I own nothing
Chapter 19
After one of the most fitful nights sleep he had had in a long time Ash woke up at 5am, showered and then headed to the gym to try and wake himself up. A few hours later he felt much better and after having another shower headed down to the restaurant to get some breakfast. Thankfully he was left alone as while people recognised him they also realised today was his big day, so other than the occasional 'good luck' he ate his breakfast in peace. Around 9:30 he got ready into his new outfit, checked he had his full team on him and headed to the stadium and checked in. An employee of the league came to greet him and showed him to his room where not even five minutes after being left alone a knock disrupted his thoughts. Opening the door he smiled as Joanne and Delia walked in, the latter giving him a hug.
"Ok" Joanne said without any pre-amble "the format for today will be slightly different than the one at Indigo Plateau because this is a smaller league and has a smaller audience. Around 10:30 we will have a few reporters coming in here to ask a few questions for about 10 minutes before we will do a walkthrough of your entrance. I've been told Drake has a rather spectacular entrance he's planning on doing but I'm not sure what so do you want to do anything too?"
"No" Ash said shaking his head as he handed his mum and Joanne a bottle of water "I know what he's going to do and if it wasn't such a big deal I would brush it off as over-compensating but I'm quite happy to just walk out of the tunnel and onto the field. I don't need any histrionics or distractions."
"What do you think he's going to do?" Joanne asked curious.
"Something with his Dragonite" Ash said "it's the only Pokémon I know he has and given it's his signature Pokémon it's only natural to do something with it."
"Oh, that makes sense" Delia said nodding.
"Then I'll leave you to it for a while" Joanne said "I'll be the one escorting the reporters to and from here but you'll have at least half an hour relaxation before we take you to the battlefield. See you soon." As she left she heard Delia say "she such a nice girl" and smiled as she headed to the reception to find the reporters.
"So how are you feeling?" Delia asked as they sat down.
"Like crap if I'm honest" Ash said "I didn't have a great sleep, and it wasn't worrying about today either. It hit me last night that once I've done this today and reunited Lapras with her family I'm done in these islands. I can't believe how quickly these three months have passed."
"It has passed by very quickly" Delia admitted "but you know you'll be kept busy when you come home Ash. Think how busy you were in the three weeks after your Indigo win."
"That's true" he said laughing "I dunno, it seems like the end of a journey does this to me. I had the same feeling the day before my Indigo final too so maybe that's what it is."
"Your dad was the same" Delia said "he was just as restless as you are but you'll be ok. How's your aura been by the way. Is it still playing up?"
"It is yeah" he said sighing as yet again his mum was digging "so it's not Nia. I'm sorry."
"Why are you saying sorry?" Delia asked confused.
"Because I know why you were asking mum" Ash said giving her a look "and I know how much you adore Nia and would love for her to be the one for me."
"I'm sorry Ash" Delia said "I just want to make sure you're going to be with someone who I know you'd get on with. That and I know how difficult it must be for you."
"It is" Ash said as there was a knock on his door and he opened it to let Joanne and the few reporters in.
Twenty minutes later he grabbed two apples and walked with his mum to the tunnel and peeked out. He was astounded that the stadium was already half full and was rapidly filling up more. "You might want to go and take your seats mum" Ash said spotting Nia and Sarah on the front row just behind his side of the platform. Giving her a hug and a kiss, he watched as she took her seat. Looking at his watch he saw he still had over an hour left so he decided to do something that he wouldn't normally do, he walked onto the field ignoring the crowd who started cheering as they saw him and he sat down in the middle of the field with Pikachu and gave him an apple and chatted quietly with him, trying to give off an unconcerned air.
At 11:30 a league official walked onto the field and spoke to Ash "Mr Ketchum, you're going to have to vacate the field while we get it ready for the battle."
Standing up Ash brushed off the dirt and shook the mans hand "No problem. I need to go and pick up the rest of my team anyway from my room."
"Thank you" he said looking relieved "and good luck today."
Nodding Ash walked off waving at the crowd as he did which had rapidly filled in the last hour and went into his room where he sat down and grabbed another bottle of water and poured a dish for Pikachu. "Good luck out there today pal. No matter what happens we've come a long way since we started our journey."
"We'll win Ash" Pikachu said "we won't let anyone's efforts be for nothing."
A knock on the door let Ash know it was time. as soon as he exited the door a league official walked him to the entrance and attached a microphone onto his lapel before quickly leaving.
"Welcome everyone to the 428th Orange League championship match. Today is only the second time in the prestigious history of this illustrious match that the two participants are champions in their own right. The current Champion Drake has been in this position for 9 years now ever since he deposed Marcus and the challenger Ash Ketchum is the current Indigo League champion having won it in September last year. So without further ado I give to you the challenger Ash Ketchum!"
Ash walked out onto the field to a huge reception and waved to the thousands of fans that were cheering his name. standing in the centre circle he waited for the noise to die down which took a while. Ash had clearly underestimated how popular he was it seems. "I didn't expect that Pi" he muttered to his starter.
"And now, I present to you his opponent. The reigning, defending, Undisputed Champion of the Orange League. DRAKE!" The audience stood as one and began cheering once again waving banners and flags as from the sky a missile shot over them at a high speed before it banked and did a lap of the stadiums roof before it stopped dead over the left hand side and slowly lowered itself down to the ground showing itself to be a Dragonite with its trainer on his back. Getting off and recalling it back Drake walked over smiling looking very pleased with his show. Pikachu muttered something in Ash's ear which he nodded looking thoughtful.
"Hello Ash" Drake said holding his hand out "you ready for this?"
"I was born for this Drake" Ash said shaking his hand before they both turned to the referee.
"Hello. Now we've had an email this morning requesting a slight change to this battle. Don't worry it's nothing too strange. This will be a 6 on 6 singles battle with move restrictions in place. Once one opponent has three Pokémon knocked out there will be a 30 minute break where the field will switch until the end of the match. If at the end of the battle we have a double knockout the Champion remains as Champion and wins the match. Now, the rule changes are as follows; it has been changed from being no substitutions to being only the challenger allowed to switch..."
"No" Ash said interrupting the referee "either we both get to switch or neither of us do. I will not have our match marred by the fact I beat Drake only because I can rest Pokémon and he can't. We're both Champions, for this battle to be anything else is an insult to us both."
"Mr Goodshow said you would contest that part so he agreed that you two could decide between the two of you on that stipulation." The referee said looking expectantly at them both.
Drake looked thoughtful before turning to Ash.
"I'll go with whatever you want" Ash said "as Champion I think you've earned that right."
Nodding Drake turned to the referee and said "No Substitutions." Turning to Ash he said "you need to get used to it seeing as you won't be able to substitute against your Elite Four."
"I'm happy with that" Ash said nodding before he turned towards the referee and waited for him to continue.
"Ok" he said crossing something out on his pad "there was only one other rule change that has been decided on. Once one person has one Pokémon remaining they and only they will have all move restrictions lifted until it's one on one. Should that happen then the other person will also have all move restrictions lifted. Moves such as Baton Pass, Volt Switch and U-Turn are allowed but OHKO moves are not."
"What about Mega Pokémon?" Ash asked the referee.
"There's nothing here about not being able to use them but in normal Champion or Elite Four matches there's a limit of only one so I guess that rule will also be imposed." The referee said looking at his notes. "that's all gentlemen. Please take your places in your respective boxes."
Ash and Drake shook hands again and took their places and waited for the referee to drop his flag. The ground opened up to reveal a grass field with a large pool in the middle and several big boulders dotted around the field.
"Ditto to the battlefield" Drake commanded releasing a pink blob onto the grassy field.
"Thought so" Ash said "let's go Pikachu."
Ash watched on fascinated as Ditto changed its molecular to mirror its opponent and soon two little electric mice were on the field.
"So soon?" Drake muttered frowning forgetting he was miked up.
"Yup" Ash said smiling "we knew that the Pokémon you landed on wasn't your actual Dragonite as its power wasn't as strong as the one we saw you land on in Trovita so it could only be one of a handful of Pokémon. I will say it did very well though imitating it. The speed was really impressive."
"Thanks, shall we get this match underway? Ditto, Thunderbolt" Drake said.
"Volt Tackle through it Pi" Ash shouted unconcerned as Pikachu raced forwards taking the electric attack and smashing into the Ditto who went flying back into a boulder. Getting up it shook its head and moved out of the way as Pikachu kept coming before he arced around the field and headed back towards Ditto.
"Iron Tail" Drake shouted as Ditto's tail became metallic and swung at Pikachu who ducked underneath and hit Ditto again smashing it into another boulder where it struggled to get to its feet.
"And Drakes Ditto is showing just how outclassed it is against Ash's Pikachu. It has yet to get a successful move off."
Pikachu stopped just in front of Ash on a boulder panting slightly but focused entirely on his opponent who had finally risen to its feet looking very worn out.
"We need to switch up Ditto, Dig" Drake shouted as his mouse quickly dove into the earth underground.
"Childs play Pi" Ash said leaning forwards onto the barrier surrounding his box "Iron Tail."
Pikachu focused intently and soon heard movement below him as Ditto began to tunnel upwards, so he quickly shifted his feet and as soon as Ditto came out of the hole it was smacked in the face by a metallic tail where it went flying into the wall de-transitioning as it was rendered unconscious.
"And Ditto is out for the count without getting a single move off." The announcer shouted over the tannoy.
"Ditto is unable to battle. Champion Drake, please send out your next Pokémon." The referee said.
"Electabuzz, to the battlefield" Drake said a little bit unnerved at how easily his Ditto had been swept aside "I'll say this Ash, no one has ever beaten my Ditto so easily before. Usually, he ends challenges before they begin."
"No one will out-Pikachu my Pikachu" Ash said laughing "Thunder."
"Move Electabuzz" Drake shouted "and move in close to Pikachu."
Wondering what was happening Ash shouted "Just run around a bit Pi, I want to see what he's up to."
"Electabuzz Brick Break" Drake shouted as Pikachu loped forwards and dodged the move twisting into an Iron Tail and forcing Electabuzz onto the back foot. The next few minutes were a battle of the two just trying to get a hit in and dodging when necessary. Ash was about to call out a move when Pikachu misread an attack and Pikachu was sent hurtling away hitting a boulder and winced as he got to his feet. Looking up he had to move out of the way with a Quick Attack before a Brick Break hammered into the boulder shattering it. Before the Electabuzz could react Pikachu swung around and hit Electabuzz full in the face with an Iron Tail before following up with a Volt Tackle ending his second challenge.
"Electabuzz is unable to battle, Champion Drake send out your third Pokémon" the referee shouted over the crowd. Drake looked at his opponents Pikachu and shook his head at how powerful that little mouse was. His two Pokémon were no slouches in the battle arena but they had been made to look ordinary. It looked knackered though and was covered in bruises and scratches, remnants of the battle with Electabuzz so he threw another ball out onto the field.
"And Drake chooses Onix as his third Pokémon" the announcer shouted.
"Pi, we need to end this quick. Thunder" Ash shouted.
"Dig" Drake shouted as the bolt of lightning just went awry as the huge rock snake tunnelled underground "Earthquake."
Pikachu stumbled across the ground as it violently shook and stopped resting against a boulder. "Pi, rip up the ground, force it out. Thunder, full power" Pikachu tried to steady itself as much as it could before making its way to the hole Onix had created and blasted the lightning bolt into it. The crowd had gone silent as they heard the pained roar of Onix from underground as it was electrocuted and it forced its way up to the top of the ground bursting through showering the field with rocks and bits of debris, some of which hit Pikachu causing him to stop his attack. Pikachu looked dead on his feet as he panted harshly glaring at his opponent.
"We need to end this quickly Pi, Volt Tackle" Ash said looking at his partner who looked on the verge of fainting.
"Earthquake" Drake shouted seeing the opportunity as a mistake from Ash. Onix roared as it slammed its tail down into the ground as Pikachu raced over towards the rock snake. Pikachu's attack was halted rather harshly when the ground heaved in front of him and he burst through rolling over and over until he came to rest at the foot of the wall. Bravely he tried to stand and finally managed to do so.
"Pi, you're done" Ash shouted down to the field. Pikachu looked up at Ash and then glared at Onix before launching another Thunder surprising everyone as the Onix roared in pain falling backwards and crashing to the ground. "Now I'm done" Pikachu said as he collapsed forwards onto the ground.
The referee waited to see if Onix rose which eventually it did panting harshly as it felt the tremors of electricity go through it every few seconds. Just as the referee was about to signify it won Onix fell forwards and didn't move.
"Both Pokémon are unable to battle. As Drake has now lost three Pokémon we will have a thirty minute break and a field change."
Ash threw himself down the stairs and headed over to where Pikachu was lying and gently picked him up before leaving down the tunnel and into his room. Pulling out a Full Restore Ash gently sprayed Pikachu all over his body before leaving him to rest and recover on his own. Sitting down he sighed heavily, it was a gamble using Pikachu first but it had paid off as he had swept half of his opponents team. There was still Dragonite left and two other unknowns, so he was still wary of counting his chickens before they hatched but he knew he was well on his way and doing well.
"Ash is doing very well isn't he?" Sarah asked Nia and Delia as they sat back in their seats with a drink "he's halfway there now."
"Yeah, but his strongest Pokémon is now out" Nia said "I wonder what his thinking was doing that. Usually your strongest would come out second from last so I'm very puzzled he chose to use Pikachu first."
"Why?" Sarah asked "shouldn't it be last?"
"Yes and no" Nia said "your strongest Pokémon is usually in the sweeper position in a battle, i.e second from last so that you can get yourself back in the battle and hopefully leave your opponent with one Pokémon remaining. It's usually your starter, the strongest naturally or the one you put the most trust in. Then you can hopefully finish them off with your last Pokémon, however the downside to that is if your opponent has left their strongest until last it becomes an almost impossible task. Then it becomes luck based for you to win depending on how strong your last one is."
"He told me he was debating doing this the other day as he was struggling to figure out the final member of his team." Delia said feeding Togepi a slice of apple "he wanted to use Pikachu first to eliminate as many of Drakes Pokémon as quickly as possible leaving most of his team to face Drakes Dragonite. I think he'd be disappointed he didn't take out four of them, but half the team is still good going."
"Is that not a little arrogant?" Sarah asked confused "to expect to sweep a Champions team so easily I mean."
"Ash is always a little arrogant when it comes to battling" Nia said laughing "because he knows how good his team is. I wonder who his team consists of now, especially after his Salamence left during the last tournament. I know he has a Lapras and Kabuto so I can't imagine it would be a hard choice between them two."
"You'll see" Delia said smiling "trust me, the Pokémon he's caught in these Islands will amaze everyone."
"So, what do you think of his chances then?" Sarah asked.
"So far, so good" Delia said "but Ash never checked on what Drake uses, he said he wanted it to be a surprise to test out his ability to think on the fly which in a Championship match is ridiculous but you know how he is. So, there's two unknown Pokémon to be used by Drake and his Dragonite."
"It's going to be fun either way" Nia said tickling Togepi under her chin making her squeal in delight.
Sidereel
"Hello everybody, if you've just tuned into this match where the hell have you been?" the television announcer said to the camera in front of him as they stood on the side of the field "You've missed a terrific Pokémon battle so far. Ash Ketchum currently is winning the battle having taken out 3 of Drakes Pokémon. Joining us at pitch-side is current Kanto Champion Blue Oak, Johto Champion Lance and Sinnoh Champion Cynthia. How have you three liked this match so far?"
"Ash has been ruthless so far as I expected him to be" Blue said "however he still has a long way to go yet."
"Yes" Cynthia said "his Pikachu was amazing, but Ash made a mistake in the match with Electabuzz and it cost him in the match afterwards. Sometimes that's what these matches come down to, the little details add up over the course of time."
"Cynthia is correct" Lance said "His Pikachu should still be able to battle but Drake showed just why he is the current Champion here and has taken out arguably Ash's strongest Pokémon."
"Yes, that was strange was it not, leading with your strongest Pokémon?" the announcer asked.
"It all depends on who he has in his team" Cynthia said "I did the same in an exhibition match last year against Steven and used my Garchomp in first position to try and get my team as big an advantage as I could despite knowing he had Metagross in reserve. It cost me the fight in the end as his Metagross beat my final two Pokémon, but Garchomp gave them every advantage she could. In hindsight I likely wouldn't do that again against such opposition, but this could still work out for Ash."
"I think it will" Lance said "Ash has proved over the last year just how good he is and how great he could easily become. Drake though is a fantastic test for him at this stage in his development as he has proved to be on par with our Elites Four over the years."
"Just how far do you think Ash can go?" the announcer asked Blue "could he beat his dad, the late Red Ketchum?"
"At the moment no" Blue said "Red is special, he had the ability to pull off the craziest moves in the most unlikely situations but it took him years to get to that level. Ash is still making his way in the Pokémon world but I have no doubt if he carries on the way he is, he will become great. It's all down to him now."
"Just how worried are you two" the reporter said to Lance and Blue "about losing to him at the end of the year? He issued the challenge during Loreleis exhibition, didn't he and there's been talk that he could become the youngest Pokémon Champion ever."
"I'm not worried" Lance said "if anything I'd welcome the challenge and should he beat me I would congratulate him on what he's achieved at such a young age."
"I'm not worried about losing to him" Blue said smiling "mainly because I don't think I will. But it will be interesting either way."
"So what does Drake have to do to pull this one back?" the announcer asked.
"Beat his next two Pokémon without losing his" Cynthia said "he needs to even the odds up as quickly as possible. Momentum can be everything in a battle and as we saw earlier one mistake could decide the match."
"Thank you, all three of you for your input on this" the announcer said "I've just heard that the second half of the match is about to start. We're in for a fantastic second half."
Ash watched the interview on the screen and frowned at some of the terminology used by Blue. Recalling the battle he watched between his father and Blue he could understand somewhat why Blue wasn't worried about him but that kind of underestimation was just the motivation Ash needed. He appreciated Cynthias words though, he had made a mistake and it had cost Pikachu the third battle but he was still confident of winning.
"Are you able to stand Pi?" Ash asked his Pokémon who was nibbling on a cherry looking exhausted. Shaking his head Pikachu put down the pith and tried but failed to stand up. Gently Ash picked him up and carried him as they made their way out of the door and down the tunnel, waiting to be announced.
"Welcome everybody to the second half of the 428th Orange League Championship match between Champion Drake and challenger Indigo League winner Ash Ketchum. So far Ash has a 1-3 lead having taken out Drakes Ditto, Electabuzz and Onix with just his Pikachu however Ash lost his Pikachu against the Onix due to a double-knockout. Please welcome back the two participants, Drake and Ash!"
Ash walked across the pitch and over to the side where his mum was sat and handed Pikachu over to Nia. "Look after him please, he still can't stand up yet but he's had something to eat and a Full Restore."
"I will, good luck Ash." Nia said sitting back down as Ash jogged over to his box and climbed up and onto the podium, waiting for the referee to begin.
"When I drop my flag, both participants will release their next Pokémon."
"Lets go Venusaur" Ash shouted
"Gengar, battle dance" Drake shouted.
Ash paused at this and gave a little shudder. His Venusaur was at a slight disadvantage due to Gengars ghost abilities. "I really don't like Gengars" Ash muttered forgetting his microphone was on.
"Why?" Drake asked when he heard Ash's comment "What's wrong with my Gengar?"
"I'm sure there's nothing wrong with your Gengar, other than it being a Gengar that is" Ash said shaking his head clear "when I was about seven years old I met Agatha for the first time at Professor Oaks ranch and commented on her having a moustache. So that night she sent her Gengar to give me nightmares and ever since then I've disliked Ghost Pokémon, especially those from the Gastly line."
"You never!" Drake asked incredulously "you told Agatha she had a moustache?"
"Yes" Ash replied "and she still has one. Bloody witch gave me nightmares for years and never once apologised. Now, shall we get on with the battle?"
"Indeed" Drake said smirking "Gengar Night Shade."
"Frenzy Plant" Ash called trying to think of a strategy "then Sunny Day." Immediately Venusaur stamped on the ground causing thick vines to rise from the sandy ground and form a wall in front of himself. After the attack fizzled out Venusaur sent a ball of light into the sky creating a very hot atmosphere in which.
"And Ash recreates the move he used at the Indigo League final against John, walling himself off from all attacks. How will Drake respond?"
"Disappear Gengar" Drake shouted as his ghost phased out of existence leaving the audience to wonder what would be next.
Ash however knew where it was at all times. "Seven O'clock Venusaur" he shouted as Venusaur sent one of its vines heading that way forcing Gengar to appear and dodge before it disappeared again. This went on for another minute or so as both competitors tried to come up with a strategy.
"Phase through the vines and use Hypnosis" Drake shouted getting tired of moving Gengar just out of reach. Ash merely smirked as it phased out and appeared directly in front of Venusaur waving its arms about in a hypnotic way.
"Leech Seed" Ash shouted as Venusaur began to fall asleep. Ash was lucky that he'd timed it correctly as several seeds hit Gengar and began to wrap around its body sucking the life out of it.
"Dammit" Drake said as Gengar appeared as the vines retracted due to Venusaur falling asleep with several buds on its legs and arms. "we're now on a timer pal, use Dream Eater." Gengar immediately created a spectral duplicate of itself and sent it hurtling to Venusaur who was fast asleep and started draining Venusaur of its health.
"Sleep Talk" Ash said smirking as Venusaur opened its mouth and several purple blobs came out impacting the Gengar halting its attack.
"Dammit" Drake said again "Dream Eater again." Gengar did the same thing and began to drain his opponents health but winced every few seconds as its own energy was leeched due to the seeds blooming on its body.
"Sleep Talk again" Ash said as another ball of light shot up into the sky intensifying the sun "again" Ash commanded as a huge beam of light swept its way to Gengar smashing into it and sending it into the wall.
"Is that not a disqualification?" Drake asked the referee "Venusaur used more than four moves."
"No" the referee said "when a Pokémon uses Sleep Talk it has no control over which moves are going to be used therefore it cannot be disqualified. As far as the rules are concerned the only move a Pokémon uses is Sleep Talk, not Sludge Bomb and Solarbeam. Once Venusaur wakes up however it will be move locked into the four moves it has used those being Sunny Day, Frenzy Plant, Leech Seed and Sleep Talk. Any further moves will mean a disqualification."
Nodding Ash frowned as his Pokémon was still asleep "Again Venusaur." This time though several leaves began appearing and circling Venusaur before launching themselves at Gengar in a spiral cone who struggled to get out of the way. Seeing his Gengar was nearing its end Drake called a move that shocked people "Destiny Bond Gengar." Gengar knowing it was nearly done created a shadow of itself and it headed across the ground where it encircled Venusaur before settling into it. Gengar had stopped trying to dodge and was hit full force with the Leaf Storm before fainting. Venusaur amazingly woke up and shook its head making Drake confused that Gengars last move didn't work. Before he could ask what was going on Venusaur took a step forward and collapsed onto the ground face first fainting.
"Both Pokémon are unable to battle" the referee said AS Ash and Drake recalled their Pokémon "please send out your next Pokémon."
"Venusaur, let's go" Drake said smirking at Ash.
"Blastoise, you're up" Ash said smirking back.
"And it's the battle of the Kanto starters folks" the announcer shouted.
"Why would Ash put himself at a disadvantage like this?" Sarah asked.
"Because he has three Pokémon left after this" Nia said as they watched Drake use the same strategy Ash did with Frenzy Plant and Solarbeam while Ash countered with Blizzard and Rapid Spin.
"We just need to wait out the sun" Ash shouted to his spinning turtle.
"Sunny Day" Drake shouted smirking as Ash revealed what they were doing.
"Earthquake" Ash shouted as Blastoise shot up into the air and slammed himself into the ground causing massive tremors which disrupted the Sunny Day. Sadly, it still got the move off and Blastoise waited for the Venusaur to regain its bearings and get back to its feet.
"That did a lot of damage" Nia said cheering for Ash.
"Blizzard again" Ash shouted as a huge storm of snow and sleet made its way over the field hitting Venusaur making it shudder and wince.
"Solarbeam" Drake shouted as Venusaur focused and sent a huge ray of light towards Blastoise who was rooted to the spot and enveloped in the light.
"Blastoise is unable to battle" the announcer shouted over the cheers "Ash please release your next Pokémon."
"Let's go Machamp" Ash said recalling his turtle. He was still up by one and Venusaur had taken a lot of damage from the Blizzard so he still expected to win the round with Machamp. "Cross Chop"
"Solarbeam" Drake countered.
"Dodge and get in close, finish the move Machamp" Ash commanded as Machamp ducked underneath the beam and raced to his opponent where he began wailing on Venusaur.
"Leech Seed" Drake said causing Ash to swear. From the crowd though he heard his mum shout "Language young man" which made Ash hold his hand up in apology to her.
"Flamethrower" Ash shouted hoping to burn off the seeds. Machamp did as asked but while he did significant damage to Venusaur, who groaned at taking the super-effective hit he was also unable to get rid of all the buds without hurting himself.
"Venusaur is unable to battle" the referee said as Drake recalled his downed Pokémon "Drake, please choose your last Pokémon."
The crowd hushed as they realised what this meant. Drake was down to just his Dragonite. Taking a pokeball from his necklace he kissed it before throwing it onto the field where it opened and his starter emerged looking more than ready to fight.
"As per the rules set at the beginning of the match, as Drake is down to his last Pokémon he is unrestricted by the move allocation. Ash you are still restricted until you are down to your last Pokémon." The referee said "begin."
"Ice Beam" Drake shouted extremely confident in his strongest Pokémon to get the job done.
"Protect" Ash said thinking of a strategy as a force field surrounded Machamp making the ice split apart and create two lines going away from Machamp. The sun began to slowly fade into the normal weather as the attack continued.
"Ramp it up Dragonite" Drake said "Blizzard."
"Keep it up Machamp" Ash said looking unconcerned as his strategy cemented itself as luckily he had one move left to be able to use. A few minutes later Dragonite stopped the attack and everyone looked over at Machamp which was surrounded by snow and ice on all sides as he shook himself off.
"Stone Edge" Ash shouted "use the ice."
"Dragonite get away quickly" Drake shouted as Machamp began to smash the ice pillars that had formed around the field and use all four arms to launch bits of ice and rock at Dragonite who scrambled to get away. Luckily for Ash Dragonite was a very bulky Pokémon and several of the rocks hit before he got out of range and Machamp stopped panting from exertion.
"Hurricane" Drake shouted "get rid of the ice."
"Protect" Ash said shaking his head at the mistake.
The wind began to pick up as Dragonite, rather than use his wings, used his speed to rapidly circle Machamp building up the wind as he went along and soon a mini tornado engulfed the field tearing it up, sending shards of rock, ice and even sand flying everywhere hitting the barriers but more importantly hitting Dragonite too.
"And a mistake there from Drake that could sway this match into Ash's favour once again. It seems rather than burn and melt the ice he used a move his own Pokémon couldn't dodge and has been pelted with shards of the ground, all the while Machamp has stayed where he is and protected himself from damage."
"Dammit" Drake shouted as his Dragonite settled on his side and glared at him "sorry pal, my mistake Outrage."
Dragonite began to glow orange as he instantly became furious, using his own trainers idiocy as fodder for his rage and he charged at Machamp who looked on warily waiting for a command.
"Cross Chop" Ash shouted wincing "try and match it."
Machamp tried his best and even got in a few strikes but the bulk and rage Dragonite felt masked his pain and soon the bulk and natural power of Dragonite shone through.
"Machamp is unable to battle" the referee said as Ash recalled his Pokémon, very proud of him. He was at a significant disadvantage in that battle and still managed to harm his opponent.
"Let's go princess" Ash shouted to the confusion of many. Those who had seen his last match against a Dragonite expected Sylveon to return as they had watched how easily she had dominated Johns Dragonite. They were very surprised however when a huge blue blur shot across the field sending Dragonite skidding backwards in surprise as Salamence returned to Ash's side and hovered waiting a command.
"That is a warning to Ash Ketchum" the referee said "you did not issue a command and your Salamence attacked without warning."
"Yes, I did" Ash countered "there are no rules stating that you cannot discuss strategy with your Pokémon before the battle and as long as your Pokémon is not move locked any move can be used. It's up to the opponent to be ready."
"Be that as it may it was not discussed with me beforehand therefore a warning has been issued." The referee countered.
"Yes, it was discussed beforehand" Ash said furious with the referee "how else would she know to use that move? We're not allowed to discuss anything with the referees due to the possibility of favouritism and if you knew your job you wouldn't have called for a warning."
"Your Salamence has a history of refusing to listen to you Mr Ketchum. And given what just happened I question whether you can control her. Do not make me disqualify her to protect everyone here." The referee said irritated at being called out.
"My Salamence listens to me 100% thank you very much." Ash said "I have full trust in her. You've seen evidence in one match where she got angry and now you think she's unruly?"
"This is your last warning Mr Ketchum." The referee said ignoring him "one more outburst and she will be disqualified."
"Fine" Ash said recalling her and walking down the steps.
"Where are you going?" the referee asked panicking.
"Good match Drake" Ash said walking over to his opponent who looked down from his box and ignoring the referee "hopefully we can have a proper battle some other time when the referee isn't biased. It's nothing personal." With that Ash turned away and walked down the tunnel to a crowd of boos and into his room sitting down sighing as he did so. Calling out Salamence and Charizard he apologised to them.
"Did we win?" Charizard asked confused as he hadn't been used.
"I'm sorry, but no." Ash said "We were up 5-4 and the referee tried to disqualify Salamence because she attacked Dragonite as soon as she was released claiming I didn't order an attack."
"But you looked over the rules" Charizard said confused "there's nothing in the rules that says you can't do that. And Psychics don't issue verbal commands in battle which means it shouldn't have been an issue."
"I know" Ash said "but that wanker seems to have a grudge against Salamence and I won't have her insulted like that."
"So, what do we do now?" Salamence asked irritated at what happened.
"Firstly, you've done nothing wrong" Ash said looking at her "I want you to know that. You did nothing wrong today and I know you're just as furious as I am about what happened so I can only apologise. Secondly we're going to pack up and head back to the hotel just as soon as the crowds leave. Let's see what's happening" he finished as he turned on the TV.
"…history of this battle has a competitor walked off the field because of a dispute with the referee." The TV announcer said to his fellow panel.
"Ash was right to do so Charlie" Blue said "there is nothing in the rules preventing him from doing what he did. It is up to both participants to be ready at all times in a battle and a grainer does not always have to issue verbal commands at all times to their Pokémon, if they did Pyschics would be in real trouble. The ref overstepped his boundaries here today."
"But he had every right to issue a warning just to establish something strange had happened. It wasn't a disqualification but his attitude afterwards more than warranted the warning" Cynthia countered "what followed afterwards was frankly astounding and I question Ash's temperament."
"Ash's temperament is not what's in question here." Lance said "and the argument and warning wouldn't have happened if the ref knew the rules as he's supposed to."
"I think the question is what happens next?" Charlie asked.
"That's easy" Blue said "I've known Ash since before he was born. Ash will carry on with his journey as if nothing has happened. As we said at half time he's got the Kanto Elite Four to challenge at the end of this year so I expect him to aim towards that."
"I've not known him as long as Blue has" Lance said "but I guarantee he won't regret walking out on this match. He'll be more upset that his Pokémon never got a chance to shine and it was likely the insult to his Salamence that made him walk off. My own Salamence would have taken issue with a referee who questioned his loyalty to me, he should be thankful that Ash trusts her completely."
"I don't know him" Cynthia said "but every time I've met him something has happened. The first time I met him he was very rude to my fellow Elite Lucian and insulted him to his face. I was very shocked."
"That's because of the rivalry Aura users have with Psychics" Blue said interrupting her "he's not like that with anyone else, in fact he's usually very amenable as long as you don't insult him, his mother, my father or his Pokémon. I guarantee if you talked to him you'd get on very well."
"Be that as it may" Cynthia said "my experiences haven't been great with him. Overall though I'll have to listen to Lance and Blue about him as they know him as my opinion is clouded."
"Well hopefully this can all be resolved soon; it was a fantastic match and it was a shame it ended the way it did." Charlie said.
Ash muted the TV before he placed three Full Restores on his Pokémon's Pokeballs and emptied them. They'd need to see Nurse Joy before the end of today to make sure they'd be ok, but they'd at least be able to move around. Ash looked up as the door opened and his mum, Nia and Sarah walked in and saw what he was doing. His mum looked like she'd been crying so he immediately stood up, placed Togepi on the couch and hugged her whispering in her ear that things would be ok. After several minutes he sat her down and grabbed water for everyone and handed it to them. Picking up Pikachu he talked quietly to him before placing him on a pillow to rest up.
"How are you two doing?" Ash asked.
"Never mind that" Nia said "how are you doing? What happened?"
"You saw what happened" Ash said confused "that referee overstepped his boundaries, and I wasn't having it."
"Why did he do that?" Sarah asked.
"I've honestly no idea. The rules are pretty clear, even Blue and Lance said as much" he said nodding to the TV screen "I don't think Cynthia likes me very much though."
Delia laughed slightly before hugging him again "so what happens now?"
"I'm here for another week before I'm due to travel to Tarroco Island to release Lapras" Ash said shrugging his shoulders "her family should be arriving there around that time. After that I'll fly back to here and then fly to Vermillion before I head for home."
"I think Delia meant what happens with you, as in your battle today." Nia said "what are the repercussions of what you did?"
"I've no idea" Ash said cheerfully "I've broken no laws so I can't be punished too heavily. Plus, I'm the Indigo League Champion who's going to be drawing the Pokémon League significant money at the end of the year when I challenge the Elite Four so they're not going to do anything to harm that. I'll be fine Nia, honestly. This will all be old news in a few weeks."
At that moment Joanne walked in looking harried. "Are you crazy? Are you ok? Do you need anything?"
"Sit down" Ash said extricating himself from his mums grip and taking her over to a spare seat. "Now, what's up?"
"What do you mean what's up?" she asked incredulously seeing the TV was on "have you no idea what's happened? The Leagues are going mental. The Orange League Board have filed a formal complaint against you stating you've cost them reputation and money that will have to be refunded to the people who bought tickets and they expect you to foot the bill. The Kanto League Board, led by your uncle have countered with their own lawsuit towards them stating that the Orange League referee caused this by acting in their name and without just cause so they should be the ones who are liable. Mr Suzuki has been on the phone to me almost the entire time both angry at your treatment and happy that we're already sold out of your outfit so he doesn't know whether to kiss you or make you partner in the company. And I walk in here, harangued by reporters seeing you looking so calm. Why are you so calm?" she finished looking at him pleadingly.
"Because I've done nothing wrong" Ash laughed "both leagues can counter each other all they want but the fact is an Orange League Official overstepped his boundaries and I forfeited the match in protest. I won't be pursuing any charges against anyone, at the end of the day it's just a Pokémon battle Joanne."
"Ash, it's a lot more than that" she said "the league boards are involved. This could impact your ability to remain a trainer."
"No, it won't" Ash said "the most that could happen is I get a fine, which I won't. I've read the rules, hell I had to to make sure I didn't cross any lines when I left Pallet Town. I'm very much aware of how I am and how I come across which is why I've kept in constant contact with mum and Sam to make sure I don't cross any lines. There have been several times where I've put my toe across, albeit unintentionally but I've always made sure my mentor and mum knew so we could try and rectify whatever I did as quickly as possible."
"He's right" Delia said "Sam has only once had to place a mark on his trainer ID and that was because his Charmeleon at the time crossed a line in Fuchsia gym. Luckily the gym leader Koga resolved the situation along with Ash and the mark was taken off his record at the end of the Indigo League."
"See" Ash said "I know the laws Joanne. So, what do you need from me?"
Taking a deep breath she said "we need to hash out a statement to give to the press. Hopefully one that will cool any resentment towards you."
"If it will make you feel better then I will" Ash said soothingly as he took a pad and pen out of his bag.
"What's in that?" Nia asked curiously.
"Oh" Ash said opening the pages to show them all "it's research I've been doing for my next book. Every now and then I'll send Sam my work and he'll see if there's any interest at the academies dotted around the world. The next book is going to be on Legendary Pokémon. After the incident at Shamouti I think it's time someone made a book detailing just how important they are and what they do for the world so that it hopefully prevents idiots from trying to capture them or use them for their own nefarious means."
"Oh wow" Nia said looking impressed and intrigued.
"Ok" Ash said turning to Joanne after a moment silence "what should I say?"
"We're heading over to the studio now" Charlie said interrupting the panel chatting about the match "apparently Ash Ketchum has just put out a statement about his actions today and why he felt the need to walk away from the match."
Panning to the screen the people watching around the globe saw Ash walking out of his room with a piece of paper in his hand and stop before the group of reporters.
"Hello" he said cheerfully "it amazes me how dedicated you guys are to your jobs, braying at my door and all like wild animals. Anyway, I have a statement I've been asked to write by my representatives about the events that took place today and I won't be taking any questions afterwards. Hopefully you can then all clear off and I can head back to the hotel where I can heal my Pokémon and then eat.
I walked out of the match today for several reasons, the main reason being the attitude of the official. He had no right to issue any warning as I know the rules inside and out, as any self-respecting trainer should do before they set out on their journey. I broke no rules, neither did my Salamence and we were unfairly given a warning. I'm aware my arguing probably exacerbated the situation but the insult to my Salamence and her temperament was the final straw. It is clearly evident that particular official has problems with either my Salamence or Salamence in general and he should seek help or training. I want to apologise to my opponent Drake who gave me a fantastic battle and I hope he hasn't taken any offence by my actions as certainly non were intended. To the fans who bought a ticket to be here I apologise, and I am sorry you guys never got your full money's worth but I will see you all again at the end of the year when I challenge the Elite Four. To the Orange League board who are currently trying to sue me, take the money I was due to be given as either runner up or winner and use it to give people the refunds they want. To the Kanto League board I thank you for defending me and I'm very much obliged to you for doing so. That is all."
At that Ash abruptly walked back out of the room and grabbed his things before leading the procession out of the door and out into the streets as they headed back to the hotel. Joanne quickly left to head to the plane and Ash led the rest back to the hotel, ignoring the curious looks he was getting. As he entered the lobby a massive cheer rose from the crowd that were waiting for him at the reception. Thanking them he led his mum, Nia and Sarah as safely as he could to the elevator and sighed in relief when the doors closed.
"I think it's safe to say you still have your admirers" Nia said smirking, causing Ash to frown.
"Oh, is someone envious?" Ash teased "maybe you should walk out of your next match, see if you get the same reception."
"I don't need to walk out of a match I was going to lose" she said causing him to splutter with indignation.
"Ok that's enough now" Sarah said flicking Nia on the nose before turning to Ash and doing the same causing him to yelp "you too!"
"Sorry mums" Ash said shaking his head causing them all to laugh.
The next day Ash woke up and headed to the Pokémon centre to heal his team. He was angry at himself for not doing it sooner but he couldn't be bothered being mobbed again. A few hours later he headed to the gym to do a light training session and after releasing all his Pokémon he gathered them all around him. "I want to start off by saying I'm very proud of every single one of you. You have all over the last few months given me everything you could to reach where we are and I love you all. I also want to apologise for what happened at the match. For those of you who don't know, I walked out of the match while we were winning 5-4 because the referee insulted Salamence and didn't think he'd done anything wrong. I will not tolerate disrespect to any single one of you and would walk out if it happened again. So, I am sorry we didn't win but I wanted to thank you all for your efforts. Today we're going to do a light training session before we take Mum, Nia and Sarah back to the plane as they leave today. Let's go guys."
A few hours later Ash was hugging them at the airport before they were due to leave. Hugging his mum, he told her he'd be back home in a few weeks and he'd see her soon. Giving Sarah a hug he thanked her for her support before he turned to Nia.
"You know you've still not visited my home yet" Ash said as he hugged her tightly.
"You've not been home for me to visit" Nia said smiling at him before she let him go.
"Oh, that's true" Ash said "I'll be home a lot over the next few months so don't be a stranger. Bye guys, have a safe flight."
Ash watched as they boarded the plane and sighed as they took off quickly becoming a speck in the sky.
"Why didn't you tell her?" Pikachu asked.
"I couldn't" Ash said shaking his head and looking at his first real friend "I wouldn't know where to begin."
"I love you is usually a good start" Pikachu said.
"Yeah" Ash said as he picked up Pikachu and placed him on his shoulders, looking out over the horizon to where the plane had long since disappeared "I love you, Nia."