Ash sat down in the Cinnabar Pokémon Centre.
"So, I'm confused," he said. "Is there a gym here, or not?"
"There's supposed to be," Misty contributed.
Brock frowned. "I definitely remember seeing people with the Volcanobadge back in Pewter. Sometimes boasting they'd use the same Pokémon against me that they did against the Cinnabar Gym."
He chuckled. "That's why the gym has a Cradily."
"So if there is a gym, then…" Ash began thinking. "Everyone's saying there isn't, but they're saying it's been closed for years because it was too tourist-y."
He looked over at Misty. "Is it me, or is that kind of more irresponsible than what your sisters were doing?"
"That's… kind of a good point," Misty admitted. "As a gym leader you're meant to battle challengers, whether or not you think they mean it, but even if you don't bother then…"
"Excuse me?" Nurse Joy said. "Your Pokémon have finished healing."
"Oh, great!" Ash said, holding out his arms.
Pikachu jumped into them, and Ash transferred Pikachu to his shoulder before taking the other five Pokeballs.
Misty was next, and made sure to praise Togepi for how well-behaved she'd been.
"Are you here for the Gym Challenge?" Joy added.
"You bet!" Ash agreed. "I'm ready!"
"I somehow don't think the Gym Leader is the nurse," Pikachu pointed out.
"Oh, yeah, good point," Ash admitted. "So… where is the Gym Leader, then?"
Nurse Joy handed Ash a fortune cookie.
"...that's not the answer I was expecting you to get," Misty said.
Ash broke the cookie open, and checked the fortune inside.
"It says, uh… it says the gym is where Cinnabar started," he read off.
"I don't think that's true," Brock frowned. "The gym was set up here because of the town."
Ash turned the paper around, in case there was something else on the other side, then sat back.
"Where Cinnabar started," he repeated. "That sounds like some kind of riddle, uh…"
"Aha!" Brock said, snapping his fingers. "You're right. It is a riddle."
There were several seconds of silence.
"So, uh…" Pikachu began.
"I'm pretty sure this is a challenge for Ash," Brock told them.
"Oh, great…" Ash sighed. "Uh… Cinnabar's been a town for ages, right? So there's no way any of the Beasts are going to be old enough, or even Zapdos… do you think Dracozolt is going to know? They're really old."
"You're on the right lines," Brock said.
"But if they're too old then Cinnabar Island won't have been here," Ash went on. "So… uh… oh, hold on. It doesn't say Cinnabar City, does it! It's about the island!"
He reached for his belt, frowning. "I need to find Groudon and ask him! Do you think the Beasts or Zapdos will know where he lives?"
After Brock had persuaded Ash that, actually, the answer was the volcano, and he didn't need to go and get confirmation on that from someone who might have done it, they went up to the big cone which dominated the skyline.
It didn't take much longer after that to find the gym, which was kind of easy once you knew where to look, and Brock whistled as he looked around.
"I never thought of doing anything this dramatic with the Pewter Gym," he admitted. "Even with Onix around to help move things around."
The Cinnabar Gym Leader nodded in satisfaction.
"I'm proud of it," he said. "It wasn't easy, but there's nothing for style like having an active magma field in your gym."
He raised a Pokéball. "Now! You've already passed my extra challenge, so it's a simple battle. Three Pokémon on each side."
"Got it!" Ash said, taking a Safari Ball from his belt. "Ready?"
"Oooh," Vulpix gasped. "That is a very pretty Ninetales…"
"I know!" Eevee enthused, light on her paws, as Blaine's Fire-type exhaled a Fire Blast towards Dratini. "Powerful and graceful! That's amazing!"
Ash ordered Dratini to use Twister, the force of his whirlwind of Dragon-typed energy shredding the attack and reducing it to tatters too diffuse to harm Ash's Pokémon, and Dratini followed up by flicking his tail and sending the Twister attack coiling off into the wall.
"Careful!" Ash said. "You don't want to waste the attack – aim a bit more to the right with the next one!"
Ninetales came loping forwards, tails rippling, then jinked to the left just as Dratini whirled up the next Twister attack.
"And the way the tails flow in the air, suggesting the direction he was going but without still having to go in that direction!" Vulpix said, practically cheering.
"And that silky fur!" Eevee agreed.
"Hmm…" Ash frowned, watching as Ninetales circled before bounding forwards. He jumped ahead and back, tails whipping around and glowing with Will-O-Wisp, and it was hard to tell if the Fire-type was coming or going.
Then the Will-O-Wisps suddenly flicked forwards, and Ash pointed. "Swirl up a Twister!"
Dratini did so, and was just about to fire when Ash added another instruction. "Go along with it!"
The Dragon-type launched himself into the swirling vortex as it set off, flexing his whole body to give himself the proper lift. It battered him around a bit, but launched him high into the air, and Ash pointed with a flourish. "Now, Wrap!"
"Out of the way," Blaine countered.
"No, make a Twister – and make it so it's along the ground!" Ash called. "Make it like a rolling barrel!"
Dratini was still in mid-air, and spun up yet another swirling storm of Dragon-type energy. He vanished inside it completely, and Nintetales paced back and forth for a moment as the Twister did a weird vertical fastball swerve – then crouched, to leap over the whole rolling swirl.
"Middle now!" Ash called.
Dratini sprang out of the maelstrom just as Ninetales was jumping, and wrapped around Ninetales' hindpaw.
"Hi!" he said.
Eevee's eyes shone as she watched Ninetales go flying into the wall.
"I guess being hit by a close range Twister is kind of painful," Vulpix winced. "As well as being launched into a rocky wall."
"Yeah, but he did it really gracefully!" Eevee said, then jumped up at Brock's leg. "Can I? That was amazing?"
"Oh?" Brock said, as Ash withdrew his tired (and singed) Dratini. "You want to be a Fire-type?"
"Yep!" Eevee answered, nodding eagerly.
"I don't have a Fire Stone, but we can probably get one tomorrow," Brock told her. "If you're sure you want to be a Flareon, that is."
Eevee's ears went flat. "...Flareon?" she asked. "I want to be a Ninetales!"
"I think there are limits even for an Eevee," Vulpix told her.
"Since you defeated my Pokémon before recalling your own, I'll let you know what my second Pokémon is," Blaine told Ash, then held up a Pokéball. "This is my Magmar, and I warn you – he's one of my strongest Pokémon. I want your best tricks for this one."
He threw the Pokéball, and Magmar materialized in a flash.
"Sure," Ash agreed, going for his other Safari Ball. "I choose whoever it is today!"
Blaine blinked. "Pardon?"
The Safari Ball burst, and Suicune landed on the arena.
"My word," she said. "This should be interesting."
"…can't say I expected that," Blaine admitted. "I'd heard of a trainer with a Legendary Beast, but… to be honest, I thought you were an urban legend."
He shook his head. "Well, I'm not going to let you off gently. Magmar, Thunderpunch!"
Magmar darted forwards, and Suicune jumped smoothly out of the way.
"Let's cool this Magmar down!" Ash declared. "Aurora Beam!"
Suicune shot an Aurora Beam at Magmar, and the Ice-type attack splashed over Magmar's body without doing much damage. The flames were briefly banked, but then they sprang back up again, and Magmar blew flame which Suicune easily avoided.
"You've got a Water-type, kid," Blaine said. "Are you telling me Suicune doesn't know Water-type attacks?"
"She knows Water-type attacks," Ash answered. "But she doesn't know one that wouldn't just conduct that Thunderpunch right back at her!"
He considered. "Hey, can you put up some ice walls? That way if Magmar tries getting through them they'll turn to water!"
Suicune used Aurora Beam again, but it took almost two whole seconds of focus to make even a small mound of ice and the ice quickly hissed away in the heat.
"That's kind of funny," Brock said. "A Water-type who's having trouble in the heat."
"Hey, it's more me who's having the trouble," Ash said. "Suicune's a good battler, she just needs me to work out what to do so it's not cheating!"
"Ash has a weird definition of cheating," Misty said.
She pursed her lips. "It's a good attitude, though."
"Suicune, try firing water into the air!" Ash called. "That'll cool the room down!"
"You know, I was talking with my brother about volcanoes just a few months ago," Suicune mused, instead of obeying straight away. "He said something that I thought was interesting."
She jumped over a surge of Will-O-Wisp, and turned at bay. "I'd like to settle an argument we had."
With that, she jumped over the side of the platform.
"Suicune?" Ash called, running forward to watch.
Suicune landed right on top of the sullen magma, and then there was a tremendous whoosh as a geyser blasted up on all sides of the platform at once. Waves of hot water went absolutely everywhere, drenching the room and everyone and everything in it, and the air abruptly went from baked-dry to sauna.
A moment later, the Water-type Legendary landed on lithe paws.
"Thought so," she said. "If magma has a few percent of water in it, then it's just really, really dirty water."
"All right!" Ash cheered. "Now if Magmar uses Thunderpunch he'll just zap himself! Water Pulse!"
"Please stop breaking my volcano," Blaine requested.
"Great work, Suicune!" Ash cheered, as Blaine recalled Magmar.
"That's a matter of opinion," Misty said. "I'm a Water-type trainer and even I think that was a bit much."
Suicune preened. "It should fix itself in a while," she said. "I didn't do it to all that much magma, not really."
"I'm going to call you back now, though," Ash added. "I think it's time to give someone else a work out!"
Suicune took the instruction with good grace, and Ash switched to a Pokéball.
"Come on out!" he ordered, and Charizard burst into the arena to land with a wet splat on the floor.
"Wow," he said, sniggering. "This volcano's defective."
"My brother tells me that there are such things as mud volcanoes," Suicune replied.
Pikachu shuddered. "Eesh."
Then Blaine sent out his last Pokémon.
Ash raised his hand, looking at the Rhydon. "Uh… don't your Pokémon have to be from the same type as your gym?"
"Weirdly, no," Brock told him. "Not if your gym's built around that environment instead. So Misty could use a Pokémon that can swim that isn't a Water-type, if it's good at swimming."
"Oh, right, like Lugia," Ash realized. "That makes sense."
"I think I'm starting to see why anything about you sounds like an urban legend," Blaine mumbled, then raised his voice. "Rhydon-"
"But if this gym's meant to be really hot, and Suicune broke the volcano-" Misty said.
"-Smack Down!" Blaine ordered.
Charizard headbutted the rock, which exploded.
"You think I care about being groundbound?" he asked. "I still don't really know how to use these things in the first place!"
"Drill Run, Charizard!" Ash ordered.
Charizard dug into the arena floor with a grinding craaaash, the ground shaking slightly, then burst out again behind Rhydon and slammed both fists into the Rock-type.
"Now, Iron Tail!" Ash added.
His Fire-type twisted around, tail shimmering silver, and hit Rhydon hard enough to make him double over.
"Earthquake," Blaine ordered.
Charizard jumped, avoiding the worst of the shaking, and Ash frowned for a moment before making a fist with one hand and punching the palm of the other. "I know! Charizard, retreat over here a bit! I've got a plan!"
Charizard liked the plan.
Rhydon did not like the plan.
But then, since it involved Charizard lifting him up by the tail and throwing him into the roof, it wasn't something he'd have liked anyway.
"So, what would you say that move was?" Pikachu pondered. "Seismic Toss? Vital Throw? Sky Uppercut? Or is it Sky Drop?"
"I'll take it," Charizard decided.
"Well, Ash, you've won the Volcano Badge," Blaine told their trainer. "Though that doesn't usually come from defeating the volcano…"
At around the same time, a very long way away, Keldeo nodded attentively.
"That makes sense," he said. "I was already thinking about hoofwork, but I didn't think about it in quite that way before."
"It's good to think about such things in a mathematical way, young Sword," Zacian said.
She tossed her head, fur flowing around her. "Now, let us see how you do again!"
An illusion appeared, of Zacian bearing a sturdy blade, and Keldeo shifted on his hooves.
"Remember, your goal here is not to block," Zacian cautioned. "Since this is but an illusion, it wouldn't work anyway. Your goal is to take the measure of your opponent, and either remain outside it or close in to strike – do not allow them to dictate the flow of the battle!"
"I don't see what's wrong with defending," Zamazenta yawned.
"When it's your turn, you can teach him blocking," Zacian replied. "Right now it's my turn, and I'm teaching him measure. Deal with it."
On the way to Pallet Town, the friends stopped off at an island north of Cinnabar.
Involuntarily.
"And what have we learned?" Brock asked.
"Don't let Ash sort out the ferry tickets," Pikachu said promptly.
"I don't know what he said, but it had his word for Ash in it, so I'm going to say that was probably accurate," Misty said.
Ash grumbled.
"Still, we're not in a rush," Misty added. "Or, at least, you're not in a rush, Ash. You've got months still to get your final Badge."
"Yeah, and train for the Pokémon League!" Ash insisted. "I want to make sure my whole team's good and ready, and it's easier to train them all if I'm back home at Pallet!"
"Then get in some training now," Misty suggested. "This island's not all that big, but it should have enough space for some training – and the next ferry to Pallet's not in a few hours."
"Sure!" Ash agreed, brightening. "That should make time pass more quickly!"
Brock and Misty exchanged glances.
"Setting an alarm on my watch," Brock said.
"Good call," Misty agreed.
"...or we could end up not doing training," Brock observed, staring across the field.
At the other end of the clearing were Suicune and Raikou… and, between them, the Rainbow Phoenix, Ho-Oh.
"Ash Ketchum," he said.
"Oh, uh, hold on," Ash requested. "Do you want to be out, Entei?"
Entei exited the Safari Ball.
"The sad thing is that the only way to tell which one you have in that ball is a clue like that," Pikachu said.
"Thank you, Ash," Entei told him.
"Now, Ash Ketchum," Ho-Oh resumed. "Approach, for I have a question to ask."
Ash frowned slightly, confused, but walked forward.
"Why have you not taken up a Rainbow Wing?" Ho-Oh said, once Ash was within about twenty feet. "Have I somehow offended you?"
"A Rainbow Wing?" Ash repeated. "What's one of those?"
Ho-Oh clacked his beak.
"My shimmering feathers, lit with the condensed light of the rainbow?" he asked. "Mighty objects of power that allow my Rainbow Hero to challenge my Throne?"
"What do they look like?" Ash said. "Because I don't remember seeing any, except still attached to you."
"But I've been making overflights for months!" Ho-Oh protested. "Some of them were so low I nearly collided with your friend's Onix! You must have seen them after that!"
Suicune coughed.
"My father," she began, delicately. "Is it, perhaps, possible that you forgot to drop one?"
"What?" Ho-Oh said. "No. I couldn't have done. I must have remembered."
"With all the respect I truly mean, Father," Entei said. "You aren't exactly observant. Didn't you forget to check whether a certain Vaporeon was male or female before resurrecting her?"
"I-" Ho-Oh began, then fluffed his wings. "Oh, sod this, I'll try again next year."
He spread a glittering raiment of feathers, and took off. "Probably for the best, anyway, I can't find where I left Marshadow…"
"Well, there's one good thing," Pikachu pointed out. "We did end up getting some training time."
"Yeah!" Zorua agreed. "Entei taught me something, watch!"
He stuck his tongue out. "Blep!"
Pikachu blinked. "...what is that?"
"Entei said it was Charm," Zorua said. "How am I doing?"
"I think it's inflicting confusion, rather than reducing attack," Pikachu told him.
AN:
I Choose You isn't happening.
Not because it couldn't happen, but for… other reasons.