Theme Song

To be the best, you must train (Acer, Pertinax, and Agrestis box while Comis and Placidus train with another Pokemon. Closeup of Ferus covered in scratches at night, and he charges at a beat up tree)
In the rain, or fighting pain (All of the evolutions for the Johto team flash by the screen)
No matter what, don't get blue (Gray watches her opponents celebrate, but she keeps her head up and smirks)
Find the strength to push you through (Gray sprints towards the screen with her Pokemon)
I know! (2x) I'm a fighter (Skitty looks over at Ferus and evolves)
You can't! (2x) Get me down (Nikki sends out Eevee, Delcatty, Misdreavus, and another Pokemon)
Oh yeah! (2x) Wins push me higher (Cole and Slakoth sit in a tree and lean against it)
Oh no! (2x) A loss won't make me frown (The screen splits in half and shows Ferus and another figure, with fire in the background, and Silver's Croconaw and two other figures, with water in the background, glaring at each other)
Now that you know what to do (Gray and Ferus begin to use Mega Evolution)
Dug deep inside of you (Cole and Nikki stand next to Gray and smile at the screen)
Is the will to win... (All six of Gray's Pokemon stand side by side)
Pokemon!

MAKE SURE TO VOTE ON THE NEW POLL ON MY PROFILE! IT'S ABOUT THE JOHTO MEMBER OF GRAY'S UNOVA TEAM

It's time to get back to the main story/badge hunt, and the gang will be traveling to Olivine City! Last chapter, Gray battled Noah, and Ferus was destroyed by Arcanine. The two then decided to meet up again at a later date, and that was the end of the chapter. Fortis will also be going returning to Owen, and that's about it. Now let's get going!

MerlockVonBaron: Don't worry about it, and thanks! There will be another capture coming soon, the egg will be hatching within the next fifteen chapters or so, and there will be a few evolutions, so to answer your question, yes!

Warrior of Hope: Hopefully. Gray can't afford to have Ferus continue to lose, so he's really gonna have to step it up

Defender31415: That he did, and that he does, lol. I wanted to have Ferus go through a faze where he found out he's not the strongest Pokemon in the world, and the slump he's in will only make him stronger in the end. As for Noah, there's a reason I'm setting that up ;)

ShadowDragon9000: Era sounds way cooler. I'm strongly considering having Noah appear in a later chapter to show off just how strong his team is in a battle, but at the same time, I don't want to because I feel like it'll take away from the story, and also (assuming he were to battle) I don't think a random opponent would make much sense. And I wouldn't want him battling Gray, because she'd be dealing with the Silver Conference and Purity. And I know exactly what you mean. Ferus was turning into Fortis, though a much more extreme version that lacked a rival capable of defeating him

James95: I knew I forgot to edit something! Sorry, that was the original idea for the chapter a few months ago, but I decided to mix it up and it'll instead focus on a Tauros. Sadly, Roserade wasn't picked, though I love the winner and feel like it'll make an awesome addition to the team for various reasons. And the idea of a Sunny Day team isn't that enticing to me (Roserade and Decorus would be hilarious, though), because I'm not in to competitive Pokemon. Also, you're right about Arcanine! He was apparently supposed to be the third legendary along with Zapdos and Articuno, but Moltres was added because a dog and two birds didn't make sense :/

Gray's Team

Comis, (m), level 38, Night Slash, Acrobatics, Sky Uppercut, X-Scissor, Quick Attack*, Feint Attack* - (Gliscor)
Acer, (f), level 35, Mach Punch, Headbutt, Bullet Seed, Stun Spore, Leech Seed*, Poison Powder* - (Breloom)
Ferus, (m), level 38, Flamethrower, Feint Attack, Howl, Smog, Bite*, Fire Fang* - (Houndoom)
Pertinax, (m), level 37, Vice Grip, Seismic Toss, X-Scissor, Storm Throw, Double Hit*, Brick Break* - (Pinsir)
Agrestis, (f), level 32, Pound, Toxic Spikes, Double Slap, Sludge Bomb, Take Down*, Dark Pulse* - (Trubbish)
Placidus, (m), level 33, Bite, Harden, Take Down, Ice Fang, Ice Ball* - (Bergmite)
Egg, (N/A): The egg is not close to hatching. There's no guessing how long it will take

"Remember, Fortis, keep training your hardest! When I see you again, I want to be impressed," Gray teased while looking down at the screen of her Pokedex.

She, Cole, and Nikki were walking down Route 39 along with Comis, Slakoth, and Eevee. They had returned to Johto three days earlier, and had just set out the day before.

"Definitely. I'll talk to you later, Gray," Fortis said before ending the video chat, prompting Gray to put her Pokedex in her backpack, which was where the egg was.

"How much longer do you think it's going to take for the egg to hatch?" Cole asked as Gray took the egg out of her backpack and checked on it, carefully looking over the object to see if there were any cracks. "It's been a month since you got it."

"No clue, but I hope it hatches soon. I really want to see what Pokemon it is!" Gray exclaimed, drawing Comis' attention as he was flying overhead. "Maybe it'll be something really powerful."

"Well, I don't know any Pokemon that are tan and kind of gold," Nikki started, inspecting the object. "But I doubt it'd be anything incredible like a Metagross or Goodra," she opined. "If it was, you'd figure the trainer it belonged to would've taken it."

"That's true," Slakoth said, hopping into the conversation. "But you can never be too sure. Besides, any Pokemon can be really strong if they train hard enough."

Everyone nodded in agreement, and they continued walking in silence. Taking in the beautiful scenery, Gray sighed and smiled, her mind running back to the time she spent in Kalos.

"Meeting and battling both Tristan and Tyson was awesome! They were both so strong and really helped me see how strong we were. And Noah..." Gray smiled at the thought of the boy and his Arcanine before realizing Comis was staring at her, causing her to blush wildly. The winged creature, however, didn't say anything and looked forward once again, not wanting to talk to Gray about whatever she was thinking.

"You know, it's cool that you got to battle against someone from the future!" Cole shouted, making Gray nod while she grabbed Comis' Pokeball off her belt and began tossing it lightly. "And Tristan was really cool."

"So were Noah and Arcanine. They were so strong!" Eevee shrieked, remembering how badly Arcanine beat Ferus. "I think the only Pokemon you had that could've beaten them was Fortis, Gray," the normal type continued, making Gray giggle while she nodded at the opinion.

"I don't know about that. I think any one of the others could've beaten him. The only reason Ferus lost was because I didn't do a good job as a trainer," Gray opined while shaking her head at the memory of her loss to Noah. "Whatever. At least I get to start winning badges again."

"Could we stop soon? I'm tired," Comis asked as he landed on the ground in front of his trainer, walking by her side. "I'm pretty sure I remember someone saying something about there being a rest stop up ahead."

Gray shrugged and looked back at Cole and Nikki, the former of whom raised his hand while looking down at his Pokedex.

"That was me. MooMoo Farm is up ahead, so we could stop there for a little while," the teen suggested, making Comis smile before he took to the sky once again.a

000

After arriving at MooMoo Farm, the gang walked up to the gates of the property and looked around for someone to let them in. Surprisingly, the gates swung open on their own, and the three teens looked at each other in confusion before pushing onwards. As they strolled down a dirt path, the trainers and their Pokemon saw a man in overalls tending to several Miltank and Tauros.

"Excuse me," Nikki called out to the man, who turned around and smiled at them. "Would you mind if we checked out your ranch? We're traveling Johto so our friend can earn eight badges and compete in the Silver Conference."

"Of course you can. My name's Ralph, and welcome to MooMoo Farm!" the man exclaimed while throwing his arms in the air. "This place is known for producing all of the MooMoo Milk in the world, but I also have some of the strongest Miltank and Tauros you can find," Ralph proclaimed, making Comis grin eagerly.

"I want to see that for myself," the Gliscor told Ralph, who laughed at the comment heartily. "If you're okay with that, of course."

"Sure, but why don't we do that after I give you a tour of the place?" Ralph quizzed.

"That sounds great!" Eevee cheered happily with a bright smile.

"Good. You can call your Pokemon out if you like," the man informed the traveling teens, prompting Nikki and Gray to release the rest of their Pokemon. "Ooh, those look like some strong Pokemon!"

Comis, Acer, Pertinax, Agrestis, Placidus, Eevee, Skitty, Misdreavus, and Slakoth beamed at the compliment, while Ferus sighed and sat down next to Gray, staring at the ground dejectedly. Gray shot him a look of concern, but Ferus didn't pay any attention and continued looking at the ground while following his teammates and Ralph to a different area of the farm.

"So, this here is where we keep all of the newborns," Ralph announced as he walked up to a red barn and opened the doors of it. "The right side is for all of the Miltank, and the left is for Tauros."

"Why do you separate them from each other?" Agrestis asked, looking at the newborn Pokemon playing with one another.

"Newborn Tauros are very violent and like to fight with one another, so when we put them together, they fight and determine the roles they'll play once they're adults. If they were with Miltank, they could hurt them," Ralph explained as he began petting one of the baby Tauros.

"That's cool," Acer opined as she and the group followed Ralph out of the barn and walked into another one.

"And here are where the maturing Tauros and Miltank stay. They're quite a bit older than the newborns, but they tend to be very aggressive around anyone and anything, so we can't let them out."

As soon as Ralph finished speaking, a Tauros slammed into the bars on its cage, making everyone flinch in shock before looking at the Pokemon. Tauros exhaled dramatically and began pushing against the bars with his front right hoof, locking eyes with Ferus, who turned away and hung his head timidly, catching Comis' attention.

"I want to battle that one," he stated, catching Ralph off guard while Gray shook her head at her Pokemon's idiocy. "I know it's aggressive, but that's why I want to battle him. The stronger the opponent, the more I can improve."

"Well, if that's what you really want," Ralph muttered, taking a belt full of Pokeballs off the wall and zapping the Tauros into the spherical device. "Okay, let's go."

With that, the group headed out of the barn and made their way over to a grassy area, where a bunch of Tauros and Miltank were watching calmly. Nikki, Cole, and the rest of the Pokemon stared at the tamed creatures in shock, amazed at the fact that they were able to sit and watch without interfering.

"Tauros, come on out!" Ralph yelled while tossing the Pokeball in the air.

The four legged bull materialized from the capsule and appeared in front of Ralph, swiping at the ground, signaling his aggression. Comis, meanwhile, walked forward with a confident look on his face, and he snapped his claws at the normal type. Much to his dismay, Comis watched as Tauros turned his head away, confusing everyone while Comis grabbed put his hands over his heart and fell over.

"What's going on?" Misdreavus inquired as Tauros refused to look at Comis, who began glaring at the normal type while Ralph scratched his head in confusion. Everyone else shared the same feeling except for Cole and Slakoth, who understood what Tauros' actions meant.

"He doesn't want to battle Comis," Cole started, making Tauros nod as he stared at the trainer. Then, Tauros stared at Ferus, who continued to hang his head next to Gray, making everyone turn to face the fire type.

Feeling everyone's eyes locking onto him, Ferus looked around and saw Tauros staring at him.

"No. I'm not battling," Ferus announced, laying down with a depressed look. "I don't care if he throws a hissy fit, I'm not doing it."

Surprised by the confident Pokemon's reluctance to battle, Skitty stared at Ferus, not knowing what was wrong with him. Clearly, something was bothering Ferus, but he wouldn't say what it was. He had been acting like that for the past three days, ever since they returned from Kalos, but no one could put a finger on the cause of his sudden change. Gray, meanwhile, looked at Tauros along with Comis, and they scowled at the Pokemon.

"Ralph, we're going to attack first so Tauros has to battle!" Gray informed the man, who nodded understandingly. "Comis-" Gray was cutoff by Skitty running forward and stepping in front of Comis, keeping him from attacking.

"Skitty, what are you doing!?" Nikki shouted at her Pokemon, who turned around with a solemn expression, catching the blonde by surprise.

"I want to battle Tauros."

Ferus stared at Skitty in shock, confused about why she'd want to battle Tauros, given the fact that the only time she battled someone was him. While shaking his head, the Houndoom let out a sigh and sat up.

Tauros, on the other hand, immediately began laughing at Skitty's statement, but he was shocked to see Gray and Comis back away without a word, allowing Nikki to step forwards. Gray and her Pokemon then made their way to the side of the imaginary battlefield with Cole, and the brunette raised her arms in the air as she was acting as the referee.

"This battle will be between Skitty and Tauros! Begin!"

"Skitty, use Disarming Voice!" Nikki shouted while looking down at the pink feline.

Opening her mouth, Skitty began wagging her tail before shooting a ring of pink light out of her mouth. The fairy type attack quickly closed in on Tauros, but Ralph's quick thinking prevented his Pokemon from being hit.

"Dodge it and use Zen Headbutt!" the man commanded powerfully.

Tauros leaped to his right and avoided the attack entirely, making Nikki frown while Skitty kept her squinty eyes locked on the built Pokemon. All of a sudden, Tauros' head began to glow light blue, and he charged across the grass. As he closed in on his opponent, Tauros lowered his head and slammed into Skitty, launching her past Nikki. Everyone gasped at the sight and watched as Skitty pushed herself back up, dirt covering her body.

"Put Tauros to sleep with Sing!"

Slowly, Skitty opened her mouth and released several music notes that were all different colors. Each of the notes floated over to Tauros, but the bull ran away from them and charged at Skitty once again, making all of Gray's Pokemon, except Ferus, turn away and cover their eyes.

"Now hit her with Horn Attack!"

Tauros grunted with each step he took, and the horns on his head extended while glowing white. Before Nikki could react, Tauros slammed his horns into Skitty and lifted her off the ground. With a mighty thrust of his neck, Tauros hurled Skitty into a different atmosphere, and she fell limply before crashing into the ground, causing Ferus to growl at Tauros, who stood over Skitty with a devilish grin. The normal type then lifted his front hoof and looked like he was about to stomp on the downed cat, prompting Ferus to sprint forwards. Before Tauros could hurt Skitty, Ferus dove forwards and pushed her out of the way. A loud crack echoed through the air, and Skitty looked over to see Ferus front left leg crushed underneath Tauros' hoof.

"Ferus!" Gray shouted as she ran over to the fire type with the rest of her Pokemon, who immediately knelt down next to their teammate while looking at his front leg. Even though it wasn't broken, it looked to be seriously hurt, making Ralph curse under his breath before he began scolding Tauros.

"Why would you do that! It was obvious Skitty couldn't battle!" the man screamed at his Pokemon, who slowly lowered his head to the ground, clearly remorseful for his actions while Gray and her Pokemon walked back to Cole's side.

"Wait..." Skitty requested weakly, causing Ferus, Ralph, and Tauros to turn towards her. "I can keep going," she muttered before being engulfed in a bright coat of light, causing everyone to gasp.

Once the light dimmed, a different Pokemon stood in Skitty's place. Its entire body was a cream color, while the top of its head was covered with purple fur. There was also a purple collar around her neck, and her tail also had a fluffy, purple tip. Nikki stared at the newly evolved Pokemon in shock before scanning it with her Pokedex.

"Delcatty, the Prim Pokemon, and the evolved form of Skitty. It dislikes dirty places. It often searches for a comfortable place in which to groom itself. New move learned: Double Edge."

"I can't believe Skitty evolved!" Pertinax shouted in shock. "I just don't know why."

"Think about it for a second," Slakoth started, making Pertinax turn towards him. "Ferus evolved trying to protect her, so she did the same thing. That shows just how much she cares about him."

Comis immediately turned to glare at Ferus, who didn't notice because he was too busy staring at Delcatty, who stood in front of Nikki gracefully. Placidus laughed quietly at Ferus' actions while Acer and Agrestis shook their heads, which made Pertinax laugh along with Placidus.

"Can you keep battling, Delcatty?" Nikki asked the normal type, who turned and nodded with a smile.

"Well, it was your move before that little interruption," Ralph started, glaring at Tauros.

"Okay. Delcatty, let's use your new move! Double Edge!" Nikki commanded.

Delcatty nodded at her trainer's words before sprinting towards Tauros as she was completely surrounded by white light. While Delcatty continued charging, Ralph threw his arm forwards and called out to his Pokemon.

"Intercept it with Zen Headbutt, Tauros!"

Tauros grunted loudly before his head began to glow light blue. Then, he dashed forwards and lowered his head, colliding with Delcatty. Much to Ralph's dismay, Tauros was overpowered by Delcatty, and she sent him rolling back towards the farmer, who chuckled at the newly evolved Pokemon's power before hearing Nikki's voice cut through the air.

"Follow it up with Disarming Voice!"

Delcatty continued her assault and let out a roar, firing a ring of pink energy at Tauros. The ring struck its target and exploded on contact, pushing the bull backwards while he grimaced in pain and bent down tiredly.

"Tauros, hang in there and use Payback!"

After standing on his hind legs, Tauros slammed his front hooves on the ground and cried out, firing a bullet of black energy at Delcatty, who was hit and launched back by the powerful dark type attack. However, she got back on her feet with little effort and lowered herself to the ground, ready to attack.

"Delcatty, let's finish this! Use Double Edge again!" Nikki yelled while throwing her fist forwards.

Suddenly, Delcatty was engulfed in white light, and she bolted across the grass at a high speed. Then, she leaped and torpedoed into Tauros' head, knocking the aggressive Pokemon unconscious instantly. Delcatty smirked victoriously before wincing in pain at the recoil damage from Double Edge, but she made her way back to Nikki and jumped up to her trainer, licking the blonde's face merrily.

"Tauros is unable to battle! Nikki and Delcatty are the winners!" Gray shouted before pointing at her friend, who cheered with her newly evolved Pokemon before walking over to Ralph and shaking the man's head.

"Great battle! That Delcatty's strong," Ralph said to Nikki, who bowed in response while Gray and Cole began talking with Ralph. Delcatty, meanwhile, waltzed over to her teammates and sat down with a happy look on her face.

"That was so cool! I can't believe you evolved!" Eevee exclaimed while wagging her tail, making Delcatty nod.

"Yeah. You destroyed Tauros!" Misdreavus commented before turning to see Gray's Pokemon walk over. Comis was the first to reach Delcatty, and he put his arm around her with a stupid smile.

"Nice job out there, Delcatty! If you ever need battling tips, I can help," he offered nonchalantly, trying to sound cool in front of his crush.

"I'll pass," the feline responded, crushing Comis' hopes as he fell over and put his hands over his chest dramatically. "Please stop doing that," Delcatty continued while shaking her head at Comis' antics, making him stand up immediately before bowing and apologizing.

"So what does it feel like to evolve?" Agrestis asked while running up to the normal type, who was caught off guard by the question as she began to blush at the actual answer. Subtly, she glanced at Ferus, and the fire type managed to notice, making Delcatty blush even more.

"I guess it makes you sick," Placidus said to Agrestis, causing Delcatty's face to turn bright red while everyone else laughed at the situation.

"No it doesn't!" she shouted, drawing confused looks from the unevolved Pokemon. "Sorry. It feels really awesome. You feel this surge of energy run through your body, and it feels like you have unlimited energy, even though you don't."

"Sweet! I want to evolve right now!" Agrestis shouted, falling over as she did so. Once she got back up, Agrestis ran towards Gray along with Placidus, screaming about wanting to evolve while Comis, Acer, and Pertinax followed after them. Eevee, Misdreavus, and Slakoth began walking along with the more mature trio of Gray's Pokemon, leaving Ferus and Delcatty.

"Is your leg okay?" Delcatty asked awkwardly, breaking the ice.

Ferus nodded and waved his leg around to prove it wasn't hurting, but he immediately stopped when a sharp pain zipped through it. Delcatty walked over worriedly, but stopped when Ferus waved her off, making the feline smile as she began walking over to her trainer.

"I know why you evolved," Ferus called out, stopping Delcatty dead in her tracks as a smirk crept across the fire type's face. "If anything's on your chest, just say it," he continued as Delcatty remained froze, her back turned to Ferus.

Slowly, she turned around and locked eyes with Ferus, and the fire type waited for Delcatty to speak.

"No."

So, Skitty evolved while battling, which was an attempt to impress Ferus, and that's really it. The group will be in Olivine City starting next chapter, and there'll be a battle! On a side note, the Silver Conference will be starting, unofficially, in Chapter 55, with the first round being Chapter 56. Till next time, peace out.

Next Chapter: "The Dragon Slayer Rises!"

Now in Olivine City, Gray runs into James at the lighthouse and they decide to have a three versus three battle. When James calls upon his Sliggoo, Gray is forced to turn to one Pokemon in particular. Who is this Pokemon? Will he/she be able to defeat Sliggoo?

Cianwood/Olivine City Arc

Chapter 40: Safari Zone Shuffle: Baby Bagon
Chapter 41: Bad Luck Chuck
Chapter 42: Mending Steel
Chapter 43: Two Down, One to Go