The training continues! And an unexpected old friend of Ash's arrives on the scene! (Okay maybe not totally unpredictable but will still make things interesting!)
Chapter 10: Let's Keep it Going! And Who is That?!
A Prologue of sorts: While everyone is off training, more fighters continue to arrive from far and near. Among these faces are still more old friends from including some that go way back with Ash. One of which is just arriving from a long flyover via the Kanto region…
"*Yawn!* That took a while! Good to get out and stretch a bit. Been quiet back at the gym, and it's great that Daisy and the others decided to take over for old time's sake. Besides, I've been itching to get over here for some time and see how I do! Show these amateurs how you really fight!" an orange-haired girl says to herself as she comes to the edge of town.
POOSH!
One of the girl's Pokeballs suddenly goes off and one of her Pokemon lets itself out!
"Psyduck! Psy?" the yellow Pokemon tilts its head in confusion, also having its perpetual headache.
"Aw! Psyduck! I didn't call for you! *Sigh!* You might as well come along if you want to be out." The girl shrugs as she heads into town.
"Psy!" the duck Pokemon waddles alongside her.
"Alright! Look out everyone! I'm here to take names and you show you all how it's done!" the spunky redhead says as she cracks her knuckles and grins.
MORE ON THIS SOON… ;)
Meanwhile, Serena continues her training with Maylene in secret. She's only got a few days to make up for fighting experience, but she is showing promise! (Anime logic in that she'll pick up some useful skills in such a short period of time. Just roll with it. Rofl ).
WHAM!
WHAM!
"That's good! Now remember to keep your guard up too!" Maylene tells Serena as they work with training mits (those gloves boxers hit with their trainers.).
"Righ! Huff… Yah!" Serena throws another jab.
PIFF!
"And watch out for this too!" Maylene says, taking a swipe at Serena's head with the left mitt.
WHAK!
"Urgh! Guess I need to watch my side too! Whoa!" Serena tries to respond.
THOK!
But she manages to block the other mitt coming in from below.
"Phew! Huff… That was a close one!" Serena gasps.
"I think we can take a break for now. You're doing pretty good so far. And you're a lot stronger than you look. Even I was surprised by the power you had when I brought up your friends. You've a good grasp of the basics too. All in all, I'd say you're a quick study!" Maylene compliments Serena.
"Thanks! Means a lot coming from you! Surprised myself too. Never thought I'd be getting ready to fight. Or that I'd be enjoying it, to be honest." Serena continues.
"As long as you don't get too cocky or charge in like crazy. Remember to keep your head about you. It's a mental game too. Never lose focus, and keep your eye on the prize." Maylene shares more sage advice.
"That's deep. You're wise for someone so young. I mean a teenager and all." Serena says.
"I get that a lot! They call me a genius back home, believe it or not. I still remember my first fight around six years ago. I didn't do too well believe it or not. I was outmatched, lost by a TKO. But I was determined to get better. I trained day and night, in secret for a long time. By the second time I had my second match months later I completely turned things around. I won by knockout in the first round! From that point on I pushed myself to get better and better. I rose through the ranks and before I knew it I was pretty famous, seen as a 'prodigy' believe it or not. I started training Pokemon around then too, and turned out I had a knack for that as well. Met Riolu soon after, it saved me from a wild Pokemon, and it's been a loyal comrade ever since and it soon evolved into Lucario. Eventually I was asked to take over the Veilstone City gym. I beat the previous Leader in a battle to prove my worthiness too. So yeah, I guess I have done a lot for someone my age…" Maylene looks up and reminisces about her past.
"Lu!" Lucario smiles at the memories.
"Wow! That's cool!" Serena comments.
"I guess so. But remember, with hard work anything's possible!" Maylene gives a thumbs up.
"LU!" Lucario gives one too.
"Fenn!" Fennekin also happily chirps.
Elsewhere, Ash And Richie continue their training with Anthony. This time, he's taking charge and leading their training personally, instead of relying on one of Clemont's explosion prone devices. (Beter luck next time!) Now he's having them work on a couple of punching bags hanging from a tree while he watches on.
POW!
BLAM!
"Yah!" Ash shouts as he does another couple jabs into the upper part of the punching bag as it swings back his way.
"Good! Remember to keep your arm straight while doing it. Nice and fast! And keep your other glove up too! Don't drop your defense." Anthony gives some tips while observing Ash.
POW!
WHAK!
WHUD!
"Whoops!" Richie cries while trying to do a quick jab combo and he's running at the bag back and forth. He gets a little ahead of himself and one of his punches slips, going to the side instead of straight. He keeps going and runs into the bag! D'oh!
"Like I said, keep it straight. And try to keep still while you do it too! You don't have to run at someone to do a jab! Here, like this!" Anthony demonstrates how to do it, stepping in front of Richie's punching bag.
WHISH!
POW!
POW!
And he does a couple rapid fire jabs to the bag, sending it swinging back with some impressive power! He does another couple pretend jabs like in slower motion, to demonstrate how to properly extend the arm (I'm not a boxing expert by any stretch of the imagination, so if any of you are, feel free to correct me. Pardon my ignorance on proper form and execution. ^^; )
"Pika!" Pikachu watches and tries some punches in the air of its own, for fun.
"Chu!" Sparky joins it, shadowboxing.
"Looks like they're in good hands now. He really knows his stuff!" Bonnie says of Anthony.
"Yeah. Still wish my invention would have worked. Back to the drawing board." Clemont adds.
POW!
WHAM!
"I did it!" Richie cheers as he gets the form right for a couple jabs without messing up.
"Good! You're catching on. Next, we'll work on some footwork! Some jump roping to be exact!" Anthony says, taking an extra long jumprope out of his duffel bag.
"I could come up with an automatic jump roping machine that…" Clemont perks up and offers to help.
"NO! Er, I mean, no thank you. We've got this and I'm sure you're tired from all the building before." Ash responds, not wanting another device to blow up in front of him.
"Like I was saying, Primeape and I here will get the rope going. You two need to keep up with it. We're gonna go faster and faster, so be ready!" Anthony says.
"APE!" Primeape calls, taking its end of the rope.
"Sounds simple enough!" Ash says, getting into position over the center of the rope.
"Yeah, what could go wrong with this?" Richie asks. (Remember kids, NEVER ask that question out loud. Lol )
"Ready?" Anthony asks the two.
"Yup!" Ash confirms.
"Yeah!" Richie nods.
"Pika!" Pikachu stands ready to cheer from the side.
"Chu!" likewise for Sparky.
"Go!" Anthony shouts, signaling Primeape to get it spinning too.
"Ape!" the pig monkey starts.
FWIP!
FWIP!
"Alright!" Ash keeps up.
"Cool!" Richie likewise keeps pace, skipping over the rope.
This continues for a little while, with both managing to keep pace, and not tripping or anything. Then…
"Alright. Now let's change it up a bit! Primeape! You know what to do!" Anthony nods to Primeape on its end.
"PRIME!" it nods in understanding.
The two start spinning the rope a little faster with each swing.
FWIP!
"Whoa! Close with that one!" Ash gulps.
"Yikes!" Richie nearly trips.
"AAAPPEE!" Primeape suddenly has the urge to go nuts. It looks maniacally happy as it suddenly whips its end of the rope hard in the other direction, making it move way too fast!
WHISH!
TWANG!
And the rope ties itself around Ash's feet and Richie's waist! Look out!
"What?!" Ash cries in confusion.
"Whoa!" Richie yelps.
"H-hey!" Anthony yells, seeing it too late.
KRASH!
The two boys land in a tangled heap, the rope coming out of Anthony and Primeape's grasp to tie them up in one big crazy knot! Oh no!
"What happened…" Ash says, looking dizzy.
"Oro oro…." Richie says, his eyes swirly eyed and dazed from the disaster! (Think like the oro face from Rurouni Kenshin.)
"Oh brother! Didn't want you to do that! Got carried away again." Anthony sighs.
"Ape.." Primeape slumps its shoulders in an apologetic tone.
"Pika pika!" Pikachu facepalms.
"Chu!" Sparky runs over to help.
"That was, different…." Clemont remarks.
"Serena doesn't know what she's missing! Ha!" Bonnie laughs.
In short order, they manage to untangle Ash and Richie from the mess. Once they're straightened out, they finally manage to get a good routine going , with Ash and Richie both showing decent footwork to avoid the rope for three minutes straight.
"There! Phew!" Ash says as they finally finish.
"That's better!" Richie says between breaths.
"Good! Think that was a great workout for today. Tomorrow we'll pick it back up. But first, how about we all go grab a bite to eat? Least I can do for you after the little mishaps my training put you through. Heh heh!" Anthony offers to get them a good meal.
"That'd be great!" Ash says.
GRRR…
And his loud growling stomach agrees!
"Pika!" Pikachu falls over.
"Good old Ash!" Richie laughs.
"I think we could all use some food right about now." Clemont agrees.
"Yeah! I'm hungry too!" Bonnie jumps up and down.
"Ape!" Primeape perks up.
"I know just the place! It's downtown, right next to this old boxing gym building. I'll lead you there when you're ready to go!" Anthony offers.
"Okay!" Ash agrees.
"Awesome!" Richie grins.
Meanwhile, Jake's tortu-er, training, continues with his cousin Jason!
"Okay cuz! Now pay attention to HItmonlee's kick. When you're ready, do it!" Jason nods to his Pokemon standing before them in the ring.
"Lee! Hitmon…. LEE!" Hitmonlee gets into position and does an impressive right side kick angled upward, then it snaps its foot back down.
"Awesome! That was pretty fast!" Jake shouts of the display.
"Now you try it!" Jason motions Jake to take a shot at it.
"Um. Okay… Like this right?" Jake tries to copy Hitmonlee's earlier stance.
"Something like that. Now kick!" Jason encourages him.
"Alright! Hyah! Oop! W-whoa!" Jake tries to kick, but extends his leg too far and leans back. He's flailing his arms and falls backward! Look out below!
THUD!
"Oof!" Jake grunts as he lands on his behind! So embarrassing...
Ringside, Tryantrum also decides to try a kick for the heck of it. This won't be pretty…
"RAR!" The dinosaur Pokemon kicks out its massive left leg, causing it to lose balance and fall with a thunderous impact.
THOOM!
"Rarr…" Tyrantrum whimpers before it gets back up.
Back in the ring, Jason facepalms at his cousin and his Pokemon's failed attempt to copy Hitmonlee's kick.
"Sheesh! Yeah, that could've gone better." Jason laughs as he helps Jake get up.
"Thanks. Guess I overdid it." Jake says.
"Yeah, but we should probably start with something a little simpler. Try a front kick like this! Yah!" Jason does a very basic front left kick.
WHOOSH!
"Okay! Hah!" Jake copies the kick. He tilts forward a bit but catches himself from falling.
WHOOSH!
"Better. We're gonna have to work on your stance too. I'll show you some basic front and side kicks you can use. I know you're more comfortable to have punches, but believe me a few extra kicks in your arsenal can give you an edge if punching is all your opponent can do." Jason tells Jake.
"Awesome!" Jake grins.
"Let's go practice on the punching bag. See if you can get some punching combos and a couple kicks in too." Jason leads him over to a bag.
After a few sloppy punches, and falling over again, Jake manages to get some punch forms right, and a couple decent low sidekicks to the bag, getting a rhythm going for about a couple minutes.
WHAM!
THOK!
"Yah! Huff… How'd I do?" Jake asks, panting from the workout.
"Not bad! Your punches actually looked like punches, and that time you kept your balance for the kicks! Might not be the most technically accurate follow through, but it gets the job done. We'll work on the finer points later." Jason compliments him.
"Thanks!" Jake puts on a big grin.
"One more thing for the evening! We're going to do a tag spar! We're gonna see how you do against me, and then Hitmonchan in the ring! Don't worry though, it'll only be for a few minutes! Get you used to fighting against different opponents." Jason motions to the ring behind him.
"Chan!" Hitmonchan eagerly bashes its boxing glove hands together.
"What?! I-I… *Gulp!* I can do this! B-bring it on!" Jake tries to put on a brave face as he marches over to the ring! Let's do this!
A short while later…
THOK!
SWISH!
POW!
WHAK!
Jake manages to block a right jab from Jason with his left glove. Then he ducks a quick right curving right hook too. Next, he takes a left uppercut to the jaw, but manages to get his left forearm up to block a light right side kick from Jason.
"Urrgh! Huff… Huff… That was… Awesome!" Jake breathes from the short but intense sparring workout. He managed to block a fair amount of the hits, but he still took a couple shots.
"Not bad cuz! You did a lot better than before there!" Jason compliments him, unlacing his gloves and tagging with Himonchan to take over in the sparring's second half.
"*Gulp!*" Jake puts his gloves up and approaches the boxing Pokemon , wary that this might not end well.
"Chan!" the Pokemon suddenly rushes at Jake with a big right punch! Whoa!
KAPOW!
"Uuunnnggh! I-I… No…." Jake groans as he falls to the canvas. He's taken a bit of a beating, despite the fact that HItmonchan was supposed to pull its punches.
"Chan?" Hitmonchan looks confused as Jake falls down.
"No! I told you to take it easy! Gah! What am I gonna do with you? How are you doing there, Jake? You did pretty well against me, but looks like Hitmonchan got a little over eager." Jason calls to his cousin.
"I-I'm fine… Oooh… That could've gone better…" Jake says as he slowly gets up and comes back to his senses.
"Think we've done enough for today." Jason finally says.
"M-me too…" Jake say, thankful his ordeal is over. At least for the evening!
"Rarr…" Tyrantrum lets out a breath, happy the crazy day is almost over.
Later, Maylene and Serena are exiting the building they were training in. They've changed back into their normal clothes and are pondering what to do next.
"Well thank you for getting my training started!" Serena bows to her 'sensei'.
"No problem! Glad I can help you out! Well, I think I can offer one more thing. How about a great meal to celebrate your progress? There's this great place just around the corner!" Maylene offers.
"Sounds great!" Serena likes the idea.
"Fenn!" Fennekin 's eager to come along too.
"Lu!" Maylene's Lucario smiles.
"It's right over here. They've got the best pizza you'll ever have, and the salads are fantastic!" Maylene describes as she walks around the block, leading the way.
"Can't wait!" Serena grins.
But just around the same corner, coming in from the opposite side.
"You guys'll love it! Small place, but they've the best grub around!" Anthony says.
"Can't wait!" Ash agrees.
"Pika!" Pikachu shouts.
"Chu!"Sparky concurs.
"Yum!" Richie anticipates the food.
"It has been a while since we last ate." Clemont points out.
"I'm so hungry…" Bonnie nods.
"Denne…" her Dedenne pops up out of her bag.
"It'll be great to grab a bite to eat and…" Ash says as he walks toward the door, looking back at the others.
A few feet away, Serena is also walking toward the same door, not seeing who's coming her way!
"This'll be good. Can't wait to have some…" Serena says as she turns around.
"I can taste the what?" Ash swings around.
"A-Ash?! What are you doing here?!" Serena gasps.
"Serena?! I thought you were back at the Center, taking a nap! I guess you're feeling alright! And Maylene?!" Ash sees Maylene coming up to them.
"Heh! Hi Ash! Everyone! Heh heh…" Maylene waves to them. Cat's out of the bag now!
"So what's going on here exactly?" Ash asks, wanting an explanation, as does everyone else behind him.
"Well…" Serena sweatdrops as she's about to talk.
(Uh oh! Looks like Serena's plans on keeping her training with Maylene a secret have come tumbling down before her! Will Serena come clean and tell everyone of her registering and fighting in the upcoming tournament? And if so, how will everyone react? And who is the strangely familiar redhead who arrived from Kanto earlier? The answers to these