I watched from the replay of yesterday's matches on the T.V as Ash's Mawile caught Dusknoir with her fake mouth in a deadly Crunch and then shook him brutally with Play Rough. The combo seemed to be too much for the poor ghost because he soon fainted afterward.
"He is very good," Tobias commented beside me. "Mawile and the Hitmontop he had used against Conway's Lickilicky, were traded to him only a year ago and he has already trained them to this level..."
"Yes, he is," I agreed. "Still you can see the difference between the level of his older pokemon, like Tauros, and the newer ones."
"I do, Conway's Shuckle fainted after only a Surf and Fissure from Ash's Tauros," Tobias answered. "May I know why you summoned me, Champion Lance Wataru?"
"Why so formal? I thought we were allies now," I turned to him with a sharp smile.
"Yet your eyes look as if you are about to eat me alive," Tobias replied with a bemused smile. "Look, I know what I did was not right. I acted like an asshole and almost ruined Sinnoh's opportunity to get rid of Team Galactic."
"You also put Ash's family and friends in danger, not to mention Ash himself!" I snapped, barely being able to contain my contempt towards him.
"I know..." Tobias sighed sadly. "I don't want to give excuses, I know they are useless. However, you need to realize how desperate I am. Team Rocket had been wreaking havoc on my region for decades." I winced at the reminder that my failure to contain Team Rocket had not only affected my region but others too. "We never had a league like yours to protect us from them and keep them in line, they own us! I wanted to stop that and when I heard of The Slayer I could not stop myself. I never thought that The Slayer would be a fifteen years old boy!"
"I wouldn't have either..." I reluctantly agreed with him, hating that I was giving in to the guy that turned my little brother's life upside down. But I was no hypocrite to criticize him about something I would have not known myself. If I had been in Tobias' shoes I would have never dared to think of the infamous and secret Slayer being a fifteen years old boy. "However, our deal still stands. You to stay away from Ash and only interact with him when you battle him, otherwise, you'll have to deal with me."
"Of course, Champion," Tobias agreed. Before we could continue with our conversation, the referee announced the first Top 8 of the day, making us both turn toward the T.V as Ash and Paul stepped onto the main arena. "A battle between mentor and mentee."
"Not really," I replied. "Paul looks up to Ash but he has never mentored a Gym Trainer, the only ones Ash ever mentored full-time were May Maple and Dawn Berlitz."
Why I am telling this guy all this? I exclaimed in my head.
"We are finally having the full battle you promised me," Paul, uncharacteristically, spoke first with a smirk full of barely contained excitement.
"I won't be holding," Ash replied with a smile of his own.
"Aggron!/Kingler!" Both trainers released their pokemon at the same time.
"Aggron, Earthquake!" Paul began, but like most of Ash's pokemon Kingler knew how to render Earthquake useless by ridding a wave from his Surf. However, Paul was not giving up and commanded next: "Rock Slide!" The rocks falling from above destabilized the Surf and forced Kingler to land a few steps away from Aggron. "Do it now!"
"It was all a trap," Tobias murmured next to me, as Kingler landed in front of Ash and was electrocuted by the vicious Thunder Punch he had just received. "He distracted Ash with Earthquake and then forced Kingler to land with Rock Slide, so Aggron could land a Thunder Punch on Kingler. After being soaked in the water from Surf, it worked as a good conduit for the Thunder Punch and made it stronger than it should be." We both winced as Aggron then released a Thunderbolt into the ground, and used the water left by the Surf as a conduit that forced Kingler to receive it at full force. "From what I investigated Ash normally does not fall for a tactic like that, what happened?"
"He must have still thought of Paul as the same boy he met at the beginning of his journey through Sinnoh," I deduced. "Attack by brute strength, who thinks that tactics like these are beneath him."
"Well, he paid for it," Tobias commented, gaining a glare from me and Scales.
"Water Speed!" Ash commanded, confusing us all.
Water Speed? I exclaimed in my head.
But that confusion was replaced by understanding when a Rain Dance and Whirlpool took over the whole battlefield. The water aided Kingler to heal a little bit and the whirlpool, while it was not able to move Aggron, it allowed Kingler to travel to his side in speed. Aggron received a Crabbhammer and a Hammer Arm point-blank one after the other.
"Even with the Rain Dance, a Kingler was able to create a Whirlpool that took over a whole battlefield?!" Tobias' jaw dropped at what he had just seen.
Serves him right! I snickered to myself.
"Aggron, Thunderbolt!" Paul commanded, making me scoff.
As if Ash would fall for the same trick twice! I exclaimed in my head.
Just as I had thought, Ash had Kingler use Ice Beam on the Whirlpool, freezing Aggron's legs in the process. The Thunderbolt hit the iced Whirlpool, releasing Aggron, but it did not harm Kingler as he had jumped away from harm. What was truly smart from Ash, was to have Kingler hide from Aggron behind the debris caused by the huge shattered ice pieces. Ash then ordered Kingler to use Scald on Aggron, who received the attack with his face. I flinched at the scream of agony that Aggron released.
"That was brutal..." Tobias commented. "Look at that, Aggron has been burned by the Scald." He pointed out to a burning red Aggron. "A few turns after and he will be done with."
"As if Ash would give him a few turns," I chuckled. "He did say he was going all out."
"Superpower!" Ash commanded, taking advantage of Aggron's flinch from the burn and finally taking down Aggron.
"It seems like you are in the lead," Paul commented as he returned Aggron.
"Not really," Ash smiled, and almost as if it had been practiced, Kingler fainted. "That was a strong Thunderbolt," Ash laughed as he returned his pokemon. "And Kingler has been training with Pikachu since the beginning!" Paul might have been trying to act cool about it, but I noticed that he was pleased by such a high compliment. "Let's do this! Squirtle!"
"Then I am choosing, Gastrodon!" Paul called out. "Earth Power!"
"Squirtle, Rapid Spin!" Ash's pokemon dodged the attack swiftly and headed towards Gastrodon with an accuracy I would not expect from someone who had his head inside his shell. "Skull Bash!" However, Paul cleverly defended his Gastrodon with Muddy Water, which forced Squirtle to take a couple of steps back. Not that Ash would take it laying down. "Stop that shield, Ice Punch!" Squirtle punched the ground, freezing the Muddy Water and rendering it useless. "Now, Ice Beam!" Before Gastrodon could move it was frozen solid. "Finish it with Aura Sphere!"
"Since when does Squirtle learn Aura Sphere?!" Tobias exclaimed in disbelief.
"His Pikachu learned Surf, of all moves, while battling Tapu Koko," I chuckled barely holding back my disbelief. "Do you need to ask?"
"He is not holding back at all! He took down Gastrodon with only a couple of moves." Tobias continued, doing what every sane person does, and ignoring the insanity that surrounds Ash.
"He did promise he will be going all out... so will he against you," I replied, not turning away from the T.V that showed Paul returning his second fainted pokemon and releasing his Drapion.
"is that a threat?" Tobias asked me warily.
"A warning," I answered with a smirk.
Ash returned his Squirtle, after hugging him and kissing his forehead, and then released his Muk.
Poison versus Poison, I'm interested in knowing how it will proceed, I thought to myself, as I returned my full attention to the match.
"Drapion, Poison Sting, and Pin Missle!" Paul ordered, and Darpion released a combination of purple and green spikes toward Muk, who did not even try to evade them and received them with ease.
"What... is that Acid Armor?" Tobias inquired in confusion. "Acid Armor doesn't work like that! It doesn't just allow you to basically swallow any attack and receive no damage!"
"Once again, this is Ash, did you expect anything else?" I asked him slowly, starting to think that Tobias was not as smart as I thought him to be.
Maybe he had some help with his plans? I thought in all seriousness. I exchanged incredulous looks with Scales. I know! Can you believe him?
"Drapion, Bulldoze!" Paul changed tactics and went for a head-on attack.
The Ground-type move did have some effect on Muk, but before any real harm could happen, Ash and Muk stopped Drapion's feet by sticking them to the ground with the use of Mud-Slap. Followed by a Flamethrower to the face and a Rock Tomb combination. A minute passed on without any movement on the battlefield, which had us all believe Drapion had fainted.
Just when the referee was going to call the round over, Paul shouted: "Now!"
From underneath Muk, Drapion came out punching his way to victory... or he would have been if Muk did not seem to be expecting it and jumped away and retaliated with a Focus Punch to the side.
"I thought he had him then," Tobias sighed, as we watched Paul return Drapion at the same time that Ash returned his Muk.
"It is hard to take Ash by surprise," I replied. "Keep that in mind, no matter how strong you think your pokemon are, Ash will find a way to turn the match around."
"I don't know if you like me or hate me," Tobias turned to me and spoke honestly. "You are threatening me one moment and giving me advice the next."
"If I am being honest neither I am," I sighed. "Part of me admires that you earned the respect and loyalty of a Darkrai, the other part of me tells me that I need to put my brotherly loyalties first."
"So, it's a toss of a coin situation," Tobias chuckled.
"Yeah, kind of," I answered honestly.
"I can't complain, I deserve it," Tobias suddenly gasped. "Ash has a shiny Noctowl?"
I turned to the T.V to see the next match-up: Ninjask vs Noctowl.
"It did not come up during your investigation?" I replied. "He is quite famous," I pointed out, and as if answering my comment various females in the crowd screamed in support. "Someone as famous as Ash having a shiny pokemon is clickbait. His fans went insane when he used him during his Hearthome Gym Battle."
"Well, I was unaware," was all Tobias said before the next battle started.
Paul began with a bang, using a Double Team, Agility, and Air Slash combination. Noctowl was forced to go on the defensive from the first second, using Substitute and illusions to confuse Ninjask and dodge. Paul seems to be losing his cool by the end, ordering Ninjask to throw Shadow Balls all over the main arena, so the ghost energy would disrupt the illusions created by a combination of Hypnosis and Confusion. It worked and the real Noctowl was revealed. However, Ash took that moment to retaliate and be on the offensive, summoning a Hurricane that erased the copies created by Ninjask and threw the real one in a bind.
"That's smart, using Aerial Ace to rid the Hurricane and evade being swept away," I commented, thinking of using it I find myself in a spot like that.
Not that it mattered, the Hurricane was a distraction, the same way Aggron's Rock Slide was at the beginning, it simply gave Noctowl the necessary time to charge for a Moonblast.
One that left a crater half the size of the main arena and a fainted Ninjask.
"A Noctowl was able to create a crater that size..." Tobias was gasping next to me, but at least this time it was a statement rather than a question.
"You know I have a question for you, is it because he is using pokemon like Kingler and Noctowl that you are making all these exclamations? Or is it because it is Ash?" I turned to him seriously. "Because I am pretty sure you've seen Water and Flying Maters achieve that level. You've seen me and Cynthia do even bigger things."
"A bit of both honestly," he answered after a few seconds of stunned silence. "I think what most surprises me is that a fifteen years old boy is capable of doing so."
"Ash is a Master," I pointed out, trying not to blurt out that he will be a Generalist Master by the end of his Sinnoh Journey.
"I know... he is fifteen and already is a Mater. Please tell me you can see that it is not normal," Tobias replied heatedly.
"Age has nothing to do with talent!"
"I am not saying it does, just that you cannot fault others for acting surprised and the such!"
"Maybe they should change the way they view things!"
"Come on! You can't mean that! Be more reasonable!"
"Reasonable?!"
It seemed that our... conversation stretched for longer than we were expecting because soon we had Scales slapping the back of my head and pointing at the T.V where a Donphan had fainted from receiving an Avalanche head-on.
Luckily, Flygon asserted dominance back by torching the ghost with a Fire Blast.
"We better continue our... conversation later," Tobias offered, as Paul released his Electivire.
"I agree," I answered under the threatening glare of my starter.
if we said brutal and vicious to describe the previous match-ups, it fell short of this battle. Thunder Punch met Breaking Swipe, Wild Charge clashes against Dragon Rush, Thunder versus Dragon Pulse, each attack equally matched making the bleachers shake, even from all the way to the room I reserved backstage we could feel the shakes the arena was feeling. When Electivire's Giga Impact and Flygon's Boomburst met, was when things reached the next level.
They broke the barrier that protected the trainers and crowd!
But no one seemed to care. The crowd was going wild. The announcers were going wild. Ash and Paul were wearing huge smiles on their faces that showed how happy they were. Even Flygon and Electivire, clashing like Titans on the battlefield were wearing bloodthirsty smiles on their faces.
I could feel Scales' wings and muscles tensing next to me.
The anticipation in the air thickened.
He was ready to go at any moment... so was I.
This is what professional battling was all about! Not holding back, honoring, and respecting your rival. Pushing each other to the limits and becoming stronger.
And having fun while doing it!
"Flygon!" Ash shouted into the air with a wild smile. Everything, everyone seems to freeze at that. One beat, two beats... "Do it!"
Flygon then unleashed a powerful Draco Meteor that wreaked the main arena even more than before, if you could believe it!
But no! Paul was not giving up that easily!
"Electivire, protect yourself! Light Screen! Aim Electro Balls to the meteors! Use Electroweb to catch others!" Paul commanded, standing firmly in place, even with the Draco Meteor making everything else fly away.
Even the poor referee was knocked out from his feet!
By sheer will and true talent, Paul and Electivire survived the Draco Meteor. They looked worse to wear, but they've survived it! That's not something many trainers and pokemon can boast about!
"Ha ha ha!" Ash threw his head back and gave a full belly laugh. "This is fun! So much fun! We need to do this again!"
"We do!" Paul answered, his smile never leaving his lips as he chuckled freely.
"But, first, we need to finish this!" Ash's expression stayed excited but also turned challengingly, a look that Paul answered without wavering.
"Electivire, Iron Tail!"
"Flygon, Dragon Tail!"
Both tails clashed, sending sparks flying everywhere.
"Electivire, Ice Punch!" Now that Electivire had Flygon so close for an extended period of time, Paul tried to land a type-effective move on Flygon.
However, Ash was expecting it and retaliated: "Flygon, Fire Punch!"
Both moves clashed, creating some steam and sending both pokemon flying a few yards away.
By now, both pokemon were exhausted, panting as they barely kept themselves up.
Paul and Ash locked eyes from each side of the battlefield and identical smiles slowly stretched through their faces.
Almost as if they've read each other's minds, they opened their mouths and shouted: "Hyper Beam!"