Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon, or any other property in this work that I didn't make myself.
Bea and the autistic gym challenger
Chapter twelve: Stow-on-Side arc part two- The stadium restaurant's grand opening tournament
It was obvious that Stow-on-Side was going to be a hub of activity for some time due to how concentrated all of the best gym challengers in this year's gym challenge are here. There was, of course, the fact that all of them were going to be challenging my gym soon, but before any of that business could go down, there was the grand opening of the stadium restaurant that had been commissioned by my friend Marina's dad Kankuro, one of the commissionery board members for the Galar Pokemon League. My dad was one of the men who had been working hard on building the dinner and a show type restaurant where all of the shows were going to be Pokemon battles.
And kicking off the grand opening was a tournament where the top eight favored gym challengers would face off against one another. This was also going to be a televised event, which would not only feed more into the maw that was people across Galar eagerly consuming any news related to the current gym challenge, but also get a bit of advertising for the stadium restaurant for free. A win-win for Commissioner Kankuro.
In fact, tickets had to be sold due to such high demand to come in and watch the tournament. There was even a betting ring being set up where one could place bets on who would end up winning the tournament and claiming the prize of a dozen Comet Shards. I had heard through hearsay that the two gym challengers that were bet on the most to win were Sashay and Bede, due to how highly ranked they were in the top eight. That was very much understandable, as the both of them have proven through their trek through the gym challenge thus far that they are by no means pushovers.
The grand opening took place the morning after the social party that Commissioner Kankuro had held to celebrate things. Wearing my gym leader uniform, I made my way to the stadium restaurant to watch the tournament; a seat had been reserved for me in a VIP section, so I had no worries about getting in to see the top eight favored gym challengers face off against one another. One of the perks of being a gym leader in Galar, I suppose, is being sent tickets to this kind of stuff by the various members of the commissionery board.
I was shown inside by a server girl that was hired to the restaurant, who led me right to the VIP section. Sitting there was Commissioner Kankuro himself. Not surprising me in the least was the fact that mother was there as well, along with the other members of the commissionery board; Rosalia, Robin, Hakurou, Tobias and Anahthyne. However, I was surprised to see that Champion Leon, as well as my fellow gym leader Piers, and of all people Gym Challenger Hop, were all there as well. The VIP section had ample room for such a party.
Right when I entered the VIP section, mother spotted me and beckoned me over to sit next to her where, just as it happened back at The Captain's Table back in Hulbury, she had ordered my meal for me before I had even arrived. Looking out through the large glass window in the VIP section that allowed those inside to see the battles taking place down in the arena, I was able to see that the regular seating areas were all full. "It would appear that the tournament to kick off the grand opening of your stadium restaurant is a sold out event, Commissioner Kankuro," I said as I turned to address the man himself.
"Well given how all of the current top gym challengers are going to square off against one another, you've got to figure," Kankuro replied. Gesturing to Leon and Hop, Kankuro added, "But I think Champion Leon and his younger brother, Gym Challenger Hop, both being here was an extra pull that brought Galar League fans in by the droves."
Hop let out a good natured laugh. "I'm not a gym challenger anymore, Commissioner Kankuro. Not since last year." Hop rolled his shoulders a bit, showing that he wore a lab coat with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows right now. A sign that he was now getting into Pokemon research as an assistant to Professor Sonya. "But Sonya was interested in coming to watch the tournament here. She got caught up with work, so she sent me here in her place to watch and take notes on anything interesting."
"I kind of wish that this stadium would have permitted the use of dynamax and gigantimax," Leon remarked, "But it's not as big as the gym stadiums and the stadium over in Wyndon. At least it can handle everything else Pokemon can do."
"Which is all that a stadium needs if you ask me," Piers commented, getting some of the others to turn to face him. That comment reminded me of how Piers is famous for abstaining from the use of dynamaxing and gigantimaxing of his Pokemon, even in situations where he'd be able to do so. In fact, in the one championship tournament where Piers faced Raihan, Raihan had won but he was later quoted in an interview saying he had no doubt he would have lost to Piers if it wasn't for the fact that he refuses to dynamax/gigantimax his Pokemon.
There is debate in Galar still going on as to what Piers's record would be like if he did indulge in the use of dynamic/gigantimax.
"So I take it you and Leon are here to watch the tournament, same as Hop?" I asked as I turned to address Piers.
The gym leader of Spikemuth nodded once in the affirmative. "Well when I heard about it, heard that Marnie and Nina were both entering, I figured had to come out here to see things live. That and I also wanted to congratulate the girls for getting their first three badges each thus far. And since there have been no challenges to your gym which is number four yet, I figured that I, being the leader of the gym that's number seven, had some time to burn."
Piers does have a point; the gyms in Galar have to be challenged in a set order in the gym challenge, and my gym is the fourth while his is the seventh. There is no way that Piers will be missing any gym challengers at least until the first one gets past Gordie. But that's besides the point. As we were talking, our attention was diverted to the stadium pit, where a Galar League official acting as a referee came out.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" the league official called out, "The first tournament of the stadium restaurant will now commence! Please divert your attention to the monitors to see the brackets that will determine who will battle who in which rounds!" Everyone in the VIP section, as well as everyone in the regular seating, looked up to the large monitors to see the brackets for the tournament. There was one across from the VIP section that we could see, and one right above us that people across from us could see.
The monitors lit up, and we saw the brackets for the tournament. The first round battles were going to see Sashay battle Nina, Marina battle Darnell, Marnie battle Rosie, and Bede battle Harry. The match ups for the tournament's first round had the others in the VIP section talking.
"Well it looks like me and Robin's respective daughters are going to be eliminating those girls from your town, Piers," Commissioner Rosalia remarked in a tone that was equal parts full of herself and (sarcastically) apologizing.
Nodding in agreement with Rosalia, Commissioner Robin said, "Indeed. My daughter Sashay is currently the most favored gym challenger in Galar right now, and Rosalia's daughter Rosie is by no means a pushover."
Piers, folding his arms over his chest, shot the commissioner ladies a wry look. "You forget that my little sister Marnie has made it just as far as your respective daughters, as did Nina who, need I remind you, defeated Sashay, Rosie and Marina in a row before defeating Bea in an exhibition match in order to prove her competency as a trainer. I think that you're counting your Rookidees before they hatch."
Rosalia and Robin, as well as mother, clearly didn't seem too keen on being reminded about how they felt humiliated over Nina defeating me and all of my friends that day over in Spikemuth. To make things worse for them, everyone else in the VIP section agreed with Piers; I said nothing and gave no sign, out of worry that mother will let me have it when we get home. Mother saw that I intended to keep quiet, and she shot me a look that made it clear that my silence here was what she wanted.
But all of that is besides the point. Down in the stadium pit, the league official was having Sashay and Nina take their places on opposite ends of the arena. "This first battle of the first round of the grand opening tournament will be between Gym Challengers Sashay and Nina! Each trainer may use three Pokemon each, with one at a time! Switching out is allowed at any time! The last one with any Pokemon able to continue battling will win and go on to round two! Now then..." Throwing his hand up, the league official called out, "BEGIN!"
"Centiskorch, I choose you!" Sashay cheered as she sent out her first Pokemon.
"Go on, Runestone!" Nina called out as she tossed up the ball that held her first Pokemon, "I know you can do it!" To my worry for Sashay and the clear alarm on Sashay's face, Nina's named Pokemon turned out to be a Stonjourner. That spelled major disaster for Sashay who only had bug type Pokemon, as they're vulnerable to rock types such as Stonjourner; Centiskorch is in an especially high amount of danger due to being part fire type as well.
I could swear that I saw Sashay choke back a curse word as she aimed Centiskorch's ball at it. "Centiskorch return!" Tossing up a second ball, Sashay called out, "Araquanid, I choose you!"
"Runestone, use Rock Tomb!" Nina said. The named Stonjourner brought up large rocks that it chucked at Araquanid to fall down and trap it. They hit Araquanid alright, but the attack in and of itself was sufficient to knock Araquanid out in one hit.
Holding up his left hand, the league official declared, "Araquanid is unable to battle! The winner is Stonjourner!"
Frustrated, Sashay recalled her fainted Araquanid. Tossing up another pokeball, Sashay said, "Crustle, I choose you!" After Crustle came out, Sashay pointed at Stonjourner and said, "Crustle, use X-Scissor!"
"Runestone, use Heavy Slam!" Nina ordered. That was really bad news; not only is a part rock type like Crustle vulnerable to steel attacks like Heavy Slam, but the damage from Heavy Slam goes up the more the user outweighs the target. And last I checked, Stonjourner is more than double the weight of a Crustle. Indeed, Nina's named Stonjourner fell like a meteor right down on top of Sashay's Crustle, making the rock-bug cry out in pain.
After Stonjourner got up off of Crustle, it was clear that Crustle was defeated. "Crustle is unable to battle!" the league official declared, "The winner is Stonjourner!"
Sashay recalled her fainted Crustle and sent her Centiskorch back out; Sashay had used it before, and she was only permitted three of her Pokemon. Sashay had no choice but to send her Centiskorch back out against an opponent that it had a major type disadvantage to. But there was still a battle to be had. Sashay aimed her finger at Nina's named Stonjourner. "Centiskorch, use Bug Bite!"
"Runestone, use Rock Tomb!" Nina commanded. Before Centiskorch got close enough, Nina's named Stonjourner dropped a number of large rocks down on top of it. Needless to say, that rock type attack was not going to be friendly to a bug-fire Pokemon like Centiskorch, given that it went down in one hit.
"Centiskorch is unable to battle! The winner is Stonjourner!" the league official declared. Gesturing to Nina, the league official announced, "Gym Challenger Nina will be moving on to the second round!" Even though there was protective poly glass separating the spectators from the stadium, the cheers got though all the same. Nina winced a bit under the noise, but she didn't cower entirely; maybe it's because it wasn't loud enough to make her panic.
As Nina relaxed a bit and recalled her named Stonjourner, the folks in the VIP section with me were a mix of emotions over Nina's win against Sashay just now. Mother and the other younger women of the commissionery board (Commissioner Robin especially so given that she's Sashay's mom) were not all that amused, but everyone else was happy to see Nina make it past round one of the tournament.
I was similarly amused, as I could tell that Sashay was expecting that Obstagoon of Nina's again, only to be thrown for a loop when Nina held the type advantage this time. Sashay was showing complacency, and letting that color your ideas will only lead to your opponents taking advantage of you. Hopefully my friend will take this as a learning experience and use her defeat here to learn and better herself.
(I kept my outward appearance stoic, lest I make mother angry by showing amusement over Nina winning against Sashay.)
The next battle in the first round saw Marina take on Darnell. Marina won fairly well, given that her favored Pokemon type of ghost resists Darnell's favored Pokemon type of poison; Marina won without any of her Pokemon fainting, although she did recall her Jellicent when he got hit with a Toxic from Darnell's Salazzle. I could tell by how he was beaming that Commissioner Kankuro was immensely proud of Marina for winning and getting past round one.
After that was the battle between Marnie and Rosie. To the embarrassment of Commissioner Rosalia and the amusement of Piers, Marnie defeated Rosie. That Morgrem that I saw with Marnie and Nina at the party hosted by Commissioner Kankuro last night took part in defeating all three of the Pokemon that Rosie had used in the battle, making sure that he got experience from each Pokemon that Rosie had used. Also, that Morpeko of Marnie's also played a notable roll in the battle.
The last battle of the first round saw Bede take on Harry. Bede won the battle rather handily, thus cementing his reputation as a Pokemon battle prodigy. I could have sworn that I heard Ginny's voice shout angrily over Bede winning from somewhere from the audience in the regular seating area. My guess is that she was hoping that one of her friends from school from the group she sat with would have won, and both Darnell and Harry getting eliminated in the first round shot that dream down.
Then came time for round two, and the first match would see Nina face off against Marina. "This first battle of the tournament's second round will see Gym Challengers Marina and Nina face off!" the league official acting as referee called out, "The same rules from all battles of the first round apply here. Now then, BEGIN!"
"Trevenent, I choose you!" Marina called out as she sent in her Trevenent.
Tossing up a pokeball, Nina called out, "Go on, Eunice! I know you can do it!" To the surprise of many in the VIP section, Nina's named Pokemon turned out to be, of all things, a Dragapult. That was really bad news for Marina; although vulnerable to Marina's ghost Pokemon due to being part ghost itself, Dragapult as a species is an incredibly powerful Pokemon. As a testament to this, one of the Pokemon on Leon's team is a Dragapult.
But the mighty ghost-dragon before her did not deter Marina's will to win. That's something that I couldn't help but admire about her. Pointing right ahead at Nina's named Dragapult, Marina said, "Trevenent, use Shadow Claw!"
"Eunice, use Bite!" Nina ordered. Both ghost Pokemon rushed at one another as both were using close contact physical moves, but Dragapult was faster and, lunging forward, bit down on the right side of Trevenent's neck, shocking Trevenent and making him shudder a bit before falling over defeated once Dragapult opened its mouth.
Holding up his left hand, the league official declared, "Trevenent is unable to battle! The winner is Dragapult!"
"Wow, this tournament is the first I'm seeing Nina battle for real since the gym challenge started," Hop remarked, "But she's been pretty ace so far." With an amused smirk, Hop added while gesturing to the stadium pit, "She got her Dragapult down there back when she came along with me last year on my go at the gym challenge. We were camping somewhere in the Wild Area in the time between former Chairman Rose's fall from grace and my battle against Lee for the championship title. Nina caught her Dragapult as a Dracloak."
Leon nodded to show he was following along. "Yeah, that battle was awesome, little bro."
Hop nodded once in thanks for the acknowledgement of his skill. "Thanks, Lee." To everyone in the VIP section, Hop went on, "Anyway, Nina has certainly come very far from the shy, quiet girl I first saw her as. Granted she's still like that I can tell, but she's looked to have built up some measure of confidence in herself." Hop folded his arms over his chest, wore an amused smile. "I bet that this is just what Nina's mum was hoping for."
Down in the stadium pit, Marina recalled her fainted Trevenent, then tossed up the pokeball that held her second Pokemon. "Jellicent, I choose you!" Marina's Jellicent came out fresh and ready for battle; in between rounds, everyone's Pokemon were fully restored, allowing everyone to battle fresh. Pointing at Nina's named Dragapult, Marina said, "Jellicent, use Shadow Ball!"
"Eunice, use Dragon Claw!" Nina called out. As Jellicent was conjuring his attack to cast at Dragapult, the ghost-dragon itself rushed at him, its claws fiercely ablaze with draconic power. Before Jellicent could throw his attack, Dragapult slashed at him with its glowing draconic claws, striking him and making him hit the ground in the stadium pit, clearly out of it.
"Jellicent is unable to battle!" the league official declared, "The winner is Dragapult!"
Marina recalled her fainted Jellicent, then tossed up the pokeball containing the last of her allocated Pokemon for this three-on-three battle. "Chandelure, I choose you!" As Marina's third Pokemon came out, Marina allowed herself a bit of a smile. "Thanks again for the Dusk Stone back in Spikemuth, Nina."
"Oh! You used it!" Nina clearly was happy that her gesture back in Spikemuth was not only useful to Marina, but appreciated as well. She smiled and even giggled a bit. This display of happiness from Nina over how she had been helpful to someone reminded me of my little brother, who acted in a similar manner whenever he ended up being helpful to someone, usually dad although I've been assisted once or twice when I allowed my little brother to help me.
(Mother never learned of any of the times I allowed my little brother to associate with me outside of times when dad was present.)
Back to the battle in the stadium pit, Marina pointed at Dragapult and said, "Chandelure, use Shadow Ball!"
"Eunice, use Phantom Force!" Nina called out.
Nina's named Dragapult dropped into a shadowy swirl that appeared below it, disappearing wholly. Chandelure had conjured and cast his attack, but it ended up hitting nothing. As Marina and her Chandelure looked around for where Dragapult would show up, the ghost-dragon dropped down from above, slamming right into Chandelure and slamming him to the ground of the arena, clearly fainted.
"Chandelure is unable to battle! The winner is Dragapult!" the league official declared. Gesturing to Nina, the league official went on to announce, "Gym Challenger Nina will move on to the final round!" The cheers got through the poly glass again, and Nina winced uncomfortably under the attention once more. But she was able to pull together quite well, and even accepted it when she was offered a friendly handshake by Marina.
In the VIP section, Commissioner Kankuro let out a resigned sigh; even though both trainers gave their all and acted properly after the battle, Marina still lost. I could tell that Kankuro, being Marina's dad, was hoping that she'd win. But I could tell that he wasn't going to hold her losing to Nina against her.
If only mother, as well as Commissioners Rosalia and Robin, held that level of respect for me, Rosie and Shashay. I remember the harsh scolding that I got from mother when I returned home after my loss to Nina in that exhibition battle back in Spikemuth, not to mention what all she's been telling me concerning Nina's inevitable challenge to me for the Fighting Badge. And I got it from Sashay and Rosie that their respective moms let them have it over them losing to Nina on that day back in Spikemuth as well; no doubt Sashay and Rosie will get it again since they lost to Nina and Marnie respectively in round one.
The next battle in round two will see Marnie and Bede square off; they've battled twice so far up to this point, and both times ended favorably for Marnie. I wonder if this battle, which is in a stadium rather than in a casual setting, will shake things up and allow for Bede to pull off a win, despite the type disadvantage.
No, the change of scenery did nothing to shake things up. Marnie not only won against Bede again, but after Marnie's Morgrem took out Bede's last Pokemon which was his Hattrem, it gave everyone watching the tournament live a surprise because it started evolving right there and then. When all was said and done, Marnie's Morgrem had evolved into Grimmsnarl, an event I have no doubt will be a notable bit when gym challenge fans all over Galar talk about what all went down here in the tournament.
Mother, as well as Commissioners Rosalia and Robin, were able to hide it that they were very unamused by Bede's loss to Marnie, which was further highlighted by the boon to her team's power that Marnie got since her Morgrem had evolved. This set off a minor alarm in my head; part dark type it may be, Grimmsnarl is still part fairy type. If it had a good fairy type move, then Marnie's odds against me when she challenges me for the Fighting Badge had gone up by quite a considerable margin.
Whereas mother and the other younger women on the commissionery board were not happy to see Marnie win, everyone else was (I again kept myself stoic and not showing anything). Piers was especially pumped to see his little sister win again. But then his expression changed slightly when he, as well as everyone else, realized that the final battle of this tournament would see Marnie and Nina face off against one another. The tournament was going to be a win for Spikemuth either way, but it would come at seeing two friends face off against one another with both aiming to take home the prize.
...
"This final battle of the grand opening tournament for the stadium restaurant will see Gym Challengers Marnie and Nina face off! The rules for all battles thus far apply here!" The league official threw his right hand up. "BEGIN!"
"Toxicroak, I choose you!" Marnie called out as she sent in her Toxicroak.
"Go on, Gonger!" Nina said, sending out her named Perrserker, "I know you can do it!" I still remember that Perrserker of Nina's, how it tore through my friendly exhibition battle party like a hot knife through soft butter; I could make the argument that Nina was able to earn what she needed to enter the gym challenge this year thanks to her Perrserker. But that is a discussion for a later time, as everyone was watching this battle between the two Spikemuth girls.
"Toxicroak, use Revenge!" Marnie commanded.
"Gonger, use Shadow Claw!" Nina called out.
Toxicroak pulled its right fist back, waiting to make its move as Perrserker charged at it with shadowy claws primed to slash at it. But that attack from Toxicroak never came, as a slash across its body from Perrserker's Shadow Claw attack threw it back and made it hit the ground, rolling a bit before coming to a stop laying face up, clearly defeated. "Toxicroak is unable to battle!" the league official announced, "The winner is Perrserker!"
Similar to Marina, Marnie did not begrudge the fact her Pokemon was knocked out by Nina's Pokemon. "I'm glad you aren't pulling punches, Nina," Marnie said as she sent out her next Pokemon which was her Grimmsnarl, "I'd be offended if you did."
"You..." Nina clearly was nervous and worried, given her tone, her expression, the air that she was giving off. "...You won't be mad if I beat you, will you?"
Marnie gave a gentle, understanding smile. "No, I won't hold it against you if I lose, although some of the crew in Team Yell might complain, knowing them. Don't worry about that though, I'll set them straight if need be." Pointing right ahead at Nina's named Perrserker, Marnie called out, "Grimmsnarl, use False Surrender!"
"Gonger, use Iron Head!" Nina said. As it did back when it defeated the Machoke that I keep on my friendly exhibition battle team, Perrserker crouched down like an amphibian Pokemon that was preparing to leap up, right as Grimmsnarl came charging at it. Perrserker, its head shining like a polished metal ball, sprung up and struck its head into Grimmsnarl, although it hit the dark-fairy Pokemon in the side of its face.
Either way, Grimmsnarl was struck very hard by a super effective move, and he ended up falling backwards by the force of the attack and hitting the ground, clearly out of it. I'm still not quite sure why Marnie would send Grimmsnarl out against an opponent with a type advantage; was she feeling confident due to Grimmsnarl having evolved earlier? Either way, after the league official declared that Grimmsnarl had been defeated and that Perrserker had won, Marnie sent her last Pokemon out.
"Morpeko, I choose you!" Ah, that Morpeko of Marnie's. I should have figured that she'd use it at some point. Marnie pointed right ahead at Nina's named Perrserker. "Morpeko, use Spark!"
"Gonger, use Seed Bomb!" Nina cried. Morpeko, sparking with electricity, ran on all fours at Perrserker, who generated a large sphere of a seed that it threw at Morpeko, hitting it with the seed blowing up on contact. Morpeko was thrown back by the force of the attack and ended up hitting the ground, clearly knocked out.
"Morpeko is unable to battle! The winner is Perrserker!" the league official announced. Gesturing to Nina, the league official declared, "Gym Challenger Nina is the the winner of the grand opening tournament!" The cheers were loud and applauding as Nina was declared the winner of the grand opening tournament. Nina herself seemed rather overwhelmed over having won, but luckily for her Marnie is a good friend, as she was quick to help Nina calm down.
In the VIP section, Piers let out a resigned sigh. "I'm glad one of the girls from Spikemuth won, but I was kind of banking on my little sister to be honest." Piers then cracked a bit of a smile. "But Nina winning here serves as proof that my arguing for her was not wasted."
"I certainly agree," Leon remarked, "Why, I'm hoping that she ends up making it all the way to the championship tournament at the end of this year's gym challenge!" A number of others in the VIP section were agreeing with Leon and Piers, but those who were did not see it when those who did not agree were...well, not agreeing. Specifically, mother and Commissioners Rosalia and Robin were quite unamused that the gym challenger who won ended up being the special needs girl that had humiliated their daughters.
...Or to be more specific, had humiliated them.
Later, as I was in the stadium restaurant's front lobby, answering a phone call I got from dad, I saw Commissioner Kankuro give Nina the promised prize of a dozen Comet Shards. Marnie and some of those Team Yell hooligans were there seeing Nina receive her loot. Knowing that the tournament at the stadium restaurant was televised, I asked dad if he and my little brother saw it; he confirmed that they did, and my little brother was excited that Nina had won. Dad had even mentioned it that my little brother asked if there was a jersey based off of Nina.
That was cute.
After I ended my call to dad, I saw mother, as well as Commissioners Rosalia and Robin, pass by me. All three of them gave me looks that made it clear that they were unamused with the results of the grand opening tournament. I also was able to pick it up that I was expected to beat Nina when she challenged me for the Fighting Badge. They left without saying a word, their glares doing all the talking for them.
...Well now. I got my work cut out for myself, it seemed.
END, CHAPTER TWELVE
Author's notes;
The events of this chapter will play a notable role in chapters to come. Also, given that one could go to Glimwood Tangle prior to taking on the Stow-on-Side gym and encounter wild Pokemon there, I used it as an excuse to add Morgrem/Grimmsnarl to Marnie's party earlier than what would normally be expected. Given that Marnie is going to be heading on in to face Bea while at a type disadvantage, I think giving her a little boost early would help to smooth things over.
But Marnie is far from the only gym challenger aiming to go after Bea for the Fighting Badge; a total of nine gym challengers counting Marnie had made it past Kabu, and all of them will be gunning for Bea's gym starting in the next chapter. The next chapter, by the way, may get a bit repetitive due to how many gym battles Bea will be fighting in. As a matter of fact, not all of them will fit into one chapter, so I'm going to have to do a bit of breaking up. You'll see what I mean in the next chapter.