Hey, it's been a couple of weeks, but I got back into the swing of things to write this.
BTW guys, take care of yourselves. Covid-19 is proving to be quite serious.
Anyway, suggestions are welcome :)

This Dratini is a male. He knows the moves- Wrap, Thunder Wave, and Dragon Pulse. He has the ability- Shed Skin.

Ash whistled after reading the Pokedex entry. Dragon Pulse was definitely the result of Ares' breeding, as the Team Rocket member had boasted. He'd walked for a short distance and had come across a clearing. He took a moment to sip some water before releasing Ares out of his Pokeball. Ares happily growled when he came out of the Pokeball. He looked fresh, with no signs of the battle he'd been in a couple of days ago, Ash noted happily.

"Right, Ares, I want to do some quick drills with you, just to get a feel of what you can do. I'm going to call out your moves and you're going to perform them on that tree," Ash said, pointing to the nearby tree.

Ares butted his leg to show his agreement. He then slithered off to wait a couple of meters away from the tree.

Ash frowned for a moment. Judging Wrap by using it on a tree would be pointless. The same with Thunder Wave. He decided to try out Dragon Pulse.

"Ares, Dragon Pulse."

Ares reared back for a moment, in obvious concentration, before being surrounded by what Ash assumed was draconic energy, which was a colour reminiscent of lilac. Ares struggled to get a proper grasp on it, as it kept fizzling for a couple of moments before is steadied into a small cover over him. Ares then dispersed it, the attack weakly crashing on to the tree, barely making an impact.

Ash winced, it wasn't unexpected. Dragon-type moves were tough to use and even tougher to master because of how slippery draconic energy was. Practice would allow Ares to use Dragon Pulse better.

Ares came back to Ash, obviously disappointed, as he himself had been hoping to do some damage.

"It's fine Ares, you did better than I expected you to do." Ash consoled, patting Ares' head.

"I also want to see how fast you are, that can wait until we battle I guess," Ash mused. He wore his backpack again and beckoned Ares towards him. He didn't bother recalling him because he wanted to battle some Pokemon. In the short walk from Pallet to the clearing, Ash had seen some wild Pokemon, mostly the ilk of Caterpie and Pidgey, but hadn't bothered to fight them. He'd taken a moment to think upon the fact that he was a Pokemon Trainer. But he'd accepted the fact, and now he was ready to get in the swing of things.

Ares growled, butting his head against Ash's shoe. Ash looked around and saw that Ares was antsy due to the Oddish nearby. Wait, Oddish? They weren't really seen in this route. He briefly entertained thoughts of catching it but dispelled the thought. Oddish evolved into Gloom and they were a challenge for every trainer due to their horrible smell. Most trainers thought Erika was a freak, due to her having a Gloom. Vileplume could be a decent substitute for Venausaur, but Ash didn't want to go through all that trouble. However, he did want to battle it.

"Ares, head in. Thunder Wave." Ash briskly said. The Oddish perked up at hearing this and turned around to face Ares. It got hit straight with Thunder Wave. Oddish froze for a moment before shaking out of it. A yellow hue surrounded it. It would get paralyzed at random times.

"Nice, Ares! Stay close to Oddish and use Wrap!" Ash said. Oddish probably didn't have many attacks for close-combat, and Ash wanted to take advantage of it.

Ares slithered towards Oddish, rather slowly in his opinion. He moved in a straight pattern, and Oddish took advantage of that. A green hue surrounded it, before striking Ares dead on. It trapped for a moment, and Ash realized that it was Absorb. He cursed, Dragon Pulse took too long to charge and Wrap was Ares' only other move. Ares looked a bit shaken up but kept moving.

"Right, Ares, move in a zig-zag pattern. Don't let Absorb hit you." Ash called out, it might be a basic strategy, but it would prevent Oddish defeating Ares by sucking his energy out of him quickly.

Ares caught up to Oddish, who hadn't moved an inch, and wrapped his body around it. A fierce tussle broke out, with Oddish unable to break free but thrashing with all its might. Ash crowed in delight when he saw that Oddish was rapidly losing its energy. He lost his smile when Oddish used Acid. It dropped on Dratini, who yelped and backed away. Small patches of his scales were missing. Ash whistled, that was one strong attack.

His options, however, were limited now. He couldn't tell Ares to get close and Wrap again since he'd get sprayed with Acid. One more hit would definitely knock him out.

"Let's go for it. Dragon Pulse." Ash told Ares. Oddish could easily defeat the Dratini now, but it was their only option.

Oddish used Absorb again, the green jet striking Ares, drawing energy out of him. Ares didn't move and kept trying to control the draconic energy.

"Just hang in there." Ash murmured, crossing his fingers. He deflated when he saw Oddish charging up another Absorb, there was no way Ares could stand that. He ran a hand through his hair but perked up.

Paralysis had struck Oddish, who was now trapped in motion, the green hue surrounding it fading away.

"Come on Ares!" Ash crowed, smiling happily. Ares controlled the draconic energy better as he wasn't being drained by Absorb, and managed to send it straight into Oddish. It appeared to have done much more damage than what had been done to the tree, as Oddish was firmly knocked out and was sent back by several meters.

Ash smiled but quickly grabbed a potion out of his bag for Ares. The Pokemon had slithered over to him, head held up, obviously proud of his triumph.

"Good work," Ash said, as he sprayed the potion on Ares. He spared a glance at the Oddish but didn't give it too much thought. Wild Pokemon were generally very resilient.

He thought back on the battle and realized that he had a lot of work to do. Oddish wasn't a very strong Pokemon. If he had a Charmander, Bulbasaur, or Squirtle, he would have steamrolled it. Dragons developed slowly, Ares' difficulty in controlling draconic energy pointed to that. His limited move-set and his rather slow speed didn't help either. He'd been quick to dodge the Magmar, though it hadn't been replicated here.

He shrugged, he loved a good challenge and this was the epitome of it. He didn't think he would be able to defeat Gary or Leaf yet. Both of their starters would have started off with good attack and defense and would probably learn powerful moves early on. That didn't matter too much to him, he decided. He'd hold the bragging rights when his Dratini matured.

Ares had displayed some good strength while using Wrap. If Oddish hadn't used Acid, it would have been knocked out in a couple of seconds. Ash felt that this meant that he should focus on Ares' strength. He wouldn't forget about speed either, being a sitting duck wouldn't do any favours for Ares.

"My dad, he was there till I was 4. He held me up on his shoulders and I remember playing football with him," Ash said, running a hand through his hair. He had kept Ares out of his Pokeball and was trying to connect with him.

"I remember him and mum shouting a bit. I was probably 3 or 4 then. Then one day, he just wasn't there." Ash swallowed, it wasn't easy to talk about this. He had received scorn from other kids due to this, which he hadn't taken to well. Ash had kept his head down and never responded to the taunts, and as he grew up, they trailed off.

"It's been nine years and I'm still getting emotional over this," Ash muttered. Ares, to his credit, bumped his snout against Ash's leg comfortingly. Ash relaxed at the touch.

"Thanks, buddy," He said, patting Ares. "It's harder to think about now because Team Rocket nearly killed me as well." He tried to calm himself down completely, but the thought of Team Rocket just riled him up. "If not for them, my father would still be alive," He angrily muttered the last part. He took a deep breath.

"Ah, let's switch to a better topic," Ash said, calming down.

Ash and Ares walked, in Ares' case slithered, for a while until Ash started talking again.

"My mum, she's always been there for me." His tone became light. "It must have been very tough. She had a four-year-old kid, she had resumed college, and she had to pay all the bills. I remember some nights where she didn't come home at all, working late shifts in some odd jobs," Ash said airily, trying to keep the pain of remembering those times out of his voice.

"She kept going for a while, but then Professor Oak helped us out. He offered mum a good-paying job as an aide in his lab after she finished getting her degree. He actually paid for her last semester. Mum told me he even took care of me sometimes while she was out." Ash said a smile on his face.

"From there, I became friends with Gary. He used to be less cocky back then, though cockier than the average five-year-old," Ash said wryly. Ares grunted to show that he was listening.

"But when we were ten, Gary's parents died," Ash's smile faded. "They went to Hoenn for a vacation. Gary didn't go with them because he was sick. While they were exploring, they came across a Shelgon evolving into Salamence. It turned feral and killed them."

Ash had been there when the news had reached Gary and Professor Oak. None of them had believed it, but when it sunk in, they'd both been devastated. Gary had fallen down to his knees and had turned an unhealthy pallor of gray. Professor Oak, to Ash's shock, had gone straight to a bottle, which in retrospect, Ash was sure it was alcohol.

Ash had left after that, while he wasn't struck with grief as he hadn't gotten to know them very well, it had still been a shock to him. Later, he had found out that Professor Oak, with the league's permission, had put down the Salamence. Ash had been disturbed when he'd heard of it but understood that his opinion didn't really matter.

"Gary was never quite the same after that," Ash continued. "He used to be brash, loud, and arrogant, but he was just withdrawn after that." Ares bumped his leg understandingly. Ash smiled, he felt that his talk, though it was very revealing, had allowed Ares to understand him better, which was what he was aiming for. His thoughts, however, turned back to Gary.

He sighed. Gary and he had made up before they had left for their journies and he hoped that it would last. Ares quietly hissed at his side. Ash looked down to see that Ares was using his head to point further down the route, where the ground was rocky and uneven. Ash understood and recalled him. While the scales of a Dratini weren't very fragile, there was no need to take risks. Ash put his hands in his pockets and kept walking.

Ash came to a stop at a small clearing. It was free of rocks and would be good enough for him to rest for the night. He had started out at noon and had traveled till 8. It was pretty dark and Ash didn't want to risk walking anymore in the dark. He didn't have any fire-type Pokemon to light up the path. He could use his torch and fumble through, but he wasn't in a hurry.

Ash pulled out his sleeping bag from his bag and spread it on the ground. He pulled out a smaller one for Ares, though he wasn't sure if the Dratini would want to use it. Deciding to ask him later, Ash put down his bag and went to grab some firewood. He wanted a fire before he slept. This route didn't have any dangerous or feral Pokemon, so he wasn't in danger of attracting anything.

He realized that the process of collecting twigs and branches might be easier if Ares helped out as well. He called him out.

"Ares, go and grab some twigs and branches. I'm going to start a fire." Ash said. The Dratini nodded and slithered towards Ash's left. "Don't go too far!" Ash called out, Ares grunted in response. Ash went towards the right to grab twigs and branches. On his way, he started thinking about the first gym battle. Ares didn't have any advantage over the gyms in Kanto, but some of them were ineffective against dragon-types.

For Brock, Ash realized, he was going to have to teach Ares a new move and train it some more. The move-set of Wrap, Thunder Wave, and Dragon Pulse was not going to cut it against the rock-type trainer. Ash decided to look up some moves in his Pokedex to teach Ares. He gathered some branches and headed back to the make-shift campsite. He noted that Ares had stacked a pile of twigs and branches, considerably larger than Ash's. Ash snorted.

Ares looked up at him and grunted, upbeat, before slithering over to his sleeping bag and laid on it.

Ash noted that Ares seemed to like it, as Ares hissed happily. Ash went over to the pile and separated some for if they needed it later. He pulled out a lighter from his bag and knelt down to light the firewood. He heard a crackling sound before it started burning. Ash kept his hands close to the fire and sighed happily at the warmth. It wasn't cold per se, but the temperature was lower than what he was used to. Ares came out of the sleeping bag where he had cocooned himself in and basked in the warmth as well.

Ash stood up and jogged over to his bag and pulled out two boxes that contained dinner. His mother had packed him and Ares both lunch and dinner. They had eaten their lunch a couple of hours ago.

Once they were done eating, Ares went over to his sleeping bag, while Ash threw in some more twigs to keep the fire burning. He put his rucksack near his sleeping bag and got his Pokedex out from it before sliding himself into his sleeping bag. He happily sighed as the warmth coursed through him. He started surfing his Pokedex, he entered Dratini's profile and found out that Ares could learn Aqua Tail.

'That'll be dead useful for Brock', Ash mused. Pewter City's gym leader used rock-types.

Water-type moves like Aqua Tail would be very useful against Brock, but it wouldn't be a deal-breaker. Ash resolved to train with Ares more. With plans abuzz in his mind, he tucked the Pokedex into his pocket before closing his eyes, allowing himself to succumb to the exhaustion that had been plaguing him after walking for a day.

"Right, Ares, here's a video showing a Dratini using Aqua Tail," Ash said. He had found a video on his Pokedex showing a Dratini using Aqua Tail.

"It looks pretty simple," Ash continued, though Ares snorted at him. Ash mock-glared at him. "I know I'm not the one battling, but I think you should just swipe your tail at objects and draw energy out of yourself until you get it," Ares hissed in agreement.

Ash had just left the clearing where he'd spent the night in. He didn't really have an alarm, so he'd slept hoping he'd wake up early. Well, he didn't. He woke up at 8 AM. Traveling for so long had worn him out yesterday. His daily run had increased his stamina, but nothing could prepare you for the arduous traveling which came with being a Pokemon Trainer.

Ash spotted a stream as he was walking. He gestured to Ares to follow him and walked over to the stream. He removed his hat and placed it on the side before cupping his hands to hold water. He washed his face to clear the last remnants of grogginess and started brushing his teeth.

Ares had dipped himself into the stream and was idly swimming around, but he growled in annoyance as he spotted a Spearow nearby. Ash didn't think too much of it and continued brushing his teeth. The Spearow flew close to the stream, and coincidentally, Ash's cap was near its path of flight. Ares saw this and growled again, before using a Thunder Wave, which hit the Spearow dead on.

Ash finally looked up at this and said through the foam present in his mouth, "Ares, what are you doing?" Ares hissed in annoyance as if to signify that it was the Spearow's fault.

"Well, I guess we're battling this," Ash said, muffled. They had battled a few other Pokemon, mainly Caterpie and Weedle yesterday. They had been easy, though a Weedle had poisoned Ares once, which made Ash grateful to Ares' ability, which naturally healed the status effect. Shed Skin wouldn't occur every time, but when it did, it was useful.

Ash stood up, expecting the Spearow to attack Ares, but it didn't, instead chose to chirp loudly. Ash froze in realization. Spearow was probably calling the rest of its flock. He cursed and put his toothbrush in his bag, mouth still full of foam. He wore his backpack and recalled Ares, not trusting the Dratini to keep up with him. He spotted the hints of a grin on the Pokemon's face before he was recalled. Ash couldn't resist a laugh.

Ash's thoughts were interrupted when he heard sounds of many Spearows, and... a Fearow?! Ash cursed again before sprinting as fast as he could, leaving the stream behind. Viridian City wasn't so far away, he reasoned. If he could reach it, someone could help him fend this flock off. He took minor changes in his route, though keeping an eye on the main path, as that was the only way he could reach Viridian City.

The Spearows and the lone Fearow were quickly catching up to him, Ash saw as he turned around momentarily.

'Damn, they're going to catch up quickly,' he thought, and suddenly sprinted into the left, and took a bizarre series of turns, leading him away from the main path, but more importantly, farther away from the Spearow. He slowed down a bit, catching his breath. He could still hear some angry chirping, but it wasn't near him. He leaned back against a tree and breathed deeply, closing his eyes. He felt a weight on his nose and opened his eyes, to stare into the eyes of a Spearow.

"Fuck!" Ash yelled, spitting out the foam in his mouth, which hit the Spearow dead on. It was the Spearow which Ares had shot a Thunder Wave at.

"Oh god," Ash said and wiped his mouth. The Spearow was hovering a few meters away, clearly not happy with him. It started flying towards him, probably to peck his eyes out, he thought. He fumbled for Ares' Pokeball but was saved from being assaulted when he heard a familiar voice.

"Squirtle, Water Gun. What the hell are you doing Ashy boy?" Gary said, chortling. The attack struck Spearow, sending it crashing into a tree, where it slumped to the ground, clearly unconscious.

"I accidentally riled up a flock of Spearow," Ash mumbled.

Ash looked up to see someone else accompanying Gary.

"Leaf?" Ash asked, confused as the short, excitable girl came into his view from behind Gary, her dark hair tied back into a ponytail for convenience, with an Oddish on her shoulder.

"You caught an Oddish?" Ash continued. That Oddish looked really familiar, he thought, as he inspected it. Wait, this was the Oddish that he'd defeated!

"He's so unique, isn't he?" Leaf smiled. Ash snorted as the Oddish glared at him.

"Maybe in this route. It was actually the first Pokemon Ares and I battled," Ash said with a shrug.

"Anyway," Ash directed his question to Gary, who was smirking in the background. "You're traveling with Leaf?"

"Not really," Gary replied, losing his smirk. "As I was leaving, I saw that she was taking a different route than what was normally followed to Viridian City, so I followed her," Gary shrugged.

"He followed me when he saw that I was taking the other route." Leaf said.

"What?" Ash asked, confused.

"My mother, before I left, told me that there was a separate section to this route, which leads to Viridian City as well, but has some rarer Pokemon than in the original one. She had used that path in her journey," Leaf said.

Ash said in annoyance, "You didn't tell me about it." Leaf's face darkened.

"I wasn't planning on telling any of you. It would have been nice to have an advantage over you two," she said, scowling.

"Anyway, I caught a Machop," Gary said happily.

Leaf raised her voice, "I literally had it inches away from fainting and Gary just leaps from behind me to throw a Pokeball at it!" She said, incensed.

Ash looked back and forth between them and raised his hands, "Well, at least you both have caught a Pokemon, I still haven't," He said, trying to stop a fight. If it turned physical, Ash was pretty sure Leaf would pound down Gary, despite her being smaller than them.

"Wait, you haven't?" Gary asked a note of confusion in his voice.

"I don't want a Caterpie or a Weedle and those were the only Pokemon I saw, apart from dear Oddish over there of course," Ash said, finishing the last part with a laugh. It was a bit uncharacteristic of him, he was generally subdued, but the endorphins of his first victory still lingered with him. Oddish growled at him warningly.

"Not all of us had access to secret routes I suppose," Gary said, a smirk back on his face. Leaf puffed up in a rage, and Ash quickly interrupted to stop Gary from being beaten into dust.

"Right, do any of you know how to get to Viridian City? I kind of lost the main path as I ran to escape the flock of Spearow," Ash said awkwardly.

He'd done his job though, as it had distracted Gary. "Well, we don't know how to get back on the main path either, but you can come along with us in the separate section, we're not far from Viridian City," Leaf said.

Leaf led Gary and Ash through a series of turns, which led them to a path, where they walked for a few minutes in silence.

Gary broke the silence, "Do you guys want to battle when we get to Viridian City?" He questioned.

Ash hesitated, but Leaf answered, "I'd love to defeat you," Leaf said, crossing her arms.

"Dream on," Gary laughed. "Ash, what about you?"

Ash looked away, "I don't think I could put up too much fight. Ares, my Dratini," he explained, "Isn't too strong right now. Your starters probably started off strong."

Gary said thoughtfully, "Yeah, you got a dragon-type. I was a bit jealous, but you probably earned it," He said, abashed. "Well, you can battle Machop. I haven't trained it at all," he offered.

Ash shrugged, "Sure, why not?"

They chatted idly for the next half an hour about what they aimed for. They all wanted to do well in the Conference, though none of them were too sure about what they'd do after that.

"We're getting close," Gary pointed. Some distance away, the outlines of Viridian City were present.

They sped up their strides and finally reached Viridian City. They glanced around a bit. They'd been here before, but for some reason, it felt completely different experiencing it as a Pokemon Trainer. There was a gym here, led by Giovanni, who used ground types, but it was generally regarded as the eighth gym due to its difficulty. The gym in Pewter City was what most starters fought.

The group walked over to the Pokemon Center when Leaf spoke up.

"You guys go ahead," she said. "I need to buy some potions, I forgot to stock up on them, and then I want to train."

Gary and Ash waved to her before they entered the Pokemon Center.

"You go get a room," Gary told him. "I'm going to video-call Gramps," He ran off to the side to use the Center's calling aids.

Ash walked over to Nurse Joy and requested a room.

"Hello!," Nurse Joy said cheerfully. "I just need your Pokedex for identification, and then you're good to go."

Ash got out his Pokedex and laid it on the counter. Nurse Joy tapped it a few times to pull up his profile, before handing him his room key.

"Room 401," she said absent-mindedly before turning to another person.

Ash jogged up two flights of stairs, before reaching his room. It was very basic. It was small, had a bed on the left corner, which had a window beside it. There was a desk on the right corner, and two chairs were strewn about. A door was present in the back, which Ash assumed lead to the bathroom. He wistfully looked at it, he really wanted a shower. It'd only been a day and a half since he'd been traveling, but the amount of grime and dirt he'd collected was just unreal. He kept his bag on one of the chairs and took out a towel. He entered the bathroom and put his clothes into the laundry basket, which proceeded to disappear.

Ash stared for a moment, "Weird," he concluded before he started showering.

Ash had showered, slipped on a fresh pair of clothes, and had come outside to find if there were places that were suitable to train in. He really wanted to train Ares and teach him Aqua Tail. He looked around for any signs of Leaf or Gary, but he didn't see them. He shrugged. Gary was probably in his room. Leaf, as she had told them, was either in the Pokemart or had gone to train.

There was a deserted area behind the gym, which had a couple of trees. Since the surface was pretty flat, Ash jogged over there and released Ares. The Dratini looked around for a bit before turning to him, cocking his head.

"Okay Ares, we reached Viridian City," Ash said, Ares grunted in response. "Our goal is to win the Indigo Conference, to do that, we have to win eight badges, which allows us to enter the League," Ash noticed that Ares was listening intently. "Our first gym isn't in Viridian City, it's in Pewter City, and rock-types are used over there. As I said earlier, you're going to learn Aqua Tail. Start by using your tail to hit the trees," Ares hissed in agreement and went over to the nearby tree and started slamming his tail into the tree, concentrating between every hit.

Ash left him to that, hoping he'd have success. An idea came to him, and he grabbed two hand-size rocks and placed them from one end of the makeshift training ground to the other end. Ash mentally measured the distance, and it looked like a straight 25m sprint. This would help improve Ares' speed and stamina if he kept doing this, Ash reasoned.

Ash looked over to Ares and was disappointed to see that he hadn't had any success, though Ash could see the hints of a dent in the trunk of the tree, which impressed him. Ares could really pack a punch, he thought.

"Ares," Ash called out. The Dratini turned to look at him. "How about we see if you can control water first," he suggested. "I think that'd be more helpful than this."

Ares slithered over to him. Ash pulled out his water bottle and poured some on the ground.

"Immerse yourself in it," Ash suggested. "Close your eyes, feel the texture, and imagine water covering you." Ash watched as Ares followed his words, touching the water with the tip of his tail while closing his eyes. He was visibly concentrating, and it took a few minutes, but Ash was ecstatic when a light sheen of water surrounded him.

"That's it," he encouraged. "Try to focus it on your tail now." This time it only took a few seconds, as all the water surrounded his tail in the shape of a vortex. Ares opened his eyes, moved over to the tree and slammed it with his tail. There was a proper dent in the tree and it was very damp. Ash punched the air, and Ares hissed loudly with pride. Ash hoisted the Dratini up to express his happiness but froze when he heard a voice.

"Impressive."

Ash put down Ares and turned around to see...

"Giovanni?!" He blurted out.

"Yes," he chuckled. He was a tall man with black hair and pale skin wearing a black suit. Ash had seen some of his gym battles on TV.

"Recognizing that your Dratini needed to have the aura of water around him to use the elemental attack was smart. I heard some noise while I was in the gym so I came out to check on it," he said silkily.

Ash nodded, thankful for the praise. "Thanks."

"I want you to battle me," Giovanni said suddenly.

"What?" Ash said, surprised. Ares however, had no qualms and hissed loudly to signify his agreement.

"You're the eighth gym leader, and I only have one Pokemon," Ash said, confused.

"I caught a Sandshrew for one of my gym trainers, I want you to battle it," Giovanni said bluntly.

"Alright," Ash hesitantly agreed. He hoped that it really was a newly caught Pokemon.

They walked to the edges of the area, where Ash had placed the rocks, and got ready to battle. Ares slithered over in front of Ash, poised for battle. Giovanni released a Sandshrew out of a Pokeball. Ash observed it closely. It looked small and light, which probably meant that it was quick. Ash winced, this would not be easy. He'd have to bank on Aqua Tail and the prospect of Ares catching Sandshrew to use Wrap.

"Sandshrew, Tackle," Giovanni said, starting the battle.

Sandshrew curled up into a ball and started rushing at Ares.

"Ares, dodge!" Ash called out. Ares managed to partially deflect the attack, as it only clipped him in the side. Ash winced, Ares had really been slow to dodge.

"Call water to you and use Wrap!" Ash called out, internally smiling as he discovered a loophole to his Dratini's lack of speed. Just utilizing water sped Ares up. Giovanni seemed surprised but quickly composed himself.

"Sandshrew, counter with Rapid Spin," Giovanni said calmly.

Ares was surrounded with a thin sheen of water and sped across the area to reach Sandshrew, who had retreated after the Tackle. Sandshrew spun around rapidly and hit Ares a few times, but Ares managed to hold on to it and squeezed tightly. Sandshrew writhed in pain.

"Nice work," Ash murmured quietly.

"Poison Sting," Giovanni said, a hint of triumph in his voice. Ash blinked and saw Sandshrew fire a point-blank Poison Sting, which propelled Ares back. A light purple sheen surrounded him. Ash cursed, Ares was poisoned, and since it didn't seem like Shed Skin was kicking in, he was on a time-limit for the rest of the battle.

"Ares, Aqua Tail!" Ash said.

Sandshrew was dazed by the crushing grip of Ares' Wrap, and despite Giovanni's calls to dodge, it got smacked in its soft underbelly by Ares' water covered tail. The super-effective attack sent it back by several meters.

"Ares, one more Wrap!" Ash called out, going for the kill.

"Dig," Giovanni said, with steel in his voice.

Ash cursed as a leaping Ares missed Sandshrew by inches as the Mouse Pokemon fled underneath the ground. Ares jerked a bit as the poison sapped more out of him.

Ash realized that he didn't have much time. Every second that the Sandshrew escaped by being under the ground was more time for the poison to knock out the Dratini. Judging by the smirk on Giovanni's face, he knew it as well.

"Ares, this is going to be tough, but draw as much water as you can and pump it down the hole," Ash said determinedly.

The tired Dratini took a deep breath, before increasing the sheen of water present around it, and funneled it all into the hole. Giovanni was visibly startled by this and quickly told the Sandshrew to get out of there.

"Sandshrew, out, now!" Giovanni called out, the first hints of panic in his voice.

Ash watched this happily as the Sandshrew made a vain attempt to get out of the hole. It managed to get out, but not before the water had thoroughly drenched it, leaving it knocked out.

Ash pumped his right fist in the air triumphantly, and Ares smacked his tail on the ground, before slumping to the ground as the poison took its toll. Ash quickly recalled him, reminding himself to congratulate the Dratini later.

Giovanni, stone-faced now, recalled the Sandshrew and walked over to him, making sure to walk around the trench of water that Ares had made.

"You have potential," Giovanni started. "You took advantage of the openings I gave you. Using water to speed up your Dratini was smart. Not many trainers grasp ideas like this, but you did and utilized your options well," Ash nodded. "However, this will tax Pokemon, unless you train them to withstand the load. Balancing water and using attacks will not be easy," Ash winced, he hadn't noticed anything, but what Giovanni said made sense.

"Does your Dratini know any long-range attacks?" Giovanni asked.

"Yes, Ares knows Dragon Pulse, but it's slow and choppy, so I didn't use it in this battle," Ash explained.

Giovanni slowly nodded. "Train him to use Dragon Pulse efficiently, it offers something new and can be very powerful." Ash took it in stride.

"I believe that you can make it to my gym and offer me good competition; I hope you stand up to my expectations," Ash straightened, this was enormous praise! Giovanni lost the least out of all the gym leaders and was skipped in favour of minor gyms which were easier and yet offered a badge.

"Before you leave," Giovanni continued. Ash listened carefully. "I want you to have this Pokemon. He has some weaknesses, yet he is skilled and sought by a lot of trainers," he reached into the pocket of his suit and pulled out a Pokeball. Ash was stunned. Giovanni was giving him a Pokemon?

"I caught this in the Safari Zone, yet I cannot use it because its typing isn't suitable for my gym." With that, Giovanni handed Ash the Pokeball and left, as Ash stared at his retreating back disbelievingly.

Ash sported a smile before looking down at the Pokeball. He swallowed nervously and called it out.

"Let's see what you are," he murmured.

A tall, green Pokemon came out, with a pair of wings on its back. It turned to Ash, looked around for a second, before crossing its blade-like arms and bowing to him. It was about Ash's height.

"A Scyther," Ash said with a smile playing on his lips. Ash held up his hand as a way of greeting the Pokemon, and Scyther lifted one of its arms to grasp Ash's tightly. Ash winced as the sharp edges lightly cut into the edge of his palm but smiled at Scyther.

"I'm going to use my Pokedex to scan you, is that alright?" Ash questioned Scyther. It simply nodded at him in response.

Ash pulled out his Pokedex and scanned Scyther.

This Scyther is a male. He knows the moves- Quick Attack, Focus Energy, Pursuit, Toxic, and Light Screen. He has the ability- Technician.

"Welcome to the team bud," Ash said, smiling as he pocketed the Pokedex.

6264 words! That's even longer than the first chapter :)
I'm in talks with a beta reader, so if all goes well, I could have someone proof-reading this story to prevent errors.
Hopefully, the next chapter comes soon :)