The Greatest There Was or Ever Will Be: Kanto League Journeys

by Forever United Never We Fall

What if Ash was chosen by the God Pokémon Arceus herself to be the Chosen One? The savior and champion of the world and the one true master of all Pokémon? Follow this retelling of Ash's entire journey from the very beginning. Ash will encounter and overcome great challenges to become the greatest Pokémon Master there ever was... or ever will be.

10. Contests, Psychics and The Punchy Dojo!

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

P.S. Hey everybody! As you may or may not know, my story has extremely long chapter lengths. If you easily get lost in long chapters, I would recommend you download my story through "Ficsave". Downloaded stories are easier to read because they're like a book where there are page numbers, which helps you keep track of your reading progress.

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'The Greatest There Was or Ever Will Be'

Chapter Ten: Contests, Psychics and The Punchy Dojo!

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Splash! Scrub, scrub, scrub, scrub... dunk, dunk, scrub a little more... rinse, ring out and drape over a nearby low hanging tree branch. Squat back down, grab another article of clothing and then repeat, movement for movement.

These were the actions that young Ash Ketchum; Pokémon Master hopeful and Pokémon Researcher in-training executed with slow, focused and deliberate motions as he diligently washed his dirty laundry at the edge of a rather fast moving stream. Of which rested on the border of an expansive forest that lay just beyond on the other side of the small channel of water.

The boy in question took the socks he had in his hand and dunked them into the cold though refreshing stream and quickly washed his cotton delicates before hurriedly pulling them from the water and then ringing them out. Standing back up, he placed his socks over the branch of a large apple tree that was growing over the creek he was currently occupying and hung them next to the jacket portion of his sopping wet tracksuit.

Once he was finished, he brought his cold hands up to his mouth and rubbed them together while blowing on them, attempting to warm his freezing cold skin that the chilly, late October air did nothing to aid. He even flicked his hands to get the water droplets free from them in order to warm himself faster but since he had been out in the cold for so long and had his hands in equally freezing water to wash his clothes, he had been exposed far too long to have any hope at such an action succeeding. The chill already having set itself into his half-nude body that was only covered by a pair of plain black boxers.

Glad he was finally finished with the extremely unpleasant and chilling task of laundry washing though, the young man walked over to the dry set of clothes he had set aside for himself and quickly pulled them on. A pair of black sweatpants, long sleeved black shirt, socks and his shoes doing wonders at warming his body almost as soon as he finished dressing into them.

Finally warm and shielded somewhat from the cold of the morning air, Ash took a moment to stretch and crack his neck as he listened and heard a noise in the forest from across the creek. Turning his attention to the sound, he went from being alert to relaxed when he saw two Rattata playing and chasing each other around in some of the underbrush at the edge of the forest.

The boy smiled at the sight of the small wild Pokémon as they played and tussled around, leading him to believe that they were most likely juveniles. He didn't know how long he simply stood there and watched them play for, neither noticing his presence, but it finally came to an end as they broke apart with one last roll on the ground and then scampered back off into the woods.

Shaking his head amusedly at the scene, Ash turned around and started to make his way back to camp after grabbing his damp clothes off the tree branch they had been hanging on. The walk back to the campsite that he and his friends had chosen to stay at the previous night was only separated from where he was now by a sparse thicket of dense pine trees and a waist high section of tall grass that bordered much of the trees around it.

Being that Misty, Giselle and Brock had already been down to the creek the previous evening to wash their own clothes and the dishes from supper, a small trail had been worn down in the grass that Ash used to both make it to the creek, as well as now following it back to the campsite.

Upon arriving in the small clearing bordered by forest on all sides that served as their camp for the night, he looked and saw that his friend's tents were still up with no one making any noises or moving around yet. Leading him to the logical conclusion that he was the only one up which wasn't all that surprising since it was six in the morning.

Walking over to the fire pit he and Brock made the night before, he knelt down and noticed that a few hot coals were still burning and giving off a comfortable warmth around the pit. Placing his clothes on the stones bordering the pit since they weren't nearly hot enough still to catch them on fire, he arranged them out so they would dry and then stood up and looked around the campsite again.

The road that had been leading them to Saffron City over the past almost three days since they left Lavender Town was only a short trek through the woods, almost directly to the right of the camp, and Ash was glad for that too since it was a very dense forest they were in and deviating from the path too much would almost certainly guarantee getting lost.

Not much had happened over the last three days that the four young friends had been venturing onward to Saffron City in all truth. The only thing really worth mentioning at all had been Ash getting accustomed to having Black Fog, A.K.A Haunter, on his team and getting himself adjusted to the right way in which he needed to train and work with such a rare and very unusual Pokémon.

Haunter was a mystery in many ways, through and through, right to the very end. No matter how much Ash studied it and tried to learn more about the Ghost-Type, there always seemed to be something else to find out and discover. Being a Pokémon Researcher hopeful, such a thing brought him great joy since he almost always had a subject to study that he could never quite figure out but for being a Pokémon Trainer, it made training and raising such a Pokémon very difficult.

Compound onto all of that, Haunter still had a lot of mental scars and emotional issues it had to work through after so many years of living in total desolation, pain and despair. After all, it's past as 'Black Fog' was not one that could ever be easily forgotten. This was, for all intents and purposes, a Pokémon that most would actually say had allowed itself to become and act almost completely evil in it's actions over the many, many years of it's life.

Ash had learned how to communicate with the gigantic Ghost Pokémon through body and makeshift sign language since Haunter very rarely (if ever) spoke and the stories it told about the things it had done in it's past were... horrifying at best, and gut wrenching at worst. Ash of course had insisted on Haunter talking to him about such things if it helped it to overcome it's past and he could tell that the stories Haunter told were just as hard to tell Ash as they were for him to hear them.

He knew from the memories Arceus had showed him back in Lavender Town that Haunter wiped out an entire town and actually stolethesoulsofnearly everyone in said town after it first became Black Fog- due of course to the brutal murder of it's one and only human friend at the hands of the same townspeople- but he had no idea that Haunter had continued to commit such vile and twisted acts all throughout the years afterwards.

Apparently, from what Haunter relayed in sign language to him, stealing souls from it's victims and the ones it deemed were 'unworthy to live' had become a very common practice that was performed on an extremely routine basis. In fact, Haunter's immense size and the otherworldly 'shadow powers' it had demonstrated while Ash and his friends were battling it down below Pokémon Tower were supposedly all due to the vast number of souls it had absorbed and collected over the years.

Somehow, because of the fact that Haunter was never a normal Pokémon to begin with, Arceus' gift that she had bestowed upon it from birth as a Gastly became corrupted and tainted along with everything else back when it first lost control over itself. In some way that Ash had no answer to, it's gift had become a curse and the very reason why Haunter could quite literally rip the soul from anyone it so chose to.

When Ash asked Haunter how many souls it had stolen over the years, he nearly went bug eyed and dropped his jaw at the answer.

One thousand.

One thousand souls had been the number of both innocent, as well as evil souls that Haunter had sucked out from humans and absorbed into itself over the many long years of it's depraved existence.

For Ash, there was hardly no believing that anyone, let alone a Pokémon, could do something so... heinous and horrible. So completely against nature and all that was good and pure. He had always been taught that it was impossible for a Pokémon to become evil and to perform evil acts but obviously, as had been proven true to him, Haunter was an exception to that rule.

None of what Haunter revealed to Ash or entrusted to him changed his opinion of the Ghost-Type however. Yes Haunter had committed truly horrible crimes and did unspeakable acts of evil but what truly mattered was that Haunter did not want or have any desire to remain that way anymore. It honestly wanted to change and become a better Pokémon and Ash believed this with all of his being.

Looking at Haunter, he could see that it desired greatly to make amends for it's sins and become better just by the way it looked every time it told one of it's stories to him. There was no happiness, no pride and no sense of accomplishment for anything that it had done over the many years of it's long life and because of this, as well as the great resolve Haunter was already showing at wanting to change, Ash was determined to do whatever it took to make those desires come true.

After all, as Haunter's trainer it was his responsibly to make every dream, desire and goal it had come true and he had every intention of doing just that.

Like with all of the Pokémon he added to his ever growing family, Ash had checked Haunter with the Pokédex and scanned it to get as much information as he could on it. He learned from the info obtained that Haunter was exactly forty feet tall, though it's weight was unknown since Ghost Pokémon were virtually weightless and really not made of any kind of solid matter.

He discovered that Haunter knew the moves; Shadow Ball, Hypnosis, Night Shade, Psychic, Dream Eater, Explosion (which was the move it nearly used to commit suicide below Pokémon Tower) and Curse. Moves of which were all incredibly enhanced to due to Haunter's huge size and unnatural power level. Something in which was very similar to Dragonite, Tentacruel and, to a lesser extent, Krabby since they were all of abnormal sizes as well and seemed to be a trend that Giant Pokémon followed without fail.

Oddly enough, Haunter had no abilities besides the obvious one of Levitate and Ash theorized that this was most likely because Haunter's corruption and complete metamorphosis when it had become dark and evil somehow changed it's body in all aspects, both internally and externally. Meaning that all abilities it possessed as a Gastly before mutatedly evolving into Haunter were either changed completely - as was the case with Arceus' gift she had given it - or lost forever. As Ash suspected was the case.

Two other things about Haunter that greatly confused Ash was exactly why it could use Psychic attacks like Psychic, Hypnosis and Dream Eater since, unlike Gastly, it was not a Ghost/Psychic-Type hybrid. In fact, Ash had actually asked Gastly why he thought such a thing was possible and he had no clue either. Neither did Haunter when Gastly asked it and then relayed what it said to Ash. It was simply a complete mystery that, as of yet, Ash was nowhere near close to solving.

The second mystery revolving around Haunter was why it could no longer use any of the 'shadow powers' it had demonstrated down in the sealing chamber below the tower. While working with Haunter over the last three days, he had tried to get it to use some of those same attacks like the dark energy blasts/bombs and creating the strange 'shadow puppets' but each time it tried, Haunter found itself to be completely incapable of doing so.

Both Ash and Haunter were confused as to why this was but Ash simply assumed that the reason was most likely due to Haunter no longer being controlled by shadows or darkness anymore. He strongly suspected after much recollection that Haunter's much more 'evil powers' were directly influenced and caused by the cloud of hatred and darkness it had been consumed by but now that such a thing was no longer the case, Haunter had lost all connection to those same abilities.

Which, in all reality, Ash was just fine with because in his opinion, such power was nothing more than malicious and vile and Haunter no longer needed to carry those things if it was so determined to change and become more pure. It was also possible that Arceus' emotion sensing ability it had gifted Haunter with that became corrupted when it turned dark had been the direct cause of the veil of shadows that came to control the giant Ghost-Type. Something that, by extension, also allowed it to in turn use the previously named 'shadow powers' as Ash came to call them.

It was Ash's theory that since Haunter had begun to slowly heal from the pain and despair it had been suffering through and finally became free from the shroud of shadows that had consumed it, maybe the stricken Pokémon had finally lost all connections to Arceus' gift turned curse. Which, if that were the case, meant that any and all shadow powers it once was able to use were now gone and out of reach.

At least... that was Ash's hope.

Unfortunately, he also feared that Haunter's dark mutation and evolution had very potentially halted the Ghost-Type's ability to ever evolve again into it's final evolutionary stage. It was impossible for Ash to tell since he wasn't a Pokémon Professor but since Haunter's entire chemistry had been completely altered by it's twisted evolution long ago, he had a strong suspicion that it also inhibited Haunter from ever being able to evolve again.

The biggest reason Ash suspected this was the case was because Haunter was already so much more powerful and so far beyond it's current evolutionary level that - from all he had learned and come to understand from Professor Oak concerning evolution - Haunter should have evolved into a Gengar long, long ago. The fact that it hadn't yet done so led Ash to believe that Haunter was simply incapable of evolving and was, yet again, most likely because of the dark mutation it had underwent.

Another thing that Ash had quite a lot of trouble discerning, even with the Pokédex, was Haunter's gender. The reason for the trouble was because of the mutation Haunter's body had underwent. Even though the dark transformation didn't change Haunter's gender, which would have been impossible, it did make it to where it was very hard to tell through a device's readings - like the Pokédex - whether it was a male or female. For whatever strange reason.

Ash had tried and tried as hard as he could to figure out Haunter's gender but in the end, he went for broke and just had Gastly ask the other Ghost-Type for him. Ash wasn't totally surprised when Haunter replied back that he was actually a male since his general personality just seemed to be one that a male would possess rather than a female but that was neither here nor there. Ash was just glad he could now finally call Haunter something other than 'it' all the time.

When it came to Haunter's actual training though, that was a somewhat more difficult matter to contend with. Since his power and strength was already so far beyond anything Ash had ever seen outside of Dragonite, he had a very hard time finding the perfect training regimen to put him on. Ash knew that he had to find a way to help Haunter train and get better and stronger though because no Pokémon was ever perfect or at the peak of how great they could be.

In the end, he pretty much settled for having Haunter train in a way that was very similar to Gastly's own regimen. Since they were both Ghost-Types, Gastly's training program would work for Haunter better than just about any other and all he had to do was slightly tweak it here and there to fit Haunter's own individual needs.

Ash knew for one right off the bat that he wanted to increase Haunter's speed, strength, agility and stamina above all others and in order to do this, he simply had Haunter work all of his moves every day until exhaustion. Perfecting the accuracy, power, intensity and how many times Haunter could use each individual move without pause.

If there was one thing Ash saw down in the chamber below Pokémon Tower when they were all battling it was that Haunter didn't have all that much endurance or stamina to go on when using such immensely powerful attacks before getting exhausted. The best way to go about improving stamina and endurance since Haunter couldn't do normal physical enhancement training like his other Pokémon was to make him drill his moves over and over again until total collapse and then have him push slightly beyond that point before stopping.

As for Haunter's other aspects of training, Ash had him spar and work almost constantly with Gastly. Mostly at night since Haunter was nocturnal and didn't care for daylight but Ash was trying to break him of that and had begun training them both in the early morning hours when the sun wasn't as bright.

Sadly, even then Haunter would try to stick to the shade of nearby trees. A habit in which Ash knew would take a long time to fix before he was ever okay with sunlight enough to just be out in it at any given time of the day.

Ash also had Haunter do multiple opponent and type sparring with his other Pokémon but for the most part, it was mainly with Gastly since he was also a Ghost-Type and was abnormally powerful for his species and evolutionary level just like Haunter was.

Such a decision turned out to be the best one he could make for Haunter since not only did he and Gastly work well together but they also had been becoming closer and forming a sort of kinship between them over the last three days, proving that the fight below Pokémon Tower was becoming just a bad memory slowly but surely. A kinship that he believed would not only help the two grow closer as brothers in a sense but also much stronger by being able to pit their powers and abilities against one another.

As Ash stood there and looked down into the still smoldering coals of the fire that was there the night before, he remembered studying and writing in his researcher's journal about the gym battle against Fuji when Charmander unleashed some kind of extremely unusual ability against the older man's Haunter at a time when things seemed most dire and he was on his last legs.

As promised to himself, Ash did everything he could to try and figure out what had happened to Charmander during that match but no matter how hard he tried, he simply couldn't figure out what occured with his Pokémon. He knew that Blaze was an ability that a lot of Fire-Types possessed and allowed them to dig down and unlock a greater level of power and strength when they were almost at the end of their rope physically but what Charmander displayed that day was very far removed from even the effects of Blaze.

He didn't bother burdening Professor Oak with something like the present issue but he was starting to think that he might have to because no matter what he thought of, he couldn't even come close to figuring out why or how Charmander had unlocked such enormous and even slightly terrifying power. The only thing he could do was keep down everything he had written in his journal about the event and hope that Arceus saw fit to maybe allow him to figure out the perplexing puzzle at some point in time.

When Ash was finally done recollecting on his thoughts, he went over to his pack near the log he had been sitting on the previous night and took out his Pokéballs from the inside. Walking into the middle of the clearing their camp was in, he enlarged and tossed each of them into the air, releasing all five of his Pokémon in bright bursts of light.

As he looked on Squirtle, Bulbasaur, Charmander, Gastly and finally, Black Fog itself appeared in front of him and began stretching their bodies out and moving around to get loosened up from being inside such confined spaces for so long. At the same time, Pikachu popped his head out from Giselle's tent and hurried over to them as soon as he heard the distinct sound of Pokémon getting released from their Pokéballs.

Ash smiled amusedly at his first Pokémon as he bounded over to them and was reminded of how the little Electric-Type had decided to sleep with Giselle last night since he had apparently deemed it too cold to sleep out on the ground in a sleeping bag as Ash had elected to do, unlike his friends.

As Pikachu finally joined them, Ash put his hands on his hips and smirked down at his Pokémon. "Have a good sleep last night Pi?"

He knew that Pikachu was able to understand that he was trying to give him a good natured guilt trip but the infuriatingly intelligent little Pokémon turned the tables on him by simply holding up a peace sign and nodding with a big smile on his face. "Pi Pikachu Pi!"

Shaking his head and wondering if he would ever be able to get one up on the smug Electric-Type, Ash merely waved him off and sighed. "Yeah, yeah, yeah you little smart aleck. I'm glad you got a good night sleep while your trainer stayed outside on the cold hard ground but... it's okay... don't mind me! I don't need a friend to stay by my side even in the coldest of conditions!"

Ash turned away slightly and crossed his arms, closing one eye and peeping the other open just a bit to see if his intended guilt trip had any effect on Pikachu. It didn't, quite obviously so from the way the small Pokémon was now busying himself by talking to the other Pokémon like he barely even heard Ash speak.

Said young man almost face planted into the ground as he hung his head and sobbed, "Man I don't get any respect..."

His pity party lasted for a few more brief moments before he finally composed himself and then walked over to his bag. Pulling out his Pokémon's individual body and free weights from within, he then made his way back to them and set the weights on the ground. After enlarging the weights from their shrunken form, he became serious and spoke in an authorative voice, "Alright everybody listen up!"

As soon as those words were spoken, all of the Pokémon instantly snapped to attention and gave their full focus to their trainer. Seeing that he now commanded their total attention, Ash crossed his arms before continuing. "Before the others wake up and since Giselle stayed up so late and trained with me last night, I want to get our workouts done and out of the way now before we leave."

He pointed to Charmander and Bulbasaur. "I want you two to pair off and work your physical training, moves, combat tactics and type disadvantage training okay? Bulbasaur, you'll work on Water Armor when it's your turn and Charmander, you will train the internal displacement and absorption of your fire that we've been working on. After that, full on spar, no time limit, until either collapses. Got it?"

Receiving nods of understanding from them both, Ash sent them to work after they put their body weights on (of which they were able to do themselves now after having used the weights for so long) and then turned to Squirtle and Pikachu. "I want you two to follow the same regimen but Pikachu, when you start hitting Squirtle with Thunderbolt to increase his type sensitivity, I want you to really turn up the power. You two've been working at it for awhile now and I think he's ready."

He looked to Squirtle. "When you feel like it's too much Squirtle, just give the signal to stop alright? I don't want anyone getting hurt today."

"Squirt!" The Water-Type answered with an affirmative nod of his head before he and Pikachu suited up and then headed off to the other end of the clearing away from Charmander and Bulbasaur so they could begin their own regimen.

Ash took a moment to watch as Pikachu started doing standing to ground push-up into tail back sit-ups, Squirtle as he commenced to shadow boxing and attempting to move lighter on his feet, Charmander as he did suicide floor/up drills and Bulbasaur working his hustles and sprints, before turning his attention to Gastly and Haunter.

"You two... same thing as we've been doing. I know you can't wear or use weights, nor train like the others, but what you've been doing over the past three days has been working really well I would say. With that in mind, I want you to start off into a light spar just to work your moves a little and to get yourselves warmed up and then I want you to increase it into a full on battle until one is down or both of you reach exhaustion."

He holds a finger up sternly. "But do NOT go all out like yesterday! I don't think flowers or anything else is going to be growing in that field for a long time now because of that friendly little 'tussle' you two had. Your powers are just too great to use at their full potential when you're not in a contained setting so just..."

A somewhat humorous, pleading expression adorned his face as he held both hands up. "Please go a little easier... okay? Please. I know it's hard but someone could get hurt and we don't want that alright?"

Gastly fazed into existence a scout's outfit onto his gaseous body as he closed his eyes and tilted his face upwards, appearing sincere. "I vow that I shall not let my power get away from me again thy fearless commander, you have my word as a-" He opened his eyes then and grinned mischievously. "Ghastly Gastly!"

Ash sighed and facepalmed, shaking his head while Gastly broke down into fits of uncontrolled laughter at his usual bout of corny, idiotic jokes.

Looking to the much more stoic and self contained Haunter afterwards, Ash addressed the secondary evolutionary stage of Gastly with a hopeful tone to his voice, "You understand what I'm getting at... right Haunter?"

Never one to say... well, anything, the former 'Terror of Lavender' merely nodded and held a hand up as though in angesture of promise that he would do as requested and keep his power in check.

Unfortunately, Gastly turned to his kin at that moment and put his great knowledge of knowing how to get under anyone's skin to use. "Of course yesterday wasn't really even my fault." Like a pouting child, he looked away and materialized a spectral hand to point at Haunter. "He started it, all of it."

Haunter's eyes grew wide as he whipped around and glared at his cousin, hands coming up as he furiously signed away to Gastly in a fashion that clearly showed how vehemently he was denying the accusation.

Grinning like a loon, Gastly turned to Haunter and nodded before making a 'tsk, tsk' sound with his mouth. "Now, now my dear brother, accepting blame is nothing to be ashamed of! Why, it makes you more of a Pokémon in my opinion!"

Haunter looked scandalized by this point as he looked between Ash and Gastly several times before eventually just sighing and dropping his head, pouting internally as he cursed himself for being unable to speak and call out his no good jokester of a cousin.

Taking pity on his Pokémon while smiling in exasperated amusement, Ash walked up to Haunter and acted like he was patting his shoulder while speaking in a placating voice, "There now Haunter it's okay buddy... I know Gastly's just telling another one of his stories in a sad attempt to be funny-"

"Hey!" Gastly interjected in a whiny voice.

Unabashed however, Ash just grinned to himself before continuing, "But we both know that it's all a big sham. He's just trying to blame you isn't he, pass off the guilt to you in order to make himself feel better?"

Catching onto what his trainer was doing, Haunter adopted a morose expression and nodded solemnly, pitifully. Grinning now, Ash kept up his pampering of the oversized Ghost-Type so as to get back at Gastly. "Aww you poor thing... I'm sorry Gastly can be so mean and immature..."

The Ghost-Type in question grew quickly offended and indignant as he fired back, "I beg your pardon! I most certainly am not immature, I am several centuries old thank you very much and I-" He stopped what he was saying as Ash leaned in and started whispering to Haunter while occasionally glancing at Gastly and snickering.

Gastly saw Haunter look at him as well, a smug, shifty expression on his face, before turning back to Ash. Due to his morbidly curious nature, Gastly couldn't help but float a little closer to them as his face shifted into one of nosy fascination.

As he drew closer, Gastly could hear Ash whispering more and more and he started to develop a nagging sensation that his trainer was telling something embarrassing about him to Haunter. Now having a nagging desire to hear what was being said, he tried to sneak up on them but as soon as he was just a few feet from them, Ash suddenly stopped whispering and stepped back while clapping his hands.

"Let's get to work!"

As his trainer stepped away, Gastly was left to just float there staring owlishly after Ash while Haunter merely gave him a small smirk and floated away himself. He knew, he just knew, that whatever Haunter had been told was probably something humiliating and rather it was true or not, he hated being kept in the dark.

Grumbling to himself with a pout on his face as he was forced to accept the bitter reality that he had been bested this time in his own game of wit, the sulking Ghost-Type made his way over to Haunter as he prepared for their spar.

On the other side of the clearing, Ash started to stretch and warm himself up while smirking internally at how humorously he managed to outmaneuver Gastly by pretending to whisper something to Haunter.

Ash knew his Pokémon and if there was one thing about Gastly he knew above all else it was that he hated not being told something. He simply figured that he would pretend to tell Haunter whatever it was that came to mind while casting sneaky glances at Gastly and this in turn would cause the nosy Ghost-Type to figure that he was being talked about. Which would drive him mad.

Luckily, Haunter caught onto the game and started helping him out in his 'revenge prank' in order to get back at Gastly for trying to pass the blame of who did what concerning the previous day's destruction of a small field onto him.

It wasn't done in mean spirits and Ash knew Gastly would quickly forget about it. He simply learned over the short time he had been with Gastly that the best way to get back at a prankster was to prank right back. Something that was just done none too poorly the smart young trainer would wager to say in his not so humble opinion.

As Ash began his workout and started doing some sprint/suicide drills, he kept his eyes scanning over the clearing and watched all of his Pokémon. Bulbasaur and Charmander were still going at their training just as intently as when they started, Pikachu and Squirtle were now warming up before starting their type-disadvantage training and the 'Ghastly Brothers' were beginning a light spar to warm themselves up.

Ash kept a close eye on Gastly and Haunter as the former took the initiative and fired off a Shadow Ball at his teammate, which Haunter quickly intercepted by absorbing it and then retaliated by sending a much larger Shadow Ball right back at Gastly. All while trying to desperately block out it's hatred of the sunlight.

Ash saw Gastly swiftly move to the side to avoid the attack then began hurriedly closing in on Haunter while launching multiple Shadow Balls at his secondary evolved form. Haunter wasn't about to remain stationary though and fired twin beams of powerful red Night Shade straight at the incoming projectiles, impacting with and destroying them in continuous bouts of restless explosions.

Ash looked on while shifting to knee to elbow sit-ups as Gastly and Haunter got in close together and then started floating all around the clearing while occasionally coming together in a few rapid attacks before separating and then firing off a few long distance ones.

Once he was assured that all of his Pokémon were situated well with their individual workouts and Gastly and Haunter were definitely watching their power, he went back to focusing entirely on his own workout.

After nearly twenty minutes of exhaustive cardio intervals and intense lower and upper resistance calisthenics and shadow boxing, Ash went to drop down and start doing jack push-ups when he suddenly saw Giselle up and stretching herself out near the fire pit along with her Pokémon while wearing her usual workout clothes.

However, what surprised him was seeing Misty stretching beside of Giselle like she was about to join her. The slightly younger girl was wearing a light blue tanktop with black shorts and as he watched her stretch, he observed that Misty was quite flexible. Evidenced by the way she was able to put her arms and head flat on the ground from a straight leg straddle position.

Finishing his hybrid push-ups after the thirtieth rep, he jumped up and jogged over to them while waving and smiling. "Hey girls! Mornin'!"

Giselle finished rolling her hips and walked up to Ash before kissing her sweaty boyfriend on the lips, making sure to keep her distance a bit from his torso since he was all but pouring sweat. Even in the cool morning air.

Pulling back, she smiled and started doing some cross body arm stretches. "Morning Ash, good workout so far?"

Ash hopped in place and nodded, still smiling. "Yeah it's good! The Pokémon are all pretty much in the zone right now so I can focus on getting my own training done for a bit." He then looked at Misty. "You planning on joining us Misty?"

The fiery headed girl let her leg down from the backwards semi-scorpion she had been positioned in and nodded to her secret crush's question before replying in a voice that displayed so much seriousness and intent, it actually took him by surprise. "Ash, I've been thinking about something hard lately and I would like to talk to you about it. Please."

The raven haired trainer just shrugged and dropped down to a crouch stretch while gesturing to her. "Sure Misty, tell me whatever it is."

The older girl took a deep breath before beginning, "Here's the thing Ash... meeting Agatha really made me think about a lot. Even though I know I'm not shooting for the same things as you and Giselle are, I do have my own dreams of becoming a Water Pokémon Master and I can't do that if I don't start taking me and my Pokémon's training much more seriously than we have been."

She nodded at Giselle. "Since she's been training with you, Giselle and her Pokémon have made some incredible progress and even though they haven't really battled anyone to display it, I can just see how much stronger and more capable they've become. You can see it in how they move, train and even act. I want that, for me and my Pokémon. Also..."

She bit her lower lip for a moment. "Ash, for whatever crazy reason, you can't stop from getting yourself involved in all kinds of crazy situations no matter how hard you try. Rather it's against Team Rocket or some other insane thing that always seems to find us, you somehow wind up being in the middle of it. If you really are this 'Chosen-One' that Arceus herself-"

Misty stopped and shook her head for a minute, mumbling something that sounded like "I can't believe she's actually real..." before speaking audibly again, "Has chosen then you're probably going to get involved in a lot of crazy crap as time goes by. I don't want to just stand by and be a witness while you risk your life and I also don't want to be a liability just because my Pokémon and I are too weak to help you. That hasn't been the case so far but it could very well end up happening sooner than later."

Bending down, she looked at Ash unblinkingly as his attention became completely captured by the new and very appealing determination and intensity Misty was now showing to him. "Ash please... help me and my Pokémon become better. To become stronger. For ourselves and also so that we can be more help to you in the future for anything that you may encounter... please."

The boy in question merely looked at Misty for a few moments without speaking before standing up and placing his hands on her shoulders. Having her rise up to stand along with him, he smiled brightly before nodding almost ecstatically. "What are you kidding Misty?! Of course I'll help you and your Pokémon train from here on out! I'd be happy to!"

A no nonsense expression came over his face then. "But! You need to understand here and now that this training will not be easy. You and your Pokémon will struggle at first and we'll also be changing your eating habits around a lot. Do you think you can handle it?"

Misty nodded resolutely and brought her hands in front of her. "I promise you Ash, I will try and give my all into everything you work on us with. You can count on it!"

A small smile slowly spread across his face as Ash looked at Giselle. "You think she can handle it Giselle? Should I do it?"

The girl in question walked up to Misty before replying, "If there's one thing she's shown Ash it's that Misty has a lot of grit and determination to do anything she sets her mind to. She also has a lot of skill commanding Water-Types so I have no doubt that she'll be able to train with us."

Misty looked surprised that Giselle stuck up for her so readily but it was enough for Ash who simply nodded and put his hands on his hips. "Alright Misty, you're in. Get your Pokémon out here and let's get started!"

Misty immediately did so and as soon as her Pokémon were released from their Pokéballs, Ash set to work with them. To begin, Ash had Misty and her Pokémon join him, Giselle and her own Pokémon in a quick cardio warm-up routine. Of which they did pretty well in all things considered since they weren't really used to doing such intense exercising on a regular basis.

After that, Ash moved them on to move training and assessed each of her Pokémon's individual moves while testing their power, accuracy and strength, as well as the time in which they could use their moves without long amounts of recover time. All in all, in the move department he would say that her Staryu, Seaking, Starmie, Horsea and Tentacool were also rather impressive. Sure they weren't as proficient or powerful as his or Giselle's Pokémon but that would only be expected.

The next thing they moved onto was sparring and in that stage of training, he watched as her Pokémon paired off and battled it out against one another. Staryu against Starmie and Seaking against Tentacool with Horsea rotating in and out between the latter two.

Ash was able to tell that while Misty's Pokémon possessed intent, strength, determination and a certain level of power from being a former gym leader's Pokémon, they still had a lot of room to improve in when it came to endurance and strength.

Once he was finished assessing and working with them, Ash set to work helping Misty construct a training regimen for her Pokémon like he did with Giselle and her own. They wouldn't go over nutrition until later when they were feeding all the Pokémon however, that had to come last.

For now, Ash decided that it would be best to focus on improving her Pokémon's base abilities on every general level just as he did with his and Giselle's. Meaning that they would work their physical training itself to improve their speed, agility, power, strength, accuracy and also their moves, abilities and the outright power expenditure that they would be able to put behind their attacks.

Once her Pokémon were taken care of, Ash then moved on to Misty herself. Being that she was always an active girl and an avid swimmer, Misty was in much better shape than Giselle was when she first started training with Ash but one thing he noticed she definitely lacked in was strength.

For the most part, Misty had good cardio and was more than just a little flexible so on top of setting her up on a standard workout routine like Giselle was on that would only help further improve her endurance/stamina and range of motion, he also made her program structure out in such a way that the older girl would be doing a lot of modified strength excercises.

Meaning basically that she would do things like push-ups, sit-ups, chin-ups on low hanging tree branches and other strength specific exercises that would eventually help to improve and increase her overall level of strength. Misty had to start doing modified knee push-ups and low reps of each strength exercise at first but Ash had no doubt that if she stayed committed to the training program, she and her Pokémon would notice exponential increases in every possible way they could.

After almost an hour and a half of intense training finally passed, it was to the sight of Ash, Misty, Giselle and all of their Pokémon sprawled exhaustedly out on the ground that Brock was treated to seeing when he finally exited his tent and scanned his surroundings.

Not being surprised at observing such a thing since it had become rather routine almost every day whenever Ash and Giselle trained, he merely chuckled and shook his head before walking over to his pack so he could get the necessary supplies out to begin cooking breakfast with.

As he made his way over to the fire pit so he could start cooking, Brock looked over at Misty who was laying the closest to him while panting steadily as she attempted to regain her breath with sweat shining on her body. "So, finally decided to approach Ash about the training thing huh Misty?" Brock questioned with a small grin.

The youngest Waterflower sat up and smiled at Brock as she shrugged. "Well, I had to do something. Can't achieve my dreams by just sitting around doing nothing can I?"

He chuckled. "No I suppose not." Looking at Ash and Giselle as they stood up as well, he gestured at them. "You guys go get cleaned up and I'll make breakfast."

Ash shook his head and wiped the sweat off of his body with the towel that he always carried around with him whenever he worked out. "Nah, I'm gonna feed the Pokémon before I do anything else." He then looked at Misty. "You wanna stay and help me plan out your Pokémon's nutrition plan Misty?"

The enthusiastic girl agreed almost right away and then went to help Ash feed the Pokémon while Giselle headed down to the river in order to clean up. After Ash made the food for all of the Pokémon and helped Misty start work on creating a blend of nutritious Pokéfood that her own Pokémon would hopefully come to love with enough tweaking, he went down to the river himself and cleaned up.

Once he was done bathing and finished dressing a short time later, Ash returned to the camp and relieved Misty so she could have her turn while he finished preparing her Pokémon's food for her. As he served them their meal, he saw that Misty's Pokémon did indeed enjoy it but he figured that they would probably like it even more so once he and the others were able to go somewhere where Misty could buy a travel bag of actual Water Pokémon food mix that would be specifically designed for just their species.

All she would have to do after that would be to buy the proper vitamins and nutrients that Ash had been nice enough to share from

some of his own collection earlier and then mix it all into the food mix just the way he had helped Misty figure out how to do for her Pokémon's individual needs. After that, they would hopefully have a healthy, nutrition packed and delicious meal to eat every day after their training sessions.

While Ash waited for Brock to finish making breakfast for them, he sat back against a rock near the fire pit and pulled his bag closer. Reaching into it, he fished out the Cubone egg that Fuji had given him and started lightly rubbing the egg with a piece of cloth that he also pulled from his bag.

Giselle picked that moment to emerge from her tent while drying her hair and walked over to her boyfriend before sitting next to him. Seeing the younger male cleaning the egg with a gentle touch and a small smile on his face, Giselle smiled herself and pointed to it. "Got any signs that it's close to hatching yet?"

He simply shook his head and paused his rubbing for a moment. "No... not yet. I don't expect it to happen soon if it even does at all. Of course, I'm new to the whole egg raising thing so I might be doing something wrong, I don't know."

Brock suddenly spoke up from his place near the fire, "No I wouldn't say that Ash. While you may not have any experience in raising eggs, the fact that the one Fuji gave you hasn't done so in decades really makes me think that it very well may be a dud or simply went cold."

Giselle nodded. "Yeah I mean, I understand Fuji having high hopes that it was still alive but an egg going so long without hatching just doesn't seem to offer any good tidings that it's still alive. I wouldn't beat yourself up Ash, if it doesn't hatch it's not your fault. It just means that Fuji's hopes were unfounded is all."

The boy sighed and went back to rubbing the egg. "Yeah I guess you two are right. Still though... I can't help but to carry that same hope Mr. Fuji did. I really want this egg to hatch and the thought of it being dead not only makes me feel sad but also kinda creeped out that I've been basically carrying a dead Pokémon around with me for three days."

Misty finally trudged back into the camp at that time and tossed her bag unceremoniously next to her tent before walking over and flopping down on Ash's other side with a huff.

The boy in question looked sideways at her and grinned. "Doing alright Misty?"

The girl shot him a look and replied dryly, "No. I'm sore as hell and that water was as cold as the pool back home when Seel would blast ice attacks into it just for fun..."

Giselle snickered. "Well we did try and warn you now didn't we? I told you and Brock before that Ash's training is nothing to sneeze at." Suddenly having a thought, she looked to Brock. "Speaking of which... have you just never had any desire to train with us Brock? If you ever do, I'm sure Ash would help you if you ever asked him."

The black haired trainer quickly nodded to his girlfriend's statement. "Yeah Brock, any time you'd ever like to work out with us, I would gladly help you train. We're friends and you always help me with anything I need."

Brock smiled at Ash and waved his hand. "Ah, I appreciate it Ash but honestly, I'm just not interested in training like you guys do. Battling Pokémon and working towards the goal you three are has just never really appealed to me. I've always been more concerned and interested with helping to take care of Pokémon and raise them than making them battle. Which is why I decided to become a Pokémon Breeder and left my gym leader days behind me."

The black haired boy merely shrugged. "That's cool Brock, if you change your mind just let me know okay?"

The other boy merely nodded in understanding and thanked Ash before the group of friends settled down for a quiet and peaceful meal.

Once breakfast was finally finished, they packed up their campsite, returned their Pokémon, put the fire out and then got back on the road to Saffron City again. They were only a day's travel away and the four of them were determined to make it to their destination before it got too late at night.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

As the sun gradually swayed and wained in the sky throughout the long day of traveling, the illuminated hours passed by rather quickly and before anyone knew it, the chilling embrace of nightfall had begun to fall amongst the group of young Pokémon Trainers.

Ash and his friends were currently making their way down a dirt path that was enclosed on all sides by forest with Pikachu perched atop his trainer's backpack, diligently keeping his eyes open and senses alert for any signs of danger that could possibly make itself known at any given time.

Sighing, Brock lowered the map from his face at the back of the group and shook his head. "I don't get it guys, we should be there by now or at least be seeing the city. This makes no sense!"

Misty groaned. "Arceus please don't tell us we're lost!"

Looking around, Giselle idly shook her head. "I don't think we are Misty, we're still on the road so we can't be lost." She looked around a little more. "Maybe it's just taking longer than we thought?"

Ash went to speak on the subject but suddenly went silent as he heard something off in the distance. Stopping mid-step, he looked to the right in the woods where he heard the sound coming from and Pikachu did the same, pricking his ears up and becoming instantly alert as he scanned the surrounding area for what had made the sound.

Giselle and the others stopped behind Ash and the brunette quickly grew worried for him as she lightly tapped his shoulder. "Ash? Ash is everything okay?"

The boy just shook his head slowly and stared off in the direction of the forest that he heard the noise originating from. "No I-" He suddenly stopped as soon as he heard the sound again and this time, all of their heads turned in the direction it came from. "You guys heard it that time right?!""

"Yeah what was that?" Misty asked curiously but also wearily as she stepped a little closer towards the treeline. "It almost sounded like-"

"A little girl," Giselle finished for her as she stared hard into the trees to try and get a visual of what was making the noise. "Like a little girl crying."

Brock put his hand under his chin and looked around thoughtfully. "A little girl in a forest like this all by herself?" He shook his head grimly. "That sounds like trouble to me, she could be lost."

Ash glanced up at Pikachu and then back to the forest again before speaking slowly, "Well... if we really are near Saffron then I guess that's possible and it's a just little girl lost in the woods or it could even be some dirty trick. Like Team Rocket trying to get us off the path and into one of their traps."

They all heard a loud scream suddenly trumpet outwards from the same direction that the sobbing was coming from and it made Giselle quickly turn to Ash. "We can't just stand here Ash! If it really is a kid lost in the woods then she's obviously in trouble right now!"

"If it is Team Rocket then we can handle those three clowns!" Misty stated vehemently while smashing her left hand into her other fist.

Ash felt torn in that moment between what was the right thing to do and what his gut was telling him to do but he couldn't just turn a blind ear to someone, especially a little girl, possibly in need of help.

His mind made up, Ash looked back at his friends. "Come on, let's go!" With those words gone through his lips, he turned forward again and took off into woods with Brock and the others right behind. Not so much as a moment's hesitation in their steps.

On and on the group of friends ran through the thick, slightly foggy forest that only became worse in visibility as they went further and further in. Branches slapped at their faces, roots jutting from above ground sought to trip them up and with the fog becoming thicker all the time, it became a challenge to simply see the noses in front of their faces, let alone any great distance.

Pikachu could see better than everyone else with his acute vision so he was perched atop Ash's backpack while looking straight ahead with his ears pricked up but even then, it still didn't help the humans of the group see any better.

"Ash!" Misty suddenly shouted, causing them all to come to a stop. "This fog is way too thick to run through, if we don't link hands or something and stay closer together then we're all gonna get lost!"

The boy immediately agreed with Misty's intelligent observation and reached back for Giselle's hand. "Giselle, grab my hand and then you grab Misty's. We're all gonna form a chain so we don't lose each other while running!"

The four of them quickly linked their hands together and never broke their stride as they continued sprinting through the thick, foggy forest. They kept their ears tuned for the sound of the little girl and eventually they heard it again, though this time it was a scream coming from directly in front of them.

"It's this way!" Ash shouted and pointed straight ahead. "Come on!"

With an extra burst of speed, the worried trainers bursted out through the treeline... and almost straight over a cliff. Ash saw the drop first since he was in front and on instinct to save his friends from the fate of falling to their demise without any thought for himself, turned mid-step and pushed Giselle back, causing her to fall down which in turn tripped up Misty and Brock.

Ash on the other hand couldn't stop himself in time and lost his footing as he fell back first over the cliff. Eyes wide, he heard Giselle and Misty scream and Brock yell before his mind just went blank and survival mode kicked in from Arceus only knew where.

"Bulbasaur-" Ash shouted almost silently against the wind that was pummeling his ears from the intense fall. "Vine Whip us!"

Throwing the Pokéball up towards the ledge, Bulbasaur burst forth just on top of the cliff with his ball landing next to him and must have heard his trainer from inside of it because the next very moment, he sent two fast vines hurdling down at Ash.

Pikachu holding onto his shoulder for dear life, Ash outstretched his hands and felt them get wrapped up by his Pokémon's vines, stopping his fall immediately. Bulbasaur had to root himself to the ground to keep from toppling off the cliff as soon as his vines latched onto Ash's hands and then he began struggling as hard as he could to pull his trainer up.

Brock and the others went to help Bulbasaur immediately but the Grass-Type glanced back at them and barked out, "BULBA!" while shaking his head.

Ash's friends stopped with confusion written on their faces but Bulbasaur didn't see it, his whole being now completely focused on nothing but saving his trainer by himself and proving just how far he had come. All the training; pushing, pulling and running with heavy weights attached to his body that he had been doing for months now... Bulbasaur had to prove to himself that he could do this on his own and he was determined to make it a reality.

Gritting his teeth and scrunching his face up concentration, Bulbasaur began grunting as he grounded himself as much as he could and started backing up a little bit at a time. Ash couldn't see what was going on from where he was at but Brock, Misty and Giselle stood by, waiting with baited breath to help Bulbasaur if it looked like he was going to need it.

At the moment however, he was doing just fine by himself and continued to walk back a little a time while hoisting his well over one hundred pound trainer up the cliffside. The Grass-Type grunted and groaned in effort with sweat pouring from his body as he performed the miraculous deed, much to the astonishment of Brock and the others.

When Bulbasaur finally pulled Ash up over the edge and the boy scrambled up the rest of the way onto solid ground, Bulbasaur withdrew his vines and then collapsed onto the ground while breathing heavily.

Ash shook himself free of the shock and heart pounding rush of what had nearly happened to he and Pikachu as his friends ran over to him. "Ash are you okay?!" Giselle yelled as she dropped beside of her boyfriend.

Misty looked Ash over while he simply nodded and replied slowly, "Yeah... yeah I'm fine. A close one but I'm good..."

"Damn that was too close man," Brock sighed in relief as he knelt in front of his friend. "You were almost a goner!"

Ash crawled over to Bulbasaur and rubbed the bulb on his Pokémon's back as he smiled down him. "Almost. If it wasn't for Bulbasaur then I would have been." He looked down at Pikachu who had left his shoulder and was now standing beside his fellow teammate with his fur still bushed out from the fright of the incident. "Me and Pikachu. We owe you a big one Bulbasaur, you showed incredible strength and resilience and I can't thank you enough."

"Pika Pika Chu Pi," Pikachu nodded in assent while smiling gratefully at the Grass-Type. His own heart just now starting to slow back to a regular beating pattern.

Brock walked over to the side of the cliff and looked down. Directly below he could see dense forest sprawling out into the distance a short ways and then almost straight beyond that, the bright shining lights of Saffron City could be seen twinkling like a sea of stars.

"Hey guys, there's Saffron City!"

At Brock's announcement, Ash and the others quickly hurried over and looked down at the city before them. "Wow... it's so big!" Misty exclaimed in awe.

"Just wait until you see the actual city itself once you're in it," Giselle commented with a glance at Misty. "There are more shops than you can possibly imagine and some of the restaurants are to die for!"

Ash suddenly put a halt to the excitement of finally arriving at their long intended destination though. "Hang on a second guys..." He then looked around the cliff they were standing upon and put a hand over his eyes. "I wanna know where the little girl is that was making that sound."

Brock, whom was also wondering the same thing, nodded as he too started scanning the area. "I agree. I know we heard something and it was loud too. If it wasn't a little girl screaming I heard then I'm either going crazy or my ears are going bad on me way sooner than they should."

Giselle and Misty turned around. "Well maybe it really was a little girl and she lives near here? I mean we are near the city so maybe there's a suburb down at the edge of the forest we can't see. It'd make sense, kids scream and carry on when they play."

Misty nodded in agreement to Giselle's assumption. "Yeah and besides you guys, we're here now and whoever it was helped us to get where we needed to be. We thought we were lost, we're not now and that's all that matters. Right? Why borrow trouble when there's no immediate need for it?"

Ash seemed hesitant to agree at first but couldn't deny that there was no need to get bent out of shape over something that they really could not prove one way or the other. "Well... I guess you're right... maybe it was just our mind playing tricks on us..."

"I can tell you right now that what you heard was most certainly not a figment of your imagination," A mysterious voice spoke up from back in the treeline behind them.

Ash and his friends whipped around quickly along with Pikachu and Bulbasaur to see a middle aged looking man with a black beard who was wearing tan pants, a green and black striped tracksuit jacket, running shoes and a yellow cap on his head standing near the trees a short distance away.

Ash and his friends watched wearily as the man approached them and Ash himself was the first to speak up to him. Doing so with a cautious tone to his voice. "Excuse me sir, who are you?"

The older man stopped just a few feet away from them, his face a mask of seriousness and no jokes as he crossed his arms and let his eyes travel over the young trainers. "What you heard was not your imagination and it was not a little girl from a nearby neighborhood. What you heard was much more sinister than that and to be honest, I would call each of you lucky to still be alive."

Ash, Misty, Brock and Giselle's eyes widened at those words as the black haired boy stepped forward. "Whoa hey wait a second! What do you mean sinister and lucky to be alive? What just happened?"

The man looked at Ash for a few moments before eventually sighing and looking out towards Saffron City. "Many people over the years, travelers just like you four, have heard those same sounds when they were outside of this city but unlike you, almost every one of those circumstances have ended in a much more tragic way."

"W-What do you mean?" Giselle asked with a noticable tremble to her voice.

The man looked at her before replying grimly, "Most of the time the unlucky individuals I speak of are only found by the authorities... with their bodies mangled and mutilated from a fall very similar to what this young man here nearly suffered."

A gasp escaped Misty and Giselle's lips as Ash and Brock's faces dropped in shock. "Dead?!" Brock exclaimed in disbelief. "All of them have died?!"

The capped man simply nodded and walked over to the cliffside that Ash had nearly met his end on. "Yes. No one knows why or how and it doesn't happen often but over the last few years, travelers coming to the city from this direction will occasionally meet their end in some mysterious way or another. Usually from this very cliffside and other times in much more puzzling and bizarre fashions. Pokémon Trainers, Coordinators coming to the city for the Pokémon Contest, normal people... there is no prejudice."

He turned back to look at them again. "I know that these tragic accidents and the sounds you just heard are related because once and only once, I managed to save a young man from an identical fate when I was jogging through this area and found him about to run headlong off the cliff. I stopped him in time luckily and after I did, he told me that he had been trying to find the little girl he heard that was screaming and crying for help."

The intense looking man walked back over to Ash and his friends. "After that I put two and two together and formulated a strong suspicion that whatever or whoever this supposed 'little girl' might be was most likely responsible for the other incidents where individuals lost their lives in or around this same location. Ever since that day, I make a point to come by this way every single night in order to help make sure no one meets such a horrifying end ever again."

His eyes landed on Ash. "I heard the commotion you and your friends were making and rushed here as fast as I could, afraid I was going to be too late. However, once I arrived and saw this Bulbasaur of yours pulling you and your Pikachu up from the cliff, I have to say I was stunned. Never before has anyone of my knowledge ever escaped the situation you were put into alive except for the young man I myself rescued."

The mysterious man put his hands on his hips and offered a small smile to Ash. "You must be exceptionally fast thinking on your feet young man and it shows or otherwise you would be dead right now, trust me. You and your Pokémon should be proud of yourselves and very grateful for your lives."

Ash could only look down at the ground in total disbelief as he processed the older man's words, truly not understanding until now just how close he and his Pokémon did come to dying. Especially not after so many others before them had apparently faced the same fate and came out much less fortunate on the other side.

Brock, for his part, seemed totally confused as he shook his head. "Why hasn't the city placed up barricades around this cliffside if so many people have died on it? That makes no sense at all!"

The bearded man sighed sadly and shook his head. "You kids will learn eventually how it is. In the world of politics, especially politics concerning the maintenance and governing of any kind of community, laws that should be passed hardly ever are and the ones that make no sense seem to go through with no issues instead. In my opinion, not until someone of great importance or the loved one of a member of the city council falls to their death or meets their end here on this cliff will any solid action be taken to prevent such a thing from happening again."

Ash let out a sigh of relief. "Well I'm glad the worst didn't happen and we got lucky or otherwise, we wouldn't be able to challenge the Saffron City Gym!" He said the words with an obvious attempt at humor so as to try and lighten the mood somewhat from the terrible tragedy that could have just occured but the man didn't see it as such.

Instead, as soon as Ash mentioned the gym, his face immediately dropped and was replaced with one of eery calm and seriousness. "You plan on challenging Sabrina?" He asked outright and in a 'to the point' type of voice.

Ash saw the man's odd facial expression and heard the seriousness in his voice so he sombered up and nodded before replying in an equally as somber voice, "Yes sir that's correct, we came for a few different reasons but the main one is so that I may challenge the gym. Do you have something against it?"

The man just looked at Ash for several moments before turning away and shaking his head. "Do not go and challenge that gym. I can tell you now that it's a bad idea and you will not enjoy the outcome. You cannot defeat Sabrina so just forget about it and take my advice young man."

Looking over his shoulder, he continued. "Do whatever else you had planned and then leave this city. There are several other gyms you can compete in to gain entrance to the Pokémon League. You do not need to challenge this gym. If you know what's good for you, you'll listen to me and do as I suggest."

Before Ash or any of the others could reply to the strange man, he bid them a quick good evening and then jogged off into the forest from where he came from. Watching him vanish into the trees, the four friends looked at each other afterwards with clearly written confusion on their faces.

"Okay... that was weird," Misty observed as the first one to speak up.

"No kidding," Giselle agreed with a nod. "Why would he tell Ash not to challenge Sabrina?"

Brock put a hand to his chin again (his go-to gesture when he was confused or thinking) and hummed thoughtfully. "Something really is suspicious about this whole thing. I don't know who that guy was but I think he knows a lot more than he's letting on."

Ash stayed silent for a few moments and shared a look with Pikachu and Bulbasaur before eventually turning to look out over the town again. "Nothing we've ever done has been easy before guys. Me and my Pokémon have had to fight hard for everything that we've worked to achieve up to this point and we're not giving up now. Maybe challenging this Sabrina isn't a good idea for whatever reason but we're going to do it anyway because we have to."

Turning to look back at his friends, he closed his eyes and felt the chilly night air blow through his hair. "We can never become the best unless we take risks and take on the toughest opponents that we possibly can. Even if we lose a hundred times over, it's okay as long as we continue to work together and never give up."

The raven haired trainer rubbed first Pikachu behind the ears and then bent down to stroke Bulbasaur's back. "I made a promise to myself and my Pokémon that we would never stop trying and we won't. Sabrina is just another step, no matter how difficult, on the way to achieving our goals."

Brock crossed his arms and looked out at the brightly lit city as well. "That's all fine and good Ash but the first thing we need to do is get down into the city and find a place to stay for the night. The Pokémon Center will probably be our best bet."

A goofy grin spread across the teen's face then as he brought his hands up to his face and stood on his tiptoes while still facing towards the city. Hearts all but appearing in his eyes, he said in an airy, dreamy voice, "And that means we get to see the Saffron City Nurse Joy! I bet she's even prettier than all the others!"

Ash and Giselle, as well as Pikachu and Bulbasaur, simply sweatdropped as Misty appeared behind Brock with her heavy mallet somehow hoisted above her head. In a fierce downswing that made a loud cracking sound and caused Ash and Giselle to wince, Brock found himself laying flat on the ground with Misty standing overtop of him and breathing hard.

"Give it a rest for one freaking second Brock! We're all tired, cold and ready for bed and hearing you daydream about Nurse Joy isn't helping!"

The pouting teen pulled himself up off the ground and grumbled to himself as Ash shook his head and returned Bulbasaur. "Come on guys, let's go. I wanna get there before the Pokémon Center closes for the night."

With those words said, the group of traveling trainers made their way back the way they had come through the forest to the road they had been on earlier. Hoping that the path in question would lead them into Saffron a short time after finally finding it again, they continued on their way while trying to put the mysterious events of the evening behind them and out of their minds.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Nearly twenty minutes of walking later found the four Pokémon Trainers traversing the expansive, numerous and maze-like streets of Saffron City. The road they followed did indeed end up taking them straight and true to where they wanted to go and before they knew it, the four of them had finally arrived at their long awaited destination.

Never having been in a city quite as massive and all encompassing before, Ash, Misty and Brock looked like their heads were on swivels as they looked all around themselves in every direction and took in the sights that seemed to be almost limitless. The towering buildings that stretched high into the sky, the numerous shops, stores and restaurants sprawled out on practically every corner and the dizzying number of streets and roads were enough to make anyone inexperienced to big city life go nearly boggle eyed at everything that was practically getting thrust into their faces all at one time.

The streets and roads were extensively populated by both pedestrians and vehicles alike and the sight of so much going on at once caused Ash to whistle and shake his head. "Dang this city is huge! I've never seen anyplace so big before, not even Virdian City is this big!"

"No kidding, you could get lost here!" Misty stated matter-of-factly as she continued to look all around.

Brock didn't say much since he was too preoccupied with all the women he was seeing at every turn but Giselle herself seemed rather nonplussed by everything. "Meh, you see one big city and you've seen them all in my opinion," She said simply.

Ash looked over at his girlfriend and placed his hands behind his head. "Yeah I forgot that you said you and your family have been here before. How many times?"

Giselle shrugged. "A few. My family has some rather important assets here in the city so I've been here quite a few times. Mostly when we've went to eat at the Golden Magikarp, but my sister and I have went shopping here a couple of times as well."

Misty looked at Giselle curiously for a few moments before saying searchingly, "You know it's kind of strange Giselle but I don't recall you ever really mentioning or talking about your family very much. Not even their names."

The slightly older girl seemed to stiffen up for a moment and looked away before replying, "That's because... it's just a complicated situation. My family has never really been a close one, let's leave it at that..." Giselle trailed off then and went silent and everyone took that as their cue to no longer press the issue.

After walking on for some time longer, they came out from another street and turned a corner around a big office building and saw a huge lot across the street from them that had a massive building situated in it's center that was stretching high up into the sky. A large sign out front near the entrance to the lot read 'Silph Co.' in big bold letters and was illuminated by two lights built into the frame of the sign post below it.

"So that's Silph Co. uh?" Brock questioned idly. "Whole lot bigger than I pictured it'd be."

"They supposedly make tons of the things that we use every day throughout the region," Ash commented in response. "At least, that's what Professor Oak told me and from what I've read of them, it's true."

Giselle looked slightly uncomfortable as she looked up at the gigantic building and shuffled on her feet nervously. "Can we please go now? I'm really tired and anxious to get to the Pokémon Center you guys."

Ash turned to look at Giselle and could tell something wasn't right but didn't press the issue. Instead, he merely nodded and stepped back. "Yeah she's right guys come on, let's get to the center before it closes."

None the wiser to Giselle's plight, Misty and Brock just shrugged and started following Ash as he continued down the street they were on and ventured further into the city.

A short time later, after taking a few more streets, getting lost a time or two and finally breaking down to ask a nearby Officer Jenny which way it was to the Pokémon Center (something they nearly didn't get to do since Misty had to bodily restrain Brock from lunging at the woman) they finally arrived at their destination and looked upon the impressively sized Pokémon Center situated right in the middle of a large city square.

Making their way inside, the four young travelers checked out the equally as sizable lobby and then walked up to the front desk where Nurse Joy was busy tending to her station.

Misty taking preemptive action and holding Brock back before he could strike, Ash approached the counter and smiled tiredly before greeting politely, "Hi Nurse Joy, do you have any rooms available tonight?"

The kindly pink haired nurse looked up at Ash from her computer and smiled sweetly. "Why of course we do! You got here just in time though, we're quickly filling up due to the Pokémon Contest taking place the day after tomorrow."

Misty appeared visibly confused. "We got here just in time because of that? You mean you don't close for the night?"

Joy merely shook her head and gave a slight wave of her hand. "Oh no dear not this Pokémon Center. Being in a city as big as Saffron, we simply can't afford to close down for a long period of time. We're always getting late night emergency calls, healing requests from exhausted travelers such as yourselves for their Pokémon and renting out rooms at nearly every hour of the day."

She gestured at the inside of the building around them. "You'll find that almost all Pokémon Centers located in busy cities like this hardly ever close down. Luckily, Joy's such as myself who are in charge of twenty-four-seven centers always have nurse assistants on shift to help us keep up with the workload so we can rest up for the night."

One of the Pokémon Center Chansey's suddenly came bouncing up to Joy's side from the backroom behind the counter and the woman patted her Pokémon fondly on the head with a gentle smile on her face. "Chansey really is a great help to have around the center but even she can't go nonstop. Right Chansey?"

"Chansey!" The cheerful Pokémon agreed as she threw her arms up in the air and nodded to her companion's words.

Ash looked up at the nearby wall clock hanging above the counter and saw that it was almost passed midnight. "You must be working here pretty late tonight then Nurse Joy, it's a little over midnight."

Joy checked her wristwatch and then turned her smiling face back to Ash. "My shift actually ends here very soon but I still have time to sign you all in. Is it just the rooms tonight or do you need anything else? A treatment for your Pokémon perhaps or maybe even to register for the Pokémon Contest?"

Ash nodded as he and his friends reached for their Pokéballs and then placed them on a cart that Joy had Chansey wheel around to them. After Pikachu hopped aboard the little trolley in preparation for his own R&R, Ash scratched him behind the ears and told his Pokémon goodnight before turning to Nurse Joy again.

"None of us are here to register for the Pokémon Contest ourselves but there is someone competing in it that we'd like to support. How much is the fee to get in and watch the contest?"

Joy appeared thoughtful for a few moments before replying, "Well I'm not exactly sure but it runs in my mind that the price is around thirty credits per person for a general admission and more if you want to get seats closer to the area where the performances take place."

Ash nods and then presses on, "We're also here for a few other reasons. Aside from seeing the city, we'd also like to check if they offer any guided tours of the Silph building before or after I take my gym challenge here."

Giselle stiffened up again at the mention of the Silph building and Ash's desire to see it in more detail but no one noticed as Joy answered promptly, "You four are in luck! Once every month they do guided tours of some of the more general areas of Silph Co. to the public. Even though you won't get to go to the employee only, high security floors of the building, you'll still get to see quite a few of the fascinating lower floors where some appliances and devices we use every day are manufactured right off the line."

The bubbly nurse giggled. "I've been on the tour at least three times myself!" Suddenly however, her face grew more serious as she looked specifically at Ash. "Obviously, I'm not going to try and discourage you from challenging the Saffron City Pokémon Gym young man but I will highly advise you to be careful. The gym leader there is very brutal and not at all merciful to challengers in any way. In fact, it's become almost commonplace for me to get several traveling trainers in here on a regular basis that has had their Pokémon badly injured after battling at that gym."

"It's a Psychic-Type specialized gym, right Nurse Joy?" Misty asked curiously.

She nodded. "Yes it is and Sabrina's Pokémon are highly skilled at what they do. From what I've heard, few trainers ever even get passed her first Pokémon and that alone hasn't happened in quite a long time."

Brock, Misty and Giselle shared a glance while Ash simply shrugged modestly. "Well my Pokémon and I will give it our best shot regardless. Maybe we'll win and maybe we'll lose but we'll never know unless we try. We're on a quest to conquer every Pokémon Gym in the region before the Indigo Conference and we intend to make it a reality."

Joy raised a single eyebrow. "Well if that's the case then I bet you would probably enjoy challenging the Fighting Dojo here in the city. It's not an official gym like the Saffron Gym is but it does host some rather talented Fighting-Types that would offer a good challenge for you."

Ash put his forearms on the counter. "I think I remember hearing about that at some point. It isn't an official gym because years ago it lost the right to become Saffron's main Pokémon Gym in a battle between the former Dojo Master and the then leader of the Saffron Gym. No one town or city is allowed to host two Pokémon Gyms at one time by order of League sanctioned rules and if there are mutiple gyms, only one can offer an official badge."

Joy smiled. "That's correct, you know your history! While the Fighting Dojo cannot offer a badge to victorious trainers, they do sometimes offer rare Fighting-Types as prizes instead but I have no idea when they do that."

Ash nodded slowly and then smiled at the woman. "Thanks Nurse Joy, we appreciate all the information. Have a good night."

The pinkette nurse waved to the four young trainers as Ash and Giselle started heading towards the upstairs portion of the Pokémon Center with Misty dragging Brock along behind her so he couldn't stay down in the lobby and torment the poor woman.

Upon arriving at the hallway that had rooms stretching down on both ends, Ash took custody of Brock with a sigh from Misty and then waved goodnight to both girls before entering the room directly across from their own.

Shutting the door behind him, Ash took a moment to take in the two bed, one bath little room that had a single window at the far end of it before dropping Brock in the middle of the floor where said squinty eyed teen commenced to moping miserably over his failure to swoon Nurse Joy.

Heading to the bathroom afterwards and taking a nice hot shower after being on the road for so many days, Ash eventually exited the lavatory a short time later once his teeth were brushed and allowed Brock his turn. Dressed in a black T-shirt and shorts, he walked over to the desk near the door where he placed his clothes and pack for the night and reached into the side pocket of his backpack where his Xtransceiver was located.

Going back over to sit on his bed, he set the internal clock built into the device for six in the morning and then got down underneath the covers. Knowing that Brock would turn the light off when he came out of the bathroom, he slowly closed his eyes and let sleep claim him since he knew that a good night's rest was going to be needed for the busy couple of days ahead of them all.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

---

The next morning bright and early, Ash arose practically with the sun once his alarm went off loudly in the still mostly dark room. The alarm jingle itself being a relatively new song that his mother had bought online and downloaded to his Xtransceiver before Professor Oak gave it to him for his birthday. A little extra gift as it were from her to him after he had called to ask her about it once he discovered the song on his handy device a short few weeks prior to the current day.

Turning off the alarm and thereby silencing the catchy tune of "Gotta Catch Em' All" by the group so it wouldn't wake Brock, Ash quickly went to the bathroom and readied himself for the day before coming back out and then leaving the room, heading downstairs to the lobby.

Not seeing Nurse Joy or anyone else yet upon arriving downstairs, he walked over to the window seats near the front door and sat down to make a call to Professor Oak with his Xtransceiver. Flipping the highly advanced little device open, he selected the Professor's speed dial number in his contacts and then watched as the all purpose nav-device displayed multiple reception bars coming from a tiny radio tower symbol on the screen to show that the call was being put through.

While he waited, Ash sat back against the cool glass window behind him and felt glad for about the tenth time that his mother had decided to set up his phone plan with his Xtransceiver through the mobile phone company "Virizion". Not only were they without a doubt unbeatable when it came to where he could and could not get reception (he was even able to get signal when inside of Mt. Moon!) but their monthly fees were reasonable and from what his mother told him when she set up his phone plan, the customer service department were all extremely helpful and very kind.

The mobile telephone market may have been relatively new on the scene but even still, Virizion without a doubt already had a leg up on all of their equally as fledgling competition. Such companies as U-Mobile, Kricketune, Jog and BD&C simply didn't have the towers or cellular technology as of yet to keep up with the rapidly growing Virizion and from what he and his mother had been told by Amelia Oak (whom had U-Mobile) the service was dreadfully terrible on overcast days.

He was broken from his thoughts suddenly by the sound of the connection on the other end of the line picking up and a few seconds later, the screen flashed to life and showed Professor Oak himself looking at Ash through the small screen.

Seeing who it was that had called, the world renowned Pokémon Researcher smiled at his protégé. "Ah hello Ash, I didn't expect to hear from you so early in the morning!"

Ash rubbed the back of his head and chuckled. "Yeah well I just figured that I'd get a head start on the day y'know? How is everything there Professor, are my Pokémon okay?"

The older man nodded and looked back into his lab before glancing to the screen again. "Everything is doing fine here Ash and your Pokémon are as healthy and as strong as ever. Still training every day with each other just as if they were with you. And you know... that actually reminds me of something young man..."

Professor Oak's face adopted a stern expression and even though it made Ash nervous, he could tell the professor was just being humorous by the slight upturn at the sides of his mouth. Serious yes, but still humorous. The nervousness on Ash's part being because he knew that he'd have to spill the beans on Gastly and Haunter and tell the professor all about them very soon if not possibly even right now.

Professor Oak was a very curious man, a testament to the field he had been in his entire life practically, and thus, when one of the trainers whom he held such a strong hope for and interest in was holding out on him, the seasoned professional could all but not stand it. Especially when it was someone like Ash and not just because he had such a strong hand in the boy's upbringing as a trainer either but also due to the fact that in his very short time of being a Pokémon Trainer so far, the young Ketchum had somehow managed to capture some of the most unique and rare Pokémon the wizened professor had seen in his very long career as a Pokémon Researcher.

For Ash's part, he hadn't been intentionally neglecting to tell Professor Oak about the story behind Gastly's capture and Haunter himself, he had merely gotten distracted so much lately that he simply hadn't had the time to. Considering there was so much to tell about Gastly and Haunter in the first place, he had been wanting to wait until he had more time and it seemed as though now was going to be that time.

Rubbing the back of his head, Ash grinned nervously and answered his mentor after a few seconds. "Yeah umm... sorry Professor, I guess I've just been getting a little bit sidetracked is all..."

Oak crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Yes well I imagine you must have been, especially when it comes to keeping the origins of this particular Pokémon you captured a secret from me."

A small smile cracked across his lips at Ash's guilty look. "I am merely curious Ash, no need to feel so nervous or upset. I will admit to being more than a little surprised at seeing a Gastly- a talking and rather cheeky one at that to boot- appearing from the teleporter pad here at the lab when you first sent him over to me but after the initial shock of the matter had passed, my momentary surprise turned into immediate fascination."

The intelligent Pokémon Researcher shrugged. "After all, it's not every day you get to study a powerful talking Ghost-Type belonging to a trainer you sponsor and, call me an opportunist, but I wanted to know more almost as soon as the awe of the moment died down. That Gastly of yours is quite the chatterbox and more than a bit of a prankster..."

Ash facepalmed and sighed heavily at the mention of Gastly having misbehaved while he had been at the lab but Oak simply smiled nonplussed. "However, he was most fascinating and I soon found myself simply sitting down at my desk while eagerly listening to Gastly go on and on about it's recent adventures with you, it's life story and several other bits of interesting information that I was only too happy to hear.

Quite naturally, he didn't tell me everything concerning how you met or how he came to join you and said that it was a tale he felt best if told from your own perspective. Either way though, all of the intrigue surrounding Gastly aside, you should be very proud of yourself Ash. Ghost-Type Pokémon can be difficult to find and capture, even for an experienced trainer, so for you to already have added such a Pokémon to your ever growing team so early on is quite the accomplishment."

The Professor crossed his arms knowingly again. "They are also known for usually having a prankster nature and can be a real challenge to train but it sounds as though you already have Gastly on the right track to improving his already impressive skill set and becoming a very strong Pokémon. You have my congratulations once again."

Oak chuckled and gave a genuine smile. "I truthfully don't understand all of the hesitance in telling me more about Gastly though young man. I can't imagine any Pokémon leaving me more shocked or speechless than when you first captured and transfered over that giant Dragonite and Tentacruel of yours."

Ash himself gave a small laugh and rubbed the back of his neck again. "Well umm... see, the thing is Professor, there's sort of more to Gastly than meets the eye as you already kind of know and I wanted to tell you about it more in-depth than just a quick summary. And technically... well... there's sort of two of them now..."

The old professor appeared automatically interested. "Oh? So you've captured another Ghost-Type then I see? My dear boy you certainly have had some good luck just like my grandson in that department haven't you? Please tell me more I'm fascinated now!"

Before Ash began telling the professor about Haunter, he smiled at the mention of Gary's progress. "Really? So Gary's doing okay for himself then?"

Professor Oak nodded with a somewhat proud look on his face. "Indeed. He already has five badges and has captured quite a few Pokémon himself. He doesn't have the ones he keeps here at the lab on a strict training schedule like yours does though so to compensate for that, he tries to rotate his Pokémon in and out regularly."

Ash nodded and continued to smile at the professor's words. "Good Professor, I'm glad to hear he's doing so well for himself."

Professor Oak's smile slowly disappeared as he sighed. "Yes it is but I fear all this near instantaneous success is going to go to his head. My grandson has always had an unfortunate problem with ego and I'm afraid that his belief that he's the best Pokémon Trainer out there is going to catch up with him at some point and when it does, I don't see it being a lesson that Gary will be too eager at all to learn."

Ash looked down at his lap and processed the smart professor's words silently. He felt as though he had no room to really comment out of fear of bringing bad karma down on himself or sounding as though he were bragging on what he had accomplished himself so far. After all, he now had more than enough badges to enter the Pokémon League and several Pokémon just like Gary. If he said too much, Ash was honestly afraid of coming across as a braggart.

Instead, he simply nodded to the professor's words and then decided to begin telling him all about the story behind Gastly and his capture. Once he finished telling the tale of Maiden's Peak and everything concerning Gastly after that to a now very fascinated and intrigued Professor Oak, he decided to go for broke and bring up Haunter.

"Umm... Professor? I sort of captured a new Pokémon while we were in Lavender Town, the one I mentioned a moment ago."

Professor Oak waved him on anxiously. "Yes? Go on m'boy!"

Ash sighed and rubbed the back of his head. "Well it's uhh... it's a Haunter..."

The Professor could tell Ash was holding something back and looked at him intently through the computer monitor he was using. "That is also very good news Ash. Two Ghost-Type Pokémon in such a short stretch of time... impressive indeed. Though I sense there is something else to this particular matter... am I correct?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah Professor, it is. Haunter is sort of... well... unique. Really unique."

Professor Oak raised an eyebrow. "Oh? How unique exactly?"

Ash sighed again. "It's gonna be a bit of a long story Professor so get comfortable."

Waiting for the professor to comment but not getting one, Ash started the long tale of what happened in Lavender Town and recounted all of the most important details that had occurred during that time of great emotional struggle and peril.

The professor just sat in the chair behind his monitor at the lab and listened to Ash as he enthusiastically and energetically recounted his and his friend's grand and heroic ventures in Lavender Town. Dare not he say anything as Ash went on, merely content to live out the young trainer's brave and exciting tales of his most recent experiences through the stories that his surrogate grandson was so excitedly telling at present.

Ash made increasingly grand gestures to help tell the tales he was weaving and his face would routinely contort into different expressions that would help to relay the emotions and feelings he had so vividly experienced in those life changing moments that he was now so avidly describing in perfect detail.

All the while, Professor Oak just listened quietly with a small smile on his face. Feeling nothing but increasing pride and respect for the boy that he saw as a member of his own family as Ash told of how he and his friends had risked everything to save a despondent Pokémon lost to darkness that everyone else had long given up on and left in the shadows of despair.

The pure love and adoration Ash held for Pokémon was almost palpable in the stories he was telling and the aging professor could not help but see the little boy that was always chasing around and playing with Pokémon at his lab years ago right now as Ash went on.

He saw the enthusiastic little boy that so diligently listened to everything he told him day in and day out for five years in the budding, growing Pokémon Trainer currently before him in digital form. The same little boy he had helped Delia care for, feed and even change when he was but an infant long ago.

A boy that, as a toddler, would fall asleep in his lap as he read books to him and even recounted some of his own tales of adventure from when he was a Pokémon Trainer himself. Stories he would tell while Ash sat on his knee and looked up at him innocently, sucking his thumb with an expression of pure fascination and awe in his eyes every time a particularly fascinating part concerning Pokémon was mentioned.

Seeing the caring, pure hearted, loving Pokémon Trainer Ash had become nearly brought a tear to the professor's eye and in that one moment, while looking at Ash through the monitor, he couldn't help but think sorrowfully to himself, 'Richard you have no idea what you're missing out on right now with your son... you truly helped to create a remarkable young man and budding Pokémon Trainer.'

When Ash finally finished telling his story to the aging professor, the old man smiled and chuckled before replying, "It seems as though you four had quite the adventure indeed. You were also quite lucky to have received some personal instruction from Agatha herself. I've known her for many, many years and she is highly skilled and very adept at what she does. I would take everything she taught you and commit it to memory because it will benefit you well, believe you me.

He then leaned back and crossed his fingers. "Now as for the issue of Haunter, that in of itself is a very interesting topic indeed. I certainly have never heard of such a Pokémon before but I have however heard the tales of Black Fog that come from Lavender Town. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that it was a Pokémon though. The best thing I can tell you is that if you get the chance to send it back to the lab, I will do my best in researching it so I that may be able to tell you more. Until then, I'm afraid that I am at just as much of a loss on the subject as you."

Ash sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I figured as much Professor. It's no bid deal though, I can wait to find out more until later on. I do have another request for you though that I'd like to make if you don't mind."

The professor shook his head. "Not at all Ash, please go ahead."

The boy readjusted his grip on the Xtransceiver before beginning. "Well here's the thing... I don't want to keep traveling with the same Pokémon I am now. Aside from Pikachu, I want to start regularly rotating my Pokémon in and out. I know they train constantly at the lab, which is great, but I want to build bonds with all of them and I can't do that if they aren't with me. After this gym battle here in Saffron is over, I would like to switch my Pokémon out completely."

The wise researcher nodded to Ash's words. "I would be glad to help you by rotating your Pokémon as often as you need Ash. I'm glad you thought of it too, most trainers with a lot of Pokémon only stick with a select few and forget the rest. I'm sure your Pokémon would all be happy to get to share time with you individually. After all, there is no substitution for going out and getting real life experience!" The professor finished with a finger raised in the air.

Ash smiled enthusiastically at Oak's approval of his plan and then responded, "It's not so much about even just wanting my Pokémon to get stronger by doing this. My main purpose behind it is just getting to bond and grow closer to them all."

Professor Oak smiled at his reply. "Good choice of words Ash, very good indeed. Oh and while we're talking, I thought I should be telling you that your friend Salia should be arriving here within the next few days or so. She stopped to do some sightseeing along the way so her progress was slightly delayed."

Ash's interest perked up. "Really? Did she call you or something?"

"Indeed she did," Oak replied. "From about a day's travel outside of Cerulean City as a matter of fact. She seemed more than a little nervous to finally get here but I reassured her and said that any friend of Ash's is welcome here."

The raven haired trainer smiled. "Thanks Professor I really appreciate what you're doing for her. I think Salia will enjoy this opportunity since it'll keep her close to her old Butterfree."

The professor nodded his agreement. "I won't mind having a little bit of help here at the lab either young man. After all, taking care of a ranch full of Pokémon gets tiring as you get older. I definitely don't complain but it will be a relief to have a little help."

Seeing Nurse Joy finally entering the lobby to start her shift for the day, yawning into her hand as she walked behind the counter, Ash looked back down at the screen and waved. "I should probably go now Professor, I wanna get my training and everything else done before the others get up. Thanks again for everything."

Oak smiled and waved back. "Don't mention it Ash. I'll be waiting for whenever you decide to swap your Pokémon out. Have a good day and enjoy Saffron City!"

Ending the call with his mentor, Ash put his device away and headed to the front desk to get his Pokémon back. Speaking with Nurse Joy, it only took her a short time to go back into the medical bay and retrieve his Pokémon and as soon as all of his Pokéballs were back on his person with Pikachu atop his shoulder, Ash thanked the nurse and then left to train in the workout gymnasium of the Pokémon Center on the other end of the building.

When Giselle and Misty came down into the large workout room almost two hours later once they had woken up and readied themselves properly for training, they found Ash doing speed rope counts on one end of the gym while his Pokémon sparred against one another on the other side of it.

As soon as he saw them stretching by the entrance a short while later, Ash put the rope back on the rack where it came from and ran over to greet them. "Morning ladies! Sleep well? Sorry about not letting you know I was training earlier but I figured I'd let you sleep in."

Giselle smiled and shook her head. "It's okay Ash, when we got up and went down into the lobby looking for you, Nurse Joy told us where you were. I was actually a little surprised that this center has it's own workout room, the others we've been to hasn't had one." Looking around the sizable gym, she commented then in an impressed tone of voice. "This place is nice. Really nice."

The sweaty Ketchum smiled and also looked around at the gym. It was about the size of a normal cafeteria and had all the amenities that any commercial gym would have to offer their clientele. Treadmills, free weights, exercise balls, jump ropes, wall to wall mirrors, sweat towels, a locker room, spring loaded wooden floors and even a stretching mat.

"Yeah it is really nice," He agreed with a nod. "I was impressed when I came down here and saw it. The Pokémon like it too."

Giselle just nodded in reply while Misty asked from her single leg stretch position on the ground, "Do we have any idea where we want to go first today Ash?"

The boy stopped and put a hand to his chin in thought. "Well... I didn't really give it a lot of thought but I was considering maybe going on a tour of Silph today if you guys don't mind. Solidad's contest isn't until tomorrow so why not?"

Misty shrugged. "Sure I don't have a problem with it."

Giselle on the other looked a little bit uncomfortable before offering own reply, "Umm... y'know what? I've actually already been on the Silph tour when I've came here to Saffron in the past with my family so why don't you guys go and I'll maybe go shopping around in the city?"

Misty turned to the brunette at that moment and looked excited. "Hey that sounds a lot better than going to see some boring old company, can I come with you instead?"

Giselle smiled, looking slightly relieved at Misty's request. "Sure that'd be great, just us girls. I like it!"

Ash looked between them both, having seen Giselle's odd behavior at the mention of Silph, but chose to remain silent on that particular and just smiled instead. "Sounds like you ladies have a good day planned. I'll just see if Brock wants to go instead, what do you think?"

Both girls agreed enthusiastically and then the three of them commenced to engaging in an intense training session with their Pokémon for the rest of the early morning.

Later on at around ten, once everyone had showered and cleaned up, Ash could be found sitting at bench table on the patio outside of the Pokémon Center with Misty and Giselle sitting across from him. The Pokémon were all gathered a short distance away eating breakfast that Ash had prepared while Brock was making food for himself and the others on a small grill near the table.

"Yo Brock," Ash called over to his older friend. "How do you feel about going on the tour of Silph today while Giselle and Misty go shopping?"

The teen looked over his shoulder after flipping over the eggs he was cooking and nodded. "Sure Ash, sounds like a plan to me."

Ash gave a thumbs up and then sat back in his seat, patting his chest in comfort before he had to turn and face Misty who got his attention. "Do you have any idea who you want to use for those two gym battles you want to take on while we're here Ash?"

The young trainer crossed his arms and thought for a few moments before answering. "Well for the Psychic-Type gym, I'm planning on Gastly definitely - Haunter's not even an option right now until it learns to control it's power better - Pikachu, and then maybe Charmander. After that, I might swap all of my Pokémon out except for Pikachu for an entirely new line-up. Or I'll wait to do that until after we leave the city, I'm still trying to decide.

Giselle seemed to understand the reasoning for it right away as she offered with certainty, "You want to give all of your Pokémon a chance to get battle experience instead of just keeping the same six head line-up all the time don't you?"

He nodded and smiled at her. "Exactly. That and I want to get a chance to bond with them all. I was thinking about Primeape for one and then maybe... one of my Gyarados, Fearow, Paras and then Weepinbell."

Brock spoke up over his shoulder, "An Electric, Bug, Water, Flying, Grass and Fighting-Type team... sounds like a good line-up to me."

Ash simply shrugged. "That's the general idea. I want to have a well rounded team but also get a chance to bond with them all. What better way than that?"

The rest of the morning after that was spent with Ash and the others eating, conversing lightly about the day planned ahead and then cleaning up after themselves before returning their Pokémon and going on their separate ways with a parting farewell. Misty and Giselle heading off into the city for some sightseeing and shopping, mostly, while he and Brock traveled to the Silph building.

Upon arriving at their destination around noon, the two boys stared up at the large building towering above them before walking into the lobby. As they entered, Ash and Brock were immediately impressed by the professional, pristine and slightly futuristic appearance of the lobby itself.

There was a big fountain in the middle of the room, multiple chairs and other seating arrangements lined up on the sides of the ground floor, colorful floral pieces placed here and there, two receptionist counters on either end of the lobby and two elevators situated at the far back wall.

Looking ahead, they could already seen a small group of people gathered in the center of the lobby, most likely for the tour, and they shared a glance with one another before walking over to the receptionist desk on the right side nearest to them.

Coming to stand before a curly black haired woman wearing a white and silver receptionist suit with an earpiece in her right ear, Ash quickly spoke politely to her before Brock could have a chance to perve on the poor woman. "Excuse me miss, we're here for the tour of the building. Have we missed our chance to sign up for it?"

The lady looked down and Ash and smiled. "No sir, the tour begins in about fifteen minutes so if you take a seat in one of the lounge chairs here in the lobby, we'll call you up when it's time."

Ash smiled to the receptionist in thanks and then went to take a seat with Brock at a circular chair arrangement located around a coffee table a short ways away from the woman's desk.

While they sat and talked idly amongst themselves about different topics to whittle the time away, Misty and Giselle were having their own one on one time together quite some ways away on another side of the city.

Inside a large department store known as "Saffrocian Sales" the two young women were currently going from place to place within the large store while browsing through the extensive display of merchandise with excitable interest.

"Oooh Misty look at this!" Giselle exclaimed happily as she held up a cute white top with frilly patterns around the neck. "Isn't this beautiful?!"

Misty took a glance from where she was standing near some other clothes a short distance away and shrugged. "Yeah I guess but it'd look better in blue if you ask me."

Giselle took another look at the top and sighed. "Maybe... then again we can't buy much as it is, I don't have much room to carry anything else while on the road. I don't know about you."

Misty gave a small laugh. "Makes me wonder why we even came shopping today!" She then became a little more serious. "So are you and Ash still going out together sometime this week for your birthday while we're here?"

The brunette nodded. "Yes, that hasn't changed. I know he felt bad that we didn't get to really celebrate my birthday properly a few weeks ago due to all the traveling we've been doing but he insisted that while we were here in Saffron, we do it right and spend some time together." A bright smile suffused her face then. "Which I was only too happy for!"

Misty merely rolled her eyes. "Good for you, try not to explode."

Once the two of them were done in the store, they left and started walking down one of the many streets towards another outlet. However, just as they rounded a corner, Misty collided with someone and stumbled back until she nearly fell to her butt.

"Oh! I'm sorry, I should have watched where I was going," She said apologetically as she looked up at the person she had run into.

"Yeah well low credit trash like yourself shouldn't even be walking on the same block as people such as myself anyway!" Replied the other individual. A rather snooty looking blond girl wearing fancy clothes who was in a posse of about four other equally as ritzy, stuck up looking girls.

Misty, given her already rather delicate temperament, glared at the girl who appeared to be around her and Giselle's age and fired back. "Yeah? Well maybe if you didn't walk around with your nose stuck so high up in the air that it made you look like a disfigured Swanna then you would have seen me first!"

The other girl looked offended at Misty's rebuttal but managed to regain her composure as she sneered and responded back, "Oh isn't that cute? Some obviously poor little country hick tomboy trying to pretend like she fits into city life. Where did you get those clothes and that hairstyle from? The farm boy next door and his mother who gives cheap haircuts when she's not churning butter?"

Misty turned red at the other girl's harsh comment and that's when Giselle became angry and stepped in. "Hey what gives you the right to talk down to her like that? You think you're so much better just because your mommy and daddy most likely has a lot of money and you live more comfortably than most do!"

One of the girls standing next to the blond, a brunette with brown eyes who was dressed just as fancily, pointed at Giselle. "Well you certainly look like one to talk! Look at how you're dressed, you obviously have some style and sense of taste about you. What could you possibly be doing hanging around with a low-class nobody as this orange headed hick!"

Giselle rounded on her but before she could say anything, the blond girl spoke to her posse at large with a smirk upon her face. "Don't let the way she's dressed fool you ladies. She's probably just as poor and tasteless as her loser friend over there but they decided to steal some nice clothes from a local secondhand store just to come out on the town and pretend to be something they're not!"

Misty stepped forward and raised her fist. "Why don't you shut your collagen filled, herpes infested mouth before I shut it for you! High rise little hooker!"

Giselle quickly grabbed onto Misty in order to keep the aggressive redhead from jumping the other girl just as the blond's face contorted into one of anger at Misty's last rebuke. "Well if you want to talk big and mess with your superiors like the brain dead poor trash you are, why don't we settle this with a Pokémon battle? Two on two?"

The brunette beside her chimed in with a voice that was just as high pitched and irritating as their collective sense of superiority. "That is considering of course you even have any Pokémon to battle with. Unless you're too stupid to know what a Pokéball is, let alone how to use one!"

The other girls all laughed as Misty and even Giselle both saw red. "You're on!" Misty immediately agreed. "Count me in too!" Giselle consented just as readily.

Misty walked up to the blond girl and glared at her. "You name the time and place and we'll be there!"

The blond girl simply smirked again before turning around and waving back at them to follow her. "The park is near here, let's settle this there!"

Giselle and Misty shared a glance with each other and nodded before glaring after the retreating prissy girls and following behind them. Hellbent on teaching the snobbish rich kids a lesson about spitting on people who were less fortunate than them.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Back in the Silph Co. lobby, Ash and Brock were approached by the front desk attendant they talked to earlier who smiled at them kindly before speaking. "Excuse me you two but we now have everyone in attendance that we believe will be showing up for this tour and are ready to begin."

Ash and Brock both got up and then looked over towards the elevator to see a crowd of normal looking tourists all gathered together as they chatted amicably among themselves and snapped pictures of the lobby on their cameras. All save for one that is however, which was a man dressed in a long beige trench coat with a hat on his head.

Ash narrowed his eyes suspiciously as soon as he saw the aforementioned suspicious looking man and then shared a look with Brock, who seemed to be thinking the same thing. They both knew what that one Rocket Grunt on the St. Anne had told Ash before the ship sunk about their plans to attack Silph Co. at some point and with a mysterious, mostly concealed man going on the tour through the lower parts of the building, neither young man had any trust for him.

Putting their concerns aside for now though, they made their way to the back of the tour group and waited for a short time before the elevator doors opened up and out stepped a blond haired woman wearing the Silph employee outfit ( just like the front desk girl had on) with her hair pulled back into a tight bun.

Coming to stand before the tour group, she smiled and spoke kindly, "Hello everyone, my name is Sarah and I will be your guide today! I hope all of you enjoy the wondrous sights and spectacles awaiting you on this tour as I show you some of the lower level floors here in Silph Co. Today you will be getting a firsthand glimpse at what goes into making several of the things this company produces that you use every day, as well as several other items and devices you had no idea we manufactured. You might even get to see a few things still in production that have not been released to the general public yet, how exciting right!"

Brock and Ash merely exchanged amused glances at the woman's over exuberance before getting into a line behind the rather small tour group and filling into the elevator.

"Floor 1, here we come!" The lady said cheerily as she pressed a button and the doors closed, lifting them all up to the next level where the doors opened again to reveal a large factory-like assembly line. A truly massive production floor that showed several objects of varying types and sizes that were being carried and transported from one conveyor belt to the next, from machine to machine, all across the massive floor. An operation which was wholly run and maintained by several employees scattered all across the line whom had many different jobs and responsibilities to keep things working smoothly.

Stepping out onto the catwalk, the tour guide turned and gestured to the assembly line before them. "This floor is where all of the general products and items, mostly household and otherwise, are manufactured, packaged and handled that Silph Co. produces!"

Ash and Brock's gaze wandered around as she continued, "Everything from home appliances, gardening tools, simple electronic devices and automotive parts are all made right here before your very eyes! Our hard working, diligent and highly efficient production specialists keep these machines working and running at full capacity almost twenty-four-seven, every day and all day! Sure does make you respect the things you take for granted on a daily basis right?"

The other members of the tour all took pictures except for Brock, Ash and the mysterious trench coat man. Whom was standing in the very back with no way to tell his facial expression due to the hat and high collar coat he was wearing. Of which still made Ash feel nervous and on edge for some reason.

Once all of that was done and the tour guide finished explaining the operation of the manufacturing facility, everyone filed back into the elevator and continued on.

The next three floors were rather uninteresting to say the least. Floor two was a customer service and consumer help desk office floor with several cubicles all blocked off from one another in perfectly spaced rows all throughout the entire floor. Everything and everyone in the entire office space looking just as generic and bland as the next.

The third floor was mostly just another office space where the accountants, business handlers and financial staff resided and the fourth floor was a little bit different. While still an office floor essentially, it was a place in which the company graphic designers, tech specialists and communication/analyses experts did their daily work in improving the technical as well as communicational aspects of the company and all products released by them.

In simple terms, it was a "Tech Nerd's" paradise through and through as Ash and Brock quietly chuckled about amongst themselves.

The fifth level became slightly more interesting as it was revealed to be a testing and troubleshooting floor where specially trained employees would test, document and attempt to find and fix issues with most all products made by Silph Co. Except for the more technologically advanced issues, which of course were then forwarded straight down to the fourth floor where the tech specialists operated out of.

Floor six was a level of the building in which was entirely dedicated to products produced solely for Pokémon and the many Pokémarts that Silph Co. supplied to in Kanto and the Orange Islands and even all the way into Johto.

This particular floor was also like an assembly line but smaller and in a much less industrialized setting. The employees on this floor also had very particular training in their given field which separated them from their coworkers who worked on the lower levels of the building.

One such conveyor line allowed everyone to see Pokéballs of all different types getting pumped out across the belt. Such as standard Pokéballs, Great Balls, Ultra Balls and even a few other miscellaneous types of balls. A sight in which everyone was fascinated by, especially the strange man in the back. A fact Ash took notice of and watched him closely for out of the corner of his eye.

The seventh and subsequently final floor they went to was the medical and pharmaceutical science laboratory. A place in which all of the scientists working for Silph Co. specializing in medicinal sciences worked at.

Stepping out of the elevator and looking around in slight awe at the large, futuristic lab setting filled with people in white lab coats and medical masks over their faces, Ash and Brock's attention was only diverted by their tour guide as she spoke again.

"This is the floor where our in-house team of very knowledgable medical scientists work on finding new breakthrough cures for both people and Pokémon, as well as reproducing all of the many incredible medicinal remedies that you can already find in stores and PokéMarts everywhere!"

She then gestured to two subdivided areas of the large lab which were separated by a thick glass wall. "Given of course that we can't have an accidental mixing of the several different varieties of medicines we make, the plexiglass barrier you see separates both sides of the lab into the human and Pokémon pharmaceutical research divisions. The scientists working in these two departments are also specialists in their individual fields and never cross over into either side."

She then claps her hands together and smiles. "That's all for the tour if no one has any questions! The next few floors are entirely restricted to any but specific clearance level employees and the eighth floor above especially is the second and much more restricted research floor of Silph Co. Which houses a team of top grade scientists who spend every day creating and designing some of the most advanced and top secret new products that you may hear being advertised at any day now."

It was at that point, at the very end of the tour, when Ash saw the mysterious man in the trench coat show the first signs of real life that he had seen from him yet. The man stepped forward at the woman's last few words and it was in that moment that Ash feared he was truly looking at an undercover Rocket agent who was about to make some kind of a move.

Tensing in preparation to do something just in case the man actually did anything criminal, Ash felt that time was upon them as the strange individual finally made a move and lunged forward.

However, to Ash and everyone else's near jaw dropping, wide eyed shock, the man who appeared to potentially be a dangerous criminal about to commit some unspeakable act of terror did something that no one was suspecting.

Like some weird movie on TV, the man threw his hat off and then ripped his trench coat away... revealing that beneath it he was completely and totally naked.

Whilst everyone watched on still in obvious shock, the now nude stranger took off running towards the plexiglass barrier that separated them from the laboratory where the scientists were busy at work. His hands were swinging above his head wildly as he ran while the quite clearly insane man voiced some sort of ear piercing, wailing scream that sounded nothing short of lunacy at it's most manic. Almost like a cross between a crazed laugh and an animalistic shout all at once.

Fortunately, the female tour guide regained her senses fast enough to press the communicator switch just below her right earpiece as she spoke urgently, "We need security on level 7 right away!"

At the same time, the naked lunatic slammed himself up against the glass and began beating on the transparent wall while grinding himself up against it in some strange form of obscene dance. The scientists on the other side of the soundproof barrier had all stopped what they were doing by now and were just looking on in varying degrees of shock and disbelief - and even slight fear - as the maniac continued beating himself against the wall while ceaselessly screaming.

Recovering from his own shock and realizing something needed to be done, Ash shared a glance with Brock who nodded in return to the unspoken question.

Looking up at his shoulder to Pikachu, who was watching the man in confusion with one ear tilted to the side, Ash pointed at him and commanded, "Pikachu we need to stop that weirdo! Use a low powered Thunderbolt!"

The Electric-Type looked down at his trainer for just a moment as if to process the command in that moment of unwarranted insanity but he finally registered what was asked of him before nodding and then jumping down on the floor.

With a loud cry of, "CHUUU!" he released a moderately sized bolt of lightning at the naked man which struck him and lit up the streaker like a Christmas tree before dropping him to the ground mere moments later. Singed, twitching and out cold.

Not even a minute later, one of the side doors opened across from the elevator at the far side of the room and a group of Silph uniformed security guards came rushing in towards the downed man. Ash and Brock watched as they immediately cuffed the unconscious lunatic before lifting him to his feet and carrying him back out the door they just came from without so much as a word to anybody.

Several moments of silence passed by afterwords which was only broken by the tour guide coughing and then speaking in her professional, cheery voice once again. "Well, that was interesting to say the least! I hope everyone is okay and I sincerely apologize for that man's actions. I can personally guarantee you that he will be held for questioning by our security professionals before getting turned over to the police immediately thereafter and will be absolutely no further threat to anyone present on this tour."

One man spoke up from the group then in a slightly unnerved voice, "Does this happen often miss?"

She shook her head at the question and responded in a very sure tone, "No sir, I can assure you that this is not a regular occurrence. Today was just an unfortunate fluke of extreme randomness that took myself just as much by surprise as all of you. However, as you saw, our security staff is always ever present to put down any possible threat or intruder should the occasion present itself at any time."

Her words seemingly placating the rest of the tour group, Ash took that moment to speak up. "Excuse me ma'am, I noticed that security guards came in a different way than we did. I assume there are obviously other ways to traverse the building aside from the elevators?"

The woman looked back at the boy who effectively stopped the crazed nudist and smiled. "That is correct young man. As you can see, Silph Co. is a very large building and while the use of elevators is quite naturally the easiest way to get around and the only thing we use for the tours we offer, there are many other ways in which one can get around."

The lady then gestured at the door in which the security guards emerged from. "All throughout the building there are a multitude of stairwells, hallways, side corridors and other secret means of access routes that gets the employees of Silph Co. to whatever floor they need to be at on a daily basis. In all truth, without the elevators, this building is a veritable maze that sometimes takes several months for each employee to adequately learn how to navigate."

Ash nodded pensively and took everything she said into his brain where he memorized what he had just learned of the internal workings of Silph Co. as best as he could.

After that was over, the tour specialist led everyone back down into the lobby via the elevator where after thanking them all for coming, she pulled Ash to the side for a moment. "Young man, I just wanted to say thank you for the part you played in helping to subdue that man earlier on. You and your Pokémon's courage was definitely appreciated today and the president of Silph Co. will be informed of your kind deed."

Ash just smiled and shrugged. "Thanks miss but it was no big deal. Pikachu was the real hero anyway." Said Electric-Type just rubbed the back of his head and smiled. "Pi Pikachu!"

Offering Ash another thank you, the tour guide wished he and Brock a good day and then disappeared back into the elevator while the two of them made their way out of the building behind the rest of the tour group.

"Well..." Ash started as he and Brock walked down the sidewalk leading out of the building. "That was cool don't you think?"

Brock simply nodded and replied, "Yeah and we learned a lot about how the Pokémon stuff we use every day is made. A lot sure goes into it that I think people kind of take for granted if they don't get to see how it's done firsthand so I'm pretty thankful for the chance to learn."

His eyes became hearts then as he clapped his hands together and smiled goofily. "And that tour guide was so awesomely beautiful! I think I'm in love!"

Ash just sighed and shook his head. "Come on ya wacko, let's get back to the Pokémon Center so we can be there whenever Misty and Giselle show up."

As the two boys walked away from the building however, neither one noticed one of the nondescript men from the tour who had broken away from the crowd soon after leaving Silph. Co and was now hiding behind a few bushes in the street across from it the large building.

Leaning against a tree near the sidewalk while practically inside of the bushes - just enough so that he was out of plain sight - the man who had asked the female tour guide earlier if crazy people infiltrating Silph Co. happened often was looking down at the camera he had carried with him throughout the tour.

Wearing standard, inconspicuous, touristy vacation clothes, the black glasses wearing man smirked as he looked over the camera in his hands. A camera which at first glance seemed innocent enough and like any other photographic device but upon closer inspection was shown to be much more advanced and sinister in design than what it appeared to be.

With several strange buttons, switches and other odd nobs on it's surface, the device had a somewhat sizable screen in the middle of it that was currently showing what appeared to be a see-through, x-ray scan of the entire Silph building.

Hallways, stairwells, upper floors which had never been visited by the tour group, offices and many other intimately private areas of the building were all being displayed upon the faux camera as the man cycled between images.

Continuing to smirk smugly to himself that his sonar enabled reconnaissance camera had done it's job well, the mysterious man pressed a hand to the almost invisible earpiece within his ear and spoke with a disciplined voice into it. "This is operative 147 checking in with headquarters. My mission was a success; general outlined schematics of Silph Co. collected and ready for interpretation. Requesting permission to return to base."

A female voice replied back in crystal clear frequency over the com-system, "Request granted 147, your job is now complete and you may return to HQ. Over and out."

Stowing the camera back around his neck again, the mysterious man stepped back onto the sidewalk and began leisurely walking away with his hands in his pockets. Chuckling darkly to himself as he imagined that Silph Co. would soon fall into their hands along with all of their top secret devices, the man blended like a Kecleon into the crowd of people around him and became lost in the concrete jungle known as Saffron City moments later.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Standing in the middle of a grassy field within the Saffron Community Park, Giselle and Misty were currently faced off side by side against the rich, snobbish girls some ways across from them that had made such a show of insulting and belittling the two of them.

Preparing for their upcoming two on two Pokémon battle against the blond girl whom they assumed was the leader of her little click along with the brunette girl that was apparently her closest supporter, Misty and Giselle scowled as the former girl spoke in a voice dripping with conceded overconfidence. "Are you sure you two peasants want to go through with this? I really don't want to ruin your pathetic senses of self worth anymore than it already is!"

Misty fired back heatedly, "You done running your mouth or are we gonna battle already?!"

She flipped her hair and flicked one of her finely manicured hands. "Fine, have it your way." Pulling a Pokéball out from a necklace she had tucked underneath of her shirt, the blond prima donna looked over at her brunette lackey of a friend and said in a commanding voice, "Come on Donna!"

The brunette jumped to attention and nodded immediately as she coincidentally pulled out a Pokéball from a necklace that she also wore under her shirt. "Y-Yes Angela!"

At the same time, both girls threw their Pokéballs out and in a burst of light came a Wigglytuff and a Clefable whom announced their names proudly, "Wigg Wigg/Clefa Clefable!"

Giselle gritted her teeth as she saw the Normal and Fairy-Type Pokémon materialize on the field at the same time as Misty silently cursed. "How much do you wanna bet those two know how to use Sing?"

Misty looked over at her and rolled her eyes. "Duh! It's all but their signature move each and they're fully evolved, of course they know it!"

Giselle glared at who would be her partner for the upcoming battle and replied under her breath as she pulled out her selected Pokémon, "Don't gotta be smart about it..." She then tossed out the Pokéball she grabbed while shouting, "Go Graveler!"

As Giselle's Pokémon appeared, Misty chose her own Pokémon and yelled, "Starmie lets go!" as her own Water-Type bursted forth from it's ball and landed next to it's polar type-opposite in a bright glow of light.

With both sides of Pokémon now on the field, the battle quickly began with Misty yelling, "Starmie use Water Gun on Wigglytuff!"

"Star!" Was the instant reply of the star-shaped Pokémon as it sent a burst of water from one of the points on it's body that rocketed straight at the Normal-Type across from them.

However, the brunette girl known as Donna came to her leader's immediate defense. "Clefable use Metronome!"

With those words, the Pokémon that had only recently been reclassified as a Fairy-Type jumped in front of it's partner and began waving it's fingers back and forth. As it did, a bright glow suffused it's fingertips that caused a Light Screen to spring up in front of them and stop the blast of water dead in it's tracks.

Giselle wasn't idle either as she decided to capitalize on the moment by ordering, "Graveler use Rollout!"

Her Pokémon called out it's name and then tucked into a tight ball before taking off rolling as fast as it could towards Wigglytuff and Jigglypuff. Unfortunately for Misty and Giselle however, it seemed that both girls knew how to work as a team because Angela was quick to counter. "Wigglytuff pick Clefairy up and use Bounce to get away!"

"Wiggly!" Her Pokémon voiced in assent as it picked up it's partner and vaulted high into the air. At the same time, Donna commanded Clefable to use Metronome just as Graveler passed underneath of them.

Waving her fingers again, to Misty's surprise and Giselle's dread, a powerful spurt of water shot out of Clefable's mouth (by whatever misfortune of luck) that collided with Graveler down below and pushed it back several feet. The only thing keeping it from becoming more damaged than it was being the type-disadvantage training that Giselle put it through every day on the recommendation of Ash.

With Graveler temporarily stunned out of it's roll, Wigglytuff descended at it fast just as Clefable jumped from it's arms, allowing the Normal Pokémon to complete Bounce as it smashed it's feet into Graveller and sent it flying back across the field.

Clefable came out of it's dive in the air and turned said dive into a hurdling Headbutt which it used to smash it's cranium into Starmie's gem encrusted center. A grunt of pain escaping the Water-Type as it spun across the field and slammed into Graveler, both of them coming to a stop in a heap.

"Hey watch your Starmie already Misty!" Giselle chastised the other girl as she glared at her.

Misty returned the glare as she fired back, "It wasn't my fault you priss! Or should I be able to just magically control where my Pokémon lands after it gets hit?!"

Before Giselle could fire off a retort, Angela and Donna took advantage of their moment of distraction and pushed forward. "Wigglytuff/Clefable! Use Sing!" They both called out at the exact same time.

Just before they could start singing, Misty and Giselle attempted to stop the potentially disastrous song of unavoidable sleep inducing melodies. "Graveler use Rock Throw! Starmie use Swift!" The two girls shouted in close tandem.

Graveler, whom was still slightly dazed from the hit it had endured from Wigglytuff, reached into the ground and pulled a chunk of earth free which it hefted up into the air. However, due to it's daze, Graveler stumbled a little and when it did, it ended up right in the path of Starmie. Whom was behind it.

All at the same time, Misty's Pokémon released it's barrage of Swift stars which, instead of hitting their opponents, accidentally slammed into Graveler's backside and caused it to cry out and send the rock it was holding flying.

To Starmie's own misfortune though, the chunk of earth came soaring straight back at it and slammed into the Water-Type, knocking it backwards once again at the same time as Graveler fell to one knee after enduring so many hits from Swift.

Almost immediately, Giselle and Misty rounded on one another and pointed at each other at the same time. "That was your fault! No it wasn't! Yes it was!

Giselle glowered. "If your Starmie would have watched where it was aiming then none of that would have happened!"

Misty growled. "And if your Graveler wouldn't have stepped back into Starmie's aim then it wouldn't have gotten hit! It was YOUR fault!"

Due to both girl's now arguing amongst themselves and even Graveler and Starmie seemingly having a stare off at one another for accidentally attacking the other (given especially that both of them already didn't have a very nice history together as it was) they were prime targets as Wigglytuff and Clefable began singing.

Misty and Giselle heard this but before they could do anything to even hope to stop it, the dual songs took instant effect as Graveler and Starmie wobbled around slightly and then collapsed to the ground moments later. Completely fast asleep and showing no signs of movement whatsoever.

As Misty and Giselle stared at their Pokémon with obvious shock and dread on their faces, knowing what it meant, Angela laughed. "Wow we don't even need to battle you two! You're doing a fine job of beating each other yourselves!"

The other girls behind Angela and Donna laughed as Misty and Giselle gritted their teeth but said nothing. Both girls knowing that right now, it was impossible for them to do anything to help out their Pokémon. A fact Angela and Donna took advantage of as they commanded at the same time, "Wigglytuff/Clefable! Use Doubleslap/Meteor Mash!"

Wigglytuff and Clefable both acted simultaneously and took off running at their now fast asleep opponents. Angela's Pokémon arrived first at Graveler and began rapidly slapping it across the face as Clefable flew at Starmie with it's arm cocked back.

To Misty's utter chagrin, the Fairy-Type's fist glowed a silverish white color just before impacting with the Water-Type in a burst of multicolored stars, the attack sending Starmie careening back across the ground in a nasty skid.

Clefable then followed it's attack up with a Headbutt which knocked Starmie skyward just as Wigglytuff reared a glowing fist back and then slammed it into Graveler's sleeping body with a powerful Mega-Punch. The Rock-Type grunting in pain while still out cold as it flew into the air and collided with Starmie, both Pokémon falling back to the ground and landing in a another heap atop one another.

"Graveler/Starmie!" Misty and Giselle yelled together at the sight of their battered and fast asleep Pokémon lying flat on the ground.

Angela and Donna just laughed as the latter taunted, "I was hoping that for hicks they would at least put up some kind of a challenge because of all the Pokémon crap they probably shovel every day at their nasty little farm but I guess not!"

Angela smirked and put one hand on her hip while she pointed with the other. "I agree, now lets put an end to this so we go and hit the West End Outlets before they close up!"

At the same time as she said this, Donna nodded with a nasty smile and then commanded her Clefable to use Metronome again. Of which resulted in a powerful blast of water to shoot from it's mouth again by whatever random chance while Angela ordered her own Pokémon to use Stomp.

Misty and Giselle could only watch in trepidation and desperation as the final attacks that would surely put their Pokémon out for the count came hurdling at them. Both rich girls were grinning smugly all the while just as Giselle cried out, "Graveler please wake up!"

Suddenly, right at the moment's approaching end of no return, her cry awoke Graveler who slowly opened it's eyes to see the sight of Wigglytuff coming at it through the air with it's foot pointed downward for a fierce Stomp attack.

As soon as it spotted this, Graveler's eyes shot open fully and it used all of it's might to leap up and dig it's hands into the ground. Before Wigglytuff or anyone else could think to make a reaction, the Rock-Type juggernaut ripped a huge piece of earth out of the ground which it swung in a sideways motion and slammed into the descending Normal-Type.

A loud shriek of pain escaping Wigglytuff after the hit, it flew back from where it had come from as the blast of water neared the still unconscious Starmie.

Eyes widening since it knew that even a Water-Type move could potentially put Starmie out of commission right now, Graveler moved as quickly as it could and shielded the downed Water Pokémon with it's back turned away and arms out while facing Starmie. At the same moment, the torrent of aquatic power impacted with Graveler and caused the Pokémon to grunt and begin convulsing in pain due to the extreme effectiveness of the move.

While Misty gaped at how Giselle's Pokémon jumped to the defense of her own and the brunette herself encouraged Graveler on, Starmie slowly came to again and awoke to the sight of it's battling partner standing over it while taking the attack that was meant for it.

In a true state of surprise that didn't show on it's faceless body, Starmie watched as Graveler shook and grunted in pain but refused to move and allow the attack to get them both at the same time. It's desire to protect Starmie making it endure immense pain without a thought for itself.

Feeling a new resolve to fight and not to mention a newfound respect for the Pokémon that had once defeated it, Starmie shot up and then, unbidden, shot around Graveler and sped towards Clefable like a wildly spinning disc.

With Wigglytuff still dazed from Graveler's earlier counterattack and Clefable not expecting it be up and fighting again, Starmie closed in on the Fairy-Type in mere seconds and slammed into it's side with the pointy edges of it's body.

Clefable faltered back while crying in pain as Starmie jumped away and then shot off a barrage of Swift stars at it, which sent Clefable hurdling towards Wigglytuff as it let out another cry of pain.

Spinning backwards, Starmie landed next to Graveler and looked down at the kneeling, panting Pokémon. Offering a simple dip of it's body in a show of respect and thanks, Graveler gave a thumbs up and pained wink in return while nodding itself.

Giselle and Misty shared a glance in that moment and, after seeing their Pokémon work to defend each other when the other was in danger, realized that if they could put their differences aside in order to fight together, there was no reason why they couldn't either.

Smiling at each other, the two girls gave one another a nod and then looked back at their Pokémon. "Let's show these prissy little bitches just who they're messing with!" Misty yelled with fire alight in her voice again.

Giselle nodded and smirked. "For once I totally agree with you Misty!"

Together, they then commanded their Pokémon in total synch, "Graveler/Starmie! Use Rock Slide/Bubblebeam!"

In equal unison, Graveler and Starmie unleashed their attacks. Stomping on the ground, Giselle's Pokémon caused many large rocks to shoot up around it which it then began kicking, punching and launching at Wigglytuff and Clefable.

Starmie also began releasing dozens of fast bubbles which joined the hurdling projectiles of earth and began circling and rotating in and out, around them and behind them.

Feeling panicky, Angela called out, "Wigglytuff use Doubleslap to break those rocks!" She then looked over at Donna and demanded, "What are you standing there for?! Help me!"

The brunette shot to attention and nodded meekly before yelling to her own Pokémon, "Clefable use Metronome!"

As the Fairy-Type began waving it's fingers, a ball of fire formed in it's mouth signaling the impending release of some kind of Fire-Type attack. However, Misty was having none of that and countered with, "Starmie use Water Gun on Clefable!"

Starmie didn't waste a tick and grunted it's name before shooting a fast stream of water straight at Clefable, which passed through the flying rocks and bubbles unimpeded and struck it's target head on.

The force of the blast spinning Clefable around, the dazed Fairy Pokémon faced Wigglytuff just as it released the blast of fire it had been holding back. Now directly in the line of fire due to it's partner's fouled up aim, Wigglytuff took the brunt of the attack and fell backwards off balance just as several rocks and bubbles pelted it -all at once and launched it off of it's feet with a cry of pain.

Clefable was in no better condition than Wigglytuff either as it endured the same brutality as it's teammate which caused it to get launched across the field like a rock being slung from a plastic-band slingshot.

As Donna shrieked and covered her mouth, Angela whipped around and glared at her. "What the hell was that Donna?! Your stupid Clefable attacked my Wigglytuff!"

The brunette cowered back and began stuttering, "I-I'm sorry Angela I didn't mean for it to I swear! W-Wigglytuff just got in the way and-" While the two girls began arguing amongst themselves - their teamwork spectacularly falling apart all the while - Giselle smirked and looked over at Misty. "And they said our teamwork sucked!"

The redhead smiled and looked back at the battle occurring presently. "Should we put them out of their misery now?"

Giselle turned and pointed at Graveler. "You said it Misty, together! Graveler use Rollout!"

Misty followed it up with, "Starmie cover Graveler!"

As Graveler took off rolling as fast as it could towards their opponents, Starmie spun through the air behind it and, on Misty's command, began using Swift at the same time which began hailing down upon Wigglytuff and Clefable.

Covering their heads and crying in fear, Angela and Donna only just heard their Pokémon and turned their attention back to the battle right as Graveler smashed into Wigglytuff and Starmie into Clefable.

Both Pokémon flying back and landing near their trainer's feet, Angela and Donna looked up to see Graveler and Starmie standing side by side just as Misty and Giselle pointed at them and yelled out, "Graveler/Starmie! FINISH IT!"

Starmie launched a torrent of water and Graveler a large rock who's speed was only enhanced by the jet of water helping it along. Donna and Angela went wide eyed in fear and gripped onto each other, screaming loudly just as the attacks collided with their Pokémon and caused a large smoke cloud to shoot up into the air.

Several moments later after the smoke cleared, Wigglytuff and Clefable were shown to be lying atop each other on the ground completely unconscious.

Falling to their knees, Angela and Donna began crying like the spoiled brats they were as Misty and Giselle cheered and ran up to their Pokémon.

"Starmie you were incredible!" Misty praised as she hugged her Pokémon.

"Graveler I'm so proud of you and you did such a great job defending Starmie earlier too," Giselle spoke softly as she patted her own Pokémon on the back gently.

Both of the Pokémon merely shared a glance with one another and nodded once more in mutual respect to the other before turning their attention back to their trainers.

Turning and facing the other girls afterwards, Giselle crossed her arms as Misty put hers onto her hips and grinned. "So which one of you girls is next?"

Obviously terrified at the thought of battling either one of them, Donna and Angela's friends turned and shrieked as they began running away. The two aforementioned young ladies appeared equally as intimidated now by Misty and Giselle and quickly returned their Pokémon before taking off after them.

"Hey! Wait for us! Don't leave us here with them!" Angela screamed as she Donna disappeared over the crest of the hill without so much as a single glance back.

Giselle shook her head in amusement as Misty shouted after them, "Yeah you better run! And think next time before you act like major bitches to someone on the street!"

Looking back at Giselle, they both smiled at one another and giggled before clapping their hands together in a high-five and cheering, "Yeah!"

On the way back to the Pokémon Center after returning their Pokémon, Misty and Giselle were walking along in a comfortable silence which was eventually broken by the redhead looking over at the brunette and saying hesitantly, "Hey umm... Giselle? I just wanted to say thanks for sticking up for me earlier today when we first ran into those girls. I really appreciated it and I'm sorry if I was a little complicated to get along with at first during the battle."

Giselle looked over at the younger girl and smiled. "No worries Misty, those girls were total snobs and reminded me of myself before I started traveling with you guys. I was only too happy to put them in their place and I gotta say... we work well together."

Misty returned the smile and nodded. "Yeah you know I guess we do."

Nothing else was said after that all the way back to the Pokémon Center but both girls knew there was really no point. Their battle together had spoken more than either of them could themselves and even though they knew that they had many differences that set them apart, sometimes it was polar opposites that made the best friends.

Even when they returned to the center and were questioned by Ash and Brock on how their day was down in the lobby over dinner, the two of them merely shared a glance that showed equal respect for the other before smiling slightly and turning back to the boys with a simple shrug. Answering in perfect unison at the exact same time, "It was okay. You?"

As the two young men began animatedly telling the tale of their humorous experience concerning the naked man in Silph Co., Misty and Giselle listened on with fascination and humor while occasionally sharing a glance which easily translated the newfound respect and perhaps even budding friendship that was forming between them.

All in all, it was a good end to a very interesting day that none of them would soon forget.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

"Wow this place is huge!" Misty observed in awe as she stared up at the Saffron City Pokémon Contest Hall the next day alongside Ash, Brock and Giselle.

It was the day of the contest and the city was abuzz with excitement and streets full as people came far and wide to witness the beautiful and awe-inspiring performances that were sure to take place inside the doors of the Contest Hall in just a short amount of time.

Even though the building itself was situated outside of the city in the middle of the countryside which shared a nice view of Saffron City, the entire town was still bustling like crazy as people hustled and rushed to either get a bus or walk on foot to the masterfully architected performance hall. Of which rested on the edge of a river which only added to it's enrapturing eye appeal.

Having gotten up early together and did their morning training with their Pokémon, Ash, Misty and Giselle had come downstairs from taking a shower after an exhausting workout in the center's gym that morning to find that Brock had already prepared everyone's food so they could leave and make it to Solidad's contest without being late.

Now, as the four friends stood near the main doors of the Contest Hall and looked up at the large building in awe, they were all exceedingly glad for Brock's earlier forethought and could only think of one word to say in reply to Misty's statement.

"No kidding..." Giselle, Brock and Ash all said at once while taking in the many people walking around who were not only heading into the building but also stopping by the several souvenir, food and game vendors that were set up alongside the concert walkway that led up to the Contest Hall doors.

"It's too bad we don't have a way to get ahold of Solidad," Giselle observed as she looked around for any signs of the redhead. "I'd like to talk to her before she goes on."

Brock looked around as well and then shrugged. "She's probably already backstage getting prepared. I'm sure we'll run into her after it's over."

"Well come on guys, let's head inside and get our seats," Ash called back as he began walking towards the doors.

As they entered the large lobby inside of the Contest Hall, Ash and the others looked around and saw people all throughout the lobby. Some standing, some sitting down in benches near windows and in chairs in the middle of the lobby, and many others still were up at what was apparently the administration counters.

Walking around slowly and taking in the scenery around them, the group of four friends saw pictures hanging on the walls of Pokémon in various positions of what was most likely mid-performance poses, miscellaneous contest moments of varying subject matter and even singular photographs that seemed to depict the winning contestants of each contest along with their Pokémon.

Making their way up to the counter nearest to them, Ash spoke politely to the lady manning it. "Excuse me miss, we're here for the contest."

The woman looked at Ash and smiled. "Of course! The general admission price is 30C per person."

Ash, Brock, Misty and Giselle each payed their own way and once collecting the fee, the lady pointed to a door near the counter. "Just head straight through that door and find a whatever seats are available. The contest starts in ten minutes, enjoy!"

Nodding in thanks to the woman, Ash and his friends went through the door and came out into a truly massive open arena area where several seats and bleachers were set up in front of a big stage that was situated right in the middle of the expansive hall.

Moving around the crowded area, Ash and the others eventually found a few seats about halfway down from the top and bottom seating section they were in. Seats in which were facing the stage with a rather clear view of both it, well as the massive screen that was set into the wall above the stage itself.

"Wow this place is so packed!" Misty stated disbelievingly as she looked around at all of the people in the hall.

"That must be the judges down there right?" Giselle asked as she pointed to three separate podiums set up in front of the stage where a man in a red suit with black and grey hair as well as a short, squinty eyed, closely cut brown haired man and Nurse Joy herself were sitting.

"Yeah I think so," Ash answered. "Those are probably the judges that Solidad told us about. Mr. Contesta and Mr. Sukizo if memory serves right, and most likely that's the Nurse Joy we dealt with at the center. She did disappear after all by the time we were done working out this morning."

Brock was all but drooling as he leaned forward in his seat. "I already love Pokémon Contests simply because of the view!" His eyes were focused on Nurse Joy and Misty and Giselle just sighed before, suddenly, the lights dimmed and a spotlight came on stage.

"Hey guys it's starting!" Ash announced as he leaned forward himself.

All eyes were soon focused on the stage as a peppy looking, slightly curly sandy blond haired woman emerged from a long hallway to the left of the stage (one of two, the other being on the right) and came running out onto it. Wearing a blue and white colored visor hat with a microphone in her ear, a blue sleeveless top and same colored shorts on her torso, light purple hosiery on her legs, white boot-type shoes on her feet and a pink sweatband on her right arm, the woman stopped in the middle of the stage and called out enthusiastically into the microphone.

"Hello everyone and welcome to this year's annual Saffron City Pokémon Contest! I'm your contest announcer Lilian and I am so excited for another incredible competition between the highly skilled coordinators who have come from all over the region to compete here today! Aren't you?!"

The entire hall lit up with the cheers of the crowd as Lilian smiled and held her hands up. "That's what I thought! Now before we begin, I would first like to take a moment to introduce our judges for today's performance!"

Gesturing to the red suited man seated at the far right podium first, Lilian gave his identity away to all who were in question. "Our first judge is none other than the creator of Pokémon Contests himself and the Chief of the Pokémon Activities Committee... Mr. Raoul Contesta!"

Standing up, the older man turned and waved to the audience behind him. "Thank you everyone for coming out today! I hope you are all looking forward to this as much as I am!"

Sitting back down, the spotlight was then focused on the shorter man beside of him as Lilian spoke again. "And now, the Chairman of the Pokémon Fanclub, give it up for Mr. Sukizo!"

The crowd cheered again as the squinty eyed man turned around and waved while simply saying, "Remarkable!" before sitting back down once more.

"And now for someone most of you probably already know," Lilian said as she reared her arm back. "I give you Saffron City's very own Nurse Joy!"

As she pointed at the pink haired nurse and yet another eruption of cheers sounded off, Joy stood with her hands clasped in front of her and smiled cheerfully. "Thank you all for such a warm welcome! I hope today is a safe, fun and enjoyable experience for everyone!"

With all of the judges announced and Misty holding Brock back so he didn't lunge over the seats in an attempt to get to Nurse Joy, Lilian held her hands up and winked. "Now that all of the introductions are over, let me explain the rules of this contest before we begin!

There will be two rounds to this Pokémon Contest! The first is the appeal round where contestants will attempt to show off the beauty, grace, intelligence, poise and specialties of their Pokémon! Once all contestants are finished, the judges will decide who moves on and who gets eliminated and then that opens up into the battle round!

In the battle round, contestants will face against each other with their Pokémon and attempt to defeat them in one of three ways! Either by knockout, whoever loses all of their points first or who has the most points remaining at the end of the time limit. The contestant who manages to come out on top at the end of the competition will take home..."

Lilian then held a beautiful pink ribbon out she had in her left hand. "The gorgeous Saffron Contest Ribbon!" Putting the ribbon away, Lilian held her other hand up again. "Now without any further ado, let's get this show on the road!"

The crowd applauded yet again as the first round of the Pokémon Contest began in earnest.

For the first several performances, Ash, Brock, Misty and Giselle were left in a state of awe and amazement at the truly wondrous, incredible and splendorous acts that were put on by the many participating Pokémon Coordinators and their highly skilled partners.

They saw a Crobat that moved like a blur who created several Razor Winds and then trapped them in a Gust tornado that spun and twisted them around inside of it's funnel like a twirling, dancing snow globe of deadly windy fury.

They saw a Raticate with a pelt that seemed to shine who was capable of creating dozens of clones of itself using Double Team that it then had perform several athletic and acrobatic stunts, flips, spins and twirls like a one Pokémon circus routine.

A Rapidash that was capable of using it's incredible speed to run around the stage so fast it was able to make a giant flaming ring of fire that burned so brilliantly and brightly, some of the observers actually had to cover their eyes.

One particular Sandslash had the amazing control over it's Sandstorm attack to where it was actually able to create several large twisters of sand which it then used to hop from one to the other in mid-air while making poses as it did so.

And, surprisingly enough, there was even an Ivysaur which had learned how to use it's ropes in perfect conjunction with it's trainer to form a speed jump roping team that was performed in near perfect, flawless synchronization. The two of them actually switching in and out between who controlled it's two vines as they each performed impressive tricks and stunts and all without a third person to help control said vines.

Needless to say, after watching so many amazing performances, Ash and his friends were truly in a state of total awe.

"Man this is so amazing!" Misty said breathlessly as she sat back in her seat and smiled. "I mean wow!"

Giselle was leaning forward in her seat with stars practically in her eyes. "Seeing this type of thing up close is beyond words! I love it!"

Ash looked over at Brock. "Solidad should be coming out soon right Brock?"

The teen shrugged with his arms crossed. "Yeah most likely, it's been quite a few people so far. She should be up soon."

It was at that same moment that Lilian called out once more, "Next up is a veteran in the contest circuit! She's competed in the Johto and Hoenn region Grand Festivals and has even been in our own a time or two! She hails from Pewter City, please welcome Solidad!"

As the redhead herself came running out onto the stage waving at everyone, Ash and the others started cheering and calling out to her.

"Solidad!"

"Yeah Solidad!"

"Knock em' dead Soli!"

"You got this Solidad!"

Without breaking her stride, Solidad jumped into the air and threw a Pokéball up into the air as she called out with a voice full of confidence and strength, "Butterfree! Take the stage and show your shine!"

Out of the Pokéball, a bright burst of light that emitted gorgeous purple, blue and pink stars came shining forth which signaled the release of a blur of a blue and white. A blur so fast that some even had trouble keeping up with it.

The speeding figure shot up into the air in a twirling, spinning motion, which had everyone watching in awe as it then rapidly descended to the ground with it's wings furled in. However, just before it could hit the stage below, the object opened them again and flew forward into the crowd. Ducking, weaving, dodging and flying all throughout the mass of people before it rocketed towards the stage again and took to the ceiling once more.

As it reached it's destination, the figure stopped completely and flung it's wings out to the sides, releasing a burst of bright silvery powder which drifted to the stage below and landed on Solidad's hair, making her already sleek and shiny red locks glisten with flecks of silver in it.

As Solidad held her hands up in the air towards her Butterfree which was now hovering up in the air while sparkling as well, the crowd cheered loudly at the spectacular entry of the speedy Bug-Type alone.

Without giving any chance for reprieve or the crowd a chance to settle down, Solidad pointed and called out, "Butterfree use Silver Wind into Stun Spore, Poison Powder and Sleep Powder!"

With a cry of "Free!" the female Butterfree extended her wings out and then thrust them forward. As she did, a thin plume of shining, silverish powder came spreading outward across the open air in a fast motion.

Shooting to the side, Buttefree flapped her wings together again which sent a purplish burst of Poison Powder at the silver one. She then repeated this action in two other directions until the yellow powder of Stun Spore and lighter orange powder of Sleep Powder had coalesced with that of Poison Powder and Silver Wind. Effectively creating a large cloud of multi-colored powders that sparkled, glinted and shone under the lights of the ceiling above.

"Would you look at that folks!" Lilian exclaimed with an impressed air to her voice. "Butterfree has created a cloud of several different spore attacks that now resembles a shining rainbow of colors! Amazing!"

As the crowd watched on in awe, including Ash and his friends, Solidad called out again, "Now use Whirlwind Butterfree!"

Backing up, Butterfree started beating her wings rapidly and created a large twister around the multi-colored spore cloud that served to trap it inside of the funnel. However, instead of dispersing it, the cloud was so thick that it actually started spreading out into the twister until the entire funnel was alight with vibrant, shining colors of blues, purples, yellows, oranges and silvers.

Before Lilian could even comment on the breathtaking spectacle, Solidad commanded again, "Now use Double Team and Agility Butterfree! You know what to do!"

The flying Bug-Type nodded to her trainer's words and then sped towards the funnel of violently spinning colors while creating several copies of herself that surrounded the twister. Then, just before she could hit it, Butterfree reared straight up above the twister as her clones all began flying into and the out of the churning gust of wind.

While the original Butterfree stayed hovering above the twister like the ring leader of a circus show, her doubles shot in and out of it like they were diving into a vertically ascending wall of water. Something that, to the crowd spectating, made it appear as though dozens of speedy little balls of blue were swimming inside of the almost prismatic funnel of wind.

"This... this is amazing ladies and gentleman!" Lilian shouted into her mouthpiece again. "I've never seen so much going on at one time by one little Pokémon before! The colors in that whirlwind combined with all of the shapes flying inside of it are just incredible!"

Solidad smiled to herself before raising her hand and giving another command. "Buttefree it's time for the finale! Use Gust!"

Rearing her entire body back, Butterfree thrust her wings forward with another cry of her name and launched a powerful gust of wind at the twister below which, upon impact, caused it to explode with a loud popping sound.

As the funnel disappeared, the spores inside of it were released and shot up into the air, slowly drifting down to the stage while still in their combined state which made it look like a rain of sparkling rainbow flecks had suddenly started falling from the heavens themselves.

Surprisingly enough, most likely due to Solidad's training of Butterfree's control over it's attacks, the shower of normally toxic spores only fell upon the stage instead of spreading outward into the crowd. Of which Lilian and Solidad were quick to back away from temporarily as said spores continued to slowly fall to the stage while Butterfree herself stayed hovering up in the air.

After the breathtaking spectacle finally ended, Butterfree hovered back down and landed on Solidad's outstretched arm, whom had since stepped back out onto the stage.

Smiling and nodding to her Pokémon, Solidad faced the crowd again and then bowed along with her Pokémon as the entire hall exploded into uproarious applause. Fanfare which Solidad gracefully accepted as she waved humbly to the crowd and smiled genuinely.

Among the cheering fans were Ash and the others, who were calling down loudly to Solidad.

"That was incredible Solidad!"

"You rock girl!"

"Way to go Soli, you were amazing!"

"Alright Solidad and Butterfree! Way to shake the house!"

Being that they were close enough to the stage, Solidad was just able to hear their voices and looked their way, finally able to spot the group of four by seeing Ash's signature colored jumpsuit and the Pikachu that was perched atop the railing in front of their seats.

An even brighter smile stretching across her face, Solidad waved in their direction and pointed, letting the four young trainers know that she indeed saw them.

Coming back out onto the stage, Lilian spoke back into her microphone as the loud applause finally died down somewhat. "Wow everyone! Wasn't that just incredible?! Let's hear what the judges have to say concerning that miraculous performance!"

Mr. Contesta was the first to go as he gave his assessment of the recent appeal into the microphone on his podium. "That was absolutely amazing! A true testament to what can be achieved if coordinator and Pokémon work tirelessly to achieve their goals together. Never before have I seen such a breathtaking performance here at the Saffron City Contest and it was a real treat!"

Mr. Sukizo went next and merely gave an enthusiastic "Remarkable!" before allowing Nurse Joy to give her own assessment. "I found Solidad and Butterfree's performance to be marvelous and beyond words. I for one do not have a single complaint concerning anything I saw!"

Facing the crowd again, Lilian called into her microphone once more, "Did you hear that folks?! Such high praise from our esteemed judges, now that's something to be proud of!" She then looked at the judges score panels. "Let's see what the judges will award our two contestants with now!"

A few moments passed by and then all three judge's podiums lit up on the front of them, which likewise showed up on the big screen behind the stage. "Will you look at that everybody! Perfect 10's from all three judges!"

As the crowd applauded once more for Solidad, she gave another bow and wave - specifically to Ash and the others up in the stands - and then retreated off stage and into the hallway she had emerged form earlier with Butterfree still perched on her shoulder.

Turning back to face the crowd, Lilian made a fist. "And that does it for the appeal round of this contest! We're going to take a short break and then start the battle round right after that so make sure to be here and catch all of the action!"

As several people began getting up and leaving the hall to go stretch their legs and rest for the intermission, Ash leaned back in his seat and smiled as he shook his head. "Man Pokémon Contests are so freaking awesome!"

Misty smiled teasingly at him and joked, "You thinking about switching careers Ash?"

The raven haired boy looked at her and shook his head. "No way but I tell ya, I could definitely see myself getting into some contests one day! I mean, think about all the possibilities that it could open up if you mixed Pokémon Coordinator training and skills with normal Pokémon Trainer ones? It could really give you a huge leg up!"

Brock nodded and crossed his arms while replying to Ash's statement, "I agree with you Ash. Being a well rounded trainer and coordinator together would really make you and your Pokémon a force to be reckoned with no matter who it was you battled."

Giselle looked down at the stage and chimed in, "Yeah but taking on both at once would be really taxing and extremely hard. You can tell these people train day and night with their Pokémon to get themselves prepared for these contests."

Ash looked over at his girlfriend. "Yeah I agree Giselle and that's why I wouldn't even think about trying it until I had more time to grow as a Pokémon Trainer and got a little more experience under my belt. But it sure would be cool right Pikachu?" He asked his first Pokémon.

Pikachu looked back at Ash from his place still perched on the railing and smiled and nodded. "PI Pikachu Pi!"

Ash chuckled at his Pokémon's enthusiastic reply, which he figured probably meant yes, and then stood up. "Well guys, I'm hungry for some peanuts that I saw at one of those outdoor vendors and need to stretch my legs. You guys coming?"

Brock, Misty and Giselle all stood up and followed Ash out of the hall and then spent the rest of the intermission break exploring the mini-festival outside of the Contest Hall. Not coming back in and taking their seats again until almost a half an hour later when Lilian called over the intercom system that it was time to start the next round of the contest.

Sitting next to Giselle this time around with a drink at his side and a bucket of popcorn that the two of them were sharing together, Ash turned his attention back to the stage eagerly. Pikachu was in his lap looking just as anxious while Giselle, Misty and Brock (whom were also chowing down on their own snacks) all seemed to share a similar vibe.

Soon, Lilian came back out onto the stage and her voice sounded throughout the hall again, "Okay everyone break is now over! Are you ready for some Pokémon battling action?!" The crowd cheered loudly and she smiled. "Alright! Now without further ado, let's start the battle round!"

With those words spoken, the final round of the contest began in earnest.

As coordinators and their Pokémon fought against one another valiantly in an attempt to survive each round and move on to the next one, Ash and his friends were treated to the spectacle of just how different contest battles were from regular battles.

While contest adept Pokémon obviously didn't posses the same raw power, strength and brute force of their Pokémon Gym battling brethren, they did show a level of grace, flamboyance and special skills that more than made up for it.

Instead of merely going at one another as hard as they could in an attempt to thrash their opponent into the ground until they could no longer battle, contest trained Pokémon showed that participating in in these types of battles depended on much more than simply power and strength.

A contest Pokémon had to possess the ability to think on their feet, control their movements almost perfectly and try to prevent their opponent from performing any movements too flashy while battling. They also had to move quickly and fight as smartly as they could since they only had five minutes on the clock to outdo each other.

Each opponent had a rectangular bar of energy below their facial

image and every time that their Pokémon would either land a hit on one another, miss an attack, perform an overly flashy move or use their opponents move against them, the circle of points would decrease. Whomever lost their points first, had the least amount by the end of the time limit or got K.O.'ed would lose the battle.

Ash, Brock, Misty and Giselle witnessed several impressive battles throughout the battle round. Seeing Pokémon that were able to make battling just as beautiful, graceful and captivating as the appeal round itself was.

Most of the time, all the battles they witnessed would end by K.O. instead of the other two ways there were to lose and this rung especially true with Solidad. Who's Butterfree was just as much of an effective battler as she was performer.

Even though Butterfree seemed just graceful and flashy, she had fierce speed and a surprising attack force on her side that left her opponents dizzy, confused and most of the time frustrated before she finally came in for the knockout.

Watching Solidad and Butterfree battle (whom were practically perfectly in-synch with another) Ash was able to deduce that they had a strategy that was perfectly formulated for the contest circuit. Instead of simply going all out and wasting all of their energy right out of the gate, the two of them would let their opponents attack as much as they wanted to while expending large amounts of stamina to knock Butterfree out of the air early in the battle.

The strategy came into play concerning Butterfree's speed. Given that she was faster than all of her current opponents, she would simply fly around quickly and gracefully dodge all of her foe's attacks without so much as attaining a scratch. Which proved to be extremely effective as every time they would miss and fail to hit her, their ring of points would decrease. Then, once they were tired out and began to slow down, Solidad would have Butterfree move in on the offensive and take them down with usually one, or just a couple of merciless attacks.

Even on the few times that Solidad and Butterfree's opponents would perform a flashy move that took some of their own points away, it would end up becoming a moot point when said attacks would always fail and result in their opponents losing just as much, or more points, than they themselves did.

After watching three battles with Solidad and Butterfree, whom won each round without losing hardly any points and barely breaking a sweat, it was not hard to believe for Ash or any of his friends that she was moving onto the final round of the contest.

A fact Giselle gave voice to as the final battle was about to take place. "I can't believe how good Solidad is! She's gonna win this no problem!"

"Yeah!" Misty agreed readily. "This guy doesn't stand a chance!"

Ash looked down at the stage and then the large screen behind it that showed Solidad's picture on one side and then one of a brown haired, green eyed man on the other who was her opponent for the final match. "I don't know you two, I wouldn't be so sure yet."

Giselle and Misty both looked at Ash and at the same time asked, "What do you mean?"

However, it was Brock that answered while crossing his arms. "He's talking about the guy Solidad's going up against. He's shown a lot of skill and strength getting here and I think he can definitely offer her a challenge."

The man Brock was talking about had been using an Arcanine throughout the battle round that possessed just as much speed as Solidad's Butterfree but also had tremendous offensive strength and power to back it up. Skills in which it and the Fire-Type's trainer had used to practically steamroll over the competition up to this point.

"If Solidad isn't careful and doesn't battle extremely smart here, she may just lose." Ash surmised while scanning the stage where Solidad and the brown haired man were now standing and awaiting the announcement to begin with their Pokémon already out. "Arcanine has way more brute strength and power than her Butterfree does so it could be anyone's battle in my opinion."

Giselle and Misty both turned their attention back to the stage just as Lilian came out and announced excitably, "Alright ladies and gentleman! This is the final match of the battle round and our last event of this Pokémon Contest! We have Solidad of Pewter City going up against Derek of Fuchsia City for the right to take home the Saffron Ribbon! If you guys are ready... then let's battle!"

With the announcement made, Lilian moved off the stage and shouted, "Start the timer and go!" as the clock started ticking and the battle finally began.

A fight in which the man known as Derek started off quickly as he commanded without any time for thought or pause, "Arcanine use Quick Attack!"

With it's body glowing a bright white, Arcanine shot off across the stage towards Butterfree. Solidad however wasn't about to be caught unawares and reacted quickly, "Butterfree ascend!"

Just before she could receive the full impact of the Fire-Type's incoming attack, Butterfree spun up into the air to avoid it and just barely got clear as Arcanine passed below her.

However, most likely so they wouldn't lose any points, Derek called out again, "Arcanine spin around and use Flamethrower!"

Jumping and spinning around on it's front paws in mid-air, Arcanine did a total 360' and launched a jet of red hot flames out of it's mouth at Butterfree.

Luckily, the female Bug-Type was fast on her wings and used them to flap upwards, sending her down and out of the way of the blast of flames just as it passed over where she had been moments before.

Derek's circle of points decreasing slightly due to the missed attack, he tried to compensate immediately by pressing forward again. "Arcanine use Double Team and combine it with Flamethrower!"

As the four legged Fire-Type jumped back, several copies of itself suddenly phased into existence and took up a circular position above where Butterfree was hovering. Then, at the same time, they all released identical bursts of fire which roared up towards the flying Bug Pokémon in a cylindrical, cone-like fashion.

Even though Butterfree started dodging, weaving, turning and flying out of the way of the streams of fire with all haste the crowd appeal of the combination move was enough to cause Solidad to lose points as her circle lost some of it's yellow coloring and faded to black.

Unfortunately for her, while Solidad couldn't really have her Pokémon perform any kind of counterattack while under such heavy fire (since any wind based attacks would only make the flames themselves that much more powerful) Derek saw the perfect opportunity and he took it.

"Arcanine now use Quick Attack!"

As soon as those words left his lips, a blur of white energy came hurdling up at Butterfree out of nowhere. Still attempting to avoid all of the jets of fire that was coming at her from below, Butterfree was too little too late to see the real Arcanine that was now on a collision course with her.

While the copies of Arcanine had been keeping her busy with Flamethrower down below, the real one had managed to get itself into a position far enough back without being seen that it had set itself up into perfect position for a surprise attack. An attack in which it was putting into play now as it smashed into Butterfree, eliciting a cry of pain from her as she fell to the ground below.

At the same time, Arcanine landed on the ground neatly while all of the copies of itself vanished just as the Fire-Type opened it's mouth on Derek's command of, "Fire Spin!" and launched a circular vortex of flames at the descending Butterfree.

Unable to help her still stunned Pokémon, Solidad shouted, "Butterfree!" just as the flames consumed it and trapped the Bug-Type within the blazing inferno of fire.

The crowd watched in awe and some even in fear - like Ash and his friends - as Butterfree cried out in pain from inside the dome of fire. However, it wasn't over because just as the fire based attack died down and the orange glow and heat it was giving off across the hall finally passed, Derek commanded again, "Arcanine use Take Down attack!"

Butterfree - whom was now badly burned and smoking - fell towards the ground limply just as Arcanine finished it's brutal series of attacks by charging full speed at her and slamming into Solidad's Pokémon, sending her spiraling across the stage where she smashed into the ground and lay still a few short seconds later.

Solidad's points dropped all the way down to just under a quarter thanks to the vicious onslaught while Ash and his friends all leaned forward and gripped onto the railing. "Buttefree!" They all shouted in unison as Solidad watched her Pokémon struggle on the ground.

"Butterfree you don't have to keep battling!" Solidad yelled upon seeing her Pokémon attempting to get back up. "I don't want you to get hurt!"

However, when Butterfree turned her head and looked back at her trainer, Solidad saw a look in her big, round eyes that translated to the redhead everything she needed to know about her Pokémon's intentions for the battle itself.

Recognizing what Butterfree was trying to relay through years of training and working together as a team, Solidad calmed herself and gave a barely noticeable smile before nodding. "Okay old friend... I trust you."

Lilian commentated in clear surprise as saw Butterfree get back up slowly, "Folks this little Butterfree just won't stay down! I tell you, this announcer is impressed at the tenacity and determination I'm seeing out of this Pokémon right now! Incredible!"

Derek obviously thought the match was already over though as he smirked and called out while seeing they still had about two minutes left, "Arcanine end this with Take Down!"

The Fire-Type howled to the air and then took off at blazing speeds towards the struggling Butterfree. A look of cold steel and barely contained excitement in it's eyes for the match it was about to claim victory over.

Everyone held their breath, even Ash and his friends, as what they felt was the end drew nearer and nearer. Solidad remained calm and impassive though and just as Arcanine was upon her Pokémon, she finally revealed the reason for it.

Raising her hand, Solidad shouted, "Butterfree drop back and use Stun Spore!"

Just as Arcanine jumped at Butterfree she fell backwards completely and let the Fire-Type pass directly overtop of her. Unfortunately for Derek and Arcanine though, there was far more to it than a simple evasion technique.

As she fell back and Arcanine passed over her, Butterfree flapped her wings upward and released a cloud of Stun Spore directly into Arcanine's face. The move was instantly effective as the Fire-Type curled in on itself in the jump and lost all grace. Landing in a rough tumble and roll on the ground which cost Derek points.

"What?!" The brown haired man shouted as his Pokémon slowly stood on wobbling legs and began shaking it's head, sneezing and rubbing at it's face with it's paws in an effort to get the paralyzing powder off of it.

Arcanine's moment of distraction gave Solidad all she needed to work with as the redhead yelled to her Pokémon, "Double Team into Quick Attack!"

Butterfree did as Arcanine had done earlier and created several copies of herself which she then put to use as she and the many Butterfree duplicates took off at the now freaked out Fire-Type while using Quick Attack, slamming into Arcanine from all different directions like miniature freight trains.

In essence, Arcanine was like a ball being kicked around as all of the Butterfree smacked it back and forth between them while Lilian announced in stunned amazement, "Unbelievable! Butterfree has turned the tide in this battle and now has Arcanine on the ropes without showing any signs of letting up!"

To Derek's great misfortune, Solidad planned on doing far more than that because just as Arcanine was sent sprawling across the ground once more from one of the Butterfree's Quick Attacks, she commanded, "Butterfree use Gust!"

The real Butterfree broke free from the others and whipped up a fierce gale of wind that swept Arcanine - whom was now almost completely immobilized - into it's funnel and began whipping the poor Fire-Type around in it's vortex like a rag doll.

To make matters worse, the copy Butterfree all flapped their wings and added to the growing twister until it was double the size and began emitting a loud, very noisy screeching noise that was almost as ear splitting as it was fascinating to watch.

Standing up, Ash leaned over the railing as far as he could and shouted while pumping his fist, "Yeah Butterfree do it! You rock!"

As if she heard him and was wanting to prove it, Butterfree flapped her wings forward hard one last time and dispelled the cyclone with another burst of wind that struck it's base and stopped it cold.

As the gust came to a sudden halt, Arcanine fell to the stage below and landed with a painful crash upon the hard ground. Looking upon it's eyes, the swirls now surrounding them were a clear indicator that the Fire-Type was out of the fight for good. A fact highlighted by the screen above changing to show just Solidad's face now upon it with confetti falling around her picture and the word, "WINNER!" lit up brightly just underneath of it.

As Derek despondently returned his downed Pokémon and Solidad ran up to embrace her own, Lilian stepped out onto the stage again and cheered into microphone. "And that is it everybody! Solidad and Butterfree are the winners of this Saffron City Pokémon Contest! Everybody give them both a big round of applause!"

The entire hall erupted into loud clapping and cheering - joined of course by a standing Ash, Misty, Brock and Giselle - while Solidad and an exhausted Butterfree waved to the crowd gratefully. Clear joy and happiness present upon their faces as Solidad hugged her Pokémon once again and laughed joyfully.

As her opponent left the stage with a congratulatory nod of his head, which she accepted, Lilian spoke once more while the three judges got up from their panels and joined them upon the stage. "And now everyone, Mr. Contesta will present the grand prize to our winner to commemorate the end of this Pokémon Contest!"

The slightly middle aged man walked up to Solidad and opened a small red box that was revealed to contain a beautiful pink ribbon with a gold medallion nestled upon soft cotton within the case. "Young miss, that truly was some impressive performances you and your Butterfree put on today and I am very pleased to present you with the Saffron City Ribbon. Congratulations!"

As Solidad took the ribbon in hand and nodded gratefully to Mr. Contesta, Sukizo simply gave a cheerful "Remarkable!" while Nurse Joy gave a kind smile and offered her own praise. "That was a fantastic match Miss Solidad and I wish you all the luck in the world going forward!"

Thanking the judges, Solidad then turned and showed her ribbon to Butterfree before facing the crowd and holding it up in the air. To which everyone cheered wildly at while Lilian shouted over the roar, "Thank you all for coming out today and I hope you had a great time! Travel home safely and please join us here for the next contest!"

Ash and his friends clapped, cheered and hollered for Solidad along with the rest of the crowd until gradually, the applause died down and everyone eventually began filing out of the contest hall.

Following the masses, Ash and the others made their way out of the hall and re-entered the lobby while stretching their legs. "That was such an awesome experience!" Giselle gushed with her hands stretched up in the air as she bounced up and down.

"I know and Solidad and Butterfree were so good," Misty agreed while stretching her back. "They were totally in-synch with each other the whole time!"

Brock chuckled and rolled his neck. "Yeah well that'll happen when you travel and train with your Pokémon for as long as she has. Soli has some serious skill as a coordinator, I'll give her that."

"Aww thanks little bro, that means so much to me!" Solidad herself responded teasingly as they all turned around and saw the redhead walking their way with a smile on her face.

"Solidad!" Giselle exclaimed happily as she and the others went up to her. "That was incredible! The entire performance I mean... just wow!"

"I've never seen battling done so beautifully and gracefully before!" Misty added from beside of Brock. "You really earned that ribbon!"

Solidad just smiled modestly and held her hands up. "I appreciate the sentiments girls, really, but it was my Butterfree that did all the heavy work. I just helped guide her along."

"Well either way Soli," Brock began. "Misty's right. You did earn that ribbon and I was really glad to finally get to see you perform."

The red, almost pink haired woman, smiled at her childhood friend. "Thanks Brock, I'm glad you could see it too. And all of you." She gestured kindly at the four of them. "It's great to see you and I'm so happy you could make it!"

Ash smiled at her and spoke himself finally, "We didn't wanna miss it Solidad and I'm glad we didn't. I've never seen a Pokémon Contest like this before and after watching you and all the other Coordinators perform, I've got a lot of respect for what you do."

Pikachu chimed in from his shoulder, "Pikachu Pi!"

Solidad placed her hands on her hips and gave an eyesmile before leaning in to scratch Pikachu behind the ears. "I'm glad it didn't disappoint, thanks Ash. And you too Pikachu!" After she finished scratching Pikachu, she stepped back and asked curiously, "So how have you all been?"

Before anyone could respond, Ash's stomach suddenly growled causing him to chuckle sheepishly while his friends rolled their eyes and shook their heads. Solidad merely laughed though and offered, "How about we go eat at this nice little place I know of in the city that I always go to when I come through this way while we catch up?"

Getting no complaints from anyone, the five of them left the contest hall and waited out near the road for one of the buses ferrying people back to the city to arrive. When one did, they boarded it and in no time at all, they were back in the heart of Saffron City.

Getting off at one of the bus stops while making small talk, they headed downtown and went to a small café located on a street corner that sold hot beverages, pastries, soups and sandwiches.

Finding a table near one of the windows after ordering their individual things, the group of five sat down and began catching up on everything that had transpired since they parted at the Butterfree Cliffs.

While telling their stories, Solidad found herself in a state of amazement at the incredible, dangerous misadventures they took part in at Lavender Town and when they finally got to everything that had happened up to the current day of the contest, she just shook her head and took a sip of the hot green tea she had ordered.

"Saying you four have some crazy adventures would be a definite understatement. I'm just glad each of you are safe though, that's all that matters." She took another sip and then asked simply, "So what's your next move while here in the city?"

Ash was the one who answered her as he leaned back in his chair across from Solidad. "Well tonight me and Giselle are going out to celebrate her late birthday, just us, and then tomorrow we're heading out to the Saffron City Pokémon Gym so I can hopefully earn another badge."

Solidad stopped mid-sip of her tea and lowered it as she just stared at Ash for a good few moments before finally replying, "You're challenging Sabrina, the leader of the Saffron Gym?" She shook her head. "Ash I... I hope you know what you're getting yourself into. I've heard that gym leader is extremely cold and merciless. She doesn't take pity on any challengers and seems to have a habit of breaking them down mentally while she's battling them. At least from what I've heard. You'd better be prepared big time or else I have a feeling that you'll regret it."

Ash shared a glance with Pikachu on his lap and then smiled while scratching his Pokémon behind the ears. "All we can do is give it our all, nothing more. If we win we win and if we lose then we lose. It's not about that anyway, it's about building our bond together and also maturing as a trainer, in my case, and as Pokémon in theirs."

Solidad smiled and tipped her tea to him. "Well, I wish you luck and since you all did it for me today, I would really like to come and see you battle tomorrow Ash. To cheer you on and be a source of support if you wouldn't mind."

The boy shook his head immediately. "No way not at all! We'd love to have you come along, right guys?"

Brock, Misty and Giselle all gave their own eager words of consent and assurance which made Solidad laugh a little. "Okay then, I guess we'll all be going tomorrow together!"

For the rest of the time after that, the five young Pokémon enthusiasts spent their meal talking, sharing stories and laughing amongst each other. Finding out different things about one another, cracking the occasional joke and just generally growing closer the longer the dinner drug on.

By the time they all finally paid the bill and left the café, night had already begun to to settle over the city as Saffron became aglow in the bright lights of street lamps, homes, restaurants, businesses of all kinds and even entertainment establishments like nightclubs and bars.

Stepping out onto the still crowded streets that were now filling up with people that were about to enjoy the early evening and late night attractions the city had to offer as a way to unwind after a long day, Ash and the others gradually made their way back to the Pokémon Center on foot. Of where they had learned just recently that Solidad was also staying at as she always did when she came through Saffron. The smart redhead having called ahead days in advance - not relying on luck like Ash and his friends had - to book a room for herself before the after-contest rush flooded the center.

Upon arriving at the Pokémon Center and not finding it as crowded as they expected (most likely due to people still being out on the town) Solidad left her Butterfree with Nurse Joy before all five of them headed up to their individual rooms so they could clean up and shower off from the long day.

Meeting back up in the lobby sometime later, Brock, Misty and Solidad decided to go out on the town together and see the sights while leaving Ash and Giselle to do the same, only on their own. A little gesture they were both happy for as it gave the young, innocent couple a chance to be together alone so they could celebrate Giselle's birthday in a more one on one, romantic setting.

A private outing which the two of them would come to greatly enjoy as they toured the city together, hand in hand, while taking in all of the many sights and attractions that Saffron had to offer in a leisurely, relaxed manner. Not doing anything too fancy or extravagant except for simply enjoying the alone time together that they now had in a new, lively city that held much to offer two young and adventurous souls with a thirst for discovery and new sights.

In fact, the night turned out to be an enjoyable, pleasurable experience for everyone. Brock, Misty and Solidad finding their own fun and interesting things to get into while Ash and Giselle spent their romantic little evening together.

Even Pikachu got to have fun as Solidad let him ride around on her shoulder in Ash's place so he could also see all of the many sights, attractions and spectacles of the large city. The little Electric-Type having developed quite a fondness for the Pokémon Coordinator that Misty and Brock became aware of and found to be quite humorous since the starter Pokémon of their shared friend seemed to like just about anybody that was female and treated him nicely.

Like trainer like Pokémon as they say.

Altogether, it was a pleasant end to an equally as enjoyable day. A reprieve that would prove to have been much needed as the next day loomed on the horizon. No one, not even Ash, being able to guess what life changing and shocking events were awaiting them all on the morrow.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

It was about ten o'clock in the morning and Ash himself was sitting down in the Pokémon Center's lobby near one of the large glass windows at the front with two Pokéballs before him. A thoughtful, contemplative expression adorned his features as he tapped his fingers against his arms and just stared at his Pokéballs.

After getting up at seven and doing a light training session with his Pokémon that was meant to just be a warm-up for their upcoming gym battle and wasn't nearly as intense as it would normally be, he took a quick shower, had a bite to eat in the cafeteria after feeding his own Pokémon and then sat down in the lobby. A seat in which he hadn't moved from since.

In fact, Pikachu himself looked just as serious as he sat beside of Ash and seemed to be in his own little world. Preparing himself mentally for the sure to be trying gym battle ahead.

Hearing movement coming towards them, Ash looked over and saw Solidad coming their way. Already dressed up in her usual blue lacy top, white jean shorts with black designer belt, lone blue glove on her left hand and knee high black boots.

"Penny for your thoughts mister?" She asked with a good natured smile on her face.

Ash gave a small smile himself and then sighed. "I guess I'm just nervous is all..."

Solidad sat next to him and nodded. "About the match you mean?

The boy shook his head and clasped his hands together. "No, it's just... I'm not nervous about the battle itself. I mean rather we win or lose doesn't matter because to me it's about growing stronger and getting closer to my Pokémon. It's more... it's more of me being afraid that I won't be able to fully do right by my Pokémon."

Solidad appeared slightly confused. "How so?"

Reaching out, Ash grabbed one of the two Pokéballs on the table in front of him and held it in his hands while looking down at it. "My Pokémon deserve the best. They're great and they always will be. I'm just a rookie and sometimes I'm afraid that I won't lead them right in battle and make mistakes that either get them hurt or humiliates them. And that... that's just a scary thought."

Solidad remained silent for several moments before finally responding, "Yeah that makes sense. I can totally understand how you feel. To be honest, I felt the same way about my Pokémon back when I first began competing in contests. Actually... I still do."

Ash looked at her in surprise. "Really? You do?"

The redhead nodded. "Sure. It's only natural for a compassionate, caring trainer to worry that they aren't good enough for their Pokémon, just the same as I'm sure all Pokémon in that same situation feeabout themselves. But you know what I've learned about all that though?"

Getting nothing more from Ash than a look which implored her to continue, she did so. "I've learned in situations like that to not worry about it. As long as you give it your all and treat your Pokémon as best as you can, you are more than worthy of being their trainer just as they are being your Pokémon."

Ash looked thoughtful for a few moments before smiling and nodding to her. "Yeah... yeah you know you're right Solidad. Thanks. I guess I needed to hear something like that because it can all get a little much sometimes y'know?"

The older girl chuckled. "You don't gotta tell me, I know it well enough to write a small book about it!"

They both laughed at that as Brock and the others came downstairs looking dressed and ready for the day. "Who's ready for breakfast?" Brock asked with a smile as they approached. "I was thinking that we could all have a nice meal together before we head out for Ash's gym battle."

Ash patted his stomach and grinned before shrugging and replying, "Well I already ate but you know... I think I could eat again."

Yet another laugh was roused, this time by everyone, before the group of five, plus Pikachu, went out to the outdoor picnic area where Brock commenced to cooking up a hearty breakfast on the the small table-side grill. The tension of an upcoming fierce gym battle being temporarily forgotten over the mouth watering smell of Brock's cooking beginning to sizzle.

Almost an hour and a half later when breakfast was officially finished Ash and his friends could be seen standing before the large Saffron City Pokémon Gym that stretched before them like a daunting gauntlet ready to chew up it's contestants and spit them out alive. A building in which was a vast contrast from the park-like, wooded area it was situated in amongst the heart of the city and was only a short distance away from where Giselle and Misty had their battle against the rich girls two days prior.

Looking up at the gym and then at Pikachu, the two of them shared a simple nod before stepping forward and entering the gym with the others right behind them.

Upon entering, they found the inside of the gym to look very different from it's somewhat strangely built outside appearance. There was essentially a long hallway that stretched widely on all sides running down the whole length of the gym with several other hallways off to the sides from the main one and a set of large double doors at the very end of it.

The interior design and decor of the gym was rather plain and everything seemed to be colored a mixed shade of dull yellow/orange and possibly even brown in places. On the right side of the entrance to the gym was a row of doors that lead to who knows where and to the left was a single door which showed an interesting spectacle on the other side of the glass window built into it's top surface.

Walking closer to the door, Ash and his friends looked in and saw several people in white coats with face masks on performing a variety of odd and very unusual things.

Some people were holding up cards to each other while sitting down around one of the many tables in the room while the person they were holding said cards up for would stare hard at the back of it. Almost as though they were attempting to see through it.

Even still, other people were doing things just as weird. Like staring at random blocks spread out on tables, holding their hands out to large piles of miscellaneous objects, doing the same thing but only to each other, standing still blindfolded while someone else struck close to them with thick sticks, sitting down meditating at random places and also (the strangest by far) a few people were even sitting or standing around while staring at one another unblinkingly.

The five travelers standing outside of the room could only watch in total confusion and bafflement as the unusual individuals beyond the glass did... whatever it was they were doing. Eventually however, Misty spoke up with a quirked eyebrow. Saying what everyone was thinking but not quite able enough to put into words.

"Okay... I don't know what the people in that room have but it's obvious by what they're doing and those medical masks on their faces that it's contagious and probably effects their brain so I suggest we go now before we catch whatever freaky virus that's making them act like complete weirdos."

"They are NOT weirdos! A loud, angry, accented voice shouted from behind them. Something which made the four trainers and one coordinator spin around in fright to see a man with long, messy brown hair that was tied back - whom was also wearing similar attire as the ones beyond the glass door - now standing behind them with his right hand pointed out accusingly.

Finding his voice first, Ash asked cautiously, "Umm... what was that mister?"

The med-mask covered man marched up to them and pointed into the room beyond. "Those people are not sick! They are trying to unlock their psychic abilities you fools!"

All five faces dropped immediately into ones of disbelief, surprise, shock and also skepticism as soon as those words left the man's mouth. "Uhh... psychic abilities... sir?" Giselle spoke up hesitantly from beside of Ash.

The man nodded vigorously. "Yes you heard me little girl! Psychic abilities! We work tirelessly every day in that room to hopefully someday awaken our psychic powers so that we can become like the great Sabrina!"

"Sabrina's... a psychic?" Giselle questioned lagain. "As in like... telepathy and mind reading and all that stuff?"

Solidad giggled behind her hand just as the man went to answer Giselle, causing him to round his crazed, fierce gaze onto her. "You do not believe me girl?! You wish to laugh and make mockery of the great Sabrina and our birthright?!"

Solidad held her hands up and immediately began shaking her head while saying apologetically, "No sir no, I just thought it was funny that-" The man cut her off. "What did you think was funny?! Seeing us wearing these outfits or maybe struggling to do something you say is impossible hmm?! Well I will show you impossible!"

Standing back, the man reached into his coat quickly, causing Ash and the others to take defensive positions in case the obviously volatile stranger did something crazy. However, when he instead whipped out a regular old dinner spoon and held it up into the air like it was the solution to all of life's problems, they went from nervous to completely baffled. Now seriously questioning the man's sanity as he held the spoon up with both hands in front of him and laughed manically.

"AHAHAHAHAHA! Now behold! The true might and power of telekinesis in all it's glory!"

His mask covered face scrunching up into one of intense concentration, the man started to make grunting noises as every vein in his forehead and neck started to pop and his eyes began to strain.

The girls shared concerned looks among themselves as Brock stepped forward and asked hesitantly, "Sir are you o-" However, he was immediately interrupted as the man shouted, "DON'T SPEAK!" causing Brock to fall silent and step back again.

Finally, after several long, boring moments, the spoon in his hand gradually, gradually, shifted just a very tiny bit. Seeing this, the man cheered in triumph and lunged back while pointing at the spoon. "AHA! See that?! I did it!"

Giselle blinked widely. "Uhh... did what exactly sir?"

The man scoffed. "You didn't see it?! Stupid girl, I bent the spoon with my mind!"

Ash however squinted his eyes at the spoon and put a hand to his chin before quirking an eyebrow and saying with almost humorous dismissiveness, "Meh... I don't see it. Still looks the same to me."

The masked man blinked Noctowlishly before pointing at the spoon again and all but jabbing it into Ash's face. "What do you mean you can't see it?! It's right there clear as day! See!"

He pointed closely at the spoon, which, upon closer inspection, might have been slightly more rounded than before. "There! Now can you not see my psychic prowess shining through?!"

Ash just crossed his arms and looked away while smirking as he simply shrugged and replied offhandedly, "Nope, still don't see anything. Must have been the wind or something."

The man appeared to be on the verge of having an aneurysm as he growled and shoved the spoon at Ash. "Fine! You try and bend the spoon with your mind then you disbelieving little brat!"

Instead of taking the spoon however, Ash just looked at it and then pushed the man's hand away from his face. "I tell you what... why don't you instead just take me to Sabrina so I can battle her and see what real psychic powers are all about since she supposedly is the real deal. Nothing you do will convince me because let's face it, that outfit makes you look like a total freak. And you want me to take you seriously in it? Yeah... that'll happen."

The man was red in the face with rage as he gestured at himself and replied vehemently, "I will have you know that this outfit we wear helps keep negative outside forces from messing with our pure psychic energy! The area we practice in must be free entirely of infection and bacteria or otherwise it could taint our cerebral focus and inner power!"

Calming himself slightly, he rubbed the bridge of his nose and then spoke in a more contained voice. "But... if you insist on challenging the great Sabrina then I will take you to meet your fate." He then turned around and gestured behind him. "Follow me."

With no further ado, Ash and the others followed the man to the end of the long, wide hallway (which was illuminated by torches on the walls) where the aforementioned set of large double doors was waiting at the end.

Pushing them open, the man stepped inside and allowed Ash and his friends to come in. As they did, the five of them took in the appearance of the inner gym and noted that it greatly resembled a large chamber. Multiple pillars resided on either side of the room that connected the floor and ceiling above and the battlefield itself rested directly in the center of the chamber. A square ring on the ceiling that stretched all around the room also had a row of several lights on it which gave the gym a faint, dusky glow of illumination.

At the very front of the room a platform rested against the wall with steps leading up to it and two flaming pedestals on either side of said platform. In the middle of it, a throne-like chair was situated in the blackness that was cast by the back wall and sitting in the chair was a figure shrouded in shadow. Nothing at all visible from the individual but their faint silhouette, of which somehow gave them far more than just an eery, creepy persona.

Just as they stepped closer to the arena in the center of the gym, a cold, emotionless female voice spoke up from the throne-like chair. "Why have you chosen to disturb me this time? I sincerely hope for your sake that there is a good reason."

The man appeared visibly nervous but pointed to Ash as he spoke in a respectful and docile tone, "G-Great Sabrina! This ingrate has come seeking to challenge you and will not take any less than yes for an answer!"

The voice remained silent for several moments before finally replying with a simple, "Very well." At that point, the lights came on in the gym at full power and a black haired girl with bangs over her forehead who appeared to be in her late teens was shown to be sitting on the throne. She was wearing a red and black button-up long skirt of some kind with yellow buttons on it's center that hugged her body and came down to her upper thigh, along with black thigh-high boots on her legs.

What was even more surprising and confusing about the woman though was the small child sitting upon her lap holding a ball. The little girl was dressed in an old timey white dress with pink frills here and there and a similar colored wide brimmed hat upon her head. Her eyes were not visible under the brim.

Sabrina's voice spoke again, "So... you wish to challenge me?" Which was really more of a statement than a question and was directed straight at Ash.

The boy in question nodded and stepped forward. "Yes I do. A battle for the Saffron Gym Gym Badge. My name is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town."

A voice did indeed reply to him, though it was not Sabrina's and sounded very childlike. A voice in which, surprisingly enough, came from the little girl on her lap. "Oh yay a fun Pokémon battle! We accept! Only on one condition though..."

Ash blinked a few times before asking, "And that would be?"

The girl giggled before answering. "If you lose, you and your friends have to play with me and be my friends forever!"

That made Ash's friends share a confused, though also slightly worried look amongst themselves while Ash narrowed his eyes and remained thoughtful, having no idea what she was talking about and figuring it to be mere child's talk. Finally though, he nodded. "Fine. If I lose then I will become your friend and play with you... forever. However, I refuse to count my friends in on this because I don't speak for them. So take me instead if I lose but not them. Agreed?"

The little girl giggled again. "Okay!"

The man wearing the face mask stepped out to the edge of the ring while Ash took his place in his trainer's box. The doors behind them suddenly shut tightly, causing everyone but Ash, the man and Sabrina to whip around in fright just as Sabrina herself actually floated up into the air and landed in her own box.

This made the eyes of Ash's friends all but pop out in astonishment while said raven haired trainer went a little wide eyed himself and breathed out slowly. "Okaaaay... I guess she really is the real deal. This should be fun..."

When they were in position, the man wearing the medical mask spoke up loudly enough for all to hear, "This is a match between Sabrina of the Saffron City Gym and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town! This will be a three on three battle and whoever loses all of their Pokémon first will be defeated, only the challenger may substitute Pokémon. Please choose your first Pokémon!"

Suddenly, the ball in the little's girl hands morphed into a Pokéball which floated out into the arena as Sabrina announced emotionlessly, "Abra. I choose you."

Out of the Pokéball came the small, squinty eyed Psychic Pokémon which took a simple sitting position near the middle of the ring while chanting a slow, stoic, "Abra... Abra... Abra..." over and over again.

Taking in the sight of the very troublesome and not to be underestimated Psychic-Type, Ash looked down at Pikachu and nodded. "You're up buddy. I know you can do this."

Pikachu nodded himself and ran out onto the field, taking a battle ready crouch position but not acting overly aggressive due to the intense focus and concentration upon his face. His eyes staring hard at the seemingly unimposing Pokémon before him with a calculative, unwavering gaze as he knew from what his trainer told him before about just how frustrating and difficult battling an opponent like Abra could be.

Back with his friends, Solidad crossed her arms and spoke with an air of strong curiosity in her voice, "Interesting choice of type-match up to use against a Psychic Pokémon," She stated idly. "Given how knowledgable Ash seems to be about Pokémon, I would have half expected him to use something else like maybe a Ghost-Type since they are strong against Psychic ones. I know you traveled through Lavender Town and he has at least one now from the story you told me so to not use it here seems not to make much sense to me. Abra is a notoriously difficult Pokémon to battle even with a type advantage, not having that seems almost nonsensical."

Brock shook his head and smiled. "Trust me Soli, you don't know Ash. That kid thinks of a lot of things before and even during a battle so I can guarantee he's already thought of this and probably developed a strategy around it. It's just not like him to go aimlessly into a battle without taking into consideration different possibilities."

Giselle nodded and spoke up from beside of Misty, "Brock's right Solidad and Ash already told me what he planned on doing this morning when we were all training together. He was running the three Pokémon he planned on using for this battle through different scenarios and told them all they needed to know about what to expect when battling most common Psychic-Types."

She looked out at her boyfriend and continued, "He said that it would make most sense to use nothing but Ghost-Types yes but at the same time, he knew it would also be the most expected. If Sabrina is as talented and skilled as we've heard then she's probably trained to learn how to handle most situations involving a Ghost Pokémon so the playing field is more even. He wanted to use a strategy that was unorthodox to maybe help throw her off a little bit."

Solidad shrugged and smiled slightly. "Well he's definitely proven to be unique up to this point so I don't see why I can't trust him."

Back on the battlefield, Sabrina stated in her emotionless voice as soon as she saw Pikachu, "An Electric-Type? How foolish. This will be over quickly."

Instead of replying, Ash just pointed at Abra and commanded Pikachu, "Use Quick Attack Pikachu!"

His body glowing faintly white, Pikachu rocketed off from where he was standing and shot straight at Abra. However, just before he could make contact, the Psychic Pokémon warped away into thin air and reappeared on another end of the ring.

Pikachu didn't let that stop him though and turned flawlessly on his front paws and put himself on yet another collision course with Abra in mere seconds. The small Psychic-Type disappeared once more but Pikachu was utterly relentless, chasing down Abra again and again, all while showing no signs of fatigue whatsoever.

The child in Sabrina's lap giggled and taunted playfully, "You should know by now that it isn't working, why would you keep doing it? I hope future friend isn't a dummy because that won't be any fun at all!"

Instead of replying to the child's taunting, Ash called out again, "Pikachu use Double Team and Agility!"

The powerful little Electric-Type took off at Abra again but this time as he did so, several clones of himself phased into existence around him and began to surround Abra while running at top speed.

However, just as the little girl in Sabrina's lap giggled again and was about to say something, Ash beat her to it with a smile while initiating the next part of his strategy. "Pikachu use Thunderbolt near to, but don't hit Abra!"

The several copies of Pikachu all discharged a stream of powerful electric voltage straight at the Psychic-Type but instead of hitting it, they instead fell short and began impacting the ground around Abra in a circle-like formation.

Giggling once more, the little girl spoke in what seemed like a mocking tone. "Your Pikachu must be broken, that attack didn't get anywhere near Abra!"

Ash simply smirked. "It doesn't have to, look."

Sure enough, even though the lightning bolts didn't hit Abra, the sheer number of them did manage to accomplish something. That being a simple play on an anatomical fact and even flaw about Abra that most people would usually forget or altogether not think about.

Even though Abra was an exceedingly intelligent and gifted Pokémon in the area of psychic manipulation, a few of it's natural senses were greatly underdeveloped due to it's heavy reliance on nothing but it's mental powers. Such as it's sight for instance. Due to this, Abra's other senses were forced to undergo dramatic enhancements in order to make up for it's lack of normal sight.

One of these compensational senses being it's hearing.

It was a well known fact amongst professionals that Abra had very sensitive hearing and because of this, sounds that would normally not overly bother individuals with average hearing would be almost like pure torture and agonizing pain for Abra.

Given all of the incredibly loud Thunderbolts now mere feet away from Abra and keeping it boxed in, the Psychic-Type was being subjected to all of the ear blastingly loud decibels that the lighting-based attacks were producing.

A tactic which proved to be working as Abra clamped it's hands over it's ears in a rare show of bodily movement and it's face actually scrunched up into one of pain.

It's concentration now broken, which meant that it couldn't use it's cerebral abilities, Ash took immediate advantage of the situation and yelled out, "Pikachu use Thunderbolt on Abra now!"

Charging his body up, Pikachu reared back and cried, "PIKACHU!" as a bolt of pure electrical energy came hurdling from his body and impacted against the Psychic-Type with little fanfare.

As it was being electrocuted, all Abra could do was cry out it's name in pain before the bolt finally exploded, shooting a cloud of smoke up into the air while Ash's friends watched on in amazement.

However, when the cloud of black smoke finally passed and revealed a badly burnt Abra laying on the ground, things did not happen the way in which Ash or anyone else was expecting. In fact, just the exact opposite ended up proving itself to be true as, instead of passing out, Abra began to glow a bright white, almost silver color.

Knowing exactly want was happening even as their opponent began to change shape, Ash dropped his shoulders and sighed. "Well this really sucks..."

In mere moments, the evolution that had awakened itself in Abra faded away and left a much bigger, fully bipedal Pokémon in it's wake. A Pokémon now holding spoons in it's hands with a strange star-like marking in the middle of it's forehead. A Pokémon which spoke it's name seconds later, showing it to be completely rejuvenated from it's earlier toasting as an Abra.

"Kadabra!" The newly evolved Pokémon chanted while holding it's spoons up, causing the little girl to giggle and speak again. "Wow thanks for helping Abra to evolve! That was so nice of you!"

Misty cringed and hid her face behind her hands. "Oooh this is gonna be bad!"

"Ash is really gonna have to pull something crazy out here," Brock surmised evenly of the situation while Giselle sighed. "It just can't ever be easy can it? I mean come on!"

Solidad however remained silent, simply watching the events play out and eyes trained on Ash. Whom still seemed collected and calm despite the turn of fortune.

Unfortunately, before he or Pikachu could make a move, Sabrina beat them to it. Ordering simply in her cold tone, "Kadabra use Confusion."

Before Ash could have Pikachu move out of the way, Kadabra's eyes and the spoons in it's hands suddenly began glowing blue as Pikachu's entire body locked up and went stiff as a board.

"Pika!" Pikachu grunted as he struggled to move his body but to no avail. The powerful Psychic-Type attack had him completely slave to it's will with no chance of controlling his own body.

Then, just as Ash started trying to think of a way to help free Pikachu of the invisible force now constricting him, Kadabra moved it's eyes to the right. When it did, Pikachu was flung across the gym and slammed into the far wall. Another grunt of "Pika! getting expelled from the Electric-Type's mouth as the wind was forcibly knocked out of his lungs and his body was rocked from the sheer force of the impact.

Unfortunately, this became an immediate trend that Kadabra was rather fond of as it stood in one place and simply shifted it's eyes this way and that. Pikachu following said gaze unwillingly as he flew all across the gym and got smashed up against the walls, floor and ceiling.

At one point, while Pikachu was getting trounced up and down on the ceiling and floor like a rag doll, Ash yelled for him to try and use Thunderbolt but was beat to it by Sabrina, whom commanded a simple, "Kadabra use Disable."

As those words left her lips, Kadabra's eyes and body glowed an even brighter blue. As this happened, Pikachu's attempt at creating a Thunderbolt ended instantly. A look of confusion upon his face that made it appear as though he could no longer remember how to use the powerful electric attack.

"This is bad," Brock observed. "Disable makes a Pokémon completely forget a certain move for a varying period of time. Ash needs to find a way to get Pikachu out of this fast!"

At that same time, Kadabra dropped Pikachu to the ground, whom landed with a heavy thud. However, just as the hardy little Pokémon slowly began struggling to get up, Sabrina's cold voice spoke again in order to continue the onslaught. "Kadabra, use Confuse Ray."

Kadabra's eyes and body glowed once more, this time purple, and as they did, rings of wavy energy came from the spoons in Kadabra's hands and washed themselves down upon Pikachu. Who's eyes became distant and unfocused as his mental facilities went into temporary lala land.

As though he were being controlled by an external force again, Pikachu began slamming his head into the ground repeatedly as well as thrashing around and running in circles with no control over his actions whatsoever.

"Oh man this is bad!" Misty fretted while wringing her hands together tightly.

"Come on Pikachu you can do this! Don't stop fighting!" Giselle yelled with her hands over her mouth.

To make matters worse, Kadabra added insult to injury by picking Pikachu up with Confusion again on Sabrina's command and then slamming him into the ground repeatedly once more.

"Ash you need to stop this match or Pikachu's gonna get hurt!" Solidad finally shouted from the sidelines as true worry for the suffering Electric-Type began to fill her heart.

Ash however didn't respond with an audible reply. His eyes were locked onto the battle and all of his concentration was centered around Pikachu. Even as the little girl in Sabrina's lap spoke up again in an obviously mocking voice, "You really are a bad Pokémon Trainer aren't you? What kind of person would keep making their Pokémon suffer like this when they know they can't win? Ooooh you really are bad! Bad, bad, bad!"

Ash was determined not to let the taunting words get to him, even as he watched Pikachu get repeatedly thrashed on the ground. 'I know Pikachu is strong... he can take way more than this. Please just hold on buddy, I'm thinking of a way to get us out of this...'

WhenKadabra finally ended the vicious beating by tossing Pikachu up to the ceiling, which he hit and then fell back to the ground like a heavy stone, the Electric-Type impacted the ground with a thud and lay still with marks and bruises all over his body.

The little girl's taunting voice was now giggling at Pikachu's misfortune. "Hehehehehe... your Pikachu is all done playing! That's so sad I wanted to play with it more!"

However, as Ash watched Pikachu struggle upon the ground, he somehow knew that his Pokémon wasn't done yet. He knew Pikachu had a little bit left to give and he wasn't about to let that go to waste.

Suddenly, in that same moment, it struck Ash like a ton of Brick Breaks exactly what could be done to possibly turn the tide in the battle. Looking at Kadabra, he realized the powerful Psychic-Type's one true weakness as he gazed upon it's head. A weakness in which he hoped could be exploited to possible victory.

The idea now formed in his brain, Ash decided to wing it and see if his plan would work. "Pikachu, build up all of your electrical energy and then release it in a burst with Thundershock!"

Hearing his trainer's words and being determined to give it his all until he collapsed, Pikachu grunted with tremendous effort and slowly stood up. His body sparking brightly, the high-voltage Pokémon began growling it's name lowly with one eye closed.

"Piiiiii... Kaaaaaa... Piiiiiiii... Kaaaaaaaaa..."

With each passing second, Pikachu's body glowed brighter and brighter as an electrical shield of energy formed around him and began sparking all across the ground around him.

"PIIII... KAAAAA... PIKAAAAAAAA!"

With his energy at the maximum level for his beaten and exhausted state, Pikachu released all the pent up electrical charge inside his body. However, instead of releasing it in a concentrated burst like he normally would to attack an opponent, the static energy was set off very similar to a bomb exploding. Meaning basically that all of his built up electrical power erupted outward in a bright flash of blinding light which made Ash's friends and even he himself cover their eyes due to the sheer brightness that suddenly illuminated the dreary gym.

Unfortunately for Kadabra, it wasn't prepared for the sudden solar flare-like blast of bright light. Causing the eyes of the bipedal Psychic-type to take the full brunt of the bright explosion as they immediately contracted and dilated in size. Becoming several times wider than their normal width as Kadabra slapped it's hands over it's eyes and stumbled back from the numbing pain now stinging it's vision.

Seeing his plan had worked, Ash yelled quickly, "Now Pikachu jump onto Kadabra's head and use Thunder Wave!"

Even in his tired, battered state, Pikachu still moved as fast as he could on his trainer's command and was on his feet and in the air in mere seconds. Landing upon Kadabra's head even as his cheeks sparked.

With a loud "CHUUUU!" Pikachu released a wave of arcing electricity which bathed Kadabra's entire body in a field of yellow, almost golden energy.

As the paralysis causing electrical attack pulsed throughout Kadabra's body like a sense dulling, muscle freezing suit of pure electric energy, it's arms shot out to the side and eyes flew wide open. What was more, the focal point of the electrical power was centered where Pikachu was at, which was upon Kadabra's head.

Essentially, this meant that Kadabra's brain was getting zapped and overloaded with relentless volts of electricity which caused what could only be described as a fog of thick, mind numbing confusion and light headedness to descend upon the Psychic-Type.

This also unfortunately meant for Kadabra that since it's brain was temporarily frazzled from the electrical discharge it had endured, any and all psychic-based abilities were now locked out to it for the time being.

Quite obviously, this was a remarkable advantage for Ash and Pikachu. Which they took instant advantage of.

"Alright Pikachu now jump away and use Thunder!" Ash yelled from his trainer's box.

Jumping off and away from Kadabra, Pikachu landed on the ground near the middle of the ring and built up one final charge of immense electrical energy.

"Piiiiiiikaaaaaaa..." As he collected more and more of his electric power, not only did Pikachu's body spark madly but the entire gym began to glow with a faint yellow, almost bluish aura. An actual storm cloud of buzzing, whirring electric energy now forming above Kadabra's head and sending sparks of electricity all throughout the gym.

Finally, with a final cry of "PIKACHUUUUUU!" the storm cloud above Kadabra opened up like the actual clouds outside of the gym and released their detrimental payload unto the Pokémon below.

All Kadabra could do was look up with actual fear showing upon it's usually emotionless face as a bolt of massive lightning crashed down from the storm cloud and struck it with all of the ferocity of an actual lightning storm.

The Psychic-Type's body was entirely lost in the glow of the pillar of electrical energy now consuming it as it cried out in pain and became ramrod straight like someone had strapped a wood plank to it's back.

Ash, Pikachu, Solidad, the others and even the ring referee looked on with baited breath while Kadabra endured the brutal electrocution of a lifetime before finally, it all came to a head and the bolt of lighting exploded with a mighty roar.

The entire gym becoming awash with a thick cloud of smoke, Ash and everyone else had to cover their eyes and mouth, coughing while the black haze very slowly faded away. The after effects of such a powerful blast of lightning still being felt in the form of small charges of static energy which buzzed around the gym and made the hair on everyone's arms and even head stand on end.

When everything became visible once again, a sizable crater was left in the ring where the bolt of lightning struck and Kadabra itself was seen still standing up in the middle of said hole in the exact same position it had been in moments before. It's entire body covered in black scorch marks and it's eyes gazing distantly up at the ceiling above as Pikachu moved his tired body into a ready position in case Kadabra wasn't down for the count yet.

This however proved not to be the case when, just seconds later, the Psychic-Pokémon collapsed fully to the ground on it's back with a poof of smoke leaving it's mouth. It's eyes now nothing but swirls as the spoons it religiously held actually fell from it's hands and rolled to the sides.

Feeling complete and total shock that Sabrina's Abra - now Kadabra - had actually been defeated for the first time that he could remember, the man with the medical mask over his face took several moments to overcome his stunned surprise at the completely unexpected turn of events.

When he finally did though, the man raised a shaky hand and announced, "K-Kadabra is unable to battle, Pikachu is the winner!"

Hearing those words spoken, Ash ran out onto the field and scooped the battered Pikachu into his arms while spinning him around in circles. "Pikachu you did it! I knew you could, you're stronger and tougher than anyone gives you credit for! Man I'm so proud of you!"

Even though his entire body quite literally ached to the bone from getting intimately familiar with practically every square inch of the gym in the most painful way possible, Pikachu smiled at his trainer's praise and held his hands up while cheering. "Pikachu Pi!"

While Giselle and Misty cheered and Brock breathed a heavy sigh of temporary relief, Solidad smiled and crossed her arms while watching the touching interaction between trainer and Pokémon. 'Huh... that kid really does surprise at every turn... I'll admit that I'm impressed. I just hope he can keep it up because this match isn't over yet...'

Sureenough, possibly due to her emotionless personality or maybe even lack of compassion for her Pokémon, Sabrina made no outward shows of emotion of any kind and simply said, "Kadabra return." as the downed Psychic-Type returned to the Pokéball that was still in the little girl's grasp on Sabrina's lap.

Moments later, the Pokéball disappeared and a new one appeared in the little girl's hands which Sabrina released with a cold announcement of, "Grumpig go."

Out of the red and white capture device came a flash of light and sparkles that quickly took shape into the figure of a black and purple bipedal Pokémon with black pearls on it's head and also one right near the center of it's stomach. Along with that, it also had a long, very curly tail that stretched out behind it.

"Piiiig!" Sabrina's second Pokémon called out as it flexed it's arms to the sky.

Ash took in the sight of his next opponent and in the few moments it took for him to register Sabrina's new Pokémon and walk back over to his side of the ring, he already knew everything he needed to know about it without pulling out his Pokédex. A trend that wasn't really that uncommon all things considered since Professor Oak's five years worth of instructions and strict lessons on all the many different species of Pokémon there were in the world had stuck in Ash's photographic memory like an Octillery to a Wailord's hind in.

Placing Pikachu down on the ground to rest, Ash straightened up and looked Grumpig over with a narrowed gaze. 'Grumpig is a Psychic-Type but unlike Kadabra, it also possesses actual physical strengths that other Psychic Pokémon usually don't have. It's legs and arms are pretty powerful, which allows it to learn Fighting-Type moves, and the tail on it's backside let's it catapult high into the air. Meaning Bounce and maybe even Body Slam could be a problem combined with the Psychic-Type abilities it can use...'

Making his decision, Ash selected his Pokémon and then threw it's Pokéball out into the air. "Alright, Charmander lets go!"

As the powerful little Fire-Type Pokémon materialized onto the battlefield with a cry of it's name, the girl in Sabrina's lap giggled for seemingly the dozenth time. "Isn't it cute! We look forward to playing with it once you lose!"

Ash wouldn't hear her taunts and let it throw him off of his game though as he immediately started the battle off with a high note and shouted, "Charmander use Flamethrower!"

Balling his fists up as fire appeared at the edges of his mouth, Charmander opened his maw and shouted his name again while releasing a stream of glowing hot flames at Grumpig.

Sabrina's voice could be heard seconds later though as she countered with, "Use Psychic now Grumpig."

As she said that, the little black balls on Grumpig's body glowed blue followed by everything else. At the same time, the cone of flames heading towards it stopped in mid-air - just inches in front of Grumpig with a faint blue glowing outline around it as well - and then shot straight up to the ceiling when the Psychic-Type directed it's focus upwards.

Sabrina's voice echoed throughout the large chamber room again as she commanded immediately after that, "Now use Psybeam."

Grumpig's eyes glowed in a scale of multicolors quickly before twin beams of psychic energy shot from it's eyes and headed straight for Charmander. Ash saw this and was quick to take evasive action, "Dodge to the side Charmander and use Fire Spin!"

Leaping away just as the beams of energy exploded on contact with where Charmander had just been standing moments before, the little Fire-Type rolled a few times and then stopped in a crouched position as he opened his mouth and expelled a twisting funnel of flames straight at Grumpig.

However, Grumpig was quick on the draw once again and stopped the flames just before they could hit it with Psychic. Instead of directing them away though, the Hoenn native pushed it's hands outward and sent the flames back at Charmander.

Having no fear of his own fire, Charmander simply held his ground and allowed the ring of fire to surround him and began drawing in all of the heat around him. The added fuel from the hot flames now making his tail flame glow that much brighter as his eyes practically burned with the fire within.

When Ash commanded, "Use that firepower and try another Flamethrower!" however, Sabrina ordered her Pokémon like she could see the future. "Grumpig use Disable."

Charmander was right on the cusp of releasing the intensely hot flames now burning within his mouth just as Grumpig's eyes glowed blue and a similar color suddenly suffused Charmander. In that same moment, the flames disappeared from Charmander's mouth and the same look of confusion passed over his face as Pikachu's own had taken when Kadabra used the same move on him earlier on.

Before Charmander could really process what had just happened or Ash could give him an order to shake it off, Sabrina commanded stoically, "Use Psywave Grumpig."

As she said that, a very similar multicolored glow from earlier began to emit and glow off of Grumpig's body but instead of coming from it's eyes or hands, the psychic energy seemed to come from all around it's body. Especially the gems melded into it's skin.

Unlike Psychic, Confusion or Psybeam, this attack spread out like a wave of slowly fluctuating, lazily drifting energy that for all intents and purposes looked rather appeasing to the eye. Ash however knew better and that's why he yelled, "Charmander try to get away and hide behind one of those pillars!"

Charmander made an immediate dash for the nearest support pillar to escape the wave of psychic energy now coming towards him but the little girl on Sabrina's lap giggled and said in a sing-song voice, "It's tooooo laaaaate!"

Sure enough, to everyone else's dismay, the wave of multicolored energy washed over Charmander just before he could duck behind one of the pillar for safety.

Falling to his knees, Charmander started writhing and convulsing in pain under the effects of Psywave which was immobilizing him due to whatever forces that the psychic attack operated under. If that wasn't enough, when Sabrina commanded her Grumpig to use Psybeam again, this time the mark hit straight and true as Charmander was sent flying back into the wall behind him and cratered it slightly before falling to the ground.

That was unfortunately all the opportunity that Sabrina needed to have Grumpig use Psychic and begin using the same tactic on Charmander as Kadabra had used on Pikachu in the last match.

While the little spunky Fire-Type started getting smashed against one of the nearby pillars under the influence of Psychic with grunts of "Char! Char! Char!" being heard after every hit, Misty seemed almost enraged on the sidelines beside the others.

"This is so completely unfair! How are you supposed to beat Psychic Pokémon when they can just take command of your own and then start levitating them around and bashing them into anything they want to?! It's not fair!"

"This isn't about fair Misty," Brock admonished sternly while watching the intense battle unfold before their eyes. "This is an official Pokémon League Gym Battle that's meant to test challengers and push them to their limits. To see if they have what it takes to overcome adversity and hardships in the heat of the moment while under pressure. It may not seem very fair when you're facing an opponent that can control your Pokémon like a Psychic-Type can but that's what makes it worthwhile. If you can find a way to overcome such a thing when it seems most impossible, that's what makes you get a little better each time and is what propels trainers one step closer to being prepared for the Pokémon League with each badge they earn."

Solidad chimed in while nodding to Brock's wise words, her own eyes not leaving the battle. "Brock is right. This may seem bad right now but if Ash truly wants to achieve his dream then he has to be able to overcome challenges like this and clear those hurdles to get one step closer to his goals. The same thing goes for Pokémon Coordinating as it does for Pokémon Gym battling; you don't give up and if you stay strong, it makes you better at the end of the day."

"I just hope Ash can stop this or turn it around like before because otherwise Charmander's gonna get hurt," Giselle said with a voice full of worry from her place next to Misty.

Unfortunately, Sabrina apparently had no intentions of making a repeat of her past mistake and letting Charmander go prematurely like Kadabra did with Pikachu, which ended up resulting in it's defeat at the paws of the resilient Electric-Type. This time the merciless psychic user seemed intent on not having Grumpig stop until Charmander was unconscious in it's invisible grasp.

To make matters even worse, the little girl on her lap spoke directly to Ash again in an infuriatingly taunting tone. "Hehehehe, don't you see? You can't win. Your Pikachu defeating Kadabra was just a fluke, nothing else! You can't hope to win because you can't even save your own Charmander, why not just give up now and become my plaything? We'll have all kinds of fun together!"

Ash gritted his teeth and struggled not to let the mysterious little girl's taunts get to him since he knew from the stories he heard that she was just trying to get into his head. Even still though, knowing it and putting the same thing into practice was no easy feat and he would be lying if he said that her jabs were not starting to get to him. Especially not when he had to see Charmander getting just as violently brutalized as Pikachu was earlier, only that much worse.

He could hear his friends calling out to him, trying to offer him encouragement on not letting the little girl get to him, but their voices seemed far away. Even as his fists clenched tightly, Ash started to seriously wonder how he was going to get out of the current, seemingly impossible situation just as he felt something pulling on his pant leg.

Looking down, he saw Pikachu staring at him with an expression of intense determination and ferocity in his eyes. Strength and conviction he gave voice to as he began speaking rapidly while gesturing from Ash to Charmander. "Pikachu! Pika Pika! Pikachu Pi! Pi Pi Pikachu Pi! Pika Pika Pika Pikachu!"

Ash's eyes were wide as he heard his first Pokémon give him what he knew was an extremely rousing and very intense pep talk that was full of sincerity and conviction. Even though he couldn't understand Pikachu, the Electric-Type's passionate tone and all the gestures he was making at Charmander spoke loud and clear of exactly what he was trying to say.

All of Ash's Pokémon depended on him and no matter what he thought of himself sometimes, they always had faith in him no matter what. They would fight to the bitter end and to the very peaks of total exhaustion for him because of their intense loyalty, compassion and trust in him.

Hearing such fierce vocalizations coming from Pikachu, knowing now what he meant and realizing that his Pokémon was doing it so he didn't lose faith in himself when they had so much in him themselves, caused Ash to feel incredibly touched and uplifted by his Pokémon's trust and loyalty.

Feeling a new fire rage in his gut, Ash nodded to his Pokémon and gave a true smile, one filled with intent and purpose. "Thanks Pi, I needed that! You're absolutely right!" He then turned around and faced the battle again with his eyes locked into focus. "It ain't over 'till it's over!"

As Pikachu pumped his fist, smirked triumphantly and felt another wave of pride for his trainer rush through him, Ash called out to his currently distressed Pokémon, "Charmander! Listen to me! This isn't over! I know you're in a lot of pain and I know it all seems helpless right now but believe me it isn't! I promise! Now shake off that pain, focus on what you need to do and let's win this together! What do you say?!"

Hearing such strong, powerful words coming from his trainer, Charmander's eyes snapped open just as he saw himself starting to hurdle over Grumpig's head again.

Fortunately, trainer and Pokémon seemed to be perfectly in-synch because they both had the same idea at the exact same time. Just as Ash was calling it out, Charmander was already building it up into his mouth so that when his trainer yelled, "Use Smokescreen!" Charmander struggled against the bonds of the psychic aura holding him back and expelled a thick plume of gas out of his mouth and directly into Grumpig's face just as he passed over it's head.

Unprepared for this, Grumpig took the full brunt of the black smog directly into it's eyes, mouth and nose and caused it to lose all focus. Which was all Charmander needed to break free from the powerful Psychic attack and land on all four feet on the ground.

Mouth still open, Charmander commenced to spreading the thick haze of smoke all over the middle of the ring which caused it to rise into the air and spread out until it was covering a large portion of the battlefield.

Standing outside of the smokescreen and looking towards it as they were able to hear Grumpig struggling inside of the curtain of black smoke, Charmander looked back at Ash and they both seemed to yet again have the same thoughts.

Smiling, Ash pointed into the smoke haze and commanded, "Charmander! Use Fire Spin and surround that smokescreen with fire!"

Opening his mouth once more, Charmander called out his name again and began creating a bright red, circular jet of fire which surrounded the black fog of smoke and extended from ground to ceiling.

Seconds later, the smoke cloud disappeared and showed Grumpig standing in the middle of the ring with it's arms over it's head which it removed as soon as it saw the smoke cloud was gone. However, before Sabrina could command it to use a Psychic-Type move and get rid of the flames, Ash yelled, "Charmander turn up the heat with Fire Displacement and Ember!"

As he said this, Charmander's tail flame gradually grew smaller and smaller until eventually, it disappeared altogether. Much to the shock and almost terror of Solidad since she knew what it meant but was stopped by Brock - whom gave her a knowing nod - and effectively halted her from doing anything to even attempt to interfere.

Baffled, the redhead watched on and was further stunned to see that instead of Charmander dropping over and well... dying as she expected when his tail flame disappeared, the flames he was expelling seemed to become that much brighter, stronger and even hotter. Allowing her to feel the intense heat coming off of the inferno quite a distance away even from where she was standing until the coordinator felt sweat beginning to form on her body.

What was even more amazing was how Charmander's entire body appeared to glow a bright red, almost orangish color while the flames he was making got an even stronger burst of energy and power due to the Fire-Type now adding Ember into the mix along with Fire-Spin.

Even still, Solidad was confused as to why Ash was having Charmander do this until she looked over and finally saw the answer to her unspoken question.

Grumpig, even though it could now see, was becoming practically immobilized by the unbelievably hot temperatures that was circulating within the vortex of flames it was trapped inside of. Sweat was pouring profusely from the Psychic-Type's body and it appeared to be breathing heavily due to all of the oxygen getting sucked out of the air by the wall of ferocious flames surrounding it.

Seeing their opponent temporarily handicapped by the inferno prison they had captured it in, Ash took the golden opportunity presented to them and shouted, "Charmander charge in now!"

With the roaring flames of both Fire Spin and Ember still spewing from his mouth like the polar opposite of a torrent of water, Charmander ran towards the wall of fire as fast as his legs could take him.

As soon as the determined Fire-Type reached his goal, he threw himself into the flames with a cry of defiance just as Ash yelled again, "Fire Fang!"

Seconds before he could impact with Grumpig inside the cylindrical dome of fire, Charmander's entire mouth ignited in blazing hot fire identical to that spinning around them just as he clamped his sharp jaws down atop the Psychic Pokémon's shoulder and dug themselves in deep.

Raising it's head to the ceiling, Grumping cried out in fierce pain as what felt like liquid flames were being injected into it's skin via the remorseless Fire-Type now biting down deeply into it's shoulder with his mouth ablaze.

Before Grumpig could even try to shake Charmander off though, Ash shouted through the fire, "Flame Burst!"

Digging his front and back claws into Grumpig's flesh, Charmander raised himself up until he was level with the larger Pokémon's face. His mouth wide open, Charmander formed a large ball of orange/reddish flames that expanded itself between him and Grumpig as it continued to grow.

The Psychic Pokémon went wide eyed and was just about to try and use one of it's psychic abilities or straight up muscle to get free from Charmander and the blazing fire ball growing between them - completely forgetting the dome of flames that had been slowing it down up until now in the face of such certain doom - however when it tried to move, Grumpig felt agonizing pain pour through it's body like thousands of tiny needles were puncturing it.

Not realizing that the previous Fire Fang it had endured from Charmander had actually given it a bad burn which resembled getting paralyzed to some degree from an electric based attack, Grumpig lost it's final chance to get away as Charmander finally released the ball of flames from his mouth.

Time seemed to move in slow motion as both Pokémon, silhouetted against the roar of the flames around them, were blasted apart from each other by the massive ball of fire Charmander let loose. An attack which slammed into Grumpig's midsection and smashed it into the ground while Charmander himself was sent flying up into the air above the dome of flames.

Seeing the end of the battle at hand, Ash raised his hand and called out, "Charmander finish this! DRAGON RAGE!"

While still airborne, Charmander just managed to hear his trainer over the flames below and flipped around in mid-air as his stomach took on a bright, deep blue glow which spread throughout his entire body and settled in his mouth.

Parting his jaws to reveal a sphere of shining blue draconian energy within, Charmander vaulted off the ceiling as soon as his feet made contact and hurdled towards Grumpig down below. Whom was now struggling to stand up again with a large burnt patch of skin on it's abdomen from the ball of fire that it took straight on.

Unfortunately, just as the flames around it started to die down and it looked up, Grumpig found itself staring at the descending form of Charmander as he closed with it and finally released the energy pent up in it's mouth.

As soon as the powerful little Fire Pokémon released what would hopefully be the last attack of the battle, the cannon of draconic energy morphed into the actual shape of a Dragon-Type just before it collided with the terrified looking Grumpig below.

The entire chamber shook as a loud explosion hailed the success of Charmander's attack, which hit Grumpig and shot smoke back into the air once again and covered the battlefield. Luckily, very luckily, Charmander hadn't been caught up in the blast of his own attack and was instead sent flying out of the cloud of smoke where he hit the ground and rolled several times before finally coming to a stop.

Fighting himself to get back on his feet and eventually managing to do so, Charmander turned around and looked towards the center of the ring where the smoke had now cleared and was showing Grumpig laying in a rather sizable crater that put the one Pikachu left behind with his earlier Thunder attack to shame.

The Psychic-Type Pokémon's body was battered and bruised from head to toe and the tightly shut eyes gave a definite clue away as to Grumpig's current state of wellbeing. Showing that it was now, indeed, out for the count.

Finding himself in a state of disbelief for the second time that day that Sabrina had not only lost one Pokémon in battle but now two, the man in the medical mask who was standing in as the ref raised his hand and gave his verdict. "Grumpig is unable to battle, Charmander wins this battle!"

In a mirror of before Sabrina ordered a simple "Return." and Grumpig returned to the Pokéball in the little girl's hands which disappeared soon after. At the same time, Charmander tiredly walked over to his trainer and went to fall down just as Ash caught him in his arms and held him close.

Smiling at his Pokémon, Ash nodded and spoke with a sense of great gratitude in his voice. "Charmander I can't thank you enough for battling as intensely as you did today. I know how hard that was on you and I want you to know that I truly do appreciate it and am very, very proud of you."

Charmander smiled himself and nodded to his trainer's words while giving a simple, "Char..." in reply. Showing his gratitude for Ash's praise.

Rubbing Charmander's head one last time, Ash told him to get a good rest and then returned the only Fire-Type he had back to his Pokéball before facing the ring again. His eyes and brain locked firmly onto the match at hand and his focus totally on point even though his stomach was feeling a little nervous since he knew this was the last battle of the match.

Which quite naturally meant that it would also most likely be the hardest one yet.

As another Pokèball appeared in the little girl's hands, Sabrina psychically opened it and announced dully at the same time, "I choose you... Lunatone."

In a flash of bright light, a Pokémon that resembled a half-moon almost perfectly with red eyes on either side of it's body and some type of beak like nose in it's center emerged from the Pokéball and floated several feet off the ground. It's eyes just as vacant and emotionless as Sabrina's own.

"Wow another Hoenn Pokémon," Giselle said in awe as she got her first glimpse of Sabrina's last Pokémon. "And it looks so creepy!"

"I wonder where she got this one and Grumpig from?" Misty asked aloud as she looked from Lunatone to Sabrina in curiosity.

Brock hummed. "It's definitely a mystery. You don't find those Pokémon here in Kanto to my knowledge."

For Ash however, he was thinking of anything but where Sabrina got her Pokémon. Instead, he pulled out his Pokéball of choice. "Okay I'm counting on you to take us home..." Throwing the ball up into the air he announced loudly, "Gastly come on out!"

Out of the Pokéball came the very old Gastly of Maiden's Peak with a grand twirl in mid-air as confetti exploded into existence around him. "Oh how wonderful it is to be free again! Thank you everyone, I'll be here all day!"

Bowing several times to no one in particular, Gastly then turned to look back at Ash and grinned. "You rang o' great and powerful trainer of mine?"

Ash nodded seriously and pointed at Lunatone. "We're in the middle of a gym battle Gastly and this is against a Psychic-Type Pokémon. I need you to be on the top of your game alright?"

Gastly looked around and then at his opponent, smile never fading away. "A Psychic-Type eh? Well I suppose that makes us half cousins!" His echoing, almost operatic laughter rang throughout the gym afterwards as he stated cheerfully. "Do not fret yourself Ash, I won't be as careless this time as I was the last time we battled together."

A serious expression also formed on Gastly's face then which was rather odd in appearance all things considered since his seemingly permanent smile was still etched onto his mouth. The only difference being his eyes, which were set into a determined stare right at Lunatone.

For Solidad and the referee however, who had not been granted the luxury of being introduced to Gastly beforehand, their eyes went wide and mouths agape as they stared at the Ghost-Type in shock.

"I-It talks!" Solidad exclaimed with her face set into a humorous expression of complete disbelief.

"Impossible!" Was the accented, totally stunned voice of the mask wearing gym hand who stood at the top of the ring between Sabrina and Ash. "It simply isn't possible!"

Sabrina didn't say anything but the little girl in her lap did, forgoing her usual giggle to be replaced with a tone of childish curiosity. "A talking Gastly? So you do have a Ghost Pokémon after all! That will make it so much more fun when you lose and you both become our new friends! Playing with a talking Gastly will be so much more fun than a plain old regular one!"

Ash could tell Gastly was curious as to the little girl herself but he simply spoke in a stern voice to capture the eccentric Ghost Pokémon's attention, "Don't worry about her Gastly, she's been doing that this whole match. She'll try to get inside your head and throw you off your game so just ignore her and focus on the task at hand. Don't get cocky, don't get sloppy and watch out for her Pokémon. They're really strong and she knows how to use them."

Gastly nodded and replied just as simply, "Understood." while getting into a ready position up in the air. His entire being determined not to mess up and get complacent and then nearly lose the battle like he did back in Shadow's Hallow when he took on Walt's Misdreavus.

Apparently though, Sabrina had learned her lesson when it came to giving Ash and his Pokémon any amount of time to make a move because she quickly commanded her Lunatone, "Use Psybeam now."

The moon-shaped Pokémon's eyes glowed before it fired the same beams of psychic energy that Grumpig had earlier right at Gastly.

Acting quick on his feet, Ash ordered, "Gastly dodge to the side and then use Shadow Ball!"

The Ghost-Type swerved to the right just before the beams of energy could hit him and at the same time, shot a fast moving ball of darkness at Lunatone.

Fortunately for it though, the Psychic-Type managed to dodge out of the way quick enough to avoid it and then countered immediately on Sabrina's command of, "Now use Rock Slide."

Dozens of large rocks appeared above and all around Gastly's head seconds later which forced him to take evasive action. Dodging, swerving, flying and ducking out of the way of the falling rocks as they fell and attempted to crush him under their weight. Sure he could have phased through them but that took just a split's moment of concentration and currently, he didn't have that luxury.

Still, even as Gastly dodged out of the way of the falling rocks, he couldn't help but make a joke. "I've heard of acid rain but never rock rain! We must be off to a rocky start eh?!"

In the midst of Gastly's bad puns, Sabrina ordered her Pokémon to use Psychic on the many rocks that were now laying around on the battlefield below.

As Lunatone's body glowed blue and it initiated the Psychic-Type species' most powerful attack, the many large rocks that had failed to hit Gastly rose back up into the air and then started getting flung in all different directions in an attempt to hit Gastly again.

Ash didn't want to leave Gastly's speed and current luck in dodging all of the rocks up to chance though and that's why he yelled, "Gastly spin and use Night Shade!"

Stopping in place with a wide grin on his face again, Gastly began spinning himself in a circle in mid-air like a top while twin beams of dark energy exploded from his mischievous eyes. The spinning motion combined with Night Shade effectively created a rapidly firing cannon which shot off multiple blasts of the ghostly energy. Ultimately serving the purpose of destroying all of the rocks that Lunatone was controlling psychically in an attempt to hit him.

"Ooohooooohooooo!" Gastly cheered as he spun. "Now this is living! Not sitting around rotting on some boring old peak! Yeeehaaaaawwww momma!"

One of the shots of Night Shade even managed to hit Lunatone, whom wasn't nearly as fast with evasion as Gastly, and sent the Pokémon floating backwards several feet with a grunt of pain due to the super-effectiveness of the Ghost-Type attack.

Sabrina didn't wait to give her Pokémon a chance to recover however because right at the same time as Gastly stopped spinning with his eyes comically rolling around in his head as he continued giggling to himself, the cold and stoic gym leader ordered in an icy voice, "Lunatone use Moonblast.

Moving back a few feet more as it's body began to glow white, Lunatone formed a ball of pinkish energy in it's center near what what resembled it's nose while streaks of white light formed off of the ball itself.

"No way that's a Fairy-Type attack!" Brock shouted as he stepped forward and looked up at the Psychic Pokémon who was about to use the attack.

"You definitely don't see one of those every day," Solidad remarked distractedly while she looked on in obvious concern for what might happen if Gastly got hit by that attack.

Just as Lunatone fired off the dazzling and admittedly beautiful ball of energy, Ash called out urgently, "Gastly you need to get out of the way now!"

Regaining control of himself and his senses, Gastly saw the sparkling ball of energy coming at him in just the nick of time and barely managed to swerve to the side and avoid it.

However, Sabrina was cunning as she commanded again, "Confusion Lunatone."

As it's eyes and body glowed blue and it focused it's influence outward, Ash immediately grew concerned that Lunatone was trying to control Gastly. However, when the ball of Fairy-Type energy stopped mere inches from hitting the back wall and then reversed course, shooting back towards Gastly again, he saw the real purpose behind the tactic.

"Gastly watch out behind you!" He shouted up to his Pokémon, whom heard him and spun around to face the ball of incoming energy with a serious expression now upon his face.

Surprisingly though, just before the attack could attempt to hit him again, Sabrina ordered her Pokémon to use Stone Edge. Which Lunatone was quick to oblige with as several large, jagged pieces of rock formed in front of it's body and then shot off towards Gastly like little rockets.

Sensing both incoming threats and knowing that now was anything but the time for joking around, Gastly waited until just the right moment and then shot straight up into the air. His action allowing Moonblast and Stone Edge to connect with each other and explode into a rain of dozens of rock pieces and brightly shining light.

As the smoke cloud settled over the field temporarily, Gastly ducked down into it and then spoke up from within the haze in an exaggeratedly creepy and spooky voice. "Don't worry everyone... I know the perfect way in which to take down this psycho psychic and her floating rock! Muhahahahaha!"

As his boisterous laughter echoed throughout the gym everything gradually went silent until, in a burst of white smoke that overclouded the dust that was still settling from Lunatone's previous attacks, a gigantic shape slowly emerged and rose up high into the air.

When the smoke around it cleared enough for everyone to see exactly what it was, several reactions made themselves known all at once. Ash's was simply an expression of exasperated frustration with his right hand over his face, Brock and Giselle had looks of total confusion upon theirs, Sabrina appeared as emotionless as ever, both Solidad and the referee sweatdropped in question of Gastly's sanity and Misty lunged back in terror. The redhead's skin instantly beginning to crawl and break out into nervous bumps at the disturbing sight before her.

The source of all of the varied and somewhat humorous reactions was to due to Gastly shapeshifting his form entirely until he now resembled a massive Weedle. The long bodied, horn headed, fake Bug-Type slowly wiggling it's body from side to side directly in front of Lunatone. Whom appeared as emotionless and impassive as ever even in the face of such a perplexing sight.

Removing his hand from his face Ash shouted up to his Pokémon, "Gastly what are you doing?!"

The voice of said Ghost-Type could be heard coming from the giant bug as he replied, "Simple! I've always heard that Psychic-Type Pokémon are afraid of and weak against Bug-Types so I decided to take the shape of one and scare this little moon rock into a corner that it won't be able to fight it's way out of!"

Ash's mouth all but hung open and his face appeared to be one of complete and total disbelief before he finally came back to his full senses a short while later and then tore at his hair while yelling loudly, "Are you crazy?! Gastly's that's just a myth that crackpot wannabe Pokémon Researchers made up as a way to give them something to "announce" at Pokémon Science Expos! It's not true! Why the hell would Psychic-Types be afraid of Bug-Types when their attacks have been proven to barely even be able to touch them by actual Pokémon Researchers!?"

Unfortunately, before Gastly could have a chance to calculate his grievous mistake, Sabrina grew impatient. "Enough of this foolishness. Lunatone use Hypnosis."

Before Gastly could cancel his illusion and have even a hope of dodging the potentially game ending attack, Lunatone was already sending several large, pulsating rings of purple energy at the fake Bug-Type which surrounded it and slowly distorted the air around the sizable illusion.

Gradually, the image of Weedle faded away and as it did, to Ash and everyone else's dread, Gastly was shown to be fast asleep while simply levitating slowly in mid-air and snoring with his mouth open.

Not one to show her opponent any mercy, Sabrina first commanded for her Pokémon to use another new move called Future Sight followed by Stone Edge. The first attack only being signaled by a faint blue glowing of Lunatone's eyes while the second one was much more noticeable as dozens of jagged rocks appeared in front of it again and then fired off at Gastly.

Ash called out to his snoozing Pokémon but Gastly was too far gone into the land of dreams to hear him. Thus, when the multiple sharp rocks started raining down upon him and pelting the Ghost-Type repeatedly with their hard, unforgivingly rough surfaces, Gastly could do nothing but cringe and grunt in pain in his sleep.

Far from done, Sabrina then gave another command, "Now use another Moonblast."

Ash knew that if that particular attack connected, Gastly would be in trouble and that's why he started shouting as loud as he could. "Gastly wake up! Come on! If you don't wake up then things are gonna get really ugly real fast!"

The infuriating giggling from the little girl sounded again as Lunatone charged up and prepared to release the Fairy-Type attack. "Too late! Talking Gastly is about to go nightie night permanently!"

Sure enough, when Lunatone finally fired off the brightly shining ball of energy, Gastly still had not awoken and was powerless to stop it. Even when the almost hypnotizing ball of light made contact with the sleeping Ghost-Type and rocked the arena in another explosion, nothing could be done to stop the insurmountable damage that Gastly had most likely just taken.

In fact, when the smoke cleared and revealed Gastly to still be levitating in place (though badly damaged) everyone was surprised that he wasn't on the ground unconscious or at the very least far too injured to continue battling if he did indeed wake up.

As usual though there was no rest or luck for the weary because at the same time that Gastly was revealed to still be conscious, the ceiling above glinted as out of it suddenly appeared a growing sphere of large psychic energy which grew bigger and bigger the longer it stayed suspended up in the air.

Ash and everyone else knew exactly what they were looking at and he gave voice to it in an attempt to awaken Gastly again, "You need to wake up now Gastly! That attack is Future Sight and if you don't open your eyes right here and now then this battle is over!"

As the buildup of psychic energy up near the ceiling grew stronger and stronger, Gastly's face began to twitch and grimace as his inner conscious fought to get free and awaken himself.

All the while though, the child on Sabrina's lap continued to taunt and tease. "You won't wake it fast enough! You won't wake it fast enough!"

Ash gritted his teeth for the umpteenth time and shouted one more time just as Future Sight prepared to fully unleash itself, "GASTLY WAKE UP RIGHT NOW OR YOU'RE GONNA LOSE!"

Maybe luck or the sound of his trainer's voice finally snapped him out of the deep trance he was in because just before he completely ran out of time, Gastly's eyes snapped open. Awakening just as the force of psychic energy above finally released itself and shot like a cannon down at the Ghost-Type.

Spinning around, Gastly's eyes widened when he saw the blast of powerful psychic energy coming for him and at the same time, he heard Ash yell loudly, "Use Confusion!"

Almost as though his body was reacting on instinct and muscle memory instead of on cognitive command, Gastly's eyes and body glowed a bright blue. As soon as he did, the unnaturally powerful Confusion attack took hold and enveloped the incoming beam of Psychic energy in it's powerful control.

Sensing he had only seconds, Gastly grunted with effort and moved to the side while using as much as force as he could to shift the direction of Future Sight. His entire body straining with the force he was exerting in the process.

It was a tense moment that went right down to the wire indeed because with barely even seconds to spare while everyone below held their breath, Gastly just barely managed to avoid the focused beam of psychic energy by a hair's breadth.

Now shifted out of the way of Future Sight's path, Gastly continued to use all the power he could manage to redirect the attack in the best possible direction he could think of it to go. Which was on a collision course with it's creator.

Lunatone - being far too slow to move out of the way of the speeding burst of pure psychic power which was only enhanced by Gastly's Confusion - could only hover there in their mid-air with it's eyes widening ever so slightly in the first show of emotion that it had displayed the entire battle.

Seeing what Gastly had done Giselle, Brock and Misty cheered, Solidad looked shocked that Gastly had used a Psychic-Type move, the temperamental referee shouted "WHAT?!" and the little girl in Sabrina's lap whined in a loud, almost shrieking voice, "No fair!"

Ash raised his hand and pointed at Lunatone while calling back, "Sorry little girl, I'm not gonna be your plaything today! Gastly use Shadow Ball!"

Mustering up the last of his energy in his tired and battered state, Gastly said nothing and instead let his actions do the talking for him. His entire body glowing with a dark aura as he grunted and released a huge Shadow Ball at the descending beam of psychic energy.

As the ball of ghostly power met with that of the psychic beam, both attacks slowly merged and melded together in what would appear to be an unholy union of dark and light just before colliding with Lunatone at full speed.

The resulting final explosion rocked the entire gym like a mini-landslide and obscured just Lunatone, not the entire ring this time, in a thick cloud of smoke that expanded towards the ceiling above.

Seconds later however, Lunatone became visible again as it fell from the smoke cloud it was in and dropped to the ring below like dead weight. It's smooth, rock covered surface smoking like a burnt sausage as it finally hit the ground with a thud and lay still. The vacancy of any kind of conscious thought in it's eyes giving proof to the unspoken question of what condition it was now in.

Seeing this but being unable to fully compute or understand exactly what he was now witnessing, the man standing in as referee and who practically seemed to worship the ground Sabrina walked on found himself to be at a temporary loss for words.

Never before had he seen a match with his powerful gym leader drag on to such dramatic limits, let alone actually make it to this point. Sabrina herself hadn't even lost her Abra in countless battles against the many challengers that came her way and now, in the course of a single match against some strange trainer from a no name place like Pallet Town, someone had actually managed to defeat her in an all out, three on three, fair and square Pokémon battle.

Finally returning to his senses a short time later, he did his duty and raised his hand. Gesturing towards Ash as he announced loud enough for everyone to hear, "Lunatone is unable to battle! Since the gym leader has lost all three of her Pokémon I hereby declare the winner of this match to be Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town and his Gastly!"

As his friends all began cheering in praise for him Ash dropped to his butt on the ground and breathed out a heavy sigh. "Thank Arceus it's finally over..."

Looking up, he saw Gastly slowly floating down to him and he smiled wearily at his Pokémon while nodding. "Heckuva battle Gastly, heckuva battle. You really showed grit and determination out there and I really appreciate it. You did great."

Ash glanced down at Pikachu and rubbed his battered Pokémon behind the ears. "You all did. That was the toughest battle we've fought yet but each of you gave it your all and came out on top. I'm super proud of you."

Pikachu smiled and rubbed his head into Ash's hand while Gastly smiled tiredly. "You put your faith in us and we didn't want to let you down. I don't believe it gets any plainer than that."

Before Ash could reply or any of his friends could come up to congratulate them, they all heard the little girl in Sabrina's lap speak in barely above a whisper at the same time as Lunatone was returned to it's Pokéball. Which disappeared immediately thereafter.

"No... we don't lose... we don't..." Her voice became slightly more audible the more she spoke. "They promised to play with us ... they promised..."

Suddenly, the little girl's head shot up and her eyes glowed a bright, blazing yellow that was mimicked in color by Sabrina's own. Somehow, the young girl's voice also became much deeper and seemed to echo throughout the gym with an undertone of malice laced within her words.

"THEY PROMISED TO PLAY AND BE OUR FRIENDS AND PLAY WITH US THEY WILL!" Sabrina's hair stood up on end and appeared to levitate behind her as the two standing torch lanterns on top of the platform that she was on flickered and barely resisted being put out completely. "RATHER THEY WANT TO OR NOT!

As she said those words, the little girl extended her hands as the glowing in her and Sabrina's eyes became brighter. Almost painfully so. "THEY WILL BE OUR FRIENDS FOREEEEEVEEEEEERRRER!

Hearingthelittle girl's voice end in what resembled a roar, Ash shot to his feet and stepped back with his eyes wide. "What the heck do you think you're doing Sabrina?! The battles over!"

Over near the top of the ring, he heard the man that had judged the match cry out in fear while stepping back several paces. No! No please! Do not hurt me great Sabrina! Haven't I been nothing but loyal to you?! Please!"

In unison, both Sabrina and the little girl turned their heads towards him with their faces showing nothing but cold indifference and malice and as soon as they did, a blue glow surrounded his body as he was lifted off of his feet and pulled high into the air.

Gasping and grunting while his body twitched in a desperate attempt to move it, the mask covered man gurgled and just barely managed to rasp out, "P-Please Sabrina... d-do not do this! Please I-" Anything else he had to say was cut off as the man in the white coat was flung back across the gym with a strangled scream escaping his lips.

Hitting the back wall with a loud thud, the wannabe psychic slid down heavily and landed on the ground before falling to his side and becoming motionless. An action that, all together, caused Ash and his friends to feel immediate fear at the sudden dangerous turn of events that the entire situation had just taken.

"Did you see that?!" Misty gasped in shock. "She just picked that guy up with her mind and tossed him like a piece of trash!

"We need to get out of here now!" Brock yelled without any further waiting around as he and the others turned and began running towards the exit of the battlefield while followed swiftly by Ash, Pikachu and Gastly who caught up and fell into step behind them in mere seconds.

However, just as they passed the last pillar on the way to the door, both torches on either side of Sabrina's chair atop the second level platform took on a dark blue glow and then blazed to life like an inferno had suddenly been lit inside of their basins.

Fire shooting straight up into the air like pillars of skin melting lava, the seemingly alive flames roared forward in an arcing fashion and merged together before hitting the ground in front of Ash and his friends. Spreading outward into a long line that reached from one wall to the other, the flames raged high into the air and formed an impassible barrier that the seven of them were unable to get through.

Coming to a halt in front of the wall of flames, Ash looked back at the enraged psychic duo and then up at Gastly before pointing to the fire and commanding, "Gastly use Confusion and part these flames!"

Not wasting a second, Gastly utilized his own psychic power and opened up a wide enough gap in the flames that his trainer and the others were able to jump through and get to the other side safely.

Simply flying overtop of the flames afterwards, Gastly joined them as they all made a mad dash for the exit. However, just as they reached it, the doors suddenly slammed shut tightly and not even Gastly's Confusion was able to open them back up again.

Turning around, they all looked back at the wall of flames just as the fire dimmed and began to flicker before fading away completely. As soon as it did though, Sabrina and the little girl in her lap could be seen still sitting in the throne-like chair atop the raised platform with their eyes glowing menacingly yellow without falter.

Taking a single step forward, Ash shouted at them both, "Just stop this already you two! I only agreed to be your plaything or whatever if you won but you lost instead so just forget about it and let us go! What are you gonna do, keep us here against our will and kidnap us?!"

All he got as a reply was both Sabrina and the little girl speaking at the same time, "You promised to be our friend and play with us and you will do as you said! WE CANNOT LOSE!"

Then, to thefurtherhorror of Ash and his friends, Sabrina and the little girl formed a massive amount of psychic energy in front of them which glowed and blazed a bright blue color like indigo flames.

Extending her hands forward, the little girl started giggling manically as the mass of psychic energy began shooting across the gym towards Ash and the others like a comet streaking through the sky.

Due the immense speed it was traveling at, Ash, Pikachu, Gastly and his friends only had enough time to cry out in terror and attempt to shield themselves before the overwhelming amount of psychic energy fell upon them all and instantly turned their worlds seemingly upside down.

All seven of them felt their heads become incredibly heavy and disoriented as the room around them appeared to spin in circles and fade in and out of clarity. Their legs felt as though they had become jelly and the scariest feeling of all was how their entire bodies started feeling like they were melting and falling away.

Looking over, Ash tried to get a clear view of Giselle, Solidad and then Pikachu and Gastly but to his utter horror, he saw each of them actually starting to fade away like their bodies were made of mist. A process that was beginning at their feet and spreading upwards quickly.

He could hear their screams and shouts of fear and as much as he wanted to do something, he found himself completely helpless to do so. What was more, when he looked at himself, he saw the same thing was happening to him.

As the phenomena continued to consume his body all the way up to his chest, Ash held his hands in front of his face and watched as they too started to fade away until he was only able to just barely see the glowing yellow eyes of Sabrina and the child in her lap at the far end of the room. Which appeared as though it were now a hundred miles away.

Looking down as what was left of his body vanished, Ash only managed to see Pikachu, Gastly and his friends disappear entirely before he too faded away into nothingness. His whole being and very consciousness itself seemingly slipping away into a great void of total obscurity as heavy blackness became all that he could possibly perceive in the waking world or even the one of his dreams.

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In all truth, Ash didn't expect for himself to wake up. Or, at the very least, if he did he expected to see a bright light and maybe even Arceus herself as a way to let him know that he had indeed passed on and was now awaiting his final judgment before stepping into the afterlife forever.

However, when his eyes blinked open and he instead saw blue skies above him surrounded by tall buildings, he slowly sat up and then took stock of his surroundings. Seeing something once he did that completely stunned him.

To Ash's total confusion and bewilderment, he found himself sitting in the middle of a street in what he knew from his waking memories to be none other than Saffron City itself. Down to the very last skyscraper, everything resembled the city to a T which left no further question in his mind that, somehow, he had ended up back in the city indeed.

The only issue he found with his new surroundings besides the multiple questions he now had was two things. For one, he was totally alone with not a sign of his friends or even Pikachu and Gastly anywhere to be found... and the second, he seemed to be the only living soul in the entire area. Which of course he immediately found to be beyond unusual since the words "Empty" and "Saffron" simply didn't go together at all.

Standing up, Ash looked around and glanced as far into the distance on both sides of the street as he could and still saw absolutely no one except for himself. Furthermore, when he walked over to the righthand sidewalk and peered in through the thick plexiglass of one of the many businesses that stretched all along underneath the massive buildings throughout the city, he failed to see anyone else inside of what he was assuming to be a coffee shop.

Stepping back and rubbing the back of his head, Ash murmured to himself, "Okay... something is seriously not right here." He then looked around once more. "Where the heck is everybody?"

Heading back out into the street, the black haired trainer began walking down the road while continuing to swivel his head this way and that in an attempt to catch a glimpse of at least someone.

"Brock!" He shouted with his hands over his mouth. "Misty, Pikachu! Turning around, Ash started walking backwards while continuing to shout. "Gastly, Giselle, Solidad! Hey guys where are you?!"

Getting no reply of any kind but the sound of utter silence in the eerily desolate streets, Ash continued on his way through the city. Checking in every alley, every street corner and through the glass of every building for his missing friends and Pokémon.

However, upon hearing a loud "Pikaaaaa!" Ash stopped in his tracks and started frantically looking in every direction for the source of what he knew to be Pikachu's voice.

Taking off, Ash began sprinting through the streets while calling out for his Pokémon, "Pikachu! Pikachu where are you?!" but each time his calls only resulted in Pikachu crying more and more.

Eventually however, once he rounded a street corner, Ash found Pikachu. Unfortunately, his Pokémon was in an extremely precarious situation. Hereby meaning that the Electric-Type was dangling by his right foot from what Ash thought was a cable that was attached to a large crane extended over the side of a big building.

Seeing his first Pokémon in such an extremely dangerous situation, Ash sprinted immediately towards the building that the crane was on top of while yelling up to the endangered Pikachu, "Hang on buddy I'm coming!"

Hearing his trainer's voice, Pikachu looked down and saw Ash running towards him. Becoming excited for a rescue, he started calling down to Ash while swinging back and forth on the crane. "Pika Pi! Pika Pikachu Pi!"

"Don't move Pikachu!" Ash shouted. "I'm coming!"

He then ran up to the door at the front of the building and tried to open it, only to find that it was locked. Banging on the door and cursing, Ash stepped back and began looking around for another way in before finally managing to spot a fire escape on the right side of the building.

Running over to it as fast as possible, Ash jumped to reach it but fell short. Stepping back several paces and jumping in place, he took several deep breaths and then ran towards the wall of the building at top speed.

As soon as he reached it, Ash didn't slow down and instead jumped up on the wall with one foot, using that leg to catapult himself up into the air even higher than before and then grabbing onto the end of the fire escape with just barely his fingertips.

Grunting in effort as he secured a more stable grip, Ash pulled himself up and then climbed the first few rungs with just his hands before finally finding purchase with his feet and then flinging himself the rest of the way up as fast as he could.

Once his feet landed on the first platform of the fire escape, Ash took off up the winding steps all the way up the side of the building and managed to reach the top in just a few short minutes of climbing.

Stepping out onto the rooftop of the building itself, Ash hurried over to the crane and stopped at the edge of the roof. Looking out at Pikachu, he instructed as calmly as possible, "Hold on Pi!" He then looked down at the city far below and gulped. "Just uhh... try to remain calm... I'm coming..."

Stepping onto the crane slowly, Ash took a deep, shuddering breath and held his arms out while gradually beginning to make his way across the open spaced metal beam of the crane.

Seeing Pikachu looking towards him with a desperate and scared expression on his face, Ash smiled and attempted to calm his Pokémon. "Just stay relaxed Pikachu, I'm coming. Don't move as much as you can and I'll be there in a minute..."

Suddenly, at the same time as he said that, the cable holding Pikachu up started to fray and strain before dropping down several more feet, Pikachu coming to a halting, jerking stop as soon as the cable caught tension again. "Pika!"

Ash held his hands out and stepped forward quickly while being careful not to step through any of the gaps in the crane. "Hang on Pi I'm coming!"

Reaching for one of the Pokéballs on his side, Ash enlarged it and then called out, "Bulbasaur I need your help!"

As the Grass-Type emerged from his Pokéball, Ash quickly began issuing commands. "Bulbasaur I need you to wrap your vines around me and lower me down so I can get to Pikachu. If we don't work fast then-"

At that exact moment, the cable finally snapped completely and Pikachu started falling rapidly to the ground below.

Seeing this and not thinking twice, Ash jumped over the side of the crane and Bulbasaur reacted by immediately sending his vines after his trainer.

Falling like a stone while reaching for his crying Pokémon, Ash grabbed onto the cable just as Bulbasaur's vines wrapped around his waist and stopped his descent in a fierce jerking motion. The air leaving his lungs as the vines pressed up into his stomach.

Now dangling high in the air while Bulbasaur strained up above to keep him, the cable and Pikachu elevated, Ash grunted and then began pulling the cable up one hand at a time while Pikachu slowly raised back towards him.

Once the Electric-Type was within reach, Ash grabbed his Pokémon with one hand and pulled him into his arms while setting to work on quickly freeing Pikachu's leg.

"It's okay now Pikachu, I've got you! Just hold on a second then and we can-" As though luck was no longer on his side, Ash heard a loud sound of some kind followed by what resembled crunching metal reaching his ear drums. Then, mere seconds later, Ash and Pikachu felt a terrible shaking sensation that was followed by them both unexpectedly falling several more feet.

Hearing Bulbasaur yell out in a strained tone from above after they came to yet another stop due to the Grass-Type's vines around Ash's waist, the two of them looked up and saw the crane itself starting to break away from the roof as it slowly but surely began dropping downward.

Going wide eyed, Ash shouted up to the quadruped Pokémon, "Hurry and raise us up Bulbasaur! Quick!"

Shouting out in pure determination, Bulbasaur pulled upwards on his vines as quickly as possible and - digging his feet down while fighting against the unsteady movement of the crane - pushed up as high as he could. The movement whipping Ash and Pikachu all the way back up until the boy could grab onto the edge of the crane with one hand.

Hurrying over to Ash quickly, Bulbasaur helped his trainer back up onto the falling crane and once he was on his feet again, Ash grabbed onto both he and Pikachu and then ran towards the rooftop with all possible haste.

Feeling the final few shakes and shudderings of the crane signaling it's imminent collapse, Ash put on an extra burst of speed and then jumped for the rooftop just as the crane finally broke fully away from the building and began plummeting towards the ground.

Rolling to a stop on the gritty surface of the rooftop as he heard the crane hit the street below with a loud, metal crunching/crashing sound, Ash sat up and looked down into his arms at Bulbasaur and Pikachu (the latter of whom he'd managed to free just before the crane collapsed) with a relieved smile on his face.

"Thank Arceus! Are you two okay?" He questioned in concern while Pikachu and Bulbasaur both nodded at the same time. "Pika/Bulba!"

Hugging Pikachu close while feeling immense relief that his first Pokémon friend was safe, he then looked down at Bulbasaur and rubbed the Grass-Type's bulb. "Thanks Bulbasaur, we would've been totally toast without you just now."

Standing up after setting Pikachu down while Bulbasaur smiled in acceptance of his trainer's gratitude, Ash walked over to the edge of the roof and looked down at the street where the crane had landed. A large crater was in the pavement marring the surface of the road below while a car that the crane had landed on now resembled nothing more than a colorful metal pancake that had been crushed almost completely flat.

Putting his hands on his hips and whistling at what could have been their fate while joined at his position by Pikachu and Bulbasaur, Ash spoke in barely above a whisper, "Man that could have been bad..."

Pikachu didn't say anything, merely nodding instead and patting Bulbasaur's back in a show of relief and thanks as Ash turned to look down at them both with a smile that was meant to be an attempt at humor on his face. "Well now that our moment of utter terror is over, what say we go and try to find Brock and the others so we can figure out what's going on with this city?"

Looking out over the expansive horizon that spanned all of Saffron City - of which looked even bigger than usual from where they were currently standing for some reason since he couldn't see anything in any direction except for more city - Ash scratched his head in confusion.

"All I know for a fact is that this stuff is super weird. I mean there for a second we were in Sabrina's gym and the next... here we are in the city but without anyone around. Strange as hell...

"Pika," Pikachu replied slowly with a nod while also looking over the city alongside Bulbasaur.

Turning away from the ledge, Ash pumped his fist and smiled. "Well, let's go find our friends and get some answers! Whadya say?"

Pikachu and Bulbasaur cheered their agreement and then followed Ash as he made his way back to the fire escape. The three of them climbing down off the building in respectable time and heading back into the maze-like city again on the search to find their missing friends.

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---

When she blinked her eyes open, Giselle was more than a little surprised to find herself staring up at a plain white ceiling instead of being greeted by nothingness as she thought she would be after Sabrina had used her psychic powers on them all.

Scrunching her face up slightly, the brunette took in her surroundings and felt as though she was laying in a soft bed upon cotton sheets. Looking to her side and behind her, Giselle's musings were proven true as she saw that she was indeed laying upon a regular sized four poster bed.

Sitting up, she allowed her eyes to wander around some more and found that she was actually in some type of room. A room that had a small kitchen at the front of it, a door leading to what she saw by the toilet inside of it to be the bathroom near the left side of the bed and a window situated into the wall across from the tiny kitchenette area.

To her eye, the room didn't look very luxurious at all. More like what a person who was trying to get back on their feet after an unfortunate incident or someone living on their own for the first time would choose to live in. Overall though, it was well furnished with a couch near what she guessed was the main door, a coffee table in front of it and a TV placed on a stand near the very back wall.

Swinging her legs over the side of the bed and looking down at herself (and being more than happy to find that she was still dressed) the confused, newly teenaged girl walked around the apartment as it appeared to resemble and then made her way to the window that she saw earlier.

Looking through it to the outside world beyond, Giselle was further stunned to find herself looking down upon a street with cars parked alongside the curb and a row of buildings across the road on the other side.

Looking around through the glass portal as much as she could, all Giselle could see passed the buildings on the other side of the road were even more, much larger buildings towering in the distance just beyond.

Her mind now reeling with questions as she stepped away from the window, Giselle found herself wondering where in Arceus' name Sabrina could have possibly taken them - or just what she did to them in general - and even more than that, she wanted to know where Ash and her friends were. The curiosity and fear concerning that particular question only growing since she saw no sign or trace of them anywhere in the room with her.

Making her way over to the main door, Giselle opened it slowly and then poked her head out of the slight crack she made. Looking in every direction first to see if there was any danger before just haphazardly waltzing out into who know's what, Giselle surmised that she was most likely definitely in an apartment building if the rows of doors with numbers beside each one - which were stretching all down the hallway on both ends - was any indication.

Stepping out into the hall after being assured there was no danger, Giselle checked the belt that helped to keep her pink skirt up and felt to make sure her two Pokéballs were still there before making her way down the hall towards the staircase she saw at the far left end of it. Being that the right hand side of the hall led to nothing but a wall.

Upon reaching her destination, Giselle took the staircase that led down instead of the one that went up and eventually - after passing three more levels of apartment rooms - she entered into a small, simple looking lobby with built-in mailboxes on the left wall near the front desk. Now affirming her suspicion that, indeed, she was in an apartment complex of some kind.

Deciding to make her way out onto the street in an attempt to get a little more info on where she was or where her friends were, Giselle exited the building through the double doors at the front of the lobby and found herself standing on a stoop overlooking the same street she saw from the window earlier.

Glancing down both sides of the street, Giselle saw nothing but rows upon rows of apartment buildings but to her even further confusion, not a single soul was in sight anywhere she looked.

Finding that fact more just a little odd, Giselle stepped down on the sidewalk and then started walking through the apartment complex portion of what she supposed was the city that she was in. However, after she finally left the residential area behind and entered into what looked like the shopping district about fifteen minutes lateral, Giselle still didn't see anybody but her on the streets and this caused a heavy lump of worry and even panic to settle into her gut.

To Giselle, the massive city she found herself now fully within resembled a creepy, very spooky ghost town with the complete and total absence of all life except for her. Not even the usual common types of Pokémon found in cities like Rattata, Pidgey and Spearow could be seen and that in of itself made the entire situation that much stranger.

Cars were parked along curbs, stoplights went through their different signals as per normal and there was no shortage of curbside shops, restaurants, boutiques and other business that were so commonly found in big cities but... it all seemed to be almost... fake. Like it was just a painted canvas being dropped over the real scene beyond for some undisclosed, mysterious reason that no one could quite figure out.

For Giselle, whom had been to both Saffron and Celadon City, two of the Kanto region's biggest cities, the lack of anyone around was obviously completely out of place but the seemingly picture perfect, totally clean appearance of everything she saw - meaning that not even a speck of garbage could be seen anywhere - was even more strange. After all, every city had known garbage issues to some degree so not seeing the one she was in currently with the same sort of problem just rang in a very off-key manner to her.

Checking several of the nearby shops for any sign of life within by looking through the widows and failing each time, Giselle stepped back and put a hand to her head. "Okay Giselle, just calm down girl... I'm sure there's some sort of explanation for this. For all of... whatever this is. You just have to find Ash and the others if they're around here and then you can find the answers together. Yeah, yeah that sounds like a good plan!"

Smiling to herself and putting her fist into her palm at the end of her comforting self-conversation, Giselle made her back on the sidewalk on the left side of the road and started following it while putting her hands over her mouth and shouting as loud as she could.

"Ash! Pikachu! Can you hear me?!" She stopped for a few moments to listen and then started again. "Brock! Misty! Solidad! Is anybody around at all?!"

Continuing on her way down the streets of the seemingly never ending city after taking a few minutes to listen hard for any kind of reply, Giselle just wandered aimlessly from street to street. Praying to Arceus the whole time that she would eventually come across at least one of her friends.

Just when she went to turn a corner onto another street however Giselle was completely unprepared for it when, suddenly, she bumped into someone and the two of them jumped back screaming.

"EEEEK!" Giselle squealed as she stumbled and nearly fell to the sidewalk while the person she collided with did the same. Fortunately though, when the former Pokémon Tech student regained her bearings seconds later, she felt a huge sense of relief wash over her at who she saw standing across from her. Not to mention the other familiar face that was floating next to the individual as well which only served to add even more to Giselle's happiness.

"Solidad! Gastly!" She yelled excitedly at the sight of the beautiful redheaded woman standing a few feet away and the comedic, powerful Ghost Pokémon beside her that belonged to her boyfriend.

"Giselle?!" Both Solidad and Gastly questioned incredulously at the same time with surprise evident on their faces. "Thank Arceus we've been looking everywhere for you!" Solidad said happily as she stepped forward and hugged Giselle

Returning the hug readily since she was glad not to be alone anymore, the younger girl stepped back a few moments later and smiled brightly. "I'm so happy to finally see you guys! Where are the others?"

Solidad and Gastly shared a look before she shook her head and replied, "We have no idea Giselle, I was hoping that they might be with you. Gastly and I have been searching all over the city since we woke up and I was starting to get afraid that we were the only ones here until I just bumped into you."

Confusion became palpable on Giselle's face. "You woke up together? Where? I woke up in some bed in an apartment building but I was totally alone."

Solidad nodded and gestured to Gastly. "I woke up in the storage room of some deli laying on a bunch of bread and I found Gastly locked in the freezer. Good thing too because the poor guy was almost frozen stiff when I found him."

Gastly shuddered in remembrance of the freezing cold torture he had endured upon waking up. "By the time I awoke, my entire form was practically frozen solid, making it all but impossible to focus enough to use any of my powers." He then looked at Solidad and smiled. "But this young maiden here saved my life and for that I will be forever grateful!"

Solidad smiled in return as Giselle asked curiously, "So do either of you have any idea where we are yet?"

The redhead looked around at the city they were trapped within and then put her hands on her hips while shaking her head slowly. "I have a few ideas but I think that the most possible one is, somehow, we've ended up back in Saffron."

Giselle's eyes widened. "What? How? Sabrina attacked us with that weird blast of psychic energy, how could we be back in the city after that?!"

Yet again the older girl shook her head and crossed her arms. "I can't be sure and I can't give a definite answer but I believe we are. I've seen a few places while Gastly and I were searching for you and the others that I've been to before on my way passing through the city. I can't begin to tell you why no one else is around or why everything seems so... perfect for lack of a better word... but I do think we're in Saffron."

Gastly made a humming sound while in deep thought before finally speaking a few moments later. "I can't be sure but since I'm part psychic myself, I can usually sense trace amounts of such energy in the air around me when I am near to it."

Gastly then floated up a little higher and gestured at everything around them with his eyes. "Right now I am sensing very small amounts of psychic energy all around us in practically everything you see. Again, I can't be sure but since the gym leader Ash took on is supposedly a very gifted psychic - and I believe it after seeing what she did back in the gym - it could be a possibility that all of this is nothing more than an elaborate illusion."

Giselle blinked in shock. "C-Can someone with psychic powers actually do that?"

Gastly looked down at the brunette and grinned. "You forget the very real and believable illusions that I myself can create young miss Giselle." He then floated back down to them. "But to answer your question; most definitely. If the wielder is strong enough then they could create an illusion so powerful that it could fool a couple of minds all at the same time into seeing whatever the caster wanted them to."

Giselle looked worried to the point of getting sick. "So... so how do we find the others if this is all just an illusion then?"

Solidad stepped forward and placed a comforting hand on Giselle's shoulder while smiling gently. "Don't worry, we were all captured by Sabrina and thrown into... whatever this is. I'm sure the others are all here as well, we just have to find them. That calls for us to be calm though and not panic because that won't help anyone. Okay?"

Giselle took a few deep breaths and then smiled thankfully at Solidad. "Yeah... yeah okay you're right. Thanks Solidad."

The kind young woman merely squeezed Giselle's shoulder lightly in a show of affection and then looked up at Gastly. "Since you can sense the psychic energy in this place Gastly, would you mind leading the way and then alerting us if you sense anything dangerous coming towards us?"

The hybrid Pokémon smiled widely. "Delighted miss Solidad!" Turning around, Gastly poofed into existence a pioneer's fur hat on his head and then began making his way down the street in front of them, all while whistling a jaunty tune. "Follow me ladies, I shall help us find our friends and keep us safe in the perilous ventures that lie ahead! Ahahahahahaha!"

Sharing a glance between each other, Solidad and Giselle just rolled their eyes and smiled before following after Gastly. Hoping that every step would bring them one bit closer to finding their missing friends.

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"Ash!" Was the scream that escaped Misty's lips as she shot straight up in a panic and relived the last few moments before Sabrina attacked them with her psychic powers. Almost like a scene that was playing on repeat over and over again.

Sweating from her brow and breathing heavily, Misty shook her head and cleared the fog from her brain as she let her eyes adjust to her surroundings and the feeling of being awake again.

Looking around after she calmed down, Misty felt a feeling of shock and confusion at finding herself sitting down upon soft grass in what looked like a park instead of dead like she thought she had been when Sabrina went insane. A feeling very similar to what Ash and the others had also felt upon awakening, not that she knew any that of course.

After taking in her strange new surroundings for a few moments, she suddenly heard someone groan and spun around to see Brock just beginning to stir a short distance away.

Shooting up right away, Misty ran over to the older boy with a yell of, "Brock!" as she dropped down next to him. Reaching out, she placed a hand on his shoulder as he slowly sat up with a grunt and rubbed at his head.

"Man... what happened? It feels like I-" As soon as Brock got a good look at his immediate surroundings, he paused mid-sentence. Feeling a hand on his shoulder, he turned and saw Misty kneeling next to him.

Instant relief flooding his heart at the sight of one of his friends being okay, Brock expelled a heavy sigh and shook his head. "Geez I was afraid there for a second that I was all by myself. It's good to see you Misty."

The orange burnt redhead nodded and then looked around. "Yeah but I think it's just us here Brock. I don't see any of the others anywhere nearby."

The squinty eyed teen looked around and saw that Misty was right, there friends were indeed missing. "Okay that's strange... we were all together when Sabrina got us and suddenly it's just us. Something obviously isn't right."

He then glanced around at the park they were in some more before standing up. "And this is the last place I expected us to end up before I blacked out. I have no idea what this place is or where we are."

Misty stood up as well and looked a little more closely at the forested park around them. Taking in the sight of the freshly mowed grass, cement paths that went all throughout the area in different directions, well maintained trees, benches and several other things that were synonymous with almost every park and then even at the slight hill she and Brock were standing on.

Feeling a sense of familiarity come over her as she slowly pieced together their surroundings, Misty hesitantly spoke up after a few moments. "I... I think I do know where we are Brock."

The teen turned to her and then gestured at what could clearly be seen as skyscrapers in the background of the park behind the trees on almost every side of them. "Yeah, I think I might be starting to get an idea too but I have no explanation for how it could be possible. Does yours have anything to do with the buildings I see all around us outside of this park?"

Misty nodded and took a few steps forward before looking down at the wide stretch of open grassy field at the bottom of the hill. "This place looks really familiar and I think I know why." She then looked back at Brock. "Do you remember when me and Giselle told that story last night when we were with Solidad about those snobby rich girls we battled?"

Getting a nod from him, Misty glanced down at the field again. "This is where we battled them at. I recognize this part of the park really well and I know for a fact that this is it."

Giving a simple nod, Brock walked up and looked at the skyscrapers in the need distance. "I think somehow we ended up back in the city after Sabrina attacked us but that doesn't make any sense to me. She obviously had no intentions of letting us go so why just release us into the city like this and then even go as far as to separate us from each other?"

Misty let her eyes scan over the park some more. "The better question is why is this place totally deserted? It's the middle of the day, not a cloud's in the sky and when Giselle and I came here, this whole place was full of people. Now it's completely empty."

Brock looked down and made sure he still had all his Pokéballs before facing forward again. "Well we're not gonna find any answers by standing around here so let's go see if we can find Ash, Giselle and Solidad. It's the only thing we can do right now anyway."

Misty nodded her agreement after making sure she still had her own Pokémon and then began following Brock down the hill, through the grassy lawn and onto one of the walkways.

After following the path they were on for some time, it eventually took them into a forested part of the park and just kept taking them deeper and deeper into it's woodsy heart. The sun overhead becoming shadowed out by the trees closing in around them.

Catching movement out of the corner of her eye Misty suddenly stopped, spun around and then stared off into the thicket of the brush as she called out, "Brock wait! I think I saw something..."

The teen stopped as well and then turned around while looking back at Misty. "What did you see?"

She shook her head. "I don't know I thought I just saw... never mind. Maybe it was just my-" At that moment, Brock saw something flash by him and spun around as well until he was facing the brush on his side. "Hey I just something too Misty!"

Before she could reply, the two of them suddenly began seeing multiple sets of glowing red eyes appearing all around them in nearly every direction. Up in the trees, down in the brush and even farther back the way they had just come.

"W-What are these things?!" Misty stammered as she backed up until she was beside of Brock.

Just as he was about to say something, a string of sticky webbing suddenly flew out of the shadows and landed just inches away from his foot. The same thing happened to Misty as well on her side, causing her to jump back as it actually landed where she had just been standing.

Suddenly, like something out of a horror flick, the mysterious figures in the forest made themselves known as they stepped out into the open and were revealed to be none other than dozens upon dozens of Ariados and Spinarak.

Seeing the horde of Bug-Type Pokémon quickly surrounding them, Misty lunged back and screamed. "Buuuuugs! Why the hell does it have to be bugs?! I hate bugs!"

Brock backed up as well until he and Misty were back to back and then called over his shoulder while his brow began to sweat from the tense predicament they had suddenly been placed in. "Misty you're gonna have to forget about being afraid for a second and help me fight them off before we become bug food!"

Quickly grabbing one of her Pokéballs, Misty nodded frantically while shouting back, "Fine whatever I don't care! Let's just do something quick before I have a heart attack then I won't be a help to anybody!"

Brock pulled out his own Pokéball and reared it back before throwing it forward and shouting, "Graveler use Rock Throw and take out as many of these Ariados and Spinarak as you can!"

As Brock's Rock Pokémon appeared from it's ball and started forming rocks in it's hand (of which it had to do since there were none nearby and they were standing on top of cement instead of normal ground) it threw one after the other at the approaching Bug Pokémon with as much power and force as it could muster. All while Misty just held her Pokéball out in front of her a little bit and stammered fearfully, "S-Staryu use Water Gun!"

As Misty's own Pokémon appeared in front of her and started using Water Gun to blast away all of the approaching Ariados and Spinarak, Brock shouted out another command. "Use Rock Slide Graveler, there's too many for one rock at a time!"

Extending it's hands outward, Graveler mirrored the move that was used by Sabrina's Lunatone earlier on in the battle with Ash and caused several rocks to appear which began falling in front of the many fast approaching Bug-Types in an attempt to slow them down.

Unfortunately however, the tactic didn't work and the multi-legged Pokémon just crawled or swung over the rocks like they were not impeded by the makeshift barrier whatsoever.

Misty was not having any further luck either because even after she called out for her Staryu to use Rapid Spin and Swift all at once, the combination move barely put a dent in the number of Bug Pokémon that was now quickly boxing them in.

Feeling desperate as he heard Misty yell for Staryu to use rapid fire Swift, Brock called out, "Graveler use Rock Tomb!"

Chanting it's name, Graveler raised it's hands skyward and then clenched them together as it began grunting and straining. Seconds later, a few large boulders appeared out of the air above and then slammed to the ground below, smashing the smaller rocks from before like a hammer to an egg and sending several of the Ariados and Spinarak scurrying to get away.

However, one Ariados was unable to get away in time so just when one of the boulders fell upon it and Brock expected to see the unpleasant sight of blood and guts flying everywhere, his mind was sent for a total loop as instead of getting crushed... it simply vanished into wisps of thin air.

Going still for a moment at the unexpected sight he had just witnessed, Brock suddenly came to an immediate revelation as everything started to fall in place and make sense to the smart young Pokémon Breeder. Showing him a truth that was both a slight relief and also a great terror all in one.

Looking over his shoulder, Brock shouted to Misty, "These things aren't real Misty, they're just illusions! I think all of this is just an illusion created by Sabrina somehow to fool us!"

Glancing back just slightly after commanding her Pokémon to use Water Gun, she yelled in reply, "What are you talking about?!

Brock had Graveler use another Rock Throw attack as he quickly explained the situation. "One of the Ariados got crushed by a falling rock but instead of dying it vanished! These things are just really powerful illusions that can't be killed!"

Misty looked back at him fully with her eyes wide. "Then what do we do if we can't beat them?! I don't wanna stick around and see if they can hurt us but we can't hurt them!"

Brock pointed at the path ahead of them that was blocked by Ariados and yelled to his Pokémon, "Graveler use Rollout and clear a path through those Ariados!"

Jumping forward and into the air, Graveler wrapped itself into a ball and then began rolling like a steam engine down the walkway, bowling over and smashing through Ariados like they were nothing but pins. Several of them even vanishing into nothingness as Graveler hit them and proving to Misty that what Brock told her was indeed true.

Once they had a clear enough way through, Brock shouted over the snapping pincers of the encroaching Bug Pokémon. "Now Misty! Run!"

Not needing to be told twice, Misty returned Staryu and then followed Brock as he took off running through the path in the Ariados that Graveler had made. Even as they did though, several more of the relentless Bug-Types suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Seemingly phasing into existence like they were multiplying and also further proving Brock's theory that they couldn't be killed.

It didn't matter however because Brock and Misty were already sprinting through the forest on the path as fast as they could. Brock actually returning Graveler on the move without stopping while he and Misty ran for all they were worth. The entire horde of Ariados and Spinarak now following behind them like a sea of fast moving spindly legs, clinging pincers and big rounded bodies.

After some time of running, Brock and Misty finally exited the thick part of the park and then hurried their way as fast as they could to the edge of it, their sights on the large sprawling city out in front of them.

"If we... can get into... the city..." Brock panted while they ran. "Maybe we can lose them!"

Misty seemed to have put on a burst of speed from seemingly nowhere and was now practically leaving Brock in the dust as she ran frantically with her arms swinging back and forth madly. "I don't care as long as we get away from these buuuuugs!"

Finally reaching the city, the two teens took off into the maze of streets and numerous roads in an attempt to flee their relentless pursuers. An endeavor which was unfortunately proving to be all but impossible as no matter where they went, the armada of Bug Pokémon followed tirelessly.

All they could hope was that they did indeed eventually lose them or else risk ending up as entrées on the menu for a bunch of ravenous arachnids.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

"I swear this city goes on forever..." Ash sighed heavily while he trekked down what seemed like the one hundredth street he had traversed in the search for his friends, the boy's shoulders drooped and head low with exhaustion clear on his face. An expression shared upon Pikachu's own face with Bulbasaur having long since been returned.

"Pika Pi..." The Electric-Type murmured in agreement from his place upon Ash's shoulder.

Stopping in the middle of the street, Ash looked around and all but fell to his knees in exasperation. "This is totally hopeless! We've been looking forever, we'll never find them!"

Pikachu was just about to droop his ears in agreement when suddenly, he caught a scent of something in the air and perked up. "Pika?" Was all he said as he jumped from Ash's shoulder and then began sniffing around from down on the ground.

"What is it Pikachu?" Ash asked curiously as he knelt down next to his sniffing Pokémon.

After several moments Pikachu stopped and lifted his head up with his ears twitching before taking off down the street with an exclamation of, "Pikachu Pi!"

"Hey what're you-" Ash began with his hand outstretched but knew Pikachu wasn't going to stop so instead gave chase.

They ran for what felt like several blocks. Pikachu turning and going down multiple streets, roads and even allies until he eventually rounded a corner and was greeted to the sight of a horribly ugly, scary looking voodoo mask staring back at him.

Jumping back on two legs with a scared expression on his face and multiple drops of sweat running down his head, Pikachu cried out "Pikaaaa!" in his surprise and unleashed a jolt of electric energy right at the floating mask. Of which hit it's mark and after several long seconds of painful electrocution revealed the 'Mask' to be none other than a badly singed and swirly eyed Gastly now laying on the ground.

Overcoming his shock and piecing together that Gastly must have known he was coming and hence, played a practical joke on him, Pikachu adopted a look of pure fury and was just about to light into the prankster Ghost-Type again when he sensed other people coming.

Ears perking up, Pikachu looked ahead just as Giselle and Solidad rounded the corner on the farthest end of the street and stopped when they saw him.

"Pikachu!" They both called out in unison as they ran up to him and the Electric-Type gave his own cry of happiness and did the same.

Jumping into Solidad's arms, the redhead scratched him behind the ears and was just about to ask where Ash was when they saw the boy in question himself appear from around the corner.

As soon as he spotted them, Ash felt an instant sense of relief and ran up to the two girls as they did the same to him. "Giselle! Solidad! Finally! I've been looking all over for the two of you!"

Giselle gave him a tight hug and then stepped back after a few seconds. "We could say the same for you Ash! Where were you and Pikachu?!"

He shook his head. "It's a long story. I'm guessing since I don't see them, Brock and Misty aren't with you?"

Solidad walked up to him. "No I'm afraid not Ash, we were hoping they would be with you if and when we actually did find you. Misty and I found each other shortly after waking up and then Gastly helped lead us to you."

His eyes widened. "Gastly! Where is he? Is he okay?!"

Before Solidad or Giselle could get Ash to calm down however and tell him that Gastly was right behind him, he turned around himself and saw the Ghost-Type still laying on the ground where Pikachu had fried him at earlier.

"Gastly!" Ash yelled as he ran up to his Pokémon's side. Unfortunately though, what could have been a tender and touching moment was ruined, of course, by Gastly's constant fondness for a good joke.

Displaying "X's" over his eyes with a small little tuxedo on his gaseous body and a white flower sticking up out of said funeral attire, the comedic Ghost-Type tried his best to play dead in an attempt to garner a few laughs.

Ash however knew better than to humor Gastly's jokes in such a time and simply smirked before turning around and shrugging his shoulders. "Oh boy, it looks like Gastly's finally reached the end of his rope, whatever shall I do?"

Grinning to himself, he tapped his side. "Good thing I've got Haunter to fall back on..."

No sooner did those words leave his lips and Gastly was suddenly at his side looking invigorated and as mischievous as ever. "Who needs a rotten old Haunter when you have the first best thing! I am at your service, twenty-four seven except on bagel days! Ahahahaha!"

Ash just shook his head in amusement and then turned back to Giselle and Solidad. He was just about to ask them a question when, suddenly, they all heard both a loud scream and a yell and twisted around in the direction in which it came from.

"What was that?!" Giselle fretted, clearly on edge.

Before anyone could answer her though and from directly down the street in front of them, the three friends and two Pokémon suddenly saw Misty and Brock appear over a rise in the road. However, instead of feeling joy at seeing them, Ash and the others felt confusion take hold of them when they saw the two former gym leaders running their way with all possible haste. Arms swinging madly in front of them as they sprinted with pure terror on their faces.

Stepping back a few paces, Ash held his hands up in front of himself and swallowed thickly. "Oh man... something tells me that whatever they're running from isn't good news!"

Sure enough, as Misty and Brock closed with them and saw their friends, they both began shouting at the same time, "RUN! GET OUT OF HERE! GO!

Even though they heard them, Ash, Giselle and Solidad stayed where they were until they saw the massive horde of angry Ariados and Spinarak chasing after their friends.

Seeing this, all of their hair stood up on end and they each screamed/yelled before turning around and running down the opposite street. In seconds, Brock and Misty caught up to them and started following right beside of the rest of their friends while Pikachu rode on Ash's shoulder and Gastly flew fast from above.

"What the hell's going on you two?!" Ash demanded as he looked back at the now badly sweating Brock and Misty.

"It's... a long story..." Misty huffed in reply. "Sabrina... illusion... keep running!"

That was all anyone needed to hear and indeed, run they did. They ran down long streets, into allies, side roads and then back onto the main streets again in an attempt to escape their eight legged pursuers.

Unfortunately, when the group rounded one particular street and found themselves blocked off by another horde of Bug-Types

directly in front of them, they knew they were trapped.

Getting back to back, all five trainers closed in with each other and surveyed the large crowd of illusionary Bug Pokémon surrounding them. "Guys we don't have any choice, we have to try and fight back!" Ash instructed in a rush.

"But if we attack them they'll just keep coming back!" Misty replied exasperatedly while trying to keep herself as far away from the enclosing Bug Pokémon as she could.

"Yeah but if we don't try then we're toast either way!" Brock yelled his own assessment of the situation.

"I say we try it," Solidad began as she pulled out a Pokéball. "Butterfree use Gust!"

As Solidad called out her flying Bug-Type, Ash chose Pikachu and Gastly, Brock picked Graveler, Misty chose Starmie and Giselle chose her own Graveler. Then, with a unified command of;

"Pikachu and Gastly! Thunderbolt/Shadow Ball!"

"Starmie Water Pulse!"

"Graveler/Graveler! Rock Slide!"

All of their Pokémon unleashed their attacks at the incoming Ariados and Spinarak. When they hit, it was like an explosion of multi-elemental attacks that caused the streets to shake, the wind to pick up and a huge smoke cloud to shoot up into the air and obscure the surrounding area entirely.

When it finally dissipated sometime later, Ash and the others were ecstatic to find not a single trace of any of the homicidal Bug-Types anywhere in the street. That was only until, however, they found out just why they had disappeared mere seconds later

"Yes!" Misty chanted as she threw her arms up into the air. "We showed those bugs who the boss was! You don't mess with Misty Waterflower of Cerulean City, no way!"

Giselle smiled and was about to reply when, out of nowhere, a loud giggling sound filled what felt like the entire city and seemed to come from all directions at once.

Each of the five young travelers could tell who the giggling belonged to right away and when they looked up in the sky, their suspicions were confirmed.

"Sabrina!" Ash shouted as he and the others looked up into the formerly clear blue sky where a somewhat hazy image of Sabrina, still with the little girl in her arms, appeared and seemed to dwarf all of them far below in the city. Her eyes were as cold and lifeless as ever while the little girl's partially obscured facial features just seemed to radiate childlike mirth and humor in an almost scary way.

"Hehehehe, are you all enjoying playing with me?" She asked in her high pitched, echoing voice. "Because I know I'm having fun!"

Ash growled under his breath and stepped forward. "Sabrina I should have known you were behind this! Tell me what's going on now!"

The little girl giggled again before answering like she was speaking to a child herself. "Don't you get it yet? You're in our play world! This entire city you see isn't real, it's all just an illusion we made in order to bring people we want to play with right here so they can't run away!"

"So this isn't real after all..." Solidad said quietly to herself while glaring up at the projections of Sabrina and the little girl.

"That's insane..." Misty mouthed in awe and also shock that everything they saw around them wasn't real.

Giselle and Brock seemed too at a loss to say anything presently but Gastly did as he turned to Ash, his demeanor actually becoming serious. "I haven't had a chance to tell you yet Ash but I believe this entire replica of Saffron City you see around you was created by the awesome psychic abilities that Sabrina possesses. I can sense the energy in the air."

Ash looked back up at Sabrina and glared. "You didn't have any right to bring us here Sabrina! I won that battle fair and square and you broke our agreement by forcing us to come here!"

The little girl giggled once more. "It doesn't matter, you're going to be our friends forever and that won't ever change!" Suddenly, a giant ball appeared in her hands which she held up with a sinister smile on her childish, creepy little face. "And now it's time to play a new game! Catch!"

Then, with no forewarning, she tossed the ball down on the ground which began bouncing several times as it came towards Ash and his friends.

Eyes going wide, the five of them turned around and took off down the street again with more screams and yells of fright emitting from them as the ball stopped bouncing and instead just began rolling their way like a steamroller about to pave over concrete.

With as much speed as they could muster, Ash and the others sprinted down the street they were on - which had somehow become much longer than it was previously, like an eternal straight stretch - while both of their captors watched on from up in the air. One impassive and uncaring while the other cheered and clapped as she giggled madly.

Not gaining any ground and realizing this, Brock looked over at Ash and shouted, "Ash I think Sabrina messed with the city and made this whole entire street unending!"

Giselle panted and gasped as she gave her legs all the energy she had left in her body. "That... crazy... little girl... is gonna... flatten us!"

"I don't wanna play anymore!" Misty all but whined as she ran with her eyes practically closed from the effort she was exerting.

Suddenly, Ash heard a loud gasp followed by the sound of someone hitting the ground and looked back to see that Solidad had tripped and fallen to the asphalt. Stopping in his tracks, he yelled, "Solidad!" and then ran back to the downed redhead and dropped to her side.

"Are you okay?" He asked with concern as he went to help her get up.

Shaking her head and feeling a little dazed from the nasty fall, Solidad nodded and got back to her knees. "Yeah I'm-" Suddenly, they heard the others yell, "Watch out!" and turned around to see that the massive ball was almost upon them and they had no time to get away.

Looking back at his friends who were now a good distance away, Ash stayed by Solidad's side and glanced up at the incoming ball of death again before pointing up at it and shouting, "Pikachu use an enhanced Thunderbolt on that ball!"

Jumping from his shoulder to the ground, Pikachu fired a powerful bolt of electricity at the rolling ball with a cry of, "CHUUU!"

As soon as the bolt made contact with the child's toy gone evil, the two opposing forces met head on and began an immediate struggle for dominance. The ball kept wanting to roll on without stop but Pikachu's Focused Lightning enhanced Thunderbolt was providing what could best be described as a shield against it. An unyielding force that refused to fail as Pikachu poured as much power as he could into stopping the ball from crushing them all flat.

Seeing how much his Pokémon was struggling, Ash cheered him on as much as he could. "Come on Pikachu you can do this, don't give up now! Give it everything you have!"

Pikachu gritted his teeth together as tightly as he could and his whole body began to glow bright yellow as he focused every ounce of strength in his body into the bolt of lightning he was refusing to give up on.

Finally though, after several extremely intense moments, the ball gradually lost it's speed and slowly, very slowly, came to a stop just twenty yards or so away from Ash and Solidad.

Catching Pikachu just as he ended the fierce electric attack and fell back into his arms, Ash cradled his first Pokémon to his chest and breathed heavily while he and Solidad both stared up at the now still ball with undisguised relief on their faces. Brock, Misty and Giselle cheering in the background at the rarely pleasant turn of fate.

Looking over at him, Solidad wiped some sweat from her brow and nodded to the boy. "Thank you Ash, you and Pikachu... I owe you my life just now. Rather we can really die in here or not."

Ash glanced at the older girl and smiled. "You're welcome. Pikachu was the real hero but you're still-" Just then, they both heard an annoyed whining sound coming from up in the sky.

Looking upwards again, Ash and Solidad saw Sabrina and the little girl once more up in the air high above the city. This time though, the younger of the two didn't seem so happy.

"That Pikachu is really annoying!" She pouted in the same whiny, annoying voice. "He interrupted play time!" Gradually however, that creepy smile crossed her lips again. "It doesn't matter though... I know another game we can play!"

"Oh no..." Misty said with dread in her voice. "Not again..."

Then, before the eyes of all five friends, Sabrina and the little girl's eyes glowed blue. As they did, the ball that was now stopped in front of Solidad and Ash began to glow a similar color before, slowly, the entire rounded object started to morph and change shape.

Ash and his friends watched on with not even a little bit of excitement and far more trepidation as the toy continued to change shape until it eventually took on the form of an item that they all recognized well... a Pokéball. A giant Pokéball.

"This..." Giselle began with a heavy intake of air. "Is gonna be bad. Really, really bad..." She finished ominously.

To all of their great misfortune, none of them knew just how right Giselle was until the Pokéball itself started to glow again before it suddenly snapped open at the same time as the little girl announced, "I want to give you another playmate!"

To the ever widening eyes and complete befuddlement of Ash and everyone else watching, the ball released a bright burst of light from within which quickly began taking shape and form into whatever creature lay within the oversized Pokéball.

When the light finally died down moments later however, it revealed something in which stunned all of those present due to the type of Pokémon it was. A selection that made everyone wonder why Sabrina herself of all people would choose such a thing over any other Pokémon she could probably phase into existence within her little "Mind World."

As the truly gargantuan, completely oversized Pokémon finally took full shape and stood at a height that was now towering above that of every building in the entire faux Saffron City, it raised it's head and called out it's name in a much deeper voice that it should normally possess.

"RATTATA!

Sure enough, the Pokémon that had caused such a shock amongst the five captives of Sabrina was none other than a giant, illusionary Rattata. It's pure size and stature being enough alone to dwarf everything in the city as it's tail swung back and forth and slammed into the windows of the many large skyscrapers, causing glass windows to shatter and fall to the streets below upon impact with the massive tail.

"You gotta be kidding me?!" Misty screamed in exasperation. "A giant Rattata?! What the hell?!"

Ash and Solidad quickly ran back to their friends' side just as Rattata lowered it's gaze onto them and began scraping one paw against the asphalt below it's feet.

Grabbing Misty's hand, Ash started tugging her backwards when it became clear that the fake Pokémon was about to attack. "Less complaining Misty, more running!"

The group quickly turned and began running down the street once again as the little girl commanded with mirthful glee in her voice, "Go get them Rattata!"

Giving a bellow of "RATTA!" the monolithic mouse-like Pokémon began chasing down Ash and his friends with the pure intent to catch them and then do whatever Sabrina commanded of it after the fact.

They could hear the earthshaking footfalls as Rattata gave chase, they could hear it's breathing and what's more, they could hear the earsplitting sounds it made as the Normal-Type Pokémon crushed cars underfoot, trampled street lights, demolished stoplights and rocked the surrounding buildings with every swipe of it's tail.

Turning a corner and heading down another street, Giselle looked behind her and then announced with fear heavy in her voice, "Guys move faster! It's gaining!"

Ash looked over at Gasty as he ran. "Can't you use your own psychic powers to get rid of that thing or help us in some way Gastly?!"

The Ghost Pokémon shook his head while flying beside of his trainer. "Her abilities in that area far outclass my own Ash, I would not be able to outdo such a powerful illusion on my own! I am only a half-breed, her psychic powers are pure and much more concentrated!"

Brock huffed a reply in that moment. "Well if we don't do something soon then I don't wanna know what'll happen if that thing catches us!"

Solidad suddenly pointed at a nearby alley and shouted, "Follow me!"

Following the redhead as requested, Ash and his other friends joined Solidad as she left the main street they were on and headed down into the narrow alley between two buildings that she had pointed to.

Running through the alley as fast as possible, they eventually exited on the other side of the buildings on the next street over and then backed away slowly while staring up at the two large buildings they had come between, waiting with baited breath to see if they would be followed or not.

Unfortunately, Rattata showed that it not only was about to follow them but also that no obstacle in the city was too great for it when, with a great bounding forward leap, the purple colored Pokémon literally smashed through both buildings and reduced them to thousands of tons of rubble in mere seconds. Landing on the street that Ash and the others were on and skidding to a halt in front of them without breaking a sweat.

Feeling as though they were backed into a corner with nowhere to go, Ash looked back at the others who still had all of their Pokémon out from earlier. "We need to take a stand guys or else we won't stand a chance! There is no outrunning Sabrina, we've been trying that without success and now it's time to stop and fight!"

Brock, Misty and Giselle all shared equal looks of contemplation at his words before nodding seconds later with their minds made up and a determined expression of resolve on their faces. An expression of intent that was shared by Solidad as they all lined up together with their Pokémon standing together as well out in front of them.

Seeing the change in tactics instead of them continuing to run, the little girl giggled. "You can't beat us but feel free to try! You'll still lose though!"

Ash gritted his teeth in frustration and glared up at Rattata, "We'll see about that! Gastly use Night Shade!"

His commands were further followed by Solidad, Giselle, Misty and Brock ordering their own Pokémon to use moves like Silver Wind, Rock Slide and Water Pulse. Attacks which flew up and connected with Rattata but only succeeded in making the oversized illusion angry as it bellowed once more and then began thrashing at it's opponents with it's large paws and tail.

Seeing Rattata go on the offensive, Ash and the others had their Pokémon go into defensive/offensive evasive maneuvering so as to avoid the massive illusion's earth shaking retaliation attacks and not be such an easy target by being all huddled up together at once.

This was a process that went on for quite some time as a matter of fact. The real, much smaller Pokémon running around and occasionally even in-between Rattata's legs to avoid it's attacks while returning fire with their own every time one would have a clear shot.

It eventually became apparent that neither Sabrina or the mysterious little girl was expecting their collective determination or the way in which the five young trainers were having their Pokémon work together in near perfect synch by the way in which annoyance and even frustration became evident on both of their faces. Annoyance that Ash and his friends were lasting so long in their little illusionary world without breaking completely, and frustration that the five of them had not yet become willing slaves to whatever sick game they were trying to play.

The proof of this great irritation was given voice to by Sabrina as she called out in an angered voice while subsequently showing emotion for the first time ever, "Enough! Rattata use Flamethrower!"

Suddenly, the giant Pokémon stopped in it's efforts to hit it's much smaller targets as it's eyes glowed red and it's mouth opened wide. A cherry red glow of burning ember flames being seen as it formed within the Pokémon's maw in preparation for the fiery payload that it was about to unleash.

Seeing this, Ash stopped and opened his mouth. "Wha-?! That's not right! Come on already, play fair!"

Getting the cue, Brock, Misty, Giselle and Solidad all quickly returned their Pokémon followed by Ash and then started running for their lives just as Rattata spewed forth a hot trail of flames that covered the entire street and raced towards it's fleeing quarry with a molten fury that melted everything within it's path.

Apparently however, Sabrina wasn't playing around anymore with her captives as the road in front of them suddenly sprung up and blocked their way by shooting straight up into the air. Ash and the others tried to run around it but the street on either side of them did the exact same thing until they were soon boxed in completely with nowhere to go.

Turning around and staring at the wall of flames as it closed in on them without relent, Ash (whom was holding a still unconscious Pikachu) stared at the incoming blaze that was making his amber orbs glow like cinders in the light of the wild inferno.

He and his friends huddled up together and vocalized the terror of their imminent doom but just before the flames could wash over them and do Arceus only knew what to their lives within the illusionary world, Sabrina's face took on a pained grimace up above which was mirrored by the little girl's own in her lap.

As soon as this happened and her concentration lapsed, the flames gradually faded and died down just before it could reach them. What was more, Rattata appeared to have completely frozen since it's controller and creator was unable to give it any demands.

However, before Ash or any of the others could process the unusual but definitely appreciated change of fortune, a blur of movement appeared in front of them. Abnormal movement that was immediately followed by - out of seemingly nowhere - the man that Ash and his friends had met the night they arrived on the cliff overlooking Saffron City suddenly appearing in front of them.

Seeing the mysterious bearded man showing up out of what seemed like thin air, Misty pointed and was just about to shout, "Hey I know y-" But was cut off by the man a holding a hand out and nodding. "I know but there's no time to explain! Now grab my hand, join hands together and come with me if you want to live!"

Sharing a quick glance with his friends who all seemed only too eager to take the stranger's help and escape the living nightmare they were currently trapped in if at all possible, Ash reached out and grabbed his hand with the one not holding Pikachu.

Giselle took Ash's arm, Brock grabbed Giselle's left hand, Misty took his right and Solidad reached onto her left while Gastly floated down onto Ash's head. As soon as the black haired, cap headed man felt this, he looked up into the sky at Sabrina and the little girl - whom still appeared to be in some kind of discomfort that was distracting them from what was happening - and held his free hand up in front of him.

With a stern command of, "Hold on and don't let go!" the man and each of his five passengers (seven counting Pikachu and Gastly) disappeared in the same blur of movement that he had appeared in. Not a trace of any of them left behind afterwards like they were never even there in the first place.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

With a jolt, Ash opened his eyes in a panic for the second time that day and found himself sitting on the floor in the middle of the ring of the Saffron City Pokémon Gym.

Looking around wildly while his heart beat at what felt like a hundred miles an hour, his brow sweated profusely, his head swum and his stomach did backflips in on itself, Ash saw that he was sitting in a circle with his friends and Solidad. All of them back to back while Pikachu rested on his lap and Gastly lay at his side.

Feeling all of them stir at the same time as he, followed by each of them voicing their own shock at what had just transpired once they got a good look at their surroundings, Ash turned around and saw the same man that had apparently saved them standing in front of Misty while facing towards Sabrina. His body now glowing a very familiar bluish color that Ash instantly recognized which was being mirrored around Sabrina and the little girl's own bodies.

Hands out in front of him with his face scrunched up in immense effort and sweat pouring down his face, the man struggled and grunted as he focused intently on the unstable gym leader sitting some ways away in the same throne-like chair that she had been sitting in during she and Ash's match.

Seeing Sabrina and the little girl's faces contorted into ones of pain and internal struggle, Ash looked back at the man and stood up as steadily as he could while being mimicked in his movements by his friends and Gastly. Of whom took to the air himself as slowly as possible due to the disorientation he still felt upon reawakening.

"What are you doing?" Ash quickly asked of the man as soon as his vision stopped spinning from standing up so fast. "What's wrong with Sabrina and what are we doing back here in the gym?!"

"And why are you here!" Giselle also questioned with more than a little caution and hesitant fear to her voice.

The man didn't take his eyes off of Sabrina as he replied in a strained tone while his hands shook badly, "No time to explain, just trust me! When I tell you to, all of you run for the exit and don't stop!"

Seeing no reason not to trust the man after he seemingly freed them from where Sabrina had been keeping them hostage, the five friends shared a quick glance and nodded in unison before Ash responded, knowing they had no other options. "Okay, we'll trust you."

No sooner did those words leave his mouth and the sweatsuit wearing man yelled as loudly as possible, "Good then run right now! Go!"

Trying and eventually succeeding to get the message to their feet that they needed to run, Ash and the others took off for the exit of the battlefield as fast as their wobbly, exhausted legs could carry them.

At the same time, the older man dropped his hands and the blue glow faded from around his body. As soon as this happened, Sabrina and the child on her lap ceased glowing as well but that didn't last long as their eyes immediately snapped open and a violent blue shroud of energy, even stronger than the man's own, sprung up around them like a cocoon and their eyes blazed a ferocious matching indigo.

As if she could sense it was happening before really even seeing it, Sabrina directed her gaze towards the door and a blue glow of energy surrounded it just as Ash and the others reached it. The faint outline of psychic energy keeping said double doors locked tightly and impossible to open no matter how hard Ash and Brock struggled to open it up.

Realizing that there was no way they could get out as long as Sabrina was focused on the door, the mysterious man looked back at her and his body began glowing blue again. His eyes doing the same as he held both hands up once more and then sent out a bright pulse of psychic energy at Sabrina.

The little girl in Sabrina's lap saw this however and held up her own hands as a blue shield of psychic power sprung up and absorbed the blast of energy from the old man.

Now alerted to what almost happened, Sabrina turned her glowing eyes onto the man and her face contorted into one of fury as she flicked her right hand and an even bigger and more powerful wave of bluish energy flew from her hands and sped towards the man.

Rooting himself, he held both of his hands up and absorbed Sabrina's burst of psychic energy into his own aura field with much more difficulty than the little girl had earlier. However, he didn't let that stop him and grunted in exertion as he began waving multiple half-moon shaped discs of psychic energy at Sabrina which she held her own hand up and dissipated each one with. The black haired girl countering immediately thereafter by swinging both hands in an arc and sending two large slicing waves of psychic power at the man with obvious intent to kill.

As they watched the psychic dual take place before them, Misty shouted with a tone of incredulity to her voice, "He's a psychic too? Really?! When are we going to get a break from these insane psychic freaks!"

"I don't think he's a threat to us Misty," Ash answered reassuringly. "If he was with Sabrina or any enemy to us then he wouldn't be fighting against her right now and he definitely wouldn't have helped free us."

Solidad nodded. "Ash is right. We were in big trouble back there in... wherever Sabrina had been holding us before he showed up. I don't think he is any foe to us."

Suddenly, the man fighting against Sabrina was struck with one of her psychic flare bursts and went tumbling across the ground with a pained gasp.

Showing that he was not to be underestimated however, the man floated back to his feet and held his hands up to his face right near his eyes as he shouted, "Cover your eyes kids, this is going to be bright!"

Everyone doing as he instructed without hesitation, the man's psychic aura flared powerfully around him as he faced Sabrina and floated a little higher into the air. Legs spread out slightly and the fingertips of both hands at his eyes with elbows turned out, the man's voice seemed to become amplified as he closed his eyes and yelled, "PSYCHIC FLARE!"

As soon as those words left his bearded lips, the man's psychic aura grew and expanded outward as it glowed extremely bright. Then, with a banging sound, an even brighter flash of light illuminated the entire gym like a flare of solar energy itself that caused Sabrina to clamp her hands over her eyes and scream in pain. An action mirrored by the little girl in her lap who also screamed just as loudly and covered her own face with her tiny hands.

Lowering himself back down to the ground as his psychic energy faded away from around him, the man looked towards Sabrina for just a moment with what appeared to be an expression of pain and anguish on his face before he turned and ran towards Ash and the others.

Reaching them just as Ash and Brock were finally able to push the doors open since Sabrina's influence had been temporarily interrupted, the man gestured them all forward quickly. "Everyone leave the gym now! Run!"

Not needing to be told twice after everything they had seen, Ash and his friends took off in a sprint out of the room and into the hallway beyond with the man running behind them just as hurriedly.

However, before they managed to get anymore than fifty feet down the hallway, the man that had refereed Ash and Sabrina's match suddenly appeared in front of them with a much smaller field of psychic aura flaring around him. His eyes were glowing blue but they appeared lifeless and dull as he spoke in a droning variation of his uniquely accented tone while holding up both hands. "You have angered the great Sabrina and now you will pay... you may not leave this place!"

As he finished speaking, a pulse of psychic energy shot out out from his hands and hurdled towards the escaping group of trainers. Fortunately though, the bearded man stepped in front of them and held his own hands out as his eyes glowed and a shield of thick psychic energy sprung up in front of them all and stopped the opposing attack cold.

Moving his hands inward in a swift grasping motion, the shield shot forward and hit the med-mask wearing man on both sides, his body going rigid and the glow disappearing from around him as he fell to the ground unconscious yet again.

Motioning Ash and the others on, the man fell into step behind them once again as they all dashed through the long hallway of the gym with all haste possible in order to escape the psychic freak show of horror they seemed to be trapped in.

Just when they were all within sight of the door that lead outside, the other door to the psychic training room to the right of the hallway was flung open and all of the mask wearing, white coat garbed trainees came running out and blocked the exit. Their bodies and eyes glowing blue as well with the same expression of lifelessness on their faces as the lead trainee himself had.

Stopping in their tracks, Misty cursed and held her hands up in front of her. "Dammit! When are we gonna get a break?!"

This time however it was Gastly who flew forward as he narrowed his eyes at the brainwashed trainees and spoke in an abnormally serious tone. "I will handle this!"

The Ghost-Type's own eyes and body glowing blue, he grunted with fierce effort and then moved his eyes upward. As he did this, a powerful wave of psychic energy appeared around the many trainees blocking the door and then forced them upwards towards the ceiling where they stuck to the smooth surface like Spinarak web to a tree.

Nodding to his Pokémon, Ash quickly praised his Pokémon. "Great job Gastly, come on everyone lets go!"

The five of them plus the man who saved their lives rushed towards the door but just before they could reach it, a massive blue wall of psychic energy sprung up in front of the door and blocked it off from one end to the other.

Spinning around, they all saw Sabrina slowly floating their way up the hall with the little girl that was always with her seemingly stuck to her chest by telekinesis. Sabrina's hair was standing up on all ends, her aura was flaring menacingly around her like blue fire and her glowing eyes were set into a furious, enraged glare that was directed straight at them.

As she approached, the lights in the gym actually breaking due to the psychic energy now bearing down upon them, the little girl spoke in a voice that was the farthest thing from sweet and childlike as possible. "YOU WILL NOT LEAVE! YOU WILL PLAY WITH US FOREVER EVEN IF YOU DON'T WANT TO!"

Just before Sabrina could reach them, the man stepped out in front of them and held his hand out to Gastly. "Please lend me some of your unique psychic power Gastly and I can get us out of here!"

Sharing a quick glance with Ash who quickly nodded his consent, Gastly flew forward and let the man touch him. As soon as he did, some of Gastly's psychic energy began feeding itself into the aged man's own and caused his eyes and body to begin glowing brightly once more.

"Everyone get ready!" He shouted, this time not needing anyone to touch each other.

Bracing themselves, they all saw Sabrina lunge and thrust her arms forward, a large pulse of bright blue energy rocketing towards them just as the bearded man's eyes flared once more and they all felt a strong tugging sensation in their gut.

As a light field of blue surrounded each of them, Ash and his friends, including Gastly, vanished in the blink of an eye just as Sabrina's wave of psychic energy washed over where they had been standing mere seconds before.

Coming to a stop and her eyes widening slightly at what had just transpired, Sabrina's shock only lasted for a short time before pure fury flashed across her features once more and she screamed aloud towards the ceiling. The little girl mimicking her once again as a bright flash of psychic energy illuminated the entire gym and practically shook under it's might. A shriek being heard that echoed throughout the now nighttime landscape of the city which caused several people to startle awake in their beds and sit up in a panic.

"AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Their feet landed on what felt like hardwood as they fell to the ground like their legs had turned to jelly. Their noses could pick up the faint hint of what resembled spices, and what also might have been incense, amongst the smell of long cured wood that greeted their nasal passages upon their faces meeting the rather clean floor after the sudden drop of what felt like appearing in thin air.

Stirring with a groan, Ash looked up and saw that he and his friends had landed in what appeared to be a well built, cozy looking, medium sized cabin that was sparsely (if at all) decorated throughout. A bed rested in the far back corner, a kitchen table and lone chair were set up to the right side of him, a couch and armchair were located on the other side of the cabin near what looked like a fireplace and to the front of the log home was the kitchen. A door near the bed lead to what was most likely the bathroom.

Getting into a sitting position at the same as his friends did the same, Ash looked over near the entry door of the cabin and saw the man that had saved them all from Sabrina, twice, hanging up his hat on a rack near the door before walking over to the fridge beside the sink.

"Can I get you kids anything to drink? I imagine you must be parched after everything you've been through." The still unnamed stranger asked as he looked back from the fridge.

Sharing a look with Brock, Solidad, Giselle and Misty, whom all looked just as confused as him, he finally glanced back to the man and replied slowly, "Umm... we'll just have water I guess..."

Nodding, the older man withdrew a pitcher of cold water from the fridge and then gathered a few glasses from a finely varnished cabinet above the stove situated on the opposite side of the sink.

Pouring water into six glasses, he then put them on a tray that he gathered from the same cabinet and walked over to the coffee table that was placed in-between the armchair and sofa. Taking a glass for himself, he sat down in the armchair and took a sip before gesturing to the large couch. "Please take a seat. You probably have a lot of questions and I will answer them for you if you take a moment to rest from your very trying ordeal."

Ash and his friends shared a glance between them before standing up and walking over to the couch. Grabbing a glass of water each, they all sat down on the furniture with Gastly resting up near the ceiling on a rafter and Pikachu still fast asleep in Ash's arms.

After several moments of silence, Solidad spoke up first with a sip of her drink preceding it. "Thank you for rescuing us the way you did today sir, twice. You have my gratitude."

"And mine," Brock said with a nod in his direction.

"Me too," Both Misty and Giselle agreed simultaneously while Ash gave a small nod of his own head and smiled at the bearded man. "Yeah we really do appreciate it mister. Without you it's hard to say where we would be right now."

The man nodded to everyone's words of thanks and then looked directly at Ash as he stated in a very matter-of-fact tone, "While all of your gratitude is accepted I would like to point out that had you heeded my warning the night we met, none of this would have been necessary or happened at all."

Ash looked at the man slightly suspiciously and replied in an offhanded manner, "Yeah but I suppose if you would have been a little more forthcoming with your warning and told us a little more about Sabrina then we might have been more inclined to listen to you."

The man tipped his head in acceptance of Ash's words. "Be that as it may and I will accept my own fault for not warning you kids properly where it is due but that does not change the fact that you all just came very close to becoming permanent slaves of Sabrina for the rest of your lives. I warned you that you couldn't defeat her and because of your refusal to listen, you nearly lost your minds."

Misty spoke up then with a raised hand and a confused expression on her face, "But... sir, Ash didn't lose to Sabrina. He beat her in a fair three on three standard gym battle."

"Yeah and she practically lost her mind afterwards!" Giselle chimed in with her voice raised. "Her and that creepy little girl she keeps with her!"

The bearded man blinked in surprise several times before turning his head back to face Ash again. "Is what they say true young man? Did you actually defeat Sabrina in an all out Pokémon battle?"

The young trainer in question nodded and then replied modestly, "Yeah we did. It was a tough battle to be sure, the toughest me and Pokémon have faced so far, but we managed the win."

The man's face showed his shock at the revelation as he sat back in his chair and looked down at his hands. "I never imagined someone would actually be able to go into that gym and defeat Sabrina the way she is now... incredible..."

Ash shared a confused expression with his friends and then decided to get to the heart of the conversation and find out what was going on with this mysterious man once and for all.

Leaning forward on the couch, Ash looked at the black haired man and asked seriously, "Sir... you know more about Sabrina than you're letting on... don't you?" Getting the man to look at him with an expression of slight surprise, Ash continued. "We've all been thinking it. I mean you show up on some random cliff and warn us about Sabrina, then you somehow manage to get into wherever she was holding us prisoner and saved us."

Brock interjected at that point. "And we all saw what you did back in the gym mister. It's plain as day to see that you're a psychic as well."

"Something that can't be a coincidence," Solidad spoke up with a curious and questioning look on her face that showed she was no fool.

Seeing all of the young people he had gathered in his home staring at him expectantly for the answers he had promised them, the man sighed and nodded slowly. Closing his eyes as he faced towards his lap.

"Very well... I promised you answers and now I will give them to you." Looking up again, he spoke with a heavy tone to his voice. "The first thing you should know is that my name is actually Gerald and as for how I know so much about Sabrina... well... that part is both simple and complicated all in one."

He then glanced at Ash and his friends. "I am her father."

Each of the five traveling youths went wide eyed at the stunning revelation and were at a complete loss for words for several long moments. A silence which was only broken by Misty sometime later.

"You're her father?!"

The man in question simply nodded and crossed his arms. "Yes... it's true." He then glanced up at the ceiling with a wistful expression upon his face. "Sabrina wasn't always how she was now. When she was a child, that girl you couldn't keep from smiling. She had an incredible zest to learn anything she could and even from the time she was very young, Sabrina showed intelligence beyond her years. She also had an almost unusual interest in Psychic-Type Pokémon and would spend hours staring at them on TV and reading about them in books."

He smiled slightly and chuckled. "At two Sabrina could walk and run like a four year old, at three she could read and spell and at four she could write. We honestly thought that we had a prodigy on our hands, my wife and I, and fortunately... or unfortunately depending on how you look at it... we found out just how right we were two years later."

The middle aged man massaged the bridge of his nose. "From the time she was in diapers, Sabrina showed signs of being able to do things that other children could not. If you put her toys down and looked away, they would be mysteriously moved somewhere else when you turned your back. If you placed Sabrina herself in one particular area for a short moment of time, she would somehow end up in a different area, no matter how close or far, mere seconds later. Even when you read to her Sabrina seemed to know what was coming on the next page before you even turned it."

He sighed again. "My wife and I didn't think anything of it at first, we merely thought it was all coincidence and turned a blind eye to the strange things that occurred around Sabrina. It wasn't until she was about six years old and began showing undeniable signs of her powers that we could no longer deny it. She started bending silverware by simply looking at it, foretelling what commercials would come on TV next, appearing and disappearing in different areas of the house at random and even levitating small objects whenever she felt like it."

Looking down at the coffee table, his voice took on a far-off tone. "As you can imagine, we both became very worried for our daughter and had no idea what was happening to her. We studied and looked up all the information we could find on what we thought might be going on until we finally found a specialist of sorts working outside of Fuchsia City who tested Sabrina and ended up revealing to us that she had psychic powers.

It doesn't take a genius to surmise that we were beyond surprised and shocked and had no idea how to handle the revelation presented to us. The professional we dealt with, an old woman who also possessed clairvoyant powers, instructed us that the only thing we could do for Sabrina was to support her and try to help her powers grow and develop when and where we could so that she did not become stunted or stagnant with her abilities. Which would only serve to hinder more than help her.

My wife and I did this for Sabrina and even though we didn't understand, we supported her and allowed her to continue playing with her powers and maturing in her abilities. Unfortunately though, she had a difficult time interacting with other children due to how different she was and because of the unique things she could do, Sabrina was more often than not teased and picked on by kids her own age.

Even though she attempted to control her powers on our request, Sabrina still had a hard time doing so and would slip up every now and again until eventually, her powers grew to such a level that other children would become scared of Sabrina and of what she could do and chose to avoid her entirely. No one wanted to be her friend and no one wanted to have anything to do with her.

After that and as she began to age, Sabrina started to grow confused as to why she was gifted with the powers that made her such a pariah and also resentful to those her shunned her. Choosing instead to seclude herself away in her room and spend all of her time honing her abilities in favor of interacting with any outside influences."

Running a hand through his hair, Gerald slowly shook his head again. "In a desperate attempt to get her to focus on anything else besides her powers, I decided to try something in an effort to get her interested in the only other thing she cared about besides her abilities... Psychic Pokémon.

I had my own photography business and was rather well known for my photographic, artistic eye from here in Kanto all the way to Hoenn, where I occasionally traveled and did work. While away on business in the aforementioned region, I payed a young and talented Pokémon Trainer to capture two Psychic Pokémon for me that I ended up giving to Sabrina as a gift for her tenth birthday."

Ash's face dawned in comprehension. "Are you talking about...?"

The man nodded and smiled. "You must have met them in your battle today. Yes, I gifted Sabrina with a Lunatone and who was at the time a Spoink. In fact, for quite some time, my idea seemed to work and Sabrina shifted all of her attention into caring for and training her two new Pokémon. However, to mine and my wife's ire, Sabrina simply transferred her obsession over into something that became much worse and far more damaging to her psyche."

Once again a sigh left his lips as Gerald leaned on the armrest of his recliner. "Sabrina became steadily infatuated in a very unhealthy way with learning all about Psychic Pokémon after I gave her Lunatone and Spoink. For a time I thought it would distract her from her own psychic abilities, but it didn't. Instead, she became more obsessed than ever with mastering her powers so that she could become closer and more at one with her Pokémon.

Over time, Sabrina even formulated a goal for herself which if her mother and I would not have been so worried for her, we might have felt glad for. After about a year so of training with her Pokémon and even catching an Abra for herself, Sabrina decided that she wanted to become the next Saffron City Gym Leader since she knew it specialized in Psychic-Type Pokémon and the former leader was close to retiring age."

Gerald then looked at Ash and the others again. "As I'm sure you kids know by now, all children who decide to become Pokémon Trainers all have to get their basic academics out of the way before they reach the appropriate age dictated by whatever region they live in to finally get their first Pokémon."

All of them nodded, needing to have done the same thing each of them before they could qualify to get their first Pokémon when they came of age. For Solidad, Misty and Brock it was ordinary primary school, for Giselle it was Pokémon Tech from the time she was little and for Ash, Professor Oak took care of instructing him on his general academics in addition to everything else he taught him in the five years they trained together.

They all knew the basic rule of the Pokémon League in Kanto and in pretty much every region being that if a child wanted to make a career out of being a trainer of some kind to a Pokémon, they had to at least accomplish basic academics first and foremost (essentially meaning reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, science and biology of both human and Pokémon concern, etc,). Then, if things didn't work out and they wanted to try out a different career path or maybe just specialize in something else while still trainers, they could decide to take advanced, specialist courses in whatever they so chose to.

Seeing that they did indeed understand, Gerald continued. "Sabrina, being as intelligent as she was, completed her basic academics long before she turned ten so once she decided that she wanted to become a gym leader, all she had to spend her time on was training to make her goal into a reality.

When she was thirteen and had studied all the course material needed for gym leader candidacy in hardly any time at all, Sabrina went and challenged the current Saffron City Gym Leader. Her mother and I went to watch in an effort to support her but she didn't need it. By that point Sabrina had become so close to her Pokémon through her abilities that the man she battled against, who was not a psychic himself, stood no chance against her and was defeated without Sabrina losing even a single Pokémon.

After that, he conceded his defeat and upon learning of Sabrina's goal passed the gym down to her so that he could retire. Having the title of gym leader itself through at least inherited rights, the Pokémon League sent an official inspector out to evaluate Sabrina's abilities as a trainer and upon passing all of his tests, she was made an official Pokémon Gym Leader on the spot. One of the youngest to do so."

Solidad raised her hand at that point. "How could Sabrina possibly be allowed to run an established, official Pokémon Gym at just thirteen? She couldn't have been old enough for her own insurance, I don't know how she would have been able to pay taxes on it and who would even put someone so young onto any kind of a policy to support her?"

Instead of Gerald answering, it was Brock who did so instead. Beating Misty out, whom was also going to reply, by just seconds. "Well actually Solidad, that's not how Pokémon Gyms work. Unless a gym is either opened up and then certified as official through the Pokémon League by an individual or a family, all gyms are owned and maintained by the Pokémon League itself."

Holding a hand out, Brock explained in a little more detail. "Every region needs at least eight gyms all throughout for trainers to have an opportunity to win eight badges so that they can enter the Pokémon League. Usually, the League builds the gym themselves, find what type they want it to specialize in and then holds tryouts for experienced or talented trainers to become the gym leader.

Whoever manages to pass the trials doesn't own the gym, they're basically just leasing it out from the Pokémon League throughout their tenure as gym leader. Because of this, the League themselves are the ones who pay on property taxes, maintenance and upkeep around the gym, insurance and also things like water and electric fees, not the gym leaders. In return, they only pay their own utilities and still get a pretty hefty check from the League. Which is what makes it such a good job."

Misty took that moment to interject. "Yeah and that's the way most all gyms are run. Being a private owner is way more expensive if you build yourself or decide to buy it from the Pokémon League. If you do that, not only do you have to pay all the costs yourself but you also have to pay direct ownership taxes to the Pokémon League."

She gestured at herself. "I should know, my family actually owns the Cerulean City Gym. My parents bought it years ago and then once they died, my sisters inherited it and used the money from their life insurance policies to help pay for the costs of the gym. They knew they couldn't rely on just that and being gym leaders to take care of all four of us along with everything else though and that's why Daisy, Lily and Violet started doing their water shows. Part of the reason I also became certified as a gym leader was because they were always so busy with their shows, they hardly had time to battle."

She shrugged. "I mean, all in all we've got it a lot easier than some because combined with the check we earn from the Pokémon League for being the gym leaders and also from all the money they make from their shows, we've never been in any position where we've hurt for money. But not all private gym owners are that fortunate and it's why some gyms look more run down than others. You'll never see a League owned gym looking anything less than immaculate."

Gerald looked towards Solidad. "Yes that is basically the answer to your question miss and the same route my daughter decided take as the gym leader. In fact, my wife and I actually thought for a time that being a gym leader might good for Sabrina because it seemed to be taking her mind off of how out of place and alone she felt due to her powers. Unfortunately though... all of that changed dramatically when we took a family vacation to Lavender Town."

Ash perked up and sat forward a little. "What do you mean?"

Gerald rubbed at his eyes tiredly. "In an effort to get away and spend some time together as a family, we all took a trip to Lavender Town about six months after Sabrina became the Saffron City Gym Leader. It was supposed to just be a relaxing getaway for the weekend but it didn't happen that way."

Looking down at the floor, his voice became low and distant. "When we were touring the city, Sabrina suddenly became rigid and spaced out as though someone had just turned her mind off. Before we knew what had happened, she simply teleported away from us and left my wife and I to search the entire town for her in an absolute panic.

Eventually, after searching for what felt like hours, we entered into an old abandoned portion of the city where a terrible calamity had supposedly taken place years earlier and found her standing like a statue near the boarded up and no longer operational Pokémon Tower.

She was just staring up at the tower with a blank expression on her face and no matter what we said, Sabrina refused to snap out of whatever trance she found herself in. In fact, if I hadn't made the decision to forcibly move Sabrina away from the tower and then run with her as fast possible, it's hard to say what might have happened. We possibly could have even lost her to whatever unnatural persuasion she had found herself under. I had heard rumors about the tower and that it supposedly boded ill tidings but after that day, I no longer questioned rather or not it was true. There was just something ominous about that place."

He shook his head sadly. "After that unnerving event happened, we ended our trip and came straight home. Sabrina didn't speak a word of what happened to her and to be honest, she didn't really speak a word at all. The daughter we knew changed forever from that day forth, like we didn't even know her. She became much more ruthless and cruel in her gym battles with word even reaching our ears eventually about how many local trainers were scared to challenge Sabrina because of her merciless and ruthless ways when battling. Her psychic powers and the fact that she used them in battle to become more in-synch with her Pokémon didn't make it any easier either. People even came to say she was really a monster in human form."

Gerald's knuckles tightened and turned white from the pressure he was exerting upon his pants leg. "Then one day... when she was home... we got into a terrible argument. My wife and I tried to talk to Sabrina and tell her how concerned we had grown to become over her but she barely even showed any sign of emotion or that she cared at all. My wife then made the horrible mistake of telling Sabrina that she thought she needed to give up the gym leader life because it wasn't healthy for her and that as her parents we had every right to force her to end it."

His eyes closed again. "That was the worst mistake we ever made. In her rage and fury, Sabrina unleashed her power in a terrible fashion and attempted to destroy the house in her anger. My wife tried to reach Sabrina and stop her but as soon as she touched her she... she disappeared. Vanished, without so much as a trace."

Ash and the others appeared at a loss for words. "She just... she was gone? Just like that?" Giselle questioned with a slight tremble to her voice.

He nodded gravely. "Yes. Before my eyes, Helen just vanished. I myself attempted to stop her but Sabrina used her abilities to teleport me from the house and when I tried to run back inside, our entire home just disappeared. In the same way that Helen did. It was like someone had just lifted it up, warped the very fabric of space around it and then pulled a disappearing act that was far too good to be an illusion. Nothing but the foundation being left behind in it's wake afterwards."

Standing up, Gerald walked over to the window at the kitchen and gazed outside at the wooded glade his cabin was situated in. "There was no trace of Sabrina anywhere and the police were at a loss as to what happened to my wife and the house. They tried to ask me if I knew anything but I knew couldn't tell them it was Sabrina. Even after everything she did she was still my daughter and I couldn't turn her in like that. Who would believe me anyway?"

He leaned against the sink. "I instead told them that I was at the gym with my daughter and when we came home, the house and Helen were gone. Circumstances were too strange and there was far too much of a lack of evidence for anyone to point a finger at foul play or otherwise so eventually the investigation was just dropped without another thought. Brushed under the rug like a bad memory since there was no clear explanation to be had."

He looked out the window again. "I knew what had happened to Sabrina. I knew that she went back to the gym and after that day, I never heard another word from her. Even still, I never stopped believing there was hope for my daughter and because of that, I quit my business and started searching all over for someone that might be able to help me.

It took a long time but I eventually managed to track down the old woman who first told my wife and I of Sabrina's powers and I asked for her help. For any kind of information. She told me that psychic powers had to be passed down from at least one parent to the child and when she asked if she could test me, I allowed her.

To my astonishment, she found dormant psychic potential lying deep within me and by using her own powers, she managed to awaken them. For the next year, I stayed with her and trained my newfound psychic abilities. Having her mentor and teach me to control my powers so that maybe, just maybe, I might be able to help Sabrina with them in some way.

When I finally returned to Saffron City, I learned through word of mouth that Sabrina had become a very feared icon and a gym leader that no one locally wanted to battle due to her reputation for being so cold and merciless. After hearing all of this, I feared greatly for my daughter's sanity and wellbeing but I knew I couldn't show my face to her. That was why I had the elderly woman who awoke my powers teach me the ways of meditation and also of how to focus my abilities into being able to psychically monitor, view and keep track of other psychics who shared the same energy as myself from short distances away. Even through solid objects.

Using this, I was able to find places in the park outside of the gym and go into a deep meditation. Disconnecting my mind in a sense from my body and using my powers to observe Sabrina's actions inside the gym in a way that she would be unaware of. Allowing me to keep an eye on her and observe what she did from a safe location that would keep her from seeing or sensing me.

Over the next three years I performed this same routine of mine every day. Disguised as a jogger that would run through the city, I made rounds all over the outskirts and started keeping watch for traveling individuals coming in late at night after the first few accidents started happening up on the cliffside I met you kids on. Then, every afternoon, I would just sit in the park and meditate while using my powers to monitor Sabrina."

Gerald then gestured at the cabin around them. "On one of my runs I even found this place. It may have been in a state of disrepair at first but with nowhere else to go and nothing else to do, I fixed it up and made it into my home."

The five young Pokémon enthusiasts all were silent for quite some time after that. No one knowing what to say in the least to the things that Gerald told them. A need to process everything first taking precedence over anything else in that time instead of blindly asking questions that had no real merit.

Eventually however, Giselle spoke up first. "So then... sir... if you've been watching Sabrina all this time and knew about what she did to trainers that challenged her, why didn't you do anything to stop it beforehand or just come out and tell people exactly what she was capable of?"

He turned his somewhat eery, dark blue gaze onto the brunette. "Because, until today Sabrina has never done anything to anyone who challenged her like she did to you kids. My powers may not allow me tell me exactly what is happening when Sabrina battles but I usually don't need to. The sight of her challengers coming running out of the gym in a frightened panic not even fifteen minutes after they enter is usually all the proof I need that they were soundly defeated without posing much of a challenge to her."

He then looked at Ash. "But this one... well I could tell that he was most likely extremely stubborn and probably wouldn't listen to a word of the warning I gave you all." At those words, Ash face faulted from the couch to the ground while the others snickered lightly at the man's unintentional but very accurate assessment of their friend.

"I kept a close mental observation of what I could feel happening inside the gym the moment you five went inside. When over an hour passed and no one still came out, I started to worry that something was wrong and then when I felt Sabrina's influx of power I knew for certain that things were taking a turn for the worse.

Immediately after I felt her power output increase, I took the risk and teleported into her gym to where I felt the disturbance centered from and found the five of you sitting in a circle in the middle of the gym's battlefield. Sabrina herself was sitting in her chair with a strange little girl in her lap I had never seen before and appeared to be in some type of trance. Given the faint psychic aura field I sensed around all of you and Sabrina's incoherent, meditative state, I knew that she had most likely used her abilities to place all of you under a trance and was probably imposing her will, her thoughts, upon your minds."

Gerald crossed his arms. "Very powerful psychic users are sometimes capable of influencing other's minds into seeing and even living out whatever fantasy world they so wish. When I used my power to cerebrally attack Sabrina's own mind externally as a distraction and then used the time she was disoriented to enter the mental link she had opened between herself and all of you, my suspicions were proven correct."

Bringing one leg up onto his other as the man walked back to his chair and sat down again, he played idly with his beard and onward slowly. "For whatever reason I believe Sabrina created an illusionary world resembling Saffron City that she uses an escape of some kind from reality. She pulled all of you into there but for what reason I cannot say. Especially since she never did that to anyone else before from my knowledge."

The five guests he had all nodded in unison at the same time, having each guessed the same thing about Sabrina and the fantasy world she had created. Ash himself though seemed pensive and thoughtful for several minutes before he finally spoke in a contemplative tone.

"You said that Sabrina didn't start changing into who she is now until you and your wife took her to Lavender Town?"

Gerald simply nodded. "That's right. Sabrina was always rather different and due to how alone she felt because of her powers, she usually kept herself emotionally contained and somewhat stoic but... before our trip to Lavender Town happened and she disappeared for a time, Sabrina wasn't nearly as cold and unfeeling as she is now. I can even recall her laughing and smiling before then but since that day... she's been nothing but a shell of who she once was. Her prowess as a gym leader has only increased by leaps and bounds due to all of her time being spent training with her Pokémon and never leaving the gym for these past three years but the person she once was... the daughter I once knew... is gone."

Ash shared a look with his friends, who all seemed to be thinking the same thing, before looking back at the older man and sighing. "Well... I guess I'm about to drop a bombshell on you then because I think I know exactly why Sabrina is how she is now. And after you just told us what you did, everything makes sense to me about what we went through today. I think I even know what that little girl she always carries around with her is."

Seeing he had Gerald's undivided attention, Ash began going into a long explanation of everything concerning his and his friend's misadventure at Lavender Town and Pokémon Tower. Revealing everything to the bearded psychic about the truth of what caused half of the town to become deserted, the tower to get shut down and what all of those unfortunate events led to in the form of Black Fog appearing. Omitting all of the unimportant details but putting emphasis on everything surrounding Haunter and exactly who and what he was.

After that, Ash then told the story of what happened to he and his friends when they encountered Haunter. How he had been possessed just like Sabrina had been (only in a way that ended much more seriously) and also how dangerous the mutated Ghost-Type had been when they finally encountered it.

By the time he was finished, Sabrina's father simply sat there in a state of amazement and disbelief and after several minutes of saying nothing at all, he finally spoke in an awed tone. "Sabrina... was possessed... by a Pokémon?"

"Not just any Pokémon," Giselle pointed out.

"An extremely powerful Pokémon," Brock finished.

Ash nodded. "Haunter would attempt to influence anyone who wandered into that deserted part of town but what he was really looking for was someone with special energy that he could use to free himself from his prison below the tower. Sabrina is a very gifted psychic and I have no doubts in my mind that Black Fog possessed her because he thought that he could use her powers to get free."

Putting a hand to his chin, the Pallet native continued on in a thoughtful tone. "Personally, what I really believe happened from what I know of Haunter so far is that it was forming some kind of metaphysical connection with Sabrina when she disappeared away from you and your wife. He was probably siphoning off Sabrina's powerful psychic energy in a desperate attempt to free himself and recover all the strength he had lost when Haunter was sealed away."

Ash then looked at Gerald again. "I honestly believe that if you wouldn't have pulled Sabrina away when you did then she could have been severely injured, maybe even killed, and Haunter would have gotten set free. I know that's what happened to me when we were there and I almost died myself."

Reaching up, Ash rubbed his chest. "What really surprised me at first about Haunter is that he has psychic abilities, which is abnormal for a Ghost-Type. I'm starting to wonder if maybe through their connection, Haunter somehow took on some of Sabrina's psychic power and it not only helped revitalize him enough to then possess me as strongly as he did years later but if it also maybe gave him the ability to use psychic based attacks."

He paused for a second and then continued a few moments later. "I'm also starting to really believe that Sabrina might have picked something up from Haunter as well..."

Seeing him stop mid-sentence, Giselle asked in concern, "What do you think she picked up?"

Taking a deep breath, Ash responded a few seconds later. "I think, from what Gerald told us, Sabrina might have actually picked up a piece of Haunter's soul. To me it all fits. I mean her personality suddenly changed after what happened and not for the better either. She became cruel, callous, emotionless, dark-" He held up a hand to Gerald. "No offense."

The older man simply waved him off. "None taken. I know it's true just as much as you."

Ash then looked at his friends. "And think about it guys, doesn't Sabrina's personality now mimic how Haunter was before he joined us almost exactly?" Getting a tentative nod in response at those bad memories, he went on. "And as for that little girl? I don't think she's real at all. I think it's the part of Haunter's dark soul that took on a physical representation of something that Sabrina could empathize with. What better thing to take the shape of than Sabrina's inner, innocent child? To mimic something from what was probably a much happier, simpler time in her life."

Gerald nodded slowly and then interjected. "Come to think of it, when I saw that little girl in Sabrina's lap, she did appear strikingly similar to what Sabrina looked like when she was a little girl... clothes and all."

He then sighed heavily again and his eyes took on a look that showed almost pure defeat. "If Sabrina really has been possessed by the dark soul of a Pokémon then what hope can I have to help save my daughter? Maybe she truly is lost..."

Ash merely smiled and reached into his tracksuit. "Actually... I wouldn't say that." He then pulled out a black Pokéball with yellow and red lines around it's surface and held it up on the chain suspended around his neck. "There is still a chance we can save Sabrina and the answer is in this Pokéball."

The older man leaned forward in his chair with an anxious expression on his face. "Is it really? Like what?"

Ash looked at the Pokéball in his hand and smiled. "In this Pokéball is the Pokémon I was telling you about in my story. And he's the only one who can possibly help Sabrina right now."

Without any further explanation, Ash released the Pokémon from within and in a burst of bright, beautiful light that was only contrasted by the slight mist of shadows which also emerged from the ball was a massive, uniquely shaped, red eyed Haunter.

As the unusually large Ghost-Type appeared and filled up the entire space of cabin he was in, Gerald sat back in his seat with a look of wonder and even slight fear upon his face. "T-That's the Pokémon you were telling me about?"

Ash looked up at his newest Pokémon, who simply floated in place with an impassive expression on his face, and nodded with a smile. "Yeah, this is Haunter. Or Black Fog as the locals of Lavender Town came to call him."

He then looked at the bearded man again. "I truthfully believe that if anyone can save Sabrina it's Haunter. It's part of his soul that she took on and I think part of the reason why Sabrina did what she did to us and none of her other challengers is because the part of Haunter that's inside of her could sense my presence. Or... more specifically I guess, it could sense that it's originator, Haunter, was close by and had her act on it subconsciously."

Ash glanced at Haunter once more as he continued explaining. "I know it sounds incredibly strange but I think Sabrina has basically been like a passenger in her own body for who know's how long now ever since the incident at Lavender Town. She might be vaguely aware of what she's been forced to do but I can't be sure. All I do know is that Haunter's energy, his essence, was around me and to a lesser extent my friends since he's been with us for a little while now. I carry his Pokéball around my neck and I truly believe that the part of Haunter's soul that latched itself onto Sabrina was simply reacting to where it originally came from."

Taking a deep breath, he then got Haunter's attention and began explaining everything that had happened throughout the whole day to his Pokémon and at the end of it all, he finished with a question.

"So Haunter... can you please help us save Sabrina and take away that part of you that might be inside of her? I know this has got to be really strange and unpleasant to think about for you, and I'm sorry, but we need your help with this. Will you do it?"

The very old Ghost-Type remained silent for several moments before finally just giving a simple nod of his head in reply to Ash's plea for help.

Seeing this, Ash smiled widely and then looked back at Gerald. "There we go, Haunter's on board! Do you really want to do this and save your daughter?"

Without a moment's hesitation, Gerald stood up from his chair and a fire that had long since been extinguished reignited itself within the older man's eyes. "If it can possibly help save Sabrina and give me my daughter back then I will try anything!"

Solidad spoke up from her seat, "And so will I." Standing up as well, she smiled at Ash. "I feel like I am a part of this with you now Ash so I'll go and offer support in any way I can."

Misty, Giselle and Brock all stood up as well. They didn't say anything but by the smiles on their faces, Ash knew they were basically saying that they were with him to the end. No questions asked. Just as they always were.

Even though Gastly was now giving Haunter the stink eye and vice versa, the equally as old Ghost-Type nodded and replied with a simple, "As will I." However, he didn't take his eyes off of his (for all intents and purposes) rival for even a second.

Smiling at everyone in appreciation as Pikachu - whom had recently woken - gave his trainer a thumbs up, Ash looked back at Gerald and held his hands out. "Well, I guess we're all on board then. We might want to do this as soon as possible though, maybe even tonight, since I think Sabrina's in a really bad place right now after our escape."

The father nodded and picked up his drinking glass. "You're right. We'll do it tonight since this cabin is just a short distance away from the city and Arceus willing, I'll have my daughter back!"

He then downed his glass of water followed by everyone else, almost like the signing of a pact except with water and not alcohol, and then slammed it down on the coffee table. An action also mimicked by five other glasses.

None of them knew exactly how the attempt at freeing Sabrina would go but if there was one thing they did know it was that no one deserved to live their life being controlled by someone else and remaining in a haze every single day of their life. If they could help give someone their freedom back then they were all going to try as hard as they could to do so.

Come hell or high water.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

When Ash, Gerald and the others entered in through the doors of the Saffron City Gym later that night at a little before midnight, they did so with a great degree of trepidation and caution to their steps.

Not seeing any of the people that had attacked them in their escape from the gym earlier present anywhere and the lights themselves out completely, a foreboding sense of dread filled all of their minds and set into course a feeling of intense nerves for exactly what they may end up encountering.

When the group finally reached the doors to Sabrina's battle chamber after the long walk down the eerily quiet hallway, they each shared looks with one another that clearly asked if everyone was ready for what was about to happen.

Knowing that it was either now or never, a unified nod was shared amongst them all before Gerald pushed the doors open and they stepped into the equally as darkened room. Not a bit of light to be seen except for the very dull glow of the standing torches near the back wall.

Looking forward, they saw Sabrina herself sitting in her chair as she always did but something was very different about both her and the little girl in her lap. Both of them had their heads down with their hair shadowing their features and an ominous aura seemed to surround the two of them that instantly set almost everyone's skin to crawl.

As soon as they each stepped inside fully, the doors quickly shut behind them and only then did they hear a spine chilling, fear inducing, malevolent laugh that sounded like it was coming from the little girl. The only difference between the current laughter and the childish giggling she did before though was that now, no semblance of child-like mirth or joy could be heard in her voice.

Now, the dark leech that had attached itself to Sabrina was showing it's true colors because it's laughter sounded vindictive, evil and full of malice. While it was still high somewhat, the tone itself was almost otherworldly and the air seemed to chill with each pitch that was given off.

After several seconds of skin crawling laughter, a voice finally spoke from what was most likely the fake little girl in a smooth, low and slightly arrogant tone. "Soooo... you have returned to meet the fate that you so barely escaped from before... a wise decision if not also somewhat foolish..."

Looking at Gerald, who nodded, Ash stepped forward and called out strongly, "Sabrina! We've come back because we know what's wrong with you! I know about the trip you took to Lavender Town years ago with your parents and I know what happened to you there! At Pokémon Tower!"

At those words, the little girl in Sabrina's lap picked her head up and inclined her head towards Ash as her lips quirked like a puppet's own. Sabrina remained motionless however.

"I know what you encountered there and I know what has come to possess and control every aspect of your life! You picked something up there when it attempted to control you and you've never managed to get rid of it... have you?"

As Sabrina slowly began to stir, the little girl in her lap suddenly sprang to life as her head snapped up and showed a truly horrific sight. Her hair was standing up on all ends and her face was wrinkled, twisted and expressing a look of pure hatred while her eyes glowed a bright, evil red.

"ENOUGH!" Was the loud shrieking command that came from the soul piece's mouth as it's maw opened and showed nasty, pointed teeth residing within.

Knowing that he was now correct beyond a shadow of a doubt in his suspicions, Ash pointed at the dark energy construct and shouted back, "No I will not! I know what you are! You're a piece of Black Fog's soul that latched itself onto Sabrina that day he tried to possess her! Haunter was still weak and his soul was fragile and fractured from being trapped down in that sealing room for so long. You took advantage of that to get free and then imposed yourself onto Sabrina! Didn't you?!"

The malicious face cracked into a wicked smile as yet another bout of evil laughter escaped it's mouth. "You really are special aren't you? Hmhmhmhmhmh... yes, it is true. I could sense the girl's weak psyche which only made her too easy of a target and her power was simply too delicious to ignore! I figured that if I could latch myself onto her during the time of our connection then I would have a chance to siphon enough energy from her that I needed to escape."

The abomination of an entity frowned. "Unfortunately, the connection was broken before I could steal enough of her power to do as I had planned but in those final moments before it closed I managed to attach myself onto her mind without the naïve girl being any the wiser.

Over the years following that, I slowly grew more powerful being connected with her immense energy reserves and as I grew stronger, so did my influence. Making the girl submit to my will and become more cold, emotionless and unfeeling towards those around her was only too easy thanks to the loneliness and confusion she had already endured for so long prior to my influence. All it took was a little push in the right direction to make her fully succumb to my power!"

Sabrina's father went to lunge forward and curse the spirit essence but Brock and Solidad held him back as Ash stepped forward a little more and asked curiously, "Then why would you stay and continue to make Sabrina bow to your will? What could you have possibly achieved by possessing her and controlling every aspect of her life? What was in it for you?"

The dark specter chuckled again. "Oh that was simple... I hoped that eventually I would be able to drain Sabrina's very life force away from her! If I did then I would have been able to become strong enough to return to that blasted town and free my original self from the bowls of that wretched prison that we had been trapped in for so many countless years!"

The little girl's face showed an expression of warped joy and triumph upon it. "The wait was excruciating but my time is finally at hand! That battle you shared with Sabrina as well as your subsequent escape from her little illusionary world has worn and torn what remained of her mental defenses down and now I have finally been able to begin draining her of her life force in full! She is barely incoherent as it is and once I'm finished with her, Sabrina will be no more and I will have all of her power! Once I free my true self from that tower, nothing will be able to stop me from reaping my vengeance on the world and everyone in it!"

The crazedmalevolenthalf-spirit cackled gleefully once more. "And I really must thank all of you! I could sense my true self's essence upon each of you when you first arrived at this gym, especially upon yourself boy, and that lead me to believe that you came from Lavender Town and most likely had an encounter with it! I knew that this meant a portion of Sabrina's psychic power must have fed over into my real form through our connection years ago after all and gave it enough power that it is now closer than ever to being able to free itself! Once I drain all of Sabrina's power and dispatch the rest of you, it will only be that much easier to free myself!"

'Her' eyes then focused on Ash with almost sick fascination. "However... I might save you and drain your essence as well. Something... unique, lies within you as well and I can sense it! It is buried deep and it is dormant but I can feel it and it is powerful... very powerful indeed. I forced Sabrina to trap all of you inside her illusionary world in an attempt to learn more from your minds as to why I was sensing my original self upon you all so strongly but now... now I am going to find out firsthand myself! By breaking your minds apart like glass and leaving you nothing but hollow shells in my wake! AHAHAHAHAHA!"

Instead of freaking out or getting angry at the evil side of Haunter's spirit, Ash merely smirked and shook his head. "Well I hate to be the bearer of bad news that totally screws your plans up but... none of that is even gonna be possible anymore for you."

The entity chuckled darkly once more. "In a state of denial? That's too bad, I guess I will have to show you just how much you truly have to fear right here and now!"

However, before the spirit could do anything, Ash reached into his tracksuit quickly and pulled out Haunter's Pokéball as he threw it into the air and shouted, "It's time to put an end to your past once and for all... Black Fog!"

As the gigantic, extremely powerful tormentor of thousands of souls emerged from within the small device and took full form within the dreary chamber that Sabrina called a battlefield, the little girl in Sabrina's lap showed for the first time a set of emotions that were completely different from anything shown thus far. Namely that of shock, disbelief, incredulity and even fear.

As the very old spectral Pokémon took stock of his surroundings stoically and then settled his unexpressive gaze down upon the shade of a soul that once resided within himself, Haunter made no other movement besides a slight narrowing of his eyes.

Seeing it's originator before it, the little girl floated off of Sabrina's lap for the first time ever and flew up to Haunter with a look of reverence and hope upon it's face. Completely overlooking the fact that it's originator had just emerged from a Pokéball and what that meant.

"Finally! We are free! We can now make this world burn in the fires of our hatred and bring everything to utter ruin as we always dreamed of! I have waited for this moment for years!"

However, instead of getting the reaction from it's real self that the dark specter expected, it was stunned to it's core when Haunter merely shook it's head and began communicating mentally with it through the link they shared as the same being.

The eyes of the demonic little girl widening with everything her creator told her, she slowly floated back and stammered with disbelief palpable in her voice. "Y-You can't be serious! This is what we- you have dreamed of since you lost her to those monstrous villagers! We have a chance to become one again and make this world bow to us like they should! How can you have possibly changed your mind like this so suddenly?! You can't do this! To us! To me!"

The shade's artificial face twisted into one of rage and fury. "NO! NO YOU WILL NOT DO THIS TO ME! I WILL NOT ALLOW IT!"

Falling back, the nonexistent child held it's hands up as it's eyes glowed a dark and malevolent red. Channeling energy from Sabrina herself into in it's hands, the shade fired a large ball of pure darkness at Haunter with a twisted smile on it's face. "I WILL BE THE ORIGINAL NOW! YOU ARE NOTHING BUT THE SHELL, I AM THE TRUE BLACK FOG! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

As the ball of dark energy, very similar to what Haunter himself used back in Pokémon Tower before Ash helped save him from his darkness, collided with the massive Ghost-Type and exploded, the twisted soul fragment of Black Fog laughed maniacally.

"AHAHAHAAHAHAH! I AM SUPERIOR! I AM THE GREATER FORM OF BOTH OF US! NO ONE CAN STAND IN MY WAY NOW! EHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

However, the manic laughter only lasted for a short time until the smoke around where the energy ball impacted at finally dissipated. When it did, the dark spirit's laughter completely ceased as Haunter was shown to be floating in the exact same position as it had been before with not so much as a scratch upon him. In fact, he appeared to be completely unfazed by the attempt to kill him that his darker side had just tried so hard to accomplish.

His face was just as impassive and emotionless as ever but this time, his eyes were expressing something else. Something which could only be described as anger as his vermillion orbs locked themselves upon the much smaller form of Sabrina's tormentor. Almost like a judge about to pass the final verdict onto a convict that had been proven guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt. A cold, merciless, silent judgment that was more terrifying than all of the ranting, raving and outward bursts of violent emotions could ever hope to relay or conceive.

Feeling a sensation of actual fear settle over it's dark and corrupted being, the dark piece of Haunter's soul floated backward under the guise of the little girl and stammered with it's fear bleeding through into it's words. "W-Wait... wait! W-We can work something out can't we? I-I was just jesting, I didn't mean any of it! We're one and the same, you can't do anything to me without hurting yourself as well!"

Ash smirked and called up to the entity that had been a source of great frustration and torment for he and his friends as well as Sabrina. "That's not how this is going to work! You may have been a part of Haunter when he was dark and twisted by his own pain and rage but now that's he found a measure of peace and happiness in his life, you no longer hold any sway over him! Why else do you think nothing you can do can effect him? The powers you use comes from Haunter so they can't control him!"

Resilient to accept it's fate, the dark entity began draining more power from Sabrina and started firing ball after ball of dark energy at the slowly approaching Haunter. Each time it hurled some type of dark power at it's creator, the spirit piece would back up across the gym in a desperate attempt to escape.

However, every time a ball of energy would come his way, Haunter simply flew straight through them as though they held no effect on him whatsoever. His progress completely unimpeded as the feared Black Fog approached his long separated half-self with cold intent written clear as day across his face.

Backing itself up until it hit the far wall, the phony little girl looked up at the towering Pokémon glaring down at her and held her hands out as the spectral being she really was opened it's mouth and let out a loud shriek of indignant rage.

Just before any curses or threats of death could leave it's mouth however, Haunter suddenly started opening his own mouth and as he did, it grew wider and wider. At the same time, his eyes widened disturbingly and the Ghost-Type's entire body began expanding and getting larger.

Knowing what was coming, the shade little girl turned and tried to fly away but a powerful vacuum of wind that suddenly started sucking inwards from Haunter's mouth began pulling her backwards.

The malevolent spirit struggled and fought as hard as it could as it was pulled back to Black Fog's waiting maw and the entire time it did, ceaselessly vicious curses and swears fell from it's mouth.

"NOOO! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! WE ARE ONE AND THE SAME AREN'T WE?! AHHHHHGGGHHHH! YOU'LL REGRET THIS! DO YOU HEAR ME?! YOU'LL REGR-" At that same moment, the wide brim hat that the little girl was wearing flew off of her head and into Haunter's mouth, disappearing into the shadows and causing the shade itself to feel unrequited fear. "NOOO! NOOOOO! YOU WON'T BE RID OF ME! NOOOOOOOOO!"

With that final bellow of resistance, the unnatural abomination that had possessed and tormented Sabrina's life went tumbling into Haunter's mouth with the Ghost-Type's spectral jaws snapping closed immediately after.

As soon as Haunter became reacquainted with the lost fragment of it's soul, the former terror of Lavender Town started to writhe and struggle in pain and exertion as Black Fog's much purer, lighter soul sought to destroy the dark taint that had been ingested and was now trying to corrupt Haunter all over again.

Seeing his Pokémon struggle as Haunter's body shifted between it's normal appearance and the dreaded shadows that once encompassed it's entire being, Ash ran out to the edge of the ring and yelled up to him, "Haunter listen to me!"

Hearing the boy who saved his life from darkness calling out to him, Haunter turned around and looked down at the young Pokémon Trainer. His face scrunched up with pure effort and intensity as Black Fog struggled to hold onto himself and not lose his mind to darkness again, the Ghost Pokémon focused on Ash and his words as the determined young man continued to support him.

"Haunter you already beat this darkness once and you can do it again! Don't give into that weak dark spirit trying to control you, you have all the power needed to destroy it and assure no one ever gets hurt by you again!"

Holding up Haunter's Pokéball, Ash shouted, "This is who you are now Haunter! Remember that!"

Seeing the Pokéball that Ash had cemented their bond with, as well as hearing his trainer's supportive words that were being backed up by Pikachu, Ash's friends and even Gastly, Haunter found the will he needed deep down to fight off the darkness attempting to control him again.

Looking inside of himself once more, Haunter's eyes narrowed in determination as he struggled with every ounce of will he had to push out and destroy the last remaining piece of evil that still remained from his dark days.

All of that intensity, iron will and pure, unyielding grit allowed Haunter's soul to finally overcome the darkness trying to taint it with an inner explosion of light and positive emotions. A phenomena that was signaled by Haunter going rigid and then becoming completely still for several moments without even moving a single muscle.

For quite some time, Ash and the others watched with baited breath to see if Haunter had truly managed to fully overcome his darkness and when the Pokémon turned around and looked down at Ash with an impassive expression for several moments that gradually - ever so slowly - turned into as true of a smile as he could muster, a vast sense of relief washed over everyone.

Letting a smile of his own break across his face, Ash let out the breath he really didn't even realize that he had been keeping in and held a simple thumbs up. Praising his Pokémon immediately afterwards in a fashion that wasn't too long or heartfelt since he knew that the emotionally damaged Ghost-Type had a hard time processing such things.

"Way to go Haunter, I knew you could do it. I'm proud of you."

The giant ghostly Pokémon merely nodded his head to Ash in acceptance of his praise and then winked at Gastly in a way that infuriated the smaller Ghost-Type before, suddenly, they all heard a groaning sound followed by Sabrina falling from her chair and onto the floor like a rock.

Seeing this, Gerald yelled, "Sabrina!" and ran off to his long estranged daughter's side. Dropping next to her, he pulled the young woman into his arms and looked down at her with concern etched upon his bearded features.

"Sabrina! Sabrina please look at me!"

After several moments of tense silence, the black haired girl slowly began to stir and scrunch up her face before, finally, her eyes blinked open. Seeing the face of a man she had not laid eyes on in three years, Sabrina's face showed her confusion as she questioned in a hoarse voice, "F-Father?"

Hearing that simple word come from his daughter's mouth after never having expected to hear them again as long as he lived, tears formed in Gerald's eyes as he smiled warmly and responded to his daughter's question in a tone that was thick with the sentiment he was currently feeling.

"Yes my sweet daughter... it's me. I'm right here..."

Moving her head around weakly, Sabrina attempted to get a stock of her surroundings. "W-Where am I... what happened?"

Gerald helped his daughter into a sitting position and rubbed her hair gently to sooth her. "Shhh... I will explain everything that happened to the best of my ability once you've had a chance to rest a little bit." Looking up at Ash and his friends as they approached, he smiled and nodded to them. "Though I believe some parts would better be explained by them..."

Sabrina turned to look in the direction her father was gesturing to and saw a black haired boy with a Pikachu on his shoulder and a Gastly at his side approaching her along with an older looking boy, two younger girls and an older redheaded one.

For some reason, Sabrina got the feeling as though she should know who the five of them were, especially the boy with the Pikachu, but no matter how hard she tried the young woman kept coming up with only bits and pieces of a fragmented group of memories.

Stopping a short distance away from her, Ash smiled and greeted the female gym leader in a friendly manner. "Hey Sabrina, I guess this is really the first time we're actually meeting huh? It's good to see you back to your umm..." He scratched the back of his head and searched for the right words to say. "Well I guess what is probably your old self."

He then gestured at himself. "I'm Ash in case you don't remember and this is Pikachu and Gastly, my Pokémon." Pikachu smiled and chirped at Sabrina while Gastly gave an exaggerated bow and grinned widely. "A pleasure to see you back in a fit state of mind young miss!"

Ash then pointed to his friends in turn. "And this Misty, Brock, Giselle and Solidad, my friends." Putting his hands on his waist, he looked back at her again and smiled. "And we're all really glad to see you free now."

"That's right," Brock agreed kindly with his own smile. "Breath the fresh air again and feel alive once more Sabrina."

Misty and Giselle didn't say anything except for smiling nicely at the confused young lady while Solidad gave words of consoling politeness to the girl that had nearly killed them all. "I think you had a lot of people really worried for you Sabrina, it's good to see you well finally."

Even though it made Sabrina feel very warm and pleasant inside at having so many people acting so nice and kind to her (especially after going for so many years knowing nothing but loneliness and contempt from her peers and otherwise due to her powers) the gnawing sense of total confusion and bewilderment as to what was going on wouldn't leave her mind. Rightly so as a matter of fact.

Having the polite, warm words of Ash and his friends greeting her as soon as she awoke from... whatever had happened to her... along with her father behaving so affectionately towards her was definitely very welcomed and great but for all intents and purposes, they were still strangers and she had no clue how they knew her.

Seeking to get some answers to satisfy her ever curious and need-to-know mind, Sabrina sat up a little more and asked slowly of Ash, "How... how do I know all of you? Should I know you? I'm sorry it's just that I..." She held her head and grimaced slightly. "I just can't remember much..."

Ash smiled softly in understanding and nodded. "It's okay Sabrina and we'll answer all your questions in time just like your dad said but for right now, all you need to know is that you just met me and my friends today. I'm traveling to enter the Pokémon League and we stopped by your gym so I could try to earn another badge. We had our battle today... or I guess it might be yesterday now depending on how you look at it... and basically... that's how we know one another."

Hearing that she had just recently had a battle that she couldn't remember yet caused Sabrina's ears to perk up as she sat a little straighter, her father following her movements with concern still on his face. "We had a battle? Me and you? How did it go? Who won? Did I-"

At that moment, Gerald put a hand on Sabrina's shoulder lightly to calm her while Ash rubbed the back of his head and eyesmiled with a light chuckle. "Well... umm... it was a great battle and you definitely provided the most challenge I've faced so far! But uhh... but we actually won."

For several moments Sabrina didn't say anything. In her head, not only was she trying to process that she just had a battle she couldn't remember, but had lost it on top of everything else. She was far from a sore loser but Sabrina hated losing so to hear that she had been defeated threw her for a definite loop.

Honestly hating the amnesia she was currently suffering with and the fact that she couldn't remember hardly anything at all except a choppy, hazy, heated argument she had with her parents what felt like a long time ago, Sabrina committed herself to staying in the present for the time being and smiled at Ash. An expression almost everyone present was not used to seeing on her face.

"Well then... I may be sorry that I lost but you apparently had to have come with some skill in order to defeat me. I just wish I could remember how it happened."

Ash laughed. "Yeah well, it was exciting that's for sure. I'm still super anxious to see what the badge looks like too!"

Sabrina gave him another confused expression. "I didn't give you the badge?"

Hesitantly, Ash shook his head and replied slowly, as if choosing his words carefully. "Uhhh... no, not yet. Some things happened and caused a few distractions to pop up after our battle so..."

Her brain actually starting to hurt, Sabrina's face now showed her frustration at her current lack of remembrance as she practically demanded, "Why would I not give you a-"

Suddenly, in mid-sentence, Sabrina went totally silent with her mouth agape as though she had frozen like an ice block. Then, as though a pack of Onix's were steamrolling through her head, dozens of memories all began flashing through the psychic gym leader's brain.

In her mind she saw rushed images of everything that had happened since she had been full on possessed by Haunter's dark side three years ago. Memories of what she did to her parents, their home. How she became a cold, ruthless and cold person that only cared about training her Pokémon, becoming more adept with her powers and crushing her opponents.

She also remembered all of the many trainers she had brutally thrashed and humiliated in gym battles over the years. Her purposefully making fools out of her opponent's Pokémon using her own and how, with each defeat, her challengers would practically run in sheer terror from her gym.

Sabrina also began to remember being influenced by the evil soul shade of Haunter. She saw in her memories the little girl that had appeared out of nowhere one day - one who she barely even noticed at first for some reason - but on the times that she did have lucid moments concerning the strange child that had taken to literally sticking with her at all times, her thoughts would become muddled and warped. As though some alien presence was influencing her mind into believing that the little girl had always been. That they were connected, one in the same. That the child was almost precious to her as someone to be protected at all times and never questioned.

Sabrina saw in her memories that, for some reason, she fell completely for the mind tricks of the spirit possessing her. She saw herself become like a backseat passenger to her own body as the little girl took over and basically became the figurehead, the puppet master, behind everything she did. All while she herself never did a thing to stop it and simply let the dark spirit fool her into following along with every single decision it made. With each and every move it decided upon.

Then, Sabrina started realizing through the memories of what emotions she had been feeling during those times exactly why she fell so hard to the shade that had taken her over and made her it's slave.

In her continuously flooding memories, Sabrina recalled the loneliness, the depression and the desperation she felt at having no friends or anyone to truly understand her because of her powers. She recalled herself becoming angry, resentful and careless towards all those who shunned her while simply shutting herself away and focusing on training her powers and her Pokémon.

She could remember the darkness itself feeding off of her during that time of extremely negative emotions and thoughts that she had been going through and as it grew stronger, Sabrina remembered herself becoming more and more influenced by it until she started to actually change and become dark herself. In essence, because of her weakness of mind that was caused by her becoming so angry and full of bitterness towards everyone who looked down on her or made her feel like a freak her entire life, she had all but invited the malevolent spirit to hop right in and take her mind and body for a test drive.

Sabrina even recalled foggy moments and times in the life she had been living over the last three years while she had been being controlled by the dark entity that had latched onto her.

In these memories, Sabrina saw that, somehow, she had managed to use her powers (most likely with the assistance of the shade itself) to create multiple 'people' that she had helping her run the gym. Individuals in white coats that she had made with the built-in mindset that they were psychic students hoping to somehow unlock their inner psychic powers by training under her and practicing different 'skills' in order to awaken said telekinetic abilities.

However, from the memories Sabrina was seeing of the time that the shade posing as the little girl influenced her to create these 'psychic puppets' she understood that none of them actually had the purpose that the lead 'puppet' -a long brown haired man wearing a medical face mask along with the same coat - always told visiting challengers they had.

In all reality, none of the 'hard working trainees' were doing any of the things that real people were told they did. It was all for nothing more than appearances. Psychic powers had to be with someone from birth, they couldn't be learned. Apparently however, the real purpose of her 'slaves' was much simpler and far less extravagant than training every day at the gym as a group to unlock their inner 'psychic'.

From what Sabrina was gathering from her memories, she had created those illusionary servants so they could serve her around the gym and do her bidding more than anything else. The main servant she had (the man with the long brown hair and medical mask) had apparently taken care of the finances and political aspects of her gym for her while the others had taken care of menial tasks such as shopping, doing domestic chores in the part of the gym that she lived in and any other small thing that she had been otherwise incapable of achieving herself due to the muddled state of her mind.

As Sabrina's memories continued to wash over her, she finally remembered the intense and all out battle that she had shared with Ash. A battle that, even she would admit, was far more brutal and challenging than any she had ever partaken in before.

Not only was Sabrina impressed by Ash and his Pokémon's ability throughout the battle but also her own as well. She honestly expected that her skills would have dropped off and become lacking over the years that she had been manipulated and possessed by the shade but somehow, inexplicably, she had battled better than she ever had before.

On a second thought concerning the matter though, she supposed that it really wasn't a big surprise. From what she could now remember, all she ever did was train and her mind was focused on nothing, twenty-four-seven, but battling and getting stronger as both a psychic and a gym leader. With her very being so obsessed with one thing and one thing alone, Sabrina supposed that anyone would attain the level of skill that she had shown in her battle against Ash.

The last bit of memories she recovered were those of what came after the battle itself. How the shade had manipulated her into trapping Ash and his friends inside of some illusionary version of Saffron City within her mind for some reason.

She remembered how she had tormented them inside of it, how they had escaped thanks to her father and the almost crippling effect failing to recapture them when they tried to escape her gym afterwards had on her due to the insurmountable rage that the dark spirit felt. Fury that it had taken out on her by attacking her mind viciously in her weakened state and attempting to completely overtake her entire being until nothing remained but it.

Finally, Sabrina's memories stopped flooding into her and she snapped back to reality with a jolt.

Looking first at her father and then at Ash and the others, she spoke in barely above a whisper, "I... I remember everything now..." Tears gathered in her eyes as she looked down at her hands. "I... I was a monster..."

Moving quickly, Gerald pulled his daughter into a tight hug and shook his head while rocking her back and forth. "No Sabrina you are not a monster! You were controlled by something that you had no hope in fighting against and part of that, of all of it, was mine and your mother's fault. We should have made you feel like your powers were something special and beautiful and that they in no way made you a freak or an outcast. If we would have been more observant and seen the signs of how badly your mind was truly being effected then we might have been able to save you before that wretched spirit ever latched onto you."

Sabrina had tears now running down her face as she sobbed. "B-But I did so many terrible things! T-To you... and to mom! I did something to her and I don't even know what it was! She's gone because of me!"

The older man had a few tears collected in his own eyes as he held his daughter as closely as possible. "Sabrina... what happened to your mother was something you had no hope in controlling. Those were the actions of a vengeful spirit forcing you to use your powers in a way in which you never would yourself. Your mother loved you fiercely and she knew that you loved her as well... it is not your fault my daughter. I swear it isn't. You were just a child."

Sabrina's sobbing slowed a little bit as her father's comforting embrace gradually helped to ease her great emotional turmoil somewhat. "W-What about all of those trainers and their Pokémon I humiliated and made suffer? A gym leader doesn't d-do that to their challengers, I'm a disgrace!"

Ash was the one who spoke this time as he moved forward and knelt down next to her. "Listen to me Sabrina, you have got to stop blaming yourself for things that you did under the influence of a spirit that was more powerful than you could have ever hoped to overcome. That person you were then is not who you really are. You have a chance to make things right and be a better person but you can't do that if you continue beating yourself up over things that you can't change."

Slowly, she wiped her eyes and spoke softly a few moments later, "I... the only thing I can't remember is how you all saved me. Everything concerning that is just... it's all just a blur."

"You were really out of it by that time so it's really not a surprise," Misty answered gently. "You shouldn't be upset about that."

Seeing that she really wanted to know however, Ash started describing everything concerning how Sabrina was finally freed from Haunter's dark influence. He described exactly how she was possessed, where the spirit really came from and how they got rid of it thanks to Haunter himself's help.

Throughout the explanation, Sabrina's eyes went wide and her face showed her disbelief until, when he was finally finished, she asked in an awed toned tone. "So you're saying that this... Black Fog, the source of the spirit that possessed me, got rid of it be reabsorbing it's dark half and immediately after I was set free?

The boy nodded. "Yeah, that's pretty much what happened." He then gestured behind her. "And if you wanna thank him, he's right there."

Turning her head, Sabrina looked behind her and saw, for the first time, the immense and very imposing Ghost-Type that had helped save her floating near the back of the ring with a stoic, unexpressive look on his face.

Offering a small smile to the Pokémon, Sabrina spoke in a humbly grateful tone. "I can't thank you enough for helping to free me from that dark side of your soul Haunter... you have my gratitude."

The powerful specter merely nodded to the girl's words of thanks but made no other gestures or movements. Something Sabrina could respect and understand since she herself had never been all that great at showing emotions before either.

Just as she was about to turn back and say something else to the group of people surrounding her, they all suddenly heard a loud smashing sound coming from somewhere else in the gym that felt like a small earthquake had just went off. Violent shaking joining in with the destructive sound at the same time in a way that made all of them spin around and look towards the entry/exit doors of the battle chamber with full on alertness present upon their faces.

"What was that!?" Giselle demanded outwardly in a fearful manner, still very much on edge from everything that had happened to them all lately.

Sabrina struggled to stand as she answered everyone's curiosity in as strong of a tone as she could, "It... it sounded like it was coming from my personal chambers... we need to get there fast..."

Her father quickly helped to support Sabrina as Ash returned Haunter and then they all made their way out of the battlefield and into the long hallway outside. Taking one of the right side passages that lead down another hall a few seconds later, they ran along for some time through two rounded bends until coming to a sight that left them speechless.

There, with the entire front wall crumbled completely to ruin, was Sabrina's bed chambers in a state of total ruin. Not only was her room in shambles but a massive layer of thick debris littered every square inch of her sizable living quarters within like a hurricane had passed through it similar to what constantly happened in a small town in the Orange Islands known as Hurricane Alley.

What was exceedingly odd though was the type of debris scattered all over the place. Large piles of wood, plastic siding, concrete, gutters and even shingles could be seen in the mass of destroyed garbage. Each piece just as mangled and destroyed as the last.

Stepping into the room carefully through the big hole in the wall, Ash, Sabrina, Gerald and everyone else was a total loss for understanding as they wandered around and looked at all of the damage.

"What the hell happened here?!" Misty demanded as she nearly tripped over a pile of boards. "It looks like a hurricane came through here!"

Brock looked around and then knelt down to examine the debris a little closer. "This obviously isn't natural. None of this stuff should be anywhere in this gym, it almost looks like what you'd find-"

Solidad cut him off as she reached down and picked something up. "In a house?" She then held up a stuffed Teddiursa for everyone to see.

Gisele blinked multiple times in confusion. "How could a house get into Sabrina's room?"

Gerald and Sabrina both walked around slowly while simply taking in all of the mess around them as they began to see what looked like a couch, a TV, fridge, dressers, clothes and several other household items strewn all around what was once Sabrina's room.

Suddenly however, Sabrina stopped with a gasp and looked down. Gerald followed her movements and put his arms around her instantly. "Sabrina what's wrong?"

The black haired girl just pointed shakily down at the ground and as her father looked to where her eyes were focused, he saw something poking out from between a few planks of wood.

Reaching down, he moved the debris away and picked up that which caused his eyes to widen and his mouth to hang open. "I-Impossible... h-how can this be?"

Ash and the others heard what was happening and turned around to see the father and daughter. "Hey what's going on?" Ash asked as he made his way carefully over to them with his friends in tow.

Instead of telling them, Gerald held out what was in his hand and showed it to be a cracked picture frame. What was in the picture frame however left everyone present in a state of disbelief because within the image of the colored photograph could be seen Gerald himself, who looked quite a bit younger with no beard, a woman they had never seen before and Sabrina. Whom appeared to be no older than five or six and eerily resembled the little girl form that Haunter's dark side had taken.

"No way..." Ash murmured quietly.

"Is that even possible?" Giselle questioned aloud.

Sabrina could only stammer in disbelief while looking at the devastation around them. "This... this is... this is..."

"Our house," Gerald finished for her as he lowered the picture frame and walked around like he was now in a slow moving trance.

"Wait," Solidad began. "I though you said that your house was destroyed by Sabrina the day your wife vanished?"

The man nodded absently and looked back at Sabrina. "It was. Or at least... it disappeared. The same as her. I could never find a trace of it or Sabrina's mother no matter how hard I tried."

The psychic herself held her head and shook it slowly. "But how did it-"

Sabrina was suddenly interrupted by a loud call of, "Everyone come quick!" which could be heard coming from Gastly who was near a large column of standing wood and concrete. The urgency in his voice leading everyone to quickly make their way over to him.

"Gastly what's wrong?" Ash asked in concern as he stopped by his Pokémon's side.

Gastly merely gestured towards what he was facing and replied simply, "I believe miss Sabrina and her father will want to look at this. She might be someone they know."

Ash looked at what Gastly was talking about and saw a woman lying on a bed that was situated between the tent-like structure of the debris overhead. The woman had long brown hair and was wearing a cream colored blouse with a yellow over shirt and light red skirt. She appeared to be unconscious or sleeping and almost as soon as he looked at the woman, Ash could see similar facial features to Sabrina upon the older woman's face.

Having a very good feeling who he was looking at, Ash turned around just as his friends, Gerald and Sabrina caught up to him. Stepping to the side, Ash took a place beside Giselle while father and daughter stepped inside of the little debris shelter.

As soon as they saw who was laying upon the bed, complete and total shock could be seen passing over their faces as Sabrina muttered in teary awe, "M-Mom..."

Gerald fell to his knees beside of the bed and placed his hands on it's soft surface as he looked upon the face of the woman he hadn't seen in three years and allowed two tears to drop down his bearded cheeks. "H-Helen... I can't believe it... she's alive..."

Misty looked between Sabrina, her father and the woman laying on the bed in surprise. "Wait... this woman is Sabrina's mom? How?! I thought she was dead!"

Sabrina's father reached out and gently took hold of his wife's right hand in both of his own while speaking in a voice that resonated with the amazement he was feeling. "I never knew if she was dead for certain... all I knew was that she disappeared and I never saw her again until today. This is... this is beyond a miracle..."

"But how did she..." Solidad began and then paused while looking around at the destruction and ruin littering Sabrina's room. "And all of this get here I wonder..."

Before any of them could contemplate on the answer, the woman on the bed slowly began to stir and move around until her eyes finally blinked open.

When the mother of Sabrina opened her eyes and the first thing she saw were the faces of her husband and daughter, though older than she remembered, hopeful excitement and tears of joy gradually leaked into her eyes.

Reaching up, she gently touched her husband's face and spoke in a voice that was barely above a whisper, "Gerald... is it really you?"

Seeing his wife awake and hearing her voice, the older man broke down into tears himself and pulled her into a tight but gentle hug as he sobbed. "Helen! Oh my love thank Arceus! I thought I would never see you again while I still lived!"

As her husband hugged her tightly, Helen wrapped her own arms aroundhim and embraced the crying man as much as she could. "Oh Gerald my love, I'm so happy to see you again..." She then pulled away slightly and gave a teary smile as she rubbed his face. "Look at you darling... you need to shave..."

As her husband returned her smile with an emotional one of his own, Helen finally locked eyes onto her daughter so as to be sure she wasn't seeing an illusion. However, given the very unique circumstances surrounding Helen's disappearance over the last three years, she hesitantly spoke to her daughter in a weary tone.

"Sabrina? Sweetheart is that... is that really you? How do you... how do you feel?"

Knowing exactly why her mother seemed to be acting so oddly around her, she rubbed her left arm and nodded slowly. "Yes mother... yes it is me. It's... the real me..."

However, before Helen could say anything, Sabrina suddenly broke down into tears and hugged herself as she began shooting off rapid words of remorse and apology to her mother that were partially choked by her sobs.

"I-I'm so sorry for what I did mother! I feel so horrible for what I did to you a-and father and everyone I else I hurt! I... I hate myself for being controlled by that spirit and turning into a monster! I was just so angry and... and I felt so alone and... and... and I'm just so sorry!"

The woman instantly got up and pulled her daughter down onto the bed with her in a tight embrace. One hand on the back of her head while the other cradled Sabrina to her bosom as she comfortingly hugged her daughter and rocked her back and forth while speaking soothingly.

"Shhh... shhh sweetheart... Sabrina my dear please don't cry, I promise I'm not mad. I was never mad at you sweetie, I was just worried and concerned for you because I knew how alone and angry you had become. I hated watching you turn into something I knew you were not just because you felt like a freak due to your powers..."

Pulling her daughter back just a little, she stared into Sabrina's eyes with a tender and loving smile on her face. "I was never upset at you my dear and I never blamed you for anything. I just wanted you to find yourself, your smile, again." Reaching up, she wiped the black haired girl's tears away and then rubbed her hair softly. "But I can see in your eyes now and the way in which you just spoke to me that you have finally overcome that darkness plaguing your heart. My daughter is back and that is all I care about Sabrina."

Hearing the sincerity in her words and feeling her mother's loving embrace one again caused Sabrina to lunge forward and hug Helen tightly once again while still lightly sobbing. "I... I love you mom..."

Smiling as she rested her chin on her daughter's head, Helen rubbed her back and responded gently, "And I love you Sabrina. More than anything in the whole wide world."

She then held a hand out to her husband who immediately joined in and embraced both his wife and daughter for the first true, heartfelt family moment that they had shared in a very long time.

As the family of three rejoiced in their reuniting and clung to each other tightly, Ash and the others looked on with soft smiles on their faces for the extremely touching, heartfelt moment that they were fortunate enough to witness.

When they finally parted some time later, Helen wiped her eyes and finally noticed the extra people present as she focused on Ash and his friends. Smiling kindly, she addressed them all in a polite, happy tone. "Well hello there, I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting yet."

Taking that as their cue to join in, Ash stepped in first and waved at her with a smile. "No we haven't. My names Ash and these are my Pokémon, Pikachu and Gastly. It's nice to meet you ma'am."

Brock then gestured at himself, "And my names Brock, pleasure to meet you miss."

"I'm Giselle," The brunette introduced herself with a little wave.

"Just call me Misty," The Water-Type enthusiast greeted with her hands behind her back.

Solidad went last as she stepped forward. "My name is Solidad, it's good to see you well after hearing your husband's story about what happened to you."

Helen nodded her head to all of them and then smiled as she gave her own name. "Well it is a great pleasure to meet all of you as well and I am Sabrina's mother as you already know, Helen."

Gerald lightly touched his wife's shoulder then to get her attention and nodded to Ash and his friends while a small smile crossed his bearded face. "Helen my sweet, these courageous and selfless young trainers are the reason we have our Sabrina back and even yourself as well I would venture to say."

Helen looked back at the group of friends again in surprise. "Really? They are?"

Ash rubbed the back of his head and smiled a little sheepishly. "Yeah well, however you wanna put it, the whole thing is a pretty long story and this might not be the most comfortable place to tell it."

Gerald nodded and stood from the bed. "The young man is right, this is no place to tell of all that's happened today. It looks like a war zone in here right now and I'm honestly not very comfortable being under all this debris. It could crumble and fall on us at any time."

Helen smiled and nodded. "Yes dear you're right. Besides, I'm feeling a little peaked right now and feel as though I could go for some tea. In fact, I believe we all could." She then looked to her daughter and reached out to stroke her cheek. "I trust wherever we are now comes with a kitchen my dear?"

Sabrina nodded and gave an earnest, happy smile to her mother. "Yes mother, we are actually in the gym right now."

Helen appeared genuinely surprised. "We are?" She then looked to her husband. "Honestly?"

Gerald gave a simple nod in reply and took her hands in his again. "As I said darling, there is much to be discussed but here is not the place." Looking to his daughter, he smiled. "Would you mind leading us to the kitchen so we can talk about everything that's happened Sabrina my daughter?"

The psychic user shifted her smile to her father. "Of course." She then turned and began leading the way out of the ruins of her room carefully. "Everyone follow me please."

With Gerald helping his wife out of the bed, they followed their daughter out of the room while Ash and his friends brought up the rear. The small group of trainers and reunited family making their way back into the hallway and then to the kitchen of the gym where they all hoped to get everything discussed and out into the open for the last time so no one had anymore questions or confusion concerning all of the insane things that had recently taken place.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Sitting at a table in the somewhat small kitchen of the gym, Helen held a cup of still hot tea in her hands which she had hardly touched since her husband, daughter and the five traveling trainers gathered with them had started telling the story of everything that happened which led up to the current point.

Hearing the extraordinary, emotion filled, perilous tale of what had really happened to her daughter that day at Pokémon Tower, the three years after she herself disappeared, her husband possessing psychic powers as well (which equally surprised Sabrina) and also how Ash and his friends had helped finally save Sabrina from the dark entity, left Helen at a loss for words.

In fact, for several moments she simply sat in silence without saying anything at all. Only once she had a chance to process everything told to her did she finally comment in a tone that conveyed her sense of numb shock. "I... I never could have possibly guessed any of that. I knew Sabrina suddenly changing the way she did was not normal but it never even crossed my mind that something so radical and horrible had happened to her. It's just... well it's almost unbelievable..."

Her husband laid a comforting hand upon her own. "I know dear and that was exactly how I felt but the proof to support it was in everything that happened to us. To our family. To these young kids and everyone who was effected by Sabrina. As hard as it is to imagine, we can't deny it. All we can do now is be thankful that the dark time has passed us over and we can now begin a new life together as a family. You, me and Sabrina."

Helen smiled at her husband and squeezed his hand in return as Ash looked at Sabrina and asked in surprise, "So none of those people here in the gym were real at all Sabrina? The man who refereed our match, those people practicing in that room... none of it was real? You created all of them?"

The black haired gym leader nodded with an air about her that showed she was not proud of the fact. Looking down at her own cup of tea, she replied in a subdued tone, "Yes... it's true. I don't think I was fully responsible for it since I can faintly recall that... thing influencing me to do it..." Her voice became bitter and angry at the mention of the dark shade that had latched itself onto her and used her like a puppet for so long.

"But I do know that I was the one who created them. Somewhere in the back of my mind I think I knew, perhaps even as a survival instinct, that I needed others to help me survive and continue to run this gym since I was obviously in no condition to do anything but battle. Part of the reason why I think I was pushed so easily by that spirit into making them was maybe even out of the lingering loneliness that a piece of my mind still felt deep down."

She absently stirred her tea with the spoon that was in the cup without even touching it, her quickly recovering powers doing that for her. The sight of Sabrina using her powers again so soon after their recent bad experience with them causing more than a few of Ash's friends to flinch internally on pure instinct if nothing else. Something that they luckily didn't show.

"But how did you make them with the knowledge of how and what to do for you though?" Ash asked curiously. "I mean, like how they shopped for you, cleaned for you and that one guy even took care of all the gym's business needs. How could they possibly do that if they were just illusions made by you?"

Gastly chuckled from up atop one of the cabinets near the fridge that was mostly cloaked in the darkness of shadows. Only his eyes visible from within the inky black shroud as they twinkled with their usual mischief and mirth. "Mmhmhmhm... remember Ash, illusions can be a very powerful thing," He spoke ominously.

Sabrina nodded in agreement and looked at the boy who had helped save her from herself. "Your Gastly is right Ash. Illusions are very powerful, especially ones based on mind persuasion like us psychics use. I think I created all the people you originally saw training in that room, along with the one who judged our match, by instilling the memories and knowledge into them that I myself had to learn before I even became a gym leader."

Gerald nodded and then interjected. "Since they were connected to Sabrina, that was why they were able to use a small portion of her powers when we tried to escape from the gym last night." He then paused and rubbed the back of his neck as he let out a hearty chuckle. "At least I think it was last night, it might be morning currently but I wouldn't know. My days and nights are a little skewed right now!"

Everyone shared a small laugh at his joke before Giselle leaned forward a few moments later and asked curiously of Sabrina's mother, "Excuse me umm... Helen? Can I please ask where you were the last three years if you weren't really dead?"

The atmosphere turned rather serious again as everyone became focused and intent on what Helen was going to reply with. After several seconds though, she merely sighed and placed both of her hands on the table.

"Honestly, after hearing what all of you told me, I truthfully believe that I was trapped in the same place as the five of you were; inside of Sabrina's illusionary version of Saffron City. After I awoke when Sabrina lost control of her powers years ago, I found myself still in the house but I was on the couch."

Reaching up, she brushed a strand of hair from her face. "When I went outside after wandering around and finding no trace of Gerald or Sabrina, I found that I was still in the city and in the exact same area that our house was always located, only no one was around. Which was unusual in itself since the place we lived in was always bustling with people.

Eventually, when my desperation and confusion grew to it's greatest, I started exploring around the area that my house was located in since I knew it so well and just to see if I could find someone, anyone, to tell me what was going on. But..."

As Helen trailed off, Ash nodded knowingly and finished for her. "You didn't find anyone. You were totally alone."

She nodded in his direction. "Exactly. I even began searching throughout the city but still, I couldn't find a single soul besides myself. As I'm sure all of you can imagine, being somewhere that resembles your hometown so much but with no one else around and your family nowhere to be found left me in a state of almost manic fear and frantic worry. Especially for my husband and daughter since I had no idea what happened to them."

Seeing Sabrina's guilty expression Helen reached out and gently took her daughter's hand with a smile, which she returned after a few seconds of her mother's comfort, before continuing with her story. "I grew so desperate that I even tried leaving the city itself, thinking that perhaps an epidemic of some kind had happened and everyone had been evacuated. Unfortunately, that theory was proven incorrect as well because no matter how far I traveled or what I tried, I could never seem to leave the city. It was like I would simply end right back up in the exact same place I started from if I wandered for too long."

"But how could you have lived for so long in a place like that with no food or nourishment of any kind?" Brock asked as he leaned forward. "No offense or anything but that just doesn't seem possible."

Helen waved him off with a kind smile. "No Brock no offense taken, I know how crazy it sounds. And actually, believe it or not, I did manage to find all I needed to sustain myself. The grocery stores were still stocked full of food so I didn't have to worry about that and what was more, none of it ever seemed to expire."

Sitting back in her chair, Helen sighed tiredly. "I had no idea where I was or what had happened to me but I knew I simply had to make the best of it and bide my time until, hopefully, something would reveal itself and either rescue me or provide me with answers. It turns out that my patience was well rewarded though because now here I am, reunited with my family and back home at last."

As she finished, Helen pulled Sabrina in for another hug while Gerald squeezed her gently and affectionately with his face showing the love and happiness he felt at having his family returned to him once more.

However, Ash found himself questioning one thing and decided to broach that subject seconds later. "Still though... three years is a long time to be trapped someplace and I still don't understand why you and your house ended up here in the gym instead of back where it disappeared from."

Helen looked at Ash again and shook her head. "Actually, I don't think I was in there for that long. For some reason, I believe time in Sabrina's illusionary world is sort of frozen or maybe doesn't even exist at all since it isn't a real place. Because of that, I think I was essentially stuck in an infinite time loop, if that makes any sense whatsoever, and is probably the reason why I look the exact same now as I did before it all happened."

Gerald also looked to Ash. "As for your last point young man, I believe the most likely reason for why Helen and our house ended up in Sabrina's room here in the gym is because when you freed my daughter from that horrible spirit, her powers took a massive drain which greatly weakened her for a short time. Not to mention that evil abomination was constantly taking power from her there at the end to save itself, which was only that much more taxing.

Nodding towards Sabrina, he went on. "I think, given what I learned about psychic powers over my time of studying the art, that Sabrina could only keep living things trapped inside of her illusionary mind world for as long as her powers were at a certain level. Once she dropped below that point, as a safety mechanism to keep her alive I suppose, her powers probably expelled Helen and the house out from under it's influence so they could recharge properly and allow Sabrina to recover her energy. Otherwise, she very well might have sustained serious injury or even died."

Everyone present seemed to gather the true seriousness of what Gerald had just explained and thus it caused the whole table to fall into temporary silence as a way to just reflect and think on everything that had happened. Now, since all had finally been explained, it was a time for silent contemplation. To truly recognize just how fortunate they had all ended up being in the face of something so enormous that had involved every single one of them.

After quite some time of saying nothing, Helen finally broke the silence and she did so with a smile as she looked between her daughter and husband. "Well, all I know is that I am very thankful that I finally have an opportunity to start a new, happy life with my family and pick up where we left off. That to me is a greater blessing than any I could ever be given."

She then looked to Ash and his friends and bowed her head. "As to you kids and that Haunter of yours, I am truly and completely grateful. Thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you did for my Sabrina even after what she unintentionally put you through."

Ash looked at each of his friends and then returned her smile as he simply shook his head and replied, "You don't have to thank us, we did what we did because we wanted to and because we wanted to help Sabrina. Also... as crazy as it may sound, since Haunter is my Pokémon now I feel responsible for his actions, both past and future. I know that he's very glad this happened as well because it really gave him a chance to help show just how much he's been turning himself around and in some small way, I think helping Sabrina today allowed him to feel like he was repenting for his past sins."

Sabrina looked to Ash herself and smiled, a display of emotion that was still slightly odd on her face but definitely not unpleasant. "Just know that I myself am very grateful as well Ash, to all of you. I am in your debt and if you need anything, all you have to do is ask. I don't believe I will ever be able to repay it but any chance I have I will gladly take."

Ash just nodded and gave her his own smile. "The only thing you have to do to repay me Sabrina is to just live your life and make the best out of it as you possibly can, that's all. I don't want you to think about owing us anything because you don't."

A call of "Pika!" from Pikachu and a collective chorus of "that's right!" from his friends gave the powerful young gym leader all the comfort and peace of mind that she needed to know Ash was telling nothing but the truth. Which only increased the level of respect and gratitude she felt for all of them.

Trying to get the conversation moved on to hopefully lighter, happier topics that weren't so serious, Brock took a sip of his tea and then asked casually, "So what's the plan now that you guys are a family again?"

The family of three shared a look before Gerald answered the teen for all of them, "Well I think it's a little too early to have anything figured out yet but I know I can't wait to just catch up on all the years I missed out on with my wife and daughter."

"That's right," Helen said while taking her husband's hand. "We've been apart for far too long and I think it would do us all well to just take some time to get to know one another again."

Gerald looked over at Sabrina and took his daughter's hand in his own smile smiling enthusiastically. "And now that I've unlocked my own psychic powers, Sabrina and I have something precious that we can share in together and grow at as a team."

The unusually happy and currently serene young woman just smiled back at her father and nodded. "That is something I greatly look forward to as well father. To no longer be alone in something so important that I value as much as I do means more than I can say."

Helen smiled and sighed happily while resting her chin on top of her free hand. "I'm so happy my two favorite people now have such a unique and incredible gift to share in together. It's just wonderful and does my heart such joy to see it!"

"What about you Sabrina?" Misty suddenly asked in the older girl's direction after a few seconds went by. "Do you have any immediate plans of things that you would like to do?"

The black haired psychic looked at the other gym leader for a few moments before smiling and shaking her head. "All I want is to get closer to my family and my Pokémon but in the right way this time. I would also like to improve on my skills as a gym leader without relying on the assistance of some dark spirit."

"What about you young people?" Her father asked their guests at large, rather glad for the shift into more pleasant and domestic conversation since the heavy matters were now out of the way. "Do you have any other plans while you're here in the city?"

Ash answered for them all as he reached up and stroked Pikachu's fur. "Well, before we head out I'd like to stop by the Fighting Dojo here in the city and give it a try. I've heard they've got some pretty strong Fighting Pokémon and I happen to have a Fighting-Type myself that trains hard all the time who I'm sure would love a good match or two."

"Do you have any place to stay in the meantime?" Helen asked in concern.

"Yeah," Ash answered with a sigh. "But we don't always like staying in Pokémon Centers because even though their nightly rooms are usually free, we prefer staying at more private places when the centers themselves are super busy like right now with the contest crowd in town. We'll probably just stay one more night and then leave tomorrow after I challenge the dojo."

Helen placed her hand on her husband's arm and then asked while looking at Ash and the others, "Honey the gym still has extra bedrooms here that we had put in when Sabrina became the gym leader right?"

Gerald put a hand to the top of his head and looked up in thought. "Yes I'm rather certain we do, why?"

Sabrina however seemed to catch onto what her mother was getting at as she smiled and spoke up, "I think that would be a very nice idea mother." She then looked to Ash and his friends. "Would you consider staying with us here instead before you leave?"

Gerald caught on finally and smiled widely himself. "Yes I think that's a great idea and it's the least we can do for you kids after all you did for us! It's not like I can take my family back to that tiny little cabin right now anyway so we'll all be staying here as well until we can make other arrangements."

Ash shared a look with his friends and, seeing no complaint from any of them, looked back at the two adults and Sabrina. "Are you sure you wouldn't mind? I mean, is there room? I don't want any of us to be in the way."

Gerald shook his head. "Nonsense young man, there are at least two decent sized rooms in this gym besides Sabrina's and we only need one. Mine and my wife's room is big enough to accommodate the three of us and as long as some of you don't mind sleeping on the furniture, the guest bedroom we had installed is big enough for all of you."

Ash looked at his friends again and Misty just shrugged. "I don't mind."

"Yeah me neither," Giselle agreed.

"Ditto," Brock seconded with a nod.

Solidad even gave her own opinion. "I don't mind either, that is as long as you four don't mind having me around for another day or so."

Ash looked at the redheaded Pokémon Coordinator. "I don't mind at all Solidad but why do you want to stick around? Don't you have another contest to get to?"

She just shrugged however and shook her head. "Not at this moment. The next and closest contest, that I would prefer to compete in at least, isn't for another month or so in Fuchsia City." A smile crossed Solidad's lips as she placed a hand on Ash's shoulder then. "And besides, I've grown to like all of you and would rather enjoy seeing you challenge that dojo tomorrow Ash."

Ash and his friends shared a smile which showed a unanimous agreement had been reached as he turned back to Sabrina's family and nodded. "Alright sure we'd love to stay, thank you!"

Helen clapped her hands together. "Wonderful! I'm so glad to hear it!" She then drained her tea cup and then set it down. "Well... I don't know about the rest of you but after such a long ordeal and not having access to one in so long, I am in desperate need of a shower and a fresh change of clothes!"

The way that everyone else pulled at their clothes and sniffed them at the exact same time, which made for a rather humorous sight, showed that her statement was shared by the rest of the group present.

"Yeah I could definitely go for a nice, warm shower." Solidad announced as she drank down her own tea.

"Ugh, me too." Misty agreed while Giselle nodded in agreement.

"A shower sounds great but I think afterwards we need to head to the Pokémon Center so we can empty our rooms out," Brock advised in his ever thinking, ever prepared mindset that was greatly appreciated by his companions

"And we need to get our Pokémon taken care of by Nurse Joy too," Ash added. "Especially mine."

Sabrina nodded. "I agree with Ash. If my memories are as accurate as they appear to be, my Pokémon took a real beating in our recent match and I would like to have them looked at as well. It's the least I can do to show them that I still care for them after the years of cold treatment they received when I was otherwise mentally indisposed."

A small smile appeared then as she closed her eyes and looked down. "I would also like to congratulate my Abra on finally evolving. It's been a long time coming and I would like to see Kadabra for myself instead of simply through memories."

Gerald stood up. "Well I guess it's decided then, we'll all clean up and then go take a trip to the Pokémon Center together. Afterwards maybe we can all go and get something to eat in the city. Three years of living by myself eating canned food and bread has left me hungry for something a little more substantial and as luck would have it, I still have more than enough credits saved from years of running my own business to afford to treat all of us with no issues!"

With plans for the rest of the day laid out and agreed upon by all present, everyone left the kitchen and headed back down the hallway that lead to Sabrina's now destroyed room. However, instead of going that way, they took another hallway that eventually ended at a dead end with two doors on either side of the hall.

Sabrina and her parents took the right room which lead to Gerald and Helen's own quarters while Ash and his friends took the left. Entering into a rather spacious and luxurious one room suite beyond that had a large bed set up at the far wall across the room, a dresser right beside of it serving as the nightstand, two long couches facing each other in the middle of the large space and a bathroom situated to the far left.

Deciding to just get clean now and redress back at the Pokémon Center when they got their stuff, Ash and the others took turns showering using bathing supplies already provided in the bathroom while Gastly and Pikachu just crashed. The former doing so in the darkest place he could find in the room while the latter just laid down on the bed and sprawled himself out with a sigh of comfort.

The last day, nearly two, had been long and full of hardships with absolutely no denial. A series of perilous events that left everyone in a state of physical and mental exhaustion that only rest and sleep would cure but in the end, a massive sense of relief and happiness was felt underneath of it all. Relief that the danger of Haunter's final dark plague was finally over and happiness that a long stricken family had been reunited.

It was hard to say what lie in store over the course of what remained of the day or even the next one after that but it was however safe to say that everyone felt confident the worst of Ash's Saffron City gym challenge turned nightmare was finally behind them. Now was a time of relaxation and perhaps even a healthy dose of celebration for all involved and Arceus willing, that was exactly what was going to happen.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Walking down the hallway leading to the kitchen late the next morning, Ash yawned and stretched his arms above his head, still in his black sleeping shorts and shirt with Pikachu looking equally as sleepy from atop his shoulder.

Rubbing the sleep from his eyes, the messy haired trainer arrived in the main hallway of the gym and then took the one directly across from him that lead towards the kitchen. All the while, he had a slight smile on his face from the memories of the night before that played through his head.

After having visited the Pokémon Center, checked out of their rooms and left their Pokémon with Nurse Joy, Ash, his friends and Sabrina and her family left to go to a simple little restaurant downtown that served several different types of food like soups, sandwiches, pasta, seafood and even a salad bar.

Over dinner, the eight of them spent their time talking, getting to know one another better, sharing stories and even trading the occasional joke and bouts of laughter. However, the greatest thing for Ash personally was seeing just how happy that Sabrina and her family obviously were together.

In fact, even though seeing the formerly stoic and unemotional gym leader suddenly laughing, smiling and making open conversation was definitely odd, he would be one of the first to admit that it was an extremely welcome abnormality that Ash could tell made her mother and father very happy.

Also, and it was something he would never say to anyone, but seeing the way in which Sabrina's face would light up anytime she smiled or laughed gave her a rather substantial measure of attractiveness. In that there was really no denying and, even if only to himself, Ash would admit to it freely.

All in all, it had been a very rewarding night that all of them had enjoyed but once they got back to the gym and went to bed hours later - the girls sharing the bed while Ash and Brock slept on the two couches - everyone practically passed out and didn't even crack their eyes open until late the next morning.

Arriving in the kitchen and coming to an end with his thoughts, Ash saw Giselle, Misty, Solidad and Sabrina sitting together talking at the table while Gerald, Helen and Brock made what smelled like breakfast with the food that Sabrina's old illusionary servants had made sure to keep the kitchen stocked with.

Walking in with a cheerful, "Morning everyone!" Ash was greeted in return by several equally as enthusiastic morning greetings as he took a seat at the table across from Sabrina and beside Giselle.

"Did you sleep well Ash?" Sabrina asked nicely from where she was sitting while still in her purple night top and black undershorts.

"Yeah definitely!" He answered with a smile. "Man I was practically dead to the world. Right Pi?" He finished while looking up at his Pokémon who gave a simple chirp and smile in reply

"Well I hope all of you are hungry," Gerald announced as he poured what looked like orange juice into several glasses near the fridge. "My wife makes a mean breakfast!"

Helen giggled and playfully swatted her husband's shoulder with the spatula in her hand from where she was standing near the stove. "Oh you! And besides, Brock here has proven to be a big help and quite an accomplished cook himself."

The boy in question turned around and rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment as he brought a bowl of Pokémon food over for Pikachu. "Ahh, I was just helping out because I love to cook."

Setting down Pikachu's food on the table as the Electric-Type hopped atop it's surface with a happy trill and began digging into the food that Ash had long ago specially formulated for him, Brock smiled and scratched his friend's Pokémon behind the ears as Misty rolled her eyes and smiled. "Don't listen to Brock, he's just being modest. He cooks for us all the time on the road along with Ash and both of them are really good."

"Yeah and he makes great pancakes too!" Giselle said with her mouth all but watering at the thought of Brock's famous buttermilk pancakes.

Solidad chuckled. "Well he started young. When we were kids Brock here used to love making mud pies so I suppose it's only fitting he grew up to be a fine cook!"

Everyone shared a laugh at that as Brock whined Solidad's name and hung his head in shame. Chuckling heartily while he helped his wife carry the food over to the table, Gerald shook his head and announced boisterously, "Don't let em' get to you Brock, finding one's passion so young is never a bad thing. You should be proud of it!"

"Indeed," Helen agreed with a smile as she took her seat beside Sabrina. "If you have a passion for something just go for it and explore it and never let anyone hold you back." She then reached out and stroked her daughter's hair. "Just like our Sabrina here, if you don't give up on your dreams then you can accomplish anything. That determination is what made her a gym leader so young!"

Sabrina merely smiled and blushed faintly at her mother's gushing as her father sat down on her other side and rubbed his hands together. "Alright everyone, let's eat!"

As the sizable group began enjoying the delicious and nutritious breakfast prepared chiefly by Helen and Brock, they occasionally stopped and made small talk in-between bites.

"So then Sabrina," Ash began after he swallowed a mouthful of egg. "What do you plan on doing concerning the gym now? Are you gonna shut it down for awhile so you can take time to adjust and get back in the swing of things or what?"

The psychic prodigy wiped her mouth with her napkin and shook her head. "Actually, no, I am not Ash. While I am very glad to have my family and my life back and fully intend to spend as much time with them as possible, I still have duties as a gym leader that doesn't go away no matter what happens to me. Besides, there's no better way to get myself back into the feel of being a full time gym leader with a clear mind than by battling new challengers and training with my Pokémon anytime I have the chance."

Ash nodded in respect and admiration of Sabrina's answer, a feeling that he could tell was shared by Gerald and Helen as they smiled proudly at their daughter. "Well Sabrina I'm glad to hear it and I'm sure you'll do great."

"If you don't mind me asking," Brock asked curiously as he changed the subject. "What are you going to do about the mess in Sabrina's room? That's a lot of damage and it'll take forever to clean up and repair."

Gerald took a drink of his coffee and shook his head. "Not to worry Brock, a simple call to the Pokémon League and they'll have someone out here to repair the damage in no time. This is a League controlled and owned gym mind you so it's their responsibility to keep up with the maintenance of their facilities."

"But what about the type of damage sustained?" Solidad questioned, whom was still in her own red sleeping shorts and maroon colored spaghetti shirt. "Surely questions will be asked and an investigation launched when they see a whole destroyed house in Sabrina's room and the entire front wall demolished."

Gerald held his hand up. "That's why we'll clean up the mess ourselves and clear it totally out so only the damage of Sabrina's room itself will be left behind for them to fix. Afterwards we'll simply say that one of Sabrina's Psychic Pokémon was having a hard time controlling it's power after evolving in a match and accidentally destroyed Sabrina's room in an accidental outburst. Her Abra just evolved and it's a known fact that sometimes Pokémon don't react well to evolution at first so I know they would buy it. I hate to lie but we can't hardly tell them the truth, no one would believe us."

"Even still though, how are you going to actually clean up all of that debris in there?" Giselle asked in a tone that showed both confusion and bewilderment. "Some of that stuff probably weighs over a thousand pounds!"

Sabrina took that question however as she finished taking a bite of toast. "That part will be easy actually. My Pokémon can handle eliminating all of the mess themselves after my parents and I pick through whatever valuables may remain in the ruins of our old home."

"How?" Ash asked curiously. "Are they just gonna make it disappear? How would that even work, wouldn't it just end up somewhere else?"

Sabrina smiled at the boy who was the catalyst behind saving her life and provided an answer to his confusion. "Remember Ash, psychic abilities, telekinesis, are practically limitless in their application. For the most part, psychics use their powers by bending the existing cosmic energy around us all to their will in order to do extraordinary things like create illusions, levitate, move objects at their discretion and even control people's minds."

She took a sip of her juice. "However, Psychic Pokémon are much more in-tune with their powers and can actually take it a step further. They can actually bend the energy around inanimate, non-existent objects and compress it to the point where they can literally destroy it. Essentially, if they focus enough, a Psychic-Type can actually destroy objects entirely given long enough to do so."

Understanding lit in Ash's eyes. "And that's how you'll get rid of all the damage. You'll just have them destroy it all with their abilities."

Sabrina tilted her head in his direction. "Exactly. But it will be a long process though since even with three Psychic Pokémon working together it will still take quite awhile to permanently destroy so much debris."

Gerald sighed. "It will be a shame to destroy what's left of our old house but sometimes the old has to die to give birth to the new and in light of everything that's happened, I think that is fitting. And besides, it will pave the way for me to eventually do something that I believe will make saying goodbye to our old home that much easier."

Taking his wife's hand, who smiled at him, Gerald looked at Ash and the others and then decided to explain his intentions. "The three of us stayed up quite awhile last night discussing it and I think that after we have a chance to really reconnect as a family again, I'm going to open up my photography business again. Except this time I'm going to base it right out of the gym here so that I can be close to my family all the time and maybe even get Sabrina's gym more visitors. Perhaps even challengers. It will be good for both of our respective endeavors and we get to be close together at the same time, it's a win/win!"

Sabrina's mother giggled at her husband's excitement and then added her own input. "The money this gym brings in from the Pokémon League due to Sabrina's wonderful work as a gym leader all these years will allow us to slowly remodel and not only put my husband's business in here but also renovate certain parts of the gym into more permanent living quarters so we can just live here in the same comfort as we would any house."

Giselle smiled brightly. "Aww that sounds so awesome! I really hope you can make it happen!"

"What about your cabin though?" Ash asked Gerald curiously.

The older man merely shrugged. "I'll keep it up. We were thinking that maybe we could use it when we wanted to get away from the city for awhile and just escape out into the country for a little relaxation time."

Ash's face morphed from one of curious interest to sincere happiness for the reunited family sitting across from him. "I'm so happy for you guys, it sounds like you have a really good plan worked out for the three of you and I'm sure it'll work great once you get everything off the ground with the whole business and remodeling thing."

Gerald, Helen and Sabrina all joined hands as the beaming father just squeezed their hands affectionately and nodded. "I'm sure it will. Nothing can stand in our way now that we're back together and as long as I'm alive, we'll never be separated in such a way again."

After that, they all fell back into a peaceful silence while eating their food until, once a few minutes went by, Brock pointed to a small TV sitting on a cabinet shelf a few feet away from the table on Sabrina's side that was turned on but with the volume low. "Hey can someone turn that up please? It looks they're making some kind of big announcement on the news."

Gerald got up and turned the volume higher on the TV until the curly blond haired woman who was wearing a red suit and giving the news could be heard louder. Her professional, standard "news voice" being heard clearly now as she spoke into the mic held below her mouth even as Ash and everyone else noticed exactly where she was standing in front of.

"Hey isn't that Silph Co.?" Misty asked aloud.

"Yeah," Ash said leaning forward in his chair more. "Me and Brock were just there the other day."

"I wonder what it could be about?" Helen questioned as she turned in her chair. Knowing full well from living in Saffron City for so many years that news crews usually only gathered outside of the multi-billion credit company when something big was about to be announced.

No one spoke to a give a reply though and simply turned all their attention towards the TV as the reporter continued to talk with headlines that read 'BREAKING NEWS FROM SILPH CO.!' flashing along the bottom of the screen directly below her.

"Today in a surprise press conference, President and CEO of the world renowned research and development company Silph Co. -creators and developers of many of the household appliances and otherwise that are used by the general public every day - made an important and very urgent announcement concerning a brand new product software that is scheduled for release some time in the following month."

While she continued to speak, the scene on the screenchanged until recorded video of the press conference began playing and showed a room full of reporters in a large conference room. They were all listening intently to the announcement that was being made by a middle aged, slightly portly man who was standing up on stage in front of a podium dressed in an expensive looking brown suit with a white mustache and equally white hair on the sides and back of his head only.

To his immediate flank the man was guarded by blue uniformed security guards and to his direct right holding a briefcase was a sandy blond haired woman that had her hair pulled up into two buns at the back with a yellow hair band through the middle of it. She wore a purple button-up blazer with a white blouse underneath of it, a white skirt, peach pantyhose and black low heeled shoes on her feet. The woman appeared to be in her early to mid-twenties and was most likely the president's assistant if her position beside of him meant anything important at all.

"According to details given at today's press conference, the new product will be an augmented reality game of sorts where players will get to capture their own virtual, 4D-based Pokémon using the camera function on just about any handheld device with satellite/Internet compatible software.

Details about the product and how it works were also given and explained that consumers will be provided with GPS coordinates that works in conjunction with the clock feature on all mobile devices in order to find specific locations dictated by satellite all around the region at certain times. Upon arriving at the marked "capture zones" players will be given the chance to capture whatever number of Pokémon has been chosen to appear in that designated location with "Pokéballs" that are provided to them as per standard after downloading the free app.

Upon capture of their virtual quarries, fans of this new product will then have the ability to battle virtual gym leaders, who's gyms also appear at certain locations, as well as against their friends. They will even be able to trade with other "Trainers" and have a limited degree of interaction with their faux Pokémon.

Another feature which is the only thing players will supposedly have to pay for concerning this new product are specific locations known as 'PokéStops' where purchase of extra Pokéballs and other real life Pokémon Training items found at Poké Marts, as well as Pokémon Eggs, will be available.

This reporter understands that upon release of the new software, attainability of the downloadable application can be found at all participating Poké Marts located throughout the region. Consumers will merely have to download the software to their devices on-sight and then go on their way afterwards with no payment or terms of agreement necessary.

The ambitious new product that now has Pokémon enthusiasts everywhere gripping at the edges of their seats in barely contained excitement has been given the name 'Pokémon Go' by it's developers and for now, is only slated for release in Kanto.

The president of the company who made the announcement today divulged that this is a lifelong dream coming true for himself and was quoted as saying that he also has the hopes of this product inspiring more social interaction amongst the general public and-" The TV went quiet again as Gerald turned it back down and everyone simply sat there at the table in a mixture of shock and dumfounded disbelief.

Eventually however, Sabrina became the first to break the silence as she stated in a flat, deadpan voice, "That... makes absolutely no sense." She tilted her head to the side as though she was trying to figure out a great equation. "Why would anyone want to walk around with their faces buried in a gadget, catching fake Pokémon, when they could just go and capture a real one around practically any corner?"

"Yeah," Misty agreed as she sat back and crossed her arms with a huff. "Catching virtual Pokémon is all fine and good but it doesn't have the same emotional reward or skillful gain as when you actually catch a real life one. No matter how good it is, no software program will ever be better than the real deal."

"Not to mention there's no substitute for raising your Pokémon and growing alongside them as you both mature," Giselle chimed in as she reached over and rubbed Pikachu behind the ears. An action that caused said Pokémon to push his head into her hand and coo in contentment. "You can't a form a real bond with some computer created graphic image, only real Pokémon can create those feelings in someone."

Solidad and even Gerald and Helen nodded in agreement as Ash rolled his eyes and sighed. "I don't get it either, I'd much rather have my Pokémon than a bunch of fake ones any day of the week."

Putting a hand to his chin, Brock hummed thoughtfully and nodded. "I understand where you guys are coming from and I agree with you but I think the reason why Silph Co. did this is for all the people who's always wanted to have their own Pokémon but lack the know how, skills or even courage to do so."

He shrugged. "I mean think about it... starting a journey with living Pokémon and being totally on your own is a scary thing. I'm sure a lot of people want to do it but just don't have what it takes to go out and make it happen. I think this Pokémon Go thing is for those same people who want a Pokémon - no matter what kind it is - but not the hardships and oftentimes emotionally, mentally and physically stressful responsibilities that go along with it."

Smiling, the teen let out a small chuckle. "I guess this new game thing is for all the Pokémon fan fanatics that want a Pokémon themselves but just not the constant hard work that comes with the territory. I don't think it's a bad thing, I just think it's something meant to cater to everyone who simply don't have the stuff needed to be real trainers."

Ash shook his head and stood up while smiling. "Well then they can keep their virtual stuff because I've got real Pokémon to pick up at the Pokémon Center, a call I've gotta make back home to the lab and an official gym battle to get to. My day's pretty full and I ain't gonna sit around wasting it away!"

Sabrina stood up as well. "Yes I need to get ready as well so I can also go and pick up my own Pokémon."

Ash's friends all stood from their chairs, knowing they needed to do the same, and individually took care of their dishes along with Ash and Sabrina. Once finished cleaning up everything a short time later, Gerald spoke from the table where he and Helen were sitting together again. A fresh cup of coffee in both of their hands.

"You kids go ahead and enjoy the day. I think Helen and I are just going to stay around here and enjoy each other's company for the first time in a very long while. A little alone time as it were, I think we desperately need it."

Helen nodded and smiled at Sabrina and the others. "Yes darling you go and have a good time with Ash and everyone else today. Your father and I are just going to stay here and maybe just laze around all day."

Sabrina simply nodded as she walked over and hugged her parents. "Very well, I love you both. I'll see you soon."

Returning the hug, Gerald and Helen then wished a good day to Ash and his friends before the group of talented young trainers left to go back to their rooms so they could prepare for the day ahead.

Seeing the kids all disappear down the hallway from the kitchen, Gerald leaned over and kissed his wife's cheek before whispering mischievously, "Now... what say you and me go play 'Photographer' in the bedroom once they're gone eh my love? I recall you always did so well at that game..."

The brown haired woman blushed faintly before lightly slapping her husband's arm and admonishing him half-heartedly, "Oh behave you dirty man you!"

The bearded man in question just laughed heartily and began playfully attacking his wife with nips to her neck which caused the brunette to throw her head back and giggle mirthfully at the actions provided by her loving husband.

One thing was for sure, it was going to be a very nice day for everyone.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Two hours later found Ash, his friends and Sabrina all standing before the Saffron City Fighting Dojo. A traditional design by build with a quite impressive size that spanned about half of the lot it was located in.

Stepping inside through the double sliding doors that made up the front entrance, the group of six were greeted to the sight of several ripped, sweating men dressed in white gi's and different colored headbands grunting, shouting and vocalizing in several forms while they worked out by themselves and also with the many different Fighting-Type Pokémon spread throughout the gym.

The dojo itself was like a huge square with a wide open floor that was made of standard wood flooring while the walls were all colored white with wood slats to resemble changing screens. The ceiling above was normal white tile that was made to also resemble changing screen except it was clearly tile save for the shape and texture.

All throughout the gym hanging bags, standing bags, speed bags, wooden katanas, staffs and several other types of non-lethal weaponry were set up for use and was getting that use currently by all of the traditionally garbed martial artists and their Pokémon that were training together intensely. Some who were running through katas, some were sparring and others whom were even working on weapon style forms if they weren't already making good use of the many bags that littered the sides of the dojo.

Putting her hand over her nose, Giselle made a disgusted face and stuck her tongue out. "Ewww it smells nasty in here!"

Solidad crossed her arms and looked around. "What do you expect? It's bunch of sweaty meatheads who probably haven't bathed in days all congregated together under the same roof."

Misty made a fake throwing up action in her mouth. "Like a mixing pot of bad B.O. and filthy gym socks... nasty!"

Looking around with a face of genuine question and confusion, Sabrina ventured forth in a stoic voice that relayed the complete lack of understanding she felt. "I haven't the faintest clue why anyone would want to bash their knuckles on rough bags, swing sticks around and throw one another on the ground for no immediately foreseeable purpose besides some misplaced sense of self achievement."

Ash shrugged as he looked around. "Eh, I don't know. I like martial arts myself but I've never been as uhh... flashy or theatrical when I'm training."

Brock nodded with a serious expression upon his face as he crossed his arms. "You're right Ash. None of these men have the same sense of style, ability or grace as the great Master Bruno!"

Everyone turned to look at Brock with expressions of confusion but before anyone could ask him about the out place comment he just made, one of the men in gi's with black hair came walking over to them after he finished training with his Machamp.

"Newcomers I see! Did you come to workout with us or are you lost?" He asked with a slightly arrogant smile upon his face. "We usually don't get such small, weak looking kids coming to our dojo!"

Sabrina quirked an eyebrow as she responded emotionlessly, "You judge people based off of their physical stature and appearance? Well I suppose that answers the unspoken question regarding the size of your brain and it's cerebral capacities then."

The man blinked a few times dumbly before it apparently finally registered to him that he was being insulted and got angry. "You trying to tell me something little girl?!"

Sabrina just stared at him like she was looking at an oversized, mentally special lab experiment and replied nonplussed, "Not in any way or that fashion you would likely perceive no."

Just before the black belt wearing man could step into her face and say something nasty to Sabrina, Ash moved in front of her and said in a polite but stern tone, "Actually sir, I'm here to challenge the leader of this dojo. Is he here?"

The short tempered man looked down at Ash and smirked. "You're here to challenge Master Kiyo?" Throwing his head back, the man laughed. "Please! The master would destroy you without even trying you little bug and besides, no one challenges the Karate Master without going through all of us first. And I doubt you could even beat me in a one on one!"

Ash, instead of rising to the man's taunts, just held up the Pokéball that he had sent Gastly away for. "How about we have a battle then to decide just how worthy I am of challenging your master?"

Smirking once more, the man just shrugged and then walked back over to his Machamp while calling over his shoulder, "Fine but don't go crying when we cream you!"

As the rest of the practitioners all stepped away in order to give them space to battle, Ash's friends and Sabrina did the same. "Beat him to a pulp Ash!" Misty yelled out with ferocity in her tone.

"Yeah no mercy!"' Giselle shouted in agreement.

Ash didn't offer any reply though as he held out the Pokéball in his hand and stared down the arrogant karate student and his equally as arrogant looking Machamp.

Enlarging the Pokéball, Ash simply side tossed it while announcing, "Primeape lets show them what we can do."

As the Pig-Monkey Pokémon appeared from his ball and simply materialized on one knee with a focused, controlled expression on his face instead of jumping and thrashing around wildly like most of his species would do, Ash crossed his arms and put his mind into immediate battle mode.

"Primeape buddy," He addressed his Pokémon. "This is what you've been training for all this time. A chance to show off your abilities and strength. Remember to stay focused, clear headed and locked onto nothing but the battle. I know you can do this because I have every faith in the world in you. Are you ready my friend?"

The boy's only Fighting-Type Pokémon just looked back at him and then nodded, showing a definite feeling of respect for his trainer that was also unusual for his species. A feeling that had only grown when, after Ash had him sent over from the lab at the Pokémon Center, the two of them went into the center's gym and then sat side by side and meditated. Focusing their minds and bodies on the task at hand while bringing their hearts and souls closer together as trainer and Pokémon through that deep moment of spiritual reflection.

Ash was big on training Primeape not only to become much stronger and a better fighter but also to become far more at one and at peace with himself as well. He knew that Primeape's species were prone to fits of rage and uncontrolled anger and that's why he had at one point - before sending him to the lab for a time- taught Primeape meditation and then made it a staple of his training program.

Meaning that the Fighting-Type had to meditate every day for at least one hour after training to help calm his aggressive spirit and become more clear of mind.

A tactic which was proven to be working wonders if Primeape's current calm, cool demeanor and focused personality were anything to go by.

Directing his full attention to their opponent, Ash called out, "Okay we're ready."

Smirking once more, the man raised his hand and pointed at them. "You're gonna get pulverized little boy! Machamp use Dynamic Punch!"

Flexing it's muscles and smashing it's fists together, the four armed Pokémon raised it's head and called out it's name before charging at Primeape with all of it's muscly appendages glowing.

Even as the much larger Pokémon drew close, Ash and Primeape didn't make any moves until it was just a short distance away. As soon as it was however, only then did Ash command, "Primeape use evasion."

Moving at incredibly quick speeds, Primeape moved his head to the side just as one of Machamp's fists went soaring passed it. The next punch that came in he simply sidestepped, the third one he jumped over and the last one Primeape dodged by backflipping out of the way.

Seeing this and becoming temporarily surprised at the other Fighting-Type's quick movements, the arrogant martial artist regained his sour disposition mere seconds later and then yelled out another command, "Machamp use Cross Chop!"

Bringing it's hands up in front of it's face, Machamp took off at Primeape with a bellow of it's name and then brought all four hands up before swinging them downward at impressive speeds.

However, just before Machamp could get into reach of Primeape, the focused Pokémon simply jumped and ran overtop of Machamp's hands in a single leap each before pushing off of it's back and landing on the floor behind it.

Now feeling frustrated at his usually unbeatable Machamp being unable to land a single punch, the black belt grew impatient and angry as he shouted in a growl, "Use Mega Punch Machamp and don't stop until that little pipsqueak is down on the floor!"

Feeling just as agitated and aggressive as it's trainer at being unable to simply lay the smaller Pokémon out in a single punch, Machamp roared and then ran at Primeape while raining multiple glowing white fists down at him that were all in rapid succession.

For Primeape though, a Pokémon in control, it was only too easy to dodge the larger Pokémon's blows that were quickly starting to grow sloppier and sloppier the more it attacked him.

Dodging, twisting, side-stepping and jumping like he could almost foresee each attack before it came, Primeape made seemingly easy work of evading the punches all while Machamp grew more and more unstable and volatile.

After several minutes of this continued on - with Primeape leading Machamp around practically the entire dojo while dodging it's attacks - the muscle headed black belt gritted his teeth and all but screamed, "Machamp stop playing around and use Vital Throw!"

Knowing what Machamp was about to do but deciding not to make any immediately outward movements for the sake of strategy, Ash yelled, "Primeape don't move!"

Listening to his trainer, Primeape allowed Machamp to grab hold of him with it's four strong arms and then felt the muscly Pokémon jump high up into the air.

Smirking since he felt certain that they were about to win, the arrogant karate student shouted, "End it with one final toss Machamp!"

Just as the four armed Pokémon let Primeape go with two arms so that it could hoist him over it's head with the other two to throw the Pig-Monkey Pokémon, Ash called out, "Now Primeape! Legs to ceiling!"

Moving quick as a flash, Primeape dropped his left elbow down and smashed it into Machamp's face hard enough to cause the bigger Pokémon to let him go. After that, Primeape immediately twisted himself around and use Machamp's shoulders as springboards to launch himself higher up into the air until he was level with the ceiling.

From there, Primeape placed his feet atop the ceiling's surface just long enough to launch himself back downward again towards Machamp like a bullet.

Knowing that he and Primeape were in good enough synch to issue the next command with enough time, Ash yelled, "Primeape use Mega Punch!"

Just before Primeape could impact with Machamp who was still in the air, he cocked his fist back until it started glowing a bright white color. Not wasting any time though, Ash's Pokémon brought his fist down and smashed it into the other Fighting-Type's face hard enough to send spittle flying from Machamp's mouth as it grunted in pain and soared towards the ground.

Impacting the dojo floor below with a loud crashing sound just as Primeape landed a few feet away on both feet, Machamp crumpled like a limp noodle to the ground and lay where he landed without any sign of getting up.

The cocky and unkind black belt looked at his downed Pokémon with wide eyes as he put his hands on his head and reared back. "Impossible! There's no way!"

Looking over at Ash and Primeape, who appeared calm and in control still from where they were standing, the man returned his Pokémon and growled before looking back at his fellow students. "What are you idiots waiting for?! Teach that little punk not to mess with us!"

The other black belts didn't seem too unsure of the idea at first but when their furious peer turned towards them with rage on his face and demanded, "What the hell are you waiting for?! Do it or you'll be sorry!" they all snapped to attention and did as commanded out of no small measure of fear for the man who had unofficially named himself second in command of the gym.

Running out onto the middle of the floor, the several other black belts all released multiple Fighting-Types at once like Machoke, Machop, Tyrogue, Hitmontop, Meditite, Makuhita and even a Mankey.

As the Fighting Pokémon all surrounded Primeape, Misty yelled indignantly with her fist raised, "Hey seven on one isn't fair! That's-" But she was cut off by Ash who called back calmly, "It's okay Misty just relax, we've got this."

Sharing a look with Primeape, who looked back at Ash, they both allowed a moment of silent communication to pass between them before the trusting trainer simply gave a nod to his Pokémon.

Understanding what this meant, Primeape looked back at his opponents and cracked his neck just as the first one came charging at him with a shout of it's name.

Primeape immediately began dodging the quick attacks being thrown at him by Machoke before grabbing one of it's arms and then stepping in with a side block, effectively smashing his fist into the other Pokémon's gut which sent it flying backwards.

Sensing another one moving in on him, Primeape turned around and looked just as Hitmontop came flying in with a Mega Kick. Stepping back, Primeape caught the other Pokémon's outstretched leg in a tight hold with arms near his side and then spun it around several times before tossing Hitmontop towards Machop who had been running in to attack him from behind.

As both Fighting-Types collided with one another and flew back, Makuhita came dropping from the air with both hands raised above it's head which it quickly slammed down at Primeape.

Ash's Pokémon was quick to react though and backflipped out of the way just as Mankey came charging in with it's eyes blazing red and muscle's bulging, showing that it was using Rage.

Primeape quickly began rapidly dodging all of the attacks being thrown his way by his pre-evolved cousin before, once he had an opening, dropped down and sweeped the smaller Pokémon's legs with a Low Kick.

Grabbing Mankey's legs as it fell to the ground, Primeape then turned around and used his living 'mace' to bash Makuhita away just as the plump Fighting-Type came towards him with a palm extended.

Jumping in the air afterwards, Primeape wrapped Mankey up and then soared towards the ground with his pre-evolved form wrapped tightly in his arms.

Just before hitting the ground, Primeape let go and jumped away while putting the Seismic Toss he had just utilized to work as Mankey hit the ground with a heavy thud and cracked the wood floor.

Hands out in front of him, Primeape shifted his eyes back and forth as his many now angered, winded and injured opponents quickly got back up and closed in on him at one time. Having learned their lesson and no longer wanting to fight him one on one, the several other Fighting-Types all converged on Primeape slowly until he was backed into a tight circle.

"This is bad," Giselle fretted. "He's totally surrounded!"

Sabrina and Solidad didn't say anything though and just kept their attention locked on the battle while Brock shook his head and replied, "Don't count Ash and Primeape out just because they're outnumbered Misty. They can still come out on top yet, just watch."

At that moment, just before the Fighting Pokémon all attacked, Ash thought in his mind, "You can do this Primeape... just have faith in yourself. I know you can do it.'

Almost as though Primeape could hear his trainer's thoughts, a small

smile came across his face and he nodded slightly just as his opponents all gave a loud bellow and charged him at one time.

Letting his mind and body go into pure instinctual overdrive and with a heavy faith on all the intense training he had been doing, Primeape allowed himself to move on pure muscle memory as he began moving like a blur of cream colored fur and fast moving limbs. His eyes even closed as he simply let his senses and instincts become his only method for seeing.

With every fast punch, kick and powerful attack sent his way in the mass of flailing limbs, Primeape would move just a little bit faster and allow his arms and legs to block, parry and cancel out each blow like water running over rocks.

When punches would rain in upon him, Primeape would dodge down, to the side, up and sideways while his hands moved in fast circles and whirlwinds. Not only would he stop the incoming attacks but with each block performed, Primeape would quickly turn it into a counter. Doing this by either dislocating the joint of whatever arm he had in his hold, stepping in and punching or force-palming his opponent away, low kicking it, launching it away with a kick to the face or gut or even performing a small rapid combo of quick punches and kicks that would knock whoever it was away from him several feet back.

With every strike the other Fighting-Type's would throw at Primeape, the intensely focused Pokémon would block, counter and send them hurling away. The sounds of grunting, groaning, fists and feet impacting skin and bodies hitting the ground was the only predominant sound that filled the dojo for the next several minutes.

As his opponents would get back up progressively slower each time and run back in to attack him again, Primeape grew faster and faster in his movements due to how focused, centered and intent the Pig-Monkey Pokémon now was in the multi-opponent battle.

As the seconds ticked by, his body became like a blur as his feet and hands moved as though they were made of lightning itself. Dozens of kicks, punches, fast blocks, dodges, jumps and other complex counters all being utilized with near perfect precision the more Primeape fought until, eventually, every other Fighting-Type was on the ground beaten, bruised, unconscious and battered except for one.

The last Pokémon still standing was Machoke, who looked to be in very bad condition with one arm no longer in use due to a hyperextension courtesy of Primeape, one eye swollen shut, one leg all but totally stiff behind him and several large, purple bruises covering his body.

Obviously hesitant to approach the one Pokémon fighting force that had decimated it and it's comrades, Machoke kept trying to find other angles in which it could move in and attack Primeape but every time it moved, Ash's Pokémon would do the same like a mirror.

However, when Primeape held his hand out and did a 'come here' gesture, Machoke's pride and anger got the best of it and caused the massively ripped Pokémon to just charge it's target with blind fury in it's eyes and one hand raised up and poised to slam itself down onto Primeape's skull.

Closing his eyes once more before his opponent could reach him, Primeape rooted himself to the ground and focused his senses on each heavy, thudding step Machoke would take as it approached him.

Arms coming out to the side, Primeape finally moved just before Machoke could make contact with the fist that it had positioned to perform serious damage to him. Stepping very lightly to the side with a sliding motion so he could still maintain his root, Primeape threw Machoke completely off balance by outward blocking it's punch away in a pushing motion that knocked the bigger Pokémon's center of gravity completely off.

Just as Machoke started to teeter and sidestep due to his loss of balance, Primeape stepped back around in a backwards spin and came in front of his opponent while smashing an elbow into the middle of it's abdominals.

Just as Machoke lurched forward and it's eyes bugged out from the painful elbow it had sustained to the gut, Primeape pulled his fists into his body and then twisted to each side, right and left, while throwing two fast, powerful hooks into both of Machoke's chiseled obliques. Causing the bipedal Fighting-Type to cringe to either side from the rib creaking blows.

Immediately afterwards, Primeape reached up and grabbed Machoke around the neck before pulling it down repeatedly where it's face would then meet each of his knees in rapid succession. Machoke's head becoming like a paddle ball as it snapped back with every vicious blow to the face.

Finally, just as Machoke was starting to stumble back now totally off balance, Primeape stepped in and began rapidly beating the other Pokémon's stomach with punches that became progressively harder, faster and more powerful with each rotation the fists made.

Even when Machoke finally hit the ground, Primeape followed it down and continued rapidly punching the other Fighting-Type's gut while Machoke's body moved up and down uncontrollably from the force of the blows it was enduring.

Finally, with one final twist to the side and a punch to Machoke's face, the volley of meaty sounding thwacks that came with the barrage of merciless hits came to an abrupt end. Primeape's final opponent flopping out bonelessly on the ground while it's body continued to faintly twitch, convulse and struggle in phantom pain from the after effects of the intense beating it had received.

Standing back up slowly, Primeape stood in the center of his now beaten, battered opponents which lay in a widespread circle around him. His fists bruised and red from all of the relentless striking to hard skin that they had been forced to perform.

The other black belts all looked to be in a state of total disbelief and shock that their Pokémon had been defeated so easily and soundlessly by one lone Primeape. Anger quickly replacing that shock as they returned their Pokémon, they all then converged upon Ash and Primeape with the first man that had challenged them as the ring leader of it all.

Stepping back to defend his trainer in case things went badly, Primeape brought his fists up and stared the men down challengingly as he stood just a few feet in front of Ash. Daring any of the men to take a single step closer unless they wanted to meet the same fate as their Pokémon did.

Ash himself took a similar defensive position in case things did indeed go bad while his friends, Solidad and Sabrina all appeared weary and a little nervous as to just how the very volatile situation everything had become was about to now go down. Their hands reaching for their Pokéballs to be ready just in case things did indeed erupt into an all out fight and they needed assistance.

Watching all of the angered and embarrassed martial artists wearily, Ash tried to placate the situation as he spoke in a calm, even tone. "Everyone... let's just calm down. This is stupid to get involved in an all out fight just because you lost a battle. Now why don't you step back, cool down and we can all-"

Unfortunately, he was interrupted suddenly by the instigator of the whole affair stepping forward and pointing at Ash with a furious gleam of anger in his eyes and rage on his face. The arrogant and obviously sore loser of a black belt all but spitting venom as he cut Ash off as though nothing he had to say mattered.

"Why don't you shut the hell up little boy! You think you can just come in here and humiliate us and then expect everything to just be okay? Well we're gonna show you not to mess with the Saffron City Fighting Dojo!"

The man cracked his knuckles after saying that as he and the other black belts all advanced closer while Ash, Primeape and even Pikachu - who had left Ash's shoulder by this point and was now on the ground sparking his cheeks angrily as a warning - prepared themselves for what was sure to be an all out brawl. Even Brock and the others had now moved closer to Ash with their Pokéballs out and enlarged in order to back-up their friend if need be.

However, just before things could explode, a loud, stern and commanding voice shouted angrily from the room behind the main dojo training area, "NO MORE!"

As soon as the shout was heard, everyone stopped and the men blocking Ash and his friends in stepped aside so the back wall where the voice came from could be seen.

There, behind a sliding door that had two plaques on either side of it which read 'Struggle for vengeance' and 'A complicated fracture' a man suddenly emerged who was dressed in the same white gi/black belt attire as the others but with slightly longer black hair, a red fighting band around his forehead and eyes that were very similar to Brock's own. The man seemed to be around his mid-thirties perhaps.

Walking out into the main practice area slowly, the stern and no-nonsense looking man approached Ash and everyone else with a look on his face that went a long way to show just how angry he was.

All manner of aggressive tendencies and arrogant cockiness immediately left the younger black belts who seemed to shrink back and recluse in on themselves as soon as the older man walked out into the middle of them.

Looking between Ash, his friends and then to the men who were dressed similarly to himself, the squinty eyed serious man demanded gruffly, "Someone had better explain to me right now why my meditation was interrupted by the sounds of fighting that had nothing to do with training or battling!"

Almost right away, the man who had instigated the fight with Ash stepped forward and pointed an accusing finger at them all. "Master those kids came in here trying to stir up trouble and break the peaceful tranquility of our dojo!"

Misty became irate at the outright lie and yelled indignantly while pointing in return at the conceded black belt, "That's nothing but a big fat lie! We got here with no intention to start trouble whatsoever and then you came over and started insulting us and talking to us like we were Donphan shit on the bottom of your foot!"

"Yeah you lying meathead!" Giselle joined in. "And then you had everyone else team up on Ash and Primeape after they beat you and Machamp fair and square!"

At those words, a spark of realization suddenly came over the face of who was now revealed to be the master of the dojo as he spun around and glared at the younger man. "Kenji! What have I told you about harassing challengers that come to our dojo?! Just because they may not train with us does not mean they are not welcome here! Now this is the last time I will warn you about this, stop trying to chase away our visitors!"

The man in question lowered his head and nodded while speaking in a respectful tone, "Yes Master... I understand."

The leader of the dojo just pointed away towards the far wall and commanded without pity, "Sorry does not cut it this time Kenji you need to be punished! Now go and hold deep wall squats until you collapse!"

Not looking at his master, the admonished young black belt just nodded again and then ran off to complete the punishment task assigned to him for his actions.

After dealing with Kenji, the master then turned to the rest of his students and put his hands on his hips. "And as for the rest of you, there is no excuse for any of you listening to Kenji and doing what I have expressly forbade! As recompense, you will join him for the same punishment and for the same duration of time! Now go!"

All of the students gave their master the same show of bowed respect and then ran to join Kenji on the wall as the master himself walked over to Ash and his friends. Stopping before them, he bowed his head lowly with hands by his sides as he spoke in an apologetic tone. "I am deeply sorry for the actions of my students. They are still young in the ways of our sacred art and have yet to learn how to control the aggressive spirits that reside within their hearts. You have my apologies."

Ash gave his own bow, except with his hands out in front of him, as he replied in a polite manner, "Thank you for your sincere remorse and I hold no ill feelings towards your dojo. I understand that martial arts is a great responsibility and can also go to someone's head if they are not careful."

Raising back up, the dojo master smiled and gestured at himself, "My name is Master Kiyo and I am the leader, the sensei if you will, of this dojo. It is good to meet new faces."

Ash smiled in return and gave his name while also gesturing at Pikachu and Primeape. "I'm Ash and these are my partners, Pikachu and Primeape." He then pointed at everyone else who either smiled or nodded politely in greeting. "These are my friends Brock, Giselle, Misty, Solidad and Sabrina, the Saffron City Gym Leader."

The now named Kiyo looked at Sabrina and gave another bow of respect. "It is a pleasure to meet you miss Sabrina, I trust your gym has been well?"

The black haired psychic gave her own smile and inclined her head. "Affairs at my gym have been productive and successful, thank you for asking."

Giselle looked between both gym leaders and had an expression of confusion upon her face. "Wait... I'm confused, I thought you two would hate each other because of what happened between your gyms?"

Kiyo just gave a hearty chuckle and shook his head. "Very old wounds that have long since healed young lady. Besides, the leaders that originally battled it out to decide who's gym would become the official one for this city happened long ago and quite a few predecessors before myself and Leader Sabrina here."

Brock nodded thoughtfully and looked around. "Yeah now that you mention it, this dojo and Sabrina's gym do appear to have been around for quite awhile, just really well maintained."

Kiyo nodded and then looked back at Ash. "So, I imagine that given what I hear, you're the one here to challenge my dojo?"

Ash nodded and gestured at Primeape. "Yes sir. And this is the Pokémon I wish to use, my Primeape."

Kiyo looked down at the Pig-Monkey Pokémon for a few moments with a critical gaze and then smiled appreciatively. "Ah I can see your Primeape has been raised well! He looks strong and healthy, very nice indeed."

Putting his hands into the front pockets of his white gi, Kiyo then asked idly of Ash, "So how would you like to do this young man? I have two Pokémon that I give my challengers a chance of battling. Both are Fighting-Types but that's all I can tell you." He then pulled out two Pokéballs and held them up for Ash to see. "Which one would you like to battle?"

Ash examined both Pokéballs for several moments and then looked down at Primeape, who seemed to be thinking the same thing he was. Sharing a nod, Ash looked at Kiyo again and gave his decision. "If at all possible Master Kiyo, Primeape and myself would like to have the ability to take on both of your Fighting-Type Pokémon in a one-on-two battle. He loves a challenge and so do I."

Kiyo looked at Ash in surprise for a little bit before finally chuckling and nodding with an impressed look on his face. "Daring and gutsy, I like it! Okay young man, you'll have your two-on-one but do not expect any mercy from me!"

Ash and Primeape looked at one another and then he glanced back at Kiyo while grinning and holding up a fist, "I'd be insulted if you didn't!"

Almost ten minutes later found Ash and Kiyo facing off on either side of the dojo with Ash and his friends behind him and Kiyo's students (who were now finished with their punishment) standing behind him as spectators. All of them were looking very anxious to see the outcome of the battle except for Kenji, who had his arms crossed and a sour look on his face that made it clear he was still bitter about the circumstances prior.

Since Primeape was already standing tall as Ash's selected Pokémon, Kiyo enlarged both Pokéballs he had in his hand and then threw them up into the air. Out of the balls came two very well known and quite powerful looking Fighting-Types in Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee. Each of them appearing just as calm and collected as Ash's Primeape did.

Seeing as how they were both ready and understood the rules of gym battling quite well, neither one wasted words on pointless chatter and went straight into the battle. Kiyo himself being the first one to go as he quickly commanded his Pokémon, "Hitmonlee Mega Kick! Hitmonchan Mega Punch!"

Like lightning, Hitmonlee surged forward in a blur of speed and brought a powerful, glowing roundhouse kick up and around in mid-air which Primeape only managed to block due to the intense reflexive and agility based training he did.

Skidding back a few feet from the force of the kick and rooting himself with a gritting of his teeth, Primeape was immediately forced to turn around due to Hitmonchan suddenly blurring in front of him with a glowing fist soaring towards his face.

Twisting to the side and bringing his arms up in a cross block, Primeape used his forearms to stop the punch but with a pained grimace due to the force of the blow which rattled his skin all the way down to the bone.

Jumping back away from the powerful duo, Primeape barely managed to land before both bipedal Fighting-Types launched themselves at him again and boxed the furry Pokémon in between the two of them. Within seconds, the kicking and punching experts began hurdling a flurry of extremely fast and powerful attacks at Primeape which Ash's Pokémon became very hard pressed to defend against.

As he jumped and hopped all around the floor while blocking and protecting himself as best as he could against the unending barrage of attacks coming his way, Misty held her hands up and rung them together nervously. "Primeape looks like he's really in trouble, those two are just too fast!"

No one commented and just kept their attention focused on the battle at hand as Kiyo called out, "Hitmonlee Low Kick! Hitmonchan Vital Throw!"

Suddenly, just as it finished launching a quick combo of kicks at Primeape, Hitmonlee dropped low and swept at his legs, the attacking taking him by surprise and causing Primeape to lose his balance and fall backward.

As soon as this happened, Hitmonchan grabbed Primeape by the legs and then spun him around several fast times before throwing him away.

Almost immediately after this happened, Hitmonlee capitalized on the advantage presented to them and ran after Primeape. Jumping into the air, Hitmonlee flipped once before shooting down towards it's opponent with it's foot extended outward.

Primeape just barely managed to right himself and brought his arms up in a double block position which caught the powerful kick on his bruised forearms. Unfortunately for him, Hitmonlee wasn't about to stop there and then used his momentum to swing a kick around with the other leg which struck Primeape across the face and sent him flying back the way he had come.

At the same time, Hitmonchan worked in perfect synch with it's partner and ran at Primeape. Fist extended and glowing again, the tall Fighting-Type reared it's arm back and then clocked Primeape across the face when it had a good enough shot and range. The hard hit reversing Primeape's direction and sending him rolling back across the wood floor like a toy ball that was meant to be kicked by a bunch of children.

As soon as Primeape left his feet and went flying across the dojo, Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee capitalized yet again on the turn of events and went running after Ash's Pokémon with all possible haste and intensity.

Primeape tried to right himself and get back to his feet but he wasn't fast enough after the surprise blow he had endured and was taken yet again by surprise by a punch to the side of the face by Hitmonchan. Then, immediately after, Hitmonlee appeared at his side and smashed a roundhouse kick into Primeape's side.

Without giving the Pig-Monkey Pokémon a chance to recover his senses, Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan then began executing a vicious whirlwind of extremely fast punches, kicks and other brutally damaging combination attacks which all connected with Primeape and left him in the center of a nasty one-on-two all out brawl.

Ash's first and only Fighting-Type did everything in his power to try and avoid, block and evade the attacks being sent his way in the close quarters combat he now found himself at the center of but due to him already having gotten knocked off balance and out of rhythm, he was unable to keep himself from eating almost all of the powerful blows sent his way.

With a final combined kick and punch from both of them, Primeape went flying through the air and landed on the ground roughly. His body covered in bruises and shaking slightly from the nasty beating he had endured.

The dojo master Kiyo merely clapped his hands from across the ring and then called out, "You fought bravely young man, both of you, but this battle is over. Your Primeape is in no condition to battle any further."

Ash looked down at his struggling Pokémon and didn't say anything at all. He knew the bond that he and his Pokémon had and he was just hoping that subconsciously, deep down inside of himself, Primeape would remember that and use the strength of their connection to unlock the true power that Ash knew lie within him.

Several moments later though, much to Kiyo's surprise, Primeape showed that he did indeed recall that bond as he slowly got to his feet and stood up shakily. His body was sweating and his face was scrunched into one of pain but the resolve and determination on his face was almost palpable.

What happened next however shocked everyone present.

As Primeape stood there and breathed heavily with his arms hanging limply by his sides, a faint red aura of energy began to surround him that became stronger and more pronounced the heavier he breathed. Eventually, the heavier he breathed and the more focused and intent he became concerning the battle at hand, the red field of violently glowing crimson energy became so bright that it was almost like a strange form of fire.

However, not only did Primeape's body glow but his muscles started to bulge more, the pupils of his eyes became dark and wide and all signs of struggle visibly left him.

Face scrunching up angrily as his eyes locked onto both of his opponents, Primeape let out an angry bellow of, "Priiiiiimeaaaaaaape!" and then shot off at Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee at speeds that even they had a hard time following.

Appearing in-between both of them before either mascot Fighting-Type could react, Primeape brought a powerful and lighting fast right cross punch around and slammed it into Hitmonchan's face, spittle flying from the other Pokémon's mouth and his eyes scrunching up as the punchy fighter was sent flying across the floor.

Spinning around, Primeape then brought up his left foot and smashed it into Hitmonlee's gut with ferocity, the kicking specialist grunting in pain as he too was lifted off his feet and launched across the dojo.

Primeape raised his fists to the ceiling and bellowed his name again as suddenly Brock exclaimed with a tone of amazement to his voice, "Primeape just unlocked Anger Point!

Misty looked at him oddly. "What's Anger Point?"

Giselle answered her instead of the older boy. "It's an ability that allows the Pokémon possessing it to increase it's attack power by an exponential amount if they endure one or more critical, damaging hits."

Ash knew exactly what this ability was as well and he wasn't about to let it go to waste as he pointed at Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee and commanded powerfully, "Primeape use that newfound strength and take out Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee! Use everything you've got!"

Primeape lowered himself to the ground and then took off at his opponents like a streak of light, nothing but a trail of red energy being left in his wake as his eyes actually glowed red the more he fell under Anger Point's influence.

Kiyo knew full and well the danger his Pokémon were currently in and that's why he yelled desperately, "Hitmonchan! Hitmonlee! Get up and attack Primeape with every ounce of energy and strength you can muster before it can unleash all of that power!"

Knowing the severity of the situation themselves, Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee shot up and went into immediate all-out attack mode as they ran at Primeape and intercepted him by attacking the rapidly strengthening Pokémon with every scrap of power, technique and energy they could possibly muster.

Both of them became practically a blur as they worked in perfect conjunction with one another. Each of their blows coming harder and faster at Primeape than they had throughout the entire battle up

to that point.

However, for each burst of speed they put on, Primeape matched and then doubled them pound for pound by moving just as quickly in his powerfully accelerated state. Every punch, every kick and every attack that came his way Primeape would simply block as though they were moving in slow motion and then responded with his on rapid combos. Of which Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee became extremely hard pressed to follow, let alone stop.

After several long minutes of fighting so ferociously and they finally started to show signs of fatigue, Primeape took advantage of it and began moving even faster. His blows coming like meteors as Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee started losing their ability to keep up with him.

Once the first punch slipped passed their combined defenses and made contact with both of them, one fist on each face, the entire battle went terribly down hill for Kiyo and his Pokémon.

Due to the power of the blows they each received to the face and the subsequent lightheaded, dizziness that followed, Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee were powerless to fend off Primeape as he went into a full on assault of brutal, quick and ceaseless combination attacks that effectively turned both powerful Fighting-Types into mere punching bags at his disposal.

The sounds of fists and feet impacting flesh savagely and mercilessly was the only thing henceforth that could be heard inside of the dojo as Primeape basically walked Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee all over the training floor while wildly beating on them like a Pokémon possessed. His muscles bulging with multiple veins visible and sweat saturating his fur as the consumed Fighting-Type nightmare gave his opponents an absolutely ruthless beating that dwarfed even what they had given him beforehand.

Kiyo was powerless to do anything to help his Pokémon as his student's watched on in wide eyed, shocked disbelief at what was happening to their teacher's Pokémon (especially Kenji). Even Ash's friends and Sabrina looked on with amazement on their faces at the sheer unstoppable force of power and raw strength that Primeape was displaying.

Finally, with a final uppercut to Hitmonchan's jaw and a nasty aerial spinning hook kick to the side of Hitmonlee's head, both Pokémon went falling back a few feet through the air before landing in a heavy heap on the wooden and now damaged floor of the dojo. Cuts, scrapes, bruises and lumps now covering their bodies as Kiyo's Pokémon just laid where they were in a dazed, exhausted and defeated state. All fight practically drained from their bodies after enduring such a chaotic beating at the hands of the enraged Primeape.

It was clear to all witnessing that the battle was now, officially, over. Hitmonchan and Hitmonlee were in no condition to fight any further but even with this fact obvious and plain, Primeape had lost himself to the fury of Anger Point and was showing no signs of stopping as he charged at them again.

Ash saw this happening though and just managed to yell out in an authoritative and commanding tone before anyone else could react to what could very well become a very disastrous situation, "PRIMEAPE THAT'S ENOUGH!"

Almost immediately, the obsessed Pokémon stopped in his tracks and turned around, shifting his wild gaze and enraged facial expression onto Ash. To his credit though, the trainer of the ferocious Fighting-Type didn't even cringe and kept his own facial expression etched into one of stern, unyielding steel. His voice still serious and intense as he stepped forward and pointed his Pokémon down with his finger.

"Primeape you get control of yourself and come back over here NOW! You won, they're down and there's no reason to fight anymore! Don't you dare let yourself get controlled by your anger and rage again after everything we've done to help make you better than that! This power doesn't control you, you control it! Now shape up, stop acting like a pathetic little Mankey throwing a temper tantrum and be the Pokémon we both know you are!"

He met Primeape's fierce gaze pound for pound and didn't show so much as a single moment's weakness, hesitation or faltering in his resolve. Primeape continued to hold the stare off with Ash for several moments more as though he were challenging him but seeing that the boy would not be swayed or intimidated, Primeape eventually backed down. Submitting fully to Ash under the powerful, unwavering gaze of his trainer that spoke volumes to the silent statement he was making of, 'I am the alpha here and you will respect me!'

Gradually, the red aura suffusing Primeape slowly faded away and his body and eyes returned to normal. Along with his temper. In fact, as he returned to his senses, Primeape appeared to become totally drained and fell down to one knee while panting heavily from the exertion of using such incredible amounts of raw power in an already priorly fatigued condition.

Seeing that his Pokémon had returned his senses, Ash ran up to Primeape and knelt down next to him while placing an arm around the Fighting-Type and smiling. "You fought with an intensity and spirit that would make your species shine Primeape and I'm very proud of you."

His smile becoming reassuring, Ash placed his other hand on Primeape's shoulder in a show of support and affection. "And I promise you that we'll keep training and working to control your power and emotions whenever you get really into battling. You're still young and have a lot to learn buddy but together we'll get there, okay?"

Offering his own smile of gratitude and even a level of compassion to his trainer, Primeape just nodded and allowed Ash to help him stand as Kiyo returned his downed Pokémon and then walked over to the both of them. His students all in a state of total amazement that their sensei's Pokémon had actually been defeated in such a sound, thorough manner by the same Primeape that effortlessly defeated all of their own Pokémon.

Stopping before the boy and his Pokémon, the dojo master simply smiled and placed his hands on his hips. "That was some impressive battling, both of you. I can definitely tell you have a strong bond and that is what allowed you to beat me and my Pokémon today."

Ash smiled and looked at Primeape before glancing back at Kiyo again and dipping his head. "Thank you but we have a lot to learn. Primeape still loses control when he gets too into a battle or when one of his abilities activates like Anger Point. We need to keep training so we can learn to master his aggressive nature in battle because otherwise, that could end up being really bad and dangerous for us and any opponent we take on in the future."

Kiyo nodded knowingly and crossed his arms. "Controlling one's emotions and knowing when to control themselves in battle is very important indeed. I am glad to hear you say such a thing young man because that shows you know the value of training hard and never letting yourself become complacent or sloppy with your abilities and strength. If you keep that mindset then I can see both of you going far."

Ash and Primeape bowed respectfully to Kiyo in gratitude for his kind words at the same time as the dojo master's students all walked up looking shamed and embarrassed. Standing in a line on either side of their master, the men all bowed their heads and spoke at the same time, "Please forgive us for our actions!"

Ash and Primeape looked at each other in a way that translated they really didn't know how to handle the apology given by all of the many martial artists now bowing their heads to them. Eventually though, Ash just rubbed the back his neck and responded calmly, "Umm... it's okay, really. Everyone makes mistakes. You're forgiven."

Primeape nodded in agreement with his trainer just as Kenji made his way up to them. Stopping mere inches away, the much taller man stared down at Ash and Primeape who looked at him with a little weariness and caution.

However, he took them both by surprise when, instead of saying something snarky or rude, he just bowed low and spoke in a humble tone, "I also apologize for my actions. What I did and said was rude and uncalled for and I know behaving like a bully is not the right way to be. Master constantly lectures me about it but I guess I always thought being kind to others and your Pokémon made you weak."

His head dipped a little lower. "But you showed respect and kindness to our master and even us after everything we did to try and run you off. You could have spoken out against us and demanded recompense for what we did but you did not and it is obvious that you share a close, strong bond with your Primeape. You managed to defeat our master's Pokémon which is something none of us have ever been able to do."

Finally, he raised back up and finished his short speech. "Watching you battle today made me realize that maybe showing kindness to your opponents and compassion for your Pokémon is not a weakness as I once thought but actually a strength." He closed his eyes and nodded. "Thank you for teaching me a lesson I desperately needed."

Ash looked quite taken aback for a time at Kenji's apology and admittance of his wrongdoings (something that oddly seemed to easily happen a lot between him and the arrogant, conceded people that he would meet after lecturing them about their unkind ways, sans Damian) but he handled it with good graces and overcame his surprise a few moments later.

Smiling, Ash shook his head and shrugged. "Like I said, everyone makes mistakes, including me. The only thing you can do is learn from them and move on to hopefully become a better person. I accept your apology and I wish all the best for you in the future."

Holding his hand out, Ash continued to smile. "Thank you for making amends with me. It means a lot."

Kenji smiled as well, obviously relieved that his apology had been accepted, and shook Ash's offered hand firmly with his own. A sight which made Ash's friends and Kiyo happy to see.

Once Kenji stepped back a few moments later to stand beside his fellow students, Kiyo turned around and started walking towards the backroom he had come from earlier. "Well then, it's time to give you your selected prize for defeating this dojo young man, please follow me."

Ash shared a glance with his friends, who shrugged and gestured him on, and then started following after the dojo master with they and Primeape in tow.

Stepping into the backroom a few moments later, Ash looked around and saw that it was a rather simple area. At the far end was a plain bedroll with a bathroom on the left side of the room and the only kind of furniture that could be seen anywhere was a lone table on the other side of the room that had incense, towels, scrolls and fresh gi's on it's surface.

Looking ahead, he saw Kiyo standing before two raised wooden pedestals that had a Pokéball on each one. Walking up to him, the dojo master stepped aside and gestured at the Pokéballs. "For being the first challenger to not only defeat me but also truly impress me in a battle in quite some time, I would like you to take one of these Pokéballs young man."

Crossing his arms behind his back, he glanced between both pedestals and explained while nodding to each ball in turn. "In these Pokéballs are two well trained, disciplined masters of the fighting arts; Hitmonlee and Hitmonchan. The very same Pokémon that you battled today of mine except one of them... I am allowing you to take."

Brock, Misty and the others went wide eyed and agape at Kiyo's serious and to the point statement while Ash himself appeared genuinely surprised. "You... you want me to take one of them?"

Kiyo nodded. "Yes, I do. This is not an offer I make to just anyone who comes to challenge my dojo. Not even the ones who win. I have been waiting for someone with real spirit and heart to come here and impress me and you have done that young man. I believe you know how to bring out a Pokémon's true strength as seen with your Primeape and I believe that you can do the same with either Himonchan or Hitmonlee. Few people get this honor that I am presenting you with now."

Ash just stared at both Pokéballs for several moments in complete silence without saying. Simply taking in the shock of the sudden unexpected offer while at the same time trying to make his mind up and come to a decision.

However, as he looked down at Primeape and then to Pikachu up on his shoulder, seeing the encouragement and support in their eyes, Ash found his mind was already firmly made up for him as he looked back at Kiyo and smiled before shaking his head. "Master Kiyo, as much as I greatly respect this offer, I can't take either one."

At that statement, his friend's jaws dropped even farther while Kiyo actually uncrossed his arms in true surprise. "What do you mean you can't take one? I am freely offering you your own choice of whichever Pokémon you choose young man, please do not feel guilty about doing so!"

Ash just shook his head again before kneeling down next to Primeape and rubbing his Pokémon's head. "See, I just don't believe in taking Pokémon that I don't earn the right of capturing myself through whatever honest means it may be. Some would say I did the exact opposite with Pikachu when Professor Oak gave him to me but..."

Looking up at his first Pokémon then, Ash smiled. "I think I captured Pikachu, or he captured me, a long time before that when we met when he was just a Pichu. Our hearts were sort of connected I think ever since that day so in reality, I see Professor Oak as the catalyst that brought us back together. We were already connected long before that."

Standing up again, he looked seriously at Kiyo as he continued earnestly, "Ever since then I haven't taken in a single Pokémon that I didn't earn the right call my own. Taking one of these Pokémon from you now, no matter how kind the offer, would taste bitter in my mouth and I can't do that. I'm sorry..."

He bowed his head and Kiyo remained silent for several long seconds before finally putting his hands on his hips and smirking slightly. "You young man... keep impressing me."

As Ash and his friends all looked at the dojo master in surprise, Kiyo explained his statement without hesitation. "Only a true Pokémon Trainer and aspiring Master would take it upon himself to souly bond with the Pokémon whom he has a chance to gain the trust, affection and friendship of first before ever making the decision to actually claim them as his own. I respect that mindset and way of thought Ash and I believe you to be a better trainer for it."

Putting a hand to his chin afterwards, he hummed in thought. "Still though... I feel the need to give you something to help aid in the growth of yourself and your Pokémon..."

Looking around the room for several moments, Kiyo finally settled his eyes on the cabinet stand with the gi's and towels upon it and then smiled to himself before nodding and walking over to it.

Kneeling down in front of the stand after reaching it, Kiyo opened the cabinet doors underneath of it and then reached in. After a few seconds, he withdrew his hands with what looked like a strip of cloth in his grasp and then shut the doors before walking back over to Ash and holding the object in his hands out to him.

"Ash, I would like you to take this to help improve upon Primeape's already impressive skill set and strength. It is known as a Black Belt and is worn by myself, my students and all of the Pokémon who train in this dojo. It is worn to not only bolster strength and confidence but it will serve as a sign to all those who see your Primeape wearing this that he, and by extension yourself, are official members of this dojo."

As Ash took the black cloth material into his hands, Kiyo backed away and smiled. "Use it well young one, both of you."

Turning to look down at Primeape, Ash knelt and held out the belt for his Pokémon to examine. After the curious Fighting-Type did so with much interest and wonder, he jumped up and down excitedly, anxious for Ash to put it on him.

Chuckling, the raven haired trainer held his hands out and got around behind Primeape. "Alright, alright you crazy fur ball! Calm down and I'll put it on you!"

Primeape finally stopped jumping and Ash carefully tied the belt around his waist tightly but not too tightly. Standing up after he was done, Ash nodded and held a thumbs out to Primeape. "Looking good buddy, I wouldn't wanna mess with you!"

Pikachu gave his own thumbs up and chirp of approval at Primeape's new look while the Fighting-Type ran his hands almost reverently over the slightly course material before pumping his fists into the air and then commencing to hopping back and forth from foot to foot again. His eyes set into a gleam of joy and happiness as he called out loudly in glee, "Prime! Prime Prime Primeape Prime!"

Everyone gave a small laugh of amusement at Primeape's enthusiastic actions that only grew more pronounced, humor wise, when Brock announced with a wide smile on his face. "Better watch out Ash, he might try to start training you now that he's got that belt!"

Everyone laughed a little more at Brock's joke and then, several minutes later after the humor of Primeape's excitement died down, the group of young trainers left the dojo and stood outside in the street with Kiyo and his student's seeing them off.

"Well, you kids take care of yourselves," Kiyo said kindly as he took in the talented young group of Pokémon lovers before him. "Thank you for visiting our dojo and I wish you the best in all that you do."

Solidad, Sabrina and the others all nodded politely to Kiyo as the seasoned martial artist looked between Ash and Primeape. "As for you two, you keep training and working hard together and you'll go far. Your skills are good but if you keep at, they will become great in time."

Ash and Primeape both bowed to Kiyo and then the former replied gratefully to the dojo master's words, "Thank you. Take care of yourself Master Kiyo, maybe we'll see each other again someday."

After that, the six of them plus Primeape turned and began walking away from the dojo while Kiyo and his students, including even Kenji, waved along after them. A chorus of, "So long! Take care! Come back soon!" following after them as they left the Saffron City Fighting Dojo behind them. The famous martial arts establishment slowly shrinking into the distance until it was nothing but a small speck in the ever expansive city.

XXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Later on that evening, while sitting around the table in the kitchen at Sabrina's gym, Ash and the others were in the middle of telling the aforementioned girl's parents all about their experience at the fighting dojo.

When Ash finally finished telling the story, Sabrina's mom merely smiled and congratulated him while Gerald nodded and drank a bit of his tea. "Well I guess that's the last thing you kids had planned to do while in the city am I right? What's your plan from here?"

Ash shared a glance with Brock, Misty and Giselle and then looked back at the bearded man. "I don't know really, I was thinking we could hit Celadon next as our big destination. I'm pretty sure Brock told me a day or so ago that there are maybe two smaller Pokémon Gyms along the way depending on if we take the long way around so we'll probably do that."

Gerald nodded but before he could respond, Sabrina suddenly spoke up from her seat while looking at him. "Ash... would you please consider having a one-on-one Pokémon battle with me?"

All eyes turned to her and she simply looked down at her plate before explaining. "I want to prove that I am still a competent and skilled gym leader without the influence of that dark spirit controlling me."

Ash was only too quick to make up his mind as he smiled and nodded while clenching his fist. "You bet Sabrina, let's do it! We can battle right now if you want!"

The dark haired gym leader smiled gratefully at him. "Thank you Ash, I'm ready to battle whenever you are."

Her mother then spoke up before things could progress too far. "Now hold on everybody! Before we all go rushing off to the battlefield..." Helen's mouth split into a cheery smile. "Let's clean up our dishes first!"

A collective groan could be heard from everyone - which only served to make the mother smile wider and giggle - but nonetheless, they all did as requested and helped Helen clean the kitchen before heading out into the main battle chamber of the gym a short time later.

As Ash and Sabrina took their places across from one another on either side of the ring, his friends and Helen all stood together near the back end of the room to watch while Gerald acted as the stand-in referee.

Coming up to the top of the battlefield, the bearded man raised his left hand in the air and instructed, "This is a one-on-one match between Sabrina, the gym leader of Saffron City, and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town. Please choose your Pokémon!"

Sabrina immediately made her own choice and threw forth the Pokéball she already had waiting in her hand. "Kadabra I select you as my Pokémon!"

As the freshly evolved Psychic-Type he had already battled before emerged from his Pokéball, Ash surveyed the situation and went through a quick strategy selection in his mind before coming to a conclusion of who he wanted to use in this particular re-match of sorts.

Grabbing the ball that held his selected battler from his belt, Ash gave it a toss and announced, "It's me and you Squirtle, show em' what you've got!"

As the Water-Type turtle emerged from his Pokéball and appeared on the field ready for battle, Gerald lowered both hands and yelled, "Begin!"

Ash knew better than to have Squirtle attack a powerful Psychic-Type like Kadabra outright after his first battle against it with Pikachu so he didn't make any rash movements right off the bat. Instead he simply called out, "Squirtle use Withdraw and build your defense!"

Squirtle did as commanded and tucked himself into his shell tightly just as Sabrina commanded, "Kadabra use Psychic!"

It's whole body glowing, Kadabra sent a burst of concentrated multi-colored energy at Squirtle using the spoons in it's hands as the conductors. Tearing along the ground at rapid speeds, the telekinetic attack struck Squirtle's shell and sent it spiraling up and through the air like a spinning top.

Living up to her ruthless roots that she had really always been known for (just not to the degree that she had been while under the influence of Haunter's dark soul) Sabrina yelled again, "Now use Confusion Kadabra!"

Glowing blue again at the same time Squirtle's shell did likewise, Kadabra flicked it's eyes to the left and sent Squirtle hurdling towards the far left wall.

Already having formulated a strategy to fight back against Sabrina and Kadabra's 'control & smash' methods after their first battle, he yelled, "Squirtle use Withdraw again! Tighter defense!"

Squirtle hit the wall just as his shell glowed a deep aqua blue and because of his increased defense, he simply bounced off said wall like a ball.

Frowning to herself, Sabrina endeavored to just beat away at Squirtle's defenses with Kadabra's control over it and then commenced to having her Pokémon repeatedly bash the Water-Type up and down, back and forth, against every possible inch of the gym as it could.

However, with every incoming attack Ash just had Squirtle repeatedly use Withdraw to build up and hone his defenses until, eventually, his defensive strength was so great that his shell was actually glinting from the sharpness of the defensive edge that it had now gained.

Ash could tell Sabrina was getting frustrated and he decided to take advantage of that just before Kadabra could smash Squirtle against another wall.

Waiting for just the right moment and the perfect timing, Ash hesitated just until Squirtle was about to hit the wall and then yelled, "Squirtle Rapid Water Pulse!"

Right before his shell could hit the wall, Squirtle began spinning madly and started firing several blasts of water out of each end of his shell. The force of the water actually altering the Water-Type's trajectory when he hit the wall which sent him spinning back towards Kadabra at even faster speeds.

It was at that time that Ash also yelled, "Squirtle! Aqua Jet into your exit maneuver!"

Sabrina didn't know what that last part meant but she wasn't about to find out as she commanded, "Kadabra use Psychic and blast Squirtle away!"

Chanting it's name, Kadabra sent another powerful burst of concentrated psychic energy at Squirtle, who was now descending towards it in a speeding jet of cyclone-like water.

Luckily for it, Kadabra's attack was powerful enough that it managed to knock Squirtle back before he could hit with Aqua Jet and launched the still closed shell rotating back up into the air haphazardly, all sense of control now hopelessly lost.

Unfortunately though, it wasn't the shell Kadabra had to worry about as, suddenly and out of nowhere, an identical spinning jet of water came rocketing at the evolved form of Abra at speeds that were too quick to hope to counter.

All Sabrina and Kadabra had time to do was blink in surprise just before the turbulent jet of water collided with Kadabra and picked the Psychic-Type up off it's feet, launching it across the gym towards Sabrina's elevated platform which she herself had to jump out of the way of to avoid.

Colliding with the chair itself seconds later and causing a large wave of water to splash up into the air in all directions, everyone present who wasn't Ash could only stare in shock (and slight disgust) as the water rocket that collided with Kadabra became visible.

There, standing atop Kadabra's chest on top of the elevated platform amongst the smashed ruins of what was once Sabrina's throne, was Squirtle... sans his shell.

Misty and everyone else blinked widely at the stupor inducing sight but the eloquent redhead was the first one to actually give voice to what she was feeling as she all but shouted, "He's... he's naked!"

Indeed, Squirtle did look quite nude without his shell on. However, whereas most people would expect a shell-less turtle Pokémon to look nasty and gross underneath of it's shell, Squirtle appeared relatively normal. His skin was a somewhat paler shade of blue than his arms, legs and head being that his torso was always covered by his shell but it still wasn't all saggy and loose like many individuals would expect for it to resemble.

Not waiting for Sabrina or Kadabra (whom was looking up at the naked Water-Type standing on it's chest with something akin to disturbed incredulity) to come to their senses and counterattack, Ash took advantage of the situation as he was so apt to doing.

Raising his hand, the talented young trainer ordered his Pokémon in a voice loud enough for him to hear all the way on the other side of the gym, "Squirtle use Water Gun on it's face!"

Not waiting for even a second, Squirtle opened his mouth and started blasting Kadabra in the face with voluminous amounts of forceful jets of water that became like a never ending, relentless downspout. Kadabra immediately started thrashing it's arms and legs out to the sides as it tried to get away and defend itself but found actually focusing long enough to do so all but impossible due to the water being blasted up it's nose and mouth.

Sabrina kept yelling out different commands to Kadabra in an effort to help her Pokémon escape the aquatic onslaught it was enduring but, as she was dread to see, her Pokémom was completely powerless to focus it's psychic abilities under the ruthless water pummeling it was taking.

Ash's strategy became known several moments later to her however when she noticed Kadabra's struggles becoming much more wild and desperate under the powerful spray of water blasting it in the face like dozens of never ending fists.

Being a smart young woman, Sabrina was quickly able to put two and two together and realized that, due to Squirtle's ceaseless water blast directly in the face, Kadabra was unable to get any air in through it's mouth or nose. Both orifices being completely plugged off by the water drilling up into them.

Realizing that there was no way Kadabra could fight back and get free if it couldn't even breath, Sabrina was forced to make the difficult decision between continuing on and letting her Pokémon risk severe injury or throw in the towel and save Kadabra from drowning.

Luckily, it only took mere seconds of thought and the possibility of Kadabra getting hurt to make Sabrina's mind up for her as she raised her hand and yelled loud enough for all to hear, "That's enough! I surrender!"

Ash immediately called out for Squirtle to stop and he did so, closing his mouth and cutting off the flow of water from it as he jumped back off of Kadabra and panted heavily. The Psychic-Type itself simply laying there panting in total exhaustion and fatigue as it took in large gulps of air with each gasp of it's name and let it's body remain limp like a noodle in the large puddle of water below it.

Raising his right hand and pointing it towards Ash, Gerald announced loudly, "Sabrina has forfeited the match, that means this battle goes to Ash Ketchum and his Squirtle!"

Squirtle ran back to Ash and jumped into his trainer's arms while his friends cheered and Helen smiled sympathetically for her daughter. Sabrina herself meanwhile walked up to her Pokémon and knelt down next to it with a small smile on her face.

"Kadabra..." She placed a comforting hand on her Pokémon's shoulder, who looked upset at losing twice in a row for her. "You did amazing. We still have a lot of training and growing to do and this has taught me that. We can start training and learning to become better and stronger together, okay?"

Returning Sabrina's smile with a grateful one of it's own, Kadabra nodded slowly before getting returned to it's Pokéball by it's trainer, who then stood up and turned around to see Ash and everyone else approaching her while Squirtle walked next to him as he continued to fully readjust himself inside of his shell.

Giggling slightly at the sight of Squirtle smiling and patting the front of his shell in contentment as he finally finished getting situated in it again, she crossed her hands down in front of her and then looked at Ash. Smiling herself, she nodded to him. "That was a very nice battle Ash and you showed some impressive off the

wall strategizing there at the end. Thank you for battling with me."

Smiling in return as he stopped in front of her, the humble young man just shrugged. "Meh, it was a team effort. Squirtle's been the one working so hard on finding a way to exit his shell in battle as a strategy. I just gave him the idea some time back." He then rubbed the back of his head and chuckled nervously. "And I'm uhh... sorry for your chair," He apologized while looking towards what remained of Sabrina's throne atop the raised platform.

The black haired girl smiled nonplussed and shook her head. "Please Ash it was a small thing. That throne was ridiculous anyway and I'm glad to be rid of it, I'm not royalty after all."

"Well either way it was a good strategy you applied indeed my boy," Sabrina's father praised as he came to stand beside of her. "Few people have managed to defeat Sabrina. Let alone twice."

Ash rubbed the back of his neck and smiled. "Well she's a really tough opponent, the toughest I've faced so far without a doubt. We really had to work hard each time."

"Maybe so," Sabrina conceded. "But that doesn't change the fact that I did lose and need to improve upon my skills as a trainer and a gym leader. You helped teach me those lessons so thank you Ash."

Helen wrapped an arm around her daughter at that moment and then smiled at everyone else before Ash could offer a reply. "Now that the big battle is done, why don't we all go to the park for awhile and enjoy the beautiful evening that it's shaping up to be? I happen to know they occasionally even have street performers and their Pokémon entertaining there some nights!"

"Hey I could go for some park time!" Brock announced enthusiastically. "Not to mention there's always pretty girls at places like that so maybe I can-ACK!" His words were suddenly cut short courtesy of Misty hammering Brock into the ground via her fist while she fumed over top of him. "No one wants to hear about you perving Brock!"

Giselle and Solidad just laughed with Gerald and Helen shaking their heads in amusement while Sabrina simply looked confused. Knowing how emotionally stunted she was, especially towards social customs and events, Ash just laughed and thumbed at Brock while leaning over and whispering to her, "I'll explain on the way to the park. It's sort of like a running joke amongst us all."

As everyone started leaving the gym and Ash fell into step beside of her with Pikachu on his shoulder and Squirtle back in his Pokéball again, Sabrina looked over at him with confusion still on her face. "A 'running joke'? How can you tell a joke but be running at the same time, won't that wind you?"

Chuckling again, Ash just winked at her and put his hands into his pockets. "Well I don't know about running and telling a joke but I know a few times when Brock was running from Misty and Giselle after he did something stupid!"

Seeing he had Sabrina's undivided attention, the younger of the two prodigies started telling her a few of Brock's more 'shameful' tales as they all traveled to the park through the brightly lit nighttime streets of Saffron City.

Needless to say, by the time they finally arrived at the park a short time later and Ash had managed to tell a few stories, Brock was on the ground once again with a fresh lump growing out of his head thanks to an angrily blushing, scandalized Sabrina. Whom had looped Ash around her arm and all but drug him away in tow with the others so as to save the respectful young trainer from falling down the dark road of perversion and shame that the poor, loveless, squinty eyed teen had succumb to long ago.

All of this ultimately leaving a confused and agonized Brock behind at the entrance of the park to raise his hands to the sky above as he cried out on his knees to the realm of Arceus herself, "WHY MEEEEEE!

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

---

Early the next morning, Ash, his friends and Solidad could be seen standing in front of the Saffron City Gym with Sabrina and her parents there as well to see them off.

The previous night had been enjoyable and was spent with Ash and his friends enjoying the evening with Sabrina, Gerald and Helen in the park until late that night. There had indeed even been street performers there so in-between talking and laughing together, the group had also gotten to enjoy the very talented routines that were put on by the traveling entertainers and their Pokémon.

Ash himself had awoken relatively early that morning so he could train with his Pokémon out in the battlefield area of the gym since he knew he and his friends would most likely be traveling all day and not have a chance to stop for any in-depth training until at least nightfall.

Breakfast afterwards with everyone present had been an enjoyable affair - as it had come to be since Ash and his friends had been staying with Sabrina's family - but there was also an undertone of palpable sadness that pretty much everyone felt since they all knew it was their last day together.

Smiling at Sabrina and her parents, Ash said gratefully, "Thanks again for letting us all shower and stuff before leaving. It's gonna be a long day of traveling for us and I would really always prefer a shower over a bath in some random creek any day!"

The family of three all gave a light laugh as Ash became serious then and dipped his head. "But seriously though, thank you guys so much for all your hospitality. You've been great and I do really appreciate it."

"We all do," Brock spoke up from behind Ash while Giselle, Misty and Solidad all nodded and gave their own words of thanks.

Smiling brightly, Helen shook her head. "It was no problem at all! Besides, I feel as though my family and I owe you a great debt for what you did for us so don't think anything of it! Just make sure the five of you take care of each other on the road okay?"

Gerald nodded in agreement with his wife and offered his own smile to their young friends. "Yes my wife is correct, make sure you always have each other's backs because that will pull you though any challenge you face. And also, for my part, thank you from the bottom of my heart. If not for you kids then I wouldn't have my family back and would still be a lonely old man. Thank you for giving me the chance to have a relationship with my family again... sincerely, thank you."

Ash and his friends all shared a glance and smile with each other before looking back at the reunited family. "Just make sure to treasure each other and always hold onto your bond and that's more than enough thanks for us," Ash replied earnestly.

Sabrina stepped forward then and decided to give her own words of parting. "I know my family already said it Ash, everyone, but you too have my undying gratitude. Without all of your bravery I would still be lost to darkness but now I have my life and my parents back again and that's more than I could ever ask for."

Looking directly at Ash, she smiled. "And thank you even more for showing me how much farther I have to go as a gym leader Ash. You and your Pokémon are a great team together and I know you'll go a long way."

Smiling modestly, Ash looked up at Pikachu and scratched his ears before looking back at Sabrina and chuckling. "Well we need to thank you too Sabrina. You and your Pokémon really kicked our butts there at a bunch of places and showed us that we have a lot of work on too. I'm sure our battle against you will help take us far in the Indigo League."

At that comment, Sabrina's eyes lit up and she held a finger to him. "That reminds me, I almost forgot!" Reaching into a little right hip side pocket on her one piece red skirt outfit, Sabrina pulled something out of it and then held her hand out to Ash in a closed fist.

"I was going to give this to you at breakfast but I forgot and I'm glad you reminded me with what you said about the Indigo League." She smiled once more in a pretty fashion that Ash found quite appealing about her. "Not only did you help me and my family in a way that few others ever would have dreamed of or taken the time to do Ash, you also defeated me in an official Pokémon League Gym Battle. Twice to be precise, both times fair and square. Because of all of that, I want you to have this..."

She then held her hand open and revealed a small little circular badge in her palm that was colored a light yellow/orangish and unlike so many other Kanto badges, was predominantly plain and normal looking instead of extravagantly colored and designed like so many others were. In favor of any kind of flashy engravings in fact, the badge's only design to speak of was a small indention in the middle of it which caused the edges of the badge to be higher than the dip in it's center.

Gesturing for Ash to take it, Sabrina finished with a proud tone to her voice. "This is the Marsh Badge and you have most definitely earned it Ash."

Taking the badge into his hand slowly, Ash held it up into the air and examined it carefully before showing it to Pikachu and then smiling. "What do you think buddy? We finally earned the Marsh Badge!"

The Electric-Type smiled widely at Ash and nodded as he chirped happily, "Pi Pikachu Pi!"

Showing the badge to his friends, who all congratulated him, Ash then looked back at Sabrina and smiled as he closed his hand around the badge. "Thank you Sabrina, I hope to see you again some day."

The girl smiled in return and nodded before her father suddenly asked out of curiosity, "So where are you kids headed to for definite next?"

"Well we're taking the long way to Celadon City I think," Ash informed him as a reply. "There are two other smaller gyms on the way to the main one we're heading to and I'd like to challenge them both."

"I'm pretty sure the closest town to us from here that has one of the two is a place called Triangle Village so we might head there to start with," Brock offered helpfully while Ash nodded to his suggestion without even a moment's hesitation.

"What about you Solidad?" Giselle asked the older girl beside her. "Don't you have another contest to get to in Fuchsia City or something?"

The redhead nodded and smiled. "That's right but it's not for awhile yet so I figured I would just tag along with you four if you don't mind."

"Hey that'd be great!" Giselle said enthusiastically.

"I'd love to have you along too," Brock agreed.

"Yeah I think it'd be nice having another girl around to help me and Giselle keep these two in line," Misty teased as she crossed her arms and looked between Ash and Brock.

The younger of the two boys turned back to Gerald and shrugged. "Well I guess you got it Gerald, that's our plan!"

The older man nodded. "Then you all take care of each other and hopefully we'll see you again soon."

"Yes please come back and visit us," Helen chimed in sweetly. "We would love to have you around whenever!"

Ash, his friends and Solidad all smiled gratefully at their words and then gave their final farewells before turning and walking away from the gym a few moments later. Sabrina and her parents waving after them and the disembarking group waving back until the gym itself was eventually swallowed up by the trees in the park until they could no longer see it.

With an extra companion in Solidad joining them for now, Ash, Pikachu and his friends started making their way out of the park and into the vast city of Saffron. Their sights set upon the open morning horizon in the distance and the promise of even more adventures and epic battles awaiting them in just the near future.