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.

4. The Twisted Forest: Part 2

Unfortunately, the trio's relatively peaceful stroll through Viridian Forest had ended with the previous battle.

Not even an hour after the encounter with the samurai kid, Pikachu and Nebula leapt back with startled yelps as two figures abruptly emerged from the bushes.

"HALT, TRESPASSERS!"

Ash blinked in surprise at the two people in front of him. Both were only slightly older than him, carrying large nets and wearing mediocre camouflage uniforms.

Irritably, he held back the urge to grit his teeth. 'Bug Catchers.

The Bug Catcher Gang wasn't known for being particularly strong, even among most rookie trainers. But they were constant. Like a swarm, any trainer passing through the forest was likely to encounter them, an inevitability that Ash had been dreading.

One bug catcher took out a Poke Ball. "If you wish to proceed further, you must either pay the fee, or turn back."

Ash glared. "We're just headed to Pewter-"

"By passing through our turf! The conditions still stand, so hand over a valuable or make yourselves scarce."

Inwardly, Ash's expression twisted. These people thought they owned the forest; like a noble governing a piece of land. Who did they think they were, trying to obstruct travelers just because-

"You're time's up; Caterpie, eliminate them!"

A green, worm-like Pokemon appeared in a bright flash of light. It gazed intently at Ash and his friends.

"This unstoppable creature shall now put you in your place! Use Tackle attack!"

Caterpie began rushing forward as fast as it could…

...Which wasn't very fast.

Ash groaned. "Iron Tail, Pikachu!"

Using Quick Attack to boost his speed, Pikachu met the incoming Caterpie head on. A loud crack sounded as the metallic tail collided with the green bug type Pokemon's head, sending Caterpie rolling backwards until it hit a tree trunk.

"WHAT?!" screeched the bug catcher in an insufferably ear scratching cry as he gazed at his now unconscious Pokemon. "But that Caterpie was supposed to be unbeatable! It never lost a fight before!"

"How many fights did it win?" Ash raised a brow.

"This was its first fight!"

… Ash hated this damn forest.

The other bug catcher stepped in front of his partner. "Take Caterpie back to the base. I will deal with the intruders."

As the first bug batcher returned his Pokemon and ran off, the second one held up a Poke Ball, releasing a Weedle.

Ash flinched a bit. Weedle were more dangerous than Caterpie due to their poisonous abilities.

"Nebula," he said, looking over to his bird-like companion. "Be careful."

Nebula nodded and flapped her wings just long enough to position in front of her new trainer, eying her opponent carefully.

Ash was confident that Nebula would be able to handle her opponent, but he knew that letting his guard down would get her poisoned. Thankfully, Weedle were very limited in terms of moveset. As long as they avoided their opponent's, they should be fine.

"Whirlwind!"

Launching herself into the air, Nebula flapped her wings as mightily as her body allowed her too. The large gust of wind created from the pressure bowled over the Weedle, sending it rolling across the dirt.

"Poison Sting!"

Regaining its bearings as the wind died down, Weedle charged forward with its stinger sticking out in front. It was a little bit faster than Caterpie, but Nebula avoided it pretty easily, driving her wing into the side of the Weedle's head.

One Quick Attack later and the Weedle was down.

Returning his Pokemon, the Bug Catcher turned to face Ash.

"You haven't seen the last of us, intruders. Turn back now before backup comes; otherwise, this'll be your final warning!"

With that, he fled off in the same direction as his partner, and Ash, Pikachu, and Nebula were left with the sinking feeling that this was only just the beginning.

/

A good deal of Viridian Forest was endless trees as far as the eye could see. Although there were plenty of clearings, they still only made up a small fraction of the massive forest and the amount of land that it covered.

The biggest clearing, however, was near the very center of the forest, and that was where the Bug Catcher Gang made it's primary base.

Several log cabins, spread out throughout the clearing, served as their primary form of shelter from within the forest. Equipment lined the outside walls of the cabin, and consisted of nets, shovels, and standard hiking gear. They were also accompanied by stolen supplies from other trainers.

Right now, a couple dozen members of the gang were out and about, while a few others were resting within the cabins. The gang had seen an all time high increase in members in the past year or so. For as many of them currently stayed at the camp, a few times more were currently prowling the forest, just waiting to pick off any "trespassers" that sunk their boots onto their turf.

Near the center of the base was the largest cabin, with a roof resembling the shell of a Cascoon. Sitting against the door was a girl dressed in a somewhat dirty uniform, stained from trekking through the forest for such a long time. A forest ranger hat rested upon her head, concealing some of her teal hair, which was tied back into a surprisingly neat ponytail.

A few leaves of a nearby plant brushed against her slightly tan skin as she fiddled with the Poke Ball in her hand, deep in thought.

Leading the Bug Catcher Gang was tiring, to say the very least. With the unbearable increase in members, she was forced to promote advisors just to help her keep track of everything. Not to mention that, "business" was especially high now that it was the beginning of the Season. These past two days, new trainers from Viridian City had been all over the forest. It meant much more work for her and her subordinates.

More intruders meant more goods to pilfer, after all.

"Big Net!"

She looked up to see two bug catchers approaching her. They were both among the newest and youngest members of the group. Granted, everybody who worked for her was younger than her.

"Yes?" as she stood up, her voice had a very… unique layer of stoicism to it. She sounded very distant, lost in thought. As though her mind was always on something else, other than the current topic at hand. Her tone was hollow with every word she uttered.

"We have just received word from our scouts: The samurai has been vanquished yet again!"

The bug catcher frantically stamped the gorund as she spoke. A common habit from her subordinates when things did not go their way.

She sighed, running a hand through her teal hair as she sized up the two in front of her.

"But that's the third time he has lost in the past two days." she stated matter of factly, tone of voice unchanging. "Who took out our mercenary this time?"

"Some boy from Pallet Town, it seem." said the other Bug Catcher, who was ruthlessly biting his nails clean. Yet another common habit.

Her face scrunched up. "Another one? We already heard of his humiliation by the spiky haired kid with the Squirtle just yesterday morning?"

"And the purple haired girl with the Bulbasaur last night." the first Bug Catcher chirped in.

"We need to get a new mercenary." the second Bug Catcher deadpanned.

She let out another sigh, this one quite deep. "He has proven very… ineffective in these first few days of the Season. Perhaps he has lost his touch. His blade needs to be sharpened."

"Are you speaking of reevaluation?" the first bug catcher's head tilted. His eyes remained the same, filled with crazed fanaticism, yet innocnet ignorance.

"Perhaps." she said blankly in a very matter of fact manner. "And what of the rest of our troops? Have there been any more incidents with this new… Pallet Town boy since then?"

The second bug catcher saluted. "Yes! These past few hours, we have attempted ambushes with several of our soldiers, and all of them were quite swiftly annihilated! He's the real deal! They say that his Pikachu moves faster than the very lightning that shoots out of its tail!"

Her frown deepened. "He's been that much trouble in such a short amount of time? When was the last time someone's given us this much issue?"

"I do not recollect! For I have only been here for four months!"

"I see…"

"Big Net… what are your orders?"

The two bug catchers stared intently as their leader rested her chin in her palm. Her distant gaze was directed at nothing, reaching far out into the forest, with no target in particular.

"We can't take his success sitting down." her hollow voice was just loud enough to get her point across. She never raised it outside of the fiercest of battles. Looking up, she stared at her two subordinates. "Otherwise, we'll lose our touch, and the more people who humiliate us, the more our operations will suffer." Her scouts wre far from undefeated, but up to this point, their group still had a steady stream of goods coming in from successfuls thefts and "fees". Losing to the same person repeatedly would only make weaker intruders less likely to comply to their demands should word ever get out; this had to be nipped in the bud.

"Her wisdom is unrivaled!" The first bug catcher was gazing in awe.

"The Big Net is the supreme ruler of Viridian Forest, and the big sister to all who carry the Bug Catcher name!" The second was equally enraptured.

She didn't comment; the majority of the grunts had taken to calling her by her alias, so the odd behavior was far from unusual for her. Many in her ranks were like this; quirky misfits in need of direction.

Instead, she glanced over at an orange haired boy passing by, minding his business and not butting into their conversation. "Feral, I need you here."

The orange haired boy, Feral, glanced over to her, his movements halted. "Yes, Kimberly?"

"A boy from Pallet Town has been giving our scouts more trouble than normal. Inform all in the field that we are switching our patrol tactics to First A. Until further notice, am I clear?"

Feral bowed to his superior. "It will be done, I assure you."

Gazing off into the distance, Kimberly tightened her fists, yet no rage or emotion of any sort appeared on her face.

"Let's see how long it takes to ensnare this one."

/

The moon was high in the sky as a sighing Ash sank into the ground, leaning against the large tree stump in the clearing.

The Bug Catchers had been relentless. First the samurai kid, and now they were getting ambushed at what felt like every turn. He was almost afraid to take another step, knowing that there was a fifty-fifty chance that two, maybe even three, Bug Catchers would be bursting out of the nearest bush to attempt havoc on him and his new teammates.

So far, none of the battles had been particularly challenging; a Butterfree had nearly stopped Pikachu in his tracks with a surprise Stun Spore, but after that close call, Pikachu's Thunder Shock and Iron Tail had brought the battle to an end.

The problem wasn't the battles. It was the Bug Catchers themselves. They were like a parasitic swarm; spewing entitled nonsense with insuffesrable persistence. And after the battle, most of them didn't even pay him any money…

Their parting words were always the same too: "We'll get you next time!", "You shall rue the day you ever came here!" or, "The Big Net will never forgive you for this!" it was tiring to say the very least.

Looking over to Pikachu and Nebula, Ash could tell that they were both getting fed up with it, too. The mouse's face made no effort to hide the agitation, and the bird was glum, unenthusiastic as she consumed her food.

Honestly, he imagined the constant intrusion might have been slightly more tolerable if prize money was involved, but less than half of them had even bothered. At this point, it usually felt like they were getting harassed for nothing. After meeting Janine, he had been looking forward to interacting with other friendly trainers. The Bug Catchers clearly weren't those people.

"Sorry about the rough day, you too" he caught their attention. "But at the pace we're going right now, Pewter City should only be a few days away. Then we can leave this forest behind, and never look back."

Pikachu and Nebula weren't particularly happy, but the thought of leaving the forest was appealing enough to motivate them, even Nebula, who had just been caught in the forest itself. Ash supposed that meeting the Bug Catchers had soured her opinion on the place, outside of the sections that she was used to. He hoped that his words would heighten their morale. The sooner they left, the better.

But for now, it was time to turn in for the night, and pray to the Guardian Mew for a smoother tomorrow.

/

Nebula was flying overhead as Ash and Pikachu made their way down the path in silence. They had risen early today, in hopes of uncovering as much ground as possible. The presence of the Bug Catchers was more than enough motivation to speed up their travels in hopes of soon reaching the end.

So far, no Bug Catchers had ambushed them, but Ash wasn't about to get his hopes up. Not after yesterday.

Nebula was staying close to Ash, as was Pikachu. Neither Pokemon was willing to venture too far out, if not because of the erratic wildlife that resided deep within the forest, then because of the obnoxious bug catchers that were undoubtedly on the prowl. Part of Ash wasn't too worried about them because the battles had mostly been nuisances up to this point. They had yet to face a bug catcher that posed too much of a threat to him or his team.

But the fact that such nuisances were so common left an overhanging sensation of dread in his mind. A few Bug Catchers here and there wouldn't be a problem, especially if they were among the ones who begrudgingly offered prize money after losing.

The constant ambushes, however, were a different matter entirely.

Did every trainer who ventured into the forest really have to deal with this? Ash found that hard to believe. Given that the Bug Catcher Gang was primarily stationed in the central portion of the forest, perhaps some trainers with a better sense of direction than him were capable of going around it, without having to take too much of a detour? That was the only explanation that he could think of. Why else wouldn't the League be cracking down on these despicable troublemakers?

Granted, Ash knew that he probably wasn't getting the worst of it. They hadn't stolen anything yet, and he'd heard stories of such events before, so he supposed he shouldn't be complaining… just yet.

For now, he would just enjoy the quiet time until they-

The ground gave out from beneath him and he let out a startled yelp as he felt the weight of gravity pushing him down below.

THUD! Just as suddenly as the descent, he felt a pain in his butt as he hit the ground.

Hearing Pikachu's startled cry, he looked up to see his starter and Nebula nervously peering down at him, the bird-like Pokemon landing by the young mouse's side as he took in his surroundings.

Walls of dirt closed him off from going anywhere else.

He had fallen into a pit trap.

Ash glared. It must have been one of the Bug Catcher Gang's tricks. What was up with these people? Did they have any motive for this? Did they not realize that halting the progress of "trespassers" would only make it take longer for them to finally leave their territory, like they wanted them to? Or maybe this was an attempt to steal-

"MUHAHA! That hole shall become your tombstone, trespasser!"

Ash groaned at the sound of retreating feet as Pikachu and Nebula chattered angrily at the fleeing bug catchers.

/

With difficulty, he was able to climb out of the uncomfortable hole, which thankfully fell just short of being too deep, but the experience had left his clothes filthier than usual.

And unfortunately, that wasn't the only pit trap that he had fallen into that day.

Ash counted about six. After the first four traps, he had found a clearing to quickly change his clothes at, only for his change of clothes to be ruined by the remaining two.

What's more? The fighting had resumed, but this time there seemed to be some kind of coordinated pattern to their attacks. Almost like they had a plan.

They had forgone ambushing him in the bushes and had instead taken to attacking Pikachu and Nebula while he was stuck in a hole. The angle was likely to steal his belongings while he was vulnerable in the hole, while also trying to pick off his Pokemon while he couldn't give orders. The move was clever, but…

They still weren't very strong.

Ash was assuming that the gang had some sort of survival instincts to carry them through the forest, because they sure as hell didn't have the muscle to survive it. None of their Pokemon had put up much of a fight.

By the time he had climbed his way out of each hole, the bug catchers were already running off, always declaring that they'll be back for vengeance. And none of them had given him any money.

Now it was nighttime again, and Pikachu and Nebula were even more agitated than the previous night. Ash had tried the same "morale raising" promises that he had before, but he wasn't sure how much longer they were going to work at this point.

It was the kind of situation where you really wanted to do something, in this case, get out of the forest, but you were so fed up that you no longer had the energy left to pull it off. Ash was starting to feel it too; even as he tried to raise motivation amongst the Pokemon duo, he wondered if he even believed his own words. The day had just been too exhausting to be viewed in optimism.

Eventually, he decided that striking up a different conversation would be the best way to go about things.

"Pikachu, Nebula." he said, his two Pokemon looking over to him as they turned their attention away from their food. "Are you looking forward to challenging Pewter's Gym?"

The mouse and bird seemed to think that question over. Ash doubted that they had put much thought into it compared to him, as they were not trainers. He wondered how a Pokemon felt about challenging Gyms so soon after being caught.

After all, the Pokemon were obviously not the ones who came up with such an idea. It was the trainers who chose to challenge the Gyms. To get the badges. The Pokemon just… went along with it.

But what were the motives that the Pokemon acted on, anyway? Did they go beyond simply listening to their trainers?

Pikachu and Nebula didn't seem to have an answer to this, but the electirc type still raised a paw and let out a questioning chatter. Ash took this as an invitation to elaborate on his question. They likely wanted to know more. It was understandable, neither Pikachu or Nebula would have any way of knowing much about the League, right?

"Well…" Ash began, considering his words. "You both already know about how I want to become the world's greatest Pokemon Master, right?"

Pikachu and Nebula nodded. How could they not know that? Their new trainer was always talking about the Conference, and how it was the first step to achieving the dreams of the most ambitious trainers. How winning the Conference was such a huge achievement. Making it to the Conference opened a brand new threshold for any trainer to experience.

Ash crossed his legs as he eyed his teammates.

"Gyms are an important part of that process, you see." he adjusted his cap. "They are the qualifiers for the Conference. They determine who is strong enough to enter it."

Pikachu returned to his food for a second before looking back up towards Ash. Nebula, while tempted, had chosen to wait for a bit. She likely wasn't as hungry, as she ate faster.

"Gym Leaders are the leaders of their respective territories." Ash explained. "Giovanni, for example, governs Viridian. He's in charge of their law enforcement, and has a hand in starter Pokemon distribution. Their main purpose is to watch over their respective territories, and protect them. They are the highest ranking League officials of where they are stationed. But they are also the ones who test the trainers trying to compete in the Conference. And they are strong; much stronger than these bug catchers, for sure."

Pikachu perked up at that. Ever since the humiliating fight against Gary, and the debacle with the Skorupi, the mouse had seemingly expressed genuine interest in getting stronger. Not to be the best, like Ash, but just to no longer be pushed around. It was a different motive, but one he seemed committed to nonetheless.

Ash had told him that battling against strong opponents was the best way to do this, however. Which of course, risked more humiliation. It was conflicting, but he would help his starter ensure that it would be worth it.

"Typically, a Gym Leader specializes in a specific type. There is no rule that says they have too, nor do they need to exclusively use the type that they specialize in, but every Gym Leader in the Kanto and Johto Regions are type specialists." Ash explained. "They each hand out a badge pertaining to their respective Gym. Trainers trying to compete in the Conference are expected to win eight of these badges before the Season is over. Oh, but if you're not able to earn all eight of them in one Season, then any badges that are already in your possession will not be eligible for the next Season. Qualifications are as strict as they come." As they had always been; the Conference was the most prestigious event in Indigo.

He paused for a moment, allowing the information to sink in.

Nebula had finished her food, having gotten back to eating while still listening to Ash closely, and was now eying Pikachu's food. The mouse had progressively gotten tired of it over the past few nights, and Ash wondered if the electric mouse's period of extensive hunger post-evolution was beginning to wind down. Pikachu in question had stopped eating to listen to his trainer. Apparently this story was more interesting than the food was.

"Gym Leaders have a large variety of Pokemon at their disposal." Ash explained. "The battles are orchestrated like tests for the trainers. Most Gym Leaders don't use their strongest teams against inexperienced Trainers, but that doesn't mean they go easy on them." He breathed. "It's just the first step, though. Completing the task of earning eight badges is difficult enough, but it's the Conference itself that really brings the intensity. It's a competition between the best trainers of the Season, those who have earned the eight badges. In Indigo, the Conference covers every Region under the Empire's banner. This also means that not all of a trainer's badges need to be strictly from Kanto or Johto abecause ny combination of badges from gyms under the League's authority are eligible." he was shaking a bit now. "But the fact that multiple Regions are involved also means that there is even more competition. Not all Conferences cover multiple Regions, but it goes for any League whose authority stretches past their native land. I'm hoping to break records there; be one of the few rookiesto make it there, maybe even be the first rookie trainer to make it to the top 16, where the six on six rounds are held." he chuckled. "And really, my reasons are simple. I just want to be the best. When I see Lance, Karen, Bruno, Lorelei, Agatha, whenever I see them battling, it just reminds me of what I could become. If I really push myself… they are what every dedicated trainer in Indigo strives to be, even if few can." his eyes steeled. "I want to become one of those people! Not just to prove Gary wrong…"

Nebula's face scrunched up at the sound of the name. Pikachu had told her about Gary before, and the boy most certainly did not sound appealing to her.

"...But because it's just something that I've wanted to do ever since I was a little kid! I became so fascinated by the professional side of Pokemon training… that it became my dream. Not just something that I enjoy… but something that I want…" he paused and took a deep breath, realizing that he had allowed himself to ramble. "But enough about me. I'm sure you two have something that you dream for too, right?"

Pikachu and Nebula shared unsure glances at that. Truth be told, neither of them had ever given it much thought before. Pikachu had never really imagined life beyond the environment that he grew up in, and for Nebula, Viridian Forest was pretty much the whole entire world.

Ash may not have understood what they were saying but… he enjoyed talking to them. As he began brainstorming about things that Pikachu and Nebula might want to achieve for themselves, he took note that the two had gotten more sociable with one another. Used to each other. And that Pikachu was sharing some of his food with Nebula.

The bird Pokemon, who Ash initially wasn't sure would be completely on board with them, was seemingly opening up to the young mouse little by little. It was comforting to see. Certainly much more comforting than the various sounds and cries that he could hear emitting from the trees.

But there was something else tonight. Something else that ended up making him feel even more uneasy.

Was something… watching them?

He could almost feel another presence in their midst. As though the temperature was dropping…

As though there were a pair of blazing, dangerous eyes, burning into the back of his head no matter which direction that he looked in...

/

Day four in this miserable forest. The vegetation had grown thicker, and Ash felt the leaves brushing against his skin as he made his way through the now seemingly non-existent path, which was now almost completely covered by grass blades and bushes.

Pikachu had taken to riding on his new trainer's shoulder, not too keen on walking through bush after bush. Nebula, after seeing the overabundance of low hanging branches that would inhibit her flight, had opted to stay in her Poke Ball.

Ash couldn't help but find himself… somewhat pleased by Pikachu riding on his shoulder. The young boy wasn't sure why, but he enjoyed the feeling, all the same. He could get used to this.

This was the longest that they'd gone without a bug catcher ambush. Ash had expected them to be all over him and his team at this point, but even an hour after a lunch break, there was still no sign of them.

Ash wanted to think that this meant that they were in the clear. Maybe they'd passed through bug catcher territory already? But that sounded too good to be true. He didn't want to get his hopes up, only for them to be immediately dashed the next time some random weirdo came bursting through the bushes shouting "TRESPASSER!" at the top of their lungs.

Ash felt that the safest approach would simply be to continue dreading whenever their next attack was going to be. That way, he'd be pleasantly surprised if it didn't actually happen, and not be disappointed when it inevitably did.

"Hey Pikachu," he turned his eye in the electric rodent's direction. The yellow Pokemon was steadily perched on his new trainer's shoulder, smiling lightly, but still having a sense of dread in his eyes. Clearly, the bug catchers were on Pikachu's mind, too. "If we reach another clearing before dark, would you like to get some training in? I was thinking of asking Nebula too, if we ever get the chance."

Pikachu's reply seemed positive. Ash had told him about how useful of a move that Double Team could be, and the rodent seemed to be keen on learning it.

"Good! It would be really good if we got Double Team down before challenging the Gym. To help speed up the process, I was thinking of-"

He was cut off by the sound of a scream. But this one wasn't a bug catcher.

It was a very high pitched scream… definitely a Pokemon… but he couldn't quite place it…

"You heard that, right?" Ash flinched. It was a stupid question. Of course Pikachu had heard it!

Pikachu's ears were twitching. Sticking straight upwards, they wiggled around as the mouse looked in the direction of the voice.

Ash bit his lip.

"Should we… check it out?"

Pikachu wasn't so sure, but… something was compelling Ash too look. Suddenly, it was as though his body was moving on its own.

Ash didn't know it yet, and probably wouldn't know it for a while, but he would eventually come to be very, very, very thankful to himself for doing what he did.

/

A frustrated Feral ran a hand through his bright, orange hair. How had this happened?

In front of him was a rope hanging from a nearby tree branch. And dangling upside down from said rope, was a Pokemon.

It was definitely foreign. Most certainly not a Pokemon that you would normally find in Indigo, or even in a forest in general. So that begged the question that the bug catcher continuously found himself asking: What was it doing here?

Two bug catchers stood by either side of him; one boy and one girl. They each turned to him for instructions.

"Well, Feral?" said the female bug catcher. "This wasn't what we were expecting…"

The Pokemon looked like it could be humanoid, but didn't look very human, nonetheless. It was about a foot tall. Red horns on top of its head. Most of its body was white. Green hair obscured much of its face.

It was currently flailing about in a panic, startled by the trap. Desperation was in its tone of voice as its small arms flew around all over the place, the rope swaying from side to side as its prisoner struggled.

Humanoid Pokemon weren't common in forests… there was clearly a reason why this Pokemon was here.

"I was hoping that this trap would catch the Pallet Town intruder that we've been chasing after." said Feral as he continued to eye the suspicious Pokemon carefully. "Instead we get a creature that I am unable to identify."

"Would our leader know what it is?" the male Bug Catcher inquired.

"Most certainly. Which is why we should probably take it back to the base. Could be another intruder."

The sound of frantic footsteps and snapping twigs interrupted them before they could make another move, however.

Ash emerged from the wide array of leaves that had previously been obscuring him. Pikachu was on his shoulder. The trainer stopped to take in the scene before him.

"Hey!" he called out angrily. "What are you doing with that Pokemon?"

Feral tilted his head towards the trainer. "So you're the intruder, I suppose." He fully turned to face Ash and Pikachu. "It was like this when we found it. This trap was meant for intruders like yourself, but it seems a Pokemon has found its way in instead."

"You'll let it down?" Ash asked carefully.

"And take it to our leader." said Feral cooly. "As the patrol advisor, I have a responsibility to carry out."

"And what's your leader going to do with it?" Ash asked, his brow furrowed.

"Who knows?"

Ash grit his teeth. Who did these people think they were? Pit traps were bad enough, but rope traps that held you upside down? And they weren't just going to let the Pokemon go free?

"You're not taking that Pokemon." Ash was somewhat surprised by the amount of backbone that he had put into that statement. At least, he hoped that it qualified as backbone.

"You have no say in that." said Feral, taking out a Poke Ball. "But I suppose we can battle to decide who claims it."

The male bug catcher pumped his fist. "A challenge from Feral himself! Nobody outside of the Big Net can beat him in a fight!"

Emerging from the orange haired boy's Poke Ball was a round, purple bug with large, red eyes.

"Venonat is my partner. If you can get past her, then you get the mysterious Pokemon that we caught." the Bug Catcher advisor crossed his arms. "Otherwise, you'll be out of luck."

Well, Ash could credit this one for not being as annoying as all of the others. He wondered if that meant he would be more difficult to defeat.

Nebula appeared in front of him in a flash. Turning to him, the young bird seemed quite irritable, chirping to Ash and Pikachu angrily about how she had told them that she had wanted to stay in her Poke Ball.

"Heads up, Nebula." Ash raised his hands above his head in hopes of calming her down. "We're in the middle of a battle, here."

Perking up at that, Nebula turned to face her opponent. The bug watched her closely, almost as cool headed as her trainer. Said orange haired trainer snapped his fingers as he declared his first order.

"Venonat has dealt with birds before. We shall now commence our anti-flight strategy. Tackle!"

With surprising speed, Venonat charged forward. Nebula immediately flapped her wings, propelling herself into the air and avoiding the attack. However, Feral didn't seem too surprised as he responded.

"Supersonic!"

Ash's ears suddenly felt a blazing pain as the most horrific of sounds emitted from Venonat's body. He could hear Pikachu crying out while the mouse desperately tried to close his own ears as Nebula recoiled from the sudden shock, knocking her out of the air.

As Nebula landed back first into the dirt, Ash tried to regain his bearing in the midst of such a horrible shrieking noise. Gratefully, the sound began dying down.

Ash growled. Nebula's options were limited. He doubted that the Starly had complete control over Aerial Ace, and Double Edge was most certainly out of the question. Either way, that Supersonic would be a problem. If Nebula wasn't prepared for it, it would continue to knock her out of her flight attempts. Even then, he doubted that it would be easy to concentrate with such a horrific noise in your ears… he certainly couldn't.

Feral nodded in approval. "Perfect, Venonat. Now Psybeam."

A small beam of narrow, rainbow light emitted from Venonat's face. A loud SHING! noise sounded off as Nebula was struck square in the chest by the attack, right as she attempted to get up.

Ash squirmed as his bird teammate was sent tumbling backwards, stopping at her back yet again. This new bug catcher was quick on his feet. He hadn't had a challenging battle since the samurai kid and his Pinsir, but this one would be a problem…

"Now, Confusion."

Venonat's eyes began flashing furiously, as if the Pokemon was struggling to properly use the attack. Nevertheless, its eyes eventually began to glow a steady, albeit faint blue. Nebula started as a thin blue outline appeared on her body. Against her will, she slowly but surely began lifting into the air.

Ash grimaced. Confusion was a fairly potent move for beginner level pokemon. It allowed the user to manipulate objects and even living things with their mind, freezing them in place and moving them about on their own.

But much like most non-psychic type Pokemon, at least those at the beginner level, this Venonat was having trouble using it. It was a difficult move to master for just about any experienced Pokemon that was not a psychic type itself.

"Fight back, Nebula! Break free with Quick Attack!"

Pikachu was shouting his own words of encouragement as Nebula struggled against the psychic hold that Venonat had placed on her. Looking over to Venonat, Ash could see that the purple bug was struggling to maintain the move. As long as Nebula won out in a war of attrition…

Venonat's eyes blinked, and after a few seconds, the flashing went away. Nebula, caught off guard, found herself abruptly rushing forward with the power of Quick Attack. A startled screech escaped her beak as she slammed beak first into the Venonat.

Ash could hear Feral grunting in frustration as Venonat tumbled away, but Nebula too recoiled from the attack, tumbling backwards in midair before just barely regaining her bearings with a forceful flap of her wings. As she continued flapping her wings in place, hovering just above the center of the battlefield, Ash took notice of the light shaking of her head. She was likely hurt from the sudden impact.

Feral maintained his composure for the most part as Venonat returned to her feet. "Poison Powder!"

Ash flinched. Poison Powder was exactly what it sounded like, and as the purple substance emitted from Venonat's body and made its way towards Nebula, he reacted immediately.

"Use Whirlwind!"

The wind kicked up as the hurt, but still battle ready Nebula flapped her wings as furiously as possible, letting out a mighty, albeit high-pitched, battle cry as the large, sudden gust repelled the powder back to its source.

Venonat struggled against the wind, as did Feral and his two companions, but all remained firmly in place as the powder harmlessly sprinkled over Venonat.

"Impressive. It was clever to use Whirlwind to blow the attack back to us. I figured you might try something like that, but Venonat is immune to Poison Powder. It's a good thing I didn't have her use Stun Spore." Ferak remained stoic. "But let's see how your bird friend handles another Supersonic!"

Ash and Pikachu both instinctively covered their ears as Nebula shrieked in displeasure at the noise that once again invaded her sense of hearing. Ash could see her concentration slipping as she began to slowly descend from the air…

Although he wanted to look away, as though it would somehow make the horrible sound go away too, Ash steeled himself as he stepped forward. "Nebula! Use Whirlwind to propel yourself in the air!"

Putting all of her resolve into flapping her wings, Nebula created the largest gust that she had ever managed before. Her mind was jumbled by the horrific noise that invaded her hearing, but somehow, she managed to ascend high above the battlefield, gliding in the air, away from the noise, and trying to regain her bearings.

She felt somewhat dizzy for a second, but it soon settled as her eyes focused on the large tree leaves ahead of her. Taking a deep breath, she found herself returning to normal, a calm mood entering her mindset as she looked downward at her opponent, who was now far below her.

"Speed yourself up with Quick Attack and use Wing Attack!" Ash had to raise his voice as high as possible in order to ensure that she heard him. Thankfully, she did, but he hoped that he hadn't disturbed any wild Pokemon with the sudden noise…

Nebula flew straight downward, putting all of her might into Quick Attack as she shrieked down towards her now fast-approaching opponent. The wind pressure against her face had her feathers swaying backwards against the resistance as she plummeted downward towards the ground. She raised her wing as she prepared to attack…

CRACK!

The impact of the blow was practically as loud as the Supersonic itself. Venonat had no time to react, and could only let out a startled cry of pain as Nebula's wing collided with her forehead, immediately pinning her on the ground, back-first, as the painful blow to the head immediately registered, the large bruise that it produced rivaled only by the pain that she felt just before losing consciousness.

A moment later, Feral returned Venonat to her Poke Ball, and Pikachu nervously made his way to Nebula as the young bird nursed her now sore wing. Ash would have to apply some potion to both her wing and her head afterwards…

For now, his attention was on Feral as the orange haired boy approached him, both of his bug catcher companions in tow.

Surprisingly, he didn't seem to be too upset about how the battle had turned out. Ash couldn't say that he was the biggest fan of this bug catcher, given that he was planning to take advantage of a Pokemon that was caught in a trap, but he could at least respect the apparent good sportsmanship.

If only they were all like this one.

"Impressive…" said Feral. He was attempting to sound blank, but his tone clearly had a layer of surprise to it. "I wasn't expecting that last trick with your Whirlwind."

Truth be told, Ash had thought that one up at the last minute. Looking over to Nebula, he was amazed at how she managed it. The adrenaline rush from being startled by Supersonic, perhaps?

Either way, he would definitely be excited about new ways regarding how to utilize Whirlwind in the future.

But now was not the time to be trying to think of new ideas for the move. That could come later on, after they had left this dreaded forest.

To his surprise, the orange haired boy reached into his pocket and held out a surprising amount of money.

"Here, this is yours. Don't think too much of it."

As Ash quickly took the money (a bit excited about one of the rare instances where a bug catcher was actually willing to pay him for winning) Feral continued.

"Well, a deal is a deal. The Pokemon is yours. Do what you want with it. I'm leaving now." Turning to the bug catchers, he pointed in a separate direction. "Let's go."

Ash watched the group walk off, a bit confused about what had just gone down. That particular bug catcher wasn't like the rest of them. He was still trying to wrap his head around there being a member of the group who was not completely obnoxious, but pushed those thoughts aside as he turned to Pikachu and Nebula, the duo currently heading on over to him. Pikachu was supporting Nebula a bit, and Ash suddenly realised that her wing injury was worse than he thought.

Guilt washed over him

"Sorry…" he said, kneeling down and lightly patting his bird companion on the head. "That was reckless of me."

"Reckless" being a pretty big understatement, of course. Since Nebula wasn't very durable yet, she was obviously going to be much more prone to injuring herself from stunts like that, and Ash was cursing himself for not realising this. He would never become a Pokemon Master if he kept being this negligent.

"Let's cut that Pokemon down." Ash was attempting to stop his guilty frown from spreading too much, trying not to think about it. "I'll look at you right away." They needed to find another clearing quickly.

/

"You don't seem to be very upset about the loss, Feral." the female bug catcher pointed out.

"Of course not, I'm looking at this from the bigger picture." the orange haired boy declared. "We at least have more to work off in terms of gauging their abilities. I'll report the battle to Kimberly and go from there."

"What do you think that Pokemon was anyway?" the male bug catcher wondered aloud.

/

A tiny clearing was thankfully nearby, allowing Ash to tend to Nebula's injuries more safely after having Pikachu cut the mysterious Pokemon down with Iron Tail. Seeing that yet another one of his Pokemon had been hurt because of his own choices had brought back very unpleasant memories of the Spearow flock, but Ash tried to convince himself that this wasn't the same thing. Nevertheless, the parallels wouldn't stop running through his head.

After healing Nebula's wing and head with some potions (and apoligizing for the upteenth time) Ash returned her to her Poke Ball in order to allow her time to rest up. Between the struggle to break free from Confusion, and the damage that she had taken from the battle, she was still quite exhausted even after the healing. He was guilty that she wouldn't be able to properly meet the Pokemon that she had saved, but he knew that her rest was important. At the very least, Pikachu was still around, as he had freed the Pokemon from the trap.

The Pokemon in question was quite quiet, but seemed to be grateful.

Currently, Ash was seated on a small rock as he observed the small Pokemon. Pikachu was cautiously approaching it, doing his best not to freak it out too much, to his trainer's gratitude.

The Pokemon was eying Pikachu carefully, not necessarily seeming distrustful, but still appearing nervous. Its green hair was blocking out its eyes, meaning Ash couldn't really get much of a read on its emotions apart from the movements of its mouth.

Pikachu slowly raised his paw, a smile gradually forming on his face. Ash couldn't help but wonder if he should just leave this to the mouse. Although Pikachu's more nervous qualities were still present, his evolution had certainly given him a confidence boost, especially since he was actually winning most of his fights now.

His starter seemed to be getting along better with Nebula, now, too. Although there had never been conflict between the two of them (outside of their battle, obviously) the mouse and bird seemed to have grown closer over their travels. No doubt that that had encouraged Pikachu to try and interact with some more Pokemon as well.

The Pokemon was approaching Pikachu now, looking up at the slightly taller mouse and crossing its arms defensively, as if just in case. Pikachu offered a squeak, seemingly asking a question.

As the two conversed, Ash looked back to the forest from where they had come, hoping that they wouldn't have to deal with any more bug catchers anytime soon. They thankfully hadn't attacked them while they were resting or at camp yet, so Ash was hoping that it would stay that way.

Hearing Pikachu call out to him, Ash looked to see the two Pokemon approaching. Pikachu had his paw on the mysterious Pokemon's back. A friendly contact that actually seemed to be easing its nerves a bit.

Since when had Pikachu's social skills been so on point? Perhaps the situation with Nebula really had boosted the mouse's confidence.

Kneeling down, Ash slowly reached out his hand. The small Pokemon flinched, but didn't move away as Ash patted its head.

"I'm sorry about what happened back there. You must have been scared. We're your friends though, so you don't have to worry."

The Pokemon tilted its head a bit, before looking back at Pikachu, who just nodded with a cheerful smile. Looking back to Ash, the Pokemon seemed to ease up just a bit, and nodded with acceptance.

Ash could have sworn that he'd heard the name of this Pokemon before… so why couldn't he place it?

However, something else was on his mind right now.

Something was compelling Ash to say what he said next. Ash didn't know why he was jumping into this so quickly, but… something inside of him… really wanted to…

"I know this may sound sudden, but would you like to come with us?"

The Pokemon seemed surprised by the question. Pikachu released it and simply crossed his paws non-threateningly, giving the Pokemon an encouraging look as it turned back to him.

After some careful consideration, the Pokemon turned its attention back towards Ash and nodded, to the rookie's surprise. But looking at the Pokemon now, it almost seemed like it found the thought of being with them… comforting. Ash couldn't see its eyes, but he could have sworn that its body had eased up just now as it accepted Ash's offer.

Ash smiled. "Great! I'm sure we'll all get along just fine! My name is Ash, by the way. And this is Pikachu." he gestured over to the small mouse, who seemed to be quite pleased by the turn of events. "And the one who fought off those bug catcher people for you was Nebula. I'm sure she'll be delighted to meet you once she's all rested up."

The Pokemon scratched its head but said nothing.

Ash took out a Poke Ball. "Would you mind going in here real quick? It won't take long, I promise, but I would like to be able to identify you and see your moves. But I need you to be registered first." Otherwise, he would only know the Pokemon's species and some additional information, but nothing about its actual capabilities.

The Pokemon complied and was sucked into the orb. Afterwards, Ash quickly released it and took out his Pokedex to scan the newcomer.

"Ralts, the Feeling Pokemon of the psychic-fairy type. It is highly attuned to sensing the emotions of people and Pokemon. If it senses hostility, it hides.

"This Ralts is male and knows the moves Disarming Voice, Confusion, Hypnosis, Teleport, Psybeam, Light Screen, Confuse Ray, and Shadow Sneak. Its ability is Telepathy, which allows the user to anticipate the actions of its opponent in a battle."

Ash's jaw almost dropped.

Okay, so the Pokemon was a Ralts. Ash had a feeling that he knew something about this species, but the name had slipped away from him for some reason. What really intrigued him, however, was the Pokemon's moveset.

Based on Ash's limited knowledge of the species, he could have sworn that Ralts had difficulty learning Light Screen, Confuse Ray, and Shadow Sneak conventionally. It was quite surprising to hear that he had known those moves already. Was this because of Egg Moves? The only other explanation that he could think of was TMs, which didn't make any sense. This Ralts was a wild Ralts.

Furthermore, what was a Ralts even doing in the forest, anyway? Based on what little that he had known about them, he was pretty sure that they usually favored urban areas. And they were pretty deep into the forest by now.

Clearly, there was a lot that he did not know, but he tried not to focus on that right now. Instead, he and Pikachu happily welcomed their new teammate.

"Do you want a nickname?" At the small Pokemon's nod, Ash began to think, his hand on his chin.

He tried to think of a name suited for the Ralts. So far, he seemed to be quite timid, almost reminding Ash of both himself and Pikachu prior to Evolving.

Suddenly… that gave him an idea.

"How about… Valiant?"

The Ralts tilted his head in confusion at the suggestion.

"It means to be bold. To have a lot of courage." Ash explained simply. "You kind of remind me of myself and Pikachu. He's getting better, but I'll admit that I'm not the most confident person out there. You seem to be… nervous. Easily startled." Ash smiled, thinking back to Professor Oak and Janine. "But some talented people have told me that our starting points are not what define us. Just because you're the way you are now doesn't mean you always have to be. Think of it as a goal of sorts. What do you think?"

The Ralts seemed taken aback by Ash's explanation, but nodded nonetheless.

"Good! Valiant it is, then!" Ash turned to his starter; Pikachu seemed to be quite happy about the choice too.

The Ralts, now Valiant, smiled at Pikachu and his new Trainer.

And with that, Valiant became the group's newest addition.

/

Deep within the forest, a part few even knew existed, Kimberly took her steps carefully, calculatingly.

Feral's report had been rather surprising. The intruder from Pallet Town was much stronger than she thought. Clearly, drastic measures needed to be taken.

The moon was high over the forest, but she couldn't see it; no sky was visible where she was right now. A lantern in her hands was all that lit her path as she carefully stepped on the series of twigs and grass blades that lined her path, which was simply of her own choosing right now, as no clear, definitive path was visible where she currently was. If she were to look up, the leaves high at the top of the trees were all that she would see. This was by far the thickest part of the forest. And it was where she needed to be. Very few had ever ventured this far into Viridian Forest before, it was rare for even her to make this trip. But tonight, she had a reason to do so.

Up ahead of her was an altar. As she approached it, some more light filled her line of vision. The light that emitted from her golden lantern was now accompanied by the light of the various purple torches that lined the altar.

The last time she had come here had been months ago. It was a rarity when it was needed, but a special occurrence when it was.

Whenever guidance was needed, one being would always be there to provide her with exactly what she needed.

Placing the lantern down carefully, the Kimberly made her way to the altar. Taking off her backpack, she unzipped the bag, taking out various sour fruits and a smoothie. This being loved sour stuff.

Taking a deep breath, she continued to step forward, placing them in the center of the altar. She rolled up her sleeves, barely paying any attention to the now revealed scars on her arms. Kneeling down, she spoke softly, but still just loudly enough to be heard.

It was time.

"Ghost of Viridian Forest. In exchange for your unrivaled wisdom, I give you these offerings."

At first, she was only met with silence, but it would not last forever.

After about a minute or two of kneeling, the… temperature changed.

Kimberly knew what it meant when the temperature dropped at this rate, with such suddenness. That was the sign.

Slowly but surely, she stood up, as each present began to go out, one by one, leaving only the light from the golden lantern nearby.

A slight breeze went through her hair. Through her clothes. She could feel the chill slowly but surely creeping up her spine, grabbing hold of her, as her hair moved along with the wind, flowing through the air as the breeze suddenly began to grow, first slowly, but then fast.

As quickly as it had begun, it was over. Now, floating in front of her...

Few knew that he existed, but many believed it. Few had confirmed it, but many had heard the stories.

Viridian Forest was haunted. But only by one, single ghost.

The being gradually descended in front of her.

What was the forest to him? No, what was he to the forest? He was everything. He saw everything. He heard everything. He knew everything. He did everything and anything. Because that was what he was capable of.

The one who watched over the forest that many trainers feared, was right before her eyes.

He was quite a bit bigger than her. Larger, stockier, greater. An incredibly dark shade of purple, an extreme, strong color that bore its way right into the human eye, yet glowed all the same. His eyes were large, as was his mouth, which was occupied by the large tongue inside of it.

The ghost finished his descent, standing over the bug catcher leader. She said nothing. She did nothing. All she did was take in his presence. He was a dominating force, one who took over the area the moment he touched down. The moment he was there. Simply by existing. That was what the ghost did, because that was what the ghost was. None could compare to him. Not in this forest.

The location was silent. Not a sound. No wind, no wild Pokemon crying in the night. There was nothing else to take in.

Removing her hat, her teal hair now fully exposed, Kimberly bowed down before the ghost, closing her emerald eyes. A purple hand reached out and rested upon her head. Comforting, soothing, yet authoritative.

"Your knowledge is much appreciated, one who observes the forest. Please, hear of my plight." Kimberly gathered her words before continuing, realizing that it was unnecessary as she raised her head to look up at him. "You already know why I'm here, don't you?"

The Ghost didn't need to respond for her to already know the answer.

"I see." She was unsurprised. "Then what do you propose as a solution?"

Eyes flashed bright red. First the Ghost's. And then hers. Knowledge was transferred. Messages were received.

As the Ghost's eyes returned to normal, so too, did the Big Net's. As he rose back up, the wind returned, only to die down again just as quickly as before.

The purple torches on the altar were suddenly lit again.

/

Nebula had made a full recovery after a few hours of stasis in her Poke Ball. Ash was very grateful for how useful the devices could be, lifesavers for Trainers everywhere.

It was often understated too. Stereotypically, they were most known for carrying your teammates around with you during travels. This was most certainly true, however, it was far from their only use.

Poke Balls were a marvel of technology among the Pokemon world. The stasis was perfect for giving Pokemon rest, which Nebula had most certainly benefited from.

Her wing and head were now no longer in pain. She was no longer out of breath. Ash smiled at her as she sat next to Pikachu, happily picking away at her food after Ash had finally finished setting up camp.

They had traveled just a little bit longer before stopping, Valiant choosing to tag along instead of staying inside of his Poke Ball. Pikachu had been pleased with the company. It made sense, given that Nebula had spent almost the entire day inside of hers. Now, the mouse wasn't the only Pokemon currently out and about.

After setting up camp, Ash had taken it upon himself to release Nebula so that he and Pikachu could both introduce her to Valiant. The young bird had been pretty neutral about the meeting, but certainly not opposed to it. It gave Ash hope for a healthy dynamic between the trio as they continued onward towards Pewter City.

And, most importantly, out of Viridian Forest for good and free to enjoy civilization once more, as a bonus.

As Pikachu and Nebula sat on a tree stump together as per usual, Valiant had taken it upon himself to eat by Ash's side, to the boy's not unwelcome surprise.

Much like Pikachu, Valiant didn't seem overly interested in the food, but Ash had promised the young Ralts that he would go out and find food more suitable to his tastes once they had reached Pewter. For now, the Ralts was still content with what was available, and ate without complaints, albeit not very fast. Only Nebula finished her food as quickly as she did, the young bird delighted with what was provided and unable to savor it, simply opting to scarf all of it down. It was amusing. At least she was happy.

Pikachu was silently eating, occasionally sparing Nebula a glance or two. Once or twice, his eyes wandered over to Valiant as the Ralts continued to eat by Ash's side, the young Trainer focusing on his own meal.

The Trainer thought back to what the Pokedex had told him about Valiant. His ability was Telepathy. It was pretty useful to have, since Pokemon with it could minimally read the thoughts and actions of their opponents. Really skilled Pokemon with the Telepathy ability could get a basic reading on the emotions and thought processes of others, which was inevitably very useful in battle.

Although he tried to think of ways that it could be utilized in battle, Ash found himself overcome by that same feeling as last night. The feeling that he was being watched. It had made it hard to sleep last night, and Ash had hoped it would go away tonight.

But he had already had a feeling it wouldn't.

Looking over to Valiant, Ash could see the young Ralts shivering a bit. No doubt, the Pokemon's natural talent at sensing emotions, combined with his Telepathy ability, had made it easy for his to sense the same presence that had been weighing on Ash all this time.

"Are you scared?" he asked carefully.

The Ralts looked up from his food and stared at his new Trainer. Ash emphasized with his newest partner's slow nod.

What was watching them?

What was making him feel this way so suddenly?

The young boy found himself looking around nervously, eying his surroundings very carefully. He found nothing.

But he felt it.

But he felt what exactly?

/

Kimberly returned to her camp, the moon high over her head, and the trees surrounding from each direction. There was nothing but confidence in her now. Everything was now in place for tomorrow. It was just a matter of waiting it out.

She found Feral awaiting her at her cabin, leaning against her door with crossed arms. He perked up at her presence, allowing his arms to fall to his sides as he approached her.

Giving a salute, he asked "Well? What's the plan for tomorrow?"

Kimberly's arms crossed confidently across her chest. "I have spoken to the one who observes the forest, Feral. This issue will be resolved tomorrow morning."

"Okay, so what's the plan? It's been a while since we've had an intruder last this long on our turf."

"Tomorrow, the observer is going to rile up a group of Beedrill that the intruder and his Pokemon will inevitably be passing by on their path. They will drive all of them out." The leader's tone of voice was cool headed and confident, even more so than before. Her meeting with the observer had reinvigorated her spirit, revitalizing her soul and leaving her ready to start anew.

Feral's fingers scratched the back of his head as he responded to the revelation. "But… won't that kill them?"

"Nonsense." Her cool tone of voice drifted in the air as a light breeze blew against the strands of her hair. "This particular group of Beedrill is quite docile compared to the usual members of their species. Even when in a panic, they will simply take to chasing all of our intruders out of here." She shrugged, her tone simple. "You're the patrol advisor, so you probably know which ones I am talking about."

Feral nodded, the breeze blowing against his hair too. "That I do. But, can we be absolutely sure they will be there when the swarm starts?"

"Of course. The observer knows everything. He sees, hears, and feels everything that goes on within here. He is this forest." Kimberly tilted her head upwards, ever so slightly, just enough to get a minor view of the sky, the bright stars almost perfectly surrounding the moon. "He'll know exactly where they are going, and exactly when they are going to be there. Everything is under control."

"Oh, yes, that is true. So what do we do for now?"

"We will inform most of our scouts to return to camp. Those who don't will need to take up their usual hiding spots in order to avoid getting caught up in the middle of things. Once this is all over, they will be able to report the results."

Feral nodded, once again saluting to his leader. "I will proceed with spreading the word immediately."

/

Ash and his group rose early.

Now that they had officially been in Viridian Forest for more than half of a week, the young rookie was sincerely hoping that there was some light at the end of the tunnel. Was it wishful thinking? Sure the forest was huge, but he and his team had been making pretty good pace with each day.

Currently, everyone on his team was out and about. Nebula flying overhead, Pikachu on his shoulder, and Valiant walking alongside him. Once again, the path was less than desirable, leading to Pikachu hitching another ride, but the tree branches weren't as low hanging this time, leaving Nebula free to do whatever she pleased, and Valiant insisted on walking regardless of the path ahead.

And so far, no Bug Catchers were in sight.

Ash was most certainly on guard, though. That battle with the Venonat had certainly been a wake up call for him. Not only was it much more difficult than any of the previous battles with the group, but Nebula's injuries, for as temporary as they had been, were still fresh in his mind.

He couldn't be careless like that anymore. He wanted his team to trust him, which meant not doing anything stupid that would get them hurt.

He hadn't gotten over the Spearow incident just yet, and he certainly wouldn't be getting over the Venonat battle anytime soon, either.

With that vow to not repeat past mistakes, Ash marched on ahead, wanting to inspire morale within his team.

Until he heard the noise.

It was hard to place it. It was hard to describe it. Some sort of buzzing sound? And there were a lot of them…

And they were getting closer…

His survival instincts were telling him to turn around.

Good thing he did.

"GAH!" he cried out and stumbled off of his feet. A startled Pikachu jumped off of his shoulders and landed safely on the ground, using his tail to balance himself, sticking up in the nearby dirt as he landed directly on his tail and balanced on it. Ash felt gravity suddenly overtake him at the same time. He winced in pain as his butt collided with the ground, but that was nothing compared to the terror he felt from what was approaching them.

It was a Beedrill swarm.

/

Running.

That was the only thought his mind could produce at the moment.

There was no time to return his teammates. Instead, he had simply scooped Valiant up in his arms and took off in a bolt. The young Ralts wasn't nearly as fast as Pikachu or Nebula, who were both ahead of Ash at the moment, Pikachu forgetting all about his disdain for the path ahead as he immediately broke into a run on all fours, while Nebula had gone from a simple glide to a desperate flight for survival as the Beedrill closed in on them. The adrenaline was pumping through his very veins, giving him energy he didn't even know he had. He was moving even faster than he was when the Spearow had attacked.

To look behind him felt like too much of a risk. He had to dedicate every fiber of his being to making sure that they stayed ahead of the Beedril. Pikachu and Nebula seemed to be doing just fine. He wondered how much they were exerting themselves.

Ash's physical capabilities had never been anything very impressive. Nothing any better than the average boy of his age. Oh, but sure, Gary was a pretty great runner, just like how he was a pretty great climber, or sports player, but Ash? Average at best. Even with the adrenaline pumping through him, Ash could already hear his body screaming in defiance. Even with the added adrenaline flowing through his veins, and providing him with newfound strength and resolve, it still wasn't enough to drown out the pain in his muscles, which left his brain screaming at him to stop.

Not even fear was enough to cloud the pain. Even with his self preservation completely maxed out, involuntarily or not his body still wanted to stop moving. Because running away was torture. Running away like this was tortue.

Humans weren't built like Pokemon, but Ash still knew for certain that man would be perfectly capable of running like this for much longer than he was. Especially when their lives were on the line. So why couldn't he? Why was the very movement of his muscles torturing him? Was he really that weak? Not even fit enough to properly run for his life?

Ash was afraid to stop. Afraid of losing the adrenaline, most likely the one thing that even kept his body functioning at this point. But of course, he couldn't afford to stop anyway. But even slowing down would run the risk of losing his resolve.

Even so, he could feel his legs, his whole body, straining even further. There was only so much more of this that he could take-

Then it happened.

From the corner of his eye, he suddenly saw Nebula fly past him. The young bird had gotten tired of retreating, turning around to meet the Beedrill head on.

"N-Nebula!" Ash just barely forced out as his body began running out of breath for his lungs to produce. "NOO-GAH!" he tried to turn around to look at the bird Pokemon, but ended up tripping over his own two feet as a result. Fatigue overcame him as he tumbled into the dirt, Valiant screaming as the young Ralts was sent flying. Ash couldn't see what happened to him as he rolled around upon impact, his body moving on its own from the momentum of his run and his fall, his lungs trying but failing to gasp for air.

As he lay on his back, his lungs finally gasping and sucking in as much air as possible as he was now no longer in motion, Nebula hovered in front of the incoming Beedrill swarm, flapping her wings furiously as she tried to create the biggest Whirlwind possible.

Pikachu had stopped running upon hearing the commotion, turning to see Nebula and her defiant stand. He called out to her, but was quick to notice Ash and Valiant.

Valiant was rubbing his sore head as he struggled to get up. A few meters away, Ash was laying in the dirt, clearly out of breath and overcome with exhaustion. Pikachu had no idea who to check on first, but since Valiant was closest to him he prioritized the Ralts. Ash was much further away from either of them.

The Whirlwind collided with the fast approaching Beedrill swarm, and the effect was immediate. The violent wind pushed against the aggressive attackers, the Beedrill struggling against it.

The swarm wasn't as big as most, with not many Beedrill as expected making it up. There were still quite a lot of them, however. Nebula was dangerously outnumbered.

A few Beedrill struggled against the wind more than others, however. Some were slowly blown away. Others were held firmly in place, not able to progress any further, but still too strong for the wind to affect them in any other way. Others, however, were still slowly approaching, still struggling just like the others, but also slowly pushing against the wind. The Starly glared at her advancers, continuing to pour more and more effort into her last, desperate attack.

Pikachu knelt down and helped Valiant up, one paw on the Ralts's belly and another on his back. His eyes filled with concern, and although he couldn't see Valiant's, he would have seen gratitude if he did. The young Ralts rubbed his sore head, and Pikachu's eyes narrowed sadly as his newest companion whimpered in pain.

Looking over to Ash, Pikachu saw the boy slowly sitting up. That was relieving, but Nebula's situation certainly wasn't making the young mouse feel any better.

Ash looked up and saw Nebula's struggle against the Beedrill swarm. A part of him gazed in awe at the sight of his bird companion standing up to the fierce threat for everyone else's sake. However, most of him looked on in horror as Nebula clearly began to fall victim to fatigue herself.

Feeling her strength wavering, nebula glowered in frustration, the flapping of her wings becoming slower and less intense. More Beedrill were advancing now, no longer held in place by the advancing wind. Those that were already advancing now began to do so faster, their resistance against the wind increasing as the strength of the wind simultaneously decreased. It was a war of attrition, and Nebula was tiring out much faster than any of her opponents.

Her mind thought back to just a few days ago. She had been beaten by Ash and Pikachu. Despite the fight that she had put up, they had prevailed, leaving her to be a part of their team after being caught. She had cooperated with them, accepting defeat, and given them a chance despite everything. Her opinion of them, however, had not yet been fully formed.

Pikachu had reached out to her that night, however, and the young Starly remembered her conversation with the mouse underneath the moon. It was… odd… opening up to the very creature that had caused her capture in the first place, but… Pikachu himself had even worked up the courage to talk with her despite their initial interaction being that of a battle.

And she had to admit, the mouse was quite impressive too. Not only had he beaten her, but he had also beaten that Pinsir, who certainly looked intimidating. He and Ash made a good team. And he would always eat next to her at mealtime, even sharing his food with her at one point, knowing that she liked the food better than he did. And after Valiant had joined the group, nothing had changed. He was still keeping her company, while Ash helped to ease in their new teammate. His sudden attempt to ride her had certainly been annoying, but he hadn't pulled anything else like that since. But he had, however, put time into interacting with her whenever he could. Even with how they had first met on that day.

Ash, to his credit, had provided her with good food, and didn't even confine her to her Poke Ball all the time when she didn't want it. He had expressed genuine concern for her after injuring herself against that Venonat yesterday, and had immediately gotten to work tending to her. He was also quite smart, which had helped her and Pikachu win their more challenging battles that required more than just smacking the opponent away.

Plus, unlike her and Pikachu, he actually had a goal in life, even if it sounded absurd. Become the strongest Trainer? Reach some big tournament in less than a year? It was preposterous!

So why did she… suddenly find herself intrigued by such a goal? Wondering if she had what it takes to do such a thing?

She had never felt that way before. She had never cared about how strong she was. So then, why did she now?

Why had these two individuals, this Trainer that had captured her, and his lightning shooting mouse companion, constantly enter her mind?

It was as though her indifference had started to... was it fading, perhaps?

And so too, was her fatigue.

As she suddenly remembered that she wasn't the only one in danger at the moment!

Her eyes lit up. Now bright red. Her body began to glow with an outline of the same color.

Ash's horror was replaced with shock, and then with intrigue, followed by confusion, as he witnessed what was happening to Nebula. Behind him, Pikachu and Valiant were both on their feet, the mouse still supporting the Ralts in his arms. Pikachu's eyes were wide with awe. Valiant's, although not visible, with shock.

The flapping of her wings intensified. First to its original level. And then beyond. The wind kicked up again. First at its former strength. And then, suddenly, at something far greater.

The Beedrill struggled. But they couldn't for long.

Ash, Pikachu, and Valiant watched in magnificent, jaw-slacked awe as their young bird companion sent the entire swarm flying over the horizon.

Trees were swaying in the intense gust that Nebula had created. Leaves were flying off the branches. Bushes were uprooted.

And then, as the threat disappeared off into the distance, Nebula's flapping slowed, and then ceased.

Ash felt a second surge of adrenaline flowing through him as the Starly fell out of the air. Diving to catch her, he felt relief course through his soul as she landed safely in his arms, and he maintained his grip on her even as he landed body first into the dirt with a thud.

He was filthy now. But he didn't care. Nebula was safe.

And so were they.

He did his best to ignore the pain in his lungs as he sat up on the ground, gently laying Nebula down on her back into the dirt. He looked down at the bird Pokemon as she panted in exhaustion.

Whatever had just happened had understandably taken a lot out of her.

"Nebula…" he said, trying to fight off his sense of speechlessness. "What was that?'

Nebula forced out a confused chirp. She was just as surprised as Ash and the others were. She really did not know.

And neither did Pikachu or Valiant, as the pair slowly made their way to their other two companions.

Valiant leaned against Ash's side as Pikachu knelt down in front of Nebula. A relieved smile spread across his face as Nebula locked eyes with him, and the small bird Pokemon returned the expression with one of her own.

"...Reckless…" all eyes turned to Ash as his eyes lit up in realization. "Your ability… it must have activated involuntarily because of the adrenaline! It saved us! You saved us, Nebula!"

Nebula, despite her fatigue, felt some elation overcoming her exhaustion. Nevertheless, she stayed on the ground. As Ash rose to his feet and patted Valiant's head in concern, she locked eyes with Pikachu again. Her beak remained in a smile, as he returned her expression with a cheerful grin that she would soon grow to perpetually adore.

Her yellow companion… no, her friend.

/

The group got some much needed reprieve afterwards.

With Ash carrying Nebula and Valiant in his arms, they eventually found a clearing, Pikachu trotting along by his side.

A small cabin stood in the center of the clearing, although it seemed to be vacant. Ash immediately rushed to it.

He wasn't sure how much rest they would need, but they would definitely be needing it nonetheless. Arriving at the cabin, he set his two teammates down and took off his backpack, rummaging through it.

First thing was first, he needed to heal them, and he needed some water.

Taking out a bottle of water for himself, he applied a potion to Valiant, the only one who had gotten hurt during the incident. Pikachu had come out of it unscathed, and, looking over Nebula, Ash realized that she wasn't injured and was merely tired.

The involuntary activation of her Reckless ability had left her completely spent, bringing about all of the inner reserves of her strength. Such reserves existed to prevent her from getting tired out too easily, as it did with all Pokemon, but, thanks to Reckless, she had used it up all at once. Not to mention that she may have already been beginning to feel tired beforehand, given how hard she was fighting.

The ability was definitely a double-edged sword. Sacrificing all sense of self-preservation in exchange for raw power. By letting loose all of your energy at once, while being much less weary of an opponent's attacks, or even the very idea of taking damage. The increase in physical capabilities and overall prowess in general was astronomical, but the drawbacks were inevitably just as much so.

Not to mention, the Ability was practically guaranteed to activate when using recoil moves like Double-Edge. Since moves like those already forgo self-preservation in favor of raw power, just merely using them was inviting the Reckless ability to activate and take hold, even if only for that one attack.

Normally, it took a great amount of skill and practice in order to be able to successfully call on the ability at will. The fact that Nebula had called upon the ability involuntarily was likely a direct result of her sheer adrenaline rush kicking things into overdrive, trying to repel the threat by any means necessary. Ash found it rather ironic that it was ultimately self-preservation that had led to the activation of an ability that deliberately forgoes such a thing.

It was almost like she no longer cared about self-preservation. Like she was fighting for something else entirely.

Once they reached Pewter, he hoped that he and Nebula would be able to train to activate the ability at will. But that was hardly what he was thinking about right now.

He was still gasping for air as he chugged down his water bottle. Even as the relief of tasting water in his thirsty mouth and throat overcame him, he still felt the fatigue and discomfort from the running. And he was still thirsty. Suddenly, the water must have gone down the wrong pipe, and he found himself coughing up a storm.

Gathering his bearings, he looked between his three teammates and took out another water battle. "Do any of you want one? Nebula, you might need it the most."

He wasn't sure how long they stayed at the cabin, but they needed a break. Nebula was returned to her Poke Ball after being convinced to drink some water by Ash and Pikachu, while Pikachu and Valiant, who were in better shape after Ash had healed the Ralts, remained outside, conversing with one another as an exhausted Ash leaned against the cabin. The young Trainer still wanted to clear some more ground today, but for now, all that he could think about was, above all else, how much that he wanted to rest up. They would stay here for at least a few hours. Gather their bearings. Then they could hit the road again when they were ready and set to go on again.

/

A few hours to catch his breath had actually done wonders for Ash and his psyche. It was reinvigorating. It had taken a while, with Ash spending much of his break either gasping for breath or still feeling the fatigue in his chest and lungs, but in the end, the reprieve had proved invaluable.

Ash vowed to improve his stamina the first chance he got as he strolled through the forest, Pikachu walking beside him on one side, and Valiant on the other. Nebula, who, much like Ash himself, was now fully rejuvenated and out of her Poke Ball, was flying overhead once again, sticking closer than usual and occasionally sparing a fond glance at the others.

The section of the forest that they were currently traveling through was slightly more open than most, with some of the trees parting to reveal the slowly turning orange sky of the sunset. It would be dusk soon, and they would have to set up camp.

But for now, Ash just wanted to get some final advancements in. If they couldn't leave the forest by tonight, then hopefully by tomorrow night.

Unfortunately, there was still one more encounter left before they could close out the day.

Instead of bursting out of the bushes, they came down from the trees.

Numerous Bug Catchers descended in front of the group, and apart from the one who tripped and fell upon landing, they actually seemed pretty intimidating doing it.

They had just entered an open area of the forest, where the path was much wider. Perfect for a battle, Ash realized. Gowling, Pikachu stepped forward as his cheeks began sparking, while Nebula landed slightly behind him at his side. Valiant stayed by Ash's side, and the boy glared a the Bug Catchers. There were more of them this time.

"Enough." Ash perked up at the new voice. It was female, and, even more so than the orange haired boy, sounded very cool headed and stoic.

In the back of the Bug Catchers, Kimberly stepped out from behind a large tree, her teal hair gently moving as she advanced. Her emerald eyes were fixated into a glare. Not an angry one, but a determined one nonetheless. Behind her, Feral emerged from behind yet another tree, syncing his own steps perfectly with hers.

One Bug Catcher stepped forward and spoke up, pointing a finger at Ash with a joyful guffaw.

"You thought you could humiliate all of us on our own turf, huh? Well the Big Net is here to show you what happens when you-"

"Enough." all words and movements from the Bug Catchers ceased as the leader raised a single hand, making her way to the front of the group and locking eyes with Ash. Feral was somewhat by her side, but still remained behind her.

Ash felt… uncomfortable under this girl's gaze. Her emerald eyes were fierce, yet calm. A weird kind of serenity, of tranquility, that still managed to be intimidating.

He heard a noise down at his feet. To his surprise, he looked down to see Valiant positively shaking at the sight of this newcomer, not taking his eyes off of the bug catcher leader as he immediately fled behind Ash, clinging to his legs in terror.

That certainly got Ash curious. Why was Valiant so scared of her? What was it about this new Bug Catcher that struck such fear into him?

Feral's arms were crossed professionally around his chest, while Kimberly's remained at her sides. When she spoke, her voice was so… cool headed. A confidence radiating from her that he could never even hope to match.

If she wasn't a Bug Catcher, Ash would have found the voice quite pretty. Her face certainly was. And those eyes…

But it barely even took a moment to dismiss that thought. These Bug Catchers were a bunch of delinquents that had made their lives a crapshow for the past few days. And most likely done the same to many other trainers as well. He hoped that Janine had fared a lot better than him although he was significantly less worried about Gary.

"You are… quite resilient, intruder from Pallet Town. Thanks to you, I had to reduce our mercenary's payment plan."

Ash's brow raised at that statement. Was she talking about the samurai kid? Then this was…

"So, you're in charge." he said matter of factly. He did his best to sound professional. To sound imposing. To rival her. To match her presentation. To make the conversation seem equal.

Problem was, he knew he hadn't managed. Was his voice shaking? He couldn't tell. He couldn't look weak in front of her. If this was their leader, then he had to look tough.

She crossed her arms in an action that matched that of Feral's. "What do you think?"

'Just give me a straight answer already, damnit!'

Valiant's fearful moaning increased in volume. Ash spared the young Ralts a glance and frowned curiously. Just what was it about this girl that terrified him so much?

She took a single step forward with each foot, although Feral remained in place. "Most trainers don't stay on our turf for this long. But you've quite literally been traveling through the very middle of the forest ever since you started. Are you antagonizing us?"

Ash growled. "Me? You're the ones who set up pit traps, ambushes, hired some lunatic to come after trainers, and caught my friend in a rope trap!" he gestured down to Valiant, who remained whimpering as his eyes refused to leave the leader.

Kimberly sighed, closing her eyes for a moment, before relocking her gaze with Ash's. "You were warned to turn back, and chose not to."

Ash gritted his teeth. Damn himself for not having any sense of direction. Had he taken any detours, his trip either would have lasted far longer, or he would've been forever lost. He bet Janine and Gary were both perfectly capable of finding their way around the forest, but sadly he wasn't them.

"What excuse does that give you to do what you did? If you have left us alone we could have passed here peacefully."

"Would you let just anyone venture into your backyard, intruder?"

Ash's brow furrowed. "This forest isn't yours-"

"Ah, but that's where you're wrong. This forest belongs to me. To all of us. And to us alone." she spread her arms out, but maintained her stoic expression as she tilted her head upwards, ever so slightly. "Viridian Forest is property of the Bug Catchers. And anyone else who crosses us is a trespasser who must compensate."

Ash took a slight step back in surprise, careful not to catch Valiant by surprise as the young Ralts continued to lean against his leg. This girl was crazy! She may have acted stoic, but at the end of the day, she spoke the same delusioned nonsense as the rest of them; just far more elegantly.

"Why do you waste your time causing trouble for people like this? You've practically made this your life."

"This forest is my life." Kimberly rebuked. She spared a split second to glance at her arm, which was rolled up into a sleeve quite neatly, before returning to Ash's own eyes. Everytime their eyes met, Ash found himself flinching, hoping the reaction hadn't been outwardly noticeable "My family is here. Viridian Forest is all that matters to me now." she stretched out her hand. "You have questioned our authority over the forest with your constant resistance. Nothing that we have tried has worked, so I'm dealing with you the old fashioned way."

"You'll battle me?" Valiant's fearful moaning had thankfully ceased for the time being, but he still remained just as scared as ever, as Pikachu and Nebula both took up fighting stances.

"It's quite simple, really." Kimberly's cool tone never left her voice. "If you beat my partner, I'll reward you by telling you how to get to Pewter, the fastest route." Ash perked up at that. "But if I win, and I will, I won't give you any directions, you will be escorted outside of our turf and have to navigate the forest by yourselves." She pointed a thumb to herself. "Otherwise, you could always just join us and use your strength to help train the rookies at our fort."

"That won't happen." Ash responded a bit too quickly.

"I see." she prepared herself. "Well then, it matters not. Either way, you will be leaving our turf tonight. Bug Catchers, formation!"

All bug catchers, barring Feral, scattered and parted. Instead of being directly behind their leader, they moved to the sides of the makeshift battlefield. To the outskirts. They were practically outlining the place.

With Feral following behind her, Kimberly turned around and made her way to the far side of the battlefield. As the duo stopped, she took a single step forward with a Poke Ball in hand.

Out of the bright flash of light emerged a purple moth that Ash, after a few quick seconds of pondering, recognized from a pamphlet detailing certain extoic Pokemon.

"I am Kimberly, the Big Net of the Bug Catchers, and I hereby challenge you." she spoke cooly, pointing forward at Ash and his team. "Dustox, prepare for battle."

The Dustox hovered over to the center of the battlefield, awaiting its opponent.

After a few seconds of consideration, Ash knelt down in front of Pikachu and Nebula.

"Pikachu," he spoke calmly, locking eyes with his Starter, trying to remain confident. "You've got this, right?"

With a determined glare, Pikachu nodded, returning Ash's gaze with his own. Hearing a chirp from behind him, the starter turned to see Nebula giving him a serious look. The mouse locked eyes with the Starly next, as she raised an encouraging wing to the electric rodent.

There was… camaraderie between them as Pikachu made his way onto the battlefield.

Cheeks sparking, voice growling, Pikachu's glaring eyes locked with that of his opponent, his gaze trying to pierce through Dustox in intimidation, even though it wasn't.

With no time wasted, Kimberly gave the first order. "Gust, Dustox!"

Dustox began flapping its wings vigorously, but unlike with Nebula, something different happened.

Gust was a very similar move to Whirlwind, but Ash immediately realized that Dustox was using it in a very different way than Nebula had used her move. It was concentrated. Rather than a gust of wind that spread throughout the battlefield, it was condensed into a single blast of wind, aimed directly at Pikachu like an attack. All of the force behind the wind was focused on a single target, which most likely did wonders for the move's offensive potential.

It occurred to Ash that Dustox must have trained quite a lot in order to gain such control and mastery over this technique. Could Nebula do the same?

Pikachu bolted out of the way with Quick Attack, quickly turning to charge at the moth head on, only for Dustox to fly upwards in evasion as Pikachu leapt into the air to try and slam into it. As Pikachu evaded the attack, the Gust slammed into the ground, where Pikachu once was just moments before, creating a small explosion of dirt.

There was definitely a lot of concentrated force behind that technique.

"Psybeam, Dustox!"

Pikachu tried to avoid the rainbow-colored beam that shot from the moth's eyes, but Dustox must have predicted how he'd dodge. As Pikachu moved out of the way, he had actually charged right into the beam's path, rather than away from it.

Nebula and Valiant both let out concerned cries as Pikachu tumbled onto the ground, his fur collecting dirt particles as he rolled across the battlefield. Finally regaining his bearings, Pikachu quickly found himself back on all fours again, sliding backwards from the force of the attack, his gaze glaring back up at the menacing Dustox.

Ash was worried now. Just how had Dustox predicted where Pikachu would move?

Shaking off the blow, Pikachu rushed forward again, gathering electricity in his cheeks as he fired off a Thunder Shock. Avoiding the blast, Dustox allowed a large series of poison needles to escape from its mouth, and Ash immediately recognized the technique as a Poison Sting.

Pikachu leapt over the attack and tried to strike at his opponent with Iron Tail, but Dustox was too fast and swerved out of the way. As Pikachu landed, the bug catcher leader gave her next order.

"Tackle!"

Before Pikachu could react, Dustox flew headfirst into the young mouse's side. Pikachu cried out as he abruptly flew forward, and soon his other side slammed into a nearby tree trunk. Slowly getting up, the rodent painfully clutched both of his aching sides; one from the tree trunk, and the other from where Dustox had slammed into him.

Lying on his back, the electric type attempted to get to his feet, only to be interrupted by a large string that suddenly wrapped around his tail. Using String Shot, Dustox pulled the screaming mouse backwards, dragging him across the dirt as the fur on Pikachu's back collected even more dirt as a result.

Ash snarled in frustration, a nervous sensation creeping into his chest. She was making them her playthings! They'd never win at this rate…

They had to fight back.

"Quick Attack!" he shouted. "Pull back the other way!"

Pikachu tried to flip himself over, eventually succeeding as he struggled to dig his paws into the dirt, desperately scrambling his two front paws in an effort to hold himself down and prevent the large moth from dragging him even further. He let out desperate shrieks as he did so, as his opponent continued to pull against him, eager to quell his resistance.

Feral turned to Kimberly, his fixation on the battle briefly broken. "He's desperate. I think you've got him soon if this keeps up."

The stoic girl nodded slowly, but kept her eyes on the moth and the mouse as the tug of war continued, Pikachu still trying to regain his footing as Dustox dragged him, but now being dragged much more slowly as he desperately attempted to put up a fight.

"Things will end soon." she tilted her head up towards Dustox. "Poison Sting!"

With Pikachu struggling against the string, Dustox fired off the needles yet again. Suddenly, Pikachu finally found his footing, and successfully used Quick Attack. He ran away from the needles, pulling Dustox along with him. But the large moth Pokemon quickly regained its bearings and struggled against Pikachu's resistance, slowly pulling the mouse back as Pikachu once again found himself struggling to maintain his balance.

Ash clenched his fists. Pikachu was fighting hard, and they couldn't let that go to waste.

"Come one, Pikachu! You can do it!"

From behind him, he could hear Valiant letting out cries of encouragement, while Nebula's chirps were the noisiest that he'd ever heard from her before, the small bird Pokemon pumping her wing high in the air as her voice called out with great volume.

Pikachu eventually found his footing again and resisted Dustox's mighty pull. For what felt like a few minutes, the two of them went back and forth, before Pikachu finally barreled forward, the full force of his Quick Attack finally overcoming Dustox as the moth Pokemon was abruptly sent flying in Pikachu's direction.

Ash pumped his fist up. This was their chance. "Iron Tail!"

Instinctively boosting his speed with Quick Attack, Pikachu immediately changed directions, sliding backwards across the dirt as he planted his paws firmly into the ground, right before propelling himself forward with the speed he could muster to increase the force behind the blow, aiming his attack right at Dustox.

BAM!

The metallic tail slammed into Dustox's front, sending the large moth Pokemon flying back first into a nearby tree trunk with a loud cry of pain. The momentum from being forced to fly right into the Iron Tail had almost certainly worsened the blow for their opponent. As Dustox fell to the ground, it let out a mighty flap of its wings to regain its bearings, briefly hovering above the ground for a moment before rising back up and into the air.

Kimberly was undeterred, however. "Rapid fire Psybeam!"

Despite the pain from the blow, the Dustox was quite durable. Ignoring the small bruise on its front, it began firing a series of multicolored beams at Ash's young mouse companion, Pikachu scrambling out of the way to dodge.

The beams were… aimed carefully. Everytime Pikachu dodged in one direction, he would immediately have to dodge in the opposite direction. Closed off, going from side to side, unable to do anything else.

How long could Dustox keep this up before tiring out? How long could Pikachu keep this up before tiring out or losing his balance?

The Psybeams created small explosions of dirt each time they connected with the ground.

Ash gritted his teeth. No time to counterattack. Pikachu was just playing right into the Dustox's little dance, with no other choice.

What… did they do?

This girl was the leader of the most despicable group of people that he had ever met. Even more so than Gary and his friends. Her group was unbearable in every sense of the word. But she was good.

"I usually think back to my Conference win when considering that stuff. That final match was pretty brutal at times, but whenever my team and I were placed in an undesirable position, we always found a way out. And then struck back with ten times the force. It was how we won." Karen's voice from an interview just prior to the League Rush, when asked about what it was like to overcome seemingly hopeless situations, suddenly entered his mind.

Finally, the slowly tiring out Pikachu dodged just a little bit too slowly. The dirt explosion from the Psybeam that he had just narrowly avoided created a small shockwave, just barely enough to knock the mouse off balance, and Ash gasped as his electric companion tumbled around in the dirt.

"Silver Wind!"

It was like Gust, but the wind was glowing a bright, shiny glow. The concentrated blast of wind slammed headfirst into Pikachu, sending the screaming mouse flying backwards from the mighty impact.

Nebula shrieked out in horror as Pikachu slammed head first into a tree trunk, landing on his side, blood leaking out from the bruised cut on his head.

Was it… over?

Pikachu was trying to get up, while Dustox was trying to gather its bearings. Kimberly confidently stood still, arms crossed across her chest, while Feral looked on silently.

The Bug Catchers cheered.

Pikachu struggled to his feet, but was forced to lean back first against the tree trunk even as he finally, successfully stood up, clutching the painful cut on the top of his head with a single paw. Tears began leaking from his eyes as he gritted his teeth in pain.

Ash's gaze went to the ground as he desperately tried to think of something, anything, that could potentially turn this around for them.

What to do? Do they quit? Pikachu certainly didn't seem to want to.

Pikachu pushed himself off of the tree trunk as Nebula's concerned cries traveled across the battlefield and into his ears. Ash could hear Valiant letting out some encouraging shouts of his own from behind him.

Pikachu's teammates were still cheering him on. And so would he.

"Pikachu!" Ash called out. The mouse turned his attention towards his new trainer. "It's not over yet! You can still do this! We can still do this!" Nebula and Valiant both cried out the affirmative.

Feral sighed. "Too stubborn, they are. Guess that explains why they gave us so much trouble."

Kimberly lowered her crossed arms from her chest and onto her sides. Pointing forward, she glared ahead at the battlefield with unmatched intensity. "It matters not. This is going to be over now. Dustox! Finish this up!"

"Pikachu! Run around the battlefield using Quick Attack! Don't advance yet! Keep your distance!" A last minute strategy born from either desperation or creativity. Whichever one it was, Ash had no idea.

Ignoring the pain as best he could, Pikachu bolted around the makeshift battlefield as the blood trailed down his head.

The bug catcher leader continued pointing forward, her index finger trailing the mouse. "Poison Sting, Dustox! Aim for the cut on Pikachu's head!"

Dozens upon dozens of purple needles assaulted the battlefield as Dustox chased the dashing mouse, Pikachu just barely being able to avoid each of them.

Zigzagging across the battlefield, Pikachu took in Nebula's encouragement, Ash's encouragement, Valiant's encouragement.

It all empowered him.

Before, he was the small one among Pokemon that were constantly aggressive. He was powerless against him. And then he had been transported to the Lab to be a Starter Pokemon. Clefable was nice, but Ash was demanding. Gary was awful. Squirtle had beaten him up and left him humiliated and bruised. The mouse couldn't imagine anything worse.

Then he and Ash continued to bicker. And then the Spearow incident happened.

But something had… changed then.

Ash's sorrow, and desire to protect him. They had all been new to him. And then at the Pokémon Center, when those obnoxious Team Rocket goons had attacked, he had taken a leap of faith against the Meowth, trusting in Ash's judgment against a Pokemon that was trying to kill him. And it had all paid off in the end.

Ever since then, Ash had shown nothing but dedication, and a sincere promise to become stronger. Along with a request for a fresh start.

Nebula allowed him to eat next to her every night, even listening to him when he had wanted to talk, and now she had saved all of them from that terrifying Beedrill swarm.

He wanted to make friends for once. To be strong enough to protect himself. To no longer be helpless and weak against aggressors.

These past few days, while horrid because of the forest and the Bug Catchers, had shown him that that might actually be possible. He just needed to stick with his trainer. Stick with his team.

And win this fight.

"Pikachu! Charge up Thunder Shock! But don't fire just yet!"

Kimberly. "What are you up to?"

Pikachu complied, confused by the order, but trusting in his trainer's judgment once again. It was a struggle, due to the pain, and the effort that it took to maintain Quick Attack. But soon, the electricity was flowing perfectly through his cheeks.

"Charge forward, Pikachu!"

Pikachu abruptly rushed Dustox, who, despite being surprised by the sudden attack, flew out of the way.

But Ash was already prepared.

"Fire! NOW!"

The Thunder Shock sizzled out of Pikachu's body as he flew past Dustox. The close proximity allowed the lightning bolt to strike the moth head on, the large moth screaming in pain as the electricity assaulted his body.

"WHAT?!" Kimberly gasped in awe. Feral gritted his teeth from behind her.

"Gain some distance!" Ash was pressing on the momentum now. The opposing Dustox was still covered in static, struggling to remain afloat after the painful, point-blank shock. It was time to end this. "Try using Spark and Iron Tail at once! Build up speed with Quick Attack and finish Dustox off!"

"Psybeam, Dustox!" Kimberly was quick to respond.

But Pikachu avoided the final attack and complied to his trainer's orders. Thanks to the electricity from Thunder Shock, Dustox had been having a harder time getting the attack out as quickly as before.

Pikachu surrounded himself with the electricity of Spark as he continued to run forward. At the same time, however, the metallic energy of Iron Tail covered his tail.

"Try combining the attacks!" Ash called out.

Briefly, Pikachu looked back at his Trainer with a nod, before turning his attention back to his opponent.

"Go! Now!"

Rushing forward, Pikachu barreled on over towards Dustox. As he sped across the battlefield, dirt was kicked up in his wake. The electricity from Spark, initially surrounding his body, began to gather around at his tail. Soon, the Iron Tail was crackling with lightning, channeled by Pikachu's now metallic tail.

A combined attack that had been born from either desperation, determination, or creativity. Even years later, Ash would never be able to truthfully guess which one that it was. Because even then, not even he knew. And neither did his team.

As he approached Dustox, Pikachu let out a mighty battle cry, ready to finish this once and for all. Aiming right for the bruise that Dustox had received from the previous Iron Tail.

The impact was deafening, and spread across the battlefield. Dirt nearby began to fly around from the massive shockwave that was being produced by Pikachu's final attack.

And Dustox was sent sailing towards a nearby tree trunk with a loud scream. Another powerful impact occurred as it slammed into that tree. A large dent was left on the trunk as Dustox fell to the ground with a thud, landing on its side and rolling ever so slightly until it was laying down on its back. It stated there, motionless and bruised from the battle.

It did not get up.

The adrenaline wore off as Pikachu collapsed towards the dirt, catching himself in his paws. As the Bug Catchers' shocked gasps filled the area, their leader returned her Dustox with a red beam of light.

Pressing the Poke Ball against her cheek, she let out a sigh.

"You were extraordinary, thank you." she spoke softly, but never lost her cool tone, even then.

The commentary from the Bug Catcher Gang began to fill the air.

"The Big Net's been beaten!"

"But how?"

"He must have cheated!"

Ash grimaced.

Even now, even far from home, whenever he did something impressive, it was always considered cheating.

His gaze shifted over to Pikachu, panting on the ground, desperately trying to catch his breath. As Nebula made her way over to the small mouse, Ash saw her wrap her wing behind his back, pulling him up and leaning the mouse against her side for support.

The young Trainer could not stop the smile that spread across his lips.

As mouse and bird exchanged looks, and smiles, the sound of footsteps stole Ash's attention as Kimberly and Feral approached him, stopping a few feet away. Behind them, the rest of the Bug Catchers gathered.

"I… don't know what to say… honestly." her cool tone of voice was only slightly compromised as she locked eyes with him yet again. "Dustox has brilliant aim, thanks to his Compound Eyes ability. And yet… not even that was enough today."

Ash had felt Valiant clinging to him even more tightly as the cool-headed girl had approached, but reached down to pat the young Ralts's head in comfort. Valiant eased up just a little bit, but still remained wary.

"You lost." said Ash blankly, his tone slightly more confident than before. It had been a hard-fought battle, but with the combination of Pikachu's tenacity and the rest of his team's cheering, it had all ended in success. "You'll keep your end of the deal now, right?"

Nebula looked up at the group, eying them carefully along with Pikachu.

She crossed her arms with a sigh. "I have not forgotten the terms of our battle, intruder, but first…" to Ash's surprise, she dug into her pocket and pulled out a very notably large amount of cash. Reaching out her hand, she said "This is for you."

Ash took the money and stashed it away, eying the Bug Catcher leader carefully.

"Now, then." She pointed forward in a different direction. "The path that you are going down now will still take you another two or three days or so to get to Pewter City. Going this way, you'll be there in about a day or so."

Ash raised a brow. "You sure about that?"

"Nobody is a better expert on this forest than I. Except for one particular being." Ash was confused by the reply, but didn't press.

Kimberly crossed her arms. "Now then, your end of the bargain is to leave. The rest of the Bug Catchers will not harass you anymore, so don't come back here."

Ash inwardly breathed a sigh of relief at that.

The leader looked between Ash's teammates. "You have a strong Trainer."

"Ashy boy would never make it as a Trainer. He wouldn't even throw a Poke Ball right anyway.'' The compliment clashed with the memory of Gary's voice.

Ash didn't let his guard down, but still took the time to respond. "Your Dustox was pretty strong too."

"I know," she said coolly. "But I'm too busy to converse anymore. Just get out of my forest."

Nodding, Ash turned to Pikachu. "How are you holding up?"

The mouse was still being supported by Nebula, but tried to give Ash a thumbs up.

Kimberly turned to her crew as she spoke up. "Bug Catchers! We're leaving!"

As they followed her out of the forest, Feral lingered behind slightly. Turning to Ash, he locked eyes with him briefly.

"I'll admit you were stronger than us, intruder, but don't let that go to your head. Next time, I will be prepared."

He was gone after that.

Ash watched the Bug Catchers leave with some conflicted thoughts as they disappeared into the darkness of the forest. By now, the sky above was completely orange, and it would be dusk soon.

Most of them were annoying, obnoxious, and not nearly as strong as they had hyped themselves up to be, but Ash knew that the same couldn't be said for all of them. Their leader and the orange haired boy had both proven themselves to be quite formidable, at the very least.

Turning his full attention onto his team, Ash kneeled down.

Placing a gentle hand on Pikachu's head, but being careful to avoid the bruise, Ash locked eyes with his Starter. "You were amazing, Pikachu, like always."

Pikachu blushed a little bit at that, as Nebula smiled at him brightly. Ash looked between Nebula and Valiant next, and spoke to them.

"You two as well," he said. "Nebula, Valiant, thanks for cheering him on so much."

Valiant was calming down a bit now that bug catchers were gone, and smiled shyly at the comment. Nebula beamed proudly.

/

The group had started down the path before setting up camp for the night.

Ash had tended to Pikachu's wounds, with Nebula refusing to leave the young mouse's side until he was back on his feet and good as normal again.

Valiant still stuck by Ash's side at dinner during camp, while Pikachu and Nebula ate together as usual. Ash's assumption was that the mouse and bird duo were discussing the battle from earlier.

They had risen early the next morning to get a head start. The bug catcher leader had been true to her word: None from their group antagonized them for the whole day. It was just a free, quiet day of nonstop walking. Valiant was still nervous about something, but the thought of leaving the forest seemed to increase his morale. Pikachu ran ahead a little bit, with Nebula flying overhead as per usual.

And as the sun began to set, Ash could notice the trees parting. It was the opposite of when they had entered the forest.

And by the time that the moon and stars were high in the sky, they found themselves a beautiful scene as the vegetation began to give way for a much more clear path.

And Ash could feel the tears of joy welling up in his eyes at the sight of Pewter City.

The forest towered over them from behind, as they overlooked the city, the path ahead of them going downwards in order to reach it. Nebula was perched upon a rock as the group looked over the buildings in the very near distance.

They were just on the outskirts of both Pewter City and Viridian Forest. Those down there, in the city, could probably see the tall trees up above because of just how close that the two places were.

"We… made it everybody." Ash wiped the tears away as he pumped his fists up. "Alright! No more Viridian Forest!"

The Pokemon cheered along with him.

"Our first Gym Battle is down there everyone! And so is civilization! Let's get to the Pokemon Center quickly!"

Pikachu hopped up onto the rock next to Nebula as the two exchanged excited cries. Suddenly, they both took off, Pikachu bolting down the path while Nebula flew on after him, both of them yelling and chirping excitedly, as if they were trying to race each other to the Pokemon Center.

Ash gasped. "Hey, wait up you two!" he looked down towards Valiant. 'We better go catch up to them fast!" Not wanting to be left behind, the two of them dashed down after their two companions.

As the group closed in on Pewter City nearby, Ash Ketchum's first week as a Pokemon trainer came to an end.

It wasn't a week that he or his teammates would ever forget anytime soon, either. Before, a simple duo consisting of an ordinary human boy and a single Pikachu had been what entered the forest. However, six days worth of traveling had caused that same duo to grow into a group of four.

And with the many trials and hardships that had been faced from within the forest, this same group had officially taken its first steps to becoming a family.

Next Chapter: Cracking Rocks

Ash and his trio of Pokemon have finally arrived at Pewter City, a city laced with history from within the Indigo Empire. Their first Gym Battle awaits them here, but the Pewter City Gym is at a level far higher than anything else that they have faced up to this point. In preparation for the grueling battle ahead of them, Ash subjects his team to a week's worth of intense Training, to hone their bodies, and their skills, for the trials that were to come ahead.