Pokémon: Equestrian Adventures

by Banshee531


The Summer of Adventure

A bright flash of light flooded the area, two adults clad in camping gear walking onto a small stage. Within a snap of a finger, the duo turned around, now revealing Professor Celestia and Professor Luna as they both waved at a camera.

Both: "Hello there."

Celestia: "I'm Professor Celestia."

Luna: "And I'm Professor Luna. My sister and I both work here in the Equestria Region, helping trainers with their journeys."

Celestia: "But we don't always have time to help every trainer. That's why we would like you to come to the Pokémon Summer Camp, located at Camp Everfree!"

Luna: "Come learn things about Pokémon you'd never thought possible and meet trainers you might not have the chance to meet!"

Celestia: "It's seven days you'll never forget! So come along and let us help you be the best, like no one ever was!"

They both got closer to the camera, giant grins on their faces as they waved.

Both: "We hope to see you there!"


Several days later...

"There it is!" Spike cheered as he pointed at a wooden arch with the words 'Camp Everfree' written on it.

Twilight clapped at the sight, the group now walking under the sign as they got a better look at the camp. It was situated in the middle of a large forest between a giant lake and a small mountain. It had two large open areas, one with several different buildings and a battlefield, while the other had several identical cabins. "This is gonna be great. A whole week of learning as much as we can about Pokémon. Plus, we get to see the professors again!"

"And not just them," they all turned to see Sunset Shimmer standing nearby. She was carrying a clipboard and wearing a pink and white t-shirt with a small logo on it. "Hey everyone. Ready to enjoy what could possibly be the best week of your lives?"

"You know it," Flash replied while pumping his fists. "So, what are you doing here? Camping like us?"

Sunset shook her head in response, "No, I'm just helping the professor with all the finer details. Don't worry, I'll still get to have fun with the rest of you." They all smiled back as Sunset marked off their names. "You know, there's a few other trainers that have shown up that I think you might know."

"Really? Who?"

"GUYS!" The group spun around to see a familiar cotton candy haired girl running over, a massive smile on her face.

"Pinkie!" They all cheered as she leapt over and threw her arms around the four, pulling them into a big hug. As she pulled away, they noticed she was wearing a similar t-shirt to Sunset, only her's was sleeveless with a lighter pink color.

"It's so great to see you all!" She exclaimed, confetti firing out of her hair.

"It's great to see you too," Twilight replied with a small giggle. But as she did, she noticed a small Pokémon floating towards them. It looked like it was made of milk, small blobs bobbing up and down as it blinked at them with white-colored eyes. "Is that a-"

"My newest teammate!" Pinkie interrupted as she took the Pokémon in her arms. "Meet Milcery!"

"Wow..." the guys all said while Twilight's jaw dropped.

"But...but they're only supposed to live in the Galar Region." Twilight responded as she slowly pointed at the Pokémon, "Where did you find one?!"

"Well..."

A few days ago...

Pinkie was currently staring at her Gumigator, the little gator now sitting on a bench as she growled at it, "No Gummy, you're not allowed to have Jiggly's Pokemuffs! I told you, you need to stop being so greedy."

The gator didn't respond, just staring back with wide eyes.

"Oh Gummy..." Pinkie's hair drooped down before she pulled him into a hug, "I'm sorry. I'm not angry, I'm not." She pulled the hug away and stared directly into his eyes, "I just don't want you to get fat."

"Milcery." said a sudden voice, Pinkie turning to the voice. There, she saw the Pokémon floating right by her. "Mil?"

"Oh hello, I'm Pinkie! Who are you?"

The Present...

"And that's how we met. Any questions?" Pinkie responded, her grin getting even bigger as Twilight's eyes shrunk at her explanation.

"But...but that's...how did you-you just met Milcery randomly?! It shouldn't be in the Equestria region!" Twilight exclaimed, pointing at the Milcery again. "They're not native!"

"They aren't?" Pinkie and Milcery exchanged a glance, only to both shrug, "Huh. That's weird."

"That's...what...augh!" Twilight yelped as she rubbed the sides of her head, the others trying to suppress their laughter.

But before Twilight could say anything else, a new voice caught everyone's attention. "Hey! What's up guys?!" They turned around to the voice, now seeing a familiar rainbow-haired girl walking up alongside a pink-haired girl. "Long time no see." Rainbow Dash responded as she walked up with a red version of Sunset's t-shirt.

"It's so lovely to see you all," Fluttershy added, showing a small smile. She was wearing a sleeveless version of the top with a green trim.

"It's great to see you too. Though uh...anyone else here?"

"Well of course there is." A new voice spoke up, making them now see Trixie walk up to the group, the teen wearing a purple version of Fluttershy's shirt that had a yellow line running across it. It was here that everyone also noticed a Pokémon on her shoulder, the creature appearing to be a pink sphere with legs half-hidden under a load of blue hair with a pink hat on top.

Once again, Twilight's eyes went wide. "Is that a Hatenna?" Trixie nodded, "Where'd you get that?!"

"Professor Luna gave it to me as a gift for finishing my training. She had it especially sent over from the Galar Region."

"That makes more sense." Twilight whispered, her eyes slowly narrowing as she stared back at Pinkie. However, the party-loving girl didn't notice, now pulling a Pokemuff out of her hair before chowing down on the treat.

"So, is this everyone?" Doc asked, only to see nothing but frowns in response. "What? Was it something I said?"

"I think they're reacting to him." Flash replied as he pointed to another person, Doc soon frowning as well as Flash continued, "Lightning...what's he doing here?!"

The trainer was walking by the group, wearing a black version of everyone else's t-shirts. He didn't even look at the teens, a dark glare on his face as he kept making him way through the camp.

"What are the professors thinking letting him be here?!" Twilight asked, Sunset sighing in response.

"They can't exactly refuse anyone who wants to come. Plus, they said they were doing it as a favour for someone they know."

"Eh, just count yourself lucky," Rainbow hissed with crossed arms, "At least you aren't stuck with him in your cabin."

"Cabin?"

Sunset then spoke up to explain, "The camp has several cabins that act as teams. It's four to a cabin, and there are points awarded to the cabins for good behaviour and other acts that are deemed reward worthy. At the end of the week, whichever cabin has the most points wins, and gets their picture hung up in the hall of fame." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a card, which she held out to Twilight, "This is your cabin."

Twilight took the card and saw it was a blue rock, "A sapphire? I mean, I'm assuming this is one, though technically sapphires aren't just blue. They can be pink, purple, yellow-"

"Yeah, but they're mostly blue." They spun around again, this time seeing an older teen with light brown skin and dark green hair and wearing a red shirt. He was also wearing brown shorts and a hat. "That's why they're named after the ancient Hoenn word sapphirus."

Twilight adjusted her glasses at the statement, "Huh. You certainly know your ancient Hoenn."

The teen shrugged in response, "It's a hobby." He then held out his hand, "Name's Timber Spruce."

"Twilight Sparkle," she shook his hand before turning to the others. "This is my brother Spike."

"What's up," he waved before pointing at the Terragon. "This is Peewee."

"Terra!"

"I'm Flash Sentry," the blue-haired teen spoke up before gesturing to his Riolu partner. "And this is Springer."

"Ri."

"And you can call me Doc."

"Nice to meet you all." Timber then pointed to a cabin, "You might wanna all get changed before orientation. Come on, I'll show you the way." Everyone followed him, Timber showing them to a cabin with the same image on Twilight's card. "Here we are, Sapphire Cabin. The best of all the cabins."

"Really?" Twilight asked, "Why's that?"

Timber turned to give her a smirk, "Because you're in it."

"Oh..." Twilight's face turned bright red, Spike raising an eyebrow at the sight while Doc chuckled at the interaction. At the same time, Flash rolled his eyes as Twilight then asked, "Wait...do you say that about every cabin?"

"Not exactly." Timber turned to the next cabin, a bulky white-skinned teen just now walking out. He rushed over to lean on his shoulder, "You're in the Ruby Cabin?" The teen nodded. "Ha! That's the worst one!"

"What?! Aw man!" The bulky teen gasped, now beginning to sulk.

Timber chuckled, "I'm just jokin', buddy. Ruby Cabin is great." Once the teen left, Timber turned back with a smirk. "See? Now, be sure to be in the student hall in thirty minutes." He winked at Twilight with a gun salute, "Catcha later." He then turned and walked away, Twilight still bright red as she waved at him.

Flash continued to roll his eyes, "That's a guy that tries way too hard to be cool."

Twilight let out a giggle, "I guess you'd be the expert in that field."

Flash nodded in response. "That's right. So of course-" His eyes shot open, soon turning to glare at her. "Hey!" The other all laughed as they entered the cabin, which was a simple room with a pair of bunkbeds that lead to another room that Doc checked to be the bathroom. There were four wardrobes and upon looking inside, multiple versions of each of the camp t-shirts everyone else was wearing.

Thirty minutes later, they all stepped outside wearing the t-shirts they had chosen. Flash was now wearing a blue variant of Rainbow's shirts, coupled with a pair of cyan shorts. Twilight had a blue version of Timber's shirt, with purple shorts that had rhinestones on them. Doc was wearing a brown version of Timber's shirt with dark blue shorts and Spike had a purple version of Flash's shirt on with green shorts.

It was here that they headed over to the largest building in the camp, now noticing that everyone else and their Pokémon were gathering there as well. Once inside, they found the room was filled with square tables that had a plack in the middle showing different images of stones. They found the sapphire table and sat down, Flash now seeing the other groups.

Lightning, Trixie, Rainbow and Fluttershy were at the diamond table, while Pinkie was sitting beside the bulky teen on the ruby table with a boy that had yellow skin and blue hair and a girl with light green skin, dark green hair and wearing a straw hat.

Five minutes later, Timber came out of the backroom followed by a pink-skinned woman with pink hair. Celestia and Luna came out next, followed by Sunset, which was carrying a large box. "Welcome," Celestia said once she was on stage. "I'm so glad to see so many young trainers here, all ready to learn and grow in many amazing ways while making new friends along the way." She then turned to Timber and the woman. "First, let's all give a big thanks to Timber Spruce and Gloriosa Daisy for allowing us the have the camp here on their land." Everyone clapped as Gloriosa shined a big grin while Timber just showed a smirk.

Luna spoke up next. "Over the next few days, you'll be interacting with Pokémon of all different shapes and sizes. And as you learn, you'll also gain points for your individual cabins. At the end of the week, whoever has the most points will get their picture in the camp's hall of fame."

Celestia leaned in to continue, "So, to start the camp off right, let's start with some introductions. And what better way to introduce yourself than with a battle." This got a round of applause from all the campers, only for Celestia to flash her hand, "Hold on. To make things interesting, you won't be using your Pokémon." Sunset took this moment to put down the box from earlier. "Instead, you'll be randomly picking a Pokémon from this box."

Luna nodded. "Battling with a Pokémon you have little experience with is a good way to help you learn to adapt."

Gloriosa stepped up and clapped her hands, "Alright everyone, please head outside and form an orderly que to get your Pokémon."

Everyone did so, some being a little less orderly than others. Flash and his friends were all at the back of the line, watching as people got their selected Pokémon before moving over to let them out of the ball. Some were basic Pokémon like Nidorina, Abra and Pidgeotto, while others were less commonplace like Ursaring, Beartic and Ambipom.

And when Lightning got his Pokémon, everyone laughed when they saw he had gotten a Lallaby. But as they did this, Lightning showed a dark glare, "What is this?!"

"Lal?" Lallaby tilted its head in confusion, Lightning now glaring at the professors.

"You can't be serious."

"This is the Pokémon you chose," Celestia told him.

"I can tell just by looking at this thing that its worthless!" Lightning crossing his arms, "Give me another one."

Lallaby's eyes began to tear up at the words, Luna growling at his response, "That's enough. You have no right to insult that Pokémon-"

"That isn't a Pokémon." Lightning interrupted as he pointed at the now crying pocket monster, "Its worthless. I'm not competing with it."

"A real trainer could win with any Pokémon," Luna barked back.

"Don't be ridiculous. A real trainer wouldn't do something to stupid." Lightning returned the Lallaby to its ball and threw it at the professor, "I refuse. Just put that in the trash where it belongs."

Luna growled as she put the ball back in the box, glaring at her sister next, "Why is he here again?"

"You know exactly why Luna." Celestia replied before sighing, "Now...about our current situation, we no longer have an even number of trainers."

"I'll battle," they all turned to Timber as he walked up to the box. "I'll take his place and use one of the Pokémon in the box. Whoever was supposed to battle that guy can battle me instead."

"That works. Thank you, Timber."

"No prob," he shot her a gun wink before moving over to the back of the line. "What's up, little man?" He asked Flash, who just huffed at being called 'little'. The two watched as the line kept going until it finally reached them and their friends.

"Come on out!" Twilight cheered as she tossed her selected Pokeball, which turned out to be a Psychic Fairy ballerina.

"Kirlia!" it exclaimed with a pirouette.

"Aww...you're so cute."

Doc was next, deciding to dig to the very bottom of the box before pulling out a ball. "Let's see who I've got," he held the ball out, unleashing a tall green mantis looking Pokémon with blade arms.

"Scyther!" It roared while slicing its arms through the air.

"My turn!" Spike grabbed a ball and tossed it into the air, revealing a puffy pig monkey Pokémon with an angry look on its face. "Cool!"

"Primeape!" It barked, throwing a few quick jabs into the air.

The rest all picked their Pokémon, getting mixed results. Rainbow got a Delcatty, sighing as she had hoped to get something more 'awesome'. Pinkie got a Lickitung, who greeted her by covering her in slobber. Fluttershy got a Luxray, who's tough exterior she quickly broke through with a belly rub. Finally, Trixie got a Krookodile, who seemed to enjoy trying to make himself look cool.

"Alright, my turn." Flash reached for a ball and opened it, "Come on out." A swirl of red energy fired out of the orb, now revealing a red rock covered in holes. "Huh?" Flash crouched down before poking the rock, "Hello? Anyone in there?" Everyone else heard this and stared at the sight, watching as the rock shook before something popped out one of the holes.

"Shuck?" A yellow worm-like Pokémon popped its head out, staring up at him.

"It's a Shuckle," Twilight told Flash.

"Ouch!" Timber seemed to flinch, "Too bad for you. Looks like you're this year's unlucky one."

"What are you talking about?"

"You see, this isn't the first time Camp Everfree's done this kind of thing, and every time we do, we use the same bunch of Pokémon. Whenever that Shuckle gets picked, the one who picked it loses big time. Basically, that Shuckle's never won a battle." Flash turned to the Shuckle, who retreated back into its shell from Timber's words. "Sorry kid," Timber shrugged his shoulders. "Guess some Pokémon just aren't meant to battle."

Flash turned to glare at Timber, "No way. Any Pokémon can battle once it's been properly trained."

"You're not the first trainer to say that, but it won't help. Probably best to just bow out and save Shuckle the pain and you the humiliation." Flash's glare turned to full-on scowl, Timber shrugging. "Just trying to help."

"Can it!" Flash picked Shuckle up, "I'll show you. Tomorrow. You and me. Battle."

Timber raised an eyebrow before smirking, "Alright. Challenge accepted." He reached down and grabbed a ball, unleashing another Pokémon.

"Poli?" A green toad Pokémon looked up at him before clapping and hopping from side to side.

"Looks like it's Shuckle verses Politoad." Timber turned to him, "May the best trainer win."

"Don't worry," Flash placed Shuckle under his arm. "I will." With that, he did an about-turn before marching off.

Once that was done, Celestia looked at all the trainers and their selected Pokémon. "Alright campers, you have the rest of the day to get to know your new friends. Tomorrow is when the battles will take place, and you'll show off how well you can work with them." Everyone nodded and went off to different parts of the camp, though most headed into the main hall so they could use the machines to see what moves their Pokémon knew.

Twilight was at the lake, standing on the pier with Kirlia. "Isn't this view amazing?"

"Kirlia..." it nodded while enjoying the light of the sun as it shimmered on the lake.

"It is a pretty amazing sight." Twilight yelped as she spun around, losing her balance and almost falling off the pier. But before she could do this, an arm stretched out and grabbed her. As she was pulled up, she looked up to see Timber smiling at her. "I know I'm charming, but you don't have to fall for me."

Twilight blushed again as Timber pulled her back over the edge. "Thanks." She whispered before looking away, "So...what are you doing here?"

Timber smirked before turning to pat Politoad's head, "Where else would I hang with my new buddy?"

"Politoad!" The frog clapped before leaping into the water, enjoying the feel of the lake. Kirlia stared at Politoad as it surfaced, the frog smiling up at her before gesturing her to come in.

The ballerina looked a little nervous, turning to look up at Twilight, "Go on. I'll be right here if anything happens." This made her shy Pokémon now before using her psychic powers to float onto the water, dancing across the surface as Twilight and Timber watched. They then turned, only to blush as they looked away.

Meanwhile, Flash, Springer and Shuckle were over at the gazebo as Flash watched Timber and Twilight now start talking. "I'll show him." He placed Shuckle on the floor and pulled out his Pokedex, "Let's see what moves this little guy can do." He scanned it and frowned as he saw Shuckle's only moves were Iron Defence, Endure and Rock Throw. "That's...not a lot to work with. Guess this is why he's having a problem battling." He looked back at the shell, "Guess I'll start by getting you out of that shell."

"Hello?" He knocked on the shell, looking inside one of the holes. "Can you please come out? I promise I'm not gonna hurt you. I just wanna be friends." The teen waited several seconds, Springer poking the shell as well. It was here that the little worm's head poked out, "Hey there." He held out a hand, "See? I'm a friend." But as he said this, the sound of laughter hit Flash's ears, making him look up to see Twilight and Timber giggling, reflexively making him scowl.

"Shuck!" Shuckle cried as he saw Flash's angry face, pulling its head back inside.

"No! Wait!" Flash let out a groan as he flopped back onto his seat. "Hang on there little guy, I-"

"Problem?" Flash hopped in place as he turned to a sudden voice, now seeing Sunset leaning against the edge of the gazebo, arms crossed.

"Don't do that!" Flash moaned, making Sunset laugh as she sat down and began to scratch behind Springer's ears. As she did this, her eyes darted to Twilight and Timber.

"You know, jealousy isn't a good look on you."

Flash blinked at her, "What are you talking about?"

"Seriously?!" Sunset deadpanned before gesturing to the other two, "You're not jealous about that over there?"

"Oh him?" Flash replied while pointing at Timber, "You can't be serious."

"I'm talking about what he's doing with Twilight, moron." Sunset responded while rolling her eyes, "Twilight's always around you, always watching you and paying attention to you and your training. It's understandable that you'd get a little jealous of someone else taking all her attention."

"I am not jealous of him."

"Keep telling yourself that," she patted him on the shoulder before standing up. "And I hate to break it to you, but you trying to help that Shuckle there while acting like that isn't gonna help. Both with him and Twilight. Do yourself a favor and concentrate on that first."

Before Flash could say anything, Sunset walked away, making Flash slump over. "Darn it..."

"Riolu." Springer added as he patted Flash's side.

"I know buddy." Flash looked back down at Shuckle, the Pokémon still hiding in the shell. "Darn...I really need some help here. Guess I rely on asking Twilight for help too much."


It wasn't long until the rest of the camp began training their Pokémon, all getting a good understanding of their Pokémon. Doc learned his Scyther was a fan of moving fast, so he adapted a quick hit and run strategy combined with sharp targeted strikes. Spike found that his Primeape got more powerful the angrier it got, but knew getting too angry would make him sloppy and careless. As for Twilight, she and Kirlia quickly got into sync, focusing on an eversion strategy revolving around using Kirlia's dancer-like grace and agility.

The only one who wasn't able to do any training was Flash, who still couldn't get his Shuckle to come out of its shell. Soon enough, nighttime arrived and everyone returned to their cabins. Flash was the first in bed, sleeping on the top bunk above Doc while his friends had just finished preparing to get to sleep.

"This is great!" Spike said as he climbed onto the other top bunk. "I can't wait to see how well me and Primeape do tomorrow!"

"This camp is pretty exciting," Doc added as he got into bed. "We've just arrived and already we're learning so much. Not to mention we're making a lot of great new friends."

Twilight nodded as she brushed her hair. "I know. Timber's so great." Her face started to turn slightly red, "He knows so much about so many things. Not just Pokémon, but ancient languages, science, music...it's too bad he can't pursue any of them full time."

"Why not?" Spike asked.

"He has to help his sister run the camp. But if that wasn't an issue, I'm sure he'd already have all the badges needed to compete in the Equestria League."

"I'm sure he would," Flash grumbled, Twilight turning to glare at Flash.

"Just because you can't bond with your Pokémon doesn't mean you should take it out on Timber. He hasn't done anything to you."

Flash turned to glare back, "He insulted Shuckle to his face."

"He was just stating the facts. I would hardly call what he said about Shuckle insults."

Flash rolled his eyes at this, "Of course you'd agree with him."

"Excuse me?!" Twilight barked back.

"You said the same thing about Riptide when we found out about his special attacks aren't as strong as they should be. You told me to give up on him and get another Pokémon." Flash leaned down with an ever-increasing frown, "What do you say about that now?!"

Twilight looked away at that, "Okay, I'll admit that Riptide has come a long way compared to what the Pokedex said, and part of that is because you believed in him, but...what if it's different this time?"

"Why would that matter? Are you saying I don't believe in Shuckle enough?!"

"I didn't say that!" Twilight almost yelled, "I'm saying Riptide wanted to get stronger, and Shuckle might not want too!"

Flash then squinted his eyes as he continued to glare at her, "But you knew Riptide wanted to get stronger and you still said that. Does that mean you still don't believe in him because the Pokedex said so?"

"That's...well...no." Twilight stuttered, her brain showing a little steam, "I mean, Riptide's nature is still...wait, that's not the point! That Shuckle's different because Timber said it is and I bet the Pokedex said the same!"

"Tch. Of course." Flash growled as he rolled back around, "Figures you would go with a machine and the guy that insulted Shuckle."

"Flash!" Twilight yelled, but the trainer didn't respond. Seeing this, she rolled into her bed, grumbling, "Jerk."

Doc and Spike both shared a frown, gulping at the sight before silently going to bed. They had a feeling this was gonna a be a long time problem.


Midnight...

As the moon reached its apex, movement could be seen in the sapphire cabin. The door opened before Flash's head popped out and looked around, seeing nobody around before tiptoeing out and running over to the woods. Once far enough away, he took out the Pokeball and held it out. It opened up to unleash Shuckle, who was still inside its shell.

"Hey Shuckle," Flash sat down and leaned against a tree. "You awake?" He looked inside the holes and after a few seconds, saw a pair of eyes looking out at him. "Listen, I uh..." he looked away in near shame, "I'm sorry about before. I guess I was just frustrated and I scared you because of it." He sighed as he looked up into the sky. "I don't know what it is about that guy, but...he just gets under my skin. And what he said about you just made me want to show him up even more."

Shuckle didn't say anything, just blinking as Flash continued.

"I get you probably don't like battling, and I'm fine with that. But what Timber said about you not having what it takes to battle if you wanted to, it just...set me off." He looked back at Shuckle, now seeing a pair of eyes that were a little closer to the hole. "If you don't wanna battle, I won't make you. I'll swallow my pride and forfeit. But I'd still like to become friends with you before I have to give you back, so that's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna tell you all about me and the adventures I've had."

And that's what Flash did. As the night went on, Flash told Shuckle about everything that had happened to him since starting his journey. As he did, Shuckle's head slowly got out, soon showing its full noodlehead. "And then, Prongs evolved into Chitaleaf. It was awesome." Flash smiled as he looked down at Shuckle, slowly reaching out and gently placing his hand on its head. When Shuckle didn't flinch or move, his smile increased as he started petting it.

"Shuck..." it sighed happily at Flash's patting.

"You see, I'm not someone you need to fear. I love Pokémon."

"Shuckle." Shuckle slowly crawled onto Flash's lap, the teen chuckling as he continued to pet him.

"You know, I didn't get an answer about the battle tomorrow." Shuckle looked up at him, "Do you want me to forfeit." He then saw Shuckle look down, almost in shame. "Are you sure? I won't be mad if you say you don't want to battle." Shuckle looked up at him, their eyes meeting. "You don't want to forfeit?" Shuckle nodded, "But you're scared to battle?" Shuckle nodded again.

Flash hummed, rubbing his chin before looking back down at him, "Can you show me how you use Rock Throw?" Shuckle nodded before crawling off Flash's lap and turning to a tree.

"Shuck..." it tensed up and raised its tentacle as white lights appeared around it. "Shuckle!" It swung its tentacle at the tree, the lights flying off and slamming into the tree.

"Oh? Can you fire that move from inside your shell?" Shuckle looked up at him with wide eyes, quickly shaking his head. This made him sigh, "Alright..." He smiled down at Shuckle. "Don't worry. We'll find a way...but we'll need to start training now."

"Shuckle!"


The next morning...

"Scyther, use False Swipe!"

"Scy!" The mantis Pokémon slashed at a Machoke, knocking it back but unable to make it fall.

"YEAH!" A bulky teen cheered, "Power-Up Punch!"

Machoke began to charge with a glowing fist as Doc yelled, "Double Team!" Scyther suddenly multiplied into an army of ten, one of them disappearing as Machoke punched it. "Now, Aerial Ace!"

"SCYTHER!" Its blades began to shine before zipping through the air, its blades now swinging upward at Machoke.

"CHOKE!" It cried before falling back, spirals appearing in its eyes.

Sunset, who was acting as ref, spoke up, "Bulk from the Ruby Cabin's Pokémon is unable to battle. Sapphire Cabin's Time Turner is the winner and earns two points!"

Everyone clapped as Doc and Bulk returned to their groups. The entire camp had come out to battle as soon as they had finished breakfast, soon finding the pointing system to be easy to follow. Winning earned you two points while a draw got you one point, but losing meant no points at all. Doc and Bulk were one of the first to battle, Spike versus Trixie being next.

"Mega Punch!" Primeape slammed its fist into Trixie's Krookadile.

"Krook!" It cried as it fell down, spirals appearing in its eyes.

"Trixie from the Diamond Cabin's Pokémon is unable to battle. Sapphire Cabin's Spike is the winner and earns two points."

"Slam!" Pinkie yelled while spinning around, her Lickitung spitting out its tongue as it swung it down on Rainbow's Delcatty.

"Substitute!" As the tongue slammed into it, Delcatty burst into smoke as the real one appeared above the Lickitung. "Fury Swipe!" Its claws shined as it then rapidly slashed into the tongue monster.

"Licki!" It yelped as it fell back, swirls appearing in its eyes.

"Pinkie from the Pearl Cabin's Pokémon is unable to battle. Diamond Cabin's Rainbow Dash is the winner and earns two points."

"Charge Beam!" Fluttershy ordered, her Luxray letting out a roar as lightning surged around it.

"Get ready to dodge!" Twilight told Kirlia, the Pokémon nodding as Luxray fired the laser. Seeing this, she did a ballet leap out of the way. "Now, Magical Leaf!" Kirlia raised its hands above its head, only for a multitude of glowing green leaves to appear in its hands.

"Kirlia!" it yelled as it fired the leaves at the electric-type.

"Lux!" Luxray cried as the leaves slammed into it, making it stagger back.

"Oh dear," Fluttershy gasped.

"Now, use Draining Kiss!" Kirlia leapt ahead, spinning as it was about to reach Luxray.

And as Kirlia went in to kiss Luxray on the cheek, Fluttershy cried out, "Use Discharge!"

"LUXRAY!" The lightning lynx unleashed a burst of energy as Kirlia's lips made contact, its energy being drained away as the Psychic Fairy-type was electrocuted.

And once the lightning came to a stop, they both staggered away from one another before falling to the dirt with swirls in their eyes. "It's a tie! Both Twilight from the Sapphire Cabin and Fluttershy from the Diamond Cabin will receive one point."

"Great work girls," Doc told the two after they returned their Pokémon and moved over to their group.

"Yeah, Fluttershy!" Rainbow tapped her friend on the back a little harder than needed. "You did great out there!"

"Oh...thanks." Fluttershy muttered out with a small blush.

"You all did great!" They turned to see Timber walking over to them. "With two wins and a draw, Sapphire Cabin's at the top of the leaderboard." He pointed to the board and saw their cabin was at the top with five points. "Its too bad your lead's gonna be taken though."

"Why is that?" Twilight asked with a tilted head.

"Isn't it obvious? Your friend Flash doesn't stand a chance of winning."

"Where is Flash anyway?" Trixie added.

"No idea," Spike replied with a shrug. "He wasn't at the cabin when we woke up, and he wasn't at breakfast." Everyone turned to Springer, who was sitting down beside Peewee, wordlessly asking him where Flash was.

"Ri?" Springer shrugged, not knowing either.

"Hmmm....he probably got up early," Doc told them. "Likely so he could try and get Shuckle out of its shell."

Timber let out a laugh, "Well, he might have well as just slept in. No way that Shuckle's gonna get over its fear in one night."

"Alright," Celestia said as the current battle ended. "Only one camper left. Flash Sentry!" There was no response, making her frown. "Flash!" Again, no response. "Last chance! If you're not here, then you forfeit your chance to battle."

Timber put his arms behind his head. "He's probably too embarrassed to show his face. Too bad. A small part of me actually hoped he'd find a way to get Shuckle to battle. Looks like I was wrong."

"You weren't!" Everyone turned to the voice, now seeing Flash run up to Celestia and Luna. "Sorry I'm late. I didn't miss my turn, did I?" The sister's shared a look, Luna nodding before Celestia looked back at him.

"No, you can still battle."

"Alright!" Flash turned to Timber, "Ready to lose?"

"We'll see about that." The two moved over to their ends of the field, Timber already letting Politoad out. "Alright kid, let's see what you managed to do. Though I will say, you best just give up."

Flash smirked back, "Not a chance." He pulled out the Pokeball, "Shuckle, I choose you!" The ball flew into the air, unleashing the mould Pokémon as it popped out of its shell.

"Shuckle!" It roared, making Timber almost backpedal.

"No way..."

"It's come out of its shell," Gloriosa gasped.

Sunset stepped between them. "The battle between Flash of the Sapphire Cabin and Timber is about to begin. This'll be a one on one battle with no substitutions and the battle will be over when one of either side's Pokémon are unable to battle. Do both trainers understand?" They nodded, "Then battle...BEGIN!"

"Water Gun!" Timber commanded without a second's hesitation.

"Poli!" Politoad took a deep breath in before spitting out a stream of high-pressure water.

"Iron Defense!" Flash ordered.

"Shuck!" Shuckle pulled itself back into its shell before it began to glow, the water slamming into it. Put despite the pressure, the shell remained stationary.

"Do it again!" Flash ordered, Shuckle's shell once again glowing.

"Trying to up its defense, huh?" Timber smirked, "That won't be enough. Politoad, Rock Smash!"

"Poli!" Politoad bounced ahead with a glowing fist, quickly getting within striking distance of the Rock Bug-Type.

"Endure!" As Politoad threw its punch, two of Shuckle's tentacles flew out of the shell and wrapped around its wrist to stop it a few inches from the shell.

"Poli?"

"What?!" Timber yelped.

"Throw it away, then use Iron Defense!" Shuckle's shell spun around, dragging Poitoad around one thousand and eighty degrees before letting go, sending the toad flying as its shell began to glow again.

Everyone went wide-eyed at this, none more so then Timber and Gloriosa. "Shuckle's never done this well in a battle," the female sibling gasped, "We usually have to call the match because Shuckle wouldn't come out of its shell."

"The same could be said for this battle," Celestia told her. "Flash has just found a way to stay in this while keeping Shuckle safe."

"Impressive," Luna added.

Timber smirked, "Not bad kid, but I know for a fact Shuckle needs to stick its head out its shell to use Rock Throw. That's its only offensive move, and without that, there's no way you can win."

"Is that true Timber?" Twilight asked, Timber nodding with an ever-increasing smirk.

"Oh yes." Timber pointed to himself, "I've even checked Shuckle with a Pokedex, I know he can't do anything else."

"Wow...Timber sure is prepared." Twilight gasped, her face turning red again.

"Oh yeah? You got a dex with you right now?" Flash barked back with a low glare.

Timber just shrugged, "No, but I don't need it. I've-"

"Then watch this!" Flash interrupted as he pointed at Politoad, who was still recovering from the throw. "Rock Blast!"

"Wait, what?!" Timber yelped as Shuckle's shell began to spin, all the holes glowing. Then, as one of the holes pointed at Politoad, a glowing white projectile shot out and slammed into Politoad.

"TOAD!" It cried as it fell back, only for another rock to shoot out of the shell when another hole pointed at it. This continued, the shell launching a rock whenever one of its holes aimed at Politoad.

"He taught it a new move?!" Timber gasped, only to start growling, "That won't save you! Use Bounce!" Politoad started hopping around the battlefield, evading the rocks as it got close to Shuckle.

"Iron Defense!" Shuckle's shell glowed again as Politoad slammed its foot into it, making it skid backward until it came to a stop in front of Flash. "Again!"

Timber rolled his eyes. "I'll admit your defense is probably insane right now, but it won't be enough to protect from this next move." He pointed at Politoad, "Hydro Pump!"

"Poli," Politoad looked like he was about to use Water Gun, "TOAD!" This time, the water shot out in an even more powerful stream, this one slamming into Shuckle's shell like a rocket.

"Shuckle!" It moaned as it was bombarded by the water.

"Rock Blast!" Shuckle's shell began to slowly spin as it launched the rocks into the water, cutting through it and lowering the power, only to turn to dust before they got close to Politoad.

Everyone in the audience frowned at the sight as the Hydro Pump came to an end. "This is bad," Rainbow sighed. "He can't get a good hit off."

Doc nodded. "Shuckle are meant to be walls, best used with moves like Toxic or other slow-burn moves. It's not meant to give off great amounts of damage."

Trixie moaned, "So what's he supposed to do?"

Twilight sighed and shook her head. "Nothing. Pokémon stats don't lie, and that means Timber has all the advantages. Timber is going to win this."

Timber then pointed to himself, "Give it up kid. I admit it, Shuckle's doing way better than it has in the past, but its just not enough for that Pokémon to win on their own."

Flash let out a low growl, "You little...we're gonna win and our new move will give us the power we need to do it!"

"Don't bluff. Your Rock Blast is good, but with Shuckle's tiny attack stat-"

"I'm not talking about Rock Blast," Flash interrupted, "I'm talking about our other new move. Shuckle, Power Trick!"

"Shuckle!" It roared as its head and tentacles popped out of its shell, right before its whole body glowed a multitude of colors.

Timber, Gloriosa, Twilight, Doc, Sunset and the professors all went wide-eyed, Twilight gasping, "He actually managed to teach Shuckle that move?"

"What's Power Trick?" Spike asked her, but Flash's next order stopped her from explaining.

"Rock Blast!" They all turned to see Shuckle draw back into its shell before spinning, the holes once again glowing. But this time, the rocks that shot out were larger and moving way faster, the first instantly striking Politoad.

"TOAD!" It cried out as a new barrage of rocks struck, knocking it backward.

"Wow!" Rainbow added, "That Rock Blast went from meek to macho in a second."

"That's the power of Power Trick," Doc replied. "It's a move that switches the user's Attack and Defense. Shuckle's already has a super high Defense stat, and with it now being powered up by Iron Defense, it has been switched with its Attack stat."

Everyone's eyes went wide hearing this as Pinkie spoke up, "But that means-"

"Shuckle has enough power to take down any opponent with a single hit," Flash called out as Shuckle kept firing Rock Blast. Politoad was trying to dodge, but the rocks were too fast and it kept getting hit or scratched.

"Flash still needs to be careful," Twilight countered, "Now that Shuckle's low Attack stat has become its Defense, it's a glass cannon. One hit will be all it takes."

"Flash must know this," Doc told her. "I'm sure he has a strategy."

"Use Rock Smash!" Timber ordered, Politoad now managing to get close to Shuckle as its fist began to glow.

"Power Trick!" Flash ordered again, Shuckle's shell glowing. Seconds after the light finished, Politoad's fist slammed into it, skidding Shuckle back. "Again!" As it skidded, it's shell glowed the rainbow as its two states switched again. "Rock Blast!"

"So that's his plan," Timber realized as the rock barrage began again.

"Brilliant!" Doc clapped, "Flash is going to keep switching Shuckle's Attack and Defense whenever he switches from being on the offensive to the defensive."

"Smart," Rainbow added.

"GO FLASH!" Pinkie cheered.

Twilight just shook her head though, "Its not bad, but I don't think its enough."

"Bounce!" Politoad began hopping around, still getting scratched by the edges of the rocks as they hit it. But even so, it still got closer to Shuckle as it prepared its foot.

"Power Trick!" Shuckle stopped the Rock Blast before glowing, doing so seconds before Politoad slammed its foot into it. "Now Endure!" As the foot slammed into the hard shell, its tentacles flew out and wrapped around Politoad's leg before spinning around, tossing the opponent away. "Power Trick!" Once again, Shuckle glowed a rainbow of colors as Politoad hit the ground. "Now, Iron Defense!" The shell glowed again, only this time it was a single silver color. "Again!" It did so again, "One more time!"

"What's he doing?" Spike asked.

Doc hummed, "I think..."

The professors smiled as Luna commented, "Smart choice."

"Rock Smash!" Politoad rushed ahead as Shuckle finished its fourth Iron Defense.

"Power Trick!" Shuckle glowed, switching its Attack and Defense stats again. Seconds later, Politoad slammed its fist into the shell, sending it flying back.

"Shuck!" It cried out as it skidded to a stop, then started spinning as he knew what Flash would order next.

"Rock Blast!" It started firing the rocks, these not as big or as fast as the barrage raining down on Politoad.

"Poli, poli, poli, Politoad!" It cried while leaping around, only to get hit on the head. "Toad!"

"Of course!" Doc clapped again, "Fantastic!"

"What'd he do?" Trixie asked, Doc turning with a big grin.

"Flash used Iron Defense to increase the Defense that was once its Attack. So that way, once Power Trick switched them back, Shuckle would have its super high Defense and now its Attack stat would be raised to a reasonable level."

Everyone else caught on as he said this, Spike cheering, "Alright! Go Flash!"

"Do it!" Rainbow yelled.

"You can do it!" Fluttershy clapped.

"You haven't beaten me yet!" Timber told Flash, "Hydro Pump!" Politoad fired the high powered water stream, the liquid instantly powderizing the rocks before hitting Shuckle.

"Shuck!" It cried as it tried to stay where it was, throwing its tentacles out and slamming them into the ground to keep it in place. "Shuckle!"

"You can do it Shuckle!" Flash told him, "I believe in you!"

"Give it up kid, you've lost!" Timber told him as Hydro Pump ended. "There's one thing you overlooked with this plan."

"What's that?!"

"While all those attacks Shuckle took were when its Defense power was high, they still hit it and Shuckle took damage. Even if it's only a little bit of damage, all those hits add up."

Flash's eyes went wide, only to narrow as he yelled, "Doesn't matter, we'll just go for broke! Power Trick!"

"Shuck!" the Rock Bug-type's shell glowed, its stats switching around before it started spinning as Flash called out a Rock Blast. "Shuckle!" The barrage began flying out, back to being at max power.

"Rock Smash!" Politoad jumped from side to side, dodging most of the big rocks while still getting scratched by the smaller ones as it got closer. "Uppercut!" Politoad's fist glowed as it threw an upward punch into Shuckle's shell.

"SHUCKLE!" It screamed as it went flying into the air, Flash and everyone else going wide-eyed at the sight.

"Shuckle!" Flash cried, Timber smirking as he gave his next order.

"Bounce!" Flash looked down as he saw Politoad hop into the air, flying toward Shuckle with increasing speed.

"Power Trick!" Shuckle pulled itself back into its shell as it glowed, right as Politoad got in range.

Time seemed to slow down as Politoad and Shuckle reached the same hight, Politoad rolling before raising its foot. "Poli...TOAD!" It slammed its foot into the top of the shell, smacking it back into the ground.

"SHUCKLE!" Flash screamed, seeing Shuckle flying toward him. Before he could react, the shell slammed into him, knocking him back.

"FLASH!" Everyone yelled as they saw this, rushing over as he lay on the ground moaning.

"Ow..."

"You okay?" Rainbow asked, Flash sitting up and rubbing his head.

"I'm fine...that just really hurt." he assured them, only to look down at the Pokémon in his arms. "Shuckle, you alright?" He didn't get a response, making him tap the shell, "You okay? Please say something."

Eventually, Shuckle's head popped out and collapsed onto his chest. "Shuckle..." it moaned with spirals in its eyes.

Sunset sighed and shook her head, "Shuckle's unable to battle. Timber and Politoad are the winners."

"Looks like I'm still right." Timber added before high-fiving Politoad. "Well done buddy."

Flash let out a moan, "I can't believe we lost. Even after all that hard training..."

"I wouldn't be so depressed." Celestia added as she walked up to him, "You may not have won, but it's remarkable how well you did considering what you had to work with." Flash looked up at her, the professor patting him on the shoulder. "Sometimes losing can be an even better learning experience than winning, as long as you're willing to learn from it, and I think you've leaned a lot from this. For that, I'm awarding your cabin one point." Flash's eyes went wide at this, only for Celestia to frown, "However, I'm going to have to take away five points."

"WHAT!?" The four and their Pokémon yelled, turning to see Luna move their team name to the bottom of the board. "Why?" Flash asked, only for Celestia to give him a stern look.

"You think you can go out after curfew, then stay out all night and not get punished?" Flash's eyes shrunk, now seeing his friends all glare at him. The teen began to shrink under their gaze as Timber and Gloriosa stepped up to him.

"You did pretty well kid," Timber told him. "Even I'll admit, I was wrong. Shuckle's not just a fighter, he's a seriously awesome fighter."

"I agree," Gloriosa took Shuckle into her arms. "Thank you for helping him find his courage."

Flash said nothing as Gloriosa took Shuckle's Pokeball and returned him before everyone else said goodbye to their new friends and returned them. As Twilight gave back Kirlia, she began to talk to Timber, "You really are a great trainer. The way you and Politoad battled was so good it was almost scary."

Timber shined a huge grin as he placed his arms behind his head, "Well, I can't take all the credit. Just...ninety percent. Politoad sure pulled its own weight as an awesome Pokémon for an equally awesome trainer."

Twilight laughed at this, causing Flash to growl as he walked away. As he did this, Gloriosa walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder, "Don't take it the wrong way. My brother is always like that. And...again, thank you for helping Shuckle."

Flash did a small nod, "Thanks...and its no problem. I was glad to become friends with him."

Our heroes first two days of the Pokémon Summer Camp had gotten off to an exciting start with friends new and old all around. But with another six days to go, who knows what else is in store for our heroes. You'll have to stay tuned to find out.