"A Gym?" Trucy's blue eyes gazed at Ash as she looked up from her ice cream cone.

The boy nodded, taking a break from sipping his milkshake as he explained. "Yeah, they're one of the core parts of the Indigo League, not just for the Conference and professional training, but politically for the Empire itself."

Trucy tilted her head curiously, a cute habit of hers.

"What are they for if they are so important?"

"Gym Leaders are esteemed individuals who run the respective territory of their Gyms." Ash explained. "Most importantly, they are incredibly strong trainers, as a necessity." Taking a quick sip, he continued. "Politically, they're job is to run their territories. Watch over it, protect it, lead it. That alone requires a lot of strength, but the more… competitive aspect of the job is another reason. They are the ones who determine who is qualified for the Conference."

Trucy perked up. "They're that important?!"

"Of course." he smiled nervously. "You know how trainers competing in the Conference often travel around and go on long journeys?" at her nod, he continued. "It's usually because of the Gyms. If you want to compete in the Indigo Conference, you have to travel around Indigo and earn eight badges from the various Gyms spread out across Kanto and Johto. In other words, you have to challenge at least eight Gyms and defeat their respective Leaders. And you have to do all of this before the Season is over. Otherwise, you have to start all over again in the next Season."

The young girl frowned. "And you said they were really strong…"

"Exactly."

They sat in silence for a few minutes after that. Right now, they were just outside of Pallet Town's local ice cream shop. It was a popular hangout for Gary and his followers, but right now only a few of them lingered here, and apart from the judgmental looks they occasionally shot at Ash (not Trucy), they thankfully weren't trying to start up any conflict.

Ash was very used to when Gary and his friends usually were and were not here. He had carefully planned to take Trucy here on a day, and at an hour, where the other local kids usually didn't occupy the place. The time he and Delia spent babysitting Trucy was something that he had eventually come to view as a break from all of that.

And since Trucy had hit it off with both of them so much, her grandparents had made Ash and Delia her regular babysitters. Much to her ecstasy.

A small part of Ash felt weird that a small child was essentially the kid that he was closest to in the town, but it hardly bothered him. It didn't seem to bother her at all, either.

Eventually, Trucy broke the silence with another question. "Is it… hard to do that? Beating the Gym Leaders, I mean?"

"Overwhelmingly." Ash grimaced. Having recently learned about the statistics in school, the concept of Gym battles had him feeling quite paranoid. "In the typical Season, the Indigo Conference has just over five hundred competitors. Those are the people who beat the Gyms and clear the requirements as a result."

Trucy blinked. "But that sounds like a lot."

Ash giggled. "That's what I said." Gary had guffawed at him for not putting two and two together. Brittany had to spell it out in class for Ash to understand the bigger picture. "But the thing is, compared to the number of trainers in Indigo, it's only a very small fraction. In Kanto alone, the number of rookies that we get in each new Season can sometimes be more than double the number of trainers who actually make it to the Indigo Conference, if the pass rates for the Qualification Exam for that Season are particularly high. And that's not even considering the Johto Region. Apparently, they usually have higher pass rates than Kanto on average, even if Celadon is the place that typically spawns the most rookies overall…"

Trucy, who was now in the middle of munching on her cone, had her mouth agape at that.

"B-but, I…" she trailed off. Ash chuckled at her bewilderment. It reminded him of his own reaction in the classroom.

"Yeah, and that's just the rookies of each Season, too. The thing is, most trainers who make it to the Conference aren't even rookies. First years always have it the worst, easily. Most of them aren't able to get all eight Gym badges on their first try. Usually, it's than a select few, or a handful at most." now he was just echoing Brittany. "Occasionally, there might even be none. It's honestly crazy how absurd the odds are."

Trucy gulped. "That sounds scary."

Ash laughed nervously. "It's enough to make almost any rookie scared." Not Gary, though. As soon as Brittany had finished explaining the statistics, the grandson of Professor Oak had proudly announced that he was going to be the one to break the mold in that regard. Make it to the Conference on his first try, and even make it to the six on six rounds, which no rookie trainer had ever been able to do before. And the their classmates had all applauded his declaration, as though he were a legendary hero sent from the heavens. As if he had been blessed by the Guardian Mew himself. Brittany had been noticeably amused by the young boy's bravado, but had still promised him her full support in that regard.

"Hey, Ash?" he turned to see her eyes staring into his. The blue orbs that occupied Trucy's eyes were incredibly cute. Hard to say the word "no" too. Especially when she was pleading with him to buy her a double scooped cone. "That won't… stop you though, right? You can beat them, right?"

Ash wanted to say yes. He wanted to jump up from his seat, and make the same exact bold declaration as Gary. To be the big hero that put an end to the days of rookie trainers being looked down upon as typically weak and unsuccessful.

Instead, he simply gulped, and, after breaking eye contact with her, said something else, something that was inevitably much less motivating to him. "Let's hope so."

/

Ash Ketchum was now inside the Pewter City Gym.

It was even more overwhelming on the inside than on the outside, no longer an intimidating building to stare at from afar.

He was here.

Surprisingly, the Gym looked a lot different on the interior than he had pictured. Rather than simply being the typical stone that he was expecting, he was greeted with a more varied sight. The walls and floor were marble, which wasn't too surprising, but there was more to the inside of the building than just rock. The lobby surprisingly had what resembled a miniature garden in the middle. Little sprouts poked out from the soil, and Ash could see that the soil looked somewhat wet, indicating that they had probably been watered recently. Most surprisingly, there was a small waterfall on the far side of the room, surrounded by more vegetation.

The air was cool, and air conditioned, reminding Ash of what it felt like back at Professor Oak's Lab. The interior of the Gym had a very sophisticated feel to it, and the professional aura only heightened Ash's nerves.

It felt comfortable in here, but the amount of effort that was clearly put into just the the presentation of the Gym alone… Ash couldn't help but be reminded of just how important these places were.

Towards the other end of the room was a counter where a teenage boy sat in a cushioned chair. He was reading a magazine, although Ash couldn't tell what it was from where he was standing.

Curiously, he also spotted a young boy standing by the large double door on the far end of the room. The doors were likely what lead to the battlefield.

His breath catching in his throat, Ash failed in his attempt to suppress his gulp while making his way over to the counter. The small boy standing by the door eyed him carefully.

Perking up from his magazine (which Ash could now see was an issue of Inside Indigo's Tech, which had apparently printed its latest installment just a few days ago), the teenage boy eyed Ash carefully. He seemed to frown for a moment. "Oh… another rookie?" he almost sounded sympathetic. This was worrying.

Trying his best to steel himself (and not actually knowing if he had succeeded or not) Ash cleared his throat as best he could, and, in an effort to shed timidness, spoke in the most professional voice he could muster.

"Hi, I'm here for a Gym battle." Ash almost felt proud of himself for how clearly he spoke. He wasn't sure why.

The boy nodded, straightening himself out and turning to his keyboard. "Alright, can I see your Pokedex?"

Reaching back towards his backpack's back pocket, Ash pulled out the Crimson device and handed it to the boy. Inserting it into a nearby slot, he began typing.

"Okay… Ash Ketchum… from Pallet Town… no badges yet, three Pokemon…"

From the corner of his eye, Ash could spot the younger boy muttering his name and hometown over and over again, as if trying to memorize it for some reason.

He titled his head towards the younger boy out of curiosity, but his attention was quickly pulled away when the teen at the counter turned to him and spoke again. "

Alright, I have you registered. I'll contact the Gym Leader and you can get started right away, Mr. Ketchum." Ash gave him a nod, which he returned, before the older boy turned to the younger boy. "Hey, Forrest, you still want to do referee duty like I suggested, right?"

The boy nodded, a nervous but determined expression on his face. It almost reminded Ash of himself…

"Yes, I'm ready. Thank you." He sounded even more confident than Ash, and seemed like he wasn't putting nearly as much effort into it. It felt natural, not forced.

"Great, just hold on a second then. I'll get things started." he pressed an intercom button, and Ash could here a beeping sound.

/

Brock sat back in his steel chair, eyes fixated on the latest issue of Indigo's Breeding World, having immediately turned to a collaboration column written by Suzie and Elacia. He was about halfway done when the intercom beeped.

Groaning, he quickly placed a bookmark in his magazine before setting it down on his desk for later. His office was pretty spacious, as despite its size he hadn't put too much in it apart from the essentials. He liked the extra room. On the wall behind him was a large poster of Suzie and her award winning Vulpix, after winning first prize in last Season's beauty contest.

Pushing the intercom button, he spoke in response to the call, already knowing what it was for.

"Challenger?" his facade was immediately put on, almost like a reflex action. His own personal interests could wait. Now was time for his priorities. It was time for business.

"Yes, his information has been sent to you and is in the Gym's database. He's ready when you are."

"Got it, just hold on a second while I look it over real quick…" bringing up his latest challenger's information, Brock started speed reading, just as he had done so many times in the past. A picture of the new challenger, and also that of each of his individual team members, showed up on the screen as he quickly went through it. It didn't take long for him to turn back to the intercom. "Alright, send him in. I'll be there. Thanks for the call."

"Alright, I'll let him know you're ready, then."

As the intercom beeped and his caller hung up, Brock rose to his feet and stole a quick glance at the clock. 9:15 AM and a challenger was already here at the Gym. They had just opened fifteen minutes ago. Stereotypically, yet backed up by the young Gym Leader's own experience, challengers who arrived this early were either full of themselves or truly meant business. Time to see which category this next one fell under.

'Alright Brock, it's time to put on your mask again.'

It was automatic. Whenever a Gym Battle began, the real Brock took a brief break from existing, and the facade that he had built up as a Gym Leader took hold of the wheel. A stone cold man meant to strike fear into the hearts of every single trainer who challenged him. The rock type specialist who led the esteemed Gym of Pewter.

/

Forrest led Ash through the double doors and down a dark, dimly lit hallway. Ash was in the middle of returning his Pokedex, which he had been given back by the teenage boy at the counter after it was time to head on into the battlefield, to his backpack pocket, when the young boy spoke to him.

"Your name is Ash Ketchum, and you're from Pallet Town, correct?" his tone of voice was stern as he spoke. For somebody even younger than him, Ash found this boy to be shockingly professional; not even Janine had been this formal with him.

"Huh? Oh, yeah." he said with a nod, trying to ignore the hammering heartbeat in his chest as the double door that most likely led out of the hallway and into the battlefield continuously drew closer, and closer.

"Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town. Ash Ketchum, from Pallet Town…" Forrest was muttering to himself now, saying the same thing over and over again. It was a bit unnerving.

The boy pushed the doors open, and led Ash into a massive room.

There it was. The battlefield that they had been training for all week long. Ash's involuntary gulp immediately returned to his throat as he took in the sheer size of the arena. It was easily large enough to be used in a stadium, and the room kind of felt like one.

Both sides of the room were occupied by a tall series of bleachers, where Ash could see a few people gathered on the side where the referee stood. Most Gym's often offered spectator stands akin to that of stadiums, so that the employees working at the Gym could sometimes watch the battles in person, typically when they were on their break. Apparently, there were also cameras broadcasting the battle to the employees throughout the Gym as well. Gyms that also took in Gym trainers would often have some of them observe the battles in order to get full context of what a Gym Leader was like in action. To his knowledge, the Pewter City Gym had no such Gym trainers, but plenty of people still worked there nonetheless.

The ceiling was raised high above his head, and Ash was caught off guard by just how much higher it was than in the lobby or the hallway, both of which were fairly average by comparison. This room seemed to have the ceiling fifty feet high in the air.

But the main event, of course, was the battlefield itself. Exactly as Ash had expected it, and constantly envisioned, it was a long, seemingly endless series of rocks and jutted out boulders. Exactly what they had trained for.

Pikachu's mobility training was just about to pay off.

Ash and Forrest's heads turned as the sound of approaching footsteps entered their ears. A tall man approached them, wearing a special uniform. This must have been the Gym Leader.

The Gym Leader stopped just in front of him, his arms crossed as he eyed Ash carefully. At least a head taller than the young boy, he looked down on him with a scrutinizing look that would make even some of the strictest of teachers squirm in their seats.

Ash briefly made eye contact, trying to steady himself amidst this man's gaze, but broke away almost immediately.

The man seemed to be somewhat amused by that, his lips tugging upwards for the very briefest of seconds, before returning to the position that matched the stern scowl on his face. After a few more seconds of him staring at the boy, Ash suddenly felt grateful as he was given a very brief moment of reprieve, as the man's gaze turned to Forrest, his face suddenly becoming neutral.

"So, you're on referee duty for this one?"

Forrest nodded and bowed quickly. "Yes, Timothy suggested that it would be beneficial for me to start watching the Gym battles occasionally, while also practicing my demeanor for challengers. He's working at the reception desk for now."

The man nodded in understanding. "Very well, assume your position. We will begin in a moment."

Nodding, Forrest hurriedly made his way to the referee stand, which was located at the side of the battlefield, in front of the stands, and roughly in the middle of the battlefield's perimeter. He stood there confidently, straightening himself up with his hands at his sides. His face straightened out into an even more determined look as he gazed on ahead, steadfast and forward.

Ash suddenly felt small again as the man returned his gaze to him. The scowl was back again, piercing through his face like a Beedrill's sharp needles.

"So, you're my latest challenger. Latest hotshot who thinks they're ready to hold a Gym badge in their palm?" his voice carried a judgmental aura to it, and Ash could almost feel the derision hammering down onto him.

If all of the Gym Leaders were this intimidating, then he definitely had some work to do.

Cursing himself for his pathetic social skills, Ash tried to straighten himself up, only to feel himself shrink back down as he locked gazes with the man.

"Y-Yes, sir. I've c-come to win y-your Gym-b-badge." He stuttered out pitifully.

The morbid side of Ash wanted to see Gary interact with this man. Would he be intimidated too? Or would he crank up his ego even further?

The less morbid side of him thought about Janine in concern, and how she would react to him, but she seemed to steel herself relatively well against Team Rocket, so…

The man tilted his head downwards, just enough for Ash to feel him draw closer. The boy took a step back as the man's gaze never left his face, following Ash's every move.

"And this is your first Gym match, correct?" at Ash's timid nod, which was very slowly delivered, he continued. "A Gym battle is very different from other battles. This match is going to be a test for qualification to the Indigo League's Annual Conference. This is not some playground battle held in your backyard for fun and games." he almost spat out those words, as though trying to increase Ash's discomfort.

"Y-yes, I-I kn-know." Ash sputtered back. The man shook his head lightly as he continued to stare.

"My name is Brock. I run this Gym. And I will be the opponent that you will face today. Take your position, Ash. And be prepared for defeat." the tone of his voice was final, as though the outcome of the battle had already been decided. Ash couldn't get another word out as Brock turned around and made his way to the other side of the battlefield. Ash watched for a few seconds as the intimidating Gym Leader walked across the room towards the leader's stand, before gulping yet again and making his way to the challenger's stand.

Brock had certainly made a first impression. Ash's first impression, on the other hand…

After both Ash and Brock had positioned themselves, Forrest's voice echoed across the room for all to hear.

"This Gym battle, between challenger Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town, and Brock, the Pewter City Gym Leader, will now commence." the boy sounded almost as authoritative as Brock himself. "Both parties will use three Pokemon. Substitutions are allowed on both sides, and the victor will be decided either when all Pokemon on either side have been defeated, or either party surrenders." his arms now spread out, he turned his head over to Ash. "Any questions from the challenger?"

Ash shook his head. Suddenly, the floor in front of him opened up, just for a stand with a screen to rise in front of him.

"Very well, both parties, please direct your attention to the screen and select the Pokemon that will be used in this battle. The Poke Balls for those that you do not select will be locked until the battle is over."

Pictures of Pikachu, Nebula, and Valiant flashed on the touchscreen. The screen read clearly.

Select three Pokemon

Only having three Pokemon to select anyway, Ash quickly tapped each of the pictures and the stand returned into the floor, which closed back up immediately.

Forrest placed his hand on a nearby button. "Please wait as the barrier gears complete activation."

The barrier gears were special machines designed by Professor Oak to be installed underneath the battlefield. They casted special barriers that rose from the perimeter of the battlefield, boxing it in and shielding both the trainers and the audience from attacks. They were a necessity for safety, especially in the higher level battles.

Ash didn't know the full science behind it, but they apparently utilized energy from every Pokemon typing to nullify any stray attacks that struck the barriers. In the past, Pokemon, typically of the psychic or ghost typings, would be the ones to cast the barriers manually. They were effective, but being limited to only one type left the situation with a few noteworthy holds, often struggling against attacks with type advantages to the barriers themselves. It had been Professor Oak's idea to mechanize this, both so that the Pokemon would no longer have to exhaust themselves, and for extra safety by including all typings to make it easier to nullify the many attacks that would inevitably strike the barriers, often altering whichever typing that it harnessed to adapt to whichever attack it was protecting against.

It was an innovation that was initially strictly exclusive to that of the Indigo League, but once testing was complete, Professor Oak had immediately received permission to send the means to build these machines to both the Ever Grande and Lily of the Valley League, both of which Indigo had friendly relations to. Other territories had since begun to replicate this themselves, the Vertress League being the first one to do so.

All Gyms used some form of barriers for protection purposes. So did every professional tournament. Pokemon Centers also typically had a private battlefield of their own, that utilized these barriers. They were widespread throughout both Indigo, and, in various forms, the rest of the world as well.

Once the barriers activated, they would prevent all Pokemon and attacks from entering or leaving the arena during battle. In between bouts, the barriers will go down so that trainers may release their Pokemon onto the battlefield.

Normally, the barriers were borderline invisible, but Ash could see the faint shimmering as the machines began to turn on.

After a few moments that just served nothing more but to continue to pile down on Ash's nerves with the growing anticipation, Forrest spoke up again.

"Okay, begin!"

This was it. His first ever Gym battle. Their ever Gym battle. They had trained for this. Prepared for this. Vowed to win this, both for themselves, and each other.

And yet Ash was still scared.

Brock had already taken out his Poke Ball, currently waiting for Ash to do the same. In official battles, trainers always selected their first Pokemon at the same time, not releasing their Pokemon until their opponent had made their choice as well. That way, trainers wouldn't have an advantage by being able to start out the battle by picking their first Pokemon based on what they believed would fare best against their opponent's first Pokemon, if their opponent were to send out their Pokemon first.

Nervously, Ash brought a shaking hand to his belt. Carefully unclipping a Poke Ball, he brought it out in front of him, holding it out over the battlefield as steadily as possible.

Brock was significantly more confident as he chucked his Poke Ball into the air.

"I'll start with... Geodude, go!"

A bright flash of light from Brock's side of the rocky battlefield formed into a Pokemon that essentially looked like a large rock with a face and giant arms. Ash wasn't too surprised by this, however. According to experts, Geodude were the most commonly used rock type Pokemon around the world, native to multiple Regions and often found in the various mountains and caves of nature. Although strong, they were also considered to be fairly predictable, as just about any trainer who favored rock types had at least one of them.

Predictable didn't mean easy, however, and Ash would never allow himself to assume such, either. Common Pokemon or not, Brock was a Gym Leader.

Gripping his Poke Ball just a little bit too tightly, Ash chucked his own into the air, albeit finding that he didn't do so with nearly as much bravado as Brock.

Nebula appeared in front of him in a flash of light. Immediately realizing where she was, she frantically steadied herself and took on a battle stance.

"This is it, Nebula. That Geodude is your opponent. Watch out for its fists."

At Nebula's affirmative chirp, Ash briefly locked eyes with Brock. Even from across the battlefield, he found it hard to maintain eye contact with the Gym Leader's merciless gaze.

"The battle starts… NOW!" Forrest's voice echoed more loudly than ever, and then it began.

Brock didn't waste any time. "Geodude, use Rollout and pin it!"

Ash started at the loud volume of the Gym Leader's voice, carrying an aura of passion and power in it that he had never heard before from any opponent that he and his team had faced up until now, as the Geodude carried out its trainer's orders.

As the Pokemon's arms suddenly retracted into its body, Nebula began flapping her wings furiously, propelling herself off the ground in record time, as Geodude briefly began rolling in place to build up force before charging forward at the young bird.

Geodude charged through the spot where Nebula had once stood, but to Ash's surprise, the rolling Pokemon made a sharp turn and launched itself into the air, seemingly using a nearby rock as a makeshift ramp.

Squawking out in shock, Nebula jerked herself up higher, and Ash felt a deep sigh of relief escape from his breath, which he hadn't even realized that he was holding, as his bird companion just barely avoided the blow.

Despite thinking that he had come prepared, actually being in a Gym battle was very different from imagining it.

Nebula circled around the battlefield as Geodude attempted to follow her movements. Ash took a deep breath. This was it. No time to freeze up at the last second.

Clenching a fist, he shouted out his order.

"Alright Nebula, Steel Wing!"

Nebula's wings glowed brightly as the feathers turned metallic, cloaked in steel as she blitz forward towards her opponent. Instinctively, she boosted her speed with Quick Attack, putting even more force behind the attack.

Ash was certain that this would hit. Geodude weren't known for being fast, and although this Geodude had displayed a surprising amount of speed with Rollout, that should most likely be the exception. And given just how fast that Nebula had become, he highly doubted that Brock's Geodude had the reaction time to-

Geodude's outstretched hand grabbed hold of Nebula's right wing and stopped the Starly in her tracks. A shocked Ash froze as Nebula squawked in surprise while flailing her other wing helplessly in an attempt to free herself.

If Ash wasn't so far away, he would have noticed that the wing that Geodude had grabbed hold of was grinding against the palm of the Rock-Ground Type Pokemon's hand, the Starly still trying to push against him as she kept Steel Wing going. However, Ash did at least notice that the metallic coating on Nebula's wings had not gone away, and Geodude seemed to be lightly wincing in pain, based on its face.

Brock was stoic as he called out his order. "Put it down right away with Mega Punch!"

Ash gaped as Geodude pulled back its other fist, glowing in a deep blue aura.

Although Nebula had certainly gotten stronger over the past week, she was sadly lacking in durability. It was an issue that all of his teammates had, as none of them were of a species that was known for taking hits. And that Geodude was clearly a very heavy hitter. A single, direct hit from a Mega Punch to the head would probably leave her out cold right off the bat.

Brock wasn't spending a second warming up. As soon as a battle began, he was going for the finishing blow the first chance he got.

Ash wanted to let out a sigh of relief as Nebula instinctively raised her other wing-which was still cloaked in Steel Wing- to block the incoming blow, but the sheer force behind the attack still pushed back against her metallic wing with ease. Although the steel coating likely prevented any serious pain from being dealt to the Starly, she was still struck hard enough for not even Geodude's grip with its other hand to be able to hold her in place, the young Starly being propelled backward and landing painfully onto the rocky ground.

Before Ash could muster up any words of encouragement for his feathered companion, Brock was at it again.

"Don't give it breathing room! Rock Blast!"

Geodude's mouth opened as shards of stone came shooting outward and towards Nebula. Barely having any time to react, the young Starly shrieked as she instinctively rolled to the side, still not on her feet yet. Geodude angled itself slightly and took aim at her again, and Ash finally acted fast enough to shout out a command.

"Propel yourself with Whirlwind!"

Nebula had begun rising to her feet, and the second barrage of stone shards was narrowly avoided as she let out the biggest wing flap that she could muster, causing a powerful gust of wind boosted her up into the air.

Nebula was flying around the Geodude in circles now, slowly but surely ascending in the air in an attempt to gain some distance. Ash wasn't sure if he should be keeping track of her or their opponent, but he knew that he had to act quick, because sooner or later Brock would be barking orders again.

If that Geodude was reflexive enough to catch Nebula's Steel Wing despite the small bird's speed, then she would have to knock it off balance first.

Thankfully, they had just the technique for that. "Wind Blast! Push it back, Nebula!"

The bird immediately got to work, flapping her wings as furiously as she was able as she fired the concentrated blast of wind towards Geodude, who instinctively raised its arms over its face in defense.

Had this been a normal Whirlwind, Geodude's weight, along with the rock/ground type's obvious effort to brace itself, likely would have prevented the technique from doing very much. However, the concentrated nature of the wind resulted in much more force assaulting Nebula's opponent at once, and despite its best efforts, Geodude found itself gradually yet increasingly being pushed back, until it suddenly found itself being knocked over entirely, laying on its back as the wind subsided.

Ash couldn't waste any time. "Steel Wing, hurry!"

Once again, Nebula launched herself forward with Quick Attack as the steel energy manifested around her feathers. A week's worth of practice with the Move was about to pay off.

Although Nebula was farther away this time due to Wind Blast pushing Geodude a great deal backwards, her speed, combined with Geodude still getting up, more than made up for it. It didn't take long for the rock/ground type to regain its bearings and pick itself back up again. But it took even less time for Nebula to charge straight into her opponent, her left wing slicing painfully against its rocky body as Geodude let out a great howl of pain.

Geodude were known for being quite durable, especially compared to most unevolved Pokemon. It was a very common characteristic for rock types to have. But Nebula's Steel Wing, mastered after a week of gruelling training, was a perfect move for damaging a rock type with, and the fact that the extra speed boost that was provided by Quick Attack had greatly amplified the force of her already powerful blow simply helped her further.

Ash took note of the large gash on the Geodude's body as Nebula circled upward and resumed her routine of flying around her opponent.

Brock, however, wasn't perturbed as he shouted out his next order. "Rock Blast! Knock it out of the air!"

Even with its body having sustained the might blow, Geodude was quick to action as it fired off the stone shards in short bursts this time. To Ash's shock, they were aimed with great precision, and Nebula's surprised squawks filled the room as she was constantly forced to jerk left and right, occasionally up and down, to avoid the onslaught of her opponent.

Until one of them finally clipped her wing.

A light shriek of pain escaped her beak as Nebula reeled from the blow, losing her balance and descending into free fall. As the Starly fell head first towards the rock battlefield, Brock was already on it.

"Now use Mega Punch! Speed yourself up with Rollout!"

Normally, Geodude wouldn't be nearly fast enough to catch up with Nebula, but Brock's Pokemon was quite speedy with Rollout. It was upon Nebula almost immediately, and Ash quickly barked out a panicked order in response.

"Pull yourself up with Quick Attack, Nebula! Hurry!"

As Geodude approached Nebula, it began to cease rolling and its arms appeared again, one of its fists already glowing in its terrifying blue aura as Brock's Pokemon reared its fist back and prepared to strike.

But just mere moments before the glowing fist could shatter her skull, the falling Starly curved upwards in a sudden burst of speed, just barely avoiding what both Ash and Nebula knew would have been a fatal blow.

Ash's relief had been immeasurable. It was a damn good thing that they had worked on Nebula's maneuverability. Just a week prior, she never would have been able to do what she had just done: reversing free fall and performing a perfect turn upwards. Every passing moment of this battle was a reminder of how much of a bad idea that it would have been to challenge this Gym when they had first arrived at Pewter City, without any of the prior training that they had done over the course of the week.

But Ash quickly reminded himself that there was no time to feel relieved when battling against Brock.

"Repeat the same tactic!"

At the Gym Leader's orders, Geodude once again fired the Rock Blast at Nebula, who, to Ash's delight, spawned a copy of herself to confuse her opponent.

Geodude ceased firing and looked between the two circling Starly in bewilderment, before Brock called out to it.

"Keep going!"

The Starly began advancing at once. Clearly, Nebula wanted to keep geodude guessing so that she could strike with Steel Wing. However, the move was risky: the closer she got, the easier it would be for Geodude to hit her if it chose right.

The clone fizzled out as the shards struck it, and Geodude immediately turned its attention to the real Nebula. Although Nebula was able to quickly change direction and avoid the blast, she suddenly found herself in the same predicament as before, this time too busy frantically dodging the shards to repeat using Double Team, and, to Ash's dismay, ended up getting hit slightly more quickly than before.

Once again she was in free fall. Once again she avoided a Mega Punch to the top of her skull, even more narrowly this time.

As Nebula ascended upwards once more, Ash could have sworn he saw some blood dripping from her feathers. He snarled. She had been clipped in the same wing twice in a row now, and the pain was effecting the speed of her flight.

Nebula was giving it her all and he wasn't sure how to help her!

"Finish it Geodude! Once more!"

A horrified Ash quickly realized that Nebula would probably fall victim to the Mega Punch this time. In his panic, he suddenly felt an idea click in his mind.

"Use Steel Wing to deflect the rocks!"

Ignoring the pain in her wing, Nebula channeled the energy of the Steel-Type Move through her wings once more, this time flapping her wings against the shards of stone as they bombarded her. The metallic coating provided the perfect protection against the rocks that Geodude was attempting to pelt her with, which shredded with ease upon contact.

Ash felt a glint of satisfaction in the back of his mind as Nebula flawlessly defended herself from the move that had quickly become the bane of her existence in this fight. But quickly reminding himself of how much of a quick thinker Brock was, he immediately knew that he had to follow up right now if he no longer wanted to stay on the defensive.

"Wind Blast! Knock Geodude over again and then use Steel Wing!"

Nebula winced slightly as she flapped her wings as hard as she could, the blood dripping from her feathers being sent flying by the force of her flaps, and by the wind itself, of course.

Geodude once again found itself on the defensive, and was knocked over like before.

A triumphant shriek of aggression escaped the young Starly's beak as Nebula charged forward, Steel Wing at the ready, and once again sliced into Geodude, cleverly aiming for the gash that had already been formed by her previous assault.

Ash could have sworn that he had seen Brock actually grimace as Geodude let out an even louder, even more pained howl than the previous one, it's gash now far more visible and painful. Ash couldn't help but flinch at the sight of the injury. Pokemon battles were brutal.

Nevertheless, it didn't matter. If they failed to follow up right away, Brock would inevitably counterattack and regain the upper hand.

"Once more, Nebula! Wind Blast!"

One more Steel Wing should do the trick. They just had to knock Geodude off balance first.

But Brock's next order surprised Ash.

"Stone Blockade!"

Stretching out its massive hands, Geodude glowered up at Nebula as a large rock suddenly began to materialise in between its palms. It was at least as big as Geodude itself, and Geodude, despite its painful injuries, held it with ease as it raised the stone in front of its face, but still holding it closely.

Acting as a makeshift shield, the large stone took the brunt of Nebula's Wind Blast, providing the Geodude with an extra, and powerful cushion against the force of the attack. Ash snarled in frustration as Geodude was only slightly pushed back, but not even remotely caught off balance or winded. As Nebula ceased her now fruitless attack, her opponent leered up at her dangerously.

It was taking everything that the young Starly had to maintain a decent flight speed with the pain in her wing. Between the cut that she had received from the Rock Blast to the constant overexertion with Wind Blast, she was certainly starting to feel the effects. And Geodude, despite its injuries, had now canceled out their only means to create an opening for Steel Wing.

They couldn't risk charging in again with Geodude still upright. Even with its injuries, it could still potentially manage the reflexes necessary to grab onto Nebula's Steel Wing in time and intercept her again. It was powering through its injuries, and the immense pain that it was most likely feeling, much like Nebula herself was.

As Ash clenched his fists in sheer panic, he could feel Brock's scowl piercing into him from across the battlefield. It almost caused him to wince in pain, as though he had just been stung, but that was likely subconscious.

"So your Starly can modify its moves. Not bad, but don't fool yourself into thinking that your the only one with that idea."

Ash grinded his teeth in frustration, ignoring the slight pain that he felt from doing so. What to do now…?!

"Throw it!"

Ash started and took a light step backwards as Geodude raised the large stone over its head, bringing both of its arms back as it took aim at the Starly.

It was already pretty darn precise with that Rock Blast, and the small bird was now having more and more trouble maintaining her momentum with her light but aggravated wing injury.

And Geodude was obviously incredibly strong. Even with that rock's obvious weight, it was going to be chucked at high speeds with the force that the Geodude would inevitably be putting into it. Certainly far too fast for Nebula to avoid…

"Hurry! Use Steel Wing to shield yourself!"

As the Geodude made the powerful throw, Nebula once again coated her wings in metallic energy. This time, however, she folded both of them in front of her body, just in time for the large rock to crash into her.

It protected her from being damaged by the blow, but the blunt force behind the rock had quickly knocked her out of the air regardless.

"You know what to do, Geodude!"

And so it did. As Nebula once again descended into free fall, plummeting head first towards the rocky battlefield, Geodude once again charged forward with Rollout, preparing to exit its move and prepare a Mega Punch when able and close enough.

Ash knew that Nebula couldn't possibly avoid it this time. There was only one thing left to do.

Nebula still hadn't fully gotten the hang of calling on her ability at will just yet, but at this point, they were now left with no other options. It was their last resort.

"Activate Reckless, Nebula! Steel Wing!"

Despite being winded from the impact of the previous blow, and the pain in her wing, and the overwhelming g-force of her fall, nebula still took in Ash's orders. Scrunching up her face and squeezing her eyes shut, she did everything that she could to try to muster up her ability. Trying to-

BAM!

Geodude's glowing fist smashed into her chest, and she was sent flying backwards at breakneck speeds, possibly as fast as her flight when she was in the middle of using Quick Attack.

And had it not been for the protective barriers, she would have slammed right into Ash.

The upside down Starly slid down the barriers and onto the ground, Ash looking on hopelessly as his gaze followed his bird companion.

Her body was motionless, her eyes closed, and her chest bloodied. She showed no signs of getting up, or even trying to, as she hit the ground with a thud.

Raising a hand, Forrest called out at the top of his lungs.

"Starly is unable to battle! Geodude wins!"

It took a few moments for Ash to process it. Gazing in defeat at his feathered companion's unconscious body.

Was there anything more that he could have done?

Slowly, he reached for his belt. Slowly, he pulled out Nebula's Poke Ball, and returned her ina red beam of light.

As the Poke Ball let out a high pitched beep to signal that Nebula had been returned, Ash held it up to his face, staring into the red and white orb with a blank expression on his face.

The look in his eyes was one of defeat. One of failure. Unfulfilled.

"You were… wonderful out there, Nebula. I'm sorry I let you down."

It was true. He had let her down. Not the other way around.

Nebula had… given everything she could, truly. Tenaciously until the very end.

And Ash had failed her.

"You kept using the same strategy to try and hurt Geodude." He slowly looked up as the Gym Leader's voice echoed judgmentally across the battlefield, filling Ash's ears seemingly from all directions, as though the heavens themselves were now judging him for his failure. "You should have known better than to assume that I wouldn't find a way to counter it eventually. It doesn't matter if something works the first time, or even the second. If you fall into repetition, your predictability will make you into an open book that anybody could read. You're never going to win an official battle like that; didn't I tell you this wasn't a playground? You're overlooking every devastating hole in your battle style, like the rookie you are."

Ash snarled as he clenched his eyes shut. Images of an unconscious Pichu flashed before his eyes. A poisoned Pikachu. A Starly with an injured wing. And now a Starly with a bashed in chest.

All incidents that could have been avoided had it not been for his failure as a trainer, and his alone.

He wanted to become a trainer that they would truly want to be commanded by. Somebody that they could be happy to be with. Somebody that could lead them throughout their journey through Indigo, and to new heights. A trainer that was irreplaceable to them. Just like how he was beyond satisfied with the team that he currently commanded. A team that he wouldn't trade for the world. A team that he happily called his own. His teammates were the most valuable companions that he could ask for, and he truly felt the benefit of having them by his side.

He wanted to be the same thing to them. For them to truly feel like training under him had been good for them. That he was more than just their companion. That he wasn't just a Trainer. That they, together, could take on the world and win.

He thought he'd been ready to prove that to them today… was he?

Brock's voice filled his ears yet again as he was consumed by his thoughts.

"Are you going to send out your next Pokemon? If you have no resolve left in you, then surrender. Or are you going to start making excuses to make yourself feel better?"

Ash gradually raised his timid gaze back up to the battlefield as he desperately tried to find something, anything, that could act as a comeback line against Brock. But he kept finding himself coming up short. Just like with Gary. Just like with Gary's friends. Just like always.

Had he really not changed? All those days in Viridian Forest, a week's worth of training his team solely for preparation for this fight… was all of that really not enough?

Was he just the same kid who got walked all over by all of his peers, never capable of keeping up with them?

Professor Oak, the grandfather of somebody who hated him. Janine, a girl he had just met one night. Elacia, a woman who had barely even known him. Were all of their words of encouragement really for naught?

His teachers… his mother… Trucy… was he really only capable of letting them all down?

His signature feeling of hopelessness had returned to him. Maybe he really wasn't ready for this. Maybe Gary had him pegged. Maybe that obnoxious boy really was right about everything. And maybe Brock was too-

And then he caught sight of Brock's Geodude.

To the Pokemon's credit, its resilience really was off the charts. Most Pokemon probably would have been keeling over by now, maybe even unconscious. But this Geodude… was still upright. It bore it's injuries and powered through the pain by every minute. A true warrior worthy of fighting in a Pokemon Gym.

But it was the sight of those injuries that truly caught Ash's attention.

That snapped him out of his insufferable state of self loathing and detestment.

That brought him back down to earth and reminded him of what was going on.

That gave him the strength to remember the big picture. And what they were here for.

Those injuries…

Nebula had done this. Nebula had continued to fight until the bitter end. Just as she had vowed to do so. Just as Pikachu and Valiant had vowed to do so.

If he gave up now… and wasted all of the effort that she had put in… he really didn't deserve her.

After everything that Nebula had accomplished against that Geodude. After coming so close to victory. After utilizing everything that she had learned from her training… there was no way he could disrespect her like that.

There was no way that he could disrespect Pikachu and Valiant like that, either.

He had failed her. Which is why he was going to have to somehow make it up to her. Starting with winning this battle, and continuing to push forward, and capitalize on what she had done.

Viciously, he reclipped Nebula's Poke Ball back to his belt, and immediately took out his next one.

"Can it Brock." his voice was surprisingly aggressive. Not even Gary had been on the receiving end of something like this before, even before Ash had stopped firing back at him.

The sudden aggression was enough for Brock to perk up a bit, his brow raised in surprise as Ash glowered at him from across the battlefield, his expression suddenly matching the Gym Leader's own.

"I'm not letting you push me around anymore. You've been trying to get under my skin since we started, but I'm done! This means too much to me, and to them, for me to let you walk all over me. There are people out there who believe in me… A couple I barely even know… and I'm not wasting their faith. And I'm not wasting my team's efforts!" He held the Poke ball out in front of the battlefield defiantly. "So save your breath, because we're not losing!"

He was going to become a Trainer worthy of Delia, Trucy, Professor Oak, Janine, Elacia, and everyone else's faith.

Most importantly of all, he was going to become a Trainer worthy of Pikachu, Nebula, and Valiant.

And if he didn't mean that before, then he definitely meant that now.

Valiant appeared in front of him in a triumphant flash of light white.

The Ralts stood as tall as his height allowed him, and glared defiantly at Geodude.

Time for a comeback.

"Valiant," Ash spoke in a steady tone of voice. "Nebula was just defeated. She gave it her all. Let's win this next one for her, okay?" he smiled at the Ralts' immediate nod.

To his surprise, Brock's lips tugged upwards. "Your change of attitude puts on a good show, but I'm more a fan of actions than speeches." A red beam of light shot out from his Poke Ball and sucked in Geodude. Clipping Geodude's Poke Ball back to his belt, he immediately unclipped another, and held it out for Ash and Valiant to see. "We'll see how long your new demeanor lasts."

The red and white orb opened up, and out of the blazing white light emerged another pokemon that Ash immediately recognized.

Rhyhorn were also fairly common rock/ground type Pokemon, although unlike Geodude, which were practically universal among specialists, these were at least slightly more rare. Nevertheless, they were often sought after for their super powerful evolved forms; the iconic Rhydon and the incredibly rare Rhyperior. Rhydon were among the more common Pokemon found in high level tournaments such as the Indigo Conference; much like Pidgeot, albeit not quite as much as they were traditionally a lot more difficult to capture and raise. Rhyhorn were particularly dangerous among beginner level Pokemon: Their maneuverability was rather limited due to their bulk, making it hard to make sharp turns without strict training, but they were incredibly fast for a Pokemon of their bulk and weight, and their immense physical strength made them incredibly heavy hitters, perhaps even more so than Geodude, and had garnered them fame for their durability.

A dangerous opponent indeed. Ash just hoped that Brock hadn't trained this Rhyhorn to be better with maneuverability, as it would give them a weakness to exploit. It was generally really difficult to do, so he doubted that a beginner level Rhyhorn would be able to manage such a thing.

Of course, he wasn't about to take any chances.

"Valiant," he spoke quickly. "That Rhyhorn's hide is very thick. It'll be very difficult to hurt it, so it's all up to your Magical Leaf for that. Do not underestimate its speed, and do everything that you can to not take a hit, especially if it charges you."

Valiant nodded in the affirmative, and just in time to.

As Forrest gave the signal for the battle to begin, Brock was already at it once more.

"So you have a psychic type, huh? Let's see if you know how to use it; Rock Blast!"

Rhyhorn wasted no time opening its gaping maw and letting loose the same barrage of rock shards that had given Nebula so much trouble in the previous battle. Without Ash even needing to say it, Valiant erected the glowing silver cube around him to box himself in, as Reflect shielded the young Ralts from the rocky onslaught.

The sound of rocks smashing the cube shaped barrier filled Ash's ears as Valiant braced himself against the assault, the shockwaves still causing Ash's psychic fairy type companion to brace himself with his arms held protectively in front of his face as the Rhyhorn relentlessly continued its onslaught.

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Its stamina was quite impressive, as it did not let up its assault, keeping the Rock Blast going far longer than Geodude ever had.

Ash could see the cracks forming in Valiant's Reflect. Pretty soon, it would shatter, and Valiant would be left vulnerable. The cracks were beginning to form faster and faster as the Reflect continued to lose durability, and holding onto the technique for too long would have most likely been very taxing for Valiant anyway.

"Drop Reflect and dive to the side!" Ash wasn't sure if Valiant would have enough time to focus on using Teleport right after dropping Reflect, and Shadow Sneak wasn't instantaneous like Teleport was, so this would have to be their next best thing.

The cube disappeared as Valiant dodged sideways, just barely avoiding being clipped by the rocks.

Valiant hadn't moved too far away, but Ash's companion still took note of the Rhyorn's slow speed when repositioning itself to keep facing towards the young Ralts again. Ash could see the young Ralts crossing his arms thoughtfully.

"Rhyhorn can't maneuver well with its bulk, Valiant. Take advantage of that."

Valiant nodded as Ash called out his next order.

"Magical Leaf!"

Training had paid off. Valiant's Magical Leaf was stronger than ever, and shot out at Rhyhorn while glowing a bright, vibrant green. With Rhyhorn's thick hide bolstering its defenses, a grass type move like Magical Leaf was the best tool that Valiant had for dealing any damage to it; they had to focus on Rhyhorn's weaknesses.

Unfortunately, the moment Ash had shouted out his order, Brock had coun tered with one of his own.

"Use Flamethrower!"

An order like that made Ash wonder if this Rhyhorn was even beginner level at all. Flamethrower wasn't the most difficult fire type move to master, but it wasn't the easiest either. Normally, even fire type Pokemon, which inevitably had the easiest time learning the move, still needed some experience under their belts before learning it.

Of course, it immediately occured to Ash that this Flamethrower in particular wasn't a complete one. The stream of fire that escaped from Rhyorn's open maw wasn't steady at all.

Nevertheless, it had done its job as it shot out from Rhyorn's maw and incinerated the glowing leaves. The remnants of the Flamethrower continued on flying right towards Valiant, but were immediately stopped by a quickly activated Light Screen.

Imperfect Flamethrower or not, this Rhyhorn had to have been more experienced than Ash had initially thought that it was if it was even using a Move like Flamethrower. Ash doubted it was a high level Pokemon, but Brock had likely been training it for a decent amount of time. Enough for the Rhyhorn to at least get the basics of such a technique down, probably with the help of a TM.

At the very least, the very brief first impression that they had gotten from Rhyhorn's slight turning to face towards Valiant told Ash that his assumption on Rhyhorn's mobility hadn't been too far off.

"Valiant, remember what I said about its maneuverability."

Valiant nodded at the command… right before sinking into Shadow Sneak.

A look of bewilderment seemed to occupy the rhino's face as Valiant's shadow traveled underneath it. Shadow Sneak was a great Move for catching opponents off guard.

As Ash watched the young Ralts rise up a few feet behind Rhyhorn, a small grin appeared on his face as he quickly realized Valiant's plan.

Since Rhyhorn couldn't turn quickly, it wouldn't be able to counter with Flamethrower in time if Valiant fired at it from behind-

Unfortunately, Brock caught onto the plan just as quickly.

"Protect!"

A round, shimmering green barrier formed around Rhyhorn just as the Magical Leaf was fired. It wasn't a perfect barrier by any stretch of the imagination, very clearly, this Protect was something that the rhino had only just recently learned.

Nevertheless, it was enough to deflect the glowing emerald leaves as Ash and Valiant both huffed in frustration.

"Your plan amounted to attacking from behind because most Rhyhorn aren't very mobile when not running straight forward." Brock stated matter of factly. With crossed arms, he spat out his next sentence. "Do you really think that I would deserve my position if I had left such a blatantly obvious weakness unaddressed?"

Ash clenched his fists at that, but reminded himself not to let the Gym Leader get to him.

The rock specialist was just trying to frustrate him. Get him to make a misplay. Intimidate him into giving up. Anything to keep that badge away from him and his team.

But they weren't leaving here without it, and they were about to show Brock exactly that.

As the Rhyhorn turned around to face the young Ralts, Valiant immediately teleported a few yards away to clear some distance between them. He was closer to Brock's side of the battlefield now, and Ash had to focus to get a clear view of him.

It didn't help that some of those jutting boulders were still in the way.

Ash saw Valiant disappear behind one of them, likely trying to use it as cover. Brock seemed amused by that.

Rhyhorn stalked around the battlefield, heading off in the direction where Valiant had disappeared too. Its legs made loud stomping noises as it moved throughout.

Valiant appeared behind it again, but a quick warning from Brock immediately had the Protect barrier once again deflecting the Magical Leaf.

Valiant was thinking on his own pretty well. Although Brock probably found the young Ralts' strategies to be predictable, Ash was impressed that Valiant was this capable of thinking on his feet. Pokemon were often known for taking matters into their own hands when in battle, but Valiant still showed a surprising amount of initiative for a beginner level Pokemon. Could it be early signs of a gifted tactician? Ash wasn't too sure, but he certainly hoped so.

As Rhyhorn began turning around yet again to face the young psychic/fairy type, Ash began racking his brain for potential ideas. The rhino's fierce eyes pierced into Valiant as the young Ralts flinched for the briefest of split seconds, before suddenly steadying himself, taking a battle stance as he braced himself with a glare of his own.

"Thunderbolt!" Brock was acting quickly as usual, and Rhyhorn responded with equal initiative as it carried out its Trainer's orders. Ash had to admit that he was both impressed and intimidated by how on top of things that Brock and his Pokemon constantly were.

A bolt of lightning made a sizzling noise as it escaped from the rock/ground type beast's horn, but it quickly found itself being halted by a strong Light Screen, as Valiant steadfastly braced himself from within his protective golden cube.

As both Pokemon ceased their techniques, it occurred to Ash that Brock had most likely focused on teaching this Rhyhorn as many Moves as possible, in order to combat the traditional opponents and strategies that would most likely be used against it.

Flamethrower for handling grass types. Thunderbolt for handling water types. Protect for covering blind spots. Rhyhorn's arsenal was well built, but Ash knew that such a thing should be expected from a Gym Leader. It was never that simple in these types of battles.

A tint of frustration appeared on his features, however.

As impressive as it was, it had suddenly occurred to him that neither combatant seemed to have any means of hurting the other. Every attack was either countered or blocked. At this rate, it would all come down to whoever ran out of energy first. And in a war of attrition, Ash was unfortunately confident that Valiant would be tiring out much, much faster. The way that Rhyhorn had continuously been able to keep that Rock Blast up had said wonders for its stamina, and Ash wasn't entirely sure if Valiant would be able to handle an overuse of his own techniques quite as much.

But for now, they were at a stalemate…

Which Brock immediately tried to break.

"Rhyhorn, knock it off balance with Magnitude, and then smash it with Take Down!"

Ash had to cover his ears at the sudden roar the escaped from Rhyhorn's maw. Valiant let out a startled cry of shock as he did the same, looking up and watching as the massive beast reared back on its hind legs… and then slammed its front legs down on the ground, suddenly thrashing around against the battlefield with enough brute force to make Ash grateful to not be on the battlefield himself right now… while simultaneously, suddenly being concerned for Valiant's safety.

Would the young Ralts even survive getting hit by a beast like that?

Those thoughts immediately left his mind however as he watched in shock, as the battlefield began to tremor from the massive beatdown that the Rhyhorn was currently giving it.

Although the barriers protected the rest of the giant room from feeling the effects, Ash could see the battlefield shaking rapidly. Magnitude was a powerful move that could create tremors that shook the entire battlefield during the battle, perfect for situations like this when you wanted your opponent to be knocked over more easily. The move was unique in that it had multiple levels, with a Pokemon's skill with the technique determining what levels that it currently had access to.

This Rhyhorn probably did not have access to the highest levels of the technique just yet, but it very clearly had at least some handle on the move, and its massive brute strength very clearly did the rest.

Ash recoiled as Valiant was inevitably knocked off of his feet by the constant shaking of the very ground itself, the young Ralts desperately looking for something to hold onto as his body was repeatedly sent bouncing painfully against the hard stone.

Rhyhorn waited a few more moments for Valiant to be winded before ceasing its technique and charging forward. Theoretically, it could have kept the technique going right then and there, but perhaps this particular move was more taxing on it than any of the others were.

Nevertheless, the shaking of the ground quickly returned, albeit not nearly as badly, as Rhyhorn rapidly charged forward with Take Down. The Move was a hard hitting one that was perfect for a Pokemon of Rhyhorn's massive bulk.

Valiant hadn't had enough time to regain his balance, and the continuous shaking of the battlefield from Rhyhorn's charging certainly wasn't helping matters. Ash was just about to think that the battle was lost when the young Ralts, now on his knees, raised his head, as his eyes glowed a deep, bright blue.

It was using Confusion, and that same blue color began to outline the Rhyhorn's body as the charging beast began to slow down.

Valiant was very clearly straining himself here. A massive beast of Rhyhorn's bulk, charging forward at such high speeds? There was no way that Valiant would be able to stop it, but by some miracle, he was still able to slow it down.

Doing his best to keep the technique going, Valiant slowly began rising to his feet, straining himself to keep his hold on the advancing Rhyhorn while still picking himself up. Ash couldn't see it from so far away, but a gnasty bruise was on the young Ralts' head from the Magnitude attack, while smaller bruises were on his left elbow and back.

Gritting his teeth definitely, the young Ralts stood upright, releasing his hold on the Rhyhorn and activating Teleport as soon as he could.

The Rhyhorn, who had been fighting against the young Ralts' hold in order to regain its lost speed, suddenly found itself caught off guard as its full speed returned abruptly, just as quickly as it had left, and it suddenly found itself charging right into one of the jutted boulders, no longer adjusted to the speed that it was now going at due to the sudden fluctuation in momentum.

The boulder exploded on impact, and Valiant immediately had to shield his ears from the place that he had teleported to, the shockwave from the blow briefly being felt before passing just as quickly as it had come.

In the massive cloud of dust that had spawned from the explosion, Rhyhorn began shaking its head vigorously, reeling from the impact. As the dust slowly cleared, Valiant, attempting to take advantage of the recoil that the rhino was feeling, teleported behind it and fired off a Magical Leaf. The headache that he was now suffering from made it more difficult to concentrate on his Moves, especially Psychic Type Moves, but he persevered.

Unfortunately, Brock had already called out for Rhyhorn to use Protect just as Valiant had made his Move, and the rhino had recovered just in time to do so, albeit only just barely.

As Rhyhorn began turning around to once again face its opponent, Valiant began slowly backing away, prompting the rhino to begin stalking forward after catching the young Ralts in its eye.

As Valiant began drawing closer back to his side of the battlefield, Ash took note of his companion's injuries and frowned. If Rhyhorn had the stamina to keep the Magnitude up, it probably could have kept the technique up until Valiant was knocked out.

But as the Rhyhorn continued to slowly advance, Ash could see the large bruise on its forehead, most likely from when it had rammed right into the jutted boulder.

Although most Rhyhorn were durable enough to handle such a thing, this Rhyhorn, for as tough as it was, likely wasn't on the same level as the higher level members of its species.

That still didn't help them, though. Although that Rhyhorn was now bruised up too, it still wasn't beginning to start breathing heavily like Valiant was. The strain from holding onto Confusion like that, against an opponent that was very clearly capable of resisting it, followed up by an immediate use of Teleport, had very clearly taken quite a lot out of the young Ralts.

They needed to end this quickly… but how…?

Up until this point, they had only been trying to find ways to strike at Rhyhorn from an opening but…

They needed to do what Nebula had done against Geodude, and make sure Rhyhorn was unprepared first.

"Valiant, use Hypnosis. Once it begins to feel tired, hit it with Magical Leaf."

By now Valiant was almost right in front of him. The young Ralts nodded in the affirmative, the determined glare returning to his face, as he suddenly teleported right in front of the rhino behemoth's face.

Before Brock could call out any orders this time, Valiant's eyes were glowing pink as he stared into Rhyhorn's eyes, the massive beast completely caught off guard, not expecting the attack.

The young Ralts was clearly straining himself against the surprised yuet resilient Rock-Ground Type beast, but continued to pout more and more power into the move nonetheless.

"Flamethrower!"

The moment the rhino's eyelids had begun to droop, Brock had called out his order, and although the Rhyhorn was able to power through the Hypnosis in order to follow through with it, it took significantly more effort to do so than if it had been able to use Flamethrower freely.

As soon as he had heard the order, Valiant had pressed one final surge into the Hypnosis, before canceling the attack and then diving down to the side. As the stream of fire escaped the rhino's maw, this time even less steady than before due to the Rhyhorn being winded from the Hypnosis attack, Valiant took advantage of the distraction and fired off a Magical Leaf.

The flames sputtered out as the beast howled in pain, the grass type move clashing against its thick hide. Large gashes slowly but surely began to form as the attack continued, but Valiant was eventually left panting and gasping for breaths as the young Ralts was forced to cancel the attack.

Just as he had caught his breath, the rhino too had finished reeling from pain, and turned its head to spit another stream of Flamethrower over at its opponent. Dodging to the side, Valiant sunk into Shadow Sneak and moved himself over to Rhyhorn's other side, landing a powerful Magical Leaf point blank.

As the beast once again recoiled in pain, Valiant sank into Shadow Sneak again, this time appearing behind the beast. The young Ralts let out a determined cry at the top of his lungs as he let loose yet another Rhyhorn just barely managed to heed Brock's order to use Protect, it was in too much pain to muster as much of the technique as it could, and as fast, The now feeble green barrier deflected the first few leaves before shattering and leaving the Rhyhorn open to the remaining ones. Valiant was straining himself like crazy to keep on firing at his full power, while using Shadow Sneak right beforehand no less, but to Ash's amazement, the young psychic fairy type was persevering.

Rhydon sank to the ground, collapsing onto the battlefield with a loud thud.

"Rhyhorn is unable to battle! Ralts wins!"

Filled with joy as Forrest made the announcement, Ash beamed at Valiant as the exhausted Ralts making his way back to him.

"Valiant…" he looked down at the Ralts, who was returning his smile with equal enthusiasm. "You were amazing!"

He really was. Valiant had demonstrated fantastic initiative throughout the battle, heeding Ash's warnings and orders and using them as building blocks for his own strategies and split second choices.

A red beam of light engulfed Rhyhorn as the beast was sucked back into Brock's Poke Ball. Holding the orb in his hand, Brock lowered his arm as he eyed Ash evenly.

"So… perhaps your little monologue wasn't just for the sake of hearing yourself talk after all." His gaze intensified. "You still haven't proven that it's going to change anything, though." he began reclipping Rhyhorn's Poke Ball and unclipping another.

Ash glared back at him, his fists clenching as Valiant took another battle stance, the young Ralts doing his best to remain stoic despite his obvious exhaustion and injuries.

'Don't let him intimidate you, Ash.' the young boy thought to himself. 'That is exactly what he wants. Fire back!'

"Then we'll just keep fighting until we have."

As Valiant nodded the affirmative, Brock's lips tugged upwards, holding up his Poke Ball." Heh. You're starting to amuse me a bit. But it will take a lot more than that to get me to lose focus."

Geodude reappeared on the rocky field.

Ash looked down at the panting Ralts, who was doing his best to hide his condition." Valiant… can you keep going?"

At Valiant's nod, the Ralts turning his head slightly to give his trainer a determined look, Ash nodded back with equal determination before raising his head to observe their opponent.

Both Pokemon were injured from their previous battles. Valiant was tired, but was powering through his exhaustion with everything he could. Geodude was wounded pretty badly, but kept itself upright and fought through the pain.

This was a contest between two Pokemon who refused to give in.

"Valiant… that Geodude beat Nebula before. But she left behind those injuries. Focus on the gash. One Magical Leaf should do the trick."

Valiant nodded firmly, fixing his glare onto his rock/ground type opponent.

Valiant didn't waste any time as Forrest gave the signal. With unrivaled defiance, the Feeling Pokemon began forming an emerald ball of energy in his hands, charging up his Magical Leaf to end the fight quickly.

But Brock was already giving orders. "Stone Blockade!"

The same large rock that had previously shielded Geodude from Nebula's Wind Blast was now doing the same thing against Valiant's Magical Leaf. Although the emerald leaves slowly began to chip away at the makeshift shield, the Ralts quickly subsided the attack, realizing how taxing it would be to keep it up.

"Throw it!"

Once again, Geodude chucked the rock at its opponent, but Valiant had already changed tactics, sinking down into Shadow Sneak as the rock sailed over his head.

The shadow of the Ralts moved around the battlefield, circling around Geodude in an attempt to catch the Pokemon on off guard. One Magical Leaf, especially to the gash, would end it all.

But Brock already realised what was going on. "Move around the battlefield with Rollout, Geodude! Don't stay in one place!"

Retracting its arms, the Geodude, still powering through the pain of its injuries, began rolling through the rocky battlefield at the fastest speeds that it could muster.

Valiant continued circling after it, both pokemon attempting to outmaneuver each other in different ways.

But Ash was nervous. No doubt Brock was trying to wait the Ralts out. Ash wasn't sure how long that Valiant could keep Shadow Sneak up, even after all of the training, there was still probably a limit, given that the Ralts was still a beginner level pokemon. Not to mention the exhaustion that Valiant had already been feeling from his previous bout.

Valiant seemed to be thinking the same thing however, but Ash soon realized with awe that the Ralts had a plan.

Once again, Valiant used a jutted boulder as cover, keeping his shadow hidden from view as as Geodude approached.

Once the rolling Pokemon was within firing range, Valiant's shadow darted out of the hiding place. Rising up, Valiant greeted his opponent with the strongest Magical Leaf his exhausted body would allow him to use.

The Geodude let out a wail of anguish as the emerald leaves smacked into its rolling form. The impact of the blow forced it out of Rollout, the Pokemon sailing through the air, and towards Valiant.

Clearly in pain, and having now been pushed past its limits by that last hit, Geodude raised a slightly glowing fist as it attempted to bring a last ditch effort Mega Punch down onto Valiant.

But as the falling rock/ground type pokemon descended, Valiant, just as blatantly defiant as his opponent, erected a last minute Reflect that boxed him in one final time.

The Mega Punch was weak, but given more force behind the blow with the gravity of the fall. The Reflect was imperfect from Valiant's exhaustion, but held up through every last bit of vigor that the Feeling Pokemon could still muster.

The silver cube shattered on impact, the shockwaves repelling both combatants as the concussive force of the clash showed no mercy to either of them. Geodude was blown back and rolled along the ground for a good few seconds while Valiant was knocked onto his back with abrupt speed, both Pokemon hitting the ground with a mighty thud.

As both Pokemon attempted to push themselves upwards, both of their trainers were already preparing their Poke Balls as they realized that this was the end. Eventually, after a good few seconds, the two Pokemon, after struggling to give up, collapsed backwards halfway through.

Geodude had been finished by that final Magical Leaf, and although it had used what remaining strength that it could to let loose that final Mega Punch, it was no longer able to ignore the pain.

Valiant, after receiving a blow to his already bruised head from the shockwaves of the Mega Punch shattering Reflect, could no longer hold back his exhaustion regardless of how stubborn that the young Ralts continued to attempt to be.

Two defiant Pokemon until the bitter end, having lost the last of their strength in the exact same moment.

"Both Geodude and Ralts are unable to battle! We have a draw!"

At Forrest's declaration, both trainers returned their Pokemon in a beam of red light.

Ash let out a deep sigh before turning the Poke Ball in his hand, looking down at the orb with a sad smile.

"You were incredible Valiant, thank you."

As Ash reclipped Valiant's Poke Ball and took hold of Pikachu's he realized that this was it. The make or break moment.

Both him and Brock had one Pokemon left. This next battle… would decide the match.

Pikachu appeared in front of him, his Starter letting out a battle cry and immediately sinking down onto all fours upon realizing where they were.

"Pikachu…" said Ash carefully. "You're the last one left. Brock only has one Pokemon left, too. Nebula and Valiant gave it their all to get us here. Let's make that final push!"

Pikachu was quick to shout in agreement, cheeks blazing with electricity as he growled on ahead with as much viciousness as his cute voice could muster.

Brock unclipped his final Poke Ball as he continued to eye Ash harshly.

"I'll admit you made it further than I thought you would, Mr. Ketchum." he spoke sternly as usual. "But no Gym Leader in the world would allow a battle to be turned around so easily."

Before Ash could think of a response, Brock's Poke Ball opened.

And out came…

The white light materialized into a new creature, and Ash and Pikachu suddenly gaped in shock as the forming Pokemon continued to rise, higher and higher.

And then the light dissipated, and an immense shadow was suddenly casted over a great portion of the battlefield.

In the stands, a couple of the spectators were snapping pictures of the giant creature that had been spawned from Brock's Poke Ball.

There, right on the battlefield, towering over Ash and Pikachu, easily over two dozen feet high, the final hurdle between them and their first ever gym Badge, letting out an earth shattering roar that shook the building…

Was a giant serpent of stone.

Onix were not commonly used for a variety of reasons. Such creatures were incredibly difficult to train and raise because of their sheer size alone, and although there were areas in Indigo where they could be easily found, these places were all incredibly hard to reach. These Pokemon were most often found in the deepest depths of the most mountainous areas, although they were not native to every Region.

They were among the most rare Pokemon to be used on the battlefield as a direct result of their incredibly high difficulty to raise and extreme habitats, but were nevertheless some of the most iconic Pokemon out there. Some of the most popular and iconic nature documentaries were focused with great dedication on the exploration of their habitats, and any Onix that was used in an official battle was given almost immediate attention.

Pikachu was back on his hind legs now, backing away slowly until his back pressed against the barrier, his face pale from the emergence of the frightening foe and the behemoth serpent's thundering roar.

"Pikachu…" Ash just barely managed to squeak out. Shaking his head vigorously, he did what he could to snap out of it as he looked down at his Starter. "Remember… this is our moment."

Looking up at his new trainer, Pikachu locked eyes with Ash, the two holding each other's gaze for a moment before the young mouse's eyes matched Ash's increasingly determined gaze.

If Brock wanted to throw an Onix at them, then so be it. They were still not leaving this Gym without that badge.

"Listen Pikachu…" Ash's breath caught in his throat as he attempted to inhale and calm his nerves. Struggling, he exhaled deeply, feeling an unrivaled surge of emotions wash over him as he continued to gaze down at his Starter. It was time. "That Onix is part ground type. Your electricity won't do anything. Try to get on top of it and strike with Iron Tail and Brick Break every chance you get." he turned his gaze upwards, doing his best to look tough in front of the towering serpent glowering down on them. "One direct hit from that titan and you'll probably fall for sure… avoid its every attack. Keep Quick Attack going as much as you possibly can, never stop maintaining momentum. And don't forget about Double Team." he looked back down at his starter, and the two locked eyes again. "This is it. This is our team's victory and no one else's."

The mouse's cheeks were blazing again, lightning crackling along Pikachu's entire body. Letting out yet another battle cry, he returned down to all fours, and stalked forward.

Brock's arms were crossed as he eyed Ash stoically. Ash met his gaze, and this time, he did not look away.

Onix eyed Pikachu with malice, as if the mouse was nothing more than prey to it. Pikachu raised his head to meet the gaze of his adversary, the two Pokemon locking eyes as they glowered into each other's gazes with a fierceness that radiated throughout the room.

Their first ever Gym battle. Their first ever Gym badge. All decided by one final bout.

Two trainers and two Pokemon. Nothing more, nothing less.

There was no hesitation. The moment Forrest gave the signal, both parties blazed into action.

The battle was on.

And there was no warm up.

Pikachu launched himself forward, bounding across the battlefield as Quick Attack did its thing.

It was almost as though the young mouse was twice as fast as he once was.

Seemingly endless training navigating rocky terrain, maintaining Quick Attack, and bolstering his speed.

This was where all of that had finally reached its climax.

The mouse was a yellow blur.

The Onix roared.

Both trainers watched.

The electric mouse zipped through the battlefield as though he were a bolt of lightning himself, and suddenly, Onix moved.

The behemoth let out another roar.

And made an abrupt diving motion as it charged head first towards Ash's Starter.

Before Ash could react, Pikachu had moved too, Onix sailing past him and head first into the ground.

The shockwaves.

The battlefield trembled more than Rhyhorn could ever make it, but Pikachu's dexterity and training in maintaining his balance allowed him to keep his bearings just long enough to plant himself firmly into the ground with Iron Tail.

It was a natural reflex at this point. Whenever Pikachu was in danger of falling, his Iron Tail would be there to save him.

Onix's massive body continued to sink into the ground, the massive beast burrowing underneath the battlefield. As it's body continued to descend, Pikachu returned to his dashing as the tremors began to subside just barely enough for him to no longer be obstructed.

The battlefield started shaking even more as Onix completed its descent, its entire body now underground as the last of its massive tail disappeared underneath. Pikachu maintained his glare.

And then Onix burst out from under the rocks.

It had attempted to launch itself upwards headfirst, right from under where Pikachu was. But Pikachu's movements were too quick.

But this Onix was quick too. Ash couldn't help but wonder if it would have been just as much of a blur as Pikachu was if its massive size didn't make it so much easier to notice.

As Onix continued to rise from underneath the rocky terrain, the shockwaves of its movements radiated across the arena. Ash was almost convinced that the barriers were the only things keeping the building from collapsing.

Pikachu maintained Quick Attack throughout it all. No matter how many times Onix tried to put him down, he would never stop moving.

Blitzing forward at breakneck speeds. Bounding with each pair of paws. Landing on the uneven terrain just right to not lose his balance while still maintaining speed. Traversing the rocky landscape with perfection. Maintaining Quick Attack the entire time. Never running out of stamina. All what he had trained for.

The monster's eyes followed the mouse like a predator, waiting to snatch Pikachu at any moment. But Pikachu kept on running, never showing any signs of slowing down.

Onix made another diving motion.

This time it had predicted where Pikachu would be, charging downwards towards the very spot that Pikachu would be at when it struck.

But Pikachu flawlessly changed direction as Onix's head smashed down into a jutted boulder, the rocky serpent once again descending underground.

The tremors were back. Another Iron Tail to keep himself planted within the stone.

And then running again.

When Onix rose this time, it kept itself half buried in the ground, charging after Pikachu with a mighty roar that was partially filtered by the ground itself, but still only added to the tremors.

Opening its maw as it closed in on its target, Onix let out a roar of triumph as Pikachu was forced to halt himself, slamming an Iron Tail down on the ground in order to cancel out his momentum.

But then Pikachu pushed himself upwards, using the force of the Iron Tail to sail through the air and above Onix's head. As the creature's frustrated roar at its infuriating failure echoed throughout the room, Pikachu brought the metallic tail down onto the massive behemoth's back.

The cracking noise was almost deafening as Pikachu dove downwards with Quick Attack before flipping himself over to deliver the blow.

The Onix howled in rage.

Pikachu once again used the force to propel himself upwards and landed on all fours, breaking into a sprint the moment his paws touched the rocks.

The beast rose upwards.

Pikachu's Iron Tail was fully mastered now. After using it as much as he did throughout Viridian Forest, and the time that he had spent honing it in Pewter City in preparation of this battle, his tail was now fully coated in metal whenever he used the powerful Move. Not to mention the amount of practice that he had put into the Move had been great exercise for his tail itself, strengthening the young mouse's tail, and, by extension, strengthening the Move even more.

Brock shouted at the top of his lungs, in order to ensure that he would be heard.

"Rock Blast!"

The behemoth's mouth opened to let lose a bombardment of stone shards that rained down on the battlefield after Pikachu.

Not slowing down his run, the young mouse darted from side to side, evading the stones as they came.

Thanks to Elacia's suggestion to add it to his training regiment, Pikachu was now capable of avoiding attacks without slowing down his traversal of the uneven terrain.

Ceasing its assault, the Onix switched tactics upon hearing Brock's next order.

"Slam!"

The still running mouse gazed upwards as Onix's tail rose into full view. A massive tremor shook the very core of the battlefield as the serpent's tail was brought down in full force.

This time, although Pikachu had once again managed to avoid the blow, it was a much closer call than before. The young mouse was unable to avoid the shockwave that was unleashed by the sheer force of the blow, and cried out in pain as the shockwave slammed into him, hitting his side and launching him into the air.

A Pokemon as light as Pikachu, hit by a shockwave created by a Pokemon as heavy as Onix. Ash clenched his fist tightly, feeling the sweat dripping down his cheek, but sighed in relief as Pikachu steadied his landing by once again slamming an Iron Tail into the ground as he approached the terrain, and then immediately afterward, used that same Iron Tail to propel himself forward, and resumed running with Quick Attack.

Yet another reason why the week's worth of training had benefited the team so much: It was the whole reason why Pikachu had developed that habit in the first place.

Repositioning itself, the massive stone behemoth looked to around to get Pikachu in its sights again…

Only to see two Pikachu darting across the battlefield instead of one.

Ash grinned. Double Team had done its job.

With the Onix bewildered by the sight of two pikachu sprinting across the rocky battlefield at the same time, Ash capitalised on the moment of confusion.

"Get on top of Onix and use Iron Tail!"

Whether Pikachu had actually heard Ash's loud shout over the frustrated roar of the beast, or if the young mouse had simply gotten the same exact idea, Ash would never know. Nevertheless, the mouse had done exactly as he wanted.

Both Pikachu rushed over to the stone behemoth, alternating between each other with well timed zigzags in an effort to confuse the Onix even further, before the clone finally fizzled out as Pikachu canceled the technique and climbed onto Onix's rocky body.

Iron Tail at the ready, Pikachu slammed the attack down onto Onix, another furious roar of pain erupting from the creature's mouth.

As the roar died down, Ash did his absolute best to ensure that Pikachu could hear him as he cupped his hands and called out.

"Get to the top and strike it on the head!"

Following up on its successful attack, Pikachu flipped himself over with his paws as Brock frantically shouted orders. Before Onix could do much, Pikachu brought his tail down again, inciting yet another roar of pain, and then used the momentum from the blow to scale even higher.

Landing on all fours, Pikachu dashed up Onix's body and then leapt up with a flip, somersaulting in the air as he ascended over the beast's head.

Perhaps a week ago, Pikachu might have froze up, or at least been nervous, about being so high in the air. But a few sessions of riding on Nebula's back had quelled most of those nerves, and the electric mouse's adrenaline rush did the rest.

As Onix raised its head towards the mouse, its mouth opened, allowing the shards of Rock Blast to emerge from it as they rocketed towards pikachu. Raising his tail, Pikachu shielded himself from the onslaught as the metallic coating did its work, deflecting the rock shards before they could strike the electric mouse. The force of the attack propelled Pikachu upwards, and the mouse did a backward flip to angle himself, landing on all fours on the rocky behemoth, hanging on near the top of its neck.

"Burrow underground with Dig!"

Ash snarled at Brock's order, realizing that he was trying to force Pikachu off now. "Brick Break, and quickly!"

As Onix prepared itself to dive downwards, Pikachu raised a glowing fist and slammed it into the back of the behemoth's neck.

Not allowing the angered roar of pain from the flinching beast to deter him, even when he was so close to the source of the sound, Pikachu made his move, once again flipping himself over with a somersault as he rose over the behemoth's head.

This time, there was nothing stopping him from bringing his metallic tail down.

BAM!

The massive beast reeled from the mighty blow, the impact pushing Onix's head, along with the rest of its upper body, forward as Pikachu descended into free fall. Somersaulting downwards, pikachu struck the ground with yet another Iron Tail, breaking his fall from over two dozen feet high in the air.

Scaling the beast's body would have been a lot more difficult for Pikachu about a week ago. But after all of the climbing training that he had done, it was now doable, at the very least.

For once, Pikachu did not run as he returned down to all fours, instead taking the moment to catch his breath.

It was a breath, Ash realized quickly, that the mouse Pokemon had very clearly needed. Between maintaining Quick Attack for as long as he had, usage of Double Team, and the numerous attacks that he had launched, not to mention the blow to the side that he had received from the shockwave of Onix's Slam attack, the young mouse was letting out deep breaths, panting as he gazed down at the rocky ground.

Ash grimaced. This battle was taking its toll on Pikachu. The adrenaline rush was simply doing a good job at hiding it. Not to mention that Onix's thunderous roars couldn't possibly be very good for Pikachu's sensitive ears…

Over on Brock's side of the battlefield, Onix had finally recovered from the painful blow that Pikachu had slammed into its skull, having shaken its head back and forth for a good few seconds in an effort to get the pain to go away. Now it leered down at the mouse, the size of its head and its height preventing Ash from noticing the deep gash that the Iron Tail had left behind.

Onix had very clearly taken a lot more damage than Pikachu in this fight so far, but as far as stamina was concerned, Pikachu seemed to be declining faster.

Brock seemed to take note of this, of course. "Your Pikachu is clearly determined, Ash." his voice remained stoic. "But, it's clear that it's reaching its limit. How long do you think it can keep this up?"

Ash's fists were clenched as he glared across the battlefield at the Gym Leader.

He wouldn't throw in the towel now. He had faith in his Starter.

"As long as it takes." he said matter of factly. Glancing over to the young mouse, he smiled encouragingly. "Right, Pikachu?"

Glancing back to his trainer, Pikachu's determined chirp was the only response.

Brock's lips tugged upwards. Ash couldn't tell from this far away on the battlefield, but this time, the Gym Leader's smile was not an antagonistic one.

"We'll see." the Gym Leader simply responded. He raised his voice into a shout. "Dragon Breath!"

Ash inwardly started. Onix could use dragon type moves?!

Apparently it could, because the stone behemoth complied. Opening its humongous mouth, the serpent of stone fired a purple stream of flames that descended downward towards the mouse.

Pikachu broke into Quick Attack again. Ignoring the fatigue, and having spent several moments gasping for air in an attempt to regain its bearings, the mouse's break was over. Once again it sprinted across the battlefield at the fastest speeds that it could manage, as a huge explosion of dust erupted from the part of the battlefield that he had just been standing on mere moments ago, having been struck by the powerful Dragon Breath.

"Fire your attack across the battlefield! Rapid fire! Prioritize the boulders!"

Pikachu was left scrambling as blast after blast descended upon the battlefield, their targets being nothing in particular. Massive boulders shattered into huge clouds of dust upon the impact, and as his vision on certain parts of the battlefield became more and more obscured, Ash quickly realized what Brock was planning.

Pikachu could no longer see where he was going, but Onix was still in its natural element. The young Trainer wasn't sure if Onix could see very clearly either, but nevertheless, the changes to the battlefield would be less jarring for the mountain native creature. A clear advantage.

But there was something else that Ash hadn't considered, something just as important.

As the clouds of dust entered Pikachu's path, and the young mouse found himself blazing right through them, Pikachu's running began to slow, as the electric mouse began coughing as the dust entered his lungs, squeezing his teary eyes shut as the dust burned into his pupils.

The mouse no longer able to pay full attention to his path, distracted by both the pain and the dust clouds, the Onix finally hit its mark.

Pikachu's blood curdling scream left Ash shivering, the hairs on the back of his neck beginning to raise as the purple flames landed upon the young mouse. Ash frantically shouted words of encouragement to his starter as Pikachu sank to the ground in pain.

"This is the end, Onix! Snatch that Pikachu up with Dig!"

Onix's blaring roar filled the air as the beast descended downwards. Diving towards Pikachu, it opened its maw wide for what was sure to be the final blow.

Pikachu's surroundings turned to darkness as the behemoth's shadow enveloped him. He could hear Ash calling out for a counterattack.

Images of Nebula's smile and Valiant's determination flashed by through the young mouse's mind.

This Onix was ruthless. It was almost like the Pokemon that the young mouse had known as a Pichu. The aggressive troublemakers with little sense of reason or control. And this fight was the most brutal that he had ever been in before. Everything that Ash had said to warn them about the intensity of Gym Battles had been true. But that hadn't stopped Nebula or Valiant from giving it their all and doing everything that they could to get this far.

Pikachu couldn't let this stop him either. Ash had said that the young mouse would last long enough to win this battle, no matter how long that it took. And Pikachu was going to do just that. He would return his trainer's faith in him. And he would pay back the efforts that his teammates had put in.

That week of training… would not be for nothing.

Powering through the excruciating pain in his now scorched back, Pikachu pressed an Iron Tail down against the ground, and launched himself forward to the side. Although the shockwaves of Onix's dive slammed into his backside, and once again propelled him through the air, the mouse had avoided certain defeat.

As the rest of Onix's body sank into the ground again, Pikachu landed with an Iron Tail, launched himself forward, and then took off sprinting.

He was no longer able to run at full speed with the pain and exhaustion that he felt, but if he really pushed himself, he could still come close.

Feeling the tremors of the ground increasing nearby, Pikachu quickly changed direction as the Onix erupted out of the ground, roaring the mightiest of roars as its eyes darted across the battlefield for its prey.

Doing his best to avoid the dust clouds, Pikachu made his way back to Ash. Behind him, Onix began to resume its barrage of Dragon Breath attacks at Brock's command.

Ash was racking his brain for solutions to this. Onix was fast, despite its size. Onix was powerful, just as its size would suggest. And Brock was the most ruthless Trainer that he had ever faced.

And their strategy was on point, too. With those dust clouds…

With those dust clouds…

Ash was going to hate himself for this.

As Pikachu stayed as close as he could to Ash's side of the battlefield without staying in place, Ash raised his voice. With any luck, Pikachu could hear him over the sound of the explosions, but Brock, being much farther away, couldn't.

This last tactic needed to be kept a secret.

"Listen, Pikachu! I can only say this once, so…"

It took only a few moments to explain the plan, Pikachu being able to decipher the implications as Ash simplified the description of the strategy to save time.

It was a risky plan, for more reasons than one, but it was the only way to gain the upper hand in this situation.

And although Ash knew that Pikachu was terrified of the strategy, the young mouse complied, once again putting his full trust into his Trainer, as he bolted right into the dust clouds. The dust had been growing as Onix assaulted the battlefield with more and more Dragon Breath attacks, aiming for Pikachu a good chunk of the time, and aiming elsewhere purely for the sake of kicking up the extra dust clouds in the first place.

Ash gulped, and suddenly found that he could no longer breathe.

This was it. It either worked or it didn't. They either won or they lost.

Would Brock see through his strategy? Would he fall for it? Somewhere in between? Only time will tell.

Onix caught sight of Pikachu as the young mouse exited the mass of dust clouds and advanced towards it. It leered down at its prey, and suddenly, the look in its eyes grew triumphant as it saw how much slower the young mouse was now moving.

Brock grinned viciously on the other side of the field.

"It seems your Pokemon has finally run out of steam, Ketchum. It's not even moving half as fast anymore."

Ash's gulp was back. His nerves froze up as his spine ran cold.

"You've all fought hard today, but hopes and dreams just don't cut it in my Gym. My only advice is to train harder if you decide that you want a rematch." He cupped his hands and raised his voice. "Onix! Put Pikachu down with Rock Slide!"

Ash's heart almost shot out of his body as the series of boulders materialized in the air. The rocks descended downwards, and Pikachu was now too slow to avoid them.

Forrest watched as the electric mouse helplessly found the boulders closing in. It was a shame that it had ended this way, after all of the effort that they had put into making a comeback.

But that was just how Gym battles went. You needed to be more than a good Trainer to earn your badges.

Everyone watching in the stands seemed to have realized that it was over as well. That Brock's latest challenger had just barely come up short, and that their Gym Leader had scored himself yet another victory. Everyone knew that the battle was now over.

Until the first boulder landed right on top of Pikachu… and the electric mouse fizzled out of existence.

Brock started.

Onix blinked.

And Ash just grinned.

With the dust clouds obscuring so much view, Brock had no idea… that Pikachu had used Double Team.

Cupping his hands, Ash shouted as loud as his lungs permitted him.

"PIKACHU, NOW!"

The real Pikachu blitzed out of the mass of dust clouds as Onix remained off guard.

Waiting in the dust clouds for Ash's signal had been murder for the young mouse; but for Nebula's sake, for Valiant's sake, for Ash's sake, Pikachu had persevered.

Pikachu closed in fast as the last of the Rock Slide descended onto the ground. Weaving in between the falling boulders, the young mouse lunged forward, a glowing fist outstretched as he punched Onix with the strongest Brick Break that he could muster. It connected with ferocity.

Onix reeled back at the impact, and Ash capitalized as he attempted to shout over the beast's roar of pain.

"To the top! Now!"

Pikachu didn't need to be told twice. Quickly climbing on top of Onix's body, the young mouse darted upwards with Quick Attack. The electric mouse was a blur as Ash's Starter blitzed his way up Onix's body, scaling the serpent as fast as its exhausted yet determined body could muster.

It seemed just like yesterday that Ash and his Starter had not seen eye to eye. That they had not been in sync with each other in battle. And yet, in this moment, it had almost felt like years had gone by.

Neither member of the duo would forget their rocky start. Not because they had enjoyed it, but because they didn't enjoy it at all. Because it had been important. Important for them to never take their newfound synchronization for granted. They knew what it was like for a Trainer and a Pokemon to be unable to cooperate with each other.

And as they closed in for the finish, both of them knew that they would never let it happen between the two of them ever again. And this battle had solidified that.

Pikachu reached the top of Onix's head and launched himself upwards. Somersaulting through the air, the young mouse descended downwards towards his target. Towards the end of the battle. Towards their first ever Gym badge.

"Let's win this!" Ash shouted.

"Oh no you don't!" Brock was frantic now. "Rock Blast!"

"Thunder Shock!" Ash countered as quickly as possible.

Onix's last minute blast of stone shards was quickly met with a blast of lightning that triggered a small explosion. Pikachu, too close to avoid the shockwaves, was painfully propelled upwards, but steadied himself as he continued to descend, his tail already glowing in its metallic aura.

Pikachu's electricity couldn't harm Onix, but it could still most certainly be used to defend against attacks.

"IRON TAIL!"

Pikachu closed in on his opponent, swinging his tail downward as hard as his body could muster, as the electric mouse let loose the greatest body cry that his vocal cords would allow.

BAM!

Onix was sent reeling backwards as Pikachu's final attack struck the side of its head.

Ash gaped in awe as the beast descended towards the ground. A behemoth over two dozen feet tall. A behemoth made of stone. A serpent larger than life. An Onix.

Slammed towards the ground by a tiny mouse.

The greatest tremor of the entire battle rocked the battlefield without mercy as the serpent came crashing down to earth. Ash could see the barriers shimmering from the impact as Onix's landing created an explosion of dust that obscured his vision from most of the battlefield. He couldn't see Brock anymore, and the dust rose higher than any of it had ever done so previously.

Pikachu somersaulted through the air as he descended downward, the shockwaves from Onix's fall painfully launching him forward. As the mouse sailed back towards Ash's side of the battlefield, he instinctively slammed one last Iron Tail down on the ground.

But this one was not strong enough to completely break his fall. His energy all used up, Pikachu was lightly propelled into the air, bouncing painfully on the stone battlefield and rolling head over heels towards Ash. He stopped just at Ash's feet, and, now in a sitting position, gazed up at his Trainer, his head and fur bloodied with cuts, and his back burnt with charred, crispy fur.

Ash's eyes met with Pikachu's. The mouse looked exhausted, everything about his posture indicating a creature that was positively spent. Eventually, Ash moved his gaze upwards after a few seconds, surveying the battlefield. Taking deep breaths, the mouse turned his head backwards, taking in the battlefield just like Ash was, not moving from his sitting position. He was out of energy. Out of just about everything.

The dust was beginning to clear, but it was doing so painfully slowly. A devastated arena filled with shattered boulders and holes from where Onix had burrowed.

But as the dust finally, slowly but surely, began to clear up just enough for everybody to take it in, the greatest sight of all, was the unconscious Onix sprawled out across the terrain.

It was a sight that Ash could not process. Something too good to be true. An outcome that was only possible in his personal fantasies.

Until Forrest's voice filled his ears, and triumphantly brought him back to the real world.

"Onix is unable to battle! Pikachu wins!" The young boy gestured over to Ash's side of the battlefield. "The victory goes to our challenger, Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town!"

It had all come to an end now.

First shock.

Then disbelief.

And then… triumph. Satisfaction. Joy.

"PIKACHU!" Suddenly unable to contain himself, Ash scooped up his Starter and pulled him into an ecstatic embrace. "You're the greatest, buddy! You all are!"

Had Ash not been so overwhelmed with emotion, he might have heard the clapping from the stands, or noticed the look of respect and acceptance on Brock's face as Onix was sucked into the beam of red light.

But all of that was completely drowned out by his racing thoughts, and the feeling of Pikachu's yellow fur against his skin. He didn't even care that his Starter's blood might get on him. That wasn't part of his thoughts right now.

Their first ever gym battle. Their most important battle yet. Their most difficult battle yet.

And they had won.

Exhausted but overjoyed, Pikachu let out a satisfied squeak as his cheek brushed against Ash's. At the moment, there wasn't just trust between the two of them. Right now, as Pikachu snuggled up with his Trainer, the mouse was feeling genuine affection.

The sound of footsteps brought them back to the world, and Ash turned to see Brock making his way towards them, flanked by a slightly shaken Forrest. Pikachu turned his head to see the two approaching as well, and was set down by Ash as gently as possible, returning to his sitting position as he craned his head upwards towards the humans.

"Impressive." Although the powerful aura in his voice remained, the tone was no longer harsh. "Using your opponent's strategy against them is fundamental to just about any kind of Pokemon battle, but it is rare for a beginner level Trainer such as yourself to take that kind of initiative in your first ever Gym battle."

Ash eyed Brock carefully, but the joy flowing through him didn't leave his heart. He wasn't sure if the rush of their victory would ever wear off at this rate.

Brock reached into his pocket as he continued to speak. Forrest stayed slightly behind him as he watched the exchange.

"You had a rough start with your Starly, but something changed in you in the moment when everything mattered. When you were left feeling hopeless, when running away seemed like the perfect choice to make, you stayed and fought. And so did your team."

Ash's eyes widened at the small object that the Gym Leader pulled out and held in his hand.

"You never would have accomplished anything if you took the easy way out like that. And you seemed to know that. Not many rookie trainers can clear a Gym this early, but since you've passed the test, I'm proud to give you this." he extended his hand, the small object resting safely in his palm. "The symbol of your victory today. The Boulder Badge."

Ash gazed at the object for a good few seconds.

It was something that he was never sure he'd see in person. Something that his subconscious had told him was just an ideal that he could never properly pursue. A symbol of success. Something that he could never achieve.

But it was here. Right now. In front of him. And it was for him, specifically.

Reaching out slowly, as if afraid that the badge would disappear the moment his hand got too close, Ash took hold of the object delicately, raising it in front of his face with a trembling hand.

His cheeks felt wet.

Locking eyes with his Starter once again, Ash found himself and Pikachu exchanging smiles. A small nod was made by the young Trainer as his Starter's smile grew into a beam.

Two weeks together. Including a week's worth of training for this specific battle. The fruits of their labor had come in the form of something so small, so tiny, and yet, so meaningful.

They had taken their first step towards the Indigo Plateau. Towards the ultimate goal for all Pokemon Trainers under Indigo's banner.

And they had done it together.

Him. Pikachu. Nebula. Valiant. They'd earned this. It was all theirs.

Brock's voice brought him back to reality as the young Trainer locked eyes with his ruthless opponent, who had pushed him and his team farther than he could have ever thought possible. The first of many Gym Leaders that they would have to face and overcome, and an opponent that none of them would ever soon be forgetting.

"Half a month into the Season and you've already earned your first badge. That puts you twice as far as your average rookie." his lips were sticking up. "Way to go, kid."

"You'll be behind forever loser-" Gary's voice was shut out of his mind as he gazed back down at the badge in his palm. The outcome of their victory.

None of it mattered anymore. The insults. The neglect. The ostracization. What reason did he even have to care?

This badge was the antithesis of all of that. The object itself was a clear confirmation to Ash that he had proved them all wrong.

But most importantly of all, it was vindication towards everybody that had ever expressed faith in him.

Vindication for the three wonderful Pokemon that called him their Trainer.

What Gary and the others said… it couldn't dictate what he was. Not anymore. Not when he, and, most importantly of all, his team, had just defied every insult that Gary had at the ready. Every belief that Gary and the others seemed to hold.

What reason did he even have… to care anymore?

If Ash ever ran into Gary again, he'd beat him. Plain and simple. But he had no real reason to fixate on that.

He didn't care about Gary. He didn't care about Gary's followers. They had never given him a reason to.

And so he wouldn't.

It didn't matter if Gary was better. It didn't matter who was destined for greatness. Ash Ketchum was not at the bottom anymore. And he never would be at the bottom, ever again.

And he was just getting started.

They were just getting started.

This time, the young boy brought himself back to reality.

"Thank you…" he eyed Brock carefully. His voice was trembling a bit, but he was getting better now. All of a sudden… it felt like his voice was coming out… a lot more clearly. "I've dreamed about this for so long… and…"

Brock's arms were crossed. "Yes… it must be… nice… to have so much passion for something like this." As Ash knelt down to put the badge in his Badge Case, Brock pulled something else out. With an outstretched hand, he presented it to Ash. "One more thing I would like to give you."

Standing back upright and eying the object in the Gym Leader's hand, Ash blinked. "A TM?"

"Rock Blast, one of my own personal favorites." As Ash took the disc carefully, Brock continued, watching the young trainer carefully placing it in his TM Case. "It's perfect for quick rapid fire offense. If you ever get a Pokemon that can learn the Move, I'd recommend it."

Nodding in silent thanks, a thought suddenly occurred to Ash. "How did your Geodude do that?"

Brock frowned. "Do what?"

"That… technique… where it created the large boulder shield? I think you called it Stone Blockade…"

Brock perked up in understanding. "Oh, yeah, that. That was a modified form of Rock Throw. Instead of forming multiple rocks at once, I had Geodude focus all of his energy into creating a single, larger rock. It's great for defense, and counterattacks as well." he frowned slightly. "I couldn't figure out the details of your Starly's wind attack at first, so I didn't think to use it right away. An error on my part. Just like how I fell for your last trick with that Double Team."

Ash nodded in understanding.

"You'll be facing off against a lot of opponents with unique techniques that you won;t be prepared for." Brock warned. "You've already started developing them yourself. If you want to keep up, you'll have to keep making more. Don't stop growing."

Ash nodded. He would never stop. He could never stop. Now that he knew what it was like, to rise above everything that stood in his way, he would continue to do so.

And he would ensure that he helped his team to do the same. They were all in this together, and he owed all of this to them.

As he prepared to walk off, Brock made one last statement. "I can tell that something changed in you today, Ketchum. You're not perfect, but you're definitely a stronger person than when you first came in here." Eying the boy crucially, he continued. "It feels like a fire was lit in you." he turned around, looking back to the young boy as he prepared to leave. "Now that you've proven yourself, the rest of the Gym Leaders are going to be pushing you far harder than myself today. Don't disappoint them. Keep tempering that resolve of yours. And make sure that fire never gets snuffed out. Find out how to make it blaze even brighter. You'll need to. If you can do that, I'm sure that the Indigo Plateau will be in your future." with those final words of advice, he walked off, Forrest giving Ash a quick thumbs up and a friendly grin before following after him.

Taking a deep breath, Ash watched as the two of them walked off. Keep the fire lit. Blaze it even brighter. Continue growing.

Brock was the strongest opponent that they had ever faced. If they had rushed into the battle without their week's worth of prior training, any one of his Pokemon could have easily mopped the floor with his entire team. And single handedly, at that. The Pewter City Gym Leader had challenged them in ways that nobody else ever had up to this point.

And this was only just the beginning. But they were going to be ready.

Kneeling down, Ash smiled at Pikachu again as he held up his Poke Ball.

"Thanks, buddy. I'm going to be taking you guys to the Pokemon Center, now. Then we can pick up some treats to celebrate, and head on over to Elacia's."

At the young mouse';s nod, Ash tapped the Pioke Ball against Pikachu's forehead, and pikachu was sucked it.

As Ash made his way out of the room, through the hallway, and passed the older boy at the counter, he felt something new inside of him as he approached the doors leading to the outside world. It felt… different. And he preferred it.

The prologue to his journey had come to an end.

The real adventure was only just about to begin.

/

Brock stood in the center of the devastated battlefield with his arms crossed. The last bout had done some incredible damage to it. It would take at least a few hours until the battlefield was ready for challengers again.

By now, all of the spectators had left, and returned to work. Pretty soon the maintenance crew would be here to fix up the battlefield for the next chapter. There were likely to be at least a few today, as per usual.

Standing beside him, Forrest looked upwards at his older brother, eying him carefully as Brock surveyed the scene.

"Did you enjoy the battle?" he asked casually.

"...About as much as I'd be able to." Brock answered honestly.

Pokemon battling had never been his passion. But battles like this one, at the very least, prevented him from disliking his current profession outright.

Forrest smiled, looking ahead as his grin defined his face. "That guy was pretty talented. I really didn't think he was going to win at first."

Brock nodded at that. "He certainly showed some signs of potential. I was almost certain that he was going to be just another newbie to be sent packing, but he really did come through in the end. Before him, only three other rookies had managed to get the badge so far."

Only that grandson of Professor Oak's, along with Koga's girl, and that foreigner boy from Sinnoh.

And now this seemingly unremarkable kid. Hopefully more of the rookies showing up would end up being like them. Then this job would remain quite tolerable. But he could only hope for such a thing right now. Either way, until Forrest was ready, it was still going to be his job to take on every challenger, and either grant them his approval, or teach them a lesson. It was his responsibility for now. One that he would continue to carry out with the utmost dedication. The job was more demanding than most. Ironically, it was likely part of the reason why it was coveted so much.

"By the way," he said, turning to his younger brother with an approving smile. "You did a good job as referee. You just need to carry your voice a bit more. It'll be especially important when you're the one commanding the team."

The boy nodded. "I think I learned a lot, too. About strategy, I mean."

The Gym Leader certainly couldn't disagree with that.

"Yes, that's a big part of why it's so important to watch these battles. You need to see how somebody with the skill level of a Gym Leader fights, and how the challengers will respond. In the end, our ultimate responsibility is to test the Trainers."

Looking over at the remnants of a shattered boulder, Forrest rested his chin against his palm. "All of your Pokemon were stronger than his. He seemed to favor maneuverability and knocking them off balance…and he was able to take advantage of the dust clouds when they were supposed to prevent the fight from turning in Pikachu's favor..."

Brock nodded. "Competent enough. He's got a long way to go before he will be ready for the likes of LT. Surge or Koga, though."

The Gym Leader flinched at the thought of his two ruthless colleagues. For Ash's own sake, the boy had better hope that he'll have improved astronomically once the time came for the Trainer to face the two of them.

Glancing at his watch, Brock turned to face his brother in full. A smile appeared on his face. "You should do this more often. It's good for you, and… it'll give us a little bit more time to spend together, at least in some way."

Forrest beamed up at his brother and nodded as Brock place a hand on the boy's head. Turning away, Brock made his way back to his office.

Another challenger had come and gone, and now, it was back to doing what he usually did in between bouts.

'Gotta file that report for the battle first.' he thought to himself. 'After that, it's back to the magazine column.'

/

Nobody knew where the location was.

Not anywhere marked on the map. Perhaps… not even on the map in the first place.

A remote island in the middle of nowhere, where nobody could find it. It they did not want to be found, then they could not be found, plain and simple.

A laboratory, as big a gym, with clean white walls, a ceiling, and floors.

Large banners with a giant red R occupying the walls. Numerous men and women coming in and out, wearing uniforms of the same logo.

A few Pokemon were also out and about, some carrying crates, others occupying the humans like additional guards.

At a large desk sat a man with teal eyes to match his hair. Most of his uniform was a clean white.

Resting in his hand, moving up and down as he ran his fingers along it, was… what looked like a Poke Ball.

But rather than the signature red and white appearance of the traditional orbs, this one was a very dark blue. Four yellow crests folded over the sphere, and the bright, practically glowing, greenish blue lines that outlined the orb were a stark contrast from the Poke Ball's general deep blue color.

Picking up the device to answer his call, he spoke in a voice with an unsettling calmness to it.

"Yes?" he spoke simply. "You're checking in to ensure everything went smoothly, correct?"

"Of course," came the woman's voice on the other end, wearing a mask of serenity. "I trust that those we lent to you are situated nicely?"

"Yes, indeed." he listed things off. "The supplies, that masked mercenary who is also your top hunter, the technicians, and that damn clown." he spat that last one out with some vitriol.

"We're fulfilling our end of the bargain, I'd like to think." the woman on the other end spoke coolly. "Just ensure that you do not disappoint, Archer. I do not take kindly to my resources being wasted on lost causes. Productivity is everything in my world."

Archer grimaced. "Yes, we will ensure that they are put to good use." his fury was hidden beneath a mask of indifference. It was the best way to move these conversations along. "Have you received your payment?"

"Of course, that's why I called. I didn't want you accusing me of being fraudulent if something had gone wrong with the delivery process. But I am a busy woman, so I'm afraid we will have to converse some other time. Remember what I said, Archer."

As she hung up, Archer placed the device down and spat angrily.

"Damn woman." he hissed under his breath. Their benefactor was not ranked on his personal list of favorite people in the world, and he had much doubt that he was on hers in turn.

But in this field, you were always working with people that you felt that way about. It was a part of your everyday life. Something that you could not escape from. And without this particular partnership, half the technology that they had at their disposal would be absent from their versatile arsenal. They would continue to rely on these benefits until they no longer needed to.

In Team Rocket, everything that you did was for the sake of pulling ahead.

Turning to the teenage boy standing beside him, Archer offered a curt nod before getting up from his seat.

"Time for the conference call."

The boy watched him go but said nothing. His face was almost a stoic scowl by default, yet there was no rage in his eyes, only irritation. It had always been that way for him. His eyes remained on Archer's back before he turned and walked off in the other direction. As he passed by a few tanks of fluids, he spared a glance at the creatures resting within them before moving on without words or comments.

Every person in the room moved out of the way as he made his way to the exit. A few Pokemon flinched in sight. Taking one last look at his unique Poke Ball before stuffing it into his pocket, Archer pushed open the double doors leading into the hallway. There was much to go over. And plenty left to plan.