Art of War: Game of Chess

Chapter- 1: Enter the Dragon

Pokémon battles are a game of chess. If you can arrange your Pokémon like pieces on a chessboard... like a game of chess, consider the battle already won. The Art of Pokémon Battling is very subtle and of the finest kind. Pokémon must resemble pieces on a chessboard.
A sixteen year old Ash Ketchum finished his journal entry for today. It had always been that way since he was seven. At the age of seven, he began to feel what Pokémon Battling looked like.
Ash went outside, and soon was outside his hometown of Pallet. He reached the forest... and came on a clearing.
A lake, completely devoid of life, was visible in the clearing. Complete with the one Pokémon whose very presence caused the others to vacate the area.
A Deino.
Yes, a Deino.
One wouldn't even imagine having a member of the Deino evolutionary line on there team. They couldn't handle it. No one, at least anyone known, had captured a Deino. They were SSR+ ranked Pokémon. Which meant that not only were they on par with Legendary Pokémon (or at least, the fully- evolved Hydreigon was), but they'd created a class of their own. No trainer (and that included Lance Wataru, Dragon- Type Champion of Kanto).
Four years ago, he remembered that day...
*Flashback *
Ash Ketchum was twelve at the time and had moved in with Professor Samuel Oak. The death of his mother at the hands of Team Rocket still haunted his nightmares. He'd gone to the forest because Professor Oak asked him for some Sitrus Berries that weren't found anywhere else in the vicinity.
When in the forest, he came across the Dark/ Dragon- Type no one could bet to catch. That was how reputed Deino were.
Ash knew that a small misstep on his part could lead to a gruesome death, and so he mustered up his courage. Taking out an apple, he knelt down to Deino's level.
Deino sniffed Ash's hand and the apple before lowering his mouth. Ash closed his eyes for inevitable pain, but none came. Deino chomped down on the apple.
* Flashback end*
Since then, Ash petted, fed and later trained Deino. It was already an unspoken agreement between Ash and Deino that Ash Ketchum and Deino wouldn't part with each other. Deino would be Ash's second Pokémon, so as not to scare the aged Professor.
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Ash Ketchum walked down with his bitter rival, Gary Oak, to Professor Oak's laboratory.
Gary was Ash's bitter childhood friend- turned- rival. After Ash's mother died, Gary grew more and more jealous at the attention Ash received from the aged Professor. After an incident which resulted in each of them keeping a half of an old Pokéball, the two officially cut the knot of friendship.
"Ashy- boy. Never expected you to wake up on time, did I. Well. Looks like I've got a nuisance to deal with. " Gary sneered.
"True, there's a pretty big nuisance. Just have a look in the mirror... and you'll understand. "
"Why you motherfu-"
"GARY!" thundered the aged Professor, coming out of the lab, "There's no need for such language. Anyway, the two trainers already took Charmander and Bulbasaur... so, who's taking Squirtle? I'll give the other person another starter."
Gary snatched Squirtle's Pokéball and ran, laughing like a lunatic.
"You snooze you lose, Ashy- boy!"
Ash Ketchum was left in the dust.
Professor Oak pulled out another Pokémon.
"Well, Gary didn't, in fact, get the best. This Pokémon is just as rare as a Kanto starter, maybe rarer."
The Pokéball opened: "Ab, ab s- sol?"
An Absol.
On that day, Ash was to record another thought in his journal.
Fate and Absol don't play dice with each other.
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(A/N: 1. No, Ash isn't a Dark- Type master. That's for another time. I like Absol, that's it.
2. Yes, Ash will have a host of Pokémon. Fifteen or sixteen minimum. They'll all have character arcs, don't worry.
3. This is the first story in a long line of stories. Yes, this is a series.
Stay tuned and comment on what Pokémon you want Ash to catch.
Please comment. Just write the name of the Pokémon you want Ash to catch. I won't be changing some fundamental Pokémon, but I might consider others. )