CHAPTER 2
The two Pallet Town trainers eyed each other off from opposite sides of a small paddock, located within Professor Oak's facilities. A few of the Pokémon running around the lab stopped their activities and rushed over to watch the two trainers, opting to view the battle from a safe distance, perching themselves on fences and trees to get a good vantage point. A few fleeting clouds floated lazily across the sky high above them, occasionally blotting out the sun from view and throwing vast shadows over the sweeping plains beneath them.
"One-on-one sound alright to you?" Gary called, pulling a Pokéball from his waist and lightly tossing it in his hand.
"Sounds fine to me!" Ash replied, taking his own Pokéball and hurling it high and proud. "Buizel, I choose you!"
The capsule burst open in a bright flash of white light, a slim shape materialising out of the air and gingerly touching down on the grassy ground. As it condensed into a recognisable form, a pail of twin tails became visible, swishing around in the still air behind it. The Pokémon stood at waist height on its back legs, its body covered in vermillion fur. The blue fins on its forearms ruffled as a weak breeze ran by the Pokémon's body, its snout twitching from above the yellow ring around its slender neck.
"Bwi bwi!" barked the Sea Weasel Pokémon confidently, puffing its chest out as it waited in front of Ash for Gary to send out its opponent.
Flicking his wrist, Gary launched his own Pokéball across the paddock with a cry of, "Umbreon, let's go!"
With a second flash of light, Gary's Pokémon popped out of its Pokéball and pranced onto the field, shaking its head as its red eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight. The Pokémon's thick tail waved around behind it as it studied the Water type in front, the yellow rings on its body dimming in the lack of moonlight. Both Pokémon assumed a battle stance as they tried to glare each other down, both awaiting an order from their respective trainers.
Gary broke the silence, throwing an arm forwards as he gave an order. "Umbreon, let's start things off with a Shadow Ball!" he commanded, and Umbreon gave a shrill cry as it charged a spinning ball of ghostly-grey energy in front of its open mouth. Its eyes flashed briefly as it swung its head in a circle, shrieking as it blasted the orb at Buizel across the makeshift battlefield.
"Buizel, block that Shadow Ball with a SonicBoom!" Ash countered, Buizel's black nose twitching as the Shadow Ball homed in on it. The Sea Weasel Pokémon leapt into the air, both tails shining with a brilliant light before it swung its body in a full circle and flicked its tails. A shockwave of energy burst forward, whistling sharply as it crashed into Umbreon's attack, splitting it right down the middle and burying itself in the grass. The SonicBoom cut a shallow gouge in the ground as the two halves of the Shadow Ball slid away from each other and promptly exploded, each letting off a large puff of smoke.
Buizel landed gracefully on the ground, snapping its sharp gaze back towards Umbreon, but its vision was obscured by the cloud of smoke between the two combatants. Ash studied the cloud intently along with his Pokémon, waiting for any sign of movement from the other side.
"Quick Attack!" yelled Gary from behind the haze, and without warning, Umbreon streaked through the black cloud, a white coma tailing behind it as it galloped towards Buizel.
"Aqua Jet!" Ash fired hastily. Buizel smirked and instantly shrouded itself in a spray of icy water which intensified into a thick veil as it pounced forwards, spinning its body as it flew headlong into the Dark-type. The extra force provided by the spinning Aqua Jet was enough to overpower Umbreon's attack, and the Moonlight Pokémon was sent flying backwards from Buizel's tackle.
"Umbreon!" Gary cried as his Pokémon crashed to the ground in a heap. "You okay to keep going?" he asked, his face morphing into a smirk as his faithful Dark-type bounded to its feet, shaking the loose covering of water off its black fur. Umbreon gave a shrill bark at Buizel, who sneered back and raised its arms in a taunt.
"Buizel, follow up with a Water Gun!" Ash exclaimed, something sparking to life inside of him. Buizel's jaw clenched for a fraction of a second before it opened its mouth wide and volleyed a powerful jet of water across the field, taking deadly aim at Umbreon's muzzle.
"Let's try another Quick Attack!" Gary said, his Pokémon's head twitching in a minute nod in understanding. Umbreon's form wavered slightly and flickered in the bright sunlight as Buizel's Water Gun bore down relentlessly on it. But the next second it had disappeared into thin air, leaving the Water Gun to drill uselessly into the short grass. A rustle behind Buizel made the Water-type turn around, only for Umbreon to deliver a bone-crunching head-butt into Buizel's midsection, knocking it off its feet.
"SonicBoom, then Water Gun!" Ash ordered, a smirk working its way onto his face; he'd forgotten how fun battling was since his loss to Tobias. Gary noticed the smirk from across the field, and he quickly thought of something, just as Buizel performed a lithe mid-air spin and launched a second shockwave at his Umbreon.
Umbreon saw the attack coming and promptly flattened itself against the ground to avoid the SonicBoom. It winced as it felt the blade of energy rush past its pointy ears, before springing back to its feet, its red eyes locking onto Buizel's black ones. Buizel immediately jettisoned another spire of cold water at Umbreon, catching it unawares and driving it backwards, the Dark-type's black paws carving out shallow trenches in the ground as it fought to hold its footing.
"Umbreon, throw that Water Gun off, then hit Buizel with a Payback!" Gary yelled, Ash's infectious smile working its way onto his own face.
Umbreon gave a low growl as it struggled against Buizel's Water Gun, paws digging deeper into the ground as Buizel strengthened its attack. The Moonlight Pokémon's rings flashed for a fraction of a second, and it threw its head to the side, Buizel's Water Gun spearing over Umbreon's shoulder. Finally free from the power of Buizel's attack, Umbreon bounded forwards, its rings glowing brightly in the sunlight as it closed the distance between itself and Buizel.
"Aqua Jet!"
For the second time, Buizel's body disappeared behind a thick veil of water that enveloped it like a cocoon. Spinning once on the spot to gain momentum, Buizel launched itself straight into Umbreon's path, just as the latter's entire body turned jet-black. The two Pokémon met head-on in a sickening collision that sent sprays of water and flashes of dark energy flying in all directions, accompanied by a miniature shockwave of its own. Both Pokémon touched down on the ground, Umbreon panting heavily and having a bit of trouble standing upright, Buizel leaning heavily on its left side.
"Buizel, how's about another—?"
"Umbreon, return!" Gary called out. Ash started in surprise as Umbreon dissolved into a haze of red light, before being drawn back into the red-and-white ball that Gary held in his outstretched hand. Ash frowned and fumbled at his waist for Buizel's Pokéball, before doing likewise with his Pokémon. After some quiet encouragement to the Sea Weasel Pokémon, Ash marched over to where Gary stood.
"Why'd you recall Umbreon?" he asked, folding his arms. Gary was a little taken aback by the tone of Ash's voice, but didn't let it show.
"What?" Gary replied innocently. "You enjoyed the battle, didn't you?"
"Well, yeah, but—"
"Then what's the problem?" Gary smirked, shrugging his shoulders as he looked at Ash. "We both had some fun; it's not as if we were really trying to beat each other's Pokémon into unconsciousness. I just figured that you needed a battle to get you in a good mood," he explained, grinning.
Ash held Gary's stare for a good few seconds before he slumped his shoulders and gave a shrug of his own. "Eh, I guess you're right…" he conceded, smiling again.
"Of course I am—!"
"—But next time…" Ash interrupted, bringing a noise of surprise from Gary, "let's finish the battle properly, yeah?" he finished, the trademark competitive glint reappearing in his eyes.
"Deal," Gary replied, holding a hand out to seal it, which Ash shook. The two let go quickly, just as Ash's stomach made a violently empty noise, making Ash grin sheepishly.
Ash laughed nervously and scratched the back of his head. "Guess I should eat something instead of thinking about that battle, huh…"
"Well, let's go grab a bite," Gary stated matter-of-factly. He clapped a hand on Ash's shoulder before turning and striding across the grass towards the small gate leading out of the paddock. The Pokémon that had been watching their battle quickly scampered off, resuming their usual activities as though nothing had happened. Ash watched them run off, feeling a slight twinge, before trailing after Gary.
"Hey," Gary said aloud, stopping in his tracks and turning around to face Ash again. "Where's Pikachu?" he asked, noticing that the Electric-type was absent from its usual post on Ash's shoulder.
Ash chuckled. "You mean you only just noticed?" he teased, stopping alongside the brown-haired trainer.
"Well, I was a little more concerned with getting you to stop being so glum," Gary admitted, resting a hand on the top of the gate and leaning on the thin metal frame.
"Fair enough," Ash acknowledged with a twitch of his head. "Pikachu's with mom," he explained.
With a final nod, Gary swung the gate open and exited the paddock, walking out into the streets of Pallet Town, Ash following him and closing the gate behind him. A strong breeze gusted past, threatening to snatch Ash's cap from his head, and he jammed a hat on top to prevent it from flying off. A shape passed in front of the sun overhead, throwing a shadow over the duo as they made their way down the street.
After a good few seconds of silence, Ash spoke up. "So, what've you been—" he began, but a shrill cry from above them cut him off. Both heads jerked skywards, looking for a sign of whatever it was that had made the noise, but they quickly recoiled, having just looked straight at the sun.
"Son of a…" Gary cursed, rubbing his eyes to try and dispel the light from them—Ash doing the same—as several strong gusts of wind raced past. Once he was able to comfortably see again, he reopened his eyes, and tentatively looked up again. This time, he was able to make out what the shape was; it was a large brown-and-white bird with a short stream of multi-coloured plumage fanning out from its head.
"Pidgeo-tto!" screeched the bird, soaring down with its wings spread wide and landing a few feet in front of them. Its powerful wings sent a shower of dirt across the dusty road, forcing Ash and Gary to throw an arm over their faces to keep the dirt from getting in their eyes. Once the miniature dust-storm had died down, the two trainers lowered their arms and looked at the Pokémon, who intently stared back.
"Uh…" Ash muttered uncertainly, his hand subconsciously reaching for the Pokéballs at his waist.
"Hold on, Ash," Gary warned, holding a hand out in front of him as though trying to keep him from moving forwards. "Look," he instructed, pointing a finger at the ground the Pidgeotto was standing on. Ash's gaze quickly followed, and he saw that the Flying-type had something looped around its pink talons. Rather, there were two somethings.
Two small, golden tubes were affixed to the Pidgeotto's feet, each held in place by a loop of string wound around their respective talon. They appeared to be made of some sort of metal, evidenced by the way their surfaces glimmered in the bright sunlight. Shooting another blank look at Gary, Ash crept forwards, one hand stretched out to detach the two tubes, the other still close to his waist, inching towards the Flying-type.
"Tto~!" trilled the Pidgeotto suddenly, making Ash start in surprise, his outstretched hand shooting back. The Pokémon spread its large wings wide and flew up a few feet into the air, gliding gracefully onto Ash's shoulder and perching there, its clawed feet digging slightly into Ash's jacket. Ash winced nervously and turned back to Gary, shrugging his shoulders unhelpfully as Pidgeotto preened a wing with its beak.
"Maybe we're supposed to take whatever it is that's on its feet?" Gary suggested, moving forwards and carefully removing the two canisters. The Pidgeotto chirped gratefully and hopped back onto the ground, resuming its preening as Gary studied the strange objects. Each one was about as long as Gary's hand and roughly one inch in diameter.
"What are they?" Ash wondered aloud, yanking one of the canisters out of Gary's hands and turning it this way and that as he examined it. Fortuitously, he managed to tilt it so that the sunlight illuminated a small depression running around the side of the object, near one of the ends. "Hey! I found something!" he exclaimed, quickly jamming his fingers into the depression and prising the cylinder open.
"These things slide apart?" Gary inquired, having just witnessed the demonstration, and he tried to mimic Ash's actions, squinting at the polished metal to find the depression. Ash ran his fingers along the surface of Gary's tube for a few seconds until he hit a small bump, and he pointed this out to Gary. "Oh right. Cheers," he said thankfully, opening his canister and peering inside.
It appeared to be completely empty and featureless, save for the paper-coloured coat of paint on the interior surface. Gary even brought the rim up to his eye and looked inside, hoping that there was more to the object than first met the eye, but alas, he still couldn't see anything inside it. Frustrated, Gary tipped the canister upside down and gave a sharp slap on the base. A roll of paper slipped out of the open cylinder and gently fell to the ground with a small puff of dust.
Still slightly wary, Gary picked up the piece of paper, unfurled it, and began to read.
Dear Mr. Ketchum—
We are—
"Oops," Gary said quickly, rolling the piece of paper back up and holding it out for Ash, who gave him a puzzled look. "It's for you," Gary clarified, a little sheepishly.
"Really?" asked Ash, his eyebrows shooting up and disappearing into his dark hair. He looked at the roll in Gary's hand, then back at his own canister. "Guess this one must be yours, then," he added quietly, taking the roll of paper from Gary and replacing it with the canister.
"You think?" Gary joked, whacking the roll of paper out of the second canister and catching it before it hit the ground. In front of him, Ash unrolled his letter and read it.
Dear Mr. Ketchum—
We are delighted to inform you that you have been invited to participate in the inaugural Summit Conference. This decision was reached after examining your previous League achievements, and our review panel unanimously agreed that you qualified for invitation. You were one of the two hundred and fifty-six trainers selected by our panel to extend an invitation to.
The Summit Conference is to be held at the Crown Battleground in southern Hoenn, starting two weeks from today. Please verify your attendance at the Conference by registering at your nearest Pokémon Center or Pokémon Lab. You will need your Pokédex, as well as the five-digit verification code located at the bottom of this letter in order to register. All Pokémon Centers have been notified of the correct registration process.
Once registered for the Conference, please remove the boat ticket at the bottom of this letter and make your way to the designated harbour to board a ship for the Battleground. You may bring any number of guests to accompany you to the Conference, but be advised that they will be housed in separate lodgings during the tournament. If you decide to bring guests, you will be required to notify both the ship's captain and the registration centre at the Battleground itself as to who your guests are.
The Battleground features state of the art training and battling facilities, designed specifically for this tournament. Trainers are encouraged to make full use of these facilities, even if they are not competing directly in the tournament. Be advised that in order to use these facilities, trainers must be able to produce a full set of badges from at least one region.
We await your response and hope that you will be able to compete in the Summit Conference.
Yours sincerely,
—Jeremy Michaels, Secretary to Charles Goodshow
Pokémon League Committee
The declaration was accompanied by several logos and a very fancy, looped signature scrawled underneath them. Ash's eyes trailed down to the bottom of the letter where, sure enough, he saw the five-digit code mentioned in the letter, as well as the boat ticket, also specified in the notice. He chuckled to himself as he saw that the boat ticket could merely be ripped off the bottom of the letter, the faint dotted line being a bit of a giveaway.
Ash glanced up from his invitation at Gary, who was immersed in his own letter, his eyes darting left and right as he read it. The Pidgeotto who had delivered the letters to the pair of them cocked its head and looked upwards at the two, its eyes flashing red for the briefest of moments as a small white light sparked inside its irises. However, the light was gone as quickly as it had appeared and its eyes immediately returned to their usual shade of black.
The Pidgeotto gave a loud squawk before spreading its large wings and taking off, kicking up the familiar cloud of dust as it left the two trainers on the ground below. Neither Ash nor Gary seemed particularly interested in it, though, instead being focused on what the Bird Pokémon had brought them.
"Hey Ash," Gary said, his voice sounding strangely distant as he finished his letter. Ash leaned forwards. "…Are you gonna go in this thing?" he asked earnestly, his eyes finally leaving the page and locking onto Ash's.
Ash considered the question very carefully. Like Gary had hinted at earlier, the prospect of battle always got him in a good mood. And it was true; battling brought out Ash's better side. Plus, it'd give him a great chance to get his form back after his recent loss at the Sinnoh League. A lot of strong trainers were bound to be there, so it'd make sense for him to go. On the other side, however, he didn't want to rush headlong into a brand-new tournament without making sure that he was ready, in terms of his Pokémon's health and his own mentality.
"Hello?" Gary sighed, waving a hand in front of Ash's face. "Earth to Ash," he droned, snapping his fingers an inch from his friend's nose.
"What?"
"Are you gonna go in this thing?" he repeated, pointing to the invitation and waving it in front of his face this time.
"Are you?"
"Uh, I asked you first, Ashy-boy."
Another short silence ensued before Ash said anything, in which another grumble echoed up from Ash's stomach. "Yeah," he finally muttered, tweaking his cap. "I think I'm gonna give it a shot," he added confidently. The spark in his eyes was unmistakeable this time. "You?"
"You bet," Gary replied, pumping the air with a fist. "I've been waiting for something like this to come around. Something where only the best of the best are competing. You know what I'm saying?" he asked, and Ash nodded vigorously in response.
"I hear ya," Ash answered with a nod of the head. A few seconds passed before he continued. "According to that ticket, the boat leaves for the Battleground in seventeen days," he recounted, pocketing the invitation. "So that gives us ten days to get in some serious training."
"Sounds like a plan to me," Gary grinned.
"But first," Ash said suddenly, "how's about that bite to eat you said we should get?" With that, Ash turned on his heels and took off towards Professor Oak's lab, leaving Gary behind in his wake. The brown-haired trainer chuckled in surprise and ran down the street after Ash, shouting good-heartedly at him. "Hey, I'm starving!" Ash yelled over his shoulder as he ran, feet flying over the warm dirt road as Gary let out a raucous laugh.
Until next time, keep reading, and don't forget to review~