Author's Note:
First off, I owe you a couple of apologies. I'm really sorry this has been a crappy summer for updates compared to last summer. My internship ate up a lot more time than my previous job, and it seemed like half my weekends were all booked. Next weekend is another one of those cases, but my internship is over now, meaning I'm going to try to get next week's update on Friday. I'm also not nearly as far ahead on writing as I was last summer, and the story is at the point where the chapters are consistently longer. Hopefully that will change next summer, but I'll discuss that more in a later chapter.
Second apology: I know some of you have been asking me via PM about the tournaments I've been in and whether you could play with me and help me warm up. Unfortunately, our internet has been so unreliable that it has been impossible for me to follow up, plus other issues came up. Right now, I am at home in the cities, with only my 3DS, so if you still want to play with me online, it'll have to be something like MK7 or ORAS. At least internet is reliable in the cities.
Now about the tournaments, all I can say is that if you or a friend works at a game shop like a GameStop, host game tournaments! Also, make tournaments accessible to kids! I won't share the why nor how nor the mind-blowing stories unless someone asks, but seriously, open box should equal open tournament!
Guest: Thanks for the suggestion!
AveragePichu: I love the new name! I have no new tricks for this chapter though. Chapter 26 on the other hand…
There's one clue in this chapter that's going to lead to some interesting events. See if you can guess what it is, or maybe even who it is! Bonus chapter details are listed at the end of the chapter.
Today is 8/6/16 and this chapter is 4600+ words.
Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, just dream it.
Chapter 25: Tee Off
"But as you can see, there may be some disruptions coming from this high pressure zone that is going to sweep on through the area, and with it, we might see some thunderstorms late afternoon Saturday into the evening. But for today, it is going to be a beautiful day in the Eon metro area. Your forecast for today is a high of seventy-six, partly cloudy skies which should clear up later this afternoon, and around five mile-per-hour winds to the southeast. Right now it is sixty-three in Sprint County, sixty-eight in Tyron, sixty-one on the lakefront, and sixty-four here in Eon City. It's going to be a beautiful day for golfing. I'm Todd Anderwisch, and you're watching Sky 9 news."
"And not just a beautiful day for golfing, but for spectators as well, which is our top news story this morning. Let me turn it over to Devin out in the field."
"Thanks Sharon. I'm here at the Eon Cityside Country Club, and as you can see, a large crowd has already gathered for the Eon Invitational Tournament. But that isn't the only thing special happening here at Eon Cityside Country Club. A pokemon will be competing in this year's tournament. According to an Eon Valley spokesperson, the pokemon goes by the na…pfft tch…click."
"Not bad weather for a tournament," Kieren told himself aloud as he dropped the black box on the bed and stuffed his room card into his club bag. "I should go thank Mason for showing me how to use the T-D-thing. Oh right! He's supposed to take me the back way to the course today!"
Kieren gave a hasty farewell to his hotel room and hopped into the elevator door just in time to catch the next trip down. After the elevator door shut, he quickly realized he wasn't the only one in the ride.
"So you're that pokemon prodigy the whole town's worked up about," said the man inside. He possessed a slim figure with loose khaki shorts, a horizontally pink and green striped polo with a fiery red logo, and a cream colored hat. Next to the man was a bag much like Kieren's, although this one stood much more upright. Kieren noticed that the clubs in the man's bag were attached at a sharp angle between the pole and the contact surface. It was almost as if they swung the club vertically over their heads.
"Wait, that matches with those pictures," Kieren noted to himself silently.
"Well as long as you're better than that talking ninetails," the man began.
Kieren snorted a laugh and lost his gaze, pumping his lungs with silent chuckles.
"Oh, so you know him then?" the man asked smiling.
Kieren nodded.
"Well then, best of luck to you. Can't wait to see how you hold up," the man bade him as the elevator beeped open.
The cafeteria was all but vacant, sporting only a few tournament golfers and their friends. It didn't take long for Kieren to spot Mason over at a table on the right. As he went to grab a plate, he noticed a couple of the golfers point at him while chatting quietly. He didn't mind. They were probably sizing him up. It was a tournament after all, a competition not all much different from the Migration Games back at ho…his former tribe.
"Hopefully I don't disappoint," Kieren told himself while shaking his head to refresh his thoughts. He grabbed his favorite selection of… well he couldn't read the name of it yet, but it was the eighth box of breakfast kibble. He coupled it with several slices of sephiar leaves and razz juice.
"How's it going, Kieren?" Mason greeted the approaching umbreon.
"So far so good," Kieren answered while carefully navigating his tray off his head and on to the table. "And you?"
"Busy. I've been up since four A-M today. This is my second breakfast," Mason answered, nosing his tray of food. He had some kind of wheat wrapped around spicy protein kibble topped with pepper jack cheese, some foreign berry slices, and loads of diced peppers.
"Really? Wow! What kind of stuff have you been tied up with?" Kieren asked, somewhat amazed.
"Oh, everything," Mason answered with a sigh. "Advertising, television broadcast, crowd control, maintenance, but mostly advertising. Sponsors bring in a lot of money, which is why it's important they know their money is going in the right places."
"Why do you need all that money?" Kieren asked.
"Well, Mr. Clesse, the owner of both the golf course you'll be playing at today, and the Valley reserve, is a very smart man. While he could have gotten by financially without the tournament, the money an event this size brings in allows him to manage both pieces of property and still enjoy life. Plus it brings a lot of business to the city, so as long as everything runs smoothly, most people are willing to help Mr. Clesse support both the reserve and the golf course. We've been doing this for over twenty years now, so we've got the procedures pretty well down, but there's always a few misnomers to resolve right as the tournament starts."
Kieren nodded as he tried to take it all in. He could tell by Mason's relaxed expression that everything was setting up for another successful year. Again, it was just like the Migration Games, except people and city things.
"So how about you? You aren't nervous or anything?" Mason asked.
"Nah," Kieren answered between bites of food. "You can't be thankful and nervous at the same time, and you can't not be thankful when the food is this good!"
"Glad to hear it," Mason chuckled. "Mr. Clesse wants to thank you for being a good golfer. He's watched some of your practice rounds and even put together a showcase video."
"Well I'm not sure what a 'showcase video' is, but I did want to thank you for showing me how to use that T-D-R thing in the hotel room," Kieren thanked.
Mason responded with a strange look.
"The black box that future sights the weather?" Kieren tried.
"The TV?" Mason tried.
"Yeah! That's it!" Kieren exclaimed. Where did he get the R from?
"Well speaking of which, you're going to have a camera crew following you today. Just totally ignore them. The equipment might look strange, but all they are doing is letting people who have TVs watch you play."
"As long as they tell me when it's ok to swing and where I'm supposed to walk, I'm good," Kieren answered.
The two of them spent the rest of their meal discussing procedures for golfing at a big event. Mason promised he would introduce Kieren to the time keeper, and warned the umbreon not to get too close to the crowds. He also explained how it was typical for competitors to be placed in pairs, although he wasn't sure if Kieren would be put in one as well.
"So I should only have to mark my ball if I'm in the way or if someone asks me to?" Kieren asked as he set his empty plates on the rack at the end of the cafeteria.
"Yep, and remember you mark behind the ball in reference to the hole," Mason reminded. "Ready to get going?"
Kieren nodded. He quickly dashed back to where they had sat, grabbed his bag, and walked with Mason through the hallway and out the hotel's back turntable door.
The streets were eerie empty in the broad daylight of the 9AM late summer sun. The weather people were dead right about it being a beautiful day. It was calm, not too humid, and just the right amount of sunlight to color the sky without baking the earth. They weaved through back alleyways following a set of arrows of which Mason assured were for the tournament golfers. Eventually they reached the edge of the city where flag streamers welcomed them and directed their way to the tournament grounds. At first the noise was faint, and all Kieren could see was green grass and red and blue decorative triangles hanging on ropes attached to metal stakes on either side of him. However, a new noise of individual chatter sprung upon the two of them as they neared a flat area of the incline.
"Hey! Here comes the umbreon!" a human male exclaimed. Kieren turned to see two grown men smiling casually at them. One had blondish brown hair escaping from his dark navy hat with a logo on the side that showed a pokeball and two construction cranes embedded in the text. He wore a polo decorated with images of purple and orange October leaves with a pocket slightly offset to one side with a logo matching his hat. His shorts were a grassy green. Next to the blond man was another slim figure wearing mostly attire that sported the golf course's logos.
"The ninetails next to him is Mason," said the golf course man.
"Is he one of those talking ninetails I've heard rumors about?" asked what Kieren believed was a competitor based the golf bag next to him matching his leafy patterned shirt and sporting the same logo.
The event employee nodded, prompting the golfer to smile as he turned to face Mason.
"Nice to meet you, Mason," the golfer greeted bending down with a firm hand/paw shake.
"A pleasure sir," Mason responded, causing the man to flinch slightly, only to relax again. Mason turned to the employee. "Jackson this is Kieren. It's his first time playing in a professional scene, so can you make sure he doesn't accidentally break any walking regulations or play his ball too early?"
"No problem," Jackson answered. "I'm sure Aurelein here should be able to help with that as well. He volunteered to be paired with the umbreon here for the first day."
"I play with a Lucario periodically back in Kalos," Aurelein explained. "I wanted to see how a quadruped plays, and hopefully I might be a little less awkward for him to hang out with too." The man winked at Kieren. Kieren responded by cocking his head to the side with blatantly fake skepticism, prompting a laugh from the golfer.
"Well as much as I would like to stick around and chat with you guys," Mason began, "I have things I need to take care of. Good luck to both of you!"
"Thanks," Kieren and Aurelein responded in unison, albeit in different forms of speech. The ninetails knowingly chuckled as he turned and departed back down the hill, swinging his nine tails into a wavy rhythm matching his step.
"That ninetails is quite the character, isn't he?" piped another golfer approaching the three of them. Compared to the other two men, he was a bit heavier and much shorter. Specs of curly blonde hair leaked from under his black hat. His bright red button-up was tucked loosely into his khaki pants. "I had to come meet the star players before the show starts," the man continued as he stopped up next to the two men and offered his hand to Aurelein. "Paul Goosekin"
"Nice to meet you, Paul. Aurelein Cindevelli," Aurelein introduced shaking hands with the overweight man. "You know anything about this fellow here?" Aurelein asked nodding over to Kieren.
"All I know is that his name's Kieren Bluestripe, and it is suspected he is from the valley and may be one of Flint's flareon's descendants," Paul answered. Kieren flinched at the mentioning of the location, but relaxed slightly at the reference to his grandfather.
"Flint's flareon?" Aurelein asked.
Kieren nodded. If there was anything he wanted to be associated with, his grandfather was one he could be proud of.
"So what is he to you? Father? Grandfather?"
Kieren nodded at the latter guess. Aurelein nodded back in understanding before turning to face Paul again.
"You ever golf with a pokemon before? Paul asked.
"A Lucario," Aurelein answered. "And you?"
"Mason the ninetails that was over here just a minute ago," Paul confessed. "I highly recommend not trying that."
Kieren burst out laughing, catching the attention of the two golfers.
"See, even the umbreon knows why," Paul joked.
"Is he that bad?" Aurelein asked.
Kieren and Paul gave a simultaneous nod.
"Well then…" Aurelein paused. "I suppose you're from this area then?"
"Yep. And you're from Laverre?"
"How'd you guess?"
"I didn't. It's written all over you."
The two of them exchanged hardy laughs when Jackson returned. Kieren realized he never noticed the guy leave in the first place.
"Kieren? Aurelein? We should probably get going. Show time is in 15."
"Good luck to both of you," Paul told them as Kieren and Aurelein grabbed their bags and set off up the hill.
"Thanks, you too," Aurelein answered over his shoulder.
The three of them passed several other groups hanging out as they ascended the hill. A couple of these groups were golfers. Most were employees or sponsors.
"Free drinks are up on the next table to the right," Jackson pointed out. "Sun gets hot with this many people around, so make sure you pack extras."
"Good idea," Aurelein praised. He beckoned the umbreon to follow him as they approached the tables of coolers filled with ice and drinks.
"Aurelein!" screeched a young lady that ran up from behind one of the tables and embraced the man.
"Cindy! How are you doing?" Aurelein answered grabbing her shoulders and bringing her face into focus.
"It's going great! I got all your favorites in the red cooler packed with ice. Do you want oran, strawberry, or peach?"
"One of each," Aurelein answered calmly.
"You betcha," Cindy answered.
She quickly dashed over to the tables, swiping her hand against her side to avoid catching her pink skirt while her brown ponytail trailed her movements. When she looked back at the two of them, her face soured with panic. She returned anyways and handed Aurelein three bottles of different colored liquids.
"Sorry! I didn't even see the umbreon was with you!" she frantically apologized. "Do you know what he wants?"
"Nope," Aurelein answered.
"Ok then," Cindy muttered. She turned back towards the tables. "Mike! What do we give the umbreon?"
"I don't know! Probably just water!" Mike shouted back.
"Throw in a couple of lemonades," Aurelein suggested. He'll probably like it. They both looked down at the umbreon. Kieren rolled his front shoulders – the quadruped equivalent of a shrug.
Cindy dashed back and pulled out two water bottles from the cooler.
"Aurelein! Catch!" she shouted while tossing one of the water bottles. Aurelein was caught off guard by her throw and couldn't pull his hands out of his pockets fast enough. The bottle bounced off the palm of his hand and fell out of his grasp before he could wrap his fingers around the wet plastic tightly enough. He looked down to see the bottle gripped tightly in the umbreon's mouth.
"Wow, did he just catch that?" Aurelein could hear Cindy ask Mike.
"Snagged 'er last second," Mike answered while Kieren placed the bottle in a pouch of his golf bag. Aurelein watched in amusement as Cindy tossed the next 3 bottles, two lemonade, all of which Kieren caught with impeccable precision and ease.
"I wonder who trained him," Aurelein told Cindy as she approached him, his gaze never leaving the black quadruped.
"Have you met his trainer?" Cindy asked.
"I think he's wild," Aurelein told her.
"Wild?" Cindy asked incredulous.
"There's a reserved valley just south of the city where a tribe of strong eevee live. Rumor has it he's from there," Aurelein explained.
"Rumor also has it he has a tricky past, so do you mind not talking about it?" Jackson interrupted. "See? He's already moving on." He pointed at the umbreon who was already dragging his bag up the hill.
"How'd you find out about this?" Aurelein asked.
"Dan Clesse himself informed me. He said he found a note left on his counter this morning all typed out detailing a recent tragic event. The fact that he's participating in a big public event is a bold, yet strategic move on his part to buy time. If something concerning comes up, notify Zach Clesse, and be sure not to say anything to Mason."
Aurelein nodded, recalling Kieren's previous reaction when he himself found out about Kieren's origins.
"Let's get going. We still have a little ways to walk yet," Jackson beckoned.
Aurelein agreed, and the two made a brief effort to catch up to the lone umbreon a few paces ahead.
"Ready to put on a show that would make your grandpa proud?" Aurelein asked Kieren as he caught up.
Kieren perked up, looked up at him, and smiled with a coo. He waited for Aurelein to say something else but soon realized Aurelein had nothing else to say. Instead, the human was taking in all the sights as the background noise of people slowly grew louder and louder with each step. Kieren mimicked Aurelein's actions, noting all the decorations and advertisements scattered everywhere. Of course Kieren couldn't read any of what the advertisements said, but the pictures were pretty. Cans of various beverages, some with yellow-tainted portraits while others silver with a giant blue flame, were marketed everywhere. Fascinatingly, exact real-world replicas of those cans could be found in the grass underneath those signs, void of liquid content. Kieren recognized many of the downtown logos, including the bank, the movie theatre, and even the stone shop. He even recognized that banking psyduck painted standing back to back with a man with a connect-the-dots game in the background along with some unreadable text. However, the kicker was the overly chiseled machop holding onto some box package and giving a thumbs-up. Metal bars and circles were present in the background of the image. To humans, the image of an extra-chiseled machop was probably a symbol for fitness. To pokemon, that machop was stoned!
Apparently Kieren was chuckling out lout, because Aurelein looked his way, before looking in the direction of the sign. He shrugged and returned to his nature observation. Kieren had to admit Mother Nature was beautiful here, but he'd already discovered that beauty three days ago. He was on the hunt for more stoned machop and other oddball advertisements.
The young umbreon was still by Aurelein's side when a giant rock in the sky floated over their heads. Kieren blinked a few more times, not sure if he saw that correctly. He soon located a logo on the rock, which meant it was some kind of human invention likely playing some role in the tournament. They reached the next flat break in the long climb, and instantly the noise of people flooded Kieren's ears. They were just up ahead. The triangles on ropes tripled in height and sported more fanciful patterns and emblems. Inside the decorative walls stood statues double Aurelein's height representing various humans swinging golf clubs.
"These must be past winners of this tournament," Aurelein explained. "The year is listed below each statue."
"You know they don't make a statue of you unless you're a legend," Kieren could hear his grandfather say, recalling back to the time he was recovering in the Pokemon Center. The realization hit Kieren like water cold as ice from an old lapras friend. This tournament wasn't just a fun gathering for anyone to compete in. This was a battleground of the best. A legend was going to be born here. Kieren shrunk to himself a little by the thoughts. He reminded himself he was only invited after that one human saw his scorecard. He was invited to this tournament for a reason, and even though he had few reasons to win, he could at least put on a show!
The young umbreon engaged game-face mode as the sounds of the crowd grew louder and louder. The sounds sank into his subconsciousness when the wind picked up, combing every strand of fur along his back, washing him in coolness just as his blood switched routes. Kieren glanced up to see Aurelein wearing the same serious expression staring straight up the last hill. Kieren straightened up and stiffened his stride. He knew where he was now. The tee box was just over the hill, marking the start of a competition bigger than anything Kieren had ever witnessed. He was going to compete, and he was going to prove his independence from the Eon tribe!
"Good luck to you!" Aurelein spoke in a serious, almost rivalry-induced tone of voice. Kieren nodded back. The challenge was on.
The noise of the crowd managed to penetrate Kieren's consciousness once again as Aurelein held up his left hand palm out. Kieren still could not see who he was gesturing to, but could hear that the crowd was really close now. He gazed at the hill's horizon revealing more and more of the skyline with each ascending step. A voice boomed through a set of loudspeakers announcing Aurelein's entry. Kieren did not bother listening to the crackled voice buried by the noise of the crowd. The horizon revealed green of the first hole's treetops. The noise from Aurelein's entry slowly faded as Aurelein disappeared ahead on the other side of the hill. The instructions Jackson was giving Kieren were all processed subconsciously, because all Kieren could focus on was the wind, the statues, and the faint crowd in the background. Kieren was one steep step away from the top. He allowed his hind legs to fold while his front legs shifted off his weight. Like a snap of a vine, he pushed his body up into the air smoothly onto the peak of the hill.
The blast of voices pounded his ears with such velocity his vision blurred as the sound overwhelmed all other senses. The powerful volume of the people was ceaseless; destroying any conceptualization of crowd noise Kieren had built up in his seventeen years of life. Not even the recent Evelescence ceremonies compared.
Kieren opened his eyes to the blinding sunlight revealing bright green outlined by a jumbled assortment of multidimensional rainbows. His vision gained focus, and soon the bright green transformed into the familiar sight of the hole one fairway. But on either side was a completely new sight to the umbreon. Each spec of color was a full human being, staring back at the umbreon and screaming words that blended into the pounding noise of the crowd. Kieren slowly began his wide-eyed descent down the hill entering the river of green between the banks of humans.
"Making his first appearance in the world of professional golf, he has already set a record for being the first pokemon to enter the Eon Invitational Tournament, and the first quadruped to enter a CSG Major. Ladies and gentlemen, Kieren Bluestripe!"
"We love Kieren!" shouted the first recognizable chorus of syllables from Kieren's sharp left. The chorus belonged to a nearby group of teenage girls holding a sign displaying unrecognizable text and a pink heart in the middle. Kieren gazed around, observing all the different sights littered throughout the crowd. Giant black mechanisms hoisted on the shoulders of several men could be seen at every corner of the fairway, each with tails of cabling disappearing into the crowds. Signs featuring both poor and awe-inspiring renditions of the golfing umbreon kept pulling Kieren's gaze in every direction. Even the trees were not spared of the people and signs, as faces and text poked out between the branches. Yet this was only minor compared to the walls of humans on either side of the hole. The sea of voices only stormed louder as Kieren wandered deeper into the event grounds.
Finally, Kieren's gaze shifted back to the course and what was right in front of him: the tee box. The chills of wind and blood returned to him yet again as the image of the statues replayed in his mind. His eyes narrowed; his march softened to a quiet, poised stride. He stared only at the hole ahead, already calculating the route to success and a "starly". He pulled off to the left only a few strides before the tee box, approaching Jackson and Aurelein's bag. Aurelein was already in the box studying the hole over and over again. The crowd quieted as Aurelein backed up and turned to set his feet. He looked up at the fairway before glancing down again. With sudden ferocity, he pulled the full length of his club over his head, switched directions, and blasted the head of the club through empty air at his feet. He repeated the process with three more warmups before stepping up a couple inches aligning the head of his club with his ball perfectly balanced on the tee.
Kieren hardly had a chance to blink before Aurelein's club tore through the ball and sent it flying off into the open sky. With careful sharp eye, Kieren traced the ball's path. The ball suddenly veered towards the left away from the direction of the hole. It bounced off the sloped hole and rolled back down into the valley where it stopped just shy of the longer grass. The crowd clapped in applause. Kieren could see a contempt smile across Aurelein's face. So the fairway was enough for this guy? Kieren could do better!
It was now Kieren's turn, and he knew exactly what he wanted to do. He released his bag from his tail and pulled out the heaviest club from inside. He gently tossed the club up on the tee box and turned back to his bag. The bottom right pouch was where he kept his supply of golf balls, tees, and markers. He pulled out a ball and tee which met his liking, and carried them up to the tee box. The pounding of the crowd returned, but a different set of images crossed his mind. It started with the night he stood on that podium, seeing Celestia's frightened expression as he left the stage alone, away from those who tried to kill him. He saw the friendly machoke sitting on the bench drinking the miracle beverage replenishing the fluids lost from sweat. Then there was Leon and Eddie, lost staring at the map, and again as Eddie ran ahead while Leon explained the world of the city to Kieren. And finally there was Mylan, laughing at himself for believing Kieren was out for him the first night they met. The ball was set in place. His steps were traced, marking the path between him and a solid strike with the ball. There was only one thing left to do: swing. The crowd was dead-silent, curious eyes watching the quadruped's approach to the popularized sport. Kieren relished in the quiet, and stared off into the fairway beyond. But he wasn't staring at the hole ahead, he was staring at his future. He closed his eyes, straightened his club, and loosened his grip.
"Kieren Bluestripe. Welcome to your new life."
Upon finishing those words, he tightened his grip, swung around in a circle, and smashed the ball with perfect precision.
The ball was steering off to the right of the fairway towards the longer grass. It descended, dodging right of a sand pit and bouncing in the long grass. The crowd began to gasp as the ball leaped into the air and tapped the sloped fairway "doglegging" to the right. The ball settled down onto the fairway and softly rolled backwards left towards the sand, but stopped in the small area of flat fairway behind the sand…
…Right where he wanted it.
Author's Note: So did you guys like it? Did you catch the clue? If not, it's totally fine. The story will make sense in the end. So it is August, meaning summer is almost over. That means it is time to start pushing event submissions. So name submission or event submission, that's your choice! But the magic number is 3! Normal reviews count for a re-updated chapter of choice (and choice of time), but must be specified. Good luck with the tournament hosting for the few of you who are into that! And for the rest of you, enjoy August! Don't let it escape as fast as it came! ~Dreaming I'm Latios