It's time for chapter three of A Toxic Journey my readers! First of all, I apologize for the wait, but this chapter was crucial and I wanted it to be perfect. Secondly, I couldn't write a lot lately because of a school assignment due. But I finished that and now have a little more time for my writing. While not much, it's still more time than what I had before.
Come to think of it, I think this is the longest chapter I've written in a while. Anyway, as I announced in my previous chapter updates, I have a poll set up for my first attempt at an AU fanfic with no OCs. If I'm so bold, I want to asked if you would be so kind as to drop by my profile and leave a vote.
But enough with that, on with the chapter!
Chapter Three: A Challenger Appears
Ryan groaned when the sunlight slipped past the cracks in his curtains and hit his eyes slowly opening them. He sat up, revealing a purple pajama top, raising his arms to the air and stretching. He lowered his arms down and let out a yawn before rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. By his bedside, Nauxeon's ears twitched and raised his head before slowly opening his eyes. The poison eeveelution got to his feet and stretched his body with a yawn.
Ryan removed the covers from his legs, which wore a pair of purple pajama bottoms, before tossing them over the edge of his bed. Once his bare feet hit the floor, he shivered when he felt a chill from the cold surface. He then stood up and walked over to his window and opened the curtain to let the sunlight in. He looked outside to see he had the perfect view of the forest that surrounds his hometown and had a smile on his face.
Nazuxeon walked over to stand beside his trainer as Ryan opened the window. He rested his hands on the windowsill just as a flock of pigeon-like pokemon called Pidgey flew by. The sun was shining brightly as it slowly rose up into the sky. Nauxeon brought his front paws up to the windowsill and lifted himself up to watch the sunrise with his trainer.
"It's another beautiful day." Ryan said to himself as he let the morning breeze blow on his face gently ruffling his hair. Ryan took a deep breath enjoying the smell of the forest as he patted Nauxeon on the head. "I can never get over this smell in the morning." He then slapped his cheeks to psych himself out a determined smile on his face before shouting out loud. "Alright, I'm gonna give it my all, so watch out challengers!"
Meanwhile, on the floor that was the gym's battlefield, three staff members that arrived early to clean up heard Ryan's outburst. They all had smiles on their faces chuckling in amusement as they began their work. They went to the locker rooms provided for them and changed into their proper work attire. Staff members of the Hemlock gym all wear green and purple hazard patterned jumpsuits.
A male staff member in his early twenties with brown spiky hair and brown eyes swept the battlefield. A female teenage staff member with long blond hair tied in a ponytail and blue eyes watered the trees surrounding the battlefield. A middle aged male staff member with black hair and red eyes fed the pokemon that lived in the gym.
"Sounds like he's awake now." The sweeping staff member commented, chuckling in amusement as he continued to sweep.
"Yeah." The female staff member nodded in agreement as she moved on to the flowers growing beneath the trees. "And from that outburst I'd say he'll be excited when he has a challenger."
"Will he be okay though?" The staff member feeding the pokemon asked, a concerned expression on his face as he watched the pokemon eat. "He's only had the position for a little over a week."
"He's been training really hard with his pokemon." The brown haired staff member pointed out pausing in his sweeping to turn his head to the black haired staff member. "So relax Nathan, you saw the battle he had with that Nidoking."
"I know, but you need to remember that he's only ten." Nathan pointed out as he sealed a large bag of pokemon food. "He now has a lot of responsibilities as the Hemlock gym leader." He sighed before looking up to the ceiling where the young gym leader was. "I'm just worried that he might not have time to act his age."
"He's a smart kid, I'm sure he'll be fine." The blond staff member said as she refilled her water pail before moving on to water the remaining plants. She then giggled, getting both males' attention. "I happened to sneak a peek at his training and he seemed to be having fun training his pokemon and he kept talking about how they were going to have fun battling."
"That sure sounds like him, Gloria." The brown haired staff member said, smiling as he continued sweeping.
"I think he'll make a great gym leader, don't you think Tony?" Gloria asked, turning her head to Tony who kept sweeping.
"No doubt, poison type pokemon just seem to be naturally attracted to him." Tony laughed, getting a look of confusion from both Nathan and Gloria. "One time my Beedrill just started to buzz around his head."
"The same happened with my Venomoth." Nathan added remembering the day with a nostalgic smile on his face. "It's like they can't help but be attracted to him."
"That's the gift he has." Gloria said as she finished watering the plants and setting down the watering pail. "When my Vileplume was ill, it was Ryan who found out what was wrong and cured it."
"AAAAAAHHHH!"
Their conversation was interrupted when they heard the sudden shout followed by loud thumping and looked at each other in alarm. They ran to the door of the battlefield and down the hall that leads to the back of the gym. Tony quickly grabbed the doorknob of the door to the house connected to the gym and opened it. Once they were inside, they saw Ryan sitting at the bottom of the stairs, wincing in pain as he rubbed his sore behind. He was wearing his usual attire of a green short sleeve shirt under a purple vest with the zipper halfway done, brown shorts with baggy pockets on the sides and back. Halfway down the stairs was Nauxeon who was looking down at his trainer in concern.
"Are you alright Ryan?" Gloria asked in concern, running over and knelt in front of the young gym leader as she checked him for injuries.
"I'm fine Gloria." Ryan replied, getting to his feet as Nauxeon walked down the remaining steps. He gave the concerned teen a sheepish grin as he rubbed the back of his head. "I was thinking about future challengers coming to the gym and slipped on the stairs."
"You could've hurt yourself, Ryan." Gloria scolded lightly, poking Ryan on the forehead with a finger as she looked the young gym leader in the eye. "Please be more careful from now on, okay?"
"I promise." Ryan replied with a hand over where Gloria poked him. He pouted before looking at the clock that hung on the wall in the hall. "Look at the time, better get Grimer and Ariados."
"Going out training again?" Tony asked as Ryan walked past them and down the hall.
"Yup." Ryan nodded his head, looking down to Nauxeon who walked beside him. "I wanted to try a few battle strategies."
"They should be finished eating by now." Nathan said as he, Tony, and Gloria followed Ryan back to the battlefield.
"Thanks for that, Nathan." Ryan looked over his shoulder to give the man a grateful smile as they entered the battlefield. He then faced the pokemon that were happily eating before cupping his hands around his mouth. "Grimer, Ariados!"
The two pokemon lifted their heads from their empty food bowls to see Ryan standing at the battlefield entrance. Ariados quickly scurried over to the young gym leader with Grimer following slowly behind. Ryan got on a knee when his other two pokemon were in front of him and petting them on their heads. The two poison types enjoyed the care and attention their trainer was giving them.
"Did you guys have a good breakfast?" Ryan asked as he removed his hands from their heads and got nods from Grimer and Ariados. "That's great, cause it's time for some special training." Both poison types looked excited at hearing training when a gurgling sound was heard and Ryan blushed. "... After I get some breakfast myself."
His words got a round of laughs from the gym staff and his pokemon. Once he had returned Grimer and Ariados to their pokeballs, Ryan left the battlefield. He walked alongside Nauxeon to his house and into the kitchen. Ryan gathered flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, milk, butter, vanilla extract, and a single egg. He set the ingredients on the kitchen counter before pulling out a food bowl.
"Nauxeon!" Nauxeon cried out excitedly upon seeing the food bowl. His tail whipping around behind him as Ryan took out a labeless container.
"Relax Nauxeon, I didn't forget about you." Ryan chuckled at his partner's excitement as he set the bowl down and opened the container's lid. "Alright, enjoy." He pour the contents into the bowl which was pokemon food. Nauxeon sat down and stared at the food before looking up at Ryan patiently. "What's wrong Nauxeon?"
"I think Nauxeon wants to eat together." Ryan looked at the kitchen's doorway to see his grandfather walking in. He had a small smile on his face and his hands in his kimono sleeves. "Haven't you two always waited for the other before eating?"
"Morning grandpa." Ryan greeted his grandfather, popping the lid back on the container and setting it on the counter. "I was just about to make breakfast."
"Then you better hurry." Ryan's grandfather looked down at Nauxeon staring down at his food. He chuckled when he saw saliva dangling from the poison eeveelution's mouth. "Looks to me Nauxeon wants to eat soon."
"Sorry Nauxeon." Ryan patted his partner on the head before raising his right fist and placing his left hand on his upper arm. "Alright, time to get cooking."
Ryan's grandfather watched in fascination as Ryan quickly got to work making breakfast. It never ceases to amaze the former gym leader how efficient his grandson is. One moment Ryan is mixing the ingredients, the next he's at the stove pouring batter onto a frying pan. Once he saw Ryan tightly gripping the pan's handle, his grandfather already had a plate in hand. Ryan suddenly lifted the pan over his head before a pancake flew off it and onto the plate.
This process was repeated until Ryan ran out of batter and there were two plates full of pancakes. Each plate had five stacks of pancakes as Ryan placed butter on top and gently drizzled them with honey. He then took an array of strawberries and thinly sliced them before placing them neatly next to the pancakes. Once he was finished, Ryan took the plates out of the kitchen followed by his grandfather and Nauxeon. Nauxeon had his food bowl in his mouth, being careful not to spill any of the pokemon food inside.
"I think I went a bit overboard with the vanilla today." Ryan said as he set the plates on the table in the dining room. "So tell me if it's too sweet, I make another batch."
"No need." Ryan's grandfather shook his head as he took his seat across from his grandson. "I'm sure it'll taste fine."
The two then ate in silence along with Nauxeon who had a look of pure bliss. The pokemon he was eating was made by Ryan that had his favorite berries mixed into it. The young gym leader was always considerate of the pokemon in the gym. He always made sure that the pokemon food was nutritionally balanced. He also made the food to suit each individual pokemon's favorite flavor so even the pickiest eater can be healthy.
Ryan told his grandfather his plan to go train in the forest to try a few battle strategies. His grandfather wished him luck and to be careful as they finished their breakfast. Once Ryan had finished washing the dishes, he went up to his room to get ready. He already had quite a few ideas of how to train each of his pokemon.
For Ariados, Ryan noticed that the long leg pokemon replied too much on Agility to dodge quickly. While Agility is good, Ryan knows that there will come a time that move will be blocked. So to counter that, Ryan decided to have Ariados work on its speed. He also thought it would be a good idea to work on the long leg pokemon's reaction time. Having good speed won't matter much without good reaction time after all.
As for Grimer, there was nothing Ryan could do to improve the sludge pokemon's speed. However, he knew that Grimer had a wide variety of other battle tactics. As such, he decided to work on Grimer's elasticity. Because its body is sludge, Grimer can mold its body any way it wants. By bending and twisting its body, Ryan theorized that Grimer can still dodge a number of attacks. The sludge pokemon's body is also soft enough that it can absorb blows while taking little damage. Grimer can also use its body to trap the opponent and restrict their movements.
Then there was Nauxeon, which stumped the young gym leader a little. Because he had Nauxeon since he was an Eevee, Ryan had a lot of battle strategies. Nauxeon had a nice balance of moves and was fast. This worried the young gym leader as he wanted to train with Nauxeon as well.
"I'm sure I'll think of something." Ryan muttered to himself as double checked everything he packed.
He then zipped the backpack closed and slung it on before looking down at Nauxeon. The two nodded to each other before leaving the young gym leader's room. As he walked down the stairs, Ryan wondered when he'd get a challenger and what they would be like. He grew nervous at the thought of having an official gym battle with a badge on the line. He was worried he won't be much of a challenge since he's still a new trainer with little experience.
He felt something nudge his leg and looked down to see Nauxeon looking up at him worriedly. Ryan smiled down at his partner and patted him on the head as they reached the front of the gym. He knew that he shouldn't worry as it would affect his pokemon as well. He then turned to face the staff members and his grandfather standing in the gym lobby. He knew he wasn't going on a journey like he wanted, but it was nice that people still came to see him off.
"Well, I'm off to the forest." Ryan said to the gym staff his backpack on his back. "If anyone comes to challenge me, please ask them to wait until I get back."
"Take care!" The staff members said at once as they watched Ryan and Nauxeon went out the door.
"It doesn't feel like over a week has passed." Gloria said, placing a hand on her cheek while the other played with her ponytai..
"Yeah." Tony nodded in agreement, scratching his cheek with a finger with a small smile on his face. "Even though he hasn't had a challenger yet, you can tell Ryan's still nervous about the position."
"He'll be fine." Ryan's grandfather said, taking a sip of tea from the cup in his hands. He lowered the cup and looked at the door Ryan left through. "I'm sure once he has a challenger he'll gain more confidence in himself."
"Let's hope you're right." Nathan muttered, eyeing the door with a worried look on his face.
Meanwhile, outside of Hemlock town. a trio of young trainers were walking down the worn road. The middle trainer was a boy with raven black hair and brown eyes with a pair of lightning-shaped marks on his cheeks. He was wearing a white and blue short sleeved jacket with gold trim, white collar and sleeves, a dark teal T-shirt, and blue jeans with light blue cuffs. He also wore a pair of black and white sneakers with red dots, green fingerless gloves with light green borders and a red and white cap with a green stylized "L".
On his shoulder was a short chubby rodent pokemon covered in yellow fur with two horizontal brown stripes on its back. It has a small mouth, long, pointed ears with black tips, brown eyes, and two red circles on its cheeks. There are pouches inside its cheeks where it stores electricity. It has short forearms with five fingers on each paw, and its feet each have three toes. At the base of its lightning bolt-shaped tail is patch of brown fur at the base.
To the left of the trainer was a dark skinned teen with eyes that look like they're closed was wearing an orange T-shirt under a lime green cargo vest with four pockets, a dark brown belt with a gold buckle and dark red pockets, brown jeans, and blue and grey sneakers with white trim. In his hands was a map that he looked at carefully and compared it to his surroundings.
To the trainer's right was a girl with short orange hair tied into a side ponytail and green eyes. She has fair skin and wears red suspenders, a yellow sleeveless tank top that shows her midriff, blue denim shorts that stop at her thighs, and red sneakers with yellow lining and white laces.
In her arms is a small, light-yellow Pokémon with a round body that is encased in an eggshell. The eggshell has an array of red and blue shapes on it along its white surface. The pokemon has black eyes and five spikes on its head that seem to form a also has stubby hands and round feet with two toes each.
"How much farther is the town, Brock?" The girl asked curiously, playing with the egg pokemon in her arms with a finger.
"We should be seeing it soon, Misty." The dark skinned teen, Brock, replied as he examined the map once again. He lifted his head to look ahead of them to see the makings of rooftops of houses. "In fact, there's Hemlock town now."
"Well what are we waiting for?" The raven haired boy asked, his hands over his stomach when it started to growl. "Let's hurry to the pokemon center and get something to eat."
"We do need to stock up on a few things." Brock said, folding the map and placing it inside his backpack. "I'll get what we need, you and Misty can head to the pokemon center, Ash."
"I don't think so, Brock!" Misty said, pinching Brock's ear and tugged on his with an irritated look on her face. "You'll just be distracted by any girl you see." She then walked towards Hemlock town while dragging Brock along. "I'm coming with you to make sure that doesn't happen."
"Not the ear." Brock whimpered as he hopped along behind Misty as she still had a hold of his ear.
"Well, I guess it's just us Pikachu." Ash said, sweatdropping as he watched Misty drag Brock away. He looked at the mouse pokemon on his shoulder who was also sweatdropping. "Let's hurry to the pokemon center and get something to eat."
"Pika!" Pikachu raised a paw in agreement and Ash walked towards the town.
Unknown to the trainer and his pokemon partner, they were being watched from the sky by a balloon. The balloon was shaped like a cat with two whiskers, a gold amulet on its forehead, and had a green basket. Inside the basket looking down at the trainer with binoculars were two humans and one pokemon.
The first was a young woman with magenta long hair that she wears curled in a comet-tail behind her head and blue eyes. She wears a pair of green pearl earrings, a short black shirt that exposes her midriff under a white high collared sleeved shirt emblazoned with a large red R, a white miniskirt, black leg-length boots, and long black arm-sleeves.
To her right is a young man with shoulder-length periwinkle hair with a single fringe sprouting from the center and green eyes. He was wearing a white long sleeve shirt with a large red R on it, a black short sleeve undershirt, white pants with a purple belt, black boots, and matching gloves.
Between them was a small, bipedal, feline pokemon. It has two cream whiskers on each side of its oval-shaped face and two hairs sticking up on either side of the amulet on its forehead. The reline pokemon also has a curled tail. Its tail and feet are cream-colored like the rest of it, but they are brown at the end. It has small paw pads on the undersides of its heels and toes.
"There's the twerp, Jessie." The periwinkle young man said, smirking upon seeing Ash through his binoculars.
"I see him, James." The young woman, Jessie, replied, also smirking as she looked left then right before focusing back on Ash. "And he's alone with Pikachu too."
"Dis is our chance." The feline pokemon snickered followed by Jessie and James. "Let's hurry and grab that Pikachu."
"But how, Meowth?" James lowered his binoculars and gave the feline pokemon an inquiring look. "Everytime we try a frontal approach, we end up blasting off."
"Isn't it obvious?" Jessie precariously tossed her binoculars, hitting James on the head, and pulled out a shovel. "We do what we do best."
"Better than all the rest." Jame smirked, the bump on his head forgotten as he pulled out his own shovel.
"With a hint of zest." Meowth added, raising a paw causing Jessie and James to do the same with a cheer.
They then heard the sound of a pokeball popping open and a flash of light formed behind them. Out of the pokeball was a tall, cyan pokemon with a soft body. Its eyes were scrunched, and it has a jagged upper lip. It has flat arms that are wider towards the tip and four stubby legs at the base of its body. There are two eyespots on its black tail.
"Wooobbuffet!" The pokemon cried out, placing one of its flat arms on its head after fully appearing out of its pokeball.
"We weren't talking about you!" Jessie said in annoyance, gritting her teeth as she pulled out a pokeball and pointed it at Wobbuffet. "Now return!" The pokeball shot a red beam at Wobbuffet, returning it inside before Jessie addressed James and Meowth. "Now then, let's go on ahead of the twerp and prepare our ambush."
"Aye aye!" James and Meowth saluted before the balloon floated over and past Hemlock town into the forest.
While walking through the streets of Hemlock town, Ash noticed a few things about the town. For one thing, all the townspeople had what looked to him like poison pokemon with them. Another is the serene atmosphere that reminded the young trainer of his hometown. The townspeople seemed to know each other by name as they walked by and greeted each other. The town itself was filled with mostly houses and greenery being tended to by a group of flower looking pokemon.
"Check out all the pokemon." Ash looked around the town streets as a Venomoth was in his line of sight. "There's a Venomoth." He then saw insectoid pokemon with a spherical body covered in purple fur hopping after Venomoth. "And there's a Venonat!"
The pokemon in question has a pink pincer-like mouth with two teeth, stubby forepaws, and a pair of two-toed feet visible through its fur. Its limbs are light tan. There is also a pair of white antennae sprouting from the top of its head. However, the most prominent feature on its face are its large, red compound eyes.
"I take it you're new in town?" Ash turned to see a young woman with long wavy brown hair and green eyes with a smile on her face. She wore a white sundress and had a yellow purse. "I can tell by how you were looking around town."
"Yeah." Ash nodded, momentarily looking around the town again at all the pokemon he could see. "I noticed there are a lot of poison pokemon around."
"Hemlock town is known for them." The woman explained, pulling out a pokeball and tossing it to release the pokemon inside. The pokemon was revealed to be a Nidorina wearing a yellow ribbon around its neck. "The poison pokemon are considered our town's guardians, so it's a given that everyone has one with them."
"Really?" Ash asked, crouching down to look at Nidorina before petting it on the head. His stomach then began to growl, reminding him why he was looking around town. He laughed sheepishly as he got to his feet. "Sorry, do you know where the pokemon center is?"
"It's right over there." The woman replied, pointing down the street where the pokemon center was in view.
Ash thanked the woman and made a beeline for the pokemon center to get something to eat. Once inside, Ash decided to have Nurse Joy have a look at his pokemon to make sure they were in top condition. The young trainer noticed that there were a few other trainers in the lobby tending to their pokemon. He shrugged it off when his stomach growled again and went to get some food.
"Did you go to the gym too?"
Ash stopped walking and turned to a pair of trainers conversing with each other. One trainer was a teenage girl with green eyes and shoulder-length blue hair tied in a small ponytail to the right side of her head. She wore a white blouse, a blue skirt, black boots, and heart shaped sapphire earrings.
Sitting beside her was a quadruped pokemon with three small toes on each foot and dark blue paw pads on the hind feet. Its body is light blue with a dark blue marking around its head, and a spiky ridge down its spine. It has black eyes and a tiny black nose. There is a white fin encircling its neck and three fins with cream-colored webbing on its head. One of these fins is on each side of its head similar to ears and one is directly on top of its head similar in appearance to a dorsal fin. Ash knew right away that the pokemon was a Vaporeon from his previous encounter with one.
The other trainer was a teenage boy with spiky blond hair and black eyes. He wore a white button up shirt, black pants, and black boots. Wrapped loosely around his waist is a belt and a pair of spiked bracelets on each wrist.
Sitting beside him was a quadruped pokemon with slender legs and three small toes on each foot and yellow fur with a spiky fringe around its tail and a white ruff around its neck. Its ears are large and pointed with black interiors, and its eyes and small nose are black. Once again Ash recognized the pokemon to be a Jolteon.
"Yeah." The girl trainer nodded, resting one hand on her waist and raising the other in a shrug. "But the staff said the gym leader went out to train."
"They told me the same thing." The boy trainer said, petting Jolteon on the head who enjoyed the attention it was getting. "They asked me to wait here until he got back."
"There's a gym here?" Ash asked, getting excited at hearing there was a gym in town.
"Yeah." The boy trainer replied, slightly surprised by Ash's sudden appearance. "But they didn't know when the gym leader would come back."
"I'm thinking of just going to another gym." The girl sighed, shaking her head as she reached into her pocket. She pulled out a small case and opened it to reveal four uniquely shaped badges. "I was hoping to get my fifth badge today."
"You and I both." The boy shrugged, pulling out his own case to show his own uniquely shaped badges, one of which Ash recognized as the Zephyr badge. "I'm gonna skip town too once Nurse Joy's done looking at my pokemon."
As if on cue, a Chansey walked over to the three trainers and held out a tray with three pokeballs to the boy trainer. He nodded in appreciation as he took the pokeballs and walked towards the front from Jolteon beside him. Another Chansey approached the girl with a tray of four pokeballs. She thanked the egg pokemon before she too left the pokemon center with her Vaporeon.
"Ash Ketchum, your pokemon are ready for pick-up." Nurse Joy called from the counter as a third Chansey placed down a tray with Pikachu and five pokeballs. Ash approached the counter and Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder. "I'm happy to announce that all of your pokemon are in perfect health."
"Thanks, Nurse Joy." Ash said, picking up his pokeballs and placing them in their usual places on his belt. He then looked at Nurse Joy after making sure all his pokeballs were secure. "Nurse Joy, can you tell me where the gym is?"
"It's not hard to miss." Nurse Joy replied, pointing to the front door and Ash followed her finger. "As soon as you walk out those doors, just walk straight until you see a building with a pokemon statue on top."
"Thanks, Nurse Joy." Ash nodded before running to and out the front doors and followed the pokemon nurse's directions.
Halfway through the town, Ash ran into Brock and Misty just as they left a pokemart. He told them about the gym and decided to go challenge it, forgetting the gym leader wasn't there. Brock and Misty shared a knowing look and had the young trainer lead the way. On the way, Misty asked Ash what pokemon he was going to use. Brock mentioned that the gym most likely specialized in poison pokemon judging from the people in town. Ash didn't reply as he was still thinking on which of his pokemon to use.
They eventually were in front of a large building with a giant statue of a quadruped pokemon standing stoically on the roof. It has three small toes on each foot, a purple body with an indigo tuft on its head. This Pokémon has long pointed ears and a thin tail with an arrow-shaped tip. The building itself was three stories with a skylight behind the pokemon statue.
"Hello!" Ash called out, walking in as the doors slid open with Brock and Misty behind him. "Is anyone here?"
"Welcome to the Hemlock gym." Tony greeted the trio of trainers from the reception desk. "Are you a challenger?"
"That's right," Ash nodded, pulling on his jacket to reveal his badges pinned on the inner part of it. "I'm Ash Ketchum from Pallet town." He then pointed to Pikachu on his shoulder. "And this is Pikachu."
"Pikachu." Pikachu raised a paw in greeting.
"I'm Misty." Misty gave Tony a friendly smile, adjusting her hold on the egg pokemon in her arms. "And this little cutie is Togepi."
"Toge Toge Prrriiiii!" Togepi raised its stubby arms excitedly at being introduced.
"And I'm Brock." Brock nodded to Tony in greeting.
"I'm sorry," Tony said, giving the trio an apologetic smile. "But I'm afraid the gym leader left for the forest outside of town not too long ago."
"What?!" Ash shouted hands on the desk leaning forward a little. "Do you know when they'll be back?"
"He said he'd be back later today." Tony replied, leaning back a little from the sudden outburst. "He told me to ask any challengers to wait for him to return."
"Why would he go to the forest?" Brock asked, pulling Ash back to relieve the receptionist.
"He just got appointed gym leader last week." Tony explained as Nathan walked by carrying a couple of boxes. "So he goes to the forest's trial site to train."
"Trial site?" Ash, Misty, and Brock asked in confusion.
"It's a tradition of the Hemlock gym for the gym leader position" Nathan explained, setting the boxes down and stretching his back before facing the trainers. "The ones who want to be gym leader of the Hemlock gym have to go into the forest to find a medal and return by sunset."
"If they're successful, then they'll be appointed as gym leader." Tony added, walking over to Nathan and taking one of the boxes. "However, it isn't that easy." He sets the box under the reception counter before dusting off his hands. "They have to battle the current gym leaders best pokemon that's guarding the medal."
"This new gym leader must be pretty powerful." Brock muttered to himself, cupping his chin as he thought about what kind of person the gym leader is.
"Oh, and he only started being a trainer the same day he became the gym leader." Tony said as an afterthought which left an awkward silence.
"You let a new trainer be the gym leader?" Misty asked, breaking the silence with eyes wide in shock.
"Of course," Tony nodded, not seeing the problem with what he just said. "Several of the previous gym leaders had a similar start and turned out well." He rested his hands on the counter with a proud grin on his face. "Ryan shows signs of this as well."
"So his name's Ryan?" Ash asked, excited to hear the gym leader's name and can't wait to battle him.
"Yes." Tony nodded, looking over his shoulder to look at the hall that leads to the house connected to the gym. "In fact, he's the grandson of the former gym leader."
"Do you know where in the forest he is?" Brock asked, knowing Ash is just about ready to run out and find the gym leader.
"He shouldn't be far from the forest entrance." Tony replied, looking up in thought as he thought of where Ryan could go to train.
"Alright, let's go!" Ash ran out of the gym with Misty and Brock following, having a good idea where he was going.
The young trainer zipped through the streets of Hemlock town, getting curious looks from the townspeople. Pikachu held on tightly to his trainer's shoulder so as to not fall off with an excited smile on his face. Lagging behind them were Brock and Misty as they slowly gained on Ash. They were soon out of the town and in the forest running in a straight line.
"Ash, wait up!" Misty called out as she and Brock finally caught up with Ash.
Brock and Misty just managed to catch up when all three let out a startled yell as they fell in a hole. They hit the bottom in a pile with Brock on the bottom, Misty in the middle, and Ash on top with Pikachu on his head groaning in pain.
"What's this hole doing here?" Ash moaned when a mechanical arm reached and grabbed Pikachu. "Pikachu!"
Then there was the sound of laughter as music suddenly began to play. The trio of trainers got off each other and looked up the hole. Ash, Brock, and Misty groaned when they recognized the laughs. A cat head balloon with a green basket then flew overhead revealing three figures with their backs turned.
"Prepare for trouble!" The female figure started as the mechanical arm held Pikachu tightly.
"And make it double." The male figure followed.
"To protect the world from devastation." Jessie turned, a confident smile on her face as she placed her left hand on her waist.
"To unite all peoples within our nation." James also turned, holding a red rose in his hand.
"To denounce the evils of truth and love."
"To extend our reach to the stars above."
"Jessie."
"James."
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light."
"Surrender now or prepare to fight."
"Meowth that's right." Meowth finished as he jumped on the edge of the basket and Wobbuffet popped out of its pokeball again.
"Woooobbuffet!"
"Team Rocket!" The kids in the hole shouted.
"Twerps!" Team Rocket shouted back before the arm brought Pikachu to them and placed the electric mouse in a cage.
Jessie then turned her attention to the trainers in the hole. "Now that we got that out of the way."
"It's time for us to say." James said, holding the cage over his head with a mocking smile.
"Have a nice day!" Meowth finished as Ash climbed his way out of the hole.
"Give me back Pikachu!" Ash shouted, hanging on the edge of the hole.
"Let me think, no!" Team Rocket said at once before laughing and was about to fly away.
"Shadow Ball!"
A ball of black sparking energy suddenly flew out of the bushes and struck the back of the balloon. The ball pierced through the balloon creating holes in the front and back of it causing it to quickly lose air. The balloon then began to fall and Team Rocket screamed as they crashed.
"Nauxeon!" Nauxeon cried out as he jumped out of the bushes and stood in front of the hole. He crouched down and growled in the direction that Team Rocket's balloon crashed.
"Whoa, what pokemon is that?" Ash asked, eyes wide in surprise at the poison eeveelution's sudden appearance. He reached into his pocket and pulled out his pokedex before flipping it open. "Let's see what dexter has to say on it."
"Nauxeon, the Toxic Point Pokemon, and an evolved form of Eevee." Ash's pokedex said with its robotic voice. "Nauxeon are very territorial and have been the prime suspect of poisonings around abandoned factories and facilities. Though Nauxeon are very dangerous towards others, they are very loyal and dedicated, always protective of their trainers."
"Alright, who was the wise guy?" Jessie moaned as she crawled out of the wrecked balloon.
"That would be me." The voice said as Ryan came out of the bushes to stand beside Nauxeon with his arms crossed. "Here I am trying to train in peace and I find a bunch of thieves."
"Jessie, look at that pokemon next to him." James said after crawling out of the balloon and pointing at Nauxeon.
"What about it?" Jessie asked, getting irritated that their plot to steal Pikachu was being foiled.
"I've never seen a pokemon like it before." Meowth pointed out with a mischievous smirk. "That must mean it's really rare."
"If we give both it and Pikachu to the boss." James said, pulling out a pokeball.
"We can finally cut our loss!" Jessie smirked and pulled out a pokeball too.
"You guys just don't learn." Ash said as he, Brock, and Misty finally got out of the hole reaching for a pokeball but Ryan stood in front of him confusing the boy.
"Let me handle this." Ryan said, looking over his shoulder before facing Jessie and James with narrow eyes. "I will not allow thieves to stick around this forest for another second."
"Tough talk for a twerp, but can you back it up?" Jessie taunted before throwing her pokeball. "Arbok, show him what we're made of!"
"Weezing, you too!" James threw his pokeball.
Out of the pokeballs was a purple cobra with an intimidating pattern and a purple pokemon consisting of two spherical heads connected by a thin tube with another sphere in the center. The heads have differing sizes and features. The left head is larger, and has prominent eyebrows, pointed teeth protruding in its upper jaw. The smaller, right head simply has two pointed teeth, one at each corner of its mouth. The larger head has a cream-colored skull and crossbones marking below its face, while the smaller head has a light yellow circle instead.
"Charbaku!" The cobra cried out.
"Weezing Weez!" The triple ball cried.
"So they use poison types too huh?" Ryan mused before a smirk made its way across his face. "Perfect."
"Arbok, use Poison Sting!" Jessie ordered and Arbok fired needles of poison from its mouth.
"Weezing, Sludge attack!" James ordered and Weezing released blobs of sludge.
Ryan just stood there with Nauxeon waiting for orders.
"What's he doing?" Misty asked as the attacks got closer. "If he doesn't do anything, his pokemon's going to get hit."
"Use Double Team." Ryan calmly ordered, getting a nod from Nauxeon as its body briefly glowed. The toxic point pokemon began to multiply around Team Rocket, their attack passing through where Nauxen used to be.
"Now there's a lot of them!" Meowth exclaimed, holding his head in panic as Jessie, James, and their pokemon looked around for the real Nauxeon.
"Finish this with Shadow Ball!" Ryan called out not giving his opponents a chance to counterattack.
"Nauxeon!" Nauxeon and his copies opened their mouths and formed sparking balls of black energy. They then fire at a panicking Team Rocket and the Shadow Balls explode upon impact, sending them flying.
"Looks like Team Rocket's blasting off again!" Team Rocket yelled as they went out of sight, becoming a twinkle in the sky.
Ryan went to the wrecked balloon to pick up the cage before fiddling with the lock and opening it. Pikachu let out a happy cry before jumping out and running on all fours to its trainer who caught him in a big hug.
"Glad to see your safe buddy." Pikachu climbed onto his shoulder and turned to Ryan who was walking towards them. "Thanks for your help in getting Pikachu back."
"It was no problem." Ryan said with a smile, petting Nauxeon on the head whose tail flicked happily. "I was just doing the right thing." He then looked over the group of trainers with a curious look on his face. "So, what brings you three out to the Trial forest?"
"We were told the Hemlock gym leader was here so we came to find him." Brock replied, adjusting his backpack.
"Then we got caught in another of Team Rocket's pitfall traps." Misty said as she stared at said pitfall with a look that said it was the bane of existence.
"Are any of you here to challenge the gym?" Ryan asked with a hopeful look in his eyes.
"That would be me." Ash said, pointing to himself. "My name is Ash Ketchum by the way."
"I'm Brock." Brock nodded to Ryan.
"And I'm Misty." Misty said, giving Ryan a smile.
"Pikachu." Pikachu raised a paw in greeting.
"Toge toge prrriiii!" Togepi waved its arms in its own happy way of greeting.
"Nice to meet you, my name's Ryan and I'm the Hemlock gym leader." Ryan introduced, causing the group of trainers' eyes to widen surprise.
"You're the gym leader?" Ash asked, pointing at Ryan.
"That's right." Ryan nodded, a smile of amusement on his face at their reaction. "And as gym leader, I accept your challenge Ash."
"Alright, and I'll win it too." Ash raised a fist grinning.
The group left the forest together and went to the pokemon center to have Pikachu checked again. Ryan also wanted to have his pokemon checked because he was training. In the gym, Ash stood on one end of the battlefield while Ryan stood on the other hiding his nervousness with a grin.
"The Hemlock town gym battle between Ash the challenger and Ryan the gym leader will now begin!" Tony declared, acting as the referee as he was holding a green flag in his right hand and a red flag in his left. "You will each have the use of three pokemon and the battle will be over when all three of either side's pokemon are unable to continue." He looked at both trainers to make sure they were listening. "In addition, only the challenger is allowed to substitute pokemon at any time."
Brock and Misty sat in the spectator seats, looking down at the battlefield in anticipation. Unbeknownst to everyone, Ryan's grandfather stood at the doorway, watching his grandson's first gym battle. He could see past Ryan's grin and saw the nervousness in the way he carried himself. Ryan
"Grimer, let's go!" Ryan took out a pokeball from his pocket before throwing it. The pokeball popped open and released the sludge pokemon.
"Grimer!" The sludge pokemon cried out, raising its arms high and wide.
"A Grimer huh?" Ash smirked before pulling out a pokeball and threw it. "Bayleef, I choose you!"
The pokeball popped open and released Ash's first pokemon for the gym battle. Out of the pokeball was a quadrupedal, pale-yellow pokemon that resembles a sauropod dinosaur. It has a long neck, red eyes, a short, rounded snout, and a stubby tail. Each foot has a single, light gray nail. Sprouting from its forehead is a green leaf that curves back over its head and around its neck are a series of tightly curled leaves.
"Bayleef!" The grass pokemon cried out before turning its back to Ryan and Grimer. Ryan and Grimer blinked in confusion when Bayleef ran over to Ash and rubbed her head at him affectionately.
"Bayleef, we're battling now." Ash said, lightly pushing Bayleef back while petting her on the head.
"Guess we should have seen that coming." Misty sweatdropped as Bayleef returned to the battlefield. "But why did he choose Bayleef?"
"You can never tell with Ash." Brock hummed in thought as he thought about Bayleef's moves. "He might have chosen Bayleef to attack from a distance."
"Then wouldn't Pikachu be better?" Misty pointed out as she thought the pokemon Ash had on hand. "Or maybe Totodile or Noctowl."
"We'll just have to watch and see." Brock said, crossing his arms as he waited for the battle to begin.
"The challenger calls the first attack." Tony said, looking at both trainers and pokemon before raising both flags. "Battle begin!"
"Bayleef, use Razor Leaf!" Ash ordered and Bayleef waved her head, releasing sharp leaves from the big leaf on her head.
"Dodge it Grimer!" Ryan ordered and Grimer gave a nod of its head as it watched the leaves approaching. The sludge pokemon then began to extend, bend, and twist its body like it was dancing to dodge the leaves.
"What?!" Ash shouted with wide eyes a look of shock on the faces of Ash, Bayleef, and his friends watching from the spectator seats.
"Now use Sludge Bomb!" Ryan smirked as Grimer opened its mouth wide and fired numerous globs of brown sludge towards Bayleef. The leaf pokemon cried out in pain as the sludge exploded on impact.
"Bayleef!" Ash called out in concern as the leaf pokemon was bombarded.
"How was his Grimer able to move like that Brock?" Misty asked, eyes wide as she watched the battle.
"It must've been raised well if it was able to bend and twist its body like that." Brock replied not taking his eyes off the battle while outside a certain trio was watching from a window.
"Did you see how that Grimer moved?" Meowth asked using a box to stand on to watch the battle.
"Quite the slippery pokemon if you ask me." James said, a thoughtful look on his face before looking at Jessie. "Can't Arbok move like that, Jessie?"
"Quiet you two!" Jessie quietly shouted, writing furiously on a notepad and looking at the battle occasionally. "Can't you see I'm taking notes here?"
"Bayleef, use Vine Whip!" Ash quickly ordered, getting a nod from the leaf pokemon before she jumped out of the sludge bombardment. Two dark green vines came from under the leaves around Bayleef's neck and wrapped themselves around Grimer.
Ryan gasped in shock as Grimer struggled to escape the vines. Bayleef raised Grimer and tossed the drudge pokemon into the air. Grimer began to backflip uncontrollably from being tossed. The vines then struck the sludge pokemon slamming it into one of the rocks spread through the battlefield.
"Grimer!" Ryan watched in concern as rubble fell on the sludge pokemon. He tapped his feet nervously as he waited for Grimer to climb out of the rubble. 'I wasn't expecting that at all, what do I do?'
"It looks like my grandson is losing his cool again." Ryan's grandfather said as he walked over to sit next to Brock and Misty.
"Excuse me sir, but who are you?" Brock asked politely.
"I'm Ryan's grandfather." He replied, watching the battle and saw that Ryan was tapping his right foot. "I also happen to be the former gym leader of this gym."
"The former gym leader?!" Brock and Misty stared at the old man with wide eyes.
"Yes," Ryan's grandfather nodded, not taking his eyes off the battlefield. "I thought since this is Ryan's first gym battle, I would come and see how he's doing." He frowned as Grimer pulled itself out of the rubble but Ryan was still tapping his foot. "But it seems he's nervous like I thought he would be."
"This is his first gym battle?" Misty asked in confusion as she remembered Ryan's previous battle. "But he was battling fine against Team Rocket back in the forest."
"That was an ordinary battle,'' Ryan's grandfather explained, placing his hands into the sleeves of his kimono. "But in a gym battle, it is the gym leader's job to test the challenger to see if they're worthy of their badge." He turned his attention away from the battle to face Brock and Misty. "Since Ryan didn't have to worry about stuff like that he could battle fine." He then turned his attention back to the battle as Grimer waited for Ryan's orders. "But since this is his first gym battle and doesn't have much experience as a trainer, he gets nervous worrying that he might not be a tough enough opponent which leads him to make mistakes."
'Maybe if I use Minimize to dodge.' Ryan thought, shaking his head as his right foot tapped rapidly. 'That won't work, then Grimer will be hit with Razor Leaf.'
"Bayleef, use Razor Leaf one more time!" Ash shouted, snapping Ryan out of his thoughts as Bayleef fired sharp leaves at Grimer causing the sludge pokemon to cry out in pain.
"Grimer!" Ryan shouted, his voice filled with concern as Grimer was bombarded by leaves and slumped down. "Are you alright?" Grimer struggled to get back up, refusing to go down while Ryan's nervousness grew. 'What would grandpa do in this situation?'
"Ryan!" Ryan's grandfather shouted, causing the boy to jump to turn to the spectator seats to see the old man giving one of his lecturing looks. "What have I told you about getting distracted in the middle of a battle?"
"I'm sorry grandpa." Ryan bowed his head knowing he deserved the lecture after getting lost in his thoughts.
"Stop doubting yourself." Ryan looked up to see his grandfather was giving him an encouraging smile. "You trained really hard with your pokemon, are you really gonna let that go to waste?" Ryan looked over to Grimer who had a determined look on its face. "You're the pride of this town, the Hemlock gym leader, and you have proved that you deserve the position." Ryan's eyes widened and looked back at his Grandfather who held a folding fan and pointed it at him. "So stand tall and show this challenger what you can do!"
"Grandpa." Ryan whispered before he slapped his cheeks and his eyes burned with determination before turning back to Grimer. "We haven't lost yet, Grimer, let's show them what we got!"
"Grimer." The sludge pokemon looked back to Ryan and nodded, waiting for its trainer's next order.
"Sorry for the wait, Ash." Ryan apologized, turning his attention to his challenger and gave him a determined smile. "But I'm ready to continue."
"So are we Ryan." Ash raised a fist in response to Ryan's determined smile before turning his attention to Bayleef. "Alright Bayleef, use Body Slam!"
"Bay!" The leaf pokemon nodded and started to run towards Grimer before jumping up into the air.
"Use Minimize, Grimer!" Ryan countered, watching as the sludge pokemon suddenly decreased in size. Bayleef went over and behind Grimer, much to both her and Ash's shock. "Now use your Sludge attack!"
"Grimer!" The sludge pokemon returned to its normal size and turned to face Bayleef before releasing a stream of dark brown sludge from its mouth that hit Eevee in the face.
"Bayleef!" Ash gritted his teeth as Bayleef tried to shake the sludge out of her eyes.
"Now's our chance, use Sludge Bomb!" Ryan quickly ordered, getting a nod from Grimer before it started to bombard Bayleef with exploding sludge again.
"Ash is in trouble." Misty leaned forward in her seat as the leaf pokemon was pushed back into a rock. "I'm not sure how much more Bayleef can take."
"Ryan's really bringing out Grimer's true potential." Brock said, getting both Misty and Ryan's grandfather's attention. "You saw it yourself, Grimer can bend and twist its body any way it likes." He crossed his arms as he analyzed the battle before him. "Not only that, Grimer can also compress its body with Minimize to dodge attacks."
"That's my grandson." Ryan's grandfather nodded, a proud smile gracing his lips as he watched his grandson battle. "Ryan can use the best qualities of poison pokemon to create unique battle tactics."
"Bayleef, return!" Ash quickly pulled out the leaf pokemon's pokeball and returned her into it.
"A wise decision." Ryan's grandfather nodded in approval, flicking his fan open and began to fan himself. "If Bayleef stayed out any longer, then Grimer most certainly would have won."
"What do you mean?" Misty asked, looking at the former gym leader in confusion.
"He means the type advantage, Misty." Brock explained, a frown on his face as he watched Ash pocket Bayleef's pokeball and pulled out another. "Poison type moves deal massive damage on grass types like Bayleef."
"Precisely." Ryan's grandfather nodded in agreement. "Sludge Bomb also has a chance of poisoning the opponent." He looked over at Misty and flicked his fan closed. "My guess is that your friend chose Bayleef for long range attacks."
"Noctowl, I choose you!" Ash's voice brought the spectators attention back to the battlefield as he threw his pokeball.
Out of the pokeball in sparkles was an avian pokemon that resembles an owl. It has pale yellow plumage with a dark brown pattern of triangles on its chest. Its fan-like tail and wings are a lighter shade of brown with pale yellow undersides. It has red eyes with black rings around them and a second, cream-colored ring around the first. Above its eyes are bushy, cream-colored feather "horns" that resemble large eyebrows. Its small beak and talons are pinkish, and its feet are cream-colored with three toes facing forward and one backward.
"So it's a Noctowl this time." Ryan mused, looking up at the owl pokemon flying over him. He looked down to Grimer who was prepared for its next opponent. "We're in for a tough one, Grimer."
"Grimer." The sludge pokemon nodded in agreement as it knew Noctowl had the advantage this time.
'Let's see how you handle this opponent, Ryan.' Ryan's grandfather thought, crossing his arms as he waited to see who made the first move.
"Use Sludge Bomb!" Ryan quickly ordered and Grimer fired globs of sludge at the owl pokemon.
"Fight back with Confusion Noctowl!" Ash countered as Noctowl's eyebrow tufts glow blue and the Sludge Bomb became surrounded in a blue outline, shocking Ryan and Grimer. "Great, now send it back!"
With a cry and waving of its wings, Noctowl forced the Sludge Bomb back at Grimer. The sludge pokemon looked around frantically for somewhere to hide before the sludge hit it. The globs of sludge exploded upon striking Grimer, getting painful cries from it as smoke clouds surrounded it. There was a tense silence, waiting for the smoke clouds to fade away. A bead of nervous sweat trailed down Ryan's face as he prayed that Grimer was alright. The smoke cloud dispersed to reveal Grimer slumped on the ground with swirls in its eyes.
"Grimer is unable to battle!" Tony declared, raising the green flag in Ash's direction. "Noctowl's the winner."
"Alright!" Ash cheered, raising a fist high up into the air before looking up at the owl pokemon. "Great work Noctowl!"
"Grimer return." Ryan returned the sludge pokemon to its pokeball and gave it a smile. "Don't feel bad, you did your best."
"Grimer did well." Ryan's grandfather commented as Ryan pocketed the sludge pokemon's pokeball. "All of their training was certainly not a waste."
"No doubt." Brock nodded in agreement as Ryan pulled a second pokeball and stared at it. "It must have taken a lot of time and practice for Grimer to move like that."
"And to think he's still a new trainer." Misty added, keeping a firm hold on Togepi when the little pokemon got too excited. "Makes me wonder what he'll be like if he traveled and gained more experience."
"Indeed." Ryan's grandfather nodded, a thoughtful look on his face as he watched his grandson take a deep breath.
"Alright Ariados, you're up!" Ryan tossed the pokeball and out came the shiny long leg pokemon with a sparkle.
"Whoa, check out that Ariados." Ash said in awe when he saw the coloring of the long leg pokemon.
"And you're about to see it in action." Ryan grinned, sharing a nod with the long leg pokemon. "Ariados, use Spider Web!"
"Aria!" Ariados shoots white strings from its mouth into the air past Noctowl. The string then splits to form a web-like dome.
"Another result of Ryan's training." Ryan's grandfather smirked, noticing that the surrounding trees were supporting the webs.
"Here we go!" Ryan called out as Ariados jumped onto the web and began to quickly scurry around.
Noctowl tried to follow the long leg pokemon's movements, but couldn't keep up. Whenever Noctowl looked in one direction Ariados was already somewhere else. The long leg pokemon also scurried along the ground, using the surrounding rocks as a cover. Noctowl continued to look around to find the long leg pokemon when suddenly a large web appeared behind it. The owl pokemon let out a cry of surprise before getting its wings wrapped close against its body.
"Noctowl!" Ash called out as the owl pokemon fell to the ground and Ariados was dangling over it. He gritted his teeth as Noctowl tried to free itself from the web. "That Ariados is so fast."
"Believe it or not, Ariados wasn't nearly as fast when I caught him." Ryan admitted, shrugging with a sheepish smile as he looked up at the long leg pokemon. "But we worked on that the past week."
"Not good." Brock muttered as Ariados began to scurry along the web dome again. "Noctowl's at a huge disadvantage if it can't fly."
"Now use Psybeam!" Ryan quickly ordered, getting a nod from the long leg pokemon as his horn glowed with a rainbow colored light and released a rainbow colored beam at the owl pokemon.
"Noctowl, get out of there!" Ash desperately yelled, watching as the owl pokemon struggled to free itself only to be struck by the beam. "Noctowl!"
The owl pokemon cried out in pain before finally breaking free of the webs and flying away. Ariados continued with the Psybeam, trying to hit the owl pokemon again but Noctowl flew out of the line of fire. The long leg pokemon canceled the psychic attack and began to scurry along the web dome again. The two pokemon were next side by side, trying to outpace the other as their trainers watched on.
"Use Tackle, Noctowl!" Ash ordered and the owled pokemon rammed into the long leg pokemon, knocking it off the web dome.
"Straighten out and use Poison Sting!" Ryan watched as Ariados did a few flips and landed on a rock. He then faced Noctowl and fired numerous glowing needles at the owl pokemon.
Seeing the needles, Noctowl flew away from them as Ariados continued firing them. The long leg pokemon jumped from rock to rock before climbing up the web dome again. The two pokemon would not give an inch as Noctowl dodge the needles and Ariados jumped to avoid a tackle. Finally, Ariados' needles struck the owl pokemon in the back, getting a cry of pain. The owl pokemon began to stagger in its flight as a purple hue appeared on its face.
"Oh no, Noctowl's poisoned!" Brock got to his feet when he saw the purple hue on the owl pokemon.
"That's bad, that means Noctowl will keep getting weaker." Misty said, starting to get worried as the owl pokemon cringed in pain from the poison.
"Try and use Confusion Noctowl!" Ash desperately called out, watching as the owl pokemon formed the attack only to cancel when the purple hue got worse. "Oh no."
"Finish it with Psybeam!" Ryan called out and Ariados fired a beam of rainbow light from his horn. The beam struck the Owl pokemon and it plummeted to the ground with swirls in its eyes.
"Noctowl is unable to battle!" Tony declared, raising the red flag this time in Ryan's direction. "Ariados is the winner!"
"Alright!" Ryan cheered, pumping a fist as Ariados crawled over to him and he crouched down to pet the long leg pokemon on the head. "You were great Ariados, thanks for getting payback for Grimer."
"Aria." The long leg pokemon nodded, enjoying the attention his trainer was giving him while Ash returned Noctowl to its pokeball.
"Thanks Noctowl, get a good rest." Ash pocketed the pokeball and pulled out another before throwing it. "Bayleef, I choose you!"
The leaf pokemon appeared with a cry, covered in scratches from Grimer's Sludge Bomb barrage. Seeing this, Ariados went back onto the battlefield as Ryan got to his feet. The two pokemon glared at each other, not willing to let their respective trainers down. Ariados jumped onto the web dome and began to scurry around.
"That strategy again." Misty said softly, frowning as she knew how fast the long leg pokemon was on the webs. "Ash needs to do something about those webs."
"Cut the webs with Razor Leaf, Bayleef!" Ash quickly ordered, getting a nod from the leaf pokemon and she released sharp leaves. Ariados looked around frantically as his webs were cut by the leaves and began to fall to the ground. "Catch Ariados with Vine Whip!"
The leaf pokemon released her vines and wrapped them around Ariados' abdomen. Ryan gasped as the long leg pokemon struggled to get free. Ariados used his mandibles to nibble at the vines and Bayleef cringed in pain. The leaf pokemon then began to spin, stopping the long leg pokemon's nibbling.
"Ariados!" Ryan called out in concern as Bayleef spun faster before tossing the long leg pokemon. "Try to straighten out and use Psybeam!"
"Finish this with Body Slam, Bayleef!" Ash countered as Ariados straightened himself out and his horn glowed in rainbow colors.
Bayleef quickly jumped as Ariados fired the beam of rainbow color and avoided it. The leaf pokemon headbutted the long leg pokemon into the ground. She then descended down just as Ariados got to his feet and slammed her body on top of him. Bayleef got off of Ariados to reveal the long leg pokemon had swirls in his eyes.
"Ariados is unable to battle!" Tony declared, once again raising the green flag. "Bayleef is the winner!"
"Just one more, Ash!" Misty called out as Togepi cheered happily. "You got this!"
"I wouldn't be so sure, young lady." Ryan's grandfather said, getting the attention of Brock and Misty as Ryan returned Ariados to his pokeball. He watched his grandson thanking the long leg pokemon and pocketed the pokeball. "Ryan's last pokemon is a strong one."
"This feeling." Ryan lowered his head and closed his eyes as he placed a hand over his rapidly beating heart. "I've never felt like this before." He opened his eyes and raised his head, an excited smile on his face. "So this is what a gym battle feels like."
"You alright Ryan?" Ash asked, seeing Ryan's hand was still over his heart.
"Yeah, I'm just really excited." Ryan replied, taking a deep breath as he pulled out his last pokeball. "The adrenaline I'm feeling right now, I don't want it to stop yet, this is so much fun!"
"I know how you feel!" Ash raised a fist and held it out to Ryan who did the same with his pokeball. "But I'm the one who's gonna win!"
"You'll have to beat my partner first!" Ryan declared as he reeled his arm back before tossing the pokeball. "Come out, Nauxeon!"
The toxic point pokemon popped out of the pokeball in all his glory. Nauxeon looked back at his trainer and saw a look he's never seen before. On Ryan's face was a look of determination, a desire to win with everything he had. The toxic point pokemon also saw that Ryan was excited and having fun in this battle. In fact, his trainer looked like he was having so much fun, he could burst at any moment.
"So it's Nauxeon after all." Misty said, recalling the battle the toxic point pokemon had with Team Rocket.
"It must be his strongest if he saved Nauxeon for last." Brock deduced, taking in every detail of the toxic point pokemon. "You can tell with just a glance that Nauxeon is well taken care of."
"Nauxeon is Ryan's pride and joy." Ryan's grandfather explained, smiling at seeing how the two were communicating with just eye contact. "Their teamwork is unmatched so far."
"Bayleef, use Razor Leaf!" Ash quickly ordered and the leaf pokemon released her razor sharp leaves at Nauxeon.
"Deflect them with Iron Tail!" Ryan countered and Nauxeon turn his back to Bayleef.
Ash and Bayleef were confused until the poison point pokemon's tail began to glow. Nauxeon then spun his tail around rapidly, deflecting the leaves. Nauxeon then jumped up and over Bayleef, who got blinded by the sunlight through the skylight. Nauxeon brought his tail down on the leaf pokemon's head.
"Finish with Shadow Ball!" Ryan raised a fist as Nauxeon formed the ball of black energy and released it.
"Dodge it, Bayleef!" Ash desperately called out, but was too late as the Shadow Ball collided with Bayleef and exploded. "Bayleef!"
Nauxeon landed in front of Ryan, crouching down as he prepared for a counter attack. The smoke cloud cleared to reveal Bayleef standing strong. She was gritting her teeth as she glared at Nauxeon. She took a step forward, but collapsed to the ground, swirls in her eyes.
"Bayleef is unable to battle!" Tony looked over to Ryan, smiling at the young gym leader as he raised the red flag. "Nauxeon is the winner!"
"Bayleef!" Ash cried out as his second pokemon now fainted. He held out his Pokeball and returned Bayleef. "Thanks Bayleef, take a good rest." pocketed the pokeball before looking towards Pikachu, who nodded in determination. "Alright Pikachu, let's finish this!" Pikachu jumped onto the field, cheeks sparking with electricity and ready to fight.
"It's Pikachu versus Nauxeon now." Misty muttered, looking at Brock with a worried look on her face. "Do you think Ash can win this?"
"It's hard to be sure." Brock replied, cupping his chin thoughtfully as he compared the two pokemon. "Both pokemon are healthy and ready to go." His gaze went between the two trainers who had matching smirks on their faces. "My guess is that victory will go to the one who wants it more."
"I'm kind of sad." Ryan said, getting looks of confusion from Ash and Pikachu as he lowered his head and closed his eyes again. "I didn't want this fun to end yet." He raised his head and opened his eyes. "But this is the last battle, Nauxeon and I aren't going down easily!"
"The same with me and Pikachu!" Ash looked down at Pikachu while Ryan did the same with Nauxeon. The two pokemon looked back at their respective trainers and nodded.
"Then there won't be any hard feelings when this battle's over." Ryan and Nauxeon gained determined looks on their faces as Ryan pointed forward. "Nauxeon, use Poison Sting!"
"Use the rocks Pikachu!" Ash countered as Nauxeon fired the needles from the fur on his back. Pikachu ran across the battlefield, using the surrounding rocks as shields.
"That won't stop us!" Ryan grinned as Nauxeon jumped from one rock to the other. The toxic point pokemon fired needles whenever Pikachu was spotted but missed. "Use Double Team!"
Nauxeon glowed briefly before he started to multiply on each of the rocks. Pikachu looked around as he was surrounded by Nauxeon. Nauxeon and his copies all fired needles at the mouse pokemon. Pikachu frantically dodged the needles and began to run around the battlefield.
"We'll just have to hit them all." Ash muttered, noticing a few needles grazed Pikachu's tail. "Pikachu, use Thunderbolt and spread it out!"
"Pika!" Pikachu nodded before jumping high into the air, cheeks sparking with electricity. "Piiikaachuuuu!"
The mouse pokemon released bolts of lightning that rained down onto the battlefield. The bolts struck the copies, making them vanish until they were all gone. The real Nauxeon quickly jumped out of the way and went behind a rock to use as a shield.
"Now use Quick Attack!" Once Pikachu landed, the mouse pokemon sped through the battlefield and rammed into Nauxeon.
"Use Iron Tail!" Ryan called out and Nauxeon's tail glowed before slamming it into Pikachu.
The two pokemon flew back away from each other and slammed into a rock. The rock broke and fell on top of each pokemon. Pikachu and Nauxeon pushed themselves out of the rubble and glared at each other. They then used Quick Attack and Iron Tail again, knocking each other back again.
"Shadow Ball!" Nauxeon formed the ball of black energy and fired it at the mouse pokemon.
"Dodge and use Thunderbolt!" Pikachu jumped over the Shadow Ball and fired a bolt of lightning at the toxic point pokemon.
"Dodge it Nauxeon!" Nauxeon jumped out of the way of the lightning bolt as Ryan looked over at Ash. "You've really raised Pikachu well, Ash."
"Same to you and Nauxeon, Ryan." Ash adjusted his hat while Ryan rested a hand on his hip. "It makes me wonder if this really is your first gym battle."
"It is, you're just really making me push myself." Ryan smiled as Pikachu and Nauxeon were now butting heads. He watched as the two continued to trade blows between Quick Attack and Iron Tail. "I think it's about time we ended this."
"Took the words right out of my mouth." Ash nodded, seeing their two pokemon were starting to get exhausted from trading blows.
"Thunderbolt/Shadow Ball!" Upon hearing their trainers, Pikachu and Nauxeon backed away from each other.
The two pokemon stared each other down before smirking in respect for the other. Pikachu's cheeks sparked with built up electricity while the Nauxeon opened his mouth and formed the ball of black energy. They held their positions, waiting for the other to release their attack first. A small pebble fell from a rock and the two pokemon released their attacks when it hit the ground.
The Thunderbolt and Shadow Ball collided in the center of the battlefield and pushed to overpower the other. The two attacks continued to push each other until they reached their limits and exploded. The explosion caught both Pikachu and Nauxeon as they cried out. Ryan and Ash brought an arm up to shield their faces when debris flew at them.
"Pikachu/Nauxeon!" Ash and Ryan called out for their respective pokemon as they watched the smoke cloud.
Everyone waited anxiously, wondering who would emerge victorious in the smoke cloud. Tony sweated nervously, tightening his hold on the flags. Ryan's grandfather remained stoic, knowing that no matter who won, his grandson did his best. Nathan and Gloria appeared from the doorway, having caught the collision of the two attacks. They two were anxious to see who came out on top. The smoke cloud cleared and revealed both Pikachu and Nauxeon were still standing.
The two pokemon were covered in scratches and breathing hard, but refused to fall. Ryan and Ash looked at their partners in worry. Pikachu and Nauxeon each took a step forward, then another. Once they were in front of each other, Pikachu looked up at Nauxeon's eyes with the toxic point pokemon doing the same. The two pokemon gave another respectful smirk before cringing and fell at the same time."
"N-nauxeon and Pikachu are both unable to battle!" Tony stuttered in disbelief, raising both flags up. "Therefore this battle is a draw!"
"Pikachu/Nauxeon!" The two trainers ran over to their respective pokemon and held them in their arms.
"Are you okay buddy?" Ask asked as the mouse pokemon regained consciousness and smiled up at him.
"You were great Nauxeon." Ryan petted the toxic point pokemon on the head who enjoyed the attention. "We'll win next time."
"Man, that was a close battle, huh?" Ash asked with a smile on his face.
"Yeah." Ryan nodded, returning the smile. "But I had fun battling you, Ash."
"Same here, Ryan." Ash nodded in agreement and held out his hand to shake with Ryan. Ryan looked at the hand before he took it and shook firmly.
"You did well, Ryan." Ryan's grandfather said with a proud smile as he walked over with Brock and Misty. "You have raised your pokemon well." Then he turned to Ash. "The same can be said about you, young man. No one in this town was able to get past Ryan's first two pokemon when he asked them to help him with his training."
"Really?" Ash asked, chuckling and rubbing the back of his head sheepishly.
"Really." Ryan's grandfather nodded, looking over at Ryan. "It's all because of Ryan's strategy skills and the faith his pokemon have in him." Ryan blushed in embarrassment at the praise he was given as his grandfather faced Ash and bowed. "I thank you for being my grandson's very first challenger."
"It's no problem!" Ash nodded in appreciation, holding up a fist as Pikachu jumped onto his shoulder. "I'm always up for a great gym battle!"
"How about we head to the pokemon center and get our pokemon healed up." Ryan suggested as he looked out one of the gym's windows where Team Rocket was who ducked under the window to avoid being seen. "And since it's getting late, why don't you guys stay over for dinner?" Ash, Brock, and Misty all looked at each other and nodded. "Let's get going then."
"You can leave the cooking to me." Brock said, placing a fist on his chest as they walked out of the battlefield and down the hall.
"No, it's alright." Ryan shook his head as they reached the gym's lobby. "Your guests, and I hate to have guests do anything at home. So you leave the cooking to me while you relax, I insist."
Ash, Ryan, and the others left the Gym and went over towards the pokemon center. As they walked down the street, Ryan was greeted by the townspeople. Word spread fast and they learned the young gym leader had his first official gym battle. While they knew it ended in a draw, they still congratulated Ryan for finally having a gym battle.
Hope that you enjoyed the battle, now onto to a segment I call Review Corner. Review Corner is a segment at the end where I reply to your reviews and answer any questions you might have.
Karsap: That it did, and it took and equal, if not longer, amount of time for this chapter.
DragonBladeB5: I must say, this is a nice character design you have here, although irrelevant to the fanfic. I look forward to what you have to say in your next review.
With that being said, until we meet again!