Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon or the concept for Aura Bond. Pokemon belongs to Satoshi Tajiri and Aura Bond I believe was first used by dragonwolf12 on his story 'The Chosen One's Journey'. I only own the plot.

"The Aura is With Me."

Giovanni Marshall was a person that, at first view, looked like he couldn't even be bothered to be afraid. With his sharp features and commanding presence, he looked like the one that inflicted the fear in the minds of others. And it was a necessity as he was the final Gym Leader of Kanto, the final frontier that trainers had to overcome if they wanted to participate in the Indigo Conference. He was known for his brutal battle style and the fact that he only accepted challengers that had managed to acquire the seven major badges on the Kanto Region.

What was less known, but was much more important to him, however, was that he was the supreme leader of the infamous organization: Team Rocket. He was known by his grunts as "The Boss" and only his most trusted employees, the Executives, and the scientists that worked for him knew who he really was. It was just for the sake of keeping a low profile as he didn't want his position being known, at least not yet. He had plans that needed for him to stay in secrecy for now and he was a patient man.

That patience and normally commanding presence was nowhere to be seen as he started at the screen in front of him with widened eyes, full of terror. His hands were shaking uncontrollably as he gripped the arms of his comfortable couch and his breaths were coming out almost like spasms. He was certainly hyperventilating and it didn't look like it was going to stop on its own.

Giovanni was staring as a teen, that looked no older than fifteen years old, decimated a group of grown men and women with extreme prejudice and efficiency. Giovanni flinched each time the boy used his glowing, blue staffs to render one of the Team Rocket's grunts unconscious. It seemed like he was dancing, with a grace the few humans, but most fighting type pokemon, could ever hope to match. Giovanni saw all this but he was focused on an entire other thing and that was what caused his terror.

The boy's hair casted a shadow over the upper half of his face, but that didn't prevent Giovanni from seeing the boy's glowing red eyes. Red eyes that glared directly towards the front with nothing but cold vehemence and intent. He thought that he was never going to see those eyes again, not after he came out of nowhere, ruined everything for him and then disappeared just as randomly as he appeared. This had to be a nightmare. It had to be. There was no way that-

"Sir?" A man that had purple hair and a sunken face asked uncertainly as he stood before Giovanni. He had taken the footage of the failed mission to acquire rare pokemon from the St. Anne before having the powerful psychic they created destroy it. When he saw how everything was thwarted by a mere kid, his pokemon and a Gyarados, albeit a gigantic one, he had rushed towards Giovanni's office and showed him the video. The moment that kid with strange powers and glowing eyes appeared Giovanni had frozen up and looked like he had seen a ghost.

That was… troubling, especially coming from the leader of such an evil organization like Team Rocket.

Giovanni's face turned towards the man so fast that the purple haired man thought he heard some cracks. He cringed as Giovanni took a big, calming breath after he turned off the screen. The purple haired man watched as Giovanni began to pet the massive feline, Persian, that sat at his side. The feline had been somewhat distraught that its trainer seemed so upset but it soon calmed down when Giovanni began to absently rub its head. It purred contently.

"Petrel…" Giovanni began to say and the other man in the room, Petrel, noted that his boss' voice was shaky. It unnerved him much than he would like to admit. "Take the best picture of that trainer you can using that footage and spread it through the operatives of Team Rocket in the bases ore in current missions. Use the video to acquire as much information on him that you can like what pokemon he uses and such," said Giovanni, looking straight ahead with a blank expression on his face.

Petrel's eyes widened as he understood what Giovanni wanted but he nodded anyways. While he was only a kid, the trainer that thwarted the mission already had a team of strong and rare pokemon (that riolu, ivysaur, charmander, squirtle and scyther being the main examples) and it would be foolish not to make the entire organization of him so they could be prepared in case they encountered him. "So with how much caution should I tell everyone that trainer should be approached?"

His eyes widened when Giovanni shook his head. "You are misunderstanding me Petrel. I'm not having you do this so everyone knows how he looks like so he can be captured and dealt with. No, under no circumstances that trainer is to be approached."

Petrel couldn't believe his ears. Giovanni was asking them to flee from a freaking, albeit intimidating, powerful and strange looking, kid? "Sir?!" One could say that he was beyond bewildered and shocked. It was understandable since Team Rocket was not known to run away from a challenge.

"That was an order, Executive Petrel. I hope you carry it out as fast and efficiently as possible. The…" Giovanni paused as he trailed off before he looked directly at Petrel and the purple haired man could finally see that Giovanni's eyes were still shaking and looked crazed. "…future of our plans, no, the future of this entire organization depends on you carrying out that order. That, that Trainer is not to be messed with under any circumstances."

While Giovanni's sanity seemed to have slipped the man, Petrel could see that his boss was being completely serious so he nodded his head slowly. "Alright. It will be as you say, sir. Should we call back any operation nearby if that trainer is spotted in close vicinity, too?" Petrel asked with thinly veiled sarcasm. He was getting rather annoyed at what he perceived to be an exaggeration from Giovanni's part. A kid was still a kid no matter how strange he was.

Giovanni shook his head. "That won't be necessary as calling off an operation just because he was sighted near would be stupid in case he doesn't become aware of it. If he is sighted keep a very low profile and don't call attention to yourselves. Remember, that kid and his pokemon are extremely dangerous and from now on, our best bet is to tread as lightly as we can," replied Giovanni, hesitantly.

Petrel rolled his eyes but he nodded nonetheless. "Very well. I shall inform the branch bases of operations. I will also tell Proton, who is currently in Lavender Town, and Archer, who is in Saffron to keep their eyes open. I will return back to Celadon to keep working with Dr Fuji and Dr. Numba."

Giovanni nodded his head before he dismissed Petrel with a wave of his hand. Petrel rolled his eyes again and he saluted before he walked out of his office with thoughts less than flattering about his boss. He was going to tell his fellow executive about Giovanni's weird behavior but he was also going to tell them about this mysterious trainer. Admit it or not, the boy was a threat and unlike what Giovanni ordered, he was going to tell them to attack him if he was sighted.

Team Rocket wasn't going to take kindly to any type of threat.

-AM: KOI-

Ash sat on his bed with a blank expression on his face as he stared straight ahead without an ounce of emotion on his face. He knew that it was dark outside and he was supposed to be sleeping like his friends, who were all arrayed across his master suit on the St. Anne, but he couldn't even force himself to do it. So much has happened in the last two days that he could barely take it all in without going insane. That may be a slight exaggeration but one couldn't fault him.

After the Rocket helicopter had escaped, he had called off both Gyarados and Pidgeot from striking it since it would serve as a message that while Team Rocket was dangerous, they were no longer on the top of the food chain. There was a new player in the game and his name was Ash Ketchum. He wasn't going to be actively looking for them, that was the job of the League and the G-Men, but he wasn't going to stay idly watching if the opportunity to strike them down ever arose.

What happened a few hours ago had served as proof that Ash was more than capable of defending himself and his pokemon have proved themselves to be already forces to be reckoned with and they were just going to keep getting stronger. Ash doubted that Pokemon would normally be this strong but he came to the conclusion that he had given them the ability to use raw Aura, it was strengthening them beyond what mere normal Pokemon were capable off, like his own Aura was strengthening him with inhuman abilities as he showed when he took in by himself thirty men and women and came out victorious.

Ash frowned, the first sign of emotion he had given off in some time, as he stared down at his hands. After the chaos had passed and the still shocked Leaf was sent to her room by the captain, she refused to stop clinging to him until she was assured that they were finally out of danger, Ash had reflected on the fact that he and his pokemon had killed. He had killed a man by sending him flying with a serious injury into the ocean and his pokemon had dealt brutally with their foes: some of them made it, others weren't that lucky.

And contrary to what you would belief, Ash's lack of emotion wasn't because he didn't care what happened or what he had to do. He did care and it was precisely because he didn't feel bad about what he did that he was upset. Ash knew that he wasn't supposed to not feeling anything and it scared him that the reason he was upset was because he wasn't feeling anything about it in the first place. His only solace was the fact that he wasn't relishing on it and he was sure that if that had been the case then he was sure there would've been something more than wrong with his psyche.

"A berry for your thoughts?"

Ash perked up and he looked towards Riolu who jumped onto the bed and sat on his side on a similar position to his trainer and Master. Ash regarded him for a moment before he turned to look around the room to see most of his friends sleeping soundly. Pidgeot had decide to sleep outside because she felt a little cramped inside his suite and Gyarados was resting inside her pokeball since she quite liked the suspended animation, unlike Pikachu.

Said electric rat was curled by the end of the bed and his ears would occasionally twitch as he shifted slightly on his sleep but there didn't seem to be something wrong with him. Zoey was resting on her abdomen by his side and she seemed more than content. Ash was glad he had made the decision of pulling her into the pokeball as soon as he became aware of the incoming danger.

Scyther was sitting and resting against the wall, his wicked main weapons resting limping in between his parted legs as his chest rhythmically rose and fell in his sleep. Next to him was Nidorino who was on a similar position to Zoey's except that he was on the soft carpet of the floor.

Ash turned towards the aquarium and snorted in slight amusement as he saw Squirtle's shell right in the middle of it. Thankfully water type pokemon could breathe both air and water to survive so there was no problem with Squirtle sleeping there. Right in front of the Aquarium was Ivysaur who was resting on his belly with his legs supporting his body comfortably. Ash then turned towards Charmander, who was sprawled face down on the floor and snoring loudly. His flaming tail was perched up on a small stool so was to keep it from igniting something in accident.

He was glad they weren't affected for what they had to do some of the Pokemon they had battled.

"Am I right to think that you are like that because you are not feeling bad about killing?"

Ash turned sharply towards Riolu who was looking back at him solemnly. "How do you know that? I haven't shared my thoughts on the matter through the bond. I made sure of that."

Riolu smiled sadly, which looked slightly odd on his canine face. "I know because the 'problem' has to do with Aura and who was it that thought you how to use Aura?" A more normal smirk appeared on Riolu's face at Ash's embarrassed look and he nodded. "Anyways. The reason why you are not feeling like shit about it or why you aren't relishing it is rather simply. Aura is filtering those emotions out of your psyche."

Ash's eyes widened and he sat up straighter. "What do you mean by that?"

"In the past, Aura Guardians had to do a lot of terrible, terrible things to keep the balance of the world, which was threatened more often than what everyone was comfortable with by the way, and almost all of them stopped doing their duties thinking that they were worse than the people they stopped for causing death and destruction. And while they did cause death and destruction, the motive was different, even if the acts in their essence were the same, but that made all the difference. Today you killed. But you didn't kill trying to harm. You killed trying to proterct innocent people and Pokemon. That is what means to be an Aura Guardian: to protect the innocent and the balance of the world no matter what it takes."

Ash nodded his head slowly. "I get that. And I guess I can understand the reasoning and I agree with it now that you have explained it to me. But what does it have to do with me not feeling bad about killing?"

Riolu shifted slightly to look at Ash's red eyes. "Because almost every Aura Guardian couldn't deal with the things they had to do, the world was almost left without an Aura Guardian, the stories about what they did, left by previous Aura Guardian to their successors, discouraging prospect Guardians from becoming one so Arceus modified Aura to affect the mind of their wielders when they began to doubt themselves and the path they have taken so they could think about it logically. You may think that it is manipulating you but the only thing it does is take away the feelings that would've clouded your judgment when time came for you to make a decision."

Ash looked at Riolu with incredulous eyes at the new information. It did feel as if his own Aura was manipulating him to keep going forward no matter what but truth to be told.. it was actually an advantage. Ash admitted to himself that for a fleeting moment he contemplated on going back home and help his mother fully with research and that was when everything suddenly became so dull and he began to think about what he had done and how it was going to affect him, or how it didn't affect him more precisely.

And Ash wanted to keep going forward no matter what. He wanted to keep protecting people, now even more that he realized that Team Rocket weren't above mass murdering if it meant advancement in their plans, whatever the fuck those plans were. They needed to be stopped. And Ash couldn't let the work solely to the League and the G-Men anymore. They were passive and only acted when Team Rocket acted first.

There needed to be a proactive force focused on stopping Team Rocket. They were a threat both to human and Pokemon alike. Ash's eyes hardened. Yes. He was going to be that force. He had the skills and power to do so. He was not defenseless. He was a force to be reckoned with and he only had growth ahead of him and he was better putting that strength onto something good and productive.

Riolu grinned when he saw the familiar determination shining on his Master's eyes. But there was something different this time. Before Ash's determination, while noticeable, was overshadowed by his intelligence and talent. Now his determination matched those traits and burned in his eyes hotter than Charmander's tail flame and it had nothing to do with Aura this time around. "I take it that you have made your choice."

Ash nodded resolutely and smirked. "I have."

Riolu smirked. "Pikachu isn't going to like the increased training time and intensity."

"Not one bit."

-AM: KOI-

The next morning Ash stood with Leaf and the Captain watching as police boats took away the surviving Rocket grunts and their Pokemon. The grunts will be taken into custody in Vermillion City where they will be questioned by Lt. Surge, who was quite famous for being ruthless against criminals. The Pokemon will be taken by the League where they will rehabilitated and possibly reintegrated into their natural habits or given to other trainer that could take care of them. That was another good thing that had come out of the whole ordeal.

"That's the last of them," commented the Captain as he saw another batch of grunts being forced to board the police boats, the bearded man grinned when some Rockets turned towards them with glares only to begin shaking in fear when they caught sight of Ash. "You sure did a number on them lad. How were you able to do it by your lonesome though?"

Ash turned towards the older man and shrugged one shoulder since Leaf was hugging one of his arm tightly, not that he complained. "My Pokemon did most of the work really. They are way stronger than what their appearance would suggest, exceptions being my pidgeot and my gyarados obviously. But I have to at least admit that being taught how to fight by fighting types didn't hurt my ability to defend myself." Ash brought up his free hand and made a fist and smirked. "I can pack quite the punch I've been told."

Ash ignored the many snorts inside his mind and focused on the Captain who nodded in understanding. "I see. How old are you, anyways?"

"Twelve. I'll be thirteen in a few months though."

"I am thirteen already."

The Captain's eyes widened. "Truly. I would've thought you were fifteen at least." He motioned towards the content Leaf pressing her body into his arm. "Her too."

Ash looked at Leaf, who smiled at him, before he shrugged. "We ate our fruits and vegetables."

The Captain snorted. "You don't say." He then got serious and turned towards Ash and inclined his head deeply in gratitude. "No matter. You have my deepest thanks, Ash Ketchum. Without you here I doubt we would've been able to see the attack coming and defend the ship and its occupants as effectively as you did. There is no way for me to truly thank you but please accept a monetary transaction from the Anne Shipment Company. It doesn't compare to what you have done and what you have prevented but it is the least we can do."

Ash and Leaf turned towards the captain and Ash frantically waved his hand. "None of that, sir! I didn't save the ship expecting something like that! It isn't necessary! Besides I'm pretty well off and I make good money being a trainer so please don't do that!"

The Captain narrowed his eyes. "I must insist. You have done selflessly a protection service that the League would've charged a fortune for. You put yourself in danger for people you didn't even know and people that were even rude and aggravating to you for winning the tournament. You have earned and you deserve the money."

Leaf nudged him. "While I would normally agree with you, Ash, the captain is right this time. You didn't have to defend us. You didn't have to risk your life to save mine for that matter. But you did and you should be rewarded for it. Period." Leaf put her foot down in a matter of fact tone.

Looking at the stubborn Captain and the no nonsense Leaf, Ash sighed and nodded in acceptance. "Alright. I'll accept the money. Don't bite my head off."

The Captain smiled. "Perfect. I'll have it done by the end of the day. Please enjoy the rest of your stay. We'll be arriving at Lavender Town in two weeks' time." With that said he saluted them before he walked away, leaving the two teenagers to look at the gentle waves that crashed against the ship as it moved.

A few minutes later, Ash turned towards Leaf, a nervous smile on his face. "So…"

Leaf looked up at him, her soft smile full of mischief. Her smile widened when she tightened her hold around his arm and he gulped, his eyes flicking towards her chest before he focused back on her face. How cute. "So?" She prompted, her voice teasing.

Ash blushed slightly and rubbed the back of his head. "About what happened yesterday…"

Leaf smirked. "Oh. You mean this?" she stood on her toes and pressed her lips into his. Ash's eyes widened slightly before he relaxed and returned the slow, tender kiss. They stayed like that for a few long seconds before they separated. Ash had a goofy smile on his flushed face and Leaf looked very pleased with herself.

"Yep," he said, blushing when his vice came out an octave higher than normal. He ignored the snickering and giggling from within his mind.

"That means that I like you, that I want to be your girlfriend and that I want to travel with you from now on," said Leaf, her voice slightly shy as her cheeks colored slightly. "To be completely honest, I have always liked you and I tried to give you signs of it but you were always too dense to notice. The reason I refused to travel with you when you asked me before we received our pokemon was because I was mad at your denseness. I'm actually surprised that you can kiss like that," she commented, her smile wide.

Ash's blush became slightly more prominent and he looked away. "I've had practice."

Leaf's eyes widened slightly and she felt equal amounts of jealousy and amusement. "Oh. Daisy, I guess, huh?" She teased him, knowing that he had a crush on her. While Ash was dense to her trying to flirt with him, that didn't mean that he couldn't appreciate a very attractive female.

Ash laughed nervously. "Um, no. Remember what happened when I caught Ivysaur?" She nodded. "Well, a girl called Melanie was trying to heal the pokemon that Ivsaur was protecting when he was a Bulbasaur. When I helped healing the pokemon, saving them from Team Rocket and then offered her a job as one of mom's aides because her house was destroyed by TR, she was so grateful that she kissed me and, well, you know," he explained, still laughing nervously.

Leaf giggled, now only amused. "I guess I'll have to thank her sometime in the future for teaching you how to be such a good kisser," she said before she leaned forward and caught his lips again.

When they separated, Ash stared into her eyes. "So, you want to be my girlfriend, then?" He asked, a confident smirk on his face now that he was sure that Leaf didn't regret what happened yesterday and at the knowledge that she had liked him for quite some time.

Leaf swatted at his arm, but nodded her head, not looking away from his mesmerizing red eyes. She realized now that they could be as beautiful as they were scary and intimidating. "Yes, I do. More than you would think of," she said softly. She had always admired him. How he never let Gary's taunts get to him, even becoming better than Professor Oak's grandson to let his actions be the answers to Gary's words.

Ash chuckled and liberated his arm from the comfortable hug of her breasts so he could hug her and press her head into his chest. "You know? I think I'd like that. I always thought you were very pretty and if that isn't enough, you like pokemon and exploring as much as I do. I'd like to your boyfriend too," said Ash honestly. While he had never considered entering in a relationship with Leaf, he had had more than one explicit dream with her as the protagonist.

Leaf smiled happily into his chest and wrapped her arms around his torso.

They stayed like that for a few minutes before Ash reluctantly and tenderly pushed her away so he could look into her eyes, which were shining happily. He gave her a serious look. "Now, Leaf, if you want to stay with me and be my girlfriend there is something you should know. I've decided that I want to stop Team Rocket from doing the horrible things they do. I'm not going to be actively looking for them but if I run into one of their operations I'm not going to turn my back on them. I'm going to face them and I'm going to stop them. That could put you in danger."

Leaf heard him low and clear, understood his concern and she nodded, her eyes filling with determination. "I know. And I agree with you and I don't care about any danger that could befall me. I am a Pokémon Trainer too and my pokemon are strong, not at the level of yours, but strong on their own right. I can defend myself," she smiled cheekily and winked up at him. "Besides, you can always give some pointers in training them so you don't have to worry about me that much if I'm with my pokemon."

Ash stared at her for a few more seconds and she he saw how serious she was, his shoulders sagged and he sighed in relief. He doubted her Pokémon will ever be as strong as his since she lacked the ability to use aura, which made it impossible for her to form an Aura Bond with her pokemon so they could raw Aura, which was the reason his pokemon grew in strnght so fast and were already stronger than the norm. But his methods of training her pokemon could reach incredible levels of strength, which would be enough to see that she was safe when he couldn't make sure of that himself.

"That's good to hear. Now I think I can be your boyfriend without worrying too much," he said with amusement before he grasped her chin tenderly, tilted her head up and kissed her. Leaf wrapped her arms around his torso again and returned the kiss eagerly. Coming to Vermillion City and challenging Lt. Surge so she could get a Ticket for the S.S. Anne was the best decision she had ever made.

-AM: KOI-

Two weeks passed relatively quickly and Ash and Leaf spent that time exploring their new relationship and training their pokemon and battling regularly with them with the others passangers. When Ash had informed his mother of what happened she had been terrified for him and she gave him the harshest scolding she had ever given him… before she began to gush about how proud of him she was and how much of a good job she had done raising him. She had also removed the limit on the amount of pokemon he could carry, wanting him to be as protected as he could since by now she knew that her son was a trouble magnet.

Then he had told her that he and Leaf were now boyfriend and girlfriend. That had resulted in Delia giving him a strange smile before she congratulated them. She than had claimed she had work to do before she hung up. Weird.

His relationship with Leaf had developed steadily in the two weeks, she they spent all their time together as she had moved into his room, not wanting to be far from him. They hadn't gone farther than heavy make out sessions and petting, since they wanted to let their relationship develop naturally. Their time was spent mostly training and battling other trainers with their pokemon, and they had all advanced significantly in the past two weeks.

Riolu had gotten faster, his techniques stronger and he could maintain them going for as long as he wanted. Riolu had also decided that he felt like he needed to fight other fighting type pokemon before he let himself evolve. Ash told him that there was a dojo in Saffron City full of fighting types and he and Riolu decided that they would enter the Dojo when they were on their way from Lavender to Celadon, after Ash got himself a ghost type in the former. Riolu also spent his time fighting and training Crany, Leaf's marowak.

Pikachu had also gotten a lot faster, managing to combine quick attack and agility to reach speeds that even impressed Scyther. He had gained complete control of his electric reserves again, which were at the limit he could reach as a Pikachu. The only move of those he needed to master and learn that he had learned and mastered was shock wave, since Thunder, Volt Tackle and Discharge were too powerful and volatile to use on the ship. Because of this, Pikachu was perpetually annoyed since he wanted to evolve, but Ash was punishing him for his recklessness during the fight with Lt. Surge. Pikachu also helped in training Leaf's pokemon by using his electric attacks to toughen up Feather, Doe and Pince, Leaf's pidgeotto, butterfree and crabby respectively.

The only new move Gyarados had learned was Scald through the TM his meter had sent him. She had taken advantage of the amount of water she found herself surrounded by to practice her ability to manipulate water and taste her limits. Needless to say, that Ash and the others were shocked when she told him that she was capable of manipulating thousands of cubic meters of water without too much difficulty. She practiced with this ability to also increase her Aura reserves, hopping that she could fly for long periods of time soon enough. She also worked on making her other techniques stronger and more precise. Ash wanted her to learn Ice Fang, Fire Fang and Thunder Fang and Dragon Pulse and Dragon Tail, which he felt were the only techniques she needed to learn before she was set to face any situation she found herself in, and they were going to work on that once they reached land.

Scyther increased his speed so much that he now left after images when he moved. The only new move he had learned was Hone Claws, which enhanced his attack and accuracy constantly using dark type energies. Ash felt that Scyther only needed to learn the moves X-Scissor, Swords Dance and Night Slash, get more experience, grow a bit more and raise the amount of power he wielded before he could become a Scizor. He sometimes joined Riolu in training Crany, and had given Doe a few pointers in how to use its bug type energies for some of its techniques.

Pidgeot had not learned any new moves since the only technique she needed to learn was Hurricane, and they couldn't risk creating a storm while in the sea, meaning that they needed to wait to get back on land before she could practice the strong flying type technique. Instead, she focused in increasing her speed even more along with strengthening the power of her current attacking techniques, all of which were safe to use while in the ocean. She also helped by increasing the flying capabilities of Doe and Feather, the latter who had taken a shine to her, which amused Pidgeot, who claimed that it was only right that others of her species strived to be like her.

Nidorino had learned Toxic, which helped to augment his misdirection oriented battle style. Other than that, Nidorino had worked on the accuracy and strength of his other techniques. Ash felt that Nidorino only needed to reach full maturity and increase the amount of power he wielded before he could evolve into Nidoking and learn the other close quarters technique that would make him an absolute nightmare to face up close. He also occasionally helped Leaf's pokemon to strengthen their resistance against poison type damage and physical attacks.

Ivysaur had also learned Toxic, which increased his already high affinity with poison. Because of this, Ivysaur had managed to grow poisonous plants with the ability granted to him by Aura, which was what Ivysaur focused on the most, since both him and Ash felt that it would be Ivysaur's greatest asset the moment it reached its maximum potential. That didn't mean, however, that Ivysaur neglected his more generic moves, since they were also mighty useful. He increased their power, accuracy and effectiveness by a fair amount. Ash felt that Ivysaur only needed to learn Power Whip and reach his full maturity as an Ivysaur before he was ready to become a Venasaur. He also focused a fair amount of his time on helping Flower become stronger, who much to amusement of everyone and Ivysaur's embarrassment, had a crush on him.

Charmander had, not surprisingly, grown a lot. He mastered all his fire type moves along with Metal Claw and Dragon Claw and learned Fire Fang and Fire Punch, which were the moves he was working on, though he was also very close to mastering those. In any case, Charmander was extremely close to evolving due to the red coloration of his scales and the increase of body size. He only needed that last push. Ash wanted for him to evolve so it would be easier for him to learn Thunder Punch and the amount of fire and draconic energy he could use increased, which he felt was going to help with practicing his ability to mix his fire and draconic energy. He had also helped a lot with Fluff's, Leaf's vulpix, training, with them having the same type of relationship that Pidgeot and Feather had.

Squirtle had also learned Scald, and with that move, Ash felt like he had everything he needed until he evolved, which was also going to happen soon enough since Squirtle's blue skin had become darker and there were fangs peeking out from his upper lips, after which he would be able to learn more physically oriented techniques, like Ice Punch and Skull Bash. Aside from that, he had worked on the strength, effectiveness and accuracy of his techniques along with his ability to pull out water from the environment and manipulate it. He had a fondness of making water drills for some reason. He also helped a lot with Pince's training, with Pince looking up to Squirtle with something akin to hero worship, which amused Leaf and disturbed Ash and his other pokemon.

And finally, Zoey, his newly acquired Zorua, was proving that she could become an integral part of the team. She was a trickster through and through and her fighting style revolved entirely around misdirection, unlike Nidorino who only used it as a tactic. Raw Aura gave her the ability to use illusions on the environment, not only over herself. With this she could trick most opponents into doing whatever she wanted, and when they least expected it, she would attack with ferocity and precision. In the last two weeks, she had learned Double Team, Agility, Aerial Ace and Toxic, putting her just above to the level Ivysaur, Charmander and Squirtle had before they reached Vermillion City. She was also the one that battled the most, because Ash wanted to get her used to her fighting style before they reached Lavender Town, and she hadn't disappointed.

Truthfully, they all had enjoyed their time in the S.S. Anne but it was time for them to continue their journey. The majestic ship had docked for the day in one of the many ports that ran through the eastern coast of Kanto and connected the southern part of Lavender Town with the rest of Kanto's main land, specifically with Route 11 and Route 13, which could be used to reach Vermillion and Fuchsia respectively.

Ash, with Pikachu perched on his shoulder and Riolu standing by his left side, and Leaf standing at his right, grasping his hand, waved at the captain and some of the passengers that had made friends with them during their short voyage. They waved back at them as the S.S. Anne began to leave port, its horn resounding, scaring a few pidgey from the trees and making Pikachu and Riolu cover their sensitive ears.

Pikachu glared at the ship. "The only reason I don't light the ship up to oblivion is because the food was nice," commented darkly.

Riolu nodded his head, also glaring at the ship. "I agree."

Ash rolled his eyes, ignoring the snickering and giggling of his other friends at the misfortune of Pikachu and Riolu. Once the ship was far enough that its horn was barely audible, he released Pidgeot, smiling as she cawed and extended her wings. She had grown a few inches in height and had bulked up a little due to all of her training, which only served to make her look more majestic than what she already was.

Ash stroked the glossy feather of her chest and smiled. "Hey, Pidgeot, would you mind flying above us and keeping us up to date with everything that might be heading towards us?" Knowing the dangers that he now faced, Ash wasn't going to leave everything to chance and his ability to respond to threats when they made themselves known. He had learned his lesson while in the S.S. Anne.

Pidgeot nodded her head. "Of course. While I don't think that serving as a glorified scout is the job for someone such as me, I can see the need of the job. I will keep you informed of everything I see or hear," she said before she flapped her wings and took to the air, using her control over the winds to not generate them and inconvenience Ash and Leaf.

Leaf got his attention by pulling slightly on his hand. "Should I release Feather too?"

Ash shook his head. "That won't be necessary. Pidgeot is more than enough for the job. Besides, Feather is going to need all the time he can conserve his energy since training will become more intense from now on since we are in land. Also, fights with stronger trainers are going to become the norm, so he is going to need his energy. Leave the scouting and our protection to me," he said reassuringly as they began to walk north, in direction to Lavender Town.

Leaf smiled and tightened her hold around his hand. "Alright! Let's go then!" She said imperiously, pointing forward and dragging Ash with her. While she wasn't excited to reach the Town of Ghosts, the place she wanted to go to, the Rock Tunnel, was going to be their next stop. In her mind, the faster they arrived the faster Ash would catch the ghost type he wanted and the faster they would be out of the widely known creepy town.

Ash shook his head in amusement and settled to walk next Leaf, ignoring the snickering and giggling, something that he was getting used to, which he couldn't decide if it was a good or a bad thing.

-AM: KOI-

"Sir! The device will be ready soon and the operation will start!" Said a male Rocket grunt, saluting.

"Excellent!" Declared a green haired man, wearing a white and black white version of the Team Rocket uniform along with a beret that had the R imprinted on it. His sharp features were twisted into an arrogant smirk as he settled into his chair. "With this device, we will be able to harness more ghost type energy in order to keep MT under control. That fucking beast has been getting unruly lately."

The grunt nodded in agreement but he soon grew nervous. "Um, sir, shouldn't we proceed with more caution. You heard what Executive Pretel said about that black-haired trainer with red eyes. It was also confirmed by Executive Arianna's report. With the S.S. Anne mission failed, he should be arriving here in a few days."

The green haired man's arrogant expression twisted into a sneer. "As if! I don't know what has gotten into The Boss but a single trainer with a few strong pokemon is no match for my might and the number of Rockets at my disposal, no matter what that slut Arianna has to say about it," he growled, hate and scorn dripping from his voice. The reason for his anger was because of the obvious and genuine interest Arianne had on this supposedly powerful trainer.

Everyone knew that Executive Proton had the hots for Executive Arianne, and she wouldn't give him the time of the day because he couldn't defeat her pokemon in a battle, and Arianne refused to interact more than what is was needed with anyone weaker than her, which was everyone else except The Boss since she was easily the strongest Executive. And The Boss wasn't interested in her like that since he was already and older man.

The fact that this kid had Arianne's attention angered Proton more than what he could put into words and when Pretel confirmed that he was likely heading to Lavender Town, he had been ecstatic. This was his chance to beat him, take his pokemon from him, kill him and give his rare pokemon to Arianne. He was sure that if he did that she would allow him to woo her. Also, he felt that with his assured success with the mission he was assigned, he would get in even better graces with Giovanni, which would be icing in the cake.

Proton stopped sneering and smirked arrogantly, standing up from his chair. "Let's go. We have an operation to see through. And no one is going to stop us," he said and walked out of the room through a set of stairs, paying no mind to the many tombstones that littered the floor. The grunt sighed before he followed before he stopped and shuddered, feeling a chill go down his spine as he heard a giggle somewhere behind him.

He looked back and saw nothing. He scowled. "I fucking hate ghosts," he muttered before he followed Proton upstairs.

Unbeknownst to him, red eyes full of mischief appeared right behind the chair Proton had been sitting on, followed by an insane grin that stretched more than what could be possible. The eyes closed and the grin widened, as an insane laughter began to fill the room.

And after more than one year, here is the next chapter for this story. I'm so sorry but had momentarily lost interest in this fic. But lately, I've been reading pokemon fics that gave me back my desire to continuing writing for this. I also made some changes to the previous chapter, the main one being that the only one of Ash's pokemon that has a nickname is Zorua, which is Zoey.

I'm sorry that this chapter was a transition one, but I assure you that the next one will make up for it in length and content… pause. Sorry.

Riolu (M): Quick Attack, Foresight, Counter, Force Palm, Blaze Kick, Aura Sphere, Low Sweep, Double Kick and Brick Break. Riolu can use Aura to enhance his movements and keep his techniques activated for longer periods of time.

-Pikachu (M): Quick Attack, Agility, Double Team, Iron Tail, Thunderbolt, Thunder Wave, Electro Ball and Volt Tackle. Pikachu uses Aura to increase his storage of electricity at a steady pace that lets him always stay in control of his attacks.

-Gyarados (F): Hyper Beam, Hydro Pump, Dragon Rage, Twister, Crunch, Flamethrower, Ice Beam, Thunderbolt and Scald. Gyarados can manipulate water using Aura and will eventually be able to fly due to her typing using it.

-Scyther (M): Quick Attack, Agility, Double Team, Slash, Fury Cutter, Wing Attack, Pursuit, Aerial Ace, Steel Wing and Air Slash. Scyther can makes his attacks stronger than normal and enhance his body to move at unparalleled speeds on the ground.

-Pidgeot (F): Quick Attack, Agility, Gust, Twister, Tailwind, Steel Wing, Aerial Ace, Air Slash, Mirror Move, Hyper Beam and Counter Shield. Pidgeot's Aura lets her manipulate the air currents around her and she can use that to completely nullify wind resistance as she moves, making her Ash's fastest pokemon.

-Nidorino: Horn Attack, Fury Attack, Double Kick, Poison Sting, Poison Jab, Toxic Spikes, Thunderbolt, Ice Beam and Toxic. The still haven't found out what special ability Aura will give Nidorino, but Ash's suspects that it will be ground based and it will manifest fully once he evolves.

-Ivysaur (M): Leech Seed, Vine Whip, Sleep Power, Poison Powder, Razor Leaf, Ingrain, Giga Drain, Synthesis and Energy Ball. Ivysaur can grow plants out of nothing as long as his vines are in direct contact with the ground. He can sue them to sap away the energy of his foes with even more effectiveness.

-Charmander (M): Ember, Fire Spin, Smokescreen, Dragon Rage, Flamethrower, Dragon Claw, Metal Claw, Fireball, Fire Fang and Fire Punch. Using Aura as a medium, Charmander can mix draconian energy with his fire to make his attacks more powerful but they are waiting a bit to explore this ability.

-Squirtle (M): Water Gun, Withdraw, Bubblebeam, Rapid Spin, Aqua Tail, Water Pulse, Ice Beam, Counter Shield and Scald. Like Gyarados, Squirtle can also manipulate water with his Aura but he can also use it to pull water out of the environment.

-Zorua "Zoey" (F): Pursuit, Feint Attack, Fury Swipes, Fake Tears, Foul Play, Double Team, Agility, Aerial Ace and Toxic. Zorua's especial ability with Aura allows her to extend her illusory abilities to affect the environment around her.

Love y'all.

The BadAss Writer.