Ace vs Ash

Altogether nine of us, not counting the pokemon, were gathered in Bill's living room after Ash and Tracey had arrived. Quite coincidentally I might add, since they had been lost on their way to Vermillion city.

The two newcomers told us quite a bit about what they had been up to since leaving Pewter city, like crossing Mt. Moon, and the time they had to spend in Cerulean since the Gym was closed for a few days(due to Team Rocket's attack). Then they started making their way south to Vermillion city, getting so lost that they completely missed Saffron city altogether.

Ash especially had been excited to learn that Riolu had evolved into Lucario, and couldn't wait for his to do so as well.

"Well this is exciting! All of professor Oak's proteges together under one roof!" Bill exclaimed as he looked each of us over.

"True. It's the first time we've all been together since before we set out on our journey." I commented, thinking back on how Ash had been late waking up that morning, and missed Gary and I leaving. And personally speaking, I hadn't seen Ash since leaving Pewter city quite a while ago.

"Well I'm glad that we met each other here!" Ash declared as he jumped to his feet, Pikachu hanging tight to avoid being thrown off his shoulder. "Aniki, let's have a rematch before I go to beat Surge!"

"Hmmm." I hummed in contemplation while considering Ash's challenge. The last actual battle I had was back before we left the Pokemon Center, and I was curious to see how far he'd come.

"Alright then. If Bill doesn't mind, we can have our rematch." I said while looking towards the researcher questioningly.

"Of course! I relish the chance to get to see everyone's pokemon that they've collected this far! I've even got a small arena set out outside for when my own pokemon want to test themselves, and it looks like the rain has slowed down."

Looking out the window as he said that, I nodded before looking at Ash and saying, "Alright. Time to show me how far You've come little brother."

"You got it Aniki! I've been training nonstop with my team, AND I've also caught some really good new pokemon since our last battle!" Ash proclaimed excitedly, making me wonder if he'd seen any of the footage that's been posted online about me since we last saw one another.

After all, I myself have gotten a LOT of new and powerful pokemon since then, while all of my pokemon that hadn't yet have evolved since leaving Pewter city, except for Cranidos.

"Now hold on just a second!" Gary proclaimed while also standing up, drawing everyone's attention to him. "I'm not going to just sit around and let you steal a march on ME Ashy boy! I also want a rematch against Ace the waste!"

"Butt out Gary! I challenged Aniki first!" Ash declared angrily, making Gary grit his teeth as he prepared to retort back, but then Bill stepped in.

"Now now, there's no need to fight." Bill said while trying to be the voice of reason.

"Yeah, I can just battle both of you one after the other." I stated calmly, looking between Ash and Gary.

""Huh?"" They both uttered while looking at me in confusion.

"Well, I've got PLENTY of pokemon to choose from. I can battle Ash first, since he was the first one to challenge me, then swap out for some fresh pokemon to battle Gary." I explained to them.

"Sounds like a plan." Bill stated, obviously excited to see more of my pokemon.

"I guess that works..." Gary muttered begrudgingly.

"Alright! That means I get to battle Aniki first!" Ash exclaimed.

"Haaa..." Tracey sighed in undisguised exasperation at my brother's excitement. I could even see his red aura flaring up in anticipation.

With him leading the way, we all hurried outside where thick clouds of fog had rolled in after the rain. Our view of the arena however was unobscured as we took our places around it, Ash on his side, me on mine, and everyone else to the side while Bill stood in the center to referee.

"This will be a six on six single round battle. All pokemon may only be used for one round, and shall not continue battling even if they win the match." Bill stated as he declared the rules, which were actually the same rules Ash and I battled with before. Except that had been a three on three instead of six.

"Fine by me! Now let's get started!" Ash declared as he palmed his first pokeball.

"I'm ready too." I said as I finished swapping out the pokemon I wanted.

"Go Squirtle!" Ash declared, sending his first one out.

"Squirtle squirt!" Ash's Squirtle declared as it reached into its shell to pull out a pair of sunglasses to wear.

"What the-!?" Gary exclaimed when he saw Ash's Squirtle, not that I could blame him. After all, this meant that all three of us had the same pokemon he chose for his starter.

"Interesting choice." I said without too much surprise. After all, I did recall that Ash managed to acquire all three of the Kantonian starters during his travels.

"Let's go, Cranidos!" I cried out while throwing the respective pokeball.

"Dos!" Cranidos cried as he appeared, his gaze immediately focusing on Squirtle.

"Both sides ready?" Bill asked as he looked between the four of us, though I'm pretty sure his eyes lingered on Cranidos for a second. "Begin!"

"Squirtle, use a Water Gun!" Ash declared immediately.

"Squirtle!"

Squirtle complied with a cry before it fired a powerful blast of water from its mouth at Cranidos. I have to admit, it definitely looked like quite the impressive little Squirtle.

"Cranidos, use Battering Ram." I calmly commanded.

"""Battering Ram?""" The rest of the guys questioned as one. But their question was soon answered.

Rather than trying to avoid the powerful blast of water, Cranidos charged forward right at it with his full speed and head lowered. And when the Water Gun hit him, it was sprayed in every other direction by his dome head instead of actually hitting him.

"What was that phrase? The best defense is a good offense?" I asked with a smirk as Cranidos took barely any damage from the Water Gun despite it being a type advantage against him, before he proceeded to ram into Squirtle with his full strength.

"!!!"

"Squirtle!" Ash exclaimed as the little turtle was sent flying back, and hit the ground hard without moving to get up.

"Squirtle is unable to battle!" Bill proclaimed, announcing my first victory.

"Good job Cranidos." I complimented the fossil pokemon.

"Cranidos!" He declared smugly while trotting back over to my side.

"Cranidos has gotten a lot stronger..." I heard Tracey mutter to himself as he hurriedly sketched my pokemon in his notebook.

I smirked at the comment before saying to Ash, "remember little brother, there's nothing else more hard-headed than a Cranidos."

As I said that I knocked on his head for emphasis, even as Ash returned Squirtle to its pokeball.

"I understand Aniki..." Ash replied, before pulling out his next pokemon. "But this one won't lose! Charmander!"

"Char char!" The little Charmander exclaimed as it appeared this time in Squirtle's place.

"Oh? You found a Charmander too?" I asked while feigning ignorance, already knowing which pokemon I was going to use this time.

"That's right! And together, we're going to win this round!"

"Char char!"

In the face of Ash's declaration, and Charmander crying in affirmation, I simply grabbed my next pokeball.

"In that case... Go, Tangela!"

"Tangela!"

"Woah!" Ash exclaimed in surprise as he hurriedly used his pokedex to scan my Tangela.

"In a real battle, your opponent will never give you the chance to scan their pokemon Ash! Tangela, use Vine Whip!" I commanded my pokemon.

"Ah! Charmander, use Flamethrower!"

"Char!"

Responding to Ash's command, Charmander spewed out a powerful blast of fire that scorched Tangela's attacking vines before hurtling towards it.

"Vine Weave: Wall!"

"Tangela!"

Hurrying due to the rapidly approaching stream of flames, Tangela used several vines to attempt to create a barrier between the two of them. It was a new technique we had been working on recently, and so he had been unable to create the actual wall that I had told him to.

Thankfully though, the mass of vines he'd created WAS able to block the fire, preventing anything from hitting Tangela, and also allowing him to prepare for the next move that I had mentally commanded him earlier.

As Charmander's flames burned through the mass of vines, it revealed Tangela surrounded by numerous stones that he had pulled up from within the earth.

"Now Tangela, Ancient Power!"

"TANG!"

Crying in affirmation, Tangela sent the numerous stones directly at Charmander with pinpoint accuracy.

"Get out of the way Charmander!" Ash cried out urgently. And while Charmander did try to avoid the barrage of powered rocks, Tangela had such precise control that they honed in onto the little fire lizard with pinpoint accuracy.

One after the other they slammed into Charmander, battering the little lizard until it collapsed from the damage that had been inflicted on it.

"Charmander is unable to battle! Tangela and Ace win the second round!" Bill declared to announce our second victory.

"Good job Tangela." I praised the little bundle of vines for his victory.

"Tang!" Tangela cried back with a pleased voice, before his entire body began to glow.

My smile widened as Tangela grew to twice his height, making him roughly a foot taller than I was, before the glow faded to reveal his new form. Though he was still a mass of vines, Tangela was now practically hulking compared to his earlier form, complete with three vines on each side that ended in red tips, which were actually retractable arms that he could now use.

"Well look at you, you great big brute!"

"Tang!" My newly evolved Tangrowth boomed in a notably deeper voice, even as he slowly made his way back to my side.

"You've got so many vines now, we can definitely work out the kinks and improve on Vine Weave." I told him while also resisting the urge to scan him on the Pokedex. I'd criticized Ash for just that earlier after all.

Instead I turned back to my little brother, whose aura was flaring intensely after his second loss, and from seeing one of my pokemon evolve.

"I'm not going to lose the next one Aniki! Go Bulbasaur!"

"Bulba bulb!" Bulbasaur cried as it appeared.

"How did Ash get a Squirtle, Charmander AND a Bulbasaur?" I heard May mutter to Dawn on the sidelines, who merely shrugged in response. Gary on the other hand was fuming that Ash had all three of the starters the professor offered, which I had to fight not to laugh out loud at.

Speaking of, I still needed to find myself a Bulbasaur...

There was no way I was going to miss out on collecting every single starter I could get my hands on.

But that was for later, right now I had to beat my little brother in this battle.

"Go, Tyrunt!"

"TYRUNT!"

The little dinosaur roared as he appeared on the battlefield, his battle-hungry gaze focusing entirely on Bulbasaur.

"Another fossil pokemon!?!" Gary exclaimed in disbelief, while Bill's eyes sparkled like Christmas had come early. Fossil pokemon may be rare, but as far as I knew Tyrunt were almost nonexistant amongst them.

Ash too was burning with curiosity and excitement that was being radiated outwards through his aura as he gazed at my pokemon. Now that I think about it, his aura did look like it's gotten stronger since I last saw him.

But there was time for that later.

Ash, apparently having learned his lesson after Tangela, immediately ordered, "Bulbasaur, use Razor Leaf!"

"Bulbasaur!"

Crying in affirmation, Bulbasaur quickly stirred up a flurry of leaves that shot at Tyrunt like bladed bullets.

"Ancient Power."

'And then Roar.'

Giving two commands at once, vocally and mentally, Tyrunt immediately did as I said as he forcefully brought several chunks of stone up from within the earth. Not only did they scatter the Razor Leaf, but they also forced Bulbasaur to move in order to dodge them.

With his opponent distracted, Tyrunt dug his claws into the soft earth, took in a deep breath, and let loose a powerful and fearsome Roar.

"RUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUNT!"

Not just Bulbasaur, but nearly every single person and pokemon in the area flinched and recoiled from the intensity of Tyrunt's Roar. Only a few of us didn't even flinch, while Bulbasaur got the worst of it as his actual target.

The quadrupedal bulb was completely immobilized in fear of Tyrunt, its body shivering slightly under his gaze.

"Now, finish Bulbasaur with a Tackle!" I commanded him.

"Tyrunt!" He cried in affirmation, charging at Bulbasaur while quickly building up speed.

"!!!"

"Quick Bulbasaur! You have to move!" Ash yelled at his pokemon.

That seemed to do it as Bulbasaur became aware of what was about to happen, and swiftly dodged out of the way of Tyrunt's Tackle.

"Great! Now give it a Vine Whip!"

"Bulbasaur!"

Responding to Ash's command, Bulbasaur sent numerous vines at Tyrunt to try and end this fight. But, baby or not, Tyrunt wasn't going to go down that easily.

'Grab and pull.' I mentally commanded him.

Dodging deftly to the side of the Vine Whip, Tyrunt snapped his jaws down onto the vines to lock them into place.

""!?!""

While both Ash and Bulbasaur were surprised by the move, Tyrunt kept it going as he pulled on the vines with all his strength instead of biting through them.

I had heard about Tyrunt swinging an Arbok around as a weapon during the battle for Lavender town. In comparison, a tiny Bulbasaur was no match for his neck and jaw strength.

Though it tried to brace itself, Bulbasaur was still yanked into the air towards Tyrunt without being able to control itself.

"Now give it a full powered Tackle, head on!" I declared, and Tyrunt did just that.

With both of their respective momentums going in opposite directions, the Tackle was basically twice as powerful as Tyrunt slammed his body into Bulbasaur's. The little bulb was sent crashing down to the ground by the force of the attack, where it stayed down.

"Bulbasaur is unable to battle! Tyrunt wins this round!" Bill announced.

"Return Bulbasaur!" Ash cried while returning his pokemon back to its ball. "You did really well out there."

I could hear him praise his Pokemon quietly while Tyrunt smugly trotted back to my side.

"That was excellent." I told Tyrunt while scratching the top of his head, making him do some kind of gutteral purr of contentment in response. Truth be told I was a little worried since the Tyrunt and Tyrantrum line were known for their brutality, but things went ok this time.

"This isn't over yet Aniki!" Ash declared as he pulled out his next pokeball, already ready for the next round.

"I couldn't agree more." I responded while doing the same.

Though technically this round would end the battle if I won it, as the best of six, today we were going to use all six pokemon we were able to so that Bill could get a chance to see them all in action.

Tracey apparently appreciated the chance as well, as he was still scribbling furiously in his notebook while glancing up at Tyrunt occasionally. I just recalled I still needed to trade notes and sketches with him one of these days.

I put that thought on the back burner for the moment though while returning my attention to my battle with Ash.

"Go, Spearow!" Ash cried while sending out his next pokemon.

"SpearROOOOOW!" Spearow cried out as it appeared, before.....

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Stop that Spearow!" Ash yelled while trying to protect his head, which Spearow was furiously using Peck on.

"Always the same with Spearow..." Tracey said while shaking his head.

"Seriously?" May asked him incredulously.

"Yeah... Spearow is easily one of Ash's strongest pokemon, but it still doesn't like to listen to him and does whatever it wants when he tries to battle with it..."

I looked at my brother with pity at how his Spearow still refused to listen to him. Though, this may make for an excellent experience for later if Charmander also becomes a dick after evolving again.

Only once it was satisfied with the number of times it had Pecked Ash did Spearow go to its place in the arena, still fully intending to fight. It may not listen to Ash, but that Spearow still apparently had a chip on its shoulder and a point to prove.

"If we're going to go ahead with the battle, then I choose you, Buizel!"

"Bui bui!" Buizel cried as he appeared on the battlefield, staring down at Spearow as he did so.

"Spearow, use Tri Attack!"

"Spear!"

I smiled wryly as Spearow said something less than flattering to Ash's command, before shooting forward at Buizel with its wings glowing for a Wing Attack.

I fought the urge to shake my head at the angry and hot-headed bird, not even bothering to give Buizel a command as he elegantly dodged Spearow's attack by the barest margin.

"!!!"

"Shoot it out of the sky Buizel."

"Bui Bui."

With the same calmness I was feeling, Buizel followed Spearow's movements before firing a pressurized Water Gun with pinpoint accuracy.

"!!!"

Without even being able to react to it, Spearow was sent tumbling beak over tail feathers after being hit by the Water Gun. However it was not down yet despite that.

"End it Buizel." I ordered my pokemon, and he began running on all fours at the angry bird while water formed on his body for an Aqua Jet.

"Get up Spearow!" Ash urged his bird as Buizel honed in on it.

"Spearow..." The little bird growled as it stood to its feet, but it made no motion to flee or take flight. Instead, it glared right at Buizel as if to say 'bring it!'

And 'bring it' Buizel did.

We all watched as Buizel slammed his water-covered body into Spearow's as hard as possible, sending the now soaked bird rolling on its side to the edge of the arena.

"..."

For a beat nothing happened.

"Spearow is-!" Bill began, before catching himself as Spearow began to pick itself up off the ground.

"Spear...row!" Spearow declared, stating that it wasn't finished just yet.

"Spearow, please listen to me!" Ash pleaded with the little bird, his aura flaring in response to his emotions.

"I want to win too! So please, try listening to what I say for once!"

"Spearow...." Spearow uttered as it looked at my brother thoughtfully, and I could feel its stubbornness wavering for several seconds.

Though we could end it now without giving them the chance to recover, both Buizel and I waited to see what would happen. Neither of us doubted our impending victory, and this could be a good chance for Ash and his pokemon to increase their bond and grow stronger.

And that was exactly what happened.

"Spearow!"

Declaring that it would listen to Ash 'this time', Spearow shakily rose to its feet before turning its attention towards both Buizel and I.

I'm pretty sure I saw recognition in Spearow's gaze as it looked at me, recalling that it and Ash had battled me once before back in Viridian. Plus I WAS technically the one who caught it, only I gifted it to Ash since I already had Pidgeot, and he HAD been the one to defeat Spearow and it's flock originally with Pikachu.

Perhaps because it decided to listen to Ash for the first time, or because it wanted revenge after losing to me and Squirtle before, I'm not sure which. But at that moment Spearow began to glow as its form began to grow larger.

"No way!" Tracey exclaimed as he hurriedly began scribbling even more, sketching the exact moment that my brother's Spearow evolved into its final form, Fearow.

"FEAROOOOOOOOW!" The bird cried when its evolution had finished, revealing its brand new form for all to see.

Not only had it grown to four times its original height, but its neck had also grown significantly longer along with its beak, making it look more like a stork or crane. To say nothing of its wings, which were now big and powerful enough to even carry a passenger.

Spreading them open to their full length, Fearow directed a look at Buizel as if to say it was his turn now.

Both of us cocked a brow at that before smirking in amusement.

"If that's what you think, then come on." I said to taunt the newly evolved bird.

"Bui Bui." Buizel said in agreement cockily.

"Fearow, use Tri Attack!" Ash commanded in an attempt to get the battle going once more.

"Fearow!" The bird cried out in response, before listening as it began amassing electric, fire and ice type energy.

"Charge at it Buizel." I told him.

"Bui!" Buizel cried in affirmation.

'Use Aqua Jet and....'

I then gave him several commands via telepathy as Fearow prepared to unleash its attack at him.

"Now Fearow!" Ash declared, prompting the bird to release its attack at Buizel before he could hit it again.

Water covered Buizel's body as he shot towards Fearow, while both of his tails began to glow before he dug them straight into the ground while continuing to run. And not a second too soon, as Fearow's attack bombarded Buizel.

"Yeah! Direct hit!" Ash cried out in celebration, and even Fearow radiated a brief flash of jubilation, before it was quickly replaced by shock.

Buizel had not been affected by the attack in the slightest.

The water covering him had smothered the flames and blocked the ice, while the electric type portion of the attack had apparently done nothing despite the type advantage.

I smirked at the look Ash was making from disbelief, which Gary, Bill, and Tracey all had similar looks on their faces as well. Not that I blamed them.

While he used Aqua Jet to block the fire and ice in the attack, I had also commanded Buizel to use Iron Tail before jamming his tails into the ground beneath him, grounding the attack completely.

"Now finish this Buizel." I told him, and Buizel moved to do just that.

"Oh no! Quickly Fearow, take flight!" Ash urged the bird, who quickly did as he said and swooped up into the air so that they could plan their next move. I even saw Ash pull out his pokedex to scan Fearow and see if it had learned any new moves after evolving.

"Not a smart move little brother." I muttered under my breath, before telling Buizel out loud, "Hydro Pump."

That made Ash look up in alarm, but anything he might've done was too late as Buizel fired a powerful blast of water from his mouth.

The downside to their evolution was that Fearow mostly drifted on the wind instead of slicing through it like Pidgeot could. Granted, that would change with enough experience and training.

But at the moment Fearow's movements were sluggish as it tried to adapt to flying in this form, making it nearly impossible to avoid the attack that was coming.

We all watched as the Hydro Pump slammed into Fearow from behind, sending it forward before it fell from the sky to land hard on the ground.

"Fearow!" Ash declared as he hurried to check on the bird, before returning it to its pokeball.

"You did really well Fearow...." I heard Ash say to him, before turning back to the arena.

I then turned my attention back to Buizel as he returned to my side.

"You did excellent Buizel." I praised him.

"Bui Bui!" Buizel declared happily, his tails spinning while I could feel the urge to dance coming from him. Blastoise truly was a bad influence on him.

But then...

"!!!"

I blinked as Buizel began to glow before he too began to grow to nearly twice his own height.

"FLOAT!" Buizel, or rather Floatzel now, cried out in declaration once the glow faded, revealing his newly evolved form to everyone.

"There's a lot of evolutions today!" Tracey exclaimed excitedly, his pencil moving furiously on what must've been the tenth page since the battle started.

"Right? This is so exciting!" Bill said while nodding in agreement. But Ash and I had a battle to finish.

"It's down to you and Pikachu." Ash said to the pokeball in his hand, while Pikachu appeared ready to enter the battle already. But I'm pretty sure he was being saved until last.

"Go, Riolu!" Ash cried as he sent out the pokeball, which released the bipedal canine within.

"Oh my!" Bill exclaimed as he looked between Ash's Riolu, and Lucario excitedly.

"She's grown." I remarked while looking his Riolu up and down, noting that her height had increased by several inches since Viridian city.

"AND she's gotten a lot stronger too!" Ash proclaimed confidently.

"Hmm." I hummed lightly at that while considering which pokemon I'd send out next. But then...

"I'll go."

"""???"""

Ash, Bill, Tracey and Gary all looked around confusedly from the new voice, not knowing where it came from.

"Who said that?" Bill demanded with minor alarm in his voice.

"I did." The voice answered as the speaker stepped forward, drawing everyone's attention to none other than Lucario.

"""Eh?"""

"Well then, shall we battle?" Lucario asked as he stood across from Ash's Riolu, both of them taking stances to do battle.

"WAIT A SECOND!!!!" Bill exclaimed as he hurried forward, looking Lucario up and down with stars in his eyes.

"Did you really just SPEAK!?!" He demanded excitedly.

"No habla Ingles." Lucario answered, making me snort in amusement.

"I don't know what you said just then, but you are still speaking like a human, aren't you!?" Bill exclaimed.

"Little help here?" I asked the girls, who were completely unfazed by the talking Lucario by this point.

I shook my head as Bill was literally dragged off of the arena by Misty and May, before turning my attention back to Ash. He was surprised along with the rest, but less so than they were. This probably wasn't too shocking to someone who grew up with me regularly talking to pokemon.

"Alright Riolu! You ready for this rematch?" Ash asked his little Riolu.

"Ri!" She declared in response, right before Lucario suddenly appeared before her.

"!!!"

I could see her eyes widen as the sudden blitz, before Lucario slammed his open palm into her abdomen for a Force Palm, sending her flying back by Ash and beyond.

"Not yet." Lucario told her coolly, before turning around and exiting the arena since Riolu was already out of bounds.

"Amazing..." Bill uttered in awe of him, making me smirk with pride of my partner. Though he HAD technically just bullied Ash's poor little Riolu.

But she needed to see the heights that were possible for them in order to properly grow, even if it hurt right now. Even Machop idolized Lucario after seeing him in action.

And just like that, we were now in the final round for my rematch with Ash.

Though things had been decidedly one sided up until now, I didn't expect that to remain the case with this last match. The reason being was the pokemon currently riding on Ash's shoulder.

"Alright Pikachu. It's the final round, are you ready?"

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu proclaimed as he leapt down to take his place in the arena.

"Maybe I'll go electric as well." I said, grabbing my next pokeball. This would also be this guy's first real battle since I got him.

"Go, Electabuzz!"

"Bl-bl-bl-bl-BUUUUUUUUUUZZZZZZZZZ!!!"

Electabuzz cried out while firing random sparks of electricity everywhere in an intimidation tactic.

"Pika...." Pikachu uttered while his cheeks began to spark in preparation.

For a moment nothing happened as the two glared at one another, and Ash and I waited. Until finally....

""Quick Attack now!""

Ash and I shouted at the same time with the same command, and our pokemon shot forward at once.

Their figures blurred as they moved, before disappearing altogether until they clashed in the middle of the arena. Scratch that, it was slightly closer to me due to Pikachu being slightly faster than Electabuzz. Slightly.

But what he was lacking in speed compared to his opponent, Electabuzz more than made up for in strength as both of them were sent back from the collision. Pikachu was sent flying back several feet, while Electabuzz only went back a few inches before preparing for the next attack.

"Again." I ordered Electabuzz.

"Give it another one pikachu!"

"Buzz!"

"Pika!"

Again the two of them clashed, and then again, and again, and again.

Sparks flew each and every time the duo collided, briefly lighting up the growing darkness like a storm in the night. And neither one would back down.

But I could tell that Pikachu was starting to wear down.

I don't know what kind of training Ash does with his pokemon, if any, but endurance was one of the most important aspects of my own training with my team. They all knew how to take a hit, and several were even able to keep taking them until a chance appeared to counter attack.

Of the two though, it was obvious that Pikachu had taken the most damage so far thanks to Electabuzz's superior strength, and was quickly beginning to tire as his speed began to drop. I could also tell through Ash's aura that he was growing impatient, and would change his strategy at any given moment.

"Keep it up Electabuzz." I told him while also giving him a set of commands mentally, my eyes never leaving Ash as I waited for his next move.

As I thought, the next time Pikachu charged in with a Quick Attack, Ash declared, "Pikachu, Iron Tail!"

"Pika!"

When he was too close for Electabuzz to react, Pikachu spun around with his tail glowing to deliver a more powerful attack. It might've worked if my brother's opponent wasn't me.

I didn't even have to say anything as Electabuzz naturally ducked under Pikachu's tail, stunning both him and Ash even before he came up with his right fist crackling with electric power.

"ElectaBUZZ!"

With a cry and a discharge of electric power, Electabuzz sent Pikachu flying back with the foreign electric energy filling his body.

But neither Ash nor Pikachu would give up just like that.

"Pikachu, give a Thunderbolt!" Ash commanded.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu replied as he rolled to his feet, his cheeks crackling with built up power.

'Electabuzz...'

I gave Electabuzz my commands right as Pikachu released one of the largest electric attacks I had ever seen. Not counting Zapdos' of course.

Before it could hit him though, Electabuzz shot forward with another Quick Attack, dodging the Thunderbolt and closing in on Pikachu. And by this point the electric mouse was so exhausted and worn out from the numerous attacks, along with being distracted by his current attack, that he was completely unable to defend himself.

With Pikachu being completely defensless, Electabuzz used the speed from his Quick Attack to deliver a powerful Low Kick that sent Pikachu rolling across the arena, before coming to stop at Ash's feet.

"Pikachu!" Ash exclaimed worriedly as he picked up his pokemon.

"Pikachu is unable to battle! Electabuzz and Ace Ketchum win!" Bill declared, ending both the round and the battle.

"Good job Electabuzz." I told him as I walked out onto the arena.

"Buzz buzz!" He declared while throwing his arms up for a pose, as if to say 'naturally!'

I then approached Ash while he was holding Pikachu, and said while offering a hand, "You should work on your pokemon's endurance a bit more, but other than that they all looked excellent."

Of course I meant every word I said. It was obvious that Squirtle, Charmander and Bulbasaur were new additions to Ash's team, so he hadn't spent nearly as much time with them, or training them. Riolu, Fearow and Pikachu were all obviously the powerhouses on his team, though the former was instantly KOed by Lucario.

"Thanks Aniki!" Ash said while accepting my hand, and we shook to a great battle. Though I hadn't used any of the powerhouses on my team.

I then turned towards Gary, who was watching with a stony expression on his face.

"Your turn Gary."

(A.N. just a quick announcement for those who haven't seen the ones I've made on GSS.

Typically the summer season is my busiest season of the year, in both work and my private life. Summer is when I go camping, fishing, bike riding, and cut firewood for the winter with my family, while I started writing for the winters when theres several feet of snow and nothing to do.

Due to both covid and personal reasons I haven't been able to do very much of that the last couple years, but I plan to do some of them a lot more this year. No, I am not dropping either series.

Release rates may slow, but I try to publish at least one chapter from either series a week. My 'schedule' is that I simply post when I have a chapter done though. Hopefully I don't slow down too much though, and I can keep giving you guys regular chapters.

Thank you for the understanding.)