Welcome back, everyone! Just so you know, I'm still getting used to how this website works, so my stories may seem a little wonky at first. Also, I decided to follow Gamefreak's recent trend of basing regions off of real-world places, so I chose one, big country to serve as the main inspiration for Ralia. I dare you guys to guess what it is.

In the Kalos region, Serena was beginning to pack her things to prepare for her big trip to the Kanto region. She packed some credits into her bag, and stashed her extra clothes into her suitcase.

"C'mon, Serena!" Grace said, walking into the room. "You plane's going to leave in an hour!"

"I'm almost ready," said Serena. "Just trying to pick out my hat. What do you think, this one or this one?"

Serena showed her mother two hats, one blue and one pink. "I kind of like pink," said Grace.

"Great!" said Serena, putting the pink hat on her bed and putting on the blue one.

"I'm sorry," said Grace, "do you not trust my fashion advice?"

"Sorry," Serena said, "but you know we have very different tastes in clothes."

At this point, Serena was dressed in a black skirt, had red boots and jacket, a blue shirt hiding underneath, and had done her hair into a ponytail.

"Well," said Grace, "if you're ready, we've got to go."

At the Lumiose Airport, final calls were being made for the the next flight to Kanto. Serena and her mother were struggling to push through the many people in their way.

"Well," said Grace, "here's your ticket. Tell Ash I said hello."

Serena took the ticket from her mother and quickly wrapped her in a hug. "Thanks, Mom," she said. "I'll be back! Now you know how to care for Braixen, Pancham, and Sylveon, right?"

"Of course, I have the list right here!" said Grace. "Now go, or they'll leave without you!"

"Right. thanks, Mom!" said Serena as she ran to join the other people boarding the plane. Once she was finally aboard and was seated, she looked out the window as the plane rose from the ground, taking off until Kalos became just a speck of dust in her eyes.

Serena relaxed in her seat, thinking about what she'd do when she arrived. She had only been to Kanto once for Oak's summer camp, and she couldn't help but wonder what else was there. But before that, she wondered what would happen when she saw Ash again. She wondered what he'd been up to since now, and wondered…

...if he'd remember their last encounter.

Serena suddenly smiled, knowing that seeing Ash again would all be worth it.

It seems like Serena is only too excited to see her friend Ash again, but by the looks of it, she may have arrived too late.

"Good luck, Ash!" said Delia.

"Have fun!" waved Oak.

"Tell the professor I said hello!" said Tracy.

Ash, Pikachu, and RotomDex all waved back at Delia, Oak, and Tracy as the boat was slowly beginning to pull away from the dock at Vermillion City. "See you later, guys!" said Ash. "We'll be back!"

"Pika pi!" said Pikachu.

"So long," said RotomDex.

As soon as the dock disappeared, Ash walked away from the edge and began looking at a map of the Ralia region he bought from the ship's employees. He quickly located Coastport City.

"Hey, RotomDex," said Ash, "what can you tell me about Coastport City?"

"Well," said RotomDex, "I know that is the largest boating harbor in all of Ralia. Boats and ferries from everywhere come to Coastport City to ship goods in and out.

"Coastport City is also the largest city in all of Ralia. It is known for having hundreds of facilities on the same street."

"Sounds really cool," said Ash. "What do you know about Ralia as a whole?"

"There are many different biomes that various types of Pokémon like to live in, like a desert, jungle, mountain range, or even a tundra. They are able to live in balance along the nearby, human-built cities."

"Man, Ralia sounds so cool!" said Ash. "I can't wait to get there!" Suddenly, a sudden gust of wind blew the map out of Ash's hand. He chased after it to grab it from the air, but it landed at the feet of a red-haired lady.

"Sorry, ma'am," Ash said as he picked the map back up. "Wind blew it out of my hands."

"That's quite alright, son," the lady said.

As Ash walked away, he couldn't help but look back at the lady for another second. She looks really familiar. Ash thought.

As he began to walk away, the lady and her two friends, lowered the magazines in front of their faces. They grinned evilly and were revealed to be Jessie, James, and Meowth.

Who's that Pokémon?

When this Pokémon evolves, it sheds the steel carapace that covered its whole body and develops a new one.

"There it is," said Serena, "Pallet Town." She began walking all the way down the hill and closer to the small town standing in the distance. Eventually, as she finally entered into the town, she felt something wiggling in her bag. Curious, she looked down and opened it up, but was surprised to see a PokéBall in it.

"I don't understand," she said to herself. "I left all my Pokémon with Mom."

She decided to pull it out of her bag and press the button on the front. The ball opened in a white flash, which transformed into her Braixen.

"Braixen, brai!" Braixen called out.

"Braixen!" Serena exclaimed. "What are you doing here? I thought I left you with Mom."

Braixen just smiled smugly as it remembered how, when Serena wasn't looking, Braixen stuck its PokéBall into her bag, then pushed the button to hide inside of it.

Serena sighed and let her head fall to the side. "Great, I can't send you back now, so I guess you'll just have to visit with me."

"Braixen," Braixen nodded, smiling.

Suddenly, Serena noticed three people walking back to the building she knew was Professor Oak's lab. She recognized one of them as Professor Oak himself, another she recognized as Ash's mother, Delia. Smiling, Serena decided to follow them inside.

"He left?" Serena said, shocked. She had been talking to Delia, Oak, and Tracy for a few minutes now, and was surprised when they told her that Ash was running an errand in the Ralia region.

"We're sorry, Serena," said Delia, "we didn't know you were coming all this way."

"Do you know when he'll be back?" asked Serena.

"Not sure," said Oak.

Serena looked backed at Braixen standing next to her, who looked at her with a determined expression and said, "Braixen, braixen."

Serena nodded, gaining her own face of determination. "You're right, we've come this far." She turned back to Oak, Delia, and Tracy. "Do you know when the next boat to Ralia is leaving?"

"Here we are!" said Ash. "Coastport City!"

Coastport City was large, to say the least. Multiple, three-story buildings lined up the streets, occasionally interrupted by grocery stores, Pokémon Centers, shopping marts, and restaurants. Right now, Ash, Pikachu, and RotomDex were on their way to the largest building in Coastport City: the sailboat-like building that was actually Professor Acacia's lab.

Upon entering the establishment, the trio found that it was very spacious on the inside, and was very technologically advanced. All over the place, there were scientists carrying various Pokémon around, either studying them or taking care of injured ones. There was a pool for Water Types to swim in, a small garden where some Grass Type Pokémon were resting, and a small, cavern made from plastic rocks where some Rock Types were coming in and out.

"This place is so cool!" Ash gushed. "Hey, RotomDex, what do you know about the kind of work here?"

"Not much, actually," RotomDex admitted. "I only know how to find it."

"Excuse me," said a brown-haired woman wearing glasses approaching them. "Can I help you boys with something?"

"Yeah," said Ash, "We were hoping to speak to Professor Acacia? I have a special delivery for him."

Ash pulled out the case from behind him and opened it to show off the Pokémon eggs inside. The woman peered inside and said, "Ah, so Professor Oak has sent them back, huh? Well, I'm afraid you just missed the Professor. He actually left for his family's new home in Greymill Town. He wanted to help them get settled into their new house."

"Do you know when he'll be back?" said Ash. The woman just shrugged.

Ash kicked the ground. It's too bad. I was kind of hoping for a tour of this lab from him."

"If you'd like, I can show you around," the woman said. "I'm actually the Professor's assistant, Stacey. Here, we examine the diversity of different Types of Pokémon, and study their differing behavior. Would you like to see it?"

Ash looked up and grinned. "Sure!"

Ash, Pikachu, and RotomDex were now wandering the darkened streets. "Well, that lab was really cool to see," Ash said, "but we better find our way to Greymill Town. We need to get these eggs to the Professor soon."

"Allow me," said RotomDex. A map pulled up on his screen, and he began calculating the fastest route to Greymill Town. "According to my calculations," he said, "The fastest route recommends that we walk a four day trail."

"Four days?!" Ash exclaimed. "We'll never catch the Professor in time."

"Hey, you!" called a nearby voice. Ash, Pikachu, and RotomDex turned their heads to notice a purple-haired young man in a purple vest. "I haven't seen you around here before," he said. "Are you new in town?"

"Well, not really," Ash said. "I'm just here on an errand. I'm Ash, this is Pikachu, and this is RotomDex."

"Greetings!" said RotomDex.

"Pikachu!" greeted Pikachu.

"Pleasure to meet you," said the man. "I'm sure you've heard of me though!"

Ash tilted his head. "No, I'm sorry," he said. "I've never seen you before."

The man looked shocked. "My name is Vernon. Only four years ago, I was the most popular movie star in all of Ralia!"

"Nope, still nothing," said RotomDex.

Vernon groaned. "So what're you doing here?" asked Ash.

"Admittedly, I've been looking for a new acting gig," Vernon sighed, "but I guess no one wants to hire me anymore."

"Really? I'm sorry, Vernon," said Ash. Suddenly, Ash's eyes noticed a PokéBall on Vernon's belt. "Hey, are you a Pokémon trainer?"

Vernon grinned. "You could say that."

"I'd really like to see the kind of Pokémon Ralia has to offer. How about a battle?" Ash offered.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu said with determination.

Vernon grinned again. "Very well."

Later, Ash and Vernon were standing on opposite ends of a parking lot. "Pikachu, I choose you!" Ash declared.

"Pika!" Pikachu rejoiced as it jumped off of Ash's shoulder to face Vernon on the other side of the battlefield.

"Then my Pokémon will be this," said Vernon. He pulled off the PokéBall on his belt and threw it in the air. It opened and released a flash of white light which transformed into a Pokémon. It was colored purple, seemed to be made entirely of gelatin, was shaped like a small battery, and had tentacles shaped like electric cables.

"What is that Pokémon?" Ash asked. RotomDex scanned the Pokémon and revealed a 3D, rotating, holographic image of the Pokémon in front of it.

"Floattery, the Shock Pokémon. An Electric and Poison Type. Floatterys had no biological brains, and mostly just float aimlessly around in the ocean water. However, they are capable of acting on their own, and wrap their electric tentacles around their prey or attackers to deliver a jolt that later leaves them in a poisoned state. Evolves into Jelloater at Level 25."

"I've never seen an Electric and Poison Type before," Ash said.

"Well, Ralia is a great place for Pokémon biodiversity," Vernon said. "Now then, shall we begin?"

"Of course!" said Ash.

BATTLE BEGIN!

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!" Ash commanded.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu shouted as it agilely ran at Floattery, outlined in white.

"Dodge it, Floattery," Vernon said. Floattery stayed in place for a second, but once Pikachu was close, it floated up into the air.

"Now use Acid!"

Floattery aimed one of its tentacles and spewing violet liquid in Pikachu's direction. Unfortunately, Pikachu turned around too late and was blasted by the poison.

"Shake it off, Pikachu!" Ash said. "Use Iron Tail!"

Pikachu leaped into the air as its tail turned metallic silver, and it poised to strike its opponent before…

"Use Acid Armor!" called Vernon.

"Floattery!" Floattery called out as its body turned to a watery-like state, allowing Pikachu's tail to phase right through it.

"Now use Wrap!" said Vernon.

Pikachu cried out as Floattery wrapped its tentacles around Pikachu's body. It squeezed harder, causing Pikachu to feel even more damage being taken.

"Hang in there, Pikachu!" Ash said.

"Now use Thundershock!" said Vernon.

"Float-ter-y!" Floattery called as it lit up Pikachu's body with electricity. However, Ash suddenly got an idea.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail and stick it into the ground!"

"Pika!" Pikachu said as its tail lit up again and dug its tail into the ground. As a result, the electricity coming from Floattery was dispersed into the ground.

Vernon grinned. "Not bad."

"Now use Volt Tackle!" said Ash.

Pikachu pulled its tail out of the ground, and its entire body lit up with electricity until it was cloaked in one big, yellow arrow. The electricity forced Floattery to release Pikachu as its opponent charged up into the sky and came back down on Floattery's head.

"Floattery…" Floattery muttered, dazed from the impact. "Now use Iron Tail again!" it heard Ash called out. It didn't even have time to recover before Pikachu's metal tail was brought down on its head.

"Your Pikachu's pretty tough, I'll admit," said Vernon. "I've never felt so engaged with a battle."

"Well, your Floattery's pretty good, too," Ash admitted. "You've trained it well."

Vernon grinned again. "Floattery, use Headbutt!"

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack!" said Ash.

Both Pokémon began to perform their respective moves before charging at each other. Suddenly, however, a large net came out from above, wrapping them up and dragging them into the air.

"Pika!"

"Float!"

"Hey, what gives!" said Vernon, looking up with his fists clenched.

"No," said Ash, "it couldn't be!"

"Prepare for trouble, you know well who it is!" said Jessie, making her entrance.

"And make it double, nabbing Pokémon is our show biz!" said James, now showing himself.

"To protect the world from devastation."

"To unite all people within our nation."

"To denounce the evils of truth and love."

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

"Jessie!"

"And James!"

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"

"Surrender now or prepare for a fight!"

"Meowth, that's right!" said Meowth jumped in between them.

"Wobbuffet!" called Wobbuffet, peering out from behind Jessie.

"Mime, mime!" said Mime Jr., hopping onto James's head.

It's Aron!

"Not you guys again!" groaned Ash.

"Who are they?" asked Vernon, glaring in Team Rocket's direction.

"Team Rocket," said Ash. "They're bad guys who steal other people's Pokémon! And they're always following me everywhere just to nab Pikachu!"

"Ha!" Jessie laughed. "This is about more than just catching Pikachu now."

"Thanks to you, twerp, the three of us have become a laughing stock among Team Rocket," said James.

"We're gonna get even with you for all the times you've made fools out of us if it's the last thing we do!" said Meowth.

Pikachu started using Thunderbolt to try and break the net, but was met with poor results.

"Haven't you learned by now?" said Jessie. "All of our traps for you will be electric-proof."

"Well," said Vernon. "Let's see if it's acid-proof. Floattery, use Acid!"

Floattery began spewing acid from it tentacles again, quickly dissolving the net and setting itself and Pikachu free. Both Pokémon jumped back in front of their trainers, with determined looks.

"You know," said James. "Perhaps we should think about making our traps immune to all Pokémon."

"Doesn't matter," said Jessie, pulling out a PokéBall. "Time for phase two!"

"Right!" James nodded as he pulled out his own PokéBall. "Say, twerp! We have some old friends here that want to reintroduce themselves to you."

Jessie and James threw their PokéBalls, and out came two, familiar-looking Pokémon. Jessie's was a long, purple, snake-like creature with razor-sharp fangs, a short hood along its neck, and black-and-yellow marking on its head. James's Pokémon was a three-headed creature, with one head looking sad, another looking asleep, and the one in the middle looking angry. It was purple and black, and the middle head had two holes on the top of its head emitting gases.

"Napiat!" said Jessie's Pokémon.

"Choaking!" said James's Pokémon.

RotomDex decided to scan these new Pokémon. First scanning Jessie's Pokémon, he said, "Napiat, the Poison Snake Pokémon. A Poison and Dark type. Napiats like to hide in the undergrowth of swampy areas, and ambush prey by injecting them with a dizzying venom. The venom is enough to put even a Wailord out of commission. Evolves from Arbok when traded with holding a Poison Barb."

Moving onto James's Pokémon, he said, "Choaking, the Toxic Gas Pokémon. A Poison and Fire Type. Choakings can emit flammable, poisonous gases into the air, then ignite them with fiery emissions. It must live in polluted areas, as it grows stronger the more poisonous air it inhales. Evolves from Weezing when traded while holding a Charcoal."

"They evolve from Arbok and Weezing?" said Ash. "Does that mean…"

"That's right, twerp!" said Jessie. "These are the same Arbok and Weezing from years ago!"

"Interestingly enough," said James, "some other Team Rocket operatives found them on a mission and brought them back to us."

"Then they evolved when these two accidentally dropped them into a trading machine shortly after recapturing them," Meowth groaned.

"Oh, hush!" said Jessie. "Napiat, use Venoshock!"

"And Choaking," said James, "use Sludge Bomb!"

Team Rocket's Pokémon prepared to use their respective moves and aimed them towards Pikachu and Floattery.

"Dodge it!" yelled Ash and Vernon simultaneously. Pikachu and Floattery jumped out of the way of the attacks and were then commanded to use Iron Tail and Thundershock. Pikachu brought its metallic tail down on Choaking's head, and Floattery zapped Napiat with its electricity.

"Now use Electro Ball!" Ash commanded.

"Use Headbutt!" said Vernon.

The end of Pikachu's tail glowed as it formed a ball of electricity, which it flung at Napait's head. Floattery slammed its head into Choaking, knocking it back.

"Yes!" Ash and Vernon said.

"We're not finished yet!" said James. "Choaking, use Smog!"

"Choa-king!" cried out Choaking, who spewed black smog from the holes on its head, blinding Pikachu and Floattery.

"Now Napiat, use Constrict!" Jessie said.

Once the smog cleared, Ash and Vernon could see that Napiat had wrapped its long body around their Pokémon, and had its tails dug into the ground. Ash growled believing that Team Rocket had witnessed his and Vernon's battle and stole his strategy.

"It's over now!" said Jessie. "Napiat, use Poison Fang!"

"Napiat!" said Napiat, whose fangs glowed purple as it inched closer to the helpless Pokémon in its grip. Suddenly, however, a torrent of flames scorched its face, causing it to wail in pain and drop Pikachu and Floattery.

Everyone looked to the side in confusion, but Ash was shocked to see Serena standing a few feet away from them, with Braixen standing in front of them, holding out a smoking stick.

"Serena?" Ash said.

"Isn't that the twerpette from Kalos?" said James.

"What is she doing here?" questioned Meowth.

Serena and Braixen walked up to join Ash and Vernon, and Serena said, "These guys are still giving you trouble, Ash? Then let's take 'em out together!"

Ash grinned and nodded before saying, "Right." He turned to Pikachu before saying "Pikachu use Thunderbolt!"

"Braixen, use Fire Blast!" said Serena.

"Floattery, you use Acid!" said Vernon.

The three Pokémon charged up their attacks before launching them in Napiat and Choaking's direction. The force was so great, it launched the Pokémon back into Jessie, James, Meowth, Wobbuffet, and Mime Jr., launching them all back into the sky.

"Well," groaned Meowth, "feels good to be back it the old routine again."

"I don't even care about getting blasted off," said Jessie, who was hugging her Pokémon, "as long as I'm reunited with my beloved Napiat!"

"Wobbuffet!" Wobbuffet agreed.

"And I'm glad it have you by my side again, Choaking!" James declared, also embracing his Pokémon.

"Mime, mime!" Mime Jr came up beside them.

"WE'RE BLASTING OFF AGAIN!" they all said.

"We did it!" cheered Vernon. He turned to Serena. "All thanks to you!"

"I can't believe you're here, Serena!" Ash said.

Serena grinned. "Surprise!" she said.

Looks like Serena has finally found Ash again! But how will this affect Ash's little errand? And have we seen the last of Team Rocket? There's more to come…

The camera panned over to the case Ash was carrying, as all three of the eggs started to glow.

...as the journey continues!

Do you know what country Ralia is based on yet? Think about the Professor's lab, how it looks like a sailboat. Does it remind you of anything? Well, I'll tell you soon, but for now, please review, and tell me about how you think I can make this story better.