Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.
"Pokémon" – Normal Speech
'Pokémon' – Thoughts
Pokémon – Flashback
Pokémon – Move Names
{Pokémon} – Pokédex
Master of Bad Dreams
The Importance of Rivals
Previously on Master of Bad Dreams,
"So this machines were causing all the Steel type Pokémon on this island to go on an uncontrollable rage. No doubt it is something that Team Galactic will do but why would they, in their boasting of changing the world, waste their time on an island?" Ash brought up before turning to Riley, an action that everyone else had found themselves doing as well. "You have been here longer than anyone else. Is there anything on this island that criminals like Team Galactic will be interested in?"
Riley smiled and nodded. He told them that he always knew about a cavern on Iron Island that contained something very valuable and yet so important that it can't be removed from the island. Riley then led everyone to the caverns and they found grunts with the uniforms of Team Galactic undergoing something in the entrance to a cavern indeed!
This set something off with Barry and Team Rocket as they ignored Ash calling out to them and charged for the grunts with Pokéballs in hand. Dawn and Brock hurried to try and catch up with them while Ash and Riley stayed behind. "Hopefully Dawn and Brock will help those idiots buy us some time to find where all this madness is coming from." Ash muttered and Riley just nodded.
While the trainers were fighting the Grunts, something that they were surprisingly struggling with, Ash and Riley had snuck into the cavern. That was where they ran into the worst person on the Island, Commander Mars of Team Galactic! Riley told Ash that he will take care of Mars so that the boy can try to stop all this but it was too late.
Team Galactic had used an artifact from another place in Sinnoh altogether called the Spear Key to meld it with some ruins within the caverns of Iron Island. This event had sent a surge of energy throughout Iron Island and even to various places in Sinnoh where meteorites were being held. But that wasn't the worst part; it was when this strange energy had landed on Riley's Lucario as the two were fighting Commander Mars. Now Lucario is under the same influence from the start of the day but a hundred times stronger, so much that even with all the Aura Lucario can muster, he eventually fell victim to the rage inducing effects!
Riley was about to be attacked by his Lucario when, "Shock Bolt now!" That unfamiliar move to Riley had hit Lucario and like back in Canalave City, it caused Lucario to be frozen in place. And yet that only slowed Lucario down until the Aura Pokémon released its self from that attack from Ash and his Pikachu, only to charge against Team Plasma. Yet that seemingly was for naught when Mars used her Normal type Tiger Cat Pokémon, Purugly, to defeat Lucario!
But it wasn't for nothing when Mars was shocked to see that all the Team Galactic machinery had shut down during her battle with Riley's Lucario. And with all the machines down, Lucario was able to regain control from the effects. Mars knew that Ash had foiled their plans in search for what is known as the Spear Pillar. She issued a retreat to her grunts while leaving her enemies to deal with bombs she scattered throughout the Iron Island; if they all go off, the entire island will wiped off the map!
Even though she tried to get even with Ash before retreating and losing, Mars still managed to escape via the same helicopter that she used to get to Iron Island in the first place. All that is left is an island filled with trainers and Pokémon who are stranded on a doomed island. And the worst part is that no matter how they searched, they couldn't find the bombs!
And so everyone braced for the impending explosion and yet the island remained intact and the only explosions were in the ocean harmlessly. That made no sense until Ash turned away from the noise and faced his shadow before taking out his necklace to reveal the Pokéball on it, empty.
"Darkrai…" Ash said and everyone present saw who arose from Ash's very own shadow. The Pitch Black Pokémon and prince of nightmares himself. "Thank you." Ash simply said, ignoring the shocked and frighten faces of the trainers and Pokémon. Darkrai also ignored the expressions on all but his trainer's face and simply nodded before returning himself to where he can be safe, within Ash's very special Pokéball.
After everything that had happened, it was time to finally leave Iron Island. But a lot of things had be done before that could happen. One, Professor Carolina who is the grandmother of Cynthia the Sinnoh Regional Champion, had to hear all this from everyone who was present during Team Galactic's operation on the island. Two, Team Rocket had been spared this time since they had nothing to do with all the madness but they will on the run if they try anything criminal; it is true what they say, 'old habits die hard'. Three, All the injured and trainers had to be taken into care of two Nurse Joys who have arrived along with Professor Carolina and her own crew. Finally, the existence of Ash's Darkrai had to be kept a secret or otherwise there will be unwanted attention regardless if the Legendary Pokémon is with them or not; and fortunately for the Pitch Black Pokémon, all the trainers weren't idiots and thus were never going to try their luck.
All in all, Darkrai proved that he was out of the Pokéball the whole time and learned something once again. He saw that all the trainers, despite their own Pokémon going temporary rogue on them, never gave up on the problem or their poor Pokémon and tried to stop the madness. Darkrai learned what is known as loyalty to ones Pokémon and friends can led to great things to happen and nothing to be ashamed of. So Darkrai decided that if Ash was going to be that loyal to him, it won't hurt for Darkrai to be the same in return. And that will define how the future adventures will turn out to be, for sure.
"No!" Pikachu heard as the small yellow Pokémon that is based off the fusion of a mouse and thunderbolt heard that caused him to toss and turn. And yet it was not a voice of a human calling out during an emergency, it sounded a lot more like a voice from within Pikachu's head.
Flashback Begins!
It was a few hours ago, when the two of them were simply on a ship heading out of Canalave City and heading to Chocovine Town where Dawn's next Contest is scheduled to happen. But while Pikachu and the others were relaxing, Ash was not. He just couldn't shrug off this feeling that this is something very fishy about this since he had gotten this instinct he developed from the countless encounters with Team Rocket; it is about time for their new record attempt at his Pikachu.
Although everyone told him to relax and that they have seen the last of Team Rocket, Ash knew those were famous last words and so enough, Team Rocket appeared once again. This time, as the crew of the ship that wasn't heading to any Town at all; they were just faking it so that they can try at Ash with no place for the trainer to run and lose them.
That was an ingenious plan and Ash found no place to go in order to get away from Team Rocket. But luck came bittersweet when a storm suddenly appeared while Ash was battling with Team Rocket over Pikachu. The storm rocked the ship and soon, Pikachu fell off the side! And when Dawn's Piplup appeared to try and save Pikachu, they both were swept from the ship!
Dawn saw this but when she tried to get them both, Ash had stopped her. "Stop! You will be swept away too! And I am not losing anyone else to this storm!" That was what both Pikachu and Piplup before they rocky waters had caused them to drift into unconscious while the current kept their bodies above the water while carrying them out of sight to both trainers; Dawn cried out for her Pokémon while hugging Ash for support.
Flashback Ends!
The nightmare finally ended when Pikachu finally awoke and sat up from that nightmare. He then looked around and saw what he had hoped it was only part of his dream. He wasn't on the cruise ship at all, he wasn't even where he been before. It was the beach of an island that Pikachu had never been to before, not without Ash around.
[You're awake!] (1) Pikachu turned to see Dawn's Piplup staring at him. [I just got up myself so I guess my screaming woke you up as well. Sorry.] Piplup said while using his flippers to rub the back of his furless and hairless head.
Pikachu smiled, [Thanks anyways. I wasn't sleeping very well.]
[About how I endangered the both us when I tried to save you?] Piplup said with a nervous tone and Pikachu started to stare so strong, it was his eyes were acting like a drill through his head.
[Sure. Just how were you going to get the both of us back onto the ship when you did save me from the current? A Prinplup could have done that better.] Pikachu said before he hastily covered his mouth after that last sentence. It was totally uncalled for, [Not that you weren't any better than one…] Pikachu stopped when he noticed that Piplup had an expression that wasn't what Pikachu had feared.
Piplup looked forlorn, like it purposely missed out on something and now is regretting it. [Pikachu, will I be a bully if I do evolve into a Prinplup?] Pikachu never thought about that, he was under the impression that Piplup just wants to stay the way he is because Piplup just hates to evolve. Did Kenny's Prinplup really make such a negative example on this Piplup?
[If I have the answer Piplup, then I can safely say why I haven't evolved into a Raichu by now.] Pikachu said and Piplup nodded, taking this statement as the answer for now. Meanwhile, they will better burn sunlight trying to fight some place to at least see the cruise ship. Too bad they hadn't had much luck in hours. They were about to give up until something caught their attention; a stream that didn't seem to move from the island but instead went in reverse.
They then discovered a school of Mantyke going up stream which gave off the illusion of a river moving towards the island. Mantyke resembles a manta ray. It has a round body with wide, flat fins. Its back is dark blue, while its underside is light blue. There are two red spots with white outlines and a light blue, curved line on its back. These markings give the overall impression of a smiling face and vary slightly in each region. It has two long, curving antennae on top of its head and black eyes with eyelash-like markings underneath. The antennae are used to sense ocean currents. Mantyke is a friendly Pokémon that can be found swimming near the ocean's surface with schools of Remoraid.
And all these Mantyke seemed to be carrying something to the end of the stream where a Corphish was gathering all of them and constructing something else entirely from the looks of things.
The Corphish is a red-shelled, crustacean Pokémon with a short tail similar to a lobster. Its eyes are saucer-like with small pupils, and it has three spikes on top of its head. It possesses four pairs of limbs in total: two large pincers used for gripping prey, and three pairs of legs used for walking. The upper segments of its legs, underside of its body and lower halves of its pincers are cream-colored. A hardy creature, Corphish is able to live in polluted water and eat nearly anything. There were also Nosepass, Probopass, Magnemite and Wingull they encountered on this island present.
It all looks like some kind of rocks and stones from the bottom of the seashore but it was what the Corphish was using them for that really got the attention of both Pikachu and Piplup.
It was like a gemstone but it was glowing an eerie green and gave off light in the similar way to that of a heartbeat. It was like this stone was alive somehow. When Pikachu and Piplup were finally noticed by the Corphish, he invited them over as visitors.
Corphish had explained that they were living on this unnamed island in the middle of what was known as the 'Diablo's Ocean'; where strange rocks jut out of the sea. But this stone was something that came to their home in a storm. It somehow told them that it needed a place to rest so they had been constructing a pile of rocks around it, to cover up the stone if it rains again.
Pikachu and Piplup decided that since they had nothing left to lose on this island, they will pitch in and help Corphish with the rocks that the Mantyke bring in. That is until some of the Mantyke had broken through the line, to them the trio that there are two more Pokémon coming. But it didn't take long for a Staravia and a Buizel appeared as soon as the word got to the ears of the two Water types and Electric type.
But the reunion was cut short when the stone had been completely covered in the rocks from the 'Diablo Ocean'. And out came something that only Pikachu had seen before. Piplup must have noticed that or only by instinct when he said [Pikachu, what is that?!]
[Deoxys.] Pikachu said plainly, and that was because the mere name can say it all for this being. Deoxys is an alien-like bipedal Pokémon that has four formes, each focused on a different stat. The main components that are constant for all four formes are a dominant reddish orange color, a bluish-green face, and three bluish-green dots on its back arranged in a triangle. Typically, there is a purple stripe running down the center of its face and a purple, crystalline organ in its chest. Its white, circular eyes are set inside rectangular, black eye sockets. It is shown that Deoxys may have a green crystalline organ and facial stripe.
Deoxys has tapering legs with a segmented, vertical, blue stripe on the upper portion. The abdomen is black with vertical lines, while the majority of its skin is reddish-orange. The arms are capable of taking different forms, usually a pair of tentacles coiled in a double helix. One tentacle is the primarily skin color, while the other is light blue. Alternately, it can form more humanoid arms with a red top and blue underside and a five-fingered hand. This forme has a blunt protrusion with a single blue stripe on either side of its head and stubby tail.
From what Pikachu understood about Deoxys ages ago, Deoxys was formed by the mutation of a virus from space. The Pokémon is highly intelligent; its brain appears to be the crystal in its chest. This organ is capable of firing laser beams. Additionally, Deoxys can use psychokinetic powers, which are useful for its signature move Psycho Boost. It is able to regenerate any part of its body that it may have lost during a battle. It has also demonstrated the ability to create an aurora without changing its forme. These auroras can have different electromagnetic wavelengths and are used to communicate with other Deoxys. It is also shown that the various electromagnetic waves given off by people, Pokémon, and all electronics can obscure its vision if there is enough interference with its communication. This Pokémon came from outer space from inside of a meteor.
Back in Hoenn, Deoxys has been observed to create clones of itself. These clones have lifeless eyes and duller color, lack of the trademark crystal on the chest, and seem to be unable to change from its default appearance. Furthermore, they seem unable to morph their tentacles into hands. When these clones are defeated, they dissolve into dust-like particles.
"Deoxys!" The Pokémon turned to see a Sub that was modeled after a Magikarp but Team Rocket was outside and in shock at the sight. They were also in Hoenn around the time the most high tech city was under attack by a Deoxys who caused all the machinery to go mad.
"DEOXYS!" This time, everyone including Team Rocket much to their chagrin, saw that there was a motor boat heading their way that carried the gang with Officer Jenny at the wheel. Ash and Brock were leaning forward when they shouted out the Pokémon's name. "Look out!" But that was something else that had broken the silence when Deoxys turned to see that Team Rocket had gotten their sights set on it.
Jessie used her a Pokémon called a Yanmega to use the move Silver Wind to deal some damage as a Bug type move on the Psychic type Deoxys. Yanmega is a large, dark green dragonfly Pokémon. Its large eyes are red with black lines that make a sideways "T" shape in each one. It has two large, white fangs or mandibles next to its small mouth. Its immense jaw power allows it to bite apart foes while flying by at high speed. Each of Yanmega's segments have a red spot on them, while the last tail segment has a black triangular plate. It has two similar plates on the back of its thorax and a third on its head. It has four white, oval wings with red tips, and there are two smaller white wings on the end of its tail. Yanmega can create shock waves by beating its wings. These shock waves are so powerful, they may inflict critical injuries on the foe. Yanmega also has six thin, black legs.
Meanwhile, Team Rocket had pulled out something very nasty up their sleeves. Their net had somehow be infused with the energy used by dark type Pokémon and since Psychic types are both weak and useless against that type of energy, it was almost done in for this Deoxys. But before Team Rocket could feel that they have finally succeeded in a Pokémon capture, "Do it now!"
Ash's voice shouted out again and this time, at the waterfall where Deoxys first appeared. Everyone saw that there were three dark spheres that rocketed from the cliff side and landed completely on Team Rocket. Once that happened, all of them fell into deep slumbers. Thus that allowed the move to be labeled as Dark Void, and there is only one Pokémon in existence that can learn and use such a move.
"Now send Team Rocket off this island Darkrai!" Ash said, confirming the suspicions of most. Darkrai had been sent by Ash during the storm since the Legendary Pokémon can fly after them better than most in a storm. And he has been watching over Pikachu and Piplup while alerting their locations to Staravia and Buizel; that was how the former two had been found by the latter two. Currently, Darkrai used his Psychic attack to lift the sub from the ocean and was about to send it packing when something else happened instead.
Everyone present and fully awake had suddenly heard the sound of the ropes of a net severing. They turned to see the Silver Wind attack from Jessie's Yanmega still in the air but were controlled by the Psychic move used by another, the captured Deoxys! He must have used its power outside the net to capture the power of a Bug type move since it somehow figured that it will get him out; amazing considering that it is true that Psychic type Pokémon are weak to Bug type moves but also Dark types are weak to the same type of moves as well.
Given these facts, Deoxys was finally able to get free from the net laced with Dark type energy. Then Deoxys creates a glowing multi-colored ball of energy within its tentacles and throws it at the submarine of Team Rocket. The resulting explosion had finally sent Team Rocket blasting off.
But the day wasn't over when the two Legendary Pokémon had suddenly turned to face each other. The look in their eyes had something that Ash had knew too well. "What is wrong with them?" Dawn asked with a nervous tone as she found herself hiding behind Ash.
"Looks like they are going to fight." Ash said with a smirk that frighten everyone. One Legendary Pokémon's power is hard to match as it is but take two Legendary Pokémon using all that against one and other is unimaginable. "Come on, let's get some real seats." Ash said to everyone and they took it the way Ash intended to mean; observe at a safe distance.
And after they were able to lead the wild Pokémon to the other side of the island while the gang took to the sea with Officer Jenny, the fight between the two Legendary Pokémon had begun. And it was epic in all aspects. Darkrai had used every move he used against Ash and his Pokémon back in Canalave City while the Deoxys had surprised everyone other than Ash and Brock by changing forms to suit the next move used.
In one new form in which its attack power seemed to increase, its legs remain tapered. However, its blue stripes are no longer segmented and run the entire length of the leg and there is now a large spike on the knee. Two pairs of whip-like tentacles with pointed tips, one reddish-orange and one blue, replace its previous coiled, blunted tentacles. The protrusion on its head are now triangular with an additional one extending for the top of its head. Most of its reddish-orange skin has receded, revealing a striated, black chest and abdomen. Finally, its tail is now longer and more pointed.
Another form that seemed to increase its defenses has bulky, wide legs that are somewhat flat at the end with a bluish-green spot on each knee. It retains its two pairs of red and blue tentacles, but they are now flat and broad. The head has fused with its body and all protrusion are gone, causing it to resemble a helmet. The reddish-orange skin now covers the entire body, so none of its inner black portion is visible. There is now a single blue stripe on each shoulder, and its tail has disappeared.
And yet there was this other form that surprised everyone this time since the Deoxys from Hoenn never used this one. In this form Deoxys has a sleek black body with thin striation. The reddish-orange skin now covers only its head, hip joints, and the area around its crystal. There is now only one tentacle on each side of its body, one red and one blue. The protrusions on its head now point upward and the back of its head now forms a long spike. There is a long, thick blue stripe running down the center of this longer protrusion. More blue stripes appear on either hip joint and on its legs. This form looked like it increased the speed of this wild, Legendary Pokémon.
But after a good hour, the match was off to a stand hill when both Legendary Pokémon had wasted their energy on their moves and are left with no energy left to even move from the craters they made throughout the spot on the beach that contained the waterfall. So it was clear that it was now safe to get in closer.
Ash had given Darkrai a Hyper Potion and a Max Elixir that both healed his health and replenished his energy to use moves again. Meanwhile, the Deoxys regained some of its own health by pushing itself to use Recover. Everyone was wondering why Ash was risking get the two to fight again until nothing happened between Darkrai and the wild Deoxys.
Instead they glanced at each other and somehow, everyone saw a smirk on each of their faces. Darkrai then simply allowed himself to be returned back into his special Pokéball. Meanwhile, Deoxys said something that alerted all the wild Pokémon on the island; to them, Deoxys was saying thanks for all the help they gave it and while it had to leave, it promises to come back one day to visit again. Deoxys then disappeared in a flash of bright light.
"W-what happened?" Dawn asked from besides Ash who never lost his smirk at all and neither did Pikachu.
"Something mysterious Dawn and yet something wonderful too. Darkrai has now found someone to look forward to and battle again. What else is there when it comes to rivals?" Ash said and Dawn looked up to him, "I have learned my own answer to that question Dawn. Maybe you will find out an answer too, just for you."
"Answer? About having a rival? I already have one Ash." Dawn said with a little confusion but Ash just shook his head.
"Your rivalry with Joey maybe friendly but I have seen both sides to having a rival. You will have to see it too as you get better." Ash said from all the experience he had in Kanto, Johto and Hoenn. Dawn just dropped it after seeing that rock-hard expression that seemed unmovable at all. And yet Dawn made sure to remember what Ash had just told her since he never let her down before.
XXXXX
"And as you all know, it is time for the arrival of our divine guardians during their annual migration!" A tour guide shouted through a mike which was loud enough for the gang and their Pokémon who were in some kind of submarine. This was because they finally arrived in Chocovine Town after their encounter on the island in Diablo's Ocean; but instead of a contest awaiting them, it was a festival!
It was a festival about some kind of Legendary Pokémon that was once again native to Sinnoh but it sure wasn't Darkrai or Cresselia but another Pokémon that was said to be the offspring of Manaphy, the Prince of the Sea. Yet another Pokémon that Ash, Pikachu and Brock had encountered in Hoenn; unaware that it was instead more native to Sinnoh.
Ash told Dawn that Manaphy is a small, blue, aquatic Pokémon with stubby feet and club-like arms that are longer than its body. It has a red gem on its chest and a yellow dot below the gem. Its onion-shaped head has a pair of long blue antennae, which have small spheres on the ends. Its irises are dark blue with yellow sclera, and there are two yellow dots of "eyelash" markings extending from the eyes.
Eighty percent of Manaphy's body is made of water. It is highly susceptible to its environment, and swims long distances to return to its birthplace. It is born with a special power that allows it to bond with any Pokémon. Manaphy can switch the perspective of people, and Pokémon, with each other using its signature move, Heart Swap.
But while the gang had to shut off their ears with all the racket the locals onboard the sub were making, there was a school of strange Pokémon that happened to be what the local customers were so excited about. Too bad the gang couldn't get a good look other than the Qwilfish, Luvdisc, and Finneon since the locals were crowding up the windows facing the school. But what they didn't know was that they will actually see one of these rare and Legendary Pokémon more up close then they can imagine. And that was because one from the school had left the group and begun to follow the sub,
This Pokémon was a blue Pokémon with a round head and a tiny body. Its head is crowned by a flotation sac with a long, ribbon-like antenna. Its mouth is small, and its eyes are large with blue sclera and gray irises. Above its eyes are two blue, circular markings connected to the eyes by a thin black line. Its long, flipper-like arms have rounded tips. It has a red, oval gem on its chest and a single rudimentary foot spike.
It followed the sub while focusing on one of the Pokémon inside that was viewing the rest of the scenery. But that still didn't stop this strange Pokémon from continuing to follow the submarine. There was just this something about that certain Pokémon that convinced this water dweller to chase after.
Later, the gang were relaxing on a beach with their Pokémon out to enjoy the sun and surf as well. Pikachu of course, had something else to do besides relax; he was told by Ash to allow a certain Pokémon to snuggle with him by Ash. And it was the Pokémon that was trained by Dawn who only caught her because of her interest in Pikachu; on the extent of a young crush was the Normal type Rabbit Pokémon, Buneary.
Buneary is a small, bipedal, rabbit-like Pokémon with brown ears that can curl up. It has two types of fur covering its body: a light tan fleece that covers much of its lower body, feet and the tips of their ears, and a smooth chocolate colored pelt on the upper half of its body. It has a small, triangular pink nose, pink paw pads on the undersides of its feet and small tan spots above its eyes. It has a small brown puff of a tail. It is commonly depicted with one ear curled up. If it senses danger, it perks up both ears. It can deliver powerful blows with its curled up ears, and it has an impressive jumping ability.
On cold nights, Buneary sleeps with its head tucked into its fur. It lives in forests, though it can also be found on icy mountains. It is most likely herbivorous. Buneary also likes to eat certain kinds of flowers found in the wild.
And this Buneary was indeed with Pikachu, snuggling into the fur of the Electric Mouse Pokémon. Pikachu didn't mind Buneary but had to deal with the embarrassment that came with a Pokémon with a crush that strong and monstrous of Buneary's. It was hard to do so but Ash told his best friend to endure it because once you lose something as wonderful as this, then your heart will definitely shatter; strangely enough, Pikachu saw some much convince in those words. It was like it happened to Ash before but Pikachu couldn't remember such a thing so it must have happened to Ash before the two met; but nevertheless, Ash never told Pikachu what it was, even when this conversation keep coming back.
But all looking back was interrupted when the sea water right in front of Pikachu and Buneary had erupted very loudly. Enough to alert the two Pokémon and the others nearby who forgone their activities to go and see what is going. And they saw that very same strange and rare Pokémon that they keep hearing and only seen in pictures.
Dawn took out her Pokédex and scanned it,
{Phione, the Sea Drifter Pokémon. Phione lives in warm oceans. It inflates the flotation sac on its head allowing it to float on the waves and look for food.}
"So this is the Pokémon that is supposed to give good luck and the one that all the locals here were so excited to see." Ash said but noticed that even when everyone was crowding around this Phione, the Sea Drifter Pokémon didn't seem to even notice. Not even when a very familiar sub had appeared, disguised as a Magikarp.
And yet when Team Rocket exited out of their sub, they acted lie they were going to watch a soap opera along with their Pokémon including the ever talking Meowth.
Meowth is a small, feline Pokémon with cream-colored fur that turns brown at the tips of its hind paws and tail. Its ovoid head features four prominent whiskers, wide eyes with slit pupils, two pointed teeth in the upper jaw, and a gold oval coin embedded in its forehead. Its ears are black with brown interiors, and are flanked with an additional pair of long whiskers. Meowth is a quadruped with the ability to walk on its hind legs; while there are some Ash had seen on hind legs, most Meowth normally walks on all fours. It can freely manipulate its claws, retracting them when it wants to move silently. The tip of its tail curls tightly.
Meowth is attracted to round and shiny objects, and has the unique ability to produce coins using Pay Day. It is known to wander about city streets and pick up anything that that sparkles, including loose change. Upon finding a sparkling object, its eyes will glitter and the coin on its forehead will shine brightly. Meowth is a playful Pokémon with the capacity for human-like intelligence.
But along Meowth is James's Mime Jr. Mime Jr. is a small, pink Pokémon with dark blue legs and "hat," which appears crooked and has a white ball on it. A red bump appears on its stomach and a typical red clown nose appears on its face. It has slender arms and small hands. Mime Jr. has a knack for imitating others; it can easily pick up emotions of those around it and imitate it. It has been known to mimic its foes in order to create distractions. Once the foe is confused, it will quickly escape. It likes places where many people gather.
And with the both of them are Jessie's long running partner Wobbuffet. Wobbuffet is a tall, cyan Pokémon with a soft body. Its eyes usually appear scrunched, and it has a jagged upper lip. The female Wobbuffet has a red marking on its mouth that resembles lipstick, while the male does not. It has flat arms that are wider towards the tip and four stubby legs at the base of its body. There are two eyespots on its black tail. Wobbuffet is very protective of its tail, to the point where it will suddenly turn uncharacteristically aggressive if the tail is attacked.
Wobbuffet is usually a docile Pokémon that will never attack first. However, when it is attacked, it will inflate its body and initiate a counterstrike. When two or more of this Pokémon meet, they will attempt to outlast each other in a battle of endurance. However, since neither is able to attack, they may compete to see which can last without food. Because of its overprotective nature regarding its tail and hatred of light, Wobbuffet lives in dark caves.
Back to the Phione staring at both Pikachu and Buneary with a mixture of emotions but it was clear who had what from this Legendary Pokémon. The Phione was staring at Pikachu with jealously and anger that Buneary is snuggling with the latter instead of being interested in the former; speaking of whom, the Phione looked at Buneary with such interest that it can be past as a crazed inflation for the Rabbit Pokémon. It was like Phione was glaring at his rival while eying the prize it has its eyes on.
"This is really creeping me out." Ash said and everyone including Brock's Croagunk and Happiny as well as Dawn's Piplup and Pachirisu. "It is like a Legendary Pokémon somehow is infatuated with Buneary. And most Legendries are genderless, this prevents them from breeding with each other and all Non-Legendary Pokémon." Everyone was also confused too and it only made the circumstances a lot more unpleasant.
And to make things edgier, it seems that Buneary had somehow gained enough confidence to get between Pikachu and Phione. She then asked for a wager that involved them to fight and if Phione should win, Buneary will have to on a date with it! While the Pokémon were shocked, especially Pikachu, Ash tried to tell everyone present on what he could tell from all this.
Dawn was also especially worried. She barely trained her Buneary for battle, only for contests and the last time she even heard of a Legendary losing to a Non-Legendary was with Ash's Pikachu who had been harden by countless duels over the course of a few years; no way Buneary can gain all that before the day ends!
Nevertheless, Phione accepted the challenge, thinking that its reputation as one of the strongest species of Pokémon will guarantee its victory and the date with the Rabbit Pokémon its madly in love with. And they started off with each using Ice Beam right off the fly which caused everyone but Team Rocket to back off; after all the trio were still on the sub, barley out of the water.
This stalemate went on for several minutes and the more time passes, the more anxious Pikachu gets. His head was filled with the lessons Ash said of what happens when one takes the affection and inflation from another for granted until it is all gone. Now Pikachu is feeling that his heart will ultimately and bitterly shatter if Buneary does lose and has to go on a date with Phione. He could just feel the cracks in his chest just imagining Buneary going with an actual Legendary Pokémon, one that never loses and actually listens to her.
Ash saw this and embraced Pikachu which seemed to barley did anything. "It is okay Pikachu. Whatever happens, you will see Buneary in a much better light. That is all that matters." Ash said but Pikachu was only focusing on what can possibility happen is Buneary loses this match.
And something no sort of a freak accident occurred when Buneary had found an opening to distract the wild Phione and unleashed the full power of her Ice Beam that was able to knock out even a Legendary Pokémon and one with a type resistance. Everyone was in awe and Pikachu was so overjoyed that he found himself hugging Buneary like a bear does; this of course made Buneary blush hard that now it was her crush hugging her instead of the reverse like the times before.
"She did it! She defeated a Legendary Pokémon!" Dawn bounced up and down until she noticed that Ash and Brock were not even the least bit excited compared to how she was. "What's wrong?"
"There is still a debate as to Phione being a Legendary Pokémon Dawn." Ash started. "Like I said, Legendries are not supposed to breed and yet the only way for any Phione to be born is to breed a Manaphy. And they don't even evolve into Manaphy, they are born Phione and they are going to stay that way, never going to be official Legendary Pokémon." Ash explained the whole way as Brock nodded as well, all this just dashed Dawn's hope to be a trainer who did what only Ash ever did.
Meanwhile, Phione was heartbroken for both that it lost humiliatingly in front of her everyone & to the one it had hoped to go on a date with and that it lost when he thought itself as one of the invincible species worthy of being Legendary; only to hear from the trainers that calling all Phione Legendary is nothing but a dodgy topic. It just want to leave for the waves in pity and shame. But Buneary had sent him off with something to sleep with at night; that she will keep getting stronger in all aspects so that they can fight again.
But of course, everyone almost forgot that Team Rocket was still there. And when they tried to capture the distracted Phione, Buneary came to its rescue by using Ice Beam one more time that day to freeze the net and give Pikachu enough time to send them flying with a Thunderbolt. Just another encounter with Team Rocket on any Pokémon they have their eyes on.
After Phione said its goodbyes and wen to find its school, Ash and the gang returned to the Pokémon Center where they plan on resting for Dawn's next Pokémon Contest. They all were just glad to see that Pikachu was spending a lot more time with Buneary who enjoyed the closer company. That was what Ash had in mind when he was in his room seeming alone with his shadow but like before, his shadow turned into the very Dark type Pokémon who had been watching Pikachu handle this situation that involved the one who frustrates him with her crush but want Buneary to win in his favor.
"I suppose you have already seen it Darkrai." Not waiting for a response, Ash continued. "That relationships do shift to break-up and that isn't the sigh of a failing one but a test to improve it. Now Pikachu sees that Buneary is actually a very good Pokémon and he just told me that she was his type. They have a bright future after how their friendship was about to collapse today." Darkrai nodded, looking down. He always thought that relationships were just frail bonds, about to break any day and people just ruin it while trying to prevent it from shattering. He will just have to ignore those who do and give everyone the chance to prove him wrong.
What is for sure, this bond with Ash as Pokémon and his trainer won't be so bad after all. Darkrai has learned ten time about other Pokémon and trainers than he ever did for as long as he can remember. That's strong stuff for sure.
XXXXX
The next day in Chocovine Town,
"Pachirisu, use Discharge!" Dawn was up really early in the morning with her Elesquirrel Pokémon. Pachirisu is a small, white squirrel-like Pokémon with a faint blueish tint and a light blue stripe starting from its forehead and goes all the way down to the tip of the tail. A large white tooth grows out of its mouth. It has deep gray eyes and a yellow circle on each cheek. Its tail is almost twice as big as its body, with three spikes at the top of the curl, which it can use to shoot charges. Though its arms and legs are very short, it can run incredibly fast, enabling it to tire pursuing Pokémon out quickly. It has a great amount of electricity flowing in its body. If it builds up enough charge, it may shock other Pokémon.
When it sleeps, Pachirisu likes to curl its big, fluffy tail round to the front of its body and uses it as a pillow. It also likes to chase and groom its tail. When a Pachirisu sheds its fur it shapes them into furballs, which have static charges just like its fur. It hides its favorite foods—which mainly consist of berries—in these static puffs and stores them in tree holes. It does this to protect the food; if a human or another Pokémon tries to take the food, they will get shocked from the static. It may rub cheek pouches with another Pachirisu to share stored electricity. It is generally found in tree tops in forests, as well as the outskirts of a forest and near power plants.
"Nice, Pikachu had done wonders to increase the power of Pachirisu's Discharge attack." Ash commented and Pikachu rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. Ash just smirked at how powerful and yet modest his Pikachu is; kind of like how Ash has really improved as a trainer but has no wish to show to anyone, the least his own friends. But this day has just begun to get rotten when,
"I have finally found you, you cheater!" Everyone turned to see a girl around Dawn's own age that had some kind of color that is a peach color in spiral dual ponytails. Her outfit was light and yet it screams bratty and arrogance. "I thought that following the Pokémon Contests will lead me to you! And finally I will get even for what you have done to me!"
"Excuse me but this is the first time we got acquainted, so don't be so rude and introduce yourself." Ash said in a stern tone that somehow silenced this strange girl with some kind of Pokémon Ash had never seen before. Still, she didn't say another word so Ash figured he will scan the new Pokémon by her side.
{Gabite, the Cave Pokémon. Gabite goes wild for precious jewels, first digging them up and then stashing them in its nest.}
Gabite is a medium-sized, bipedal dragon-like Pokémon that is primarily blue. Its underside is light blue, with red covering it from the middle of its abdomens to the bottoms of its jaw. Gabite has two appendages that resemble jets or plane engines extending out the side of its skull. Each appendage has a blue stripe. It has four fins, one on each arm, one on its back and another one on its tail. It has spikes on its hind limbs, and sharp claws on its feet. Its eyes have black scleras and gold colored irises.
Gabite is a fierce and predatory Pokémon, known for its scales, of which have medicinal properties and can heal most illnesses. Gabite has short, extremely sharp teeth. It has been known to move at extreme speeds. Gabite is also a very territorial creature, and will fight back against enemies to protect its home. Gabite has a habit of digging up gems and hoarding them in its nest.
"So this is what Cynthia's Garchomp evolved from." Ash remarked when he saw that Gabite and Garchomp were all part of the same evolutionary line. And since the woman still has yet to speak so Ash decided to check out what Gabite evolves from,
{Gible, the Land Shark Pokémon. It attacks using its huge mouth. While its attacks are powerful, it hurts itself out of clumsiness, too.}
Gible is a small, bipedal dragon-like Pokémon that is primarily blue. It has a big mouth filled with sharp teeth, no neck, and arms that start at the outer edges of its jaws. A red underbelly stretches from its abdomen to the bottom of its jaw. Gible has two horns that resemble jet or plane engines, each with a light blue stripe in the middle. It has a single light blue stripe wrapping around its back. The fin on its head is strong enough to carry a person. Gible appears to be a good digger, making deep holes for homes in caverns. It enjoy play-fighting with other members of its species. It has tremendously strong jaws that it uses to bite enemies. However, when biting, it often hurts itself because of clumsiness.
By this time, this woman had finally begun to speak. "My name is Ursula and I am here to tell you Dawn, winner of the Wallace Cup, that you only won by chance instead of skill, you cheater!" The woman, now called Ursula, proclaimed and now the gang had tried to settle things down until Ash had a brain surge.
"And no wonder you know about all that…" Ash said, "Dawn, I saw every Coordinator who was eliminated in the very first round. And I remember seeing Ursula there too." Ash said and Ursula was just about to explode if not it was Ash who said it.
"That's right! They didn't appreciate the talent me and Gabite have and they had the nerve to eliminate us from the rest of the Contest! If I only made it to the battle rounds then I would have won!" Ursula had another outburst.
"Then how about this, I will enter along with Dawn and if we match up then I fight you during the Contest Battle rounds. If you win then you can say all you want until you make it to face Dawn but if you lose then you will have to respect that Dawn had found everything in her life fairly and with skills she worked hard to learn. Is it a deal?" Ash explained and showed out his hand for Ursula to shake if the answer is 'yes'.
Ursula stared at for a while and then shook it before telling her Gabite to come with her. Meanwhile, Dawn was berating Ash; the only time that Ash ever competed in a Contest was the Wallace Cup and he only made it to the Top Eight. No doubt that Ash hadn't made plans to compete in any other Contest and thus his skills are noteworthy rusty. But Ash said that Dawn has gained the type of rival he had warned her about and because of that, Ash is going to try and help Dawn in the best way he can think of.
Then Ash took all his Pokémon said that he needed to get ready for the Contest. Dawn and Brock were just hoping that Ash knows what he is doing. And no matter what they did, it was time for the Pokémon Contest of Chocovine Town. Marian introduced her and the judges, in reverse order of course, and then announced every single Coordinator who will be judged in their Appeal Round in order to decide if they are fit to make it to the Battle Rounds; the usual, protocol, the works if you prefer.
After a couple have their rounds judged, only one of them actually made it to the Battle Rounds, Dawn went next. And with Brock, Pikachu and her Pokémon watching, she soared and impressed the judges with the power of her Buneary's aerial jumping and the talent for Ice Beam. Like a child on its favorite slide, Buneary used her adorable charm with an innocent love for fun on her recently created slide from Ice Beam and right into Dawn's arms. The judges pretty much passed Dawn right from the beginning, all this is proof of Dawn's hidden talents in the field of Pokémon Coordinating.
And her friends in the stand loved it. Pikachu, Piplup both cheered while Mamoswine was wondering on how he was going to do it with his own pompoms. But the real cheer came from Ambipom. Ambipom is a purple, simian Pokémon with two tails, each with a large, rounded hand with three red-tipped fingers. The tails also have a cuff of a rounded frill on the wrists. The bases of Ambipom's tails also have a similar frill. It has round ears with red insides. Ambipom has an arrangement of a split hair sticking out from the top of its head. These strands of hair are longer on a female. It has a purple, triangular nose and wide eyes.
Ambipom can leap from tree to tree with brilliant speed. To eat, it deftly shucks nuts with its two tails. As it has two hands on its tails, it rarely uses its arms. Ambipom works in large colonies in heavily wooded areas and makes rings by linking tails with another Ambipom, apparently in friendship. It lives along with its young, Aipom. And this one came from Ash initially but she loved Contests better so Ambipom, an Aipom back then, was traded to be Dawn's Pokémon until a strange encounter had caused her to evolve with the Double Hit move learned. Ambipom loved her trainer and used duel pompoms with both large hands in an effort to maximize the amount of cheer and support.
But while the judges and the crowds loved the show, there was this feeling of arrogance that was ruining the good mood. And every single other Coordinator knew exactly where it was coming from; Ursula. She was acting like she taught Dawn that move and was criticizing it. "I think that Dawn worked hard for this Contest Ursula. Besides no one asked for your opinion." Ash's voice finally got her to simmer down a portion and everyone spoke their agreements since they had to listen to Ursula's criticism ever since the Appeal Rounds actually started. As for Ash himself, he was wearing the same outfit that his friends helped him pick out for the Wallace Cup weeks ago; a black gentleman style suit over a gray vest and an undershirt complete with gray pants, white gloves and a gray fedora.
Then it was time for another Coordinator that Ash had a distinctive feeling on who it was given that the hair size and color were the same as well as being the trainer of a Yanmega, all like Jessie. Ash just wondered how Jessie of Team Rocket was able to get into the Pokémon Contest legally. This wasn't the first region that Ash had seen this type of Coordinator but back in Hoenn, she was never able to earn even just one badge; this Coordinator named Jessilina had really blossomed into a considerable rival for Dawn along with Kenny, Joey and Nando.
In this Appeal Round, Jessilina's Yanmega had used its Silver Wind to pick up a gust around herself until the Ogre Darner Pokémon had shown to speed up the move it moved. Ash heard Marian call it Yanmega's Speed Boost which made it pre-evolved from Yanma famous. Soon, Yanmega was moving so fast that Jessilina was practically lifting off the ground in the vortex. To finish things off, Jessilina had her Yanmega use Sonic Boom and then another Silver Wind to fill the air with shiny particles. That allowed Jessilina to advance to the Battle Rounds.
Then it was finally Ursula's turn and the Pokémon she sent out, she called it Wormadam. Wormadam is a black, bagworm-like Pokémon that can be either covered in leaves, sand or any building insulation. It has oval eyes, a long pointed beak, and a long antenna with a coiled tip. The beak is tipped with varying colors depending on the coat. The coat forms a pair of arm-like structures near this Pokémon's head. It will be dotted with reddish-brown rocks, and have chains of pebbles for arms and a brown tipped beak if it has the Sandy Cloak. Wormadam that evolve on cold days are said to form thicker cloaks. It is a female-only species, with Mothim as its male counterpart.
Ash had seen this before and much earlier in his Sinnoh Journey with all three forms of Wormadam under a single trainer who was hoping to find a Burmy that is male so that it will evolve into a Mothim. Back to current events, Ursula was able to use moves like Confusion, Rock Blast and Sandstorm to appease the crowds and judges only to finish with Captivate.
Now it was Ash's turn. He showed up and summoned his Gliscor with the effects of a sand storm that had excited the crowd. "Let's start things off while the crowds are excited Gliscor, use Sandstorm!" Gliscor unleashed another sand storm on the field, making everyone wonder what Ash has in mind. "Now begin with Rock Slide!" Gliscor, now hidden within the Sandstorm, had still heard that command and everyone saw that above the vortex of sand were stones that appeared out of nowhere and begun to drop into the Sandstorm. "Gliscor, do as we practiced!" Ash shouted and everyone were on the edge of their seats since Ash is purposely keeping in suspense.
But what happened was something once again unimagined. A couple of minutes after Gliscor used Rock Slide, the Sandstorm was dispelled and the boulders they saw enter the sandy vortex had suddenly exploded into harmless particles while imitating fireworks. The crowds were amazed to see Gliscor right in the center of it all and yet showed no fear. It was like Gliscor is presenting fireworks out of a sand storm. "It is time for our finale. Gliscor, use Acrobatics!"
Gliscor then flew all around the air with the fireworks and right into them too! "Aerial Ace!" Gliscor then soared around the air with something special or the eyes of the crowds and judges. Gliscor was flying straight and true while acting a lot lie a comet, with the fireworks as his trailing tail! "Finally, Roost." Ash said calmly and Gliscor descended like a bird homing in on its nest and landed right on the ground with the fireworks still following him as his tail until they all settled on the ground around Gliscor in the form of a sixteen point star for all to see as both trainer and Pokémon bowed to the crowds.
"Amazing! Incredible! Simply outstanding!" Marian roared with excitement as she was also on the edge of her seat, wanting to see every that Ash had planned for them. "Gliscor did all those moves in that particular combo like he was born to pull it off! And Ash, he never hesitated or get nervous; he knew that his Pokémon will pull through! And Gliscor trusted Ash to give him the right commands at the right time too! Those two are among the best in terms of bonds between Coordinator and Pokémon!"
The judges firmly agreed in Marian's outburst. What is more is that it was revealed that while every other Appeal was recorded as protocol, the judges ordered a copy for themselves as they saw that Ash knew more about Gliscor than the average trainer for any Ground or Flying type. Ash was immediately passed and allowed to partake in the Battle Rounds.
Dawn rushed to greet Ash and tell him about how excited she was seeing that display while almost ignoring the other Coordinator's Appeals. "Thanks Dawn. I learned the best from you and your Buneary." Ash simply said and Dawn was frozen; she was the one who was learning from Ash and yet he learned something from her too? That cause something to sparkle within herself and it is strong for sure.
Then it was time for the Battle Rounds where eight of the remaining Coordinators will face each other two on two. But unlike Gym Battles in which Pokémon are sent to battle until the last one standing, Contest Battles were different. At the start of every Contest Battle, both Coordinators start off on a five-minute timer and each a full set of points. There were three basic ways to wind in Contest Battles. One, the opposing Pokémon faints. Two, the opposing Coordinator loses all their points before the timer goes off. And three, the timer goes off and the Coordinator with the most points wins. How to lose points is to fail at a move, miss the opposing Pokémon or being hit by the opposing Pokémon. That is how a Contest Battle is different from any other Pokémon Battle; to improve on not only beauty of a Pokémon but also the ability to avoid damage and practically control the battlefield with style and skill.
Dawn went up first and her Pachirisu used Hyper Fang on a Weavile. Jessilina used a Cranivine against a Hippopotas. Ursula used her Gabite against a Hariyama. And Ash used his Gliscor against a Corsola. And then the first round of the Contest Battles were over and soon the second round was to start with Dawn against Jessilina and the two were almost evenly matched until the timer saved Dawn a few extra points to pass to the final round. But after hers was Ash versus Ursula.
"Battle begin!" Marian announced and Ursula decided to take the first move since actually wanted to fight against Dawn but instead she was pitted with Ash.
"Gabite, use Dragon Claw!" Gabite charges with one of her fangs covered in blue light with the intent of dealing damage to Gliscor who just stayed right in his spot, on his scorpion like tail, waiting for Ash's word.
"Wait for it…" Gliscor nodded briefly so that Ursula won't catch on in his overconfidence. And when Gabite jumped for the hit, "Sandstorm forward!" Ash shouted and when Gabite was still above the ground, with no time to move out of the way for Gliscor to summon winds of sand and hit the Cave Pokémon, thus stopping Dragon Claw from even hitting. And because of Gabite's failure to hit Gliscor, Ursula had already lost a small amount of points under half a minute. "Now hold it and expand it around the field." Ash said and Gliscor was able to savage the desert winds from the makeshift block and spread the Sandstorm until the entire battlefield was covered in a sand storm, reaching only a few inches from the two Coordinators.
And yet despite the thick sands, Ash still saw Ursula growl and flinch by this. "Don't dare to even twitch under all this, Ursula! I have made this far by working hard and fighting to win so that is what I am going to do now!" Ash barked through the sands and somehow, his opponent heard it perfectly. "Gliscor, use Hone Claws." Ash said and everyone but his friend were confused on the strange move; it was still something inclusive to Ash and anyone that sees him use some moves like this one.
"I don't know what you have in mind but you underestimate your enemy!" Ursula shouted despite everyone sweat dropping at the voice of a hypocrite before shouting, "Gabite, use Aerial Ace!"
"Quick Attack!" Ursula was shocked to hear that move and was even more surprised to see that Gabite was hit despite the Sandstorm and was sent out of the sandy vortex. She was starting to get angry to see that only a minute had passed and she lost a third of her points. It was like Ash had been playing with her and knows how to counter her attacks.
"ENOUGH! GABITE USE STONE EDGE!" Ursula exploded as her Cave Pokémon struggled to get up. Then, two light blue rings surround Gabite's body. Then, the rings disappear and two rings of glowing white rocks circle Gabite's body. Gabite's eyes then glow light blue and it fires the stones at the Sandstorm. "NOW USE DRAGON RAGE!" Ursula was not going to let Ash call out another move. Gabite opens its mouth and fires a red-orange fireball from its mouth at the Sandstorm which caused it to reveal Gliscor out in the open. Still, Ursula didn't know why Ash didn't lose any points. "Now finish all this off with Aerial Ace!"
Gabite's body becomes surrounded by white streaks and it flies into Gliscor multiple times. But when Ursula thought that she had finally gotten Ash, the Gliscor suddenly and somehow shattered in sparkling pieces. "Wow folks, looks like Ash had been prepared for pretty much anything and taught his Gliscor how to use the move Substitute!" Ursula gasped and saw that she lost even more points after falling for Ash's plan completely. "Now not even we know where the real Gliscor can be!"
"Oh yeah, Gabite use Sandstorm!" Ursula was going to find Gliscor even if she will have her Gabite tear up the battlefield. "And now use Dig! Then Gliscor will have no place left the hide!" While Ursula roared until her throat grew dry, Ash didn't speak a single word.
"You are too confident Ursula." Ash suddenly spoke and after a while, it was like a ghost started to speak in the room and spooked everyone in the room. "You think that you can walk up to Dawn and call all her Pokémon and her hard work cheating when she trained herself to the ground to win the Wallace Cup. You act like you should have won it. You act like you should win every contest you enter. You are wrong Ursula and now Gliscor, use Ice Fang!"
Ursula felt like time had stopped when the Sandstorm dispelled to show that Gliscor had been flying above it the whole time, hidden with the help of the desert winds. And for being a Ground type, Gliscor knew to find where Gabite started to dig and sent the Cave Pokémon out of the ground while biting down with ice covering his fangs, dealing fours time the Super Effective damage. Gabite fell from the chilly fangs with barely the energy left to stand.
Ursula fell to her knees with tears in her eyes. All of her training, her best Pokémon, everything was useless in order to win against Ash. And yet the unthinkable had happened. "Now that is done, I forfeit!" Everyone gasped, Ash had made this far and he can win this Contest by storm, and now he is forfeiting!? "You hear me. I didn't enter for any Ribbon, I didn't enter to be a Coordinator. That isn't the life for me or any of my Pokémon. Fame just isn't what is best for us."
"Are you kidding me!?" Ursula roared, "Then why did you embarrass me!? My Pokémon!? My talents!? My future as Top Coordinator!?"
"Because you did the same to Dawn, one of my friends Ursula." Ash said plainly and Gliscor nodded. "I entered this Contest so that if you did indeed fought me instead of Dawn, I will show you that victories are never faked. They are earned through skill, with faith in bonds and through hard work. You can see all of it with my and Gliscor plainly. And you lost to the very three things you spit and laugh at; I know this ever since we first formally met." Ursula flinched at how she made a poor first impression to people who never got the chance to know slightly better.
"By standing that only natural talent is the key to Ribbons and being a Coordinator than you were not only insulting me, insult Dawn but every single Coordinator is this hall and all across Sinnoh. They all are different but they truly are Coordinators because they work hard, train hard and establish bonds between Pokémon. Natural Talent means nothing to them but you!" Ash continued and pointed to the crowds in all directions and Ursula could see the glares from all the Coordinators in the stands watching the battle. "If you want to keep this up then do it for all I care or anyone else for that matter. But I don't want to be a Coordinator is you see yourself as the example of a real Coordinator. And no else either and that is why I am forfeiting." Ash finished before returning his Gliscor back to his Pokéball.
The end result was everyone cheering for Ash while booing at Ursula who remained on the stage since she did have a place in the final Contest Battle in the Chocovine Pokémon Contest. With her exhausted and broken Pokémon and her soul even more, Ursula tried to fight to win with what is left of her overconfidence but she ultimately fell to her imperfect feature via special moves that Dawn had cooked up so that nothing is taken advantage of; moves such as dodging attacks and Pachirisu moving around so that Gabite instead stumble, the Electric type Pokémon didn't as much as attack because against a ruined Pokémon, they will be no different than bullies. The match was all neutral despite what the circumstances could be in default.
The Contest was filled with building excitement that just died in one fell swoop but what rose where the first fell was the heartfelt devotion of a trainer to another. Every Coordinator came home with all these forever cemented in their minds, along with various emotions from the chances that Ash used that involved Dawn were much more appreciated than that Ursula ever did when she kept telling everyone that she will defeat Dawn, and all that rising rookie ever did was win the Wallace Cup fair and square. Just how beautiful loyalty can be when it came to friends?
Whatever is the answer, Darkrai will be trying to figure out all from his experience within Ash's physical shadow for the entire day. Ash was just his opposite to what Darkrai always thought humans were and what is more is that Darkrai feels like he is slowly becoming more like Ash. Whatever this will be good or bad will be up to all those who are asked the question.
End of Chapter 5.
*Well, I once again had to cut loose ends again and this time, I had to take one chapter as planned and into three. And this time, I feel like doing episodes DP112 and DP113. I feel like if Darkrai and Ash are going to be the center stage then I need to include all the episodes in order to tell just how I intend Ash's Darkrai experience what the Ash in the canon did.
I hope you don't mind me having Ash partake in the Chocovine Town Pokémon Contest but I had an internal debate about all this. I ultimately decided for it since it otherwise be boring to just summarize most of the episode in this story. Tell me what you think and let me know if I accidently copied any of your own variations of Ash's Pokémon Contest Appeals; I haven't read all of them on this website.
If you watched the original Pokémon series then you know that they did an episode in which Pikachu, along with some of Ash's Kanto Pokémon had been separated from their trainer. In order to understand them, subtitles were installed along with the Pokémon's dialogue.
