"My, my, this is quite an interesting reversal, wouldn't you agree?" Delia asked the honey-blonde performer who sat next to her on the grass.

"What do you mean?" Serena asked her boyfriend's mother.

"Well, years ago," Delia began her explanation to his son's girlfriend. "When Ash and Gary battled each other at the Silver Conference, Ash was in a situation that Gary's in right now. Ash had only one Pokemon left, while Gary had three Pokemon remaining. Ash's last Pokemon was his Charizard, who was able to knock all three of Gary's remaining Pokemon and win the whole match for him."

"Wow," Angela, who was listening to Delia's explanation, said in amazement over Ash's underdog victory over Gary at the Silver Conference. "That's quite an impressive victory, considering the conditions that Ash had to deal with back then."

"So what are you saying? You think Gary could pull that same underdog victory that Ash did back during their battle at the Silver Conference?" Serena asked Delia, with a worrying expression on her face.

"No, not at all, dear," Delia said, comforting Serena with her gentle words. "Although, anything can happen in a battle, Serena. We'll just have to wait and see."

"Yeah," Serena responded as she refocused her attention back to the battle, while her thoughts were praying for Ash to win.

---

The young researcher took out the Pokeball that contains his starter Pokemon. He gazed upon the Pokeball he held with a smile on his face. He has had many adventures with this Pokemon who has been by his side from the very beginning. It's his strongest Pokemon, and his last hope for victory in this battle. Gary then turned his gaze towards the black-haired trainer across from him, while still smiling.

"You've made it this far, Ashy Boy," Gary said, as the expression on his face changed to a serious look. "But that'll be far enough! Blastoise, go!"

Gary throws the Pokeball into the air to reveal his final Pokemon. Landing with a thud, Gary's Blastoise lets out a roar, then gets into a battle-ready stance. Ash, with a serious expression on his face, notices Blastoise wearing a piece of armor, on its forehead, with a shining Mega Stone in it. The Shellfish Pokemon then glares at the Seed Pokemon with intense eyes of burning passion as it challenges the Grass and Poison-type Pokemon to battle. Even though Venusaur is completely exhausted from its battle against Electivire, the Seed Pokemon was still raring to go into battle.

"Let's go! Venusaur!" Ash shouted as he called the first attack. "Petal Blizzard!"

Suddenly, pink petals circle Venusaur's body and then fires them towards the Shellfish Pokemon.

"Rapid Spin! Blastoise!" Gary countered against the Grass-type move.

Blastoise pulls its head, arms, legs, and cannons into its shell and starts spinning like a disc. It's deflecting the pink petals as it keeps spinning towards the heavily breathing Seed Pokemon. Ash grunts in frustration as his Grass-type attack appears to not be inflicting damage to the Water-type Pokemon.

"Ice Beam!" Gary said with a calm tone in his voice.

Light blue balls of energy are formed in front of Blastoise's cannons, and then light blue beams are discharged from the light blue balls and are sent towards the exhausted Venusaur. With little to no energy left, the Seed Pokemon could only stand there like a sitting duck and get struck by the super-effective Ice-type attack. Hearing the scream of agony from his Pokemon, the expression on Ash's expression turned from serious to concerned for his loyal Grass Pokemon.

"Venusaur!" Ash yelled out, as he saw his Grass and Poison-type Pokemon collapsed to the ground with swirls in its eyes.

"Venusaur is unable to battle! Blastoise wins!" Trevor announced the results of that short battle, as Ash recalls his fallen Pokemon to its Pokeball.

"You were great as always, old friend. You deserve a nice long rest." Ash said to the Pokeball, containing his Venusaur.

He puts Venusaur's Pokeball back on his belt. Ash then looks at his own starter Pokemon, who has sparks flying off its cheeks. The black-haired trainer nods to the Mouse Pokemon, who nods back at its trainer. They knew what they should do next.

"Pikachu! Go!" Ash shouted as the Mouse Pokemon rushed out to the battlefield with sparks of determination and confidence flying off its cheeks.

"Pika!" The Mouse Pokemon exclaims while taking a stance against Gary's Blastoise.

"Hmmm. Interesting." Gary said, regarding Ash's decision to have Pikachu battle against his Blastoise.

"Huh?" Ash responded to Gary's comment.

"It's a battle between our starter Pokemon, Ash," Gary pointed out to his rival. "They've never battled against each other, so this should be very interesting to see before we moved on to the main event."

"If we get there, that is," Ash stated before Gary called out his first attack.

"I'm sure we will, Ash. Blastoise, Hydro Pump!" Gary exclaimed.

"Pikachu, use Quick Attack to dodge it, then go into Volt Tackle!" Ash shouted the set of instructions to his Pikachu.

Blastoise starts firing powerful jets of water from its cannons at the charging Mouse Pokemon. While covered in a white outline, Pikachu dodges the powerful blasts of water with precision and great timing. As it got closer to the Shellfish Pokemon, Pikachu's body suddenly became covered with golden electricity. Without missing a beat, the Mouse Pokemon tackles into Blastoise's under the chin. The Shellfish Pokemon roared out in pain from the super-effective attack but then was able to brush it off, despite little sparks of electricity flying off its body. Pikachu then groans in pain as its body becomes surrounded by yellow sparks of electricity, suffering from the recoil damage.

"Impressive, Ash," Gary said, with his eyes closed and a small smile on his face, but quickly reopens his eyes with determination burning within them. "But it's not good enough to take us down!"

Gary touches the Key Stone on his Mega Ring, which activates it and the Mega Stone on Blastoise's forehead. Then, beams of lights are coming out of both Gary's Mega Ring and Blastoise's forehead. The beams meet with each other in between the young researcher and his starter Pokemon. Within the bright light, Blastoise's form begins to transform. Once the light faded away, the Shellfish Pokemon's appearance changed. Blastoise now has two smaller shells over its arms, each with its water cannon. The two cannons on its back are replaced by a single, central water cannon of a greater size that can retract into its shell. This cannon extends forward over Mega Blastoise's head. Small ridges have developed over its now-red eyes and extend to its ears. The ears angle slightly backward and there is a small point on its chin.

Following its transformation, Blastoise let out a roar that was louder and more intimidating than before. Pikachu's face went from confident to being terrified upon the sight of his opponent Mega Evolving. Ash was slack-jawed when he saw Mega Blastoise appear before his very eyes.

"So," Ash responded to Blastoise's Mega Evolution. "That's Mega Blastoise, huh?"

"Indeed it is, Ash," Gary replied with a big grin on his face. "And now, you'll experience its power first hand!"

"Well, bring it on then!" Ash challenged his rival.

"Glady," Gary stated as he called his next attack. " Blastoise, Rapid Spin!"

"Pikachu, stop it with your Thunderbolt!" Ash shouted, hoping Pikachu's attack will slow down the Shellfish Pokemon's attack.

Even as Pikachu was firing a powerful bolt of yellow electricity from its body at the spinning opponent, Mega Blastoise's stamina was strong enough to deflect the Thunderbolt with its speedy spin attack. This turn of events shocked both Ash and his Pokemon, as the spinning Shellfish Pokemon tackles into the Mouse Pokemon sending it flying backward.

"Pikachu! Are you okay, buddy?" Ash questioned his injured Pokemon, who struggles to get back up.

Eventually, Pikachu was able to stand on its shaking feet, while giving its trainer a thumb's up to show that it can still fight. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ash then gazes at Gary's Mega Evolved Pokemon, while brooding over how to deal with its overwhelming power.

We'll have to deal some more damage to it before it knocks out Pikachu. We've gotta give Charizard a fighting chance over it. Ash thought before noticing the small sparks flying off the Shellfish Pokemon's body. He grins upon seeing those sparks, before going back to his thoughts. Or maybe, we already had.

"Stop stalling and call out a move already, Ashly Boy!" Gary yelled at the black-haired trainer across from him, which snapped Ash out of his thoughts. "Unless you're afraid?"

"Me? Afraid?" Ash replied in a jokingly manner. "Nah! Just figuring out how to take down your Mega Blastoise, that's all."

"Well then," Gary responded to his rival's answer. "Let's see what you've got in mind."

"Volt Tackle, Pikachu, Go!" Ash exclaimed, as Pikachu started charging towards Mega Blastoise, while its body became surrounded by golden electricity.

Gary smirks upon seeing Pikachu charging right into the little trap he had set for the Mouse Pokemon. Ash noticed the smirk, but he knew it was too late to call off Pikachu's attack. Gary saw his rival's haunted face, and then laughed at it, before calling out his next attack.

"Hydro Cannon! Right at Pikachu's feet!" Gary shouted with a smile on his face.

Mega Blastoise fires powerful orbs of water from all its cannons at the charging Mouse Pokemon's feet. The impact from the powerful Water-type attack making contact with Pikachu's feet sent the Mouse Pokemon flying into the air with a pained look on its face. Ash was terrified upon seeing the pained expression on his Pokemon's face. However, he knew Gary wouldn't stop there. Just before Pikachu could land on the ground, Mega Blastoise starts spinning rapidly and then tackles the injured Mouse Pokemon with incredible force. Pikachu lets out a loud cry of pain as it is sent flying backward and loses consciousness as it lands on the ground with swirls in its eyes.

"Pikachu is unable to battle! Blastoise wins!" Trevor announced as Ash rushed over to his fallen Pokemon with a grave look in his eyes.

"Pikachu..." Ash said in a somber tone as he picks up the unconscious Mouse Pokemon and holds him in his arms.

Pikachu slowly wakes up to see its trainer's worrying look on his face. Pikachu gives a small smile to his trainer.

"Pika..." Pikachu said in a soft voice, as Ash smiled upon his injured starter Pokemon.

"Pikachu," Ash said to his partner Pokemon. "You did the best you could out there against Mega Blastoise; but thanks to your hard work, we have a chance at victory. I promise you, I won't let it go to waste."

"Pika?" The Mouse Pokemon said with a puzzled look on its face.

That conclusion was quickly wiped away when Pikachu noticed small sparks of electricity flying off of the Shellfish Pokemon's body, as it was being carried back by Ash to the spot where his trainer was standing before. Upon that sight, a small grin formed on Pikachu's face, as he was gently placed on the ground next to Ash, so it could take a nice rest.

Ash took out both Charizard's Pokeball and the Charizardite X that Gary gave him for his birthday. He stares at both objects with a meaningful look of confidence and determination burning in his eyes. He then recalls the special moments he shared with Charizard in the past, including when Charizard finally obeys Ash, defeating Gary's Blastoise in the Silver Conference, and fighting against an Articuno and winning at the Battle Factory. Ash and Charizard had a bond that may have had its ups and downs, but Ash knew he could always count on Charizard to come through for him at the very end. As he recalls these memories, a big smile formed on Ash's face. He then suddenly looks up and gazes upon the young researcher and his Pokemon, who were both waiting patiently for the black-haired trainer to bring out his final Pokemon.

"I'm counting on you, Charizard!" Ash exclaims as he throws the Pokeball into the air.

The light from the Pokeball revealed the Flame Pokemon, as it let out a proud and thunderous roar, before letting out a Flamethrower attack into the air. Ash's strongest Fire-type Pokemon then had its eyes fixed on the Mega Blastoise standing in front of it. The two Pokemon had faced each other before, and Charizard was the victor; but this time, Blastoise was in its Mega Evolved Form. However, the Flame Pokemon was not bothered by its opponent's huge advantage. Even though he had the type advantage in this fight, Gary still expresses a look of cautiousness on his face as he stares at the powerful Flame Pokemon across from him.

You finally showed up. Gary thought about Charizard. Time to finally wipe my scar of defeat from that day where you beat my Blastoise and eliminated me from the Silver Conference.

"Charizard!" Ash shouted to get his Pokemon's attention and snapped Gary back to reality. "Take this!"

Ash threw the Charizardite X to his beloved Flame Pokemon, who catches the Mega Stone with one of its hands. Charizard looks at the Mega Stone, and then, looks back at Ash with a curious expression on the Flame Pokemon's face.

"Charizard," Ash said as he shows the Mega Ring to his Fire-type Pokemon, whose expression changed from curious to wide-eyed when he saw the Key Stone in its trainer's bracelet. "Let's show Gary the true strength of our bond!"

The Flame Pokemon nodded in agreement with its trainer, as Charizard turned to face his opponent once more, but with determination and confidence burning in its eyes. Ash touches the Key Stone on his Mega Ring which activates the Charizardite X that his Charizard now holds in his hand. The Flame Pokemon held the special stone close to its heart as beams of lights come out of both Ash's Mega Ring and Charizard's Mega Stone. The lights meet with each other in between the trainer and his Pokemon.

"Now, Charizard," Ash states with a commanding voice of authority. "Mega Evolve!"

As the bright light consumes the Flame Pokemon's body, Charizard's appearance begins to drastically change. When the light faded away, the transformation was completed. Charizard's body and legs were more physically fit, though its arms remain thin. The Flame Pokemon's skin was now black with a sky-blue underside and soles. Two spikes with blue tips curve upward from the front and back of each shoulder, while the tips of its horns sharpen, turn blue, and curve slightly upward. Its brow and claws are larger, and its eyes are now red. Charizard now has two small, fin-like spikes under each horn and two more down its lower neck. Its finger disappears from the wing membrane, and the lower edges are divided into large, rounded points. The third joint of each wing-arm is adorned with a claw-like spike. The Flame Pokemon was breathing blue flames out the sides of its mouth, and the flame on its tail now burns blue.

Following its extreme transformation, Charizard let out a terrifying and thunderous roar that shook the battlefield grounds like a small earthquake. Gary and Mega Blastoise weren't a bit intimidated by Charizard's Mega Evolution form. They both just had a big smirk on their faces, as they knew that they're about to get that rematch they have long awaited for. Now, it has finally come.

"The final battle begins, now. Let's do this, Blastoise!" Gary exclaims as the Shellfish Pokemon roars in agreement with its trainer.

"Let's give it all we got, Charizard!" Ash also exclaims to his Pokemon, who roars in agreement as well.

---

"This is it," Serena stated as she and the other spectators were watching the final battle of this match about to take place. "We've reached the climax of this amazing battle."

"So we have," Angela said while holding her daughter, Ashley, on her lap.

"Charizard! You can do it!" Ashley shouted, cheering for Ash's Charizard to win.

"Let's not forget," Delia spoke up as the four spectators, including Lucario, turned their attention to hear what Ash's mother has to say. "No matter who wins this battle today, we should all be very happy for them to be able to do this and display what they have learned through their travels and studies to their friends and family today."

"I agree," Serena stated, with a bright smile on her face, while the other spectators nodded in agreement with Delia's statement.

As they turned to watch the final battle take place, everyone was ready to witness the best Pokemon battle they have ever seen.

---

Both Pokemon stood across each other on the battlefield. Their eyes were both expressing the following emotions: Passion, determination, confidence, cautious, and excitement. These two Pokemon were the final choices of both their trainers. Both in their Mega Evolved Form, they both knew their power has become stronger than ever before. For a few moments, the whole area was completely silent. They were waiting to see which Pokemon strikes first in this climactic final round of the battle between Ash and his childhood rival, Gary. Eventually, the silence was shattered when Ash called out the first attack.

"Thunder Punch, Charizard! Go!" Ash shouted, as Charizard's fist became surrounded by yellow sparks, which grew into a ball of electrical energy.

Charizard then flies towards the Shellfish Pokemon with its enhanced speed, following its Mega Evolution. Gary was not at all stunned by Charizard's increased speed as he prepared to call out a counterattack.

"Blastoise! Counter that with Hydro Pump!" Gary shouted to his Pokemon.

However, just when Blastoise was about to fire its cannons, yellow sparks of electricity began to fly off its body, which made it difficult for Blastoise to counterattack against Charizard's Thunder Punch. With its increased speed, Charizard punches right into the paralyzed Shellfish Pokemon's face, causing it to fall and let out a painful moan as it struggles to get right back up. While viewing the sparks of electricity covering his Pokemon's body, the young researcher groans in frustration as he immediately knows what had just happened and how Blastoise got that status condition.

"Blastoise's paralyzed?!" Gary said with a wild-eyed expression on his face while looking at the resting Mouse Pokemon next to Ash's feet. "Pikachu must have paralyzed Blastoise with its Volt Tackle!"

Ash smirks at his rival's face as he calls out another attack. "Dragon Claw! Now!"

The claws on both of Charizard's hands become surrounded in light green, claw-shaped energies. It then strikes the immobilized Water-type Pokemon with one of them, just as the Shellfish Pokemon had finally got back up. While landing a blow, this attack did not make Blastoise fall. It was withstanding the blow with such amazing stamina.

"My Blastoise won't be taken down that easily, Ash!" Gary commented on his rival's attack. "You should know that by now."

Ash quickly realized what he had just done. Charizard was at a close enough range for Blastoise to strike it. Before Ash could warn his Flame Pokemon, Gary quickly made his attack call.

"Hydro Pump!" Gary commanded his Shellfish Pokemon.

This time, Blastoise was able to fire the powerful jets of water at Charizard who was directly in the line of fire of those cannons. The blasts of water hit and pushed Charizard back with the force of a huge wave. The Flame Pokemon let out a painful moan as it gets splashed by the Water-type attack.

"Charizard!" Ash called out to his Pokemon, who was able to withstand Blastoise's Hydro Pump. "Are you alright?"

Charizard gives its trainer a thumb's up to let him know that it was alright and did not take a huge amount of damage from that Water-type attack. Ash smiles as he remembers battling against Alain's Mega Charizard X during the Kalos League. He knew that when Charizard mega evolve into Mega Charizard X, it becomes a Fire and Dragon-type Pokemon. With it being a Dragon-type, Charizard can endure the strongest of any Water attacks.

"You know, Charizard is now a Dragon-type, Gary," Ash stated to his rival. "Water attacks won't be super-effective against it."

"I know, Ash," Gary responded to his rival's remark. "But it still can deal some damage in the long run!"

Ash's grin then became serious as he thought about his strategies against Gary's Mega Blastoise. He's right. I gotta be careful from here on out. I've gotta think smart here, and not be reckless.

"Rapid Spin!"

Gary's attack command snapped Ash out of his thoughts, as Blastoise started spinning rapidly and flying towards the Flame Pokemon. An idea popped into Ash's head while he watched Blastoise spinning endlessly. He grins as he executes his plan.

"Charizard, fly over Blastoise, and then use Thunder Punch on the top of its shell!" Ash shouted.

Following its trainer's orders, Charizard flies out of the spinning Shellfish Pokemon's way, and then punches the top of Blastoise's shell with an electric-covered fist. The force of the punch causes the Shellfish Pokemon to crash directly to the ground. Feeling the impact of the crash, Blastoise slowly comes out of its shell, and then stands up. The Shellfish Pokemon starts breathing heavily as it gazes upon the Flame Pokemon with a look of respect towards his opponent. Its opponent's facial expressions showed it to be in awe by Blastoise's incredible endurance against super-effective attacks. Both Pokemon are displaying their true power against each other, while also showing their sign of respect and admiration towards each other's battling skills. They were enjoying this battle a lot, and so were their trainers.

Ash and Gary have been rivals since childhood and neither one wants to lose to the other. Like their Pokemon, Ash and Gary have expressed their signs of respect and reverence for each other whenever they battle. Both want to win this fight; however, they know that only one could win. With this in mind, they are both battling with all their true strength and power.

"Dragon Claw!" Ash called out his next attack, as Gary does the same.

"Ice Beam!" Gary exclaims.

Just as Charizard dives in on the Shellfish Pokemon with its fists covered in light green, claw-shaped energies, light blue balls of energy are formed in front of all Blastoise's cannons and then light blue beams are shot from the light blue balls and are sent towards the diving Flame Pokemon. The chilly beams struck the Flame Pokemon in the chest area, causing it to let out a painful groan as it's forced to land, so it could recover from that Ice-type attack. When it landed, Ash could hear his Pokemon breathe heavily. The look on Ash's face became worried about the condition of his Pokemon.

Charizard is running out of steam. Ash thought as he looked at his tiring Fire-type Pokemon. We've gotta end this now!

"Hydro Cannon! End this!"

Gary's voice snapped Ash out of his thoughts, catching him off guard as Blastoise prepared to fire its most powerful attack at the almost exhausted Charizard. Ash grunts in frustration as he's about to face defeat handed to him by his longtime rival, Gary. But all of a sudden, yellow sparks of electricity covered the Shellfish Pokemon, making it groan in pain from the electricity, thus preventing it from firing Hydro Cannon.

"Oh no!" Gary yelled out, as Ash's face changed from a look of concern to a more confident expression.

"Oh yes! Now, Charizard, use Seismic Toss!" Ash exclaimed with his voice ringing with excitement.

Charizard charges quickly towards the paralyzed Blastoise, grabs it, and then flies into the sky while holding the immobilized Shellfish Pokemon. Gary could only watch as his Pokemon carried up into the sky. Out of hope, Gary tries to retaliate against the Flame Pokemon before it is too late.

"Quick, Blastoise, use Hydro Pump!" Gary shouted with a worrying tone in his voice.

Just like before, when Blastoise tries to fire its cannons, the sparks of electricity start covering Blastoise's body, preventing it from attacking. Gary gasped upon this sight, as he knew there was nothing he could do to stop Charizard's attack. The young researcher's hand turned into a fist, out of frustration, and his face expressed a grave look for his paralyzed Pokemon. He could only watch as Charizard starts spinning around in a circle; and then eventually, it begins to zoom back down. Ash wants this battle to end, so he decided to have Charizard use one more attack as it goes back down.

"Now, Charizard," Ash starts giving Charizard its final attack order. "Spin while using Flamethrower!"

Listening to its trainer's commands, the Flame Pokemon, while still holding the paralyzed Blastoise, starts spinning endlessly while firing a stream of orange heat in front of it. The stream of fire soon completely covered both Charizard and Blastoise as they rapidly descended. The flames were scorning the Shellfish Pokemon, inflicting damage to it throughout the descent.

"Blastoise!" Gary yells out with a concerned tone in his voice.

Finally, with the momentum of the dive, Charizard tosses the burning Blastoise into the ground. When the Shellfish Pokemon crash-landed, smoke began covering the field. Both the trainers and spectators were waiting in anticipation to see which Pokemon remained standing. When the smoke cleared, it revealed a knocked out Shellfish Pokemon who's now back in its original appearance before it mega evolved. It also showed a still-standing Charizard, whose form also returned to normal. The Flame Pokemon then unleashes a red-orange stream of fire from its mouth, out of celebration over its victory against its opponent. Trevor walks out onto the battlefield and then examines the unconscious Shellfish Pokemon before he makes the final call in this battle.

"Blastoise is unable to battle! Charizard wins! And so, the winner of this battle is...Ash!" Trevor announced the results of the battle, causing a burst of joy and excitement from the victor.

"Yes!" Ash exclaimed as he rushed over to his Charizard and then hugged his loyal Fire-type Pokemon. "We did it, Charizard! And it's thanks to you!"

Pikachu also hugged its Fire-type Pokemon friend out of excitement, resulting in Charizard smiling at the both of them. As the trio was smiling and laughing, Gary walked over to his fallen Blastoise with a small smile on his face.

"You did a great job, old friend," Gary said to his Pokemon, as he helped it stand up. "Even though we did not win, I'm still very proud of the hard work and effort you put into this battle today. Thank you."

Blastoise smiles brightly at its trainer, who smiles back at his beloved starter Pokemon. The two then start walking over to Ash and his two Pokemon, while they were still laughing and hugging each other.

"Ash!" Gary's voice made the trio stop the celebrations as they turned to face Gary and his Blastoise.

"Congrats on your victory over me, today,' Gary said, as he extends his hand out to his rival. "You've earned it."

"Thanks, Gary, for the awesome battle," Ash responded, as he grabs Gary's hand, and they both shake hands in good sportsmanship. "It was one of the best battles I have ever been a part of. Thanks for this amazing birthday gift."

"No problem, Ash," Gary responded, as Charizard and Blastoise shook hands as well. "Even though I lost, I'm very happy to have a battle with you once more."

"Me too, Gary, me too," Ash said, as Trevor walks over to his two friends.

"You two put on a fantastic show for us, today," Trevor stated as he looks at Ash and Gary with a satisfying smile on his face. "It almost made me want to join in the battle!"

The three laughed at Trevor's joke, which led to an idea that popped into Ash's head.

"Well, Trevor," Ash started to explain to Trevor about his idea. "If you like, you and I can have a battle in the future. What do you say about that?"

Trevor thought carefully for a moment, before responding to his friend's request.

"Yes, we could have a battle," Trevor answered, before turning to see a smiling Lucario on the sidelines. The sight of Lucario gave Trevor an interesting suggestion as to when they should have their battle.

"But, let's have that battle when we both obtain the Mega Stones for Lucario and Gregor," Trevor stated, which made Ash and Gary confused.

"Huh? Why?" Ash asked a smiling Trevor.

"Simple," Trevor began to explain to his puzzled friend. "I want our rematch, Ash, to be even better than what you and I displayed during our match at the Pokemon Masters Challenge Tournament. Also, I want Lucario and Gregor to battle in their Mega Evolved forms. It will be quite a battle. So what do you say?"

The young man held out his hand to Ash, who thought about it for a moment. Then, the black-haired trainer quickly grabs Trevor's hand and holds it firm as he looks at the young man, smiling.

"Yes, I accept that challenge!" Ash stated, with Trevor forming a bright smile on his face. "Let's make that battle more exciting than our match back at the tournament."

"We will, indeed," Trevor said, agreeing with the black-haired trainer, as they let go of their grip on each other's hands.

"Alright," Gary interrupted the conversation between Ash and Trevor. "We better get inside and help decorate the house for the party, before the rest of the guests arrive."

"Yeah, you're right," Ash said. "The party is in a few hours, so we have better get started."

"Agreed," Trevor stated, as he, Ash, and Gary started walking over to where Serena, Delia, Angela, Ashley, and Lucario, were all watching the battle from.

Everyone was utterly pleased with how the battle ended. One such reaction came from the honey-blonde performer who rushes over to Ash, and then hugs and tackles him to the ground. They both were laughing and smiling when this occurred, with everyone else joining in on the laughs as well. When they got back up, everyone started heading back to the house, to get it set up for Ash's birthday party.

---

Two hours later, the interior of the house was completely decorated for the birthday party. There were balloons tied to the chairs, multi-colored banners were draped on the top of each door, and exciting music playing in the background.

Eventually, the guests arrived. These guests included all of Ash's friends, with Brock bringing his girlfriend, Holly, to the party. Clemont also brought a date with him. His date was Korrina, the Shalour City Gym Leader. May brought Drew with her since they started going out together. Dawn's new boyfriend was her childhood friend, Kenny, and he came to the party as well. Professor Oak also came to the party, where he found out about the results of Ash and Gary's battle. He was very proud of the two trainers and how they both raised their Pokemon with such love and care. Ash and Gary were pleased with the old professor's comments.

As the party went on, everyone was having a good time chatting, laughing, dancing, and sharing stories of their travels with Ash. The atmosphere was peaceful, joyous, and exciting as they all celebrate the life of Ash Ketchum and his triumphant return from the dead. Everyone's Pokemon were enjoying their own kind of party outside of the house. They were also celebrating Pikachu's anniversary of the day when it first met Ash. As they enjoy the party games, such as pin the tail on the Ampharos and musical chairs, they were all protected under the watchful eye of Ash's Venusaur, Torterra, Sceptile, and Lucario. Trevor's Mewtwo was also a part of this Pokemon team of supervision. Their job was making sure that brawls do not occur and preventing wild Pokemon from interfering with the celebrations. Noctowl is also keeping an eye out for intruders in the area. Even though Team Rocket is no more, there are still Pokemon Hunters who would want to steal Pokemon and sell them on the black market. Under the great protection of these Pokemon, everyone was in good hands.

When it came time for cake, Delia and Serena revealed the cake they baked for Ash. The cake was in the shape of Pikachu, the Pokemon Ash began his journey with. Ash was pleased with how the cake turned out and how it tasted, which made Serena and his mother happy. The Pokemon also got a cake for their party. It was a huge cake that was in the shape of a Pokeball. Some of the Pokemon had to put up an effort to prevent Ash's Snorlax from eating the cake. Luckily, all the Pokemon got a slice of cake to eat. The cake was quite delicious to them. All the guests found the cake to be very delicious and tasted excellent. Can even comment on how the cake's excellent tasting comes from the love and care that they feel towards Ash. This comment made Serena blushed badly.

The party continued until the sun was setting to set and darkness covered the sky. It was time for the guests to go home. Once everyone left, Ash and Serena started to clean up their place with help from their Pokemon. After thirty minutes, the clean up was completed. Pikachu and Lucario went outside to do some stargazing, while the rest of Serena's Pokemon went to sleep in Serena's bedroom. Everything was once again peaceful in the house of Ash and Serena.

"Boy, that party was a blast, wasn't it?" An exhausted Ash asked his also exhausted girlfriend.

"Yes, it was, " Serena replied with a heavy sigh. "Still can't believe Dawn is so good with karaoke."

"Yeah, she must have seen too many Pokemon musicals while in Unova, " Ash joked about his coordinator friend, which resulted in a chuckle from both him and Serena.

As the two lovebirds relaxed for a moment, a thought popped into Serena's head, which made her concerned. She turned to look at the smiling and peaceful young man and placed her hand on his shoulder, which got his attention.

"Hey Ash," Serena said in a soft voice. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure, Serena, what is it?" Ash asked as he noticed Serena's doleful expression on her face. "Is something bothering you?"

"Well," Serena began to answer. "Your mother told me about your father. And well...I'm a bit afraid that you'll leave to go on a journey, and then leave me all alone by myself..."

"Oh...so that's what's bothering you," Ash said while understanding Serena's worries. "Hmmm."

He thought for a moment, before embracing Serena in a hug while rubbing her back gently. Serena felt safe in his arms, with all the depressing emotions being eliminated by the light of good emotions. She knows that when Ash hugs her, it is the best feeling she will experience each day that she is with him.

"Serena," Ash said with a comforting tone in his voice. "For five years, I have trained so hard to get you back. There's no way I'll ever leave your side, ever again."

"Ash..." Serena said, surprised by his words.

"I will never do to you what my father did to my mother," Ash explained to Serena, who smiles upon Ash's proclamation, as he breaks off from the hug and stares her directly into her beautiful blue eyes. "You don't have to worry about losing me ever again. Okay?"

He then pulls her in for another hug, as Serena's nerves were calm and she smiles and nods at her boyfriend's response to her worries, The two, within each other's embrace, start waving back and forth to the music of a slow pace rhythm. They knew they would be together forever and ever.

---

Meanwhile, in the backyard outside, Pikachu and Lucario were laying in the grass. They were both relaxing and enjoying the peacefulness of the area around them. The two Pokemon were gazing up at the stars in awe and wonderment.

"Pikachu," Lucario broke the silence as he asked the Mouse Pokemon a question. "You ever wonder what stars are? Where light comes from?"

"Pi." The Mouse Pokemon nodded to the Aura Pokemon's question, while still being curious itself.

"I heard from an old tale that every star up there is another world," Lucario stated, causing a surprised look to appear on Pikachu's face. "Yep, hard to believe there are so many other worlds out there besides our own."

"Pi?" Pikachu asked, confused by what Lucario had said.

"The light is their hearts, and it's shining down on us like a million lanterns." Lucario continues his explanation with Pikachu still confused by what he means. "In other words, they're just like you, Pikachu."

"Pika?!" The Mouse Pokemon annoyed with what Lucario said, which meant a chuckle from the Aura Pokemon.

"Don't worry, Pikachu," Lucario stated to calm Pikachu down. "As I said, it's an old legend. It might not be true."

The Mouse Pokemon nodded, sort of satisfied with the Aura Pokemon's answer, before laying back down on the grass and resumed stargazing.

As they continued to stargaze, something caught the attention of the Aura Pokemon. Lucario stood up and noticed a figure, wearing a black-red cloak, who was standing on the roof of Ash and Serena's house. The Aura Pokemon shook its head to make sure it was not dreaming; however, when he did, the figure had completely vanished, much to the surprise of the stunned and confused Aura Pokemon. His thoughts began to ponder over what or who he just saw.

Who was that? Lucario thought as he returned to stargazing, while forever wondering about the mysterious figure in the black-red cloak he saw tonight.

---

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Hope you guys enjoy the epic conclusion of Ash and Gary's battle! I wish to apologize for how quick I went through the details regarding Ash's birthday party. I was suffering a headache while writing it, so I am sorry for how I quickly went through Ash's party. Anyway, the next chapter will be the start of the Trevor vs the Unknown Figure in Cerculean Cave. I might start writing it either Saturday or next Tuesday, I am not sure. Nevertheless, stay tuned for the next chapter! Bye!