OH DAMN IS THAT AN UPDATE I SEE? IN JUST ONE WEEK?! WHAT IS GOING ON?!
Man I cannot remember the last time I uploaded consecutively like this. Probably not since I started writing this so many years ago. I have been feeling a little inspired to write though, plus this chapter is shorter than usual.
This chapter is the final scenes leading up to the tournament, so it may not be too exciting. I hope you enjoy it nonetheless~
Cobalt's POV
"Mom! Moooooom!" I barged through the front door and ran up the stairs to our living quarters within the clinic, frantically searching for Mom.
"Cobalt...?" Mom was sitting in the living room with a book. Sadness was plastered on her face, most likely because Mint and Mr. Ray called and informed her of what had happened. Her face completely turned around however when I suddenly grabbed her hand and urged her to follow me to the backyard. "What are you doing Cobalt?"
"Mom, follow me, please!" I helped her up from the couch and ran to the backyard with her hand in my paw. When we reached the backyard the Audino was bent over, trying to catch her breath.
"Oh dear... It would appear I am a bit out of s-shape..." She gasped for air. "Now, what is the meaning of this?"
"Mom, look!" I got into position and swiftly performed a Blaze Kick. "I did it Mom! I really did it!"
The Audino gasped, her light blue eyes widened and awestruck. "Y-You did it?! H-How?! Ray called me not too long ago and told me you failed and ran off!"
"I don't know! I ran off into the forest and I..." I took a deep breath, trying to contain my excitement from mastering the move I had worked so hard to learn. "I ran into Auburn there. She... She let out all her pain to me. She was scared Mom. She told me how so, so, scared she was for tomorrow... And I was just so frustrated because I couldn't do anything. I felt so worthless at the moment. When Auburn left, I just let it all out. I let out all my pent up frustrations out on the forest, and when I kicked a boulder, my leg was on fire! I couldn't believe it at first, so I did it over and over again, each time my leg engulfed in flames!"
"I see!" Mom nodded with her arms crossed. "I suppose right then and there, your world had finally crumbled. You finally had lost everything. You harnessed all that rage and frustration and converted it into blazing power, which resulted into Blaze Kick."
"Yeah..." I tightened my fists. Everything Mom said made sense. I had thought the past two months of hell was already painful enough, but that was just the tip of the iceberg. It wasn't until I had finally seen Auburn in despair was I able to find it in myself to turn that pain into a blazing kick.
"Auburn..." I whispered to myself. She has always been my source of courage. She is my source of everything. I wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for her. You could even say she is my reason for living. She blazes the flame of my life and gives me all the courage in the world. And now that I have the power to do so, I must protect her at all costs.
"Cobalt, are you prepared?" Mom said with stern expression. "This tournament will not be easy. You are at a disadvantage after all. Do you have the courage to move forward? Do you have the resolve to protect the one you love with all your heart? To win this tournament means to become the king of the Fire Kingdom. Are you able to handle all that?"
"Mom...?" I widened my eyes. Mom was being serious, though perhaps a little too extreme? No, the stakes at hand are that high. Everything she said was completely true. I shook my head to shake any doubts. "I will not hesitate anymore. I've been asking myself if I have the right to even enter this tournament. To have the right to become king of a nation that I'm not even from, of a type that I'm not am. But I have decided for myself that I will do this. I will enter the tournament. I will come out as victor. I will protect Auburn, I will protect the woman I love with all my heart. I'm honestly afraid Mom. I have no desire to become the king. But if it means I can protect Auburn and be by her side, I will gladly do anything."
Mom froze in place, completely awestruck. After a few seconds she blinked and let out a sigh of relief. "My, Cobalt you really all grown up, aren't you?" Mom stepped forward and gave me a hug. "I am so proud of you Son. I have no doubt in my mind you will win this. You may have a type disadvantage, but no one has a resolve or heart as strong as yours." Mom broke the hug and wiped the tears from her eyes. "Besides, you are my son! No son of mine will be taken down so easily!" She laughed and smiled warmly.
"Mom..." I felt tears starting to form. I shook my head to rid of them before they could start falling. "You're right! I can do this!" I looked up at the starry sky and stared at the moon shining brightly. "Heh, it's funny... Back in Miner's Town, I was always so nervous about living up to my parents' expectations and growing up to be a leader like my father. Now here I am, determined to become the king of the Fire Kingdom. What would my parents think if they could see me now?"
"They would be so proud of you Cobalt, to see their son has grown up to be such a strong young man with so much conviction. I'm sure right now they are watching down, smiled gleaming with pride for their son."
I continued looking up at the sky. The stars seemed to twinkle even brighter as Mom spoke of my parents watching over me. Trails of tears began falling down my face as I stared at the starlit sky. "Yeah... I hope so..."
Mom and I had arrived at the Fire Kingdom Coliseum very early in the morning. The coliseum was seldom used but is rather large. Several battlefields are held inside, with one large battlefield in the center as its main stadium. There are sometimes tournaments held here, though I never entered them, as you needed to be at least 18 to enter them. However I have watched many battles here with my friends. Though the thought of not being in the audience this time made me feel a little nervous.
While it was still early in the morning, the coliseum was bustling with Pokemon. Workers were preparing for the biggest event in the Fire Kingdom, scrambling all around the area, and doctors and nurses were setting up the infirmary, Mom included.
"Good morning Cream, Cobalt." Ms. Sana and her family greeted us. They had smiles on their face, yet I could tell in their eyes they weren't exactly happy, Mint especially.
"Good morning!" I greeted them with a huge smile on my face, causing them confusion.
"Cobalt, you're rather... cheerful." Mint said with a furrowed brow. "Are you okay?"
"I couldn't be better." I said with a grin.
"Cobalt... I know it must be painful that you can't enter the tournament, but there is no reason to feint joy." Mr. Ray voiced his concerns.
"On the contrary," I smirked and kicked the air, a trail of flames following my motions, "I will be entering the tournament!"
Mint and her family gasped, "C-Cobalt!" Mint ran up to me and placed her hands on my shoulder. "D-D-Did you just do Blaze Kick?!" I nodded while the Gardevoir shook me frantically. "H-How?! I-I thought it was impossible?!" I managed to escape Mint's frantic shaking of my body and explained what happened last time to her and her parents.
"That's..." Mint began to cry heavily, "So w-wonderful..." Mint hugged me tightly and planted her face on my shoulder. "I-I-I'm s-so happy..."
"Oh Mint..." I rubbed her back to comfort my sobbing friend.
"Wow, I'm so happy for you kid!" Mr. Ray patted my back. "All your hard work really paid off!"
"I-It truly did..." Mint broke her hug and rubbed her eyes to dry the tears. "Cobalt, you have to win this now."
"I will, I promise." I nodded with determination.
"My, this will make for an exciting tournament now." Ms. Sana commented. "Please do be careful Cobalt. While this tournament will be fully staffed with doctors and nurses, the less we have to work, the better."
"Yes, of course." I agreed.
"Well we must be off now. There is still much to be done. Good luck Cobalt." Ms. Sana bowed politely and left.
"You got this Cobalt! You've grown so much, I know what you can do!" Mr. Ray did a fist pump before following his wife.
"Son I need to be going as well." Mom stated.
"Okay Mom. I'm gonna go sign up and then do some last minute training!"
"Don't train too hard though!" Mom shook a finger, "You must conserve your energy. Mint, could you be a dear and tag along with Cobalt? Make sure he doesn't over do it and give him a good Heal Pulse when he needs it."
"Yes ma'am." Mint nodded.
"M-Mom, I said I'll be fine!" I whined.
"Cobalt you have a history of overdoing it. I'm taking every precaution here to make sure you are in top shape! Now I must be going, I'll see you later!" Mom ran off to work, leaving me alone with Mint.
"Geeze..." I sighed.
"She's just watching out for you. And Cream does have a point." The Gardevoir shrugged. "Come on, let's go see if the sign up desk is ready. I'll teleport us there!" Mint grabbed my hand before I could answer and within a blink of an eye we were at the entrance lobby of the coliseum.
"Wow, your teleporting skills have really improve." I was impressed.
"Well I am fully evolved now, it is only natural!" Mint bragged playfully.
"Oh, it's Cobalt and Mint! Hey!" The two of us turned around to see Tangelo working behind one of the counters.
"Tangelo!" Mint and I ran up to our Arcanine friend. "I forgot you were helping out with the tournament. Are you helping with signing up?"
"I sure am." Tangelo's eyes suddenly gleamed, "Dude, please tell me you are here to sign up! Please tell me you mastered Blaze Kick!"
"I did!" I took a step back and performed a Blaze Kick to prove it.
"Dude, sick!" Tangelo jumped over the counter and pounced on me. He locked me in his forelegs and gave me a playful noogie, "I knew you had it in you man! Hahaha!"
"Okay, okay, you can let go!" I escaped from Tangelo's grip and rubbed my head.
"Hahaha sorry man, I'm just so stoked!" Tangelo apologized and jumped back to his counter. "Here, let me personally sign you up!" Tangelo began typing away, "Let's see... Name: Cobalt... Species: Lucario... Age: 18... Hometown: Homura City... Known Fire Attacks: Blaze Kick... aannnnnddd done!" Tangelo grinned widely, "You're the first one signed up! That's definitely gotta mean you'll also end in first place!"
"That's not how tournaments work..." Mint shook her head, "But you aren't wrong. Cobalt is definitely going to win this."
"I'm sorry, did you just say Cobalt is going to win this?!" A voice shouted with disgust. There was only one Pokemon that voice could belong to. I turned around to see a Blaziken standing tall, looking down at me, as if he was some noble looking down at the peasants. Behind him was a Typhlosion, shuffling his hands nervously as if he didn't want to be here.
"Garnet." I spat. My eyes lowered angrily as he approached us.
"Mint you must be joking right? Cobalt, win this tournament? A Lucario? Is this some kind of twisted joke?!"
"It's not a joke Garnet." Mint stepped forward and crossed her arms, glaring at the tall Blaziken before us. "Cobalt is entering this tournament and he will be making sure the likes of you won't be ruining this kingdom!"
Garnet winced back at Mint's rather harsh words and piercing gaze. "Y-You do realize he's a Steel-type now, right?! He won't stand a chance! And the rules state he needs to know a Fire-type move! C-Cobalt doesn't know any—"
I interrupted Garnet's panicked words and did a Blaze Kick in front of his face, the flames just barely touching his shocked his.
"C-Cobalt...!" Jon's eyes lit up. He looked as if a weight had been lifted from his shoulders. The Typhlosion looked at me with hope and wide smile.
"N-No way..." Garnet took a step back. "T-That's i-impossible! You weren't born with that! How...?!"
"Because my resolve is stronger than anyone's in this entire kingdom." I took a step forward and looked up at Garnet with determination blazing in my eyes. "I will enter this tournament and stop you. I won't let anyone harm Auburn!"
Garnet's dark red eyes were wide open and his body began shuddering. He gritted his teeth and looked at me with fury. "It doesn't matter how strong your resolve is! I have a double type advantage against you. I'm not the same weak Combusken I was before. I'm way stronger than you, you couldn't possibly win!" Garnet shouted, trying to appear strong, but I could tell there was hesitation behind his words.
"We'll see about that." I said as I walked away from the trembling Blaziken. "I'll see you in the tournament." I stopped in my tracks and looked back at Garnet, who had fear written all over his face. "You better hope someone else defeats you." I said confidently before leaving.
"Cobalt...!" I heard Jon exclaim. Garnet surprisingly remained silent, while I heard Tangelo and Mint say something about how cool I was.
There were still a couple of hours before the tournament started. I headed to the park and decided to train alone, honing my Blaze Kick.
"Cobalt, there you are!" I heard Mint called out my name. Behind her were the rest of my friends, minus Tangelo and of course Auburn.
"COOOOBBBBBAAAAAAAAAAALLLLTTTT!" Masello shouted and jumped onto me full force, "My good chum!"
"M-Masello, please d-don—OOF!" I grunted as the heavy Numel pounced and landed on top of me.
"Oh my goodness, I am so so so SO happy!" Masello began crying as he nuzzled against me. "You really really did it!"
"He really did it! He did it he did it!" Tea repeated happily as she spun in the air, her face flushed with a pink blush, "Coburnt is gonna be a reality! Ohmigosh I'm so happy!"
"He really did it..." Aika sniffled, the Mightyena rubbing her paws over her pink eyes, "All that hard work..."
"Cobalt, you're so cool! Mint told us everything! Even your confrontation with Garnet!" Maple cheered happily, "If you and Auburn weren't so madly in love with each other I might be falling for you right now!"
"M-M-Maple!" I shouted in embarrassment as I shoved the heavy Numel off me. "P-Please don't say things like that!" I covered my face, which was dyed in red.
"Which part? Auburn loving you or me loving you?" Maple tilted her head cutely.
"B-Both!" I blushed heavily.
"Aw, but we know it's true!" The Braixen nudged me with a sly grin on her face. "Everyone knows Auburn's totally in love with you. Why do you think so many of us supported Coburnt for so long?"
"G-Guys, p-please..." My heart was pounding loudly now. I wanted to believe Maple's words, but I can't know for sure if Auburn really is in love with me.
"Okay, that's enough." Mint clapped her hands to get our attention. "We are here to help Cobalt train, not embarrass him."
"That's right!" Maple said rather enthusiastically and pulled the wand sticking out of her tail, twirling it skillfully with flames dancing. "I know I'm not much of a fighter, but I'm here to make sure you can withstand some fire!"
"I hope you're ready!" Aika got in position, her fangs flaring up.
"W-We'll help too!" Tea shouted, her yellow eyes gleaming. Masello stood beside her, smoke fuming from his hump and getting ready to fight.
"Count me in, chum!"
"H-Hey now, four against one is hardly fair!" Mint cried.
"It's okay Mint!" I held my paws out and formed a bone-shaped staff with my aura. "I can handle this!" I got in position with a smirk. "I've been training like crazy for the past month, come at me with all you got!"
I continued to train with my friends for the next few hours. It was rough, but I manged to come out as victor against my four friends during our initial battle. Maple, Masello, and Tea weren't fighters so I defeated them with little difficulty. Aika however definitely put up a fight. I could see Mint shaking her head as she healed up my defeated friends. After that battle I practiced blocking fire and such.
"Cobalt we should get going." Mint stated after giving me one last Heal Pulse. "The tournament's going to start soon. I suggest you spend the rest of the time resting."
"Thanks Mint." I wiped the sweat off my forehead and bit into the the Sitrus berry she handed to me to restore more of my energy.
"Good luck Cobalt." Maple walked up and offered her paw to shake, which I accepted. Maple looked straight at me with her purple eyes. "You better win this. I won't forgive you if you don't!"
"I'll be watching all of your matches and cheering for you!" Masello jumped happily. "Surely my cheers will give you all the energy and power you need to overcome any obstacle!"
"M-Me too!" Tea added. "I-I know I'm usually quiet... But I'll raise my voice just for you!"
"Watch for us in the audience! You should be able to find us easily from all our loud cheering!" Aika winked.
"Thanks everyone. Thank you all for everything." I bowed politely. "I'll do my best and come out as victor. Let's go Mint." I nodded at the Gardevoir.
"Right. We'll see you guys later." Mint nodded back and teleported us back at the coliseum.
We arrived in a within seconds. The place was much more crowed than it was just a couple hours ago. Banners with the symbol of the Fire Kingdom decorated the area and Pokemon from all over the entire kingdom filled the surrounding area.
"Okay Cobalt, this is where we split up. I need to go back to the infirmary. I believe all the fighters have their own waiting room, so you should head to yours and try to relax." Mint instructed me. She let out her hand, offering me to shake it. "Good luck my friend."
"Right." I nodded and shook her hand. "Thank you Mint."
"Cobalt, I believe in you." Mint looked at me with determination and hope. "You have to stop Garnet." She broke the hand shake and teleported away. I smiled and walked towards the entrance lobby.
"Yo, Cobalt!" Tangelo waved over at me behind the counter for sign ups.
"Hey." I approached the Arcanine.
"Check it out!" Tangelo pointed at one of the large screens displayed, "The bracket for the tournament is up!"
"Oh!" I looked up at scanned the screen. "Hmm, there's a lot less fighters than I anticipated."
"Well that's because there was an entry limit. It was on the flier." Tangelo stated. I don't recall that being on the flier, but perhaps I was just too distracted from the other rules that I forgot. "We don't want the tournament to last all day, so they made sure only the first 32 fighters could enter."
"I see..." I nodded as I scanned over the bracket. "Heh, I'm the only non-Fire-type. As expected."
"Yeah! Everyone's shocked to see that you're entering! No one knew you could use Blaze Kick so they never expected you would enter! Boy are they glad though, I've seen a bunch of our old classmates being so hyped that you're entering!"
"I-I-I s-see..." I blushed heavily. Everyone really did ship me with Auburn... "W-Wait a second." I noticed something about the bracket. The bracket was split into two halves, with the winner of each half battling it out in the finals. "Tangelo..."
"Yeeesss?" Tangelo said rather suspiciously.
"Garnet and I are in separate brackets..."
"Uh-huh..."
"S-So that means in order to fully protect Auburn, I have to meet him in the finals..."
"Uh-huh..."
"...Did you have something to do with that?" I glared at him, who avoided my gaze and whistled. "T-Tangelo!"
"What's the problem? You're in this to win it aren't you? Don't tell me you really were just gonna drop out as soon as you made sure everyone that was left in the tournament was for sure gonna be a nice guy for Auburn?"
"W-W-Well..." I stuttered. It is true that I do want to win Auburn's heart, and that I came in this with a strong resolve, but now that I'm here I feel like I'm starting to get cold feet...
"See, I had a feeling you were gonna get like this, even though you worked so hard and had such a strong conviction. So I just had to tweak the tournament juuuuust a tiny bit!"
"Well, thanks I guess..." I sighed heavily.
"Come on Cobalt, cheer up!" Tangelo jumped over the counter and patted my back to comfort me. "You made it dude! I know how badly you want this!"
"Y-You're right!" I said enthusiastically, "This has been my goal for the last two months, I got this!"
"That's the spirit dude!" Tangelo cheered. "Come on, I'll show you where your waiting room is." Tangelo gestured me to follow.
Tangelo led me down a hallway that was blocked off and had a sign that said "Staff and Participants Only." The hallway itself was rather long and wide, with several Pokemon walking about and doors on each side with numbers on them. Surprisingly though, we stopped at the first door which had a 1 on it.
"Here's your room. You were the first one to enter which means you're in room number 1." Tangelo then gestured at the room across from us which had a 2 written on it. "Garnet actually signed up right after you, so his room is there. Best if you avoid that."
"Right, thanks Tangelo."
"Good luck dude!" Tangelo said before running off back to the entrance lobby. I waved him bye and opened the door to my room.
"Cobalt!" A concerned Ninetales sat in the middle of my room.
"A-Auburn?!" I gasped, not expecting to see her, or anyone as a matter of fact, in my room. "W-What are you doing here?!"
"I should be the one asking that!" Auburn marched up to me and glared at me with stern eyes. "What do you think you are doing in this tournament?! How did you even enter?! I didn't know you knew any Fire-type attacks!"
"H-Huh?" I was flabbergasted. Was she mad at me for entering? I stood silently in my shocked state and at a loss for words. "I-I..." Suddenly Auburn pulled me into a hug.
"What do you think you're doing you silly Lucario?" Auburn choked. Was she... crying? "Don't you know how dangerous this is? You're a Steel-type! You're going to hurt yourself!"
"A-Auburn..." I hesitated to return her hug. She's... worried about me? "I..." I gulped. Do I tell her my true intentions? If I did, that would practically be the same as confessing my love. I don't think I'm mentally prepared to do that just yet. This whole time I was so distracted with trying to enter the tournament, I didn't even bother thinking of how Auburn would feel about it.
I gulped and eventually returned her hug. "I'm here to protect you Auburn."
"Protect me?" Auburn sniffled and looked up at me. Her blazing red eyes... they sparkled beautifully with her tears glistering in them.
"I'm going to defeat anyone that isn't suitable enough to be your husband. I'm going to make sure that your future king is worthy of you and will treat you right. I will make sure he has no malicious intentions. I'm here to make sure Garnet doesn't win." I gulped. While my first priority is to make sure Garnet doesn't win, in order for me to even face him I would need to come out as the winner of my half of the bracket. Defeating him would mean winning the tournament, and I needed to avoid implying that that were my true intentions.
Auburn remained silent, causing me to break a sweat. Perhaps she's already seen the bracket and knows that for me to beat Garnet we would need to meet in the finals. "I see..." She finally broke the silence. She buried her face into my chest and tightened her hug. "Cobalt... You're always there for me... I don't know what I'd do without you. Thank you so much, my best friend."
Friend...
"Cobalt." Auburn took a step back and wiped her tears. "I appreciate you entering the tournament for my sake, but please, don't do anything too reckless. You're at a major type disadvantage here, and..." Auburn shuddered. She lowered her head and started to sniffle again. "A-And if I were to lose you... I-I don't know what I would do. This tournament isn't a fight to the death or anything dangerous, b-but I can't shake this nagging feeling some thing is going to happen to you." Auburn was now sobbing loudly. The ground below her became darker and wet from her tears. "Losing you would be a million times worst than marrying Garnet a-and I-I-I..."
"Auburn." I softly placed a paw under her chin and lifted her head, those blazing red eyes wet with tears making contact with mine. I used my other paw to wipe the tears off her cheeks. "Don't worry. I'll be fine. I promise. I won't leave you. Ever."
"C-C-Cobalt..." Auburn covered her face with her paws. Behind her paws, I could see her cheeks was covered in a deep red blush. There was a strange pain in my chest as I watched the girl I was madly in love with crying loudly. My heart shattered from seeing her in pain, and yet it pounded with hope seeing her blush heavily. Again, everyone's words repeated in my head as they all suggested that Auburn felt the same way.
I once again felt a strong urge to confess, but I had to fight it. This wasn't the time or place for such words. For now, I needed to stay strong and focus on the tournament.
Auburn wiped her tears again and shook her head. "S-Sorry Cobalt. Today's been pretty hectic and I'm kinda on edge right now. F-Forgive me..."
"It's okay Auburn." I reassured her, "Everything will be okay."
"Thank you again Cobalt, for everything." Auburn gave one last sniffle and smiled brightly. That beautiful and genuine smile of hers. That smile could melt the coldest of hearts. "I shall take my leave now. Rest up, you'll need it." Auburn headed to the door. She stopped when she grabbed the door knob, "And again, please be careful."
"I will. Thank you Your Highness." I bowed playfully.
"Hehe... Oh Cobalt." She giggled. "I..." She suddenly frowned and looked down.
"Auburn?"
"Oh nothing." She shook her head, "Good luck Cobalt. I'll be rooting for you." She said with a blush and quickly left the room. I stood alone in the room with a deep blush on covering my cheeks.
"S-She said she'll be rooting for me... D-Does that mean...?" I said quietly to myself. Perhaps she really does... I shook my head and sighed heavily.
"I love you..."
I spent the rest of the remaining time I had resting in my waiting room. The room was small, with only a couch, a mini fridge with some water and berries, and a restroom. There was also a TV hanging on the wall playing the news coverage of the tournament. I lied on the couch lost in my thoughts until an announcement played on the intercom.
Attention all fighters, please head to the main battlefield for the opening ceremony. The tournament will begin shortly afterwards.
"Well this is it." I jumped off the couch. I exited my room and saw all the other fighters in the hall. The only ones I recognized were Garnet and Jon. The two of them saw me and didn't say a word. Garnet glared at me and walked off, following the rest of the fighters. Jon acknowledged me with a weak smile and followed his friend. I did the same and headed out to the center battlefield of the coliseum.
A staff member instructed us to wait for the announcer to call us down. I looked out the hall and could already see that the place was completely packed. The cheers of the audience echoed all the way back here.
"...And now, everyone give a hand for our 32 fighters!"
"That's the cue, please enter in a uniform straight line!" The staff member shouted loudly, not to be lost in the loud cheers of the crowd.
"This is it Cobalt." Jon whispered to me. I was too lost in thought to even realize that I had been standing behind him. "I never expected you to be entering, but man am I relieved."
"O-Oh, Jon...!" I stuttered, "Yeah..."
"Jon, shut up!" Garnet snarled at his friend, causing the Typhlosion to wince. I looked up at the Blaziken standing in front of him as he gave me a death glare. I returned his glare, he answered with a roll of his eyes.
The line began moving and soon we entered the battlefield. It was somewhat dark where we were waiting, so eyes winced as we entered the bright stadium. A grand fanfare played from the Homura City Orchestra played loudly while we headed to the center. Cheers and shouts filled out crowed stadium, cheering for their favorite fighter. I even managed to hear some Pokemon cheering out my name. I looked around and found Aika, Masello, Maple, Tea, Tangelo and their families were sitting together holding a huge banner that said "GO COBALT!" written on it while cheering for me loudly. I couldn't help but blush from embarrassment.
When we reached the center of the battlefield we halted and looked straight forward. Right before us in the audience on the closest level was a closed off, fancy looking seating area. There were only three Pokemon occupying the space: the royal family. Auburn sat in the center, with her parents on each of her sides. I focused my view on Auburn, completely tuning out the announcer and the loud audience. The expression on her face, it was obvious she was conflicted. She clearly did not want to be there. Her fiery red eyes, usually blazing with life, looked dull and melancholic. Seeing her like this only strengthened my vow to win this tournament.
"...And last but not least, we have Cobalt the Lucario! Our only non-Fire-type participant!" The announcer introduced me suddenly, snapping my focus off of Auburn. I hadn't even realized he was giving each of us introductions. "This courageous young man is childhood friends with the princess herself and has a rather tragic past! His life was in danger and the princess saved him! Is he here to return the favor?! Or is there perhaps more behind him entering?!"
The crowd roared as he finished his introduction. My face was on fire though from the implications he made from me being here. I made a mental note to give Tangelo a piece of my mind, as he probably had something to do with that introduction...
I once again scanned the audience as they clapped and cheering, chanting my name. I couldn't help but feel somewhat inspired, despite the embarrassment, at how much the crowd was cheering for me. Even the workers and healers on the sidelines were cheering for me. I noticed Mom and Mint and her parents among the healers cheering loudly and chanting my name. I turned my attention over to the royal family's VIP seating and saw that all three of them had smiles on their face. The life seemed to be blazing once again in Auburn's eyes as our eyes met, her cheeks a light shade of pink.
"...And with that, that is all of our participants! That concludes the opening ceremony! The tournament will begin shortly, please turn your attention to the closest monitor to see which battlefield each fight will be taking place at to watch your favorite fighter duke it out for the princess' heart! Which one of them will come out on top?! Stay tuned to find out!"
I looked up at the monitor nearby and saw that I was actually one of the first fighters and that my first match will be right here in this stadium, no doubt thanks to Tangelo. There are only so many battlefields here in the coliseum so not all the battles can happen at once.
I took one deep breath and looked over at Auburn again. Our eyes met once more, and the Ninetales gave me a worried expression. I nodded, trying to reassure her. She smiled weakly and returned my nod. I placed a paw on my chest and gave one last heavy sigh.
"Don't worry Auburn. I will protect you."
The tournament's finally here! We are reaching the climax of the story! I can't believe we've made it this far, and I can't believe it almost took me 5 years to get here lmao I'm sorry! I said we would make it one day though, no matter how long it took!
To all my readers, I'm truly sorry that I've been going so slowly with this story, but man it has gotten into something so much bigger than I expected. I ended up adding too many characters and Cobalt slowly drifted from being the only main character. Thank you so much though for still following the story though. It's truly surreal to me that there are still people that follow my story even after all these years. I do hope you'll continue to stick along until the very end!
I highly doubt the next chapter will come out as quickly as this one did. As I've stated in the past, I'm terrible at writing action scenes, so I have no idea how I'm gonna make this tournament sound epic... I'll do my best though!
Thanks for reading!
