Going forward and beyond {Path of the Aura Ranger: Book I}

V Riley's P.O.V

"Good! Ash is only down by two pokemon, while Elite Four Lucian only has three pokemon left!" Dawn cheered, while Paul smiled at her.

These two are also very cute, I thought fondly. I have adorable little siblings. Even if they can be scary, I looked down at the destroyed battlefield and recalled all that a rookie like Dawn had achieved and shivered. She will be a force to reckon... she already is.

"Girafarig!/Slowbro!" Once again both trainers released their pokemon together.

"Is that a Galarian Slowbro?" Elite Four Lucian inquired in excitement. Which surprised me, as Ash uses the mated pair a lot for his ranger work. "How did you get one? I am still waiting to get a vacation so I can go to Galar and get one."

"I traded her for a Tauros with a farmer out there," Ash answered with a sad smile at the memory. "But enough of this, let's get back to the battle!"

"You are right! Girafarig, Agility and Stomp!"

To our surprise Ash did not command Slowbro to dodge it, the complete opposite. "Receive it!"

Receive it she did and jabbed a painful Shell Side Arm on Girafarig's gut. Girafarig stumbled back and took a light purple color. He was poisoned! Paul and Dawn quietly cheered at that, and Reggie relaxed against me. I almost missed how he tensed, when Ash had commanded Slowbro to take the attack.

"Girafarig, Earthquake and Thunder!" Elite Four Lucian rapidly commanded, he knew that this was a battle against time now.

"Slowbro, Withdraw!" Ash ordered his pokemon.

"Shadow Ball!" Elite Four Lucian was rapid for the attack again, using the previous ones to hide this one. However, it was of no use. I watched as Slowbro slized the Shadow Ball in two, using a deadly Razor Shell. Girafarig was done for, the poison was too much for him. He fainted soon after shooting the Shadow Ball. "Girafarig, return! Good work! Alakazam you are next!"

"This will be hard," Paul commented leaning forward. "Alakazam is one of the strongest Pshycic-type pokemon out there."

"But it is nothing Ash can't take," Lucario replied calmly like always. Even as we both faced Teamm Rocket on their final stand, he was poised and calm by my side. He turned to smile at me, and I knew he was aware of what I was thinking. "Always, partner."

"Always," I returned with a smile.

"Slowbro, Acid!" Ash called out, but his move was useless against Alakzam's Psychic, who easily moved the acid away. However, it was all just a distraction for Ash's real objective. "Yawn!"

It was a direct hit and Alakazam was asleep in a matter of seconds. But this was the Leader of Sinnoh's Elite Four, no way it would be this easy to defeat him.

"Sleep Talk!" Elite Four Lucian commanded calmly and a Psybeam rapidly shot from the sleeping pokemon, injuring Slowbro. "I must thank you for your research paper on Poke Science," Elite Four Lucian thanked Ash. "It did wonders for our training with Sleep Talk."

Ash grimaced at Elite Four Lucian's smirk and shouted: "Amnesia!" Elite Four Lucian's eyes widened in shocked and opened his mouth, surely to command another Sleep Talk. But it was too late, Slowbro had already moved. With that Alakazam was cut off from doing anaything else in this battle. Before Slowbro succumbed to the Thunder and Psybeam injuries, she finished the fight with Belch. "You should have not stopped in the middle of the battle to brag."

"I shouldn't," Elite Four Lucian agreed with a chuckle, as they both returned their pokemon.

"I really should teach her Heal Pulse," Ash commented with a sigh. "I'll have Meganium teach it to anyone that can learn it."

"Hey, I just realized that Ash uses a lot of moves to take down the Elite Four's pokemon, but they only use a couple of them and Ash's pokemon are down," Dawn commented frustrated. "Why is that?"

"You need to remember that Ash's pokemon are young and inexperience, at least compared to the Elite Four. Especially, those he got only before he began his journey through Sinnoh," I explained to her. "They were winning thanks to Ash's trickery and slyness. Of course, this does not mean that Ash and his pokemon are not talented of powerful, just that the level is different. The battle against Champion Cynthia will be much different, you'll see that Ash's pokemon will be in a disadvantage and more will faint."

"I see," Dawn murmured.

"Ash is also not using his main A-Team," Paul reminded me. "The difference won't be as large as you are eluding."

"Look at you Paul, coming out to Ash's defense," Reggie teased his little brother, who blushed at the attention and turned back to the battlefield just in time to see Ash release his Galarian Slowking and Elite Four Lucian his Gallade.

"I hope you are ready!" Elite Four Lucian warned him, before taking out a Key Stone.

Of course, Mega Evolution, I moaned in my head. Why is everyone so obssessed with that?! Can't they let Ash recover? He just fought three Mega Evolutions in a day! And I'm sure he'll face another one against Champion Cynthia!

"Slowking, Eerie Spell!" Ash began with a bang.

"Mega Gallade, Calm Mind and Psycho Cut!" Elite Four Lucian commanded, and his pokemon cut through the Eerie Spell and went for Ash's pokemon.

"Take it with Razor Shell!" Ash shouted, "Use Drain Punch!"

He continued now that he had Mega Gallade so close to him. Mega Gallade received two punches to the gut, before he began to retaliate with Close Combat. It was a Fighting-type battle now, one that was cut short when Slowking got a Thunder Punch to the side, soon followed dby a Thunderbolt. It took everything in Slowking not to faint and get some distance between him and Mega Gallade.

"Are you ready Slowking?" Ash asked his pokemon with concern but determination. Slowking heaved but straighten up, and nodded. "Good!" He raised his hand, with the Z-Ring around his wrist. "Then, let's do this! Never-Ending Nightmare!" The surrounding area was engulfed with an illusionary dark scenery, that created a large shadow around Slowking's feet. Multiple shadowy hands then reached out from the shadow and attacked Mega Gallade. When the hands reached the Mega Evolved pokemon, they explode. As the surrounding returned to normal, it revealed two fainted pokemon. "We did it... we did it!" Ash jumped in excitement, as we all cheered for him.

"Elite Four Lucian was the first one to take down four of Ash's pokemon," Lucario commented as he clapped.

"It will only get harder from now on," Reggie replied.

"Who do you think will win?" Paul asked, to no one in specific.

"No idea, but I can't wait to watch the battle," I answered. "It will be epic!"