Hello everyone! Here's a story I've always been wanting to do! It all takes place within the episode, The Symbol Life, only with some "surprising" turn of events.

That's all I have to say right now, so please enjoy!

The sun slowly rose from behind the far-off mountains around the Battle Factory of Kanto. Normally at this time of the day, people and Pokémon were either just waking up, or still sleeping, but this day was a very special day.

Today was the day a certain trainer from Pallet Town will battle the head of the Battle Factory, Noland. And that 'certain trainer' is Ash Ketchum. Usually for challengers, Noland has them choose who they want to battle within his large collection of Pokémon, and the one Ash chose to battle was the almighty Articuno, who technically wasn't his as Noland only befriended it after saving the icy bird when its wing was injured. The Legendary Bird, though, could never turn down a challenge, especially after seeing the Pokémon Ash picked for their battle: Charizard, who had flew all the way from Charicific Valley last night after Ash called Liza to send him over.

Inside the facility, Noland and Articuno were seen together on the battlefield as Scott watched them from the stands.

"Articuno, I know your unquestionable power, but do not underestimate our opponents: Ash and Charizard," Noland said to the Legendary Bird as he stroked its feathers. "Even though we haven't seen their strength yet, I could tell by just looking at their eyes last night that the power they have is something truly fearsome."

Articuno nodded to its temporary trainer, understanding what he meant and showing that it felt the same way to after seeing both Ash and Charizard together the previous night.

"So with that said, let's give it all we got! We're not going to hold anything back!"

In response, Articuno spread its wings and gave a mighty roar to the closed ceiling above, though it could still be heard from outside the battlefield.

Over at the stands, Scott looked on with his arms crossed and a smile on his face.

"This is gonna be one interesting battle," Scott thought to himself. "Noland's tough, but from what I've seen from Ash so far, he's got a lot of potential within him. And I can't wait to see what he and his Charizard will do later on."

Back outside, Ash's three traveling companions, Brock, May, and Max, were watching Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard flying high in the air, preparing themselves for the upcoming battle against Noland. They had seen Ash and Charizard practice many aerial-maneuvers like steep dives and climbs, reach heights they couldn't ever imagine a Charizard achieving, and even show off a new move: Dragonbreath.

"Wow. Ash and Charizard are really getting everything all ready for Noland." commented an impressed May.

"I know!" enthused Max. "And I so can't wait to see this battle! It's gonna be so awesome!"

"Yeah, and the thing is, Charizard has never faced against a legendary Pokémon before, and considering his intense love for battling, you know he's gonna give it everything he has." stated Brock.

The conversation between the three was interrupted when they heard Charizard's mighty roar from the sky above them. The three saw the winged-lizard fly farther away from the Battle Factory.

"Hey, where are they going?" asked May.

"Hmm, perhaps Charizard just needs a little more space to show off some more moves." answered Brock.

Up in the air, Ash, on Charizard's back and Pikachu in the protective grasp of his left arm, pleasantly admired the high view he was at right now.

"Alrighty buddy," Ash started, "looks like this a good enough space, so show me everything you got!"

Hearing this, Charizard smirked before he took off like jet, performing several impressive aerial techniques, from loops to barrel rolls and even immelmann turns, all in an incredibly fast motion. As he did this, Charizard roared powerfully as Ash screamed enthusiastically.

"RAWRR!"

"YEAH!"

"PIKA!" Pikachu screamed as he struggled to remain in Ash's arm.

Once Charizard was done, he flew in place with a prideful grin on his snout.

"Charizard, that was awesome! You've really learned a lot back at the valley!" Ash happily complimented his fifth Pokémon as he patted the back of its neck with his right hand.

Ash then felt Pikachu's head collapse over his left arm, seeing his beloved started incredibly dizzy from the fast-paced air tricks.

"Pika pika..." the electric mouse moaned.

"Heheh, don't worry buddy," said Ash, petting the top of Pikachu's head, "I think we're about done here. Right, Charizard?"

"Rawr."

Chuckling a bit at the mouse, Charizard shook his head.

"What's that? You still got some new moves to show us?"

Charizard looked back to his trainer and nodded.

"Rawr."

Seeing this, Pikachu groaned and slumped down to his belly on the lizard's neck, not wanting to go through any more intense action.

Ash chuckled for a bit and rubbed the mouse's back.

"It's gonna be alright pal. Once we're done, you can sleep through the battle if you'd like."

Pikachu gave a short thumbs-up as his got back up to the grasp of his trainer's left arm.

"Pika..."

"Alright Charizard, what else you got?"

Charizard smirked as he started to search for a good set of clouds. It was time to show Ash this awesome move he had learned at the Charicific Valley. Within his sight, he saw a huge clump of clouds not too far from where he was at. It looked like the perfect target, so the lizard flew towards it.

"They're getting real far now."

"Yeah, they're starting to look like Pidgey from here."

"I just hope Ash and Charizard don't get too carried away. We know how headstrong they both are. It's a perfectly equal, honestly."

"Is this a new attack, Charizard?"

"Rawr." the lizard replied with a nod.

"Cool! Let's see what it is!"

With his eyes targeted on the clouds, Charizard focused all his power within to start up his new attack, but before he could even execute it, much larger and darker clouds suddenly appeared from behind the clouds he intended to fire on. Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard were surprised as they got engulfed by the large number of darker clouds, trapping them inside.

"Aw man, it's too dark to see! Charizard, think you could use your new move to get us out of here?"

The lizard nodded and he looked for a good opening to use the attack. Unfortunately, before he could get the chance, a thunder clap occurred not too far from their location, bringing the horrifying realization to Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard's minds.

They were stuck in the middle of a thunderstorm.

Charizard tried to use his new attack again, but endless lightning bolts from pretty much every corner prevented him from doing so.

"Charizard, it's too dangerous to use your new attack! We have to get out of here now!"

Charizard grunted in disapproval at first, disappointed he didn't get to show off his attack, but he knew Ash was right, so he instantly took off, looking for a way out of the storm. The lizard could barely fly a good distance though, considering all the lightning bolts, leaving him stranded in a singular spot.

"Pikachu, you think you could block all the lightning bolts away from us?"

The mouse bravely nodded and he jumped above his trainer's head, using his Thunderbolt attack to block away all the incoming lightning bolts.

"Okay," Ash said once it looked clear for the moment, "now's our chance Charizard!"

After Pikachu landed back on the lizard and moved up to his neck, behind Charizard's head, the lizard flew as fast as he could to find a way out as Pikachu continued to counter any lightning bolts headed their way. The storm was so big and the clouds were so thick, it almost seemed impossible to escape, as the trio flew around the deadly hazard for minutes and minutes. And Pikachu was getting tired.

"Pikachu pika..." Pikachu tiredly panted on Charizard's neck, almost out of energy, but still incredibly willing to protect two of his closest friends.

Ash saw Pikachu's exhausted state and grew worried. He didn't want his best friend to overwork himself just for his own carelessness.

"Pikachu, please don't work yourself too much."

"Pika Pi pikachu." the mouse argued, saying he doesn't want Ash and Charizard to get hurt.

Charizard heard all of this and he grew more determined. In a way, just like Ash, he felt this was all his fault due to how much he wanted to show off what his training at Charicific Valley had resulted in.

"RAWWRRR!"

There's no way he's gonna let his two greatest friends get hurt because of him, so he narrowed his eyes and flew in a faster pace, swiftly avoiding every lightning bolt Pikachu was unable to counter.

Ash hung on tight to Charizard, unable to open his eyes due to the incredible speed his faithful fire/flying type was flying in. Pikachu, despite his tired state, still kept on protecting Ash and Charizard from the storm's lightning. Hearing a thunder clap from behind, Pikachu looked back and spotted two larger lightning bolts heading straight for Ash's neck and Charizard's tail. Pikachu jumped up from Charizard's neck, bringing him behind the two, and he fired a strong Thunderbolt to the two lightning bolts, blocking them away. The mouse was just about to use Quick Attack to make it back to his friends, was then he a humongous lightning bolt heading straight down to Ash and Charizard, and neither of them noticed due to Ash's closed eyes and Charizard's focused eyes. The lightning bolt was also going by too fast for Pikachu to counter.

"PIKA PI!" Pikachu cried as he desperately brought his right paw out towards Ash and Charizard.

The lightning bolt harshly struck the trainer and his lizard, causing the both of them to scream in intense pain as Pikachu could only watch in horror. The strong electricity from the bolt made Ash and Charizard's bodies move around vigorously, eventually leading the front of Ash's skull colliding with the back of Charizard's skull.

When the lightning bolt finally dissipated, Ash and Charizard were both rendered unconscious as their bodies began to plummet back down to the ground. Pikachu used Quick Attack to reunite with them, clinging onto Ash's jacket and desperately trying to wake him up, but to no avail.

"Pika pi!"

All the way back down to the Battle Factory, Brock had prepared breakfast for him and his friends and they were eating at the same spot they were watching Ash and Charizard train. The thunderstorm was too far away from the facility for the gang to see.

"Geez," started Max, "when will Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard come back?"

"Yeah, they flew so far, it became impossible to even see them." May pointed out.

Scott then approached them as they started to eat.

"Hey guys, where's Ash at?" the man asked them. "He was suppose to be here around this time to start the battle."

"We're wondering the same thing," Brock pointed out. "I'm sure they'll be back soon though. Ash and Charizard love training, but they'll never let it get in the way of a battle."

"Hmm, I hope you're right." Scott said, not out of impatience, but out of worry.

Ash, Pikachu, and Charizard had a rough landing, but thanks to the trees, it wasn't too bad. The trio had landed in a small circular clearing of the forest that surrounded the Battle Factory, and their bodies laid on the soft grass right beside a small lake. Pikachu became unconscious with his friends due to the landing. Luckily, neither of the three were too hurt from the recent incident, minus a few scratches and bruises.

"Ugh, my head..." Charizard moaned to himself as he started to wake.

"Man, why do I feel so different?"

Charizard sat up and shook that thought off for the moment as the pain in his head quickly returned, provoking him to rub his forehead to ease out the pain. Though, this is when Charizard started to feel... not himself.

Not only did his right "claw" felt different, but when he touched his forehead...

He felt hair.

Heh. Can you guess what happened to Ash and Charizard?

Whatever it is (you all most likely already know), things are gonna be absolutely chaotic for them now!

I hope you all enjoyed this first chapter for this new fanfic and please leave a review if you'd like to share with me your thoughts!

Thank you and have a nice day!