Hey everyone, I'm here with an update. I hope you all enjoy battles because this chapter revolves around one. Thanks again for your continued support and I hope you all enjoy this chapter. I did my best to make it great and I'm sure you'll all enjoy it.

Last Time: Ash reunited with Brock who arrived in Kalos to do a research project for his class to becoming a Pokémon doctor. Serena and Shauna arrived at Lumiose City to receive their starter Pokémon from Professor Sycamore. Ash also started training to get a feel for Froakie's and Fletchling's strength for their gym battle with Viola.

Key:

Bold- PA system/Message Bulletins

Bold Italic- Radio/TV/Pokedex descriptions

Italics-Thoughts/Letters/Flashbacks

Ash had awoken before his alarm clock was set to go off. He managed to get a good night's sleep in and was just a couple of hours away from battling Viola. He rubbed the crust from his eyes as he sat up and yawned. He walked over to the bathroom to take a quick shower before going to get breakfast. As Ash finished his shower, he stood in the bathroom and reflected on his strategy again. Throughout the night he had a dream of battling Viola and the strategy he used worked marvelously and he planned on using that same one he saw in the dream.

He left the bathroom and was greeted by Pikachu who climbed up to his shoulder. He smiled at his partner as he gently scratched the top of his head. The two of them left the room and made their way down the hall to the cafeteria to get an early breakfast. When they entered the cafeteria the smell of delicious food met their nostrils and their stomachs gave a loud growl. Not wanting to wait for food any longer, Ash hustled over to the counters and grabbed a tray to start grabbing some food. He went to each dish and grabbed a bit of everything and walked over to the table to start devouring it.

Ash and Pikachu continued to stuff their faces with food until Brock came in and sat down at the table. He still looked half asleep as he sat there which made Ash smirk.

"You awake there?" Ash asked.

"Yeah, but I didn't expect your alarm to go off," Brock replied with a yawn.

"Oh, sorry about that. I forgot to turn it off when I left the room."

"It's fine, I was going to get up early anyway. Are they serving anything good?"

Ash's mouth was full of food so he could not reply, but he was able to point at the counter with the food. Brock got up and walked to get some food of his own and came back to see all the food on Ash's plate was gone. He smirked and shook his head as he saw Ash's infamous appetite. For as long as he could remember, Ash had always been a bottomless pit when it came to eating and would devour everything that he would cook for him and their friends on their earlier journeys. As Brock started eating he saw Ash reading a passage of data from his Pokédex.

"What are you reading?" Brock asked.

"I'm looking through Froakie's and Fletchling's moves," Ash replied. "I know that the Pokédex has the ability to display the moves of the Pokémon that was caught after I saw Paul doing that when we were in Sinnoh."

"Good thinking. Are you seeing anything useful?"

"I found one move that can really help me out with Froakie, but it all depends on the battlefield's terrain."

"Which move is it?"

"What's the fun of spoiling it for you? You'll see for yourself."

Brock let out a laugh as he took another bite of his breakfast. Ash was always spontaneous and loved to make people wonder what tricks he had up his sleeve during his battles. Seeing that Ash was getting fired up, Brock finished the rest of his food quickly and stood up to let Ash know he was ready to go. Ash, Brock and Pikachu left the cafeteria and made their way down the hall to the lobby to pick up the rest of Ash's Pokémon.

When they arrived to the lobby, Ash went to the front counter with Brock right behind him doing a lively stride, no doubt happy to see Nurse Joy. Nurse Joy greeted them with a smile and walked into the side room to retrieve Ash's Pokémon. She came out a few seconds later with Ash's Poké Balls and handed them over in the tray. Ash thanked her as he clipped the balls on his belt. While Ash was adjusting his belt, Brock grabbed Nurse Joy's hands and leaned in.

"Nurse Joy, I must thank you for your assistance. I'm glad fate has brought me to you," Brock said with a smooth tone.

"Oh, well," Nurse Joy stammered.

There was a snap as a Pokémon materialized beside Brock and brought back its fist. The fist started to glow purple as the power coursed inside of it. The Pokémon punched Brock right in his rear, making the latter go stiff as a board before falling back. Ash looked down and shook his head with a light laugh.

"Hey, Croagunk," Ash said.

Croagunk nodded and dragged the still stiff Brock by his ankle to the front door. Ash turned to thank Nurse Joy with a smile before following them outside. As they left through the doors, Brock groaned out in disappointment.

"Croagunk, why?" Brock asked as he was being dragged.

Ash, Brock and Pikachu were walking down the street after Brock spent the past half hour recovering from Croagunk's Poison Jab. Brock still looked down in the dumps at being stopped by Croagunk, but Ash knew that he would be back to his normal self when he saw another cute girl. He never understood why Brock could jump from girl to girl so quickly, but he was almost sure that was one of the reasons why he struggled with finding love. Shrugging it off, Ash started looking around for the gym. From what he saw on the town's map, the gym was supposed to be near the center of it.

They stopped when they came to an intersection that had a large fountain sitting in the center. Ash looked around, but his eyes could not find the gym. He frowned and crossed his arms as he scanned the area again. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the map he had. Sure enough, the map still displayed the gym near the intersection they were at, but Ash could not find it.

"Maybe you should just ask somebody where it is," Brock suggested as he looked at the map.

"Yeah, this is taking too long for my taste," Ash agreed as he handed the map to Brock.

Ash spotted a girl with short, sandy blonde hair. She was holding a camera in her hands and her dark green eyes seemed to be searching for the perfect picture to take. The girl turned to look at him when she heard him coming over to her. She gave him a friendly smile and rested a hand on her hip.

"Excuse me, but can you help me with something?" Ash asked as he sheepishly scratched the back of his head.

"Sure! What do you need?" The girl asked.

"I'm looking for the Santalune Gym, but I can't find it. The map said it was supposed to be right off the intersection here."

"Oh, yeah, you can't miss it! It's just up the street here."

The girl pointed down the street on the north side of the fountain which made Ash grin.

"Thanks a bunch," Ash said as he turned to Brock. "Hey, Brock, the gym's this way!"

Ash took off down the road leaving Brock to fold up the map and hurry after him. Brock gave the girl a nod in thanks as he hurried after Ash.

"I guess I should get back to work," the girl said as she walked after them.

Ash, Brock and Pikachu came to a grinding halt as they stood in front of a large building. There was a sign that was just above the building's doors reading 'Santalune City Gym' in red letters. Excitement filled Ash as he felt the adrenaline surge through his body as he got ready to have his first gym battle of the Kalos Region. He looked at Pikachu and saw the determination in his eyes as he stared at the gym.

"Are you ready, Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"Pika!" Pikachu nodded.

"All right, let's go!"

Ash, Brock and Pikachu made their way to the doors, but were surprised when the doors opened and a small Pokémon leapt out. The Pokémon caught Ash by surprise as he raised his arms and caught the tiny Pokémon that jumped up to greet him. Taking a closer look, he recognized it as Helioptile. He took a knee and set Helioptile on the ground and rubbed his head as he greeted him.

"I only know one Helioptile, so this must be Alexa's," Ash thought as he looked up when the doors opened again. "This is her sister's gym after all."

When the doors opened again, Alexa came out and looked down to see Ash. She was a little surprised to see Ash and smiled when she saw him.

"Hey, Ash, how's it going?" Alexa asked as she walked up to him.

"I'm doing great," Ash replied as he stood up. "I was caught off guard by Helioptile here a second ago."

"He was just happy to see you."

"Figured as much."

Alexa then noticed the additional face that was traveling with Ash and Pikachu. She turned her attention to Brock who smiled and held out a hand.

"And who are you?" Alexa asked as she shook Brock's hand.

"My name is Brock. I'm an old friend of Ash's," Brock replied.

"Nice to meet you."

Alexa then turned her attention back to Ash and she crossed her arms as a knowing smile came to her face.

"Since you're here I guess that means you are looking for my sister, huh?" Alexa asked.

"Yeah, is she here?" Ash replied.

"She was here a while ago, but stepped out for a break."

"Are you serious?"

Ash sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Just like a few days back, the gym leader he was looking for was once again gone. If he had to wait any longer to battle for his first badge he would go crazy. He only had one goal in mind at the moment and that was to win his first gym badge, but now that would have to wait once again.

"There's no need to wait, Sis. I'm back," a girl's voice said.

Ash turned around and was surprised to see the girl he asked for directions. When he took a closer look he mentally kicked himself. He noticed that the girl had strand of hair that framed her face that was in a similar style to Alexa's. He felt embarrassed that he did not see the similarity earlier.

"I'm starting to wonder if you see photography as your main profession instead of being a gym leader," Alexa said with a teasing smirk.

"Not at all," Viola replied as she rested her hands on her hips. "I just can't sit still all day waiting for trainers. I need to have some form of fun."

Viola walked up to Ash and looked him up and down and a smile came to her face. She was happy to have a challenger to make her day more interesting and she could tell that the trainer that stood in front of her had a lot of experience. The way he carried himself and seemed sure of his power made her know that she was going to have a great battle.

"So, you must be Ash," Viola said as she stood in front of him. "My sister told me about you."

"Did she tell you that I wanted a battle?" Ash asked with a smirk.

"Yes she did. So, since you are so eager to battle, let's go inside and get this show on the road."

"You took the words right out of my mouth."

Viola smiled and motioned for Ash to follow her inside. Ash followed Viola with Brock and Alexa close behind.

The group followed Viola down a large hallway that was adorned with pictures on both sides. The pictures were not focused on one particular subject, but there was a wide variety ranging from Pokémon, buildings, landscapes, shadow and color contrasts. While Ash was no photographer and knew nothing about how to capture a good picture, he was very impressed and fascinated with what he saw. He had to give Viola credit that she was a very good photographer. If she was this passionate about photography and considered it her second job outside of being a gym leader, he wondered how strong she was as a trainer.

"These are very impressive pictures," Brock commented as he stopped to observe one that had a flock of bird Pokémon.

"Thank you," Viola replied with a smile. "I take my camera everywhere I go in hopes to capture some of the greatest things that might be in the area. That shot there is one of my personal favorites just because of the way the sunset adds to it."

Brock nodded in agreement and continued walking with them. They came to a pair of double doors which Viola opened wide and they entered a room that had a large battlefield in the center. Upon seeing the field, Ash's mind went to work as he analyzed the terrain. His eyes looked up and saw the glass windows above the field that had sunlight shining through it. He then noticed some trees and bushes that surrounded the battlefield and left it open for any possible Flying-type Pokémon.

"Okay, she has quick access to sunlight which can set her up for Solar Beam without charging it. There's open space for flying, so she probably has a dual type in her lineup. To top it off she has trees and bushes that she can use for hiding," Ash thought as he checked everything off in his head.

"Alright, Ash. Let me see what you can do!" Viola said as she hurried over to her end of the field.

"You won't be disappointed," Ash replied with a smirk. "I'll make sure to give you a run for your money!"

"Good. Now, let's set the rules. We'll use two Pokémon each. Only the challenger will be able to substitute out Pokémon in the battle. The person with Pokémon remaining is the winner."

"Sounds good to me!"

"All right, let's go!"

Viola pulled out a ball from her pocket and tossed it into the arena and it opened with a loud snap. The white glow that came from the ball took shape on the field and it vanished to reveal a Surskit. Ash had chosen his first Pokémon and threw the ball out into the field as well. Froakie emerged and stared Surskit down as a focused look came to his eyes.

"You have the first move, Ash!" Viola said.

"Fine with me!" Ash replied. "Froakie, use Quick Attack!"

"Surskit, use Protect!" Viola countered back.

Surski looked up at Froakie and a light green dome surrounded it. Froakie slammed into the dome and bounced off as his attack was blocked. He glared at Surskit as it stared calmly at him.

"Froakie, use Pound!" Ash shouted.

Froakie flipped over Surskit and landed behind it and turned on his heel with his arm drawn back. He gave his punch just the green barrier dropped and his fist connected with Surskit's back. Surskit quickly skid away and got Froakie back in its sight. Froakie went charging at Surskit once more with Quick Attack, but Viola had her next move planned out.

"Surskit, use Ice Beam on the field!" Viola ordered.

Surskit quickly glided to the side and avoided Froakie's attack, all the while charging up a light blue ball of light. Surskit continued to charge the attack as it moved and finally fired it on the ground. With Surskit moving quickly, it did not take long for the ice to completely cover the field. Froakie was now trapped on a small bit of solid ground and would not be able to move on the field without slipping and being open to attack. This tactic surprised Ash a little as he saw it, but he kept his calm. He knew that to win the fight he had to control the field and that was one thing he was always good at doing.

"Now use Signal Beam!" Viola shouted.

A pink flash of light emitted from Surskit's antenna before a streaky pink beam shot from it and went straight for Froakie who was trapped. Thinking fast, Ash made his next move.

"Froakie, jump and spin while throwing your frubbles!" Ash yelled.

Froakie crouched low and sprung high into the air as his legs propelled him off the ground. His hands reached for the frubbles around his neck and he grabbed two handfuls as he reached the peak of his jump. As he fell back to the ground he started throwing the frubbles as hard as he could while he spun. The frubbles landed on the icy ground and were scattered all over the area. Ash nodded inwardly as the first part of his plan was counter was complete.

Now that the frubbles were scattered all over the area, it would be impossible for Surskit to move as fast and if it were to touch them, it would get stuck and be open for an attack. It was time to start the next phase of his plan.

"Froakie, use Smokescreen!" Ash shouted.

Froakie inhaled deeply and blew out a thick stream of black smoke that engulfed the entire field. With the smoke concealing his movement, Ash was now able to counterattack with ease.

"Now use Quick Attack!" Ash said.

Using his chance while the smoke provided concealment, Froakie jumped from his spot and on to the frubbles he made. He jumped again and began to make his way to Surskit's location. When he was within range, he looked towards the spot Surskit was hiding and jumped forward. His Quick Attack gave him the speed necessary to send Surskit skidding away after he collided with it. The smoke lifted and revealed Surskit now standing a few feet away with one of its legs caught inside a frubble, keeping it in place.

"Froakie, use Bubble!" Ash yelled.

"Surskit, use Ice Beam!" Viola countered back.

Froakie opened his mouth wide and fired a volley of large blue bubbles at Surskit. Surskit's antenna glowed a light blue before it fired a beam of frigid ice. The attacks met head on, but the fragile bubbles stood no chance against the solid beam of ice. The Ice Beam shot clear through Froakie's attack and was almost upon him before Ash gave his command.

"Froakie, block it with your frubbles!" Ash shouted.

Froakie took another deep breath and the frubbles around his neck swelled in size to shield his face and part of his chest. The Ice Beam slammed into Froakie's frubbles and he went rigid as the ice-cold attack froze him to the bone. He started to tremble as he fought through the cold. When the attack ended, Froakie took a knee to recuperate and try to warm himself up as his body shook from the chilling after effects. He stood up and shook off the frubbles that absorbed the attack and a new batch started to form around his neck.

"Froakie, return!" Ash said as he recalled Froakie.

Froakie returned to his ball and Ash pulled out Fletchling's next. He threw the ball into the field and it opened to allow Fletchling to take flight. Fletchling took high to the air and locked on to Surskit as it managed to tug itself free from Froakie's frubbles.

"Surskit, use Sticky Web!" Viola yelled as she pointed at Fletchling.

"Fletchling, use Double Team!" Ash shouted.

Fletchling flickered before multiple copies of it filled the air and began to fly around. Surskit looked at the giant swarm of Fletchling and opened its mouth. Large webs were launched into the flock of Fletchling and hit them and made them disperse one by one. The webs continued through the copies and plastered the walls. Once Surskit's attack ended, a decent amount of copies were still flying around the air.

"Fletchling, use Peck!" Ash ordered.

Fletchling and its copies flew around the field and then dove for Surskit. With the wave of Fletchling coming at it, Surskit got ready to evade the attack. Surskit skid back to avoid one Fletchling, but was overcome by the swarm of copies. Although the copies did not hurt Surskit, they dispersed one at a time on contact and distracted it from locating the real Fletchling. Out of the corner of its eye, Surskit saw a lone Fletchling coming from the side. Surskit jumped back just in time to avoid the sharp beak of Fletchling and turned to get it in sight to counterattack. However, Surskit was unable to move. It was caught on a clump of Froakie's frubbles.

"Surskit, use Ice Beam!" Viola yelled.

"Fletchling, dodge and use Razor Wind!" Ash shouted.

Surskit fired another beam of ice high into the air at Fletchling's anticipated path. Fletchling tilted its wings and took a sharp dive, narrowly missing the Ice Beam. It turned and got Fletchling in its sights and its wings began to glow white as power surged in them. Fletchling brought its wings back and then forward as hard as it could. Large, white sickles flew from Fletchling's wings and rocketed forward at the immobilized Surskit. There was a loud boom as the attack crashed head on with Surskit, kicking up a small cloud of dust. The dust cleared moments later and Surskit was lying in a collapsed heap on the icy floor.

"Surskit is unable to battle! The winner is Fletchling!" Alexa said as she raised her arm to Ash and Fletchling.

Viola returned Surskit to its ball and gave it a gentle smile. She clipped the ball back on her belt and pulled out her next one. She threw her ball out to the field and it opened to release her last Pokémon. The white glow vanished and revealed a large butterfly Pokémon. Ash narrowed his eyes as he observed the Pokémon before him. He had a fair amount of knowledge with Bug-type Pokémon since he previously had a Butterfree, but he decided not to take any chances with this new one before him. His hand pulled out his Pokédex and he pointed it at the Pokémon. The screen came to life as the image of the Pokémon appeared on it.

"Vivillon, the Scale Pokémon. Vivillon are skillfully able to find a source of water. It has been said that you'll find a spring if you follow a Vivillon," Dexter informed.

Ash clicked his tongue at the lack of information as he would just have to use his past logic to try to expect what it was capable of. He pocketed his Pokédex and observed the area again. His eyes took account of the webs that were now plastered to the walls after Surskit fired them. He also looked back towards the glass ceiling to see the sunlight gleaming through.

"Okay, I need to be careful of those webs and that's manageable if I have Fletchling stay low to avoid Gust. That sunlight is also another threat with the possibility of Solar Beam," Ash thought as he looked back to the battle.

Fletchling and Vivillon were in a stare down as they got ready to battle. Putting his focus back into the battle, Ash gave his next command.

"Fletchling, use Peck!" Ash shouted.

"Vivillon, use Gust!" Viola yelled.

Fletchling's beak glowed white and extended out as it shot forth at Vivillon. Vivillon flapped its wings to scurry back and began to flap them wildly. A strong wind kicked up and began to blast Fletchling who was stopped in its tracks from the wind. Fletchling tried to flap its wings and push through the wind, but it was too strong.

"Fletchling, use Steel Wing to weigh yourself down and dive!" Ash yelled.

Fletchling's beak retracted as it cancelled the attack and then diverted power to its wings. Its wings glowed for a minute before a shiny metal covered them. The plan worked brilliantly. The added weight allowed Fletchling to push through the wind and dive to under it to come under Vivillon. Fletchling's wings tilted up and it shot towards Vivillon, intending to strike it with its reinforced wings.

"Vivillon, use Sleep Powder!" Viola ordered.

"Dodge it!" Ash shouted.

Vivillon scuttled back again and flapped its wings to allow a light blue powder to fall towards Fletchling. Fletchling was quick to divert off course to avoid the attack, but Vivillon swiftly moved over Fletchling and managed to hit it. Fletchling's eyes began to droop as sleep began to overpower it. Its wings gave a few more flaps before it fell down to the gym floor.

"Now use Psychic!" Viola yelled.

"Fletchling, you need to wake up! Come on!" Ash cried out.

Vivillon's eyes glowed blue as it looked down at Fletchling. Fletchling was halted in midair and then thrown to the wall as Vivillon turned its gaze to the webs left from Surskit. Fletchling slammed into the webs and was jarred awake. Taken by surprise by being stuck, Fletchling began to struggle frantically to break free from the web.

"End it with Solar Beam!" Viola shouted.

"Fletchling, get ready to counter on my command!" Ash yelled.

Fletchling continued to struggle to try and break free from the webs, but after hearing Ash's words, it stopped. Vivillon began to glow yellow as numerous yellow balls appeared around and began to move in a circle. Between Vivillon's antennae a large yellow ball began to form and continued to grow until it was just as big as Vivillon. When the ball finished forming, a massive beam of energy shot from it and soared to Fletchling.

"Fletchling, use Steel Wing to cut through the attack!" Ash shouted.

Fletchling's wings were coated in the strong steel again and it slashed forward just as the beam was upon it. It managed to break free from the web and both wings clapped together as a form of protection. There was a loud bang as the beam of devastating power made contact with Fletchling and a large cloud of smoke surrounded it. What was amazing was that when Fletchling brought its wings forward, it managed to reduce the damage of the attack when the steel managed to cut through the beam and split it off into the walls. The smoke cleared and Fletchling was still hovering in the air in front of Vivillon looking a little winded, but still eager to battle.

"Nice job, Fletchling!" Ash praised. "Now use Razor Wind!"

Fletchling gave a loud chirp as it began to flap its wings and sharp, crescent-shaped blades of wind shot at Vivillon.

"Deflect it with Gust!" Viola yelled.

Vivillon began to wave its wings as it summoned another blast of wind. The two attacks met, but some of the wind blasts from Fletchling broke through and crashed into Vivillon, stunning it. Seeing his chance to end the fight, Ash gave his next command.

"End it with Peck, let's go!" He barked.

Fletchling folded its wings and dashed at the stunned Vivillon. Its beak extended once again as it got within range, but something unexpected happened. Vivillon recovered and managed to dodge at the last second. Fletchling glanced back at Vivillon in surprise and turned around to attack again.

"Vivillon, use Psychic!" Viola shouted.

Vivillon's eyes began to glow blue again as it looked at Fletchling. Fletchling was halted in flight and then jerked up high into the air. It only got worse as Fletchling crashed into the glass and then brought down to the floor of the field with a loud crash. Ash growled as he saw the brutal attack Fletchling took and knew that it would be a miracle for it to be able to still be standing. To his surprise, Fletchling gingerly got back up and glared at Vivillon. Its legs shook violently as it tried to stand, but eventually stopped. Fletchling swayed and fell to its side and entered blissful unconsciousness.

"Fletchling is unable to battle! Vivillon is the winner!" Alexa declared as she raised her arm to Viola and Vivillon.

Ash nodded as he raised Fletchling's ball and recalled it. Fletchling was returned to the ball and he smiled down at it. He was very impressed with Fletchling's performance and tenacity to continue to fight, despite being banged up from Psychic and Solar Beam.

"You were awesome, Fletchling," Ash said as he clipped the ball back to his belt and pulled out Froakie's again. "You get some rest while Froakie and I wrap this up."

Ash tossed Froakie's ball out into the field and it opened. Froakie appeared on the field once again ready to continue where it left off. He looked up at Vivillon as it circled above him and he narrowed his eyes in concentration. While he was observing Vivillon's movements, Ash was doing some thinking of his own.

"I can use the terrain to my advantage, but there's no way to dodge that Psychic attack," Ash thought as he clenched his fists. "Unless I get a lucky shot, there's no way we will get a hit on Vivillon."

As he tried to think of a plan to neutralize Vivillon's Psychic attack, he decided to have Froakie attack to buy some time. If Froakie managed to score a hit, that would be a plus.

"Froakie, use Water Pulse!" Ash shouted.

"Vivillon, use Solar Beam!" Viola countered back.

Froakie held his hands apart as a rotating ball of water formed between them. Vivillon's antennae had the large yellow ball of energy generating once again as it locked on Froakie. Froakie was the first to finish building his attack and threw the ball the ball as hard as he could. The ball of water flew at Vivillon and hit it in the face just as it finished building power for Solar Beam. The water made Vivillon flinch in pain as it slammed into its face. The pain made Vivillon fire the Solar Beam blindly down at Froakie. Froakie jumped back just in time to get out of the impact zone, but the power from the explosion carried him and slammed him into a nearby tree.

Froakie felt the air leave his lungs as he hit the tree and landed on the ground in obvious pain. He stood up shakily as Vivillon managed to recover from the last attack.

"Vivillon, use Gust!" Viola yelled.

"Froakie, use your frubbles on hold yourself in place!" Ash shouted.

Froakie's hands grabbed a fistful of his frubbles and he spread them across his feet. Vivillon's wings conjured another power gust of straight-line winds and directed them down at Froakie. Froakie raised his arms to shield his eyes from any flying particles, but his feet stayed planted to the ground, rendering the gust ineffective. When the attack ended, Froakie jumped free from his frubbles and off to the side.

"Throw your frubbles at Vivillon!" Ash yelled.

Froakie grabbed another bunch of frubbles and threw them at Vivillon. Vivillon weaved between the frubbles, but missed the last one as it clipped its wing. The frubbles solidified on Vivillon's wing and it started to struggle to stay hovering out of Froakie's range.

"You're not going to win that easily!" Viola yelled. "Vivillon, use Psychic!"

Vivillon's eyes flashed blue as Froakie went stiff as a board. It then jerked its head to the side and Froakie was dragged across the ground and thrown off the field into a nearby bush. Ash was growing frustrated with that attack as he struggled to find a way to counter it. Thinking quickly, Ash gave his next command.

"Froakie, use your frubbles again!" Ash shouted.

"That won't work, Ash!" Viola barked. "Vivillon, use Gust to send them back!"

Froakie jumped up from the bush and sent another barrage of frubbles at Vivillon. Vivillon began to swing its wings as hard as it could to send the frubbles away, but with its wing being weighed down from one of Froakie's frubbles from earlier, it was taking more energy than normal. The frubbles that Froakie sent at Vivillon were sent back at the bush and Froakie quickly jumped away and ran to a nearby tree.

"Vivillon, use Pyschic again!" Viola yelled.

As Vivillon's eyes locked on Froakie to use the attack, it stopped when he disappeared behind the tree. Ash was fortunate enough to notice what happened and the answer hit him like a slap to the face.

"That's it!" Ash thought as a grin came to his face. "I can still win this with a good hit!"

It was time to end this battle and get his first badge.

"Froakie, use Smokescreen!" Ash shouted.

A couple of seconds ticked by, but a thick and massive cloud of smoke filled the area moments later. The smoke covered the entire arena and Vivillon soared above it to have a clear line of sight.

"Vivillon, blow it away with Gust!" Viola yelled.

"I don't think so!" Ash shot back. "Froakie, use your frubbles one more time!"

Another wave of frubbles burst from all over the cloud of smoke and soared at Vivillon. Vivillon began to take evasive maneuvers to avoid getting hit. However, that was exactly what Ash wanted to have happen. With Vivillon distracted, it gave him the chance to execute the final part of his plan.

"Froakie, jump up high!" Ash ordered.

A trail of smoke followed Froakie as he soared high into the air and above Vivillon. Vivillon finished dodging the frubbles and looked up to locate Froakie, but was met with a blinding light from the sun. Vivillon recoiled and tried to shield the harsh rays of light, but to no avail. Froakie was descending on Vivillon with growing speed and was now within striking distance.

"Froakie, finish it with Pound!" Ash yelled as he gave a punch of his own.

Froakie brought his arm back and gave a loud cry as he drove his fist forward. Everything seemed to go in slow motion for Ash as he saw his plan unfold and succeed before him. Froakie's knuckles smashed into Vivillon's crown and continued to drive forward until Vivillon was sent plummeting to the icy floor. Vivillon vanished into the smoke and an echoing crash came seconds later.

"Vivillon!" Viola cried out.

Froakie fell into the smoke and landed smoothly on the ice. The smoke vanished seconds later and revealed Froakie standing over a downed Vivillon with his arms crossed and a cool look on his face.

"Vivillon is unable to battle! The winner is Froakie!" Alexa said with a smile as she raised her arm to Ash and Froakie. "The victory goes to Ash Ketchum!"

Ash gave a loud whoop as he heard Alexa say that. He successfully beat Viola with persistence and strategy and that felt good. Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and cheered as Froakie walked over to them. He gave Froakie a high-five as he stepped off the field and Ash scooped him up.

"Froakie, that was awesome!" Ash beamed.

Froakie tried to dismiss it, but could not hide the prideful look on his face. Defeating Vivillon in an intense fight only filled Ash with pride as he saw the potential of his newly acquired Pokémon. Both Fletchling and Froakie did an excellent job in their battles and even though they were new, they secured him his first victory and his confidence in them rose in general.

"I'm proud of you, Froakie," Ash said as he set him back on the ground. "You and Fletchling both exceeded my expectations."

Ash stood up as Viola, Alexa and Brock walked over to him. Brock had a smile on his face. He was very impressed with Ash's tactics throughout the battle and saw that he improved greatly from the last time he saw him. While he did know that Ash's tactical approach in Sinnoh was great, he could not get over how far it had come since then.

"Nice job, Ash. That was a great battle," Brock said as he clapped him on the shoulder.

"Thanks. I told you that you would be impressed," Ash replied with a smirk.

"You were right."

Viola was smiling as she pulled out the badge that was in her pocket. Ash turned to her with a large grin and she extended her hand. He shook it and felt the badge in his hand. When Viola withdrew her hand, Ash looked down at his first badge.

"Ash, that was an excellent battle," Viola said as she rested her hands on her hips. "Our battle was one of the best ones I've had in a long time and I must thank you for it."

"No problem. You were definitely no pushover," Ash replied with a nod.

"I would welcome a rematch sometime if you are up for it."

"Definitely. I'll be looking forward to that."

"That badge there is the first one of eight you need to enter the Kalos League. Your next gym battle will be in Cyllage City."

"Then that's where I'm going next."

"While I am strong, the gym leader of Cyllage City is stronger than me. You better start training more to be ready for the battle with him."

"I will. Thanks again."

"No problem, but before you go."

Viola pulled out her camera and raised it to snap a quick picture of Ash, Brock, Pikachu and Froakie. She looked at the photo as it popped on the screen.

"I want to get one last picture here of all of us," Viola said as she motioned for Alexa and Helioptile to get closer.

Viola set the camera down on the ledge after lining it up with the group and hurried behind them. She got beside Alexa and Ash and gave a wide smile as the camera flashed and a click met their ears.

"Couldn't have you leave without getting a group shot," Viola said with a smile.

Ash returned Froakie to his ball and clipped it back to his belt and let Pikachu climb back up to his shoulder. Once Pikachu was comfortable, Viola and Alexa escorted Ash and Brock to the exit. When they stepped outside they waved goodbye to the two sisters and started to make their way back to the Pokémon Center.

That's the chapter everybody! I hope you all enjoyed the battle, so let me know what you thought about it. Look below for some statements and answers to reviewers questions.

Statements:

1.) I had one reviewer saying that Ash was not as serious in Sinnoh as he was now. Now while that is true, remember that he had an epiphany on the plane in the first chapter and realized that he was not as serious as he should have been if he truly wanted to succeed. Plus, I'm also implementing on how I personally would train my team and battle if I was a Pokémon trainer into Ash's style to give the portrayal of a true tactician.

Answers to reviews:

jg13145: I'm wondering about Brock. At the end of Sinnoh, he decided to become a Pokemon doctor. Is there going to be an explanation as to why he decided to continue pursuing breeding instead?

Answer: Personally I believe Pokémon doctor is the same thing. I imagine a breeder being and doctor being like veterinarians.

MidnightFenrir:By the way, will Shauna truly have a role or is she just a sidekick?

Answer: Shauna will have a role, otherwise I would not have put her in the story.

stars90: Fantastic job. Just out of curiosity, why are you not going to do some evolving?

Answer: I believe you may have misread what I wrote to someone who asked about this. I am evolving some of his Pokémon, but only the ones I can see it happening to.

darkrai6543: I've been wondering though, [this is kind of an unimportant question, but one that my experience in the X and Y games demands an answer from] what ability does Froakie have, torrent or Protean. Protean is an ability that had annoyed the hell out of me in the games, so I have to know, even if it's not all that relevant to the story. Another question, will you end up following the anime, or will this be unique. I know you plan on having Ash catch the pokemon he does in the anime, but I'm interested to know.

Answer: For your first question, I wasn't too focused on ability, but Protean was what I would give Froakie. For your second question, I will only follow some aspects or something I thought was good in it, other than that, this is all me.