Serena then thought to herself saying this is it.
"Here I go." She said to herself.
"Ash?"
"Yes?"
"D-d-do y-y-you?" Serena stuttered out.
"Yes?"
"Do you...remember me?" Serena finally said. Ash gasped at the request while Pikachu and Fletchling saw this as a personal matter and joined the others.
"Think back to when we went to camp back in Pallet Town I did too, that's where we met." Serena explained.
"At camp?" Ash asked, still shocked.
"That's right, we met at Prof. Oak's Pokemon Summer Camp." Serena said.
Ash then recalled many memories from his childhood.
"Hey, I remember that camp." He said.
"You do?" Serena said happily. He may remember her.
"Yeah of course, I went to it." Ash said.
"I know and that's because I went there as well." Ash then tried to remember where he'd seen her.
'She does seem familiar but I was only close to...I don't know...could she?' Ash remembered only one person he was just as close to as his mother back then.
"Ash?" Serena said, worried about him.
"Oh I'm sorry, you do seem familiar and I'm trying to remember but I just don't." Ash said sadly. He really tried to remember, but he just can't. Serena felt her heart sink as she heard this and hung her head low.
"I'm sorry." Ash apologized while Serena's head was still hung low. Nick overheard Ash not recognizing Serena.
'Letting Serena go to Ash first will determine if he still remembers both me and Serena and also the promise that me and Ash made way back when we were kids.' Nick thought to himself with Eevee also watching to see what happens.
"I never asked, what's your name?" Ash asked.
Serena felt dumb for forgetting to tell him her name, then apologized before speaking.
"Serena, my name's Serena Yvonne." She introduced herself. As soon as she said that, Ash felt many flashbacks run through his head and the last one was a meaningful one.
(Flashback)
Two young children were sitting around a campfire late at night.
"Thanks for saving me today Ash." A young Serena said.
"It was nothing um...I'm sorry I never did get your name." Ash said.
"Oh um right, it's Serena, Serena Yvonne." She introduced herself.
"Serena Yvonne, that's a pretty name." Ash said, scratching his cheek.
Meanwhile Serena blushed from his compliment until a cold breeze came in. She shivered and Ash saw that she was cold. He then grabbed a blanket and wrapped it around her. Serena felt happy from this but didn't want to be greedy so she got closer to Ash and wrapped the blanket around him. They then wrapped their arms around each other for comfort.
"You know...I didn't want to come to this camp, I never could fit in or even make friends." Serena said with tears in her eyes.
"Well you made a friend in me, Serena." Ash grinned happily.
Serena's blush went deeper before thinking.
'And I hope we can be more, Ash.' She thought to herself as the two gazed at the stars that night.
"I-I-It can't be." Ash said as he felt like he was hit by a ton of bricks.
"Ash?" Serena said, with a worried tone.
"Serena? Is it really you?" Ash asked. From there Serena's heart rose back up knowing that Ash remembered her.
"Ha I knew you would remember." She said. Then she did something unexpected. She threw herself at him and wrapped her arms around him very tightly. Ash was shocked by this at first, but slowly he returned the hug as he did the same.
After seeing Ash finally recognize Serena by her name and also them hugging each other, Nick and Eevee let out a sigh of relief and smiled simultaneously.
"Good. I'm glad that he still remembers everything otherwise goodness know how long it would've taken me and Serena to get him to recognize both of us. Well with that out of the way, let's go see if Ash might need some more help with his rematch against Viola since he seems to be stuck right now." Nick said to Eevee.
"Eh-Vay." Eevee agreed and the two walked over to Ash and Serena.
"I missed you." Serena said happily with tears in her eyes. She was really happy to reunite with Ash.
"I missed you too." Ash said. He enjoyed seeing his best friend once again.
"How have you been Serena?" Ash asked the blonde.
"Oh I've been good." Serena said.
Meanwhile Pikachu and Fletchling returned from their break. There they were eagerly waiting to resume training with some help from the Froakie pair. This will allow Fletchling to become faster and push him to get Aerial Ace and any other moves to receive a power boost for future battles.
"Well I suppose you need to concentrate on training. We can catch up later. I gotta say that you were awesome during your gym battle." Serena said, praising Ash for his battle.
"Yeah, but I totally blew it back there." Ash said.
"Don't be hard on yourself. I remember what you said the last time we were together. Never give up until the end. You're obviously not gonna give up. You're still the same Ash I've always known." Serena said.
Ash thought about her words and realized she was right. He wasn't gonna give up, not when he just started. Meanwhile Drake looked over at the two and smiled, knowing they must have a history.
"I'm not gonna give up. That's not like me at all." Ash said while hugging Serena, thanking her for the encouragement.
"Thanks Serena, you're a big help." Ash said.
"Anytime Ash, anytime." She said, blushing deeply while returning the hug.
Before Ash can call out to his brother, another voice cut in.
"Glad to see Serena helped you get back on your feet with the same words you gave to her back when she was in a similar situation back when we were kids. Kinda ironic isn't it right, Ash?"
"Eh-Vay." The familiar cry of an Eevee immediately following caused everyone to perk up especially Ash, Andrew and surprisingly Pikachu and Raichu who's eyes widened at the familiarity of the two voices and turned towards the approaching blue and silver eyed boy with a smiling Eevee sitting on one of his shoulders. The boy also had a smirk on his face.
"Long time no see Ash." He added.
Ash then gasps at the two newcomers along with Pikachu and Raichu. Ash then had flashbacks to the first time he met Nick, the fun activities they participated in back at Summer Camp, going on a mini adventure with Serena and Calem and when it was time to say goodbye, Nick called out to his mom and Drake.
"It was nice meeting you guys." He said as they were returning to Pallet Town. Before they left Nick called out to Ash.
"Hey, if you ever decide to become a trainer, the next time we meet in person let's have a battle to see how much stronger we've gotten over the years, okay?" Ash thought about it and then smiled. He made the promise by holding his arm up with his hand open and Nick followed suit. Both grasp their hands together.
"I'll be waiting." Nick said and everyone said their farewells heading in different directions.
"I know those eyes and spiked up hair from anywhere. Nick is that you?" Ash asked the boy who then said.
"It's been a long time since Summer Camp, Ash Ketchum." Meanwhile Pikachu and Raichu are staring at Eevee when he does a familiar action causing them to remember a particular Eevee they were friends with and also traveled together with for a long time before they went their separate ways with the brothers getting excited and asking Eevee something only that particular Eevee knew about them and when it confirmed what they are talking about without batting an eye, they immediately run over to the Eevee with cries of joy who jumps off Nick's shoulder and dashes straight to them to meet up with a hug from Pikachu and Raichu as the brothers reunite with their friend. While this is happening with the Pokemon, Ash went over to Nick and did the same thing they did when they were kids with both flashing grins at each other.
"What are you doing here?" Ash asked Nick.
"Eevee and I traveled from Lumiose City with Serena to find you after we saw what happened back there with Drake and Andrew while on the plane ride to Kalos plus I also saw what happened in the Santalune City gym and I wanted to see if me and my Pokemon could help with training when you're finished with Drake." Ash agreed.
"Now if you'll excuse me." Nick conversed with Drake and Andrew as it had been some time since he last saw them and also about the stunts that they pulled against Team Rocket on Prism Tower.
"It was a walk in the park." They replied.
"Well, I'll let you get back to training." Nick told them. "You'll have to be ready for your rematch against Viola. I'll see you guys later."
"Before you go, want to join us for dinner?" Drake asked. Nick accepts the offer after getting his Pokemon checked out.
"Hey Drake, let's resume." Ash said.
"Sure, but let's go over a few things first." Drake said. Ash wondered what he wanted to say.
Putting the elephant in the room aside Drake said, "Alright you saw what Viola can do and how she can use the field to her advantage. What can you do?" Drake asked.
"Well that's the thing, if I can't move freely my choices of attack are limited." Ash said while Drake merely smirked.
"But you can still use it to your advantage as much as her." Drake said.
"How?" Ash asked, confused.
"Simple, if you can't cross her lines. Let her lines cross you." Drake said. "By simply using her field against her." He continued while Ash started to figure out what he was saying.
"Do you know what I'm saying?" Drake asked.
"Yep, and I already have a few ideas." Ash said.
"Great you can practice those right now." Drake said as he made his way to his side of the field. "During the training for the rematch I noticed your Fletchling was glowing after he and Pikachu pushed themselves to overcome most of the tricks Viola's Pokemon had." This got Ash thinking what it could be and maybe it could help beat Viola and get him a gym badge.
"Ready?"
"Ready."
"Pidgeot, go." Pidgeot then fired a Gust at the two Pokemon.
Serena then scanned Drake's Pidgeot.
Pidgeot, the Bird Pokemon. This Pokemon flies at Mach 2 speed, seeking prey. It's large talons are feared as wicked weapons.
After that, she looked up the rest of his Pokemon along with Andrew's team including his signature shiny Legendary Pokemon, Rayquaza.
Rayquaza, the Sky High Pokemon. Rayquaza is said to have lived for hundreds of millions of years. Legends remain of how it put to rest the clash between Kyogre and Groudon.
Night fell in Santalune City and after a long day of training, the group was currently having dinner at the local Pokemon Center. Ash had introduced Serena and Nick to the group as his childhood friends and they were much obliged to meet them. Nick was eating a bacon cheeseburger. At the same time Pikachu and Raichu introduced Eevee and Fennekin as well to the other Kalos Pokemon. Froakie recognized Fennekin from the lab and came over to greet her. She wasn't the only one from the lab as she gestured to the door. To his complete surprise he turned and saw his friend walk in who's glad to see him.
"Fro." Froakie responded by smiling and stretching his hand out, making a fist to meet the one his friend made.
"Fro?" Froakie then asks what he's doing here. The other Froakie explained that he came with the blue and silver eyed boy because they have a lot in common and the most important thing: this trainer has great potential that rivals the potential of the one you came here with shocking Ash's Froakie as he looks over at Nick and immediately felt the potential his friend described catching his attention and also seeing why his friend chose the teen. He would need to keep a closer eye on Nick to see how far his potential may lead him in the foreseeable future while also wondering what would happen then to fully bring it out when the time comes for it to emerge. While still having dinner, Drake changed the subject.
"Well that takes care of the ice battlefield, Gust and Psychic, now all that's left is Sticky Web." Drake said, while chowing down on a plate of spaghetti.
"Ha ha ha, you leave that to me okay, meet me outback when you're done." Clemont said as he left for the battlefield again.
"Alright Pikachu and Fletchling, it's back to training after we eat." Ash said. He had the same meal as his brother, while his Pokemon were enjoying their own meal. Meanwhile Serena looks at the confident trainer and thought to herself.
'After all these years, you're still the same Ash.' She said in her head while smiling at him.
On the battlefield the group then looks at Clemont who stood next to some sort of contraption.
"In order to help with your current predicament, I made this machine. The future is now thanks to science and the power of technology. CLEMONTIC GEAR on." Clemont then unveiled a dust cover revealing some sort of cannon with eyes attached to a glass container of some sort of white substance.
"I call it the Sticky Web Sticky Wicked Whacker Wonk." Clemont introduced it with pride while Serena and Bonnie were confused by it's name.
"What?" Nick and Eevee were confused.
"The heck?" Andrew sweat dropped.
"That sounds like a name from a children's book my mom read to me when I was younger." Serena commented with the others agreeing and wondering why it's named like that. Clemont then sweat drops.
'Why didn't I think of a easier name?' He thought.
'I would've just called it the Sticky Blaster or something.' Drake thought to himself, believing the name Clemont chose was quite a mouthful.
"Hey, big brother why does it sound like a name from a children's book?" Bonnie asked.
"I used to read a children's book to you back in Lumiose City, that's where I got the name." Clemont sheepishly answered, rubbing the back of his head. This causes everyone to fall to the ground.
"That name is too much." Drake said and Clemont agreed, sweat dropping.
"This device can shoot Sticky Web matching it on a DNA level that reconstructs it's stickiness, color, smell and nutrients to a Tee." Clemont explained.
"Alright, thanks Clemont." Ash thanked the scientist for his help.
"Get ready, fire!" Clemont then pulled a lever and the cannon fired two shots.
"Dodge it." Pikachu and Fletchling did that and dodged both shots hurtling towards them.
After a few minutes, Clemont then turned it up a notch. "Not bad. But you haven't experienced my device at full power." The eyes of the machine then turn red. "Maximum level and fire." But the machine didn't fire anything, puzzling everyone.
"Huh, something's not right." Clemont said as the machine started to rumble. Clemont was startled and pushed the angle of the cannon 90 degrees. Not long after that the cannon fired five shots upward and came back down into the mouth of the cannon, blocking it. The pressure then built up to an unstable level and Clemont ran back knowing what's going to happen next and leaving the others surprised. The cannon exploded and when the smoke cleared, everyone was dirty and their hair was all puffy, everyone except Drake who shielded himself with his aura.
"Looks like another machine went boom." A still dizzy Bonnie said.
"Oh why, why!" Clemont cried out, looking over his destroyed invention.
"Looks like we're doing this the old-fashioned way." Andrew muttered.
"Well if that's the case, Froakie I choose you." Ash then released the Bubble Frog Pokemon. Nick also released his Froakie as the Bubble Frog Pokemon wanted to help his friend make the training more effective. "If you attack us with your frubbles, it'll be like we're under attack from Sticky Web." Froakie then continuously fired it's frubbles at Pikachu and Fletchling, while both dodge each shot. Fletchling then started to glow again while this is happening as Ash encouraged his Pokemon like he normally does.
"Wow, I didn't know Ash had a Froakie before." Serena admitted.
"That Froakie is from Prof. Sycamore's Pokemon Lab." Bonnie told her.
"Just like my Fennekin."
After a few minutes Pikachu and Fletchling thought they had enough practice.
Afterwards, Nick said. "That was quite a workout."
Everyone hoped the training was enough to defeat Viola.
"I know it will." Ash confidently said.
"Alright, I think we're ready for tomorrow." Ash said, calling it a day.
"Row, row, row, go team you can do it." Bonnie said, all of a sudden and Clemont knew what she needed.
"Bonnie I think it's bedtime." Clemont said, taking Bonnie inside.
"Alright, I'm going inside too." Drake said, before going inside feeling exhausted.
"Yeah, it's been a tiring day." Andrew added, yawning and stretching his arms. Nick unrolled a sleeping bag and slipped inside it before falling asleep.
While Ash mended his Pokemon, Serena approached him.
"It must take a lot of work and skill to earn a gym badge, huh." She said.
"Yeah, what about you? What's your plan?" Ash asked.
"Well...to be honest I don't know. I know I have Fennekin, but I don't know what my next step will be." Serena said calmly.
"There's no rush. Take your time and you'll figure out what to do." Ash said.
"I will, thank you Ash." She thanked Ash.
"Anytime." They then went to the room to discover Drake sitting in a chair with Clemont and Bonnie already asleep.
"Hey I was waiting for you two. Well there's two beds left and four of us so you guys can have them while I roll out my sleeping bag and sleep on the floor." Drake explained.
"Are you sure?" Ash asked.
"Yes, to be honest I've been sleeping on the ground more often than on a mattress over the years." Drake insisted. Then he snuggled in his sleeping bag and went to sleep. Andrew released a dark blue amphibian-like Pokemon and climbed onto it's back before falling asleep. Meanwhile, Ash and Serena got in their pajamas and each took a bed.
"Good night Ash." She happily said.
"Good night Serena." He returned the gesture.
The next day we find the group at the Santalune Gym waiting to see how the rematch will go as Nick eagerly awaited to see how the training got Pikachu and Fletchling ready for this moment with Ash and Viola already in battle positions.
"So let's see how strong you've gotten." Viola stated.
"Trust me Viola, this time I'll win and get my first Kalos Gym Badge." Ash vowed.
"Not without a fight, Surskit let's go." Viola then took her Poke Ball and released the Pond Skater Pokemon.
"Pikachu, let's go." Ash then called Pikachu to battle. Raichu along with Fennekin and Eevee cheered for their friend/brother.
Ash vs Viola: Two on Two
"Alright Pikachu, use Thunderbolt." Ash then charged and fired at Surskit.
"Dodge it." Surskit then slid to the side to avoid it.
"Use Quick Attack." Pikachu then glowed white and charged at Surskit.
"Use Sticky Web go." Surskit then fired multiple shots of web at Pikachu.
"Keep going and dodge all of them." With the training from yesterday Pikachu had no problem avoiding Sticky Web. Viola was shocked to see this. This was not gonna be like last time. Pikachu managed to avoid the last of Sticky Web and managed to land a successful Quick Attack.
"Surskit, are you okay?" The Quick Attack did some damage, but Surskit managed to remain strong.
"Good, now it's time. Use Ice Beam on the field." Viola said.
"Don't let her use Ice Beam." Pikachu then jumped on Surskit trying to prevent it from freezing the field. The struggle caused Surskit to fire Ice Beam in random directions, freezing a few trees and the lights above. Then Surskit managed to shake Pikachu off and freeze the field afterwards.
"Aw the field is frozen again." Bonnie said, feeling it's just like last time.
"Don't worry, Ash prepared for this." Serena said, feeling confident.
Pikachu tried to stand on the ice, but kept on slipping. This didn't stop Ash though.
"Alright, use Iron Tail to jump and attack." Pikachu then used his tail as a spring and jumped high before coming back down to attack it with Iron Tail.
"Dodge it." Surskit then slid backwards to avoid the attack. The attack crumbled the ice, sending chunks of it into the air, there Ash put his plan into motion.
"Quick, use Iron Tail to turn the chunks into projectiles." Pikachu then charged up another Iron Tail, jumped up and sent the chunks of ice towards Surskit.
"Quick dodge it." Surskit then dodged in a zigzag manner not knowing that's what Ash wanted.
"Gotcha, Pikachu use Electro Ball." Pikachu managed to keep track of Surskit and launched a powerful Electro Ball from above which bounced off the ice chunks.
"Say what?" Viola exclaimed.
This ended up hitting it and causing an explosion catching Viola off guard and doing major damage.
"Surskit, no!" Viola saw her Pokemon go flying from the explosion and land right in front of her
"Surskit is unable to battle, Pikachu wins." The referee announced.
"They did it!" Everyone cheered.
"Huh impressive Ash." Alexa said.
"How did Ash know?" Serena asked.
"By using the ice chunks as projectiles, Ash knew Surskit would use a maneuver predictable enough for Pikachu to land a successful hit."
"Incredible, Ash really used her field to his advantage." Clemont explained his tactic to the others who were impressed.
"Thanks Surskit, take a nice rest. Huh, I'm impressed you managed to pull that off." Viola said. "You really caught me by surprise."
"Thanks, I improved from our last battle, now it's time to beat your other Pokemon." Ash stated, rubbing his nose and grinning. "I had to pull out all the stops if I wanted to beat you."
"Don't think it'll be that easy. Go Vivillon." Viola then released her next Pokemon and continued.
"Alright Fletchling, use Peck." Fletchling then tried to attack using it's beak.
"Dodge it." Vivillon ascended above the attack. "And since your Fletchling is faster, use Tailwind to catch up."
"What, Tailwind right now." Alexa said, surprised.
"Quickly while she's cornered, use Steel Wing." Fletchling then attacked with Steel Wing while Vivillon is still ascending and the attack landed successfully, pushing Vivillon back.
"Looks like yesterday's training is paying off." Serena said. "Both Fletchling and Pikachu seem to be stronger."
"Don't count it as a win yet." Drake replied.
"Alright use Peck." Fletchling then tried to attack with Peck. When Fletchling got close, Viola smirked.
"Use Sleep Powder." Vivillon then released green spores which caused Fletchling to become tired.
"Fletchling is a lot faster then before." The others commented.
'I didn't know Vivillon could use Sleep Powder. I'll need to try something.' Everyone saw Ash was looking worried and that caused them to get worried as well, but then Serena spoke up at the right time.
"No, never give up until the end. Remember your training yesterday!" She said loud enough for Ash to hear.
"Quick fly up." Fletchling reacted fast enough to get far enough away from the Sleep Powder. This was starting to be a issue for Viola and Vivillon.
"Fletchling is a lot faster then before." The others commented.
"Fletchling spin around, remove any remaining Sleep Powder." Fletchling spun around and stopped to reveal a fully awake Fletchling.
"Alright Fletchling." Ash said.
"This again? Oh well. Vivillon use Psychic." Viola said.
"Fletchling Double Team!" Fletchling then made many copies and Vivillon's Psychic wound up hitting one of them.
"Alright use Peck." All the copies then use Peck and charged. Vivillon couldn't tell which was the real one.
"Use Gust to stop the impact." Viola ordered.
"Gotta say your Pokemon are much stronger then last time." She admitted. "Now let's even the score."
"Vivillon!" Viola called out.
"Use Tailwind." Alexa was surprised by her announcement as her sister only orders Vivillon to use Tailwind if she's up against a difficult challenger, but she's never seen her use it a second time. For Ash to warrant it not just once, but twice during a rematch, she must really be in a tough spot. This cements him as one of her most difficult opponents. As a sign of respect Alexa wonders how Ash can overcome this new development.
"What?!" This caught Ash off guard.
Fletchling struggled immensely with the powered up and faster Gust. The strong wind forced Ash to hold onto his hat and the spectators felt the move's full power.
"This is not going well for Ash." The group said with concerned expressions over the fact Viola ordered Vivillon to use a second Tailwind as it means she still has tricks up her sleeve.
"It's because of Fletchling's speed and response time." Clemont explained. "Viola was backed into a corner and left with no choice but to use it as a last resort to catch up with Fletchling." This causes Bonnie and Dedenne to become worried.
"No." Serena snapped the two out of it.
"I know Ash can win this rematch." She said. Nick and Eevee nodded in agreement. This lifted Bonnie and Dedenne's spirits.
"I agree. Fletchling has the size plus speed and a faster response time, but this will be a close battle and that doesn't even take into account the other moves Vivillon will use along with Tailwind." Clemont said. "If anyone can figure out a way to overcome it, Ash can."
'Be careful, Ash.' Serena thought.
Ash gritted his teeth.
"Fletchling keep your guard up."
"Fletch." Fletchling said back, bracing for anything that came his way. Both watched Vivillon use Tailwind as it flapped it's wings.
Fletchling was being pushed to his limits when Ash decided to encourage the flying type.
"I know you can do it Fletchling." Ash told the bird. "After all, you trained hard to get some payback for your earlier defeat."
Flashback
Ash and Fletchling were in a field practicing for a upcoming rematch.
"Alright, Fletchling today we're going to train our hardest."
"Fletch." Fletchling chirped in response.
End flashback
With a very determined expression, Fletchling began to push through the powered up Tailwind and got closer to Vivillon. While this was happening Fletchling started to glow but this time it was a lot brighter than during training.
"What?!" Viola exclaimed in shock. "It's impossible." She was seeing Fletchling force it's way through her Gust and Tailwind combination.
"How is Fletchling doing that?!" The spectators said in disbelief with surprised reactions on their faces.
As Fletchling got closer and closer, Ash thought now was the time to make the final push towards Vivillon.
"Alright Fletchling, time to show them what we can really do. Goooo!" Ash said, yelling out the last part.
"Fletchling!" Fletchling responds with a familiar loud cry. The light turns into a familiar move which pushed all the way through to Vivillon hitting her hard and sending the Pokemon flying back and effectively stopping the Gust immediately and allowing Drake to disperse his Aura shield. Everyone was in shock and awe after what Fletchling did, especially Ash.
"Was that?" Ash asked.
"That was Aerial Ace." Clemont explained to the rest of the group.
"Fletchling you learned Aerial Ace. That's awesome!" Ash happily exclaimed.
"Fletch." The Pokemon responded back happily.
Vivillon recovered from the attack and Viola snapped out of her shock before congratulating Fletchling for learning Aerial Ace.
"I still plan on winning." Viola said. "Use Acrobatics."
Vivillon zipped through the air before tackling Fletchling, then flapped it's wings releasing a gust of wind made stronger by the Tailwind. It was more powerful then the Gust produced by Drake's Pidgeot during training for the rematch.
"Not if I have anything to say about it. Aerial Ace." Ash punched the air and both Pokemon clash with each other and are thrown back at the same time.
"Fletchling Peck." Ash ordered. Fletchling headed straight for Vivillon.
"Vivillon dodge it." Viola said, then noticed Ash was smiling.
"Gotcha." Ash stated. "Aerial Ace." Fletchling's body glowed and immediately changed direction where Vivillon was attempting to dodge.
The Peck and Aerial Ace combo struck Vivillon sending her into the frozen lights and crashing into the icy battlefield.
"No Vivillon!" Vivillon tried to take off, but realized that her right wing had been frozen from the impact.
"Now finish this with Razor Wind." Fletchling then charged up and fired at the downed butterfly knocking it out. The smoke had finally cleared which showed a fainted Vivillon.
"Vivillon is unable to battle, Fletchling wins and the match goes to Ash of Pallet Town." The referee announced, declaring Ash the winner. Ash, Fletchling and Pikachu celebrate their hard earned victory.
"Alright." The group cheered.
"You guys did amazing. I'm proud of you." Ash said to his Pokemon.
"That was a awesome battle." The others commented.
"You were great." Serena said.
"That was well done old friend." Nick said.
"Eh-Vay." Eevee added.
"Well Ash I lost to you fair and square. Good job."
"Thanks Viola."
"Here is proof of your victory, the Bug Badge." Viola said, giving Ash a badge that resembled a small brown bug. "Thanks."
"Alright I just got the Bug Badge!" Ash presented his new badge along with Pikachu and Fletchling before putting it in his badge case.
Outside the gym the group said goodbye to Alexa and Viola when a red sports car pulls up. The driver notices the group and immediately recognized Ash, Drake and Andrew from their little stunt on Lumiose Tower. She was a pink-haired woman in a black turtleneck and red and black jeans that had diamonds on them. A pair of red-shaded sunglasses adorned her face.
"So that's where they went to and I see Ash Ketchum managed to beat Viola. Well done." The driver remarked.
Then she spots Nick and his Eevee.
"It seems like I know that trainer and his Pokemon from somewhere." It then dawned on her as her eyes widen slightly.
"He's here too." She said, surprised. She was considering going after them but had some business to attend to at the gym. She also had a phone call to make now that she saw them leave the gym.
"Well Ash any thoughts on where your next Gym Battle will be?" Alexa asked.
"Huh, I never really thought of that." Ash said.
"If I can make a suggestion. Why not the gym at Cyllage City." Viola said.
"Okay, Cyllage Gym it is." Ash accepted her suggestion.
"We better get going." Ash continued.
Nick made his way over to Viola to introduce himself.
"My name is Nick Parker." As he said that, Viola was thinking. His name and face sound and look familiar to her.
"I challenge you to a gym battle after your Pokemon have recovered." Viola accepted the offer. She was then able to remember something about him.
"Hey, aren't you the one who bumped into my sister back in Lumiose City?" Nick sheepishly rubbed the back of his neck with an embarrassed laugh.
"Oh, she told you about that. My bad."
"It's not a problem because usually it's the other way around with her accidentally doing that to other people when she's working on a story for the Press. Anyway, how about we have our gym battle tomorrow so I'm sure they'll be fully battle ready for our match sound good to you?"
"Sure, that's fine with me." Nick said. "I definitely need to train my Pokemon to be ready for all your tricks that you've pulled out when you battled my friend today." This surprises Viola.
"Oh, you're a friend of Ash's?" Viola asked. Nick nodded.
"I've known him ever since we met as kids at Pokemon Summer Camp several years ago."
"Huh, go figure." Viola said, before continuing. "Then in that case, I'll make sure to give you everything I got tomorrow since I can tell that you're going to be just as strong as Ash just from looking at you."
"Thanks, I'll make sure to do the same for tomorrow. Anyway, I'll see you tomorrow." Nick then goes back towards the Kalos group to tell them that he must stay behind to challenge Viola for her gym badge.
"Take care Ash, and don't go after any more rampaging Pokemon and giant robots on top of towers, okay?" Ash and Drake were surprised before they spoke.
"Wait, you knew?" Drake asked.
"Not just her, I knew as well and let me just say what you guys did was border-line crazy. You guys have to be the bravest trainers I've ever met, especially you Drake." Viola smiled.
"Oh um thanks I guess." Drake said from the sudden compliment.
"And not just her, but all of Kalos as well. The story of that night made regional news. There isn't gonna be a single trainer in Kalos who don't know who you guys are." Alexa said.
"Well hopefully we don't get bombarded by questions if that happens, right Ash?" Drake said.
"Hopefully." Ash said before continuing. "Well we gotta get going. Take care you two." They then walk away.
"Goodbye and good luck everyone."
Alexa and Viola recognize the driver of the car as she headed inside the gym.
"That's Malva, why is a member of the Kalos Elite Four here?" Alexa and Viola asked.
"Hello Viola, Alexa." Malva greeted the sisters. "I'm pretty sure you're wondering why I came to the Santalune City gym right now." The sisters nod.
"I need to talk to the pair of you about a couple of assignments Alexa's job and myself want you to take a look at that was sent in not too long ago." This immediately caught Alexa and Viola's attention, because if any assignment gets sent to the Press, it usually takes a little time to choose who gets to do it but if the Press wanted to give them these just as they received them, then it must be urgent. Alexa and Viola's expressions changed from surprised to somewhat serious.
"What are the details?" They ask at the same time. Malva agrees to fill them in.
"The first involves a request from the Pokemon Groomer Sherman and a report from that town's Officer Jenny about suspicious activity going on there lately." Malva explained. Both siblings expressions go back to surprise.
"Wait! The Sherman as in one of the top Pokemon Groomers in the Kalos Region!?" They were ecstatic about the first assignment because both sisters are big fans of his work, especially Viola as she always wanted to have some of his works on camera which was one of her goals and now the opportunity is right in front of her. The joyful mood doesn't last as they remember the report from Officer Jenny.
"What type of suspicious activity are we dealing with?" They asked.
"Apparently a group of con artists posing as Pokemon Groomers have been spotted in the area leading potential customers away from his business as well as other trainers visiting the town, convincing them to leave their Pokemon for a little while and when they come back to pick up their Pokemon only to find no one there not even their Pokemon, they end up realizing that they had been tricked into giving away their Pokemon and that they had actually been stolen from them. Sherman is also concerned about this situation affecting his business because he also usually has people who come in and learn under him as apprentices and students in the art of Pokemon Grooming when they want to pursue the career for it and whoever these con artists are might possibly target his current Pokemon clients which would put his line of work in jeopardy."
"By the way, Sherman only needs one of you to go." Malva informed the sisters. Viola immediately volunteered to go much to Alexa's disappointment as she wanted to go but relented and made Viola promise her to get a interview with the Pokemon Groomer later after the assignments are done with and Malva herself accepted this. Alexa was curious about something.
"What's the other reason you came here?" Alexa asked.
"It's the second assignment." Malva explained. "It came from Diantha herself." She gained a serious expression. This shocked the sisters.
Their eyes widen and mouths dropped open in shock.
"Wait, so Diantha herself sent you to pick up the assignment from the Press since me and Viola weren't there and personally delivered here to the Santalune City gym?!" Malva nodded.
"That's right and Diantha has a lot of stuff to do all over the Kalos region at this moment so she sent me to the Press to get them and I drove all the way to Santalune City and here we are now." Malva replied with a small smile.
"So what's serious enough to warrant Diantha's attention for you to deliver the assignments to us?" Viola asked.
"I'm glad you asked, Viola. There have been multiple incidents involving the Lumiose City gym over the last several weeks originally thought to be rumors at first, but the news stations and papers there have been receiving a whole lot of complaints from trainers and some of their families who are absolutely furious about either being denied a gym battle by the gym leader and getting electrocuted or are able to get a gym battle with the gym leader, lose and end up getting forcefully ejected from the gym with their Pokemon and even the Pokemon Center in Lumiose City is reporting trainers bringing in Pokemon whether they were battling or not in rough shape and their trainers looking just as beat up and some of the Pokemon trainers are reconsidering whether to even challenge the gym at all and others are threatening to never come back again unless something is done about the situation ASAP. Even the Nurse Joy there is starting at this point to get overwhelmed by this mess that she had to get additional help." Malva said with her expression becoming serious again.
"That's terrible. What could've caused the Lumiose gym leader to go and do something like this in the first place?" Viola asked, her body shifting into a questioning stance with her arms crossed.
"I'm not sure what happened, but I know you two can figure it out and Diantha herself is counting on both of you to solve the mystery behind this major situation. Plus Viola, since you're the closest gym leader to Lumiose City and your sister works in the city with you helping her sometimes, it makes both of you perfect for the tasks ahead." Malva said before continuing. "However, Diantha is giving you until the end of the week to fix this issue in Lumiose City because she gave a ultimatum to the gym leader."
"Huh? The end of the week and a ultimatum for what?" Alexa asked.
Malva then sighed and said.
"If this situation in Lumiose City keeps going on like this and isn't resolved soon, then Diantha will have no choice but be forced to..."
Outside the gym Viola shouted, "Wait, she's going to do what?!"
Both sisters are more shocked than before with what Malva just told them about Diantha's ultimatum.
"No way she'd be forced to go that far. You've got to be kidding." Alexa said with a shocked expression on her face and her brain was still processing the information that she and her sister had just learned and not wanting to believe it.
"Unfortunately, I wish I was. Diantha can't allow this issue to continue on like this otherwise someone could end up getting seriously hurt or something. But, this is only a last resort and she doesn't want to do this either which is why she's counting on both of you to find out what happened and resolve this issue ASAP while she's unavailable." Malva said before noticing the time.
"Anyway, I have to go take care of some business elsewhere before I have to go back to Lumiose City and I'll see what I can do with what's happening there now on my end to give both of you a little more time and to keep things from getting out of hand."
"Then, we'll make sure that we leave Santalune City soon after Viola has her gym battle with her next challenger tomorrow." Alexa said, remembering that her sister promised to battle Nick tomorrow.
"By any chance, the name of your next challenger wouldn't happen to be Nick Parker, right?" Malva asks Viola directly which causes the Santalune City gym leader to blink in surprise.
"Wait, how did you know that!" Malva then replied.
"Well, it was pretty obvious when I saw him along with the three people who saved that Garchomp back in Lumiose City exiting your gym as I pulled up to the gym to speak with you two."
"Wait, you don't know who he is?"
"Well, I think I've seen his face and remember his name from somewhere but I'm not sure where." Viola admitted.
"Same here." Alexa said chiming in with Malva sighing and pulling out her pink Holo Caster pulling up several news articles about Nick and his Eevee with a couple of trophies and video clips of his battles with his other Pokemon including a Luxray, Infernape, Donphan and Ariados among the many Pokemon Nick owns which helps jog the memories of Alexa and Viola about where they remember Nick from.
"Now I remember where I heard that name before, he's said to be one of the trainers who's supposed to be in the Pokemon World Tournament because of how far ahead he can plan for a battle against an opponent before the battle even begins making his battling style very difficult to read and counter even by an Elite Four member and a Champion and was well-known for coming up with multiple combination moves by combining more than one Pokemon move."
Back in the lobby Viola then picked up a portrait of the group along with herself and Alexa.
"So you think Drake is kinda hot, huh?" Alexa asked, trying to get under her sister's skin.
"It's just a observation, okay." Viola admitted.
"So...no strings attached." Alexa continued.
"Positive."
"Are you sure." She pressed the matter further.
"Look, when you first met him did you think he was kinda hot?" Viola asked.
"Well I'm not gonna lie, yes when I first met Drake I thought he was kinda hot." Alexa confessed.
"See just cause I see a good-looking guy doesn't mean I gain a crush on him." Viola said.
"You don't know Drake."
"Really, what don't I know?" Viola asked. Then Alexa whispered in her ear. When she pulled back Viola was shocked.
"WHAT you mean I met the Kanto Champion in addition to Sinnoh's Champion!"
"Not just that." Alexa then whispered in her ear again and pulled back.
"And he's an Aura Guardian!" Viola screamed.
"Pretty much but keep that to yourself okay. We don't want those brothers to think they can't trust us." Alexa said in a serious tone.
"Got it."
"So...no strings."
"No, it was just an observation." Viola said once again.
"Okay, got it." Alexa said as she and Viola went outside and into the city.