AN: Have an extra chapter this week!

Episode 3: Battle Against Leaf: The Gateway Gym Quiz!

After getting over the shock of meeting Leaf, Ashton smiled and held out a Poké Ball. "So my first Gym battle will be against one of the top Trainers in the world? You're on!"

"Hold on for a moment," Leaf said. She pulled out her own Poké Ball and tossed it up, revealing an Ivysaur from it. "You're here as part of the World Tournament, right? Then you'll have to take part in my Gym Challenge before we battle."

"Fair enough," Ashton nodded. She sent out Vulcan. "So, what challenge do you have?"

"If your friends will take a seat in the stands, we can get started," Leaf said.

Dylan and Kris complied, taking seats on the side while Ashton followed Leaf to the center of the stadium. The two opponents took to opposite sides of the field, where they both rose up on platforms above the main battlefield. A referee on the side of the field blew a whistle to gain the attention of everyone.

"Let the match between Gym Leader Leaf and Challenger Ashton… begin!" the ref called.

"Alright, let's start with the challenge first!" Leaf said. She pressed a button on her platform, which changed the battlefield below into a four-panel screen. "After my friends and I conquered the Kanto League, I worked a bit with Gym Leader Blaine to become an official Gym Leader. So for your challenge, you'll have to answer three questions on battle. Get it right and move on to the next question, but get in wrong and you'll have to take a penalty."

"Now I wish that I was the one taking on this Gym," Dylan sighed.

Have some more faith in Ashton, Aurora said. She can get through this.

"First question," Leaf said as the floor panels lit up. "The most basic match-up between Pokémon is their Types. Which Pokémon has the most immunities?" Four Pokémon appeared on the panels. "Command your Pokémon to stand on the one that will be your answer."

Ashton looked at her answers, then smirked and shouted, "Vulcan, go for Shedinja!"

Vulcan jumped onto the panel with the Shed Pokémon, which lit up green as a small fanfare played.

Shedinja is the correct answer!" Leaf announced. "Thanks to its ability Wonder Guard, Shedinja has a whopping total of thirteen immunities! Now then, onto question two!" The floor panels changed again. "One of the more random aspects of battles in landing a critical hit on your opponent. However, which of these moves can guarantee that you land a critical hit?"

"Oh, I know this one!" Kris said. "It's obviously- "

"Vulcan, go for Laser Focus!" Ashton called. The Quilava did as he was told and stood on the corresponding panel, which lit up green again. "You'll have to give me a harder question than that!"

"You're doing great," Leaf complimented. "However, this next one will be the hardest one yet." The panels changed as she continued, "Stat changes can turn the tide of a battle. Which of these Pokémon can affect stat changes in their favor?"

When the panels filled in, Dylan and Kris were shocked to see that they were all Grass Starter Pokémon. "This has to be a trick question," Dylan said.

"Yeah, everyone knows that Starters all have the same ability," Kris said. She gave a hum and took down some notes, "I'll have to make that a part of my studies into why that is now…"

Ashton looked down at her answers, then closed her eyes and smirked. "I'll admit, you almost got me there. But even so…" She pointed a confident finger forward. "Vulcan, go for Serperior!"

Vulcan jumped onto the panel with the Regal Pokémon, and the field went blank. The stadium was tense for a good five seconds, before the floor turned green and the fanfare played again.

"Amazing! You got all three questions right!" Leaf cheered. "Most Trainers get that last question wrong."

"Luckily, I'm not like most Trainers," Ashton said. "I've studied professional battles, so I know that there are some Serperior that have the ability Contrary, which changes negative stat changes into positive ones!"

Kris slapped her forehead. "How could I forget about Hidden Abilities!"

"Hey, I didn't know that one either," Dylan admitted.

"Now that the quiz is over, let's get onto the battle," Leaf called. "Since this is your first Gym battle, I'll be using two Pokémon." She pulled out a Poké Ball and tossed it out. "Go, Vaporeon!"

"Vulcan, you better come back for now," Ashton recalled her Quilava, then pulled out another ball. "Go, Azrael!"

The ball opened up to reveal a bird-like creature covered in metal, it's eyes opening to a gleaming yellow. "Skarmory!" it cried.

The two Pokémon on the field sized each other up, then charged forward to attack. Vaporeon got in close with a Quick Attack but was countered when Azrael met in with a Pursuit. The Armor Bird Pokémon then spun around with a Steel Wing attack, sending out metal feathers everywhere and knocking the Vaporeon away as he flew into the air.

"Looks like this will be an interesting battle," Kris said. "Steel is resisted by Water, but Skarmory's physical defense will let it take those attacks fairly well."

Azrael swooped down with Fly, which Vaporeon dodged and used Water Gun. Skarmory cried out, but stood strong and rushed in with Pursuit, tanking another Water Gun while doing so to directly hit Vaporeon. The two clashed again with Quick Attack and Pursuit, but Azrael flew up once more afterwards.

"This is it," Ashton said. "Azrael, use Fly!"

Skarmory let out a cry as it came crashing down onto Vaporeon, dusting flying up as the Bubble Jet Pokémon fell over. "Vaporeon is unable to battle!" the referee called.

"Good job, Vaporeon," Leaf said as she returned her Pokémon. "Alright, Ivysaur, I choose you!"

Ivysaur hopped onto the battlefield, but then flinched as metal spikes dug into it. "You fell for my trap!" Ashton called. "I had Azrael scatter Spikes when it used Steel Wing!"

"Woah!" Kris gasped.

"That's Ashton for you," Dylan said, nodding his head. "She can get ahead of herself in real life, but on the battlefield she's a strategic mastermind."

"Azrael, come back," Ashton recalled her Skarmory. "Let's have a battle of the Starters. Vulcan, let's finish this!" Vulcan popped out of his Poké Ball, landing on the field and flaring his fire. "Go for a Flame Wheel!"

As the Quilava charged, Ivysaur stood its ground, taking the attack and breathing a purple mist on Vulcan. Vulcan stumbled back a bit, his body taking a sickly appearance as the Ivysaur sent out a Seed Bomb attack.

Vulcan's been poisoned by Poison Powder, Aurora observed.

"Did Ivysaur breathe that out of its mouth?" Kris asked, her face turning slightly green. "Ew…"

"Gotta finish this battle fast," Ashton said to herself. "Vulcan, you've gotta move fast! Keep using Flame Wheel!"

The Quilava did as he was told, building up speed to avoid Ivysaur's Seed Bomb attacks. The poison was starting to wear Vulcan down, though, and soon Leaf saw an opening for her next move.

"Ivysaur, use Leech Seed!" Leaf commanded. When Vulcan came in for another attack, Ivysaur sent out seeds to cover the Quilava, draining more of its energy and healing itself.

"This isn't good," Dylan said. "Poison and Leech Seed is a deadly combination."

"Leaf doesn't hold back in her Gym battles," Kris said.

Ashton looked down, before looking directly at Leaf with fire in her eyes. "This is it!" She held out a hand to Vulcan. "Now, power up and go for Quick Attack!"

Vulcan let out a cry as his Blue Flare ability activated, then rushed forward to blitz Ivysaur. The Seed Pokémon had no time to react as it was knocked to the ground, flames licking it as it became burned. The Leech Seed went into effect, but soon the burn made Ivysaur fall to the ground, fainted.

"Ivysaur is unable to battle due to its burn. The winner of this match is Ashton!" the referee announced.

Ashton hopped off of her platform and down to Vulcan, pulling out an Antidote to heal him of his poison. "You did awesome, Vulcan," she said, the Quilava affectionately licking her face. "Azrael did good as well!"

"Congratulations on your victory, Ashton!" Leaf said. She reached into her bag and pulled out a small object. "As proof of your victory, have this Oak Badge!" Ashton accepted the Oak Badge, which depicted an oak tree on it.

"This is the official start of my journey!" Ashton held up her badge. Vulcan and Azrael jumped up next to her to join in the cheer.

[***]

"Great job Ashton," Dylan said as they exited the gym. "So, what gym should be challenge next?"

We should head to the west coast next, Aurora suggested. We can take the scenic Route 66.

"That sounds fun," Ashton nodded. "We can even try to find some more party members while we travel."

"So, neither of you want to 'Catch 'Em All' as they say?" Kris asked.

Dylan shook his head. "Nah. Ashton is more into battles, and I want to create strong bonds with my Pokémon. I only catch ones that want to come with me."

"It'll be interesting to see what kinds of Pokémon and Trainers we meet, then," Kris said.

"And the battles we'll have with them!" Ashton added.

As the trio went about seeing if there were any Route 66 tours they could join, they were stopped when a familiar voice called out to them. "Wait up!" shouted Leaf. She and Ivysaur skidded to a halt int front of them. "Kris, I heard that you were leaving with Dylan and Ashton."

Kris nodded. "I've decided that if I travel with them around the world, I can get more data for my studies into the bonds of trainers and Pokémon." Croconaw let out a cry. "Oh, and Alpha wants to get stronger to rematch Vulcan again."

"Then I want you to have this," Leaf said. She handed a Poké Ball over to Kris. "I give one of these to every person that trains in my gym. A personal gift from Professor Oak himself!"

Kris opened the ball, surprised as an Eevee popped out into her arms, it's fur a shining white color. "An Eevee? And a shiny one at that," Kris gasped. She looked at the Pokémon and then cuddled it a bit. "Thank you! I'll take good care of her!"

"You've been a great help at the Gym, so I had to thank you with a special gift," Leaf smiled. "This one is actually the kid of Red's Espeon, so I bet she'll get as strong as her father is."

"Now all she needs is a name," Dylan said.

Kris looked at the Eevee, then placed it on her shoulder. "Sera. I name you Sera, Eevee!"

"Vee-vee!" Sera the Eevee called.

"Thanks for the battle again, Ashton," Leaf said. "I wish you all luck on your Pokémon journey, just as Red, Blue, and I all did."

The trio waved goodbye to Leaf as they left St. Louis. Ashton had obtained her first badge, Kris welcomed a new Pokémon to her team, and now they were off to find the next Gym for Dylan to have his first challenge in.

Author's Note

Shout-out to my friend and story editor Azakael for the amazing cover art on this story!

Ashton's knowledge of battle strategy and unique tactics is based off of my friend whom creates and battles with real competitively viable Pokémon teams. Now that the main trio is set up, next chapter will start the main journey around the world! See you next chapter!