The St. Anne

"Tickets please. Make sure you have your tickets ready at the boarding point," a man at the entrance to the ship shouted with a large megaphone.

They were all excited. It was time to board the greatest cruise ship in the world. They were a lot of people, but lucky for them they came earlier than normal. They ascended the stairs to the boarding point.

"Tickets please," the man said as they reached him.

They gave him their tickets one after the other. He scanned the tickets with a device he held in his left hand to make sure that they weren't fake. After confirming that they were indeed real, he gave them their rooms via same device. They were all riding first class. Ash was in First Class-025, Gary was in 026, Misty was in 027, Leaf in 028, Paul was in 029 and Serena was in 034. They were all pretty close to each other.

"Have a wonderful cruise," the man said as he ushered them in.

They were in awe at the interior of the ship. A very luxurious carpet covered the floor, and it looked like it was one made for a King or the high-rankings in the League. The wall of the ship was filled with beautiful paintings of Legendary pokémon and that of past and present Masters. The paintings were made by the famous artist Leonardo Othello. He was the greatest artist in all the regions and they say he hailed from the Galar Region. Ash knew the St. Anne was not for only trainers like himself and the others, but the number of wealthy citizens on board surprised him.

"Wow," Misty finally said.

"That aside, let's get to our rooms," Gary said with all eagerness to begin enjoying the cruise.

"Yeah, how do we find it?" Serena asked.

"There's the map, let's check it," Leaf said.

"You guys are forgetting something," Ash said.

"What?" they all asked.

"I remember a certain wealthy man, Bill giving us stuff to help on our journey. One of them was an update to the Xtransceiver, giving it details and directions to any and everywhere in the world," Ash said, sounding like a Scientist.

"That's true, but how do we do it?" Leaf asked.

Ash turned to his Xtransceiver. "Xtransceiver."

The device turned on and the holographic system activated. "Yes Ash," it replied.

"I need directions to St. Anne, First Class-025."

"Got it," the device responded as it displayed where he was on its screen and the destination as a red dot on the screen and showed all the routes to reach there from where they were.

"That's handy," Leaf said. "How do they come up with such ideas?"

"Who knows?" Ash responded as they began to follow the directions. It didn't take long before they arrived at the hall. Each of them parted to their various rooms and Ash was the last to arrive at his room.

He opened the door with the key that was given to him at the boarding point. Entering the room, he was awestruck. A royal, golden carpet decorated the floor. He looked to his right and saw a king-sized bed with beautiful, white bed sheet and large fluffy pillows. The room looked like it could contain all eleven of his pokémon. A beautiful lounge chair was positioned in the direction of a large television. By his left was a closet, he had doubts if he would use it, and a bathroom. By the side of the bathroom door was a small pool. By the side of his bed was a pamphlet containing a list of guest services. He walked to the bathroom and was surprised at how beautiful it looked. White tiles joined the floor to the wall. A bathtub with a shower and the odd Water Closet. The lighting if the room was perfect and even the fan looked really expensive. The curtain design was also very luxurious.

He doubted whether this room was actually for him or a celebrity. He even had a mini fridge. After getting over the surprise, he tossed his bag on the bed and set his whole team loose. And removed the incubator that contained his Dratini egg and placed it on his bed. His team came out and were a bit taken back by the change in environment.

"Hey guys. I know you're a bit surprised at where we are. You see after defeating Surge, he gave me a ticket for this cruise ship that we're on. We're here to relax from all the hard work we've been doing. However, there's going to be a tournament aboard, so we are also hoping to win it. Sound okay?"

His team looked around. They had all worked hard and deserved a break. Psyduck immediately jumped into the pool upon seeing it, with Wartortle joining him. Ash knew this would happen. Butterfree and Beedrill took to the window side with Clefairy tagging along. Blaze went to the lounge chair and lay on it with plans of lazying about. Ivysaur and Scizor took their spots at the side of the bed. Eevee climbed the bed and curled up into a ball. Tyrunt just payed in the middle of the room, watching the door. Ash had noticed that Tyrunt had started growing more feral. It seems his primal instincts had started kicking in. He lay on his bed, before noticing something. His egg had started glowing and wobbling. It was about to hatch. He quickly sat up as the egg began to crack. He removed the glass covering the incubator as the egg finally broke and Dratini came out.

"Hey there Dratini. My name is Ash."

With Serena

Serena had already gotten over the shock of the room and had released her pokémon. She currently had Delphox. Braixen had evolved after all that rigorous training they had before they reached the St. Anne. She had Charmeleon, Clefable, Sandshrew, she had also requested for Pancham from Professor Oak and had caught a Feebas.

All the first class rooms were pretty much the same. She was happy Ash had sent the map of the ship to her Xtransceiver. Her Feebas was currently in the pool. Charmeleon and Clefable were by the window. Delphox was on the lounge while Pancham and Sandshrew were on the bed with her. She was looking forward to the Tournament aboard the St. Anne.

"I'd better call mum," she said as she turned on her Xtransceiver.

With Misty

Misty was on the bed and had all her pokémon except for Gyarados who she had sent back to accommodate her Kabuto, with the promise of using her in the tournament. The rest of her pokémon were in the pool. Starmie, Goldeen, Her two Poliwhirl, Kabuto and Omanyte. She had evolved Staryu before the St. Anne arrived.

'I'll take this tournament by storm. But first, I better call my sister's,' she thought.

With Leaf

Leaf was currently on her bed with all her pokémon released. Saur was currently on his belly beside her bed. Houndour was curled up in a ball at the center of the room. Skitty was beside him also curled up in a ball. Her Fearow was by the window which had a perch for flying type pokémon. Her Spearow had evolved during a battle with Paul's Fearow. Clefairy and Sandshrew were also by the window. Onix was currently in his pokéball due to his size. Pinsir and Pineco were beside the closet. Nidorino and Nidorina were on the lounge chair while Slugma was beside the chair.

"Hey Saur. How about we call mum and dad and give them an update?"

"Saur," her starter responded.

With Paul

Paul was on his bed as he contemplated the tournament. Infernape was sitting cross-legged at the center of the room. Grotle was on the bed beside him, sleeping. Electabuzz was seated cross-legged by Infernape. Paul had been noticing the rivalry between the both of them. Elekid had evolved during a battle with Infernape. As it took a powerful flamethrower from Infernape and fought to his feet, he evolved. Sandslash and Fearow were by the window. Skorupi was by the closet resting. He had also caught a pokémon who was currently at the lab. He had caught a pretty powerful shiny Teddiursa. She was defeated by his Elekid but she really tired him out to the point Elekid couldn't stand after the battle, prompting Paul to catch her. And for some reason, she knew thunder punch, fire punch, and ice punch.

"Alright," Paul said as he shot up. "Time to call Reggie."

With Gary

The brunette boy was pacing around his room. He had already unloaded his bag and had released all his pokémon. Blast was in the pool floating belly up. Eevee was resting on the bed. Graveler was curled up into a ball by the side of the closet, with Growlithe beside him also curled up. Krabby was also in the pool. Mach was perched by the window side. Flaaffy was lying belly up on the lounge chair. His Mareep had evolved during a battle against Volt. Nidorino was lying beside the bed. His Horsea was also in the pool but at the bottom. And finally, Kadabra was meditating and levitating her spoon. Abra had evolved in a battle with one of the PokéTech Academy students.

Gary suddenly stopped pacing. "I'll call Dad first, before Gramps," he said as he turned on his Xtransceiver.

Back with Ash

Ash had spent few minutes introducing his self and the rest of his pokémon to Dratini and after she had warmed up to them, he let Cleffa look after her while the others continued with what they were doing.

He picked up his Xtransceiver and dialled his Dad's number. It rang before his Dad and his face was shown on the screen.

"Hey Dad. Good morning."

"Morning Ash. How are you doing?"

"I'm great Dad, I'm currently aboard the St. Anne," Ash said as he showed him around his room and his pokémon.

"That's good news Ash. I take it you'll be participating in the Tournament right?"

"Of course Dad. I'm in it to win it. And even if I don't win, I'll earn experience that way."

"That's my champion. So you beat Surge?"

"Yep. He was the one who gave me the tickets. Anyways Dad, my Dratini egg just hatched."

"Seriously. That's great news."

"Yes it is. But I need help."

"In what area?"

"Her skin. It's so soft. I'm afraid I'll damage it."

"Well son, your best bet is to call Professor Oak. He helped me out when my Dratini egg hatched."

"Oh okay. Thanks for the advice Dad."

"No problem Ash. And Ash."

"Yeah."

"You're on a cruise. Take time to enjoy yourself and get to bond more with your pokémon."

"Will do Dad. Bye."

"Bye son, take care."

And the line disconnected. He dialled Professor Oak's number. It rang for almost a minute before he picked up.

"Hello Professor Oak, good morning."

"Good morning Ash my boy. How are you doing?"

"I'm fine Professor. How's the lab and all the pokémon?"

"Well they do miss you guys so much."

"I miss them too and what about you Professor Oak? How are you doing?"

"I'm doing fine Ash my boy. Forget about me and let's talk about you. It seems your Dratini egg just hatched."

"How'd you know?"

"I just recently received an alert showing that a Dratini had been added to your team. And my guess is that you are calling because of its soft skin."

"I should have known. Nothing gets past you Professor Oak," Ash said with a laugh. "That's exactly what I'm calling about."

"Well, new born Dratini need about one to two weeks for their scales to begin to harden, even in the wild. During this period, their skin is extremely fragile and any impact to the skin will cause permanent damage and might even lead to death. And even after their scales harden, they shouldn't battle for another week or so. What you need to do as the trainer is to apply lotion. Did you get some before you boarded the St. Anne?"

"Yes. I got all kinds of lotions an- Wait! How do you know I'm on the St. Anne. I have my ways, plus the background you have is a clean giveaway."

Ash looked back at the luxurious room in the background before laughing.

"Anyways Ash my boy. Go through them and look for Scale Hardener. All lotions are developed by Silph Co. and have their various functions. I suggest you go through them and begin usage immediately. The Scale Hardener is specially designed with chemicals and minerals found in the water that Dratini are rumoured to stay. While she doesn't battle, rub this lotion all over her scales with a soft cloth. This will help with the soft scales. That's about it."

"Thanks Professor Oak."

"Anytime Ash. You Leaf and Gary keep on making Pallet Town proud. Bye."

And the line disconnected. He dialled another number on his Xtransceiver and it didn't take long for the receiver to answer from the other side.

"Hey mum. Good morning."

"Ash, sweety. Good morning. How are you doing? Where are you now?"

"Relax mum, I'm fine. I've got Blaze by my side." Hearing his name, the pseudo-dragon walked over to Ash to join in the conversation.

"Oh if it isn't little Blaze."

Blaze made the Charizard equivalent of a blush at the words of the woman who bred and fed him.

"How are you Blaze? Hope Ash is doing well."

Blaze nodded his head as he snorted a puff of smoke at Ash.

"Blaze!"

Delia just laughed at the antics between the two.

"Anyways," Ash said rolling his eyes. "I'm fine mum. I'm currently on the St. Anne."

"You're on the St. Anne? That's great news Ash. Does your dad know?"

"Yep. I called him earlier to tell him."

"You did." That was not a question. Ash was a bit frightened at Delia's dark face. "So you decided to call your dad before me." Her expression had gotten darker and Blaze was snickering.

"No mum," Ash tried to explain but only stammered in the process.

"All Passengers are expected to gather at the Ship's Main Hall for a little briefing now!" A voice from the speakers in Ash's room said.

"Sorry mum, I'll call you later," Ash said as he hung up.

"Wait Ash," Delia said from the other side, but he had already hung up. "That boy," Delia said to herself. "He's going to regret this."

Ash breathed a sigh of relief. "Saved by the bell, or in this case, the speakers."

Blaze soon couldn't hold it and burst into laughter.

"What are you laughing about?"

Blaze's laughter intensified at the question.

"Go on and laugh. I'm dead. My mum might kill me. Anyways, I'm going to the Main Hall, you're in charge Blaze and no monkey business," Ash said as he left the room and locked them in.

After finding the Ship's Main Hall from the map in his Xtransceiver, he headed there. He met with the others on the way, and all six of them went down to the hall together.

Reaching the Main Hall, they were even more starstruck. Huge chandeliers were hanging from the top of the ceiling. Tables sitting six people were everywhere with fine wine glasses on each table. At the center of each table was a bucket containing chilled non-alcoholic wine that was kept chilled by ice cubes. The chairs were also very lavishing. The flooring was impeccable. Looking forward, one could see a raised podium made of fine wood with a microphone.

Soon the Hall was filled with all the passengers of the St. Anne. Ash and the gang were seated and soon waiters and waitresses entered the Hall, moving from table to table, serving the wine to each of the glasses. After they left, a man dressed in a white sailor's uniform walked in and took the stage. He walked up to the microphone and began to speak.

"Greetings everyone and welcome to the St. Anne. I am your Captain, Captain Jones and it is my pleasure to serve you in the Grandest Ship to ever sail the seas. The St. Anne would begin her departure for Cinnabar Island in a couple of hours, were she will drop all passengers before going to port back in Saffron City were she will prepare for next year's journey. The trip is going to take roughly six days during which there would be a Tournament aboard that would last for about four days. The Tournament is open to everyone and is not restricted to only trainers. I advice everyone to please have a map of the ship as it is quite easy to get lost. As you may have seen from the pamphlet I your rooms, there are a number of services aboard the ship, so I assure you that you won't get bored during your stay here. Also, there would be a banquet by eight o'clock. Suits would be provided for all male trainers and dinner gowns for all female trainers. It is also advised that you come with a date for the banquet. There would be breakfast every morning by eight in the morning and dinner by eight in the evening. That is all. I remain your Captain and once again, welcome to the St. Anne."

With that, he left.

"That was quite a briefing," Paul said.

"They are also going to provide suits and gowns for all trainers aboard. That sounds nice," Leaf said.

"We've still got some time before the ship departs. What do you guys want to do?" Gary asked.

"Well, there's a huge pool at the back deck. What do you say to checking it out?" Ash asked with a grin.

Moments Later

All six of them were currently in their swimwear and had each taken a pool chair for themselves. They had also come with some of their pokémon who were willing to come. Misty came with both Poliwhirl. Paul brought Fearow because he didn't have any water type pokémon. Serena had brought Feebas. Leaf had brought Skitty. Gary had brought Blastoise and Ash had brought Wartortle.

"Cannonball!" they heard from Ash as he jumped into the pool followed by Wartortle, creating a splash. The others soon followed suit. Paul's Fearow took to the skies as he gave the go-ahead not to fly far away from the ship. Gary's Blastoise hit the pool with a huge splash. Gary had to help him a little so he won't hurt himself. They swam for a few minutes before Ash was hit with a large volume of water. It was a water gun. He looked up to see Gary and Blastoise laughing.

Ash looked at Wartortle and he got the message. Wartortle immediately went underwater and swam towards Gary and dragged him underwater causing the boy to scream. Due to the fact that Wartortle was faster in water than Blastoise, he was able to get away easily. He dragged Gary to where Ash was. Seeing that his plan was complete, he lounged at Gary and gave him a submission hold. Ash was laughing triumphantly while Gary pleaded.

"Water gun!" Misty yelled. Both of her Poliwhirl shot jets of water at both Ash and Gary. The first blast took Ash in the face, while the second one took Gary in the cheek as he was laughing at Ash.

Ash and Gary soon surfaced and they all scanned each other. It was war. Each one with his own pokémon darted for the other. Paul was in a tight spot since he didn't have any water type pokémon. They continued this little game for about an hour before going back to the deck. They shared stories about travels, talked about the upcoming league and stuff like that and just downright played with each other, having fun aboard the best cruise ship in the world.

"Hello. This is Captain Jones, and it is with great pleasure that I tell you that the St. Anne has left Vermilion harbor."

There were loud cheers atop the deck as everyone ran to the side to see the ship depart. The trio continued their pool conquest until it was some minutes to four o'clock.

"We better get going. I bet those guys are starting to get hungry," Ash said.

"Yeah. You're right. Fearow!" Paul called out as he watched the flying type land by his side.

"All right then, let's go eat," Leaf said as she led the way, been the ever cheerful one.

Scene Change

They had all gone to their rooms and had gotten the rest of their pokémon. They were currently inside the cafeteria and had ordered food for all their pokémon. Ash added a zinc vitamin to each of their food, already coming up with a pattern of giving them that. Zinc was for Mondays, carbos was for Tuesdays, protein was for Wednesdays, Calcium was for Thursdays, Iron was for Fridays, HP ups were for Saturdays and rare candies for Sundays. The others had also chosen to do the same but in a different manner. His pokémon all had at their food and Ash had to assist Dratini to eat due to her just hatching. They all are to their fill and Ash worked up an appetite and went back to his old ways. He ate roughly seven plates, claiming that it was to gain energy.

After eating, they all decided to head back to their rooms and prepare for the upcoming Banquet.

Ash lazily opened his room door and released all his pokémon, with each of them taking their favorite spots. He looked at his bed and noticed that his suit had already arrived. He hanged it in the closet as he lay in his bed. He looked at the time. Four forty-five in the evening. He decided to close his eyes but he shot up as he realized that there was something he had not done yet.

"I'll be right back you guys," he said as he ran out of the room. His pokémon were all surprised at the way he ran out of the room, but that was their trainer, kind and weird.

Ash ran down the hall before stopping in front of Serena's door. He knocked on it and she opened a while later.

"Ash."

"Hey Serena. May I come in?

"Sure. I don't mind."

Ash walked inside the room and noticed how her pokémon had already claimed spots for themselves. As he entered, Delphox noticed his presence and simply waved her stick to show that.

"I see you've settled down."

"Yeah. It seems they already know the best spots to have."

"Same thing here. Umm.. Serena. Can I ask you something?"

"Of course Ash. Ask me anything."

"How do I put this," he muttered. "Okay. Will you go to the Banquet with me tonight?"

Serena was taken aback for a few moments before she gave Ash her answer. "Of course I will Ash. If not you, who else, my Aura Knight."

Ash blushed slightly. "Thanks Serena. Should I pick you up or will you meet me there."

"I'll meet you there. It takes girls a lot of time to prepare."

"Okay, see you then," Ash said as he left the room.

As soon as he left, all Serena's pokémon shot up and gave her a questioning look.

"What?"

Ash walked down the halls with a huge smile on his face. He opened his room door and all his pokémon noticed this.

"What happened Ash?" Blaze asked.

"Oh nothing," Ash said as he fell happily on the bed and Dratini crawled up to his belly to rest. "You just asked Serena to go with me to the Banquet this evening."

As he said this, all his pokémon had shocked looks on their faces, before they burst out into laughter. They were not laughing at Ash. They were merely happy because Ash had asked Serena out on a somewhat date.

"Oh Ash," Blaze said as he walked up to his trainer.

"We have to make preparations for the evening," Eevee announced.

"You think those two are going to go together?" Blaze asked.

"For sure. Gary knows that if he doesn't go with her, Leaf is going to make his life a living hell."

Later that Evening

It was twenty minutes past seven in the evening. Ash had groomed all his pokémon and had applied on them their various lotions and had given them berries to eat for the night. It was now time for him to prepare for the Banquet. He got into the shower and washed away the sweat and aches from before. After getting out, he brushed his teeth and then stepped out of the bathroom. He looked at the beautiful tux hanging in the wall, but as he was about to take it, Eevee stopped him.

"What Eevee?"

"You can't go to the Banquet with your hair all messy."

"Huh!"

"Into the bathroom you go," she said as she pushed him.

She forced him to apply gel to his hair and she watched him comb it until it was okay. It was still spiky but not messy.

"Now isn't that better?"

He looked at his self in the mirror and was pleased with the results. "It kinda is," he responded.

"Now you can wear your suit."

Ash was fully ready by seven forty-five. He looked at his self once again in the huge mirror by the table at the corner of his bed. He looked good in the nice, black tux. He smiled and turned to his pokémon.

"So how do I look?"

They all gave their approval, but what he wasn't expecting was Eevee walking over to him and requesting to go with him. He accepted. After placing Blaze in charge and Cleffa in charge of Dratini who has agreed to go by the name Emerald due to the color of her scales as a Dragonite, he left the room.

He looked for the direction to the Dining Hall with Eevee beside him. He was later joined by Paul and Gary who were also dressed in a similar tux with him. Gary was with Flaaffy and Paul was with his Teddiursa. He asked them who they had asked to go with them. Gary said he had asked Leaf, and Paul said he had asked a childhood friend of his who was also aboard the St. Anne. When asked , he said he had asked Serena. They reached the huge hall and we're not surprised at the size. They were used to it by now. Huge, bright chandeliers hung from the ceiling. Long dining tables covered in white cloth, surrounded by beautiful chairs were in front of them. On the tables was a meal fit for Kings. The amount of food present was shocking. Many guests had already taken their seats and had begun eating.

The boys had already chosen seats and their pokémon by their sides. A girl with blue hair approached them shortly.

"Hey Paul," she called out.

"Dawn," Paul said as he went to meet her. "Glad you could make it."

"Of course I'll make it. It was a request from dear Pauly," she said with a bright smile.

"It's not like that," Paul said. "I asked you because I'd feel awkward if I was one of the few that didn't have a date."

"Classic Paul," she said before noticing Ash and Gary. "Hi, I'm Dawn."

"Hi. The name's Ash," Ash said as he shook her.

"And I'm Gary. Pleasure to meet you," Gary said as he also shook her.

"The pleasure is mine. So are you guys friends of Paul?"

"They're friends and also rivals. Ash's and Gary's strength impress me. I know you're supposed to love pokémon, but I hate it when guys preach that and forget about grooming his pokémon. It's sick and a waste of a pokémon's potential."

"It's okay Paul," Dawn said, stopping him. "Let's seat down before you rant about pokémon the entire night."

They all sat down while they waited for Leaf, Misty and Serena to arrive. It didn't take long before they heard a voice.

"Sorry we're late," Leaf said.

Ash and Gary turned to look at them. Their jaws dropped as they saw their respective dates. (I apologise, I'm not going to describe their dress. Just imagine how ten year olds would be in dinner gowns.)

The girls joined them and Misty dragged someone along. His name was Trip and he was the one who asked her out. He was from the Unova region and was also cousin to one of the Elite Four of Unova, Marshall the fighting type master. They all got acquainted with each other. Trip was also a pokémon trainer aiming for league glory. Dawn was also a pokémon coordinator like Serena. After getting acquainted with each other, Ash launched the dinner. They had been eating for a couple of minutes when the Captain took the stage.

"Good evening Ladies and Gentlemen. I'm your Captain. Captain Jones. It's a pleasure to see all of you here. Is everyone enjoying their meal?"

A clamor if cheers filled the room. "That's good to hear. I know many of you are wondering about the major activity on the St. Anne, the Pokémon Tournament."

Once again, everyone chorused in agreement. He looked at their faces and noticed that they were all focused on him. "The Tournament will begin tomorrow by eleven in the morning. Registration starts by eight in the morning. The battles would be held at the front deck. All those interested should go there to register. The tournament would last four days. The first two days would be preliminaries that would leave us with eight trainers. The next day would be the quarter final and semifinal matches. The last day would be the final and the award ceremony night which would be the fifth day of our travel."

"I know you're all wondering about the prizes for the top eight. It seems that the league is more evolved this year in the Pokémon Tournament than other years. The bottom four would each get twenty full restores and four TM vouchers to be redeemed anywhere. The top four would each get a pokémon. There would be seven rare pokémon from each of the regions. They would have to choose and whichever one they choose becomes their pokémon. In addition to that, Fourth place wins five Great balls. Third place wins eight Great balls. Second place wins four Ultra balls along with one of every evolutionary item. And first place gets four Ultra balls and a direct entry into the Indigo league next year."

Gasps filled the entire hall. The idea of choosing one of seven pokémon from each region was already great enough, but a direct entry into the Indigo league was amazing. Ash knew what was running through their minds. Each of them wanted to win this and get a shot of choosing a rare pokémon.

"The battle format for the preliminaries is going to be one-on-one battle type. The second stage of the preliminaries is going to be a double battle format. The quarterfinals and semifinals is going to be a three-on-three battles, and the finals is going to be six versus six format. That is all. Enjoy the Banquet." And with that, he left.

Claps and cheers filled the Hall as Jones left, to go back to the wheel house.

"While I don't care about the direct entry. I do care about the possibility of me getting a powerful pokémon," Ash said. "Sorry guys but I'm going to win this."

And with that a nice peaceful dinner turned into an argument. Who was going to win the Tournament. The Banquet was nice and they all ate to their fill. After eating, they each went to do something with their respective dates. Ash took Serena to the souvenir shop were he bought her a water crystal necklace and a miniature model of the St. Anne.

They later went to the Arcade and had a fun time playing various games like Temple of Arceus, Charizard run and the rest. After the fun evening, he said goodbye to Serena and went back to his room with Eevee. By the time he reached, all his pokémon were already fast asleep. Dratini had curled up around Cleffa on one side of the bed. He was also exhausted. He took of his tuxedo and fell on his bed, dozing off almost immediately as his head hit the bed.

The next morning, they were all waiting at the battlefield. They had already registered and had fed their pokémon. Sixty four contestants had registered for the tournament. Those who did not register had to watch behind the protection of the psychic barriers that also reinforced the floor. The work was done by six Alakazam. All the trainers were waiting in anticipation for the first battle.

"Testing," a voice said from the speakers. "Ladies and Gentlemen welcome to the St. Anne Pokémon Tournament. These confident contestants all have a feeling that luck would be on their side and that they would win the tournament. It's a beautiful day to begin the preliminaries which would last for two days. Without further delay, let's start with the first battle for the day."

She paused as a screen randomly matched names.

"First off is Misty Waterflower and Aaron Gabble."

Both of them made their way to the field, with the Alakazam opening the barrier for them to enter. "This is a two on two battle between Misty Waterflower and Aaron Gabble. There are no substitutions and the battle would be over when both pokémon from one side are unable to battle. The red side has the first choice. Begin."

Aaron was red so he had the first choice. Aaron threw a pokéball into the air as he released his first pokémon, Sneasel. Misty countered by releasing her female Poliwhirl.

"Sneasel hone claws."

Sneasel brandished his claws together as it glowed red, raising its attack power. "Now shadow ball."

Sneasel placed its hands in front of it as it charged and fired a shadow ball at Poliwhirl.

"Dodge and use water gun."

Poliwhirl avoided the attack as it shot a jet of water at Sneasel.

"Dodge it and use feint attack."

Sneasel slowly faded into the darkness and made its way to Poliwhirl. Misty was aware that feint attack never missed.

"Poliwhirl take it and use brick break."

Poliwhirl nodded as her hand glowed. She waited patiently for Sneasel to strike, and when it did, she countered back. The brick break attack sent Sneasel flying into the psychic barriers as it was very very effective.

"Sneasel! That was a dirty trick," the boy said.

"Says the one who used feint attack. You can dish it out but you can't take it," Misty retorted. "Poliwhirl, focus punch."

Poliwhirl's hands glowed a blueish white. She lunged at Sneasel and gave it a roundhouse kick before punching it back to its trainer.

"Sneasel get up! I command you."

"This looks sad. Poliwhirl end this. Body slam."

Poliwhirl flexed her legs before jumping high into the air. Reaching her maximum height. She spread her hands and feet and slammed into Sneasel, knocking it out, before jumping back to Misty.

"Sneasel is down for the count," Diane the announcer exclaimed. "Which means that Misty moves on to the second one-on-one battle for today. Congrats Misty."

Misty celebrated before telling Poliwhirl to blow bubbles at the audience, resulting in an awe. Aaron returned his pokémon and stomped off the field. Misty went back to the gang, happy that she was in the next round. They congratulated her and waited for the next battles to pass by.

"It's time for our next battle," Diane announced. "This battle will be between Paul Shinji and Catherine."

Paul smiled as he heard his name and made his way over to the field. Catherine too made her way to the field. Paul was the red trainer, meaning that he had the first move.

"Sandslash, standby for battle," he said as he tossed a pokéball, releasing his Sandslash.

"Come out, Pinsir."

"Sandslash vs. Pinsir, begin."

"Sandslash, rock tomb."

Sandslash slammed his hands on the ground as he summoned rocks and sent them flying at Pinsir in hopes of burying it.

"Pinsir, dodge and use brutal swing."

Pinsir avoided all the falling rocks as it charged Sandslash.

"Counter with metal claw."

Sandslash's claws attained a metallic sheen as it slashed them at Pinsir's horns, resulting in a stalemate.

"Fling," Catherine ordered.

Pinsir grabbed a hold of Sandslash and tossed him into the psychic barriers.

"Focus punch."

Pinsir's hand glowed white. It hurriedly charged at Sandslash.

"Rock slide."

Sandslash slammed his hands on the deck causing rocks to fall from the sky and hit Pinsir.

"Sandslash, use those rocks for a stone edge attack."

Sandslash's eyes glowed white for a second as he slammed his hand on the deck, causing the rocks to form two rings around him. The outer ring had four rocks while the inner one had five rocks. He sent them at Pinsir, slamming into it and dealing severe damage.

"End this Sandslash."

Catherine was busy yelling for her pokémon to get up but Pinsir was battered and bruised from that close range rock slide and stone edge attacks.

"Rock tomb!" Paul yelled.

Sandslash slammed his hand on the deck once again (This slamming of hands on the deck is starting to sound like Doton: doryui hekhi from Naruto.) The rocks on the deck were soon sent flying at Pinsir.

"Pinsir no!"

It was too late. The first rock hit its legs, the second hit its horns, before the rest completely buried it.

"Sandslash," Paul said.

The Mouse pokémon nodded as it slammed his hands once more, lifting the stones from Pinsir's fallen body. It was clear to everyone that Pinsir was knocked out.

"Wow! Sandslash clearly is a formidable force in this tournament. His trainer also looks like he has everything planned. And with that," Diane said. "Catherine is out of the tournament and Paul has advanced to the next round."

Cheers filled the air as she said this. The Alakazam opened the psychic barriers for Paul and Catherine to come out. As Paul came out, they congratulated him on his amazing win. They waited a couple more battles before Diane announced again.

"Hope you all aren't bored. This next match is going to be between Gary Oak and Jake Black. With Gary in the red corner and Jake in the blue corner."

Gary and Jack got up from their seats as they took their respective spots on the battlefield.

"Alright. Let's do this Nidorino," Gary said as he tossed Nidorino's friend ball into the air, releasing him.

"You're mine kid. Go Primeape," Jake said as he released a Primeape.

"This is going to be an awesome battle," Diane said as she watched Nidorino and Primeape face off. "Nidorino vs. Primeape, begin."

Without missing the beat, Gary gave the first attack. "Double team and poison sting."

Nidorino created copies of himself as they surrounded Primeape and began launching poison stings.

"Protect."

Primeape brought forth his hands and erected the green barrier, completely blocking all poison stings from touching it.

"Now, ice punch."

Primeape's hands soon became like ice as it ran at Nidorino.

"Thunderbolt!"

Nidorino sparked up as he shot a powerful bolt of lightning from his horn at an incoming Primeape. The thunderbolt crashed into Primeape and sent him flying back from the super-effective hit. Primeape hit the ground hard.

"Double team. Surround Primeape."

Nidorino created copies of himself. All of them charged Primeape as he started to getting to his feet.

"Primeape, use earthquake."

Primeape slammed both of his hands on the deck while at the same time jumping up. The entire deck shook, but the Alakazam prevented the deck from getting wrecked.

"Dodge with drill run."

Nidorino jumped up to avoid the earthquake attack before all his copies slammed into Primeape, dealing damage to it. The contact with Nidorino had poisoned Primeape as seen by the purple glow on its body.

"Nidorino thunderbolt."

From a point-blank range, Nidorino shot a bolt of lightning at Primeape. The attack electrocuted Primeape hard.

"Let's end this. Venoshock."

Nidorino jumped backwards as it shot a huge blob of poison at Primeape. The attack hit Primeape in and explosion of purple goo and did double damage due to its poisoned status. After the attack cleared, it was engulfed in a purple glow as poison kicked in again. Primeape fainted.

"Pulling off an amazing win after performing that drill run and avoiding earthquake, Nidorino has emerged the winner. That means Jack is out of the tournament and Gary is going on to the next round," Diane announced and cheers and claps filled the air.

Gary and Jack exited the Battlefield and made their way to their respective areas. A couple of matches after that, and it was another battle.

"Welcome again, to another exciting battle. This match is going to be between Leaf Green and Daniel White. Daniel is the red trainer. Proceed to the battlefield."

Leaf and Daniel took their spots on the battlefield.

"You're gonna regret been paired up with me. Come on out Graveler."

Daniel tossed a pokéball into the air and released a Graveler.

"You're dead," Leaf announced.

Everyone flinched at the tone she said this. She tossed her friend ball into the air. Out of her pokéball came a fairly large Cloyster.

"Ster," it said as it came out of its ball.

"She has a Cloyster? How's that possible?"

"Guess everyone has secrets," Paul said, prompting them to look at each other.

At the Battlefield

"Cloyster vs. Graveler begin."

"Hammer arm."

Graveler's arm glowed as it ran at Cloyster.

"Hydro pump."

Cloyster opened its mouth and shot a powerful jet of water, bigger than that of water gun. The powerful water slammed into Graveler and sent it flying behind Daniel and into the psychic barrier.

"That's Leaf for you," Gary said.

"Yeah. Brutal fighting style for a goodhearted girl. Kind of ironic."

At the Battlefield

Graveler was completely drenched by the attack.

"Oh my Arceus!" Daniel exclaimed.

"You need to be observant while battling, if not you'll end up hurting your pokémon," Leaf said with a cheerful face. "Cloyster let's wrap this up."

"Cloy."

"Cloyster use shell smash and end this with frost breath."

Cloyster activated the move and glowed red, raising his attack, special attack and speed, while also dropping its defense and special defense. He opened his mouth and shot an icy breath from its mouth. The attack froze Graveler upon impact and due to the fact that frost breath always ends in a critical hit, it was very bad for Graveler. It was knocked out without even launching a single attack.

"Graveler is down as Leaf has shattered Daniel's dream of winning the tournament. Therefore she advances to the next round."

Everyone cheered for the speedy battle that just occurred. It was clear to everyone that Daniel probably bought a ticket for the St. Anne and hasn't properly trained his pokémon.

"When did you get a Cloyster?" Gary asked as she left the battlefield to meet them.

"Well it was some days back. He came and attacked us when we were training. He was able to prove himself a strong pokémon by giving Saur a hard time."

"Really? He gave Saur a hard time?" Ash asked.

"Yeah. After the battle, Saur was exhausted."

They talked for some time before Serena was called for her match. She was facing off against a girl named Rose. Serena was on the red side and she had the first choice.

"Come out, Pancham."

Out of Serena's pokéball came her Pancham.

Rose quietly released a Persian.

"Serena has the type advantage," Misty announced.

"Yeah, but that Persian is not your average Persian. Look how big it is and how shiny its gem is. Serena's going to need strategy to beat that thing," Ash said.

Back at the Battlefield

"Pancham vs. Persian begin.

"Leer."

"Water pulse."

Before Pancham could leer at Persian, the normal type had launched a water pulse that hit Pancham in the face.

"Aerial ace."

Persian shot forward with glowing white head. It slammed into Pancham, dealing a great amount of damage.

"Pancham! Thank goodness," Serena said as she saw Pancham get up. Training with all those flying types must have paid off.

"Persian, shadow ball."

"Foul play and send it back."

Persian fired the ball of ghostly energy at Pancham, but he sent it back with foul play. The shadow ball coupled with foul play hit Persian, giving Serena the opening she needed.

"Storm throw," Serena called.

Pancham ran at Persian and picked it up by its tail, before tossing it into the air and letting it crash on the ground.

'It's worth a shot to end this battle.' "Use roar."

Pancham mustered up a deep voice and gave a big battle roar. As Persian heard the roar, it was engulfed in a red light and was sent into its pokéball. Ash smiled while the rest of the crowd were dumbfounded.

"Pulling off a shocking and surprising victory is Serena who will move on to the next round," Diane said, understanding what had happened.

The move roar was a move that is used to make wild pokémon flee or to force a trainer to substitute his pokémon. Once a pokémon hears a roar from another equal or above it in a certain way, it reacts with its pokéball and backs down, retreating to its pokéball for another pokémon to take the stage. But, in a one-on-one battle, that's a loss on the side of the opposition. It is a sign of backing down.

"Way to go Serena," Leaf said as she approached them.

They ended up waiting until the final battle before Ash was called. His opponent was a girl and she was on the red side. Ash watched her take a pokéball and release a Xatu. Ash recognized the flying and psychic type. Xatu were not very powerful, but their teleportation was a pain in the neck. Ash took a deep breath as he released Tyrunt. If he was not mistaken, this was the first official battle he was using Tyrunt.

Ash wasn't dumb. He knew she was going to rely on Xatu's teleportation ability, and that's why he chose Tyrunt. The dragon type was the only one apart from Blaze who could sense opponents and Ash had especially honed this with Gary and his Abra, now a Kadabra. That girl was in trouble. Diane gave the signal for the match to begin.

Ash smirked slightly at Xatu's fallen body while the girl stood there in shock. Using Tyrunt's sense of smell, they were able to pull through. The girl had ordered Xatu to use teleport right from the beginning and then use night slash. That was a big mistake. Ash let Xatu draw close to Tyrunt and land a hit, but it also allowed Tyrunt to get a whiff of Xatu's scent. After four rock polish moves, Ash began to battle. Xatu teleported once more and before it could use ominous wind, it was hit with a dark pulse from Tyrunt and knocked out of the sky. Ash quickly followed up with a bite attack and ended the battle with stone edge. Moves he and Tyrunt had practiced. Tyrunt's stone edge was not perfect, but it did its work, and thanks to Kings Species, the battle was easy.

The first rounds were over and they were given a thirty minute break, after which, all trainers were to return to the field. Trip and Dawn had also won their battle. They all went to have lunch and after their thirty minutes were up, they went back up to the deck.

"Welcome to the second round of the first stage preliminaries. These thirty-two trainers have proved their worth and told us that they deserve to be here. So put your hands together for them."

Cheers once again filled the deck as they praised the trainers that made it to the second round.

"Now let's begin the second round. The first two trainers squaring of will be..."

None of them were called until the tenth battle. It was Paul against a boy. His name was Clinton. The two of them were currently facing each other in the field. Paul was the red trainer. He drew a deep breath before tossing his ball into the air. Teddiursa was the one who came out of her pokéball. The boy smiled before releasing a Hitmonlee. Diane gave the signal for the battle to commence.

"Teddiursa ice punch."

"Hitmonlee, jump kick."

Teddiursa's right hand became like ice as it ran at Hitmonlee only to notice Hitmonlee coming quickly with a jump kick. Teddiursa swerved right to dodge, with Hitmonlee's attack narrowly missing her. It was fast.

"Hitmonlee mega kick."

Hitmonlee's feet glowed white as it kicked Teddiursa and sent her flying.

"Teddiursa!" Paul yelled.

"Hitmonlee, high jump kick."

Hitmonlee responded by jumping into the air and coming down with its knee towards Teddiursa. Teddiursa dodged the attack, letting Hitmonlee take the recoil damage. Her hands glowed white as she swiped them along Hitmonlee's back. It was cross chop. Hitmonlee was sent rolling across the floor.

"Thunder punch."

"Revenge."

Hitmonlee got up in a red glow just as Teddiursa's hand had sparked up. It charged Teddiursa but Paul was ready for it. He ordered Teddiursa to use protect and she was able to erect the green barrier just in time. Hitmonlee slammed into the barrier and revenge was cancelled. Teddiursa dropped the barrier as she gave an uppercut to Teddiursa using thunder punch. Hitmonlee was launched into the air and down with great force.

"Lee," Hitmonlee said as it hit the ground.

"Teddiursa, use yawn."

Teddiursa opened its mouth and yawned. As the sound reached Hitmonlee, while it was starting to get up, it started feeling drowsy. It soon fell to the ground asleep. Clinton frantically yelled for Hitmonlee to wake up, but it was at the mercy of Paul and Teddiursa.

"Teddiursa thunder punch, back to back."

Teddiursa's hands sparked up as it began punching Hitmonlee over and over again. After four hits, Hitmonlee woke up, battered and bruised.

"Hitmonlee rolling kick."

"Gunk shot, aim for its eyes."

Before Hitmonlee could move, He was hit in the face with gunk shot, dealing super-effective damage and covering Hitmonlee's eyes.

"Hitmonlee," Clinton yelled as Hitmonlee struggled to remove it from its eyes.

"Teddiursa, let's end this. Double Thunder punch."

Teddiursa held both her hands in front before drawing them back, charging her thunder punch ( just like Hinata's Gentle step, twin lion fists in Naruto). As both her hands sparked up, she ran at Hitmonlee, before spearing it with both fists, sending it flying until it hit the barrier, never to get up again.

Cheers filled the air as Teddiursa got up and walked back to Paul.

"What a surprise? When the battle started, it seemed like nothing was going Paul's way but he pulled through with surprise moves and has knocked Clinton out of the tournament, and he has advanced to the Second Stage of the Preliminaries tomorrow," Diane said and everyone cheered once again.

Paul returned Teddiursa he was going to get one of those pokémon and win it all. A couple of matches passed and it was Ash's turn. He was facing an elderly man that went by the name Morty. The man was on the red side and he had already released a pokémon. It was a Houndoom. Ash smiled, he had the perfect counter to Houndoom. He released Clefairy. As Diane have the signal for the battle to begin, Morty began.

"Houndoom, use inferno."

Houndoom quickly unleashed the roaring torrent of flames at Clefairy.

"Protect."

Clefairy extended her arms as she erected the green barrier. The barrier was able to hold up the flames from getting to her. As the attack ended, Morty began.

"Iron tail."

"Dodge amd focus punch."

Houndoom's tail attained a metallic sheen as it came upon Clefairy. It swiped its tail at her, but she dodged and gave it a focus punch to the belly, launching it back. Houndoom hit the ground but it got up.

"Houndoom, thunder fang."

Houndoom's maw sparked up with electricity as it ran at Clefairy. Ash ordered her to use signal beam, but Houndoom dodged it and sanked its teeth into her flesh. It picked her up and began shaking her like a rag doll, dealing an incredible amount of damage. Ash was in a tight spot, Clefairy's defense wasn't all that great. He decided to go with the only move that had a chance of getting her out that hold.

"Metronome."

Clefairy tried her best to execute metronome, but it turned into a psychic attack that had no effect on Houndoom.

"Fire fang."

Houndoom's thunder fang changed into a fire fang as Morty was insistent on burning Clefairy. Houndoom continued to shake Clefairy with great force until Ash called out another metronome. Lucky for Ash, the metronome turned into aqua jet, forcing Houndoom to let go. Ash could clearly see the blood on Clefairy's neck and the burn marks also. Houndoom's attack had drawn blood. As Houndoom let go, it froze in its tracks.

"Houndoom flamethrower."

It didn't move.

"What's going on with Houndoom?" Diane said, drawing everyone's attention back to the battle.

Taking a closer look, Ash understood it. Houndoom had been affected by Clefairy's cute charm ability. He was currently infatuated with her and won't attack her for any reason. Ash knew this was his moment to make a comeback.

"Focus punch."

Clefairy ran at Houndoom before slamming her fist into its face, and sending it to the ground. Houndoom got up but was still affected by cute charm. "Work up and them disarming voice."

Clefairy used work up as she increased both her attack and special attack stats. She sang loudly as she used disarming voice to knock Houndoom to the ground.

"Houndoom get yourself together."

"Into the air. Water pulse followed by drain punch."

Clefairy jumped towards Houndoom before blasting him with a water pulse, causing an explosion of water. She landed atop Houndoom as she used drain punch, draining Houndoom's energy and taking it into her self. Houndoom slowly tried to get up, but Ash ordered her to use sing. She sang so beautifully that Houndoom slept off. She continued her drain pulse assault into Houndoom passed out.

Everyone in the deck was quiet. And then they burst into cheers at the way the battle ended.

"And just like that folks. Ash has secured his place in the second stage preliminaries. Using his wit and with luck on his side, he has prevailed against Morty and his Houndoom."

Ash hugged Clefairy as he thanked Morty for the awesome battle. The next battles came pretty quickly.

Serena had faced off against a girl named Mary. Mary had sent out a Pinsir while Serena had sent out Clefable. The battle was pretty close, but Serena made it in the end through a critical metronome flamethrower, earning her place in the second stage of the Preliminaries.

Misty had been paired with a boy. His name was Scott and he had sent out a Fearow. Misty was able to bring it down through a clever usage of hypnosis and ice attacks, earning her place in the second stage of the Preliminaries.

Leaf also won her battle against this guy named Tyler. He was pretty cocky and Leaf took advantage of this using her brutal fighting style. The boy I question had released a Vileplume. Leaf had used her Slugma. Increasing the intensity of the sun through sunny day, Leaf had Slugma push Vileplume to a corner with fire moves like ember, incinerate and flame burst, before attacking with intensity using flamethrower and fire blast. The only chances she gave the opposition to attack was with a solar beam which she extinguished with fire blast and a venoshock which hit Slugma. Leaf was happy. She had secured her place in the top sixteen.

Gary had also won his match. His opponent was a boy that looked to be in his teens. The kid had countered Gary's Growlithe with an Ampharos. Thanks to the Kings Species gene in Growlithe, he was able to win the battle by defending with weak fire moves like ember and flame wheel and fire spin, and them attacking with fire blast, flamethrower and ending the match with a flare blitz to counter Ampharos' wild charge. Flare blitz had prevailed in the end and knocked Ampharos out earning Gary the win.

Dawn had also won, using a pokémon she called Bibarel. Trip had also won his battle with a Mankey.

"And that's it for the second round of the first stage preliminaries," Diane said and everyone cheered. "We are now down to sixteen trainers and they are going to face off against each other tomorrow. The battles will be double battles as said earlier and will commence by twelve o'clock. That is all." And she left.

By the time all the battles were over, it was almost time for dinner. Ash and the gang made their way back to their various rooms and freshened up, before heading to the Dinner Hall. Dinner was quick because each of them wanted to run over their strategies before tomorrow. And Ash was sure that Paul and Gary might have it in mind to go and pick one of the training rooms aboard the great ship. After dinner, Ash went to the cafeteria and got food for each of his pokémon.

He entered his room with a huge bag containing their food. It was a good thing that they were all free. He dropped the bag as he released each of them. They came out, all ready to here how they did in the preliminaries, but first food. Ash laid out twelve bowls and poured pokémon food into it, and then sprinkled the carbos powder on it. He mixed it and served it for each of them. The food also seemed to be far more delicious than the occasional one they usually had, if the look on Blaze's face had anything to say about it. Ash knew Blaze loved food as much as he did, so he brought extras just in case.

"So guys. I know you want to here the outcome of the preliminaries today."

They all nodded.

"Well, we made it to the second stage of the preliminaries, thanks to Tyrunt and Clefairy."

His team cheered, each in their own way. Blaze snorted smoke from his mouth. Like Ash, he was largely extroverted. He usually spat flames into the sky, but he didn't want to risk burning the room. Psyduck danced about. He was more of a "I can't afford to lose" kind of guy. Volt twirled his arms as his antenna sparked. He was a born prankster and had a mischievous and secret nature. Butterfree and Beedrill both took the news by flying around each other in a calm way. Scizor smiled. He was the calmest out of all the pokémon, but even he can get battle hungry and insane. Clefairy giggled while Tyrunt roared. He was more of a general than a pokémon as shown when he addresses some of them. Eevee simply puffed up her chest in pride. She sees herself as royalty even though she is not, and likes everything to be as it is meant to be, perfect. Ivysaur was a peacemaker by heart so he just waved his vines in the air. Wartortle celebrated by spinning in his back. He was a boss by nature. Ash had noticed that he had already taken Psyduck under his wing.

None of his pokémon were normal, and he knew it. But that was how he liked them. As for Emerald, he didn't know anything about her, but she seemed to have warmed up to him as she was currently in his arms, feeding. After they had finished eating, they rested for sometime. After their little rest, Ash called Butterfree, Beedrill, Eevee and Volt with him, while the rest stayed back. He placed Clefairy in charge of Emerald and Blaze in charge of all of them.

He took the others to the training part of the ship and booked a room for a thousand pokédollars. After payment, he was given the key to one of the rooms. He opened the room and turned on the lights. The area was pretty big. The floor was wood, but it was very strong. He saw a command center for the room and saw targets. 'I need to do this at home.'

He released them from their confines and explained to them why they were here. After they understood, they began their training session.

The Next Morning

They had had quite an awesome training session the previous night, and Ash was ready for the day. All sixteen trainers were waiting for Diane to arrive and begin the battles for the day.

Meanwhile In an Unknown Location

It was pitch black, until a single light turned on, illuminating the area just enough for you to see, the faces of those present with you. Seated on a table was Team Rocket Commander, Proton. There was another seated with him.

"Archer!" Proton called the other man.

"Yes Proton."

"Pierce is late and I have training to conduct with the grunts. If he doesn't come in the next five minutes, I'm leaving."

"Patience, Proton. I'm already here," a man said as he approached the table.

"Pierce," Archer said.

"You're late. And why did you call for this meeting?" Proton asked, feeling slightly irritated.

"It's for the next big thing, and the boss asked me to make plans with you guys."

On hearing the boss been mentioned, Proton calmed down a little. "And what would that be?" Archer asked.

"Well you both know about the St. Anne, right?" On seeing them nod, he proceeded. "As you all know, the St. Anne is sponsored by the Pokémon League. And from our sources, this year, the league is more involved in it than the rest. Currently aboard that ship are seven rare pokémon, one from each region. Also aboard are dozens of trainers, each crawling with pokémon in their pockets. And also, there are a lot of valuable items aboard that ship, because it is the Grandest Ship to set sail."

"So what does the boss want us to do?" Archer asked.

"Raid it," Pierce said with a sinister smile. "Collect as many pokémon as possible. Kill any oppositions and destroy the ship. Doing so will cause a major loss to the league."

"This plan isn't all that grand," Proton said. "And besides, the Pokémon master and Champion of Kanto will just come and stop us."

"No they won't. Both of them are in Alola for research purposes, alongside Bruno and Fuschia of the Elite Four. Lorelei is back at home in the Orange Archipelago, and only Agatha is present. Plus, to interest you, a certain someone you would like to meet is aboard that ship."

"Who?"

"Ash Satoshi Ketchum, the son of the Master himself." Proton perked up with interest as he heard those words. He smiled a devious plan as he agreed to the plan alongside Archer. "I assume you have plans for him?"

"Yes. And how are we going to pull this off?" Archer asked.

"Leave that to me. Are the rage devices ready yet?"

"Yes they are," Archer responded.

"Then in a few days, we raid the St. Anne. It is going to take time to prepare the necessary things for this to happen. Until then we're dismissed."

Proton got up from his chair. He hadn't forgotten the kid who fouled their plans in Mt. Moon or delayed the Project END. He had plans and they were going to happen. He burst into a growing evil laughter.