Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon, or any other property in this work that I did not make myself.
Pokémon: Sinnoh no Isekai
Chapter One-hundred and thirty-one: Adventures with Cynthia
The mysterious Pokémon that had taken to following Ash around was fleeing from the Team Rocket trio. Even though it was using its powers to make itself transparent, the Team Rocket trio were able to follow it thanks to a pair of anti-cloaking goggles they had, supplied to them by Dr. Zager. When the mysterious Pokémon hid in a bush nearby, Jessie and James called out Woobat and Yamask, and had them fire Air Cutter and Shadow Ball at the bush in question, busting the bush in the process and exposing the mysterious Pokémon.
Meowth then took aim with a shoulder-mounted cannon to fire an eletrified net at the mysterious Pokémon, but the net missed its mark wholly. But the net DID score a grazing hit on the mysterious Pokémon, causing it to stumble to the ground and roll of the cliff. The Team Rocket trio ran to where the mysterious Pokémon fell off the cliff side, having lost sight of it. "Drat!" Jessie exclaimed, snapping her fingers in annoyed anger, "Where did that Pokémon go? We need to capture it so we can proceed with the next phase of the plan!"
"We'll have to search down the side of this cliff," James replied.
"We had better find it," Meowth said grimly, "We're gonna need it if Team Rocket's to make it to the big times."
...
The mysterious Pokémon, no longer making itself transparent, was now down the side of the cliff. In its injured state, it stumbled into the road, and luckily a truck that was coming right for it hit the breaks suddenly. The driver of that truck was Cynthia, the former champion of the Sinnoh region. The passengers in her truck consisted of Ash Ketchum and his companions Iris, Cilan, Bianca, Dawn, Kenny, and Trip (some of them sat in the bed of the truck). What was particularly amusing was that one of the guests of the former Sinnoh champ was the CURRENT Sinnoh champ, her successor to the Sinnoh champion's throne.
After hitting the breaks and bringing her truck to a stop just in time, Cynthia got out of the truck followed by the heroes. "Hey!" Ash said as he pointed at the mysterious Pokémon, "That's the Pokémon that I saved from getting hit by a falling plank of wood back at Pokéstar Studios!"
"I even recognize it," Trip spoke up, catching everyone's attention. Nodding once, Trip went on, "I saw it in a book on Pokémon lore. It's called Meloetta."
"You're actually right about that, Trip," Cynthia remarked, "But Meloetta here doesn't look to be in too good a shape." Indeed, there was a scrape wound on Meloetta's chest area, and it looked to be running a fever. The ground decided to stop for a moment in order to treat Meloetta. They went to the riverbank along the side of the road, where Ash laid Meloetta down on a sheet before Dawn sprayed the scuff wound on Meloetta's chest area with a Full Restore. Cynthia was impressed by the quality of supplies Dawn had; Cynthia at best only had a Super Potion to offer.
Cynthia then tried tasking Iris and Cilan to go find an Oran Berry, but Trip called out, "Will Sitrus Berries work just as well? Because I have a few on hand."
"Those will be even more effective than an Oran Berry," Cynthia replied, thanking Trip for his resourcefulness before Trip took out a Sitrus Berry to help with caring for the sick and injured Meloetta. With the sitrus Berry set to the side, Cynthia called out her Glaceon and had it use Ice Beam on some of the nearby river. The resulting frozen ice was collected, and some curshed up and put into a bag to be placed under Meloetta's head.
Ash then proceeded to wipe Meloetta's forehead with a damp cloth, during which time Meloetta's eyes briefly opened. When its eyes opened, Meloetta saw Ash, the kindly human who protected it from falling stuff even though he took the hit himself, and Ash was now taking care of it. Upon seeing Ash taking care of it, Meloetta gave a weak and tired, but sincere, small smile, happy to see the good human was looking after it once more. Ash then had to get some more ice when he noticed the ice bag under Meloetta's head was melting.
...
Eventually, Meloetta had regained some energy, so it ate the Sitrus Berry Trip had provided, then it took off, leaving the heroes looking on. "...You think that Meloetta will be okay?" Bianca asked.
Dawn, Kenny, and Trip looked on in the direction that Meloetta took off in. They all had vague feelings that they'd be seeing Meloetta again, and that it'll have a target on its back. Turning to look at Bianca, Dawn said, "I'm sure we'll see Meloetta again."
"In the meantime," Iris said, "I would like to have a practice battle with Cynthia."
Hearing that surprised everyone, Cynthia included. "...Well my experiences helping Dawn, Kenny, and Trip back in Sinnoh have shown me that I'm a bit rusty ever since I went into Pokémon Lore research following Dawn winning my former title off of me." Looking a bit guilty, Cynthia went on, "...I had been overwhelmed and defeated by a large group of Team Scorn members."
"You were defeated by Team Scorn?" Ash said, looking alarmed.
Cynthia nodded once in shamed confirmation. "As much as I am now a Pokémon Lore researcher," Cynthia said, "I still need to shake off some of that rust. I'm not one to boast, but my Pokémon do have some power, but that power won't do any good if we can't shake the rust off and get overwhelmed by Team Scorn again." The two trainers took their practice battle off to the side of the riverbank that they were on right now.
...
For the practice battle between Iris and Cynthia, Iris sent out Axew, whereas Cynthia sent out her Garchomp. "How's your Garchomp doing, Cynthia?" Dawn asked, getting Cynthia's attention, "I ask because I own a Garchomp as well."
"Ah yes, I remember your Garchomp," Cynthia replied, "And yes, my Garchomp's doing fine." Turning to face the battle, Cynthia added, "And she's about to get some exercise to stretch and limber up so we don't slip against Team Scorn again!"
"We'll see about that!" Iris called out, "Axew, use Scratch, then follow it up with Dragon Rage!"
The tiny dragon Pokémon used both of those attacks on Axew, but neither did any significant damage to Garchomp; probably a slight scratch at best. Smiling a bit in knowing amusement, Cynthia called out, "Garchomp, use Dragon Rush!" Garchomp, cloaked in a surging energy cloak shaped like a dragon, rushed at Axew and rammed right into it, dealing a lot of damage. "Now let's bust out Draco Meteor!" Cynthia continued, prompting Garchomp to fire out a Draco Meteor. After one of the meteor shots slammed Axew, it cried out in pain.
"Axew, are you okay?!" Iris called out in worry. Even Cynthia was concerned; due to how she had gotten a bit rusty at battling since becoming a Pokémon Lore researcher, Cynthia feared that she might not have a gentle enough touch anymore to hold back on obviously weaker opponents in a friendly spar. However, Axew not only was able to push through, but it was cloaked in a harsh energy before it rammed right up into Garchomp's gut, finally dealing enough damage for it to gain at least some notice from the pseudo legendary dragon.
"That was Giga Impact!" Cilan said, "Iris's Axew had just learned a powerful attack!"
Even with such a powerful move, Axew didn't take Garchomp out of the fight. Not by a (very) long shot. And Axew was stunned after using Giga Impact, giving Garchomp an in to rush in with Brick Break. "Garchomp, no!" Cynthia called out, making Garchomp take pause and jump back. There was a hint of worry in Cynthia's tone when she ordered her Garchomp away, and the former Sinnoh champ breathed a sigh of relief when Garchomp was able to stop from attacking the stunned Axew. Looking to Iris, Cynthia said, "Let's end the battle here. Axew should work to get used to using Giga Impact, and I still need to sharpen my dull edges so that I'm keen enough to refrain from acting as I don't want."
Nodding once in agreement, Iris said, "Yeah, that's a good idea to end the battle here." With the battle ended, everyone gathered their stuff and made their way to the docks, where they would take a seaplane to get to Undella Town.
At the docks, the heroes and Cynthia got on board of a seaplane to head right for Undella Town. However, unbeknownst to them, Meloetta while transparent snuck onto the seaplane, and seeing Meloetta sneak onto the seaplane was Team Rocket. "We need to contact Dr. Zager and let him know that Meloetta's heading for Undella Town." Jessie said, "Then we need to get to Undella Town before the twerps."
"Why is it that the twerps always have to get in our way?" Meowth asked rhetorically.
James let out a resigned sigh. "...If it's not the twerps, then it's Team Scorn. They've interfered with Team Rocket activity so much that even the boss wants them dealt with as soon as possible."
...
After the short ride on the seaplane, the heroes and Cynthia arrived in Undella Town. "I wasn't aware you owned property outside of Sinnoh," Trip remarked to the former Sinnoh champion.
"I do," Cynthia replied, "Although I may have to liquidate some assets in the future. Being Sinnoh's champion is part of why I was able to afford keeping it, and me losing that title has strained my wallet a bit."
Turning to look at Dawn, Kenny asked, "Yo Dawn, you ever considered owning property outside of Sinnoh?"
"No, and there's still so much of the world out there for me to take in and learn from," Dawn said, "So I won't be looking to settle down anytime soon. If I do, I'll most likely find property within Sinnoh, preferably located close to friends we have there. Maybe in Oreburgh City, where Roark lives with Maylene."
"Oh, how are Roark and Maylene doing by the way?" Ash asked. A hint of seriousness entered the expression of the Kanto region native. "...Are they doing better after what they suffered from Paul?"
"Wait, what did Paul do?" Cynthia asked, immediately alarmed.
Holding up her hands, Dawn replied, "Cynthia, relax. Ash, Kenny, and I were able to settle things there with some help from Brock." Turning to look at Ash, Dawn replied, "Roark's doing well enough, although I couldn't get an accurate read on him the last time I saw him due to having to deal with some Team Scorn presence in Sinnoh. As for Maylene, she ought to be getting along fine enough." With an amused look on her face, Dawn added, "By the way, Roark and Maylene are engaged to one another. They're going to get married."
That took Ash and the others who didn't know by surprise. "Roark and Maylene are going to get married?" Ash nearly exclaimed, "That's great!"
Before anyone could say anything further, a limo pulled up and out of it popped a butler that Cynthia identified as her butler Jervis. "The rented limo is ready to take all of us to your villa, Cynthia," Jervis said.
Nodding once to Jervis, Cynthia said, "Thank you, Jervis." Turning to the heroes, Cynthia said, "Well, time to get in." Following Cynthia's cue, the heroes all got into the rented limo, with Iris and Bianca both excited about getting to ride in a limo.
However, unbeknownst to the heroes and Cynthia, Team Rocket was spying on them. "Meloetta is following the twerps," Jessie said, "And what's worse is that the former Sinnoh champ Cynthia is with them. She's still strong, even though she's no longer the Sinnoh champ."
"And the Sinnoh twerp girl is the current Sinnoh champ," James pointed out, "And she's got frightfully powerful Pokémon as well, including Palkia!"
Growling in annoyance, Meowth said, "If Meloetta seeks protection with the twerps, taking it will be infinitely more difficult."
Later, the heroes and Cynthia were driving to Cynthia's villa. As the party made its way, Meloetta surprised everyone by suddenly becoming visible while sitting on Ash's lap. "Whoa dudes," Kenny said, "Meloetta must be sticking to Ash like how some of my girl Pokémon like sticking to Shallot!"
Seeing how much Meloetta enjoyed sticking with Ash, Cynthia smiled. "It must have taken a shine to you, Ash."
Eventually, the rented limo pulled up to Cynthia's villa. When everyone got out, they noticed that Meloetta had disappeared on them again. "Hey, Meloetta!" Ash called out, "Where did you go?"
"Relax Ash," Iris replied, "I'm sure Meloetta will come back."
Cynthia nodded in agreement. "Indeed, Ash. I'm sure that Meloetta's shy, so just-"
*THOOM*
Cynthia was cut off by what sounded like either an explosion or a volcanic eruption; looking around, everyone saw that there was smoke trailing up from an island that they could see from the shore near Cynthia's villa. "...That's a deserted island where wild Pokémon live," Cynthia remarked, "It's got a population of wild Onix, one of which has been confirmed to be a shiny."
"A wild shiny Onix?" Ash asked, "That can't be good."
"Why not?" Cynthia asked.
"Because Team Scorn's looking to-" Ash began, but got cut off when Meloetta suddenly reappeared, cried out in fright, and flew right over to Ash, burying its face in his chest. "...The explosion on the nearby island scared you, huh?" Ash said in a comforting, reassuring voice to Meloetta.
Turning to look at Cynthia, Dawn explained, "As Ash was trying to say before Meloetta interrupted him by coming back, one of Team Scorn's known goals here in Unova is to track down a wild shiny Pokémon, species doesn't matter, and capture it. And the shiny Pokémon in question apparently HAS to be wild at the time Team Scorn gets to it; one owned by a trainer apparently won't work."
Cynthia looked in the direction of the island that smoke was rising from. "...If Team Scorn is as knowing as they were back in Sinnoh, then I'm willing to bet that they're after the shiny Onix on that island. But how to get over there on short notice and with no boats-"
Cynthia was cut off when Dawn, Trip, and Kenny called out Tsukune, Deelia, and Black. "We'll climb on and just zoom over," Trip said, "There's eight of us here, so one dragon will carry two while the other two will carry three each."
Looking up at the three legendary dragon Pokémon of Sinnoh, Cynthia remarked, "It'll certainly be an honor to be helped by such awesome Pokémon."
Thusly, the heroes and Cynthia got onto the legendary dragons, flew up into the air, and took off for the island that was under attack; Bianca rode with Dawn on Tsukune, Trip had Ash and Iris with him on Deelia, and Kenny rode with Cilan and Cynthia on Black. As such, the heroes and Cynthia made their way over to the island that was under attack.
Meloetta, despite its fright, stuck close to Ash as he carried it and Pikachu.
Upon reaching the island, the party landed, and the reborn trainers recalled their respective legendary dragons. They rushed towards the center of the island, making their way past lots of wild Pokémon that were cowering out of fright by what was going on. After making their way, the heroes and Cynthia eventually came upon the sight of multiple Team Scorn grunts fighting loads of wild Onix. Looking around, Dawn and Ash spotted a shiny Onix, an olive green-ish color as opposed to gray like normal Onix, battling Captain Hiroki, Second Captain of Team Scorn's Longsword Sector, and Hiroki's Captain's Assistant Nobuyuki.
"Those two battling the shiny Onix," Dawn said, "Kenny, Trip, and I saw them back at Relic Castle. We pulled them out of some danger that could have otherwise seriously injured them."
Ash scowled bitterly. "Well this is certainly a good way for them to repay the kindness you've shown them." Ash then ran right for where Hiroki and Nobuyuki were trying to wrangle down the shiny Onix, forcing Dawn to run in after him with Meloetta floating on in quickly to stick by Ash's side.
...
"Come on, stay down damn you!" Hiroki barked as he commanded a Bisharp while Nobuyuki commanded a Pawniard in their efforts to subdue the shiny Onix. After both dark steel Pokémon dodged a tail swipe from the shiny Onix, Hiroki pointed forward while calling out, "Bisharp, use Iron Head on that shiny Onix!"
Bisharp, its head shining like polished metal, leapt in and flew right at the shiny Onix, prepared to strike it hard. However, instead Bisharp's Iron Head rammed Ash in the back when he stood in the way to shield the shiny Onix. "GAAHH!" Ash cried out in pain as Dawn and Meloetta both caught up to him.
"Ash, you okay?" Dawn asked as Meloetta looked worried, not to mention touched that Ash was clearly the kind of person who wants to protect ALL Pokémon from bad humans. Ash really was a good person from what Meloetta was seeing, and it felt its choice to stick with Ash for protection from the bad humans chasing it had been a very good call.
Ash, wincing in pain, looked to Dawn. "...Is Onix okay?" Similar to Meloetta, the shiny Onix was surprised by Ash's selflessness. If these humans attacking it and the normally colored Onix were bad humans who couldn't be trusted, then Ash was a GOOD human who could be trusted.
"Hey, girl," Nobuyuki said, getting Dawn, Ash, Pikachu, Meloetta, and the shiny Onix to all turn to look at Nobuyuki and Hiroki. "Captain Hiroki's men with him and I during the mission at Relic Castle told us you and two friends of yours helped to pull Captain Hiroki and I out of danger after that wild Volcarona went crazy. I suppose we ought to thank you for the save."
Giving the members of Team Scorn a wry look, Dawn said, "...And I suppose you're counting your men not turning on me, Kenny, and Trip after we all got out of there as you returning the favor."
Nodding once, Hiroki replied, "You got it, little lady. Now stand aside so that we can capture that wild shiny Onix."
Gently shaking her head, Dawn said, "I don't think so. Alright, Leni! Let's get goin'!" After sending out her named Lucario, Dawn said, "Leni, use Aura Sphere on Pawniard!" Acting on command, the named Lucario conjured and cast an Aura Sphere at Pawniard, blasting it and knocking it out in one hit.
"You're being really tough, kid," Hiroki said, "Both of you. Kids like you ought to stand down."
"No way!" Ash scowled loudly, "We won't stand down! Not while criminals like you harass innocent Pokémon!" Ash was about to send Pikachu in to fight Hiroki's Bisharp, but Meloetta flew in instead; it sung a song so calming yet so powerful, it slammed Bisharp with potent force. Although Bisharp endured, everyone was surprised to see Meloetta change form, its green music bar hair turning brown and curling up into a upwards rising 'do. Then, the transformed Meloetta rushed Bisharp and blitzed it with Close Combat, hitting it hard and knocking it back.
When Bisharp landed on the ground defeated, Hiroki scowled in annoyance as he recalled his defeated Bisharp. After that, Hiroki heard his men cry out; looking around, it turned out that the other heroes, backed by Cynthia, had defeated the other Team Scorn members. Seeing that, Ash and Dawn turned their attention to Hiroki and Nobuyuki. "It looks like you guys have lost here," Dawn said.
Sighing in resigned exasperation, Hiroki said, "Looks like it. We'll be seeing each other again soon, I bet." At Hiroki's call, all of Team Scorn on the island ran out of there and took off, resulting in a win for the heroes and Cynthia.
"We did it!" Kenny cheered, "We kicked Team Scorn's sorry butt and drove them off!"
Ash nodded while Meloetta changed back to normal. "...Yeah," Ash said, "It certainly-" Ash was cut off when he felt something big nudge into him, nearly knocking him over. Turning around, Ash saw that it was the shiny Onix. "...Oh, no problem, Onix," Ash said, "I'm always glad to help a Pokémon in need if there's ever-" Ash was cut off by the shiny Onix when it cried out at him, then looked at him expectantly.
"...Ash," Cynthia remarked, "I do believe that Onix here is asking to come with you."
Looking surprised, Ash said, "Really, Onix? You want to come with me?" The shiny Onix gave an affirmative nod and a likewise growling cry. Smiling happily, Ash said, "Sure thing! I'd be glad to have a new Pokémon aboard!" Ash then took out a spare pokéball, expanded it, then tossed it at the shiny Onix. It went into the pokéball, which then fell to the ground with a very light clink. It then shook for a moment before making a ping sound, indicating capture. "Alright!" Ash cheered as he picked up and held aloft the pokéball, "I caught an Onix!"
"Given that it's no longer a wild Pokémon," Dawn said, "Team Scorn will have no interest in it. You catching Onix there actually serves more than one good point, Ash." And so, with the troubles on the deserted island averted, the heroes and Cynthia got back to Cynthia's villa in Undella Town by riding Tsukune, Deelia, and Black back over the water. Given the time, the heroes and Cynthia decided to relax for the rest of the day, but first thing in the morning, the heroes were going to get right onto training for the times that they had ahead of them.
The following morning, the heroes got right to work on training; not just for the Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup, but also the Vertress Conference. Dawn wasn't going to enter either event, but she still wanted to train to keep her skills sharpened to their finest, keenest edge. Cynthia volunteered to be Dawn's sparring partner, especially since Cynthia was still trying to get the rust shaken off after she stopped battling following going into Pokémon Lore research. Although still strong, Cynthia had allowed her skills to atrophy following Dawn taking her title from her.
Getting the former Sinnoh champ back to her finest edge will be another boon to help against Team Scorn.
The other heroes also trained as well; Trip, after pointing out the benefits to Ash (mainly the extra power to use against Team Scorn), helped him with evolving Boldore and the shiny Onix, both of whom can only evolve when traded, and Onix needs to hold a Metal Coat to boot. Trip had a spare Metal Coat (quite a few actually, because Trip here has a fondness for steel types) that he gave to Ash to give to Onix to hold. Trip then set up a trade cycle where he traded Fourze to Ash in return for Boldore, triggering Boldore's evolution into Gigalith, then Trip traded Gigalith back to Ash in return for the shiny Onix while it held the Metal Coat, triggering Onix's evolution into Steelix, then Trip traded the shiny Steelix back to Ash in return for the return of Fourze.
Ash now having Gigalith and Steelix gave him a serious boost to the overall power his Unova rotation was capable of fielding. Gigalith and Steelix were both bound to serve Ash well; in the Pokémon World Tournament Junior Cup, in the Vertress Conference, against Team Scorn, AND against what all other problems that the heroes and Cynthia may encounter in the Unova region.
At one point while the heroes and Cynthia trained, a young boy named Chris came up asking for help to find his missing Cubchoo. The heroes agreed to help and soon began a search for Chris's Cubchoo; Cilan came across a Beartic that, due to evidence, he thought was Chris's Cubchoo evolved, but it wasn't Chris's Cubchoo, which was later seen running around playfully with a wild Larvitar. After explaining some things to Chris about raising Pokémon, the heroes and Cynthia took off, wishng Chris well as he and his now found Cubchoo went home.
...
That evening, the heroes and Cynthia relaxed inside of her villa, watching a news report about how there was going to be some dark skies that night which may indicate bad weather. "Hmm, we ought to keep inside, then," Dawn remarked, "Going outside in bad weather is just asking for trouble."
"I once caught a cold due to being outside for a long period of time when it was raining back when I was a little kid," Cynthia commented causally, "Hoo boy, did my grandma scold me over that."
"Well we can get back to training in the morning, when the weather's clear," Bianca spoke up. Turning to see Iris, who was looking out a window, Bianca said, "Wouldn't you agree, Ir-"
"...A dragon Pokémon is in trouble," Iris said, as if feeling something through some manner of sixth sense.
END, CHAPTER ONE-HUNDRED AND THIRTY-ONE
Author's notes;
This chapter actually covers events from BW085 to BW088 (although only skimming 088), and sees the heroes and Cynthia arrive at Cynthia's villa in Undella Town, meet up with and befriend Meloetta, go to the island with the shiny Onix (with Ash actually capturing said shiny Onix), and briefly helping that Chris kid all the while they get some training in. Dawn and Cynthia spar with one another, Dawn to keep her skills sharp and Cynthia to resharpen her skills she had allowed to dull, while the other heroes train with one another; Trip even helps Ash with evolving Boldore and Onix into Gigalith and Steelix.
The chapter then ends with Iris looking out a window into a dark cloudy night sky with a concerned look on her face while saying that a dragon Pokémon was in trouble. Given Iris has a certain connection with dragon Pokémon, it would make sense for her to be able to sense these things. The next chapter will begin with seeing Iris's feelings proven right as the heroes deal with a powerful dragon Pokémon who's causing some trouble. If any of you know well about the BW anime, then you'll be able to guess what will end up happening, as well as who will show up.
Dawn's Pokémon: (on hand) Chi-Chi (female Infernape), Argent (male Arcanine; alpha; Hisuian), Zatch (male Hariyama; shiny), Zancrow (male Volcarona), Leni (female Lucario), Tsukune (Palkia)
Kenny's Pokémon: (on hand) Godzilla (male Tyranitar), Giyu (male Samurott; Hisuian), Goofy (male Houndoom), Black (Giratina; Origin Form), Cell (male Scizor; shiny), Shallot (male Glaceon)
Trip's Pokémon: (on hand) Byron (male Bastiodon), HedonismBot (Magnezone), Myde (male Empoleon), Veda (female Abomasnow), Deelia (Dialga), Fourze (male Electivire)
Ash's Pokémon: (on hand) Pikachu (male), Krokorok (male; Sunglasses), Scrafty (male), Gigalith (male), Emboar (male), Steelix (male; shiny)