Mt. Silver - Day 1
The base of Mt. Silver was already cold. Andrew stood at the trail's beginning, looking up at the snow-covered peaks that disappeared into clouds. This was it—two months of the most intense training of his life.
"Alright, team," Andrew said, releasing all his Pokémon. "This mountain is where legends train. Ash Ketchum trained here. Red trained here. Now it's our turn."
Pikachu, Charizard, Ivysaur, Gengar, Greninja, and Garchomp all stood ready, sensing the challenge ahead.
"We're going to push ourselves harder than ever before," Andrew continued. "The wild Pokémon here are incredibly powerful. The weather is brutal. There's no backup, no easy way down. But when we come down from this mountain in two months, we'll be ready for anything the Elite Four can throw at us."
He adjusted his backpack and started climbing. "Let's go."
Week 1 - Adaptation and Survival
The first week was about survival and adaptation.
Temperature Training: The cold was intense, especially as they climbed higher. Andrew trained his team to battle in freezing conditions, learning to compensate for ice on the ground, reduced visibility in snowstorms, and the physical drain of fighting in extreme cold.
Wild Pokémon Encounters: The Pokémon on Mt. Silver were no joke—powerful Ursaring, aggressive Donphan, territorial Tyranitar. Every encounter was a test, forcing Andrew's team to work together and adapt quickly.
Reaction Time Drills: Andrew set up a training regimen focused on split-second decision making. He'd throw rocks from random directions, release sudden attacks, create unpredictable scenarios. His team learned to react instantly, without hesitation.
Pikachu practiced dodging while maintaining Chidori charge.
Charizard learned to change direction mid-flight at a moment's notice.
Ivysaur worked on redirecting Solar Beam mid-charge.
Gengar practiced phasing reflexively when threatened.
Greninja refined his Shunshin to react to attacks he couldn't see coming.
Garchomp, still adjusting to his evolved form, focused on controlling his newfound speed and power.
Week 2-3 - Specialized Training
Greninja's Development
Andrew noticed Greninja naturally taking high-ground positions during battles, preferring to strike from elevated positions with precision.
"You're thinking like a sniper," Andrew observed one day as Greninja perched on a cliff edge, watching wild Pokémon below.
An idea formed—combining Greninja's ninja training with ranged precision attacks.
"Greninja, we're going to develop a new technique. I want you to learn Psychock—a psychic attack that manifests as physical force. Combined with your ninja training, you'll be able to strike opponents from long range before they even know you're there."
Training began. Psychock was a TM move—Andrew had purchased the Technical Machine with savings from his journey. Greninja learned the move quickly, his intelligence and adaptability shining through.
But Andrew wanted more than just the basic move.
"Use Smokescreen first," Andrew instructed during a training session against a wild Graveler. "Create cover, reposition using Shunshin, then strike with Psychock from a completely different angle."
Greninja executed perfectly. Smokescreen filled the area. The Graveler searched for its opponent. Then—WHAM—Psychock struck from behind, the psychic-physical attack hitting with devastating precision.
The Graveler never saw it coming.
Over the following weeks, Greninja perfected this technique—becoming a ghost on the battlefield, striking from impossible angles with Psychock, using Smokescreen to mask his movements and create confusion.
"You're not just a ninja anymore," Andrew said proudly. "You're an assassin. A phantom striker."
Gengar's Poison Mastery
Gengar had always been mischievous and tactical. Andrew decided to lean into the ghost-type's Poison typing more heavily.
"Gengar, we're going to make you a battlefield controller. I want you to learn Toxic and Toxic Spikes."
Both were TM moves Andrew had acquired. Toxic inflicted severe poisoning that worsened over time. Toxic Spikes could be scattered across the battlefield, poisoning any grounded opponent that entered.
But Andrew took it further.
"Combine them with your Shadow Ball technique," he explained. "Set up Toxic Spikes while your opponent is distracted by your multi-projectile attacks. Use Toxic when they're locked down and can't escape. Control the battlefield—make it so dangerous that your opponent has nowhere safe to stand."
Gengar took to this strategy eagerly, his mischievous nature perfectly suited to turning battlefields into death traps.
In one training session against a wild Machamp, Gengar demonstrated the full technique:
1. Shadow Ball barrage to force the Machamp into a defensive position
2. Toxic Spikes scattered across the battlefield while the Fighting-type was distracted
3. Hypnosis to slow the opponent
4. Toxic to inflict worsening poison
5. More Shadow Balls to finish the badly weakened opponent
"Perfect," Andrew said. "You're not just attacking anymore—you're making the entire battlefield work against your opponent."
Garchomp's Speed and Power
Garchomp was Andrew's newest team member and still adjusting to his evolved form. The dragon-type had incredible potential but needed to learn control.
"You're naturally fast and powerful," Andrew told Garchomp. "But we need to refine that. I want you to be able to launch rapid-fire attacks so quickly that opponents can't counter. Speed and aggression combined."
Training focused on:
Attack Chains: Dragon Claw → Dragon Rush → Dig → Dragon Claw. Garchomp practiced flowing from one attack directly into the next without pause, creating relentless pressure.
Reaction Speed: Andrew would have other team members attack Garchomp from random angles. The dragon-type had to dodge or counter instantly, training his reflexes to match his natural speed.
Precision Strikes: Using Dragon Claw repeatedly on small, specific targets—learning to hit vital points consistently even while moving at full speed.
After weeks of training, Garchomp could launch five Dragon Claw attacks in the time most Pokémon could execute two. His reaction time became sharp enough to dodge attacks he'd only seen from peripheral vision.
"You're becoming a whirlwind," Andrew said, watching Garchomp decimate a training dummy with a blur of attacks. "Fast, powerful, and relentless."
Week 4-5 - Team Coordination
With individual training progressing, Andrew shifted focus to team coordination and reaction time across all members.
Multi-Opponent Drills: Andrew's team would split into groups and battle each other in rotating combinations, forcing them to adapt to different partners and learn each other's fighting styles intimately.
Reaction Chain Training: Andrew created scenarios where split-second reactions determined victory:
• Pikachu fires Thunderbolt
• Opponent dodges
• Greninja must Psychock the dodge location before opponent can land
• Garchomp must follow up with Dragon Rush if Psychock misses
• All within two seconds
The team drilled these coordination sequences hundreds of times until reactions became instinctual.
Environmental Adaptation: They trained in blizzards, on ice, in complete darkness, during avalanches. Every condition the mountain could throw at them became a training opportunity.
One particularly brutal training session involved battling wild Pokémon during a whiteout blizzard where visibility was near zero. Andrew's team had to fight purely by sound, instinct, and trust in each other's positions.
They won. Barely. But they won.
Week 6-7 - Pushing Limits
Charizard's Blast Burn Mastery
Charizard had been working on the Blast Burn Cancel technique since before Mt. Silver, but here, with time and intensity, they finally made breakthrough progress.
"The key is energy management," Andrew theorized, studying his notes. "Blast Burn's recharge is because it expends all your fire energy at once. But if you can reserve just enough energy during the attack to immediately channel another move…"
Day after day, Charizard practiced. Blast Burn, then try to move. Blast Burn, then try to attack. Blast Burn, then fight through the recoil.
It was exhausting. Charizard pushed himself to the edge of collapse repeatedly.
But slowly, progress came.
First, Charizard could move his wings slightly during recharge.
Then, he could lift himself off the ground.
Then, he could breathe a small Ember during recharge.
By week seven, Charizard could follow Blast Burn with a weakened Flamethrower—not full power, but functional.
"We're getting there," Andrew said, hugging his partner after a successful execution. "A few more weeks and you'll have it mastered."
Ivysaur's Defensive Training
Ivysaur focused on durability and recovery. As a Grass-type, he was vulnerable to Fire, Flying, Ice, Poison, and Bug attacks—more weaknesses than most of the team. But he was also the team's tank and support.
Training emphasized:
Synthesis timing - healing during brief openings in battle
Leech Seed precision - hitting fast-moving targets consistently
Grassy Terrain control - creating environmental advantages
By week seven, Ivysaur could maintain battlefield control even when heavily pressured, using Leech Seed to drain opponents while healing with Synthesis, creating a war of attrition he almost always won.
Pikachu's Chidori Evolution
Pikachu's signature technique continued evolving. The Chidori had always been powerful, but Andrew wanted to push it further.
"What if you could charge it faster?" Andrew asked. "What if you could fire it from range instead of just close combat?"
They experimented. Pikachu learned to quick-charge Chidori for rapid successive uses. He practiced launching the piercing electricity as a projectile rather than only a melee attack.
The ranged version was weaker but could strike from distance. The melee version remained devastating.
"You're giving them no safe distance," Andrew said. "Close range or far—they're in danger either way."
Week 8 - The Summit
By week eight, Andrew and his team had climbed to Mt. Silver's peak—the highest, coldest, most dangerous area of the mountain.
Here, the wild Pokémon were legendary-tier strong. Here, the air was so thin that just breathing was difficult. Here, every moment was a test of will.
Andrew set up camp in a cave near the peak, his team huddled together for warmth. Charizard's flame became their lifeline, keeping them from freezing.
"One more month," Andrew said, looking at his exhausted but determined team. "We've come so far. You're all so much stronger than when we started. But we can't stop now. The Elite Four won't care that we trained hard. They'll only care if we're strong enough to win."
His team responded with sounds of determination despite their exhaustion.
They'd push for one more month. Whatever it took.
Final Month - Refinement and Mastery
The last four weeks were about perfecting everything they'd learned and pushing beyond previous limits.
Reaction time drills became second nature. The team could now coordinate attacks with split-second precision, responding to threats they couldn't even see, trusting their instincts and each other completely.
Greninja's sniper style was perfected. He could use Smokescreen to create confusion, Shunshin to reposition instantly, and Psychock to strike with devastating accuracy from any angle. Opponents never knew where he'd attack from next.
Gengar's battlefield control became art. Toxic Spikes, Toxic, Shadow Ball barrages, Hypnosis—every move worked together to transform the battlefield into a nightmare for opponents.
Garchomp's relentless assault was refined. The dragon-type could now launch attack chains so fast and varied that defending against him was nearly impossible. Dragon Claw into Dragon Rush into Dig into Earthquake into Dragon Claw—all in seconds.
Charizard's Blast Burn Cancel reached 70% reliability. Not perfect, but functional. In seven out of ten attempts, he could follow Blast Burn with another attack immediately, eliminating the technique's main weakness.
Ivysaur's tanking ability reached the point where he could hold off two powerful opponents simultaneously through Leech Seed draining and Synthesis healing.
Pikachu's Chidori could now be executed in three variations—quick-charge melee for close combat, full-power melee for maximum damage, and ranged projectile for distance strikes.
Andrew himself had changed too. Two months of survival training, constant battles, and pushing his limits had transformed him. He was leaner, stronger, his reaction time as sharp as his Pokémon's. He could read battles with incredible speed, making tactical decisions in fractions of seconds.
His bond with his team had deepened to levels he'd never imagined. Especially with Greninja—there were moments during training where Andrew could sense what Greninja was thinking before the water-type even moved. The foundation of the Bond Phenomenon was solidifying.
Day 60 - Descending the Mountain
On the final day of the two-month training period, Andrew stood at Mt. Silver's peak one last time, looking out at the world below.
"We came up here as strong trainers," Andrew said to his team. "We're leaving as something more. The Elite Four won't know what hit them."
The descent took two days. When Andrew finally reached the mountain's base, he barely recognized the trainer he'd been two months ago. That Andrew had been talented but inexperienced at this level of intensity.
This Andrew was ready for war.
Pokémon Center - First Contact with Civilization
Andrew walked into the nearest Pokémon Center, looking weathered from two months on the mountain. Nurse Joy's eyes widened when she saw him.
"Are you alright? You look like you've been through a battle!"
"Two months of training," Andrew said, handing over his Pokéballs. "On Mt. Silver."
Nurse Joy's expression shifted to respect. "Mt. Silver? For two months? That's… that's what Champions do."
While his team healed, Andrew checked his messages. Dozens from Professor Oak, several from his parents, a few from Adrian and Penny.
He called Gary first.
"Andrew!" Gary's face appeared, relief evident. "You're alive! You actually survived two months on Mt. Silver!"
"Barely," Andrew admitted with a tired smile. "But we did it. Professor, my team is… they're on a completely different level now."
"I believe it," Gary said. "The Indigo League preliminaries start in three days. You're cutting it close."
"I'll be there," Andrew promised. "How many trainers qualified?"
"Sixty-four trainers with eight badges are competing in the preliminaries. It's a bracket tournament. Winners advance to face the Elite Four. You'll need to win five matches to qualify for the Elite Four challenge."
"Five matches," Andrew repeated. "We can do that."
"I know you can," Gary said. "Get some rest. Eat real food. And Andrew? Welcome back."
Three Days Later - Indigo Plateau
The Indigo Plateau was massive—a complex built into a mountainside, featuring multiple battle stadiums, training facilities, and lodging for competing trainers.
Andrew stood in the main arena, looking up at the stadium that would host preliminary matches. Sixty-four trainers gathered, all wearing their eight badges with pride.
A League official stepped forward to address them.
"Congratulations on earning your eight badges. But badges alone don't grant entry to challenge the Elite Four. You must prove you're among the best. This tournament will determine the top trainers worthy of facing our Elite Four."
A massive display showed the tournament bracket—sixty-four trainers paired in first-round matches.
Andrew found his name: Andrew vs. Marcus - Stadium 3 - Tomorrow, 10 AM
He studied the bracket, noting other names. Adrian Oak was there—his rival from the start of the journey. Penny hadn't qualified, focusing on her Performer career instead.
This was it. The real test.
Tournament - Round 1: Andrew vs. Marcus
Marcus was a confident trainer from Cinnabar Island, specializing in mixed-type teams with an emphasis on speed.
The referee raised his flags. "This is a three-on-three battle! Begin!"
"Go, Jolteon!"
"Greninja, you're up!"
The Electric-type was fast—very fast. But Greninja was faster and far more tactical.
"Jolteon, Thunderbolt!"
"Smokescreen!"
Greninja filled the battlefield with smoke. Jolteon's electricity struck empty air.
"Greninja, Shunshin to high ground!"
The water-type vanished and reappeared on the stadium's elevated platform structure.
"Now, Psychock!"
The psychic-physical attack struck Jolteon from above before the Electric-type even realized Greninja had repositioned. The Electric-type collapsed from the surprise attack.
"Jolteon is unable to battle!"
Marcus's second Pokémon was Fearow, a Flying-type. But Greninja's ranged Psychock picked it off before it could close distance.
His third was Arcanine, a powerful Fire-type.
"Arcanine, Extreme Speed!"
The legendary Pokémon moved with incredible velocity, but Greninja's reaction time—honed from two months on Mt. Silver—let him Shunshin-dodge at the last instant.
"Water Shuriken!"
The super-effective attack struck Arcanine hard. The Fire-type went down.
"All of Challenger Marcus's Pokémon are unable to battle! Winner: Andrew!"
The entire match lasted less than five minutes. The crowd murmured—they'd just watched something special.
Tournament - Round 2: Andrew vs. Sarah
Sarah from Celadon City used Grass and Bug types. Charizard swept her entire team in seven minutes with Fire-type attacks and Dragon Claw.
Tournament - Round 3: Andrew vs. David
David from Fuchsia City was tougher, using Poison-types with strategic depth. But Gengar's battlefield control—Toxic Spikes covering the arena, Toxic inflicted on his Pokémon, Shadow Ball barrages—overwhelmed David's team through attrition.
Tournament - Round 4: Andrew vs. Adrian Oak
The semi-finals. Andrew's rival from the beginning of the journey.
They stood across from each other in the main stadium, broadcast across Kanto.
"Been a while," Adrian said with a competitive grin. "I've got six badges. Didn't quite make all eight before the deadline. But I've been training hard. I want to see how much stronger you've gotten."
"You'll see," Andrew promised.
"This is a six-on-six battle!" the referee announced. "Begin!"
The battle was intense. Adrian's Ivysaur had evolved into Venusaur. His team had grown significantly.
But Andrew's two months on Mt. Silver had created a gap that was impossible to close in that timeframe.
Greninja's sniper tactics picked off Adrian's Pokémon from impossible angles.
Garchomp's relentless speed overwhelmed opponents before they could mount offense.
Gengar turned the battlefield into a toxic nightmare.
When the dust settled, Andrew had won 6-3. Adrian had taken down three of Andrew's Pokémon—respectable, but not enough.
They shook hands afterward, mutual respect evident.
"You trained somewhere intense," Adrian observed. "Your team moves differently. Faster. Sharper."
"Mt. Silver," Andrew admitted. "Two months."
Adrian's eyes widened. "Mt. Silver? For two months? No wonder. That's… that's Champion-level training, Andrew."
"Thanks for the battle," Andrew said. "You'll get there too. Keep training."
"I will," Adrian promised. "And next time we battle, I'll win."
Tournament Finals: Andrew vs. Katherine
Katherine from Saffron City had made it to the finals using Psychic and Dark types with incredible synergy. She was skilled, experienced, and had a reputation for tactical brilliance.
The final match was six-on-six, broadcast worldwide.
It was the hardest battle of the tournament. Katherine's Alakazam nearly took down three of Andrew's Pokémon alone. Her Umbreon used stalling tactics that pushed Ivysaur to his absolute limits.
But Andrew's training showed. Every Pokémon responded to threats with split-second precision. Garchomp's rapid attack chains broke through defensive strategies. Pikachu's varied Chidori techniques gave him answers to every situation.
In the end, Andrew's Charizard faced Katherine's ace—a powerful Metagross.
"Charizard, Blast Burn!"
The devastating attack struck Metagross hard but didn't knock it out. Charizard began to lock up from recoil—
"Now, Flamethrower!"
Charizard fought through the recoil, channeling fire energy immediately. The Blast Burn Cancel worked. The follow-up Flamethrower struck Metagross before it could recover, and the Steel-Psychic type fell.
"Metagross is unable to battle! The winner is Andrew!"
The stadium erupted in cheers. Andrew had won the preliminary tournament. He was qualified to challenge the Elite Four.
That Evening - Celebration and Preparation
Andrew sat in his assigned room at the Indigo Plateau facility, his eight badges laid out alongside the tournament trophy. His team rested, all healed and recovered.
Tomorrow, he would face the Elite Four. Four of the strongest trainers in Kanto, followed by the Champion.
His Pokédex chimed. Multiple messages came through now that he was back in civilization:
From Ash: "Saw the finals. That Blast Burn Cancel was incredible. You're ready, Andrew. Good luck with the Elite Four."
From his parents: "We're so proud of you! Watching the tournament on TV. You've come so far. We love you!"
From Gary: "Congratulations on qualifying. Rest tonight. Tomorrow you face Lorelei. Ice-types. Study your notes. You can do this."
Andrew smiled, touching Ash's cap on his head.
Eight badges. Tournament victory. Two months of brutal training.
Tomorrow, the Elite Four.
And then… the Champion.
The final test awaited.