With Courage I Will Face
Arc IV: Cerulean
Chapter Eighteen: The Cascade Badge
"Y'know, if I didn't know any better, I would think that gramps is trying so hard not to play favorites that he's actively pretending I'm not literally his grandson." Gary moped to them over lunch.
Leaf had just told them she had been on the phone with Professor Oak last night for a while regarding an errand he asked her to run. Gary was left playfully indignant, as he had tried to call him at the same time and did not get through.
"He really needs an assistant or something." Leaf agreed, downing her glass of apple juice. "Alright boys, and Misty, it's been great but it's time for me to head out of here. I should get a move on since I have to meet one of Professor Oak's aids back on Route 3 for some type of drop off."
"I should get going too. At least, head up to Bill's and pick up my ticket for the SS Anne before I totally head out." Gary agreed, standing up with Leaf.
"I guess we'll see you guys later, then. I'll be here until I win my next badge." Ash said.
"I hope that doesn't take too long; I'm starting to remember why I left." Misty muttered, and everyone laughed.
Gary and Leaf departed and went their separate ways. Gary went north, taking the Nugget Bridge back to Route 24 while Leaf headed back towards Mt. Moon. After battling the steady stream of trainers only to be confronted by an undercover Team Rocket grunt on the Nugget Bridge and spending half his time in Mt. Moon clearing it of Team Rocket grunts, Ash didn't envy either of their paths.
Ash, Misty and Brock, who were all previously sharing one side of the booth, stood up and spread out.
"What's the plan, Ash?" Brock inquired as they exited the Pokemon Center's cafeteria.
"Well, Gary and Professor Oak gave me some great ideas on training Butterfree. He's getting really good at mixing powders, but Professor Oak says that nobody really knows exactly what the rain-repellant dust is made of so it's just one big guessing game." Ash began, scratching his cheek unconsciously. "I think I might challenge the gym today and hope I don't have to use Butterfree, I can't let Gary, Leaf and Ritchie keep getting ahead of me."
"I don't know, Ash, that sounds pretty risky. There's a fifty-fifty shot between a two-on-two and a three-on-three." Misty replied.
"I like those odds. Besides, we managed to get through it last time." Ash countered.
"Last time was a fluke! And you caught me by surprise. Daisy will be expecting something like that, she did watch our battle." Misty countered right back.
Ash hummed in thought.
"But I do have my secret weapon still. Isn't that right, Pikachu?" Ash settled on his reply, glancing to Pikachu on his shoulder.
"Pi!" Pikachu replied happily.
"Whatever you think is best, Ash. It's only time we're wasting either way." Brock said with a shrug.
"Then to the gym it is!" Ash decided, leading the charge to Cerulean Gym.
"Like, sure, you can have your gym battle now. Just let me go find Daisy, alright?" Lily told them happily as she left them in the pool area.
Ash could feel himself bouncing with excitement as the three Sensational Sisters re-entered the room.
"I hear your ready for your gym battle, Ash." Daisy said with a smile.
"I'm ready for my gym badge." Ash corrected confidently. Daisy smiled wider.
"I love when they're this confident." She said, waving her hand. "Lily, Mist, Brock you can take a seat anywhere you want. Violet will referee the match. Ash, you can head over to your side of the field."
"I think we'll do a 2-on-2 today, Violet, since Misty just reclaimed one of my better battlers." Daisy called to Violet after they were all in position. Violet nodded.
"Guess he got lucky today." Misty remarked from the stands at the decision.
"This will be a two-on-two gym battle between Ash and Daisy! Ash, as the challenger, may substitute Pokemon while Daisy, as the gym leader, may not. The battle will be over when both of either sides Pokemon are unable to continue battling. Do both trainers understand and agree to the rules?" Violet recited.
Ash and Daisy both gave verbal confirmation they heard her, and Violet declared that they may both choose their first Pokemon.
"Goldeen, let's go!" Daisy chose her Pokemon quickly. Her fish Pokemon appeared slightly bigger than Misty's, but that could just be the amount of volume in its tail that made it look longer.
"Pidgeotto, I choose you!" Ash's Pokemon was chosen simultaneously. As Daisy's Pokemon sat in the water, Ash's hovered in the air above the pool.
"Goldeen, use Supersonic!" Daisy took the first move.
An array of light blue rings came from the horn on Goldeen's head, shooting out at Pidgeotto.
"Dodge above it, Pidgeotto, and use Tackle!" Ash ordered.
Pidgeotto moved faster than the attack could, easily dodging just in time by flying over it and coming in to dive-bomb Goldeen with a Tackle. Goldeen, without Daisy's prompting, submerged itself into the water to dodge the attack. Pidgeotto, without a target, pulled up and flattened out to avoid going underwater.
"Horn Attack!" Daisy yelled next.
Suddenly, from directly underneath where Pidgeotto was flying Goldeen lurched forward from the water with a glowing, elongated horn. It struck Pidgeotto right in the chest as it passed by, arcing over the bird as it landed back in the water.
"Again!"
Goldeen leapt again, horn ready, and slammed into Pidgeotto who was taken by surprise. Ash narrowed his eyes as Goldeen dropped back into the water.
"Keep your eyes peeled and wait for it, Pidgeotto. I know you can find it." Ash called, his eyes scanning over the pool as well.
He knew it would be impossible for him to see much unless Goldeen came closer to the surface, but Pidgeotto was on high alert so he should be too. Pidgeotto had proven that her eyesight was incredibly reliable, he knew she could see Goldeen coming if they focused hard enough.
Ash smiled as Pidgeotto's head started to move while her wings held her in place. She had found Goldeen.
"Get ready." Ash prepped.
He smiled as wide as Daisy did, which confused the gym leader. Though she didn't have time to think about it before Goldeen broke the surface yet again attempting to skewer Pidgeotto, but this time it seemed the bird had seen them coming and prepared a counter-attack. Pidgeotto had quickly dodged backwards out of Goldeen's reach and smacked it hard with a Wing Attack, sending it flying off to the side and back into the water before it could do any damage.
"Not bad, you adapted to that pretty fast." Daisy commented. She expected as much after seeing his battle with Misty. He had adapted fast then too but countering her after only getting hit by Horn Attack twice was ridiculously fast. "Goldeen, Tail Whip!"
Under the water, Goldeen whipped its tail back and forth vigorously. It violently threw water about the field and seemed to complete its job as well as distracting Pidgeotto by spraying her with water.
"Now Water Pulse!" A sphere of water rushed forward from the pool below, slamming straight into Pidgeotto.
It exploded into a wave of water upon contact, pushing Pidgeotto backwards while Daisy called for another Horn Attack.
"Quick Attack, intercept it!" Ash called suddenly.
Pidgeotto gained her wits quickly, flickering into a dive tailed by a white light as she slammed straight into Goldeen's underside as it attempted to skewer her with its horn once more. Unfortunately, while Pidgeotto struck first Goldeen still managed to complete its attack on the way back down to the water, slamming its horn into Pidgeotto's back as it fell and bounced back seamlessly into the water.
It seemed to be trying to disappear again, but Pidgeotto found it even faster than last time.
"Try and follow this. Goldeen, Agility!" Daisy called.
Ash noticed Pidgeotto's head start to swivel around a lot, as if she were trying to track more Goldeen than her eyes could see or Goldeen was moving at imperceptive speeds. He noticed the water rippling throughout the pool, moving constantly even near the surface.
"Come on out and use Peck!"
Before Ash or Pidgeotto could blink, Goldeen was in the air, glowing horn first and striking Pidgeotto. Ash gasped at the speed while Pidgeotto tried to turn around to follow Goldeen, but it even fell back to the water faster than before.
"You can't keep up with us now, Ash. Peck again!" Daisy teased.
Pidgeotto desperately tried to move, but Goldeen was faster now and still slammed into her and dropped back into the water. Daisy quickly switched back to Horn Attack, and Pidgeotto took another direct hit while desperately trying to move out of the way while Ash grit his teeth and clenched his fist.
He almost closed his eyes in frustration, but as he hung his head down, he noticed the water bubbling and rippling across the pool again.
"You won't be so fast we use the water against you! Pidgeotto, fly down close to the water and use Gust!" Ash called suddenly.
Pidgeotto entered a dive, going as close to the waters surface as she dared without asking to be struck by Horn Attack again. She flapped her wings vigorously, seeming to hunch forward to collect some water in her thrusts. Ash's plan became rather apparent quickly, and the water started to get spun in huge circles following the Gust's rotation. Ash had created his own make-shift whirlpool in the gyms pool to the utter astonishment of all watching.
Ash noticed Goldeen trying to swim against the current pulling it in, but it was no use. Fast as it was, it wasn't faster than the rushing water. He could only barely tell, but he saw enough to know his plan was working so he knew where Goldeen would end up. Right in the center.
"Go in for a Wing Attack!"
"No, Goldeen! Block it with Water Pulse!"
Pidgeotto dove again, dunking into the water just slightly to swing at Goldeen with her wing after the fish was pulled into the center of the vortex created. The Goldfish Pokemon, though dazed, did charge up a Water Pulse on command. Although Goldeen was struck anyway, it provided a barrier and created a wave of crashing water when it was hit that forced the two battling Pokemon apart after. It gave Goldeen much needed space and did some damage to Pidgeotto, who panted as she landed on one of the floating platforms for the first time since entering the battle.
"I'm impressed again, Ash." Daisy complimented him. "It's no wonder you won the Nugget Bridge Tournament. It's been a long time since I saw this kind of quick thinking from such a new trainer."
"Really?" Ash seemed surprised, but he settled on a smile. "Thanks, Daisy. It's thanks to all the hard work my Pokemon have been putting in lately, and you bring that out in us too. But we haven't shown you what we can do yet, we still have a badge to win!"
Daisy smiled at his determination.
"Goldeen, use Mud Sport!" She ordered.
Goldeen floated to the surface, appearing out of breath even for a fish. Its horn glowed a gentle orange color before it shot out several glob-like objects of mud. One landed on each of the floating platforms around the pool. Even the one Pidgeotto was on, though it didn't seem to bother her at all.
Ash's eyes narrowed at the move, unsure what it was for, but Daisy wouldn't give him time to think about it.
"Horn Attack, Goldeen!"
"Quick Attack!" Ash countered.
The two exhausted Pokemon lunged at each other again. Pidgeotto stuck first, slamming into Goldeen's underside again. But just like before, Goldeen fell straight into Pidgeotto and used the fall in its attack, striking the bird as it fell. They both collapsed into the pool.
Seconds went by while Ash and Daisy scanned the surface, but Violet raised her flags just seconds before, having anticipated the outcome. Both Pidgeotto and Goldeen floated to the surface, unmoving.
"Both Goldeen and Pidgeotto are unable to battle! This round is a draw. You may both select your next Pokemon!" Violet judged, waving her flags.
Daisy recalled Goldeen with a smile. Ash mirrored her in recalling Pidgeotto.
"You did great out there, rest up." Ash said as he called her back.
"Let's finish this, Ash. Poliwag, you're up!" Daisy chose her next Pokemon.
It was small and blue. This one stood on two tiny legs instead of swimming but had a large thin tail that was attached to a translucent fin, making it look bigger.
In the stands, Misty and Lily both smiled at seeing Poliwag.
"Poliwag is one of Daisy's best," Misty told Brock. "She's really going at him hard."
"Alright Pikachu, you're up! I choose you!" Ash pointed out. Pikachu excitedly sparked his cheeks as he leapt onto one of the floating platforms.
They all waited just a moment for Violet to commence the match officially, before Ash took the first move.
"Okay Pikachu, show 'em your ThunderShock!" Ash cried.
Pikachu charged his electricity up, cheeks crackling before it came out in a familiar bolt of yellow lightning. Pikachu's attack, however, seemed smaller than usual, and Poliwag hardly had trouble blocking the attack with a Water Gun. Ash and Pikachu both gasped in unison while Daisy smirked.
"ThunderShock again!" Ash tried.
Pikachu grunted, shooting off another electric-type attack that Daisy chose to fend off with another Water Gun. They collided in mid-air, but this time they struggled for dominance. Pikachu tensed further, trying to focus more electricity out. It began to work and started to overpower Poliwag's attack, but the Tadpole Pokemon simply dodged out of the way.
Pikachu was left panting heavily at the energy expended by the attack, though obviously still eager to battle. Daisy continued to smile.
"I'm impressed again, I didn't think you'd be able to break through that at all." Daisy said. "In case you haven't figured it out, it's Goldeen's Mud Sport. It's a field attack that weakens the use of all electric-type moves until the end of the battle. I prepared it to give myself a fighting chance since I knew you'd use Pikachu next."
Ash and Pikachu both narrowed their eyes. Ash was in shock, and Pikachu was beginning to get nervous.
"Don't worry about it, Pikachu! We've won without using electric attacks before, right?" Ash soothed him. "There's still plenty we can do, so let's so 'em our Quick Attack!"
Pikachu straightened up for just a second before he launched forward. He leapt from platform to platform before slamming into Poliwag's chest, knocking it into the water with a loud splash.
"Thanks a lot for knocking us into the pool already. Poliwag, use Bubble Beam!" Daisy followed up.
Without breaking the surface, Poliwag shot a jet of light blue bubbles through the water at Pikachu. They traveled fast, much faster than the previous Water Gun, and Pikachu just barely had time to dodge. Two more came rapidly and Pikachu narrowly avoided both by rolling and leaning heavily backwards, only for Poliwag to launch forward after the second attempt.
"Hit it with Pound!" Daisy cried.
Poliwag swung its tail out, hitting Pikachu as he was mid-lean backwards to avoid the Bubble Beam attack. It caught him off guard, but it didn't knock him off the platform and he pushed himself back up.
"Pikachu, Tail Whip!" Ash commanded.
Pikachu turned around, performing the attack. It seemed to have the desired effect, but Daisy just smiled.
"Don't turn your back on us, Ash. Poliwag, use Mud Shot!" Daisy cried.
Ash gasped as Poliwag spat out multiple globs of brown mud from its mouth, launching them at Pikachu while he was still turned around. Several made contact, knocking him around a little as he tried to stumble out of the way.
"Quick Attack, get out of there!" Ash said urgently.
Pikachu obeyed, practically launching backwards. It was suicide to try to run through those at such a close range while starting off balance, Ash knew. If that was his plan, it would require a clean break right through and a much better running start where Pikachu could see them all coming.
"Bubble Beam!" Daisy continued.
"Dodge it!" Ash's command followed again.
It went on for what felt like forever for Ash. Pikachu dodging Bubble Beam's and Mud Shot's while darting between platforms. Daisy had made it impossible to get close or Pikachu would take super-effective damage if he wasn't careful. That wasn't great while they couldn't make up the damage with their own super-effective attacks. And Poliwag was much more mobile than Pikachu on this field, regularly using the water to its advantage while Pikachu was stuck on the half dozen floating platforms scattered about that seemed to have no real placement if the way they floated was any indication.
Ash watched as two of them bumped together. Pikachu ran from one to the other, dodging a Bubble Beam that tried to track him. The platforms separated at the force of the attack and seemed to remove the mud covering them.
Mud Sport was a field attack, huh?
"Alright Pikachu, we're gonna turn this around right now! Are you ready?" Ash declared. Rather boldly, in Daisy's opinion.
"Pika!" Pikachu responded, taking a stand and a breath as Poliwag charged its next attack.
The Bubble Beam was hurtling towards them now and Daisy, despite herself, couldn't smile. She knew her opponent had a plan, but what it was she couldn't see it yet.
"Jump and use Brick Break on the platforms edge!" Ash cried suddenly.
Pikachu jumped up, spinning his tail around over his head and slamming it down on the edge of the platform. It knocked the entire thing into the air vertically, creating a shield for Pikachu from the attack. Between being flipped vertically, being hit by Poliwag's attack and gravity, the platform was flipped upside down by the time it landed back in the water.
"Okay Pikachu, onto the next one!" Ash called. Pikachu sped off, dodging as Poliwag attempted to leap at him with another Pound.
The process was repeated for several minutes. Pikachu would use Brick Break on a platform to knock it vertically and, using the force of whatever attack it blocked, Ash was overturning each one as they went. Poliwag was faster than Pikachu in the water, but it wasn't totally a game of speed when the biggest problem was Pikachu blocking the attacks. Four more overturned platforms later, making five in total, Pikachu and Poliwag both landed on the sixth and last platform, the only one left in its original placement.
Pikachu stuck one edge with Brick Break, launching it and Poliwag into the air.
"Mud Shot, while they can't run away!" Daisy cried triumphantly. Poliwag obeyed and shot a Mud Shot from the air, although its aim was slightly off due to the odd trajectory.
"We don't just run away! Block it with Brick Break!" Ash cried.
Pikachu curled up behind his tail, using his own glowing tail as a shield in the air. It worked well for how impromptu it was, until Poliwag's aim got better and Pikachu was assaulted by three in a row and slammed into the water below. Poliwag landed on the freshly overturned platform, ready to continue firing as Pikachu broke the surface.
"It's time to finish this. Bubble Beam!" Daisy ordered confidently.
"I couldn't agree more. Pikachu, ThunderShock!" Ash ordered in return. He was just as, if not more confident, than Daisy to the surprise of everyone else.
Amazingly, Pikachu's ThunderShock had no problem blowing straight through Poliwag's Bubble Beam and moving on to nearly fry the Tadpole Pokemon if not for its very quick reflexes. It jumped into the water to avoid the attack, giving Pikachu time to climb onto the one nearest him.
"But… how?" Lily asked in the crowd, unsure of what she was seeing. Misty or Brock didn't have an answer for her.
"Surprised?" Ash asked. He couldn't help but sound amused by himself.
"You could say that." Daisy replied, unable to hide the shock in her voice. "But we'll worry about it later. You haven't won yet. Poliwag, Mud Slap!"
Poliwag leapt forward, its tail fin was glowing with a soft orange hue as it closed in on Pikachu.
"Emphasis on yet! Block it with Brick Break!" Ash called. Pikachu intercepted Poliwag, running to meet the water-type before it could complete its attack.
Pikachu whacked Poliwag's tail with his own before it could slap the ground and create more mud, knocking Poliwag off balance. Daisy called for a Pound instead, and Poliwag switched its momentum to slam Pikachu directly with its tail instead.
"Nuzzle!" Ash called out at the last minute.
Pikachu managed to grin even as he let himself get flung backwards by Poliwag's tail, letting out a few sparks as they were in contact with one another. The result was immediate, and everyone noticed sparks dancing around Poliwag's body while Pikachu pushed back onto his feet.
"Mud Shot!" Daisy called urgently, knowing their window for victory was closing.
"Here we go, Pikachu! Quick Attack, go right through!" Ash said, just like he pictured before.
With a bigger running start and a noticeably slower Poliwag, Pikachu was easily fast enough to dodge between the globs of mud Poliwag created. Ash knew it could be a gambit as well, but he had seen roughly the amount a single volley of Mud Shots created quite a few times in the battle and knew it wasn't an outrageous task. Risky, maybe, but not outrageous.
Pikachu pulled through yet again and slammed into Poliwag's chest, knocking it even further back this time than last time and throwing it into the water. Before Poliwag could even disappear, Pikachu knew what the next command was. He felt it in his entire body. In his bones, cheeks and heart.
"Pikachu, ThunderShock!" Ash called.
Pikachu happily obliged, releasing the electric attack with a fierce cry. It easily caught Poliwag off guard and electrified the Tadpole Pokemon. It only lasted a few seconds, but Pikachu found himself panting heavily after. He slumped forward but did not dare sit down.
Poliwag's form went limp in the water, falling to the side and remaining afloat. Pikachu breathed a sigh of relief while Ash let out a cry of victory.
"Poliwag is unable to battle, the winner of this round is Pikachu! As Daisy is out of usable Pokemon, the winner of this Gym Battle is Ash from Pallet Town!" Violet announced, flags waving once more.
Ash sprang onto the battlefield, catching everyone by surprise even still, and scooping Pikachu into his arms.
"You did it, Pikachu! You really did it! We won! You were amazing out there!" Ash praised him, holding him into the air in celebration. Pikachu responded excitedly, shouting happily back at Ash as they laughed.
"I have to say, Ash, that was one of the most exciting gym battles I've had in a long time." Daisy said as they converged by the bleachers a few moments later with the others.
Ash scratched his cheek as he laughed it off.
"Thanks, Daisy, but you made it exciting for us!" Ash shot back.
"I have to know, what happened that Pikachu's ThunderShock started to work again? I thought for sure that Mud Sport would've done you in!" Lily asked curiously. Ash laughed nervously.
"Well, Daisy said it was a field attack and that it was weakening our electric-type moves, right? So I figured that if I changed the field…" Ash trailed off a little as Brock gasped.
"By changing the field, you reset the effects of Mud Sport! It started with a clean slate and let you use electric-attacks at their full power, that's pretty clever." Brock complimented, putting a hand on his chin.
"I wasn't sure if it would work or not, but I had to try something. I thought it would be easier to catch you off guard by trying to go for electric attacks than figuring out a way to win without them, since you were doing great at keeping us away." Ash explained.
"As proof of your victory here, I'm awarding you the Cascade Badge." Daisy held out the badge for Ash to grab. It was roughly the same size as the Boulder Badge, but blue and teardrop shaped. "And I'd like to share my expertise with you by allowing you to have TM211, the TM for Bubble Beam." She handed him over a small blue disc next.
Ash took them both with care.
"Thanks a lot, Daisy. I really mean it, I had a lot of fun in our battle." Ash nodded with respect. Daisy smiled at him.
"I can tell. It's not every day you meet someone so…" Daisy trailed off, and Misty cut in.
"Thick?" She supplied helpfully. Ash stuck his tongue out at her. Daisy laughed at them, while her sisters looked away.
"Passionate, I would've said." She finished. "With two badges, this is when the trainer boards start to become a real source of side income. Plus, it gives you a lot of authority most trainers don't have."
"Where to next, Ash?" Misty asked as she stepped beside Ash. Her sisters wailed at the question, getting all their attention.
"You can't leave yet; you haven't seen our show yet!" Violet protested. Misty sighed, but Ash and Brock smiled.
"Yeah, like, just come to the one tonight! You can stick around one more night, right?" Lily added.
"I guess one more night couldn't hurt." Misty agreed, a tad reluctantly. Her sisters smiles did make her feel like it was worth it.
"I need to go back to the Pokemon Center to heal Pikachu and Pidgeotto first, though." Ash noted.
"The show starts at eight, you have plenty of time! Misty knows where the VIP's sit, so don't worry about that." Daisy said lastly.
That was the end of it, and they split into their two groups of three soon after. The Sensational Sisters went off to prepare for the show while Ash, Misty and Brock headed back to the Pokemon Center.
As they returned to the gym later that night, Ash and Brock were amazed at the glass retaining wall that held the water for the show.
"You weren't kidding, Misty." Brock said, impressed. It went almost all the way to the ceiling, leaving ten feet of space for some standing room and diving boards attached at the top.
"It's a sight to see, alright." Misty agreed as they took their seats.
They sat in the very front, a small group of seats unconnected to the others. They were separated by a thin red rope with a reserved sign hanging from it. They only put it out when they had special guests, and even though it was a full house they had no issues fighting to get to them.
Just as they sat down, the lights dimmed and the lights on the floor of the tank turned on, illuminating it from the inside. The crowd gasped at the underwater biome on display inside. It was full of corals, props and many water-type Pokemon swimming about.
There was a shell in the middle, designed like that of a Cloyster that glowed a brilliant, illuminating purple from inside. It opened to reveal Daisy in a ruby red bikini, wearing goggles with a red strap and a mouth breathing apparatus to stay underwater for extended periods of time.
The crowd gasped in awe of how perfect she looked as she swam out of the Cloyster shell, easily twirling in big circles like an underwater ballerina as she moved about the tank.
"They love to do Swan Lake." Misty told the boys. "It's always thematically appropriate, with the water, and gets the biggest turn out."
Ash noticed Poliwag swimming about the tank, performing parts in the routine as well and spinning with Daisy. There was a whole bunch of Pokemon inside the tank, so Ash leaned over to Misty.
"Where do they keep all those water Pokemon? I hardly saw any of them all week." He asked.
"That hallway we were in only holds some of the smaller Pokemon tanks, like Tentacool's. The older Pokemon, like that Dewgong there," Misty pointed to the white seal-like Pokemon. "Usually are in their Pokeballs when the gym is in business hours, or on nice days they get to play around in the lake. Otherwise, they're usually in the main pool, it's more than big enough for how many Pokemon they have between the three of them when there's no other trainers here."
Ash was paying more attention to Misty's explanation about the Pokemon while Brock was much more heavily focused on Misty's sisters as Lily and Violet made their appearance. They descended from the heavens above, diving with perfect form into the water with Daisy in their own bikinis.
It was a very beautiful and elegant performance, even Misty seemed to be more than satisfied with having come despite having seen it countless times before. Everything was going well until, as the Sensational Sisters twirled around each other in unison, a familiar voice shouted above the gentle music playing.
"Koffing, use Smokescreen!"
The sound of a Pokeball popping open followed before the audience could see no more, their vision was covered with green smoke. It was so thick that people began to have a hard time breathing, and a cacophony of coughs was heard through the building.
"What's is this?" Misty asked through a cough. She covered her mouth flutily with her hand.
"I don't know, but I'm gonna find out. Butterfree, Pidgeotto, come out and use Gust!" Ash released his two winged Pokemon.
They set to work immediately, clearing large swaths of smoke from their vicinity with the flapping of their wings. They worked on it as others left the building, desperate for a taste of fresh air after the assault on their lungs. Laughter rung out as the crowd fled while Ash's flying-types disbanded the smoke.
"Prepare for trouble!" A girl's voice sang through the smoke.
"And make it double!" A boy's voice followed.
"To protect the world from devastation!"
"To unit all peoples within our nation!"
"To denounce the evils of truth and love!"
"To extend our reach to the stars above!"
"Jessie!"
"James!"
"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light!"
"Surrender now or prepare to fight!"
"Meowth, that's right!"
A gym battle AND a cliffhanger? I'm terrible, I know!
We see Gary and Leaf off on their next adventures. We'll hear about those eventually when we catch up with them next time, which might end up being sooner than anyone expects. Thoughts on Ash's gym battle? This was tough to make it feel unique from Misty's but have the same vibe of them really liking to use the water to their advantage, obviously, against non-water Pokemon opponents. It's not far enough into the series yet where everyone can have a fleshed out style or have enough Pokemon variety to make everything feel SUPER original but I think I did a well enough job, especially considering how recent Ash vs. Misty was. Bet nobody ever thought I'd make use of Mud Sport, did you? This is the first time I've ever seen it be used effectively, and I had to literally make it up for that to happen.
Not much for me to break down for you guys this time, I feel like everything is very straight forward. Ash battles well, if a bit risky. Misty means well to her sisters, if a bit reluctantly. Brock also means well to Misty's sisters, if a bit toooo well. Jessie and James mean well, but for them and that's all that matters, really. Jessie does have the Jynx on her team, she just is holding it back for shock value right now. It will be added to her team bio when it appears in person in [spoiler] literally the next chapter.
It's been a while since I addressed any reviewers, so let's do that now...
Dragonkeeper10: I debated a lot about the Kanto starters, but I think I like them all and their personalities too much to do away with them. I did try and change up a good amount of things, like even some other catches, but I felt it was overall pretty importat Ash keeps the starters. I agree about Charizard too, I'm no genwunner, but Charizard is probably my favorite Pokemon. It's nice to eat so good, but it does get exhausting to see them milk him dry like that. But Ash's should be above that, I feel like it's THE reason he's overrated. I know that sounds like part of the problem, but I'd rather see Ash's Charizard come back than see 4 Mega's, a G-Max and have like three of Ash's opponents have one as key team members.
That's the vibe I was going for for Bill. He's a young adult so he's been around the block, but he's way more interested in researching than training. He does enjoy the occasional spar like these tournaments, but his heart isn't in being competetive. I'm glad you see what I was going for with Ritchie as well. I didn't want to do his character a disservice and just make him into a knock-off Paul, but I think justifying a slight personality change by how they would've grown up being compared to each other made enough sense to keep it interesting without being unfathomable.
uchiha-rune: lol it's really funny that I uploaded in between you reading the chapters. I'm glad you were enjoying it enough to keep at it unexpectedly! I appreciate the advice about burnout too, I've definitely struggled with it before and it's definitely something to keep in mind in such a long series like this. Thanks!
Speed Reader: Thanks so much! I'm glad you're still enjoying!
RagingSceptile: How nice to see you back again, my friend! Glad you're still following the story! Yeah tournaments were vastly underused in the anime, they're so much fun to think about. We should've gotten more filler with those than just random farm house people. Thanks for your feedback on the worldbuilding as well, I've been really trying to take it slow-ish and not just over-explain so I'm glad someone is grateful for it. I get stuck in my head sometimes about the finer details, because it's important that *I* know something even if it'll never be elaborated on in-universe, but that's just a personal struggle always lol. And like I've already said, I was worried I would get a lot of flack for changing Ritchie so drastically, but I'm surprised people are pretty okay with it. Maybe I overestimated the level of loved he is in the fandom. Hope you liked this chapter, my friendly neighborhood NPC!
Ash's Team: Pikachu, Butterfree, Pidgeotto
Pikachu: Electric - Male - Static - Rash | ThunderShock, Tail Whip, Growl, Nuzzle, Charm, Thunder Wave, Brick Break, Quick Attack
Butterfree: Bug/Flying - Male - Compound Eyes - Hardy | Tackle, String Shot, Harden, Gust, Supersonic, Confusion, Stun Spore, Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Psybeam
Pidgeotto: Normal/Flying - Female - Keen Eye - Hasty | Tackle, Sand Attack, Gust, Quick Attack, Wing Attack
Misty's Team: Staryu, Goldeen, Tentacool
Staryu: Water - N/A - Natural Cure - Modest | Tackle, Rapid Spin, Harden, Water Gun, Confuse Ray, Swift
Goldeen: Water - Female - Swift Swim - Careful | Peck, Tail Whip, Supersonic
Tentacool: Water/Poison - Male - Liquid Ooze - Hardy | Water Gun, Poison Sting, Acid, Supersonic, Wrap
Brock's Team: Onix, Geodude, Zubat
Onix: Rock/Ground - Male - Rock Head - Calm | Tackle, Bind, Screech, Harden, Rock Throw
Geodude: Rock/Ground - Male - Sturdy - Relaxed | Tackle, Defense Curl, Rock Throw
Zubat: Poison/Flying - Male - Inner Focus - Hasty | Absorb, Supersonic, Astonish
Jessie's Team: Ekans, Spearow
Ekans: Poison - Male - Shed Skin - Serious | Poison Sting, Bite, Wrap, Leer
Spearow: Normal/Flying - Male - Keen Eye - Hasty | Peck, Growl, Leer
James' Team: Koffing, Spearow, Weedle
Koffing: Poison - Male - Levitate - Bashful | Poison Gas, Tackle, Smog, Smokescreen
Spearow: Normal/Flying - Female - Keen Eye - Lax | Peck, Growl Leer
Weedle: Bug/Poison - Female - Swarm - Jolly | Poison Sting, String Shot
Meowth: Normal - Male - Pickup - Sassy | Fury Swipes, Scratch, Growl, Fake Out