Kapitel 67: 25,26

"Are you holding up okay?" Ash asked, crouching down.

Sliggoo faced towards him, roughly. "Uh... I think so... um, you are there, right?"

"That's right," Ash confirmed. "You can't see, right?"

"No, I can't," Sliggoo nodded. "I can kind of... tell where you are, but not very well."

"Dexter?" Ash asked, taking his Pokédex out. "Anything you can tell us?"

Sliggoo. The Soft Tissue Pokémon. His four horns are acting as a kind of radar, detecting scents and noises.

"Huh, that's pretty neat," the trainer nodded. "But... well, I guess we should do some target practice. I think we've got the time... we have got the time, right?"

You have time to do some training, it's a couple of days until you are scheduled to meet Torkoal.

"That's about what I thought," Ash nodded. "Okay... Absol?"

The new Dark-type materialized, and nodded. "Yes, Ash?"

"I was wondering if you could help us with teaching Sliggoo how to use senses that aren't sight," Ash explained. "You're used to using a sense which is really kind of vague, so my hope is you could help him with that."

"I see," Absol nodded. "Yes, that sounds sensible. How should we start?"

Ash grinned. "Well, I know who'd be up for target practice... Swellow?"

"Heh, of course!" Swellow agreed, flying down. "So, dodging back and forth through a hail of Bubble? Slipping over and under unerringly aimed Water Pulses?"

Ash waved his hand. "...more like, making sure Sliggoo can aim in the right direction."

"Oh, right," Swellow said, correcting herself. "Okay, I'll fly around slowly. Really, really slowly."

She began to do so – still moving quite quickly, but no longer at the rate that she was a blur.

"Can you tell where she is, Sliggoo?" Ash asked.

"Kind of..." Sliggoo frowned. "I think... uh... that way?"

He fired a Bubble.

"Missed me!" Swellow called out.

"That's not the point," Absol noted. "Of course he missed you, the question is by how much."

"...oh, right," the Flying-type agreed, slowing to a hover. "I guess I forgot what we were trying to do. Whoops..."

"Did I get close?" Sliggoo asked.

"You were firing pretty close, for the first time," Ash told him. "Okay, Swellow, hover there for a bit... try again, Sliggoo."

Sliggoo fired another Bubble.

"Okay, that was a bit too low... up a bit."

The second one was closer, and Ash nodded. "That's right!"

He waved at Swellow, who moved a little to the side, and Sliggoo fired again.

The bubble's path was a little to the side of his previous attack as well. Not as much, but the difference was there.

"Good, you spotted her moving, that's great," Ash praised. "You just need to get used to aiming that way." Ash looked over. "Absol, do you have any tips?"

"Well, I'd say that an important thing to remember when using a non-visual sense like this is that you can detect things all around you," Absol told him. "That means you can see behind you, but it also makes it harder to work out where something is if you're used to seeing – something halfway through your field of vision is actually to your side, not to the side and ahead."

"Okay," Sliggoo said, absorbing that information. "Bubble!"

This one got close enough Swellow had to zip to the side.

"Great shot!" Ash told him. "Okay, now try a Water Pulse!"

"So, you know who's next, right?" May asked, leaning against the slope.

"Yeah," Max agreed. "Dad."

"Got a plan?"

"Well, kind of," Max nodded. "Guy's the obvious one, but I think it would make sense to use Cinder and Arc as well."

"Right, because they're quick and agile," May agreed. "Quick enough to say out of Slakoth's way."

"That's pretty much what I was thinking."

They watched as Sliggoo shot bubbles of water at the speeding Swellow.

"Got any plans to use Jirachi?" May asked.

"Not really," Max said, shaking his head. "I mean, it would kind of feel like cheating. I know that he's a Steel type, and it would be appropriate to use him against Dad, but... I'd rather fight him without using a Legendary."

"I heard Ash was going to use a Legendary," May commented.

"Really?" Max blinked. "Who?"

"Well, Keldeo's leaving fairly soon," May reminded him. "I guess it's him."

"Oh, right," Max snapped his fingers. "I keep forgetting he's from Unova."

There was an outbreak of barking as Arc and Cinder chased one another across the grassy field below.

"It's nice they're having fun," Max smiled.

"How close do you think Arc is to evolving?" May asked, suddenly.

"...you know, I'm not sure how I'd tell," Max admitted. "He's been near Ash, does that count?"

"Probably..."

"Hmm, that's pretty good," Ash said. "You can stop for a bit, Sliggoo."

The soft snail stopped promptly, and took a deep breath. "Was I doing any better?"

"You were getting better, yeah, but... well, I want to check something," Ash told him.

He closed his eyes, looking around for a moment, then pointed. "Hey, Swellow, can you check if Stantler's available?"

"Sure! I was getting moss growing on me standing around for that long!"

Wings clapping, Swellow flew off at speed.

A couple of hundred metres overhead, Flygon hovered in the still air.

"Thanks for this," Brock said, patting the Dragon-type with a smile. "I know it must be fairly tiring."

"Not as tiring as you'd think," Flygon said, bobbing his head. "It's good to get some time in the sky, actually."

"You just need to ask," Brock assured him.

He looked out at the bulk of Mt. Chimney rising nearby, and then out at the mountains of central Hoenn. "This is a great view – it's amazing what rising above the trees gets you."

Flygon buzzed happily.

"Hey," Crobat asked, flying up to come alongside. "Fancy a race?"

The Dragon-type glanced back at Brock.

"Go ahead," Brock smiled, leaning lower over his back. "I'll try not to fall off."

"Once around Mt. Chimney, first back to the campsite wins?" Crobat offered.

Flygon nodded, and they set off at speed.

"What was it you were wanting, Ash?" Stantler asked.

"Well, I'm trying to help Sliggoo's aim improve," Ash said. "But – something occurred to me. Can you make an illusion?"

Stantler nodded, and a large Steelix illusion appeared with a flicker of his horns.

"Okay, try to hit the illusion," Ash told Sliggoo.

Sliggoo frowned. "What illusion? I can't tell where it is..."

"That's what I thought," Ash grinned. "You can't see, so the illusions don't work!"

"...was that all you wanted me for?"Stantler asked, letting the illusion vanish.

"Yeah, just wanted to see," Ash said. "If he could see them they'd be good for training, but since he can't..."

Stantler nodded. "Okay. I guess it's something to think about, too... I wonder if I can work out how to do an illusion with smell..."

"Well, the Spinda thing was..."

Ash searched for the words.

"Bizarre would do," May suggested. Spinda are kind of cute at times, but raising them must be a really trying experience..."

"Hey, look!" Brock said, pointing ahead of them. "I think that's the Valley of Steel!"

"Yeah, it looks like it," Ash agreed. He closed his eyes, and squinted. "I... no, can't quite see him."

"Torkoal, right," Max nodded. "What else was there about the Valley of Steel, though..."

A Skarmory swooped down on them.

Pikachu jumped up onto the top of Ash's head, cheeks crackling. "One more flap and you get Thunderbolted-"

There was a whistling sound as Skarmory flared his wings and began to hover. "Wait, you're... yeah, I did hear of you!"

"Pardon?" Ash asked, a bit surprised.

"We heard about this trainer with a Pikachu who – and he – but yeah, that's you, so..." Skarmory trailed off for a moment. "Can I start again?"

"Sure," Ash agreed.

"Well, I was wondering if one of your Pokémon would like a battle? We're kind of all about fights here..."

Ash glanced at the others. "I don't see any problem with that – anyone have a problem with that?"

May shook her head. "Not if Blaziken wants the fight, no."

"You've got a Blaziken?" Skarmory asked. "Neat! Not my kind of battle, but I'm sure someone would love a match!"

Max frowned, looking up from Kris' screen. "What about a Breloom?"

"I'm game for that," Skarmory agreed.

There was a bzzt noise.

"What was that?" Ash asked.

"Oh, we found some Torkoal who wanted to challenge the boss Steelix," Skarmory said, shrugging his wings. "If he can't get past – wait, where are you going?"

Ash ran over the top of the low ridge, and saw Torkoal held in a crackling cage of electricity from two Magnemite.

"Your continued challenge is not advised," one informed the Fire-type.

"Additional combatants approaching," the other noted. "Preparing to-"

"Force Palm, Pikachu!" Ash called.

"Force what?" Magnemite asked, in a much less emotionless tone.

Then Pikachu duly used Force Palm.

The Magnemite he hadn't targeted observed what had happened to its ally, then promptly disengaged its half of the Thunder Wave. "Fine, you can have him."

Muttering, the Steel-type floated off to retrieve his friend – who had gone quite a way.

"Thank you," Torkoal muttered, shaking the sand off his shell. "I wasn't sure what to do..."

"Don't worry," Ash said, crouching down. "I don't like seeing people bullied."

"But... I'm a Pokémon," Torkoal said uncertainly.

"So?" Ash asked. "You're still a person."

Torkoal smiled, and snorted out a cloud of soot which drifted over Ash and Pikachu.

"Oh, yeah..." Ash smiled. "I forgot you do this..."

Torkoal stopped. "Have we met before?"

"Nice going," Pikachu snarked.

"Hey, it's not every day I meet one of my Pokémon," Ash defended himself, promptly digging himself deeper.

"You're going to need to explain this one," Torkoal requested.

"Okay," Ash agreed, sitting down. "Hey, Dexter? Can I have some of the pictures of Torkoal?"

Torkoal looked at the pictures.

"...yeah, that's me," he said. "Well, I guess... either amnesia or time travel?"

"In a strange way, sort of both," Ash said hesitantly. "Okay, here's what happened..."

"Sky Uppercut!" Max called, and Guy crouched before springing into the air.

The Skarmory turned in on himself, evading the first punch but not a lightning-fast Mach Punch follow-up, and squawked in pain before rolling and lashing out with a Peck.

The Flying-type attack hit Guy hard, but the Breloom's ability began to heal him in short order, and he got in a clanging blow with an Iron Tail before skidding to a landing.

"Seed Bomb above him!" Max instructed.

Skarmory put on a burst of speed, avoiding the first one, but the second cracked open just above his right wing.

"And – Dynamic Punch!"

Knocked lower by the blast of the Seed Bomb, Skarmory was unable to avoid the impact of the explosive Dynamic Punch. He spun once through the air, recovered, and pulled up short of crashing.

"Okay, okay, I give," he said, panting. "Not bad!"

"Thanks," Max replied. "I'm glad we could give you a good fight."

"Yeah, that's most of what we do around here," Skarmory chuckled. "If you're crossing the valley – whoo, you're going to get challenged a lot of times!"

"That's actually quite good news, in a way," Brock said. "Steelix has wanted a battle or two."

"There's a lot of Steelix around here," Skarmory said – having gotten quite used to the talking-to-Pokémon thing quite quickly. "What's special about him?"

Brock held up his Key Stone.

"...whoa," Skarmory said, flapping down to land. "You've seriously got a Mega Stone for a Steelix?"

Brock nodded. "Yeah, we got it down in Dewford."

"That is going to be so popular," Skarmory observed.

Lucario bowed.

His opponent crossed pincers, and bowed as well.

The two Steel-types – one Bug-type, one Fighting-type – shifted slightly into their fighting stances, and stood that way for several seconds.

Then they blurred into motion.

Lucario opened his side of the battle with a forearm blow into Scizor's chest, knocking him back. The Bug countered almost immediately with two lightning-fast Bullet Punches, delivered with enough force that Lucario went skidding back in turn.

The next move was also taken by Scizor, who lashed out with a Brick Break and turned it into a Rock Smash as Lucario evaded the original strike, resulting in Scizor's metallic pincer striking home with a belling clang of metal-on-metal.

Lucario whirled, his Iron Tail swiping out towards Scizor, and barely avoided scoring a body blow as Scizor blurred into the air in an acrobatic backflip.

As Scizor charged a Flash Cannon from his safe altitude, Lucario demonstrated that it wasn't a safe altitude at all with an Aura-boosted high jump and a Bullet Punch of his own.

"Like... this is kind of loud?" Skitty opined. "All this clanging, I mean, it's like two ironmongers, like, throwing things at each other. You get what I'm saying?"

"Yeah, it sounds like this pretty much all the time," Skarmory chuckled.

"You, like, couldn't pay me to live here," Skitty said, sticking her tongue out.

"Come on!" Mawile said, tugging on Sliggoo's pseudopod. "You'll love it!"

"I'm not sure," Sliggoo said, swallowing slightly. "I'm still a bit nervous with Fairy-types..."

"But they're like me!" Mawile told him. "You know – Mawileiles!"

"I'm almost certain that's not how you say it..." Sliggoo muttered. He let himself be pulled along a bit further, then sighed. "Well..."

"Please?" Mawile begged. "I've never met another Mawile before!"

"...okay, then," Sliggoo decided. "But I'm still not very good at sensing things..."

"That's okay!" Mawile said firmly. "I'll tell you where to go and where not to go!"

"Thanks," Sliggoo said, sounding a little more confident. "I'll trust you."

They were quiet for a couple of minutes, as they walked on following the directions the Skarmory had given them.

"How much further is it?" Sliggoo asked.

"It's that cave, just-" Mawile began, then blushed. "Oh... sorry, forgot. Um... it's about as far away as... Steelix is long."

"Thank you," Sliggoo said. He frowned. "Hold on a moment, I'm getting a bit dry."

A flicker of light around his horns, and a miniature raincloud appeared.

Mawile held her hand under it as it poured out a very short and very intense rainstorm. "I still think this is really cool!"

Sliggoo smiled.

A minute or so later, after letting the rain soak him to the point he was rehydrated, Sliggoo nodded. "Okay, we can keep going."

"Great!" Mawile said, and took his pseudopod again. "This way!"

Lucario skipped backwards, paws glowing blue. He turned his jump into a skid, extending his rear foot out to brake his slide, and built a glowing blue globe of energy in his palms.

Scizor charged forwards, wings buzzing, and lashed out with a Bullet Punch – and Lucario brought his globe forwards and fired.

The blaze of blue light that resulted cannoned into Scizor right in the thorax, and lasted for about three seconds. Lucario's back-swept foot skidded backwards a few more inches, and when it faded Scizor was collapsing backwards some distance away.

Lucario drew himself back erect, and bowed. "My thanks for the battle."

Scizor shook his head, a bit dazed, then came to his feet as well. "Indeed. A close match, but a fine one."

A nod. Then, the Aura Pokémon held up his hand – which flashed into flame.

"...you know Fire Punch?" Scizor asked, sounding vaguely disappointed. "But why..."

"I wanted to see if I could win without the obvious answer," Lucario explained. "Make no mistake, I'm thankful for the spar, and I mean no insult."

Scizor considered, and nodded. "Then thank you, as well. It was interesting to battle a Pokémon skilled in Aura."

"Nice work, Lucario!" Ash called, hurrying over now the battle was over. "That move was pretty cool – what was it?"

"It's basically Aura Storm," Lucario told him, turning. "Just a fair bit weaker – that's about the limit of the force I can put in before I go rocketing off into the middle distance."

"Given how often you throw me around then it would serve you right..." Pikachu muttered.

"Excuse me?" Mawile called. "Hello?"

She knocked on the side of the cave mouth. "Is someone there?"

There was a pause. Then another Mawile leaned out. "Hello? I've not seen you before." She giggled. "Where are you from?"

"Oh, I've got a trainer!" Mawile explained. "We're just passing through!"

"We?" the other Mawile called. "Oh – girls! We have visitors!"

She turned back to Ash's Mawile. "So... who's your friend?"

Sliggoo tried to look small as two more Mawile – both a little shorter – came hurrying over.

"This is Sliggoo!" Mawile introduced. "He's just evolved recently, so be nice!"

"Recently evolved?" one of the younger Mawile asked. "Well, he must have looked great as his last form!"

"That's-" Ash's Mawile began brightly.

"Yeah," the other younger one said. "Anything would be an improvement on that."

Sliggoo slid backwards slightly, wincing. "Um..."

"Hey!" Ash's Mawile said, hands on hips. "That's not nice! You're not nice!"

"Why should we be nice about a Dragon?" the first one asked. "Dragons can hardly even hurt us!"

"Girls," the mother said soothingly. "He can't really help what he is."

"That's not much better," Mawile pointed out. "It's not something he has to help!"

"Be realistic, dear," the mother told her matter-of-factly. "He's slimy and gross."

Sliggoo drooped.

"Now, that doesn't mean he can't be a nice Pokémon, but-"

"You're all horrible!" Mawile told them crossly. "Sliggoo's fine just the way he is, he was fine before he evolved and he'll be fine whatever he evolves into!"

"But really, come on," the second young Mawile said. "He's just ew."

Ash's Mawile shook her head. "He's not! He's not ew! Stop bullying him!"

"It's not bullying if we're just pointing out the truth," one of the sisters pointed out.

Mawile wasn't even sure which one it was, being too busy trying not to cry. "You're all horrid! Completely horrid!"

"You may be a guest, but no insulting my daughters in my house," the mother said firmly.

That was the last straw.

"Sliggoo?" Mawile said. "I've changed my mind. Let's go!"

The two young Pokémon were nearly silent for most of the trip back.

Mawile hiccuped, trying not to let her emotions get the better of her, and Sliggoo squirmed steadily along with his head bowed.

"...Mawile?" he asked, after some deep thought.

"Yes?" Mawile replied, looking up and taking a deep breath.

"...do you think I'm icky, really?"

"No!" Mawile shouted, with a vehement shake of her head. "You're not! You're great! You're kind of slimy, but I don't mind that – you're my friend, and that's way more important!"

She stopped, and threw her arms around the startled Sliggoo.

"I wish they weren't horrible," she whispered. "I don't think I like other Mawile now..."

Sliggoo sighed, and reached out to her in return. "I don't think all other Mawile are like them," he said, softly. "I think they're just not very nice Pokémon – like that Glaceon you've told me about. She wasn't a very nice Pokémon either."

Mawile nodded, but said nothing for a long minute.

"Sliggoo?" she asked, eventually.

Sliggoo nodded.

"...can you make it rain? I think I'm stuck..."

Sliggoo blinked unseeing eyes, then – unable to help himself – began to laugh.

As he laughed, Mawile began to giggle as well, and then the rain began and the two of them collapsed into fits of hysterical laughter under the drumming rain.

There was a loud, echoing clang as Mega Steelix slammed into one of the family of Aggron.

The tough Rock-type was sent skidding several paces backwards by the force of the blow, but he rallied and roared in defiance – and his mate smashed a heavy two-handed blow into Mega Steelix' back.

Unperturbed, Mega Steelix lashed out in reply with the length of his tail, whip-cracking it into the stomach of the female Aggron, and followed that up with a gout of blazing Dragonbreath into the face of the male – which startled him, and made his feet skid back a pace from the surprise.

"Sandstorm!" Brock called, and a swirling dust-devil of wind began to develop, obscuring the combatants... all except Mega Steelix, whose crystals began to glow brighter and brighter.

He roared, slamming his tail on the ground, and Stone Edge pillars came crashing up from the valley floor towards the female Aggron. She side-stepped, smashing her elbow into one of the pillars with a crack that echoed off the valley walls a second or so later, and as she did so her mate got Mega Steelix's attention with a Headbutt.

"It's a good thing this isn't near anywhere populated!" May shouted over the noise. "It's pretty loud!"

Brock watched the shifting blue glows, and the shine of Aggron steel they illuminated. "Good work, Mega Steelix... okay, use Earthquake!"

A blue crystal slammed into the floor, making the ground shake and tremble. Both Aggron staggered back some distance, and one of them nearly went over backwards before righting itself.

"That looks like those Aggron are getting tired," Ash volunteered.

"Yeah," Brock agreed. "But he's still outnumbered two to one, so I need to be tricky about it..."

One Aggron caught the eye of the other, and gestured. The other nodded, and then both lowered their heads and charged.

The female opened her mouth, inhaled, and fired a Water Pulse. The watery wavefront slapped into Mega Steelix' spine with a splash, sending water sluicing off in all directions, and wrung a grunt of discomfort from the Steel-type.

"Ignore her!" Brock warned.

Mega Steelix didn't question the order. He lunged at the male instead, jaws creaking as he used Crunch, and hit the Aggron in the side.

Another Water Pulse slapped into his side, but he ignored it – instead pushing hard on the male, bringing his tail around for an almighty Iron Tail, and when the CLANNNNG died down the male Aggron was out for the count.

Mega Steelix was struck in the side by a third Water Pulse, but this one he didn't ignore – he reared up to his full height, crystals flaring as he coiled, and struck down like a giant serpent made of steel and stone.

Which he was.

"...that probably counts as a win," Ash said, looking at the somewhat buried female. "I guess you told him to ignore her because she was being the distraction?"

"That's right," Brock confirmed. "I trusted Mega Steelix to handle a few of them, and I didn't know what the male was going to do in the meantime."

The swirling sands dissipated, revealing Mega Steelix triumphant among his defeated foes.

"Thanks for the battle," Brock added, addressing the two Aggron. "It was a good one."

Mega Steelix nodded, though the male at least was too unconscious to appreciate it, and then flashed bright orange and slowly reverted.

"Okay, who's left?" Ash asked their local guide.

"Well, you've fought most of them... and usually won, too, which is a bit embarrassing," Skarmory noted. "The most important remaining one is the Steelix, really..."

Ash looked down at Torkoal. "You want that one?"

"I'm not really sure," Torkoal admitted. "I'd be okay with fighting him if no-one else wants to, but... well, I'm not sure if someone else would..."

There was a whoosh, and Sceptile emerged from his Pokéball. "May I?"

Ash looked around to check no-one else was also asking, and nodded. "Looks like that's fine!"

"But... uh..." Sceptile shrugged. "I'm not sure how strong this Pokémon is, so I might need healing afterwards."

Ash frowned. "Right, I'll get Meganium..."

"Good," Sceptile nodded. "That'll be fine."

Pikachu looked suspicious. "Is there any particular reason why you want her to..."

"Healing. I said." Sceptile lashed his tail, and turned. "Now, where's that Steelix?"

"I'll get him," Skarmory volunteered. He spread his wings, and hammered the air at a run for a moment before getting airborne.

"It must be hard for such a heavy Pokémon to fly, sometimes," Max commented.

"Yeah, I think Pokémon like that or Aerodactyl need to use air manipulation to keep them up," Brock agreed.

"So that's what we forgot with Archen!" Ash said, in the tones of one making a great realization.

The others looked at him.

"...it's a long story," he said. "From Unova."

Request made, Meganium will be available shortly, Dexter noted.

"Great," Ash said. "Okay, let's..."

He paused, and turned.

"Mawile? You're back early..."

Mawile came hurrying up at a fast walk, and hugged Ash's leg. "I don't like other Mawile," she said, with a catch in her voice.

Ash knelt down. "What happened?"

"We met some Mawile," Sliggoo explained, coming up behind her. "They... weren't very nice."

"They were horrible," Mawile told Ash. "And I'm going to try really really hard to not be horrible like them!"

With a flash, Meganium materialized. "Hi, sorry, I was helping Ivysaur... rebuild..."

She stopped.

"Why is Mawile hugging your leg?"

"She had a bit of a bad day, I think," Ash explained.

"Poor thing," Meganium said, reaching down with her vines to give Mawile a quick squeeze.

The little Steel-type smiled wanly. "Thank you..."

"Was that why you wanted me?" Meganium asked, glancing at Ash.

"No, not really." Ash patted Mawile on the head and stood again. "Sceptile wanted you around in case he got hurt in his next fight."

"Okay," Meganium nodded. "I'll be ready."

The Steelix looked down at Sceptile. "You're the one who challenged me?"

Sceptile nodded.

"I accept," the Steel-type said, then darted forwards with a speed that belied his size.

Sceptile leapt aside as the metallic head hit the floor with a wham, and swung his tail for a stinging blow – then got thwacked aside by the much larger and heavier tail Steelix could bring to the fight.

He shook his head mid-air, reoriented himself, and landed with a long skid and rooster-tail of dust and earth.

"That was quite fast," he noted.

Steelix tilted his head, then lunged again. This time, Sceptile raised his green-glowing Leaf Blades, and the Iron Head hit it with an audible spang and drove Sceptile back several inches.

Twisting, Steelix hammered in his head again and accompanied it with a tail sweep at the same time.

"Get back!" Ash called quickly, and Sceptile launched himself backwards to get out of the threat zone.

He nearly made it.

The Iron Tail's penultimate segment blurred in, hitting him in the side, and he rolled once before getting somewhat more slowly to his feet.

Steelix blasted him with a torrent of Dragonbreath, and Sceptile's reply was to sweep his tail around in a scything motion to block the worst of the purplish flame.

He discovered a little late that there'd been an Iron Tail attack winding up as well, and had to hastily duck under the high-speed swish of steel.

Lighting up his arm-blades with Leaf Blade again, he darted forwards as soon as the attack was over, and vaulted over a coil of Steelix' body to drive the Leaf Blade attack in on the third segment down from the head of his foe.

Steelix grunted, then twisted in a violent motion which launched Sceptile off his body and some way into the sky.

"Sceptile!" Meganium called.

The green shape of Sceptile shrank quickly as he headed into the air, and then brighter green flashed down from his arms as he fired a pair of Leaf Blades.

The first glanced off the glacis of his Steel-type opponent, but the second bit home – and the Steelix coiled, then launched himself skywards with fangs flashing fire.

Sceptile noticed, and began to get out of the way, so the two hit a little off centre of what Steelix would prefer. The Fire Fang hit with a burst of flame, and Sceptile was seen for a moment with his leaves smouldering before he pushed off and fired a Leech Seed.

He made a three-point landing, and Steelix crashed to the ground behind him – thrashing and tearing at the crawling roots of the Leech Seed, and shredding them quickly.

"Are you okay?" Meganium asked, worried. "Are you burned?"

"Don't think so," Sceptile replied, brushing at his tail and pinching out a glowing ember. "It didn't hit me very hard."

He turned around as the Leech Seed finally failed completely. "Well, I guess it's time to use this."

"You've got a new move?" Ash asked, interested. "You didn't mention..."

"Just got it working last night."

Sceptile crouched, and took a deep breath. His arm-blades flashed green, and then began to shimmer towards turquoise in waves.

"Wait..." Ash said, closing one eye to look. "Is that... it is!"

The corner of Sceptile's mouth quirked.

As he stood, both arm-blades shone a clear azure blue.

"Sacred Sword!" he announced, and charged.

Steelix lashed out at him with his tail again, but this time Sceptile simply held up his right arm-blade to block. Several hundred pounds of Iron Tail smashed into the crackling blue blade, and Sceptile staggered a step sideways but kept going.

He swiped out with the other blade at Steelix as he closed, and the blue energy of the Sacred Sword knocked Steelix backwards bodily – but, as Sceptile skipped backwards from the impact, the blade lost its' blue glow and reverted to green.

"Look out, Sceptile!" Ash called. "The left one stopped working!"

Sceptile frowned slightly, jumping over a tail sweep, and grabbed one of Steelix's spines to use as an anchor for a moment. He threw himself clear over Steelix' body, and tucked into a roll as he reached the ground on the other side.

Leg sliding out and left Leaf Blade down to grip the ground, he turned around and over into a crouch facing Steelix.

Steelix glared at him for a moment, then smashed forwards with an Iron Head.

Sceptile surged to his feet as the attack came in – and caught Steelix, hands grabbing the sides of his mouth to hold him in place. His feet skidded backwards, digging into the ground as much as possible, and his tail dug in as well.

Flame flashed into place on the sides of Steelix' mouth as he used Fire Fang, and he pushed harder – making Sceptile wobble dangerously backwards, despite the steadying effect of his tail.

Then an Iron Tail smashed him aside.

Sceptile picked himself out of the Sceptile-shaped crater in the rock face, shaking his head to clear it, and stood to face Steelix once more.

A green light began to swirl around his entire body as Overgrow kicked in, and some of it ran down his arm to his left blade – which brightened, then flared blue as he reestablished Sacred Sword.

Steelix watched warily.

"Quick Attack," Sceptile informed him, then blurred forwards like a comet with a tail of green fire.

His legs bunched as he ran, and then he vaulted over Steelix's Iron Head – and rammed both Sacred Swords down into the Steel-type's forehead.

A cascade of blue sparks went up as the blade collided, and he kept running along Steelix's back with blue-cored green trailing behind him.

Dodging left-right-left around the steel spines that stuck up in his path, he reached the other end and leapt off just before the thrashing tail could wrong-foot him.

The friends watched, silent, as Sceptile did two forwards flips in midair and skidded to a halt in a cloud of gravel.

Behind him, Steelix crashed to the floor with a sound like gigantic falling steel ingots.

"Wow..." Meganium said, staring. "That was amazing!"

"Yeah!" Ash agreed. "Good one, Sceptile!"

Sceptile smirked slightly, then wobbled and collapsed sideways.

"Oh no!"

Meganium hurried forwards, extending her vines to hold him up, and looked him over. "Are you okay? Did you strain something?"

"I'm fine," Sceptile waved, then wobbled again. "Okay, maybe not... that was a lot more tiring than I was expecting."

"How did you do it?" Ash asked. "I thought Keldeo hadn't managed to teach anyone..."

"It's actually quite simple," Sceptile explained, breathing heavily. "You just need to build the Sacred Sword on top of something – like Keldeo has his horn – and charge it with other energy first."

"...that sounds really hard," Ash admitted.

"It's simple in concept, not in execution," Sceptile confirmed. He sighed. "Thank you, that feels wonderful."

"Do you need another?" Meganium asked, as her Heal Pulse took effect.

"Yes please, that would be great..."

Ivysaur sat in the sun, drowsing just outside the main door to Oak's lab.

It was a lovely afternoon, just right for not doing much – and he'd managed to get Molly to help keep some of the more boisterous Pokémon occupied, as well, so the chances of a major disaster were less than usual.

There was a click as the door opened, and he cracked an eyelid to look.

"You know where everything is," Tracey said, from just inside the door, and then Torkoal came waddling out.

"Oh, hi!" Ivysaur said, shaking himself and coming to his feet. "Long time no see!"

Torkoal looked at him.

"Uh... wait, is that you, Bulbasaur?"

"Used to be," Ivysaur confirmed. "Sorry, I've been an Ivysaur for years, but I guess for you it was just a few hours ago..."

Torkoal nodded. "Yeah. I've already seen Bayleef has evolved into Meganium, and Pikachu's cheeks are... kinda strange... and I think there was a Flygon and a Mawile and... something purple?"

"Do you mean Sliggoo?" Ivysaur asked.

"That's the one, yes," Torkoal confirmed. "He seemed nice."

"He is," Ivysaur nodded. "I've only met him a few times so far, but that's the impression I got."

He gestured. "Come on, I'll introduce you to the Pokémon you've not met – like Pidgeot, she left before you joined last time."

As they set off, Torkoal frowned. "So... how'd you evolve?"

Ivysaur chuckled, a little nervously. "That's the thing... accidentally."

"Does that happen?" Torkoal blinked. "I thought it was a very deliberate choice."

"Not really, no," Ivysaur shook his head. "Choosing not to evolve is, and I'd done that... but then I overdid it in a battle, and there I was."

"Oh."

The Fire-type contemplated that as they walked.

"Did it hurt?" he asked. "I mean... you didn't want to, right? What was your reason?"

"I was kind of afraid of evolving, because I wondered if it would still be me inside," Ivysaur said, uneasily. "But... I guess, over time, I realized by talking to Charizard and Staraptor and all the other Pokémon we know who evolved... it's not that they became different people when they evolved, it's just that they got a new perspective."

"Okay," Torkoal said, absorbing that. "But... well, I know I've never evolved, and never can evolve. But I still think I've matured..."

"You have, you're right," Ivysaur agreed. "That's the other half of it. I've met Pokémon who didn't change at all when they evolved, including a Houndoom who felt better about being playful when he'd evolved... and I've met Pokémon who changed a lot despite not evolving or not being able to evolve."

There was a crash in the middle distance.

Ivysaur sighed. "Speaking of which..."

"What was that?" Torkoal asked.

"Allow me to introduce you to my friend," Ivysaur said, looking upwards. Torkoal followed his gaze, and saw a hurtling orange-white shape approaching them.

A moment later, water blasted out of the shape, splashing over Ivysaur and barely missing Torkoal. The spray concentrated down on a point a little in front of the two quadrupeds, and a Squirtle came down to land in a fountain of water and mud.

"...Squirtle," Ivysaur finished.

"Hey!" Squirtle waved, walking over. "How's my favorite Ivysaur?"

"I was enjoying a quiet afternoon..." Ivysaur muttered. He indicated Torkoal next to him. "This is Torkoal – I mentioned him before? Ash just ran into him again."

"He did?" Squirtle asked, with a grin. "Great! It's been too long without a fellow Chelonian around here!"

He shook the forepaw of the confused Fire-type. "Welcome back to the team! I'm Squirtle – only the most badass Squirtle in a hundred nautical miles in any direction!"

"Does that include up?" Ivysaur asked, idly.

"If there's no Squirtles in space, then sure!" Squirtle agreed. "If there is, then I need to up my game!"

"It's... nice to meet you," Torkoal said. "Didn't you have a fire brigade?"

"They don't need my burning passion to extinguish any fires!" Squirtle waved off. "Speaking of which, what's your thing? How do you battle?"

"Well, I'm a Fire-type," Torkoal told him. "I mostly stand back and hit opponents with Heat Wave or other Fire-type attacks, and if I need to I charge in and use Body Slam."

Squirtle waited.

"...why are you not speaking?" the Fire-type asked.

"That's it? That's all you have?" Squirtle checked.

Torkoal kicked the grass. "...'s not that bad..."

"Well, it's not good enough!" Squirtle announced. "I'm taking you under my wing!"

"You don't have wings," Torkoal pointed out.

A Tauros stampeded past, followed by two more and a high-speed Primeape clutching a wooden sign.

"Come back with that, you bounders!" Raikou roared, pelting past after the four other Pokémon.

"...sorry, guys, I've got to handle this," Ivysaur sighed. "See you later."

He set off at a run.

"...was that a Legendary?" Torkoal asked.

"Man, you are behind the times," Squirtle muttered. "Anyway! It's time for the ultimate chelonian team-up that destroys everything before it!"

Whipping his pointed sunglasses out of his shell, Squirtle used them to punctuate his points. "The team-up of fire and water! Held contained within a shell, the combination expands to twelve hundred times the size with a force that nothing can stop!"

Torkoal blinked.

"What does that mean?"

"Steam!" Squirtle explained. "You're a Pokémon with a fire in your belly! Mix that with water and you get steam, a force that causes motion!"

"I suppose that's true," Torkoal said, slowly. "But I can't use Water moves."

"Of course you can!" Squirtle waved off. "You can pull your legs back into your shell, can't you? That's Withdraw!"

He pulled out a sheet with a list of moves. "And this says that Withdraw is a Water-type move!"

"...wait, is it?" Torkoal looked at the sheet. "Huh, so it is... wait, where'd you get this?"

"It's one of Prima's new guides!" Squirtle told him. "I keep it because it has a list of things people think are impossible for Squirtle to do. Anyway, that's the answer – use that and you'll go three times as fast easily!"

He frowned. "Actually, it might be quicker if we paint you red..."

Torkoal tilted his head, now completely lost.

"I say, what ho!"

Noctowl came fluttering down, wings flared, and alighted in front of the two testudines. "I heard that you were back, young chap. Capital!"

"Hi, Noctowl," Torkoal smiled, relieved. "I'm glad to see something hasn't changed around here..."

"Now dis is a nice afternoon," Meowth sighed, picking at his teeth with a claw. "You're one heck of a cook!"

"Thank you," Audino smiled, moving the pan a little lower towards Moltres' blazing tail. "I'm glad you like it."

"What's it called, exactly?" Cubone asked, sniffing her plate. "It smells... interesting..."

"Well, you can see the sausages and mash, but the sauce is honey and mustard with some flour to help it stick," Audino explained. "It's a recipe Blissey taught me, she says it's a nice one to share with friends."

"I can understand that," Cubone admitted, and took a bite.

Her eyes widened beneath the skull, and she coughed. "...wow, that's a bit stronger than I was expecting..."

"Still good, I hope?"

"Yes," Cubone assured her. "But I might need to take smaller bites... can I have some water?"

Meowth threw her a glass. It flipped three times through the air, leaving a glittering trail of water, and Cubone caught it in her free paw.

With a splitterplish, the water all poured right back into the glass again. A lemon slice landed in it, and two ice.

"Show-off," she said tartly.

"Hey, it's one a' da things I do," Meowth shrugged.

"A little more heat, please," Audino asked. "I'd rather get this batch finished before Gyarados eats one of the plates."

Gyarados looked down, somehow managing to look sheepish despite his enormous blue form.

"Of course," Moltres agreed, and her tail flared higher. "I hope you're doing mine with extra spice like I asked..."

"I got some Babiri special," Audino told her, and pulled the green fruit out of a small box by the chopping board with his free hand. Taking a knife, he began to chop it with small, efficient strokes.

"Man, but you're so nice it's kinda bizarre," Meowth said idly. "I mean, it ain't like we don't appreciate it, but... ya know."

"I don't, really," Audino told him. Finishing the Babiri, he flipped the sausages out of the pan and arrayed them on the plate. "There we go."

Gyarados surged forwards, and took the plate in his jaws before heading off to eat.

"That was one of the paper plates, right?" Cubone asked.

"Yes, I learned that lesson after the first time," Audino assured her. "Now, let's see... how many do you want, Moltres?"

"Three?" Moltres asked. "Are there that many left?"

"Easily." Audino laid the next set of sausages out, and they began to sizzle almost immediately – and the sizzling took on a new note as he added the Babiri. "By the way, you're basically immune to catching fire, right?"

"Pretty sure I am," the Fire-type Legendary agreed.

"Good," Audino smiled.

"Wait, wait, back up," Meowth said, sitting up. "Didn't ya just say dat you didn't know why we appreciated ya bein' so nice?"

"I wondered about that," Cubone admitted, swallowing another mouthful of food.

"No, it's not that I was denying," Audino said, shrugging. "I just don't know why my being nice is unusual. You're all quite nice people."

"...pardon?" Meowth asked, tilting his head. "Ya do know dat we're kinda criminals, right?"

"Oh, I did know that," Audino agreed. "Blissey told me about where Jessie went after she dropped out of nursing school, and of course I was assigned to you. But... well, you're still nice people."

The Normal-type poked at the sausages, turning them over. "Jessie's nice. James is nice. And you're all nice too."

"...don't say dat around another team, you'll ruin our rep," Meowth chuckled.

Audino smiled. "Your secret's safe with me."

After a pause, he resumed. "But... well, my point was that – you're good people. That's obvious. And if the law disagrees, that's a mistake by the law. It's not like it's always exactly right all the time."

"But what about the rest of Team Rocket?" Cubone asked, curious. "Surely you must know that some other members of our organization are engaged in some highly dubious activities."

Audino nodded. "Yes, I do. But I think you should judge a group by the best in it, not by the worst."

He gave the sausages a look, and put them back on the heat for a little longer. "Blissey taught me the rule was – first, do no harm. And as far as I can see, we're doing no harm and a lot of good."

Taking the spatula, Audino pushed Moltres' sausages onto a waiting plate, and gave the rest of the Babiri berry a quick dose of heat to flush out the juices before pouring it into the sauce and sprinkling it over. "There we go!"

"Thank you," Moltres said, letting her tail simmer down and turning to have her lunch. "It smells lovely."

Audino did a little bow, smiling.

"I mean," he resumed. "Look at our mission at the moment."

"Breakin' into tombs an' ancient temples ain't my idea of law-abidin'," Meowth said, then frowned. "On da other hand, it's fine when a guy with an archaeology degree does it, ain't it... hmmm, dat's a puzzler..."

"It may be illegal, but does that make it wrong?" Audino asked. "I don't think so. We're breaking into places with powerful artefacts, like the Caves of the Golems, and then... well, we're checking everything's still there, and then sealing the place up again."

"I see," Cubone agreed. "It's because we're making sure that the artefacts are not being misused."

"And there's people out there who would," Audino confirmed. "You already told me about several of them."

"Looked at like dat, we're doin' a public service!" Meowth grinned. "Hey, I feel more virtuous already, how 'bout that..."

There was a startled cough from behind Audino, and a spiralling tongue of flame hiccuped skywards.

"Told you," Audino chuckled.

"What was in that?" Moltres asked, coughing out gouts of smoke with her eyes wide. "That felt like eating a volcanic eruption!"

"Well, that was some specially bred Babiri," Audino said. "Have you heard of the Scoville Scale?"

"I know enough that that's not a good thing," Moltres admitted, and coughed again. "What was it?"

"About seven hundred thousand." Audino washed his hands carefully. "Too much?"

"Yeah..."

"I'll make sure to stick to something a little cooler in future," the Normal-type noted. "Need some healing?"

"...I think I might, actually..."

Audino nodded, and waved his fingers.

There was a flicker of green light around Moltres' body.

"What was that?" Cubone asked. "That didn't look like Heal Pulse..."

"Oh, I gave her my Ability," Audino explained. "It'll wear off once she's healthy."

"Now dat's kinda useful!" Meowth nodded. "Guess you'll-"

Audino's head turned, and he scowled. Picking up the pepper shaker, he threw it into the middle distance.

It connected with Arbok's nose with a thwack.

"Don't add that much salt, you'll ruin it!" he called sternly.

Arbok managed to mumble and hiss at the same time.

"There really aren't that many ways to travel through Hoenn, are there?" Max asked, looking up from the map as they reached the Mauville outskirts. "It's Mauville or Rustboro, really..."

"There's other routes, we just don't take them," Brock told him. "This map only shows really large scale stuff."

"That explains why we kept getting lost in a space the size of a full stop..." May muttered.

"Yeah, probably," Brock agreed. "Where's Ash?"

They looked around.

"I think he might just have run off to challenge the gym..." Max said, slowly.

"...he does know we did this one already, right?" May asked. "Okay, let's go, I guess he'll probably be there already..."

Ash stepped onto the moving platform. "Okay, let's go!"

The platform didn't move.

"Do you think you broke it?"Pikachu asked.

"I hope not, I've not broken anything in a gym yet," Ash said, worried. "I wouldn't want to lose my streak..."

A speaker crackled. "Is that you, Ash?"

"Yeah!" Ash confirmed. "Wattson?"

"The same," Wattson said. "But... well, you've already got your badge here."

"Yeah, but I wanted to see how Electrike was getting on," Ash explained. "Since, you know, we helped her meet you..."

"Ah, of course." Wattson went quiet for a moment, and the platform began to hum. "Okay, you're on your way... by the way, do you have Raikou with you?"

"No, I think he's busy," Ash shrugged. "Sorry."

"Last I heard he was visiting the Orange Islands," Pikachu volunteered. "Swellow had a chat with him last time she went back to Pallet."

"Oh, okay," Ash nodded. "I guess that makes sense... wonder what he's doing?"

"Well, it could be carrying messages like normal, or it could be..." Pikachu trailed off. "Does he like sunbathing?"

Ash chuckled. "I can just see him with a pair of sunglasses under a big beach umbrella..."

Pikachu nodded. "Yeah, and a sign next to him with 'Caution: Relaxing Legendary'."

Ash snorted.

The platform clicked as it reached the far end, and after a short pause the door hissed open.

An empty corridor confronted them.

"Wasn't there supposed to be a Raikou here?" Ash asked, slowly.

"Yeah, it was about here..." Pikachu agreed with a frown.

There was a mechanical roar-noise, and then a Manectric ran around the corridor shrugging a Raikou costume on. "Um... no, I was too late, wasn't I..."

Ash and Pikachu exchanged a glance.

"What happened?" Ash asked.

"Well..." the Manectric shook herself, sending bits of costume flying. "Wattson rebuilt the Raikou-bot so I could stand on its back and send controls, and we were just starting to install the controls inside instead when I evolved... and it sort of broke."

"Ouch," Ash winced. "Did it hurt?"

"Not really, no, but you should see the Raikou-bot," Manectric told him. "Anyway, we're building a mk.2, but it's only finished up to the middle of the torso, so we kind of had to improvise..."

"Wait, I thought that was a joke," Pikachu blinked. "He's actually building you powered armour?"

"Yeah?" Manectric asked, shrugging. "I certainly like the idea, and – well, Wattson always has to be tinkering with something."

She smiled with clear fondness. "He's kind of silly, but I'm glad you helped me to him."

"No problem!" Ash smiled.

The platform clicked and moved off again.

"I guess that's the others?"

"Probably," Manectric agreed.

"...so, this is what it looks like," Wattson explained, pointing. "That's where her feet go, and they use the charge in her fur to help actuate the servos – that way the whole leg moves like she does."

"That's pretty cool," Max agreed. "Is it working?"

"Not really, no," Wattson told him. "Well, in the last test we certainly got it moving! Stopping was more of a problem, though..."

He indicated two Magnemite hovering up near the ceiling. "They had to stop her."

"That's going to look very impressive when you're done," May said. "Are you going to make it seem like you've got a Raikou?"

"Hah! For as long as I can manage!" Wattson told her with a booming laugh. "It should be quite a jape!"

"Maybe you should tell Raikou about it, Ash," Brock suggested. "I mean, I'm pretty sure he'd love to help create that impression."

"He probably would," Ash agreed. "I wonder how that would look..."

While they talked, Arc pawed the ground anxiously. He looked up at Manectric, and frowned before looking down again.

"What is it?" Manectric asked, looking over.

"Uh – well – I was wondering," Arc began, then shook his head and started again. "What I mean is... I've been thinking a bit about evolving."

"Go on," Manectric invited.

The little Electrike sat back on his haunches, and sighed. "Well... I was wondering what it was like, really. I've asked a lot of Pokemon, but... I still feel nervous, and I wasn't able to ask any Electric-types."

"What about that Pikachu?" Manectric asked, a little confused.

"He's... well, his relationship with evolution is kind of strange," Arc said, trying to work out how to summarize it. "He said it hurt a lot when he half-evolved, though."

"...yes, I can see his relationship with evolution must be very strange," Manectric mused. "Anyway – since you've asked, here's what I think."

She took a breath.

"When I evolved – at the moment I evolved – I wasn't trying to evolve, and I wasn't trying not to evolve. It just happened, and I didn't notice it until it was almost over, and when it was done I felt..." Manectric shrugged. "Stronger. Lighter, because of that. Bigger, certainly... and also like I could feel more of everything."

"More?" Arc repeated.

"Well, more electricity," Manectric clarified. "I could feel currents in things I couldn't feel before... and I could also feel the Raikou-bot mk.1 shorting out as I overloaded it, which was a bit embarrassing."

Arc nodded. "Okay, thanks... I guess that does make me feel a bit better about it."

"It's nothing to be afraid of, really," Manectric assured him. "Besides, I think it looks good."

Arc examined her, sniffing and looking up and down, and did a complete circuit of her body.

"...it's a bit blue," he concluded.

"That's all you got from that?"

"Not all... hey, does that tail itch like that?"

"Hey... May?"

May looked up. "What is it, Max?"

"Well..." Max shrugged, and sat down to his sister. "I guess... I just wanted a talk."

"Well, talk," May invited. "What's bothering you?"

"Not much, really," Max said. He glanced across the clearing, smiling at the sight of Arc trying to encourage Cinder to play fetch, and then shook his head. "Well, more like... I kind of wonder if you're bothered by something."

May blinked. "Pardon?"

"I mean..." Max sat back, and waved. "I can see how much Ash enjoys it being able to get to know and train with new Pokemon... and he's kind of focused on gym battles anyway. And Brock's been studying Pokemon anatomy more, I've seen the books... and I know that a lot of what I enjoy about this time is being able to train Pokemon and do gym challenges when I couldn't last time."

He nodded to May. "So... I guess I wondered, because you've... more or less been doing the same stuff. Maybe you've got new routines, but..."

Max trailed off, and shrugged.

May considered that, looking troubled, and then sighed. "Yeah, you're right. I've been doing the Coordinator thing, but that's about all I've been doing... and I've been feeling a bit uncomfortable about it, but you've put it into words."

"So..." Max asked. "What now?"

May frowned. "I'm not sure, really... I mean, I kind of know about this Cyrus thing – we certainly know he's a problem, but I can't bring myself to think that he'll be a big one."

"He did kind of destroy the universe," Max pointed out, and May sighed.

"I know, Max!"

After a moment, she shook her head. "No, sorry, that was... it's because, well, look at Ash."

Max did, turning to see the time-travelling trainer.

"...okay, yeah," he admitted, watching as Keldeo earnestly talked Ash and Absol through another attempt at Sacred Sword. "He's got ridiculously strong Pokemon..."

"That's it exactly," May agreed. "I mean, I know Cyrus is a threat, intellectually, but... Ash has, is friends with, Pokemon who move comets around, and..."

Her hands dropped. "I just can't really see how I can compete. And... I don't really have a sense of progress on that front, either."

Max nodded, looking troubled. "I guess I can see what you mean... uh..."

He sighed. "I don't know. I could suggest you do the Gym Challenge, but both Ash and I are already doing it..."

Arc came trotting over, and Max began to stroke him absently.

"I know what you could do," Max said, after a moment.

May looked up.

"Speak to Drew about it," he explained. "Let him know you'd like to do some pure battling as well as Contests – I'm sure he'd love to help you out."

"I guess he might," May admitted, then frowned. "Wait... what's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, he certainly seems to like you," Max teased.

"That's not... but..." May shook her head. "It's not like that!"

Max nodded, somehow conveying that he wasn't convinced in a simple up-down movement.

"The big breakthrough we made was... well, more twofold," Lucario said, sitting cross-legged. "The first one was fairly obvious – you really need to think about Sacred Sword, and what it means to you. It has to come from the heart."

"I guess that's why it's sacred," Ash nodded. "But yeah, thinking about it that was how Keldeo got both moves working – that is how you got Secret Sword working, right?"

"Right," Keldeo agreed. "It was when I realized that I... well, that I didn't have to be a hero to be valued by the people I wanted to impress all along."

Ash smiled. "Right! And Sacred Sword was..."

"...when I realized what it meant to be a hero," Keldeo confirmed. "That what matters isn't being cool or amazing... it's saving people. That's the valuable bit."

"For myself..." Lucario smiled slightly. "It was to work out what was most important to me. Ash... you have done so much for me, and I owe you a debt that can never be repaid. But it is my honour to stand beside you, whenever and wherever I can, and your companionship is more precious to me than anything."

Ash swallowed past the lump in his throat. "Lucario, I... thank you."

"It is only what you deserve." With that, Lucario pressed his paws together. "Now... here is what that realization won me."

The spike on the back of his right paw glowed with the silvery sheen of Metal Claw, then began to change – elongating into a slim metal blade.

It took perhaps four seconds to form, then froze – but still glowed blue with Aura, as Lucario layered his energy on it in alternating, glowing pulses.

After several more seconds, it began to change – then, with a shocking suddenness, elongated out into what was recognizably a sword-blade like Keldeo's own.

"Sacred Sword," Lucario explained, sweeping it through the air for a moment. It hummed and sang, then flickered off as Lucario stopped sustaining it.

"That's... wow," Ash managed. "It felt – and looked... special."

"It should," Sceptile agreed.

"What's yours?" Ash asked. "Your realization, I mean..."

"I'm afraid it's... private," Sceptile said, shaking his head. "Sorry, but... I don't feel comfortable talking about it."

"Right," Ash said, a little disappointed. "I guess it's your choice..."

"So that's the most important thing?" Absol asked, speaking up for the first time. "Coming to terms with... well, with who we are?"

"Not quite," Keldeo hedged, waving a hoof. "It's quite personal, but it just has to be something about you. Something important, but not what defines you – people and Pokemon aren't just defined by one thing."

"Right," Ash agreed. "I know what you mean, I guess... but I'm not sure what that could be. I mean..."

He shrugged helplessly.

"You don't have to just guess," Keldeo said. "Since three of us have done it, we've noticed what's kind of similar – it helps to meditate a bit. You've both been learning how the energy form works, so... try to lose yourself in it, I guess. Try to see what makes it react, and you can home in on something."

"That's how I did it," Sceptile volunteered.

"Right," Absol nodded. She closed her eyes, laying her head on her paws, and took a deep breath.

Aura – what little she'd gotten working so far – swirled around her paws for a moment, then traced up to her horn. It flashed around it in a pale blue glow, then snuffed out almost completely.

"Should it-"

"That's about right," Lucario assured her. "Now, keep that up, but start meditating."

"I'm not even sure where to start," Ash sighed, sitting cross-legged and summoning Aura with practiced ease to his hands. "Sceptile said it kind of has to focus around something that's already the right shape, but I don't have any moves like that..."

He considered, then brightened. "Oh, right – when I did it in Lugia's mind, and in my own, it was the staff that did it – I'll try that."

Unlimbering it, he let his clear blue Aura flow down the staff, coating it in azure light, then started to try what Keldeo had described.

"How do I know if I'm getting it?" he asked.

"It kind of just... suddenly makes sense," Keldeo said.

"Well, when you're doing it this way, it's a bit more gradual," Sceptile amended. "But it is just... it feels right."

Absol breathed evenly, concentrating on her self.

Born at a particularly low risk time, just like any other Absol. Raised by a caring family, trained as a chance-dancer – a skill for which she had a particular talent – and accomplished in journeying alone. Relying on no-one but herself.

And, now, a captured Pokemon, working with a trainer whose avowed aim was to save the world.

Put like that, things had gone rather strange when she'd run to save Jirachi a month or so ago.

So. She was... a proud Absol, and with a trainer who she respected.

Nothing.

Perhaps she was going about this the wrong way... taking a deeper breath, Absol concentrated instead on the precise feeling of her horn as it tingled with energy.

It is about who I am.

Frowning over the response, she tried something else.

It is about how I interact with others.

Nothing again – then, as she wondered what else there was, a slight tingle.

Trying to remain calm, collected and unexcited, Absol followed up on that slight tingle. She wondered whether it was specific to her abilities, and compared that to the question she'd asked earlier.

Still nothing.

Perhaps she should stop-

-and catastrophe rolled over her. A warning and premonition of enormous risk, possible defeat and destruction and the failure of-

Absol flinched, shaking off the feeling of impending doom.

"Are you okay?" Keldeo asked, and she opened her eyes.

"I'm fine," she assured him, shaking her head. "Sorry, just... worried by something. A sensation of doom..."

Keldeo nodded seriously. "Right," he said. "Still there?"

Absol considered the answer to that question.

No, it wasn't... or, it had receded. From a dire risk to a distant chance – still a danger, still the chance of failure, but nothing like it had been.

Absol took a deep breath, and resolved to keep trying on Sacred Sword until she had it mastered.

As she did, the sensation faded further, and she felt a faint satisfaction. At least I know I am on the right path.

"Ash!" Brock called. "Don't forget to get some sleep!"

Ash glanced up, noticing how dark it was. "Oh – sorry, I'll get to bed! Thanks for the reminder, Brock!"

"You're welcome!"

"Were you making any progress, Ash?" Lucario asked.

"I don't... well, I don't think so," Ash said. "Maybe it's just that this isn't a mindscape... I guess the staff can't change shape like that in reality. Was the Aura right, at least?"

"Not really," Lucario said. "Sorry... I'd hoped you were making progress on the thought part of it, at least."

Ash shook his head. "No, nothing."

Lucario put his right paw on Ash's shoulder. "You will work it out, Ash. I believe in you."

"Thanks," Ash smiled, touching the paw.

"What about you, Absol?" Keldeo asked. "Anything?"

"Some," Absol said, shrugging her shoulders and getting to her feet. "I'm not very far along the way yet, though."

The next day, in Verdanturf, May left the stage to cheers.

"That worked pretty well," she said, as Beautifly settled on her arm.

Indeed, Ethan confirmed. Let us hope that it achieves a sufficient score to go through.

May smiled, then looked out over the field to see who was next.

"Oh, hey, it's Drew!" she said, interested. "I wonder who he's going to use – I don't think I've seen him do a doubles run yet..."

"Roselia!" Drew announced, sending out his main Pokemon. "Time to bloom!"

Roselia nodded, doing a twirl, and then jumped into a forward roll.

She came up and twirled again, petals glowing faintly, and swept her arms around in a back-forth pattern outlined in traceries of blue and red. She brought her flowers together, and the glow brightened.

Again, and the glow began to light the room, throwing purple light onto the faces of the watching spectators as she twirled and pirouetted.

Drew watched, then gestured. "Okay, Petal Dance!"

Roselia stepped backwards, the glow intensifying, and a plume of petals spiralled upwards before beginning to collapse back again in a dense cloud.

"Dazzling Gleam!" her trainer called, before the petals really reached the ground, and Roselia unleashed the Fairy-type attack.

The pulse of bright pink light flash-blinded the audience for a fraction of a second, and when it faded Leafeon was leaping gracefully down from the epicentre of a spherical burst of pink-red-blue petals.

As the other Grass-type landed, Roselia swept her arms out and produced a cloud of Stun Spore. Spreading out with impressive speed, the amber powder got as far as the edges of the arena before stopping, and lent a golden tinge to the two Pokemon all but completely ignoring it.

Roselia's petals began to glow again, faster this time, and Leafeon ran a complete circle around her at a lope before skidding around to face her and opening a mouth glowing with greenish-white light.

Their Solarbeams hit at the midpoint of a line between them, sending out a sparkle of light which made the Stun Spore glitter like stars.

"...that's my idea," May muttered.

Beautifly fluttered her wings.

"Yeah, I know, it's not like I was the first to try it..."

"Look out!" May called. "Dodge left!"

Beautifly dodged, and the wham of a pair of precisely aimed Seed Bombs pushed her further left like a pillow of sweet-smelling air.

"What should I-" she began, then winced as a Dazzling Gleam flashed out and caught her in the side. "Ow..."

"Switch!" Drew ordered, and both his Pokemon smoothly changed target. Roselia spun on the tips of her toes, firing a shower of leaves at Ethan's approaching form, and Leafeon ran alongside the Razor Leaf before sweeping her tail across in a Leaf Blade as a passing attack.

Ethan formed a shield out of hard-light to block the Grass-type attacks, then let out a blatt noise as Leafeon fired a blazing ball of green light through his Reflect shield and into his body. Ow.

"Excellent teamwork!" one of the judges noted. "Using a combination attack to decoy out the opponent!"

"Switch!" Drew called almost on the heel of the judge's approval, and both Grass-types switched back to keeping Beautifly busy as she swooped in.

Her Air Cutter came off successfully, slicing through some of the shower of leaves, but the follow-up Dazzling Gleam hit her hard enough to make it something of a wash.

"And May Maple's having trouble keeping things going," the local Joy said. "She's going to have to come up with something to turn this around..."

"Around," May said, then brightened. "Oh, of course!"

She cupped her hands around her mouth. "Ethan, Reflect and Light Screen!"

Establishing, Ethan reported, and the two shields together formed a mirror-bright layer.

"Now, Beautifly – down a bit, left and–!"

"Scatter!" Drew ordered, realizing what she meant-

"–Signal Beam at Ethan!" May finished.

The shimmering blaze of light went well to the right of Roselia and Leafeon, homing in unerringly on May's Porygon. It hit and blazed off in a flash of reflected light... and the main beam bounced squarely onto Leafeon.

Leafeon yelped, producing a cloud of Magical Leaves in reflex, and dodged for cover.

"Keep firing!" May said. "Ethan, turn the shield to reflect it!"

Moving his wall of reflective force in precise increments, Ethan shone the Signal Beam back and forth across Leafeon repeatedly – now making it go ahead so she ran into it, now jerking it back as she slowed.

After several seconds, Roselia reached the Porygon and hit him with a Sludge Bomb, covering the shield in gunk which rendered it non-reflective, and followed up with a Poison Jab – but by the time she did, Leafeon was in trouble.

"Dive down and use U-turn!" May ordered, and Beautifly ended her stream of Bug-type energy in favour of a down-and-up dive that hit Leafeon in the side.

The Eeveelution wobbled, took three steps, and collapsed in a faceplant.

"And May Maple turns it around at the last moment!" one of the commentators said. "What an innovative use of Reflect to... er, reflect!"

May realized she'd been holding her breath, and let it out in an explosive rush.

"Nice work," Drew said, recalling his Grass-types. "I guess I don't have to feel bad about being beaten by you, May."

May smiled. "Thanks!"

"Hey!" Ivysaur called.

Very little notice was taken of him.

"Hey, guys!" he repeated, trying to make himself heard over the din.

The sound of stampeding Tauros, several Pokemon talking loudly, and Houndoom showing off his Flame Burst drowned him out.

"Right, spud this," he muttered, and took a deep breath.

The ground beneath him began to creak and crack, and then an enormous pillar of wood rose out of the ground and carried him several feet into the air.

"Quiet!" Ivysaur bellowed, and this time he got it.

"Right," he went on, after a few seconds. "Who here feels a little bit bored?"

Hands, arms, paws and wings went up. So did whatever Muk had.

"That's about what I thought," he agreed. "But we need to do this in an organized manner. We can't just wreck the place, poor Professor Oak is putting up with a lot."

There was a general – though reluctant – muttering of agreement.

"So, here's what I suggest," Ivysaur went on. "A league cup."

"A what?" Totodile asked, tilting his head.

"Basically, we take turns battling one another, until everyone's had a go. We keep track of who wins and who loses, and the one who won the most battles at the end is the winner."

"How do we work out who goes when?"

"Good question," Ivysaur nodded to Swellow. "I'm going to ask Damos if he'd be willing to generate us a match list."

"Sounds good," Swellow agreed. "I'm impatient already, let's get this done!"

Somewhere mostly outside time and space, Arceus considered things.

The battle was going pretty well, really. It was a shame about Ransei – he'd put quite a lot of work into the design – but at least it reassured him that his sons were working together well.

A space-portal opened in front of him, the sky tearing open with a sound like all the cloth in the universe tearing, and Roar of Time came through the hole.

Arceus blasted the attack away with an instant meteor swarm, dropped three hundred metres, and hit Giratina from below as the Ghost-type materialized behind his former position for a Shadow Force.

You're getting better, he informed them, and sent a meteor back through the portal as it closed.

Below, there was a large explosion.

Ah, that's where you are...

Arceus flexed his will, and teleported. He appeared in a flash of light, and added to the crater field by pounding Palkia and Dialga into the bedrock.

"Ow," Dialga muttered.

I'm just doing this so you get valuable experience, Arceus informed them. It's something you'll need before going out into the world... at least, if the last few years before Cyrus broke everything are a baseline to go by...

"Why does it have to hurt so much?" Palkia asked.

Giratina crashed next to them, and his orb went clattering across the battlefield. He reverted to Altered Forme in a flare of energy, and dragged himself painfully to his feet.

The one question I have is where Sir Aaron is, Arceus admitted. Which, frankly, is a bit suspicious. I'm only God, I should be able to at least tell where he is if I try...

Something flickered on Arceus' senses. He looked outwards, saw what was coming in, and had to nod. Okay, fair enough, this is a good one.

Then he was buried in swords.

"It worked!" Dialga said, floating down to land on the blasted ground with Sir Aaron standing on his back.

Dialga's past self muttered something, and vanished in a flash of chronal energy – taking Palkia with him.

A moment later, Palkia appeared out of a space portal. "Nice one, Dialga, I didn't think it would actually get Dad..."

"I don't think many Pokemon are ready to be hit with the same Sacred Sword four hundred times," Sir Aaron agreed, and caught the white and black blades as they flew back out of the final portal. "I'm trying not to think about the maths of it, though, given they were being attracted to one another's past-time clones and future ones..."

Dialga shrugged. "It worked, so I don't question it."

Nice one, Arceus announced, rising back out of the hole he'd been in. I think that counts as a win for you. What's the score again?

"One hundred and eight to twelve," Sir Aaron supplied. "Incidentally, I don't think we're ever going to catch up..."

You're probably right, Arceus admitted. I'm just too fond of Judgement.

Aaron looked around at what was – he assumed – a small section of the floor of a crater so big the edges were below the horizon. "I've noticed. So, what's the plan now?"

Ah, the plan, Arceus nodded. Well, I've been thinking about this, and suffice to say – I've come up with a new one.

The hero was about to ask what it was, but then reality inverted itself.

Aaron came to groggy consciousness, feeling grass against his cheek and all down his side. Blinking blearily, he saw trees – a forest – from a side view.

He was, it seemed, lying on the grassy forest floor.

Wait... he thought, yawning. I can... am I not wearing any clothes?

The ground trembled, and Sir Aaron sprung to his feet – finding it a little awkward, as his balance seemed off.

Then he noticed the tail.

Then he noticed the fine blue fur on his forearms.

"...why am I a Riolu?" he asked, looking up at clear blue sky overhead.

Honestly, it fit better than any of the other options, Arceus replied.

"Hi," said a deep, rumbling voice.

Aaron spun, overdoing it slightly as he got used to his tail and digitigrade feet, and saw the enormous form of Dialga towering over him.

Palkia peered out from behind Dialga's left side, waving a clawed forearm, and Giratina's head poked over the top of both of them.

"You guys can speak here?" Aaron asked. "I mean, speak normally... speak without the terrible accent... you know what I mean."

"No?" Palkia replied, uncertainly. "We're speaking normally. You're the one who stopped speaking human."

Look, Pokemon speak their own language and it's natural to them, Arceus explained defensively. Since it's a world with no humans, only Pokemon, you logically have to be Pokemon. If you're going to get all hung up on the mechanics of it all...

"No, this is okay," Sir Aaron said, flexing his tail experimentally. "I'm starting to get the hang of this... right, what's the plan here?"

Well, you're a new Rescue Team, Arceus told him – and, by the slightly surprised looks on their faces, the Creation Trio as well. This might be a bit of a spoiler, but your first mission is to rescue a Caterpie.

"Can't we just rip a hole in spacetime and save the Bug-type inside thirty seconds?" Palkia asked.

Sorry, outright snapping Minkowski space in half is disallowed, Arceus informed them. Intangibility's okay, though.

Giratina stuck his tongue out at the others, who grumbled.

"No offence, Arceus," Aaron began, frowning. "But saving a Caterpie doesn't sound like... well, much of a test of our skills."

You haven't seen how much I've overdone the other Pokemon, Arceus noted. Put it this way, you remember how we saw Ash's Pikachu can blast Ground-types?

All four nodded.

He wouldn't stand out here. They can all do that.

"...did we offend you?" Giratina asked, glancing up.

I'm just a concerned father wanting his sons to be able to take anything that threatens them, and snap it in half, Arceus told them virtuously. Now, here comes the quest...

A Butterfree fluttered over to them. "Somebody! Please, help me – my poor baby fell into a cavern! When I went to get him, Pokemon attacked me!"

"We'll sort it out," Sir Aaron told her. "You can count on us. Guys?"

"Yeah!" Palkia agreed.

Dialga nodded, letting out a bass rumble rather than words.

"It'll be fun, anyway," Giratina concurred.

The Butterfree didn't bat an eye at three Legendaries agreeing to help her son. "Wonderful! Thank you so much!"

"Fell down a hole?" Aaron asked, glancing upwards as they walked back along the path Butterfree had come down.

...okay, so it's an entry-level quest...

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