Pokémon Sun & Moon: The Challenge of a Lifetime!

by NegaiFreak

The Ketchum twins are now 10 years old! That means they can travel the world as Pokémon trainers! And their adventure has just begun as they head off to the Alola region to make new discoveries with their family and friends! Pokémon X Fairy Tail Crossover! SHIPPINGS INCLUDED! PLEASE READ, REVIEW, AND ENJOY! THANKS FOR OVER 10,000 VIEWS!

38. Tick-Tock Togedemaru!

Alola, everyone! Hope you're looking forward to what's ahead, because there's two chapters of this story coming back-to-back, starting now!

We're about to reach the forty-chapter mark, a feat I never thought would be possible at one point. Yet here we are, getting closer and closer. Just to preface this, I'm super stoked to be arriving at forty chapters, especially since this is my longest story to date.

So without further delay, let's get back into "The Challenge of a Lifetime"!

POKÉMON SUN & MOON

THE CHALLENGE OF A LIFETIME

"So…" Leslie began over the video call she was having with her little brother, "who's the girl?" she asked curiously as she smirked, having her arms folded underneath her chest.

"Wh-What?" he stuttered out, blushing a little.

"You heard me…" his older sister replied, narrowing her eyes teasingly, "Dad mentioned that you were having girl problems…" she pointed out to him, "So who's the lucky lady?" she questioned again.

"It's…" Calvin started to reply, glancing away and letting out a sigh, "It was something that happened by accident…" he told her, "Besides, why do you care about me and a girl together?" he wondered aloud, "You've never dated someone yourself…" he noted. In embarrassment, Leslie looked off to the side.

"I came close…" she claimed quietly with a light blush across her cheeks. Her brother sighed in frustration.

"It's… Paige…" he admitted sheepishly as he blushed.

"The girl you and Erika battled at the Trainer's School?" Leslie guessed, raising an eyebrow in surprise, "She's the one who kissed you?" she inquired on.

"Ugh…" Calvin groaned, lowering his head, "Dad told you that, too?" he questioned in frustration.

"Cal, you don't have to be embarrassed…" his older sister pointed out, "Back when I was your around your age, I had my first crush…" she admitted sheepishly.

"On the lead singer of a boy band…" the capped boy retorted in response. She rolled her eyes.

"My point is, it's probably just something that happened in the moment," she told him, "Don't go letting it get to you," she advised with a smile.

"…I won't," her brother affirmed as a reply, "Thanks, sis," he said in gratitude.

"No problem," she remarked while nodding, "So apparently, Erika's already taking her trial at the observatory right now," she pointed out.

"Which means she'll probably be done soon…" Calvin assumed in response with a chuckle, "Guess I better get going then," he confirmed, "Talk to you again soon, Leslie!" he promised before the call ended. Back the Kukui laboratory, the eldest Ketchum girl let out a sigh before walking over to sit on the couch beside her little sister's Lurantis, who was still snoozing soundly.

"Guh, guh shoo!" Gumshoos yelled, catching her attention as she saw the Stakeout Pokémon trot over to her, hopping onto the couch next to her.

"You want some rest too, huh?" she guessed, inviting him to scooch in closer for warmth. He smiled contently as he leaned against her. Meanwhile, Oricorio was swaying about without a care, waving the feathered tips of her wings about freely.

"Koree~… Koreee~…" she sang as she pranced about. Just then, there was a knock at the door, breaking her away from her train of thought as she tripped and fell forward onto the floor. "Reee…" she squeaked out of pain.

"Are you okay, Oricorio?" Leslie asked as she got off of the couch and trotted over to the downed Dancing Pokémon with Gumshoos.

"Ree…" she squawked with a huff while standing back up and dusting herself off. Another set of knocks came to the door.

"Excuse me?" a female voice inquired from outside, getting their attentions, "Is Ash Ketchum present?" she asked curiously. Hearing her father's name mentioned by the supposed stranger caused Leslie to blink in surprise. She walked over to the door and turned the knob to open it inwards. Upon seeing who was there at the front porch, she smiled.

Standing there was a tall, well-endowed female android with a slender, voluptuous figure. She had long green hair and wore a black dress along with a visor that covered her eyes, having 'E4' etched on it. She was barefoot and seemed to have painted nails.

Next to her was a lean young man of average height with spiky black hair that partially covered his ears, slanted dark eyes and thin eyebrows. He donned a red pouch around his waist. His attire consisted of a high-collared, red-and-black open jacket with the sleeves rolled up to his forearms, pockets on either side of the chest, and two black laces attached to the neck of his jacket hanging behind his head. Underneath, he wore a simple white shirt with a v-neck collar and a red design on the front which patterned out into a Y-shape. He also sported baggy, green-colored trousers which possessed a noticeable white details on both sides, and a pair of brown goggles upon his forehead. Lastly, his choice of footwear was a pair of simple, black boots.

"Oh, you must be Lady Leslie then," the former of the two noted in realization.

"And… you must be Witch… right?" Leslie inquired.

"Correct," the android responded with a chuckle, "You seem to know us pretty well…" she pointed out.

"Well, I've heard lots of stories…" Leslie remarked in reply, giggling with the Shining Star, "So this is Shiki, right?" she guessed, looking over to the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user.

"Correct," Witch replied with a nod, "This is Magimech King Shiki," she introduced, gesturing towards the lean man.

"Yo!" he greeted with a wave, "Nice to meet ya!" he exclaimed as he ventured in and held his right hand out to the Ketchum girl.

"Likewise," she replied, taking his hand with her own and shaking it firmly, "So… you're looking for my dad because…" she started to say, trailing off as she expected one of the two guests to answer.

"We had heard word from someone that your family was offering to train people in terms of battling with Pokémon," Witch finished for her. A blank, annoyed look came across Leslie's face.

'I wonder who that could've been…' she muttered inwardly with sarcasm, knowing that it was likely Yami who disclosed the fact.

"Anyway, I wanna really wanna try battling!" Shiki chimed in excitedly as his eyes sparkled, "When I heard that Asta and some other guys were gonna do it, I thought it'd be super cool!" he mentioned.

"Would you be willing to train the Magimech King in terms of Pokémon for a few days, Lady Leslie?" Witch inquired of the Champion Master, who crossed her arms over her chest in thought.

"Well… does Shiki already have a Pokémon he can work with?" she asked back, "If not, then it's gonna be hard to—"

"Oh, I've got one already!" the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user interjected assuredly, "Come on over, little guy!" he beckoned. The Ketchum girl took notice of a figure floating towards the doorway. It was a Bronzor, who seemed… rather meek.

"B-Brahhhh…" it chimed out, looking around nervously.

"A Bronzor, huh?" Leslie noted, "Not something I'd expect from you, if I'm being honest…" she admitted as she scratched at her cheek.

"But it's a unique choice for the Magimech King," Witch pointed out, "So…" she continued, "would you be willing to help him?" she inquired again. The Ketchum girl looked over at Shiki… and then at Bronzor. After a moment, she sighed with resignation.

"I'd be happy to," she confirmed as she nodded.

"Woohoo!" Shiki exclaimed excitedly.

"B-Brah zorrr…" Bronzor stammered out meekly again, seemingly hiding itself behind its trainer. Leslie knew it was going to be a long week. But it'd definitely be worth it if she could help her friends.

OPENING

Insert "Koko" by Beverly

Opens with the rising sun over the ocean horizon as a boat is sailing towards Ula'ula Island. Upon its bow are Calvin and Erika Ketchum, standing alongside their Pokémon as the wind rushes through their hair. They're about to embark on the next stage of their island challenge, smiling with excitement.

As the music picks up, the Pokémon logo appears in bright green letters, followed by "The Challenge of a Lifetime" appearing in bright yellow underneath it. The brightness of the logo envelops the screen before we transition to the Ketchum twins disembarking from the boat onto the island.

We cut to Calvin fishing in Maile Garden as Steenee and Incineroar are bickering in the background. Once Calvin sees his lure go underwater, he pulls the line hard to reel in a Poliwag. Watching from afar, Paige smiles while holding onto his egg, which shakes a little in her arms.

The scene then changes to Erika trudging tiredly up Mount Hokulani. She's about to fall backwards, but Primarina and Lycanroc are there to help push her up. She smiles gratefully, continuing the trek up the mountain.

We then see several new faces around the island, including Samson Oak, Acerola, Molayne, Sophocles, Grimsley, and Nanu. We also get a shot of Guzma, sitting upon his chair in the Shady House of Po Town. He grins deviously at the screen.

As the music picks back up, we see Calvin swing his left arm out as his Incineroar and Marowak charge in with a Flamethrower/Flame Wheel combination to take down a Skarmory. Meanwhile, we cut over to Erika as she orders for Fomantis to use Leaf Blade on an Alolan Geodude. Drifblim then floats in and sprays out a Gust to blow away a flock of Fearow. Afterwards, he floats over Fomantis to her chagrin as she seethes in frustration.

We get shots of Hau with his Alolan Raichu and Decidueye, Trent with his Mightyena and Greninja, Paige alongside her Combusken and Medicham, and Pyrrha alongside her Quilava and Ariados. Each of them are in their own battles, with Hau's Decidueye using Spirit Shackle on a Haunter, Trent's Mightyena blasting back a Kadabra with Snarl, Paige's Combusken using Flame Charge to ram into a Shieldon, and Pyrrha's Ariados landing a Cross Poison on a Sylveon.

The song continues from back on Melemele at the Ketchum vacation home. There, Leslie gets herself dressed and throws on her visor, heading out of her room alongside her Lopunny and shiny Gabite. As she heads outside onto the front porch, she smirks upon seeing Asta Sutarria there alongside Shiki Granbell and Tanjiro Kamado, as all three of them are looking to train Pokémon with her guidance for them.

Asta commands an Aegislash as he takes on his sword form and slashes at Leslie's Magmortar, who jumps back before firing off a Flamethrower. Meanwhile, Tanjiro's Croconaw attempts to land an Ice Fang onto Gabite, who uses Dig to get away before popping up from the ground and chomping down on his foe's tail, causing him to scream in agony. Watching from afar are Shiki and his Bronzor, who both giggle.

We cut back to Ula'ula Island as we see Erika commanding her Lycanroc to use Rock Slide against the Totem Vikavolt inside the Hokulani Observatory. The Stag Beetle Pokémon dodges the attack and lets electricity surge around his body before zipping down at his foe, who prepares to use Counter. Afterwards, we get a scene of Calvin and Incineroar facing down the Totem Mimikyu inside the abandoned Thrifty Megamart. As the Heel Pokémon lands a Darkest Lariat, a smaller Mimikyu watches from afar in awe.

There are several shots of a Cleffa poking out from a sleeping bag, a Togedemaru near a power plant, and an Alolan Sandshrew wandering about the cold area at the base of Mount Lanakila. We see Professor Kukui staring at the peak from Hokulani, hoping to host a Pokémon League there someday. However, we also see him glaring down Guzma in the Maile Garden as his Golisopod appears behind him. We get shots of Plumeria with her Salazzle and Gladion with Null and his Zoroark.

To end the opening, we see an anxious Lillie looking out over the horizon, concerned for the future. However, Calvin and Erika come to her, both giving her reassuring smiles. She grins, thankful for their presence as they all trek onward through the island…

END OPENING

Tick-Tock Togedemaru!

"Whoa…" Erika uttered with amazement as she looked at the brand new Z-Crystal that rested in her hands. It was yellow with a lightning bolt-like symbol at its center in black. She and Lycanroc were staring at it excitedly as they had just earned it from Sophocles after completing his trial at the observatory.

"You'll want to make sure that you use that Electrium Z to the fullest when you can," the trial captain advised, getting their attentions.

"Right!" the Ketchum girl replied with a nod, "By the way…" she continued curiously, "what's the pose like for the Z-Move?" she inquired, arching an eyebrow.

"Ah, right…" Sophocles uttered, rubbing at his head as he had forgotten to show her. He crossed his arms in front of his face, followed by swinging them around as a prelude to the pose. He then twisted to his right, waving his arms and posing them together in the shape of what looked to be a lightning bolt.

"Maju!" Togemaru squeaked afterwards, while Erika clapped.

"Wow, that was really good!" she complimented.

"T-Thanks!" the trial captain stuttered in response, scratching at his right cheek, "I'll admit, the Ping Totem Pokémon Two-Point-O needs some work…" he admitted sheepishly, "But I'm glad you ended up being the first to try it," he mentioned with a grateful smile.

"Yeah, it was no problem!" the Ketchum girl assured, giving off her own toothy grin.

"We zzzhould probably meet back up with Molayne and Profezzzor Kukui, zzt," Rotom advised, chiming into the conversation as Erika looked over at him.

"Yeah," she agreed with a nod, returning Lycanroc to his Poké Ball in a beam of red light, "Thanks for the trial, Sophocles!" she exclaimed in gratitude as she jogged off with the Pokédex floating alongside her. The trial captain was surprised. He couldn't remember the last time someone was humble enough to thank him for a trial…

"Y-You're welcome!" he responded with a stutter. Moments later, the sliding doors opened to let the Ketchum girl embark outside the observatory alongside Rotom.

"Oh, Erika!" a familiar voice called out, belonging to Kukui as he was standing off towards the guardrail at the edge of the peak. He waved her over, enticing her to walk up to his side. "Looks like you cleared your trial okay!" he pointed out with a chuckle.

"Eh…" the capped girl uttered, remembering how difficult the final battle against Vikavolt had actually been, "I wish we would've done a little better, honestly…" she admitted sheepishly.

"Better than winning?" the professor inquired as a retort, making her blink in surprise, "Well… I get that you want everyone on your team to get a fair shake at things," he pointed out, "But sometimes, things don't work out for everybody," he noted, "That's why we're here to help 'em grow stronger," he stated firmly. She nodded in agreement.

"What are you doing over here, Profezzzor?" Rotom inquired curiously, chiming into the conversation.

"You see that over there?" Kukui questioned to both it and Erika, pointing towards something in the distance. It appeared to be a construction site… atop another mountain.

"What is that?" the Ketchum girl asked curiously.

"That…" the professor began to reply, "is Mount Lanakila," he told her, "And it's going to be the birthplace of the Alola Region's first ever Pokémon League," he mentioned with a grin.

"Wha… really?" Erika questioned out of surprise, getting a nod in return from Kukui.

"I've been around to a lot of regions, Erika," he pointed out, "And even though Alola's unique because of her trials…" he continued, "I still think we need something to spice things up in the end," he said, "So that's why I'm having this get started," he told her. She looked over to the construction site again with awe. That was going to be the stage for a Pokémon League? Like the ones her big sister and her father battled in?

'If there's a chance that I can do that…' she began to herself, 'then maybe I can be a champion like them!' she declared excitedly through her thoughts. Kukui could tell she was ecstatic thanks to the look upon her face he saw.

"Anyways, we better get ourselves back to Malie City," he insisted, getting her attention, "Unless you wanna run on down by yourself again…" he mentioned with a teasing smirk. Erika blushed.

"N-No…" she stuttered in reply with a sheepish grin, knowing that the second she'd try to run down the whole mountain, she'd end up likely dehydrated and passed out on the ground again. Rotom knew it as it gave off a blank look towards its user. "Let's just take the bus," she confirmed. The professor nodded. They boarded the Exeggutor Express moments later before it drove down the mountain road.

"Ah, wait…!" a flustered Molayne called out from the observatory entrance, but the bus had already left, "Huh…" he sighed deeply, letting a chuckle escape his lips, "You really haven't changed much, Royal…" he grumbled out with a shake of his head. In his left hand was a very familiar mask…

X

"Wait, he took off?" Calvin inquired in surprise.

"Mm-hmm," Lillie responded with a simple nod, "He wanted to make sure he'd be ready for the trial up at the observatory," she pointed out, "so he'll be training by the outskirts of the city for the time being," she told him, "At least until he thinks he's ready to take the trial," she mentioned.

"Hmm…" the Ketchum boy hummed worriedly. He knew his cousin was upset about how he and Ariel lost to Ryuki yesterday. The thing was, he didn't expect him to take it so hard.

"Anyway, you might wanna get yourself going!" Acerola advised to get his attention, swinging her legs back and forth upon her seat, "Never know when someone else might get to take the trial before you…" she pointed out. The three of them were in the Malie City Pokémon Center, having already spent most of the day hanging around and enjoying the sights of the city once again. But now, Calvin was ready to get going. He was sure that his team was anxious about battling again as well.

"Yeah," he said with a nod. Moments later, he left the Pokémon Center, waving goodbye to Lillie and Acerola. He was happy that he got to spend time with them.

"Good luck, Calvin!" the assistant called out in farewell. He smiled, giving her one last wave of his hand before heading off.

'Knowing Erika, she's probably already done with the trial by now…' he noted inwardly as he hurried along, 'She's always gotten a head start on me…' he recalled, thinking back to how she had been the first one to beat both Hala and Olivia on Melemele and Akala respectively, 'So now it's time for me to get a move on!' he affirmed to himself, pulling out his Ride Pager. A while had passed before the Exeggutor Express returned to the base of the mountain, with Erika disembarking first.

"Huh…" she sighed in relief, glad that she didn't end up trekking down the mountain after all. It would've been quite a long trip…

"And now you've got just one more trial to do here on Ula'ula!" Kukui pointed out, stuffing his hands into his lab coat pockets as he got off the bus with Rotom floating beside him.

"Oh yeah, Acerola's!" the Ketchum girl remembered aloud, "I met her back in Malie with Lillie when we were hanging around the library looking for clues about Nebby," she told the professor.

"Is that right?" he inquired curiously, putting his right hand onto his chin, "Well, I guess I'll be joining you back to Malie then," he decided to her surprise, "I needed to meet up with Lillie anyways before we try heading to the Haina Desert," he mentioned, now taking on a more serious expression, one that Erika found… unnerving, "Even though Ula'ula's got great sights… it's also home to some shady characters," he pointed out, "Ones that I know are gonna stir up some trouble…" he added.

"Is it… Team Skull?" the capped girl guessed out of concern. The professor nodded.

"This is the island where they all started," he noted to her, "They may act like a group of petty thugs…" he continued, "but they used to be trainers, too," he said, much to the surprise of the Ketchum girl, "Erika, just be careful on your way to the next trial site," he advised, "I wouldn't you or your team to get really hurt," he added grimly. However, she gave him a reassuring smile.

"Don't you worry, Professor!" she affirmed confidently, "Any Team Skull guy that tries to get in our way is gonna get thrashed!" she vowed with a pump of her left fist. Kukui grinned at her optimism. But he knew it was misplaced.

"Hey, look, zzt!" Rotom suddenly buzzed, getting their attentions as they looked to see a figure coming towards them from the near distance. It was a figure aboard a Tauros, being none other than Calvin as they were charging towards them.

"Calvin!" his twin sister called out, waving hello as he approached, having the Wild Bull Pokémon slow down and grind to a halt.

"Hey, sis," he greeted, having immediately recognized her in spite of her change of clothes and hair, "You cleared the trial already?" he guessed as he hopped down from Tauros, returning him to the silver Poké Ball of the Ride Pager in a beam of red light before clicking it back into place.

"Yep!" Erika responded, proudly putting her hands onto her hips, "And I've got this to show for it!" she mentioned, taking out her Electrium Z for her brother to see.

"That's an Electric-type Z-Crystal, right?" he guessed after a moment of awing it.

"Yep!" his twin sister replied with a boastful look on her face, "We earned it with all our hard work!" she mentioned proudly.

"Wow, that's great!" Calvin complimented, "Too bad you can't really use the Z-Crystal though…" he pointed out.

"Huh?" she uttered in confusion as she blinked.

"None of your Pokémon know Electric-type attacks, let alone are Electric-types…" her brother noted in response, scratching at his right cheek. She started to pale in realization.

"Oricorio wazzz an Electric-type, zzt…" Rotom chimed in, "But zzzhe never knew an Electric-type move, even before zzzhe changed formzzz," it recalled. Its user lowered her head in dejection.

"Dang it…" she grumbled out.

"Haha!" Kukui laughed, "Don't worry, Erika," he assured to her, putting a hand onto her shoulder, "Pretty soon, you'll have an Electric-type who'll light your world up like a Thunderbolt!" he remarked confidently, "Maybe until then, you can practice the dance for the Z-Move," he suggested.

"Huh…" the Ketchum girl sighed in resignation, "I guess that'd be for the best…" she admitted, albeit still a little frustrated, "Anyways, good luck up there, Calvin," she said to her brother, getting his attention, "If I beat that trial, you're gonna ace it!" she added with confidence. He smiled.

"Thanks, Erika," he replied in gratitude. He held his right hand up, and the two of them exchanged a high five before heading off in opposite directions. The Ketchum boy had boarded the Exeggutor Express, letting it take him up to the peak of Mount Hokulani as Kukui and Erika watched on.

"Now let's get ourselves going," the former of the two advised before walking off.

"Right!" Erika agreed with a nod, jogging after down the path back towards Malie City.

X

"Gyro Ball!" Shiki commanded, sticking his right hand out. Bluish lights shined over his Bronzor's spheres before it spun around rapidly, heading towards an opposing Lopunny. Behind her was Leslie, who balled her hands into fists.

"Counter with Dizzy Punch!" she called out. The Rabbit Pokémon had a rainbow-colored orb of energy shroud both of her hands. Once her foe got close, she struck it with a left hook to make it start spinning in the opposite direction, followed by landing a straight punch to the Bronze Pokémon to send it flying back before it tumbled back onto the sand below, stopping on its back end. Swirls were in its eyes…

"Braaaahhhh…" it groaned out.

"Bronzor!" its trainer exclaimed, hurrying over to go and check on it. In the meantime, Leslie went over to her Lopunny.

"Thanks for the help, Punneria," she said in gratitude, gently petting her.

"Lahhh…" she cooed happily. The two of them went over to Shiki, who had just picked up the Bronze Pokémon off of the sand.

"Wow, you really can lift anything…" the Ketchum girl commented, putting her hands onto her hips.

"Yeah…" the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user responded with a nod, "It really does come in handy when I've got to lift up heavy friends of ours…" he mentioned as he chuckled a little. However, his expression changed into a frown. "What am I doing wrong?" he wondered aloud, "I'm trying to battle the way Asta and Tanjiro are…" he noted, "but I don't think I'm… there," he admitted in explanation.

"Hmm…" Leslie hummed in thought, crossing her arms over her chest, "It might be because of a couple things…" she pointed out to his surprise, "For one, Bronzor's a bit shy, isn't it?" she guessed as the Bronze Pokémon awoke in its trainer's arms.

"I guess you're right…" Shiki admitted in reply, letting his partner float back up.

"Brahh…" it moaned sadly, thinking it had disappointed its trainer.

"But then there's the fact that you, the trainer, aren't recognizing that," Leslie pointed out, catching their attentions as they both blinked in surprise, "Punneria here was a Pokémon of mine that used to be really shy herself," she noted to them, crouching down beside her Lopunny and petting her gently, "Even though she still is a little shy…" she continued, "she and I were able to recognize that together and overcome it by supporting each other," she told the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user and the Bronzor, "That make sense?" she inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I think so…" he replied as he scratched at his right cheek, "We should be battling together as friends, not as just trainer and Pokémon, right?" he guessed.

"Yep!" the Ketchum girl answered with a wink, "The key is to really make sure you know your partner inside and out," she mentioned, "Not literally, by the way…" she added as emphasis, "We know each other best by not only battling together, but having fun with each other," she told him while still petting the Rabbit Pokémon.

"Hmm…" Shiki hummed in thought, "I don't know what we could do together though…" he admitted as he tilted his head to the side.

"Well, ask your Bronzor what it'd like to do," Leslie offered as an idea.

"Brah?" the Bronze Pokémon chimed out in surprise.

"What do you like to do, Bronzor?" its trainer inquired. Sweat poured down its face as it was growing somewhat worried about the stress of finding something it and the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user could do together. Almost instantly, it floated off and hid itself behind a nearby palm tree.

"Well… I guess it wasn't gonna be that easy…" Leslie admitted with a sigh as she stood up.

"What if I gave Bronzor a name like you do with your Pokémon?" Shiki suggested, "Ooh, I know a good one!" he exclaimed excitedly, "Hey, Thwomp!" he called out, "Come back over!" he beckoned as he waved to the Bronze Pokémon. It stayed behind the tree, peeking out meekly.

"A name isn't going to change things…" the Ketchum girl noted, "I give my Pokémon names so that they can be unique and have their own identities," she told him, "I doubt 'Thwomp' gives your Bronzor an identity it'd like…" she mentioned rather harshly.

"You're right… hff…" Shiki whimpered out to her surprise, especially as she saw tears streaking down his face.

"H-Hey!" she yelped out, "Th-That's no reason to start crying!" she stammered, waving her arms frantically as she tried to think of a way to console the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user. Meanwhile, Bronzor took notice of the situation. It floated over somewhat cautiously.

"Brah, zorr?" it chimed worriedly for its trainer, getting his attention. He looked to see the concerned expression in its eyes.

"Bronzor…" he uttered out. Leslie smiled softly.

"See?" she said, causing Shiki to perk up, "Bronzor wants you to be happy just as much as you want it to be happy," she pointed out, "The key to being a good team is to first and foremost understand each other," she told him, "And that's not something you're just taught…" she mentioned, "That's something you know your Pokémon deserves," she stated firmly. The Satan Gravity Ether Gear user looked back at his partner. He gave it a grin.

"I'll do my best to understand you better, Bronzor," he vowed, kneeling down in front of the Bronze Pokémon, "For you and me," he added assuredly.

"Brah, zor!" it chimed happily in response, making him chuckle. Leslie smiled, looking out towards the beachfront to see how the others were doing in their training. Tanjiro was teaching Tomi how to properly breathe during battle, which was meant to help strengthen his body for stronger attacks. What followed was him firing off a Water Gun that actually blasted apart a slab of rock upon the sea.

"Nice job, Tomi!" his trainer complimented.

"Toh tah!" the Totodile exclaimed with delight as he hopped up and down. Meanwhile, Aegislash's bladed body was clashing against the glowing purple needles in Greninja's hands, making sparks fly. Both Asta and Ash watched on with wide grins as their Pokémon clashed fiercely.

"Hey, Shiki?" Leslie said, catching the attention of the Satan Gravity Ether Gear user, "Why not instead of sparring, you train Bronzor yourself for a little bit?" she suggested to him.

"Yeah, I think that's a good idea for now," he decided in reply, "What do you think, Bronzor?" he asked of the Bronze Pokémon.

"Zor!" it responded, nodding its floating body. The two of them then headed off towards the beach as Leslie watched on, letting out a relieved sigh. Hopefully, her friends would prevail in this endeavor of becoming trainers. And she had a good feeling they would.

X

"Welcome to the Hokulani Observatory!" Molayne greeted as Calvin approached the entrance to the blue building, "You must be Calvin!" he realized, holding out his right hand for the Ketchum boy to take and shake.

"Yeah," he replied, "And you are…?" he started to inquire.

"Molayne," the spectacled man answered, "I'm the head of the observatory and one of its key researchers," he told him, "The reason I recognize you is because of that incredible victory you pulled off against your sister in the Aether Tournament," he mentioned in explanation, "That battle was something…" he complimented. A sheepish chuckle left Calvin's lips as he rubbed the back of his head. "Anyways, I'm guessing you're here for Soffy's trial, right?" he assumed, putting his hands onto his hips.

"Soffy?" the capped boy repeated in confusion.

"My little cousin," Molayne corrected as a reply, "I bet he'll be especially excited to know that you're taking the trial today," he mentioned, "Oh, but before we go on in…" he started to say just as Calvin took a step forward towards the entrance, "would you mind helping me with something important?" he requested of him, much to his confusion as he blinked. Moments later, he and the observatory head were out in the dirt field just a dozen yards away from the building itself.

"Charjabug, huh?" the Ketchum boy inquired as he brushed aside a few wheat stalks, spotting areas of softened soil, as if something had been digging there.

"Yep!" Molayne grunted out as he pulled a Battery Pokémon from the ground, "They really like burrowing like this, so it's hard to wrangle 'em up when we need them…" he noted.

"Are they helping you with something important?" Calvin guessed, arching an eyebrow. The spectacled man chuckled.

"Your trial, actually," he affirmed in reply, much to his surprise, "Anyways, it looks like we've only got Ninejabug left to find…" he confirmed after seeing that eight of the Charjabug had been gathered.

"Just one, huh?" the Ketchum boy noted, looking about the area. He then took notice of the familiar shape of a Battery Pokémon peeking out from behind the Exeggutor Express bus that was parked by the sidewalk. "Found him!" he called out, quickly hurrying over as he hopped the fence. Upon taking notice of the approaching trial-goer, the Charjabug started sparking with yellow electricity. "Hey there, little guy…" he greeted as he carefully approached, "I think it's time you meet back up with your buddies and—" Before he could speak any further, he was suddenly zapped by the Battery Pokémon as he unleashed an array of electric bolts onto him.

"Calvin!" Molayne exclaimed in shock upon heading over to see what had happened. Once the electricity subsided, a cartoonish puff of smoke left the capped boy's lips.

"So that's what it's like…" he muttered out, shaking his head to regain himself. Ninejabug was already crawling off, about to hide elsewhere. "Hey!" Calvin yelled. All of a sudden, a light streaked out from his pants and formed upon the ground right in front of the Battery Pokémon, dissipating to reveal Steenee.

"Neeee…" she growled, glaring at the Charjabug.

"Ja, jah!" he chittered in response, having electricity spark about his body again. However, the Fruit Pokémon wasn't remotely intimidated. She made the tips of her leaves glow a bright white before smacking him across the face several times.

"Steenee…" her trainer uttered out of surprise as he blinked rapidly. The Battery Pokémon attempted to fire off bolts of electricity like he did before. However, he was interrupted as his foe stomped down on his head with her right leg.

"Neee…" she grumbled out, glaring at him with contempt. Ninejabug was sweating madly. Now he didn't want to irritate the Fruit Pokémon any further. He backed off once she released her leg, allowing Molayne to go over and pick him up.

"That was impressive, Calvin!" he complimented, "Your Steenee's a reliable Pokémon," he mentioned.

"Stee neee!" the Fruit Pokémon huffed proudly with her hands at her hips.

"Thanks, I guess…" her trainer responded in gratitude, sheepishly scratching at his cheek, "Though… that's the first time something like that's happened with her…" he admitted.

"Well, I'd say it's good you have a partner like her," Molayne noted, "With moves like Double Slap and Stomp, she's definitely been well-raised," he mentioned.

"Nee, neee…" Steenee boasted as she continued to stand tall and proud.

"Stomp?" Calvin repeated in confusion. That wasn't a move he remembered the Fruit Pokémon ever learning… Did she end up learning it just now?

"Anyways, now we can get ourselves going," Molayne said, heading into the observatory.

"O-Oh, right!" the Ketchum boy stuttered out, "Come on, Steenee," he beckoned to his teammate, enticing her to skip along after him as they followed the spectacled man and the nine Charjabug. Upon venturing inside, Calvin was immediately awed by the technology and equipment strewn about the building. He had to wonder what his trial would be like. He hadn't asked his twin sister because he wanted to be surprised… though now he was starting to grow curious. Very curious.

"You're in luck, Calvin," Molayne pointed out, "Soffy has another experiment ready to conduct for your trial today, so that'll be what you'll help him with," he explained.

"Experiment?" the trial-goer repeated, arching an eyebrow.

'Is that what they did with Erika?' he wondered inwardly. They then arrived at a door similar to the trial gates Calvin had seen before. The observatory head removed his glasses, allowing the keypad beside the door to scan his eyes after he entered in a code. The door slid open, allowing him, the capped boy, Steenee, and the nine Charjabug to enter.

"Majuu!" Togemaru squeaked in greeting as she scurried over.

"Hey, Togemaru!" Molayne greeted with a laugh. Meanwhile, Calvin was surprised by the sight of the Roly-Poly Pokémon. He had never seen one before. She sauntered over to the Charjabug, who all seemed to be happy to have her company. Some of them discharged electricity from their bodies, which she seemed to absorb into her needle like a lightning rod as her triangle-shaped markings started to glow.

"Majjuuu!" she exclaimed happily.

"Togemaru's Lightning Rod ability helps her gather enough electricity that can help lighten the load of some of our machines if they get overpowered," Molayne explained, getting Calvin's attention, "She's been really helpful to Soffy in that regard," he pointed out, letting off a chuckle.

"So… she's a Togemaru?" the capped boy inquired, somewhat perplexed.

"She's actually a Togedemaru," another voice answered as he blinked in surprise, turning to see Sophocles approaching, "Togemaru's just her nickname," he pointed out. He then looked at the Ketchum boy and gasped out of shock. "Y…You're Calvin!" he stammered out, sounding completely stunned.

"Hahaha!" his cousin laughed aloud, "I had a feeling you'd be surprised to see the guy who just won the Aether Tournament," he admitted, stuffing his hands into his pockets, "Did you know that his sister was the one who just took your trial not too long ago?" he inquired curiously.

"Wha… really?!" the trial captain exclaimed in shock, "She looked so different from when I saw her on TV…" he noted, very surprised.

"Yeah, I guess so…" Calvin agreed, letting off a sheepish grin.

"Ahem…" Molayne fake-coughed, trying to get their attention, "Soffy, you wanna tell about the rules of the trial?" he inquired of his cousin, causing him to perk up.

"Ah, right!" he quickly responded. He waved the Ketchum boy over to what appeared to be a table that was connected to wires leading to a machine that hung at the back end of the room. The machine itself looked like a mechanical Vikavolt.

'What is all this stuff?' Calvin wondered inwardly. He then noticed Molayne placing three of the Charjabug onto the table.

"Onejabug, Twojabug and Threejabug are all set to lend their electricity," he told his cousin, who nodded in response.

"My trial's an experiment like Big Mo probably already told you…" he said to the Ketchum boy, getting his attention, "First, you need to connect the Charjabug that are on the Roller," he began explaining, "Once they're aligned, we'll use the electricity they'll channel through their bodies to power the Pinger over there," he continued, pointing towards the Vikavolt-shaped machine hanging near the end of the room, "That'll let us call the Totem Pokémon that you'll be facing for the trial," he mentioned confidently.

"Hmm…" Calvin hummed. He was a bit worried about the implications of this experiment. "What if the Charjabug juice up the machine too much?" he inquired in concern.

"Maju!" Togemaru suddenly squeaked out, getting his attention as he saw her skip over.

"If there's any kind of surge from the Charjabug, Togemaru can absorb it thanks to her Lightning Rod," Sophocles affirmed in response.

"Okay then…" the Ketchum boy said, going over to the table known simply as the Roller, "So I just gotta line up the Charjabug with the points and—?" As he tried to grasp one of the Charjabug to pull him over, he suddenly zapped him fiercely, causing him to fall over. "Ow…" he muttered out in pain.

"I was about to say, you might wanna use the buttons on the Roller to bring 'em into place…" Molayne advised while rubbing the back of his head.

"Yeah… I'll do that…" Calvin replied as he sat up. Moments later, he was using the buttons to rotate the Charjabug upon the table's panels. After lining the three of them up, he watched as the panels tilted to slide them into position in front of the points of the Roller.

"Okay, we're all set here!" the observatory head called out to his cousin.

"Mm!" he responded with a simple nod, going up to a small column with a yellow button atop it, "Now we're ready to power up the Pinger!" he declared, pressing the button. All of a sudden, a ray of electricity channeled through each of the three Battery Pokémon atop the Roller. It flowed through the cables attached to both sides of it, pouring into the Vikavolt-shaped machine at the end of them. Its eyes suddenly lit up along with the yellow parts of its body, signaling that it was turned on. A yellow orb of electricity formed upon its mandibles as it shook, with the meter upon its back being green.

"Alright!" Molayne exclaimed.

"The Pinger's accepting the power…" Sophocles noted with narrowed eyes, "Now the Totem Pokémon should be here any minute…" he mentioned assuredly.

"It's that easy?" Calvin inquired, raising an eyebrow. He hadn't expected the trial to be so… simple.

"Beebee!" a voice suddenly buzzed, getting his attention along with those of the others. Jumping in from a nearby window was an Elekid, who spun his arms around excitedly as he ran towards the electrical orb forming upon the Pinger.

"That's not the totem…" the Ketchum boy realized, "Steenee, stop him with Magical Leaf!" he quickly ordered.

"Nee!" the Fruit Pokémon responded with a nod, having a green light appear upon her hands before she swung them around in front of herself, forming an orb that launched several glowing leaves towards the incoming Electric Pokémon.

"Bee?" he uttered in surprise before being bombarded by the leaves, getting blown back in an explosion of smoke, "Beee…" he growled out, waving his arms around as they became cloaked in yellow electricity. Sparks of electricity were appearing between the prong-shaped horns atop his head as well.

"Neee…" Steenee growled back, narrowing her eyes onto her foe.

"Double Slap!" her trainer commanded. With the tips of her leaves glowing a bright white, the Fruit Pokémon lunged out towards Elekid. He countered her attempted smacks with his electrically charged punches, leaving them both at a deadlock.

"So the Pinger ended up attracting a wild Elekid instead of the Totem Pokémon…" Molayne noted, rubbing the back of his head in confusion.

"It's probably because we didn't use much power…" his cousin pointed out, folding his arms over his chest as he hummed while thinking, "The Roller probably needs more of the Charjabug..." he concluded after a moment.

"Stee neee!" Steenee exclaimed as she finally landed a firm smack onto the face of the wild Elekid, bombarding him with more before he fell backwards onto the ground.

"B-B-Beee…" he stuttered in fright upon seeing the Fruit Pokémon glare at him. He quickly scurried away, jumping out the open window and running off.

"Nice going, Steenee!" Calvin complimented afterwards.

"Nee!" the Fruit Pokémon squeaked delightedly with a cute tilt of her head as she turned to face her trainer.

"Elekid are attracted to electricity… so it makes sense that he was tempted out by the Pinger," Sophocles noted.

"So what do we do now?" Calvin inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, we'll have to strengthen the output with another row of Charjabug…" the trial captain responded, crossing his arms over his chest, "One isn't gonna give us a strong enough signal for the Pinger to send out," he mentioned firmly.

"Couldn't that be dangerous?" the Ketchum boy wondered out of concern.

"Well, we'll have to try something," Molayne pointed out, catching his attention, "Besides, now that we now the Pinger itself works," he continued, "we should do what we can to call on the totem," he insisted.

"Yeah," his cousin agreed with a nod, "Calvin, can you help us set the Charjabug up again?" he requested of the trial-goer.

"Uh, yeah, sure…" he stuttered in response. Moments later, he had a pair of insulated gloves on as he picked up one of the Battery Pokémon and set him onto the Roller. Three of them were aboard before he pressed a few buttons to rotate them around the panels of the table-like setting. Once they were lined up at the other end, the panels tilted to slide them into position.

"Okay, we're all set, Soffy!" Molayne called out to his cousin. He nodded in response, pressing the button atop the small column beside him. Rays of electricity channeled through the two rows of Charjabug, powering through the cables as a blue light shined from them. They flowed into the Pinger, which shook as the electric orb of energy it was building grew. Calvin also took notice of how the meter went from green to yellow.

"I think we've got a better dose of power this time!" Sophocles pointed out excitedly.

"Looks like it!" the observatory head agreed.

"Buzzaappp!" another voice buzzed. Everyone looked over to see who it had come from. It was an Electabuzz that had wandered in, seemingly attracted to the building electricity from the Pinger as well. He ran towards it.

"Steenee, Magical Leaf!" Calvin commanded quickly. The Fruit Pokémon quickly brought her hands together to make a green orb of light shine upon them, followed by unleashing a flurry of glowing leaves towards her target. However, he took notice, having a pink curved force field suddenly appear in front his hands that he stuck out. It took the leaves as they came apart like shattering glass upon striking it.

"N-Nee?" Steenee stuttered in surprise, having not expected her new opponent to take that attack so well.

"That was Light Screen…" Molayne said, putting his hand onto his chin, "Looks like this one's not going to be as easy to beat as that Elekid was…" he mentioned somewhat grimly. The Ketchum boy looked on as the pink energy barrier in front of the Electric Pokémon came down. He looked at Steenee and smirked.

"Ka buh!" he exclaimed, creating a ball of electricity in between his hands and aiming it towards his opponent. It then released several rings of light that struck her, causing her to wince as electricity sparked along her body.

"Neee…!" she groaned out.

"Steenee!" her trainer exclaimed in shock, seeing her grit her teeth as she stood firm.

"And Thunder Wave, too…" Sophocles noted, "This Electabuzz might be trouble…" he admitted grimly.

"We can handle it, Sophocles!" Calvin assured firmly, "Steenee, Double Slap!" he commanded.

"Nee!" she responded, making the tips of her leaves glow a bright white. But as she tried to take a step forward, electricity sparked around her body again, stopping her from moving as she winced.

"Steenee!" her trainer cried out.

"Being paralyzed isn't a good status to be in during battle…" Molayne mentioned while narrowing his eyes.

"Yeah…" his cousin agreed, "That's an advantage a lot of Electric-type Pokémon have…" he pointed out.

"Eleh kah!" Electabuzz buzzed, forming an orb of electricity upon his hands, making it grow thanks to electricity coming from his antennae.

"Steenee, be careful!" Calvin called out quickly in worry. The Fruit Pokémon looked out to see her foe pitch the energy orb like a baseball, striking her fiercely in an explosion of grey smoke.

"NEEEE!" she shrieked as she flew back.

"Steenee!" her trainer screamed, quickly jumping out to catch her in his arms.

"And now Electro Ball, which works much better on slower opponents…" Sophocles pointed out, putting his right hand onto his chin.

"Especially in the case of paralyzed ones like Steenee…" his cousin added in agreement. Meanwhile, Calvin set the Fruit Pokémon down gently as she winced, with more sparks of electricity appearing around her.

"Neee…" she groaned in pain. Her trainer gave off a worried grimace.

'Against an Electric-type, I don't really have many options…' he inwardly noted, grabbing one of his Poké Balls off of his belt and enlarging it with a press of its center button, 'So we'll have to break through with pure power!' he decided through his thoughts.

"Stee!" Steenee suddenly squeaked out, getting his attention as he looked to see her stand up firm despite the electricity crackling around her.

"Steenee…" Calvin uttered in surprise, followed by taking on a serious expression of understanding, "Okay, Magical Leaf!" he commanded, swinging his right arm out. The Fruit Pokémon brought her hands together and formed another green orb of light upon them, firing off glowing green leaves that flew out towards Electabuzz. The pink, curved force field reappeared around him again, blocking off the leaves as he smirked. He then made his tail glow a bright gold before whipping it around to launch several sparkling starts of light that trailed to his target.

"And now it's Swift!" Sophocles pointed out.

"Knock them back with Double Slap!" the Ketchum boy instructed quickly. With the tips of her leaves shining a bright white, Steenee smacked each one of the incoming energy stars away, sending them back to her foe. His force field defended him, but he grimaced in frustration at how resilient the Fruit Pokémon was being.

"Kah, buzz!" he yelled, forming another orb of yellow electricity upon his hands.

"Now it's Electro Ball again!" Molayne noted as a warning.

"Steenee, Stomp!" Calvin commanded quickly. Flipping over onto her digit-less hands, Steenee launched herself out at her foe just as he threw the electrically charged orb. She spun around it, slamming her tapered legs into his face and knocking him down onto the floor.

"Neee…" she growled afterwards, glaring at her foe with contempt. If he wasn't intimidated before, he was now. He found himself getting repeatedly struck in the face by his opponent's left leg, crying out in agony. Watching from afar, the Ketchum boy let a drop of sweat roll down his head.

'I guess I didn't need to switch things up after all…' he realized.

"BUHHHHHH!" the wild Electric Pokémon shrieked as he scurried off like the Elekid before him.

"Nee!" Steenee huffed proudly, putting her hands onto her hips.

"That was impressive…" Molayne commented while scratching at his right cheek.

"Yeah…" his cousin agreed with a simple nod.

"Nice work there, Steenee," Calvin complimented, getting the Fruit Pokémon's attention, "You wanna take a rest?" he inquired of her.

"Stee nee…" she responded with a defiant shake of her head.

"Well, you're probably gonna need something to deal with that paralysis…" Molayne pointed out as he ventured over, pulling out a Cheri Berry from his jacket pocket and handing it off to the Fruit Pokémon. She happily accepted it, taking a big bite as she chewed contently. Meanwhile, Sophocles glanced down in thought as he hummed curiously.

"It seems like the more power we pump into the Pinger, the bigger the Pokémon that appears…" he inferred, catching the attentions of the others.

"That makes sense… I think…" Calvin replied, arching an eyebrow as he looked towards Molayne.

"Yeah," he agreed with a nod, "If we give it one more push with another row of Charjabug, we'll probably be able to generate an electrical current strong enough to attract the Totem Pokémon," he explained.

"But aren't we already juicing the Pinger up enough?" the Ketchum boy inquired out of concern, looking back at the Vikavolt-shaped machine, "What'll happen if we give it too much for it to handle?" he wondered aloud.

"We'll have to chance it, unfortunately…" Sophocles replied with a shrug, "So that means…" he started to say, gasping lightly in realization before hurrying over to the other three Charjabug still in the room, "Calvin! Big Mo!" he called out, getting their attentions, "Can you help me set the Charjabug onto the Roller?" he requested of them. Moments later, the trial-goer helped put Ninejabug atop a panel upon the table-like contraption.

'So now I have to arrange them in a way that all three rows will connect and let electricity flow between them…' he noted inwardly. Pressing the buttons along the Roller, he arranged the Battery Pokémon into a diagonal row, forming into the shape of a z with all nine of them.

"Okay, I think we're set!" he called out to Sophocles.

"All right…" he responded, pressing the yellow button atop the column next to him once more. Electricity flowed through of the nine Charjabug, channeling into the cables as they glowed a bright blue. The Pinger started sparking, shaking wildly as it glowed.

"Uh… that doesn't look right…" Calvin noted worriedly.

"Nee…" Steenee squeaked out, hiding behind her trainer's right leg.

"The cables are looking a little too unstable…" Sophocles admitted as he sweated a little. The meter had gone from yellow to red, much to everyone's concern. And at that very moment, the cables snapped off from the Vikavolt-like machine as it spun around towards the Charjabug still atop the Roller. Everyone gasped.

"Oh no, the Charjabug are gonna get blasted with all that electricity!" Molayne realized in fright, "We gotta stop it!" he insisted. But it already appeared to be too late as the machine buzzed loudly. It then fired off a powerful burst of electricity towards the group of Battery Pokémon.

"Majuuu!" Togemaru suddenly exclaimed as she leapt out, taking the electrical rays to the needle upon her head as they veered towards it. The triangular-shaped markings along her body glowed brightly as they spiked out like a hedgehog.

"T-Togemaru!" Sophocles stuttered out in shock.

"She's taking in all the electricity?!" Calvin wondered, blinking rapidly in disbelief.

"With her ability being Lightning Rod, she can…" Molayne replied, getting his attention, "But there's a limit to how much her electric sacs can take…" he added grimly as he gritted his teeth, "There's no way she can handle all of that…!" he pointed out. His cousin quickly ran over.

"Togemaru! Hang in there!" he cried out, "Agh… I gotta think of something!" he yelled in frustration, unsure of how to best handle the current situation.

'If there's no way for Togemaru to absorb all that electricity, then we've gotta break the Pinger!' Calvin inwardly decided.

"Steenee, use Magical Leaf on the—!" A loud bang interrupted his command as he yelped in surprise. He and everyone looked up. Standing upon one of the pipes above them was a very big Togedemaru. And he didn't look happy. He leapt down in front of Togemaru, taking the electric rays to his needle as his own triangular-shaped markings spiked out. His intervention allowed for her to land down safely and sigh with relief.

"That's the Totem Pokémon!" Molayne realized aloud as he blinked. After a few more seconds, the electric rays the big Roly-Poly Pokémon was absorbing finally ceased, with the Vikavolt-shaped machine powering down. He landed down hard with smoke coming off from his body as his spikes folded back.

"Whoa…" Calvin uttered in amazement, "That was incredible!" he exclaimed with clenched fists. Togedemaru turned towards him. "Hey, thanks for your help!" he added gratefully, "If it wasn't for you, then those Charjabug and Togemaru might've—"

"Majjuu," the big Roly-Poly Pokémon squeaked deeply to his surprise. All of a sudden, he lunged out at the trial-goer with his body encased in a bright white light, making him appear black and white.

"Ah!" the Ketchum boy gasped. He would've been struck if Steenee hadn't bumped him aside, taking the sudden attack as she crashed hard into a bookshelf from the force. "STEENEE!" her trainer screamed, seeing her fall onto her stomach and groan in pain. Meanwhile, the Totem Pokémon landed back onto the floor in front of him.

"Mah," he squeaked deeply again in challenge. Gritting his teeth, Calvin regained his focus. Now it was time for him to win his trial.

X

"WHAT?!" Erika exclaimed loudly as half of the Pokémon Center reeled in surprise, "Cal got kissed by a girl?!" she questioned out of shock, "Who was it?! Did it happen yesterday?!" she asked on. It turned out she was having a video call with her older sister, who seemed a bit frazzled by the bombardment of questions.

"You know, now I'm regretting telling you…" she admitted with her arms folded over her chest.

"Sorry…" her little sister apologized meekly with a sheepish grin, "I just… never thought Cal was ever into stuff like that…" she pointed out in admission.

"The girl kissed him, you know…" Leslie mentioned, raising an eyebrow.

"Anywayzzz, I'm pretty zzzure Erika wazzz gonna thank you for zzzending Oricorio over!" Rotom chimed in.

"Yeah, thanks!" the capped girl exclaimed with gratitude, "I'm sure she's really happy to be back!" she mentioned as she smiled.

"No problem, Erika," her big sister responded, "And congrats on beating your first Ula'ula trial," she added in a complimentary tone.

"Ah, it was no biggie…" the trial-goer boasted as she dismissively waved her left hand. Rotom gave her a blank look. "Anyways, take good care of Magmar and Lurantis for me!" she requested of Leslie, who chuckled.

"Will do, sis," she responded with a smile, "But don't go letting your wins get to your head…" she advised seriously.

"I know, I know…" her little sister repeated in understanding, rolling her eyes, "All right, I gotta go…" she said, about to end the call.

"Hey, Erika?" Leslie suddenly chimed in, causing her to stop just as her pointer finger hovered over the red icon on the screen, "I'm really proud of how far you've come," she told her, much to her surprise as she widened her eyes slightly, "And just like you, I've got stuff I need to take care of, too," she pointed out while grinning, "See you later," she remarked in farewell, ending the call herself as the screen went dark. The trial-goer's eyes were shaking. And then they teared up.

"Zzzt?" Rotom buzzed out, surprised to see such an expression upon its user's face, "Are you okay, zzt?" it asked in concern.

"Y-Yeah…" she sniffled in response, rubbing her eyes with her left arm. It felt like a long time coming. But she smiled all the same. Her big sister was proud of her. "Anyways, we better not keep them waiting!" she insisted, making sure her things were gathered before hurrying out of the Pokémon Center with the Pokédex floating after her.

Outside, Lillie and Acerola were waiting together, with the latter patiently humming to herself. The two of them had met up with Erika once she returned to Malie, deciding that it'd be for the best if the three of them traveled together towards the Haina Desert, where the Ruins of Abundance were located. They saw the trial-goer exit the building and smiled.

"Are we all ready to head on out?" she asked her friends, who both nodded.

"It's gonna be a long trip, so we might be camping out tonight," Acerola mentioned to the others.

"Oh, I have a sleeping bag packed!" Lillie assured, "And Repels!" she added firmly.

"I've got one, too," Erika mentioned.

"Great!" Acerola exclaimed, "Now just as a fair warning, you have to clear both trials on the island to gain access to the Haina Desert," she told the two girls, "That said, you can't even head around the island past Route Eleven without clearing the trial at the observatory," she added in explanation.

"So that's why you were waiting for zzzomeone who could help take you, zzt…" Rotom realized.

"Correct!" the trial captain responded with a nod, "Now let's get a move on!" she insisted as she started walking off.

"Heh," Erika chuckled, "Well, I'm glad I can be of help to you again, Lillie," she said to the blonde-haired assistant, who blinked in surprise.

"O-Oh!" she stammered out, "Um, thank you so much… again…" she said nervously in gratitude, "I feel bad that I'm always relying on you for help…" she mentioned with a look of shame on her face.

"Don't feel bad!" the Ketchum girl reassured, getting her attention, "Relying on others is never a bad thing," she said firmly with a shake of her head, "Even the strongest people need help sometimes…" she admitted, thinking back to when she consoled Pyrrha on Mount Hokulani.

"You… think I'm strong?" Lillie inquired, somewhat confused… and humbled. Erika giggled.

"You'd have to be to put up with someone like Nebby!" she pointed out in response, leaning towards her friend's bag as it shuffled a little.

"Pew!" the Cosmog squeaked happily as it poked its head out. Lillie let out her own giggles.

"I suppose you're right…" she admitted, smiling with the trial-goer, "Anyways, have you looked into Tapu Bulu, Ula'ula's guardian deity?" she inquired.

"Actually, not yet…" Erika admitted sheepishly in response as she rubbed the back of her head, "Hey, Rotodex?" she said, getting Rotom's attention.

"Leave it to me, zzt!" it exclaimed in response, pulling up an image upon its screen. It was of a vaguely bull-like Legendary Pokémon. It had a bulky, black body with thick arms and no legs. It had blue eyes with an orange line across each iris. Under each eye was a red line divided into three segments with a smaller, white line below that. There was a short white line above each eye. In the middle of its face a what appeared to be a golden nose similar to a bull's snout. There was a white ring through the nostrils of the nose. On each side of its face was a thick white line that curved upward at the outer tip. There were red rings around its shoulders and golden, cloven hooves at the end of its arms. Its tail was mostly covered in a golden bell with two thin black rings around the top and a wavy black line around the bottom. A tuft of fur was just visible inside the bell. On top of its head was a pair curved, black horns. Each horn had a thick yellow marking near the tip and half of a wooden shell attached to it.

Its shell was primarily red with white-and-yellow markings thickly bordered by a muted black. The shell itself resembled a flower or plant when open; when closed as shown in another picture, the horns shifted to the sides as it took on the appearance of a bull. The top of each half was slightly thicker than the bottom, which gave the 'bull' a slightly protruding brow. At the bottom of each half was a white rectangle with a muted black triangle at the very end. Above the rectangles were two triangular markings; the top triangle slightly overlapped a larger, yellow triangle. Behind and just touching the yellow triangle was a tiny, white rectangle that created the 'bull's' eyes. The side had a single, tiny yellow triangle marking.

"Tapu Bulu, the Land Spirit Pokémon," Rotom began, "It pulls large trees up by the roots and swings them around. It causes vegetation to grow, and then it absorbs energy from the growth. Although it's called a guardian deity, it's violent enough to crush anyone it sees as an enemy," it explained thoroughly.

"Sounds like it's even tougher than Tapu Koko…" Erika noted with her arms crossed over her chest, "Well, we'll be ready when we go to meet it someday soon!" she promised. Lillie nodded in response. Rather than be nervous like she usually would, she was excited, especially with the Ketchum girl joining her along the journey. "Oh, that's right!" she yelped in remembrance, reaching down to her belt and pulling off her Moon Ball, enlarging it with a press of its center button, "There's someone I wanted you to meet!" she insisted, opening the Poké Ball as its light formed upon the ground, dissipating to reveal Starbright.

"Kleh?" she squeaked out, blinking before her trainer picked her up into her arms.

"You caught a Cleffa?" Lillie noted curiously.

"Mm-hmm!" the Ketchum girl responded with a nod, "I named her Starbright," she mentioned.

"Kleh!" the Star Shape Pokémon squeaked in greeting.

"Nice to meet you!" Lillie greeted back with a tilt of her head.

"Heyyy!" Acerola called out from afar, getting their attentions as they looked over to see her waving to them from afar, "It's gonna get too late if you Slowpokes keep standing there!" she yelled teasingly. Erika laughed a little.

"We're coming, we're coming!" she assuredly repeatedly in response before jogging over alongside Lillie. The three girls ventured towards the street leading towards the route. And then the trial captain blinked in surprise upon noticing something.

"Oh boy…" she muttered out, coming to a stop as her hands rested upon her hips.

"What is it?" Erika inquired as she arched an eyebrow. Just then, they heard a loud guitar riff.

"Pewww!" Nebby squeaked in fright, ducking back into its caretaker's duffel bag as it shuffled slightly.

"ROCK'N'ROLL!" a raspy voice screamed through a microphone. With a deep sigh, Acerola saw that it was none other than Ryuki, who was apparently playing on his electric guitar while letting his Turtonator spew out flames from his nose to accentuate his trainer's performance. He had drawn somewhat of a large crowd as they were impressed by the performance. Meanwhile, the Ketchum girl blinked in confusion.

"Who the heck is that?" she asked.

"That's Ryuki…" the trial captain replied with an annoyed look on her face, "He's a former trial-goer who started up the Kantonian Pokémon Gym here in Malie," she told Erika.

"But… what is he doing now?" Lillie questioned, clutching the strap of her duffel bag tightly.

"Performing, per usual…" Acerola answered. With one last powerful guitar riff, the gym leader finished his song, earning himself an applause from his audience.

"Thank you! Thank you!" he yelled into the microphone out of gratitude, "Just so you all know, this star's gonna be back on the island challenge path pretty soon!" he promised as he pointed to himself, "So ya better look forward to it!" he insisted with a toothy grin. Hearing that got Erika's attention as she blinked in surprise. She had no idea what kind of trainer Ryuki was… but was curious to know just what he and his Pokémon were capable.

"Hey, Rotodex?" she said, getting Rotom's attention, "Who's the Pokémon with that guy?" she questioned curiously, pointing towards Turtonator.

"Leave it to me, zzt!" it exclaimed in response, bringing up an image of the Blast Turtle Pokémon upon its screen, "Turtonator, the Blast Turtle Pokémon," it began, "The shell on his back is chemically unstable and explodes violently if struck. The hole in his stomach is his weak point. His exploding shell poses a real danger but is sensitive to moisture. On rainy days, Turtonator takes silent refuge in caves," it explained thoroughly.

"If he's another trial-goer like me, then he's a rival," Erika pointed out, grinning a little, "And that means I've gotta see just what he's made of!" she declared additionally as she jogged over.

"Ah, Erika?!" Lillie yelped in surprise. Meanwhile, Acerola cracked a grin.

"I like her," she admitted with a giggle. Just as Ryuki had put his guitar away backed into its case, which was decorated with spikes like his outfit, the Ketchum girl had approached.

"Excuse me?" she said, getting his and Turtonator's attention as they looked over to her, "Can we have a battle?" she requested of him.

"Huh?" he uttered in surprise as he blinked rapidly, "I normally don't get requests out of the blue like that…" he noted while standing up, "What's your name, kid?" he asked curiously.

"Erika," the Ketchum girl replied.

"Erika, huh?" Ryuki repeated, putting his hand onto his chin as he tried to remember where he had heard that name before. He then widened his eyes upon realizing. "Oh yeah, you're the runner-up from the Aether Tournament!" he exclaimed.

"Yep!" the capped girl responded with a nod.

"Kleh!" Starbright squeaked, nodding herself. The gym leader smirked.

"Well, if you wanna battle someone like me, it'll have to be without someone like that…" he remarked while pointing at the Cleffa. She blinked in surprise before tearing up, crying into her trainer's chest.

"H-Hey, Starbright!" she stammered, petting her gently in an attempt to console her, "That was uncalled for…" she noted to Ryuki, who shrugged.

"Well, it's how the cookie crumbles sometimes…" he pointed out, "Now then," he continued, pointing at the Ketchum girl, "let's see your best Pokémon against mine!" he insisted with a toothy grin. Moments later, the two trainers stood about a dozen yards from each other, with Turtonator standing in front of the gym leader, while Erika had given her Cleffa to Lillie, who held her in her arms as she, Acerola and Rotom watched on.

"Okay, let's do this!" the capped girl declared as she readied a Poké Ball, enlarging it with a press of its center button, "Primarina, I choose you!" she yelled, throwing the spherical container forward. It popped open, with its light spilling onto the ground and coming into shape to reveal the Soloist Pokémon upon dissipating.

"Pree mah~!" she sang in greeting.

"Oh, the Pokémon that evolved during the finals…" Ryuki noted in remembrance, "You're hoping for a star-studded victory today, huh?" he guessed, "Turtonator, Flamethrower!" he commanded, swinging his left arm out.

"Turr!" the Blast Turtle Pokémon responded, unleashing a powerful spray of flames from his nose towards his foe.

"Dodge it by using Aqua Jet!" Erika instructed quickly. Enveloping herself within a torrent of water, Primarina rocketed upwards, evading the incoming flames. "Now aim for that hole at his stomach!" her trainer advised.

"Mah!" she barked in reply, zooming down at her opponent.

"That's not gonna work on us!" Ryuki proclaimed, "Use Shell Trap!" he called out. The Blast Turtle Pokémon attempted to turn himself around to have his shell face his incoming foe, but she dashed by and slammed fiercely into his stomach.

"TTAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" he exclaimed in agony as he stumbled back.

"Turtonator!" his trainer exclaimed out of shock. Meanwhile, Primarina landed down safely as the water around her broke apart beautifully. Starbright was immediately in awe as her eyes were sparkling.

"Fahhh…" she uttered out, completely stunned.

"Our fire's not gonna get put out that easily!" Ryuki vowed fiercely as he stuck up his right fist, "We'll just turn up the heat on you and vaporize that water!" he decided, "Turtonator, Shell Smash!" he shouted. The Blast Turtle Pokémon became outlined in a white glow while the spikes on his back also glowed white. A faint red glow surrounds him and then disappeared in a burst like shattering glass. Lines of a blue aura shot down his body and an orange aura shot up his body.

"Shell Smash…" Acerola noted, crossing her arms over her chest, "Looks like Ryuki's been training a little since the last time…" she pointed out.

"Yeah…" Lillie agreed, remembering how his Turtonator had defeated Hau's Vaporeon rather easily.

"Now Dragon Tail!" the gym leader ordered. A green, scale-patterned aura shrouded the Blast Turtle Pokémon's tail before he lunged forward in an instant towards Primarina. However, Erika cracked a smirk. The second Turtonator's tail made contact with the Soloist Pokémon… nothing happened. "Huh?" Ryuki uttered in confusion as he blinked.

"Primarina's a Water-and-Fairy-type, ya know…" the Ketchum girl remarked as she smugly tipped her cap, "Dragon-type moves aren't gonna work on her…" she mentioned.

"Pree mah!" her partner yipped.

"Ah… that's right…" Ryuki realized as a drop of sweat rolled down his cheek, "Well… in that case…" he began to say, regaining his trademark grin, "use Flamethrower!" he commanded as he stuck his left hand out.

"Turr!" Turtonator responded, spewing out another spray of flames from his nose. They were bigger this time though, heading towards the Soloist Pokémon.

"Dodge again with Aqua Jet and then use Icy Wind!" Erika called out quickly. Immersing herself within another torrent of water, Primarina shot above the incoming flames and zoomed past her foe. As the water broke apart around her, she inhaled a deep breath through her mouth before firing off a freezing blast of air with blue sparkles onto his shell-covered back, causing ice to form upon it.

"Ergh…" Ryuki growled in frustration, "Flamethrower again!" he ordered. The Blast Turtle Pokémon whipped around in an attempt to blast his foe with flames again.

"Use Sparkling Aria!" Erika commanded.

"Pree!" Primarina yipped, standing upon her tail fins as an orb of water formed over her open mouth as she sung. The orb then broke apart into several streaks of water that all struck Turtonator in bursts of white smoke, causing him to stumble back.

"Turrr…" he groaned out.

"Wow…" Lillie uttered in amazement.

"Klehh, fahh!" Starbright squeaked delightedly with sparkling eyes. Seeing Primarina so elegantly battle against her foe was mesmerizing to her. She wanted to be that beautiful and strong.

"Now Disarming Voice!" Erika commanded as she pumped her right fist forward. The Soloist Pokémon made her nose shine a bright pink. But instead of unleashing a ray of pinkish-purple hearts from her mouth, a golden light shrouded her body as she sang up into the air. A pink orb of light then formed in front of her mouth before she fired it forwards, having it strike Turtonator in a powerful explosion.

"Turtonator!" Ryuki screamed in shock.

"Whoa…" the Ketchum girl uttered out of surprise, blinking rapidly.

"That wazzz Moonblast!" Rotom buzzed in exclamation.

"Awesome!" Erika yelled happily as her eyes sparkled, "Way to go, Primarina!" she complimented.

"Mah!" the Soloist Pokémon yipped in response with a smile. In the meantime, the smoke settled to reveal that Turtonator lied upon the ground on his back with swirls in his eyes. Seeing that made Ryuki drop to his hands and knees.

"I got starstruck…" he remarked in disappointment with himself.

"Nice job, Erika!" Acerola complimented as she and Lillie walked over.

"Yes, that was very impressive!" the assistant added. Hearing them made the trial-goer stand proud as her hands were on her hips, glad to be praised.

"Kleh!" Starbright squeaked, hopping out of Lillie's arms as she went over to Primarina, getting her attention, "Kleh, klehh fahh?" she asked with a hopeful look in her sparkling eyes. The Soloist Pokémon blinked in surprise, but then smiled as she picked up the Cleffa into her front fins.

"Preemah!" she assured with a nod to the delight of the Star Shape Pokémon.

"Looks like those two are gonna be helpin' each other out!" Acerola noted from afar.

"It makezzz senzzze since they're both Fairy-typezzz," Rotom mentioned. Erika was excited about the prospect of getting Starbright some training. And she'd be doing her best to live up to her big sister's expectations.

X

"Steenee…" Calvin uttered, picking up the unconscious Fruit Pokémon into his arms.

"Nee…" she weakly squeaked out as her eyes slowly fluttered open. They were still in the lab at the Hokulani Observatory, with the Totem Togedemaru standing before them. And he was angry.

"Maybe he's upset because of how much at risk Togemaru and the Charjabug were…" Molayne inferred, sweating a little.

"Calvin, I'm really sorry that—"

"Don't worry about it," the trial-goer assured, interjecting Sophocles, "It's part of the trial to defeat the totem, isn't it?" he inquired as he took out a Poké Ball and enlarged it with the press of its button, "Take a nice long rest, Steenee," he advised to the Fruit Pokémon, returning her to the spherical container in a beam of red light.

"Maju," Togedemaru boomed as he stepped forward in challenge. The Ketchum boy readied another Poké Ball in his right hand.

"If you're an Electric-and-Steel-type, then I know just the Pokémon for you!" he declared, throwing the spherical container forward. It popped open, with its light pouring out onto the ground and dissipating to reveal Marowak.

"Whak!" he exclaimed, immediately igniting his bone with green flames by rubbing its ends across his head.

"An Alolan Marowak, huh?" Molayne noted, "That's a good match when fighting a Togedemaru…" he pointed out, putting his hand onto his chin.

"Let's just hope he can be enough…" his cousin added, while Togemaru and the Charjabug gathered nearby him. Electricity sparked off of the big Roly-Poly Pokémon's body as he glared down his new opponent.

"We'll get you back for what you did to Steenee!" Calvin vowed firmly, "Marowak, Flame Wheel!" he commanded, pumping his right fist forward.

"Mah, roh!" the Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon responded as he ran forward, somersaulting as the flames upon his bone spewed around him, cloaking him in a wheel of fire. He rolled towards his foe, who had an orange aura flare up around his body.

"Majjuuu!" he boomed, turning around.

"Huh?" Calvin uttered in confusion as he raised an eyebrow. All of a sudden, the spikes upon the totem's back stood up and glowed a bright green, followed by an energy shield of the same color with spikes appearing around him.

"That's Spiky Shield!" Sophocles exclaimed.

"Ah!" the trial-goer gasped in realization, "Marowak, look out!" he yelled. But it was too late. The enflamed Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon collided with the spiked energy shield in a powerful blast of smoke.

"Mahh…!" he groaned out as he was sent flying back, landing upon his feet as he winced.

'So he's got a move that can protect himself while dealing damage at the same time…' his trainer realized, looking over at the big Roly-Poly Pokémon, 'It's definitely going to be tough for Marowak…' he noted inwardly.

"Mahju!" Togedemaru suddenly exclaimed, spinning around as his body became encased by yellow electricity. He then rolled forward like Marowak did earlier, slamming hard into him as he yelled in agony from the zapping sensation.

"Marowak!" Calvin screamed.

"And Zing Zap, too…" Molayne noted, crossing his arms over his chest, "This totem's well-prepared, Soffy…" he commented to his cousin.

"Maybe a little too well…" he admitted in response while scratching at his right cheek.

"Mah… roh…" Marowak grunted as he used his bone as a cane to pick himself up, with its ends having gone out.

"Ergh…" Calvin growled in frustration, clenching his fists tightly.

'Togedemaru's way too tough for Marowak to handle alone…' he concluded through his thoughts, reaching down to his belt to pull out and enlarge another Poké Ball, 'I hate to already have to do this, but I'd rather we be safe than sorry!' he decided inwardly.

"Incineroar, go!" he yelled, tossing the spherical container forward. As it popped open, its light spilled onto the floor and took shape, dissipating to reveal the Heel Pokémon.

"Rawr!" she exclaimed, punching her left hand excitedly. Marowak widened his eyes in surprise. He didn't think that he'd have to rely on anyone else for this battle. And it irked him…

"Mah, roh!" he huffed out, standing up firmly.

"Two Fire-types now…" Sophocles noted, "Calvin's taking this really seriously…" he mentioned with narrowed eyes.

"Mahju!" Togedemaru exclaimed, lunging out while cloaking herself in a whitish light to make her appear black and white.

"Counter with Darkest Lariat, Incineroar!" the Ketchum boy quickly instructed. Dark reddish flames erupted upon the Heel Pokémon's hands before she spun forward rapidly towards her incoming foe. They collided fiercely as sparks flew about. The big Roly-Poly Pokémon found himself blown back by the force of his foe's attack, sliding to a stop upon the floor.

"Juuu…" he growled with clenched teeth.

"Now Flamethrower!" Calvin ordered. Bringing herself to a stop, Incineroar whipped around and unleashed a spray of fire from the center of her flame belt. Togedemaru quickly reacted by turning and making his spikes stand up while glowing green, forming yet another spiked energy shield that took the incoming flames with ease.

"Toh, geh!" he exclaimed afterwards as his shield came down.

"Double Kick!" the capped boy commanded, swinging his right leg out. The Heel Pokémon ran out towards her foe, readying her right leg. As she attempted a swing kick with it, the totem leapt over it. He smirked, thinking that he was in the clear. At least until his opponent hopped up and struck him square in the face with her left foot.

"Se, rahwr!" she roared out, sending him flying until he hit the wall at the other end of the room, causing a few books to fall from the bookshelves nearby.

"Maaahhh… ruuu…" he groaned as he landed upon the floor, gritting his teeth in agony.

"Nice hit, Incineroar!" Calvin complimented with a pump of his left fist.

"Rowrr!" she responded while smiling widely. But that elation soon vanished when…

"WHAK!" Marowak exclaimed, striking the Heel Pokémon upside the right knee with his bone.

"RAH!" she yelped in surprise, grabbing at it as she hopped up and down while wincing out of pain, "Seh, rawwrrr!" she shouted angrily.

"Mah, wak, mah roh!" the Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon argued, sharing a glare with his teammate. Meanwhile, their trainer was flabbergasted by the sudden interaction.

"H-Hey, guys!" he stuttered out, trying to get their attentions, "Let's worry about that later!" he insisted, noticing that Togedemaru was getting ready to counterattack, "We've got a trial to beat!" he pointed out emphatically. Unfortunately, it seemed like nothing was going to snap the two out of their argument.

"Day nay?" a voice suddenly squeaked near them, getting their attentions as they looked down to see a Dedenne right beside them, "Nay!" he exclaimed as his cheeks suddenly started sparking. Both Incineroar and Marowak reacted too late as they were zapped by the Antenna Pokémon as he unleashed multiple bolts of yellow electricity from his body.

"Guys!" Calvin cried out, seeing both of his partners falter back slightly as electricity sparked around their bodies. Meanwhile, the electricity that shot towards Togedemaru was absorbed into his needle, causing a reddish aura to flow up his body.

"A Dedenne, huh?" Molayne noted as he blinked in surprise.

"And with the Discharge he just used, Togedemaru's Lightning Rod lets him get a boost in special attack, while the others got hit…" Sophocles mentioned, "This really is a tough trial…" he concluded aloud. Incineroar and Marowak regained themselves, glaring out at their foes.

"We'll turn this around right away!" Calvin vowed firmly, "Marowak, Bonemerang!" he commanded. The Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon flung his bone forward, letting it spin his two foes. Dedenne ducked to evade it, while Togedemaru jumped mightily into the air before he could be struck.

"He's using Bounce!" Molayne pointed out.

"Incineroar, catch him with Darkest Lariat!" the capped boy instructed quickly.

"Rawrr!" the Heel Pokémon responded, igniting her hands with dark reddish flames as her big foe approached from above. However, she didn't notice Dedenne crawling up her leg. He made his front tooth glow a bright white and lengthen before he bit into her thigh. "RRRRAAAAHHH!" she roared in agony, quickly shaking the Antenna Pokémon off. However, that was the exact distraction Togedemaru needed as he crashed hard into his target in a flurry of dust.

"Incineroar!" Calvin screamed, clenching his teeth together out of frustration. He saw the Totem Pokémon and Dedenne regroup, staring down their foes confidently.

"Rrrrr…" the Heel Pokémon growled, gritting her teeth as she slowly stood back up. Marowak then stepped out in front of her.

"Mah, mahroh!" he exclaimed in declaration, pointing his bone towards their foes, "Mah, whak!" he added firmly. Togedemaru narrowed his eyes, letting his cheeks spark.

"Toh geh…" he squeaked deeply, immersing himself in yellow electricity as his spikes stood up.

"He's going for Zing Zap again!" Sophocles pointed out as a form of caution.

"Marowak, get back!" Calvin insisted immediately, "Let Incineroar take him!" he advised. However, the Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon seemed adamant about this decision, tightening the grip he had upon his bone. Togedemaru spun forward, heading towards him quickly.

Marowak then placed both hands upon his bone before slamming it down in a vertical position. He used it to block the big Roly-Poly Pokémon as sparks flew wildly between them. Everyone looked on in surprise at the scene. The Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon then positioned his weapon so that one of its ends was underneath his opponent. With a mighty yell, he flipped him up into the air.

"Ah!" Calvin gasped in shock, while everyone widened their eyes.

"Mah, mahroh wak!" Marowak yelled, getting his trainer's attention as he saw him flash a thumbs up in approval. Seeing that made him blink in realization, letting off a grin.

"Incineroar, Fire Fang!" he commanded, pumping his right fist out. Making her mouth billow up with flames as her teeth glowed a bright red, the Heel Pokémon leapt up towards Togedemaru just as his spikes went down and his electricity ceased. He had no time to react as his opponent bit down on her hard in a fierce explosion.

"MAAAAHHHH!" he cried out in agony, falling down towards the ground.

"Day nay!" Dedenne exclaimed in fright upon seeing what was happening. His cheeks sparked as he was attempting to unleash more bolts of electricity.

"Marowak, Shadow Bone!" Calvin ordered quickly. The Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon made both ends of his bone ignite with purple flames as he charged forward, spinning it in his right hand. Before the Antenna Pokémon could do anything, he was struck by his foe's weapon, being sent flying back.

"Se, rawr!" Incineroar remarked with a smirk, making her teammate huff proudly.

"Battle's not over yet, guys…" their trainer pointed out, enticing the two to regain their focus as they glared forward at their foes, who were standing back up.

"MAHJUUU!" Togedemaru bellowed as he lunged forward, cloaking himself in a white light to make him appear black and white.

'Iron Head again, huh?' Calvin noted inwardly while narrowing his eyes, 'In that case…' he began to himself.

"Marowak, Flame Wheel!" he commanded, sticking his right hand out.

"Roh!" the Alolan Bone Keeper Pokémon responded, igniting both ends of his bone with green flames once more as he ran out. As he flipped forward, the flames shrouded him entirely in a wheel of fire, rolling towards his incoming foe. They both collided fiercely, not giving an inch to each other…

"Totem Pokémon really are something…" Calvin said aloud, "And that Togedemaru's even more amazing…" he added with a grin, "But still…" he continued, closing his right hand into a tightened fist, "that's not going to stop us!" he proclaimed loudly, "Incineroar, Flamethrower!" he ordered, pumping his right fist out.

"ROWWRR!" the Heel Pokémon replied, launching a powerful spew of fire from her flame belt towards the deadlocked pair. The flames collided with her teammate, not only growing her wheel of fire, but also making it a beautiful mix of orange and green. Togedemaru grimaced, unable to handle the powerful flames. An explosion enveloped both him his foe moments afterward, veiling the room with smoke.

"Ah, ah!" Sophocles coughed as the smoke was slow to settle down, "That was dangerous…" he admitted with a somewhat shocked look on his face, "What would've happened if any of the equipment got destroyed…?" he wondered aloud.

"We'll have to think about that for next time then…" his cousin noted sheepishly, scratching at his cheek. In the meantime, the smoke finally settled to reveal the result. Marowak was still standing despite breathing heavily, while the Totem Togedemaru lied upon his back in agony, having swirls in his eyes.

"Yes!" Calvin exclaimed with delight, realizing that they had emerged victorious against the big Roly-Poly Pokémon, "Now all that's left is to—!" Before he could even finish his remark, Dedenne scurried off out the window. "Oh," he uttered, realizing that he must've been scared from seeing the totem's defeated state.

"Nicely done, Calvin!" Sophocles complimented as he went over to the trial-goer, getting his attention, "Sorry about all the trouble you went through with the experiment…" he mentioned, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.

"Oh, it's no problem, really…" the Ketchum boy assured, waving his hands in a placating manner, "But… I bet you'll wanna change things up for the next time…" he assumed, looking around at the damage caused to the room.

"Needless to say, you and your team cleared this trial with flying colors!" Molayne pointed out as he walked over, getting their attentions, "Soffy, you wanna give him his reward?" he inquired to his cousin, getting his attention.

"Ah, right!" he yelped in response, reaching into the left pocket of his cargo shorts to grab something, "Here you are," he offered as he pulled out an Electrium Z to hand to Calvin, "Your very own Electrium Z!" he exclaimed, allowing the trial-goer to take it into his hand. He beamed happily, holding it up high for his teammates to see.

"Looks like we've got another trial down!" he noted excitedly with a grin.

"Rawwr!" Incineroar agreed as she smiled.

"Mah whak!" Marowak exclaimed happily. They all laughed, glad that they emerged victorious.

X

"Kennn…" Combusken groaned, clenching her teeth as she lied upon the grass with scrapes and cuts all along her body.

"Combusken!" Paige cried out, running over to her alongside Stufful.

"Stuh?" the Flailing Pokémon squeaked out worriedly for her teammate.

"Hahahaha!" a voice laughed nearby, getting their attentions as they looked over to see Guzma there alongside his Golisopod and the Team Skull members, including Plumeria, "Another quarterfinalist from that tournament down!" he remarked with a smug shrug, "That was nothin', huh?" he inquired to his subordinates, earning himself a round of cheers from them. Meanwhile, the Team Skull admin approached Paige, who stood up defensively.

"Heh," she chuckled, "How 'bout you head on back to Malie and see if either Calvin or Erika are around?" she suggested with a tilt of her head, causing the trial-goer to blink in surprise, "The big man's dyin' to meet 'em," she mentioned, pointing towards her boss, who grinned widely.

"Golisopod and I are gonna destroy those upstarts…" he vowed.

"Gohhh…" the Hard Scale Pokémon growled in anticipation. Paige grimaced, wondering what Team Skull was after…

ENDING

Insert "Fushigina Fushigina Ikimono" by Tortoise Matsumoto

Opens in a hospital, with the newborn Calvin and Erika lying in separate cribs as they snooze soundly. Watching from outside the window to the nursery is Leslie, who's excited about having both a little brother and sister. Her father comes up behind her and puts his right hand onto her shoulder, giving her a warm smile.

We cut to the Ketchum family returning home. Leslie spends a lot of time with the infant twins, helping her parents feed, bathe, and put them to sleep. As the years go by, we see that she struggles to keep up with trying to take care of the rambunctious twins. At one point, Erika actually refuses her baby bottle and tries getting her milk from her sister's breast, much to her shock and embarrassment.

We cut to when the family started vacationing in Alola, with Leslie having drifted somewhat apart from her twin siblings. It saddens her that most of the good memories she had with them are now fleeting. We see her put on her new dress as she goes to the Iki Town festival, where she witnesses Calvin and Erika attempt to battle for the first time. Though they both lose, she's happy that they tried.

From Ash and Mirajane's point of view, they've had a wonderful life with their three children. Ash and Pikachu had helped teach Calvin how to walk, while Mirajane showed Erika how to garden as they water plants together. There's another scene of the twins getting to see their sister in a tournament as her Krookodile goes up against Benga's Garchomp, countering a Dragon Claw with his own.

We cut to the present day, where Leslie contently watches the highlights of the Aether Tournament. As she sees the final match between her twin siblings, she doesn't even realize that she's crying happily for getting the chance to witness it at all. Her parents take notice of her emotional state and venture over to give her a comforting hug.

As the ending slowly winds down, we cut to the twins camping together on Ula'ula. They both glance up at the stars and smile. They're grateful to be on a journey that they never thought they would enjoy in the first place.

END ENDING

And from there, we've got ourselves another setup for what's to come next! We got two chapters in a row for you guys, so the second one's coming soon! Here's a summary to keep you occupied!

SUMMARY

Guzma has arrived in Malie City! Upon learning that he's Team Skull's boss, Erika immediately challenges him to a battle! Who's won by the time Calvin arrives?!

Meanwhile on Melemele, the Pokémon training for Asta, Tanjiro and Shiki is about to conclude! How will Leslie wrap things up?!

END SUMMARY

Really excited for what's ahead in the next chapter, so I hope you all are, too! See you next time!