An Intense Fighting Spirit

"Machamp!" The Fighting type Pokemon cried out as it lashed out at a boulder, punching it with a singular fist with the boulder crumbling into rubble shortly after contact. It's trainer punched the air in front of while letting out an excited shout. "Oh yeah, if we keep up training like this we'll become World Champions in no time!"

It hadn't always been her dream but ever since she winded up losing the Stow-on-Side's Gym Leader title to her former rival Allister, she took up training nonstop and quickly ended up surpassing him once again but upon Chairman Rose offering her the role of Gym Leader again she refused. She loved the thrill that training brought her, the thrill that there was somebody out there that could prove a challenge to her. She lost all interest in being a mere Gym Leader, forced to hold back on Gym Challenges instead of being able to go all out! No, the title of World Champion would be hers! She hadn't taken on any challengers as of yet, there weren't many opportunities in Galar and she wasn't properly done with her training ritual yet. Though she was satisfied with the results they still need to improve, become stronger...

"Everyone take five," The girl said as she wiped some sweat off of her forehead before going to grab a bottle of water. Unlike most trainers she trained alongside her Pokemon, finding it helped them form a deeper connection as they grew stronger together! She began taking a sip from her water when she heard her Rotom Phone starting to go off, the girl reached into her back and withdrew it to reveal that she had received a challenge from a fellow World Championship competitor.

"Our first battle," A smirk crossed her face as she turned to address her many Fighting types. "And our first victory, whoever this Ketchum guy is he's going down!"

"Machamp!"

"Hitmon!"

"Grapp!"

"Falinks!" Her Pokemon cried out in agreement.

She sat down and waited for their arrival, tapping her foot out of impatience before she noticed a small group of trainers coming into view. She instantly recognized the girl, Marnie as the two had fought before but the other two were new. Bea's eyes darted between them as she tried to figure out which one of them was her opponent, her eyes soon landed upon Ash with her gaze quickly taking in the sight of Pikachu.

"That Pikachu looks quite strong, no doubt he's my opponent!" She said to herself with an excited look. 'He's cute too... but I've got no time for that nonsense, I have a Championship to win!'

Marnie's eyes widened up spotting the Fighting type girl. "Ash, whatever you do don't underestimate that girl!" She hissed out.

"Yeah, that's Bea. She used to be one of Galar's top Gym Leaders, her Fighting types are nothing to sneeze at!" Zach backed Marnie up.

"Relax, I have the utmost faith in my Pokemon. I've handled plenty of Fighting type trainers before and I always came up on top at the end!" Ash exclaimed with a bit of a cocky smile. Zach and Marnie glanced at one another with worried expressions as Bea approached them.

"Hello Marnie, that your new entourage? It's a improvement over your old one." Bea gave Marnie a teasing smirk.

"They're my friends, Bea. Not my fans."

"Heh, anyway enough talk let's get straight to the action! You're Ash Ketchum, am I right?!" Bea pointed at Ash, an excited and eager expression upon her face at the prospect of a great battle, a look that precisely mirrored Ash's own face as his reaction matched hers.

"That's alright with me!"

"I-Nevermind." Zach muttered out after realizing he didn't get to introduce himself.

"Huh, she's almost like a female version of Ash." Marnie noted before nudging Zach's arm. "Don't ya think?"

"Yeah I can kind of see what you're getting at. It'd be so weird if they hooked up."

"Yeah-Wait, you don't think she likes him do you?" Marnie suddenly asked, her own eyes went wide upon realizing what she'd just said. She couldn't believe that those words had just left, she didn't mean them... did she?

"Oh yeah, I'm sure that the two of them will make out once the fight is over!" Zach decided to have a bit of fun with Marnie upon seeing her reaction.

Marnie felt something that like a lot like rage flowing through her as she caught herself glaring intensely at Bea, the girl soon shaking her head before letting out a light groan as she wondered what was happening, did she really think that or was it just a silly fling? Ash and Zach were the first normal guys that she'd actually gotten to hang around with, well as close to normal as she could get anyways. Everyone in Po Town apart from her brother was a bit coocoo for coco puffs! She soon shook her head and decided to dismiss her emotions.

"Machamp, clear the field will ya?"

"Champ!" Machamp put on a bit of a show, lifting up boulders and large rocks with a single hand as he hurled them away from the area to clear up space for the two trainers to battle it out.

"Greetings challengers," A Rotom Drone arrived on the scene in order to referee and record the match. "Today's challengers Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town and Bea from Stow-on-Side will now get under way, trainers choose the number of Pokemon you desire to use at the maximum of three!"

"Three!" Ash and Bea shouted in unison while Marnie and Zach glanced at each other once more with weirded out expressions.

"I'll start us off, Falinks I choose you!" Bea thrust her arm forward as Falinks dashed forward to take their place before their trainer.

"Falinks!" The Pokemon cried out.

"Falinks?" Ash pulled out his Rotom Phone, wanting to learn about the Pokemon before he decided which of his he'd utilize.

"Falinks the Formation Pokemon. Six of them work together as one, constantly changing their formation as they fight!"

Ash looked thoughtful for a moment before grabbing a Pokeball and throwing it forward. "Gible I choose you!"

"Arceus, even their battle cry is the same!" Zach shook his head.

"Gible!" Gible leaped out and proceeded to chomp down on Ash's head, causing his trainer to chuckle as he began attempting to pull him off.

"I missed you too buddy but right now it's time to focus on the battle!"

"Gib!" Gible let go before taking his place before Ash, his gaze now focused on Falinks as Rotom Drone spoke in order to start the battle.

"Trainers... begin!"

"Falinks use Close Combat!" The Falinks charged at Gible before repeatedly ramming their bodies against his own. Gible grunted out from the blow but kept a firm stance on the ground as his trainer called out an attack.

"Dragon Pulse!"

"Gible!" A multicolored energy ball formed inside of the Dragon type's mouth before getting unleashed at his opponent in a dragon-shaped beam of energy!

"Falinks!" The Falinks were blasted away from Gible and knocked apart from one another, causing them to take a few seconds in order to regroup. Unfortunately that short amount of time would cost them as Ash was already preparing his next move!

"Draco Meteor!"

Gible's body began glowing a bright orange as he fired an orange energy ball up into the sky with the energy ball soon exploding and sending multiple energy spheres crashing down into the ground around the area!

"Falinks!" The Fighting type cried out, the Pokemon split off into multiple directions in order to dodge the attack and the energy spheres winded up striking each one of them! All six of them were sent flying through the air before shortly landing in a defeated heap before their trainer, Bea didn't look upset or disappointed by the results instead a smirk crossed her face as she realized just how strong Ash's Pokemon were. The kid gloves were off!

She returned Falinks to it's Pokeball before looking towards Machamp.

"Machamp, I cho-"

"GIB!" A bright blue light began engulfing Gible as the land shark Pokemon quickly began changing form, his stubby arms and legs no more as they began extending which would no doubt help the Dragon Pokemon maneuver faster now. Along with his torso changing while the fin on his back extend outwards and became larger as two smaller ones grew between his hands and lower arms. A more fiercer look on the Pokemon's face as the light faded to reveal Gible's evolved form!

"Gabite!"

"Alright Gabite!" Ash punched the air in front of him, his face full of excitement and delight as he witnessed his Pokemon evolve. He had a feeling that it would happen soon, Gible was already quite strong and this battle proved to be just what they needed in order to make it happen!

"Gabite!" Gabite turned and quickly tackled his trainer to the ground, nuzzling up against Ash's chin while Ash laughed out.

"I'm excited too buddy but we've got a battle to do, rude to keep Bea waiting!"

"Gab!"

"Heh, Machamp let's finish things!" Bea punched the air in front of her as Machamp leaped forward, towering over Gabite as the Fighting type punched his fists.

"Machamp!

"Heavy Slam!"

"...How much does a Gabite even weigh compared to a Machamp?" Zach asked himself before looking at his Rotom Phone, surprise greeting him as it turned out that Machamp outweighed Gabite by 100 pounds! "Strange, thought it'd be closer than that." He muttered to himself.

Machamp's body became surrounded in a silver aura as he leaped up into the air before slamming down against Gabite!

Gabite let out a pained grunt but soon pushed Machamp off with a ticked off expression. "Gabite!"

Ash gritted his teeth before throwing out his arm. "Alright Gabite, let's use another Draco Meteor!"

Gabite's mouth began glowing bright orange as he fired off the energy ball, the ball exploding in the air and sending multiple spheres of energy crashing down towards Machamp! Machamp was still standing as the dust cleared up from the attack, looking as if the Draco Meteor had barely affected him!

"Way to take it like a champ, Machamp! Now let's go with a Close Combat!"

Machamp shot across the field and began repeatedly punching Gabite at a quick pace! Gabite grunted out as he was struck from four different angles but refused to go down, gritting his teeth and digging his claws into the ground for a firm footing.

"Alright Gabite, let's-" Ash paused as he realized his Rotom Phone had been vibrating, alerting him to a new move that Gabite had learned upon evolving. A strategy quickly forming within his head as he shouted out the next command. "Sandstorm then Dig under the ground!"

"Gaaaa!" Gabite cried out as a fierce sandstorm formed across the battlefield, pelting Machamp and bringing down visibility of the field for a brief while while Gabite burrowed underground and began making his way towards Machamp!

"Really?" Bea chucked as a light smirk crossed her face. "Seismic Toss!"

"Gaaa-" Gabite shot out from the ground, his throat instantly being grabbed by Machamp whose eyes were closed as he and Bea had practiced this maneuver many times to deal with opponents that hid underground. Training themselves to close their eyes and block out all other senses in order to feel the Pokemon beneath the ground and prepare to counterstrike! Machamp leaped up high into the sky, swinging his body around before throwing Gabite and sending him hurling back towards the ground with a loud and heavy sounding thud! The sandstorm prevented visibility for the trainers but Rotom Drone's sensors detected the results.

"Bzzzt, Gabite is unable to battle. Challenger Ash please send out your next Pokemon!"

Ash returned Gabite, smiling at the Pokeball before putting it onto his belt. "You fought well Gabite, you deserve a rest!" "This girl definitely isn't messing around, got to pick my next choice carefully."

"Noctowl, let's go!"

Noctowl let out a cry as he burst out, his feathers seeming to sparkle for a brief second.

"Psychic!" Noctowl's eyes began glowing light blue as a faint blue aura surrounded Machamp, Noctowl stretched out his wings as he lifted Machamp up high into the air and soon slammed him hard against the ground. Machamp let out a pained groan as he slowly rose to his feet while giving Noctowl a dirty look.

"Machamp, let's get up close and prepare to strike!"

"Machamp!" Machamp raced across the field, a fist hidden behind his back.

"Air Slash!"

"Thunder Punch!"

Noctowl's wings glowed light blue as he fired off multiple light blue energy blades at Machamp, striking the Fighting type right as Machamp delivered an electrically charged blow to his face, Noctowl's eyes went wide as he felt the breath get knocked right out of him due to a critical hit! Both Pokemon toppled over onto their sides, swirls in their eyes. Machamp had finally been taken out but at a price!

"Noctowl and Machamp are both unable to continue fighting, challengers Ash Ketchum and Bea please choose your final Pokemon!"

"This is an easy one, right buddy?!" Ash shouted while he and Bea returned the defeated Pokemon to their Pokeballs.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu flicked his tail as he leaped off of Ash's shoulder and onto the battlefield. Machamp was quite strong and if that was her second choice then no doubt her final choice was the true powerhouse of the team!

"Grapploct, I choose you!"

Ash noticed the blue octopus Pokemon from Bea's ensemble approaching, causing him to clench his fists lightly from nerves. It was a Pokemon that was entirely new to him so he had no previous experience to go off of here.

"Grapploct the jujitsu Pokemon. A body made up of nothing but muscle makes the grappling moves this Pokemon performs with its tentacles tremendously powerful!" Ash's Rotom Phone read out upon him scanning the Pokemon, Ash pocketed the device before thrusting out his arm.

"Alright Pikachu, let's use Thunderbolt!"

"Pika...chuuuu!" Pikachu's cheeks sparked as he charged up and blasted Grapploct with a powerful dose of electricity! Grapploct groaned out but didn't budge, pain was readable across his face but he wasn't showing signs of weakening physically.

"Octolock!" Octolock quickly lashed out with his tentacles as he pulled Pikachu straight in, tightly constricting around Pikachu's body and keeping a firm grip on him as Pikachu began to squirm and do his best to break free.

Ash's eyes scanned the current predicament, Pikachu's tail was currently stuck within Grapploct's tentacles along with the rest of his body so Iron Tail wouldn't be much assistance but if they could get him to loosen his grip then perhaps...

"Thunderbolt!"

"Pika-Chaaaa!" Grapploct lashed out with a free tentacle, said tentacle glowing with a orange aura around it as Bea smirked.

"Think ya gonna break free?! Nobody's ever gotten out of my trap before, shoulda picked a bigger Pokemon!"

Ash gritted his teeth for a second before it came to him, if Pikachu could cause enough friction perhaps they could activate Volt Tackle and get Pikachu to rocket himself out of Grapploct's grasp?

"Pikachu, keep squirming and charge up your cheeks as if you're about to Volt Tackle!"

"Ha, good luck!" Bea thrusted out her arm while she commanded Grapploct to strike once more. "Superpower!" Grapploct's tentacle became surrounded in the orange aura again as he took a swing at Pikachu's face only for the electric mouse to rocket himself out at the very last second, blasting off into the sky as his body was surrounded and charged with a bright electrical current! Pikachu soon began to slow down, aiming his head towards Grapploct as he let gravity take over as his electrically charged body came blasting down like a meteor, crashing down against Grapploct and causing a massive cloud of dust and dirt to rise up as a result of the impact.

All four trainers began to cough as dust flew into their mouths, squinting their eyes to prevent dirt flying in as they tried to see if any of the Pokemon were still standing after the improvised attack. The dust soon cleared to reveal Pikachu panting and breathing heavily atop a defeated and unconscious Grapploct!

"Bzzzt, Grapploct is unable to battle. The winner is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town!" The Rotom Drone announced while Ash and Bea's points began adjusting properly, which wasn't by much given that Ash had only battled Siebold prior to that while Bea's first Championship match was against Ash himself. The Rotom Drone soon flew away after announcing the results, taking the recordings back to Macro Cosmos.

"Man that Volt Meteor attack was awesome!" Zach shouted out, giving the technique a name which Ash didn't mind as he doubted that they'd ever have the chance to use it again.

"Congrats Ash," Marnie nodded with a light smile across her face.

Bea returned Grapploct to his Pokeball, thanking her ace before placing it onto her belt as she held out her hand. "That didn't go as well as I hoped but it was a fun battle, next time I promise that things will be different. I'll be even stronger and we'll have a bigger battle too!"

"That's the spirit, I'm looking forward to that!" Ash reached out and took Bea's hand, the two trainers shook hands before shortly separating as Bea began returning her other Pokemon to their Pokeballs.

"I can tell that you lot are going to Motostoke City," Bea glanced at Zach as she said that. "He's clearly a new trainer and I'm headed there myself to restock on some supplies. Do you mind if I tag along for a bit? I'll buy you all some sweets, my treat!"

"I'm not into sweets," Marnie said, glancing at Morpeko as she said that.

"Oh come on Marnie, everyone loves chocolate!" Zach said while Bea nodded enthusiastically in agreement.

"This guy gets it!"

"Scor!" Scorbunny cried out in agreement.

"Yeah, chocolate is one of my favorites!" Ash added on.

Marnie bit her lip before letting out a light sigh. "Well I suppose I could try it again..."

"Gengar..."

The lights began flickering on and off in a laboratory as a blonde haired man in a lab coat began nervously glancing around. "H-Hello? Parker if you're trying to pull another prank please go pull it on Chrysa, you know I don't enjoy being scared!"

"Gengar... Gengar!" The lights turned off again, casting the lab into darkness while the man began feeling a tongue touching his hand.

"Yamper? T-That you? Y-You'll protect your friend Ren, won't you?" He turned his eyes only to see a pair of large red eyes and a sinister smile looking right at it, causing the man to let out a loud scream before running straight out of the lab, passing his boss who looked after Ren as he ran off.

"This won't do at all, I told Ren that if we ignore him that he'll likely go away but Gengar insists on sticking around and scaring both him and any trainers that come by looking for their first Pokemon." The Professor placed his hands into his lab coat before dialing a number. "Hello, Professor Oak? Do you know anyone that can deal with a ghost problem for me?"

"Call the Ghost Bus-!" Tracey shouted in the background before Oak hushed him.

"I'd deal with it myself but I'm a bit swamped with paper work, a good friend of mine is available though. I'm sure that he'll be willing to help you out!"

"Thanks, you don't know much much this means to me!" The Professor breathed out.

Gengar and Chloe will be appearing soon.