When we last left our heroes, they went up against Team Shade, who were capturing and injuring many Pokémon. Our heroes were able to save the Pokémon, and are now working on helping them recover.

Ash was carrying a female Nidoran onto a gurney for a Nurse Joy. "Here you go," he said. "Looks like she took quite a tumble."

"Yes, but no worries," smiled Nurse Joy. "We'll have her back on her feet in no time!"

Meanwhile, Serena and Vernon were working on gathering up more of the scattered Pokémon, while the Officer Jennys were working to find any remaining members of Team Shade.

"I still can't believe Team Shade could be so cruel," said Serena.

"I know, I mean, come on!" said Vernon as he looked over a pair of Jumjoeys sleeping next to each other. "How exactly are Pokémon like that dangerous anyway?"

Suddenly, Vernon spied something in the bushes. Walking over, he saw it was an egg, colored purple, with patches of white.

"That's odd?" he said, picking it up. "Why on earth is there an egg just sitting out here in the open?"

"Maybe Team Shade took it from its nest or something?" said Serena, walking over.

"Oh, come on, now they're afraid of eggs?" said Vernon. Suddenly, the egg lit up with white light.

"Ack! Oh, no! I think it's about to hatch!" he said.

"Nurse Joy!" Serena called out. "We need your help over here!"

The Nurse Joys had the egg wrapped in a blanket, sitting on a gurney. Vernon stood in front of the egg and asked, "Is this egg gonna be alright?"

"Of course!" said a Nurse Joy. "In fact, it should be hatching any second now."

Suddenly, the white light poured out of the egg once again, and everyone had to shield their eyes. Finally, it faded, and Vernon opened his eyes to see a baby Toxel now sitting in front of him in a blanket. Slowly, the baby Pokémon opened its eyes and saw Vernon standing before him.

"Hey there, little guy!" Vernon smiled. "Welcome to the world!"

The Toxel turned its head, and let out a big yawn. RotomDex floated over to scan it and said, "Toxel, the Baby Pokémon. An Electric and Poison type. Toxel stores poison inside an internal sac and secretes it through its skin. It can manipulate the chemical makeup of this poison to produce electricity."

"Aww, it's so cute!" said Serena, reaching down to pet it. However, the second her hand made contact, she was shocked by Nuzzle.

"Whoa, careful, Serena!" said Vernon. "It was just born, it's got no control over its powers yet."

"Right," said Serena, paralyzed on the ground, "good to know."

Vernon picked up the Toxel with the blanket, and said, "Come on, you, let's get you something to eat."

A few minutes later, Ash, Serena, and RotomDex watched Vernon feed Toxel a few small Berries.

"There we go," said Vernon. "Now doesn't that taste good?"

Unfortunately, Toxel suddenly spat up what it just ate through Belch, spitting all manner of purple fluid all over Vernon.

"Whoa, Vernon!" said Ash. "You okay?"

"Eh, I guess so," said Vernon. "Maybe those weren't the right Berries." Toxel looked up at Vernon and basically chuckled to itself at seeing what it did.

"Oh, you think you're funny, do ya?" Vernon said. "Alright, hold on, I know a recipe for Berry Juice that you can eat easier."

"Here, try this," said Vernon, taking a spoonful of the Berry Juice he made and carefully pouring into the Toxel's mouth. Tasting this, the Toxel immediately perked up, and began smiling.

"See, that wasn't so hard, now was it?" said Vernon.

"Heh, you're pretty good with this Toxel, Vernon," said Ash. "How'd you know what kind of Berries it would like?"

"Oh, I'm quite experienced with Poison types, actually," said Vernon.

Suddenly, everyone heard an explosion behind them. They turned to see a bunch of the Pokémon they had rescued being lifted up into the air by a net.

"Aw, no, you don't think-" Ash said, and everyone looked, and who should they find but Team Rocket in their balloon. Jessie, James, and Meowth looked down with the smuggest expressions on their faces and laughed.

"Prepare for trouble, so sorry we're late!"

"And make it double, but wasn't our entrance great?"

"To protect the world from devastation!"

"To unite all peoples 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!"

"Mime, mime!"

"You guys, now!" said Ash. "What did you come to kick these Pokémon while they're down?"

"That's low, even for you!" said Serena.

Team Rocket simply laughed as Jessie said, "Please, this many Pokémon in a single place, unable to fight back? You might as well have put a flashing, neon sign that said, 'Free Pokémon for the taking!'"

James said, "The boss is gonna be so pleased with us!"

The Officer Jennys came and growled. "You lot won't get away that easy!" one of them said before turning towards the others. "You guys ready?"

The Jennys all nodded and pulled out PokéBalls before a new voice suddenly cut in.

"That's okay," just leave these punks to me."

Everyone turned to see a tall man wearing sunglasses and a trench coat walking into the area. He looked up to Team Rocket and said, "Those kids are right, you know. Doing this to injured Pokémon? It's despicable." Pulling a PokéBall from his coat, he threw it, and out burst a Haxorus.

"Haaaax!" it roared.

"Whoa, he's got a Haxorus?" Ash said in awe.

RotomDex quickly scanned it and said, "Haxorus, the Axe Jaw Pokémon. A Dragon type. They are usually kind, but can be relentless when protecting their territory. They battle by using their giant tusks, which are strong enough to cut through steel. Evolves from Fraxure at level 48."

"So cool," said Serena. However, she raised an eyebrow when she saw RotomDex's hologram of Haxorus. "But this one's a different color."

Indeed it was. Most of the Haxorus's body was colored black.

"Alright, Haxorus, use Breaking Swipe!" said the man.

Haxorus's tail grew long and purple, as Meowth laughed. "Do your worst! You ain't never gonna catch-"

SMASH! Before anyone could even blink, the net filled with Pokémon was cut loose from the balloon, and Haxorus quickly grabbed to carry it down to the ground.

"Now use Outrage!" said the man. Haxorus quickly kept back up, it's eyes glowing red and its body surrounded in a red aura. It angrily slashed at Team Rocket's balloon, popping it and causing it to go flying.

"Ack! Just who is this guy?" said James.

"Our worst nightmare, that's what?" said Meowth.

"We're blasting off again!" they screamed as they shot away into the sky.

A Jenny walked up to the man and said, "Thank you so much, sir."

"That was so cool!" said Ash, running up to the man. "Your Haxorus is amazing! What's your name?"

"Oh, I'm just a friend," said the man. "You can just call me Johnny."

"Thanks for stopping those guys, Mr. Johnny," said Serena, walking up. "But... what exactly are you doing here?"

"A friend of mine told those Team Shade punks were causing a ruckus around here, so I figured I'd come lend a hand." Johnny looked around at the Pokémon and said, "Looks like those cruel people did a number on these Pokémon. Here, how about a little help getting them to the Pokémon Center in Orbarrow City?"

"Orbarrow City?" said Ash. "You mean that place is close?"

"You bet!" said Johnny cheerfully. "I happen to know a little shortcut there."

"Alright!" said Ash and Serena, but unbeknownst to them, Vernon was sitting off the side, looking a bit worried.

Not long after, the group had brought the Pokémon to Orbarrow City. And the thing was, as they got closer and closer, the air got more humid, and the plant life seemed to change to something a little more tropical. Eventually, once they made it to Orbarrow City, they could see a large city sitting next the ocean. The whole place had a tropical feel to it, with tall trees, small bushes, and people who looked like tourists going around.

"Man, Orbarrow City much different from what I expected," said Serena.

"It's a city that was built near the ocean, but also on the edge of the Ralia region's rainforest territory," Johnny explained.

"Rainforest?" said Serena.

"Yep, leave this town in that direction," Johnny pointed, "And hit the Misty Jungle rainforest."

"Whoa, this place is so cool!" Ash said, before he suddenly saw something. It was a tall building with an unmistakable logo on top.

"Guys, look!" he said, pointing. "That must be the Orbarrow City Gym! To think we found it already!"

Vernon saw the gym, but got an uneasy feeling in his stomach. I was really hoping we didn't have to get here so soon.

"Ah, so you're a Gym Challenger, huh?" Johnny said. "Well, why don't we all come back here for your battle once the Pokémon are taken care of?"

Pausing upon hearing this, Vernon suddenly spoke up. "Say, Ash? Why don't you go meet the Gym Leader right now?"

"Huh? Now?" Ash said, turning to Vernon confused.

"It's just, what if he's here now, but won't be soon? I mean, we don't want to take the chance you might miss him, right?"

"C'mon, Vernon, these Pokémon need our help. I don't mind waiting."

Vernon struggled to come up with a response, only for one of the Nurse Joys to speak up.

"Oh, don't worry about the Pokémon. You already did your part in rescuing them. We can take it from here."

"Really?" said Ash. "Well, okay, if you say so. C'mon, everyone! Let's go meet the Gym Leader right now!"

The others quickly agreed in excitement, but Vernon suddenly said, "Oh, uh, actually, I think I need to go to the Pokémon Center as well."

"What? Why?" said Serena.

"Um..." Vernon said, hastily looking around. That's when he spied...

"Toxel! I just wanted to make sure that Toxel is okay, that all."

"Toxel?" said RotomDex. "It'll be fine, the Nurse Joys can take care of it."

"Yeah, but I just wanna make sure it's alright before It has to go back to the wild. I mean, it is just a baby, after all."

Everyone stared at him confused, but finally, Ash said, "Okay, if you say so."

Vernon grinned, glad to get out of going to the Gym, and he quickly ran over to the Toxel, who was being carried in a blanket by a Nurse Joy.

Everyone else just stared at him. "What's going on with him?" Ash said. "It's like he doesn't want to go to the Gym for some reason."

Johnny looked at Vernon, with a raised eyebrow, before he said, "Hey, why don't you kids come with me to go meet with the Gym Leader?"

Who's that Pokémon?

It's shell is overflowing with its heightened, otherworldly energy. The ectoplasm protects its core soul.

Ash, Pikachu, Serena, Johnny, and RotomDex all entered the Gym, but the whole place seemed totally empty. No workers or Pokémon around, nothing.

"That's odd," said Serena. "Where is everyone?"

Suddenly, they heard rattling, and looked over to see a janitor mopping the floor. He looked up to see the group and said, "Oh, are you challengers? Sorry, the Gym's closed for right now."

"Really?" said Ash. "We wanted to meet with the Gym Leader."

"Oh, well, if you're looking for the Gym Leader, he said he was on his way to the Pokémon Center. He closed the Gym because his Pokémon needed a while to rest after a tough battle," said the janitor.

"Pokémon Center?" said Serena, before she looked at Ash. "Well, that's perfect then. We'll go meet him and Vernon back there."

"Here you go, little guy," said Vernon, giving the Toxel an Oran Berry.

"You're awfully good with that Toxel, Mr. Vernon," said the Nurse Joy next to him. "Maybe you should take care of it yourself?"

"Really?" said Vernon. "I don't know about that."

The Toxel continued eating Oran Berries, only to drop one. It quickly jumped down onto the floor to chase after it, only to see it roll over to a man's foot. The man, a tall, purple-haired man with glasses, looked down to see the Berry and the Toxel below. "Aw, hey there, little guy. Looking for this?" He took the Berry and handed it to Toxel, who happily gobbled it up.

"Oh, sorry about that, sir," said Vernon, walking over. "That little guy is-" He suddenly froze upon seeing the man.

"Oh, it's okay, he-" the man froze too upon seeing Vernon. "Vernon?"

"D-dad?" Vernon stuttered.

"Well, well, well, look who comes crawling back," the man said.

Vernon just chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his neck. "H-hey, Dad, long time no see. W-what you been up to?"

"Oh, nothing, just working to keep your- oh, sorry, my gym together."

"Hey, Vernon!" came a voice. Vernon turned to see Ash, Serena, RotomDex, and Johnny coming into the Pokémon Center. "The Gym Leader wasn't in, but they said he was here!" said Ash.

"Yeah, I know," moaned Vernon, pointing at his father. "He's right here."

"Hmm?" the man said. "Now who are these people?"

"These are my my friends, Ash, Pikachu, Serena, and RotomDex," Vernon said. "Everyone, meet the Gym Leader, my dad, Walter."

It's Cursola!

"Whoa!" Ash said, as everyone sat down in the Pokémon Center. "So you're really Vernon's father, Mr. Walter?"

"Heh, it's just Walter, kid," Walter laughed. "And yeah, Vernon's my son."

"You didn't tell us your dad was a Gym Leader," said Serena. "I don't get it. Why didn't you say anything? In fact, it's like you were avoiding him back at the Gym."

"Oh, you were avoiding me?" Walter said. "I wonder why?" Vernon groaned as he held Toxel in his lap. "Why don't you tell them why you might be avoiding me, huh?"

Vernon looked up to see everyone staring at him, and sighed. "Look, the truth is... he's not really supposed to be the Gym Leader. I am."

Everyone all gasped. However, that was when Johnny spoke up. "It's true. Walter, he's been complaining to me for a while now about his rotten son taking off one day and never coming back."

"You know Walter too?" said Ash.

"Yeah, he's the friend I was talking about before," said Johnny. "He's the one who asked me to help the Pokémon before."

Walter looked at Vernon with an angry look, and explained, "He's right, though. This Gym's been in our family for years now. And I was ready to pass it on to my young, little child. But then-"

"Dad, please, don't talk about this!" Vernon begged. "I don't want to relive that!"

Walter looked at him, but sighed and said, "Yes, he wanted to be an actor, isn't that right? But that meant leaving the Gym for me."

"I know, Dad, but, I did so well with acting. In case you forgot, I was the hottest child star ever!"

"Yes, until that day," said Walter. "Vernon, please, I think it's time to give up this dream. I think that disaster was a sign that it's time to come back to the Gym. This is where you belong."

"Dad, please," said Vernon, "I know you've always wanted me to inherit the Gym, but being an actor is my dream! And... what happened wasn't that bad."

"It's true, Walter," said Ash. "Vernon is a great actor! You can't just tell him to quit."

Walter looked over to the group, and then said, "You never did tell these friends of yours about the day your acting career ended, did you?"

Vernon sheepishly looked away, but his father suddenly put a hand in his shoulder and said, "Vernon, please, I know it was a difficult time for you, but if these are your friends, you can trust them to know about it, right?"

Vernon looked up at his friends, who looked at him with curious eyes. "Yeah, what did exactly happen to you to ruin your acting career in the first place?" Serena said.

Vernon sighed, and said, "Okay, it's time you guys knew the truth. RotomDex, come here."

"Uh, okay," said RotomDex, as he flew over. Vernon tapped his screen and searched for something on the net, before he displayed it for everyone. "This was me. A child star of a show called House of Seven."

On RotomDex's screen was a picture of a poster for an old sitcom. It was of a big family of seven, but at the center was a purple-haired little kid, who looked like the youngest.

"Oh, is that you, Vernon?" Serena said.

"Yeah, I got to play the youngest kid in the family in that show, little Lorenzo. We were a big hit, and all 'cause of me. I was the biggest star, playing the kid who was endearing, always getting into trouble. But, well, one day, I started growing up, and no one found my role endearing anymore. The show's creators were prepared to kick me off, replace me with an annoying little cousin. But I tried to convince them to let me stay. I offered to write a new episode that would completely reinvigorate my character. But... it was a disaster. It was the worst episode ever, and viewership declined to the point of the show's cancellation. But of course, the creators decided to tell the world about who ruined the show, and my reputation tanked. People laughed at me. I was so embarrassed, I left the TV scene for four years."

"Really?" said Ash. "Aw, man, that's awful!"

"It's true," said Walter. "After that, I offered to let him come back to the Gym and start his career anew as a Leader, but do you know what he said? 'No way, Pops, I'm gonna rebuild my acting career, even if it takes me forever!"

"I know, Dad," said Vernon. "I'm sorry, but-"

"You didn't talk to me for years!" Walter complained. "You know how hard running that Gym is?"

"Alright, alright, calm down you two," said Johnny. "It may have been years since you've talked, but you need to work this out now."

"Yeah, I know a simple solution," said Walter. "It's time to give up this acting thing."

"No way!" Vernon said. "My acting career didn't die that day! I found some good roles in the past four years!"

"Oh, like side characters in horror movies? The only lead role you've gotten in all this time was in the worst romantic comedy I've ever seen!"

"No, Dad, I-" Vernon suddenly pulled out a certain slip of paper. "Do you see this, Dad? I got a recommendation for a part in a Robert Kennedy production! I have a real chance to rebuild my career here!"

"Robert Kennedy? You can't be serious!"

Suddenly, Toxel's stomach started rumbling. Vernon looked down at it and said, "Hmm, the little guy must still be hungry."

"Oh, come on, don't you think he's had enough?" Walter said.

"Hey, if he wants something, I said he deserves to have it," said Vernon.

"Not if it's no good for him."

"You don't know that!"

Vernon angrily stood up and carried the Toxel away. Ash and Serena looked at each other concerned, until Ash said, "We gotta do something to help them."

"I agree," said Serena. "Say, why don't you go talk to Vernon? I think I can talk to his dad."

"Okay, if you say so," Ash said as he got up and walked after Vernon.

Serena then turned to Walter and said, "Do you really think you're son's a bad actor?"

"I-I didn't say that," said Walter. "I'm just saying I don't think he's meant to be an actor."

"I don't know," said Johnny. "I saw that rom-com your son was in, and I gotta say, he was probably the only reason to watch it."

Walter sighed and said, "I just really want my son to succeed, you know? This acting thing, I mean, what happened on that show was exactly what I feared would happened. It's a cruel, cruel business."

"Maybe, but I think Vernon has what it takes!" Serena said.

"I agree!" RotomDex said, flying over. "I've been helping him come up with new characters, and he's really good."

He displayed some videos he shot of Vernon acting in roles he created. They included a down-to-his-luck cop, a scientist, and of course, Toxicity. Seeing his son ham it up that last one made Walter chuckle.

"You know, Mr. Walter," said Serena, "my mom is a professional Rhyhorn racer, and she wanted me to be just like her. So when I told her I wanted to Pokémon Showcases instead, she got angry with me. But I had to show her that Showcases were my dream, and that it was my life to live, not hers."

"Well, how'd that work out, then?" Walter said.

"Well, it wasn't always easy. I didn't even manage to achieve the rank of Kalos Queen. But I don't regret any of it. You know why? 'Cause performing like that was so much fun, and it helped put a smile on so many people's faces! It's why I started doing Contests and Pageants. Which means I'm still doing what I really love, and making other people happy!"

Walter was silent for a second before saying, "And what does your mother think?"

"Well, Mom was frustrated that I wouldn't be following in her footsteps, but she realized that this was what I really wanted, and saw how happy I was, so she supported me from then on."

Walter went silent again, and Serena spoke up again, "I'm glad she came around you know, 'cause she's my mom, and I love her. And the fact that she's in my corner proves how much she loves me. Imagine where she and I would be right now if she didn't come around."

Walter went completely silent, before he slowly looked over to where his son went.

Ash walked over to where Vernon was standing, as he was feeding the Toxel more of his Berry Juice. The Toxel looked up at Vernon and cooed.

"That little guy really seems to like you, huh?" said Ash.

"Well, I've been taking good care of him," said Vernon. "Making sure he grows up big and strong, and has lots of support, and letting him pursue what he actually wants!"

Ash sighed and rubbed his forehead. "Vernon, I know you're mad at him, but what exactly are you planning to do? Just never talk to him again?"

"No, of course not..." Vernon muttered before he sighed and said, "I've been trying to tell him he can't tell me what to do for a long time now, but he just won't listen. There's no point trying to reason with him."

"You can't just give up," said Ash. "He's your father. And I can tell all you really want is for him to support you, right?"

Vernon sighed. "Honestly, when I knew we were coming here, I thought maybe I could finally talk it out with him. 'Course, when we made it, I got nervous and ran off. But it looks like I was right to worry. He hasn't changed a bit."

"Well, do you think it has anything to do with you running off like you did?" Ash said. "Maybe if you had come back to him, he wouldn't be so mad. You guys kept this bottled up for four years. If you don't resolve this now, you guys may never bury the hatchet."

Vernon sighed before he suddenly heard his father's voice. "Son?" He looked up to see Walter and the others walking over.

"I've made a decision. You can stick to your acting career on one condition. You come to the Gym, and beat me in a Pokémon battle."

Vernon was surprised, but as he thought about, he nodded and said, "Deal."

At the gym, Vernon and Walter stood on opposite sides of the battlefield. Ash, Serena, Pikachu, Wobbuffet, and RotomDex sat in the bleachers, while Johnny stood at side of the battlefield to act as the referee.

"Alright, you can both you one Pokémon each," he said.

"Floattery, take the stage!" Vernon said, throwing out his most trusted partner.

"Vatoxic, go!" said Walter, throwing out his own Pokémon. It looked like a little gray man with a tiny body, but it's head was shaped like a vat, and contained some greenish looking goo.

"Whoa, what's that Pokémon?" said Ash.

RotomDex scanned it and said, "Vatoxic, the Chemical Pokémon. A Poison and Steel type. Vatoxic will gather various materials in order to mix them together into a chemical mixture inside its head. These chemicals are corrosive, but Vatoxic will drink them like juice. Evolves into Chemicaldron at level 30."

"Aw, man," said Ash, "if it's a Steel Type, it won't be affected by Floattery's Poison Type moves!"

"No worries, Vernon can do it!" Serena said.

"Battle begin!" said Johnny.

"Now, Floattery, use Thundershock!"

Floattery blasted a small bolt of electricity at Vatoxic, but Walter called for it to dodge and use Iron Head. The Vatoxic jumped forward, its head hardened silver, and bashed Floattery back.

"Not so fast!" said Vernon. "Now, use Wrap!" Floattery quickly grabbed onto Vatoxic with its tentacles and held on tight.

"Thundershock, again!" Floattery shocked Vatoxic with all its might, but Vatoxic quickly shrugged it off.

"Venoshock!" Vatoxic spat out a purple fluid, spraying Floattery away and freeing it. "Now, use Iron Head once more!"

"Acid Armor!" Vernon said. Floattery's body turned into liquid, causing Vatoxic to phase through it. "Now use Headbutt!"

Floattery flew down to collide with Vatoxic head on, but Walter called for another Iron Head. Vatoxic quickly met Headbutt head-on with a head of solid steel, stopping it in it's tracks.

"Sludge Wave!" Vatoxic then unleashed a big wave of purple sludge, washing Floattery away. Suddenly, Floattery's body flashed purple and purple bubble came out of it.

"What happened?" Ash said.

"I think Floattery was poisoned!" RotomDex said.

"What? But Floattery's a Poison Type!" said Serena. "That shouldn't be possible!"

"I'm afraid it is," said RotomDex. "Vatoxic has the Corrosion ability, which allows it to poison Pokémon that should normally be immune to poisoning."

Ash, Pikachu, Serena, and Wobbuffet all looked down at Vernon, who was beginning to sweat.

Is this it? Vernon thought. Is this how my acting career ends?

"Don't give up, Vernon!" He heard Ash call out. He turned his head to see his friends cheering him on.

"You wanna be an actor, right?" Serena said. "So don't let him beat you so easily!"

"We know you can do it!" RotomDex cheered.

"Pika, pika!" said Pikachu.

"Wob!" said Wobbuffet.

Hearing this, Vernon grinned and turned back to the battle. "They're right, Floattery. We're not giving up yet! This means too much to us! And we're gonna fight to the bitter end to chase our dream!"

"Floa..." Floattery said, before it suddenly flew upwards and flex's its tentacles like muscles. "Floooooaaaa!" it cried out.

And then its body glowed white.

Everyone present gasped as Floattery's body changed shape. Its tentacles grew longer, and it body was now a mix of purple and yellow, and shaped like that of a Portuguese man-o'war.

"Floattery..." Vernon said, breathless, "you evolved?"

"Incredible!" shouted RotomDex before he scanned Floattery's new form. "Jelloater. The Floating Pokémon. An Electric and Poison type. Jelloaters float around aimlessly in the greatest depths of the ocean. Their electric stings can deliver poison too. Evolves from Floattery at level 30."

"I don't believe it," said Walter, eying Jelloater. These two, they're something incredible.

Vernon grinned, now brimming with confidence. "Alright, now the real battle begins! Jelloater, use Thundershock!"

However, Jelloater began unleashed a huge discharge of electricity, zapping the entire battlefield and blasting Vatoxic.

"Whoa!" said RotomDex. "That wasn't Thundershock! That was Discharge!"

Then, Jelloater thrust forth a tentacle, glowing with electricity, and zapped Vatoxic once it made contact.

"Whoa! I've never seen that move before!" said Ash.

"That's a move called Electro Jab!" RotomDex explained.

Despite himself, Walter grinned. Just look at you, Vernon. You do your old man proud. "Use Iron Head!"

"Headbutt!" Vernon said.

The two Pokémon collided with each, trying to push the other back. Unfortunately, the poison on Jelloater activated, causing it to lose its balance and be knocked aside.

"Let's finish this," said Walter. "Use Sludge Wave!"

As Vatoxic prepared another wave of purple ooze, Vernon suddenly had an idea. "Jelloater! Grab Vatoxic with your tentacles and drag it through the ooze!"

Quickly, Jelloater grabbed Vatoxic in its tentacles just as the wave began, and pulled it under the ooze.

"What's that gonna do?" said Ash. "Vatoxic is still immune to Poison type moves."

Vernon then grinned. "Now use Discharge!" Jelloater gathered all its electricity and blasted the ooze with it. The ooze, full of conductive materials it seemed, amplified the shock, and when the ooze dissipated, all that was left was Vatoxic, lying on the ground with swirls in its eyes.

"Vatoxic is unable to battle! Jelloater wins!" Johnny declared.

"Yes!" said Vernon, running over to hug his newly evolved Pokémon. "You did it, Jelloater, you did it!"

"Yes, they did it!" Serena said, standing up in joy.

"I knew they could do it!" Ash said.

"Pika!" Pikachu cheered.

"Wobbuffet!" said Wobbuffet.

Some time later, Walter was standing in front of his son outside the Gym, everyone else watching from the side. "Didn't think you had it in you, Vern."

"Hey, I've learned a few things out on the open road," said Vernon. "So, since I won, I can continue my acting career, right?"

Walter was silent at first, but finally smiled. "Ha, you know, Vern, I never wanted to be Gym Leader myself. But my own father made me. This Gym has been in our family for a long time now."

"Really?" Vernon said. "So you understand what I've been trying to say then?"

"Actually, that was the problem," said Walter. "I wanted to be a regular Pokémon Trainer, but when I became the Gym Leader, I realized how much I loved it. I realized it was my calling. And that's why I gave up my original dream. I think, maybe... I was trying to do the same thing with you. I thought if you became Gym Leaded, you'd find it was your calling too, and that you'd forget about your dreams of being an actor."

Vernon stood there shocked, but then, his father said, "But I was wrong. Rotom over there showed me your acting chops. You're really good. And during our battle, I was trying to test how far you were willing to go to chase that dream. And guess what? You passed the test."

"Y-you mean-"

"Being a Gym Leader may be my calling, but it's not yours. Your future is in show business. So I want you to get out there be the best actor you can be!"

Vernon's eyes filled with tears of joy as he gratefully hugged his father. "Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you! I won't let you down, Dad! I promise! I'll make you proud!"

"I know you will."

Everyone else looked on and smiled seeing the scene in front of them. As the hug finally ended, Walter said, "Too bad you won't be a Gym Leader now, though. That battle we had was intense! You've pretty good as a battler too. I bet you could have been a real challenge to our challengers."

Hearing that, Vernon suddenly looked over to Ash, and he had an idea. "Actually, Dad, now that you mention it, there's a favor I want to ask."

He whispered something into Walter's ear, and Walter's eyes lit up and he nodded in understanding. He then pulled off his Gym Leader necklace.

Huh? What's he doing? thought Ash. But then, Walter put the necklace around Vernon's neck, and Vernon turned to Ash and pointed.

"Ash Ketchum, I have decided to be your opponent for your Orbarrow City Gym Challenge!"

Incredible! After reconciling with his father, Vernon has decided to act as Gym Leader in order to battle his friend, Ash! Whatever will this battle hold? Find out as the journey continues!

TO BE CONTINUED...

Hi, everyone, miss me? I know it's been a long, long time since I've updated, but the thing is I was dealing with something personal. It may not even be resolved by the time this chapter goes up, but don't worry about it. I've almost worked it out.

So, if it wasn't obvious yet, Vernon is supposed to be the third Gym Leader in my fake games. A Poison Type Gym Leader whose name comes from "venom". When I first started writing this, I had all eight of my Gym Leaders in Ralia in mind and ready to go. So when I needed to come up with a traveling companion for Ash, I decided to chose of my Gym Leaders, 'cause Ash has a knack for making friends with these guys. I settled on Vernon because he felt like he'd work best. I always imagined him as an actor in addition to being a Gym Leader in my fake games, so I figured, "Here's his dream, acting!" Anyway, I want to know, how many of you guessed this?

But anyway, that means next time, Ash will battle Vernon for his third Badge!