Author's Note:
Here it is, the part where we see the second of the Johto starters, like with Chikorita, Cyndaquil was an option for possibly joining Serena's team back in the poll we had a while ago. I don't want to spoil the results of who gets the fire mouse here, you need to read the chapter for that. Not much else to say, just remember to vote in the poll, it changes when I reach chapter 11 of Johto and with that, let's get on with it…
Chapter 14: Good Quil Hunting
It was early morning for the group in the middle of a forest area on the away to Azalea Town. It has been about a week and a half since Serena caught Quagsire. They left the town the next day, feeling refreshed after doing the all-nighter. It has been pretty basic since than, just travelling, training, eating and sleeping. Quagsire has fitted into the group, sort of well. He is certainly friendly and enthusiastic but based on Ash's translations, he is pretty weird. Maybe not Haunter level weird, but still weird.
Inside one of the tents lays Serena and Ash. The sunlight hit the top of the tent and despite the material blocking it out mostly, it did let a little light through which caused the honey-blonde girl to stir. She blinked awake as she realised she woke up first today, it seems to be fifty - fifty on who wakes up first, obviously if one of them has a contest or gym battle respectively that day, they are normally the first one up but most days, it is random.
As she came to her senses, Serena became very glad she was the first one up, this is because her hand during her sleep had made its way under Ash's shirt. Due to him training alongside his Pokemon, Serena noticed he has been growing some muscle, he has been for a while, but it was only recently that she realised he is also starting to develop some abs. She cursed her hand for what could've ended up as a very embarrassing situation if Ash woke up. She hopes her hand won't do this again.
"Well, better get him up or he might question why I let him sleep." Serena thought to herself. So she moved her head over towards Ash's ear before whispering. "Ash, it's time to wake up.".
"Huh?" Ash groaned as he blinked awake. It took a couple of seconds for him to realise what was happening, as he looked around. His eyes landed on Serena who was sat up next to him. Sitting up himself, he rubbed his eyes to kind of clear his vision. "What time is it?".
"Not sure, I haven't been outside yet." Serena informed him. "But it must be day time, as the sun woke me up.".
"Are the others up?" Ash asked.
"No, I don't think so." Serena replied as she leaned into a hug. "I haven't heard them.".
"Hehehe, guess that means you want to cuddle then." Ash whispered with a light chuckle.
Serena didn't answer him directly and instead wrapped her arms around him as she rested her head on his shoulder. The two stayed in silence for a few moments, not an awkward silence but a content one. Eventually, Serena started a conversation.
"So Ash, have you decided who you'll use in the Azalea Town gym?" Serena asked.
"Well since I haven't caught anyone new since Violet and even if I did I doubt they would be ready for a gym match at this point, my first two choices are Heracross and Chikorita." Ash explained. "Then for my third Pokemon, I am thinking Charizard since not only is it bug type but I think Pidgeot is flying him up the wall in her quest to learn heat wave. Plus, I am guessing he will be missing Delphox, they haven't seen each other for a while.".
Serena was silent after that, he is going to bring Charizard over? Oh no, hopefully Delphox is ready to face her soon-to-be-ex-boyfriend as she can't really try to convince Ash not to bring over his fire type, at least not without revealing Delphox's secret to him and if she did that, then it would likely encourage Ash to do it more as he wouldn't want one of his friends to be living a lie. Not that she would blame him, if it was the other way around, she would want it over and done with so her friend could start moving on.
"What's wrong, Serena?" Ash asked, filled with concern.
"Huh?" Serena jumped slightly. "Sorry, just thinking.".
"Whatcha thinking about?" Ash asked.
"Oh um... Just about who I should use in my next contest. I know a ton of my Pokemon have routines worked out, and even of those who don't, a lot of them have been practising contest battles." Serena explained. "But I don't know whether I should go with someone back at the lab or one of the new Johto team.".
Sure, it was a lie but it is something she has been thinking about recently so it wasn't a full lie. Besides, this isn't as bad as her betraying Delphox's trust, is it?
"Why not combine them?" Ash asked. "Since you can swap Pokemon between the appeals round and the battle round, you could say use Mareep in the appeals performance and say, Beedrill in the battle round.".
"I guess that could work." Serena replied thoughtfully. "But if any of my Johto team has an appeals performance ready, I would say it is Sentret. We have a bases for Mareep's performance but it hasn't developed into a full display then.".
"So you and Sentret putting on a great appeals and take the lead into the battle round. Before you win your second ribbon." Ash replied in an encouraging manner. Although that declaration caused Serena to blush and bury her head into his neck, while she loves the fact Ash believes in her, it is also kind of embarrassing.
"It won't be that easy, Ash, there will be a bunch of coordinators competing and I am sure all of them will be wanting to win just as much as I do." Serena replied.
"That maybe true, but you'll still be this years Grand Festival winner." Ash replied. "I can see it now.".
Before Serena could reply, they heard the sound of a tent being unzipped and saw the silhouette of Brock standing up. This was the sign that their alone time is over. With a sigh, they ended their hug. Serena left the tent with her toothbrush and stuff, so Ash could change while she freshened herself up. Once both were done, they swapped places so she could change in the tent while Ash freshened himself up.
Once done, they saw Brock preparing to make breakfast for everyone. Releasing all their Pokemon, Serena took on the job of setting up the Pokemon food while Ash went over for another cooking lesson from Brock. During this time, Misty emerged from her tent and she began helping Serena lay out the Pokemon food.
Soon they were all eating their breakfast and talking about the plan for the day. It wasn't really anything different from the previous days, just instead of travelling in the morning, they would do the training in the morning because they are already in a decent sized field location. As they finished their meal, the group saw most of their Pokemon were finished, only some of the smaller ones who take their time were still eating. They were about to start cleaning up when-
"You!" A voice called out, with an arrogant tone. "Have you four kids seen any Cyndaquil around here?".
The person the voice belongs to revealed as he walked towards them from a heavily wooded area. Despite referring to all of the group as 'kids' he didn't look any older than either Ash or Serena, the youngest of the four of them. Dressed in hiker gear, he also had medium length purple hair.
"Cyndaquil live around here?" Ash asked, blinking, before a huge grin appeared on his face. "Awesome, I've been wanting to catch a Cyndaquil since seeing how Jimmy's was in battle, especially since I only have Charizard as a fire type.".
"Where do they actually live, as starter Pokemon are normally taken care off by a specialised breeder before being sent to the regional professor." Brock interjected. "Its because each family classified as a starter was once an endangered species so the breeders made sure they brought their numbers back up. I wouldn't have thought any of them would be in the wild based on that.".
"Beats me, I've heard they are meant to be Cyndaquil all over this place." The boy replied, with a shrug.
"What do you say Pikachu and Togepi, wanna help me find a Cyndaquil?" Ash asked, jumping to his feet in excitement. The two Pokemon walked up to him and made signals to show they were willing to do just that. So Ash turned to the rest of his team. "You guys continue your training from yesterday, okay.".
"Listen kid, you best stay away from the Cyndaquil if you know what's good for ya." The boy threatened.
"How come?" Ash asked, with a blank expression.
"Because I said to stay away, runt!" The boy shouted in anger.
"Look kid, what makes you think you have a right to tell him what he can and can't do?" Serena asked, with her hands on her hips. She can be very protective when someone threatens her friends or boyfriend.
"Who ever happens to find the Cyndaquil first has the right to try and catch it." Misty added, like a big sister she can also be protective of her friends.
"Says who?" The boy asked but didn't give the chance for anyone to answer that question. "Just stay out of my way and away from the Cyndaquil.".
"What an attitude, that guy makes Ash looked relax." Misty commented as the boy walked away.
"Gee, thanks Misty." Ash muttered before turning towards the two Pokemon. "Well guys, are you ready to go searching for a Cyndaquil?".
The two Pokemon nodded in agreement and they three of them set off to find a Cyndaquil. Togepi opted to stay on the floor for the time being, as he is getting more use to not being carried everywhere. Pikachu also stayed on the floor, trying to pick up a Cyndaquil scent, remembering what Jimmy's smelt like.
"Well I guess we will be here a while, either until Ash finds a Cyndaquil or he gets hungry and returns." Brock commented before turning to Serena. "Hey Serena, mind if I borrow Larvitar for today's training session? Diglett wants to get stronger and I think those two are around the same level of strength.".
"Sure Brock, its okay with me. Just check with Larvitar first." Serena replied. "Actually, today I was going to test out some of those grooming techniques you taught me and see how my Johto team likes them.".
"Great, thanks Serena and good luck. I am sure they will love them." Brock replied as he made his way over to the two ground types. It seems these two get along quite well, although Diglett is older by little over two years, they are both still very young.
Serena watched to make sure Larvitar was happy to do some sparring with Diglett and once that was confirmed she went over to the group of: Delphox, Eevee, Sentret, Mareep and Quagsire, who were waiting together for their instructions on what to do today.
"Okay guys, today instead of training I want to try out some new grooming techniques on each of you." Serena told the group, before looking down at her Sentret. "I will start with you Sentret and the rest of you can line up to go next.".
Serena decided to go with Sentret first simply because she is the most energetic one of her team so getting her to wait in line isn't very likely. Picking the energetic normal type up, she walked over to the chair where she left her bag. Once sat down she brought out a wooden brush to brush the normal types fur. She is also going to tell Delphox when it's her turn about Ash's plan to bring Charizard over for the next gym, she hates going behind his back but she has a responsibility as a trainer and friend.
Meanwhile the other Pokemon lined up next to her, ready for their respective turns. Eevee was next, followed by Delphox than Mareep. Quagsire, on the other hand, wandered a way to get some things for when it's his turn. Namely a shower cap, a towel and a rubber ducky. He doesn't know what grooming is.
"Come out, come out wherever you are!" Ash called out. "Cyndaquil!".
Meanwhile Pikachu was busy sniffing all around the area for one of the fire types. He has picked up on the scent of the Cyndaquil, several of them in fact, but the problem is they are all old scents and overlap with one another, it is impossible for him to tell which is the most recent or even if this is all from the same one or multiple Cyndaquil.
"No luck, buddy?" Ash asked his starter.
"Nope, I can't track it." Pikachu replied with a sigh. "All the scents are old and overlapping. I couldn't even tell you if they're is one Cyndaquil or a dozen of them."
"Well we just need to keep looking the old way." Ash told the two Pokemon before turning back to Pikachu. "So... Wanna tell me what's been going on?".
"Well... An arrogant kid mentioned Cyndaquil so you dragged us off so we could find it first." Pikachu explained in a sarcastic tone. Although he knew what Ash was truly asking him, he did his best to pretend he didn't.
"I mean, why have you been throwing yourself into your training?" Ash asked. "Serena said that even Eevee has noticed something is wrong.".
"Well... You remember back in Vermilion you showed me the Thunder Stone and offered me a change to evolve?" Pikachu asked.
"Yeah, you seemed to relieve a painful memory." Ash replied.
"Right... I did." Pikachu responded. "You see, I am not originally from Kanto. I was born in a forest, and lived with my family for about a year. And so I originally come from the Johto region.".
"You mean we are in your home region right now?" Ash asked.
"No, I come from the other Johto region." Pikachu replied sarcastically. "And the forest I lived in was called the Ilex Forest. With the closest town to that forest being Azalea.".
"... So we are heading towards your own home right now." Ash realised. "But still, why throw yourself into training over this?".
"Because... Of the reason I left." Pikachu replied, finding each word more difficult than the last. "You see, I didn't live there by myself. I lived there with my parents and a brother. My brother & I even evolved from Pichu at the same time... It was nice..."
"Then, one day, we heard some trainers walking through the forest. This was nothing unusual, we just kept out of sight and let them pass through. Although one mentioned wanting to catch a new Pokemon, possibly an electric type for the Violet city gym. Of course, at the time I didn't really know much about gyms."
"After hearing that, my dad told us to wait in the tree we called home while he ran off to lead them away. It started raining and our mother made us hid in the deepest corner of the tree. The closed dark space is all I am reminded off inside Pokeballs, which is why I don't like them.".
Ash was speechless as he listened to his best friend speak about what he went through, he didn't know why but he had a bad feeling the worst was yet to come. Still, this explains why he doesn't like Pokeballs and Ash has a sneaking suspicion that it will also answer some other questions about his yellow friend.
"Then... about an hour or so later our father returned. But he wasn't a Pikachu anymore, he was a Raichu." Pikachu explained. "And... He wasn't the same. Instead of his goofy old self who would try to make us laugh, his face held a dark sinister smirk as he loomed over us.".
"My mother stood up and spoke to him in a calm but concerned voice as she too had no-idea about what was happening. Instead of answering her, he raised his paw and hit her sideways before he turned back to both my brother & myself. We were both frozen in fear after seeing him attack our mother like that.".
"Then our mother tackled him aside and told us to run. Which is what we did. We ran, not looking back and not really knowing on where we were going. We actually ended up running into another human and although we attempted to escape, I lost my brother in the mess. I haven't seen either my brother or my parents since that day.".
"I just kept running and after a few months found a smallish city. I started to eat by feeding on fuse boxes on buildings, it wasn't much but it was the best I could do. Than some human caught me, I think he was a g men like Lance is, seeing the state I was in, he sent me to Oak's lab. Then he gave me to you.".
"Wow Pikachu... I-I don't know what to say." Ash muttered amazed by his starters story.
"Then don't say anything, especially to the others, I don't want my rep as the big bad leader of our team to be ruined." Pikachu replied with a cocky smirk. "Besides, I've come to accept what happened and it is in the past. Nothing can be done to change it.".
"Are you sure you've come to terms with it though? I mean, if how you've been training is any indication, it's like you're trying to force yourself to focus on something else." Ash replied.
"I said I had come to terms with it, didn't I." Pikachu replied, a little forcefully.
"Okay, if your sure." Ash accepted defeat, although not entirely convinced.
The trainer and his Pokemon continued to make their search for a Cyndaquil in silence. Soon they came across a sort of mountain with a bunch of holes edged into the side, this looked like a perfect place for a fire type to live as they wouldn't burn down any greenery and would have cover from the rain.
"Oh, it's you again." The kid from before growled. "Don't think your gonna get that Cyndaquil before I do.".
"Why don't we just settle this in a battle." Pikachu suggested, entering a battle stance as he sparked his cheeks. Although the kid couldn't understand what Pikachu said, from his current stance it was clear he was ready for a battle of some kind. So the kid took out a Pokeball. "A Pikachu, huh? This will make quick work of it.".
In a flash of light, a Pokemon appeared in front of the boy and also entered a battle stance. Ash and Pikachu were amazed to see a very familiar looking Pokemon, especially since Ash has one who is currently back at the lab. This boy just so happened to have a Sandslash, although it was smaller than Ash's and not as angry looking.
"Ya know Pikachu, it's a little off putting to see a Sandslash who doesn't hate everything around." Ash admitted. "So, I am guessing you won't let me use Ivysaur or someone instead, am I right?".
"Uh huh." Pikachu replied for confirmation. The two Pokemon prepared to start the battle, one has a major type advantage but the other has a very devise move-set and experience so it kind of evens out.
Just as the battle was about to start, a weird cry echoed from all of the caves inside the mountain. It was too distraught for Ash to make out any words in particular but it was clearly the cry of a Pokemon. Which meant both trainers and the Pokemon instantly had the same thought. It's a Cyndaquil! Not even bothering to start the battle, all of them ran into the nearest cave opening to find the Fire type they are all after.
Back at the campsite, Serena just let Sentret down so she could finally run around. Serena was impressed she sat still for the whole time she was brushing her fur, as she is such an energetic Pokemon who is filled with energy. Next up was Mareep, so she switched from the normal brush to one with metal so Mareep wouldn't accidentally destroy it as her wool is filled with static electricity. Also putting on a pair of rubber gloves so she didn't get shocked herself.
"Alright Mareep, it's time to see what we can do with this wool." Serena told the electric type with a smile.
As she got to work on the electric type, Sentret began running around admiring her new shiny coat. While she isn't a fan of having to stay still for so long, she does love shiny things so a shiny coat is more than worth the boring brush, in her opinion. Soon she ran into a shrub, not really focusing on where she was going, where she saw a blue and yellow Pokemon who looked like that fire thing the boy with the cap who was with them had, she thinks it was called a Cyndaquil.
"Hello there." Sentret greeted with a bright smile. "What're you doing.".
"I live in a cave near here and was looking for some berries. I was on my way back when I saw the campsite." Cyndaquil replied, in a female voice. "I was just wondering why all those Pokemon are lining up next to that human.".
"Oh, that's Serena. She's our trainer and is really nice and really great at baking treats." Sentret explained, a little fast. "She is giving us all a brush so we have nice shiny coats, see.".
"Um, your coat doesn't look all that shiny to me." Cyndaquil replied, as she gestured towards the normal types fur. It turns out by running around in the dirt and through the shrub that she already destroyed her shiny coat.
"Aww man, I was really liking my shiny coat. Maybe if I get back in line she will brush it and make it shiny again." Sentret replied thoughtfully. "No wait, waiting in a line is boring, you can't run around in a line. The wait while being brush might be worth a shiny coat but adding in a line wait on top of it doesn't make it worth it. But I did get to meet a new friend so losing my shiny coat was worth it anyway.".
"... Okay." Cyndaquil replied, not sure how best to reply to the normal types ramblings. "Do you think if I got in line she would brush my coat? I don't really have anything else to do today and having a shiny coat does sound nice.".
"Oh sure, Serena is really nice like that and if you're lucky she might even let you have one of her treats, they taste really really nice." Sentret replied brightly.
Cyndaquil nodded in understanding before beginning her waddle over to the back of the cue. Unlike Sentret, she really doesn't mind waiting. She likes to take things slow and enjoy her time. Sure, she may not always be able to use the fire on her back because she is always so chilled out but that doesn't matter, being so relaxed means she easily falls asleep at night and in the day she has the sun so she doesn't need the light. Soon she waddled behind Eevee who volunteered to go last.
"Hello, what are you doing here?" Eevee asked in a friendly tone.
"Oh, I just spoke to Sentret, I believe you both share the same trainer, this human girl. I think Sentret called her Serena." Cyndaquil replied. "Anyway, she explained that Serena is making all your coats shiny and it sounded nice so I asked Sentret if she would do mine if I waited in line and she said probably yes. So here I am.".
"Oh well I am sure she will, she is really nice like that." Eevee explained. "But the shiny coat is just one benefit of her brushes. They also help us stay healthy by getting rid of germs and nasty stuff like that and it also makes us feel good which helps when it comes to training and stuff like that.".
"That sounds very useful, I bet having a trainer is really useful than." Cyndaquil replied before something caught her eye. "Um... what's that blue guy doing with a rubber duck?".
"Oh, that's Quagsire and to answer your question... I don't know." Eevee replied.
Just like the two Pokemon observed, Quagsire was walking over to the line with a medium sized rubber duck in flipper. He also had a see-through shower cap on his bald head and a pink towel wrapped around his waist. With a bright dopey smile plastered on his face. He honestly couldn't have looked more ridiculous if he tried.
With the dopey smile plastered on his face and a blank look in his eyes, we waddled over to the line but instead of joining the back of the line like one would expect with any new person in the line, he instead waddled in front of Delphox who was meant to go next based on how lining up works. Having the Water Fish Pokemon cut in front did not sit well with the fire psychic type.
"What do you think your doing?" Delphox asked with annoyance in her voice.
"Lining up, like we were told to." Quagsire replied, in a monotone voice.
Since she has been on edge about knowing her time to prepare before seeing Charizard again has been running out, she isn't in the mood for a rude Pokemon and the monotone voice Quagsire has, is leading her to believe he is being sarcastic. Combining this became too much for the Fire Fox Pokemon. The two Pokemon started an argument about Quagsire having to go to the back of the line.
Of course, he would have to simply because that is the polite thing to do but in all honesty, Delphox could've handled it better. Seeing her two Pokemon argue, Serena ended up stopping Mareep's brush to sort them up. She apologised to the electric type who didn't have an issue as she knew she had to stop them before someone got hurt.
"Delphox! Quagsire!" Serena shouted as she stoop in front of the two Pokemon with her hands on her hips. This brought silence to the two bickering Pokemon's lips as they turned towards their trainer. Although it is rare she has too, Serena can be strict with her Pokemon if they miss behave. Seeing as she has both of their attention, she lowered her voice so she isn't shouting at them. "Quagsire, you can't just cut in front of everyone else. When you join the line, you need to join the back so you wait your turn like everyone else.".
With the same blank look, Quagsire picked up his rubber duck which he dropped in the argument with Delphox and made his was to the back of the cue. It was hard to tell if he was holding back any sort of hidden aggression or just no-understanding of what was going on. With one down, Serena turned to her starter.
"And Delphox, no matter how annoyed you are or what your feeling and it doesn't matter what someone else does. You can't just start an argument with someone, especially not one of your friends." Serena told her starter. The fire psychic type looked down in disappointment as she realised she let her frustration with the Charizard situation control her reaction to Quagsire.
With the argument now over, Serena returned to her seat. After a quick apology to Mareep for interrupting her brush, she got back to the grooming technique. Due to where Delphox was standing, she didn't get to see the new fire type who was now having a nice chat with Eevee, as Quagsire stood behind them humming a nice tune.
Running through the cave mountain, the boys were neck and neck as they tried to figure out where this Cyndaquil could be. Ash had Togepi in his hands as he knew the fairy type wouldn't be able to keep up with them by himself. Pikachu and Sandslash were leading the way, also neck and neck.
The same Pokemon let out another cry but due to them all being within the cave, it was easier for the Pokemon to pick up on which direction it was coming from. Turning down one pathway they ran to a dead end where they showed what this mysterious Pokemon was. Unfortunately, it seems that the Pokemon in question wasn't a Cyndaquil like what they were hoping for. Soon the boys caught up to their partners and saw exactly which Pokemon lead them over here.
"Grr, it's just a stupid Raticate." The boy growled in anger. "Sandslash, teach that thing a lesson with Poison Sting.".
"Wait, you can't just attack Raticate because it's not a Cyndaquil." Ash tried to argue but it fell on deaf ears.
Sandslash jumped into the air before he unleashed a barrage of Poison Stings at the normal type. The attack struck the normal type who up to this point was minding his own business. He cried out in pain but was unable to run anywhere due to being stuck at the dead end where he built his next. Ash clenched his fist in anger as he tried to think of a way to stop Sandslash from hurting this innocent wild Pokemon any more.
Togepi, had enough of seeing this other Sandslash attack Raticate, sure Ash's Sandslash would attack anyone itself but never did he seek out someone, he always attack those who came to him. Waggling his stubby little arms back and forth, they soon began to glow. After about half a minute, they stopped wagging and the very tips of his arms glew bright, Pikachu noticed this and jumped out of the way.
A second later, a strong gust of ghost type wind with a slight purple colouring. It destroyed the poison stings as it also passed straight through Raticate, not effecting him in the slightest. The wind was strong enough to blow Sandslash into his trainers face before both Pokemon and trainer were blown down the cave pathway and away from the others. Screaming as they had no idea how to make whatever was pushing them, stop.
"What just happened?" Ash asked with a blank stare.
"Togepi." Pikachu replied. "Togepi happened.".
"Oh yeah." Togepi cheered.
"... and did he just say-" Ash went to ask.
"Yes, yes he did." Pikachu nodded in agreement. "Now, we can either keep gawking at how he is growing or we can help Raticate, I think he might've been poisoned by that Sandslash.".
"Right." Ash replied, shaking his head clear from his amazement at the fair type. Putting down the Spikeball Pokemon, he also took a Pokeball off his belt. "Come on out, Ivysaur.". In a flash of light, the grass poison type appeared in front of the others.
"I heard from within the ball, congrats Togepi." Ivysaur praised the young Pokemon, who cheered happily at the praise. Ivysaur smiled before he turned towards Ash. "So what do you need from me?".
"You mentioned that you learnt a move for healing status conditions like burns or poisons." Ash explained. "Can you use it on Raticate, we think he's been poisoned.".
"Sure, I can do that." Ivysaur replied. "Aromatherapy!".
A cloud of light green pollen shot out of Ivysaur's plant. It floated over to the Raticate who had a light purple colouring and was also sweating heavily. The normal type began to breath in the mysterious cloud and slowly its purple colouring faded slightly.
"Huh, you was right Pikachu. Calling the attack out is fun." Ivysaur told the electric type.
"Told ya." Pikachu replied with a cocky smirk.
"Hang on Ivysaur, I didn't think Ivysaur's were capable of learning Aromatherapy." Ash replied. "So how did you learn it?".
"Well it is kind of like Synthesis but shooting it outwards and not inward." Ivysaur replied. "And I kind of had to, a couple days after you left for Johto, an Arbok showed up at the lab. He was caught by another trainer, but he started poisoning anyone who came close to him.".
"Why didn't the others mention this?" Pikachu asked.
"For Charizard." Ivysaur replied. "He attempted to beat Arbok for poisoning everyone but only ended up getting poisoned himself, and we didn't want to hurt his ego so we agreed not to mention it unless it naturally came up in conversation. Either way, the professor was running out of antidots and by the time he could get to one of the victims, they would be in a much worst position. So I came up with this idea to help heal any poisoned Pokemon.".
"How did you handle Arbok in the end?" Ash asked.
"Oh, it was after you sent Sandslash back to the lab. We told him someone tried to steal his big bad reputation as the dangerous one on the ranch." Ivysaur explained. "After he showed he wasn't bothered by that, I mentioned that Arbok claimed his rock as his own.".
"Then?" Pikachu asked.
"Arbok ended up in A&E for three days." Ivysaur answered with a pleased tone. "And he hasn't poisoned anyone since, so I would say it worked.".
"But why didn't Aerodactyl or someone try?" Ash asked. "Surely Arbok wouldn't have beaten him, after he defeated a Dragonite, I mean.".
"Well we was going to ask Aerodactyl to help but Charizard volunteered first. Arbok escaped by using dig, and came up next to Charizard once his guard was down to use Toxic on him." Ivysaur explained. "After that, we figured the only one who would stand a chance, without destroying the ranch, is someone able to follow him into the ground.".
"Well... That was interesting." Ash replied. "And it looks like Raticate is feeling better.".
"Yeah, there is all sorts of stuff which happens at the lab when your away." Ivysaur replied. "It could possibly make its own TV comedy show.".
"Well now that that's sorted, why don't we keep looking for a Cyndaquil." Ash suggested to the three Pokemon.
"Sounds good, but can Ivysaur stay out?" Pikachu asked. "I wanna hear some more of these funny stories.".
"Fine with me, as long as Ivysaur is fine with it." Ash replied, picking Togepi back up so he didn't get lost in the cave.
"I'm happy to share some more stories." Ivysaur replied. "How about I tell you about the time Haunter turned Dragonair into a Balloon animal.".
The two Pokemon began to chat away as they walked back towards the exit of the cave. It seems like there is no Cyndaquil in here right now. Ash did slightly wonder what happened to that kid with the Sandslash, after Togepi blew them away they don't know what happened to them.
In actuality, they ended up hitting a big round rock on the edge of the mountain as they were blown all the way to the exit. They did survive and managed to walk away to continue their search for a Cyndaquil but slower due to the boy's aching back.
Back at the campsite, Diglett and Larvitar have been sparring. Although Larvitar is still young, unlike a baby Pokemon, most young Pokemon are able to start battling as soon as they hatch. Larvitar only didn't because of his nature and traumatic experiences in the egg. As the two continue sparring, Brock looked on with a smile.
He is truly proud of the little Larvitar, although he is still very timid, he is slowing opening up to other Pokemon. Sure, he isn't really comfortable around other humans, other than Serena but he has slowly been opening up to other Pokemon, mostly those on Serena's team but he has also opened up to Pikachu somewhat and Brock's other rock and ground types. Just like Diglett, he feels comfortable around those of the same type. Well, apart from Omanyte who is energetic which turns Larvitar off.
Diglett buried underground as he attempted to hide from Larvitar. The rock ground type closed his eyes and seemed to focus hard. Since ground types are sort of one with the ground itself, they can feel slight movements under the ground much easier than any other Pokemon, hence him trying to currently sense Diglett's movements.
Realising that Larvitar has yet to master the art of sensing underground movements, no shame in it, Diglett took over a year to learn it even with the help from Onix, Golem and Rhyhorn. So Diglett popped up in front of Larvitar, he doesn't want to hurt the rock ground type, especially since the first half of the sparring match was to help him get stronger so now they are focusing on getting Larvitar better now.
Unfortunately, Larvitar isn't one for surprises. Seeing the ground type appear out of nowhere, extremely close to him, Larvitar rolled back in shock, losing all focus and startled by the surprise. He ended up on his behind as he stared blankly at Diglett, why would he scare him like that? Larvitar didn't scare Diglett when helping him get better with sparring. Unsure about what to make of the situation, Larvitar burst into tears with a loud screech.
"Larvitar?" Serena questioned, upon hearing the familiar cry. She was just about to start brushing Delphox and also start the chat with her about Ash's plans for the Azalea gym battle but she is also the only one able to comfort Larvitar when he gets into this state.
Serena stood up and looked around to notice Brock also going towards the rock ground type. Although they were both soon brought to a stop as they felt the ground start shaking, like Golem used Earthquake. They both looked around as none of the Pokemon that could use that move in the group would use it in this very situation, after all, they are all responsible. Diglett closed his eyes as he attempted to sense what was causing this ground shaking, blocking out everything else around him.
Soon, he felt it. Something very large, moving very fast towards by himself and Larvitar is on its way. He isn't sure what but by the rate of how the vibrations are increasing, it will be a matter of seconds. Acting on instinct alone, he turned towards Larvitar and tackled him, getting the rock ground type hooked on his head. He knows this will probably make the young Pokemon scared to be around him ever again but it is a matter of life and death, so he will take that risk.
Diglett barely had time to change direction before he noticed what the source of the rolling was. A very large boulder was rolling down out off control and crushing anything in its path. Now that it was in sight, Diglett shot straight ahead in hopes of getting out of the way. Normally he would be faster by himself but with Larvitar as well, he was being heavily slowed down. It looked like the boulder would end up crushing them before they got the chance to escape.
Digging deep inside, Diglett thought about everything he has been through. He wasn't that old when he first met Brock all that time ago, just under a year old. He had been separated from his parents and the rest of his pack and was scared but Brock brought him in. For a long time, he was only comfortable around Brock's other ground types but slowly he opened up to both Golbat and Vulpix. Now he is even helping Stantler do the same.
All this combined along with his desire to protect not only himself but also Larvitar who in a lot of ways reminds Diglett of himself, scared, young and feeling alone with only the trust of his trainer, Diglett discovered something important. The want to not get crushed by a boulder. Of course, he already knew he didn't want to die but this realisation that it is now a very real possibility is what he discovered. In a flash of light, he began to glow white and sped up tremendously.
Being able to make it out of the boulders path of destruction, the newly-evolved Dugtrio stopped in front of Serena, with the crying Larvitar still on his head. Everyone seemed frozen as it all happened in a blur. In a shocked state, Serena silently picked up her young crying Pokemon and scanned the newly-evolved ground type:
Dugtrio, The Mole Pokemon and the final evolved form of Diglett. While the three of them normally get along splendidly, on rare occasions a huge fight will break out over which head gets to eat first. What the underside of a Dugtrio looks like is one of the world's greatest mysteries.
However, the danger was far from over. The boulder continued down its path of destruction with a new target in its way, Primeape. But instead of attempting to move out of the way, the fighting type had his eyes closed and fist clenched. The fist began to glow and as the boulder got closer, Primeape punched forward with all his might. The boulder shattered into millions of pieces of rubble as it was unable to withstand the force of Primeape Dynamic Punch.
Primeape smirked proudly, he was hoping to show off his mastery of one of the most powerful fighting type moves in a battle with Ash here but desperate times called for desperate measures. He didn't mean to take away from Dugtrio's big moment, but he wasn't about to become a splat on the ground either.
"Didn't Ash take Primeape with him?" Misty asked with curiosity.
"Actually, he let both Primeape and Heracross out before he left as Heracross has been getting close to mastering something Primeape has been showing him." Brock explained. "So I guess the true question is where did Heracross go?".
"I think he's hiding in the tree, scared by the rock." Misty replied, as she pointed up to a tree where the blue beetle was hiding.
It took nearly half an hour but eventually Serena was able to rock Larvitar into a peaceful speed. Now that he was taking a nice little nap, she placed him in her backpack before returning to her previous seat and she started to brush her fire psychic starter.
"Sorry about that, Delphox." Serena apologised.
"Del Delphox." Delphox shook her head, saying that Serena didn't need to apologise as it was just a matter of what she has to do.
"Thank you." Serena smiled as she continued to brush Delphox's fur, even if she can't fully understand what Delphox said, she knows her well enough to get what she means, after all she isn't quite ready to They sat in a comfortable silence for a couple of minutes before Serena decided to break the news. "So Delphox, I have to tell you something... and it's not exactly good news.".
"Del?" Delphox asked, with concern evident in her voice.
"Ya see Delphox, Ash and I were talking about his plans for the Azalea gym." Serena started slowly. "It's going to be a bug type gym and after how neither Heracross or Chikorita got to take part in the Violet gym, he didn't want them to miss out.".
"Delphox." Delphox replied, which Serena semi-translated to 'understandable'.
"So assuming the gym battle will be three on three, like most gym battles are." Serena continued. "He will use both Heracross and Chikorita but bring over someone from the ranch in case they aren't enough... and he told me, he plans to bring over Charizard since it is a bug gym.".
"Phox..." Delphox replied, which Serena semi-translated to 'oh'.
"The way I see it Delphox, we have three options. Either you stay on the team and pretend like everything is fine with Charizard, at least until you decide your ready to tell him. Or I send you back to the lab when Ash transfers him over." Serena explained. "But there is a good chance both Ash and Charizard will recognise something is wrong with that. And if Ash asks me, while I am happy to keep your secret, I don't know if I would be able to straight up lie in that situation.".
"Delphox." The Fire Fox muttered sadly.
"Or the final option is, you come clean. Make the whole slate clear and tell Charizard how you feel." Serena emphasised this point. "If I was in your position, I know this final option would be the best one... but I also know that is easier said than done so take your time to think about it.".
Delphox nodded in understanding and sat still as Serena continued her brush. Serena knew after hearing this, her starter wouldn't be in much of a talking mood and she is happy to just let her think. Thinking she did. Delphox would mostly likely want to go back to the lab but if she did, she couldn't expect Serena to keep switching her in to avoid Charizard. Not only would it be unfair to her fellow team mates but it could put strain on her relationship with Ash, which is what she wanted to avoid in the first place.
Although she isn't entirely sure she is able to come clean right now. She is quite honestly stuck between a rock and a hard place. While she wants to say she will be ready to confess to Charizard when he arrives, she isn't entirely sure she will be. What should she do?
"And done." Serena announced.
With that Delphox stood up and uttered a quite 'Del' which Serena could guess was her thanks. With that, Delphox wandered away to go and continue her thoughts about what she would do when the time comes. Eevee saw this and went after her, of course she will let Serena brush her fur later but right now her friend needs a shoulder to cry on. With Eevee no-longer in the cue, the next Pokemon for some grooming was Cyndaquil.
"Hello... What are you doing here?" Serena spoke softly as she looked at the next Pokemon in a line. She didn't expect to see a Cyndaquil, at least not in her line for grooming, maybe she expected Ash to bring one back but this is a sort of pleasant surprise.
"Cynda." Cyndaquil waved hello.
"Have you lined up to get a brush like the other Pokemon?" Serena asked.
"Quil." Cyndaquil nodded to answer the question.
Seeing as she didn't have the flame on her back active, Serena smiled and picked the small fire type up. The fire type lay on Serena's lap and cooed at the cosy feeling, she has been living alone for so long that it was nice to have someone to be close to. She did live on a Cyndaquil farm which was ran by a breeder who got them ready to be ready for being a starter Pokemon but she didn't like the idea of that so she went off on her own.
It was the horror stories she heard about different trainers from the breeder's Typhlosion, looking back, he was probably just trying to scare them but it really put her off, plus she is a very relaxed personality so the idea of hard work and battling was off putting by itself.
"So let's just start with a nice brush." Serena told the fire mouse Pokemon.
Grabbing the brush, she placed it by Cyndaquil neck before running it along the fire types back. Since the fire wasn't active, Serena noticed four red spots which is likely where the fire comes out off. Not sure if she should or shouldn't brush them, Serena realised that they were positioned in a place where she couldn't really avoid them and she realised a little too late. As the brush went over the first spot, Cyndaquil's reaction surprised Serena.
She assumed it might cause her flames to burst out, of course if it did and she got hurt she wouldn't blame Cyndaquil as it might've out of her control and Cyndaquil hasn't shown the least bit of hostility. Although there were no flames in sight, instead Cyndaquil's reaction was one of laughter. Those spots are pretty ticklish.
"Hehehe, are you ticklish there?" Serena giggled, seeing the fire types reaction.
Cyndaquil replied happily before Serena continued to brush the fire type. She tried her best not to tickle Cyndaquil too much but a bit of it was unavoidable. They continued to converse - well it was mainly Serena talking since she didn't get to understand Cyndaquil well enough to get the idea of what she was saying.
"And done, there you go Cyndaquil all your fur has been brushed." Serena smiled at the fire type.
"Cynda." Cyndaquil frowned, she was enjoying this pampering, why did it have to end now?
"Sorry Cyndaquil, I would love to spend more time with you but I still have to give Quagsire his grooming and Eevee as well." Serena explained. "And depending on when Ash gets back, we might be travelling some more today. So we can't really hang around.".
Cyndaquil looked down while she was still on Serena's knee, originally she only came over to waste some time and get some nice pampering. While she did get that, she also made a friend in Eevee and was very fond of Sentret despite the nearly polar opposite personalities. Then, as she was being brushed and listened to Serena speak, she realised that she actually has a lot in common with this girl. She like to look her best and while she isn't fond of normal battles she does like the idea of contest battles, or at least the appeals round. As she looked down, she spotted some of Serena's Pokeballs attached to her belt.
"Cynda Cyndaquil?" Cyndaquil asked, with a pleading look.
"What?" Serena asked, not sure what the fire type said.
Cyndaquil sweat dropped, of course she wouldn't be able to understand what she just said. Thinking quickly, she repeated what she said but slower, this time also pointing at the Pokeballs on her belt before pointing to herself. This seemed to get the message across to the honey-blonde girl.
"You want to become my Pokemon?" Serena asked.
"Quil." Cyndaquil nodded yes as confirmation.
"But, I already told you my boyfriend is out looking for a Cyndaquil. Wouldn't you prefer to join him since he was so interested in catching a Cyndaquil and from what I've gathered from what you said, you are the only Cyndaquil around here." Serena replied, would it be wrong for her to catch a Pokemon Ash clearly showed he wanted to catch.
"Cynda." The fire mouse Pokemon shook her head in a 'no' fashion. She then began to make punching motions in time with what she said next. "Cyn-da-quil.".
"You mean your not interesting in battling?" Serena guessed.
"Quil." Cyndaquil nodded yes as confirmation.
Serena looked conflicted, while she would hate to catch a Pokemon which she knows someone else is after, let alone her own boyfriend she also would hate to let a Pokemon get caught by someone they clearly showed they didn't want to be caught by. Well, knowing Ash wouldn't catch a Pokemon if he knew they didn't want to be caught, she realised that it is just as much Cyndaquil's decision and she can't be sure the other boy they met would be as thoughtful.
"Okay then Cyndaquil. If you want to join my team, here you go." Serena smiled as she reached for an empty Pokemon before holding it in front of the fire type. The female fire mouse looked at the object before poking the centre with her nose and soon she was sucked inside. The ball didn't even wiggle before dinging to show the fire type had been caught. Serena decided to scan her new Pokemon with her Pokedex:
Cyndaquil, The Fire Mouse Pokemon. Cyndaquil protects itself by flaring up the flames on its back. The flames are vigorous if the Pokémon is angry. However, if it is tired, the flames sputter fitfully with incomplete combustion.
Type: Fire
Ability: Blaze
Hidden Ability: Flash Fire (Note: The hidden Ability is locked)
Gender: Female
Nature: Relaxed (Note: The nature could change when this Pokemon evolves)
Move(s): Tackle, Leer, Smoke Screen, Ember, Flame Wheel, Defence Curl
Serena's Pokedex screen lit up with images of all of his current on hand Pokemon. Delphox, Eevee, Larvitar, Sentret, Mareep, Quagsire and Cyndaquil. Due to all her Pokemon being out of their Pokeballs except for Cyndaquil, they were all blacked out excepted for Cyndaquil yet again.
"Please select which Pokemon you wish to send back." The device requested.
Looking over her options, Serena realised this is going to be a very difficult decision. The obvious option would be either Delphox or Eevee since they have been on her team for a long time but she doesn't want to send Delphox back after the news she had to give to her starter and Eevee is currently giving her emotional support. Although she didn't want to, she might have to send one of her Johto Pokemon to the lab.
With a sad sigh, she looked around at all her Johto Pokemon. She doesn't think Larvitar is ready to leave her side yet, especially after the frightening experience earlier and Mareep and Quagsire are still very new, same with Cyndaquil obviously. That leaves Sentret, well, she would like to run around the ranch right?
"Sentret!" Serena called out, so the normal type came running up to her with an excited look on her face. She doesn't know what Serena wants but she is very easy to excite so it isn't really and any surprise.
"Sen?" Sentret asked.
"Hey Sentret, look. You know the Cyndaquil from earlier." Serena started slowly, with Sentret nodding to answer the question. "Well I just caught her so she is on our team, but I can only have six Pokemon with me at any one time. I was thinking, would you like to visit the lab? There is a big massive ranch for you to run around and all my other Pokemon are their so you can play with Roo and Kangashkan again. Does that sound fun?".
"Sen Sentret!" Sentret nodded excitedly, she has really missed playing with Roo, and just the mention of the big ranch for her to run around and explore has got her all excited. She loves to run and explore new places. Serena smiled that Sentret doesn't have a problem with this, it makes things so much easier. She took her Pokeball out and returned the normal type. Once the image lit up on the Pokedex, she clicked Sentret's picture and it was teleported away.
"Quagsire." Quagsire sat in front of her. It is finally his turn for a good pampering.
"Okay Quagsire, you did wait in the line like you was meant to after all." Serena smiled at the water ground type. She let the fire type out of the Pokeball so she could go and meet the others before turning back to the water fish Pokemon. Grabbing a wet cloth, she began to rub Quagsire as he has no fur to brush for his pampering.
Quagsire smiled happily before squeezing his rubber duck which made a high pitched noise.
Since the search for a Cyndaquil didn't go as planned, Ash, Pikachu, Ivysaur and Togepi began to walk back to the others. On the way back, they ran into the boy with his Sandslash again but this time he was holding his back in some sort of pain. When the boy spotted Ash, despite not saying anything, he straightened up not to show any signs of weakness. He also started to walk in the same direction but a little faster as to keep ahead of Ash.
The raven-haired boy sighed as he realised this kid is attempting to get a raise out of him. If this was a year ago, then he probably would've taken up the challenge and walked a little faster to over take him, but now he is mature and doesn't need to prove himself in a little competition like that.
"Hey guys, how's it going?" Ash called out as he appeared in the campsite where his friends were waiting.
They all turned around to see the Ash walking back. Before Ash could get a look at everyone, Serena engulfed him in a hug with a peck on the check. It's not like she missed him in the short time he was gone, she isn't that clingy, but she wanted to tell Ash about Cyndaquil before he saw her himself and before any misunderstanding could be made.
"Welcome back Ash." Serena greeted. "Listen, I have to tell you someth-".
"Ha, finally I found that Cyndaquil!" The boy exclaimed as he grabbed an empty Pokeball. Throwing it at the fire type, Cyndaquil attempted to run away but wasn't fast enough. The ball hit her and attempted to suck her inside but couldn't do so. She quickly ran and hid behind Serena's leg. "What!".
"I already caught Cyndaquil, she is on my team now." Serena explained before turning to Ash. "Sorry Ash, I know you wanted to catch one but she came to me and after I gave her brush, which she asked if I would catch her. She also made it clear she isn't to fond of the idea of battles but was interested in appeals performances.".
"Its okay Serena, I wouldn't have made her join my team if she really didn't want to." Ash reassured.
"Hehehe, well since the this kid is out of the race." The kid smirked arrogantly as he approached Serena. "I challenge you to a battle, and the winner gets to keep the Cyndaquil.".
"Why should Serena battle for the Cyndaquil when she already caught her?" Misty asked, angry.
"Well I guess if she is too scared." The boy replied, trying to get a raise out of her.
"I am not to scared but I have spent the whole day making sure all my Pokemon look the best with some new breeding techniques so I don't want to ruin all that work with a battle, sorry." Serena replied simply. "Now if you excuse me, I need to wake my Larvitar up from his nap.".
The boy in question was left in shock as Serena picked up the fire mouse Pokemon and wandered over to the bench where Larvitar was still napping. Ash saw the boys expression and frowned, he can remember when he was still a young trainer and would try and get a raise out of his rivals like Gary.
"Look kid, I know you're disappointed but I am also guessing your still a fairly new trainer." Ash spoke to the boy.
"I am not still a new trainer, I have been a trainer for a whole six months now." The boy replied.
"Still, in the long term that isn't very long." Ash explained. "You need to understand that even if you want a particular Pokemon on team, not everything works out that way and you can't force others to make what you want happen to happen.".
"... Yeah, I guess you're right." The boy sighed sadly. "I just wanted a Cyndaquil really badly as my brother took it as the option when we went to Elm's lab to get our starter and because the other two were taken, I was given a Sandshrew.".
"Huh, that sounds pretty similar to when Serena & myself got our starters." Ash replied. "You see, Serena got her starter as a gift from her father. He died before I met her but he asked a breeder to raise a Pokemon for her for when she started. While the other three starters was taken by our two friends who started at the same time and my brother. So in the end, I started with Pikachu. But I'll tell you something, I wouldn't trade him for any Pokemon in the world.".
"Huh?" The boy questioned as he looked down at Sandslash. He can remember back before he evolved that he would always try his hardest to win every battle, almost like he was competing with someone, but the boy was always more focused on the Cyndaquil which never was. He has been looking at this completely the wrong way.
"I-I'm sorry Sandslash, I was so hung up over not getting a Cyndaquil I guess I made you feel inferior by comparison." The boy cried. "I didn't mean to be so mean to you.".
"Sandslash." The ground type replied, giving his trainer a hug.
"I promise from now on, we will be a team. I don't care if I catch a Cyndaquil or not, as long as you're with me we can win the Silver Conference, no-doubt." The boy cried.
"That's what I like to hear." Ash smiled. "And how about we seal this promise with a battle, to mark your new beginning.".
"Um, sure." The boy replied, drying his eyes. "My names Koji, by the way.".
"Alright, now I get to battle." Pikachu smiled as he took up a battle stance.
"Actually, would you mind if I take this one?" Ivysaur asked.
"Huh, how come Ivysaur?" Ash asked.
"Well, you remember when I evolved, it was back when you caught your own Sandslash." Ivysaur explained. "You know I've had issues with myself and my evolution since that time but after learning the more defensive style and some soul searching. I think I am finally ready to evolve again.".
"Does that mean you think you'll evolve in this battle?" Ash asked.
"I doubt it, I have been putting my evolution to Venusaur off for a while now, since just after the Indigo League was when I first felt my body try once more." Ivysaur explained. "After fighting it for so long, I don't know when my body will try again but when it does, I won't resist it. I want this battle to symbolise my coming to terms with my evolution, because my problems started in a battle with a Sandslash so it seems fitting to end that way.".
"Well, I can't argue with that. Are you alright to sit this one out, Pikachu?" Ash asked.
"Sure, I guess I can't really compare my want to battle for the sake of a battle to your reason Ivysaur." Pikachu replied.
"Thank you, both." Ivysaur replied before taking a step up to the ground type and entering a battle stance. Brock took up the position of the referee.
"This will be a one on one battle between Ash and Ivysaur against Koji and his Sandslash." Brock declared. "There is no time limit and no substitutions can be made. The battle will be over once one side is determined unable to battle... Begin!".
Ash VS Koji:
"Start off with a Slash Attack!" Koji shouted, making the first move.
Sandslash scrapped his claws together as they glew white. He spread both his arms out as his claws grew bigger and began to run towards the grass poison type. Ash smiled as he knew that he didn't need to tell his Ivysaur what to do in this situation.
Ivysaur started the ground type down, not showing the slightest bit of fear as the opponent ran towards him. Two vines shot out of the plant on his back and they shot forward towards Sandslash. Despite being faster than Ivysaur, Sandslash wasn't that fast himself. The vines wrapped around Sandslash's arm.
The ground type went to slash the vines but before it could slash the vines, Ivysaur began to pull the ground type so he lost his balance. Two more vines shot out and wrapped around Sandslash immobilising him. Ivysaur might've had a much bigger advantage as he often had to restrain Ash's Sandslash when he lost his temper at the ranch.
"Leech Seed!" Ash shouted.
With Sandslash struggling to escape from Ivysaur's vines, the grass poison type produced a small seed in the top of the plant on his back. Luckily, this Sandslash isn't as vicious or physically as strong as Ash's so Ivysaur wasn't having much difficulty with restraining him. The seed shot out of Ivysaur's plant before it landed on Sandslash's head. The seed burst open and roots expanded out wrapping around the ground type.
Now that he has a constant damage being dealt to his opponent and also a healing source all at once, Ivysaur decided to lift the ground type above his head and threw the ground type away. Sandslash crashed into the ground as he was zapped by red as the leech seed stole some of his energy. Ivysaur also glew as a result, regaining health.
"Rollout!" Koji shouted.
Since he was already on the floor, it didn't take much effort for Sandslash to curl up into a ball but instead of going straight for Ivysaur, he rolled away from the grass poison type. As the rolled, the roots on the outside part of his body were destroyed but they continued to grow back.
Ash realised that Sandslash was building up the Rollout momentum before even trying to hit Ivysaur. Before he could think off a counter or inform Ivysaur of this, the ground type turned around and went to collide with Ivysaur who couldn't react in time due to the speed Sandslash was rolling at.
"Sludge Bomb the ground around you!" Ash called out.
Shaking his head after the impact, Ivysaur was far from out. While it was a powerful hit, it wasn't very effective in terms of typing but he could respect the ground type for the strength. Still he is very defensive and can take a lot of punishment from his opponents.
The plant on his back extended upwards and several large blobs of purple toxic sludge shot out of the plant. They went and hit the ground around Ivysaur, with them bursting open and turned the ground around him into a toxic waste land.
Sandslash wasn't aware of this new development due to him still rolling. He had turned around and was now going back to try and hit Ivysaur again. Koji attempted to call out a warning to his ground type but it was too late. He rolled onto the purple sludge which burnt like hell, causing him to cancel his Rollout. He began to roll around as he attempted to get out of the toxic pool but the poison combined with the leech seed was making it very difficult.
"Take Down!" Ash shouted.
Ivysaur scrapped his foot against the floor as before charging off at a slow pace towards the struggling ground type. He went over the toxic sludge but due to his poison typing, he didn't have the trouble Sandslash was having. A power barrier formed around him and he slammed into the ground type. Sandslash was sent flying and he landed out of the toxic sludge next to Koji. The leech seed absorbed the last bit of health from Sandslash, causing swirls to appear in his eyes.
"Sandslash is unable to battle, meaning the victors are Ash and Ivysaur." Brock declared.
Thanks for reading... Please Favourite, Follow and Review. Also, feel free to ask any questions through PM, I will answer them all, although don't expect too big of spoilers. Don't forget to vote in the polls. I really appreciate the support. Thank you and see ya next time...