Author's Note:
Here it is, the fourth gym battle in Hoenn, the start of the second-year writing Hoenn and a plot point I didn't decide upon easily. That last point won't become relevant until the end of the chapter so let's forget it until then. It's a pretty simple gym battle, you know what those involve right. I want to apologise that I wasn't too active over the last month. You see, my gran died, and I've had to put my family first. I don't want to go into too much detail but hopefully you all understand. It's been tough but I should be back on track now. Sorry for any inconvenience. Don't forget to vote in the poll, this is a new one based on the team aqua admins, with that let's begin.
Chapter Forty-One: Ash verses Flannery: Rashness
Ash stretched out his arms and legs. Blinking awake, he found himself lying on stomach with his head turned towards the window. The morning sun shone through the window. Pushing himself up, he looked around. He knew Pikachu was spending the night with Sylveon again, but he failed to see his girlfriend.
Moving into a sitting position, he looked around, "Serena! Where are you?!"
"In here," she replied, as he glanced towards the bathrooms. Shrugging, he stood up and moved over to his backpack. Grabbing his clean clothes, he heard the door open. Turning around, he found the blonde-beauty stood in the doorway, in her usual travelling outfit. Smiling, he made his way across room, greeting her with a peck on the lips, "good morning."
"You've cut your hair," he smiled, gently stroking the short golden locks as one hand fell to her waist, "it's back to the length for when you first cut your hair."
"I've been thinking about it since it reached past my shoulders," she replied, "and I know you prefer it short."
"You didn't need to do it for me," he replied, engulfing her in a hug, "but have you been reading my thoughts?"
"I don't need to read your thoughts to know how you like my hair," she pecked his cheek, "it's written all over your face. I know a lot of things you like about me, even if you've never told me. Why? Don't you know what I like about you."
He felt his heart race as she raised a hand up onto his left peck, "I erm-"
"Your so cute when flustered," she giggled. Looping her arms around his neck, she swayed side to side. Pulling him down, she connected their lips together for a long kiss, pulling back she stared straight into his eyes. Her hands slide across his skin, landing on his shoulders, lightly massaging him, "but I'll let you into a secret. Since you've started Brawly's workout routine, your shoulders are broadening. That's one thing I like about you."
"Erm, hehehe, yeah," he stuttered. Twirling around her so she was stood in the main room, and he had one foot in bathroom, "I-I need to freshen up a-and-"
"Yeah, I get it. And you know I was only teasing," she smirked, walking backwards across the room. Picking up her own backpack, she quickly opened the door out, "I'm gonna check on Sylveon. Get her some breakfast but come find me before you head off to the gym, kay?"
"R-right."
She blew him one last kiss before walking out of the room. Smiling at her flirty nature, he took a deep breath. Entering the bathroom, he walked over to the sink and looked in the mirror as he turned on the tap. His cheeks were bright red. Cupping his hands under the running water, he leaned down and splashed the water into his face. Shaking his head, he grabbed the nearby hand towel to wipe the water away.
He can't explain it, but she just seems to have that effect on him. He knows she is teasing when being all flirty, but it doesn't make a difference. It also doesn't help that if he sees another female who 'catches' his interest. First thing his mind does is put Serena's face over the other persons. Like when he met Flannery a couple days back.
Shaking his head, he stepped over to the shower and turned it on. Turning the temperature right down, he knew that today of all days, if that little interaction was any indication, he'd end up all hot and bothered.
Ash stretched his arms up, feeling the hot summer sun on his skin. He knew they'd use the outside field that they found Norman battling on when first entering the town but in this weather... he knew already she'd have a massive advantage over him.
"You seem deep in thought, Ash," Norman drew his attention, "don't tell me your nervous. You've had a lot of gym battles by this point."
"If there's any gym you should be nervous to face, it's dad's!" Max declared, "he's the next member of Hoenn's elite four!"
"Way to keep it secret champ," the normal type specialist smirked.
"Nah, I'm not nervous. Not more than usual, anyway," he smiled, "just running through my strategy. It's kind of a new one for me."
"How so?" May asked.
"I don't want to spoil it... we just saw how well Max kept a secret," he smirked, "but I will say it's more of a strategy my brother would use."
"Oh yeah, your twins, right?" May asked, "I know you've mentioned him a few times, but you haven't really talked about him much."
"Yeah, well..." he mumbled, "he's off in Unova-"
"Unova?!" Norman asked, "what trainer in their right mind would go there? With the Plasma protests and everything."
"He said it was to get away," he sighed, "but with everything we've heard... I'm worried about him. This is the furthest we've been apart and for the longest period of time."
"You flew to the top of an active volcano," May crossed her arms, "you can't talk about his safety."
"Alright May, how would you feel if it was Max?" he asked.
"Max never flew to the top of a volcano to get in the middle of some gang fight," she retorted.
"Your still mad about that?" he asked.
"She does have a point, Ash, it wasn't the smartest decision," Norman chimed in, "I'm just happy you left my kids out of it. And he's right too, May, an older brother will always worry about the younger, even if they are twins with only minutes between them."
"Hehehe, actually, I'm the younger one," Ash corrected.
"My point still stands," the normal type specialist sighed.
A silence fell over the group as they came out over the outside battleground. Flannery was stood in the centre with a Magcargo by her feet. She seemed to be discussing something with the fire rock type. Glancing in their direction, she stood up and recalled the fully evolved Pokémon.
"Glad to see ya'll could make it," she smiled, "I assume you're ready?"
"Of course," he smirked, "by noon we'll have badge four in hand."
"We don't just hand out the badges here," she frowned, glancing behind him, "your friends can sit on the benches behind the referee."
Nodding he turned to see May, Max and Brock already taking the cue. Heading over to the benches, he received a swift peck on the lips from Serena, who wished him a quick good luck. She quickly made her way over to the others, Pikachu by her side, although he took a seat on Max's shoulder. Smiling he turned back to see Flannery whispering something to Norman. The normal type specialist nodded and walked over to the referee stand.
He made his way over the outdoor field, standing in one of the trainer boxes. The blazing sun beat down on his skin, so he took off his hoodie, tying it around his waist. He watched the female gym leader walk to the opposing side of the field, shaking his head, he tried to focus on something other than her appearance. Sometimes he really misses being a dense kid who wouldn't notice anything different.
"Hey Norman, not to sound rude but-" he started.
"I've made an agreement with Flannery to referee this battle," he replied, "like I said, it's my chance to see what your made off. I've got an idea for when you challenge me, but I want to make sure your up to it before committing."
"We're up for anything," he declared, smirking at his friend's father.
"I'm sure. This will be a three-on-three gym battle between the Larvaridge gym leader, Flannery Asuna and the challenger, Ash Ketchum from Pallet town," Norman declared, "due to the challenger being a multi-league competitor, we've got a special challenge. The leader shall use a member from her six-badge team, seven badge team and eight badge team. Although she'll be unable to switch freely, the challenger may and there will be no time limit. Understand?"
"Yes," he and Flannery called out in unison.
"Furthermore, the gym leader shall reveal her Pokémon first," he replied, "the first trainer to eliminate the other's side will be victorious. Let's begin."
"Then light it up, Torkoal!" Flannery shouted.
In a flash of light, a tortoise-like quadrupedal Pokémon materialised. A cloud of smoke surrounded him as it blew out of his nose and back. He took in the sight as the black smoke faded. He had a large, black, rock-like shell with a hole on top. Red shapes glew around the edge. His skin on the legs, neck and head were an orange-brown with grey-black bands around the ankles. A long neck allowed it to hold the small head above the shell, with eyes which resembled Brock's. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his Pokédex to scan his opponent:
Torkoal, The Coal Pokémon. Torkoal digs through mountains in search of coal. If it finds some, it fills hollow spaces on its shell with the coal and burns it. If it is attacked, this Pokémon spouts thick black smoke to beat a retreat. Their shells inspired medieval armor due to it durability
"A defensive fire type," he mused, putting the device away, "that's not something you see every day."
"What'cha thinking?" Flannery called out.
"Well, most fire types tend to be agile and high power," he replied, unclipping a Pokéball from his belt and enlarging it, "even something like Camerupt, I'd hardly call them it defensive and more like a power tank."
"Well don't underestimate my Torkoal, he might be able to take a hit, but he's got power to spare," she smirked, "so let's see how you handle it."
"I'll choose, Corphish!" he shouted, tossing his Pokéball up into the air. A red light shot down onto the ground. His pure water type landed on the ground and snapped his claws with a confident smirk spread across his face.
He knew that Corphish was his only type advantage today but given the strong sun, water wouldn't be as useful as originally thought. Not to mention, the rouge Pokémon hardly plays well with others. Given his lack of seriousness, starting off seemed like the best place to put him.
"A strong start, at least in terms of typing, I like it," she smirked, "so ya'll ready to bring it?"
"Cum wi bring di pain!" Corphish shouted.
He smirked at his Pokémon's abrasiveness. He never was much for trash talker, but he had to admit, having his Pokémon declare such a thing really does get his blood pumping. Even if only Torkoal out of his opponents understood it. With a narrowed gaze, he glanced to the side where Norman stood.
"Corphish verses Torkoal," Norman declared, "let the battle begin!"
Ash verses Flannery: Round One
He smiled as the pure water type leaped forward. With glowing claws, water spewed out around them. Bringing one down onto the fire types head, he landed right in front. Quickly delivering a second claw straight to the side of his neck. A field of smoke exhaled out from Torkoal.
Scurrying back across the field, he noticed the pure water type coughing. Using his crab hammer to wash his face from the black smoke.
"Look out!" he called out.
A series of flames shot out from the coal Pokémon. Engulfing the ground as his Corphish attempted to escape.
"Water gun to put out the flames!" he instructed.
Spinning on a heel as the flames surrounded him, Corphish extended both claws. A jet of water shot out of both sides extinguishing the flames.
As the flames disappeared, the field was revealed to be scorched. The two Pokémon stared off, with Corphish snapping his claws in anger, "mi tink a fire type did mean tuh bring di heat!"
Extending his neck upwards, the pure fire type opened his mouth. He noticed white balls of solar energy floating into his shell.
"Bubble beam in the face!" he shouted.
The water type opened both claws. Two beams of high-powered barrage of bubbles shot out. Smashing straight into Torkoal's face.
Withdrawing into the shell, Flannery's coal Pokémon became a shell on the scorched field. Spinning around on the spot, he began moving across the field with a grey outline around the base. His lips pinched together; gyro ball was hardly a threat to Corphish but no doubt she's testing the waters.
"Try and knock him back with crab hammer!" he shouted.
Throwing himself forward, his rouge Pokémon tried to smash his claws into the slow-moving shell. It bounced off and he was sent flying from the impact, landing on his side. While the Coal Pokémon exited from the spinning shell, facing him once more.
"Enough fun and games," she smirked, "let's set the stage."
Rearing up onto his hind legs, the pure fire type smashed them back down. With a light tremor, several rock pillars extended out of the ground.
Clenching his fist, he frowned. Stealth rocks would punish him for any substitutions, and he hardly had a way to get rid of them.
With a deep breath, he shot out a stream of flames. A fire tornado weaved in and out of the rock pillars, leaving a wall of fire in it's path.
"Careful Corphish," he shouted, "they're trying to lead you straight down. Cut off many of your attack options."
"Suh wi attack from above?" he turned to look at him.
"Just be careful," he replied, "chances are they're ready for whichever attack pattern we use."
His pure water type pointed his claws down and shot out a water gun from each. Shooting high into the air, above the flames and rocks. Flying over the field, water rained down over the field, extinguishing the trail of flames but not the fire spin. Adjusting his jets, moved him over the fire type.
Ending his water guns, his two claws glew white. Water squirted around them as he spun, falling back down.
It was difficult to make out between the remaining flames and rocks, but he saw his rouge Pokémon land straight down. Although it was mostly on the shell, so he assumed it wasn't nearly as effective. Opening his claws, he slashed at the neck with vice grip.
Stamping back and forth, the coal Pokémon knocked his pure water type off. With a swing of the neck, he launched out a blob of purple sludge.
It drenched his pure water type as he stood up. A purple mark formed over his face, wobbling back and forth. The sludge alite from the fire trail.
"Get back over here, Corphish!" he shouted.
As fast as his feet could carry him, he charged over. Torkoal returned to building up a solar beam. Glancing up to the sky, he saw blazing sun and his eyes widened, reach down to his belt to unclip a Pokéball, "return Corphish!"
Holding his device out, a red light shot out. It engulfed his pure water type, sucking him back inside. Moments later, the fully powered solar beam shot out straight where he once stood. He blinked in surprise at the sheer power blowing out from the move. No-doubt that would've finished off the rouge Pokémon.
"Corphish has been returned by his trainer," Norman declared, "we'll continue with a new round once the challenger has picked their next Pokémon."
He sighed in relief and turned to glance back at his device. It was obvious that had he been a couple seconds slower, then he would be down one Pokémon already. Clipping the device back to his belt, his hand hovered over the two remaining Pokéballs.
His team selected have all had their own independence which is what he's been planning on. From what he knew of Flannery, she was a fairly new gym leader and remembering when he was new, several gym leaders used his own inexperience to trap him. Hopefully seeing them argue or ignore him would put her in a safe sense of security. Since this is his first gym in Hoenn, using only his team caught in Hoenn, he knew he needed to play the leader as much as her team.
"Careful when you come out, they've set up stealth rocks which'll hit you upon entry," he whispered to the device, tossing it up into the air, "Kirlia, I choose you!"
In a flash of light, his psychic fairy type materialised in the air. Landing down on one knee, she glanced up and narrowed her eyes on the coal Pokémon. The rock pillars shot up out of the ground and flew towards her. Zooming past, they knocked into her before replanting themselves in the ground.
"A Kirlia? I can honestly say that wasn't what I was expecting," the gym leader mused, "no ground type. Or rock type? Even another water type."
"We don't need type advantage to win," he smirked.
"The pride of youth," she smirked back, "but in case you missed it, we're already one up on you."
"Last I checked, we've both got all three Pokémon remaining," he retorted, "and you're not much older than me."
"Touché," she narrowed her gaze, "I assume you're ready for this."
"Kirlia," he mentally called out, "I need you to make a scene before we start. Pretend to be angry with me."
"Because they won't understand a word I'm saying, I'm just gonna yell some random nonsense at you!" she cried out, turning to face him whilst stamping her foot down. He glanced behind her to see confusion on both Flannery's face and Torkoal's.
"Flannery or the humans can't understand you, but Torkoal can, so follow my lead," he mentally instructed. Following on in his regular voice, "I told you that I couldn't promise you'd go first. Corphish made the best choice in the moment."
"I am not some sort of electric type diva that rides along on your shoulder!" she retorted, crossing her arms in defiance, "and needs constant reassurance-"
"Hey," Pikachu pipped up from the side-lines. Glancing to the side, he saw Serena sat with her own Kirlia sat on her lap.
"Look, can we just talk about this later and focus on our battle now?" he asked.
"Fine," she humped, blowing some air up into her green hair. Crouching low, she entered a battle stance.
"Ya'll finished?" the gym leader asked, a smirk on her face, "this'll be even easier than I expected."
Inwardly smirking, he glanced to the side to see their stand-in referee. Norman corked his head to the side with a narrowed gaze. His lips pinched together with a slight frown. Only for a moment before raising both arms up, taking up a more stoic expression.
"Kirlia verses Torkoal," Norman declared, "let the battle resume!"
Ash verses Flannery: Round Two
"I want you to do the exact opposite of my verbal commands," he mentally instructed, "alright Kirlia, we need to keep our distance. Use Teleport to move around the field. Throw Torkoal off from where you're coming from!"
He smirked as she charged forward straight through the nearby rocks surrounding Torkoal. The female gym leader blinked in surprise, unsure what they were doing. Although Torkoal reacted quicker, launching a flamethrower straight towards her.
"He has both toxic and gyro ball," he mentally informed, "so proceed with caution."
She swirled around, setting up a psychic shield. The flames burst around her, as she proceeded closer. With a skidding stop, she pushed the ESP forward.
A psychic wave blew back, keeping the flamethrower at bay. Knocking the pure fire type back, the shell smashed into one of the rock pillars.
Falling onto his stomach, he spewed out a blob of toxic sludge. Kirlia spun around with ESP radiating out from her.
Grabbing the toxic bomb, she spun, and it swirled around her, under complete control. Landing on one knee, she sent the toxic straight into Torkoal's face.
Despite being inflicted with his own badly poison status, the coal Pokémon withdrew into his shell. Spinning around, a grey outline surrounded his base.
"Stand your ground and block it!" he shouted.
On cue, she spun on a heel, charging back towards him. Easily moving faster than their opponent, who leaped out of the spinning state. A powerful flamethrower followed suit. She jump rolled to the side, avoiding the burning streams of flames.
"We need to cover ourselves for the next attack, otherwise we won't get through that defence," he instructed, "use magical leaf on the flames."
Standing back up, she spun around on the spot. Several glowing leaves shot out of her, swirling straight into the flamethrower.
It only took a few seconds before a thick black cloud of burnt leaves surrounded the field. A wave of ESP captured the cloud and moved over to Torkoal.
The flames stopped spewing out as it was difficult to make anything out. Kirlia quickly sent out a separate wave of ESP. Flying upwards, Torkoal helplessly went flying through the air. She crossed her arms with a smirk as he came back down.
Smashing into the ground, the pure fire type weakly exited his shell. Stepping back towards his trainer, the coal Pokémon collapsed.
"Torkoal's unable to battle," Norman declared, "meaning the winners are Ash and his Kirlia."
He smiled and kneeled down, petting the psychic fairy type on the head but her judgement look made him stop. With a roll of her eyes, the fallen pure fire type disappeared from beside them in a red light. Standing up, he stared straight at the gym leader.
"Huh, even with an attitude problem, your Kirlia proved tougher than she looks," Flannery humped, "but sheer luck won't do good against my others."
"You really think it was luck?" he asked, quirking an eyebrow up.
"Obviously," she shrugged with exaggerated actions. She held her hands to the side and slightly tilted her head to the side, "I would've thought a trainer with your experience would've smoothed out the edges, but sometimes blind confidence is uncurable."
"Big talk," he smirked, standing back up in his trainer's box. He glanced down to the emotion Pokémon stood by his side, "are you done stalling or do we need to wait to continue this battle."
"You little-" she bite her tongue, shaking her head, "light 'em up, Houndoom!"
In a flash of light, a familiar looking canine Pokémon materialised. A black, shining fur coat covered the body, different to the rough and tough one his own Houndoom had from the years in the wild, with an orange underbelly and snout. Small red eyes and a black nose made up the rest of the face, which twitched with a low growl. Around the neck was a white band with a small skull-shaped pendant on the throat. While each ankle had two bands, as well as three rib-like ridges across the back, it was the long-pointed tail swaying back and forth which caught his attention. His Houndoom's tail had small scars and nic's from his adventurous days but this one looked brand new. Three claws on each paw clenched into the field. Glancing to the top of the head, his suspicions were confirmed. The long pair of curved, grey horns were loosely pointed to the side although given the size, he was clearly male. Despite knowing a lot about the species from his own, he pulled out his Pokédex for the latest information on his new opponent:
Houndoom, The Dark Pokémon. The final evolved form of Houndour. They spew flames mixed with poison to finish off their opponents. They divvy up their prey evenly among the members of their pack. Folklore from the past claimed their burns to be the worst inflicted from any fire types
"This isn't good, Kirlia, Houndoom are no joke," he mentally instructed, studying their opponent as he slipped the device back into his pocket. Despite the hardened glare, with slightly twitchy nose, he noticed the trembling body most, "I don't think this one was a pack alpha so we're good in that sense. But we can't take it lightly."
"Whether it was or wasn't, I can handle it," she declared, "I know you've got one but that doesn't mean it could beat me. Although I am curious, how can you tell he wasn't the leader?"
"Firstly, lack of battle scars. You only become an alpha in a pack through battle," he explained, "but secondly, the way he holds himself. He's ready to pounce at any moment. An experienced leader has as much patience as ferocity. If I had to guess, she raised this one from an egg."
"I see your scared," Flannery's voice cut through him, "want to give up already?"
"Nope, and I wouldn't say I was scared," he replied, "more underwhelmed."
"Excuse me?!" she stomped her foot down.
"I've got a Houndoom myself, but he was a pack leader," he smirked, "evident by the reminiscence of battles past on his horns, tail, fur-coat. He takes pride in every flaw but your's is so well groomed that... I doubt he ever spent one day in the wild."
"My granddad gave me his egg, bred from his own Houndoom who was an alpha," she replied, "he's got the blood of a leader and that's more than enough."
"We'll see," he smirked, "you up for a second battle Kirlia?"
"Gladly," she smirked, walking forward.
The canine Pokémon crouched low. His eyes fixated on them, nearly closed by the ever-flinching snout. Wrinkles formed on his forehead as a lite flicker of flames appeared within his mouth. It was clear the dark fire type was angered by the disrespectful talking.
"Kirlia verses Houndoom," Norman declared, "let the battle begin!"
Ash verses Flannery: Round Three
Max's eyes widened as the dark Pokémon leaped forward. Kirlia ran and dived behind one of the rock pillars, avoiding the initial impact. Turning on a heel, their opponent leapt at her, but Ash's psychic fairy type continued to dance between the stealth rocks, leading him along.
"Something doesn't feel right," he muttered.
A shadow ball and moonblast went flying across the fields between the rock pillars. The two moves collided, cancelling each other out.
"What do you mean, Max?" Brock asked.
"Well Ash is acting weird," he mused, "he's always been confident but it's like he's putting Flannery down. Something isn't right."
A spew of flames shot around the outer field of the stealth rocks. Closing in like a sort of forest fire, Kirlia came running into centre field.
"I wouldn't worry too much, Max," Serena interjected, "it's all about Ash's strategy."
Houndoom pounced forward, landing on top of the emotions Pokémon who went running from the flames. She quickly blew a kiss upwards with bright pink-fairy type energy filled lips. Momentarily stunned, he was unable to stop her shooting a moonblast straight up into his stomach.
"I hope your right," May added, "because right now, it looks like Houndoom's out for blood."
With their opponent knocked sideways, she rolled onto her knees with a narrowed gaze. Psychic energy burst out through her eyes.
"Hmm..." he mused.
One of the stealth rocks broke into dozens of sharply pointing rocks, each surrounded by ESP. Flying forward straight towards the canine opponent.
"What is it, Max?" Serena asked.
Weaving in and out of the remaining rocks, the makeshift stone-edge continued to fly forward. With the majority hit the remaining rock pillars.
He continued to run around the field, avoiding the flying rocks as Kirlia stood centre field. Controlling the rocks with pin-point accuracy. With a deep breath, he shot a shadow ball straight at her. Snapping her head in that direction, she redirected the rocks to smash through the ghost type projectile.
Houndoom shot towards her, landing with a powerful flamethrower. Engulfing both Pokémon in flames, Kirlia's cries accompanying them.
A blast of esp radiated out from the two Pokémon, blowing the flames away. Houndoom, however, wasn't affected in the slightest.
"Are Ash and Kirlia communicating through that mental link thing?" he asked, "Kirlia's reacting quicker than she normally does. And Ash hasn't said anything in this round yet. He's acting like a completely different person in this battle."
The canine's mouth foamed with dark type energy. With a deep breath, it was clear a close-ranged dark pulse was the planned finisher.
"Disable!" Ash shouted.
Kirlia's eyes glew bright red and beams shot out of her pupils. Straight into Houndoom's as the dark type energy faded from his mouth.
"I think part of that is because he wants to impress your dad," Brock mused, "all will become clear at the end of today's battle."
Using the opportunity, she used another moonblast to knock him off. Standing back up with heavy panting, the two Pokémon stared at each other.
With a deep breath, Houndoom launched out a shadow ball, backed with a flamethrower. Closing her eyes, Kirlia seemed to embrace her fate. The two moves engulfed her with a fiery display engulfing her. A tint of purple coloured the explosion. With the display clearing, Kirlia was flat on her side, swirls in eyes.
"Kirlia is-" Norman stopped himself.
Houndoom whined and fell to the side. Swirls replacing his own eyes.
"Both Pokémon are unable to battle," Norman corrected, "as the gym leader, Flannery shall reveal her next Pokémon first."
Ash walked forward and kneeled down, scooping up the fallen psychic fairy type. Closing his eyes, he let out a soft breath. While they came to an agreement on her newest move, doesn't mean it hurt any less. He honestly felt like they could've spun this around if they tried.
"I call foul," Flannery declared, "it was clear Houndoom won that match."
"I have my suspicions on what happened," Norman replied, "but I'll require the challenger to explain it given the accusation."
"Destiny bond," he smirked, pulling out his Pokédex. Flicking through the device, he pulled up the statistics for his fallen partner, "if she knows she's going down, it's her last-ditch effort. A nice surprise to ensure she takes someone down with her."
"Destiny bond is an authorised move by the P.L.A," Norman handed the device back, "so the ruling from the end of the battle stands."
"So not fair," Flannery rolled her eyes as she recalled the fire dark type.
"I thought it was meant to be the gym leader's job to surprise the challenger, not the other way around," he smirked, walking back to his trainer's box. Pulling out his Pokéball, he recalled his fallen partner, "thank you for everything, Kirlia. Your hard work won't go to waste."
"Well, you won't get away with anymore cheap tricks," Flannery declared, holding a Pokéball out, "not in my gym."
"Big talk," he smirked, clipping the device back to his belt, "but can you match it?"
"Why you-" she growled, unclipping a Pokéball and tossing it high into the air, "Blaziken, light this brat up!"
In a flash of light, a bipedal Pokémon with some bird-like features materialised high above the ground. Like a meteor, it came crashing down, landing right in front of her. Hopping back and forth from one leg to another. Majority of his body was red with accents of beige, yellow, and grey. Behind his head, there are beige, hair-like feathers that continue downward and surround his chest and abdomen. He has a small red face with a V-shaped crest on his head. Blaziken's blue eyes are semi-circular with yellow sclerae, and his mouth was similar to a hooked beak. He has featherless, grey hands with three fingers each, and three clawed toes that were covered by the shaggy, yellow feathers on the bottom of his legs, only becoming visible when he performed a kick with one leg, jumping kicking his second leg and landing on his original kicking leg. His wrists had grey wristband-like markings, which burst into tufts of fire. His ankles also sprouted flames.
Ash smirked, remembering seeing Harrison's back in the silver conference and the one his Pidgeot battled atop of mount chimney. He knew they were powerful, which excited him. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out his Pokédex:
Blaziken, The Blaze Pokémon. Final evolved form of Torchic. In battle, Blaziken blows out intense flames from its wrists and attacks foes courageously. The stronger the foe, the more intensely this Pokémon's wrists burn
"Man, I was hoping to face one of these," he smiled, "I've seen a few but never really got the chance to properly battle one. My Pidgeot did but-"
"Are you just gonna stroll down memory lane or are we actually gonna battle?" she asked, crossing her arms.
Inwardly smirking, he reached down to his belt, unclipping the final Pokéball he selected for this battle. Whilst this was the biggest risk, he knew that he had successfully implemented his plan against Flannery... after how many times his attitude hindered his battles, using it against someone else was rather fun.
"I'll choose, Seviper," he shouted, tossing his Pokéball up into the air, "let's go!"
His newest team member materialised and turned to face him with narrowed eyes. She stared directly at him before making a side glance to the stand where his girlfriend sat. He knew she wanted Zangoose, but Serena made a point of keeping him at the lab for safe keeping. He couldn't understand what possessed Serena to catch him, but she just claimed it wasn't like it seemed and if her normal type gave permission, she'd reveal his side of the story.
"Look Seviper," he drew her attention, "this is the gym battle I told you about. Your already plenty strong so this should be fun for you."
"And you think we're friends now?" she hissed, the long tongue slivering out.
"I know it'll take more for you to trust me, and like I said, if you can get over your tendency to hurt others and live in peace I'll gladly return you back to that route where we met," he replied, "I just thought this would be a good way for you to have a fun battle without life or death situations."
"I'll battle," she hissed, "but you need to accept. I didn't kill for fun. I had no other choice."
"There is always a choice," he sighed.
"Such sentiment... it'll kill you one way or another," she replied, turning around and slivering across the field, "you know that, right?"
"Maybe... but I wouldn't have it any other way," he replied, raising his voice so the others could hear, "now get ready. I'll be here to help out, but I also want to see how you handle a tougher opponent like this. It'll be a good test for your skill."
"Test?" Flannery called out, "you think this is some sort of game?"
"Well, Seviper and I haven't really had a real opponent yet," he smirked, "I suppose your better than nothing."
"We'll make you regret that," she narrowed her eyes, "I'll have you know, Blaziken here was my starter way back. We aren't some second-rate trainer."
The fire fighting type nodded with a cry of his own. Slamming a closed fist into his open hand. With a narrowed gaze of his own, he swiped one of his legs back, bending the front one. Entering a pose like he was about to run a race. A quick glance to the side showed Norman raised both his arms.
"Seviper verses Blaziken," Norman declared, "let the battle begin."
Ash verses Flannery: Round Four
He bite down on his inner cheek as he watched the two Pokémon charge forward. Blaziken was far quicker but Seviper hardly seemed fazed, pre-emting their impact by throwing her tail forward. The tip glowing with a bright purple poison.
Skidding to the side, Blaziken spun his feet around. Delivering one kick to get his serpent into the air, followed by another to push her away.
The pure poison type constricted her body, wrapping around the second leg as it made impact. With a purple tint, she slammed her fangs down.
With a cry of pain, the fully evolved starter crouched down. Leaping up into the air, Seviper was thrown off about halfway up. She began to fall.
Above the falling poison type, a giant fire ball formed. Charging straight down, it caught her, and the duo smashed into the ground. A fiery explosion consumed the two Pokémon. Blaziken jumped back next to his trainer as Seviper was revealed. Pushing herself up with burn marks, she hissed angrily.
"Don't let it get to you, Seviper," he called out, "lose focus and you'll allow an opening for them to attack."
Blaziken charged forward with glowing fists. Narrowing her gaze, she ducked to the side, letting their opponent charged past her.
With a glowing tail, she smashed it into his chest. Stumbling backwards, his serpent used the opening and leaped forward. Digging her fangs into his forearm.
Her body swung around and wrapped around the main body. She smashed her poison tail into the back of his leg as he crouched down, causing him to fall.
Raising her head up towards his face, she let out a thick black smoke into his face. A series of coughs followed as both Pokémon disappeared from sight.
A series of cries came from the unseen-battle. Due to the voice, they were mostly from their opponent. A red tint flashed within the smoke before a shockwave spewed out. He guessed the combination of some exhaled poison and fire caused the explosion.
Seviper rolled in front of him, weakly opening her eyes. With a wincing expression she pushed herself up and turned back to the smoke field.
Blaziken came charging out of the smoke and delivered a powerful uppercut. Jumping after his serpent, Blaziken took a surprise tail to the gut.
Using the opening, she wrapped her body back around him, tightly squeezing the air out as they fell back to the field. His eyes widened at a potential future threat from this opponent, "use gastro acid!"
Stumbling around, the fire fighting type tried to pull her off. The grip was too tight. With a hurling expression, she threw up a toxic acid all over him.
"If you can't pull it off, then flare blitz!" Flannery commanded.
Running across the field and away from him, they charged straight into one of the rock pillars. Flames consuming both Pokémon upon impact.
Blaziken stumbled backwards with recoil static jumping around his body. Seviper slowly pushing herself up around the crumbled debris. He first noticed a purple mark over their opponent's face, as he stood, slightly slouched, with heavy panting.
If he had to guess, blaze would be kicking in soon if not for gastro acid. Looking around, an idea popped into his head.
"Whack the rocks with your tail!" he shouted. Both Pokémon clearly fight close up but with limited options, he needs something knew right now.
With a blowing purple tip, she swiped her tail down. Sending the sharp pointed rocks flying towards their opponent, he crippled over as one by one they hit.
"Heh, I see you found our other use for those rocks," Flannery smirked, "entry damage is nice but they're really there in case someone brings a flying type against Blaziken. Breaking up the rocks is easy enough for him and gives us another attacking method."
"Why are you-" he stopped himself, turning back to the battle.
The fire fighting type was down on one knee. Closed eyes as each rock smashed or skimmed past his body. A red outline surrounded him.
He knew it couldn't be his blaze ability now... which meant it was some sort of boosting move like focus energy or something.
"Careful Seviper-" It was too late.
A pale blue tint coloured the outline as the blaze Pokémon charged forward. Delivering a swift punch in the face, followed by a round house kick.
His pure poison type was knocked to the side. In one swift movement, he grabbed her tail just below the dragger. With a vicious display, he swung her around, smashing her back into the ground. Without hesitation repeating, blow after blow.
In the blink of an eye, he tossed her sideways. Her body smashing into one of the still standing stealth rocks. She fell down to it's base. Swirls in her eyes.
He took a moment to take in Blaziken's appearance as he walked back over to his trainer. Panting heavily with a slouch in his posture. He turned to reveal a purple mark across his face and an ill-ridden expression covering his once serious face.
"Seviper is unable to battle," Norman declared, "making the winners of this round, the gym leader Flannery and her Blaziken."
He sighed and held his Pokéball out, recalling his fallen poison type. He truly hoped she was alright. After the commotion atop mount chimney, she made it clear she enjoyed the chance to battle. Even if not in life-or-death situations... overall, they are in a weird place as Pokémon and trainer. Somewhat similar to his early relationship with Sandslash but it's not quite the same either. Closing his eyes, he touched the device against his forehead
"Thank you, Seviper, you did exactly what I needed you to do," he whispered towards the device. Shrinking it down, he clipped it too his belt.
"Hurry up already!" Flannery called out, "we already know who your only remaining Pokémon is so let's get this going already!"
Inwardly smirking, his hand fell to his belt. Snatching the device containing his already battle worn water type and enlarging it in his hand. He guessed she wouldn't want to waste much time given the poison status Seviper inflicted, and his previous attitude has put her on edge.
"Corphish, I choose you!" he shouted, tossing the device forward. In a flash of light, his rouge Pokémon landed on the field. Crossing his claws in front of his face, the remaining stealth rocks shot out of the ground and smashed into him repositioning across the field, "you alright for another round."
"Yuh insult mi," he snapped his claws in response, "mi cud handle a hundred more battles!"
He smiled at the enthusiasm from the pure water type. Corphish still had a purple mark across his face, but he seemed well rested since that first round. He just hoped that this battle of endurance would end in their favour. Heh, it's funny how despite neither current Pokémon having a way to poison each other
"Corphish verses Blaziken," Norman declared, "due to both trainer's being down to their last Pokémon. This round shall decide the match. Begin!"
Ash verses Flannery: Round Five
He watched as Blaziken charged forward. Opening his claws, he shot out two streams of bubble beams. Crouching low, he leaped high into the air, effortlessly avoiding the two water moves. Turning his claws upwards, he attempted to shoot their opponent down once more.
With arms spread wide, a tint of flying type energy surrounded the falling fire fighting type. Swooping under his bubble beams, he dived on them.
Crossing his claws over his face, a hardening shine shimmered across his body. The rouge Pokémon was knocked back from the initial impact.
His claws glew white and water spewed out. Move for move, he blocked the oncoming acrobatic strikes, deflecting each blow. Causing him to stumble back.
Using the opening, his Corphish leaped up, reaching Blaziken's head. With a wide-open claw, aiming to end with a guillotine aimed for the neck.
A reddish-orange outline of fighting type energy surrounded the fully evolved starter. Striking the water types stomach, he tossed him over his shoulder, avoiding the finishing move. His rouge Pokémon smashed into one of the rock pillars, sliding down to the field. Slowly, pushing himself up with open claws.
"Oi Kfc, return tuh yuh bargin bucket!" his pure water type shouted, shooting out two water guns. Direct into the fire fighting types back.
He knew water gun was stronger than bubble beam, but it lacked the same sort of reach. With a grunt a pain, the fully evolved started leapt into the air.
His rouge Pokémon quickly turned his water guns into bubble beams. Following the ascending opponent, his aim wasn't quite on target.
"Switch it swift!" he shouted.
Shaking his claws, he opened them up once more. Golden sparkling starts shot out, firing up into the air, seeking out the blaze Pokémon.
Striking the airborne Pokémon, a cry of pain followed. Corphish ended his assault, sweating buckets with heavy panting. Clearly feeling his poison status. A glance up to the sky showed the fully evolved starter diving down. A stream of flames spinning around covering the entire field.
"Bubble beam straight up and use the rock for cover!" he shouted.
Aiming his two claws up, he shot out two more streams of bubbles. Piercing through the flames, he seemed to be in the eye of the fire storm.
Raising his arms, he had to step back from the flames. Peeking through the intense heat, he could barely make out anything other than fire.
Forcing himself to look through as the flames disappeared, he found Blaziken bringing down his foot. Destroying the rock Corphish used for cover.
Leaping to the side, his pure water type attempted to shoot out a double water gun. Their opponent jumped back, overhead, landing right behind. He attempted to follow him with the water sprinkling down over the burning battlefield.
Swiping a foot underneath, he swiped the rouge Pokémon away. Both Pokémon skidded to a stop, slouched, sweating heavily with matching panting.
"Aim water gun straight up!" he shouted.
Without wasting a second, he shot the two jets of water up into the air. Their opponent zoomed across the distance, punching him in the face. The two lots of water collided above the field, causing a light rain over the field. The flames dying down as both Pokémon ended up soaked.
"Yuh getting nyam up," Corphish taunted, "should ave battle mi pan ramadan."
Narrowing his eyes, the fully evolved fire fighting type charged. Running forward, his pure water type slided, sailing underneath the blaze Pokémon.
Jumping off a loose bit of rock, he spun his glowing claw around. Water spewed out over the appendage. Delivering a crab hammer straight into the back of his head. Knocking the starter down into the muddy-field, landing on the back.
Blaziken rolled over onto his back, attempting a kick-up. Corphish landed on his chest, smashing him back down onto the field.
Pointing his claws directing into his face. The pure water type delivered to water guns straight into their opponents face. It only lasted a few momements until he walked off the downed opponent, panting heavily with Slugma-ish movements.
"Dat... a ow yuh bring di heat," he declared.
"Blaziken is unable to battle," Norman declared, "because the gym leader is out of Pokémon, she has lost. The victor of this match is the challenger!"
Chuckling at the water types final declaration, he made his way over the field. Grabbing the rouge Pokémon as he finally collapsed, he brought him up in a cradle hug, "thank you, Corphish. You really went above and beyond. I couldn't ask for more from you."
"Yuh welcome," he uttered.
Smiling down, he reached to his belt. Pulling out his Pokéball, he quickly recalled his team member and stood up. Flannery stood over him as he clipped the device back to his belt. She had her arms crossed and a frown on her face.
"You know, kid, I have half a mind to decline your victory after your attitude during the battle and your... questionable, victory over Houndoom," she grunted.
"Hehehe," he nervously chuckled, scratching the back of his head, "sorry about that. It's just, I knew Corphish alone wouldn't be enough to beat you and he's my only Hoenn Pokémon with a type advantage. So, I decided to try something that had been used against me in the past. I saw some rashness in your interaction with Norman and since my three Pokémon are all pretty independent, liking to do things in their own way. I just couldn't resist the opportunity."
"Well don't just think about doing it too me again," she lost her frown into a reluctant smile. Holding her hand out, she revealed a badge which looked like a single flame, coloured, yellow on the top tip, orange near the centre and reddish near the bottom. A circular pin at the base which was a warm-purple mixed with the fiery colours, "I guess you can take this heat badge."
"Thank you, Flannery," he chuckled, picking up the gym badge. Holding it up, he saw the sun light shimmer off, giving the illusion of a real flame. Taking out his badge case, he pinned it into the final slot of the top row. He smiled at the sight of his case already half full. Closing the case, he turned back towards the red-haired gym leader, "and don't worry, Flannery. Playing the mind games just felt a little weird so I doubt I'll go back to that strategy again."
"Sounds like your just as rash, if you rushed into that plan without thinking it through," she smirked, "but this is where I must take my leave. I've gotta get the field ready for this afternoon and I assume your friends will wanna do more than stand around here for the rest of the day."
"Right," he smiled with a nod.
Turning around, he made his way over to his friends. With each of them giving him a quick word of praise, they set off back towards the Pokémon centre.
Ash stood off to the side, outside of the Pokémon centre. It was the day after his gym battle with Flannery and Norman was with his two kids, bidding them goodbye. He couldn't help but smile at the scene, remembering his own parents. The normal type specialist stood up after engulfing both of them in a hug and looked towards him. Realising the silent request, he made his way over to him.
"I believe your next gym battle will be Petalburg, right?" he asked.
"Yeah," he nodded, "it's the last gym on the mainland I need to challenge. It only makes sense."
"Right," he smiled, "well I'll be sure to make this ready for you. And I think I've got a worthy challenge for you."
"Great," he smiled, "the tougher the better. I look forward to it."
"You'll be facing my strongest Pokémon... he's easily on the level of elite four Pokémon," he explained, "and you'll have the chance to use three Pokémon. I want to see what sort of strategy you can produce to counter him."
"Why are you telling me?" he asked.
"Because I already know the stipulations, so you should too," he smiled, "I want to see the extent of your experience."
"We won't disappoint," he nodded.
Receiving a nod from the normal type specialist, he turned around and gave his two kids a parting hug once more. Not wanting to interrupt their parting more than he already has, he turned and entered the centre. Walking over towards the video phones where Serena sat.
"You sent Sylveon to the lab?" he asked, drawing her attention as well as the Professor's, who was on the screen.
"I have," she nodded, "but Pikachu won't let me hang up yet. I think he's got something to tell you."
He turned towards the pure electric type, who stood on the desk with the video-phone. His starter was wondering back and forth, clearly muttering to himself, but it wasn't like he could make anything out. Raising his hand, he coughed into his fist to draw the mouse Pokémon's attention.
"Hey bud, Serena says you won't let her hang up," he greeted, "ya'll know we need to get going. And the professor is very busy."
"Send me back," he stated.
"Wait wha-" he uttered, blinking. Staring down at his starter, he looked deep into his eyes as his brows wrinkled, pulled together. He was chewing on the inside of his cheek with his pupils darting around. With a hard swallow, he let out a long breath.
"She's carrying my kids, Ash," he sighed, "I can't let her do that on her own. I ran off from my brother before... I can't do that too them as well."
"She won't be alone... she's got Professor Oak, Gary, Leaf, Daisy-"
"None of them are the parents!" he snapped, sparking his cheeks. Taking a deep breath, he blinked as a tear escaped down his cheek, "please... just send me too the lab before I lose the nerve."
"You know the only way for me to send you back today is by returning you too your Pokéball?" he muttered.
"I know... and I'm willing to do it," he sighed, "for my kids."
"Sounds like you're going to want to make some rotations yourself, Ash," Professor Oak spoke up, "if you don't mind. Tell me which Pokémon you'd like, and I can get them ready on this-"
"Daddy!"
"T-Togetic?" he blinked. Glancing down he saw the resolve in his starters eyes, with a hard swallow, he glanced back to the screen. He knew his mind was already made up, "erm, yeah Professor. Could I get Togetic, Duskull and Grovyle please. I'll send Pikachu, Pidgeot and Seviper."
Seeing the professor disappear from the screen, he slid his backpack off. Unzipping it, he searched through and found a single Pokéball which sat neatly at the bottom. Enlarging it, he placed it down on his table next to his starter.
"Are you sure about this Pikachu?" he asked, "once we set off. We don't know when we'll get a chance to rotate you both back in. We're heading off to the desert for Max again and then taking the valley of steel as a shortcut to Verdanturf."
"I've never been more sure about anything," he sighed, "besides... you're a big boy now. You don't need Lil ole me to keep you on the straight and narrow."
"Okay then..." he sighed, "hey erm, could you do me a favour at the lab?"
"Course," he offered a weak smile.
"I want to use Granbull in the battle with Norman," he explained, "do you think you can get her ready?"
"I'll get her ready to fight even Groundon or Kyogre," he smirked, "and speaking of them-"
"You don't need worry about them now," he sighed, "just focus on Sylveon and your eggs. 'Kay, buddy?"
"I was just gonna say, don't have any giant legendary kaiju battles without me," he smirked, "we both know that's where this entire mess is heading."
"If it's up to me, we won't let it get that far," he sighed.
Glancing to the screen, he saw the Professor returning. With one more silent goodbye, his starter tapped his tail against the device. Feeling every pound of his heart against his chest, he picked up the device and placed it on the transport unit. In a flash of light, it was gone, a friend ball sat in it's place. Blinking, he wiped away the tears forming in his eyes and quickly swapped his other two Pokémon. With a swift goodbye, they ended the call.
"How you feeling?" his girlfriend asked.
"What would you say if I said I didn't know?" he asked.
"I'd think you was being honest," she embraced him in a hug, "I know this is your first time since meeting him that he won't be by your side. But that's not a judgement on you. If anything, I think it shows how mature you both are. Both of you are making the right decision for the unborn kids."
"Thank you, Serena," he whispered, returning the show of affection.
"So can I ask why you've brought Togetic over?" she asked.
"Well... I wanted to send Seviper to the lab so you could spend more time with Zangoose," he replied, "and... I miss the little guy. It just felt right. What about you, who have you brought over?"
"Mostly the Hoenn team," she mused, "Cacnea, Dustox, Meditite, Kirlia, Zangoose and Bagon. But also, Murkrow."
"No Feebas?" he asked.
"No," she shook her head, "her performance with Kingdra and Dewgong is the most complete. So, I wanted them to put on the finishing touches ready for either Verdanturf or Rustboro when we pass back through."
"I take it you two are ready to go?" a familiar voice asked. Releasing their embrace, he turned to see Brock stood there with a smile on his face. His browl flicked down with his lips for a brief second, "where's Pikachu, Ash?"
"He decided to join Sylveon at the lab," he sighed, "not wanting to be away from his kids."
"I can understand that," he nodded, "when you're a parent... they become the most precious thing in the world. I know I'm not their father but all my brother's and sister's back in Pewter are like my own. I'd do anything for them."
"We know you would Brock," Serena smiled, "you're the best older brother anyone could ask for."
"Thanks," he smiled, "oh and speaking of Sylveon. Since she wants to have the eggs with our little family here in Hoenn. I've picked up a couple books on the delivery process. I'll do my best to learn everything I can, so we'll deliver the eggs safe and sound."
"You didn't need to do that Brock," she replied.
"I was just gonna keep Pidgeot or someone on hand," Ash shrugged, "then when the time came, we could fly over to the nearest Pokémon centre."
"That works too," he smirked, "but I wanted this to be an option. If I'm going to be a Pokémon doctor, I'll need to learn this stuff at some point anyway."
"Well, we should get going," Serena sighed, a content smile resting upon her face, "we don't want to just waste the whole day stood around here chatting."
"I'm guessing your excited about the chance to compete in another showcase?" Brock asked.
"Of course," she smiled, leading the way out of the Pokémon centre.
"But we need to get there first," Ash noted, "so Brock. Who did you end up bringing over?"
"I didn't make any changes," he shrugged, "so my current line-up is the same, Vigoroth, Mudkip, Aron, Electrike, Trapinch and Solrock. I mostly just wanted to check on the others back in Pewter. Lombre seems to be having fun with a lot of my younger siblings."
"I can imagine," he smiled, as they passed through the doors. Both May and Max were stood against the wall, waiting for them, as Norman disappeared down the path. The duo quickly made their way over to them.
"You guys ready to get going?" Serena asked.
"Sure am!" Max jumped, "desert resort, here we come!"
"Hang on guys, I want ya'll to meet someone first," he smiled, holding his friend ball in hand, "come on out and say hi, Togetic!"
In a flash of light, his fairy flying type materialised. Swooping around all of them with a bright smile on his face, sparkles sprinkled behind him. He turned around and shot back into the raven-haired boy. The two engulfing each other in a warm hug. A wide smile taking over Ash's face.
Thanks for reading... Please Favourite, Follow and Review. Also, feel free to ask any questions through PM, I will answer them all, although don't expect too big of spoilers. Don't forget to vote in the polls. I really appreciate the support. Thank you and see ya next time...