With Bales Town behind them, our heroes are once again on their way to Fillydelphia City and Flash's second Equestria Region Gym challenge. They had left the town earlier that morning and had been walking for at least four hours before stopping in a small forest clearing, where they intended to have lunch. While Doc was busy making it, Flash and Twilight were building an appetite by battling against one another with their Flying-Types. On the sidelines, Spike, Doc and everyone's Pokémon were watching the spar.
Twilight was now more focused and confident than ever, her victory over Trixie making her pumped for battling. She then pointed at Flash's Chickling, "Use Peck!"
"Dodge and use Wing Attack!" Flash countered, Skyler flapping backwards before his wings started to glow, ready to swipe at Owlicious.
"Dodge it as well!" Twilight told the Psychick, the owl quickly manoeuvring away from the attack. "Now, use Confusion!"
"Psy!" Owlicious yelled as his eyes began to glow.
Skyler had been circling around for another attack, only for a light blue energy blast to hit him. "Chick!" He cried as he was knocked backwards, his wings flapping rapidly as he tried to keep himself airborne.
"Keep yourself together Skyler!" Flash ordered as he pointed at the Psychick, "Now, use Gust!"
The bird quickly flapped its wings, a whirlwind soon appearing as he slammed into Owlicious, a cry of pain following as his eyes stopped glowing.
"Nice move," Spike commented as his eyes went back and forth in the battle. At the same time, Doc was also watching while cooking some omelettes for the group.
"Ri," Springer nodded in agreement while Flash's other Pokémon cheered Skyler on.
"Terra!" Peewee cried as it cheered for its teammate.
Twilight then pushed her glasses up her nose, "Owlicious, get to a safe distance. Now!"
"Psychick!" Owlicious did as instructed, flying out of the Gust's range.
Twilight smiled at this before pointing at her Pokémon. "Okay, just like we practiced. Use Peck!"
Owlicious remained stationary in midair, only for his beak to glow. Then, the light around the beak suddenly extended, making Owlicious's beak appear five times longer than it had originally. Everyone was amazed by this, Spike speaking up first, "How'd he do that?"
Twilight smirked as she readjusted her glasses. "Pretty cool, huh? It's a trick I read up on in the library. Its a move that allows Owlicious to storing up power in the beak to improve the strength of pecking attacks like Peck, Fury Attack and more."
"Fantastic," Doc said before looking back at his pan, "Twilight's really starting to improve."
Flash just shook his head as a smirk appeared on his face, "Maybe...but it takes more than one stronger move to take me down." He pointed at Owlicious, "alright Skyler, Quick Attack!"
"Chickling!" Skyler yelled as he shot forward.
Twilight then pointed at the speeding Chickling. "Time to show off Peck's new power. Go Owlicious!"
"Psy!" Owlicious shot forwards as well.
The two bird Pokémon charged into each other, slamming at full speed. They two then bounced off, both taking damage as they flapped back, only to quickly recover and right themselves in midair. The two trainers then smirked as they were ready to give another order-
"Alright, that's enough everyone!" Doc interrupted, clapping his hands. "I think that's enough for now. Food's almost ready!"
Flash and Twilight both nodded at this, their Pokémon quickly flying down and landing on their head or shoulder. "You were looking great out their bud," Flash told Skyler.
"You too," Twilight told Owlicious.
"Chick/Psy," the two smiled with a blush on their faces.
"I agree," Doc added while not looking up from his cooking. "Both trainer and Pokémon are growing stronger with each battle. You should be proud."
Spike rapidly nodded, "Yeah! You guys were-"
"AWESOME!"
Everyone froze at Spike's interrupted statement, all of them spinning towards the direction the voice came from, soon seeing two figures standing by the treeline. They were both girls, one of which had blue skin and had hair that was literally a rainbow of colours. She was wearing a blue jacket over a white shirt that had the image of a cloud with a rainbow coloured thunderbolt on it. She also wore a purple and white skirt, along with blue knee high boots.
The second girl had buttercream skin and pink flowing hair. She was wearing a white sleeveless shirt and a green skirt with pink trim and three butterflies on it. She also wore green knee high boots and had a slightly frightened expression on her face.
The first girl quickly rushed up to them, though the group could easily tell her focus was on the Pokémon currently on Flash's shoulder and Twilight's head. "That battle was awesome! Nothing's better than watching two Flying-Types duke it out in the air, wouldn't you say?!"
"Err...I guess?" was all Flash could get out.
Twilight then stepped in front of the girl, "Um, I'm sorry but...who are you?"
The girl just now seemed to realize that there were others apart from Skyler and Owlicious around, making her back pedal before pointing at herself, put her focus on them. "Oh, sorry. Name's Rainbow Dash, I'm sure you've heard of me?"
Flash, Twilight, Spike and Doc all shared a look, obviously asking the other if they had heard of her. When the results came in, they all looked back before replying in unison. "Sorry, never heard of ya."
Rainbow's cocky attitude immediately disappeared, soon replaced with embarrassment before showing a forced look of anger. "What do you mean you haven't heard of me?! I'm Rainbow Dash, the world's best Flying-Type Pokémon trainer." She still only got odd looks, making her pout.
The other girl had finally reached them, hiding her face behind her hair. "I-I-I'm sorry about R-R-Rainbow Dash. She can be...um...a little over excitable."
"Oh really?" Flash replied sarcastically. "I hadn't noticed."
Before Rainbow could say anything, Twilight stepped up to the other girl. "So, what's your name?" The girl once again hid behind her hair before whispering something. Twilight leaned a little over to her, "Sorry, what was that?" The girl repeated herself a little louder, but still too quietly to be understood. "I still can't hear you."
Rainbow then stepped in between them. "She's Fluttershy. Sorry, she's a little shy around new people." Rainbow then pointed at Springer and the others. "Look Shy, Pokémon you're not friends with."
"Really?!" Fluttershy squeaked as she turned to the Pokémon, only to zoom past Flash and Twilight. She then grabbed Riolu, giving him a massive hug! "A Riolu! You're sooooo cute!"
Springer was surprised by this action at first, but quickly got over it and hugged back. "Ri...."
Fluttershy then looked at the others as she released the hug and leaned down to the Pokémon. "You're all so cute. I could just hug you all forever!" She began petting all of the Pokémon, even getting a happy hiss from Viper.
Flash's group just blinked at the sight as Flash commented, "Wow. She's good."
"She's Fluttershy," Rainbow groaned in a tone that made it sound like it explained everything.
Everyone then watched as Fluttershy take out a Pokeball. "Angel, come out and meet some new friends." The Pokeball opened and unleashed a white rabbit like creature that was about half a foot in height.
"Whose that Pokémon?" Flash asked as he pulled out his Pokedex.
Name: Bunnop
Category: Rabbit Pokémon
Type: Normal
Info: This Pokemon is known for its temper, making befriending it difficult. Its powerful legs allow it to run at super high speeds for long periods of time.
Bunnop looked around at the others, a frown on its face before turning to its trainer and crossing his arms.
"What's up with him?" Spike asked as he pointed at the rabbit.
"He's spoiled," Rainbow hissed as she rolled her eyes. "He hates it when Fluttershy gives any other Pokémon any kind of attention."
"I see..." Twilight commented, blinking as she looked back at Fluttershy, who was still petting the Pokémon.
Before anyone could say anything else, Rainbow turned back to the two trainers. "So, one of you guys wanna battle?"
"Right now?" Flash asked in surprise.
"Yeah!" Rainbow replied, nodding. "I wanna battle either your Chickling or Psychick."
"Why those two specifically?" Doc asked.
Rainbow smirked as she rubbed her nose. "Because I wanna see how I compare to other Flying-Type trainers. So whenever I meet someone with a Flying-Type, I challenge them." She turned back to Flash and Twilight, "So, what do you say? Wanna battle?!"
Flash and Twilight shared a glance, before Flash nodded back at Rainbow, "Alright. You're on."
"Great!" Rainbow leapt back several feet before pulling out her own Pokeball, "Here's my partner. Let's go Tank!" She tossed the all in the air before it opened, releasing a red light as it faded to reveal a small green tortoise Pokémon. It stood at around a foot in height and wore a pair of aviator goggles. Its shell seemed to have some kind of propeller sticking out of it, which began to spin and lift the Pokémon into the air. "Tor...peller."
"Whose that Pokémon?" Flash asked as he held up his Pokedex again.
Name: Torpeller
Category: Air Tortoise Pokémon
Type: Rock/Flying
Info: Due to an immense desire to fly, its shell adapted to gain a propeller like appendage that it uses to lift itself off the ground.
"Looks strong," Flash commented before turning to Skyler. "You wanna go bud?"
"Chickling!" Skyler nodded before jumping off his shoulder and flying up until he was at the same level as Tank.
Twilight stepped between the two. "Alright, I'll referee you two. Chickling verses Torpeller, battle begin!"
"Quick Attack!" Flash ordered, Skyler shooting forward at high speed.
"Withdraw," Rainbow replied as Tank's head and legs suddenly retracted into its shell, which flashed a white colour before Skyler struck it.
"Chick!" He yelped as he bounced off the shell, doing no damage whatsoever.
"Not good," Flash said as he watched Tank's head pop back out.
Rainbow smirked as she pointed at Skyler. "Now Tackle!" Tank zoomed forward, hitting Skyler with brute force. The bird immediately fell back, screaming in pain.
"Keep your balance Skyler!" Flash ordered, his Pokémon quickly flaring its wings to stop itself in midair. "Alright, use Gust!"
"Chick...ling!" Skyler yelled as it flapped his wings. "Chick, chick, chick, chick!" The wind attack struck Tank, only for it to just stay there in midair, unaffected by the breeze.
"What's happening?" Spike asked as he saw Tank just smile at Skyler.
"Tank must be too heavy," Doc commented as he tapped an egg with a spatula. "Gust isn't strong enough to blow him away."
As she saw Skyler stop his wings, tired from doing Gust, Rainbow pointed at Skyler and yelled, "Our turn. Use Gust Tank!" Tank re-positioned himself so his propeller was pointing at Skyler, the device spinning like crazy as a high powered current blasted Skyler.
"Chickling!" He cried as he rolled through the air.
"Skyler!" Flash yelled. "Pull yourself together!"
"Now Tackle!" Rainbow ordered, Tank now stopping his attack before flying towards Skyler.
Flash growled at this. "Skyler, use Double Team!"
"Chickling!" Skyler yelled as it balanced itself, soon creating a group of duplicates. Tank struck one of the Skylers, only to keep flying as it had hit a fake.
"Wing Attack!" Skyler's wings glowed as he aimed for Tank.
"Withdraw!" Rainbow replied, Tank once again retracting into his shell before it shined white again. A second later, Skyler struck it with his wing, only to not do a spit of damage.
"Damn it!" Flash hissed. "Why isn't' this working?!"
Twilight let out a low groan, shaking her head as she told Flash, "Torpeller's a Rock-Type Flash. Flying-Type attacks won't work well on it."
"You got that right," Rainbow added as she pointed at Tank. "But Rock-Type attacks will work on Flying-Types. Now, use Rock Tomb!"
"Tor!" Tank's shell once again glowed, only for the shine to shoot off it and turn into a barrage of rocks.
"Chickling!" Skyler cried as the stones struck him, pushing and pinning him into the ground before the rubble buried him.
"Skyler!" Flash yelled as he watched is partner be buried, causing him to run over to the pile while the rest of his team did the same. The five of them started pulling the rocks off, eventually freeing the Chickling, only to see spirals in its eyes.
"Chick," Skyler moaned out as Flash picked him up.
"Skyler's unable to battle," Twilight declared with a hand pointing at the victor. "Tank wins, and victory goes to Rainbow Dash."
"Alright!" Rainbow cheered as Tank flew down to her, which she grabbed and pulled him into a hug. "Nice going Tank!"
Flash just let out a sigh as he looked down at Skyler. "We...we didn't even do any damage."
He felt a hand on his shoulder, making him turn to see Fluttershy. "I'm sorry your Pokémon got hurt," she said before holding up a blue berry. "Here, this Oran Berry will help him."
Flash nodded and fed it to Skyler, "thank you."
With the battle over, Doc invited Rainbow and Fluttershy to have lunch with them. The two accepted and the group were now sitting around a table while Tank and Angel ate with the other Pokémon.
"So Rainbow, Fluttershy," Twilight spoke up as they ate. "Tell us about yourselves."
"Not much to tell," Rainbow replied before stuffing a bit of omelette in her mouth. "We're both from Cloudsdale City."
"Cloudsdale City?" Spike asked.
Doc leaned in to explain, "The highest city in Equestria, though its mainly that because it's built on top of a mountain."
Spike's eyes went wide at this. "Whoa...that's awesome!"
Rainbow took a gulp of her drink before continuing. "Since it's so high up, Flying-Types are super common there."
Fluttershy nodded at this. "There's even a Gym that specialises in the type there, founded by a woman named Cloud Clipper. She was supposed to have been the best Flying-Type trainer Equestria has ever seen, but it's uncertain if she still is."
"Why's that?" Spike asked.
"She left Cloudsdale about ten or twelve years ago, leaving the Gym to its current leader," Rainbow explained with a slight frown. "Then she seemed to just...disappear. No one really knows what happened to her. But...I wanna be just like her, so that's why I train Flying-Types and went on this journey."
"A mighty goal," Doc commented as he started on his second omelet. "Are you planning to enter the Equestria League?"
Rainbow leaned back with a huge grin, "You know it! Heck, I already got my first badge from Fillydelphia City!"
"Really?" Twilight asked with a raised eyebrow, "that's where we're heading now."
"Well then be prepared to battle some super tough Bug-Types. That's what the Gym Leader uses."
Fluttershy nodded in agreement. "Rainbow was able to win because all of her team had an advantage. The Gym Leader's young, but very strong."
The three of them nodded before Twilight turned to Flash, "you'll need to be careful then." When she didn't get a reply, she raised an eyebrow before tapping Flash on the shoulder.
"What?" Flash said as he looked up from his barely touched plate.
"You okay? You haven't said anything since we sat down."
"Yeah," Flash replied as he looked back down, "I'm just...thinking."
"About the battle?" Doc asked, getting a nod in return. "It's true, you did seem outmatched."
"Skyler's moves barely scratched Tank," Flash replied as he crossed his arms. "I need to come up with a way to help him against Rock-Types and over highly defensive Pokémon."
"But how can you do that?" Spike asked as he finished his food.
Everybody thought for a moment as they continued eating, only for Doc to snap his fingers. "We teach him a move that's strong against the type."
Everyone looked up at him. "We can do that?"
Doc nodded, "Of course. And I know just the move we can teach him. It's a Steel-Type move, so it'll give Skyler the edge in battles against Rock-Types."
"That sounds perfect!" Flash cheered, his eagerness back. He then munched down his lunch, slightly horrifying the others as the food just disappeared almost instantly. After finishing, he turned back to Skyler, "Better carbo-load buddy, because we're gonna get training as soon as we're done."
Skyler turned back to him, his mouth and beak brimming with food. "Chickling!"
As soon as everyone's lunch was finished, Flash, Doc, Rainbow, Tank and Skyler moved over to another clearing. Flash had changed so he was wearing what he wore when he trained Riptide while Doc took off his coat and Rainbow had taken off her jacket. Skyler was also there, stretching in preparation for learning this new move.
"Rock Tomb!" Rainbow called out, Doc having asked her for her help, and Tank unleashed a flurry of rocks. They were much larger than the ones from the battle and scattered around the area. The perfect training ground.
Doc then cricked his neck, "Alright, let's get started. Now, the move I suggest we teach Skyler is one called Steel Wing."
Rainbow smirked. "Aw yeah! I know that move, its awesome."
"Is it really strong?" Flash asked with the tilt of the head.
Doc nodded. "Like I said, it's a Steel-Type move which will help Skyler against Rock and Ice-Types, which Flying-Type's have trouble with. It also has the effect of increasing the user's defences, meaning he'll take less damage from attacks."
"Nice. So...how do we get started?"
Rainbow smirked before pulling out a Pokeball. "Allow me. Gligar, let's go!" She tossed the ball in the air and unleashed the creature within, which appeared to be a purple scorpion like Pokémon with a large tongue. It had big pincers on its arms and a tail with a stinger on the end while a thin membrane could be seen between its arms and legs.
"Gligar," the Pokémon said as it glided through the air.
"Watch and learn," Rainbow said before pointing at a nearby rock. "Gligar, use Steel Wing!"
"Gligar!" The creature turned towards the rock and flew at it, the membrane beginning to glow. Everyone watched as he shot past the boulder, only for the top to slowly slide off, revealing a perfect slice between it.
"Whoa..." Flash gasped as he and Skyler were in awe at this.
"See?" Rainbow said as she returned Gligar, "cool move, am I right?"
"Yeah!" Flash replied like a kid who had just been told he would get to flying in a rocket.
Doc turned to Flash. "But if we're to teach Skyler how to use this move, we need to increase the strength of his wings. But since he already knows Wing Attack, it shouldn't be too hard to develop it into Steel Wing."
Flash nodded before kneeling down in front of Skyler. "You ready for this?"
Skyler nodded, "Chick."
"Then let's get started!"
Back at the camp, Fluttershy continued to be in awe over all the Pokémon. She was now scratching Prongs behind the ears. "Awww...you're so cute. I've heard of Thawn, but I've never got the chance to see one until now."
"Maybe you could get one from Professor Celestia," Spike commented as he played with Peewee. "She let Flash have Riptide even though he already had a Pokémon."
"That was a special circumstance Spike. Riptide literally ran away from Professor Celestia so he could be with Flash," Twilight explained as she then turned to Fluttershy, "sorry."
Fluttershy shook her head, "Its alright, I don't have to have one of them for myself." She continued to scratch Prongs's ear while Angel glared at her, not looking happy about it as he munched on a carrot. "As long as I get to call them my friends, then I don't need to catch a Pokémon."
Twilight surprised at her honesty over loving the Pokémon, "So....you really like Pokémon, huh?"
Fluttershy nodded at this. "Of course. And unlike Rainbow, I love all types. I want to meet as many of them as possible."
"That's great," Twilight said as she rubbed her chin in thought. "So...do you want to be a breeder or something?"
Fluttershy thought for a moment, only to frown. "To be honest, I don't know what I want to do with my life. I just want to meet and befriend new Pokémon, but I'm not sure what else I want to do."
"There has to be something." Spike chimed in, only for Fluttershy to simply shake her head.
"I don't know. That's why I'm out on this journey with Rainbow. We've been friends since we were children, so when she was finally allowed to leave home, my parents decided it would be good for me to go with her and see the world. They thought it might help me realize what I want to do."
"And you still haven't found it?" Twilight asked as she rubbed her owl Pokémon's head.
Fluttershy shook her head again. "We've only been travelling for a few weeks. We flew from Cloudsdale to an airport a little ways from Fillydelphia, then made our way there. Rainbow caught as many Flying-Types as she could, but I still only have Angel."
They all turned to the Bunnop, who was crossing his arms and tapping his foot.
"Man, he is spoiled," Spike said to Peewee, who nodded in response. A second later, a carrot suddenly bounced off their heads. "Ow!" He turned to glare at Angel, who blew a raspberry at him in response.
"Terr," Peewee hissed at him. He then got his own raspberry, increasing his annoyance and began preparing for a Dragon Breath attack.
"That's not nice Angel," Fluttershy told the Bunnop. "Apologize right now." Angel rolled his eyes before turning to Spike and Peewee, soon putting on its most 'sincere' apologetic face. "That's better."
"She's seriously buying that?" Spike grumbled as him and Peewee crossed their arms.
Twilight rolled her eyes before continuing the conversation. "So...how did you get Angel? I don't think Bunnop are usually found near Cloudsdale.
"They're not," Fluttershy commented as she rubbed Angel's head. "I got him while I was on a vacation to the town called Ponyville. I got lost in the forest by the town and got really scared, only to be found by Angel. He was all alone, but he came up to me and tried to cheer me up. Then a bunch of different wild Pokémon showed up and we started playing together until the sun went down. Angel showed me the way back to the town, but I returned the next day and played with them again. When the week was up and I had to go home, I went to say goodbye to all my friends..." They watched as she reached down and picked the Bunnop up, hugging him close to her chest. "But Angel didn't want to say goodbye, and he followed me back to the village. It wasn't until we were on the plane that I found him in my bag. We've been together ever since."
Angel's previous demeanor disappeared, replaced by a happy and loving one as he rubbed his face into Fluttershy's chin.
"Awwww," Twilight and the rest of the Pokémon all said while Spike and Peewee just glared at the bunny. Before anything else could be said however, a loud outcry could be heard through the trees. The three teens and Pokémon all turned towards it. "Looks like the training's begun."
"Awesome," Spike replied before standing up. "Let's go watch."
Fluttershy shook at this idea, "Oh....should we? We might get in the way."
Twilight shook her head as she stood up. "As long as we stay near the treeline, I don't see that happening."
"Oh...okay." With that, they all moved over to where they had heard the outcry. When they got there, they spotted Flash and Skyler training. "What's he doing?"
Flash and Skyler were running, or flying, around the area at high speed. Flash had a large rock tied to his back, while Skyler was carrying two in his feet. The two looked like they were having trouble with the added weight, but refused to let it slow them down. At the side, Rainbow, Doc and Tank were watching, only to see Twilight and Fluttershy walk up them.
Twilight then chuckled at the sight as she nudged Fluttershy, "You see that? That's just Flash's way of training. He doesn't have his Pokémon do anything he's not willing to do. It's kind of his way of building teamwork."
"Oh..." Fluttershy gasped as she blinked at the sight.
As Flash and Skyler passed a marker, Doc looked down at his pocket watch. "Three seconds faster," he told the trainer.
"Now we'll beat that time," Flash said before turning to Skyler. "Ready to go again?"
Skyler nodded, "chick!"
After several more laps, each done faster than the last, they moved on to another exercise. This time, they tied rocks around Skyler's wings and had him lift them like dumbbells, while Flash lifted rocks of equal weight to him.
"They're strengthening different muscles depending on the exercise they're doing," Twilight explained as she pushed her glasses up her nose. "That'll strengthen Skyler's wings for sure."
Next, Doc had Flash and Skyler try to stand up high powered winds, courtesy of Tank. "Gust!" Rainbow yelled as Tank spun his rotor and created a powerful current.
Flash and Skyler were bombarded by the winds, with Flash trying to walk and Skyler trying to fly through it. "Come on!" Flash yelled over the winds, "we can do it!"
"Chick!" Skyler cried, only for him and his trainer to suddenly be blasted backwards.
"Oooooh! That had to hurt" Spike commented as him and Twilight flinched at the sight of them hitting the ground.
Fluttershy on the other hand, looked horrified as she gulped and asked,"Are they okay?"
Twilight nodded back, "They'll be fine,. It'll take more than that to knock them down."
"Come on you wimps," Rainbow barked out as the two of them laid out on the floor. "You gonna give up already?"
"No way!" Flash replied as he picked himself up.
"Chickling!" Skyler agreed as he did the same. Once they were back on their feet, the two of them rushed towards Tank as he fired off another Gust attack.
A few Gusts later, Doc was happy with their progress and decided it was time to actually learn the attack. "Okay you two, now its time that we can try and get the technique down. Try using Steel Wing the same way you use Wing Attack Skyler."
"Alright!" Flash cheered as he turned to Skyler and pointed at a nearby rock. "Let's do this! Use Steel Wing!"
"Chickling!" Skyler rushed toward the rock as his wings glowed, only to bounce off it with a flinch. "Chick!"
"That was Wing Attack," Rainbow said as she tapped her foot. "You'll need to do better than that!"
"Come on Skyler!" Flash told the Chickling. "Focus your energy. You can do it!"
"Chick..." Skyler moaned as he spread his wings and focused. Seconds later, his wings glowed once more, only to show a bit brighter light as a metallic shine could be seen. "LING!" Skyler shot forwards and swiped the rock, actually cutting it in two this time.
"Yes!" Flash cheered.
"Now that was a Steel Wing!" Rainbow added with a fist pump.
"Now, do it again!" Doc told them, clapping his hands. And again they did, only for Skyler's Steel Wing to fail. This went on for a good while. Skyler would attempt to use Steel Wing, but fail every now and again.
Eventually, they ran out of rocks, but Skyler had yet to use Steel Wing twice in a row. Flash grumbled at this, "Man...what aren't we getting?"
"I'm not sure," Doc added as he glared at Skyler. "It's obvious he now knows the attack, but the use of it is really inconsistent."
They all thought for a moment, only for Rainbow to snap her fingers. "I know! Let's battle again!"
Flash and Doc turned to her, Flash asking, "How's that gonna help?"
"Maybe Skyler needs to be in a real battle to get Steel Wing down. Let the instincts take over, ya know."
"Actually, that might just work." Doc turned to Flash, "its worth a shot."
Flash nodded before turning back to Skyler, "you ready for a rematch?"
Skyler rapidly nodded. "Chickling!"
Everyone had now returned to the first battlefield, Flash and Rainbow staring each other down along with their Pokémon doing the same thing. Flash then turned to his shoulder, "You ready Skyler?"
"Chickling!" Skyler chirped as he took to the skies.
"Let's do this Tank!" Rainbow cheered, raising a fist into the air.
"Tor!" Tank began to rotate his propeller, soon taking flight.
Twilight stepped between them and adjusted her glasses. "Alright, I'll be the referee for this as well. Now...Skyler verses Tank, second match." She raised both arms high before throwing them down. "Battle begin!"
"We'll start this off with our new move Skyler. Steel Wing!"
"Chick!" Skyler shot forward like a bullet, his wings glowing.
"Withdraw!" Rainbow ordered, Tank withdrawing into his shell as it glowed. But as he did this, Skyler's wing struck the shell, only to be sent flying back, his body spinning like a top.
"Yes!" Flash cheered, Skyler imitating his happiness.
Rainbow watched as Tank finally stopped his spinning, his head popping out while looking dizzy. Despite this, she smirked. "Well what do you know? This might actually be a challenge this time. Now, use Tackle!"
"Tor!" Tank dashed towards Skyler, his head retracting into his shell as he got closer.
Flash smirked. "Counter with Steel Wing!"
"Chick!" Skyler flew right as him, his wings glowing again. But as he did this, the light suddenly faded seconds before he tried to strike Tank.
BAM!
"Ling!" He cried as he was knocked back.
"Oh dear," Fluttershy gasped.
"What happened?!" Spike asked next. "I thought Flash had Steel Wing down."
Doc nodded in agreement, "So did we. There's something we're not seeing here."
"Ri, ri, rio!" Springer yelled in a cheering motion, the rest of Flash's Pokémon mimicking him.
Flash growled as he watched Skyler regain aerial stability. "What happened? I thought-"
"Rock Tomb!" Rainbow interrupted, Tank soon firing off the rocks from last time.
"Quick! Evade them as best you can!" Flash yelled as Skyler flared his wings, his now increased speed allowing him to outmaneuver the flying rubble. And as he dodged the last stone, Flash pointed at Tank, "Let's try this again. Steel Wing!"
"Chick...ling!" Skyler's wings once again glowed as he swiped at Tank, knocking the turtle away with a spin.
Rainbow watched as Tank spun, trying to stabilize himself. He soon managed to reach stability just above the ground, only to cut his rotor so he could land gently on the ground. "You okay?" Tank looked back at her and nodded.
Spike tilted his head at the sight, "I don't get it. Why'd Skyler manage to use Steel Wing now, but not before?"
"It's almost like he can't use the move twice in a row," Fluttershy added.
Doc heard this, which made his mind race as he quickly snapped his fingers. "Of course!" Fluttershy and Spike turned to him in confusion. "In order to pull off Steel Wing, Skyler needs to build up the energy in his wings. Since he's only just learned the move, he hasn't mastered that part, so his wings need time between Steel Wings to build up power. That's why he can't use it twice in a row yet."
Twilight frowned at this. "So Flash needs to be careful until Skyler can build up the energy."
"Use Gust!" Rainbow ordered, Tank spinning his rotor again to create a powerful air current.
The Chickling was struck by the wind and was starting to be pushed back, his form barely stable now. "Use your Gust!" He heard Flash order before beginning to flap his wings, creating his own air blast that countered Tank's and created a stalemate.
The two Gusts pushed at one another until finally, they began to spiral around, morphing into one big tornado. This made everyone go wide-eyed as the vortex started to grow, soon sucking them all in. "Everyone get down now!" Doc screamed over the force of the wind as everyone fought the wind.
"Skyler!" Flash told the Chickling, "you can stop now!"
Skyler did so, weakening his flaps, only to feel himself being dragged in the super-powered gust. "CHICKLING!" he cried as he vanished into spinning vortex.
"SKYLER!" Flash screamed in horror.
"Tank, cut the wind!" Tank did as he was told, but even after his Gust stopped, the tornado kept going. Everyone watched in horror at this, but then the wind started to fade when they saw a new surprising sight. It was Skyler, who was now flying around the edge of the tornado, surfing the inner winds with skill and control.
"No way!" Spike gasped, his jaw dropping with Peewee mimicking his mouth drop.
"How is he doing that?" Fluttershy asked.
"It must be from all the training," Doc answered. "Our work to increase his wing strength has made them strong enough to handle a tornado's power."
"AWESOME!" Spike cheered.
Both Flash and Rainbow had to agree with that, with Flash just happy that Skyler was okay. He then fist-pumped the air as he ordered, "Alright! Let's use that new strength plus the speed and aim it straight at Tank! Steel Wing!"
"CHICK!" Skyler shot out of the tornado with blinding speed, his wings once again glowing.
"Withdraw!" Tank once again retracted into his now glowing shell as the Chickling slashed the shell with his metallic wing.
"TOR!" Tank cried from within his shell, his body sent flying into the air. His rotor quickly spun, stopping him from hitting anything.
Flash smirked, knowing that the move had done heaps of damage. But when he looked at Skyler, he saw the little bird Pokémon was breathing hard, showing that riding the tornado had sapped a lot of strength. Despite this, Chickling turned and nodded at his partner, making Flash's smirk increase, "Double Team!"
"Ling!" Skyler's numbers multiplied, soon covering the sky with Chicklings.
"Good thinking." Doc commented with a rub of his chin, "using Double Team to defend until Skyler can use Steel Wing again."
However, Fluttershy just shook her head at this. "That won't stop Rainbow."
"Rock Tomb....MAX POWER!" Tank's shell once again glowed before unleashing a multitude of lights, all of them transforming into enough rocks to block out the light of the sun. Soon enough, they all began to fall towards the multiple Skylers.
"Dodge it!" Flash cried out.
The Skyler all began flying through the air, trying to get past the fall rocks. One by one though, the clones were all struck until only the true Skyler remained. "CHICKLING!" He yelled as he got past the last falling rock.
"Tackle!" Before Skyler could react, the turtle smashed into the bird, knocking him into the air.
"Level out! Get your balance back and use Steel Wing!" Flash ordered.
Skyler put all of his strength into his wings, flaring them to level out. His wings then started glowing, only to notice that the sun was being blocked from his vision. He then looked up, only to see the air tortoise staring down at him.
"Gust!" He heard Rainbow cry, causing Tank to point his rotor at Skyler as another air burst blasted the bird. He felt the wind slowly push him down, but his wings glowed as he tried to fight it with Steel Wing.
"You can beat it bud!" Flash told him. "Keep using Steel Wing! Cut the wind with it!"
"Keep up the pressure!" Rainbow exclaimed.
Tank and Skyler continued to fight against the others moves, Skyler trying to stop himself from being blown away while Tank tried to keep the wind to a level Skyler could not fight against. Eventually, one side had to give.
"CHICKLING!" Skyler cried as his Steel Wing ran out of power and he was pushed towards the ground.
"Let's end this! ROCK TOMB!"
"TOR!" Tank yelled as he unleashed another wave of stony projectiles, all of the instantly striking Skyler.
Everyone watched a repeat of the last battle, Skyler being thrown to the ground before being buried. "Skyler!" Flash screamed as he and his Pokémon rushed over and started digging him out, freeing the last rock to find Skyler in the exact same state he was at the end of the last battle.
"Skyler is unable to battle," Twilight proclaimed. "The victor is Tank and Rainbow takes the match."
Flash sighed as he held Skyler in his arms. But before he could say anything, he found a hand in front of his face holding an Oran Berry. He smiled as he took the berry and turned to the hand's owner. "Thank you."
"You're welcome," Fluttershy replied as she hid behind her hair again.
Flash fed the Oran Berry to Skyler, who seemed to perk right up afterwards. "Well bud, we lost again."
"Chick..." Skyler replied sadly as he looked down.
"But it was a much closer match," Doc added as he patted Flash's back. "And with a little more practice, you'll be able to use consecutive Steel Wings as much as you like."
Spike nodded in agreement. "Yeah! Don't feel down Skyler, you were awesome! Especially the way you rode that tornado, that was really cool!"
"Terra," Peewee agreed.
"Ri."
"Ak."
"Fay."
"Scor."
Skyler turned to the rest of his teammates and nodded, happy for the support. He then turned to Rainbow and Tank, who were walking over to them with smirks on their faces. "You've definitely gotten way cooler," the prism haired girl told the tiny bird. "I'd say your about twenty percent cooler."
"Tor," Tank agreed.
Rainbow then turned to Flash with a big grin on her face before holding up a fist. "I've decided. From now on, you're my rival. With how fast you managed to pump up your Pokémon, having you challenging me is sure to get me to the next level."
Flash smirked at the girl, loving her enthusiasm. He raised his own fist and bumped hers, signifying the birth of a new rivalry. "You got it. And don't think I'm gonna lose to you next time we battle. You're going down."
Rainbow's expression turned to one of both cockiness and seriousness. "Sure I am."
Skyler flew down to where Tank was standing. "Chick, chickling." He held out his own curled up wing, wanting to mimic their trainers.
"Tor," Tank replied before slowly raising one of his front feet. The two bumped fists-err...wing and weird scaly foot thing, signifying their own rivalry.
With training and the battle over, the two groups packed up their belongings and were now ready to head out. Twilight then stepped up to Rainbow and Fluttershy, "Well, we'd best get going. It was nice meeting you two."
"Us too," Fluttershy replied, nodding before Angel hopped onto her head. The rabbit was looking a little bored at the prospect of having to do a long goodbye.
"Hopefully we'll run into each other soon," Rainbow told them as Tank hovered by her head. "And when we do, we can battle again."
"You know it," Flash told her with a thumbs up.
"Ri!" Springer cheered.
"Chickling!" Skyler began to wave its wing to say goodbye.
"Good luck in your next Gym Battle," Doc added.
"Hope you win," Spike finished.
"Terra."
"I will," Rainbow replied before turning to Flash. "You'd better win against the Gym Leader too," she held up her fist. "Now that you're my rival, you're not allowed to lose to anyone."
Flash smirked as he once again fist bumped her. "Don't worry about that. With my team, that Gym Leader's going down."
Twilight smiled at Fluttershy. "And I hope you manage to find what you want to do with your life."
Fluttershy nodded at this. "Thank you. I hope I do soon, and I hope you learn as much about the Pokémon world as possible." She and Twilight pulled each other into a hug, only to release just as Flash and Rainbow's fists disconnected.
With nothing more to say, the two groups turned and began walking away from each other. Though they were heading in to different directions, their paths were sure to cross again. Flash and Rainbow's quest to enter the Equestria League had linked their destines together. Now the two will compete against one another, and one day, they will battle. It will be here that a battle to decide which one is the better.
If you want to see that day, you'll have to stay tuned.