Thanks for the reviews guys I really appreciate you taking the time to write one.

Sorry for the wait guys, between rewriting the chapter several times, illness and playing This War of Mine it took a lot longer to write this chapter than I expected.

The poll has been taken down but I'll probably put another one up soon after as I like letting you guys have some input.

In conversations:

'- Translation of Poké Speech – No human unless otherwise stated can understand it. Ash can get the gist of what his Pokémon are saying due to his close bond with them.

"- Human speech

'- Thoughts'

"- Telepathy

Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon.

Ash walked into the Pokémon Centre and up to Nurse Joy who was stood behind her desk tapping away on her computer. She looked up when she heard the footsteps approaching and a smile came to her face as she saw the massive grin on Ash's face.

"So I'm guessing by the grin on your face that you won your battle with Norman."

"Yep it was a great battle but my Pokémon took a beating so could you heal them up for me?"

"Of course I can Ash."

Ash handed the Pokéballs belonging to the three who had battled Norman to Nurse Joy and she took them into one of the recovery rooms leaving Ash on his own. Ash looked around the room hoping to see something he could read or watch while his Pokémon were healed but the room was barren. He sighed and just sat down at one of tables and he started to wonder how Kirlia and Glaceon were doing without him. He glanced over to the phones and considered bringing them back to Hoenn but that would defeat the reason of leaving them in Kanto in the first place. Ash was pulled out of his thoughts when he felt something soft rubbing against his right cheek. He looked to his right and saw Celebi nuzzling him affectionately, a smile crept on to Ash's face and he pulled the legendary off of his shoulder and hugged her tightly.

"Ash your Pokémon have been healed." Nurse Joy announced.

Ash placed Celebi back on his shoulder and got up, he walked over to the main desk and took his Pokéballs from Nurse Joy; quickly thanking her for healing them. He exited the Pokémon Centre and headed towards Route 102, he knew that they wouldn't reach Oldale today so he started looking for a suitable area to make camp. As it started to get dark the group spotted the small lake that was known for the Corphish that inhabit it. They decided that it was as good a place as any to stay so Ash sent out all of his Pokémon and they set up camp.

After having a quick dinner everyone found an area to stay in and one by they fell to sleep until only Ash was still awake. He smiled as he looked at the peaceful looks on their faces and heard their gentle snores. He looked to his sides and saw that Raichu and Meowth were sleeping in very uncomfortable looking positions so he carefully moved them so that they wouldn't wake up with aching muscles. He then turned his gaze downwards where Celebi had curled up on his lap and Raimodo was laying across his legs, he gently ran his hand along Celebi's head watching as a small smile appeared on her face. His attention switched to Raimodo and he stroked the reptile's back noticing that the scales were incredibly hard now.

"He's ready to start training now. I think I'll hold off starting his training until after the trading event. I could probably use the forest between Slateport and the Daycare Centre to get some training done." Ash thought.

Ash could feel his eyelids starting to droop so he laid down and pulled Celebi to his chest, he felt her snuggle into him and he quickly fell to sleep with a smile on his face.

The sounds of Tailow chirping woke Ash up, he wiped the sleep from his eyes and then stretched his arms out, groaning when he felt his bones popping back into place. He looked around the clearing and saw that everyone was still asleep, he then turned his gaze to the sky and saw the dark clouds to the west that were rapidly approaching. He knew that if they didn't get moving soon they'd be caught out in the rain and he really didn't fancy getting soaked and frozen. He quickly woke everyone up and made their breakfasts, the meal was scoffed in moments and most of them were recalled to their Pokéballs. The remaining Pokémon helped Ash pack away his sleeping bag and the feeding bowls and then they started walking towards Oldale.

They arrived in Oldale a few hours later and had managed to outrun the weather which was a relief for them all. Ash looked back at the skies over Route 102 and saw that the thick, black, rain filled clouds were rapidly approaching. He considered heading north and finding somewhere to camp on Route 103 but he was almost certain that the rain would hit there too and he seriously doubted that they'd find somewhere undercover for them to stay while the rain passed.

"Well guys I think we're going to stay in the Pokémon Centre tonight. I don't want us to get caught out in the rain." Ash said.

"Couldn't we just have Heracross fly to Slateport with me levitating you again?" Celebi asked.

"No I can't ask Heracross to do that. He just fought a very tough gym battle yesterday and he deserves a rest."

'Why don't you just bring Pidgeot over?' Raichu asked.

"Yeah boss you've been saying that you wanted to spend more time with her and that you intend to use her against Winona so it makes sense." Meowth added.

"That's a pretty good idea. She'll also be able to get us to Slateport in time for the next Trading Battle Event."

'What about the rain?' Raichu asked.

"I'm pretty sure that Pidgeot will be able to fly us there before the rain reaches us. Come on let's go get Pidgeot."

Everyone cheered and they followed Ash as he walked into the Pokémon Centre. He headed over to the phones, he tapped in Professor Oak's number and waited for it to be received. The call was quickly accepted and Gary appeared on the screen wearing a lab coat similar to the one his grandfather wore. Ash still found it strange to think of Gary as a researcher instead of a trainer and he was sure that he always would. They had spent so long talking about becoming trainers when they were kids that imagining Gary as anything else didn't seem right.

"Hi Gary." Ash said cheerfully.

"Hey Ash. Is it safe for me to assume that you won the Balance Badge?"

Ash took out his badge case and showed his newly won badge to Gary, the sight made Gary feel both relieved and proud. He was relieved that he had been right when he said that Ash was ready to go back to Hoenn and he was proud of Ash for beating one of the toughest gym leaders in all of the known regions.

"Congratulations Ash. It's great to see that you are obviously back to your best."

"Thanks Gary." Ash replied as he placed his badge case back in his bag.

"So Ash what can I help you with?"

"Well I was wondering if you'd be able to get Pidgeot for me. I need her help."

"Ok just give me a minute to find her."

Gary walked off screen leaving Ash to wait impatiently, after a few minutes Gary came back into view with a Pokéball in his hand. He placed the Pokéball in the transfer machine and moments later it appeared in the machine next to Ash. He picked up the Pokéball and looked gratefully at Gary.

"Thanks Gary."

"No problem Ash. Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Ash was about to let the aspiring Professor go back to his work however he remembered that he needed some of his Tauros for the Trading Event and he didn't want to bother either Gary or Professor Oak any more than necessary so it made sense for him to get them now.

"Actually can you go and get four of my Tauros and Togetic?"

"Sure, just put the Pokéballs you're sending in exchange in the machine and I'll go get them."

Ash nodded and watched Gary walk away again, he then started thinking about who to send back and finally chose to send back Croconaw, Quilava, Heracross and Tauros. In the end it had been an easy choice since all three of them had already had their gym battles for the region so they could go back to the lab and take a break until the Hoenn League. Ash placed three Pokéballs and a Lure ball in the transfer machine and then Gary reappeared with four Safari balls and Togetic's Mirage ball, he placed them in the machine in the lab and pressed the transfer button. Moments later Ash's four Pokémon were swapped for five. He placed the Safari balls on his belt and placed Togetic's Mirage ball in his pocket.

"Thanks again Gary. I'll try not to bother you for a while." Ash said with a grin.

"I'll hold you to that." Gary replied jokingly.

"Right I'm sure you have something important to do so I'll leave you to it."

"Okay Ash I'll talk to you soon."

"Yeah I'll see ya Gary."

Ash hung up the phone and walked back out of the Pokémon Centre. He opened Pidgeot's Pokéball and in a flash the majestic flying type appeared in front in of him. She was happy to be back on Ash's team and she leant down so she could nuzzle him. Ash laughed as Pidgeot's soft feathers tickled his skin and he hugged her tightly. He still felt guilty for not going back for her after the Orange League so he wanted to make sure that he appreciated every moment he had with Pidgeot and gave her all the attention he could.

Pidgeot finally stopped nuzzling Ash and then looked at him wondering why he'd brought her over. Ash looked up at Pidgeot and smiled while he stroked her crest, he saw the confused look on her face and realized that she was probably curios about why he'd called her over earlier than she had been expecting.

"Pidgeot I brought you over because I need to get to Slateport and I was hoping that you'd fly us there." Ash said.

Pidgeot nodded and laid down, she signaled for everyone to climb on to her back. Raichu, Meowth and Raimodo quickly did as the flying type asked however Ash and Celebi stayed on the ground and were looking at Pidgeot wondering whether or not she could carry all of them.

"Are you sure that you can carry all of us? Celebi can just levitate us to make it easier for you." Ash asked.

'No thanks. I want to carry you guys, it'll help me increase my strength and speed.' Pidgeot replied.

"Okay Pidgeot I can see the logic in that but if you're starting to feel tired then say the word."

'Okay Ash I will.'

Ash climbed on to Pidgeot's back with Celebi sat on his shoulder. Pidgeot then stood tall and extender her wings, she squawked and with a powerful flap of her wings she launched herself into the air and raised a massive dust cloud that coated the front of the buildings in dust. She shot like bullet eastward leaving the people of Petalburg to wonder what had caused the dust cloud and complain as they had to clean their homes.

Several hours later Pidgeot landed on the outskirts of Slateport. Everyone jumped off of her back and saw that she didn't seem very tired which considering how much weight she was carrying was astounding. Ash now felt a bit silly for asking her if she could handle carrying them earlier. It was clear that her time spent dealing with Fearow and the training she'd been doing since they'd been reunited had been much more fruitful than he had thought.

"You're even stronger than I thought Pidgeot, I'm really proud of you. Now take a well-earned rest."

Ash pulled her Pokéball off his belt and then he returned her, placing her Pokéball back on his belt. He turned towards Slateport and headed into the city to find somewhere to stay until the start of the next Slateport Trading Battle Event. He decided that the Pokémon Centre was the best place to start as they almost always had spare room, he entered the building and saw Nurse Joy busily working behind her desk. Ash was reluctant to bother Nurse Joy when she appeared to be so busy but he needed a place to stay so he walked up to the desk.

"Hi Nurse Joy." Ash said.

"Hello Ash. I presume that you're here for the trading event." she replied.

"Yes I am. Do you have any spare rooms at all?"

"I think we have a few."

Nurse Joy looked under her desk and found a key under a stack of papers, she quickly looked at the room number and then handed the key to Ash.

"Go down the hall and it's the third door on the left.

"Thanks Nurse Joy."

"No problem Ash." Nurse Joy murmured and she gave Ash a small tired smile.

Ash felt sorry for Nurse Joy, she did so much for trainers and got very little recognition other than the occasional thank you. He watched as she moved a stack of papers next to the computer and started tapping away on the keyboard.

"Hey do you need a hand?" Ash asked.

"Thanks for the offer Ash but the paperwork I'm doing now has to be done by a medical professional."

"Alright just try not to work yourself to death."

"I'll try."

Ash nodded and then made his way down the hallway to find the spare room. He came to the room that Nurse Joy had suggested and entered it, he placed his bag on the floor and sat on the bed. He briefly considered letting out the rest of his Pokémon but the room was far too small for them all so he chose to leave them in their Pokéballs for tonight. He changed out of his travelling clothes and crawled under the covers, he was quickly joined by Meowth, Raichu, Celebi and Raimodo who snuggled up to him. Ash wrapped his arms around his Pokémon and quickly fell to sleep.

Meanwhile Salem as well as her chosen bodyguards entered the tunnels underneath Mt Pyre where they had found the stone tablet that held information on Ksher. Salem stomped angrily through the caves, she spotted a Zubat hanging from the season and picked up a small rock. She launched the rock at the Zubat which screeched in pain and fell to the ground. Salem smirked as she watched it hold its head where the rock had struck it.

Normally she would have left it at that but the journey from the main base to Mt Pyre had pissed her off from start to finish and she needed to take her anger out on something and this Zubat was the perfect target. She smirked as she watched the Zubat push itself back in the air and moments later it screeched in agony as she slammed her boot into its ribs. The impact sent the Zubat crashing into the cave wall and it slumped to the ground clutching its probably shattered ribs.

Suddenly the sound of several wings flapping filled the cave, Zubat looked into the darkness and saw his family coming to rescue him. He looked from his family to the girl who had attacked him and was confused to see that she was grinning while holding three red and white balls.

"Raichu, Luxray and Jolteon annihilate them with Thunderbolt."

The trio of electric Pokémon burst out of their Pokéballs and saw the oncoming horde of Zubat, they grinned evilly and fired three large bolts of electricity at the Zubat. Deafening screeches filled the cave as the Thunderbolt's electrocuted the Zubat's, creating electrical burns all over their bodies. Raichu, Luxray and Jolteon continued to shock the already beaten Zubat until they started to plummet from the air and land on the cave floor. Salem watched as the roasted Zubat's slammed into the ground and she started to cackle manically as some of them writhed around in agony.

Salem eventually got bored of watching the Zubat's pain stricken faces and walked down the tunnel followed by her Pokémon and bodyguards, all of then deliberately stepping on some of the Zubat just to hear their pained cries. She turned around to face her guards and then handed them all dozens of Pokéballs.

"Make yourselves useful and capture these worthless Zubat. They'll be good cannon fodder when we need to subdue Ksher after his revival."

The bodyguards did as they were told and started capturing the Zubat one by one. Salem decided to leave them to it and find whoever used to be in charge so she could find out how the excavation has gone so far as well as how long it would take for them to safely finish the excavation and get it ready for transportation. She walked through the tunnel flanked by Raichu, Luxray and Jolteon, stopping when she came to a group of grunts who were idly standing around and laughing. Salem cleared her throat which made all of the grunts look in her direction, the second they saw who was in front of them they went quiet and stood to attention.

"Where is the idiot in charge here?" Salem yelled.

"H-h-he's over there." One of the grunts stammered as he pointed down the tunnel.

Salem looked to where the grunt pointed and saw a grunt being yelled at by what she presumed to be the former supervisor. She glared at the grunts who all quivered slightly as they saw the same look that Rethant had given them when he had warned them of the consequences of failure.

"Get back to work." Salem spat.

"Y-y-yes ma'am." The grunts all said.

Salem smirked as she saw them scamper away from her, she then walked over to the former supervisor who had stopped yelling at the grunt. The man spotted Salem approaching and he stood ramrod straight in front of her while saluting.

"Hello Commander Ashni. I have been informed that you've been sent here to oversee the excavation."

"Yes I have so show me where the tablet is now."

The former supervisor started walking down one of the connecting tunnels, Salem and her Pokémon followed the former supervisor through the tunnels until they came to large open cavern which had several grunts carefully excavating the tablet. She stared in awe at the enormous tablet and her eyes roamed across all of the intricately carved drawings. She walked up to the tablet and gently ran her hand across the rough surface, brushing some dust off revealing a carving of Ksher.

"Soon you'll be mine, then we can dispose of my father and anyone else who dare stand in our way. Then together we'll rule the world." Salem murmured.

What Salem didn't know was that hidden inside her collar was a listening device that was transmitting everything she was saying to a certain red and blue eyed man.

Deep inside Team Firestorm's main base Rethant was sat in his office with Moukoko, they sat there listening as Salem rambled on about overthrowing him. Suddenly Rethant starting laughing as he heard her feeble plan to dispose of him, take control of Team Firestorm and then rule the world. Moukoko looked at Rethant with a baffled expression, he had no idea why Rethant could be taking his daughter wanting to betray him so lightly. It was as if he didn't care that his own flesh and blood intended to kill him and take his place.

"Why are you laughing Rethant?" Moukoko asked.

"Because her ridiculous plan to overthrow me will never work." Rethant replied.

"But do you not care that it's your own daughter who is planning to overthrow you?"

"Not at all, I expected her to try at some point. Although I did think that she would have a more substantial plan."

Rethant stood up and wandered from his table to the drinks cabinet, he poured himself some scotch and then sat back down.

"She is a tool Moukoko, a tool that is nearing the end of its use. If she was more like me she would be much more useful unfortunately she is too much like her weak mother."

"So do you want me to go capture her and bring her here?"

"Not yet. She still has some use to me, when she returns with the tablet though she will no longer be useful to me. Then I will make sure that she suffers for plotting to betray me." Rethant said darkly.

"I have no doubt that you will give her what she deserves. Now with your permission I wish to return to my quarters and plan how to capture Rayquaza." Moukoko replied.

"Permission granted."

Moukoko nodded and left Rethant's office, as he walked down the corridor leading to his quarters he couldn't help but feel sorry for Salem. He knew what Rethant did to people who questioned him and/or disobeyed him and it was horrific, he still remembered the wounds on Annette's back after Rethant had tortured her. He wondered what he would do to Salem considering what she's planning to do. All he knew was that Salem would never be the same after the torment Rethant will subject her to.

"Poor girl, she's gonna wish that she never considered overthrowing Rethant. Maybe she should have given up on Team Firestorm and stayed with Ketchum." Moukoko thought as he entered his quarters.

Notes

I know that this is the shortest chapter so far but I didn't think that adding anything else would be beneficial to the chapter. I could have added more but it would have just been writing for sake of making the chapter longer and that is a waste of time for you guys and me. Next chapter will be longer though so look forward to that.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Please give a review telling me what you liked/didn't like. It really helps me know what I am doing right and what I can improve on.

If you have any questions I am more than happy to answer them.

Ash:

Kanto - Raichu, Meowth, Butterfree, Ivysaur, Wartortle, Charizard, Pidgeot, Kingler, Muk, Tauros(x24), Snorlax, Sandshrew, Jolteon (Shiny), Vaporeon (Shiny) & Aerodactyl

Johto - Croconaw, Meganium, Quilava, Heracross, Noctowl (Shiny), Phanpy, Hitmontop, Togetic, Sneasel, Espeon (Shiny) & Celebi

Hoenn - Marshtomp, Ninjask, Shedinja, Treecko, Vibrava, Zangoose, Sableye, Plusle, Minun, Raimodo & Kirlia

Sinnoh - Monferno & Glaceon (Shiny)

Kalos - Meowstic & Amaura

Pokémon currently on hand – Raichu, Meowth, Celebi, Togetic, Raimodo, Sandshrew, Tauros(x4), Vibrava, Phanpy & Pidgeot