Chapter 15:V. Setting the stage: Forging the team
"Riolu! Riolu! Riolu! Wake up! Come and look at something!" said Pikachu. It was a dark night in the Sinnoh region. Moon was nowhere to be seen and the clouds were darkening the region even more. Everybody was in deep sleep in the cave lighten up by a few torches on the walls except one yellow Pokemon who is now nagging Riolu in his room in the wall.
"Huh... Who's that?" said Riolu. After their long session of expanding the cave, he was tired. Add the fact that he was overlooking Ash training and you've got one very tired Riolu who does not like to be woken up in the middle of the night. He didn't even recognize who was talking to him right now.
"It's your Pikabro. Something weird is happening to Ash. And I think it has something to do with Aura." said Pikachu.
"... It better be something worth to wake up for. I'm really tired if you didn't notice." replied Riolu to the Pikachu.
"Trust me. It is. I've never seen anything like this before. And I've seen a lot of crazy stuff happening in the past." said Pikachu to Riolu.
"I hope so." said the tired Riolu to Pikachu.
And without anything other to say, after Riolu finally got up, Pikachu and Riolu made their way to Ash's 'room' which was a hole in the cave walls with a grass floor. As all the other rooms. Pikachu shared this room with Ash since he always slept next to him. As they were walking, Riolu suddenly stopped in his tracks. During the short walk, he was looking at all of Ash's Pokemon inside their rooms. Every single one was sleeping. And they were probably tired too. But one Pokemon just caught his eye. Again. She was even prettier when she was asleep. Riolu's eyes were just glued to her.
"Come one loverboy. That's just creepy." said Pikachu when he realized that his friend was watching Gardevoir sleep.
"I... I'm sorry. I... don't know what's wrong with me. I can't control myself properly." apologized embarrassed Riolu to Pikachu.
"Considering the other Pokemon we have here. You can control yourself very well. Now come with me. Your girl can wait until the morning. This can't. Whatever that is" said Pikachu to Riolu.
Riolu took one last glance at Gardevoir and then the two Pokemon resumed the walk. After a minute they were finally at Ash's room. Inside was a sleeping Ash. He didn't even sleep in his sleep bag. Just him on the grass with his signature hat covering his eyes. Pikachu was right. There was something going on here. And it definitely has to do something with Aura.
"What is that?" asked Pikachu Riolu as Pikachu pointed at the sleeping Ash.
"I... I don't know. It is definitely his Aura energy. But I don't know what exactly is going on here. Had it happened before?" asked Riolu Pikachu.
"I don't think so. Can you somehow check if it's dangerous with your abilities?" asked concerned Pikachu. Even though Ash was visibly still breathing and sleeping, you never know what it can be.
"I think it's not. Aura isn't dangerous to those who are born with it. But I'll try to find out what's going on. Maybe it's some forgotten Aura ability." said Riolu to his concerned yellow friend. Aura can be a dangerous thing if you aren't born with it and you are trying to mess with the power of of Aura. They will completely mess with your head and emotions if you aren't an Aura Guardian. But Ash was a natural born Aura user and has an incredible gift to control his Aura without much of a training. Ash shouldn't be in any kind of danger. But Riolu will check him up. Just in case.
Riolu then got into meditative position and began to focus on Ash. More specifically on his glowing stomach. After few minutes Riolu began to finally feel something. And what he is feeling isn't an ordinary Aura emitting from Ash's stomach. There were numerous strange things happening. Firstly, it felt like Ash's aura, but at the same time, there was someone else's Aura. Secondly, the place from where the Aura was glowing. Riolu could sense it. How Ash's Aura was seeping through a place on Ash's left side of the abdomen. But probably the strangest thing was that the Aura that was glowing with a bright blue color was filled with one emotion. It was the same feeling that he felt with Gardevoir. It doesn't take a genius to figure out what it was. But then there was another thing. "What is this?" thought Riolu as he focused at the place on Ash's left side of the abdomen. It is some kind of mark. Or tattoo. The mark that was emitting bright light blue glow looked like a dark blue tribal tattoo on Ash's side. Strange thing was that the mark wasn't on Ash's skin. It was beneath the skin. It's like some kind of Aura energy grouped together and formed this emitting tribal tattoo that is connected to someone. But to who? Even though Riolu tried to find out to who it's connected he couldn't do it. The connection was completely cut off from Riolu. After several tries, Riolu gave up and slowly opened his eyes.
"So. What is it?" asked Pikachu when he saw Riolu opening his eyes.
"I... I don't know exactly." replied Riolu to Pikachu.
"Is it dangerous?" asked Pikachu again. The way Riolu said it doesn't calm Pikachu down at all.
"No. I don't think so... Is there any chance that Ash has a tattoo?" asked Riolu.
"Ash? No. Definitely not. He was never into crazy hairstyles, piercings, and tattoos. Why do you ask on THIS anyway?" replied Pikachu.
"Wait. What's a piercing?" asked curious Riolu.
"Some people like to get pierced some parts of their body and leave some kind of small metal object there. I saw it a few times. They mostly pierce their tongues and part of lips." explained Pikachu. He remembers when he saw it the first time. Strange thing.
"WHAT? Why would they do that?" asked Riolu in disbelief. Who would willingly pierce their body parts? Why? What purpose does it serve?
"I don't know. Some people like this sort of stuff." replied Pikachu as he shrugged his arms.
"... Humans are weird." replied Riolu. Piercing yourself because you like it. Sounds pretty dumb if you ask Riolu.
"Yeah, I know. But what is weird about our human? Care to tell me? We got sidetracked a little." asked Pikachu still trying to find out what his happening to Ash.Nothing serious it seems. However, he has some kind of mark or tattoo on the left side of the abdomen. That's from where the blue glow is coming from." explained Riolu to Pikachu
Pikachu then looked at his sleeping human. He was getting ready to look at the mark, tattoo or whatever he has there. But Riolu stopped him.
"You won't find anything there. It's not visible to you. It's some kind of Aura mark or tattoo. Invisible to human and Pokemon eyes." said Riolu to Pikachu.
"... Anything else?" asked Pikachu.
"Ehmmmm... Well... the glow is emitting a certain feeling." said Riolu to Pikachu. God. How he hates conversations about this stuff.
"Feeling of? Come on Riolu. Stop answering in riddles. It's annoying." said Pikachu to his blue friend.
"W... Well... Did Ash had a... mate?" asked Riolu Pikachu as he scratched the back of his head in embarrassment.
"Who? Him? Really? Ash probably don't even know what to do with a mate. He had so many girls around him that they were practically dancing around Ash for attention and he didn't do anything. He is in a worse state about females then you are. And that's saying something." replied Pikachu to Riolu.
"Ou... Ok. Well. The thing is. Love is the emotion that is radiating from his stomach with his aura. Which reminds me that I felt somebody else aura there. But I couldn't trace it back. The connection shut me off completely." said Riolu to Pikachu.
"Guh. This is so confusing. We'll ask him later. I don't have the energy to dwell on it now." said Pikachu to the Emanation Pokemon.
"Yeah. I'm pretty tired myself." said Riolu as he was slowly making his way towards his room.
"Romeo you won't leave me here with him won't you? I can't sleep here when he is shining like a star." said Pikachu to Riolu as he pointed to Ash.
"You won't sleep in my room. I want to have at least a little privacy here. Besides. You can just wake him up." said Riolu to Pikachu. He has a lot of space for him there. But in this cave you won't have a private time for yourself much. And he intends to make that time count.
"Come on. He had a tough day. He deserves the rest. Please." said Pikachu to Riolu.
"Sleep somewhere else." said Riolu to Pikachu. That yellow mouse is getting annoying.
"And what if I give you some tips how to get close with a certain Gardevoir? Would that make your sacrifice of privacy worth it?" said Pikachu with a sly smile on his face.
"... Come."Meanwhile in Ash's head
"Huh? What is going on?" said Ash to himself. Ash remembered that he fell asleep in his new build room when he and everyone else was just so tired after working on their cave. He wanted to wait for Mewtwo when he comes back, but Pikachu and Riolu dragged him to his room for some rest and he fell asleep almost immediately.
And right now, Ash felt that like he was awake. And it felt very VERY realistic. He knew he was sleeping. But. This wasn't a dream. Not a chance. He saw, heard and smelled everything around him. But there was one problem. He wasn't himself. And he wasn't in his body either. It was like he was paralyzed inside someone else's body and had no control over the body. Ash was feeling like a co-driver in a car. Seeing and hearing everything, but not having any control over the car whatsoever.
Ash now realized that his vision was limited to some extent too. "This person must have one of the eyes covered or don't have it at all." thought Ash to himself. As the person was walking through a corridor of a hall, the person stopped in front of a door. The person then reached for the keys inside person's trousers and pulled a key up. Then the person looked down on a door and a keyhole. Ash now had the first look on the body he was now in. And the first thing he spotted? "Boobs in a turquoise blouse... So I'm in a girl... That came out wrong. What the hell is wrong with me lately?!" thought Ash to himself as he was beginning to pay attention to the girl, his mind was now in. Unfortunately for Ash, the girl lifted her head up and was walking through the room denying him look between those two nicely shaped hills.
The girl closed behind herself, took off the boots, and was heading towards another door. She opened them revealing a nicely equipped bathroom. She then locked the door again and turned to the bathroom. Bathtub, shower, sink, toilet, mirror, and counters with hygiene aids and towels. All of it was in a clean white color. Tiles were from marble and walls were white too. But something startled Ash when he looked at the counter. "No cosmetics? Is this really a woman?" thought Ash to himself.
Then the person went to the bathtub and started to fill it with steaming water. "Wait. Wait. Wait a second. Does she really..." thought Ash, but before he could finish his thoughts the person began undressing. "Well. Ok then. Guess we'll find out if it's really a woman. Please be a woman. I really don't want to watch some booby guy bath." thought Ash. Head looked down again now revealing that it was a woman with a delicate milky skin. When the blouse and her brown trousers were left on the tiles the woman was left with black bra and panties. "Now that I think about it. Even if it is a woman it will be weird too. God, I wonder what my body is going through right now." thought Ash to himself. And to get things even weirder her right side of the abdomen was starting to glow in bright blue color. It wasn't a big area, and the light from the golden chandelier hid it pretty well too so the woman didn't notice. But Ash did.
"And what is this?" asked Ash himself the question about the mysterious blue glow. But before he could inspect anything else in that area, the head was lifted up again. Her hands made their way to her back and then the woman unclipped her bra. Then she looked down and started to take off her panties as well. "Oh boy. This is just... weird. Nice but weird." thought Ash. And Ash had to give it to her. This woman had a nice asset. At least Ash thought so. When the woman looked down she revealed her small pink nipples and areolas to Ash. "Not gonna lie. I am enjoying this much more than I probably should. Just look at those curves! Those boobs are just perfect. And look at those wide hips and flat stomach. Man she is stunning." thought Ash. He should try to wake up and don't do this. It's just wrong to creep on someone like this. However, he is technically still dreaming. Soooooo. Let's enjoy the show!
The girl was now taking off her panties. And as she was taking them down, Ash caught another glimpse of something that could help him identify this mysterious blue glowing milky woman. "Hmm...a small blonde bush? Just who are you blondie?" thought Ash to himself. When the panties fell to the ground the woman turned to the mirror for the first time since Ash was in this weird situation.CYNTHIA?!" yelled Ash when he saw her face in the mirror above the sink.
"Ash?" asked someone in a sweet voice.
"Crap...Come on Ash. Wake up. Now you have to. Wake up! WAKE UP ASH! WAKE THE FUCK UP ASH!" thought Ash to himself trying to get out of there before Cynthia realize that he was there. Who knows how this thing works. Fortunately for Ash, his wishes came true and he woke up.
Back in the cave in the morning
Ash woke up breathing heavily. He looked at the body and thankfully it was his. Then he realized that he had a morning problem between his legs. "Too tight. Too tight." thought Ash. To be honest he could expect this problem when he would wake up from that unexpected...dream? He looked around and found out that his Pokemon were sleeping. Only one was up. And he was coming to him.
"You okay Ash? You look like you've seen a ghost." said Mewtwo through telepathy who arrived a few hours ago with a bag full of empty pokeballs. It was much harder to steal them then he thought. They have much better security on these things than food or water in ordinary shops.
"I... I think... I was in someone's mind in real life when I was sleeping." said Ash to Mewtwo as he covered his crotch area with his hat.
"Don't worry about it. It is probably some Aura ability you have. Or it could be just a dream. You can ask Riolu about it. But till then. You can share it with me if it'll help you." said Mewtwo to Ash. It looked like Ash needed someone to talk to. And Mewtwo thought right.
Ash told Mewtwo a few things about his encounter. That he was in some woman's body and that he screamed when the woman heard him and that he immediately woke up after that. He left the part about Cynthia's stripping of course. Nobody can know what really happened. NOBODY.
"This is so confusing. I hope Riolu knows what it was." said Ash trying to calm down slowly. A minute passed by and Ash was finally getting rid of the thoughts of his 'dream'. Even though the image of naked Cynthia will stay with him for a long time.
"So. Mewtwo. What's next? We have the cave sorted out and my Pokemon are back." asked Ash Mewtwo who listened to Ash story the whole time.
"I believe that you should catch some more Pokemon. You'll need more of them to take Team Rocket down." replied Mewtwo.
"Sound's good. But how? Do I just come out and catch everything that crosses my path? I don't think that's a good idea. I can't train everyone like this." asked Ash.
"Well. I think some Pokemon wait specifically for you. Remember. You found Gardevoir through your unique connection to Pokemon. Maybe if we'll just fly around Sinnoh or other regions we'll find more of those Pokemon. Just follow your instincts Ash." replied Mewtwo.
"I am thinking that the only thing I should ever do is follow my gut." said Ash. Even though it always paid off, to follow his gut, Ash is wondering if it'll stay that way. Other people use logic to overcome their obstacles. But Ash? You could count his logical decisions in life on the one hand. The others were just spontaneous solutions that came to him right away. No thinking. Just doing what came to mind. Numerous time it nearly killed him or his Pokemon. How long it'll last till his luck runs out?
"Well. Just do what you always did and everything should run smoothly. So. What should we do today then? What do your instincts tell you?" asked Mewtwo.
"Well, my gut tells me that your idea seems like a good one. Let's wait for the others to wake up and hit the road." replied Ash.
When Ash's and Mewtwo's debate ended, they waited for Ash's Pokemon to wake up. When they did, Ash finally caught them all inside the ordinary pokeballs that Mewtwo brought. There was one complication with this though. And the complication was Pikachu. Pikachu's hatred for pokeballs was so strong that he even attacked the others when they wanted to hold him off for Ash to catch him. It took the combined power of Gliscor, Donphan, Sceptile, and Charizard to hold him off for a brief second and let Ash catch Pikachu inside the pokeball.Now only one pokeball remained unused. One slightly changed pokeball. The usually red top half of this pokeball was instead colored in a bright purple color. Signature color of the last uncaught Pokemon in the cave. All of Ash's Pokemon were outside of their pokeballs and were watching this memorable moment.
"Mewtwo. I am going to ask one more time. Is this really what you want?" asked Ash as he was holding Mewtwo's pokeball in his hand.
"And I'm going to say one more time yes it is." said Mewtwo telepathically to Ash. And without any warning, Mewtwo lift his hand and tapped the button on the pokeball and the red light sucked him inside the pokeball. One shake. Second shake. And the last shake. Ash just caught a legendary Pokemon. After that, Ash immediately released Mewtwo as he did with all of his Pokemon previously.
"Well. Now you are officially part of the gang." said Ash to Mewtwo when he materialized before him.
"By the way. You just had to make yourself special with this pokeball didn't you." said Ash to Mewtwo trying to joke around a little bit.
"Yes." replied Mewtwo. To this Ash and all of his Pokemon just giggled at Mewtwo's straightforward behavior.
After this exchange, Riolu and angry Pikachu stepped out of the crowd. Riolu then talked to Ash through his Aura Link.
"Ash? Did you experience something unusual when you were sleeping?" asked Riolu straight away.
"Y...Yes. I... I did. But. What gave you the idea?" replied Ash. He was going to ask Riolu about his 'dream', but he didn't except Riolu to know something about it.
"Ash. You have some kind of tribal Aura mark or tattoo or whatever it is on your abdomen. It was glowing so brightly, that Pikachu had to sleep in my room this night because he couldn't fall asleep." said Riolu.
"A glowing mark?" asked Ash. He then unzipped his Sinnoh jacket and pulled his shirt up. But he couldn't find the mark there.
"It's not visible to the human or Pokemon eye. Next time you'll meditate try to focus on your left side of the abdomen. It should be there." said Riolu to his confused trainer.
"What happened in your sleep?" asked Riolu. Pikachu was still near him. But he is just so angry at Ash that he forced him inside the pokeball that he didn't utter a single syllable.
"Yeah... Well... I was in... another person's body. I saw and heard everything that they did, but I didn't control the body. I think that it wasn't a dream. I... I think that somehow I connected to this person because the right side of the person's abdomen was glowing in a blue light too." said nervous Ash to Riolu.
"Hmm... it could be possible that two people can connect like this. But I never heard of this power. Is this the first time this thing happened?" asked Riolu. Aura is in everyone so the possibilities of this power are vast. And a connection between two humans could be similar to the connection between him and Charizard for example. It's not that surprising that Ash could have this power.
"Yes." answered Ash.
"Interesting. Anything else you can think of that could help us identify this possible new ability." asked curious Riolu.
"Ehm... No. No, I don't think so." said Ash nervously.
"OK then. Let's go to the others Pikachu. You promised me something this night." said Riolu to Pikachu. Pikachu was eyeing Ash the whole time. He knows his trainer through and through. It was clear that he didn't tell them everything. And the fact that he stuttered the whole time implied one thing. It was something embarrassing. "What is your dirty little secret Ash?" thought Pikachu to himself. When he'll find out, he is sure that he'll remind it to Ash every chance he'll get for that pokeball prison torture Ash forced him into.3 hours later
"I said I'm sorry numerous times. You know how it works Pikachu." said Ash to his yellow friend. Both of them were now high in the skies on Charizard's back with Mewtwo flying beside them. Ash and Mewtwo both wore they usual stealthy attire. And yes it was weird seeing a flying Mewtwo in his cloak.
"Pi pikachu pika pika pi!" yelled Pikachu to Ash. Ash caught a few words. Most of them were swear words.
"Come on. You were there just for a second. Not even that. It can't be that bad." said Ash back to him. Their banter was going on for some time before it finally came to an end.
"Finally." thought Mewtwo and Charizard Ash's fight with Pikachu ended.
They were flying all around the Sinnoh Region for 3 hours already. They were nearly everywhere and Ash still couldn't register any Pokemon in the areas with his weird connection power. Maybe the thing with Gardevoir was a one-time thing. Maybe it has to do something with Gardevoir's telepathy and not his Aura abilities. They were ready to fly back to the frozen mountain but then Ash finally sensed someone calling out to him again.
"There! Someone is right there!" yelled Ash as he pointed to the fairly large pond inside the forest below them.
Startled at first, but when Charizard realized what was going on he slowly descended next to the pond with Ash and Pikachu. Shortly after, Mewtwo landed on the ground too. Ash and Pikachu jumped off the Charizard's back and looked at the pond. The pond in the middle of the forest looked magnificent. Clear water surrounded by a small sandy beach and trees all around the place. Definitely better-looking pond than the one where he found Gardevoir. But this time, he sensed that the Pokemon was in the water. Somewhere in the middle of the pond. "Damn. Should have brought the bathing suit. Do I even have it in the bag? I should really look into the bag when I come back." thought Ash to himself.
"Buizel. I choose you." said Ash as he unclipped one of the 20 pokeballs Ash brought with himself on his belt and threw it in the air. The weird thing is he didn't yell his signature phrase as he always does. He said it in his normal tone to keep his low profile.
Ash said to the sea weasel Pokemon that there is someone in the middle of the lake. Buizel jumped into the water and was waiting for Ash. Ash then slowly undressed with only his boxers on and hesitantly began walking into the cold water. Ash was going deeper and deeper into the water with each step until the water reached a critical part of his body. "Sorry, Ash junior. I hope you won't turn into an icicle when I'll do this." thought Ash as he looked at his crotch area. Then suddenly a log hit him in the back and he was thrust into the freezing water without mercy.
"You could have been a little softer with that throw you know." said Pikachu to Charizard at the grassy field near the small sandy beach around the pond.
"We would be here all day if I would be 'softer' with him" replied Charizard to Pikachu.
Even though the water was freezing, Ash got used to it pretty quickly. Ash then looked at smiling Charizard with an angry expression. But. Charizard didn't care in the slightest that Ash was angry. And so Ash and Buizel swam to the center of the fairly round pond leaving Mewtwo, Pikachu, and Charizard on the grassy field near the pond.Ash with Buizel was now in the middle of the pond. After a few seconds, Ash felt someone calling for him again. It was coming from below.
"Buizel. I'll need you to bring me under water. I'll be pointing in the directions where I think the Pokemon is. OK?" said Ash to Buizel.
"Bui!" yelled excited Buizel.
In a matter of seconds, both of them were under the water. And it doesn't matter how many times Ash sees it but the sight of so many water Pokemon swimming underwater will always amaze him. This pond was very lively. And thanks to the clear water it wasn't hard to see under it. But what was hard was trying to keep his breath underwater. Ash had a well-trained lungs from all the traveling and swimming he did on his journey. But being in a freezing water for two minutes can tire even Ash. But they were really close to the Pokemon. And Ash could recognize this Pokemon already. But there was something wrong with the Pokemon. As they were nearing the Pokemon Ash could tell what was wrong. This fish like Pokemon had one of its fins greatly damaged. Not just damaged but this fin was much smaller than the other one. The Pokemon was swimming very slowly thanks to this. When Ash neared the Pokemon he just grabbed the Pokemon and gestured Buizel to swim back to the shore since Ash was running out of breath. The Pokemon they found didn't even struggle to break free.Meanwhile outside of the water.
"So. Will you help me with our loverboy?" asked Pikachu.
"What is there to help with? Riolu should just show her he is the Alpha and he'll have her on her back screaming his name in no time." replied Charizard. That's how it worked for him anyway. Show the others you are the best and females will come. Easy as that.
"Yeah about that. I don't think that Gardevoir would find that appealing. Besides. You two are now the 'Alphas' in our cave and it doesn't look like you would give it up for Riolu. So that's out of the question." said Pikachu to Mewtwo and Charizard.
"Why won't he just tell her?" asked Mewtwo. These relationship problems are still new to him. And his opinion is that they are absolutely useless. Creating more and more problems.
"He doesn't have enough courage to tell her. And I don't think Gardevoir would say yes to him right away. Did you forget what happened when she came to our cave for the first time?" replied Pikachu.
Both of knew what Pikachu was implying. That experience scared Gardevoir of getting into these sort of things. If Riolu wants anything with her, he'll have to take it slowly. Before they could think about it more, Buizel with Ash and strange looking carp Pokemon were swimming their direction. A minute later Ash was on the land with Pikachu, Charizard, and Mewtwo. Buizel stayed in the water with newly discovered Pokemon.
"This is the one that was calling out to me guys." said Ash as he pointed at the beige fish in the water supported by Buizel.
The three remaining Pokemon were looking on the Pokemon with surprised looks. They thought that on this quest Ash would be catching strong Pokemon and making them even stronger. But this was a complete opposite of that. One of the weakest Pokemon and with a handicapped fin. Was this really the Pokemon that was calling out to Ash?
"That's... interesting." said Mewtwo to Ash telepathically as Pikachu with Charizard was just staring at the Pokemon.
"Is something wrong?" asked Ash his Pokemon.
"No of course not. We just thought that it would be someone stronger since we are going up against Team Rocket. We didn't except a disabled Feebas to be your next Pokemon." said Mewtwo to Ash.
"I don't care if he is strong or weak. He called out to me for help. I couldn't let him be there in this state. I'm going to make him as strong as my Charizard in no time. As I'll do with all of my other Pokemon." proclaimed Ash. And he really intended to do so. Ash knows that his team is imbalanced right now. That has to change. Some Pokemon he'll have to train harder than the others because of this. Now Feebas included. He needs every single one of them to be in top condition when the day D will come.
"OK, Ash. We understand. And it's a she, not he." said Mewtwo to Ash.
Ash chuckled and then smiled at Mewtwo. It seems like he knew from where he is coming from. Even Pikachu with Charizard smiled at him. Ash then turned back to Feebas and Buizel.
"Sorry for the kidnapping. My name is Ash and I think you were calling for help. Is that true?" asked Ash as he kneeled in the shallow water near the sandy beach to Feebas.Feebas nodded to this. It was very hard for her to live like that. She was born with the small damaged fin and she learned to live with that to a certain extent. Her fin was keeping her down and she couldn't get stronger because of this. It was frustrating. She was sick of this. She wished that someone would help her from this. And then the help came to her in the form of this boy it seems.
"Well. I would like to add you to my team of Pokemon. I would train you to overcome your disability and make you stronger so we can do some good in this world together. What do you say?" asked Ash Feebas.
A trainer? When she hoped for help she thought that a Pokemon would help her. She didn't expect a trainer to hear and help her. Feebas isn't the most popular Pokemon catch from what she observed. Especially not the one with a disability. This trainer, however, seemed like the one who would help her achieved greatness. He asked her to join him after all. Feebas than took the offer and nodded her head once again.
"Great! I promise once we get back to our home I'll train you." said Ash. He then took one of the empty pokeballs from his belt he brought with him and tapped it on the Feebas's forehead. And just like this, Ash added another member to his family.20 minutes went by and Ash and co were still at the pond. Mewtwo said that he'll get some food for them since lunchtime is coming. When Mewtwo teleported away Ash let out his Pokemon which consist of Pikachu, Charizard, Buizel, Riolu, Infernape, Sceptile and newly caught Feebas. Plus Mewtwo that wasn't here at the moment. Those six where training and trading blow near the pond releasing shockwaves through the forest with Feebas as spectator admiring the display of power before her. Pikachu vs. Charizard, Sceptile vs. Infernape, and Riolu vs. Buizel. Ash, on the other hand, was meditating in his now usual cloak with the grey scarf that covered his whole body. His skills were increasing constantly. It will take some time to perfect the meditation but it should be soon enough. He could even register that mark on his body now. It's just like Riolu said. Under his skin blue simple tribal mark. But it didn't serve a purpose as he was examining it. At least that's what he thought.
Ash wants to learn how to communicate with his Pokemon too. The link between him and Charizard was like a rollercoaster. Sometimes he can communicate with him sometime he can't, even if he wants to. With Riolu it is much easier since he is using Aura too and they have similar Aura. When he'll be able to communicate to all of his Pokemon through Aura link and understand their speech life will become much easier. As this was running through his head he was beginning to feel someone again. But this time they weren't the calls of need like the previous ones with Gardevoir and Feebas. "Another one." thought Ash to himself as his eyes shot open and looked at the direction where the Pokemon was. It was in the forest behind the lake.
"Guys. I think I found another one." said Ash to his Pokemon. They immediately stopped their training and went to him.
"OK. Pikachu, Charizard, and Riolu. You'll go with me. Sceptile, Infernape, Buizel, and Feebas you stay here if Mewtwo'll come back. OK?" asked Ash his Pokemon. Everyone nodded and Ash with his Pokemon went inside the forest.
After a minute or two of walking the group stopped. When they heard the rustling in the bush everyone was on alert. After few seconds a Pokemon emerged from the bush. He walked casually out of the bush and gave the group uninterested look. Then he resumed walking in the other direction of Ash and his Pokemon.Guys. That's him." said Ash to his companions as he felt a slight connection to the Pokemon again. As soon as he said this Riolu launched himself at the Pokemon with Aura Sphere at hand. But the Pokemon casually leaned himself on the right side and Riolu missed. He then turned to Ash and his Pokemon again. Riolu immediately after he missed jumped in front of Ash and was ready to fight. Pikachu and Charizard got into their fighting stances too. "Guess we'll have to do it this way. Thanks, Riolu." thought Ash to himself.
"OK Riolu. It looks like this will be our first match. Pikachu and Charizard don't intervene OK?" said Ash to his Pokemon as the two powerhouses in his team nodded. And with that a match between Riolu and Toxicroak began
Toxicroak's lazy attitude was gone and he launched himself at Riolu with his purple glowing claw on hand.
"Riolu dodge!" yelled Ash at his Pokemon.
Riolu immediately jumped out of the way. He was now above Toxicroak. But Toxicroak began doing his next move. Purple sludge was forming around him. It looked like he was in a blob. Suddenly part of this sludge was shot right at Riolu like a tentacle. Riolu and Ash were both too slow to realize what was going on and Toxicroak trapped Riolu in his Sludge Wave damaging the Emanation Pokemon.
"Riolu don't let it throw you off. Use Aura Sphere!" yelled Ash at his Pokemon.
Riolu landed on the ground with his eyes closed trying to prevent the sludge reaching his eyes. Riolu then located Toxicroak with his Aura sensing ability and used an Aura Sphere in that direction. It hit Toxicroak right in the head. But it didn't do much of a damage to him. But at least the Sludge Wave was interrupted.
"Riolu. Use Blaze Kick!" yelled Ash at Riolu.
Riolu jumped in the air and was prepared to slam his leg onto Toxicroak. But he was too slow. Toxicroak jumped and with Low Sweep attack, he slammed his own leg onto Riolu's stomach sending him to the ground.
"This Toxicroak is much stronger than I anticipated" thought Ash to himself. "Let's try this through Aura Link." thought Ash as he an Riolu reached out to another and were able to communicate through Aura.
"How are you holding up?" asked Ash Riolu via Aura Link.
"I'm just getting started." replied Riolu.
"Great thing to hear. Now Use Shadow Claw!" said Ash to Riolu.Riolu slammed his paw into the ground and a Shadow Claw was now heading towards Toxicroak. Toxicroak confused by the lack of trainer's commands didn't expect this and was hit right in the chest. Toxicroak shook it off and immediately after this. Toxicroak was surrounded by the purple sludge again ready to attack with another Sludge Wave.
"Riolu dodge and use Blaze Kick!" said Ash to Riolu via their link.
Riolu jumped out way successfully dodging the sludge tentacle. But he didn't just jump mindlessly away. No. He jumped to Toxicroak and slammed his fire leg into him through his purple sludge blob around him sending Toxicroak to the ground. Finally, it looked like it did something to Toxicroak. But the battle was far from over.
Toxicroak got up and got his Poison Jab ready. Then he launched himself onto Riolu.
"Dodge Riolu!" yelled Ash through the link.
Riolu successfully dodged the jab when he jumped out of the way to the right. But ten Toxicroak's whole fist then turned black and Toxicroak turned around and punched Riolu right in the stomach with powerful Sucker Punch sending him to the across the field. Riolu now greatly damaged managed to get up. But it hurt like hell.
"Let 's finish this. I have an idea." said Ash to Riolu.
"Great. What should I do?" asked panting Riolu. Tired from the match already.
"OK. Use Aura Sphere!" yelled Ash.
Riolu then charged Aura Sphere between his hands and threw it at Toxicroak. Toxicroak anticipated and dodged the Sphere and run right at Riolu with his Sucker Punch ready.
"Riolu. Use Blaze Kick!" yelled Ash to his aura trainer still through the link.
Riolu then runs against Toxicroak with his leg on fire. When they were near each other Riolu slammed his leg onto Toxicroaks fist resulting in an explosion from this collision. Smoke covered the two battling Pokemon.
"Riolu. Use FORCE PALM!" said Ash. This was his trump card against any Pokemon battling against Riolu.
The collision didn't make much damage to either of them. But Riolu was now in great advantage. He could see where Toxicroak was. Toxicroak couldn't. When Riolu find where Toxicroak was. He jumped in the air doing a spin and from above and placed his palm on top of Toxicroaks head. Riolu then charged the energy into his palm and shooting it straight into Toxicroaks face pummeling him into the ground.When the smoke cleared it revealed a still standing Riolu. But Toxicroak was getting up again from a small crater that was created beneath him.
"Riolu end this before he can get up. Use Aura Sphere one last time!" said Ash his last command via the Aura Link.
And Riolu did as Ash told so. He threw one last Aura Sphere and since Toxicroak was already on his last legs, he managed to hit him. This finally knocked Toxicroak down.
"Great job buddy." said Ash to Riolu normally. Ash then unclipped another empty Pokeball from his belt and threw it at Toxicroak. One ding. Second ding. Third ding. Ash caught him.
Riolu sat on the ground after the long match panting with exhaustion. He did it. He won his first battle with Ash. Ash then ran to his friend to look how is he doing.
"Well. Well. Well. That squirt sure has a potential." said Charizard to Pikachu as both of them were looking at their tired comrade.
"It's a Riolu who can use Aura Sphere. What did you expect?" said Pikachu to his orange friend.
"That he would get beaten up badly." said Charizard.
Pikachu sighed at this. Charizard is acting a little differently from the time they are in the cave. He knew why of course. But it would be great if he would be hopeful again. Charizard always believed in Ash's other Pokemon. Well not always exactly. Since their adventure on the Orange Islands. But still. He is a lot more pessimistic nowadays.
"Will you help me with him and Gardevoir at least?" asked Pikachu again.
"... Sure why not. But I don't know how. I already told you how I got a mate." said Charizard. If he has to live in a cave for three years, he has to keep himself entertained. This seemed like a decent option. He could train non stop but that what would remind him of the Valley to much. He'll take it easy here. And hopefully get two Pokemon together.
"Great! Now let's go and congratulate him on his first win." said Pikachu. And both of them went to the Riolu and congratulate him on his first win at Ash's side.
"You did a really magnificent job on your first battle Riolu. Take a good rest. Gardevoir'll take care of you when we'll come back into the cave." said Ash to Riolu.
Riolu blushed at Ash's words. Not because of his compliments. But the thought of Gardevoir taking care of him sounds very appealing.
"You cheeky bastard. That's why you jumped on that Toxicroak and provoke the fight didn't you?" thought Pikachu to himself as he was looking at blushing Riolu. "Smart move, Riolu... Smart move..." thought Pikachu to himself.
Ash then recalled Riolu and with his two remaining Pokemon, they headed back to the pond where Mewtwo'll meet them with a fresh food. Hopefully.
After another 20 minutes, Mewtwo brought lunch and discovered that Ash caught another Pokemon. But since he was tired from the fight against Riolu he didn't see him at the lunch. Neither he saw Riolu at the lunch who fought against that Toxicroak. After the lunch which consisted of Pokemon food for Pokemon and some sandwiches for Ash, they were headed back to the cave to let Toxicroak and Riolu healed and rest for a bit. Ash returned his Pokemon except for Charizard, Pikachu, and Mewtwo. Then Ash with Pikachu hoped on Charizard's back and took off with Mewtwo besides them leaving the forest behind them.