"…"- normal talking
'…'- thinking and Pokémon talking
Ash and Blake met up in the locker room before taking on Jaune and Pyrrha the next morning. Ash was sensing something unusual coming from her after they went their separate ways for a while. Blake pointed out to him more about why Ruby was hesitant to use Volcarona from her match against Gary and Lindsey.
"So that Volcarona belonged to Summer Rose? I guess using her was not the best option for her. But on the other hand, it helped her and Penny win." Ash said while processing more of what Blake told him.
"Can't blame her. I mean, if I had a Pokémon that my deceased mother or father had that was passed down to me and I learned of their true fate, then I be pretty choked up too." Blake said while choosing her Pokémon. "Let's see…how about Accelgor and Umbreon this time." Blake said while choosing her two Pokémon.
"Then let's go with Mirage and Grace." Ash said while he was picking his Pokémon.
"You know Ash…I think Grace will be overwhelmed with happiness that she will be fighting today." Blake said with a teasing look.
"Right…she will be." Ash said.
The two of them entered the elevator and they saw Jaune and Pyrrha coming from the other side. Jaune and Pyrrha looked at them with smiles, while Ash and Blake were doing the same thing.
"No hard feelings right guys?" Jaune asked them.
"Nope. Don't go holding back on us since we are close friends." Blake said.
"Of course." Pyrrha said.
Ash was feeling a lot comfortable facing off against them since they are not traitors, but new friends that he really needed. He saw a lot of confidence growing from Jaune since he was very well trained by his friends for years.
"The next battle of the second round is about to begin with Blake Belladonna and Ash Ketchum Vs. Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Arc. This will be a four-on-four match, and whoever loses all four Pokémon will end the match. In addition, there will be no substitution throughout the fight. Mr. and Mrs. Arc, you have the first call." Glynda said.
"Then ladies first! Blaziken, time to shine!" Pyrrha yelled while sending out her starter Pokémon.
Blaziken LVL 96 Fire/Fighting Blaze Expert Belt
Blaze Kick Scorching Sand Close Combat Bounce
"I'll show you some true strength! Come on out Aegislash!" Jaune yelled while sending out his ghost possessed sword and shield onto the field.
Aegislash LVL 93 Steel/Ghost Stance Change Spell Tag
King's Shield Sacred Sword Shadow Sneak Night Slash
"Alright then. Umbreon! Go!" Blake yelled while sending out her lunar Eevee evolution.
"Time for some Eeveelution power. Mirage! I choose you!" Ash yelled as he sent out his own Eeveelution to join Umbreon.
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled.
"Blaziken, up!" Pyrrha ordered her. Blaziken squatted down and she sprang upwards into the sky.
"Then let's get on the offense on Aegislash. Use Foul Play!" Blake ordered Umbreon.
'Going in!' Umbreon yelled as he charged in right at Aegislash.
"Aegislash, use King Shield! Stop that Umbreon dead in his tracks." Jaune said to it.
The Aegislash created a barrier of hexagonal energy around him. Umbreon realized it too late, and he jumped into the barrier, bouncing backwards, and having his attack stat lowered.
Mirage saw this happen and went on to a more tactical approach. She then fired a ball of water into the air towards the sun. Just as it did, clouds began to form till they were big and dark. It then began to rain heavily around them.
Just after the rain began to fall, Blaziken came through the clouds and landed on Umbreon, dealing some damage onto him.
"Umbreon! Are you okay?" Blake asked with worry.
'Don't worry about me. I've taken worst pains.' He said while looking back.
"Then let's go for a Confuse Ray on Blaziken!" Blake yelled while pointing at Pyrrha's starter.
Umbreon's eyes and stripes began to glow pink. He then shot a beam of light at Blaziken, causing her to become confused.
"Hang in there Blaziken. Try and go for a Blaze Kick!" Pyrrha yelled. Blaziken charged up her feet with flames and ran towards Umbreon. Unfortunately, she tripped and landed on her face due to the confusion. "Oh no!" Pyrrha yelled with fright.
"Not so fast! Aegislash, change forms and use Sacred Sword on Vaporeon!" Jaune yelled.
Aegislash pulled itself out of his shield and held it with a spare hand. He then charged forward, and the sword began to glow. He then swiped at Mirage, dealing damage from the side.
'GAH!' She shouted in pain.
'NO!' Umbreon shouted in fright.
"Now Umbreon, use Foul Play on Aegislash!" Blake yelled.
Umbreon charged in at Aegislash once again, and this time landed a hit right in the face, sending it flying. The sword landed and was stuck in the ground.
"Oh no…" Pyrrha said with worry. 'What do I do!? Blaziken is still confused, and Aegislash is vulnerable. Wait! That's it!' Pyrrha thought to herself until she had an idea. Blaziken, get to Aegislash and use the sword as a support!" Pyrrha yelled.
Blaziken stumbled over to Aegislash and managed to grip him. Blaziken looked back at them with a sinister grin.
"Now use Close Combat on Umbreon!" Pyrrha yelled.
Blaziken pushed herself from him and began charging up her body. She got the upper hand on Umbreon and began punching and kicking him.
Mirage saw this and knew she had to intervene. She got right in between them and fired off a Water Pulse right at Blaziken.
'Not my partner today.' Mirage said with venom in her voice.
Blaziken stumbled more and fell backwards, causing her to see the world spin around her.
"We need to protect her! Aegislash! Use King Shield in front of her!" Jaune yelled.
Aegislash changed his stance and began to protect Blaziken with another barrier. Blaziken slowly looked up and shook her head. She was able to snap out of her confusion.
"Umbreon, heal yourself up with Moonlight!" Blake yelled.
Umbreon gazed upwards and a moon began to form above them. It then shined its light down onto him, healing up most of his wounds.
During that time, Mirage began to use Acid Armor. Her body began to turn into water for a brief moment and she returned back to normal.
"Blaziken, use Scorching Sand!" Pyrrha yelled.
Blaziken got in front of the shield and fired off a bit of flames at the ground. She then took the hot sand and shot them at Umbreon. Umbreon screeched in pain, and he began to get burned from the attack.
"NOW! SACRED SWORD!" Jaune shouted.
Aegislash changed his stance once again and charged up the sword. He then swiped hard at Umbreon, and he was knocked out from the hard slash.
"Umbreon is unable to battle! Aegislash and Blaziken take the win!" Glynda yelled just before the stadium cheered for the results.
Blake returned Umbreon and held the ball to her heart.
"You rest up Umbreon. We'll finish what you started." Blake said to it before putting it away. She then pulled out the next ball. "Alright Accelgor, let's go!" Blake yelled while sending out her last Pokémon.
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled. Just as she started the fight again, Mirage fired a Water Pulse right at Blaziken, knocking her out. "Blaziken is unable to battle! Accelgor and Vaporeon take the win!" Glynda yelled.
When the stadium cheered once again, Pyrrha retuned her starer into the Poke Ball and placed it on her heart like what Blake did. Pyrrha then glared at them as she gotten serious. Whenever she gets serious, she's scary and Jaune knew this.
"Alright…not this time." She whispered a bit while gripping her Ultra Ball.
"Uh…Pyrrha? Are you…okay?" Jaune asked while backing away from her a bit.
"Oh I am Jaune. Time to bust out my big gun. Go for it, Aggron!" Pyrrha yelled as she sent out her strongest Pokémon onto the field.
Aggron LVL 96 Steel/Rock Rock Head Aggronite
Iron Head Double-Edge Automize Heavy Slam
Blake's eyes were wide at the site of her Aggron. She even started shaking in her boots. Ash looked towards her when he sensed her feelings.
"Blake?" Ash asked.
"That's…that's her strongest Pokémon. She even uses Aggron to exercise with and to use as a projectile with her polarity semblance." Blake explained.
"Oh…" Ash said with her eyes wide as well.
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled.
"Alright Accelgor, let's not waste time. Bug Bite!" Blake yelled.
Accelgor charged forward right at Aegislash. She revealed a pair of fangs underneath that glowed. She then bite down on Aegislash and threw him away. Mirage saw an opening and fired another Water Pulse at him, knocking it out from the combination. The rain finally stopped.
"Aegislash is unable to battle! Accelgor and Vaporeon take the win!" Glynda yelled just before Jaune returned him.
The stadium cheered loudly as the match continued. Jaune put his defeated Pokémon on his belt and pulled out a Dusk Ball.
"I guess it's time to get serious just like Pyrrha. Go Porygon-Z!" Jaune yelled as he sent out his last, and strongest member of the team.
Porygon-Z LVL 95 Normal Adaptability Silk Scarf
Lock-On Zap Cannon Tri Attack Hyper Beam
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled.
"Alright Porygon-Z, use Lock-On. Aim it at Vaporeon!" Jaune yelled while pointing at her.
Porygon-Z's looked at her and its eyes turned blue. A targeting system activated and was locked on target.
"Alright Aggron, move in on Accelgor and use Double-Edge!" Pyrrha yelled.
Aggron charged forward and his head glowed orange. He roared just before he attempted to slam his head onto her head.
"Dodge it and get on top of it!" Blake yelled. Accelgor moved to the left, and Aggron slammed his head into the ground. She then hopped onto his head. "Now use Giga Drain!" She yelled.
Accelgor began to unravel her bandages on her back as they glowed green. They latched around Aggron's neck and began to drain some energy from him, dealing a good amount of damage.
Meanwhile, Mirage fired another ball of water into the air, and it began to rain again.
Just then, Pyrrha realized the situation that is happening. From underneath her breast, she pulled out a necklace that had a Key Stone. Jaune took noticed and his eyes widen with excitement.
"Time to get serious. Aggron! Let's take it to the next level! With our bond and love, MEGA EVOLVE!" She shouted as her Key Stone glowed and energy beams shot out of it and the Aggronite on her Pokémon glowed as well and energy beams shot out and connected with the other beams.
Aggron roared as he went through a transformation in the center of the field. It gotten bigger and a third horn emerged on his head while the other horns gotten smaller. His spike on his shoulders gotten longer and curvier and a new spike emerged from his arms. His tail gotten thicker and gained two bands around it. Mega Aggron roared once again, this time louder that it shook the stadium when the transformation ended.
"Now Porygon-Z! Zap Cannon!" Jaune yelled.
It began to charge up a powerful ball of electricity in front of its nose. It then fired it right at Mirage. Due to Lock-On, there was nothing she could do but to take the hit, knocking her out.
"Vaporeon is unable to battle! Mega Aggron and Porygon-Z take the win!" Glynda yelled over the cheering stadium.
Ash returned Mirage and held it close to his heart.
"Mirage…you did great. But thanks to this, I got a great idea." Ash said before pulling out his next Pokémon. "Alright Grace, I choose you!" Ash yelled as he sent out his last Pokémon.
'Ah! Ash!' Grace yelled with happiness before standing by him and held his arm.
"Save that for later after we win." Ash said.
'Alright! Going in!' Grace yelled while getting back out there. When she returned to the battlefield, she used her Trace ability to copy Porygon-Z's Adaptability ability, giving her powers a boost.
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled.
"Alright Accelgor, give that Aggron another Giga Drain!" Blake yelled.
Accelgor did just that, but this time it wasn't that effective. Aggron just shook him off with ease.
Grace began to channel her psychic powers into her spirit, causing a single drop from within her conscious. This caused her special attack and special defense to get stronger due to her Calm Mind.
"Porygon-Z, let's deal with that Accelgor with Tri Attack!" Jaune yelled.
Porygon-Z powered up its body with a fire, electric and ice energy from the atmosphere. It then fired a blast at Accelgor with those elements.
"Dodge them and use Toxic!" Blake yelled.
Accelgor charged around fast while avoiding the attacks. He got right up at Porygon-Z and fired a large ball of sludge at it, causing it to be badly poisoned.
"Hang on Jaune! Let's end this Mega Aggron! Use Iron Head on Accelgor!" Pyrrha yelled.
Mega Aggron began to channel his head glowed bright white. He then charged at Accelgor, who was caught off guard, and took the full force of the Iron Head to the face, knocking him out.
"Accelgor is unable to battle. Porygon-Z and Mega Aggron take the win!" Glynda yelled while the stadium cheered.
Blake returned her Accelgor and walked right by Ash with a defeated look in her eyes.
"Ash, I…" Blake was saying until Ash cut her off with a smile.
"I'll take care of this. You'll see." Ash said while looking back at Grace, who looked back at him and nodded, signaling for him to do it.
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled.
Ash slowly reached for his Key Stone on his brooch.
"Aha!" Ash yelled, gaining everyone's attention on the battlefield. They were petrified with shock at the sight of the stone. "Alright Grace, time to show how strong our bond is. Let's go! Mega Evolve!" Ash yelled while activating his Key Stone and the Gardevoirite activated on Grace.
Grace extended her body and closed her eyes when the two energy powers connected, causing her transformation. Her gown began to grow bigger and looked more like a bridal gown. Her horns on her chest began to split and become slightly larger, almost resembling a heart. Her hair was shorter and curled inwards, and her arms began to resemble sleeves on a dress. Finally, her spikes on her head began to grow longer and sharper while curling upwards.
After the transformation ended, Grace glared at her opponents with her psychic powers radiating from her body. She then used Psychic on Mega Aggron and lifted him into the air. She then threw him right at Porygon-Z, causing the Porygon-Z to get knocked out really quickly due to his weight and on impact.
"Porygon-Z is unable to battle! Mega Gardevoir take the win!" Glynda yelled as the stadium exploded into cheers.
Jaune returns Porygon-Z, he backed away from the battlefield as he is out of usable Pokémon. He then saw Pyrrha giving Ash a look of anger that he felt from a distance. Jaune knew she was getting serious, but this might be a bit much for him, so he just stayed out of this.
"Good luck." Jaune whispered.
"Battle commence!" Glynda yelled as the fight resumed.
"Mega Aggron, we need to finish this now! Heavy Slam!" Pyrrha yelled.
Mega Aggron jumped high into the air, and he channeled a silver aura around his body. He then roared while he was on a collision course with Grace.
Grace put her hands to her heart and closed her eyes. A bright light sored through the sky above them, but no one took noticed. After she used Wish, she quickly opened her eyes and quickly extends her arms at Mega Aggron and channeled her psychic powers to try to stop him. Mega slammed onto her, but he was slightly being lifted above her body. She barely succeeded; however she did sustain extensive damage from the attack.
After she threw him off, she slowly got up, but she was limping. She slowly looked back at Ash, only to see him smile and slowly nodded.
'Ash…' Grace whispered before closing her eyes and a single teardrop fell from her eye. From that, she felt her powers grow stronger due to her using Calm Mind.
Suddenly, the bright light from before returned and slowly flown above Grace, restoring her health a lot.
"She must've used Wish before the impact!" Blake yelled, realizing how she was still standing.
"Mega Aggron, let's finish this! Double-Edge!" Pyrrha yelled.
He began to charge forward once again with his head glowing orange. He barely clipped her, dealing some damage to her, but also to himself as well.
'I am done!' Grace yelled as her eyes glowing blue and used Psychic once again, this time lifting Mega Aggron high up into the sky. She then slammed her hands to the ground, causing him to slam onto the ground just as hard and dust and dirt exploded underneath him upon impact.
After the dust settled, they saw Mega Aggron reverting back to his base form and was knocked out. Pyrrha gasped and clasped her hands to her mouth.
"Aggron is unable to battle! Mega Gardevoir wins! The winner of this match in the second round goes to Blake Belladonna and Ash Ketchum!" Glynda yelled.
Ash and Blake were shocked for a bit, but it turned into pure happiness.
"ASH YOU DID IT!" Blake shouted as she ran to him and hugged him.
"We all did it!" Ash yelled.
'Ash! Blake!' Grace yelled as she joined in on the hug. Just as she hugged them, she reverted into her base form. 'Thank you!' She said as she nuzzled Ash's face.
"I knew all those unique training would pay off-hmm?" Ash asked as he saw Pyrrha collapsing onto her knees, and she began to cry. "Pyrrha?" He asked as he got a bit concerned.
"Hmm?" Blake asked while looking. She grew a bit sad as well, but she knew that this was a tournament. "Poor Pyrrha. First dying in the Battle of Beacon, then having been resurrected after all the real fighting passed, and now losing like this in a tournament like this? Maybe we should check up on her later." Blake suggested.
With Jaune, he went to Pyrrha and bent to her height while she continued to cry.
"Pyrrha…it's okay. We'll get them next time." Jaune said in a comforting voice.
"I'm sorry!" Pyrrha cried out as she hugged him.
"Pyrrha, I don't need to hear it. You win some and you lose some. That's life. But hey, I bet your Pokémon felt like they had a lot of fun out there." Jaune said while trying to change the subject.
Pyrrha was in thought about it. She never even thought of that, especially since she trained them to be the strongest that they've ever been after years of hard work.
"Oh…" Pyrrha whispered before she wiped her tears away. "Let's go Jaune." She said when she got up and held her husband's hand.
Later on, Ash and Blake were at the Pokémon Center when their Pokémon were resting. The rest of Team RWBY were with them while they celebrated their win.
"I have to say, that was probably the closest match I've ever had." Blake said while getting into a fish sandwich.
"Yeah. Reminds me of my fight in the Kalos League years ago." Ash said.
"You think Pyrrha will be okay?" Weiss asked when she remembered that Pyrrha wasn't the happiest she's been.
"I think so. Well, one can't win them all. I guess it's really rare to see Pyrrha lose in a Pokémon battle." Ruby said.
As if it was on cue, Jaune and Pyrrha arrived, but they weren't alone. They were followed by her mother Candice Nikos. Candice was slightly shorter than Pyrrha with shorter red hair and had wrinkles under her green eyes. She had on a black light turtleneck shirt that exposed her back, a short grey skirt with stockings and brown boots. She had emerald studded earrings and a single ring on her left hand.
Jaune and Pyrrha dropped off their Pokémon and they went to another table where they waited for them to be healed. Ash sensed that Pyrrha was still a bit down in the dumps.
'I wonder how my mom is doing? For all I know, she's probably still in Alola or at Pallet Town. Hopefully, she'll know that I'm still here.' Ash thought to himself.
With that match finally coming to an end, Ash and Blake are that much closer to reaching the championship match. How will things play out with the rest of the tournament? Will Pyrrha ever move on from that lost? How will Blake's parents react when they meet Ash for the first time? Find out more next time as the story continues.
Meanwhile in a nightmare world
A middle-aged woman with long platinum blonde hair, light skin, blue eyes, and wearing a long dress and jewel accessories, was running away from a dark mist that was making its way towards her.
"STOP IT! LEAVE ME ALONE! I JUST WANT TO STAY DEAD!" The woman, named Salem, screamed in fright when she looked back while continuing to run.
"You cannot run from me! I need that dark side from you!" A man's voice yelled with a devilish sound in the mist.
"I REFUSE TO LET MY DARK SIDE COMMIT MORE CRIMES! I BEG YOU!" Salem screamed. Just then, a Keyblades crown shot out of the mist and latched itself around her leg, causing her to fall. "NO!" Salem screamed as she tried to free herself and tears were rolling down her face.
The man began to emerge from the mist and glared down at Salem. He resembled Ash, but his pupils were smaller, his hair is spikier, and his teeth were slightly fanged. He wore a similar appearance of Ash's clothing, only heavily armored. He gripped his Keyblade tight while glaring down at her.
Keyblade Analysis
Dark Reincarnation
A Keyblade that is said to rival that of the most ancient Keyblade dated long before the first Keyblade War, the No Name. It is said that the wielder of this Keyblade is a split of the Yin and Yang from the original person.
Primary Effect: Boost the power of all Dark-Type moves in the user's party
Secondary Effect(s): Extracts the dark counterparts of any living being, turns Pokémon into Shadow Pokémon, and controls them like a mind puppet.
Attack Power: +6
Magic Power: +5
Salem began to shake while the man looked down at her.
"N'aww. Look at you, the original appearance of the Black Queen herself cowering in fear. Do not worry, I'm only here to extract your dark side. She has some unfinished business. Don't you want to be freed from her?" He asked before laughing evilly.
"Please…don't do this. Take anything, just not that. Please!" Salem begged while crying harder.
"Tell you what…" He said while releasing her, only to shoot a powerful dark beam at her chest, petrifying her. "If she fails, you can have her back. But...if she succeeds, you're gone for good." He finished before aiming Dark Reincarnation at her chest.
A ball of dark energy began to form at the tip. Salem could only watch as the ball continue to grow.
'Ozma…Brothers…help me!' She thought to herself.
The ball fired a beam and hit her in the chest. She gasped as a transformation commenced. Her hair turned white, her eyes turned black with red pupils, her skin became paler and red veins formed all over her body. Her dress turned black, and blood red accessories formed around. Her jewels turned to Grimm armor that morphed around her body.
"NO!" Salem screamed with all she had left until she lost herself into her subconscious and her darker side took over. She slowly opened her eyes and looked at the man that freed her. "Well…I'm back." She snarled with a smile.
"Queen Salem…call me…Haxs, the empty shell of Ash Ketchum, the King of Pokélantis, and the one that freed you. Unfortunately, your immortality cannot be restored, but I can give you a second chance. Do as I say, and Remnant will be yours to command just as before. What do you say?" Haxs asked her.
"Of course. What do you get out of this?" Salem asked while approaching him.
"Stability. Ash is my original self that I must have in order to complete my own goals. Join me, and he won't stand a chance." Haxs offered.
Salem smiled bigger until she let out a maniacal laughter that caused her dark magic to radiate around her body.