Essence

by vincentgrey21

Ash has always wanted to be a pokemon master. When the time comes for him to pick out his first pokemon, he shocks Professor Oak with a peculiar request. One thing leads to another, and he ends up with a loyal Growlithe. How will this unique situation affect the boy's destiny?

4. Kanto 4

Kanto 4: Essence

With Growlithe sitting anxiously by his side, Ash stood outside of Vermillion City's eastern conduit. The arching metal gate was old and rickety. It definitely wasn't what you'd expect from one of the three main entrances to a major city. The passage lied in between a wide gap in the city's encompassing walls. Suspended by the gate's upper arc was a tacky looking tarp sign that read: Vermillion City.

"Vermillion City...the city of sun," said Ash, as he glanced down at Growlithe. "We're finally here."

Growlithe responded with an aberrant yap. Ash could tell by the puppy pokemon's vocal inflection that he was nervous. Either Growlithe was over-excited for his gym battle, or wigged out because of the upcoming array of people. More than likely his anxiety stemmed from the ladder.

Ash crouched down to Growlithe's level. "Remember what we talked about…we have to face this fear head on. There's going to be a lot of people watching the league tournament."

Growlithe nervously nodded. In order to be a leader, he had to be brave. The puppy pokemon would do whatever it took to overcome his silly phobia.

Ash serenely smiled, before proudly patting the tuft on Growlithe's head. "That a boy...Just remember...I'm always right by your side."

The puppy pokemon forced out a confident grunt in attempt to trick his rising nerves.

"Would it help if I released Charmander?" asked Ash. "He'd be one more friend to help distract you from the anxiety."

Growlithe took a brief moment to mull it over, before nodding hesitantly.

Ash encouragingly smiled, as he detached Charmander's pokeball from his trainer belt. He proceeded to release the orange fire-lizard, who immediately scanned his surroundings.

"We've reached Vermillion City," reported Ash. "We're about to enter city limits. Would you like to walk with us?"

Charmander cheerfully squealed, as he hastily nodded his head up and down.

"Awesome," replied Ash, while reading the digital clock on his xtranceiver. "You guy's ready to get going then? I'd like to reach the Pokemon Center before noon."

Both fire-types grunted their consent, before following Ash through Vermillion City's shoddy entrance...

The city's eastern border was under heavy construction. Ash had been exploring within city limits for at least fifteen minutes, and had yet to see a single building that was up and running. There were construction workers everywhere, frenziedly engaged in different projects that varied in size and construction phase.

Most of the construction zones seemed to be industrial or commercial. Few sites were in there fitting-out or commissioning phases. The majority were either under groundworks, or just being topped-out. Ash saw numerous trained pokemon helping with some of the more arduous labor. He observed several muscular machoke using their incredible strength to aid with the heavy-lifting.

The dark-haired boy was blown away, as he watched two machoke effortlessly haul a massive steel beam that must have weighed more than a ton. While pointing out the impressive feat, Ash all of a sudden noticed that Charmander's demeanor had at some point polarized. Something had caused the fire-type to tense up. His eyes deviated from a warm and friendly gaze, to a desolate, icy stare.

"What's wrong Charmander?" asked Ash, as he waved his hand in front of the lizard-pokemon's fixed line of sight.

Charmander used his tremulous claw to point at one of the gray, reptilian faced, humanoid pokemon. The many preoccupied machoke were oblivious of the fire-lizards contempt. The superpower pokemon's presence drew out a side of Charmander that Ash had never seen before. It was frightening...the fire-type's malignant behavior consummately contradicted his usual easy-going personality.

"The machoke...?" asked Ash in a manner of confusion. "What's wrong with the machoke?"

Charmander gave Ash a pained look. In correspondence to the lizard pokemon's bizarre behavior, the boy could tell that there was a heavyhearted story.

…Something significant must have happened involving a member of the machoke species.

Growlithe fought through his social anxiety in order to check on his fellow fire-type. He communicated to Charmander with a series of barks and yips, trying to use conversation to calm his troubled friend down.

Charmander retorted in his own form of speech, explaining to Growlithe the reason behind his antipathy. The puppy pokemon's initial reaction was a look of surprise, but he quickly suppressed it. Ash watched, as the puppy pokemon reasoned with the fire-lizard. Ash couldn't understand a lick of what they were saying. But judging by their body language and vocal-tone, it was pretty evident that Growlithe was trying to talk down Charmander's rage.

It took a while for Growlithe to get through to the fire-lizard. Throughout the intervention, Ash debated returning Charmander several times. He ultimately decided to let it play out. The dark-haired boy figured it would be more beneficial to address the problem now, than to unwisely let it fester over time. He wasn't quite sure what the details of the issue pertained, but right now that didn't matter. The boy's only concern was the abrupt change in the lizard pokemon's disposition at the sight of an innocent machoke.

Once Charmander was calm enough for Ash to make sense of; the boy interjected. "Maybe I can help…is there any way you can explain what's going on?"

Growlithe stepped back, allowing Charmander to portray his pain. The fire-lizard stood in front of Ash, using his sorrowful inflection in accompaniment with a multitude of gestures to create an image for his trainer.

Ash tried to follow, as Charmander used a complex arrangement of charades to explain himself. It took quite some time, but Ash was finally able to decipher a story that actually made sense.

And if what he'd interpreted was accurate…Charmander's animosity was understandable.

"So it was a machoke, eh?" questioned Ash — still skeptical of his deduction. "You're telling me that a machoke is responsible for the condition that I found you in?"

Charmander nodded, once again confirming to Ash that he had correctly deciphered what the fire-lizard was trying to say. The dark-haired boy momentarily paused, careful when coming up with an appropriate plan of action.

"Do you really think that those machoke have anything to do with the one that hurt you?" queried Ash, as he sternly looked Charmander in the eye. "I'm a human — the same as Damian. Do I have anything to do with the trainer that abused and abandoned you?"

Charmander's eyes quivered, the fire-type was clearly conflicted.

"Just because something looks the same, doesn't mean it is," insisted Ash. "You can't judge a book by its cover. What lies inside is the only thing that matters…"

Charmander dropped his gaze, folding under his trainer's intensity.

"I didn't mean to intimidate you," said Ash. "I just want you to understand that everybody's different. Those machoke have done nothing wrong. They cannot be held accountable for every single member of their species."

Ash could tell by Charmander's change in behavior that he had gotten through to him. The fire-lizard's scorn had turned into guilt. His eye's turned solemn and his body language depicted shame. Charmander's pure heart convicted him of his abrupt outburst of hatred

The dark-haired boy had a feeling that the comparison of himself to Damian is would sealed the deal. If Ash could be the polar opposite of that egotistical prick — even though they belonged to the same species; than two machoke could be inverse in character, regardless of whether or not they're identical in appearance.

Ash gently patted Charmander on the head. "It's okay. We all have emotions…and emotions are bound to spiral out of control every once in a while."

Charmander looked up at his wise young trainer. Judging by the tears in his eyes, it was obvious that the fire-lizard was still distraught over his behavior.

Ash bent over with soft eyes, intently meeting Charmander's line of sight. "Look on the bright side of things...nobody got hurt. And luckily, the construction equipment was too loud for any of them to eavesdrop."

Charmander examined his surroundings, like his trainer said, his conniption had gone unnoticed. The machoke and construction workers went about their laborious work unknowingly, remaining entirely engrossed in their duties.

Charmander smiled, his cheeky orange dimples caused the tears under his eyes to rapidly fall from his face. The fire-lizard subsequently used his arm to wipe off the remaining liquid residue. He quickly made a mental promise to his inner-self that he wouldn't procure another reason to cry any time soon.

Ash curiously looked at Growlithe. He seemed to have discarded his anxiety in order to help him address Charmander's unexpected, emotional upheaval. The ten-year old boy internally giggled, he didn't quite have this scenario in mind when he said that Charmander would serve as a distraction for his puppy pokemon's apprehension.

"Are you okay to keep traveling?" asked Ash, as he brought his attention back to the fire-lizard. "As interesting as this construction site is, I'd like to get going…"

Charmander grunted, before decisively shifting his line of sight to the west. He lucidly conveyed that he was ready to move forward.

"Let's get going then," insisted Ash. "We've still got a long ways to go before we reach the Pokemon Center."

Both pokemon concurred, beckoning their trainer to lead the way.

As they finally cleared the entirety of the expansive construction site, the city opened up into a busy sea port. For the first time since entering city limits, Ash was able to get a visual of the ocean. He took a deep breath; breathing in the fresh air that was associated with the large body of water. No matter how many times he encountered the ocean, the awe-inspiring feeling he got from it was always just as satisfying.

As the boy ambulated through the enormous port, he bumped into all sorts of interesting individuals. Vermillion port was doubtlessly diverse. From hundreds of cargo workers to thousands of tourists, the multi-use port was brimming with people.

Ash periodically checked on Growlithe, who was desperately trying to overcome his phobia. The puppy pokemon trembled, while following as close to Ash as possible. The boy suppressed his desire to return his starter. Amidst his mixed emotions, Ash was able to acknowledge that short-term relief wouldn't help provide a long-term answer.

Charmander on the other hand, seemed to enjoy the active port. He was especially enthralled by the industrious freight workers that occupied the cargo harbors.

"Do you know what they're doing?" asked Ash, in reference to the cargo workers.

Charmander shook his head. The fire-lizard simply respected the tough grind of general hard-work. Anybody that pushed themselves to their limit, at any respective task, was worthy of his adoration.

"You see those ships," said Ash, as he pointed. "They're loading all types of cool stuff onto them. Every region has its' own unique resources, making international trade essential in our world. Cargo ships, like the ones over there, are one of the many ways that us humans export and import different goods overseas."

Ash watched, as Charmander seemingly processed what he had just said.

"Does that makes sense?" questioned Ash.

Charmander nodded; for the most part he understood everything that Ash had just explained to him. The humans were basically sending stuff back and forth to other humans that lived faraway — simple enough...

Ash indicatively pointed at a specific cargo ship. "That one over there…Do you see the writing on the side? That's its name. It's called the S.S. Sinnoh Conveyor. It must be a ship from the faraway Sinnoh region that's currently delivering some of our requested imports."

Ash took a momentary pause to check on Growlithe. The poor little guy was too busy trying to overcome his social anxiety, to pay any attention to Ash's brief synopsis of the international trade-system.

As they passed through the final cargo harbor, and crossed over to the sea port's smaller cruise zone, Ash was able to make out the city's primary commercial district. In the distance he saw numerous buildings and skyscrapers; the streets looked to be flooded with an absurd amount of vehicle traffic.

Ash had never been to Vermillion City before, so the spectacle was actually quite amazing. To his left lay the ocean. Docked in the port's cruise zone were two internationally famous cruise ships — the S.S. Anne and the S.S. Aqua. Ash wasn't quite sure what Vermillion City's docking schedule looked like, but he figured that it was a rarity that both colossal luxury ships were docked at the same time. Maybe there was some kind of upcoming special event….

The heart of the city was to his right. It was lively and boisterous. Ash could hear the distinctly rowdy sounds of honking car horns and wild people. No matter how many trips he made into a major city, he always had the same astonished reaction. Culture shock was a very real phenomenon, especially after entering a big city in subsequence to a long duration of rural travel.

Ash responsibly checked the digital map on his xtranceiver. The pink dot that signified the closest Pokemon Center was just a few miles northwest of his current location. The dark-haired boy took one last look at the harbor, for now, before motioning Charmander and Growlithe to follow him up into the bustling commercial zone.

Even though the streets were much busier than the port, Growlithe seemed to be calming down. Either the fire-type was responding well to the intense session of exposure therapy, or he was shutting down. But judging by the puppy pokemon's frequent communication with Charmander, Ash figured that Growlithe was beginning to pave the way towards a non-phobic response.

"How do you guys like Vermillion?" asked Ash, as they passed by a collection of street vendors. "I think it's pretty cool."

Charmander squealed elatedly, expressing his admiration for the lively city.

Growlithe quietly nodded. Regardless of how simple the response was, Ash took it as a step of progress. The fact that the canine pokemon could even acknowledge his surroundings around this many people was a breakthrough.

"Good," continued Ash. "Now keep your eyes peeled. The Pokemon Center should be coming up any second now."

Ash, Growlithe, and Charmander continued to walk down the active streets of Vermillion City. Every once in a while, they would stop to partake in some window shopping or listen to the frequent street performer. But for the most part, they moved along briskly. Ash's anticipation for his gym battle was rapidly beginning to get out of control. He couldn't wait to arrive at the Pokemon Center. That way he could quickly get his pokemon restored to full-strength, before heading over to the Vermillion City Gym.

Growlithe was the first to locate Vermillion City's Pokemon Center. It was situated on a sectioned off street corner. Ash figured that the League was being cautious towards young trainers. It made perfect sense, given that the Pokemon Center was located in a very busy commercial district. The League, more than likely, didn't want to acquire any unnecessary lawsuits, because they didn't bestow appropriate safety measures regarding traffic.

Vermillion City's Pokemon Center was thus far the biggest he had been to. The center was three stories tall and immense in gamut. It was similar in design to the other major city's Pokemon Centers — no matter the location, the off-white exterior walls and bright pink roof never ceased to betray the norm. Ash assumed that there was some kind of official mandate enforced by League officials, concerning the external appearance of their pokemon centers.

Ash could tell that his pokemon were extremely excited about their arrival at the pokemon center. While Ash approached the center's door, Growlithe and Charmander were jumping up and down gleefully. There were very few things in this world that brought as much joy to his friend's hearts, as Nurse Joy's restoration machine.

The lobby was hectically swamped with trainers. Growlithe immediately began to quiver; so many people in such close proximity seemed to enhance his symptoms. This time, Ash decided that he'd return his friend. The puppy pokemon had already had a pretty hefty helping of exposure therapy today. Besides, he would have to return him soon anyway. Most pokemon centers required a trainer's pokemon to be in their pokeballs in order to use the restoration machine.

While Ash and Charmander waited in the line to see Nurse Joy, the boy eavesdropped on several other trainers' conversations. The most interesting sliver of information he picked up, was the reason behind the docking of both the S.S. Aqua and the S.S. Anne.

The S.S. Aqua was simply following typical protocol. Apparently, the ship was docked to perform its usual duties of taking people, to and from, the Johto region's main sea port in Olivine City. The boy was able to learn that the luxury cruise ship departed every Wednesday and returned every Sunday. Since tomorrow was Wednesday, the S.S. Aqua would be departing for the neighboring Johto region soon.

The docking of the S.S. Anne was much more interesting. Ash actually had its agenda explained to him by a stocky red headed girl waiting directly behind him in line. The S.S. Anne was supposedly docked outside of its usual schedule. The freckled girl elucidated that the gargantuan cruise ship was celebrating its fiftieth anniversary. In honor of its fifty straight years of flawlessly transporting people back and forth from the far land of Sinnoh — the League was funding a week long trainer getaway. The ship would circle the entirety of the region. Throughout the trip there would be all kinds of spectacular events, including a single elimination tournament — in which all trainers onboard would be permitted to enter.

"So when does the ship leave?" asked Ash, as they slowly neared the front desk.

"It leaves Saturday," replied the short female trainer. "Originally it was supposed to leave on Thursday, but apparently not enough people could afford the outrageous ticket price."

"How does pushing back the departure date help fix a problem like that," said Ash. "Wouldn't it be more beneficial for the League to just lower the ticket cost."

She smirked. "That certainly makes sense…but the Champion came up with another solution.

"Lance did?" questioned Ash with a raised eyebrow. "What did he come up with?"

The redheaded girl chuckled. "Lance thought it would be a brilliant idea to have trainers battle for a ticket. I guess anyone that can manage to defeat Lt. Surge this week, gets a free pass aboard the ship."

Ash scoffed. "You're kidding me...So all you've got to do is beat Surge, eh?"

"Easier said than done," retorted the freckled girl. "Surge isn't exactly a pushover…Why do you think the Pokemon Center's so packed right now…?"

Ash quickly cleared up the misunderstanding. "I didn't mean it like that. It's just...how could something like that possibly benefit the League. It hardly seems like a good financial move."

The girl shrugged. "Who knows? Whatever the reason is...I'm not complaining. A fair chance at an all-expense paid vacation is pretty damn awesome. A deal like this is usually only offered in one of those border-line, impossible sweepstake giveaways."

"Fair enough" replied Ash.

The ten-year old boy spent the rest of the time in line considering whether or not he could realistically afford to take a week off from his travels. A week was a considerable amount of time. The only thing making it possible was the fact that it was an event planned for trainers. There would without a doubt be some kind of training facility on board. Not to mention the single elimination tournament sounded like it would be good experience for his friends.

As Ash finally approached the front-desk, he decided to push off a decision until after his gym battle. The dark-haired boy figured he still had three days before the ship departed. And as of right now, he wasn't even in possession of a ticket. If he wanted a chance to board the S.S. Anne, he'd have to focus on defeating Surge first. The surprising, once in a lifetime opportunity to ride the S.S. Anne, didn't alter his original plan of action. The reason behind his stop in Vermillion City was the Thunder Badge. He'd worry about recreational fun later. Right now he had to take care of business.

XXX

After checking into the pokemon center and getting his pokemon healed by Nurse Joy's restoration machine, Ash waited in a long line outside of the Vermillion City Gym. He would be lying if he said he wasn't annoyed. Surge's gym was significantly backed up because of the valuable reward of an S.S. Anne ticket. Ash worried that unless the line's pace suddenly picked up, he'd be stuck outside of the gym until sunset.

As Ash gradually approached the large, modern, dome-shaped structure; he carefully observed the mannerisms of the many trainers that continuously poured out of the gym's automated glass-doors. The majority of the challengers walked out sluggishly, failing to exude an attitude that portrayed triumph. Every so often, a trainer would skip out with a smile on their face. Throughout the entirety of Ash's wait, he counted only seven trainers that presented a demeanor exhibiting a win. The ratio was hardly in the challenger's favor, given that there were at least a hundred people waiting in the long line.

After several hours of cursing under his breath, Ash finally reached the gym's front door. Above the entrance was a massive insignia of a lightning bolt. It was welded vertically onto the face of the building, conveying an almighty illustration of electricity stabbing through the heavens. Ash took a momentary pause to soak in the moment, before being pushed along by an impatient trainer standing directly behind him.

Upon entrance into the gym's dim foyer, Ash jerked when he abruptly came face to face with a tall, rough looking man. His hair was buzzed, and he was wearing an unbuttoned black leather-jacket with no undershirt.

"Welcome to Lt. Surge's gym!" howled the intimidating man. "How many badges, kid?"

Ash jumped at the sudden loud voice, before gathering himself to reply. "Just one…"

"Just one, eh?" reiterated the ruffian, before turning around with a shout. "You here that Surge? You gotta use the league registered team!"

"I heard you dammit!" thundered a voice from somewhere in the back of the dark room. "I'm not friggin' deaf!"

Ash squinted, as a bright light suddenly switched on, unexpectedly making the large room visible. The gym's original lighting made its access look like an entrance hall; apparently his eyes were just being deceived by an artificial, dusky mirage. The entirety of the gym was one commodious room. In the center laid its only feature — a large dirt arena. It was covered in evident proof of battle. Ash saw various craters and blemishes that seemed to be allegedly created by a hodgepodge of elements. It was very clear that the gym had been extremely active as of late.

"Sorry sir!" wailed the man in the leather jacket. "It won't happen again!"

"You've been saying that for years!" roared the giant of a man. "Maybe it's time I find a new doorman!"

Ash took a good look at the lieutenant. The man was absolutely humongous — perhaps the biggest human-being he had ever seen. He was at least seven-feet tall, and his bronze body appeared to have been chiseled out of a slab of stalwart granite. The gym leader's blonde, spiked hair was doused in gel. He wore a tight, sleeveless, army-green muscle tee and a pair of official camo pants. His pants were neatly tucked into a doublet of black, heavy-duty army boots. Hanging from his trunk-like neck was a collection of tattered military dog-tags.

"But sir…" whimpered the delinquently dressed door-man.

"Lighten up, Jace!" boomed Surge, in a burst of laughter. "It was just a joke!"

"Right…" stuttered the man known as Jace, as he awkwardly wiped the nervous sweat from his forehead. "I knew that…"

Surge placed both of his hands on his hips, as he continued to laugh like a cannonade. "Your face tells a different tale! You look like you've just seen a friggin' ghost!"

Ash held back a chuckle, before Lt. Surge pointed at him. "What do you think kid? Doesn't he look like he's about to crap his pants?"

Jace's face was bright red, clearly exuding embarrassment.

Ash briefly glanced at Jace, before looking back at the giant gym leader honestly. "Pretty much...yeah, he does."

"Dammit kid," whispered Jace, as he kept his eyes on Surge. "Don't add fuel to his cruel sense of humor."

"You're awfully blunt kid! I like that!" thundered Surge. "What's your name?"

Ash ignored Jace's quiet comment, responding quickly to the lieutenant. "...Ash Ketchum, nice to meet you!"

Surge unclipped one of the many pokeballs securely fastened around his black, rope-like belt. "—Ash Ketchum, eh? Well nice to meet ya kid…now tell me, have you come here for the thunder badge...or the blasted ticket?"

Ash smirked. "Both."

Surge fiendishly smiled. "Hmm I see…you're a greedy one. Tell me...which do you want more?"

"The badge," replied Ash. "I just found out about the ticket earlier today. I've been waiting for a chance to earn the Thunder Badge my whole life."

Surge's sadistic smile turned into an expression of satisfaction. "Well damn...let's not waste any more time then! Jace hurry your ass into the officiating box, it's time to battle!"

The officiate zone was safely established off to the side of the arena. Jace scurried over to the risen platform, before addressing Ash. "Do you know the rules kid?"

Ash nodded. "Two-on-two, right?"

"Exactly, also once a pokemon is released, they cannot be returned until they're unconscious — unless you wish to forfeit them."

"Gotcha," retorted Ash, before pivoting his gaze back in the direction of Surge. "I'm ready whenever you are!"

Ash calmly removed Bulbasaur's pokeball. He had already predetermined that he would start the battle off with his grass-type.

Surge enlarged his pokeball in quick response, clearly waiting on Jace's cue.

"This is a two-on-two official battle between challenger Ash Ketchum, and gym leader Lt. Surge! The battle will end once one trainer has lost both of their pokemon! Let the carnage begin!"

With a look of determination, Ash hoisted Bulbasaur's pokeball out onto the nearest half of the arena. The dark-haired boy simultaneously watched, as Lt. Surge's spherical contraption was lofted onto his half of the battlefield at a casual velocity.

Ash stared straight ahead, meticulously analyzing, while the bright lights corresponding to both releases faded into obscurity. Left in wake of the vibrant flash was Ash's assiduous Bulbasaur and Lt. Surge's smug-looking voltorb.

Lt. Surge raised an eyebrow at the sight of the saurian grass-type. "A bulbasaur, eh? I haven't seen one of those in years!"

Ash ignored Surge's comment and carefully observed the voltorb. The half red, half white, spherical specimen, rolled around the dirt heedlessly, consciously emitting a trail of electricity wherever it went. Ash watched Bulbasaur's scarlet-red eyes dart back and forth, analyzing the bizarre creature's movements.

"Vaporize it!" boomed Surge.

Voltorb instantaneously rotated, while enveloping itself in a coat of seething electricity. It momentarily paused, glaring at Bulbasaur for a split-second, before unleashing a violent spark attack.

Bulbasaur's eyes grew wide, as he brusquely dodged to the right. He barely avoided the first spark of electricity, before quickly maneuvering around a second. The saurian fleetly slid across the gravel, stirring up an airy cloud of dust in the process. He glared down a third attempt, while dexterously protruding his vines. The nimble grass-type smacked his rope-like appendages against the ground, using them as an impetus to launch himself into the air.

Ash watched, as Bulbasaur tactfully wafted above the ground. He examined voltorb, who was preparing to load another spark attack.

"Leech seed, now!"

Bulbasaur promptly fired a plethora of high-velocity, emerald-colored seeds. They whisked through the gym, desperately yearning for a host.

Ash grimaced in response to Voltorb's quick deterrence. The electric-type projected an accurate sonic boom, scrunching its face as the leech seeds exploded in mid-air.

Bulbasaur skillfully landed — keeping his eyes cemented on the ball-pokemon. He proceeded to impel a second flurry of seeds. They cut through the air like a barrage of missiles, honing in on their targeted host.

Voltorb squint its eyes — pulling the trigger on a second sonic boom. The burst of energy whistled through the air and exploded upon contact, disarming the majority of the attack. Unfortunately for Voltorb, a single seed penetrated the sonic explosion. It made contact with the living sphere, instantaneously sprouting into a web of parasitic vines. The energy-draining net pulsated into a bright-green color, immediately signifying that its mission had been initiated.

Surge's Voltorb spun out into a bypass, intentionally screeching throughout the process. Bulbasaur howled, as the screech pierced his eardrums, causing him to momentarily become distracted. Voltorb took advantage of the forced opening, firing a quick succession of sparks in attempt to deal damage to the grass-type.

The grass-type was belted by the anterior spark, but managed to shake off the buffet quick enough to dodge the rest of the enfilade. He jetted across the arena, allowing the leech seed to drain another installment of Voltorb's energy. The ball-pokemon squinched its eyes, as the entanglement of vines once again oscillated. Bulbasaur felt the stolen energy pulse within his bulb. He facilitated it throughout his body, healing the minimal damage he had taken from the blast of electricity.

"That thing's friggin' fast!" bellowed Surge, as he clenched his fists. "Voltorb, smash it with rollout!"

Voltorb briefly circulated in place, before launching itself towards Bulbasaur like a cannonball. It crashed back to the ground just short of the saurian, preparing to create a turbulent collision.

Bulbasaur once again used his vines to catapult himself into the air. He soared above the arena, upside down, observing as Voltorb jarringly cancelled its' rollout. The grass-type looked down, as another increment of the voltorb's energy was snatched away from its being and absorbed into his bulb.

"Poison Powder!" commanded Ash, as he witnessed Bulbasaur incidentally float into perfect positioning.

Bulbasaur caught onto his trainer's plan, unsealing his poison powder's designated secretion sac.

LT. Surge's eyes lit up, as he reacted to the command. "Get out of there!"

"Enhance your scope!" howled Ash. "Emit a widespread release!"

The grass-type expanded his secretion sac, while instantaneously expediting more of his stored, custom-made toxin. He dispensed his loaded batch, showering almost half of the arena in a potent cloud of purple.

Voltorb screeched, as the intense poison seeped into its body through its' narrow eye-sockets. Its' orb shaped body simultaneously convulsed, as it was hit by the duel influence of leech seed and poison powder.

Bulbasaur fell back to the ground, landing within the dissipating cloud of poison. Ash smiled — pleased by his saurian's incredible display. The focus required in order to magnify poison powder's range, without contaminating either trainer, was exhaustively scrupulous. As the cloud completely vanished, Ash could see that Voltorb was in bad shape. The ball-pokemon periodically broke out into spasms, while he fought the two burdensome conditions.

"Crap!" cursed Surge, while lowering his eyebrows. "I forgot how friggin' troublesome a bulbasaur can be."

"I'm glad that I've been able to refresh your memory," angled Ash. "Now Bulbasaur, hit it hard with a takedown!"

Bulbasaur sprinted towards Voltorb, aimlessly kicking up dirt in the process. Voltorb's eyes grew wide, as it watched the saurian grass-type bound towards him at an expeditious rate.

"Eerie impulse!" thundered Surge. "Dodge if you can!"

Ash knew exactly what the electric-type specialist was up to. Eerie impulse was an electric-based status technique. The user essentially creates a peculiar off-set thunder wave that seeps into a pokemon's elemental tract; thus creating a thin electrical coat that is emitted at the focal point of the targets elemental attacks.

The ten-year old boy thought about changing up his plan of action, so that he could avoid the bizarre technique — but ultimately decided against it. He didn't want to run the risk of getting hit by an eerie pulse, without causing any damage to voltorb — which was entirely possible if Bulbasaur was caught off guard by an unexpected command.

Voltorb disembogued the strange yellow wave of electricity. It squiggled through the air like a worm, before making contact with an imprudent, airborne Bulbasaur. Bulbasaur felt the strange electricity percolate within his bulb — locating the access point to all of his available elemental techniques. He simultaneously was hit by a nasty recoil, as his body heedlessly collided with the rigid ball-pokemon.

Ash winced, as Bulbasaur painfully shook off the afflictive recoil. Voltorb rapidly rolled across the arena confusedly, blatantly nearing unconsciousness. It finally passed into comatose, once its' remaining energy was snatched away by an unmerciful combination of both leech seed and the toxins within its body.

Lt. Surge smirked, as he knowingly returned his first pokemon.

"Good job Bulbasaur!" yelled Ash, in response to the victory. "How are you feeling? Do you think you can keep going?"

Bulbasaur nodded with a grimace, while enduring the after-effects of take-down.

"That's a tough pokemon you got there, runt!" boomed Surge with a sadistic smile, as he unclipped his second pokeball from his belt. "Its' got a good handle on its status techniques!"

"Thanks!" exclaimed Ash. "We've worked hard on them!"

"If you teach it some more elemental attacks it could grow into a real monster," suggested Surge. "Until then, it's going to have a tough time with my next pokemon!"

Surge heaved his second pokeball out onto the battlefield. Right before it made contact with the ground it rapidly snapped open, releasing an energetic display of bright light. When the luminous flash faded, a raichu stood in its wake.

Ash knew it was coming — Surge's raichu was practically a living legend. There were very few league registered pokemon as infamous as the fully-evolved electric mouse. The brute was well known for its hard-hitting electric attacks and ruthless lack of mercy. Voltorb was merely an opening act — Raichu was the Vermillion City gym's petrifying main event.

Raichu's vehement black eyes leered at Bulbasaur. Its facial expression reminded him of Pidgeotto, as it fiendishly smiled at the grass-type. Judging by its countenance, Ash could tell it breathed for nothing but battle. With every second that went by the blood-thirsty look Raichu advertised grew more and more barbarous.

The bipedal mouse pokemon's dark orange fur erected, as it diffused two arcs of electricity out of the yellow pouches on its cheeks. It pounded its two, round, dark-brown paws together, while intimidatingly whipping its bolt-shaped tail violently against the ground. Its bifurcated yellow and brown ear's quavered, reacting to Raichu's sudden crouch. It arrogantly got in a four-point stance in preparation to dispatch.

Surge swiftly pointed ahead with fire in his eyes. "Crush it, Raichu!"

Raichu exploded out of its stance, bursting toward Bulbasaur as fast as a speeding bullet. The grass-type frantically struggled to keep up with the mouse-pokemon's movements. He tried to stay calm, as the rodent seemingly vanished out of sight. There was a brief pause, before Bulbasaur felt a looming presence. He quickly turned around to find an impending Raichu. It appeared next to him bearing a perverse smile, intentionally unveiling itself in order to instill fear. All of a sudden, he felt a sharp pain in his side. The saurian watched out of the corner of his eye, while Raichu viciously struck him with both of his paws.

"Bulbasaur!" Ash blustered, as he watched his grass-type involuntarily soar across the arena

"That's gotta hurt!" heckled Surge, while Bulbasaur simultaneously crashed onto the hard tile that lied outside of the arena. "Raichu's slam is as nasty as they come!"

The dark-haired boy cringed in response to the clamorous impact. He helplessly watched Bulbasaur roll across the gym, while forcing his eyes to remain open throughout the entire crash. When the saurian's momentum finally came to a stop, the grass-type wrestled to his feet. He was bruised and battered — his legs wobbled as he fought to stand up.

Raichu folded his arms, while continuing to grin malevolently. He beat his tail against the ground like a whip-cracker. As the tip made contact, it caused streaks of electricity to discharge across the dirt. Ash gritted his teeth in response to the discordant hiss of electricity. The grating sound it created was even more jarring than the sound of nails on a chalk-board.

...The dark-haired boy racked his brain in attempt to come up with a strategy.

"Bulbasaur! Are you okay?" bellowed Ash, making sure his grass-type was still able to continue.

Bulbasaur painfully nodded, as he slowly plodded back over to the arena. He stared down Raichu, while brewing a new batch of poison powder in the process. He debated using sleep powder, but quickly excused the idea. He probably wouldn't get more than one opportunity to make an impact on Growlithe's battle, and he figured he shouldn't risk using his most recently brewed sleep powder against a formidable opponent like Raichu. If the sleep powder was a dud — it would be a missed opportunity. Poison powder was a much more plausible choice.

As Bulbasaur breached the arena, the electric mouse instantaneously took off in a blur. Ash's stomach dropped when he realized that he wouldn't have enough time to give a command. The dark-haired boy watched, as a shaft of lightning precipitously appeared above the battlefield. Ash heard the sound of Surge's booming laughter in the background. The gym leader was obviously enjoying the battle.

Raichu's thunderbolt cackled and shrieked, while it conjured in the air. The boy suddenly caught a glimpse of Bulbasaur's expression, as the bolt of electricity tore through the atmosphere. The grass-type smirked serenely — erupting from his bulb at the moment of impact was an expansive blast of purple. Its chemicals created a sparkle in the air, while it ascended in the shape of a cylindrical pillar.

Raichu's countenance portrayed a slight glint of fear, as he was enveloped in Bulbasaur's full-power poison-powder.

The grass-type was synchronously struck by Raichu's thunderbolt. Ash flinched, while listening to Bulbasaur's high-pitched clamor.

When the chaos finally ceased, Raichu stood resolutely in the arena. The only differences in his appearance was that his eyes looked slightly tired, which was probably caused by the foreign toxins that were now coursing throughout his bloodstream. In addition, his coat had a slight purple-tint to it — an obvious byproduct of the several grains of poison powder that were presently embedded in his fur.

Bulbasaur lied still — he was slightly charred and blatantly unconscious. A beam of red-light shot across the dirt arena, as Ash returned his grass-type to his pokeball. The dark-haired boy looked down at Bulbasaur's pokeball proudly. It sat in his sweaty hand idly, ready to be clipped back to its designated spot on his trainer belt.

"You were awesome," praised Ash, while he clipped his friend's pokeball back to his belt. "I couldn't be more proud of you."

"That's a hell of a Bulbasaur, kid!" bellowed Surge. "I've never seen one with that much power stored in its bulb!"

"He's definitely special!" retorted Ash, as he handled Growlithe's pokeball. "Now let's finish this!"

Surge smiled ferociously. "It's your move Ketchum!"

Ash responded by lofting Growlithe's pokeball into the air, triggering his release. After the blast of bright light subsided, the puppy-pokemon stood in the arena regally. It took him a split-second to recognize Raichu's presence, before he crouched into a defensive position. Growlithe expelled an abbreviate blast of fire out of his maw, while preparing for a vicious battle.

"A Growlithe, eh?" queried Surge. "Should be interesting…"

Ash wasted no time. "Ember barrage!"

Growlithe called upon his inner-flame, before firing a surplus of high-temperature fire balls. They streaked across the arena, whisking through the air like a fleet of gastly. Ash watched Raichu grimace, as the poison in its body assaulted his insides. The fully-evolved rodent quickly shook off the pain, before using a quick attack unconventionally to avoid the enfilade of fire.

The puppy-pokemon reacted quickly, enshrouding himself in an array of scorching hot fire. He used flame wheel to promptly close the distance between Raichu and himself, meeting the electric mouse head-on in a fury. Raichu's eyes lit up, as he witnessed Growlithe keep up with his incredible speed. The electric-type was simultaneously hit by another wave of toxins, as the poison-powder continued to damage him from the inside-out. Raichu's momentary flinch created an opportunistic opening. Growlithe's flame wheel collided with Raichu, causing the electric-mouse to painfully shriek. It was launched across the arena, landing jarringly on the opposite side closest to Lt. Surge.

"Raichu get up now!" ordered Surge. "Use electro-ball!"

Raichu used his paws to nimbly spring himself back up to his feet. With a stiff upper lip he raised his tail into the air, initiating the formulation of a crackling sphere of electricity. The orb grew at the tip of its tail, remaining stationary because of the magnetizing power of Raichu's rear extremity.

Growlithe dashed across the battlefield expeditiously, leaving a trail of fire in his wake. He wasn't going to just standby leisurely and allow Raichu to hone in on a definite location. Out of his peripherals, the fire-type witnessed the electric mouse propel his electro-ball. It ripped through the air, hissing like an ekans. The large ball of electricity rapidly closed in on him; Ash wondered if Raichu was somehow facilitating some type of heat-seeking energy into his technique. However, he decided to respond otherwise, there wasn't even close to enough proof to act on such a foolhardy whim.

"Flame wheel to dodge!" roared Ash, as he witnessed the proximity between Growlithe and the electro-ball quickly shrink. "Hit it if you can!"

Growlithe bolted toward the electro-ball at full tilt. Right when the sphere of electricity was about to make contact, the puppy-pokemon sheathed himself within an unrestrained flame wheel. He spun head over once, before using his front paws to sling himself into the air. The canine glided over the electro-ball, looking like an inflamed meteor blasting through the atmosphere.

Ash watched Raichu scowl, as the electro-ball barely missed its target. The mouse pokemon was then forced to use his quick attack to dodge, before deciding to counter with a curt, jabbing thundershock.

"Growlithe dodge!"

Ash's plea was too late. Growlithe was hit by Raichu's quick-fire electric strike as he concurrently expelled his flame-wheel. The puppy-pokemon winced, while the high-voltage electricity coursed throughout his body. Growlithe shook off the pain — not allowing it to dictate the battle whatsoever.

"Counter with another ember barrage!" bellowed Ash, while he watched Raichu once again make a wry face because of the poison that flowed throughout his veins.

The puppy Pokemon released another plethora of fire-balls. They navigated through the air at an astonishing rate. Each individual ember spread out sporadically, making it nearly impossible to decipher their different landing points. Raichu endured another knife-like poison strike, while darting his eyes back in forth in attempt to find a weak point in the battery of fire.

"Over there!" thundered Surge, as he pointed at a gap in the barrage that was on the opposite side of the battlefield. "Hurry!"

Ash thought he sensed a little bit of uncertainty in Surge's voice. For the first time today, he could tell that the lieutenant was nervous. "More fire, Growlithe!"

His fire-type obediently emitted even more flames. They shot through the air similar to the previous barrage — this time filling in the gaps. With nowhere to go, Raichu was hit by a wall of fire. The electric-mouse screeched like the wheels of a car spinning out on asphalt, while being hit by the scorching-hot palisade.

Once the shriek subsided the gym was quiet. Ash watched, as the smoke from the attack gradually faded. When all was clear, Raichu remained standing. He was wearied and charred, barely able to remain on his feet. The dark-haired boy cringed, when he witnessed Raichu once again be struck by an intramural wave of poison.

Nevertheless, the electric-type somehow remained standing. Raichu achingly forced a sadistic smile, while raising his tail in the air.

"That's it Raichu, hang in there!" boomed Surge. "One last chargedup thunderbolt!"

Being contrived in the air was a large bolt of electricity. It crepitated above the gym, yearning for its release. Raichu snickered throughout the charge, coughing up poison infused muck in the process.

"This is it!" howled Ash. "Hit it with the strongest flame wheel you've got!"

Growlithe reached down into the core of his inner-flame, withdrawing as much fire as possible. He released it wildly from his maw and the rear eccrine glands situated in his hind paws. His body instantaneously erupted in fire. The fire-type's wheel was expansive, nearly twice its average-size. He had traded endurance for power; his body would without a doubt be exhausted after this.

…There was a momentary pause, before the elements finally commenced.

Growlithe detonated out of his stance like a savage, bursting across the arena with victory in mind.

Raichu catapulted his risen thunderbolt, while his insides churned under the influence of Bulbasaur's toxins.

Both trainers clenched their fists and gritted their teeth, as they anxiously observed the two powers clash. Raichu's thunderbolt had the initial edge — the powerful electric attack put a dent in Growlithe's wheel, causing it to become stuck in its tracks.

However, Surge's countenance turned from a smile to a frown, as Growlithe persevered. He pushed forward, using his momentum to push back the thunderbolt. The encasement of fire temporarily shielded him, while he gradually closed the distance between himself and Raichu.

The electric mouse simply stood there. He barely had enough energy to stand, let alone flea. The thunderbolt fizzled out, as fire won the battle between equal elements. Ash thought he saw a last second smirk appear on Raichu's face, before he was ran over by a voracious, flame enshrouded Growlithe.

"You've gotta be friggin' kidding me!" boomed Surge, when he saw a scorched and unconscious Raichu embedded in the dirt surface.

"Hell yeah!" shouted Ash with a fist in the air, as Growlithe expelled his flame-wheel.

"Raichu is unable to battle!" bellowed Jace from atop the dais. "All of Lt. Surge's pokemon have been defeated! The winner is challenger Ash Ketchum!"

The puppy-pokemon cheerfully yapped, while scampering over to his trainer. Ash leaned over, congratulating his starter with an affectionate scratch behind the ears. As Ash petted his friend he realized how exhausted he was. Growlithe's body was tense and he was breathing heavily. It was evident that the fire-type was going to have to get some good rest over the next couple days.

"You were great!" cheered Ash, as he continued to pet his fire-type. "All of the work we've put in definitely paid off today."

Growlithe happily licked Ash across the face, elated at the outcome of his very first gym battle.

Ash laughed in response to his starters' playful antics. "That tickles buddy!"

Out of the corner of his eye, Ash watched Surge return Raichu, before approaching him with a massive grin on his face. "That was a great battle Ash! Best rookie match I've had all season!"

"Thanks Surge," replied Ash, while standing up straight. "It was a blast!"

"Hell friggin'yeah it was!" boomed Surge, while suddenly turning around to face the officiating zone. Jace was presently climbing down from the risen platform in attempt to meet them in the arena. "Jace, go get me a badge and a ticket!"

The ruffian almost fell from his climb, after being jostled by Surge's thunderous voice. When he reached the ground, he scurried off toward the front desk — which was where Surge apparently kept his winnings.

"So what's your plan, kid?" asked Surge. "What are you going to do after the S.S. Ann?"

"Well, I'm planning on heading to Saffron to take on Sabrina," replied Ash. "But to be honest, I'm not quite sure if I'm going to use the ticket. I don't know how I feel about wasting a week of travel."

"Screw that logic," huffed the lieutenant. "You should be thinking of the ship as a chance to enhance your skills. There will be all kinds of tough trainers. Not to mention the fact that there's that single elimination tournament. It's a once in a lifetime opportunity runt…I wouldn't pass on it."

Ash mulled it over. "Yeah, I guess…but what about travel time?"

"Kid, the tournament is not until May," replied Surge. "You've got eight months. A week of free food and some good training ain't gonna hurt you. Besides, Sabrina is a damn hellion. You could use some extra training before you face her."

"Good point," said Ash. "I think I'll give it a shot."

"Good decision!" boomed Surge, as Jace scurried over and handed Surge the requested items.

"Before I give these to you…" said Surge. "I've gotta a question."

"Yeah," mumbled Ash.

The lieutenant pointed at Ash's xtranceiver. "That thing's a phone, right?"

Ash nodded. "Yeah it's called an xtranceiver. It's a mobile video phone…my friend Bill gave it to me."

"Let me see it for a second," requested Surge, while he held his hand out in front of the dark-haired boy.

Ash shrugged, while unfastening the xtranceiver's strap. He handed it over to Surge, who instantly fired it up. The giant of a man used his long, bulky fingers to briefly fiddle around with the device. Once he was done, he nodded his head in satisfaction, before handing it back to Ash.

"What'd you do?" asked Ash, before looking at the screen with raised eyebrows.

"I put my number in there," retorted Surge. "I want a friggin' rematch at some point — full six-on-six. No restraints."

Ash smirked. "I can't say no to that...I've already got a rematch planned with Misty. I'll have to stop by sometime after I get all of my badges."

Surge laughed with a booming voice. "You're re-matching the shrimp, eh? That's a battle I'd like to see."

"The shrimp…?" asked Ash. "You know Misty?"

"Of course I know her…" replied Surge. "All of us gym leaders know each other. Besides, Misty's a friggin' beast. If it weren't for my type-advantage, I'd be a little more hesitant to battle her. Word is... she hasn't lost a match to a trainer with more than three badges all season."

Ash clenched his fists in excitement. "Now I definitely can't wait to battle her again!"

Surge smirked. "Don't forget about our battle kid."

Ash laughed. "I can be excited for more than one battle at a time."

"Truth," retorted Surge. "Us gym leader's don't usually have trainers come back once they've earned our badge. So it should be a blast! Make sure you get stronger kid. Raichu just qualified for my main team a few weeks ago. You've got a long way to go until you can actually compete with me."

"I'm up for the challenge," replied Ash.

Surge chuckled at Ash's confidence, before graciously handing over the badge and the ticket. The thunder badge was relatively small — identical in size to the cascade badge. The center was dark-orange and shaped like an octagon. Around the edges of the eight-sided polygon was a repeating pattern of bright-yellow triangles. The emblem created a vibrant image of a sun, symbolizing the primordial meaning behind the city…

The ticket was relatively bland. For the most part it was just a typical looking admissions voucher. The only thing that stood out was the bright-blue, holographic image of a boat to the right of the event name.

"Thanks," said Ash, as he stuffed the ticket in his pocket and removed his wooden badge case from his backpack.

The dark-haired boy undid the latch to his case, before placing the thunder badge in its designated, red-velvet slot adjacent to the cascade badge. Once the badge was secure, he put the case back into his backpack for safe-keeping.

"Alright Ketchum, I think it's time you get going," said Surge. "As fun as it's been, I've got some more trainers to battle. I've gotta hurry up and get Raichu and Voltorb restored."

"You've got enough time to run to the Pokemon Center and back?" asked Ash. "How do you manage that?"

"That's usually what I'd do…" Surge sighed, as he pointed at the bulky contraption set up directly behind the front desk. "But with all these trainers trying to get free tickets, I had to ask Nurse Joy to set me up with my own restoration machine. It doesn't give them a chance to fully recover, but it heals them enough to get them through the day. As soon as I get the chance I'm going to treat Voltorb and Raichu to a week of rest, they deserve it."

"Makes sense," replied Ash with a nod. "Before I go though, I've got a message for you…"

"What is it?" asked Surge with a raised eyebrow.

"Officer Jenny wanted me to tell you that she is doing well," said Ash. "She was pretty adamant about me letting you know."

"Jenny, eh?" questioned Surge, "there's a lot of them, can you be more specific."

"I forgot the name of the town she's stationed at…" said Ash. "But it's small. And she said that you guys were old drinking partners."

Surge's eyes lit up. "Oh, that Jenny! That's great news! I haven't seen her in years…as a matter of fact I really should give her a call sometime soon."

"How do you guys know each other?" asked Ash.

"It's a long story…" Surge sighed. "And I don't have enough time to tell it right now — maybe another time kid."

Ash nodded, before returning a tired Growlithe to his pokeball. "No worries...I understand. I really should get going anyway. My pokemon need to get looked at before I go to bed."

"See you around Ketchum," said Surge, as he shook Ash's hand. "Let me know when you're ready for that rematch."

"I'll make sure to give you a call," replied Ash. "Thanks for today's battle, it was awesome."

"No, thank you kid," confessed Surge. "It was a damn pleasure."

Ash flashed the giant man a big smile, before saying goodbye to him and Jace. As Ash walked out of the gym, he whispered a quiet thank you to Growlithe and Bulbasaur's pokeballs. They had battled even better than he had originally hoped.

XXX

Ash and Clefairy watched in awe, as the S.S. Aqua disembarked from the Vermillion City Port. The ten-year old boy still had three and a half days until the departure of the S.S. Anne. He figured it would be a worthwhile occurrence to get an outsiders perspective, before his first-hand experience on Saturday.

"Pretty cool…don't you think?" questioned Ash, while they watched the colossal ship begin to drift away.

Clefairy nodded; she wasn't quite sure what the trip would entail. Nevertheless, as long as her trainer was excited, she would remain supportive.

"We've still got three days until we leave," said Ash. "There are a few things we need to get done."

Clefairy half-heartedly smiled, as she noticed a couple of gawking bystanders that passed by.

"Ignore them," said Ash. "People will always be looking at you. You're not exactly common…"

Clefairy frantically covered her sensitive ears, while the S.S. Aqua briefly interrupted their conversation with its loud, alto-toned horn.

When the cacophony subsided, Ash continued. "You're a special pokemon Clefairy...and people know it."

Clefairy slightly blushed — her trainer's kind words were reassuring.

Once the S.S. Aqua was out of sight, Ash glanced back down at Clefairy. "Let's go, we've got a lot to get done."

The fairy-type nodded, while realizing that she would follow her trainer to the stars and back if that was what it took to always stay by his side.

XXX

After taking a quick trip to the Pokemart to re-up on supplies, Ash walked the far-distance back to Vermillion City's southeastern boarder in order to finally take care of a long awaited matter of contention.

Just outside city-limits, the ten-year old boy discovered a decently vast clearing. He released Pidgeotto and Charmander, who were quickly filled in on the upcoming plan of action. The dark-haired boy had already explained his relatively simple plan to Clefairy, during their long walk toward the city's boarder. He would have released Growlithe and Bulbasaur if he could, but they both were still recovering from their battle with Surge. Ash didn't want to risk their health if Squirtle decided to run amuck. He wanted to be able to use Growlithe and Bulbasaur confidently for the S.S. Anne tournament, and if their injuries were to become more serious it could delay the healing process. Ash cursed under his breath, this was one of those times where he really needed Growlithe by his side.

Ash handled Squirtle's pokeball anxiously, as he rambled off a few quick reminders…

"Clefairy…if things somehow escalate use sing to put him to sleep," said Ash. "Don't jump the gun. Only use it if it's absolutely necessary."

Clefairy decisively nodded, signifying that Ash's orders were clear.

"Charmander...your typing is at a disadvantage," said Ash. "I really just need you to provide intimidation. You can use growl if you want, it's your call."

The fire-type grunted affirmatively, snorting a burst of fire in the process.

Ash laughed, before addressing his excited Pidgeotto. "Pidgeotto this is not a battle…I repeat this is not a battle. Please don't attack unless I say so. I know you've been itching for a new sparring partner, but this is not the right time."

The colossal flying-type disappointedly huffed, as he nodded his head hesitantly in agreement.

"Alright…let's do this," muttered Ash. "Remember, he's a teammate — no matter how he reacts."

His pokemon collectively grunted, while waiting anxiously for the upcoming affair.

Ash gently lofted Squirtle's pokeball up into the air, while his friends dutifully encompassed the release. When the bright array of light faded, a stone-faced turtle was revealed. He sat on the ground placidly, not making any sudden movements. The turtle pokemon was fully aware of his current predicament.

…He knew he had been captured.

Ash took a few steps forward, garnering Squirtle's undivided attention. The dark-haired boy sat down Indian-style, meeting Squirtle's cold, knife-like eyes with his own.

"Do you know what's going on?"

Squirtle replied with a lucid grunt.

"You've been captured," replied Ash. "You're no longer part of the Squirtle Squad."

The turtle-pokemon quickly flashed a brief display of malice, before abruptly suppressing it in response to Pidgeotto's nefarious squawk.

Ash buried his nerves, as he continued. "The League will take good care of your gang..."

Squirtle took a big breath in attempt to remain emotionless.

"Officer Jenny told me your story," said Ash. "I know you've been through hell."

Squirtle showed a sliver of uneasiness, while listening to Ash's words. This trainer knew about his past...yet he still wanted him, why?

"My names Ash," said the boy, while pointing to himself. "I'm a pokemon trainer. I'd like to make this process as smooth as possible. I don't care how long it takes, but understand that eventually you're going to have to listen to me. The sooner you submit — the faster we can begin to train. I just want to make one thing clear...I will never release you — whether you want me to, or not. I always finish what I've started, and from the moment I caught you I made the commitment to raise you into one of the strongest pokemon in the world."

Squirtle raised the reptilian skin above his left eye, clearly intrigued by Ash's words. The boy's dogma was definitely in the right place, but humans — humans were liars.

As if Ash was synchronized with Squirtle's mind, he answered. "I know you probably don't trust me because I'm human, but I can assure you that I am different...I think that what your old trainer did was despicable. No matter how bad his injuries were. You were his family…and he betrayed you."

Squirtle showed a hint of emotion, as he expressed a barely noticeable frown.

"What do you guys think?" asked Ash aloud, desiring the support of his friends.

All three of his pokemon nodded their heads in agreement. Charmander even stepped forward, while speaking out in his native tongue. Ash wasn't exactly sure what he was saying. However, judging by Squirtle's surprised expression, he thought it might have something to do with the fire-types' similar past...

Squirtle processed what the charmander had said. According to the lizard pokemon, the human named Ash had saved the fire-type's life. Charmander had been abandoned, just like him. The lizard's wounds were physical, while his were emotional. Squirtle thought back to the good times he had shared with his old trainer, and wondered if it was really possible to have something like that again.

Ash interjected. "If you don't open up your heart things will never get better. You'll just remain stuck, all by yourself, in this icy realm that you've created. Give me a chance…I promise I will not disappoint."

Squirtle was internally conflicted; he feared opening up his heart, yet the boy's words sounded genuine. The turtle-pokemon had lived the last couple years of his life in an icy haze. Could this boy really be the one to help him feel again?

"My pokemon and I are a family," said Ash. "It's your decision what kind of role you want to take on. You can be obedient from the beginning…or rebellious. Regardless, you are part of my family now. I want to make that clear."

The turtle-pokemon suddenly felt something he hadn't felt in a long time…warmth. It started in his chest, before gradually spreading out throughout the rest of his body.

Ash witnessed a distinct change in Squirtle's eyes. They turned from a cold, hellish stare to a warmer, more hopeful gaze. For the first time the boy could tell that he was getting through.

"My training won't be easy," said Ash. "But I will do whatever it takes to bring out your fullest potential. Judging by your build, I would assume that you're close to evolving. I will help you become the strongest blastoise on the planet."

Squirtle didn't know what it was, but the boy's words transcended truth. It was as if the boy was speaking divinity.

"So what will it be Squirtle…do you choose to obey?

The turtle-pokemon mulled it over one last time…before coming to a final decision. He'd give this Ash what he was looking for. He'd follow the person that this boy pledged to be. However, if the boy failed to live up to his own, self-proclaimed expectations, he wouldn't hesitate to revolt.

Squirtle nodded, pledging his fealty to Ash.

The dark-haired boy gave Squirtle a toothy grin, while patting his new friend on the head. "Fantastic! I promise that you've made the right decision!"

Squirtle responded blankly, not quite sure how to react to the abbreviate affection.

Ash stood up from his spot, before wiping the dirt from his pant legs. "Now that the hard parts over, I'd like to properly introduce you to part of the team."

Ash looked Squirtle in the eyes, before gesturing over to Clefairy. "This is Clefairy. She's the only female on the team. She's been with me for a while now…so if you have any questions she would be a good one to ask."

Clefairy waved her hand in the air, officially greeting the turtle-pokemon.

Squirtle simply nodded, acknowledging the esoteric creature's existence.

"This is Charmander," continued Ash, while pointing at the lizard pokemon. "He joined the team right before I caught you. You've already heard his story..."

Charmander responded by puffing up his chest and flexing his stubby biceps.

"He's also pretty funny," inserted Ash with an abbreviate chuckle.

Squirtle smiled with his eyes, amused by the lizard pokemon's antics.

Ash moved on, smirking as he introduced his giant avian. "And this is Pidgeotto…you two have met under some less than friendly circumstances."

Pidgeotto leaned over like a succubus, trying to get a rise out of Squirtle.

Squirtle shot Pidgeotto a glare of his own, not backing down a single inch.

"Pidgeotto knock it off!" howled Ash, as he instantaneously tried to diffuse the situation. The flying-type malignantly chortled, while diverting his gaze from the turtle-pokemon.

Ash walked Squirtle a few feet away from Pidgeotto, before glancing down at the most recent addition to his team. "There are also two others — Growlithe and Bulbasaur. They faced the Vermillion City gym leader yesterday, so they're still recovering."

…Squirtle's eyes lit up. Something about what Ash had just said piqued his interest.

"What is it?" asked Ash. "Is something wrong…?"

Squirtle shook his head, minimizing the significance of the ordeal. The truth is; he was thrilled by the prospect of challenging the Kanto gym circuit. Competing in a gym battle was a dream he'd thought he had given up a long time ago.

Ash ignored the obvious shift in countenance. If Squirtle found it necessary to conceal his heart on the occasion it wasn't a big deal. He was just happy that Squirtle had agreed to obey…

XXX

"Try and make them bigger!"

Pidgeotto quavered both wings, distributing another installment of draconic energy into his twin tempests. The increase in the draconic element drew upon an excess of wind, thus enhancing the binary-twister's overall scope.

"Now create the wall!" howled Ash. "Compartmentalize!"

The barbaric avian inhaled a big breath with his nostrils, before exhaling a steady stream of high velocity air. It flowed in between the tempests, disrupting the natural pull of the two matching powers.

"Good! Good! Good!" exclaimed Ash excitedly. "Now stabilize!"

Pidgeotto ceased the increase in draconic energy and allowed the duel-twisters to briefly settle. Once they were secure, he let down the wall. The two menacing cyclones grated against the atmosphere, creating a loud menacing hiss. The flying-type balanced them amidst his wings, while waiting for an order.

"Throw them!"

...Pidgeotto violently propelled the large geminate tornados

They moved across the ground like a couple of wild tauros, vacuuming numerous stray objects in the process. The surrounding trees rustled and pulled, being stretched by the attacks overwhelming suction. The clearing's dirt was sporadically assimilated, changing the techniques tint from vibrant lavender, to a more ominous dark-purple.

Pidgeotto's custom technique smashed into the targeted boulder, triggering a massive explosion. As the twisters dissipated, the debris was impelled in every which direction. Ash covered his eyes in response to the dwindling fog of dirt caused by the detonation.

After noticing his trainers' uncomfortable expression, the flying-type used a quick gust in order to clear the filthy air. When the dust settled, Pidgeotto squawked in satisfaction. Twin tempest had been tamed.

"That was awesome!" roared Ash, while jumping up and down gleefully. "Great job, Pidgeotto!"

The barbarous bird chortled sadistically, truly excited for the amount of destruction he would be able to cause with his new attack.

"We're definitely using that in the S.S. Anne tournament," said Ash. "What do you say?"

Pidgeotto crooned, delighted by the idea.

"Great," said Ash. "Now take a rest…were done for the day."

XXX

Clefairy darted dauntlessly across the clearing, as Charmander fired a barrage of ember. She effortlessly minimized, dodging the fire-balls in quick succession. The fairy-type used traditional means when necessary. But the majority of her evasions consisted of manipulating herself into a minuscule target.

Ash grinned, extremely pleased by the outcome of the past couple weeks of training. "Charmander, turn it up! More fire!"

His fire-type expedited more of his inner-flame, doubling the velocity and expansiveness of his attack.

Clefairy continued to skillfully dodge, using the thaumaturgic energy in her body to shrink and expand. She bit by bit closed the proximity between Charmander and herself, preparing to position herself for a pound attack.

The lizard pokemon ceased the barrage, loading a quick-fire focus punch. Moments before Charmander was able to use the technique, Clefairy landed her hardened fist into his gut. The fairy-type's pound caused a significant amount of pain. Ash watched at the moment of impact, while Charmander's eyes bulged and his expression contorted.

The fire-type was launched across the glade, rapidly rolling across the dirt like a tumbleweed. Once the fire-type had slowed down enough to conquer his momentum, he used his short arms to spring himself back to his feet. The lizard gathered himself, before sprinting towards Clefairy while loading another focus punch. He used a well-timed ember to keep Clefairy at bay, as he completed the charge.

Clefairy shrunk to about a fourth of her normal size, as a frustrated Charmander whiffed overhead. She then proceeded to quickly expand, flattening her palm for a vicious double-slap. The lizard pokemon responded quickly, using his non-dominant arm to block his teammates strike. He sequentially used his other claw to lash out with scratch, catching Clefairy across the chest.

The fairy-type quickly minimized, before breaking free of the close-combat exchange. She was just about to emit a disarming-voice when…

"That's enough!" bellowed Ash. "It's just a spar. I need you to stay healthy before the S.S. Anne."

Both pokemon dropped their stances disappointedly, before cantering over to their beckoning trainer.

"You guys did great," said Ash. "Clefairy, I think we can probably start learning a new technique. It looks to me like you've finally mastered minimize."

Clefairy nodded; she had to admit, the technique was becoming rather natural.

"I did some research on the pokedex," muttered Ash. "I think we'll learn stored power next."

Clefairy grunted in agreement. Stored power was a technique that she recognized. A lot of the clefairy and clefable back at Mt. Moon were masters of it. Essentially it was a great counter move against pokemon that liked to increase their power with status techniques. It essentially copied the opponent's enhancement, but focused the absorbed energy into a concentrated blast. It would be a worthwhile technique to conquer.

"Glad you approve," said Ash with a smile, before diverting his attention to a solemn Charmander. "You've lessened the charge time by a ton. Don't be so down on yourself."

Charmander lifted his head, as he listened to his trainer's encouraging words. "Focus punch isn't an easy technique. It's going to take a while to fully master. Just be patient...we'll get there."

Charmander squealed elatedly in response to Ash's kind words. He subsequently clutched the boy's leg affectionately, doing whatever he could to portray his admiration.

"Thanks buddy," said Ash, as he pat his fire-lizard on the top of the head. "But be careful of your tail-flame…it's awfully close to my pants."

Charmander frenziedly backed away, after realizing that his tail was a mere centimeter away from Ash's clothes. The fire-lizard sheepishly scratched the back of his head, while diffusing an awkward chuckle.

Ash burst into laughter. Life with his pokemon never ceased to be entertaining

XXX

After checking Squirtle's move-set with his pokedex and identifying his ability, Ash needed to do a detailed evaluation pertaining the turtle pokemon's current techniques. Even though he had acquired a decent feel for his water-type's long-range style of combat during their battle at the banquet, he wanted to witness Squirtle's techniques from a more personal perspective.

Squirtle also seemed to be in a fairly good mood. After explaining to the turtle-pokemon that they were going on a cruise around the region, he instantly perked up — which in Squirtle's case meant that he looked a tad less cold-blooded. Ash had a feeling Squirtle didn't quite understand the concept of a cruise ship. The turtle pokemon had heard the word ocean and that was all she wrote.

"Alright, so tackle and tail whip are pretty much inherent…so you don't have to show me those," said Ash. "But I'd like to see your water gun, withdraw, bubble, and bite."

Squirtle grunted affirmatively in his low, alto-toned voice, before stepping out in front of Ash.

"Water gun first," commanded Ash, while pointing at one of the many scattered trees in the distance. "First we'll check velocity…shoot as hard as you can at that oval tree."

With a blank face, Squirtle concocted a powerful water gun in his gullet. It sat idly for a split-second, before being fired at a frightening rate. It hit the tree's center at an incomprehensible speed, causing the thick trunk to tremor and the leaves to fall to the ground.

"Damn…" muttered Ash. "So your velocity is obviously just fine...next we'll check your accuracy."

Ash cantered ahead, gathering a few loose pine cones along the way. The dark haired-boy subsequently placed them on a wide, stout tree stump. The surface was uneven; whoever had chopped it down had done a shoddy job of staying straight.

The tree stump was situated about a hundred feet away from where Squirtle stood. Once Ash returned to the water-type's side, he explained the objective…

"I want you to shoot down those pine cones as fast as possible without missing," commanded Ash. "They're pretty far so—."

Ash was interrupted by Squirtle's rapid fire. The turtle pokemon stood emotionless, after shooting the three pine cones down expertly within a matter of seconds.

"Okay…" babbled Ash, slack-jawed. "So accuracy is through the roof—hold on, let me try something!"

The dark-haired boy ran out into the clearing, picking up as many pine cones as possible. "I'm going to throw these high and fast…shoot them all before they hit the ground."

Ash proceeded to throw them up into the air as fast as he could, trying to challenge Squirtle's long-range expertise. He had no such luck. Squirtle shot them all down with ease, proving to be as equally adroit with moving targets, as he was with stationary targets.

"Pretty damn impressive," retorted Ash. "Your water gun is impeccable."

Squirtle quietly nodded — he had spent countless hours honing the technique.

Water gun — check.

"Alright time to show me your' withdraw," said Ash. "This shouldn't take too long...just let me see how fast you can conceal and reveal. This technique is all about speed. A squirtle's shell is always durable, unless there is some kind of birth defect."

By the time Ash had finished his next blink, Squirtle had palpitated in and out of his shell. The turtle-pokemon revealed a feeble smirk, as he watched Ash's jaw drop for a second time.

Withdraw — check.

"Okay…how about bubble?" requested Ash. "You used it against Pidgeotto, but I'd like to see just how much range it actually has."

Squirtle responded quickly, sucking in a massive breath. His cheeks condensed, as he passed the air through his internal hose and into his everlasting container. He secreted his gastric acid consciously from his stomach into his container, temporarily carbonating a portion of his internal reservoir.

Ash watched, as Squirtle dispersed a voluminous array of chemically induced bubbles. They floated through the air at an impressive velocity, proving their wielder's competence. Not a single bubble popped incidentally. Every single one lasted until contact — which resulted in a discordant paroxysm.

"Well done," praised Ash. "Bubble is just as impressive as the others."

Squirtle gave Ash a curt nod, signifying that he was ready to move on.

Bubble — check.

"Gotcha," said Ash, as he wiped the sweat from his forehead, before leading Squirtle over to a thick, ring-cupped oak tree. "Last but not least...I want to check out your bite. Now this is a pretty sturdy tree, so feel it out before you commit."

Squirtle obediently set his jaw around a fragment of the tree. He did as the boy asked — feeling it out cautiously before entrusting the strength of his jaw. Once he calculated its density, the turtle pokemon came to a decision. He opened his mouth as wide as possible, before closing it with tremendous force. He bit straight through the tree's trunk, unintentionally smacking his teeth together jarringly, as a result of exceeding the required amount of effort.

Bite — check.

Ash chuckled aloud. "It seems you pass. All of your current techniques are perfect."

Squirtle stared ahead expressionlessly, not knowing how to react to Ash's praise.

Ash scratched the back of Squirtle's head affectionately, purposely ignoring his confused quaver. "Good job. Now that I know exactly where you are at, we can start learning a new technique."

Squirtle looked up at Ash; his countenance expressed nothing, however his eyes showed interest.

"Next we'll begin to learn rapid spin," explained Ash. "You could use another physical attack to compliment your long-range expertise."

Squirtle emitted a low grunt.

...So far so good — his new trainer had yet to disappoint.

XXX

"Ring…"

"Ring..."

"Ring..."

"Click."

"Hi honey!" exclaimed his mother, as she elatedly picked up the phone. "How are you doing? Have you reached Vermillion City yet?"

Ash smiled, as he soaked in the sound of his mother's voice. "I've been in Vermillion since Tuesday. I already got the Thunder Badge!"

"Well isn't that exciting," acknowledged his mother. "I hear Lt. Surge is quite the gym leader. It must have been a tough battle."

"It was," said Ash. "He even asked for a rematch…I'm gonna get to battle him at full-strength once I earn all of my badges."

"That's great," replied Delia. "I can't wait to hear all about it! Now tell me, how do you like Vermillion City? Gosh...I haven't been there in years."

Ash turned up the volume on his xtranceiver, as he answered. "I like it...It's a really busy city, so it's kind of been crazy. But I got to watch the S.S. Aqua depart the other day, so that was pretty cool."

"The S.S. Aqua's the one that goes to Olivine City, right?" asked his mother. "I always get it confused with the one that they're having that big event for."

"Yeah, the S.S. Aqua travels to and from Johto," replied Ash. "But the S.S. Anne is actually one of the reasons that I needed to call you."

"What about it?"

Ash continued. "Surge was giving out tickets to anyone that defeated him. So when I beat him, I won a ticket to board during the fiftieth anniversary event. I leave tomorrow morning."

"Well isn't that a treat!" exclaimed his mother. "How long is it?"

"A week," answered Ash. "All expenses are paid for; it's basically a free vacation."

"Oh honey I'm happy for you, it sounds like you'll have a blast!" elated Delia. "Just make sure you don't forget to change your underwear amidst all of the festivities."

Ash blushed, garnering the attention of Growlithe and Clefairy — Growlithe had finally fully-recovered, so Ash was happy to have him lounging about outside of his pokeball.

The ten-year old boy sat down on the edge of the lodges' bed, as he disconcertedly replied. "I won't mom…."

Ash could hear Clefairy snicker from behind him. Growlithe didn't make a peep. The puppy pokemon had already met Mrs. Ketchum…he didn't want to run the risk of her over hearing him.

Ash ignored his giggling fairy-type, as he prepared to wrap up the short conversation. "Well anyway…I should probably get going Mom. I leave first thing in the morning and need to get some good rest."

"Absolutely honey," said Delia. "Get a good night sleep. I love you."

"I love you too Mom," replied Ash. "I'll give you a call sometime soon."

"I look forward to it. Bye Ashy, have fun!"

"Bye Mom."

"Click."

Ash released a giant sigh, as he promptly fell backward on the comfortable bed. "I miss her…"

Feeling the need to provide comfort, Growlithe and Clefairy cuddled up next to him. The dark-haired boy smiled at his friend's thoughtfulness. He couldn't ask for better friends, he mused to himself…as he internally reflected.

Ash laid there for a while, simply meditating over his adventures. When he felt like he was close to nodding off, he returned Clefairy — who preferred to sleep in her pokeball. In subsequence he hit the light, causing the scope of the room to dwindle out of sight. He burrowed underneath the covers with Growlithe snuggled up right by his side. Tomorrow he would disembark on the S.S. Anne, until then…he was signing off.

XXX

After waiting through the obnoxiously long line and passing through the many security checkpoints, Ash found himself at the base of a long, slanted boarding ramp.

He spotted a decent enough gap in the large mass of people to get a visual of the ship's hull. It was colossal — probably close to a thousand feet in length and a hundred feet in breadth. Ash obviously wasn't able to see the base of the keel, but he would guess that the ship was probably close to a hundred-and-fifty feet tall. The S.S. Anne definitely lived up to its billing as one of the greatest man-made wonders of the world. Its size was almost as impressive as its elegance. The hull's pearl-white exterior glistened beautifully, as the light from the sun shined across its surface. Its two golden chimneys reached towards the sky with authority, complimenting the pearl-white exterior's exquisiteness.

Ash had to wait another half-hour to get through the line on the ramp, before he stood face to face with a muscular, well-groomed sailor. The sailor sat behind a temporary booth, barely inside the confines of the ship. Situated to the left of the booth was a tall wooden cubby, filled to the brim with room-keys.

"Ticket please," said the sailor, as he held out his hand expectantly.

The ten-year old boy handed over his crumpled ticket — which he had desperately tried to smooth out while he was waiting in line. The fresh faced man didn't have any kind of reaction. Ash assumed that the thousands of people passing through the embarkation process had the man operating on auto-pilot.

"Your room number is E37," informed the sailor, while handing over the rooms' corresponding key.

The sailor subsequently allowed Ash to walk through the entry passage, and into the luxury liner's expansive main lobby. Before observing his surroundings, he immediately released Growlithe. Because of security reasons, his starter had been forced to his pokeball throughout the entirety of the boarding process. Apparently, a lot of pokemon's unique physiologies messed with a lot of the security equipment. Ash figured that those issues primarily pertained to steel and electric types; however, he didn't find it worth it to complain.

Although the luxurious, multi-storied corridor was brimming with people, Growlithe seemed to be doing okay. Ever since his ample dose of exposure therapy back when they arrived in Vermillion City, the pup appeared to be responding better to large crowds.

While following the signs to the E-wing's lodging zone, the boy observed some of the different activities going on aboard the ship. There were: games, shows, restaurants, buffets, clubs, battles, raffles, etc. The ship hadn't even left port yet and the place was already booming.

The E-wing's lodging area consisted of several floors. The boy had to take the wing's smooth ascending elevator in order to reach the third floor — which was where his room resided.

After exiting the elevator and following a few more signs, Ash found his assigned room. The inside was small, yet extravagant. Despite his status as a gym leader, Surge must have been allotted some of the more affordable rooms. The League needed to make some money off of the event. They couldn't afford to give free admittance to the pricier deluxe rooms that the S.S. Anne was well known for.

The room was decorated with all kinds of fancy adornment. Its' walls were painted a classy beige. The bed appeared to be king-sized, and there was an expensive looking flat-screen TV stationed in an armoire across from it. The cabin had its own bathroom — which was expectant on a luxury cruise liner. Honestly, the only fallacy Ash could come up with was that his room didn't have a window. But then again he didn't pay for the tickets…so how upset could he really get.

"What do you think, Growlithe?" asked Ash. "This definitely isn't something that we're used to…but I still think it's a rather nice change of pace."

The puppy pokemon yipped, affably conveying his approval.

"My thoughts exactly," replied Ash, making up his own dialogue for Growlithe in his head.

After dropping off some of his more replaceable items, such as potions and empty pokeballs, Ash headed out to explore. He thought about leaving his backpack all together, but he was too paranoid about someone stealing his precious moonstone fragment.

Once he finally made his way back to the lobby, Ash asked around in search for some kind of registration booth. He wanted to register for the single-elimination tournament as soon as possible. The ten-year old boy had no idea if there was some kind of deadline, and he'd rather not have to worry about taking care of it later.

…Ash wasn't very good at procrastinating.

After finding his way to the registration booth — which was located in the B wing, alongside the entrance to the battle facility — Ash waited in the abbreviate line to register. Moments later, he was elated to find out that he had barely beaten the wave of restless competitors. It didn't take long for the line behind him to rapidly grow to about the length of a gyarados.

Once he reached the front of the line, the boy stood opposite of one of the S.S. Anne's staff members. He wore a crisp, navy-blue suit over a formal white dress-shirt. His red and blue diagonally striped tie was neatly fastened around his neck. The man's dainty smile was so obnoxious it almost seemed faked. His name badge read: Reid — Reid's eyes were in conflict with his countenance. Something was off about him...

"Hand me your pokedex' young man," said the creepy staff member, as he unnaturally held his smile throughout the duration of his request. "It's a necessity."

"Okay…" said Ash, while reaching into his back pocket. "What do you need it for?"

"Authenticity of course," replied Reid, as he reached out and snatched the red-device curtly from Ash's hand. "We must make sure you are who you say you are."

"I guess that makes sense…" said Ash, slightly suspicious.

"Ash Ketchum, eh?" questioned the man peculiarly, as he scrolled through Ash's pokedex'. "Ah…it says here you have a Bulbasaur — very nice...and a Clefairy, mhmm even better."

Ash tried to ignore the man's bizarre behavior. He watched, while Reid typed something short into the keyboard connected to his computer, before handing back Ash's pokedex.

"You're all set Mr. Ketchum," smiled Reid. "The tournaments in three days; report to the battle facility's main arena by 11 a.m. sharp on Tuesday. Enjoy your stay aboard the S.S. Anne."

"Thanks," said Ash, before putting as much distance between himself and the odd man as possible.

XXX

Ash grabbed hold of the steel railing that encompassed the deck, while he watched Vermillion City slowly taper out of sight.

"It's definitely better firsthand, eh?" thought Ash aloud, as Clefairy and Growlithe stood awe-inspired by his side.

Ash was surprised when he got a verbal response from an elegant, cultured human inflection — accompanied by Clefairy and Growlithe's grunts of avouchment.

"It sure is," drawled the elegant-toned man, as he approached Ash from behind. "It always saddens me to see that such a small minority of the ship's guests are willing to stop what they are doing...to watch something magnificent such as this."

"Everybody's different I guess," said Ash, as he turned around to face a tall extravagantly dressed man.

The wealthy-looking man had a benign smile on his finely-featured face, as he leant up against the railing next to Ash. His long, stylish, turquoise colored hair flowed gently with the wind, while he looked at Ash with his matching colored irises. "Very true, everybody certainly is different...I suppose I'm just disappointed because the ocean is my passion."

Ash nodded, before raising a question. "Do you wish people cherished it the same way you do?"

The man chuckled, as he adjusted his mallow-purple tie. "I'm a dreamer, not a fool. I know only a select few will see the ocean for what it truly is. I just wish more people could at least show a sliver of appreciation."

"I understand," said Ash. "I feel the same way about pokemon."

"It shows," crooned the well-dressed man. "Your pokemon seem happy. Besides, not many people are given the privilege of training a Clefairy."

Ash glanced down at both of his friends with knowing eyes. "Thank you, that's a high complement."

"It's just the truth," stated the comely man, as he straightened the coat of his white suit. "Well, I better get going. I have some matters to attend to."

"Nice to meet you," said Ash politely, while reaching out to shake the man's hand.

"I don't believe I caught your name," inserted the well-cultivated man, as he shook Ash's hand firmly.

"Ash Ketchum," answered Ash. "And you are?"

"Wallace."

"Wallace, eh?" Ash thought aloud, before properly responding. "Well I'm sure we'll run into each again at some point."

"I'm sure we will," replied Wallace with a smile. "See you later, Ash."

XXX

After three days of: comfortable sleep, fine dining, tough training, and winless raffle tickets; Ash waited with hundreds of other trainers in the bleachers of the S.S. Anne's main arena.

The state of the art battlefield was extremely impressive. If it weren't for the occasional tremor, caused by the unpredictable sea, there would be no way to tell that they were on a boat. The battlefield itself was built out of coarse stone — which was a rather neutral element. It was officially marked with a glossy white paint. Ash's estimation was that the encompassing bleachers could probably seat about a thousand people.

The surrounding chatter was abruptly interrupted by an amplified female voice. Her intonation was smooth and sultry, somewhat contradictory of a typical emcee. "Hello competitors. My name's Ariana and I'll be your emcee for the single-elimination tournament. The S.S. Anne is hosting this event in commemoration of the vessel's fifty straight years of active duty."

Ash examined the source behind the voice. She stood loosely in the center of the arena — her semblance was utterly beautiful. The emcee's body was shaped like an hourglass, and her perfect curves resembled those of a goddess. Ariana's facial features were fine and unlined; her makeup was done up flawlessly — not too little, not too much. It was like a work of art, painted by a master class artisan. The goddesses' hair was a burnished carmine-red —analogous to her voluptuous eyes. She wore a formal black blazer, accompanied by a pair of polyester dress-pants and dark-red, pointed high-heels.

"Due to the large number of entries, we shall hold five preliminary rounds located throughout the battle facility. If you manage to battle your way out of the preliminaries into our version of the top sixteen, you will earn the right to battle in our official arena…in front of an audience."

Ash nodded his head attentively, listening carefully to the enticing woman's words.

"Each preliminary battle is one-on-one and there is no rules pertained to the usage of pokemon. You may use five different pokemon for each battle, or a single pokemon for the entirety of the preliminaries. The choice is yours. There will be a nurse stationed outside of each arena with a restoration machine, and a surplus of League mandated full-restores. Feel free to use both if necessary, they are completely complimentary!"

After the news concerning the full-restores had been revealed, Ash glanced around to observe the museum of astonished faces. Full-restores were a highly concentrated potion that had the ability to heal nearly any physical injury — including impairments of the bone. The dark-haired boy wasn't quite sure about its contents, but he was aware of its excessively steep cost. The League typically only issued a limited supply of the miracle concoction to its Pokemon Centers, because of its uneconomic developmental cost.

"Those of you who manage to make it out of the preliminaries, will be required to report back to the main stadium at 5 o'clock tonight," informed Ariana. "The top sixteen will then battle for a chance to be crowned the tournament's champion. There will be a prize for all of you that make it to the top sixteen — each prize varies in value. The better you place, the better the prize."

Ash smirked; this tournament was starting to sound even better than he'd anticipated.

"The battle times and match-ups have been posted in the B Wing's lobby," orated Ariana, as she nonchalantly checked the expensive looking watch fastened around her delicate wrist. "You better get moving…the first wave of battles begins in fifteen minutes."

The crowd erupted out of their seats, flooding out of the stadium in a boisterous frenzy. Amidst the ruckus was Ash, who rudely pushed his way through the conflux of trainers like a hungry houndour.

In the background, Ash could hear the echoing voice belonging to Ariana, as she graced the crowd with one last assemblage of words. "Good luck..."

XXX

Fifteen minutes later; Ash stood opposite of a short, snub-nosed, tubby kid with an anxious disposition. He looked about the same age as Ash, and wore an arrangement of fine linens. He handled his pokeball nervously...Ash assumed he didn't have much battle experience.

The mock arena they occupied was official size, but enclosed. The only person that accompanied them was a tall, dark-skinned man that served as the referee for the match. He raised his hand in the air, before harnessing the power of his booming voice.

"This is a one-on-one battle between Ash Ketchum of pallet town, and Duke Martin of Celadon City! The battle will be decided once a pokemon has been rendered unconscious! Trainers prepare for battle!"

Ash unclipped one of the pokeballs suspended from his belt, as he zeroed in on his opponent. He watched Duke Martin fumble his pokeball with his pudgy hands, before finally gaining decent control over his body.

"Begin!"

The opposing pokeballs wafted through the air, before snapping open to emit a flurry of bright light. Once the display of radiance dissipated , Charmander and a dinky paras were unveiled.

Charmander disembogued an abbreviate burst of fire from his nostrils, before raising his claws for battle.

Paras chattered its six sharp teeth, and examined Charmander with its two large pupils, while its frail extremities nervously quavered. Its' foremost pair of legs — which were larger, and served as its frontal claws — were anchored heavily on the ground. They worked to maintain balance, while Paras' posterior legs continued to tremble.

Ash felt slightly sorry for the nervous duo. It didn't take an expert to make a prediction on how this battle would go.

"Make quick work of it, Charmander."

Charmander instantaneously unhinged his jaw, before belching out a thick curtain of smoke. It spread throughout the arena, making it nearly impossible to see what was taking place. All of a sudden, Ash could abruptly make out a quick outbreak of light within the smoke-screen. It punctured the darkness for a split-second, while concurrently triggering a high-pitched shrill.

Ash winced, as he registered the ear-shattering shriek. He felt a slight twinge of guilt, knowing that the battle had ended as quickly as it had begun. The dark-haired boy disliked blowouts, almost as much as he hated losing. However, it was part of the enterprise — and he'd rather win handily, than risk an upset.

Minutes later, when the smoke finally cleared, Charmander stood unscratched by Ash's side. Lying scorched and unconscious in the center of the arena was Paras, whose tochukaso mushrooms had been burned off of its back. Ash squinched his face — it was a tough sight to look at. Regardless, they would grow back quickly. Paras were well known for the brisk reproduction of their potent medicinal mushrooms.

"Paras is unable to battle, Charmander is the winner! Victory goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!" exclaimed the official.

As Ash examined Paras' charred body, he watched as the insectoid pokemon was suddenly enshrouded by a coverlet of scarlet-red light. The pudgy boy returned his bug-type with a disappointed hunch, before hastily plodding his way out of the mock arena. Ash tried to catch his attention in order to thank him for a good match, but the boy was too preoccupied by his Paras' pokeball to notice. Ash expressed a faint smile — the beginner trainer definitely cared for his young Paras…

Ash gratefully thanked Charmander, before returning the dissatisfied lizard-pokemon to his pokeball. It was obvious that the fire-type was expecting a better battle…

The ten-year old boy subsequently headed back to the B Wing's busy lobby. He spent nearly a half an hour scrolling through his pokedex' in attempt to kill the tedious time in between matches...

...His next couple of battles unfolded similarly to the first.

In his second preliminary match, he went up against a girl named Sydney from Fuchsia City. She summoned an average-sized oddish with an immature shrub atop its head. Clefairy easily knocked the grass-type out with a single combination of sing and wake-up slap. Just like Charmander, Clefairy was rather disappointed by her opponent's skill level.

The third opponent Ash faced off against was a curly haired man named Jake. Ash was expecting a better match on account of the severe age gap between himself, and the middle-aged gentlemen. However, the battle was once again a breeze. Bulbasaur pulverized Jake's average raticate with an onslaught of vine-whips, followed by a vicious takedown.

Bulbasaur's power had nearly doubled since his battle against Surge. Judging by the darkening of Bulbasaur's pigmentation, and the growth of his bulb; it was obvious that the saurian was nearing evolution…

In succession to his initial three effortless wins, Ash stood opposite of his next opponent. His adversary was a teenager with a nasty temperament. He was tall and angular — his long, greasy, black hair covered a portion of his furrowed face.

The referee assigned to oversee their battle was a stout, muscular, middle aged man. He followed typical protocol, raising his hand in preparation to initiate the battle. "This is a one-on-one battle between John Thompson of Viridian City, and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town! Last trainer with a pokemon standing is the winner! Trainers prepare for battle!"

Both trainers handled their pokeballs indelicately — in anticipation for the battle. The greasy haired teen menacingly glared at Ash, as the referee signaled the beginning of the match. "Begin!"

...Both trainers unleashed their pokemon.

The teenager released a brawny machop. It pounded on its chest with pride, signifying its eagerness to compete. The short, gray-skinned, humanoid pokemon flexed its vascular muscles arrogantly, while it stared down its adversary.

Squirtle stared straight ahead with an icy countenance, as he calculated his opponent's existence. Machop were well known for their overwhelming strength. Even though they weren't nearly as formidable as their evolved forms, they still possessed an ample amount of power. If Squirtle wanted to win this battle he would have to keep Machop at an arms-length.

…Good thing long-distance battle was his strong suit.

"Focus energy!" bellowed the furrowed faced teen, as he dramatically pointed forward. "Then go get it with a karate chop!"

The machop's red eyes intensified, while it clenched both of its fists in a crouch. Its muscles pulsated and its body perspired, as it prepared its mind for battle.

"Shatter its concentration!" howled Ash. "Quick-fire water gun!"

Squirtle loaded a water gun into his gullet, as he analyzed machop's options for escape. He prepared his internal water supply to be drawn upon, readying himself to reload.

Chaos unfolded concurrently, as Squirtle unleashed a barrage of highly concentrated water guns. They sprayed throughout the air like a pivoting turret, whistling throughout the process. Machop darted back and forth throughout the arena, closing the proximity between himself and the turtle pokemon. It grunted painfully, as a couple of water guns connected with its shoulder and oblique. Unfortunately for Ash, the impacts weren't powerful enough to stop machop in its' tracks.

Machop impressively maneuvered around one more round of water guns, before it was close enough to strike. It flattened its hand like a brick, before slicing through the air towards Squirtle's head. The turtle Pokemon brusquely withdrew itself, narrowly avoiding the machop's powerful attempt.

"Reveal and bite!" yelled Ash passionately.

While Machop was extended and off-balance; Squirtle reemerged. He exploded out of concealment with his jaw gaped open, ready to sink his teeth into the fighting-type.

Machop painfully grimaced, as Squirtle vigorously clamped his teeth into its side. The fighting-type responded with a hammering karate chop, thrusting it down atop Squirtle's head. The turtle pokemon's eyes bulged as he endured the blow. But he quickly shook it off, before firing a water gun into Machop's chiseled chest. The close-ranged water gun struck with an immense amount of pressure. It lifted Machop off of the ground, launching him towards the arena wall. The collision was cogent — the fighting types eyes billowed and his chest heaved at the moment of impact.

"Don't let it get in close again!" commanded Ash. "Finish it at a distance!"

Squirtle had to admit, his new trainer thought similarly to himself. The turtle Pokemon emitted another series of water guns, trying to hit the machop while it was embedded into the wall.

The superpower pokemon registered the attack, before hastily using its strength to free itself from the arena's entrapment.

Ash watched, as Machop heedlessly barreled out of the way of the enfilade. The boy quickly changed his plan of action, understanding the need for a wider scope. "Shift to bubble!"

Squirtle had already initiated the transition, as he seeped his gastric acid into his water supply. The water-type proceeded to impel a bombardment of chemically induced bubbles. They propelled through the air at a dangerous rate, spreading out with malignant intent.

Squirtle examined the cannonade of bubbles, searching attentively for any breaches in the barrage. He quickly located three options for avoidance, before loading another round of water gun. He would eliminate the gaps caused by bubble's random accuracy — that is…if it was necessary.

...it wasn't.

The wall of chemically infused bubbles crashed into a helpless Machop, who was unable to locate a breach in the attack. He was hit hard by the fusillade, causing him to scream in agony while the chemicals seeped into his skin.

Squirtle was pretty sure that the battle had been won. However, he coldly fired a quick battery of high-velocity water guns for good measure. It made coercive contact in numerous places, overpowering Machop's will to stay conscious. The superpower pokemon slid across the ground aimlessly, eventually coming to a limp stop in front of its flabbergasted trainer.

"Machop is unable to battle, Squirtle is the winner!" announced the referee. "The victory goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

"Dammit…" sighed the greasy haired trainer, as he returned Machop. "Good battle my friend, but we've still got some work to do."

The angular teenager acknowledged Ash's victory with curt nod, before hastily shuffling out of the arena. Ash cursed under his breath — sportsmanship didn't appear to be a high-priority aboard the famous S.S. Anne.

Ash proceeded to divert his attention towards his water-type. The turtle pokemon had proved himself to be trustworthy in their first official battle together. Ash wanted to make it clear to Squirtle just how much he appreciated his support. The dark-haired boy gave Squirtle a warm smile, as he leaned over and affectionately scratched the top of his head.

"Great battle Squirtle," crooned Ash. "You were exceptional."

Squirtle backed away from Ash — unsure of how to handle the sudden affection. He subsequently nodded his head up and down with a blank expression, attempting to respond to Ash's gratitude in a more comfortable way.

Ash smiled; he would always remain available if Squirtle ever chose to open up. Until then, he wouldn't pressure his water-type to change. The ten-year old boy was just happy that Squirtle was listening to him. He would accept Squirtle's personality no matter how distant it was…

"Be prepared for another battle," warned Ash. "I might need to use you if I keep winning."

Void of emotion, Squirtle grunted affirmatively, before waiting expectantly for suspended animation. Ash gave Squirtle what he wanted, smiling tranquilly as he returned the water-type to his pokeball…

After healing Squirtle in the mock arena's corresponding restoration machine, Ash once again headed back to the B Wing's lobby. It was much less chaotic, primarily because the majority of the competition had already been eliminated. He walked over to the front desk in order to check his next matchup. His final opponent of the preliminaries was some kid named Chance Chapman. The receptionist informed him what mock arena his battle would take place in, before shoeing him along in order to take care of the next inquisitive trainer.

Ash had exactly thirty minutes until he battled his next opponent. If he won, he would have a little more than an hour to prepare for the S.S. Anne's top sixteen. Ash spent the duration of the wait doing research on his pokedex' and internally debating which pokemon he was going to use next. Once the drag of a wait had finally come to an end, he headed towards the site of his final preliminary battle.

His final preliminary match was on the same battlefield as his first. The dark-haired boy could still see the black scorch marks that were an evident aftermath of Charmander's ember. Ash kindly waved to the same dark-skinned referee that had overseen his first round battle, before strolling over to the furthest of the two trainer's boxes. He waited patiently for a couple of minutes in advance to his opponent's tardy arrival.

The ordinary looking kid suddenly dashed into the arena exhausted, before scuttling his way over to the trainer box opposite of Ash.

"I'm sorry for being late!" confessed the blonde-haired boy apologetically, as he wiped the sweat from his thin face. "I lost track of time!"

"No worries," replied Ash. "You're only a few minutes late."

"If your opponent doesn't have a problem with the delay, than neither do I," said the referee. "A couple of minutes aren't a big deal. Just don't make a habit of it."

"Yes sir," retorted the blue-eyed boy, as he shifted his gaze towards Ash. "Thanks for being cool about this…"

"Honestly, it's really not that big of a deal," answered Ash, while unclipping a pokeball from his belt. "Now let's get on with this."

"Absolutely," replied Chance, mirroring Ash by detaching his own pokeball from his waist. "I'm ready to go."

The tall referee raised his hand, as he prepared to start the match with his thundering voice. "This is a one-on-one battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Chance Chapman of Vermillion City! The battle will be decided once a pokemon has been rendered unconscious! Trainers prepare for battle!"

Both trainers focused on the battlefield in anticipation for the competition.

"Begin!"

Ash was the first to send out his pokemon. Appearing in a flash of vibrant light was Growlithe. He instantly crouched, ready for battle. The dark-haired boy could feel the intense heat being accumulated by his puppy pokemon, as he displayed his inner-flame through his open maw.

The boy named Chance sequentially released a valiant looking pidgeotto. It proudly squawked, as it raised its body into the air with its glossy wingspan. Ash found it interesting to see an average-sized pidgeotto. He had gotten so used to his giant Pidgeotto that seeing one that lacked the king's nature was sort of diacritic.

Regardless, the ten-year old boy wasn't foolish enough to disregard this pidgeotto as a lesser challenge. Just because it lacked his specimen's unique physical blessings, didn't mean it was less powerful. The blonde-haired boy's pidgeotto very well could have a distinct advantage in experience. Growlithe had attained a surplus of knowledge battling the species — however Ash was unsure whether the difference in size would make for a different type of battle.

...A smaller Pidgeotto, meant a smaller target.

Ash immediately noticed that Growlithe's ability had taken affect. Chance's pidgeotto appeared to be slightly flustered, causing its flight pattern to look somewhat less natural. Intimidate typically only activated against lesser opponents, but Ash tried not to jump to conclusions. He was one battle away from the top sixteen — competition was bound to strengthen at some point.

Growlithe initiated the fight with a salvo of ember. The fire-balls rocketed through the air at an expeditious rate, bearing the violent intent of their user.

"Pidgeotto dodge!" commanded Chance. "Retaliate with quick attack!"

The flying-type skillfully maneuvered around the barrage, before harnessing the breakneck speed that corresponded with quick-attack. It descended through the air like a torpedo, after stiffening its neck muscles.

Growlithe instinctually barricaded himself within a cloak of fire, using his flame wheel as an elemental shield.

Speed collided with fire…and both parties were violently forced back.

Pidgeotto appeared to have taken the brunt of the damage, as it wildly skidded across the arena floor. Growlithe momentarily barrel rolled, while his flaming cloak dissipated in the process. Although there were blatant expressions of pain depicted across Growlithe's face, the puppy pokemon was able to quickly recover his balance. His paws slid across the floor, as his momentum finally came to a stop.

Pidgeotto simultaneously used its wings like a parachute in order to stop its momentum. Once the flying-type slowed down enough to gather itself, it used its talons to push itself off of the ground. The bird pokemon thrust its wings, catapulting itself into the enclosed air. Its recovery time was tremendous; as it instantaneously used its wings to throw a flurry of gusts, catching Growlithe off-guard.

Despite his surprise, Growlithe dodged, using his well-conditioned fast-twitch muscles to frenziedly bolt out of the way. After clearing the battery of wind, he catapulted a second array of ember. The fire-type instantaneously dashed towards Pidgeotto, who was preoccupied by the incoming flames. The puppy pokemon masked himself behind his own attack, causing Chance's pidgeotto to jolt when the fire-type unveiled itself behind a ball of scorching fire.

"Bite/ember combo!"

The canine sunk his teeth into Pidgeotto's side, while using the force behind his leap to rip the bird down to the ground. Upon collision, Growlithe unleashed an outburst of fire, causing an abrupt detonation. Pidgeotto shrieked like a misdreavus, as its body was harshly impacted on both sides by the hard surface and Growlithe's bite/ember combo.

Ash winced in response to the brutal attack. Bite/ember combo was typically an endurable technique, but when amplified by the massive amount of force Growlithe was just able to create, it became unbearable.

"Pidgeotto is unable to battle! Growlithe is the winner!" boomed the referee. "Victory goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

Growlithe proudly exhaled a curtain of fire, as he walked back to Ash's side with a bit of a sore limp. The unconscious pidgeotto was quickly wrapped up in a quilt of red-light, before being returned to its pokeball.

Ash bent over and congratulated Growlithe with a brief stroke to his tuft, before being interrupted by Chance's orotund voice.

"Good match, Ash," said Chance. "That Growlithe's got quite the bite."

"Thanks," replied Ash, as he held his hand out to the friendly thin faced boy. "Growlithe's been working hard on it. That Pidgeotto of yours has strong wings — Keep training it hard."

"Of course," answered the blue eyed boy, while he shook Ash's hand. "Well anyway, I better get going. I don't want to miss out on getting a seat for the top sixteen."

"I won't hold you up then," said Ash. "Nice meeting you Chance... I'll see you later."

"Yup, see you around Ash," inserted Chance. "Good luck with the rest of the tournament."

In order to avoid an awkward second goodbye, Ash let Chance get a head start out of the arena. After thanking the referee, the fresh-faced boy proceeded to return Growlithe so that the pup could get healed by one of the S.S. Anne's restoration machines. The ten-year old boy didn't know how long he would be able to last in the top sixteen of this tournament. Nevertheless, it comforted him to know that he'd have a healthy Growlithe as an option.

In subsequence to getting Growlithe's pokeball back from the S.S. Anne staff member, Ash once again headed back to the B Wing's lobby. Before he would head over to the main arena, Ash wanted to sit down in the lounge and strategize. Coming up with a plan of action would be rather difficult. He had no way to know what pokemon his opponents would choose, or how strong they would be. The dark-haired boy simply wanted to figure out which of his pokemon he would choose to give the valuable experience to.

…The preliminaries for the most part were a breeze. Ash had a feeling that the top sixteen of the S.S. Anne tournament wouldn't be nearly as facile.

XXX

Ash, together with the rest of the remaining competitors, sat in the first row of the risen bleachers. He watched entrancingly, as a gaggle of kadabra raised a psychic barrier over the conflux of spectators.

It was the first time Ash had laid eyes on the psi-pokemon. Their yellow humanoid forms were eerie, yet sublime. The species deep-set eyes slanted narrowly, while glowing with an auroral pink. The red star on their foreheads oscillated and their conduit spoons quavered, while they dutifully doused the bleachers with protective enchantments.

Ash gulped — he would have to battle one of these creatures when he faced Sabrina.

…How on earth was he going to approach his battle with the psychic virtuoso? His pokemon had no experience battling a pokemon of the psychic typing. Furthermore, none of his friends currently possessed a way to protect their minds from even the weakest psychic incursion.

Right now, there wasn't a single pokemon on his team that he could confidently challenge Sabrina with. Even though defeating a psychic pokemon was a skill that he'd like to eventually teach all of his pokemon — that kind of training would take months. Clefairy could probably learn in a lot faster, due to the unique thaumaturgic energy coursing through her veins. However, it would be foolish of him to think that his fairy-type could take down both of Sabrina's registered pokemon.

Sabrina's famous Kadabra would be a long shot in and of itself. Any other psychic pokemon she had under her revered tutelage would be overkill. The dark-haired boy had yet to research what Sabrina's other league registered pokemon was — which was pivotal information if he wanted to stand a chance. Nevertheless, now wasn't the appropriate time to worry about this.

…He needed to focus his attention back on his current surroundings.

The vast psychic barrier was successfully suspended above and around the crowd. It could be descried with a heavy squint, but for the most part it was completely transparent. Anytime the league hosted a battle that was accompanied by an audience, some kind of protection had to be established.

All registered trainers, were required to sign a waiver after the qualification exam that exempted the League of responsibility for any injuries attained from a stray attack. However, this didn't apply to spectators. As long as you had tickets, anyone could watch a match taking place at a League accredited battle site. Therefore, if the League had provided your means for attendance, they were responsible for your safety.

After the squad of kadabra had plodded their way through the barrier, they effortlessly maintained their focus on the other side. The dark-haired boy painstakingly watched in awe, desiring a kadabra of his own.

Ash's attention was suddenly diverted, when he heard the distinct sound of Ariana's disembodied voice.

"Welcome everybody to the top sixteen of the S.S. Anne's single-eliminationtournament," crooned Ariana. "Give a round of applause for all of the trainers that have fought their way through the preliminaries, for a chance to battle in this arena."

Ash tracked down her voice amidst the ruckus of the crowd. The ten-year old boy lusted, as she swaggered her way down the bleacher stairs from the direction of the mounted broadcast booth.

She continued to speak smoothly, like a siren, as she strutted her way over to the center of the arena. "We will commence the competition in a few short moments. But before we start, I would like to introduce a special guest."

Ash looked around at the intrigued crowd, as Ariana patiently waited on the appearance of the specified spectator. Suddenly…standing up and out of the first row of the bleachers, opposite of Ash, was a familiar elegantly dressed man. Ash recognized him as the man he had met on his first day aboard the ship; the one who yearned for the respect of the sea — Wallace.

Ariana beckoned him over to the center of the battlefield, before proceeding to present the comely man to the audience. Right before Ariana spoke; Ash noticed the assortment of slack-jawed onlookers trickled amongst the sea of people.

…They alluringly gazed at the extravagant man as if he was an exalted king.

"I welcome to the arena the newly crowned Champion of the Hoenn region, Wallace Mikari of Sootopolis City!"

Ash joined the rest of the masses — acquiring a dropped jaw and a pair of awe-inspired eyes.

…He had engaged in small talk, with a Champion.

Wallace carried the same title as the Kanto regions, Lance Wataru, of the dragon clan. Ash didn't know too much about the other regions leagues; mostly because a Champion's jurisdiction didn't extend outside of their own region. For this reason, unless you were an international traveler, seeking out more than just the essence of the pokemon in your home region, information on the other champions wasn't a necessity.

The only other Champion Ash knew of prior to this moment, was the Johto region's master dark-type trainer — Karen Karin. Because of Johto's close proximity to Kanto, Lance and Karen made a lot of appearances in each other's regions. Also, on account of Kanto and Johto's great relations; there were a lot of co-events shared between both regions requiring each champion's presences — such as the Kanto/Johto grand festival. Therefore, Karen Karin's fame was precedent in Kanto, just as Lance's was in Johto.

Ash's thoughts were smoothly interrupted by Wallace's silvery voice.

"Congratulations trainers for making it this far, like Ms. Ariana just said, I come from the far away land of Hoenn. It has been a pleasure to get the chance to remove myself from the familiar, and enjoy another region's people and pokemon. I've only been a champion since the end of last season. Nevertheless, it's been nice to be able to relax a bit. The work of a champion can be arduous. Therefore, a cruise aboard the famous S.S Anne has been exemplary."

The audience applauded and whistled in response to Wallace's humble words.

"On my first day aboard this ship, I met a boy that reminded me that all people are different," said Wallace, as he intentionally diverted his gaze directly towards Ash. "I look forward to seeing those differences surface in today's battles."

In that moment, Ash felt like he was the only person being talked to, as Wallace spoke of their previous encounter. It appeared that he had somehow piqued the interest of one of the world's most acclaimed masters. The dark-haired boy continued to look ahead, while the well-dressed Champion shifted his gaze directly above him.

"For those of you that are just spectating, please enjoy the show," advised Wallace. "I have a feeling it's going to be a good one."

Wallace subsequently handed the mic back to Ariana, before returning to his spot in the bleachers. Ariana lifted the mic back up to her luscious lips, while she spoke in a fluid exclamation. "Let me hear it for the Champion of Hoenn, Wallace Mikari!"

The arena erupted, cheering madly for the foreign master. Wallace simply crossed his arms with a smirk, as he listened to the blustering noise of the adoring crowd. Ash observed, as Wallace handled the obnoxiousness of the conflux serenely, closing his eyes while he eventually gestured for them to get quiet.

Once the crowd had calmed down, Ariana spoke out once again, while running her fingers through her silky red hair. "I'm sure Mr. Mikari appreciates your cheerfulness. However, now that our guest has been introduced, it's time to get this party started!"

The large assembly of people enlivened the voluminous chamber once again, roaring in response to Ariana's exclamation.

"Now let's not waste any more time!" echoed the gorgeous emcee. "Quiet down so I can announce the first matchup!"

The collection of voices gradually fizzled out, as they listened carefully to Ariana's words. Ash listened attentively, anxious for his chance to battle in the state of the art arena…

XXX

The first wave of matches was rather entertaining. Ash had watched nearly all of his unknown adversaries in action, and his verdict was that most of the trainers seemed to be on a relatively equal playing field. There were a few lopsided battles, but the ten-year old boy had honestly only witnessed two trainers that outclassed him. Most of the competitors were relatively young, just like him.

The S.S. Anne wasn't necessarily brimming with talent, like Lt. Surge had suggested. But there were still a handful of good beginners and a few seasoned veterans. Ash assumed that the slim collection of trainers that were able to get a ticket by beating Surge, were mostly rookies with less than three badges. Not too many people in the region could defeat Surge's real team — the lieutenant was just too damn powerful.

The rest of the passengers aboard the S.S. Anne were mainly rich businesspeople, who barely qualified as trainers. A lot of Kanto's upper class citizens got their trainer's license just so they could own a pet, or two. Rich people didn't usually adapt well to the affliction of travel — which was where the majority of good trainers found their team and honed their skills.

...The truth is, in the field of battle, there's only so much that money can achieve on its own.

Skill is learnt…not bought.

Ash's first match in the acutely built arena was the final battle of the round. He stood patiently in his designated trainer box, mirroring his serious looking opponent.

The dark-haired boy embraced the atmosphere, as the skinny referee began to commence the battle.

"This is a one-on-one battle between David Ensign of Vermillion City, and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town! The battle will be called once a pokemon has been knocked unconscious! Trainer's prepare for battle!"

Ash reached for Bulbasaur's pokeball, as he briefly examined his opponent. The boy was about his age, with short red hair and a thin face clustered with freckles. The boy's dark-brown eyes glared menacingly at Ash in attempt to intimidate him.

...It didn't work.

"Begin!"

Without a word, Ash hastily released Bulbasaur. The saurian zoned out the crowd, as he zeroed in on his opponent. The grass-type protruded his vines, letting his adversary know that he was ready for battle.

The freckled boy simultaneously released a foolhardy beedrill. It rapidly flapped its rounded, veined wings, as it hissed out of its pointed mouth. The bipedal poison-bee leered at Bulbasaur using its large red eyes. It grated its massive, poison coated stingers together, creating a despicable chirr.

"Beedrill use poison sting!" commanded the red-haired trainer, while he folded his arms arrogantly.

The action began as the bug-type secreted a poisonous substance from its abdominal stinger, before ruthlessly attempting to stab Bulbasaur. The grass-type tactfully dodged, careful not to get struck by the fully-evolved insect. Even though Bulbasaur's secondary typing was poison, he frantically avoided Beedrill's flurry. Regardless of the toxins, poison sting was bound to inflict damage. The sheer size of Beedrill's stinger was indubitably impressive, and it would without a doubt create some type of painful wound if it landed.

In attempt to disrupt Beedrill's assailment, Bulbasaur retaliated with a lone lashing of one of his whip-like appendages. The saurian barely connected, just making enough contact to throw Beedrill off. The seed pokemon proceeded to expel a quick burst of blue powder — it whisked through the air expeditiously, shimmering throughout the process.

Ash crossed his fingers, as he watched the newly mastered sleep powder briskly travel through the air like a cloud of smoke. Beedrill reacted hastily, using his fast flapping wings to avoid the enfilade of powder.

Ash cursed under his breath — the bug-type's speed posed a serious problem. The grass-type was unable to activate chlorophyll, on account of the enclosed setting — which put him in an adverse circumstance in terms of speed. Not to mention the fact that Beedrill had a significant type advantage over Bulbasaur. Beedrill technically had a double advantage, due to the fact that Bulbasaur was both a grass and poison type. Hitting Beedrill with sleep powder was one of Bulbasaur's only logical options. Unfortunately, landing it wouldn't be easy.

Beedrill suddenly used the joust-like stingers connected to his forelegs to try and pierce Bulbasaur. Ash gritted his teeth nervously, as Bulbasaur dodged jab after jab. His stingers glowed with a slight greenish-tint. Ash recognized the ferocious technique as twineedle — a bug-type technique infused with poisonous properties.

"Hurry up and hit it, Beedrill!" shouted the arrogant boy with a scowl. "You've got it on its heels!"

Bulbasaur took a marginally painful graze to his side, as he reloaded his sleep-powder's secretion sac. In order to slow it down, the saurian fired a quick array of leech seeds at Beedrill's striped abdomen. The bug-type effortlessly avoided the barrage, using his wings to jet out of the way.

Ash could hear the crowd howl in the background, while the battle continued to unfold at a tremendous speed. Every once in a while, he would notice the sound of Ariana's amplified voice, as she attempted to announce every bit of action that took place. He tried not to get too distracted though, Bulbasaur needed his full attention against a speedy foe such as Beedrill.

"Try and catch it with vine whip!" commanded Ash, as Bulbasaur dodged another surge of twineedles. "Be careful of its stinger!"

In attempt to grab hold of one of Beedrill's legs, the grass-type swiftly reached out with one of his vines. His first attempt was to no avail, barely missing the bug-types segmented extremity. Beedrill remained in close enough proximity for a second attempt though, so Bulbasaur subsequently stretched out with his other vine.

Ash internally celebrated, as Bulbasaur barely latched on. The poison-bee pokemon frantically tried to shake the saurian off, but had no such luck.

"Sleep powder now!" howled Ash, while Bulbasaur finally created an opening.

"Shake it off!" yelled the freckled boy in an edgy-tone.

Beedrill tried to break free, but Bulbasaur's grasp was too strong. The saurian impelled another bluish powder. It enveloped the bug-type; concurrently penetrating its lungs and bloodstream. Bulbasaur's vines no longer felt a resistance, as Beedrill went limp under anesthesia.

"Slam it to the ground!" yelled Ash. "And finish it with takedown!"

Bulbasaur swung his vines powerfully — he could hear the crowd roar as beedrill painfully collided with the ground. Bulbasaur didn't give the bug-type an opportunity to wake-up, barreling across the arena with violent intent.

"Beedrill, wake up!" screamed its trainer, before Bulbasaur closed the distance in a flash.

The outcry was useless, as Bulbasaur recklessly pulverized Beedrill with his body. The bug-type momentarily jolted out of its slumber, before subsequently folding under the pressure of unconsciousness. Beedrill were known for their speed and attack power, their feeble bodies didn't provide good endurance against physical attacks. The battle was over as soon as Beedrill had been caught.

"Beedrill is unable to battle!" announced the referee. "Bulbasaur is the winner! The battle goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

"And that's it folks!" announced Ariana, as Ash gestured Bulbasaur back over to his side. "Our last match of the round has been decided! Ketchum wins with a decisive vine whip/take-down combination!"

As Bulbasaur approached Ash, the ten-year old boy could see the scarlet red-light of Beedrill being returned in the background. He serenely smiled at his grass-type, crouching down once Bulbasaur was within arms-reach. The dark-haired boy leaned over, getting close enough that the saurian could hear him over the sound of the cacophonous audience.

"Good job buddy," praised Ash. "Sleep powder was just as potent as we'd hoped."

Bulbasaur's smile happily stretched from cheek to cheek, as he soaked in his trainer's kind words. The saurian's expression only became more vibrant, as he felt a warm energy seep out of his core.

Ash brightened up, while he watched Bulbasaur's body expel an incandescent white light. His memory instantly shifted back to Mt. Moon, where he watched a similar scene unfold under the influence of the primordial moonstone. The radiant white light expanded in scope, as the enshrouded being grew from within. The ten-year old boy clenched his fists in excitement, as evolution finally revealed itself amongst his team.

The crowd boisterously erupted, as the white light gradually fizzled out. Ash tranquilly smiled at the result of the brief, refulgent display. Standing in the aftermath of the resplendent outburst was a new being. It resembled its previous form in a lot of ways, but its body was slightly bigger and its features had flourished. Bulbasaur's bulb had bloomed into a pretty pink bud — the base of the bud was surrounded by four leafy, green fonds. Its' complexion had darkened considerably and its countenance was much more fierce. The anatomy of Bulbasaur had changed; Ivysaur now stood before his trainer.

"What a treat," announced Ariana's disembodied voice. "We've been honored with the opportunity to watch a live evolution. Give Ivysaur a round of applause for its wondrous display!"

The arena echoed, as the audience cheered for the saurian.

Ash gleefully laughed, while an excited Ivysaur affectionately nestled his head into Ash's chest. His grass-type may have evolved, but his essence had stayed the same.

XXX

Ash made his way back to the trainers' box, as he mentally prepared for his next battle. He was still getting over the excitement of Ivysaur's evolution. However, he suppressed his emotions in order to focus on his next opponent. He was facing off against a girl named Ally. She had shown formidable skill in the first round, using a rash poliwhirl to win her last battle.

The rough looking brunette enlarged her selected pokeball, while she focused her eyes on the battlefield. Ash handled one of his automated spheres, as he settled into his designated zone.

The crowd got quiet, while the referee prepared to initiate the match.

"This is a one-on-one battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Ally Stork of Saffron City! The battle will be decided once a pokemon has been rendered unconscious! Trainers prepare for battle!"

Ash could feel the tension in the chamber, as the encompassing crowd was about to ignite.

"Begin!"

Once the heavy dose of bright light ceased, Ash's giant Pidgeotto dwarfed a rambunctious mankey.

The fighting-type bounced around on its two-toed feet. Its round, shaggy fur shook wildly and the nostrils on its pig-like snout flared, while it psyched itself up for battle.

Pidgeotto leaned over with a hellish expression, severely pissed off by the small mammal's arrogance. He gratingly squawked, emitting a sound that portrayed malicious intent.

Ash gulped — this could turn out ugly.

The crowd had yet to erupt. They were currently entranced under the sheer size of the colossal Pidgeotto. The beast raised itself into the air, requiring only two thrusts of its wings to propel itself off of the ground.

Ash watched, as Ally Stork's countenance shifted from confident to fearful — a common reaction after witnessing Pidgeotto's abnormal immensity. Her mankey obliviously strengthened its mind with focus energy, too focused on itself to recognize its disadvantage.

Pidgeotto glared down at the fighting-type, spreading his wings in preparation for twin-tempest. The avian didn't care how immature his opponent was, he'd been itching to use his signature technique in battle once more. The immense flying-type slowly formulated two howling tempests. They circulated in the air, spewing draconic energy in every which direction. The two full-power twisters remained separate — a byproduct of Pidgeotto's powerful exhalation.

For the first time, Mankey appeared to grasp reality, as it looked up in the air with fearful eyes. It watched while Pidgeotto palpitated his' wings, before unleashing the devastating attack. Ash felt kind of bad for the fighting-type. It was stuck — frozen by its own despair. Not that it mattered anyway — it took a pokemon of tremendous size and strength to break free of twin tempest's gravitational pull. Mankey's evolved form, primeape, would probably have enough strength in its legs to escape the technique at this juncture. But a mankey of this level stood no chance. Its fate was sealed upon release.

The explosion that triggered when twin tempest clashed with the ground was ruinous. The sound of Mankey's cry was easily drowned out by the infernal shrill of twin tempest, while it shred through the rocky terrain. Ash covered his eyes, as the dust from the blowout settled. The encompassing crowd was silent, utterly shocked by the devastation of the attack. Left in twin tempest's furrow was a blacked out mankey — it laid on itsback erroneously, unaware of its surroundings.

"Mankey is unable to battle!" declared the official. "Pidgeotto wins! Victory goes to Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

"Well that was fast!" announced Ariana, while everyone in the arena held their tongues. "Ketchum's Pidgeotto wins with an overwhelming variance on twister!"

The delayed reaction of the audience subsided, as Pidgeotto landed smoothly next to his trainer. They broke out into an uproar, cheering for the battling duo. Ash had to admit it was a pleasant feeling. The sudden burst of adoration he received from the spectators was spine-tingling.

His flying-type didn't seem to recognize the cheers though. He gently squawked, as he waited for Ash's praise.

The dark-haired boy reached up and scratched behind Pidgeotto's wing, causing the avian to softly croon. Ash understood that he was the only being capable of drawing out this side of Pidgeotto. It made him feel special — the ordinarily sadistic flying-type had a soft side after all, he was just extremely selective about who he showed it to.

Ash and Pidgeotto's moment was interrupted by their defeated opponent. She repetitively tapped Ash on the shoulder, making it absolutely impossible for him to ignore her.

"Yes?" questioned Ash, as he turned his attention away from Pidgeotto. "What is it?"

Her countenance was wry, as she held out her hand. "Good battle…"

Ash awkwardly grasped her suspended extremity — sportsmanship for the most part had been absent throughout the tournament, so he wasn't exactly expecting kind words from someone he had just decimated.

"Thank you…" replied Ash to the rough looking girl, as he forced a smile. "Um… good battle to you as well."

Ally's expression softened, while she lightly chuckled under her breath. "It could have been better. I should have known Mankey wasn't ready for competitive battle."

Ash curiously raised an eyebrow. "New capture?"

"Might as well be," replied Ally. "She hatched from an egg a couple of months ago. She's still young."

"Gotchya," muttered Ash. "If I would have known, I would have told Pidgeotto to–"

"Don't say it," interrupted the brunette. "Compromising a battle isn't a good way to gain experience. I'm glad she got crushed — maybe she'll take her training a little more seriously, now that she knows she's not as tough as she thinks she is."

Ash scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "You're right…I don't know what I was thinking."

"It's fine…well anyways, good luck in the next round," she said, as she gestured to the encompassing crowd. "I think they're starting to get impatient."

Ash looked around at the mass of irritated spectators, before hearing Ariana's voice.

"I hate to break up this honorable exchange," said the woman's smooth, sultry voice. "But, we still have two more matches left in the round. So, if you could wrap things up it would be nice."

Ash laughed, as he recalled his gargantuan avian. "Nice meeting you Ally. See you around the ship."

The rough looking brunette gave Ash an abbreviate nod, before heading back to her spot in the crowd.

Ash followed suit; plodding his way over to his seat, before anxiously awaiting his next match.

XXX

Up to this point, Ash had skated through the competition relatively untested. He had battled a few trainers that were decent. But for the majority of today's campaign, the boy had been in control from the very beginning of each match.

…That was about to change.

Ash had watched his upcoming adversary steamroll his opponents in the previous two rounds. The powerful trainer was in his young teens. The boy exuded confidence...and his experience was more than evident.

In the first round of the top sixteen he used a stout marowak. In a matter of seconds, the fully-evolved ground-type utterly destroyed the opposing opponent's weepinbell — despite the grass pokemon's type advantage.

In the top eight, the well-defined teenager battled utilizing a menacing pinser. At the time, Ash's mind was immediately taken back to his battle against Samurai in the Viridian Forest. However, once he watched the confident teenager's pinser battle; the familiar memory was quickly discarded. Unlike the specimen Pidgeotto had beaten, this pinser was a monster. It handily defeated a boy's staryu as if it was a newborn magikarp...

…Ash had reached the top four of the S.S. Anne's tournament — the competition was about to beef up considerably...and he knew it.

Ash faced off against the elder boy, as he handled Pidgeotto's pokeball. The flying-type hadn't taken any damage in the last battle, and more than likely offered him the greatest chance of victory.

The chiseled faced teen looked at him with a smile. His countenance depicted that of a genuinely good guy — Ash could tell that he wasn't the type to intimidate through any means other than his pokemon. The teen's short, gelled, dirty-blonde hair stayed stationary, as he seemingly shook out the butterflies before the match. He rolled up his green, long-sleeved shirt that almost matched the color of his verdant, hazel-green eyes.

The skinny referee cleared his throat, before raising his arm to commence the battle. "This is a one-on-one battle between Austin Turner of Fuchsia City, and Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town! The last trainer with a pokemon standing wins! Trainers prepare for battle!"

The young teenager detached a pokeball from his belt, before bellowing across the battlefield. "Give me your best kid!"

Ash nodded, before enlarging Pidgeotto's pokeball.

"Begin!"

Pidgeotto appeared in a flash of light, leering at his opponent with dangerous eyes. The flying-type carefully watched, as the subsequent array of bright light faded to reveal an experienced looking fearow.

The angry specimen stood a little bit shorter than Ash's avian. However, once it showed off its lengthy ailerons, Ash could tell that its wingspan exceeded Pidgeotto's. The decorative, red coxcomb on top of its head quavered, while it fiendishly thrust its bayonet-like beak forward. Fearow emitted a discordant squawk, before looking at Pidgeotto peculiarly.

Pidgeotto's eyes turned savage and his primordial instincts took over. Ash squinched his face in anticipation — this was going to be a vulgar one.

The last millennium of both of these species existences had been painfully intertwined. In the skies of Kanto the pidgey evolutionary line had won the battle for dominance. This truth only enraged the spearow — which gradually led to a genetic corruption of their personality. Spearow were crude, devilish creatures; their fully-evolved form fearow was even more murderous.

Fearow and Pidgeotto simultaneously thrust their powerful wings towards the ground, before they took off into the chamber's available sky. They both emitted resonant battle cries, while they effortlessly ascended, collecting a plethora of gasps from the enthralled crowd.

The avians skillfully weaved around each other, while they promptly neared the arena's roof. They created a visual draught, before concurrently opening their wings like a parachute. The resistance yielded their momentum, before eventually bringing them to a bona-fide halt. There was a momentary gap in the action, as both birds circled each other like some sort of aerial gambol.

Ash took his eyes off of the two avians for a split second, when he heard a cheerful laugh derive from his opponent. Ash watched, as the teenager looked up with gleeful eyes, while the two flying-types prepared to engage each other. It was obvious that the chiseled faced teen was enjoying the display.

The dark-haired boy shifted his attention back to the battle. Pidgeotto and Fearow were feinting in and out of their aerial dance, as they beckoned one another to commit to an attack. In attempt to sharpen his view, Ash squint his eyes. He hadn't seen Pidgeotto battle this precariously in a long time — which meant his foe was either of equal or stronger stature.

Pidgeotto was the first to commit to an attack, as he vehemently used his wings to conjure up a flurry of gusts. The Fearow took the first one head on, due to its close proximity, before jetting out of the way of the enfilade.

Ash watched Fearow enhance its speed, as Pidgeotto continued to throw gust after gust. The menace darted back and forth throughout the air at an expeditious speed, becoming harder to follow with every passing moment. Ash recognized the technique as agility — a speed boosting move that literally enhanced the rate of motion of every individual cell in the user's body.

Pidgeotto treaded in the air, as he watched the enemy birr throughout the chamber. He whipped up a whirlwind with intention to draw the fearow in. The enemy briefly revealed itself, before performing a sortie with dark-energy. Pidgeotto had little experience with the dark-element — his only familiarity involved Growlithe's rudimentary bite.

Fearow's assurance sliced through the formulating whirlwind, like a knife cuts through butter, before colliding with the confused Pidgeotto. Ash witnessed, as his avian contorted, painfully invaded by the crepuscular wave.

"Shake it off!" howled Ash. "Create distance with quick attack!"

Pidgeotto responded sluggishly, using his wings to initiate the rapid movement. He threw himself through the air, while continuously feeling the internal strife that Fearow's dark-energy was inflicting.

The affliction finally came to an end, as Pidgeotto gathered himself amidst the air. He spread his wings, quickly absorbing the atmospheres draconic energy in order to manipulate a twister.

Twin-tempest wasn't an option — the enemy was too fast.

The lone twister roared like a freight train, while it stirred into its expansive form. Ash watched the purple draconic energy overflow within Pidgeotto's wings, as Fearow stalled his movement intriguingly. The devilish scavenger waited until Pidgeotto unleashed the cyclone, before showing his cards. The enemy instantaneously manipulated a twister of its own — equal in size to Pidgeotto's.

Ash scoffed; twister wasn't in a fearow's learn-set. Either Austin had taught Fearow twister through a TM (an artificial move-tutor that instantaneously installs a technique into a pokemon's intelligence), or the avian was using mirror-move. Probability had the answer leaning more towards the ladder.

The two purple-tinted twisters met in a flash, stimulating an outrageous uproar. The grating noise they created, as they merged together, had every person in the vast room covering their ears. Ash grimaced, as fearow's copy-cat twister took the advantage, pushing Pidgeotto's authentic cyclone back towards its creator.

Ash had never seen such an expression on his flying-type's face. Pidgeotto appeared to be flabbergasted, as the "twin-tempests" fused together on their way to swallow him.

"Get out of there!" howled Ash, while the augmented twister promptly closed the distance between itself and Pidgeotto.

Pidgeotto didn't stand a chance. The pull of the gargantuan twister was too powerful for him to overcome. Pidgeotto tried to fight his way out of the elemental vacuums range, but it was to no avail. He venomously scowled, as he was sucked up into his own attack.

Ash cursed under his breath, as Pidgeotto painfully squawked from within the powerful tempest. The crowd roared, while Fearow fiendishly belted a shrill of superiority. The massive, draconic infused whirlwind spiraled aimlessly for an abbreviate moment, before spitting out a battered Pidgeotto right before it dissipated.

The king of Pidgeotto heedlessly plummeted through the air, conscious, but completely unaware of his surroundings. Fearow chortled, as it used agility to initiate its steep, high-velocity decent. It rocketed through the air like a nuclear missile, shackling its wings in attempt to catch up to Pidgeotto.

Ash's stomach dropped, as he continued to watch the powerhouse of his team get humiliated by its natural rival.

Pidgeotto suddenly expelled his damaged wings, attempting to slow down his meteor-like fall. The giant sifted through his available techniques, desperately trying to come up with a counter to crush the puissant Fearow.

He had none — absolutely nothing — the enemy was more experienced; the Fearow was stronger...

…He'd lost.

Fearow performed an intricate aerial display, as it briskly piloted itself through the air. The scavenger disembogued a victorious squawk, before using its beak like an auger to strike Pidgeotto's back.

The ten-year old boy recognized the technique as drill-run — a move typically learned by ground-types. Unfortunately, Fearow had the ability to learn the devastating technique as well — able to use its long, sharp beak as a substitute drill.

Pidgeotto succumbed to comatose in mid-air. The impact of drill-run was too overwhelming to endure, especially after taking the full brunt of two combined twisters.

Ash expelled an exasperated sigh, as he returned Pidgeotto right before the avian collided with the ground. There was no reason to risk Pidgeotto's health. He had lost — there would be no comeback.

"Pidgeotto is unable to battle!" announced the referee. "Fearow is the winner! The victory goes to Austin Turner of Fuchsia City!"

The crowd went wild, as Ash self-reflected over the defeat.

He wasn't necessarily disappointed. Ash had a feeling he would be outclassed before the battle even started. His opponent was a veteran, and the teen's pokemon were well-trained. The ten-year old boy had a long way to go before he could defeat a trainer of this caliber…Regardless, it was good experience — Pidgeotto would learn from his defeat.

The ten-year old boy watched, while Austin congratulated his fearow. The teen gently stroked the scavenger's red coxcomb, receiving a soft hum from the typically torturous avian. Ash faintly smiled; the relationship that the teenager had with his fearow, resembled the precious affinity he shared with his own flying-type.

The moment was interrupted by the resonation of Ariana's amplified voice. "With a convincing aerial victory against Ketchum, Turner moves on to the final round!"

Ash took the announcement as his cue to congratulate the victor. He made his way over to the other side of the arena, catching the attention of the teen and his fearow. Once Ash was close enough, he politely reached out his hand. "That was a good battle. You handle your fearow well."

"Thanks kid," answered Austin, as he returned the affable gesture. "That Pidgeotto of yours will be a beast before you know it."

"We've definitely go a lot of work to do," replied Ash.

"Eh, don't sweat it," retorted Austin. "How long have you been training it for?"

"A little over a month," said Ash with a shrug. "Not too long."

"Damn…only a month," replied Austin. "I've been training Fearow for a couple of years and your Pidgeotto was able to fly with him. That's pretty impressive."

Ash scratched the back of his head bashfully. "Well…when you put it like that–"

Austin glanced down at Ash's xtranceiver, before interjecting. "That's one of those new mobile video phones the League's coming out with, right?"

"Yeah…" answered Ash. "Why?"

"I won't ask how you got one of those…but I'll tell you what," orated the teenager. "I'll give you the number to my pokegear, so that you can call for a rematch when you think your birds ready. What do you think about that?"

"That would be awesome!" replied Ash.

"Cool, find me after the tournament and we'll exchange numbers," said Austin, as he returned his powerful Fearow. "I gotta hurry up and get ready for the final round."

"Okay," replied Ash with a nod. "Good luck in the final, you better win!"

The teen chuckled, as he began to walk back towards his spot in the stands. "Oh I'll win. No doubt about it."

Ash briefly followed, before finding his own spot in the first-row of the bleachers. He was a little bit upset that he wouldn't get a chance to battle in the final. However, he was still proud of himself for making it to the top four. Hopefully, his new acquaintance Austin would win. That way he could at least say he lost to the guy that won the whole thing...

XXX

Ash anxiously stood out in the middle of the arena. The ten-year old boy waited next to Austin and two pretty teenage girl, while Ariana finished giving out the prizes to the competitors that had placed below them. The winnings at this point had been a lot better than Ash had expected.

If you made it to the top sixteen, you received one-thousanddollars cash in addition to a couple of great balls…

For those that happened to get eliminated in the top eight, they won three-thousand dollars cash and five great balls...

After handing over the prizes to the last standing competitor of the top eight, Ariana raised her microphone to her lips. "For the competitors that made it to the top four, each prize varies in value. We'll start with the fourth place winner."

What was left of the crowd focused in, as they awaited the unveiling of the earnings.

"In fourth place, we have Alexia Fuller," informed Ariana, as she kindly shook the blonde's delicate hand. "Congratulations on making it to the top four."

Ariana walked over to a temporary display table that acted as a pedestal for all of the covered prizes. It had been quickly set up after the final match between Austin, and the other teenage girl. The voluptuous emcee unveiled the prize situated under a dark article of cloth. It was set apart by a propped up sign that read: 4th.

The well-endowed beauty carried two, stacked, decorative cases over to the pretty-faced teen; along with a thick roll of cash. Before she handed the boxes over, she spoke into her microphone.

"The boxes are sealed, so I'll just announce what is inside," said Ariana, before continuing. "Our fourth place winner gets to leave here with: five great balls, a box of full-restores, and four-thousand dollars cash!"

The pretty-faced teen gave the crowd a joyful smile, as she gratefully took hold of her winnings.

Ash's excitement heightened, as Ariana strutted her way over to him.

"Our third place winner is Ash Ketchum," announced the burnished haired goddess, while firmly shaking his hand. "Good job young man, you battled splendidly."

She subsequently swaggered over to the prize table, before pulling the black-sheet off of Ash's earnings. Much like she did with the fourth place winner, Ariana picked up the collection of spoils, before carrying them over to the ten-year old boy.

"Our third place winner has earned himself: two extremely rare ultra balls, two boxes of full-restores, and eight-thousand dollars cash."

After receiving the small fortune, and the collection of valuable items, Ash sunk into a bewildered daze. He spent the entirety of the second-place giveaway inside his mind palace, telling himself that this wasn't a dream. The cash and full-restores were two amazing prizes in-and-of themselves — but ultra balls...they were practically priceless.

Ultra balls were a product developed by the League's partner Silph Co. — the company responsible for the manufacturing and distribution of the world's pokeballs, in addition to many other exclusive items.

Some would even go as far say that Silph Co.'s inclination even surpassed that of the leagues, primarily because of their international influence. Every single region in the world relies on Silph Co. to supply them with pokeballs, potions, repels etc. It is one of the only functioning world-wide monopolies allowed to freely maintain power.

Silph Co.'s current CEO, Robert Montgomery (Bill Montgomery's father), is indisputably one of the richest men on the planet. His generosity is equally as big as his wallet, making him one of the most beloved people in the world. The Montgomery family gives away more than half of its incredible revenue to charity — doing whatever they can to help the less fortunate.

Robert Montgomery was the sole designer of the Ultra Ball. Word is...he had spent years creating a capture device more potent than the great ball. Ash remembered reading somewhere that he finished it a couple of years ago, but was still debating whether he would approve it to be sold to the public. Apparently, the League had already given their consent. However, Mr. Montgomery was still up in the air about it...and unfortunately, he wasn't willing to disclose why.

Ash wondered how the cruise liner could possibly get a hold of such a prize. Nevertheless, the fact that Ash was able to win two of the unissued ultra balls was astounding. He definitely wasn't about to complain.

Ash's internal rumination was broken, as Ariana approached Austin. The chiseled faced teen had won the final in a close battle — just like he had said he would. He had defeated the other pretty-faced teenage girl — who was probably just as strong, but had a bad matchup. She summoned an elegant rapidash, while Austin called upon a nasty Golduck with insane psychic capabilities…

"Our victor of the tournament is, Austin Turner!" announced Ariana, with a cheerful intonation.

The audience happily cheered, as Ariana simultaneously took Austin's hand within her own, before raising it in the air. Ash could see the apparent blush on the young teenager's face, as the gorgeous woman grasped his hand. The dark-haired boy internally chuckled, the teen looked like an electrode on the cusp of detonation — that's how ridiculously red his face was.

Once the crowd finally settled down, Ariana headed over to the prize table one last time. Laying on its surface was one last pile of earnings. It was covered by a golden cloak, intentionally setting it apart from the rest of the prizes. Just like the other winnings, it was labeled by a numbered sign that read: 1st.

She dramatically removed the cloak, unveiling two elaborately designed boxes and a fat wad of cash. She swaggered her way back over to the teen, catching the eyes of just about every guy in the arena.

"As a reward for your victory in the S.S. Anne's 50th anniversary tournament," spoke Ariana. "the The Indigo League, Silph Co., and the S.S. Anne staff; shall present to you your prize."

Austin held his hands out, as Ariana handed him the bundle of goodies.

"I have here fifteen-thousand dollars cash, four ultra balls, and well…the last ones a surprise — I'll let you open it."

With a smile on his face, Austin undid the seal and opened up the medial-sized, elaborately designed box. Inside was a beautifully crafted gold-plated pokeball. From Ash's vantage point, he was unsure whether its foundation was that of a pokeball, or one of the pricier upgraded capture devices.

"Go ahead, press the release button," said Ariana, as she looked at Austin expectantly.

The teenager gave her a brief confused look, before catching on. "Wait there's a pokemon in here?"

Ariana laughed, along with most of the encompassing crowd, before answering. "Well of course there is. The pokeball's merely gold-plated — hardly suitable for a grand prize, don't you think?"

The chiseled faced teen scratched the back of his head, while he replied. "Well I don't know about that…I think the golden pokeball's pretty damn sweet. But now that I know there's a pokemon inside, it's even sweeter."

Ash laughed at the goofy teen's comical behavior, as Austin pressed the release button.

The golden pokeball emitted a vibrant surge of white light, before unveiling a cute little eevee. The small brown kit wagged its' tail in the air, as it looked carefully for the human that had released it. Austin gently reached down and held his hand out to the evolution pokemon, letting it explore his scent.

Ash smiled at the sight; it made a lot of sense why the ship would choose an eevee as a grand prize. The evolution pokemon's relatively easy to get along with, in addition to its numerous evolutionary possibilities. Even if a trainer happened to already be in possession of an eevee, they could always evolve a second specimen into something else.

One of the biggest issues with giving away a pokemon as a prize is that the host of the competition is unaware of the contestant's current pokemon. However, an eevee is a great way to disarm that issue —since it's highly unlikely that a trainer is in possession of every single known eevee evolution.

Austin spent a few minutes joyfully playing with the young eevee in front of the crowd, before returning it. With Ariana's final permission, he attached eevee's gold-plated pokeball to his belt, antecedent to returning to Ash's side in the center of the arena.

As Ariana thanked the audience for sitting through the tournament; the teen turned around and whispered to Ash.

"Pretty damn sweet, right?" said the teen quietly, as he held on to his wad of cash like it was a new-born baby. "You better be careful with your winnings, Ash. You never know who might have an eye on them."

"Good point," said Ash, as he held on tightly to his earnings. "I won't let them out of my sight."

The dark-haired boy chimed back into what the beautiful emcee was saying, as he heard the most heavenly word in the world — food.

"Since most of the trainers probably haven't had any time to eat," informed Ariana. "At nine-thirty we will be hosting a banquet in the A wing's dining hall. I know it's kind of late, but we would love for you to come get a nice gourmet meal before you hit the sack. My watch says nine o'clock, so you have thirty minutes until food is served. Thanks for watching the tournament. I hope you had as much fun as I did. Enjoy the rest of your stay aboard the S.S. Anne!"

After the tournament's award ceremony was finally over, Ash pulled Austin off to the side in order to plug the teen's pokegear number into his xtranceiver. After the exchange had taken place, the two new friends engaged in a quick session of small-talk, before going their separate ways. Austin wanted to drop his winnings off in his room before the banquet, while Ash headed straight towards the A wing — just in case there was a line for the food. The boy was as hungry as a munchlax, and didn't think he could withstand the sight of watching other people eat, while he waited in a line...

The dark-haired boy reflected on today's events, as he made his way through the ship's extravagantly decorated corridor. He had to admit, a lot of good things happened today…

Growlithe battled well, manipulating his inner-flame like a veteran. He maneuvered his flame-wheel even better than he did against surge, and took bite/ember combo to a new level.

Pidgeotto would probably be extremely upset about how he faired today…but Ash wasn't. The avian executed twin-tempest perfectly against Ally's mankey, and managed to keep up with Austin's seasoned fearow — even if it was only for an abbreviate amount of time. Either way, in Ash's opinion the loss would probably turn out to be a good thing. Over the past couple of weeks Pidgeotto's arrogance had spiked. The avian needed to be reminded that he wasn't the strongest flying-type in the skies, yet.

Clefairy and Charmander both had good showings. Although their adversaries were weak, they made quick work of them — which was all you could ask for in a tournament setting.

Bulbasaur had evolved into Ivysaur — which was something that Ash had yet to really process. The dark-haired boy planned on spending a lot of time in the battle facilities the next couple of days with his grass-type. Evolution usually took a while to get the hang of. Ivysaur would probably need to spend some time to get used to his new body, before he could be completely comfortable in live battle again.

Furthermore, Ash wanted to spend some quality time with Ivysaur as friends. Melanie had warned him that the grass-type's suppressed memories were more likely to surface, as he grew. He didn't notice any changes in Ivysaur during their brief moment together — after the evolution — but then again he wasn't a psychiatrist. He would like to spend a good chunk of time making sure Ivysaur was mentally stable, before proceeding in his training.

Words couldn't explain how relieved Ash was that Squirtle had obeyed him in their very first battle together. Insubordination was something he had been worried about ever since he caught the cold-blooded turtle pokemon. Ash just hoped it lasted. It wasn't rare for evolution to initially cause pokemon to rebel. Since Squirtle was bound to evolve at any moment, this was a legitimate worry of Ash's.

…On top of all of the experience his pokemon got, he had earned some priceless items and a large helping of cash.

The full-restores would come in handy during his long stints on the road. The dark-haired boy wasn't quite sure how many full-restores the two boxes contained, but nevertheless they should help free up his training a little bit. He wouldn't have to worry so much about getting caught in the middle of nowhere with an unconscious pokemon. A full-restore was even more potent than Nurse Joy's restoration machine — capable of healing even the most devastating of injuries. He'd be careful not to waste them. The miracle concoctions were high-end Silph Co. products, he'd have to be an idiot to use them as carelessly as a mere potion.

Ash wasn't quite sure what he'd do with all of the cash. Even before the tournament, his trainer account was relatively well off. The ten-year old boy had accumulated quite a hefty sum of money from all of his battles on the road. Maybe he'd send some home to help out his mom.

Ash had absolutely no idea when he would use the two ultra balls. All he knew was that the pokemon he caught with them would have to be special. Ultra balls were highly potent. He wouldn't use them unless it was necessary. As a matter of fact, it was probably about time he restocked on pokeballs and maybe bought some great balls. He had the money, he might as well.

…Ash's intramural reflection was interrupted by the obnoxiously loud growl disembogued from his stomach. The dark-haired boy sighed, as he longed for sustenance. The boy hadn't eaten since breakfast. The remainder of his reflection could wait until there was food in his stomach.

XXX

The food was consummately delicious. Ash was currently waiting on his third helping of gourmet ramen, as he engaged in a pokemon related conversation with Austin.

"My starter's my meganium," mumbled Austin, as he took a bite out of his bread roll.

The dirty-blonde haired teenager swallowed his food, before continuing. "I wanted a charmander, but I slept in...Chikorita was the only pokemon left when I showed up to Professor Gould's laboratory. I was pretty bummed at first…but it ended up being the best thing that could have ever happened to me. She's been like a sister to me ever since. What about you? I heard Professor Oak still issues bulbasaur every once in a while. You must be one of the lucky few?"

"No, I actually caught Ivysaur in the wild," said Ash. "My starter's a growlithe."

"Hmmm...childhood pet?" asked Austin with a curious expression. "Or, maybe a special request?"

"Yeah…a special request just about sums it up," replied Ash. "I just wanted to start my journey with something different, you know?"

"Was it the right choice?"

"Absolutely," answered Ash with a smile. "Growlithe's one of my best friends — right up there with my childhood friend Gary. Honestly, Growlithe's probably the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"That's all that matters," retorted Austin, with an earnest smile. "Make sure you always cherish your starter. They're the only pokemon you'll ever have that has known you since you were nothing."

The older trainer had a good point. Ash had never thought about it like that. Growlithe had known him since before he was even a trainer. The moment they had shared at Professor Oak's lab was the prologue of their conjoined story. No matter how far his adventures would eventually take him, he could never change his roots. No matter how many pokemon he added to his team, Growlithe's position as his starter would always remain untouchable.

Ash nodded, before changing the subject. This topic had gone deep enough for now. Ash didn't know what else to say, other than that he agreed. "So where does your journey have you right now? Are you planning on battling at this year's tournament?"

"Not the Indigo League — nope," sputtered the chiseled faced teen, as he shook his head. "I'm taking on the silver league this year — trying to see the world a little bit, you know?"

Ash looked at him in a confused manner. "Shouldn't you be in Johto then? Why are you here?"

"I'm here for this obviously," said Austin, as he gestured around the room. "I was doing a transfer with Professor Gould, when he told me that Lt. Surge was giving away free S.S. Anne tickets to anyone that could defeat him. I obviously couldn't miss out on a chance for a free vacation. So I hopped on Fearow back in Goldenrod City and flew straight to Vermillion."

"Jeez…" said Ash. "How long did that take you?"

"Eh, like a day and a half…" said Austin. "The only rough stretch is passing over Mt. Silver. The rest of the ride is relatively smooth."

"I bet..." muttered an astonished Ash, as he processed the feat. Mt. Silver is one of the largest mountains in the entire world. The colossal, hallowed mountain stands more than twenty-five thousand feet tall, and stretches over more than one-hundred miles in between Kanto and Johto. Flying over such a humongous landmark wasn't easy — the accomplishment only made Ash respect the older trainer even more.

"What about you, Ash?" asked Austin, changing the focal point of the conversation. "You're taking on the Indigo League, right?"

"Yup," replied Ash with a nod.

"How many badges do you have?"

"Only two," answered Ash. "I skipped the Pewter Gym. At the time I only had Growlithe and Pidgeotto."

"Smart move — Brock isn't easy...especially if you don't have a type advantage," replied Austin. "So you have the Thunder Badge, and…?

"Cascade Badge," retorted Ash.

"Who'd you battle?" asked Austin with a raised eyebrow. "All three of the sisters are pretty good…"

"I battled the youngest sister, Misty," replied Ash. "Apparently, she's the best battler out of all of them."

"Misty, eh?" questioned Austin. "Must be the little girl that was running around the gym when I battled Daisy — so she's taking on gym leader duties now…interest–"

"Do you mind if we join you?" interrupted a familiar, elegantly-toned voice.

Both boys shifted their line of sight towards the pair of newcomers.

Ash instantaneously recognized the man that had spoken as Wallace. The champion of Hoenn was dressed in the same extravagant, white suit that he had worn during his speech that preceded the S.S. Anne's top sixteen.

The man accompanying Wallace looked familiar as well. But Ash couldn't quite figure out why. The wealthy looking older gentleman wore a finely made, black sports coat over an off-white, dress-shirt. His unwrinkled, black slacks were a slightly lighter shade than his sports coat, creating a peculiar contrast within his outfit. His facial features were craggy and lived-in — the man's visage looked to be that of someone that had lived an interesting life. He had a neatly groomed, curly, brown mustache that matched the color of his fading hair, and wore a pair of fancy framed bifocal glasses.

"Not at all," answered Ash, as he tried to descry the identity of the wealthy old man, while concurrently flashing a friendly smile toward Wallace.

Austin just sat there dumfounded, unable to formulate words. Ash could tell he was star struck — the ten-year old boy would probably be reacting similarly, if he hadn't already met Wallace.

"Nice to see you again Ash," said the comely champion, as he sat down next to the ten-year old boy; prior to gesturing in the direction of the older gentlemen. "This is my friend Mr. Montgomery."

The luminous lightbulb went off in Ash's head, as the elder man sat down on the opposite side of the table. The iconic, CEO, of Silph Co. cleared his throat, before introducing himself. "I'd prefer it if you called me Robert. It's nice to meet you two lads."

It took just about every ounce of strength in Ash's body to remain seated. How had he not recognized him from the beginning? He was sitting across from possibly the most influential person in the world — Bill's father — Robert Montgomery.

Ash and Austin simultaneously answered — nerves slightly noticeable in their inflections. "Nice to meet you Ro-ro-bert."

Wallace quickly changed the subject. Ash could tell that he picked up on the two boy's nervous dispositions. "You two battled great today; it was a lot of fun to watch. That pidgeotto of yours is a talented specimen, Ash."

Wallace pivoted his gaze towards Austin. "And you're Austin Turner, right? I was especially impressed with that Golduck you used in the final."

Both trainers scratched the back of their heads bashfully, as they received the flattering compliments from one of the strongest trainers in the world.

Austin suddenly turned to Ash curiously. "How do you know Wallace Mikari?"

The dark-haired boy shrugged, before answering. "We met on the first day aboard the ship."

Wallace interjected. "Ash and I had a pleasant conversation about life during the ship's departure."

Austin's eyes lit up, as he turned to Ash. "So you're the one he was talking about during his speech."

"Yeah…kind of," said Ash, as he sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "But I had no idea who he was. I just thought he was some nice, rich guy that was obsessed with the ocean."

In response to the comment, the table broke out into laughter. Robert was laughing especially hard — Ash had a feeling that he had explained Wallace a little too well.

Once the laughter had finally subsided, the billionaire CEO spoke up. "So Ash, my son Bill has spoken very highly of you over the past couple of weeks. I was bloody surprised to find out that you were onboard the S.S. Anne."

"Bill told you about me," replied Ash. "What'd he say?"

"Ah...he just told me to keep an eye out for you," replied Robert. "Said you'd be something special. I'm a bit of a battle fanatic. So I'm always on the lookout for rising, young trainers to follow."

"If you don't mind me asking, how'd you find out I was onboard the ship?"

"I saw your name in the tournament committee's system," said Robert. "I donated all of the prizes. So they let me take part in the match-up process."

"Makes sense," said Ash

"I would have recognized your bloody Pidgeotto either way," replied Robert with a shrug. "Bill's been raving about how your bird has the blasted king's nature."

"What's the king's nature?" asked Austin.

"In a nutshell, it pretty much explains the whole giant pokemon phenomenon," explained Robert. "My son's been doing research on it for years. Nothing's been published about it though. My boy needs to gather a little more proof, before it can be counted as a credible theory."

Austin raised a curious eyebrow, while Ash simply nodded along in agreement.

Wallace had an interested look on his face as well. Ash wasn't exactly sure, but judging by his expression, it looked as if the champion wasn't previously aware of Bill's theory.

"Why didn't the tournament committee have some kind of big introduction for you, Mr. Montgomery?" asked Austin boldly. "You're even more famous than Wallace."

Ash noticed the offended expression on Wallace's face, as Robert answered the question hesitantly. "I don't really fancy public speaking. I try to avoid it if I have the choice."

In response to Mr. Montgomery's rather honest answer, both boys nodded their heads.

The rich old man's mustache wiggled, as he proceeded to lean across the table with a funny expression. "Besides, if you couldn't tell by his heart-felt speech, my friend Wallace here absolutely adores the spot light."

The two young trainers chuckled, as the Champion's face turned bright-red due to embarrassment.

To Wallace's benefit, one of the ship's food runners interrupted their conversation, as they finally arrived with Ash's third bowl of ramen. Wallace asked the flustered food runner to send over a waiter, before tactfully changing the direction of the conversation. "So what are your plans for this season boys?"

Ash and Austin quickly gave Wallace and Robert a brief synopsis of their personal agenda's for the upcoming year. Both influential men listened attentively while they ate, briefly interjecting every once in a while to ask a question. Their conversation went on for nearly an hour, until everyone was beginning to drift in and out of the chat due to exhaustion.

"Well, I fancy I should probably be hitting the kip," said Robert, as he stood up from the table with a yawn. "It's been a bloody long day. See you tomorrow Wallace — nice meeting you two lads."

"Nice talking to you Robert," said both boys simultaneously, as their eye lids grew heavy.

Wallace was the next to stand up from his seat. He adjusted his coat, as he politely shook Mr. Montgomery's hand. "See you tomorrow Robert. What time do you want to meet?"

"Just meet me at that café in the C Wing around nine," replied Mr. Montgomery. "We'll talk over some latte's and breakfast sandwiches."

"Sounds good to me," replied Wallace. "Nine o'clock it is."

Mr. Montgomery proceeded to groggily stumble out of the dining hall, as Ash and Austin stood up to say goodbye to Wallace.

"It was nice to meet you, Wallace," said Austin, as he shook the champion's hand.

"Yes, it was a pleasure," replied the champion with a smile. "See you around the ship.

The teen proceeded to shift his attention towards Ash. "See you later Ash. Hit me up tomorrow if you want to train or something. You've got my number…just hit dial."

"Will do," replied Ash with a friendly smile.

The chiseled faced teen subsequently exited the dining hall, leaving Ash alone with the champion.

"Before I go back to my room…I gotta ask, why didn't you tell me that you were the champion of Hoenn?" asked Ash.

Wallace faintly smiled, before answering. "You didn't ask."

Ash rolled his eyes, in advance to giving a response. "That's not exactly a typical question to ask someone."

"Fair enough," replied Wallace. "Truth is; I was just happy to have a conversation as plain old, Wallace."

"What do you mean?"

"Fame is a double-edged sword," said Wallace, while reaching into his coat pocket. "People begin to look at you for your title, instead of who you are as a person."

Even though he was extremely tired, Ash listened attentively.

Wallace pulled a small, tortoise-colored, electronic device out of his coat pocket, as he continued. "I guess it was just nice to have a chat with someone that saw me, for me."

"I think I understand," replied Ash.

"It's okay if you don't," mused Wallace. "Even if you don't understand now, I'm certain you will someday."

"Why's tha–"

Ash was interrupted, as Wallace briskly passed over the turquoise-colored pokegear. "Put your number in there. I'd like to be able to reach you if something comes up."

Ash complied, quickly typing his xtranceiver's number into the on-screen keyboard, before handing it back over to Wallace. "Can you give me yours?"

"I'm calling you right now," said Wallace. "Just save the number."

Ash's xtranceiver quietly vibrated against his wrist, before the dark-haired boy added the unknown number as a contact.

"Don't hesitate to call if you need anything," said Wallace.

"You sure?" asked Ash sincerely. "You're the champion of Hoenn. Don't you have more important calls to take?"

Wallace stuffed his pokegear back in his coat pocket, before replying. "Sometimes...but most of the time daily life of a champion is rather dull. You're a friend now. Friends are a higher priority than boring calls concerning business and public relations."

Ash smiled — life over the past couple of weeks had been absolutely crazy. First he'd made friends with one of the most brilliant researchers in the world, Bill Montgomery. Then, without even knowing it, he befriended the champion of a foreign region — Wallace Mikari. And to top it all off, he'd had a casual conversation with the CEO of Silph Co. — Robert Montgomery.

...One thing had definitely been made clear by all of this — without fail, his journey always remained unpredictable.

"Alright then," responded Ash with a nod. "I'll at least try not to call unless it's important...or if something really cool happens."

"Fair enough," replied Wallace. "Now I don't know about you, but I'm exhausted. It's probably about time I head back to my room."

"Same," said Ash.

Ash and Wallace accompanied each other as far as they could, before the routes of their destinations diverged.

"Get some good sleep," said Wallace. "And again, good job today. You should be proud of how you faired in that tournament."

"Thanks," replied Ash. "That means a lot. I'll probably see you sometime tomorrow, right?"

"I'm sure we'll run into each other at some point," said Wallace. "And if you and Austin train tomorrow, let me know. I'd be happy to give you guys some pointers."

"Really?" asked an elated Ash. "That would be awesome!"

"Absolutely," said Wallace. "Just give me a call. My league back home knows that I'm on vacation. They promised not to call unless it's an emergency. So the line should be open. I've got that meeting with Robert in the morning. Other than that I got nothing else going on."

"Tomorrow it is then," answered Ash with an excited nod.

"Tomorrow it is," said Wallace. "Until then, I'm off to my room. I can barely stand I'm so tired."

"See ya Wallace," replied Ash, while re-igniting the walk back to the E Wing.

"Later kid," muttered the champion, heading in a different direction…

On the walk back to his room, the only thing Ash could think about was uniting his head with his pillow. Nothing else seemed to matter.

XXX

Ash woke up in a jolt, after hearing a clamorous crash emitted from amidst the hallway. He could hear the sound of Growlithe's unsettling snarl, coming from the edge of the bed. It was the type of growl that the canine only disembogued when something was askew.

The dark-haired boy frantically flipped the switch that belonged to the lamp atop the nightstand. Upon illumination, Ash discerned Growlithe's demeanor. The hair on the back of the pup's neck was fully erect, signifying his alertness.

"What is it boy?" asked Ash, as he checked the digital clock on the face of his xtranceiver — it read 2:32 a.m.

The puppy pokemon nimbly leaped off of the bed, before darting over to the door. He looked back at his trainer with unrestrained eyes, beckoning him out of bed. The look on Growlithe's face had Ash worried — he'd never seen his friend's countenance this feral.

Ash briskly got dressed, wiping the sleep from his eyes in the process.

"Did something bad happen?" asked Ash. "Should I bring my stuff?

Growlithe hastily nodded, before impatiently scratching the door with one of his forepaws.

"Gotchya," answered Ash, as he quickly gathered his things, making sure to leave nothing in the room that was his. He did a detailed inspection along the side of his trainer belt. No matter the circumstances, the young boy refused to go anywhere without the entirety of his team.

Once Ash had assured himself that everyone was accounted for, he was ready to go. He slowly opened the door, before looking both ways to make sure that the corridor was clear.

"I don't know what's going on," said Ash. "Where are we going?"

The pup used his nose to quickly lead Ash a short distance down the hall. When the lavishly decorated corridor opened up into fork, Growlithe took a swift right, leading Ash sharply around a corner.

That's when he saw it.

Smeared across the wall was a muck of red liquid. It didn't take a forensic scientist to deduce that the scarlet smudge was fresh blood.

"Holy-" blurted Ash, as he simultaneously covered his mouth in attempt to silence his trembling voice. He looked down at Growlithe, who was using his olfactory glands to pick up the scent. Ash's hands remained wrapped around his lips, as he saw the tiny dapple of blood pressed up against the tip of his friend's nose.

Growlithe glanced up at Ash with a perturbed expression, before suddenly darting off down the hall. Ash didn't have time to process. In order to keep up with the canine, he was forced to sprint at full-speed. Hopefully the noise of his lumbering foot-steps didn't disturb anyone's sleep. But considering the circumstances, he didn't really care

The distressed canine led Ash into the E Wing's lobby and out of the lodging zone. It was quiet — the only sound that could be heard was the insipid background music that continuously looped through the ship's radio-caste system. Ash's spine tingled and his skin crawled. Between the fresh splotch of blood, and the empty corridors; his current predicament felt like a scene straight out of a horror film.

The duo passed through the lobby, and into one of the D Wing's multiple entrances. Ash was perplexed that he still hadn't seen a single person. Even though it was the middle of the night, he expected that there would at least me some staff members up and about. The majority of the ship's night life was in wing's A through C. Therefore, it made perfect sense that there weren't any passengers active in the upper wings. However, that didn't change the fact that the S.S. Anne was supposed to be staffed and serviced 24-hours a day. It was one of their main marketing points. The fact that the E and D wing's we're presently vacant was extremely bizarre.

Ash's breathing was beginning to grow heavy. Growlithe had him running at a high-pace, and he had no idea how far the pup was going to take him. They brusquely passed through the D wing's lobby, before coming to an abrupt stop at the edge of the quiescent wing's lodging zone. Ash watched, as his canine began to steadily creep forward, using his eyes to portray to Ash that he was to follow suit.

They moved meticulously — careful not to make any noise. Ash wasn't quite sure what was going on, but he trusted the judgment of his starter. His eyes grew big, as he saw a second helping of fresh blood. This time there was a lot more than a mere splotch; it winded across the slick tile like a serpent, creating a trail to follow. Ash gulped, before whispering a prayer to an unknown higher-power.

The stream of blood swerved down the entirety of an abbreviate hallway, before snaking around a corner, and coming to a sudden stop. The trail ended in front of a door that read: "employees only."

Growlithe was about to use his forepaw to scratch on the door, when Ash interjected with a harsh whisper. "Wait!"

The puppy pokemon looked up at Ash with ferocious eyes — anger evident in his disposition. Ash wasn't exactly sure what to think of his pup's behavior.

…It was as if Growlithe already knew what had happened.

"We have no idea what's behind that door," whispered Ash, as he looked at his friend sternly. "We need backup. Something strange is going on aboard this ship."

Growlithe temporarily challenged Ash with his gaze, before eventually conceding with a disappointed huff.

Ash was slightly surprised by Growlithe's stubbornness. The pup had never directly opposed a command before. Even if it was only for a split-second; it was troublesome. If the blood wasn't enough of a sign to prove that something horrific had taken place, Growlithe's intense behavior was. His canine was his most trusted ally. He was the heart of his team — always choosing to lead through loyalty and faithfulness to his trainer. However, right now Growlithe wasn't himself. He had been consumed by worry and malice. Whatever had caused this reaction was more than likely atrocious.

"Come with me," whispered Ash. "I have to make a call."

Despite his reluctance, Growlithe obeyed orders. The puppy pokemon followed his trainer back around the corner and down the hall, moving as scrupulously as possible. Once the lodging hall opened back up into the D Wing's lobby, Ash did a brief scan of his surroundings.

It was still empty.

He led Growlithe passed the front desk, over to the one of the lobby's private bathrooms. The door was heavy and lockable; the perfect place to make a discreet phone call. He walked over to the luxurious restrooms back wall, as far away from the door as possible. He couldn't risk the phone call being listened in on. Especially by an S.S. Anne staff member . Presently, there were way too many signs of some kind of corruption amongst the ship's work crew.

In attempt to calm his pup down; Ash gently stroked the fur behind Growlithe's ears, prior to flipping through the contacts programmed into his xtranceiver. Antecedent to pressing the on-screen call option, he anxiously clicked on the icon corresponding to the number he needed to dial.

The tiny backlit screen read: "Calling Wallace", as it began to ring.

"…Ring."

"…Ring."

"…Ring."

Ash cursed under his breath, as he apprehensively feared an ignored phone call. "Dammit! Dammit! Pick up the phone."

"…Ring."

"…Ring."

"Click."

"Ash…is that you?" mumbled the Champion's tired, disembodied voice. "It's nearly three in the morning. Why are you calling me?"

"Thank God you answered. I'm sorry for the inconvenience," muttered Ash quietly. "But there's been an emergency."

Wallace's voice fortified, as he replied. "I'm listening."

"My Growlithe and I came across something extremely worrisome," stuttered Ash. "Can you meet me in the D Wing's lobby? It can't wait. Bring your pokemon."

"...Okay, I'll be there soon," said Wallace.

Ash could hear the evident sound of scrambling through the phone, as Wallace was hastening to get ready.

"Can you explain what's going on?" asked Wallace. "Are you hurt?"

"I'm not," said Ash. "But, someone is."

"Who?" asked Wallace.

"I don't know," said Ash. "Something's going on aboard this ship. My Growlithe and I found a trail of blood in the D Wing's lodging zone."

There was a momentary pause, as Wallace seemingly processed Ash's words.

"I understand. I'm on my way," said Wallace. "Is the lobby clear? Are you sure you're safe to wait there?"

"I'm in one of the lobby's bathrooms with my Growlithe," answered Ash. "The door's locked, so I think I'm safe for now. The entire E and D wings are completely clear of any staff from what I can tell. How far away are you?"

"I see," replied Wallace. "I'm just leaving my room in the C wing. I should be there in a few minutes, so stay where you are."

"Okay."

"I'm going to hang up," said Wallace. "Which bathroom are you in? I'll knock when I'm there."

"The one closest to the front desk," answered Ash.

Ash heard the distinguishable sound of a pokeball release in the background, as Wallace held the phone away from his ear.

"Follow me Swampert, something's come up," said Wallace, before directing his voice back towards the pokegear. "Alright, you said bathroom by the front desk, right? See you in a few."

"Click."

After the call ended, Ash hit the sleep button on his xtranceiver. He looked down at Growlithe, who was still restless. The pup's eyes were in a vacant daze, as he sat up straight, facing the door.

"Try to relax," murmured Ash. "I made a call to a friend. Whatever's going on aboard this ship, he'll help us sort it out."

Growlithe looked up at Ash with pleading eyes, as his mental state shifted from anger and fear, to solemnness. He quietly whined, while pacing in circles around Ash.

Ash crouched down into a squat, meeting his pup at eye level. He softened his eyes — gently stroking the tuft atop Growlithe's head. As Ash's serene poise rubbed off on him, the canine's countenance seemed to slightly settle by installments. The boy spent the next couple of minutes contemplating what could have caused such an adverse reaction. A loud noise and the smell of blood may be enough to get a member of Growlithe's species riled up. But this was different. It felt more personal. Almost like Growlithe had seen the crime take place, and felt the emotions involved.

His rumination was cut short, when there was a solid knock on the door. Ash was quick to answer, slowly cracking the door open for the champion. The dark-haired boy was relieved to see Wallace. Before a visual, there had been a strong looming thought in the back of his mind — what if someone else was on the other side of the door?

It was evident that Wallace had just woken up. His hair was all over the place and his eyes looked tired. His attire was elegant, but slightly less formal. He wore a slim, white dress-shirt with a staggering turquoise design. Wallace's polyester pants were a rich purple, depicting a certain air of royalty.

"Are you alright?" asked Wallace, as Ash and Growlithe filed out of the doorway.

"Yeah I–"

Ash's response was interrupted, as he saw the creature that stood by Wallace's side. It was definitely foreign, unlike anything that he had ever seen. The large, blue, fish-like reptilian stood on its bipedal legs, eyeing Ash with its beady, yellow eyes. The two, semi-circular, black fins on its head flopped back and forth, as it gazed down at Growlithe.

Ash glanced over at his pup, who appeared to be somewhat flustered by the strange pokemon. "It's okay buddy. It's one of the Champion's friends."

"Swampert, try and look a little less intimidating," groaned Wallace, as he lightly smacked the back of its neck. "Ash is our friend."

The pokemon known as Swampert shot its trainer an annoyed grimace, before holding its three fingered hand out to Ash.

The dark-haired boy was slightly dumfounded, while he shook the foreign beast's scaly hand. Swampert muttered something in its native tongue, as it released itself from the handshake. After its hand was free, it leaned over and patted a bewildered Growlithe gently on the head.

"That's better," said Wallace, before changing the subject. "Now Ash, show me where you found the blood."

"Okay…" said Ash, as he took his eyes off of the amazing exotic pokemon. "Follow me."

Accompanied by Growlithe and Swampert, Ash led Wallace across the lobby and over to the D Wing's lodging zone. They moved quietly — careful not to make any significant noise. Ash was astonished by the dexterity of the bulky, assumed to be water-type. Despite its powerful build, it was easily capable of concealing the sound of its movement.

When they neared the site of the blood, Growlithe's nose began to quiver. As they re-approached the scene, Ash could see the ferociousness reignite in his canine's expression. He wondered if maybe the pup's feral behavior was caused by the species' rumored ability to smell emotions. It made sense. If Growlithe was truly capable of picking up an emotion's scent; it was possible that the pup had felt the anguishing feelings akin to the incident. Ash made a mental note to explore this theory sometime in the near future; it may also have something to do with Growlithe's bizarre case of social anxiety.

The fresh blood lied in the same spot as before, coiling through the hallway towards the "employee's only" passage.

"Damn...that's a lot of blood," whispered Wallace, as they approached the door. "Ash it's up to you if you want to go any further. I don't want to be held responsible for what you might see. Swampert, prepare for a confrontation — things could get ugly."

The foreign water-type emitted a low, quiet grunt as it nodded its head.

Ash glanced down at Growlithe, who had a look of determination depicted across his face. The dark-haired boy gulped, before conjuring the courage to see this thing through to the end.

"I'll come," said Ash. "Growlithe and I would like to help if we can."

"Alright then," muttered Wallace, while attempting to pry open the locked door. "We can't waste any more time."

"It's locked…" groaned Ash, while rolling his eyes. "How are we going to get in?"

"It's not a problem," said Wallace, as he diverted his attention towards Swampert. "Break the lock quietly with ice beam and hammer arm."

Swampert took a deep breath, before emitting a silent, white beam. The temperature in the room temporarily fluctuated, as the frigid emission caused the room to turn cold. It lasted for the blink of an eye, before dwindling away. In wake of the quick-fire ice beam was a medial-sized slab of frozenness. It enshrouded the door's handle — protruding out of the door like a minuscule ice-berg.

"Try not to be loud with the hammer arm," commanded Wallace. "Hit it just hard enough to destroy the lock. We want to remain unnoticed for now. The fact that this mess wasn't cleaned up is very strange. Whoever did it obviously isn't worried about covering it up."

Swampert winded back its' right arm, enshrouding it in an orange blanket of energy. Ash could literally feel the power stored within its extremity, while the orange gilled creature swiftly struck the slab of ice. The impact was quieter than Ash would have expected, as the miniature iceberg in addition to the handle and part of the door, were severed from their originally crafted positions.

"Damn," said Ash, as Swampert easily pushed the door open in wake of the aftermath. "That was awesome."

"Yup," replied Wallace, while rubbing his eyes. "Swampert's ice beam tends to make most inanimate objects relatively brittle. Under normal circumstances, hammer arm would have done the job on its own. However, the volume from that approach would have been an issue."

"Makes sense," whispered Ash. "Are you ready?"

"Of course," answered Wallace with a smirk. "I was about to ask you the same question. Let's go."

Wallace and Swampert entered through the doorway, while Ash and Growlithe followed closely behind. The entrance revealed a long, narrow corridor. The trail of blood snaked its way all the way down the hall, before taking a sharp left turn. It was evident that a body had been dragged; and judging by the sheer amount of blood it was most likely dead. Whether it was human or pokemon was unknown. A lot of the earth's animalistic creatures had the same red-colored blood as the human race.

"Move quietly," whispered Wallace, as they traveled down the hall, while following the smeared scarlet trail. "Keep a look out behind us, Ash."

"Okay," replied Ash quietly, as he looked down to make sure Growlithe was still by his side.

The puppy pokemon glanced up at Ash with dangerous eyes, attempting to portray to his trainer that he was ready for confrontation.

As they approached the point where the trail diverted, Wallace signaled for them to stay put, before covertly glancing around the corner.

"It's clear," said Wallace, as he confidently stepped forward. "Come on let's go."

Ash, Growlithe, and Swampert obediently followed the Champion, while he led them down another hallway. This one was much shorter, quickly revealing another division within the corridor. Just before the hallway veered left, there was a cracked open door.

…In front of the door the trail of blood finally ceased.

In attempt to signal for them to be silent, Wallace placed a single finger up against his lips. He carefully maneuvered around the puddle of blood, placing his ear up against the sliver of open space in between the door and the frame. Behind the door, they could hear a conversation between two men with rough intonations.

Ash followed suit, precariously dodging the blood like it was an explosive in a minefield. He crouched down to the ground, pressing his ear to the crack in order to successfully eavesdrop…

"So according to the executive leader, the plan should have already been completed," said the lower of the two male inflections.

"They were supposed to have the target out of here by 1:45," replied the other young, rough sounding man. "So unless there were some unforeseen complications, I believe you're right."

"God...this plan's been in the woodworks for so damn long," groaned the deep, scratchy voice.

"It's going to be worth it though," replied the younger of the two voices. "The world's reaction is going to be priceless."

"When they find out that Team Rocket is back," said the deeper inflection. "The region is going to breakout into an uproar."

Ash's eyes grew big and his lower lip trembled, at the sound of the infamous name. There wasn't a single soul in Kanto that hadn't heard of the devilish crime-syndicate, known as: Team Rocket. Team Rocket was a massive underground organization, whose foundation was rotten to the core. Where their name arises, chaos soon follows. Not much is known about their leadership, or who is amongst their ranks. But, their organization is responsible for several large-scale crimes over the past decade.

…The bombing of Fuchsia City's city hall in, 2005.

...The chaotic armed robbery of the Celadon Department Store in, 2007.

…The robbery of the Pewter Museum of Science in, 2008.

…In 2010, there was the abduction of several scientists, stationed at the Pokemon Lab on Cinnabar Island.

And those are just to name a few. Team Rocket's account of tcransgressions, would make a yellow-book look like a travel brochure. Fortunately for the region of Kanto, the organization had remained dormant for the past five years. No one knows why. Some people say that they lost sight of their original goal and therefore disbanded. Others believe that there was fallout amongst their ranks, causing an internal implosion. But most people are convinced that they've been biding their time, waiting for the perfect opportunity to strike.

Regardless, one thing was absolutely certain; their presence on this ship was unnerving.

The lower inflection gratingly coughed, before continuing. "Dammit! We've got to do something about this kid's body. The atrocious smell is starting to get to me."

"Just bear with it," replied the other disembodied voice. "We've only got ten minutes until we're supposed to report to deck."

"Do you think we should have cleaned up our mess?" asked the deeper voice. "Don't you think we could get in trouble with the executive if we get caught?"

"Na…it's no big deal," replied the young, raspy inflection. "Besides, we did the woman a favor. The damn squirt was snooping around the ship. If we didn't kill him, who knows what could have happened."

"Well, I know we had to kill him…" said the lower intonation. "But what if someone traces the blood?"

"Eh…whatever," retorted the raspy man. "The ship will be up in flames in thirty minutes anyways."

Ash nearly fell over, as Wallace finally had heard enough. The Champion burst through the door in a fury, confronting the two wicked men.

"What the hell!" shouted the man with the raspy intonation. He looked to be around his mid-twenties. He was relatively thin, and his countenance looked corrupt. You could see the sin oozing through his eyes, as he glared at Wallace.

"Dammit Sid, I knew we should have cleaned up that mess!" bellowed the other Rocket, while reaching for a pokeball that was fastened to his uniform's belt.

The man with the lower inflection was a large, boarder line obese, middle-aged man. After a brief observation, Ash was able to deduce that they both wore the same black jump-suit. Painted across their chests was a big red "R" — recognizable as Team Rocket's infamous logo.

"Disarm and constrain, Swampert!" commanded the champion with fire in his eyes. "Try not to cause too much damage, I want to interrogate them.

The exotic water-type barreled into the room, simultaneously firing a lightning-fast barrage of water-guns. They honed in on their targets, destroying the clip in between their pokeballs and trainer belts. The result was a distinct clattering sound, caused by the cluster of metallic spheres colliding with the tile. The impact between the spheres and the ground thankfully didn't result in a release, since the capture devices had yet to be enlarged.

With a violent thrust of its palms, Swampert proceeded to send both of the disgusting humans hurtling towards the wall. Upon impact, he subsequently emanated a flurry of ice beams. The temperature in the room, once again dropped for a fraction of a second, as the beams of ice tore through the air. They struck both of the Rockets at four points, binding them to the wall with cuffs of hailstone. The two men lied against the wall — limbs stretched out like a staryu.

As Wallace approached the two men with an unrestrained dogma, Ash noticed the battered body wedged into the corner of the room. He gagged at the sight, barely managing not to throw up — he'd never seen something so abominable. There were multiple lacerations around the abdomen, an evident sign of a stabbing. The young boy was drenched in his own blood, and his eyes were still open portraying an image of hopelessness. How someone could do something like this to a child his age was heinous.

But, unfortunately, the gruesomeness of the sight wasn't the worst part about it.

…The repugnancy of the murder wasn't what caused Ash's stomach to drop and his body to tremor.

He knew him — Ash recognized his face.

It was the boy he'd battled against in the last round of the preliminaries.

It was Chance Chapman — the trainer with the promising pidgeotto.

Growlithe scampered over to the boy's body. His whine was solemn, as he sniffed at the pokeballs attached to Chance's belt. There were four red and white spheres fastened around his trainer belt. Ash held his breath, as he pushed through the foul smell of the mangled body. He knew what he had to do. He had to deliver Chance's pokeballs to someone that could properly take care of them, preferably Professor Oak. The Professor's corral was well known for being one of the best domestic pokemon reserves in the region. They would be safe to mourn under the Professor's watch.

Ash glanced over at Growlithe, who nodded his head in approval. The dark-haired boy detached Chance's pokeballs from his belt, before using an untainted part of Chance's jacket to too wipe the blood from the mechanical orbs. He pulled off his backpack, before placing the quartet of pokeballs in one of the middle pockets. The ten-year old boy simultaneously heard the cry of painful sounding grunts behind him, as Wallace interrogated the criminals.

"Come on boy," said Ash, as he stood up from his crouch. "There's nothing else we can do here."

Growlithe murmured, before following Ash over to Wallace and the two shackled Rockets.

"Tell me where the bomb is now!" ordered Wallace, as he punched the heavier of the two Rockets in the gut.

The alto-toned man coughed up blood, as he answered with a barbarous laugh. "Even if I knew, I wouldn't tell you — Wallace Mikari."

Wallace responded with another powerful uppercut, before replying. "You must know something!"

The man retorted with another maniacal laugh, as a stream of blood dribbled down his chin. "I do know this. You better start moving if you want to stop this ship from blowing up. The clock's ticking."

"Why is Team Rocket doing this?" asked Wallace vehemently. "What's your motive?"

The man snickered under his breath, before sadistically smiling from ear to ear. "Power; what else is there?"

"I see…" said Wallace, before changing the subject on account of the man's insanity. "I have one more question. I overheard you talking about a target. Who was it?"

The heavyset rocket instantaneously glanced at his younger accomplice, who gave him a smile bearing nod. "I guess it won't bring any harm to the operation. It's already been done anyway. The executive has kidnapped Robert Montgomery — good luck finding him."

Wallace's eyes bulged and his expression contorted, as he grabbed the man by the hair. "Tell me you didn't!"

The masochistic Rocket laughed, while the champion viciously ripped at his scalp.

The skinnier of the two Rockets interjected; his countenance was cold and unembellished. "He's not dead, if that's what you're saying. The executive made it perfectly clear that no one was to harm him — the Boss needs him."

"Boss?" asked Wallace. "Is the Boss different from the executive?"

"The executives are the Boss's most trusted members…" hissed the raspy-toned Rocket. "The Boss is our leader."

"The Boss, eh?" thought Wallace aloud, as he turned to Ash. "Let's go Ash…we're done here. We've got to get everyone off of this ship. We don't have much time."

"Hold on," pleaded Ash. "I have to know something before we go."

"Very well," muttered Wallace. "But make it quick. Lives are at stake."

Ash directed his attention towards the raspy-toned Rocket, before asking his question. "Why did you kill the kid? Why did you kill Chance?"

"He was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time," said the Rocket. "He overheard us talking about the plan."

"So, you killed an innocent kid," answered Ash. "Because he was wandering the halls at the wrong time."

"Pretty much," replied the Rocket known as Sid, while creepily licking his lips. "I also like the sight of blood."

"You monster!" howled Ash, as he threw his fist at the man's face.

Wallace quickly interposed, grasping Ash firmly by the wrist. "Ash, we don't have time for this. We have to go!"

"He killed an innocent kid!"

"And many more will die if we don't hurry!" scolded Wallace. "The S.S. Anne is about to blow! We have to warn the rest of the passengers!"

Ash looked down at Growlithe, who frantically gestured his head towards the door. "Okay. I see your point."

"Alright, so we need to find the ship's intercom system," said Wallace. "Follow me. My guess is that it's in the A Wing."

"Wait…Wallace," said Ash, as he gestured towards the two Rockets. "I know they probably deserve it, but what about them? Are we just going to leave them here?"

Wallace frowned. "I don't like the prospect of leaving anyone to die, but we don't have a choice. We can't let them go free. If they disclose that we have knowledge of the bomb to their associates, they could destroy our chances at saving the rest of the passengers."

"I see what you're saying," replied Ash with a contemplative expression. "But…"

"No buts!" barked Wallace. "Every second we waste is vital! Ash these are the tough decisions you to make, when you've been given the opportunity to make a difference. If we have to let two evil souls perish in order to save thousands, it's really a no brainer. This is the choice we must make!"

Ash gulped, as the two Rocket's fates had been decided. "I understand."

Ash and Growlithe followed Wallace and Swampert out of the room. As they exited the small cabin, they could hear a duet of crazed laughter coming from behind them.

"Remember our names kid — Sid and Jack!" hissed the scrawnier of the two Rockets. "I hope our deaths haunt you for the rest of your life!"

Wallace responded by shutting the door, muting the voice of the psychopathic Rocket. "Don't listen to him, Ash. This one's on me. I made the choice, so let me live with the pain."

Ash didn't know what to say. He simply remained quiet, while Wallace led them down the hall — back towards the entrance. The trail of blood was even more ominous the second time around. Knowing that it belonged to someone he knew, made the experience that much more repugnant. As hard as Ash tried to fight off the intrusive thoughts, he couldn't remove Chance's mangled body from his mind. The blood, the smell, the look of hopelessness in his eyes; he couldn't disintegrate the awful cerebral impressions. His mind had been scarred by the image of a mutilated boy. His psyche had forever been tainted, by his first encounter with pure evil.

Ash looked down at Growlithe, who appeared to be going through a similar mental digestion. The pup had been just as affected as Ash — maybe even more so. If Ash's hypothesis was correct, Growlithe had felt the murder take place with his aromatic awareness. Witnessing a murder and seeing its aftermath, are two entirely different cataclysms. Ash wasn't entirely positive how different the mental affects of witnessing a murder visually or aromatically would be. But, he was sure that Growlithe's trauma was probably worse than his.

"Ash, can you call Austin?" asked Wallace — interrupting the boy's mental assimilation. "We'll probably need his firepower."

"Okay," stuttered Ash, as they passed through the "employee's only" door, back into the D Wing's lodging zone. "I'll call him right now."

In search of Austin's pokegear number, Ash flipped through the contacts compiled within his xtranceiver. Once he found it, he quickly pressed dial.

"Ring…"

"Ring…"

"Ring…"

"Ring…"

"Click."

"Yes…" griped Austin hazily, as he picked up the phone.

"Austin. It's Ash," said the ten-year old boy. "There's been an emergency. Wallace and I need your help."

"An emergency?" mumbled Austin. "What kind of emergency?"

"Like…this ship's about to blow up in twenty-five minutes kind of emergency," replied Ash. "Team Rocket's on this ship. They kidnapped Robert Montgomery."

"…What the f-!"

Austin's verbal explosion was interrupted by Wallace, as the champion grabbed Ash's wrist in order to talk into the xtranceiver. "Austin it's Wallace. I need you to grab all of your important stuff and meet us in the A Wing's lobby in five minutes. This place has been completely infiltrated by Team Rocket. Do not trust anybody on staff. Like Ash said, we only have twenty-five minutes in counting. Grab your pokemon and anything else that's important, hurry!"

Wallace indelicately released Ash's wrist, as he cantered off in a jog. "Ash, Swampert, Growlithe — lets go!"

Ash held his xtranceiver up to his lips, as he followed Wallace at a high-pace. "See you soon man."

"Click."

XXX

The A Wing wasn't nearly as empty as the upper wings. It was far from busy, but there were still a few active passengers. Ash and Wallace spotted Austin, who was anxiously pacing back and forth by the lobby's unoccupied front desk. Ash watched as the chiseled face teenager's eyes lit up, when he caught a glimpse of them rapidly approaching.

"Ash, what the hell man? You can't tell me that the ship's about to blow up, and then hang up the freaking phone," scolded Austin.

"What else was I supposed to do?" asked Ash. "I don't have time to explain. We've got to get this ship evacuated."

"He's right," interrupted Wallace. "Austin, there is no time to argue about anything. Time is ticking as we speak."

"Fair enough," groaned Austin. "What do we have to do to make sure that nobody dies?"

"Well, we need to inform the entire ship of what's going on," explained Wallace. "The fastest way to do that is to use the ship's PA system — which is located in the wheelhouse on the bridge."

"And where's that?" asked Austin.

"In the A Wing," answered Ash. "That's why we're here."

"The A Wing is the biggest part of the ship," stated the young teen, facetiously. "Where in the A Wing are we supposed to go?"

"I know the way," replied Wallace. "My first day aboard the ship, Ariana took me on a tour of the bridge. Follow me."

"Alright," answered the two boys simultaneously. "Let's go."

Wallace led the group through the lobby and passed the A Wing's lodging zone. The A wing's cabins were few and far between, signifying their diminutive selectivity and enormous size. The wing consisted of numerous deluxe penthouses and the ship's casino. It also served as the primary entertainment wing, consisting of the bulk of the ship's night life.

As they neared the edge of the lodging zone, Austin spoke up. "Why don't we try and disarm the bomb?"

"We have no idea where it is," muttered an exhausted Ash, while they entered the A Wing's state of the art casino. "The Rockets we interrogated didn't even know its location."

"Dammit!" cursed Austin. "Wallace, do you really think that we'll be able to get everyone off?"

"It's hard to say," huffed Wallace, as they sprinted through the casino. "All we can do is try our best!"

In response to their haste, the squadron of five got several confused stares from the gambling passengers.

"Why aren't we informing the people that we're passing by?" asked Austin. "Wouldn't it save us time?"

"Not necessarily," answered Wallace. "People are skeptical. In order to ensure that they'll take the alert seriously, we need to do whatever we can to deliver the message in a credible way. The only people with access to the ship's intercom system is the Captain and the Cruise Director. The passengers are much more likely to listen if the message is delivered through the system."

Ash checked both of his peripherals. To his right was Growlithe. The puppy pokemon looked to be holding up well. Ash wasn't surprised; his starter's endurance training had been rigorous over the passed month. To his left was Wallace's Swampert. The foreign water-type didn't even seem phased by the long-distance lope — which was to be expectant of a Champion's pokemon.

However, Ash himself was feeling the throes of exhaustion. And after taking one good look at Wallace, he could tell that the champion was as well. The grind of pushing their bodies to the limit for an extended period of time was starting to wear on them. Wallace wasn't nearly as tired as Ash, though. The champion's mature body, and evident proof of physical conditioning, had him prepared for times like this. Ash, on the other hand, was merely ten years old. His body was premature and fragile — years away from its physical prime. Right now, there wasn't all that much Ash could do other than persevere through the strain.

When they reached the other side of the casino the A Wing opened up into a second antechamber. This lobby appeared to be much more bent towards entertainment based guest services. It was busier than the other lobbies they had passed through — which was expectant of the A Wing. Ash noticed that the people appeared to be peeved by the delay of service. The front desk was once again unoccupied — which didn't come as a surprise. If what the two Rockets from the D Wing said was true, the majority of the Rocket infested staff was probably reporting to deck in order to escape the explosion.

After jogging through the lobby, they followed Wallace into a narrow, abbreviate corridor.

"Are we almost there?" asked Ash, while breathing heavily.

"It's right up ahead," stated Wallace, as they approached another, employee's only, door.

Upon advent, Wallace swiftly reached out and pulled on the door's handle. Surprisingly, it was unlocked — which saved them a considerable amount of time. The champion swung open the heavy door, before hastily signaling the rest of them through.

"Keep your eyes peeled," warned Wallace. "Now might be a good time to release a pokemon, Austin."

"Gotchya," answered the teenager, as they trotted down the corridor.

The messy haired teen unclipped a pokeball from his belt, before pressing down the release button. In a flash of incandescent, white light a powerful looking golduck was revealed. It momentarily paused — confused by its current whereabouts.

"There's been an emergency!" explained Austin. "Follow us! Be prepared for battle!"

The blue, bipedal, duck-like pokemon accepted the command with engaged eyes, as it cantered alongside its trainer. It cracked open its' long, cream-colored beak and used one of its sharp, webbed claws to tap the red jewel embedded into its forehead. In concurrence with the tap, a wide, purple-tinted light encompassed their surroundings. Ash recognized the technique as light screen — a status move that helps protect against elemental attacks.

"Good thinking, Golduck!" praised Austin, as they turned around a sharp corner. "That'll give us protection from unwarranted projectiles."

"Hopefully we won't need it," stated Wallace, as they neared a door at the end of the corridor. "This is the passage to the wheelhouse. The intercom should be in here."

The champion heaved open the door, antecedent to instantaneously dashing to the right of the embellished room. Ash's eyes bulged, as a flurry of purple coated needles, were fired at the door like a round of ammunition poured fourth from a tommy gun.

"Swampert, intercept!" commanded Wallace.

The foreign water-type rushed forward, using all four of its limbs to quickly cover ground. It gaped open its mouth, before unloading an enormous, hard-packed ball of mud at the enfilade of toxic needles. It caused a muculent explosion — filth flew everywhere in response to the collision, temporarily obscuring everyone's vision of the room.

Ash quickly turned to Austin. "Did you see its source?"

"No...I didn't," answered Austin. "But that was a flurry of poison stings. It's got to be some kind of poison-type."

"Must be…" muttered Ash, as he looked down at his fuming fire-type.

"Good thing you put up that light screen," said Austin, to his golduck. "It kept all of us squeaky clea-."

Austin's doltish statement was interrupted by a charged up Ash.

"I see it!" howled the ten-year old boy, as a vehement cobra pokemon unveiled itself. "It's an arbok!"

Behind the purple-scaled, serpentine pokemon., Ash could see the form of its trainer. The creepy looking man that commanded the fully-evolved arbok wore the same black jump suit as the Rockets from the D Wing. Furthermore, his weasel-like countenance was familiar. Ash recognized him. He was the man that had signed him up for the tournament on his first day aboard the ship — Reid.

Wallace sprinted back over to the boys, who both stared ahead at the creepy Rocket. "You two, do you see the intercom system over there?"

Ash examined Wallace, who was pointing towards the right side of the room. The right half of the wheelhouse served as the ship's command center. Pushed up against a fiber-glass wall, was a gangling counter that bore all kinds of buttons and controls. Through the transparent wall, you could see the bridge-deck and the eerie, black ocean. The only light that could be seen was the reflection of the stars — which was about to alter, on account of the explosive fire that would engulf the S.S. Anne in less than twenty minutes.

"I don't see it," blurted Austin. "There's way to much crap over there to single anything out."

"Is that it?" asked Ash, as he pointed at a small, radio-like device, situated to the right of the annular steering wheel.

"Yes!" shouted Wallace. "Go make the announcement! I'll take care of the Rocket!"

"What should I do?" asked Austin anxiously.

Wallace pointed over to the other side of the room, while Swampert fired another mud bomb in order to fend off a second barrage of poison stings. "Go check if they're alive!"

Before Ash headed over to the intercom system, he glanced over at the left side of the wheelhouse. Pushed up against the wall were two limp bodies. The idle men wore proper navy-blue captain's attire — their formal hats lied a few feet from their bodies, stained by scarlet-red blood.

"Dammit!" yelled Austin. "I didn't notice them until now! Let's go check on em Golduck!"

Ash watched the duo canter off towards the two bodies, before following his orders. "Come on Growlithe! We've got to hurry!"

As Ash turned his body from the action, he could hear the sound of Reid's arbok shriek in agony. Judging by the tremendous upward shift in temperature, it was obvious that Swampert was burning the poison-type with some sort of high-temperature technique. On account of Swampert's typing, the Champion-level specimen was most likely using scald, or some sort of variation of the boiling technique.

Once the ten-year old boy reached the control panel, he examined the intercom system. It consisted of a protruding microphone that was planted into the control panel; in addition to a speaker and a custom dial pad. The dial pad consisted of numerous buttons — all corresponding to different parts of the ship. However, Ash was only interested in one. Situated in the top right-hand corner of the dial pad was a button that read: "PA" (Public Address)

Ash wasted no time — proceeding to hit the "on" button in the top-left corner, before pressing the "PA" button in the top-right. He cleared his throat away from the microphone, in precedence to speaking into the metallic, oval-shaped device.

"Attention passengers aboard the S.S. Anne!" bellowed Ash in the lowest intonation he could muster. "There's been a Team Rocket infiltration aboard the ship! They have armed a bomb that's set to explode in fifteen minutes! Grab only your most prized possessions and report to deck! Trainers that can escape by either flying-type, or water-type, go ahead! Bring others if possible! There are lifeboats on deck! Time is ticking! This is not a drill! Hurry! I repeat this is not a drill!"

As Ash put the microphone back down, he could hear the sound of his voice echo throughout the ship's PA system. For good measure, he proceeded to look for some type of emergency button. On the far left side of the control panel was a protruding glass box. Inside of the protective barrier was a thick, red button. Underneath the button read: "Emergency Alert Siren".

Before swinging open the glass box, the ten-year old boy hastily undid the latch on the side of the protective barrier. While Wallace barked his next command, he could feel the sudden temperature drop in the room, most likely caused by ice beam. Ash used his palm to briskly press down the emergency siren's trigger. In subsequence to pressing the thick, red button; a loud, blustering alarm was disembogued through the PA system. Ash fought off the urge to cover his ears, as he turned around to check out the scene behind him.

The initially minacious arbok was frozen in a massive block of ice. Its eyes looked vacant, as it was hoisted vertically in an icebound comatose. Its trainer, Reid, was bound by hailstone to one of the solid walls — similar to how Jack and Sid were constrained in the D Wing. A flush faced Austin stood next to an enraged Wallace, who was trying to extract information from the masochistic Rocket. Golduck and Swampert stood on both sides of Reid — ready to receive commands from their trainers. While checking the time on his xtranceiver, the ten-year old boy, accompanied by Growlithe, subsequently loped over to the intense interrogation.

"Where did you take Mr. Montgomery?" asked a fumed Wallace, as he grabbed Reid by his insidious face.

Reid laughed like a gengar, before curtly replying. "That's for you to figure out, Champion."

Wallace squeezed Reid's face even tighter, while depicting an ominous disposition of his own. "Dammit! Just tell me!"

"You couldn't get me to talk if you boiled me alive," said Reid. "Team Rockets been trained for situations like this."

Wallace's expression turned even darker, as he looked at Reid with cold, knife-like eyes. "Why don't we find out for sure, Swampert scal-!"

"Don't!" yelled Austin. "I've seen enough death today!"

Ash instantly glanced over to the far side of the room. The two captain's bodies were still and turned over. From his vantage point, the dark-haired boy could see the massive gashes in the back of their heads. They were dead — killed by two heavy blows to the head.

Ash quickly chimed back into the action. Chance Chapman's murder had already begun to take effect on his psyche, numbing his response to the morbid tragedy.

"Austin's right!" howled Ash. "Wallace we've got to get up to the main deck. People are going to need help getting off. Let's go!"

Wallace forcefully shook himself out of his enraged trance, as Ash's words got through to him. "You're right, let's go. Besides, I have an idea of where they took Robert. Follow me. We can get up to the deck through here."

The champion left Reid frozen to the wall, antecedent to cantering over to a door adjacent to the ship's control panel. Amidst all of the chaos, Ash had failed to notice the steel passage anteriorly to the present moment. On account of the fiber-glass wall, you could tell that the heavy-looking steel door led out to the bridge-deck. Ash, Austin, and their pokemon frantically followed Wallace through the doorway. Upon exit, the dark-haired boy simultaneously saw the reflection of Reid, who was sadistically snickering in the background…

The rapid wind was frigid atop the exterior bridge-deck. Ash tightened the straps to his backpack and held on to his cap firmly, as Wallace directed them towards a short ladder. It was bolted onto a solid, steel wall — adjacent to the transparent fiber-glass. They could hear the ominous sound of frantic passengers, as they promptly climbed up the ladder to the main deck. Much to Growlithe's displeasure, Swampert carried him up the ladder with one of his giant hands, while using the other to grapple up.

The S.S. Anne's primary deck was in a state of utter confusion, as thousands of people looked for a way off of the ship. Uncorrupt sailor's were lowering lifeboats full of people, impressing Ash by their sheer quickness to report to duty. Their encompassing field of vision was full to the brim with trainers mounting large flying-types; while the sea was clustered with water-types capable of transportation.

Ash looked hard, but he didn't see any Rockets. Chances are they had already evacuated the ship…

To his left, Ash saw about a dozen people clinging onto the scales of a momentous sea-serpent. The Gyarados roared, as it treaded on top of the water. Grasping onto the blue, dragon-like scales along the base of its neck was the pretty-faced girl that placed second in the S.S. Anne's tournament. She commanded the beast with grace, proving herself to be a trainer with a formidable presence.

…It was well know that any trainer that could keep a Gyarados under their control had a considerable amount skill.

To his right, Ash watched a decent-sized pidgeot take off from the deck. Despite the evident strain, it managed to carry three people on its back. The ten-year old boy recognized the lead trainer riding the pidgeot. She was the girl that had placed fourth in the tournament — Alexia Fuller. Alexia's strong pidgeot reminded him of the state of his pidgeotto. The bird was unconscious on account of his battle against Austin's fearow. Pidgeotto wouldn't be an available escape option.

"I don't have a way off the ship," said Ash. "My pidgeotto still hasn't recovered, and I don't have a water-type capable of long-distance transportation."

"Don't worry, I've got you covered," replied Wallace. "How much time do we have left?"

Ash checked the digital clock on the face of his xtranceiver, before answering. "Approximately ten minutes."

"Austin — you have a ride, right?" asked Wallace.

"Yeah, I've got Fearow," answered the chiseled face teen.

"How many people do you think it can carry?" asked Wallace. "It seemed like a strong flyer when you battled Ash.

"Eh…Fearow can probably manage two more," answered Austin. "That is, depending on the size of the other passengers."

"Do you think Fearow can make it to Lavender Town?" asked Wallace. "It should be relatively close."

"Probably," answered Austin, while pointing to Ash's xtranceiver. "Ash, does that thing have a map?"

"Yeah, hold on," answered Ash, as he fired up the high-tech GPS on his xtranceiver. "Let's see...I just gotta plug in Lavender Town, and…Here it is!"

"Let me see it."

Austin grabbed Ash's wrist, as he looked at the small digital map on the apparatuses face. "This thing says Lavender Town's coast is about two-hundred miles from here. Fearow can easily fly that."

"Splendid," replied Wallace with a smile. "Go find a couple more people to take with you and get out of here. Ash and I will meet you at Lavender Town's Pokemon Center as soon as possible."

"Deal!" exclaimed the messy haired teen, as he cantered off into the skirmish. "Don't mess around too much! I'd like to see you guys again!"

"We'll be right behind you!" yelled Wallace, as he appeared to be mulling something over in his head.

Ash watched Austin curtly grab a couple of confused bystanders, before releasing his feral flying-type. In the blink of an eye, the chiseled faced teen had the two befuddled passengers hanging onto Fearow for dear life, while they hastily took off into the night sky.

"How much time now, Ash?" asked Wallace once again, as the amount of crazed passengers rapidly diminished.

Ash checked his xtranceiver once again, while his heart began to pound and his palms started to sweat. "Seven minutes."

"Alright," said Wallace. "I should be able to get everyone else off of here; I just need get everybody's attention."

"There's at least a thousand people left up here!" howled Ash. "How are you going to manage that?"

"Watch," answered Wallace, as he unclipped two pokeballs from his trainer belt.

The champion proceeded to stand at the edge of the ship's railing, as he pressed both release buttons. He aimed the far-reaching, bulky streams of light at the black body of water, before turning his head back to Ash. "Meet our rides…"

The entire ship swayed back and fourth, as the two gargantuan water-types emerged from the depths of the sea. The duo was of the same species — but varied in color. The sheer immensity between both colossal beings was otherworldly. Ash recognized them from his pre-requisite studies: Wailord…the float whale pokemon.

"Use surf to raise your water level!" howled Wallace. "Bring your backs up to deck level! There are quite a lot of people that we need to get off of this ship!"

Ash watched, while the two fifty-foot whales emanated a loud, deep, horn-like sound — before steadily rising up about forty-feet to evenly reach the deck. From a point blank vantage point, Ash was able to descry each wailord's features. Both were identical in thickness and length. The only difference lied in their color schemes. One had a blue posterior, while the other had a phlox-purple posterior.

Ash was unable to see their underbellies. But based off of his pre-knowledge of the foreign species, he was positive that the non-mutated wailord had a tan bottom half. Outside of the dragonite he met at Bill's lighthouse, Ash had zero knowledge of the distinct color-schemes of shiny pokemon. However, based off of the purple wailord's visible, off-white colored mouth it most likely had a tan underbelly, just like the blue specimen.

Wallace subsequently hopped onto the head of the non-mutated wailord, before gesturing Ash over. The dark-haired boy wasted no time. He quickly climbed up and over the deck's railing, before leaping onto the same wailord that Wallace embarked on. Once Ash was safely atop the bouncy, blue wailord; Wallace began to gesture over the rest of the curious, terror-stricken passengers.

"Jump on!" yelled Wallace, as the frenzied passengers flooded atop both wailords. "We're running out of time, hurry!"

"Ash, how much time do we have left?" asked Wallace one last time, as the ten-year old boy watched the conflux of panicked people embark on the giant water-types.

Ash compliantly looked down at his xtranceiver. "Four minutes…"

"Let's go people!" bellowed Wallace, in response to the update. "Faster! Come on!"

Ash continued to sweat nervously, while he heard all sorts of anxious outcries disembogued by the panicked crowd:

"Godsend!"

"There's no more time!"

"We've got to get out of here!"

"Leave the rest, otherwise we'll all die!"

"I don't want to die!"

"Don't let me die here!"

"Please. Please. Please. Please. God!"

The dark-haired boy carefully watched his xtranceiver — which read that they had two minutes— as the last of the passengers climbed over the deck. Ash picked up Growlithe, who was way too preoccupied by their current circumstances to react anxiously to the mass of people.

"Wallace, we have to go!" screamed Ash at the top of his lungs. "There's no more time! It's going to blow!"

"…Pido! Dreca!" bellowed Wallace, amidst the sea of people. "Get us out of here!"

Both Wailords emitted a low, alto-toned, horn-like sound, before slowly starting to drift away from the ship. The multitude of people began to get antsy, as the wailords gradually put distance between themselves and the S.S. Anne.

"We need to go faster!" yelled Ash, as his xtranceiver read that they had a minute left.

"Don't worry," said Wallace. "They've got to feel it out first. They're carrying a lot of people. Pido and Dreca are figuring out how much speed they can afford to accumulate, without losing passengers. Besides, unless the bombs nuclear, we should almost be out of its range."

Just as Wallace promised, they promptly started to speed up by installments. Every few seconds, Ash felt like he could externally feel the increase in velocity, as it pressed up against his face by means of wind. At this point, Ash figured they were probably outside of the bombs scope. The dark-haired boy looked around at his surroundings; different people coped in different ways. Some curled up into a ball; others stood tall. Some closed their eyes; others didn't even blink. Some people shook; while others remained still. Some cowered in fear; while others depicted courage…

At the moment of the explosion, Ash had to cover his ears and close his eyes. The roar of the detonation was louder than anything he'd ever heard. His ear drums nearly ruptured from the sheer volume put forth. The atmosphere itself seemed to catch fire, as the bomb lit up the sky like the sun illuminates the galaxy. He could feel the heat emanating from the catastrophe, but it wasn't overbearing — signifying that they had cleared the eruptions range. When the heat settled, and the detonation silenced, Ash uncovered his sensory receptors.

The calamity was evident. The S.S. Anne was no more. The ship that had endured fifty years of safe travel had finally failed — defeated by an external source of evil. All that was left was an unrecognizable mass of flaming steel. Ash's psyche was instantly intruded by the faces of the dead rockets. The three agents of destruction took their last breath amidst the wreckage.

He coped with his disturbed mind by looking down at Growlithe, whose eyes were disoriented. Ash figured it was hard for the fire-type to watch his natural element used for such a calamitous purpose.

Ash glanced over at Wallace with perturbed eyes — the champion looked back at the dark-haired boy and Growlithe with a thankful expression.

"If it weren't for you two," confessed Wallace. "Everyone here would have died, including myself."

"No," said Ash. "We saved everyone together."

"I wouldn't have even known there was a bomb, if it weren't for you and Growlithe," answered Wallace. "I owe you my life."

"You don't owe me anything," answered Ash. "I was just in the right place at the right time."

"Fate wanted you there," answered Wallace, while emitting a massive sigh of relief. "Damn…I feel like I can breathe again."

Ash thought Wallace's statement over for a brief moment, before answering. "Fate is a strange thing..."

Their conversation was cut short by the eruption of the cheerful passengers. Ash turned around to watch, as the people celebrated the survival of their near-death experience.

"So many lives preserved…" drawled Wallace, as he rubbed the back of Swampert's fin.

"So many lives almost lost," answered Ash with clenched fists. "Because of Team Rocket…"

"Focus on the good for now," replied Wallace. "We'll worry about the return of Team Rocket tomorrow."

There was a brief moment of silence, before Ash severed it.

"So...we're headed for Lavender Town," answered Ash. "Why?"

"Well, its close," said Wallace.

"Fuchsia City can't be that much farther?" questioned Ash, skeptically. "Doesn't it make more sense to drop all of these people off at a major city?"

"I have my reasons," said Wallace with a smirk.

"And your reasons are…? Ash asked curiously.

"Lavender Town's closer to Saffron than Fuchsia," answered Wallace.

"Why does that matter?" asked Ash with a raised eyebrow.

"It matters... because Saffron is where Team Rocket is taking Mr. Montgomery."

Ash scoffed. "But that would mean-"

"Exactly," interrupted Wallace stoically. "Their target is Silph Co."

"But…why?"

"Because there's something at Silph Co. headquarters that they want," answered Wallace. "And they need Robert to get to it."

"What are they looking for?" asked Ash conspicuously.

"If I tell you…you have to promise not to tell a soul," answered Wallace sternly. "It's top secret information."

"I promise," answered Ash, as the wind of travel smacked against his face. "My lips are sealed."

"Very well," said Wallace, before continuing.

"Mr. Montgomery developed a new capture device," enlightened Wallace with a frown. "It's called the master ball."

"...The master ball?"

XXX

To be continued…

XXX

A/N:

Well there you have it: chapter 4. This chapter was super challenging to write, but also extremely fun. I know I got great feedback on chapter 3, but I felt like it was mostly adventure and lacked battles and action. So, although my plan from the beginning was to have the S.S. Anne tournament, I wrote out a lot more of the battles than I originally intended as a way to apologize. Hopefully, they remained interesting. The last two scenes really brought out the dark side of Essence. If you can't tell already my pokemon world is a lot more realistic than the series. A world with so many people and so many pokemon cannot exist without darkness. Unfortunately, the human race is corrupt. No one's perfect, and everyone has their dark spots. That's something that I want to explore in this story. Also, Wallace has been a character I've had big plans for since the beginning of my story. I really wanted to explore Hoenn's champion, and also wanted to expose Ash to foreign pokemon early on — even though I have no plans to have him capture one in the Kanto Arc, albeit maybe a Johto pokemon. Well anyway thanks for reading. Don't forget to review. Next chapter may be a bit shorter. My goal for every month is to release between 25,000 and 35,000 words. This chapter exceeded 40,000, but the S.S. Anne is something that needs to truly be fleshed out in order to work right. I hope you liked my interpretation. I'm changing the release date to the 13th every month. It was my fault for releasing a day early last month. I'm not going to make you wait longer on a chapter for my own convenience, even if it's only an extra day. It's been a month since my last update, so I'm updating today. tune back in on July 13 for chapter 5.

Much Love, vincentgrey21