The first thing I saw when I entered the city was a large crowd of people gathered around the entrance. When I came into view, they started clapping and cheering. I glanced back at my Moemon to see that they had equally confused and concerned expressions on their faces. I stopped, immediately suspicious. We were being applauded, so these people knew who we were.

An older man stepped out of the crowd with a friendly smile on his face, teeth gleaming underneath a white goatee. "Ah, Arthur, is it?" He extended his hand. I nodded tentatively and shook his hand with even less assuredness. "Welcome to this fair city! I hope you find your stay here friendly and hospitable!"

He maintained that smile. When I didn't say anything, just staring at him in disbelief, the smile faltered slightly. "I am assuming that you just came from Cerulean City, correct?"

I nodded.

He nodded understandingly. "Well, then I understand your alarm and your mistrust. I have heard that you had trouble in that city. You can rest assured, however, that our city is free from the corruption and barbarism of that unfortunate place. We do not wish harm on Challengers or their Moemon; we celebrate them!"

I wanted to believe it. I wanted to believe he was telling the truth. The crowd behind him cheered after those words. It was such a welcome change; it was almost too good to be true. I just couldn't shake my suspicions, but I didn't want to start any trouble after such a warm introduction. I decided to act friendly, pretending to believe him just on the off chance that there was nothing wrong.

"Well, great!" I said, forcing a grin. "That's exactly what we're looking for: a city without police who'd point guns in my face."

There was a mixture of surprised gasps and relieved laughter from the crowd. Immediately after I spoke I saw flashes of light out of the corner of my eye. I looked to the left and saw several reporters, their cameras glued to their faces and pointing at us. Notepads were strapped on their chests, large and colorful.

The man stepped closer, taking my response as approval. "You have my word that nothing of the sort will happen to you in this city. I am the mayor of Vermilion City. It is my personal mission to ensure that your stay here on your journey to defeat the Elite Four is as carefree and relaxing as possible. I do hope you enjoy your stay."

He grabbed my hand again and turned to the reporters. He whispered to me barely moving his lips, "Smile and look at the cameras, son."

He had my hand in a fairly tight grip, and I couldn't get away. I had no choice. I simply smiled away and let the cameras blind me.

Once the reporters had gotten their front page stories, the crowd was dispersed by a police entourage and large men in suits. The mayor led me through the clearing and through the city. The city itself was extremely sunny and colorful. Nearly every building had an orange hue. It matched the weather; the sun beamed down on us constantly, and everyone wore swimwear to compensate. I didn't know how the men beside me were able to stand the heat in their suits.

It was a spacious town as well, much different from the crowded streets and alleys of Cerulean. There were parks and playgrounds everywhere, fountains and water geysers sprayed refreshing water constantly, tropical plants and trees lined the streets. A huge aquarium – the largest building in the city – was the centerpiece. Statues of various water-type Moemon lined the path leading up to it, and in front there was an even larger version of the sun statue outside the city. At the southwest corner of the city, there was a path leading up to a cliff where the fairly secluded gym sat. The gym had an orange picture of a Raichu in front of a lightning bolt on the sign, but otherwise it was as ordinary as the past gyms.

I didn't know how to read this mayor. He gave impressive descriptions of nearly every important building, so he had knowledge. He stopped in front of pedestrians to greet them personally, so he had charisma. And everyone seemed to love him and treat him with respect, and he did the same to them, so he had respect. He seemed on the surface to be a genuinely kind and caring leader.

"You keep looking at me with suspicion, Arthur," he said after we had seen the gym. "What did that awful city do to make you mistrust me so much?"

"I'm sorry," I said. I hadn't realized I was being so obvious. "I'm not trying to be suspicious."

"I understand some of your concerns. They are only natural for someone you have only just met. I just hope that I grow on you, and that you grow to enjoy my presence as much as I enjoy yours."

"I just… it's hard to be friendly with someone whose name I don't know."

He stopped, his eyes wide. "Oh, you're right! I've completely forgotten! I spent so long ensuring everything was accounted for that I forgot to open with my own name!" He stood up straight, his hands in his pockets, smiling proudly. "The name is Mayor Porter."


We reached the SS Anne, the giant cruise ship docked in one of many of the city's ports. It was massive, towering over most of the nearby buildings and stretching nearly the entirety of the port. A single gangplank rested on a pier and led up to the ship's bow. There was a large line of people on the pier facing a stand and security guard in front of the ramp.

"This is the pride of Vermilion. The SS Anne! Although decommissioned five years ago, it stands as a testament to the sheer power of human and Moemon ingenuity."

"Decommissioned," I repeated. "You mean it isn't running?"

"Unfortunately, it was nearly capsized attempting to fight the rough seas of Hoenn. It was salvaged after taking on an enormous amount of water and taken back to its home. The water was drained and the damage repaired, but it no longer sails. It was remade as a museum honoring the men, women, and Moemon who were responsible for its creation. I hope you'll visit it once during your time here."

"Absolutely," I said. "I wouldn't want to miss that."

Our last stop was the mayor's own house, a large orange building on the top of a hill, with white and orange gleaming steps leading up to it. He explained the many features of the house in such great detail that I quickly lost interest. He seemed like a genuinely proud, happy man, and it was refreshing to see an adult actually want what was best for me in this region with no catches. But at that moment, he was droning on and on, and I wanted nothing more than to escape.

When he finally finished, he shook my hand once again.

"I have work to attend to," he said. "I heard that there was another Challenger coming, and we must prepare for his arrival. If you would like to join us, I'll send for you. It will likely be a few hours."

"Another Challenger?" I repeated. I never even mentioned Eric. "How did you know that?"

"It is the job of the Mayor to know everything happening in his city," Mayor Porter explained with a wink. "If he does not, then he will not be able to make the best decisions for his people."

"Fair enough," I shrugged. "Sure, I'll join the crowd. Let me know, alright?"

"Of course, Arthur. I'll leave you to your exploring. Perhaps we shall have dinner tonight as well! I do want to get to know you."

"Sure," I said noncommittedly. I waved goodbye and went on my way. We rounded the corner and reached a fairly empty street. I turned around and looked at my Moemon, an expectant expression on my face. "What do you all think?"

"He was a nice man," said Annie, smiling.

Olivia nodded. "I wish other people acted like him."

"He was," I agreed. I glanced at Stacy. "Do you think he's genuine?"

"No one is genuine in this region," Stacy replied. "He has an ulterior motive."

I nodded. "That's exactly what I think."

"You're serious?" asked Olivia. "I can understand being suspicious of people in Cerulean City, but nobody there treated you like that mayor did. He spent a lot of time and energy to give you a warm welcome."

"And nobody in power does that for free," I countered. "Either he wants something from me, or doing this will benefit him in some other way."

"We've only just met him," said Rose. "Perhaps we should wait before assuming he wants something from you."

"Just be wary when dealing with him," I warned. "Until we know exactly what he wants. We don't want to be making promises or saying anything we'll regret later."


We decided to eat lunch at a nearby café, eating outside to enjoy the sunlight and watch the people interact. Everyone was friendly with one another, smiling and chatting. Kids were playing at the playground across the street. Couples chatted on benches and tables. A pair of curious teenagers walked up to us and asked us a few questions about our journey so far. I was – of course, given the age of our last opponents – suspicious of them at first, but they simply seemed curious and didn't want to battle.

When they left, another pair of people replaced them. Two of the men following us on the tour.

"Arthur," said one. He had a deep, intimidating voice. "Mayor Porter asked us to let you know that it is nearly time."

"We'll escort you to the northern entrance of the city," said the other in an equally deep voice.

I was wary of the intimidating escort, but I didn't know the city well enough to maneuver through it on my own. We returned to the city's entrance to find that Eric had already crossed the border. He was shaking hands with the mayor, his face contorted into an amusingly confused expression, when we walked through the crowd. He seemed relieved to see a familiar face.

"Ah, Arthur!" said Mayor Porter. "I'm glad you were able to make it."

I nodded, giving him a friendly smile. "You caught your Moemon, then?" I asked.

Eric glanced at the mayor, and then nodded. He pointed down at his feet, where a Poliwag was hiding from the eyes of the crowd. "Polly," he said.

"Clever," I retorted. He glared at me.

"I'm glad you two are so friendly with each other," Mayor Porter interjected. He had drawn me closer and had an arm over both of our shoulders, posing for the cameras. "You're able to make jokes with one another. It brings a tear to my eye. I have already given Arthur here a tour of the city, but he is always welcome to join us as we walk."

"I'll walk on my own," I said. "Eric loves houses, by the way. He'd love to hear about your house. It was the best part."

"Wonderful!" Mayor Porter smiled happily. "I'm so glad to hear that! I have a great affinity for housing myself." He led Eric away, beginning a speech about the origins of his own house. Eric glanced back at me helplessly, but I simply waved him away.

Before I could leave, the reporters had walked up to me – six of them in total – and thrusted microphones in my face.

"We'd like to ask you a few questions," said one young pretty woman. "Casey Andrews, Moemon News, what are your first impressions of Mayor Porter? Would you say-"

"I thought it was illegal to record Challengers," I said. Getting interrogated by the news was the last thing I wanted to do.

"There are no cameras here," said Casey. "This is a written interview. Nothing is recorded. Now then-"

"No thanks," I said. "We have some training to do."

And mercifully that was that. The reporters let us walk out of the city. We walked under the torii and moved out of sight.

"We're really going to train already?" Christine asked. "I'm glad you changed your mind!"

"It was the first thing I could think of," I explained. "I just didn't want to get interviewed."

"Why not?" asked Annie. "It looked like fun."

"The less attention we draw to ourselves, the better," I said.

"We're doing a poor job," muttered Mandy. "The whole city knows we're here."

"Better the whole city than the whole region," I said. Word will spread. That much I knew. We were still fairly close to Saffron – the city that the Hunters' HQ was located – so we were still in danger of getting challenged. If I had finished the interview, and that interview went on television, then there was no chance of us hiding.

"We will not be able to avoid them forever," said Rose. "They will report on us whether we want it or not."

"Until then, we stay inconspicuous," I said.

Deciding to give my lie some validity, we did train much of that afternoon. Little of importance happened; everyone gained a level or two. The most exciting thing was that Rose learned Giga Drain, which would help immensely. Our session was interrupted by the same pair of large men walking up to us while we were resting.

"The Mayor would like you to join him for dinner," said one.

"Dinner sounds great," I said.

And so we were led to the mayor's house. The inside was just as orange as the outside, but it was a duller shade that was more pleasant on the eyes. The house was lavish and luxurious and certainly a sign of wealth. A giant table filled the dining room, several cloches placed on it covering many foods. The mayor, Eric, and his Moemon were already seated, speaking in whispers.

When we entered, the mayor stood up, his arms open wide. "I'm glad you could make it, Arthur! I hope you're hungry. We have excellent chefs. The best in the region!"

"Starving," I replied. I decided to sit on the other side of Mayor Porter, right across from Eric. Mayor Porter seemed pleased with that. Eric less so.

"We were just discussing the matter of your challenge," said Mayor Porter as we began eating. "How you were brought to this region and what it meant for you."

"Oh?" I said, eyeing Eric. "I didn't know we were telling people about that."

Eric glanced down guiltily. "It's nothing to be ashamed of," Mayor Porter said. "It is a similar story to the numerous other Challengers who are brought to this world. Few of them are brought here willingly. Fewer leave happy."

"What else did Eric tell you?"

"Actually, you arrived before he could tell me much else," Mayor Porter replied. "I would love to hear about the trials you had to overcome. You are so early in your adventure, yet you seem more prepared for this world than any who have come before you. You must have had to ordeal numerous hardships to be so experienced."

"I'm just naturally suspicious," I said. "I don't think I'm prepared."

"Naturally, of course. Suspicion is good. In this region, with your status, it is very difficult to trust people." Mayor Porter smiled knowingly. "I am more inclined to trust Challengers who do not trust me than those who do. It shows knowledge."

"Or paranoia," Eric muttered.

Mayor Porter laughed. "Or that, yes. I simply hope the mistrust fades away with time. I do not expect you to stay long in my city, so I hope that the impression I give you is a lasting one."

"It's definitely the warmest welcome I've ever had," I said. "An entire audience clapping for me entering the city? It was amazing."

"I'm glad you enjoyed it!"

"It was fantastic," said Eric. "I hope the other cities are willing to do what you did."

"I hope so as well," said Mayor Porter. "If they don't, then they simply aren't good hosts." He chuckled.

"Have you talked with the others?" Eric asked. "I haven't gotten a call from anyone all day."

"They're coming," I said vaguely, not wanting to give this stranger all of our secrets. "Everyone's okay."

"That's good to hear," said Mayor Porter. "How many Challengers will be traveling to Vermilion City?"

"You'll probably see them all eventually," said Eric. "They'll all pass by this city." Eric didn't seem to share my resolve for keeping secrets. At least he didn't give a number. He continued, "We have watches that tell us where everyone is. Most of them are still in Cerulean."

"Oh, interesting," said Mayor Porter. "Do you mind if I take a look?"

"Of course not-"

"Eric!" I said firmly. He looked at me in confusion. "I don't think some of them would appreciate you giving away their positions."

"Would you two like to discuss something in private?" Mayor Porter asked suddenly, standing up. "I fear that the comradery between you is not as genuine as I had believed."

He left the room. I leaned over the table and whispered, "He would've found Hannah!"

"Oh, shit," Eric muttered. "I forgot about her."

"Why are you telling him so much stuff?" I asked. "Weren't you going off on me talking to Hunter X? Now you're telling him everything right in front of me!"

"He's not a Bounty Hunter," Eric argued. "He's a mayor!"

"Who can sell information to the Bounty Hunters for money and power!" I countered.

"You're being paranoid! He wouldn't do that!"

"Two hours ago you had no idea he existed. You have no idea what he will and won't do!" I said. "My paranoia is justified, you idiot."

"I'm not an idiot!"

"Then don't tell him anything! You might be fucking us all over!"

"What am I supposed to do then? Accuse him of trying to betray us to his face like you are? I'm not an asshole!"

"Then you wouldn't be trying to fuck us all over."

We sat in silence, stewing in our frustration. When the whispers seemed to have died down, Mayor Porter walked back into the room, a cautious expression on his face.

"I trust that the matter was settled," he said. "If you wish to eat in silence, we could do that. I do not mind."

"We're fine," I said. "Just… let's ask you some questions."

"Of course. I am an open book."

"The SS Anne. How long ago was it turned into a museum?"

"It was decommissioned three years ago. It was renovated over the course of a year, and then it was opened early last year. We still get tourists from around the region."

"Is it free?" asked Eric.

"I could get you free tickets," Mayor Porter offered. "You and any Challengers who wish to join you. I do not want any of you to miss that experience."

"That'd be awesome!" I said. The mask of friendliness was back on.

"If you want anything, simply ask me," said Mayor Porter. "Challengers are celebrities. Anything they want, they get."

"I don't want to impose," said Eric. "Thanks for the offer, though."

"Not at all. Nobody minds. We love Challengers. You'll be taking pictures, signing autographs, giving interviews. You get special treatment here."

"That's awesome!" said Eric.

I didn't share his enthusiasm. "Is there… no way you could tell everyone not to do those things? We were trying to keep in secret."

"Oh, yes, I had forgotten about the Challenger Identity Protection Act last year," said Mayor Porter. "Unfortunately, I do not believe I could tell everyone. And if you deny anyone, they'll be disappointed, but you could still remain as anonymous as possible. It isn't much, but it's something."

"Challenger…" Eric tried to repeat. "Is that law preventing cameras from following us?"

Mayor Porter nodded. "One of the great things President Monroe has done for the region and its people. He is a good friend of mine, and he is a very respectable man."

"I heard about him," said Eric. "He's the leader of this region."

"He is. I don't believe you should know much about him, being here for such a short time, but know that he is the greatest President our region has ever known. I admire him greatly."

"He also paid for the statue," I said. "Outside the city."

"He is also a generous man," Mayor Porter added. "The statue was a gift, paid for out of his own pocket. A miniature version of my own gift, which I hope you noticed outside the aquarium."

"It's an impressive statue," I nodded. "Definitely dwarfs the President's."

Mayor Porter liked that remark, his face beaming. "I do hope that one day I am as great as he is. That one day might be soon."

"What do you mean?" Eric asked.

"The President has run this great nation for six years, which means that this is his final year. He will choose his successor in only a few months, and I have great faith that it will be. The people love me, and I love them. I only want what is best for this nation. I believe I am the only one capable of successfully filling the giant shoes of President Monroe."

"I hope you're able to do it," said Eric.

"I hope so as well. The people support me entirely, and I have full faith in their faith." He laughed at his own joke.

Eric was impressed, but I sat believing that I had found the ulterior motive. I started piecing together the clues: the kindness, the friendliness, the generosity. If Challengers were celebrities, then being so kind with us would certainly give him more admiration and subsequent attention. If that was his game, then I'd play. So long as he didn't ask me to risk anything for him, then I was okay with the kindness.

"Why do you think you'll be the one he chooses?" I asked.

"We are good friends," Mayor Porter replied. "We have been ever since our chance meeting many decades ago. I think of him as a mentor, and I try to mirror how he would act."

"I'd like to hear about that meeting," I said.

His eyes lit up. "Oh, now that is an interesting story. You see, he was the previous mayor of Vermilion City before myself. He owned this very house. I was only a simple Professor at the city's university. One day, the mayor came to visit and speak with the students. I missed his speech, unfortunately, helping a graduate student with his thesis, but he happened to pass by my very classroom.

"'Why, Mayor Monroe, what do I owe the pleasure?' I asked.

"'Well, Professor Porter, I had heard from some very enthusiastic students that you were the man to talk to about the needs of the pupils, so I decided to stop by to ask a few things.'

"'Of course, of course,' I replied. 'Whatever I can do to help.'

"And he stayed, and we spoke for hours about a whole manner of problems that I felt needed to be addressed about the university, the city, and the nation. We spoke for so long in fact-" and at that point Mayor Porter broke off to laugh. "-there was an announcement over the PA system about a potential kidnapping of the mayor.

"And so I said, 'Well, I'm sorry sir. I believe I caused your people a lot of unnecessary pain.'

"And he replied, 'I believe it's time for you to collect your reward. I never would have expected a university professor was able to kidnap the mayor.'

"And after laughing, we returned to the mayor's people and relieved them of their worries. I did not get a reward, although I did get the companionship of a new friend. We met several times during his run as mayor and several more after he was declared this nation's new President. It has been a while since our last meeting, but we always had good things to say about each other."

He stared longingly at his plate. "I do hope he's doing well. I would like to meet with him one last time."


Arthur:

Christine the Charmeleon

Stacy the Staravia

Mandy the Mankey

Rose the Roselia

Olivia the Dewott

Annie the Aron

Eric:

Sarah the Servine

Glenda the Psyduck

Shelly the Shuckle

Hilda the Hippopotas

Deidre the Drilbur

Polly the Poliwag