Victory Road tunnels - 1437 hours local time - Day 108 of Ash Ketchum's Journey
Victory Road. A simple maze of tunnels that were the final challenge for a Pokemon trainer on their way to the League. Filled with Pokemon that were incredibly powerful and would crush anyone stupid enough to enter.
At least, if they weren't prepared. Many trainers tried during the early days of the league to run through with no badges. Their deaths inspired the posting of guards until the Cipher War. After that, it was drilled into the heads of every trainer: 'No badge, no League'.
"I've never seen these before." Misty said as they walked past a pokemon that looked like a spiked rock rolling past. "Not even Ash saw them."
"Minior." Sabrina said, barely sparing them a glance. "Rock/flying-types native to Alola. They're common as sin, born in the atmosphere. They're so common, Rayquaza uses them for food."
Ash blanched. "Rayquaza EATS them?" he asked, horrified at the idea. "They're Pokemon!"
"True, but they're also non-sentient." Anabel said, looking at them. "I don't get any feelings of higher thought from them. And they're awake, before you ask."
"Pika." 'Dumb as a rock.' Pikachu commented, only to receive a look from Ash. "Pi?' 'What? Literal rocks!'
The cap-wearing trainer sighed. "I guess I don't know everything about Pokemon after all." Ash admitted. "But knowing everything takes the fun out of it, I suppose."
"NOW you're sounding your age." Kyoji said, grinning as the Gibles continued their 'races' around them. "…Seriously, how DO you guys do that?"
Serena giggled at the Gibles before they surfaced again. "GIB!" they cried, not saying anything before doing the land shark thing once more. Sabrina moved past them, getting a dirty eye from Anabel as she brushed past.
"I've been through here before, or at least the crazy bitch that controlled me was here before. Unless you want to end up like those guys?" Sabrina said, hooking a thumb at a corner, revealing what looked like a set of rocks.
Then Sabrina made them glow, revealing them to be aged, mineral-infused human bones.
Misty and Anabel cringed at the bones, Serena just looked fascinated… Janine and Iris just shrugged.
Janine was obvious: she was a kunoichi. They saw death on a regular basis. Iris… Ash didn't want to know.
"Lead on." he said, willing to let the greenette lead the way.
Viridian City Pokemon Center - 1512 hours local time
"Are you sure you want to release them?" the local Joy asked the incredibly jerkish trainer from Sinnoh as she tried to convince him to heal several Pokemon instead of just letting them go.
"They're useless to me." he said, scowling. "They barely kept the wild Pokemon off my back while I healed the worthwhile ones. I have no use for weaklings."
"Your attitude is disgusting," the Joy retorted, venom dripping from her words. "If I had the right, I'd refuse you services!"
"But then the Pokemon you're so eagerly defending WILL die," replied the trainer - Paul Ikari, his Trainer ID read - smuggly. "Put them up for adoption if you want: I don't care. Just heal Torterra and the others. They fought something called a Goodra and some Arceus-forsaken Shadow Pokemon."
The Joy almost felt sorry for him, not knowing what a Goodra was before she looked it up on the computer, even as she took his Pokeballs for healing. The monitor displayed the most squishy and friendly looking dragon-type she'd ever seen. "…aww, he's cute…"
"It's a damn pseudo-legendary is what it is," Paul growled, "I'll teach that damn slimeball a lesson, along with that jackass Ash…"
"Ash?" Joy blinked. "Wait, Ash Ketchum?"
"…you know him?" Paul rose his brow.
"Know him? He single-handedly saved this whole Pokemon center when Team Rocket attacked!" The Nurse exclaimed, causing Paul to blink. "Kicked them right back out the door with his Pikachu! I was scared at first, him being a Shadow and all, but he's actually extremely well trained! And he helped us again… granted more indirectly when he trashed Giovanni's Gym and officially kicked all of Team Rocket out of Kanto! He's become something of a legend here!"
Paul scowled. "Get rid of all but Murkrow, Teddiursa, Magby and Torterra. The rest are useless." he said before putting his hand on a palm scanner, registering him as a visitor. "I presume you have a room?"
"If I said no, I would be lying. Get out of my sight: I don't want to see you until they're healed," the medical professional snapped. "You're little better than Cipher."
"At least I don't use Shadow Pokemon," the Sinnohan jackass retorted as he left, going for one of the rooms.
She sighed as she looked at the Pokemon he was releasing: all good Pokemon worthy of any trainer willing to take care of them. She could tell just by looking at them that this trainer had just gone on some sort of 'catching-spree' in Sinnoh and Kanto to catch as many pokemon as possible… she could only imagine how many others had been caught and released. Normally she could apply to send them to a ranch like Oak's, but the time and paperwork that would require would take too long - and there was no guarantee that they would say 'yes' since Ranches are for Pokemon with trainers.
Joy sighed again, as she prepared to release them… but a thought crossed her mind and she paused. 'For trainers…' she thought again, as she slowly smirked. She still had Paul's information pulled up. He wasn't even around to finalize everything like a proper Trainer would. So… she casually opened up Ash's own file for Pokemon transfers.
Of course she knew it would look extremely suspicious if a bunch of Pokemon all went to one person at once. She still needed to keep her job… but thankfully, Ash did not travel alone, as his little… 'pseudo-harem' would probably be more than happy to take in a few for themselves… plus that man, Kyoji? He only had four Pokemon to his name - the yellow Gible (which was ungodly cute), a Natu, the dancing Galvantula, and his Charizard. Though it seems he just recently caught a Marill… funny, Paul was registered with a Marill, but no sign of it… she put two and two together very quickly.
'..not like that Sinnoh brat cares…' Joy thought, as she casually began the transferring of all the Pokemon to Ash, Kyoji and the girls. All it took was a few minutes… and a subtle note that said 'Please take care of them, their trainer is an asshole. V.N.J.' and like that… they were off.
"Chansey?" She glanced back to where her Chansey aide, who watched her - the sole witness to what was technically illegal… and Joy simply gave her the 'hush' gesture. The pink Pokemon smiled, mimicking the motion.
Paul shut the door, scowling as he sat down, thinking about what the Joy said.
Ketchum? A hero? If he destroyed a gym in Sinnoh, he would be jailed. As far as Paul was concerned, anyone using a Shadow Pokemon was as bad as a Cipher Peon. A criminal just waiting to happen.
The only way to beat power was with power. To fight a Shadow Pokemon, you have to be stronger, faster, better then it. And then… you kill it.
Such was the nature of this world. Cipher taught them this. Anyone thinking otherwise was a damned fool. And fools were the epitome of pathetic.
"All I need to do is get stronger, better," Paul muttered as he thought over how to beat Ash's Goodra without risking another four-to-one loss.
The Sinnohan scowled as he smelled himself. "After a shower, I'll put more on," he muttered.
Indigo Plateau - Victory Tunnel Exit - 1832 hours local time
The rain had faded away, letting the sun burn through the sky.
"AH, MY EYES!" Kyoji cried as his eyes had to readjust to the light. "DARKNESS, MY FRIEND, WHERE HAVE YOU GONE?!"
Ash had an easier time then the others for one very simple reason. "I don't just wear this thing because it's the official League hat." he said, the brim of his hat keeping the sun from blinding him.
"That any way to treat your friends?" Sabrina deadpanned, cheating herself using her psionic powers to filter the light until her eyes adjusted.
"It's a legitimate strategy," Serena said, her own little sun hat keeping the sun off her eyes.
"SCREW ALL OF YOU!" Kyoji shouted, mostly for melodrama. "I'M MELTING! MELLLTTTTING!"
Ash outright started laughing, which the Pallet Town trainer assumed was the point. "Come on, I think I see a Pokemon Center that way," he said, pointing at a building with a Pokeball proudly displayed on it. "Or it's a store. Haven't seen many of those."
"Not since the League made it mandatory for Pokemon Centers to have a Pokemon Mart in them," Iris said, sighing as she remembered something… bad.
"Ok, seriously, guys, I can't see," Kyoji said, now serious. "Mind helping me get where we're going?"
Sabrina took his hand, smiling the whole time as Ash led them to the… supposed Pokemon Center.
20 minutes later, they discovered it WAS a Pokemon Center, with a tunnel leading to the building where the Indigo Conference would be taking place.
Right now, Ash was taking the girls to lunch. Iris had so many questions and Anabel suggested that they be there to keep Serena from attempting to break his hips.
Kyoji, meanwhile, was getting Pokemon supplies from the mart in the PokeCenter before having his Pokemon checked out.
"I swear, we are MILKING those Tauros when Ash goes to Johto…" he muttered as he filled a basket with potions, antidotes and other useful items.
"You can only get milk from a Miltank," Sabrina quipped as she grabbed some milk from the freezer section.
"You get the idea," Kyoji muttered, "A convoy of Tauros-drawn carriages would go a long way to helping our travel issues…"
"I know. I just wanted to make a joke." Sabrina said, smirking.
"Yeah…" Kyoji sighed "Sorry, just… that Paul guy just has me on edge…"
"Don't worry about the asshole. He is legally banned from Leagues for another two years. Indigo was early, so in 15 months, Johto, then he'll be back for Hoenn, ripe for public humiliation."
"I know…" Kyoji sighed "Just… I've met people back home with similar mindsets to him… It was an… uncomfortable reminder…"
Sabrina put her hand on his shoulder. "I understand. Anabel is freaked out by me being here." she said. "She knows I'm not the same person, but it's ingrained in her mind." She telekinetically lifted the heavy baskets out of his hands. "You check on your Pokemon. I'll pay for these. I'd ask dad, but the Rotans haven't given him his royal allowance yet."
"Right - see you at the Center," Kyoji nodded, as he walked back across the street to where the center was. As he entered, he pulled out Marill's pokeball, bringing the small Pokemon out.
"Okay…" Kyoji muttered, as he opened the terminal. "I'm gonna send you to Professor Oak, okay Marill? Just to have him look you over since he has more advanced medical care than I have right now. Okay?"
"Marill." 'Okay,' Marill nodded in understanding.
"Good." Kyoji smiled, patting the Marill between her ears, "Just give me one sec, as I…" He blinked as he looked at his terminal. "A message? Who could that be…" He clicked it open.
…
…
…
"…the hell…?" He blinked as he saw that he suddenly had… more Pokemon than he last recalled. Suddenly he had a Ralts, an Aipom, a Pichu, a Vulpix, a Pachirisu, a Buneary, a Magikarp and an Eevee. "…where did they all come from?"
He looked at the message, which only read 'Please take care of them - V.P.C'. which didn't exactly tell him who or what sent all these Pokemon to him. "…well, only one way to find out…"
He keyed up the terminal, activating the transfer system - as a ball of light signalled the arrival of a Pokeball. "Well… come on out, little guy…" He said, as the ball opened up… revealing the small, furry form of an Eevee.
"E-Eevee!" 'I-I'm sorry Paul, I-I'll do better next time I promise I-' The Eevee shuddered in fear, before he opened his eyes, and glanced around "V-vee?" 'P-Paul? Where are…?'
"Marill?!" 'Eevee?!' Marill shouted in surprise, hopping down to its level. "Marill!" 'That is you!'
"Eevee?" 'Marill?' Eevee looked at the small blue ball in surprise. "Vee? Vee?" 'What happened? Where's Paul?'
"…Marill." 'He released me…' Marill sighed, as Eevee flinched at that, "Marill… Marill?" 'So he probably released you too… but how did you get into my new trainer's terminal?'
"Paul?" Kyoji blinked, "How did you…" He looked at the terminal. "…how the ripe fuck did that happen?"
"Vee?" '…did he understand me?' The Eevee asked, looking at Kyoji as he responded to them.
"Yup - so can Ash, but… he's elsewhere…" Kyoji said, as the Eevee's eyes widened. "…how did you end up in my…" he sighed, shaking his head as he kneeled down. "Well, little guy… don't know how it happened, but… it looks like you and a bunch of your friends got transferred over to… me I guess…"
"…Eevee?" 'Y-you're not gonna release us, right?' Eevee asked, looking up at him.
Kyoji bit his lip a bit - he was not expecting so many pokemon all at once… but if they were all Paul's pokemon… what was he supposed to do? He couldn't just… let them go! He'd be no better than him…"No." He shook his head. "I never let Pokemon go unless they want to leave… if you and…" he glanced at the terminal "…the others want to stick around with me… you're more than welcome."
"…VEE!" 'THANK YOU!' Eevee jumped into Kyoji's arms, crying as he rubbed his face into his chest. "Eevee, Eevee, Eevee!" 'Thank you, thank you, thank you! You won't regret it, I promise! E-Even if I never evolve like P-Paul wanted me too!'
Kyoji just smiled, petting the little bundle of fur soothingly. "It's all gonna be fine, little guy…" he assured, glancing around. "…I'm gonna have to talk to Ash about this… he has more experience taking care of so many Pokemon at once…"
90 minutes later - PMC food court
"Hey! Ash!" Ash glanced up, as he spotted Kyoji approaching him… oddly enough with an Eevee in his hand.
"Sup," He nodded, "Where'd you get the Eevee?"
"Uhh… long story," Kyoji said, "But, ummm… do me a favor and… check your terminal and the pokemon you got, would you?"
Ash blinked. "Sure, my Pokedex should be connected." he said, opening it up and turning it on, Zero the Porygon giving him a wave before displaying something… new.
Multiple new Pokemon. He was almost afraid he left more Safari Balls registered to him back in the he remembered why he had his dex out. Kyoji looked at it and nodded.
"…so it happened to you too, huh?" Kyoji nodded.
"…what do you mean?" Ash asked dumbfounded.
"I opened my terminal… and I suddenly had over double the amount I already had. Only had Gible, Natu, Gulvantula and Charizard when I came here, plus Marill now… but now I suddenly have a Magikarp, a Ralts, an Aipom, a Pichu, a Vulpix, a Pachirisu, a Buneary and…" he gestured to the little Eevee. "This bundle of joy here… I spent the last hour interviewing them… and guess what they all have in common?"
"What?"
"…they all used to belong to a certain jackass we just met." Kyoji deadpanned.
Ash scowled. "Paul." he said, pissed off once more. "It was stupid back in the old timeline, NOW it's just cruel for the sake of cruel."
"The weird thing is, they didn't come from him though," Kyoji said, making him blink. "I just got a note that said to… take care of them, with the initials V.P.C… no idea who or… what that's supposed to be…"
"V.N.J?" Ash said before thinking about it. There wasn't anyone he knew with those initials. Then he thought about where Paul would have to go to patch up the ones he gave a damn about. "…Nurse Joy."
"What would Nurse Joy have to…" Kyoji asked before he facepalmed. "Doh. Viridian Nurse Joy. The asshole had to go back to Viridian to heal them, he pissed off the local Joy… I think I don't need to guess the rest."
Ash chuckled. "Yeah, she gave them to us," he said, looking at the list. "Huh. Nidorino and Houndour? You know, I met a Houndour pack in Johto, last time…"
"Now… I gotta look after eleven Pokemon at once…" Kyoji muttered, letting out a sigh. "…how the hell do you do it? I mean… I stuck with just Charizard, Gible, Natu and Galvantula for so long because I… I didn't want to have like a dozen pokemon to look after at once, or develop a sense of favoritism among them… but I can't just abandon these guys, knowing what they've had to go through…"
Ash looked at Kyoji and sighed. "Most of the time, if they're not with me, I send them to the Ranch." he admitted. "They get all the air and food they need, not stuffed into the balls all the time. But the Pokemon I have on me… I learned a few tricks from Brock, the gym leader from Pewter I told you about?"
Kyoji snorted. "Yeah, Pikachu calls me the 'new Brock'." he snarked.
"I know the old saying's meant for Pokemon…" Ash trailed off before chuckling. "You teach me how not to fuck up with the girls, I teach you how to care for all of them at once."
Kyoji nearly fell to his knees. "Arceus BLESS you," he said before thinking about it. "Wait, you're already blessed by Arceus: chosen one and all that. What do I use?!"
Ash honestly laughed at the Ranseian's confusion. "Just a 'thank you' will do." he replied, smiling before looking at the Pokedex. "The big secret is rotation. Mind helping me out, Zero?"
The pixelated Porygon gave a Pory-salute before showing three 'wheels', one with a sprite of one of Ash's Pokemon. "Whenever you think they need to rest, take a break from all their worries and all that, you swap them out for another Pokemon that's spent a lot of time relaxing at the ranch." Ash explained as he 'rotated' the two left wheels, replacing Goodra with Froakie, then the top left; Quilava being rotated out for Pidgeot. "It's difficult, but I try to keep it up. I haven't swapped in Ivysaur for a while because he's busy at the ranch. He works out all the inter-species problems."
"An ambassador?" Kyoji asked, shaking his head. "That's awesome."
"Yeah." Ash said before pointing at the one sprite he hadn't moved: Pikachu. "I keep Pikachu on me at all times, though."
"Makes sense. He is your starter." Kyoji said before looking at the second screen."So… what Pokemon did you get? From the Center I mean?"
Ask looked at his Pokedex. "Let's see… Bellsprout, Houndour, Machomp, Sandshrew, Smoochum, Ponyta and…" he blinked, before his eyes narrowed. "…Nidorino…"
"…fuck, he let him go too…" Kyoji growled, "Does he not know he can evolve to Nidoking?"
"This isn't the first time." Ash said, pulling up an image of Monferno. "Monferno used to be Paul's in the last timeline. Pretty sure the jerk didn't get him this time: I'm registered as his original trainer."
"Dude, Monferno's a BADASS." Kyoji said, dumbfounded. "How in the name of the Lake Guardians and the Creation Dragons would he not GET that?!"
Ash frowned at remembering when he caught Chimchar. "He didn't take to Paul's style of training and he let him go," he said. "I caught him later on and treated him a lot better. He happened to be the strongest Pokemon I caught in Sinnoh as a result."
"Hehe…" Kyoji chuckled a bit. "Oh I can't wait for when you humiliate him… I can't wait to see your Monferno kick his ass."
"Monferno, when he evolved, had a… rivalry of sorts with an Elekid that evolved to Electivire." Ash said, whining at the reminder that, during that last fight, Infernape tore enough muscles to make it hard to move, let alone fight. "Hopefully he won't hurt himself that badly this time…"
"Still a fight to look forward to." Kyoji said before Ash frowned. "What's up?"
"I… already have a Ponyta." Ash said, rubbing the back of his head. "I mean, the egg hasn't hatched yet, but… I don't want either of them to feel like one is more important than the other…"
Kyoji thought about it… before he grinned. "Sure, you have one…" he said, "…but do any of the girls have one?"
Ash looked back at the girls, who were sitting at a table, watching them talk before he thought about who would want a Ponyta. Who would want a… fire horse…
"It makes sense…" Kyoji shrugged. "I mean… I'm considering letting Sabrina have the Ralts I got… she's better with Psychic-types after all…"
"Yeah, and it'd be a nice gift of sorts," Ash mused with a smirk, as Kyoji blushed a bit.
"...kinda, maybe…" he nodded.
Ash smiled. "I know just who to give Ponyta to," he said.
Iris looked at the pokedex, seeing Ponyta's entry. "Aw… he's cute…" he said, making her Gible give her a look. "I mean, you're cute, but… a different kind of cute." Gible accepted this and opened his maw in an eternal Gible smile.
"I know you're scared of ice-types…" Ash said, trying not to make her relapse. "But maybe you and Ponyta can help each other?"
Iris shrugged. "I'm willing to try. But a future dragon mistress like me with only two dragons…" she said, trailing off.
"Ponyta doesn't have to fight." Ash explained gently before transferring in the little fire pony, sending Goodra back home. "I'm willing to trade you for an empty Pokeball?" he said with a smile.
Iris scoffed. "What a child." she muttered before smiling back. "Sure. I'd like to meet Ponyta."
Sabrina walked back to the center, carrying the batch of supplies with her. However, her psionic field felt a 'ping' of a Psychic-type. This caused her to pause for a moment… she didn't detect one in the town beforehand.
She decided to not think on it too hard, as she entered the Pokemon center….
"Ralts!" 'Hello!'
Sabrina blinked as she turned… and found Kyoji standing there… with an Eevee on his shoulder. In his arms was a small, little Ralts that waved at her.
"H-Hey, Sabrina!" Kyoji smiled, gulping a bit. "Um… bit of a development while you were gone…"
"…I can see that…" She blinked. "…explain?"
"...long story short, it looks like me and Ash…" He shrugged. "...got… shanghai'd by the Nurse Joy in Viridian city to… adopt the pokemon Paul abandoned. I got a bunch but… Raltz is a Psychic-type, and...you're an expert on them, so… I asked the little one here if she'd like to be with you and… she wanted to meet you so… tada!"
Sabrina blinked in confusion before doing something her father remembered all too well. Laughing like mad, like her alternate self did when Haunter made her laugh. "Oh, the idiot is going to REGRET this." she said, smiling.
"Yeah, me and Ash thought the same thing," Kyoji chuckled, stepping closer to hand her the Raltz. "So… you wanna keep her? I mean… if you don't I-"
Sabrina gracefully took Raltz into her hands. "Hello, young one." she said, introducing herself. "My name is Sabrina. I'm nothing like the fool that abandoned you to your doom."
"Raltz." 'That's what I thought.' she muttered.
"I will not make you battle if you don't want to. But if you want to hand your former trainer his rear end…" Sabrina said, trailing off with an evil smile.
"Ral." 'I do...but I'm not strong enough.' Raltz replied. "Ral." 'I can't focus.'
"Paul has no idea how to train a psychic. I, on the other hand, am well aware, seeing as I am one." the gym leader replied. "How about I show you what you can REALLY do?"
Raltz seemed to grin before cheering, Sabrina then having a bird land on her head.
"Natu?" 'The ranch?' her father's bird asked.
"Yes, please." Sabrina said, but just walked towards the entrance. "We're in range of the teleport dampeners, so I'll take us back to the cave so we can get there and back."
With that, Sabrina left the Pokemon Center, going out the doors.
Indigo Plateau - Indigo Coliseum - 0854 hours local time - Day 109
As he was wont to do, Kyril Pernon woke up needing one of two things: his girlfriend or coffee.
Today was coffee day.
"I hope you're rested and ready~" Rin said as she came into the room, missing the outer dress jacket and tie and being all too cheerful.
"Keep it down...we had a late night." he groaned. And a fun one, but he left that out.
"Revenge for last night." she all but purred. "Now, on your itinerary for today…" she gave him a mug of pure black sludge. He was going to need it. "A meeting with Lance and the Elite Four for the usual mooching of money, meetings with the Silph Corporation head and everyone's FAVORITE activity, watching teenagers beat the shit out of each other's Pokemon!"
"Stop yelling, please." Kyril said before drinking the sludge-like coffee. "And it's more humane than that. In the wild, maybe it's to the death, but here, it's until the ref says they're done."
"Yeah, yeah." Rin said. "Get dressed. I don't want you in your boxers when we deal with Agatha: that old bitch scares the shit out of me."
"Is it because she can literally feed you to Giratina?" Kyril snarked. Rin threw his shirt at his head in response.
Path to Indigo Coliseum - 0900 hours local time
Ash and Kyoji walked ahead of the girls, who were having a session of 'girl talk' (Janine just silently listening in as always) for Ash to get himself registered and to grant him some space.
He wasn't ready. He was slowly working on it, but he needed some space.
A Jenny at the gates snored before her Arcanine barked, making her snap awake. "I'm-I'm up!" she said, Kyoji chortling at the police woman jumping awake before noticing them. "Halt!"
Ash simply pulled his jacket open, revealing all eight badges. "Pokemon League challenger." he said. "He's here to watch, same with the girls that are coming up."
The bluenette nodded, shaking her sleepiness off. "Alright. But you have to surrender your weapons before being allowed deeper into the building." she said, Ash all but beaming at that.
"Why didn't you say so?" he demanded happily, VERY tired of carrying around three guns and a pair of swords. He wanted to feel like it was the old days again!
"You...ok?" Kyoji asked, worried.
"I have been forced to carry around guns since I left home." Ash said, "I would like nothing more than to get rid of them, even if it's only for a few days."
"...you do realize we live in a world with magical creatures that can kill us in the wild, right?" Kyoji asked. "Going around unarmed is suicide."
"I'll explain inside." Ash said before the girls caught up and the Jenny waved them inside.
A rifle, two pistols (Kyoji marvelled at the old Team Rocket design) and a daisho pair of swords ("WHY DIDN'T YOU TELL ME YOU HAD THOSE?! Kyoji had demanded. "I only kept them because no one wanted them!" Ash replied, explaining the Samurai to him afterward) were placed in an arms locker, locked and sealed.
Ash sighed as if a weight was lifted from him. He felt normal for once. He hated guns.
Kyoji meanwhile was at his locker. Ash peaked over and… did a double take. One Pistol, several strange stick-shaped grenades, some sort of rifle that came with multiple parts, a sawed-off-shotgun and… was that a grenade launcher? And… some weird cylinder device. "And I thought I had too many guns…"
"There is no such thing as too many guns, Ash." Kyoji said.
"I don't recognise most of the models…" he muttered, looking them over. "Then again, I'm not much of a gun expert…"
"Ransei has a lot of tech and weaponry that hasn't exactly been seen by the rest of the world." Kyoji explained, "Since most of its infrastructure was intact, we've had nothing to do but advance technology for the past few centuries in isolation." He pulled out the cylinder device, "Like this…" he held down a button, and a beam of plasma shot out from the cylinder - forming into a katana-like shape.
"...is that a Lightsaber?"
"Huh?" Kyoji tilted his head "No idea what that is, but this is a Beam Katana." He swung it around a few times. "Pure plasma, and so far it's been able to cut through most types of metals, with few exceptions like specific pokemon hides like the Legendaries. Interesting thing about this is I can adjust the power of the beam - so I can either slice and dice… or use it like a stun baton that hurts like the dickens."
"Well, at least there's a non-lethal option." Ash said grousing. "I hate this timeline."
"Here," He tossed a second cylinder to Ash. "I always carry a second as a back-up, take it… but I'd like your swords if you don't use them."
"Thanks." Ash said, looking at it. "I don't like them: the Samurai tried to kill Misty with them."
"But seriously, what's a 'lightsaber'?" he asked - even as he nerded out holding the Daisho swords. "Sounds cool. And I LIKE cool things."
Ash chuckled mirthlessly. "I think whenever Unova's movie industry gets back to its feet, I'm going to make a killing, figuratively speaking, on movie plots from my timeline." he said. "Just...I would like to share."
"And get paid for it." Kyoji said grinning.
"I never said it wouldn't go to a good cause." Ash retorted. "You can keep them, though the Rotans might want me to use them for some ceremony."
Kyoji grinned. "Sweet!" he said before putting the katana and wakizashi into his own locker. "Though...guns? Seriously? Why don't you like them?"
Ash thought back to Kaiser and how he put a revolver in his face. Then that other time in Kanto he had multiple guns pointed in his face. "I've...had them pointed at me way too many times." he finally said. "And the first person to point one at me did it to protect a Dratini. Here, he was a crazy psychopath that shot at me. I had to shoot him in the knee."
Kyoji grinned, chuckling. "I was once a nutcase like you...but I took a bullet to the knee." he said, laughing at his own joke.
"Not funny. He fell into a pool of Basculin." Ash said.
"...ouch." Kyoji winced "Not a nice way to go…"
"MORE reasons not to like them." Ash said. "I'll use them, I just won't like it."
"But… guns aren't what got him killed," Kyoji pointed out, "This guy sounded like he had clear mental issues."
"Yeah...but I got him killed." Ash said, wincing. "If I didn't shoot him…"
"I know you feel responsible, but really, he had it coming." Kyoji said, "I mean… imagine if it were anyone other than you? He might have killed them, but thanks to you, he won't be a danger to the people or pokemon in the future."
"Pika." 'Been telling him that for months." Pikachu said, shrugging. "Pikapi." 'But no...HE feels responsible.'
"I know it's not exactly nice to hear, but it's the truth." Kyoji shook his head. "Sometimes… you may run into a situation where it will be you vs them - and if you don't do everything in your power to survive…" He paused for a moment, as if thinking of something. "...Someone important to you might get killed… and you'll never forgive yourself for it..."
"...you say that like you had experience." Ash glanced at Kyoji.
The young Ranseian looked in his locker - his eyes focusing on the handgun in the locker. "Yeah… I suppose you could say that…" he nodded, closing it.
They left the lockup, Misty arguing with the Jenny over keeping her light machine gun, which made Kyoji stare.
"How-" he started.
"It's Misty." Ash said, as if that explained it. "Come on. Our Pokemon are going to need to be given some air while the other challengers get here. I'm...kinda surprised we got here first."
"Yeah…" Kyoji muttered. "Surprising…" he said, not bothering to say that when Ash wanted to rush, he often got ahead of everyone.
"So, did you give any thought on what I told you yesterday?" Ash asked, changing the subject to something more comfortable.
"Yeah… I'm working on a rotation thing like you said," Kyoji nodded, "Gible's gonna stay around, but Natu, Galvantula and Charizard agreed to be swapped out for a bit. I'm gonna be traveling with Marill, Eevee, Vulpix, Pichu and Magikarp for a while."
"Ah, you want him to go all Gyarados?" Ash smirked, and Kyoji mimicked the smirk.
"If I see that prick again and get a chance to challenge him, I'm using exclusively the pokemon he abandoned to fight him." He said, "He may not get the point until he's publicly humiliated, but I want to slap him around."
"I completely agree with that," Ash nodded.
"Yeah… kinda surprised he gave the Magikarp away though," He mused "I mean… who wouldn't want to grow one up into a Gyarados?"
"It's Paul," Ash shrugged. "He's impulsive - and as much as I respect all Pokemon… not everyone has the patience to help a Magikarp fully evolve. I mean, I've never caught one, but..."
"I guess…" Kyoji nodded, frowning. "But… I might have Oak look at him, because he seems like he might be sick or something…"
"Huh?" Ash tilted his head. "How so?"
"Well… I know Ransei and Alola have different variants to specific pokemon, but…" he pulled out his Pokeball, letting it out by the water.
"Karp!" The Magikarp swam around a bit. But Ash blinked… Why was its scales so… no way…
"Magikarp aren't supposed to be gold, right?" Kyoji said in concern as the Golden Magikarp swam around the small lake happily. "I mean… he seems fine, but neither in Ransei or Alola are there variants for Magikarp, so I'm kinda worried…"
Ash stared at the golden koi before he surfaced. "Karp." 'Hello.' said the shiny.
"Kyoji… that's a shiny Pokemon." Ash said, somewhat dumbfounded.
"…a what Pokemon?" Kyoji rose an eyebrow at that. "I mean… its gold, yeah, so of course he's shiny."
"Shiny!" Ash stressed. "Ok, you've seen my Noctowl, right?"
"Uh, yeah." Kyoji nodded, "Kinda weird his feathers are a different color from others though… why?"
"He's a shiny." Ash said, pulling out the pokedex entries for Noctowl, showing the normal and shiny color schemes. "They're VERY rare Pokemon, like one in a hundred thousand or something. And I know what Shiny Gyarados looks like." he then pulled up the entries for Magikarp and Gyarados, showing the shiny form and the normal, the golden karp matching PERFECTLY.
Kyoji looked at the entry, then at the Magikarp. Then at the entry… and then the Magikarp… his eyes began to grow as wide as dinner planes, and his jaw dropped. "…holy shit that's awesome!" He exclaimed, looking back at the Golden Magikarp. "And… and Paul was willing to just… let this go?! Red is my favorite color! This is awesome!"
"It's Paul. When he's angry, he doesn't think straight." Ash said, shrugging. "And… well, I handed him his ass. He's probably at Viridian right now, realizing exactly what he did and facepalming or something."
"Oohohohoh…" Kyoji giggled as he knelt down, petting the Magikarp. "You, me and Gible are gonna be good friends,"
"Karp!" 'Yay!'
In Viridian, same time
Paul yawned as he awoke, then realized that he released his shiny Magikarp in his annoyed haze.
"FUCK!" he cursed.
Back at Indigo
"…wait," Ash raised a finger. "…you've never heard of Shiny's before then?"
"…no?" Kyoji shrugged "I mean… like Alola, Ransei has some variants to common Pokemon - like you've seen Gible and Galvantula… but they always have a type change as well. These… These are still the same type they were originally." Koyji then looked at the Pokedex. "…is there a Shiny Gible?"
"There's shinies for every species." Ash said, smiling. "Some look cool, like Gyarados being red and Noctowl being gold, but some...don't look great. Shiny Gible looks nice though." he pulled up the dex entry, showing the familiar smiling land shark, but with a light blue body and a yellow belly, making Kyoji feel like this was familiar.
"…awwwww…" Kyoju fawned. "He's adorable…"
"Shiny Garchomp, you can barely notice. You can only tell when it's released, with the sparkles." Ash explained.
"…Sparkles?" Kyoji asked.
"Yeah, they do that when they exit their Pokeballs." Ash said. "You probably didn't see it because he remateriallized in water." He then offered him the Pokedex. "Want to take a look?"
"Is Arceus God?" Kyoji asked rhetorically. Ash smiled and surrendered the dex to him and he looked through them.
"Whoa…" Kyoji's eyes were wide as he scanned through the different types of Shinies. "Shiny Charizard looks metal as fuck…"
"You take a look through all of them." Ash said, knowing how he felt whenever he saw a new Pokemon and wanted to know about it. That was curbed by the fact that he… basically met every Pokemon there was, even some of those weird Ultra Beasts. Poipole was new, though. "Have fun!"
Koyji nodded as he started wandering around, getting to Pikachu's entry. "He's gold!?" he cried.
30 minutes later
Kyoji was sitting down, going through the known shinies. Mew was GREEN. That weirded him out.
"Hey!" called a familiar voice, making him look up to see…
"Oh hey," Kyoji blinked, "Weren't you from the whole Mewtwo thing?"
"Oh!" Neesha jumped a bit, before she smiled "Hey! Yeah, I remember you - you were with Sabrina, right?" She glanced around. "She's… not here, is she?"
"Yeah, we're in town, I was just looking around," he shrugged. "Well, you're looking good. Going for the leagues?"
"Eh, maybe - maybe not," Neesha sighed, "I mean… look, to compete again, I need to challenge Sabrina and… I know she's not the same, but… I just don't want to fight her again… I've been thinking of shifting gears to be a Coordinator, maybe start those Pokemon Contests I've been hearing about."
"I've heard good things about those," Kyoji nodded, "You'll do fine - I remember you having a Rapidash, they'd do great."
"Yeah, Blazer likes to put on a show…" Neesha giggled a bit… Kyoji had to admit, she was pretty cute when she laughed-
'NO!' Kyoji mentally slapped himself as hard as he could. 'BAD THOUGHT! NO! Sabrina WILL KILL YOU if you think of another woman like that!'
"You okay?" Neesha tilted her head in concern.
"Y-Yeah… well, nice seeing you," He nodded, "I gotta get going, don't wanna keep my friends waiting."
"Oh sure!" Neesha nodded, "Say, if you've got the time… maybe we can hang out, ya know?"
"Uh… sure, yeah," He nodded, meanwhile he gulped as he walked away. 'Just friends, just friends.' He cautioned in his mind. 'Sabrina will see into your head, see you are not hiding anything, and you'll be fine - everything is fine…'
Kyoji sat as Sabrina looked through one of the stalls. '…she hasn't called me out yet…' He thought, letting out a sigh of relief 'Good… she probably looked in my head, saw there was nothing going on between me and Neesha. We're just friends now - that's it.'
For some… odd reason, as he thought about Neesha, a stray thought of her in a bikini popped in his head 'NONONO!' He physically slapped himself - banishing the thought quickly - glancing at Sabrina in a panic… but she didn't seem to react. 'Phew… good… Arceus, I thought I was a dead man for a moment…'
Sabrina meanwhile… was trying her best not to cackle, Natu and Raltz laughing psychically as she messed with him. 'This is just rich,' She thought, using her powers to send another psychic image of Neesha to Kyoji - giggling silently at his flustered reactions. Oh, she read his mind alright - and she knew Kyoji was doing his damndest to remain faithful to her, and she loved him for that. Though his… strictness for being mindful of her own mind-reading abilities was both comical and sad.
Oh she can elect to not read his mind - it's not like she's 24/7 reading every mind around her. That would be a royal pain, and she'd pity anyone who'd have to live through that kind of hell if they couldn't turn it off… unless they were assholes of course. But, like how Kyoji was helping Ash… Sabrina wanted to help Kyoji in a… similar matter. Sure, by law Ash had to have multiple wives… but nothing said nobody else could as well… well, maybe in Unova, but that's just one region.
Still, it was going to take some time. Ash had self-esteem and past-timeline daddy issues to work through. Kyoji… well, he needed help, too.
'Slow and steady wins the race.' she thought to herself… before sending an image of Neesha in VERY revealing swimwear to Kyoji, making him mentally scream.
Challenger's waiting area - 1132 hours local time
The eight-badge people started pouring in. Ash recognized many of them: Jeanette Fisher, the one with the freaky Bellsprout, a few others…
Richie… Sweet Arceus did Ash hate Team Rocket for forcing him to lose. Hopefully though, assuming they were keeping their promise, that wouldn't happen this time around.
He wanted an honest and pure rematch with Richie.
"Char…" 'I am NOT repeating the same mistake.' Charizard said, Ash having transferred him in. Salamence knew better than to try and usurp his 'alpha' title. Besides, Charizard wasn't the alpha and he knew it. That title belonged to Pikachu.
"I know, Charizard," As said, patting his back. "Don't worry. Team Rocket's not going to bother doing anything stupid. The only thing we need to worry about is having a good, clean fight."
"Charr." 'That doesn't change anything.' Charizard said before the door opened, revealing two faces Ash hadn't seen in almost two weeks.
The wig was impressive and Ash knew he was good at disguises, but James wasn't even TRYING this time. "Welcome, challenger!" he said, pushing in a concession stand. "Your opponents are getting settled and-"
"James, I know it's you." Ash said, making him pause. "I might pretend a lot, but I'm not stupid."
"Well, could you at least let us keep our cover?!" Jessie yelled as Meowth poked his head out from under the cart. "We are DEEP in League territory. LANCE is five floors above us and if he learns who we are-"
The door on the other size opened, letting in Kyoji and Sabrina. "Seriously, they don't have anything like-" he paused as he looked at the TRio. "…Have we met?"
Ash sighed. "Kyoji Akamura, meet Jessie, James and Meowth." he introduced, the TRio laughing sheepishly. "They're good at hiding: sometimes I don't notice them."
"Yeah, sometimes." Meowth muttered as he climbed out. "You're lucky da boss wants us to keep you covered! Otherwise we'd be with that nutcase Patel! Who do ya think taught us all these tricks?"
"He wasn't kidding: the Meowth DOES talk." Sabrina said with mild surprise. "And vocally, too."
Kyoji's eyes immediately turned to Meowth, squatting down to his level "Holy shit he wasn't kidding…" he muttered. "…a pokemon talking without needing psionics… how do you do it?"
"Self-taught, actually," Meowth informed. "Found some books and… well, I committed to learning human speech…" he cupped his chin in though. "I mean… really, any pokemon could learn it I guess, they just need the attention span and determination to actually do it…"
"So Gible COULD learn…" he said, nodding to himself. "Don't need it anymore, but hey."
"Yeah, you got the twerp over there to translate." Jessie said.
"Oh no, I can do it too," Kyoji waved his hand, indicating his head. The TRio gawked at him. "Gift from Arceus."
"…weird people just follow you everywhere, don't they?" Jessie asked Ash.
"…he's good company," Ash shrugged.
"So… you're the guys who have been following Ash around for… a while?" Kyoji looked at them all.
"We're just following orders," James sighed. "Boss wanted to keep him safe so his mother didn't go after Team Rocket… a lot of good that did us… now we're just following him to make sure if he does approach some Rocket operation in another league, we can let them know so they can get the hell out."
"It hasn't been easy…" Meowth muttered. "The Authors writing as a new one every day…" He paused for a minute before glaring. "They can't hear you! Shut up!"
"…is he okay?" Kyoji pointed at Meowth in concern. "What does he mean about… 'authors'?"
"Honestly, I think they're a little nuts." Ash said, getting up. "I mean, that Shadow Bolt they got… Wasn't fun to get hit by. Arceus knows I probably got my brain scrambled by a thundershock or two early on. …You got any popcorn and ketchup for Pikachu? We're gonna need a snack before we go up there."
"Well, you got five matches before you're up," James said before picking up a small carton. "5 Poke."
"You kidding me? I could get bigger bags back home for that much!" Ash retorted, even as he gave them a bill.
"It's to fix our Magikarp sub. It got wrecked at New Island." Meowth explained. "Can't guard your ass stealthily if we can't keep from being seen."
PONG-FUISH!
"WOBBUFFET!" 'Damn right! I had to keep them from drowning!' said the saluting psychic-type.
"…When-"
"A while back." all three answered.
"…you have a Magikarp Submarine?" Kyoji raised his brow.
"Yeah, its… primitive, but stealthy." James sighed. "I mean… it's the most advanced thing we're gonna get, since it's not like we can afford things like giant robots anymore…"
"…you had giant robots?" Kyoji blinked.
"Yeah, had, but the boss cut us off." Meowth sighed. "They ain't easy or cheap to build with how the world is now and all.. Plus, Authors criticize us for using them in the first place, saying they were unrealistic or 'stupid'…"
"U-huh…" Kyoji nodded slowly. "So… just the Submarine then?"
"It's not motorized, so we have to pedal it ourselves…" James pulled up his pants a bit… revealing extremely toned legs, as were Jessies.
"…shit, you've never skipped leg day…" Kyoji muttered.
"You have to be this fit when you keep crashing, getting blown up, carried away, scorched…" Meowth just counted off the various… things that had happened to them.
"…how are you still alive?" Kyoji questioned.
"Authors." All three said in unison.
Kyoji was about to speak… but just shook his head. "Alright fine - Authors."
Ash made a mental note that the TRio had all of their Pokemon, at least he assumed. "…You don't have a Mimikyu, do you?" he asked.
"Under lock and key! We're not letting that thing out until we teach it Pikachu is not murder material!" Jessie said. They gave Sabrina a free lollipop and Kyoji a drink before GTFOing.
"…They are weird." Sabrina said before opening her candy treat.
"I agree, but here, weird is GOOD!" Kyoji declared, popping open his drink. "They seem like an okay bunch - just caught in the wrong crowd is all."
"…yeah, kinda." Ash nodded "I mean, I hate it when they'd try to steal my Pikachu or whatever other Pokemon I encountered that day… but I'd be lying if I didn't admit they helped us out in some major situations… like the whole Orange Islands debacle… but I have to remind myself they've also gotten me into a lot of situations as well so…" he waved his hand a bit. "Eehhh.. They're… neutral at this point - to be determined."
"Eh… I wouldn't mind hanging out with them," Kyoji shrugged, taking a sip from his drink. "If nothing else, it'd be interesting the stories they'd tell."
Ash sighed and closed his eyes and thought about his possible opponents. Skyla did the same thing, but there was a big difference between him and her.
He didn't take those 'air battles' seriously.
VIP Skybox - Kanto Coliseum - 1153 hours local time
Charles Goodshow was an old man. The massive size of his white beard showed that.
He had seen war, peace and this plague unleashed by Cipher. For almost 60 years, he had led efforts against the Shadow, first as a warlord before Samuel Oak recruited him to fix what was left of the former URN. 25 years of fighting to patch together the fractured provinces. Then he and Samuel founded the modern League to replace the old which died with the Cipher War.
But he was getting old. This would likely be one of his last Leagues. It was a good thing he had a replacement lined up.
But first things first. The tens of thousands that had made their way by ferry and flying-type to watch the competition had to be addressed, as he walked up to the microphone, like he had for the last 35 years.
"Greetings, everyone!" he said cheerfully. "And welcome to the 35th Annual Kanto Pokemon Conference! Whether you are watching in person, listening in at home or participating in the Conference itself, I hope you enjoy yourselves as newcomers, veterans and master trainers alike show their stuff!"
And prove that these children could actually keep the damn plague in check, but that went unsaid.
"And now, without further-" he started before a shadow formed over the stadium, circling the building before coming into his line of sight.
It was a giant bird, wings seemingly made of fire while the body looked more like an immortal crane. Moltres, the Legendary Flame Pokemon.
"Well, that's a surprise!" Goodshow said, even as Hoenn Champion Steven Stone, standing behind him, stared at the bird in awe.
"I have never seen Moltres in person," he said as the bird inhaled and torched the brazer where the ceremonial torch would be lit by a runner before perching on the northern edge of the building.
"Incredible! Ladies and gentlemen, Moltres has decided to grace the League!" Goodshow said, smiling. "This conference is off to a great start and er haven't even begun the main events!"
"This is not going to end well," Ash said as he looked at Moltres.
"It's a legendary." Anabel said, honestly confused. "Why would this be a bad thing?"
"Because EVERY TIME a legendary's shown up, everything goes downhill faster than Whitney's Miltank using Rollout!" Ash retorted, obviously on edge.
"That's oddly specific," Iris noted.
Ash sighed. "Yeah, I have personal experience," he said before the PA pinged.
"Ash Ketchum, please report to the south field entrance." a female voice called out. "Ash Ketchum, southern field entrance."
"Looks like you're up first." Serena said, giving him a hug that made him choke somewhat from the force she exerted on his chest before letting him go. "Good luck!"
Ash nodded, slowly getting out of there and making his way to the halls. Once he was gone, he ran as fast as he could.
Serena was getting BETTER, but she still scared the crap out of him sometimes.
5 minutes later, Ash came out of the dugout, walking up onto a deis where he would be commanding his battle against…
"Give a round of applause for Ash Ketchum, who seems to be turning into his mother's successor!" Goodshow said, the crowd actually cheering for him. His mother must've been popular as a trainer.
"Let's see if Pallet Town's rising star can take on the man calling himself the Astounding Mandi!" the head of the League back in the old timeline said before Ash groaned, resisting the urge to facepalm as the field was changed out for a water battlefield. THAT guy? His magic tricks weren't exactly great.
"Oi! Ketchum!" yelled Mandi as his head slowly appeared from the northern entrance, having a very… different accent-
Ash stared, bug-eyed at Mandi's outfit. Last time, he had a garish pink jacket on.
This time, he had a white shirt, the band was still there and his little scarf was red… and he was wearing a skirt. A very long, PLAID skirt - and carrying a weird bag with horns poking out of it.
"…why are you wearing a skirt?" Ash questioned.
"Skirt? Bah, ya daft bastard, this here be a kilt!" Mandi declared, in the deepest south-Gallarn accent Ash has ever heard. "It be a sign of Galarian pride!"
"…you are. WILLINGLY. Wearing. A SKIRT." Ash said, his right eye twitching at the idea someone WILLINGLY wore women's clothing. Cilan didn't count: HE was already screwed in the head.
"Don't be disrespect'n my people!" He exclaimed, adjusting the bag on his side - putting one of the horns in his mouth…
BGM: "Wild Area Theme" Pokemon Sword & Shield OST (its the only non-remix Pokemon song with Bagpipes I could find)
Ash would have said his skills with the… instrument were good...but he could not, for the life of him, get off the fact that anyone outside of Harley, (he owed him a kick to the balls for May) Cilan or… well… GIRLS was willingly wearing a skirt.
"What you starin at, ya wee posh cunt?!" He shouted. "We gonna have a Pokemon fight or what?!"
"…You're right." he said, nodding. "The sooner we get this over with, the less I have to stare at your skirt."
"IT'S A FOOKING KILT!" Mandi yelled before retrieving a Pokeball. "Teach tis hafwit a lesson, Seadra!" he yelled before tossing it, releasing the water-type Dragon Pokemon into the water.
Ash thought about who to send out. He didn't bring Squirtle or any of his flyers with him for this fight and there were few platforms.
"Make due with what you have." he muttered before picking a ball and throwing it. "Go, Quilava!" The ball snapped open, sending out the Johto fire starter, who spun in midair before landing on a platform with a 'Qui!', the crowd cheering while some cooed at how cute she was.
"A fir'-type? Yur bonkers, laddie!" Mandi said. "Seadra's gonna eat 'im up an' spit him out!"
"Qui." 'I'm a GIRL, you skirt-wearing freak.' Quilava retorted, shooting off an Ember at him, only to hit a psychic barrier.
"That will cost you, Challenger Ketchum-" the referee said. Ash looked at him.
"Quilava's a girl. She doesn't like it when people mistake her for a boy." Ash explained.
"Qui." 'Damn straight!' Quilava said, VERY annoyed..
"Oh shite, sorry!" Mandi apologized. "Cannae tell a damn thing fram ova here!"
"You can't tell period," Ash said, only learning Quilava was a girl AFTER he got sent back.
"Anywa', Seadra! Agility, th'n Water Gun the wee lass out o' her miery!" Mandi commanded, Seadra glowing with psychic energy before shooting towards Quilava.
"Dra!" 'Down you go!' said the Dragon Pokemon, firing pressurized water at Quilava, who just used Aerial Ace to dodge, then smack the seahorse in the side of his face before using him as a springboard to jump into the air, using Quick Attack to jump onto the platform opposite of Ash, below Mandi.
"Qui!" 'You were saying, seahorse?' Quilava mocked before rearing up on her hind legs. "Lava!" 'Let's dance!'
"Flame Wheel, Defense Curl and Aerial Ace!" Ash called out, using Quilava's favorite combination of attacks. "Then Tackle him!"
Quilava jumped into the air, spinning as she caught fire.
"Aw, feck." Mandi said, knowing would hurt. "DODG' ET, SEADRA!"
"Dra!" 'It's got Aerial Ace as a base, you idiot! You CAN'T dodge that!' Seadra said, making an attempt to dive under the fireball. But he was too slow, the attack hitting the seahorse, the real damage coming from getting hit in the chest before Quilava spun over him, rolling on the water.
"QUI!" 'WWWWWWWWHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!' cried Quilava, having the time of her life as she rolled on the water's surface.
In the stands, Kyoji watched Quilava do her thing.
"That...is awesome." he said, Gible nodding.
Seadra groaned before getting smacked again but the rolling ball of fire, Quilava giggling the entire time.
"Oi! Seadra!" Mandi shouted, "Don' jas sit dar! Git up and hit'er! Shoot'a with a wa er gun!"
Seadra spat more water at Quilava, but while the Agility boost made Seadra faster, the Volcano Pokemon was even quicker, rolling on the water's surface like a ball on a table.
"Aerial Ace and Tackle!" Ash called out. Quilava disappeared before using both the flying and normal-type attacks at once, slamming Seadra into the water. Bouncing back, she came to a stop on a platform, her head swaying like mad.
"Qui…" 'I'm dizzy. It was really fun…' she said as Seadra...went belly up.
"Seadra is unable to battle!" the referee said, raising his right hand flag towards Ash. "The winner of round one is Ash Ketchum!"
Quilava's head thumped on the platform, but not because she was tired. She was REALLY dizzy.
"Tha's a fookin' draw!" Mandi demanded. "Quilava's ou' like a light!"
Quilava shook her head, looking at Mandi. "Qui!" 'Ret-to-go, as the yellow Gible would say!' Quilava cried.
"That's enough, Quilava," Ash said. "Take a rest." he returned Quilava to her ball, clipping it to his belt.
"Initiate field change!" the ref said, the water field getting covered up, Seadra being automatically returned to his ball.
'They're swapping fields in the middle of a match?' Ash thought to himself. 'I don't mind, but it's new.'
"Amazing! Ash has beaten Mandi's famous Seadra!" the announcer said. "A stunning performance made even greater by the fact that Seadra won Mandi the last Kanto Conference and Ash defeated him with a type-disadvantaged Pokemon!"
Another arena rotated in, the shutters opening to reveal a field filled with grass, shrubs and dirt patches. At least Ash could rely on the ground not to give under his Pokemon's feet.
"Challengers, prepare your second Pokemon!" the ref ordered.
"I mad' a mistak' underestimat'in you, boy!" Mandi said, pulling out another ball. "Tak' im down a notc', Exeggutor!" with that, he tossed out the ball, releasing the stunted palm tree form of the Kantoan version of Exeggutor, one Ash had missed during his time in Alola.
'…how IS that a Dragon-type?' He thought to himself, shaking his head, as he pulled out his next Pokeball. "Go! Krabby!" He tossed it out, releasing his first crab-like pokemon.
The tiny crab had bulked up since he got his ass handed to him by Daisy's Spheal, even if he hadn't physically grown bigger.
"Kooky." 'Ready for your ass kicking?' Krabby asked, clacking his claws.
"…A fookin' CRAB?!" Mandi demanded.
"Not just any crab." Ash said, pointing at Exeggutor. "Show him what you got, Krabby!"
"Kook." 'With pleasure.' said the red crab, opening one of his pinchers, a beam of cold ice firing from it and slamming into the walking palm tree, who stumbled backwards.
"Tor-Tor-Tor!" 'Ow, damn it that hurts!' 'Power through the pain, gentlemen!' 'MORE! MORE PAIN! AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAAHHAHA!' said the three heads of the Exeggutor, making Ash cringe, especially at the last one.
"Great, an Exeggutor that gets off pain." Ash muttered. "Can my life get ANY worse?"
"Da fekke you talkin' bout?!" Mandi yelled. "Exeggutor! Seed Bomb!"
"Krabby, jump!" Ash ordered. Krabby eyesmiling before using his springy legs to leap into the air, even as Exeggutor's tree crown grew, then launched, about ten coconut-sized seeds, launching them at Krabby's last location.
Seed Bomb's weakness: once launched, it would land in the same location. There was no way to change it mid-flight.
Krabby landed about ten feet away, then scuttled into a bush. Exeggutor fired at it and destroyed it, the cloud parting to show a dead bush. But no Krabby.
"Kooky." 'Hello.' Exeggutor's heads looked down to see Krabby in the dirt, right under his trunk with a pincher steaming with ice-type energy. "Kook." 'Goodbye.' Ice Beam slammed into one of the Exeggutor's heads, freezing it solid. The other two heads cried out in fear.
"Tor!" 'MOE!' 'Come on, Curly, we can win this!' said the two heads, Stomping on Krabby's hole, but the crab dug under them as they raised their leg appearing behind them before the claws glowed green.
"Kooky-Kooky." 'Gotcha, bitch.' said the crab as he used X-Scissor on the tree, making it cry in pain.
And Ash didn't even know Krabby could DO that.
"Us' Psychic ya dumb tree!" Mandi yelled as Krabby whacked the tree again with X-Scissor, following up with Crabhammer, slamming a shaking claw into the tree, making it trip onto the frozen face.
"Kooky!" 'TIMBER!' cried the crab as Exeggutor fell, unable to fight further.
"Exeggutor is unable to battle! The winner is Ash and Krabby!"
"Well Shite…" Mandi sighed, returning the eggplant pokemon back to its ball. "Well, ain'tcha da cleva one, ya little tart?"
"Kook." 'Fuck you,' Krabby said before he started glowing, the light of evolution covering him as he grew, both ins body and his power, but mostly his right claw, turning into a giant hammer crab.
When it was over, Krabby was Kingler. "Kook." 'Guess the weight training paid off!' he said, eyesmiling as he did.
"I think you need a rest, big guy," Ash said, returning Kingler to his ball before the shutters closed for a field change.
"And that's two for two, folks!" said the announcer. "Ash Ketchum is so good at battling, he doesn't even need to talk for his Pokemon to know what he wants them to do!"
…Yeah, more like Ash trusted them to fight without his direct say-so. He only took command when he had a plan and needed to follow through on it.
"Challengers, prepare your final Pokemon!" the ref said, the big monitor showing they were only allowed three Pokemon each.
"Alri't, you cheeky bas'ard! Time to end this!" Mandi said as the field changed to a rocky terrain, covered in boulders and loose sand. Ground and Rock-types would have a field day here.
"O'righ, time to end this!" Mandi said, tossing out his final ball. "Ga, Golbat!" And out came the flying mouth Pokemon. The second (and for the longest time, Ash thought it was the final) stage of the Zubat line, the blue bat screeching loudly.
…Yeah, he was sticking to form. "Go, Bayleef!" Ash called, sending out his trust Johto grass-type.
"You're kidding!" the announcer said in shock, though in Ash's opinion, he was being overly dramatic. "Ladies and gentlemen, Ash Ketchum is continuing a trend! Using type-disadvantaged Pokemon, yet coming out on top!"
Up in the skybox, Kyril was watching the fight with interest. "Not often that you find someone who can properly counter the type chart like that," he mentioned. "From what I've seen, most trainers treat that chart as semi-sacrosanct, yet Ketchum turns it on its head."
"So far, he's using speed to keep them from getting hit." said the blue-haired Clair Wataru, Gym Leader of Blackthorn City, who was wearing… essentially a swimsuit and a small cape. Rin promised him death if he stared. Either death in the literal sense or death of their sex lives: Kyril did NOT know and didn't want to find out. "He's been a trainer for what, three months?"
Her older cousin nodded. "And likely been coached by his excessively terrifying mother…" he added dryly. "That is the only reasonable explanation for why he's dominating a three time conference winner… on his first try. I mean, there's conspiracy theory nonsense, but who cares about that?"
"Like what?" Surge asked, his freaky ass RED Magneton hovering above them. Seriously, WHY WAS IT RED?!
"Time travel! But that makes no sense: the boy is 14!" Lorelei said before glancing at Mandi again. "WHY is he wearing that stupid skirt again?! I thought I told you to ban him if he wore that thing! Skirts only work for women!"
"Pretty sure Southern Galar is filled with men that wear those-" Erika added before the taller, bustier redhead glowered at the Celadon Gym Leader.
"I DON'T CARE!" she roared.
Kyril and Rin just sighed. "And this is why neither of us became trainers…" Rin said, rubbing her left temple. "They eventually go INSANE."
"Are you bloody daft?!" Mandi yelled. "What is WRONG wit' you?! Ignoring th' da'n type chart like it's just som'th'n you DO!"
"…Speak Kantoan. I can BARELY get what you're saying." Ash said, FINALLY getting tired of the butchered language. "Please, speak CLEARLY or just SHUT UP."
"I AM spe'kin clearly!" Mandi retorted. "Oh, fook it. Golbat, Confuse Ray!"
"Dodge it, then use Sweet Scent and Razor Leaf!"Ash retorted.
"Bay!" 'You got it, sweetheart!' Bayleef answered, running behind a rock, the incoming sonic rays hitting the ground harmlessly. Bayleef swung her head-leaf around, putting out sweet perfume-like scents. At least they weren't overly saturated like Erika's shop.
"Pika!" 'I thought you got over that!' Pikachu said. Ash blinked and gave him a look of confusion.
"Over what?" Ash asked.
"Ova this! Wing attack!" Mandi retorted, Golbat swinging in towards Bayleef, even as she whipped her leaf around, razor-sharp leaves hitting Golbat but not stopping him from angling his wings to smack Bayleef in the head, a very audible crack being heard from halfway across the stadium.
"Keep it up!" Mandi cheered. "Leech Life! Suck 'er dry!"
"That sounds disgusting-Tackle and Stomp! Keep Stomping him!" Ash ordered quickly. Bayleef shook her head to make the pain go away, only for Golbat to sink his teeth into her neck, wrapping around her neck with his VERY flexible body.
"Bay!" 'You know what, FUCK YOU!' she cried, hearts suddenly flowing out her head leaf and smacking into Golbat's skin.
"Gol!...Gol…?" 'Hey! What… huh…?' Golbat looked up at Bayleef who looked… oddly attractive suddenly. "Baaat-GOL" 'Pretty-OW!' Bayleef swung her neck around - grabbing the Golbat off of her neck before slamming it back into the ground - and proceeded to stomp down hard on Golbat… again… and again.
"Bay! Bay! Bay! BAY!" 'Fuck you! Fuck you! Fuck you! FUCK YOU!' Bayleef shouted, over and over with every stomp.
"Stop Stompin' my bat!" Mandi shouted, the crowd actually laughing at Mandi's bat getting his ass handed to him.
"An Attract and Stomp! Not exactly creative, but if it works, it works!" the announcer said as one of Golbat's bones FINALLY broke and the bat groaned, a sign he was no longer going to be fighting. "And Golbat is out!"
"Ah call bullshit!" Mandi yelled. "Attract's a pussy mov'! Fight like a man!"
The crowd disagreed as they started cheering 'Bayleef' repeatedly. They REALLY didn't like Mandi. Ash didn't blame them: anyone willing to wear a skirt without being forced into it needed their head examined.
"The battle is over!" the ref announced. "While somewhat frowned on, the Attract was used for the preservation of Bayleef's life as the bat was drinking her blood in dangerous amounts. Ash Ketchum is the victor!"
The crowd applauded, drowning out Mandi's horridly broken cursing.
"Ah, fook you, Ketchum!" he snapped before returning his Golbat and storming off.
"Pika!" 'No. Fuck YOU!' Pikachu snapped before sending a weak Thunderbolt at Mandi's skirt, setting it on fire.
Mandi screamed and ran inside, much to the crowd's amusement.
"I should penalize you for that." the ref said to Ash. "Attacking a trainer is not allowed."
"I didn't ask Pikachu to attack him and he aimed at that eyesore of a skirt." Ash said, shuddering. "At least he'll put on a pair of pants now…"
The ref thought about it… then nodded. "I hate to say it, but you're right. It's worse because he doesn't wear anything UNDER that skirt."
Anabel and Sabrina both winced at something that only they could hear.
"…what is Ash's issue with guys in skirts?" Kyoji asked, "Even I know Kilts are culturally important to southern Galar…"
"In his last timeline… Ash was forced to crossdress a lot," Sabrina answered, "He… does not like the fact that he did, and has a mission to… get payback…"
"…seems like a silly thing to be mad about," Kyoji shrugged.
"I'm sure you wouldn't be thinking that if you…" Sabrina began, before she blinked, and blushed a bit. "…oh…"
"…look, when you work for Intelligence, you have to do weird things," Kyoji defended, blushing a bit. "Not proud of it, but… it happened…"
The two were silent for a moment, before Sabrina looked at him with an amused smirk. "Seriously, though… Kiki?"
"IT WAS ON THE SPOT!" He exclaimed, "I had to think of a fake name fast! Don't judge me!"
"…Yeah, as I was saying… he had to crossdress to get into a gym because he said he didn't like perfume-" Sabrina started.
"THAT is dumb." Kyoji interjected.
"Yeah, this time he used legal nonsense to make Erika go 'shit, now I HAVE to fight him."
"…gonna take a wild guess and say he called himself 'Ashley' when he crossdressed?" Kyoji asked.
"Pretty much. Wasn't his idea." Sabrina said, shrugging.
"Whose WAS it?" he asked.
"You remember those two with the talking Meowth?" the greenette asked dryly.
Kyoji blinked as he got it. "…holy shit…"
She nodded. "Yeah, his timeline was weird."
"Fooking bastard!" Mandi yelled as he got out of the building, now wearing pants because his kilt… no longer existed.
"Caw." Mandi then looked up to see Moltres glaring at him.
"Aw, shite." the Galarian-raised trainer said before Moltres torched him.