I didn't sleep well that night. I lay awake with my eyes open staring out the window. I heard my friends enter, whispering to themselves trying not to disturb me. I debated trying to talk to them, but I kept quiet. I just wanted to be alone with my thoughts.

I barely got any sleep. When I woke up, I was still exhausted. I was nudged awake by Christine, who whispered something in my ear. I tilted my head to face her.

"Are you feeling better?" She asked. She was greatly concerned for me. It made me feel even worse. I was supposed to be the big strong trainer who could handle anything, and I was breaking down in front of little girls.

"I am," I lied, forcing a smile. "Thanks to everything you said."

She smiled as well. "Good. Because you missed a lot last night."

I didn't want to get out of bed. A few minutes later, I was sitting on the bed still wearing my clothes from the previous day. I smelled horrible. Rose had moved to my bed sometime last night. I patted her as she slept. She definitely hadn't gotten any sleep either. She stirred but remained sleeping, and I decided not to wake her yet.

"What did I miss?" I whispered. I looked around the room to find it mostly empty. Garrett and Quinton had already left, and checking the watch I saw them at the Center with most of the others. Scrolling down the map, I saw the stragglers – Maggie included – beginning the trip through the forest.

Then I remembered what happened before Beauty's death. I clicked the fourth app to confirm Mike's defeat at the hands of Brock. Somehow he had beaten that Sandshrew, and instead his Igglybuff had been killed by Brock's Onix.

"We're in Pewter," I said, the realization suddenly coming to me. "We made it."

"I'm hungry," complained Mandy. Now that she saw me awake and not crying, she had stopped sympathizing. "When are we eating?"

"In a few minutes," I said, looking down at Rose. "What did I miss last night?"

"We buried Beauty," said Stacy. "We could visit her if you like. You were with us, but you looked lost. You didn't even react."

"I didn't?" I didn't even remember that. "I guess I took the loss harder than I thought I did."

"It's hard to know who was affected more," said Mandy. "You or Rose."

"Rose shouldn't blame herself," I muttered.

"Neither should you, but here you are doing it anyway," countered Mandy. "I'm sorry, but I'm hungry, and you being depressed isn't solving any of our problems."

"Let's visit her grave first," said Christine. "Maybe that will help."

I nodded. I picked Rose up and held her as we all left the hotel. I'd change and shower later; I wasn't going to visit the Center. We headed a bit west and then straight South down the main path. Pewter was not nearly as modernized as Viridian City was, as there were no paved roads, no giant skyscrapers, and no cars. It was a simpler city, with a lot of small, scattered restaurants, shops, and houses. There were a lot of people outside, and a lot of them watched me shamble by. I didn't like the looks they were giving me, but I didn't want to deal with them.

We left the southern gate passing underneath a greyish torii guarding the city and went into the trees. Just out of sight of the road was a small cluster of dirt with Beauty's ball resting on top. I stared at it feeling nothing. Not guilty, not sadness, nothing. I didn't know how to react.

"How are you feeling?" Christine asked carefully after a few minutes of silence. I glanced at her, seeing her staring at me with concern.

"I don't feel anything," I admitted. "Is that bad?"

"Everyone deals with their loss in their own way," Stacy replied.

I felt like I should say a few words. "I'm… I'm so sorry," I began. "I couldn't protect you. I did so much to keep you alive, but in the end it wasn't enough. I didn't prepare, I was caught off guard, and because of that you died. You would've been a strong Moemon. I know that. You had the passion and the heart, you had the strength. You just didn't have the right trainer, and I'm sorry I could never have been that for you."

We stood in silence after that. I didn't want my words to be the last words we said about her; I'm not nearly eloquent enough. Rose woke up after a few minutes, saw where we were, and immediately buried her face in my elbow. She didn't move until we were well clear of the grave. I kneeled down and patted her ball and left the grave.

We needed a distraction. I didn't feel comfortable with visiting everyone at the Center, so we needed to accomplish something. Anything. Route 2 was split into two parts, so I decided to capture a new team member. One last ally before the first battle.

It didn't take much convincing to get them to join me. They exchanged worried looks, no doubt thinking I was trying to replace Beauty. I wasn't. I just needed to prove to myself that I could take care of all of my Moemon, and the more I had the better I'd feel. The reason didn't matter. I just needed to do this.

So we entered the grass field, and the first Moemon I found was a Caterpie. The moment I saw her, I froze. It was the worst thing that could've happened to me. As I stopped, Stacy floated in front of me, blocking her from my view. She shook her head.

"You can't," she said. "You aren't ready."

"I have to try," I replied. I threw a ball at the Caterpie, and it bounced off her head harmlessly. She recoiled in pain, but I blinked in surprise. "Is she owned by someone?"

"I don't believe so. I didn't see a trainer nearby."

It didn't take me long to come to the most likely reason: We couldn't catch duplicate Moemon. The thought was chilling. If we were unlucky enough to have our first encounter be a duplicate, we would be unable to catch it. Then I felt relief: I was not forced to catch another Caterpie. As much as I wanted to prove myself, I didn't want it to be with another Beauty. It was too soon; the pain still stung. It was like a burden was lifted from me.

In the end, we decided to leave the Caterpie alone. I collected the ball – thankfully it was still useable – and we returned to our hotel. I took a long shower, dressed myself, and we went to the Center. A lot of my classmates had gathered there. The moment they saw me enter the building, they brought me over. I saw Eric was the center of attention. He had his Snivy on his shoulder and was smiling proudly and talking with Sam. When I approached, he saw me and grinned.

"Arthur!" He said. "You finally made it. I'm glad."

"I thought you won last night," I noted. "Why are you still in Pewter? Don't you want to go ahead?"

"I'm giving advice," Eric replied. "I'm not sure if we're ready to go out just yet. I heard you lost a Moemon too."

I nodded. "I'm sorry for your loss."

"Their sacrifices won't be in vain," Eric vowed. "I'm trying to make sure no one else has the same trouble I had."

"So has Quinton, annoying enough," added Nick. "He keeps warning us not to fight Brock until our Moemon have a lot of levels. We'd just be wasting time."

"It's good advice," said Sam. "Quinton knows his stuff."

"He does," I agreed. "So what will you be doing now, Eric?"

"We need to recover," replied Eric. "I fought Brock too early. I got lucky. It was a Critical Hit that saved Sarah's life. I can't do that anymore. I still have a Moemon to catch and some training to do. I'll just watch you guys fight. When everyone's done, I'll continue on."

"What if some of us never fight him?" asked Laura. "I really don't think I'm ready."

"A week, then," said Eric. "I want to explore the city, anyway. The point is that I made a mistake by rushing. I'm going to relax now."

"Yeah, Eric, but I'm going next," said Garang, grinning. "What'll you do when I race ahead?"

"You're not," I said. It wasn't a command. It was exasperation. "You can't."

"I can," Garang said. "Olivia says we're ready, and we're ready."

"You don't have any other Moemon," I argued. "Olivia's underleveled. You only have one attack that is the slightest bit effective."

"Oh not you too," Nick groaned. "Quit talking about levels. They mean nothing compared to talent and skill."

It was a good point, but I had my own to prove. "She isn't ready, and Garang isn't ready. She's close to evolving, right? Evolve her, then fight Brock. You'll have a good chance then."

"Nah, I really need to win this race," Garang winked. "Watch me face him tonight. I already beat his younger trainer. I just need to face the big man himself."

"Younger trainer?" I repeated.

"A boy. A couple Moemon. They weren't hard. Olivia destroyed them. She'll destroy Brock."

I looked at Eric. "You warned him, right? You know this is a bad idea."

"If Garang thinks he can win, I can't stop him," said Eric. He lowered his voice. "I couldn't convince him. I really think he's making a mistake."

"Garang, please," I said. "Don't do this."

"I'm glad you're worried," said Garang. "But you really shouldn't. I can handle myself. We can win."

I didn't have faith in him. He looked so sure of himself, but having seen him fight I just didn't have the confidence. But I was in a terrible mood, so I let it go. I smiled in defeat, nodded, and said I would watch him. He believed it, shook my shoulder, and walked out of the Center.

I had left the Center to be on my own. After speaking with Garang, replaying the conversation in my head and realizing how little faith I had in his abilities, I believed that I was not in the right mood to be giving anyone advice. Maybe I just underestimated Garang, and he truly was ready to fight Brock. Maybe I was being negative for no reason. I hoped I was wrong. I hoped Garang wasn't making a bad choice.

My negativity toward Garang didn't stop people from calling. I got three calls that day from people asking for advice. I did the best I could, but I knew I didn't have the heart. They asked me when I would be fighting the Gym Leader, and I always replied that I wouldn't until I knew I was ready.

My Moemon disagreed with my decision to be on my own, but they wanted to support me so they stayed with me that day. We visited the Pewter City Museum, viewing the various exhibits. I felt that was a decent distraction for them. Nothing of interest was there. I just wanted to keep them from complaining while I spent the day reflecting on my decisions. I couldn't help shake the feeling that I would be watching someone dying today.

Hours passed and the time was nigh for Garang's fight. He called me specifically hoping that I would cheer him on, and I told him that I would definitely be there. I could see people gathering at the gym, both my classmates and some random civilians. News had apparently traveled fast that a trainer would be fighting the Gym Leader tonight. In the back of my mind, I knew that having an audience would be nothing but trouble; I knew there was still a small chance that us all being Challengers was still a secret, and I wanted it to be a secret for as long as possible. If Olivia died… if Garang lost… that secret would be out.

But I kept quiet. I took my seat near the front of the bleachers of the gym. The gym itself was huge. A gigantic rock battlefield had been constructed in a circle; boulders scattered the arena and the ground was made of dirt rather than steel. Garang stood on one end, Olivia by his feet, grinning. A referee dressed in yellow and holding red and green flags in each hand stood in the center.

And then there was Brock. To call him muscled would be an understatement; he had huge, shiny muscular arms that emanated strength. His thin, tight shirt revealed a chiseled chest and abs, and even his baggy pants couldn't hide the muscles. He stood proud and tall, crossing his arms in front of his chest, staring at Garang.

"You are the Challenger," Brock said. His voice was deeper than I had expected. "A true Challenger."

"I think so," Garang shrugged. Compared to Brock, even the bulky Garang looked small. He knew it; he was trying to stand as tall as he could. "I just want the badge."

"And you have defeated my protégé," Brock continued. "Yet you waited a day."

"I needed some people to see me win." I could feel Garang's eyes on me. I couldn't look him in the eye. If he was doing this just for me, I didn't know how I could hide my own guilt.

Brock, however, looked at the growing audience with amusement. It was rare that he had such a large gathering. Gym battles typically weren't viewed by more than a few people. "Yes, it is strange to see such an audience. Your friends are amongst them, I assume."

"They are." His eyes. I still couldn't look. "They'll watch me win."

"Are they also Challengers?" Brock asked. Garang, remembering his promise, kept silent. Brock turned to the audience. "I would be wary, everyone. This is a Challenger. If I defeat him, the Moemon will not faint; it will die. This may not be for the squeamish. I have already defeated one Challenger, and it was not a pretty sight. This is your warning."

The audience silenced. I looked around to see various expressions of shock, horror, and disgust on the strangers' faces. My classmates looked unnerved and nervous. Some even glanced at me apologetically.

"It's not going to happen," said Garang. "I'm going to win."

"For your sake, I hope so," said Brock sadly. "I will not be going easy on you."

"Wouldn't dream of it." Garang looked at Olivia and smiled. "You ready to get our badge?"

"Ready," Olivia replied.

Brock threw out his ball. A Geodude; a young girl in a rocky helmet and a grey skirt. She stood proudly by her trainer. Garang sent out Olivia.

"A water type," Brock noted. "That may buy you time, but it will not guarantee your victory."

The referee came forward. "Are both competitors ready?" Brock and Garang nodded. "Then let the match begin!" He threw his flags down.

Brock's Geodude pulled a large rock straight out of the ground and threw it with surprising strength at Olivia. Olivia, meanwhile, hid behind a larger rock, waited for the sound of crashing rock, and jumped out to land a Water Gun. The Water Gun hit the Geodude with its full blast and knocked her into the ground, where she rolled until she crashed into a boulder. All of its health depleted.

"One down!" Garang announced, pumping his fist into the air. "One shot, one kill!"

Brock's expression didn't change as he switched his Geodude with his Onix.

I heard some mutters and whispers from the audience. Someone wolf whistled. I was surprised myself.

The Onix was a woman. She wasn't a little girl you'd want as your daughter, she looked like she was in her mid-thirties. She had long grey hair, was wearing a grey t-shirt and shorts, jewelry on her hands and ears, and she was wearing make-up. The only thing which would signify that she was a Moemon was a giant rock tail coming out of her head like a ponytail. She stood with her hands on her hips, staring Olivia down with disapproval.

The woman's sexiness was not lost on Garang, and he wolf whistled. "Olivia, water gun her! Make her wet!"

Olivia paused as Garang made that last comment, but she committed and sprayed a water gun at the Onix. The Onix whipped her head around, allowing her tail to deflect the majority of the spray. Her tail seemed to have a mind of its own, as it moved without her doing anything, scooping up a rock even larger than the Geodude's and throwing it at Olivia.

Olivia, accustomed to this tactic, once again hid behind the rock. However, it seemed to be taking the strain poorly, as it had cracked severely. Unaware, Garang and Olivia continued their hit and run tactic. With each rock more and more of their barrier was blown apart, and it continued to shatter and crack. It was the fourth hit where the rock shattered on impact, and Olivia took the full blast of the rock's debris. She escaped being crushed as the shattering flung her backward, but she took a severe amount of damage.

"Olivia!" Garang shouted, rushing forward.

The referee held out his red flag and shouted, "Stop! Don't touch her, or you forfeit the match!"

"I'll do whatever I want!" Garang shouted, and he picked Olivia up and ran out of the gym. I was stunned. The Onix turned to her trainer in confusion, and Brock shrugged apologetically. The audience was whispering with concern. I got to my feet and ran out of the gym.

I didn't have to run long. Garang was hunched over by the entrance, holding the injured Olivia close to his chest. The moment I saw him, my watch flashed red. There was only one thing that could mean.

"Oh no," I muttered and quickened my pace. "Garang! Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Garang grimaced. "Olivia isn't. She's hurt."

"She's still alive," I sighed in relief.

Garang looked from me to her. "I lost. I ran."

"You saved her. That's all that matters."

"What's going to happen to her?" Garang asked. He couldn't tell, his eyes focused on Olivia, but he was beginning to glow. I knew what was going to happen.

"She'll probably go back to Pallet," I said.

Garang shook his head and gritted his teeth. He noticed himself glowing. Now he knew what was going to happen. "It's over for me, but not for her. She can't go back." Then he got an idea, and his eyes filled with a sudden hope. "Arthur, take care of her."

"What?" I asked. "Garang I can't-"

Garang held out Olivia as well as her ball. "Take her to the League. Promise me you'll take her to the end for her and for me. She won't die under you."

"Garang, I really don't know-"

He shook his head and thrust the ball into my hands. He balanced Olivia in one hand and pointed an accusing finger at me. "If I wake up in class and find out she's dead, I'm going to be so angry that…" he stopped. He let go of Olivia, forcing me to catch her. He started to levitate, staring at me the entire time. I nodded. It was the only thing I could think to do. Whatever Garang felt, I couldn't tell. He turned into a flash of blinding light and disappeared.

I stood there in shock, Olivia asleep in my arms. I didn't know what to do. I just watched by the entrance as people began to file out of the gym. I noticed Quinton amongst the crowd and managed to get his attention. I led him a few feet away from the crowd and showed him Olivia. He seemed surprised to see her.

"Garang was eliminated," he said, motioning toward his watch. "Why is Olivia still here?"

"He gave her to me," I explained. "Before he disappeared."

"So he really disappeared?" Quinton sighed. "So you can't even run away from a trainer battle."

"I don't know if I can keep her," I said. "He gave it to me, but I don't think it's… legal."

"We're allowed a Moemon in Pewter City," said Quinton. "I suppose it could count." After some fiddling. "Yeah, she's yours now."

"Fuck…" I whispered. "Garang, why'd you do that? I told you…"

Olivia stirred. She blinked awake and flinched suddenly in pain, clutching her side. She moaned and looked up at me. "Hello, Arthur. Where's Garang?"

I hesitated, biting my lip, debating what to tell her. "Garang's going to be away for a while. He told us to look after you until he comes back."

She jerked awake, eyes wide open, staring right at me. She couldn't feel the physical pain, but tears were starting to well in her eyes. "He ran from the battle, didn't he? He ran to save me, and he lost, didn't he?" I couldn't continue the lie. I just nodded slowly. She closed her eyes and wept. "I'm so sorry. I let him down. I failed."

"You didn't fail," I said quickly. "Without you, he wouldn't have made it to Pewter. He had confidence in you. That's why he didn't let you die. He knew you could get to the end. He made me promise that I'd take you to the end. He… he wouldn't…" I was starting to tear.

"Arthur will take care of you," said Quinton. "And we'll make Garang's promise come true."

Olivia looked at me, and then nodded.

Then she cried.

Arthur:

Christine the Charmander

Stacy the Starly

Mandy the Mankey

Rose the Budew

Olivia the Oshawott

Garrett:

Gloria the Ralts

Jenny the Joltik

Hope the Houndour

Veela the Venonat

Debbie the Deerling

Lily the Petilil

Quinton:

Melody the Beldum

Wendy the Wooper

Brianna the Shroomish

Flora the Pineco