned for several seconds until Ash felt a hand on his shoulder. Looking up, he saw Fuji smiling down at him. "Ash, I can't tell you how today will turn out. Maybe we will succeed and maybe we won't but whatever happens, I want you to know that this was not a dumb idea. Your compassion and feelings of mercy for Haunter is a good thing which I doubt anyone else, even myself before today, would have shown. Yes things seem bleak right now but things will always seem the darkest before the dawn. Know that I am with you right now through whatever happens."

Giselle took Ash's right hand and smiled warmly at him. "So am I Ash. I'm not going to abandon you. That Pokémon, not creature or monster, needs our help and someone to show it some love. I'll help you do that however I can because I'm with you no matter what."

As soon as those words were said, Giselle and Fuji's Pokémon all came to stand around them and smiled (or at least kindly looked at him for those that couldn't make the proper facial movements to smile like the Ghost-Types) in a reassuring manner. Ash's own Pokémon joined in and looked at their trainer with belief and determination radiating in their eyes.

Ash for his part felt incredibly touched by everyone's sentiments and smiled gratefully at them. "Thank you... all of you. I've said it before but without the people..." He leaned down to rub Charmander and Pikachu's heads while smiling at Gastly. "And Pokémon that care for me and always stand by my side... there's no way I would ever succeed in anything I do."

Turning to look down the chamber at Haunter again, Ash and everyone else stared at the powerful Pokémon with a look in their eyes that clearly spoke of their unwavering intent to do what they came to do. "Haunter!" Ash shouted loudly. "You see this?"

He gestured to his companions and the Pokémon that were gathered around him in a supportive circle. "You've never truly known this, what I have right here beside me. The hope, the love and the compassion of those who care about and love you. The ones who would give their lives for you and do anything you ever needed. You only had a small taste of what this was like years ago but it was taken from you... wasn't it?"

Haunter's veiled visage scrunched up dangerously as Ash continued. "I know what happened to you Haunter... I know the pain you have endured and been forced to live with all of these many years. I know the gift turned curse you were given and I also know about the one and only human you ever loved being taken away from you so ruthlessly..."

At this point, Ash and the others could actually start to see the outline of a gaping maw filled with what looked like pointed teeth appearing underneath the red eyes of Haunter. An angry, hissing sound emitted from within the shadows as Ash's words not only surprised but also enraged Haunter.

"You've become lost and twisted by your fear and hatred and that's why I'm here. To take away your pain and show you the beauty in life again. To end this cycle of hatred you have carried and show you the light! I'm here to help you and I'm not giving up until I do!"

That was the final word Ash managed to get out of his mouth before Haunter finally snapped and lost all control of itself. Letting loose a primal sounding wail, several beams of dark energy shot out of the shadow veil and arced through the air towards the humans. At the same time, many of the shadow ghouls also began flying towards Ash and the others.

Quick to take evasive action, Ash yelled out, "MOVE!" And then took off running to the side just as one of the beams impacted the ground where he had just stood and exploded. This became the main tactic of escape used by all of them as Ash, Fuji, Giselle and their Pokémon ran and hid at every turn they could while each blast of energy would hit a target and destroy it. Rocking the entire chamber with the sounds of explosion and destruction.

As they ran and were trying to seek shelter, the puppet shadow creatures Haunter had created also tried to swarm them in large groups at some of the most unexpected moments. A group of three went for Giselle, who was already preoccupied with four others that were attacking her and her Pokémon. Ash saw this and shouted at his Pokémon, "Pikachu, Charmander, stop those three!"

The Electric and Fire-Type ran forward and jumped in front of the ghouls, who instantly started to attack them. Pikachu jumped and hopped from side to see and front to front back as one of the creatures tried to strike him with it's claws. Charmander was doing the same with his own enemy while the third one was preparing to take either Pikachu or Charmander by surprise.

Gastly saw this however and flew at the remaining ghoul before releasing a Shadow Ball at it, which struck the intended target head on and forced it to explode into nothing. Just then, Pikachu flipped in the air and brought an Iron Tail down on it's own ghoul and Charmander unleashed a powerful Dragon Rage at his, both attacks taking out their foes in seconds.

One thing that none of them were ready for though was the wayward dark energy blast that came zeroing in on them before Ash could even make an attempt to warn them. The next moment, the blast hit the ground in front of Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly and launched them into the air as they cried out in pain.

Ash ran forward after having taken cover from the blast and slid to his Pokémon's side to see Pikachu and Charmander with burn and scuff marks covering their bodies while Gastly tried desperately to keep himself from falling to the ground. "Pikachu, Charmander, Gastly, are you okay?!" He shouted in worry as they shook from the pain their bodies now felt

Pikachu and Charmander just nodded as they slowly stood back up and Gastly eventually righted itself in the air. Ash heard commotion going on around him and looked to see Giselle and Fuji getting pushed back towards him with their own Pokémon, who were being rapidly overcome by the large numbers of vicious shadow ghouls fighting them.

Ash stood up and got back to back with the two of them just as Fuji commanded his Duskull to use a rapid fire Shadow Ball on a thick line of ghouls that were closing in on them. Knowing that they needed to do something else since they were never going to be able to beat the nearly endless supply of shadow ghouls that were being created by Haunter's seemingly limitless energy, he spoke aloud to all of them.

"Guys, we need to switch things up! There's no way we're gonna win this way!" A shadow ghoul then came charging at Ash but Gastly flew forward and met it head on with a Shadow Ball poised to destroy it, which he did. The unique Ghost-Type then called on some of his own reserves of powerful Ghost/Psychic-Type energy as his eyes began glowing bright blue.

Determined to do what he could for his trainer, Gastly charged forward cloaked in a shroud of blue energy before engaging dozens of the shadow ghouls at one time, cutting a swath through them with his powerful mixture of Ghost and Psychic moves.

Ash felt pride and gratitude for his Pokémon but he knew Gastly would only be able to keep up such draining, all out combat for a limited amount of time. Fuji finally spoke after having witnessed Gastly's actions himself, "I know Ash, I'm seeing that myself! They're going to keep coming until Haunter stops creating them, that's the only way this will stop!"

"But the only way to do that-" Giselle began before stopping to have Graveller toss a broken piece of a stone pedestal at a group of ghouls. "Is to get Ash close enough to Haunter to make a connection again and hope he can actually reach it this time! Way easier said than done!"

Ash, feeling desperate, looked ahead to the far end of the chamber where Haunter was at and saw nothing but a sea of ghouls in their way. Coming to a sudden, possibly insane conclusion, he shouted loudly over the sounds of battle, "I think I've got an idea! Call all of your Pokémon back to us!"

Giselle looked at him like he had lost his mind. "What?! Ash are you crazy!"

He just shook his head. "Listen to me! Fighting them separately like this we're powerless and will lose but together, I think we stand a chance. If we can make a push forward with all of our Pokémon fighting together then maybe we can reach Haunter so I can try to make another connection!"

Fuji answered almost immediately, "That sounds like the best plan we have right now, let's do it!"

Giselle just shook her own head in disbelief but agreed. "Alright fine, we'll try it!"

Ash held his hand up. "On my go, call our Pokémon in! After that, we'll immediately have them start putting all of their power into going forward!" The other two nodded and waited until just the right moment to put Ash's strategy into action.

During a small pause in the number of attacks being fired off, Ash called out, "Go! Pikachu, Charmander, Gastly, to me!" Fuji and Giselle did the same for their own Pokémon and even though confusion was clearly seen on all of their faces, they did as commanded and quickly fell back to their trainer's sides.

As soon as they were all gathered together in a group, Ash took point and pointed towards Haunter before shouting again, "I want you all to put every bit of power you have into pushing forward towards Haunter! Right now!"

Giselle addressed her own Pokémon. "The same with you two Graveller and Marowak, go help Ash's Pokémon!"

Fuji quickly followed suit, "Alright my friends, I want you three to give it one final push! Help our friends, fight together with them as a team!"

Like dominos falling into place, the three sets of Pokémon obeyed their trainers and formed a single, strong line and then exploded forward with attacks blazing as Ash, Giselle and Fuji called out, "NOW!"

The shadow ghouls weren't prepared for the sudden unified front of so many Pokémon fighting together in almost perfect tandom and because of this, as the valiantly fighting Pokémon pushed forward with all of their might, a path started to cut itself slowly towards Hauner as ghoul after ghoul was destroyed by the all out assault.

Ash could tell Haunter was surprised at the sudden turn of events by the way it started making more and more of it's puppets at rapid speeds. Seeing that they were almost there, Ash gave a final burst of encouragement to their Pokémon, "Come on you guys I know you can do it! We're almost there, I need you to fight and give it everything you've got! Don't give up now or ever! COME ON! GIVE IT EVERY BIT OF POWER YOU CAN!"

With Giselle and Fuji shouting their own words of encouragement to their Pokémon, it proved to be the final push they needed as, with Gastly's glowing blue form leading the way and Pikachu and Charmander at his sides, the powerful force of Pokémon made a final shove forward. Unleashing all of their most powerful attacks at one time which joined together in a huge, brightly glowing, incredible combination beam of raw energy, Ash and the others watched in fascination as the mega-powerful attack slammed into the final line of ghouls and blew them into oblivion in an explosion which rocked the entire massive room.

Seeing a small opening in the virtual sea of shadow ghouls after the cloud of smoke began to fade, Ash didn't even need to wait for the shove and shouts of Giselle and Fuji yelling, "NOW ASH!" Before he was running towards Haunter at a full out sprint.

Time seemed to slow down as Ash ran, pumping his arms and breathing heavily as adrenaline coursed through him. Some of the ghouls tried to attack him but Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly trailed behind Ash, lighting up the area around him with the varying types of light from their individual attacks.

Ash could hear the cries of effort being given off by his Pokémon as they protected him with every bit of energy they had left in their bodies. He could feel the debree and pieces of rubble spraying on him and hitting his face as the attacks of his Pokémon tore through their enemies and impacted with the ground. He could even practically hear the blood rushing in his ears as the adrenaline spiking through his body screamed at him to run and not stop.

He paid no mind to any of it though. Ash's eyes remained locked on Haunter's own glowing red ones. It didn't matter if every ghoul in the chamber converged on him at one time, he had the thousand yard stare focused on his goal and he wasn't stopping until he reached it.

Knowing it was in trouble, Haunter fired an energy blast at Ash which zoomed right towards him in a shroud of dark malevolence. Ash saw it but refused to slow down and then, just before it could hit him, Gastly flew in front of him and channeled all of his energy into forming a blue shield of energy in front of them which the blast hit instead.

Unfortunately, Gastly underestimated the power of the attack and therefor was taken by suprise as the energy blast belonging to Haunter and the shield of his own energy finally came to a head and exploded, Gastly getting shot backwards across the room as a result of said explosion.

Ash himself was right behind Gastly when it happened and because of this, he was lifted off his feet and launched up into the air by the force of the explosion. Luckily enough for him though, he was sent airborne towards, instead of away, from Haunter and took advantage of the unexpected stroke of good fortune.

Extending his arms forward, Ash flew like an arrow towards the now wide eyed Haunter and- with a look of pure grit and ferocious intent upon his face- shouted loudly, "NYAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Before breaking through into the shroud of shadows, his right hand glowing brightly as the connection he was determined to make thankfully took hold.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash opened his eyes just seconds after his world went black and was greeted to the sight that he had been hoping he would see when he came to once more. Which was that he was now suspended yet again in the dimensional realm of the Star Mark.

Looking forward, his eyes landed upon Haunter and, learning from his earlier failure, didn't play around or waste any time as he sent a powerful burst of strong emotions straight at the darkness engulfed Pokémon.

"I'm not letting you kick me out so easily this time Haunter!" Ash shouted in his mind across the telepathic link to the much larger being across from him. "I want to help you Haunter, why won't you let me?!"

He could feel Haunter countering his charge of positive emotions with a blast of harsh, negative ones but unlike before, Ash was prepared and steeled himself before pushing right back with another burst of compassionate feelings. "What are you so afraid of huh?! Are you so terrified of opening yourself up to others again that you hide yourself away behind this cloud of darkness and hate, bringing pain and misery to anyone you can?!"

Haunter's eyes glowed with malice as the black aura around it became stronger and more focused. Ash wasn't fazed though and remained calm as he continued to feed a constant stream of positive feelings, happy emotions and calming sensations at Haunter to combat it's fierce attempts at severing the connection. Little by little, he kept hammering away at the seemingly impenetrable wall of hate and darkness Haunter hid itself behind. He further strengthened his efforts by telepathically calling out to the corrupted Ghost-Type again.

"Is this honestly the way you want to be? I know who you are Haunter and I know what you were meant to do. Arceus gave you a gift that you tried to use to help people but all you ever got in return was pain as you witnessed evil actions and bad things being done between people and Pokémon your entire life. You started to lose your hope and became desolate and bitter until you met that kind old woman who showed you love and compassion for the first time in your life."

At those words, Ash felt the strongest wave of anger and ferocity yet as Haunter tried to break the connection with all it's might but Ash merely grit his teeth and held on, staying strong as he kept trying to connect with Haunter's heart. To his great suprise though, even as Haunter lashed out at him with fierce fury and malicious intent, he could detect the faintest... very slightest hint... of a falter in the Pokémon's emotions and the black aura surrounding it. Knowing that he had struck a chord somewhere deep within Haunter's most repressed memories and hidden feelings, he pressed on.

"She loved you Haunter and do you know what I think? I think you loved her as well. For the first time in your life you were actually happy but all of that changed when those humans from that town took her from you didn't it? When they thought you were a monster and came to her demanding that she hand you over. But she didn't did she? She didn't because her love for you was greater than any fear she felt at what those people, the true monsters, would do to her."

Sensing yet another falter, this time a little stronger, buried within the depths of the powerful waves of anger and hatred Haunter was pushing back at Ash with, the boy capitalized on it and shoved back hard with a staggering wave of compassion and sympathy... all for Haunter itself and the terrible things it had been forced to endure. Ash was at this point pouring his heart out to the Pokémon as he tried to reach it's heart and share all the kindness and pity he held for it.

"They killed her Haunter, in one of the worst ways imaginable and you lost all sense of self at that time. You became lost to your anger, your rage and the soul shattering sorrow at losing someone you cared so much for. You had all but tied your very existence and happiness to that old woman and when you lost her to such an act of blind ignorance and foolishness from people who understood nothing about you, everything you were became nothing more than a faded memory. It wasn't just the loss of her but also the culmination of every bad, horrible thing you saw over the years that finally overflowed to a point that you just couldn't handle it anymore. You lost your way and then you actually became the monster that everyone believed you to be."

Ash's eyes glistened with the raw emotions he was currently feeling. The sorrow, the sympathy and even some anger he himself felt at the humans who made Haunter the way it was now, boiling over the surface. "You gave into your hate then didn't you? You took your vengeance out on those people even though you knew, as much as they deserved it, she would have never wanted you to give into such darkness. But you did and afterwards, instead of feeling better, all you felt was the gaping wound of sadness and sorrow for the loss of your friend and companion. You felt no better, taking all of those lives and wiping out that town did no good for you. On top of everything else, you then felt guilt and disgust at yourself for doing what you knew she would have disapproved so greatly of. After that day you lived in shame by believing that if she were still alive, she would be disgusted by what you had become."

Ash felt yet another wave of anger wash over him but this time, he could clearly detect other emotions within the swirling cloud of shadows besides just hate and malice. He couldn't tell exactly what they were yet but he was going to find out and just kept pushing forward with all the love and strength he had in his heart.

"Because of how you felt Haunter, because of the disgust you felt with yourself, you completely lost your way. With no one left in your life to give you purpose you allowed yourself to become swallowed up by the anger, the hate, the bitterness and the self loathing you felt. You became what you are now as a way to live with the shattered and broken pieces of your soul that once made you who you were. Over the years you have killed, tortured and stolen the very souls of people, even innocent people, because of who you have allowed yourself to become."

Ash pointed a finger at the mass of shadows before him. "That old woman would be ashamed of you and who you are now Haunter but it is not too late to change! You still live and breath and due to that, you have every ability possible to atone for the things you have done and change for the better Haunter! This isn't how you have to be, you don't have to be alone and live inside of your fear and desolation anymore! There's a whole world full of happiness, love and compassion that you know nothing about and that's why I came here! Even though you tried to kill me and take my life force to free yourself I still came here and put mine, my Pokémon and my friend's lives in danger because I believe in you! I believe deep within my heart that you can be saved from this darkness because I know... I KNOW that no Pokémon is truly evil at heart!"

Ash leaned forward and all but shouted through the mental connection as his heart hammered itself at Haunter, doing everything it could to connect with the other much more fragile and grief stricken one. "Aren't you tired of this Haunter?! Are you not sick of being this way?! Do you not loath this feeling of never ending pain and loneliness that you live with every single day?! No one wants to live in the darkness Haunter and despite those shadows you surround yourself with, I know you don't either!"

It was like a climactic finish was being drawn to as Haunter's eyes remained locked onto Ash. It was still trying to push back against him as the black aura and the shadows of it's despair desperately tried to hang on. For the first time in more years than it could possibly count, Haunter was starting to lose control of itself and it's own emotions. Feelings, memories and sensations it hadn't felt in so long began rushing to the surface as they warred with the darkness and hatred that had come to encompass Haunter's very being.

Ash could feel all of this happening through the connection and became lost himself to the moment of what was happening. He could feel the conflict beginning to arise within Haunter as, to his amazement, the black aura surrounding the Pokémon started to war heatedly with the wispy red colorings of a new energy that was now trying to overcome it. Even the shadows around Haunter began to fluctuate wildly and shift as some great internal struggle was beginning to take place inside of the veil of darkness.

Ash's eyes started to glow a bright white color as the good, calm, peaceful aura of clear white around him began to pulsate and glow, desperately wanting to rid the black aura around Haunter away from the dimensional plain they were currently within. Wanting to completely destroy it once and for all if possible. As was the nature between the two polar opposite emotional energy auras of black and white.

Ash, who by now was himself becoming possessed by the pure energy around him, grew rapidly obsessed and developed a hunger for seeing the blackness repressing Haunter being gone for good. Because he could see the dark, negative energy battling and struggling to remain even as a new color of aura tried to take hold, Ash felt like a predator to prey as he built up the greatest amount of compassionate feelings he had yet so far in preparation for the last push. The final attempt at reaching Haunter's heart and making the connection which would free it from the all consuming, soul destroying black aura that had ruled it's life for so long.

Just as Ash felt Haunter's internal struggle reach it's climax- the red eyes of the Pokémon squinting in pain as the black aura around it tried with all of it's might to wrestle control back from the red one that was so viciously attempting to gain dominance- he released all of his built up positive emotions in an overwhelming flood straight at Haunter. A white vortex of pure energy being pushed at the powerful Ghost-Type like a tidal wave as Ash screamed, "Haunter... FREE YOURSELF OF THOSE SHADOWS NOW!"

A loud, high pitched wailing sound could be heard the next instant as Haunter's red eyes snapped open fully and a white flashbang of energy completely consumed everything around them both. Ash felt himself being jerked out of the connection then while still hearing the loud wailing scream echoing within his mind even as everything went totally black.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"Ahhh!" Ash cried out as he was sent spinning out of the shadows and through the chamber while on the floor, his back getting rubbed raw by the hard stone beneath due to the sheer speeds he was traveling at.

Eventually his harsh tumble on the ground came to an end as he rebounded off of a smashed stone pedestal and flew through the air before hitting the ground again and letting out a loud huff that sounded more like a sharp gasp of pain than anything else.

Rolling over onto his side after regaining the breath that had been stolen from him, Ash looked around with eyes that were still a little blurry from the unexpected nasty tumble and saw Fuji, Giselle and all of their Pokémon standing in place with their eyes locked onto something that was apparently giving them an extremely unexpected shock if the expressions on their faces was anything to go by.

Turning around until he was laying on his back, Ash's own eyes widened at what he saw. The reason for all of the dumbfounded amazement was due to Haunter itself, or more accurately, the shroud of shadows that were covering it.

The dark shadows were currently twisting and writhing in a way that almost resembled anger around the Pokémon they concealed. Life seemed to have been bestowed upon them, bringing the darkness to life, as they bubbled and swirled viciously in a dangerously unstable way.

Ash slowly got to his feet as he saw Haunter struggle within the darkness. He could tell the Pokémon was fighting by the way it's red eyes would squint and even occasionally open wide in an expression that looked like immense pain. Though he couldn't see it's full form, Ash could just imagine that Haunter's entire body was most likely convulsing in pure agony by the expression he could see in it's eyes.

Just as he finally regained his footing, the boy had to clamp his hands over his ears and cringe as a loud, shrill wailing sound that resembled that of a hundred people screaming, started to resonate through the shadows and filled the chamber in a frequency that sounded like it could bust eardrums and shatter glass.

Fuji, Giselle and the Pokémon all mimicked Ash and covered their own ears as best as they could as the wailing grew louder and louder. Through his own now squinted eyes, Ash could see the unstable shadows around Haunter building up to an insanely large mass while still churning violently in uncontrolled fury.

Somehow, he just knew that Haunter was not in control of what was currently happening to it and, due to the terror inducing sight of the out of control darkness coming alive before his very eyes, Ash had a sinking feeling in his gut that something bad was about to happen. A suspicion that was proven correct the very next moment when he saw the shadows around Haunter begin to pulse and contract in and out rapidly, like a heart pumping much too quickly to be safe.

Listening to his instincts, Ash turned around and started running towards the others while waving his hand and shouting, "Get cover now everybody!"

Not needing to ask questions since they were apparently feeling the same endangering sixth sense as him, Giselle, Fuji and the Pokémon all ran for cover behind the nearest stone pillars they could find that wasn't broken and then braced for the impact of whatever destructive force was about to be unleashed.

Ash himself ran towards one of the larger pillars in the room and didn't even break stride as he scooped up Pikachu and Charmander and kept running, Gastly following right above him.

The four of them had just managed to jump behind their chosen barrier of protection as the proverbial 'keg' finally exploded.

Ash and everyone else felt their bodies getting sucked forward like a vacuum was pulling them in, only to be stopped by the pillars they were sheltering behind. Then, no sooner did the suction feeling stopped and loud ringing sound mixed with Haunter's own ghostly wailing reached an ear splitting apex. Giving no sign or signal beforehand, an earth shattering explosion rocked the entire chamber as well as the tower itself, the aftershocks of which were felt all throughout the town outside. A blinding light accompanied the eruption as the sealing room was all but reduced to utter rubble and ruin.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Outside of the sealing chamber, Agatha, Misty and Brock were still fighting Gastly, Haunter and Gengar when they heard and felt the massive explosion that rocked the entire tower to it's very foundations.

The younger two of the three fell completely to the ground because of the explosion right as they were engaged in a double battle with Gastly and Haunter. Agatha managed to stay up but stumbled back into one of the pillars near the door that lead into the sealing chamber Ash the others were currently in.

As the intense shaking and aftershocks of the explosion rumbled wildly throughout the catacombs and effectively ceased the fighting between Onix, Starmie, Agatha's Gengar and Haunter's three ghostly servants, Misty looked around while still on the ground and yelled over the loud noise, "What's happening?!"

Brock tried to stand up but was forced back to his knees by the shaking. "It's probably coming from in there!" The teen responded as he pointed to the sealing chamber.

When the shaking finally came to an end, Agatha saw their three ghostly opponents just staring towards the room Brock had just mentioned. Narrowing her eyes questioningly, her suspicion quickly turned to worry as fear could be seen lighting itself within the eyes of the three Ghost-Types before they hastily retreated back into the shadows of the large chamber room and vanished through the walls.

Agatha felt a bad sensation like a heavy rock sinking into her stomach as she saw this and promptly turned to Ash's friends before shouting, "We need to get in that room now!"

Running towards the sealed up door as fast as her aged body could take her, Misty and Brock looked at each other with shared expressions of confusion etched onto their faces but decided to just follow Agatha's lead after hearing the urgency in her voice. Returning their Pokémon since the danger seemed to have passed for the moment, they got up and ran to join her just as the older woman started to have her Gengar attack the door with a barrage of different attacks.

"Agatha's what's going on?!" Brock questioned in total bewilderment as he and Misty arrived at her side.

Agatha refused to take her eyes off the door as she simply answered in a grave tone, "I don't know but I have a feeling that something of great importance just happened and I want to be there in case they need our help. More power Gengar!"

As the high-level Ghost-Type turned up the power in the Night Shade it was using to try and blast the door down, Misty clenched her hands together tightly and gazed at the barrier separating them from the others. Her eyes wavered with the intensity of the worry and anxiety she was currently feeling for one person who was inside in particular as she said in all but a whisper.

"Ash..."

XXXXXXXXXXXX

A thick haze of smoke and the smell of sulfur was the only thing left behind after the mega explosion finally passed and the aftershocks caused by the mini-earthquake slowly abated.

Ash brought his face back up from where it had been buried within the front of his tracksuit and the first thing he did was try and clear his vision so he could see through the white fog of smoke swirling through the air. Looking down, he could just see Pikachu's bright yellow fur and Charmander's tail flame from where the two Pokémon were cradled safely in his arms and just to his side, he could just make out the wispy spectral energy embers that made up Gastly's body.

Coughing as he breathed in the dust and thick smoke that had been kicked up, he managed to wheeze, "G-Giselle... M-Mr. Fuji!" He coughed again. "Are you both alright?!"

He could hear shuffling on both sides of him just a few feet away before the voice of Giselle responded back, "Y-Yeah... yeah I'm fine Ash! Me and my Pokémon are a little..." She coughed herself. "Shaken up but we're alright!"

Fuji's voice came from the opposite direction, though it sounded much more wheezy. "We're okay young man don't worry about us... are you okay?"

Ash replied, "Yeah we're fine. I don't know exactly what happened but everything's fine here." He looked down at his Pokémon. "Right guys?"

Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly nodded in response, the former two climbing out of his arms as Gastly raised himself back into the air slowly. "What was that fool of a Pokémon thinking?! It just destroyed itself!"

Ash stood up and looked around the chamber as visibility started returning slightly, the chalky-like smoke escaping through several holes that had been punched into the walls around the stone room due to the explosion. Fuji and Giselle could also finally be seen as they stood up from behind the now destroyed pillars they had been hiding behind, the two of them and their Pokémon appearing to be fine while they regained their bearings.

Ash slowly scanned the chamber and was taken aback by the pure devastation that had been wrought caused by the blast. Almost all of the stone pillars were now nothing more than hunks of rubble on the ground, the ceiling was chipped and cracked in places, the floor was cratered in several places and the walls had holes in them. Some small and others quite large.

Unable to see the shadow shrouded visage of Haunter near the front of the chamber even now that the smoke had all but totally cleared, Ash felt a sinking feeling of despair and guilt drop upon him like a mass of heavy rocks as he reached out to lean on the partially destroyed pillar in front of him. His head dropped and his shoulders sagged, saying in a voice that revealed the immense feeling of failure he was experiencing at that moment, "I failed it... I couldn't help Haunter... it's gone..."

Giselle walked over to Ash and placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder. "Ash it's not-" She was suddenly cut off though by Fuji pointing and shouting, "Look!"

Ash and Giselle both whipped their heads around to stare at the front of the room where Fuji was pointing and their eyes almost bugged out at what they saw. Giselle due to her shock and Ash for multiple reasons. The first was shock, the second disbelief and the third was a sense of relief that he hadn't failed after all.

As they watched, a small, black glowing circle which was in the same spot as Haunter had been in before the explosion started to expand and grow until it was steadily increasing in size and shape. With Ash and everyone else's attention completely ensnared, the black circle grew until it was almost triple the size it started out as.

The odd object then began filling in at it's center until a pool of black swirling energy could be seen inside of the circle like a large wall mirror. The object just continued to grow and grow until after only a few minutes, the entire thing was the size, both height and width wise, of the shadow veil that had surrounded Haunter.

Ash felt like he wasn't going to drop over from the sheer shock of it all when, the very next moment, the now very large portal of black energy started to shape and take form. With breath held and not a single soul blinking for fear of missing the spectacle before their very eyes, the shapeless mass of energy slowly took form into the appearance of an actual creature... one in which all Pokémon Trainers in the chamber was eventually able to recognize.

Once the slow transformation had ended, in place of the shapeless energy was now the massive... massive form of a truly incredible, awe inspiring and imposing Pokémon. A Pokémon which, even though it's general appearance differed greatly from that of the others in it's species, could be clearly identified with no doubt whatsoever. Especially for Ash, who had already seen what this particular Pokémon looked like in the memories Arceus had shown him. The very appearance it once wore before the veil of shadows consumed and concealed it away, hiding the Pokémon behind an eternal mask of darkness.

Ash could only find one word able to leave his lips as he stared upon the true appearance of the stricken and cursed being before him. "Haunter..."

And indeed it was. Words could truly not describe the monstrous, overwhelming appearance of the mighty Ghost-Type now fully revealed to all of their eyes in it's impressive, finally unveiled glory.

Ash, for his part, could only stare in total awe at the immense size and unrivaled dark majesty that was Haunter, no longer hidden away behind the shadows that had concealed it for so many countless years. To him, seeing the legendary Ghost-Type titan revealed before his very eyes was like nothing Arceus' own mental images of it could have ever done justice.

In all truth, while Haunter had the same coloring of any normal Haunter, that was where the similarities ended. Not only was it multiple times the size of any normal Haunter but it's physical appearance also differed a bit from it's kin. This being due to the slightly... 'spikier' look that the Pokémon's still somewhat gaseous body possessed. This meaning that Haunter's entire large body was raised up on end at certain places that quite strikingly resembled purple spikes sticking out of it. Even at the top of it's head, which ironically enough almost resembled horns. Also, unlike normal Haunter that just had black slits for eyes, Black Fog actually had whole pupils which were dark red.

Ash's stupor while staring at Haunter was broken when he heard Giselle and Fuji speak, the former being first. "That... that thing is huge! It's like a Haunter on steroids!"

Fuji merely shook his head in awe as he whispered breathlessly, "By Arceus I never would have known... incredible..."

Everything was strangely quiet and peaceful for a short time as Ash and the others simply stared at Haunter while the Pokémon in question looked itself over slowly. Even though Ash wasn't connected to it right now, he could still feel the warring, unsettled emotions tearing through Haunter's very being as it struggled to come to grips with the rush of new emotions and feelings that were now that it had locked away for years.

The boy could feel Haunter's borderline panic at being revealed to the outside world for the first time in so long and it was this that started to worry Ash. He knew just how dangerous and unpredictable a confused, conflicted and scared Pokémon could be and, given all of the many unsettled emotions he just knew was going through Haunter's head right now, he began to fear that it would lash out negatively in it's uncertainty.

Damn to hell all of his gut feelings because he was proven to be right the next instant.

Haunter, who was visibly beginning to lose it's composure, started thrashing around as he it gripped at it's head. Ash didn't exactly know how but he could tell that the Pokémon was still battling fiercely with itself in some kind of internal struggle that was no doubt due to it's release from the constricting grip of the darkness that held it for so long. Simply put, Haunter was on an emotional and mental overload at present and was unable to deal with it all at one time.

Ash stepped forward then and called out to the suffering Pokémon, "Haunter listen to me! You have to calm your mind down! You're going through too much at one time and you're not used to this! Just calm down a little and let me help you, I can-"

He was unable to get anything else out as Haunter's body started to glow with an outline of purple energy before a large ball of black energy, which looked more like a mega Shadow Ball, began forming in it's hands.

Screeching loudly, Haunter launched the ball of powerful, condensed energy straight at the group of trainers and their Pokémon. Ash was the one in the direct line of fire and he was quick to jump out of the way of danger just before it hit the spot he had been it and exploded.

Ash, as well as the others, were completely taken by surprise at the sheer power of the attack as the aftershock of the energy ball was enough to launch them all off their feet and a few yards back.

Ash grunted as he stood up slowly only to see Haunter continuing to thrash around wildly as it gripped at it's head. Holding his arm, Ash yelled, "Guys watch out, Haunter's out of control! Move!"

Just as he said that, another large ball of dark energy was sent careening at them and forced them all to flee once more. This became much worse as Haunter started firing off rapid Shadow Balls all around the room at different locations, randomly hitting and destroying anything they came into contact with.

None of them had a chance to catch their breaths before Haunter started on yet another barrage of devasting attacks. This time though, it's eyes glowed red before Haunter unleashed a massive beam of Night Shade that it used to sweep all across the room.

Ash and the others were forced to drop to the ground and stay low as the beams passed over their heads. Looking up a little, Ash yelled again, "I need to get to Haunter and establish another connection with it in order to calm it down, we're gonna have to fight back!"

Fuji nodded from where he was sitting against a tall pile of rubble, his Pokémon sheltering around him. "We'll have to do it together Ash! None of our Pokémon can take Haunter on by themselves!"

Giselle shouted over to them from her own position behind a large unbroken pillar with her own Pokémon, "Just give us a signal!"

Ash nodded and then looked up from his hiding place just long enough to see that Haunter had temporarily stopped attacking and was now just thrashing back and forth wildly. Looking down at his Pokémon, he gave them the signal before getting ready. Mentally counting down, he gestured with his hands towards Fuji and Giselle before jumping up and shouting, "Now!"

In almost perfect unison, they all shot up with their Pokémon and shouted a command to each of them. The eight Pokémon quickly charged forwards and stopped in the center of the room before unleashing electricity, fire, rocks and ghostly energy at the much larger Pokémon.

Haunter's eyes snapped open at the last minute though and when they did, it's eyes were shone to be glowing a bright, angry red. Just before the attacks could make contact, Haunter raised an arm and caused a bubble of what, shockingly enough, appeared to be psychic energy around it.

All of the attacks hit the barrier of energy and then rebounded off of it, surging right back towards the Pokémon whom created them. The attacks were propelled at blurring speeds and this meant that none of the trained Pokémon had any chance to react before they were struck with their own attacks and sent rocketing back across the room, mutiple cries of pain being heard in the process.

Ash ran out to check on his Pokémon and upon seeing that they were okay, pointed towards Haunter again and ordered them to attack separately in hopes of confusing it. Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly took off towards Haunter again with Gastly going first.

Closing with it, Gastly began moving in multiple directions as he fired mutiple Shadow Balls at Haunter. The more powerful of the two Ghost-Types just raised it's right arm however and let all of the energy balls slam into it harmlessly before forming a much larger Shadow Ball in the same hand, which it fired at Gastly.

Gastly had no chance to react and was struck with the energy ball, getting blasted back across the chamber afterwards. Charmander was running frontways at Haunter, expelling a strong blast of flames to which Haunter merely intercepted them with a powerful beam of Night Shade that blasted through the fire and blew Charmander away.

Pikachu and Giselle's Graveller ran side by side with Marowak sneaking up on Haunter from the side, providing support since none of it's attacks would actually effect the Ghost-Type.

Ash's Pokémon jumped on top of Graveller and then sprung off of it while unleashing a bolt of electricity at the massive Pokémon. Graveller just stayed where it was and stomped it's foot into the ground and popped several large chunks of rubble into it's hands which it chucked at Haunter, one after the other.

Haunter's eyes glowed the next moment and Pikachu's electric bolt stopped in mid-air before redirecting itself back at the incoming rocks hurdling towards the Ghost-Type. The powerful bolt of electric energy smashed through every chunk of rock before impacting with Graveller. Since it was one of Pikachu's electric attacks and he could implement Focus Lightning into them, which enabled his Electric-Type attacks able to cause damage to both Rock and Ground Pokémon, Graveller cried out in intense pain as the bolt shocked through it like a drill was digging down into it's rocky surface.

Haunter then extended it's right arm until it was nearly ten times the size of usual and swung it down at Pikachu, who was far too small to hope to dodge something so large and was hit head on by the powerful swing. The Electric-Type was then flung across the room and smashed into the far wall hard enough to crater it before falling to the ground.

As painful as it clearly looked to be though, Pikachu was visibly pissed off as his face scrunched up in anger and he growled under his breath, his cheeks sparking while he tried to get back up.

Meanwhile, Fuji's three Ghost-Types were closing in on Haunter with their own attacks readied for use. Just as Haunter turned his attention to them though, Marowak jumped out from behind a pile of rubble and started wacking rocks at the Pokémon with his bone club.

Haunter just looked down at the small, puny projectiles coming at it and extended it's left arm at them, which expanded similar to a rubber band and smashed through the rocks like a hammer. The hand further continued on towards Marowak who jumped out of the way. Just as it landed through, one of Haunter's fingers extended and quite literally flicked the Ground-Type away towards Giselle, who ran after her Pokémon.

This provided all the distraction Fuji's Pokémon needed though as they quickly formed a circle around Haunter and then launched a tri-Night Shade at it. Surprisingly enough, the attacks actually hit Haunter and lit the Pokémon up in a bright red glow of powerful ghostly energy.

However, to everyone observing's great shock, instead of Haunter recoiling in pain like they expected, it merely shifted it's glowing red gaze fiercely upon the three Pokémon attacking it and then opened it's mouth in a vicious grin. Ash knew something bad was about to happen but before he could warn Fuji to call his Pokémon back, Haunter started to cringe inward on itself with it's hands in front of it's body.

At first, a few of them thought that Haunter was finally starting to feel the effects of the triple Night Shade all hitting it at once but then a blue pulsing aura started to form around Haunter that was visible even through the red glow of the Night Shade. Looking up at it's opponents then, the unstable and out of mind Pokémon expanded it's body outwards and unleashed what was revealed to be a massive amount of psychic power which spread outward like a dome and competely broke through the beams of energy attempting to subdue it.

The rapidly moving dome of pure power quickly swept Fuji's Pokémon up in it before doing the same thing to some of the other Pokémon that were nearby like Graveller, Charmander and Gastly. The trainers of said Pokémon could only watch in fear as their Pokémon were electrocuted, burned and internally tortured by the brutal burst of energy.

After several agonizingly slow minutes of complete punishment, the energy dome finally exploded and sent the Pokémon caught in it to all different directions of the chamber. Giselle ran in a panic towards her Graveller while Fuji went to collect his own Pokémon. Ash made to run for his own Pokémon but, to even his surprise, Charmander and Gastly started trying to get back up.

Stopping in his tracks, Ash watched as his two burned, scratched and bruise covered Pokémon fought to get up. Pikachu limped his way out from behind a large pile of rubble with his eyes all
but boring an angry hole into Haunter.

Ash stood there not knowing exactly how to precede as his battered Pokémon formed a line with each other and prepared to take on Haunter once more. Looking at them worriedly, he asked, "Are you guys sure you want to keep on? You've really taken a beating."

His Pokémon just looked at him, all of them with a fierce expression on their faces and a fire in their eyes as they nodded. Gastly looked back at Haunter and narrowed his eyes. "I'm done playing around, it's time to get serious!"

Pikachu and Charmander both nodded their affirmation as they took fighting positions beside of Gastly. Feeling emboldened by his Pokémon's dedication and spirit, Ash nodded and clenched his fists, "Alright then fight as hard as you can! Show Haunter what you can do!"

The three of them just gave a return nod and then took off at Haunter in unison. The large Ghost-Type merely looked at them with vague amusement as Gastly spun in the air before poofing into existence a cannon, which he used to shoot at the other Ghost Pokémon.

Pikachu ran towards Haunter as the Ghost-Type batted away the cannon ball fired at it and as he did this, Charmander was getting rocketed through the air by Gastly, who had conjured up a slingshot illusion and shot the Fire-Type out of it.

The two smaller Pokémon rapidly closed with Haunter while Gastly made several illusionary copies of himself that he had swarm Haunter alongside of his teammates. The multiple clones of Gastly all started firing round after round of powerful Shadow Balls at the powerful Pokémon while others used Night Shade, Confuse Ray and Curse. Even though Gastly was a Ghost-Type like Haunter, he was luckily powerful enough that his attacks would hopefully have at least some damaging effect on the other Pokémon.

Meanwhile, Charmander and Pikachu also closed in on Haunter and released jets of flame and bolts of thunder, respectively, at it which joined in with Gastly's own barrage of attacks.

Haunter seemed to be almost taunting them as it stayed in one place and waited patiently for the right moment to swat the attacks away in order to prove that they were nothing against it's might. However, Haunter wasn't planning on Fuji having snuck up on it though and as the older man jumped up from behind a pile of broken pillars and shouted, "Haunter look here!" The Ghost-Type turned it's head for a split second just to see a glowing white object now hurdling at it.

Eyes widening, Haunter wasn't prepared for the Light Tag Fuji that had been thrown at it and held it's arms up to block it's vision from the bright light. That was all the distraction Gastly, Charmander and Pikachu's attacks needed to collide with the unaware Pokémon and as soon as they did, the large Ghost-Type was pushed backwards as it cringed. A loud explosion rocked the room as the attacks exploded, completely concealing Haunter behind a layer of smoke.

Ash and the others waited afterwards with baited breath for the smoke to clear, feeling confident that such a powerful barrage of attacks had to do at least something to it. Unfortunately though, all of those hopes were squashed to nothing when the smoke finally cleared and showed a still very much okay and now very angry Haunter glaring at them all with it's glowing red eyes.

Wailing in fury, Haunter raised it's hands out in front of it as two large balls of purple energy formed in it's palms. Before any of the Pokémon or humans could even blink, Haunter unleashed several energy beams from the energy balls which headed straight at Ash's Pokémon.

"Get out of there!" Ash yelled as his Pokémon began running/flying, weaving and dodging from as many of the energy beams as they could. Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly were doing a valiant job at avoiding the powerful beams of energy for a time before eventually, they were simply overcome.

A particularly numerous salvo of energy beams rained down upon the overwhelmed Pokémon and began peppering them with blast after blast of body shaking, extremely excruciating electric-like shocks, hardly none missing their marks.

The savage barrage lasted for almost two minutes before it finally ended and Ash's three Pokémon were launched back across the chamber towards him, coming to a stop finally with bruises and marks all over their bodies as they convulsed in pain.

Ash quickly ran out to his Pokémon who, even after all that, were still trying to get back up and fight. "No guys stay down!" Ash commanded as he slid to a stop next to their downed forms. "Stop
being so stubborn you three! You're extremely injured and exhausted right now, let me try some other way of reaching Haunter because fighting it clearly isn't working!"

Gastly started mumbling lowly about 'never giving up' while Pikachu just shook his head stubbornly and kept attempting to push himself back up, Charmander mimicking him.

Ash grew frustrated and was just about to say something else when, suddenly, a loud banging sound was heard from the other end of the chamber. Turning his head around, Ash and the others looked back towards the door where the banging was coming from.

Confused, Ash went to stand up and walk to where the sound was coming from before, like a Hyper Beam colliding with the ground, the entire front half of the chamber around the door exploded into thousands of pieces.

Ash, Giselle and Fuji all covered their faces as chunks of stone and other debree flew across the room at high speeds. When the smoke and dust cleared away, they saw Agatha, Brock and Misty standing in the middle of the now gaping hole with their Pokémon gathered around them.

The three newly arrived trainers looked around the sealing chamber and were astounded by the sight of it's all but completely destroyed state. When their eyes landed upon Haunter at the far end of the room, Brock and Misty's faces dropped while Agatha's eyes narrowed.

"I-Is that Haunter?" Misty asked with her voice shaking.

"That's the biggest Ghost-Type I've ever seen!" Brock exclaimed in shock.

Agatha remained silent however until her gaze fell upon Ash, the others and their exhausted, beaten up Pokémon lying on the ground. "Fuji, are you all alright?!" She shouted.

Seeing his old friend, Fuji lowered his arm from his face and smiled tiredly as he responded back, "I've been better Agatha, I've been better. I think we all have..."

Finally being able to see their friends, Misty and Brock ran towards them as fast as they could. "Guys are you okay?!" Brock asked urgently as he reached their side.

Misty stopped beside of Giselle, who was closet to Ash, and dropped down to her knees next to the two of them. "Giselle, Ash, what happened here?!" She demanded as she looked Ash's rather battered form over.

The boy just coughed and shook his head. "Ah you know Misty... pissed off a really old, really powerful Ghost Pokémon, fought it with our own Pokémon, been getting our asses kicked and survived through a few explosions... nothing new really."

Giselle just sighed at Ash's sarcastic attempt at humor before turning her attention to Misty. "Believe it or not Misty, this is the calmest it's been and Haunter isn't nearly as bad as it was." She looked at the oversized Ghost-Type then and shook her head slowly. "I've never seen a Ghost Pokémon with so much power though... it's beyond incredible..."

Ash coughed again. "What happened outside Misty, did you manage to chase away those other three Pokémon?"

Misty stopped checking Ash over and answered with a slight shrug of her shoulders, "I don't know really, after that explosion that shook the entire tower, the three of them just disappeared. I think they could sense something had happened and ran for it. Brock and I fought Gastly and Haunter with our Pokémon while Agatha took on Gengar with her own. They were a lot stronger than we anticipated though and gave us a good fight. Agatha and her Gengar were almost scary, I've never seen someone battle like that. If Elite Four are that strong then I'm glad I've never faced one," She stated the last part rather firmly and with a slight shiver of recollection.

Ash struggled to get up as he grunted. "I've gotta reach Haunter... gotta calm it down..."

Giselle and Misty looked on as he continued trying to force himself up with his Pokémon mirroring their trainer. "Ash stop you need to rest, you're gonna hurt yourself!" Misty told him in a loud voice, worrying for her secret crush.

Giselle simply shook her head sadly. "He won't listen Misty... none of them. He's determined to do whatever he can for Haunter and his Pokémon will do anything he does."

Misty pointed towards Haunter, who was currently staying still, observing the new arrivals with narrowed eyes while ready to go off again at any moment. "Look at it! Look at all Ash has already done for it! Fuji said Haunter was consumed by darkness and shadows before, it's not now so Ash has done what he set out to do!"

The boy in question grunted again as he got to his feet. "No... I haven't. I may have helped take the darkness away from it but Haunter is still angry and confused. If I don't see this all the way through then it'll just slide right back into the same desolation and despair that it was before."

Ash panted a little as Pikachu and Charmander struggled to their feet. The boy was just about to give a command to his exhausted Pokémon when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning his head, he saw Agatha looking at him with a straight faced and serious expression upon her aged visage.

"Let me handle it from here Ash. If you need someone to battle Haunter and keep it distracted so you can get to it again then let me do it." She walked out into the middle of the room then without waiting for a reply and locked her eyes with that of Haunter's own blazing red ones, whom was now looking at her sharply in return.

"I am a member of the Elite Four and as such, I have a duty to this region. To fight and defend all those who live here, be they Pokémon or people, no matter what cost. You children have done more today than I would have ever thought possible and for that..." She looked back at Ash and smiled. "You have my respect."

She faced forward again as her Gengar suddenly appeared in front of her and stared challengingly at Haunter. "Now it's time for us to do our part!"

Fuji and Brock walked over to Ash and the girls as the older man spoke wearily, "Agatha, be careful. You know what happened the last time we fought that thing. Do not underestimate it."

The woman in question glanced back at Fuji. "I'll be fine, don't you worry about me. We are far stronger than we were all those years ago." Agatha walked up then until she was in line with her Pokémon, banging her cane down on the floor before saying in a loud, firm voice, "Your battle is with me now Haunter, face us!"

The powerful Ghost-Type turned it's eyes to Agatha and then stretched itself out to it's full, imposing size before wailing/screeching loudly at them. Agatha just remained calm and took a few deep breaths before exhaling a final time. "So it begins..."

She quickly looked at her Gengar, who seemed just as collected and poised as she was. Shifting her vision again, she could see that everyone else had fallen back a bit to give them room enough to battle, Ash and his Pokémon just a little bit closer so he could make a dash for Haunter when the time was right.

Unfortunately for her, Haunter took the momentary lapse in her concentration to raise it's hands and fire two massive Shadow Bals at them.

Agatha's reaction time however was instantaneous as she hurriedly called out to her Pokémon, "Gengar be quick!"

At speeds that left the others in dizzy shock, Gengar quickly fazed out of existence and reappeared just a few feet away from the first giant Shadow Ball which hit the ground and exploded. The second energy ball Gengar focused on and just stood in place, waiting patiently until the deadly attack was right upon it. Then, raising it's hands up, Gengar quickly charged and launched a powerful but much smaller Shadow Ball at the larger one on Agatha's command.

Both attacks met in mid-air and, despite the size difference, the power was almost even as they collapsed in on one another and exploded, sending pieces of rubble and smoke flying in every direction.

Agatha capitalized on the moment then by commanding, "Gengar press forward and use Curse!"

Gengar flew forward through the smoke cloud as it's eyes glowed red and a similar colored veil of energy rose up around it. Haunter was not even slightly deterred though as it's own eyes shone an even brighter red before a beam of Night Shade shot from them and through the air.

Gengar managed to see the twin laser-like beams just as it emerged on the other side of the smoke cloud and quickly dodged to the side with instincts and reflexes that were honed from years of training and battling.

It's energy stored up, Gengar cried out it's name as a powerful burst of red ghostly energy raced across the short distance separating it from Haunter. However, since Haunter's own Night Shade attack was on a collision course with Gengar, both attacks met in mid-air and commenced in yet another duel for supremacy between two very powerful Pokémon.

Ash, his friends and Fuji watched on in amazement as the two beams of energy grew larger and brighter from the extra power both Pokémon were pumping into them.

For Agatha, this was a repeat performance of the last time she and Gengar battled Haunter and due to that, she was quick to take action. "Gengar use rapid Shadow Ball and strike the area around Haunter!"

While still mainting the power of Curse, Gengar raised it's hands and made small shadowy balls of energy in each one that it quickly unleashed at Haunter. Several more energy balls followed the former two and every single one of them all went towards Haunter.

Instead of hitting it though, the balls of energy struck the ground, walls and ceiling around Haunter, which caused the Pokémon's attention to become temporarily distracted. This was all Gengar needed to force more power through it's body, which made Curse stronger as it started to overcome Haunter's Night Shade.

The latter Pokémon didn't have enough time to react before Gengar's Curse attack cut completely through Night Shade and impacted with it's massive form, lighting Haunter up in red as both it and Gengar started to convulse and cry out in pain. Curse was an attack that afflicted both Pokémon but Agatha knew that having Gengar give up half of it's energy to likewise weaken Haunter would only be as effective as possible if she did it while Gengar was still relatively healthy and full of stamina.

The strategy seemed to pay off as once Curse ended and Gengar dropped to the ground on it's knees in order to recover from the intense pain it was currently feeling, Haunter itself seemed to real back in equal pain as it screeched and cried out in pain.

As much as she hated to push her Pokémon in such a state, Agatha knew they needed to climax on the rare advantage they now had by ordering Gengar to get close and use a full power Dark Pulse on the weakened Haunter.

Even though it was now clearly drained and tired from using Curse, Gengar nodded and then jumped towards Haunter until it was just a short distance away. It's body glowing darkly, Gengar grunted in effort before throwing it's hands out as a powerful burst of black energy exploded forth from it's body and raced across the ground towards Haunter, ripping up and cratering the already destroyed chamber floor underneath it all the way.

Ash and the others watched with baited breath as the dark pulse of energy collided with Haunter, whom was unprepared for it, and exploded on impact. Another loud shrieking sound emitted from Haunter as it was apparently very damaged by the attack.

Agatha watched intently whilst Gengar stooped over and breathed heavily, the energy expenditure and exhaustion it was feeling from having been battling almost all night long finally catching up to it's slightly aged self.

As the smoke swirled around the chamber, everyone was almost certain that Haunter had been seriously damaged by such a powerful two-part combination attack but... as visibility returned to normal again... they were all proven on just how wrong they were.

Even though Haunter was soon revealed as having been definitely damaged and drained from enduring such powerful attacks from an Elite Four Pokémon, the Ghost-Type's rage and fury had clearly been underestimated.

When the smoke cleared, Haunter's now burned and scuffed up form was slightly hunched over while it's eyes were locked dead on Gengar. It's eyes were burning with a malicious rage which only became stronger the more it's anger consumed it.

Opening it's mouth, Haunter let out a loud shriek which startled even Agatha and Gengar with the sheer ferocity and primal rage of it.

Ash almost instantly had a bad feeling form in his stomach as he shouted to Agatha, "Agatha get Gengar out of there! It's too tired to fight and I think Haunter is about to go off again!"

Being the seasoned professional she was though, Agatha was far ahead of Ash as she raised Gengar's Pokéball and prepared to return her Pokémon, not wanting Gengar to get injured in the exhausted state it was now in. "Gengar retur-"

However, that was all she managed to say before Haunter disappeared in the blink of an eye, completely astounding everyone with the totally unexpected and never before seen ability of seemingly instant invisibility it had just displayed.

Having no time to react, Agatha was taken by surprise as well as Gengar, when Haunter reappeared out of the floor in front of the much smaller Pokémon.

Before anyone could move or blink, a large glowing ball of dark energy formed in front of both of Haunter's outstretched hands before, with an enraged scream of rage, it pushed the Shadow Ball down onto Gengar's unprepared self.

Even all of Agatha's many years of experience could not help her take action in time as her Pokémon was drilled down into the ground by Haunter's massive Shadow Ball, displaying power no one thought it would still possess in such vast quantities after being weakened by Gengar's Curse.

Agatha's Gengar cried in pain over the hum of the viciously churning ball of energy as it was pushed father and farther down into the cold stone ground. Haunter only stopped the Shadow Ball just before it's eyes charged up and then unleashed an equally as powerful Night Shade down onto it's stunned and suffering final evolutionary form.

Agatha, who was far from locking up in panic, tried to run as many different scenarios in as short a time as possible to help get Genger out of the situation it was currently in but Haunter had thoroughly taken them both by surprise in their moment of rest and now they were paying for it.

The older woman was just about to call another of her Pokémon out to help Gengar before, in a flash, Ash ran past her and made a beeline towards Haunter. Eyes widenening as his friends and Fuji yelled for him to stop, Agatha reached out and shouted, "Ash no! Stop!"

It was too little too late though because at that same moment, Pikachu came jumping past her and hurdled into the air, his tail turning to steel before he brought it down towards Haunter's head.

The currently blinded by rage Pokémon was too preoccupied with torturing Gengar with Night Shade to sense the attack coming for it and thus, was taken by total suprise when Pikachu's now iron hard tail slammed down onto it's massive head with a loud cry of, "PIKA!"

Haunter felt it's whole body rattle with an enormous shaking sensation as it fell backwards giving a shriek of pain, Night Shade finally being cut off and giving Gengar a much needed reprieve as it just laid in the crater it was now in and trembled in pain.

Pikachu flipped back and landed between Haunter and Gengar, using his own battle ravaged body as a barrier between the two Ghost-Types just as Ash jumped up on top of a nearly destroyed stone pillar and lunged at Haunter.

A look of pure, unrestrained fire and desperation was alight in Ash's eyes as he sailed towards the Pokémon with his right hand outstretched, the palm of which was already starting to glow as the Star Mark appeared.

"HAUNTER! ENOUGH!" Ash shouted as the ancient Ghost-Type looked up at him through eyes that were still blurry from the surprise Iron Tail Pikachu had used on it.

The ghostly Pokémon's eyes widened in shock when it finally regained it's wits just before Ash fully impacted with it's body. The entire chamber was then bathed in a bright white light just before Ash and Haunter entered into the Star Mark's dimension for the third time that night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

When Ash opened his eyes and found himself once again floating in the suspended state of the Star Mark's odd pocket dimension, the first thing he noticed about both he and Haunter was just how much of a serious toll the entire night had taken on them both.

He himself felt like he had went ten rounds with a whole group of champion Fighting-Types (which is something he should know about since he did have experience with such things) and his entire body felt completely and utterly exhausted. Of course, he had been involved in two extremely stressful days so it wasn't really a suprise to him but still... even while not in his actual body, he could feel the exhaustion his mind was projecting over his 'astral self' and it was definitely taking a tiring toll.

Looking across from him at the much larger and very imposing form of Haunter, Ash could also see with much clarity that the Ghost-Type was feeling just as tired as he was. The way Haunter was slightly bent forward as it's body expanded outward and inward with the obvious signs of heavy respiration as well as the look of fatigue in eyes, showed Ash that the Pokémon was feeling the effects of the harsh night almost the exact same as him.

Briefly, Ash wondered if maybe entering the Star Mark state pulled on both the wielder and Pokémon's energy stores and if that were the case, it would make sense why he and Haunter were appearing so tired. They had already entered the pocket dimension three times in one night and for some reason, Ash just had a feeling that doing so was not only unsafe but also abnormal. Well... more abnormal than being in a strange dimension cause by an already abnormal hand mark could be at any rate.

Turning his tired mind towards the present though, Ash tried to move himself forward as he spoke to Haunter through their current mental link in an equally as exhausted sounding voice, "Haunter... please... please just calm down and let yourself feel peace. Please, don't you feel what this is doing to us? Is it worth it? Is going through all this exhaustion, pain and torment worth holding onto the anger and hatred in your heart? Is it!" He finished with a shout.

Haunter obviously couldn't reply to Ash but the way the bright red energy surrounding it pulsed angrily- which had replaced the former dark black aura and shadows that had been shrouding it before- he could tell Haunter was trying to retort back to him in a violent way. Something Ash didn't mind since it at least seemed as though Haunter no longer had the energy to forcefully expel the connection like before.

Managing to make himself float forward a little bit for the first ever time since he had first entered into the strange 'Star State' with Pikachu sometime ago, Ash reached for Haunter as he spoke again, "Why? What do you have to gain by holding onto these grudges and keeping so much hate inside Haunter? Tell me, what! The people that really deserved your wrath you killed long ago so what is left for you to be this way? Why do you want to hurt people and cause so much pain? Do you think your old human friend would have wanted this for you? She would be ashamed of you and you know it!"

Ash saw the red aura around Haunter pulse again and swirl madly around but he ignored it, opting to move forward just a little more. Something he found to be very difficult since moving in what he was now calling the 'Star State' felt like moving legs made of iron through an ocean of sand up to your kneecaps.

"Is that how you live everyday Haunter? By lying to yourself and living in denial about you are and what you've done? Do you really tell yourself that the kind old woman who cared for you would have ever wanted you to live this way? If that's how you truly believe then you are lost in more ways than you think!"

Ash gestured at the mighty Ghost-Type with his hands. "Look at yourself Haunter! Look at what you've already done! You've freed yourself from the darkness and shadows that plagued and haunted you for numerous years! I may have helped you realize what you had become but you were the one that wanted it bad enough to change yourself. Is that it? Are you now going to resign your existence to being angry and bitter when you are so close to having peace and freeing yourself completely from the hatred that controls you?!"

Ash could see the glowing in Haunter's red eyes slowly start to fade as the violent red aura around the Pokémon very slightly began to flicker and pulse faintly, indecision and doubt beginning to reveal itself within the powerful creature's almost unreadable body language.

Ash could see his words were starting to have an effect so he pushed some of his own positive and pure energy towards Haunter in an effort to help sooth and reach the Pokémon sooner. Feeling even more fatigue overcome him as he pushed so much emotional energy at the Ghost-Type, Ash had to focus and steel himself to keep from falling unconscious and breaking the connection.

"Haunter... can't you see the life you are missing out on? There is so much more to this life, so much more beauty and great things to see and do than you have ever known. People and Pokémon truly can live in peace and harmony together if they just try and you know what, they do it all the time. I know you're angry and feel unbearable sadness for what happened to you and the human you cared for but dwelling on it and handling everything with hatred and misery will never help you overcome the past. Dealing hatred with more hatred will never solve anything Haunter and all you'll accomplish by doing so is spreading more pain and hurt to a world that doesn't need anymore..."

Pushing even more of his energy at Haunter as he focused as much compassionate warmth and caring feelings as he could into them, Ash continued to speak mentally while simultaneously fighting off the desire to collapse, "You have to believe it Haunter... you have to give this world another chance and stop living in the shadows of anger and grief. You are a great Pokémon with so much potential and promise but you have to want it. You have to want to change yourself and be better. Not for me... not for the old woman and not for anyone else... for you..."

The boy shook his head as white spots attempted to fill his vision. He could just barely see through his slightly fading sight, Haunter as it looked at Ash intently. It's eyes were now a normal, non-glowing red and the crimson aura around it had also ceased the fluctuating, twisting and flaring motions around Haunter that it had been. Instead, the aura was now unmoving. Stagnant. Strangely calm as though the proverbial raging sea was just beginning to settle, leaving only the murky, muddy waters left to churn and wroth in still unpredictable patterns.

Ash could swear that he could also see a faint yellow aura trying to force it's way through that of the much greater red one around Haunter but at the moment, he just couldn't be sure. Instead, he spoke again in words that took much more effort to get out than before, "You can... you can fight it Haunter... you... you can fight it..."

Haunter, for it's part, was still having an internal struggle with itself. Though the words Ash spoke to it made much sense and kept trying to smash through the unbreakable barrier it had built around it's heart and inner emotions, the memories and pain it still felt at losing it's one human friend the way it had rang like a bell in it's head and caused a massive internal struggle which raged on even now.

Eventually, the harsh debate within Haunter was enough to cause one final jolt of intense negative energy which, in his current state, Ash was unable to stand against and caused the connection to break once more. Sending the both of them back to the battle destroyed sealing chamber below Pokémon Tower.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash was once again flung through the air as the connection between he and Haunter finally broke. Propelled at the same fast speeds as he had been the other two times, Ash was this time caught in a tight hold by Brock and Fuji, who had been waiting to catch Ash when he reappeared from the bright light dome that had been covering he and Haunter from sight while they were connected.

Obviously surprised at being caught by two sets of hands instead of hitting something hard again like before, Ash looked up with his eyes all but bloodshot into the concerned faces of Brock and Fuji. "How..." He was forced to wet his dry mouth a little before continuing, "How did you catch me?"

Fuji nodded towards Giselle, she and Misty quickly running over to join them. "You can thank your lady friend for that young man. She knew from watching the violent way you were shot out of that bright light every time your connection with Haunter was severed that it would probably happen again. She had myself and Brock get into the position she figured you would probably appear from so we could keep you from enduring another hard hit."

Ash looked at Giselle as she knelt down and touched his cheek, her heart breaking at the sight of his exhausted, beaten looking self. "Ash... you look exhausted..."

Misty crouched beside of him as well. "You need to rest, your body can't take much more Ash and you were already tired from last night when Fuji saved you."

Brock patted his shoulder. "You've had practically no time to recover man, you're gonna hurt yourself if you're not careful."

Ash still attempted to sit all the way up as he shook his head to
clear it of the fluffy, flighty feeling he was experiencing currently. "Pikachu... my Pokémon... ah!" He quickly grabbed at his side where a large bruise had unknowingly formed when he was thrown into one of the stone pillars earlier in the night. "Agatha... Gengar..."

Giselle broke off his strangled speech with a light push to his chest in order to get him to lay back against the stone slab behind him. "They're okay Ash, all of them. Your Pokémon are right here, by your side, you just can't see them because of how tired and heavy your eyes are right now. Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly, they're okay."

Ash then felt two small hands on his thighs, hearing Pikachu and Charmander both speak to him worriedly a few seconds later, "Pikachu, Pika Pikachu," The Electric-Type called softly to his trainer while gently nudging Ash's leg with his nose.

"Charmander Char Char," Charmander also spoke in an equally as soft and concerned voice as he looked at his trainer's unhealthily exhausted features.

Ash then felt a cold yet oddly comforting presence at his shoulder before Gastly's unique, almost operatic voice spoke to him, "You must rest Ash, we are fine. I can sense your energy levels and they are dangerously low currently."

At ease knowing that his Pokémon, though also tired and equally roughed up as he was, were okay, he grunted in pain before asking, "W-What about Agatha?"

Fuji was the one to reply in order to calm his mind, "She's fine Ash, she and Gengar. Remember, they're both members of the most elite team of Pokémon and trainer in the entire region, they know how to take care of themselves. Gengar is tired and a little banged up but both it and Agatha are ready to go again at a moment's notice."

Fuji looked ahead and frowned. "That light bubble that surrounded you and Haunter still isn't gone yet and we can't see Haunter because of it. She and Gengar are standing by prepared in case it comes out attacking again."

Ash's eyes finally opened fully as he forced himself to take in his surroundings clearly. Once the swimming and blurriness finally began to pass from his eyes, he was able to see everything around him with no more blurriness.

His eyes first landed upon Giselle and Misty, who were kneeling in front of him with looks of concern on their faces and then to his Pokémon. He could see Pikachu and Charmander on either side of his legs, also looking at him with concern. The two of them were rather beat up and worn down looking, just as all of them were, but they were still okay.

He couldn't see them but he knew Gastly, Fuji and Brock were just behind him. Looking forward past the girls, Ash saw Agatha standing with her Gengar a few feet away, both of them with their backs turned to him. He could see some rips and dirt on Agatha's purple dress but, looking at himself and also Misty and Giselle, could tell they looked pretty much the same.

Gengar appeared a little worse for the wear but, true to it's fierce-some reputation and very experienced ways, looked as though it could fight again at a moment's notice, regardless of the harsh beating it had suffered at Haunter's hands or it's older age.

Looking past those two, Ash finally spotted what Fuji had been talking about and saw that he was indeed correct, a large dome of pure white light was expanded across half of the chamber and seeing it made Ash's eyes widen. "Is... is that what it looks like when I connect with Haunter?"

Fuji nodded. "Yes. Both times you came in contact with Haunter, you were immediately veiled in that same dome of light. The only difference is that every time before now, it would disappear the moment you came hurdling out of it. Now it's staying up and we have no idea why."

Ash looked from Fuji, back to the dome of light and then scrunched his face up in thought. "But... why would-" His words were suddenly cut off as, the very next instant, the light dome started to flicker and shudder before it commenced to glowing even brighter. The light became so bright that they all had to cover their eyes and then, just as the light reached it's appex, it simply vanished without a single trace or warning.

Opening his eyes and uncovering them afterwards, Ash looked ahead again where the light dome once was and now saw, finally, Haunter floating in the air in the almost exact center of the chamber. The Pokémon looked to be a little scuffed up with singe marks here and there on it's body but all in all, it appeared to be the least damaged out of any of them.

Haunter was clearly very tired however as a few beads of sweat could be seen trickling down it's body. Knowing that Ghost-Types couldn't perspire however, Ash figured that what looked like water in the form of sweat was actually just a physical representation of Haunter's massive energy expenditure that it had been suffering with throughout the entire night. Most likely the 'water' was just crystallized forms of the ghostly energy that Haunter needed to simply keep itself levitating in a state of such exhaustion, let alone battle.

Which was all something Professor Oak had explained to Ash about himself since many people would become confused when they saw a Ghost-Type 'perspire'.

Haunter not only appeared to be 'sweating' in exhaustion but the look on it's face showed the fatigue the Pokémon was feeling. The way it's eyes were slightly narrowed and the look of effort Haunter seemed to be excuding just to keep it's massive form up proved that the night had definitely taken it's toll on it, as well as the Star Mark connections Ash had forced upon it.

Ash and Haunter's eyes locked onto each other and in that moment, Ash could see the conflict and turmoil still battling it out within the Pokémon's eyes. It wasn't as bad as before but he could still see it there and he knew his goal hadn't yet been achieved.

Ash knew furthermore that what he was about to do would probably result in him putting his life in imminent danger or at the very least his physical well-being but he wasn't going to back down. Not now when he had come so far to help Haunter. It was his idea to do all of this and he knew he had to see it through to the end no matter what.

Giselle and the others had their eyes on Haunter as they watched anxiously for what the Pokémon was going to potentially do. Agatha readied herself and her Gengar did the same, fully expecting the need to go into action once more if the volatile Pokémon before them went into another rage. Which, even though they were not looking forward to fighting such a powerhouse again, Agatha and Gengar knew they had a duty to protect everyone in not just that room but also all of the town in case Haunter tried to escape now that the sealing chamber was in ruins.

What no one, not even Haunter itself was expecting however, was for Ash to struggle to his feet on very wobbly legs. His friends saw this and right away tried to stop him. "No Ash what are you doing?!" Brock shouted as he tried to get Ash to sit back down.

"You can't keep going like this!" Giselle scolded in an admonishing tone of voice as she and Misty reached for his arms.

Ash just shook them all off however and shouted back, "No I have to do this!" Everyone stopped after his outburst and just stared at him, causing Ash to sigh before continuing in a quieter, though no less intense tone, "Please listen to me you guys... I have to finish this. I started this, I was the one that made the decision to help Haunter and I was the one that gave it hope."

He gestured towards Haunter with a tilt of his head. "I know you all don't see it and still think Haunter is just waiting to destroy us all and be free but I'm telling you... there is good in it and now, for the first time ever, also a sense of hope. I was the one connected to Haunter's heart and I could feel it... I could actually FEEL the hope and desire to change forming deep down inside of it. All Haunter wants truthfully is to have peace in it's life and for someone to care for it. I know it's true because I could see it in Haunter's eyes and feel it coming out through it's emotions."

He shook his head slightly and finally stood up completely while fully adjusting to his surroundings. Looking back up then, he focused his eyes on Haunter and spoke in a voice thick with emotion, "All Haunter wants is love... to feel wanted and no longer be alone. It just wants someone to be there for it and help to take away the pain in it's life but it's too scared to know how right now. I have to help it. I have to show Haunter how beautiful life can be."

Surprising all of them then, Ash suddenly broke off into a run and started a mad, all out dash for Haunter while crying out, "Our destinies are now intertwined through the connections we've made and I won't give up on it!"

"Ash come back!" Giselle and Misty both screamed at the same time, horrified for his safety. Even though they understood what Ash's motivation was to risk so much for Haunter, it did little to ease or take away the fear they felt at having something horrible happen to him.

Brock and Fuji watched on in disbelief just before Pikachu, Charmander and Gastly, inspired by their trainer's heart and determination, took off running after as quickly as their banged up bodies would allow them to.

Agatha turned her head and stared in fascination as Ash blazed past her, not even bothering to try and stop him, so taken aback was she by the boy's sheer spirit and determination to do what he felt was right. Even Gengar itself seemed more than a little surprised as well at Ash's vigor and heart.

The boy could see Haunter looking at him as he ran and Ash was also able to see a mixture of surprise, unease and even a bit of fear in it's eyes as he rapidly attempted to close the distance between them.

What he wasn't expecting though, which he probably should have, was the way Haunter would handle such confusion and fear. Which was with aggression. Before he could process what was happening, Haunter opened it's huge maw and formed a large Shadow Ball in it that it quickly fired at Ash.

The boy saw the blazing ball of dark energy coming at him and just as he went to stop, a jet of powerful orange flames came rushing over his head before colliding with the ball of energy and exploding in a mixture of shadowy darkness and cherry red heat.

Ash looked back and saw his three Pokémon following closely behind him with Charmander closing his mouth after having just expelled the Flamethrower that stopped the Shadow Ball.

Smiling at them, Ash ran faster towards Haunter while at the same time, the powerful Ghost-Type grew more and more nervous and held it's hands up before launching multiple Shadow Balls at them.

Pikachu used Agility and quickly jumped up into the air, landing in front of Ash as the small Electric-Type started running in zig-zag patterns towards Haunter. Seeing the many balls of energy coming towards him, Pikachu's whole body glowed faintly yellow before he started shooting several bolts of electricity that impacted with the individual balls of darkness and destroyed them in a bright explosion of arcing voltage and wispy shadows.

Ash drew even closer to Haunter and the Pokémon visibly began to lose it's composure as it's eyes glowed red and fired off a massive twin beam of Night Shade at the young trainer.

However, Gastly was fast and came to a stop high up in the air before his eyes glowed blue. In a poof of smoke, a solid wall of steel erected itself up between Ash and Haunter's attack, Night Shade slamming into the defensive barrier and drilling into it mercilessly in an attempt to smash through and reach it's intended target.

Gastly grunted as his weakened self tried to maintain the illusion. "Move faster Ash and get out of the way! Illusions are never as powerful as a real attack and I'm not going to be able to hold this much longer!"

Ash quickly nodded and pushed his tired body to run faster. He just managed to get past the steel wall and ghostly beam of energy drilling against it when Gastly finally lost the strength to keep it up. The wall disappeared in a burst of smoke and the powerful Ghost-Type move sped forward to hit the only thing it still could... which was Gastly.

Ash heard his Pokémon cry out in pain and stopped just long enough to turn around and see Gastly getting forced back across the chamber before impacting with a pile of debree on the floor and going still, Giselle quickly running to his side.

Ash turned around again in time to catch sight of Haunter's eyes glowing red again. Although, unlike every other time so far, Night Shade wasn't what came from it's eyes. Instead, reddish colored rings of what Ash recognized to be Hypnosis energy came floating towards him at an alarmingly fast pace.

Like every attack Haunter had it it's disposal, they were all
massively oversized and this also rung true for Hypnosis, who's rings were twice if not three times the size of normal ones.

Ash's eyes widened since he knew he couldn't dodge such a widespread attack but instead of being hit with the sleep inducing rings and falling into blissful unconsciousness like he thought would happen, Ash was instead knocked out of the way and landed a few feet away to the side after he felt something small and compact slam into his side.

Looking up from the ground, Ash saw that it was Pikachu who had pushed him out of the way just before the rings of Hypnosis could reach him. The attack was not only much bigger than normal but also much more effective because the very next instant, Pikachu went from fully awake to sprawled totally on the ground and out cold like a light.

Ash's worry for his Pokémon only doubled when Haunter's whole body glowed red and then a spectral, energy made construct of the Pokémon appeared from within it and went flying at Pikachu immediately afterwards.

Ash knew exactly what attack Haunter was using and desperately tried to scramble to his feet and run for Pikachu. He was far too slow though for that in that next second, Haunter's deadly doppelgänger reached Pikachu and then melded itself inside of the sleeping Pokémon.

What was quickly revealed to be none other than the attack Dream Eater worked quickly on Pikachu after that. Surrounding the small Pokémon in a red haze of energy that turned into sparks of red electricity, the malevolent fake of Haunter quite literally sapped Pikachu's energy from him in vast quantities within mere moments.

Finally on his feet, though unsteady, Ash felt immense worry since not only would such an attack be very damaging to Pikachu but also, if all of that energy managed to feed itself back into Haunter then the Ghost-Type would essentially have a large portion of it's power restored to it.

Taking immediate action, Ash ran for Pikachu and then dove himself into the red cloud of energy draining fog that was around his Pokémon. Feeling the oppressive, heavy feeling of Dream Eater weighing down on him even though he wasn't asleep, Ash quickly developed a much greater respect for his Pokémon if that was what they felt every time they were hit with an opponent's attack.

Scooping Pikachu up into his arms, Ash ran out of the red haze, enraging Haunter since it had not yet finished siphoning off the energy from the Electric-Type that it was going to use to restore it's strength.

Opening it's mouth again immediately afterwards, Haunter formed and then released yet another abnormally large Shadow Ball at Ash, it's anger and rage giving fuel to it's attack.

Ash looked over his shoulder and saw the Shadow Ball closing upon him. Closing his eyes, he knelt down and turned away while cradling the still fast asleep Pikachu in his arms. The boy was bracing for impact but instead of receiving it, he instead heard a loud call of 'Charrrr!" Before feeling a strong and very powerful heat at his back.

Looking over his shoulder again, Ash saw Charmander standing behing him while bravely battling the immense Shadow Ball with an equally as impressive jet of extremely hot looking flames which came roaring out from his wide open mouth.

Ash and everyone else in the chamber looked on in amazement and fascination as Charmander battled the ball of huge energy in an attempt to keep his trainer safe. Something that brought a smile of pride and adoration to Ash's face as he watched his Pokémon fight as hard as he could to keep he and Pikachu safe.

Watching Charmander now, the way he stood illuminated by the flames of his own attack, arms stretched out to the sides with his eyes clenched tightly shut and sweat pouring down his body as he struggled to put every ounce of power he had into the Flamethrower he had going, made Ash realize just how special Charmander truly was as well as how powerful he was deep down inside.

Ash honestly couldn't help but wish Charmander's old trainer Damian could see his 'useless' Pokémon now because, at the angle he was standing, Charmander looked everything like a total winner and one of a kind Pokémon to him.

The precious moment of fickle reflection was unfortunately ruined the next moment however when a combination of Haunter forcing more power into it's attack and Charmander running out of the energy needed to keep it's Flamethrower going finally overwhelmed the small Pokémon's brave resistance.

The giant Shadow Ball quickly pushed straight through the fire and slammed into the ground directly in front of the three of them, launching Ash and his two Pokémon across the room like simple pebbles. The entire chamber shaking once more from the force of the explosion in a very violent manner.

Giselle, Misty and the others shouted in fear for Ash as they saw him and Charmander getting tossed up into the air and then watched helplessly as they both slammed down onto the ground seconds later.

Giselle and Misty tried to run out to them but were stopped by Fuji and Brock. "Giselle stop!" Brock struggled against her as she tried to get free from his grasp. "Haunter might attack you too! Just stay here for now!"

Hearing Brock and knowing he was right, Misty stopped fighting against Fuji which prompted him to let her go. Instead, she just yelled across the room, "Ash are you okay?!" Ash!"

Agatha herself appeared to be extremely frustrated and antsy because she desperately wanted to go and help Ash but was also afraid that if she made any sudden movements, especially with her Gengar, then Haunter might go off again and attack. Which would have been very bad since in their currently downed state, Ash and his Pokémon could get easily caught in the crossfire and become seriously injured or even killed.

When the smoke settled eventually some distance away, Ash was seen laying on his stomach with Pikachu curled protectively into him. Charmander was just a few feet away laying on his own stomach with cuts, fresh marks and bruises covering the now very dirty Pokémon's body.

Ash slowly shifted around while groaning before opening his eyes and looking down. Seeing that Pikachu was still fast asleep, he then looked to where Charmander was laying on the ground a few feet away, appearing to be very beat up and more than just a little bit exhausted

Dropping his head back to the ground, Ash's eyes fluttered as he whispered quietly to himself, "I'm sorry Haunter... but I just can't do this... I'm too tired... I can't even move..." A feeling of great despair and failure settled over him as Ash closed his eyes tightly. "I... I failed..."

Tears began prickling at the corners of his eyes as the feelings of total defeat and regret washed over him. Quiet sobs started to slowly wrack his body as he just laid there, feeling utterly helpless. That was until, however, he heard soft, unsteady footsteps coming towards him.

Opening his teary eyes, Ash saw to his astonishment, Charmander moving towards him in slow, wobbly strides. One of his eyes were closed and a cut ran down his side but Charmander's face never wavered as he stared dead at Ash with a look of unwavering strength and unshakable determination on his face.

Ash continued to watch Charmander walk towards him without even blinking until the Pokémon was standing at the side of his face. Looking up, he was about to say something until Charmander cut him off with a shout and started waving his arms around furiously.

"Charmander! Charmander Charmander Char! Char Charmander Char!" The Fire-Type spoke fiercely as he stared down at his trainer. "Char Char! Charmander Char!"

Ash just looked at his Pokémon as he went off on what he somehow knew was a heated, no nonsense speech of some kind. He really didn't get what Charmander was saying until he saw his Pokémon point at Haunter and then back at him, almost as if he was trying to tell Ash to do something.

After watching the same gestures a few times, Ash finally got what Charmander was saying and replied to him, "You're... you're trying to tell me not to give up and to keep going aren't you Charmander? You're telling me to not stop until I've done what I came to do... is that it?"

Charmander just nodded and held his fists up to his chest. Ash smiled sadly and replied, "But I can't even move right now Charmander, I'm too-" That was all he managed to say as he suddenly felt a stinging sensation erupt on his face.

His whole head turning, Ash's cheek burned like a hot iron had just struck it. Looking back at Charmander, he saw the Fire-Type standing with his tail extended outward. Realizing that his own Pokémon had just slapped him, Ash was about to say something before Charmander went off on another slew of intensive, loud and unintelligible sounds. "Charmander Char! Char Charmander Char Char Charmander! Charmander Char, Char Charmander!"

Ash just listened to his Pokémon go on and on and even though he couldn't hear what Charmander was really saying, he understood the meaning behind it. He could tell that Charmander was basically telling him, 'How dare you even think about giving up Ash! You've never taught us to give up before and now you're just gonna lay there and do nothing?! I don't think so! You started this and now you have to end it! You wanted to help Haunter so get up and do it! We're behind you all the way just like we always are so don't you dare give in now! Stand up and fight!'

Being able to in some way know what Charmander was telling him without speaking human tongue gave rise to a fire being rekindled in Ash's gut again. The self belief and inner strength that his Pokémon was trying to inspire within him made Ash feel both miserable and furious about himself for even thinking of giving up in that moment.

It was just like Charmander was trying to tell him, Ash started this. He was the one who wanted to help Haunter and he had put a lot of people and Pokémon at risk by doing so. Because of that, he owed it to not just them or Haunter but also himself to see it through.

His eyes hardening with resolve once more, Ash nodded to Charmander's words as he laid Pikachu down and slowly started to get to his feet. "You're right Charmander... I can't give up now... I won't give up now! We've come too far now to quit and I can't let that happen..."

Standing fully up, he turned around and looked at Haunter while clenching his fists. "I made a promise and now I'm gonna keep
it!"

Charmander just looked at his trainer proudly before nodding his own head and looking back at Haunter again, his tail flame blazing brightly as he prepared himself to give his all for his trainer and human friend.

Leaving Pikachu where he was, Ash called out loudly with a cry of firm resolve, Charmander doing the same, before the two of them rushed forward again towards Haunter with everything they possibly had to give being all laid out on the table in that time. Every last shred of willpower and stamina they had being pushed into one final assault.

Obviously taken by surprise at Ash's continued relentless persistence, Haunter watched in surprise as Ash and Charmander ran towards it with all haste. Feeling the pressure of being backed in a corner, the ghostly Pokémon started using practically every attack it had at it's disposal to stop the impending charge of the two coming for it.

Ash could see a virtual volley of Shadow Balls coming his way along with a thick beam of Night Shade cutting through the middle of them all but instead of slowing down, he merely put his trust and connected his heart, in a sense, to Charmander.

His faith wasn't wasted either because at that same moment, Charmander ran in front of him and opened his mouth as a roaring jet of flames came spewing forth and swept across the chamber, coming into contact with and destroying every single Shadow Ball it came in contact with.

As Haunter's Night Shade drew closer to them, Charmander stopped and built up the energy in his body quickly before, with his body shaking in effort, he opened his mouth again and released a powerful purplish/blue blast of Dragon Rage which collided together with Night Shade and began a battle of dominance which quickly ended in a dual explosion.

Haunter was now clearly doing whatever it could in order to keep itself away from any further contact as rings of red, sleep causing energy came forth from it's eyes and headed towards Ash. The boy could see this coming however and quickly commanded Charmander to get in front of him and use Smoke Screen.

His Pokémon did so with no hesitation and hastily expelled a cloud of inky black smoke from his mouth which quickly coalesced around the two of them and hid Ash and himself from view. The rings of hypnosis entered into the smoke cloud but unfortunately for Haunter, their aim wasn't true as Ash and Charmander came running out of the smoke the next moment at a totally different direction than Hypnosis had entered.

Seeing that they were within just a few small yards of Haunter, Ash smirked to himself that they were going to make it. What he wasn't prepared for though was Haunter making a final move out of almost complete desperation.

Before he or Charmander could fully react, Haunter's massive body started to glow bright red as a powerful looking aura surrounded it's form. Scrunching it's body up in intense concentration and effort, Haunter's eyes pulsed with equally as bright red energy and it's mouth opened as the Ghost-Type began emitting a loud screeching sound.

Ash promptly stopped and put his hand out to stop Charmander as well while looking at Haunter in confusion. The Ghost Pokémon continued to struggle and focus it's power as the shroud of red energy around it commenced to growing and expanding.

It was only then that Ash finally understood what Haunter was doing and his eyes widened at the realization. Turning around, he looked down at Charmander and started madly gesturing to the way they just came from. "Run Charmander! It's about to use Curse!"

He turned out to be right on the money too because at that very next moment, just when Ash and Charmander started running away in the opposite direction as fast as they could, Haunter finally let loose with Curse and did so in a way that was very unusual. Meaning that instead of needing to have a target to latch onto and steal energy away from, the massively enhanced and mega-powered Curse acted like a bomb.

The red energy around Haunter formed into a rotating sphere just below it and then impacted into the ground below like a humongous hammer clobbering the earth. As the energy Haunter had been building up for who know's how long finally exploded, Ash and Charmander jumped for it and hit the ground for cover while the others all took shelter behind a few scattered piles of rubble and whatever else they could find.

The attack that had been made much more powerful than usual thanks to Haunter's far larger than normal size, like Dragonite and Tentacruel, completely annihilated everything around it's blast radius and turned it all to ashes. Quite literally, everything even close to Haunter was now nothing more than fine powder and smoke. Crushed into nothing by the might of ghostly energy which had been somehow effectively turned into raw destructive power by Haunter when it unleashed Curse.

As the smoke and shaking finally stopped and cleared off respectively, Ash looked up from his arms while still laying flat on his stomach and tried to see ahead. Charmander as well uncovered his own head from beside of Ash and used his keener eyes to peer further than that of what his trainer could.

Both of them were able to finally see Haunter at just about the same time as everyone far behind them was and when they gazed upon the titanically large Ghost-Type, a collective gasp escaped from everyone at practically the same time.

What shocked the humans and even their Pokémon so much was the sight of Haunter. Instead of looking like the scary, dangerous and monstrous Pokémon they had all become accustom to seeing, now they were looking at something which just appeared... grotesque, for lack of a better word.

Haunter's entire body was ballooned out to epic proportions until it resembled a massively over inflated beach ball and it only just kept getting bigger and bigger. It's eyes were also all but bulged out of their sockets and it's mouth was open unnaturally wide like it was trying to filter feed.

Ash stood up and looked at Haunter with a mixture of befuddlement and slight disgust as he said aloud, "What the hell is Haunter doing?!"

Giselle, Misty, Brock and even Fuji seemed at a loss but Agatha, who had been watching everything happen from the sidelines in case she and Gengar needed to intervene at some point, widened her eyes as her several years of battling experience told her exactly what it was Haunter was doing and not only did it astound her but it also scared her.

Cupping her hands over her mouth, she shouted, "Ash!" And when the boy turned to look at her, Agatha continued almost frantically, "Ash get back here! We have to leave now! All of us!"

His face must have shown his question but Agatha yelled again, "I don't know how but Haunter is about to use Self-Destruct and that's why it's expanding! It's gathering all of it's energy into one focal point and then it's going to explode and destroy itself, probably taking the entire tower with it!"

Ash's friends and Fuji all looked at Agatha with varying degrees of shock as the older man gave voice to it all, "What! How is that possible?! Self-Destruct doesn't kill a Pokémon, it just renders them into a temporarily unconscious state from the massive energy depletion the power for the attack calls for!"

Agatha quickly returned her Gengar as she shook her head. "Not this time! I can tell by the way Haunter's body is expanding that it is drawing on every available ounce of energy that it has in order to destroy itself! For what reason I do not know but I do know that it's about to commit suicide and if we don't leave now then we're all dead!"

Ash was about to respond until they suddenly heard struggling from outside of the chamber. Turning to look, he and everyone else was surpised to see the three wild Ghost Pokémon that had served as Haunter's servants getting pulled in from the anti-chamber quickly, struggling all the way as they were sucked in like a vacuum towards Haunter's gaping mouth.

In sick fascination, Ash and the others watched as Gastly, Haunter and Gengar were swallowed up into the bigger Haunter's maw and disappeared into nothing, subsequently causing Haunter's body to expand that much more.

Giselle gasped. "W-Were they a part of Haunter?!"

Fuji nodded slowly. "I-I think so... they must have been constructs of energy that Haunter somehow was able to create in order to guard it and the tower while it was trapped in here... even while it was sealed..."

Brock shook his head, squinty eyes never leaving Haunter's growing body. "Amazing, that's incredible!"

Agatha quickly hurried out to grab the still sleeping Pikachu into her arms and then ran back towards the others much faster than a person her age should have been able to, like Fuji, as she started to rush them all, "Yes, yes it's facinating now everyone return your Pokémon now, we have to go!"

Her words seemed to snap the others out of their individual stupors as they began hurriedly returning their Pokémon. The Elite Four member then started ushering them all quickly towards he exit until just she, Giselle and Fuji were in the rear. Turning around at what remained of the door, which was now just a huge gaping hole, once everyone was through, Giselle shouted back at Ash, "Come on we have to go Ash! Hurry!"

He didn't even register her words though. Ash just remained rooted to the floor as he stared up at Haunter with his eyes locked onto the soon to explode Pokémon. He heard Giselle scream at him again but he still didn't reply or even turn around.

"Ugh!" Giselle groaned in frustration. "What's wrong with him?!"

Gastly, who had managed to recover a little by this point and was up and floating again, looked out at his trainer with a calculating and thoughtful expression on his face. Realizing rather quickly what Ash was thinking, Gastly started to curse, "Damn that boy and his recklessness!"

He quickly looked at Brock and Fuji, "One of you go get him now!"

Agatha caught onto what the talking Ghost-Type was alluding to immediately, being the intelligent and wizened person she was. Fuji seemed to understand as well but Agatha voiced it before he could, calling to Ash with authority in her voice, "You get back here right now young man, don't you even think about it!"

"Ash it's not worth it!" Fuji yelled desperately.

It was only then that Ash turned around and said, much to his friend's confusion, Gastly's frustration and the older adult's horror, "It is to me!"

Looking down at Charmander, he said quickly to his confused Pokémon, "Charmander go with them right now!"

With no further words, he took off running at Haunter as Agatha and his friends screamed after him, Fuji and Gastly watching on in helpless dismay knowing that there was now nothing they could do to stop him.

Giselle tried to run after him but Brock yet again had to detain her, "No Giselle don't!"

"Let me go Brock! Let me go!" She yelled at the older boy as she fought against him. "I need to help him!"

Misty made to run as well but Agatha just held her hand out. "Don't you dare! This is bad enough as it is!" Knowing she wouldn't make it past the serious looking older woman, the younger female reluctantly was forced to back down.

"Ash!" Giselle screamed once more. "Ash please no!"

All their pleas fell on deaf ears though as Ash sprinted towards the now morbidly inflated Haunter. Breathing in and out extremely hard as he pumped his arms as fast as they could go, Ash shouted, "Haunter! I'm not letting you go so don't even think about it! I know what you're trying to do and it's not gonna happen!"

The boy didn't even bother looking behind him- so preoccupied was he in his dead set goal of reaching Haunter- but if he did then he would have seen Charmander faithfully running behind him. Choosing to rather risk his life and be there for his trainer than go back to safety.

Unbeknownst to either of them though, Fuji was watching the both of them now intently. Not bothering to worry or panic for the moment, the older man just watched the two of them with his eyes particularly trained on Charmander. A look of deep thought and contemplation was on his face as he wondered in his mind, 'Such a bond exists between that boy and his Charmander that I don't even think they are fully aware of just how deep it is. I've watched that little Fire-Type closely ever since I first saw it in our battle and the level of sheer dedication and loyalty it has to Ash is truly astonishing. It is clear to see that he can bring out the best in his Pokémon but I wonder if maybe just maybe he could help bring out that young Charmander's full potential if I..."

His thoughts were suddenly cut off by Giselle pointing ahead and screaming again, "He's not going to make it!"

Fuji came back to the present and cleared his head before focusing on what Giselle was yelling about. As he did, he saw that Haunter was starting to rise high up into the air while it's bloated form began to pulse and fluctuate wildly. It was only in that moment that he realized a simple, undeniable and also very harsh truth.

That said truth being that Haunter was now too high up in the air for Ash to reach and form a connection with it through whatever means he utilized to do so. With that sudden slap of cold undeniability in his face, Fuji felt his stomach drop and could only imagine the despair Ash must have been starting to feel as well in that same moment.

Little did he know however that Ash was far from giving into despair. Even as hopeless as it might have been, the boy still charged Haunter, intent on finding some way to do what he knew had to be done for his, Haunter's and everyone else's sakes.

Fortunately enough for him though, luck, Arceus or perhaps even the small Fire-Type running behind him seemed to be on Ash's side because just as the boy started to run out of ideas on how to reach Haunter so high up in the air, Charmander suddenly stopped and built up a powerful Dragon Rage within his body that he opened his mouth and then released with a roar of 'CHARRRRRMAAAAANDEEEEEER!"

The powerful Dragon-Type move exploded outwards with incredible force, utilizing some of the last of Charmander's energy as it was aimed right at Ash.

The others saw this and Misty panicked as she screamed, "It's gonna hit Ash!"

However, to her and everyone else's surprise, the burst of draconian energy ended up hitting the ground right below Ash, the force of which caused an explosion that rocketed the boy straight up into the air and, coincidentally enough, towards Haunter itself.

Quickly recovering from his shock of suddenly being airborne, Ash took the fortunate last minute strategy of his Pokémon gratefully and looked up at Haunter as he extended his arms out. "HAUNTEEEEEER! YOU'RE NOT DOING THIS!" He yelled as the Star Mark appeared on his right palm once again.

Haunter was too far immersed in it's nearing self destruction to see Ash flying towards it and then, with a cry of sheer ferocious intent, the young trainer came in full contact with the Pokémon. His right hand landing on Haunter's bloated body just before the room yet again exploded in a burst of white light.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Ash opened his eyes and for the fourth time found himself floating within the dimension unique to the Star Mark. Looking up directly in front of him, Ash's whole face seemed to drop to one of exasperation and frustration.

The reason being that Ash could no longer see Haunter like he could the last two times he was in the connected state with it. This time he was looking at a cocoon of swirling dark mist. Not the thick dark shadows of evil from before but more like just a black... dark mist. A black mist of energy.

Ash didn't know what he was going to encounter on the other side of the veil but he did know that he had to find out so, with his mind made up, Ash started forcing himself forward across the weightless, anti-gravity space of swirling, multicolored energies.

The effort to make himself move forward was not only awkward since he was floating but it was also extremely difficult to do so. Like he had hundred pound weights strapped to his legs that was only letting him move a small amount at a time.

Gritting his teeth and grunting inside in frustration, Ash continued to move forward like he was making his way across a hundred meter stretch. After what seemed like hours but was really only minutes, he finally found himself standing in front of the cloud of dark mist, looking up at it like it was an impassible fortress.

Taking a deep breath, Ash put his hands out and let them make contact with the dark mist, finding that they passed through unimpeded into a cold, almost chillingly empty void beyond. Confusing him a bit and more than worrying the young trainer since he didn't know what he would encounter on the other side of the mist, Ash knew deep down that he had to do it if for none other than Haunter's sake. He had come too far and now wasn't the time to back down.

Steeling himself, Ash allowed his body to pass through the dark mist and into the blurry, obscure and eery domain beyond it. As soon as he did, Ash found his eyes almost immediately having to readjust themselves to the extremely dim light within the veil of shadows.

Keeping his arms in front of him, Ash slowly made his way through the thick darkness for several moments before he was eventually able to make out a shape some distance away. Squinting his eyes, Ash continued onward with great effort until he found himself finally breaking out of the mist and into a small circular clearing within the dome of darkness.

To Ash's great shock and utter confusion, what he saw floating in the middle of the space was something he didn't expect. At the most, he was fully prepared to see Haunter in all of it's gigantic size or perhaps the bloated shape it was taking on outside of their connection in the real world.

However, instead of either of those things, he actually saw a normal sized Haunter. Whom still looked the same as Black Fog with it's own unique physical characteristics that differed from others of it's species but now, it was actually the same size as Fuji's own Haunter.

Taking in the way Haunter's head was dropped low and an almost palpable air of depression and sadness hung around it like a suffocating aura, Ash knew the Pokémon was in a very bad place right now. As he looked around and took in his surroundings a little more, he started to wonder if maybe the cloud of dark mist, Haunter's current size and the depressive aura around it was actually a visual representation within their connection of the inner turmoil Haunter was feeling at the moment.

He knew that Haunter wasn't always gigantic from what Arceus told him nor was it always able to wield the unnatural 'shadow powers' it had demonstrated at the beginning of the night while still controlled by the darkness that had been surrounding it then. If that was the case then maybe, just maybe, what he was seeing now was really Haunter's original form before everything bad had happened to it.

Feeling his heart go out to Haunter even more so now than it already was due to the suffering Pokémon's decision to basically kill itself, Ash slowly moved forward and spoke in a soft voice, "Haunter?"

He received no reply or even acknowledgement that it heard him but he continued to try. "Haunter... please listen to me. Out of everything you have ever done before, I'm begging you to please listen to me." He put his arms out imploringly. "Or at the very least look at me... please."

Haunter still didn't look at Ash but he could tell by the way it's body shifted some that it was at least listening. "Haunter what can I say to stop this? What could I ever possibly do to take away the pain and the horrible memories of the life you've lived?"

He looks down. "Honestly I... I came here tonight thinking that I could change you. Thinking that I could make all the difference and do what even Arceus thought wasn't possible. She was the one that told me about you y'know. She knows you're angry with her for thinking that she took your human friend from you all those years ago and for all of the bad things that's happened in your life."

He could see Haunter bristle a little at his words. "To tell the truth though... I don't blame you." This obviously surprised the Pokémon as it's head shot up and it's red eyed looked directly at the boy.

Not seeing it however, Ash kept talking. "I can't say that I would personally blame Arceus if the same kinds of horrible things happened to me and the ones I loved but for you... I think I can understand. From the moment you were born, you were thrust into a world you didn't understand, with abilities you didn't have a choice in and around people who would never understand you."

Ash shrugged his shoulders slightly. "I know what it's like to carry such a heavy burden of being different and to have a great destiny. To do things you never had a choice in and wield abilities that aren't normal. Arceus says I'm her chosen one and that I'm meant to bring peace to the world but... but sometimes I have to wonder if I even can. If she picked the right person or even if I can handle it. Sometimes I feel so overwhelmed that I just... I just want to break! I just want to give up and go home but then I..."

He finally looked up at Haunter, his eyes locking onto his own. "Then I think about the people and Pokémon I love and care for and how I want to protect and keep them safe. I think about the Pokémon with me now and how I want to fulfill my promise of making them as strong as they can ever be and help them achieve whatever dreams they may have. I think about how I want to make my mom, Professor Oak and everyone else back home proud of me... how I want to make myself proud of me."

Ash's eyes soften then as he smiled at Haunter. "I also think about all of the Pokémon I've been able to help along with my friends and my Pokémon since I started my journey and left home. All the hearts of loneliness I've helped heal and the hope I've been able to help give back to Pokémon and even people that lost their own long ago."

Ash's smile remained as he said next, "I think... of the ones like you Haunter."

This clearly shocked the very old, yet longevity blessed (some would say cursed) Ghost-Type as it's eyes widened at the boy's proclamation. Ash tilited his head a little and chuckled. "It's funny how things in life happen and how they take completely unexpected turns without us even noticing. Well... sometimes we don't. Other times they're really extreme and harsh turns that kick us down into the dirt where we feel like we don't want to ever get up again."

The boy sighed. "The fact is though, we can blame whoever we wish... we can get mad at anyone we want and even say it's Arceus herself's fault. In the end though... it's not. It's just life. Life can be amazing but it can also be cruel and knock us down on our asses a lot of times. When that happens we can either get mad and just hate the world and want to make everyone else feel our pain or... we can stand back up and brush ourselves off. Put a smile on our faces and keep moving forward, taking whatever life has to throw at us and never give up."

Haunter's face seemed to drop as, for the first time, Ash could clearly see guilt revealing itself within the Pokémon's eyes. Seeing this and knowing he had a chance at finally helping to turn Haunter around potentially, Ash spoke quickly again, "I know you feel guilt for what you've done to others over the many years and I also know that your past is full of more regret, shame and self loathing than I could ever imagine. Yes it's true you did bad things and yes it's true you allowed yourself to become a monster."

He smiled again. "But that's not who you are anymore. I can see it. I know that you desire to change and be different Haunter, I know you do. The only one keeping you from changing is yourself. You are allowing yourself to be so eaten up with guilt and shame that you have convinced yourself that there can be no redemption and no peace in your of life. Because of that, you've made the decision to take your own life but tell me... what will it change? What will it help?"

Haunter looked at Ash again in confusion and the boy elaborated, "Say you do this and your soul moves on to the next life. What escape from your guilt and pain will you have then? You didn't try to make anything right or atone for the mistakes that you made and the bad things you did. All you would have done is take the easy way out and became a quitter. In turn, you also leave behind those that are going to blame themselves for not being able to help you and are also going to miss you when you're gone."

Ash could see Haunter's complete disbelief that anyone would ever miss it, shown by the sardonic expression that it's surprisingly emotionally expressive red eyes were now giving him. "You don't believe that do you? You don't believe that anyone will miss you if you die right now. If that's what you truly believe then I'm sorry to tell you this Haunter but you're dead wrong. There is someone who would mourn for your loss and do you know who that would be?"

Ash then pointed at himself. "It would be me, I would."

The Ghost-Type visibly flinched back at Ash's admittance and at the same time, felt a great amount of confusion within itself. The boy floated a little closer and nodded. "I may not know you Haunter and I can't say I care for you too much yet but I can say that I do hold compassion and sympathy for you. Even though you tried to kill me a few times..." He grinned jokingly. "I still feel the same even now and all I want is to help you. I want to help take your pain and bad memories away. I want to help you get rid of those scars of betrayal you have and teach you that life is much better and much more wonderful than you have ever thought or imagined possible before."

Ash came closer yet again but this time, Haunter didn't move back, it's eyes locked on Ash with a mixture of both caution and perhaps even slight hope as it stayed in one place. "Don't you want to know what it's like to be cared for and to be happy? Don't you want to be able to count on someone other than yourself and know what compassion and even love is like Haunter?"

Almost as if in an attempt to push Ash away due to the unsure feelings and fear it was still feeling inside, Haunter pushed outward at him with a powerful force of negative emotions. Ash himself was sent reeling back from Haunter's energy pulse but his unwavering determination and the hope he had in helping Haunter allowed him to overcome his exhaustion and fight against the Pokémon's attempts to keep him at a distance.

Holding his arms out in front of him with his body bent forward, Ash fought to get to Haunter again, even as the dark mist around them both started to swirl and twist wildly. Haunter fought and struggled with everything it had to keep Ash away, terrified to let someone in again as it kept pushing more and more pulses of dark energy at him.

Ash for his part was in his own state of firm, unwavering resolve. His entire being was fixated on getting to Haunter and cementing their connection no matter how hard he was getting pushed away. Grunting with immense effort, he shoved back at Haunter with his own pulse of compassionate and caring motions that were practically bleeding from his heart. Effectively causing a duel of wills between the two of them.

A battle in which, amazingly enough, Ash was starting to win.

Moving his arms forward rapidly like he was trying to run and with his face turning red from exertion, Ash shouted at Haunter from across their mental link, "I'm not giving up Haunter! From this day on, you are going to know compassion and you will never be alone again! I AM NOT LETTING YOU DIE!"

With those final words of solid resolve spoken, Ash yelled across the link again and threw himself at Haunter, the Pokémon's eyes widening in actual fear as it expected something terrible to happen for failing to keep Ash away.

To Haunter's near heart stopping shock, instead of feeling pain or any one of the other horrible fears it had speeding through it's mind at what Ash could possibly to do it, the spectral Pokémon instead felt an immeasurable warmth spread through it's entire body. A completely foreign and long since alien sensation to the Ghost-Type, like a memory that was once there and then disappeared far out of the mind's ability to recall it long ago.

Looking down, Haunter's red eyes showed it's stunned surprise as Ash had his arms wrapped around it's body while he hugged it tightly. The boy smiled and spoke the answer for Haunter's confusion, "Do you feel this Haunter? That warmth and comfort spreading through your body right now? There's nothing wrong with it and it doesn't mean anything is wrong with you either. This is what it feels like to be cared for and to know love... to let someone else in and be there for you."

Ash hugged Haunter closer still and continued, "I promise you Haunter that if you let me... I will always be there for you and I will always care for you. I'll help you see the beauty and good in life again if you just let me in. I know it's scary and I know opening your heart after enduring so much pain is hard to do but if you can trust again... if you can just give life one more try... I swear I'll always be there by your side."

Pulling away then, Ash kept his hands on Haunter's ghostly shoulders as he smiled sincerely at it. "I will be your friend. Until the very end and you have my word."

Haunter just looked at Ash for several moments with an unblinking,
disbelieving expression on it's face. Almost as if it was staring into Ash's very soul for any shred of dishonesty or deception, unable to believe that anyone would show it such kindess and compassion after all of the terrible things it had done to so many others before.

Ash eventually let his hands drop to his sides again as he continued to smile at Haunter and asked, "So? What do you say Haunter, will you give life... and yourself, another chance again? Will you let me be your friend?"

Time appeared to slow down as Ash waited for Haunter's decision, so deep in thought did the Pokémon seem to be. Though, after several tense minutes of complete stillness, Ash looked around and saw the dark mist around them begin to fade until, gradually, the pocket dimension of multi-colored aura energies they were in came into full view again.

Ash looked back at Haunter and grinned as a feeling of barely contained excitement and accomplishment began forming in his gut. "Is that a yes Haunter?"

The Ghost-Type in question merely looked at Ash in silence for several more moments, taking in observance everything about the human before it that Ash had shown himself to be over the course of the night. To Haunter, from the moment he first felt Ash's energy he knew the boy was a different kind of human but what kind for certain was definitely a mystery to it.

For so long Haunter had truly blamed Arceus and the world around it for all of the misfortunes and tragedies it had seen, underwent and also witnessed others go through that it had tried to help or simply even just observed over the many long years that it had lived. After it's one and only human friend had been brutally taken from it, Haunter knew that it had shut it's heart off to others and became brutal and cruel to everyone it came across afterwards.

Ash had been right. Haunter had truly begun to believe that there was no good left in the world after so many desolate years passed by and it had further resigned itself to the darkness that came to control and dominate it's very existence. Haunter felt guilt for what it had done to so many innocent people but it also felt as though redemption was so far beyond it's grasp that there was no point in trying to change or find something else to believe in anymore.

Then Ash came along. A simple human that only had his courage, friends, determination and belief that Haunter was not beyond saving to go on. Through all the odds and after all that happened, even after it tried to kill Ash, his friends and their Pokémon time and time again, the boy was still hell bound to help bring the light to it's poor and wretched soul.

Looking at Ash now after all that had happened during the long night, Haunter could not help but see some of the same kindess and compassion in the boy that it had seen in it's old human friend from so long ago. It was in that same moment that Haunter felt something... a warmth. Like a spark of heat being ignited within it's long cold heart that Haunter hadn't felt for years.

It was then, and only then, that Haunter realized what it was feeling. More specifically, what it was feeling for the human in front of it. And that emotion, that feeling... was caring. Haunter found itself actually feeling a level of affection and ever so slow growing compassion for the human that had risked and given so much for it when he never even had to in the first place.

Ash had been asking if Haunter could feel the warmth spreading inside of it and now... now Haunter actually believed that it could. For the first time in longer than it could remember, the Ghost-Type was actually feeling hope and perhaps even the tiniest bit of happiness growing up inside of it's formerly darkened, evil self.

It was at the end of all of this inner monologue and thought that Haunter finally made it's decision with firm resolution and allowed the sight of a small, contained, yet no less very welcome smile appear on it's once malicious looking face.

Ash's own smile only increased ten fold as he nodded and put his hands on his hips. "It's not gonna be easy Haunter and I know that you are still going to battle with the darkness of your past. Living a life like you have for so long isn't going to change over night and I know that, I think you do too. But together..."

He extended his right hand out to the Pokémon then. "Together we can do it. I know we can."

Haunter just gave Ash another small, silent nod of it's head with a smile accompanying it. The smile felt very foreign on the ghostly Pokémon's face, no doubt from having gone so long without giving one, but Haunter still decidedly liked the feeling of doing something other than angrily scowling all of the time.

As Ash took the chance to look Haunter over, he started seeing the yellow aura around it begin to slowly morph and change. This surpised Ash since for one, this was the first time he had even bothered to really check out Haunter's emotional aura level during their current connection. Mostly due to the fact that he had been too preoccupied with simply reaching the Ghost-Type when they re-entered the Star State to give thought to anything else.

When their third connection had failed, Ash recalled seeing Haunter's aura slowly starting to change from red, which meant angry, to what he thought was yellow, which meant cautious and unsure. He turned out to be right since the aura he was seeing around Haunter currently was indeed yellow but now, it was changing once more before his very own eyes.

Ash found himself hoping that this particular aura shift would be to white like his since that would mean Haunter was finally calm and at peace. Arceus must have been watching and saw fit to bless him in that moment because, to his utter joy, he was just able to see the wavering yellow energy around the Ghost Pokémon shifting into that of the tranquil, serene and calm white one that he had been so longing to see.

Unfortunately, Ash was only able to bask in the fact that he had managed to succeed in bringing a Pokémon all the way down from the dreaded and 'inescapable' black aura to the pure white one that matched his, for a very small fraction of unfortunate part of the situation being the sudden wave of extreme fatigue and overwhelming exhaustion Ash felt slam into him all at one time.

Grabbing his head, Ash grunted through the telepathic mind link and doubled over, only the fact that he couldn't actually fall while floating in the Star State being what kept him up.

As pure fatigue overcame the boy and his vision started to swim in his eyes, Haunter looked down worriedly at the human he was growing to care for.

Feeling Haunter's worry, Ash looked up at the Pokémon from his nearly totally bent over position and gave a weak, almost squinty eyed smile. He brought a trembling hand up and tried to put his thumb out as he said in a near whisper of a voice through the mind-link, "It's... It's okay Haunter I'm... I'm fi-"

That was the last word Ash managed to utter mentally before darkness suddenly swallowed up his vision. The last thing he saw before the blackness of unconsciousness claimed him was Haunter's aura turning to a snowy, vibrant white and the final sensation he felt was the combination of Haunter hurrying to his side and the violent tug that signaled the end of their connection just before the Star State broke entirely.

XXXXXXXXXXX

Giselle and the others had spent the entire time Ash and Haunter were connected through the Star Mark anxiously awaiting to see what would happen at the end of it all. So far though they were only treated to the frustrating sight of the bright dome of light that blocked their vision from being able to see what was currently happening within.

It was while they were waiting that the shaking started. It was mild and not too noticeable at first but gradually it became more and more pronounced until practically the entire chamber and what felt by extension like the entire tower itself was starting to quake off of it's foundations.

The ceiling up above began to tremble and then actual chunks of it, small and then much bigger, started raining down on them from above. This caused all of them to run and take shelter wherever they could in the chamber to avoid the large pieces of rubble falling hazardously from above.

"What's going on?!" Misty yelled from where she was hiding behind a few broken down pillars which had formed a sort of cross-shaped barrier over one another.

Fuji shouted back from his own spot behind some rubble nearby, "It's the structure of the tower! It's old and given all the abuse it's taken over the years plus everything that's happened down here tonight, I think the entire infrastructure is starting to collapse! I was afraid this might happen at some point in the future but not right now! We need to get out as soon as possible in case it does collapse or otherwise we'll all be crushed and buried alive down here!"

"Not without Ash we can't!" Giselle yelled back.

Agatha looked towards the dome of light from where she was near the exit. "Well then they'd better hurry up whatever it is they're doing in there or it'll be too late!"

As if on cue and right as more chunks started to fall down from above, the light dome began flickering and fading out until in a flash, it was gone altogether. Brock was the first one to get a clear sight on what could be seen after the light vanished and he announced it while pointing, "Hey guys look there! It's Ash and Haunter looks normal again!"

As each of them gazed upward to see for themselves what Brock was saying, they saw Ash floating face up in the air high above near the ceiling, his arms and legs dangling limply by his sides with his head thrown back.

Haunter was now indeed completely back to normal, no longer bloated or expanding in order to self-destruct. It was still the same giant size that it had been the entire night though, proving that the smaller form the powerful Ghost-Type took during it and Ash's final Star Mark connection was truly just a physical representation of the uncertainty and vulnerability it had been feeling during those particular moments. It's true size, at least now days, was the immense, all encompassing, awe inspiring one they were looking at now.

Seeing Haunter no longer poised to explode and with an almost visible air of calm about it that none of them had seen it portray so far, led to a relieved sense of joy that Ash had apparently finally succeeded in taming Haunter's enraged spirit. However, it also led to a feeling of panic and terror for everyone at the sight of Ash hanging limply in the air.

Giselle shouted Ash's name along with his friends, Fuji and Agatha, while his Pokémon (including Pikachu who had woken up a few minutes earlier) all called out to him as well in great worry for their trainer and friend.

As they all watched on while feeling a dreaded sense of hopelessness at the situation, Haunter's eyes glowed a faint blue and then the same bluish glow that had been around Ash the entire time but had been too dull for any of them to see, started to become much more pronounced around him.

Then, with great care and careful concentration, Haunter started to lower Ash down to the floor below until he came to rest on the hard, broken stone ground.

Giselle and Pikachu were almost moving on air, such was how fast they got up and were now running towards Ash at a frantic pace. Fate was not to bestow reunion amongst them so soon however because at that exact same moment, Fuji was also up and running to intercept Giselle as a large chunk of ceiling broke free and came hurdling down towards her and Pikachu.

His old body moving faster than it had in years, Fuji quickly pulled Giselle out of the way just as she looked up and saw the massive chunk of rubble coming towards her.

The two of them fell to the side just as Pikachu flipped out of the way and the huge lump of stone smashed into the ground. Letting her go and getting to his knees, Fuji watched along with Giselle as several more large pieces of ceiling started to come loose and fall like ballistic missiles to the chamber floor below.

Fuji helped Giselle up and then the two of them, plus Pikachu, ran back to the others just as the bombardment of debree started to rain down on them ruthlessly.

Agatha stood up fully and put her arm over her head as she shouted, "We have to get Ash and get out of here now!"

Brock however was already up and prepared to make a sprint for his friend when, to his and everyone else's horror, a massive chunk of ceiling nearly thirty feet long and across busted free from the ceiling and fell to the ground as if it were a meteor. It then smashed down in the almost exact center of the chamber seconds later but on it's side, causing the ground to split apart as the hard and very durable chunk of thick stone cut a swath down into the earth and formed a giant wall of rock which practically divided the room into two separate sections.

Brock was stopped dead in his tracks by the mammoth boulder that had fallen and it was only made worse by the tons of smaller but no less considerable sized chunks of solid black stone that rained down in a shower and joined their huge cousin below in creating a large wall of rubble and rock that only kept getting higher and higher.

To top it all off, everything had fallen in such a way that the chamber was now essentially cut completely in half, blocking off Brock and the others from Ash and Haunter. And it was only getting worse as several large rocks now began falling onto their own side.

Misty, Giselle and Ash's Pokémon screamed and called out in sheer terror for Ash's safety as the sudden harsh turn of fate took them all by a cruel, twisted surprise.

Brock and Fuji were all but rooted to the ground in dumbfounded shock at what had just happened but their wits quickly came rushing back to them when Misty and Giselle both went running towards the wall of boulder and pillar sized ceiling debree separating them from Ash.

Brock was quick to reach out and grab Giselle as Fuji did the same to Misty, both of them holding the now desperately struggling girls back as they struggled to get free while screaming Ash's name over and over again.

Neither male had any words of comfort or reassurance to offer the girls though because they themselves were still reeling from the shock of what had just happened. For them, the realization brutally struck home that they had just lost their opportunity to get Ash back and save him from the cave-in that was almost guaranteed to happen any moment now.

Once all of the massive chunks of ceiling started to fall and then made a virtually impassable barrier with their mass and size, the chance of just running in and retrieving him was gone. They couldn't try and scale the wall of rubble to get to him or send any of their Pokémon to do it for them either because the ceiling was still practically falling down on their heads. Every second spent in the chamber was just one more very real chance that they would all be crush or buried alive.

This was the same harsh, terrible truth Agatha quickly came to herself and called for her to make the hardest decision that she had ever... ever had to make in her entire life up to now. A decision in which she knew would haunt her until the day she died.

Tears gathering in her eyes even as the usually calloused and tough woman raised her head, Agatha yelled out, "Bring them in and call back your Pokémon! We have to go now or we won't get the chance to later!"

Brock and Fuji turned their heads and looked back at Agatha like she had just told them to murder their Pokémon and forsake their families but, knowing the threat of being crushed to death was very real as they looked around and saw all of the deadly pieces of ceiling crashing down all around them, they knew that there was no other option. As much as they would have given anything in the world to make it not true what they had to do, both Brock and Fuji knew that they had to listen to Agatha.

His heart shattering even as he started pulling Misty backwards towards the exit, Fuji felt tears prickle at his eyes as the girl screamed and fought against him viciously, vehemently protesting against the decided course of action.

Brock, for his part, just looked at the wall of rubble separating them from Ash with an inconsolable feeling of despair and hopelessness consuming his being for failing his closest friend. Tears fell down his own face slowly as he whispered in a broken voice, "I'm so sorry Ash..." Before tugging on Giselle as he turned around to follow Fuji.

The brunette's eyes widened at what Brock was doing and she screamed loudly at him while beating on his chest. "Brock stop! Let me go! We can't leave him!"

Brock continued to struggle against her as he tried to talk some sense into her, "Giselle if we don't leave now then we're all gonna die and Ash wouldn't want that!"

Paying no heed to her older friend's words, Giselle continued to scream and curse at him as she all but bit and clawed at the teen to let her go.

Pikachu and Charmander however were not so easily swayed as they ran up to the wall of fallen ceiling and started attacking it ruthlessly with fire and electricity respectively. The worry they were feeling for their trainer had quickly turned to all out maniacal panic as they poured every ounce of their remaining energy into moving the huge barrier in their way which simply refused to move, not caring if they killed themselves from over exhaustion or not.

"CHUUUU!" Pikachu cried loudly as he released his most powerful Focus Lightning enhanced Thunderbolt at the seemingly immovable wall of rocks, only succeeding in smashing apart a few of the smaller boulders but not nearly enough to make a difference.

Charmander kept blasting every rock he could see with Flamethrower and Dragon Rage while Gastly stayed back with his head bowed low. Being the intelligent Pokémon that he was, Gastly knew there was little to no chance of saving Ash and with that heartbreaking revelation settling in, he also knew that his trainer would want them to live. Not die and waste their lives in a fruitless attempt to rescue him.

Knowing what he had to do since his fellow Pokémon would never willingly leave, he floated forward and used his psychic energy to paralyze and lift Pikachu and Charmander into the air.

The two smaller Pokémon desperately fought and struggled against the power Gastly was using to make them immobile but it was for naught. Tears started to stream down their faces as they cried out for Ash and even Gastly's own eyes dripped with tears as he started to float back towards the exit with his teammates in tow.

For the three of them it wasn't just the loss of Ash that was weighing heavily on their minds but also the fact that the other Pokémon, their teammates and friends, whom he still had with him in their Pokéballs were going to perish just the same as he was. And that thought alone tore at Gastly, Pikachu and Charmander's hearts like no other.

Agatha stood by the exit ushering everyone through and once Gastly went by her, she looked and saw that Brock and Fuji were struggling to hold onto Giselle and Misty. Taking a page from Gastly's book, she called out to her Gengar again and had it use it's own ghostly power to immobilize and lift the two struggling girls up into the air.

Having their hands free finally, Fuji and Brock returned their own Pokémon and then beckoned for Misty and Giselle's to follow them before turning and running out into the much larger anti-chamber outside.

Agatha watched her Pokémon carry off Misty and Giselle, both of whom were still shouting loudly, before turning back and looking at the collapsing room around her. Zeroing her eyes in on where she knew Ash was beyond the wall of debree, the old woman let her eyes fill with tears of sorrow before saying quietly, "Arceus please forgive us, forgive me..."

Turning away, she took off after the others as fast as her aged body could go and caught up with them quickly. The group of humans and Pokémon made their way out of the catacombs as fast as they possibly could while avoiding falling chunks of ceiling and collapsing walls at every turn.

Eventually they managed to break through from the quickly crumbling stairwell that lead up from the catacombs and rushed out into the ground floor of the tower. They could see the pale light of the moon shining just outside of the still wide open door and to the group of frenzied and adrenaline rushed trainers, it was like a beacon of hope that if they could just reach it, their night of terror would finally be over.

Finally, after a final burst of intense speed, the five of them plus the Pokémon managed to make it to the exit just as the largest part of the ceiling above the ground floor broke free from it's once secure position and fell down before smashing into and destroying half of the entire entrance hall.

On the outside, Brock and the others were forced to jump ahead just as the smoke and flying pieces of rubble from the destruction of the ground floor came shooting out of the door and effectively blocked it off.

Fuji got up and looked up at the tower just as the entire structure started to shake and rattle. Knowing what was about to happen, the old man's eyes widened as he pointed up while yelling, "Everyone get clear! The tower's gonna fall!"

Agatha scrambled to her feet and yelled at Gengar to get Misty and Giselle away just as Gastly did the same for Pikachu and Charmander. Brock quickly got Misty and Giselle's Pokémon together and then started to run along with everyone else in a mad dash across the cobblestone walkway that lead to and from the tower.

While they all ran frantically to get out of the way of the collapsing tower, the monumental structure started to groan and shake even more as cracks appeared all along it's outside surface. Sounds of extremely loud crashing and breaking could be heard coming from inside of the tower as a clear indicator that it was quite literally falling apart from the inside out.

When they had finally reached a safe distance a few dozen yards away, Fuji turned around along with everyone else and looked up at the tower just as it's pointed roof spire caved in on itself and started a downward domino effect. In essence, the entire tower began collapsing inward like a heavy rock being dropped into a tube full of feather light cotton balls.

Floor after floor of the iconic tower dropped down and crushed into each level of itself. The almost deafening roar of stone being smashed apart and broken to pieces and glass shattering accompanied the terrible but morbidly fascinating sight of such an incredibly large manmade structure toppling like a house of cards.

When the destruction of Lavender Town's most legendary symbol finally came to an end, Fuji and the others just gazed upon the huge dust cloud that was now covering the area in which the ancient tower once stood. Even though it was still nighttime, almost dawn, the massive smoke cloud could still be seen even against the dark night sky.

However, in that particular moment, everyone gathered presently was in too much of a state of sorrow and all consuming grief to give any thought to the fall of the tower.

Fuji, Agatha and Brock's heads were dropped low as they tried to come to grips with the life they had just lost so tragically while Gastly and Gengar finally released the ones they had been holding in the grip of their ghostly powers.

As soon as Misty, Giselle, Pikachu and Charmander were free, the former two just dropped to their knees with looks of complete despair and catatonic shock on their faces. Neither of the two young ladies were in the shape or sort of any kind to make so much as a noise, so overwhelmed were they by the unbearable catastrophe that had just so unexpectedly claimed the life of the person they cared equally as deeply for.

Pikachu and Charmander however took off running towards the now ruined tower in a vain attempt at saving the life of their beloved trainer. Brock knew, just as well as Agatha and Fuji, that nothing anyone said could get through to them at the moment so they just let them go. No one even made an attempt to try and comfort Giselle or Misty because none of them had the ability to do anything other than just stand there and drown in the feelings of failure and agony that they were feeling in varying degrees.

Agatha was perhaps the worst of all of them in that moment since it was her decision to leave. Even though it ultimately saved their lives since staying would have meant every single one of them would have died in the end, it still didn't take away the pain or immeasurable pain she was feeling right now.

No one spoke... no one made a single sound. Sometimes in the wake of a terrible tragedy people would flock together and let their heart bleeding pain become known to the world through loud wails, sobs and virtual rivers and pools of tears but then sometimes... sometimes the pain and the shock was just so great that any rational thought of expressing ones grief in an acceptedly normal way was completely and totally thrown out the window.

This was... unequivocally... one of those times.

While their human counterparts wallowed in their newfound despair, sorrow and self loathing, Pikachu and Charmander arrived at the edge of what was once Pokémon Tower but was now nothing more than an immense pile of rubble and ruin. A few large stone pieces and chunks of stairwells were the only things now left of the once great tower and the cloud of dust in the air gave a very distinct smell to the occasion. An aroma of which was not pleasant at all and basically resembled the smell that would have been released if someone brought a sledgehammer down and cracked open a piece of sandstone or any other rock that busted apart easily and then bent down to sniff the chalky dust released from them.

Looking around wildly for any sign of Ash, Pikachu sniffed the ground madly while Charmander ran from rock to rock and tried to lift them up so he could see if Ash was under any of them.

After several moments of heartbreakingly hopeless searching, Pikachu finally started calling out in a grief stricken voice along with Charmander as they tried to somehow reach their trainer. Several minutes of this went by with obviously no chance of getting Ash to respond and finally, Pikachu and Charmander both dropped their heads as tears fell from their eyes in earnest.

It was a time of total despair and unrivaled sorrow for all of them that seemed to be in no way coming even near to a close. In fact, when the earth around the tower started to rumble and move, shaking the small loose rocks amongst the pile of rubble that made up what was once Pokémon Tower, no one even noticed it at first.

Pikachu and Charmander were the first to realize something was happening and their heads shot up just as they were able to sense a strange energy rising up from what felt like below them.

Brock, Fuji, Agatha and the girls only noticed what was happening when the earth started to tremble in a very pronounced way. Looking at each other in confusion, they then turned their attention towards the ruins of the tower just as something incredible happened.

Like gravity had been relieved just in that particular area, the large slabs of rock and concrete making up the ruins of the tower began lifting up into the air slowly but surely until after just a few moments, the sky was full of the suspended rubble as it just levitated in place, completely denying all laws of reality and physiques to the amazment of everyone watching.

"W-What's happening?" Misty stuttered as she looked up at the extremely unusual spectacle taking place before her very eyes.

Before anyone could answer her, a large potion of the ground where the tower once stood started to cave in and drop away, leaving a massive hole in the center of it. Then, to the further astonishment of all watching, a large black and purple sphere began rising up out of the hole in the ground.

The black ball of swirling energy spun and rotated around in the air as it emitted a strange humming sound. Wearily looking up at the unnatural object, Pikachu and Charmander stepped back slowly as the sphere lowered itself to the ground just a few yards away from the ruins of the tower and then came to a stop.

Brock and the others all looked on with more than a little caution that was quickly replaced with total shock and awe as the large orb of circular energy begun to fade away until, amazingly enough, Haunter could be seen scrunched up inside of it.

The faces of everyone fell to slack jawed disbelief as Haunter slowly unfurled itself and then stretched out to it's true, extremely impressive, height. It's body expanding out and upward until the Pokémon formerly of pain and misery finally stopped enlarging.

Raising high up into the air, Haunter opened it's eyes and let it's red orbs slowly scan it's surroundings while the Ghost-Type breathed in the first bit of fresh, outside air that it had been allowed to take in for many, many years.

Giselle tried to make sense of the situation as she pointed up at Haunter and sputtered, "H-How... w-why? W-What's going on?"

Looking down at the humans and Pokémon gathered below it, Haunter fixed them with an impassive gaze before it steadily lowered itself down to their level.

Fuji and Agatha were instantly on alert as Haunter came to rest just a short distance away. "I don't know how you survived," Agatha began as she stepped forward protectively in front of the kids. "But if you're here to cause trouble then we won't hesitate to fight back!"

Gengar got in front of Agatha with a look on it's face that said it would attack at the slightest given signal. However, instead of looking worried or even registering her statement, Haunter just continued to look at them all intently for a few moments.

Eventually, Misty's temper took over as she stepped forward and shouted at the Ghost-Type, "Haven't you caused us enough torment Haunter?! Haven't you taken enough from us?! Why do you want to continue hurting us after you've already taken someone we all cared for and..." Tears formed in her eyes. "Loved so much..."

She shouted yet again, "Tell me why!"

Instead of answering her, Haunter just opened it's mouth widely before reaching it's hands up towards it's mouth. Everyone quickly went into instant alertness at Haunter's actions. Pikachu, Charmander, Misty and Giselle's Pokémon included.

Completely flooring all of them and sending Misty and Giselle into a near anxiety attack though, Haunter's mouth expanded more and more until suddenly, shoes could be seen appearing from with it's gaping maw.

Fuji's eyes, along with everyone else's except for Brock, widened almost comically as legs, a torso and then the familiar face and unruly hair of Ash Ketchum slowly appeared from within Haunter's mouth.

Levitating slowly out of the Ghost-Type's spectral body, Ash floated down and then came to a rest in Haunter's now cradled arms. Still unconscious, the boy was carried over to his friends and Pokémon in a surprisingly very gentle manner by Haunter. Whom seemed to be carrying the young Pokémon Trainer with a care and tenderness completely unlike it's fierce-some and dark appearance would suggest.

The Ghost Pokémon slowly reached out and laid Ash down on the ground while the others merely looked on without saying a word. Too consumed by their own shock to even register or let sink in what had just happened. Well... at least until it DID finally sink in and Pikachu and Charmander went running towards their trainer while crying out in sheer ecstatic happiness.

Eventually, Gastly, Brock, Misty and Giselle all overcame their own shock and then rushed towards Ash as well while calling out his name. As the lot of them crowded around the previously thought to be dead boy, each of them began looking him over urgently to see if anything was wrong with him. Meanwhile, Fuji and Agatha were still in a state of disbelief and had yet to find their words.

Sitting Ash up to cradle him in her arms, Giselle looked him over still with teary eyes as she said while almost not believing her eyes, "He's... he's okay..." The girl looked up at everyone else. "He's really okay!" She then hugged the unconscious boy tightly to her body as Misty reached out and gently moved Ash's hair from his face. "It's a miracle..." She whispered reverently with a soft smile on her face.

Brock, happy as he was that Ash was alive, erred on the side of uncertainty while Pikachu and Charmander, as well as Gastly, joined in on rejoicing that their trainer was okay.

Looking down at Ash, he shook his head. "How is this possible?"

Fuji stepped forward finally and knelt down to examine Ash. "He looks fine all things considered. No serious injuries or wounds that I can see... this just doesn't make sense. You're right Brock, this is a most unsual and unlikely miracle indeed."

Agatha finally got her wits about her again as she looked up at Haunter and asked suspiciously while leaning on her cain, "What did you do Black Fog?"

She wasn't expecting the Pokémon to give her any kind of reply until suddenly, the Pokémon's eyes glowed blue as several rings of similar colored energy came forth from them and started to encase the small group of people and Pokémon in a blue dome of energy.

Looking around in surprise and bewilderment, Agatha and the others watched as the blue aura changed and shifted around them before scenes then started to play inside of the strange blue energy dome encasing the lot of them. Almost like a constantly revolving and all encompassing television screen since the images being revealed to them were actually playing on the blue energy waves themselves like reflections upon water.

The first scene was that of Ash and Haunter getting trapped behind the wall of fallen ceiling chunks down in the chamber before the tower collapsed. Fuji and the others looked on as boulder after boulder fell down around Haunter and the Ghost-Type was forced to avoid and dodge as many as it could.

A few hunks of rubble fell towards Ash but Haunter was quick to intercept and destroy them with it's ghostly attacks and physical strength, effectively defending the unconscious boy however it could. Then, at one point, they watched as a particularly large section of ceiling went to fall and crush the two of them but Haunter was quick to action.

In a very impressive display of pure power and control over it's own strength and abilities, Haunter used it's power to construct a dome of black energy around it and Ash which quickly morphed into that of a sphere. The same sphere that they all saw appear from under the tower just moments beforehand.

Then just before the ball of energy totally covered Haunter up, whom was starting to scrunch and condense itself up to fit inside, the Pokémon quickly scooped Ash up and dropped the boy into it's open mouth where he was then swallowed and dropped into a safe place within Haunter's massive being. Basically, Ash had been being kept alive and well within a pocket, a protective cocoon if you will, of Haunter's very own internal energy which it had forced oxygen into so Ash could breath.

The question now answered as to how Ash and Haunter survived being crushed to death by the collapse of the tower- being that the boy had been being kept secure inside of Haunter while the black sphere of energy was what had kept both of them safe- the ghostly Pokémon then answered the unspoken question for how they got out of the fallen tower.

Eyes still locked onto the images that were being displayed within the vortex of energy swirling around them, the humans and Pokémon alike continued to watch as the scene shifted to one of almost total darkness. It took them awhile to figure why everything was now dark and totally quiet around them but then the entire dome of energy started to shake and pulse as suddenly, the darkness was replaced with a strange purplish, blue light.

Smashing, buzzing and crushing sounds were then heard before the entire mass of energy around them began moving in, what appeared to be, an upward motion. It took awhile before they realized that they weren't the ones moving, it was actually the images they were witnessing that were.

The dull purple/blue glow continued to pulse and cast colored shadows around them while the smashing sounds in the background and the upward raising motion continued on. When moonlight finally burst through into the scenes they were watching and the black sphere rose high up into the sky until it was overlooking the entirety of Lavender Town, as well as the landscape around it, into the distance and, weirdly enough, the images of themselves standing far below on the ground, they finally understood what they had been seeing.

Haunter had somehow been showing them through some strange form of energy based memory communication that it had been the one to save Ash and bring them both to the surface. The darkness they first saw was what the sealing chamber far below now looked like once the tower and everything else had caved in. Now it was nothing but a solid space chocked full of mammoth boulders with no room for even a Rattata to squeeze through.

The black sphere of energy Haunter wrapped around itself and Ash before the chamber fell in is what had kept them safe from being crush to death. The breaking, smashing, ascending sounds they heard was what the protective black sphere had been emitting as it rose up through the ground of the now collapsed tower and smashed apart every rock and piece of rubble that it encountered along it's way in the process.

The moonlight they had witnessed and the feeling of being able to look down over all of Labender Town and the surrounding area is what Haunter had been seeing from within the dome after it had finally busted through to the surface.

With the images no longer playing anymore, the blue vortex of energy faded and dropped from around them until the small group of humans and Pokémon were now staring up at the impassive face of Haunter once more. All of them were stunned into silence at the revelation that the one who had attempted to kill them all night long was now the very reason they had to thank for Ash's life being spared. Without Haunter, their friend, admired young man, trainer, boyfriend and love interest (respectively for each individual of course) would have been lost to the world.

Eventually, Giselle stood up and walked towards Haunter slowly as she spoke in a gentle voice, "Haunter... you... you saved Ash?"

The abnormally large Ghost-Type just nodded to her question and then a smile formed across Giselle's face, tears freely streaming down her face, before she lunged forward and hugged the bottom of the Pokémon's huge body. "Thank you! Thank you Haunter! I can never repay or thank you enough for saving him but... thank you..."

Giselle repeated her chants of 'thank you's' to Haunter while crying freely and even though this clearly took the now wide eyed Pokémon by suprise, it didn't attempt to move or push her away. Giselle's actions were mirrored by Misty, who also went up to the ghostly Pokémon and hugged it with her own tears of joy running down her cheeks.

"Thank you so much Haunter, you have no idea what this means to us..." The reddish, orange haired girl murmured tearfully as the joy she felt at not losing the boy who had come to mean so much to her mixed with that of the immeasurable gratitude she now felt towards the Pokémon responsible for keeping him alive.

Brock just smiled and nodded at Haunter in his own way of saying thank you and then shook his head in disbelief at the insane, yet very welcome turn of events the night had just underwent. Fuji on the other hand was still just a little bit too stunned at what had happened to say anything so he just stood there and watched the moment play out silently.

Agatha however decided to voice what she was thinking and stepped forward a little bit before clearing her throat. Not exactly sure where to begin, the seasoned Elite Four member looked up and addressed the Ghost-Type in a slightly hesitant tone just as Misty and Giselle finished hugging it and backed away.

"Haunter I..." She trailed off and thought for a few moments. "I was convinced that you were an evil, twisted Pokémon that only took joy in hurting others. For so long I detested you even though you were locked away under that tower but... but looking back on it now I guess that perhaps I... I guess that perhaps I wasn't looking at things the way I should have."

The old woman looked down at Ash and smiled faintly. "It took a boy decades my junior and with experience in Pokémon and life in general not even close to the equivalent of my own to make me learn a valuable lesson that I think I had forgotten... or maybe even never learned."

She slowly walked up to the unconscious boy a few feet away and looked down at his peacefully resting visage. "This boy taught me that no matter what something may appear to be at face value... even through the first few actions it may commit... it doesn't mean you have the right to judge them and condemn their souls to eternal damnation and desolation."

Agatha then looked back up at Haunter again, who was watching her intently, and said in an apologetic voice, "Fuji and myself locked you away because we were scared. We feared what you could do and from that one lone act we saw you perform the day when Pokémon Tower caught fire, we were convinced that no matter what, you were a dark and evil creature that needed to be stopped. Not once did we stop to think about trying to learn more about you and instead opted to lock you away in the darkness and forsake all attempts at redemption or compassion."

Shame crossed Agatha's face. "I regret that now. I wish we would have shown you at least some manner of kindness but we did not. It took a boy stepping far out of his own league and putting himself into a life threatening situation for Fuji and myself to see just how thoughtless we were originally. I may have made the call to leave the chamber earlier but when we thought Ash had died I... I couldn't even..."

She stopped and took a minute to compose herself, wiping a few stray tears away from her eyes before looking back up at Haunter again and smiling. "What I'm trying to say is that I'm sorry and that I am also so very grateful for saving Ash the way you did. I am more overjoyed than you can possibly imagine that I will not have to carry the burden of this young man's death on my conscious for the rest of my life. Thank you..."

Fuji followed his old friend's suit and bowed his head. "Yes thank you Haunter... I think you have now officially started on the path of redemption by saving the life of the one who believed in you and risked so much for your own life."

Haunter, obviously surprised at so many people being kind to it and thanking it at one time, just nodded it's head slowly but maintained a stoic facade regardless.

Brock spoke up then and got everyone's attention, "As great as this moment is you guys, dawn will be on us soon and we need to get Ash back to the house so he can rest. He's been through a lot and we might even have to check him over for any injuries we can't see right now."

Giselle looked at him oddly. "Injuries we can't see? You mean like-" It hit her like a ton of bricks what Brock meant after a few moments of thought and her face instantly reddened like a beet afterwards. "Oh... yeah that..."

Misty went over to her tired and battered looking Pokémon and then patted her Starmie gently. "We really need to get our Pokémon taken care of and rested too, it's been a long night."

Agatha nodded. "Yes a very good idea. Fuji can you-" However she was cut off by the kindly old man before she could say anything else as he simply held a hand up. "Of course I will Agatha, no need to even ask." Walking over to Ash then, he leaned down and lifted the boy up onto his back, grunting as he did so. "Ooph! Dear Arceus this boy is solid as a Golem!"

Brock moved to help him but the old man just shook his head. "I'm alright Brock, don't you worry. We need to focus on getting home right now, by tomorrow I foresee the town being in an uproar over what happened to the tower."

Misty suddenly stopped them all before anyone could do anything else. "Wait! What about Haunter?"

The others turned around and looked up at the massive Ghost-Type thoughtfully. "Hmmm..." Brock mused thoughtfully as he rubbed his chin in thought. "That's a good question. Haunter is essentially homeless now with the destruction of the tower."

Giselle snorted. "I don't think it'd want to stay there even if the tower was still up and standing. It was dark, cold, drafty and I think Haunter spent way too much time there as it is already."

Everyone else nodded in agreement to Giselle's words and then thought about it for a few more minutes until Fuji ventured forth curiously but also hesitantly. "Well... I suppose Haunter could stay in the gym back home if it wanted to, after all there is plenty of room."

Agatha nodded to Fuji's suggestion. "Yes that could work indeed I would wager."

Fuji looked back up at Haunter. "What do you say Haunter? Would you like to come and stay with us at my home? There's plenty of room and you won't be noticed by anyone." He then decided to sweeten the deal a little. "You'll be right near Ash the whole time and once he wakes up, you can even see him again."

Those words, especially the part about being near Ash, seemed to have won Haunter over because it simply gave another nod of it's large head and then went still again.

The old man smiled. "Very good then." He turned to the others while adjusting the unconscious young Ketchum on his back. "Let's go everyone, before this area starts seeing a heavy amount of traffic in the form of curious townspeople."

Everyone else agreed and then once Giselle, Misty and Agatha returned their Pokémon, they set out for Fuji's home. Pikachu on Giselle's shoulder and Charmander in her arms since they apparently felt the most comfortable with her out of everyone else while Ash was out of commission.

Haunter took one last look at the ruins of the tower which had been the bane of it's existence for so long and then focused outward on the horizon where the light of a new day was just starting to rise over the distant mountains.

Looking back towards the group of humans as they made their way back to Fuji's home then, Haunter began to follow them. More than a little curious and with a fair amount of hope at what this new phase in it's life would end up leading to.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

It was the warm streams of daylight shining down upon his face which awoke Ash from his slumber. Opening his eyes, the raven haired boy blinked a few times as his dizzy brain tried to adjust to just exactly where he was.

Turning his head, Ash rolled around onto his back and hissed in pain as he did so. Glancing up, he saw nothing but a dark wooden ceiling above him and when he finally looked down, he saw that he was wrapped in some warm blankets on a very comfortable bed.

At that realization, Ash suddenly was able to put two and two together and figured that he must have been back in the room that he and his friends had all shared together the night before when they had stayed with Fuji.

His mind swimming, Ash turned his attention from figuring out where he was to trying to remember what had happened to him. It took some time and more than a little pounding within his head due to a headache which he felt throbbing at the base of his skull, but eventually he was able to recall the last memory he had before falling unconscious. Which was right after Haunter had calmed down completely during their fourth Star State connection and he then passed out due to the total exhaustion he finally fell victim to.

Everything else was a blank afterwards and desperately wanting to know what happened to Haunter, his Pokémon and his friends after he fell unconscious, Ash forced himself into a sitting position. Something that was very complicated to do since his entire body felt tired, sore and achey all over.

Once he was up though, the boy rested back against the headboard and looked around the room, getting visual confirmation that yes, he was definitely in the guest bedroom at Fuji's home once more. What took him by surprise however was the sight of his friends and Pikachu all in the room, sleeping, in almost identical positions as they had been in when he woke up the last time in this near exact same situation.

Pikachu was at his feet near the end of the bed, Giselle was asleep beside of him on a chair with her head down while Misty was resting on the window seat, head leaning against the glass, and Brock was in his sleeping bag on the floor. Which was the only difference from last time since before, both he and Misty had been sleeping on the window seat.

Almost in an exact copy of the way things happened the day before as well, Pikachu felt the bed shift when Ash moved and his eyes opened almost right away. Looking up the bed and seeing his trainer awake, Pikachu bolted up and jumped at Ash while crying out, "Pika Pi!"

Ash was taken by surprise at Pikachu's sudden quick movement but caught his Pokémon and hugged him close while smiling warmly, "Hey buddy I was worried about you!"

"Pika Pika! Pikachu Pi!" The little yellow Pokémon cried again happily as he nuzzled his face into Ash's chest.

While the boy continued to smile and reassured his Pokémon that everything was okay, the commotion they were making awoke the others in the room. As soon as Giselle, Misty and Brock opened their eyes and saw Ash awake, they immediately shot up and ran over to him while practically shouting.

"Ash you're awake!" Misty exclaimed excitedly as she threw herself at him and wrapped her arms around the boy's neck. Not one to be outdone though, Giselle quickly got up on the bed and took Ash's face in her hands after Misty freed him from the strangle hold she had on him.

With no further ado, the brunette quickly leaned down and claimed the young trainer's lips with her own as their mouths became reacquainted with one another yet again after such a near permanent loss of connection between them due to Ash's near death.

Surpised at first due to Misty's vicious hug and then Giselle throwing herself at him, Ash quickly recovered from his shock and wrapped his arms around her before returning the passionate kiss she was gifting him with.

Giselle's right hand quickly came up and gripped onto Ash's unruly black hair as she continued to kiss him fiercely. Brock and even Misty just looked on with smiles on their faces at the sweet moment between the two, the particular circumstance of it not being enough to weird them out. Misty for her part understood and for once wasn't jealous of Giselle since, even though she was very worried and then distraught about Ash when they thought he had died, she could only imagine what Giselle, as his girlfriend, must have been feeling at the same time.

After all, even though she strongly believed her own feelings matched her female friend and self-made rival's own for their shared love interest, Misty also knew the very close bond that Ash and Giselle had growing between them. And after having such a bond nearly shattered, she didn't want to intervene and mess up the very tender moment they were currently sharing.

When Ash and Giselle finally broke apart, she laid her forehead against his and whispered breathlessly, "I was so afraid that I nearly lost you Ash... thank Arceus... thank Arceus..."

Ash kept his arms wrapped around Giselle and hugged her while murmuring comforting words to her, "I know Giselle but I'm okay... I promise... everything is fine now..."

When she finally released Ash and then curled up beside of him with her head rested on his shoulder, their kiss saying more than words really ever could, Brock took that moment to give his own well wishes. "You had us worried like crazy Ash... I thought we would never see you again man."

Ash looked at the older boy oddly. "Why would that have been?"

His friends looked at each other, knowing that Ash had no clue they had left him when they thought there was no hope to save him down in the chamber. Each of them seemed very uncomfortable with how to tell him what happened and eventually, Giselle decided to do it.

"W-Well Ash... you see... when the chamber was caving in, we all knew we had to get out. After you and Haunter came out of that connection thing you were in, you were unconscious and fell to the ground with Haunter helping to levitate you down so you didn't get hurt. Brock and Mr. Fuji tried to get to you in time to save you but the ceiling started to collapse twice as fast and blocked you off from us. There was no way we could get to you..."

Misty picked up from there. "That's why Brock said we almost lost you. We had to leave with-" She paused for a minute and had to clear her throat to keep from breaking down at the sheer thought of
it. "Without you..."

Ash's eyes widened, not caring that they had left them since he understood why they did so right away. No, his shock came from instantly having several questions, urgent questions, that he needed answered and demanded for as he commenced to speaking hurriedly, "What happened to Charmander and Gastly? Are they okay? What about all of the other Pokémon? Are Mr. Fuji and Agatha alright? What about Haunter, and how did I get out?"

Before anyone else could respond, the door suddenly opened and in came Fuji and Agatha. As soon as they saw him, Fuji smiled slightly and nodded towards the boy. "I thought we heard some commotion coming from in here, how are we feeling young man?"

Ash was about to answer but he was unable to as Agatha quickly rushed over to the bed and bent down, wrapping Ash up in a grandmotherly hug and thoroughly surprising him that someone as famous as her, a member of the Elite Four no less, was doing such a thing.

The old woman squeezed Ash tightly before pulling back enough to look at him with tears in her eyes. "Oh thank Arceus you are okay dear boy! I was worried sick about you!" She hugged him again and started to frantically apologize, "I am so sorry I made the decision to leave you Ash, I was merely acting in what I thought was the best interest of everyone! I thought of every possible way to get to you but I could not foresee one single attempt that would do so without burying us all alive down in that chamber..."

Pulling away a little bit, she looked at Ash again with a few tears now rolling down her cheeks. "Can you ever forgive this foolish old woman for doing something so terrible? I wouldn't blame you the slightest if you didn't!

Ash was still very surpised at Agatha's sudden display of affection and the tearful, frantic apologies she was offering him so it took a few minutes for his brain to catch up with what was happening. When it did though, he finally was able to reply to her and just shook his head.

"I'm not upset or mad at you at all Agatha, I understand why you all did what you did. I know that none of you would have left me unless it seemed absolutely hopeless and beyond the realm of possibility to rescue me. If anything, I'm just thankful that you got my friends and Pokémon out safely and didn't allow anything bad to happen to them. I'm grateful to you Agatha, not mad."

The old woman gave a small, warm smile at Ash after he said that while just shaking her head and placing her hands gently on his cheeks like a mother would do. "You really are a remarkable young man Ash, that much is for certain. I can see Samuel Oak in you the more and more I'm around you, even though I know you aren't related. I don't feel as though I deserve your gratitude or praise but I do still appreciate it more than you can ever know. Thank you dear boy."

Ash just smiled at her and nodded before looking at his friends and Fuji. "That goes for all of you guys, please don't feel bad for what you did. The entire chamber was coming down around us from the way I'm hearing it and you had to leave. I know that none of you would abandon me if there was even a slight chance at rescuing me so it must have been a really, really bad situation. I'm not upset at all so please don't blame yourselves okay, none of you."

Misty and Giselle both sat next to Ash and hugged either side of him while Brock smiled a little and nodded at his words. Fuji also gave a small smile at the boy's forgiving nature and then walked over to the chair next to the bed that Giselle had recently vacated. Taking a seat, he leaned on a cain that he had been using ever since the night before down in the chamber. His body still having not recovered yet from the intense exertion his aged self had went through.

"I also thank you for your words of forgiveness Ash. I was feeling just as guilty as everyone else so to hear you say such a thing not only places my mind at ease somewhat but it makes me respect you that much more as person and as a Pokémon Trainer," Fuji consented with a slight bow of gratitude to the boy in question.

Ash stretched his legs out, wincing a little at the soreness in them, before asking, "How long have I been out for?"

Yet again, Fuji answered almost immediately, "I'll answer that and your other questions Ash. You were out for a full day, that being all of yesterday, and woke up just a little after noon on today, which is Friday. All of our Pokémon is fine, each and every one. Myself and Agatha are doing just fine except for the occasional little aches and pains we've been feeling but, then again, it is to be expected." The old man smile amusedly. "We're not as young as we once were."

Agatha, who was sitting at the end of the bed, merely rubbed at her knees as she replied whimsically, "No... unfortunately no we are not."

Fuji smiled at his friend's statement before looking back at Ash. "As for how Haunter is doing and exactly how you survived... well... both are interchangeably related as a matter of fact."

Ash tilted his head to the side curiously and Fuji elaborated. He started off into as quick of an explanation as he could of the events which transpired after they managed to flee the tower, doing his best to tell about the mind boggling events that led up to Ash's miraculous survival.

It was easy to see Ash's surprise and flat out shock as Fuji, helped along by the others, told the rather long tale as best as he could. His eyes completely bulged when he found out that not just the sealing chamber but the entire tower had collapsed but Fuji merely held his hand up and told him that he would explain that particular portion of the story shortly.

By the time it was all said and done, Ash was just sitting there in stunned silence. Hardly believing how close he came to almost dying as well as the extreme lengths Haunter went to in order to save him. After several moments though, a small smile crossed his face as he asked quietly, "So... I succeeded in helping Haunter after all..."

Fuji nodded while crossing his arms. "Oh you did much more than that my boy." Seeing Ash look at him in puzzlement, the old man smiled again before explaining, "Haunter is doing more than okay. Right now it's down in the gym where it's been staying since it came back with us. All of your Pokémon have been making every attempt to make it feel welcome and after a short time, your friend's Pokémon all followed their example and started doing the same. It's safe to say that I believe Haunter is now quite comfortable here. It took awhile but it's finally beginning to relax and loosen up a little. Slowly but surely."

Ash smiled fondly, proud of his Pokémon doing such a thing without being asked. "But how is Haunter though? And Charmander and Gastly for that matter? I know they were all really exhausted and beat up, at least in the case of my Pokémon. Pikachu I can see is fine but I'm still worried about the others."

"We got all of our Pokémon, including yours, taken to the Pokémon Center bright and early the very next morning Ash," Brock spoke up from the other side of the bed across from Fuji and Agatha. He then grinned perversely. "Nurse Joy was nice, real nice!"

As Brock's mouth slightly hung open and his face began turning red with a blush at the memory of the Lavender Town Nurse Joy, everyone else watched him with beads of sweat running down the back of their heads. The more... 'into' the memories Brock became, Misty's hand started reaching towards his ear while twitching.

All it took was Brock uttering one, "Oh Nurse Joy!" Before said hand promptly latched onto his ear and then yanked the teen down to the floor where he was pulled towards the door by an irritated Misty. "No one wants to hear your perverted little fantasies Brock you big creepo!"

She then pulled the struggling, yelping Brock out of the room and shut the door before the pleas for mercy and shouts of pain from the former Pewter City Gym Leader filled the rest of the house as Misty commenced to giving him a good, well deserved pounding. At least... well deserved in her mind.

Everyone in the room looked towards the door before Ash, Giselle and Pikachu hung and shook their heads in exasperated frustration at Brock's never ending perverted antics. Fuji meanwhile just chuckled amusedly while Agatha raised an eyebrow and shook her own head slightly. "That young man has some serious issues regarding the opposite sex," She stated rather bluntly.

Ash and Giselle simply sighed before speaking in unison along with Pikachu, "We know/Pika..."

Fuji chuckled again before he heard Ash ask, "So what about Haunter? How did you all manage to help it?"

The old man leaned on his cane a little more until his chin was resting on his clasped together hands and then answered, "The Nurse Joy here in town is a very kind and helpful woman, just like most of her unusually numerous kin. She's heard the stories of Black Fog like almost everyone else here has but she was not so harsh in judgement as most would be. When we took the Pokémon to the center that morning for treatment, Agatha and I explained to her the situation of what had happened the night before."

He smiled a little amusedly. "Well, at least we did once your friend Brock finished making a rather sad attempt at wooing the poor nurse." Fuji chuckled again before continuing, "The entire town was already in a buzz as to what happened to the tower so Joy was partially aware of the fact that something had happened. We omitted many parts of the story obviously but the general outline of events was revealed to her."

He then smiled genuinely. "She was clearly quite suprised at first at the tale we told her but being that she has known me ever since she first came to take over the center many years ago, Nurse Joy had grown to trust me and knew I wouldn't lie to her. Without even asking outright, she volunteered to come here and look Haunter over after hearing our story and when she did, she confirmed several things for us."

The older man sat back in his chair and sighed. "The first being that Haunter was completely fine aside from being exhausted. It had no wounds that wouldn't heal on their own despite the large scale battle we waged against it. Surprisingly enough, once we informed Haunter of why Nurse Joy was here, it didn't put up a fight and was very well behaved when she checked it over."

Ash intervened at that point, "But what else did she find out about it?"

"Aside from the fact that Haunter is much, much larger than not only any Ghost-Type I've ever seen but any other Pokémon in general?" Agatha offered in response to his question and ended in a somewhat questioning note herself. "Many things really. She was able to tell from the simple tests she performed without any heavy equipment that Haunter is far, far from an ordinary Pokémon. Biologically it is made up very differently from any other Ghost-Type in specific. Generally it's body functions much the same as any other Ghost Pokémon, which it would have to in order make it a member of that particular species. Everything after that though is supposedly a mystery."

Ash looked quite confused at her final words and Fuji elaborated, "The differences lie not only in Haunter's mass and obvious supercharged physical capabilities and attacks but also in how it operates on a regular day to day bases. We learned for instance that Haunter can apparently go an abnormally long time without food or sleep and it also has a unique sensitivity to sunlight. Something attained most likely from years of living in darkness no doubt. In time it may fade but it's hard to tell. Joy could only tell so much without actually doing a full on exam back at the Center and even then, she's a healthcare professional, not a Pokémon professor or scientist."

Ash nodded and then sat up a little more. "Well I really do appreciate you doing all that for Haunter. What about the tower though? How did people handle it?"

Fuji just chuckled again and shook his head. "About how you'd expect. With shock, panic, fear and in some cases, even joy. That tower had become a black mark on the town for many, many years so several people were glad to see it topple. The only thing almost the entire town has in common concerning yesterday's events is wondering exactly what happened. Everyone felt the massive earthquake that rocked the entire tower earlier in the night during our battle against Haunter and the three Ghost-Types it had created as it's bodyguards. Even more townspeople recalled seeing the bright pillar of light shoot up into the sky the night before when I rescued you from Haunter's clutches down in the catacombs."

He sighed in exasperation. "So essentially, half the town seems to be divided into those that believe it was a simple act of nature which took the form of a random earthquake rocking through the area and being the cause for the tower's fall but then others see it as some act of divine intervention. A great act of the powers that be finally smiting a dark monument which was nothing more than a memorial for pain, suffering and tragic events of the past."

Fuji shrugged. "But whoever believes what really doesn't matter because the fact does remain that even though Pokémon Tower's origins started out noble and true, being a resting place and memorial ground for the souls of departed Pokémon and the humans who cared for them in having a place to pay their respects, it did not remain that way. For whatever reason... fate, destiny, the divine or whatever you may believe in, something chose to make that tower the pinnacle for a series of unforgettable tragedies that it simply couldn't bounce back from.

Truth be told, the only reason the tower was never taken down years before now was largely due to the community itself. Lavender Town is somewhat known for being rather spooky and ominous because of not only Pokémon Tower itself but also because that in all of Kanto, one of the best places to find Ghost-Types is in the forests and other nearby areas around this town. Occasionally you'll even hear of one or a group of them moving into a local building here in town that's been abandoned and then making it their home. I know for a fact that many places here in this abandoned part of town serve as home to several Ghost Pokémon but no one ever bothers to clear them out. In fact, it never happens unless they come to harbor somewhere within the main part of the town itself where people actually live."

Once more Fuji sighed. "It is a sad thing truly but once you've been labeled for so long as something unpleasant, you slowly start to believe it over time. Because outsiders have given this town the reputation of being spooky, creepy and all around 'ghostly' in origin, the people living here have almost come to play the part. Many that live here are very superstitious and because of this, years ago when the last accident surrounding the tower occurred and everyone left this part of town, no one wanted to vote to have it taken down for fear of reprisals at the hands of whatever 'Great Evil' came to live within it.

Now that the tower has finally fallen however, many of those same superstitious believers are taking it as a good omen and a sign that the dark cloud which hovered over this town for many years because of Pokémon Tower has finally passed. Even now I hear that the town council is deciding on what course of action to take now that the tower is no more. Some are saying to make it into a memorial sight while others are trying to vote to get it rebuilt."

Fuji smiled yet again. "Whatever happens though, I do believe things here in Lavender Town are going to get much better. Even for all of the rumors and theories going around about what might happen to the sight of where the tower once stood, one thing is for almost certain. Nearly the entire town seems to be unanimous on deciding to finally start cleaning up, repairing and even bringing this particular part of town back to life. Which would be wonderful, if it does happen, for our local economy. After all, getting use and making profit from both sides of a town works far better than when only using one."

Fuji then looked at Ash and grinned. "I suppose that for just this once, the local train of superstition seems to be right. For all the years Haunter was locked under that tower stewing in it's own hatred and misery, this town suffered and was a shadow of it's former self. Now that Haunter has been freed of it's pain and given a new form of peace in it's life, the unofficial object of this town's oppression in the form of the tower has since crumbled down and now everyone has hope again."

He pointed a finger at Ash. "And unknowingly my boy, they have you to thank for it."

Ash just shook his head. "No they don't. It was a combined effort of all of us working together to help Haunter, it wasn't me by myself. If I would have been alone I'd be dead right now and who knows about Haunter."

Giselle smiled softly and reached for his hand. "We have helped you Ash and been there for support, both phsyical and emotional when you needed it, but you were the one that freed Haunter. You were the one that risked your life time and time again to establish a connection with it's heart and help take away Haunter's pain. None of us would have been able to do that Ash, it was all you for that part. When we were ready to give up, you kept pushing forward and you didn't stop. You had hope for Haunter and you weren't going to give up on it. Rather you want to admit it or not, you are the reason, souly, for Haunter finally having hope again and the chance at a new life."

Giselle continued to smile at Ash as she kept going with her speech, "I think that in some ways, the two of you are intertwined now. Just looking at Haunter and how it acts when your name is spoken, not to mention how worried about you I know it's been, makes me honestly believe that you two really did connect your hearts somehow and now, Haunter is tied to you. It's like Fuji said, because of the light and release from darkness you brought to Haunter, the town is now free of the unknowing oppression and negativity it's rage and anger brought. This town really does have another shot at life again, just like Haunter, and it is because you were willing to stand up and be there for something that everyone else gave up on a long time ago."

Fuji nodded and then stroked his chin. "Wise words for one so young and she is right Ash. In some odd way, you, Haunter and this town are now connected in a very unique way and I'm sure it isn't a coincidence. Lavender Town was the cradle for Haunter's refuge for so long and due to that, it was forced into a form of desolation and despair by the dark shadows it's malice brought down upon us all the day of the fateful fire in Pokémon Tower. And after the town had already been blackened and stained by Team Rocket's act of cruelty and evil years prior."

The kind old man looked up at the ceiling with a fond, thoughtful expression on his face. "But then you came and pulled those same dark curtains back and allowed the light to shine over the town once more with the toppling of the tower and the redemption of Haunter's soul. In fact, I would wager to say that had you failed and left with us the other night when the tower was collapsing and Haunter would have succeeded in killing itself, I believe that would have been the final nail in the proverbial coffin that could have forever sealed Lavender Town's dark fate that had been ruling it for so long."

Ash smiled politely and rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah well I don't know about all that, I'm just glad that everything turned out for the best in the end. Is there any way I can go and see Haunter and my Pokémon now?"

Fuji shrugged again before replying, "That's up to you Ash, how are you feeling?"

The boy stretched his legs and arms out a little and nodded. "I'm okay. A little sore and tired still but I'm good enough to get up and move a bit." He looked down at that point, noticing he was only in his boxers and black undershirt. "Where are my clothes?"

Giselle quickly got off the bed and ran over to the dresser in the corner of the room and took his tracksuit off the top of it before running back over to the bed. "Here you go Ash. We washed them up for you and Agatha even re-patched the cuts and tears in the material."

Ash looked at Agatha as he took his clothes from Giselle and smiled widely. "Hey thanks so much for fixing my clothes Agatha!"

The older woman just smiled and waved him off. "Oh Ash you don't have to thank me, I was happy to do it for you. If they need anymore repairs, just let me know."

The boy got up off the bed and pulled his tracksuit on before looking himself over in the mirror that was attached to the back of the door. "Wow this thing looks good as new, you did great!"

She smiled again and nodded. "You're very welcome young man, very welcome indeed."

Fuji took that time to stand up and stretch. "Well... what do you say all say we go down and let Ash have a much anticipated reunion between he, the rest of his Pokémon and Haunter?"

Ash finished putting his shoes on and then headed towards the door before anyone could answer Fuji's question. "I'm ready, lets go!" He then opened up the door and headed out onto the elevated walkway that was suspended above the ground level of the house.

Fuji, Giselle and Agatha followed him with Pikachu jumping up onto his shoulder and when they were almost to the stairs that lead down to the living room, they all saw Misty sitting on top of Brock while twisting his arm. The teen boy was yelping in pain as Misty shouted, "Learned your lesson yet Brock?!" While physically torturing him.

Ash stopped and shook his head in amusement before sighing and placing his hands on his hips. "Misty... please let Brock up, we're going to see Haunter and the other Pokémon now."

Misty almost immediately stopped torturing Brock and stood up before appearing next to Ash's side with a big, sweet smile on her face seemingly the very next moment. "Sure thing Ash!"

Chuckling, Ash lead Giselle and Misty down the stairs with Agatha in tow while Fuji brought up the rear. The old man stopped just long enough to see Brock laying there on the top step with a little bit of drool hanging limply from his mouth while comically groaning in pain.

"Ugh..." He mumbled in a daze. "How does Ash do that... It's not fair!"

Fuji merely chuckled and responded simply, "Learn the ways to a woman's heart young man, learn the ways." He then followed the others down the steps without another word while Brock peeled his beaten and mangled self up from the ground.

Once Ash reached the door to the gym, he opened it up and stepped inside. As soon as he walked in, he saw all of his Pokémon plus Misty, Giselle and Brock's gathered around the middle of the large hanger-like gym where Haunter, in all of it's massive glory, was hovering as they talked to it.

Ash smiled at the sight and called out, "Hey you guys talking about anything good?!"

Almost instantly, all of his Pokémon turned around and as soon as they saw him, the entire group got up and rushed towards their trainer as fast possible while making an uproarious chorus of varied calls at him. A scene of which was identical to the other day when they all did the same thing after he awoke from the unconscious state Haunter had caused him.

Also just like that day, Ash was smart enough to lay down on the ground just as his Pokémon converged upon him so that they wouldn't trample him to death. A decision that turned out to be very wise as they all jumped on him at one time and caused the air to be forcibly expelled from his lungs.

"H-Hey guys... I m-missed you all too!" He huffed and then started greeting each one while hugging them close and grinning once he regained his breath. "How've you all been? Everything going okay?"

His Pokémon all began talking to him hurriedly in their own unique ways of speech and even though Ash couldn't understand any of them except for Gastly, he treasured the gift of getting to hear his Pokémon's voices after having such a close brush with death. The feeling of having them all surround him was one of which he couldn't replace and just sat there, happily listening to them rattle on while sitting close to him.

"We were all very worried about you Ash," Gastly said in his usual sophisticated, somewhat operatic tone. "For a time none of us knew what was going to happen until your friends came down and informed us that you just needed a long rest. I can tell you that I have never been so relieved in all the years of my long life once I found out that you were safe."

Ash smiled and nodded to Gastly. "I'm really glad to still be here too Gastly and it's all thanks to you guys-" He gestured at the Ghost-Type and then looked down and smiled at Pikachu and Charmander. "My friends and even Haunter. If not for everything you all did to keep me safe down in that chamber and then Haunter itself saving me when the tower collapsed, I wouldn't be here right now."

He then looked back down at Charmander again and gently rubbed his Pokémon on the head. "I owe you an especially big thank you Charmander. If it wasn't for you sticking by my side there at the end when Pikachu was forced asleep and Gastly was stilled stunned from one of Haunter's attacks, I never would have been able to get to it at the end and finally heal it's soul. So for that... thank you."

The Fire-Type just did a mimicry of his trainer and rubbed the back of his head while smiling modestly. Ash chuckled fondly at him and then looked at all of his Pokémon. "Listen everybody, I really want to say thank you for being here for Haunter and making it feel welcome while I've been out of it. I heard that you guys really went out of your to make Haunter feel accepted and after everything it's been through, I'm sure it really appreciated all the kindness."

He nodded to Brock, Misty and Giselle's Pokémon a little ways away. "You guys too, thank you for making Haunter feel welcomed as well."

His friend's Pokémon gave a return nod to the boy they had all come to respect and then Gastly got his attention again. "You know Ash, Haunter has been very anxious to see you again. Why don't you go and talk to it for awhile?"

Ash stood up. "Yeah good idea, I will." He then walked across the gym to where Haunter was at and stood before the truly impressive and immensely large Ghost-Type. Now that he wasn't in a situation where he was scrambling to try and achieve something before Haunter could kill he and everyone else, Ash finally was able to stand back and get a good look at Haunter.

Truthfully, the Pokémon in question was very a unique one. Not just with it's great size either but also how it actually looked different from other Haunter. The red eyes, spiky looking points all over it's body and the much larger frame Haunter possessed was what truly set it apart from others of it's species and physically made it look much different than say, Fuji's Haunter.

Seeing the very old Pokémon looking down at him, Ash smiled and waved up at it. "Heya Haunter how's everything going?! You look good!"

The ancient Ghost-Type didn't say anything but inclined it's head to Ash's statement with what appeared to be it's own version of a small smile on it's unfortunately permanent wicked looking face. The boy scratched at his arm and then said a little hesitantly, "You know Haunter I... I really owe you a big time thank you. If it wasn't for you saving me there the other night, I'd probably be buried along with everything else under what used to be Pokémon Tower right now and well... you went through a lot to save me and I just wanted to say thank you."

Yet again Haunter nodded and then made a gesturing motion at Ash's body with it's hands. Eventually catching on to what Haunter was trying to ask after a few moments of thought, Ash finally realized that he was being asked if he was doing okay now.

Smiling widely, he gave a simple thumbs up before replying, "Now don't you worry about me Haunter, I'm doing totally fine now. A little tired and beaten up but that's okay. I'm fine though, I promise!"

He could see what he thought was relief come across Haunter's face at those words and then sat himself down before going off into what would become an hour long conversation of sorts using mostly body language to communicate with the stoic Pokémon.

Even though he never replied with any kind of speech, Poké or otherwise, Ash knew that Haunter was listening to what he had to say intently and would actually answer him in it's own way. Being it through nods of the head or gestures with it's hands . Sometimes Haunter would even just give him a look which Ash knew meant he was giving him the answer to his question or a reply without outright speaking to him.

Ash did this for quite some time with his Pokémon all sitting around him, as well as with his friend's own, before Giselle opened up the door of the gym right on the turn of eight o'clock and called out, "Ash dinner!"

The boy turned around and waved at his girlfriend. "Coming Giselle!" He then looked back at Haunter. "I gotta go but all the Pokémon are gonna stay and keep you company for now. I'll be back so we can talk some more okay Haunter? Like tonight if you'd like."

The large Pokémon simply nodded to Ash and gave it's own odd, creepy, yet still unique smile to him. The boy stood up and then said goodbye to his Pokémon before he, Pikachu, Charmander, Squirtle and Bulbasaur went back into the living quarters of the house for supper.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

Half an hour later after Ash and Brock made the Pokémon their food and then served a dish each to the ones in the gym, including Agatha and Fuji's who were given permission to try both boy's unique recipes, they helped the others set the table in the kitchen/living room combination before settling down for a very delicious looking meal prepared by Brock, Fuji and Agatha. A meal of which consisted of brown rice, broiled potatoes, tossed salad, thin wheat bread rolls and soft boiled Pidgey eggs. Oolong and jade tea coming in right after as the refreshing warm beverages of choice to wash down such a fulfilling meal.

As they all sat together and ate, Ash swallowed a mouthful of food and then exclaimed praisingly, "Mmmm! The food is delicious, you guys did awesome preparing it!"

Agatha smiled at him and replied gratefully, "Why thank you Ash. I didn't do too much though, the real praise goes to Fuji and Brock. The old brain here has always been the better cook out of the two of us. My 'finer' cooking knowledge has been sadly limited over the years due to all of the constant traveling I've always done. Never really stayed in one place for too long to have a chance to learn."

Fuji chuckled and looked over at his friend. "Now, now Agatha, you're just sore that Luanne taught me all of her talented tricks of the trade when in the kitchen instead of you whenever you came over. Oh and you're very welcome Ash," He finished with a smile at the younger male.

Agatha simply huffed and sipped her tea as Brock looked at Fuji with interest. "So your wife was a good cook?"

Fuji nodded as he poured himself a cup of tea. "Oh yes, most definitely. Before she became a Tower Keeper, Luanne traveled the region and worked at some of the finest culinary establishments in Kanto, all while working under some of the greatest chefs of the time. I don't know if you've ever heard of it before Brock but she even worked for a time at the Golden Magikarp as the sous chef."

No sooner did the words leave Fuji's lips and Brock practically had his mouth hanging open. "Are you kidding me Mr. Fuji?! Of course I've heard of the Golden Magikarp! My mother was a famous cook herself and had her own line of cooking recipe and instruction videos that she did for years when I was younger! She was invited to go and become the head chef at the Golden Magikarp but by then she was already married to my father and had become a mother. She was forced to pass up on the opportunity but I've always dreamed of visiting that restaurant!"

Fuji smiled and tipped his teacup to Brock. "Quite an accomplishment your mother made if she was being offered such a prestigious position. Very impressive indeed."

Ash suddenly waved his hands in the air for a halt. "Wait a minute Brock... you said that your mom had her own cooking instructional videos? What was her name?"

Brock appeared a little confused at the question but answered anyway, "Lisa, Lisa Stone. She did her own series of cooking shows for years, all the way up until she died of cervical cancer."

Ash sat back in his chair and seemed happily suprised. "Brock, my mom couldn't cook a thing when she and my father first got together. She had to learn from these cooking videos that was taught by a woman named Lisa Stone!"

Brock also looked suprised for a few moments but then smiled. "Hey what do you know? I was really impressed by your mom's cooking ability and wanted her to teach me what she knew if she ever got the chance but it turns out that her and my own mom were more alike than I thought. Who would have guessed Mrs. Ketchum learned to get so good at cooking from my mother?" He crossed his arms and chuckled. "Small world."

Ash grinned and pointed between them both. "I guess you and me were always meant to be friends huh Brock?"

The older boy merely smiled and nodded. "You know Ash, I think you're right."

Suddenly, Misty spoke up in an irritated voice, "Will someone please tell me what the Golden Magikarp is?!"

Everyone except for Ash looked at the orange haired girl like she was more than a little flighty in the head. Brock especially seemed shocked as he raised an eyebrow. "Seriously Misty? You've never heard of the Golden Magikarp?"

Ash spoke up as Misty shook her head, "Neither have I."

The teen looked at them both, stunned, for a moment before leaning forward on the table and explaining, "Well the Golden Magikarp is basically the most famous restaurant in all of Kanto and is located in Celadon City. It's the full five star experience and everything. Complete with indoor theater, live shows that are performed regularly, a rooftop pool and lounge, five floors of the most stunning atmospheric eating conditions you've ever seen and the menu is super extensive. Not only can you get some of the most famous dishes found anywhere here in Kanto at this particular restaurant but you can also get exotic dishes prepared for you that comes from far away regions like Sinnoh, Unova and even Kalos."

Ash leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms while whistling. "Wow... sounds fancy."

Giselle nodded and took a sip of her tea. "Yeah and not to mention extremely expensive. And I mean like... really expensive. Only the wealthiest and most high class people in society eat there. Even celebrities and other famous figures from here and other regions go to the Golden Magikarp. My family eats there pretty often and it really is a very nice place."

Brock looked at Giselle like she had just slapped his face and called him homosexual when she said that she had already been to the Golden Magikarp and multiple times at that apparently. Said brunette looked over at Misty without noticing that Brock was simply staring at her with wide eyes. "So you've really never heard of the Golden Magikarp before Misty?"

The slightly taller female glared slightly at Giselle even though the other girl didn't mean to intentionally rub her family's good fortune in anyone's faces. "No I haven't for your information. Some of us don't come from super wealthy families that can afford to send their daughters to snobbish technical schools and eat all the time at five star restaurants either."

Giselle glared back at Misty since she could hear the subtly barbed comments the younger girl was making but just before they could get into one of their nasty rounds, Fuji spoke up to diffuse the tension, "Yes I've only been there once myself and everything miss Giselle and Brock talks about concerning it is most definitely true. The Golden Magikarp is the nicest place you'll ever go to eat at here in Kanto and unlike many other high rise eating establishments that charge unbelievable prices for small portions of food that is only somewhat adequate, the Golden Magikarp more than lives up to it's reputation of being the best. Their food is far beyond incredible. I remember it from the time I went there with Agatha as her guest at a celebratory dinner for the Elite Four."

Agatha smiled fondly and held her teacup close to her mouth. "Ah yes I remember that night well. It was right after little Lori managed to get into the Elite Four and we all went out to celebrate her success. Which was well earned considering how hard we all were on her during the trials, especially Lance. But... then again, he was the same way with me so I wasn't really all that surpised at her rough treatment I suppose."

Misty's head seemed to turn on a swivel as she looked at Agatha with big eyes, her near fight with Giselle all but totally forgotten. "Wait did you just say Lori? As in... Lorelei of the Elite Four? Water Mistress and Ice-Type master of Kanto? THAT Lorelei?!"

Agatha looked at Misty and chuckled amusedly. "I see you are a fan of hers and yes, that's exactly who I am talking about."

The youngest Waterflower sister seemed to form stars in her eyes as she nodded rapidly. "Of course I am! She's my biggest inspiration, even more so than Wallace the Champion of the Hoenn region! They're both big time Water Pokémon masters but Lorelei is my favorite! She always seems so cool and collected any time she battles on TV and the way she commands her Water and Ice-Type Pokémon is just... it's just incredible! Being how my dream is to become a Water Pokémon master too, Lorelei is my greatest idol!"

Agatha chuckled again and took another sip of her tea. "Well I can tell you that you picked the right person to idolize Misty. Lorelei is a very kind, sweet and fiercely intelligent woman who loves Pokémon a great deal. She's definitely a genius when it comes to raising Water and Ice-Types and is always a great thrill to battle against or even to watch battle from the sidelines. I've known her ever since she was just a young lady first getting into the League as the youngest member of our Elite Four and I quickly took her under my wing so to speak. We developed a very close bond over time and now she's like the daughter I never had."

The older woman winked at Misty. "I guarantee she would love to meet someone as spirited about Water-Types as you Misty. In fact, you even remind me of her a little bit when she was younger."

While Misty and Agatha chatted away about Lorelei, Brock turned his attention back to Fuji. "Hey umm... Mr. Fuji? I was just wondering... if you don't mind and depending on how long we're here for that is... would you maybe consider teaching me some of the ways that you cook? You're really good, way better than me, and I would be honored to learn from you."

Fuji just laughed and reached out to pat Brock's shoulder since he was sitting right next to him. "Well I think you give me a little too much credit and not enough for yourself young man but I would be honored and happy to work with you!"

Brock smiled widely and bowed his head to Fuji. "Thank you Mr. Fuji, I really appreciate it. I hope I do get a chance to learn from you."

After that, the table descended into small chatter amongst everyone for a little while before Agatha suddenly spoke up, addressing Ash." I must say young man that I am very impressed by yourself and Brock's cooking abilities when it comes to Pokémon food. When you two went to feed all the Pokémon I didn't think my own would eat the mix you made since they are always so picky but I was wrong."

Fuji nodded. "Yes mine are rather picky as well but they ate your food with no issues, I am quite impressed."

Ash and Brock just shrugged and laughed modestly before the younger of the two answered, "Yeah well, Brock is better than me I think. My mom taught me how to make food for my Pokémon and I've been working to get better at it ever since."

"I don't know about that Ash," Brock intervened. "I may be the better when it come to making human food but I'd say we're about equal when it comes to Pokémon. You're really good at it and I wouldn't short yourself out."

Misty and Giselle both nodded in agreement while simply humming their agreement since their mouths were full. Ash scratched his cheek with one finger and smiled. "Ah well I appreciate it Brock, thanks." He looked over then at Pikachu, Squirtle, Charmander and Bulbasaur, who were still eating their own food a little ways away from the table. "I just like knowing that I can make food my Pokémon enjoy, that's all."

Agatha glanced at where Ash was looking for a moment before speaking to the boy once more, "I must also say that I am very impressed with how you raise your Pokémon young man. There are ways in which to tell for each species of Pokémon just how healthy they are and for yours I can easily tell it. Pikachu's coat is very glossy and sleek and the electric sacs on it's cheek are a vibrant red. Squirtle's shell looks to be very firm and wall taken care of without a crack to be seen, which is a sign of very good health in it's species. Charmander's tail flame is one of the healthiest and brightest that I have ever seen on one of it's kind so that says all I need to know concerning it and as for your Bulbasaur, the bulb on it's back appears to be very healthy, full of vitality and also a very good size. You should be proud."

Ash just leaned over one side of his chair and continued to look at his Pokémon before replying, "Thanks Agatha, that means a lot coming from you. I do my best for Pokémon and that's all I can do." The boy smiled a little in reminiscence then. "I remember the morning I first left for my journey and I was the very first one at Professor Oak's lab. He gave me the top pick between Squirtle, Charmander and Bulbasaur but my heart was so set on this little Pichu I met in the forests surrounding the ranch years earlier, I just couldn't pick any of them."

Ash's eyes turned to land on Pikachu where he smiled a little more. "It turns out that the Professor had just captured a Pikachu earlier that morning and when I asked to see it, Pikachu recognized me and I recognized him as the Pichu I saw as a kid years before. He was really angry and ill tempered at first since Professor Oak had succeeded in capturing him in order to keep him from chewing on the electric lines for the lab and that was why he was afraid to let me have Pikachu in the first place. He was worried that it was too much for a beginner trainer to handle. But... after Pikachu recognized who I was and we caught up a little, he decided to willingly come along with me. We've been together ever since that day now almost six months ago."

Ash laughed before shaking his head. "I never would have imagined that I'd end up with all three Kanto starters anyway. It kind of blows my mind when I think about it and makes me realize just how lucky I am."

He then reached for another soft boiled egg while Agatha smiled fondly at his little story and puts one on his plate before looking at it for a minute. He then looked up at Agatha again and grinned a little cheesily. "To be honest, I'm just really hoping that eventually this little mind block I have with eating meat will eventually go away. I still make myself eat it but taking this Pidgey egg for instance, I have such a hard time now that I've become a trainer and have my own Pokémon, eating any kind of food made out of one. Before I became a trainer I never thought too much about it but now that I've been raising my own Pokémon, it just seems so... I don't know... wrong somehow. Especially since one of my first Pokémon was a Pidgey."

Agatha actually gave a little chuckle, as well as Fuji, before taking a sip of her tea. "No Ash you don't need to feel bad about that at all, it just means you're normal and have a heart. Now if you would have said instead that you had no troubles eating Pokémon meat after becoming a trainer, I would have questioned the state of your head."

She set her cup down and pointed at him as she smiles. "What you're feeling right now is completely normal young man. When I first started out as a Pokémon Trainer I was so conflicted about eating anything made out of Pokémon that I became a vegetarian. Unfortunately, living a life as physically exerting as the one a trainer lives while on the road is not one for a vegetarian and I quickly had to rethink things if I didn't want to run myself into the ground from lack of energy."

She then leaned forward on her elbows and laced her fingers together. "I eventually had to come to realize something. And that was this... everything and everyone in this life has a place in the cycle of life and nature. We all live for a particular purpose, no matter what it may end up being, and we are all meant to die in a particular way suited for each individual. People and Pokémon come and then they go, ashes to ashes and dust to dust. Yes certain species of Pokémon are farmed as food for humans and even other Pokémon but it's not done as an evil act by heartless people... for the most part anyway.

Arceus made humans and Pokémon to coexist yes but also to help each other live and prosper. Without the species of Pokémon we have that serve as a large source of our food, many people all over the world would starve. Including the certain types of Pokémon that depend on a large protein source in their diet which only comes
from meat for their nourishment needs, instead of pure vegetation. If all Pokémon consumption stopped tomorrow then not only would people suffer but many types of Pokémon that are carnivorous would starve and perish as well. Add onto that, the Pokémon species who were being used as livestock would start to overpopulate and grow too large for their chosen home environments to sustain them. They eventually would also start to go hungry from lack of findable food and even develop sicknesses and diseases due to said overpopulation."

Agatha smiled warmly at Ash and the other young trainers at the table. "So you see? Life and everything in it has a circle that it has to follow, from birth to death. If people or Pokémon try to interfere and mess with nature then the same world that nourishes us would eventually start to suffer and wither until nothing remained. Eventually killing any and everything on this planet in the process. It's a harsh and dramatic example I know but no less true. We are all a part of this world and even the slightest bit of interference towards the natural order of things could cause chaos."

Agatha then gestured at Ash. "Tell me young man, is your Pidgey healthy, happy and growing strong?"

The boy smiled brightly at the mention of one of his Pokémon and nodded right away. "Yeah she's doing really well and is actually already a Pidgeot. She's really strong and fast too!"

The old woman smiled and had to refrain from chuckling again at Ash's almost constant infectious enthusiasm. "Well then you see Ash? Your Pidgey wasn't meant to be one of the ones who is bred for livestock. Instead she was born in the wild and her destiny has led her to a talented young trainer that will help make her stronger and happier than she could ever hope to be by herself. Not every Pokémon in a species that can be used for produce will be and many of them go on to live happy, fulfilled lives in other ways. Either with a Pokémon Trainer, human friend of some kind or maybe even find happiness on their own."

Fuji then spoke up and addressed Ash and his friends, "What Agatha is saying essentially is not to feel bad for playing your own roles in the circle of life. We don't eat Pokémon because we're malicious or bad people, we do it because it's how we survive and is also how Arceus meant for things to be. Everything has a purpose, everything lives and everything dies. It's just nature."

The young group of trainers appeared thoughtful for a few moments before, one by one, they all nodded in understanding and acceptance. "You know, that actually does make a lot of sense," Ash conceded as he looked at Fuji and Agatha. "I never honestly thought of all that to such a degree or put it in such a way before. You're right though, both of you. People and Pokémon are all a part of life and just like everything else that lives, we also have a way in which we have to die and a purpose for why we do so. It doesn't do me or anyone else any good to feel bad about or try to change what is naturally done by nature."

Brock, Misty and Giselle seemed to agree with his words as he smiled and bowed his head. "Thank you both for explaining all of that in such a way and helping it to make sense to me. I truly never thought of it in that way but after hearing it put so sensibly and intelligently, I actually do feel a lot better now about it all. Thank you again, I truly do appreciate it."

Agatha got up as she prepared to take the now empty dishes to the sink. "Anytime young man, it was my pleasure. If I can help offer even a little bit of advice or help to a young trainer reaching for the stars then I am happy to do so." She gestured to the table. "Now what say we all pitch in and help clean up the dishes and kitchen hmm?"

"Yeah I'll help!" Giselle volunteered as she hopped up.

"Me too," Misty chimed in as she grabbed her own plate and cup and headed to the sink.

"Well I helped cook so I should help clean up afterwards too," Brock said with a chuckle as he got up and pushed his chair in.

Ash however simply nodded, "Yeah I'll help too but first I would like to ask you a question if you wouldn't mind Mr. Fuji."

The older man just inclined his head to Ash and waved with his left hand in a welcoming gesture. "Please do Ash."

The boy took a few moments to make sure he would be asking in the nicest way possible before beginning, "Well Mr. Fuji it's just... Haunter is so new to all of this and it hasn't had a chance to fully accustom to life away from the darkness and shadows of the tower yet. I would really like to have some more time with it so I can get to know Haunter better and maybe even help it adjust to life out here in the real world again. Of course I would also like to see the town a little more and maybe even learn what I can from you and Agatha during the time we're here so... so I was wondering if maybe you would mind if we stayed for perhaps another week with you here?"

Ash held his hands up. "We'll help however we can and I'll even pay you so that we're not just a burden on you, that's no issue. If you just don't want us staying then that's fine too and we'll find somewhere else to room while we're here, like the Pokémon Center. I just thought that I would ask if you would mind or anything since-"

Fuji stopped him with a raised hand. "Ash, you and your friends are more than welcome to stay with me for as long as you wish to. I'm very happy for the company and you all are great sources of it at that. I also will take no payment of any kind from any of you. You either stay with me free of charge or not at all."

Ash looked at his friends and then went over to ask, "Hey... would you guys be okay if we stayed here for another week or so? Solidad's contest in Saffron isn't for awhile yet so we'll still have more than enough time to get there I think."

Misty shook her head. "I'd love to stay Ash, maybe Agatha can tell me a little more about Lorelei while we're here!"

Giselle snickered at Misty but answered her boyfriend, "I'd also like to stay Ash, maybe we could go and see the town together just us while we're at it."

Brock was instantly on board. "Hey I'm definitely okay with staying for awhile longer! Hopefully Mr. Fuji can teach me some of his great cooking secrets and recipes while we're here."

Ash turned back to Fuji once his friends gave their consent and nodded. "We'll stay Mr. Fuji and thank you, this is very gracious and kind of you. We all greatly appreciate it," He finished as each of them gave a respectful bow to the older man.

Fuji gave his own bright smile and held a thumbs up. "Okay then, it sounds like I'll be having some great company to count on for the next few days!"

After that, the group of friends went to help Fuji and Agatha clean up the kitchen before settling down for a quiet evening of fellowship and conversation that was both stimulating and also very humorous at certain points. Especially whenever Misty and Giselle would nearly get into one of their loud, over the top shouting matches.

All in all though, the evening was a good one and in Ash's opinion, the perfect way to end a very stressful and intense two days. While surrounded by his friends, Pokémon and a warm and friendly atmosphere, Ash couldn't help but sit back and reflect on just what the next week would hold for him and the others.

And he wasn't disappointed either.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

The following week passed by in a figurative blur for Ash and his friends. Just as he had hoped, the week turned out to be very eventful, very successful and a learning experience for all of them. Not only had he been spending every day getting to know Haunter better and talking with the Ghost-Type at every chance he had but he had also been, believe it or not, training with Agatha during that same time.

It had all started when she walked in on he and his Pokémon training together in the gym during the physical improvement and integrated training portion of their workout session. She watched them for a time and then observed as Ash started to run them through the paces with move training, attack and defensive maneuvering, speed, strength and agility drills, battle tactics and strategy, partner and all out sparring and even the special skills portion of their regimen.

Which was basically where Ash would break them down into working on utilizing their abilities and even special techniques he was helping them to create, all while in practice battle. There was a quite a few other smaller areas of focus Ash put emphasis on but those were the ones in which he put the most focus to and really drilled his Pokémon on.

And of course, even though he was just coming off of a close brush with death and had minor injuries, he refused to let his Pokémon train alone and was right out on the floor doing his own intense workout right beside of them. Something Agatha had found quite impressive.

Something she also found to be rather impressive was the intelligent, well structured and properly integrated ways in which Ash went about training his Pokémon. Each one was done systematically and with special focus and detailed attention for not only each Pokémon's unique type differences but also the little things that made them unique and special as individuals.

Agatha was at first surpised and almost a little worried at the over the top intensity Ash trained he and his Pokémon at and found his methods to be in some ways almost, well, brutal. Especially after he would roll over from a set of elevated chair pike push-ups covered in sweat and then shout at his Pokémon to do more, go faster and be stronger. Even as the Pokémon themselves were gasping for air, sweating in some cases and nearly on the verge of what appeared to be collapse in others.

However, after their training was finally done, she saw a complete change in Ash from militaristic, brutal coach to kind, caring young trainer that loved his Pokémon. Meaning that he would go to each one and check them over for serious wounds, patch up any cuts they had and then rehydrate and wipe the sweat off of them with care and patience after training was complete.

Seeing such a thing made Agatha feel more at ease that he wasn't just some slave driver trainer like so many other young and even older Pokémon Trainers she knew of. He actually cared for them and it showed in his actions when he would dote over them after their workouts were finished. The fact that he even trained with them was something that made her smile since she personally believed that the best way to bring out a Pokémon's true potential was to train with them and give it your all. If they see you going for it intently then they'll be more inclined to follow your example versus if you were a lazy bum of a trainer who only sat around on your rump and barked out orders all day.

Mankey see as Mankey do like they say after all.

In fact, watching Ash train reminded her of her old friend Sam Oak when he was a young man training his own Pokémon. He was also very structured, intelligent, diverse and precise when training, just as Ash was. Something she could yet again see coming out of the boy as proof that Oak really was his teacher and mentor.

Still though, Ash may have been similar to Oak in some ways when he trained but the very harsh intensity he added to it gave the boy his own special flare and spice to he and his Pokémon's training regimen. The way he went from harsh trainer to a loving one during and after training respectively was what really made his style unique in her eyes.

Unbeknownst to her however, Ash had known that she was watching him train and for that reason alone, he had purposefully not had his Pokémon go too in-depth with their tactical, strategical or special techniques training since, call him paranoid, Ash didn't want Agatha seeing all of their techniques and secret methods to their battling style. It's not that he didn't trust her but in Ash's mind, someday he would be battling her and he didn't want the much more experienced trainer having any first hand knowledge or insight into their true battling abilities if he could help it.

What did surprise him though was when Agatha approached him after he was finished training and asked him if he would like to train and learn under her for the time in which they were all together at Fuji's for. Obviously, being offered an opportunity of training from a member of the Elite Four was way too good of a chance to pass up so he took her up on her offer right away.

Over the week, Agatha didn't so much work with Ash and his Pokémon on firsthand battling and physical training as she did battling and general Pokémon theory, in-depth type explanations, stories she shared of some of her more intense battling experiences as well as those she witnessed of others, how to handle the extreme pressure of performing in front of a stadium full of people during the Pokémon League conference tournaments, as well as little known tricks, tips and strategies she had developed over the years that were unique to her.

What was really beneficial about the whole situation though was how when Agatha was instructing Ash one on one, she would have all of her own Pokémon gather Ash's together and then get them to share advice, impart valuable knowledge and instruct the much younger and more inexperienced Pokémon on many different things that was only learned and encountered through years of experience and a life full of intensive battling.

Ash, just like his Pokémon, took in all that the highly respected and seasoned professionals had to offer them just like a sponge, soaking in every bit of information given to them. Especially the parts on how to handle pressure at crowded matches during the Pokémon League since that was one thing that Ash had no clue on how to train his Pokémon, or even himself for that matter, to handle such things since they had never been in such an atmosphere so full of pressure before.

Agatha, however, made it very simple for them in theory. She simply explained that when you stepped onto that field during a League Conference or any other major event taking place in front of a large crowd, you simply had to focus and center your mind on the here and now. You had to zone out everything that was going on around you and have your attention focused on nothing but the battle ahead, your Pokémon and the way in which your opponents were battling so you could find a way to exploit their weaknesses and then strike hard at them.

She told Ash that when battling in such conditions, the trainer and their Pokémon had to be able to tune out the crowd, the announcer and even the cameras if the particular event was being televised like the Indigo Conference was. No amount of noise or fanfare could distract you because if you let it, your battle was as good as over. Especially if you were battling against an opponent that was very skilled and did know how to tune out the crowd.

Agatha further went on to explain one of the main reasons why first time newbies and even trainers that had a few years of experience under their belts hardly ever went on to make it very far in a League Tournament or other similar types of events. The reason basically being that nerves would choke them and then the distraction would kill them. Something she had seen more times than she could count and was even a victim of a few times in her youth.

The advice she offered Ash against such potentially crippling issues was to go into a quiet, preferably dark place with his Pokémon and then for all of them to shut their eyes and go completely quiet. All the way up until they were told to enter into the field, they should be doing nothing but focusing their minds on the battle ahead and reflecting on everything that got them up to that point. All of the training they did, all of the hurdles they had overcome to get there and most importantly, what gotten them to that moment in their lives. What their reasons were for doing what they were doing essentially.

Of course, it was as Agatha said... all of the most sound advice in the world would be useless if you couldn't put it into effect yourself and on the day when actually stepping out into a crowded stadium for the first time, it would be much harder to actually put such advice to practice than it was to merely hear it. A strong mind and a strong mind alone would be what would allow them to overcome the pressures of a professional, packed, televised event of any kind and then give them the ability to come out as the winners at the end of the day.

Accepting fanfare, making the crowd happy and wanting to enjoy the moment, especially if it was your first time, was important but when ego and vanity got it in the way, it could be just as dangerous as choking from stage fright and nerves. Concentration on nothing but the here and now would always be a trainer's best friend and if nothing else, that was really what Agatha drilled into Ash over and over again. As well as what her own Pokémon told to his.

It was very safe to say that by the end of the week, Ash's head was spinning from all of the things Agatha told and taught him but he also felt as though everything he had been instructed in over the week would serve he and his Pokémon invaluably in the coming trials and hardships they would encounter on their journey together. Some of her lessons were far from easy to remember and get right when she tested him on it but Ash felt beyond grateful to her for taking such time to work with them and showing so much of an interest in their success as both trainer and Pokémon.

Something that Ash had also been taught over the course of the week was just how truly skilled and powerful Agatha and her Pokémon were. Sure he had seen Agatha battle against Haunter down below the tower but that wasn't really a fair measure of power. She and Gengar had been battling all night long beforehand against the three Ghost-Types that Haunter had created to guard it so when they finally did face off against Haunter itself, Gengar was already fatigued from so much endless battling.

When Fuji and Agatha had a small practice battle for fun however, Ash and his friends saw clearly the might of the Elite Four when it only took Agatha and Gengar no more than ten minutes to defeat Fuji's Pokémon, all three of them. Ash would know as well, he actually timed the fight and stopped counting when Fuji's Duskull was sent hurdling into the ground by one of Gengar's insanely powerful Shadow Balls and never even made an attempt to get up.

For Ash it was almost surreal watching the way Agatha and her Pokémon battled and worked together. The way she commanded them and her Pokémon obeyed her flawlessly in turn, like they were of one mind, was simply awe inspiring for all of them but especially to Ash more so of everyone. Who, out of his three human friends, definitely was the most fascinated and in love with Pokémon battling by far.

In hindsight, he really wasn't all that surpised when he actually thought about. Agatha and her Pokémon had been battling together and facing some of the toughest challengers and Pokémon imaginable for countless more years than he had even been alive so the fact that their prowess in battle fascinated him wasn't all that shocking. If anything, seeing Agatha battle against Fuji just made Ash yearn to become strong enough with his own Pokémon to battle against her and the rest of the Elite Four someday.

At the current time, Ash knew he wasn't even close to a match for her. He and his Pokémon were too inexperienced and undertrained and he was mature and smart enough to admit it. Lying to himself and trying to act like he was greater than he was would have been just plain stupid. Shooting ones mouth off about being great and powerful when you didn't yet have the full ability to back it up just made you look like a moron and Ash realized this.

In all truth, it was Ash being humble and honest with himself about he and his Pokémon not being ready to face someone like Agatha yet that saved him from making a real ass of himself and demanding a battle of her like most loudmouthed, wet behind the ears trainers would do do. If he battled her, Ash was able to almost play in his mind how one sided it would be and knew that he and his team would be utterly destroyed and humiliated.

That was why, after watching Agatha battle, he resolved to train him and his Pokémon even harder and get even more experience. To learn all they could and capitalize on everything Agatha showed and taught him so that when he did eventually battle her, she would be the one who was stunned by their battling ability, teamwork and power instead of the other way around.

Also something Ash had to admit was that he had grown rather close to the kind, yet stern when needed, old woman. Even though Agatha took some time to teach Brock, Misty and Giselle a few things whenever they seemed interested as well, she and Ash were nearly inseparable during the week. Only not spending time together and training when Ash was with Haunter or Giselle- such as when they both went out for an evening alone to see the town- and that was about it.

If he was honest with himself, Ash almost felt a form of attachment to her as a grandmother figure begin to form after the more and more time went by that he was around her. He never knew what it was like to have a grandmother but if he could have ever chosen one for himself, he would have picked Agatha as his. That was just how easy it was to like the kind, wizened and warm hearted older woman.

In fact, when Agatha left the day before so she could go and handle a few League matters that suddenly popped up, Ash had a rather hard time saying goodbye, even though he tried not to show it. Agatha apparently could see this too because right before she left, she gave him a warm smile and told him that she would be anxiously watching his career from then on out before, to his surpise, she gave him a grandmotherly hug.

Of course, Agatha hadn't been the only one that Ash had been getting closer to and learning to know better either. He and Fuji had taken to sitting down in the living room/kitchen during the evening after the day was done and then just talking over a cup of tea until the late hours of night.

Ash had found that, like Agatha, Fuji was a very interesting and experienced older person that had many things to share, teach and tell stories about that were almost as numerous as Agatha's, simply about different things. What Fuji lacked in all of the Pokémon care and battling knowledge Agatha had, he made up for by knowing just about everything else there was to, generally at least, know about.

The fact that Fuji was a scientist and a well educated person spoke to Ash since he himself was a studious young man that loved to study all he could about anything he had the opportunity to learn about. This meant that most of their converstations were spent with Ash and Fuji just talking about anything that came to mind as well as, for the largest part, him listening to the likable old man tell story after stimulating story about his youth and the things that he had experienced.

With so much that had happened over the course of a few simple days, Ash felt much more learned and knowledgable than he had prior to coming to Lavender Town and it was really all because of Fuji and Agatha. Two people he could say with certainty that he now greatly respected and thought quite a lot of due to their kindess and willingness to impart what they knew to he and his friends.

Alas, all good things must come to an end though (at least that's what most say) and today was the day in which Ash and the others were due to leave Lavender Town and continue on their way to Saffron City.

The mood amongst he and his friends was a mixture of both excitement to be traveling again as well as a slight downcast air overshadowing it. The feeling of being down was mostly centered around Ash since today was the day in which he would no longer see Haunter anymore. A Pokémon in which he had come to grow quite close to over the long week of quality time they had been spending together.

Coming downstairs from the room that he and his friends had been sharing over the week, Ash saw Misty and Giselle waiting for him by the staircase that lead up to the elevated balcony of Fuji's home where his and the guest bedrooms were located.

Smiling at the two girls, Ash walked up to them and then wrapped his arm around Giselle's waist before leading the three of them down to the living area with Pikachu perched firmly upon his shoulder. When they finally reached the bottom landing, they saw Fuji and Brock standing together talking near the bar at the kitchen.

Once they saw them, Fuji smiled and waved. "All packed up and ready to go?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah we're ready. I just need to go and say goodbye to Haunter before we go."

The old man smiled and replied in an understanding voice since he knew how hard it was on the boy to be leaving Haunter, "I promise that Haunter will be well taken care of here Ash. It can stay as long as it wants to and whenever it's ready to leave and go off into the world again, it will be free to do so."

Ash rubbed the back of his head and gave a small smile in return. "Thanks Mr. Fuji, for everything. You've been very kind to us and I don't just mean by risking your life alongside of us when we were trying to help Haunter. I do really appreciate the faith and belief you put in me by allowing us to do what we did but I also am very grateful for how hospitable and welcoming you were to all of us. Opening your home to us, feeding us, teaching us such valuable things that I know we'll remember for years to come... I'm just really thankful for everything you did."

Fuji merely chuckled a little and shook his head. "No Ash I was happy to do it. You are a group of very talented young people with a bright future ahead of you all and I was more than confidant of putting my faith into you. To each of you. You kids showed great promise, strength and friendship, between both yourselves and your Pokémon, down in that chamber against Haunter. You even succeeded in doing something Agatha and myself never did, which was bring hope back to a tortured soul that had none. You should all be very proud of yourselves and your Pokémon. Remember to always be there for each other, care for one another, treat your Pokémon right and don't be afraid to face each new challenge life brings along. Do this and I know each of you will go far and achieve your individual goals."

Ash and the others smiled thankfully at Fuji but before any of them could say anything, the old man's eyes widened and he snapped his fingers. "Oh-ho! I almost forgot!" He then shuffled over to the couch and grabbed a small, sealed up cardboard box that he carried over to the kitchen table and placed atop it.

Looking at Ash and the others with an anxiously excited gleam in his eyes, he nodded towards the box. "I wanted to give you kids something special to show my admiration for you and also as a symbol of my hope that you'll all succeed in achieving your dreams and perhaps even remember old Mr. Fuji now and again as you go forth in life."

Gesturing them all forward, Fuji waited until the young trainers were gathered around next to him before unsealing the box. Once it was open, he reached inside and then pulled out a medium sized book with a blue cover that had the picture of a fancy looking dish of food on the front of it.

Turning to Brock, Fuji held the aged looking book out to him. "Brock, if I learned one thing about you while we cooked together all this week is that you are a very determined young lad who is dedicated to his friends. You have exceptional talent in the kitchen and it is for that reason that I want you to please take this cookbook. It belonged to my wife but I think you can benefit from it more than me. I've already memorized everything there is to know in that book since learning to cook the food we would always shared together helped me cope and heal after she passed."

Brock took the book into his hands and just looked at it before bowing to Fuji and saying in a voice full of gratitude, "Thank you Mr. Fuji, this is an honor to recieve something so special from you and I promise I will care for it."

The old man smiled at him and then reached back into the box again before pulling out a small, silver looking bell which he presented to Giselle. "Giselle my dear, in the short time I have known you, I have come to see that you are the voice of love and reason within this group. You are always willing to help bring peace and comfort to your friends instead of watching them suffer. This is known as a Sooth Bell and it's comforting chime when held or attached to a Pokémon will make even the most unsettled and frustrated of them experience a sense of calm and peace that will subside and placate whatever tide of negative emotions it is they may be feeling."

He winked at her then. "Perhaps you can use it on yourself and Misty here when you go to get into one of those verbal jousts you seem so fond of eh?"

Misty huffed while Giselle just blushed in embarrassment and took the bell with a nod. "Thank you Mr. Fuji, I really appreciate this gift and... and thank you again for what you did for Ash. It means a lot to me."

Fuji chuckled fondly and patted Giselle's shoulder as he nodded to her in a sign of acceptance of her gratitude. Turning to Misty then, he spoke to her kindly, "Misty, you have proven yourself to be a very brash, confidant young woman that, even though you may let that temper get the best of you sometimes..." Misty herself blushed at that. "You are still fiercely dedicated and loyal to your friends through whatever possible end and that, is a very commendable trait my dear. You can be as ferocious and powerful as a raging sea when aggressive but then act as calm and serene as a gently flowing stream when at peace and your emotions are in check."

He turned around and started searching through the box again. "It is for this reason that I believe this will suit you perfectly..." Withdrawing his hand from the box then, he holds up a beautiful pendant on a silver chain that had the clearest, purest looking water contained within the teardrop shaped pendant.

"This is a unique and very rare object known as the Mystic Water Pendant and inside it holds purified water from one of the lakes in a very sacred forest far away in the Johto region. A forest that is said to be guarded by what locals of the area call 'The Voice of The Forest' and is also a place where the mythical Pokémon Suicune is said to run across the lake's surfaces within that very forest and purifies them with each step it takes until they shine a vibrant, beautiful bright blue. Almost as if the stars themselves were dropped down into the lakes to make them emanate with a glorious celestial light."

Fuji delivers the pendant into Misty's almost shaking hands as he continues, "These particular pendants are said to increase the power, energy and even vitality of Water-Type Pokémon and for someone like yourself who has such aspirations of being a Water Pokémon Master, I believe this is the perfect item to help you along with that goal."

Pointing to the pendant again, he went on to say something that he knew would make Misty's mind all but overload with excitement. "That pendant was actually given to me by Lorelei herself you know..." The orange haired girl's eyes widened as she stared at the object in her hands like it was a sacred, holy item. Fuji repressed a chuckle as Misty looked at him and said with obvious excitement in her voice, "Seriously?! Lorelei gave you this? This was hers!"

Fuji nodded before beginning to tell the story that he could see all of them were interested in hearing. "You see, being friends with Agatha, I've already told you all how I have met each member of the Elite Four and even Lance himself. Lorelei lives in Indigo City where she can be close to the League whenever she's needed but what most people do not know is that she also has a secondary home that she uses as a form of retreat whenever she needs to get away from it all.

This particular home of hers is actually located on an island that is part of a chain of islands located some ways away across the ocean from the Cinnabar Island chain. This island she goes to occasionally was actually the one she grew up on and houses a very small community situated right outside of a glacial mountain. Something which is not only extremely rare since cold enviroments usually do not exist on islands so far south but also, the mountain itself is only glacial in appearance on the inside, not the outside."

Fuji then shakes his head to get back on track. "The biggest problem with having a small town situated so close to a freezing cold mountain is that very often when the sporadic winds so famous to an island's ecosystem starts to churn up, it would blow the extremely cold temperatures down from the mountain into the town and make life for the locals very difficult. I heard of this unfortunate problem from Agatha and traveled to the island myself to see what could be done since, being a scientist who studied many subjects over the years in my free time, I was rather learned in the trades of weather temperature patterns and regulation.

Just being on the island for a short time, I could see the torture of living in such a place where temperatures dropped and fluctuated so frequently. I questioned why the community never installed any form of heating and cooling system to the homes and businesses of the town and my response from Lorelei was that since the island they called home played victim to a very rare cold anomaly I had never heard of before, electricity was something they were not fortunate in having.

Apparently, something about the mountain being located on the island blocked any kind of electromagnetic waves from across the sea and due to this, no matter how hard they tried, the people could never get a fully functional source of electricity to run on the island. They also had no room for a large substation in their tiny community so that was out of the question for them as well. After she told me that, my mind automatically went to thinking for some solution to their problem and I eventually managed to come up with one."

Fuji then started to make gestures with his hands as he explained the idea he came up with to help the islanders. "Essentially I came to the conclusion that if you can't get a constant, mechanically reliable source of electricity on an island that focused electro waves couldn't for some reason reach, why not make your own source of it? To this end I devised the idea of creating generators which would be placed in every home and business on the island. These generators would be capable of running the simpler electricity based luxuries such as lighting, heating and cooling systems, warm water regulators and other simple things we use each day like fridges, ovens and wash machines.

I had connections with an individual who ran his own heating and cooling company outside of Cinnabar Island, the same company of which actually did the entire temperature regulation system for the research center Isaac and I had built on the island years earlier. Being that the man and I were friends and he owed me a favor, we struck up a deal and had his company make the generators needed at a highly discounted price that the island community could afford.

Once the machines were built, I then developed the idea of making a small, comfortable containment house and then using Electric-Type Pokémon to power all of the generators through main electric lines that would lead from the 'Power House', as we came to call it, into each home and business that contained a generator and into the machines themselves.

We simply buried the electric lines underground and then ran them up under each business and home on the island in order to connect them to every generator which had a pre-designated place inside of whatever room that was chosen for them to be in. This was how we connected them to the main power source. After that was done, we- and when I say we I mean Lorelei and myself who was helping me with the project- knew that we couldn't have organic Pokémon dependent on people being the sole sources of energy for the Power House and that's why we sent out a favor to the main Kanto power plant near Cerulean City to send us out as many inorganic Electric-Types as they could spare.

Being how that particular area is practically infested with Electric Pokémon, they did us a grand kindess and sent out a large number of Voltorb, Electrode, Magnemite and Magneton that we could use to help charge the town's new generators from inside the Power House. The Pokémon adapted very well and due to the free, peaceful lives they were offered to live within the small electric station, they happily accepted the deal and worked together to charge and power up the station whenever it was needed.

I had also created a sort of electricity recycling machine, almost like a big generator in itself, which I installed inside of the Power House and it's purpose was to hold a vast amount of electrical energy provided by the Pokémon that it would then use to power the small community. When it grew close to empty, the Pokémon living there would be alerted by the people who maintained the Power House that I had personally trained in the operation of the building. The Electric Pokémon would then refuel the machine with their own electricity, a job that was simple since there were so many of them, and then the process restarted over again."

Fuji looked up to the ceiling and smiled a little in fond memory. "If my old memory serves me right it took about three months to finish the project but once it was done, Lorelei's home island never had to worry about power again." He then pointed to the pendant Misty held in her hand. "Lorelei gave me that as a thank you for what I did and being that I knew how extremely rare they are, the token of appreciation was more than enough to suffice for something I did out of sheer kindess. Even then she and the community still tried to pay me, separately, to which I politely denied."

A thoughtful expression spread across the old man's face. "You know it's funny but Lorelei never really told me where she got that pendant. The only thing she did say is that she recieved it from a kind older woman she met while traveling in Johto who lived near the forest that housed the lakes in which that very pendant supposedly came from and that was it."

Misty felt tears well up in her eyes as she hugged the pendant close to her chest and then looked up at Fuji with a teary smile. "T-Thank you for this gift Mr. Fuji... I promise I will always treasure it."

He gave Misty a grandfatherly smile and nodded before turning to look at Ash. When he did, he brought his fists up to his sides while looking down at the boy. A sort of twinkle was evident in his eyes as he said in a slightly mysterious tone, "Now the question is... what could I possibly give to such a talented young man who already has everything that he could possibly need to succeed in all of his life's endeavors?"

Fuji shifted his eyes knowingly to Pikachu and all of Ash's friends as a small smile slowly parted his lips. "Well, to answer my own question, that might be a difficult thing to do but..." He then leaned down and tapped the side of his nose while winking at Ash. "I think I might know just the thing."

Turning back to the box he had been pulling all of the unique items from, Fuji fished around a little bit before pulling out a small spherical object wrapped up in a cream colored cloth.

Unifying the knot keeping the cloth tied together, Fuji slowly pulled the covering away to reveal what was very clearly a Pokéball. The only difference being that it didn't look like an ordinary Pokéball that could be bought at any old PokéMart down the street.

This ball was a Pokéball in particular that boasted a much more beautiful and elegant appearance than most others did. It sported a shiny black base coloring almost the shade of night with red stripes around the top and bottom of it, gold lines bordering the red stripes and there was also a solid gold stripe that wrapped around the front of the ball and emblazoned itself in particular upon the release button of the device.

Holding the strange, yet eye catching Pokéball out to Ash, Fuji explained, "You might already know what it's called Ash but in case you don't, this is known as a Luxury Ball. A Pokéball in which is much more comfortable and enjoyable to be inside of than a regular Pokéball, mostly because the way it's made allows the Pokémon housed within it to feel great comfort and peace whilst inside. It's said to make Pokémon become more friendly towards their trainers but I couldn't answer that one way or another. All I know is that these Pokéballs are quite rare and that my brother Blaine actually gave me this one."

Reaching out, Ash took the Pokéball into his hands and looked it over for a few moments before looking at Fuji again and smiling. "Wow Mr. Fuji thanks a lot, this is great!"

The older man chuckled and shook his head. "That's not all my lad, I have another gift for you. First however, why don't you call that Charmander of yours out here?"

Ash blinked a little bit in confusion but did as told, putting the Luxury Ball away before pulling Charmander's Pokéball out from his belt since the Fire-Type had slept with he and Pikachu last night instead of down in the gym like his other Pokémon did out of choice to keep Haunter company. Whom of which he had already went downstairs early that morning and returned to their Pokéballs so they would be ready to go when it was time for them all to leave.

"Charmander come on out, Fuji wants to see you," Ash said to the ball as he released his Pokémon and Charmander came forth in a bright burst of light. "Charmander Char!" He exclaimed happily as he stretched out his body.

Ash knelt down and fondly patted his Pokémon's head with a smile on his face that was returned by Charmander. Fuji watched them both with a strange, though not creepy smile on his weathered face before turning back to the box and searching through it again.

Once he found what it was he was looking for, the older man reemerged from the box holding something behind his back. Focusing his attention on Ash again, who was now standing up holding Charmander in his arms, Fuji addressed them both. "Ash, in all my years of training my own Pokémon and accepting the challenges of many different trainers that has passed through my gym's doors, I can honestly say that not one has impressed me or gained my respect like you have. You have a way of bonding with your Pokémon and bringing out the best in them as I have never seen before and to me, that is an incredible gift."

He gestured at Charmander then. "When I watched you battle with this young Charmander during our gym match and then down in the chamber against Haunter, I could tell that even for who you are as a person, yourself and Charmander has a very special bond together that I believe is only truly shared as well between you and Pikachu."

Fuji moved forward and began rubbing Charmander's head gently, to which the Pokémon happily cooed. "This little one is already an exceptionally powerful Pokémon, even for it's species and especially at it's current size and evolutionary stage. I am sure I don't have to tell you just what kind of a powerhouse you are going to have on your hands once Charmnder fully evolves Ash but I know that with your loving care and determined personality, you are going to be able to bring out it's full potential like no one else can.

Fire-Types are some of the hardest Pokémon to raise because, just like they element they are linked with, they can be as fierce and destructive as a raging inferno but also as mysterious and subtle as a gently burning flame." He smiled at Ash then. "A mystery that I am confident you will unlock in order to bring the best out of every Fire Pokémon you ever take under your guidance Ash. Something that many, many trainers of Fire-Type Pokémon are never able to truly do and is also the very reason for why I want to bestow upon you both..."

He then produces a small, silver, rectangular shaped case which he opens and reveals something inside that confused his friends but caused Ash's eyes to all but bulge out of their sockets. Fuji smiled at the reaction from the boy as he finished his earlier sentence, "...With this."

The young Ketchum placed Charmander on the counter and then pointed at what was inside of the case with a shaky finger. "T-That's... Mr. Fuji this is..."

Misty quickly grew impatient however and asked loudly, "Is what?! What are we looking at! What is it?!"

Fuji turned the case so they all could see what was inside and answered her, "These Misty..." He then pointed to two perfectly rounded, smooth looking stones resting inside of the case on a black velvet covering. One stone was much bigger than the other but they were both equally as beatiful and awe-inspiring due to their coloring. One side of each stone was a deep, magnificent blue while the other side of them was colored a bright, vibrant orange/red. Each color was separated evenly down the middle of both stones and in the center of the junction between the opposing colors was the symbol for fire, which was a mixture of both colors in itself.

"These..." Fuji said in a tone that was meant to build suspense and was definitely doing it's job. "Are Mega-Stones."

As soon as Fuji said this, everyone minus Ash (who was still in a state of shock) shouted at once, "MEGA-STONES?!"

Brock pointed at the stones within the case, his hand also shaky almost as though anyone who's hand got close to them would lose all control of it's motors functions. "I-I've heard of Mega-Stones before but I've never actually seen one... this is amazing!"

Giselle tilted her head to the side. "But... I thought Mega-Stones could only be found in Kalos?"

Ash finally managed to shake off his shock as he looked right at Fuji and asked with a voice laced full of surprise and disbelief, "How... how did you get this?"

The Lavender Town Gym Leader merely smiled and sat down on a barstool behind him. "Do you remember when I told you all the story last week of how Team Rocket sent me on an expedition with a team to Kalos years ago when I was still with them and we were looking for Mega-Stones?"

The kids nodded in unison and Fuji continued. "Well, I told you then that we never found anything but that wasn't entirely the truth. I did find something and I found these. Inside of an old inactive volcano is where I actually found the stones in raw gem form to be more accurate. We were digging around in a particular area, illegally of course, and since I was the outcast of the team just because I didn't have the same ruthless, cold mindset that they did, they were always sending me off alone into the most dangerous of places around the mountain we were digging at. Most likely hoping I would never come back again."

Fuji shook his head. "It was during the night of a bad storm. I was far way from our campsite on the other side of the mountain where the terrain was the most inhospitable and treacherous when a terrible thunderstorm with very high winds tore through the area. I tried to find shelter and as I was looking for it, I stumbled across a small cave entrance hidden behind a large wall of brush and undergrowth growing up against the mountainside.

The hole wasn't very big but since I was never a man of bulky stature it was enough for me to squeeze through. When I did I found myself staring down a dark tunnel and, being that I had nowhere else to go, curiosity got the best of me. I lit one of the emergency glow sticks I had with me and then followed the tight passage down deeply into the earth. At first I thought I would never reach the end but eventually the tunnel opened up into a huge cavernous room.

Exploring the room after I found it, I could tell almost instantly by the hardened, blackened looking rocks and very odd compostion of the terrain around me that I had stumbled into what was once the base of a volcano. The strange ground I was standing on actually being the lava that had once filled the cavern, only hardened and dried up. All of this surprised me of course since none of us knew that the mountain we were looking for Mega-Stones around was actually an inactive, extinct volcano.

Just before I prepared to leave however, the light from my glow stick illuminated something that faintly shined in the wall near the front of the cavern. When I went to inspect it, I found a beautiful gemstone sticking halfway out of the rock with a surface as dark blue as the ocean at night while the inside of the stone seemed to have a secondary layer of coloring that was bright red, almost orange, as a burning flame. Inside of the gem I saw a small stone suspended inside of it that was also a perfectly mixed color of blue and red, like the much larger stone it was trapped within.

I managed to dig it out and after I did, I stashed the gemstone away and left. The rest of the time we dug around the mountain after that, I acted as I always did. Never complaining and just going off on my own to whatever desolate patch of earth they would send me to dig through, none of them being any the wiser of what I had found and kept hidden away at all times. Of course, I knew what it was I found. I knew that I had just discovered the raw gemstone used to fashion a Mega-Stone and even though I didn't know what type it was, I was determined to find out.

It wasn't until myself and a few other members of the team were sent into a nearby town undercover for supplies did I finally get a break in identifying the stone. As per usual I had been sent off on my own and while wandering the town I came across an older gentleman's shop that claimed he was able to make Mega-Stones out of any of the precious gemstones used to fashion them if he was provided the material.

I paid him a visit as discreetly as I could and from the reaction I received from him upon showing what it was I found, I knew I had discovered something extremely rare. So rare in fact that he couldn't even tell me what it was for certain aside from obviously being a Mega-Gemstone, only what it strongly resembled."

Misty pointed at the stones. "So what kind of Mega-Stone is it?"

Fuji looked down at the two brightly colored stones in the case and gave a slight shrug. "To be honest? I am not sure and neither was the man I showed them to that day. He told me that it looked very similar to a Mega-Stone known as Charizardite, which has two variations of it that allows Charizard to Mega-Evolve into two different forms depending on the stone. However the one I found didn't exactly resemble either one."

Ash nodded his head slowly, eyes still locked on the Mega-Stones as he said distractedly, "Yeah I know what Charizardite is. Professor Oak taught me all about the Mega-Stones that are currently known when I was training under him. Charizardite X, otherwise known as the Black Fire Mega-Stone, is a dark blue stone and Charizardite Y, also called the Dragon's Fire Mega-Stone, is a bright orange/red one." He looked a little closer at the stones then. "But... but this one almost looks like a..."

He trailed off but Fuji finished what he was going to say for him, "A combination of both?" Ash nodded and the old man inclined his head slightly to the side. "Yes that's exactly what the older gentleman I spoke to told me as well. He said that somehow, which he was unsure of, it looked as though both forms of Charizardite somehow managed to grow and form together until they combined into one stone. No doubt an extremely unsual occurrence that rarely, if ever again, happens.

Once he finished examining it, the man offered to make the stone into an official Mega-Stone for me for free since I had showed him such a valuable, unique and priceless treasure and I agreed to it. I told him I was on a time crunch and he assured me it would be done in three days. Which, subsequently, was the only remaining time I had left in Kalos.

I left the stone with him then and came three days later for it before my team left, saying that I needed to stock up on supplies for the trip back home. He had made good on his word and had the stone ready and fashioned for me by the time I came to pick it up. The larger stone was made from the outter portion of the gemstone while the smaller one was left the way it was and just fine detailed a little. I made the man swear to never tell anyone of what he saw for a few hundred credits and he promptly swore to it. After that I came back home and hid the stones hidden away from everyone, never showing a single soul before you kids except for my wife and Agatha."

Ash looked at the stones a bit longer before glancing back at Fuji again with a confused expression on his face. "You know, I'm really grateful you showed us all this Mr. Fuji but... why did you?"

The old man smiled warmly and held the case out to Ash. "Because I am giving you this Mega-Stone Ash. I want you to use it someday in order to bring out the full potential and power of that little Charmander of yours and possibly even bring forth the strongest form of your bond together as trainer and Pokémon that can ever be established."

Ash looked at the stones dumbly before looking at Fuji once again with wide eyes. "B-But... but Mr. Fuji I... I can't accept this it's too much!"

The old man shook his head. "No Ash it isn't. You've done more than enough to prove to me that if anyone could ever use this Mega-Stone to bring out the full potential of their Pokémon, it would definitely be you. I have faith you in Ash and that is why I'm giving this to you."

Ash just stared at Fuji for several long moments until, finally, he conceded and took the case from the elderly man's hands. Charmander looked at the stones curiously as Ash held them and Fuji took that time to speak again, "Ash, I'm sure you've already been told this by Professor Oak but I'm going to go ahead and tell you again just to be sure. Something that the gentleman who made this Mega-Stone told me himself and also something I learned from studying Mega-Evolution on my own."

Fuji put his hands behind his back then as his tone became very serious. "These Mega-Stones are very powerful yes and they can bring out a Pokémon's inner potential and power like you have never seen but you also must be weary. If the bond with your Pokémon is not the strongest it can be and you don't know how to calm them down and be there as true emotional support during such a harsh and aggressive change, Mega-Evolution can also break them down into nothing."

He looked down at Charmander and gestured to the Pokémon as he gave his words of wisdom. "You see, a Mega-Stone will unlock a Pokémon's true power but it will also bring with it a terrible burden that the Pokémon will have to deal with the first time they enter Mega-Evolution. The power that the stone unlocks will also bring out their innermost most wild, ferocious and feral side as they try to become accustomed to so much raw power coursing through their bodies at one time.

If you are not able to be there for your Pokémon in that most dire of moments and your bond is not strong enough then not only could they go on a terrible rampage and hurt anyone they come across but they could also hurt themselves. Just remember to make sure your bond is as strong as it can be before attempting Mega-Evolution in the future and that your Pokémon trusts you explicitly and everything will be fine."

Fuji chuckled in amusement. "It would also probably be a good idea to do it for the first time somewhere far away from where anyone is at!"

Ash just looked down at the Mega-Stone, Charmander and then back at Fuji again. His face slowly became one of determination and confidence as he nodded his head firmly. "I will make sure Charmander and I are as close as we can possibly be before we ever try Mega-Evolution in the future. I'll also make sure I am there for him and do whatever I can to make sure he never hurts himself when and if he ever decides to Mega-Evolve. I promise you that Mr. Fuji."

The old man gave his by now famous kindly smile to the boy and chuckled fondly. "I am sure you will young man. Also remember that when the time comes and you're ready to use that stone, you'll have to get something to wear that will be able to hold the smaller stone for yourself and also something to attach to your Pokémon that will hold the larger stone on themselves. This needs to be done in order for Mega-Evolution to work but the exact method of how you begin the process is a mystery. I'm sure Professor Oak could tell you all about that though when the time comes."

Fuji rubbed at the back of his head and grinned a little bit in embarrassment. "I would give you something to put the smaller stone in, as well as a holder for the bigger one that your Pokémon would wear too but... I've just never come across anything like that before unfortunately."

Ash smiled and laughed a little as well before shaking his head. "Don't worry about it Mr. Fuji, I'll find something eventually." No sooner did he say those words and Misty and Giselle were suddenly pulling him closer as they started to look at the Mega-Stone more closely.

"Wow it's so pretty," Misty said in awe as she leaned on Ash's shoulder. "This is just incredible Ash..."

"Yeah I've never seen anything like this before," Giselle chimed in from Ash's other side. "I'm really happy for you Ash, that's one heckuva an awesome gift!"

Ash looked at them both and chuckled at their words of praise and fascination. "Thanks girls, I appreciate you not being upset at me for getting something like this."

Brock looked at Ash when he said that and appeared genuinely confused. "Why would we be upset Ash? Fuji wanted to give you that and as he said, you earned it. I for one am as happy as can be with what he gave me and even if he would have given me nothing I wouldn't have cared. You deserve that stone Ash and I think Fuji's right, you're gonna be able to do something great with it it someday."

Giselle nodded in agreement. "That's right, I believe you and Charmander will one day be able to use that Mega-Stone and really become a powerful force to be reckoned with. Not to mention I think it's really going to help form your bond much stronger together too."

"Besides," Misty said with a shrug. "What would any of us do with that stone anyway? None of us even have a Charmander to evolve into a Charizard to use it on at some point."

Ash smiled gratefully at his friends. "Thanks guys, for being so cool about it and understanding."

While he bent down and took off his backpack to place the case holding the Mega-Stone inside of it, Fuji waited patiently and once he was done, the old man held up a single finger. "We're not done quite yet Ash. I still have one more thing that I would be extremely grateful if you would take. Something even more special and valuable than that Mega-Stone in fact."

Ash appeared a little lost and raised an eyebrow. "Something more valuable than the Mega-Stone?" When Fuji nodded, Ash let out a huff. "Wow... well I mean don't really see how that would be possible but... okay, yeah I'll take whatever it is you would like for me to Mr. Fuji."

The old man looked clearly relieved and happy with Ash's answer as he turned around and gestured for them to follow him. "Alright then, please follow me if you don't mind. I've got a very special place in which I keep it."

Looking at his friends who just shrugged in return, Ash placed his backpack on again and returned Charmander before falling into step behind Fuji with his friends in tow. They followed him, surprisingly enough, into the prayer sanctuary half of the building and once they were inside, Ash stopped and looked around.

The medium sized room which looked more like a greeting/dining hall of some kind was almost totally white in color. The whole room being made up of white drywall for the walls and ceiling and the same colored tiles on the floor. The memorial stones themselves that Fuji had managed to copy as many of as he could from Lavender Tower, were all spread out amongst the holy sanctuary in neat rows which divided the room into left and right sections.

A walkway from the entrance door that the public would use extended from that side of the room, all the way to the end where Fuji was standing near the far wall. The only other color the room had being the long red rug which stretched from the main door to the front of the room. Also, to add a little color and a relaxing feel to the room Ash guessed, were incense burners and pictures of Pokémon in peaceful poses and in their natural habitats lined all along the walls of the prayer sanctuary.

After he was done assessing his surroundings, Ash walked over to where Fuji was standing near a long table of some kind that was pushed up against the wall at the very front most part of the room. A few incense burners, books and lines of wreath were spread on the table itself, which was covered in a silky white table cloth. Hanging behind the table was also a pure white tapestry with gold trimmings around the edges that took up quite a bit of wall space.

More than a little confused as to why they were there, Ash asked Fuji in a perplexed tone, "Umm... Mr. Fuji? Why exactly are we here?"

The kindly old man just clasped his hands behind his back and gave a small smile. "Because this is where I keep my most precious possession Ash. A place that I hid something where I knew no one but myself and Agatha would ever find it."

Ash raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "Okay... but where? This place isn't exactly the prime location to hide anything."

Fuji chuckled before responding. "Well, before I explain to you exactly what I mean, let me ask you all a question... do you remember when I told you the story of that mother Marowak who lived in Pokémon Tower and had an egg which myself and my wife helped to take care of before that fateful day when Team Rocket came?"

A look of sadness passed over the faces of Ash and his friends but they nodded nonetheless with Ash saying in a solemn tone, "Yeah... yeah I remember."

Fuji nodded. "After the tragedy that happened that day and I awoke in the hospital, my immediate attention once I got over the initial shock and crippling grief of what had happened turned to the egg in which belonged to Marowak. I didn't know what had happened to it after that day in the tower and I was worried for it.

When I was released from the hospital sometime later, I forced myself to go back to the tower in the dead of night with Agatha along by my side. We then snuck into the tower and made our way up to the floor that held the room where Marowak had been nursing her egg. To be honest, I wasn't expecting to find anything when we were there and even if we did, I didn't have any high hopes as to what condition the egg might have been. However, what we found instead was something more than I could have ever hoped for..."

Trailing off mysteriously, Fuji smiled a little more at the looks of undisguised suspense and anxiousness Ash and his friends had on their faces to hear the rest of the story.

Walking over to one end of the table behind him, Fuji gestured at the other side. "Could one of you young men please help me move this table?"

Ash shared yet another confused glance with his friends but Brock stepped up to help Fuji regardless. Together, the two of them moved the table down a few feet on Fuji's directions before said older man motioned for them to stop and then walked up and stood in front of the now fully revealed white tapestry, of which hung all the way down to the floor.

Reaching up, Fuji took hold of the immense piece of cloth material before pulling it aside to reveal, to everyone's surprise, a door hidden behind it.

The aged gym leader stood back afterwards and gestured towards the door. "There are chambers within this sanctuary that only I am allowed entrance into and that is where I keep what I told you about Ash." He then opened the door and revealed a hallway beyond made of standard tan wood boards for the walls, ceiling and floor.

Gesturing at the hallway, he walked in first and called behind him, "Follow me and close the door if you wouldn't mind."

Ash quickly followed Fuji inside without hesitation, followed by his friends. As they entered the hallway with Brock shutting the door behind them, Ash looked around a little bit before walking after Fuji, who was already making his way steadily down the twisting, winding hallway before them.

While following the older man, Ash and the others noticed not only that they seemed to be going in a gradual downward direction- meaning that they must have been going a little ways underground- but also that there were several shut doors along the way on both sides of the hallway. None of them pressed as to what was inside of them or what Fuji did with the rooms however, they simply followed him along in silence until they eventually came to the end of the hallway where another door was located.

Taking a key out of his pocket, Fuji unlocked it and then opened the door, motioning for Ash and the others to go in first. Once they were inside, the four of them looked around and observed the somewhat large room they were in.

It had high ceilings, far spaced apart walls and everything inside was made of the same tan colored wood as the entire hallway that lead to the room. There were also four large wooden pillars inside of it which rested rather close together in a square shape in the middle of the room and stretched all the way up to the ceiling.

What really captured all of their attention the most though was the raised wooden dais in between all four pillars that had a strange machine on top of it with an electric chord extending from it and to an outlet on the far wall. The machine wasn't very big and the entire top part of it was made of clear glass with an object none of them could recognize yet resting within.

Fuji walked over to the machine and stood beside of it as Ash and his friends slowly made their way over to it as well. Once they got close enough, they were finally able to see what it was that was being contained inside of the machine and almost right away, Brock slightly stammered as he pointed to it, "Is... is that a... Mr. Fuji is that a... a Pokémon Egg?"

Fuji nodded and then gestured towards the now revealed egg with his left hand. "Yes it is Brock. An egg I've been keeping in this incubator that I made myself many, many years ago and has been in it ever since."

Giselle got a little closer to the glass and looked in on the egg to examine it closer. She could see that the egg was about medium sized and was also a sandy tan color with cream colored stripes circling around it's oval shape.

Looking up at Fuji while still bent over, she asked curiously, "Where did you get it and what kind of egg is it?"

The old man smiled and then looked down at the egg as he answered the question, "It is quite old, a little over three decades to be honest and as for where I found it... well..." He gently patted the incubator. "Kids, you're looking at Marowak's very own egg from all of those years ago in my story."

Disbelief and wide eyed shocked met Fuji's statement as everyone went silent. Misty was the first one to speak out of all of them and she did so boisterously, "What?! That's not possible! Pokémon Eggs don't last for that long, this egg has to be a dud!"

The old man smiled sadly and withdraw his hand from the machine. " Misty I... I do know that you have a point and to tell the complete truth, I've often thought myself that it was dead as well. When Agatha and I went up to the room in the tower where Marowak had her nest, we found the egg exactly where she left it. We both thought that it would surely have been long dead since it went so long without it's mother's warmth but when I touched it, I was shocked to find that it was still warm to the touch. Agatha did the same and also had no explanation for it.

I brought the egg back home with me and debated over what to do with it after that. I carried some hope that it might hatch for me being that it was still warm when we found it but no matter what I did or how long I waited, it never did. I still couldn't bring myself to get rid of it though due to it always staying warm to the touch and because of that, after I moved here and built this place, I created the incubator you see before you in which I put the egg in to keep it warm and is where it has stayed ever since."

Ash shook his head, not understanding. "But Mr. Fuji... how can any egg last this long without hatching and still be alive? That's completely against nature, how can it be possible?"

The old man looked at Ash with sad eyes as he spoke softly, "I cannot answer that Ash. All I know is that somewhere deep
down in my heart I just feel as though this egg is still alive and is just waiting for the right time to hatch. A theory I have had for quite some is that perhaps the baby within this egg formed a strong bond with it's mother even before it was born and thus, losing her caused it to go into a state of shock which then led to it going into a form of embryonic stasis."

Fuji then shrugged his shoulders. "I know that sounds insane and goes against all types of logic, especially since I am a scientist but... well... life has proven time and time again that it is a mystery that simply cannot be solved and I've seen enough unexplainable things in my time to have good reason to throw caution and all logic to the wind occasionally and say, 'What if?' After all... it should have been impossible for Haunter's heart and spirit to be healed. That's what I originally thought but you proved me wrong Ash."

Fuji glanced back at the egg. "Maybe the love Marowak had for this egg was so strong that it gave some form of protection to it that kept it from dying without her and also kept it in a stasis for all this time. Yet again, yes I do know how insane that sounds but... but I just can't shake the feeling I have within me that this little egg still has a chance and is waiting for the proper moment to greet the world."

It was then that Fuji looked at Ash seriously and crossed his hands down in front of him. "Ash, there is a reason for why I brought you here... I believe that the reason why this egg has yet to hatch is because it is waiting for something to happen- and I don't know what- that will apparently never happen with me. You are embarking on a brave and adventure filled journey to make your dreams come true Ash and, if what I have seen from your Pokémon is anything to go by, I think you are helping all of them reach their own goals and dreams along the way. If anyone can get this egg to hatch young man, I have faith that you can be the one to make that happen."

Fuji pointed to the egg again. "Will you please Ash, if it is not too much of a burden, take this egg with you when you go? Please. As a favor for an old man who doesn't want anything bad to happen to this egg when the day comes that my wife and child come to call me home."

Ash looked down at the egg within the incubator and then at Fuji in total suprise. "Mr. Fuji are... are you sure?

He simply nodded resolutely. "I am absolutely sure Ash. Unless of cours, taking the egg would be too much trouble. Which if that is the case then I totally under-"

Ash cut him off though as he vigorously shook his head and spoke quickly, "No it's no trouble at all! I would gladly take the egg off your hands as long as you're competely sure that you're okay with it Mr. Fuji."

In response, Fuji smiled brightly and lifted the top of the incubator off before picking the egg up and handing it to Ash. "Then it's yours young man, I know you'll take great care of it."

As soon as Ash's hands made contact with the egg, he instantly felt a very unusual jolt of what felt like electricity run up his spine but instead of freaking out, he merely held the egg close to him and remained calm. Looking it over, he gently rubbed the surface of it before looking up at Fuji again and smiling widely. "I promise you that I am going to take great care if this egg Mr. Fuji, you have my word!"

Misty slid up next to him then with a mischievous grin on her face as she spoke in an equally as mischievous tone, "We're gonna have to watch so Ash doesn't accidentally make an omelette out of the egg you guys..."

The black haired boy whipped around and glared at her. "Hey Misty not funny!"

Brock chimed in then with a laugh, "I'll keep the salt away from him!"

Even Giselle giggled a little and joined the good natured teasing, "And make sure he doesn't fall down with it or try and force it to train while it's still in the egg!"

Ash looked at each of them in turn with a scandalized expression on his face before turning away and huffing. "Ah forget you guys! Making fun of me and my egg raising abilities, I'll show you!" He then bent down and looked at Pikachu, who was standing on the floor, and held the egg out to him. "We'll hatch this egg and raise the baby Pokémon inside to be the best it can be won't we buddy?!"

Pikachu just pumped his fist in the air and then laid a paw on the egg. "Pi Pikachu!" Ash smirked at his Pokémon's enthusiasm and then stood again before turning his nose up at the others. "See that you three? Pikachu believes in me!"

"Yeah but he practically worships you so that's no real surprise Ash," Giselle said with a humorous smile still on her face. At that, Ash's head dropped and he whined, "Not you too Giselle! You're supposed to be on my side..."

His friends just laughed as Giselle kissed his cheek. "I am on your side and besides, I was only teasing. I know you'll do a great job raising that egg."

Misty nodded. "Yeah Ash if anyone can do it, you can. Just try to avoid any kind of training until it's at least out of the egg and a few days old okay?" She joked with a sly smirk and wink.

"And if you need any help, we'll be here for you," Brock offered as he lightly patted Ash's shoulder.

Fuji stood by took in the display of friendly camaraderie and close friendship between the four of them and smiled to himself, knowing that he had made the right decision in who to give the egg to. "I'm sure you will take very good care of the egg Ash," He stated with a voice full of confidence. "And I am also sure that under your care, it will hatch and grow into a very strong Pokémon someday."

The boy looked at Fuji while cradling the egg close to his chest. "I really can't thank you enough for all you've done Mr. Fuji, really I can't."

Fuji unplugged the incubator and shook his head. "You don't need to but you're most welcome young man. I hope that you can use the gifts I've given you all to make your dreams come true in every way possible." Looking at his watch after saying that, Fuji tapped the surface of it. "Well it's just about noon you four, I guess it's about time you hit the road so you can cover some distance to Saffron before night falls eh?"

Ash nodded as he placed the egg carefully within his backpack and covered it with a soft piece of cloth. "Yeah it is time we get going." He then zipped up his pack and put it on his shoulders, instantly feeling the difference in weight with the heavy egg inside of it. "We don't want to waste too much time."

Fuji nodded in understanding and then led the four of them out of the secret section of the prayer sanctuary. Once they were back out in the main sanctuary hall, he closed the door and locked it behind him before he and Brock covered it back up with the tapestry and moved table in front of it once more.

After that was done, the group headed back into the living suite of the building and then headed towards the gym half so Ash could say goodbye to Haunter.

Upon entering the large gym area, Ash saw Haunter floating near the middle of the room and walked up to it while his friends and Fuji stayed back, knowing this was something he had to do by himself without them.

Once Ash was standing before the large, powerful Ghost-Type, he smiled up at it before greeting the Pokémon in a rather subdued tone of voice, "Hey Haunter. I just came to tell you that... well... that I'm leaving today and this will probably be the last time we see each other."

Haunter said nor did anything after the boy told him that and just remained silent, staring down at Ash intently as he continued, "I really don't want to go and leave you Haunter but... I have a dream that I'm chasing after and want to achieve. I can't stay here forever and I know you are anxious to see the world and live your new life for yourself so... so I guess our paths are just going in different directions you know?"

Ash then smiles warmly up at Haunter. "You really have made some changes and I've seen a definite difference in who you are over the past week. I've enjoyed every second we've been able to spend together Haunter and I know... I just know that you're going to live a great life and I'm happy for you because you deserve it after everything you've been through."

Sticking his fist up into the air, Ash grins brightly. "You're one kick-ass Pokémon and I was glad I got to know you. I'm gonna miss you Haunter and I wish you all the best in everything you do!"

Ash simply continued to look at Haunter with a smile on his face for several moments while the Ghost-Type looked down at him with it's usual impassive, unreadable expression on it's stoic face. When Ash finally got ready to turn around and wave goodbye to it, Haunter finally made a move and reached out with one of it's massive hands which it stretched out and laid in front of Ash to keep him from going anywhere.

The young Ketchum turned around and smiled sadly up at Haunter before speaking in a solemn tone, "I know Haunter, I don't want to leave you either but there's no other way, I'm sorry."

Haunter stared at Ash intently for several moments before reaching out with it's hand and pointing a massive finger at him. Ash was obviously confused because he looked down and tried to see what Haunter was pointing at.

"Hey Haunter what's up? I can't see what you're trying to show me," He said as he looked back up at the powerful Ghost-Type again.

Haunter moved it's finger downward then to Ash's belt and he finally understood what he was trying to be told when he felt the Pokéballs on his side get touched. Eyes going wide at the implication he was almost positive he now understood, Ash looked up at Haunter and said in disbelief, "Haunter... you don't... no... no way..."

His friends and Fuji came up behind him and, since Fuji had seen Haunter's little gesture, smiled knowingly at what he was almost certain Haunter was trying to say. Unbeknownst to either him or Ash though, Misty and the others were gathered together in a circle as they spoke in hushed tones.

"...Okay so I guarantee that's what is about to happen!" Giselle said in an adamant tone.

"What?!" Misty recoiled back in disbelief. "No way!"

Brock shook his head. "I don't know Misty, I can actually believe it since after all... those two have gotten quite close over the week and we all know it."

Misty looked between them both and then back at Ash and Haunter. "Well yeah but... but... how can it... and would it even-"

Giselle sighed in annoyance and gave Misty a light shove. "Come on already! Do you take the bet or not?"

Misty gave the other girl a slight glare but eventually just sighed herself and nodded. "Fine... I'm in!"

While the three of them continued to speak quietly to each other, Fuji walked up to Ash and put a hand on his shoulder while also looking up at Haunter. "You know what I think Ash? I think Haunter has developed such a bond with you that it actually has decided to come and be with you. At least... that's my guess."

Ash blinked and shook his head before asking in a voice that almost sounded as though he couldn't believe what he was saying, "Do you... honestly want to come and share in my journey with me Haunter?"

The Pokémon in question, as had become customary for it, didn't say anything and instead just settled for giving a small nod of it's head. Ash ran a hand through his hair and let out a shaky exhale while staring at the ground. "Wow... okay well I... I wasn't expecting this..."

He looked up at Haunter again and rubbed the back of his head. "Haunter I... I would be really happy if you came with me but if you do, you won't be able to see the world in the way that you may want to do it. I have to complete this first step of my journey and enter the Kanto Pokémon League before I can even think about anything else. Are you... are you seriously okay with that? You really need to be sure too because there's no going back once this happens. Becoming the Pokémon of a trainer is a way different than being free and living on your own like you've always been used to."

Haunter stared down at Ash for several long moments without making any movements or giving any form of reply until, finally, it's large finger simply tapped a Pokéball on Ash's belt again.

The boy let a smile slowly come across his face as he looked into Haunter's red eyes, understanding through the look it was giving him and the way it tapped the Pokéball that it had made it's final decision and there was no further question about the situation.

Nodding, Ash simply reached for an empty Pokéball while still smiling at Haunter. "Okay then, if you're sure this is what you want then I would be happy to have you with me."

Before he could pull a ball out though, Fuji stopped him and spoke with a small smile of his own, "Why don't you use that other Pokéball I just gave you Ash? I think it would fit Haunter much better than a standard one, especially given the type of ball it is and the harsh life Haunter has lived thus far. In my opinion, I believe a Pokéball designed for comfort and luxury would suit a Pokémon like Haunter much more than a standard one don't you think?"

Ash stared at Fuji for a short time as he tried to figure out what the older man was alluding to. Eventually though, his eyes widened as he finally understood. Reaching around to the back of his belt then, Ash pulled out the Luxury Ball he had stored there for safe keeping after Fuji had given it to him.

Looking at the unique Pokéball in his hand, he then glanced at Fuji who merely nodded in response to his unanswered question. Feeling a little bit nervous and excited all at the same time since he knew he was about to add an extremely rare and very powerful Pokémon to his growing roster of teammates, Ash glanced back up at Haunter as he enlarged the ball.

"Alright Haunter..." He reared his arm back. "It's time to join the family!"

Spinning the Pokéball in his hand, Ash then threw the Luxury Ball through the air at Haunter, who stared on at the small object hurdling at it through the air in it's usual impassive way. As soon as the ball made contact with it's target, it opened up and released a burst of bright, golden light before pulling Haunter's massive body inside of it.

The Luxury Ball fell to the ground and rolled around a few times as Haunter slowly became adjusted to it's new living space before going still, sparkles of light bursting forth from the end of the ball as it dinged to signal a successful capture.

Ash walked up to the Pokéball and picked it up with a smile on his face but before he could say anything, Giselle and Brock suddenly started whooping and shouting in glee while Misty just hung her head in sorrowful defeat.

Ash turned around and looked at his friends questioningly as he asked curiously but also somewhat hesitantly, "Uhh... do I even want to know?"

Giselle looked at Ash with a triumphant grin still on her face as she said excitedly, "Brock and I just won a bet, that's what!"

The boy looked even more confused. "A... bet?"

She just nodded enthusiastically again before explaining, "Brock and I were both betting that you would end up capturing Haunter before we left but Misty thought you would just say goodbye and leave it at that. We bet fifty credits on it and-" She got close to Misty and pointed a finger at her. "She lost! Ha!"

Misty sighed pitifully and shook her head sadly as Giselle and Brock both did the weirdest victory dance Ash had ever seen while hooping and hollering in glee.

Raising an eyebrow in amusement and giving a small chuckle along with Fuji, Ash raised the Luxury Ball up to Pikachu and smiled. "Check it out Pikachu, our newest teammate and family member! What do you think?"

The Electric-Type sniffed the ball and then smiled before looking at Ash and calling back in agreement, "Pikachu Pi!"

Fuji walked over to Ash and gave a small nod and smile to him. "It seems as though you and Haunter truly are connected now in your destinies Ash. Your paths intertwined together forever and with that being the case, I believe you both have a very interesting and bright future ahead of you."

Ash looked down at the Pokéball in his hand and smiled before nodding to himself. "You know Mr. Fuji... something tells me that you just might be right and onto something with that statement."

Turning to look at his friends then just as Giselle hopped on top of Misty for refusing to pay up on the bet, Brock getting pulled into the fray as he tried to stop them, he sighed and hung his head before putting the Luxury Ball away on his belt and looking at Fuji. "Think we should try to stop them Mr. Fuji?"

The old man looked at him and grinned slightly. "Well yes... I supposed we could..." He suddenly winked then as his grin became downright mischievous. "Or... we could just wait and see who the winner is..."

Ash shared Fuji's grin and laughed a little before turning back to watch the comical three-way brawl taking place in front of them, Pikachu as well watching with a mixture of exasperation and humor from atop his trainer's shoulder. "You know, I think I like that idea Mr. Fuji.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Almost an hour later after endulging in a delicious yet quick breakfast prepared by Mr. Fuji and Brock, Ash and his friends stood at the road that lead out of Lavender Town on the outskirts of the town and eventually hit Saffron City a few days away.

Fuji, meanwhile, stood in front of them with his hands clasped behind his back and a kind smile on his face. Ash was the first one to step forward as he extended his hand and said respectfully, "Mr. Fuji... I know I've said thank you before for everything you did for us but I just want to thank you again once more. Both for believing in me and also for giving away such precious and valuable items to us. I promise I'll always cherish them and never forget what all I learned while here."

Fuji shook Ash's hand and replied back simply, "I know you won't Ash. I definitely see a bright future for you and your Pokémon and if you never stop working together and shooting for the stars, I know you'll reach the goals you have set for yourself. Take care and I'll
be watching for you in the Indigo Conference young man, you can bet I'll be cheering you on all the way."

Ash just smiled in return and bowed to him before stepping back as Giselle came forward. She also spoke to him in a very kind and respectful tone, "Thank you for everything you did for us all Mr. Fuji. I appreciate the gift you gave me but the best thing of all to me is how you helped keep Ash safe and alive. I can never repay that."

Fuji shook his head. "Never feel the need to thank me young miss. I merely did what I knew to be right and proper. I was very glad to have gotten to know you because in ways, you remind me of my dear Luanne. She was a sweet and caring soul like you but could also he one fierce fighter when she needed to be."

He chuckled then and looked between her and Misty with a teasing glint in his eye. "Something I happen to know that both of you young ladies possess in not just the heat of battle but also amongst yourselves... am I right?"

Both Giselle and Misty blushed in embarrassment before looking at each other and then turning away while huffing and crossing their arms.

Fuji let out a well natured bout of laughter that was shared by Ash and Brock before calming down slightly and addressing Misty. "You my dear also remind me of Luanne and not just because of the similar sometimes volatile tempers you both share either. Like her, you have an indomitable will of determination to stick by your friends and do what you know to be right. Carry that throughout your life and it will serve you right, I can promise you."

He grinned again. "And try not to do each other too much harm while traveling together hmm?"

Misty and Giselle cracked an eye open apiece at one another but quickly turned around and huffed once more as soon as they caught each other's gazes.

Fuji chuckled in amusement but also in knowing since he could tell what, or better yet, WHO they both had in common that caused them to fight more than anything else rather they knew it or not.

Walking up to Brock, he gave a kindly smile to the older boy. "The same goes for you young man. I hope you achieve whatever you have planned for yourself and can continue to improve upon those gifted culinary talents you have with the aid of that book I gave you. It served Luanne and myself very well so I know it will do the same for you."

Brock gave a polite bow to Fuji in return and nodded as his head came back up. "Thank you Mr. Fuji, I'll take care good care of it and do my best to truly deserve and honor such a gift."

After they were finally done saying their goodbyes, Ash and his friends turned around and started walking down the road while waving back at Fuji. Once they were far enough away that they really couldn't see him all that clearly anymore, Giselle turned around, stretched her arms out to the sky and announced exitedly, "Ooooh I can't wait until we get to Saffron City! It's such a great place to visit and I've always loved going there with my family!"

Ash snickered at her enthusiasm before nodding in agreement. "Yeah I'm anxious to check out the city too. My gym battle, Solidad's contest, all the sightseeing and everything else we've gotta do while there... man we're gonna be busy!"

His smile vanished for a moment though as he thought of what else he had to do while in Saffron. Remembering what that Team Rocket agent had told him back on the St. Anne before it sank, he recalled how, supposedly, the criminal organization had some big plan in mind for the company known as Silph Co. and this made him extremely curious to check out the corporation for himself and see just what Team Rocket might be interested in it for.

Of course, he was also going to keep an eye out for Team Rocket but he doubted he would see any of them. Any agents possibly scoping out Silph Co. for any kind of operation would be so well disguised due to the highly powerful and very secretive nature of their organization, anyone not a member of the crime syndicate would most likely never recognize an undercover Rocket even if they were standing right in front of them.

That very train of thought ended up leading Ash to another conclusion as well. Being that he had gotten involved with Team Rocket's affairs a few times too many now, once they discovered from most likely Jessie or James that he hadn't died on the St. Anne, he would have to be extremely careful when meddling in their affairs or otherwise, his mother and everyone else in Pallet Town could very potentially pay the price for his risk taking, meddling antics.

He was suddenly disrupted from his thoughts by Brock who tapped his shoulder and grinned at him. "How does it feel to have another rare addition to your ever growing team Ash?"

The boy finally broke from his reverie and looked at Brock before reaching to his belt and pulling out the Luxury Ball that now contained Haunter. Holding it up to the sunlight, Ash smiled at the ball as his friends and Pikachu looked along with him. "I think that it wouldn't have mattered how special Haunter was or not. I'm just glad to have another awesome addition to my family."

Misty laughed and then teased him, "Who knows Ash, maybe you'll find a giant Rattata roaming around Saffron City causing troubles that you can catch!"

Brock laughed at the joke as Giselle chimed in while Ash just glared at Misty, "If that happens maybe you can get a saddle for it and then just ride it all the way to the Pokémon League!"

At that, Ash finally snapped and made a grab for either of the two older girls. "Okay that's it! I'm gonna get you two for that joke if you think you're so funny!"

Giselle managed to swerve around him while Misty jumped to the side, causing Ash to fall off balance and comically wave his arms around in the air before falling to the ground. Pikachu however managed to jump to safety at the last minute to Brock's shoulder as his trainer face planted.

Giselle, Misty and even Brock and Pikachu couldn't help but bust out into racious laughter as Ash slowly got to his knees and wiped the dirt from his chest. Instead of being mad however, he just let out an eery, creepy chuckle combined with a freaky wide grin.

Standing up, he continued to grin as his fingers started to twitch and wiggle. "Ooohoohoohoohoohoo! Now you've done it... you ladies have just earned..." He then got into a squat position as he shouted crazily, "The tickling of a lifetime! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Misty and Giselle both gave mock screams of terror as they turned and started to run down the road as fast as they could with Ash giving chase close behind. All three had wide smiles on their faces as clear indicators of the enjoyment and fun they were having in that one carefree, happy moment and as Brock started to give frantic chase with Pikachu barely holding onto his shoulder while yelling after them to slow down, none of the four friends had any doubts in their minds that their adventures were only just beginning. Certain that many exciting new events and countless good times were just around the next corner.

Even as the group of young trainers ran down the long road to Saffron in the still somewhat early morning sun, none of them were aware of the faint outline that appeared high up in the sky of a face that belonged to none other than the creator of their entire world.

Arceus's majestic and powerful eyes stared down at the four humans sprinting on the ground far below while the rest of her face was just barely visible. Focusing her gaze on just Ash, the God Pokémon smiled to herself at the sight of happiness and joy on her Chosen-One's face and gave a humor filled chuckle deep within her throat.

"Oh my dear young one... you just continue to impress and make me more and more proud of you with each day that passes. You did the impossible and brought peace and light back to Haunter's life... something I am guilty now of thinking impossible but shall always be eternally grateful for. Maybe, just maybe, you can truly bring peace and prosperity to this world after all."

Arceus's face started to disappear while at the same time, her next and final words came out as nothing more than the barest of whispers before she completely vanished. "But only time will tell my Chosen... only time will tell..."

NKHLNKHLNKHLNKHLNKHLNKHL

(Chapter End)

Now for some announcements~

1: Salia, the pink Butterfree's trainer, is actually not an OC I created. Well... technically I suppose she is but I did base her off of an actual character in the show so, meh, take it however you see it. For anybody that remembers and has seen the 'Bye, Bye Butterfree' episode from yeeeeeears ago back during season 1 of the Indigo League, you'll probably know who I'm about to describe.

Salia is modeled after the girl Brock went all goo goo eyed over while up in the balloon when they were trying to find Ash's Butterfree *cough cough* pansy ass! *cough cough* ahem... excuse me, a mate. The woman in question actually had a normal colored Butterfree and nothing to do with the pink one but since she was practically a 'blank slate character' if you will and I needed a character appearance for Salia, I decided to just use her.

In complete honesty, all I did was change her hair from violet-ish purple to chocolate dark, revamped her outfit somewhat and gave her a personality. Anybody that wants to see who I'm talking about should go and either watch the episode or type in 'Bye, Bye Butterfree' on Google and then search through screenshots of the episode.

Just remember that it's in the scene where Brock flips out over her, tries to have Ash's Buttefree go after hers and then gets bashed by Misty for interfering with 'Pokémon Love Affairs' or whatever she called it.

2: The four new badges Ash earned in this chapter can be found on Bulbapedia in the 'Unnamed Badges' section of the article on gym badges. The Avian Badge belongs to the unnamed boy who's case is full of badges you never see in the show, the badge obtained from Devon and the one from Fuji can be seen in Gary's badge case and the one from Walt you'll find in Otoshi's badge case. You know, the guy with the Cubone that Ash and his friends helped before the Indigo Conference when Team Rocket was on a badge stealing spree? Yeah, that's him.

Match up the badge descriptions I gave in this chapter with the badge cases belonging to each trainer on Bulbapedia that I just mentioned and you'll find them. They're pretty impossible to miss.

3: For anyone that wants to see what Black Fog looks like, just go to Google Images and type in it's name. You'll eventually see a picture of it done in color by somebody. Once again I'll say, pretty damn hard to miss since it looks way different than a regular Haunter. You can also find out all about Black Fog itself in The Electric Tale of Pikachu manga chapter called 'Haunting My Dreams'.

There are obviously quite a few differences between my version of Black Fog and the Canon one, namely concerning both of their histories, but they're still one in the same. Black Fog is not, I repeat NOT, an OC Pokémon like some of Ash's others in this story.

4: All information regarding The Greatest There Was or Ever Will Be, including numbers of badges obtained, Pokémon captured, characters close to Ash and/or important to the story and just about every other valuable scrap of info needed to be known can be found on my profile now. Instead of updating all that shit in post-chapter A/N's like I used to do, I just wrote it all down on there so as to save time and clutter.

And yes, it will be updated when need be.

5: I am henceforth looking for a skilled Beta in which can proofread and edit my future chapters, as well as this one. I'll also be wanting that same Beta to edit and fix my previous eight chapters in order to get them up to snuff with my current work. If anyone is interested in taking me up on this offer then just send me a PM.

6: The sixth and final announcement I'll do so as not to make this shit any longer and boring than it already is will revolve around myself answering a question that some of my reviewers have made known to me and are curious about. Some much more crudely and asinine in practice than others but I digress...

So here it is. When it comes to what I accept and respond to criticism wise, it's all pretty simple to understand. The only subjects I believe anyone as a reviewer has ANY right pointing out or 'critiquing' in a story when they themselves are not the ones writing it, are three things.

A: Grammar. Sure, sometimes grammar in a story just sucks or needs to be improved, like mine did. If that's the case, go ahead and critique it.

B: Potential misinformation accidentally given in a story. Sometimes a writer might tell about or explain something related to Canon events in whatever series they're writing about that turns out being wrong. Such as the information about something in particular, the name of a character or place, what a certain power or ability does and so forth. If this is the case then go ahead and bring it up and I'll listen to you.

In many cases however, a writer might have purposefully changed something about whatever it might be- since this IS fanfiction- without announcing it. Such as... maybe they changed how 'this' happens or gives an extended effect for the way 'that' works. Hell, maybe they totally changed some shit all the way around just for laughs. If that's the case then they'll let you know, like I would, and then most likely make it known to everyone else in the next chapter.

C: Creative ideas and suggestions for the story. I'll admit, some of you have great ideas sometimes and I love hearing them so that I can possibly decide to implement them at some point. These ideas can range anywhere from Pokémon, potential funny scenes, introducing a character I may not have thought of, creating a cool ability or item that's completely original... you name it. Those types of ideas and suggestions I'm always open for.

HOWEVER! Those three things are where critiquing in a story STOPS for me! If you just don't like how I did something at some point in one of my chapters, disagree with the direction things took, wish to complain about how 'silly', 'ridiculous' or stupid something is that I did and/or how you just don't like or agree with it, don't even bother leaving a review because I will not pay any mind or adherence to it.

I do not now nor will I ever need a co-writer for this story so if anyone desires to try and change my mind about how anything in it is being done or how I'm making ANYTHING happen then save your fingers the work of typing up a review. I will not listen to you, your suggestions or pay you any mind whatsoever.

NEITHER WILL YOUR WORDS EFFECT THE WAY I WRITE. Remember that.

This is where I stand when it comes to reviewing someone's work in the realm of fanfiction so if anyone steps outside of these bounds and does what I have now expressly said that I will not tolerate or accept, do not expect any kind of reply for your review or any PM's in which you send. I know where my story is going and what I'm doing and that's all there is to it. Period, no room for discussion or argument. If something changes with the way in which I do things then it will be because I decided to do so. No one else.

So, all rambling aside, that's it for my long ass, boring announcements. I apologize for the wait and exceedingly long chapter but on the bright side, these monster chapters are now a thing of the past. My word processor can't take such extremely long word counts anymore without crashing so from here on out, I'm most likely going to be constricted to anywhere between 40-60K chapters.

Anyway, hope you all enjoyed it and look forward to the next chapter of this little piece of insanity that I so lovingly call a story.

Peace out peeps and my beautiful mon chéri's.