Ash is now perched on top of rising platform to one side of the battlefield atop Winona's gym. His friends are all anxiously awaiting the match from the sidelines. Winona is on the opposite side and her ref is watching intently. The platforms Ash and Winona are on begin to rise until they are a few feet off of the ground. The two glare at each other until the platforms stop rising.

Winona then takes a crouching position and begins to give a small speech. She declares that as a flying type trainer she will use the abilities of the sky to her disposal. She then stands up and reaches for the sky exclaiming that she will not lose. May wonders what that was all about and Max says she must really take her Pokemon specialty seriously. Brock comments that she views the wind as something to give her strength in battle.

Ash stands like a rock on the other side determined to stop at nothing to win his Feather Badge. The ref declares the rules of the battle; saying it will be a three on three match with no time limit. He also says that Ash is allowed to switch Pokemon while Winona cannot. Winona has to choose first and Max can't wait to see what flying type she sends out.

Winona pulls her hand back and then tosses a Pokeball to reveal an Altaria. Max is in awe by it and May decides to scan it with the Pokedex. Brock points out that Altaria has both flying and dragon abilities so Ash has to think hard before choosing. Ash pulls out a Pokeball and releases Grovyle. It appears and places a twig in its mouth. Everyone is shocked as grass types are weak against flying types. Brock thinks Ash must have some type of plan.

The ref signals the start of the match. Winona begins by ordering Altaria to use peck. It begins to fly towards Grovyle and Ash has it launch a bullet seed. Altaria dodges each barrage and keeps coming. Grovyle leaps away from Altaria but the cotton bird pulls up and manages to peck Grovyle repeatedly. May and Max thinks this looks bad.

Grovyle lands hard on the ground wincing in pain. Winona tells Altaria to peck it again, but Ash calls to his Pokemon. Grovyle recovers and leaps away. It climbs up a pole nearby and does a back flip to land behind Altaria. It is now breathing hard but doesn't look ready to give in. Winona smiles at Ash stating that though Grovyle is fast, it can't contend with a flying type. Ash just glares at her angrily. As the two Pokemon prepare to attack again, a small breeze picks up blowing sand up from the battlefield.

Down below inside the catacombs of the gym, Team Rocket complains. James doesn't get how they are going to catch Pikachu by going underground, but Meowth says that they can use dousing rods to locate the battlefield when Pikachu uses electric attacks. He pulls a pair of them out but Jessie and James don't know what they are. They imagine using them in some weird disco dance, but Meowth smacks them.

He explains that dousing rods are used to find water. The two are still confused and Meowth continues to explain while spinning the rods. After some time, Jessie states that it will never work, but the rods suddenly point down another hall. Jessie and James become excited at the thought of water and steal the rods. They begin to rush down the hall as Meowth stands angrily.

Back at the battle, Winona has Altaria launch a dragon breath. The attack collides with Grovyle and everyone seems worried. The attack stops and Altaria pulls up before releasing another dragon breath. Grovyle dodges and flips off of the pole again. Altaria begins to chase it while launching more dragon breaths. Ash has Grovyle dodge some more and Altaria then flies right by it. Winona begins to worry about Grovyle's speed.

Ash takes this time to order a bullet seed and Grovyle launches it. The attack strikes Altaria dealing some damage. The Pokemon then turns direction and launches another dragon breath but Grovyle dodges again. It then bounces off two poles and slams Altaria down with leaf blade. The two hit the ground and the dust clears to show that Altaria is unable to battle! Grovyle is declared the winner and it leaps back towards Ash's side of the field. Ash's friends all comment on how Ash is using Grovyle's speed to his advantage.

Winona compliments Ash on his win and the fact that he used a grass type to do it. She then calls out a Pelipper as her second Pokemon. Ash decides to let Grovyle rest and then sends in Pikachu. May thinks it's a good choice and Brock and Max comment on how as a flying/water type; Pelipper has a large weakness to electric types. Winona says that they shouldn't be so hasty and then informs Ash that she has ways of countering electric types.

Ash has Pikachu start things off with thunderbolt. Winona counters by having Pelipper use steel wing…on the ground! The thunderbolt scores a direct hit and Max thinks it's over, but Pelipper seems unfazed! Everyone is shocked and wonder how the attack had no effect.

Down below, the electricity from the attack is building up in the rafters of the catacombs. Team Rocket walks eagerly searching for water with the rods Jessie is holding. Suddenly, the two rods point up and the three look up excitedly. They notice the electricity above and become confused. The rods act as lightning rods sending the electricity from the rafters down and shocking Team Rocket. An explosion ensues and the three are sent flying through the roof and onto the sidelines of the battlefield.

They complain for a bit and then notice Pikachu trying to shock Pelipper. Bent on capturing it, the three begin to say the motto. The motto ends with Chimecho's soothing call. The three then rush in to catch Pikachu, but Jessie's dousing rods attract the Pokemon's electricity once again. They are shocked and then sent blasting off again.

May thinks she hears something but shrugs. Winona grows tired of letting Pelipper take the attack and tells it to use head butt. Pelipper slides across the ground with its wing still touching and slams into Pikachu. As the Pokemon rolls back in pain, Brock begins to get Winona's strategy. He explains to the others that Pelipper uses its steel wing attack to discharge the electricity into the ground by touching it.

Ash now decides to have Pikachu use quick attack. Pikachu races towards Pelipper only to receive a hydro pump to the face. Ash tells Pikachu to hang on and the mouse begins to slide back. Ash then notices the power of the hydro pump is sending Pelipper off the ground a little bit. He orders a thunder which Pikachu launches. Pelipper is fried and then falls back. Pikachu can't take the hydro pump anymore and also falls back. The two hit the ground unable to battle!

The ref declares it a draw and Brock comments on how though Pikachu managed to attack, it was also receiving major damage as it did. Ash leaves his platform to cradle his Pokemon. Pikachu seems fine, but Ash is now worried about beating Winona. As he returns to his platform, the wind picks up again blowing more sand around. Winona then explains to Ash that she is impressed he has gotten this far. She then explains that because of her love for the sky, she will not allow him to gain victory over her.

With that said, Winona calls out her third Pokemon, a shiny Swellow! Max is very excited to see it, and the others are impressed with its unique coloring. Ash seems impressed too, but he knows he has to take it down. He decides to go with Grovyle again. The Pokemon is called out and immediately goes in for a leaf blade. The attack strikes Swellow, but the Pokemon flips back and looks ready for more.

Winona orders an aerial ace and her green Swellow begins to spin. Ash doesn't know what to expect and tells Grovyle to use leaf blade. Grovyle charges up both of its leaves and tries viciously to strike Swellow but the bird is too fast. It flips back and strikes Grovyle, lifting it into the air with its beak and then flying straight down and slamming it into the ground. The dust from the impact clears and Grovyle is unable to battle! Winona's Swellow is declared the winner and Ash's friends begin to discuss what he could possibly use to match her Swellow's speed.

Ash recalls Grovyle and thanks it. He then takes out another Pokeball and releases his Swellow. Max seems excited to see Swellow vs. Swellow, but May and Brock aren't so sure Ash's can contend with Winona's shiny Swellow. Winona inquires Ash if he would like to take the match higher into the sky seeing as how they are both using flying types. Ash agrees and the platforms rise to the highest point possible. Brock explains that Winona feels more comfortable battling higher up as flying Pokemon can use the wind to their advantage.

Ash starts things off by having Swellow use wing attack, but Brock thinks it’s a bad idea. Winona's Swellow flies straight into Ash's causing his Swellow to loose control and start falling. Ash is shocked and Brock explains to the others that while Swellow is using wing attack it doesn't flap its wings. Because of this, Swellow hovers in the air and is unable to maintain balance when it is struck.

As Swellow continues to fall, Winona has hers dive down on it and use peck. Ash's friends are now extremely worried. Winona's Swellow flies away as they near the ground and Ash's Swellow recovers. It flies back up sending dust into the air. Winona's Swellow gets behind Ash's and Max warns Ash. Winona tells Swellow to use hyper beam, but Ash's dodges. Winona's launches another one and this time it scores a direct hit!

Ash's Swellow begins to fall again and Winona's launches another hyper beam. However, Ash calls to his Pokemon and it recovers; dodging the attack and flipping back. It goes in for a quick attack, but Winona's dodges and slams into Ash's with a powerful aerial ace. Ash's friends are now very worried and begin to wonder if Ash's Swellow even has a chance to win when Winona's has speed like that.

Ash's Swellow starts to fall again and Winona's flies down towards it. Ash tells his to dodge and it begins to fly in a zigzag pattern. Max and May are still worried and Brock knows it can't keep this up much longer. As Winona's shiny Swellow chases Ash's Swellow, Ash wonders what he can possibly do. He then notices the wind pick up again causing sand to blow across the battlefield. He recalls the last time Swellow recovered from its fall and blew sand up when it regained altitude and he now has a plan!

Winona apologizes to Ash for having to finish off his Pokemon and then she orders a final hyper beam. Ash's friends turn away unable to watch. Ash then commands Swellow to use quick attack straight at the ground. Winona's Swellow launches two hyper beams but Ash's dodges each one. Winona's Swellow then speeds up and gives chase to Ash's as they near the ground.

Winona tells her Pokemon to use aerial ace and it goes into a spin. Max covers his eyes and Ash orders his Swellow to use wing attack on the ground. It does so, sending dust everywhere. Swellow sees Winona's Swellow through the dust and Ash tells it to use wing attack. Swellow shoots straight up and smashes its wing into Winona's Swellow's jaw. The dust clears away and Winona's Swellow falls fainted on the ground. The ref declares it unable to battle and then states that Ash is the winner!

Ash begins to jump for joy and he congratulates his Swellow. May and Max leap in happiness as well. Brock explains that Ash had Swellow use wing attack against the ground to blow dust in the air and greatly decrease Winona's Swellow's speed of attack while also blinding it from view for a few seconds. Brock is very impressed that Ash is now thinking things through in battle.

That evening, Winona graciously hands Ash his Feather Badge. Ash thanks her and then happily inspects it. He then holds it up and cheers as Swellow winks to the screen. Winona then compliments Ash on his battle strategy and tells him to train his Swellow well. He says he will and she then says that he battles well in the sky, and should use the power of the wind in future battles. Ash says he will and then prepares to head off with his sixth badge in hand.

Thanks To GoldenNoctowl For Writing this for us