(Next Morning)

Ash, Serena, Clemont, Dragon Emperor and all the Pokemon are finishing their breakfast.

"Alright. Clemont now it is back to your Tauros for training. Time to get going." Dragon Emperor says while getting up.

"Right." Clemont says while recalling all of his Pokemon into their Poke-ball. "See you 2 at lunch." Clemont says while waving his hands and walking away to his spot.

"Alright. Now have your Pokemon run 20 laps around the edges of that clearing. You 2 will only run 5. Now go." Dragon Emperor says while pointing to the clearing.

"Right." Serena and Ash reply with tone of determination as they run off along with their Pokemon.

(30 Minute Later)

"Well Ash I am quite impressed with your Snorlax. I thought it will take it at least 50 minutes to complete 20 laps. You have raised it quite well." Dragon Emperor says while Snorlax finishes his 20th lap while panting.

"OK the rest of you 30 normal push ups for the trainers and Snorlax. Everyone else do 50. Snorlax will begin after a 10 minute rest." Dragon Emperor says while Snorlax sits down on the ground with a thud.

(20 Minutes Later)

"Alright. Your warm up is now complete. 10 minute break. Then your Pokemon practical training lesson will start." Dragon Emperor says while opening a water bottle and offering it to Ash and Serena.

"Thanks." Serena says before drinking some water. She then gives the bottle to Ash and wipes her sweat. Ash does the same.

(15 minutes Later)

"Alright today we shall practice one of the most important components of a Pokemon battling. That is the art of evasion." Dragon Emperor says as all the Pokemon are standing in a line behind Ash and Serena.

"You are going to teach us various techniques of dodging attacks." Ash asks.

"Yes and yes. Dodging is an extremely important part of Pokemon battles. If statistics are to be believed around 40% of the battle is spent in evading and avoiding attacks." Dragon Emperor says before pausing.

"Mastery of the art of dodging attacks is essential if you wish to become a Pokemon master. Always remember the key phrase DAFT. D stands for diversion, A stands for Agility, Acrobatics and Adaptability, F stands for Fast and T stands for Terrain. Now I shall demonstrate one by one what do each of these letters mean. Alright come out Raichu, Meganium, Steelix, Sylveon, Dusclops and Dragonite." Dragon Emperor says while tossing 6 Poke-balls.

"Alright for the first letter D. D stands for diversion. Diversion means that you use another medium as a shield or a technique with which you can hide yourself. The most common method is this. Steelix use Flash Cannon. Raichu double team to dodge." Dragon Emperor commands. "Even you two must have seen or used this method. Here we are using a double team to create multiple fake copies as a distraction to avoid the attack." Dragon Emperor replies as Ash and Serena nod.

"Another less common way is to use a similar attack known as substitute. Watch closely. Raichu use thunderbolt on Dragonite. Dragonite you know what to do." Dragon Emperor says as Raichu thunderbolt hits Dragonite. Dragonite winces in pain for a moment. But then disappears only to appear behind Raichu.

"In this technique a Pokemon sacrifices a little bit of health to create a decoy copy which can even be seen taking damage by the opponent for a short time. If used properly Substitute can be a great move to deal critical blows to an opponent who may let down his guard after thinking your Pokemon took a lot of damage and leave a big opening for you to capitalize on."

"I have never used Substitute myself before but I have seen it being done." Ash replies looking impressed.

"Of course today I shall teach you both all the techniques I know." Dragon Emperor says while smiling.

"Now the next letter is A. A stands for the triplet Agility, Acrobatics and Adaptability. Agility and Adaptability are for Pokemon like Snorlax who are so big that they can't rely on high speed and small size to evade attacks. These type of Pokemon must use acrobatics along with a great deal of agility if they wish to avoid attacks. Here take a look." Dragon Emperor says while tossing a Poke-ball revealing Hariyama.

"Sylveon shadow ball rapid fire barrage attack. Hariyama dodge it." Dragon Emperor commands.

Sylveon sends a barrage of shadow balls but Hariyama dodges them all by performing Acrobatics by staying on his feet or on his large palms.

"Wow." Serena says as it reminds her of her performing on the stage.

"I thought you will be the one to react. After all being a performer you Pokemon will be good at doing acrobatics." Dragon Emperor says while chuckling to himself.

"Now moving on we come to adaptability. This is a tricky part. For it partially depends upon luck and the trainer's aptitude as a battler in order to pull this off. Here I will show you 3 examples. Alright Dragonite use flame thrower on Meganium. Meganium use Vine-Whip to knock Dragonite off balance." Dragon Emperor commands.

Dragonite release a flamethrower but Meganium's vine-whip knocks it of balance causing Dragonite to trip and it's flamethrower to miss its mark.

"I remember doing something similar with my Gliscor in my Sinnoh gym battle with a gm leader called Byron and his Bastiodon." Ash says while turning and looking at Gliscor.

"You might have. I don't hold a copyright over this technique. Who knows? Someday a trainer might come up with a technique not known even to me. But enough of that there is another way Vine-whip can be used to dodge attacks."

"Let me guess. Use it on the ground to propel yourself into the air." Ash replies.

"Very good. Where did you use this technique?" Dragon Emperor questions Ash sounding impressed.

"In my battle in the Johto league against a battler name Gary Oak. In fact it was my Bayleef who used this technique. He is now a professor in training." Ash replies.

"Alright then the next one will be a useful one for you Serena." Dragon Emperor says while turning.

"Steelix use Iron Tail and send some rocks flying towards Sylveon. Now Serena watch closely. Sylveon you know what to do." Dragon Emperor says as Sylveon nods. The rocks are flying towards Sylveon but Sylveon doesn't move a muscle. Just seconds before they are going to hit it uses it's feelers to swat down all the rocks without even breaking a sweat.

"Wow!" Serena exclaims upon seeing Sylveon being able to use it's feelers like that.

"One thing to note about adaptability techniques. These can in a way be a categorized in 2 types. First where you use special features of your Pokemon like Sylveon used its feelers. Second you can even use attacks that your Pokemon can use like Meganium's vine-whip or water type using hydro pump on the ground to lift itself off the ground etc. The possibilities are endless."

"Right." Ash and Serena say while making a mental note of it.

"Alright the next letter is F which stands for fast. The principle is simple. The emphasis on dodging is on speed. Using moves like Quick Attack and Extreme Speed to avoid the attacks. But the last letter is T which stands for Terrain. In other words the battlefield. This is the one element I want you two to be extra careful about."

"Why?" both reply in unison.

"Because this is the one element which trainer forget about in a battle. They forget that in a battle it is not just the 2 Pokemon who take part here is another element involved and that is the battlefield." Dragon Emperor says before pausing.

"The power of the battlefield is not one to be under estimated. For example in an air battle a sudden gust of wind can mean the difference between defeat and victory. Or in a rocky battlefield an unaccounted boulder may act as a safeguard from a devastating hyper beam."

Both Ash and Serena listen with utmost seriousness.

"Here I will show you. Dragonite use Flamethrower. Hariyama you know what to do." Dragon Emperor commands.

Seconds before the flamethrower is about to hit Hariyama uses Arm Thrust on the ground causing a large portion of rock to come out in between the Flamethrower and Hariyama protecting it. Ash and Serena are left with their jaw dropped as they see the flamethrower diverted to either side of the protruding rock barrier.

"Unbelievable." Ash and Serena say in unison.

Dragon Emperor smiles before chuckling. The he says "Alright time to train you two. Get ready."

(2 hours later)

"Alright now most of your Pokemon are wiped out. So put them inside their Poke-balls. Now Pikachu and your Braixen are the only 2 left. Since this is the last lesson before the lunch break I thought we will make it more interesting by giving you 2 a little Z move surprise." Dragon Emperor says.

Ash and Serena who have tired faces instantly light up upon hearing Z move being mentioned.

"Will we get to see one?" Ash asks with enthusiasm.

"Even better. You both will get to face one. Hariyama stand by." Dragon Emperor says before rolling up his sleeve to reveal a ring with a crystal on it.

"What is that?" Serena asks."

"That my dear Serena is a Z ring. Without the ring and the correct crystal corresponding to the Pokemon type performing a Z move is impossible. Now get Pikachu and Braixen ready." Dragon Emperor replies.

Both Ash and Serena nod and take their positions with their loyal Pokemon in front of them.

"Alright Ash you will go first. Remember play to your Pokemon's strength then choose from DAFT. Cause here I come." Dragon Emperor says while striking a pose.

'Pikachu's strength is speed so I am going with F.' Ash thinks to himself while making a determined fist.

After striking a few more poses a light emanates from the Dragon Emperor which then goes into Hariyama.

"Alright Ash get ready. Here we go. All Out-Pummeling go." Dragon Emperor commands.

Upon hearing it's trainers commands Hariyama sends out a wave of attacks with great speed and power towards Pikachu. Serena is meanwhile stunned at this display.

"Dodge with quick attack." Ash shouts.

Pikachu waltzes through the powerful barrage of attacks. After dodging the first 10 or so it gets hit and then all the rest of the attacks meet its mark creating a huge blinding explosion. After the smoke has subsided Pikachu is on the ground with swirly eyes while Ash is visibly shaken at the level of power that Z move possessed. Then he recomposes himself and goes and picks Pikachu up in his arms.

"You did very well Ash. Dodging more than 10 attacks on your first try is commendable." Dragon Emperor says while tossing an Oran berry to Ash.

"Thanks but Pikachu got injured quite badly. I don't think an Oran berry will cut it." Ash replies in a worried tone while feeding Pikachu the berry.

"Don't worry." Dragon Emperor says before turning to Serena and saying "Your turn."

"U mm. I don't think I want to." Serena says with a little hesitation in her voice.

"Why?" Ash asks.

"Because she is intimidated by the level of power displayed." Dragon Emperor answering for her.

He smiles then walks over to Serena and puts his hand on her shoulder which is giving a slight tremor.

"Why are you so afraid?" Dragon Emperor asks.

"I d-don't k-n-know. It's overwhelming." Serena replies while stuttering a little.

"It is. No doubt. But when you finish your training this will actually be a trivial thing for you." Dragon Emperor says in a reassuring tone.

"It's just that I don't think I am ready for this kind of power." Serena says quietly.

"No one ever is." Dragon Emperor replies.

"It is just for some reason I am afraid." Serena replies.

"I know. I felt the same way when I was training as well. But that is what it means to be a Pokemon Master. To wield great power with even greater responsibility." Dragon Emperor replies.

"If you were in my shoes how did you overcome your problems ?" Serena asks him.

"Faith. In a better brighter future and in my mater's guidance. Always remember Serena no matter what happens never lose your self confidence. For that is yours and yours alone. No one. Not even I can take that away for you. If in doubt close your eyes and remember your loved ones for strength. Now get ready." Dragon Emperor says while walking back towards Hariyama.

Serena closes her eyes. Images of her mom, her Pokemon and finally Ash flash in her mind. Strength returns to her hands and the trembling stops. She opens her eyes with a fire of determination blazing in them. Upon seeing that Dragon Emperor chuckles and Ash gives her a thumbs up.

"You ready?" Dragon Emperor says.

Serena gives a firm nod while standing behind her trusted Braixen.

"Alright. Now remember what I told Ash. Play to your Pokemon's strength and remember DAFT. Let's do this Hariyama." Dragon Emperor replies while striking the earlier pose.

Serena's mind is running a marathon. 'What do I do? Braixen doesn't have Pikachu's speed. So F is out. Don't have time to survey the field so T is out. I am running out of option.' she thinks to herself when suddenly she remembers Dragon Emperor having Hariyama do acrobatics.

"All Out-Pummeling go." Dragon Emperor commands jerking Serena out of her thoughts.

"Quick Braixen think like it's a performance. Use your acrobatics to avoid those attacks." Serena counters.

Initially Braixen does well but her jumps can't keep up with the pace of the incoming attacks and soon like Pikachu she is down on the ground with swirly eyes.

"Well done as expected. Here." Dragon Emperor says while tossing an Oran berry to Serena.

"Now listen up you two. All your Pokemon are wounded and tired. The Pokemon center is over the mountains on the other side. Ash you take your Poke-ball and Pokemon and go on Aerodactyl." Dragon Emperor says while tossing a Poke-ball. "And you Serena go on Dragonite. Deposit your Pokemon. Pick up some Pokemon food and supplies before coming back. Then return back for lunch the same way you went. We will have our theoretical lesson in the afternoon. Then in the go back in the night and bring them back before dinner time. Now go."

"What are you going to do?" Both ask as they climb onto the backs of their respective Pokemon.

"I will go and check on Clemont's progress. Then the two of us will get started with dinner. Don't take long." Dragon Emperor says while turning around and walking away.

"Right." Ash and Serena says after climbing on to Aerodactyl and Dragonite respectively and take off.

Dragon Emperor looks at them flying away. He smiles to himself then turns around and walks away.