Author's Note:
IPL round 2 coming up, and this time, the battles come first. I apologize in advance for a very goofy little moment for Clemont. Anyways, let's go to the chapter.
Chapter 28: Clemontic Geared Up
The bus arrived in Shalour City fairly late on the Friday night, so the Lumiose University crew were quick to get to bed, their first meetings with the Shalour College IPL teams left until the next day. When Ash woke up in his room in the Pokemon Centre, hearing Clemont already getting his things ready to go and get breakfast, he quickly got up, rushing to the washroom to get himself ready, and in his uniform. When he got out, Ash saw Pikachu up and ready to go, while Clemont was checking to make sure he had his backpack in order.
"Ready to go win this thing?" Ash asked, holding up his fist, smiling confidently. He was ready to show his friends and Pokemon that he wasn't letting Anton, or the rest of his losses, get to him. It was time to move forward. When Sycamore had mentioned that the Battle Team would be starting off the weekend's matchups, Ash had been immediately fired up.
Clemont chuckled a little nervously, fiddling with his hat, clearly still as uncomfortable with it as he'd been the first time he'd worn it. "I guess so. It definitely can't go worse than last time, right? And at least Korrina might be a better sport."
Ash shrugged as Pikachu joined the two of them at the door and they exited the room, thinking of the Shalour Gym Leader and the battle he'd had with her way back for his Rumble Badge. "Korrina might be a better sport, but she definitely won't be an easy opponent to beat. It'll be really fun to battle her again, though. How do you feel about another battle against Lucario, Pikachu?" he asked, as Pikachu hopped up onto his shoulder and they started heading down the hall towards the lobby of the Pokemon Centre.
"Pika! Chu pi!" Pikachu announced, tensed up in excitement, looking more than ready to go toe to toe with the powerful fighting type once more. He wasn't one to be scared off by a difficult matchup, and loved a good challenge.
"It'll be interesting to meet the other members of the team," Clemont said, pushing open the door that led into the lobby. Ash could see that Dawn and Serena were already sitting at a table, the latter looking up as he and Clemont entered, waving them over. "I hope they're not as...um...you know, disinterested as the Laverre trainers."
"I hope not," Ash said with a laugh. The two then made their way over to the table Dawn and Serena were at, Ash sitting down next to Dawn, while Clemont sat next to Serena. Ash thought he saw a flash of disappointment on Serena's face as she looked at him, and wondered if something was wrong with Absol. When he asked, though, she just blushed, quickly shaking her head.
"Oh, no Absol's fine," she said, looking down at her plate of breakfast. "Nurse Joy's doing a quick checkup on him before we head over to the battlefield. It looked like he'd had a pretty good sleep last night, so I think he'll be ready to cheer everyone on."
Dawn giggled a little, getting a curious look from the three at the table. "I certainly hope he's well rested. He slept on your lap the whole bus ride!"
Serena smiled at that, looking over towards the front desk, as though hoping Nurse Joy was going to show up in that moment with Absol. "I'm glad Absol was able to come with us," she finally said, turning back to the group, while a Wigglytuff appeared at the table to give Ash and Clemont a plate of food each. "I'm hoping he can learn a few things about performances, and maybe even contests, with the matches tomorrow. And of course, he'll be able to learn about never giving up from watching you battle, Ash."
Ash rubbed his nose, a little embarrassed at that, as Dawn giggled at him. "I bet Absol will learn lots from us," he finally said, beginning to eat. "He's already shown some real guts with the way he's healed so far. Escaping from that hunter showed that he was determined."
As Ash dug into his food, he noticed the front door of the Pokemon Centre opening, just as Professor Sycamore was coming into the lobby, followed by Agatha, Flint and Fantina, all holding clipboards like they'd been making notes. Ash had no idea why they'd found the need to do that, but didn't really care at the moment, as he noticed just who was entering the Pokemon Centre.
"Korrina!" he exclaimed, waving and then quickly stuffing some more food in his mouth, trying to finish as quickly as possible. He started choking, though, and as Korrina looked over and started approaching, her eyes widened as he began coughing, only stopped by Dawn hitting his back.
"Try not to choke to death before our battles, Ash," Korrina joked as she came by the table, Ash taking a quick drink of water to recover. "How's it going, everyone?" she asked, looking at the group, looking a little confused as Clemont avoided eye contact, focusing on his food.
"Not bad," Serena answered, casting a nervous glance towards Ash before looking back at Korrina. "We got in pretty late last night, so I think we're all anxious to get things started."
"Yeah, although I kind of wish the performances started today," Dawn admitted, looking over to where Piplup and Pikachu were eating their food.
"You guys will get your chance soon enough," Korrina assured her, looking behind her as the door opened once again, a few other people, all their age and in uniforms that looked like they represented a Lucario's colouring. The girls were wearing light blue skirts with black tank tops with a yellow stripe at the bottom. The guys wore black pants, and a blue jacket with grey sleeves and a yellow stripe. Both had blue hats wear a Lucario could be seen punching the air. "Looks like my teammates are here, so you'll get to see what you're up against," Korrina added, laughing as Sycamore's group greeted the Shalour students. "You guys finish up eating. I've still gotta go get changed into my uniform."
As Korrina quickly rushed towards where the washrooms were, Ash noticed the activity in the lobby increase even more, as Marie, Bonnie, Shauna, Tierno and Trevor finally entered, quickly approaching and seating themselves at the table next to theirs. "Ready to get your groove on, guys?" Tierno asked, nodding in thanks at the Wigglytuff that appeared quickly to give their plates of food.
"You bet!" Ash said confidently. "Pikachu and I are all set to win this thing."
Trevor and Clemont both nodded in agreement, both looking just as fired up now, especially with the Shalour team now in front of them. "So those are our opponents?" Trevor asked, nodding towards the group of students talking with Professor Sycamore and the coaches. "Anyone know anything about them?"
Ash, and those at his table shook their heads, but surprisingly, Marie spoke up, narrowing her eyes as she looked at the Shalour team. "I think I recognize a couple of them, actually," she said, surprising everyone among the group. She ignored the surprised glances and pointed towards a boy with black hair tied back in a ponytail, who almost seemed to know he was being pointed out, as he looked over and gave a wave, seemingly focusing his gaze on Dawn. "That guy's name is Dusk. He finished in the top eight in the Unova and Johto Leagues. I watched a few tapes of their battles a couple of weeks ago. The guy next to him, Clayton, finished top sixteen in both those leagues. And the one talking to Professor Sycamore is Sumato. He finished top sixteen in the Hoenn League."
Everyone stared at Marie in shock, definitely not having expected her to know so much about the opposing trainers. "How did you learn so much about these people?" Ash asked, laughing a little as the young Joy blushed.
"Well after the last IPL match, I thought I'd see what some of the Nurse Joys could tell me, since they probably see these trainers a lot. I would've told you sooner, but you guys were all so busy with training that I-"
"Marie, you're the best!" Ash interrupted, looking back over to the Shalour students, a couple of them looking back curiously. It seemed like Professor Sycamore was telling them something that wasn't the most exciting of stories, so their attention was wavering. Ash was a little confused, though, as Marie had mentioned three trainers being League trainers, despite the IPL battle teams only having three trainers each, and Korrina obviously being one of them.
"It's not that much information," Marie pointed out, smiling shyly.
"It's definitely a lot more than we had last time," Clemont told her, turning around and glancing over at their opponents. "Anything helps, Marie. It's a good thing you came along."
The group was quick to finish up their meals after that, Clemont pointing out that it looked like Professor Sycamore had forgotten that the teams needed to be introduced to each other. Fortunately, though, this seemed to give Korrina the time she needed to get changed, and as she approached from the washrooms in her outfit, the group got up from their seats to head over to meet the Shalour team, Pikachu running over to hop up onto Ash's shoulder.
"Wow! Korrina, you look great!" Dawn complimented as Korrina joined them, the Shalour Gym leader adjusting her hat as she slowed up to walk next to Clemont, who immediately seemed to tense up at her presence.
"Thanks!" Korrina said, smiling, flicking her hair a little. "I'm not really a fan of these uniforms, but Dusk keeps telling me I look good in it, so I guess it's okay."
"I...I think y-you look good too," Clemont suddenly said, somehow tensing up even more. Ash wondered if he'd eaten something bad, because he seemed to be acting pretty strangely.
"Aww, poor Clemont's jealous," Ash heard Shauna whisper to Serena, which made him even more confused.
"Korrina's a real keeper!" Bonnie added.
Korrina looked quite happy with the compliment, but didn't say anything as they all stopped in front of the Shalour team, just as Professor Sycamore seemed to be finishing up a story about an argument he and Gurkinn had had about Mega Evolution. He greeted the Lumiose students and stepped back, apparently deciding they could introduce themselves. Korrina quickly moved over to stand in front of her team, the boy named Dusk quickly stepping up next to her. "Well, everyone, I'd like you to meet my team. This here is Dusk, the Captain of the Performance Team. He's a Coordinator, but he's mostly participated in League competition before."
Ash nodded, glad to know why there had been three trainers who'd participated in leagues before. Dusk stepped forward as Korrina finished, holding out his hand to Ash, who quickly shook it, also stepping forward, Dawn joining him. Dusk then smiled, looking at Dawn as he shook her hand. "I actually decided to become a Coordinator because of you, Dawn. You're really quite something. Hopefully we can have a good battle tomorrow."
"I'm sure we will," Dawn assured him, smiling a little awkwardly, a little taken aback by Dusk's admission.
Dusk nodded once more, and then proceeded to introduce his Performance Team. "This here is Desiree, an old friend of mine from Violet City in Johto. And these are Melissa and Kathy. Melissa's a Coordinator as well, while Desiree and Kathy are performers." He then smiled again, locking eyes with Serena. "I suppose they'll be going up against the fair Serena, there," he added, winking at her.
Ash's eyes narrowed a little at that, and he quickly nudged Dawn, hoping for her to introduce her team. "Um, right," she muttered, looking back at Tierno, Shauna and Serena. "This is Tierno, a new dancing Coordinator, who also used to compete in regular battles. And I guess you apparently know who Serena and Shauna are. They both did quite well in the Masterclass Showcase here in Kalos."
"Haha, they sure did," Dusk said, winking once more at Serena, and then reaching out to give Dawn an overly long handshake. "Nice to meet you all."
Ash, felt a little tensed up at this point and looked at Korrina, who looked a little surprised at his look, although she managed to quickly recover and started introducing her team, who Ash was familiar with already, thanks to Marie. He then turned to look at Clemont, Bonnie and Trevor, gesturing to them. "Well our team consists of Trevor, Clemont and me. And Clemont's sister Bonnie is here as well," he said, looking back at Korrina, Clayton and Sumato. "Don't expect an easy match from any of us. We're not going down easily."
"Well, we look forward to a tough battle, Ash," Korrina said, smirking as she stepped forward, holding out her hand, which Ash reached out to shake. Her eyes then went behind him, where Clemont and Trevor were standing. "A good battle tells me a lot about a person."
"Marvellous!" Sycamore said, stepping forward, ending the short handshake. "Now, I believe it's time for us to head on out to the battlefield. Gurkinn will likely be waiting for us, and I bet your classmates have already started packing the stands."
When they arrived at the battlefield, it was to find out that Sycamore was indeed correct about Gurkinn waiting, with a very anxious crowd already packing the stands. Clemont was pretty shocked to see so many students there, and how well set up the battlefield was. It wasn't as big as Lumiose University's, but for what he assumed was a smaller school, with it not being in as big of a city, it was quite impressive.
Gurkinn had been quick to introduce the Lumiose University team to the crowd, where Clemont was surprised to hear boos raining down on him and his friends. He supposed he should have expected it, considering that whenever he'd watched sports, the visiting team was often booed. However, it was still a little unnerving. He was happy to have Ash next to him, though, just laughing it off.
When the introductions were completed, Gurkinn then shook hands with Sycamore, while Korrina, Ash, Dawn and Dusk also shook hands, and then all six of them returned to the sidelines, while a referee approached the opposite side of the battlefield. The Performance teams quickly got themselves seated, while the Battle teams stood by, waiting to see who would go out to battle first. With the way Ash seemed so fired up, Clemont assumed he was likely the most interested in battling first. If Korrina was battling later, though, that would likely force him to wait.
The thought of the Shalour Gym leader caused Clemont to look over towards her once more, while Gurkinn and Sycamore each went to discuss something with their coaches. As they waited, Ash and Trevor started talking, while the two other Shalour battlers were conversing as well, leaving Clemont and Korrina waiting silently.
"You look a little nervous, Clemont," Korrina pointed out, looking him up and down. "You're all tensed up. Are you going to be all right?"
"Y-yeah, I'll be fine," Clemont said awkwardly, feeling his cheeks heat up. Why was he so nervous...again? He glanced over to where his friends were sitting, seeing Serena talking to Absol sitting in front of her, while Shauna and Bonnie giggled, watching Clemont's little conversation that was going on.
"I've been thinking, Clemont," Korrina said, snapping his attention back to her, "I bet Ash is probably expecting to battle me, but..." She shrugged, looking over to Sycamore and Gurkinn, apparently deciding it wasn't worth it.
Clemont wasn't sure what she was going to say, but he glanced over to Ash, seeing him animatedly talking to Trevor. "I think he's excited about battling, regardless. He'll probably just run onto the battlefield no matter who his opponent is right now."
Korrina laughed at that, making Clemont smile a little. "I know how he feels. You should've seen the both of us when we were battling for the Shalour Gym Battle. I've never had a battle like it before, and haven't had one since. I bet it was the same for you when he challenged your gym."
"Um...well I wasn't there," Clemont admitted, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. "I have a bit of a problem with being at my gym enough. Clembot, the robot that I designed, is usually in charge there. That's why I enrolled at Lumiose University. I want to be a better Gym Leader."
"Oh," Korrina looked a little disappointed at that, making Clemont feel even more embarrassed, but eventually she just smiled, shruggin it off and laughing once more. "I guess you and I are kind of the same, then, Clemont. We're both trying to learn to be better gym leaders."
"Yeah, I guess so," Clemont realized, smiling as well. "Maybe..."
"All right, ladies and gentlemen!" Gurkinn's voice started speaking, as he approached the edge of the battlefield, looking around at the people in the stands, holding up a megaphone. "The first match of the Battle Round of the IPL match between Shalour College and Lumiose University is set to begin. Korrina, Ash, please send forth your first battlers!" As he made his way over to sit with the Shalour team, he quickly nodded to his granddaughter, also giving Clemont a suspicious look, which made the inventor a little more nervous, considering what he'd been about to ask Korrina.
"Awesome!" Korrina exclaimed, pumping her fist and quickly turning around and heading towards her teammates, while Ash and Trevor quickly joined Clemont. "I'm gonna head out first, okay guys?" she said, giving her teammates each a fist bump and heading onto the battlefield.
"All right, if Korrina's going out first, I guess it's you, Ash, right?" Trevor asked, smiling at the raven-haired trainer. "Go show her you mean business!"
"You bet!" Ash said, giving Trevor a fist bump and then reaching out to Clemont to give him one as well. "Cheer me on, okay?"
Clemont held up a fist to meet Ash's, nodding at his friend, but in that moment, he glanced over to see Korrina waiting, holding up her pokeball, watching their group with interest. He didn't know what came over him, but suddenly, there was a fire inside him that gave him a boost of energy. He had no interest in sitting down right now. He wanted to battle. "Ash...hold on," he said, holding his fist back and looking at his friend. "I want this battle."
Both Ash and Trevor looked at him in surprise, the latter's jaw dropping a little. "But...Korrina's got a Mega Lucario. Clemont, you can't win this."
Clemont ignored that, though, watching Ash as his friend stared back, surprise turning into interest. "You're serious about this." It wasn't a question, but Clemont nodded, pulling out Luxray's pokeball. Ash smiled at that, exchanging a look with Pikachu and then nodding, before turning back and holding his fist out once more to Clemont. "In that case, Clemont, go ahead. Show Korrina how great a Gym Leader you are, too."
"I...I'll do my best," Clemont said, nodding seriously and bumping his fist with Ash's and then Trevor's. "Wish me luck." He then took a deep breath, and walked past them, making his way towards his end of the battlefield, unable to stop himself from looking over to Korrina, who looked back in surprise. When he stopped on his side of the battlefield, he held up his pokeball, looking at the referee, ready to start and show his friends, and show Korrina, just what he could do.
"Well this is surprising, Clemont!" Korrina called out to him, smiling excitedly. "Make sure to give me a good battle, all right? I wanna see just what you've got!"
Clemont just nodded, not sure what else to say, and as he noticed the referee holding up his arm, his body tensed, fully realizing what he'd gotten himself into. Here we go. As the referee waved his arm down, Clemont threw out his pokeball, just as Korrina threw hers out, Luxray and Lucario appearing opposite one another, both quick to get into battle position. With another wave of his arms, the referee called, "Let the battle begin!" and Clemont immediately knew he was in for one of the toughest battles of his life.
"Lucario, Bone Rush, now!" Korrina yelled immediately, pointing forward and ordering her attack so quickly, that Clemont couldn't even blink in time. He watched, stunned, as Lucario darted forward, a line of dust shooting up behind him while he brought forth his bone of light. Luxray only took one step back as the fighting type reached him, spinning his bone in front of him and then swinging it in an arc in front of himself, slamming it hard into Luxray's shoulder.
"Rayyy!" Luxray roared in pain as he was sent flying to the side of the field, sliding along the ground, dust shooting up around him. The crowd cheered loudly, clearly happy with Korrina's quick start to the match.
Clemont took a deep breath, noticing Korrina doing a little fist bump while Lucario prepared for his next attack. He had to be faster and he had to be smarter. "Luxray, use Electric Terrain!" he ordered, as the Gleam Eyes Pokemon struggled to his feet.
"Lux!" Luxray answered quickly, rising to his feet a little faster, body engulfed in electricity. "Rayyy!" he roared, the electricity shooting out from his body, hitting the field and spreading along it, sparks dancing along the ground. Clemont smirked, seeing Lucario look a little nervously at the sparks of electricity dancing around his feet.
"Don't worry about it, Lucario!" Korrina called out. "Metal Sound, let's go!"
"Ru ru!" Lucario answered, holding his fists out in front of himself, staring straight ahead towards Luxray. He then slammed his fists together, sound waves, immediately shooting out towards the electric type, reaching Clemont's ears as well, and even the crowd by the groans he heard. He saw Luxray wincing, not exactly finding the sound pleasing himself, and he immediately tried to think of a counterattack, knowing he had to get on the move quickly.
"Luxray, fight through it, and use Wild Charge!" he yelled, now holding his ears as the Metal Sound seemed to get worse and worse. Luckily, Luxray managed to hear his order through the terrible sound waves, though, nodding and lowering his body as it became engulfed in electricity once more.
"Ray!" he roared, immediately breaking into a run, going right through the sound waves that continued to head straight towards him. Lucario looked up in surprise, clearly not expecting Luxray to fight through the Metal Sound with such determination. With an extra burst of speed, the electricity across the field from Electric Terrain seemingly giving Luxray a little boost, he managed to reach Lucario before he could get out of the way. With another roar, he slammed his body into the fighting type with as much force as he could muster, sending him flying backwards, smoke trailing from his body from the electric attack, impacting hard with the ground, Korrina calling out to him in concern. Luxray winced from the recoil, but stood up straight, ready to get back into the battle right away.
Korrina seemed surprised by Luxray's powerful counterattack, and Clemont could see that it only had her more fired up. The two exchanged a smile, and then each were quick to make their next orders, knowing it was time to turn up the heat for this battle. "Lucario, Bone Rush again!"
"Counter with Thunder Fang!" Clemont shouted back.
Both Pokemon cried out, each sensing the battle had grown a little more intense. Lucario quickly got to his feet, the bone forming once again as he held it out in front of him. Meanwhile, Luxray roared as his jaws crackled with electricity and he charged forward. The two Pokemon met at the midway point in the battlefield, Lucario's bone slicing out towards Luxray, who ducked low to avoid it, before leaping up to close his jaws on Lucario's arm, which was quickly pulled back. The two Pokemon seemed to dance in the middle of the battlefield, dodging one anothers' attacks and darting forward with their own. Finally, though, Lucario managed to swing out with his bone as Luxray jumped forward with his electricity-covered fangs, the two attacks meeting, Luxray's jaws closing around the bone.
"Throw Lucario!" Clemont quickly ordered, desperate to take advantage of the fighting type being trapped.
"Not so fast!" Korrina shouted back. "Power-Up Punch!" she called out, pulling a fist back, just as Lucario did. They punched forward at the same time, just as Luxray seemed to be attempting to toss Lucario up. As the fighting type was lifted into the air, though, he managed to slam his fist into Luxray's jaw, causing the Gleam Eyes Pokemon to stagger back, Lucario easily getting free. "Now, Aura Sphere!" Korrina added, keeping up the assault.
"Ru!" Lucario grunted, holding his arms at his sides, a blue orb forming as he landed from Luxray's toss. He skidded backwards a couple of feet, but was still able to unleash the attack, sending it whipping towards the staggering Luxray.
It impacted at full speed, Luxray roaring in pain as the blue sphere exploded against him, sending him flying through the air, before he landed hard, sliding along the ground, coming to a stop only a few feet in front of Clemont. The Lumiose Gym Leader looked at his Pokemon with wide eyes, knowing that Lucario's Aura Sphere would've done extra damage after Metal Sound had been used. "Luxray, are you okay to continue?"
"Lux!" Luxray grunted, struggling to his feet, shaking off the dust the was on him. "Luxray!"
Clemont smiled at that, looking across the field towards Korrina, seeing her eyeing the two of them. She smiled back, though, looking quite pleased to see that the battle would continue. Clemont felt that tenseness coming over him again, but he took a deep breath, managing to relax himself. This battle wasn't over yet, and he wanted to show Korrina what he could do.
"All right, Luxray, we can still win this thing. Stay focused. Use Swift!" Clemont ordered, thrusting a fist forward with the call.
"Use Bone Rush to deflect!" Korrina answered quickly.
"Ray!"
"Ru!"
Luxray quickly straightened his tail out behind him, standing up tall and then leaping into the air, spinning around and sending the shining golden stars outwards towards his opponent. Lucario didn't panic, though, forming the bone of light just as quickly and slashing it outwards as each star came towards him, exploding each and every one of them into sparkling golden dust that fell in front of him, shining in the sunlight. Clemont was sure he could hear Serena, Dawn and Shauna gasping in awe from that, and remembered Ash using a similar move in one of their training battles. He wondered if that guy Dusk had been teaching Korrina some flashier moves, similar to how Ash had picked up on some of the moves Serena and the others used. The thought didn't sit well with him for some reason.
"Lucario, use Aura Sphere again!" Korrina suddenly ordered, snapping Clemont's attention away from his strange thoughts. He cursed himself for getting distracted, and quickly looked towards Luxray, knowing he needed to be quick.
"Wild Charge, Luxray!" he yelled, fists clenched as he watched Lucario form the blue sphere, about to launch it forward. And he did just that, as Luxray's body was engulfed in electricity, the sparks along the battlefield from Electric Terrain seemingly attracting to him as he started to run forward.
"Ray!" Luxray roared loudly as he ran, not flinching once as the blue orb approached him. Clemont had no idea if his loyal electric type would power through, but he knew there was no turning back now. The electric lion ran forward with all his might, meeting the blue orb at the halfway point of the battlefield. There was a loud explosion as the Aura Sphere exploded against him, smoke shooting up around the centre of the battlefield. But Clemont could just see it. A yellow light emerging from the other side. "Luxray!"
"Lucario!" Korrina cried out in concern, seeing Luxray emerge from the smoke unharmed. They had no time to counterattack, though, and the Gleam Eyes Pokemon impacted powerfully with the fighting type, sending him flying backwards, sparks shooting across his body and smoke trailing off of it. Luxray winced once more from the recoil, but he still seemed willing to continue, sensing he wasn't done yet.
"Keep it up, Luxray!" Clemont shouted, feeling that the momentum had turned. "Use Thunder Fang!"
That was when he saw it. Clemont's eyes widened, almost feeling like everything was happening in slow motion. He saw Korrina's and Lucario's eyes meet, a nod exchanged between them. Their arms raised into the air as Lucario got to his feet, the stones on their armbands shining in the sunlight. "Let's do this, Lucario! Mega Evolve!"
Luxray's charge continued, his fangs crackling with electricity, but it didn't seem to matter to Lucario, the light extending from his Lucarionite, to Korrina's Key Stone. The crowd cheered wildly, clearly ecstatic to see Korrina bringing out her trump card. As the lights met, Lucario's form changed, his body growing larger. Luxray leaped forward, the transformation still incomplete, but Clemont could see the fighting type reacting, throwing his shining arms up, catching Luxray's sparking jaws. As the light faded, the transformation complete, he threw the electric lion up in the air, head held high, embracing his power boost, his now red eyes, paws and legs looking like blood in the sun, his yellow fur shining and elongated spikes more threatening.
"Bone Rush!" Korrina yelled, smiling confidently, clearly expecting victory.
"Luxray, catch it with Thunder Fang!" Clemont countered as Lucario leaped into the air, bone already held in front of him, while Luxray straightened out, jaws once more electrified, the electricity on the field rising up around him, but seemingly vanishing afterwards.
"Ru ru!" Lucario roared, swinging the bone up towards Luxray, who chomped down on it, sparks shooting out from the colliding attacks. Lucario wasted no time, though, immediately pulling up and then throwing the bone down to the ground, sending Luxray with it, crashing hard.
"And finish with Aura Sphere!" Korrina called, pumping her fist. Lucario answered immediately, the sphere growing within seconds before he hurled it down. It exploded against Luxray at full speed, and as the dust and smoke settled, Clemont was already rushing forward to his Pokemon, knowing the result.
"Luxray is unable to battle! Korrina and Lucario are the winners, earning Shalour College one point in the IPL standings!" the referee announced, the crowd cheering loudly.
Clemont didn't care, though, coming to a stop by Luxray and kneeling next to him as he slowly raised his head. "Luxray," Clemont said, placing his hand on the electric lion's side, "you okay?"
"Lux," Luxray breathed out, nodding slightly. He was clearly exhausted, but Clemont was glad he wasn't badly hurt.
"Clemont! Is Luxray all right?" He looked up, surprised to see Korrina and Lucario approaching him.
"A good rest and some time at the Pokemon Centre will make him good as new," Clemont assured her, Luxray nodding in agreement. He and Lucario, now in his regular form, exchanged a nod, clearly having earned one another's respect.
"I'm glad," Korrina breathed out, reaching out to help Clemont stand back up. He blushed at the gesture but accepted it. "That was a really great battle, Clemont," she continued, still holding onto his hand." He stared down a little awkwardly at it, but then Korrina slowly slid her hand back, leaving a little slip of paper in Clemont's hand. "Maybe we can battle again sometime and swap Gym Leader stories." With that, she turned around, heading off towards her cheering teammates, Lucario behind her.
Clemont stared blankly at her for a few seconds before glancing down at the piece of paper. His eyes widened and he quickly stuffed it in his pocket, looking at Luxray awkwardly, the Gleam Eyes Pokemon simply looking confused. "Um...good work, Luxray, take a good long rest," Clemont muttered, returning his Pokemon to its pokeball. He started walking back towards his friends, seeing Trevor getting up, Ash apparently waiting once more. As he quickly gave Trevor a high five and sat down next to Bonnie, Clemont could feel his cheeks burning, thinking of the paper in his pocket.
"Clemont?" Bonnie asked sweetly, tapping his shoulder. He looked at her, expecting her to say something sympathetic about the battle. Unfortunately, he was way off on that. "What did Korrina give you just now that you put in your pocket?"
That immediately got the attention of Serena and Shauna, who looked at Clemont with surprise and glee respectively. "Clemont...don't tell me Korrina gave you her number!" Shauna squeaked excitedly.
"Th-that's none of your business," Clemont muttered, looking at Trevor, who had just called out his Charizard, while Clayton, the Shalour battler that was up, responded with a Grumpig. "Focus on the battle. In case you didn't notice, we still don't have a point."
"It's not a big deal, big brother," Bonnie said, as they looked towards the battlefield, "you got something better than that."
Ash gritted his teeth, watching as Trevor's Charizard dove down towards the opposing Grumpig once again, already scratched up from trying to force Clayton into an up close battle. He'd tried using fire attacks from a distance to start, but Grumpig had managed to make those attacks nearly ineffective. From what Ash could see, Clayton had definitely earned his high league rankings. Trevor had done well so far with Flint, but he was relying too much on Charizard's strength alone, a mistake Ash could see was deciding the match.
"Flint, we'll need to address Trevor's Charizard's moveset. It's very unbalanced. Either fire or dragon type moves. Very predictable," Agatha muttered, sounding a little miserable, seeing yet another loss was on the way.
"I can see it's a bit of a problem, yeah," Flint agreed, exchanging an amused look with Ash. "Charizard and Trevor are smart, though. We can definitely set them up for success."
"Why isn't Trevor mega evolving?" Bonnie spoke up, leaning past Clemont, looking at Ash as though expecting him to know the answer.
Ash thought for a moment, watching with clenched fists as Charizard was struck with a Charge Beam attack while trying to get behind Grumpig. "Trevor wants to prove himself, I think. There's no doubt that Charizard is strong, with or without Mega Evolution, but Trevor's been working really hard to not rely on it so much. Isn't that right, Flint?"
"For sure," Flint said, nodding. "Trevor told me he felt he relied too much on Mega Evolution to win his gym badges for the Kalos League, particularly as he'd fallen behind Tierno. He thinks it hurt his chances once battling against that other Mega Charizard, who had a great deal more experience."
"But he's losing," Bonnie complained, pointing to Charizard as he staggered back from a Psyshock. "He should do it to win."
"It's not just about winning one battle, Bonnie," Clemont told her. "Trevor's trying to grow as a trainer, and in this case, he's making sure he learns how to fight on an even playing field."
It didn't take much longer for the match to end. Charizard managed to land a Dragon Claw and a Flamethrower towards the end, but was ultimately taken out by one more powerful Charge Beam, earning Shalour yet another point. The Lumiose team was disappointed, of course, but Ash felt they were more accepting of the two losses they'd suffered. Clemont had barely lost, barely losing despite Lucario Mega evolving, and Trevor hadn't let frustration get the better of him, determined to stick to his plan for improvement, which Ash knew would serve him better down the road.
"Hey Ketchum, looks like it's you and me," a voice from Ash's left called out. He turned his head, seeing the messy black hair of the boy named Sumato. He approached Ash, holding out his hand, smiling. "Good luck out there. I've seen some of your battles, and I'm excited to see what I can do against the Kalos League runner up."
Ash nodded, standing and shaking Sumato's hand. "Yeah, it should be a great battle. I hear you did quite well in the Hoenn League."
Sumato shrugged, turning his head as he noticed Clayton heading off the battlefield. "I guess I did all right. But today's challenge will top that. I've got a plan, and I hope you're ready for it."
Ash didn't say anything, just smiling as Sumato turned away, heading towards his side of the battlefield, pausing to congratulate his teammate. "Ready for this, Pikachu?" Ash asked, looking up at the electric mouse on his shoulder. "I have a feeling Sumato will be tough to beat."
"Pika!" Pikachu answered confidently, giving a little fist pump.
"Good luck, Ash!" Serena called out, Absol also giving a little shout of encouragement. The Disaster Pokemon may have been interested in performances, but he definitely seemed to like the battles so far as well. Ash just hoped he could deliver the win.
"Thanks," Ash called back, before turning and setting off to his place on the battlefield, nodding to Trevor as they passed one another. I've been losing too much lately, and I'm not losing again. Not to Anton, Alain, or anyone...
Once Ash and Sumato had taken their places, Pikachu tensed up, ready to charge out onto the field at any moment. Sumato at the other end looked just as ready, his pokeball in hand while he looked at the referee. Ash didn't really know what to expect from him, but with what Marie had said, Sumato was definitely no beginner. He may not have earned the high league rankings that Ash had, but he'd gone farther than many trainers would ever go, just like many of the IPL trainers.
Ash couldn't help but feel a little doubt as he thought of this. Was Sumato another Anton? Had Korrina surpassed him? Was Clemont stronger? Even Trevor, who would've had a much closer battle had he mega evolved Charizard. Ash didn't want to lose again, yet that possibility still seemed very real to him.
"Trainers, please select your Pokemon!" the referee called out, snapping Ash out of his thoughts. He looked up, seeing Sumato toss out a pokeball, which flashed brightly, revealing a metallic Pokemon with a saucer-shaped body, with an eye on each "arm" and one in the middle. Its arms appeared to be black magnets, while a yellow antenna poked from the top of it.
"A Magnezone, huh?" Ash looked down at Pikachu and smiled, nodding and pointing ahead. "All right, Pikachu, I choose you!"
"Pika!" The electric mouse burst onto the field, excited about his first real battle since the screening matches for entering Lumiose University. Ash was excited too, but he could tell Pikachu had been waiting a while for this.
He looked towards the referee as Pikachu and Magnezone waited, both suddenly very still, not wanting to make a mistake. The referee then raised his arm, waving it down quickly and yelling, "Let the battle begin!"
"Magnezone, use Lock-On!" Sumato yelled immediately. This was likely his favourite opening move, as Magnezone seemed to act slightly before the order was given. Immediately, the antenna on its head glowed red, before a light shot out of it, hitting Pikachu before he could react. Ash flinched, expecting it to have hurt the electric mouse, but all it seemed to do was connect the two Pokemon with a light.
"Pikachu, get out of the way with Quick Attack!" Ash ordered, not liking how this was starting. Pikachu moved quickly, digging into the ground and kicking off a moment later. He started darting around Magnezone, keeping a safe distance and moving so quickly he looked like a little, yellow blur. But no matter how fast he moved, and no matter which way he moved around Magnezone, the red light continued to follow, trained on Pikachu while Magnezone hovered in the centre of the field.
"Now, use Zap Cannon!" Sumato called, narrowing his eyes and pumping his fist. Ash's jaw clenched, knowing he'd gotten off to a bad start immediately.
"Magne magnezone!" Magnezone cried in its robotic voice, the antenna now lighting up in a yellow light as electricity began building up around it, the red light still trained on Pikachu who continued to dart around, trying to shake it off.
Ash could see that avoiding Magnezone was useless, so he quickly set his mind on landing an attack. "Pikachu, get in there with Iron Tail!" he yelled, punching the air.
"Pika!" Pikachu answered, quickly sliding to a stop and then setting off towards Magnezone, the Magnet Area Pokemon's antenna sparking as electricity seemed to swirl around it.
"Launch!" Sumato yelled, as Pikachu closed the gap between the two Pokemon. Ash could see he was in trouble, and quickly called off the Iron Tail. Pikachu nodded, leaping to the side, just as Magnezone unleashed the blast from its antenna. However, as Pikachu moved, so the light that was trained on him, and the massive blast of electricity seemed to follow. It moved along the red light like it was a path, and Pikachu had no escape. It struck with full power, exploding against the electric mouse with a loud bang, the crowd gasping and cheering with the successful attack. Then, as the smoke erupted out of the explosion, Pikachu's body went flying up into the air, before descending in an arc and crashing hard into the ground to Ash's right.
"Pikachu!" Ash yelled in concern, nearly leaving his place to run out to his partner Pokemon. How could he have let that happen? That attack was too powerful to allow Sumato to get off for an opening move. Lock-On, Ash realized, cursing himself for not coming up with a way to counter it.
"Chuuu," Pikachu groaned, managing to rise to his feet, smoke still trailing off his body. Ash sighed in relief. He thought he'd lost this battle in one move.
"You okay, buddy?" Ash called, getting a nod from Pikachu as he quickly shook himself off, padding forward, glaring at Magnezone up ahead. All right, we need a plan, Ash thought, narrowing his eyes as he looked ahead at Sumato and his Pokemon. "Pikachu, get in there with Quick Attack, again, and watch out for that antenna!"
"Pi!" Pikachu shouted, setting off immediately, a white light around his body as he bolted towards Magnezone.
Sumato paused a moment, looking surprised that Pikachu had managed to get up, but a moment later, he quickly called out an order. "Magnezone, use Metal Sound!"
"Mag magnezone!" Magnezone cried, its magnet arms rising as Pikachu closed in on it. The magnets then appeared to shake, before suddenly emitting the piercing sound waves. Pikachu appeared to wince, slowing down a little, but he still powered through, leaping into the air and driving his body hard into the Magnet Area Pokemon. Both Pokemon staggered back from one another, Pikachu wincing from the Metal Sound, while Magnezone staggered from the Quick Attack.
Ash narrowed his eyes, noticing the crowd going a little quieter. This was where the battle really started. "Pikachu, Iron Tail, let's go!"
"Magnezone, use Gyro Ball!"
"Pika!" Pikachu yelled, straightening his tail behind him and leaping up as it stiffened and began glowing in a white light. He sailed towards Magnezone as the electric and steel type began to rapidly spin in midair, becoming a grey blur. Pikachu spun around, just before reaching it, striking out with his tail with all the force he could muster. As the Iron Tail struck the spinning Magnet Area Pokemon, Pikachu tensed up, clearly feeling the strain of meeting with Magnezone's own powerful attack. Sparks flew out from the meeting attacks, raining down on the field below. For a moment, it didn't seem like much more was going to happen, but then, it seemed to wear on Pikachu, and his hold wavered, his attack weakening just enough for Magnezone to dart forward and drive its spinning body into the electric mouse.
"No! Pikachu!" Ash yelled, seeing his partner Pokemon suddenly get caught on the spinning Magnezone, the two looking like a grey and yellow blur as they spun in midair. Then, suddenly, Pikachu was again sent flying through the air, crashing hard into the ground in front of Ash once again.
"Magnezone is my strongest Pokemon, Ash," Sumato called out, looking ecstatic about how the battle was going so far. "I want to be the best triple battler in the world with my Magnezone, Magneton and Magnemite, and Magnezone is always able to lead us in our battles. And what I've learned from those battles is that if I can slow the battle down for Magnezone, then my other Pokemon are able to attack. Battling against Pikachu is the perfect practice for that."
Ash narrowed his eyes. He always liked a fast-paced battle, so battling against an opponent who relied on slowing the match was definitely frustrating. It had him getting completely out of sync with Pikachu. However, Sumato was revealing a little too much...
"Pikachu, use Electro Ball!" Ash ordered, just as the yellow mouse got to his feet. Pikachu nodded, running forward and leaping into the air, his tail sparking as electricity began to build up near the tip of it.
"Pika pika pika pika pika pika CHUPI!" he roared, flinging the electrical sphere towards Magnezone. Sumato clearly hadn't expected such as swift counterattack, as he just stared, along with Magnezone, as the electric sphere rocketed towards the Magnet Area Pokemon, impacting hard with it and exploding once it made contact. The steel and electric type was sent spinning backwards, its metallic body smoking and sparking. It righted itself fairly quickly, but its middle eye twitched, showing it was in a little bit of discomfort.
"Now, keep it up, and get in there with Quick Attack!" Ash continued, desperately wanting to up the tempo. He could hear the crowd murmuring, some of them excited about how Sumato was battling, while others sounded nervous about Ash's quick moves.
Pikachu darted forward, zigzagging back and forth as Magnezone turned left and right, attempting to follow where he moved. Sumato seemed a little confused as well, eyes trying to track the electric mouse, before he looked towards his Magnezone, clearly having come up with a plan. As Pikachu leaped up, driving his body once more into Magnezone, causing all three of its eyes to shut as it winced and staggered back, Sumato made his next order.
"Use Metal Sound again!"
"Magne!" Magnezone called out, righting itself quickly as Pikachu landed, aiming its magnets towards the electric mouse. Immediately, sound waves began shooting outward again, striking Pikachu and making him take a few steps back, ears down, clearly struggling with the ear splitting noise. It carried back to Ash as well, and he couldn't help but wince, holding his own ears to block some of the noise.
"Now, use Lock-On!" Sumato shouted, excitedly clenching his fists and holding them up.
"Zooone!" Magnezone's robotic voice was heard again as its antenna glowed in a red light once more. It lowered its body, aiming towards Pikachu, who still seemed shaken by the Metal Sound.
"Pikachu, jump!" Ash yelled suddenly, just as the light from the antenna shot down. His voice seemed to snap Pikachu out of his daze, the electric mouse tensing up and leaping up immediately, his body just leaping over the red beam. He spun once in midair and then landed safely to the right as the beam from Magnezone's antenna connected with the ground. Ash narrowed his eyes wondering just what was going to happen as Magnezone and Sumato both looked on in slight confusion. The Magnet Area Pokemon then moved slightly, seemingly attempting to get his light away from the spot where it had missed. However, as Magnezone moved, the antenna continued to glow red, the beam of light still extending to the point where it had just missed Pikachu. Ash smiled, knowing he had an advantage now, although he was a little hesitant as he saw Sumato's eyes dart between Pikachu and the Lock-On location. He ignored that for the moment, though, instead ordering his next attack. "Pikachu, use Iron Tail!"
Sumato didn't attempt a counter, just watching on in frustration as Pikachu leaped up, his tail glowing white, and struck Magnezone hard, just near the antenna. It caused a ringing sound as the Magnet Area Pokemon staggered back, still connected to the ground by the red beam of light. As Pikachu dropped back to the ground, Ash was quick to order his next attack, not willing to let up.
"Now, Quick Attack and then Electro Ball!" he yelled, punching the air in excitement. Sumato seemed confused as to what to do now, knowing his next attack would be attracted to the ground. Pikachu wasn't hesitating at all, though, immediately breaking into a run, circling the somewhat confused looking Magnezone and then leaping into the air and driving his body into the steel and electric type.
"Pika!" Pikachu yelled as he struck Magnezone, spinning around as he dropped back, his tail sparking as electricity began to build up. "Pika pika pika pika pika pika CHUPI!" he roared once more, flinging his tail out before spinning and landing safely on the ground, the electrical sphere sailing up towards Magnezone and exploding on impact. The Magnet Area Pokemon seemed to sag a little, its magnet arms dropping a little, its body starting to lower.
"We're wearing it down, Pikachu!" Ash called out confidently. "Now, let's wrap this up! Iron Tail, and then Thunderbolt!"
Pikachu nodded, tensing up and then taking off once again. This time, he darted underneath Magnezone, who lazily turned around, looking for the mouse behind it, before Pikachu once again leaped up, swinging upward and striking his opponent from below. "Chuuu PIKA!" Pikachu yelled, slamming his metallic tail into Magnezone's underside, causing another loud ringing sound. Ash Pikachu spun away, electricity surging around his body, Ash felt sure his victory was imminent.
"Zap Cannon!" Sumato suddenly yelled.
"Magne zooone!" As Pikachu landed, his electricity shooting upward and striking Magnezone, the Magnet Area Pokemon's antenna glowed, its own electricity surrounding it. It winced as Pikachu's attack struck, but it didn't stop, the electricity shooting up the antenna, expanding, and then firing down through the path that Lock-On had created. Ash's eyes widened, seeing the attack speeding towards the ground. It wasn't going to hit Pikachu, but he knew what Sumato was going for.
The ground exploded, dust and smoke shooting into the air, the field shaking from the attack, causing Pikachu to stop as he staggered. "Now, use Metal Sound, one more time!" Sumato shouted, Magnezone aiming his magnets down to Pikachu, who coughed as the smoke reached him. The sound waves then rained down on him, making the electric mouse shut his eyes and take a few steps back. Ash's eyes widened, seeing just how vulnerable Pikachu was. "Lock-On!"
"Pikachu, dodge it!" Ash yelled. It didn't matter, though, as he was too slow with Metal Sound and the explosion having slowed his movement. The beam of light struck him, lighting him up in red for a moment.
"Pika?" Pikachu looked back at Ash, eyes wide, realizing he was trapped.
"Don't worry, we'll win this before he attacks. Electro Ball!" Ash shouted, pointing up at Magnezone.
Pikachu nodded, lowering his body and then leaping into the air, the light following him as he did so. The electrical sphere began to expand at the tip of his tail as he chanted, "Pika pika pika pika pika pika," and then he unleashed it with all his might, spinning around and shouting, "CHUPI!"
"Zap Cannon! Finish this!" Sumato yelled, watching Pikachu's attack sail towards Magnezone, looking both nervous and excited.
"Magne!" Magnezone shouted, the electricity building on the antenna once again. Its eyes seemed to narrow as the Electro Ball approached it, and it winced, staggering back as it struck, exploding against it. However, Ash could see the electricity on its antenna through the smoke, and then, a moment later, the red beam connecting the two Pokemon brightened, and a massive bolt of electricity burst forward, aiming straight for Pikachu.
Pikachu tried to run, but it was no good. He zigzagged along the ground, the light and the attack following him. As it finally reached him, he looked towards Ash with wide eyes, looking both ashamed and scared.
Then the attack exploded against him.
"Pikachu, Charizard and Luxray are all better now," Nurse Joy said, handing Clemont and Trevor their pokeballs, while Pikachu jumped up onto Ash's shoulder.
"Thanks Nurse Joy," Ash said, smiling and scratching Pikachu behind the ear as the electric mouse nuzzled his cheek.
Serena smiled, relieved to see her friends' Pokemon were all okay. Especially Pikachu, with the damage he'd appeared to take. She winced at the thought, the sight of Pikachu's still body after that final Zap Cannon, and Ash running towards him. She could still hear the cheers of the Shalour crowd, almost hating them for it, as Pikachu had clearly been hurt.
"Sol." She glanced down at her side, seeing Absol nudging her hand. It calmed her a little, and she smiled at him, glad he'd been able to come. It made the next day even more important to her. With the Battle Team suffering another three losses, more success for the Performance Team was crucial. Returning to Lumiose City with another zero-point outing would definitely not be fun.
"Ready for tomorrow, Serena?" a voice in front of her suddenly asked, and Serena looked up, seeing Ash approaching her, while Clemont and Trevor went over to sit with the rest of the group who were getting dinner.
"Yeah, I think so," Serena said, nodding. She looked at Pikachu, who was smiling, but still looked tired. "How are you, Pikachu?"
"Pi..." Pikachu said sadly, bowing his head a little, letting his disappointment show.
Ash frowned, his own disappointment apparent as well. "I thought I was going to win. I really thought I was going to get out of my streak."
"I thought you still battled really well, Ash," Serena said honestly, Absol making a noise of agreement next to her. "It was a bit of bad luck. You could've just as easily won that-"
"Of course he could've won that battle." Ash smiled, surprising Serena a little as Agatha appeared at her side. The Kanto Elite Four member was still a little intimidating to her, so Serena wasn't quite sure why Ash was so at ease around her. "You should have won that battle, Ash."
Serena watched the woman in silence, curious as to what she would say. She thought Ash should have won as well, but just thought it was bad luck that ended up costing him the match. Apparently Agatha seemed a little more sure of what it was.
"That Sumato boy was very clever, forcing you to fight a slower battle, when both you and Pikachu are much better with speed. He made you fight on his terms, which good trainers are able to do. He planned that battle out specifically for you, and you let him show it." Agatha paused, looking pointedly at Ash, as though waiting for him to answer.
When he did, he nodded, apparently understanding where Agatha was going with this. "I was thinking too much about winning, and I was too scared of losing. When Pikachu had the advantage towards the end, I was too confident, but whenever Sumato slowed the battle down, I was too worried about what he would do."
"Ash, I find those fools from Team Rocket to be nothing more than incompetent thieves, but they showed you something, did they not?" Agatha asked, narrowing her eyes. "They have a goal, and they push towards it, even if it is a despicable one. They don't let defeat cloud their desire."
"Ash, you've always been like that too," Serena chimed in, causing him to look at her in surprise. "Ever since..." She trailed off, remembering that he still didn't recognize her from that day in camp. "When I saw you at the Kalos League," she started over, deciding on a different example, "every time you looked like you were backed into a corner, you never got scared, or frustrated, you just kept battling the way you wanted to. It looked like you were always fighting on your terms, no matter how the battle was going."
"Exactly," Agatha said, nodding at Serena's words. "You are not one to lose focus easily, Ash, and I understand that with the amount of time you've been a trainer, and some of the success you've had, the losses now seem even more frustrating. However, you have your style. You have what makes you Ash Ketchum. Don't lose that. Don't lose what made you who you are."
Ash took a deep breath, looking up at Pikachu on his shoulder once again. "I let Pikachu down today. I let Greninja down against Anton. I've let all of my Pokemon down lately. I've let my friends down."
"Ash stop-" Serena started to say, but Ash quickly cut her off, continuing.
"I know I can get out of this. I'm not losing again. Not because I'm scared to lose, but because I want to win. I just want to battle and have fun with my Pokemon. Lumiose University is a fresh start. It's like I'm ten all over again, and that's not a bad thing. Nothing is more exciting than training and having fun with your Pokemon, and we're not letting a few losses change that."
"Pika!" Pikachu cheered, clearly liking the sound of that.
"And of course, I'll be supporting you and the Performance Team all the way, Serena," Ash said, holding up a fist and smiling. "Things start turning around tomorrow."
Author's Note:
Yes, another loss...another 3 losses. But again, they had their purposes, which I know many will ignore, but for those willing to try to understand, I'll explain. Clemont's trying to become a better Gym Leader. Well, who better to test himself against than Korrina, a Gym Leader with a Mega Lucario. Not to mention, he wants respect for other reasons. As for that, I know the phone number slip was ridiculous, but hey, I need an excuse for having them see each other before the next IPL match between these two schools...so...yeah.
As for Trevor's loss, that was explained in chapter. He was skimmed over anyways, really. He'll get a big battle soon enough, though.
And Ash, yes, he and Pikachu. What level is it that some of you want him at again? 80? 90? 100? Despite me having a class in this story where I point out levels are not really a thing. Anyways, this was Ash fully coming to terms with his losses. Team Rocket opened the door to the light, and Sumato pushed him right on out. The first IPL loss had him fall into depression, while this one helps him move forward.
This IPL match is setting up something much bigger, boys and girls. Trust me. See you next time.
