Kiawe's Fiery Match
"I know that Kiawe is the Kahuna of Akala Island but I don't know where he'd be waiting for me, does he host his Grand Trials at the same location as Olivia or does he battle elsewhere?" Ash questioned at the breakfast table the following morning.
Brock and Olivia planned on embarking on their honeymoon after their wedding night so Ash was pretty sure that he wouldn't be seeing either of them for awhile while all the other guests save for those based in Alola and Ash's current traveling companions had all left the region once the wedding came to a close. Zach and Dawn had chosen to remain on Akala Island during their stay in Alola as they wanted to relax and spent time with each other after the Hisui adventure while Ash and Marnie went back to Melemele with Burnet and Kukui. During the time that Ash was away, the house had gone under a bit of remodeling so that Lei could have his own room as soon as he was old enough and they'd even constructed a room for Ash himself when that was happening, that way he'd have a place to stay whenever he was in Alola.
"I haven't seen him in action yet as I've been preoccupied with other duties," Kukui spoke while glancing towards Lei with an affectionate smile. "But I did hear from Kiawe that he's built a battlefield inside Wela Volcano, taking inspiration from Kanto's own Fire Master Blaine!"
"A battle inside of a volcano?!" Marnie began sweating at just the thought of being inside the steaming volcano. "Won't that limit the Pokemon you can use? I mean Ice type attacks are liable to just outright melt!"
"Well nobody said a Grand Trial was supposed to be easy." Kukui chuckled.
"Besides it also powers up Fire type attacks and lets one use Solar Beam and Solar Blade without the charge up time." Burnet informed.
Ash stared down at his empty plate upon the location's reveal as he began thinking things over inside his head. Originally he planned on using his Alolan team against Kiawe as the two never had a proper battle before seeing how Kiawe was eliminated before they had the chance at the Alola League but after hearing all of this, perhaps he should fight Fire with Fire and give Kiawe a hot fiery match! Kiawe loved Fire types as much as Marnie loved Dark types so he was sure that Kiawe would love to meet some of his other Fire types.
Marnie noticed her boyfriend staring off and placed her hand on his shoulder while lightly tilting her head. "Everything okay?"
"Hm? Oh yeah, I'm fine don't worry about me!" Ash chuckled while flashing her a quick appreciative smile. "I've just got a call to make, excuse me!"
Gladion stood beside Wicke and Faba as Faba showed off one of his latest experiments. Lusamine had left Gladion in charge of the day to day operations of the Aether Foundation while she was at work trying to get other branches of the company set up in other regions, the search for Mohn had proven unfruitful as there was no trace of him so she drowned herself in work to distract herself from her emotions. "Wicke you probably don't know this seeing how you're not a Pokemon trainer like the rest of us-"
"Hmp." Wicke promptly gave Faba's face a hard slap! "Don't forget that I'm your superior now Faba, I won't tolerate that sort of talk!"
Gladion smirked at the sight before quickly putting on a straight face as Faba looked back towards him.
"Yes well regardless, trade evolution as always been an annoying inconvenience to trainers as why would they want to trade their beloved Machoke or Haunter off? As the owner of an Alakazam let me know you it's not fun having to set up a trade back scenario and can be quite cumbersome so I've constructed this!" Faba held up a small cord that looked like it was used to hook two handheld consoles together.
Gladion's eyes widened at the sight. "Hey, I used to have a cable just like that... in fact that looks like mine, I can see the teeth marks from when Eevee bit it!"
"Umbre..."
Faba began nervously sweating. "Well moving on... this device, which I call the Linking Cord, will allow one to evolve a Pokemon without the pesky inconvenience of trading." Faba clapped his hands. "Intern you may enter!"
"I have a name you know..." An Aether Foundation worker grumbled as he pushed in a cart that had an Alolan Graveler sitting atop of it.
"Nonsense, you're just an intern and an unpaid one at that!" Faba dismissed with a wave of his hand before moving the cord towards Graveler. "Now watch as I evolve this Graveler into a Golem!"
Wicke and Gladion watched as Faba moved the Linking Cord towards Graveler.
"Brother!" Lillie shouted out, quickly fetching Gladion and Wicke's attention right as the cord made contact with Golem!
"Aha, see I told you that it would-" Faba quickly went silent as he realized Lillie hijacked his spotlight. "Little brat..." He sourly muttered out.
"I saw it sir!" The intern piped up.
"Shut it intern." Faba growled out shortly before his eyes widened at the sight of another Cosmog. "What the-?"
"Brother I wanted to show you this," Lillie opened her bag to try and find Nebby II only to see that they weren't inside. "Huh? Where did-"
"Pew!" The cry caused Lillie, Gladion and Wicke to look above them where they'd see the Cosmog sitting atop one of the lab's upper beams.
"Ah! Nebby get back in the bag before you hurt yourself!" Lillie shrieked out.
"Pew!" The Cosmog cheerfully cried out before teleporting back into the safety of Lillie's bag.
"Another Cosmog..." Gladion trailed off before shooting a look towards a massive computer monitor that had a sheet thrown over it. "Huh, Nebby-Cosmog is actually an Ultra Beast of his own and at this stage isn't powerful enough to generate full on Ultra Space portals by himself meaning that perhaps something else is afoot." Gladion theorized while lightly stroking his chin.
"That's precisely what I was thinking!" Lillie exclaimed. "We'd have known if she was around two years ago so perhaps another portal opened up at some point between then and now, and if that happened then who knows how many others opened up! You need to start that machine back up so we can check for ourselves!"
Gladion looked towards the large monitor before looking back at his sister with a light nod. "Of course, you're right sis. If there's even a small chance that the Ultra Beasts are coming back then we can't possibly ignore it, I'll get right on it!"
Faba's eye twitched as he watched Gladion rush towards the monitor. "I refuse to be one upped by those annoying brats any longer, it's time that I did something about it!"
"Man it's hot!" Sweat poured down Marnie's face as she removed her jacket, balling it up before carrying it beneath her arm in an effort to cool herself off. Ash was sweating as well but the heat wasn't bothering him as much it did to Marnie as he was used to extreme heat and cold weather due to how much he experienced it throughout his travels. Ash gave her a look before reaching for a Pokeball.
"Squirtle I choose you!"
"Squirtle!" Squirtle gazed towards his trainer as he burst from his Pokeball with a curious expression upon his face. "Squirt Squirtle?"
Squirtle and the Squirtle Squad had taken up residency at Professor Oak's lab shortly after Ash's Kalos adventure, modern technology simply exceeded the work a handful of Squirtle could manage thus they were let go but that wasn't as if they were out of a job. The Squirtle Squad now acted as Pallet Town's own fire department with Professor Oak offered them free food and board at his ranch while Squirtle became an active member of Ash's roster again, hence how Rotom Dex was able to take his picture back when it visited Professor Oak's lab. Although Ash intended on using Fire types against Kiawe, he still had two open slots as it'd be a four on four match so he brought along Squirtle just in case Marnie didn't react well to the volcano's intense heat!
"Squirtle, I want you to stick by Marnie and help her cool off with Ice Beam." Squirtle saluted Ash before promptly turning around to give Marnie's face a quick blast with a beam of ice! Marnie uttered out a soothing sound as she cooled off, flashing Ash an appreciative smile before giving Squirtle a quick nod.
"Thanks Ash! Alright Squirtle, that'll do for now."
"Squirtle Squirtle!" Squirtle smirked while giving Marnie a thumbs up.
The two continued their way up the volcano path before eventually reaching it's peak where they'd find Kiawe waiting below on a man made platform stationed a safe distance from the rumbling lava below. Kiawe flashed a light smirk upon spotting the couple before giving them a welcoming wave. Although he and Zach had yet to be properly introduced, Kiawe did meet Marnie during the wedding's after party as he and Ash got together to arrange their battle but in all the excitement both Ash and Kiawe failed to realize that Ash wasn't aware of the location of Kiawe's battlefield!
"Hey Ash, I'm glad that you could make it! My Fire types and I are all fired up and ready to take you on!" Kiawe roared out.
"Marowak, wak wak!" Marowak shouted alongside his trainer while twirling his fiery club.
"My Fire types are fired up for this as well!" Ash shouted back at his friend while he and Pikachu raced down the path that led to the battlefield. "And so am I!"
"Likewise, let's get things fired up right away!" Kiawe roared while holding out his Rotom Phone, however unlike the previous times it took a few minutes before a Rotom Drone entered the arena.
"Bzzzt! Times like these I wish that I was a Heat Rotom!" The Rotom Drone groaned out. "Bzzzt! Greetings Challengers Ash Ketchum and Kiawe Kaki, today's battle will consist of a four on four matchup. Both Challengers are registered owners of and permitted to utilize Mega Evolution and Z-Moves however be warned that you may only utilize one each throughout the entire match, if you Mega Evolve then you'll forfeit your Z-Move usage for the duration of the fight while if you utilize a Z-Move then you'll forfeit the usage of Mega Evolution for the duration of the fight. Both trainers are allowed to switch Pokemon at any time, challengers are you ready?"
"Of course we are!" Ash and Kiawe shouted out simultaneously while Marnie sweated lightly at the sight before gasping out as Squirtle blasted her with another beam of ice!
"Bzzzt! Then let the battle begin! Bzzzt!"
"Centiskorch I choose you!"
"Coalossal let's heat things up!"
"Skorch!"
"Coal!" The two Pokemon cried out as they burst from their Pokeballs.
"Coalossal?" Ash blinked while staring at Kiawe's Pokemon for a moment before pulling out his Rotom Phone to scan the creature.
"Coalossal the Coal Pokemon, while it's engaged in battle its mountain of coal will burn bright red, sending off sparks that scorch the surrounding area!"
"That Pokemon sounds amazing!"
"Pi Pikachu!" Ash and Pikachu's eyes sparked for a brief moment before they quickly regained focus as Kiawe ordered an attack.
"Tar Shot!"
"Tar Shot...?" Ash found himself asking as he never heard of such an attack. "Dodge it!"
"Skorch!" Centiskorch tried weaving away however his long body merely made him a bigger target as tar flew out of Coalossal's mouth and across the field before splattering across Centiskorch's back! The move didn't appear to hurt him but Ash noticed that he appeared to be significantly slower than before.
"Ash, Tar Shot slows the target down while also making them weaker to Fire type attacks!" Marnie shouted out to him from the sideline.
"Eh?" Ash glanced towards Marnie before smirking lightly as he came up with a strategy. "Centiskorch wrap yourself around Coalossal then use Fire Lash!"
"Wai-" Marnie tried to stop Ash but it was too late.
"Skorch!" Centiskorch wrapped his body around Coalossal, smearing some of the tar along his body before the tip of his tail ignited in flame as he lashed out and struck Coalossal's backside!
"Coal!" The Pokemon uttered out a pained cry.
Kiawe gritted his teeth. "As strategic as ever I see, well two can play that game! Coalossal use Stealth Rock!"
"Coal!" Coalossal raised up his arms as several razor sharp rocks burst from beneath the ground before beginning to levitate above the battlefield, ready to strike whatever Ash sent out!
"Ash, Coalossal has the ability Steam Engine! If you strike them with Fire type attacks, they'll become drastically faster than before!" Marnie exclaimed.
"Steam Engine..? That's a new one, alright Centiskorch use Solar Beam!" Ash called out.
"Centiiiiskorch!" The centipede cried out as a bright yellow beam of solar energy came blasting from his mouth, the attack shot across the field and towards his opponent.
"Coalossal leap to the side and use Rock Blast then follow up with Burn Up!" Kiawe shouted out.
"Coal!" Coalossal leaped aside with surprising side, easily avoiding the beam of solar energy while silver energy formed within his mouth before firing out in the formation of a rock! The rock shot across the field with incredible speed, nailing Centiskorch in the face before Ash even had the chance to counterattack! A bright orange and red fiery glow began to surround Coalossal's body as he prepared his next attack.
"Centiskorch, fire off another Solar Beam!" Ash was quick to shout, hoping that Centiskorch could fire out the attack before it was too late!
"Centiiiiskorch!" The Pokemon cried out while firing off another beam of solar energy, the attack flew across the field and exploded against Coalossal's chest shortly before a massive wave of fire erupted from Coalossal's body and shot off across the field! Centiskorch emitted a loud pained cry as the flames struck his body, his eyes started to droop as his body crashed towards the ground before going limp as he laid in a defeated slump. "Centi...skorch..."
"Bzzzt! Centiskorch is unable to battle, Challenger Ash please send out your next Pokemon!"
"Centiskorch return, you did a great job and deserve a rest." Ash returned Centiskorch to his ball before focusing his gaze upon Kiawe and Coalossal. 'Kiawe's definitely grown stronger since I've last seen him, I'll have to be careful as who knows what else he has to throw at me.'
"Time to fight Speed with Speed, Infernape I choose you!"
"Infernape!" Infernape screeched out as he burst from his ball.
"Infernape!" Stars filled Kiawe's eyes for a brief second before he quickly shook his head to regain focus. "Rock Blast!"
"Coal!"
"Counter with Mach Punch!"
"Nape!" Infernape's fist glowed a bright blue color as he lashed out at the incoming projectile, smashing it to pieces!
"That Infernape sure is strong!" Kiawe gasped out.
"Marowak wak!" Marowak gazed towards Infernape with a determined expression.
"Now let's finish things with Mach Punch!"
"Infernape!" Infernape screeched out before punching Coalossal across the face! A heavy groan escaped Coalossal's throat before he slumped towards the ground, landing on his stomach while swirls filled his eyes.
"Coal..."
"Bzzzt! Coalossal is unable to continue, Challenger Kiawe please send out your next Pokemon!"
"Good work Coalossal, return!" Kiawe returned Coalossal to his Pokeball and gazed towards Infernape for a brief moment before quickly retrieving a different ball. "Moltres let's heat things up!"
"Moltres?!"
"Pika pi?!"
"Tres!" The fiery Kanto bird screeched out as it emerged from the Pokeball.
"Wak..." Marowak crossed his arms and sat down as he pouted, he'd hoped that Kiawe would send him out to battle Infernape!
Marnie shot a glance towards the lava below before looking back up at Moltres. "I'm guessing you caught it while it recharged here?"
"Yep! Though I did request the challenge, I'm not foolish enough to just blindly attack it." Kiawe laughed before throwing his arm outwards as he ordered out an attack. "Sky Attack!"
"Tres!" A bright blue aura surrounded Moltres' body as he quickly swooped across the field and knocked Infernape off his feet as he crashed into him! Infernape grunted out as he fell to his back before quickly shooting back up to his feet.
"Infernape!"
"Hit them with Thunder Punch!"
"Fernape!" Infernape's fist crackled with electricity as he shot across the field before delivering a shocking blow to Moltres' chest, sending electricity flowing through the bird's veins!
"Tres!" Moltres let out a pained screech while Kiawe gritted his teeth. He thought that he'd fight fire with fire but it became clear to him that Moltres was simply no match for Infernape.
"Moltres return for now," Kiawe swiftly returned Moltres to his Pokeball before turning to his partner. "Marowak get on in there and show them what real Fire power looks like!"
"Marowak!" Marowak twirled his fiery club as he raced out onto the field. "Wak wak!"
"Bonemerang!"
"Wak wak!" Marowak hurled his bone club across the field, the club flew across the field and struck Infernape upside the head before flying back to Marowak. "Wak!" Marowak flashed a light smirk as he caught his club.
"Fernape..." Infernape punched his fists together as he gave Marowak a light leer.
Ash flashed a light smirk as he stretched out his hand. "Dig then use Flare Blitz!"
"Fernape!" Infernape burrowed beneath the field before unleashing his attack, resulting in the entire battlefield lighting up as fire erupted from the ground and blasted Marowak!
"Marowak wak wak!" Marowak cried out as the flames struck his body, he tried running away only to run straight into another flame as they covered the entirety of the battlefield.
Kiawe let out a frustrated grunt shortly before a sly smirk formed as his eyes lit up. "Earthquake!"
"Wak!" Marowak slammed his foot against the ground causing it to violently shake with Infernape getting the worst of it as dirt and rubble fell down on top of him from within the hole while the hole sealed up behind him!
"Infernape?!" Ash called out as he grew worried for his trusted friend before shortly uttering out a sigh of relief as Infernape came blasting out from below Marowak to deliver a electrically charged punch!
"Infernape!"
"Marowak!" Marowak cried out as electricity surged through his body.
"Wait a bloody minute... Alolan Marowak isn't Ground type?" Marnie questioned upon seeing the Pokemon getting electrocuted.
"Nope, Alolan Marowak are Fire and Ghost typed!" Ash was quick to respond. "Though they can use Ground attacks."
"Shadow Bone!"
"Wak wak wak!" Marowak began twirling his bone club as the flames turned a ghastly purple color, Marowak then thrusted the club forward as a large bright purple flame erupted from one end, the flame shot towards Infernape before engulfing his body in the ghastly flame.
"F-Fernape!"
"Stand strong Infernape, you can do this! Now let's hit them with another Flare Blitz!"
"Infer!" A bright red-orange flame surrounded Infernape's body as he shot across the field, the monkey let out a loud screech as he threw himself against Marowak's body. Marowak uttered out a grunt as he fell to his side and for a moment it appeared that he'd been taken out but the stubborn Pokemon slowly raised back to his feet before twirling his club in a threatening fashion.
"Wak wak!"
Kiawe flashed a light smirk before stretching out his hand. "Bonemerang!"
"Wak!" Marowak hurled his club across the field, bonking the top of Infernape's head and forming a modest sized bump!
"I-Infernape!" Infernape screeched out, his eyes shot a fiery red color as flames ignited around his body!
"Blaze!"
"Pika pi!" Ash and Pikachu's eyes lit up before the pair shared a smirk.
"Let's finish this with Flare Blitz!"
"Infernape!" Infernape screeched as he shot across the field before throwing his fiery body at Marowak, knocking him off his feet once more!
"Wak..." Marowak slowly stood back up before coming to a sudden collapse as swirls filled his eyes. "Maro... wak..."
"Bzzzt! Marowak is unable to continue battling, Challenger Kiawe please send out your next Pokemon!"
"Marowak return, you were great out there." Kiawe smirked as he returned Marowak to his ball. "Alright Moltres let's light up the field with your fiery might!"
"TRES!" Moltres shrieked out as he burst back out of his ball.
"Infernape you still up for this?"
"Infernape!" Infernape flashed his trainer an eager smirk while giving him a thumbs up.
Ash smirked in response before giving an approving nod. "Alright then hit them hard with Flare Blitz!"
"Fernape!" Flames engulfed Infernape's body as he charged across the field before leaping up to throw himself at Moltres! Moltres let out a pained shriek as he was pushed towards the ground before swiftly lashing out with a wing as Kiawe called out.
"Hurricane!" Infernape soon found himself trapped within a fierce wind that lifted him off the ground and hurled him about the air before he was slammed against the ground with a hard thud!
"In...fer...nape..." Infernape groaned out as swirls formed within his eyes.
"Bzzzt! Infernape is unable to continue battling, Challenger Ash please send out your next Pokemon!"
"Infernape return, you were amazing out there and deserve a long rest." Ash smiled as he returned his faithful partner Pokemon before swiftly reaching out for a different ball. "Torkoal I choose you!"
"Torkoal!" Smoke flared from Torkoal's nostrils as he burst from his ball!
"Use Flamethrower!"
"Torkoal!" A stream of fire erupted from Torkoal's mouth and flew towards Moltres before striking the fiery bird!
"Tres..." Moltres grunted out.
"Sky Attack!"
"Iron Defense!"
"Torkoal!" Torkoal tucked into his shell as Moltres swooped towards him, the bird knocked his body against Torkoal's shell and sent him spinning across the battlefield! Torkoal soon emerged with a dizzy expression as he shook himself off.
"Koal..."
"Use Hyper Beam!"
"Torkoal!" The orange-yellow energy beam erupted from Torkoal's mouth and shot across the field before making contact with Moltres' wing, the legendary bird Pokemon uttered out a pained shriek before landing on the battlefield as it was unable to maintain proper flight.
Kiawe gritted his teeth before quickly throwing his arm forward. "Heat Wave!"
"Counter with Heat Wave!" Ash was quick to shout.
Both Pokemon fired off hot gusts of fiery wind towards each other, both winds appeared to be equally strong as they formed one larger force of wind that proceeded to sweep out and attack both sides! Torkoal and Moltres grunted out from the shared pain before Moltres came to a sudden collapse, laying upon his side while swirls formed within his eyes.
"Moltres..."
"Bzzt! Moltres is unable to continue battling, Challenger Kiawe please send out your final Pokemon."
"Way to go Torkoal!"
"Pika pi!"
"Torkoal!" Torkoal began crying tears of joy while smoke flared from his nostrils once more.
"Moltres return," Kiawe returned Moltres to his ball while flashing Ash a smirk. "It's all come down to this, Turtonator let's heat things up!"
"Turto!" Turtonator cried out as he burst from his ball.
"Dragon Pulse!"
"Counter with Flamethrower!"
"Torkoal!" Torkoal quickly fired off a stream of fire towards the incoming dragon-shaped energy beam, the two attacks soon collided resulting in a large explosion that knocked the pair back! Torkoal's legs were knocked out from under him while Turtonator remained firmly on his hind legs.
"Turto."
"An opening..." Kiawe clenched his fist before throwing out his palm. "Turtonator let's even things up with Shell Trap!"
"Turto!" Turtonator leaped towards his opponent before turning around so that his spikes would make impact with the temporarily downed Torkoal with another explosion setting off upon impact!
"Torkoal!" Torkoal was sent flying through the air before landing in a defeated slump as swirls filled his eyes.
"Bzzzt! Torkoal is unable to continue battling, Challenger Ash please send out your final Pokemon!"
"Torkoal return, you were amazing out there today. We couldn't have done it without you!" The Pokeball shook lightly in response to his praise, Ash then smirked as he reached for his final Pokeball. "I was hoping that it'd come to this, Incineroar I choose you!"
"Roar!" Incineroar flexed his muscles as he burst from his Pokeball. Stars filled Marnie's eyes at the sight of the muscular feline. She really wanted an Incineroar of her own but knew that it'd be quite difficult finding one. Sure there was always the possibility of Ash giving her one of Incineroar's offspring but given that the sole female Fire type he owned was a bird, the possibility wasn't exactly strong at the moment.
"Dragon Pulse!"
"Turto!" Turtonator fired off a green-blue dragon shaped energy beam towards his opponent.
"Counter with Darkest Lariat!"
"Incineroar!" Incineroar held out his arms and began rapidly spinning in place as dark purple energy surrounded his hands, eventually forming a twister of purple dark energy that repelled the Dragon attack and sent it flying back towards Turtonator! Turtonator let out a pained grunt while Incineroar began closing in on his opponent, creating an opening for Kiawe to even things out.
"Turn your back to him!"
"Turto!" Turtonator swiftly turned his back to Incineroar while the tiger was a mere feet away from him.
"Incineroar cancel-" Ash was interrupted by the sound of a loud explosion, smoke and dirt covered the battlefield and obscured the view making it impossible to see what just occurred. The Rotom Drone hadn't made a call yet and it'd know better than them as it was fitted with heat sensory technology to ensure that sneaky Pokemon such as Ghosts, Kecleon and Inteleon weren't interfering with matches, so Ash eagerly watched on in silence while wondering how Incineroar and Turtonator were faring as the dust began to settle.
"Roar..."
"Turto..." Both Fire types were standing and breathing rather heavily while staring each other down. It appeared as if they had reached the final stretch and Ash and Kiawe shared a quick look before reaching for their Z-Power Rings to activate the crystals embedded within! Incineroar and Turtonator began moving in synch with their trainers as the two shouted out their z-move simultaneously.
"Inferno Overdrive!"
"Roar!"
"Turto!" Two massive fireballs formed above the two Fire types before the pair quickly threw the fireballs at each other, the two balls collided and met in a fiery explosion that sent Turtonator and Incineroar flying off their feet! Both Pokemon remained on the ground and looked rather exhausted as the attack wore away, neither appeared able to stand.
"Bzzzt. Neither are able to continue, this is a d-" Rotom Drone went silent as Incineroar slowly rose to his feet, the tiger turned to Ash and flashed him a light smirk while Turtonator's eyes fully turned to swirls as laid in defeat.
"Turto..."
"Bzzzt! Error in calculations. Turtonator is unable to battle which means the win goes to Challenger Ash Ketchum! Congratulations Ash, your new ranking is 32,583!" The Rotom Drone swiftly flew off afterwards as it went to report the results to Macro Cosmos.
"Way to go Incineroar, you were great out there!" Ash praised.
"Pika pi!"
"Roar..." Incineroar purred out before pulling Ash and Pikachu in for a tight hug while nuzzling his head against theirs in an affectionate manner.
"Aw..." Marnie couldn't help but gush at the sight, the sight of which only made her crave an Incineroar more! While Zach was a canine lover and Ash seemed to love both dogs and felines, Marnie was more of a feline Pokemon lover.
Kiawe smirked at the sight before pulling a red crystal from his pocket as he began making his way over to them. He then patiently waited for Incineroar to break the hug before speaking up. "Ash, I know that we just had a World Championship match but seeing how I'm a Kahuna now I can't help but feel obligated to give you a reward for beating me." He held out the crystal to Ash, revealing a red Z-Crystal that had Incineroar's face etched onto it. "This is Incinium Z, with it you'll be able to use 'Malicious Moonslaught'! I figure it a fitting reward for our battle and hope to see you utilize it in the finals!"
Ash and Incineroar's eyes lit up upon seeing the Z-Crystal, stars filled their eyes as they envisioned themselves utilizing the Masked Royal's signature move themselves before eventually returning to reality as they offered Kiawe a smile before giving their close friend a hug. "Thanks Kiawe, we really appreciate it!"
"Incineroar!" Incineroar eagerly purred out.
"Ah good, you're still here." Ash, Kiawe, Incineroar, Pikachu and Marnie all leaped up from shock upon hearing the sudden arrival of another causing them to turn to see Gladion sitting atop his Noivern at the peak of the volcano, leering down at them as he spoke. At first Ash wondered why Gladion bothered tracking him down but he soon noticed what Gladion was wearing causing a serious look to form across his face.
"Um, what's Gladion wearing?" Marnie asked him in a hushed tone.
"That's the Ultra Guardian uniform!" Ash was quick to shout out with a bit of an anxious tone. "Are the Ultra Beasts back?!"
Gladion gave Ash a swift and silent nod before pointing towards Marnie. "Bring your girlfriend with you, she looks like she can handle herself."
"Should we fetch Dawn and Zach? What if it's another Guzzlord..?" Kiawe questioned.
"If it's a Guzzlord, I'll fetch them myself." Marnie spoke up. "The two deserve a break after everything they've been through, we shouldn't bother them unless it's necessary."
"Right," Ash nodded his head in agreement before tilting his head as he looked towards Gladion. "I feel like we're missing something here, how do you know the Ultra Beasts are back? I thought you turned all those machines off."
"We-I did, but I turned them back on once Lillie came home with another Cosmog." Gladion informed.
"She found another Nebby?!"
"Pika pi?!"
"Yep, though that's not important right now. This Ultra Beast has been active for well over twelve hours now, we need to find and capture it stat!" Gladion exclaimed. "So let's get back to base!"
"...Seriously?" Marnie sweated as she held up a Ultra Guardian uniform, where the other uniforms had white coloring hers had a dark red coloring while in place of alternate colors the primary color was black rather than blue or red like Ash and Kiawe's were.
"Huh? Aren't you goth?" Gladion questioned.
Marnie gave him a silent leer before quickly shaking her head as she walked off to get fitted into her uniform while her Hisuian Braviary waited for her return alongside Ash's Latias, Gladion's Noivern and Kiawe's Charizard.
"Bzzzz!" Buzzwole angrily punched through a large sandcastle as he continued his search for Nebby. The kid that made the castle burst out into tears causing several people to look over before gasping out in fear at the sight of the large bug!
"First Fula City and now this?! I pick the worst places for vacations!" A tourist shouted while running off as fast as his feet would carry him. His wife and kids hot on his trail as Buzzwole began brushing past the humans, not seeming to care about them at first as he simply shoved and pushed them away while making his way through them. At least until a hotshot had the bright idea to attack the strange creature!
"Darkest Lariat!" The white and orange tiger twirled through the crowd before crashing into Buzzwole, the attack didn't appear to hurt Buzzwole but rather tick him off! The bug swiftly turned towards the kid and let out an enraged buzz before lashing out with a quick punch, sending him and his shiny Incineroar blasting off to the sky above! The Ultra Beast then turned towards the rest of the fleeing crowd before lashing out with an enraged shout! He had merely been on a mission but now these annoying humans ticked him off and he wanted to punish them for it!
Lucario's eyes soon shot open as he sensed an unusual aura nearby, the jackal jerked his head towards the further part of the beach before looking towards his sleeping trainer and girlfriend who were fully relaxed and basking in the sunlight. Lucario grew a look of concern and went to wake them up while Garchomp began to stir from his slumber, the dragon turned his attention towards a charging muscular bug as it came racing down the beach and uttered out a loud roar as he went charging straight towards it with Giga Impact!
"Bzzzz!" Buzzwole's fist glowed bright orange as he delivered a powerful punch to Garchomp's stomach, knocking the air right out of him and halting him in place before Buzzwole punched him across the face, knocking the alpha Pokemon out!
"Ace?!" Cinderace gasped out in shock. "Ace, Cinderace?!" She cried while wondering how Garchomp went down so easily when he was the strongest member of the Hisui team.
"Carrrrr!" Lucario let out a grunt while stating that while Zach may have been the 'strongest trainer in Hisui' he still had quite a way to go before he was considered 'strong' in today's terms.
"Ace..."
Zach soon stirred awake and uttered out a startled gasp upon seeing Buzzwole. "Pyro Sphere!"
"Carrrr!"
"Ace!" Lucario fired up a sphere of aura while Cinderace kicked up a flaming fireball, the two kicked and punched their attacks towards each other and combined it into a massive sphere of fire and aura! The attack flew towards the charging Buzzwole but he simply blasted through it while only appearing to be slightly scorched!
"Ace..."
"Car..." Lucario and Cinderace gasped out before Buzzwole swiftly knocked them both out with a singular punch!
"Bzzzz!" Buzzwole leered towards Zach and Dawn as the Pokemon fell to a defeated heap alongside him.
"Piplup!" Piplup let out an enraged cry as he bravely raced forward but Buzzwole gave him a swift kick and sent him flying into the ocean! "Pipluuuuuup!"
Mallow saw Piplup flying past her as she rode atop the Pokeride Flygon. "Was that Dawn's...?"
"Yep, I see them down there!" Kiawe pointed towards them before having Charizard drop from the sky so he could help out. "A Buzzwole's with them!"
"Buzzwole...?" Marnie questioned.
"Didn't we calm the last one by flexing? Maybe that'll help this time too..." Lillie theorized as she didn't want to hurt Buzzwole unless they had to. Lana was silent as her gaze was fixated upon Buzzwole's large muscles!
"Wait, you seriously calmed it down by flexing?" Marnie asked.
"I think it's worth a shot, I mean Zach and Dawn are dangerously close to Buzzwole." Ash pointed out.
"Zach right? I see you're already shirtless which works perfectly for this," Kiawe smirked while tearing off the top half of his Ultra Guardian uniform. "We've got to flex to calm Buzzwole down, that should allow us to capture him and send him some place safe."
"...Are you serious?" Zach gave Kiawe a look of disbelief before looking towards his three strongest Pokemon who all laid in defeated heaps along the beach. "Well I suppose I don't have any better ideas, let's try it."
Buzzwole halted in place for a moment as the two young adults began to flex, his arms raised up as if he was about to flex alongside them before shortly coming down on top of their heads, giving both of their heads a powerful blow and knocking them out!
"Arca!" A bright red blur whisked past and knocked Buzzwole away from the unconscious boys, sparing them from any further action Buzzwole might be tempted to do.
"Zach!" Dawn screamed out as she raced towards her boyfriend.
"Kiawe!" Lana screamed out in a similar worried tone as she raced towards Kiawe.
Mallow quickly leaped off Flygon and raced towards the boys with a look of concern.
Ash gritted his teeth and looked towards where Buzzwole had disappeared to. "Come on, we can't let it get away!"
"Right!" Marnie, Lillie, Sophocles and Gladion all nodded in agreement as their Pokemon swiftly flew in the direction Buzzwole had disappeared in before shielding their eyes as a large and bright fire ball formed and blasted across the nearby beach.
"Inferno Overdrive!" Gary's voice could be heard.
"Gary?! What's he doing here?!" Ash couldn't help but growl out. "Faster, Latias!"
"As you wish, Chosen One!"
"I thought I told you-Oh never mind!" Ash groaned out. Latias soon caught up to Gary, allowing Ash to see his long time rival and best friend chuck a Beast Ball towards the now downed Buzzwole while his faithful Arcanine stood alongside him. The Beast Ball shook back and forth before chiming out to announce the capture causing Gary to pick the ball up and twirl it atop his finger before turning to face Ash with a sly cocky smirk.
"Too slow Ashy boy, I caught this one!" Gary laughed out. "I can't wait to study this one back at my lab!"
Ash let out a light growl as he watched Gary smugly walk away before cooling off as Marnie placed her hand atop his shoulder. "Hey don't worry about it, Gary won't misuse it's power and he saved Zach, Dawn and Kiawe's life by knocking Buzzwole away with Arcanine's Extreme Speed. He deserves a win today, you'll get yours when you battle against him."
"That's right..." Ash smiled lightly as his thoughts drifted towards his coming battle with Gary. Though he'd need to fight Hau first as it was his turn next, battling Gary would be even more exciting now that a very powerful Pokemon entered his ranks!
Later that night another portal opened up as two individuals dressed in spacesuits stepped out followed by a yellow and black Naganadel. The two had a similar uniform but were noticeably different as one stood at the height of an average adult while the other was around the same height as Bonnie and Max, a strand of braided orange hair could be seen from the back of her helmet.
"Oh wow, the stars sure are beautiful here!" The girl gushed out before eagerly pointing towards a Finneon that swam in the nearby ocean. "Dulse look! I'm not sure what that Pokemon is but it sure is beautiful!"
"Careful Zossie, don't look at it too long! It comes from the same planet as those vile humans, it can't be trusted!" Dulse spat.
"Oh come on Dulse, humans can't be all that bad. See? Some are picking up trash on that beach."
"And making things worse..." Dulse pointed towards a boat that was anchored off shore where Chad could be seen overlooking his men with a smug expression as they poured waste into the ocean. "Humans are selfish vile creatures that only care for themselves!"
"Naga!" Naganadel nodded in agreement.
"Don't forget that our mission is to track down Cosmog before the Beast King's forces do, now that Necrozma absorbed Solgaleo we'll need to evolve Cosmog if we ever hope to defeat the Beast King and free both Solgaleo and Necrozma from his control!"
Faba stared at a large test tube as a Pokemon began taking form within. "Silvally, my beloved creation... the first version was flawed but version 2.0 will be a success! I just got to figure out how to make Silvally change types without the use of those pesky discs this time... but how?" Faba scratched the top of his head with a mystified expression.
"Um sir?" Faba's intern nervously spoke up. "I-I didn't want to tell you this before as you'd never have hired me if you knew but... I actually worked on an experiment back in Vermilion City... with Team Rocket. We were working towards making an Eevee that could evolve and devolve at will, giving us the ultimate weapon but it came out as a failure as she could only utilize elemental attacks and not evolutions. I was let go but I remember the basics of that and can work that into Silvally's DNA if you'll allow me to do so? That could help Silvally switch his type on a whim!"
Faba's eyes widened while a sinister smirk formed across his face as he gleefully rubbed his hands together. "Oh yes, once I stop the Ultra Beast threat those brats will be forced to recognize my genius!"
I was dissatisfied with how Kiawe and Ash never had a proper battle so this chapter was my way of fixing that. Marnie's Ultra Guardian uniform was rather easy to decide on as I love the running gag that just randomly came to me at some point but I'm struggling on Zach and Dawn's. They won't be active members but they will be wearing the uniforms in the Alola arc finale