PILOT
The roar of the crowd echoed throughout the stadium. Rock walls on all four sides were carved by rows of steel bleachers packed with rowdy thugs and drunken spectators. This underground arena was a reflection of the world above, a world of anarchy and chaos. A fluorescent spotlight was cast down on both sides of the pit. From each corner emerged a man accompanied by his loyal ally; his Pokémon. All eyes were set dead at the arena now. Standing on the right side, was a man no more than twenty years of age. He had slick black hair, and a thin build. He was dressed in the normal tattered garb of all the thugs in the stadium. Next to him was a two-foot purple beast with spikes running down its back, and a sharp horn protruding from its head. The horn glowed with a purple tint as poisonous liquid began to ooze out of it. The beast, spikes bristling, kicked its feet against the ground and let out a fierce cry. The beast's partner smiled. On the left side, stood a man of identical age, his features concealed by the dark hooded jacket he wore. Beside him stood a ghostly purple figure no more than five feet in height with glowing red eyes. Both the hooded man and his partner cracked an eerie wide smile that seemed to pierce the darkness of their very being.
Both men approached the center and a systematic flashing of spotlights followed them with each step. The booming of a loudspeaker overtook the crowd as an announcer began his excited commentary on the event.
"Welcome everybody to the semifinals of the Annual Seafoam Islands; Battle Champions Tournament. We are your hosts, Naun and Myku!" From a spectator's box above the arena, an older bald man with a long brown mustache was speaking into a microphone being amplified by his three foot blue companion, who had natural loudspeakers for ears. "In the blue corner, we have Hajime, a Cinnabar native fighting alongside his partner, Nido!" The crowd cheered on for their familiar fighters, calling out their names. "In the red corner, we have Yuya! He traveled all the way here from Sentora, central of the Kanto region. Yuya is fighting alongside his trusted ally, Gimann!" At Naun's mention of Central capital, the audience booed at the sound of it, throwing garbage and causing ruckus perhaps, just maybe, now there was a purpose to. With the way those of us on the edges of the region are neglected, I don't really blame them. "Both teams have pulled off an incredible season so far. Soon enough we will see which pair of fighters are worthy enough to take on our reigning champ in the finals. Trainers, take your positions." Hajime and Yuya entered a fighting pose with their Pokémon. "Let the battle commence!" And with those words, the death match ensued.
"Nido, Poison Sting now!" Hajime shouted to his partner. With that, Nido launched a barrage of poisonous needles at Yuya and Gimann. Yuya countered by maneuvering laterally and revealing a katana to deflect the attack. Using Nido's offensive as cover; Hajime dashed towards his opponent and unsheathed his own blade. Hajime moved in and lunged at Yuya with a powerful swipe. Yuya took advantage of an opening from Nido's poison sting to block Hajime's strike. The two trainers locked swords and locked eyes. Yuya smiled his bizarre grimace and gave a command to his identically faced partner.
"Giman, Shadow Ball." With the command, Gimann channeled a mysterious ghostly energy within its clasped hands to form a glowing black orb. Hajime jolted at the sight of it but before he could react, he was blasted back several feet by the Shadow Ball, crashing to the floor. Yuya and Gimann beamed their wide grimace once again at the sight of their injured opponent. Naun from the announcer's box was relaying the events transpiring to the audience. Nido rushed to Hajime's side; pushing him to get up.
"I know, Nido. I shouldn't have rushed in like that. I'll be damned if some Sentora scum thinks I'm gonna throw in the towel." Hajime stood up and glared at his opponent. Nido did the same, growling and baring its fangs. Yuya just stood there, that creepy smile glued to his face. Unfazed by his demeanor, Hajime prepared for a second offensive, this time letting his opponent make the first move. That was just what Yuya did.
"Gimann, Double Team!" Complying with its trainer, Gimann began to multiply itself into intangible copies; hiding Yuya in the process. Hajime, keeping composure, searched through the copies, looking for his foe. Out of the sea of ghosts, a familiar black orb flew at Hajime.
"Not good." Alarmed, he called to Nido. "Quick! Use Protect!" Nido rushed in front of his partner and emitted a force field to disengage the Shadow Ball. Another orb flew out from the Double Team, this time from a different direction. Nido, still using Protect, shielded its ally once more. Noticing, Nido's Protect starting to weaken, Hajime closed his eyes and took a deep breathe. "Ok, time to change it up. Nido, Focus Energy." With the command, Nido nodded, trusting his trainer's decision. Nido began to channel its strength, glowing with concentration. Hajime opened his eyes and took a fighting stance behind his partner. He looked into the waves of smug-faced phantoms and noticed the Shadow ball onslaught had halted. "He needs to get close to give commands." Hajime thought out loud. In an instant, Yuya revealed himself dashing between the Gimann clones and Hajime locked his sights on the direction of his enemy. "There you are! Nido at 2 o'clock, use Poison Jab!" Nido and Hajime dashed through a line of pseudo Gimanns, dissipating them as they advanced. Just as Hajime calculated, Yuya was now right in front of them. Nido leaped into the air, its horn glowing with venom. Hajime lunged as well but from the ground, giving Yuya no way to escape.
"Gimann Hypnosis!" Yuya issued his command. A sleep-inducing trance halted Nido's Poison Jab, as it fell to the ground. Hajime, not letting up his attack, went to barrage Yuya with furious swipes and slashes but his opponent parried and matched his strikes, disarming him. Yuya proceeded to hit Hajime with a crushing kick, knocking him to the floor. The clones vanished, and the real one was nowhere in sight. Beaten, Hajime looked over at his unconscious partner, puzzled at how he was bested so easily.
"But where was it?" Hajime muttered.
"Gimann, Hypnosis once more." From Hajime's shadow, a red eyed, wide smiled, face emerged and emitted a dazing wave of energy. "When you closed your eyes during your little Focus Energy bit, Gimann slipped into your shadow. I made my movements obvious so you would get close enough for me to issue the command for two precisely aimed Hypnoses.
"You capital scum! To hell with all of you! You won't have your way with this country! I oughta…I ought…I…will." Hajime cursed at his subduer but was unable to act upon his frustration as he too slipped into unconsciousness.
"Now time to finish it. Gimann…Nightmare." And with that, the ghost tormented the dreams of both Hajime and Nido for several agonizing minutes until their screams ceased to be heard any longer.
"We have a winner! Yuya from Sentora will take on our champion in the finals!" Naun exclaimed over the Poké-loudspeaker. The crowd went wild; maybe because they really are rooting for Yuya. Or perhaps it was because they now would get the chance to see a Central trainer be broken alive by their beloved champion. Or maybe the bloodshed just gets everyone so….rambunctious. I however could not bear the sight of the poor fool who was now incapacitated due to his rashness. Hajime and Nido were carried off the arena in stretchers by a burly gray Pokémon.
I stepped outside of the arena into the night. I walked past the two buff Pokémon bouncers who guarded the entrance and sat on the cold Seafoam beach; avian Pokémon grazing the water, the red and blue heads of jellyfish Pokémon basking in the chilled air. Then a familiar friend teetered over to me, his shiny gold fur sparkling in the moonlight. He was carrying charcoal which he set down in front of us and gave me a cute nip on the ear. I nudged him playfully as he curled up right by my side. Sensing the chill, he breathed an ember onto the coal and I stroked him gently, massaging his fluffy mane. As we sat there in the peaceful night air, I wanted nothing more than for every moment, in every region, to be like this one right here, right now; moments of serenity, of just pure warmth in the midst of a world so very cold. But reality lay right here with us, patiently waiting to overtake me once again, just as it always has. I held my friend tight and whispered into his floppy yellow ears: "We're going to have to face a man from Central tomorrow, Apollo."