The Epic Tale of Tyler Sanders and Boombox

by L0rd Aurastorm

It's been 5 years since the events of Team Flare transpired, and Tyler Sanders is pumped to go out on his own Pokémon journey with his trusty Noibat. He's doing it without a traditional starter, though, and he's also being chased by a psychotic uncle and three TV stars.Tyler must make new friends, learn about the Dragon Force, and trust a mysterious man named N... Rated T for Tyler

1. Still Fall Short

Hello, it's L0rd Aurastorm with a story I've really wanted to write for a while: a Kalos journey story!

This isn't following X and Y, though. This is a semi-original plot that I thought of, with Calem and Serena involved as secondary characters, but Sycamore will be in here for sure! And he will be involved in the plot as well.

Also, for this story, I'm going to try and use underused/underappreciated Pokémon (An example would be Noivern), but there will be some overused Pokémon that Tyler will have.

I'm deciding if this should be a SYOC (Send Your Own Character, I think) or not. Most likely not, but we'll see how this will play together.

Without further ado, let's start The Epic Tale of Tyler Sanders and Boombox!

"Hello"- Talking/Description/Narrating

"Hello"- Thoughts/Telepathy/ Letters/Foreign Languages

"Hello"- Public Announcements/Texts

"Hello"- PokéDex entries/Signs

A single bead of sweat rolls off of my eyebrow and down my left side of my face like a runaway car. Quickly brushing it away, I ready myself for the last minute throw-in deep in our own territory. This specific throw in was crucial for us as it would most probably be the last possession for us before the final whistle, and we're down 3-2 in injury time of extra time. We need the ball- now. Otherwise, it's game over. Literally. And the championship will slip through our hands.

In case you haven't realized it yet, I'm playing soccer. I live in Vaniville Town and go to Vaniville High, so I play for the Vaniville High soccer team. We had a stellar record of 25-1-4; losing only 4 matches and only one of those were lost by more than one goal.

My position on the team was a striker; I've always loved attacking. Whether it was on the football pitch or in Pokemon battling, I was always at the forefront, spearheading the attack. I lead the Kalos League, or K-League, with 26 goals and was fourth on the assists leaderboard with 12 assists. Honestly, that all didn't matter to me at the moment. All I cared about right now was winning this match, which coincidentally happened to be the championship match: the Vaniville Hurricanes versus the Kiloude Legends. It was a match being covered by every well-known magazine known to be based in Kalos, as well as ten or so highly-rated TV channels such as Kalos Max Sports and SportsCenter (1).

The sharp tweet! of the referee's whistle jars me back into reality. Our captain, Jack the center back/defender, takes a large step towards me and hauls the ball over his head, letting it fly.

It lands with a thump directly at my feet. Instantly, the defender who was covering me attempts a slide tackle for the ball, but I swerve the ball to my left, watching the defender eat dirt as I accelerate past him. He was able to get up nippily, though. I was warned preemptively thanks to their stark-white kit (2) outlined by the fading twilight's beauty compared to our royal blue kit (3).

Normally, I wouldn't be in my own territory this deep, but our coach wanted me to drop back at receive the throw in, so who was I to argue? Our coach was eccentric and did use ridiculous plans sometimes, but they worked for the most part. I dribble the ball quickly down the right flank, occasionally juking out a few defenders with a handy step-over move or a simple backwards roll, sometimes relying on my fake crossover to bypass them. I beat 4 defenders and was able to stave off the mounting pressure on me until about 30 yards or so from the penalty box.

As I near the penalty box, I was aware that the clock was ticking ever so quickly. I eat up the distance between the goalie and I, leaving the other defenders in the dust. The keeper's eyes widen ever so slightly, and out of the corner of my eye, I see my winger and best friend, Joseph, crossing into the box with a clear shot which would guarantee a goal. I could finesse it, chip it, blast it, or cross it over to Joseph. The problem with crossing it would be that I run the risk of having the defender heading the ball away and it would be good game.

The whole crowd was roaring now, waiting to see what I would do. I take a deep breath and dig my neon-orange Mercurial Vapor into the turf for the shot that I was taking.

The goalie buys it like popcorn at the movies. As he jerks himself forward to block my shot, I lob it over to Joseph, who was able to burn his marker and streak towards the soccer ball. A perfectly played fake shot, if I say so myself.

If there was one quality of Joseph's that I found amusing, it was that he would always make everything more dramatic. He jumps up and does a beautiful bicycle kick that sends the black and white sphere rocketing into the back of the net.

I scream at the top of my lungs, "JOSEPH!" as I charge over to him and tackle him with the crowd going absol-utely nuts over the equalizer. I haul Joseph up and drag him over to the Vaniville team bench who were screaming in ecstasy, believing the game to be over. The referee's three long tweets of the whistle signify the end of the game. We survived to live for a bit longer in the championship match.

The announcer wasn't much different either; he was yelling into the microphone about that being one of the best goals he's ever seen and something like that. But then he brings up about what happens when there is a tie after extra time: penalty shootout.

That literally dropped the sound level from an Exploud with amplifiers to a Lucario meditating in the dead of night. Not a single thing could be heard except for the labored breathing of the two teams' soccer players.

It was time to decide which city had the best team in Kalos for once and for all in the most dramatic way possible. Penalty shootout.

~/\/\/\~

The electronic scoreboard which had displayed the soccer match's score was now displaying the penalty shootout results for the two warring teams. It was the last penalty of the match and I was taking it. Again, normally I would be taking the penalty first or second, but my coach predicted that it was going to go down to the wire so he wanted a penalty specialist to take our last penalty. Namely me.

I place the Size 5 Victini (4) onto the spot 12 yards away from the goalie and take three steps back. Then two steps to my left.

The goalie was about 6'1'' and he had some mad hops too. I learned this from unfortunate experience, as I had taken a really nice shot (in my opinion) and it was curving into the upper 90's.

Unfortunately, the keeper had exploded off his left foot and punched it away like a Hitmonchan in training. So that was my only chance at getting two goals in the game, since I had already streaked one past the goalie in the 38th minute.

Anyway, back to the penalty thing. I slowly take a deep breath and let some fresh air into my air craving lungs. I look up to the sky and point to the brightest star in honor of my sister who died 4 years ago. I always do whenever I score a goal or prepare for a penalty; it's just what I do. Sometimes, I imagine her next to me or in the stands, screaming her head off with fervor.

The referee blows his whistle, indicating that I could take my shot. I glance at my options before deciding on a spot. I cut across the grass and whip my foot at the soccer ball, connecting with it beautifully. I see the red-and-white sphere spiral towards the goalie, with an extra surprise for him.

The keeper was tracking the ball down though, and was preparing to make the heroic save. Unfortunately, I knew I had him beat from the beginning.

As the ball was going for the goalie's top right hand corner, it curves suddenly, kissing the goalie's arm before spinning into the net behind him. As soon as that happened, I sink to my knees and point up to the sky. I could feel a tear rolling down my cheek, but I brush it away quickly. I won't cry. Not when just became the new champions.

My teammates come and rush me, piling on top of me like a horde of hungry Stoutlands. Within a few seconds, I was on top of the pile and being carried on their shoulders to our coach while being showered with multi-colored confetti that exploded out of cannons from somewhere in Lumiose Bridge (5). Our coach was hugging his assistant, and my friend Reggie, who had an anterior cruciate ligamenttorn in his left knee, was hopping up and down on his crutches like a hyper Lopunny.

I roll off the wave of my teammates and help out some of my other friends to hoist our Krookorade (6) bucket over our coaches' heads and dump it on top of them. They were all caught unaware and were drenched with Oran Berry Krookorade, dying their suits and white shirts a deep blue which would take forever to wash out.

A constant roar was echoing throughout the stadium as the commissioner of the Kalos League, Dr. Alex Jalliet, carries the ornamental trophy towards the center of midfield, where our team was waiting joyously for the silver accolade to come to us.

Dr. Jalliet reaches the center circle, where there was a person with a wireless microphone for him to speak into. He taps it a few times to quiet Lumiose Bridge down, and once they do, he begins to speak.

"I have to say, that was one cracker of a game! Non?"

The crowd roars once in the affirmative. He nods and continues. "Well, I am ecstatic to bestow the Kalos League trophy and title to the Vaniville High Hurricanes!"

Dr. Jalliet passes me the trophy. I grasp the ancient accolade by its handles and kiss the cool, silver metal. Quickly, I pass it on to my next teammate. It was only with metal, but it was probably the best kiss of my life.

It eventually ends up in our head coach's hands, and he lifts it up victoriously. Our whole teams jumps up in a huge team spirit thing, and I feel like nothing could take us down from the top.

As of now, I feel like I was on top of the world.

~/\/\/\~

As I'm walking out to the bus with my bag, Alexa, one of the most renowned reporters this side of Kalos, sneaks up on me and shoves a microphone in my face. She apparently had her Noivern drop her outside of the stadium and stalk us while our coach was talking to the press alone about our comeback victory.

It scared the living daylights out of me, a moment which Joseph caught on Vine and probably uploaded ASAP. I have to remind myself to get back at Joseph for that, because I am NOT letting him one-up me.

"Hello, Tyler!"

"Alexa? Oh my god I can't believe it!"

"Well, you better, because you are now on camera!" Alexa points dramatically to some bushes, where two cameramen jump out with cameras already rolling and focused on me. I could feel a blush come to my face, and I could hear Joseph snickering as well. I punch him in the stomach before looking to the camera and putting on a smile. Oh Arceus, help me out.

"How far have you guys come from the beginning of the league?"

"Well, I think we've come really far. We've grown together as a family and we fight through losses and wins together as a team."

"Ok, next question. So, Tyler, how do you feel about winning the K-League with your amazing penalty shot?"

Trying to be humble, I answer, "I don't take credit for winning the game for us. That was won by all of us; a team effort. I will take credit for my goals, but nothing else. If anyone should take credit for our win, it's our coaches. They've stuck with us and made us a championship-worthy team, and I can't wait for Champions League next season. This can give us the confidence to become one of the best high school teams in the world."

Alexa jots down a few quick notes before looking up and smiling at me. "Did you find the match hard or anything against the Kiloude Legends?"

"Well…Every match is hard. You can't underestimate any team, because any team can beat any team at any time. You just have to give it your all, and hope that your teammates can do the same. I know my teammates will fight to the death, and I loved today's game. The Kiloude Legends were certainly no pushover." I laugh, and Joseph grins his brace-face smile at the mention of my "teammates."

"Thank you, Tyler. One last question before you go: Why didn't you take the shot instead of giving it to Joseph in injury time?" Alexa pressures, trying to get me to write her a scoop.

"Honestly? I don't know. My parents always told me do what would be the best for everyone, even if you don't get the glory at the end of it. Also, I guess that it was a gut instinct that told me that I wouldn't make the shot, so I took the next best option."

"Great answer, Tyler. Congratulations on winning and Kalos Live wishes you and the Vaniville High team all the best and good luck in the future! Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go and catch my next big scoop. Let's go, boys!" Alexa motions to her two cameramen to go. They nod and run after Alexa, her hair bobbing in the air like a buoy.

"Well Tyler, it was a great run, and now we got to make it rain in the Champions League," Joseph comments to me as we make our way back to the bus through the incoming media firestorm.

The constant shutter clicking and the bright lights from the flash were starting to annoy me. I could tell Joseph felt the same way too, and together, we charge through like angry Tauros and clamber onto the bus just as it was getting ready to leave for the drive back to Vaniville Town, the new home of the fabled K-League trophy.

I dive into my seat and immediately dig out my neon-orange (neon-orange is my favorite color as you probably could tell by my cleats and headphones) Beats by PokéTech and plug them into my iPhonewhile calling my family who were watching the game at home because my younger brother, Carter, was sick with the stomach flu.

"Hello-"I begin to say after the rings. I get interrupted quietly rudely though.

"OH MY GOD I CAN'T BELIEVE IT! YOU GUYS WON! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU TYLER!"

"MOM! Please don't do that, because I swear you'll make me deaf just like Grandpa Wesley!"

"Okay, I'm sorry Tyler. But still, you guys won it all! You are all champions!" my mom fawns.

"I know. I'm trying not to let the fame get to my head," I say while rolling my eyes. Women.

"Your dad wants to talk to you, Tyler."

"Pass it over then, Mom. Freak out somewhere else where my eardrums don't get burst, okay?"

"Sure, why not?"

I wait for a few seconds before saying, "Hey Dad, what's up?"
"Not much son. I'm really proud of you, and I knew you worked hard on it."

"Are you doing that stereotypical 'post-victory pep talk thing', Dad?"

"Eleanor would do the same thing, I know it from the depths of my heart."

All of a sudden, my exuberant mood crashed on down. I didn't want to talk about my dead sister, even though her death was my fault. People say I shouldn't blame myself, but I still do, since it was at my Dragon ceremony.

I'm actually descended from great Dragon Tamers who have come from the Village of the Dragons in Unova. Well-known people who were born in my village are Iris, the Champion of Unova; Lance, the Champion back in Johto I believe, and N, the person who supposedly sought out and captured Reshiram, the Legendary Dragon of Truth and counterpart to Zekrom. Apparently, N had escaped the turmoil in Unova and ran away with Reshiram to an unknown place.

My sister was the extraordinary battler known as Eleanor Sanders. Her starter was a Bagon. The Bagon and Eleanor took the whole battling world by storm, and in no time at all, she had all eight badges and was the Champion of Kanto. She was able to find Red and survive Mount Silver. In the battle that ensued, she and her Pokémon were pushed to their limits like none before. So were Red's. At the end, her Salamence and Red's Pikachu knocked each other out in an Outrage/Thunder combo explosion that nearly sheared off the top of Mount Silver.

I was 13 when I got my Dragon starter. He was a Noibat whom I named Boombox. As I was returning, someone shot a bullet at me. My sister, being the brave, stupid, overprotective sister she was, stood up and took the bullet herself.

The worst part? It was my uncle, my own kin who shot her, aiming for me. Why, I don't know. Nor do I want to know. We spent 5 days hunting him down, but it was futile. He escaped with my sister's life.

Ever since then, her Pokemon have lived with us and work at Sycamore's laboratory. It didn't seem like the world cared either, because they found a replacement Champion just like that and life moved on. It wasn't fair, because I didn't want Carter and Addison to see one of their family members dead. Their faces… Oh, their faces were so scared. That day on, I swore that they wouldn't have to see another person die like that ever again.

"Tyler… Are you there?"

"Oh? Sorry! I really miss her Dad."

"I bet everyone does. She illuminated the room whenever she walked in," my dad pronounces, saying each word rather slowly.

"Hey Dad, I'm sleepy. I'll call you when I'm ready to get picked up from Vaniville High."

"Okay, sounds good. Don't sleep yet; you still have your contacts in."

"I know. See ya." I end the call and stare outside into the lustrous

He buys it and wishes me good night. I reply back warmly and close my eyes. Immediately I'm hit with comforting dark sleep.

~/\/\/\~

Fast-forward to the assembly on Monday at school. The first day back after winning the championship. The first day without planning for soccer practice after school since it is over unfortunately. Fun.

"And also this weekend, the soccer team was able to capture the K-League trophy for the third time in school history and with the best record in school history also! Let's give them a rousing Vaniville applause!" Principal Jackson asks politely. The Vaniville High students comply and cheer with fervor as the soccer team, including Joseph and I, stand up and identify ourselves. After a few seconds of applause, we sit back down, feeling a bit awkward standing up there.

"Thank you! And now for the real thing: We have the finalists of the Kalos Dreams Sweepstakes contest, which is a fully sponsored trip around Kalos to earn the 8 coveted badges or the 5 ribbons, or anything else you want! Your very own Pokemon journey, fully sponsored and on TV! What can possibly be better than that?"

A dead silence travels around the gymnasium instantaneously. Principal Jackson smiles before producing a fancy-looking envelope from his pocket, presumably holding the 6 finalists' names.

"May the following please come up here? The first finalist is… Andrew McCormack!"

No. Please, no. Not the most popular, stuck-up jerk at Vaniville High. He's 6'2''and has got the "sexy blonde hair and turquoise eyes" package deal. He has supposed "abs", but I seriously doubt that. He isn't the stereotypical jock, though. He actually is the Vaniville hockey team captain, and he's got college scouts already "checking" him out. I hate to admit it, but's he seems pretty damn good. See what I did there? Huh? Ok, moving on.

His family is also filthy rich from something in the pharmaceuticals field, and they have a vacation house in each region of the world, like Kalos and Unova. Also, he drives to school in a maroon Lamborghini Venini, one of my dream cars. He likes to rub it in my face.

Andrew was well liked, so he gets a ton of applause and a few girls screaming for him to go out with the thirsty person screaming for his "long" manhood. Whores.

"Number 2 is…. Makenna White!"

Another massive round of applause. If Andrew was the king of the high school in popularity, then Makenna was the queen. She was smart and pretty, and humble as well. Andrew, of course, is dating her. They've been dating for the whole junior year and maybe some more, and it makes me want to puke out my intestines.

To be honest, I would be lying if I said that Makenna wasn't cute, or hot (in this case, she's both of them). Makenna is around… 5'6'' I think. She has warm chocolate eyes and long, brown hair that reaches to her shoulders. Cleavage is decent, but not massive or anything. She applies just a tad bit a mascara, but she always has these little sparkles under her eyes, probably unintentionally. Also, Makenna's build is lean but mean. She's a lacrosse middie and leads the team in goals and assists. She also has a 4.6 GPA, and I know that because I "accidently" saw her grades on my homeroom teacher's computer. Oops.

"Finalist number 3 is….Emily Richardson! Please come on up!" Oh god. Not another "popular person". Actually, no. I take that back. Emily isn't that bad to be honest. She's tall and blonde with bright blue eyes and decent cleavage. I know her family especially well because her dad and my dad were buddies in college, so that's my "claim to fame" I guess. We go over to their house all the time, and when it's just Emily and I, she's pretty cool. We've actually made some good memories together in her serene backyard. No, no, NO! Not sexually. Perverts.

"Finalist number 4 is…. Tyler Sanders! Please come on down!"

YES! Thank you Arceus! I walk up there all coolly, trying to not show any emotion, but inside, I was cheering and screaming like a little girl.

"Our fifth finalist is… Joseph Garcia!"

NO WAY! HELL YEAH!

I could barely control myself from screaming out loud in joy as I stand there with my best friend next to me, with both of us having a chance to make it into the sweepstakes competition and spend our around-the-corner summer traveling the Kalos region. On TV, nonetheless!

He quickly arrives there and stands next to me. I give him a fist bump, which he returns quickly. I keep my head down, not wanting to look up and… you know, screw my luck up. I also didn't want to see the last finalist.

"Our last finalist is… Emma Sinesworth! Please come on down!"

I look up and I feel myself spiraling downwards metaphorically as I see the biggest slut in the whole school walk on up with a dazzling smile which makes some male teachers' hearts melt. For me, it makes me want to gag myself. And I can have the whole junior year of Vaniville testify with me on this particular case.

Emma Sinesworth was a huge whore. Literally. She has all 100% in every single subject because she bribes all of her teachers by fulfilling their sexual desires. The reason why we (the student body) know this is because she actually brags about it to her friends. One person even walked in on her riding our Calculus teacher like a Horsea. He's now mentally scarred for life and sometimes screams when he sees Emma in the hallway. But then again, who wouldn't?

Emma has long, wavy blonde hair with a few freckles adorning her face, and she has leafy green eyes. She's 5'10'', maybe 5'11'', with a lean build. She pretty hot, but I wouldn't date her because of her ugly personality. Her school nickname is Mrs. T&A, and with good reason. Not someone who I would approve of dating Carter (my brother) for sure, although she is pretty smoking hot. She plays field hockey and wears these ridiculously short shortie-shorts. I know this because a friend of mine plays on the same field hockey team as Emma, and she hates it.

She runs up, somewhat flashing her thighs to a thirsty sophomore who tried grabbing her right leg. Emma accelerates past him and reaches to our group of 5 (now 6) and high fives Emily. She then turns around to Makenna and fist bumps her outstretched fist.

"Let's give them a round of applause!" Principal Jackson asks. The auditorium erupts in boisterous applause once again as the 6 of us wave and bow dramatically. As soon as the auditorium quiets down, the bell rings clearly, signifying the end of school and also emphasizes the point that there are two more weeks before school ends for the summer. When I come back, I'll be a senior at the top of the food chain.

Principal Jackson tells the 6 of us to wait until everyone leaves, then we can head to his office where we'll find out if we make it or not.

It takes about 5 minutes or so, but soon, the school was clear of most students. We pass by a few stragglers on the way to the main office. He tells us to sit in the few chairs that were positioned in the office in front of our secretaries, Ms. Cwynar and Mrs. Wray.

The office was painted a deep-sea blue with the Vaniville Hurricane stamped behind the front desk with the two secretaries were working studiously on their computers, making sure Vaniville High ran like a well-oiled machine that it was. There were some potted plants in the corners next to the chairs and the mascot where the Video News people sometimes take the mascot "Harry Hurricane" for some crazy video to be put on the daily morning newscast.

The door opens into Principal Jackson's office with the head honcho himself beckoning for Emily, Andrew, and Makenna to come in his office. Hopefully, they wouldn't make it. I didn't care who else made it as long as I made it and so did Joseph.

My hands start to get clammy, and to get my mind off the decision, I pull out my iPhone and quickly browse through my Instagram account. I have an Instagram account for my YouTube channels (TylerSandersGaming and TylerSandersVlogs), and my personal account (TylerSanders). I was putting my iPhone in my pocket right as the personal office door opens to reveal Makenna with Andrew's arm around her, and Emily walking next to Makenna, chatting about something that only the "popular" people would know.

It was taking so long, I thought back to an old meme in which there's a skeleton waiting in a chair with a caption like: "Waiting for the Derrick Rose to return to the NBA (11)". Luckily, we were saved. Thank Arceus.

"Alright, see you three tomorrow!" Principal Jackson waves them off. He then motions for Joseph, Emma and I to come in his office.

I gulp, feeling the saliva slide down my throat somewhat soothingly. Unfortunately, it didn't do much.

He has us sit down in three comfy, blue chairs facing his messy desk. The desk was a pretty big disconnect from the orderly, OCD principal that I knew of.

"Alright guys, you all did amazingly, even better than the other three..."

Oh boy. What's he driving at?

"Unfortunately, you guys did not make it."

Of course. Of fucking course.

And that is a wrap! I guess that I could do an Opinion of the Day, or OOTD. But that'll be on the bottom of the page… I think.

Or it's right here: What's your thought on Alpha Sapphire and Omega Ruby?

Here's the (sort of) elaboration on the bolded numbers.

I ran out of good ideas for sport channels, and SportsCenter seems pretty generic

2/3) These are the Chelsea home kits and the Real Madrid kits from the 2013-2014 season. #ChelseaIsLife!

4) Victini would be the "Nike" of the Pokemon world as I see Victini as the goddess of victory, and Nike is the Greek goddess of victory… See where I'm going?

5) Lumiose Bridge is based off of Stamford Bridge, another Chelsea thing :D. If you're in London, you should go visit if you are a football fan like I am.

6) Krookorade is the Gatorade, with Krookodile as a sweet (and better) crocodile than a real life crocodile. In my opinion, at least.

So yeah, that's it. Aurastorm out, ciao!