Hello one and all to another chapter of POkemon SVTA where today, Ash and the gang (plus Lacey and Drayton) arrive to the town of Mirage Town where Rika is holding a battle and Ash decides to battle her but just as they were down to Quaxwell and Rika's Gallade, Rika accidently frightens Quaxwell to the point of fear due to his past. Not wanting his fears to overcome him, Ash seeeks to help Quaxwell overcome his fears with the help of a particular Pokemon.
Without further ado, let's begin.
Koraidon's moveset from the last chapter: Iron Head, Dragon Claw, Temper Flare, Close Combat (relearned due to not being able to use Collision Course).
Main Story
On our previous endeavor, Ash and the gang encounter the Blueberry Academy students Lacey and Drayton and Ash had a battle with Drayton alongside his Koraidon and Cyclizar and after some shenanigans with Team Rocket, Ash and the gang go with the two Blueberry students to Mirage Town for Ash's battle.
We see the gang walk over a hill tired and ready to rest.
"That walk felt more like 30 minutes, are we there yet?" Nemona says as Lacey nodded.
"Yes, but it felt more like 20 minutes, we would've been there much faster had Drayton had to take a nap on the side of the road unannounced." Lacey said with some snark as Drayton was unphased.
"I was tired." Drayton said.
"You should've slept on the plane rather than watch that horror movie trilogy through the flight." Lacey says as Penny appears to notice something in the distance, "Wait! I think I can see something over there, like an orb or something." Penny says as the gang make it up the hill to see Mirage Town which was a decently sized town with a large orb like structure most likely a sculpture and a nice riverside to go along it as the gang marvel at the town's beauty.
"So, this is Mirage Town." Ash says impressed as the others aw at the town's view and after taking some pictures of the town, the gang walk down the hill that led to the town. It's through the road where the gang sees fliers posted out of the lovely Rika promoting a battle later today along with colorful decorations that sprawled throughout the city.
"This town must be really happy for Rika's arrival huh?" Ash says as Penny, Nemona and Lacey gasp and look at him with serious, angered expressions on their faces.
"Well of course, Rika's the most beautiful model and actress out there alongside Tulip, she's also a powerful trainer and supposedly is the strongest or 2nd strongest of the Elite Four but she holds back most of the time in order to not reveal her true strength." Nemona says as Penny went next and is blushing.
"And Rika's just gorgeous, a dreamboat even." Penny said blushing profusely.
"She's also incredibly kind behind her coolness to the point she gave half of her movie check to charity and prefers to live in modest housing rather than some villa or mansion from what I've heard." Lacey says as Arven looks to Ash determined.
"If you're going to face Rika even if it's not a full battle, you should know she specializes in Ground types and your best bet is Quaxwell but knowing you, you likely have a plan, don't you?" Arven says as Ash nods.
"Anything is unpredictable but even I fail, it's only just a start and we can always improve on next time right Pikachu!?" Ash says with determination as Pikachu nods.
"Pika!" Pikachu says, Drayton looks intrigued by Ash's words.
"For a 4-time Champion, you seem fine with losing despite your status." Drayton says as Ash nods.
"Of course, sure being a Champion who doesn't want to lose would be nice, but I don't expect myself to win everytime. I just have fun and not let a loss bother me. It happened before but that's when I was still traveling and doing Gym Battles and now that I'm Champion, I don't want to let a loss bother me. I'm kind of expecting my win streak to end soon." Ash says as Drayton smiles.
"You're one interesting kid." Drayton says as they continue walking along.
We see the group walk through the town as they were having a casual discussion about their daily lives and the adventures, they've had from Ash's own adventures to the Paldea trio's own journeys as Lacey and Drayton look on in intrigue.
"So, you and Ash took on two Titans. That's insane and Arven, you must be pretty strong right?" Lacey asks blushing towards that last part as Arven casually nods.
"I'd say so, I'm able to lift this backpack easily." Arven says.
How has he not caught on yet!? Nemona and Penny thought to themselves as Ash decided to continue the chatter.
"So you guys were here from Unova to survey the environment?" Ash says as both Drayton and Lacey nods.
"Basically. It's a field trip where we learn about the ecology of Paldea compared to other places like Unova or Kalos." Drayton says. "Oh, so like it's both a field trip and a study assignment? That sounds pretty boring." Penny says as Lacey chuckles.
"Yeah, but at the very least, we get to look around and see the sights and our homeroom teacher will most certainly be delighted by the research we found." Lacey says as Arven got curious about something.
"Speaking of, where is your class?" Arven asked as Drayton pointed in the distance to a woman with a dark blonde hair, unique earrings, purple shirt and red pants who was eyeing the menu for churros.
"They're scattered about, but our teacher is over there, likely eyeing the number of churros they have." Drayton says.
"Oh well churros seems ni- oh no." Arven says confusing the group as if he realized something as the teacher turned around and smiled towards the group, but Arven stood there in fear.
"Drayton, Lacey, you're back already. How did you enjoy your adventure?" the teacher said enthusiastically as Lacey and Drayton nodded.
"It was quite fun Ms. Briar, we got to see cute Pokemon, cool battles and the environment was very bumpy but we also got to meet some friends." Lacey says as the teacher turns to the gang.
"You guys must be pretty fun, I'm glad you became friends with my students. You all seem- wait a sec, Arvy!?" Briar said as she looked to him and gave him a huge hug. "My you've grown big and strong the last time we met. You were so little back then and-" Briar kept talking as the gang were still confused.
"Is Briar here your aunt?" Nemona mentioned.
"Not exactly, she's a family friend and a former student of my father so she got to know me pretty well before she became a teacher." Arven says as the gang were surprised.
"A former student!?" the gang said as Briar broke away.
"Sorry, I often get excited often about seeing old friends once again that often go off the walls and-" Briar was interrupted by Lacey.
"Ms. Briar, I believe it would be necessary to introduce yourself, right?" Lacey says as Briar realizes this and nods.
"Sorry. My name is Briar Diamante and I'm Lacey and Drayton's homeroom teacher at Blueberry Academy, I teach Geography and was formally a student of the glorious Turo. I take it your Arven's friends, right?" Briar said as the gang nods.
"Yep, my name is Nemona Banderas, and this here is Pawmo!" Nemona says as Pawmo nods.
"I'm Penny Flores and this here is Sprigatito." Penny said as Sprigatito purred happily.
"And I'm-" Ash didn't finish as Briar finished for him.
"And your Ash, right? I've heard a lot about you from the news, the school records and the official merchandise. It's so great to meet the official Champion in the fle-" Briar didn't finish as Lacey bumped her in the arm.
"Talking about Ash's identity out in the public like that without his consent is unacceptable!" Lacey said sternly as she crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks as Briar frowned and looked bad.
"Right sorry, Ash. Guess I got a bit excited there. To tell you something, it's kind of strange I know but you're as brave as my ancestor and I wish I was as brave as you." Briar said honestly as Ash got intrigued.
"Your ancestor?" Ash asked as Arven grabbed the Scarlet book and opened the book to a stern man with glasses alongside Cyclizar.
"She means Heath." Arven says as Briar nods.
"He looks scary." Nemona says a bit spooked.
"Wait, isn't that the person your mom was talking about the other day?" Penny asked as Arven nods.
"Indeed but I'll let Briar explain as she has a bit more details." Arven says as Lacey looked to the group and nudges Drayton.
"It sounds important to you guys so we'll-" Lacey didn't finish as Briar shook her head.
"No, it's alright, I don't mind, I'll give you a snippet. Heath was my ancestor back in the day and yes, he did look stern, but rumor has it that nothing really phased him except a Togepi, I'm not sure why but he was the director of Naranja Academy and was 3rd Director of the Academy after a short-lived director and the founder Agrumes who decided to lead Paldea. But Heath decided to do more than just some boring director, he was the first person to enter Area Zero." Briar says as the gang looked on in intrigue.
"How could they possibly enter a place that's covered with the thickest of fogs that feel like pillows?" Nemona says as Briar shrugs.
"Not even I know that one, but it was there that they learned the Paradoxes and wrote them in his book including the first documented instance of the Winged King and Iron Serpent." Briar says as the group looked on in surprise.
Winged King? Iron Serpent!? Those are Koraidon and Miraidon right? everyone but Arven, Lacey and Drayton thought.
"Say Arven, wasn't Koraidon brought over here by your dad." Ash whispered.
"They it's rumored they died or disappeared under unknown circumstances, so the Koraidon and Miraidon right now are new by a couple years." Arven whispered back.
"Either way, Heath made it down through Area Zero when he encountered the greatest Treasure of them all, a treasure that I want to see with my own eyes in the future, one that I want to find, the one tha-" Briar didn't finish as the others looked at her angerily.
"JUST GET ON WITH IT!" everyone yelled out as Briar chuckled.
"Sorry, their name is Tera-" Briar didn't finish as they heard a crowd nearby, "Well I hope that provided enough info for one day, wonder what's going on?" Briar said as the gang go to see as a crowd gathers around two trainers. One was a woman with long green long hair and appeared masculine with her Pokemon on the battlefield being a Gallade while another was a male trainer with a Terastallized Azumarill which had a snowflake Tera hat indicating her being Ice type.
"Azumarill, use Ice Punch!" the trainer said as Azumarill nodded, and the Tera hat glows as the woman remained calm and focused before calling out her attack.
"Gallade collide with Psycho Cut." the woman exclaimed as Gallade nodded and his blade arms glowed with a pink aura clashing with Azumarill's Ice Punch as the woman smiled. "You're doing pretty well for yourself, Joeseph, you two must've trained hard?" the woman said as Joseph smirked.
"Of course, we've been training all week for this now cover Gallade with Bubble Beam!" Joseph says as Azumarill launches bubbles out of her mouth that covers Gallade's view and damages him but both the woman and Gallade don't react as Joseph smirks. "Now Trailblaze!" Joseph says as Azumarill hops off Gallade and glows with grassy energy as she rushed from behind prepared to strike but the woman was calm.
"Alluring Voice." the woman said as Gallade turned and launched a musical note at Azumarill and when that happened, Azumarill appeared to be confused and was dazed as she attempts to hit at Gallade to no avail as the woman smiled with determination.
"Quick wake up Azumarill!" Joseph says as Gallade prepared to strike.
"Sacred Sword." the woman said as Gallade rushed at Azumarill.
"Aqua Tail!" Joseph says as Azumarill snapped out of it and attempted to strike at Gallade with her tail attack, but Gallade was swift enough to strike at Azumarill sending her flying and knocking her out.
"Azumarill is unable to battle! Gallade wins and the winner of the 12th match is once again, Rika Corteza, congratulations to both challengers!" a referee says as the crowd cheers and Rika softly smiles as she walks towards Joseph and Gallade walks towards Azumarill helping her up.
"You were excellent out there." Rika says politely.
"But I lost." Joseph says as Rika shook her head.
"Even so, you still put up a good fight and you shouldn't feel bad for that. Just work hard and you'll be able to overcome your challenes the next time." Rika says as Joseph nods with determination and shakes her hand as the crowd claps.
"Rika just beat that guy only using her Gallade and without using Terastalization." one bystander says.
"I hear that Gallade isn't even her ace in the sleeve but it's incredible how the two were able to go 12 rounds without stopping." another bystander says as the gang look on impressed.
"Had that guy not used Trailblaze, Azumarill would've likely lasted a bit longer." Drayton says.
"What do you mean by that?" Ash says as Lacey chimed in.
"It's because of the move Gallade used, Alluring Voice. It's a Fairy type move that confuses the target if they did anything to boost their stats and Trailblaze boosts speed, so it made Azumarill confused." Lacey says as Ash looks to his Pokeballs and thinks of who to choose for this fight as Rika talked with the fans.
"I want to be just like you Rika!" a little girl says as Rika smiles.
"Aww, aren't you adorable. When you become a trainer, train hard and be the very best." Rika says as she signs some autographs while Briar, Penny, Lacey and Nemona floated towards Rika with hearts in their eyes.
"We would like your autograph!" all 4 say in love with Rika as she smiled and signed the papers and gave them out as the 4 fainted after Rika gave a wink.
"We love you Rika!" they said faintly as Rika looks around and sees Ash, recognizing him she smiles.
"I have an announcement; I will be doing one last battle for now and I'll be back to battle after a break. Who would like to battle me now?" Rika asks as she got many contenders raising their hands and Rika looked around to see Ash's hand. "I choose the kid and his Pikachu!" Rika says as Ash jumped up in surprise and walks towards the battlefield as the crowd begins to talk amongst themselves and the gang look on concerned.
"Is that who I think he is?" one bystander says as the crowd talks with one another.
"Is Ash sure about this?" Penny says as the others shrug.
"If Ash feels ready for this, we won't stop him, but I bet he's been training for some time now so I'm confident he can make progress." Arven says as the others look on anxiously as Ash appeared determined.
"I've been waiting a while; I may not be able to do a full battle, but I'll at least see what you got so give it you're all with your 2 Pokemon." Rika says as Ash smirks.
"Way ahead of you! Ready Pikachu?" Ash says to his day 1 partner who nods and hops off of Ash's shoulder onto the battlefield ready for battle as the gang look on in excitement as the gang look on in curiosity.
"So, Ash is using Pikachu eh, his star Pokemon. From what I've heard, Rika's Gallade hasn't taken any hits during their 12 battles so can Ash get a hit on Gallade?" Drayton says as the others looked on anxiously.
"There's only one way to find out." Nemona says as Rika appeared intrigued.
"Pikachu eh. I'll be interested in seeing what your Pikachu has so go ahead and make your move." Rika says enthusiastically as Ash nods.
"Alright, Pikachu use Quick Attack to surround Gallade!" Ash says as Pikachu nods and runs at quick speed towards Gallade as he remains focused on Pikachu as he runs around Gallade at quick speed.
"Stay vigilant Gallade and wait for the moment." Rika says as Gallade nods and waits until Ash decides to make his move.
"Now!" Ash says as Pikachu prepares to launch himself as Rika smirks.
"Behind you, use Sacred Sword!" Rika said as Gallade prepares to strike but Ash knew what was planned.
"To your left!" Ash finished as Pikachu rushed to Gallade's left before Gallade could prepare Sacred Sword but before he could land the strike, Gallade blocked the attack with Sacred Sword as both Pikachu and Gallade smile with confidence. "Jump off of Gallade and use Thunderbolt!" Ash says as Pikachu nodded and jumped off of Gallade to launch a powerful Thunderbolt as Rika stayed calm.
"Tera Blast." Rika says as Gallade nods and launches a blast of white energy from his blade arm to Pikachu's Thunderbolt as they clash and create a puff of smoke wowing the audience and more gather.
"It's amazing, it's almost like Ash and Rika are on the same league!" Nemona says as the others looked on still concerned.
"Still, don't get your hopes up so fast. This is only the beginning and from what I've heard, Rika knows how to turn the tides of battle and take advantage of a battle." Drayton says as Nemona looks on worried for Ash but has a hope of optimism that Ash will make it through. Rika looks on impressed towards Ash's skill and smirks.
"My oh my, I was correct on how strong you were. You guys must've trained hard to make it to where you are now?" Rika complimented as Ash smirked and nodded.
"Me, Pikachu and the rest of my mons have been traveling over the past couple years to see locations, get stronger and see the world. I hope that with my post-Champion journey I can meet all sorts of trainers and have riveting battles for a long time." Ash says as Rika smiles with confidence.
"Then give it your all." Rika says as Ash nods.
"Right, Pikachu use Iron Tail!" Ash says as Pikachu nods and runs through the battlefield as Rika smiles.
With the weight of that Iron Tail, it should hinder one's movement but for Ash's Pikachu, he seems pretty strong to carry his metallicized tail so let's test that out. Rika thought to herself as she calls out her next move. "Use Psycho Cut!" Rika says as Gallade launches 4 blades of psychic energy towards Pikachu.
"Dodge it!" Ash yelled out as Pikachu nodded and jumped out of the way of the attacks and even attacks the last one with Iron Tail as Rika nods.
So, Iron Tail wasn't too much of an hinderance, very well. Rika thought to herself once more, "Sacred Sword!" Rika says as Gallade nods and rushes towards Pikachu with a glowing blade arm.
"Use your Iron Tail against the Sacred Sword!" Ash yelled out as Pikachu nods and Pikachu jumps in the air to collide with Sacred Sword which both clashed with one another as they both stayed like that.
"I admit, you're one of the very few who's able to catch up with my Gallade so I commend you for that, but can you come up with a plan for this? Use Alluring Voice." Rika says catching Ash and Pikachu off guard as Gallade launched a musical note from his mouth towards Pikachu which exploded and sent the Mouse Pokemon flying back but he was able to land on his legs safely though slightly injured.
"You're alright buddy?" Ash asks as Pikachu nods as Ash looks ahead towards the scenario.
Rika and Gallade seem to be adept to their battles to the point Gallade didn't get hit through their strategies so what if we turn the tables by creating an obstruction? Ash thought to himself as he nods with the others noticing his determined expression.
"Judging by Ash's expression, it seems he has a plan in mind." Arven says as the others look on what that plan is.
"Pikachu, jump in the air and use Thunderbolt!" Ash says as Pikachu nods and jumps high in the air to launch a beam of electricity towards Gallade's direction as Rika remained calm.
"Jump back." Rika simply says as Gallade nods and dodges the attack, but the result of the attack creates a huge puff of smoke which blocks the way of Rika and Gallade's view and impresses the crowd and Rika.
"Now launch Electro Web!" Ash says as Pikachu nods and creates a web of electricity that Pikachu launches at Gallade.
"Cut with Psycho Cut when you see it." Rika says as Gallade nods and his arms glow with a pink energy and when he sees it, he starts to slice it down but it's what Ash was hoping for.
"Now for Iron Tail!" Ash says catching everyone off guard.
"Wha-" Rika says as she didn't have time to finish as Pikachu rushed in and through a quick turn, he launches his tail to Gallade's middle section sending Gallade flying a huge margin but still on his feet and dealing major damage. The crowd look on impressed towards the battle, the gang were just as curious, and Rika was impressed with Ash's skills.
"You've managed to succeed my every expectation about you, your strong and strategic. i can see how determined you are to face me and the other Elite Four to face Geeta so keep battling but don't forget, much like you, we Elite Four members and Champion-ranked trainers are always on their toes and being adept too. Use Psycho Cut on the ground!" Rika says as Gallade nods and smashes the ground causing dust to surround Pikachu preventing Pikachu from seeing anything as he looks around.
"Pikachu, clear the way with countershield!" Ash says as Pikachu nods, but it seems like Rika was aware of this and grabbed her Tera Orb.
"You know, I didn't want to use this, but I guess it's time to break this Teraless streak. Gallade, Terastalize!" Rika says as she throws her Tera orb at Gallade who through various crystals transforms into a Ground type whose hat resembles one half of the earth but Ash and Pikachu didn't see that yet as Pikachu began to spin in a clockwise direction and using Thunderbolt.
"Now Sacred Sword!" Rika says as Gallade nods and rushes in through the smoke that clears out of the way and due to it's Ground Tera type, Gallde remained unaffected by the Electricity catching both Ash and Pikachu off guard.
"What the- Ground type!?" Ash says as Gallade rushes in and slashes at Pikachu sending him flying in the air, "Pikachu!" Ash yelled out as Rika snaps her finger.
"Tera Blast." Rika says calmly as Gallade aimed Tera Blast towards the ground with the white blast of energy turning a light brown and was launched creating outward crusts of earth that continued until they land on Pikachu to which he was sent flying again until he lands knocked out.
"Pikachu!" Ash yelled out in worry as a referee looks at Pikachu and nods.
"Pikachu is unable to battle, this round goes to Rika of Porto Estelar!" the referee says as the crowd cheers and the gang look on shocked.
"So, this is the power of Paldea's Elite Four." Briar says surprised as the others nod.
"And that move, it started white and then Gallade launched it to the ground and resembled Earth Power." Nemona says as Arven nods.
"That's the power of Tera Blast, it starts as a Normal move before it changes type and Tera Blast's type to something else depending on the user's Terastal type and changes appearance. My parents discovered that while researching the Tera orbs a long time ago." Arven says as the gang look to Ash who picked up Pikachu.
"You alright bud?" Ash asks as Pikachu smiles and nods.
"Pika!" Pikachu says as Ash smiles out of relief.
"That's good, get some rest pal." Ash says as Pikachu nods and hops next to Ash's side as Rika smiles.
"Your Pikachu is certainly impressive; I can tell you two have climbed up many hills during your journey to get here." Rika says as Ash nods.
"Yep, it took a while, but we made it to where we are now." Ash says as Rika nods.
"That's good. Can't wait to fully battle you one day for now though, what will your 2nd and last Pokemon have to make it through this tough hill." Rika says as Ash grabs a Pokeball and nods.
"Very well, Quaxwell, let's do this!" Ash yells out throwing his Pokeball in the air sending out the Practice Pokemon who twirled onto the scene in grace.
"Quaxwell!" Quaxwell says determined as he looks up towards Gallade with determination and prepares himself as Ash nods.
"Ready Quaxwell, alright, rush in and use Rapid Spin to pick up the dust!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and rushed towards a patient Gallade as Quaxwell began to spin and build up dust that covered the field as Gallade remained focused.
"Stay adept Gallade and wait until the right moment!" Rika says as Gallade nods and Quaxwell stopped spinning.
"Now find an opening and use Aqua Cutter and don't let up!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and disappears like a shadow moment to moment waiting for an opportunity to strike as Quaxwell prepared to strike Gallade from behind.
"Sacred Sword." Rika says as Gallade's right blade glows and turns to clash with Quaxwell's Aqua Cutter, they clash a couple more times with Quaxwell's increased speed from Rapid Spin allowing Quaxwell to move twice as fast as he tries to find an opening but Gallade counters it each time as Quaxwell got more and more frustrated with Gallade.
"You'll need to be more adept and adaptable than that to break through Gallade's defenses." Rika says to Quaxwell as he starts to remember those words of 'Adapt' and 'Adept' as they plague through his mind as he remembers back when he was Quaxly with his previous trainer who was scolding him after a battle.
"C'mon, I caught you and I'm expecting you to me more adept to battling or you'll be a liability to me. Can't you win one single battle!" a male voice was heard in his head as Quaxwell gritted his teeth in anger and sadness. Quaxwell jumped in the air and attempted to strike at Gallade which was blocked but it seems Ash and Quaxwell see an opening.
"Quaxwell! use your legs to grip onto Gallade's arm and use Rapid Spin!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and also caught everyone by surprise as Quaxwell wrapped his legs around Gallade's left arm and spun around as fast as a tornado as Gallade tried to get him off of his arm to no avail as Ash smirks.
"Now!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and kicks Gallade's middle section with Rapid Spin sending Gallade flying by a huge margin, but Gallade still remains standing as Quaxwell felt much faster.
"Impressive and not one I was expecting. Still, you'll need to do more if you want to keep up with Gallade." Rika said as Quaxwell began remembering more of those words this time being 'Keep up' and remembered the voice of his previous trainer again.
"You seriously can't keep up with a freaking Rockruff!? What good are you then if you can't even take on a Rock type, you're strong against. Why are you this useless, you useless, little- maybe Houndoom and I have to teach you a lesson, so you'll keep up." the male voice began to say again as Quaxwell shivered at the thought and covered his eye scar which worried Ash and the gang.
"Quaxwell's going through that phase again." Penny says worryingly as Lacey, Briar and Drayton looked to Penny in confusion.
"What's up?" Lacey asked.
"Well, to put it shortly, Quaxwell went through a tough life before he went with Ash as noted by his scar on top of his eye." Nemona said as Lacey covered her mouth in shock, Briar looked on in sympathy and even the slow Drayton felt angry by this.
"So, I'm assuming this phase is some sort of 'episode' Quaxwell is going through?" Drayton says as Arven nods.
"Pretty much, it seems it's something that Rika said that triggered Quaxwell's worries and panic. Hopefully Quaxwell can make it through without being overcome by fear again." Arven says as Quaxwell looks to Gallade in determination. Rika even felt a bit bad about saying that as she sees Quaxwell's worried expression but had to stay professional.
"Is your Quaxwell o-"
"Quaxwell!" Quaxwell says determined as Ash looks to him and Quaxwell looks back and nods even know his fist is shaking in anger as Ash sighed.
"Don't get overwhelmed now, we'll make it through! Let's Terastalize Quaxwell!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and Ash throws his Tera orb at Quaxwell who Teratalizes into a Water type and Ash nods.
Use Aqua Jet!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and covers himself in a watery veil and launches himself towards Gallade who prepares himself as well.
"Use Alluring Voice!" Rika says as Gallade launches a musical note towards Quaxwell's direction as Quaxwell clashes with it stopping his Aqua Jet as Gallade rushes in like a shadow behind Quaxwell.
"Wha-" Ash says but didn't finish.
"Psycho Cut." Rika says as Gallade nods and prepares to strike at Quaxwell as Ash panics.
"Counter with Aqua Cutter!" Ash says as Quaxwell clashes with Gallade's Psycho Cut, but it seems Rika was a bit too prepared.
"Alluring Voice." Rika says as Gallade launches a musical note as Quaxwell sending him flying, "Now Psycho Cut." Rika says as Gallade launches his Psycho Cut as flying projectiles towards Quaxwell hitting him as Quaxwell attempts to get up, but all Quaxwell sees in his eyes are someone large and monstrous causing Quaxwell's eyes to display fear as he sees Rika and Gallade as he starts to quiver.
"What's wrong, you really giving up here?" a different voice was heard in Quaxwell's head as the voice snickered, "I knew you couldn't handle the task of fighting a tougher opponent, that's a shame, you were useless, but I was willing to give you a chance for once, but it seems you need me to handle it because you have to disappoint everyone. No wonder why your previous trainer looked down upon you, you never lived up to his expectations, I am the superior you. Let the fear consume you and let me out." the voice was heard again as Quaxwell shook his head worrying Ash.
"Quaxwell?" Ash asked as Quaxwell covers himself in a watery veil activating his Torrent out of rage and fear once more as the gang panic. "Quaxwell! Please calm down, you don't have to be scared!" Ash tried to reassure Quaxwell to no avail as Quaxwell rushed in to attack Gallade.
"Quaxwell don't!" Ash yelled out as Gallade blocked Quaxwell's Low Sweep taking Rika by surprise.
"Poor kid, Gallade, just hold yourself up until he calms down!" Rika says as Gallade nods, but Quaxwell kept attacking with quick speed as the gang looked on worryingly.
"So Quaxwell did lose control and is in Torrent mode." Arven says as the Blueberry students and teacher were confused.
"What happens in that state?" Briar asked.
"Well, in this state, Quaxwell's fears overcome him and from the looks of it, he has heightened senses, speed and power but loses control of himself in the process." Arven says as the others look on in worry but even more so when Ash rushes onto the field.
"What's Ash doing!?" Nemona says as Quaxwell prepares to strike at Gallade with a mighty kick but before he could land the attack at Gallade, Ash steps in front of Gallade and takes the blow.
"Ash!/Pika!" the gang, Pikachu and Rika says but Ash goes in to hug Quaxwell tightly as everyone looks on in shock as Ash gives a soft if pained smile as Quaxwell stops to look at Ash scared and guilty of his actions.
"Qua-"
"It's alright Quaxwell, it's not your fault. You're just going through some tough stuff, and I won't blame you for it. I want to help you out, to make sure you don't feel alone, ack!" Ash said in pain as Quaxwell stops his Torrent and looks to Ash as tears overflowed Quaxwell but Ash had a calm smile but before he could reach out to Quaxwell, he broke away from Ash and ran off as a worried Ash tried to reach out to Quaxwell as he became much smaller in the distance as Rika and the gang went over to help Ash but Ash was focused on Quaxwell.
"Quax...well." Ash said faintly.
We see Ash at an indoor Pokemon center with an ice pack on his stomach as Nurse Joy and Blissey wheeled in a healthy Pikachu.
"I'm happy to report that your Pikachu is feeling much better and ready to go!" Nurse Joy said happily as Pikachu jumps into Ash's open arms happily.
"Glad you're alright bud!" Ash says as the gang and Rika walk in with Rika and her Gallade feeling guilty about what happened earlier as Ash looked on. "Rika? What are you doing here?" Ash asked.
"I came by to see how you're doing as well as offer a formal apology for our battle." Rika says as Ash looked on.
"Rika." Ash says as Rika and Gallade bowed apologetically.
"I'm sorry for whatever I said or did to tick off Quaxwell! I wasn't aware of what Quaxwell was going through until your friends told me and I feel more guilty about it so I apologize on my behalf and Gallade's behalf." Rika said apologetically as Ash shook his head.
"It's alright, I knew you didn't mean any harm." Ash says as he looked worried as Lacey took notice.
"You're worried about Quaxwell, aren't you." Lacey says as Ash nods.
"I want to help Quaxwell through what he's going through, help him overcome his fears and not let him feel overwhelmed but it seems like in the toughest of moments, he loses control of himself like something haunting him to feel overwhelmed with fear." Ash says as the gang began to think themselves until Penny steps forward.
"Well, going by his reactions and expressions, Quaxwell went through some tough stuff from his past so he must be going through some nasty memories in his head that feel like it's controlling him like he's haunted by the past and can't escape it. Trauma isn't one where one can simply forget about it, it always comes back but they can overcome it." Penny says as Ash thinks about Quaxwell sadly, worried about him.
"So, with his abusive past, it must've been bad enough for him dealing what happened in the past, but it also feels prevalent enough to haunt Quaxwell and make him lose control because of those fears. Is there nothing I can do?" Ash says as Drayton steps forward.
"Well, as Penny said, while trauma is something that is prevalent in an individual, one can work to overcome it. There's an ancient tradition in Dragon trainers that in order to fully become one with their Pokemon, they have to look to each other's minds and overcome boundaries that they're going through by fighting their inner demons through battle both literally and mentally. While the other trainer/Pokemon can help them through, it's ultimately up to that individual to overcome their demons. but that's just a tale from long ago, I don't know how true that is nowadays through revisions, but I can guarantee that Quaxwell can overcome his fears. They may not be erased from one's memories, but they'll be able to fight it to the point where it doesn't bother them as much or able to not let it control them." Drayton says as Ash looks on and continues thinks about Quaxwell.
"To overcome fears and their past huh. I think I know who can help." Ash says as he gets up and heads to a Pokemon PC.
Meanwhile, we see Quaxwell near a bankside upset at himself over his actions from earlier. He's seen practicing his kicks and attacks by himself letting out stress as he tumbles around frustrated as a voice laughs in his head.
"You really done it now, your trainer hates you, your friends hate you and you've hurt your beloved trainer. You should let me out, I'm much superior to you." the voice said snickering as Quaxwell attempts to kick the voice away. "If you truly want to fight me, why don't be so brave as to enter Torrent and fight me yourself." the voice said as Quaxly gritted his teeth.
"Quax Quax!" Quaxwell yells out as the voice laughs once more as Quaxwell kicks around angrily hoping to hit this voice and just as he was about to kick something, his kick was caught by a right hand of a Pokemon. Quaxwell looks forward see an Infernape as Quaxwell jumps back and prepares to attack but Infernape held his hand forward as Quaxwell hesitated as Ash and Pikachu caught up to the two, embarrassed for what happened earlier, Quaxwell turned around.
"Quaxwell! So, this is where you were hiding, thanks for helping us find him Infernape." Ash said to his Infernape as he nodded, Quaxwell ignored him and sat by the riverside as Ash looked on worried and the 3 join Quaxwell by the riverside.
"Quaxwell, it's not your fault you know. I'm ok and I'm doing well, you don't have to worry about a single thing!" Ash says encouragingly but Quaxwell doesn't buy it as he continues to look into the river sadly, "I get ya, it wasn't easy for you I imagine. It's not easy to let it go, it continues to plague your thoughts?" Ash asked as Quaxwell nodded.
"I want to help you; I want to help you overcome your fears and to show your mind you're in control and not them. I know it might not erase what happened back then, no matter how much you try to erase the past, it always seems to come back but I want to let you know that we can get through this together. Infernape here has been... well, through a lot himself but through our teamwork, we were able to control Blaze and not let it control him when angry and if Infernape can do that with Blaze, we can work together on your Torrent. What do you say?" Ash says holding out his hand as Quaxwell began to reflect on his journey before Ash and after and how much he went through but thinks of the happy memories of his friends and the adventures with Ash that make Quaxwell feel determined, and he nods clasping Ash's hand tightly and shaking it as Ash nods.
"Let's get started!" Ash says as Rika watches from the distance with her Gallade as Rika softly smiled.
We see Ash and Quaxwell across from Infernape who stretched and throws some small punches for training as the gang (plus Pikachu and Rika) look on from the sides with intrigue and worry towards this matchup.
"So, they're going to help Quaxwell out though and they're doing that by battle?" Lacey says as Penny nods.
"From what Ash told us, Infernape went through a similar ordeal once both in the past and when it came to his Blaze ability but through further battles and coming to understand one another, Infernape was able to overcome his fears and his Blaze ability allowing him control in battle. From what I'm assuming, Quaxwell and Infernape are going to battle until they reached Torrent and Blaze respectively and once that happens, Quaxwell has to become one with himself before he goes out of control and if they can do that, Quaxwell will be in control but whether that works or not is up to them." Penny assumed.
"I hope your right." Nemona said nervously as Infernape and Quaxwell are done stretching and are prepared to fight.
"Alright Infernape, you'll be our opponent. Try not to go too hard to make Quaxwell scare, Quaxwell needs to be in control and not lose themselves." Ash says as Infernape nods as Ash looks to Quaxwell, "If things go too far, let us know and we'll stop alright?" Ash asks as Quaxwell nods as Ash looks in his Pokedex.
"So, during your time at the lab, you learned Acrobatics and Fire Punch while keeping Flamethrower and Mach Punch, good to know." Ash says as Infernape nods gesturing towards Quaxwell who's prepared for a fight. "Aqua Jet!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and rushes to Infernape in a watery veil as Infernape's fist glows and rushes at Quaxwell's Aqua Jet clashing with one another as they break away.
Infernape uses this as an opportunity to light his fist on Fire and use Fire Punch on the ground which creates dust that's send flying towards Quaxwell as Ash prepares himself.
"Quaxwell, Rapid Spin!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and spins quickly clearing the dust as Infernape uses this as an opportunity to rush in with Acrobatics as his body glows and rushes at Quaxwell who staggers. "Block it!" Ash says but before Infernape could land his attack, Infernape disappears and reappears around Quaxwell like a shadow being faster as time went on as Quaxwell tries to land kicks and attacks to no avail making Quaxwell frustrated as the voice from before lingers in his head.
"What's wrong, can you not handle the task of focus? Hmm, do you want me to come out early?" the voice said as Quaxwell gets frustrated, and water started to form around Quaxwell. Noticing this, Ash calls out to him.
"Calm down Quaxwell, don't try to attack randomly but instead wait and use Low Sweep at the right moment if you're feeling comfortable!" the boy yelled out allowing Quaxwell to break free from the voice and breath in and out as Quaxwell closed his eyes and imagined where Infernape would be from right, left, forward and back and when it felt like Infernape was going to appear from the front, Quaxwell's leg glows and strikes at Infernape who was in front of him as Infernape was sent back but stood there fine. Quaxwell was nervous for a second, but Infernape gives him a smirk and a nod showing he was ok as Quaxwell nods.
"That's the spirit you two! Alright Quaxwell, Aqua Jet!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and rushes at Infernape in a watery veil that formed as Infernape stands there and thinks before jumping in the air and unleashing a mighty Flamethrower towards the Aqua Jet which burned the water seemingly unaffecting Quaxwell at first.
"Using Flamethrower against an Aqua Jet, Aqua Jet's like a shield so it looked like it was unaffected." Nemona says as Drayton and Rika shake their heads with Rika pointing towards the Aqua Jet.
"No, look closely." Rika says as Infernape's Flamethrower burns the water within Aqua Jet as if it was boiling, this causes Quaxwell to stop and hop around in pain over the boiling water as the gang looked surprised.
"I never would've thought someone could use a Fire attack against something like Aqua Jet to burn them, kind of like a semi-Scald in a way." Nemona says as the others nod as Infernape saw the opportunity to launch itself with Acrobatics preparing to strike at Quaxwell sending him flying a bit, but Quaxwell gets on his feet as Infernape appeared again preparing to strike with Fire Punch, but Quaxwell and Ash see an opportunity.
"Quick, Low Sweep!" Ash says as Quaxwell nods and sweeps Infernape before he could dodge and kicked him back with Low Sweep as both Pokemon breathed heavily almost at their limits with water starting to flow out of Quaxwell while fire started to crackle from Infernape's head as the others notice.
"They appear to be at their limits, they're likely in that range soon." Drayton says as the others worry but they could see Ash was calm about this.
"Hopefully, they don't go too wild." Briar worried as Infernape appeared tired and gritted his teeth and just as Infernape was getting tired, a red, flaming aura surrounded Infernape and his fiery head started to light up as Blaze was active.
"Infernape!" Infernape yelled out in anger as the aura from Blaze was so immense it pushed down Arven and the others look on shocked and surprised over Infernape's power.
"So, this is Infernape's Blaze, it's so, monstrous and yet it still feels controlled in some sort of way. This control must be Infernape's doing to not lose themselves, it must take a lot of hard training." Nemona said astonished as the others nod. To Quaxwell once more, he sees a vicious shadow that frightens Quaxwell as he tries to move but is overwhelmed with fear as the voice from before returns to Quaxwell's head.
"You really think you can take on someone like him, hahaha, you're pathetic, guess like I have to come in to save you again, weakling." the voice said as water started to form around Quaxwell once more letting the fear take over once more but before Quaxwell could get consumed by the fear, Infernape calls him out.
"Infernape!" Infernape yells catching Quaxwell's attention as Infernape tries to encourage him and to fight back against this inner demon.
"You can do it Quaxwell!" Ash says as Quaxwell looks on inspired and breathes in and slapping his face with both wings as the voice in his head was shocked.
"What!? You're really going to fight back!? How pathetic, you'll just lose." the voice said as Quaxwell shook his head and created a large circle with his feet which confused everyone, but Quaxwell looks to Infernape and he nods preparing himself.
"Why did Quaxwell draw a circle, is he drawing shapes?" Arven says as Drayton shook his head.
"I presume as some sort of barrier or limit if Quaxwell loses control. I'd imagine if Quaxwell loses control of his Torrent and goes beyond the circle, that's when Infernape knocks him out." Drayton presumes as the others looked on worryingly.
"I hope he can control himself in time." Nemona says as Ash looks on worried but knows Quaxwell can make it through.
We see Quaxwell alone in some sort of mindspace where he wanders around searching for some source of light until the mindspace lights up revealing a mind full of memories and emotions from his reunion with Steenee, his first meeting with Ash and his evolution. Everything seemed normal until a shadow of sorts forms into the shape of Quaxwell causing Quaxwell to panic and prep himself until this shadow laughs and starts to form itself resembling Quaxwell with a smirk.
"Well, well, well, look who decided to show up for fun. You made the mistake of trying to fight me because let me give you a word of advice, give up and let me take over for you. Our previous trainer preferred the real me, the one focused on battle and toughness." fake Quaxwell said as main Quaxwell gritted his teeth.
"Our previous trainer didn't care for us; he didn't have any consideration for us. He hur-" Ash's Quaxwell didn't finish as the shadowy Quaxwell stomped on the ground angrily.
"Liar! You were just acting up because you couldn't follow directions and now you drove him away! I'm going to show Ash that I'm more capable than you, this is the ideal me!" fake Quaxwell says as he rushed at Quaxwell angerily with Aqua Jet. Panicking, Quaxwell also used Aqua Jet at fake Quaxwell clashing with each other, fake Quaxwell sees an opportunity to sweep Quaxwell with Low Sweep but before Quaxwell could fall to the ground, he uses his wings to push himself forward and launch himself with Aqua Jet hitting the fake Quaxwell and sending him back.
Quaxwell jumped in the air preparing to slam his leg down on fake Quaxwell with Low Sweep, but the fake Quaxwell dodged and kicked him on the side sending Quaxwell flying as both panted.
"Why are you so insistent on saying our trainer was bad, he was clearly just tired and needed love. He never intended to hurt us!" fake Quaxwell said as main Quaxwell shook his head.
"Then why did he give me- us that scar, why did he beat us up? Why did he say we were a failure? If he cared about us, he would've-" Quaxwell didn't finish as the fake Quaxwell though he has a pained expression, rushes in attempting to kick Quaxwell who jumps back.
"Silence! It's all lies, lies, lies, lies! You never gave him a chance, we were happy! He was just scolding us for our slight errors, but he doesn't mean any harm. Your just fake, you're not real, I'm the real Quaxwell, someone trying to earn our trainer's approval and your just someone who denies it!" fake Quaxwell says as Quaxwell looks down with a sad expression.
"I admit, I felt like that a long time ago. I always wanted to earn Jeice's approval for a long time, I worked hard but Jeice is not a good person. He's hurt us physically and emotionally, he gave us our scar, he's frightened Steenee to the point of nervousness around bigger people and Toxel... We don't have to force ourelves to earn our trainer's approoval. Ash is proud of us for who we are and he's proud of the both of us!" Quaxwell tries to reason but the fake Quaxwell is frustrated with Quaxwell.
"Toxel's still here, right? He's just training, that's it." fake Quaxwell says as Quaxwell remained still.
"He's gone." Quaxwell says as the fake Quaxwell gets angry.
"He's here, we can search for-"
"He's gone." real Quaxwell says breaking fake Quaxwell's breaking point.
"Liar! He's here, it's just you blabbing on your about your lies. You push me away hoping to not accept reality and now you're claiming that Toxel is just magical-" fake Quaxwell didn't finish as Quaxwell stepped in.
"HE'S GONE! Gone! Gone! Gone! Departed! What else am I supposed to say huh, he's taken from us, Jeice did this to him!" Quaxwell tearfully yelled out as the fake Quaxwell looked shocked but in denial.
"Liar. LIAR!" fake Quaxwell yelled out as water started to cover the fake Quaxwell angrily.
In the real world, Quaxwell's Torrent was starting to rise and fall at staggering rates as the others looked on worryingly as the Torrent was reaching high levels of destructiveness around Quaxwell.
"Oh Quaxwell, please make it through this." Ash says as the still Blazed Infernape nods, "If you can hear me Quaxwell, I believe in you!" Ash yells out as the others also yell out their support.
Back in the mindspace, Quaxwell dodges his fake self's attacks and hears the support of his friends cheering him on causing the fake Quaxwell to grit his teeth angrily.
"Oh, look at you with those fake supporters, you have people cheering you while I'm left in the dust prepared to be erased for being the actual Quaxwell, why are you so special." fake Quaxwell said pained as the main Quaxwell looked bad for the fake Quaxwell.
"It's not that I'm trying to be special, they're just trying to help me out. I don't want to erase you; I just don't want you to lose yourself thinking you have to earn a trainer's approval by forcing yourself to do fight." Quaxwell says as fake Quaxwell still didn't believe it and even looked conflicted as Quaxwell sighed. "I acknowledge the fact that I'm your other half, the one who tried to work hard for Jeice's approval, and I'd imagine that's what you want but... he's hurt me in a way where I can't trust him. Are you also jealous of me? Is that why you try to take control?" Quaxwell asks as the fake Quaxwell's eyes open up appearing pained.
"Jealous? I have no idea what you mean. I mean, we were cared for right, Jeice praised us for our actions during that one double battle with Houndoom, he cared?" fake Quaxwell says sounding defeated at this point as main Quaxwell remembers that battle and all of a sudden, a memory appears within the mindspace showing a battle with Quaxly (who didn't have a scar yet) and Houndoom against a lone Male Oinkologne whose partner Pawniard was defeated.
"Quaxly, Wing Attack!" Jeice yelled out as Quaxly rushes in with his wings glowing as Oinkologne rushed in with Trailblaze, Quaxly hopped out of the way and striked Oinkologne with a powerful Wing Attack sending Oinkologne flying knocking him out as the crowd watches on impressed.
"Oinkologne is unable to battle! Jeice wins!" the refferee says as the crowd cheers and Quaxly appears happy and goes to his trainer but stops upon seeing him with Houndoom who Jeice happily rubs.
"You were the star of the show Houndoom, I promise you tons of treats later on." Jeice said as he and the crowd walks away leaving Quaxly alone as he looks on sadly over being ignored and runs to his trainer's leg, but Jeice kicks him away. "Do you mind? Your being too clingy, you ain't a star Quaxly." Jeice says leaving Quaxly alone once again as it begins to drizzle. The fake Quaxwell looks on in shock over what happened in that memory.
"Wha- no, that's not what happened, he praised us, he-" fake Quaxwell says trying to deny it as Quaxwell looked on with empathy as the fake Quaxwell looked to be breaking down, "I trusted him! So why doesn't he trust me!? I've done so much and yet- AHHHHHHHHH!" fake Quaxwell yelled out in anger as he stomped around tearing up and crying.
"I TRUSTED HIM!" fake Quaxwell yelled out in pain as he collapses breaking down. The real Quaxwell walks towards the sad fake Quaxwell and hugged him tightly surprising the fake Quaxwell. "Why are you hugging me, I thought you hated me." the fake Quaxwell said as the real Quaxwell shook his head left and right.
"You know, I did hate you, you let us go out of control for the sake of you being stronger than me, playing into my fears and letting people get hurt because of our actions. I wanted you gone but I realize, you only wanted to act that way because you were alone and needed validation and that's why you acted out. I realize you were another part of me that I was trying to suppress you because I wanted a fresh start, to forget about my old trainer and not let myself lose control of what I am, and you wanted the same but for acknowledgement. I promise you; Ash is proud of us, he doesn't expect us to live up to his expectations, he wants us to enjoy ourselves and be friends. Even when we lose, he's not disappointed in us, everyone loses in someway and we can always improve without feeling like a failure." Quaxwell says as the fake Quaxwell turns to Quaxwell tearfully.
"It's all I wanted, to be like you and yet I ignored that, and left others hurt because me and left you hurt." fake Quaxwell says as Quaxwell thought to himself and held out his hand.
"Why not we become one, we can acknowledge both sides and work towards not being so alone. We can be praised for who we are and not lose ourselves in Torrent mode." Quaxwell suggested as fake Quaxwell looked unsure and slightly scared.
"What if we lose control?" fake Quaxwell says as Quaxwell held his hand firmly.
"We won't I promise you. and if we do, we'll work on it together with everyone." Quaxwell says reassuringly as fake Quaxwell nodded.
"Let's go back to being one." fake Quaxwell says as both nodded and spun around together as the fake Quaxwell dissipated and into a white light and was absorbed into Quaxwell as he stops spinning and glows.
I've become one and the same once more.
Back in the real world, Quaxwell's Torrent calms down catching everyone's attention as Quaxwell was still covered with water, but it was on a steady rate. Ash was worried for Quaxwell but a look on Infernape's face told him that he trusted Quaxwell's instincts.
"Quaxwell?" Ash says as Quaxwell turns around to Ash anonymously as the others worried and Pikachu prepared himself to help Ash but then Quaxwell smirks with no sense of fear as the gang looks on impressed.
"Quaxwell was able to control the fear." Rika says impressed though Quaxwell does get a bit wobbily, "Well, not fully yet anyways." Rika added on as Quaxwell turned to Infernape and both nodded as Quaxwell looked to Ash.
"Alright, Quaxwell, use Aqua Jet!" Ash says as Quaxwell's watery body starts to rise as Quaxwell's body is covered in a watery veil and is launched towards Infernape who launches himself with Mach Punch clashing with Quaxwell's Aqua Jet, both jump off from each other. Infernape's fist is covered with fire and through Blaze, his flames trickle like sparklers and launches his fist towards Quaxwell.
"Use Aqua Cutter!" Ash says as Quaxwell's legs start to form a watery blade but all of a sudden, the blade turns into some form of free-flowing water which covers Quaxwell's right leg and forms into a more solid piece of water as he clashes with Infernape's Fire punch which did not go unnoticed by the group.
"That's Liquidation!" Arven says as Quaxwell and Infernape jump away from each other and eventually their Torrent and Blaze die down and calm down, but it seems that amount of energy tires out Quaxwell as he was about to fall but Infernape and Ash help him sit down and Ash smiles softly.
"Quaxwell, I'm proud of you Quaxwell. I promise, we'll work together on your Torrent and being strong together, if you're scared, we'll be by your side." Ash says as Quaxwell teared up and nodded.
The next day, we see the gang prepared to leave Mirage Town as Briar, Rika, Drayton and Lacey prepared to say goodbye to the group. Lacey appeared to be sad and holding hands with Nemona.
"We just reunited and now we have to depart again, it feels upsetting." Lacey says as Nemona nods.
"Well, even when we're far apart it doesn't mean we'll be gone forever. We have each other's numbers and one day we'll see each other again." Nemona says trying to find the positive in all this as Lacey nods.'
"I guess your right though-" Lacey asks as Nemona leans in and Lacey whispers, "Could you figure out what Arven likes for me?" Lacey whispered as Nemona giggled causing Lacey to cross her arms before Nemona eventually nods. Arven stepped forwards with special cookies that he hands to Lacey and Drayton
"As a sign of our friendship, I present some Paldean style cookies to take on the flight home to Unova." Arven says as Drayton nods in appreciation while Lacey looks delighted and blushed.
"I'll treasure these always." she whispered, "I mean, I'll find you something to pay you back!" Lacey says as Arven shook his head as they continued talking.
Briar looked sad about Ash.
"I was hoping to learn more about Ash for the school papers." Briar said as Drayton patted her back.
"It's best you don't, you'll be a bit absent minded when it comes to Champions and Terastalization. Plus, he has a Champion encyclopedia and a toy line." Drayton says as Ash and Pikachu look surprised.
"I have a toyline!?" Ash says as Drayton laughs.
"Regardless, I hope Cyclizar and Koraidon get stronger enough to battle Haxorus and Archaludon again especially your Koraidon." Drayton said holding out his hand as Ash smirks and grabs onto the hand.
"I promise you that for the next time!" Ash says as Drayton smirks before Rika steps forward.
"Ash, we may have not had our true battle yesterday, but I could tell your determination is in high spirits." Rika says as her Gallade looks at Quaxwell and he looks back at him having some sort of stare like rivals would do.
"It seems even Quaxwell's determined, I promise you the next time we'll meet, Quaxwell's Torrent will be under control and we'll show everything we got right guys?" Ash asked his Pikachu, Quaxwell and Infernape.
"Pika!/Quax!/Ape!" the 3 say with determination as Rika smiles.
"Your full of energy, you know, my fellow colleague and Elite Four-member Poppy is very interested in challenging you. You'll find that challenge in Oresville near pass Artazon and you might even see me there. Just be ready, she's not going to go easy." Rika says as Ash nods.
"We'll be ready." Ash says as Rika smiles.
"Just one more thing." Rika says as she grabs her bag and pulls out 4 pictures of her with Gallade and a Pokemon called Clodsire which was autographed by Rika.
"I figured you might take these for the road as a souvenir. I have some for you too, Drayton, Briar, Lacey." Rika says as they marvel upon their autographed pictures and they store safely, "So where you guys off too now?" Rika asks as Penny looks at her map.
"Well, we're heading to Artazon for Nemona's 2nd, technically 3rd Gym battle." Penny says as Lacey looks intrested in the map.
"Ohh, there's a town nearby called Sakura Town, they say no matter the season, cherry blossoms always seem to drop because of a Legendary Pokemon named Enamorus." Lacey says as the gang look interested.
"Guess we'll have to make a quick stop on the way there." Nemona says as the gang nod, they then check their stuff and are prepared to leave. And so, Quaxwell's fears have been quelled and even learned Liquidation. Though this doesn't their past and might be affected sometimes, Quaxwell is determined to make it through and not lose control after becoming one with himself as the journey continues.
END
Omake: Rinto and Rika relation?
While at the Pokemon Center after Ash grabbed Infernape, Ash starts to remember something. Rika looked familiar to Ash despite having met today.
"Say Rika, you look familiar to me for some reason." Ash says as Rika looked confused.
"I look familiar, well, I've starred in some popular movies, maybe it's there?" Rika says as Ash shook his head.
"No, the green hair, red eyes, Gallade, the RI in the name, are you familiar with Rinto?" Ash says as Rika's eyes open up in realization.
"Oh, you must've met my brother. He likes to travel around a lot, I assume you encountered him?" Rika says as Ash nodded.
"Yeah, twice, I was training my Galarian Farfetch'd when he was focused on strength and his Gallade beat my Farfetch'd down but did help us realize strength isn't everything, so we trained with Wikstrom from Kalos until we were prepared for another battle with Rinto and that's when Farfetch'd evolved." Ash says as Rika gives a soft smile.
"I'm glad my brother is doing well. You know, he's kind of stubborn back home, he's an excellent trainer and student in Manzana academy to the point he can even be a Champion ranked trainer but before he left for an adventure, he pulled off a prank where he put whip cream on my pillow and ran off. I mean that brat thinks he can do that to me, and I think my wife, Rinto and Poppy were all in on the trick. I love em dearly but why would they do that to me, I know I pranked Rinto but still when I see that little brat I'm going to prank him so hard, he'll-" Rika rambled on about her possible revenge against her younger brother as Ash and the gang saw a new side to Rika they never thought they would see.
Somewhere else in the world, Rinto shivered upon the thought of something completly out of his usual stoic appearance as his Gallade noticed.
"I think I hear the sound of revenge back home, we should run."
END
And with that, another chapter ends. I don't have too much to say other than thank you for sticking to the series thus far and the next chapter will involve the gang heading to Sakura Town for a festival celebrating Enamorus, a Legendary Pokemon related to the Forces of Nature and it's there Ash reunites with Alexa from Kalos and Raifort who is on a field trip with her class. When rumors arise that Enamorus will show up, the gang decide to go search for her and Raifort appears to be intrested in.
Meanwhile, TR hear about this and decide they want to capture Enamorus for their boss.
And with that, I'll see you next time.
Quaxwell's current movepool: Liquidation, Rapid Spin, Low Sweep, Aqua Jet
Random character bio:
Rika Corteza (Corteza is Spanish for 'Crust)
age: 27 (birthday: April 26th)
Hometown: Zapapico, Paldea
Description: Born to an artist mother and a construction worker father, her homelife wasn't as happy as her father was let's say not a nice person. She emphasized with Quaxwell due to similar pasts as she was abused and has a scar on her chest. Her father was arrested when she was 12 and spent a long time in prison (he's still there and attempted to apologize but no one forgave him) thus leaving her with her mother, older sister Rina (who was 3 years older) and younger brother Rinto (who is 9 years younger) as her mother worked to provide for them.
She went to Manzana Academy and due to her good looks, acting ability and skills in Ground types, she caught the attention of the Champion's association and was given a title of Elite Four member at the age of 15 and got along with her fellow colleagues, she even got to meet a fellow trainer who became her wife years later. She also met Geeta who was Ribes's assistant at the time and became best friends with her and serves as a right-hand man to her. Despite her cool looks and acting abilities, she deeply cares about others especially those who went through tough spots in their life and thus wants to help them out establishing a charity for those with troubled pasts.
Known Pokemon:
Gallade (Male, Psychic/Fighting, TT: Ground, Ability: Sharpness):
Description: Her first Pokemon she ever caught as a Ralts, Gallade serves as a right hand mon to Rika acting cool but also caring about others.
Moves: Alluring Voice, Tera Blast, Psycho Cut, Sacred Sword
Clodsire (Male, Poison/Ground, TT: Ground, Ability: Poison Touch)
Description: Her second known Pokemon, most people think she just uses Gallade and cool looking Pokemon that fit her style but in actuality, she's lloves her droopy little guy and thus most people are surprised to see Clodsire as her ace most times as they wern't expecting Clodsire.