Ch. 20
Keeping the Peace
Pokemon is the property of its respective owners
"So Steph, you ready for this?" Karen teasingly asked the grass snake as Stephanie just snorted and turned her head away from Karen causing the former champion to chuckle.
"I'll take that as a yes," Karen cheerfully stated as she pushed opened the door to the dragon field and shifted her gaze up to the sky as she saw one of her former pokemon, a light bluish dragon with red wings and fins on the side of his face, easily defeat his opponent and land with a thud on the ground as he offered his claw to his opponent.
"(Ha Ha! You truly have put up a tremendous fight against this old dog! It has been far too long since I've fought such a worthy adversary! I'd like to fight you again once you've gotten stronger!)" Karen's former pokemon boomed happily as his opponent, a hydreigon, grinned and flew back to its trainer and allowed itself to be sucked back into the pokeball.
Its trainer thanked Hydreigon for its efforts and looked at Karen in shock before he calmly walked over to her and extended his hand to Karen. Karen was about to grip it until her former pokemon smashed into her and knocked her onto her back as she felt him happily nuzzling her face.
"(Friend Karen! It has been far too long since I last saw you!)" Karen's pokemon shouted loudly at her as Stephanie stepped in and tried to use her vines to push away her former teammate's face away from her trapped friend to no avail.
"I just saw you last week when I checked up on you like I do with my other pokemon!" Karen barely managed to squeal out as she struggled to push away his face.
"(You stupid old coot, get off my Karen!)" Stephanie snarled furiously at her former traveling companion as his eyes widened in shock when he saw her and promptly tackled her to the ground.
"(Friend Stephanie! It's wonderful to see you as well!)" Stephanie's former teammate yelled cheerfully as Stephanie violently squirmed under his weight while Karen looked on and chuckled as she saw Stephanie whacking Salamence on the side with her tail.
"Karen, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?" Hydreigon's trainer questioned as he extended his hand to the former champion.
"I'd just came to get one of my old teammate's back if that's alright with you Malakai," Karen replied simply as she gripped his hand and shook it.
"I think that'd be alright. Salamence has taught my Hydreigon very well and I think he's finally ready to lead the class in drills. But is the headmaster ok with it?" Malakai asked Karen unsurely as he slightly tilted his head.
"Yes, Malakai he is. You don't need to worry about getting in trouble with the headmaster," Karen assured Malakai who sighed in relief and placed his hands behind his back.
"You know Karen, this school can never thank you enough for lending us your pokemon to help teach the classes. Our students have learned so much from them and I never once see a frown on their faces when they get to learn from one of the champion's pokemon," Malakai complimented Karen who chuckled under her breathe and folded her arms.
"Former champion Malakai; I gave that up when I decided to teach here at the Battle Academy so the future generations of trainers could learn from one of the best teachers," Karen humbly stated as Malakai grunted and rolled his eyes.
"To me you're still the champion Karen. That fool Alder will never deserve that title until he's actually beaten you in a match which we both know will never happen," Malakai disdainfully said of Unova's current champion which caused Karen to shake her head at Malakai's comment and coolly narrow her eyes at him.
"Malakai, while it's true that Alder didn't beat me to gain the title of champion, I deemed him worthy enough to be allowed to become the champion when I decided that merely standing around for hours on end and waiting for someone to beat the elite four to challenge me for the title was something that I didn't want to do. So I know you have your doubts about Alder, but please give him a chance," Karen defended her successor as Malakai pursed his lips for a few moments before reluctantly nodding.
"Call me old fashioned, but to me becoming champion meant you had to dethrone the previous one. But if you say he's a strong trainer, I guess I can give him a chance," Malakai hesitantly grumbled as he folded his arms as Karen was suddenly yanked backwards by a light blue tail and nuzzled by an overly enthusiastic Salamence.
"(What of friend Darris? Why doesn't your mate walk beside you?)" Salamence confusedly asked Karen who sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she looked at her former traveling companion with a crestfallen expression.
"He's dead Salamence," Karen mumbled bitterly as he looked at her in shock until he felt something thump his head and quickly turned around to face an absolutely livid Stephanie.
"(YOU FUCKING RETARDED PIECE OF SHIT! HOW DARE YOU-)"
"Steph, please, that's enough! He didn't know!"
Karen sucked in a deep breath and let it back out before she petted Salamence and wrapped one of her arms around his neck.
"Salamence, you're aware that I have a son right?" Karen asked Salamence as he perked up when he heard this.
"(Of course I have friend Karen! Friend Darris would always bring pictures of that little scamp whenever he came to visit me here!)" Salamence enthusiastically shouted as Stephanie cringed and covered her ears with her vines.
"Well, I sent him on a journey through the Sinnoh region, the same region I traveled in when I was younger, so he could get stronger and break out of the habit on relying on books too much," Karen stated as Salamence tilted his head to the side in confusion.
"When he gets back from his journey I'm going to test how strong he's gotten and because of that I'm going to need a little help," Karen said seriously to Salamence as he gave Karen an odd look and scratched his head with his claws causing Stephanie to groan loudly.
"(She's asking you if you want to be part of our team again you old coot!)" Stephanie irritably shouted at Salamence whose eyes widened in shock before letting out a gale of hearty laughter.
"(Oh friend Karen, how could I possibly say no to the being who trained me to be as strong as the legendaries of old? I'd be delighted to fight alongside you once again! Oh how I missed the thrill of battle and the rush of adrenaline standing over a vanquished foe and now I finally have an opportunity to experience it once more!)" Salamence bellowed eagerly as Karen felt a tap on her shoulder and saw Malakai handing her an old, scratched ultra-ball.
"You still kept Salamence's pokeball after all these years Malakai?" Karen asked her coworker incredulously as she took the ball out of his hands and examined it carefully.
"Of course I did! How could I possibly not after you have contributed so much to this school?" Malakai responded bewilderedly as Karen grinned and bowed respectfully to Malakai who mimicked the action and bowed to her.
"Salamence, would you rather be in your pokeball of would you like to walk beside us?" Karen asked her friend kindly as he smiled at her and rustled his wings.
"(For now, I would prefer to walk beside my companions,)" Salamence replied cheerfully as Karen nodded and waved goodbye to Malakai as he waved back and went to go set up the field for the students.
The trio walked to the garden intently as Salamence tried and failed to engage in small talk with Stephanie who rebuffed every attempt he made causing Karen to shake her head disdainfully at Stephanie's attitude.
"(Stephanie?)" Salamence said as the grass snake turned her head towards him with an angry scowl on her face.
"(What?)" Stephanie seethed through clenched teeth as she told herself she mustn't kill her teammate lest she incur Karen's wrath.
"(I…I was rather fond of friend Darris so my heart feels heavy knowing of his fate,)" Salamence admitted to her causing Stephanie's face to soften when she heard this and placed a vine on his back.
"(I know, Sal, I know,)" Stephanie comforted her friend as Salamence bowed his head and mourned his friend's passing.
"(Darris and Karen's hatchling; is he safe?)" Salamence concernedly asked Stephanie as the grass snake nodded which brought the mighty dragon relief.
"(I'd think you'd like Dmitri, Sal. He's a good kid with his heart in the right place and he always looks out for his friends and family,)" Stephanie happily said to Salamence as he perked up when he heard this and grinned sadly at her.
"(That sounds like friend Darris you're describing,)" Salamence said nostalgically as Stephanie smirked and closed her eyes briefly before looking back at Salamence sympathetically.
"(Might as well be; those two were really close with each other and when he died…I'm…I'm just glad Maris was there for him,)" Stephanie said solemnly as the dragon comforted her with one of his wings.
"Me too Steph; Darris's gift to his son ultimately helped him pull through that dark time in his life and if she hadn't been there-"
"(Kit Kat, you know I would have knocked him out if he tried anything like that and I would have told you the second it happened!)" Stephanie assured her friend passionately as Karen smiled at her best friend and patted her on the head.
"I know you would have Steph and…I…appreciate it," Karen stated solemnly as Salamence and Stephanie looked at each other and nodded while Karen shoved the doors to the garden open and lazily rested her arms against her sides.
"Hey, it's me! You can come out!" Karen called out as a Lucario dropped down from one of the trees right in front of the high ranking teacher and confusedly craned his head.
"(Lady Long, I didn't expect you back here until next week,)" Lucario surprisingly said as he fell onto one knee and bowed his head.
"Lucario, you don't need to call me Lady; Karen is alright with me. And the reason for me coming back here is because I need to ask you something," Karen said to Lucario as he furrowed his brow and looked up at his trainer confusedly.
"(What did you come back here for then Mistress Karen?)" Lucario questioned his trainer warily as he stood up on his feet and narrowed his eyes at Karen.
"I'm just getting the gang back together and I'm just wondering if you're interested in joining us once again," Karen calmly replied causing Lucario to fold his arms and grin at her.
"(I would be happy to assist you once again Mistress Karen, but I would like to know the reason why you're uniting us once again. Surely it must be a strong opponent you're worried about if you feel the need to gather all of us,)" Lucario said coolly as Karen put a hand on his shoulder and pursed her lips.
"Well, I guess were going to have to see if my son is indeed a strong opponent after he's collected all the gym badges and competed in the Lily of the Valley Conference," Karen told Lucario nonchalantly as Lucario seemed to contemplate this for a moment before pounding his knuckles together with an audible crack.
"(You're son won't know what him Mistress, be certain of that,)" Lucario arrogantly boasted as the former champion rolled her eyes and glared intensely at the aura pokemon.
"Don't underestimate my son Lucario or you'll find yourself in a world of pain. Be certain of that," Karen retorted causing Lucario to grunt and mutter an apology as he walked over to his teammates and respectfully bowed to both of them.
The former champion chuckled as she saw Salamence tackle Lucario to the ground and began nuzzling his face with the aura pokemon awkwardly petting the old timer on the head.
"Dmitri, I know I said I'd crush you in our battle. Prove me wrong," Karen whispered to herself softly as she shoved her hands in her pockets and walked over to her group of friends.
"(Oooo, let's all get ready to grab that brush and shine-)"
"(Shut up you old coot! Just shut up already!)" Stephanie shouted angrily as she shoved her vines into her ears while Lucario, who had since gotten up, shrugged and began tapping his foot to the shanty Salamence was singing.
"(This…actually isn't that bad,)" Lucario stated simply causing Stephanie to lightly thwack him on the head with her tail.
"Steph?" Karen said unsurely as she walked up to the annoyed grass snake and petted her on the head.
"(Yeah Kit Kat?)" Stephanie replied worriedly as she tilted her head and examined her trainer with concern on her face.
"I heard what you said to Dmitri and Maris on the pokegear. Steph…I…I know these guys annoy the hell out of you, but they're my family too. We traveled all over Sinnoh with them-"
"(Okay Kit Kat. I will, for you, and you'd be damn grateful,)" Stephanie assured her friend as she coiled around her and rested her head on the former champion's shoulder as they both listened to Salamence continuing his chanty about brushing your teeth.
Meanwhile
"So, I finished my training for today! Luka, buizel, and geodude will be ready to crush the gym leader tomorrow and get our second badge! Heck, I don't even think buizel and geodude will be able to get any shots in considering how strong Luka's become!" Catherine stated arrogantly as Luka cracked a small smirk and lightly hit her friend on the shoulder.
"(Pssh, I don't think it will be very fair to the gym leader if you just let Luka pound on them for the entire match,)" Maris responded offhandedly as she plopped down on the bed and put her paws behind her head.
"…Yeah, that wouldn't be fair to buizel and geodude either considering how hard they worked for me," Catherine said firmly as she sat down in chair and rested her head in her palm as she turned her attention to Dmitri.
"So, did you get a third teammate yet?" Catherine asked Dmitri casually as he rubbed the back of his head and shook it reluctantly causing Catherine to groan and slump down in her chair.
"Dude, really?" Catherine stated bewilderedly as she shook her head with Luka patting her on the shoulder comfortingly.
"(Catherine, it's alright. When the time comes for his gym battle, I'm sure he'll have an additional teammate with him,)" Luka defended Dmitri causing the former heiress to sigh and nod in affirmation as she began stretching her body.
"Well, since we've got nothing to do, do you guys want to walk around town?" Catherine asked her friends as Luka shrugged and nodded with Dmitri and Maris doing the same.
Delia pondered about this for a few moments before responding to Catherine's question.
"Sure, why not? Might as well go sightseeing for a while before we put this city behind us and move on after we win our badges," Delia stated as she put her backpack on.
Catherine smiled and opened the door to the room as she walked out with her friend's following her. Catherine excitedly pointed to a statue of Dialga in the center of town and took a picture of it with her camera as Delia squinted due to the flash of the camera.
"Hey guys, we should all take a picture next to the statue," Catherine suggested as Delia shook her head and folded her arms while Luka reluctantly denied her request as she patted her best friend on the shoulder causing the former heiress to be slump her shoulders.
"Maris and I will take a picture next to it Catherine," Dmitri told the former heiress with a smile on his face as Maris looked at her paw which was currently holding her boyfriend's hand and groaned.
"(Ugh, fine! Let's go take the stupid picture!)" Maris whined as she and Dmitri walked up to the statue and put on generic grins on their faces.
"No, no! Do…uh…funny faces or something!" Catherine shouted frantically as Maris covered Dmitri's eyes with one paw while holding his waist in one of her arms and gave her boyfriend a creeper stare while Dmitri put on a face of mock terror.
"Lo and behold the strong, loving bond these two share. They're so close to one another they can make something as creepy as this look comical," Delia snorted sarcastically which caused Catherine to chuckle under her breathe as she took the picture in a bright flash of light causing the battle ace to shield her eyes with her forearm.
"Okay, now take one of Luka and me!" Catherine yelled excitedly as she shoved the camera into Delia's chest as the battle ace fumbled around with it for a little bit before steadying it in her hands.
Before the aura pokemon could protest, Catherine dragged her towards the statue and put her arms around Luka's waist causing the jackal like pokemon to blush.
"Okay, Luka let's do funny faces too," Catherine said enthusiastically as Luka rolled her eyes and put her friend in a full nelson causing Catherine to squeak in surprise.
"Hey, leggo!" Catherine whined causing Luka to smirk at her best friend.
"(Nope, sorry Catherine. You said to do a funny faces so putting you in this move caused you to blush and squirm in a very adorable way,)" Luka mocked Catherine playfully as the former heiress continued to struggle in vain as Luka's smirk grew wider.
"Okay, smile," Delia said in a very bored tone as she pressed her finger down onto the button on the camera causing a bright flash of light to erupt from the lense.
Delia snarled as her eyes briefly flashed red again before going back to her usual color as she gently handed the camera back to Catherine. She squealed like an excited toddler and flipped through the photos on the camera until sudden shouting caused the entire group to perk up as the ran to the direction of the commotion and found a middle aged man yelling at two people. The two people were a man and a woman with round, light blue hair and wearing outfits that seemed straight off the set of a sci-fi movie in front of an building with spikes coming off the top.
"Give me back my precious pokemon! You have no right to do this!" the middle aged man yelled angrily causing the oddly dressed man to roughly push him away.
The middle aged man shouted in pain as his back hit the ground and angrily looked up at the oddly dressed man as he slowly unclipped a pokeball off his belt and was about to release his pokemon until his entire skeleton lighted up as he was electrified by an unseen foe. The oddly dressed man screamed in agony as he collapsed on the ground and twitched violently causing the woman to look in the direction of the attack and found herself staring at a young fifteen year old boy with the weirdest looking floatzel at his side and an furious Luxio standing atop her unconscious partner with electricity dangerously sparking off her body.
"That's enough! Now return his pokemon to him!" Dmitri ordered the woman who responded by grabbing a pokeball on her belt and threw it towards the ground until a furry whip appeared out of nowhere and slapped it back to the woman causing it to collide with her face and knock her out.
"(Huh, so that actually does work,)" Maris said in a slightly surprised tone as she examined the long fur on her arms with renewed interest as Dmitri knelt down next to the middle aged man and began asking him questions.
After a few moments, Dmitri nodded and stood up causing Maris to look at her boyfriend intently.
"(So, what's the flippin' scoop?)" Maris questioned Dmitri interestedly as she put her paws on her hips and narrowed her eyes at him.
"Mr. Rickshaw told me that these criminals called Team Galactic not only took his pokemon, but other townspeople's as well and hid them away in this building. What we can do is that we first have Maris and Luka scan the building with their senses to establish what we're up against and then we can decide what we'll do from there," Dmitri firmly responded causing his friends to give him impressed looks and nod in affirmation.
"Luka, Maris, you guys know what to do," Dmitri told them as Maris smirked and gave him a mock salute while Luka gave a short nod in response as the two pokemon yanked out the little trees blocking their path and tossed them aside.
Luka placed her paw on the side of the building and closed her eyes as the appendages on the back of her head stood up while Maris simply narrowed her eyes in concentration as she slowly breathed in and out.
"(I'm picking up twelve chi signatures within the building,)" Maris stated causing Luka to nod without even opening her eye as she continued to focus.
"(My aura sense is telling me the same thing; two humans on each floor with some pokemon except on the last one which has one human and some pokemon. Their auras are showing that they are currently lax and content at the moment; if we want to strike then now's the time to do it,)" Luka said determinedly as Maris frowned and looked away from the aura pokemon.
"(Geez, aura can tell you all of that? When we're done with this you have to show me how to use this aura stuff,)" Maris stated a bit angrily as Luka gave Maris an amused stare and placed a consoling paw on the martial arts pokemon's shoulder.
"(Do not be discouraged sis; our powers are similar to each other, but aura deals more with the spiritual energies flowing within a being like emotions and focus. Likewise, I have long since wanted to learn how to manipulate chi, but I was unable to find a proper teacher…until now,)" Luka told Maris with a small grin on her face causing Maris to playfully knock her paw off her shoulder.
"(Well Luka, you're first lesson is that chi deals more with willpower and the physical strength of the being; remember that when we decide to teach other,)" Maris told Luka as she informed her human friends about what they discovered causing Delia to tap her chin in deep thought.
"Since they're two on each floor except for the last one, I say we should split into teams and take them all down systematically," Delia stated to her friends causing them to give her questioning looks.
"Sounds like a good plan, do you guys need some help?" a cheerful voice asked the startled group as Delia narrowed her eyes and turned her head to the person who dared to speak unannounced.
"Ash…and his friend's I don't recognize, although the me of the past would have denied aid from someone such as you, I realize now that I can't do everything on my own and so I…request that you aid us in this," Delia said with a bitter undertone which Ash either noticed and ignored or didn't realize as he nodded and told everyone to huddle up.
"(What the flip is this; the fucking PFL?)" Maris said bewilderedly as Dmitri lightly thumped her back and told her to pay attention.
"Okay, so like Delia said we should all split into teams and take down this base systematically. So I'm thinking that Dmitri and Dawn can take the first floor, Catherine and Brock can take the second floor, and Delia and I can take out the third and fourth floor," Ash said solemnly as Dmitri rubbed his arm uncomfortably while Catherine pursed her lips uneasily as they both questioned this plan.
"(I'm fine with this as long as blueberry can put up a fight against these Space Odyssey rejects,)" Maris openly voiced her opinion causing Dawn and Brock to look at the Unovan pokemon with raised eyebrows while Dmitri nodded.
"Okay, Dawn and I will take out the grunts on the first floor and will meet up with you guys when we're done," Dmitri told the group as they nodded while Delia gave him and Maris a quick hug and told them to be careful.
Creeping up on the side of the building, Maris felt a chi signature next to the window she was hiding under and beckoned her group to follow her.
"(Dmitri, I'll take out the guy near the window and Sparkplug will rush in and disorient the other guy. When that happens, you and Dawn will bust in and help Sparkplug take him out okay?)" Maris told Dmitri who pondered this for a moment before nodding and waited at the ready for Maris to start.
Maris concentrated and she slowly inched her body up to the window and subtly drew her paws back as she eyed the blue haired guy next to the window. Counting in her head until she reached three, she quickly punched her paws through the glass and grabbed the startled grunt who flailed around uselessly as he was pulled through the window with a rough tug. Maris rendered him unconscious with a stiff punch to the face and not a second sooner she heard the screams and grunts of her companions as she jumped over the now broken window into the building. She smirked when she saw Sparkplug standing over an unconscious grunt who was twitching violently as electricity still sparked within his every being while Dmitri and Dawn began the process of tying the other grunt to a chair with some rope they found.
Maris didn't even get a chance to congratulate them as she saw Catherine, Luka, and the squinty eyed man rush past them and up the stairs as Luka roughly smashed the face of a confused grunt who came to investigate the commotion into the wall and gave a wicked front kick to the face of another grunt who came to aid his partner. Maris didn't even flinch when she saw blood fly from the nose and mouth of the grunt onto the wall and merely flicked away a tooth that was flying towards her face as she jumped up the entire flight of stairs and patted Luka on the back.
"(Nice work,)" Maris simply told the aura pokemon who nodded in response as she placed the grunts she took out against the wall while Catherine and Brock began the process of tying them up.
Dmitri and Dawn soon joined them as Dmitri consoled a shocked Dawn as she looked at the mangled face of the grunts Luka had taken out. Delia and Ash soon ran past all of them as Delia threw a pokeball and out of it came Hydreigon who grunted in annoyance at being called out. Delia explained the situation to him and after a few seconds of processing this Hydreigon nodded its three heads and slowly flew up the flight of stairs with a blank look on its face while Ash narrowed his eyes at Delia.
"You would send him out after he nearly killed you? Delia, I don't know if this is recklessness or stupidity on your part," Ash scolded Delia causing the battle ace to turn on her foot and glower at Ash who wasn't even fazed by her attempts to intimidate him.
"Yes, I sent him out. Deal with it," the battle ace snapped at the orange league champion who held up his hands to placate her while Pikachu looked at Delia uncertainly.
Suddenly, screams of pain and terror resonated throughout the building as the bestial roar of Hydreigon fired his attacks at the remaining grunts. Flashes of red, blue, and yellow were seen by the entire group as one grunt, a blue haired woman, was sent flying down the stairs with Hydreigon snarling at her menacingly as he slowly floated towards her.
"NO, go away!" the woman yelled in pure terror as she threw her pokeballs at Hydreigon who simply weaved his head out of the way and continued to float towards the terrified woman slowly, but intently with his teeth barred until he heard the cries of her pokemon telling him to back off.
Hydreigon responded by firing a stream of shocking lightning, a torrent of scorching flames, and a blast of chilling ice at the pokemon who came to their trainer's defense causing all of them to collide with the wall with a sickening crack. Hydreigon returned his attention to the woman who cowered in a corner with her arms covering her face and cringed when she felt the hot breathe of the dragon on her head.
"Hydreigon, that's enough," Delia ordered the mighty dragon coolly causing Hydreigon to snarl briefly before backing off and allowing his trainer to approach the woman.
"Oh, thank you! Th-"
The woman was cut off by Delia's fist smashing into her face and causing the grunt to slump against the wall with her eyes closed.
"You didn't need to do that!" Brock chided Delia who sighed and wheeled around to face the breeder with a solemn stare on her face.
"Yes, I did. I couldn't allow her to escape so rendering her unconscious was the best option. C'mon guys, let's finish this," Delia said simply as Hydreigon seemed to grin slightly at his trainer's attitude and floated next to her as he followed her up the stairs.
The rest of the group soon followed her up the flight of stairs and they were in shock at the damage Hydreigon had done as what were once computers were now melted into mush and black scorch marks adorned the wall next to an unconscious scientist as his hand still gripped a single pokeball on his belt. Ash pushed past his friends and up the stairs as he concernedly looked up the stairs which didn't go unnoticed by Dmitri and Maris. Not a moment later, Delia and Hydreigon came down the stairs with a purple haired woman in tow as Hydreigon glared at the purple haired woman, daring her to try something funny.
"We caught the leader of this base, so let's round up the goons we caught and deliver them to the police," Delia said calmly as Dmitri and Maris walked down the flight of stairs to the first floor to get the grunts they knocked out with Dawn reluctantly following him while Luka blurred for a moment before returning to normal with two of the thrashed grunts in her paws.
"I'll go return the stolen pokemon to the townspeople, you guys go turn these creeps into the police," Catherine solemnly told the rest of the group as she and Dawn took the tray of stolen pokeballs and jogged down the stairs with Luka following her.
After Delia knocked out the purple haired woman, Ash, Brock, and Hydreigon followed her to the police station where the battle ace smirked when she saw the police scrambling to find cells to hold all the Team Galactic Grunts. Delia's eyes locked with Officer Jenny and promptly handed the woman to the esteemed police woman who nodded and ordered her police officers to take them in. Sighing and running her hand through her hair, Delia took in her surroundings and chuckled when she saw Catherine and Dawn surrounded by people as the profusely shouted their thanks to them as they both awkwardly acknowledged it and tried to squeeze their way through.
The people soon left after a while which gave the battle ace a chance to regroup with her friends as they all nodded to her in response which Delia responded with a curt nod of her own. Stealing a glance at Hydreigon, she noticed that he wasn't breathing heavily at all and didn't seem worse for wear causing her to smile as she petted Hydreigon who cooed at her touch.
Gesturing to Ash with her head, the three headed dragon snarled at the boy fiercely and gently pushed his trainer towards him. Seeing this, Ash stopped talking to his friends about what happened and stared at Delia and Hydreigon with a wary look.
"Ash, if you'd like, I want a rematch against you now that Hydreigon is under control," Delia asked Ash politely as he and Pikachu pondered this for a moment before Ash gave her simple nod.
"Good, how bout' we take this battle in the practice field I found near the pokemon center with the same rules as last time?" Delia stated hastily as Ash sent a questioning look at Pikachu who smirked at Delia and emitted sparks from his cheeks causing Ash to grin slightly.
Delia nodded to Ash with a stoic expression on her face and told her friends what was going to happen as Dmitri and Maris gave her concerned looks.
"What if Hydreigon loses control again?" Dmitri told his sister worriedly as she disproved his fears by placing her head in Hydreigon's open middle maw causing Dmitri, Catherine, Luka, and Maris to step forward in fear for their friend.
When Hydreigon simply grunted and licked his trainer's face affectionately, they all calmed down and took a step back as Delia nuzzled her forehead against the dragon's causing Hydreigon to click happily as he wrapped his arms and tail around his trainer.
"You see, nothing to worry about. We…talked out our problems back in Oreburgh and although it took some time for him to get used to me and the rest of my team again, he's finally accepted us as his friends and me as a worthy trainer," Delia told her shock friends as Dmitri and Maris shuddered involuntarily as a scary thought popped into their heads.
If Hydreigon was nigh unstoppable when he wasn't under control, then a fully trained and tame Hydreigon…
"(Shit, I don't even want to think about that,)" Maris muttered as she folded her arms and glared at the three headed dragon who stared back at her blankly while yapping and clicking innocently.
Time skip
"This will be a three-on-three battle with no time limit and either trainer can win by knockout or if either side gives up!" Brock shouted loudly to the two trainers as they both nodded and gripped pokeballs at their waist.
"Are these rules understood by both sides?" Brock questioned the two trainers seriously.
"Right as rain Brock," Ash responded quickly as he turned his hat backwards.
"Of course," Delia told the breeder politely with a courteous bow.
"Then let the match begin!" Brock yelled as the two trainers quickly yanked off a pokeball from their belts and threw them onto the field.
"Delia is going to win this time, I just know it," Dmitri told his friends passionately as Maris squeezed his affectionately while never taking her eyes off the battle.
"I still think Ash is going to win, but she sure looks tough," Dawn said as she looked in awe at a tall, light orange dragon happily floating in the air as he waved to his opponent with a cheerful grin while his foe merely eyed him warily as it shifted the twig in its mouth.
"My dragons, lend me your strength and we shall overcome this challenge! I have failed you all once against this man, but it will not happen again!" Delia thought to herself determinedly as she gazed at Ash with fire in her eyes.