A hard fought battle against a new-and-improved Team Rocket had proved tiring, for Ash and his pokemon alike. Soon after the trio of thieves had fled, Ash took the opportunity to doze off, falling into a very content slumber. Night soon turned to morning, seeming just about as ordinary as any other day… At least, it did for a little bit.

A body-rattling boom knocked Ash unpleasantly from his slumber, forcing a startled yelp from the adolescent as he jerked awake, only to topple over and land face-first, still constricted by his sleeping bag. He muttered something incoherent, muffled by the earth before pulling himself upright.

Pikachu was quick to voice his complaints, none too happy to be woken in such an unwelcome manner. Never mind that, though, what was that noise? His beady eyes turned toward the cliff side, noting pebbles that fell from the closest heights above them. That was unusual.

"Sorry, buddy. I didn't wanna wake up like this either. But, I'm sure you heard that, right?" He pulled himself out of the sleeping bag, quickly donning his jacket. Before he could do much more, a couple of Teddiursa came running by, completely ignoring the boy and his pokemon that were just being stirred from slumber. A couple of Ursaring followed, watching over the smaller pokemon as they fled the scene. A few Phanpy followed, scurrying onward.

"Hey, what's with all the pokemon? Is it breakfast time already?"

Pikachu gave his trainer a deadpan stare, having no words. "Pikapi!" He pointed, trying to bring Ash's attention toward the heights. More pebbles tumbled over, accompanied by another loud crash. A loud roar could be heard, forcing Ash and Pikachu to cover their ears.

"Man, that's loud! If it keeps up, I'm gonna get a major headache!" Ash whined, hopping to his feet before donning the rest of his outfit. "Let's go check it out, Pikachu! Whatever's going on up there, it can't be good!" Answered by a cry of agreement from his companion, Ash dashed toward the source of the commotion.

A couple of scaled rocks later, and Ash was crawling over the edge of the nearest elevation, following Pikachu, who'd already made the climb with ease. "There… Now we can find what's causing all thi-" A flurry of purple rings interrupted the trainer, forcing him to yelp and duck under the assault before scrambling out of harm's way. Letting out a sigh of relief, he climbed to his feet. "That was a Dark Pulse!" Finally gaining his bearings, he caught sight of the culprit.

A mad Tyranitar stood atop the precipice, crying loudly before slamming its powerful tail into a nearby tree, splitting the bark like a twig. Aipom swung from the branches, making a quick acrobatic escape from the rampaging pokemon. A Donphan had seemed to enter the fray, spinning into a Rollout attack to put its destruction to an end.

Another barrage of dark energy, however, pulverized the ground between them, cutting the pokemon's attack short.

"That Tyranitar's really on a rampage!" Ash grimaced, watching the various smaller wild pokemon flee. "Hey! Cut it out! They didn't do anything to you!"

The Armor pokemon turned its gaze towards the duo, hues doubling at the sight of Ash and his Pikachu. It'd stopped in its tracks, seemingly paralyzed in their wake. Lowering its guard, it seemed to grow docile in Ash's presence. Still, one couldn't be too careful in a situation like this.

Ash, of course, wasn't the type to show that caution. Slowly approaching the large beast, Ash held his hands outward. "Please, Tyranitar. You're gonna hurt other pokemon like that! I'm sure something's freaked you out, but you've gotta take it easy." Step by step, he moved closer, intent on soothing the destructive pokemon.

Moving closer, though, only seemed to frighten the pokemon more. It let out a cry of warning, stepping backwards away from the trainer. While hesitant to attack Ash, it was none too happy to get close.

"I'm not gonna hurt ya! If there's something bugging ya, we want to help!" Ash was joined by a cry of agreement from Pikachu, who clung to his trainer's shoulder. Again, they stepped forward.

Tyranitar let out a roar, panicking before firing another purple barrage of rings, soaring over the duo's head. While the Dark Pulse missed, the stray attack collided with overreaching rock, unleashing several boulders that plummeted down toward Ash and Pikachu.

The duo gawked up like a pair of Stantler in headlights, speechless in the face of certain doom. Neither of them wanted to be smashed flat like pancakes! It seemed that was their fate, though, until a blinding beam of light shot over their heads, blowing the falling rocks to smithereens!

Two pairs of dark hues turned toward the source of the ray, leading them to an oddly familiar sight. "It's another Tyranitar!" Ash gawked, letting out a breath of relief. "We woulda been toast if it hadn't saved us… Hey, Pikachu! Check it out!"

A healed but noticeable gash upon her side and an expression of maternal kindness upon her face, it was none other than the Tyranitar which mothered the one rampaging now. She recalled Ash, not one to forget the face of the one who returned her precious child to her all those years ago. "Nitar!" she cried, brief calm broken by her attention turning to her fleeing son. "Ty!" she quickly barked to Ash and Pikachu before rushing towards the panicked pokemon.

Cutting off her full grown child with her own mammoth body, Mother Tyranitar barely kept her son from running. She grunted, weight of him heavy against her.

Startled and scared, the Tyranitar belched energy, startling his mother also.

Ash furrowed his brows, walking towards Tyranitar with a tense Pikachu on his shoulders. "Tyranitar… what's got you so upset, buddy?" However, the moment Tyranitar caught sight of the duo, it whirled.

The thin of its tail caught Ash, sending him flying and rolling across the ground. Pikachu recovered better, landing so as to stand protectively before Ash.

"Pika!" the electric type pleaded.

Then, the sky broke, quite literally. A void of boggling purple and black spread across the sky, letters of some lost language brought to life dancing down. A leader could be determined, speeding to dance around Tyranitar's head.

Half confused from his heavy landing, Ash could only watch, dazed, as one of the Unown circled around him.

Then, his world was a battle field and he felt proxy to emotions that were not his own. It was all fear and self-doubt. The chanting of dozens of voices filtered through his mind as well.

"Calm him! Calm him! Calm him!" they cried.

".. The Unown," Ash mumbled, watching with mild horror as Tyranitar the son was attacked by black figures. He spotted Pikachu likewise looking on with him. "We've got to save him again," the trainer realized. "Let's go! We did it before, we can do it again!"

A barrage of glowing pellets fired out of the twisted abyss, falling like hail upon Ash, Pikachu, and Tyranitar. The Armor pokemon began to flail wildly, acting in futility to ward off the assault.

"Is that Bullet Seed!?" Ash covered his head with each of his arms, none too happy with the rain of energized seeds raining down upon him. A cry of pain, though, pushed Ash's pain to the backburner. Tyranitar had roared in protest, attempting to guard itself just the same.

"Tyranitar!" Not hesitating for a moment, Ash lunged for the Armor pokemon, grabbing hold of its spiky shoulders. Hugging to its form, he took the brunt of the attack raining from above. Canines clashed together, a hiss passing Ash's lips as his back was assaulted in Tyranitar's place. "I won't let 'em hurt ya…! But we've gotta fight back! I know you're strong enough!"

The pokemon gawked at the boy taking his blows, speechless. Its breath hitched in its heavily guarded chest, anxiety fleeting. Once again, Ash was giving his all to save him…

The rain then came to an end, and the pain dulled with it. Exhausted, Ash slid down the pokemon's hide before standing upright. "That wasn't fun... "But, things were only just get started.

Tyranitar stepped backward, cowering as three looming shadows hovered over it, along with Ash and Pikachu. The duo turned to face the giants, only to find Team Rocket towering over the three. Each of them wore their usual despicable sneers, leering down upon the Armor pokemon.

Ash's expression bore disgust. "Oh, great. Now we're dealing with three giant losers!"

As if the large specter had heard him, Jessie's hand rose high, heralding a flurry of purple missiles to rain in from above, toxic ooze trailing their paths as they descended.

"That's Toxic Spikes!" Ash's face fell, fear building in his gut as they came closer. "Pikachu, Counter Shield!" The electric mouse wasted no time, skidding forward before flipping on his side. Spinning along the rocky anomaly of a surface, Pikachu shrieked before unleashing several wild bolts from his form. Spinning along with the rodent, the electricity began to form a cyclone around the group, crackling as each collided with the spikes. Diffused poison fell around the group in a mist, rendered harmless in the wake of Pikachu's makeshift barrier.

"Now I get it…!" Sclera going wide, Ash turned towards Pikachu, who now stood upright. "These are attacks from the battle last night! Tyranitar musta overheard it all and gotten scared again! That's why he was going wild!" He turned back toward the large pokemon, holding a hand out to him. "They're not gonna hurt you, alright? We won't let that happen!"

Tyranitar's eyes followed the trainer, dark orbs trembling. The abstract landscape still left his heart racing, entire form uneased. Though, at least Ash was there… Its large hand reached out to the boy's, about to show his trust in the ones that'd kept him safe so many times. Hues turned upward, though, catching James' hand being thrown forward. Accompanying it was a terrible flame, colossal in size and threatening to consume all three of them.

"I know my name is Ash, but I'm not lookin' to get turned into it!" Ash panicked before quickly regaining his bearings. Throwing a hand forward, he called out. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!"

"Chu!" Pikachu cried, leaping in the flame's path. A blinding path of electricity cut through the air, colliding with the scathing flame. Soon enough, electricity won out over fire, driving stray flames off to the side.

Though, the trio hardly had time to rest. A flurry of cold winds and snow barraged the landscape, forcing the group to huddle together. Ash held onto Tyranitar tightly sheltering Pikachu under his arm beneath his jacket. Shuddering in the cold blanket of snow, he persevered through numb fingers and a bitter nose. "Man… No matter what we do, it just keeps coming!" Doing his best to preserve warmth, he looked up to the pokemon. "We're not gonna make it fighting on our own like this! You've gotta help out, Tyranitar! You can do it!"

"They're gonna do it again…! I can't stop them!" A voice echoed from above, bringing two pairs of eyes upward. It sounded quite like one they'd heard years ago, if not a bit deeper.

The pokemon trembled, shielding Ash and Pikachu from incoming snow. Tried as he might, though, Tyranitar cowered under the freezing blanket, petrified.

"I know you can! You've gotten stronger, Tyranitar… Ever since you were born, I saw you grow. And you sure as heck have, now! You've evolved and everything… I know these guys scare you, but you're bigger than them!" Dark hues locked with the pokemon's, brows furrowed.

The onslaught didn't end, still. A mangled mess of iron outgrowths shot from the sky, coming mere feet of striking Ash and company. Caging them under the barbed mess, they brought attention to three more figures replacing Team Rocket. A short man with a bowl cut, a larger, brutish figure, and a tall man with a sneer. "Those're the poachers from last time!"

Cowering away from the enclosing steel, Ash was forced up against the pokemon's natural armor. "Those guys are gone now. They can't bother you anymore! And neither can Team Rocket. We can fight them too, but you're strong enough! Please, just give yourself a chance!" Ash pleaded, holding to the larger pokemon. "Pika Pika!" Pikachu joined, shivering under Ash's jacket.

Large, sharp canines gnashed together, closed eyes quivering. It hated this. It hated its fear of others ruining its life… Of hurting its friends, and family. They couldn't get away with that!

They wouldn't. Shut eyes parted to become a determined glare, eyes turning up toward the sky. Large, trunk-like arms shattered steel, breaching the cage around them. Rock-like jaws parted, allowing a brilliant orange glow to grow between sharp fangs. Light drew to a singular point, culminating before spewing from Tyranitar's maw as a massive Hyper Beam, blowing the wasteland to smithereens. The poachers were engulfed in light, and the entire abstract world with them.

Moments passed; it was difficult to tell just how many, but soon, the light faded, and Ash found himself back in the real world, sitting on the seat of his pants, with Pikachu sitting in his lap. "Uh… What happened? Are we back now?"

The sight of two Tyranitar, accompanied by Mt. Silver's heights, answered his question. The younger, more distressed one stood closer, looking much more at peace, now. Letting out a content roar, he smiled upon the boy. Finally, everything was as it should be!

Likewise, Ash had found peace in its own. Tears began to sting the boy's eyes, dripping onto the gravelly surface as he sprinted toward the pokemon, leaping into its arms. "Tyranitar! It's really you! Man, it's great to see you again!" He chuckled, absolutely thrilled to be united with his former companion. Reaching to rub away his tears, he smiled up at the pokemon he'd hatched. "You've grown a whole lot… Hard to believe you were just a lil' egg when I got you, huh?"

"Pika, Pikachu!" Pikachu cheered, leaping up to stand on the pokemon's spiky shoulder.

Tyranitar's battle-scarred mother let out a happy cry of her own, thanking Ash and Pikachu in her own way. Seeing your own child on a frightened rampage was horrid, to say the least. Once more, they'd proven themselves reliable.

The son himself spoke next, speaking in intelligible roars. Unlike before, though, he seemed happy as ever. His past fears of the terrible trios had been once more put to rest.

"I guess you're really feeling better now, huh?" Backing off just a bit, Ash smiled. Though, he couldn't quite understand what was being said. Scratching his cheek, he cocked his head.

As if on cue, one of the floating characters crashed into the back of Ash's head, drawing a yelp as the latter was knocked to his knees. It was an all-to-familiar face - the "g" Unown they'd met some years ago.

"Oww…" Ash whined, noting that his mind felt rather fuzzy. Much like Misty had complained when she'd befallen a similar fate. With the pain came a strange, unspoken knowledge. "Hey, I get it now… You wanna come with us, Tyranitar? To get even stronger, so you can protect yourself and your friends?" Ash beamed, climbing to his feet once more.

"Gahr!" The pokemon growled, forming as much of a smile as he could. Smiling sadly, his mother nodded in agreement. As much as she loved spending time with her son, it'd been a good few years since he was returned. That, and it might be for the best to let him spread his proverbial wings. She approved his decision.

"And you think it'd be good for him to live his own life, right? That must be really hard for you. But I promise I'll take great care of… Nah. We'll all take great care of each other! Right?"

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu cried in agreement, waving his paw from atop the Armor pokemon.

"Gah!" Tyranitar raised his arm as well, also on board.

Now becoming equally aware that this was goodbye, Tyranitar turned back towards his mother. Approaching her, he entered a final embrace. The latter's tail coiled around, comforting the son.

None too soon, it seemed, as tears began to fall from the child's eyes. Nonetheless, it smiled, it made a wordless promise to stay safe. Surely, with Ash's company, everything would be alright!

"Hey, don't worry. I'll have to stop by again sooner or later, so you guys can catch up!" Ash flashed a thumbs up to the duo, close to becoming misty-eyed himself. Holding back a quivering lower lip, he earned the duo's consolation before reaching for a pokeball. "Alright… Pokeball, go!" In his typical fashion, Ash tossed a pokeball forward, enveloping his old companion in a red flash of light. The pokeball landed on solid ground, beginning to wobble.

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Ping!

Dashing to grab the sphere, Ash righted himself before holding the pokeball up high, grinning from ear to ear in his usual trademark pose. "Alright! I just caught… Tyranitar!"

"Pi-Pikachu!"

And so, with a heart-stopping, tear-jerking reunion, Ash has renewed his bonds with yet another one of his pokemon. Tyranitar's fears have been put to rest once again, and his confidence has built just that much more! Managing a difficult goodbye, Ash has added yet another trusty teammate to his roster, and so, has come just one step closer to becoming a Pokemon Master!


After the zenith of the rock's lazy arc up was reached, it tumbled down, landing soundlessly in the waiting vine. Bulbasaur dropped the pebble as quickly as the grass type had caught it, catching another and then another. Pikachu let out delighted squeals, keeping count on the little poison type's progress. Ash, meanwhile, kept an enthusiastic smile on his face, in awe of Bulbasaur's dexterity.

"Man, you know, if you ever decided you wanted to go into show business, I think you'd have a real-HEY!"

Ash only saw it after it happened, but a Linoone had his backpack and was making a hasty retreat.

"Get back here!" he snapped, beginning to running after the thief. Pikachu and Bulbasaur quickly joined in the chase. Soon, they entered a particularly lush section of the forest. The chase ended as Linoone dropped Ash's backpack in front of a Golduck. Off to the side, a Natu watched eerily.

Raising his fist and stomping a foot forward, Ash was already ready to scrap. "Give me my bag!"

"Saur," the grass type instructed, raising a vine to pat Ash's shoulder. It looked up, giving Ash a very intent glance.

The trainer calmed before frowning. "... you're gonna take care of it, then?"

"Bul."

"...okay."

As Bulbasaur stepped forward, making its intentions to battle for the backpack clear, the Golduck jerked its head towards the Natu.

The little flying type flapped its wings, taking off to hit Bulbasaur with a Peck attack. At least, that was the intention.

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!"

Grinning, the little grass type did a bit more. It had been a while since Ash had seen it in action and it had learned a new trick. "Saur!" it cried before a flurry of leaves blinded Natu. When the bird struck where its target had been, there was instead an empty space.

Seeing that the Bulbasaur had escaped due to Natu's temporary lack of sight, Linoone frowned before using Rototiller to get under the ground, planning a surprise attack. Bulbasaur was taken off guard, but something about the change in soil texture on the turf made it feel more secure. All the same, the Slash attack from the Linoone took Bulbasaur by surprise, earning a cry of pain.

"Vine Whip!" Ash commanded, already impressed by what it had done to the Natu. Where had it figured out to use its leaves like that? Maybe after dealing with all the pokemon on the ranch it had learned to do what it had to?

Obedient but clever, Bulbasaur picked Linoone up, tossing it at the just recovering Natu.

"Right… they've got to avoid getting hurt or hurting each other, but Bulbasaur can go nuts like this," Ash realized, finding justification for why Bulbasaur wanted to handle this on its own. "Nice job, Bulbasaur!"

The Golduck's patience ran out. It lifted a webbed hand, using Disable. Only Bulbasaur's shocked expression alerted Ash to a move even being used. He brought out his Pokedex, quickly registering the move and then grunting in frustration. Well, that effectively crippled them for a bit. Didn't it?

Golduck, however, had no time to waste as it headed straight for Bulbasaur with an Aqua Jet. At the same time, Linoone rushed towards Bulbasaur again.

"Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!" Ash commanded, hoping perhaps Bulbasaur could outpace the two if they were blinded once more.

The grass type waited a moment, seeing what the Natu would do. Luckily, it played right into Bulbasaur's hopes. As a Confuse Ray headed its way, it finally used Razor Leaf. The Golduck adjusted its movements, trying to pursue as leaves obscured its vision. It was no good, though. The Confuse Ray struck the water type, blurring its vision. It lashed out blindly… striking the Linoone.

"Lin!" it cried out, confused as to why its boss hit it.

"... Duck?" it inquired after realizing who it hit. "Gol!" Seeing red, the Confuse Ray seemed to have unlocked extra psychic potential in the Golduck. As it used Confusion, Bulbasaur was unable to dodge. Natu was quick to follow in with a Peck as Bulbasaur reeled, barely avoiding a nasty headache but suffering a direct blow from the bird. Linoone brought in a third blow, Slashing the grass type.

"Oh, man, Bulbasaur isn't gonna last much longer," Ash realized. "Bulbasaur, use Leech Seed… on Natu!"

The bird recognized its name and looked towards Ash, making a perfect opening for Bulbasaur to cast its seeds upon the bird's back. As it flapped its wings and Teleported away in blind panic, the grass type already felt relief in the stolen energy entering its body.

Linoone moved in again, hoping to properly execute Play Rough. Bulbasaur tried to dodge, but was simply unable. Thankfully, Golduck was too confused at the moment to do much more than fall rather painfully onto its face.

Desperation mounting, Ash called out for the big guns. "Bulbasaur, let's try Solar Beam!"

Bulbasaur's bulb began to glow, charging.

In the meantime, Linoone was dancing around its leader, attempting to shake the Golduck out of its confusion. It was all for naught, as by the time the Golduck was aware of the world, a beam of photo-energy was headed straight for the duo. As the blinding beam faded, a second, pink, energy cascaded towards Bulbasaur.

Natu's Psychic sent Bulbasaur reeling. Three of the four combatants struggled to return to their feet… but Bulbasaur had an edge; Natu continued to feed its energy into the enemy. So, only Golduck and Linoone failed to remain on their feet.

"Let's see if Vine Whip's active yet," Ash gambled, nodding to Bulbasaur.

Sure enough, a vine was sent sailing towards Natu, snatching it up. The Bulbasaur tossed it roughly towards its peers. There the three thieves lay unconscious.

"Saur!" Bulbasaur cheered, supplying Ash with his backpack.

The trainer grinned. "Aw, thanks! You're the best!"

"Pika!" the electric type agreed.


"Awesome job, Bayleef! I can tell you're really getting a lot stronger!" Ash applauded, strolling along through yet another chilly cavern after a long day of training. Alongside him were Pikachu and Bayleef, who was marked with a number of scratches, huffing to regain its breath.

Even in her tired state, though, the grass type seemed to positively glow at the praise, a bounce in her step forming when it was known that her hard work was worthwhile. Especially in Ash's eyes. "Bay! Bay!" Despite the reflexive urge to nuzzle against her trainer, Bayleef opted to continue walking, tired and eager to return to their camp site. Today had been rather tiring.

The low batting of wings and high-pitched chatter soon caught the trio's notice, their eyes turning toward the mouth to one of the more narrow parts of the cave. A number of figures swooped out of the shadows, circling the group. Shrieks and swipes urged them all to take a more defensive posture, ducking under vicious assaults before finally getting a good look at their assailants. "It's a bunch of Crobat!" Ash blurted, swinging his backpack off his shoulder to wave it in the face of a few, forcing them to make further distance between themselves and the trainer. "We've gotta fight 'em off! Pikachu, use Thunderbolt! And Bayleef, you use Razor Leaf!"

"Pika!" Pikachu shrieked, throwing his arms out as a brilliant ray launched from his body. Several of the Crobat were electrocuted by the outpour of volts, flapping violently to make distance between themselves and the mouse. That was, ones that hadn't already fallen unconscious.

"Bayleef! Bay!" The grass type launched a flurry of sharp leaves from the large growth atop her head. A number of the poisonous bats were cut by the assault, letting out displeased cry before assaulting Bayleef herself. Multiple Wing Attacks assaulted her, earning a cry of pain.

"Bayleef! One of 'em's coming in close! Hit it with a Headbutt!" Ash warned, swatting away what he could. Though, he was dealing with some trouble himself, suffering an Air Slash attack that knocked the wind out of him. Floored by the pressure, Ash let out a cough, doing his best to regain his bearings. By time he'd come to, a single bat was coming right toward him, leaving him speechless. Staring into the face of his attacker, Ash found himself helpless.

That was, if not for a bolt of lightning that struck out before him, toasting the violent pokemon. A sigh of relief left Ash's lungs, which had been denied oxygen in the terrifying moment prior. "Thanks a lot, Pikachu. I owe you one! Now, keep your eyes peeled! They're not done, yet!"

The quadruped took Ash's advice, finding her face to face with one that looked ready to sink its fangs into her. Gritting her teeth, Bayleef threw her head forward, giving the Crobat a bit more of a bite than it could chew. Sent reeling by a fierce Headbutt, the pokemon crashed into the cave wall, falling unconscious.

"I think we've got 'em on the ropes, guys! Keep it up!" Ash called out, announcing their victory. Perhaps a moment too soon. The few remaining Crobat hung above, pulling back from the three before parting their mouths, spewing several sprays of Toxic goo toward their intended prey.

A collective cry could be heard from all three. Ash, Pikachu, and Bayleef had been doused in poison, each hissing from the unpleasant sting. Ash sat up, ignoring the pain running through his arm, where the goo had landed. "This is getting bad… Pikachu, ward 'em off, with Thunder!"

"Pikachu!" Pikachu unleashed his brilliant wrath upon the swarm, firing off a powerful stream of electricity that rendered each of the Crobat unconscious. Soon, he collapsed, lying beside his trainer.

"Man, this stings… Are you guys alright?" He looked between each of his pokemon, who nodded. Though, it was unconvincing. They had gone blue in the face, and it was pretty likely that he had as well. Beginning to feel light-headed, he pulled his backpack off to rummage through it. Stuffing a hand into every pocket he had, the boy's queasy stomach dropped. "We… Don't have any Pecha berries. I think we're out of Antidotes, too! Oh, man… That's no good." He coughed, feeling none too good from the seeping poison that had fallen upon his skin. "I… Guess I'm not as tough as a pokemon is. You guys're handling that poison better than me, right?"

That was all that mattered, really, to him. As long as his pokemon were safe, then his primary concern was put to rest. Still, that didn't stop his body from overheating, or his breathing from becoming heavy. Sturdy as Ash was, he was susceptible just like any other human being.

"Pikapi!" Feeling none too good himself, he rushed over to his trainer, nudging his shoulder. He couldn't have something happen to him here… They'd come so far together. "Pikachu!"

"Don't worry about me, buddy..! I just need to make sure you guys are alright. We've gotta get you guys back to the pokemon center!" The ailing trainer pushed himself to his feet, trudging toward the light at the end of the tunnel. "As soon as we get there… Nurse Joy'll fix you guys right up!" Stubborn as he was, though, weakening limbs forced him to lean against the cave wall. "Just… Gotta… Keep… Moving!"

It was clear as day that Ash wasn't going anywhere. Bayleef whined, making her way over to support her trainer. "Bay! Bay!" Red orbs quivered, worry building over his condition. She was here to protect him. His pokemon. She should've protected him from that attack. "Leef!" She cried, buckling under another rush of poison. Vision growing weary, she wasn't sure they'd make it far at this rate. Would they wither here? Fall victim to the harsh elements?

Her eyes had shut tight. She had to protect Ash… And Pikachu, too. If she didn't do something now, they were probably done for.

A brilliant glow caught Ash's attention, weary eyes turning to the pokemon supporting him. Black orbs went wide, realization dawning on the trailer. "Bayleef… No way! You're…!" The Leaf pokemon had begun to grow before his very eyes. Barely his size before, the pokemon had begun to dwarf him, obscured by shining light. A single leaf atop her head split into two antennae, and tiny beads around her neck blossomed into large, brilliant pink petals. The light finally faded away, revealing a fully evolved Meganium.

Single minded as always, Ash shuffled through his coat pocket, withdrawing his Pokedex.

"Meganium: The Herb pokemon. Its breath has the fantastic ability to revive dead plants and flowers."

"Ganium!" The fully evolved pokemon cried, unleashing a brilliant pink mist from her petals. A soothing scent enveloped Ash and Pikachu, soothing the pain that plagued them. Toxins faded from their skin, and Ash soon found it far easier to breathe. The stream of pleasant chemicals continued until Ash's muscles loosened, and Pikachu's as well. Breathing in the last of her own production, Meganium felt her own ailment fade as well. Though, she wouldn't be satisfied until she was sure the others were well. "Meganium?" She nudged Ash's shoulder with her head.

Ash let out a breath of relief, a smile spreading across his features when it was evident the pain was gone. "Hey, I feel better now! Meganium, that was great!" This time, he was the one to initiate contact, wrapping his arms around the larger pokemon's neck. "You evolved just to protect us, didn't ya? We really owe you one!" He laughed, finding himself victim to another of its affectionate tackles. "Hey, take it easy! You're a lot heavier now! Aha!"

"Pika, Pikachu!" Feeling rejuvenated himself, the mouse hopped atop Meganium's back.

"I guess we should head back now. We can't risk something like that happening again, huh?" Ash climbed to his feet, turning back toward their intended path. As things always were when Ash Ketchum was around, the group had avoided yet another scrape with certain doom. And, as always, they would push beyond that danger to keep moving forward!


The black-haired trainer grinned, Pikachu awaiting his choice for battlers. "Quilava, Muk, I choose you!"

The fiery young Johto-native span as it was released, turning to face its opponent. The flames along his shoulders burned lowly and its crimson eyes shined with glee. Likewise, upon materializing from the pokeball's red beam, Muk oozed into position, expression more content but all the same clearly pleased with what was to happen. Each knew their trainer well enough to expect this to end in a battle.

"Quilava, use Aerial Ace! Muk, you try to counter with Body Slam!"

Dashing forward, a whirling wind energy encased Quilava. However, it was overwhelmed by Muk's Body Slam, a virtual typhoon of noxious sludge washing over the little fire type. Thankfully, its Aerial Ace move protected it and its flames from being doused by the partially liquid matter of Muk, but the impact all the same knocked the breath out of Quilava.

"Hm… Quilava, try Eruption! Muk, you use Sludge Bomb!"

"Quiii LAVA!"

Ash realized that perhaps he should take several steps back from the battle field. Seating himself on a cluster of frosty rocks, he watched as the earth under Quilava and Muk rumbled and then parted, artificial-and thus inferior yet still dangerous-lava bubbled to the surface. Muk fired off a Sludge Bomb as it tried in vain to avoid the searing heat of Quilava's attack. Quilava, however, had better luck, leaping to another jagged rock amidst its cool Eruption attack. But, when the sludge landed, it was cooked by the residual heat.

Needless the say, the smell was awful.

"Oh man!" Ash whined, covering his nose with a hand. Pikachu's eyes were watering. It looked around before turning tail, using Ash as a launching pad before scrambling further away from the field, clearly not in the mood to choke on whatever noxious odor that was. "Pikachu, you little traitor! What happened to sticking through anything together?!"

"Pikapi pikachu!" the electric type sheepishly explained, all the while not moving from the top of the tree it'd taken refuge in. That scent wasn't anything to play with.

All the while, poor Quilava looked on the verge of retching thanks to the stench. As the lava finally cooled and hardened, returning the field to relative normalcy, the scent slowly but surely died down.

All the same, everyone but Muk-who was blessed enough to not be able to smell this-remained on guard, breathing hesitantly.

Ash barely dared to breath, but knew he had to call out the next set of attacks. Raising his shirt collar to cover his nose, he did so. "Muk, use Poison Gas! Quilava, use Flame Wheel!"

Ripping across the still soft and ashy laden earth, Quilava made a hasty path towards Muk. The terrible stench of burnt poison once again permeated the air, but Quilava was spared being poisoned. Muk let out a distraught squeal at being hit by the Flame Wheel.

The trainer furrowed his brows, realizing how the heat affected the poison. Quilava was obviously still reeling from the attack, but the sheer luck of not yet having been poisoned… it got him to wondering. "We'll have to keep trying that." His stomach gurgling miserably. "...later. I need to end this before someone gets sick. Quilava, use Flamethrower! Muk, try to dodge and use Sludge Bomb!"

Muk succeeded quite easily. Quilava might not have had a status issue, but the poor creature looked green around the gills. Muk's Sludge Bomb came down heavily on the exhausted fire type, poisoning him.

"Aerial Ace!" Ash called before continuing, "Body Slam!"

Poisoned and nauseated, Quilava's Aerial Ace was actually something that Muk could dodge now. Being Body Slammed seemed to be more than Quilava could handle. The fire type stood after taking the attack, shaking and staring at the ground. Muk looked a bit concerned, actually.

Body and patience snapping, Ash called the match. Quilava wasn't knocked out, but he was to his breaking point. Muk clearly had the advantage. "Alright, good work guys! Muk wins, let's head to somewhere that doesn't stink!" he explained in a hurry, recalling both pokemon. He turned towards his runaway partner. "Pikachu! Let's get out of here!"

The electric type led the way, going upwind of the noxious fumes. "Pikapi pi chu." Ash had the right idea, he decided.


Sixteen hooves shifted, some pawing at the earth in anticipation. Across the way, a set of clawed feet planted themselves firmly on the ground, awaiting orders with a more relaxed attitude. The trainer looked between the two teams. It was time to give Snorlax a proper workout and it had been some time since he used his Tauros herd.

"Snorlax! Start us off with Ice Punch!"

The big normal type lumbered forward. The herd scattered, only one of the four being caught in the attack and being sent skidding.

"Horn attack, Tauros!"

The remaining three turned, charging at the goliath with all of their strength.

"Protect, Snorlax!"

Though tricky, the big cat-like pokemon was able to successfully block all three Horn Attacks. Its Protect shields looked on the verge of breaking, though.

"Hm. Tauros, Double Team!"

The herd obeyed, the four becoming twelve. Two thirds of the present Tauros were mere illusions, but would Snorlax be able to tell which were which? Time to find out!

"Body Slam!"

While the Tauros duo that Snorlax attempted to Body Slam proved to be false targets, the quake was enough to betray the locations of which Tauros are real and which were illusions. The real Tauros buckled under the tremors while the copies stood still.

"Hm… let's try Fissure, Tauros!"

The illusions and true Tauros alike slammed down their hooves. The combined power of their Fissures was devastating. Snorlax fell down, breathing heavily.

"Rest, Snorlax!"

That order needn't ever be told twice. The pokemon happily slipped into sleep, rapidly recovering energy.

"Alrighty, guys, now you try Horn Attack, again!" Ash instructed. However, he only counted three Tauros hitting Snorlax. One stood off-that was the one he typically used. A bit spunkier than the rest, it had an excellent personality for battling. So, Ash couldn't figure out why it was lingering back-was it embarrassed? Then, his Pokedex went off.

"New move obtained. Tauros has learned Fire Blast," Dexter explained.

"Oh!" Ash smirked, turning to see the distraught expressions of the other Tauros upon realizing their Horn Attacks did only minimum damage to Snorlax and that the pokemon had yet to awaken. "Fine, then. Let's try Fire Blast, big guy!"

Realizing Ash was referring to him, the unofficial lead Tauros perked up, his momentary pouting forgotten. He bellowed, tossing his mane before running at Snorlax, spitting a huge burst of flame.

The Fire Blast definitely worked their opponent up.

"Snor!" the normal type cried out, lambasted with a brilliant stream of hot flames.

"Use Ice Punch, Snorlax!"

An unfortunate Tauros was caught up in the hit and sent skidding, frozen over by the secondary effect of Ice Punch. It was down for the count.

"Big guy, you hang back! You two, use Take Down!" Ash had a plan. Divide and conquer… but the being conquered would be Snorlax!

Both of the bull pokemon collided with Snorlax, each of the three pokemon reeling from the attack. Snorlax stumbled back, and the attacking pokemon shook their heads, doing their best to regain their composure after suffering recoil damage.

"Body Slam!"

The sleepy pokemon's titanic weight came down on one of the recovering Tauros, knocking it unconscious under the weight. Only two Tauros remained.

"Double Team!" Ash called out.

The two Tauros kept moving, galloping as well as bovine could before being joined by a slew of mirror images.

"Ice Punch!" Unfortunately for Snorlax, not a single hit landed. Ash felt the end drawing near and grew excited. This match was certainly testing boundaries… and now it was time to try again. "Okay, Fire Blast! Snorlax, use Protect!"

A furious inferno was shot from Tauros' nostrils, eager to barrage the rotund pokemon once more. A protective barrier, though, doused the flame.

"Now, you use Fissure!" Ash ordered the non-leader Tauros.

The expression of near betrayal on Snorlax's face was almost painful for Ash, but seeing the strategy work-knowing Protect wouldn't be able to save the cornered pokemon-made him proud as well. He'd make up for it by continuing to train with Snorlax, but seeing that the Tauros herd had a new move among them and that their teamwork was great!

"Good work, pardner!" Ash joked, taking on a twangy accent as he ruffled the mane on the leader Tauros.

He, the other Tauros, and Pikachu all exchanged silent glances, clearly unimpressed with Ash's sense of humor.


"Take Down!" Fists balled excitedly, the trainer watched as Donphan charged at Torterra, squat body moving with unfitting yet pleasing speed. "Torterra, you use Energy Ball!" Likewise obedient, the huge grass type blasted a bubble of green energy towards Donphan, damaging the other pokemon, but by no means halting its assault. All the same, thanks to the mammoth size of the Continent Pokemon, Torterra did not budge from the Take Down, despite feeling some degree of pain from the sheer force... Donphan reeled back, recoiling from its all-out attack.

"Torterra, Rock Climb!" As the grass type obeyed, smashing trunk-like limbs into the ground below. Sharp claws tore into the ground, carving a path towards Donphan with a virtual wave of uprooted earth, and Ash called out a second attack. "Donphan, Defense Curl!" Tossed around by the cascading dirt, thanks to Defense Curl, Donphan wasn't as damaged as he could have been.

"Alright… time for Rollout, Donphan!" On cue, the tight-tucked ground type began spinning over the settled yet loose earth, headed straight for Torterra. "Now, Torterra, you use Leaf Storm!" The barrage of leaves collided with the tusked titan, sending many brilliant shreds spraying every which way in the wake of the spinning pair of tusks. The collision slowed, but did not stop Donphan, whose contact with Torterra's hard shell produced a loud cracking sound.

Ash paused, squinting as he made sure that Torterra wasn't injured beyond typical battle bruises. Seeing that he hadn't, Ash smirked. Time to see how long Torterra could last.

"Torterra, rest up with Synthesis! Donphan, keep using Rollout!"

Particles of sunshine snuck through the greying clouds above the battlefield, basking the Continent pokemon in their rejuvenative glory. The glittering, regenerating Torterra took Donphan's blow. Clearly irritated, the big grass type nonetheless seemed more content than before the preceding blow.

But, Rollout was gaining power.

"Energy Ball!"

It blasted Donphan, bursting in a cascading shower of photosynthetic energy. Donphan let out a grunt, but once more bounced off Torterra-this time, moving the giant!

"Synthesis!"

Donphan's expression of anger at Ash's betrayal told him it was time to give the little elephant some slack. "Hyper Beam."

A brilliant sun-like sphere built between Donphan's tusks, soon turning to pure destructive force.

Just as Torterra was once again restored to full power, the would-be starter was blasted with a full on burst of raw power. When the smoke settled, Donphan was disappointed-Torterra stood, debris rolling off its body and a smirk upon its maw.

"Dang. This is gonna end poorly for Donphan, he's still tired… but Torterra, I need you to use Leaf Storm!"

Once again, the look of betrayal came down upon Ash from Donphan's direction as the flurry of leaves hid and eventually overtook the creature. When they cleared, he was knocked out.

"Well, you guys did great!" Ash praised, walking over to heal Donphan. Torterra cockily used Synthesis again, point made. The former grunted, brushing dust off its form with a swing of its trunk.

"You're both sturdier than ever! Guess we have to just keep working harder, huh?"


After spending plenty of time up around Mt. Silver's heights, one would probably think that Ash would have adjusted to the bitter climate. However, nothing could have prepared him for the blizzards that pulverized the snowy caps. "Ah, man… I think that's enough for today, Glalie! Don't ya think we should head back now?" Ash suggested through chattering teeth, hugging both of his arms to his chest. Perhaps wearing a vest and t-shirt up toward the top of chilling mountain wasn't the best idea, but it was a bit late to worry about that.

"Glal, Glalie!" The Face pokemon chattered, floating through the snowfall. While it enjoyed the climate a great deal, letting something happen to Ash was out of the question. Hovering towards his trainer, he began to follow the boy back towards the mountain's lower slopes.

Trailing not far behind was an unfamiliar figure. Curiosity ebbed in her heart as the Misdreavus followed the trainer and his pokemon companions. Finally, she worked up her courage to float past Glalie to stop in front of him, frantically chattering. "Mis mis! Dreavus mis! Drea!"

Shaking in a vain attempt to warm himself at this point, Ash turned to the ghost type. "H-Hey, k-knock it off! We're tryna g-g-get down! 'Nd get w-warm!" the trainer chattered, teeth actually clacking, rather than his mouth going off rapid fire. Still, the Misdreavus didn't seem ready to back down so Ash let out a groan. "F-Fine! Glalie, use D-Double Team!"

The Misdreavus happily whirled away as Glalie obeyed, fluttering her lashes in what had to be the happiest Mean Look Ash had seen in a while. She was certainly excited about this match. In any case, the eerie gaze entrapped Glalie, forbidding him from fleeing the battle.

"Icy Wind, Glalie!" Ash bellowed, realizing miserably that his nose was starting to act up. He sniffled.

Misdreavus let out a shiver after the chilling wind hit, though it wasn't all that different from the hail they fought in. She tried her own Psybeam, but-

"Dohge!" Great, now his voice sounded weird. At least Glalie obeyed. This battle was definitely going in their favor… how young was this Misdreavus? It was probably really inexperienced.

Clearly striving to keep up with her opponent, Misdreavus used Power Gem.

"Ithe beam!"

A brilliant orb flickered between Glalie's demonic horns, spraying forward a sickly blue beam of freezing energy. The ray clashed with Misdreavus' own attack, soon overpowering it.

Growing desperate, she summoned a Shadow Ball. The sickly orb of black and purple energy struck Glalie, doing enough damage to satisfy the upstart ghost type.

"Shatho ball?" Ash inquired. He started sniffing again. "Ah, achoo! Achoo!"

Glalie looked back, confused. Was… he saying to attack?! Glalie panicked. Could he learn Shadow Ball!? He could try! The ice type concentrated, trying desperately trying to figure out how to make his own Shadow Ball. Suddenly, a black sphere formed in before him. Joy flowed through Glalie as it struck Misdreavus, knocking the other pokemon out.

Ash's jaw dropped. "You useth'd Shatho Ball!" he croaked. "How'd you even…?! Neverminth, leths heal Misthreavus."

A potion later and she was jubilantly awake, singing her praises for the battle and insisting that Ash and Glalie follow her with a bounce in her step. Or, whatever counted as a step for a levitating ghost. Soon enough, a refuge from the freezing weather was found in a small cavern that sat bordering the mountain's snowy caps. Ash wasted no time in finding refuge there.

Needless to say, the little warm cave Misdreavus led them into was great for Ash to recover in and for them to wait out the storm in. Pikachu had no complaints either, cozying into Ash's lap.

"There must be a powerful bunch of fire types in this cave somewhere to heat it like this," The trainer considered. Maybe he'd eventually run into them! He had a few water types he wanted to train, anyway.


The bright sun over Hoenn shined down on Dawn and Piplup. The coordinator offered her water bottle to the little starter, knowing he must be as tired as she was after their modeling session. He'd done wonderfully, though. He looked absolutely charming in all that red, yellow, and-

White.

Dawn froze, eyes steadied on the Absol in the middle of the dirt path before her. If she didn't know any better, judging by the familiar way its rich red eyes stared her down, it was the same one from before.

She must have stood there, stock still, for some time, because the dark type stepped towards her. It stood just before her.

Piplup chirped, wriggling out of Dawn's arms.

She realized what was going on. "You… want to battle?" The Absol seemed to come to life, darting away far enough for there to be room for a battle field. The coordinator grinned. "Alright, then! You're speaking my language!" she enthused. "Piplup, use Headbutt!"

The Absol sidestepped Piplup, taking advantage of its Detect move. As the penguin landed on the ground, the dark type's eyes glowed briefly. Its Future Sight attack would land-but not yet.

"Hm… let's try Hydro Pump, Piplup!" Dawn instructed, deciding to take advantage of the short range.

Piplup parted his beak, letting out a high-pitched squeal before spewing a powerful jet of water towards the Disaster pokemon. Absol was pushed back by Piplup's attack. All the same, the soaked pokemon rushed forward. She knocked Piplup back with her Night Slash attack. Despite refusing thus far to evolve, Piplup seemed to be much more powerful than the Absol… but it wasn't giving up.

"Drill Peck!" The coordinator was growing excited, thrilled by the way that her starter insisted on going-all out against the larger opponent and intrigued by the way Absol's solemn demeanor. Piplup trotted forward on his stubby little legs, his beak shining before growing substantially.

However, Future Sight hit just as Piplup was running towards Absol, softening the blow of Piplup's Drill Peck. Absol let out a cry of pain, the powerful flying type attack leaving a nasty bruise under the dark type's thick fur. The cry of pain turned into a yowling, haunting melody.

"... That's Perish Song!" Dawn realized with a jolting start. They had to end this quickly. "Ice Beam!" Piplup followed up quickly, letting out a cry as flickers of cold energy spewed from his mouth.

No good. The Absol dodged with Detect once more.

Dawn frowned, realizing their time was ticking down. "Headbutt!"

Piplup's Headbutt met with Absol's Night Slash, each attack struggling to overpower the other. However, in pressing back and forth-it was surprising how powerful little Piplup really was!-their Perish Song count came to a close.

Like puppets whose strings were suddenly cut, both pokemon fell.

"..." Furrowing her brows, the coordinator walked over, getting out potions.

Piplup awoke first, chirping indignantly as he realized how the battle ended. Once the Absol woke up, it did not fully rise. Instead, it continued to lay on the ground, head lifted and legs splayed, looking towards the coordinator.

Realization struck her. "Oh! Do… do you want to join us?!" A meek head nod answered her. She got out a pokeball, gently tapping it to Absol's head. Once it stopped shaking in her hand, she giddily twirled. "Haha, I caught an Absol!" she cheered. She released the new partner pokemon while getting out her pokedex. "Well, you're certainly a mysterious… girl? Girl."

The dark type let out a sound that might have passed as a snort.