Greetings, Mgunnels3 here, and welcome back to A Promise Kept Ash's Johto Journey. Let's get this first part/battle of the Whirl Cup going, shall we?
Chapter 70: A Dazzling water battle pt 1
"Human Speech"
"Pokemon Speech"
The Whirl Cup is now fully underway, a competition for the strongest water type user. Misty and Ash made it through to the second round of their brackets after tough battles in the first round.
It was the start of the second day of the competition as Ash was getting ready for his battle against Wallace. Who are the top coordinator, a runner for the champion of the Hoenn region, and co-gym leader for the Sootopolos city gym? Misty was also getting ready for her battle in the following bracket against Wallace's mentor and co-gym leader of the same gym.
"Man, to think we are both against two gym leaders who are pretty famous?" Ash said to Misty, who was surprised that Ash wasn't aware of them. "Huh? You've heard of them, Misty?" Ash questioned Misty, who nodded.
"Yeah, in fact, Wallace is the person who is the main reason why the Cerulean gym is known for water shows, not just for gym battles. He's an idol to them," Misty said to Ash, who was surprised by this. "As for Juan, I've heard of him, but sadly no knowledge of his feats compared to my sisters telling me about Wallace," Misty said to Ash.
"Well, I'm sure we shouldn't have to worry about them, Misty, but we shouldn't let our guard down either," Ash said to Misty, who nodded.
"I say you should take Ash's advice there, young lady," an older voice called out to the two trainers. Ash turned to see it was Pryce. "Been a long time Ash? I heard that you were here in Johto from your Uncle," Pryce said.
"Pryce, it has been a while. Good to see you again. If I remember correctly, you used to be the champion here?" Ash told Pryce this was before Lance took over when his Uncle couldn't win that title.
"That was years ago, Ash, that and I wasn't champion when we met, not anymore, but I wouldn't underestimate Wallace or his mentor," Pryce said to Ash and Misty. "I'll be waiting in the Tournament later down the road. I hope to see how you two younglings are as trainers," Pryce said as he left.
Ash sighed. "He's changed the last time I saw him. He was rather cold to trainers like you and me, Misty. Something must've changed," Ash told Misty, who was curious.
"I know he's a gym leader, but a former champion?" Misty said.
"Yeah, let's say a battle did a lot of damage to him and his Pokemon. As an Ice-type user, he's going to be a gym battle coming soon, actually in Mahogany town," Ash said. Misty knows why he is here cause most Ice types are part water Misty was about to say something but was interrupted.
"Will today's first two contestants arrive on the battlefield," the announcer said as Ash got up.
"Well, that's my cue. I'm going to need all the luck I can for this battle," Ash said to Misty, who nodded as Ash took his leave and headed to the battlefield. Ash knew that this was going to be a tough battle.
"Now for the first match of today's match from Pallet Town. He's made his way through the other tournaments here in Johto. Will he be able to make it so far? Give it up for Ash Ketchem," The announcer said as Ash arrived at the battlefield entrance. "Now for the next trainer, a wonderful master of the water arts and co-gym leader of the Sootopolos city gym Wallace," as Wallace arrived at the opposite side of the battlefield of Ash.
"Now, since both sides have more than two water types on their teams as per request of both the Sootopolos gym leaders, this will be a 3v3 battle instead of the standard 2v2 one," the announcer said as Ash and Misty were surprised by this, but Ash agreed to this as he couldn't turn down a challenge.
"Wonderful. At least someone here is willing to start changing the rules of the Tournament. Now, young Ash, let's see why the nephew of a fellow gym leader would hold up here against me?" Wallace said as he pulled out his first Pokeball. "Ludicolo comes on out," Wallace sent out his first Pokemon.
Ash looked up who that mon was, noticed it was part grass-type, and glared. "Given that there are no restrictions for the typing here in this, as long as it's a water-type is concerning," Ash thought and pulled out a Pokeball. "Time to take this up a notch, Mantine. Come on out," Ash sent out his first Pokemon as Mantine was in the water, ready to battle.
"Ludicolo vs. Mantine, let the battle begin," the ref announced as Ash and Wallace was ready to start this battle. Both Ash and Wallace were ready to start the match.
"Ludicolo, use Rain Dance and then Ice Beam," Wallace commanded his Pokemon, who made it rain and fired the Ice Beam at Mantine.
"Get underwater and use your ice beam, Mantine," Ash commanded his Pokemon, who dodged underwater and fired the Ice beam right at Ludicolo, who used the same Ice beam again, countering the attack as the two moves caused a massive icy battlefield that both water types were out of the water luckily that Mantine was capable of battling in the air not just the water. Everyone was amazed by the amount of power used against these Pokemon, as Ash knew that these two were at their limits. "Aerial Ace, let's go, Mantine," Ash commanded his Pokemon, who charged at Ludicolo.
"Ice Punch, let's go, Ludicolo," Wallace commanded his Pokemon. As the two Pokemon clashed, both Pokemon were knocked out, and both Ash and Wallace were surprised as the ice was melting from this as well.
"Mantine and Ludicolo both cannot battle," the ref announced as the ice melted. Both Ash and Wallace returned their Pokemon to their Pokeballs.
"This match is getting interesting, ladies and gentlemen, as these two are showing what this type of tournament should be, but it's only the beginning, so what will both trainers use next," The announcer said as Ash and Wallace pulled out their next Pokeball.
"Well, young man, you are doing well so far. You are doing much better than I thought, but can you keep it up? Milotic, come on out," Wallace sent out his next Pokemon, which he is known for using.
"Okay, Chinchou, come on out," Ash sent out his next Pokemon, who was somewhat shy, but she knew that she had to get used to being in tournaments while being with Ash and saw the Milotic and knew she was in for a good battle. "You gonna be okay, girl?" Ash asked Chinchuo, who nodded.
"I'm fine, Ash, and I won't let you down. Just be prepared, as this mon isn't the easiest to take down," Chinchou said to Ash, who nodded as Ash nodded, as he too had heard of this Pokemon before and knew that Milotic wouldn't let this battle be easy.
"Okay, use Thunderbolt," Ash commanded her, who fired the attack toward Milotic Wallace smirked as did Milotic, who took the attack.
"Now, Mirror Coat, send it right back," Wallace commanded his Pokemon, who fired the attack at Chinchou.
"Jump in the water now, Chinchou," Ash commanded her, who barely dodged the Thunderbolt attack before it reached her Wallace smirked, as did his Milotic.
"Now, use Twister on the water," Wallace commanded his Pokemon, whose tail slammed into the water, causing a massive whirlpool as it neared Chinchou.
"Psybeam now, Chinchou," Ash commanded her, whose antenna glowed and fired straight at Milotic just as the Twister hit her but stopped the attack as Chinchou was on the platform beside Ash. "Chinchou, you okay? You think you can still keep going?" Ash asked her, who nodded.
"I'm fine, Ash; I'm not going to let this get to me; I'm gonna fight till the very end," Chinchou said to Ash, who was still worried about her given she is still new to battles but couldn't say no to her wanting to finish this battle as Ash was about to say something as Chinchou was starting to glow as she jumped into the water given she was aware of what's going on she was now a Lanturn.
Ash looks her up on the Pokedex, sees some changes to her move set, and knows she will be helpful throughout the Tournament as she still has a shy personality but is determined to win. "Okay, use Confusion Ray and then use Psybeam," Ash commanded her, who used both moves as they hit the Milotic before it could use Mirror Coat, knocking it out.
"Milotic is unable to battle Lanturn wins," the announcer said as Wallace returned Milotic to his ball and smirked at Ash and Lanturn, who was enjoying the whole match so far.
"Not bad young man. You are battling well so far, like a gym battle, given how well you are displaying here in this battle, but this battle is far from over," Wallace said as he pulled out his Pokeball. "Blastoise, come on out," Wallace sent out his last Pokemon. Ash was surprised Wallace had a Blastoise but knew he had something up his sleeve regarding move sets.
"Let's do this, Lanturn. Use Thunderbolt now," Ash commanded, who launched the attack right at Blastoise as it was hitting him, doing minor damage.
"Mirror Coat now, Blastoise," Wallace commanded as it was sent back at Lanturn, hitting her, only for her to still be in the match. "Now, Hydro Cannon Blastoise," Wallace commanded his Pokemon. Ash was surprised to hear a new move like that as both cannons blasted at Lanturn.
"Discharge now, Lanturn and Psybeam," Ash commanded her, who fired both attacks at the attack, only for the Discharge to hits the Blastoise only for the Psybeam to be not strong enough to cancel the Hydro Cannon as Blastoise was Paralyzed, but Lanturn was knocked out.
"Lanturn is unable to battle Blastoise wins. The match is tied with both sides having one Pokemon left," the ref said as Ash returned Lanturn to her ball, praising her.
"That's the power of the most powerful attack a water starter knows just as strong as Hyper Beam and is the same with the other starters for the regions typing-wise," the announcer said as Ash realized that he had faced the same thing when he fought against Paul as Ash pulled out his last Pokeball.
"Feraligatr, come on out," Ash sent out his last Pokemon, who was ready for the battle. Wallace was pleased to see a starter vs. starter type of battle and knew this would be good. "Well, if the moves have the same power as Hyper Beam, they should also have the same issues. Use Mega Punch now, Feraligatr," Ash commanded him, who slammed his fist right into Blastoise, who couldn't use any moves cause of the side effects of such a powerful move.
"Well done, young man, but this isn't over that easily. Facade now, Blastoise," Wallace commanded his Pokemon, who slammed his fist right into Feraligatr, sending him into the water that got from that attack.
"That Discharge was a good move, but the cause of the Paralyzation side effects, Facade, which is a move that double damage when the Pokemon has status effects, isn't an ideal situation for you," Wallace explains as Ash remains calm, which Wallace noticed.
"Hydro Pump now, Feraligatr," Ash commanded his Pokemon, who fired the attack at Blastoise. It was faster than Blastoise could respond as it sent the Kanto water starter to the water. Both starters were in the water, ready to finish off this fight. "Slash now, Feraligatr," Ash commanded his water starter, who slammed his claw into Blastoise.
"Ice Punch now, Blastoise," Wallace commanded his POkemon, who punched Feraligatr as both their moves clashed, showing equal strength much to their differences of how long they've trained and battled as the two starters were above water now on the platform facing each other as the two were at their limits and knew that this battle will end soon.
"Hydro Pump now, Feraligatr," Ash commanded his Pokemon, who fired the attack at Blastoise.
"Hydro Cannon now," Wallace commanded his Pokemon, who fired the attack at the Hydro Pump as the two moves clashed. Even though Hydro Cannon was stronger, the two moves were equal power-wise, only for the Paralyzation to take effect for Blastoise and lose power for Hydro Pump to hit Blastoise, only for the Pokemon to still stand.
"End this with Ancient Power before it can recover from the Hydro Cannon," Ash commanded his Pokemon as Feraligatr sent the boulders toward Blastoise, who barely recovered from the side effects.
"Facade stop it now," Wallace commanded his Pokemon, who tried to stop the attack only for it to do the final blow as Blastoise was knocked out. Both Ash and Wallace were surprised by this.
"Blastoise is unable to battle Feraligatr; wins moving on to the next round is Ash from Pallet Town," the ref announced. Ash was surprised that he won that Feraligatr let out a roar and smiled at the victory against a fellow water starter as Wallace returned his Pokemon to his ball and sighed and nodded towards Ash, who went over to celebrate with Feraligatr.
The rest of the Tournament for Ash's bracket was wrapping up. Sissy, Prima, Casey, and Gary made the next rounds. Ash could tell he would be up against Sissy in the next round. Now it was time for Misty's turn against Wallace's apprentice Juan.
Wallace watched from the stands as the two gym leaders were with each other and, of course, would leave once the competition was over as Misty and Juan made it to the battlefield.
"Knowing what Ash went through, Juan will request a 3v3 battle; if so, we need to be prepared for anything," Misty thought as Juan noticed that Misty was prepared for anything.
"Well, young lady, I must say, for a fellow water-type gym leader, I'm surprised to have faced you in battle," Juan said to Misty, who nodded. "Well, as my mentor said, I'm willing to do a 3v3 battle as well, and it seems you are okay with it as well?" Juan asked Misty, who nodded.
"Yes, I am; I'm not going to back down to a challenge from someone trained by one of my sister's idols, so I will accept," Misty said to Juan, who nodded.
"Well, you heard the two folks. This will be a 3v3 battle, so we will allow it to let out your first Pokemon, and we can begin," the announcer said as Misty and Juan pulled out their first Pokeball.
"Walrein, come on out," Juan sent out his first Pokemon, who looked like another version of the Dewgong line typing-wise, as Misty smiled and pulled out her Pokeball.
"Well, this should be interesting, and for our first battle, no less," Misty looked at her Pokeball. "I promised that we give you a battle, so let's go, Slowking," Misty sent out her first Pokemon, Misty's Slowpoke, which she caught back in Azalea town while Ash was doing his gym battle and was now her first battle as Juan claps.
"An interesting choice, young lady, so let's see how well you will handle yourself in battle, Walrein. Use Ice Ball," Juan commanded his Pokemon Misty had heard of this move and knew that she would have to be careful.
"Now, Shadow Ball Slowking," Misty commanded her Pokemon as the two moves clashed.
With Ash's battle now over, Misty picks up the pace and is now against someone just as strong as Wallace. Who will win in the end? Misty or Juan? Stay tuned.
Meanwhile, Charizard's group, on the fourth and final Island that isn't privy to humans unless tied to the league or was born on the Island, were resting from training and eating.
Charizard and Pidgeot were sitting next to each other when Dragonair noticed that the two were acting more than just starting a relationship. "So, how long have you two known each other and Ash?" Dragonair asked Charizard and Pidgeot.
"Well, Ash saved me from my former trainer. It's been almost three years. It will be that in a few months from now," Charizard said to Dragonair while explaining what happened, much to his dismay, as Dragonair nodded.
"As for myself, I've known Ash for just as long, but longer than you think, Charizard," Pidgeot said to Charizard, who was curious. "Not as long as Noctowl has for Ash, but I was the young Pidgey that Ash tried to catch the day he started and leading up to what started the whole issue with Fearow back then," Pidgeot said to Charizard.
"Does Ash know about that? I mean, he must've realized that when you two met, you were a Pidgeotto when he caught you?" Charizard asked Pidgeot sighed and shook her head.
"Sadly, no, though I'm surprised that Fearow knew that I was there back then, but when I get the chance, I will tell him," Pidgeot said to Charizard and then turned to Dragonair. "Two years is how long your brother and I known each other as I was away from the team for that time; I know that it doesn't make sense for Ash and us, but I was gone for a year," Pidgeot asked her curious as to why she would ask that question.
"It's fine, I understand; I asked 'cause you two are acting more than just friends, and from your comment when I met, you say it all," Dragonair said to Pidgeot and Charizard as they blushed and Dragonair giggled. "Come on, it's pretty obvious that you two are acting like one, and I find it cute that you would act the way you did when you saw me hug my brother, Pidgeot."
"She's definitely your twin sister Charizard, but more tolerant and isn't as clueless as you are," Pidgeot told Charizard. He was about to say something but had to admit she was right as Dragonair giggled. "Well, we should continue the training we just started, and you're a quick study, that much I'll say, Dragonair," Pidgeot said to Dragonair, who nodded.
"Runs in the family. Even half Charmanders are fast learners when it comes to training, but I agree to Ash's standards we're still a bit aways away," Charizard crossed his claws as Charizard felt like someone was watching the group.
"You felt that too, huh? We are in the Whirl Islands, so many Pokemon can probably spot us," Dragonair said to her brother, who nodded but suspected that shouldn't be the case as this isn't the type of Island that is inhabitant by many Pokemon.
"Well, we should continue knowing how most tournaments are going. By the time we are done, you should be trained properly, Dragonair, so let's go, and if we do spot anything can ask if they want to join if they want or can battle on land," Pidgeot said to the siblings, who nodded as they got up and went to where they were training on the Island.
Little did they know it, a white-colored, longnecked Pokemon with blueish/grey colors on certain areas was watching the three who looked pretty young, like a kid and was interested in the three Pokemon of Ash.
To Be continued
Done and done. This chapter took longer than expected, especially with the writer's block and the re-edits now done. Some reviewers will say that Chinchou couldn't know Psybeam or we're too early for Discharge. Well, for the former, it's an egg move for her in Sinnoh, and I did mention it in an update in the past about it. As for Discharge, we have more Pokemon in Sinnoh showing up. Sadly this is the only mon who will use that move until we hit Hoenn. As for the ending there, it was requested by a Pidgeot x Charizard fan of the story, and he asked me to do that, so I did. As for the Pokemon at the end, you know who it is if you watched the anime. That said, it's Misty vs. Juan in the next chapter. See you next time.