Hey Everybody! Another two week installment is fresh and ready for you! It actually was quite easy for me to write, but last week I was kind of lazy, so I just finished it. Since it's really late here, I'm going to keep today's above comments short and to the point. First, I want to dedicate this chapter to The Bloody Knife, who, despite the username, is quite friendly and gave me my 500th review! In addition to them, thank all you guys so much for your continued support. I believe that I have made clear how important it is to me to maintain contact with all my readers, and I would like to take this time to say that if I haven't written you even though you've dropped a review, please let me know so in your review of this chapter (though I believe I've responded to everyone's wonderful critiques). I promise that you will be my first priority when I reply to my commenters this week if you do so. Second, uh, actually, I don't really have a second thing…weird. Well, anyway, enjoy this chapter, and once your done, PLEASE REVIEW!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any of its affiliated companies including, but not limited to, 4Kids, The Pokemon Company, Game Freaks, or Cartoon Network. The characters written within this fic are soley based upon the fictional characters created by these companies, and the story is not meant to, nor will it, receive any monetary funding.

Characters' Ages:

Ash: 17

Brock: 21

Misty: 17

Dawn: 14

Delia: 40

Oak: 55

Paul: 14


"Now finish him off with a Fire Blast!"

With a final roar of power, Charizard melted Paul's metallic battling partner into a puddle on the battlefield.

"Great job, Charizard!" The fire Pokémon blew a stream of fire above his head in victory as the crowd cheered Ash on.

"I can't beat a Pokémon that strong," Paul pouted, kicking the dirt at his foot. "I guess I may as well just forfeit the match to you, Ash. After all, you are the rightful Champion, and I'm just a stupid cheater working for Team Rocket."

Shocked at his good fortune, Ash's grin grew as he watched a pair of Officer Jennys take Paul off the field in handcuffs. "That was very noble of you Paul." Suddenly, he felt a cool hand on his neck. Looking down, he saw Misty staring up at him with wide eyes, full of excitement.

"How'd you get down here so quickly?" he asked, surprised.

"That's not important," Misty replied in a seductive voice that caused Ash to blush a little. As the crowd roared on, she leaned up and tickled his right ear with her lips. Eager to hear, the Champion stooped a little lower. "It's alright, his pulse is normal."

"Um, what?"

"I think I just heard him say something."

Ash pulled away and looked down to now find a Nurse Joy with her fingers on his neck.

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"He's definitely coming out of it," Nurse Joy announced to the two paramedics who were stooped beside her. As Ash made another guttural noise, the medics gave a thumbs-up to the quieted crowd, who quickly burst into applause and cheers as a bleary-eyed Ash slowly opened his eyelids.

"W-what's goin' on?"

"You were knocked unconscious by a Zap Cannon," Nurse Joy informed him as he raised himself atop his left elbow. "You've been out for a full minute."

With a grunt, Ash stood up, using the two paramedics' shoulders as leverage as he regained his balance. He saw that he was several feet from the trainer's box.

"Rar!" cried a familiar voice from above. Looking up, Ash saw his battling companion and friend grinning at the sight of his master's revival.

"It looks like he's okay, folks," informed the announcer as the cheers continued. "But will he continue the match?"

Furrowing his brow, Ash looked to the official, who remained glued to his podium, though he seemed to be staring at Ash with great interest. "I don't have to forfeit, do I?"

"If you discontinue the battle, then it will not be considered a forfeit. You will have a one to two week resting period before restarting the entire battle."

"Restart the battle?" Ash repeated. "No way!" He grimaced a little as he felt a weak jolt of electricity surge through his right arm. Pikachu's attacks had certainly given him resistance to low dosages of electrical power, but Magnezone's assault seemed to have been much more powerful than the playful volts he normally received.

"Mr. Ketchum, I highly advise you to wait," one of the paramedics cried from behind Ash, who had taken several steps toward his square. "If you give this a week you'll be in perfect health again." As Ash turned around, he pointed at the Champion's abdomen.

"That has to be painful."

Looking down, Ash noticed for the first time that the front of his shirt had been severely burned by the attack, and his stomach was cut and bleeding in several areas.

"I'm fine," he insured. Turning back to the referee, he informed the official that he wanted to continue the match.

"The green trainer has decided to remain in the battle! One penalty strike will be marked against Paul Ikari for attacking the opposing trainer. Two penalties will result in an immediate loss for the red trainer."

It was now that Ash remembered his opponent. Looking across the battlefield, he was barely surprised to find that the purple-haired trainer simply shrugged at the referee's warning.

"Trainers, please reassume your positions in the trainer squares, and please have your Pokémon assume their pre-battle stances once more."

Stepping back into his rectangular territory, Ash watched as Charizard barely managed to fly to his spot opposite Magnezone for a second time that evening. Squinting, Ash saw that his friend's right wing was even more severely bent downward than before, and he could hear the fire dragon's hoarse breath even from the distance.

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"Is he crazy?" Misty shouted as Ash limped back to his spot. "He just took on a full Zap Cannon! He should wait!"

"He probably doesn't wanna risk giving Paul any more time to train," Steven assumed from behind the redhead. "I'm sure he can finish this battle."

"I'm sure he can too," assured Delia. "After all, he hasn't been getting shocked by Pikachu all these years for nothing, right?"

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"Let the battle begin!"

"Zap Cannon, again!"

"Jump above it!"

Charizard used as much of his wing power as he could to barely leap above the electrical attack before landing back on his feet with an ungraceful "thud". For extra caution, Ash ducked, though this time the attack flew far above his head before hitting the protective glass.

"Now, Flamethrower!"

Opening his mouth, Charizard emitted a weak burst of fire at his opponent, who easily deflected it with another Mirror Coat attack.

His fire power's gone, Ash noted with worry as he saw Charizard's flame barely flicker behind the great beast. Though his Pokémon was blessed with the Blaze ability as well, it occurred to Ash that though the effect strengthened his Pokémon's attacks, it did not elongate Charizard's actual fire-fighting strength.

Realizing a need for action, he ordered another Steel Wing.

"Spark attack!" Paul yelled as Charizard's good wing began to glow.

Magnezone made no attempt to dodge the incoming assault, but rather remained in the same spot, hovering, as it took the steel attack head-on. As the reverberating noise of clashing metal echoed around the battlefield, Ash instantly realized Paul's strategy. Several of the electrical sparks surrounding Magnezone's body were quickly conducted into Charizard through his metallic wing.

He's using the Steel Wing against me.

"Quit the attack, Charizard!" Ash commanded above the roar of pain being released by his battling partner. Despite his order though, it seemed that Charizard was no longer able to hear him as his opponent continued to release thousands of volts into his violently shaking body. As he emitted another cry of anguish, Ash grit his teeth and reached for the fire type's pokéball. Accompanying the red beam of light, he ordered his friend and partner to "return".

"I won't be using Charizard again," he informed the referee after Charizard's picture didn't fade from the jumbotron screen.

"Oh, okay," the official replied, nodding. "The green trainer has forfeited Charizard's match. Therefore, Magnezone is the winner!"

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"Thank goodness," Delia sighed as she eased back in her chair for a moment. The entire battle with Magnezone had physically drained her as the match flew between dizzying highs and terrible lows. "Poor Charizard couldn't have taken any more abuse."

Cynthia looked across at Lance, on the other side of Steven. "What do you suppose he's going to do now?"

"Beats me," Lance replied seriously, crouched forward in his seat attentively. "I don't know what his strategy is anymore, but I hope he still has one."

"What Pokémon does he have left?" Dawn asked, turning around in her seat as Ash took a moment to make his next decision.

"Well, Gengar from earlier," Steven answered, "and Sceptile who he still hasn't used."

Not the best options, Misty mused worriedly. Gengar had taken significant damage from Blaziken, and a grass type would have a difficult time against a steel type Pokémon.

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I can't risk having him get hurt early, Ash reasoned as he looked at the ground thoughtfully, digesting his choices. Frankly, his plan originally had Charizard defeating at least two of Paul's Pokémon before being knocked out, so the new situation which presented itself was less than savory for the young Champion. With a sigh, he grabbed the pokéball nearest to the front.

"Gengar, I choose you!"

"Gengar, geng," replied the Pokémon happily as he emerged onto the battlefield, clapping his hands. Despite the damage and burn marks he sustained from earlier, Ash noticed he seemed ready for another try at Paul's team.

He's definitely one of the best additions I've made.

As Gengar approached the center of the field, Ash reminded him of their dodge-and-attack battle strategy. The ghost type nodded in return.

"Let the battle begin!"

"Night Shade, Gengar!"

Clapping his hands, a violet, rigged beam emerged from his palms and directly hit Magnezone.

"Shock Wave, Magnezone!" Paul ordered as his Pokémon became engulfed in the dark hue.

"Magnezone," answered the Pokémon as sparks began to envelope its blackened body. Suddenly, it became completely surrounded in an electrical field, and with a cry, sent the energy outwards in all directions.

"Protect!"

Gengar created another strong wall of psychic energy which easily blocked the coming electrical assault.

"Now go into the ground!"

As Gengar slipped into the battlefield floor, Paul ordered a Thunderbolt attack, which barely missed the ghost and poison type's head as it slipped out of the third dimension. The purple-haired trainer and his Pokémon watched intently as the purple blob made his way around the stadium, apparently just buying time. After Magnezone spent several minutes attempting to harm Ash's friend, the Champion smiled and made his move.

"Double Team, now!"

Instantly, the one blob on the ground split into two, then four, and then six.

"Make a circle around Magnezone, and then come up!" Ash had been struck with inspiration earlier after seeing how successfully Paul had brought his Blaziken's Double Team attack into play.

Let's see if we can do the same thing.

"Now come up and use Shadow Ball!"

"Light Screen, Magnezone."

The half-dozen ghost attacks collided instantaneously with the golden shield which instantly surrounded and protected the electric type. However, Ash was far from deterred. He'd been witness to Paul's Light Screen defense before.

"Follow it up with a Shadow Punch!"

"Gengar, gengar." The Pokémon quickly lit both their fists with ghostly energy as they simultaneously leapt at their half-steel type opponent.

At first sight, it appeared as if nothing had happened. Each of the Gengars recombined once they reached their target, and the Pokémon made itself whole again as he exited the cubical Light Screen and landed gracefully back on his side of the battlefield, still wearing a fiendish grin. Despite what it looked like, though, Ash knew he'd been successful at penetrating Paul's "special attack only" force field.

Sure enough, a few seconds later, in spite of Paul's commands to the contrary, Magnezone's shield suddenly dissipated and its heavy body hit the dirt hard. Closing its one eye, the electric and steel type made it obvious that it was no longer willing to battle.

"Magnezone is unable to battle! Gengar is the winner!"

Another enormous burst of applause and disapproving "boos" emanated from the audience as Paul recalled his fighter with a scowl on his face.

However, Ash was too busy victoriously punching the air to notice. He'd honestly doubted his Gengar's ability to win that match, despite the large advantage Charizard had given him. With this fresh victory though, hope began to creep into his veins once more.

I'm back on track, he thought joyously, realizing his strategy was falling directly into place.

"Venusaur, it's your turn," Paul announced, taking Ash out of his victory high and back to reality. As the light faded from around its body, the grass and poison type let out a low "saur" at its opponent. Ash simply continued to smile though as he witnessed his rival's newest creature.

"You remember what I told you you'll have to do, right Gengar?" he asked as the two Pokémon lined up for the next match.

"Geng," replied his Pokémon.

"Good, but give it your best shot for now! I'm sure you can handle this Venusaur!"

"Let the battle begin!"

"Razor Leaf," Paul ordered.

"Protect again!"

Dozens of leaves fell haplessly to the ground as they struck the dark barrier ineffectively.

"Now use Dark Pulse!"

Dispelling the protection, Gengar gave a wicked grin as he brought his shadowed arms together once more, creating a dark wave which hit the half-poison type directly in the head. The Venasaur gave a low grumble as it was sent several feet backward from the impact of the attack. Though once the attack ended, the grass Pokémon did not appear very fazed by the ghost type's assault.

"Vine Whip, now."

Releasing its massive vines which had remained hidden at its sides, the Venusaur instantly locked onto Gengar and reached out for him with lightning-quick speed.

"Dodge!" Ash cried. Before the word had left his mouth, Gengar had already been snagged.

Raising the ghost and poison type into the air, Venusaur's vines and body began to glow a dark green aura.

Mega Drain, Ash noted as Gengar began grunting as the life energy was sucked from his body. Should I do it now?

As if responding to his own wonderment, Gengar suddenly shot two more beams of dark energy at his opponent; this time from the eyes. Caught off-guard by the sudden shift in tactic, Venusaur violently recoiled and release its opponent. Floating back to the ground, Gengar resumed his Night Shade attack.

"Double Team 'im!" Ash commanded, glad he hadn't given into the temptation to activate his strategy.

This time, only two Gengar surrounded the opponent. However, both continued their heated assault on the grass type from both of its sides.

"Be a man!" Paul yelled over the hysteria building in the stadium. "Leaf Storm!"

"Saur!" Raising his head, Venusaur shot out dozens of glowing razor-sharp leaves, which instantly destroyed one of the Gengars, and forced the real one to fly backward. Picking himself up off the ground, Gengar tried another Night Shade attack.

"Sunny Day!" Paul ordered as the ghost type clapped his hands.

Uttering his name once more, Venusaur's flower lit up and then released a large, fluorescent, spherical ray of light as Gengar delivered his attack. Disastrously for the ghost and poison type, the bright light emanating from the Sunny Day attack partially blinded him and forced him to miss his target. As the Night Shade careened over his head, Venusaur slowly turned to his left and glared angrily at his enemy.

"Solarbeam!"

Within two seconds, the center of Venusaur's flower began to illuminate the field again as it shot off a very fast, powerful beam of light.

"Protect, Gengar!"

As another dark shield appeared in front of the ghost Pokémon, the audience and trainers watched on in amazement as Venusaur continued to deliver maximum power against Gengar's shield, which was being pushed so hard as to force the ghost Pokémon backward several steps.

"Hang in there, Gengar!"

"Finish him, Venusaur!"

Finally, after several moments, the sound of glass breaking shattered the relevant silence of the stunned onlookers. In a flare of light, Ash watched as the protective barrier broke in two, allowing his violet Pokémon to be engulfed in the powerful grass type attack.

"Gengar, no!" This was disastrous not only for his Pokémon, but for his strategy.

Venusaur no sooner broke through the barrier before he discontinued the attack. Ash mentally took note of the grass Pokémon's heavy wheezing as the move came to an end. Unfortunately for the young Champion, as the light above the stadium and from the attack disappeared, Gengar could be seen on the ground, his eyes closed tightly.

Looking to his right and finding Gengar's body, the referee prepared to make the call.

"Gengar, I'm begging you, please just get up one more time!" Ash yelled, the plea given more force by the powerful microphone attached to his ear. "You only have one more thing before you can rest for as long as you want! I promise. Just please, please get up!"

Sighing, the referee shook his head. It wasn't so much that he cared about Ash. In fact, though professional officials could never say such a thing aloud, he personally thought Paul was the better trainer. However, it was pathetic to watch a champion hold out hope for such a helpless cause. His right arm began its swift ascent.

"Gengar, gengar, geng," came a raspy voice from beside the referee podium.

"Huh?" Shocked, the young man looked down to find the ghost type Pokémon rolling onto his belly. Lifting himself up onto all fours, the fiendish creature looked up at him.

"No way," Paul commented.

"Wow," Ash simply whispered. Even he didn't think Gengar would pull through that one. Just like earlier though, the ghost type had managed to surprise him and survive yet another deadly assault.

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"How is that Gengar still standing?" Tracey asked, amazed as everyone in the box cheered.

"I have no idea," Gary replied, watching on, impressed at the Pokémon's resilience.

"I'd wager that it has something to do with that Protect," Professor Oak informed the young men as Delia and Misty hugged in front of him. "It clearly took the brunt of Paul's attack, leaving little damage to be done to Gengar. Still though, I wonder why Ash pulled so hard for him to get back into the fight."

"Yeah, it's not like he's gonna be able to do any more damage. He's barely standing up right now. Ash should just cut his losses and call out Sceptile."

"I'm sure Ash knows what he's doing," Misty remarked with a raised eyebrow at the Pokémon researcher, who once again backtracked.

She's really touchy about Ashy-boy.

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"I don't know how he survived that attack," Paul mentioned, apparently forgetting that everyone in the structure could hear his and Ash's dialogue, "but I promise that he won't make it through the next one. Venusaur, grab him with Vine Whip!"

The grass type reached his long vines around Gengar's abdomen. The ghost and poison type scarcely resisted the move, still too weak.

"Now, use Solarbeam one more time, and finish the job."

"Saur," grumbled the dark green Pokémon as his flower lit once more. Small particles of light began to rush toward the center of the plant as the attack slowly built momentum.

"Gengar, you know what to do this time."

Nodding feebly, Gengar closed his eyes and waited for the final assault.

"What's this?" the announcer questioned as Venusaur's light grew to greater levels of luminosity. "It seems that Ash Ketchum isn't even attempting to get his Pokémon out of this jam. What could he be thinking?"

Undeterred by the announcer's rude assumption, Ash stared straight ahead as both he and his friend awaited the right moment.

"Finally giving up?"

"Not yet, Paul," he replied with a grin. Venusaur gave another growl as the plant atop his back turned towards its target.

"Go Gengar!" Ash yelled above the sound of the beam firing at his loyal battling partner. He could barely make out the purple light shining from his Pokémon's eyes as he was once again trapped within the vortex of energy.

After a moment had passed, Venusaur's attack came to an end and the grass Pokémon gladly dropped the burnt ghost type.

"Gengar is unable to battle! Venusaur is th-"

The referee was cut off as Gengar's eyes suddenly opened once more. The purple light from before the attack shone once again as two small magenta orbs left the ghost type's irises and floated, almost playfully, into the air. Slowly making their way over to Venusaur, the two began to circle around the Pokémon in a hypnotic dance. Soon, they were no longer moving slowly, but were instead rapidly spinning around Paul's partner, whirring into a single purple line. Desperately swatting the light away with his vines upon his master's commands, Venusaur appeared frantic. Despite his attempts though, the halo surrounding him continued to whir as the circle grew tighter around his body; another minute passed, and the two orbs suddenly disappeared.

Venusaur's pupils grew wide for a split-second as he muttered his name, before the large Pokémon finally keeled over, his front legs giving out before the rear ones.

"An impressive show indeed!" the announcer cried, his voice echoing as everyone muttered quietly trying to figure out what had happened. "It seems Gengar used Destiny Bond to end the battle for both Pokémon!"

"Both Venusaur and Gengar are unable to battle!" Raising both flags in the air, the referee looked up to find the pictures of both Pokémon disappear from the screen in front of him. "Therefore neither Pokémon is the winner of the match. Trainers, will you please select your sixth, and final, Pokémon?"

"Ash, I will admit this one thing," the challenger said, taking a pause for emphasis. "You certainly got farther than I expected you to." With that, he thrust his last pokéball forward, not saying a word.

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"Oh my," muttered Delia.

"No freaking way!" another boy in the back row yelled.

"I can't believe it," Cynthia stated simply, eyes wide.

"How-how does he have that?"

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"Uh, um, I can't believe what I'm seeing folks," the announcer stated plainly. "Somehow, someway, Mr. Ikari has managed to capture for himself an Entei!"

With the loudest battling cry Ash had ever heard, the fire monster unleashed a powerful fireball from its jaw and straight into the air. With one graceful leap, the legendary Pokémon made the one hundred and fifty foot distance between itself and the center of the battlefield. As it looked across the field at Ash, its red eyes seemed to burn with intensity matching its strength. Its long, brown and white fur flowed gracefully about its body, in spite of the lack of wind which swept across the battlefield. Even from the lengthy distance between the Champion and Pokémon, Ash could feel the emanating heat from its body pounding against his sweat-ridden brow.

Taking a deep breath, Ash smiled. He couldn't describe how surprised he was at his next opponent, but what surprised him even more was the thought that instantly crossed his mind.

This is gonna be a great battle.

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Everyone in the box was silent even as the crowds outside erupted in cheers and screams of delight at witnessing such a strong Pokémon.

"It's no use," whispered Lance to Steven. He didn't want everyone to give up hope like he had. "There's no way that Sceptile could beat that beast."

Steven nodded solemnly. Leaning closer, he replied, "I know we worked on his attack strength, but no grass move that Pokémon knows could even begin to inflict enough damage. If he wants any chance at winning, Ash'll have to use speed again."

"I wish we'd worked on that instead of special attack strength."

Again his counterpart gave a solemn shake of his head.

I know you can do it, Ash. Misty hoped the young Champion realized that not everyone had given up hope just yet. Though no one dared say a word, everyone's eyes, even Delia's, betrayed the doubt which was penetrating their loyal hearts. Misty knew better though. Ash had battled with an Entei, at least a type of one, before, and he could do it again; this time with a victory.

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"I bet Champion Ketchum wishes he hadn't used his Poliwrath so early in the battle anymore," cried the announcer as Ash continued to stand in his trainer's box; a contemplative look gracing his features.

He didn't know. Perhaps it was the cool Sinnoh air kissing the cold sweat lining his dirty arms as it had so often in the past, or maybe it was the way the lights shone down on the battlefield as they had when he'd first gone to the Pokémon League at eleven, or it could even be knowing that his old-time rival sat high above the field, watching him in a precariously tight spot as Ash had always found himself during intense League battles. Whatever the reason, he continued to stand there, simply staring ahead at his challenger's final Pokémon with a grin on his face.

He seemed to be having an epiphany as he remained glued to his spot, pokéball enlarged and at the ready. He realized that this was his dream. He was having a battle with a strong trainer, in front of millions of cheering fans and booing dissidents. The entire battle hinged upon his final Pokémon, and the referee was standing patiently there on his podium, flags at the ready, for him, Ash Ketchum, to make his choice. For the first time that battle, he felt as if he were having fun.

Forget Team Rocket, forget the Champion title, and even forget Paul. This is my dream, and I've worked too hard to let myself not enjoy it. With a small laugh, which instantly caught all the spectators', including Paul Ikari's, attention, he chucked his final pokéball into the air.

As the light dimmed around his final choice, another audible gasp came from the rows of spectators, followed by more wild cheers from the Champion's fans.

"Sorry I had to keep you in there, buddy," Ash apologized as Pikachu stretched his small limbs from being inside the capsule all day.

"What the-?" Paul had certainly been surprised by Ash's final choice.

"Pikachu, pika, pika, pikachu," Pikachu forgave happily as he gave his trainer a thumbs-up.

"So Champion Ketchum was keeping his starter Pikachu a secret the entire time! I wonder if this small shock will be enough to deter Paul's strategy?"

As his Pokémon looked across at Entei, whose eyes now rested upon his small form, Ash noticed that Pikachu started upon meeting the fire type's gaze.

"Don't worry about 'im, Pikachu," Ash consoled as the yellow Pokémon slowly made his move towards the center of the battlefield. "We're the best team in the world. Not even a legendary Pokémon could stop us now!"

"Chu." His somber tone reflected the doubts he still harbored.

I guess I'll just have to prove he has nothing to worry about.

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"I knew something was up," Misty whispered to herself as everyone else cheered on the final Pokémon of the raven-haired trainer. She instantly felt a burden of worry lift from her shoulders as she eyed the electric Pokémon below. If anyone could take down such a ferocious monster, then it would be Ash and Pikachu.

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"Um, are both trainers ready?" The referee seemed just as surprised as everyone else at the final match.

"Sure am," Ash replied as he watched Pikachu drop to all four legs. Sparks began to flicker from his small cheeks and across the entire distance of the battlefield, barely remaining on his side of the fighting area.

"Always," Paul answered, his Entei's mouth already spitting small flames with each exhale.

"Then," the referee started, pausing as he began to worry about his own safety in the presence of such powerful creatures, "let the battle begin!"

Instantly Entei let out a roar and shot a basketball-sized fireball straight across at the electric mouse Pokémon. However, before he even released the attack, Pikachu almost teleported himself through the fire type's legs to stand behind him. Turning around, he unleashed a wicked Thunderbolt attack which tore up the ground as it sped towards the Pokémon's target.

"Jump!" Paul ordered. Again though, his Pokémon already knew what to do, and was already several feet in the air before his master gave any command. Leaping and turning at the same time, the legendary beast caught sight of Ash's Pokémon behind him and shot off a twister of flames at the yellow Pokémon, who instantly used Agility to once again dodge the attack.

Landing on his feet, his back turned now to Ash, the Pokémon leaned his forehead towards the opposite side of the field, and a rainbow-colored beam shot forward.

"Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu stood his ground this time as the psychic type attack raced towards him. Rising on his two feet, the small Pokémon blazed off another attack, which met midway with Entei's. For several seconds the two attacks continued to meet between the fighting creatures, until suddenly the combined energy swirled and turned white. In another instant, a small-scale explosion blasted in the middle of the field, ending both Pokémon's attacks as the smoke in the middle of the field became thick.

However, unlike the last time, the smoke was quickly dealt with as Paul ordered a Hyper Beam. Entei took a deep breath and unleashed a large white beam which shot through the cloud. He slowly turned his head and ripped the hazy atmosphere on the field in half. Ash could see Pikachu lying on his stomach as the powerful blast of energy radiated above.

Eyeing his opponent, Entei let out a roar as fire filled his jaw. Jumping through the passage he created, he instantly took several snaps at Pikachu with his sharp, flaming teeth.

"Pika!" Seeing the dog-like creature bound towards him, Pikachu jumped back up on his feet and skillfully dodged each of the fire type's flaming thrusts time after time.

For a few minutes, Ash and Paul allowed this dance to continue as the smoke progressively evaporated. When finally Ash had a good, though still hazy, view of the surrounding field, he gave his order.

"Get on his head!"

Pivoting backwards on his right foot to avoid another assault, Pikachu obeyed his master and friend by jumping atop his opponent's mane.

Smiling even wider, Ash ordered a Volt Tail attack.

"Pika-pika-pika!" Pikachu cried as his tail grew white and his body became covered in electricity. He raised his elongated tail high above his opponent's head as Paul retaliated.

"Eruption!"

Ash faltered as he watched Entei seemingly spontaneously combust, throwing a crying Pikachu back towards him. As he rolled along the ground, Pikachu's body continued to build electricity. When he finally came to a stop several feet in front of his trainer, his small body released all of the pent-up energy straight into the sky.

"Pikachu! Are you okay?" Ash instantly began to scold himself for allowing his Pokémon to get caught in such a powerful attack.

"Pikachu." The Pokémon immediately regained his balance and turned around to face his opponent once more. Sparks crackled from his cheeks as he muttered angrily under his breath for not following through on the attack.

"It's okay, buddy," Ash told him. "We'll get 'im next time!"

"Pika," the Pokémon replied again, nodding while keeping his eyes locked on the opponent ahead.

"Flamethrower, now."

Pikachu jumped to his right as Entei prepared another attack. However, right before he shot out the flames which were viciously flickering from within his clenched jaw, yellow sparks seized his body, causing him to stumble and roar in pain.

"It looks like Pikachu's Static ability has paralyzed Entei!" the announcer explained to the confused crowd. "What a turn of events!"

Gaining back his grin, Ash jumped in the air and congratulated his friend.

"Way to go Pikachu!"

Pikachu took advantage of the momentary ceasefire of Paul's Pokémon to begin his own assault. His tail crackled as electricity poured forth from his body once more, racing across the field in the blink of an eye, and prompting an even greater yelp from the legendary dog.

"Hidden Power!"

Another fireball immediately appeared in front of Entei, significantly larger than its predecessor, and was shot across the field. Pikachu barely jumped to the left in time to avoid the small but potent explosion which followed the attack's contact with the ground. Covering his eyes with his hands, Ash ordered Pikachu to use Double Team.

Racing around the center of the field, Pikachu created several carbon copies of himself within moments, which Paul immediately tried to destroy by ordering a Fire Blast attack on all of the yellow rodents.

Ash countered by ordering another Thunderbolt from all the Pikachu which were sprinting along the outside of the pokéball-shaped center of the battlefield.

"Pika-chuuuu!" The small mice cried simultaneously as a large electric attack struck Entei with considerable force. However, his fire attack was launched before he was hit, and the burning symbol of fire struck Pikachu as he rounded another lap. Pikachu once again rolled over several times, this time on his side, as the attack did its damage.

"Come on Pikachu!" Ash encouraged from the sideline. "You're doing great!" This wasn't exactly a stretch of the truth, either. Entei was considerably damaged following the Thunderbolt attack, and Ash was now beginning to see some signs of fatigue as he leapt, less gracefully, back to his original position on the field. Small electric sparks arched across his brown, majestic fur as he snarled and let off another fireball, which Pikachu once again barely recovered with enough time to avoid.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Pikachu's speed is really keeping him in the battle," Professor Oak noted, watching Pikachu narrowly jump through a gap in another Fire Blast. He landed safely on the other side and jolted Entei again; this time with a weaker Thundershock. "It's smart of Ash to conserve his electricity by making him dodge and then give little jolts."

"Yeah, he definitely shouldn't use up Pikachu's power too quickly," Tracey stated. "After all, Entei is a long way from being out of the battle just yet."

"I'm so proud of Pikachu though," Delia announced happily as Pikachu dove into Entei's side with a seemingly pointless Tackle attack. "Not many Pokémon his size could stand up to a scary Pokémon like Paul's. Even if he doesn't win, it's a big accomplishment to say that you came this far against such a strong beast."

He'll win though, Misty replied. As her attention remained glued to the battle below she continued to have positive thoughts, not wishing to deal with the hypothetical case-scenario of his loss.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Agility, quick!"

Pikachu barely missed another Flamethrower. It seemed that though Pikachu's speed was steadily decreasing, Paul's Pokémon had yet to peak in firepower. Ash knew that he would have to assume another strategy if he was going to win the battle.

As Pikachu reappeared in front of him, panting hard, he wracked his brain.

"Hidden Power."

"Uh, spin, Pikachu!"

Remembering the move from a long time ago, Pikachu leapt straight at the ball of fire and quickly spun to his right, barely avoiding collision with the attack as it went hurtling past him.

Thank you, Dawn.

Ash remembered another defensive move he and Pikachu had perfected as Entei charged forward, ready with another Fire Fang.

"Counter Shield, now!"

Getting on his back, Pikachu spun and shot electric bolts in the air, repelling his opponent, who recoiled in pain as one of the stray charges hit the roof of his open mouth.

Pikachu quickly flipped back around onto his four legs, and Ash commanded yet another Thunderbolt, which Paul countered with a Protect defense. The electricity was not strong enough to penetrate the green shield as Entei absorbed the entire attack.

"Double Team, Entei!"

Ash thought he'd heard wrong for a moment, but was amazed to see several Entei appear on the field at once, completely surrounding Pikachu. Frustrated that the fire Pokémon was able to pull of such a stunt despite his paralysis, Ash ordered a Discharge attack.

Surrounding himself with electricity, Pikachu opened his arms and flooded the surrounding area with voltage. Paul ordered another Hidden Power attack, which Entei launched immediately upon request. As Pikachu continued releasing bolts, the fireballs pressed hard against his electric shield.

"Pikachu, hang in there!" Ash cried. He felt sorry for his friend. He knew that the only option at this point was to continue with the electric barrier, but was also aware that Pikachu couldn't maintain such an attack forever.

After several more seconds, the fireballs began to close in on the electric mouse as Entei slowed down and returned to his still-state, watching alongside his master as the electric Pokémon continued to fend off his multiple assaults. After exhausting his power, Pikachu finally succumbed to the attack and the now-weakened Hidden Power of Entei hit him from all sides, causing Pikachu to fly several feet in the air before bouncing against the ground feebly.

"Pikachu!" Ash cried, terrified.

"Pika, pika, pi," Pikachu answered in a rough voice, lifting the upper-half of his body with his small paws.

"Finish the rat with a Fire Blast!"

Roaring, the fire Pokémon opened his mouth, presumably for the last time, as light began to gather around him.

This is it, Ash thought helplessly as he watched Pikachu struggle to stand. He continued to bombard his Pokémon with encouragement while inside he could not think of a single way to escape his Pokémon's impending doom. At least we did our best, and we had fun.

Suddenly, Entei let out another cry of pain as sparks cascaded down his fur once again.

"It looks like paralysis kicked in at just the right time for Champion Ketchum!"

"Yes!" Ash cried happily as Pikachu took advantage of the situation to rise to his feet once more. "Let's finish this battle quick, Pikachu!"

Looking around, Ash tried to think of an easy way to catch the legendary Pokémon in a large attack.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Shaking his head, Gary gave a low whistle. "Ashy-boy's hangin' in there by a thread. That Entei doesn't look so hot either, but Ash is definitely at the disadvantage right now." As he talked, Entei shot off another powerful blaze at the electric Pokémon.

"What do you think he should do?" Misty asked, unable to come up with a battle technique that her friend hadn't yet attempted.

"I dunno, I just know he better put that great battling mind of his to work quick if he wants to win this."

"He will."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Thundershock, now!"

"Chuuuuu!" Another weak bolt raced across the field, causing Entei's paralysis to take over once again.

"Now switch to Thunderbolt!"

Another strike at Entei further weakened the now-tired creature, and gave Ash hope. As he planned to unleash his final tactical attack, which he intended to put all of Pikachu's power in to insure that the beast was taken down, he continued to buy time with dodging and swift offensive procedures. The strategy seemed to be effective judging by the increasing sluggishness of Paul's Pokémon over the last several minutes.

"Break it off!"

Shaking its head, Entei shook off the electric attack, which Pikachu had grown too tired to continue anyway.

"I'm not gonna keep letting your little rat dodge, Ash. Finish him with a Flare Blitz!"

At his command, Entei's body appeared to ignite once more. Raising his front paws into the air Entei gave a final roar, before hitting the ground with considerable force and sprinting towards Pikachu.

"Agility out of the way!"

Entei almost met Pikachu's body halfway through the field before the electric creature managed to run to his right and dodge the attack. However, Ash could see Pikachu breathing hard, and as Entei instantly changed direction with his attack, he decided to take action.

"Pikachu, run over to Paul!"

Pikachu turned around and began running to his opponent's trainer, again barely dodging Entei, who quickly stopped before ramming into the referee. The fire Pokémon again sprinted towards its opponent.

"Now use one last Agility to get over here!"

"Chu, chu, chu…!" Leaving a silver trail behind him, Pikachu made the three hundred foot sprint back to his master.

"Get him now!"

"Alright, Pikachu, I want you to use Volt Tackle until I say to stop, okay?"

'Pikachu." Over the noise of the crowd and the incoming assailant, Ash's starter Pokémon looked up and nodded with a smile. Turning around, his entire body crackled with the remnants of his energy as he began to run as fast as he could muster towards the common enemy of he and his master. As he beat his small paws against the dirt, he kept his ears perked up for the command to change direction…provided that command came.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"He's crazy!" Dawn cried as she watched Pikachu's electric form charge towards Entei's flaming body. "Pikachu's too small!"

"He knows what he's doing," Misty replied, clenching her fists so tightly it hurt.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

Ash's heart raced as he watched Pikachu near Entei in the middle of the field. Though it had only been three seconds since his command, he felt as if he was watching the scene unfold before him in slow motion. The second the two battling creatures came within close range of each other he gave his command.

"Flip and use Volt Tail!"

Pikachu instantly stopped dead in his tracks, his tail glowing, and flipped forward at the still-charging Entei. His metallic and electrically-enhanced ligament made a hard connection to the creature's head, forcing the Pokémon's front legs to buckle beneath his body. The extra support of Paul's Pokémon's body pushed Pikachu even further in the air after pulling off the attack.

"Now turn and finish with a Thunder!"

Pikachu twisted his body around as Entei tried to stand straight once more. Over the roar of the crowd, Ash heard Paul command a Protect, but was pleased to see that his Pokémon seemed to still be reeling from the blunt force of the Iron Tail smashing into his head.

"Pikaaaaa-Chuuuuu!" Pikachu appeared to explode midair as intense sparks surrounded his body and made the connection with the slack-jawed legendary.

Shielding his eyes momentarily from the brightness of the attack, Ash uncovered them to find Entei miraculously erect as Pikachu fell to the ground, moaning from exhaustion.

"He's done, finish him with a Flamethrower!"

Standing up, Ash watched on as Pikachu bravely awaited his demise, staring down his opponent. Wishing he could do more, but knowing that his Pokémon was far too tired for another attack, Ash simply watched on and suffered a minor cardiac arrest as Entei took in another deep breath. For that moment in time, as he watched the fiery monster's torso slowly expand in rhythm to its lung capacity, he closed his eyes. He didn't want to watch what was sure to follow.

However, a small whimper from beyond his closed eyelids instantly caught his attention not a second later. Opening his eyes immediately, he barely caught sight of the Pokémon slowly falling to its side. As its head hit the dirt, everyone in the stadium quietly waited alongside the young Champion to see if this was truly the end. The entire world seemed to hold its breath.

When neither Pokémon on the field moved after a full minute, the referee, staring as if in disbelief, rose the green flag a final time. "Entei is no longer able to battle. Pikachu is the winner, which means that Champion Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town is the victor!"

Another moment of silence permeated the giant stadium before roars erupted. Some were chanting Pikachu's name, some Ash's, and some were protesting. However, Ash didn't listen to any of it. Instead, he ran as fast as he could to the middle of the field, past the disappearing form of the Entei, and hastily picked Pikachu up and threw him into the air. As he caught his best friend he held him close and felt tears begin to sting the corners of his eyes.

"You did great, buddy."

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"He-he won," Misty stated in disbelief as she watched Entei's listless figure. As the referee brought his flag up, the entire box jumped with excitement.

"I can't believe it!"

"That was one of the best battles I've ever seen!"

"Did you see Pikachu just flip over Entei like that!"

"So awesome!"

"Without a doubt, he's the best trainer ever!"

"He might even be better than the Master!"

"Everyone, everyone!" Cynthia called above the raucous. "I know you're all excited about this amazing victory! So am I, to tell the truth, but he's about to give his victory speech, so if you would please follow me downstairs, you can go congratulate him in front of everybody!"

Everyone screamed their approval at being on international television with their best friend or favorite relative.

-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-

"Um," Ash began as everyone quieted down to listen to their champion clear his throat. "I have a confession to make…I didn't write a victory speech like I was supposed to."

A few people in the audience laughed, but besides that, the crowd didn't react.

"The truth is, I've been so busy training that I didn't even think the have a speech ready. However, now that I'm here, I think I only have one thing to say, and that's thanks. I want to say thank you to all my fans, who've helped me get my first victory over my first champion challenge since I became the Champion of Sinnoh less than a year ago. I also want to say thank you to my friends and family, who-"

"You're welcome!" several people shouted, immediately taking Ash's attention from the waves of spectators in the stands. Looking down, he saw a crowd of people emerging from the referee's entrance in the middle of the partisan wall. Smiling broadly, he immediately recognized them.

"Actually, here's a lot of my friends and family right now! C'mon you guys!"

He began to regret those words as the onslaught of people bull-rushed him and Pikachu, hugging and squeezing the two while floating continuous compliments into their ears. He could hear laughter emanate from the audience as the two were assaulted, and he tried to continue his impromptu speech while ignoring the mass of bodies around him.

"Uh, anyway, um, ow, my foot! Anyway, thank you to everyone who has helped me get this, uh, far. I hope I continue to serve as a good Sinnoh Champion, and I hope you all continue to be proud of your Pokémon League." With that, he asked if anyone in the current crowd of people had anything they wished to say, holding the microphone away from his body.

"Uh, Ash, I have something to tell you," Dawn said, suddenly popping up in front of the trainer amongst the current throng. Her voice came in clearly from over the microphone and everyone around the Champion quieted to hear what it was she wanted to say.

"Oh no," Misty whispered. The quiet, sentimental tone of Dawn's didn't bode well for the news she was about to give.

"Yeah, Dawn?" Ash asked. His gaze caused her to blush, but she steeled her resolve. She couldn't keep it a secret any longer.

"I-uh, I wanted to tell you that I l-like you!" With that, she firmly grabbed Ash from behind the back and pressed her lips hard against his.

As the crowd went crazy in excitement, Misty felt her heart rend.


Author's Notes: First, I want to say that I realize the first couple of battles were shorter than they were last chapter, but in reality I had to do that to make it realistic. Magnezone, Charizard, and Gengar all took heavy damage last chapter, so they obviously weren't going to last very long in this installment. This also explains why Pikachu and Entei's battle was the longest of this (and last) chapter…because they were completely healthy. Anyway, as is always the case, please, please tell me what you thought by REVIEWING! I'm a very greedy guy, so 500 reviews is nowhere near enough to satisfy me. Ha,ha. But seriously, reviews of all kinds, be they flamers or encouragement, are all appreciated.

In keeping with, you know, what I do every other Sunday, here's this week's list of recommendations:

"The Legend of the Sky Cat" by Kissy Fishy - A great pokeshipping story I've only just begun which covers Ash and his (reunited) group of friends (including Dawn, May, Drew, Brock, etc.) as they go out to hunt a new type of Pokémon which threatens the world. Very interesting story, and one which is updated regularly by its awesome author.

"Haircut" by Mike Prower the Fox - Just a great pokeshipping oneshot I picked up on from one of my loyal reviewers. Basically, Ash gets a haircut, but it's a lot more fun to read than I'm making it sound. Ha,ha. This is a great fic to read if you're just wanting to unwind and enjoy something lighthearted (which I always want to do after completing another chapter).

"Journey of Legends" by livezinshadowz - You know I love this one, and he updated it a week ago, so check it out if you haven't recently. I continue to recommend it (in response to some of your inquiries) because I really see a ton of potential in the plot and I absolutely enjoy his writing style. Hopefully he'll update again soon despite his hectic personal life at the moment.

Okay, before I go, I need to say something. First, I know that most people don't read all these comments, so if you are, then you're probably a dedicated fan and deserve to know this. I've started a community for GOOD pokeshipping stories on this site. In addition to being of the highest quality (which I don't claim my fic to be of, by the way) they either they must be complete, or updated regularly, to qualify. Anyway, I'm looking for one talented writer and two talented readers to join as staff on my community. The readers will weed through the site and their personal favorite fics to put on the community, and the writer and I will continue to give our regular updates (kind of as an insurance that the community remains prevalent and alive). If you would like to be a reader, please let me know in the review section. The same goes for if you'd like to be the writer, but please remember that you must at least be decent at updating regularly for me to consider you. The purpose of the community will be to insure that the pokeshipping community remains alive and well on this site.

Alright, that's all I've got to say. Now please kindly move your mouse down and REVIEW PLEASE!