With May's Ribbon sorted out, the friends headed south towards Lavaridge.
That meant going towards Mount Chimney, in fact nearly directly over the mountain itself, and Ash was sort of interested to see what being that close to an active volcano was like.
Before long, though, as they headed south, they ran into a familiar face.
"That's Thatcher, isn't it?" Max asked. "The kid from, uh… Misty Town? Misty Valley? Something like that. Or is it Mist Valley?"
He looked puzzled. "I'm confused now because of meeting your friend Misty, Ash…"
Thatcher said something to one of his Pokémon, too far away to hear, then looked at the group and ran over.
"Ash!" he said, as he got close enough to talk. "Guys, it is you! I was wondering!"
"So were we," May agreed. "What brings you up here?"
"I'm trying to learn how to battle better with Plusle and Minun," Thatcher explained. "And they're Pokémon who do best with teamwork, so I went out looking for someone who was an expert at Pokémon teamwork and improving Pokémon performance – and I found them! It's amazing, he's really good at helping Pokémon do better than normal by encouraging them."
He turned to go, then glanced back. "Oh – I should ask. Do you want to see?"
Ash looked around at his friends, none of whom seemed to have a problem, then nodded. "Sure, I guess!"
"Though, uh… how old are you?" Max said. "I swear you're only about my age and you're on a Pokémon Journey, that kid we met in Slateport had his Spheal… it'd be really nice to be able to have a Pokémon myself."
He glanced at May. "I… still like helping you out, and it's not just to have a Pokémon, but… I know Mightyena said she'd wait for me. I know Shroomish said the same thing. But I miss them."
"I guess I can understand that," Ash said.
He stopped, turning and looking off into the distance. "When you leave someone behind, even if it's the best for them, you still think about them."
"...Ash?" Pikachu asked. "Why are you looking that way?"
"I'm remembering Pidgeot," Ash explained. "She probably wouldn't even recognize me now."
"I'm sure Charizard could tell her," Pikachu said. "But Ash… that's west. Kanto isn't in that direction."
Ash blinked.
"...oh, huh…"
Latias giggled.
The group Thatcher had joined turned out to be called a Pep Squad, run by someone called Sheridan, and he announced grandly that they believed that cheering would let a Pokémon overcome great disadvantages, cure themselves of problems, and even attack harder just because of the power of encouragement.
That sounded about right to Ash, and Sheridan was happy to offer a demonstration.
"First time's free!" he said. "But, of course, if you want our service in general, there is a fee… it's purely to pay our way, of course."
"Hmm," Brock frowned.
"I guess that makes sense," Ash admitted. "So… who should we have do it first, guys?"
He looked back at Max, May and Brock.
"Well, we're still training Skitty," May suggested. "She's got Swift, but only Swift, so perhaps her against someone else?"
Max considered.
"Forretress?" he said. "Or Crobat? Both of those Pokémon are tough, but they're trained by Brock and he's a Gym Leader. So they should be able to give a challenge Skitty could only beat with cheering."
"Sounds like a plan to me!" Sheridan said. "Okay, people, places!"
May sent out Skitty. "I should probably check it's okay with you first, though… sorry, Skitty."
"I'm sure you didn't mean any offence, of course," Skitty allowed. "And none was taken. So we're all quite happy here."
Brock elected to send out Crobat, and the Poison-type nodded at Skitty.
"Let's have a good battle," she invited.
"I'll do the referee thing!" Ash said. "Begin!"
"Swift!" May called.
"Whirlwind them away!" Brock countered, and Crobat sent out an air current that knocked the Swift stars aside. They hammered into the ground, blowing little divots, and making May look fascinated.
"That was a very Contest move," she said.
Skitty nodded, pacing a little to the side as the cheering group started up properly. "It looked fine, Crobat."
"Supersonic," Brock decided.
"Oh, uh-" Ash began. "I guess I'll wait to mention it to Skitty until this is over, then…"
"Why?" Latias asked. "What were you going to say?"
"Just how if Skitty's complimenting Crobat, it's a bit like both sides are getting cheering," Ash explained, as Skitty got hit by the Supersonic attack and started wobbling about. "But I get what Brock's doing here, he's seeing if the cheering can get Skitty to focus."
"Come on, Skitty!" the cheering squad chanted. "Come on, cat! You can do it, just like that!"
Sheridan murmured something into his microphone, and Skitty started glowing faintly. She used Swift, flinging out a barrage of stars, then tripped on her own tail and fell over.
The barrage of stars whipped up at Crobat with much greater force than before, though, and Crobat used Whirlwind to defend herself again but this time the stars punched through the wind current and hit.
"Whoa!" May said, impressed. "That was great, Skitty! Keep it up!"
"Of course, I shall endeavour to do so," Skitty agreed, springing back upright and not quite looking in her trainer's direction.
Max, meanwhile, was looking concerned.
As Skitty shook off the effects of the confusion, Max moved behind Brock and suggested something.
"Right," Brock said. "Crobat, Toxic!"
"Look out!" May called. "Dodge – right!"
Skitty's dodge nearly took her out of the way of Crobat's attack, but not quite, and the Normal-type stared at her purple-splashed tail for a moment.
"Oh, this is dreadful," she lamented. "Whatever shall I do?"
"Don't sweat it, work through it!" the cheer squad called out. "Don't let that poison make you sick! Now give that feeling such a kick!"
"Yeah," Sheridan agreed, and the purple glow faded away from Skitty's tail as a faint green swirl surrounded her for a moment.
"Swift!" May ordered.
This time the attack didn't have the force of the previous one, but rather than just dodge away from it Crobat flew high into the sky – making it into an aerial chase.
And Max knocked over one of Sheridan's drums, making the whole cheer grind to a halt.
"Max, what was-" May began, shocked, then saw a Roselia and a Vileplume spill out of the drum.
"This whole thing's a scam!" Max declared. "Sheridan's ordering his Pokémon to use moves and heal or help Skitty out – that's why he couldn't help when Skitty was confused, because there isn't a move that heals confusion!"
He pointed. "Look, the Pokémon are even wearing headphones so he can give them instructions!"
"What?" Thatcher said, devastated. "Sir, is that true?"
"There's a very reasonable explanation for this," Sheridan said, soothingly, then ran away.
This was a very bad idea, and he got about eight steps before Latias picked him up by the armpits.
"Some of us have been with you for months!" another trainer complained. "If this is all a scam, you mean – those techniques you've been having us learn weren't anything? We've been paying for that!"
"I, um, that is-" Sheridan began. "I…"
The nearest police station wasn't far, so nor was the nearest Jenny, and the whole of Sheridan's Cheer Squad accompanied Ash and friends to the town to drop off their scam artist of a teacher.
"This sucks," Thatcher groaned. "I thought this was a great way to make my Pokémon more effective, but it just means I got taken in by a scam…"
"I did, too," Ash sighed. "Maybe not for long, and Max spotted it straight away, but it's really him who noticed. If he hadn't, Sheridan could have got away with it for much longer."
It was a hard lesson to learn. Sometimes – thankfully not very often – there were people who were just out for themselves, and you couldn't trust anything they said.
But you couldn't let that mean you never trusted anyone.
"I guess… it's just about what's too good to be true?" Ash tried. "How does that sound, Pikachu?"
"I think I get it," Pikachu nodded. "Or, uh… you need proof that's not something that could be explained another way?"
"Yeah," Ash agreed.
"Well, I won't let this get me down!" Thatcher decided. "I'll make sure Plusle and Minun and I actually do become what we hope we can be!"
"That's important, too," Ash agreed.
The friends were on the way over the slopes of Mount Chimney the next day, grateful for the path that meant they didn't have to scramble over the rough terrain, and Ash stopped for a moment to look up at the peak.
"It's sort of amazing how those work," he said. "Or, do I mean work? They're so big and powerful, and it seems like they'd be nothing but bad news, but they're somehow good for the environment?"
"That's right," Brock agreed. "Volcanoes fertilize the land around them. The ash actually helps things grow… not your kind of ash, Ash."
He frowned. "Though, now I think about it, Charizard and Crobat evolved quite quickly. And it does seem like a lot of the Pokémon we meet tend to evolve…"
"I guess," Ash frowned, not really sure how correct that was, then looked up in surprise as someone came hurrying down the volcano slope.
"I thought it had to be you," she said, as she got close enough to talk, and Ash realized he'd met her before – she was the one in Slateport who'd said those weird things about the weather. "Listen, I – have you heard of this group called Team Aqua?"
"Team Aqua?" Ash asked. "They stole that orb from the Slateport Museum!"
"They did?" the woman asked. "Wow, I didn't realize they'd done that – that's worse than I'd thought. But… look, they're trying to do something to the volcano, and my friends are up there trying to stop them but we need help."
"Trying to do something to the volcano?" Max repeated. "That sounds really dangerous!"
"Well, we're trying to stop them," the woman explained. "I'm Courtney – look, can I get your help with this? I saw you from up there, and I realized I could trust you."
"Of course!" Ash agreed.
"You've got that Pokémon who can make sure it's sunny, right?" Courtney added. "We could use their help. Aqua's got loads of Water types."
She reached for her pocket. "I'll let my boss know you're coming, so he knows you're on the right side."
Once they started actually heading up the mountain, instead of following the path, it was much harder than before to make any progress.
Courtney had a Camerupt, which she sent out to get a ride on, and a Mightyena to scout ahead and clear the way.
"At least someone has a Mightyena they're not using just because it's intimidating, or as a criminal," Max said. "Brock, do you have any Pokémon we can use to get up the mountain?"
"You've got me!" Koraidon volunteered.
"Koraidon says she can take someone," Ash said. "Maybe more than one, maybe not-"
"And I've got Onix," Brock pointed out. "He can take me at least, and probably May or Max as well. I'll just have to watch out for Team Aqua at the top."
"What about you, Ash?" Courtney asked. "It must be hard for you to ride a Pokémon like that."
"I'll handle it!" Ash replied. "Okay, guys, let's hurry!"
He broke into a trot, then a canter, doing his best to avoid anywhere that looked unstable. His hooves and their preternaturally perfect grip let him build up speed quickly, and after a few seconds Koraidon came running up behind him with her own paws thumping rapidly on the ground.
She'd managed to get both May and Max on her back, tail tucked in underneath her, and Onix began to catch up a long moment later.
"Let me know if we're going faster!" Koraidon requested. "I think I can go a bit quicker, but not much…"
"This is great!" Ash said. "You're doing really well, Koraidon!"
"Big rock coming up!" Pikachu warned, prompting Ash to make a detour around the boulder.
When Ash, Koraidon and Onix reached the top of the mountain, well ahead of Courtney's Camerupt making the same climb, they found a battle going on between members of Team Aqua and trainers who were wearing the same kind of red outfit as Courtney.
There were Golbat swirling overhead, Mightyena on the ground – some of them for each side – and some Numel and Koffing for Team Magma, while Team Aqua was using Walrein and Corphish.
One of the men in the red outfits spotted Ash and his friends, did a double-take, then ran over.
"Courtney said you were on the way," he said. "It's good to have the help. Team Aqua's got some kind of machine, I'm not sure what they're planning on doing with it."
"Then let's make sure we don't have to find out," Ash decided. "Hmm… Treecko, hit those Water-types with Razor Leaf! Taillow, look to see what you can find out about the machine!"
"Stick to Psybeam, Octillery," May advised, getting down off Koraidon's back. "Skitty, Swift!"
Brock held back Corphish, but sent his Crobat forwards to join the battle in the air, and after a moment's thought sent Forretress rolling forwards.
"There's too many Water types there for Geodude or Onix," he admitted.
"Your sunlight-causing Pokémon is really helping out," the man added. "Does she know Solarbeam? That's the best move to use in sunlight against Water types."
"I should learn that one," Koraidon mused.
"She doesn't, no," Ash replied. "What does the machine do?"
Most of his attention was on the battle, as Treecko, Absol and Pikachu got involved with a bang (mostly from Pikachu as he hit a Walrein with a very strong Thunderbolt), but he glanced at the man. "And what's your name, by the way?"
"Tabitha," the man introduced himself. "I'm Courtney's co-worker."
"Tabitha?" Max asked, surprised. "Really? I thought that was a girl's name."
"Usually," Tabitha shrugged, then winced as one of the Walrein swept an Ice Beam through the Golbat overhead. "And we don't know what the machine does, not for sure, but one of our scientists thinks it could make the volcano stop entirely. Or make it erupt, of course."
"Both of those would be bad," Ash winced.
There was something odd about Tabitha's expression for a moment, but about then was when a Corphish managed to grab Treecko before hitting him with an Ice Beam.
"Taillow!" Ash called, pointing. "Extremespeed!"
Taillow hit the Corphish with a wham, knocking the Grass- and Water-types apart, and Ash frowned for a moment before nodding to himself.
"Koraidon, go after the Walrein!" he said. "They're Ice types too!"
"Torchic, you do the same!" May instructed. "But careful you don't hit Koraidon!"
"And Latias," Ash added, looking to his side. "I think I can see the machine – can you sneak over and get rid of it?"
A silent nod, and Latias went zipping off.
"I knew that was going to work out," Absol announced.
"Your left leg is frozen to the ground," Pikachu said.
"But it's not all of me," Absol replied, watching as Team Aqua evacuated. "And the machine that might have made the volcano erupt has been dropped in the volcano… everything's fine. I knew it was going to be going into the battle."
"I'd be a lot more impressed if you gave these predictions ahead of time," Pikachu pointed out, ears flicking.
"If I could give you predictions that weren't just 'everything will be fine', they'd be that something was going to go wrong," Absol countered, then sighed in relief as Torchic melted the ice off his leg. "Thank you, that's lovely."
Torchic chirped importantly.
While Absol shook himself out, Courtney came over to join Ash and Tabitha.
"Thanks for your help," she said. "I don't know what Aqua were planning to do with that machine, but nothing good."
"...yeah, the machine's gone," Tabitha agreed, sounding like he wasn't talking to either of them. "I could try digging it out of the lava if you want? That was a joke, boss… no, I don't know either."
He sighed, then turned back to Ash.
"My boss isn't all that happy about the loss of the machine," he said, shrugging. "He agrees with me that it was kind of… quicker to make Aqua retreat than try and recapture the machine, but it would have been nice to know how the hell they were planning on using it. Or the meteorite, wherever that went."
"A meteorite?" Brock repeated. "Why would a meteorite matter?"
"Are they like Moon Stones?" Max frowned. "I don't get how that would be important for a volcano… is there something else?"
"Well, that's what we'd like to know," Tabitha replied, spreading his hands. "Aqua wanted to do something with it, so they must have thought it'd work, and I'd rather not find out."
"Yeah," Ash agreed, sighing. "Still, I guess it's the best you can do… I'd almost have felt better about it if that weird orb thing that Team Aqua stole had been here. At least then we'd have known what they wanted that for."
"Team Aqua stole an orb?" Tabitha said.
"I swear I mentioned this to you on the way up," Courtney replied. "You must have been busy or something."
"Yeah, whatever," Tabitha replied. "Look… thanks for your help, and I mean that sincerely. It's good to know there are trainers out there willing to help us out against crazy people like Team Aqua."
AN:
Yes, I'm sure they're AS Team Magma and there's nothing to worry about.