A few hours after his quarterfinal victory over Sawyer, Ash had wandered off from his group of friends, including Serena, to go and spend some time alone with his Pokemon at the edge of the forest near the trainer's village. A lot was on his mind. He couldn't stop thinking about where he was now, after such a long journey.

"The final four, Pikachu," Ash whispered to his best friend, looking out into the trees. "We haven't made it this far since Sinnoh."

"Pika-pikachu," Pikachu answered with a happy nod from his trainer's shoulder.

Ash looked over to where Greninja was sitting with Goodra and Talonflame, the three of them a few feet away from a quietly sparring Hawlucha and Noivern. "Last time was against Tobias. Remember that?" Ash asked Pikachu, turning his gaze back to the trees ahead.

"Chu..." Pikachu muttered, not sounding too happy from the memory.

"Yeah it wasn't the way I wanted to go out, either," Ash told his loyal partner. "Whether we managed to perform the best against him or not, losing like that was tough." He paused a moment and thought of his progress since that battle. "It shouldn't matter now, though, if we battle a Darkrai or a Latios or any other Pokemon. We're strong enough and determined enough to beat anyone. And we've got all our friends supporting us. We won't lose, Pikachu. Calem, Alain, or whoever else is in the final four, won't beat us. We're winning this thing."

"Hey Ash, is that you?" Ash actually wasn't surprised to hear Calem's voice. He turned his head and saw his newest rival emerge from the path he'd come from earlier.

"Hi Calem," Ash greeted. "So I guess you made it through, huh?" Ash had decided not to watch the other quarterfinal battles, wanting to make his semi final battle more of a surprise.

"Yeah, I guess there's a good chance we'll battle each other, now," Calem answered with a smile.

Ash nodded. Something told him to expect it. It was an odd feeling, but he felt like it was all but certain that he would be battling Calem next. Perhaps it meant nothing, but Ash was excited at the thought. Calem had been an exceptional fighter in their last bout which had been interrupted. Another battle would be something Ash knew he'd enjoy. "Let's make it an even better one than last time."

"Last time was already really good," Calem said with a laugh.

Ash laughed as well, silently agreeing. However, he felt it was still possible for he and Calem to have an even better match than before. "I think we're both stronger and we know each other a little better. That could make things pretty interesting, don't you think."

Calem narrowed his eyes and looked towards the forest, as Ash had been doing earlier. "I guess you're right," he finally said. "But Ash, don't think you can predict what I have planned for you. I need to change my battle plan."

"You should know I'm not easy to predict either," Ash stated seriously. "I don't even plan things a lot of the time."

Calem smirked at that and shook his head while chuckling a little. "I've never met a trainer like you before. Somehow, you just exude power, even though you're a pretty lighthearted person."

"Do I?" Ash asked, frowning at the praise. He'd never thought of himself like that. Really, he'd only ever felt like that when he'd organized his army of Pokemon to assault Team Flare. He'd known his power in that moment and he'd known what the stakes were. It was a confidence that was hard to match. He hadn't even had that kind of confidence when he was beating Malva.

Calem nodded again. "I've battled a lot of tough opponents, Ash, and none if them have made me question my methods like you."

"Question your methods?" Ash repeated.

"Yeah," Calem laughed at Ash's blank expression. "I mean, I think we have a pretty similar approach, but there's something different about you. We both have our greatest strength in our bonds with our Pokemon, but you take that to another level."

Ash thought about that for a few moments. He didn't really get it, but he realized that maybe that was what made him and his Pokemon stronger. They didn't need to overthink things. They just did their best and trusted each other. There wasn't any need to worry about how strong their bonds were, because they already knew how strong they were.

"Ash, don't let up if we face each other, tomorrow, alright?" Calem pleaded. "I don't want to sound cocky, but I haven't lost a battle in a really long time, if we don't include our battle in Shalour City. I really want a challenge."

"You'll get one," Ash assured his rival. "I don't plan on going easy on anyone. Right Pikachu?" he asked, looking up at the electric mouse on his shoulder.

"Pi-pikachu!" Pikachu growled back confidently, punching the air with his fist.

"Ninja!" came a croak to Ash's right and he looked up to see Greninja standing next to him, looking at Calem.

"So this is your powerful Greninja?" Calem asked, looking at the frog-ninja Pokemon with amazement in his eyes.

"Yup," Ash said proudly. "He did pretty well today, didn't he?"

Calem nodded and laughed, but Greninja looked at Ash and shook his head. He quickly pointed to Ash and back at himself. Calem noticed this and was clearly confused. "What's he saying?"

Ash gave a quick smile to Greninja and then looked at Calem. "He's saying it wasn't just him. That we did well, together."

"Oh, right," Calem said, nodding in understanding.

Ash didn't say anything else, but he watched the forest again, in silence. Calem didn't quite understand what Greninja had meant, even though he, like everyone else watching the Kalos League, would know that Greninja and Ash had that special form. What Ash and his powerful water type could do, went far beyond what trainers and Pokemon could normally do. Perhaps Calem would find that out soon enough.

The four cards on the screen in the Pokemon centre shuffled rapidly, causing the large crowd to quickly lose sight of which trainers they belonged to. After a few seconds they finally stopped and flipped over. Calem did a little fist pump. Just as he'd predicted and hoped for, his match against Ash was finally here.

"Wow, would you look at that?" President Goodshow yelled excitedly, the screen going back to him with Professor Sycamore and Diantha. "A match that some oddsmakers had as a favourite for the final. Ash versus Calem!"

Sycamore laughed, looking just as excited as Goodshow. "I have to admit, I expected something like that as well. Although, once Alain joined the League, I knew he'd be in the mix with those two."

"It will definitely be a good one," Diantha joined in, also looking excited, although a little more composed. "Ash has proved to be just as dominant as predicted before the tournament began. Meanwhile, Calem has also shown himself to be a dominant trainer, having lost no more than one Pokemon in his matches up until now, even sweeping a couple, including today's. Honestly, his Chesnaught could probably give Ash quite a hard time, even with powerful Pokemon like Pikachu and Greninja, who, we should remember, don't match up well against Chesnaught in terms of type matchups."

Calem laughed to himself as Goodshow and Sycamore responded to that. Type matchups meant very little to Ash, and Calem knew Diantha was well aware of that. Ash and Greninja dealt with Sawyer's Sceptile well enough.

Calem watched the rest of the discussion between the Professor, Champion and President for the next couple of minutes. Finally, after heavily discussing the Ash and Calem match, they moved onto the other one, and then finished the quarterfinal recap. Once they finished, the crowd started to leave. On Calem's way out, he saw Ash separating from his friends and walking over to him.

"Well, looks like it's happening tomorrow," Ash said happily.

Calem nodded and smiled, wishing the battle could already start. "I hope it's a good one."

"It will be," Ash assured him. He then nodded and held out his hand. "May the best trainer win."

Calem reached out his own hand and shook Ash's, nodding. "Of course. But Ash, just remember that it'll be me."

Ash laughed and took a step back once their handshake had finished. "We'll see, Calem. Either way, I know it's gonna be a lot of fun." He then gave one more nod and turned away, heading back to his large group of friends.

Calem stood there for a couple of minutes and thought about what was coming. Suddenly, his heart started beating faster, and his ears started ringing. It was actually happening! He was going to battle against the greatest opponent he'd ever met. He knew he needed to get ready. Not really by training, but mentally prepared. He pulled Chesnaught's pokeball from his belt and immediately ran out of the Pokemon centre.

It only took a few minutes before Calem reached the training fields. He'd been a bit worried he might spot Ash there, but was relieved to see his upcoming opponent wasn't there. He wanted tomorrow's battle to be unexpected, so seeing Ash training wouldn't have been right. Also, Calem didn't want Ash to know what his own plans were.

With a flash of light from the pokeball in Calem's hand, Chesnaught emerged in front of his trainer. Just from Calem's excited expression, Chesnaught clearly knew what was coming. He held up his fists and then flexed his muscles. "Ches! Chesnaught!"

Calem smiled at his partner Pokemon. "Yeah, that's right. We're going up against Ash tomorrow, and we need to be ready."

Chesnaught hadn't had his chance against Ash yet, since the battle had been interrupted in Shalour City. It was clear the grass type was excited, though. He'd been able to see the raw power from Ash and his Pokemon enough to know it would be an extremely tough battle. Ever since the battle against Team Flare in Lumiose City, Chesnaught had bern fully aware of his and his trainer's most dangerous opponent.

"We need to be ready, Chesnaught," Calem warned. "Ash overpowered us last time. I need to have a strategy to beat him. Last time I went with my strongest Pokemon, but I think our best tactic against Ash needs to be better thought out than that. Raw power isn't enough. Who knows? A good strategy might not be enough."

Calem stopped and stared at the training field, thinking. The plan to beat Ash was going to have to be better than all the opponents that had gone up against Ash could figure out. Remo had tried raw power, which was definitely not a good thing to plan the whole match around. Astrid had used a strong defence, but then Ash had overwhelmed that. Malva had a good combination of strategy and power, but Ash's unpredictable style had given him the edge. And Sawyer had given Ash a hard time with his strategic planning, but once Ash had used his strongest Pokemon, Sawyer wasn't able to keep up.

It seemed like no matter what kind of strategy Ash's opponents came up with, he managed to overwhelm them with some kind of counter. Raw power, strong defence, strong strategy, or even just his unconventional style. Ash just knew how to find a way to win. He trusted his Pokemon and they trusted him.

How could someone beat him, though? Ash had battled trainers that were closely bonded with their partners, but they'd all been defeated. Calem knew he couldn't worry about that, though. If he doubted his bonds with his Pokemon, a battle against Ash, who never doubted such things, was surely going to end in defeat. No, Calem knew that was his own best quality as well. He and his Pokemon were as close as Ash and his Pokemon. That needed to be true, and Calem needed to believe it.

No, trust in his Pokemon was something Calem didn't lack. He needed to come up with a strategy that could be used no matter what Ash threw at him. He needed to counter Ash's unconventional style, his Pokemon's power, their speed and their smarts. He needed to prepare for anything that a good trainer, a champion level trainer, could bring out.

"Serena was right when she talked about how good a trainer Ash was," Calem said to Chesnaught, thinking of the day he'd met her and had decided Ash was worth searching for. "I really want to see how we match up. Chesnaught, if we can beat him, nothing will stand in our way."

"That was quite the battle that Ash had, wasn't it Delia?" Professor Oak asked taking a sip from his cup of tea and looking at the TV which was showing highlights of the Kalos League battles from earlier in the day.

Delia nodded and smiled, sitting down in a chair next to Professor Oak's. "It sure was! I'm so proud of my little boy!"

Oak managed to stop himself from shaking his head in exasperation. To call Ash a little boy at this point was ridiculous, but he supposed mothers always saw their children differently than other people. He still wanted to try to convince Delia, though. For Ash's sake. "Delia, I think it's a bit much to call Ash a little boy, don't you think?"

Delia narrowed her eyes. "Until he learns to be more careful, he'll always be my little boy. Did you see what he did with that Greninja of his? That looked very dangerous and I don't want him to risk hurting himself like that."

The Professor opened his mouth to argue, but when Delia's eyes flashed angrily, he just looked back at the TV. Then, as though the TV was listening, they started showing highlights of the battle between Greninja and Sceptile. Oak was truly amazed at what Ash had done. He had a very limited knowledge of mega evolution from Professor Sycamore's notes, but clearly what Greninja could do was far more impressive.

"Young Mr. Ketchum is going to have another tough test tomorrow," the TV announcer suddenly said. "He'll be battling another tournament favourite in Calem from Vaniville Town. It may very well be the most anticipated match of the Kalos League thus far."

"Do you know anything about that boy?" Delia asked, as clips of Calem's battles began to play on screen.

Oak nodded. He'd actually met Calem briefly when the young trainer had passed by Pallet Town a while back. Oak had immediately been able to identify an exceptional talent in the boy, that he'd only ever seen in Ash and his grandson, Gary. Calem was very good at bringing out power beyond the ordinary limits of his Pokemon. "I met him once. He's quite talented."

Delia pursed her lips, looking a little nervous, but her eyes appeared determined. "Ash can beat him, though, right?"

Oak gave Ash's mother an encouraging smile. "Of course, Delia. From what Gary tells me, Ash is performing at a level that is close to a Champion. According to him, television isn't doing it justice. He says Ash has never looked stronger. Apparently in person, it is one of the most impressive sights you can see." He smiled as his hand slipped to his pocket, where a gift for Delia, and also Ash, was held.

Delia looked like she was about to answer, but then the phone rang and Oak quickly got up and headed to his large video monitor and answered. Ash's face suddenly appeared on screen. Before either Oak or Ash could speak, though, Delia was squeaking happily. "Oh Ash! My little boy! Congratulations on making it to the semi finals!"

Ash looked a little surprised for a moment, but then smiled. "Hi mom, and thanks. It hasn't been easy, but I've worked really hard and all my Pokemon and friends are supporting me." Pikachu immediately appeared on Ash's shoulder, smiling in agreement. "And hi Professor Oak," Ash quickly greeted. "How are all my Pokemon?"

"Excellent, my boy," Oak informed Ash happily. He took a quick glance towards Delia, who nodded, accepting this was more about Pokemon than a mother and son conversation. He turned back to Ash on screen. "Each and every one of them is eager to battle. I suppose you want to make a transfer?"

Ash nodded, unclipping some pokeballs from his belt. "Yeah, I don't want these guys all getting tired out. I need a team that's fully ready for tomorrow's battle."

"Are you bringing in Charizard, Infernape, Pidgeot and Sceptile. You used them in your last battle against Calem, correct?" Oak asked, glancing out a window and seeing Charizard having a relaxed sparring match with Krookodile.

Ash seemed to think for a moment, clearly trying to assess his options. Finally, he shook his head. "I think Calem will be preparing a good strategy that would make it hard if I used all of them." He thought for another few seconds and then smiled. "Pidgeot and Charizard, I think. Sceptile and Infernape need to be ready for someone else."

Oak nodded and turned in his chair and knelt down to where he'd organized all of Ash's pokeballs in a drawer close to his desk. Since Ash was regularly changing Pokemon, this made it much easier. He peered closely at the pokeballs and then picked up Pidgeot's and Charizard's pokeballs and placed them in front of him. "Will they be the only transfers?" he asked, preparing to get up to go and get the two Pokemon.

Ash again thought hard for a few moments. Oak was glad, as it meant Ash was ensuring he was well prepared. Suddenly, there was a noise from the window, and Oak looked back to see two Pokemon peering into the lab. Delia quickly went over and opened it. Immediately, Bulbasaur and Squirtle ran in and hopped up on the desk and looked up happily at their trainer on the screen in front of them.

Ash nodded, smiling widely, and Professor Oak wasn't surprised by his next words. "Bulbasaur and Squirtle as well, please, Professor Oak. It's time to get them into a battle. They haven't had a chance since helping me win the Battle Frontier."

Oak nodded and smiled. It was a little easier to keep the lab peaceful without Bulbasaur these days. Since Charizard had arrived from Charicific Valley, he'd taken over some of the duties of peacekeeping, which allowed Bulbasaur to take some breaks. Charizard had grown quite close to Pignite in his time here, and the other fire type was also learning the peacekeeping role. With both Charizard and Bulbasaur gone, it would be a good chance for Pignite. Other than that, Sceptile, Infernape, Krookodile and the temporarily present Houndoom would be able to help. And according to Officer Jenny, the Squirtle Squad was doing quite well for now, without their leader, so there was no rush to bring back Squirtle.

The two Pokemon looked quite happy at Ash's request. They'd been two of his most loyal in all his time as a trainer. It was only right for them to get another chance. And they weren't the only happy ones. There was a loud roar and a "Pidgaw!" near the window, and Oak looked to see Charizard and Pidgeot had noticed Ash was talking and that he'd requested their services.

Now it was time for the pep talk, which Oak was pleased to be able to see. Ash looked at his four call ups. "Alright you guys, this is going to be a tough battle. I need some of my most trusted Pokemon. Think you can help me out?"

Not surprisingly, Charizard was first to answer, being the most battle hungry of the group. Unfortunately, the fire-lizard's excitement caused a stack of books to go up in flames. Luckily, Delia was able to put them out, with some help from Squirtle. Meanwhile Charizard got a slap in the face from Pidgeot's wing. After a couple of moments where Ash laughed, his Pokemon were able to give him a more peaceful show of excitement.

"Hahaha!" Ash laughed loudly. "That's great, everyone. I can't wait to battle with you all again!"

After some more words from Ash, it was finally time for Oak to recall the four Pokemon to their pokeballs. At least the early arrival of Charizard and Pidgeot made that task quite simple. Finally, the pokeballs were all assembled and on a tray, ready to be transferred. Oak saw Ash place four on his own tray and then look up.

"I'm keeping Pikachu, obviously, and Greninja with me," Ash explained. "Please make sure the others are ok."

"Of course," Oak assured Ash with a smile. He clicked a button, while Ash did the same on his end, and lights flashed over the pokeballs, before the disappeared and then the others appeared immediately after. "All good on my end," Oak informed Ash.

"Same here," Ash answered, holding up the four pokeballs. "Thanks Professor Oak. I'll talk to you again, soon. And sorry, mom, I'll make sure to call-"

"Hold on, Ash," Oak said quickly, reaching into his pocket. "I have a proposal for you. I think you, and Delia as well, will be interested."

Ash narrowed his eyes in confusion. "What is it?" he asked.

"Yes, what are you talking about, Samuel?" Delia echoed her son.

Oak smiled, holding up his hand and revealing what had been in his pockets. Delia was the first to realize it, since it was likely much easier for her to notice, given the fact that Ash was looking through a screen. She immediately clapped her hands together and cried out happily.

"What?" Ash asked again, peering in closer.

"Plane tickets to Lumiose City," Oak informed Ash. "If you can defeat Calem in tomorrow's match, your mother and I will be flying to Kalos to watch you compete in the championship battle."

Ash's jaw dropped, but then he quickly started to smile. "Awesome! Well don't worry, mom, I'll win that battle. Pikachu, Greninja, Charizard, Pidgeot, Bulbasaur and Squirtle are all ready. So am I. As tough as it'll be, I won't lose."

"You'd better not," Delia warned. "I want to see my little boy in the finals."

"Uh..." Oak could see Ash debating with himself about whether or not to argue about that, but eventually he just smiled. "Yeah, I'll be there. And so will you two, along with everyone else."

"We're rooting for you, Ash," Oak said confidently, doing his best to mimic Ash's famous fist pump. "It's time for you to become a Pokemon Master."

Serena could barely keep her eyes open as she prepared to watch the battle. It was so nerve wracking. Ash was really among the best of the best now. He'd been so good up until now, but he was going to need to be even better. Serena took a deep breath. Of course he'd be better. He was Ash. Ash always improved, each time he battled. He wasn't going to hold anything back, she knew that.

The one thing that worried her, though, was how strong Calem was. She knew firsthand how strong he was. He'd completely controlled the battle she'd had with him. Pancham, Sylveon and Delphox had been completely overpowered. Serena obviously knew Ash was strong from watching him battle, but having actually battled Calem herself, it was easier in some ways to know his strengths.

"Ash is amazing," Brock said a couple seats down from Serena. "I've never seem him battle so well. He's really never been stronger."

"I bet he'd be able to beat Tobias, now," Dawn added, staring wide-eyed and excitedly towards the battlefield below. "And he pretty much beat Calem when they battled in Shalour City."

Serena sighed a bit in relief. She'd forgotten that part. If Ash had already shown himself capable of beating Calem, he'd be able to do it again. And Dawn and Brock, particularly Brock, knew Ash very well. If they were saying he was the strongest he'd ever been, that meant something. There wasn't any reason to doubt her boyfriend. He was going to win this battle.

Suddenly, the voice of the announcer shot out out of some speakers, and the monitor on the wall of the arena lit up with Ash's and Calem's pictures. "Ladies and gentlemen, are you ready to get started with this semi final battle, between two of the most impressive young fighters in the tournament?"

The crowd roared in approval, and the noise proved how anticipated this match was. The audience had seen a lot of these trainers at this point, so they knew how strong they all were. Obviously, Ash had managed to fight his way through some of the toughest battlers in the tournament already. Meanwhile, Calem had also shown himself to be quite dominant, hardly losing a single battle on his path to the final four.

The announcer spent a bit more time hyping up the crowd, and then got set to make his introductions. "First of all, we'll introduce Calem from Vaniville Town! A fierce fighter, strong strategist and a strong believer in his Pokemon." The crowd cheered as Calem made his way to his platform. It was loud, but Serena could tell who the biggest cheer was going to be for. "And next, we have Ash from Pallet Town! The powerful and unconventional trainer who has proven his bonds with his Pokemon surpass anything we've ever seen before."

Once the crowd had finished screaming so loud that any sane person was plugging their ears, the battlefield raised up in between the trainers. It was a water field, which Serena was a bit worried about. If Ash hadn't selected any water or flying types, his Pokemon would be at a heavy disadvantage. However, Calem could also be in that situation.

"Now, everyone, as you all know, this is a crucial match," the announcer stated. "The winner will move on to the championship battle, against Alain, who emerged victorious in the last battle." He paused while the crowd murmured excitedly. "Once again, this will be a six versus six battle with substitutions allowed and an intermission once three Pokemon on one side have been defeated. Once all six are defeated, the opposing trainer will be declared the victor." The referee was obviously informing Ash and Calem of these rules as well, and Serena saw them both nod. "Well," the announcer said, "let's find out the first Pokemon each trainer will use."

Serena clenched her fists. This was it. This was where it began. Ash had never made it past the semi finals before, so this was possibly the most important match in his life at this point. She saw him and Calem pick up their first pokeballs and throw them out. There were two flashes of light, and then Serena heard an excited gasp from Tierno a few seats down.

"Another Blastoise!" Tierno shouted excitedly. "And Ash has a Squirtle? I didn't know that." He looked a bit worried. "I don't know if a Squirtle could beat a Blastoise, though."

Serena narrowed her eyes. It was one thing for her to have doubts. She was Ash's girlfriend, so worrying was only natural. But when others doubted Ash, it made her a little irritated. "Squirtle's going to win this, Tierno. I guarantee it."

"Squirtle's awesome!" Bonnie yelled happily. "He helped me in the Team Flare battle, with Bulbasaur and Primeape."

Tierno smiled and nodded. "Yeah, alright. I guess I should never doubt a Pokemon of Ash's. And besides, it looks like that Squirtle could probably dance pretty well."

"Squirtle was a big part of Ash's Battle Frontier win," May explained. "Ash had really struggled with Brandon for the final symbol, but Charizard, Bulbasaur, Pikachu and Squirtle managed to do it for him."

Serena was already feeling at ease. Ash's Pokemon seemed to be trusted and accomplished fighters no matter who he chose. And she knew Squirtle was one of his oldest, so there was no doubt he had a close bond with Ash, that would make battling together much easier. Ash was on his way to becoming a champion, and Squirtle defeating Blastoise would be the next step.

"Blastoise, Hydro Cannon!" Calem yelled, starting the battle.

"Squirtle, Hydro Pump!" Ash countered.

As Blastoise lowered his shoulders and aimed its cannons, Squirtle started to rapidly spin in his shell and then shot towards Blastoise, water firing out of the holes in the shell. As Squirtle headed towards his fully evolved counterpart, Blastoise fired off his attack. As the attacks neared each other, Serena could feel their raw power. Neither trainer was going to back down, and their Pokemon wouldn't either.