Author's Note: Next chapter is where the heroes meet Bertha and the later one will be Dawn and Denise meeting Princess Salvia (their triplet sister figure):)
I don't own Pokemon or its characters, but I own Denise, her Pokémon group and my other OCs.
Enjoy!
Pokemon: Friends to the End
Chapter 156: Pokémon Ranger: Heatran Rescue!
On their way back to Lake Valor for the Grand Festival, Ash and the gang stop off by a waterfall for a lunch break.
"Hey, Ash."Brock spoke up while glancing at the Pallet Town Trainer. "Would you bring over some kindling, please?"
"Sure thing."Ash answered while holding a couple of sticks. "Right away."
"Pika pika!"Pikachu remarked.
Dawn chopped some carrots for the lunch that Brock will make while Denise stirred some brownie mixer in a bowl to make a dessert for her and her companions to enjoy.
"Look at these."Dawn responded while showing the chopped carrots were to Prinplup. "We're talking fresh. Right, Prinplup?"
"Prinplup."Prinplup chirped.
Denise smiled as she finished mixing the brownie mixer in the bowl.
"I just love making brownies."Denise chuckled.
Denise then placed the brownie dough into a tray before bringing her attention on Combusken.
"Alright, Combusken."Denise chuckled. "Ready to bake a batch of brownies?"
"Combusken."Combusken said with a nod.
Denise placed the tray in a nearby rock before going out the way, so that her Fire/Fighting Type Pokèmon could unleash some fire below the tray to bake the brownies.
Ash and Pikachu sniffed the warm aroma of Denise's brownies causing them to get excited.
"Hey, Dennie!"Ash called out. "Your brownies smell great! When can we get a bite?"
"When they cool down, Ash."Denise answered.
SPLASH!
Something fell down from the nearby waterfall which earned the group's attention.
"What was that?"Brock questioned.
"Let's go check it out."Ash suggested.
Ash, Dawn, Denise, Brock, Pikachu, Prinplup and Combusken rushed over to the river and saw a Feraligatr holding a knocked out a figure on top of his nose.
It was a brown haired boy wearing a Top Ranger uniform that was blue and equipped with a new designed Styler whose usage was similar to the Fine Styler. He also wore a yellow scarf with red goggles.
"Someone's on top."Brock said.
"Something is wrong."Dawn assumed. "We better help him."
Feraligatr tossed the boy onto the rocky banks.
"It looks like he was knocked out."Denise suggested.
The boy makes a swift recovery and stood up before introducing himself.
"My name is Pokémon Ranger Ben!"the boy declared happily.
"Pokémon Ranger?!"Brock, Ash, Dawn and Denise said in unison.
"That's right!"Ben agreed. "And I've got one job! To spend my time protecting peace and justice for people and Pokémon!"
"Hey."Ash greeted. "My name is Ash."
"My name is Dawn."Dawn responded.
"I'm Denise."Denise replied. "I'm Dawn's younger twin sister."
"And I'm Brock."Brock added. "You see that Feraligatr carried you down the stream to us."
Ben smiled at Feraligatr.
"Thanks a lot, Feraligatr."Ben thanked.
Feraligatr gives a respond before diving back beneath the stream.
"So does that mean Feraligatr is your partner?"Denise asked.
"Yeah."Ben answered. "But he comes to me when I summon him using my Ranger Sign."
"Ranger Sign?"Dawn said in confusion.
"The Ranger Sign is a way of summoning Pokemon that I bonded with in the past."Ben explained and pointed at his wrist. "I just use my Capture Styler."
Ben then panicked after noticing that his Capture Styler was missing.
"I can't believe it! It's not there!"Ben panicked. "My Capture Styler is missing! Where did it go?!"
Brock, Ash, Dawn and Denise sweat dropped at Ben.
Ben stopped panicking when he looked at the group.
"One more thing."Ben responded.
Brock, Ash, Dawn, Denise, Pikachu, Prinplup and Combusken all dropped down on the rocky banks at Ben's actions.
"Have you guys seen a Heatran around here?"Ben asked.
"A Heatran?"Dawn said.
Dawn stood up to take out her Pokédex to see what Type of Pokémon a Heatran was.
"Heatran the Lava Dome Pokémon."Dawn's Pokédex buzzed."Heatran lives in volcanic caves and uses its cross-shaped claws to maneuver across stone walls."
Denise looked at the information of Heatran on her sister's Pokédex.
"Whoa, Heatran's a Fire and Steel Type Pokémon as well as a Legendary one."Denise complemented and looked at Ben. "Is this the Pokémon you're looking for?"
Ben nodded. "That's right."
"How come?"Ash questioned. "Is something wrong?"
"Well, I have discovered a Heatran who can use Eruption."Ben answered.
"Is it special?"Dawn asked.
"A normal Heatran can't learn Eruption."Brock stated.
"That's amazing."Dawn admitted.
"I was close on bringing that Heatran back to the national park when I lost track of it!"Ben complained and then became happy. "But it's okay."
Brock, Ash, Dawn, Denise, Pikachu, Prinplup and Combusken all became shocked at Ben's sudden optimistic reply.
"No matter what happens, I'm still a Pokémon Ranger."Ben declared proudly.
The five heroes and their Pokémon looked the Pokemon Ranger with sheepish smiles.
"Nice recovery."Dawn remarked.
"A very quick one."Denise retorted.
"But it is good to look at the bright side."Brock commented.
"Right! Finding that Heatran is job one."Ben declared and became serious. "I may have lost my Capture Styler, but I may have met some nice people to help me. Do you think you'll be able to give me a hand?"
"Sure."Ash answered with a smile. "Sounds like a real blast."
"Great! Let's go!"Ben insisted excitedly and ran off while raising his fist. "Come on!"
The group watched Ben go while sweat dropping.
"Someone's in a rush."Dawn stated.
Later, Ben leads Ash and his friends up a mountain in his search for Heatran.
"Heatran is just nearby."Ben declared. "I can feel it."
"How can you be so sure?"Dawn asked.
"Don't worry."Ben assured. "As long as you keep moving, we're bound to find it."
"For a Pokémon Ranger, you sure are optimistic."Denise murmured.
"You're always looking at the bright side of things."Brock commented. "So, what's your secret?"
"I've always remembered the motto that has been in my family for generations."Ben admitted.
"A motto?"Ash said in confusion.
"Right."Ben responded and started telling his story. "I was actually the most negative kid that you would ever want to meet. When faced with an obstacle, no matter how small, I would give up. But when I was down, my grandfather always said, 'Remember, son. Its always better to try than to cry. Great words to live by."
"But what did he mean by that?"Ash asked.
"You can either try to get things done or sit around complaining."Ben replied. "But not both. You know, if you don't succeed, try, try again. So, now no matter what happens, I know that as long as I keep trying, things will work out."
"Makes sense."Ash declared.
"But if you're going to catch Heatran, you must have a plan."Dawn assumed.
"I sure do."Ben answered.
Ben paused to feel the ground several times to check the temperature for warmth.
"What are you doing, Ben?"Denise asked.
"Combusken?"Combusken said.
"Checking the temperature of the ground."Ben admitted.
"But why?"Ash questioned.
"Heatran always live near volcanoes."Ben explained. "So, it stands to reason that it would be somewhere in the ground that feels warm to the touch."
"Wow."Ash remarked. "That makes sense to me."
"That's why you're a Pokémon Ranger."Dawn stated.
"Your knowledge in Pokémon is huge."Brock declared.
"And judging by your explanation, you mean Heatran only live near volcanoes."Denise complemented.
Ben continued leading Ash, Brock, Dawn and Denise to the area where Heatran would be found.
Ben touched the ground and felt it was warm.
"Now we're getting somewhere."Ben announced.
The field technique leads them directly to a cave where the ground was especially warm.
"The ground is especially warm around here."Ben stated.
"It could have something to do with the molten magma."Brock assumed.
"Awesome."Ash chuckled. "Let's check it out."
Ben nodded. "Right."
The Pokémon Ranger and his companions headed into the cave, only to notice the heat inside getting hotter.
"The ground temperature is really rising now."Ben informed. "Just like I thought."
The group spotted a red glowing entrance up ahead of them.
"Look, up there."Brock replied.
As the group ventured deeper into the cave and spotted a lake of magma.
"Whoa…"Ash said in awe.
"It's a lake of lava."Denise commented.
"Look up there!"Dawn shouted.
The group looked up and saw Heatran on the roof, who was using his ability Flash Fire to absorb the heat from below.
"It's Heatran!"Ash said.
"That's his special ability, Flash Fire."Ben declared. "Heatran is absorbing all the heat from the magma flow."
"I'm glad we found him."Dawn said. "But how are you going to catch him?"
"I could catch it him I had my Styler with me."Ben answered.
"Why don't you try using a Poké Ball?"Ash suggested.
"I wish I could but I'm afraid that's impossible, buddy."Ben responded, surprising Ash. "A major part of my mission is to make sure Heatran is brought to the national park as a wild Pokémon so he can have his freedom."
Ben became frustrated as he didn't have his Catch Styler on him and can't use a Poké Ball to complete his mission.
"Ugh!"Ben groaned while holding his head. "What a bad time to lose my Catch Styler!"
The Pokémon Ranger then became positive again.
"But then why cry over spilled milk?"Ben asked happily, stunning his companions."Better to try than cry."
"The master is bouncing back."Dawn complemented.
"Alright!"Ben declared confidently and rushed forward. "Let's go!"
"You're serious?!"Denise said in disbelief.
"Wait, Ben!"Brock protested. "Never head to the lava! It's dangerous!"
"Never say never!"Ben remarked happily. "Just go onward and upward!"
Suddenly, the cave started shaking violently which startled the group.
Suddenly, the ground started shaking and Team Rocket appeared with their RoboDiglett.
"A Diglett?!"Ben shouted. "What's going on here."
Team Rocket reciting their motto.
"It's a RoboDiglett, thank you very much!"
"Guess the optimistic is out of touch!"
"On the Wind!"
"Past the Stars!"
"Whenever in the clutches!"
"Breaking chaos in a breakneck pace."
"Dashing hope, putting fear in its place."
"A rose by any other name is just as sweet.
"When everything's worse, our work is complete.
"It's Jessie!"
"And it's James!"
"And Meowth, now that's a name!"
"Putting the do-gooders in their place..."
"We're Team Rocket!"
"In your faces!"
"Team Rocket?"Ben said in confusion.
"See, they're a bunch of guys who have a job and one job only."Ash stated.
"Is to protect peace and justice?"Ben asked with a smile. "For people and Pokémon?"
Ash, Brock, Dawn, Denise, Pikachu, Prinplup and Combusken sweat drop at Ben's guess.
"Nah."Ash replied. "Team Rocket's job is to steal other people's Pokémon."
Ben became shocked at Ash's reply as Denise and Combusken glared at Team Rocket.
"Okay!"Denise snapped. "What do you dweebs want this time?!"
"Combusken!"Combusken growled.
"We'll be taking Heatran that's what, little twerpette."Jessie sneered.
"And we've got just the super cool toy to do it with!"Meowth cackled.
"Feast your eyes!"James announced.
James raised up his hand, revealing Ben's Capture Styler.
"Hey, that's my Capture Styler!"Ben shouted angrily. "How did you get a hold of it?!"
"No, it's my Styler now."James replied and pointed at Heatran. "Prepare yourself, Heatran, to hang upon my every word!"
"Yay, yay, yay!"Jessie and Meowth cheered in delight.
"Now my Styler…"James started and placed the Capture Styler on his wrist. "Capture, go!"
James then tried to use the Capture Styler, but failed in doing so.
"The Styler is a big zero."Meowth retorted.
"Why isn't it working?"Jessie questioned.
"If you think that was going to work for you!"Ben scoffed, earning Team Rocket's attention. "I'm the only who could use that Styler! Besides that, if you really want to catch a Pokémon, you got to bond with it!"
James glanced at the Capture Styler.
"And it looked so cool."James said sadly.
"Now give it back!"Ben demanded.
"Okay!"James answered and removed the Capture Styler from his wrist. "Take it!"
But then Jessie and Meowth stopped James from throwing the Capture Styler back to Ben.
"Stop!"Meowth protested. "If you give it back, he's going to capture that Heatran!"
"Right."James replied.
"Let's do it the old fashion way."Jessie insisted and looked at Meowth. "Meowth, please."
Meowth took out the remote to control the RoboDiglett.
"When it comes to spinning the heat, we're the bomb!"Meowth declared. "Try and stay calm!"
Meowth used the RoboDiglett to try to capture Heatran with a net, but Heatran stopped it with Eruption.
"That was Heatran's Eruption!"Ben gasped.
However, Heatran's Eruption caused some of the cavern wall to collapse.
"Heatran is in trouble!"Ben stated.
Sensing Heatran was in trouble, Ben began to make his way down to the magma.
"Hold on, Ben!"Ash protested. "What are you doing?!"
"This cavern is going to collapse any minute!"Ben declared. "I'm going to get my Styler and bring Heatran out of here quick!"
"Ben, stop!"Dawn shouted.
"Don't do it!"Denise yelled out.
Ben bravely heads down towards the magma and already began to suffer pain from the intense conditions.
"He's totally crazy!"Dawn murmured.
Denise nodded in agreement.
"We need ice and water to cool things down."Brock suggested.
"Right, Brock!"Ash answered.
Dawn looked at Prinplup.
"Let's cool where he is standing first, Prinplup!"Dawn suggested.
"Prinplup!"Prinplup agreed.
"Use Whirlpool!"Dawn ordered.
Prinplup unleashed Whirlpool to cool the area where Ben was standing.
"That should do it!"Dawn complemented.
"Alright, Buizel!"Ash declared.
"Buneary!"Dawn remarked.
"Vaporeon, you too!"Denise stated.
Ash, Dawn and Denise threw out their Poké Balls to send out Buizel, Buneary and Vaporeon for the task at hand.
"Bui bui!"
"Buneary!"
"Vaporeon!"
"Buizel, use Water Gun!"Ash ordered.
"Prinplup, use Whirlpool!"Dawn ordered. "Buneary, use Ice Beam!"
"Vaporeon, use Aurora Beam!"Denise ordered.
Buizel, Prinplup, Buneary and Vaporeon unleashed their attacks to cool down the hot path for Ben, so that he can get to the other side.
"Wow, everybody!"Ben praised. "Thanks!"
Ben began making his way to the other side.
"No fair!"James complained. "I want my Heatran!"
"Kay!"Meowth replied.
Meowth made the RoboDiglett unleash another net, only for Heatran to destroy it with his Eruption attack again.
"Curses!"James scowled.
"Keep having our RoboDiglett focus on that hot headed and capture it!"Jessie insisted.
"Whatever you say!"Meowth remarked and pressed the button on his remote. "RoboDiglett! Hey! Hey!"
The RoboDiglett aims extra arms and legs to capture Heatran by force.
"Now to get our big mug into capture mode!"Meowth sneered. "Hit the road!"
The RoboDiglett jumped on the wall and started crawling towards Heatran.
Heatran unleashed Eruption for the third time, but the metal hands of the RoboDiglett weren't effected by its attack.
"Take that!"Meowth snapped.
Meowth made the RoboDiglett use its hands to throw rocks at Heatran.
Neither of the rocks hit the Legendary Pokémon, but they left cracks on the boulder that he was on.
"That boulder won't hold."Ben muttered with a glare.
Team Rocket became proud of their mecha's counter attacks against Heatran.
"And that's how it is done!"Jessie remarked.
"What fun!"James laughed.
"Give it back!"Ben shouted.
Ben jumped forward and started struggling with James to take his Capture Styler back from him.
"Get your filthy hands off my Styler!"James argued.
"No!"Ben snapped. "It's my Styler, you petty thieves!"
Ben successfully takes the Capture Styler back from James.
"Give that Styler back!"Meowth demanded. "Or Heatran going back to you won't happen!"
Ben back away, only for the floor under him crumbles, but quickly puts his hands on the edge to prevent himself from falling into the magma below.
"And checkmate."James said smugly.
"Give that Styler back unless you want to swim into that hot stew."Jessie threatened.
Ash, Dawn, Denise, Brock and their Pokémon gasped in shock at seeing Ben in danger.
"Quick, Pikachu!"Ash called out. "Use Thunderbolt!"
"Combusken, use Ember!"Denise ordered.
Pikachu used Thunderbolt and Combusken fired Ember on Team Rocket causing them to get electrocuted and fried before collapsing on the ground.
"All clear, Ben!"Ash informed.
"You are free to move!"Denise remarked.
"Alright!"Ben chuckled. "Thanks, Ash and Denise!"
Meowth dropped the RoboDiglett remote into the lava, causing their mecha to go out of control.
"That RoboDiglett is out of control!"Ben shouted in shock.
However, Heatran subsequently destroyed the RoboDiglett with Eruption.
The wall that Heatran was holding onto started to break more.
"Heatran is in trouble!"Brock warned.
"Leave it to me, Brock!"Ben instructed and let go of the edge, making him fall down. "Come on, Feraligatr!"
Ben summons Feraligatr and landed on top of him.
"Feraligatr, I need your help again!"Ben declared.
Heatran's boulder broke off the wall and it began to fall into the magma, shocking the group.
"Use Ice Beam!"Ben ordered.
Feraligatr used Ice Beam on the magma causing it to cool down and disappear.
This caused Heatran to survive the fall, mostly unscathed.
Ben and the group smiled at seeing Heatran safe from harm.
"Feraligatr, thanks a lot."Ben thanked.
Feraligatr nodded. "Feraligatr."
Feraligatr then disappeared from sight.
As more rocks descend from inside the cave, Ash, Dawn and Denise quickly recall Buizel, Buneary and Vaporeon into their Poké Balls.
"The cave is collapsing!"Denise warned.
"We gotta go before it's too late!"Dawn declared.
"Come on, Ben!"Ash yelled out. "Hurry up!"
Ben rushed over to Heatran to try and reassures it of its safety.
"Heatran, it is dangerous out here!"Ben protested. "You gotta listen to me! I'm going to take you to the national park where it's safe! Capture on!"
Using his Capture Styler, Ben successfully captured Heatran.
"Capture complete!"Ben announced and notice more rocks falling down. "Heatran, come with me!"
Ash, Dawn, Denise, Brock, Ben and Heatran quickly headed out of the cave just in time before its entrance got sealed by a bunch of big rocks.
"Man, that was a close one."Ash declared.
"Pika pika."Pikachu agreed.
Denise let out a sigh.
"That's a relief."Denise commented.
Combusken nodded. "Combusken."
After making a successful escape, Ben contacts his waiting helicopter to be picked up.
"Heatran has been captured safe and sound."Ben declared. "Prepare helicopter for transport."
"Rodger that."the pilot answered.
Later that Evening…
Ben prepared to say goodbye to Ash, Brock, Dawn and Denise.
"I can't believe we just saved a Heatran from a bad situation like that."Dawn remarked.
"Prinplup."Prinplup chirped.
"Though today has been pretty excited too."Denise chuckled.
"Com combusken."Combusken answered.
"From now on, I'm going to remember your motto all the time."Brock admitted.
"Me too."Ash agreed.
"Pika."Pikachu responded.
Ben smiled at the group.
"Well, one thing is for sure is that I couldn't have done it without all of you."Ben stated and held out his hand out. "Thanks a lot, Ash."
Ben and Ash shook hands with each other.
"Now you remember to keep working hard to help people and Pokémon everywhere."Ash reminded.
"Right! You can count on me!"Ben vowed. "I'm a Pokémon Ranger! I've got one job and you've got hit on the head! Protecting peace and justice for people and Pokémon!"
"That's an optimistic hero for ya."Dawn commented.
"You've said it."Brock agreed.
"Yep."Denise said slightly.
Then Ben's helicopter arrived and the Pokémon Ranger leaves to escort Heatran to the national park as the group waved goodbye to him.
Ash looked at his close companions.
"Come on."Ash encouraged. "Let's get going too."
"Pika pika."Pikachu agreed.
Dawn, Denise and Brock nodded in agreement.
Then the group walked off in the middle of the sunset to continue on their return trip to Lake Valor.
Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter:)
Denise's Team
Torterra (Male): Solar Beam, Giga Drain, Seed Bomb and Earthquake
Vaporeon (Female): Water Gun, Shadow Ball, Hydro Pump and Aurora Beam
Luxray (Male): Shock Wave, Night Slash, Wild Charge and Ice Fang
Drifblim (Female): Ominous Wind, Thunderbolt, Will-O-Wisp and Astonish
Vibrava (Male): Sandstorm, Rock Slide, Dragon Pulse & Screech
Combusken (Male): Ember, Peck, Focus Blast and Fire Spin
With Professor Rowan
Gardevoir (Female): Psychic, Ice Punch, Magical Leaf and Trick Room
Noctowl (Male): Heat Wave, Reflect, Aerial Ace and Supersonic