phcgamer: Pokemon that are specifically groups of the same Pokemon (such as the Squirtle Squad) will all be randomized to the same Pokemon. Yes, that also includes Ash's 30 Tauros. Now that's going to be an interesting chapter...
"Popcorn?"
"No," Dialga growled.
"Ice cream soda?"
"No," Dialga growled.
"Dying star?"
"No," Dialga growled. "Can you at least pretend to take this seriously, Arceus? We are dealing with possible total universal collapse here. Honestly, how did the god of the universe get so childish?"
"Millions of years of boredom." Arceus swallowed a mouthful of popcorn. "Lighten up, Dialga. You've done a great job of patching things up!"
"For now," said Dialga. "But the prospect of Ash encountering more Legendaries worries me. You see, Legendaries have a…different…relation to Ash's timeline than other Pokemon. Ash has encountered practically every Legendary from Kanto to Galar. And most of those encounters occupy what I can only describe as detached pockets of time. Like nubs of branches off the main timeline."
"Does that mean Ash's encounters with Legendaries won't be…randomized?" Arceus asked.
"I don't know," Dialga said with a huff. "And I don't want to find out. But I think it's inevitable. We got lucky that the first Legendary Ash encountered was one he hadn't before in the main timeline, but that luck isn't going to last forever."
"Cheer up, Dialga," said Arceus, clapping the Legendary of Time on the back with one of his thousand hands. "There are only 81 Legendaries out of over a thousand Pokemon. Statistically, it's unlikely Ash is going to end up with another one. That would just be absurd!"
"…and that's how you make Ember stay relevant," said Cyrus's Houndour, to his impressed audience of Litleo and Hisuian Growlithe. "See, the two of you have all but replaced it with Flamethrower and Fire Spin, but those can't be rapid-fired, whereas Ember can."
"Whoa…" Litleo grinned. "This is already amazing!"
"It'll take time, of course," Houndour pointed out, "but with enough practice, you, too, can have your very own personal machine guns."
Cyrus obligingly recalled him. "It appears the lesson is over," he said. "Shall we move on?"
"Sure! Thanks, Cyrus!" Ash smiled broadly as he recalled Litleo and gestured for Hisuian Growlithe to walk beside him. "Your lessons are great - you're a really good Trainer!"
Cyrus chuckled softly. "Thank you, Ash."
"Aww, someone's warmin' up." Clay slapped Cyrus on the back.
Cyrus heaved a sigh. "Don't push it."
At this point, the trio of Trainers were disturbed by the frantic squawking of Cyrus's Murkrow, who came careening over the treetops with a panicked look on his face. Murkrow landed on the ground and immediately began gesturing wildly with his beak, pointing in a very specific direction.
"What's Murkrow saying?" Ash asked.
"I think Murkrow has found something he wants us to see," Cyrus explained. "And he seems quite insistent, so I think it would be best if we followed his instructions."
A few minutes of speed-walking later brought Ash, Clay, and Cyrus to a rock in the middle of a small forest clearing. Upon the rock lay the prone form of a Pokemon no one in the group recognized. It was steel-gray in color with a sleek, angular shape that was only disrupted by what looked almost like a cannon protruding from its upper back. Its head was hidden from the group by the rest of its body, and it wasn't moving.
"Is it dead?" Ash asked.
"It doesn't seem to be moving," Clay murmured.
Ash quickly raised his Pokedex, only to frown. "Huh…this isn't giving me any data on this Pokemon. Guess my Pokedex is broken or something."
"Houndour, check it out," Cyrus ordered, sending out the Dark/Fire-type.
"Wait." Clay held up a hand. "It looks like a Steel-type. We don't want to alarm it - best to send out a Steel-type ourselves. And since Drilbur hasn't evolved yet…"
Both older Trainers turned to look at Ash, who understood immediately. "Right. Scizor, check it out."
The Bug/Steel-type landed on the dirt and instantly began stepping over towards the prone Pokemon. He didn't recognize it either, but his eyes narrowed as he examined it, for he beheld telltale burnmarks across its form, faded but still present. This Pokemon had clearly been in a battle, probably with a Fire-type, and had not been healed. As Scizor neared the mystery Pokemon, he watched intently for any sign of movement, and his heart leaped as he saw it twitch slightly. Evidently it had heard him coming.
"Excuse me," Scizor said to the mysterious silver-colored Pokemon. "My Trainer's Pokedex isn't working, so I'd appreciate it if you could let us know who you are."
The mysterious Pokemon did not turn its head, but a single word issued from its form, as curt as it was robotic. "NO."
Scizor glared at the mysterious Pokemon. "Look, it's clear you're hurt. And we'd like to help. But we can't help if you don't tell us who you are. So I'd greatly appreciate it if you identified yourself."
The silver Pokemon finally raised its head. It was flat and angular, with a pair of large red eyes that glared at Scizor with clear anger glinting in them. "GE-NE-SECT - DO - NOT - I-DEN-TI-FY."
"Huh." Scizor glanced back at the trio of Trainers with a smirk. "So your name's Genesect?" It was then that he noticed that all three Trainers were also staring at Genesect, almost as if…
As if they could understand it.
Genesect noticeably paused. "CUR-SES."
"You just had to say something, didn't you."
Arceus gulped at the sheer fury in Dialga's voice. "Um…at least it's one of the few Legendaries that exist in multiples?"
"Yes," Dialga admitted, "which is something I am profoundly thankful for. But even so, Genesect does play a role later in Ash's timeline. So at this point, I think it would probably best if you just stopped talking, lest you start tempting fate again."
"Fine…" Arceus took another swig from his ice cream soda. It was really the best way he could think of to get his mind off the current state of affairs.
"Genesect?" Clay asked, sounding aghast. By now, the rest of the three Trainers' Pokemon were out, but were hanging back, waiting for instruction as they snuck glances towards Genesect.
"You've heard of it?" Cyrus asked.
"Rumors," said Clay. "Some artificial Legendary Pokemon project all the way over in Unova - I didn't even know if it was real, much less that a Genesect had ended up in Kanto of all places."
"Project?" Ash frowned. "That must be why my Pokedex wasn't able to identify it."
"And you said it was a Legendary?" Cyrus asked.
"That's what I said," Clay affirmed. "At least, I believe that was the project's intent."
"We can understand what it's saying, too," said Ash. "That's useful. Speaking of which, I'm gonna go talk to it, if that's okay."
"Careful, Ash," Clay warned. "Kubfu may not be that strong-"
"Fu!"
"-but in general, Legendaries are dangerous. Even artificial ones. Especially artificial ones."
"It doesn't look dangerous," Ash protested. "It looks hurt. I want to go help it."
"All right," said Cyrus. Clay glanced at him; Cyrus quickly held out a hand. "But if it makes any sudden moves, we will be ready, of course."
"Of course," said Ash. "And so will my team. Right, guys?"
Scizor, Kubfu, Litleo, and Hisuian Growlithe all swiftly stated their agreement.
Ash smiled and walked over to Genesect. The artificial Pokemon still had not moved from its spot; after speaking to Scizor, it had dropped its head back behind its body and resumed its silent, near-stationary vigil.
"Hey, Genesect," said Ash. "Are you all right?"
"THAT - IS - NONE - OF - YOUR - CON-CERN," Genesect replied.
"Why not?" Ash asked. "You look hurt to me. And I don't like seeing a Pokemon hurt."
"I - DO - NOT - RE-QUI-RE - YOUR - SYM-PA-THY," Genesect stated.
Ash decided to change tactics. "Well, then, if you're not hurt, what are you doing lying here?"
"I - AM - WAI-TING - FOR - MY - TRAINER," Genesect answered.
Ash blinked. "Your…Trainer?"
From that moment, the story came out pretty quickly. Apparently Genesect had been owned by a Trainer named Damian who had told it to stay on this rock and wait for his return. Pretty much everyone in the clearing instantly knew Damian, whoever he was, wasn't actually planning on coming back.
"Well, this raises questions," Cyrus murmured. "How would a random Trainer in Kanto get their hands on an artificial Legendary from Unova? And why would they then decide to abandon this Legendary in the middle of a forest?"
"Those ain't the right questions," Clay growled. "The question we should be askin' is where is this 'Damian'? 'Cause I've got some things I wanna say to him."
"We need to help Genesect first," Ash pointed out.
"Look," said Cyrus, "Genesect is an artificial Legendary. It's not like it's actually in any danger out here. It can't starve or dehydrate, and I doubt wild Pokemon will be a threat to it. About the only thing that could pose a danger to it is rain - it might rust the metal and fry its internal circuitry. So Genesect really doesn't need 'help' yet, just so long as it doesn't start raining."
Naturally, it promptly started raining.
"I - AM - COOOOLD," Genesect stated, the elongation of the last word accompanied by a flash of sparks.
"Well, now what?" Ash asked. "We need to find a way to keep the rain off Genesect."
"Don't worry!" Litleo cried. "I'll rescue this Pokemon from its plight!"
"Litleo, wait-" Kubfu called, but Litleo was already bounding over to Genesect's prone form.
"Don't worry, I've got this!" Litleo's body lit up with fire. "My flames will warm this Pokemon right up!"
Five Minutes Later
"Okay," said the disheveled and slightly burned Clay, "we're all agreed that Litleo doesn't get to rescue Pokemon anymore."
Ash and Cyrus collectively nodded.
"I - AM - IN - PAAAAAIN," Genesect stuttered robotically.
Five More Minutes Later
"So what do we do?" Clay asked, glancing over at Genesect once more. The artificial Legendary looked burnt and forlorn, and was still not moving. At least no rain was falling on it anymore, though Clay had been forced to sacrifice his coat in order to create an impromptu blanket.
"Clearly," said Cyrus, "Genesect has been abandoned by his Trainer, and does not understand that. So he is waiting for his Trainer to return. As such, he must be convinced that his Trainer is not coming back."
"YOU - DO - RE-A-LIZE - I - CAN - HEAR - YOU," Genesect piped up from where it was lying.
"Oh…" Ash gulped. "Sorry, Genesect. I was trying to think of a way to more easily break the news to you…"
"I - AM - A-WARE - MY - TRAI-NER - IS - NOT - RE-TUR-NING," Genesect stated.
"Then why are you still waiting for him?" Ash asked.
"BE-CAUSE - HE - GAVE - ME - AN - OR-DER - TO - STAY - ON - THIS - ROCK - AND - WAIT - FOR - HIM," Genesect answered. "AND - I - MUST - O-BEY."
"Why?" Ash asked.
"MY - PUR-POSE - IS - TO - SERVE - HU-MANS," Genesect replied. "TO - PRO-TECT - HU-MANS. TO - O-BEY - THE - OR-DERS - OF - HU-MANS. AND - TO - SERVE. TO - PRO-TECT. AND - TO - O-BEY - MY - TRAI-NER - MOST - OF - ALL."
"Um…" Ash thought for a moment. "So, Genesect…if I became your Trainer, does that mean your purpose is to obey me?"
"YES," said Genesect. "BUT - YOU - ARE - NOT - MY - TRAI-NER."
"Do you define your Trainer as whoever's caught you in a Pokeball?" Ash asked.
"THAT - IS - THE - DE-FI-NI-TION - OF - A - TRAI-NER," Genesect replied.
"So theoretically," said Ash, "if I capture you in a Pokeball, I'm your Trainer, right?"
"YES," said Genesect. "BUT - YOU - CAN - NOT - DO - THAT. A - PO-KE-MON - CAN - ON-LY - HAVE - ONE - PO-KE-BALL."
"Got it." Ash hefted a Pokeball and threw it at Genesect.
Genesect promptly exploded out of it; Clay's coat was thrown away and tossed onto the wet grass as Genesect rose to its full height, its cannon trained directly on Ash. Instantly, Scizor and Hisuian Growlithe both leaped in front of Ash, eyes narrowed and bodies tensed in preparation to block the attack.
"I - DID - NOT - AC-QUI-ESCE - TO - YOU - CAP-TUR-ING - ME," Genesect droned furiously, energy beginning to glow in the barrel of his cannon.
"Zor!" "Lithe!" Both Hisuian Growlithe and Scizor let out furious snarls. Litleo and Kubfu stepped up beside them, both growling, and behind Ash, Clay and Cyrus's teams arrayed themselves in a line, presenting a united front in the face of the artificial Legendary.
"Stop!" Ash cried, raising his hands. "Listen to me, Genesect! A Pokeball won't try to capture a Pokemon if that Pokemon already has a Pokeball! If Damian still had your Pokeball, mine would've bounced off!"
Genesect paused. "YOU - ARE - COR-RECT."
"So Damian's not your Trainer, right?" Ash asked. "Which means you don't have to follow his orders."
Genesect untensed, the light in his cannon dissipating. "DO - YOU - WISH - TO - CAP-TURE - ME?"
Ash nodded. "As much to get you out of this rain as anything…but I'd also really love it if you let me become your new Trainer!"
"MY - PUR-POSE - IS - TO - SERVE - A - HU-MAN," said Genesect. "AND - I - SUP-POSE - I - CAN - NOT - DO - THAT - WITH-OUT - A - TRAI-NER. BUT - DO - YOU - PRO-MISE - NOT - TO - A-BAN-DON - ME?"
"Of course I promise!" Ash cried.
"THEN - I - WILL - AL-LOW - YOU - TO - CAP-TURE - ME," Genesect confirmed.
"All right!" Ash threw another Pokeball. This time, Genesect did not break out, and after a few seconds, the ball dinged, indicating a successful capture.
As Ash posed with Hisuian Growlithe and Scizor and shouted about capturing Genesect, Clay glanced at Cyrus. "So…that makes two Legendary Pokemon Ash has caught now, right?"
"Yes," Cyrus affirmed, a tone of resignation in his voice. "Yes, I do believe that is the case."
The nearest Pokemon Center was actually quite full, with a fairly long line of Trainers waiting at the front desk. Clay and Cyrus sat down at a nearby table while Ash got in line, his hand clutching Genesect's Pokeball. As the line slowly moved towards the front desk, Ash felt his senses begin to wander, taking in murmurings and conversations. One in particular caught his attention; an older teenager with blue hair (probably dyed) talking boastfully with several other Trainers.
"…artificial Pokemon!" one of the others was saying. "I've heard tell of them - Porygon, obviously - but I've never actually heard of another Trainer having one! You must be a really good Trainer, Damian!"
"Of course I am," said the blue-haired teenager. "That said…I don't actually have him anymore."
"Really?" another Trainer asked.
"Turns out artificial Pokemon aren't all they're cracked up to be," Damian elaborated. "He ended up being too weak for my taste. So I left him on a rock somewhere. He's probably long gone by now."
Ash saw red. As the other Trainers stepped away, Ash walked out of the line and strode towards Damian, fists clenched in fury. Damian saw him coming. "Well, well. What's the matter, kid? Want to learn from the best?"
"You're the one who abandoned Genesect," Ash growled.
Damian let out a harsh laugh. "So what if I did? It couldn't even take a single Flamethrower! I don't need useless Pokemon like that on my team."
"That's because he's a Bug/Steel-type!" Ash protested.
"So?" Damian asked. "I can't become a good Trainer if my Pokemon fold to any sort of type disadvantage."
"Let me get this straight," said Ash. "You abandoned a literal Legendary with only one type weakness because you decided it not being able to take a powerful attack targeting that one type weakness made it 'useless'. Do I have that right?"
"Um, yes," said Damian. "I mean, check this out." He raised another Pokeball, releasing a Poliwag. "This thing can at least take an Electric or Grass-type move. That makes it tough enough for me to give it a chance."
"That's because it's not four-times weak to those moves!" Ash protested.
Damian let out another harsh laugh. "Look, I'm a much better Trainer than you, so you can take your pathetic opinions and spout them to someone who actually cares."
Ash blinked. "You're an idiot."
Damian glared at him. "You've got some nerve. Wanna go? Let's have a Pokemon battle, right here, right now, and then we'll see who's the idiot."
"You're on," Ash growled, grasping for Scizor's Pokeball.
It was at this moment that both Trainers felt an ominous presence looming over them. Both turned to see Nurse Tabitha standing right next to them. "No fighting in the Pokemon Center, please," the stocky nurse growled. "If you have something to settle, then why don't you take it outside?"
"Huh," Damian muttered. "This guy's surprisingly intimidating for a nurse." He sighed. "Fine, then. You've got yourself a stay of execution. But try and tell me how to raise my Pokemon one more time, and I'll take your Gym Badges and leave you lying by the side of the road." Whirling, he stalked off, leaving Ash standing next to Nurse Tabitha in the middle of the Pokemon Center.
But before he could even walk out of the door, the front wall of the Pokemon Center exploded inwards. The patrons of the Pokemon Center promptly screamed and started running away.
A Dragonite soared through, and two Trainers and an Aron swiftly leaped off its back. "Prepare for trouble!"
"And make it - aw, seriously? Again?"
"Drake, that's not the line!" Liza paused as she saw Ash standing in the middle of the Pokemon Center. "Wait, what? What are you doing here?"
"I…was about to ask you the same thing," Ash admitted.
"We're here to steal every Pokemon in the Pokemon Center!" said Drake.
"Didn't you try that back in Viridian City?" Ash asked.
"Yeah," said Aron, "an' dat would've worked if you hadn't been dere."
"So we thought we'd try it again," Liza explained. "After all, with all our recent equipment losses and failed missions, we need something to show the boss. But first the Pokemon village, and now this…are you following us?"
"No," said Ash truthfully, sounding puzzled. "So…now that I'm here, are you…just going to retreat?"
Drake shrugged. "I mean, we've already blown up the wall, so…it'd kinda be a waste to not keep trying."
"If you say so." Ash quickly dropped his hands to his Pokeballs, ready to send out his entire team.
Damian, who had been knocked down to the floor, saw fit to intervene. "Ha!" he cried, glancing back smugly at Ash. "Don't bother! I'll show you how a real Trainer fights! I'll beat these-"
"Dragonite, Hyper Beam."
Damian's face fell. "Never mind, I surrender!"
Dragonite did not seem interested in Damian's surrender. Damian shrank back, shrieking like a girl, as Dragonite unleashed a vicious Hyper Beam in his direction. But before the beam could reach, one of Ash's Pokeballs exploded open, and in the next moment Genesect lunged into the path of the Hyper Beam, tanking the attack with its Steel typing.
"Genesect!" Ash cried, worried.
"Genesect?" Damian murmured, shocked.
"Genesect?" Liza asked, surprised.
"GE-NE-SECT," Genesect affirmed, furious. "AND - THESE - HU-MANS - ARE - UN-DER - MY - PRO-TEC-TION. YOU - WILL - CEASE - YOUR - AS-SAULT - OR - FACE - ME - IN - BAT-TLE."
"Hold on," said Liza. "Genesect…isn't that some artificial Legendary being constructed in Unova?"
"How'd someone like you know about that?" Clay asked from where he and Cyrus were standing, their teams released and ready for battle.
"Our boss has researched artificial Legendaries," said Drake. Liza swatted him. "For absolutely no reason at all," Drake added. Liza swatted him again.
Ash shrugged. "Anyway, yeah, Genesect's a Legendary. What's it to you?"
"That means it's valuable!" Drake cried. "Dragonite, Slam! Take it down!"
Dragonite hurled himself forwards, one fist drawn back. Genesect stood its ground. As Dragonite came in, throwing a punch, Genesect's clawed hand flashed out and caught Dragonite's fist, stopping the Dragon/Flying-type cold. Dragonite's eyes widened.
"PI-TI-FUL." Genesect unleashed a powerful Metal Claw into Dragonite's face. Dragonite was sent reeling backwards, though it stayed on its feet. "Water Gun!" Drake cried.
"Okay, seriously, how many moves does that Dragonite have?" Ash asked in an undertone.
But Genesect was fully prepared. In the blink of an eye it sidestepped with Quick Attack (the fact that the Water Gun slammed into the still-cowering Damian and soaked him from head to toe was purely coincidental) and lunged for Dragonite. Dragonite brought one burly arm up in defense, but Genesect's next Metal Claw still sent him skidding backwards. "Up, Dragonite!" Drake ordered. "Take to the sky!"
Dragonite flapped his wings, hurling himself upwards and away from Genesect. Genesect glared at Drake. "FOOL-ISH - HU-MAN," it stated. "DO - YOU - BE-LIEVE - I - AM - HELP-LESS - A-GAINST - AN - AIR-BORNE - OP-PO-NENT?"
Everyone in the Pokemon Center watched with awe or alarm as Genesect used Magnet Rise. "E-LE-VATE!"
The now-flying Genesect soared up into the air after Dragonite, dodging a barrage of Water Guns from the Dragon/Flying-type. "Agility, Dragonite!" Drake called. "And keep firing - that thing can't dodge forever!"
"I - DO - NOT - NEED - TO," Genesect retorted as it wove past more Water Guns. Its body once more flashed forwards with a Quick Attack. This time, though, Dragonite had the speed to match; instead of simply blocking with an arm, Dragonite met Genesect's Metal Claw with a Slam. Genesect still won out, the sheer power of its attack forcing Dragonite back, but this time Dragonite twisted with the blow, whirling to swing another Slam at Genesect with his other arm. Genesect blocked with another Metal Claw-
And Dragonite exhaled a Hyper Beam straight into the crown of Genesect's head.
"Genesect!" Ash cried as the artificial Legendary was sent flying all the way back down to the ground by Dragonite's Hyper Beam. The attack slammed it into the floor hard enough for it to crater from the impact; a cloud of smoke enshrouded the impact point from view.
Liza grinned. "Lunatone, immobilize it with Confusion. The boss will be quite pleased when we show him our newest acquisition."
"You won't get Genesect!" Ash released the rest of his team onto the floor of the Pokemon Center.
"Like you can stop us." Drake stepped forwards. "Dragonite, Dragon Rage. Don't let them get close."
But as Dragonite inhaled, ready to unleash draconic flames, and as Lunatone's body flashed with psychic energies, Genesect exploded out of the cloud of smoke. Its body was smoking, but it was still fast, and its claws were now glinting with the telltale greenish energy of a Bug-type attack. Genesect's claws slashed through Lunatone's Confusion like it was nothing, and before Lunatone could do anything more the artificial Legendary had sent it flying backwards with another rapid claw-swipe. The Rock/Psychic-type careened past Liza and slammed into the ground, tumbling end over end before skidding to a halt.
"Lunatone!" Liza cried.
"I - TI-RE - OF - THIS," Genesect droned. "THIS - BAT-TLE - ENDS - HERE - AND - NOW. LOCK-ING - ON."
Genesect's eyes lit up as it stared at Dragonite. "Dragonite, evade!" Drake cried.
"YOU - WILL - NOT - E-VADE - ME," Genesect retorted. "THIS - FIGHT - IS - O-VER." Before the eyes of everyone in the Pokemon Center, the tip of Genesect's cannon began to glow brightly with a rapid influx of energy.
Drake's eyes widened. "Hyper Beam, now!"
"CO-MMEN-CING - TECH-NO - BLAST." The light upon the tip of Genesect's cannon reached a fever pitch. Genesect's eyes flashed red. "EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"
With a horrific screech, Genesect unleashed the full power of its Techno Blast at Dragonite. Dragonite fired a Hyper Beam in turn; the two attacks met, and for a few moments they held, neither one prevailing over the other. But then Genesect's attack began to push forwards, slowly at first but then faster and faster, forcing Dragonite's Hyper Beam back into Dragonite himself. Drake cried out for Dragonite to dodge, but it was too late; the mingled energies of Genesect's Techno Blast and Dragonite's own Hyper Beam reached the Dragon/Flying-type, and with a loud roar, Dragonite was sent flying, his bellow fading into the distance as he was launched far away from the Pokemon Center.
Genesect's eyes swiveled back towards the members of Team Rocket. "YOU - HAVE - FIVE - SE-CONDS - TO - RUN."
Drake, Liza, and Aron collectively glanced at each other. "Aron," Liza murmured, "can you take that thing?"
"Are you serious?" Aron retorted.
"YOUR - FIVE - SE-CONDS - ARE - UP." Genesect's cannon began to glow again. "EX-TER-MIN-ATE!"
The second Techno Blast exploded out of Genesect's cannon, and the rest of Team Rocket promptly suffered the same fate as Dragonite.
As the remnants of the second Techno Blast - along with the screams of Team Rocket - faded away, Damian blinked. "Wait, Genesect can do that?"
"Did I mention that he's a Legendary?" Ash asked bitingly.
Damian blinked again, then blinked several more times, then raised a Pokeball. "All right, Genesect, I'm gonna give you another chance!"
"Uh, that would be a no," said Ash.
"And why not?" Damian asked. "Genesect is my Pokemon, and-"
"NO."
"What do you mean, no?" Damian cried.
"I - MEAN - NO," Genesect stated. "YOU - A-BAND-ONED - ME. DE-STROYED - MY - PO-KE-BALL. BY - THAT - LO-GIC - I - AM - NO - LONG-ER - YOUR - PO-KE-MON."
Damian glared at Genesect. "I'm offering you another chance, on the team of an actually strong Trainer rather than a wimp like him, and this is how you repay me? You owe me, Genesect!"
"Genesect doesn't owe you anything!" Ash retorted.
"Shut up!" Damian cried. "I challenge you to a Pokemon battle! Winner gets Genesect! Or are you too scared to face an actually good Trainer?"
Ash's face grew red, but before he could accept the challenge Cyrus stepped between them. "That is enough," said the Dark-type Gym Leader. "Genesect went into Ash's Pokeball. Which means you released it, and Ash caught it, which means under Pokemon League Regulation 23-b, Genesect is legally Ash's Pokemon. Not only that, but abandoning a Pokemon like you did violates Pokemon League Regulation 17-c, which is punishable by removal of Pokemon battling privileges for the current Gym season and fines of up to a thousand Pokedollars."
Damian glared at Cyrus. "And I'm supposed to listen to some old geezer like you? Go back to the retirement home and quit sticking your weirdly tiny nose into other people's problems! Besides, no one can prove I violated those rules - it's my word against yours, and only Gym Leaders and other League officials are allowed to enforce those rules."
"Ash is correct," Cyrus murmured. "You are an idiot." He flashed a Galactic Badge. "Cyrus, Pewter City Gym Leader. You were saying?"
Damian suddenly looked a lot less cocky, his eyes roaming desperately around the Pokemon Center for anyone who was watching. His gaze, unfortunately for him, landed on Clay. "Help!" he called out to the Ground-type Gym Leader. "These two are trying to steal my Pokemon with a fake badge!"
For whatever reason, this did not work.
Soon enough, Damian had been led away by Officer Goh, leaving Ash, Clay, and Cyrus to set out once more. First, though, Ash released Genesect in order to allow it to better acclimate with the rest of the team.
"So we're both Bug/Steel-types?" Scizor raised an eyebrow. "Maybe we could teach one another a thing or two."
"GE-NE-SECT - DO - NOT - RE-QUI-RE - TEA-CHING," Genesect replied.
"Really?" Scizor frowned. "Then I presume you know Bullet Punch?"
Genesect paused. "THAT - IS - NOT - IN - MY - MOVE - RE-PO-SI-TO-RY."
"So I guess I do have something to teach you after all," Scizor said with a smirk.
"GE-NE-SECT - DO - NOT - RE-QUI-RE - TEA-CHING," Genesect repeated. "BUT - PER-HAPS - WE - COULD - BOTH - BE-NE-FIT - FROM - MU-TU-AL - IN-STRUC-TION."
Scizor snorted. "Whatever you say, Genesect."
"Well, I, for one, am excited to learn from a fellow Legendary," said Kubfu. "Hey, Genesect, you might want to try this strength intensifier! I've been using it, and it's really helped with my musculature."
"GE-NE-SECT - DO - NOT - HAVE - MUS-CU-LA-TURE," Genesect pointed out.
"That's a fair point," Kubfu admitted. "Hisuian Growlithe, Litleo, do you think you might have anything to teach Genesect? I bet it could fire a Flamethrower out of that cannon."
"NO," Genesect stated before either of the two Fire-types could respond. "I - HAVE - NO - IN-TREST - IN - AS-SO-CI-A-TING - WITH - THOSE - TECH-NIQUES."
"Oh," said Hisuian Growlithe, who had been about to open his mouth. "Sorry."
"AND - FUR-THER-MORE," Genesect added, "I - WOULD - PRE-FER - TO - TRAIN - A-WAY - FROM - WHERE - THEY - ARE - TRAI-NING."
"Are you…afraid of fire?" Kubfu asked.
"I - AM - NOT - A-FRAID - OF - FI-RE." Genesect glanced back towards Hisuian Growlithe and Litleo. "I - AM - MERE-LY - A - FAN - OF - PRE-CAU-TION-A-RY - MEA-SURES." A pause. "WITH - RE-GARDS - TO - FI-RE."
"Look, it's all right," said Scizor. "I'm Bug/Steel too, remember? I don't like fire either, and from the sound of it Damian…didn't respect that."
Genesect shuddered slightly.
"So we'll respect your wishes," said Scizor. "And if Ash tries to pair you up with a Fire-type or something, I'll make sure he knows you're not interested, okay?"
"THAT - WOULD - BE - AC-CEPT-A-BLE," Genesect replied.
As the conversation died down, Ash stepped over to his now five-strong team. "So, everybody ready to keep going?"
Nods came from all around.
"Then let's go!" Ash said with a grin. "After all, we've got a long way still to go, and we've still got to catch up with Miette." His grin grew wider. "I can't wait to show her the Pokemon I've got…"
Yep. Ash has a capital-L Legendary now. And he's also got two of the three Bug/Steel-types in existence. Randomizers can be funny sometimes. (Edit: As multiple reviewers have pointed out, there are more than three Bug/Steel-types in existence. In fact, there are six, so...major research faliure there.)
Looking back on the anime, this entire stretch of episodes really is Pokemon-catching central for Ash. He goes from three Pokemon to seven in the span of four episodes. It's a weird choice. I'm not complaining - makes it more fun for me, and hopefully for all of you!