12 - Pewter Town - Workout for the Gym (Ash Side)

On this day, Ash and Misty finally reached Pewter Town, and Ash decided to train his Pokémon for his gym battle.

"Misty, do you happen to know what type the gym leader's Pokémon are?" Ash asked Misty.

"As far as I know about Brock, he has Rock-type Pokémon, so Grass/Water/Ice and Steel-type Pokémon have an advantage against his team. However, Ash, you don't have any Pokémon of these types that I mentioned. However, Pikachu can learn Iron Tail, and I have the TM to teach him that move. I don't need it, so I can lend it to you," Misty said convincingly.

"Oh, really?! Thank you, Misty. You're a true friend. How can I manage without you?" Ash said excitedly.

"Well, Ash, you would be lost without me, hahaha," Misty said, laughing.

"Well, let's not waste any more time. I need to start training Pidgeotto, Zorua, and Pikachu. That Technical Machine will be very useful, but I'll have to train Pikachu and Zorua to use this move, what was it called, Iron Tail?" Ash asked Misty.

"Yes, Ash, it's called Iron Tail. It's a Steel-type move that will be very useful against Brock's gym," Misty said.

After a few minutes, Ash and Misty headed towards a grassy clearing just outside the town to train their Pokémon, performing various exercises to warm up their muscles, cardio to increase endurance and speed, and various training sessions to practice their moves...

After 3 hours, the duo headed back into town to grab something to eat and coincidentally ran into the gym leader Brock at the Pokémon Center.

"Oh, you two..." Brock said.

"You must be a challenger for my gym, right?" Brock added.

"Yes, I'm Ash Ketchum, and this is Misty. We're traveling together," Ash said.

"Oh, traveling together must be nice. I have to take care of my brothers at home because of my father, who's always away from home...!" Brock said indignantly.

"Oh, I didn't realize the situation was like that, Brock!" Misty said.

"Yes, my father is a Rock collector, and after my mother's death, he lost interest in being a gym leader to travel. But after a while, he never returned home, and I was left to take care of my brothers. Not that I mind the situation, but I have a dream to fulfill..." Brock said.

"Brock, don't give up. The situation will resolve itself in the end!" Ash said, comforting Brock.

"Ah, you three, I couldn't help but overhear your conversation!" said an unknown man.

The unknown man was tall and had a beard covering his face, but as soon as he removed the beard, Brock immediately recognized him. It was his father, Flint!

"I'm sorry for burdening you with so much responsibility, Brock. So, I've decided to come back and take care of the gym and your brothers. Get ready for your final gym battle with this boy, and then you can pursue your dreams, son!" Flint said, confident.

"....You!" Brock said angrily.

"How dare you show yourself like this after all this time?!" Brock punched his father in the stomach.

"!!!!!!" Flint took the blow, suffering for a few seconds.

"Now that you're back, you'll have to stay. Is that clear, Father?!" Brock said.

"Of course, son. I had no other intentions..." Flint said, convinced of himself.

After the conversation with his father, Brock turned to Ash.

"Are you ready for my gym, Ash Ketchum?" Brock asked Ash.

"Well, not really. It's my first gym battle, and I'm quite nervous, but I have confidence in my Pokémon!" Ash said, confident.

"Just don't be too arrogant. I've seen many challengers defeated by Brock because of their overconfidence, Ash," Misty interjected.

"Well, I'll be waiting for you in the gym tomorrow. Don't be late, Ash," Brock said to Ash.

"See you tomorrow!" Ash said to Brock.

After a great lunch at the Pokémon Center, the two ventured behind Pewter Town to have a Pokémon battle between themselves, which lasted exactly 20 minutes. Then they gave berries to their Pokémon to help them recover their energy and slept next to a tree until evening when they went to have dinner. Ash then called his mother to reassure her and tell her about his training and the events of the day. After a long chat, they went to sleep, exhausted from the long day...

Origin Space

"Dialga, Palkia, I called you to discuss the interdimensional chaos happening in this world. I've observed humans coming from other universes, and I don't think it's your doing," Arceus said to Dialga and Palkia.

"No, it's not our doing. You know we are very territorial but not stupid. It doesn't make sense to take humans from other universes and send them to our world, thus altering space-time," Dialga said to Arceus.

"Exactly, it's not a great idea. Moreover, the force currently causing these distortions is located in a dimension parallel to this one and many other universes, the Xenoverse," Palkia said to Arceus.

"Ah, the Xenoverse, that distorted dimension created by Dragalisk... This is a very dangerous factor for the stability of our world. We need to come up with something to overcome this crisis," Arceus said, convinced.

"Call the other Legendaries, we need to talk and discuss this problem. Use Mew to connect their consciousness and bring them here to the Origin Space. I'll be waiting for your return, Dialga, Palkia!" Arceus said.

"Alright, Father, it will be done!" Palkia and Dialga said simultaneously, in sync, strangely.

This distortion that was causing various different worlds to collide was a very interesting phenomenon, but it will all be explained in due time...