Ryan returned to the Locker Room to uproarious applause from those who were remaining behind. He was yanked into numerous handshakes and embraces by his family and friends for his stellar victory over Holly and her Pokémon. Chris wrapped his arm around Ryan's neck, boasting about how it would be the two of them in the semi-finals, uncaring if he ruffled the feathers of those he would be facing in the next few rounds leading up to that.
"The Hero of Arcana and the Best Friend of the Champion" Chris proclaimed happily, "will be the ones who decide which will face Cameron in the Finals."
"Am I supposed to take this lying down?" Mark joked. "I'm here to win, too, Chris."
"We all are, you blowhard" Billy glared at his older cousin.
Chris shrugged. "Look, we're going to be the favorites to advance. And I have a ton of fans I can't disappoint."
"Do you really think that we don't have our own fans?" Daniel demanded.
"Sure, but not as much as me" Chris insisted.
Knowing this was not going to go over well, Ryan freed himself from his cousin's grasp and proceeded down towards a bench. The last person to approach Ryan was his father, who had been sitting in his reserved spot in the Locker Room, anticipating his showdown with his son. When he saw that Ryan had emerged triumphantly, he sighed.
"I guess I can't put this off for much longer" he told the boy.
Ryan nodded. "It looks like we get our match, next round."
Robert laughed. "I expect you to hold nothing back against me, Ryan. Because I would feel insulted if you did. And I know you would be if I held back on you."
Ryan shrugged. "Well, you could hold back on me if you want."
Robert chuckled. "Not gonna happen. I have reputation to maintain, you know." As Ryan sat beside his father, Robert put his arm around his son as they anticipated their coming showdown. The two watched as all who had been in the room came and left as the time passed. The young Tombo from Charizark Town was crushed by Giselle in their showdown and didn't return to the Locker Room. But Daniel over came Michael's mother, Erin, in a quick battle and advanced to the next round. Chris naturally came out victorious over his opponent and Jeremy surprised everyone by overcoming Renee in the first round, to round off the Eastern Bracket.
When Jeremy returned to the Locker Room, Chris gathered all of the other Male victors of the Eastern Bracket together on one side of the locker room. Chris, Ryan, Robert, Daniel, Jeremy and Mark all sat together and watched as the others continued towards their own matches.
"How many are actually going to come back?" Daniel asked the group.
"Cameron and Lizzie are running amok in the Western Bracket" Chris reminded his cousin, "so I expect not many."
"Way to give us a confidence boost" Jon called over from his side of the locker room while Greg departed for the Waiting Room for his upcoming match with Chris's stepmother.
"Come on, Jon" Chris defended himself, "do you really think anyone is going to stop those two from getting to the top?"
Mark sighed. "I'd like to disagree with you, but Cameron seems determined to prove that she's ready to take up the mantle after Mike retires."
Ryan frowned. "I wish he wasn't retiring."
Robert patted his son on the back. "Retiring doesn't mean he's dying, Ryan. He's going to enjoy his life for once in a while." He laughed sadly. "I kind of envy him a bit. But I know he won't be out of the ring for a while."
Jeremy did his best to feel in place with the remaining Kingstons and Kingston loyalists, but he found himself keeping to himself. Sensing his uncomfortableness, Ryan did his best to make the boy feel welcomed in there. "Come on, Jeremy. You belong here if you've made it this far."
"Not everyone can claim they've beaten Renee twice" Chris told the boy.
"Thanks" Jeremy answered softly.
"And besides" Chris joked, "if you beat me, you get a shot at avenging your girlfriend's loss." He gestured towards Ryan.
"Way to throw me under the bus" Ryan remarked.
"I'm not that kind of guy" Jeremy insisted. "I just want to see how far I can get."
Chris leaned towards Ryan and whispered into his ear. "He won't make it past me."
As time passed in the locker room, the number of boys and men waiting for their chance to shine decreased, as too did the number of them who actually returned. While Greg succeeded in defeating Shannon, Adrian Fourtiz did not return as he was the first victim on Cameron's rampage towards the top. Kevin, Ritchie and Cody all departed towards their matchups, but only Ritchie returned, as he had defeated Cody and Kevin Tress lost to his sister's soon to be sister in-law, Madeline Kingston. Billy and Patrick departed next, with only Billy returning to advance to the next round.
"Wow" Chris remarked after a while. "Four guys knocked out this round."
"Shows that Pokémon Training isn't just for guys" Robert told his nephew.
"I knew that" Chris assured him. "Believe me, Cameron has been routinely spanking me in these tournaments for the past ten years. I think I've only beaten her once."
To wrap up the first round, Lizzie defeated Stephanie to the surprise of few, the girl named Annette overcame Samuel and Jon proved victorious over Gavin. The seeding board that was showing in the Locker Room automatically updated to eliminate the sixteen that had already been eliminated, and then set up the matchups for the second round.
The Eastern Bracket went as follows:
Mark vs Delia, Ryan vs Robert, Giselle vs Daniel and Chris vs Jeremy
The Western Bracket went as follows:
Cameron vs Greg, Madeline vs Ritchie, Lizzie vs Billy and Annette vs Jon
The Referee entered the locker room to speak to the remaining boys. "Congratulations on making it this far. The Second Round will begin in approximately 20 minutes. If you have any exchanges to make, please do so now." He then looked towards Mark. "You'll be starting off the second round, Mark. Please proceed to the Waiting Room when you're ready." He then looked towards Ryan and Robert. "You two are in the second match." After that, the Referee departed the locker room.
Mark shrugged. "20 Minutes? I think I'll be fine." With that, he departed down the hall and towards the Waiting Room, leaving Ryan, Robert, Chris, Daniel, Jeremy, Greg, Ritchie, Billy and Jon to await how the next rounds would go.
{Meanwhile}
In the Champion's Box, Michael sat with his wife Julia, her cousin Piper and Addison while they awaited the beginning of the second round. He had watched as the first round concluded and that how, despite Holly's near victory over Ryan, the first round had gone about as he had always expected. The Gym Leaders were still uncomfortable with competing in the Pokémon League, hence why his sister, mother, Shannon and Renee all lost their first round battles. Though six of them had prevailed, considering most of them would be up against the heaviest hitters the League had to offer (AKA Ryan and The Elite Four), the odds of them making it out of the second round were slim to none. He observed the field being cleaned below him, a small bit of melancholy escaping over his face as it finally dawned on him that this was likely to be his final Pokémon League Tournament until he and Julia would return from their extended stay in Kalos.
Addison had taken a great liking to the splendors of the Champion's Box, stuffing her face full of sweets and treats. She laughed to herself after she ate a freshly made pastry from a top notch bakery. "I'll admit, I can get used to this Champion's Box."
Piper laughed. "Maybe Ryan will have things catered like this if he should win."
Addison looked up to her idol, who was transfixed by the pomp and circumstance below them. "You do think Ryan is going to win, right Michael?"
"Who's to say?" Michael told her. "He's definitely a talented battler, but his competition is only going to get harder as the rounds go on." He lowered his head and grinned. "There's a reason why Robert is one of James's last children taking part in the tournament."
"I don't think I've ever seen Robert battle" Julia mentioned to her husband. "Is he any good?"
"It's a tossup between my uncle and Madeline over who is the strongest Gym Leader in Arcana" Michael answered her. "Uncle Robert is relentlessly strong. And I have a feeling if Ryan's going to square up against his father, he's going to have to show that moxie I've heard about to overcome him. My uncle does not like losing, least of all to one of his own sons."
Piper sat beside Addison in one of the chairs and made herself comfortable. "Well, I have faith in Ryan. I think he'll be fine."
"Me too" Addison proclaimed. "He didn't come this far only to lose in the first or second round."
Michael paused. "If he can beat his father, I think he'll prove that he's on the same level as Cam and the others. He's certainly smart enough to outwit his father, but are his Pokémon strong enough to make the difference?" He sat and watched as the commencement of the Second Round began. "I guess there's only one way to find out."
{Meanwhile}
Ryan and his father sat in the Waiting Room after Mark departed to battle Delia. The two sat in silence in the Waiting Room, with little that could break it off between father and son. Both simply plotted out their strategies in their heads, wondering how strong their opponent had truly become in these recent times.
For Robert, the idea of battling his own son for the title of Champion of the Pokémon League couldn't be more interesting than it already was. Ryan was quickly ascending the ladders of relevance and popularity in Arcana and could perhaps use a reminder of how being a Champion was more than just getting the appraisal and respect of those in the region. Michael had a great deal of responsibilities that would fall onto Ryan if he were to one day surpass his cousin. If Ryan made any reckless mistakes in his match here like he did with Holly, Robert was determined to capitalize on them. A Champion could not show any signs of weakness and not expect his opponent to capitalize on it.
As for Ryan, his road to becoming Champion would only get bumpier after his narrow victory over Holly in the first round. He had defeated his father in a 1 on 1 matchup atop Iron Mountain, but he knew his father had far more experience in battling in a tournament style than he did. And in this round, he would not have Sparks or Marahute at his disposal to combat his father's team of powerful Pokémon. On the other hand, having both Achilles and Cora in this matchup should makeup for that, plus having Terra was a wild card because of his Sandslash's versatility. But he knew that his father was more experienced than Holly could have ever hoped to be and that could perhaps be the difference between them.
Robert was the one who broke the silence. "Hey, Ry?"
"What's up, Dad?" Ryan asked his father.
"No matter what happens today" Robert continued, "nothing changes between us. We're still Father and Son. And I want nothing to change that."
Ryan nodded. "Me neither. With all these things changing around us, I want some stability in my life."
Robert chuckled. "I suppose you're right."
With the sounds of the crowds cheering in the Colosseum indicating that the first match of Round 2 was coming to an end, Ryan and Robert headed for the doors of the Waiting Room. When they opened, they spotted Mark walking towards the locker room, victorious over the young trainer Delia.
"Well" Robert remarked, "at least we know who our next opponent is going to be."
Ryan gulped. Mark was supposed to be one of the best trainers on the planet. He had been the Champion of Kanto before coming to Arcana to fight alongside Michael. In fact, Michael considered him one of the few trainers in the world capable of beating him. And whoever won this bout of Father and Son was set to face the Titan of Kanto in the next round. Not a particularly reassuring thought for an up and coming trainer like him.
Robert made his way for the field first as the Announcer began to call for the next match to begin. "And now, Ladies and Gentlemen, we will commence the second match of this second round. Our next trainer is a force among himself, the youngest son of Arcana's patron, James Kingston and the Gym Leader of Charizark Town's gym. Please give a warm welcome to Arcana's own son, Robert Kingston!"
Ryan heard as the applause his father got was quite massive, even for a Gym Leader. Maybe they think that Dad is going to go on a run and win the whole thing. Wouldn't that be a surprise? Not being the champion himself, but being the son of the Champion would basically set him up for the rest of his life. Part of him began to hope that his father was actually going to win the match. Only part of him, though.
"What better matchup could we possibly ask for to face Robert?" the announcer asked. "How about his son and Arcana's newest hero?"
The sounds of the fans screaming in approval was deafening. Ryan gulped. "Here we go again."
"I present to you all the Hero of Arcana and the conqueror of Mewtwo, Ryan Kingston!"
Ryan trotted out onto the battlefield, to the uproarious applause of his ever increasing fanbase. He looked out into the crowds and did his best not to showboat in front of his father. He simply waved to as many people as he could see, before quickly heading for the arena to face off against his father. The Referee looked to the two and stepped back before blowing his whistle.
"Let the Second Match of the Second Round...BEGIN!"
Robert took a Poké Ball from his belt and glared at his son. "I guess I'll start things off. Go! Incineroar!" From out of his father's first Poké Ball appeared a huge red and black cat with what looked like a flaming belt around it's waist. The wrestling champ Pokémon growled as he appeared on the scene.
"Fine" Ryan said plainly. "So be it. Go! Terra!" Ryan's trusted Sandslash appeared on the battlefield to oppose the Incineroar, bearing it's sharp claws directly at his father's Pokémon.
"Incineroar! Use Flamethrower!" The Fire Type Alolan Pokémon spat out a stream of fire directly at Terra, who instinctively burrowed underground to avoid the attack.
"Terra! Use Stone Edge!" Ryan shouted to his Pokémon.
The Sandslash remerged from it's burrow and struck at the Incineroar with a ruthlessly powerful Rock Type attack that forced Robert's Pokémon to backflip and land awkwardly on his two feet. Despite the blow, the Incineroar seemed eager for more.
"Use Heat Crash!" Robert commanded. The Incinceroar grabbed Terra and smashed him hard into the ground with the force of a volcanic eruption. An explosion shook the Colosseum and caused a massive outcry from the audience. But when the smoke and flames cleared, Terra was nowhere to be seen. Ryan's Sandslash had used the explosion as a cover to burrow underground again.
Before anyone could wonder where Terra had gone, the Sandslash clawed into the Incineroar's legs and tripped him up.
"What in the-"
"Terra! Use Earthquake! Now!" Terra stomped his foot on the ground and caused a massive tremor, which shook the Colosseum and smashed hard into Robert's Pokémon. The Incineroar fell backwards onto his rear end, fatigued and exhausted. The Sandslash burrowed towards the Incineroar to deliver the finishing blow, but the Wrestling Champ was far from finished as he leaped up and grabbed the Sandslash's claws.
"Use Vital Throw!" The Incineroar grabbed the Sandslash and hurled it into the wall. The Sandslash fell onto his back and struggled to roll back to his feet.
"Terra!" Ryan cried out. "You gotta defend here!"
"Now, finish him off with Heat Crash!" The Incineroar leaped high into the air and came hurtling down like a meteor towards the Sandslash, who finally leaped to his feet to counter attack.
"Use Stone Edge!"
Terra dug deep into the ground and leaped high into the air to counter the Incineroar, his claws holding a sharp stone. The Explosion came in the air this time, it's harsh winds ripping through even the fans in the stands. After a moment of tense waiting, both the Incineroar and the Sandslash plummeted to the ground, knocked out.
"Double KO" the Referee declared.
Ryan recalled his Sandslash as Robert did his Incineroar. It was pretty safe to say that father and son were evenly matched at this point. The two combatants grinned at one another as they braced themselves for the next clash.
{Meanwhile}
Addison was on the edge of her seat after that first encounter between Robert and Ryan. With both the Sandslash and Incineroar taking each other out with colossal blasts, the two tough opponents were locked evenly in combat. She could not contain her own excitement as both prepared for their second confrontation.
"This is way too intense" she exclaimed.
"After an opening act like that" Julia remarked, "I'd be disappointed if there wasn't a second equally insane confrontation."
"Look at Ryan though" Piper told the others. "He looks confident."
"He should be" Addison assured the Queen of Arcana. "He's one of the best trainers in Arcana."
"It's more than that" Michael explained. "He seems to be getting over those nerves he had in his fight with Holly. And if Ryan starts to build momentum in this tournament, I don't think there's anyone that can beat him." He observed the battling closely. "He's certainly improved since the last time I saw him fight. that's for sure."
"So, it's an easy win from here on out?" Addison asked.
Michael shook his head. "Never underestimate your opponent, Addison. Ryan had to get his battling skills from someone in his family and I'd bet money they came from Uncle Robert." He folded his hands and saw as the two prepared for their next clash. "We've seen how Ryan deals with adversity. Now it's time to see how his father deals with it."
{Meanwhile}
Amid the screams and cheers from those in the stands, Robert and Ryan squared off with one another. With both of them down a Pokémon after the immense clash between their Incineroar and Sandslash ended in a stalemate, they knew that one of them would have to take the initiative immediately. Ryan watched as his father prepared to take charge.
"Go! Darmanitan!" From out of Robert's second Pokemon Ball appeared a huge red ape-like creature who smashed his enormous fists into the ground and bellowed for the audience to applaud, which they consented to eagerly. "Your move, Ryan."
Ryan thought for a moment. Dad's got a whole host of Fire Types at his disposal. I've seen his Darmanitan in action a ton of times, yet he's not sending out his ace Pokémon, Infernape yet? That's an odd choice. Then again, he might have used Infernape in the last round. Oh well. Time for me to show my Dad what I'm capable of. He reached onto his belt and pulled out his second Pokémon. "Go! Cora!" His Kingdra appeared and spat a geyser of water into the air to assert her dominance. The Kingdra and Darmanitan squared off with one another.
"Use Sunny Day!" Robert commanded. His Darmanitan shook himself on the field and caused the heat from the sun high above them to intensify.
Ryan nodded. Clever move. Now, my Kingdra won't be able to use the Water to her advantage. So, I'll have to alter my strategies. "Cora! Use Dragon Dance!" The Kingdra spun around on the battle field to psych herself up for battle, increasing her speed and attack power.
"Darmanitan! Use Belly Drum!" The Darmanitan beat it's stomach with the power of the Belly Drum and maximized it's attack power at the expense of some of it's health. Before Ryan could question his father's strategy, he noticed the Darmanitan chewing on something in it's mouth, likely Leftovers.
Fortunately, Ryan had made an adjustment to his roster in case he was facing a colossal opponent. "Cora! Use Double Team!" The Kingdra spat at the Darmanitan and then created duplicates of it.
"An impressive show of force" the Announcer proclaimed. "Both Trainers are bracing themselves for what's to come. And I hope we're all ready for what's to come."
Robert grinned. "Impressive. But not clever enough." He turned towards his Pokémon. "Darmanitan! Use Heat Crash!" The Darmanitan leaped into the air to try and smash one of the Kingdra duplicates, but it missed it's intended target as it phased out of existence. Before it could recover to defend itself, both Kingdras spat out weakened Hydro Pumps his way, both striking him with surprising force. But the Sunny Day weakened both attacks to the point where the Darmanitan was still capable of standing despite both powerful Water Attacks.
"Cora! Use Dragon Dance!" Both Kingdra facsimiles began to move faster simultaneously, raising their Speed and Attack Power.
"Darmanitan! Use Heat Crash again!"
"Cora! Use Outrage!"
Both Kingdras rush at the Darmanitan while he tries to build up enough strength to crush both underneath his sheer power. The Kingdras enhanced speed, however, make up for the difference as both Dragon Pokémon rush the Darmanitan in union and smash into him, causing the already heavily weakened Fire Golem to collapse.
Robert lowered his head as he recalled his Darmanitan and the audience burst into euphoric cheers and applause for their hero's coming victory. But Ryan was hardly in shape to continue fighting, with his Kingdra's power split by creating duplicates of itself and was thus drained of power much more than she might have been otherwise. If he was going to win this match, he needed Cora to recover some power to her.
His father did not seem keen on giving him the luxury. "You're definitely stronger than I would have imagined you could be. But I won't let you win this match easily, son. I have my own reputation to maintain." He reached onto his belt and grinned at his son. "I hope you're ready for this, Ryan." He let his Poké Ball roll out onto the battlefield and open for the world to see.
When the Pokémon emerged from the Poké Ball, Ryan gulped. "Uh-Oh."
"Here comes Charizard!" the announcer proclaimed.
His father's Charizard growled and launched a stream of fire into the air above the battleground. The Flying and Fire Type Pokémon turned towards the Kingdra and grinned menacingly at the Kingdra duplicates. "Use Outrage!" The Charizard lunged forward and smashed itself into every single Kingdra duplicate until it crushed into Cora, throwing Ryan's Pokemon into the wall and knocking her out without much of a hassle.
Ryan recalled his Kingdra as he was now at a serious type disadvantage. He reached onto his belt for his last Pokémon, nervous as he did so. We've got our work cut out for us, Achillies.
{Meanwhile}
Up in the Champion's Box, Addison nervously watches the match as it progresses. Despite her faith that Ryan was capable of going as far as his heart wanted to, Ryan was backed into a corner and she wasn't in a position to help him as she normally would. She was high above, only able to watch as her boyfriend went up against the odds as his father's Charizard strutted about the battlefield.
"Ryan..." she said worriedly.
Piper watched worriedly from the window beside her. "This is not good. He doesn't have his Kingdra or Sandslash to oppose Robert's Charizard."
"Type Advantages don't really matter much to a Master Pokémon Trainer" Michael told his friends as he sat beside his pregnant wife and observed the match from a distance. "Ryan is better than needing type advantages for a win. His Pokémon have proven themselves capable of beating all sorts of opponents. So long as he's raised his Pokémon properly, he shouldn't have to be at such a drastic disadvantage."
"Which Pokémon does he have left?" Piper asked the group.
"Achilles" Addison answered. "His Gallade." She gasped. "That's it. That's the way I can help him." She reached onto her belt and pulled out the Poké Ball containing her Gardevoir, Galatea.
"What's your plan?" Julia asked the girl.
As her Gardevoir emerged from the Poké Ball, she looked down on the battlefield. Addison joined her Pokémon by her side. "Gardevoir will be able to tell Ryan and Achilles we're rooting for them."
"I don't think that's a good idea" Michael cautioned her optimistic plan.
Addison looked back at the Champion, surprised that he would be against this. "But why?"
"If the Referee finds out you were speaking to him telepathically" Michael warned her, "it could technically be labeled as cheating."
"But-"
"Michael's right, Addy" Julia said sadly. "The last thing we need is to get Ryan embroiled in a cheating scandal."
Addison lowered her head. "I guess you're right, but I wish he could know we were still cheering him on."
"He knows" Piper told her. "He wouldn't be fighting so proudly if he didn't know." She looked down at Ryan and grinned. "He's not giving up that easily."
Addison recalled her Gardevoir and looked on, timidly hoping he had the strength to oppose the might of his father's Pokémon.
{Meanwhile}
Ryan reached onto his belt for his last Pokémon. "Looks like I've got my work cut out for me." He looked back towards his father, his confidence surging despite the odds stacking against him. "I can't let you win too easily, Dad. And this guy is going to give your Charizard the fight of it's life. Go! Achilles!" From out of the last Poké Ball appeared his Gallade, one of his closest and most trusted Pokémon.
"Charizard vs Achilles for the Final Round" Robert proclaimed. "This is the stuff of legends here, Ryan." He looked towards his Charizard. "Charizard! Use Wing Attack!" The Charizard flew right towards the Gallade, it's wings flashing brightly as it descended on Achilles. Without a moment's hesitation, the Achilles cartwheeled out of the way of the Charizard's attack and automatically used Swords Dance to beef up it's attack power.
Ryan was in utter shock. Did Achilles just do that because I was planning on doing that? This is incredible. We really are linked, just like Addison and Galatea are. While Achilles drastically increased his own attack power, he looked over towards his trainer and nodded as if that had indeed just transpired before him. Ryan grinned. So long as he and Achilles were on the same wavelength, there wasn't a force on earth that could stop them.
The Charizard skidded to a stop and looked back at the Achilles in surprise, but roared and stomped on the ground in anger. Without Robert's consent, the Charizard lunged forward into another Outrage attack, but Achilles was waiting for him and struck at him with a viciously powerful Psycho Cut, which sliced through the Charizard and slammed him hard into the ground.
"UNBELIEVABLE!" the announcer celebrated. "It's almost as if our Hero and his Pokémon are so in tune, they communicate their moves towards one another without verbal commands. Simply astonishing."
Robert called to his Charizard. "Hey, Charizard. Calm down!" The Charizard looked back at his trainer and shamefully bowed his head. "Any more reckless mistakes like that could cost us our victory here." He pointed towards his Pokémon. "Now, let's turn up the heat here with a Fire Blast!" The Charizard spat a huge Fire Ball at Achilles, who cartwheeled out of the way, but most of Ryan's side of the arena was now scorching with flames.
Achilles slipped through the flames and used another ruthlessly powerful Psycho Cut, which cut through the Charizard and forced him down to his knees. But the Fire Lizard was far from beaten and grabbed a firm hold of the Gallade.
"Perfect! Now, use Sky Drop!"
The Charizard lifted Achilles high into the air with the full intent on smashing him right into the flames on Ryan's side of the field. Robert looked to his son to inform him that the match was over, but Ryan seemed just as confident that Achilles was not only going to survive this attack, but that the attack may never even hit. Robert called to his Charizard.
"End this! NOW!"
The Charizard plummeted towards the ground, it's claws tightly around Achilles, preventing him from moving. Ryan could feel as if Achilles was waiting for just the right moment to make his move. He gently spoke to his Pokémon telepathically, informing the Gallade to wait for just the right moment before using his best move, like they had practiced. Achilles grinned up at the Charizard, who suddenly lost his confidence even as the two fell from the skies like a meteor. As the Charizard was about to slam the two of them into the ground, the Gallade vanished from his hands and Charizard crashed into the ground alone. As he adjusted his trajectory to be less painful, Achilles appeared behind him and sucker punched him to the ground. The Charizard barked angrily, but fell onto his back, knocked out.
"Charizard is unable to battle" the Referee proclaimed. "The Winner of this Match is Ryan Kingston. He will advance to the Quarter-Finals!"
"THE WINNER IS RYAN KINGSTON!" the Announcer applauded. The thousands of people in the stands erupted into applause as their hero advanced to the next round to oppose Mark in the Quarter Finals tomorrow.
Ryan looked towards his father as he recalled his Charizard. Robert's face wasn't easy to read. He seemed sad, but glad at the same time. He urged his son to soak up the adoration of all these fans. Ryan took the hint and waved to them all as if he were a rockstar performing his top charted song. Achilles did the same. Ryan's eyes caught the Champion's Box. Though he could not see Michael, he spied Addison cheering crazily. When she saw him staring at her, the girl of his dreams blew him a kiss. Ryan nodded happily to her as he soaked in his second victory. The next round would be much harder, but he was sure he would give Mark everything he has.
{Some Time Later}
When Ryan returned to the Locker Room, the number of remaining candidates in the Tournament surprised him. As to be expected, his father had not returned to the Locker Room, but the only people there were Mark, Greg, Ritchie, Billy and Jon. It finally began to dawn on him that he was now in special company. Only Arcana's finest trainers would make it to the second day of the tournament tomorrow. Even those in this room were not guaranteed to advance beyond this round.
Mark spotted him as he walked in and nodded. "No surprise. Ryan's advanced to the showdown I promised him I would give him."
Ryan nodded. "Yup. We were bound to meet each other in this tournament."
Mark sighed. "You may be the favorite to advance, but I can't let you beat me without having to earn it."
"I'd have it no other way, Mark" Ryan grinned, offering a handshake to one of his childhood heroes. Mark eagerly took the offer and the two shook hands.
"Say, Ryan. We're going out to dinner at this fancy bistro in the city tonight. Did you and Addison want to join us?"
Ryan eagerly nodded. "Of course! If I'm going to be a Champion, I should get to learn from the best."
"Sure, just forget all about us over here" Greg laughed.
Ryan gasped. "Sorry, guys. I'm just a little too excited for my own good."
Jon rolled his eyes. "The kid beats Mewtwo, Holly and his father and he already forgot all of us."
"We who helped him get to this place" Billy mockingly groaned.
Ryan raced over to his cousins and put his arm around Jon and Billy. "I couldn't have made it this far without you guys." He looked over towards Greg and nodded. "You too, Greg."
Greg nodded. "I could use some of your confidence, Ryan. I have a feeling Cameron is going to steamroll me in a few minutes." When the fanfare announced a winner had been decided between the matchup of Giselle and Daniel, Greg sighed and proceeded towards the Waiting Room. "Wish me luck, guys."
"What color body bag did you want?" Billy laughed.
"I guess whichever color Lizzie offers you" Greg replied before the door shut behind him.
Jon laughed. "He got you there, Billy."
Billy rolled his eyes. "I let him have that one."
Ryan awaited Daniel's return to the Locker Room, but after over a minute of waiting, it soon dawned on him that his cousin had not prevailed over the former Champion and Dictator Giselle. He looked back towards Jon and Billy. "It looks like Daniel is out."
"You mean Daniel lost out to Giselle?" Jon cried bitterly.
"Giselle was a tough customer" Billy recalled of her days as the ruthless dictator. "It took Mike all the power of The Crimson Fury to defeat her." He frowned as he looked towards the door. "I wonder what Grandma was thinking by letting her into this competition."
"Well, so long as Chris wins over Jeremy" Mark told the worried Kingston boys, "you shouldn't have to worry too much about that."
Ryan gulped at the idea of Giselle being the one that stood between him and the Finals. She was exceptionally gifted as a trainer, but it was her experience and her ruthlessness that made her a fiercely dangerous opponent. He looked over towards the Locker Room doors and pleaded for Chris to prevail over Jeremy in this round.
Sure enough, Christopher did prevail and crush Jeremy in their matchup to wrap up the Eastern Bracket for the Second Round. Chris came into the Locker Room a whirlwind of excitement and confidence and joined his younger cousin and Mark in the corner for those who had prevailed in their matches. They watched as the number of boys and men in the room dwindled to only the three of them. Greg, Jon, Billy and Ritchie had all lost their matchups, leaving these three as the last males in the competition. As the final match of the tournament ended with Annette upsetting Jon, the brackets were updated for the next few matchups.
The Eastern Bracket went as follows:
Mark vs Ryan and Giselle vs Chris
The Western Bracket went as follows:
Cameron vs Madeline and Lizzie vs Annette
Chris grinned as he realized he would be up against Giselle. "Ooooh Baby! I get to smoke Giselle in the next round! Payback is gonna feel so sweet!"
"Wasn't Mike beating her enough for you?" Mark asked his colleague.
"You kidding me?" Chris laughed. "Mike got exiled by her. I had to live under her reign."
"I think Mike getting branded beats whatever you went through" Mark snickered.
The doors to their Locker Room opened and the trio was soon approached by Michael. Michael laughed to himself when he saw the remaining three boys in the competition. "Somehow, I just knew you three would be the last ones standing."
"The Championship is in the bag" Chris assured his best friend. "Just give me the crown and call it a day."
"I think Cameron would wring my neck if I did that" Michael pointed out.
"And I might consider it too" Ryan insisted, causing Michael to playfully mess up his cousin's bandanna atop his head.
"You three are some of the best Arcana has to offer" Michael told the three. "But come tomorrow, only two of you will be left standing. And since you three are in the same bracket, only one of you can be the one to do it." He high fived both Mark and Chris. "But that can worry us tomorrow. We have reservations for 12 at the Bistro. Me, Julia, Piper, Addison and the eight remaining contestants. Dinner is on me."
"I'M DRINKING TONIGHT!" Chris cheered.
"No you're not!" Michael barked. "Do you remember last year? Lizzie flattened you like a pancake in the quarter finals."
Chris frowned. "You really don't trust your best friend, Mike? That's hurtful."
Michael ushered the group along with him. "Come on, enough of this. We've got a Bistro to enjoy." Ryan, Chris and Mark followed the Champion out of the Locker Room to conclude the first day in the Arcana Pokémon League Tournament.