Surmount

by HDK315

Although they travel down a long, merciless road that has overwhelmed all but the very strongest to eventually throw in the towel, they do so with unrivaled resolve and convictions. This is the story of Ash Ketchum and his beloved family of Pokemon, and how they became the greatest of all time. Cover by Atenburgh.

19. Off Road Rest Stop

"Nebula, Quick Attack!"

Soaring higher above the grassy field that served as their arena, Nebula shot straight upwards, ramming herself beak-first into the Pidgeotto's chest. The other bird Pokemon gasped for air before being propelled further up, catching itself just in time to heed its trainer's order.

Another boy Ash's age stood across from him several meters away. "Pidgeotto, Aerial Ace!"

As Pidgeotto cloaked itself in a white aura, Nebula darted to the side to avoid her opponent's incoming charge. Pidgeotto looped around to give pursuit as the two birds danced through the air, but Nebula was faster, and remained ahead of her aggressor.

The group had taken their leave of Vermilion three days after their loss to Surge. Most members of the team had been expectedly disheartened by the outcome of the match (although Tempest's reaction was a mix between that and being fired up to make a comeback). Ash had given them the time they needed to both get their morale back up and move on from the brutal match, while casually training with those who were in the mood.

When taking the time to ensure that the team was stocked up on supplies, Ash had chosen not to purchase any new TMs in an effort to save money (and from what he knew, Celadon's shopping district was top of the line, so it may benefit them for that reason as well), but before leaving Vermilion, he had gotten Pikachu started on Electroweb, and Valiant on Psychic. As expected, Pikachu was quick to learn his move with at least some efficiency, although even now, there was still an obvious need for polish. Valiant was currently unable to use his new move without a good deal of concentration, which left the technique in a state that was somewhat impractical for battle for the time being, but to the surprise of nobody on the team, the Kirlia was putting all the effort he could into developing it further. Given that the move was advanced, however, Ash didn't want Valiant to push himself too much with it, and encouraged him to take time for the moves he was already practicing.

Tempest had been training the most out of everybody on the team after the battle with Surge, his motivation having recovered the quickest. Since the Krabby was getting better with Scald, Ash had decided to start teaching him the move Icy Wind, in hopes of preparing for their upcoming match at the Celadon Gym, which specialized in grass types. Without a TM to speed up the process, Ash knew it would be more difficult to get the hang of, which had almost tempted him into buying one, but he was confident in the River Crab's work ethic. After being read a detailed description of the move's properties in the Pokedex, and seeing some footage of the technique being put to use, Tempest had gotten to work trying to learn the move. At the moment, he was only capable of producing a fairly weak stream of it, but they had time to at least develop a decent variation of the technique by the time they reached Celadon.

Plans had not changed for anybody else on the team. Tyrunt was still working on Fire Fang, another move Ash hoped to be able to use against Erika at her Gym, with plans to perfect Brick Break at a later date, while Eevee continued to work on Hyper Voice and her speed while helping Valiant to improve his own mobility.

Since they were planning to go straight to Celadon from Vermilion, rather than taking the usual path to Saffron instead (which was theoretically ideal, but also longer), the group had been off road since leaving the city, although such a thing was not too uncommon for trainers, especially those who preferred the wilderness over civilization (even if Ash himself was not one of those people). Thankfully, the terrain they found themselves taking mostly consisted of grassy fields and hills, along with a nearby forest that they had been able to avoid (although it was fairly average, and wouldn't have been nearly as big as Viridian Forest anyway). Traveling was still just as simple as it typically was on the road, and they were lucky enough to run into a surprisingly decent amount of trainers, most of whom seemed to come from either Celadon or Saffron and had also chosen to stray from the usual path. It had given them a valuable chance to acquire more prize money and help put their new moves into practice during battle, and both had proven successful thus far.

"U-Turn, and Wing Attack!" Hearing Ash's call, Nebula closed her eyes just long enough for her body to become faintly cloaked in a greenish-yellow light, concentrating for a moment before performing an abruptly sharp turn, now on a collision course with the startled Pidgeotto.

The Staravia was good at maneuvering in the air, but with U-Turn, even the most sudden and jarring swerve in the opposite direction could be performed without any loss of momentum. Since she had only learned the move recently, she couldn't utilize it without effort, and they still needed to test how often she could the move in a single battle (as simple as the concept was, Ash imagined the execution of the move required a good deal of focus, especially on repeat), but for occasional uses, the move was proving quite beneficial.

As Nebula bolted for her opponent, Ash's feathered partner raised a glowing wing that smacked into Pidgeotto's face, sending the opposing bird tumbling through the air before regaining its balance and producing a mighty gust of wind with its wings.

As Nebula flew under the incoming Gust attack, Ash grinned as he saw an opening.

"Air Cutter!"

Facing her body diagonally upwards to line up with her target, Nebula's wings glowed yet again as she produced what looked to be sharp projectiles with her flaps. Her frequent use of Wind Blast had given her a decent amount of experience with manipulating air-based attacks, and although converting wind into what was essentially a barrage of blades was a far more advanced concept, she had gotten a fairly adequate hold of the move at the current moment.

Pidgeotto's trainer gasped as his partner was assaulted by the bladed wind, the sharp properties of the technique easily piercing through the opposing bird's durability. As Nebula's opponent lost its balance in mid-air, she rushed forward and met Pidgeotto with a Steel Wing, which smacked the flier into the ground, unconscious.

The opposing trainer was somewhat disgruntled as he recalled his friend, but took the loss in stride as Ash congratulated his teammate.

/

The sky was a bright orange as Ash neared the Pokemon Center ahead, the sunset lighting up the clouds above.

Their previous opponent had generously informed him that there was a Center a few hours away, marking the halfway point between Vermilion and Celadon, which had prompted Ash to quicken his pace to ensure that they could spend the night in a comfortable room rather than a campsite. He would have liked to get a couple more battles in, but the team had already seen a decent amount of action today, so they weren't in desperate need. It would have been nice to earn a little more winnings, but they would have plenty of chances later, and since they had kept a winning streak since their fight with Surge, they'd thankfully earned a good amount of money already.

Most importantly, the team were all on the same page as him, with the majority viewing a refreshing night in a hotel room as a higher priority than training time that they could just make up later on. Even Tempest was at least open to the idea, having already gotten two clean wins from today alone.

Like most Centers on the road (or in this case, off the beaten path), this one was of a decent size on its own, but paled in comparison to those found in cities, which naturally needed to be much bigger. Not as grandiose to look at, but Ash doubted many trainers were overly concerned with such a thing, as it didn't change the building's purpose. Apart from being located in what felt like the middle of nowhere, it seemed no different from any other Center a trainer would find outside of the cities.

The boy was mostly grateful that there even was a Center to stay at. Given they were away from the traditional routes connecting Kanto's many cities, he and his teammates had expected to be camping out the whole way to Celadon, but they were thankfully being given a break from that now. No doubt the League had acknowledged this area as a popular off-road path for trainers, although he supposed that the Center could have been intended to assist travelers who had lost their way.

Perched on Ash's shoulder, Pikachu squealed in delight at the welcome sight of the boy grinned in amusement as he tickled his starter's chin.

"If we're halfway to Celadon, then we should be able to get there in two days if we leave tomorrow morning. But right now, let's refresh ourselves for the night."

The automatic doors opened in front of them to reveal the lobby, where a man was sitting on a nearby, cushioned chair with a tablet in hand and a mug of hot coffee on the small table in front of him. Judging by his uniform, Ash assumed that he was some sort of business worker, who was staying up to do some work online. Off to the side, a boy and a girl who both seemed to be Ash's age were chatting near the windows, as a Growlithe playfully chased a Marill around close by.

All sets of eyes briefly turned to Ash and Pikachu as the rookie stepped inside, albeit only just long enough to take in the duo's arrival, immediately going back to their respective activities as Ash made his way to the front counter.

Nurse Joy perked up upon seeing him and Pikachu (the mouse waving at her from Ash;s shoulder as the boy approached. Her behavior seemed to suggest that the day had been slow, or at least the last few hours.

Putting her phone away, the nurse flashed the duo a quick smile before turning her attention to the keyboard, her fingers already moving at what felt like lightning speed (no doubt it did wonders to work at the desk so often). "Checking in for the night?"

The boy nodded, already having his Pokedex ready to hand to her. She was quick to go through his information before giving him a room on the second floor, and taking in his team for a quick refresher.

/

After dinner, the group was quick to make their way up to their room. Outside of the stretch of grassy fields that made up the surrounding area, the view from the window didn't offer much, but the majority of the group didn't pay too much attention to it (although Nebula seemed to be somewhat disappointed by the lack of sights to take in). Ash had the flatscreen on for those who were interested in watching, although he had to flip through the channels a few times to find something that interested them (the television was initially on Celadon's news station, covering a book-signing event taking place at the city's public library, but as expected, none of his Pokemon had ever heard of it before). He eventually found coverage of the P1 Grand Prix, a special tournament that Silph Co. held for fighting type Pokemon based in Celadon, which Tempest immediately became drawn into. Pikachu and Nebula sat beside each other to watch the show as well, although Nebula was mostly doing it due to having nothing else to occupy herself with.

Ash sat at the head of his bed, and spared occasional glances at the television while listening in to what the announcers were saying, but his attention was focused on a pamphlet that he had picked out from the lobby.

"What are you reading?"

Ash looked over to Valiant, who had positioned himself next to him without the trainer realizing. Smiling, Ash held the booklet out for the Kirlia to see better.

"I got this from the lobby." he explained to his psychic friend. "It's sort of an advertisement for Celadon. Provides details for travellers and such." He turned his attention back to the pamphlet as he flipped through it. "It's been the most high-class area in Kanto for ages. Apparently it's status started because of its advanced agriculture. Richest soil in the region. Nowadays, it's become the fanciest city here. Not everything is upper-class, especially since it's the region's most populated city, but the richer districts make themselves stand out as much as possible. Best housing, hotels, shopping, restaurants, education…" he pressed his fist against his cheek for a moment. "It feels like all the expensive luxuries just landed in the city's lap."

Valiant eyed the pamphlet for a few moments, the conflicted look in his eyes masked by the surge of curiosity growing in his chest. After prodding Ash for a moment, the trainer caught on and handed the pamphlet to the Emotion Pokemon, who carefully took it in his hands (he was a lot smaller than Ash was) to flip through it. The young psychic skimmed through the text on each page, while also paying close attention to the pictures, many of which were made to be as visibly appealing as possible. The shot of the city's skyline at night was mesmerizing.

The young Kirlia frowned as he reached another page, however. Seeing his friend linger on the portion of the booklet, Ash leaned in to see what had caught Valiant's eye.

It was a section dedicated to Pokemon Breeding.

"A lot of top-notch breeders base themselves in that city." the boy commented, although Valiant kept his eyes on the booklet. It's basically Indigo's breeding capital." the trainer thought back to the business cards Elacia had given him. It was still hard to believe that they had run into Indigo's second highest ranked breeder purely by chance. And she was one of the breeders that gave Celadon its reputation. Not to mention she was friends with Suzie, the highest ranked breeder, who also resided in the city. "Apparently there's a whole section of the city called Breeder's Lane. We'll have to go there to pay Elacia a visit once we get to Celadon. She said to visit Suzie if she isn't there at the time."

Valiant nodded slowly. "Will we need to do it right away?" he asked, turning his head to his trainer.

Ash gave him a curious look. "You don't want to?" they would have a Gym battle to prepare for once they got there, but he also didn't want to wait too long to pay his friend a visit. Granted, it's not like she was rushing him to do it, but Valiant's words were a bit confusing. Did it really matter to him?

Shifting his view back to the booklet in his hands, Valiant tried to keep his expression neutral. "Not what I mean, it's just… there's no rush, right?"

He was right about that, but Ash frowned for a different reason. "Remember not to use your telepathic speech too often. You don't want to exhaust yourself too much." it wasn't something that would just get better with practice, sadly.

Nodding, Valiant kept silent as he flipped to another page. This one detailed the shopping district. Ash leaned in to get a look for himself.

"The Celadon Department Store is supposed to be the largest store in the city. It's famous for being the best store in the region for trainers. They sell some of the best equipment we'd be able to find." he was planning to go there at some point for sure.

As Ash and Valiant looked through the booklet, Eevee rested herself on a pillow not too far from the bed. She wasn't ready to sleep yet, but she wasn't overly interested in the tournament on TV, so she chose to take some time to herself while everybody else was occupied.

Almost everybody, at least.

She felt a rough snout lightly prodding at her side, turning her head with mild irritation to see Tyrunt standing next to her, the dinosaur offering the normal type a friendly growl.

A small part of Eevee inwardly groaned at the sight of him. She didn't have any dislike for the hatchling (was he still considered a baby?), but his antics were more than what she was willing to keep up with. It was to be expected, for a baby to be so energetic, but it was like Tyrunt wasn't capable of turning himself off, always training or playing until he practically dropped to the floor and fell asleep.

And since they both spent so much time with Valiant, she was often right in his vicinity whenever the dinosaur was looking for a playmate. Whether she was in the mood to goof off or not. The lack of boundaries constantly tested her patience.

It wasn't all bad, though. Ever since he had started training, Tyrunt had been dividing his focus between working on his moves and being a playful nuisance. Eevee initially wasn't so sure when Ash had instructed them to begin practicing Hyper Voice and Roar together, but she had to admit she found the work ethic encouraging.

Ever since Nebula had fought her back at Mt. Moon's foot and secured her capture, Eevee had been behind all of her teammates from the start. They had all been decently trained by the time they had met her, Valiant recounting their time in Pewter City and the rigorous work that they had put in to take on the Gym Leader there. Coupled with Nebula's evolution giving her such a massive spike in prowess, it was, retroactively, no surprise to Eevee that her encounter with the bird had been so humiliating. But that didn't stop her from feeling jealous. The loss of freedom was something she could mostly get over relatively quickly. Ash was far from disrespectful or inconsiderate, and her new companions had been welcoming.

But that Staravia's presence had just been a reminder of how outclassed she was by her new family. Nebula, who had fought against that Gary kid's Wartortle and nearly won, while Eevee went down in record time against that Weepinbell. Who had soloed the second half of Daisy's team after Valiant had been swiftly finished off, while she was stuck losing the first round against Seaking… and then losing in their very next battle against Misty's own Eevee. All in addition to how easily Nebula had beaten her in their first encounter.

The Evolution Pokemon hadn't cared much about getting stronger, until she was abruptly shown how weak she was. Her own fragility had made itself even more clear at Mt. Moon, where that damn Gabite would have murdered her if Valiant hadn't been there to take the hit. She was more than grateful for that, but the situation frustrated her immensely. And when the time finally came for her to start training, even as she improved with each session, Pikachu had essentially been the better copy of her. Valiant had informed her of how much dedication that the mouse had shown when preparing for Brock, and how his mobility had been honed to absurd levels from all the practice runs that he had done on the hazardous terrain of Pewter's training grounds, so Eevee wasn't about to accuse the electric type's capabilities of being unearned, but… How could she take pride in her increasing speed when he was so much faster? How could she get joy out of learning Iron Tail, a move that he was already so perfect with? He was the best sparring partner… only because he was an example of what she could be.

And she had nearly jeopardized her relationship with the electric mouse because of that. It was bad enough that she blamed everything on Nebula when first joining the team, but the moment she had started to get over that, she had lashed out at someone that Ash had told to help her improve. It hadn't mattered to her that Pikachu had been doing this for longer. That he had a head start. All she had cared about was the present day.

It didn't help that she had yet to truly prove herself. She was much stronger than she was at Mt. Moon now. She could feel the gap between her and the others closing. But even then, what had she accomplished to show off the fruits of her labor? Who had she beaten? Sure, she'd fought a decent amount of trainers on the road, but it didn't seem like any of them were on their team's level. Ash had improved at what some had claimed to be a fairly high rate for a first-timer. If somebody on the road asked him how many badges he had, they were floored to find out that he already had two, despite Ash trying to be as casual about it as possible, and not show off. A decent number of the trainers they fought were easy victories at worst, and at best, challenging, but not to the point of encouraging them to push beyond their limits.

Ever since leaving Cerulean, the only big obstacle she had faced was that blasted Surge. It was her chance to truly showcase how much she had developed her abilities since her capture, only for the brutal Gym Leader to be even more merciless than they thought. She wasn't upset about the loss itself: Everyone had gone down in that battle, but apart from Tyrunt, the youngest of the group, they had all proven their worth. They could afford a crushing loss here or there. She couldn't.

She was tired of only getting to show the world her newly gained strides against opponents that she already knew that she could beat. She wanted to test herself… and actually pass this time. And this leaked into her training. She hated messing up. Any mistake she made in practice was another step that she could have taken to improving herself on the battlefield. Ash told her that no training session would be perfect. That a few blunders wouldn't hinder her progress. Valiant told her the same. But it was getting harder and harder to focus on that the longer it took for her to actually see her progress in action.

Tyrunt's enthusiasm was a lot less annoying when it was dedicated to improving himself instead of playing around. As a baby, he was behind everybody from the start. Even if that gap was compromised by the niche advantages that were provided for him by his species and jaw, he practically needed to build himself from the ground up to truly catch up to everybody else. It almost made her feel ashamed of all the complaining that she had been doing earlier on. Tyrunt sparred with Valiant all the time, Eevee often being there to watch the hatchling practice with her best friend. He certainly hadn't measured up to him, but that happy enthusiasm hadn't wavered. Even when outclassed, he treated it as pure, satisfying fun, and although he had lashed out on occasion, it was always a product of instincts that he didn't yet have clear control over, not out of jealousy. Tyrunt's species had a much more violent temper than her own did, and yet she had been the envious one. Perhaps it was too harsh to judge herself like that, Tyrunt's infancy made him and his cheerful attitude perfectly normal, but once again, she found herself comparing, the same way she had with Pikachu and Nebula.

She didn't view battling as a fun game like Tyrunt did… but something about his excitement had left her feeling appreciative. Always excited to try again whenever he messed up a move, always cheering as though he had been victorious in a battle royale when he performed beyond his usual standards. He wasn't the only member of the team who was so optimistic about training, but in a way, that infantile behavior felt like it was slowly encouraging the stress to go away. Like a heavy brick being lifted off of her back. Whenever she and Tyrunt practiced their moves together, she found herself less afraid of failure. Like she shouldn't be so scared of the idea of making a mistake. After all, he wasn't. Maybe that's why he found it so fun.

As Tyrunt flashed her a grin, she tried to put on a friendly smile, politely shaking her head. She didn't want to play right now. Maybe later, like after breakfast tomorrow before they hit the road.

Halfway through her response, however, she noticed the look in his eyes. They were… drooping?

Tyrunt leaned against the pillow she was perched on, nudging at the spot beside her.

Her eyes widened in realization for a brief second, suddenly realizing what he was asking for. He wasn't trying to play, he wanted to rest.

Tyrunt grinned gratefully as Eevee scooted over to the side, allowing him to climb onto the pillow. His head pressed against the comfortable, soft surface as he closed his eyes, seemingly already asleep.

A mild sensation of uneasiness made itself known to Eevee as the younger Pokemon's body brushed up against her fur, but she shook it off pretty quickly. A few moments later, she found herself looking around the room. Ash and Valiant were reading in the bed, prompting her to grin at the sight. No doubt they were already planning their time in Celadon. Valiant always seemed determined to contribute whatever he could to their travels and training. It almost felt like an obsession, although her psychic friend would probably prefer a more appealing word, like "conviction".

Next her eyes lingered on Pikachu and Nebula, sitting side by side on a table facing the TV, lightly conversing amongst one another while watching the show, which was currently displaying a fight between a Poliwrath and a Machoke. It occurred to her that she had never really apologized to either of them for her previous behavior, not that either of them seemed to hold a grudge. She wasn't sure how to approach that, however…

The last one her eyes reached was Tempest, positioned not too far from the TV and chuckling in approval as Machoke landed a particularly brutal blow on Poliwrath. His back was to her, so he didn't notice the dirty look she was shooting him. As far as she was concerned, he was more trouble than he was worth. But there thankfully hadn't been any chaotic incidents since Ash had laid down the law following his fight with Tyrunt. An unpleasant memory for the entire team.

After scanning the room, as if to make sure nobody was looking at her, Eevee turned to Tyrunt and lightly licked his head.

/

Breakfast passed by in what felt like a few minutes. Although Ash was looking forward to being on the road again, he was, contradictorily, not looking forward to leaving the comfort of the Center, especially since they had just gotten there. The break from traveling had gone by all too quickly, although he reminded himself that Celadon was just a couple of days away. It wasn't like he and the others had chosen to go in this direction expecting there to be a Center to stay at. It had been a pleasant surprise, and nothing more.

Ash returned his team after they had finished eating, although Valiant chose to remain out. To his surprise, however, Tempest wished to remain outside of his ball as well.

Ash took note of the untrusting look Valiant was fixing the River Crab with as the water type clicked his pincers, an attempt at gesturing to communicate his wants with his new trainer.

"You sure you want to stay out?" Ash locked eyes with Tempest as the Krabby nodded, happy to see the trainer had gotten his message. Uneasily, the boy looked between Valiant and the water type, the latter unfazed by the psychic's suspicious glare, simply responding with a sneer.

He didn't like the idea of these two being out together, but he couldn't just force one of them to stay in their ball just because the other wanted some fresh air.

"Just remember to behave yourself, okay?" he did his best to sound as stern as possible while Tempest nodded back at him. As Tempest began to wander away from the table, albeit not straying too far, Ash looked down at Valiant, seeing the clear disappointment in the Kirlia's expression, which the young Emotion Pokemon was trying to hide. "You still want to stay out?" he questioned his friend. Valiant hadn't chosen to remain outside knowing that Tempest had been planning to do the same.

The young psychic shook his head. "I have to stay out now."

Ash almost frowned at that. Ever since the incident with Tyrunt, Valiant had been locked onto Tempest like a camera. No doubt the Kirlia was paranoid that the water type would find somebody to pick on, or some other form of mischief, even with the remainder of the team resting in their balls. Tempest's own attitude didn't help. He was clearly well aware of Valiant's disdain for him, which the psychic had done nothing to hide, and had deliberately responded to such contempt mannerisms that did little more than vindicate the Emotion Pokemon's opinion of him. It would have been one thing if Tempest was trying to improve his behavior, but he was merely restraining himself, limiting his behavior to whatever he could get away with. As a result, Ash couldn't fault Valiant, but having these two alone together was certain to produce an uncomfortable atmosphere.

Part of him wanted to think that it would be a good thing, that they might sort out their differences if together long enough, but he knew that forcing an interaction wouldn't be of much help. He'd just have to keep a closer eye on them for now.

Tempest made his way back to the duo as Ash got their attention. "I'm gonna call home before we leave, just while I have the opportunity."

Neither Pokemon objected to it as the two followed Ash out of the cafeteria, and to the waiting room where the video phones were. Valiant followed closely behind Ash, occasionally shooting a sideways glance to Tempest, who was pretending not to notice. Ash would occasionally glance back to his teammates, eventually sighing to himself as he reached the phone.

This wasn't going to work. He'd have to at least try to talk to them.

He almost reached for the phone first, but pulled his hand away. He wanted to speak to Delia, but this was more important. Turning from the booth, he looked down to his two teammates, hands falling to his sides.

"Look, you two… I can't let you guys be out together if it's gonna be like this." he frowned. "I know you two don't like each other, but…" what was he supposed to even say after that? Hadn't he just summed the whole issue up? There wasn't really anything left to add. He couldn't just magically make them get along…

The selfish part of him regretted recruiting Tempest in the first place. That was how all of this started. The group dynamic wasn't perfect, but it was a lot more stable prior to the Krabby's capture.

Or was recruiting Tempest the real selfish choice on his part? What reason did he have for wanting the River Crab on his team? To have a strong Pokemon. One who had displayed a great deal of strength and tenacity and boasted an ability that granted him durability on par with what one would expect from the typical steel type. A motive like that meant he was being selfish from the start, so did that mean he was in the wrong for both reasons?

He had to shake those thoughts away for now. The point was, Tempest was on the team, and he had to deal with that. He wasn't going to take the easy way out by just releasing the Krabby, especially since the incident with Tyrunt had yet to be repeated. It wasn't necessary yet, so he wouldn't do it. Things may have become more difficult to manage since the Krabby's recruitment, but he was the trainer. It was his job to get over those issues.

The question was… how? Where did he even start with that?

As Valiant and Tempest kept their focus on him (albeit glancing at one another on occasion) Ash crouched down to get a better look at them.

"Look Tempest… I'm sure you know why everybody's suspicious of you. Everyone got off on the wrong foot with you, but you haven't done anything to change their minds, either."

It was probably the root of the issue. Tempest didn't see anybody else in the group as a friend, not even Ash himself. He was in this for the fights, and nothing else. His lack of desire to change that meant improving anything would be an uphill battle.

Tempest snorted a bit at that, but didn't offer a rebuttal. The Krabby certainly didn't seem like he was going to change his stance anytime soon, but at least he didn't seem to be denying his problematic behavior.

Ash's brow furrowed. "I'm not going to force you to change yourself. The deal was that you could stay on the team as long as you don't do… that ever again. But if you just put in a bit more effort, you'll probably find that being on friendly terms with the others will benefit you a lot more than being a loner that none of them want anything to do with." he nodded towards Valiant. "You've seen that Valiant's become a lot faster lately, right? That's because of Eevee. As his friend, she was more than happy to spend some of her training time helping him improve in an area where he was lacking." Ash didn't understand the gurgle that Tempest had offered him in response, and he'd rather not have Valiant constantly translate for him (that would tire the Kirlia out very quickly), but based on the water type's behavior, he had a decent idea of what the river crab was trying to say. "Are you planning on just getting by on your own for this whole journey? Just because that's how you were able to manage back in Cerulean?" at the Krabby's nonchalant, the boy held back a sigh. "Look… I know where you're coming from, I guess. Nobody on this team could take you easily. Even Pikachu only beat you because we exploited a… situational tactic."

The boy recalled the ending of Pikachu's fight with Tempest. His starter had only won by paralyzing the Krabby's pincer… which was only possible by aiming a Thunder Wave inside of the pincer while it was open, as the Shell Armor ability proved too capable for the move to be very effective otherwise. Without the paralysis, the fight probably would have ended differently.

"But that doesn't mean that's never going to change, Tempest." Ash was torn on whether to sound strn or matter-of-fact. "Everyone here is improving. And they're doing it together. If you spend this whole Season trying to better yourself without any of the others backing you up, you're going to fall behind. That's not what you want, is it?"

Tempest's eyes widened a bit at that, but it was only momentary, the Krabby quickly shaking his head in denial. He wouldn't fall behind the others that easily. He'd just work twice as hard. Ash imagined that's what he was thinking.

"You may not believe me now, but I'm sure you'll start noticing it at some point. I'd keep it in mind, if I were you." As Tempest contemplated his words, Ash turned to Valiant, who had been watching the exchange silently. The rookie's gaze turned a bit softer as his focus shifted. He knew the young psychic would be easier to reason with.

Ash knew that the Kirlia hadn't actually done anything wrong. In a way, the thought of chastising him made the boy feel uncomfortable. It didn't seem fair. But he knew he had to say something. "Valiant, I understand why you're bothered by Tempest being here, and I appreciate your concern. You're just looking out for everybody. Especially Tyrunt." Ash wondered if the young dinosaur held a grudge for that one night. He wouldn't blame Tyrunt if that was the case. Thankfully, Valiant was very careful about keeping the two of them apart. "But… Tempest hasn't done anything else yet. We won't get anywhere if we scrutinize his every move. I know you don't trust him, but this won't improve anything. You'll just be putting yourself on edge, with no results.

"But he could try something at any moment." Valiant's voice wasn't overly defiant, but held a clear protest.

Ash nodded. "I know. And I know you want to be prepared. But there are other ways to do that. Being on guard doesn't mean giving someone the stink eye every time they're in your sight. If he tries something else, that's when we act. But he hasn't, and that should be acknowledged." he looked between the two. "As teammates, both of you at least need to coexist." it may not be the best case scenario, but it was good enough. If the tension died down to an extent, he would probably feel a bit more comfortable trying to bring Tempest and the others together, which would hopefully not only address the Krabby's behavior, but make things better for everybody by extension.

But in order for that to happen, the tense atmosphere at least needed a chance to start dying down. They'd never be able to work on clearing the air between them if they kept going on like this.

Standing up, Ash straightened himself before fixing his teammates with a stern look (he really hoped he was getting better at that). "For now, I just want you two to be in each other's vicinity without anything starting. And that includes nonverbal exchanges. Just don't encourage anything, and keep your thoughts focused on other things. Understand?"

He hadn't been expecting an enthusiastic reaction, and unsurprisingly, he didn't get one. But despite the uneasiness in Valiant's eyes and the mild displeasure in Tempest's expression, both offered a confirming nod to their trainer after a few seconds.

Ash grinned. It would do for now. "Good. Once I call mom, we can get moving while it's still-"

"Take that back, you jerk!"

The trio's attention shifted to the door a few meters away, where two figures stepped out of the hall. One of them was a girl with pink hair tied into a ponytail. She was somewhat shorter than the figure she was following, and her facial expression was a childish pout. Although, the look in her eyes was significantly more aggressive, which Ash didn't notice from here.

Ash's attention shifted to the boy the girl was following. He had purple hair and a stern expression, which was starting to seem familiar-

Ash's eyes lit up in recognition and to his side, Valiant's seemed to do the same. A somewhat confused Tempest took note of their reactions.

"What was his name… Paul?" Ash recalled his encounter with the boy during the group's stay in Pewter. It had been so long ago, but it was hard to forget the loss that they had suffered, coming off the heels of their monumental victory against Brock.

"I was just being honest. You're lucky I was even in the mood to give you pointers. Normally I just take my money and go." Paul's tone of voice was laced with dismissiveness, almost like he was trying to sidetrack himself from the fact that she existed.

The girl's turned red as her temper flared up. Her tone of voice wasn't nearly as scary as what Misty sounded like when she got worked up, however. "OOOOOH, so you just think you're bigger than the world you live in?!"

"Ironic coming from someone as entitled as you."

"If you don't watch your tongue, I'm gonna-"

Ash's instincts told him to leave the room and let these two settle things themselves, but a different set of instincts got to him first. As though his body had moved on its own, he was suddenly in front of the two, arms raised as Valiant followed him. Tempest lingered behind, watching the exchange in silence.

"Hold up, you two! What's going on?" he felt weird for butting in. He had no context for their argument and frankly it wasn't his place. But he doubted he'd be doing the right thing if he just let them go at it... Was there no correct answer to this situation?

Paul didn't seem to take any offense to the intrusion, however, quickly recovering from the surprise of Ash's appearance and addressing the boy neutrally. "Nothing to be concerned about. I beat this girl in a battle a few moments ago, and she took offense to my tips."

"Tips?! Is that what they call it on your home planet?" with a disgusted expression, the girl turned away from the purple-haired boy to point a finger at Ash. "He said my battle style was cowardly and unfocused! Does that sound like advice to you?!"

Blinking, Ash attempted to think of a response, but Paul cut in before he could. "It's called constructive criticism, something you've apparently never had before."

"Don't assume anything!"

"I don't need to. You don't exactly leave much to the imagination."

"You wanna settle this in a way that doesn't involve Pokemon?!" As she raised her fists, Ash's eyes widened as he and Valiant got between them. "What do you want?!"

"That's enough!" Ash pleaded to her. "A loss is a loss. Getting angry and dwelling on it isn't going to do anything. If you're upset then just focus on tending to your teammates. They're injured, right?"

The girl's arms began to lower, her face lighting up in surprise, as though she hadn't considered that. "Oh… yeah, I'll do that." She began walking off, but not before giving Paul a frustrated "Hmph." as she passed by him.

After the girl went through the door that would take her to Nurse Joy's lobby, Paul put a hand to his face, an exasperated sigh escaping his throat as Ash suddenly noticed the trainer's Elekid following behind him, the electric type's arms folded around his head. Ash remembered the Elekid all too well: He had given Pikachu a difficult battle and won.

"She didn't have the backbone to commit to any of her strategies." Paul turned to Ash. "She'd constantly change her game plan over the most minor setback, or even just things that she considered as such." With a scoff, he crossed his arms. "She wasn't adapting, there was no rhyme or reason to anything she did. Even her own Pokemon seemed to start feeling confused by her orders. Doesn't "Cowardly and unfocused" sound appropriate?"

Ash took in his words. Hearing it from Paul's perspective, the summation didn't sound inaccurate, even if he probably would've worded it a bit differently.

"That makes sense…" he trailed off for a second. "Maybe she just took offense to how you said it." being completely out of sync with your team was about as big a flaw as any trainer could have (Ash couldn't help but remember his first battle against Gary). But there were other ways to point such an issue out, right?

Paul shrugged his arms, his expression dismissive. It seemed like he just wanted to forget his exchange with the girl had ever happened. "If you're going to sugarcoat a flaw, there's no use pointing it out in the first place. That girl took simple criticism as an aggressive insult. Was probably spoiled rotten back at home."

Ash frowned. He didn't have a rebuttal to that, which frustrated him. He didn't like the idea of being harsh unless it was necessary, and yet… Paul's point made too much sense for him to come up with a convincing counterargument.

As Paul's arms fell to his side, Ash noticed that the other boy was looking at him a bit more closely now, while Tempest began approaching the group from behind, eying Elekid. "You look a bit familiar. Have we ever met?"

"I think so." Ash nodded back. "I'm Ash. Your name's Paul, right? We battled back in Pewter. It was roughly a month ago."

It took a second or two, but recognition passed over the other boy's features as he nodded. "Yeah, that's right. I think I remember you now."

Ash imagined that the battle had been less memorable for Paul than it had been for him. He couldn't help but wonder if the other boy had had similar victories throughout his journey, and being on the receiving end of an overall one-sided battle was probably more difficult to forget than dishing one out. Although they had a long way to go, he and his team still didn't lose very often.

The air seemed to turn awkward as the two trainers stood in the room. Paul wasn't leaving, but it didn't seem like he could think of anything else to say.

Ash felt the same. Paul didn't seem… unpleasant to be around, but he gave off an aura that the boy just wasn't very used to. Something about him just promoted unease, for whatever reason.

"So… where are you coming from?" Even as he spoke the words, Ash inwardly flinched. That sentence sounded like "trainer small talk 101".

"Celadon." the other boy replied. "I got the badge there. Right now I'm using this Center as a hub to train around the area. I'm heading to Vermilion, but I'm just going to be training there, rather than going for another badge."

Ash almost winced. It… was definitely a good idea to wait on attempting Vermilion's Gym, as he had learned the hard way a few days ago. He decided against voicing it, however, hoping to keep the match out of his mind for now. If Paul wasn't going there for a badge, then he likely didn't need to be warned about Surge.

"We're on our way to Celadon now. Working on our third badge."

Unsure of what else to say, Paul simply nodded, before offering a light wave. "Sounds good. Best of luck with that, then. Come on, Elekid."

Ash watched as the electric type followed his trainer, an odd temptation suddenly making itself known.

He had been planning on leaving as early as possible, but…

"Hey, Paul!" Ash's expression fixed into an even state as the other boy turned around. "Are you up for another battle?" Tempest's eyes lit up at his trainer's request, his pincers clicking rapidly as his expression turned hungry. "Our battle back in Pewter didn't go very well for the most part, but we're all much stronger now." He hadn't been expecting it, but he realized this was as good an opportunity as any for a rematch.

A light grin appeared on Paul's features. "I should hope so. You've had plenty of time."

"Is that a yes?" Ash grinned as he felt a flame inside. This wouldn't be like last time.

Paul nodded. "It's not like I have anything to lose. I win, I'll get more money. If I lose, it'll mean you were a more worthwhile opponent than she was." he turned to the door. "Just give me a moment to get my team treated. I only needed to use two of them, and neither are that injured, so they probably just need some time in the machines."

Nodding in understanding, Ash turned to the video phone. He could use that time to talk to his mother.

/

Ash informed the rest of the team of the change in plans during the wait. Apart from Tempest, everybody already knew who Paul was, whether it be because they had participated in the previous battle with him themselves, or were told of it by Valiant.

Although it likely wouldn't be a full battle, most were rather enthusiastic about the upcoming match. Nebula wasn't quite as excited despite still responding positively to the news, and Tyrunt was merely looking forward to it as much as he would any fight, but Pikachu was determined to correct his narrow loss back in Pewter, while Valiant clearly remembered how easily he had been taken out, and how outclassed they had collectively been.

Curiously, however, the two who were most looking forward to the match hadn't even been present for the first battle. Tempest was quite predictable with his reaction: hearing about how strong Paul was had made the river crab desperate to sink his pincers into a member of the opposing trainer's team. Eevee, on the other hand, had a bright fire in her eyes upon hearing about Paul's strength, and although not nearly as hyperactive, she seemed just as passionate about it as the water type newcomer.

Now, he stood on his end of the Center's outdoor battlefield, Valiant and Tempest on either side. Across from him stood Paul, arms crossed with stoic confidence as Elekid mimicked the gesture beside him. Neither Paul nor Elekid seemed very concerned about the upcoming match, no doubt due to the one-sided nature of their first encounter. Ash could feel a minor surge of anxiety at the memory, but it was quickly pushed down by his growing adrenaline.

Their team had grown in both quality and quantity since their time in Pewter City. They were going to show that.

"So," Ash called out. "How many Pokemon?"

"You were the one who challenged me. I'll give you the choice."

At Paul's response, Ash nodded. "Five-on-five." he said a few moments later, as if on random. He wasn't sure what made him decide on that specific number. Perhaps it was the battle with Surge?

Paul nodded, already taking out a Poke Ball. "Sounds good. Let's see how hard we have to work for this."

Ignoring Paul's comment, Ash looked over to Tempest. "You want to start off?" The Krabby's response was to rush onto the arena. Ash wasn't surprised.

Paul observed the water type as Tempest made a series of gestures towards him and Elekid, as if to provoke them. Elekid almost stepped forward, only to stop when his trainer placed a hand on him.

A moment later, a Skorupi appeared in front of them. The bug took a few steps towards Tempest, who growled hungrily at his opponent's arrival. Skorupi leered at the water type in response, clicking his stingers together as his gaze wandered behind the river crab. The scorpion took sight of Ash, seemingly staring at the boy for a few moments before his eyes abruptly widened.

"What is it, Skorupi?" At his trainer's question, Skorupi looked back at Paul and shook his head reassuringly, before turning to Tempest and sinking into a stance, a hungry rumble escaping his throat.

Skorupi seemed almost as fired up to battle as Tempest was, which made the matchup rather appropriate in Ash's eyes.

The sight of the scorpion brought back unpleasant memories of when he and Pikachu had encountered one in Viridian Forest. That battle hadn't ended well, but Tempest's defenses would hopefully do a better job at holding out from the poisonous attacks than Pikachu had. That didn't mean they could throw caution out the window, however. Poison types were infamous for how lethal they could be, and Ash had no doubt that a trainer like Paul would make use of those qualities to his full advantage.

Taking the initiative, Ash gave the first order. "Go forward and use Scald. Don't close the distance yet."

The Krabby's pincers clicked together madly as Tempest took off in a light sprint. Paul seemed to be somewhat taken aback by the Krabby's speed (at least compared to the usual member of the species) but didn't sound overly fazed as he issued his own order in response.

"Get in with Brick Break, fast as you can."

Just before the river crab's pincers opened to unleash the stream of boiling water, Skorupi closed its eyes, a light blue aura enveloping his body mere moments later just as the scorpion opened his eyes back up to see the attack being fired. Ash recognized the familiar sight of Agility as their opponent sidestepped away from the stream of water, rushing across the arena as his stinger glowed orange.

Tempest turned his body around as Skorupi closed in on his side, attempting to catch his opponent with Metal Claw, only for the Brick Break to be driven into his stomach before he could lunge forward to deliver the blow. The momentum of Agility's speed boost carried the scorpion's stinger as Tempest gasped, staggering backwards from the impact.

"Poison Sting!" Tempest was thankfully able to cross his now-metallic pincers in front of his body in time to intercept the incoming barrage of glowing needles that escaped from his opponents mouth, the dark-purple projectiles bouncing harmlessly off the exterior of Metal Claw.

"Run forward, keep your pincers crossed!" Smirking, Tempest sprinted ahead, the Poison Sting continuing to bounce off of his Metal Claw as Skorupi's eyes widened in surprise. Not even a moment later, the scorpion was sent tumbling backwards as the Krabby smashed into his opponent, metallic pincers still in front of his body to act as the source of the offense.

"Bubble Beam!"

"Pin Missile!"

Hoping to press his advantage, Tempest quickly unleashed the barrage of glowing bubbles before Skorupi had even stopped stumbling. Unfortunately, the scorpion righted himself immediately after, stingers glowing with a white aura as Paul's partner released a barrage of needles coated in the same light. Even as the two attacks pelted against one another, triggering a series of small explosions, both trainers followed up.

"Razor Shell!"

"Night Slash!"

Both Pokemon moved forward. Tempest raised an open pincer, glowing with an aquatic aura as the sharp end of the limb became seemingly bladed, while Skorupi's stinger turned a deep, blackish-purple. Both combatants avoided the small cloud of dust that the previous collision had produced, but swerved to separate sides, still leaving the cloud between them.

Tempest didn't wait for the dust to dissipate, however, charging right through the cloud while raising his watery blade. Skorupi was mildly surprised by the water type's boldness, but quickly took it in stride, bringing his pincer upwards to intercept the offense. Both creatures snarled through their teeth as the two blades grinded against one another, even as Tempest raised his other pincer to prepare a point-blank Water Pulse.

"Agility, then Poison Jab!"

Skorupi closed his eyes for a split second yet again, allowing his body to become cloaked in the blue aura before pushing his body forward. The added speed increased the scorpion's momentum, the poison/bug type straining himself as the Night Slash gradually began to push Tempest's pincer upwards. The Krabby's eyes widened in surprise for a brief moment, before a sensation of rage filled them, the river crab struggling to push down harder in defiance of the scorpion's progress.

It was to no avail, however, as Tempest's pincer was soon pushed out of Skorupi's path, the Skorupi's other stinger becoming cloaked in a deep purple aura as it was driven into the water type's side. Tempest snarled in frustration as the stinger grinded against his bulk, the toxins struggling to inject themselves into his body. Ash couldn't tell how severely Skorupi had managed to poison his companion as Tempest staggered back and released a retaliatory Water Pulse from each pincer, Skorupi quickly crossing its stingers in defense, but still yelping in pain as the impact sent him sliding backwards.

How seriously (and quickly) Tempest would be hampered by the poison would likely depend on how much had successfully entered the young Krabby's body. Optimistically, Ash imagined it wouldn't be too much, given that Tempest's durability would increase the difficulty significantly, but poison was poison, and he doubted anybody on the team was experienced enough to properly deal with such effects at the moment.

He shook that uneasiness away, however. The battle had only just started, and Paul was certainly making a strong first impression, just as he had before. Using the momentum-based benefits of Agility to gain the upper hand in that clash was a natural yet creative idea.

"Poison Jab again!"

"Cross your pincers with Metal Claw!" Ash thankfully responded as quickly as he could, as Skorupi once again cloaked himself in Agility to close the distance in record time. Tempest's pincers hadn't been completely encased in metal as the opposing Pokemon delivered the strike, but they had thankfully been crossed to intercept the blow. Although pushed back a bit, the Krabby seemed to be unharmed. "Scald!" Skorupi didn't have time to respond, screaming as the stream of boiling water slammed into him, pushing the Scorpion back yet again.

Paul was no doubt trying to accumulate the amount of poison entering Tempest's body, perhaps even expecting the water type's defenses to be as impressive as they were if he was aware of Shell Armor. The usage of Agility was likely to increase the force behind each blow when rushing at Tempest from a distance (although it likely didn't do much the first time the Poison jab landed, given that they had already been in close vicinity of one another at the time). It would make it easier for Skorupi to inject his toxins into Tempest's system, while simultaneously making it more difficult to avoid or react to each blow, but Ash took solace in the fact that overusing the move would likely tire Skorupi out. He doubted the scorpion was experienced enough to excessively utilize the move, so Paul and Skorupi would likely either have to limit their use of it, or risk wearing themselves down more quickly. Regardless of which option that they chose, Ash knew that he and Tempest needed to find a way to exploit it.

"Bubble Beam!"

Once more, Tempest released a barrage of glowing bubbles from his open pincers. This time, Skorupi's tail turned to metal and swung in front of the scorpion's body. Although Paul's partner slid back from the impact of the aquatic projectiles pelting against the tail, the metallic coating shielding him from harm.

Even as he fired, Tempest advanced on his opponent, cancelling the stream of bubbles as he clenched his pincers, both of which became coated in metal as he took a swing at Skorupi. The scorpion's Iron Tail met the pincer head on, all the while the poison-bug type's stinger began to glow orange.

As Tempest brought his other pincer down, Skorupi lashed out and struck the Metal Claw with Brick Break. The Krabby growled in pain as his pincer was pushed upwards by the collision, Skorupi's other stinger now glowing purple. The Poison Jab was driven into the water type's gut, the river crab letting out a pained gasp as more toxins were injected into his system.

"Water Pulse!"

Tempest needed a moment to react. Shaking off the pain, he lifted his pincers up, as two orbs of water prepared to be fired down on Skorupi at point-blank. The scorpion's body became coated in blue as Paul's partner darted backwards, just in time for the two Water pulses to splash against the ground in front of Tempest.

"Venoshock!"

A mild panic lit up in Ash's eyes at the order. Venoshock was a move known for its effectiveness against poisoned enemies. In addition to being a decent offensive technique in its own right, it momentarily amplified the pain triggered by the symptoms of the condition (albeit not strengthening the poison itself). Tempest didn't seem to be poisoned too badly at the moment, and since the toxins hadn't been in his body for long, the effects still needed time to grow. No doubt Paul's plan was to make up for this and provide a temporary boost to the symptoms, leaving the Krabby to double over while Skorupi went in for the finish.

Ash glared nervously as Skorupi brought his stingers up to his mouth, where an orb was in the midst of forming. The sphere was an incredibly deep, dark shade of purple, and the glow that it was giving off radiated its color into an ominous sight.

"Guard with Metal Claw!" Ash nodded in approval as Tempest complied, crossing his pincers in front of his face to intercept the incoming blast with their metallic coating.

"Brick Break first!"

Skorupi canceled Venoshock, his body glowing blue once more as he blitzed for his target. Both stingers glowed orange as he drove them into Tempest's pincers at an upwards angle, painfully pushing both limbs somewhat above the Krabby's head as the water type began to stagger backwards.

"Now!" At the sound of Paul's voice, Skorupi repeated his previous actions, the orb once again forming in his mouth, clenched by his stingers. Just as Tempest's pincers opened to reveal two charging Water Pulses, a beam of thick, chemical-like liquid rushed out of the sphere, matching its dark purple color. The stream slammed into the Krabby, who hollered in agony at the unexpected pain that surged through his body, the discomfort that he felt from the still faint toxins traveling through his system flaring up into a sensation of sickly pain.

The agony was quickly followed by rage, however, as Tempest's eyes lit up with murder, the Water Pulses rocketing out of his pincers while Skorupi lashed out with Iron Tail to guard. Both orbs violently struck the metallic tail, triggering a momentary surge of pain as the scorpion staggered away.

Paul didn't let up, however. Despite his retaliation, Tempest was still reeling from the effects of Venoshock. Ash could tell the other boy could sense victory, revealed by the eager tone of his voice.

"Pin Missile, then Night Slash!"

"Protect yourself, Tempest!"

The Krabby tried to raise his two Metal Claws in time as the glowing needles escaped from Skorupi's stingers. With his guard down from the pain, however, he reacted too slowly, the barrage of projectiles pelting his skin as Skorupi rushed forward once again, clearing the distance as fast as ever with the blue aura of Agility. Sensing his imminent downfall, Tempest powered through the accumulating pain as he thrust a Metal Claw forward, only for Skorupi to already be upon him to drive the Night Slash into his gut.

The moment of the scorpion's Agility-strengthened advance carried the dark type move forward as it cut Tempest's skin, the impact forcing the air out of the river crab's lungs as he toppled backwards and to the ground.

Skorupi stood over his fallen foe for a moment, trying to catch his breath as the fatigue from the excess use of Agility made itself known, not helped by the painful bruises on his body. It hadn't been an effortless victory, but in the end, he was the one still standing.

Tempest disappeared into the red beam of light that shot out from his Poke Ball as Ash tried to hide his disappointment. They had come up short once more. Paul's winning strategy had ensured a quick wrap-up to the fight before the side effects of Agility could impede them too much. It occurred to Ash that the usage of Venoshock was probably the perfect way to bypass Tempest's impressive defenses. Even with his outward durability, as long as Skorupi could inject at least some of his toxins into the Krabby's system, Paul's partner could use Venoshock's effect to focus on the inside.

"Thanks for the effort, Tempest. Rest for now." the boy spoke calmly as he returned the capsule to his belt. The early loss was a setback, but they still had four team members left, and Skorupi had hardly come out of the fight unscathed.

"He's as strong as I remember."

Ash nodded in agreement as Valiant's comment as he took a second ball from his belt. When Pikachu appeared on the field in front of them, the mouse's eyes widened after fixing themselves on Skorupi. Ash watched his starter's tail stand upwards as the electric type's body turned tense. No doubt Pikachu was thinking about what happened the last time he had fought a Skorupi. As the scorpion's eyes narrowed at the sight of the rodent, Ash was about to reassure his friend, before Paul suddenly recalled his Pokemon.

"You haven't disappointed me so far." the other boy admitted. "But that doesn't mean I'm impressed yet. Right now I'm not any less confident that I'm going to win, than I was when we started."

Ash's face tightened while Pikachu's cheeks crackled. "Give it some time, it'll sink in soon." he responded. He wasn't going to let this trainer walk all over him the way Surge did. Whether it be in battle, or verbally.

The only response Paul offered was an amused chuckle, the opposing trainer removing another Poke Ball after clipping Skorupi's back onto his belt.

About a second later, a familiar Teddiursa appeared in front of him. Ash's mind immediately flashed back to their first match back in Pewter. This had been the first Pokemon Paul used against them. He had given Nebula a struggle, and defeated her in the end with his amazing strength. No doubt his muscles were even more powerful now.

Pikachu seemed to remember too, the sparks in his cheeks becoming even more erratic. No doubt he was itching for a chance to get back at the Pokemon that had beaten his friend.

"Careful, Pikachu." Ash warned before the fighting started. "You have Brick Break, but I'm sure Teddiursa will be ready to counter it with how strong he is. You know what to do." Beside him, Valiant nodded along in agreement.

Pikachu grinned with confidence. He did know what to do. His speed had won him several battles over the course of their journey, and this would be no different.

Over on Paul's side, Elekid's eyes lit up as he stared at the mouse, who spared him a quick, acknowledging glance before shifting his focus back to Teddiursa. Although Paul didn't say anything himself, Ash was confident that the other boy remembered Pikachu quite well. He had been the one to put up the best fight in their first battle, nearly defeating Elekid before taking a narrow loss. He doubted they could count on him underestimating them, not that Ash would have wanted to win in such a manner.

Pikachu made the first move, slipping into Quick Attack right away to draw first blood. His Brick Break found itself slamming into a claw of distorted energy, however, Teddiursa's adorable face turning battle hardened as the Shadow Claw blocked the attack. As Pikachu's momentum began to push the bear cub backwards, the electric mouse firmly pushing back against the ghost type move, Teddiursa's body took on a pale aura, which quickly transitioned into the normal type's legs, the muscles strengthening with the power of Bulk Up.

With his legs firmly grinding against the pavement, their newfound strength quickly made itself known as Teddiursa ceased sliding backwards, forcing Pikachu off of him before rushing forward himself to drive the Shadow Claw into the rodent's gut.

Pikachu caught himself by slamming an Iron Tail into the ground, using the impact to push himself upwards and avoid Teddiursa's attack. As Pikachu flipped over in midair, his metallic tail became blazed with electricity, Ash's starter driving the Zap Tail downwards to strike Teddiursa on the head.

But the bear cub whirled around in response, lashing out with his other arm while his fist glowed orange. As the Brick Break collided with Zap Tail, Pikachu could feel a pain in his tail while the metal began to crack, even as Teddiursa himself felt a painful burning sensation in his fist upon making contact with the electricity.

The normal type staggered backwards as Pikachu landed on his feet in front of him, the mouse's body glowing orange as he shot forward yet again, throwing his body into his target.

Still somewhat off balance, all Teddiursa could do was defensively cross his arms to intercept Pikachu's Slam. As the bear cub was forced onto his back, his arms taking the brunt of the painful blow, the normal type tossed the electric rodent away while rolling to his feet, ignoring the pain in his arms to break into a sprint.

"Double Team!"

At Ash's orders, Pikachu split into three. It was more difficult to maintain than splitting in two, but the young mouse was progressively getting used to it, and it would be more effective in further confusing Teddiursa.

The bear cub's claws had both lit up with the dark aura of Night SLash, only for Paul's partner to stop in bewilderment as the electric type and his two clones circled him.

Perfect, now if they could hit him as hard as possible, they could cripple him and take control of the fight.

"Agility and Brick Break!"

"Endure!"

Ash's brow furrowed at Paul's response. He remembered that move from the last time they battled.

Pikachu's clones fizzled out of existence as Ash's partner put all of his focus into outlining his body with the blue aura of Agility, his sprint skyrocketing in speed, even as Teddiursa's fur took on a bright red glow, his body becoming reinforced and hyper-durable as the usage of Endure took hold. The bear cub tried to cross his arms, but was unable to do so before Pikachu's orange-glowing fist was driven into his gut. The added momentum of Agility, along with the fighting typing of Brick Break, would have been the perfect way to deal a decisive blow to the normal type, but although the bear cub gasped in pain as the air shot out of his lungs, the temporary boost in durability cushioned much of the added damage from him.

Ash watched as Teddiursa slid backwards across the battlefield, stopping a few feet in front of Paul as both Pokemon returned to normal. He wanted to tell Pikachu to keep Agility going, to overwhelm Teddiursa with a series of high-speed blows that would be too fast to intercept.

But if they did that, Paul would simply have Teddiursa maintain Endure, and the battle would become a race to see who would tire out from overexertion first. With Pikachu being the one dishing out the blows, piling on top of the added physical stress that would inevitably come from maintaining Endure for such a long time, Ash wanted to think that his first teammate would be the one to come out on top. But he knew it wasn't that simple. Teddiursa had known Endure for a long time at this point. He had used it all the way back in their first battle. Pikachu, on the other hand, had only learned Agility fairly recently, and he certainly hadn't mastered it yet. The boy wasn't sure how skilled Tediursa was with a move like Endure, but he was certainly used to it. Goading the normal type into overusing the move would be a great way to wear him down if they had an advantage in numbers, but the battle was still young, Paul still having everyone on his team in the game. Ash and Pikachu couldn't afford to be overzealous.

"Get overhead with Aerial Ace, then Hyper Voice!"

At Paul's command, Teddiursa's legs turned tense as his body became coated in white. Pikachu watched as the bear cub soared above the arena, before positioning himself to face the mouse from above. A powerful blast of shockwaves exited the normal type's mouth as he hollered down at Ash's starter, who darted to the side to avoid the attack, leaving the blast to strike the ground and kick up a cloud of dust.

Paul wasn't deterred as he watched Pikachu sprint across the arena. "Night Slash!"

Still in midair, Teddiursa activated Aerial Ace once again, rocketing downwards after the retreating Pikachu at high speeds. Positioning himself to intercept Pikachu rather than pursue him (likely taking note of how fast the young mouse was), the cub lashed out at his opponent with a dark-purple claw, which was blocked by the rodent's orange fist. The Brick Break cushioned the blow, but Pikachu found himself getting pushed onto his back from the collision, Teddiursa not only striking at him with great momentum, but also from above.

As Pikachu tumbled away, Paul pressed the advantage. "Aerial Ace and Ice Punch!"

Wrapped in white once again, Teddiursa launched himself after the mouse as his fist became coated in ice. Ash called his starter's name as the rodent was struck in the face by the blow, Teddiursa's amazing strength leaving a freezing cold gash as Pikachu rocketed through the air. Just as he was about to slam into the barriers in front of Ash and Valiant, a barely-timed Iron Tail took the impact in his stead, the mouse landing on all fours and panting as he glowered at the bear cub ahead. His vision momentarily blurred due to his severely aching head, but with some focus, he was able to straighten it out.

A wave of anxiety passed through Ash at his starter's state, but he shook it off quickly. With Pikachu as badly hurt as he was, they didn't have much to lose anymore in terms of how they utilized Agility. He just hoped the pain in the mouse's head didn't impede him too much.

"Agility, and Static Tail!"

Pikachu took off running to the side, breaking into a sprint early so that he wouldn't be a sitting duck while trying to activate Agility. His headache made it difficult to draw on the psychic power, due to its reliance on mental strength, but it didn't take too long for a blue aura to outline his body, albeit with even more mental strain than usual. He could feel his headache threatening to get worse, and his vision on the verge of blurring once again, but he ignored it as his tail coated itself in metal, the sparks of Thunder Wave engulfing it in the process.

"Endure!" Paul's response was what Ash expected, Teddiursa's fur once again turning bright red as he crossed his arms. Pikachu's tail struck against his opponent's defensive position as the bear cub grinded his feet against the pavement, doing what he could to keep himself in place and fight against the electric mouse's momentum.

Ash was satisfied however, and the normal type suddenly found his own muscles locking up as the electricity from the tail traveled across his body. His increased durability made it difficult for the Thunder Wave to take its full effect, but the boosted force behind Pikachu's blow did what it could to combat that.

Even with Agility, fully overcoming Endure with brute force alone would be a daunting task. But that was why Ash had ordered his starter to use Static Tail instead of Zap Tail. As Teddiursa's muscles strained themselves against the detriment triggered by Thunder Wave, the aura of Endure slowly began to somewhat flicker, Pikachu using the opportunity to send the cub staggering back with a final push.

"Brick Break!" This was their chance.

"You too!" Paul responded, his voice showing more emotion than before.

The blue aura outlined Pikachu's body again as he rushed forward. Although Teddiursa attempted to take a swing at him, the young mouse had already driven his own fist into the cub's face, a loud shockwave being produced by the blow. A stabbing pain assaulted the normal type's head as the fighting type move connected. In the same moment, Pikachu's own headache became a pounding one, the electric mouse squeezing his eyes shut as his opponent was launched back. Even as Teddiursa struggled to pick himself up, lifting his head as he lay sprawled out on his back, Pikachu collapsed onto his stomach, the fatigue of Agility and escalating headache from Ice Punch forcing his muscles to give out, and his eyes to shut.

Around the same time Piakchu passed out, Teddiursa, who was currently attempting to force himself into a sitting position, collapsed backwards.

Both trainers recalled their respective teammates, Ash smiling fondly at his starter's capsule. "Excellent work, Pikachu." Valiant smiled as the boy returned the Poke Ball to his belt, quickly taking out another one.

'We're doing better than we were last time, so far.' Ash thought to himself. He knew it shouldn't be taken as an invitation to get comfortable, especially since Paul was still winning, but it was encouraging nonetheless.

Looking over at Valiant, the young Kirlia seemed to feel the same.

Eevee appeared in front of the duo, eyes lighting up as she realized she was on the battlefield. The fire in her gaze was visible to Ash and Valiant as she briefly looked back at them to offer a nod. Her determination was infectious, Ash suddenly feeling the flame rise up in his chest again.

"We're down two knockouts to one." he announced. The quadruped's expression didn't waver as her trainer offered the quadruped a thumbs up. "Are you ready to turn this around?"

The Evolution Pokemon's face turned to a grin as she took in her trainer's words. Just before she returned her attention to Paul, Valiant nodded back at her in further encouragement.

He was aware of how she felt, but this was her chance. Ash knew it too.

The newcomer that appeared in front of Paul was a bipedal, bluish-black creature with three bright-red feathers as its tail and a single one on its left ear. Its hands and feet both boasted two large claws.

It was a Sneasel. They were dark-ice types known for their impressive speed and mobility, not to mention how dangerous their claws were. Their evolved form, Weavile, was acclaimed for such qualities.

Eevee's speed had improved exponentially over time, but a speed based battle would likely place this Sneasel right in its element.

"Careful, Eevee." his quadruped friend nodded along to his warnings. "That Senasel is going to be fast. And it's an ice type, so don't just focus on the claws." the fire in her eyes intensified. No doubt, battling against an opponent that specialized in speed immediately reminded her of Pikachu.

Paul made the first move. "Brick Break!"

Sneasel nearly blurred as his claw clenched into a fist, blazing with an orange aura as he reared his arm back. He was upon Eevee in moments, Quick Attack carrying him across the arena at speeds rivaling that of Ash's starter. As her opponent approached, Eevee took a leap backwards, feeling the windforce of Sneasel's swing against her face. Upon landing, she immediately slipped into Quick Attack, swinging a metal coated tail at her adversary's head.

"Shadow Ball!" she heard Ash shout just as Sneasel retreated backwards, avoiding what would have been a critical blow. As the ball of distorted energy formed in her jaws, she heard Paul issue a counter command.

"Metal Claw!" Just as the ball finished charging up, and exited her mouth, Sneasel crossed his claws together, both coated in metal as he defiantly held them in front of him. The Shadow Ball hit its mark head on, but the blow was cushioned by the durability of the two Metal Claws as the dark-ice type was sent sliding back. Eevee pursued her opponent with red-hot conviction, her eyes blazing as her tail turned to metal yet again. "Double Team!"

As Sneasel split in two, the confusion and surprise that momentarily washed over Eevee's expression was just enough to give both him and his clone an opportunity to dart away in separate directions, the quadruped cursing under her breath upon realizing that she had given her own enemy an out. Whirling around, she shrieked with a vengeance as a barrage of golden stars erupted from her jaws. The moment she finished firing, she was blazing across the arena at the highest speed her four legs were capable of carrying her. As Sneasel leapt away from the Swift, before breaking into a run yet again, she quickly realized that she wasn't as fast as this opponent, but didn't stop dashing.

Sneasel and his clone zigzagged across the arena together, leaving Eevee and her trainer guessing which was which. As the two of them finally broke apart, Eevee randomly picked a target to pursue, lining herself up behind one of the Sneasel and hoping for the best.

"Hyper Voice!" At her trainer's orders, Eevee closed her eyes for a split second of concentration before hollering at her retreating target. The blast of shockwaves that exited her throat slammed into Sneasel's back, only for him to fizzle out of existence. A clone.

The quadruped's ears perked up just in time to whirl around (sliding backwards from the momentum of her sprint) and see the real Sneasel rearing his fist back while charging from behind. With only a split second to think, the evolution Pokemon coated her tail in metal before taking a swing, striking the incoming orange fist head on. Cracks formed on the metal coating of her tail where the Brick Break had struck, and Eevee squealed in pain as she was sent sliding back faster, her tail aching.

Sneasel's speed carried the force of his Brick Break like a bullet. One direct hit would cripple her for sure, maybe even knock her lights out if the blow was to the head.

"Ice Beam, from above!"

Taking another running start, Sneasel quickly built up momentum before bending his knees and soaring into the air, gaze fixed on Eevee as a stream of ice escaped his mouth. Ignoring the aches in her tail, the quadruped dashed to the side, leaving the blast to trail its way across a section of the arena, coating it in a thin, frozen layer.

Doing a front flip in midair, Sneasel expertly landed on the patch of ice that he had created, his speed immediately increasing as he skated across it, before breaking into a run as he left the ice, his momentum carrying him forward.

Eevee quickly turned around to fire a Shadow Ball at her pursuer. With his immense speed, Sneasel had little time to avoid it, crossing his claws defensively instead. Even still, he wasn't able to cat them in metal before the collision occurred, squealing in pain as the orb of distorted energy exploded against him, nearly losing his footing as he was sent sliding backwards.

"Perfect, now Iron Tail!" Eevee didn't need Ash to tell her, however, already blitzing across the arena to take a swing at her opponent's head. This time, however, Sneasel was able to block before the blow landed, swinging at his opponent with Brick Break. The two attacks collided, and although the metal encasing Eevee's tail slightly cracked once more, it did not do so as much, as she was the one with the momentum this time. As Sneasel staggered back, wincing from the mild pain in his fist, Eevee barreled forward yet again, charging headfirst into her opponent's stomach and tackling him across the battlefield.

"Swift!"

"Dark Pulse!"

As Sneasel slid backwards from eevee's Quick Attack, the quadruped opened her mouth to unleash another barrage of stars. In response however, the dark-ice type out his claws together as they began to erupt in a dark-purple energy, an unstable beam of the same color firing out. A cloud of dust was produced as the two attacks exploded against one another, but the Dark Pulse continued to advance for a longer period before finally detonating in full, the shockwaves slamming into Eevee, leaving a painful bruise on the evolution Pokemon's face as she slid back.

"Brick Break!" Paul was smelling blood as Sneasel closed in to finish the fight. Charging through the cloud of dust, his fist glowed orange yet again as he swung forward for the final strike-

Eevee's teeth took on a blackish-aura as she chomped down on the Brick Break. She immediately regretted her choice. Although the attack was stopped, the pain that shot through her jaw left her screaming through her clenched teeth as she held her opponent in place, Sneasel's momentum sending both of them sliding across the arena as the dark-ice type pushed against her grip.

Tears were forming in her eyes as she tightened her hold on Sneasel's fist, which was hurting her more than her opponent, but the only thing keeping the Brick Break from going further. The ever-so increasing pain shooting through her jaw left her mouth begging for her to open it, to relieve herself of this excruciating grip, but she just couldn't. She needed to win.

Her eyes widened, however, as the snarling Sneasel reared his other fist back, coating it in orange.

"Iron Tail, to the legs!"

Just as she thought her fate was sealed, her trainer's voice filled her ears, which erected at the sound of the order. Just as Sneasel was about to take a swing for her head, the quadruped twisted her body, dragging him forward as her metal tail swung downwards, painfully sweeping his legs off the ground.

In surprise, Sneasel just barely had enough time to shoot his claws outward and catch himself before he landed face-first onto the pavement. Sensing her chance, Eevee took a tiny leap into the air before swinging her Iron Tail downwards, only for her opponent to roll over and catch her tail in between his two Metal Claws. The dark-ice type hissed with frustration at the painful strain of the exchange, Eevee's momentum pushing him against the ground he was laying on and threatening to crush him under the pressure.

The normal type pressed down as hard as she could, snarling through her teeth and straining herself as much as possible before Paul's voice fille dher ears.

"Dark Pulse!"

Her eyes widened at the sudden glow of dark energy in her opponent's claws. She had no time to react before the point-blank explosion sent her flying through the air with a startled shriek. Although her tail was spared the pain of the impact thanks to its protective metal coating, the whiplash of the sudden impact sent an ache through much of her body. As she slammed her Iron Tail downward to break her fall, her gaze surveyed the battlefield before finally arriving to where Sneasel was, her opponent picking himself up, his body scorched and bruised from the point-blank explosion that had forced her away.

Although Ash and Valiant were too far away to tell, Eevee could have sworn that Sneasel's breathing was getting deeper. An angry grin formed on her face as her muscles began to tense, her body crouching into a pouncing stance.

"Double Team!" Paul's tone of voice only seemed to be slightly worried as Sneasel split into two yet again, both darting off in separate directions as Eevee mentally cursed to herself. Taking off into a sprint, she tried to ignore the pain in her jaw, blinking away the tears in her eyes that threatened to obscure her vision.

She did so a bit too late, however, as the ground beneath her suddenly turned slippery. In her confusion, she had charged right into the patch of ice that Sneasel's previous ice beam had left behind.

The evolution Pokemon wailed as her balance completely abandoned her, the momentum of her progressing sprint sending her sailing through the air as Ash and Valiant called out in concern. A series of indecent words ran through her mind on repeat as she frantically coated her tail in metal, slamming it onto the ground to break her fall. But the opening had already been made.

"Agility and Brick Break!"

Eevee's heart nearly stopped at the sound of the command. She whirled around as fast as she could, in both desperation to correct herself, yet anticipation for her impending defeat. Sneasel's clone fizzled of existence out as his body became outlined with a blue aura, one that would carry him across the arena as a blur to shatter her skull and take her out of the-

"Hyper Voice on the ground!" her trainer's voice was frantic, as though he was blurting out the first potential tactic that came to his mind. Eevee had no idea what he was planning, or even if there was a plan at all, but right now, she needed his words.

The evolution Pokemon took a small leap into the air, and Sneasel was already upon her as the shockwaves escaped from her throat. The blast exploded against the ground beneath her, the force of the explosion hitting both her, and her opponent, at point-blank.

Both combatants collectively yelped as their bodies were sent backwards, Sneasel tumbling away from his target as Eevee was catapulted to the side. For the briefest of instants, she couldn't process what was going on.

The next instant, however, it was as though she felt it. A chance.

Her Iron Tail slammed into the pavement, breaking her fall before propelling her after her target. The adrenaline surge through her veins as her legs carried her across the short distance that separated her from Paul's partner. As Sneasel slid to his feet, Eevee was already upon him, taking a small leap into the air as the two of them locked eyes.

As Eevee flipped over in midair, Sneasel opened his mouth, a ball of icy aura appeared in his jaws. The frigid air radiated off of the sphere as he prepared to fire the Ice Beam-

BAM!

Eevee could feel the chilly air against her fur even as her metallic tail was brought down on his head, the impact forcing him face-first into the pavement as a large bruise was left behind.

Eevee took a moment to catch her breath as she landed next to her opponent, who lay sprawled out and motionless. She didn't dare allow her anxiety to fizzle out, or her heart rate too slow as she carefully prodded at his still body.

No matter how much she nudged him… he didn't move.

First confusion, then realization…

Then ecstasy.

"You did it, Eevee!" The quadruped turned to her trainer and let out a series of barks as the situation dawned on her. Her grin threatened to split her face apart as Valiant called out to her in congratulations. All of a sudden, it felt as though the pain in her jaw was numbing from the joy.

That Sneasel had been faster than her, capable of taking her out in one, decisive strike. And she had overcome him.

Paul ignored the quadruped's silly celebration, although an impressed grin was slowly forming on his face as he recalled his fallen partner. After telling Sneasel that they would continue to train, he clipped his capsule back onto his belt, looking up at Ash and his group as he exchanged it for a new one.

Eevee's cheers had died down for the moment, although her celebratory expression remained as she turned to face the opposing trainer once more. Ash and Valiant's faces were both adorned with confidence and morale as both rookie's momentarily locked eyes.

"You really have improved." Paul commented. "I haven't had a battle like this outside of a Gym in a while."

"Good to hear." Ash replied. He couldn't stop his grin from widening, even as Paul released his newest teammate.

A bird-like creature hovered above the battlefield, dark feathers adorning its flapping wings while its eyes zeroed in on Eevee like a predator.

"This is Murkrow." Paul revealed. "Let's see if your streak continues against her.

Ash eyed the bird carefully before looking over to Eevee, who had made her way back to their end of the arena, in front of him and Valiant.

"Careful, Eevee. I don't know much about Murkrow, but I'm pretty sure they're pretty skilled with underhanded techniques and scheming." It was what he'd heard, at least. Murkrow were decently popular, but he didn't have a lot of specific details on them outside of certain aspects that many dark types would naturally fall under.

Eevee nodded back at him as she steeled her expression. A few words of encouragement from Valiant earned the Kirlia a warm grin and a friendly bark from his friend as she turned back to face her new opponent.

"Are you still good to go?" Ash called out to her before she got too far. Eevee seemed ready to continue, but she hadn't gotten out of the fight with Sneasel unscathed.

Thankfully, however, the pain in her jaw was progressively dulling as she turned back to her two friends with a confirming nod. Ash responded with a thumbs up as she and Murkrow locked eyes once more.

They had managed to even things out for now. Right now, they just needed to push forward and forge ahead.

Paul gave the first order. "Thunder Wave, then Haze."

Eevee yelped at the surprising speed of the lightning bolt that shot down at her, her fur mildy grazed as she darted to the side. The next moment, a stream of black clouds escaped Murkrow's beak, prompting her to break away in the other direction as the Haze covered a portion of the battlefield.

Ash and Valiant were thankful that Eevee had prevented herself from being obscured from view, watching Murkrow fly upward to avoid the Shadow Ball the evolution Pokemon had launched at her.

"Eevee, use Swift!" Murkrow's flight ability gave her an inherent advantage in certain areas, avoiding attacks being among them. They needed to try and trip that up.

"Hidden Power!" Paul countered.

The barrage of golden stars exited Eevee's mouth and sailed upwards towards Murkrow, attempting to lock onto her. The dark bird's eyes glowed a bright brown as an aura of the same color outlined her body. A barrage of small orbs, still sharing the color, descended upon the stars that Eevee had fired, both attacks exploding against each other as a few of Murkrow's orbs made their way through.

"Double Team, then Steel Wing!" as Eevee leapt backwards to avoid the lingering orbs from Hidden power, which exploded against the ground where she had previously stood, Paul's partner abruptly split into three birds, all of whom parted ways before descending onto the battlefield, flying just above the ground as they made their way to the retreating Eevee.

Ash could feel a small bead of sweat on his face as Eevee looked around in paranoia. "Just try to focus, and attack!" not wasting any time, Eevee turned to one of the pursuing Murkow on random, firing a quick Shadow Ball from her jaws. As the clone fizzled out of existence upon impact, the remaining two Murkrow were already upon her. Without thinking, she whirled around and lashed out at one of them with Iron Tail.

CLANG!

The impact echoed across the arena as Eevee's tail smacked against Murkrow's wing. She had chosen right this time. The bird had come at the quadruped from the side, the flier's momentum forcing Eevee backwards somewhat as both combatants pushed against one another. But even as Eevee slid back, there was a close proximity between the two that Ash aimed to take advantage of.

"Hyper Voice!"

"Confuse Ray!" Paul's order came immediately after, and Ash wondered if it was meant to be a counter command, or if he had simply beaten their opponent to the punch.

The shockwave's were already escaping Eevee's mouth as Murkrow's eyes began to flash, and although the evolution Pokemon began to feel a mild disorientation, it didn't take long to evaporate as her opponent was blown away by the blast, letting out a pained squawk as the Hyper Voice launched her back. Turning to fully face her opponent's retreating form, the quadruped bolted after Murkrow. Just as the bird recovered, an Iron Tail was driven into her stomach, launching her into the barriers.

A grinning Ash nodded as Murkrow began to pick herself up. "Great, now Swift!"

"Defend with Steel Wing!" Murkrow had her wings crossed just as the barrage of golden stars was upon her, the impact of the collisions pressing her back against the barriers as the glowing projectiles exploded against the metal coating.

"Iron Tail!" Ash was worried about getting too close to Murkrow if she knew Confuse Ray, but if they could keep the pressure up, the dark-flying type might not be able to manage it…

Murkrow's attempt to rise into the air was thwarted as Eevee swiftly closed the distance between them, performing a tiny hop into the air to flip over and swing her tail down onto the bird's head. The dark flier hastily angled her body upwards to intercept the strike with her still metallic-coated wings, the force of Eevee's blow pushing Paul's partner into the ground as the evolution Pokemon continued to press down without relent. The quadruped snarled in determination as Murkrow squawked in displeasure, her back painfully pressed against the pavement.

"Confuse Ray!"

The disorientation hit Eevee out of nowhere, Murkrow's eyes flashing just a few moments after Paul gave the order. Ash's face paled. Confuse Ray required clear concentration to be utilized, and yet she was still able to manage it now? Murkrow wasn't even a psychic type, and yet it was as though she had already mastered such a technique, or at least in terms of how the move was competently pulled off.

Eevee felt her concentration waning as her mind began to lose focus, no longer fixated on her efforts. As the force applied by her Iron Tail began to decrease, Murkrow was able to fight back against the pressure, forcing the quadruped off of her body and rushing forward as the normal type tumbled away.

BAM!

Her guard down from the disorientation, Eevee's head erupted in pain as the metal smacked into her face at full force, sending her rolling across the arena while Murkrow took to the skies.

Ash inwardly cursed to himself as Eevee struggled to get up. They should have kept attacking from a distance, but instead, he had gone for the finisher too soon. And now…

"Use Swift, Eevee!"

"Thunder Wave!"

Now on her feet, eevee squeezed her eyes shut in an attempt to block out the pounding ache that assaulted her now bruised head. Just as she was about to fire the barrage of projectiles, however, she let out a startled shriek of pain as Murkrow's lightning bolt struck her head on, the static traveling along her body and locking her muscles as she struggled to let the Swift out.

"Finish this with Steel Wing!" Paul's tone of voice was definitive as Murkrow descended onto the battlefield. Eevee struggled to move away, combating both the electricity hindering her muscles and the agony in her head, before a metallic wing struck her in the face yet again.

Ash's heart sank as Eevee rolled across the ground, coming to a stop with yet another large bruise on her head, not getting up. He was quick to return her to her ball, at which he gazed apologetically.

"You were fantastic, Eevee. That was my slip up. Get some rest." his friend had scored a clean knockout and wounded a second opponent. She had played her part and then some with how she had furthered the team's momentum.

Returning the ball to his belt, the boy returned his attention to Murkrow, who was standing a few meters in front of Paul and Elekid, removing her wing from her stomach, which she had been clutching for a moment. Her breathing seemed mildly deeper for a quick moment or two, before straightening out once more, and there were bruises on her side and stomach, where Hyper Voice and Iron Tail had respectively struck. Ash wondered if her back was also visibly damaged from the previous exchange. She hadn't beaten Eevee unscathed.

Ash subconsciously ran his hand across the Poke Balls on his belt. He had two choices left, and three teammates to pick from. Paul still had Murkrow and Skorupi, with his final slot likely going to either Elekid or Grotle. The electric type had been standing alongside his trainer throughout the battle, confidence unwavering. Thinking about the grass type brought back a rather unpleasant memory, where Valiant had been overwhelmed with ease.

Nebula, Tyrunt, Valiant… If he sent Nebula out now, Paul would likely respond with Elekid. Ash decided to hold off on that for now, which left Valiant and Tyrunt…

Tyrunt could end the fight quickly with his jaws, but would have to get in close to do so, leaving him in danger of getting assaulted by Confuse Ray if they were to slip up. That had been what did Eevee in. His resistance to electricity would be useful in combatting thunder Wave, and Rock Blast gave him an effective means to attack from a distance. Not to mention Roar, if they needed repel Murkrow in the event that she gets too close.

In comparison, Valiant had more options against Murkrow. He'd likely finish her off with ease if they played their hand right, and without as much risk as Tyrunt, given the greater amount of offensive ranged options that Valiant had available.

It was almost too convenient, though. Given how Murkrow was already injured, Paul could easily be provoked into substituting her for later, regardless of who Ash picked. He wasn't aware of Valiant or Tyrunt's current attributes, but he could certainly make educated guesses. If he deduced Valiant correctly, he would likely switch Murkrow out and save her for after the Kirlia had already been taken out anyway. Substitutions were handled in a variety of different ways from battle to battle, and the way trainer's strategized and selected their next teammates often took that into account. There was little use sending out a Pokemon that had an obvious upper hand against the opposing trainer's current teammate if the opponent was just going to switch them out for someone better suited. That's why, trainers sometimes tried to pick a team member whose advantages could be a bit more subtle, and fly under the radar.

Tyrunt appeared in front of Ash and Valiant. The boy wasn't completely sure if this was the right choice, but Paul wasn't recalling Murkrow… Either their opponent had something planned that they didn't know, or they had successfully baited him into keeping Murkrow on the field.

They'd just have to wait and see.

"Careful, Tyrunt." Ash spoke as the young dinosaur excitedly scraped his feet across the pavement. "That Murkrow knows Confuse Ray and Thunder Wave, and beat eevee with them. Watch out for Steel Wing, too." The excited, happy-go-lucky grin did not leave the royal heir Pokemon;s face, but he still nodded along in acknowledgement to his trainer's statements. The team's youngest member looked back at Ash and Valiant to offer them a confident nod before returning his attention to Murkrow.

"Double Team. Circle around, then Shadow Ball." Paul eyed Tyrunt for a moment before giving the command to Murkrow, who took off into the air while splitting into three. Tyrunt's head angled upwards, a somewhat bewildered look in his eyes as his gaze followed the dark flier and her clones.

"Get moving, Tyrunt! Fire Rock Blast at them!" The young dinosaur nodded before breaking into a jog. A barrage of rocks fired out of his mouth at one of the birds, but was avoided. The next moment, a different Murrkow, the real one, opened her beak, allowing a ball of distorted energy to take form.

Ash took note of how long it was taking the energy to gather. It seemed… slower than it should be. Perhaps the injuries that Eevee had inflicted on Murkrow were weakening her attacks a bit…

If that was the case, they needed to provoke her into firing it before she could gather up all of its power. "Rock Blast, again!" The real Murkrow had already given away her position by charging up the Shadow Ball, and had therefore allowed her clones to fizzle away. Seeing the incoming barrage of rocks prompted her to swerve to the side and fire the incomplete Shadow Ball at her target.

"Dragon Tail!" At Ash's frantic order, Tyrunt whirled around as his tail glowed a bright purple, smacking against the Shadow Ball and sending it flying back to a startled Murkrow. The royal heir Pokemon found himself straining as the two attacks collided, but the Shadow Ball's incomplete nature had allowed him to deflect it more easily.

It also made it easier to defend against, however, as the unstable orb exploded against Murkrow's crossed, metallic wings. She still hadn't been able to completely coat her wings in time, however, shrieking a bit as the explosion knocked her off balance.

"Rock Blast!" Tyrunt was already pursuing Murkrow as Ash gave the order. With the dark flier descending to the ground, he was able to aim at her more accurately, only for her to coat herself in a pale aura, pulling up just before the rocks could hit her.

"Steel Wing!"

Still maintaining Aerial Ace, Murkrow circled around before dive bombing after Tyrunt, her wings coated in metal once more. Ducking under the next barrage of rocks that was fired to intercept her, the bird lashed out at the dinosaur, who attempted to sidestep away. The usage of Aerial Ace made her too fast, however, and although Tyrunt avoided a direct hit, a squeal of pain escaped his throat as the metal caught the side of his head, just a little more than a graze, leaving a long cut across the dinosaur's face. Blood leaked down as the reptile's eyes followed after the dark flier's retreating form, a dangerous, fiery glint beginning to take form in his gaze.

'Since Shadow Ball was deflected, Paul might try that tactic for now.' Ash thought to himself. Steel WIng required Murkrow to get up close, but it was a great offensive option against Tyrunt, and the momentum that Aerial Ace provided would make it more difficult to respond to such a move in time. And the added force from the speed boost, coupled with his friend's vulnerability to steel type moves...

Tyrunt slowly rotated in place, his eyes continuing to follow the dark flier that circled him from above. Valiant frowned at the sound of a low, hostile rumble escaping the dinosaur's throat, and Ash realized that his friend's instincts were beginning to kick in.

"Haze!" Doing one final loop, Murkrow angled herself to face Tyrunt from above, the stream of black clouds once again escaping her beak, threatening to envelop her opponent.

"Roar!" Determination in his gaze, Tyrunt let out the best war cry he could muster, the shockwaves that blasted out of his throat colliding with the clouds and forcing them to part. As the haze split open, surrounding Tyrunt, but not engulfing him, Murkrow shrieked from directly overhead as lightning coated her feathers, before firing down in a stream at the bird's target.

Upon hearing Ash's "Look out!" Tyrunt tried to leap to the side, but although the Thunder Wave did not strike him directly, his side was still hit, his teeth grinding in notable irritation as the electricity traveled along the nearby portions of his body. Although he had no interest in finding out for himself, Ash wondered what it felt like to have literal electricity circuiting through your system, locking your muscles and restraining you from within. The lack of a direct hit prevented this Thunder Wave from going too deep, Tyrunt's natural resistance to electricity cushioning his body, but it would certainly serve as a temporary distraction…

"Aerial Ace and Steel Wing!"

With an aggressive squawk, Murkow bathed her body in the pale aura once more. As her wings turned to metal, the dark bird rocketed down like a bullet, cleanly smashing the attack into Tyrunt's face. The feeling of metal rocketing into his snout sent a sensation of agony across the dinosaur's head as he collapsed onto his back, a massive gash abhorrently marking his face. His vision of the clouds overhead momentarily blurred as the pain overwhelmed his senses.

"Again!"

"Fire Fang, hurry!" Ash frantically shouted. Paul was planning to end things right here. They needed to catch Murkrow before she could deliver the last hit…

As Murkrow circled around in preparation for the next attack, Tyrunt raised his head, struggling to pick himself up as flames began to flicker in his jaws. Moments later, Murkrow was descending downward towards her target, her wings at the ready.

CHOMP!

Fiery teeth snapped down on Murkrow's left wing just as she lashed out, and a startling wave of pain immediately shot through her as Tyrunt's merciless jaws gnawed away at the metal coating, slowly crushing the wing, all the while the fire in his jaws threatened to burn right through. The dark flier's momentum forced Tyrunt onto his back once more, and he could feel some pain in his jaw from the impact, but he didn't let go.

Ash and Valiant looked on with some suspense. This was it, Tyrunt's Strong Jaw making itself known to any Pokemon unfortunate enough to have his teeth sunk into them. At this rate, Murkrow's use of her left wing would be entirely lost for the rest of the fight, leaving her a sitting duck on the ground.

Tyrunt did everything he could to tighten his grip, his mind screaming at him to bite down harder while his eyes blazed with rage, as though trying to convince himself that he could be trying harder. The screams of his prey were mostly ignored, but occasionally encouraged him.

Paul was shouting at Murkrow to rip away from the exchange, to pull her wing out of her opponent's mouth. Her efforts were in vain, however. No matter how hard she pulled, no matter how much she strained, Tyrunt's grip remained absolute, even as she had him trapped on his back.

"Confuse Ray!"

Ash was about to tell Tyrunt to let go of Murkrow, so that his friend could position himself for the final blow, when Paul's uncharacteristically desperate voice echoed across the arena. Murkrow did everything she could to blink back the tears streaming down her face, struggling to cocnentrate through the torture to her wing.

"Let go of her, Tyrunt!" Ash shouted as fast as he could. "And back away!"

Still desperately pulling at her wing, Murkrow was startled by her sudden backwards momentum, staggering away as the grip that had halted her suddenly vanished, Tyrunt's jaw opening as the flames flickered out. It did nothing to do away with the immediate pain in her wing, however, and as the metal coating it disappeared, the bloodied mess of burnt feathers and bite marks nearly going all the way through immediately became visible. The wing limped to her side, the muscles refusing to move as she hissed in agony.

With only one wing to work with, she was on the ground now.

Just as Tyrunt had made his way to his feet, attempting to back away and create distance between him and his opponent, Murkrow's eyes flashed. The Confuse Ray was weak, the concentration behind it heavily compromised by the indescribable pain from the previous exchange, but it was just enough to create a dizzying sensation as Tyrunt's vision turned blurry once more.

At Ash's "Look away!" Tyrunt dipped his gaze to the ground beneath him, away from the lights in Murkrow's eyes, which were already flickering out as she struggled to maintain the technique. Ash watched his friend stumble around, a pit of nervousness making itself known in his stomach.

'No doubt Confuse Ray has taken his aim away.' the boy thought to himself. 'But she's right in front of him. If he can't concentrate his sight enough to look directly at her-'

"Shadow Ball!"

'He'll have to rush forward!' Ash finished his thoughts before shouting out to his friend. "Use Tackle! Straight ahead!"

Tyrunt struggled to block out the mild queasiness he began to feel as the dizziness and disorientation of Confuse Ray piled on top of his already pounding headache. Just a few feet away, Murkrow staggered backwards, desperately attempting to gather energy into her beak, even as the agony of her wing injury continued to assault her.

Doing his best to firmly press his feet into the ground and ensure his balance, Tyrunt kept his head forward as he rushed forward as fast as his legs could carry him. He wasn't aiming for anything specific, he was simply charging in a straight line, which Murkrow just so happened to be in the path of.

A surge of adrenaline and panic shot through her as she saw the dinosaur beginning to charge. At that moment, the ghostly energy began to gather faster. She only had a split second to add on to it, however, cutting it short and firing early, just before her opponent could ram head-first into her.

The pain in Tyrunt's head practically multiplied as the wailing child was sent catapulting backwards. The point-blank nature of the attack doomed Murkrow's chances of escaping harm as well, however, the explosion of the collision slamming into her at the same moment. Now on his back yet again, Tyrunt's tongue slightly hung from his mouth as his eyes began to glaze over. A meter or two away, Murrkow was on her side, struggling to pick herself up for the briefest of seconds, before collapsing definitively.

Both trainers waited in silence for a few moments before recalling their Pokemon. Ash felt a mild sensation of disappointment that the battle had only been a draw, especially since it now left him with only one remaining teammate. At the same time, however, the emotion clashed with his pride in Tyrunt for being able to turn the situation around.

"Rest up, little buddy. You did great as usual." returning the capsule to his belt, he found himself locking eyes with Paul.

"Murkrow's ability is Prankster." the other boy spoke matter-of-factly with crossed arms. "It makes it easier for her to. use moves like Thunder Wave and Confuse Ray. She learns them faster, masters them faster, like a water type being a natural expert in aquatic moves." he offered a curt nod as his arms fell to his sides. "Just thought you deserved to know."

Ash grinned a bit. It explained why she was able to use the moves so efficiently, even in situations where it should theoretically be difficult. "That makes sense. Tyrunt's ability is Strong Jaw. All of his biting moves are a lot more powerful because of it." his face fell. "Sorry about your Murkrow's wing-"

"Enough." Paul responded. "This is a battle, not a sparring match. You don't have to apologize for trying to win. Speaking of which, you're on your last teammate, now."

The way Paul abruptly changed the subject almost triggered a hint of whiplash in Ash, but he shook it off quickly. The other boy was right, after all. It was an uncomfortable thought, but not making use of Tyrunt's ability would greatly hinder the reptile's ability to fight, even if it was prone to causing less than pleasant injuries.

The boy felt his hand gripping Nebula's Poke Ball as he spared a quick glance at Valiant, before returning his attention to Paul and Elekid. The other trainer still had Skorupi, albeit not in peak condition. Elekid was right next to him, patiently waiting his turn, and the remaining, unseen teammate was probably Grotle. If the grass type was anything like before, he'd be a monster to take down.

But they had done so much better this time around, and although a light, nervous sensation passed over him, Ash found himself smiling a bit. Paul's lead was hardly a significant one, and if they performed well enough, they could close the gap and overtake him. Looking back, this whole battle had actually been fairly close so far…

But now they were each left with only one remaining slot to fill, and two teammates to choose from. Paul was likely planning on saving Skorupi for later, in order to start fresh with whoever his fifth teammate was, given that Ash's final Pokemon would also be in fresh condition. That meant either Elekid or Grotle would be stepping onto the field… he needed to choose his next team member based on that.

If Paul remembered Nebula from before, then he was likely expecting her to be one of Ash's remaining two options. If that was the case, and Ash was reading the opposing trainer's thought process correctly, he'd likely pick Elekid no matter what. He would probably have a better chance against her than Grotle, while still not being a risky matchup for Valiant. In comparison, Grotle had no inherent disadvantage against Valiant, but would likely be on the back foot against Nebula. For as strong as Paul was, he had only been training for just as long as Ash had been. It was unlikely that he and Grotle had enough time to have fully developed a strategy meant to counter flying types. Elekid would be a much safer bet. He had a fighting chance regardless of who Ash chose, especially since Nebula and Ash similarly hadn't had the time to address her issue with electricity.

And between Nebula and Valiant, the one with the best chance against the electric type was…

"Ash." the boy broke away from his thoughts to turn his gaze to Valiant, who was looking up at his trainer expectantly, pointing to himself. "May I have this one?"

Ash's grin turned to a friendly grin as he locked eyes with his partner. Knowing Valiant, the psychic had just finished running his mind through the same thoughts as himself.

"Definitely." Ash crouched to better meet his friend at eye-level, holding his arms out as his hands closed up into fists. He felt the fire in his chest again, and his grin widening. They were so close. "Paul's still in danger of losing this battle. All we need to do is defeat his fifth Pokemon and finish off Skorupi. He'll probably send out Elekid. I'm counting on you."

Valiant took in his trainer's words for a moment, before a smile spread across his lips. A moment later, his eyes hardened, although the grin did not leave his face as he pressed his own fists against Ash's.

As the Kirlia made his way onto the field, Paul nodded in understanding. "So, that's your last choice, then." looking down to his side, he exchanged a nod with the electric type that had, like Valiant, observed the entire match up to this point, pointing his thumb out to the arena as he addressed his partner. "Elekid, you're up."

A satisfied grin adorned the electric type's features before he stepped forward and locked gazes with his target. Valiant's face evened out into a neutral frown, his eyes not leaving Elekid's own, even as the electric type began to rotate his arms, and sent electricity crackling along his body.

Looking over at Ash, Paul felt a mild sensation of anxiety in his chest, but the emotion was quelled fairly quickly. It occurred to him that he might actually lose this fight, if things went well enough for Ash and his Kirlia, but he pushed that thought away for now.

If you had a chance to lose, it just meant you needed to keep pushing through without hesitance, so that your victory will be even more satisfying. He hadn't gotten that feeling with this boy back in Pewter, but he could feel it coming now.

Raising a hand, he took the initiative. "Move in, and use Thunder Wave."

Elekid's legs carried him across the arena, although he was only putting a half-effort into Quick Attack. It didn't take too long for him to close the distance, however, his whirling arms producing an electric current that shot out at the young psychic.

Valiant remained stationary, stretching his hands outward as a golden cube surrounded Ash's friend. The lightning bolt harmlessly bounced off of the barrier, leaving no cracks or visible damage, but Paul was grinning.

"Predictable. Use Brick Break next."

Ash's eyes went wide. "Drop it, hurry!"

But that's when Elekid made his move. Putting his full power into Quick Attack, the grinning electric type plunged his orange-glowing fist into the cube. The psychic-fueled shield shattered all around Valiant, who stumbled backwards from the mental whiplash.

Raising his other arm, Elekid coated his fist in electricity. Still slightly dazed from the Light Screen's premature destruction, Valiant wheezed for air as the Thunder Punch was driven into his gut, the static producing a painful burning sensation in the area of impact.

Ash's face tightened as he watched his friend fall backward, Valiant attempting to catch himself with his hands, which pressed somewhat painfully into the pavement. It was the first exchange and Paul had already played them like a poorly constructed set of instruments. Light Screen and Reflect were Valiant's best bet of protecting himself, but now they were going to have to abandon one of the most natural components of his fighting style, otherwise Elekid's Brick Break would continue to exploit them.

Flipping himself back onto his feet, Valiant's expression was retaliatory as his eyes flashed pink, a beam of identical color flashing out of his palms and towards Elekid. The green sphere that engulfed the electric type strained a bit from the impact, but apart from a brief wince, Paul's partner seemed to be unscathed.

"Get moving, Valiant! Clear some distance and use Psybeam!" Ash was now very grateful that they had begun working on Valiant's agility with Eevee as of recently. With his most reliable means of protection compromised, the young emotion Pokemon would have to move, outmaneuver his opponent, and make use of Teleport and Shadow Sneak whenever he could afford to.

They were on the back foot, but both refused to be for long.

Valiant kept his eyes focused on Elekid as he sprinted to the side, his gaze fixed into a steel, neutral glare. The moment the green sphere surrounding his opponent fizzled out of existence, the Kirlia young performed a sharp turn as his eyes flashed rainbow, a beam of the same color rocketing towards its target.

Elekid lowered his head and slipped into Quick Attack, ducking under the Psybeam as he advanced towards Valiant, his fist coated in lightning once more. Immediately realizing he had no time to dodge, Valiant ceased fire, and flashed out of existence just as his opponent lashed out, the Thunder Punch only striking the air that Ash's partner had once occupied.

Ash didn't wait to see where Valiant rematerialized. He trusted his friend's judgement. "Fire Punch!"

Valiant appeared on a different side of the field, close to the patch of ice that had previously been left behind by Sneasel's Ice Beam. Breaking into a run, he fixed his gaze on the electric type once more. But just as Elekid turned to face him, his body, still sprinting forward, sank into the shadow on the ground, his momentum carrying over to the Shadow Sneak, and out of Elekid's reach.

"Protect, quickly!" Paul grimaced. Crossing his arms, Elekid produced the protective, emerald colored sphere just in time for Valiant to rise out of the ground behind him, driving a flame-coated fist into the back of the barrier. Still not quite perfect with the technique, he was unable to produce a satisfying amount of damage to the shield, but sank into a stance as Elekid whirled his body around, upon dropping the barrier.

With Valiant up close, Elekid reared his fist back in preparation for another Thunder Punch, only for his focus to falter as Valiant's eyes flashed with the aura of Confuse Ray. With his foe momentarily open, the Kirlia coated his fist in flames once more, driving the Fire Punch into the electric type's gut.

"Dazzling Gleam!" as the staggering Elekid struggled to maintain his footing, Valiant's eyes flashed pink once more. With no time to erect a barrier, Elekid instead put his fists together while channeling electricity. The dual Thunder Punches intercepted the blast, the explosion bowling Valiant's opponent over.

Recovering quickly, Elekid caught himself on his hands before flipping over, deftly sliding back as he lifted his head to face the young psychic once more.

"Thunderbolt!" At Paul's command, the electric type whirled his arms, the static flowing across his body until he was somewhat bathed, before the bolt of lightning blasted its way in Valiant's direction.

The Kirlia was already responding, however. If he couldn't use Light Screen to defend against Elekid, he'd just have to make himself a different shield. Forming a sphere of emerald colored light in his hands, the emotion Pokemon glared with steadfast enthusiasm as the barrage of glowing leaves collided with the incoming Thunderbolt. The Magical Leaf acted as the ideal makeshift defense against the electrical onslaught, and as the cloud of smoke briefly obscured his opponent's view, Valiant teleported behind his opponent, leaving a few feet of distance between them to build up speed as he reared his flaming fist back.

Elekid whirled around in an attempt to drive his Thunder Punch into Valiant's face, but the young psychic had already acted far too soon, earning the electric type a forceful impact to the side of his ribs as the fire danced across the area of impact. Valiant's opponent wailed a bit as he was sent staggering back again, but slipped into Quick Attack fast enough to avoid the incoming Psybeam that the psychic fired afterwards.

"Keep your momentum, Electro Ball!" Still running, Elekid only slowed down just enough to concentrate his electricity into his palms, the lightning forming into a steady orb before being tossed in Valiant's direction.

The Kirlia leapt to the side, rolling away from the attack as it approached the nearest side of the barriers. The moment he did so, however…

"Thunder Punch!" Elekid had already been in the midst of closing the distance between Valiant and himself, and as the young Kirlia occupied himself with the Electro Ball, the electric type's Quick Attack slipped back into full speed. Lightning crackled over his fist as the electric type socked the psychic in the jaw.

Valiant was persistent however, adamantly fighting back to ignore the pain in his chin as he caught himself on his hands upon being launched away, flipping himself over and back onto his feet. Taking no time to even hold his sore (and somewhat burnt) jaw, the Kirlia was already sprinting again, his fist coated in flame as Elekid sunk into a stance, before rushing forward to meet the psychic.

The electric type prepared to strike back against Valiant's Fire Punch, his fist already crackling with more electricity. The fire in Valiant's fist suddenly fizzled out, however, as a pink orb abruptly appeared in the Kirlia's hands.

Ash couldn't help the sudden cheer that escaped his lips as Valiant's Dazzling Gleam struck the unsuspecting Elekid's chest at point-blank. "Awesome move, Valiant!" his partner had performed a feint to lure Elekid into getting close.

The Dazzling Gleam hadn't been charged to full power, but the suddenness of the impact had nevertheless left Elekid reeling. After sliding backwards from the strike, the electric type raised a single hand to clutch his chest as Valiant abruptly flashed out of existence.

Taking a leap of faith, Elekid immediately assumed that Valiant was behind him, whirling around to swing a Thunder Punch into the side of the Kirlia's. But Valiant's eyes glowed a faint, light blue, Elekid's movements becoming telegraphed in the young emotion Pokemon's mind as Telepathy did its work. Ducking under his opponent's swift strike, the psychic reared back and lunged for his foe, driving the Fire Punch into Elekid's face.

"Dazzling Gleam!" Valiant took the time to better charge up the fairy type move as Elekid was knocked back by his strike. Just as the electric type finished catching himself on his hands and flipping back onto his feet, the Kirlia fired the pink beam with as much force as he could muster.

Hastily, Elekid crossed his arms and formed the familiar emerald sphere surrounding his body. He was only just barely able to materialize it in time, however, and the feebly constructed barrier shattered as the blast exploded against it. The windforce left Elekid wincing in displeasure as he slid backwards a few feet, holding an arm in front of his face.

As the two Pokemon stared each other down, both combatants observed one another's condition. Valiant had bruises and burns where the Thunder Punches had struck, including a nasty marking on his jaw, while Elekid's chest was marked from the Dazzling Gleam, along with the burns from the Fire Punches elsewhere.

Although Valiant's glare remained fixed, and Elekid maintained his somewhat twisted grin, their breathing was mutually on the verge of growing heavy. The eye contact between the two, however, prompted both combatants to banish the thought of fatigue from their minds.

Ash observed Valiant carefully. He'd be approaching his reserves soon enough. The high-speed Thunder Punch to the jaw had done him no favors, and overexerting Teleport and Shadow Sneak would only speed up that process. And simply winning against Elekid wouldn't be enough; they still needed to deal with Skorupi. Although the scorpion was was not in a pleasant state following his fight with Tempest, victory wouldn't be guaranteed if Valiant came out of this fight just as bad.

But limiting their options any more than they already were wouldn't make anything better for them. The loss of Reflect and Light Screen was already a huge compromise for them.

On the other side of the arena, Paul's brow furrowed. "Go forward, and Thunder Wave."

Ceasing the staring contest, Elekid slipped into a light Quick Attack, his arms whirling momentarily before the narrow bolt of lightning launched towards Valiant. The electric type continued to close the distance as a barrage of emerald, glowing leaves was fired in response. The grassy projectiles collided with the Thunder Wave, most of them continuing to advance as they flew through the bolt.

Still charging forward, Elekid crossed his fists as the Magical Leaf collided with his advancing form. Both fists became coated in fire, and although the first few leaves painfully struck them before they could be fully enveloped, the remaining ones were cushioned as the electric type charged through the onslaught.

With Elekid upon him, Valiant's eyes flashed, studying the behavior of his opponent's muscles as the electric type reared back for a strike. By the time Elekid threw the first punch, Valiant had already moved to avoid the incoming strike, ducking under his foe's fist before driving a Fire Punch of his own into the electric type's gut. Elekid's momentum fought against the Kirlia, however, the Quick Attack continuing to carry Paul's partner forward, pushing Valiant back and threatening his balance, even as Elekid's forward movement painfully pushed his stomach further and further against the young emotion Pokemon's fiery fist.

As Valiant's footing failed him, Elekid slowed himself, pulling his other fist back to deliver the next strike. The Kirlia didn't have enough balance to properly move away for the incoming blow aimed for his forehead, and instead chose the more strenuous form of evasion, flashing away yet again as Elekid's Fire Punch struck the air.

Paul immediately called out to Elekid as Valiant reappeared about a meter and a half behind his partner, a ball of pink energy already forming in his hands. At his trainer's orders, Elekid spun around, the lightning already coating his body as his arms whirled with franticity.

Both attacks fired at once, the Dazzling Gleam and Thunderbolt exploding against one another halfway between both combatants, who defensively crossed their arms as the wind from the explosion pushed their bodies back. As the cloud of smoke temporarily obscured each Pokemon from one another's view, Valiant sank into his shadow before Elekid or Paul could see what he was planning. If he could get out of view while neither opponent could watch him, Elekid would be left wide open.

Paul seemed to predict this plan however, even without being able to witness Valiant executing it. "Hold Protect!"

Valiant's shadow snaked towards Elekid as the electric type crossed his arms, allowing the emerald sphere to once again encapsulate him. If the Kirlia struck now, it would be for naught.

For a few moments that felt like an hour, nothing happened. Elekid remained sheltered within Protect, while Valiant circled around the emerald sphere with Shadow Sneak. Ash grimaced. Both techniques would prove to be strenuous if either Pokemon held onto them for much longer. ANd although neither of them could necessarily afford to tire themselves out, the fact that Valiant was the only remaining member of their team gave him the least wiggle room.

Valiant knew this for himself, and retreated a fair distance from Elekid before rising back out of the ground. His expression did an imperfect job at hiding his frustration

A small, yet satisfied smile formed across Paul's features as the purple-haired boy pointed for the Kirlia. "Electroweb!"

Ignoring the fatigue that was trying to sneak up on him, Elekid broke into a jog as the electricity coated his hands. Rearing both arms back, the electric type performed a tossing motion as the lightning exiting his palms took the form of a net, which threatened to descend upon Valiant.

The Kirlia thought fast. If he blasted the web, he'd be momentarily preoccupied, and open to a followup assault. If he used Light Screen, Elekid would just blitz forward and shatter it again.

Ash had the same thought process as his partner. "Move away and use Psybeam!"

Keeping his eye on the advancing Elekid, Valiant leapt sideways as his eyes began to flash. Just as the Electroweb collided with the pavement, the rainbow colored beam was fired at its target. Elekid's momentum halted as the electric type forced himself to perform a last minute sidestep, but the beam still struck his side, sending him into a sideways stagger as he struggled to maintain his footing. Valiant was already following up, making a mad dash for Paul's partner.

The adrenaline was rushing through Ash's body. "Keep running, and use Dazzling Gleam!"

"Guard with Thunder Punch!" Paul's composure was mostly maintained, but the desperation was beginning to leak through.

Despite his compromise balance, Elekid was still able to channel his electricity into his fists, both of which he crossed in front of his chest just in time to intercept the beam of pink light headed for him. As the Dazzling Gleam exploded against his defenses, the electric type cried out in displeasure as the impact of the collision sent him rolling backwards, the Kirlia continuing to close in on him.

"Fire Punch!" just as Elekid came to a stop and rose to his feet, his breathing having now become significantly heavier, Ash's partner pulled back his fist as his advance towards the electric type entered its final stretch.

"You too, Elekid!" Elekid had just enough time to coat his fist in flames and throw a punch, but he had no time to start running and meet Valiant head on. As the two flaming fists clashed, Valiant's momentum carried him in the face of Elekid's strength. Both Pokemon strained their arms to overpower one another, Elekid's beginning to shake.

The exchange was happening somewhat far away, but leaning forward to observe it as bes the could, Ash could see Elekid trying to raise his other, no doubt to strike Valiant with a second punch. They needed to throw the electric type off focus, and deal the final blow.

"Confuse Ray!" All Valiant needed was a brief moment to throw off Elekid's concentration, and the battle was theirs.

But Paul had the same idea. "Thunder Wave!"

Valiant had been turning his head, prepared to make eye contact with his opponent as his eyes began to flash. Just as he did, however, the flames on Elekid's fist fizzled out, replaced with electricity. Thunder Wave wasn't a particularly strong move, and the fire coating Valiant's fist was strong enough to block out the relatively small current that Elekid had hastily produced.

But Valiant's momentum was still carrying him, the Kirlia having sprinted at Elekid with all the speed he could muster. As the flames on Elekid's own fist died down, Valiant's punch carried him forward, pushing back against Elekid's arm, but pushing Valiant's fist into the electrical current that his Fire Punch would have otherwise defended him from. Most of the electricity was destroyed by the flames, but just enough found its way to Valiant's fist. Already beginning to tire out, the Kirlia was attempting to put as much focus as possible into activating Confuse Ray, only for the sudden, and somewhat painful spasm in his fist to break his concentration.

As the flash in Valiant's eyes flickered out, just as quickly as it had come, the momentum in his punch was reduced by the sudden interruption from the Thunder Wave, the few jolts that had managed to make their way to Valiant's fist struggling to lock up his nearby muscles. Grinding his feet against the pavement, Elekid used the opportunity to right himself, pushing back against his opponent's advance. With a somewhat painful strain of the arm, he successfully shoved Valiant's fist away with his own, grinning victoriously (yet with some exhaustion still sleeping into his expression) as the young psychic staggered back, and raising his other fist.

As his partner prepared to deliver the strike, Paul's arm stretched outwards. "Elekid, beat Valiant at his own game! Thunder Punch!"

Lunging forward with all the force he could muster, Elekid's other fist moved like a bullet as it was driven directly into Valiant's temple, the SMACK as loud as it was definitive. As the force of the blow launched him away from his opponent, Valiant couldn't even cry out, his eyes glazing over as the pain shot through his head like a bullet to his skull. The nasty bruise left behind was visible as the young Kirlia collapsed onto his side, his eyelids flickering before closing completely. A few feet away, Elekid gasped for air as he sank to his knees, but remained upright nevertheless.

Ash let out the deep breath that he had held, which came out in the form of a sigh as he plucked Valiant's Poke Ball from his belt. For a moment, it had felt like they had gained the advantage, having driven Paul's electric type to his last legs. Not a single member of the team participating in the fight hadn't achieved something with their efforts. Next to how their first encounter with Paul had gone in Pewter City, there was little comparison.

But it hadn't been meant to be. They had pushed Paul and his team to their limits, and smacked against the ceiling, but hadn't broken through.

He couldn't ignore the disappointment in his chest, and yet… it really had been quite the battle.

A bittersweet smile adorned the boy's features as he returned Valiant to his ball. "Awesome work, buddy. You were just an inch away." he took a moment to gather his thoughts as he returned the Poke Ball to his belt. The excitement of the match was beginning to die down as he looked up and saw Paul approaching him.

The other boy had already returned Elekid. Ash's frown only lasted a second as his gaze met the other trainer, before taking out his Pokedex. This hadn't been how he wanted the rematch to end, but he knew going into the fight that it wouldn't be an easy one.

And, at the end of the day, it was him who challenged Paul. It had been his own risk.

As Paul got his own Pokedex ready, Ash transferred a portion of his funds to his opponent's account, which the other boy accepted. He had a fair amount of money at this point, somewhat increasing the amount that he needed to pay, but for the same reason, it was far from crippling.

An unusual smile accompanied Paul's face as the two tucked away their devices. It seemed somewhat amused.

"Heh, I hate to admit it, but I was actually starting to feel scared for a moment. That's a rarity." He almost sounded amused by his own confession. "Nice to see you haven't been doing nothing all this time."

Ash couldn't help but smile at the indirect praise. "You definitely had me nervous more than once." After only a moment or two of mild hesitance, he extended an arm. "Great match."

Paul's eyes held a pondering expression as he stared at Ash's hand, before accepting it with a quick shake. "You're right, I suppose it was." his firm grip clenched Ash's hand for a moment before the two separated. "Easy victories blend in too much. My only use for them is a quick paycheck. But I'll remember this one." turning around, he angled his head to look back at the boy. "I've got my eye on you, Ash. We'll battle again sometime. Work on your skills."

Ash stared back at Paul's retreating form for a second before calling out with a light grin, the flame momentarily returning to his chest. "I promise you, I will NOT lose next time!" he spoke with as much conviction as he could muster, as if saying it enthusiastically enough would will the declaration into becoming true.

Paul didn't look back, simply raising his hand in acknowledgement before disappearing back into the Center. Watching him leave for a moment, Ash chuckled to himself.

"So much for leaving as soon as possible." he muttered to himself absentmindedly. "You just couldn't resist, could you?" Given the injuries that some of his team had sustained, they'd likely be here for another night. He didn't mind it too much, but it certainly hadn't been what he had expected when the day started. A setback that he had created himself.

Hearing another set of feet approaching him, Ash perked up in surprise to see the girl from before approaching him. How long had she been there?

Her expression seemed rather down, her feet lightly kicking away at the ground as she made her way towards the boy. "While… that stuck-up know-it-all completely embarrassed us, and you guys did so much better. It's not even a question…" she trailed off as her eyes suddenly became interested in her shoes.

"Were you watching the whole thing?" he and Valiant hadn't even known she was there, and Paul and Elekid didn't seem to either. Had they all really been that caught up in the match?

"I walked in while your Pikachu was fighting his Teddiursa." There was a few seconds of pause before her face contorted into irritation. Holding her fists out in front of her chest, she looked up at the boy with exasperation in her voice. "UGGHH! It's just not fair! Seeing you two is… what am I doing wrong?!"

Ash blinked at the mood swing, holding his hands out to settle her down. "Hold on there, getting mad isn't going to…" he trailed off for a second before changing direction. "He said something about how your strategies are all over the place and don't sync correctly with your teammates, right?"

"Hmph." she was looking at her shoes again, although not as blatantly this time. "I mean… maybe?" she didn't seem like she wanted to admit to anything, although there was acceptance in her voice.

Ash stared at her for a second, absentmindedly running his hand across his belt. "Well… tell you what… my team needs to recover from this… if you'd like I can try to give you some tips while I wait. Maybe if you tell me what your Pokemon are like, we can think of something to build on."

Crossing her arms with a somewhat annoyed (albeit not directed at Ash) expression, the girl tapped her foot for a few seconds before sighing with a nod. "Alright, that sounds good." turning to leave, she added. "We can just talk in the lobby."

Nodding back, Ash spared a final glance at the battlefield before following after her.

Even with their defeat, his friends had put in incredible work today. It made him all the more eager to get to Celadon, and finally see that effort bear fruit.

/

A set of binoculars peaked through the bushes a fair distance away from the Pokemon Center, a figure crouching as he peered through the lens. Behind him were a few others, standing upright as he exited the bushes and turned to address them.

Neither he nor the others were of the typical height of an adult, although the presence he gave off stole their attention regardless.

"Not many people have gone in today, so we should strike a different night. Let's get back to camp for now." at their collective nod, he pulled out a flashlight while making his way to the front of the group.

As the device lit up the immediate path ahead of them, the shine washed over a portion of his shirt, revealing a large R on the front.

Pokemon Profiles: Pikachu

Trainer: Ash Ketchum

Obtained At: Pallet Town (Oak's Lab)

Best Friend: Nebula

Loyalty To Trainer: Strong

Hobbies: Racing, battling

Likes: Training (especially speed), hanging out during downtime

Dislikes: Being alone, aggressive Pokemon, suspense

Ash's Pokemon:

Pikachu (Male)

Nebula-Staravia (Female)

Valiant-Kirlia (Male)

Eevee (Female)

Tyrunt (Male)

Tempest-Krabby (Male)