Pokémon Sinnoh Journey VOL 3

by 19jchoi

Continuing onwards at Sinnoh, Hikaru unravels more mysteries about himself and his Pokémon's true power and his bonds with them. At the same time, he continues his path to become a Top Coordinator and a Sinnoh Champion at the Grand Festival and the Sinnoh League. With love in the air, best friends to rely on, and rivals to battle against, what will result in Hikaru's adventure?

10. Wailing into Safety! VS Swampert!

Chapter 10: Wailing into Safety! VS Swampert!

Last time on "Pokémon Sinnoh Journey", the four trainers were prevented from heading to Chocovine Town, where Dawn and Hikaru's next Pokémon Contest is going to be, due to the Wailords blocking the way out of Canalave City. And with the boat ride being the fastest way to head to Chocovine City, the group plans to have some food before thinking of something else.

However, that plan seemed to have been foiled when a group of rogue Pokémon appeared, snatching their Pokémon food. With Hikaru's new power in telepathy active, he discovers that the rogues have reasons for stealing, but decides to go along with his three friends until they come across Team Rocket towards the underground canal.

As Dawn and Brock gets separated from the two boys, Hikaru and Ash reunite with the three rogue Pokémon, and Hareta, the young and excited Pokémon Trainer who loved Pokémon. It was revealed, that the rogues were trying to help the lost Wailmer get back to its family, with Hareta helping out, due to his ability to understand Pokémon.

Discovering several other Pokémon in the canal, both Hikaru and Ash make plans to get the Wailmer back to his family, with Hareta requesting to help out with the plan. However, what they plan has a chance of getting very risky, due to the situation being critical at the moment.

"Everybody's helping each other..." Ash stated. "Pika Pika..." "Bui bui!" Pikachu and Buizel agreed together. "I think now it's our turn to help them out as well!" Hikaru suggested. "In Infernape!" "Bui!" Infernape and the little Buizel agreed. "Me too! I'll be helping out, too!" Hareta chimed in.

Some of the Pokémon chuckled and laughed at their human friend's enthusiasm as Ash and Hikaru laughed on as well, with their four Pokémon. This was going to be a difficult task, but it's a task that they must take in order to get the Wailmer back to its group. "Alright... Lead us to where you're having trouble, Luxio!" Ash requested.

"Lux!" Luxio replied with a nod. He called to a few other Pokémon to help out as the three boys and their four Pokémon followed the rogues and Wailmer, heading to where their first obstacle is. What the boys didn't know, was that Dawn and Brock were currently searching for them right now as they were led into different situations.

Meanwhile...

"Hey! Where are you, Hikaru!? Ash!?" Dawn called loudly. "Ash! Hikaru!" Brock shouted loudly. "Piplup!" Piplup called along. "I just wonder... Where could have those two gone from down here?... I just hope Hikaru is doing okay, taking charge and all..." Dawn replied sadly, afraid of what might've happened to her boyfriend and her Kanto friend.

Just then, Piplup blinked, as if he had heard something. He ran up to the path, the same path that both Ash and Hikaru took. "Piplup! Pip Piplup!" Piplup cried. He ran on the path, as his trainer was doubtful of this decision. "Are you sure it's that way?" Dawn asked. At the question, the Water Type tapped his chest proudly.

"Piplup! Piplup!" Piplup assured with a smile. "Absolutely, positively, certain?" Dawn asked again in confusion. At the question, the Water Type took charge and ran to the path again. "Piplup!" Piplup assured. Despite of her Pokémon's assurance, the Twinleaf gurl still felt unsure about this choice.

"Why am I not sure?" Dawn sighed sadly. "Hm..." Even Brock didn't seem to have the answer to that as they were both forced to go along with Piplup's choice, since he was already way ahead. "Wait, Piplup! Wait for us!" Dawn pleaded as she ran after her Water Type. "Dawn, wait up!" Brock called as he ran after them as well.

Back to the boys...

"Wail... Wail, wail..." Wailmer moaned sadly, seeing the first obstacle. "Pika Pika Pika! Pika Pika!" Pikachu explained along with Infernape trying to translate as well. "Infern Infernape! In Infern!" Infernape explained as Hikaru frowned. "So, you're telling me you fell all the way down from there?" Ash asked, shocked.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked along. "Wail..." Wailmer moaned sadly. "He says yes... And he wants to get back up." Hareta translated with an annoyed pout. The little boy looked up at the small waterfall of the canal with folded arms. "I don't get these people... Why do they make these sort of stuff?" Hareta inquired annoyingly.

"That's... not for us to say, Hareta..." Hikaru answered nervously with Infernape nodding along. "In... Infernape..." Infernape sighed with a nod. Back to the plan, the Kanto trainer gave a huff, unsure of what to do. "Well... Getting back up there won't be so easy..." Ash pointed out. "Pika..." Pikachu agreed sadly.

"Man... What do we do!?" Ash cried out desperately. The desperate call left the Twinleaf boy to sweat drop as he sighed, before walking back to the center of the canal. "Hikaru? Where are you going?" Ash asked. "I'm going to grab something from the center... There might be something we can use." Hikaru answered.

"Something we can use...?" Hareta repeated in confusion.

Later...

"THIS is the thing that you were talking about?" Ash asked in disbelief and disappointment. What Hikaru thought of was using a rope to pull Wailmer to the next level of the canal. The Water Type held the rope in his mouth while Hikaru, Ash, and Hareta held the ends of the rope, with Infernape, Whismur, the Buizel brothers, and Luxio!

"You got a better idea? Because I don't." Hikaru muttered, causing the Kanto trainer to sweat drop, realizing that he doesn't hace any other ideas. "Uh..." Ash started as the Twinleaf boy frowned. "Uh huh... I thought so..." Hikaru sighed. Before Ash could argue any longer, Hareta grew more impatient with this situation.

"Hey! Are we going to do this or not?" Hareta called. "We're doing it, Hareta! Just be patient!" Hikaru assured. The little boy pouted at that before he called to the Ball Whale Pokémon. "Just hang on tight, Wailmer! Everything will be okay!" Hareta assured. "Wail..." Wailmer moaned in displeasure. "Alright, let's do this! And... PULL!" Ash yelled, signaling everyone to pull.

With that said, the three boys, Infernape, Luxio, and Whismur began to pull on the rope, attempting to pull Wailmer onto the second level. The Buizel brothers meanwhile, were pushing Wailmer from underwater, as they tried to help as well. Despite of Infernape and Hareta's strength however, it still didn't seem to be good enough!

"HARDER!" Ash bellowed as he pulled harder, while gritting his teeth. "We're trying!" Hikaru grunted as he tried to back away, pulling the rope even harder. In a few seconds, Wailmer started to get closer to the second level. They only heeded a few more pulls and a bit more effort! Sooner or later, the pulling and oushing worked!

The giant Water Type made it to the second level of the canal, much to its happiness. Whismur, Nidoran, Pikachu, and the Buizel brothers cheered for their first success as Hareta let out a cheer. "Yeah! We did it! Wailmer, you made it!" Hareta cheered. "Wail!" Wailmer cheered along. "Wow! We really did it!" Ash sighed on relief.

"Yeah... We did..." Hikaru panted, wiping the sweat off of his forehead. "In... Infernape." Infernape smirked with satisfaction. But, their relief had to end prematurely, as they witnessed something even larger they have to conquer! It was another waterfall, but with an even greater height! "HUH!?" Hareta yelped in shock.

"You've got to be kidding!" "No way..." Ash and Hikaru breathed out together in shock. Infernape and Pikachu were bewildered to see this as well, along with the three rebellious Pokémon and the Buizel brothers. "I don't think we'll be able to pull up anything with that!" Ash groaned in disappointment.

Hikaru sweat dropped, seeing that a mere rope wouldn't help... Especially with the huge height of the third level. "Wail..." Wailmer moaned again, tears welling up in its eyes. "Hey... Don't worry. We said that we would help you get back to your family, and that is a promise that we won't break!" Hikaru assured as Hareta frowned.

"But... How are we going to get Wailmer all the way up there?" Hareta asked, scratching the back of his head. Before the Twinleaf boy could think of any answers, Ash turned to the Electric Type for a request. "Do you think you could get all your friends to help us, Luxio?" Ash asked. "Lux!" The Electric Type growled with a nod.

"Great!" Ash replied. With that said, everyone except Wailmer started to head back for the center of the canal, leaving the giant Water Type curious of what they were going to do. "What are you planning, Ash?" Hikaru asked in suspicion. "No need to worry! You'll find out pretty soon, Hikaru!" Ash assured with a grin. "Pika Pika!" Pikachu agreed.

"Pretty soon? Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?" Hikaru mumbled, as Infernape let out a nervous chuckle. "In. Infern..." Infernape replied with a shake of his head. At the mumbling, Hareta blinked in confusion before he shrugged as the three boys continued running back to the center of the canal.

But, just as they were gone, at the third level, Dawn, Brock, and Piplup came out of the exit leading into the third level! "Pip Piplup!" Piplup panted as he skidded to a stop. Dawn and Brock followed, with the Twinleaf girl still unsure about her starter's sense of directions. "Piplup, are you sure we're going the right way?" Dawn asked.

"Piplup!" The Penguin Pokémon replied in assurance. But due to the three boys leaving the area, they were nowhere to be seen! Piplup looked around, trying to find somebody familiar, with Brock doing the same. But with Wailmer hidden below and with no people to be seen, it looked as though nobody was around.

At this, Dawn began to pout and glared at her Water Type. "There's nobody here!" Dawn scolded, leaving Piplup embarrassed. "Pip..." Piplup groaned in disappointment. Concluding that no one was around, both Dawn and Brock left the third level canal, using the doorway that they came out of. For Piplup, it pouted all the way while walking back.

Meanwhile...

Back at the center of the canal, Ash, Hareta, and Hikaru all explained to the wild Pokémon the reason they needed their help for Wailmer as getting to the top of the third level would be no easy cakewalk. "Okay, you get it? That's why we need everybody to help us!" "Pika Pikachu!" Ash and Pikachu explained together. "Lux Luxio!" Luxio cried out.

At the call, the Nidoran, Venonat, Teddiursa, and all the other wild Pokémon cried out their answers, agreeing that they will help, much to Hareta's joy. "Alright! We're gonna get Wailmer back home safe and sound!" Hareta cried out. "Yeah! We'll definitely do it now!" Ash added with a grin. But, the two boys were stopped by getting shocked a little by Luxio.

The Spark Pokémon tapped his paws onto both boys' legs, startling them, much to their embarrassment. "Oh... Sorry, Luxio..." Hareta chuckled, flushing red in embarrassment. "Ha ha... I think you're saying we should thank them first..." Ash laughed along. "Lux..." Luxio confirmed with a nod. Hikaru watched in amusement while Infernape snickered a little.

The Buizel brothers snickered as well, much to Hareta's embarrassment once again.

Later, the three boys began the operation by explaining their plan to the wild Pokémon surrounding them. "Right... So, we'd all like you to listen very carefully of the plan the three of us decided to do. This is only a one-time chance, so it must be done correctly, understand?" Hikaru explained seriously. All the Pokémon cried out their replies, all determined to success.

"YEAH! I'm ready!" Hareta cried out. That caused Ash and Hikaru to sweat drop, before the Kanto trainer cleared his throat. "Okay, so first... Hikaru's Buizel and the Spheals will use Ice Beam... all the way to the top! We're gonna make a big slide!" Ash started, as the boys pictured an ice slide, created by a huge amount of ice power.

"Pika! Pikachu!" "In! Infernape!" Pikachu and Infernape replied along, to make sure everyone understood the start of the plan. Next, Hareta spoke up, recalling of what the second part was. "Next, uh... We'll use the furni-furnitue to..." Hareta started, causing the Twinleaf boy to correct him with a sweat drop. "Furniture, Hareta..." Hikaru corrected.

Luxio and all the other wild Pokémon sweat dropped at Hareta's incapability of saying the words right, while some other Pokémon giggled it as cute. "Yeah! Furniture! We'll use the furniture we borrowed from the Teddirusa to make a sled!" Hareta finished this time, saying it completely. "Pika! Pikachu!" "Infernape!" Pikachu and Infernape replied along.

Hikaru was the third to explain as he folded his arms, before explaining. "Thirdly, the Buizel brothers and the Spheals will push the sled with Wailmer riding on it. They'll have to swim fast so that the sled would be able to get to the top fast enough without any problem." Hikaru explained, remembering what the third part was.

"Spheal!" "Bui bui!" "Bui!" The Spheals and the Buizel brothers cried out their calls, agreeing to lend a hand. The fourth part was revealed with Ash explaining it. "And once the sled really gets moving, it's Pikachu and Luxio's turn!" Ash started. "Pika Pika!" "Luxio!" The two Electric Types cried out together.

"You two will unleash a couple of powerful Iron Tails on the sled, so that it really starts moving!... And then! The sled will have enough speed to shoot up the ice slide right along with Wailmer!" Ash explained. "And then the plan will be a success! Wailmer will be one step closer to be back with his family once again!" Hareta concluded energetically.

"So... Are we ready to help Wailmer, everyone?!" Hikaru asked loudly, enough for all the Pokémon to hear. "Pika!" "In!" "Lux!" "Bui!" All the Pokémon cried out their agreements. "Cool! So let's do this!" Ash yelled out loud. "YEAH!" Hareta cried out happily. All the other Pokemon cried out their determined cries as they all began to start working on the ice and the sled.

First, the Teddiursa brought some furniture to make the sled, as Hareta helped the Normal Types bring them with his wild strength. While shocked at the little boy's strength of holding multiple furnitures despite being small, Ash and Hikaru started to help out with the sled as well.

It took a while for the sled to be done as pulling on the ropes was difficult for Ash, a little difficult for the Twinleaf boy, while Infernape and Hareta had no problems at all. Next, the ice slide came by. The little Buizel and the Spheals took charge of that, as they froze the canal water with their Ice Beam attacks, freezing the ice to all the way to the top.

"Cool! Now that's one frozen slide!" Ash exclaimed with an impressed look. The impression went higher as the slide became smooth, thanks to the Nidorans and the Rattatas biting on them all the way to make them smooth as the walls.

Finally, the sled was finally finished, as it was thrown into the water for Wailmer to ride on. Thirty minutes later passed by as everything was set and done. "We're all ready to roll! So! Onto the last step!" Ash called. With hat said, everyone went to their positions for the ice slide, preparing for Wailmer to come by.

The giant Water Type climbed onto the sled, with the Buizel brothers and the Spheal behind him. The Water Types were all ready to push, allowing Wailmer to give the okay signal to the three boys, Infernape, and Pikachu. "Alright! Hey, you two! Are you both ready to go!?" Hikaru called. "Pika!" "Luxio!" The two Electric Types cried out together as they nodded.

With everything set up, Hareta started the call for the operation. "Okay! Buizel and Spheal! It's your turn now, guys! PUSH!" Hareta cried, jumping in the air. At the call, the Water Types behind Wailmer began to push the sled as hard as they could to make the sled go fast on the ice. Hikaru narrowed his eyes as he gave the encouragement to the Water Types.

"Alright! That's good! But it needs more speed and power! Push, you guys! Push harder and faster!" Hikaru encouraged. At the encouragement, the Water Types boosted their powers to move as the sled became faster and faster, until it reached the ice slide! The Water Types finished their work as they flipped onto the ice to see what happens next.

Wailmer was moving very fast on the sled, which gave Ash the chance to give the signal to the two Electric Types. "Pikachu and Luxio! Iron Tail!" Ash yelled. At the right timing, the Electric Types charged up their Steel Type attacks, before they slammed it onto Wailmer's back! The force of the two attacks increased the speed of the moving sled.

At that point, the sled Wailmer was riding on started to move towards the top, enough to reach at that point! "Yes!" "That should do it!" "We did it!" Ash, Hikaru, and Hareta cheered together. "Pika!" "Infernape!" "Lux!" Pikachu, Infernape, and Luxio joined in with the cheering... But then, trouble came for Wailmer.

Part of the ice of the slide broke off, leaving the path too short for the sled to go on! Wailmer gasped, as the three boys were shocked to see this. "Ah!?" "No! It broke off!?" "Oh no!" Ash, Hikaru, and Hareta gasped in shock. As the sled started to get to the top, it fell off, due to the slide being broken off as Wailmer was forced to float in the air!

The Ball Whale Pokémon desperately flapped his giant fins, attempting to stay floating so that it could make it to the third level of the underground canal! At this point, one of the Venonat had an idea and ran over to the Electric Type leader, explaining its idea. "Ven! Venonat Ven Nat!" Venonat explained, as Luxio blinked.

He then nodded, accepting the idea as they both leapt in the air! The Spark Pokémon lashed its Iron Tail onto the Venonat's back, allowing the Poison-Bug Type to bounce Wailmer higher into the air! With the extra power, it was enough for Wailmer to float onto the third level of the canal, making the work and the plan a success!

All the wild Pokémon cheered for the success with Ash and Hareta cheering as well. "Yeah! I knew it would work! Yeah!" Ash cheered as Hareta laughed happily along. Hikaru laughed along, seeing that the plan actually worked. "It really worked... Tell me this is not a dream, Infernape?" Hikaru asked as Infernape shook his head with a grin.

"In Infernape..." Infernape confirmed, saying it wasn't a dream. The Twinleaf boy nodded to his Fire Type, before he looked back, as Hareta called out to him and Infernape. "Hey! Hikaru! Infernape! Are you two coming!? We're getting Wailmer out of this dark place!" Hareta called loudly, enough for the Twinleaf boy to hear.

"Yeah, yeah... We're coming! Just be patient!" Hikaru called. With that said, he and Infernape followed Ash and Hareta, climbing all the way up to the third level of the canal. Soon, the three boys, Infernape, Pikachu, Luxio, and Wailmer walked along the third level of the canal, as the Kanto trainer talked on how the plan nearly failed with the ice breaking.

"Things got a little hairy there, didn't it?" Ash asked nervously. "Wail..." Wailmer agreed cheerfully, as he was relieved to have finally gotten over the tough obstacle before. "That nearly failed when the ice broke off, so we all should be lucky, thanks to Luxio and that Venonat from before." Hikaru reminded sternly as he glanced back at his friend.

"Yeah, yeah... I hear you." Ash grumbled, seeing Hikaru was being too negative at the moment. Hareta, on the other hand, just giggled, much to the boys' confusion. "What's so funny, Hareta?" Hikaru asked. "Oh, it's just that... I thought we were all having fun even if we did nearly fail at the ice slide work!" Hareta explained happily.

That brought the small smile on Hikaru's face as he let out a small chuckle. "Yeah... I will admit, that it was fun, doing the work of our idea." Hikaru admitted. "Infernape..." Infernape confirmed with a nod and a smile on his face. Just then, Pikachu gasped in surprise, before he excitedly pointed ahead of what's head of the others.

"Pika!" Pikachu called, as everyone turned to see what was ahead of them. "Ah! There's the exit, down there!" Ash exclaimed, pointing ahead. "That means we're getting close to having Wailmer reunited with his family! Isn't that right, buddy?" Hareta asked happily, as he rubbed Wailmer's head. "Wail!" The Ball Whale cried happily.

It was excited on seeing his family once again as he felt like speeding ahead, only for the three boys and the Pokémon to hear something near them. It was Piplup! He sped out of the exit that led to the third level of the canal as he tried to coax Dawn and Brock to follow him. For the Twinleaf girl, she was exhausted and annoyed at this.

"Come on, Piplup... That's enough. I'm exhausted!" Dawn complained. Her voice grabbed Hikaru and Ash's attention as the two boys called to Dawn and Brock. "Hey, Brock!" "Dawn, you're okay!" Ash and Hikaru cried together. Their voices caught their attention as they smiled back. "It's Hikaru! And Ash, too!" Dawn exclaimed happily.

"What took you guys so long? I was worried something might've happened to you two..." Hikaru asked, walking over to the two. To his surprise, the only response he got was a big hug from his girlfriend, who looked up at him with a scolding face. "You were worried about us? We were worried about you two even more!" Dawn scolded sternly.

The Twinleaf boy blinked, before signing. "Sorry..." Hikaru apologized silently, causing the Twinleaf girl to smile softly. To Ash, Brock, Infernape, and Pikachu's surprise, she gave a kiss on her boyfriend's cheek, causing the Twinleaf boy to blush lightly, before he smiled back, seeing that Dawn had forgiven him for the trouble he caused for her.

"Piplup!... Pip! Piplup!" Piplup agreed, before he annoyingly turned to his trainer and Brock, complaining to them for not listening to him in the first place. "Okay, Piplup... I deserved that. And thank you." Dawn thanked with a smile. "Lup!" Piplup scoffed, boasting for being right in the first place all along. For the little boy, he giggled at the sight of the two.

"Wow... It's great to see you two again! Miss Dawn! Mr. Brock!" Hareta called, surprising the two. "Huh?! You're... Hareta, right?" Brock asked surprisingly. "Yep! It's been a while!" Hareta chuckled happily.

Later...

As time passed, Hikaru, Ash, and Hareta all explained to Daen, Brock, and Piplup about the Wailmer that had been separated from its family and on how it was stuck here in the canal. Thanks to Luxio and the other wild Pokémon, they were able to help it get across the two tall obstacles they had to face against.

"Huh?... Oh! I get it! So the Luxio stole the Pokémon food for the Wailmer!" Brock exclaimed in realization. "Wow... I bet the Wailord hanging out in the harbor are wondering what happened!" Dawn replied in amazement. She then turned to the giant Water Type Pokémon with a soft smile in assurance.

"Everything is going to be fun, since the exit is just up ahead!" Dawn assured. "Wail..." Wailmer moaned, thanking the girl for the comfort. At the mention of 'stole' and 'food', Hareta poured, turning to the Spark Pokémon annoyingly. "Huh? Did you really steal from them, Luxio? Huh?" Hareta scolded, forcing the Spark Pokémon to nod and sigh, embarrassed by this.

"That's not a good thing! Even if it was for a good reason, stealing is not good! You got that?!" Hareta scolded. "Lux... Luxio..." Luxio replied, bowing his head a little, admitting his shame to the wild boy. But then, Luxio's ears perked up as he placed his paw onto Hareta, zapping him a little bit to warn him about something.

Both Ash and Dawn were startled by that with the Twinleaf girl confused. "Whoa! What was that for!?" Dawn shrieked as she was surprised for the sudden shocking. "It kind of... tickled..." Hareta admitted with a small blush, as Brock remembered of what the small electricity from the paw meant when it comes to a whole tribe of one.

"Luxio's using electrical pulses from its claws to try and tell us something..." Brock explained. "Is there something going on we need to be concerned about?" Ash asked, still confused by the sudden shocking. Before Luxio could answer, there was a dark cry ahead of the group as everyone turned to see what it was.

On the water was a giant figure climbing out of the water, revealing itself. It was a Swampert! Hikaru took out his Pokédex, scanning the evolved Water-Ground Type. "That's... a Swampert..." Hikaru whispered as the Pokédex explained the details about Swampert.

"Swampert, the Mud Fish Pokémon. Swampert is a powerful Pokémon that can track even a large ship as well as inflict critical damage to its enemies with one blow." Hikaru's Pokédex buzzed. As the device finished with the explanation, the angry Mud Fish Pokémon fired a Mud Shot attack at everyone!

The five humans and the three Pokémon yelped as they dodged out of the way, with Ash realizing what the shock was all about. "Whoa... You were trying to warn us we're in the middle of a Swampert territory, weren't you?" Ash asked. "Lux!" Luxio confirmed with a nod, before he looked back at the angry Swampert.

Hareta, desperate to save Wailmer tried to defend his friends by negotiating with the Mud Fish Pokémon. "Wait, Swampert, please! We just want to leave your territory! We don't want to cause trouble for you at all! Please, let us through!" Hareta pleaded. But, to his dismay, his pleading didn't work as Swampert ignored him and shot another Mud Shot attack!

Everyone yelped as they got out of the way. Infernape grew irritated with the Swampert while Pikachu was ready to pick a fight. "Argh! Guess we've got no choice but to use Thunderbolt, Pikachu!" Ash snapped, glaring back at the wild Pokémon. "Pika!" Pikachu agreed. With that said, he shot into the air and launched a Thunderbolt attack.

"Don't do it! Ash! Swampert is a Ground Type! Electric Type attacks won't do a thing!" Brock reminded. With the sudden realization, the Kanto trainer called Pikachu off, gritting his teeth in frustration. "Urgh... You're right! Back off, Pikachu! Grotle, I choose-" Ash started, until he was stopped by the little boy. "Huh? Hareta!?" Ash yelped.

"I'll handle this one, guys! Prinplup, let's go and stop that mean Swampert!" Hareta called, summoning his starter. The evolved Penguin Pokémon appeared, facing off against the angry Swampert. "A Prinplup!" Ash pointed out. "That must mean Hareta's Piplup must've evolved!" Hikaru pointed out in surprise. "Pika!?" "Fernape..." Pikachu and Infernape agreed in unison.

The battle started with Swampert aiming to use Focus Punch onto Prinplup! "Dodge it, Prinplup! Then hit him back with Drill Peck!" Hareta yelled. After evading the punch, the Water Type drilled its beak onto Swampert's beak, dealing heavy damage onto the Mud Fish Pokémon as the wild Pokémon yelled in pain, forcing him to glare back at Prinplup.

"Now, Prinplup! Wrap this up with Bubblebeam!" Hareta yelled. At the call, the Water Type glared at Swampert, before blasting the Mud Fish Pokémon away with Bubblebeam! Swampert yelled in pain as he slumped down to the ground, fainted by the direct hit he took from the special Water Type attack. Seeing this chance, everyone ran past the fainted Pokémon.

"Sorry, Swampert!" Ash apologized quickly as he ran past the unconscious Water Type. The others and all the Pokémon followed as everyone ran out of the canal, meeting the sunlight in their eyes. "Ah... Finally! It's great to be outside again!" Ash exclaimed, feeling relieved. "Wail! Wail! Wail!" Wailmer cheered, excited to see his family again.

"There you go, Wailmer. Just go straight under that bridge and you'll be reunited with your family again!" Hikaru pointed out, pointing under the bridge, with his Fire Type giving a nod. "Infernape." The Flame Pokémon agreed, assuring to the Ball Whale Pokémon that everything will be fine now.

At the assurance, Wailmer nodded happily before he started to swim for the bridge underneath! But suddenly, another problem rose up as the giant Water Type began to flow! Everyone gasped to see the glow as Ash knew what it was. "I... don't believe it!" Ash stuttered in shock. The shape grew, turning into an enormous whale Pokémon!

"It... evolved into a Wailord!" Hikaru whispered in disbelief. "Whoa... So that's how big a Wailord is!" Hareta exclaimed in amazement. Prinplup and Luxio both looked at the little boy, seeing how oblivious he is to see the problem as they sweat dropped before sighing together, until Dawn scolded the little boy by explaining the problem.

"That's not the point here, Hareta! Since it evolved, Wailord won't be able to fit under the bridge!" Dawn reminded, much to Hareta's dismay. "I'm sure that it's a drawbridge, so the span is able to lift up!" Brock guessed. "In that case, we have to get to the control room right now! We should be able to lift the drawbridge there!" Hikaru suggested.

"Right!" The others agreed. With that said, the five humans and the five Pokémon all ran inside the control room, where all the controls were for the drawbridge! However, there was another problem that the group had to go against. "Brock, can you move it!?" Ash asked desperately, until the Kanto breeder frowned in realization.

"No... I'm afraid we can't move it unless we have a key..." Brock answered. That gave Ash an idea, as he glanced at his Electric Type partner. "Okay... Go, Pikachu!" Ash called. Pikachu nodded, knowing what his human friend wanted. He jumped down and removed the small door, of where the wires were inside.

Dawn was bewildered of what the Kanto trainer was doing. "Wait, what are you doing?!" Dawn asked. Before anyone could answer, Pikachu touched the wires and shot a Thunderbolt attack! The electricity began to charge the controls, allowing the drawbridge control to activste, much to Dawn's shock and bewilderedness.

"That's crazy!" Dawn shrieked as she watched on what was going on. "It may be crazy, but it works! Dragonair, help Pikachu out with Thunder Wave!" Hikaru called. The Dragon Type Pokémon appeared as he wrapped his tail around Pikachu's tail, shocking his friend with his Thunder Wave attack!

The combined forces made the controls' power grow as the electricity began to do their work. The screen showed the hand moving a little from the 0, as Ash blinked in surprise. "It moved!" Ash exclaimed, until the hand started to move even weaker. Brock gritted his teeth in frustration, seeing that it wasn't enough to move the drawbridge.

"Yeah, but we still don't have enough power!" Brock grunted. Just then, Wailord wailed to the five humans as they all looked outside to see what the problem is. Behind Wailord... was Swampert! It looked angry as it began to swim towards Wailord, preparing to make his payback on the giant Water Type Pokémon. "Oh no... Not again! Swampert!" Ash gasped.

Hareta blinked, before he pouted as he ran outside, with the Kanto trainer behind him. "Man... That guy is really persistent to cause trouble!" Hareta complained as he jumped into the water, attempting to protect Wailmer. "Dawn, Brock, and Hikaru! Take care of things here! Hareta and I'll stop Swampert!" Ash called as he jumped into the water as well.

Prinplup blinked before he followed, jumping into the water, joining his little trainer to stop Swampert from causing any more trouble. However, despite being outnumbered, the angry Water Type kept moving, as if it was intending to not just harm Wailord, but to those who try to defend the giant Water Type as well!

"Swampert! Don't do it! You've got to let Wailord get back to its group now!" Ash yelled as he tried to plead with the Mud Fish Pokémon. "Swamp!" Swampert snapped angrily, as Hareta paled. "He says to shut up and that he doesn't care... How cruel..." Hareta whispered before he glared at the angry Mud Fish Pokémon.

Ash frowned before he glared back at Swampert, who was starting to get closer and closer!

Back at the control room, Pikachu and Dragonair were trying their best to power up the bridge controls. Luxio joined in, using Spark to help out as well! It didn't seem enough as Dawn took out a Pokéball to summon Pachirisu. "Pachirisu, help us out!" Dawn called. The EleSquirrel Pokémon appeared, as she grabbed onto Luxio's tail while using Discharge!

At the bridge, the drawbridge started to rise up slowly! Brock smiled, seeing that it was working. "Good! Just a little more!" Brock called. However, to the two boys, it wasn't fast enough as Swampert started to get closer to them, Prinplup, and Wailord! "Argh! It won't make it in time!" Ash pointed out, noticing Swampert getting closer to them.

"Prinplup, use Bubblebeam to distract Swampert, go!" Hareta called. Prinplup nodded with a serious look as he shot the Water Type attack, creating a barrier for Swampert to pass through, much to the Mud Fish Pokémon's surprise. "Keep it going, Prinplup!" Hareta called. His starter nodded and kept the bubbles going.

To Luxio, he gritted his teeth, knowing that the three of them can't do it alone with the progress going really slow! At this, he let out a loud cry, calling the other wild Pokémon for some help! Immediately, at the call, several Nidoran and Rattatas ran out of the canal as they seemed to have heard Luxio's call for help.

They all ran as fast as they could to the control room, where the leading Nidoran bit onto Pachirisu's tail, while using Shock Wave! The others followed along as they used Shock Wave as well. To this, the power of the drawbridge went higher, and all the way to maximum power! "Whoa... Now that's what I call power!" Brock exclaimed in amazement.

"You can say that again..." Hikaru replied, seeing how fast the bridge was moving as of now. As the drawbridge completely opened up, Ash used this chance to get Wailord moving. "It opened! Wailord, get moving!" Ash called. Wailord cried out in joy before it swam past the drawbridge. In fact, it swam so fast that it created a wave towards Swampert!

Swampert could only gasp in shock as he was swept away by the giant wave and back to the canal. At the sight of success, Ash, Hareta, and Prinplup all cheered for their success. "Yeah! It worked!" Ash yelled, punching his fist in the air. "Wailord is back with his family and Swampert is sent away!" Hareta joked, causing Prinplup to laugh as well.

The other wild Pokémon, Pikachu, Infernape, Pachirisu, and Luxio cheered for the success as they all watched Wailord reuniting with his family once again.

Later...

As Wailord swam back to its family, the Wailord group were all happy to see their lost one as they all turned to the humans and to the Pokémon that helped their lost one as they spouted water into the air, creating a rainbow in the process! The group and Hareta watched in amazement as the rainbow amazed them.

"Wow... It's beautiful!" Brock pointed out in amazement. "Piplup..." Piplup said in awe. "Maybe that's their way of thanking us for helping them!" Dawn guessed. "Yeah..." Ash agreed. "Pika..." Pikachu said in amazement. Hikaru and Infernape both watched, smiling together as they knew it's been a while since they saw a rainbow together.

"Hey, Luxio? As long as I live, I won't forget you or the others that helped out! It's been fun today, hanging out with you guys..." Hareta assured as he gave the Electric Type a hug. Luxio blinked, before he smiled softly, using one of his paws to hug back his little human friend, while zapping him a little with his paw.

"I won't forget you as well, Hareta... And that goes for both Hikaru and Ash, too..." Luxio's voice said in Hikaru's mind as he blinked in surprise, hearing the Spark Pokémon talk once again in his mind. Despite of being startled a little, the Twinleaf boy just smiled, realizing that this wasn't the time to be startled and curious. This was the time to be relieved and happy for Wailord.

That evening...

As the five humans and their Pokémon parted with Luxio and the other wild Pokémon, they all watched the sunset along with the Wailord swimming away back to the sea. As they watched, Brock reminded the four about something. "Well, guess we can get back to the road now." Brock reminded, with Ash agreeing.

"Right!... But, my stomach is saying we ought to take a little break at the Pokémon Center, you know?" Ash started, before he chuckled nervously. Hikaru's left eye twitched, while Dawn giggled et that. "Well, when it comes to Ash's stomach, missing lunch is a no-no!" Dawn giggled. Bewildered at the answer, the Kanto trainer tried to counter, only to backfire on himself.

"No! I mean, yeah!" Ash yelped, before he laughed. The others soon laughed, until Hikaru looked back to seeing Hareta still watching the sunset and the Wailord leaving. "Hareta? Something wrong?" Hikaru asked. Infernape looked back to see his human brother walking over to the little boy and Prinplup as he followed along, curious of what was happening.

"No... Nothing's wrong... It's just... I have something to ask of you, Hikaru..." Hareta explained. "Ask me? Of what?" Hikaru asked, confused. "Infernape?" Infernape asked along. The two watched as Prinplup watched his trainer raise his head up with his pleading eyes shining a little like stars. "Could I come with you and the others on your journey!?" Hareta requested.

The Twinleaf boy blinked in surprise at the sudden request, before he smiled, asking. "Could you tell me why you want to go with us?" Hikaru asked softly, allowing the little boy to make his answer. "Because, well... Even when Prinplup and my other Pokémon are beside me, I feel kind of lonely since I'm the only person traveling..." Hareta explained.

"So, in short, you're lonely since you don't have any human friends to walk and travel beside you?" Hikaru asked. "Mm-hm..." Hareta confirmed with a nod. Prinplup smiled, knowing that his best friend had been lonely ever since he started on his journey as he comforted him with a pat on the right shoulder. "Lup..." Prinplup said softly.

It didn't take long for the Twinleaf boy to give the answer as he placed a hand on Hareta's left shoulder. "It's fine. We're always happy to have you go with us on our journey." Hikaru assured. At that, the little boy's eyes widened as he shot his head up, looking at the Twinleaf boy, before he gave a hopeful smile.

"R-Really?" Hareta asked in surprise. Hikaru nodded, before he glanced back, causing Hareta to notice who Hikaru was looking at. To his surprise, Ash, Dawn, and Brock were watching the two, as they all had smiles on their faces, which seemed to be that they heard the whole thing from the little boy. "You guys... You were listening?" Hareta asked in confusion.

"We heard everything... What you asked... And how you felt when you feel like you're alone..." Dawn answered. "Pip Piplup..." "Pika Pika..." Pikachu and Piplup added. "I think it'd be great... You already have some experience with Pokémon, but you don't look like you're social with other people." Brock added, much to Hareta's confusion.

"Social?" Hareta repeated in confusion. "He means that you don't get along with people that much." Hikaru explained. "Oh..." Hareta chuckled, before blushing in embarrassment. "What we're saying is, we're happy to let you join us in our journey! We could learn so much together while we're traveling." Ash assured with a grin.

At the assurance, the little boy blinked, before smiling happily as he turned it into a grin. "Heh heh... Ha ha ha ha! Thank you... Everyone!" Hareta thanked. The four trainers laughed at the little boy's excitement and enthusiasm as they expected tomorrow to be busy as they had a new traveling companion at their side.

To be continued...

Hikaru's Team:

Infernape: (M): (Flamethrower, Flame Wheel, Mach Punch, Close Combat)

Luxray: (F): (Wild Charge, Discharge, Iron Tail, Hidden Power)

Dragonair: (M): (Dragon Tail, Aqua Tail, Thunder Wave, Safeguard)

Buizel: (M): (Aqua Jet, Ice Beam, Water Gun, Razor Wind)

Togetic: (F): (AncientPower, Air Slash, Metronome, Attract)

Leafeon: (F): (Magical Leaf, Shadow Ball, Synthesis, Leaf Blade)

With Prof. Rowan:

Gardevoir: (F): (Psychic, Thunderbolt, Teleport, Magical Leaf)

Next chapters:

Chapter 11: Iron Island Chaos! Enter Riley!

Chapter 12: Team Galactic's Secret Plan

Chapter 13: VS Team Galactic! A Battle for Life!

Chapter 14: The New Aura Guardian in Battle!

Chapter 15: The Three Castaways! Diablo's Ocean!

Next chapter preview:

Ash: What's going on Iron Island? All those Pokémon are... They're hurting each other! Stop it!

Barry: Ah... This is bad! What are you guys after!? I'm gonna make you fine me for this! You hear me!?

Hikaru: I feel it... I feel some sort of power rising up in me with anger? What could this mean?

Hareta: These Pokémon... They're screaming in pain... They're crying for help... They... They... ARGH!

Riley: There's nothing you guys can do at the moment for these Pokémon! We'll have to retreat for now!

Dawn: Why am I getting a bad feeling about this? What is going in here?