GPS: I don't own Pokémon. I appreciate all and any reviews from those interested in the story, but I really would like if someone thoroughly pointed out stuff to help improve what you think is a weakness. For example, like battle scenes. Are they too boring? Not just this chapter, but all of the previous fights. Character's personalities: are they too one-dimensional? I just want sound criticisms to help improve this story! Other than that, I hope you enjoy. (:
The next morning arrived, and Ash woke up to see all his Pokémon sleeping silently. It was interesting because Dragonair, who was four meters in length, was coiled up on the ground versus her previous form that slept on the bed. The boy got up and said,
"Today we will try after our fourth badge. How does that sound?"
All five of the Pokémon who slept outside their ball cheered with enthusiasm. Then Riolu spoke through telepathy,
"Ash, there is something you should consider when we battle at the gym as well as the future."
"What's that, Riolu?" asked Ash as he patted the fighting type's head, only to have his hand smacked away. The boy was quite appalled at what Riolu had done since the fighting type was usually quite mellow.
"What you are doing, plus yesterday and with Melanie," said Riolu. "I've been holding my breath and not said anything because I was sure you were gonna change."
"What are you talking about, Riolu?" inquired Ash who was slightly upset.
"You keep treating us too kindly when you battle, always asking us if we want to continue or should we return if we felt like it," said Riolu. "You are a good kid and a pleasant trainer, but continuing to baby us will not bring out our true powers. You've given us more than enough respect, and I've earned yours, but if you truly respected us, you wouldn't hold back as much. I want to become Lucario and harness the power of aura, and since the requirements are to have high enough friendship, I feel like it would increase further if you did not hold back."
Ash was left with a saddened face, but finally said, "I-I'm sorry that you feel that way. I guess I've treated you all like this because…it's just…I never had any friends and to me, you guys are the only ones I can call friends. Apart from Erika and a few other relatives of mine, I feel like no other human seems to like me."
Zorua approached Ash and rubbed his head against his trainer. "It's understandable," said the dark-type fox with telepathy. "But I will be honest: your methods are starting to become similar to my previous trainer, and that is one of the reasons why I left in the first place."
Ash took in a moment to think of all the battles that he had gone through and thought of the times that he was too lax in his offense. At the same time, he remembered some moments where he seemed almost brutal, such as Pewter and Cerulean gym. His mind also reflected yesterday at the fighting dojo and it suddenly dawned on him: what was he going to do with Tyrogue?
"Guys, as you know, I got a new Pokémon yesterday, Tyrogue," started Ash. "And I was thinking of whether or not I should let one of you go stay with my mom. Even she says she's fine, I feel she is quite lonely and I want her to have a part of me sent with her if one of you goes. Does—"
Before Ash could finish his sentence, all five of the Pokémon approached him and gave him sad faces as if to tell him that they did not want to leave. Ash did not need to hear the telepathy from any of his three Pokémon to know that they were content being by his side and Ash had a bittersweet feeling of happiness to know that his Pokémon wanted to stay with home, but also was disappointed that his mother would not get one of his Pokémon.
"Ash, I beg you to keep me," said an almost heartbroken Dragonair through her telepathy. Ash looked at her and gasped in shock.
"I could never send away the first Pokémon that I got," said Ash as he rubbed her majestic blue head. He picked up Riolu, making the soothe bell on the Pokémon's neck jingle, and Ash looked at him in the eyes before speaking. "You have been a very helpful ally along the way. I know how much you want to reach your next stage as a Lucario, and I will not hold back on you as a trainer. Scyther," he continued as he patted the mantis's green head, "you've been more than helpful and you will be helpful soon enough when we battle at Celadon's gym full of grass Pokemon." Ash turned to Zorua and said, "You will be important for today's gym, so I can't let you go. Also, you don't want to live a life of being a pet." Ash picked up Cubone and hugged him. "You are more than likely still hurt after what happened back at Lavender Town, right?" Cubone nodded and said his name. Ash set him on the ground and he turned back to them all.
Rotom would just wreak havoc if mom took him, thought Ash. "I've made my decision, guys. I'm sending Tyrogue to my mom, so that means you all can stay."
They all said their names and Ash returned them all but Dragonair to their Pokeballs. Ash got ready and walked out the door with Dragonair by his side. Upon entering the lobby of the center, all eyes were directed towards him as they gazed with deep admiration and envy at Dragonair. There easily were around twenty-five people surrounding them and Ash sweat dropped in the awkward situation.
"Ash," spoke Dragonair where only her trainer could hear him, "these people…They're making me uncomfortable…"
"Same here," responded Ash as he tried to find a way around the people.
"Your Dragonair is the coolest!" said a girl as she squealed with joy.
"You must be awfully lucky to get one of those," said a boy.
Other trainers continued praising and taunting Ash until a man with a very expensive suit appeared and scattered the crowd who then left scoffing and complaining about his rudeness. Ash and the man were left completely alone out of hearing distance and the boy became nervous.
"Hey, kid," said the man, "I saw your face from the other side of the room, and I must say, you do not seem content with your Pokémon."
"Excuse me?" replied Ash with defense. "This is Dragonair, who evolved yesterday from a Dratini, is my starter and best friend. Who are you to have the nerve to talk like that?!"
The man snickered lowly before saying, "Forgive my words. Look, I'm not gonna ask how or why you got a species so rare, but I, Mr. Blake Pendergrass, executive vice president of Silph, as well as a pro tempore CEO, have been looking for a Dragonair for well over five years. I've checked everywhere, even the Safari Zone which is considered the last sanctuary for the species, but nothing. As an extremely wealthy man of business, I can obtain anything I want with the proper price and my outstanding charisma."
"What are you talking about?" asked Ash as he looked over at Dragonair who merely tilted her head with confusion.
"The Dragonair. I want the Dragonair," said the vice president. "But not without compensating you."
"Forget it," said Ash. "Find your own; this one is for me to keep until death." Ash turned away and began to walk towards Erika who made her way into the lobby.
Mr. Pendergrass chuckled at Ash's stubbornness. "I assumed that you've had this Pokemon since you were born?"
"That's none of your business," said Ash.
"I'll offer you enough money where your parents can make an early retirement, get completely out of debt, live a life of leisure," said Mr. Pendergrass. Ash was completely stunned at this man's determination and stopped walking. There was no way that he would give up Dragonair, but he was still curious to know what he was going to foolishly offer.
The man took out a checkbook and began to write something down. He handed it to Ash and literally almost fell over in amazement at what he saw. ¥200,0000,000! (~1,660,000 USD or ~£1,070,000)
"H-how…W-w-why…" stuttered Ash who was having difficulty talking. He signaled with his hand to give him a moment and he cleared his mind. "Why would you offer that much money?"
"Classified," said Mr. Pendergrass. "But don't feel bad if you take it. That money on the check? Practically chump change! It's only about one percent of my entire net worth that just keeps increasing. And I'll add an extremely rare Pokémon as well. Porygon, the only artificial Pokémon, and there are only thirty of them in existence."
Ash looked at the check again and then at Dragonair. She nodded with encouragement as she knew he would do the right thing.
"You can offer all your wealth and you'd get the same answer: no," said Ash. "You can't buy the bond I share with my Pokémon and you should feel ashamed!" He ripped the check in half and put it in the man's hand. The middle-aged man merely laughed.
"Uncultured fool," said Mr. Pendergrass with a laugh. "If you get betrayed, at least you'll have a large sum of money. Take this if you change your mind." He handed him a business card. "Consider the offer tripled if it becomes a Dragonite. And one more thing." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a metal object. "This is a metal coat. Some Pokemon need it to evolve." The man left Ash by himself and he read the card after putting the metal coat in his backpack. He shook his head with annoyance and anger and crumpled it up before putting it in a trash bin.
"He calls me a 'fool'?" said Ash as he turned to Dragonair. "He's the fool. Anyone is if they think they can bribe me into handing over a Pokémon for who-knows-what."
"You are very wise and caring, Ash," said Dragonair to his mind. "I detected that when we first met at the lab. That, and…"
"What?"
"Ash, I detect something unique in you," she resumed. "Something I can't identify. Perhaps you will discover it in the future."
"Are you keeping a secret from me, Dragonair?" said Ash with a crafty smile. "If you are, I want to know!"
"I can't," she said calmly. "Because I don't know what it is. I'd tell you if I knew, I swear."
Ash calmly petted her head. "I believe you, girl. Thank you for staying by my side through it all. And I meant every word that I said to him."
"Ash!" said Erika as she finally walked over to him and was able to pet his dragon's head. "What was all that about?"
"That man," started Ash, "is the executive vice president and a pro tempore –whatever that is – CEO –whatever that means - of Silph," he explained. "He thought he could bribe me to trade Dragonair with him for a Porygon. You can tell what I chose since she's by my side."
"I knew you wouldn't part with Dragonair, nor could I part with Gloom," said Erika. "This reminds me, Ash. Have you decided about Tyrogue yet?"
"I did," said Ash. "I'm sending him over to my mom. I had to do a little bit of thinking, but I am hopeful that he will enjoy it once he knows my mom. "
"I would have at least given him a chance to meet you and decide afterwards, but you do what you feel is best," said Erika with neutrality in her voice.
Ash looked at her and he could tell that she was not normal at the moment. "Hey, are you feeling okay?"
"Not particularly," she responded.
"Is it about Tyrogue?" he asked.
"No, nothing to do with him," she replied. "I just got off the phone with my father and mother is in the hospital. I am quite worried about her since we are so close in our relationship."
"You're kidding!" said Ash. "To heck with the gym battle; that can wait for another time. We should head over to your town and make sure she's okay."
"Oh, Ash, I'm sorry to put a stop in your plans of fighting Sabrina," said Erika. "But can I tell you a secret anyways? Well, maybe secret isn't the best of words."
"It's okay, really," he said. "Family is more important than a lousy gym badge. And go ahead on your secret."
"I didn't want you to fight Sabrina today, anyways, or anytime soon," said Erika.
"Why?" was all that Ash could say.
"Based on her skills and your level of training, she would annihilate you, to put it bluntly," said Erika. "I don't want to see you get crushed in a battle where you can't even land a move and leave the gym depressed. In fact, it is strongly recommended that you have five badges before tackling her. She has told me the last person to beat her with only three badges prior to the battle was five years ago. And this year, only eighteen trainers with four badges have beaten her. That's very few since the average gym leader can see as many as 200 trainers a month. You're a great trainer at your current level, but you're not that strong to take her on."
"So were you just gonna let me walk in there and get my butt kicked?" asked Ash.
"No. I was trying to find the right words to warn you. I'm sorry, really."
Ash sighed. "You know, I think the problem is I have too much optimism. You've known her for several years and I trust your words you say. I was gonna walk in with high hopes of winning, but…"
"You may have regretted it," said Erika. "Sabrina uses the final evolution of a few Pokemon that have three stages, such as a Dratini or a Oddish. But they are wicked powerful with their psychic attacks. My suggestion? We go to Celadon and you show Caroline a thing or two. You should have a great advantage with Scyther."
"You really think-" started Ash until a voice interrupted him.
"Hi, there!" said a teenager. "Sorry, but I was just so excited when I saw that man give you a metal coat. Name's Katie, by the way." She extended her hand and shook it with Ash who was a bit confused.
"Beautiful Dragonair, by the way," she added.
"Thanks," said Ash a bit skeptical. "What about the metal coat?"
"Like, okay," began Katie. "It just so happens that I got this item called a protector, which helps evolve a Rhydon into a Rhyperior. Rhydon was my starter Pokemon and he's been wanting to evolve for ages. I mean, he evolved, like, a year ago. Long story short, trade your Scyther while he holds the metal coat while my Rhydon holds the protector. You'll get Rhydon, who will then evolve, while I get Scyther. Once we've seen that they've evolved, we trade back."
Ash looked at Erika and she stared back. "I should ask Scyther first," he replied as he took out the said Pokémon.
"Scyther!" said the mantis as he looked around the Pokémon Center. He was not accustomed to being outside of his ball in the middle of the center.
"Hey, Scyther," said Ash as he calmed down the bug Pokémon. "This girl here is willing to help you evolve. What do you say to that?"
Scyther's face changed to a smile and lit up like a girl getting a dream house for dolls. He nodded with excitement.
"Okay, but you are aware that this process is irreversible, right?" asked Katie as she looked at Scyther.
Scyther was completely aware of this and nodded in agreement.
"Well, you will temporarily be my Pokémon, but you will be switched back to Ash once the process is complete. Okay?" said Katie.
"Scy," said the Pokémon. Ash walked over to him and he took out the metal coat.
"You will need to hold onto this during the trade process," informed Ash as he set it on top of Scyther's blade. Katie took out her Pokeball and sent out Rhydon. "So that's the evolved form of Rhyhorn, huh?"
"Yep," she said. "Had him for four years."
"Brock, the leader of Pewter, used a Rhyhorn," said Ash. "Wasn't easy taking him down."
"Brock? He must be fairly new," said Katie. "Before him was another gym leader named Henry. He used a Geodude and a Sudowoodo. Brings back a lot of memories, doesn't it, Rhydon?" She patted the bipedal rock Pokémon's rugged armor hide and he smiled and said "Rhy".
"Your Rhydon is pretty impressive," said Ash. "What moves does he know?"
"Quite a combination," said Katie. "He knows earthquake, fissure, stone edge, flamethrower, submission, iron tail. He even knows surf!"
"A water-type move?" asked Erika. "How did you manage to make that possible?"
"Lots of training focusing weaknesses," said Katie. "By no means an easy task. We would first conquer the fear of water by simple steps from the very beginning such as an eyedropper full of water that is sprayed on the body, usually the foot or tail. Once Rhydon, or Rhyhorn back then, was able to get used to that, we would move onto something a little larger such as a small cup of water, then a water balloon. After many, many months of training, Rhyhorn finally was able to submerge himself in about two inches of water. Then we just kept increasing the water level and practiced using water-type moves, and well…Here we are. I'm proud of my training and could never part with Rhydon."
"Does that mean that Rhydon is invulnerable to water attacks?" asked Ash. "And also, why did you choose me to trade with?"
"Of course not," said Katie. "Rhydon normally would take four times as much damage when hit with a water move, but I would say mine takes about a little less than half that, or a little less than twice the normal power of water. Really throws enemies off to see a Rhydon stand so firmly after a move that is pretty much guaranteed to take him down! As for your question: I've been looking for trainers who have Pokémon that evolve upon training, but no one seemed to have one! I mean, what purpose would there be to trade with someone who didn't benefit when getting their original Pokémon back? That would be awfully selfish, if you ask me."
"I agree," said Ash. He returned Scyther to his ball and Katie did the same with Rhydon.
"All right, follow me to the trading station," instructed Katie. Ash followed her and so did Erika and Dragonair to a separate part of the Pokémon Center behind a door. "Good. Now please place your Pokémon on this little platform here and I'll start the trade."
Ash did as she told him and she placed her ball on a different platform. She pressed a few buttons and the electronic screen lit up and displayed the images of Scyther and Rhydon. After around fifteen seconds of electronic humming and beeping, the balls went to the "new" trainers and Ash picked up his ball.
"Rhydon, come on out!" he said as he opened the ball. The light energy took the shape of the Rhydon who looked at Ash with a disdainful look and turned around. Katie let out Scyther as well and she got a similar reaction. The two Pokémon looked at their "previous" trainers and were saddened that they were departing, but they both gasped as they were enveloped with light. Their shapes were changing and they began to grow, much like the excitement of both of the trainers. Once the light had disappeared, the new Pokémon looked at themselves with awe and amazement.
"Scyther? Are you still in there in this new form?" asked Ash to the Pokémon that he had caught in Viridian Forest.
"Zor," said Scizor, the now metallic red mantis whose scythe arms turned into pincer-like clamps.
Katie walked over to "Ash's" Rhyperior and looked at the towering rock type. "Rhydon, you've reached your ultimate form. You will be back by my side in a few moments."
"Rhy!" said the Pokémon with an understanding nod of confirmation.
"Wow! It's so strange that simply holding an item and trading made them evolve!" said Ash who was still in shock of his new Pokémon.
"Glad to see that it was successful," said Katie a smile on her face. She returned Scizor to the Pokeball and Ash did the same thing with Rhyperior. "Now, let's return them back to their original owner, shall we?" Ash needed no further words to say and they initiated the trade. Rhyperior went back to his rightful owner and Scizor went back to Ash after a few moments. Katie picked up her Pokeball and smiled. "Thanks again so much for agreeing to this rearrangement! I hope you enjoy your newly evolved Scizor!"
"Thanks! Same to you and Rhyperior!" said Ash as Katie left the room and waved good-bye as she finally left the Pokémon Center. Ash turned to Erika and said, "We should make our way to Celadon now since I know you must be worried about your mother."
"Indeed," replied Erika as she looked at Scizor's Pokeball that was still in his hand. "But what about your mother and Tyrogue?"
Ash shook his head slowly. "That can wait. We should head to Celadon first and see about your mother. We need to start our march west if we want to make it there by, say, tomorrow evening."
"We will make it an easier task and save ourselves a lot of time if we took the bus," said Erika with haste. "And when we get to Celadon…I want you to prove my sister's methods wrong by beating her in a gym battle. You will show her that your kindness and skill you have obtained was through the power of friendship and understanding. Her methods are cruel and unethical, but…"
"I understand," said Ash. The boy then turned to Dragonair and rubbed her head gently and she gently moved the tip of her tail as her sign of enjoyment. "I'm afraid that you must stay in your Pokeball for the time being; you can be as free as you desire once we are no longer within the cities, away from crowds of people who may want you." She did not protest to his suggestion and he absorbed her into the ball. Erika lead Ash to the nearby bus station and they each bought their own ticket. Celadon City was 27 miles west of Saffron and they would arrive there in about thirty minutes. Ash looked back at the shrinking skyline of Saffron and calmly sat on the bus as it made its way to Celadon.
Once the bus arrived into the city, Erika took no time in searching for the hospital that her mother was located. Ash offered to tag along, but she felt that her mother would not be happy to see her daughter bring in someone she didn't know. Ash wasn't bothered by this and said he would go talk to Professor Oak about Tyrogue.
With Erika…
"301, 302, 303…" said Erika as she walked down the halls of the third floor of one of the Celadon Memorial Hospitals. "Ah, 312," she said as she approached the door and twisted the doorknob but was interrupted by a voice.
"Excuse me, but only family members are allowed in," said a nurse.
"Natalie Marianne Warriner is my mother," said Erika. "I'm the assistant gym leader here."
"I'm dreadfully sorry," said the nurse. "I just didn't recognize you immediately."
"Is she okay?" asked Erika.
"She's doing fine," said the nurse. "You may go in."
"Thank you." Erika once again twisted the doorknob and softly shut the door behind her.
"Erika, sweetheart!" said her mother. "I've been wondering about you since we haven't talked in a couple of weeks."
"Sorry, we had a bit of moments where I couldn't get to a phone," explained Erika. "I've been wanting to find myself and be at harmony with Mother Nature, but a few things happened and put a halt on my plans. What happened to you?"
"I accidentally fell down several stairs and broke my hip about two weeks," said Natalie. "It's recovering nicely and I don't feel as much pain. What happened along the way?"
"I met a boy who-" started Erika.
"How old is he?" asked her mother.
"…Ten," said Erika. Her mother sighed in relief and urged her to continue. "His name is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town. He was going for a swim along Route 1, but he was attacked by a Gyarados. His foot was cut severely and his Dratini was trying to stop it. Luckily, I had some herbs I found along the way and helped patched him up, so we then headed towards Viridian City by boarding a train."
Erika spent about 15 minutes summarizing the adventures she had with Ash and why she still followed him despite the fact he was able to take care of himself.
"Sounds like you've gone through quite a lot, Erika," said Natalie. "I'm glad that you came here to visit me. Unlike your sister who is so damn stubborn with her training." She sighed. "She's ruining the image of Celadon's gym. Why can't she follow in your footsteps?"
"She's grown, mom; I don't know what to say about that," said Erika. "I was hoping by some ray of hope that Ash could beat her and snap out of her power frenzy."
"You won't believe what she's done to the gym," said Natalie.
"What has she done?" asked Erika.
"She's completely divorced the design of the gym and her Pokemon type from the image that Celadon gym had been well known for," said Natalie.
"What are you talking about?" asked Erika.
"She uses a mixed bag; she doesn't use just grass types anymore," explained her mother. "I peered through the window one evening and saw her with a Nidoqueen, a Golduck, and a Flareon. Those are the only ones that I saw. She may have more. Plus, she installed a creek into the gym for Golduck or any other water types her rivals may have. She uses a double battle technique."
"What?!" said Erika with anger. "That's it! I want her to challenge both me and Ash! If she loses, she resigns her title as gym leader!"
"Good luck getting through her thick skull," chuckled her mother. "You'll need it."
"I saw my old mentor, Sabrina," said Erika. "I know I have her full support and respect. Plus, she gave me a few things before I left that could tip the balance on the scale if I play my moves properly. Plus, a good talking with someone changed her viewpoint."
With Ash…
Ash had just picked up the phone at the Pokémon Center. Despite the fact that he had a PokeGear, the quality of it was very low in comparison to that of the phones they had. Ash dialed Professor Oak's number and the man picked it up.
"Ah, Ash, how are you doing?" said the scholarly man as he set down some papers.
"Hey, Professor Oak," replied Ash. "I'm currently in Celadon City with Erika, the assistant gym leader of the city. Anyways, did you see the new Pokémon that I got yesterday?"
"Oh, yes, he's quite a character," the professor chuckled. "Very enthusiastic and wants to help me do my research and other small tasks around the place."
"Heh, that's great, because there is something that I would like you to do, if you don't mind," said Ash.
"Oh? What's that?"
"Well, I've been thinking about my mom and, well, I was thinking that I could send Tyrogue to her," he explained. "I want her to have a little part of me with her when she has Tyrogue."
"I understand, no problem," said the professor. "I will send it to her in person when I have a moment."
"That'd be great, thanks," said Ash as he finished his conversation. He turned around and saw that it was Erika. "Hello. How was your mother?"
"She is doing okay; she had a broken hip but it's healing," said Erika.
"What's the matter?" said Ash.
"She told me what my sister has done to the gym," she explained as she placed her hand on her cheek. "In the seven or so weeks I've been gone, she's completely changed the image into something terrible. I want you to let me join you in a double battle against her."
Ash was really surprised at this statement. He could see that there was a spark that had just ignited and he found it almost unnerving since she was usually so level-headed and calm. Nonetheless, Ash felt that he had to return the favor of her helping him when he was injured, but the debate of coming in between a family conflict was really the right thing.
"I will, but I don't want to hurt you or your relationship with your sister," he said quietly.
"Don't feel bad about intervening," said Erika. "She needs a good kick in the teeth and get straighten out. I hope that you are sufficiently prepared to face her; mother said she does not use grass types as her predominant one."
"I am ready whenever you are," said Ash. "But…aren't all your Pokémon grass types? Diversity is the strategy."
"Yes, but I managed to find another one," said Erika. "Plus, I had a few in the PC that I had for a while now that I caught before I met you. I have thought of a strategy that may be helpful. Let's move out." Erika lead Ash to the Celadon Gym and the girl looked at it. "Hmm, still looks the same from the exterior," she commented as she examined the building. She opened the door and Ash followed behind as she went to the location of the arena.
"I guess all the changes are just in the battlefield?" asked Ash.
"Apparently so; everything else inside looks the same," said Erika. After walking a few more corridors Erika made her way to the double metal doors that lead into the gym and opened them. The gym was completely pitch black except the light that poured into the first 10 feet from the entrance of the door.
"Where are the lights?" said Ash as he stood still. "I guess she isn't here."
"Oh, I'm here, all right," said a distant voice with a devious chuckle. "This is all part of our training exercise to whip these cowards into shape and sharp focusing. And are you another victim who wishes to challenge me?"
"No, it's your sister!" shouted Erika into the darkness.
"Hehe, same thing," said the voice. "I am surprised to hear that you came back. I thought I kicked your goody two-shoed ass all but good."
"Caroline, I've come back to show you that I am not the same girl I was the last time you saw me!" said Erika. The lights in the gym turned on and the indigo-haired girl gasped. The gym that she knew before was gone. All the flowers she had planted and the trees were no more. Several large boulders about 10 feet tall were scattered across the field that had a mixture of lush grass and sand. A small river ran through the gym with varying depths and widths; at its widest point, it was about 30 feet and narrowed down to about a foot. The bottom was about 15 feet at its deepest point. Erika was essentially left with no words as she glanced at the gym with anger. Ash saw the figure of Erika's sister in the distance; she had emerald green hair and blue eyes, dawned what look like a yoga outfit.
"Like what you see, Erika? I tried to design it in my image," said Caroline. "Has the balance to maximize potential."
"By force?" asked Erika who shook her head.
"Just as you said previously, I'm not the same person that you knew me as," said Caroline. "I know you viewed me as aggressive, but being your Pokémon's best friend and appealing to their emotions will not get the proper results. Sure, I was a little over the top with force at first, but you clearly misinterpreted my style with that of a savage."
"I don't know whether to believe that or not," said Erika. "I visited mom and she said you never visited her while she was at the hospital."
"Only because I'm too busy," said Caroline. "I train from six in the morning up until eight at night. I'm beyond wiped out when I finish and never had time to visit her. Besides, dad said she just broke her hip; nothing really serious. Mom's a strong woman, just like me. I have no clue where you got your weakness from. I bet-"
"Enough!" said Erika. She held her arm out to present Ash. "This is your challenger, Ash Ketchum."
Ash gulped and became nervous now that the attention was focused on him. "Uh…yeah, I've come for this gym's badge!" he said with raising confidence now. "And Erika told me that you battle with two Pokémon at once; why not battle us both at the same time?"
A smile formed on Caroline's face. "Very well. I accept. This will be a four-on-four battle; each of you get to use two Pokémon apiece. You may substitute if you desire and can also use items. I will not do either of those since I have enough faith in my training. If either one of you has no more available Pokémon, then the match is over. Feel free to use the surrounding landscape to your advantage if you can. Anything else you'd like to know?"
"No, I'm ready," said Ash. "Are you, Erika?"
"Yes; this battle will decide which of us is the better trainer," said Erika.
"Ha. We'll see about that," said Caroline. She moved to the side of the river where it was only a foot wide and just a few inches deep. "I'll release my Pokémon first. Go!" She grabbed one Pokeball with each hand and threw them against the ground, causing the room to light up with the transformation of the new Pokémon.
"Dew!"
"Chansey!"
"A Chansey?" said a surprised Erika.
"A Dewgong?" said Ash.
"Weren't expecting that, huh, sis?" taunted Caroline.
"Not those Pokémon, but I am not surprised that you chose something random," said Erika. "You always were so hard to predict. But, hey, it wouldn't be that much fun if you were using all grass types, now would it?" Erika felt she had too much at stake, so she had to prove herself that she was not just a submissive weakling that others had labeled her as.
"Go!" shouted she and Ash as they both released a Pokeball. Ash had sent out Scizor while Erika had sent out a green Pokemon that looked like it was wearing a sombrero on its head with a pineapple.
"Colo!" said the Pokémon.
Ash took out his PokeDex and obtained the information on the strange Pokémon called Ludicolo. "Smart decision; you have a Pokémon that has its weakness to ice removed," said Ash.
"I caught him as a Lotad about a year ago," said Erika. "Ludicolo, start the match off with a fake out on Dewgong!"
"Scizor, you use your new move you learned, metal claw, on Chansey!" ordered Ash. With a gleam in a pincer of red metal, Scizor dashed towards the Pokémon that one would see by Nurse Joy's side while Ludicolo made a swift attack and left Dewgong temporarily stunned. After about ten seconds, Dewgong was able to recover.
"Dewgong, use icy wind on Ludicolo, while Chansey, you use reflect!" commanded Caroline. "We're going to play with a defensive approach."
Dewgong's horn began to glow and sparkle and snow whirled towards Ludicolo whilst Chansey fortified a wall of gold light around her body and Dewgong's. Scizor came into contact with Chansey and pummeled her with his might claw, but Chansey was capable of shaking off the damage fairly easily.
"Dive into the water!" shouted Erika. Ludicolo evaded all but a little snow, taking minimum damage, and took refuge in the water.
"You both are going to have to do better than that," said Caroline. "If you're gonna end up losing, at least put forth decent effort."
"Okay," said Ash. "Then how about this? Scizor, distract Chansey with double team! Just give me a moment to think of a strategy." Ash checked out the environment and see what he could potentially use to assist him in this battle. He saw that there was a good amount of sand that moved gently in the breeze when Scizor beat his wings. Scizor's dozen or so duplicates began to circle around the battlefield, making Chansey slightly nervous.
"Raise your evasiveness, too, Chansey, with minimize!" ordered Caroline. "Dewgong, whittle their health down by using hail!"
Ash had his attention focused on Dewgong at the time being. With hail, it would be hard to focus on the battle and the visibility would be lessened. He wanted to prevent Dewgong from using that move, but that would require breaking stealth and giving Chansey a chance for a free shot at Scizor. The boy calculated his options and noticed something. The sand! And he knew a way so that it would not ruin his cover.
"Scizor! Beat your wings against the sand in their direction!" ordered Ash. "Stop that hailstorm from happening!" At his command, all the copies of Scizor and the real one began to beat their wings; although all the force came from the true Scizor, it was the only way to effectively remain in stealth mode. Dewgong was finishing the storm cloud above the field, when Caroline said,
"Chansey! Stop Scizor with egg bomb!"
Chansey grabbed the egg in her stomach pouch and hurled it towards Scizor. A new egg instantly popped up and took the place of the missing one. She grabbed that one, too, and launched it.
"Shoot them out of the air with water gun, Ludicolo!" ordered Erika. Ludicolo inhaled and fired a blast of high-pressured water at the two eggs, causing them to explode a create a display like fireworks above the battlefield. The dust finally dispersed into Dewgong's face, tickling her nose and making her sneeze. The hail cloud, although she stopped, was somehow sufficiently complete and dropped weak pea-sized hailstones on Chansey, Scizor, and Ludicolo. After pelting the three Pokémon for about fifteen seconds, the cloud completely vanished.
"How disappointing," said Caroline. "I guess we'll have to settle with a signal beam on that walking moss monster! Dewgong, make it happen!"
Signal beam…If I recall, that's a bug-type move and will inflict a lot of damage on a grass type, thought Ash. The boy thought of a strategy that would protect Ludicolo without much damage to Scizor thanks to being a steel type. "Scizor! Take the full force of the signal beam by getting within point-blank range of Dewgong and use X-scissor!"
Dewgong fired that beam from her horn that was originally for Ludicolo, but Scizor thought otherwise. Scizor put himself about a meter away from the sea lion Pokémon, taking the relentless, though weak, attack. Moving his claws slowly, he began to prepare his attack.
"Chansey, burn Scizor to ashes – no offense for the pun," she said as she turned to the boy who shrugged it off. "With that TM I taught you!"
Chansey was within a not reasonably far range of Scizor – about 11 meters - to stop the metal mantis. Erika think she had an idea how to stop it and said, "Ludicolo! Douse Chansey with water pulse!"
Chansey exuded a trail of crimson flames from her mouth, but the water extinguished the flames before the trail could even reach 5 meters. The wave of water got smaller since some of it turned to steam, but it was enough to knock Chansey off her feet. Scizor's attack connected and did some decent damage against Dewgong.
"Push Scizor back with aqua tail," said Caroline. A whirlpool swirled around Dewgong's tail and with a swift smack, Scizor was hurled about 10 meters backwards, enduring a heavy blow. "Not bad," added Caroline. "But how long are we gonna just keep idly knocking off hit points before we see some results?"
"Soon," said Erika. "Ludicolo, use giga drain on Dewgong!"
"Scizor, break through Chansey's defenses with brick break!" commanded Ash. "I got it at the department store while you were visiting your mother," he clarified to Erika, causing her to go "Ah" in response. Dewgong's body began to glow in a light green of energy and orbs of said color began to exude from the sea lion's body. The orbs then flew over to Ludicolo and the moss-like Pokemon absorbed them, replenishing lost health.
"Jump into the water, Dewgong!" ordered Caroline. Dewgong jumped into the river and Erika said,
"Use hyper voice underwater! Sound travels faster in water, after all!"
Ludicolo dived into the river after the white seal Pokémon as Dewgong desperately tried to escape. With a high-pitched yell, Ludicolo sent sound waves echo all across the depths of the river, finally reaching Dewgong and damaging her. After having been damaged with the super-effective giga drain, Dewgong was unable to recover and fainted, floating to the surface. Caroline merely sighed with frustration and said,
"Dewgong, I expected more out of you; nonetheless, that was a decent battle so you can rest for now." She smirked as she looked down at the Pokeball and directed her gaze upwards to her sister. "You think you have improved, but Dewgong just so happens to be one of my weaker Pokémon. Nonetheless, I am glad to see that you are not incompetent at battling, Erika." She clipped the ball onto her hip and took out another one.
"Well done, Erika," said Ash. "It was awesome seeing you battle with skill."
"Sure, I may be calm, polite, and submissive, but I do not lack the capabilities to train Pokémon," said Erika with a stern look on her face at her sister. "Now, make your move."
"If you insist," said Caroline. "But don't get mad when I wipe that smirk off your face, Erika. Go, Nidoqueen!"
Nidoqueen roared her name as soon as she left her Pokeball and looked at Ludicolo with a frightening glance that meant she wanted—no, rather, was going-to vindicate the fallen Dewgong.
"A Nidoqueen?" stated Ash with disbelief. "Wow, this gym sure is different than what I had in mind. I always thought that Celadon City was known for its flowers and grass, but…"
"Well, I got tired of it, so I decided to change things up a little," corrected Caroline. "Plus, are you aware of the many weaknesses that pure grass-type Pokémon have? Five! Your little friend Ludicolo got fire and iced nullified, but that doesn't help you with what I'm going to do. Now, let's show those two what you're made of, Nidoqueen, with sludge bomb!"
"Poison is one of Ludicolo's weaknesses," thought Ash. "But Scizor, on the other hand, is completely immune to poison." Ash watched as a brown blob of filth being formed in front of Nidoqueen and he then said, "Scizor, stand in front of Ludicolo and take the attack! It won't hurt you!"
"Ash is quite smart to think of such strategies," thought Erika. "He really must have studied extensively before becoming a trainer."
Upon hearing the command, Scizor immediately got in front of his battle partner while the ball of filth was launched towards the metal mantis. Scizor remained motionless as the sludge bomb impacted against him with no harm done.
"Chansey, flamethrower!" commanded Caroline. Ash knew immediately that he had to command Scizor to dodge the attack, but Ash saw something. The super-sticky sludge had dripped off Scizor's body and collected around his feet and hardened. Scizor looked down and gasped as he tried desperately to get unstuck as the flames were approaching. Erika gasped. "There's no way to save Scizor from the sludge, but maybe I can do something to possibly help." Erika looked up and said,
"Ludicolo, use water sport! It will lessen the power of the fire attack!"
Ludicolo drenched Scizor with water by creating a huge splash in the river that soaked the surrounding area around the red mantis. Scizor shut his eyes tight and took the full force of the flames, but thanks to the water, a lot of the flames were doused and turned to steam, effectively lowering the damage Scizor took.
"Scizor, are you okay?" asked Ash with concern, but as a trainer this time instead of a best friend.
"Zo-" started the bug Pokemon, but he was unable to finish when his body began to glow bright red. Despite the fact that Scizor had a relatively impressive special defense stat and Chansey having a rather low special attack, Scizor sustained a burn!
Caroline chuckled. "Well, at least the attack wasn't for nothing!" she jeered. "It'll be a lot harder to land good attacks when your Pokemon is burned."
"Urgh," groaned Ash with anger. He was quite aware that having the burn status condition lowered a Pokemon's physical offense, but he was not going to hold back now, even if Scizor would slowly lose health. "Scizor, you're doing great out there! You just keep giving it your all until you can't anymore! Now use metal claw on Nidoqueen!" Ash did not know the other types of moves that Nidoqueen know, but he did know this for a fact: Scizor had the only weakness of fire, but he took it four times as hard as a normal Pokemon. Ash felt that whatever Nidoqueen would dish out, Scizor would surely be able to handle it.
"Ludicolo, use ice punch on Chansey!" ordered Erika.
Scizor dashed in front of the poison and ground-type Pokémon and swiped the metallic claw against Nidoqueen's scaly body. The poison Pokemon did not seem to really take much damage from the attack as she did not even blink and gave a taunting grin.
"Give Scizor your superpower," said Caroline. A light blue aura of power surrounded Nidoqueen and she grabbed Scizor and held her above her head. With a powerful toss to the rocky ground below, Nidoqueen slammed Scizor with no mercy. The toss was so powerful that Scizor made a hole a few feet into the ground and could not get back up, signifying his defeat.
Ash looked down with disappointment and took out Scizor's Pokeball. "Scizor, that was a good battle. You deserve a good rest for your hard work." The red beam of energy absorbed the Pokémon and Ash clipped the ball onto his hip as he reached for another ball.
"I will admit, your fighting style isn't half bad," said Caroline. "You've been pretty entertaining, Ash and Erika. You seem to have been doing an extensive amount of training, little sister. I can't wait to see what other Pokémon you are using, Ash."
"I'll use my trusted partner and my first Pokémon that I ever got," said Ash as he took the ball and threw it. "I'm placing my trust in you. Go, Dragonair!" The blue dragon landed softly on the sand of the gym and looked at Nidoqueen with caution.
"What an interesting selection, Ash," said Caroline. "First time I have seen a Pokémon that rare. It will be a shame to see me beat her, but that's how a gym leader is. Nidoqueen, use iron tail on Dragonair!"
"Dragonair, dodge the attack and use dragonbreath on Chansey!" ordered Ash. The charging Nidoqueen approached Dragonair with a gleaming tail of steel and slammed it in the ground with a loud pound, just missing the dragon Pokémon. Dragonair inhaled deeply and produced a seafoam-green blast of energy towards Chansey. The new attack that Dragonair learned made Chansey's body turn a light green and Ash could clearly see that the egg Pokémon was reaching the last bit of her health.
"All right, Ludicolo, hit Chansey with brine!" shouted Erika. Erika was taking a chance since she believed that the metal claw and brick break easily left less than half since Chansey had such low defense. Ludicolo shot a powerful stream of water from his gut and launched it at Chansey without any holding back on the gentle Pokémon. The blast of water did substantially more damage and it was too much for Chansey to bear, knocking her out and leaving Caroline with a disappointed look that she quickly overcame.
"All right, Erika and Ash," said Caroline. "This Pokémon will show you how strong you truly are. I will admit that I am quite surprised that you managed to get this far, especially you, Erika."
"I am not the weak girl that I was before," said Erika. "Going out on my own and traveling with Ash has made me change my ways. Sure, I have not done that much fighting, but that is not what Pokémon is all about. Send out your next one so we can come to a decisive end!"
"Now that's what I'm talking about!" said Caroline with enthusiasm.
Ash turned to Erika and said, "This is the sister that you said you fought with? She honestly does not seem that bad, at least compared to the way you told me."
"Perhaps it is possible that she really has changed, but I find it rather hard to believe," said Erika.
"Go! Flareon!" said Caroline as she released her final Pokémon to accompany Nidoqueen. "Use retaliate on Ludicolo!" Flareon did not need to be told twice as he followed the orders of his trainer. Caroline was well aware about the power of the move as well as the high offense that Flareon had. With a blinding dash, the fire Pokémon rammed into Ludicolo haphazardly and caused the grass Pokémon to faint. "Well, looks like that leaves you with your final Pokémon. Seeing the way you battle and your specialty, I think that you are in quite a bind."
Erika looked down and said, "Erika, what are you going to do? Your grass types won't be strong enough to take on either of them, but…"
Erika hesitated for a second and said, "Ash. I have been keeping something from you and I hope that you don't change your opinion about me as friends."
"What are you talking about, Erika?" asked Ash with utter confusion. "What could you possibly do that would make us not be friends anymore?"
She took out the Pokeball from her bag and said, "It's time for you all to meet…Gyarados!"
"What!" shouted Ash and Caroline with astonishment.
GPS: Erika's surname is the same in both this story and WAWL if you happen to read the latter. Giving her a different one in this story (I assigned the surname first in WAWL) would probably confuse me. Her parents' have the same given name in both stories. There will be info about her family in the future! I also had a lot of influence from Pokémon Stadium 1 and 2 in which Erika (well, the gym leader of Celadon, i.e.) was using a lot of non-grass types. I found it really weird and I wanted to make some interesting and unexpected choices. (: