Chapter 3: Hydrus and Blaze

Nameless Bog - Northern Unova Region

Another Mud Slap followed the first, but it might as well have been a raindrop for all the damage it caused Terra. "Gently now…ram it with your head!" Terra rolled his eyes at his Trainer. How did one 'gently' ram something with a head like his?

He did what could, and held back, but the Mudkip still went flying, skipping across the swampy water, and whimpering. Alex was already swimming to it, ignoring the stink and the grime. He recalled Terra at the last minute.

"Should've used Leo…" he mumbled, taking the sinking form of the fainted Mudkip into his arms. Its family watched him with muted anger. "I'm going to heal him!" He told them, hoping they understood. "I'm going to fix him up, and then I'll be back to return him. You have my word."

They let him leave the muddy waters of their swamp, and Alex sprinted towards the nearest Pokémon Center, knowing that hearing the little Mudkip wheeze was not a good sign. He fed it a Max Revive. It seemed to breathe a little easier, but stayed fainted.

"Hang in there, little guy. The nurse will fix you right up." And so, she did. So focused was he on the Mudkip that he didn't see the flame-haired girl waiting for her tray of balls next to him. "Nurse! This Mudkip! He's hurt bad."

She set the tray down behind the counter, and took the young Pokémon from the man's muck-covered arms. "What did he battle?"

"My Torterra…" He said, somewhat guiltily. "I told him to go easy, but…I guess he's too strong now. I…I miscalculated. I'm sorry." The nurse sighed, and took the Mudkip into the back part of the center. He saw a hand out of the corner of his eye, reaching in vain for the tray of Pokéballs.

"I've got it…" he mumbled, grabbing the tray with his long arms, and sliding it to whoever was just out of his vision. He was laser-focused on the doorway. Did it usually take this long?

"You always had a longer reach than me…but given that you're covered in swamp, I could've gotten it myself…"

Alex blinked, just realizing how nasty he was. Jumping in a swamp wasn't very hygienic. He knew that voice though, could pick it out of a crowd with ease. He turned, and immediately blushed. "J-Jess! I-I... I didn't know you were out here. Today." He forced himself to calm down. He hadn't expected that seeing her would unnerve him this much.

"Well…" She twirled a lock of hair, and batted her eyes at him obviously. She found the whole situation a little amusing. The Mudkip was essentially a baby, but Alex would still try to catch it. Another influence from her brother, who had the same idea. Pokémon raised from near-infancy ended up stronger. "After yesterday, I had to follow you…" She paused, her own face turning crimson. "In a totally friendly, not stalker-ish kind of way! I mean, who would do that, just follow a random boy from town to town all over the world? Not me, no sir!" She grabbed the tray with her balls, and avoided the large swampy hand print.

There was a third ball with the others now, and she busied herself with putting them back on her belt, her long shoulder-length hair hiding her face.

"I could think of worse traveling companions…" He blinked, not even realizing what he was saying. She stared at him. He stared back. If he was going to say it, he was going to stand by it. Couldn't backtrack now, even if he wanted to. The doors to the back of the center opened again with a familiar ding.

"Your Mudkip is resting. The bones are set and healing. He should be ready by tomorrow morning. Will you be staying the night?" Alex nodded, attention once again drawn to Pokémon and not Jess.

She couldn't really blame him though; the worry was evident on his face still. Was his Torterra seriously that strong? Most Pokémon who were made to faint in the wild were caught, but that Mudkip had been seriously hurt…and hadn't he said it was going easy?

"Very well." The nurse said, pretending to be unaware of the obvious attraction between these two. They seemed shy, despite their age, which made some sense. Most of the novice Trainers around here were big on the knowledge one gained from years of study from the University, but had far less experience in real life situations on the road.

"Since you two are...friends, I can have you share a room. Is that alright?" she continued. They both nodded absentmindedly, before they realized what they'd just agreed to.

"I-I mean, uh, that is, if you want to share…" Alex mumbled quickly. Perhaps the old Alex wasn't completely gone yet.

Jess smirked at him. "It's fine…just like when we were younger, and we stayed in the barn with the Tauros and Eric."

He rolled his eyes. "You were more interested in Eric than myself or the Tauros…" His voice dropped, as he mumbled, "Hopefully that won't be the case this time…" She looked at him suspiciously, not catching the last bit.

"Good!" The nurse said, cutting off the chance for a potential argument, "We're almost booked up for rooms. Lots of Trainers around here." That piqued both of their interest.

"Trainers? Any looking to battle?" Alex asked, hiding his eagerness.

The nurse nodded. "Tons. We have a tournament system here for Trainers. You're all mostly beginners, so it's usually balanced."

As the last stop between the north-eastern region of the country and Unova, this center was indeed a hot spot for new Trainers who were heading south, to Unova, or coming north from there, usually in search of Pokémon, or the University campus.

Trainers from Unova were usually in their early teens, but the mixing of older and younger people often led to book smarts being exchanged for knowledge of the road. Most Trainers from their home didn't know what kind of Pokémon were around here, but the younger Trainers often did, as their youthful energy gave them the drive to constantly scour the woods, lakes, and grass for every type they could catch. Alex's thoughts were on this tournament however, and on Terra, and his power. Probably better to use Leo.

"So how about it, Pokémon Master?" He looked up, to see Jess put on a fiery red hat, and turn it around with a smirk. "How about we tag team?" He blinked once, twice, a third time, then nodded.

"Terra is a bit strong…but Leo could use the exercise." She nodded as well.

"I'll be using all of mine. Including my new Piplup." He raised a brow. "What?" she said innocently. "I like Piplups. They have happy little feet."

He smirked. "Alright. Luxio and Piplup. What a team. Let's do it." It wasn't long before the tournament was set up. The Trainers gathered were more than willing to have a double-battle system once the two of them made it clear that they intended to battle as a team.

Seeds of romance, teen angst, and inexperience both in battle and love filled the air. No novice Trainer would give up the chance to gain valuable experience from a unique situation, like a double battle. Alex took the chance to clean as the newbies gathered around. He frowned, as he saw an unusual amount of bug specialists. Naturally, since they were supposedly all novice to intermediate level here, their teams were likely full of six different Caterpie, Weedle, or evolutions thereupon. He suppressed a grimace, and made his way past the bug lovers, couples, grass Trainers, and even a small troupe of bikers to the redhead waiting for him. Leo's glare had kept the bolder male influences away while he'd scrubbed the muck off his clothes.

Alex had lost his angst years ago thankfully, and already knew how to battle as well as, he liked to think, an Elite Four member. Given his unbroken win record thus far and with Trainers on the way out here, he thought that was justified. Then again, he had used his Torterra most of the time, who only kept getting stronger. Poor Leo had been all but sidelined since their victory. He came up beside the redhead and her Piplup, and gave Leo a thorough neck/chin scratch that set him purring. Once Alex stopped, the cat stretched, then looked at his Trainer.

"I'm sorry I ignored you most of the day my friend…but Terra was on a roll." "Luxio!" Was the response. "I think I can make it up to you though. How would you like to battle in a tournament?" The Luxio grinned, and sparks flared over his gold and black fur. "Perfect. We'll train you up, and we can also help Jess here with her team as well, alright?" Leo glanced at her for a long time, examining her with those smart, golden eyes. He finally nodded, and she released her breath.

"I thought for sure he'd refuse…he's a loner, you can see it in his gaze…you know, his eyes are as intense as yours lately..." Jess spoke quietly. Ignoring her for once, Alex instead petted his friend's golden fur, smirking at the soft buzz of electricity that went through his hand as he did. He didn't mind it anymore.

"Together, we will be unbeatable." Jess couldn't tell if he was talking to her, or his Luxio. Or both. She sighed. Some things would never change. He cared for Pokémon, all Pokémon, it seemed, almost as much as he supposedly cared for her. Now that she looked, the signs were a bit obvious. Yet somehow also endearing.

She had recalled all the times he had saved her bacon in the past, from a rampaging Tauros charging at a Miltank it wanted to breed, to saving her from a pair of malicious Poliwags. One of which his brother had captured. "Do you still have that scar on your arm? From Wrath's Peck attack?"

Alex blinked at the seemingly random change of topic, but smiled at her anyways. "Umm. Yes. It's a scar. Those don't heal, you know."

She shrugged. "Stranger things have happened."

"I never thanked you, did I?" She said, putting a hand on his shoulder. She blinked at it in surprise as she felt a very noticeable buzz.

It was probably just Luxio's current of low energy running through him to her now, but just touching his shoulder seemed to set her entire body abuzz, much as she had been on their car ride home. Her thoughts turned lewd, and her gaze grew distant. Something about Leo's electricity just felt…really nice. Or maybe it was his Trainer. It was probably both.

"You did, actually." He said, smirking. "But I appreciate the sentiment all the same." She blinked, trying to clear her head as he spoke. This was not the same boy she'd slept next to as a ten-year-old. He was grown now…and so was she. How would they ever share a room?

"Our first opponents are coming…" She said, half distracted.

He nodded, glancing up into her eyes, and seeing the same low, golden glowing spark of electricity there as well. In an unexpected show of boldness, he took her hand, and then stopped petting Leo. The low hum of his electricity flowed between them still, back and forth. They were connected. She smiled at him, and didn't pull away. He reconsidered a thought from the previous day. This was rapidly becoming the luckiest day of his life. Though he was more of a rational-minded man, he offered a small prayer to Arceus that his luck didn't end any time soon.

The Luxio and Piplup strode onto the battlefield, one of many around the Pokémon center that was little more than a few lines in the grass and dirt. Personality wise, they appeared similar, despite the difference in gender and species. Both proud, both loners, but both respectful of the other's strength once they won the first round with a pair of one-hit KOs on a Roggenrola and a rather surly Hoppip. They could even cover for each other's weaknesses.

Hands still clasped together, the two battled together flawlessly against every pair they faced in the hastily configured tournament, which lasted long into the night outside of the Pokémon center, until finally there were only two teams left.

The fighting had taken hours, but now, after some Trainers had gotten a full eight hours of rest after being knocked out early, the tournament was ending and the sun was just starting to rise. They'd had a few intermissions of course, but the double-battling had quickly become a long, drawn out process as most of the Trainers had teams full of similar Pokémon of the same species, and if their opponents couldn't knock all six out too quickly, the battles could last as long as an hour, two, if both pairs of Trainers all had the same setup to their team.

Teams full of Pidgey and other such common, unevolved Pokémon were what took up most of the early hours of the tournament, and everyone had cheered when the last Unovan novice with such a team had finally been knocked out.

The night had been cold, but Leo's energy never faded. Nor did his Trainer's. Piplup eventually became exhausted however, so Chari had come out in her stead, and gained some much-needed experience. Here, at the final double battle, they faced a pair that had three Pokémon between them that they could use, just as Alex and Jess did. Terra had been deemed too strong by everyone when he'd tried to use him to give Leo a breather, which left Leo, Chari, and Serpi.

Terra had been denied, but Leo had gained the rest he needed to recharge, and fight with restored Pokémon Power. He'd usually just used Bite, and had Chari finish them off. The little runt had grown, the amount of experience she got from getting the KO was incredible. The fact that her Trainer had put an Experience Share device on her also helped. He didn't wonder where she'd gotten it. Her father was an accomplished Trainer in his own right, and, they were filthy rich.

Chari was normal sized now, after all the battles, and as the last one ended, she evolved, confirming her status as a runt. Her skin barely changed in tone as she became a Charmeleon, and she still looked smallish, but no less ferocious.

Charmeleon Trainers were dangerous, literally playing with fire. After a counsel of those who were once more awake and present, Chari was deemed too dangerous to have fight in the final, lest she go berserk on evolution energy and experience, and evolve straight into a rampaging Charizard.

Jess saw the sense in their precaution, and gave her exhausted, and over-stressed Charmeleon runt a break. She needed time with her new body before she could fight safely.

"Very well." Jessica said, cutting through the crowd's murmur as she recalled one of her strongest Pokémon. "I will use my Serpi." That got their attention. Everyone knew Jess had a Snivy, so the rumors said at least, she had arrived at the center with it by her side and everyone had seen how their eyes looked similar, but had she finally bothered evolving it, and removing that ever-stone it had?

Appearing in a tornado of leaves came her Serperior, looking every bit as dignified as the last Caesar had. But this one had a female grace and a Trainer with those same knowing eyes.

Alex gaped. "You…you evolved her too? How?" Jessica winked at him.

"Couple Rare Candies, and no ever-stone. Servine isn't really her style, tiny feet, and only half as long a body. She wanted to go straight into her final form, like Terra did, and now here she is." Alex blinked at the blatant admittance to using Rare Candies. Two probably wouldn't be a big deal, it was only considered 'illegal' when five or more were used prior to, or during, an official competition. An occasional boost to a Pokémon's strength was fine.

Their opponents spoke up, two blue haired Trainers who used dragon types who looked just as tired as everyone else who had battled through the night. Because this center was a pit stop, many additional late entries had been dealt with as well, until finally, everyone decided to close the entry. If only to avoid another bug catcher with a team full of Metapods.

"Oi! We accept the challenge. And the boy can use his Torterra too, if he likes. I am Lance, the Dragon Master of Kanto, and this is Blair, the Dragon Master of Johto. We are the former Champions of both regions. We accept their challenge, and will allow their team one night to rest and recover. We wouldn't want it any other way. Let them evolve, let them catch what few local Pokémon they can before tomorrow. It will make no difference. Our dragons will crush these two love birds."

With that, the pair walked off in silence. The crowd dispersed as well, going to find a proper rest in a proper bed at the Center's lodge. Or camping in the woods. Eventually, it was just Alex and Jess, their gaze still locked.

"This is it." He said, smirking. "This is how we become a legendary…pair." He waggled his eyebrows as he called Leo over for a well-earned rest. She tried not to break into laughter, and fought down a giggle.

"Of course, and the rumors will certainly fly... thin walls and such…" She ran her hand up his arm, to his cheek, and then sauntered off the field, finally breaking the energy loop they'd shared for several hours, leaving both him and his Luxio staring in awe as she left. Only an idiot could miss an invitation that obvious, but his focus returned as he walked towards the central building of this complex in the middle of nowhere, to check on the Mudkip. Still, he pondered, he was sure she'd been joking. She had to have been joking.

"She was joking, right?" He asked his Luxio, who was enjoying strolling beside him after so many hard fights. His fur steamed with heat in the night air from the exertion of constant Bite attacks. "Lux." The golden cat shook his head, and Alex shrugged. Leo sounded sure of himself, but she must've been kidding… This line of thought continued on repeat as he entered the Pokémon center, and spoke to the nurse. Evidently he had healed fine, as the few fractures he been clean breaks. After seeing how young he was, the nurse had said she was surprised his mother had let him fight in the first place.

The dawn came swiftly, the early sun rise would make sleeping hard, but at least it was still cool out. Alex crawled quietly through the center to his shared room with his partner. Their room had been moved to an outer building, reserved for only the richest guests. Or the loudest.

No one doubted what those two, who had held hands through the entirety of the tournament, were about to do, and everyone had bet that it would be loud. Personally, he felt too exhausted from battling to do anything more than eat 'dinner' and then sleep. Good thing he didn't snore.

He came upon their private cabin building, with plenty of room compared to University living quarters, but only one double bed within, to find Jess sitting outside on the picnic table roasting hot dogs with Chari, newly evolved. It seemed she'd burnt a few of the sausages, and they were still cooking. Judging by the smell, she'd figured out how to control her Ember eventually.

If she was annoyed at his late return, she didn't show it with the smile that lit her face from under the flame red hair. She finished the hot dog she'd been munching, teasing him with every movement of her mouth, trying not to giggle, and wiping her hands, like a lady. More kidding around. Surely. All he could focus on was the food, and he realized just how many meals he'd skipped.

"I didn't think you'd take so long to get back. I took a…shower…and then figured I should make dinner, but Chari is…what, what is it?" He was grinning like a nerd at Pokécon, and nodded at the bushes behind her.

"Thanks, for making dinner. Oh, and your Charmeleon is being watched by another Charmander." He tried to keep his excitement in check. Charmander were more common to the north-west of this area, near Draconis Mons. Finding one here was unlikely, and it probably had a Trainer. Still…it was a chance, and he'd been absurdly lucky lately. He'd noticed his unusual streak of luck so far, and hoped that, right now, it wouldn't end. He'd dreamed of finding a Charmander. Literally.

While it was true that the little Charmander male that now watched them had indeed had a Trainer, he had lost to the power of Alex's Luxio, and its' partner, the female runt of a Charmander who had evolved into a similarly colored, smaller framed Charmeleon.

His latest Trainer had abandoned him after losing, deciding to give up on training entirely, so now this Charmander once more sought a new Trainer, on his own initiative after breaking his Pokéball with the move he'd inherited from his sire: Dragon Tail.

He sought a Trainer who would light him with the fire he'd seen in that Luxio. The power of the evolutionary spiral. The power that catapulted their species' evolution forward, constantly. He needed a Trainer who would make of him what he truly was. He needed to find a human whose fire would not dim so easily, as all the others had.

As he looked over the two humans, the larger one caught his eye. The Luxio beside him grinned, and bristled with electricity, as he had when they'd fought. Like an Electrike, the thunder cat had charged his muscles to compensate for his comparatively slower speed. His Trainer had a similar look, and was approaching him, a red Pokéball in hand. As the Charmander met the human's gaze, he knew. This was his Trainer. This was a Trainer who fought with everything he had. He'd had a bad run of luck in choosing a worthy one, but he had a good feeling about this one. Even his partner's eyes were on fire, and after the thrashing earlier, he had no doubts about his competence or skill level.

The Charmander wandered over fearlessly, expertly navigating his tail through the brush without starting a blaze. "That is what you are…" Alex said softly, watching, and then looking around for someone who would claim such a rare Pokémon. "A Blaze. And a Blaze you shall be."

Jess chuckled behind him. "More like you'll use him to 'blaze' up."

He winked at her, and then offered the crimson, fiery red Pokéball in his hand to the Charmander, who eyed him for a long time. "Charmander, Char?"

"Yes. I'll make you into one of the strongest Charizard in the world. There are many claimants to that title though, and the road will be long. Are you sure you want to join us?" As he spoke, Terra joined them, and his rumbling cry shook their immediate area. Naturally, the Charmander had faced a few Turtwig in his time, but seeing a Torterra was a new experience. Still, he knew something wasn't right. This Torterra towered over him like Rayquaza had. His presence wasn't quite as intense, not yet, but he was much further along than the Luxio. The fire lizard nodded. This Trainer's first, then.

Blaze glanced at the two large Pokémon, especially at Terra, who was almost as tall as the nearby shack. This Trainer could back up his promise. He was sold. He entered the ball willingly. Alex stared at the ball, still somewhat dazed. Years of misfortune seemed to be paying off now, because he had never been this lucky his entire life. He bit his thumb, hard, and Jess gave him a look.

"Just making sure this is real…" He muttered, thumbing the release on his newly filled ball. Once released again, Blaze and his new Trainer, and his Trainer's allies, all enjoyed a feast of classic Unovan style hotdogs, well into the morning. Meat was smoked, hallucinogenic Leaf was shared, and as the effects kicked in, the two humans kept eyeing each other. Eye contact was a new thing from her awkward neighbor, but Jess didn't seem to be minding the company.

Tired as they were, the usual awkwardness that tinged their conversations had evaporated, and once more the cautiously optimistic 'rookie' Trainer let instinct take over. Mutal leaning lead to hesitant kissing, but before long, the two blazed humans had begun kissing like a Kalos couple, until they'd fallen asleep. After his offer to truly 'demonstrate his skills', and her smirking acceptance of it, they had eventually collapsed on the rug before the unlit hearth within their cabin, her in orgasmic bliss, him, still with his head between her thighs. It was in that early morning time that Alex roused himself, and carried his 'lover' to bed, then cleaned up their mess.

He recalled the Pokémon, who had long since fallen asleep, and put them to rest in their balls. He grabbed their clothes, and hung those within the cabin as well. Then, he returned to the room he'd put Jess in. She reached for him as he rejoined her, their session earlier had certainly changed their dynamic. Or at least, that's what she thought. Alex blushed, but it was impossible to tell in the darkness of the room. They'd drawn the curtains against the glare of the sun.

"Did…you, umm, enjoy that earlier?" There was a giggle, and he felt her lips on his again as she pushed him onto his back, and began straddling him in the dim light of the morning.

"Yes…" She whispered, as she began grinding on him. "I'll pay you back for that, Redwood." She yawned, and then fell on his chest. "But notrightnow…" she mumbled tiredly. They stayed like that until they both woke up.

The match was postponed until dusk the next day, which gave Alex the chance he needed to train his new Charmander a bit. His last Trainer had been incompetent, not even teaching him how to properly use Ember.

"It's alright Blaze…but this battle is probably going to be too much for you. You'll get another shot at Dragon Pokémon, that I can promise you." The Charmander looked disappointed, but obeyed his new Trainer's seemingly experienced counsel.

Already he'd gotten stronger, and in just a few hours. That was, in large part, thanks to the Mudkip that had recovered, and insisted on battling Alex again. This time he'd used Blaze, and despite the type disadvantage, managed to weaken the little mud fish enough to capture it in the ball he'd prepared for it. A blue one with similar markings to the ones his brother Eric used for his team. Around four in the P.M. after a bowl and some rest, he brought the Mudkip back to its swamp, and gave him a choice.

"You can either go home to your family and live your days there, my friend…or you can come with me, and become more powerful than any of them." The little blue Pokémon tilted its head at him. "Mud…kip?"

Alex chuckled. "Yes, even stronger than Terra, once you learn a few moves." The Mudkip, then named Hydrus, said his goodbyes to his seemingly grateful kin, and rejoined his Trainer inside his ball. Alex eyed the four balls now, grinning. "Two to go…" He said quietly.

He met several more novice Trainers on his way back to the center, and by the time he got there, he deemed Blaze strong enough to fight. He was at least as strong as Leo had been, give or take a few levels, but he knew relying on evolution as a boost was not going to be something he could do in every battle. Against dragon tamers however, it was a good strategy. Assuming he could take one of the supposed Champions down. He privately doubted their claim, as he'd seen Champions of every era battle, and not one had lacked destruction on a massive scale. Trainers that strong were simply in their own weight class. One had to train hard, to join it.

With only a few hours left before noon, he and Jess went over their strategy, and gradually, the awkwardness had faded from their conversation. She kept staring at his mouth, and he kept staring at her legs. They had managed to focus eventually, and came up with what seemed like a sound strategy.

Alex had also done a bit of research on their supposed 'Champion' level opponents. The real Dragon Master of Kanto, also called Lance, had red hair, albeit in the same cut as his upcoming opponent. But that Lance was ancient now, residing in Blackthorn City, in Johto.

He hadn't been a Dragon Master for decades, or, according to the PokéNet, even had an official League battle for almost as long. He was long retired, but as he looked up Blair, he instead found Clair, who must have been her mother. The resemblance was too strong to be mere coincidence.

"So they're siblings…or family, or something." Jess said, once he told her what he'd found. She was training Chari against Blaze, while he busied himself. It gave the Charmeleon a chance to get used to her new body, and it gave Blaze a chance to use the new moves he'd learned. All but one of them, anyways. Alex nodded.

"They have to be the children of the dragon tamers they name dropped…so formidable certainly, but then, why are they all the way over here, and not in Johto or Kanto? I'll bet anything they're just as new to this as we are. They couldn't be older than thirteen, and you know how the Japanese do things. They probably started training when they were ten."

Jess raised a brow. "You started training a year ago, and you haven't lost a match, despite being overpowered and disadvantaged twice now."

He shrugged, again wondering at why his fortunes had changed. He couldn't deny that he'd been on a roll lately, and even though he had lost several times at University, he didn't bring it up. "Dragons grow even slower than Turtwigs, and I've had more than two matches. I battled plenty of Trainers at school, but they usually weren't on his level." Alex said, glancing at Terra, who was lounging nearby.

He was enormous, a testament to just how rigorous their long months of training had been, but he slept often lately. The nurse had said that his body was still adjusting to his new size. After having so much power in such a small form for so long, his new form needed time to adjust. That meant plenty of time out of his ball, and plenty of sleep. Many younger Trainers on their way through had gaped at Terra, always amazed at how he could be so large.

The few daring, or perhaps stupid, enough to want to battle him were turned away. One of the brats had been particularly persistent, which was when Hydrus had climbed down from napping under Terra's tree, and launched Mud Slaps at him until he'd gone.

His voice had been high pitched, not yet dropping to the low tones of puberty, and Mudkip were sensitive to such sounds. Especially while they slept. Terra seemed not to notice his Trainer, or anything for that matter, being well and truly asleep.

"At any rate, I can't imagine them having anything stronger than a first form on their team." Alex said, glancing up at the sky.

"A first form dragon type," Jess countered, "With years of training under the offspring of two of the strongest Dragon Trainers in the world." The fact that even she had heard of Lance, if not Clair, was a testament to how strong he'd been in his prime. Everyone had heard of how he'd battled Gary Oak and Red, and how Red had then gone on to beat Gary, the Professor's own grandson, and claim the title of Champion.

Lance had lost again several years later to a Trainer by the name of Hibiki as well, and that same Trainer had, supposedly, gone on to beat Red at Mt. Silver. Or so the rumors said. Nobody actually knew who won that match. Despite his losses, Lance was no slouch, as the Dragon Master had, after finally retiring from the Indigo Plateau, trained thousands of students to attempt to become Dragon Tamers as well. His pupils had often becom Gym Leaders, or Trainers in dragon friendly gyms, and were notoriously strong. His descendants were unlikely to be weak either. They planned until the sky turned to the color of fire, and the final battle to this silly mock tournament could get underway.