Hey, quick update this time, which beats my record of waiting three months (and possibly longer). The ends of semesters have less homework and projects, but all the more to study for final exams. I'm not too worried about mine as I've managed to organize my time schedule well enough to even make this chapter (and other things).
Anyway, the unique thing about this story is that Ash is not the primary focus. Don't get me wrong though as he is still the main character. I write about them as part of their relationship with Ash, how they have learned from him and what he learned from them. Don't worry, though, as Ash will be the main focus in the future, of course.
The following day…
"Well, Sawk, it's time for us to hit the high road and begin training for the next big competition," Stephan announced.
The burly Trainer and his Fighting-type Pokémon were at the New Island docks, ready to take the next ship out. Their time at the Champions League had just come to an abrupt end at the third preliminary round, but they held no qualms of remorse about their loss. Sawk had given it his all at their final battle, but their opponent just happened to be stronger.
"Sawhk Sawhk," Sawk mumbled lowly, looking off into the vast sea they were about to travel through.
"Hey!" a rather high-pitched voice called out to them.
"Well, what d'ya know, it's Iris," Stephan greeted back as the Dragon Trainer approached them. "What brings you here?"
"I saw you left the Pokémon Center a while ago," Iris began. "I thought you were already gone after your last match."
"Sawk needed more time to recover from that beating we received," Stephan admitted, sheepishly scratching the back of his head. "We weren't facing Bruno of the Elite Four for nothing, you know."
"I know, but still, you fared really well against him," Iris added as consolation with her Axew nodding in agreement. "It was probably unlucky that you got paired off with Bruno the third round, but Sawk did manage to beat his Machamp after it was weakened by your Zebstrika and newly caught Exeggutor."
"Yeah, but I was hoping that Machamp would've tied with Exeggutor after all those Psychic attacks," Stephan chuckled. "And even after Machamp finally went down, his Hitmontop was too much for Sawk and I to handle. He had guts, that Bruno. I really look up to him as a really powerful Trainer and I hope to face him again in battle one day."
"You'll be ready next time, kid," Iris assured, grinning. "You probably could've made it farther into the tournament if not for that battle."
"We'll see," Stephan passed off. "Anyway, speaking of 'next time,' I heard Georgia's looking for you now. You two have another score to settle or what?"
"You know, I almost forgot about her with all this excitement going on," Iris commented, appearing a bit worried. "I haven't really gotten as much training as I would've liked for her, but hopefully Dragonite should still be more than a match for her."
"Be careful then, Iris," Stephan said as the captain of his departing ship was making last called. "Say 'hi' to her and Cilan for me, and Ash too if you get to catch him around again."
"Don't know if I can comply with the last one, but I'll see what I can do," Iris replied, waving off Stephan and Sawk as they walked away. "Bye, Steve and Sawk!"
"Agh… There goes all my remaining self-respect," Stephan mumbled, crying internally while Sawk awkwardly attempted to comfort him.
A little while later…
"It's about time you showed up," Georgia remarked impatiently. "I almost thought you were running away this time."
"Hey, I was actually talking to Sterling and Sawk before they left the island," Iris rationalized. "By the way, he says 'hi.'"
"I didn't know he was still here," Georgia murmured, mildly taken aback from the news. "I guess unlike Ash, he couldn't handle the power of an Elite Four member. It was still a good battle, though."
The two Unova rivals were already standing on opposing sides at a more public battlefield stationed by the Pokémon Center. There were other practice battles taking place simultaneously around them. Out of the usual group of friends, only Cilan, Dawn, and Piplup were off at the battlefield's side to observe their fated battle while everyone else had their own thing to do.
"It isn't surprising that we're the only ones to watch the creation of this spicy dish of a battle," Cilan commented.
"We're the only ones that do know Iris and Georgia well enough to actually be involved with them," Dawn pointed out. "But I am curious how their battle will turn out this time around."
"Bear in mind, Dawn, that we've all been driven by Ash's example in varying degrees," Cilan continued. "Even our Dragon Buster friend is motivated to become stronger if it means connecting with him before we can reconnect with him."
"That's true, and it even took me a while to understand what he went through so that I wouldn't be mad with him anymore," Dawn added. "Though I don't know why Iris is opposed in Georgia doing her own thing. If she wants to bring Ash back, then shouldn't we welcome all the help we can get?"
"Just another ingredient in their rivalry," Cilan concluded.
"Alright, not to sound like Cilan, but let's spice things up a bit," Georgia proposed eagerly.
"Like with what?" Iris inquired warily. "A bet?"
"Please, I don't need a battle to get what I want," Georgia argued. "I meant the rules of this battle. Instead of a simple one-on-one, let's make this a Double Battle. I want to see how well you can command two Pokémon at once." She then narrowed her gaze on her dark-skinned rival. "You better use your Dragon-types, got it?"
"Like I need your permission to use my Pokémon," Iris scoffed. "Geez, you're such a kid, Georgia."
"Since I know your only two Dragon Pokémon, allow me to show you who I'll be using this battle," Georgia announced, disregarding Iris's last comment and immediately tossing two Poké Balls high into the air. "Come on out, Beartic and Jigglypuff!"
Her main Ice-type Pokémon was paired with her newly caught Normal/Fairy-type Pokémon. Georgia already had the mindset on focusing on the weaknesses of Dragon-types, much to Iris's annoyance. Cilan and Dawn were waiting in apprehension for Iris to send out her Pokémon and for the battle to begin.
"Should've seen them coming," Iris muttered dully. Axew had hopped out of her hair and made his way to the field, intent on avenging his draw against Jigglypuff. "Alright Dragonite, let's go!"
"Kairr!" Dragonite barked upon his release, glaring down against the more fierce-looking Beartic while disregarding the smaller Jigglypuff.
The matchups were quickly decided based off of the Pokémon's current expressions and past interactions. The only thing needed to start this showdown was the first command.
Iris & (Axew, Dragonite) VS Georgia & (Beartic, Jigglypuff)
"Axew, use Slash on Jigglypuff!" Iris commanded. "Dragonite, go after Beartic with Thunder Punch!"
"Jigglypuff, Pound!" Georgia countered. "Beartic, let Dragonite come in close for a Focus Blast!"
The first row of attacks turned out to be immediate physical confrontations. Axew swiped in with long, sharpened claws, only to be matched in power by a strike from Jigglypuff's stubby arm. The resulting force of the collision pushed both small Pokémon back to their respective sides.
At the meantime, Dragonite flew in aggressively with an electrified fist winded up while his opponent stood in place, preparing to intercept. Upon deeming the Dragon Pokémon to be within range, Beartic began charging power into its Focus Blast. Dragonite, however, had suspected his chosen opponent to be preparing a counterattack. In response to the perception, he dove even lower and sent the Thunder Punch into Beartic's gut.
"Beeaar…!" Beartic growled in pain.
Despite the grievous hit it had received, the Freezing Pokémon hung on long enough to smash a completed Focus Blast right on top of Dragonite's head while he was still in front. The impact was strong enough to force Dragonite in backing off. After fleeing into a safe distance, he smirked brutally at Beartic's latest audacity, inciting a bit of irritation in the latter's part.
"Now Dragonite, Dragon Rush!"
"Blizzard, Beartic!"
Dragonite took to the skies and encased himself in a blazing armor of draconic energy before going into a swift descent towards Beartic. It was then that Beartic fought back with a blustery force of snow and ice. The two opposing forces came into contact with each other. Despite the advantage Blizzard had over Dragon Rush in terms of typing, their power wound up even with both sides trying to outdo the other.
As for their smaller partners, Axew and Jigglypuff had momentary stare downs before continuing their initial assaults of Slash and Pound. The former was wary of making physical contact due to remembering Jigglypuff's Cute Charm and merely used his attacks to wear her down until it was safe to finish her off. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case as Jigglypuff was well-aware that Axew was sending sparing hits her way because of her Ability.
"If we can't attack Jigglypuff up close without risking infatuation, then we'll have to use ranged attacks," Iris mused. "Time for a switch. Dragonite, use Flamethrower on Jigglypuff! Axew, Dragon Rage on Beartic! Let's go!"
"What are you doing?!" Georgia demanded, who was just as shocked as her rival's Pokémon in regards to the latest order they received.
Though initially stunned by their Trainer's command in changing their desired opponents, Dragonite and Axew knew that if they wanted to win, they had to heed her words. Dragonite had then broken out of his conflict against Beartic's Blizzard and flew up into the air to find his new opponent in the form of the Balloon Pokémon. At the same time, Axew dashed closer towards Beartic, charging up draconic energy for a potent Dragon Rage.
"That threw Georgia off her game," Dawn remarked.
"This is a Double Battle, so both Pokémon have to work together to create a flavorful combination of their unique strengths and styles," Cilan added. "It's more effective than simply having one Pokémon each taking on an opponent by themselves."
"So look who's finally thinking out of the box," Georgia quipped with a smirk. "If you want to play like that, then fine by me. Beartic! Jigglypuff! Center stage!"
Her Pokémon knew which tactic to enact. Beartic reached the center of the battlefield with Jigglypuff climbing up to the top of its head. They had just placed themselves right in the middle of their opponents, with Axew at one side and Dragonite on the other side high up in the air. They were ready to unleash their attacks.
"What's Georgia up to?" Dawn pondered in astonishment. "All of Iris's attacks will hit both of her Pokémon!"
"Too easy," Iris mocked.
"Jigglypuff, it's time for you to shine with Dazzling Gleam!" Georgia announced.
"'Dazzling' what?!"
In the decisive moment before either Axew or Dragonite could attack, Jigglypuff's body gave off a brilliant, sparking flash of light that temporarily blinded the both of them. The light was bright enough to force even Piplup, Dawn, Cilan, and Iris to shield their eyes. The speed of light was an incredible phenomenon to behold as not only did it strike first, but the Balloon Pokémon's attack started to take effect on the two Dragon-types.
Their scaly skin appeared to be letting off steam, as though a fire was being ignited on them. The sensation of the Dazzling Gleam was essentially burning them. Axew was unable to carry out his Dragon Rage and was forced to retreat from the Fairy-type light. Dragonite shrugged off the super effective pains and unleashed his Flamethrower as commanded.
"Beartic, counter it with Ice Beam!"
The Dragon Buster's Ice-type Pokémon retaliated, stopping the incoming Flamethrower for a small period of time. Dragonite's strength proved to be relentless as the Flamethrower was gradually pushing down against Beartic's Ice Beam.
Beartic was increasing in worry despite not outwardly expressing it. Jigglypuff sensed its apprehension. Though it was not that she didn't have faith in her Doubles partner, Jigglypuff leapt off of Beartic's head and fled as they both knew what the outcome was going to be.
And as grimly expected…
"Beeeaar!" Beartic yelped as it was consumed in flames.
Its attempt to fight against Dragonite's Flamethrower ultimately proved to be futile as it experienced pure immolation. The super effective hit was too much for Beartic to handle as it attempted to put its flaming self out with every sway of its forearms. The Freezing Pokémon eventually exhausted itself, toppling over in defeat as the lingering flames had put themselves out upon the fall.
"Looks like Beartic is unable to battle," Cilan concluded.
Georgia recalled her fallen Ice-type Pokémon back into its Poké Ball in a huff, taking a deep breath to remain calm despite the loss. As much as she did not want to admit it, she was impressed on how well Iris was in tune with Dragonite this time, unlike from their last bout at the Junior Cup in Lacunosa Town. However, Dragonite's style, although aggressive and difficult to withstand, was still standard and predictable as before, as Georgia carefully noted.
She didn't come up with anything new, did she? Georgia thought, frowning. Is she even taking this battle seriously? If she isn't, I'm going to make her regret it one way or another!
"What's wrong, Georgia?" Iris taunted. "You already done for today?"
"You wish," Georgia retorted with a new confident smirk. "Jigglypuff, Rollout!"
Jigglypuff started to roll in place, picking up speed within a few seconds before launching herself towards the still airborne Dragonite. Iris didn't appear worried while Dawn and Cilan wondered what the Dragon Buster was planning if the Rollout was not going to be a full-frontal assault.
"Dragonite, send Jigglypuff packing with Thunder Punch!"
"I thought so… Do it!"
"Huh?!"
Dragonite remained impassive despite of the expressions the other humans were displaying and threw in a Thunder Punch to send Jigglypuff bouncing back to the ground. However, he was surprised to witness Jigglypuff redirect the angle she was coming in as he sent in his electrified fist, connecting with her in a way that instead of rebounding back the same direction, she was pushed in a new direction.
That new direction happened to lead where Axew was standing.
"Xew?!" Axew gasped as an electrified pink sphere was coming his way.
Before anything else could be further considered, Jigglypuff bowled right into Axew, causing a minor quaking explosion on impact. Jigglypuff somehow daintily floated back to her Trainer's side of the field while as the smoke cleared up, Axew was revealed to be lying on his back with spiraling eyes and gaping mouth.
"Unbelievable!" Iris cried out in astonishment. "Axew, are you alright?!"
"Now Axew is unable to battle," Dawn commented, blinking in succession. "What just happened?"
"Georgia knew a direct attack on Dragonite wouldn't work so she had her Jigglypuff take in the extra force Dragonite gave with Thunder Punch and redirected in taking out Axew," Cilan explained. "Now both Georgia and Iris are down to one Pokémon each. I was going to say Iris had the advantage of a fully evolved Pokémon by her side, but with Georgia turning the tables on her like this and Jigglypuff having a major type advantage as a Fairy-type, this is anyone's game."
"Axew, I'm sorry I let you down like this," Iris murmured, having taken the opportunity to retrieve the defeated Tusk Pokémon during the momentary ceasefire. "I know you've wanted to beat that Jigglypuff, but I promise your hard work won't be for nothing."
"You know, Axew could've done a lot had you trained the poor thing more," Georgia spoke up rather derisively. "So far as I remember, all you did was focus on Excadrill and Dragonite. Heck, even your Emolga had more screen time than Axew."
"Well who asked you anyway?!" Iris retorted heatedly. "Prying into other people's businesses is such a kid's thing!"
"I'm not prying!" Georgia shouted back. "Not when this actually concerns your path as a rising Dragon Master! How can you even become one if you're barely a challenge for a Dragon Buster like me?!"
Iris wanted to fire back another snarky retort, but the stinging realization that Georgia's rebuking words wrought about caused her to silence her tongue. Now that she was considering it, she barely did much of anything since the Champions League began. She only came along to support Cilan and his brothers and reconnect with Ash ever since he left them behind in the Decolore Islands. She wasn't catching more Dragon-type Pokémon nor was she training the ones she has now.
She shook her head, resuming her attention on the battlefield. Dragonite had his back turned at her, only slightly looking back with that intimidating gaze of his to show that he was waiting for her next command. Iris frowned, looking briefly at her Pokémon before her eyes fell upon the one that had easily knocked out her Axew.
Jigglypuff was casually hopping in place. In spite of the delicate and carefree façade she was putting up, she had gotten much stronger since her debut battle weeks ago. And that was when she and the others were discovering what the Fairy-type was all about. All she knew right now was that Fairy-type attacks are super effective on Dragon Pokémon. That attribute alone would be more than enough reason for Georgia to begin mastering in that type in addition to Ice-type Pokémon.
"We've gone through worse things, Dragonite," Iris began aloud. "Let's show Georgia our true power!"
"Ryuu!" Dragonite barked in agreement.
"At least your fighting spirit is somewhat admirable," Georgia remarked. "Jigglypuff, Pound!"
"Dragonite, use Thunder Punch!"
The two Pokémon went forward to meet at the center of the field to trade physical blows. Due to being clearly bigger and stronger, Dragonite easily swatted away the Balloon Pokémon. However, Jigglypuff managed to recover in the air by inflating herself in order to control her descent.
"That Jigglypuff is tough!" Dawn exclaimed.
"Dragonite, Ice Beam!"
The Dragon Pokémon quickly retaliated with the ordered attack, though by the time it had reached Jigglypuff, it would've missed. Jigglypuff had promptly deflated herself the moment she saw the Ice Beam charging in Dragonite's mouth.
"Rollout!"
While in the midst of descending, Jigglypuff curled up her round body as tightly as she could and started rolling in order to pick up greater momentum upon touching the ground. She was swift, rolling towards Dragonite, to which the latter barely lifted himself off the ground to avoid a strike.
However, Jigglypuff managed to readily pull herself around in an arc, hopping up into the air and crashing into Dragonite's back before Dragonite had a chance to fly out of range. He felt back to the ground, landing on his knees while Jigglypuff bounced back to her side with ease. The more he looked at her with all that cutesy appearance, the more furious Dragonite was becoming with the little pink nuisance by the passing second.
"I can tell you're just as mad as I am now, Dragonite," Iris reached out. "Let's finish this now with Dragon Rush!"
"Jigglypuff, sidestep at the last second and use Sing!"
"No you don't!"
Dragonite picked up as much height as he could for a swift diving boost as he powered himself in draconic energy once again. Jigglypuff didn't appear all that worried, incensing the Dragon Pokémon even more as this act was perceived as nothing more than sheer mockery towards his power and this battle. Aiming himself towards the center of Jigglypuff's body, Dragonite rushed in with all his might…
*BOOM*
The collision on the ground caused shockwaves and debris to fly up in all directions. Dawn, Cilan, Georgia, and Iris shielded their faces as the aftermath died down. The dissipating dirt cloud concealing Dragonite's form vanished in a matter of moments, revealing Dragonite himself looking around dourly, no doubt searching where Jigglypuff was sent flying to.
"Im… possible!" Iris gaped.
Dragonite caught wind of his Trainer's feelings, looking up as a result to discover Jigglypuff standing on top of his head, virtually unscathed from the all-out Dragon Rush. He too couldn't help but stare in disbelief at the Balloon Pokémon, of all the ridiculous atrocities she managed to pull off so far.
"I guess I should've also mentioned, but Dragon-type attacks have absolutely no effect on Fairy-type Pokémon," Georgia announced with a triumphant grin.
"How?!" Iris demanded almost immediately. "Jigglypuff tied with Axew last time! And Axew used Outrage as the finishing move! Outrage!"
"No doubt you're outraged by this turn of events, but I also remember that battle," Georgia responded. "All those melee attacks Axew used? Jigglypuff was only knocked around by that little Dragon Pokémon's physical strength alone, untouched by the additional strength of Dragon energy. It was also when Axew disrupted Jigglypuff's Moonblast at close range that the both of them were blown back as a result."
"So then…?"
"This battle proves you were completely unprepared to face me! Now Jigglypuff, let's do this! Sing!"
"~Jiiih-gallii-ii-puuhff Jiih-gaah-lii-aah-lii-puuhff…"
Jigglypuff began to belt out the infamous lullaby that her kind was known for. The soothing resonating sonar waves that emanated from her mouth were wearing down on the Dragonite standing below. Dragonite stumbled out in an attempt to stay awake, but with Jigglypuff using Sing from right on top of his head in addition to being unprepared at the moment had ultimately proven to be his downfall.
Dragonite fell onto his behind, propped up into a sitting position by his thick tail while his head nodded off into slumber land. His peaceful, sleeping appearance actually resembled the gentle nature that his kind would be commonly known for. It was only now that Iris finally realized how truly lax she had become in her pursuits.
"I'm losing… to a Jigglypuff," Iris whispered in horrified astonishment.
"Correction: you've lost to a Jigglypuff," Georgia intervened. "Now wrap this up with Dazzling Gleam!"
Jigglypuff nonchalantly hopped off her stage that was the top of Dragonite's head and came face-to-face with the sleeping Dragon Pokémon. She garnered up as much Fairy energy as she could muster, unleashing it a lustrous, blinding light that consumed her whole body, as well as Dragonite's body and a good portion of the battlefield until a sparkling orb of light took residence upon the field before everyone's eyes.
Five to ten seconds later, the Dazzling Gleam was dying down. The Pokémon's forms were visible to everyone around them. Jigglypuff remained the same as she did. As for Dragonite, he was now reclining on his back with the same dazed expression Axew had when Jigglypuff knocked him out with Rollout.
"Dragonite is unable to battle," Cilan spoke up.
"So then, that means," Dawn started, glancing over to the victor's position.
"The Dragon Buster goes home with the win this time," Georgia finished, gesturing a victorious thumb towards herself.
At the meantime, Iris wondered over to her fallen Dragonite before falling on her knees herself and recalling the Dragon Pokémon. She mumbled her gratitude for a great battle before concluding with a wistful sigh. Once Dragonite was safely back inside his Poké Ball, Iris turned to see Georgia approaching her on the field.
"Come to gloat some more or what?" Iris muttered scornfully.
"I have rights to do so now that I took down you and Dragonite," Georgia replied before wearing a serious look. "It was a tough battle, but it could've been more intense if you did take your Dragon training more seriously. In all honesty, that battle wasn't as satisfying as I hoped."
"Why not? Dragonite now listens to me and you've even got to face all of my Dragon Pokémon."
"It's not just that. You haven't trained Axew as much as you think you did. Dragonite's tactics were just too predictable. And you don't even have any other Dragon Pokémon under your name aside from those two."
"Is there a point to all of this aside from making me feel lower than dirt?" Iris asked dully.
"Look, as much as it pains me to say this, you do have potential to be better," Georgia admitted, looking away momentarily as a furious blush lit up in her face. "I'm only saying this for your own good. As much as you've judged others, myself and Ash especially, as kids, have you even taken the time to reflect on yourself and what you've been doing with your life?"
Though she was starting to grow numb towards Georgia's affronts, Iris had to admit to herself that there were truths in them. Truths that she thought she could've gotten away from. But in all fairness, she didn't even know about how to go about handling herself as she had always been an outcast in the first place. She couldn't help the things she had done as she mostly grew up in the wild.
Maybe it was time for her to be able to move on from the comforts of her old world and charge through into this strange world around her.
"I need to think," Iris mumbled as she stood back on her feet and started to walk away from the field.
Dawn wanted to check if she was alright from the loss, but Cilan had stopped her from doing so, shaking his head as confirmation that the Dragon Trainer needed some alone time. Georgia, at the meantime, merely saw her off wordlessly. She was kind of glad that no one had caught her expression of concern for her sworn rival when Iris announced her current intentions.
"Is there always this much drama with Ash and his friends?" Georgia mused to herself before answering her own question with a mental shrug.
Elsewhere…
"… …Choo!"
"Bless you, Ash," Anabel spoke up. "I hope you're not catching a cold since you only wear that red shirt and all."
"… … I'm fine," Ash mumbled, pulling his cap over his eyes out of habit.
"You've been training hard for your next battle, but it won't do you or your Pokémon any good if you don't take a break now and then," Anabel pointed out. "While the forest is a nice place to privately train, it's also handy in resting up and reflecting into your inner nature. That way, you'll be at better peace with yourself and won't have to deal with all this drama at once."
"… … Hmm… "
The Salon Maiden inwardly smiled at her own choice of words. She felt that Ash would be ready now to move on from his past and reconcile with his friends, but his renewed passion for becoming a Pokémon Master and reaching the final rounds of the Champions League had taken precedence in his mind. At least to her, it looked like Ash was considering her words before briefly turning towards her and giving her a faint smile before advancing further into the forest with Pikachu.
"At least he's being honest with himself now."
This freedom streak that comes with ending semesters won't last very long though as final exams are approaching once again (and I would have to study more than write chapters). Also, I'm now working on another multichapter story at the same time. Again I ask, was that a smart decision to have two big stories ongoing at the same time?
Anyway, writing about Ash's friends and rivals here gives this story a bit more variety than if I simply write about Ash's progress every time. At least, that's how I feel about the matter so that it wouldn't feel so repetitive. That's my reasoning, flawed or not.
Time to measure up my writing skills! Please review!
L-ater!