Ash felt a pressure on his chest. When he tried to raised his arms to move it, his arm flared in pain. He didn't even have the strength to whimper before darkness consumed him once again.

The pressure was gone. Ash waited a second before slowly trying to move his arm again. It was painful, but not so much that it would stop him. He lifted his arm and slowly wiped his face with it. He opened his eyes and viewed the blurred area around him.

"You finally are awake, I see. How are you feeling?" a soft voice said from behind Ash.

He frowned and answered truthfully, "Like someone decided to inject acid into every muscle in my body." He heard a chuckle and thought to himself. He knew that voice. If he could just think clearly for a second, he could tell who it was. It was feminine, but still strangely strong and powerful. Someone who was confident in all they did. Ash still couldn't identify it, and struggled to sit up.

"You may want to take it slowly. Pain Split isn't meant to be used on humans," the voice informed him. He turned his clearing sight at her, but suddenly saw all yellow.

"Pika pii," Pikachu yelled as it jumped onto his face. Ash fell back onto the bed and waited for Pikachu to get off. The apologetic mouse pokemon quickly jumped off.

Ash looked at the women again. He felt his jaw drop. Long blond hair tumbled down to her waist, and in her hair were four odd hair pieces. Gray eyes peered out of a beautiful face. She was dressed in all black. A black undershirt with a black jacket. And black pants to finish up.

Ash sat up instantly and exclaimed loudly, "Cynthia!" Immediately his head pounded from the movement and noise. He grabbed it and leaned back onto the bed with a groan.

He heard Cynthia chuckle before saying, "Nice to see you remember me."

Ash then replied softly, "It is pretty difficult to forget the events that happened when we last saw each other."

"True."

Ash looked at her slowly. He hadn't seen her since they stopped Team Galactic, except on TV. She was still completely dominant as she defended her Championship title.

He spoke curiously, "What are you doing here?"

She sat at the edge of the bed and answered, "Saving your behind, of course." When Ash tried to protest she held up a hand and continued, "Before that though, I was studying some ruins nearby. I've been here for several days. Then this morning before the sun rose, I receive a call from an assistant of Professor Oak saying that one of their trainers had just caught a Spiritomb."

Now Ash sat up and asked, "Why would they call you on that?"

She shrugged and answered simply, "Because I told them to if anyone caught a Spiritomb."

Ash waited for her to continue till he finally questioned in an exasperated voice, "Why did you tell them that?"

She smiled and answered calmly, "Because I had a feeling that if anyone caught a Spiritomb, then they would need help. And I am the only person who knows about Spiritomb."

Ash gave her a skeptic look and asked, "And why is that?"

She smiled even broader and replied cockily, "Because I am the only person that has one. Or at least, was the only person."

Ash raised his hands and said incredulously, "You have a Spiritomb?" When she nodded he continued, "Then why did Nurse Joy say she didn't know anyone who had captured one?"

Cynthia stated as if it was obvious, "She didn't know. I treat my own Spiritomb because no Nurse Joy can. Now back to my story. I get a call saying another person just caught a Spiritomb. Imagine my shock when they not only say it is Ash Ketchum, but he is camped just outside the place I'm staying. Fate, I imagine. Well I figured that if there was trouble, that you would go to the pokemon center. I rush over and see your Spiritomb use Pain Split on you." She ended with a harsh stare.

Ash shrugged and listened as she continued in an annoyed voice, "That was really thoughtless, Ash. Pokemon moves work differently on humans. That could easily have killed you. As it was, it almost paralyzed half the muscles in your body. If I hadn't found you, it could have been hours before Nurse Joy or another trainer found you. Oh yeah, both you other pokemon will be fine. Nurse Joy says the Ponyta will definitely have some scars, but those might possibly go away when she evolves. Your Buizel is already fully recovered."

Ash quickly asked, "And Spiritomb?"

She gave a tiny smile before informing him, "As irresponsible as that tactic of yours was, it was effective. Your Spiritomb will make a full recovery."

Ash sighed and leaned back. So Spiritomb was okay, and now it was his pokemon. Ash found the idea slightly displeasing. He looked at Cynthia and asked nervously, "Is my Spiritomb just evil or something? I wonder whether I should just release it now."

Cynthia waited till he was looking at her before replying seriously, "No. You will not release it, and it is not evil."

Ash was shocked by her tone, but quickly questioned, "What do you mean? I don't see how I could handle a pokemon that would injure Ponyta so badly. Why would it do that?"

Cynthia shook her head uncertainly before admitting, "I don't know, but it definitely isn't evil. It was awake a little while ago, and it was probably better behaved than mine had been at first. Whatever was wrong with it, as soon as you captured it, it disappeared. Something must have caused it to go out of its mind with fury."

Ash thought about how he had thought it was insane when he first saw it. Maybe there was a reason that it was attacking. Ponyta could have just been at the wrong place at the wrong time. He sighed as he realized he had some work ahead of him.

He decided to change the subject and asked, "What time is it?"

Cynthia checked a clock on the wall and answered quickly, "Four o'clock of the same day you brought your pokemon here."

Ash jumped up and immediately swayed as the blood rushed to his head. He managed to say, "My pokemon are still waiting at the camp. I have to go get them."

Cynthia stood up and shoved Ash back onto the bed with ease. Ash realized that he was still extremely weak as Cynthia said firmly, "No, you cannot go farther than the front yard. Garchomp and I will go fetch your pokemon."

Ash grimaced, but realized that she wouldn't be swayed. He slowly got up and followed her into the yard. He was in front of a small house. Cynthia must be renting it for her research, but there didn't seem to be any buildings nearby.

Ash watched as Cynthia released her most powerful pokemon. The great dragon roared as it was let out. Garchomp looked like a larger version of Gible with longer limbs and torso. It also had a neck, unlike Gible. Garchomp looked around and looked at Ash. It lowered its head and allowed Ash to pat it on the top of its head.

Cynthia looked on slightly shocked before commenting, "That's interesting. Garchomp usually can't stand males unless the situation demands it. It seems she's taken a liking to you. Now where is your camp?"

Ash smiled and grabbed the second to last poke ball on his belt. He then released Staraptor. The flying type dropped to the ground as it waited for orders. Ash ordered calmly, "Staraptor, you are to lead Cynthia and Garchomp to the camp from yesterday. Tell, the rest to listen to her. She will bring you back here." Staraptor squawked to show it understood.

Cynthia looked at Staraptor and said, "I seriously doubt that Staraptor can keep up with Garchomp." Her voice contained a hint of a challenge.

Ash smiled as Staraptor flapped indignantly before ordering Staraptor, "Use Agility, and make sure you keep up with Garchomp. The poke balls should be there, Cynthia."

Ash then watched as the group streaked away at incredible speeds. Ash turned to Pikachu and said, "I guess we just have to wait till they get back."

He then laid down against a nearby tree and let Pikachu curl up against his stomach. He then closed his eyes and attempted to sleep.

Ash got woken up by a heavy weight dropping onto his stomach. Ash twitched heavily as he flung the weight away. He opened his eyes to see Gible and Pikachu laughing at him. Gible had jumped on his stomach, to wake him up. Ash looked to see Cynthia and Garchomp watching in amusement.

Ash sat up indignantly and said, "I think a gentle shaking would have worked just as well."

Cynthia laughed and claimed, "You refused to wake up. It was between Pikachu shocking you or Gible jumping on you."

Ash scratched his head as he realized that was very plausible. He lowered his head in embarrassment before asking, "Did Staraptor keep up with Garchomp?"

Cynthia chuckled at the random question, but answered regardless, "No. The first half she managed to, but she exhausted herself by the time we reached your camp. And when did you get a Gible?"

Ash gave a confused face before answering, "A little while ago. Why?"

Cynthia seemed exasperated and said, "Well he is one of the rarest pokemon in the world. They are only found in parts of the mountains, and at the Dragon's Den in Johto. Plus, I thought you were only going to have six pokemon. How did you end up with a Gible?"

Ash frowned and quickly explained, "True, I usually due only have six pokemon per region, so I can work with them extensively. However, that doesn't mean I can't have more. I have a lot of pokemon. I got Gible after Gliscor decided to go training with an air battle master. Do you know Old Lady Wilma?"

Cynthia frowned and stated, "Yeah, she's the one that taught Garchomp Draco Meteor."

Ash nodded and explained, "Yeah, when we were traveling to Sunnyshore for the first time, we came across her. She showed us Draco Meteor with her Altaria. When we were there, we discovered a Gible that was attempting to learn Draco Meteor. I attempted to help it when I was there, and when we left, it followed. After I helped it escape Team Rocket it decided to join me."

Cynthia nodded and commented, "We sure were surprised when we saw it at the camp. Garchomp practically never sees another of her evolutionary family. I also noticed that quite a few of your pokemon have evolved."

Ash shrugged and claimed confidently, "Well we have been working very hard. This is probably the team with the most evolved pokemon on it."

Cynthia's eyes flashed before she commented bluntly, "That didn't stop you from losing to Flint and Bertha though."

Ash grimaced as Pikachu started to glare at Cynthia. Ash opened his eyes and commented, "That was a low blow, Cynthia. Like seven feet too low."

Cynthia actually opened her eyes in shock and asked in a confused voice, "What did I say?"

Ash gave her annoyed look and announced, "You pointed out that I got completely obliterated, twice, in under a month."

Cynthia frowned and stated, "I didn't mean it as an insult. Both those two have much more experience than you, and both said that you surprised them a lot. I actually thought that Flint using Infernape was overkill. That pokemon is by far his strongest."

Ash grimaced again and stated, "A loss is a loss. We didn't do enough, and that is what matters."

Cynthia's eyes darkened as she started to speak in an even darker voice, "I didn't think you were one of those people, Ash. What matters is the effort your pokemon put in. Not whether they win or not."

Ash laughed which shocked Cynthia before stating easily, "You don't get what I mean. I don't mean that winning is everything. I mean that we still have to get stronger." When Cynthia still seemed confused Ash continued passionately, "It doesn't matter whether we got creamed or if it was super close. A loss means that we still have work to do. It means that we aren't the strongest yet, and we have to train to become even stronger. One step at a time till we are above even you Cynthia. It isn't until then that we have finally fulfilled our dream."

Cynthia laughed at his enthusiasm before he continued, "Losing to Flint and Bertha was painful, but necessary. You must realize all this from my perspective. I have competed in the Indigo Plateau, Silver Conference, and the Hoenn League, but have failed to get past the top eight in any. It doesn't matter if I lost to the soon to be champion, it's that I lost. I needed to see how big of a gap is between me and the Elite Four. Remember Paul's Torterra. One shot is all it took for you to beat it. Since then, I have seen that Torterra compete several times. It ripped right through them. No one stood a chance. It put Gliscor out of action for several days, and still had the strength to continue to battle. Yet it took you only one shot to beat it. That helped put things in perspective. Now if I do win the Sinnoh League, and I intend to, I realize how much work I need to do. I saw the outline of the stairway and realized that many people are several stories above me still. Since someone is above me, I must work for every new step till I reach the top. One step at a time, till I surpass even you."

Cynthia laughed at his curious metaphor before stating, "But there is no top. I constantly see the steps above me."

Ash frowned and said, "What do you mean? No one has gotten close to defeating you yet."

Cynthia laughed before thinking on how to explain finally she stated, "Now. In the present I am at the top, but being Champion forces you to see all the future challenges. Trainers like you and Paul. People who will work and train till they finally win. I am a target and am forced to know this everyday. When I view the future challenges, I see that there are still steps above me. Anyone who is at the top, is forced to realize that there is no end all be all trainer. There will always be people working to surpass you, and eventually some will succeed. It is inevitable."

She finished her speech and Ash quickly thought about what she said. Finally he shrugged and joked, "Thanks for destroying my view on the championship. Next are you going to tell me love and Santa Claus don't exist?"

Cynthia laughed with him and said, "I'd rather not say. I have absolutely no experience when it comes to that, and you should know Santa Claus doesn't exist."

Ash paused for a second before looking at Cynthia who let out a small squeak as she blushed from her blunder. Ash decided not to question her on it and he looked at Garchomp. The great dragon type was sitting with Gible and Pikachu as they listened to their masters talk.

Ash examined the powerful pokemon before admitting, "I still have no idea how I will beat that though. Possible Glalie, but I'm sure it knows fire and fighting type attacks. Charizard and Sceptile would both be at a type disadvantage. Maybe Snorlax."

Cynthia raised her eyebrows at the pokemon he just named before asking, "Just what pokemon do you have, Ash? I guess I just imagine you with your Sinnoh Team so much that I never considered you having other pokemon."

Ash chuckled at that and started to list his pokemon, "Had a Butterfree, had a Pidgeot, Bulbasaur who helps at Professor Oak's lab, Charizard who trains at the Charicific Valley, Squirtle is leading a Squirtle firefighting squad, a Primeape who has been in training, Kingler, Muk, thirty Tauros, had a Lapras, Heracross, Bayleef, a shiny Noctowl, Cyndaquil, Totodile, Donphan, Swellow, Sceptile, Corphish, Torkoal, and Glalie. Also my Sinnoh pokemon, Staraptor, Torterra, Buizel, Infernape, Gliscor, and Gible. I better not have to mention Pikachu. And Ponyta and Spiritomb now."

Cynthia felt her jaw drop. She just couldn't imagine Ash with all those different pokemon. Ash smirked as he saw this act. It felt nice to remind people that he was an experienced pokemon trainer. Not a kid just starting out.

He then looked at Garchomp again and admitted, "But I don't think any could beat your Garchomp right now. That is a complete monster."

Cynthia laughed and quickly pointed out, "And you will end up with the exact same monster soon probably." Ash gave her a confused look so she claimed in an exasperated voice, "Gible evolves into Gabite, and then Garchomp. When he evolves, he'll end up as a Garchomp eventually. A skilled trainer like you could raise that Gible into an even more powerful Garchomp than mine. You did realize this, right?"

Ash shrugged and stated, "Technically, but I never really thought about it."

Cynthia seemed slightly confused and commented, "That's weird. Most trainers catch pokemon based on their future evolutions. Anyone with a Gible, usually is aiming for a Gabite or Garchomp. Most can't handle them, but I figured that is what you were doing. Preparing a future pseudo-legendary."

Ash waved Gible over, who quickly jumped onto his lap. Ash quickly placed his hand on Gible before explaining, "I don't think like that. Pikachu still hasn't evolved. I don't build my team based on what they might become. Many of my pokemon have chosen not to evolve yet. Almost my entire Johto team was not in their final evolution. I look for connection and similarities between us. Most of my pokemon choose to come with me. I don't push them to evolve. They can when they are ready. I caught Gible because we are two kindred spirits. Both of us want to get stronger and help each other. He'll evolve if he wants, not because I want him to."

Cynthia looked incredibly impressed at his thinking. Barely any trainers would agree with his view. To not evolve them quickly, would make it a much harder and longer process, but would be more beneficial in the long run. Cynthia knew that if Pikachu ever evolved, it would be an unbelievably powerful Raichu. The stronger the pre-evolved form, the stronger to post-evolved pokemon. It made sense, but she knew it required courage and determination few had. Cynthia could tell that Garchomp felt similar.

Ash was oblivious to the admiration Cynthia and Garchomp were giving him. Ash quickly stood up and released the pokemon Cynthia had just brought back, and he realized he still hadn't gotten his other pokemon back. He turned to Cynthia and said, "I'm gonna go get Buizel. I think Oak will take Ponyta and Spiritomb. Can you watch my others till I get back?"

An hour later Ash was walking as he stared at a poke ball. He had to keep Spiritomb on him. Ponyta was far too injured to battle anytime soon, but Oak would care for her till she was ready. Spiritomb, though, was probably going to be a problem. Many of the pokemon at Oak's lab would be terrified of it. Oak pulled some strings so that he could carry Spiritomb too. Now he could carry seven pokemon with him.

Ash walked around the house to see all the pokemon were eating. Ash walked up to Cynthia who was lounging next to her Garchomp. He walked up and said quickly, "Thanks for all this. I think I'm going to start training tomorrow though."

Cynthia looked at him and asked, "For your match with Volkner?"

Ash frowned and answered, "Yeah, how did you know?"

Cynthia flashed a secretive smile before saying, "A little birdie told me you and Volkner were going to have a match soon."

Ash put on an annoyed face and asked in an irritated voice, "Did this birdie tell many other people?"

Cynthia smiled again before saying, "You have no idea." She then laid down and made it clear she wouldn't say more.

Ash frowned and walked over to his pokemon. Staraptor and Pikachu were sitting on Torterra, Infernape and Buizel were still eating their food, and Gible was next to Garchomp. As quickly waved for the all to gather around, and then he spoke, "Special arrangements have been made, and Spiritomb will be traveling with us. Let's all meet him."

Ash then released his newest pokemon. The Forbidden Pokemon looked at the surrounding pokemon with a slight bit of fear before Gible and Pikachu approached. As soon as those two went up, the rest followed. Spiritomb looked nervous to be surrounded by so many pokemon, but seemed to be friendly enough.

Ash sighed as he saw Spiritomb would blend in fine. He had been worried, but maybe something had been wrong with Spiritomb before. It was now perfectly friendly. It would definitely be a good addition to the team. He had never caught a ghost or dark type before. It wouldn't be ready for the gym battle, but it was naturally strong. It would be a valuable addition.

The next day, Ash was walking toward the nearby mountains as he reflected over that morning. When he invited Cynthia to watch his match with the promise of repaying her, she said 'he would be surprised by everyone there.' What was that suppose to mean?

He put it out of mind as he found an open clearing where training would be good. He took out his poke balls and released the pokemon inside. Pikachu jumped down to join the team as they faced him.

Ash thought for a second before saying, "Let's all focus on learning new moves now. Torterra, you go a good distance and practice Earthquake. Infernape, can you try to help Pikachu and Buizel learn Dig. We will practice on your Close Combat afterwards. Spiritomb, show Staraptor Ominous Wind. That will really speed up the process, if she can observe the move being done. Gible, go practice Draco Meteor at a safe distance." His pokemon nodded and set off to work.

Ash sat on a rock and pulled out his pokedex. He quickly started checking more possible moves for Buizel and Staraptor. He created a mental list as he thought of the uses of each move, and the difficulty in learning the move.

As soon as he has some good choices down, he looked up Spiritomb. Immediately Ash realized how versatile Spiritomb could be. No weaknesses, and the possibility to learn dark, ghost, electric, bug, water, psychic, and rock type moves. Not to mention Will-o-Wisp. Spiritomb could be a perfect pokemon to open up. If Spiritomb could win the first battle, he would start with an advantage. Ash immediately knew that he was actually extremely lucky that he caught Spiritomb.

When Ash looked up again, he saw everyone progressing well. Ash stood up and walked over to Infernape who was watching as Buizel and Pikachu practiced burrowing underground. Now it was just them getting faster.

Ash knew this and called, "Infernape, let them practice by themselves. We need to work on your Close Combat." He then lead Infernape to a nearby clearing. Ash looked around till he found a long straight stick. He quickly peeled off any bark and found himself with a perfect staff. He grunted in approval and turned to Infernape, who looked pretty confused.

"I think that having a practice partner would help with Close Combat. Try to hit me." When Infernape looked hesitant, Ash quickly said indignantly, "I'm not as weak as everyone believes. I take enough of Pikachu's Thunderbolts to toughen up. Now come on."

Ash looked at his team with pride. They had gotten an unbelievable amount done in two weeks, and Ash was confident that they were ready to battle Volkner. Now there was the two days walk to Sunnyshore and then the battle itself. He wondered whether Cynthia would be there before returning his pokemon and starting the long walk.

"What the hell is this, Volkner? What the fuck is going on? Prince of Pallet vs. Sunnyshore Throne King. Badge vs. Elite Four Challenge." Ash roared as he barged into the Sunnyshore Gym.

He immediately registered that Volkner wasn't the only person in the gym. Next to Volkner was the entire Sinnoh Elite Four. Aaron, Bertha, Flint, and Lucian. Cynthia was there too and she seemed amused by the situation. Palmer, the Battle Frontier Brain, and Scott were also there. Gary Oak was also there and looked to be having the time of his life.

Ash didn't feel like chatting and walked straight up to Volkner and waved a flier in front of his face as he said threateningly, "What is going on? I come into town and there are these fliers are on every surface popular. And what the hell does Prince of Pallet mean?"

Volkner shrugged and pointed to Flint as he quickly summed up, "He decided to make this a big event. Get angry at him."

Flint quickly shot Volkner a dirty look before trying to explain himself quickly, "You see, I think the crowd will make it a better match. No one knows Volkner is battling again, and you are a very popular trainer. People all across Sinnoh will watch this match. We also decided to bump up the consequences. Volkner was talking a while ago about challenging the Elite Four. So, if Volkner wins, he gains permission to do that, and if Ash wins, you get your eight badge. It's pure genius. Personally I liked Pallet Prince, but the advertisers thought Prince of Pallet was more attractive." Flint finished like everything was cleared up.

Ash wasn't convinced and he said angrily, "No, it's you being bored. This was suppose to be a gym battle, not a televised event."

Gary broke in now, "Come on, Ashy Boy. Not confident. It is just a practice match for the Sinnoh League. At least now, the crowd won't be at the battle. It can only be seen on television. If you back out now, everyone would think you were scared. The odds say that you have almost no chance. Volkner has been training with Flint for this."

Ash turned a death glare at Gary who wasn't intimidated in the least. Ash took a breath to calm down before saying slowly, "I see there is nothing I can do, but I will get my revenge on Flint. It says the match will be a six on six tomorrow."

Volkner nodded and Ash turned to everyone else as he announced, "I'll talk to you guys tomorrow. I'm gonna go rest with my pokemon. See you tomorrow." He then walked from the gym as he started planning for his battle.