The Fifth Match...

Chapter 25 - The Fifth Match...

Far away from the Indigo Plateau, hidden from everyone, an underground facility had people working tirelessly over many experiments. The facility was made up of large, multi-structured and connected buildings buried deep within the ground and had many levels. This hidden mini city consisted of living quarters, a laboratory, a large simulation area, a testing field, resource management area that included food, building and experimentation materials, its own mini hospital for humans and pokémon as well and much more. A man entered the laboratory and spoke to the scientists working there.

"How are the experiments coming along?" asked the tall and intimidating man, who was dressed in a black pin striped business suit, as he stepped inside the laboratory room.

"They are coming along nicely sir, even better than we estimated. We have fixed the problem with the performance enhancers," replied the head scientist as he turned around to face his boss. "We have found out why they weren't working correctly and why they only seemed to amplify one's rage, lust and fear. They now enhance one's physical abilities to peak levels but also strip them of their moral compass and freedom of choice, yet they still raise one's aggression and sadistic nature. They make people into perfect soldiers. A success compared to the first dose on those bumbling teen aged fools."

The scientist laughed and the tall man nodded his head in agreement before replying back.

"You are correct but those fools were needed. It was a good thing we were able to kidnap and use them without any suspicious eyes seeing us. I believe you have found them again?"

"Yes sir. We found them unconscious with burn marks all over them and their pokémon. We don't know the cause of why that happened though. But we have already injected them and their pokémon with the new enhancers and they are ready to follow your commands without question. Also…" the scientist trailed off, getting a little anxious.

"Yes? Out with it!" demanded the tall man.

"We are getting closer to the source for these performance enhancers and its energy signature is off the charts. It is unlike anything we have ever seen."

"Could it be just another legendary pokémon sleeping in the ground?"

"No sir. It is most definitely not a pokémon. I hazard a guess that it is a very ancient and powerful entity that we have siphoned some of its energy from and used to make the enhancers but what it is we cannot say yet. However, I would love to be able to study it. It may help us break past some limits we are still facing. Its energy is stronger than most legendaries as well from our initial reports. We can reach it and contain it in one of our capture devices meant for the legendaries if we strengthen it. It will just take some time to do so as it is very deep in the ground."

"Alright, get me a full report at what is needed to reach it and whether or not we can actually harness the power it contains and then I'll make my decision."

"Thank you sir! I'll get right on it!"

"Good. Make sure the device is ready to be used at the tournament's closing ceremony. That will be the perfect time to strike. Also, I want a demonstration of the performance enhancers. Use ten of the enhanced subjects and give them full roster of pokémon and some weapons. Use the worthless teenagers as well in that group of ten. Have them attack the tournament tomorrow and make sure to get some sort of record of everything that happens. I want to know where we fall short."

"Sir?"

"The tournament will have the Champions of each region there and maybe some of the Elite Four as well. Even enhanced to peak levels, they may not succeed if they get involved. I want to see how much damage they can cause before being put down. "

"Understood. Sir, what about the Aura Guardian? Can I please use him to further our studies and experiments?"

"No. Not yet. Continue with what I said for now. We will leave him be for the time being. It's not like he can wander from our eyes anyways. "

The tall man left the laboratory while smiling evilly and walked down the hallway. He felt good that his plans were finally starting to bare fruit. He reached the end of the hallway and stood in front of a large metal door with two guards dressed entirely in black standing in front of it. They saluted their boss as they stepped aside. The man keyed in his code on the electronic panel to the side of the metal door and it opened. He moved inside and took a few steps forward to reach a control console in the middle of the room. He pushed some buttons on it too, causing some beeps to sound out in the quiet room, making a mechanism to come to life as its gears grinded. A large cylinder rose from the ground and kept rising until it was fully extended upright. The thick curved glass had some dust on it and made it difficult to peer inside. The man wiped away some of the dust with a towel that was kept in the room and peered inside it while a happy yet mad smile formed on his face.

"Soon my old friend. Soon, you will see how your greatest failure will come back to haunt you. Everything you did, all the sacrifices you made, have been for nothing. After so long, we are finally making progress. Everything will be in my grasp and everything will be the way I have envisioned it to be. And I have it all thanks to your failure. Oh how I can't wait for the day I finally let you awaken and see the things that I have done in your absence. I will mark it on my calendar as the day I finally break you. I will watch you suffer in agony over what you let happen for the rest of your days."

The man laughed loudly at his own words and smirked at whatever was inside the circular glass container as he pushed the buttons on the console again. The large cylinder lowered back into the ground as the man left the room.

In a place where it is beyond the reach of normal humans and pokémon, a large white pokémon was resting on its gold throne with red cushions. Arceus was sleeping and was woken up by his three sons who had come to visit him with some news.

"Father!" said the three reality dragons as they appeared in the Hall of Origin.

"Yes my sons. What is it?" asked Arceus as he got up.

"Father, we wanted to see how you think of the chosen one's progress so far?" asked Palkia.

"It is actually better than what I have expected. The Guardian has done a great job so far. I'm actually impressed with how much he has learned and accomplished. His and his pokémon's strength is greater than I thought it would be. It is a very good sign," replied Arceus.

"That's what we were thinking as well. So perhaps they may have a chance after all," hoped Dialga.

"Yes there is. Ash, his pokémon and Mewtwo have become much stronger than I expected. I wonder if they will be able to resist what is coming at the tournament." Giratina looked up at his father before he continued. "If they cannot win against it, we should lend our aid."

"No." Arceus's command confused them. They were surprised as to why he would said that. Finally, Dialga spoke up.

"Why Father? I have seen what is coming and have relayed the information to you earlier. There is some chance that they may fail and that many will perish. Why shouldn't we lend aid?"

Arceus was quiet for a moment. The reality dragons waited patiently. Finally the Alpha Pokémon answered his son's question.

"Because it is his test. The purpose of the tournament isn't for him to win but to see where he stands. Ash is near the halfway point and has done marvelously but has still to face his greatest challenges yet. We shall not lend aid. Also, I don't believe he will fail. He will need this to better prepare him for what the future holds."

"I see. You are right. But what of Mewtwo and the others?" asked Giratina.

"Mewtwo and Ash have trained together and have grown stronger together. This is his test as well. As for the others, since they are already with him and have trained with him, that is alright as well. I am only talking about the ones who are not yet with him and of ourselves."

"We understand Father. But do you really think the others will join him in the future? If that's the case, then hopefully all will end well," stated Palkia.

"I'm sure some of them will join him before it starts and I believe things will end up alright. We must have faith in the chosen ones. My sons, if that is all, I must get to work and so should you."

The three reality dragons, Dialga, Palkia and Giratina nodded and left to their respective dimensions via portals that the three opened in front of them. Arceus sighed after they left.

"There is something else as well my children but you cannot know. Not yet. None of you can know this burden as of now. Something that I have not felt since I came to be. That is what is at the center of the coming darkness and things will be a lot harder than what I have let be known. When that comes to pass, I hope the chosen are ready. If the prophecy does not come true about the Aura Guardian, I fear for the future."

Arceus's head dropped a bit before vanishing from his spot.

The next morning, as the sun rose, brightening the land with its glow, its rays shot through the ground floor's windows of the Indigo Plateau Hotel where a raven haired trainer was sound asleep on his stomach, in one of the emergency medical rooms. He was recovering from a horrible gash on his back that he had received after protecting Serena from a pokémon attack that sent the two flying through many thorny bushes before slamming into a large, hard tree. Serena walked away with a few cuts and scratches but Ash had suffered greatly, even though most of his smaller wounds were healed by Lucario, he still needed to visit the hospital to take care of his nasty cut. Standing in the corner was Lucario, his arms crossed and eyes closed, meditating. He had kept a silent vigil over his master all night, not once falling asleep. Next to Ash were the four girls, three of whom were fast asleep, while Serena was awake.

Serena had woken up earlier and stayed seated in her position, watching Ash as he slept. Pikachu had curled up in her lap the night before to take a nap and was still there. Gardevoir had stayed as well who stayed up a while with Lucario so he wasn't alone until she fell asleep on one of the chairs against the wall. Joy had brought them all blankets and covered them as they slept. Usually, they only allowed one person to stay the night with a patient, but Joy over looked it and knew nobody would bother them about it. The others had left a couple times to watch Leaf's and Richie's matches that they had won but returned to Ash's side as they waited for him to recover. When it became late, they went to their room but said they would come back down in the morning as they didn't want to spend the night in the hallway and there was no more space in the room to sleep. Sarah and Leaf would've stayed but both didn't want to them to ask questions and so they quietly went upstairs with the others, their nights filled with thoughts and dreams about the recovering young man. Serena smiled at Ash as he mumbled in his sleep a little before going quiet again.

He's so adorable, even while sleeping. Serena's smile faded away as she continued her thoughts. I am such an idiot for causing this to happen to him. Why didn't I move? Why was I so scared? Haven't I seen horrible things like that happen before? Hell, I've even went through some stuff like that when we fought against Team Flare. So why did I freeze then? What prevented me from reacting?

Serena was lost in thought for a few minutes before shaking her head in an attempt to clear her head. She sighed and looked at Ash again. His hair had covered his eye and his mouth was open slightly, a little bit of drool collecting. Serena giggled quietly. She reached out and gently wiped away the forming drool with her handkerchief before moving his hair out of his eyes.

"I'm so sorry for this Ash. I hope you can forgive me."

"It's not your fault Serena."

Serena jumped, startled by the sudden voice. She thought she was the only one awake but looks like May had woken up as well. Pikachu was woken up by the honey blonde girl moving and jumped onto Ash's bed, curling up next to him.

"Pi pika," said Pikachu in a sleepy voice, annoyed at being woken up and quickly fell asleep. Serena looked at May as the coordinator spoke again in a whisper.

"It's not your fault okay? Things happen. You can't blame yourself for that. It could have happened to any one of us. So don't dwell on it. Plus Ash wouldn't want you to feel that way and it will just make him depressed. So chin up alright?" advised May with a smile on her face.

"I guess you're right. Thank you May."

"You bet I am." May gave two thumbs up to Serena and the two giggled, though not too loudly so they wouldn't wake up anyone. It turned out their attempt to not waken the others was useless as Misty and Dawn woke up shortly after. They both stretched as they yawned.

"Damn, my back. I need to crack it," said Misty as she got up and arched her back, causing it to make cracking sounds. "Ah, that's much better."

"Lucky that's all you need to crack," said Dawn as she got up to stretch as well. "My legs are killing me too. I shouldn't have folded them under the chair." Dawn stretched her legs out after cracking her back as well. Serena and May chuckled at the two.

"Nobody told you to sleep in those weird positions," commented May.

"Hey you don't have many choices when you're sleeping on a chair!" snapped Misty quietly.

"So how did May and I sleep so well?" asked Serena with a smirk.

"Cause you two are weird," answered Dawn. Serena and May frowned at the blunette's comment, while Misty and Dawn laughed, but soon the other two joined in laughing as well.

"What a great way to wake up; hearing the wonderful laughter of four beautiful girls."

Misty, May, Dawn and Serena went red in the face as they heard the words come out of Ash's mouth. They froze for a second, embarrassed, but quickly got up and moved closer to him. He still wasn't allowed to move from his current position, which was lying on his stomach. He was strapped to the bed when he slept to prevent him from moving so as to not open up his stitches.

"Hey Ash," said the four girls softly. They had all moved to one side to face him since he was facing one side as they knelt beside him.

"Hey girls. Good morning. Can you do me a favor? Can you please take off the straps? It's really tight and I feel like I'm going to be interrogated or something."

The girls giggled and were about to do so when Dawn stopped them, a mischievous smirk on her face. She knelt down beside Ash again.

"And what will you do for us in return? Will you give us something?"

Ash knew she was teasing him but went along with it.

"Oh I didn't know I had to give something in return. If that's the case maybe I'll just have Gardevoir teleport me out of here and forget giving you a gift."

"You're such an ass!" cried Dawn as Misty, May and Serena laughed.

"Hey I'm not the one trying to get something from an injured person Dawn!"

"What, I'm just messing with you!"

"I know. Why don't you take these straps off so I can give you my thanks?" Ash winked at her when he finished, causing her to blush.

The girls took the straps off of him so he could relax. Ash motioned Dawn to come closer with his arm since he wasn't supposed to move his body and the blunette obliged. As she drew closer, Ash cupped one side of her face and brought her closer to his. Dawn was getting weak kneed and closed her eyes as she expected a kiss. However Ash didn't kiss her and instead spoke something in her ear, the other three hearing it and making them giggle.

"No kiss for a blackmailer."

Dawn glanced at Ash and saw him grinning. She went red in the face and puffed out her cheeks.

"You're such a tease!" said Dawn as she stood back up, hands on her hips, frowning.

"I learned from the best," replied Ash, smirking. They all laughed at his comment, including Dawn, though she was waving her finger at the raven haired trainer.

"I'll get you back for that one Ash."

Ash merely chuckled. Pikachu woke up and glared at them all, his cheeks shooting out sparks, his eyes tired. He jumped off the bed and onto the chair next to Gardevoir and curled up next to her falling asleep again. The four girls shook their heads at the yellow mouse while letting out a sigh. Serena knelt back down to face Ash.

"Ash, how are you feeling?"

"I'm feeling pretty fine actually. I could get up and walk around no problem."

"I think it'll be better if you just rested more okay?" interrupted Serena softly.

"Alright Serena. Only because you said so."

"Thank you Ash." Serena placed her hand on his hand, who quickly interlocked his fingers with hers. The other girls smiled at the sweet interaction between the two. "I'm so sorry for what happened. It was-"

"Stop Serena. It wasn't your fault and no need for you to say sorry alright? Things just happen. Don't let it get to you. What's Dawn's favorite saying?" asked Ash.

"No need to worry!" answered Dawn happily.

"There you go Serena. No need to worry. Alright?"

"Okay Ash. Only because you said so." Ash smiled as she used his own words back. Serena gave him a short kiss on the lips and right when they separated, the door opened.

Brock and Joy entered the room at that moment. They were surprised to see them awake so early. They said good morning to them and had it repeated back to them. Brock began checking Ash's vitals while Joy tenderly removed the bandages so they could check on the stitches.

"So how's it going Brocko? Happy to see Lucy?" asked Ash. Brock went red as the girls giggled.

"Yea I am. Thanks Ash for that. How were you able to get her here so fast?"

"Sorry but can't tell for now. I will in the future though."

A sudden knock on the door made everyone glance at the door. Lucario stayed still, eyes still closed. He sensed nothing bad in his meditative state and so didn't react. May opened the door to see the rest of their friends, along with Lucy, standing there.

"Oh hey guys! You can come in I guess. Just don't be too loud as Gardevoir and Pikachu are still asleep," instructed May.

The group quietly entered the room and said their hellos to everyone who was awake inside. Some of them grimaced while the rest gasped as they saw the long stitched up cut on Ash's back. Joy had removed the bandages so she could check on it.

"Sorry I can't get up right now guys."

"Eh no worries Ashy-boy," said Gary as he took a seat on an empty chair.

"Does it still hurt Ash?" asked Sarah as she, Leaf and Max drew closer and peered at the wound. Serena frowned as she thought about the pain he must be going through.

"Nah, I'm okay. I've been through worse."

"I believe you, especially after hearing all the stories about you," said Lucy as she knelt beside him so they can see each other's faces.

"Oh Lucy hey! I almost forgot about you. How you been? Was the trip okay?" asked Ash.

"Slow down Ash. Man, even when you're wounded you don't ease up on the gas do you?" giggled Lucy. "I've been good and doing better now that I'm not bored out of my mind. It's been slow since the tournament started and even slower now. Everyone is either here or watching at home. Plus, I'm glad to be with Brock again. " Brock went scarlet and the others chuckled, but Lucy showed no embarrassment whatsoever. "The trip was fine but I wasn't expecting to teleport near here. That's one fancy trick you got there. How'd you do that?"

"Sorry Lucy, but can't tell my secrets right now." Ash smiled as Lucy crossed her arms and huffed.

"Is that so?" questioned the Pike Queen.

"You better believe it. He won't tell any of us. But he did say he'll tell us later," explained Misty.

"Yea, and we're going to hold you to it!" remarked Dawn.

Ash audibly gulped, causing some of them to chuckle. The group of friends began talking and joking around while Brock and Joy continued their work. They soon bandaged up the stitches again and Joy replaced his used up IV bag with another one. Gardevoir woke up and greeted everyone and joined in on the conversations. Richie excused himself as he wanted to check when their next matches were and Leaf joined him. The two walked down the hallway together commenting on how they might face each other or Ash soon if the three of them kept winning.

"Do you think you'll win against Ash?" asked Leaf suddenly when they stopped in front of the battle board. Richie sighed before looking at the brunette.

"Honestly? I can't believe I'm saying this but no way. I'm nowhere near his level from what I've heard and seen. But I won't just give up. I'm going to give him the best battle I can if we do end up battling each other. Who knows? I may win. What do you think of your chances if you face him?" asked Richie. Leaf took a long breath before answering him.

"I don't think I can win against him either. I snuck in with our friends to watch the battles he had and he is completely in the zone. I never even dreamed he would become so strong. It's like he's a Pokémon Master already but with no title. I knew he would get far when we were kids since he never gave up but I never expected this. Not at all. Maybe if I had traveled around with him, at least for a little bit, then maybe I might be more prepared. Though I doubt that would even help now. He's become much more than I could have ever guessed."

Leaf glanced at the battle board but wasn't really seeing it. Richie looked at her for a moment, curious as something intrigued him. Something else was hidden in her words and he had picked up on it. He had become more aware of what people said and acted ever since his talk with Ash about not taking a chance and speaking with Joy about how she noticed what was between his friend and the four girls.

"Leaf, is there something going on?" asked Richie out of the blue. Leaf moved her head so fast at him that her neck cracked.

"What do you mean?" Leaf asked as she massaged her neck, a little anxious.

"I mean, is there something you want or need to talk about? Maybe about a certain someone or something else?" asked Richie, not getting too specific. He had enough tact to be general in these types of questions, to help people feel a little more at ease.

"Well…yes and no. I don't really know as I'm not sure yet."

Richie nodded. "I understand. If you need someone to talk to, I'm here."

"Thanks Richie, I appreciate it."

The two smiled at one another before looking at the board and searching for their names and Ash's. It didn't take them too long they find their match details.

"Shit…" they both muttered at the same time but didn't hear each other.

"I'm facing Tobias at 1030am today. Damn it. What about you?" asked Richie.

"Damn, good luck Richie. And…my match is today too at 12pm and it's against Ash."

"No way! Wow." Richie gave her a look of concern as he witnessed her become still as a statue. "C'mon Leaf, let's get back to the others and let them know of our matches."

Richie steered a shocked Leaf back to Ash's hospital room and opened the door for her before the two walked in. The two received questioning looks at them, mostly because of Leaf's stunned expression and that Richie was holding her shoulders from behind as he escorted her inside the room. Joy flushed pink a bit before it went away as she became a little jealous but controlled herself.

"Richie, what happened?" asked Joy, trying to stay calm as Gary had gotten up and waved his hands in front of Leaf's face but got nothing.

"We just found out we have battles today. Mine is at 1030am today against Tobias…" Richie trailed off as he glanced at Leaf.

"Whoa, Tobias? Isn't he the one with Darkrai and Latios?" asked Lucy. Everyone nodded, saying that Richie was going to have a very tough battle coming up.

"Well when is Leaf's match?" asked Max.

"Leaf is battling today as well at 12pm..." Richie trailed off again, glancing at Leaf once more.

"Ah what's going on guys?" asked Joy, growing concerned as Richie's actions were making her feel uneasy. No response from either of the two until Ash broke the silence.

"Hey guys, did you find out when I'm battling?" asked Ash from his position on the bed. Leaf turned to look at him before she answered.

"Today…12pm."

Joy sighed out in relief, finally knowing the reason why the two were acting strange. She trusted Richie but not Leaf. She was friends sure, but couldn't shake off a feeling that Leaf was hiding something. Gary understood and gave Leaf a look of understanding and slight pity, the others doing the same thing.

"Oh." Ash understood and only said that one word. Leaf and Ash kept their gazes at one another for a moment before they broke their line of sight. Leaf sat down on a nearby empty chair and was soon joined by Sarah who patted her back, knowing exactly what Leaf was going up against since she had too.

"This is going to be awesome!" said Max, pumping his fist into the air. "Three of my friends are going to have great battles today!"

"It will be a most entertaining and beautiful battle, I am sure," agreed Cilan, trying to cheer up Richie and Leaf who were going to face their most difficult battle ever.

"Ash can't move yet guys. How is he supposed to go and battle so soon?" asked a concerned Serena.

"I'm fine guys. Look I can get up," Ash made to move but was quickly stopped by everyone who roared out "NO!" together. Ash was stunned. Lucario opened his eyes finally and Pikachu woke up from the group scream with a scowl on his face.

"Look guys, I'm fine really. Plus I can't forfeit. Just let me show you." Again he was stopped.

"Don't worry Ash. We'll just ask for them to postpone our match. It's not like you don't have a good enough reason," suggested Leaf.

"That's a good idea! I'll call Mr. Goodshow right now and ask him," said Joy and Richie joined her as she left the room. He wanted to talk to her about a couple things and the others waited for them to come back. After speaking with Goodshow, Joy was about to head back when Richie stopped her.

"What is it Richie?"

"Have you noticed anything strange about Leaf?" he asked her and she raised her eyebrows before sighing and answering.

"Yes, I have. Do you know what it is?"

"I'm not too sure but I have a feeling it has something to do with Ash," answered Richie.

"That's what it is!" exclaimed Joy as she facepalmed and Richie took a step back in surprise. "Sorry Richie, I didn't mean to scare you. Let's leave Leaf alone for now. She has enough on her plate for the moment."

Richie nodded and the two headed back to the room where the others were waiting. When the couple first left, Lucy asked Leaf a question.

"So Leaf, how does it feel to be matched up against Ash?" asked Lucy.

The Pike Queen was interested to see how one of Ash's friends felt that they had to battle him when they knew how strong he was. Brock had explained everything to Lucy last night. She wanted to see Ash's strength first hand and couldn't wait for it. Sarah gave her friend a knowing look; she had faced Ash in the first round, losing badly and knew what Leaf was going to face. Leaf glanced at the Pike Queen before responding.

"I'll tell you this much; he better be ready to lose. I've seen him battle and he hasn't seen me. I have the advantage." Leaf smiled, standing up and placing her hands on her hips, as if that answered everything. Ash chuckled hearing her and seeing what she did from the corner of his eye. It reminded him of when they were kids since that was what she always did to let on a confident face.

"I'm looking forward to our battle Leaf. I hope you're ready."

Joy and Richie walked back in right when Ash finished talking.

"Well I talked to Goodshow and told him the situation. He said that even though he understands, the bad news is that they cannot postpone one person's match as it will mess up everyone else's match times. I asked him about a possible substitution and even that was not allowed in this tournament since if you lost, you could make a case against it and get another chance, which would be unfair to the other trainers." Joy finished explaining what she was told by Goodshow.

"I guess I have no choice then," said Ash as he made to get up but four pairs of hands pushed him back onto the bed.

"Don't move!" said the four girls at once. Ash was losing his patience but controlled his temper.

"Stop. I know you four mean well, but I have no choice and I'm fine. Move your hands."

The four girls glanced at each other and then at Brock, who nodded. Reluctantly, they removed their hands and Ash pushed himself up. He moved his feet to touch the floor as he sat up at first, grimacing a bit before standing up.

"See? All good." Ash grinned at everyone with his goofy smile and the four girls smiled at him before they gave him a gentle group hug.

"Alright, enough of this. It's almost time for Richie's match and he needs us to cheer him on. He's facing Tobias next," said Iris and the others agreed.

"Richie, good luck against Tobias," said Ash as he faced his almost twin after being let go.

"Thanks Ash I appreciate it." Richie replied back as he headed out of the room. Joy followed him out and before he left the building, gave him a good luck kiss. Their group followed him to give him his support and they said bye to Ash but the four girls stayed behind with the raven haired trainer.

"You guys don't want to watch Richie's match?" asked a surprised Ash.

"No, it's okay," said May.

"We want to be by your side," replied Dawn.

"You do understand it's just a cut right? No need to worry right?"

"Yes yes, we know Ash. We just want to spend some time with you before you face Leaf," said Serena.

"We thought it might be a bit difficult facing a childhood friend in battle," explained Misty.

"Oh I see. Well, don't worry. It's not going to be like when I faced Richie or some of the others. Leaf has always been tougher than most and she was a pain sometimes just like Gary right before we left for our pokémon journeys so you could say I'm not thinking too much about it. Of course, if this was a few years ago, then I might be worried but right now? Nah, I'm actually going to enjoy my battle with her. I'll try not to pulverize her too badly."

"Someone's confident," quipped May, making Ash scratch the back of his head while chuckling.

"Yeah, next thing you know he'll say he can fly or something," joked Misty as she rolled her eyes. They laughed at that and the three pokémon grinned. They loved the interactions between Ash and the girls as it made them happy to see them happy.

"C'mon, let's go. We have some time to kill. What should we do?" Ash moved behind a dressing screen and changed into a pair of black jeans before walking into view while putting on a black shirt slowly so as to not mess up the stitches. When he stretched, the girls saw his muscles tighten a bit and they all flushed pink, making Gardevoir and Pikachu snicker at their reactions while Lucario didn't care. Serena was first to recover this time.

"How about you tell us what pokémon you're going to use against her?"

"I can't do that Serena. Where's the fun in that? No suspense."

"You will too! We won't let you leave until you show us!" said May as she moved towards the door and blocked it while stretching out her arms and legs as if to block the whole wall. Ash chuckled.

"You know I could just pick you up and move you right?"

"No you can't! Not right now anyways! You forget about something?" replied May.

"Damn it. Alright then, Gardevoir use Psychic to move her out of the way."

Gardevoir didn't do anything but crossed her arms and shook her head. Ash then told Lucario to do it who refused, saying he's not getting involved. Ash's jaw dropped and the four girls placed their hands on their hips and tapped their feet, waiting. Ash hung his head in defeat as he raised his arms.

"Alright, alright you win. Man, now I have three traitors on my team," huffed Ash as he glanced at Pikachu, Lucario and Gardevoir, who each turned red in the face.

"Pi pika chu pi pikapi chu pi!"

"I'm lucky I'm hurt or I would've been shocked huh? Well if that's the case no more ketchup for you buddy for the next three days."

"Pika…" Pikachu's ears dropped as he gave a pout, causing everyone to chuckle over the mouse's obsession. Ash held out his hand and three minimized poke balls appeared while covered in a blue glow.

"Ash, shouldn't we go outside before you release them?" asked Serena, thinking that the small room won't have enough space for large pokémon.

"Nah, we'll be fine."

Ash opened the three poke balls and three small cat and dog like pokémon appeared. One was blue with a long tail, the other was yellow with jagged and spiky fur and the other was red with a yellow mane and yellow bushy tail. The three pokémon jumped up and down around them in glee.

"Vape!" purred the blue one.

"Jolt!" barked the yellow one.

"Flare!" said the red one.

"They're so cute!" squealed the girls and instantly knelt down to hug the three pokémon. Misty went gaga over Vaporeon, since her favorite was water types and this was one of her favorite pokémon ever. Serena was hugging Flareon who enjoyed being cuddled with and licked her face, making her laugh. Dawn and May were tickling and massaging Jolteon who had his fur relax and become soft since he was feeling great. Ash smiled at the group as they played around for a bit.

This is how they should live their lives; happily. I love them so much. I hope I can always be there for them and can protect them all from everything, thought Ash as he watched them play around for a bit.

"Master, we should get going. You're match will be soon."

"Alright Lucario. Return, Vaporeon, Jolteon and Flareon." The three pokémon disappeared in red lights back into their poke balls, which Ash let stay and just clipped to his belt.

"Ash, I thought you said that you don't have to carry your poke balls anymore."

"That's true Dawn. But since I'm going to use these three anyway, I figured I'll just have them stay beside me."

"Oh okay. Let's go."

The five trainers and three pokémon left the building. Pikachu jumped up onto Serena's shoulder who received a nuzzle from the yellow mouse. Lucario and Gardevoir were walking side by side in front of the others, talking. They reached the stadium with ten minutes to spare and they separated, Ash going in with his pokémon this time, Pikachu on his shoulder, Lucario and Gardevoir on either side. Serena caught up to Ash before he went in too far a little after and Ash motioned for his pokémon to continue on but wait for him at the end of the tunnel.

"What's up Serena?"

"Just wanted to say good luck." Serena smiled and gave him a kiss.

She didn't mean to give a long one but she didn't want to let go and Ash was becoming inflamed from it. The simple kiss turned into a passionate one. Ash picked her up and moved her to be pushed against the tunnel wall. Their bodies pressed together, he moved his hands up and down her sides as she wrapped her arms around his neck. He brought up one of his hands and used it to go through her hair. Serena felt as if she was in heaven, feeling his body against hers, his hand in her hair and it heated her up. She didn't want it to stop. Unfortunately, they soon had to separate due to lack of air but gazed into each other's eyes as their foreheads touched. Ash took off his hat and placed it on Serena's head.

"Thank you Serena. We'll continue this later." Ash smiled at her, making her go pink. She grinned as she turned away and ran down the tunnel, taking his hat with her. Ash watched her figure disappear in the distance with a smile on his face before continuing down the tunnel and reached the end. He waited with his pokémon until the announcer spoke.

"WE ARE NOW READY FOR THE NEXT MATCH OF THE DAY! IT WILL BE BETWEEN TWO POWER HOUSE TRAINERS THAT BOTH CAME FROM PALLET TOWN! IS THERE MAGICAL WATER OR AIR AROUND THAT PLACE OR SOMETHING? ANYWAYS, THIS NEXT MATCH IS BETWEEN LEAF GREEN AND ASH KETCHUM!"

The crowd roared in approval as the two trainers walked onto the field, waving at everyone but their gazes were onto one another. Lucario and Gardevoir kept stoic as Pikachu waved energetically.

"Wow, you can feel the energy coming off of them!" said Max, getting pumped to see their battle.

"Yea, this is going to be an awesome match, you mark my words! Pallet Town has the best trainers in the world!" exclaimed Gary and the others glanced at him in amusement.

"I just hope Leaf has better luck than I did," sighed Richie. He had been eliminated in his last match. Tobias had steamrolled him. He was barely able to knock out Darkrai using his third and final pokémon but then he used his Latios. Joy rubbed his back, trying to make him feel better. She had gotten off her shift half an hour ago and decided to join her friends to watch Ash's match and found out about Richie's loss.

"It's alright Richie. Tobias hasn't lost to anyone yet in tournaments but you were able to knock out his Darkrai. That's a victory as well as only you and Ash were able to do that. I'm sure you'll do better next time," assured Joy, giving him a peck on his cheek.

"Yea I suppose. Thanks Joy." Richie glanced at Joy with a small smile before returning his attention back onto the field in time to see Leaf and Ash meet the referee and get their microphones.

"I hope you're ready Ash," said Leaf as she locked her green eyes with his brown ones.

"This has been a long time coming Leaf. It's time to have that match we promised so long ago," said Ash with a smile.

Leaf gasped at that statement. She couldn't believe that Ash still remembered about the promise between them that they would face each other in a tournament when they were younger. She smiled, shaking his hand that sent a jolt through her body, letting go quickly and went to her trainer box a bit confused at the sudden feeling. She knew what it was but this wasn't the time for it. She pushed it to the back of her mind for the time being as she had to focus for her match. Pikachu jumped down onto the ground next to Ash as Lucario and Gardevoir stood behind him.

Lucy was holding Brock's hand but was eagerly watching the battle start, which made Brock smile. He loved how passionate she was about pokémon battles. The referee reminded them of the rules and they nodded before he shouted "Let the battle begin!" Leaf and Ash tossed their poke balls into the air.

"AND THEY'RE OFF! ASH HAS DECIDED TO USE VAPOREON WHILE LEAF HAS GONE WITH VOLCARONA! BOTH POKEMON ARE STRONG BUT ASH HAS THE ADVANTAGE BUT VOLCARONA ARE RARE AND POWERFUL POKEMON! IT'S ANYONE'S GAME AT THIS POINT!"

"Wow, a Volcarona! Where did she get one?" wondered Gary, as he looked at the large, six winged fire moth that was rare to find.

"Doesn't matter! Vaporeon will win!" snapped Misty. Gary didn't respond back, knowing her obsession of water types and particularly of the one on the field at the moment.

"Quiver Dance!" shot out Leaf, not wasting any time. Volcarona started a dance with flames jumping out from him as he bopped up and down, side to side, causing him to glow white for a second, powering up his special stats and giving him a boost in speed.

"Good! Now use Signal Beam!" shouted Leaf. Volcarona fired a beam of yellow green energy at Vaporeon who stood ready for her trainer's command. Ash smirked as he crossed his arms.

"Haze." Vaporeon summoned dark clouds to appear around the whole field after she dodged the attack and made them cover both herself and the fire moth. Volcarona growled as he lost his boost.

"Damn it! I wasn't expecting that. Bug Buzz!"Volcarona flapped his six wings and made the dark clouds disappear while sending out waves of lightly colored energy at his opponent.

"Counter with Hyper Voice then follow up with Shadow Ball."Vaporeon yelled out with as much force as she could, sending powerful sound waves to counter the energy waves. She fired off a ball of ghostly energy at the bug right after.

"Protect!" Volcarona brought up a shield which the attack bounced off of. "Good, now finish with Hurricane!"The fire moth began flapping his wings rapidly and brought up a powerful whirlwind of air around the whole field. Leaf covered her face and held onto her hat, as did many around the stadium, especially Serena, clinging onto Ash's hat. When Leaf took a chance to glance at Ash, she was in shock at what she saw: he was still standing straight up, arms crossed and still smiling, though his hair went mad, flying in all directions. He was like a mountain that wasn't bothered by the incredible fast winds.

He's not even reacting to it! How tough is he?

Leaf finished her thoughts as the winds died down. She lowered her arms and looked around the field, seeing nothing but a hole in the ground, making her eyes go wide.

"Volcarona, quick, Flamethrower down that hole!" screamed Leaf. He flew towards the hole and shot powerful flames into it.

"Hydro Pump." Vaporeon shot out from the ground behind Volcarona and blasted the fire moth with a close range attack. The powerful blast of water hit the moth in its back and was sent flying towards the side wall, crashing into it. It slid down before getting back up, although it took some effort. Vaporeon retook her starting point in front of Ash.

"ASH HAD VAPOREON HIDE UNDER THE GROUND AS VOLCARONA USED UP HIS ENERGY FOR THAT INCREDIBLE HURRICANE AND SNUCK IN A POWERFUL BLOW TO THE FIRE MOTH! YET IT IS STILL UP BUT LOOKS TIRED!"

"Wow, Ash isn't going easy at all on her," whispered Sarah, utterly amazed at Ash's battling once again and even more so that he was not playing around, even against a friend.

"That's Ash for you. When battling, he never goes easy, even against his friends as he feels that's like an insult if you don't do your best at all times," said Brock.

"I hope Leaf has something up her sleeve," muttered Richie, still sulking over his loss.

"I never knew how strong Ash has become. I must have a rematch with him!" yelped Lucy, ecstatic about the possibility and Brock smiled over his girlfriend's excitement.

"You okay to go on Volcarona?" The fire moth glanced at her and nodded. "Okay. Let's get some energy back. Giga Drain!" Volcarona glowed green and sent out streams of green energy towards the water cat.

"Double Team." Vaporeon split into a dozen copies and surrendered the fire moth, dodging the attack.

"Heat Wave!" Volcarona sent out scorching winds from him, expanding outwards in all directions.

"Aqua Ring." All the copies vanished and the real one had her eyes glow blue as she made a sphere of water encase her. The heat energy collided against the cool water but did nothing. Volcarona was losing strength fast and Leaf noticed.

"Giga Drain!" shouted Leaf, her last hope to get back into the game. Volcarona barely turned green when Ash made his command.

"Surf." Vaporeon summoned a huge wave of water from nowhere and jumped high into the air to land on top of it from her spot as the wall of water hurtled at Volcarona who was hit with the crashing weight of the large wave. When the water disappeared, Volcarona was on the ground, its eyes in swirls.

"Volcarona is unable to battle. This round goes to Vaporeon and Ash!"

The crowd cheered as Leaf returned her moth, thanking it for its hard work before sending out her second pokémon. A large, dark grey and white pokémon appeared. It roared as it appeared, making many in the stands cover their ears. Ash returned Vaporeon and sent out his next as well.

"LEAF HAS BROUGHT OUT HER AGGRON, WHO HAS BEATEN ENTIRE TEAMS BY HIMSELF! ASH HAS CHOSEN TO SWITCH OUT TO FLAREON! HAS HE GONE MAD? OR IS HE GIVING VAPOREON A BREAK AND HOPING FLAREON CAN LAST LONG ENOUGH FOR VAPOREON TO REST?"

"Never underestimate Ash. He knows his type match ups but he doesn't care about it too much," remarked Misty.

"I agree. This announcer needs to change. Keeps saying the same things," added May.

"Well, you know they are limited to what they can say as it's aired on the TV," explained Max.

"Whatever," said the red head and brunette together.

Hmmm….Ash knows I have a slight type advantage but I know better. He's up to something.

"Aggron, stay alert! This isn't like other battles!" Aggron narrowed his eyes and growled at Flareon, who grinned and turned around to shake her rear at him, causing the large pokémon to roar with rage.

"Cheeky little thing isn't she?" laughed Serena, amused by the fire type.

"You said it!" giggled Sarah as the others shook their heads.

"We'll make you regret that Ash!" yelled Leaf. "Aggron, Rock Slide!" Many large boulders materialized in the air before they were shot at the fire type.

"Dig." Flareon disappeared under ground, evading the boulders.

"Big mistake Ash! Earthquake!" Aggron stomped on the ground hard causing the entire stadium to shake and tremble but Flareon popped out of the ground immediately after next to the large pokémon.

"Too slow Leaf. Fire Blast followed with Flare Blitz!"

Flareon let out a large blast of flames in the shape of a five pointed star and then quickly covered itself in a fiery sphere and charged at Aggron. The large pokémon barely registered what was happening when the Fire Blast struck, causing it to wince before being struck by the fire type hard against its side, and making it cry out in pain as it was pushed back.

"NO! Quick, Aqua Tail!" Aggron covered its large tail in water and swung it at Flareon who was struck hard, sending it crashing against the floor hard but she got back up with a few scratches.

"Flareon! You ready for more?"

"Flare!" it cried out, eager to continue.

"No more fun and games Ash!" called out Leaf. "Sand Storm!" A swirling tornado of sand and small rocks was whipped up and was shot at Flareon.

"Fire Spin." Flareon spewed out a vortex of fire that danced towards the swirling sands and the two attacks canceled each other out when they made contact instantly, not even a power struggle ensued.

"Aqua Pulse!" shouted Leaf and her pokémon shot a pulse of water from its mouth towards Flareon.

"Flame Charge." Flareon ran to the pulse of water covered in flames and right before it could strike her, she moved to the side and kept going forward.

"Alternate Aqua Pulse and Rock Tomb! Trip her up and if she gets close, counter with Superpower!" Multiple pulses of water energy and large boulders were fired at Flareon who kept using Flame Charge to dodge the attacks, becoming faster and faster as her speed was increased by using the move.

"LEAF IS TRYING TO TAKE OUT THE FIRE EEVEE EVOLUTION BUT FLAREON HAS BECOME SO FAST THAT LEAF CAN'T HIT IT!"

"This isn't good. Leaf is putting herself into a corner and she doesn't even realize it," remarked Brock. Lucy and Gary nodded as Dawn spoke.

"How so Brock? Aggron are strong and tough and it has the type advantage."

"That's true Dawn but by using Flame Charge, Ash is making Flareon faster and harder to hit. Plus this evolution of Eevee has incredible strength for its small size, rivaling that of Aggron. Even though Aggron has great power, incredible defenses and endurance, it's not fast enough to keep up with Flareon at all right now. So now Ash can keep using hit and run tactics to wear it down enough and then finish it off when it's tired."

"Oh I get it. Wow, why didn't I think of that?" wondered Dawn.

"It's alright Dawn. You're still young and inexperienced, unlike Brock here," said Lucy as she ran her fingers up Brock's neck, causing him to shiver.

"Lucy!" Brock yelped, making the others laugh. Brock pouted but then smiled after Lucy kissed him.

"I'm just teasing."

"I know."

"Hey love birds, watch the match!" shot Gary. Brock and Lucy went red and faced the arena, but held hands and drew closer to one another.

"I'm not that inexperienced," whined Dawn quietly as she crossed her arms. Misty heard her whisper and when the two glanced at each other, they both formed knowing grins on their faces as they went pink. Luckily for the two, nobody noticed as they were too attentive to the battle in front of them.

This is going nowhere. I have to do something to stop him, thought Leaf.

"Aggron, Earthquake!" The ground shook again and Flareon stumbled for a bit, unable to avoid the sudden tremors.

"Good now finish with Hyper Beam!" A beam of white energy was shot at Flareon who stood still.

"Protect."

"Damn it!" screamed Leaf as the beam of white energy bounced off Flareon's shield. Aggron was tired and now had to recharge.

"Finish this Flareon. Flare Blitz!" Flareon once again covered herself in flames, but this time they were hotter and shot forward at the tired rock and steel type. She raced across the field in a red and yellow blur and slammed into Aggron, causing a small explosion and dust to come up. The dust soon settled back onto the ground and Aggron was on the floor, swirls in its eyes as Flareon was skipping back to Ash, obviously pleased with herself.

"Aggron is unable to battle; the winner of this round is Flareon!"

Leaf returned Aggron, thanking him and then pulled out a new poke ball, staring at it while breathing hard as if she just ran a marathon. She felt alive and loved the fact that he was pushing her to her absolute limits. She felt something inside her stir even more powerfully and she couldn't ignore it anymore. She knew right then and there that she has feelings for him. She glanced up at Ash with a smile as she spoke.

"I've never been pushed this far in a long time Ash. I'm glad we can battle each other with our full strength. You may have knocked out two of my pokémon, but it's not over yet. Venusaur, I choose you!" yelled Leaf as she tossed out the poke ball. A large dinosaur like pokémon appeared that had a large bloomed tree like flower on its back.

"Saur!" roared Venusaur as it appeared. It was slightly larger than most of its kinds and looked extremely powerful. Ash recalled Flareon, thanking her before calling out Jolteon.

"Jolt!" barked Jolteon and had its fur stand on it, eyeing Venusaur.

"LEAF HAS VENUSAR, HER STRONGEST POKEMON TAKE THE FIELD! SHE IS UP AGAINST THE ROPES BUT WITH HER STARTER POKEMON AT HER SIDE, SHE MAY BE ABLE TO MAKE A COME BACK!"

The crowd roared, pleased with the entertaining battle and wanting more. In the VIP room, Diantha let a smile form on her face.

"He's become very strong. I didn't think he would beat two of her pokemon so easily. This ought to be interesting," she said. Lance stayed quiet as Steven and Alder exchanged looks. Cynthia didn't respond, keeping her attention on the match.

"Let's kick things up a notch, shall we Leaf? Agility!" Jolteon barked and charged forward and started running around Venusaur in circles with amazing speed.

"Stop him with Vine Whip!" Venusaur lashed out with two long and thick vines from the tree like flower on his back and tried to stop Jolteon in its tracks but it wasn't fast enough. It tried several more times but was unsuccessful. "Damn it. Try Earthquake!"

Venusaur lifted up onto its hind legs before dropping back down onto the ground causing a large tremor to again rock the field as Ash made his next command.

"Magnet Rise and keep going!" Jolteon used the electrical energy in his body and in the air to rise from the ground, avoiding the shaky ground and kept going around in circles, using his spiky fur to cut through the air and turn like a jet, going even faster than before. It looked like there was many of him.

"Such speed…Incredible," awed Richie. He was stunned and so were the others.

"Razor Leaf!" panicked Leaf. Venusaur launched many sharp leaves at Jolteon in all directions but none connected, passing through many after images of the speedy electric type.

"You're doing great Jolteon! Keep it up! Now, add Pin Missile into the mix!" Jolteon's fur glowed white and then fired many pin sized needles onto the grass dinosaur. Venusaur cried out in pain as it received the attack from all angles. Jolteon was going so fast that the attack was coming from every single direction, making it look like Venusaur was fighting against a dozen Jolteons at once.

"Oh my…Leaf is getting her butt kicked!" yelped Serena.

"I never knew Ash thought up such strategies like this!" commented Misty.

"I can't believe how insane this is!" said Dawn.

What am I supposed to do, thought Leaf, watching her starter pokémon get man handled by a pokémon a fraction of its size. He's too fast. I've tried everything I could think of…wait!

"Stun Spore!" cried out Leaf. Venusaur cried out in agony but still let out a cloud of spores from the top of the flower and sent them out in all directions.

"Dig!" snapped Ash. Jolteon disappeared under the ground in a flash.

"Gotcha! Earthquake and gather energy while you're at it!" The ground shook again as Venusaur gathered the sun's energy into its large flower. Jolteon cried out from underneath and popped out of the ground, a little hurt but mostly dazed. He wobbled a bit before he shook his head to regain focus.

"Solar Beam!"

"Thunder!"

Venusaur fired a large green beam of energy instantly while Jolteon responded with a large column of yellow electricity that shot up before slamming into his opponent from above. Both attacks hit their targets, sending Jolteon flying back and crashing into the wall as Venusaur dropped to the ground. Jolteon slid down the wall and didn't get up.

"Venusaur get up!"

"Jolteon, you can do it friend."

Surprisingly, both pokémon got up and shook their heads. Jolteon was panting as he went back onto the field but Venusaur was shaking violently as he tried to stay standing. The large grass dinosaur collapsed a second later.

"Venusaur is unable to battle. Jolteon is the winner of this round and the winner of this match is Ash Ketchum!"