Today was supposed to be a very exciting day for a certain hat-wearing trainer with a Pikachu. However, things did not start off that way.
"Ash, come on!" Misty whined, "If you don't hurry up, we'll miss the Tour de Alto Mare!"
Ash groaned, and rolled over in his bed, not particularly liking Misty's whining, "Misty, you can go if you want to. I'm just not feeling up to doing anything today."
Brock decided to jump into the conversation at this point, "Ash, you haven't wanted to do anything since you lost in the Silver League Conference. I think doing this will not only help raise your spirits, but also your Pokémon's spirits. Do you think they've been taking this loss lightly?" he inquired.
Ash thought about Brock's suggestion. He always knew what to say when he was feeling sad, "Thanks Brocko," he replied with a smile, "I think I will participate. My Pokémon are probably down from my loss, too."
Misty nearly exploded from joy, seeing as the trio was finally going to the Tour de Alto Mare, and ran out of the room. Brock and Ash both sheepishly chuckled at her reaction.
Brock smiled back at Ash, and said, "No problem Ash. I knew you were feeling down, and I felt like it was my job to help you. You're like a brother to me."
Ash was touched by what Brock had just said to him, and said, "Brock, I view you as a brother as well. If you were in my shoes, I would've tried to cheer you up too."
Ash got out of his bed, waking Pikachu up in the process, and said Pikachu shocked him. After Ash recovered from the shock, he continued, "You know Brock, I'm not sure Misty remembered we're still on a boat. She couldn't even go to the Tour de Alto Mare yet if she wanted to." Ash pointed out, Pikachu now on his shoulder.
"You're right." Brock said with a chuckle, "Let's go find her." They then went out the door to find Misty.
Ash and Brock were tired of looking for Misty. The duo had searched all of the ship except for the training area.
'Where could she be?' Ash thought, 'We've searched everywhere except... for the... training area.' Ash finished.
"Hey Brock?" Ash inquired, "I just realized that we haven't even checked the training area yet."
Brock facefaulted after hearing this. After waiting for Brock to get back up, they proceeded to the training area, where Misty was training with her Corsola.
The Captain of the boat came over the speaker system, saying, "We will dock in Alto Mare in 30 minutes. Please get ready to depart the boat now." Ash and Brock then went to get Misty, and went to go grab their belongings.
"Alright, the Tour de Alto Mare starts in an hour. We need to register, so let's head to the Pokémon Center." Brock advised.
After registering Totodile for Ash and Corsola for Misty, they made their way to the event, meeting last year's champion, a man by the name of Ross, who they talked with until they had to start. They wished each other good luck, and got ready to race.
Brock sat in the stands, cheering for both Ash and Misty.
The race was going well, for the most part, with Ash, Misty, and a man named Ross alternating for the top spot. Everything was looking good for Ash until Totodile took a wrong turn, causing Ash to go off course.
"Aaaah!" Ash cried, as Totodile went off of the course, "Where are you taking me?!" he yelled. Totodile just looked back and smirked at him. Now, Ash wasn't mad at Totodile for going off course, he was scared that he would get lost in the city's canals.
Little did Ash know, he was being led by two legendary dragons, who were currently invisible.
Ash was frustrated. This was supposed to be a vacation, and here he was, lost in a maze of a city. He decided the best course of action was to go back to the starting line of the Tour de Alto Mare, which was where the winner would be announced. There was also a good chance someone was sent out to search for him, so it was the safest bet to find his way back to the starting line.
After numerous times of getting lost, at times even letting Pikachu guide him, Ash decided to ask a girl that was probably a few years older then him for directions. "Excuse me Miss?" Said girl turned around, and smiled, "Do you happen to know where the starting line for the Tour de Alto Mare is?" Ash inquired.
"Of course! If you just take that street down, and take your first right, you can't miss it." she said while pointing down a street to her left.
Ash sighed in relief. He actually knew where he was going, for once, "Thank you Miss..." Ash trailed off, looking for her name.
"Bianca. Just call me Bianca." She provided.
"Thanks for the directions Bianca! I'm Ash, and this is my best buddy Pikachu!"
"Pika!" chimed Pikachu.
Bianca giggled at Ash's energetic personality, and they both said their goodbyes, with Bianca telling Ash that he could stop by their house any time, and gave him directions, which, as we all know, is Ash's specialty. Thankfully, Pikachu had at least some sense of direction.
After walking for 10 more minutes, he was at the starting line. Ash spotted Brock in the crowd, and ran over to him. The race had just ended, and Misty was being awarded a medal.
He was brought out of his thoughts by Brock asking, "So how did you get lost? One second you were neck and neck with Misty and Ross, and the next, Totodile takes a wrong turn." Brock said in disbelief.
"Honestly, I'm not sure. He was following something, though. I'm sure of it. Although I didn't see anything besides the occasional Magikarp and some Chinchou." Ash replied, "It probably wasn't very important, though. Totodile stopped and let me get back to land after about 15 minutes, so he must've lost interest."
Brock nodded in agreement as Misty came over, Ross in tow. Ash noticed her medal, and asked her, "Hey Mist, what are those two Pokémon on the medal?"
"I'm not sure," she replied, "But hey, I won!"
After congratulations from Ash, Brock, and Pikachu, Ross approached Ash, asking him, "Ash, I remember you asked Misty about the two Pokémon on her medal. If you would like, I can take you on a tour of the city, and explain the legend behind those two." he offered.
The trio hastily accepted his offer.
Ash had never quite realized how beautiful the city of Alto Mare was. He was currently enjoying a tour of the city in Ross' gondola.
"Ross, could you tell us about those Pokémon now?" Ash asked.
"Sure," Ross replied, "The primarily blue Pokémon on Misty's medal is called Latios, whereas the primarily red one is called Latias. The story behind the two started when a Pokémon Trainer used a Kabutops and an Aerodactyl to terrorize the citizens. He was continuing to terrorize and destroy the city until the original Latios came to our city. He used his powers to drown the evil Pokémon, therefore turning the streets into canals. However, Latios died from using all of his energy, and his children were left orphans. His children are said to watch over and protect the city of Alto Mare. His soul is within a special jewel called the Soul Dew which is a beautiful small, blue glowing orb."
Ash was mesmerized by the information given to him, and started daydreaming about what they were like. Brock and Misty were also stunned at the story behind those two.
"What I would give to meet those two..." Ash trailed off.
Ross, hearing this, smiled at Ash's words, and allowed the trio to finish the trip in contemplative silence.
(A/N) Hey everyone! Sorry if the first chapter is a little boring, but the next chapter will definitely be longer, and this was necessary to set the scene for the story. I should have the next chapter up within 2 days, but probably tomorrow. Let me know what you think about it.
Until next time,
-Ice