Another Chapter ready. Sorry this one took a while, as I've been busy. Either way, I hope you enjoy. As always, reviews are appreciated and I'm always looking for any feedback or even suggestions. Lol
XXXX
The group was once again on the road, their destination being Vermillion city to the south. Unfortunately….there was a small issue. "...what is with this fog? Kanto isn't supposed to get any of these until winter," Ash said in annoyance as the group walked through the low visibility.
"At this rate I can't even tell where we're going," Misty frowned, trying to look at the map they had gotten.
"It doesn't help we're the geniuses who forgot to pack a compass," Brock added, causing the group to sigh in defeat as they mentally kicked themselves for that blunder, Pikachu sighing with a small shrug.
"Well, it could be worse. If need be we'll just ask for directions when we find someone. Mom and Dad always said they got lost PLENTY of times when they were travelling," Ash sweat dropped.
"You know, you mention your parents a lot, especially your Dad," Misty mused, before getting a teasing expression. "Is the future Pokemon Master a big Mommy and Daddy's boy?" she teased.
Ash blushed a bit at that. "Well...no, or at least not really," he grumbled. "I can't help it if they taught me a lot of things, especially my Dad when it comes to being a Trainer-Fighter."
"Seems your dad knew my dad. You called him Carmine, right?" Brock mused.
"Carmine...Carmine...wait…" Misty blinked, before her eyes widened. "I think I've heard that name before. Are we talking the Carmine Ketchum who conquered Mt. Battle in one shot?"
"That's him yeah," Ash nodded with a hint of pride. "I've always looked up to him, and that's why I want to be like him some day."
"I can see why. That's a pretty high target to aim for," Brock nodded. "So, what about your mom?"
"Well...mom's semi-retired, but she's still a strong Fighter. I heard she was runner up in several Leagues when she was younger," Ash said.
"What happened?" Misty asked curiously. "She seems like she was on a roll."
"I did," Ash said, scratching the back of his head awkwardly. "Mom and Dad were both ready to settle down when they found out they were having me, and even though Dad travels a lot he comes home every chance he gets. It helps that Dad works for Professor Oak as one of his field researchers, so it helped him stay in the field as a Trainer-Fighter," he said, before quickly adding, "Not that there are any problems with that of course. Mom always said when she was younger she just wanted to travel to see the world, and meeting Dad and having me were the best things that ever happened to her."
"Awww, that's so sweet," Misty said with a smile which was half teasing and half sincere. "And you're their little bundle of joy," she added.
"Quit it…" Ash blushed, not helped by the fact Pikachu was on his shoulder, and playfully joining in, making heart eyes and talking in a more cutesy tone, while Brock just watched with clear amusement in his expression, before eventually coming to his rescue.
"Hm..we've been walking around for quite some time, so how about a little break," Brock offered.
"Well...I guess a small break wouldn't hurt," Ash mused, though he did shoot Brock a grateful look for changing the subject.
"In that case…" Brock started, before digging into his backpack...and somehow pulling out an entire table and a variety of plates and snacks that...honestly it was a testament to the abilities of modern technology to make backpacks able to carry everything a traveller needed...or wanted. "Since we've been travelling quite a bit, how about a little something special," he started as he set the table while unpacking. "And nothing quite beats the taste of some Blue Mountain Coffee, though that depends on the person drinking," Brock said, taking out a coffee grinder. "For anyone who's not really into coffee…" he mused as he rummaged through his bag for something. "How about some Oran Juice?" he offered, placing a bottle of bluish juice that had the picture of Oran Berries stamped on the cover.
"Or how about some Blue Tea?" Misty suggested.
"I think that's asking a bit much right now," Ash sweat dropped. Blue Tea wasn't exactly easy to get...or ideal for travelling since making it just right wasn't easy either.
"Not so fast, Ash," Brock wagged his finger. "As it so happens, I've brought my special tea set!" he said, pulling out a rather finely made teapot and tea cup with dark blue designs based on Pokemon that all in all looked like something you'd see in a fancy shop. "Now the key to good coffee or tea is good water," he continued as he put the tea set down on the table, and soon began rummaging through his bag again. "And as it so happens, while we were there, I got a generous supply of delicious Mt. Moon pure spring water!" he declared, pulling out a large bottle of water.
"...props to Brock, he's way more prepared than we are…" Misty said as she, Ash, and Pikachu sweat dropped, seeing as none of them had thought to get fresh spring water from Mt. Moon.
"Now for the snack, rice crackers are a nice thing for travelling, but since we've got all this good stuff, how about I make some Kalos-style Crepes too?" Brock offered, placing the aforementioned crackers on the table while he said that.
Misty was starry eyed when she heard that. "I love Kalosian things, they're so romantic~" she said...though her slight daydream was ruined when the sound of crunching was heard, Ash having taken one of the rice crackers and sharing it with Pikachu, both of them crunching down on it. "Do you mind? I'm trying to have a romantic daydream," she said in annoyance.
"Sorry…" Ash said as he and Pikachu sweat dropped.
"Oh, by the way, I couldn't get a portable stove back in Cerulean, so I can't cook crepes or boil water without a fire," Brock said. "I'm going to need someone to go out and bring back firewood. Any volunteers?"
At that both Misty and Brock looked over to Ash who nodded. "Sure I'll do it. This should be easy enough," he chuckled. "Come on, Pikachu." Pikachu soon followed after him as they walked into the mist.
"Okay, the type of wood we want for firewood is...honestly any of these trees could work, but mom and dad always say older and dryer trees are best...that and younger trees sometimes have Pokemon and animals living in them and we wouldn't want to take someone's house, right?" Ash said as he and Pikachu looked through the trees on the path, Pikachu shaking his head with an agreeing 'Chu' at the last part, before he noticed what appeared to be a light up ahead, and pointed at it in surprise.
"A light? Could someone else be here?" Ash blinked. "Come on, let's take a look," he said as the two of them ran towards the light...and were met with an odd sight. It appeared to be several Pokemorphs that seemed to be somewhere between 10 to 13 years of age, wearing matching uniforms that were obviously that of some kind of school. Several of them were holding candles standing around one who was for some reason running on a treadmill. Upon a closer look, they saw that the other Pokemorphs (they were various species like a Sneazel, a Nidoran, etc etc) were asking the one on the treadmill, a Ratata with rather puffy brown hair on his head, questions regarding Pidgeys. The Ratata seemed to answer well enough at first, but paused when asked the last question...to which the others increased the speed of the treadmill, causing him to be unable to keep up and eventually fall off the treadmill.
At this point he couldn't just sit still and do nothing. "Hey, leave that kid alone!" he growled angrily, running towards the group, Pikachu alongside him. "What's going on here?!" he demanded.
"Nothing's going on, this is just a private study session," one of the Pokemorphs in uniform said, their tone just dripping with 'arrogant rich kid' vibes.
"Looks more like bullying to me," Ash frowned, helping the Ratata up to his feet while keeping his glare on the other students.
"Well it's his own fault. What kind of Pokemon Tech student can't even remember a Pidgey's evolved form and signature attacks. We have no interest in studying with the likes of him," another of the students mocked. "After all we have to maintain standards."
"And you're the type who needs an attitude adjustment," Ash shot back, though inwardly he had to admit...being in Kanto and not knowing at least the fully evolved form of Pidgey was pretty low… "And I don't know what kind of school thinks it's okay to do things like this, but that's just messed up."
"Well said," came Misty's voice, much to Ash and Pikachu's surprise. They weren't gone THAT long, at least not long enough to warrant being followed. "You'd all better stop bullying that kid, or you're going to have to answer to us!"
"That's right, we don't take kindly to bullies who make excuses for themselves!" Ash agreed, both of them looking ready to fight.
The students however didn't seem particularly intimidated, instead just remained smug. "We're not interested in fighting," one of them said.
"We from Pokemon Tech are much more civilized than you cave morphs," another added. "Getting into a fight with someone who acts like a Pokemon would just ruin our school's reputation."
And with another arrogant chuckle the group soon turned to leave, but not before addressing the Ratata. "We'll see you back at the Tech, Joe."
"Okay," the Ratata, apparently named Joe, said without hesitation, much to the incredulous looks from Ash, Misty, and Pikachu.
"Well those guys were jerks," Ash said dryly as the boys disappeared into the mist. "Who do they think they are anyway?"
"So those are the infamous Tech students," came Brock's voice as he was suddenly standing not far from them, a frown on his face...while he was mixing batter for the crepes he promised.
"When did you get here? And for that matter, why were you both following me? We weren't gone THAT long," Ash blinked.
"Oh, we found some kindling not too far from where we'd stopped so we came after you to let you know you didn't need to get any firewood," Misty supplied helpfully.
"Huh...the things you miss when you can barely see," Ash blinked. "So...Tech?"
"Pokemon Tech. I think it's short for Pokemon Technical," Misty said.
"Pokemon Technical...isn't that some kind of prep school?" Ash blinked, having heard the name before...and it wasn't in a particularly favorable light.
"Yeah, that's the one," Misty nodded, rummaging into her pocket for a flier she'd picked up a while back.
"Let's see," Brock said, putting aside the batter he was making...somewhere...and took the flier and started reading. It seemed Pokemon Tech was a private boarding school for 'serious Pokemon Trainer preparation', and as such, all the students were eligible to enter the Pokemon League upon graduation. In short, it was one of the various ways someone could become a Pokemon Trainer without having to travel, or in the event they for various reasons couldn't travel. Additionally the entrance fees and tuition were high standards.
"In short, it's one of those snobby private schools only millionaires can attend," Misty summed up.
"Yeah, I remember hearing about that now from Professor Oak once. While he agreed the stuff they teach was top notch, the Trainers they churn out...not so much if you know what I mean," Ash said with a frown. "Where is it anyway? Seems kinda weird to come all the way out here for what you were doing."
"Oh, it's right over there," Joe said...right as a PA declared that the 'fog battle techniques' class had ended, to which the fog cleared...revealing they had been in the front courtyard of the school the whole time.
"...how the heck did we not notice anything?" Ash blinked, Misty and Brock sharing in his bewilderment.
"Oh well...looks like they'll make me into a snowman again tomorrow," Joe sighed, as the PA had announced that the special class for tomorrow would be 'snow competition secrets'.
"They treat you like that everyday?" Ash frowned. He was REALLY seeing why Professor Oak didn't care much for this place.
"My friends are just trying to help," Joe said.
"They sure didn't look like friends to me," Ash said incredulously.
"With friends like that, who needs enemies," Brock agreed.
"But they help me learn a lot of things," Joe sighed, before listing off some details about Pidgey, even adding in supposed numbers or levels when the Pidgey line learn techniques and evolve, and basically showing quite a bit of knowledge in theory.
"Wait...if you knew that, why did you pretend you didn't know?" Ash blinked.
"If I did answer they'd just make the questions even harder," Joe said simply, earning a few dry looks from the trio.
"Isn't the whole point of going to school learning more?" Misty whispered, not really impressed, circumstances aside, that honestly sounded more like someone who wanted to avoid having to work harder.
"If you're being treated like this, then why are you staying here? Wouldn't it be better to find another way?" Brock asked.
"I have to stay here at Pokemon Tech. My parents worked so hard to get the money to send me here," Joe said as he gestured to a person who looked to be in his mid to late 20s. "The classes here are so hard that some students are held back for years. That guy over there is in the Beginner's Class like me, but he's already way older than everyone else in the class, so nobody bothers trying to help him," Joe explained. As it turned out, the school was divided into three classes: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced, each having the qualifications of two, four, and six badges respectively while graduates had the qualification of eight badges, and thus were allowed to enter the Pokemon League after graduation.
"High class school or not, it's still not right for things like that to happen. Don't the teachers do anything about it?" Ash frowned.
"They don't even know about it and the ones that do pretend it doesn't happen," Joe sighed.
"How has this school not been flooded with complaints yet?" the trio deadpanned. "Who thought this kind of system was a good idea anyway?"
"Here," Joe said, taking out a picture of a Salazzle Pokemorph with long brown hair wearing a girl's school uniform...and they had to admit she was rather attractive too. "Her name's Giselle and she's at the top of the Beginner's Class."
"Wait, if she's the reason everyone uses this system, why do you have a picture of her?" Misty frowned.
"I don't like the way she treats us, but I like the way she looks," Joe admitted.
"...I hate the fact I can't say he's wrong," Ash said with a slight blush.
"No arguments here," Brock said, much to Misty's annoyance.
"Well, while you two are drooling over that picture, I think I'll find this Giselle and straighten her out," Misty said, walking towards the school with a slight huff.
XXXX
After a bit of asking, Joe showed them to one of the higher floors, revealing a room full of what honestly looked like arcade cabinets to them. "Giselle always practices here by herself," Joe said as they walked in. "Even if you beat her in a Battle once it won't matter to her. At the Tech it's your skill as a Pokemon Trainer that counts more than winning in any one battle," he explained.
"Not surprising. If you win more than you lose then that should mean you've got good overall skills," Brock nodded.
"And you said that Beginners are equivalent to holding two Badges. Guess that means I'm on par with a Beginner class here," Ash said, showing the Badges pinned to the inside of his jacket.
Joe shrugged. "But Giselle is the top of the Beginner's class. That's even better than having three Badges, and honestly even if I'm at the bottom of my class, I'm still more powerful than someone with two Badges," he said matter of factly.
"How can you be so sure?" Misty frowned. "There's a certain difference between learning to be a Trainer in a school and learning from live experience. I should know, seeing as I've been training at the Cerulean City Gym for most of my life," she said, not liking his attitude.
"Oh, Cerulean City, so that means you'd specialize in Water Pokemon," Joe said, booting up one of the machines to reveal that it was a battle simulator. "I always beat them at the simulator so I can definitely beat that," he said as on the simulator he was facing off against a Starmie with a Weepinbell...and won in a single attack.
"Are you seriously saying you can beat me JUST because you always win in a simulator?" Misty growled.
"Of course. The Simulators here are tuned to the highest accuracy using all the data on Pokemon abilities, strengths and weaknesses," Joe said. "The results here would be the same in real life."
"Care to put your money where your mouth is?" Misty glared.
"Okay, but you'll be sorry," Joe said confidently, before leading them to a battle area.
"Think we should try to stop them?" Ash asked Brock.
"I don't think we could even if we tried," Brock frowned. "Aside from this being a matter of pride for Misty, this could be a good experience for Joe."
"Good point. A simulation can only go so far compared to real life experience," Ash mused as they focused on the match unfolding.
"I'll show you the difference between real life and a simulation with this! Go, Starmie!" Misty said, releasing Starmie into the arena.
"Try as you'd like but your water-type can't beat my grass-type! Go, Weepinbell!" Joe declared, calling out his Pokemon, and soon the matchup was exactly like in the simulation. "Now, let's end this quickly! Razor Leaf!" Weepinbell fired the leaves towards Starmie but...
"Gyro Ball!" Misty countered, to which Starmie spun quickly, the Razor Leaf being completely knocked aside, leaving Starmie just fine.
"That's impossible! Gyro Ball is an offensive Move!" Joe gasped.
"Welcome to the real world," Misty couldn't help but smirk slightly. "And don't think just because you have the type advantage you can win! Scald!"
Starmie fired the heated water, hitting Weepinbell who took damage, but managed to withstand it.
Joe seemed to regain some confidence at that. "I told you, Water Moves don't work on Grass-types." However that was when he realized Weepinbell didn't look too good, its body glowing red. "A Burn Status?! But how could a Water Pokemon do that?!" he gasped.
"That was a Scald, it's not a Move Starmie can normally learn, but then...gathering Water-type TMs isn't anything strange for the Cerulean Gym," Misty said with a small smirk. "Now, Tackle!"
Starmie flew towards the Weepinbell like a discus and hit it dead on, knocking it back.
"Weepinbell, Vine Whip!" Joe gasped, but Misty was too fast for him.
"Ice Beam!" she commanded, Starmie firing the blast of frigid energy, encasing Weepinbell in ice, leaving it frozen solid.
Joe was left staring at the sight. "B-but how? Weepinbell should have been strong against a Water Pokemon…"
"True, but you forgot one thing," a new voice said, as the group turned to see the girl from the picture, Giselle. The Salazle stood confidently as behind her were the boys from before. "Your opponent is from the Cerulean City Gym, so her Pokemon has much more experience battling, not to mention is more likely to have moves that can counter against Grass Pokemon. You should have considered something as simple as that. You're an embarrassment to the school if you can't even do that."
"The face is pretty, but the attitude needs work," Ash whispered with a frown.
"Can't argue there," Brock nodded, a sentiment that only grew when Giselle introduced herself in a way that made it clear just how conceited she was of herself.
"I want to continue to help my classmates be the best that they can be. To help each other and respect each other, to be the Pokemon Trainers of tomorrow," Giselle said...to which the trio and Pikachu gave dry expressions that just screamed 'yeah, right' dripping with sarcasm, which only grew dryer when she continued. "But you're a weakling," she said bluntly. "If you don't get stronger fast, then it won't be long before your fellow students will turn their backs on you for good," Giselle said simply, turning her back on Joe much to his dismay.
"Hold it! A true friend wouldn't turn their back on someone who needs help!" Misty protested. "You may look beautiful, but if you keep acting like this, then it's nothing but skin deep!"
"Jealousy isn't very pretty either, isn't it?" Giselle shot back.
"...and you just prove my point by immediately jumping to that," Misty said dryly. Honestly, from where she was standing, this girl was just another girl who'd gone through life getting things on a silver platter.
"This is getting ugly. Think we should do something about it?" Ash frowned.
"Normally I'd say yes, but trust me when I say it's not the smartest thing to jump in the middle of a fight like this," Brock said.
Back with Misty and Giselle…
"Since you're in the mood to battle so much, I'll indulge you," Giselle said simply. "We'll be having a standard Pokemon battle if it's okay with you."
"Why wouldn't it?" Misty frowned.
"I just figured someone like you would rather fight by herself," Giselle said a little snidely. "Certainly not what I'd consider pretty."
Misty growled in annoyance. "Just pick your Pokemon already," she said, not wanting to rise to the bait.
"Alright then, since you're using a Water Pokemon…" Giselle said, grabbing a Pokeball. "Graveler, go!" she called out, releasing a Graveler onto the field, much to everyone's surprise.
"Graveler?!" Brock gasped. "But that's not just a Rock Pokemon, but a Ground-type too! That's a 4 times weakness against Water!"
"True, but my Graveler is at such an advanced level he can beat Water Pokemon," Giselle said simply, as Graveler tried to crush Starmie, who evaded the attack quickly.
Misty frowned at the match up. When someone deliberately chose a Pokemon that would normally put them at a disadvantage, they were either stupid, or had an ace up their sleeves. Generally it was safer to assume the latter. "Starmie, Harden!" Misty ordered, remembering that a majority of Graveler's Moves would likely be physical.
"Not a bad opening. Graveler, Rock Polish!" Giselle ordered, Graveler obeying and soon increased their speed, allowing them to keep up with Starmie who was still evading.
"Keep moving and counter with Water Gun!" Misty ordered, Starmie shooting the blast of water, hitting Graveler who grit their teeth and got out of the way of the attack.
"Rock Throw!" Giselle countered, Graveler shooting several rocks from his body towards Starmie.
"Bubble Beam!" Misty ordered, Starmie firing a rapid blast of bubbles, destroying the rocks and aiming next for Graveler.
"Counter with Rollout!" Giselle ordered, Graveler soon spinning in place...and getting faster, allowing it to build up momentum...and when the Bubble Beam hit there was no obvious effect, before Graveler suddenly surged forward, going straight for Starmie.
Misty's eyes widened the moment she saw the Bubble Beam not have any notable effect. "Starmie, return!" she ordered, recalling Starmie before Graveler managed to land the hit.
"Looks like it's my win then," Giselle said with a small smirk. "Seems you at least know when to quit."
"I'll concede I lost that one," Misty said with a frown. "But in the end you just proved our point."
Giselle just laughed at that. "And how would that be? Pokemon are only as strong as the Trainer who raised them. A Pokemon that's weaker can still win if they're at the higher level. It all depends on the Trainer, simple as that," she said, before turning to Joe. "I hope you're learning from this Joe. A Pokemon's level of training is just as important a factor as their type. A first class Pokemon trainer can calculate that," she said, not even once noticing the dry expressions she was getting from Misty, Ash, and Brock.
"...and yet she doesn't seem to realize what she did in the fight, does she?" Ash whispered to Brock.
"Somehow I'm not surprised. When you've learned things only from the books, there are some things you can only properly learn through real experience," Brock said. "That's the main reason why most Trainers and Fighters are encouraged to go on the full journey."
"And it doesn't look like she even realizes she beat me the same way I beat Joe at that," Misty added, having joined back up with them.
"Well, only one thing to do then," Ash sighed, before stepping forward. "Okay, that's quite enough. I'm not gonna deny training is important, but if all you're focused on is calculating the level of the Pokemon, then you're only going to get so far," he said.
"And who are you?" Giselle asked, though the tone made it clear she didn't really think much of him.
"I'm Ash from Pallet Town," he said simply, not rising to the obvious bait. "And I may only have 2 Badges so far, but I can say that what you're doing isn't enough."
Giselle just chuckled. "In other words you're still a Beginner," she said, clearly having written him off the moment he'd said he only had 2 Badges. "And how long have you been a Trainer?"
Ash thought about it for a moment. "About a month or two give or take," he shrugged, not really seeing the point.
Giselle gave an exaggerated gasp. "Two months and you still let your Pikachu walk free? You haven't even been able to tame it yet?"
At this point the trio were getting VERY annoyed with her attitude. "And what does THAT have anything to do with this?" Ash said in annoyance, though he did his best to reign it in. This girl was NOT worth losing his cool over.
"If you can't even make your Pokemon stay inside their Balls, maybe your Pokemon are training you," Giselle said with a smirk.
"I let Pikachu walk free because that's what makes him happy," Ash said with a frown. "And I help my Pokemon learn just as much as they help me."
"Oh, so you're a Trainer-Fighter too then?" Giselle chuckled. "I should have figured. Those types can't tell which is which. If a Trainer doesn't establish themselves as the one in control, then no doubt a Pokemon won't obey them in the way needed to properly train," she said. "I wonder, with the time you've had, your Pikachu should be at about level 25, but I bet it's actually lower than that. Not to mention you probably don't know much about Pokemon if you picked a Pikachu as your first one. They tend to be hard to handle, something you'd know if you've read any beginning Pokemon manual."
"If there's a point you're trying to make, make it instead of acting like you've got a head so big you'd make a Wailord jealous," Ash deadpanned, just about sick of this girl's attitude.
Giselle stopped short at that, a momentary twitch in her eye, before she regained her condescending expression. "Alright then, since clearly a brute like you can't understand in any way other than battle, why don't I show you the difference between you and a top student like me," she said.
"Fine by me, just don't think for even a second this will be easy," Ash frowned.
"For your Pikachu, this should be enough," Giselle said, picking another Pokeball. "Cubone, go!"
"Alright Pikachu, let's show her what we've learned from our journey!" Ash said, Pikachu stepping forward with a determined expression, he too wanting to wipe the smug look off the girl's face. Of course, neither of them were planning on going at this without a plan. Especially considering their opponent had the advantage.
However...Ash also took Cubone's trainer into consideration, and remembered something he'd learned not from his father...but from his mother. Clearly Giselle's idea of a Pokemon Trainer was one whom their Pokemon obeyed without question. Not a bad thing, but add in her by the book way of thinking and her ego...he had a feeling he could make this work. "I'm gonna need you to trust me on this one," Ash said, Pikachu blinking, but nodding. He trusted Ash to help him win this battle fully. "Open with Thundershock!" he ordered, much to Pikachu's surprise...but he trusted his Trainer and did as he was told.
"But Cubone is immune to Electric Moves," Misty blinked from where she and Brock were watching, Brock nodding in agreement.
"Considering how he fought against me, he definitely knows that Electric Moves don't work on Ground-types, yet why is he using them anyway?" Brock frowned.
True enough, Cubone easily fended off the attack taking no damage whatsoever. Giselle chuckled. "How on Earth did you get two Badges if you don't even know that Electricity won't work on Cubone," she smirked, as in her mind this only confirmed she was facing against someone who only got this far on luck with nothing to really back it up. "Cubone, start things off with Leer!" she said.
Pikachu recoiled when the Leer hit, his Defense falling as a result. "Pikachu, use Agility, then Quick Attack!" Ash ordered, Pikachu obeying and charging forward, hitting Cubone, and soon coming back for another round.
"Not bad, but not good enough," Giselle said. "Bone Club!" Cubone lashed out with the bone, and knocked Pikachu back.
"You okay, Pikachu?" Ash asked to make sure. Pikachu shook his head to shake off the daze, and quickly got to his feet again, giving a determined nod and 'Pika' of confirmation.
"Not for long!" Giselle smirked. "Let's show him why we're the top class! Bonemerang now!" Cubone obeyed, throwing his bone like a boomerang which flew towards Pikachu, looking like it was about to brain the mouse on the head again but…
"Gotcha! Pikachu, Iron Tail under the bone!" Ash ordered, gaining a smirk as well. Pikachu's expression matched his trainer and obeyed, hitting the bone with his hardened tail, knocking it upward.
"What?!" Giselle gasped, not expecting that at all, and Ash was all too happy to take advantage of her surprise.
"Quick Attack and Iron Tail now!" Ash ordered, Pikachu surging forward...and Cubone found himself getting pelted with a barrage of Iron Tail strikes, knocking him silly while Pikachu also took the openings he got to land several scratches and even bite Cubone on the tail.
Giselle tried to come up with a counter. Really she did...but as it was her brain was having a hard time making sense of what was happening. A nobody trainer who didn't even know the basics of the manual shouldn't have been able to train a Pikachu to fight without Electric Moves, let alone actually teach it Iron Tail. To make matters worse, with Cubone having lost his bone for now, she had no idea how to make Cubone fight back...not that it mattered as the Pikachu wasn't giving Cubone any room to breathe.
"Pikachu, let's finish this! Pay Cubone back for that Bone Club from before!" Ash ordered, Pikachu using Cubone's head as a springboard, to which he jumped up and grabbed the bone that was falling back down, and with a spin, brought it down on Cubone's head, causing the Pokemon to fall over, and soon start crying after the beating he took, Pikachu landing not far from his trainer, and tossing the bone back so Cubone could have it back.
It took a moment before Giselle realized what had happened and when it did, she sunk to her knees in shock. Fortunately she had enough wits to worry about her Pokemon first. "Cubone, please don't cry. Come back inside," she said comfortingly, recalling Cubone. "How did you do that? None of the textbooks said anything about a Pikachu winning without Electric Attacks."
"That's the difference between real life experience and learning from just the books," Ash said simply. "Books are great for giving you a solid basic, but there are things in the world the textbooks won't ever be able to tell you. That's something Professor Oak used to tell me all the time."
"Professor Oak? You mean THE Professor Oak?" Joe gasped in surprise.
"Well yeah, he DOES live in Pallet Town, and he's a family friend so he helped me out when I was learning to be a Trainer," Ash said. "So yeah, nothing wrong with learning from the textbooks and they're not wrong that how well a Pokemon is trained is an important factor in a match, but if you try challenging the League expecting things to go like the books, you're gonna be in for a nasty surprise. Trust me, I've heard my parents' stories of their League experiences enough times to know that almost anything can happen."
The students gathered were murmuring amongst themselves, as after what they'd just seen and heard...it was giving them a lot of food for thought.
XXXX
And done. Yes, I skipped an episode and went straight to this one. Some episodes are either pure filler or don't work with this version of Ash's personality and maturity. As such, episodes like that will be skipped. Apologies to anyone who was hoping to see the canonical episode before this one. Either way, hope you enjoyed. I'll try to get the next one out faster than this one. Also, here's the next Retold File.
File No. 4: Physiology
Pokemorphs are a rather unique race. If one were to sum them up, it could be said that they arguably blend the best of both worlds. They have all the basic abilities that come from their evolution into a more humanoid form, as well as having intelligence that make them able to create and innovate in ways that normal Pokemon are, while not incapable, seem to have a harder time doing. At the same time they retain the same (albeit slightly watered down) abilities of their roots, making them more intelligent but also relatively weaker than their Pokemon cousins. All Pokemorphs have the same basic abilities as their Pokemon cousins in that Fire Pokemorphs can withstand intense heat (some even able to withstand lava), Water Pokemorphs can breathe underwater, etc etc, and as such that has had an impact on the world in that what are normally uninhabitable areas to humans may in fact be perfectly habitable to certain Pokemorphs.
Pokemorphs being just as battle capable as their cousins have sturdy bodies, able to take beatings that would normally kill a human without sustaining lasting damage. As long as an injury isn't too severe, a Pokemorph can even heal from broken bones within a week with little to no need for rehab, hence why the rules regarding battle are somewhat looser regarding what is and what isn't allowed save some very clear limits.
A notable departure from their Pokemon cousins can be seen in their reproduction, as Pokemorphs are no longer completely oviparous or monotremes. Instead, outside of the fish, bird, and insect species of Pokemorphs, most Pokemorphs, especially mammalian species, give birth via live birth. The method of birth is always dependent on the mother's species, though viable couples are no longer limited by 'Egg Groups' as any male Pokemorph can impregnate any female Pokemorph, with the resulting child having a generally 50-50 chance of being the same species as either parent.
