did he not get anything in return for golduck?

I've been looking forward to Ash and Karen's battle and I was not disappointed. It's definitely one of my personal favorite battles yet, much like Ash and Clair's battle.

I'm not sure which part of the battle was my favorite, but I think it really sold how strong Karen was as a Pokemon Trainer. Her Weavile was able to battle Bruiser despite a huge type disadvantage and Bruiser being strong enough to severely injure Cynthia's Garchomp in the leg. Plus Weavile was poisoned.

I wasn't expecting Ash to win so I'm not too disappointed by the loss in this chapter. If anything, it helps show just how much growing that Ash still has to do as a Pokemon Trainer. Karen is an Elite Four Member, and is most likely a top tier as a result. That's what I'm assuming anyway.

I'm impressed that Ash did as well as he did tho. I like the idea of him and Karen both being at a huge disadvantage in different ways. But Karen seems to be a master of exploiting weaknesses.

Having the protagonist lose a lot can be disheartening but I feel like it is sort of beneficial to Ash's character arc given how he has just recently reaches this level not too long ago. He's not not at the top when standing next to these Pokemon Masters. Compared to the Indigo Conference. As far as Trainers as a whole goes, Ash is at the top, but not when compared to Pokemon Masters.

Ash's biggest weakness definitely seems to be moves like Confuse Ray. I'm glad that he is taking steps to address that. Ash and Karen's dynamic is great and they are my favorite human relationship in the story right now because of that, so I can't wait to see their rematch. I'm assuming it will be whenever Ash has an official battle with her. Unless they have some casual battles before that. What Lance said seems to suggest that Karen is getting stronger as well, so maybe both of them will be vastly improved beyond the levels that they are already at whenever they battle again. I really loved Karen's trick for turning out the lights, although I'm not sure if Ash using the feather counts as cheating or not. But either way, it's cool to see both of them being so pragmatic.

The rest of the chapter was great as well. I'm looking forward to more interactions between Ash and the rest of these guys. The teasing that Lance gave Ash about Cynthia is also very funny.

I really love your versions of these characters in the Elite Four. Karen and Will are very entertaining especially.

It's kind of sad to see Ash leave the Indigo Plateau. But once he comes back it will be exciting. I'm looking forward to the rest of his travels and what Ash's talk with Chinatsu will reveal. Overall this was one of my favorite chapters.

Obviously this is just my opinion, but the fight between the houndoom and the magmortar kind of ruined the chapter for me. After everything between them the moment the houndoom is pierced with a thunder punch it should have been game over. The amount of electricity running through its body "should have" caused all its muscles to contrsct and stiffen into paralysis and then not been able to continue fighting, especially with all the existing damage that they did to each other before hand. It read and felt like you had, A predetermined plot point that you did not want to deviate from and just wanted to push the story along. Obviously im most likely in the minority with this opinion but I couldn't help with having a sour taste in my mouth for the rest of the chapter. Overall I'm looking forward to the next chapter and seeing how you progress the story and in the style and pace that you do

Amazing chapter the trick with the lights turning off was brilliant

Like at least I think you're current update rate is pretty good. A month and half to two months is pretty fair, especially considering how long the chapters are and how long it would take to edit and proofread. Also yeah the replies, I'm totally okay if I don't get a reply right away or at all, you easily get dozens per chapter and I can imagine how time consuming it can be. So just do what you can do man.

I like this version of the Indigo Plateau, feels like a place people would conceivably live in it's pretty great.

I didn't expect Ash to win, but it was a lot closer than I thought would be. Moves like Perish Song/confuse ray, and that ilk seem to give him the most trouble.

And in general I just like the dynamic between Karen and Ash, she's the annoying older sister he never had.

Also seems like Ash has a crush, and probably everyone is going to know about it. Karen is going to have a field day.

And now the myths and legends of the world are on the move, with Ash potentially at the epicenter. Kid needs a serious vacation.

Great chapter as always! While Ash's loss was disappointing, I felt like it was needed to remind people that Ash is still a rookie, age-wise; even younger elites like Karen and Will had much more time perfecting their skills. It took him a few years to accomplish what he can now; it took Karen at least double the time to reach hers. Unless Ash is way more talented to the point where he can learn in years what others perfect in decades, which is doubtful, it is only logical that he would keep losing to the elites. That being said, I hope we will see a victory sometime in the near future, something like Clair's battle.
(Just checked, that was 2 chapters ago; time really does flies. I sincerely hope you're getting better but if you don't, don't be pressurized into releasing a chapter - it will only hurt everyone. Stay healthy, and keep up the amazing work!)

Dude I legit wait for your updates. It's an event for me when a new chapter comes out. I order a pizza and take a blanket and read it in my cozy sphere. This story has helped me through so much. Thank you for putting so much effort into this. You're the best.

P.S. This chapter had amazing writing! And can't wait for Oz to evolve!

Perhaps a recommendation is warranted here.

I think I agree with the growing sentiment that the older chapters had a cohesion to the narrative that the newer ones lack. Take a break and figure out the narrative from this point further and just commit to that narrative rather than doing, what appears to be, relatively haphazard storylines.

I’d also recommend familiarizing yourself with battles. It’s all well and good to make up moves but right now the not-ash Ash mc either demolishes what should be strong(er) trainers or gets rocked by trainers of barely noticeable power differences or age differences. What I mean by all of this is that it might be worth actually coming up with a cohesive power scale to avoid these situations.

Cohesion is definitely the most lacking feature currently and my guess is that it gets solved by understanding the mechanics of the story better and understanding the mechanics of the gimmick (Pokémon and battles) more.

Good to see you back. Great chapter. Love the elite four interactions among each other. BTW when ash will return to hoen will ash get a ralts?
Best of luck and stay healthy.

Love this fic and the amount you've put into it is unreal can't wait for more definitely appreciate the hard work and dedication u put into it

Hey, thanks for the update. It always brightens my mood when I see a new chapter in this story. I know you said it doesn't feel like your best work, but I want to reassure you I really liked this chapter. It didn't feel cumbersome, or boring, or awkward at any point in my reading.

I thought the Karen / Ash fight was good. It was fun to read and it felt like a very plausible scenario. I wonder how Ash would have faired in a more open ground with daylight, he seems to discount that the battlefield was more in his opponent's favor than his. Of course this just makes for better training for him and his team.

The following scenes were all good and for different reasons; Lance teasing Ash was amusing, Ash calling his mom was nice and a bit heart-warming, the movie scene brought into focus the fact that Ash has been pretty dedicated to his training for a while at the cost of simply enjoying his time so it seemed nice that he was letting himself take a break.

And yay for protect. I wonder what other TMs he is going to use. Also, it will be cool to see Ash meetup with Agatha again, she's an interesting character.

Q

so steven mentions the three league champions, but hes a former league champion. what about Wallace? what makes him special?

Honestly, something I'd like to see from Ash is for him to become a mentor for a rookie trainer. My reasoning for this is because while yes, he is still growing and learning himself, that is also true for teachers. As the saying goes "In learning you will teach, in teaching you will learn." (Yes, it is from a Phil Collins song, but it's the only saying on this topic I can easily remember.) Basically what it means is that when you try to teach someone something you learn more about the topic yourself, because you have to find new ways to describe training - essentially coming up with new ways for yourself to train.

It's a common theme in martial arts, actually. That's often why students rise up to become teachers - even before they are considered "masters." Because teaching helps them learn, and reach that next stage.

It's just a thought though. Maybe you could mess with the story more than you already have, and make May Ash's student. Have her enter the gym challenge rather than contests. Ultimately it's up to you though.

Thanks for the chapter!

My impression is that you’ve lost your way. The older chapters were far superior to the newer ones. I’d suggest taking a longer break to figure out how to bring the narratives back in a cohesive way and to rediscover growth as a character.

Loss does not equal growth and the main character does not NEED to either thrash everyone or be thrashed.

The wait for this chapter was totally worth it. I love this story so much. Keep up the great work.