Ash, Lillie, Dawn, and Athena were currently in the Canalave Gym, seating on the bleachers and watching the battle between the Canalave Gym leader, and his own son, Roark.
Last night, Ash has learned that the gym leader has returned from his training on the Iron Island, so he and the girls decided to go in the morning, and see when Ash, Lillie and Athena can have their battles.
Once they arrived, they learned that Roark is there, and that he just happens to be the gym leader's son.
Unfortunately, Byron, and Roark have some issues with each other, which they couldn't deal with. So, in order to get their battles as soon as possible, Ash suggested to the father and son duo, to resolve their problems by having a battle.
Byron, and Roark agreed right away.
And so, the two of them are in the middle of the battle, where Roark attacked, and Byron defended. It's been going like that for the last 10 minutes, and nothing seems to be happening, except that Byron seems to be having some advantage with his Bastiodon, against Roark, and his Rampardos.
XXX
While the father and son were battling, and the gang was watching it all, in another part of the gym, a familiar trio has broken into the room with the fossils.
"Are you sure we should do this at this time?" Jamil asked his two partners. "With that monster here, I don't think this is such a good idea."
"I agree with you," Byoln said. "But it's better for us to do this now, and escape as soon as possible, before anyone even notices that we are here.
"Yes," Zurmudd said. "Which is why you need to be prepared to Teleport us away from here as soon as possible. Do you understand? Jamil."
"Yeah, yeah," Jamil said. "I just hope that nothing goes wrong. We are not prepared to fight against that guy."
"Don't worry," Byoln said. "We get this fossils quickly, and then we run. It's as easy as that."
The three of them looked around at all the fossils. "There certainly are a lot of them." Jamil commented.
"Yeah," Byoln agreed. "Just look at the size of this one," he pointed at the Anorith Fossil. "If this thing gets revived, it will be monstrous."
"I'm sure the boss would be happy with us if we send her this," Jamil said with a smile.
"She sure will." Zurmudd said, with a smile of his own.
XXX
Suddenly, an alarm was heard around the Canalave Gym, drawing everyone's attention.
Ash, and the girls stood from their seats, and looked around, while Roark yelled. "Dad, what's that?!"
"That's the exhibition room alarm," Byron said with narrowed eyes. "This battle is over! Bastiodon, return!"
Byron turned around and run away, while Roark returned his Rampardos, and run after his father."
"What the hell is going on now?" Ash questioned, as he stood near the girl.
"I don't know, but it seems bad." Lillie said.
"We should go and check it out." Dawn suggested. "Maybe we can help Byron and Roark."
"I agree." Athena said. She was also interested in what's going on.
"Let's go then." Ash said.
XXX
Byron and Roark burst into the exhibition room, only to find it completely empty, save for the shelves which were holding the fossils. Fossils though, were gone.
Byron snapped at this, and yelled, while Roark looked at the hole in the middle of the room. It seems that someone has dug a hole from the outside the gym, and got all the way inside of exhibition room.
That wasn't an easy task, Roark was sure of it.
The two of them immediately jumped into the hole, and run through it for a while, until they finally came out all the way in the forest which was a little away from the gym.
As soon as they came out of the whole, they saw three man next to a pile of fossils, which they were loading into a large sack.
"What the hell do you think you are doing," Roark yelled at the three thieves?!
"Well, it seems we were found out," Byoln said, as he looked at the father and son. "Told you we should have teleported away right from that room."
"Yeah," Jamil agreed. "Luckily for us, it's not THAT guy who showed up."
"He was in the gym, so he won't be far behind," Zurmudd said. "I'll handle these two, you two finish loading the fossils."
Jamil and Byoln nodded, before they went to work, while Zurmudd walked forward, and stood a little away from Byron, and Roark.
"What do you want with those fossils," Roark asked the large man? "They are our link to the past, not for you to steal!"
"Maybe it's your link to the past, but it's not ours," Zurmudd said. "We don't care about its historical value. We only care about it monetary value, and how much money we can make of them."
"You are just a bunch of thieves!" Byron yelled. "I won't let you get away with my fossils! Do you hear me?"
"We are not simple thieves," Zurmudd said. "We are pirates. As for you not letting us leave… you really have no choice." He then took on of his Poke Balls, and called his Pokémon. "Come out, Kingambit!"
Byron and Roark saw the Pokémon which came out of the Pokémon, and all they can think is. What the hell is this? They have never seen a Pokémon like this, and are wondering, from which Region did this come from?"
"What is that?" Roark asked.
"That, is a Kingambit," Zurmudd said. "A Dark/Steel Type from Paldea Region. MY region."
"Paldea Region?" Roark said. He has never heard of that Region.
"Steel Type." Byron said. He was a Steel Type trainers, so naturally, he was interested in all Steel Type Pokémon. Especially those he has never seen or heard of before.
"Now," Zurmudd spoke. "I would advise you to stay back. Otherwise, this will get really bad for the two of you."
"Are you kidding me," Roark yelled, as he took out one of his Poke Balls!? "There is no way I'm letting you escape with my father's fossils!" He then called out his Rampardos to the battlefield.
Byron followed his son, and called out his Bastiodon.
"So be it." Zurmudd said, before he ordered his Pokémon to use Metal Sound.
Kingambit's arm blades become metallic before it rubbed its arms together. This, has sent silver-colored sound waves at Bastiodon, and Rampardos.
The sound waves were so terrible, that the two Pokémon cried in pain, and it caused their defense to drop.
"Now use Brick Break on Bastiodon, followed up by Flash Cannon on Rampardos." Zurmudd said to his Pokémon, whose right arm blade glowed white, before it jumped into the air, and fell down toward Bastiodon.
Byron shouted Iron Defense to his Pokémon, whose head glowed white just before it was slammed into by Kingambit.
The force behind Kingambit's attack was so high, that Bastiodon's head hit the ground, as the ancient Pokémon roared in pain.
Kingambit jumped to the side right away to avoid the Flamethrower fired by Rampardos. Then, Kingambit followed it up with Flash Cannon, which hit Rampardos, and sent it to the ground.
Bastiodon managed to stand up, and fired a Flash Cannon of its own, which managed to hit Kingambit. It didn't do much damage, but was able to draw the Samurai-like Pokémon's attention.
Kingambit went and attacked Bastiodon with Dark Pulse.
Bastiodon used Iron Defense to stop the Dark Type Attack, before Byron told it to use Metal Burst. Bastiodon's body glowed metallic, as it absorbed the energy from the Dark Pulse, creating a white ball in front of its mouth. Then, Bastiodon fired the while ball at Kingambit, who was hit by it.
At that exact moment, Rampardos also attacked with Flamethrower, which made it so that Kingambit was hit by two powerful attacks. The samurai-like Pokémon was covered in flames from head to toe, and then the explosion covered its whole body.
When the explosion cleared up, Kingambit was seen still standing, though somewhat damaged. At that moment, it was forming a bluish-silver orb of energy in between its blade arms. Then, it fired a Steel Beam toward Rampardos, who was hit head-on by a very powerful Steel Type attack.
Rampardos fell on the ground, and stayed there.
Byron growled as his son's Pokémon was defeated, before he told his Bastiodon to use Flamethrower. The fire type attack hit Kingambit, and sent it to the ground, with heavy burns on its body.
"We are done here!" Byoln yelled toward Zurmudd, who turned around to look at his two partners. It seems that they have loaded all the fossils in the large sack, and were ready to leave.
Zurmudd nodded, before he told his Kingambit to fire Flash Cannon at Bastiodon.
Byron's Pokémon was hit by the attack, though it used Iron Defense to defend itself. The explosion caused a dust cloud to cover everyone, and allowed Zurmudd to return his Pokémon, while unseen by Byron, and Roark.
As he has turned around, and was about to join his team-mates to make an escape, a gust of wind blew across the area, cleared the dust cloud, and showed Ash, Lillie, Dawn, and Athena running toward them, while Ash's Staravia was flying above them.
"YOUUU!" Ash yelled out when he saw Zurmudd and the other two. Their eyes widened in fear, as Ash practically flew toward them, while in his right arm, he has formed an Aura Sphere. A very large one at that.
"Get us out of here?!" Byoln yelled at Jamil, who grabbed Byoln by the shoulder with one hand, and Zurmudd by the arm, with his other hand. Byoln was holding the sack with the fossils with both of his hands.
Then, just as Ash was inches away from slamming the large Aura Sphere in their faces, Jamil, Byoln, and Zurmudd disappeared, while Ash slammed into the ground with the Aura Sphere, causing a huge explosion which destroyed everything in its path, and sent Byron, Roark, their Pokémon, AND the girls, flying.
"ASH!" Lillie, and Dawn yelled when they were able to stand back up, only to see a large cloud of dust and earth rising into the sky. Ash was nowhere to be seen in all of that.
"What the hell was that?" Byron asked with wide eyes, which were mimicked by his son, and Athena. "How did he do that?"
"Ash, where are you?" Lillie yelled out. "Are you OK? Say something."
Ash did say something at that moment, but it wasn't anything nice. "FUCK!" he yelled to the heavens with a demonic sounding voice. The shout was so strong, that the soundwaves speared around the area, and broke up the dusk cloud, allowing everyone to see Ash, and the destruction he caused.
Ash was standing inside the 10 meters wide, and three meters deep crater. He doesn't look like he's injured in any way, even though he was at the center of the destruction.
The area around the crater has also been damaged from the explosion, and the shockwave. The grass has been peeled off of the ground, several trees has been blown away, or uprooted.
The most important thing though, is that the three pirates… are gone. The fact that they are gone, that they were able to escape him again, and that's with all those fossils, is what made Ash so angry.
"Ash." Lillie spoke as she carefully approached to the edge of the crater. She knew not to mess with Ash when he is like this, so she was threading carefully, so to not make him even angrier. "Are you OK?"
"I'm not ok," Ash growled out. "They escaped. They escaped from me again, and took all those fossils."
Lillie felt bad for Ash, because he felt bad. It wasn't his fault, and he knows that. Still, he will blame himself because those three have escaped from him several times before.
Ash turned around and walked away, without saying anything.
Lillie and Dawn knew him well enough to know that they should leave him alone. As for the others, they didn't know him that well, thus, the confused and shocked looks on their faces. Especially on Byron's, and Roark's faces.
"What was that?" Byron asked.
"Ash is an Aura Guardian," Roark said to his father. "I've known about that since he was in Oreburgh City several months ago. There was a problem, I'm sure you've heard of it. Ash helped us a lot back then. Lillie and Dawn as well.
"That being said, I'm shocked by what Ash just did. It's one thing to be an Aura Guardian, but completely different to do something like that." He pointed at the crater.
"Let's just say that Ash is very special," Lillie said. "I don't think I should explain it now."
"Who were those three?" Byron asked, as he looked at something on the ground. It was a brown box. He picked it up, and looked at it. "They stole all the fossils I had. All the fossils I've dug out after years of hard work. All of that GONE!"
Everyone understood Byron's anger. They wanted to say something, but none knew what. Not even his son knew what to say to his father at that moment.
"I can't be 100% sure, as I've never actually seen them before," Lillie spoke, getting everyone's attention. "But judging by their looks, and from the descriptions of some people Ash gave us; I'm pretty sure that those are the same guys who released the prehistoric Pokémon in the Oreburgh City, and stole the restoration machine. Not to mention what they've done to that woman."
"WHAT?!" Roark yelled in anger. "That was them!"
"I'm pretty sure." Lillie said. "Dawn and I never saw them, but Ash has run into them several times, and they escaped him each time. One of them seems to be able to use Psychic Powers, and can Teleport. Once they teleport, they can't be followed, even by Ash, who can also teleport."
"So all is lost," Roark said with anger in his voice. "All those fossils… gone forever."
Lillie couldn't say anything except say that if they are ever arrested, there is a possibility that the fossils can be recovered. Then again, they have a restoration machine, so they can now revive all those Pokémon.
"We need to inform Officer Jenny of this," Dawn said. "Several Jenny's all over the Sinnoh already have some information on those three from every time we've encountered them, or when they've done something. Right now, they are practically wanted by the whole Sinnoh Government."
"Can they even be caught," Roark asked? "If they can teleport, how do you catch them?"
"From what Ash has told us, only one of them can teleport," Lillie said. "So it's not impossible to catch them. It will be hard though."
"They've escaped from Ash several times now," Dawn decided to speak. "With everything that they've done so far, and the fact that they've escaped from him several times, he will now do everything he can to catch them, even if it's the last thing he ever does."
Roark and Athena looked strangely at Dawn.
"She's right," Lillie said. "Ash is like that. He doesn't like criminals. He doesn't like to be messed with, and he doesn't like to be tricked. Those three have done all the above. Right now, they are most likely on the second place on his 'shit list'."
"Who's the first?" Athena asked, though she has an idea.
"Let's just say that it's a certain criminal organization, and leave it at that." Lillie said.
Athena was right.
"Let's go and report this to the Officer Jenny," Dawn said. "We will go and find Ash after that."
Lillie, and Athena agreed to Dawn's suggestion. They looked toward Roark, and Byron, and saw that Byron was just standing there, looking at the small brown box he was holding in his hands. As for Roark, he approached to his father.
The girls decided to leave them alone, and head to the Police Station.
"Hey dad," Roark called, when he was behind his father. "Come on, let's go to the police station, and report what happened."
Byron said nothing for a few moments, before he turned around, and said. "Look." He was holding the box opened, so that Roark can see what was inside of it.
Roark looked at the box, and saw a small rock inside of it. It kind of resembled a leaf. "Is that a Sunkern fossil?" Roark asked with a surprised look on his face, before he remembered something. "Is that the same Sunkern Fossil I found all those years ago?"
"It's by far the most important fossil in my collection," Byron said while smiling.
"I don't know what to say." Roark said. After moments of silence, he added. "I guess that means that you do care about family."
"I realized that as long as I was running the Oreburgh Gym, you would be my apprentice, and that's how you would stay," Byron said. "I thought it was a fine opportunity for you to become the Oreburgh Gym leader when I was asked to be the Canalave Gym Leader."
"Wow, I've been wrong all this time," Roark said. "Now I know. Thanks so much, dad."
"Hey, it was nothing." Byron said.
"But dad," Roark spoke again. "What about…?"
"Don't worry about it," Byron said. "I care about all my fossils. I spent long time digging them up, but I can always find other. This Sunkern fossil, though… it's the most important one I have, and I'm glad that those pirates didn't steal it as well."
Roark smiled.
XXX
It took two more days for everything to calm down after the break-in at the Canalave Gym.
The police have been all over the place. They've questioned all those involved, except Ash, as he couldn't be found. In the end, they've gathered all the evidence they could, and now that evidence it piled up with the other evidence which was gathered against Zurmudd, Byoln, and Jamil.
It is becoming very obvious that once those three are caught, they will be sent into some dark hole, and will never see the light of the day again.
On the third day after the break-in, Byron told Lillie, Dawn, and Athena that he is ready to accept the challenges, so they can come if they want to.
Lillie wasn't sure at first, because Ash wasn't there. She wanted him to be there to watch her battles, just like he has watched the ones before, and how she has watched his.
Unfortunately, he is nowhere to be found, and who knows when he will show up. On top of that, there are three of them to battle against Byron, so they can't do that in a single day, as Byron will probably want to have his Pokémon take a break, and rest in between the battles.
So, in the end, Athena decided to have a battle first. Maybe by the time she finishes, and Byron's Pokémon have a break to rest; Ash could appear.
Her battle against Byron, didn't last that long. As all of Byron's Pokémon are at least part Steel Type, she went with Gallade, a Psychic/Fighting Type, as well as Metang, a Steel/Psychic.
With Metang she has made short work of Byron's Bronzor, and Steelix, before her Pokémon was taken down by Bastiodon. Then, she sent out her Gallade, whose Fighting Type moves proved to be too much for Byron's ancient Pokémon. Thus, Athena won the battle, and got her fifth Sinnoh Badge.
XXX
Byron took a two hours break after his battle against Athena, so his Pokémon can recover. Then, it was a time for his battle against Lillie.
Right now, the two trainers are at their positions at the battlefield. Roark, the acting referee was standing to the side of the battlefield, while Dawn, and her Piplup, as well as Athena, and the regular gym referee, were all seating on the bleachers, from where they are going to watch Lillie's match, just like they watched Athena's earlier, only with Athena, and Lillie now switching places.
Lillie has known that Byron is a Steel Type trainer, and then she has watched his match against Athena, so now she knows what to expect.
Unlike Athena, Lillie doesn't have any Fighting Type Pokémon. Not a single one.
Type wise, Ground Type would be just as good an option as Fighting Types, unfortunately for Lillie, her only ground type is her Swinub, and he wouldn't be really useful against Pokémon like Steelix, and Bronzor, and doesn't have power to overpower Bastiodon's defense.
So, Lillie's best options would be Water Types, as well as her Alolan Sandslash, which is part Steel Type.
"The gym battle between Lillie, the challenger, and Byron, the gym leader, will now begin," Roark started to announce the match! "Both sides will use three Pokémon each, and the battle is over when all three of one sides Pokémon are unable to continue! In addition, only the challenger is allowed to substitute Pokémon!"
"I love fossils," Byron yelled out, while swinging his shovel! "AND, I love defense!" He was smiling, and seemed very enthusiastic about the battle. Even after what happened two days ago, Byron didn't seem to be upset at all. He's acting like nothing happened.
"Let the battle BEGIN!" Roark shouted.
"Bronzor, let's go!" Byron released his first Pokémon.
"Sealeo, let's do this!" Lillie released her own Pokémon.
Byron, and Roark raised their eyebrows at Lillie's choice. "I did not expect a Sealeo."
"I prefer Ice Type Pokémon above other," Lillie admitted. "As such, most of my Pokémon are at least part Ice Type. I don't have a single Fire, of Fighting Type Pokémon, while the only Ground Type I have, isn't ready for this kind of battle.
"That being said… just because I don't have type advantage, doesn't mean that you will defeat me that easily."
"I like your spirit, Lillie," Byron said while smiling! "Let's do this."
Lillie started the battle with Water Gun.
Sealeo fired a powerful jet of water at the floating Bronzor, but the Steel/Psychic type dodge it. Then, Byron told his Pokémon to use Gyro Ball.
Bronzor started to spin, fast, before it flew toward Sealeo.
Sealeo defended with Protect, stopping Bronzor right in its tracks, much to Byron's surprise.
Bronzor pulled back, but before it could get far, Sealeo hit it with Water Gun, which sent the disk-like Pokémon to the ground.
Bronzor got up, and used Gyro Ball, again, but this time, Sealeo countered it with Water Pulse. He created a water orb in front of his mouth, and then fired it at the incoming Bronzor.
Bronzor's attack had speed and force, while Sealeo's attack had power. The two clashed, and tried to overpower one another, until Bronzor broke through the Water Pulse, and struck Sealeo, making Lillie's Pokémon cry out in pain.
He wasn't defeated, though. It won't be that easy.
Sealeo straightened up, and then used Water Gun.
Like before, Bronzor flew away, and dodged the attack, but Lillie told her Pokémon to keep firing Water Gun. So, Water Gun after Water Gun Sealeo kept firing them at Bronzor, who floated around, and dodged them all.
Then, Lillie changed her move, and called Ice Beam. Sealeo created a white orb in his mouth, and then fired several beams from it.
Bronzor was caught off guard, and was hit by the Ice Beam, which froze it completely, and caused it to fall on the ground.
The fall on the ground broke the ice around Bronzor, but left the Pokémon on the battlefield. Lillie called out, Brine, and Sealeo fired a very powerful stream of water from his mouth. The stream hit Bronzor, and sent it rolling across the battlefield.
When it stopped, everyone saw that it was unconscious.
"Bronzor is unable to battle!" Roark called. "Sealeo is the winner!"
"You did great, Sealeo," Lillie said to her Pokémon, before she returned him to his Poke Ball. "Now take a nice rest."
Byron returned his defeated Pokémon, and thanked him for the great battle, and defense.
"It's been a while since I've had such a nice battles like the two I've had today," Byron said. "It makes me feel alive. I LOVE DEFENSE!" Everyone has already gotten used to him yelling that by now, so they didn't pay it any attention.
Byron released his Steelix, as his second Pokémon.
Lillie has already expected this, so she called out her Buizel.
Lillie started the battle by telling Buizel to use Sonic Boom. Her water type Pokémon jumped in the air, flipped, and sent shockwaves from her two tales.
The attack hit Steelix right on the head, sending it backwards.
Steelix managed to straighten up, and then used Screech, but Buizel defended with Protect.
Byron was impressed that both Pokémon which Lillie chose to battle him, know a defense move such a Protect. He loved it.
Buizel used Hydro Pump, but Steelix countered with Screech. Its attack pushed back Buizel's, and when she saw this, Lillie told Buizel to stop the Hydro Pump, and use Quick Attack to dodge Screech.
When she was safe from Steelix's attack, Buizel used Take Down. She run toward the larger Pokémon, and hit it hard with her whole body.
Steelix' upper body was sent backwards, and feel on the ground. Byron reacted quickly, though, and told Steelix to use Bind.
Steelix moved its tail, and managed to catch Buizel, much to her shock. Then, it squeezed the water type, causing her to scream in pain.
Lillie told Buizel to try and used Hydro Pump, but before she could, Byron told Steelix to use Iron Tail.
Steelix tossed Buizel into the air, and then its tail glowed. It swung it toward the failing Buizel, but before she could be hit, Buizel fired Hydro Pump, which hit Steelix straight on the face, and sent it on the ground. This also caused Iron Tail to miss, so Buizel came back to the battlefield, unharmed.
Lillie used this chance, and told Buizel to use Wave Crash.
Buizel shrouded herself in water, before she run toward Steelix, and hit it with her whole body.
Steelix' upper body fell on the ground, while Buizel landed next to him. Sparks of electricity rolled around Buizel's body, from the recoil damage caused by the Wave Crash. She handled it well, though, and looked at Steelix, only to see it was unconscious.
"Steelix is unable to battle! The winner is Buizel!" Roark announced.
"Well done, Buizel." Lillie praised her Pokémon, who nodded. She was slightly exhausted, but could still battle, so Lillie decided to stay with her.
"Great job on defeating two of my Pokémon," Byron said. "But let's see you get pass my Bastiodon!"
As Lillie has already decided to stay with Buizel, the round three started with Buizel using Hydro Pump.
Bastiodon used Iron-Defense to stop the attack, before Byron told it to use Metal Burst. Bastiodon glowed metallic, before it fired a white ball from its mouth at Buizel.
Buizel was hit by the attack, and sent back-first into one of the boulders at the battlefield.
Surprisingly, at least for Byron, and Roark, she wasn't defeated. Buizel got up, and Lillie told her to use Sonic Boom.
Bastiodon used Iron Defense once again, which blocked Buizel's attack. Then, Bastiodon fired Flash Cannon at Buizel.
Lillie told her Pokémon to use Aqua Jet.
The two attacks clashed, and caused an explosion, from which Buizel was sent flying backwards, until she fell on the ground.
"Buizel is unable to battle! The winner is Bastiodon!" Roark called out when he saw that Buizel is unconscious.
Lillie sighed, and returned her Buizel. She thanked her for the great battle, before she called out her Sealeo.
Lillie stared the battle with her Sealeo using Water Pulse.
Bastiodon used Iron Defense, and stopped the attack, before it fired back with Metal Burst.
Lillie defended with Protect, which neutralized the Metal Burst. Sealeo then used Ice Beam, but Lillie told him to use it on the battlefield.
Very quickly, the whole battlefield was covered in Ice, which stopped Bastiodon from moving too much, but it allowed Sealeo to move around by sliding on the ice.
Lillie used the battlefield, so her Sealeo slid over it, which allowed him to get behind Bastiodon, and use Water Gun. He would hit Bastiodon, causing it damage, before he would move away.
This went on two more times, as Sealeo slid over the battlefield, got behind Bastiodon, and hit it.
Byron grew tired of it, so he had Bastiodon use Flash Cannon all over the battlefield. This has broken the ice, and turned the battlefield back to normal.
Then, Bastiodon used Iron Head, and since Sealeo couldn't move on the normal ground, he wasn't able to escape from a very powerful Steel Type attack.
"Sealeo is unable to battle! Bastiodon is the winner!" Roark called out again.
This has left Lillie with her final Pokémon. Originally, she planned to go with her Alolan Sandslash as her last Pokémon, but she changed her mind, and released her Aerodactyl.
"You have Aerodactyl!" Byron shouted with stars in his eyes.
"Yeah," Lillie said. "I got it in Oreburgh City."
"So it's the one from back then," Roark spoke. "I'm glad that it's doing so well. It really looks strong, and well cared for."
"Of course," Lillie said. "I might prefer Ice Types, and want to be Ice Type master one day, but I love, and care about all my Pokémon, regardless of their type."
"I'm glad to hear that." Byron said, before the final round started.
Lillie started with her Aerodactyl using Ancient Power. Bastiodon was hit by it, as it didn't even try to use Iron-Defense. Rock Type attacks aren't really useful against Steel Types, so it would be a waste of energy to use Iron-Defense.
Lillie knew this, but her attack had its purpose. She had Aerodactyl use Ancient Power, which hit Bastiodon, and caused a small explosion. Then, she quickly followed Ancient Power with Steel Wing. This, Byron, and Bastiodon weren't expecting, as Aerodactyl flew down, fast, with his wings glowing, and he struck Bastiodon right on the face.
Aerodactyl's attack dealt some damage to Bastiodon, but not enough to defeat it.
Bastiodon used Flash Cannon, but Aerodactyl flew away from it, easily. Bastiodon kept firing Flash Cannon, while Aerodactyl flew around them, and wasn't hit by any of them.
Lillie went with Steel Wing once again, but Bastiodon fired Flamethrower at Aerodactyl. It didn't do any damage, but it stopped Aerodactyl from using Steel Wing. It also gave Bastiodon time to fire Flash Cannon, this time, hitting Aerodactyl head on.
Aerodactyl fell on the battlefield, before Bastiodon run as fast as it could, and hit Aerodactyl with Iron Head.
This, has dealt quite a bit of damage to Aerodactyl, but not enough to defeat him. Aerodactyl stood back up, and flew in the air. Then, Lillie told him to fly behind Bastiodon, and use Crunch.
Thanks to his considerably greater speed, Aerodactyl was behind Bastiodon in an instant, and bit it behind the head. Bastiodon roared in pain from the Dark Type attack. It turned to the side, and shock off Aerodactyl, but it didn't do it any good, because Aerodactyl used Iron Tail, and hit Bastiodon behind the head, slamming the ancient Pokémon into the ground.
Aerodactyl flew back in front of Lillie, while Bastiodon managed to get up, and fired Flash Cannon. Aerodactyl dodged it easily, before Lillie told him to use Giga Impact.
Byron told Bastiodon to use Iron Head.
The two Pokémon went at each other, and clashed on the middle of the battlefield. There was a big explosion, followed by a shockwave.
Both Pokémon were hurled backwards, but Aerodactyl managed to stay in the air. As for Bastiodon, it stood still for several moments, before it fell on the ground. It was unconscious.
"Bastiodon is unable to battle, and Aerodactyl is the winner" Roark shouted! "The victory goes to the challenger, Lillie!"
Lillie smiled widely as she has won the battle against a tough opponent, and managed to get her hands on her sixth badge.
"Thanks' a lot, Aerodactyl." Lillie said to her Pokémon, while patting him on the head. Aerodactyl grunted, before he was returned to the Poke Ball, for a well-deserved rest.
"Great job, Lillie," Dawn said, as she and Athena approached her. They were both smiling. "That was an amazing job you did. Defeating an opponent like Byron isn't easy. Especially since you won with two Pokémon who have relatively low attack power, when compared to the high defense Byron's Pokémon have."
"Yeah, it was an amazing battle," Lillie said. "My Pokémon really came through for me this time."
"Lillie," Byron said as he approached Lillie, Dawn, and Athena. "In recognition for defeating my defense, I present you with the Mine Badge."
"Thanks, Byron." Lillie said, as she took the badge.
"Now," Byron spoke again, this time very seriously, and without a smile on his face. "What about you friend, Ash?"
"I don't know," Lillie sighed sadly. "We haven't seen him since that day."
"Where could he have gone off to?" Roark wondered.
"I'm here." Ash suddenly said, while walking toward them from the side of the bleachers.
"ASH!" Lillie and Dawn shouted, as they run to him, and hugged him. "Where have you been?" Lillie asked.
Ash sighed. "I spent some time thinking over what happened three days ago," he said. "Those three have escaped from me several times now, and I don't like it. Especially with what they've done all over the Sinnoh Region."
"It's not your fault, Ash," Dawn said. "They always escape from by teleporting. You can't blame yourself for that. You can blame them for being cowards who run away from you, instead of facing you."
"I agree with Dawn," Lillie said. "And don't worry. I'm sure one day, you will catch them, and they will pay for everything they've done."
Ash decided not to say anything at that. Instead, he changed the subject. "I've seen your battle," He said, surprising Lillie. "You did great. Congratulations on the sixth badge."
"You've seen the battle," Lillie was surprised. "When did you even come back?"
"Right after your battle started," Ash said. "I've stood to the side and watched."
Everyone was surprised that they didn't notice him, but they let it go, as it was unimportant.
"So, Ash," Byron spoke, drawing Ash's attention. "I'm assuming you want to battle me next."
"That's right." Ash confirmed.
"My son told me about your battle," Byron said. "He said that you have battled on equal ground against his strongest Pokémon, and tied in that round."
"I did." Ash said, wondering where this was going.
"Do you think you can battle against my strongest Pokémon?" Byron asked with a smirk on his face, while everyone else rose their eyebrows.
"I guess we are going to see." Ash said with a shrug.
"So you accept one-on-one battle against my strongest Pokémon?" Byron questioned.
"I do." Ash said.
"Are you ready for us to battle right away?" Byron asked.
Ash thought of that, before he said. "I'll have to switch some Pokémon. The ones I have with me are all caught since I've arrived in Sinnoh, so they are not ready for this kind of battle."
"Ok," Byron said. "There is a transfer machine in the Pokémon Center. So, I guess we'll have our battle once you transfer your Pokémon."
"No, we can have it right away," Ash said, before he pulled out his Rotom Pokedex from his pocket, and said. "Call Professor Oak."
Rotom Pokedex changed its form, much to Byron's, and Roark's shock, as they've never seen something like this before.
A few seconds later, Professor Oak's face appeared on the Pokedex screen. "Hey Ash, what's up?"
"I'm gonna need you to send me Kommo'o." Ash said.
"Really," Oak questioned with raised eyebrows. "Why?"
"I'm gonna have a gym battle against Byron in the Canalave Gym," Ash said. "I accepted to battle one-on-one against his strongest Pokémon."
"I see," Oak said. "Well, I'll send it right away."
Ash nodded, before he ended the call. His Rotom Pokedex stayed floating mid-air for about a minute, before it suddenly glowed, and a Poke Ball appeared above it from the sparks of electricity.
Ash took the Poke Ball, and told Rotom Pokedex to stay to the side, and take video of the battle. Rotom nodded, before it moved to the side of the battlefield, where the referee stands.
With that over, Ash looked at Byron, and said. "I'm ready."
Byron and Roark looked in surprise at Ash, while thinking of the usefulness of his Pokedex. They also wondered which Pokémon he has brought, as none of them have heard of a Pokémon called, Kommo-o.
A minute later, Ash and Byron stood on their sides of the battlefield, while Roark is standing next to the battlefield, with Rotom Pokedex floating next to Roark, ready to record the battle. Lillie, Dawn, and Athena were seating on the bleachers, from where they are going to watch the match.
"This will be a one-on-one gym battle between the challenger, Ash, and the gym leader, Byron," Roark announced. "Are you both ready?" Once he got the nods from Ash, and Byron, and started the battle.
"BEGIN!"
"I LOVE DEFENSE," Byron said as he threw his Poke Ball! "To the battle, Metagross!"
Ash smiled when he saw the Pokémon. "And here I though a Fighting Type would have great advantage," he said to himself, but then he shook his head, and released his Pokémon. "Let's do this, Kommo-o!"
Byron and Roark raised eyebrows in surprise at the sight of Kommo-o. It's natural though, as none have seen it before, and don't know what to expect.
"This is Dragon/Fighting Pseudo-Legendary Pokémon from Alola Region." Ash gave this slight information to Byron, so he would at least know what he was dealing with.
"Thanks for the info, Ash." Byron said, before the battle finally started.
Ash started the battle with his Kommo-o using Dragon Pulse, as he sent a turquoise ball of energy from his mouth, at Metagross.
Metagross used Agility to dodge Kommo-o's attack, before it fired a Flash Cannon.
Kommo-o used Boomburst, as it fired a huge supersonic wave of white energy from his mouth, toward Metagross.
The attack spread across the entire field, and hit Metagross, dealing it small amount of damage.
Metagross used Meteor Mash as its next attack, and hit Kommo-o straight on the face, sending Ash's Dragon Type to the floor.
Metagross followed this up with Psychic. Metagross's eyes glowed light purple as it sends a burst of light purple energy at Kommo-o. The energy then surrounded Kommo-o, before Metagross used his mind, and lifted Kommo-o in the air. Then, it slammed him back down into the ground.
Metagross did this several times, before it finally stopped, leaving Kommo-o lying on the ground; hurt, but not defeated.
Kommo-o managed to get up, before Ash told him to use Clanging Scales. Kommo-o folded his arms, and then quickly unfolded them, letting out a big roar at the same time. The roar sent out blue shockwaves toward Metagross.
Byron had his Pokémon use Protect, to defend against Kommo-o's attack.
Just as the Protect was released, Kommo-o was in front of Metagross, with his tail glowing silver. Then, Kommo-o turned around, and swung his tail at Metagross, hitting it across the face, and sent the large Steel Type onto the ground. Then, to add more damage to his opponent, Ash told Kommo-o to use Focus Blast.
Kommo-o created a ball of yellow energy in front of his hands, and then slammed the ball into Metagross's face. This has sent Metagross flying backwards, and was enveloped into an explosion.
Metagross recovered, and got back to the battle. It fired Flash Cannon, which was blocked by Kommo-o's Dragon Pulse. Then, Metagross used Meteor Mash, but this one was stopped by Iron Tail.
Kommo-o attacked with Dragon Claw, but Metagross used Agility to escape. Kommo-o tried several times to hit Metagross with Dragon Claw, even adding Iron Tail once. All were dodge by Metagross, using Agility.
Metagross tried to use Psychic once again, but this time, Kommo-o used Protect to stop the Psychic, and then fired a Boomburst right after. This time, he managed to hit Metagross. Kommo-o followed it up with another Focus Blast, as that was one of only two attacks he has that would do any amount of damage to Metagross.
Metagross was enveloped in another explosion from the Focus Blast, and fell on the ground. Still, it wasn't defeated just yet.
By this point, both Pokémon were tired from the battle, and exhausted. They had very little left in them, and their trainers knew this.
So, Byron went with Flash Cannon. It was broken-up by Kommo-o's Iron Tail. Byron then tried to catch Ash of guard, when his Metagross used Psychic. Ash was focused though, so Kommo-o used Boomburst, and broke off Metagross's Psychic. It even managed to hit Metagross, dealing is more damage.
Ash saw a chance to finish the battle, so he told Kommo-o to use the second attack he has, which can deal some damage to Metagross. It was Close Combat.
Kommo-o jumped toward Metagross, and then started to hit it with his fist, kick it with his legs, and even slam it with his tail.
This went on for about half-a-minute, before Kommo-o finally stopped, and moved away from Metagross.
Metagross was left lying on the ground, swirls in its eyes.
"Metagross is unable to battle," Roark announced! "The winner if Kommo-o, and the battle goes to the challenger, Ash Ketchum!"
XXX
I know that Fighting Type moves don't work that well against Psychic type Pokemon, but they do have some effect, which is why Focus Blast, and Close Combat worked better then some of the other moves Kommo-o used.