Traveler

by The Straight Elf

Ash Ketchum has been determined to become the best since he was a toddler. He has his eyes set on a charmander, but a twist of fate led him to the humble Nidoran. Note: Mix between anime and the games.

12. Chapter 12: The Tournament

Well, here's the next chapter. But I realized that I was a little off with my wording last chapter. The Indigo League tournament is called the Conference in my story. The one in this chapter is just a tournament. We've still got a few chapters until the Conference. Sorry for not being clear.

Additionally, I'd like to thank MafiaMello, Corpj123, psychoyoshi79, Garm88, Draton, Find Pie, ShinObi87 and Crisscrossanime for submitting their OCs. Sorry if yours didn't get picked, but I felt that these were the ones that fit in best with the tournament. I'll be referencing a few of the ones that didn't get picked, though.

Right now, Ash was walking toward the Pokemon Center. He'd checked out and gotten his pack. It was time to go home.

Ash ended up sticking around Saffron for another three days. All of the pokemon that had participated in the fight had taken heavy injuries. Even Tangela had been unable to battle for more than a day, even after a heavy dose of potions.

Infernus and Torrent had worse injuries than Tangela, however. Torrent had been subjected to a full power hyper beam from Alakazam, which had done quite a number on him. His armor was still slightly frail on his chest, although he was able to fight again. Infernus was simply bruised all over his body, although his tough body and incredible rate of healing ensured he was ready to fight after a single day.

It only took two days for his friends to be well enough to fight again, but he had decided to stick around one last day. He needed to get Nidorino back into battling. His friend was almost back to his full strength, but he was still a little slow and lacked the endurance he'd had before being mauled.

Fortunately, Saffron had plenty of trainers to battle. Most were of average ability and were easily defeated by Nidorino's strength and experience, but a few proved tough enough to pose a real threat. That's when Ash called Nidorino back in and let out Infernus or Dazed. Infernus couldn't go more than a day without a fight and Dazed was one of his only pokemon that hadn't sustained a serious injury from Sabrina.

Nidorino just needed a few more days of training before Ash could use him seriously again. Ash hoped that he'd be ready in time to face Giovanni. He would like nothing more than to defeat the last and greatest gym leader of Kanto with his starter by his side.

A grin split his face as he thought of Giovanni. He knew he wasn't quite ready for the Earth Gym, but he was getting close. Just a week or two of training and he knew he'd be ready to at least attempt to battle Giovanni. Defeating Sabrina had given him more confidence in his abilities, at least in regards to the powerful gym leaders.

But right now he needed to call Professor Oak and get him to send Alakazam over. Dazed had improved a bit on her endurance in regards to teleportation, but she would never be able to teleport him long distances. It just wasn't what the drowzee line was built for.

Normally he would have just called Professor Oak on his PokeNav, but thousands of magnemite and magneton had been passing through the city and suburbs in huge swarms. The electromagnetic waves they produced were disrupting almost all of the signals to and from Saffron. Only places with specially prepared facilities such as Pokemon Centers could actually get calls out.

Ash was a little annoyed at his bad luck, but knew he shouldn't have been surprised. Magnemite and magneton swarms passed through cities like Saffron every month or so. They were attracted to the vast amounts of electricity being produced, although they usually passed by for easier sources such as power plants specifically set up to feed them.

Of course, Saffron had it easier than most cities. Sabrina and her psychics were able to scramble their minds and give them a compulsion to leave. It generally worked well from what he heard.

But he'd heard that something was off about this most recent swarm of the creatures. Normally they drifted aimlessly, seeking any possible source of electricity. They tended to be slow and lazy since they normally didn't have much power to feed on. Right now they were energized, ceaselessly following some source that humans couldn't detect. Ash had heard that electabuzz and elekid herds were following it as well.

It was worrying, but they weren't hurting anybody. The League was keeping an eye on it from what he'd heard, but didn't disrupt anything. They didn't want to accidentally hurt pokemon, after all.

He'd given thought to catching one of the electric-types as they drifted through Saffron, but it was much too risky. They were generally nonthreatening and extremely passive, friendly, even, but if he threatened one of their swarm they would attack. It wouldn't end well for him. The same with electabuzz, although they had much worse tempers. They were much like magmar in that way.

He stepped into the video phone room, passing several other trainers. Most had pleased smiles on their faces, as though they had just spoken to their loved ones after years away from them.

Such a statement probably wasn't so far from the truth. A year would be an exaggeration, but it wasn't uncommon for trainers to stay in the wild for weeks without contact with the outside world. They might run into small towns and villages along the way, but those out of the way places usually didn't have video phones.

Ash glanced around the massive room. Although the Saffron Pokemon Center was exceptionally large, it was still filled to the brim with trainers. More and more were beginning to stop and train in and around cities now that they'd gotten their badges and didn't have to travel all the time, so the relatively empty ones he'd seen throughout his earlier journey were slowly filling up.

Even though there were more than twenty video phones available, Ash still had to wait for someone to get off of theirs. He tapped his foot impatiently as the call dragged on and on. Another trainer, a teenager much taller than him, tried to skip in front of him, but a glare from Ash and a tap to Nidorino, who was sitting beside his feet, made the trainer walk away with a disgruntled look on his face.

He smiled slightly at that. Even injured and weakened, Nidorino was still so obviously tough that not that many trainers would want to mess with him. Not many trainers battled as much as Ash did, and Nidorino had taken part in a good chunk of those fights. Plus the nasty, thick scars left by Umbreon's sharp fangs showed just how dangerous Nidorino could be.

Ash idly patted his friend on the head, eliciting a happy grunt from Nidorino. He started talking to his friend, not really caring what the other trainers thought. Most were talking to their own pokemon anyways, although three or four of the dozens of trainers waiting to get on the video phone were eying them with distaste.

"So, how do you think Seeker's doing?" He asked, glancing down at his friend. Nidorino grunted and looked up at him. "I'm hoping she's healed up well. I'd like to take her with us to Mt. Moon."

Nidorino nodded and grunted excitedly at the mention of Mt. Moon. His ears perked up and he butted his head into Ash's leg. Ash winced and rubbed the lightly aching spot but grinned down at his friend.

"Yeah, yeah. We'll go there once we've beaten Giovanni. I think I'm going to get another circuit of the gyms done before the Conference. I'll need the practice."

The poison-type grunted his understanding. Ash kept on talking for a few minutes, heedless of anyone around him. He just wanted to pass the time until he could finally talk to Professor Oak.

Ash was suddenly torn away from his one-sided conversation with Nidorino.

"I'm done. You can stop talking to your rodent now." A voice sneered. Ash glanced up in surprise and scowled as a boy about his age with long purple hair and cold, serious black eyes pushed past him. He glared at the boy's back for a few moments before continuing up to the video phone. The trainer had a surprisingly adult voice for one so young.

Nidorino growled menacingly at the boy as he walked away, but loyally followed Ash a few moments later. Ash quickly typed in Professor Oak's number. The screen flickered to life and showed Oak's work station just a few moments later.

"Hey, Professor Oak!" Ash greeted with a grin. Oak, who was tinkering with that same purple pokeball, quickly put it out of Ash's sight and snapped his attention to the trainer. He smiled at Ash and returned his greeting.

"How did your battle go, Ash?" Professor Oak inquired, curiosity gleaming in his aged black eyes. "I had expected to hear from you the same day you left Celadon."

Ash grinned widely enough to cause a little pain in his cheeks. "I won!" He exclaimed. Ash sobered up a moment later, although he still had a huge smile on his face. "I was going to call you and my mother that day, but a swarm of magnemite has been passing by."

Professor Oak hummed in understanding. "Ah, that makes sense. I must confess that I haven't been paying attention to national events at the moment. I've been too wrapped up in my research."

"What're you researching?"

"Oh, this and that." Oak said vaguely, waving his hand through the air to dismiss the question. "Nothing that would really interest you. It's much more interesting to old men who haven't been outside of a musty old lab for a decade or so."

Ash couldn't hold back his smile at that. "And who would that be? Definitely not you, Professor."

A smile tugged at Oak's lips. "I suppose not. I'm not quite that old. Not yet, anyways." He leaned forward on his desk. "You wouldn't have heard of any of these men. They're just researchers for Silph. They're quite high up on the ladder, but aren't exactly in the public eye."

"Oh." Ash replied with a nod. He shook his head. "By the way, could you have Alakazam teleport to the First Pokemon Center of Saffron City?"

"Of course." Oak said. He fiddled around with a remote sitting on his desk and pressed a large, red button. At Ash's questioning look he explained. "The button activates an alarm in Alakazam's basement. It saves me quite a bit of time."

Ash nodded his understanding. He saw Alakazam teleport directly behind Professor Oak and tap him on the shoulder with one of her dull claws.

"Ah, there you are." Oak said pleasantly. "Could you teleport to the First Pokemon Center at Saffron? Ash needs you to bring him back to Pallet."

Alakazam sighed and rolled her eyes. Her small moustache twitched as she crossed her spoons and vanished. Oak smiled fondly after her for a few moments before turning back to Ash.

"Well, you should get leave now. Alakazam is waiting."

"Thanks, Professor." Ash grinned. A second later he cut off the monitor. He glanced at it for another few moments before shaking his head and walking away.

"You can go." He said to the next trainer in line. The tall, broad-shouldered man nodded and thanked him gruffly before stepping past him.

After that, Ash slipped through the crowd, although he paused to return Nidorino first. The crowd had grown much larger since he had first entered the room, which was making his friend antsy. Nidorino didn't like crowds. It was a natural instinct for Nidorino. They were the protectors of their herds. Being around a lot of unfamiliar faces could confuse them and make them a bit more aggressive than usual.

Ash made good time. The crowd wasn't too dense for him to slip through small gaps, so he didn't have much trouble. It still took a minute or so, but it was better than if he'd been bigger.

Still, he'd taken much too long for Alakazam. The psychic-type was standing out on the side of the street when he left the warm, comfortable atmosphere of the Pokemon Center. It was raining heavily, the dark clouds that had been hovering over the city casting a gloomy shadow on Saffron. The shadows made the ordinarily dull and colorless Saffron City even more lifeless.

Aside from the constant lances of lightning that lit the entire city for brief instants, there was little light. It was possible to see, but it was as dark as twilight.

In other words, Ash wouldn't mind leaving the city. It wasn't going to be a happy place for the next week or so.

"I'm ready." He said to Alakazam. Ash noticed people around him giving him odd looks, although a few seemed to see what he was talking to. Alakazam probably erased the image of her from most peoples' minds. Her kind attracted quite a bit of attention, after all, and it was best to stay incognito to keep Rockets away.

Not that any amount of Rockets would have an effect on Alakazam. She was exceptionally powerful, even amongst her kind, at least if the old videos Ash had seen of Professor Oak in his battling days were any indication. Alakazam was probably even stronger than Sabrina's, as crazy a thought as it was.

She nodded and crossed her spoons. Ash briefly blinked and found himself standing outside of Professor Oak's lab.

The weather was perfect. It was bright and sunny, but not too hot. There was a nice breeze and he could see dozens of pokemon playing and relaxing in the field.

Ash grinned. This was much better than Saffron. It was an incredible city, but it was just so lifeless. He much preferred the sun and wide open spaces than the compact, crowded city.

"Thanks." He said to Alakazam. She just rolled her sharp eyes before crossing her spoons again. A moment later she vanished. Ash shrugged and walked up to the lab. He knocked and waited quietly, although he took the time to release his friends. They deserved some time in the open.

"Hey, everybody." He greeted happily. Most of them called back or, in Infernus' case, nodded and crossed their arms. Tangela pulled him down for a brief hug, which Ash gladly returned. "We're at Pallet for a while. Just go wherever you want. I'll call you when I need you back."

Tangela tapped him on the forehead affectionately with one of his vines before waddling off. Ash assumed that he was going to the fields. The grass-type was a favorite of the younger pokemon. He always took the time to play with them and didn't mind their rough-housing.

Plume pecked him before shrieking her goodbye. She took off, kicking up a cloud of dust and tearing some of the grass from the ground. Ash coughed and wiped his face but watched her go with a smile. He didn't know what she did. The flying-type often flew to the forest, close enough to come if Ash needed her but far enough away for privacy.

Dazed didn't go anywhere for a few moments. She stared at Ash with her inscrutable eyes for a few moments and nodded to him, her eyes lighting up in a smile. Ash smiled back, although he wasn't sure what that was about. He didn't have time to inquire, however. A few moments after that Dazed vanished in a flicker of light, appearing by Tangela an instant later.

He would be lying if he said that he wasn't surprised by their friendship. Dazed was generally aloof from the rest of the team, although she spent some time with Nidorino. She was almost always around Tangela, however. Ash couldn't figure it out.

Torrent rumbled to him before floating away elegantly, his fins gently waving in the air. He was headed in the direction of the lake. The water-type had a liking for the water. It was where he was most powerful and he often sank to the bottom of the lake for hours on end.

Infernus snorted a bit of smoke at him and glanced around the area. His eyes lit up with his inner fire when he saw Arcanine lazing around with the growlithe puppies, however, and he stalked over to the great canine. Ash grinned. He couldn't wait to watch their fight. The two powerful fire-types had been testing each other in contests and feats of strength the entire time he was in Pallet last time. Infernus seemed determined to grow stronger than Arcanine, who, aside from Blaine's Magmar, was the only truly powerful fire-type he'd met.

Nidorino, of course, stayed by Ash's side. Ash idly scratched behind his friends ears, aware that Nidorino was staring at the nidoran herd. He knew that his friend felt compelled to join his own kind, but appreciated that Nidorino stayed with him. He was the best friend Ash had.

He stayed there for a bit longer before the door opened. Ash only had a moment to grin before he was wrapped up in a tight, crushing hug.

"Oh, Ash, I'm so glad to see you!" His mother gushed, tightening her grip on him. Ash coughed as the vice grip grew even tighter, although he made sure to hug his mother back. A few second later she let him go and smiled widely at him. "I heard about your match with Sabrina. I'm so proud of you!"

"Thanks, Mom." He said, still grinning happily. While things had gotten much better between he and his mom before he left for Celadon, it was still a bit tense. It looked like his mother had finally sorted everything out. That made his grin grow even wider. He'd been afraid that things would take weeks to return to normal. "How was Pallet while I was gone?"

His mother pulled him into the large home before she answered him. He listened with a small smile at his face as she chattered on. It was clear that she'd missed him. Ash could say the same about her.

"Oh, nothing too exciting." She began as they entered the house. "Professor Oak was busy most days. He told me that he's been working on something really important, but it's confidential."

Ash nodded. "Silph?"

She nodded. "That's it! Anyways, he's been busy, so I've been working at the restaurant a lot. There hasn't been much business. A lot of people have been here with Professor Oak this week. I guess he needs more help than usual. I'm actually catching up with him right now."

He nodded again. If Professor Oak was busy, then someone else would have to feed the pokemon and keep the lab running. It must be something extremely important if he was willing to bring most of his part-time assistants in.

But now he needed to ask about what was really important.

"How's Seeker doing?"

"She's doing wonderful!" His mother gushed. They'd just entered the kitchen. Professor Oak was sitting down at one of the tables with a newspaper. A cup of cold water sat next to his empty plate. "Seeker's been on a potion regimen for the last few days, but she got off of it yesterday." His mother said brightly.

She took a seat and motioned for Ash to sit down. He did and nodded a hello to Professor Oak, who returned it before returning to his newspaper. Professor Oak looked extremely stressed out and tired. Ash had detected hints of it during their call, but in person he could see the deep bags under his red eyes.

Ash turned back to his mom. Nidorino had curled up next to his leg. His mom hadn't seen him yet, so Nidorino was spared from being hugged and cuddled like he was a nidoran. The poison-type's side was leaning on Ash's foot, providing a comfortable pressure.

"And Bruiser?" He asked. Ash felt a little guilty about the fighting-type. He'd done a bad job of using him after sending him to the Corral. While he didn't want to split him up from Seeker, he wanted to use his friend some more. Bruiser had done well in the time they'd had together, even if he had a ways to go before he equaled the rest of the team.

"He's been carrying Seeker everywhere and stayed with her the entire time!" His mother crooned. Ash noticed that she was acting unusually perky, even for her. He wondered if she'd had coffee. "It's so adorable!"

Ash nodded, a small, genuine smile slipping onto his face. He could see that image very easily. Bruiser had appointed himself Seeker's protector, after all. It wasn't surprising that his devotion wouldn't have wavered. They were as close as any other members of his team.

"I'm quite impressed with you, you know." Oak said, speaking up for the first time. He'd put the newspaper down and had his glass of water in hand. "Very few trainers can defeat Sabrina. For you to have grown this strong in just a few months…it's amazing."

"Thanks. I'm actually amazed myself." Ash replied, leaning forward onto the table. Nidorino grunted softly in protest and rolled over onto his side, happily laying out on the cool tile floor. A thought entered his mind. "How are the others from Pallet Town doing?"

Oak's face lit up, some of the stress vanishing. "Gary just got the last necessary badge for the Conference! He's just got the Rainbow badge. Now he's going to challenge Koga."

Ash nodded, a frown on his face. He was surprised that Gary wasn't really challenging himself. Gary was more than strong enough to take on Koga. Alakazam was quite powerful, if not the monster that Sabrina's was. It just didn't make sense to him.

"I haven't had much contact with Jonathan or Amelia." Oak admitted, looking a little embarrassed. He scratched the back of his neck and averted his eyes for a moment. It was odd on the distinguished Professor. "The last time they called in was after they beat Erika."

He sighed dejectedly. Ash had hoped that Oak would have more concrete information on his former travelling partners. Now that he had been on his own he probably wouldn't want to travel with them again – he just felt closer to his pokemon this way, and even if he was friends with them he'd felt like a third wheel in their duo – but he still wanted to know how they were doing.

"They haven't called me, but I can tell you what pokemon they have." Oak told him. Ash perked up at that. He wanted to battle them whenever he saw them, and knowing what pokemon they had would do a good job of preparing him for that. It would be nice to know how far they'd come as well.

"Let's see…" Oak began, staring thoughtfully into space. His eyes suddenly brightened and he snapped his fingers. "Jonathan has a charmeleon, rhyhorn, kingler, magnemite, and gyarados. Amelia has an ivysaur, raticate, tentacruel, dewgong, and kangaskhan."

Ash nodded. It looked like they'd progressed quite a bit, although he had no way of knowing how strong they actually were. He'd almost forgotten about Jonathan's gyarados. That was probably the one he'd seen escaping the wreckage of the ship. He was actually looking forward to seeing it in action. Gyarados were powerful pokemon, as Captain Stewart's gyarados had proved more than once, and he wanted to see how Jonathan had raised it.

Of course, he knew that Torrent would have fun that battle. Not many water-types could even hope to challenge a kingdra, but gyarados were amongst that tiny number. It would be amazing, especially if Jonathan was capable of controlling the great sea serpent.

His mother finally spoke up. "Ash, where are you heading to after this? I know you aren't going to stay here long."

Ash smiled guiltily at her. "I'm going to head to Viridian to take on Giovanni eventually. But I know I'm not ready yet. I need to train some more."

His mom flinched and turned pale a bit at the mention of the Viridian gym. Ash looked at her oddly but didn't press the issue. If his mom wanted to tell him something, she would. That meant it was either very private or something that she wanted to forget.

Still, for her to react so badly at the mention of Giovanni was odd. It made Ash curious. Hopefully she would tell him eventually.

"I've told you before that Giovanni will be a brutal battle." Professor Oak interjected hastily. "I'm glad to see you understand that. Gary's wanted to battle him for a while now." The older man sighed, rubbing his temples. "He doesn't seem to understand just how dangerous Giovanni is. The man is far more skilled than all gym leaders but Sabrina and Blaine."

Ash rolled his eyes. Gary was smart. He should have more common sense than to even think about challenging Giovanni yet.

"How much longer do you think I should train before taking him on?" Ash questioned. Professor Oak knew enough about his abilities and his team to make an accurate guess. He seemed to know Giovanni pretty well, as well as his team.

"That's a good question." Oak muttered, scratching his chin. "Torrent will be highly effective against most of Giovanni's pokemon, but he will eventually sacrifice one to defeat it. Kingdra can levitate to avoid ground-type moves and have a type advantage. He uses primarily rock and ground-types. Still, the rest of your pokemon won't be particularly effective."

Ash paid close attention to the Professor. Although he didn't know about many of his battling achievements since the Professor was tight-lipped about them, he knew that Oak had been incredibly powerful back when he was a trainer.

The Arcanine that could easily keep hundreds of pokemon in check while still having time to play and the Alakazam that could teleport half-way across the country without too much trouble was testament to that. And he wouldn't even mention the Dragonite, who rarely made an appearance at the Corral. Ash didn't even know where it lived.

"Pidgeot wouldn't be able to do much damage." Oak continued. "She's too weak offensively and defensively. She just couldn't do the damage required. Nidorino will be back to snuff soon, but I doubt he'll be capable of taking on Giovanni's Nidoking or Nidoqueen."

Nidorino growled from beneath the table, clearly offended. The vibrations were powerful enough to make Ash's leg tingle a bit. Ash just rolled his eyes and leaned down to scratch behind Nidorino's leathery ears, careful to avoid the poisonous spines. His friend calmed down, appeased by the action.

His mother's eyes lit up and she glanced underneath the table. Ash grinned when she leaned down and began to pat Nidorino carefully, knowing enough about the breed to avoid the locations of the spines. Judging from Nidorino's sudden relaxation, he didn't mind the attention too much.

Oak had a small smile on his face before he continued. "Anyways, Magmar is one of your most powerful pokemon, but he isn't cut out for battling Giovanni. He'd do some damage thanks to his rather aggressive temperament, but not enough. Hypno would do well against both of the Nidos, but Giovanni knows how to deal with type disadvantages. He isn't averse to using pokemon outside of his favored types."

Ash nodded slowly, making sure to remember every word. He wanted to know what to expect, even if it wasn't particularly descriptive.

"Tangela, however, would be your best bet. They are quite rare amongst trainers and can be quite effective against Giovanni. But I'd suggest you train Bruiser." Oak said with a serious expression. "He will be effective if Giovanni pulls out one of his most powerful pokemon, as well as the golem and rhydon he commonly uses. You also need to train Bruiser. Machoke need an outlet for their strength, and he's not finding it here."

He averted his eyes from the Professor's stern expression. Ash was aware that he'd neglected Bruiser. It didn't make him particularly happy, after all. He knew that he needed to do something about it.

"I'll make sure to start training him again." Ash replied awkwardly. "I've just been distracted lately."

"It's fine." Oak told him, dropping some of his sternness. "I understand that you've been through a lot lately. Just do your best to take care of him in the future. Machoke can be dangerous if left alone for too long."

Ash nodded seriously. Machoke could be aggressive and antsy if they felt bored or lax. With the immense power they packed even with their power save belts on, they could be devastating.

"Enough of this talk." His mother spoke up. She was smiling, although it was a bit strained. "Ash, you must be starving. I'll get you something to eat."

He started to say something, but when his mother instantly started fixing him some food, he just quieted down. Ash wasn't really hungry since he'd had a huge breakfast at the Pokemon Center, but shrugged that concern away. It wasn't like he was going to reject food.

Besides, he would be training hard for the next few days. He should probably get as much food in as he could.

XX

"Hey, guys!" Ash exclaimed as he walked into the guest room. His mom had converted it into a room for Bruiser and Seeker. Seeker was hanging up on a high beam, hissing and chattering to Bruiser. The hulking fighting-type was doing push-ups on a bare section of the floor, his thick, reptilian skin taut and unyielding as he performed the exercise.

The effects of his words were immediate. Seeker chattered excitedly and fell from her beam. Ash worried for a brief moment before she caught herself and fluttered over to him. He smiled softly and scratched her behind her sensitive ears, laughing as she leaned into his touch. Her small hooks held onto his shoulder as she nuzzled at his cheek.

"I missed you too, Seeker." He laughed. Ash kept on scratching her ears as he looked over at Bruiser. The powerful reptilian fighter had easily pulled himself up from his exercises, showing no visible strain from the workout. Bruiser smiled and walked over to him. "You too, Bruiser. How's it going?"

Bruiser grunted, a deep noise that Ash knew to be his sign of approval, and beat his leathery chest with a powerful fist. Ash knew that was what his friend did when he was happy.

"Good, good. How're you healing up?" He asked concernedly, twisting his head as far as he could to see Seeker. She nudged him with her head and squeaked excitedly, pulling up to expose her front.

Ash examined the spot carefully. The spot that had been a wide, gaping wound when Golduck attacked her had completely healed over. It was raised just a bit more than the rest of her skin. At the very edge of the wide, hairless scar was the beginning of light, leathery skin. After that her soft blue fur started up again, a little sparse around the massive scar, but still there.

Seeker pulled herself back down. She steadied herself on Ash's shoulder and squeaked again. Bruiser crossed his arms and watched the two with his version of a smile, although his beady eyes were mostly focused on Seeker.

"Thank you so much." He whispered, gently stroking the top of her head. Seeker chattered happily and squeaked again. "I know I never got to really thank you. You were barely conscious last time."

The zubat squeaked happily and leaned into his touch. She seemed quite happy, causing Ash to smile. "Anyways, I just wanted to thank you. You were so brave."

Seeker buried her head underneath one of her purple wings, drawing a smile from Ash. "You were. I've never seen anything braver."

He laughed quietly as Seeker did her best to hide from his praise. Ash shook his head in amusement and looked over to Bruiser, his smile turning upside down. "Bruiser, I'd just like to thank you for helping her so much. You're a great friend to her, and I couldn't have asked for anyone better to protect her."

Bruiser puffed out his chest and beat it again, obviously proud at the compliment.

Ash lowered his head a bit and stole a glance at Seeker. She was still hiding from her in embarrassment, although lightly rubbing circles on her soft blue back was getting her to squeak in happiness.

"But I'd also like to apologize to you." He said seriously, meeting Bruiser's eyes. The fighting-type started at that, looking at Ash with evident surprise. "I've been a bad trainer to you. I broke my promise to bring you back as soon as I could. I sent you here just so I could try to train Golduck." Ash spat, fury bubbling to the surface as he saw Seeker's tiny form shiver and flinch at the name.

He took a few breaths, noting that Bruiser did the same. When he was calm enough, Ash continued. "I've been a bad trainer to you. But I promise I'll do better from here on out. You and Seeker are just as important as the rest of my team."

Ash glanced away, worried that he might have reawakened any dormant anger Bruiser felt. He wouldn't blame the fighting-type.

So he felt the urge to flinch when a strong, powerful hand clenched his shoulder, although not tightly enough to bruise. It was still uncomfortable, but a concerned grunt brought his eyes back to Bruiser. The machoke was looking at him with eyes glimmering with a strange emotion.

Now that Ash was looking at him, Bruiser let go of his shoulder. He stood up tall, showing off his impressive height, and pointed at Ash. A moment later he slammed his fist into his chest, producing an audible thud. Bruiser stared at Ash intently before bowing his head.

Ash smiled unsteadily and repeated the action, although his was much less impressive. Eleven-year-old muscles were much weaker than Bruiser's iron-hard muscles, after all.

Bruiser's bowed head snapped up, eyes looking at Ash and his bowed head in confusion. A wide grin split his reptilian face and he carefully clenched Ash's shoulder in respect. It was a very human gesture.

He smiled back at his friend and did the same. Seeker climbed off of his shoulder and onto his back, clicking and using her echolocation in an attempt to understand what was going on. She seemed to know enough to avoid interfering, and was as quiet as could be.

When Bruiser let go, Ash looked at his friend. There wasn't any bitterness or annoyance in his small, beady eyes. There was nothing but friendliness and that same glimmer from before. Ash couldn't put a hand on it.

But he did know one thing. He was forgiven. And that meant that it was time to start making his absence up to his friend.

"So, Bruiser are you ready to start training? I want to use you in the next gym." Ash said with a smile. Bruiser grinned widely, his eyes shining with happiness. It was then that Ash realized that he'd never used the fighting-type in a gym battle. He felt a brief flash of guilt before he pushed it away.

It was time to get down to business.

XX

"Come on, I know you can do it!" Ash said encouragingly. His pokedex was in hand, set to the entry on dragon pulse. It described the best way to teach the attack quite well, and gave him several visual examples from different pokemon as a sort of guide.

Torrent rumbled angrily, a little frustrated. He nodded though and focused again.

Ash knew that the lack of progress with dragon pulse was annoying Torrent to no end. His friend had never had any trouble learning moves before. He had always been the one who understood them the quickest, in fact.

But Ash knew what really made Torrent angry was that he had evolved now. Even with all of the power at his disposal, Torrent was feeling as though he wasn't strong enough.

He knew that Torrent could do it, though. His friend was making excellent progress. The move was difficult to learn, as with all dragon-type moves, but Torrent almost had it down. It was only a matter of time. Probably within the next few hours, if things kept progressing. Torrent could make the powerful energy ball and even launch it, but before it could reach its target it would disappear into the air.

Torrent reared his elegant head back and poured his power into the formation of the ball. Light green energy formed in small particles in front of his snout and quickly coalesced into a bright ball of swirling energy. It was almost jade in its coloration, although a bright white core shined at the center.

When it had grown to be almost half as large as Torrent himself, the dragon-type turned his head towards the absolutely massive cliff they'd been using as target practice. He closed his eyes and used his power to shoot the massive sphere of energy straight into the cliff side.

At least that's what was supposed to happen. Instead, the energy sphere exploded half-way there, releasing a huge amount of energy into the area in the form of a massive explosion. Ash flinched, but Torrent quickly flew in front of him and blocked most of the explosion. Ash was still sent stumbling back a few steps, but Nidorino quickly steadied him.

"Thanks, Torrent." Ash said with a strained grin. Torrent rumbled at him and puffed out his powerful chest, clearly pleased with himself. "Say, you want to take a break for a minute?"

Torrent happily accepted the break with a grateful nod. He levitated next to Ash and watched curiously as Ash sat down and glanced at his pokedex screen.

He just couldn't get why Torrent wasn't able to master the move. This accident proved that he was close, since it actually exploded with the full force of the attack instead of fizzling out, but Torrent still had a ways to go. Ash was doing everything he could to help, but dragon pulse was living up to its reputation in regards to difficulty.

Maybe it was because he'd never come across a pokemon that knew dragon pulse. For every other move he'd taught his friends, he and his pokemon had personal experience with. Dragon pulse was an unknown aside from the pokedex entries.

Ash sighed and took a sip of his water bottle. It was quite hot today. He'd known it was the end of summer, but the temperatures had been mild so far. Today seemed to be the weather's retribution for its lenience.

They were several miles away from Pallet, deep in one of the massive forests that entombed the small town. There were a lot of boulders, trees, and huge, sheer cliffs for his friends to test their moves on and there weren't many pokemon about.

Pallet and the surrounding areas were home to the weakest pokemon in Kanto for a reason. Its mild climate and vast natural resources, mostly untouched by humans, made it a relatively safe place for young pokemon to grow up and learn. They were mostly from common, migratory pokemon like flying-types or raticate, but a few rarer breeds like pikachu also bred here.

During spring and mating season, it was easy to find an egg or two almost anywhere one looked, although angry parents were usually close behind. He and Gary had learned that lesson well when they'd tried to take an egg they found home. Two large, furious raticate managed to run them off before they could make off with their prize, though.

He smiled at the memories. It was almost a shame that most of the young pokemon were leaving the area now that summer was ending. While it made training easier and less tedious since he didn't have to worry about destroying their homes, Ash was sure that Tangela would have enjoyed playing with them. Come to think of it, Seeker would as well, although not until it was dark.

Ash's lips curled up at that. Bruiser and Seeker were training as well. Well, Bruiser was. Seeker was just staying and socializing with the rest of the team. She didn't like fighting – it scared her. After the things she'd been through, Ash couldn't blame her. If she didn't want to fight, he wouldn't be the one to force it.

He'd have to go around and check on the rest soon. It wouldn't be that hard to find his scattered friends. Plume was within earshot and she could guide him to the others easily.

Bruiser and Infernus had been sparring. Infernus was working on his own close combat skills. While he had plenty of power and speed behind his strikes, he was undisciplined. Ash didn't want him abandoning his vicious, brutal style, but he would like Bruiser to teach Infernus how to deflect blows without taking their full force and how to be more efficient.

For Bruiser it served to get him used to fighting. Ash was sure that he'd had a few spars with other pokemon at the Corral, but he wasn't sure how many were up to par with his own pokemon. He wanted Bruiser as strong as he could be before taking on Giovanni.

The rest of his team were working on the same things they had when they were at Celadon. All of them needed some work. They were much closer to performing the powerful moves Ash knew they were capable of, but they still had a while to go.

Plume was so close to perfecting air slash. Ash was going to be helping her after he'd checked on everyone and Torrent was done for the day.

Tangela was just having fun. Ash had instructed him to work on moving around on his vines. It gave him much better mobility and greatly improved the speed in which he got around. He'd need that to avoid any nasty tricks Giovanni pulled. Fortunately, Tangela was having quite a bit of fun with it. Over the next few days Ash would have him work on power whip. It would give him a bit more power behind his attacks.

Aside from his mobility training, Ash wanted to start using Tangela more often in battles. The grass-type was on the cusp of evolution. He was displaying all of the signs the pokedex said to watch out for: lengthening vines, more energy, and even faster vine growth.

Infernus still had to perfect fire blast. The fire-type had almost mastered the move, but it was still prone to exploding at random times. Ash suspected that Infernus only had to devote another day or two to learning it before it would be under his control.

Dazed was working on a technique Ash called Flurry. It worked by Dazed producing a dozen tiny, weak shadow balls and hurling them at the opponent, or even multiple targets. While the shadow balls were weak, they could do quite a bit of damage and were able to distract an opponent. It was difficult and energy-consuming for another psychic to block all of the shadow balls, so Ash hoped it would help them out in battle.

Nidorino was just following Ash around and getting used to the rough terrain. He was still a little slow, although Ash was thinking that he would evolve Nidorino within the next two days. His injuries were no longer severe enough that evolution would harm him. Now it would just heal him perfectly.

But he didn't think that Nidorino was ready quite yet. There were still a few mottled bruises on his hide, although they were faded and barely visible. Ash was going to wait until they were completely gone to give Nidorino the shard.

It wasn't as if he didn't want to evolve Nidorino. He'd been waiting for this moment for months, as had Nidorino. He just wanted his friend to be safe above all else.

A deep, concerned rumble from Torrent snapped him from his thoughts. Ash glanced up at the concerned visage of his friend and stood up, causing Nidorino to do the same.

"Sorry, Torrent." He said with a shake of his head. "I was just thinking. Are you ready to start up again?"

Torrent nodded, his scarlet eyes blazing with determination. Ash grinned. "Alright. Do it again. Take your time."

The dragon-type rumbled his understanding and repeated the process. When the energy ball had grown to gargantuan proportions, Ash began to get a little worried. He wasn't sure if his friend was capable of controlling that much power yet.

But Torrent continued to fuel it until it was almost as large as he was. Torrent's eyes shone with glee as he turned his head and fired the massive dragon pulse towards the rocky cliff.

Ash honestly thought that this was it. Torrent had finally perfected the attack through his own iron will and determination to succeed.

Then, a little more than half-way, the dragon pulse exploded in a flash of bright green light. Ash turned his face away from the heat, although he was shielded from the explosion by Torrent's nearly invincible body. He opened his eyes and nodded thankfully at his friend before staring at the cliff face.

The explosion hadn't done much damage, but it had gouged out a large chunk of the rugged stone and pulled it to the ground. Loose rock around it began to fall out as well, more and more stone and dirt falling and kicking up a huge cloud of dust.

Torrent levitated protectively in front of Ash and Nidorino, preparing to blow the rubble away if necessary. Fortunately, it never came to that. The rock slide ended as soon as it began, harming nothing and only leaving a huge pile of rubble and torn rock at the base of the cliff, along with a huge dust cloud.

And then the three froze. Nidorino's ears twitched and Torrent's eyes glinted with something Ash couldn't quite make out through the thick haze of dust. Ash frowned when he heard a deep, annoyed roar flash out over the landscape, loud enough to be heard all throughout the forest.

He thought it seemed quite familiar for some reason. Ash just couldn't place his finger on where he'd heard it before. What he did suspect was that they'd annoyed something very large and very powerful with the explosion and resulting rock slide.

"Get ready." He warned. "I'll call Plume if you two can't handle whatever this is."

His friends didn't respond. Torrent simply took up a defensive position in front of him and prepared to unleash the fullest extent of his wrath and power should the newcomer be a threat. Nidorino flanked Torrent, a current of electricity running up his horn and sparking out in a brilliant, incandescent arc.

The roar grew louder, a constant, powerful rumble that dwarfed that of Torrent's. The deep, intimidating timbre of Torrent was like the crash of the ocean: powerful, but it was never constant. This was the earth crashing against itself, a constant boom of thunder cracking through the air.

And then he saw a tan blur coming from high in the air before the ground shattered beneath the newcomer, kicking up an explosion of dust and wind that knocked Ash onto his backside. He barely had time to tell his friends to hold themselves back before the force of the impact hit and stunned him, rendering him useless for a few seconds.

He groaned as he pulled himself up, but he never let his eyes stray from the cloud of dust. Whatever had just slammed into the ground with enough force to splinter the earth hadn't attacked yet, but he wasn't about to be careless. Anything with that much power behind it had to be a monster, and considering that it was capable of flying it was probably a dragon-type.

When the dust cleared, all of the tension intensified.

A massive dragonite, large enough to match the cornerstone of Lance's team, stood before him. Its scales were twice as large as his hand and blanketed its huge body in a thick armor, yet it was still sleek and aerodynamic enough to let it break the sound barrier. Everything that was regal about Lance's Dragonite spoke true for this one as well, but the numerous scars and dents on its scales bespoke of even more battles against unspeakably powerful foes.

Almost anyone else would have been terrified of the beast. Its eyes were narrowed in annoyance, red from lack of sleep. The normally friendly, upturned mouth of a dragonite was flipped into a frown. The antennae that would allow it to detect air currents and utilize powerful electric-type attacks were rigid and sparking.

But he just grinned. He knew this Dragonite. It belonged to Professor Oak, his prime enforcer when it came to dealing with unruly pokemon around Pallet Town and in the Corral. Ash knew that Dragonite lived somewhere around Pallet, but he hadn't known it was in this area.

"Dragonite!" He exclaimed, recognizing the powerful creature. Ash didn't know it as well as he did Arcanine since it normally rested and lived far from the Corral, but he'd seen the dragon enough to recognize it. "It's me, Ash!"

Dragonite cocked his large head at Ash in confusion and stared at him carefully, some of the aggression leaving his bulky form. It took him a moment, but his eyes sparked with recognition. At that his aggression vanished, although Dragonite was still annoyed.

"I'm sorry for the noise." Ash apologized, trying to appease the annoyed creature. "Did we disturb you?"

The dragon-type nodded, watching Ash intently with his sharp eyes. Ash had walked in front of Torrent, much to the annoyance of the kingdra and Nidorino.

"If I'd known you were around here I would have found somewhere else to train." Ash told the bulky dragon-type. He pointed at Torrent. "Torrent's just trying to learn dragon pulse, and I didn't want to destroy any trees. I'd thought the cliff was tough enough to stand up to it."

Dragonite's eyes lit up when Ash pointed to Torrent. He nodded his understanding to Ash and stared intently at Torrent, measuring the water-type up. It was a tense affair for a few seconds since neither Ash nor his friends could decipher Dragonite's emotions, but it leveled off.

The old dragon seemed to have found Torrent acceptable. He roared in a friendly manner to Torrent, waving one of his brutally powerful arms at the water-type. Torrent rumbled back, dipping his head respectfully to the more powerful pokemon.

Ash stepped back when Dragonite shooed him away. He and Nidorino watched carefully as Dragonite gracefully walked over next to Torrent and motioned for Ash's friend to watch carefully. Dragonite gave a low roar to Torrent, not particularly powerful for the dragon-type but still holding enough energy to make the earth vibrate.

Torrent rumbled something in return, causing Dragonite to nod. He looked over at the mass of rubble and gouged out chunks of stone and tensed up. Ash watched in awe as a massively powerful ball of green, glowing light formed in front of Dragonite. It was as large as Torrent's last, disastrous attempt at dragon pulse and took less than a second to form.

He suspected that Dragonite could easily make one several degrees more powerful. Dragonite didn't seem to be strained at all by the beginning stage of dragon pulse.

Dragonite held it for a while, grunting at Torrent quickly. Ash couldn't hear any sign of effort in his grunts. He seemed more bored than anything else, although interested in helping Torrent.

And then he fired it.

The dragon pulse was obviously more powerful than Torrent's. When it was released a shockwave of air and force blasted outwards, displacing air and kicking up a small cloud of dust. Despite the haze, Ash could easily make out the vibrant ball of energy as it flashed at the immense pile of rubble.

It exploded in a supernova of green light and heat. Ash had to shy away from the heat, Torrent too entranced by the work of the masterful Dragonite to levitate in front of him. The experience wasn't too bad, although Ash's skin tingled for a while and he felt a light covering of dust on his exposed skin.

That wasn't important though. What did matter was that Dragonite was grunting some more instructions to Torrent, waving around with his large arms to emphasize his points.

Ash just watched Dragonite for the remainder of the time. Dragonite left relatively quickly, just three minutes or so after he began teaching Torrent. In that time he used dragon pulse twice more, reducing what little remained of the pile of rubble into fine powder and a few odd chunks of ravaged stone.

Dragonite waved them goodbye before he launched himself away, knocking Ash onto his back and forcing Torrent and Nidorino back a few inches. He vanished in just a few seconds, becoming a tiny dot high in the sky by the time Ash was able to look up.

He glanced around the area. Dragonite had left a mess. Dirt covered everything in a fine layer. The earth had been cracked and caved in underneath Dragonite's pressure, unable to withstand the force of his landing. The huge chunks of stone and earth that had fallen from the cliff were reduced to dust.

Even if he had left a mess, it was all worth it.

"Torrent, do you think you've got this?" Ash asked. It was always easier for his friends to learn new moves after they'd actually seen them in action. Torrent was always quite intuitive when it came to learning anyways, so with an example he should be able to complete his learning. He had mostly mastered dragon pulse anyways. This was just the last push.

Torrent nodded, determination blazing in his eyes again. Ash held his breath as his friend levitated into a position where he could safely fire the attack. His eyes were intent on the large, scaled form of his friend.

A small, intense ball of soft green light formed in front of Torrent's mouth, a core of white energy providing the support. Ash nodded at that, pleased. Torrent wasn't succumbing to his annoyance and trying to overcompensate with one of the huge spheres. He was taking it easy.

His friend focused intently for another second before firing the ball at the cliff.

It flashed towards the sheer stone wall at an incredible speed, glowing brightly and providing the light of a second, miniature sun. Ash watched, a wide grin slowly growing on his dirty face.

And then it fizzled out, just a few feet away from the cliff.

Ash sighed, but patted Torrent's side in consolation. He was close, so close.

But it was progress.

"Again." He ordered. "You've almost got it."

Torrent puffed his chest out and fired another dragon pulse, but met with a similar result. But it got closer. Ash noticed that it was a bit more intense as well, carrying more power behind it.

"Again."

Torrent gladly carried out the attack again, refusing to succumb to his annoyance. It failed again, but got ever closer to the target.

They ended up performing the attack countless times. Every time Torrent got closer and closer to his goal, but something would go wrong. The dragon pulse would weaken and vanish at the last second or lose too much strength. Sometimes it would actually hit but would lose most of its power.

Nearly an hour later, Ash sighed and leaned back against the tree. He was growing weary of this. He would like nothing more than to take a break and go check on his other friends. But he had a responsibility to Torrent. His friend was going crazy trying to perfect this technique, and he wouldn't let him do it alone. The trainer refused to give up, just like Torrent.

"One more time." He said groggily. Nidorino had curled up by his foot a while ago, bored and exhausted. They had walked around and trekked over quite a bit of rugged landscape to get here. Ash wasn't surprised that Nidorino was so tired. Aside from the remnants of his injuries, his species were meant for open plains and grasslands, not a forest.

Torrent rumbled his agreement. Despite his enthusiasm and growing skill with dragon pulse, Ash knew that his constant failures were grating on his nerves and grinding his patience into nothingness. Ash did his best to be encouraging, but his own weariness wasn't helping any more.

This time, though, there was something different. The sphere of green energy formed faster, glowed a bit brighter, burned more intensely.

It was as though Torrent had poured all of his remaining effort and power into this one attack.

The dragon pulse was released, leaving a trail of green shimmers in its wake. It slammed into the cliff without losing any of its energy, releasing its power in the form of a massive explosion.

Ash blinked and stared in awe at the huge gouge Torrent's dragon pulse had ripped in the cliff. Torrent froze and stared as well, amazed that he had finally done it. Nidorino leapt up in surprise at the sound of the explosion and scanned the area carefully.

And then Ash ran over to Torrent, jumping in excitement and patting him heavily, shouting his congratulations.

"You did great, Torrent!" He yelled excitedly, too excited to care about his volume. Torrent didn't seem to mind either. His scaled body was shaking in excitement, still only because Ash was patting him. "I knew you could do it! You just needed a teacher."

Torrent rumbled in agreement and happiness and leaned his regal head into Ash's hand. Ash laughed and patted him again.

Nidorino joined in on the celebration as well, just as excited to be done with watching Torrent throw energy balls as he was for the dragon-type's accomplishment.

Ash grinned as Nidorino lightly tapped Torrent with the tip of his horn in a friendly manner.

Torrent wasn't ready for Giovanni yet, but it was a start. As long as they trained diligently, he would be fine.

Now, however, it was time for the rest of Ash's friends to buckle down. They were probably doing great on their own, but Ash had a few strategies to work on.

He grinned. This was going to be fun.

XX

Ash watched Bruiser easily lift a huge boulder with a critical eye. He'd been training with Bruiser all of yesterday and today. After Torrent had mastered dragon pulse two days ago, he just checked up on his friends' progress before going home.

Yesterday and today had been exclusively for Bruiser. Ash would be training with him on other days, but he would have to start switching his focus on the other members of his team to keep them up to snuff. He didn't want to neglect any of them, after all.

Nidorino was sitting down next to his foot, idly shooting thunderbolts at one of the massive blocks of stone that littered the area. He was bored during the training. Ash let Nidorino battle whenever they came across a trainer, but trainers were rare on the western side of Kanto, let alone in the wilderness near Pallet.

Seeker and Tangela watched from underneath the shade of a massive tree, its canopy keeping the shade from hitting Seeker and burning her skin. She and Tangela had become friends quickly, although Ash doubted they would ever be as close as Seeker and Bruiser were. Still, it was nice. Tangela kept her busy while Bruiser trained and Seeker liked sitting on top of Tangela.

He'd recognized a major problem with training Bruiser: Ash had no idea how to train a fighting-type.

Most physical moves weren't too difficult to teach. Either they simply harnessed an element like Infernus' normally did or were simple and natural for the pokemon to carry out, like Nidorino's horn attack.

Fighting-type moves, however, required finesse. They weren't just punching and kicking, they were techniques. They weren't natural for a pokemon to learn, although fighting-types picked them up much easier than others. In a way they were similar to dragon-type moves. They required a teacher.

Unfortunately, Ash wasn't a fighter. He didn't know how to teach Bruiser to use any new fighting-type moves. Bruiser knew a healthy amount already, which were probably taught to him by other fighting-types or through imitation. But he didn't know the extremely powerful fighting-type moves like cross chop or dynamic punch. Ash also wanted to teach him foresight. It would let him see ghosts when they turned invisible and dispel illusions created by pokemon.

He had tried to teach Bruiser the moves through descriptions and videos on the pokedex, but Bruiser just didn't get them that way. Pokemon seemed to learn best through an actual demonstration, although the pokedex entries were useful as a reference.

So right now he simply had Bruiser testing the limits of his strength and gaining battling experience by battling his other friends.

The first objective was pointless. Bruiser didn't seem to have any practical limits on his strength, even with the power save belt. He could effortlessly lift huge boulders and tear trees out of the ground. Both of those were impressive, but it ruined the purpose of the exercise.

Ash would lie if he said it wasn't incredible to see Bruiser perform such feats of strength, however. If a human tried to do that, even if they were as strong as Bruiser, it would tear their arms out of their sockets and cause irreparable damage to their bodies. Humans just weren't made for such things. There was a lot more to lifting and strength than just muscle, after all. Bruiser had nigh unbreakable bones and incredible tough tendons to go with his incredible strength.

The second objective was far more practical. Bruiser failed to defeat the others in most cases. Infernus simply used his flames, speed and great power to overwhelm Bruiser and Tangela simply wrapped his vines around Bruiser before he sucked the energy out of him.

Plume, Dazed and Torrent didn't battle Bruiser. Ash knew that Bruiser had no hope of defeating Plume or Dazed thanks to their type advantages, so it would be pointless. Bruiser needed to get a workout and experience, not just be thrown about like a rag doll. Torrent was just too powerful to spar with the fighting-type.

"That's enough, Bruiser." Ash called out. He took a quick sip from his water bottle before standing up. Bruiser gently placed the rock back into its original position and walked over to him, swinging his arms around. The fighting-type looked like he was having the time of his life.

"Bruiser, who do you want to fight now?" He asked. Bruiser's reptilian face was suddenly split by a grin. Even though the fighting-type frequently lost and only won every now and then, he was getting better. It certainly hadn't dampened his fighting spirit.

Bruiser pointed at Infernus. The fire-type was taking a break from battling and was sitting in a large pile of ash. Ash grinned and called Infernus over.

Infernus lazily stood up and gave a malicious grin towards Bruiser. The two had a fierce rivalry, stemming all the way back to their confrontation at the cave. Bruiser's main goal was to defeat Infernus, while Infernus enjoyed beating Bruiser into a pulp. While Infernus constantly held the edge and always would if Ash didn't tell him to avoid elemental attacks, the fights were getting tougher for the fire-type. Bruiser was getting to know his tricks.

The fire-type stalked over to them, his eyes narrowed and filled with amusement. Fire danced around his skin, although Infernus extinguished it when he neared. Ash had told him to not use it when battling Bruiser. It gave Infernus an incredible advantage when Infernus was too hot to even hit.

Both of the fighters squared up and took their positions. Bruiser's stance was far more disciplined, showing his incredible strength while prepared to be more fluid in combat. Infernus' was aggressive, consisting of him tensing up and leaning forward. He was ready to leap into the fray faster than Bruiser could react.

"Go." Ash said, his eyes glued to the fight. He was trying to pick out both of their weaknesses, although he knew both of their combat styles and flaws by heart.

The fight began as predicted. Infernus launched a brutal punch straight at Bruiser's face, forcing the fighting-type to defend. That set the pace for the rest of the fight.

Although Infernus couldn't use his flames in the fight, he proved to be an adept fighter without them. Even though the flames made him the juggernaut and monster in combat that he was, he was still fast, strong and brutal without them.

Infernus launched fast, powerful strikes. They were unrefined but when just one could send Bruiser stumbling back they didn't have to be. He made up for his lack of discipline with sheer ferocity and power.

Bruiser, on the other hand, showed his mastery of close quarters combat. He blocked and redirected most of Infernus' blows and did his best to dodge those that were too fast. He struck with enough strength to send Infernus crashing to the ground, although Ash knew that he was holding back. All machoke did when it came to their strength. But Infernus was too fast for Bruiser.

It ended as it normally did – with Infernus outmaneuvering Bruiser thanks to his superior speed and reflexes. Bruiser overextended in a punch, leaving himself exposed to a brutal fist to the gut from Infernus, who took advantage of Bruiser's pain to launch a flurry of blows into Bruiser's body. In a matter of seconds Bruiser went down, durable but unable to match Infernus.

Ash smiled and applauded for both of them. It had gone on longer than usual and showed that Bruiser was making real strides. While he had plenty of skill and strength – more than enough to defeat most trainers – he just wasn't used to fighting. That was Bruiser's main problem aside from Ash not really knowing how to train him. It was much easier to correct, however, and Bruiser was already making progress.

Bruiser drowsily pulled himself up, eyes narrowed in determination. He assumed his stance again. Infernus snorted a small burst of flame, clearly amused. Nevertheless, he prepared himself.

The trainer grinned. Bruiser didn't have the skill or power of a great battler yet, but he definitely had the heart and will of one.

"Begin."

XX

The next day was one to relax. His friends had worked incredibly hard over the past few days, practicing their moves and leaving the areas they frequented in ruin from their intense battles.

But it was also one of the most important days in Ash's journey, despite the lax atmosphere.

Today was the day that Nidorino would evolve.

He had proven time and again this week that he was healing. Nidorino had battled well in the occasions Ash had used him and had worked hard to regain his former strength. Now that the last of the faded bruises had vanished, Ash was confident that it was safe.

Ash had allowed Nidorino to choose where he would evolve. He figured it was only fair since Ash had postponed it for so long.

Much to his surprise, Nidorino had chosen the area right in front of Oak's lab. It was the exact location where Ash and Gary had first battled, with the then Nidoran being triumphant over Gary's Squirtle.

He gave a soft smile at the memory, thinking back to how much he'd grown since then. It was such a short time ago, but seemed to have happened decades ago. Ash had changed so much since he'd started off with his two travelling companions and Nidoran.

Nidorino grunted excitedly, hopping around the area. Ash grinned and dug the shard of the Moon Stone from his pocket, the impossibly smooth surface glossy against his fingers. As he exposed it to the world, Ash looked around the area.

All of his friends were there. Dazed stood right behind him, motionless but interested. Infernus flanked him, his eyes burning with excitement. Ash suspected that the fire-type couldn't wait to battle Nidorino again, especially not when the poison-type would be even more powerful. It would give Infernus someone who could really test him.

Tangela was plopped down on the dirt beside him, happily gurgling and absorbing the sun. He was playing with two of the tiny nidoran from the herd. They had come over when Ash had talked about evolving Nidorino. Both of the juvenile poison-types hissed and scratched playfully at each other and tried to jump on Tangela, although the grass-type quickly caught them with his vines and tickled them mercilessly.

Ash smiled at the scene and turned over to look at Plume. She was also behind him, her huge body standing high above him. He gently stroked her crest as Nidorino worked the rest of his energy out, eliciting a soft coo from the flying-type.

Bruiser and Seeker stood in the shadows of Oak's lab. Seeker clung to Bruiser's back, only her head exposed. She was clicking and using her echolocation constantly. Ash knew that she was just as interested in this as the others. Bruiser eyed the scene with curiosity and barely pent up excitement.

Torrent was next to Infernus. The immense heat the fire-type's body produced didn't bother the powerful water-type, so he didn't get uncomfortable. As one of the oldest members of the team, Torrent was amongst the most excited. Ash could see it in the intent stare and small quivers that went up Torrent's body. But the kingdra remained refined and dignified and did his best to avoid showing his feelings.

All the others crowding around Nidorino were of the nidoran herd, although Arcanine and his growlithe had joined them as well. Nidoqueen was shushing the others, although the excited nidoran continued to squeak and play. Ash grinned as one of the excited poison-types accidently ran into his leg, bumping off and giving him an apologetic squeal before returning to its herd.

He noticed that the nidorina appeared to be particularly interested in Nidorino and his upcoming evolution. They were eying him intently, completely ignoring the nidoran bouncing around them. The nidorino, on the other hand, were snorting and growling at Nidorino. Nidorino just ignored them, too ecstatic at his upcoming evolution to care about his soon-to-be subordinates.

"Nidorino, it's time." Ash said quietly, putting his hand high into the air and revealing the shard of the Moon Stone to the crowd.

It had an immediate effect on the pokemon.

All of the nidoran herd instantly stared at it as though it were the most important thing in the world. The nidoran were uncharacteristically silent and sat down, too enraptured by the stone to think about playing. The nidorina froze and bowed their heads, scarlet eyes wide with awe. All of the nidorino had a similar reaction. They even paused in their growling. Nidoqueen bowed her great head, her wise eyes shining with respect to the shard.

The rest of the pokemon merely froze. Arcanine no longer had to worry about calming the loud, playful growlithe. They were in awe, albeit lesser than that of the nidoran herd.

His friends were under the shard's spell as well. It seemed to possess a power that it hadn't had when he first showed them on the boat coming back to Pallet. Something about it actually being used, free to exercise its power upon a willing pokemon, gave it an ethereal shine that drew their attention. Its inky coloration seemed even darker than usual, yet brighter in its power.

Even Infernus was rooted to the ground, Ash noticed wryly. He couldn't seem to take his eyes off of the tiny sliver of the Moon Stone.

Nidorino slowly approached, limbs trembling as Ash knelt to the ground and held out the shard. His ears were flat and his barbs were nowhere to be seen as he approached the shard, his gaze never once leaving the item that would make him an opponent to be truly feared.

Yet he showed willpower beyond any of the other pokemon present when he managed to break the shard's spell. Nidorino raised his head to stare Ash in the eyes, gratitude welling up inside of them. Black met brown for several moments, pokemon and trainer silently thanking each other for everything that had lead to this point.

Nidorino grunted his gratitude to Ash before slowly lowering his head and gently placing his horn on the shard. He was almost tender in the care he showed to the shard of the Moon Stone, showing respect that was almost religious.

Ash's first and greatest friend held his horn to the shard for several seconds before he stumbled backwards, an impossibly bright light suffusing the tip of his sharp horn. Nidorino roared as the glow suddenly spread throughout the rest of his body in a single second, leaving the ordinarily pink creature a brilliant, glowing white.

He wanted to avert his eyes from the glowing form of his friend badly. The light stung his eyes, making his nerves scream at him to look away.

But he couldn't. He refused to. Nidorino was his first friend. Ash hadn't seen the full transformation from the timid Nidoran into the powerful Nidorino. He wouldn't miss this for anything.

Nidorino roared in pain as the light intensified. He reared up on his hind legs and stayed there, balanced and supported by some invisible, helpful force. Spasms wracked his glowing form as his body grew and shifted into the immense form of his new form. His body shuddered and twitched as more and more of the bright energy coursed through it.

His glowing body suddenly lengthened and thickened, thick layers of pure muscle and nigh impenetrable scales growing over his own thick hide, bones lengthening and growing dense and strong, organs shifting and his skeleton snapping into position.

Thick, burly limbs erupted from his smaller ones. They twisted and snapped into place, eliciting another roar of pain from his friend. His legs went through the same process, swelling with muscle and thick armor before they suddenly grew and wrenched themselves into place, guided by the evolutionary genes.

Ash clenched his fists at Nidorino's roars and screams, the process obviously much more painful than it had been the first time. His friend's roar refused to let up, growing in deepness and power.

His new, massive body, still glowing with evolutionary energy, shuddered and twisted in pain. He roared even louder, the deep tone threatening Ash's subconscious and raising the hair on the back of his neck. Ash shuddered but didn't tear his eyes away.

The poison-type's barbs and spines glowed even brighter, looking small and out of place on the much larger body. Ash winced as the agonized roars intensified, the horrible noise elicited by the sudden lengthening and growing of the rows of spines, the spikes growing nearly half a foot in most instances.

The effect continued all the way up the poison-type's spine until it reached his head. His magnificent horn, his greatest weapon and capable of doing much more than stabbing and goring, suddenly lengthened to nine inches, a weapon fit for a king.

His ears remained mostly the same, although the small spikes on them lengthened and grew thicker.

The last of his agonizing transformation to occur was the growth of the tail. After the rest of his body had twisted and morphed into place, his immense, powerful tail sprouting from Nidorino's rounded exterior. It elicited the loudest roar of them all as the entirely new body part erupted from nothing, the thick, muscular tail that could shatter boulders with a single swing writhing uncontrollably.

And then the light left his friend, exposing his new form to Ash's eyes.

Nidorin – Nidoking was magnificent. Painful spasms still wracked his body from the agonizing process, but he stood straight and tall, dignified.

He was much larger than his previous evolution. He could stand on his hind legs, which were thick and layered over with thick scales. His body was no longer pink, but a deep, rich purple that befitted a king amongst nidoran. Nidoking had distinctly reptilian features along with his mammalian ones, mostly consisting of the thick plates of scales that gave him his armor.

His horn was much larger and thicker, but no less sharp. It ended at a wickedly pointed tip, which would leak venom much more potent than it had as Nidorino. Nidoking's ears were mostly the same, but a tiny bit larger and the insides were a dark green.

Nidoking's eyes were narrow and fierce, showing the true power that his form and mind possessed. His arms were thick and highly muscular, more than powerful enough to shatter stone if need be. They ended in claws, not very sharp but very effective in crushing. All of his spines had lengthened dramatically, growing much more fearsome than before.

Unlike before, Nidoking wasn't just one color. While predominantly purple, his muscular chest was the exception. It was gray, highlighting the muscles that powered Nidoking's huge body.

But the biggest anatomical difference was his tail. It was a fearsome weapon, just as dangerous as his horn. The thick length of muscled and impenetrable armor could crush stone and end a match with a single attack if need be.

Nidoking's sudden collapse brought Ash back to reality. His eyes widened and he rushed forward to help his friend. Dazed didn't try to stop him, so he surmised it was safe.

The moment he got within a foot of Nidoking's shuddering, pain-wracked from, Nidoking's massive head snapped up. Ash froze and met Nidoking's pained black eyes.

His friend's eyes held no recognition. They were dark and furious, the pain remaining from his transformation leaving nothing but rage behind them.

Nidoking opened his mouth and roared, revealing rows of huge fangs. The roar was that of a beast, a predator that had firmly implanted itself in the subconscious of every human with its power and the furious intent behind it.

Everything in his body ordered him to run as Nidoking pulled himself up onto his shaky hind legs, instincts telling him to do so but without the experience to use them well.

But he stood stock still and kept on staring Nidoking in the eyes, refusing to be intimidated. Everything about the situation went against the survival handbooks and safety courses he'd had to take before getting his license, but Ash didn't care. Nidoking was his friend. He wouldn't back down.

Nidoking stood up to his full height and roared again, stamping his foot and making the earth tremble. He growled deeply at Ash and stepped forward until there was virtually no distance between the two.

"Stop this now." Ash ordered, letting none of his nervousness enter his tone. Nidoking stared at him with no recognition, fury being the only thing present in the black eyes. "It's me, Ash." He said in a friendly, soothing manner. Nidoking just growled again, exposing his fangs as he did so.

"I know that hurt." He said quietly. Nidoking just stared at him furiously, claws opening and grasping at nothing. "But it's over now. You know me. It's Ash, your trainer. We're best friends."

Nidoking's eyes suddenly flickered in recognition. His rage vanished almost instantly, cognition returning to him. He snapped his head around and looked down at his massive claws and legs. The poison-type experimentally moved his arms around, staring at them as though he couldn't believe they were there.

And then he placed one of his arms behind Ash's back and pulled him into a crushing hug, having picked up the human expression of affection from being around Ash's mother so much lately.

Ash blinked in surprise as he was pulled into his friend's thick, muscular chest, but grinned. He was careful as he patted Nidoking's back. He knew where the main spikes were, but there was always variation. It would put a dampener on the occasion if he accidently stabbed himself with one of Nidoking's spines.

He was let go of a moment later. Ash was impressed by his friend's level of control over his immense strength, but figured that he shouldn't have been too surprised. Nidoking had always known his capabilities very well.

"Are you alright?" He asked his friends, sympathy and worry coloring his tone. Ash had seen the pain Nidoking had went through during evolution. It had been an amazing but brutal thing to watch.

Nidoking grunted an affirmative, a shudder passing through his huge body. Ash stepped back and realized that he was still clutching the shard in his hand. It hadn't cut him thanks to its perfectly smooth, rounded edges, but it had left a deep indentation in his flesh.

He grinned at Nidoking and motioned for him to walk over to him.

As Nidoking made his first hesitant steps, the spell broke.

The nidoran swarmed him, squealing and hissing happily. Nidoqueen stood still, but watched Nidoking with an inscrutable expression. While the nidorina hesitantly approached Nidoking with interested expressions, the nidorino stayed close to Nidoqueen. Apparently Nidorino's evolution into Nidoking had placed him far above the protectors of the herd.

Ash grinned as dozens of pidgey began chirping and calling to one another. They and a few rattata had approached while Nidoking had been evolving, it seemed. He'd been too focused on his friend to even notice.

Not as many pokemon turned up for Nidoking's evolution, but it was still an impressive amount. His friend was practically buried in a horde of nidoran and nidorina and seemed rather pleased by the attention, if a little surprised. Nidoking kept on struggling forward through the crowd until the excited juveniles let him pass.

Nidoking walked straight to Ash on awkward legs. He nearly stumbled several times, but kept his body tall and as dignified as he could manage. Ash was still as Nidoking walked over to him and knelt, dipping his head in respect to the trainer.

Ash was frozen, not expecting the gesture. A slow grin spread across his face, though. "You don't need to bow to me, Nidoking. We're friends."

The huge poison-type nodded and seemed to smile at him before rising. He was still covered in most of the excited nidoran, who were jumping up and trying to climb his gigantic body, but they weren't too loud.

"Looks like you've got some admirers, buddy." Ash said with a wry grin, glancing down at the squirming nidoran. He sent a pointed glance over to the nidorina and Nidoqueen. "I think they want to talk to you."

Nidoking nodded, clearly not surprised at that. But he pointed a large claw at Ash and nodded.

"I'll be fine." Ash told him, a soft smile on his lips. He was glad that Nidoking was as loyal and friendly as ever, but he knew that he needed to be with his own kind right now. The evolution of a Nidoking was a rare thing, one that the herd had a right to celebrate. "We'll have plenty of time later. I'll make sure to get my mom to get you some sitrus berries."

The poison-type's black eyes lit up, clearly happy at the mention of his favorite berry. Ash grinned. "See, I'll get everything set up. You just go and be with the herd. We have plenty of time."

Nidoking nodded and lowered his head to Ash again before walking off awkwardly, still not used to his legs. He stumbled, but it happened less and less often as he joined the herd and slowly made his way to the fields. Nidoqueen supported him and kept him from tripping and crashing down on the smaller nidoran that crowded around him.

Ash watched them go with a wistful smile on his face. The other pokemon were leaving now that the main spectacle was over. Pidgey flew away on their small wings, guarded by a few pidgeotto and a lone pidgeot in their midst, and rattata and the solitary raticate scampered away.

Arcanine dashed off in a blur, followed by the happily barking and yapping growlithe. After the great canine left, it was only Ash and his friends that remained.

He turned around and glanced over at them. "Well, I guess all of you can go off and do whatever now. Tomorrow's going to be a hard day."

His friends showed their understanding before wandering off. Only Dazed remained, staring at him blankly while she idly polished her stone pendulum in her white mane. Ash didn't blame them. When he said that tomorrow would be hard, he wasn't lying and his friends knew it. They were going to relax as much as they could before they went through a particularly brutal day of training.

Ash smiled at Dazed. "Looks like it's just you and me, Dazed."

Dazed cocked her head and blinked, still polishing her pendulum with graceful movements. Ash just shook his head and smiled wider before he walked down to his house. He needed to tell his mom the good news. He'd kept the event a secret so that he could surprise her and Professor Oak.

He wasted no time. There was a lot to get ready and Nidoking wouldn't be with the herd forever.

XX

Ash was in his room. His mother was up at Professor Oak's house getting everything ready. They'd be eating outside at the Corral tonight so that Nidoking and the other pokemon could join in on the celebration.

He was going to go up to help her out in a few minutes. But for now he had something he needed to do.

There were two items in his hands. One was a huge plate of a scale, tan and bent. The other was an inky black shard of the Moon Stone. Both were trophies, the most valuable things he owned. Gifts from two of the most powerful trainers in the world.

They were also going to stay in his room from now on. He didn't want to risk losing them to a thief or accident if his pack was lost, so it was best to keep them in a safe place. Ash would probably place them in a case sometime soon, but for now he just placed them in one of his drawers.

When that was done he found the broken half of a pokeball on his dresser and picked it up. He gazed at it intently, taking in every scrape and jagged edge on the broken pokeball. It was clear that it had had a rough career even before being broken.

He smiled as he put it into the storage compartment he reserved for his personal belongings. Not much was in there now that he'd removed his treasures, but the pokeball helped to make it a less empty place.

That tattered, broken half of a pokeball was much more valuable to him than almost any other material possession. It was what symbolized the end of his and Gary's friendship and the beginning of their rivalry.

He'd meant to bring it on his journey with him, just to make sure that he always had some motivation to become better. But he'd been so excited over starting off and beating Gary that he'd forgotten. Not that it really mattered. Aside from the fact he had plenty of motivation from his friends to get stronger, Ash had barely considered Gary worthy as a rival after the first time he'd beat him. That sentiment had vanished after Gary beat him in return, but had returned in full force after he'd easily defeated Gary outside of Saffron.

But now Gary was worthy again. He'd lost, but it was clear that he'd grown. He wasn't weak anymore. Ash was better, but Gary was catching up. It had the potential to be a real challenge one day.

Ash stood in his room for just a few more minutes, looking around and trying to remember how he'd thought before he began his journey. His room just seemed so foreign to him now, far from the sleeping mat he'd gotten used to and the harsh life on the road. It was strange.

But he shook it off and turned around. Ash started when he realized that Dazed had been standing less than a foot behind him, silent and invisible to his senses. He gave her a dirty look and rolled his eyes as he walked around her yellow body.

She smiled at him with her sleepy eyes before shuffling behind him. Ash couldn't hold back his smile as they walked out of his room and left the small house. Bruiser and Seeker were nowhere to be seen. The fighting-type had happily lugged all of the necessary equipment. He assumed that Seeker had been covered by something in order to protect her from the sun.

Ash had called Plume about an hour ago, just after his mother had started gathering everything she would need for the dinner. She was tasked with finding the others and telling them to come to the Oak Corral later. He would have done it himself, but he had no idea where Nidoking or Infernus would be.

Nidoking was definitely somewhere in the Corral. Some of the pokemon would leave for a while, but the nidoran herd was always too edgy and paranoid to trust the wilderness, even with their powerful guards.

Infernus…well, he was probably somewhere in the Corral as well. Ash could never find him when he looked for him, although he'd seen Infernus testing himself against Arcanine and any of the other fire-types he could find every now and then.

Still, he didn't need to worry. Plume would find them easy enough and get them to the lab.

"Can you teleport me outside of Professor Oak's house?" He asked. While he didn't mind the walk, Dazed still needed practice with teleportation. It wasn't the most important part of her strategy, but still held a key role in allowing her to maneuver around the battlefield. She had neglected it for the past few days.

Despite her own dislike of teleportation, Dazed nodded. Her eyes glowed brightly before the two of them vanished in a flash of light. They instantaneously appeared outside of Professor Oak's home and lab. Ash saw Bruiser setting up a table on the nearby field. He gave a friendly wave at Bruiser, which was happily returned.

"Thanks." He said to Dazed with a nod. She smiled at him with her eyes and followed him as he walked into the home, not bothering to knock. Dazed followed him into the kitchen and began staring at one of the lights with a peaceful expression, oblivious to Ash as he walked up to his mother.

"Do you need help?" He asked. While Bruiser was setting everything up and doing the heavy work, his mother had a lot to handle. Making food for both the humans and Ash's friends along with Arcanine was a great task, after all. Ash couldn't help that much with the cooking – he was awful at it, even after months on the road – but he could help prepare.

His mother nodded thankfully. She was making a dish that Ash didn't recognize, but it looked delicious. "Just get on the potatoes. I'll tell you what to do once you're done with that."

Ash walked over to where a small bag of potatoes were and set to work. He jumped as a small, furry body swept down onto his back and shoulder, but laughed when Seeker started chattering into his ear.

At least it wouldn't be boring.

XX

"Nidoking is perfectly healthy." Oak announced after he had finished examining the powerful poison-type. He stood up and glanced over at Ash with respect in his eyes. "I must say, you've trained him quite well. I knew he would be an impressive specimen the moment I saw him, but you've made him stronger than I could have anticipated."

Ash grinned at the praise from the Professor. Nidoking gave his own pleased growl at the assessment, causing the ground around him to quiver a little bit. Until he gained a bit more control over his new power and typing, Nidoking would have issues like that.

"He has a bit to go before he's ready for the upper levels of the Indigo Conference, however." Oak announced, sending a cursory glance at Nidoking. The poison-type seemed annoyed at the slight criticism, but didn't act out on it.

"You really did bond well with him." The Professor said with a wry grin. He looked at Ash. "He hasn't reached his potential yet, but he will eventually. You've done a marvelous job. Most newly evolved Nidoking would have gone on a rampage right then."

Ash frowned. "Just for that?" He asked incredulously. It was barely even criticism. For such a slight thing to spark a rampage seemed silly. Ash had read about Nidoking's short tempers, but he hadn't thought it was that extreme.

"Indeed." Oak said with a small smile. He walked over to the table and sat down before starting to get into the remainders of his food again. "When they first evolve, they have absolutely awful tempers. There are just too many hormones and too much testosterone in their system for the first few weeks. It levels off, but it seems that Nidoking won't have that problem. I've heard that it isn't as bad when they see another as superior, but this is the first time I've ever seen the principle in action."

That made Ash sigh in relief and send Nidoking a thankful nod. He was very, very glad that he wouldn't have to worry about Nidoking going berserk and destroying everything in sight at the drop of a hat.

Nidoking snorted and pulled up the absolutely massive bowl Professor Oak had provided for him. It was filled to the brim with fresh fruit and large, juicy berries. He would still be able to get by fine on the pokemon food Ash normally carried, but he would need berries and fruit mixed in with his diet every now and then.

He'd already eaten the bowl full of sitrus berries his mother had given him. Oak had graciously given up a decent portion of his supply for Nidoking. The Professor said that being allowed to study Nidoking so closely was all the payment he needed, but Ash figured he was just being nice. He was the Pokemon Professor of Kanto. Oak could have ten nidoking delivered to him if he just wanted to study them.

Ash glanced around the scene with a soft smile. It had gotten dark an hour ago, so Seeker was free to fly around and mingle with the other pokemon. She'd spent quite a bit of time on his back before becoming brave enough to meet the rest of Ash's pokemon, most of whom she'd only seen or had the barest amount of contact with.

He was glad to see that she was mostly accepted. Infernus had shot a warning blow of flame at her when she tried to flutter over to him, but the rest of his friends were quite happy to see her. Even Infernus wasn't too hostile, although he refused to let the zubat anywhere near him. It looked like her sacrifice for Ash was greatly appreciated.

Infernus and Arcanine had left a few minutes ago. Ash could see long streams of flames blasting into the air from a few fields over, getting larger and more intense each time. He could only surmise that the two were having another of their contests.

Torrent was still hanging around, gladly taking the opportunity to meet other pokemon. His friend had lost the worst of his temper during his evolution. It was still there, but it took a lot to bring it out. What was left was newfound wisdom, power, and the desire to meet and mingle with other pokemon. It wasn't as though Torrent had had many chances to socialize when he was unable to be out of water, after all. He was just doing his best to make up for it.

Dazed hung in the darkness, always watching Ash protectively. Alakazam had joined her, weary of the excitement. Both of their eyes were constantly glowing, so he assumed they were communicating. They had similar personalities, so Ash wasn't too surprised.

Tangela was excitedly hopping around and making friends with the Corral pokemon that had showed up. He'd eaten his fair share, but had left to make friends once he'd finished. Right now he was happily poking one of the nidorino, who had sat down and looked resigned to Tangela's curious jabs.

Bruiser was wandering around, meeting all of his teammates again. He'd been with the team long enough to know most of them, but they'd all changed while he had been gone. Although it had only been a week or so after Ash had exchanged him for Golduck before they returned to Pallet, big things had occurred in that time. They'd all been changed and Bruiser needed to catch up.

Most of the nidoran herd was running rampant, one of the juveniles skittering underneath the table the humans were sitting at every minute or so. Others were jumping at Tangela, feebly trying to knock him over. He just released one of his vines and tickled them until they ran away or were collected by one of the nidorina, who were doing their best to keep order amongst the herd. They all looked very tired.

Plume was standing with Oak's Dragonite and positively massive, battle-scarred Charizard. Ash had never actually seen it before, but he'd heard of it from his mother and Gary from time to time. Apparently the monster of a fire-type was Oak's starter, comparable in power to his Dragonite. Aside from how ridiculously powerful that Charizard was to even compare to such a powerful dragon-type, it looked just like the tales from centuries ago had seen its kind: Vicious and awe-inspiring.

He'd gotten over his desire for a Charmander. He had a friend that was just as good, better in many ways. Nidoking could never be replaced.

But he would always have a soft spot for the pseudo-dragon. It was just such a powerful battler that he'd always respect it.

Oak's Charizard lived up to its species' reputation. It regarded the celebration with a broad sneer on its snout, exposing long, shining fangs. The flame that burned on its tail was absolutely massive, the gigantic torch constantly burning a bright blue. Thanks to reading Charizard's entry on the pokedex so many times, Ash knew what that meant: Power. Incredible power and strength built up from countless hard battles and harsh training.

Despite its distaste for its surroundings, Charizard seemed to get along fine with Dragonite and Plume. It didn't seem to really mind Plume, at the very least. Dragonite, on the other hand, was downright friendly. Apparently waking it up with a massive explosion had made the dragon-type a bit grumpier than usual.

It suddenly met his eyes. Ash didn't let his gaze waver, causing Charizard to snort a bright stream of white flame. Charizard glanced away at a low rumble from Dragonite.

Ash was pulled away from his observation by his mother's voice. She'd been chatting with Professor Oak constantly, taking breaks only to go get some more food from the kitchen. His mother had tried to fill up Nidoking's bowl, but Ash had gotten her to stand down on that. Nidoking was his friend and his responsibility, as were the rest of the team.

"So, how's the training going?" She asked curiously. "I know you've had some troubles with Bruiser."

"Eh, good enough." Ash said with a shrug. "I still can't help him other than having him fight the rest of the team, but that's not helping him much. He needs someone who actually knows how to fight. Fighting-types are strong, but their real strength is in their technique."

His mother nodded in understanding. Ash was well aware that she knew that. She'd never been a trainer, but she had studied under Professor Oak for years. All of this was basic information anyone studying to become a researcher would know in the first week.

"Have you tried finding a master?" His mother questioned. "If you even knew where to begin it would help you out a lot."

Ash sighed. "I have. There's the Dojo in Saffron. They said I could come by if I ever needed help training a fighting-type."

"No!" Professor Oak said sharply, cutting into the conversation. "They are skilled martial artists, but they leave a lot to be desired when it comes to training. That Dojo has fallen far since it was the Saffron gym."

"I noticed." Ash grinned, recounting his easy victory there. "It wasn't very difficult. I used type advantages, but they should be able to counter that."

Professor Oak nodded. "Indeed. Give me a few days and I'll find you a real trainer for Bruiser. It wouldn't be for very long, but you just need to know the basics. Bruiser can take care of the rest."

"Really?" Ash asked incredulously, having a hard time accepting that Professor Oak would do that for him. He was a busy man. Taking what would probably be quite a bit of time out of his day for a new trainer was surprising. "Thanks!"

"It's no problem, Ash." Oak said, waving his thanks away. "I know you have the potential to go far, and I believe that this person would be a good teacher to help you on your path."

Ash grinned his thanks to the Professor. He had no idea who his teacher would be, but he was excited for it. Professor Oak knew a lot of strong trainers. There was no doubt that he'd get a strong one.

Their conversation turned to other things after that, mostly about things around Pallet and the other Pallet trainers. Although he was interested in talking to his mother and Professor Oak, he found his attention slipping away as he focused on training and felt the fatigue from the day wear upon him.

About two hours later, they went inside. Ash had Dazed teleport his mother home. She'd had a tiring day and he knew that she had work the next day. He walked with the rest of his friends, although Infernus was still nowhere to be found.

Most of the plates and silverware that had been used were collected by Alakazam with a single flicker of her eyes, cleaning the mess up and sending the assorted dishes to the kitchen to be washed in mere seconds.

Before Ash left, he and Professor Oak bid each other goodbye. Ash's mind was still swimming with thoughts about his future training by the time he got home.

He slept on the couch that night. Nidoking was too big to travel up the stairs, although he was still allowed on the ground floor so long as he was careful. His friend curled up into a ball next to the couch as they both drifted to sleep.

Ash stayed up a bit longer. He was able to notice Seeker landing on top of him and huddling in close for warmth, as well as Bruiser sleeping up against a wall and Dazed standing vigil over him.

She was the last thing he heard before he went to sleep.

XX

"Alright, Nidoking, let's do this." Ash said. Nidoking roared and crushed his claws together, showing just how ready he was. The other members of the team were gathered around them in a circle, anxious to see how Nidoking had improved.

Ash wouldn't be trying to teach Nidoking any new moves today or the rest of the time he spent training around Pallet. This was just to get Nidoking used to his new form and the power that came with it. The form of a nidoking was drastically different from that of a nidorino or nidoran, so Nidoking would have to train to get comfortable with his new body.

That would happen later. For now, Ash just wanted to see what kind of strength Nidoking possessed.

Nidoking roared again, shaking the earth. He focused on the massive boulder Ash had pointed out a few minutes ago and walked over to it. While he was still having difficulty using some of his physical attacks like double kick, Nidoking was quite proficient at destroying things.

He pulled back his claw and roared loudly before slamming it into the tall, thin boulder. A deep crack formed where his fist hit. His second punch caused more and more cracks to thread throughout the stone before it finally collapsed, shards of sharp stone bouncing harmlessly off of Nidoking's armor.

Ash blinked. Nidoking had done that without any sort of actual attack. He'd known that his friend would be incredibly strong, but Ash hadn't expected him to be that powerful. Attacks naturally amplified the user's strength, focusing it and intensifying it. He could only imagine how hard Nidoking would hit with any physical moves he taught him.

"See those trees?" He asked, pointing the new targets out. Nidoking nodded and lumbered over to them. "Hit them with your tail."

Nidoking snarled in understanding and turned around. He swept his powerful tail into the densely packed cluster of trees behind him, shattering all with a single blow and sending splinters of wood flying through the area. Ash nodded his thanks to Dazed when she erected a shield of bright blue energy in front of him.

He grinned widely when he realized just how much strength Nidoking possessed. Nidoking had always been strong, but his evolution had put him into a whole new level.

His body had evolved to be the greatest protector and leader of a nidoran herd. His scales were hard and highly resistant to physical attacks and provided resistance against most elemental attacks. His tail could crush and splinter anything it hit. His punches could shatter stone.

All that was left for Ash to test was how much stronger his elemental attacks had become. Ash knew that Nidoking wasn't ready to learn a new move yet, but after seeing his ease in attacking it might be time to test out his old ones.

As Nidoking roared proudly, Ash found a new target for his friend.

"Use ice beam on that rock." Ash commanded, pointing out a very large, spherical stone. It was probably six feet high or so and nearly as large around.

Nidoking reared his head back and charged the ice beam in less than a second. Ash barely had time to see the small, light blue ball of energy form on the tip of Nidoking's horn before the ice beam was released. As usual, three arcs of icy energy were released from the ball, leaving a trail of frosty air in their wake.

What wasn't usual was their intensity. Nidoking had become adept at using ice beam as a nidorino, but no amount of expertise could create the amount of power put into the ice beam. Each of the three beams was brighter and more intense than before his evolution, a shade lighter.

Just one of the arcs of icy cold energy was enough to completely freeze half of the boulder's front over, leaving a thick layer of jagged ice over it. The other two were enough to freeze the rest of the front over, leaving all of the boulder Ash could see caked in the thick ice.

Ash blinked, not expecting that. He'd known that Nidoking increased in strength in every area aside from speed and evasiveness – his reflexes were improved, but the massive weight of his body would keep him from being particularly swift – but he'd only expected a marginal improvement in regards to ice beam and other elemental attacks.

A grin slowly crept onto his face, replacing his earlier shock. "Nidoking, I think you're ready for a real battle."

Nidoking roared and stamped his feet, triangular eyes narrowed eagerly as he waited for Ash to select his opponent.

Ash scanned over his friends critically, trying to figure out which one would be the most even match for Nidoking. Plume was automatically out. Nidoking could just use ice beam or thunderbolt to take her down. If he banned Nidoking from using them, it would just prolong the battle. Plume didn't have the offensive power to take him down anyways.

Infernus was out. He'd do well, but Ash really didn't want to burn down the entire forest. That showdown could be saved for later. He knew that the two were itching to fight each other.

Torrent would have an automatic advantage. Ash would like to avoid that. He wanted to see Nidoking's real capabilities. That cut out Dazed as well. She'd likely be needed to contain the damage anyways.

Bruiser was the only one that could match Nidoking's raw strength, but Ash didn't think that he would be a challenge for Nidoking. The fighting-type just didn't have the skill or experience to defeat Nidoking yet.

That left one option.

"Tangela, you're up." He said with a grin. The grass-type happily bounded over and stood in front of Nidoking, vines out and eyes friendly. Still, Ash could see the determination in his friend's stance. Tangela would do his best to make it a good battle. "Nidoking, no ice beam."

Nidoking growled his understanding and prepared to charge. Tangela bravely stood his ground, vines out and ready to battle.

Ash and the rest of his friends got far away from the battle, Dazed keeping a constant vigil by Ash. She would prevent any of the attacks from causing undue harm. Plume continued to circle over them high in the air, watching the battle with her keen eyes.

"Begin." Ash called out, carefully analyzing their movements. Nidoking had gotten more used to his body, but he was still rusty. His walking was slow and unsteady, causing him to lumber towards Tangela at an easily avoidable pace.

Tangela casually avoided the attack by walking away on his vines. He pulled his spherical body over to a tree when Nidoking grew too close.

Nidoking roared in annoyance and turned to Tangela. He opened his mouth and shot dozens of tiny, poison-filled needles at Tangela. Tangela yanked himself away as fast as he could, but several of the barbs landed on him and injected their poison into his vines.

Tangela gurgled and sent the vines that had been poisoned towards Nidoking, preparing to lash at the powerful poison-type. Nidoking easily slashed the vines off with a swipe of his claws. They weren't sharp, but the force behind them was enough to complete the task.

Of course, by doing that he ruined whatever chance he had of the poison in the vines being funneled into Tangela's body. Nidoking didn't appear to care about that, though. A quick lash from two more of Tangela's extendable vines did almost nothing to the ground-type, but annoyed him enough for the adrenaline running through his system to really pick up.

Nidoking roared furiously and suddenly charged at a surprisingly fast pace towards Tangela, the adrenaline and fighting instincts taking over his body and removing any uncertainties he had with his new form.

Tangela's bright eyes suddenly widened in fear and he did his best to pull himself away. Nidoking roared and fired another poison sting attack at Tangela. They were too close to defend against or dodge, so the majority of the barbs slammed into Tangela and injected their contents into the grass-type.

The grass-type collapsed to the ground, his weakness to poison crippling him as the massive dose was forced into his body. He struggled to pull himself up, but by the time he had Nidoking had slammed into him.

Ash winced at the blow. The sheer force that Nidoking's charge carried behind it sent Tangela flying into a tree, although the hardy grass-type's shell of vines absorbed most of the shock. Still, it slowed Tangela up enough for Nidoking to charge over and pick Tangela up. Tangela struggled and whipped Nidoking with several of his vines, but they failed to actually hurt Nidoking thanks to his thick plates.

Tangela quickly wrapped even more of its vines around Nidoking and began draining his energy, but Nidoking furiously slammed Tangela into a tree. The blow stunned Tangela, but he continued to suck energy from the poison-type.

It all ended when Nidoking fired another burst of poison sting at Tangela. All of the barbs hit and stabbed into Tangela, delivering their dangerous contents into the grass-type's system. Tangela's vines feebly let go of Nidoking, although the grass-type continued to helplessly struggle against his fate.

"That's enough." Ash called out. He was worried that Nidoking would be too battle-crazed to respond to his commands, but those concerns were alleviated when his friend instantly straightened up and stepped back from Tangela's unconscious form.

"You did great, Tangela." Ash murmured to Tangela's pokeball as he recalled his friend. Tangela had put up a good fight, although he was unable to do much to Nidoking's formidable body. In a real battle Tangela would have used status conditions through stun spore and sleep powder before wrapping his vines around Nidoking and draining most of his energy, but he was limited as much as Nidoking had been.

That had been a battle to show off Nidoking's abilities. Tangela knew that and hadn't used stun spore or sleep powder, which were usually important for his battling technique. It would have been much closer had Tangela been able to use his full potential.

Still, Nidoking had shown himself to be quite formidable, even when he hadn't gotten used to battle yet. He was able to shrug off vine whips as though they were nothing, when as a nidorino they would have crippled him. His resistance to Tangela's mega drain was also quite impressive. Tangela's mega drain had done quite a number on all of his other opponents.

But all this told him was that he had a very powerful pokemon on his hands and that he needed to teach him how to move well without being enraged first.

He wanted Nidoking to get a bit more battling experience in before they started working on that, though. In particular, he wanted Nidoking to get experience battling an opponent that had the firepower to penetrate his defenses.

"Infernus, you're up." He grinned.

Infernus' eyes were alit with dark glee as he stepped forward, a light wreathe of bright flame dancing around his body. He and Nidoking stepped forward, and the battle began.

XX

Four days of training later, they were finally finished. For the moment, anyways. Today was the end of this training spree, although certainly not the last.

Once he'd gotten used to his body, Nidoking's only real weaknesses were his inability to maneuver well. He had ranged attacks like thunderbolt and ice beam that were powerful enough to fight off all of Ash's pokemon except for Torrent and was almost undefeatable at close range. Only Infernus had pulled it off, and he had fainted right after from the wounds he had gained.

Dazed and Plume were quite adept at exploiting Nidoking's only apparent weakness. When Plume used tailwind to whip up a windstorm and manipulate the storm to propel her, she was often too fast for Nidoking to fight back against. She didn't have the firepower to actually defeat him – her air slash attack was quite powerful, but all it did was knock Nidoking over – but she could tire him out quite well. He almost always ended up defeating her in the end, though, thanks to a lucky thunderbolt.

Dazed, however, could easily avoid his attacks thanks to teleport. Psychic was enough to badly hurt Nidoking, while psybeam was enough to finish him off. Even if Ash had opted to give Nidoking his TMs – shadow claw and earthquake would greatly expand his ability to attack, but Ash wanted to wait until Nidoking had complete control over his body before giving him such destructive moves – Dazed would have been able to avoid them.

When he wasn't training Nidoking, Ash had worked with the others. Dazed had mastered the multiball technique, so he'd started training her to use teleport in other ways. He knew the destructive potential of earthquake quite well thanks to the videos he'd seen on the pokedex, so he'd figured that learning to avoid that could save Dazed a great deal of pain. So he'd taught her how to teleport just high enough above the ground for the average earthquake to pass under her. He'd have to test it against Nidoking in a few weeks.

Infernus hadn't progressed as much as Ash would have liked. He was advancing by leap and bounds in the battling department thanks to the constant battles against the other pokemon, but he hadn't bothered mastering fire blast. Ash had been too busy with Nidoking and Bruiser to focus on him much, although he'd be correcting that during their next training spree.

Plume had spent most of the time perfecting air slash. She was adept enough with it to slash thick trees in two, and it seemed to be shaping up to be her favorite move. It was far more precise than gust or whirlwind and was much more focused. Ash was going to start trying to teach her hurricane soon. That would was the most powerful technique a pidgeot could learn, and he thought that Plume was ready. Of course, it would also be an opportunity to spend more time with her and try to develop strategies that would work against rock-types and heavier opponents.

Tangela was obviously close to evolution. His vines were growing longer and longer, and his attacks were growing much more powerful. It was only a matter of time before he evolved into a tangrowth. Ash couldn't wait. Tangrowth were amongst the most powerful of grass-types. They were essentially tangela, but given much more power in their attacks.

Torrent had been rather bored. Aside from battles with Nidoking, which the dragon-type almost always won unless Nidoking was particularly ferocious, he didn't have much to do aside from practicing dragon pulse over and over again. Ash was going to have to work on some more techniques for Torrent.

Bruiser had the same problems as he had before. Ash had continued his attempts to teach Bruiser, but the fighting-type just couldn't learn from him. It was rather frustrating for the both of them. His friend had so much potential waiting to be unleashed, but he couldn't utilize it.

There was nothing for Ash to do now. He was about to head up to the Professor's lab right now.

Last night had been a hard one. He could only have six teammates with him, so he had to drop one of them temporarily for Bruiser.

Even though he didn't like it, he had to ask his friends if any would volunteer. It ended up being Plume, although he didn't like that. Ash didn't want his friend to feel any less valuable than the other members of his team. He hated leaving her behind.

No matter how much he had tried to get her to stay with him, though, she wouldn't relent. Plume had just cooed at his protests and lightly pecked him on the head.

He'd finally given up, although he made sure to protest just a little more. She still wouldn't hear of it.

Ash sighed at the memory. Plume was currently flying above the house, basking in the morning sun. A flock of pidgey and a few pidgeotto had joined her, shrieking and chirping in unison with the powerful flying-type.

But for now it was time to say his goodbyes.

"Seeker, be good." He said with a grin, lightly ruffling her soft fur. Seeker hissed indignantly at him and fluttered onto his shoulder. She chattered happily into his air, giving her own goodbyes. "I know, I know. You're perfect."

Ash leaned into Seeker and whispered to her conspiratorially. "Try to keep Plume company. I know she'll be fine, but I think you two could learn a lot from each other."

Seeker chattered understandingly and fluttered over to Bruiser, who was standing next to Ash. He grunted happily as the tiny zubat landed on his shoulder and began hissing at him. Bruiser grunted what Ash recognized as a laugh and lightly tapped her on the forehead with his finger.

The zubat chattered happily at the both of them before flying up onto one of the beams crossed over the ceiling. She hung there as Ash's mother walked up, a cheery smile on her face. It wavered when she looked at Ash, but it came back in full force a few moments later.

"Be careful, sweetie." She said to him quietly as she wrapped him up in a hug. Ash gasped as the air was crushed out of his lungs before returning the hug.

"I'll be fine." He wheezed back. "I'll be back before you know it."

His mother smiled sadly at him. "I know, I know. You're a strong trainer now. But a mother has to worry."

Ash didn't say anything back, instead opting to respond with a smile. His mother returned it before standing up.

"Well, you'd best get going." She said cheerfully. "I know Professor Oak is busy. Good luck!"

"Thank you." He said with another nod. Ash returned Bruiser before he stepped out of the door.

The last words he heard from his mother were "And remember to change your –"

He was out before she could complete the sentence.

XX

"Ah, hello, Ash. Come right in." Professor Oak said in a friendly manner. Ash nodded at him and gladly walked into the house. He wanted to get going as soon as he could.

Professor Oak guided him to the dining room, where they both took a seat. Oak sipped at a steaming cup of coffee, which was all that was left of his breakfast. Ash could see that the rest had already been finished, leaving nothing but crumbs on the two plates.

"Well, I suppose you're here about your teacher?" Oak questioned as he took a quick drink of coffee. Ash nodded. "Then you'll be pleased to know that I found you one. I believe that you'll be quite impressed by him when you meet him."

"Who is he?" Ash questioned curiously, leaning forward in interest. He had been thinking about the mysterious teacher ever since the night of Nidoking's evolution. Professor Oak had access to an almost unlimited amount of trainers, quite a few of whom were quite strong.

"I can't tell you his name." Oak said with a shake of his head. "It was part of the deal I worked out with him. What I can tell you is where he's training right now."

Ash frowned. That seemed odd. "Where is he?"

"Mt. Hideaway." Oak replied promptly. He placed the drained cup of coffee on one of his plates before continuing. "It's just a few days away from Pallet Town, so it's not too hard a journey. Your teacher trains there regularly, and he'll be there for another month. That gives you plenty of time to arrive and train."

"Isn't that the place where the gigantic onix live?" Ash questioned. The name seemed familiar, and he had quickly remembered the local tales and legends about the mountain. He could also recall seeing it mentioned as a footnote in the onix entry of his pokedex.

Professor Oak smiled. "Indeed. I believe he's searching for one of the onix. I'd be interested in studying it, if he succeeds, anyways."

"Where is he on the mountain?" Ash asked, knowing just how hard it could be to find something in that large an area. His experience trying to find the Cinnabar gym attested to that.

"That's part of the test." Oak replied with a wry grin. "He's powerful and has his pick of students. Those that are worthy will find him. My recommendation was only enough for him to give me his location."

Ash sighed. That made sense, and made him wonder just who this trainer was. He must be incredibly strong if he could pose tests like these. If they were really so powerful, he might have heard about them before.

"You have a PokeNav, correct?" Oak said. Ash nodded. "Good. Hand it over, please. I'll put the location of Mt. Hideaway into the map."

Oak held his open hand out and waited for Ash to hand him the small device. When Ash did, the Professor quickly opened the PokeNav and input the necessary coordinates. Now a small waypoint would be on the PokeNav's map whenever Ash looked for it.

"Thanks a lot, Professor." Ash said gratefully as he took his PokeNav back and clipped it back onto his belt. "I won't disappoint."

Oak smiled with a strange expression. It flitted off of his face too fast for Ash to read it, but it made him curious. "I'm sure you won't, Ash. You never have."

Ash smiled faintly and tipped his hat to Professor Oak. "Well, I guess I should be going. Thanks for everything, Professor."

The Professor nodded and waved him away. "Good luck!" He called as Ash went out the front door. Ash nodded back one last time before leaving the laboratory.

He was excited as he stepped outside of the lab and into the warm morning sun. It had been weeks since he last travelled on land, venturing through the great forests of Kanto with only himself and his pokemon.

Ash took a moment to check the location of Mt. Hideaway on his PokeNav. It was about sixty miles away to the east and had a bit of rugged territory around it, but most of the areas he would be travelling through were made up of the same gentle landscape that entombed Pallet Town.

The trainer traced the worn dirt path that would take him to Mt. Hideaway. He shifted his pack to a more comfortable position before starting on his newest journey, pausing only to release Nidoking. Nidoking needed the practice walking.

Nidoking grunted deeply and gave Ash a friendly nod.

Ash grinned back and nodded to his friend. "We're setting off again. Are you ready?"

Nidoking growled happily and crushed his claws together, producing a small shockwave of air. Ash shut his eyes quickly but kept his excited grin on his face. It would probably go away when the realities of travelling caught up with him again, but right now he was just too happy to care.

"Alright, then. Let's go."

With that they set off, preparing to grow ever stronger.

XX

The first day passed by quickly. It was boring since there were few trainers to fight and the wild pokemon were too terrified by Nidoking to try anything, but it let them make great time. Even Nidoking was tired by the end of the day, although it was more so because his species wasn't meant to travel long distances than any real physical exhaustion.

The second day had been brutal. Aside from being a bit rusty in all of the chores he had to perform – cleaning up the fire pit he'd made, making sure to pack every artificial thing he had pulled out was securely contained or put into his bag, and a host of other minor things – he was also horribly sore. It wasn't as bad as the second day of his pokemon journey, but the muscles that had been made hard and durable thanks to the long days of walking and running had atrophied a bit while he'd been on boats and training around Pallet.

Aside from that the sun had been brutal that day, baking almost everything. If it weren't for his cap he would have been badly sunburned. A few fearow that lived in the area had also tried to antagonize him, squawking and cawing at him as he passed through their territory. Nidoking quickly ran them off with a few ice beams, but it was still rather annoying.

In other words, travelling wouldn't be quite as fun as he remembered until he got used to it the harder parts of it. Perhaps it would have been better if there were other trainers, but the routes were mostly empty thanks to the aggressive fearow that patrolled the area. Ash figured that the League would be sending someone in to set them straight soon enough. It wasn't close enough to Pallet for Professor Oak to intervene.

But right now, during the second night, he'd just entered a large town, consisting of about six thousand. It was named Dandra Town and was one of the larger settlements in Kanto, although far out of the way and not prone to exposure to the outside world because of it.

Ash had heard of Dandra Town every now and then, but knew it wasn't really important aside from its size. It was miles away from any real center of civilization – its only real neighbor was Pallet, and thanks to the difficult-to-navigate land, large cliffs, and dense population of aggressive spearow and fearow it had few visitors.

Judging from the solar panels and windmills dotting the area, several small factories and several gigantic farms that he'd spotted as he neared the town, they didn't need to be. Dandra town looked to be a self-contained society. All it really needed was trainers to keep the local pokemon at bay.

There were only a few locals about at this time of night, but they all seemed rather friendly. He was pointed to one of the local Pokemon Centers quickly and wished a good night. Ash happily returned the farewell. Dandra's citizens were a welcome change from Saffron's.

The streets were clean and organized. Most were neat, standard fare of a small town like this, just on the cusp of becoming a more meaningful settlement. Small shops lined the long streets, most rather unassuming. A lone Poke Mart was visible, slightly more ostentatious than its neighbors but rather diminished compared to what Ash was used to.

He quickly worked his way through the streets and found the Pokemon Center. It was one of the largest buildings in town, not surprising considering that trainers were amongst the few that would make the journey to the town. They probably gave the town much of its revenue.

Ash didn't slow down as he pushed the door to the Pokemon Center open. He was tired, dirty, and stank of dried sweat. All he wanted was a shower and a bed. His sleeping mat wasn't as bad as the alternatives some trainers used, but it still didn't compare to an actual bed.

He gave a weary, albeit friendly, smile to Nurse Joy as he walked up to the counter. It was returned with the standard cheerfulness Nurse Joys exhibited, although she looked a little bit concerned at the exhaustion he displayed.

"Are you alright?" She worried.

"I'm fine." Ash said tiredly, giving her an exhausted grin. "I just started travelling again. It's a bit exhausting, is all."

Nurse Joy nodded her understanding. "Of course. We've had a fair few trainers come in lately with that same problem. It's about the time that they start taking breaks in their journeys. Anyways," she said, bringing herself back on track, "how can I help you?"

"I just need a room." He told her politely. She nodded and fumbled with a drawer on the counter before withdrawing a key with a small tag with his room number attached. "Here you are. I hope you sleep well!"

"Thanks." Ash replied as he took the key. He checked the room number. 122. He frowned at that. That meant he was on the very last room of the first floor. Most Pokemon Centers this size had twenty-five rooms on a floor. "Why are so many rooms filled?"

Nurse Joy smiled and pulled out a small flier. She handed it over to Ash, who took a curious glance at it.

"Annual Dandra Town Pokemon Tournament!"It proclaimed in large, bold letters. Underneath the announcement it read, "Come and battle with fierce trainers and compete for fabulous prizes! See who is the strongest. More information available at the Tournament. Dates: August 14, August 15."

Ash perked up at the mention of the tournament. Even if it didn't give out the best prizes, it would still be a good way to test out his skill. He was good, but he wanted to see just where he fell amongst the average trainer.

"Where do I register for this?" He asked eagerly, clenching the paper until it bent out of shape.

Nurse Joy laughed. "Just leave me your name and I'll sign you up. You came at a lucky time. The Tournament's tomorrow. If you'd gotten here just a day later, you would have just had to watch."

Ash nodded, a curious glint in his eye. "This is an annual thing, right? What kind of prizes are there?"

"Hmm." Nurse Joy said, tapping her chin and leaning forward onto the counter. "Usually there are cash prizes for the Top Four, but the Top Two usually get an additional prize. Last year the first place winner got a fire stone and water stone."

His eyes lit up. He couldn't really use either of those, but evolutionary stones were expensive. If he never ended up with a pokemon that could use one of the two to evolve, he could just sell them for a good bit of cash. It wasn't as if he'd need the money thanks to the huge sum Lance had given him, but at the very least he'd be able to help another trainer.

"There's a cash fee to enter." Nurse Joy warned. "Three hundred dollars."

Ash shrugged that off. That would have been a decent sum before, but he had all the money he needed right now. It was well worth the price to test his strength against other trainers. "Fair enough. Do you need my trainer card?"

"Please."

He handed it over. Nurse Joy quickly ran it through a scanner, although she looked quite surprised at the information that came up.

"Seven badges?" She said with a stunned look on her face. "My, my. This year will have quite the fierce competition. And access to full restores? What did you do for the League to get that privilege?"

"This and that." Ash said with a grin, never tiring of the reactions he got when people saw how much he'd accomplished.

Nurse Joy shook her head exasperatedly. "Never mind. I don't think I want to know. Anyways," she said as she passed his trainer card back to him, "you're all signed up. The Tournament is held at one o' clock, so make sure you're ready. I'll be taking all of you to the arena."

"Thank you." Ash said politely. "Good night, Nurse Joy."

She smiled cheerfully at him. "Good night, Mr. Ketchum. I look forward to seeing your performance tomorrow."

Ash smiled and tipped his hat before he left to find his room. He needed to take a shower and sleep. It looked like he would have a long two days in front of him.

XX

He was groggy when he woke up. His room was filled to the brim with sleeping pokemon. It was much more cramped then he was used to, thanks to many of his friends' evolutions. Nidoking took up a good chunk of the room on his own. His friend had been annoyed when he realized that he couldn't sleep on the bed with Ash anymore, but he'd managed to assuage his instincts by curling up into a surprisingly small ball next to the bed.

Tangela was at the foot of the bed, vines wrapped around his spherical body in a dense shell. They twitched every now and then, mostly when Tangela happily gurgled in his sleep. Ash smiled at his friend before looking around.

Dazed was, as usual, standing in the darkened corner and staring straight at him. She gave him a succinct nod and returned to watching him protectively.

Bruiser was sleeping leaned up against the wall, eyes completely shut and arms crossed. His thick, muscular chest rose and fell as he breathed slowly and deeply.

Torrent was still in his pokeball, as was Infernus. While Torrent had no problem being outside of his pokeball for extended periods of time, he had difficulties sleeping. Besides, the roof was barely high enough for him to comfortable levitate.

The reasons Infernus was in his pokeball were rather obvious.

Ash shook his head and yawned before standing up and carefully getting off of his bed, making sure to avoid waking any of his friends. He quickly put on his clothes, which were lying in a messy pile on the floor. They were a little wrinkled, but he was sure that the other trainers would be just as messy.

Before he went into the small bathroom to brush his teeth and get his familiar morning routine in, Ash made sure to put on his hat. He couldn't forget the hat.

The rest of his morning routine went by quickly. He woke the rest of his friends, although he let Tangela stay out of his pokeball. If there were as many trainers out there as he expected, he figured Tangela would be the best choice. The grass-type was much friendlier than most of the team and would enjoy making friends with the other pokemon.

Normally he had Dazed as his follower, since she was inconspicuous and observant, but he knew she wouldn't want to be around so many people. It would make her more paranoid than usual, although it would be disguised under her vacant stare. Ash had learnt long ago how to read past that, though.

Tangela gurgled happily and waved some of his vines around as he waddled after Ash. Ash held the door open for his friend as he walked into the small hallway. One other trainer was walking down the hallway, a short teen with short, spiky blond hair and cargo pants followed by an elegant ninetails. He didn't give Ash a passing glance as he smoothly walked by.

Ash shrugged it off and continued on his way. He entered the Pokemon Center's atrium just a few seconds after the blond trainer had shoved his way in.

He paused in surprise when he saw just how many trainers were in the atrium. He'd known that there were twenty, but it was odd seeing so many trainers in one place outside of one of the great cities. The room was practically filled to the brim with them.

There were girls and boys, teens and adults. Every different kind of person was accounted for. But they all had one thing in common: they were here to win.

Ash took a moment to check out the pokemon waiting with their trainers. There were quite a few that were somewhat uncommon in Kanto, but he saw even more native species. It certainly wouldn't be an easy tournament to win. Judging from the variety he saw, he couldn't just rely on one of his friends to dominate the competition. He'd have to be a bit more creative than that.

He pulled out his PokeNav and checked the time. They still had two hours until they would be called to the tournament. That would be plenty of time for him to brief his time on what was going on.

But first he needed to get breakfast. He was starving.

XX

Ash sat on a large, mossy boulder that overlooked the rest of the tiny clearing where his team sat. They were each eating their own little bit of pokemon food, although Ash had gotten some of the Pokemon Center's normal food to feed them. His friends deserved it.

As they ate, Ash started talking. Dazed was the only one really watching, but judging from the tiny nods and twitching ears of his friends, they were all listening.

"So, guys, we're going to be in a tournament today." He began. That got his friends' attention. Nidoking, Infernus, Torrent, and Bruiser seemed particularly enthusiastic. They liked fighting the most, and tournaments generally brought strong opponents. "I think there are going to be around twenty opponents, so the competition might get tough at the end. But I know we can win."

Nidoking growled happily and crushed his claws together, body language that Ash was beginning to recognize as anticipation and excitement. The rest of his friends had similar reactions, even Tangela. Tangela might not be very aggressive, but he did love testing out his strength. Most pokemon did, from what Ash had seen.

"I'm going to try and use all of you at least once." Ash announced as he lazily leaned back on his forearms. The rough stone scratched at his exposed skin a bit, but the moss helped to soothe the minor damage it did. "You've all been working hard lately, and all of you deserve it."

His friends seemed happy at that. Ash realized that he had neglected Bruiser over the past few weeks and he really didn't want to make that mistake ever again. It still put a bad taste in his mouth just thinking about how he practically abandoned one of his friends.

"We need to get back in about an hour." Ash said, counting off the amount of time he'd already eaten up. "So, let's get to it. We need to come up with some basic strategies. There's a lot of variety in the tournament."

The pokemon in front of him nodded and listened attentively as he began speaking. They wanted to win this just as much as he did, more, most likely.

Ash grinned as he started addressing each member of the team. He didn't know if he would win this, but he knew that he would at least make his opponents fight bitterly for their victory.

XX

"Everyone, line up!" Nurse Joy called out in a loud, commanding tone that brooked no argument and demanded compliance. All of the twenty two trainers in the Pokemon Center's atrium quickly followed her instructions, eager to begin the battles.

"Alright, here are the rules for the Tournament!" She shouted, making sure to be heard over the murmurs and whispers of the group. Quite a few seemed to have made friends with one another, or at least acquaintances. Since he had only come back to the Pokemon Center five minutes ago, Ash wasn't one of them. "All of you have been grouped into pairs. Once we reach the stadium, a monitor will display the teams. You will be battling other teams until only two teams remain. Then, both partners will battle one another to determine the finalists. The rules are simple: No items or enhancers such as X products are allowed, any form of cheating will get you disqualified, and you must stop when the other pokemon are unconscious or their trainers forfeit."

Ash listened curiously. He wasn't sure how he felt about working with a partner. It might be nice, but he didn't want to have to carry them both if his partner was a weak trainer. That could ruin his chances of victory.

On the other hand, if he had a decent partner they would be able to overpower the enemy quite easily. It might pose problems when he had to battle them, but at least the majority of the tournament would be easy.

"You'd do well to work together." Nurse Joy warned. "You'll be battling together and need to depend on one another. Any discord will weaken your efforts."

He nodded slowly, barely noticing it. Many of the other trainers had similar reactions. Ash glanced at them all closely, taking each of them in. Any of them could be his partner, and he would like to at least recognize them.

Nurse Joy suddenly broke into a large, cheerful smile. "Well, that's it! A few more things will be explained at the tournament, but that's the gist of things. Let's go!"

With that, Nurse Joy and her small, energetic oddish lead them out of the Pokemon Center and to Dandra Stadium. Ash hung in the back, watching the rest of his competitors carefully and trying to analyze them the best he could.

XX

"Welcome, ladies and gentleman of Dandra Town, to the sixth annual Dandra Town Pokemon Tournament!" An announcer boomed over the intercom. The large crowd – probably a thousand people or so, Ash couldn't judge very well – cheered raucously in response. "Thank you, thank you! Now, let's take a look at our competitors. I've been told we have a good group this year!"

Ash gave a faux smile as he walked into the center of the stadium with the rest of the trainers. His nervous expression betrayed the anxiety he felt at being in front of so many people. This stadium only held about a thousand people and he was feeling distinctly uncomfortable. He could only imagine what being in front of tens of thousands of people at the Conference would feel like.

Nurse Joy directed them into a straight line, whispering their instructions to them as she passed by and making sure to give the nervous trainers friendly, encouraging smiles.

"Step forward when your name is called." She whispered to Ash as she passed by, just loud enough to be heard over the roar of the crowd. Ash gave a shaky smile to her, feeling a little better as she continued. "Don't worry, you'll do fine. You'll get used to the crowd in no time."

And then she was gone. Ash glanced after her, but glanced up towards the announcer's box when they began shouting into their microphone. He winced at the noise. The only loud noises he usually heard were explosions and the clash of battle. The constant chanting of the crowd and booming of the announcer felt foreign.

He edited out the names the announcer called out until it reached his own.

"Ash Ketchum, please step forward!" The announcer shouted excitedly, keeping the same boisterous tone he had for the other competitors. Ash adopted a nervous smile, shifting away from his usual frown, and hesitantly waved to the crowd like the other competitors had done.

They shouted and cheered in response, the cacophony assaulting him from all directions.

He was glad when the announcer moved on and called the next competitor out. Ash didn't like being the center of attention for a huge audience like this. That made him frown. He'd have to get over that before the Conference. It would be no good if he wasted all of his hard work by being uncomfortable and freezing up during a battle.

Ash just stood there, a small frown on his face as he thought. He wasn't snapped back to reality until the huge monitor screen underneath the announcer's box suddenly flickered on, showing a massive set of brackets for the tournament. On the very ends of each bracket two names and a picture appeared, showing who their partners would be.

While he quickly found his picture and that of his partner, a teenage girl with long brown hair and blue eyes, he wasn't able to read the names very well. The font was just a bit too small.

"Trainers!" The announcer roared. "I will call out your name and that of your partner. Step out of the line when your name is called and pair up. Further instructions will be given out when everyone has their partner."

Once again, Ash blanked out until he heard his name called out. He snapped back into focus and stepped forward, putting a strained smile onto his face again as the crowd roared for him.

"Ash Ketchum and Jaimie Sezare, please step forward!" The announcer called out excitedly. Ash glanced to his left and saw that his partner had stepped out of the line the same time he had. It looked like there were only three teams left to pair up.

Ash walked over to her quietly, trying to ignore the crowds' gaze and calls. She offered him a friendly wave as he walked over, which he returned with a tight nod. They both walked over to the box that the other teams had entered after being paired up. Most of the trainers were giving each other distrustful glares, fierce and competitive now that they had been differentiated.

"Hi, I'm Jamie!" The girl said in a friendly manner, offering him a hand to shake. Ash took it and used the opportunity to glance over the girl. Jamie looked like a rather experienced trainer. She was fair-skinned, but had a slight tan and enough scars and scrapes to show that she'd travelled a while. Her worn shorts and faded shirt only added to that assessment.

"Ash." He returned. "How long have you been a trainer?"

She adjusted her small, red-framed glasses before she answered. "Four years. How about you?"

"…Four and a half months." He replied, a little embarrassed. Ash knew he was strong, but he knew that most trainers his age weren't, whether it was due to lack of commitment, laziness, or being untalented.

Jaimie didn't seem too bothered, although she frowned a bit. "Huh. How many badges have you got? We can discuss our pokemon later."

"Seven." He said firmly. "I have the Volcano badge and Marsh badge. You don't need to worry about pulling any slack."

"Really?" She asked bemusedly, staring at him from behind her glasses. "I didn't even know there was still a gym in Cinnabar. And how'd you beat Sabrina? I tried her and she tore me apart with her Mr. Mime."

Ash grinned. "It's just a matter of knowing where to look." He said mysteriously. "As for Sabrina, it's just skill."

Jaimie whistled, barely audible over the din of the crowd. "Wow. I have nothing to be worried about then. We can talk strategy later. The announcer's about to come back on."

He nodded and returned his gave to the monitor, which had just shifted from the brackets to a man's face. The man's face was narrow and thin, but not disturbingly so. Ash assumed it was the announcer, an assumption that was validated when the man's lips began moving in conjunction with the audio system.

"I have several announcements to make before we allow the trainers to begin strategizing and working with their partners." He announced grandly, waving his hands in the air for dramatic effect. "First off, the prizes."

The announcer grinned and let the clamor of the crowd die down before continuing. "We have a few more sponsors and a few more competitors than last year, so we have better prizes. Third and fourth place will receive one thousand dollars and five Silph Co. great balls! Second place will receive two thousand dollars and two ultra balls!"

Ash watched intently as the announcer leaned into the camera conspiratorially. He wasn't too impressed with the prizes so far, but he didn't care that much. That wasn't why he'd joined the tournament.

"But we have a very special prize for the first place winner." The announcer grinned. He moved off of the screen for a moment and returned with a small pack. He removed a large, round black object from the bag. Ash's eyes widened when he recognized the sight of a pokemon egg. "Thanks to the kind donation of a local breeder, our first place winner will receive this egg. He wouldn't tell us what it was, but we imagine that it is going to be quite the surprise!"

That determined it. Ash wouldn't just be putting up a great fight, he would be winning this competition. There were similar determined expressions on some of the other trainers, and for good reason. Pokemon eggs weren't exactly common. Anyone could buy them from a breeder, but uncommon pokemon could be extremely expensive and unavailable to the common trainer.

Ash might have plenty of money, but he didn't really want to buy a member of his team. That ruined the whole point of training to him. It was supposed to be an adventure, one where you earned your rewards and companions. He didn't really mind if people bought pokemon from breeders, but it just wasn't for him.

But earning them? That was fair game.

The announcer was suddenly handed a piece of paper from outside of the monitor's screen. He skimmed over it briefly before a wide grin spread over his face.

"I have more news!" He shouted dramatically. The crowd quieted and grew tense. "This tournament only accepts twenty competitors! Right now we have twenty-two. As a result, we are picking two random teams to battle each other for entry into the tournament!"

Ash frowned. He really hoped that he wasn't picked. That would weaken at least some of his friends early on, which might prove dangerous to his future battles in the tournament. Additionally it would allow some of the other trainers to get a feel for his skill level and style.

The tension in the air was palpable as another sheet of paper was handed to the announcer. He read over it once before announcing the unlucky competitors that would have to battle each other.

"Here are the trainers that will be battling for entry." The announcer said, stating the obvious. Every trainer listened intently, privately hoping that they weren't chosen. "Raymonds and Fennex, step forward. James and Minors, step forward."

Raymonds and Fennex stepped out of the box. One had short, spiky hair and a black, no-sleeved shirt. He had a slight grin on his face, apparently not taking this seriously. The other had dark blond hair held out of his eyes by a pair of goggles. His face was empty, clearly not pleased with being picked out.

James and Minors stepped out a moment later. One had long brown hair and glasses. The other looked as though he were too young to have a trainers license. Both were rather nervous, although the older of the two had a faraway look on his face.

"Trainers, your battle will commence in fifteen minutes!" The man in the monitor shouted to them. "Use your time to prepare a strategy. Your future in this tournament depends on it. For the rest of you, follow Nurse Joy. She will take you to rooms where you can prepare yourselves. The preliminary battles begin in one hour."

Both of the unlucky teams were guided to opposite ends of the field by a tired looking official. They were huddled together and hurriedly discussing their tactics by the time Nurse Joy walked over to the competitors in their box, a cheerful smile on her face.

"Follow me!" She chirped. "You need all the time you can get before you battle."

With that the remaining competitors followed her out of the bright, sun-baked stadium, sticking close to their partners and sending suspicious glances at the others.

Ash hung in the back with Jaimie. He didn't care much about getting competitive with the other trainers. He was going to win this. Now was just a chance to get a feel for the others.

XX

"Here's your room!" Nurse Joy said to Ash and Jaimie. She opened the door for them and ushered the two in. They were the last pair to be shown their rooms, but it had only taken three or four minutes away from them.

Ash nodded his thanks before walking in. He glanced it over. It was bare and boring. The only furnishings was a small, round table and several chairs pulled up to it. That was perfectly fine by him. It minimized distractions.

He took a seat. Jaimie followed suit a moment later. They both looked at each other awkwardly for a moment, not really sure where to start. It ended up being the older member of the pair that broke the silence.

"So, what pokemon do you have?" She began, raising her hand and putting a finger up as she listed off her own. "I've got a Venusaur, Kadabra, Charmeleon, Dragonair, Graveler, and Starmie."

The team was well-rounded and held a few of the more common pokemon Kanto trainers used, but Ash started at the mention of a dragonair. All dragon-types were fantastically rare. Dratini and their line were amongst the rarest.

"How did you get a dragonair?" He asked, stunned.

"By spending two months straight in the Safari Zone and getting really, really lucky." She said, scratching the back of her neck embarrassedly. "I spent almost all of my money, but I ended up finding a dratini behind a waterfall. The rest is history."

He nodded. It was plausible. Dragonair were known to nest in the Safari Zone, even if they were incredibly rare. Still, to spend two months of his life in one place in search of one pokemon…it was unthinkable.

Ash shook himself out of his thoughts and answered her original question. "A Nidoking, Kingdra, Hypno, Magmar, Machoke, and Tangela."

Jaimie grinned. "You've got your own dragon? Awesome! No wonder you beat Sabrina."

He nodded stiffly in reply, not bothering to mention that it was Dazed that had really won the battle against Sabrina. It wasn't particularly relevant to the conversation.

"We need to make sure our choices complement each other's." He said, speaking up. Jaimie listened attentively, nodding as he spoke. "So, I'll send out my pokemon first and then you send yours out. Hopefully we'll be second every time…"

And so started a forty-five minute long discussion on strategy. They made tactics for each of the potential pairs of pokemon on the battlefield, even the ones that likely wouldn't happen, such as Charmeleon and Infernus.

Ash didn't give her his full capabilities and neither did she. With teams as powerful as theirs, it was likely that they would end up battling each other eventually. He wasn't about to give her any information that she didn't need to know for them to work well together.

Even if he didn't trust her with everything, he did acknowledge that he liked her. She was friendly enough and was easy to get along with. That could only be a boon on the battlefield.

He was jerked from his thoughts by a knock on the door. Ash glanced over to it as Nurse Joy's head poked inside. "The first battle's starting. Come with me."

Both of them stood up and left with Nurse Joy, waiting until the rest of the line of trainers had passed before joining in. Ash felt just the barest hint of nervousness as Nurse Joy lead them out to the large battlefield.

Ash blinked as the hot sun crashed down on him, glad that his hat shaded his eyes from the worst of the light. He glanced around at the roaring crowd, who were chanting and screaming in excitement. It just made him feel nervous.

"And here are our competitors, folks!" The announcer roared as the trainers walked onto the field. "Twenty strong, fierce battlers just waiting to see who's the strongest. All are strong, but only one will emerge as our victor!"

His fists clenched in determination. That victor would be him, no matter what. The other trainers had similar expressions and reactions.

"First up, Ash Ketchum and Jaimie Sezare versus Harlon Smith and Dan White. Competitors, take your places!"

Nurse Joy pointed him and his partner to the competitors' box nearest to the entrance. She sent Harlon Smith – a tall teen with brown hair and fierce hazel eyes – and Dan White – a trainer of similar age but much shorter – over to the opposite side of the stadium.

Ash and Jaimie stood side-by-side as they walked up into the box, elevated about ten feet over the field with an open view. He clenched his fists nervously as he felt the eyes of hundreds gaze upon him, judging and analyzing him.

"Is this the first time you've been in front of so many people?" Jaimie asked curiously as she leaned onto the railing, smiling and sending friendly waves to the spectators, much to their delight.

Ash nodded. "I've battled in front of a few hundred people before, but nothing like this."

She hummed understandingly. "Don't worry about this. You'll be fine. Just focus on the battle. The crowd doesn't matter."

He smiled at her thankfully and put a hand on his belt. The other trainers had arrived and climbed up their box. Now the announcer had begun to announce the rules.

"This match will be two-on-two for each trainer!" He said, amplified voice booming and echoing throughout the arena. "Pokemon are considered disqualified when they are recalled by their trainer or are knocked unconscious. The losers of this match will be knocked out of the tournament. Smith and White will send out their pokemon first. Now…let the battle begin!"

White and Smith send out their pokemon almost immediately. White sent out a massive marowak, which wielded two large, thick bone clubs. It wasn't uncommon for marowak to adapt to using two bones, but it was something to watch out for in any case. Smith released a nidorina. She slunk over to Marowak's side, prepared to defend the larger pokemon at any cost.

Ash frowned as his mind raced over the possibilities. This match would be made very short with Torrent, but he and Jaimie wanted to keep their dragon-types hidden until they were truly needed. Nidoking didn't need to be worked out yet, and Infernus would be needed later. Dazed would be the best option since she could attack at a distance and avoid their close-range attacks.

When she was released, Dazed met her opponents with an impassive stare, not looking very impressed. Ash hid a grin at that. Jaimie quickly followed suit with her Starmie, which opened its appearance with a loud screech.

The moment Starmie appeared, Nidorina and Marowak suddenly opened up with an ice beam, showing that they'd been exposed to TMs. That meant he'd have to be careful about them. It was just an opening move, meant to distract Dazed and Starmie from the sudden charge both of the opposing pokemon made.

Dazed's eyes flickered a bright blue as a psychic wall of shimmering energy materialized in front of her and Starmie, easily blocking both of the weak ice beams.

"Wave, water gun!" Jaimie shouted. Starmie – or Wave, Ash supposed – screeched again as its back limbs quickly spun, releasing a spiral of water from the tip of its uppermost limb. The jet of high-powered water flashed towards the charging Marowak, which deftly dodged the water gun as it continued its sprint.

As it neared, it suddenly shifted directions towards Dazed. Marowak cried out furiously as it suddenly gained momentum and leapt at Dazed, who stared at the rapidly approaching Marowak with an unimpressed expression.

"Psybeam." He ordered. Dazed's eyes flashed as an intense beam of rainbow light shot out and struck the approaching Marowak in the chest. The ground-type roared angrily as it was sent to the ground, quickly leaping up at the urging of its trainer and approaching again.

"Psychic." Ash said, no longer paying attention to Nidorina. He could see her out of the corner of his eye, leaping and forcing Starmie on the defensive. Ash questioned Smith's intelligence at sending a poison-type onto the field against two psychic-types, but didn't really care. Marowak was his main concern.

Dazed's eyes burned as she sent a wave of telekinetic force towards Marowak as it charged towards her. Marowak showed incredible dexterity and skill by rolling out of the way seamlessly, elegantly regaining its footing before leaping at Dazed again, too close for her to dodge.

So Marowak and White were rather confused when its clubs struck nothing but air. Marowak looked around confusedly, still a little blinded by the flash of light that illuminated the area. It didn't take much longer before an incredibly powerful psybeam slammed into its back and sent it crashing forward.

Marowak snarled and began to follow the shouted commands of its trainer. It reared back and suddenly breathed a stream of flame onto one of its bones before covering the immediate area with it, shrouding the dirt and sand in a cloud of fire. Ash saw the bright blue flash of an ice beam before Dazed swept the cloud of flame out of the air with a psychic.

Dazed teleported again as Marowak fired an ice beam at her. Ash noted that one of its bones was glowing white-hot while the other had been covered in a layer of ice. It wouldn't really simulate the effects of a fire-type attack or ice-type attack, but the burning bone would hurt if it hit anything. The icy bone would be more for discomfort than anything else.

Marowak suddenly found Dazed in the corner of its eye and slammed one of its clubs into the ground. Chunks of earth, glowing in a dull blue outline, rose from the plain battlefield and shot outwards in all directions.

His friend easily caught the chunks and held them in midair with her telekinesis before sending them back at Marowak, who had charged at her the moment she broke her focus to block the attack. It casually batted the hurled chunks of earth out of the way with its ice bone and leapt at her.

"End this." Ash ordered, tired of Marowak's game. Dazed happily obliged, catching Marowak in mid-leap and keeping it frozen in a thin, surging blue aura. Marowak visibly struggled, showing incredible strength and willpower as it managed to actually move through the psychic.

Its struggles ended as Dazed concentrated immense amounts of force onto its body from all directions, instantly knocking it out. Dazed dropped it to the ground and allowed White to call it back, Marowak vanishing into a bright scarlet light.

While White prepared to release his last pokemon, Ash decided to take advantage of the momentary lapse.

"Dazed, hit the Nidorina!" He commanded. Dazed's eyes flickered as she turned to the battle between Wave and Nidorina and used the same trick she'd used on Marowak. Nidorina was helpless to resist as she was battered by psychic force and finally knocked out by a high-powered water gun from Wave.

Ash frowned at that. It was an easy battle. He'd expected more, but when he saw his foes' next choices, he realized that he'd get it.

White had released a vicious looking crobat. It clung to the ground at the moment, but hissed as it saw the battle and flew into the air with incredible speed. Ash stared at it curiously. He'd never battled a crobat. All he knew was that they were fast, impossibly so. This might be a challenge.

Smith released a huge, angry typhlosion. It stood up on its hind legs and roared, causing a mane of fire to blaze up around its neck. Typhlosion landed back on all fours and prepared to charge, the flames rising and wavering with the cheers of the crowd.

"Ares, you're up!" White roared. Crobat flashed through the air at that, baring its needle-like fangs and doing a series of acrobatics to warm up.

Smith was quieter, just calling out a quiet series of commands to Typhlosion. The fire-type roared and flared up again, reminding Ash distinctly of Infernus.

"We'll need both of our pokemon to take on that crobat." Ash muttered to Jaimie. She nodded, having come to that same conclusion. "Take on that Typhlosion. Dazed'll keep the crobat away."

And with that exchange, the battle began. Crobat tore through the air, a blur too indistinct to actually follow. It avoided Dazed entirely, launching itself towards Wave. The starmie quickly fired water gun at Crobat, but the poison-type easily evaded the blast of water and darted in at the psychic-type. It evaded the next water gun as well.

Ash winced as he saw a flash of dull grey covered one of Crobat's wings as it slammed into Wave. The steel wing impacted straight into Wave's bright gem, sending a sharp crack through it and knocking Wave unconscious.

Typhlosion was racing towards Dazed, fangs bared and nothing but a blur of fire. It was now being supported by Crobat, who was darting towards Dazed.

His mind raced. Teleportation would only be a temporary solution. The opponents would be expecting it and Crobat would be too fast to avoid for long.

"Mutliball!"

Dazed's eyes flashed a light grey as a dozen tiny shadow balls formed in a ring around her. They circled the hypno slowly, being aimed and prepared to fire at her foes.

The rest was up to Dazed. Ash couldn't help her, all he'd be doing is distract her. Only she knew when to fire and where.

Crobat suddenly disappeared, a dozen illusory copies appearing in its place. Ash frowned at the double team, knowing that it would complicate things. The illusory Crobat swooped in at Dazed, suddenly disappearing as she locked onto the target with her abilities and fired her shadow balls.

The real Crobat was thrown to the ground by one of the shadow balls, although the shock quickly wore off and it shot back up into the air. It was a bit slower, though, so that was a plus.

Of course, that didn't help it much when it was suddenly consumed by an enormous burst of orange and yellow flame. Ash grinned as the charred form of Crobat fell to the ground, unconscious from being engulfed in the flamethrower but mostly unhurt. It was returned in an instant.

"Great job, Ignis!" Jaimie cheered. Her Charmeleon growled and spat another burst of flame. It shot another stream of fire at the racing form of Typhlosion, but the faster creature easily avoided the flame and spat its own flamethrower at Charmeleon in reply.

"Disable. Dream eater." Ash called out as Typhlosion leapt at Dazed's still form with all the grace of a predator. It was suddenly frozen and outlined in a light blue aura, helpless to resist as Dazed stared it in the eyes and began to sway her stone pendulum in front of its eyes. Typhlosion couldn't help but follow the entrancing motion, ignoring the cries of its trainer in favor of the pendulum.

In just three more seconds the Typhlosion's will had been broken by Dazed's natural hypnosis. She gently lowered the snoozing creature to the ground, making sure not to wake it.

Ash couldn't help but wince at the next part of the process. Dazed's eyes outstretched her hand, which began to glow red. A thin stream of red energy slid through the air until it touched Typhlosion, instantly creating a connection. Both of their bodies were suddenly engulfed in an aura of red energy, leaving the two as black outlines.

Typhlosion began to whimper and claw at the ground as its dreams were roughly torn from it by Dazed, who exhibited none of the care and tenderness she used when devouring Ash's dreams. Before the process could go on any longer Typhlosion was suddenly recalled by Smith, who looked visibly shaken by the technique.

"I forfeit." He shouted with a tremor in his voice. His hands were shaking as he placed Typhlosion's pokeball on the belt. White nodded understandingly and patted Smith on the shoulder.

"And there you have it, folk, a stunning battle!" The announcer shouted, barely audible over the roars of the crowd as victory was realized. "With power like that behind them, who knows how much further Ketchum and Sezare will go in this competition?"

A wide grin suddenly split across Ash's face as he realized he won. The trainer glanced over to Jaimie and saw that she had a similar reaction.

"You did awesome, Ash!" She cried before returning her Charmeleon. "With the two of us, this competition is going to be a breeze!"

He smiled and nodded before recalling Dazed and walking out of the box, whispering his thanks to her as he entered the area where the other competitors were stationed.

"And now for our next match!" The announcer cried. "Amell and Austin versus –"

Ash didn't pay attention to the rest as he took a seat next to Jaimie. They had a prime view of the battlefield from their spot and he needed to watch carefully. He needed to know everyone in the competition. There was no telling who he would battle.

XX

Ash and Jaimie ended up getting a pass for the next round of the competition. They performed the best out of all the competitors, losing only one pokemon during their battle. The other matches were much closer, and he'd seen some pretty tough competition in the other battles.

But now they were up again, facing their opponents, Ryan Dillard and Spencer Kale. Dillard was a young teenager that had a confident smile upon his face. He looked friendly enough, but Ash knew that he had the experience and skill to back up that confidence. He'd obliterated the competition although his partner had been much weaker, although no push-over. Kale was wiry and quiet, looking a bit uncomfortable with being in the center of attention.

"Ketchum and Sezare choose first! Go!"

He quickly sent out Infernus. Kale's team had been mostly weak to fire, and Infernus could easily fight the others. Kale was his priority. They wanted to take out the weaker team so they could focus exclusively on Dillard. If Infernus was defeated, Ash had plenty of other strong options.

Infernus roared and spat a huge column of white flame into the sky before he stamped his foot and caused the earth to explode around him and leak lava around him. The spectators loved it and cheered Infernus on. The fire-type started oddly and glanced at them as though he wanted to shoot a flamethrower into the stands.

Jaimie sent out her Venusaur. It was going to cover the no-man's-land in clouds of stun spore and sleep powder. Even if the opponent pokemon were able to avoid being affected by it, both substances were rather combustible. That would pose quite the nasty surprise.

Dillard grinned and sent out a massive, regal houndoom. It howled and spit a flame of dark flame traced with flecks of black soot inside of it into the air in imitation of Infernus. Infernus' eyes glinted as he took in the other fire-type, clearly ready to take Houndoom on.

Kale nervously released a slowbro, who lazily sat down and yawned before the sudden bite of Kale's voice snapped it out of its laziness. Slowbro stretched and looked at Infernus with a dopey expression. Ash saw the shelder attached to its tail clench a little tighter.

"Flower, cover the field with stun spore and sleep powder!" Jaimie shouted over the crowd. Flower yawned and looked at her in annoyance before he shook his body and sent huge clouds of both dangerous powders floating around the field. They didn't go near Infernus.

"Houndoom, Flash Charge!" Dillard shouted. Ash was surprised that he could hear him above the cheers.

Houndoom tensed up before leaping forwards, strong muscles pushing him at a fast pace. He spat a huge blast of flame into the clouds of powders, igniting them and sending them into a huge fireball. Flower grunted in annoyance and slowly backed away from the inferno, clearly uncomfortable. Infernus simply kept his eyes locked on the approaching fire-type, who was carrying a wave of fire at its heels.

Ash groaned to himself. He knew that strategy would backfire. At least it would just give Infernus more strength.

"Infernus, intercept."

Infernus roared before charging into the flames, his camouflage hiding him from all but the most perceptive of eyes. Houndoom was heedless as it charged through the flames, aiming directly towards the angry Flower, who had begun charging solar energy in direct violation of Jaimie's orders.

"Flower, use razor leaf! C'mon, for me!" Jaimie pleaded to the lumbering grass-type. Ash looked at her oddly, not understanding why her Venusaur wasn't listening to her. She was far too experienced for that.

Flower ignored her and continued charging its energy. Houndoom suddenly leapt from the crackling inferno that covered the majority of the field now, only visible as a black, horned blur as it aimed for Flower.

Unfortunately, Infernus punched it as it jumped outside of the flames. The magmar appeared as if from nowhere, nearly invisible amongst the inferno.

The punch sent Houndoom sprawling, the powerful fire-type not meant for taking hits. It whimpered and snarled as it pulled itself up and prepared to attack Infernus. Infernus simply adopted a fighting stance and prepared for the brutal melee that would follow amongst the flames.

Ash could hear Dillard shouting objections to his Houndoom, even above the roaring flames. Apparently the enraged dark-type was deviating from their plan. That could only be good for him. At least it distracted Houndoom from its real target: Flower.

Houndoom breathed a huge stream of flames at Infernus, heedless to the ineffectual nature of the attack. Ash grinned at that. It was fighting stupidly. While he'd seen the overwhelming power and skill it wielded in previous battles, Houndoom was only really effective when Dillard could command it. At all other times it seemed to be nothing more than a furious, slavering beast that barely understood how to battle other than bite and blast it with flames.

Infernus reacted with blinding speed, the heat pervading the battlefield speeding up his reaction time and lending him strength. He ducked underneath Houndoom's pounce and slammed his fist into the dark-types gut.

Ash could only hear a yelp before the two took their battle to the flames, only visible to him through the leaping pillars of fire and dim roars and cries that penetrated the roaring of the crowd and flames.

He sighed and glanced over at Flower. The venusaur was still staying far back, not contributing anything to the fight. Jaimie was shouting and pleading with it, but it just wouldn't listen. Flower was resolutely avoiding anything to do with fire or the fight.

It went on like that for another minute. He couldn't see the details of Infernus' battle and Flower wasn't doing anything, so it was rather boring. Ash was a bit worried about what Slowbro was getting up to. The water-type could be dangerous if it got a hold of Infernus.

And then he saw the flames explode in a certain area. Ash worriedly glanced over to the destroyed zone and saw that something had pushed the flames back. He was able to see into the battle a bit now.

Infernus was standing over the collapsed form of Houndoom. He was covered in bites, but he didn't seem particularly concerned. Instead, he stepped onto Houndoom and shifted all of his weight to that foot, eliciting a pained yelp from the dark-type.

The fire-type reared his head up and spat another stream of white-hot flame into the air, showing his pride in defeating Houndoom without much trouble. The crowd loved it and jumped out of their seats at the arrogant display of power.

Ash could only say that he was glad that Houndoom had gone into a frenzy at Infernus' first attack. He had been able to see Dillard's despondent expression over the course of the battle. Houndoom was a loose cannon, highly effective and fully capable of destroying most opponents with its fire when controlled by a trainer, but a rampaging mess when angered. It would have been a difficult fight otherwise, but Infernus' own skill had managed to avert disaster.

Even as Infernus roared his victory to the heavens, Slowbro waddled into the exposed area, its psychic powers creating a protected area for it to walk through, and shot a water pulse at Infernus' chest.

Infernus was thrown off of Houndoom, who was promptly returned by Dillard. He quickly pulled himself up and snarled at Slowbro, who blinked dumbly in return. The fire-type snorted a burst of flame and smoke before disappearing into the flames, nothing but an indistinct waver amongst the flickering inferno.

"Water pulse!" Kale shouted again. The shelder on Slowbro's tail clenched hard and Slowbro looked up. A sphere of blue energy formed above his mouth before transforming into a fount of water, which exploded outwards and extinguished most of the flames around him.

Ash winced as Infernus was hurled backwards by the force of the water. His friend was still fighting strong and furiously, but he couldn't take many more water pulses.

None of his techniques would work well against Slowbro. Brick break would hurt, but Slowbro would dampen its effects with its psychic abilities. Fire-type attacks wouldn't do much to the resistant creature. So there was only one venue left.

"Infernus, beat it!" He cried. Infernus tensed up and leapt as soon as the order left Ash's mouth. The fire-type slammed a fist into the back of Slowbro's head, knocking the water-type over. Slowbro tried to get up, but a huge flamethrower from Infernus that left the dirt around them glowing with embers and ash kept it down.

Just as Infernus prepared to deliver a finishing blow, a huge, shaggy form burst up from beneath him. Dirt exploded outwards, covering the entire area with a thin layer of it. An absolutely massive creature, standing at least eight feet high and four feet across, had erupted from the ground and was now standing protectively over Slowbro as the water-type recovered. Two huge, curved tusks of solid ice jutted out from its face. A pig-like snout twitched and snorted as the gigantic Mamoswine that had torn Dillard's previous opponents apart made an appearance.

Ash frowned at the behemoth. It was going to be absolutely brutal, so he couldn't hold anything back.

"Flamethrower!" He shouted. Infernus, who had just recovered from being thrown on his back, quickly followed suit, fearlessly facing Mamoswine and bathing it in flame. Ash had to look away from the inferno it was so bright.

When he looked back, Mamoswine stood strong. It hadn't even moved, but had taken the flamethrower easily. Mamoswine snorted at an order Dillard gave it and it slowly began a charge towards Infernus.

Even as Infernus faced the oncoming monster without flinching, Ash spotted Slowbro preparing a water gun that would ruin any efforts at defense from Infernus. He began to cry out a warning, but a huge beam of pure white energy suddenly flashed across the field and slammed into Slowbro, hurling it into the psychic barriers that enclosed the battlefield and knocking it unconscious.

Ash grinned. It looked like Flower had finally made an appearance now that the flames were gone. The grass-type lumbered over to the battle angrily, its beady eyes furious. Flower gave a deep bellow as it walked over, sending out a steady stream of razor-sharp leaves into Mamoswine's side as it did so.

Mamoswine simply ignored the razor leaf attacks as it charged towards Infernus. It lowered its head and prepared to slam its tusks into Infernus' side as it grew within five feet. Infernus tensed up and leapt out of the way, rolling and spitting a stream of flame at Mamoswine as he did so.

The behemoth snorted and slowed down. Dillard was calling out a constant stream of commands to the monster as it prepared another charge. Ash couldn't make them out, but knew they wouldn't be good.

Ash expected its next move to be an earthquake, or perhaps another charge. Instead, Mamoswine turned its massive head and opened its huge mouth. A stream of freezing air shot out from the lumbering creature's mouth and hit Flower, hurting the venusaur but not knocking it unconscious.

He took advantage of the distraction to strategize. Ash didn't know much about Mamoswine. They weren't from Kanto, for one, and weren't common anywhere. What he did know was from information passed around when the undefeatable creature made its first appearance at the tournament.

Mamoswine were ice and ground-types. They were as powerful as snorlax when charging and were incredibly dangerous. It took a lot to take them down and they had a dangerous move pool.

But he did think he had a strategy. He didn't know if even Infernus could take the Mamoswine down through brute force, but he could try to get it to overheat. The behemoth's thick fur would be baking hot already in this sort of heat, so if he pounded it with fire and got it moving enough it wouldn't be able to fight.

"Change out for Ignis." He said, never taking his eyes away from the battlefield. "We need firepower."

Jaimie nodded and hastily recalled Flower, attracting a bit of attention from the announcer as she did so. She released Ignis, who quickly ran over to the fight.

"Ignis, use flamethrower on Mamoswine!" She shouted, glancing at Ash to see if that was what he wanted. He nodded and turned his focus back to the battle.

"Infernus, take him head on."

Infernus roared and prepared himself as Mamoswine turned towards him. It completely ignored Ignis' flamethrower and focused on Infernus. Mamoswine grunted loudly as it charged towards Infernus with unstoppable force, bulk carrying incredible power behind it.

His friend bathed it in a stream of unrelenting flame as it neared, leaving the Mamoswine nothing but a dark shape hurtling towards him. Ignis lent her own flame, devouring Mamoswine from all directions.

Ash spotted its ice tusks melting as the heat intensified. It just couldn't take the heat. Mamoswine was already slowing, but would still hit Infernus with a good deal of force. The behemoth was too close to avoid.

"Take it!" He shouted, trusting that Infernus was still strong enough and Mamoswine was weakened enough for this to work.

And so Infernus took a stance and lunged at Mamoswine as it met him, grabbing its huge, icy tusks in his burning hands and anchoring himself to the earth as unstoppable force met pure determination and unwillingness to bend to any foe.

The crowd finally went silent as Infernus held the weakened Mamoswine in its tracks, forcing a stalemate. Both foes struggled to win the titanic struggle, Infernus utilizing all of his strength to defeat Mamoswine. Ignis continued to help, forcing all of her power into her flames as they slammed into Mamoswine's side.

It went on for several tense seconds. Ash could barely believe it himself. Perhaps he could believe it of Bruiser and his titanic strength, but for Infernus to hold a rampaging Mamoswine in its tracks…it was simply awe-inspiring.

And then Mamoswine fell, the heat too much for the mammoth. It collapsed behind the force, allowing Infernus to push it over even as the last remnants of its icy tusks melted in his hands. Before Infernus could begin attacking it with his flames again, Dillard recalled Mamoswine.

Ash let go of a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. He stared at Infernus with awe, silent but screaming congratulations at the same time. Infernus just shakily stood there and roared, spitting flame throughout the battlefield to the immense cheers of the crowd.

Infernus collapsed after that, the effort of stopping Mamoswine too much for his powerful body to handle. He stared at Ash proudly before he was recalled.

He blinked and felt a crazy grin spread over his lips. Ash was just too frozen to do anything else as the crowd chanted his name and cheered him on. Jaimie was the one that ended up pulling him from his stupor and leading him to the box, shouting congratulations and squealing over Infernus as she did so.

XX

He and Jaimie stared at each other from opposite ends of the battlefield, partners turned opponents. Both knew each other's skill well enough, but both were confident in their ability to win. The crowd cheered their names, expecting a great battle from the first battle between partners.

"This will be a one-on-one battle." The announcer began solemnly, far from the boisterous attitude he'd claimed so far. "Choose your pokemon wisely. This will determine who enters the finals. Prepare yourselves and fight your former partner with all the ferocity you possess. Sezare chooses first."

Ash wasn't surprised when an immense blue serpent appeared on the field, exuding a calming aura and staring at him intently with large, glossy eyes. It coiled around itself and remained serene even as the crowd froze with awe at the sight of a dragonair.

"C'mon, Serpent, you can do it!" Jaimie cried, pumping her fist in the air. Serpent raised her head and gave out a low, soothing cry.

He just grinned. If Jaimie wanted a competition between dragons, she would get one. Ash trusted that Torrent would come through for him.

Torrent rumbled his arrival onto the field, shaking the earth around him. He levitated several feet above the earth, raising his elegant head in a dignified manner as Serpent's spell over the crowd broke and they began clamoring for the refined kingdra.

"And in a stunning development, we find ourselves watching a clash between dragons!" The announcer cried in a stunned manner. "I can't believe my eyes! Which of these powerful creatures shall find victory today?"

"Ice storm." Ash said quietly. The crowd was quiet now, too enraptured by the battle to cheer and roar. He didn't want to give away anything to Jaimie. She had trouble controlling a few of her pokemon, but she was a strong battler. He couldn't give her an advantage.

Torrent quickly spewed the thick haze of frost from his snout and let it diffuse over the field, an impenetrable barrier for Serpent. Before Jaimie could react he twitched his rear fins and created a gigantic tornado. The kingdra levitated with the twister, which he pushed to greater and greater sizes.

"Thunder wave!" Jaimie shouted. Serpent cried out loudly as the orbs beneath her neck glowed brightly and shot out a huge lance of blue electricity. It flashed towards Torrent and would end the battle immediately if it hit, but Torrent simply maneuvered the twister in front of the bolt of paralyzing electricity.

Torrent suddenly levitated into the twister, which by now engulfed the entire width of the field and rose a hundred feet into the clear blue sky, carrying huge amounts of dirt and dust inside of its spinning winds, and began forcing it forward. From what he could see, Jaimie had blanched when she realized that Torrent was nigh invulnerable inside of the twister.

Ash smiled softly. He needed to save his real energy for the finals. This wasn't a real fight. He knew that Serpent was an incredible force in battle. All dragons were. Even dratini were capable of a good amount of destruction if given reason.

That was why he had to end this quickly and decisively. Serpent couldn't fly above the twister, since at that height she would have run into the psychic barriers, and couldn't find a way around it. The hurricane-force winds would defeat the powerful dragon-type in just a few seconds if she tried to go through it, especially when the blizzard was assimilated into the twister.

So he wasn't worried as Torrent and his twister surged toward Serpent, an indomitable force that could not be stopped by any means.

And then he saw a bright blue glow focus on Serpent, briefly illuminating the entire stadium. Ash's widened and he nearly smacked himself. In his haste, he'd forgotten the most potent of dragonair's abilities: Weather manipulation. The twister might survive her neutralization, but it would be weakened beyond belief.

Jaimie was grinning widely as the blue light exploded outwards from the orbs on Serpents' neck and carved their way through the twister. While it had little effect at first, the blue light hovered in the air and slowly calmed the roaring winds.

Ash had a deep frown on his face as he examined the effects. The twister was dying now, the blizzard that swirled inside of it leaking away and losing its potency as warm air heated it. Even the winds were returning to nothing more than a particularly fierce summer breeze.

Then the light vanished, returning to Serpent's orbs in a single flash. For her part, Serpent looked exhausted. Apparently the effort of neutralizing a massive tornado was quite substantial. She was still able to fight, however, even if at reduced ability.

Torrent seemed fine, if a little tired. He had incredible endurance and creating the ice storm was much simpler than calming it. At least Ash still possessed an advantage.

Still, it was clear that creating another ice storm wasn't a possibility. Jaimie was onto him now. He had to end this decisively.

"Blizzard!" He cried. Torrent reared back and shot a huge blizzard, exponentially larger and more powerful than the one he had used in the ice storm. It swept across the ground, leaving a trail of frost in its wake. Dirt froze over as it passed by and crystals of ice formed on the battlefield's surface.

"Fly out of the way!" Jaimie shouted. Serpent struggled, but managed to levitate upwards. She barely stayed above the surging blizzard, the effort showing in her constant dips and twitches. Her body and mind wasn't meant to take the kind of punishment she had just put herself through.

"Dragon pulse. Follow with another blizzard."

Torrent easily formed the sphere of writhing energy and aimed it at Serpent's weakening form. A week of constant practice had done him good. He quickly released it, the sphere of draconic energy slamming into Serpent and releasing its power in the form of an immense explosion, the light of a sun emanating from the contact for a brief moment.

When Ash could see again, he saw that Serpent was crumpled to the ground. She was strong – she'd proven that by stopping the ice storm – but it was clear that she had no real way of surviving the kind of firepower that Torrent could use with ease. Dragonair didn't have the sheer power or endurance that kingdra did.

All was silent for a moment.

"Ash Ketchum advances to the finals, showing his strength in a brilliant display of power and skill! This battle will be remembered for years!"

Ash just smiled a bit, nodding at Jaimie with respect. She was a good trainer, if a little too soft on her pokemon. But, judging from her dragonair, she was doing well. Nothing else had managed to completely neutralize ice storm.

He recalled Torrent and thanked his friend for his strength before walking off of his box. The crowd was still silent as he went to the competitors' box, which was largely empty except for the last pair remaining.

The eyes of the crowd weren't so intimidating anymore.

XX

"And for the Finals, we have two incredible trainers! Ash Ketchum, who has shown that he has skill far beyond his age, and Jack Conolley, who has dominated each match he has engaged in. This is a one-on-one match. The stakes are high, but you must choose wisely if you wish to win. Conolley will choose first. Begin!"

Ash didn't like that the final match was a one-on-one. It just didn't seem to work well. But he supposed it did work well for the organizers. It gave a dramatic air to the last battle of the tournament and had the side effect of keeping it from dragging on too long. The tournament had been going on for well over seven hours now, which was absolutely brutal in the summer heat.

Conolley was a tall teen who had a constant, good-natured smirk. He was good, that much was evident. Ash had seen the way he defeated his opponents, carrying his much weaker partner's slack.

His opponent waved at him, which Ash hesitantly returned. He felt nervous again, the feeling of invincibility that had stayed with him following his victory over Jaimie practically nonexistent now.

Conolley released the one thing that Ash really didn't want to battle: a huge, roaring gyarados that had nothing in its eyes but pure rage. The creature took up a huge portion of Conolley's side of the battlefield. It was at least forty feet long.

He had nothing against it. Torrent was tired from the battle now that the adrenaline had left his system. Dazed didn't have the power to hurt the monstrous sea serpent that thrashed before him, belching fire as it roared. Bruiser had no chance. Infernus could barely stand, let alone fight. Tangela couldn't face it, not with it being capable of breathing fire.

Nidoking was weak to it, but he had thunderbolt behind him. He wasn't a good choice, but he was a choice. Ash was starting to wish he'd captured one of those electric-types running through Saffron City.

Nidoking roared loudly and pounded his chest as he was released, not intimidated in the least by Gyarados. The great sea serpent roared at him and slowly wound its way closer.

Ash formulated a rough strategy. Gyarados was invincible. Its armor was thicker than Nidoking's, so poison sting and other weak, ranged attacks would be useless. A punch would hurt Gyarados, but wouldn't do enough. Aside from that, there was the sheer problem of attacking a forty foot sea serpent up close.

What he did have was thunderbolt. Gyarados wouldn't be instantly defeated by it, but the sea serpent would be badly hurt if he used enough of them. At the very least it would keep it from attacking. The sea serpent was limited in mobility as it was, and the underside of its body was more vulnerable. It was his only chance.

"Hydro pump." Conolley said with a laugh, thinking that the match would be over quickly. Ash couldn't blame him. Nidoking was strong, but he was fighting against a beast ancient cultures had revered as a minor deity, just underneath the Legends themselves.

Gyarados reared its head back and spat a huge torrent of water at Nidoking, the flow constant and never stopping. Even as he realized that fact, Ash's mind flashed back to his battle against Blaine. The part of him that had accepted defeat was momentarily vanished by his hope.

"Thunderbolt!" He shouted desperately. "Follow with ice beam."

Nidoking resolutely did as he commanded, his increased reflexes allowing him to perform both actions before the incredibly powerful hydro pump that could wash a town away hit him. He lowered his head and shot a lance of bright, burning lightning into the flood of water.

Conolley's eyes widened in fear and shouted for Gyarados to stop, but the Gyarados was too busy blasting water that it couldn't hear. It did understand when the incredibly amplified thunderbolt travelled through the hydro pump and into its body.

Gyarados writhed in agony as the electricity raged through its system. It thrashed and twisted in an attempt to avoid the pain, pushing the psychic barriers protecting the crowd to their absolute limit as its incredibly powerful body slammed into the barriers. Fire surged from its mouth wildly, the inferno tinged a light blue and bathing the battlefield around it in flames.

Nidoking fired the ice beam just as the hydro pump was about to hit him. A small part of the hydro pump was frozen solid, giving Nidoking just enough time to sidestep before the remainder of the hydro pump forced the frozen part forward.

"Thunderbolt! Charge it!" Ash cried, able to see victory, no matter how unlikely it was. Nidoking roared and charged as fast as he could. A bolt of electricity left his horn and slammed into Gyarados' twitching form with perfect precision, sending the beast back into its spasms.

"Gyarados, get up!" Conolley snapped, a bit of worry on his face. Gyarados followed the order as best it could, pulling itself up from its agonized spasms in a display of incredible willpower. "Block the electricity with thunder. Wrap it up."

Gyarados roared furiously, pure hatred in its feral eyes as it regarded Nidoking. Nidoking roared back and shot another lance of lightning at Gyarados. The sea serpent reacted quickly, closing its eyes as a huge surge of electricity left its body and collided with the thin, intense thunderbolt.

Thunderbolt was no match for the power of Gyarados' thunder. The more powerful electric-type attack was simply absorbed by the immense surge of electricity that arced past it and slammed into the psychic barriers just in front of Ash's face.

Ash blinked in surprise before looking back to the battle. Nidoking was still racing towards Gyarados, having abandoned the thunderbolts. Now he shot ice beams at Gyarados, although they were blocked by immense breaths of fire from the powerful sea serpent.

As Nidoking charged closer, Gyarados suddenly snapped towards the poison-type. Nidoking was helpless to resist as Gyarados coiled around him, squeezing Nidoking with crushing force. Nidoking roared in agony, but kept the great sea serpent at bay by pushing outward as hard as he could.

Conolley seemed surprised that Gyarados hadn't knocked Nidoking out instantly, but began to react. Ash was faster, though, seeing another faint glimmer of victory.

"Thunderbolt!" He roared, making sure that he was audible to Nidoking. Nidoking bared his teeth with the efforts as an arc of lightning raced up his long horn and shot straight into Gyarados' mouth as the massive creature tried to breathe fire on him.

Gyarados couldn't even roar as agony raced through it, too powerful for the monster to resist. It writhed in pain and fury and accidentally let Nidoking go. The ground-type struggled to pull himself up, but quickly did so at Ash's command.

"Horn attack!" Ash cried. Gyarados was quieting down, breathing heavily and struggling to get back up. This was their last chance.

Nidoking didn't even roar as he barreled into Gyarados' sensitive underside with his sharp horn. The horn pierced through Gyarados' massive plates of scales, which were still thick even on the underbelly, and injected a huge dose of poison that would be enough to drastically weaken Gyarados into it.

But that wasn't all. Even as the spectators watched in awe and Conolley in horror, Ash shouted one word.

"Thunderbolt!"

Gyarados roared in agony as a huge current of electricity lashed through him, still too strong and overwhelmingly powerful to be knocked unconscious by the blow. Ash felt pity for the sea serpent as its gaping maw opened and closed helplessly, barely conscious but still feeling every bit of the attack.

"I forfeit!" Conolley shouted as he suddenly recalled Gyarados, looking at the pokeball with pity and admiration. He looked at Ash. "Ketchum, you are a magnificent battler. You deserve to win this competition."

Ash smiled and tipped his hat to him, feeling a little guilty for putting Gyarados through that much pain. But then he froze.

He just defeated a massive, furious Gyarados with Nidoking.

The roar of the crowd was a stark contrast to the silence within his own head.

XX

"And here is the Champion of the Annual Dandra Pokemon Tournament, Ash Ketchum!" The announcer roared to the crowd as he placed a heavy medal around Ash's neck. He had three others in his hand, one for Conolley, one for Jaimie, who had defeated Conolley's partner for third place, and Conolley's partner, whose name Ash didn't know.

"The money will be transferred to your trainer account within the hour." The announcer promised Ash quietly. He suddenly pulled out the reward that Ash wanted the most: the egg. The announcer held it out. Ash reverently took it, gazing at the solid black egg curiously. He couldn't wait to see what it hatched into.

The announcer suddenly looked up at the crowd. The winners were in the announcer's box, which had opened up to reveal them to the crowd that had come back to watch the rewards ceremony. It had been a day since Ash had defeated Conolley and won the tournament, and he had never felt better.

He had made sure to give all of his friends full restores. They were still tired, but they were healthy now. Ash couldn't thank them enough. All of them had battled with incredible skill and put everything they had into winning.

He'd also made sure that there were no hard feelings between he and Jaimie. He liked her well enough and didn't want her to hold a grudge. She'd assured him that there was no bitterness and was happy for him, if not disappointed in herself.

"Ladies and gentleman, before we continue with this rewards ceremony, please give our Champion a round of applause!"

Ash grinned and waved up at the crowd as he cradled the ebony egg in one arm. They cheered him on even more.

He didn't like battling in front of them that much, but he thought he could grow to accept the cheers.

And it's done. Thanks for reading this far! I just finished writing this at 3 A.M., so bear with me if there are some mistakes towards the end.

First off, I'd like to apologize if I didn't put someone's OC in. I was rushed towards the end and I'm a little sleep deprived at the moment. Just PM me and I'll try and make it up to you in the future.

Please, please, please make sure to review. My hands and fingers might not be functional anymore. Let's try to get to three hundred!

Once again, thanks for reading! Next chapter will be out as soon as I can write it!