Shauna took out her Holo Caster, which I knew now wasn't a camera. Or maybe it was both. Anyway, I saw her checking the time.
She pointed down the street to the left. "Down that way there's a cafe, but there's also one Vernal Avenue."
She pointed down the street in front of us that led to the Central Plaza. "There isn't that much difference to be honest. I'll leave it up to you."
I looked at Froakie on my shoulder. "How about you decide, huh? Straight, or left?"
Froakie tapped his chin, looking both ways before pointing down Vernal Avenue.
I smiled and nodded. "There you go. We're going straight."
Shauna laughed. "Well, alright then."
We headed down the street and entered the cafe. It was a grayish sort of color inside, but somehow it looked fancy. We got some tea and sandwiches for Shauna and I, and a couple Poke Puffs for Froakie and Arcanine. We headed out and sat at one of the tables, an umbrella keeping us in the shade. I bit into my food slowly, smiling as I watched Froakie dig into his food.
Unhooking my pokeball, I let out Arcanine, who shook himself. He glanced at Froakie and nosed him. Froakie took a step back and formed a bubble in his hands.
"Woah," I said, putting a hand between them. "He's a friend Froakie. You two will be battling alongside each other."
Froakie looked at Arcanine uneasily, but the Fire type simply blew a tiny spit of fire at the bubble, popping it. Froakie looked at his hands, then went back to eating, this time climbing onto Arcanine's back to finish it. I smiled warmly of how well they were getting along.
Shauna was looking at my Fire type. "Just how powerful is he?"
I shrugged. "I don't know. We've only been through one region together him and I, but that's about it."
She nodded. "Bulbasaur definitely couldn't stand a chance against him."
"Definitely not," I agreed, finishing my sandwich. Noticing Shauna had finished hers, I asked, "Should we be going?"
She looked at her Holo Caster again. "It's only noon, so we should get back earlier than expected."
She grabbed her purse and stood up. I followed suit, gathering our trash and tossing it into a garbage can.
As Shauna made to get the two pokeballs with the Pidgeots, she stopped when we saw the loud explosion. We turned to look at the Central Plaza to see two trainers standing fifty feet from another. Smoke rose from the middle and a Scizor flew out of it. It landed near its trainer, adopting a battle stance. When the smoke cleared, a Tyranitar lay fainted in a small crater.
The guy with the Tyranitar looked dumbfounded as he returned his fainted Pokemon while the girl with the Scizor looked smug. She wore black combat boots, ripped black pants, and a black leather jacket over a t-shirt. She had hoop earrings and a lip piercing, her eyes a cold blue. Her hair was semi-short and everything about her screamed goth, all the way down to her shirt where a white outlined pokeball was severed in half on a black background.
"And that's another win for me," she yelled, arms thrown out wide. "If anyone wishes to challenge me, well,"
She chuckled. "I pity you and your Pokemon."
When no one answered her, she grinned from ear to ear. "No one? Really? Oh well then. Guess I'll take my prize."
She stalked up to the guy she battled, who couldn't have been much older than thirteen. "Alright kid. Hand over the Pokemon."
He shook his head. "N-no!"
She frowned. "You agreed to the rules kid."
Her eyes narrowed. "Now hand over the Pokemon. No one scams Clara Acord out of a deal."
Her Scizor walked up behind the kid and hoisted him up by the collar. I had enough of this.
"Watch Froakie," I said and began to walk over there. "Come on Arcanine."
Arcanine shook Froakie off of his back and into Shauna's arms before walking alongside me.
"Hey," I shouted. "Leave him alone!"
Clara looked up. She was what, 16, 17? Not much older than me.
"Kid," she said, looking my way. "Stay outta this."
I shook my head. "No. I can't allow you to take his Pokemon."
She grinned evilly. "And what are you going to do? Force me to leave or something."
I snapped my finger and Arcanine crouched, fangs bared. "If I have to."
She chuckled. "You got spunk. Fine."
She moved away from the kid, her Scizor dropping him. "Hmm, because you answered my battle summoning late, I guess I'll use two Pokemon then."
She tossed a pokeball. "Let's beat this kid Barbaracle."
The Rock and Water type Pokemon appeared and glared at us.
I narrowed my eyes. "Two-on-one seems a little unfair don't you think?"
She laughed. "Sucks that no one wants to help you huh?"
"Now that just isn't true."
She stopped laughing as someone stepped out of the crowd of onlookers. A guy of about 16 walked forwards, his black spiky hair sticking out of a red pokeball cap. He latched a pokeball onto his belt with a finger-less gloved hand and smiled, the Pikachu on his shoulder sparking electricity from his red cheeks.
He came to stand next to me. "If it's a double battle you want it's a double battle you're going to get."
Clara narrowed her eyes. "Fine then. Barbaracle, Scizor, use Razor Shell on the Arcanine and Bullet Punch on the Pikachu!"
"Arcanine," I yelled. "Flame Wheel on the Scizor!"
"Pikachu," the guy said. "Quick Attack on both of them."
Pikachu leaped off its trainer in a blur and slammed into Scizor before headbutting Barbaracle. Both enemy Pokemon stumbled back and had to regain their balance. Arcanine then rolled into Scizor in a fiery blaze, sending the Pokemon flying backwards.
Clara looked enraged. "Scizor! Get back up and pummel that Pikachu with Bullet Punch! Barbaracle, use Stone Edge on Arcanine!"
The trainer grinned. "Pikachu, Iron Tail on the Stone Edge!"
"Use Flare Blitz!" I shouted.
Arcanine's body became engulfed in flames and he charged Scizor. Pikachu leaped into the air, dodging the Steel type's Bullet Punch and slammed his Iron Tail into several Stone Edge's, sending them flying back at Barbaracle. The Water type stumbled backwards with each strike and Arcanine slammed into Scizor.
The Bug type was out of commission and the guy next to me shouted, "Thunderbolt!"
"Pikaaachuuuuu!"
Pikachu fired the Electric attack and zapped Barbaracle, blasting him backwards. My eyes widened. That was probably the most powerful Thunderbolt I had ever seen.
Pikachu returned to his trainer's shoulder and Clara looked so angry, her right eye was twitching.
She composed herself and walked away after returning her Pokemon. "That's fine. I didn't want that weak Tyranitar anyway."
Before she reached the crowd, she turned her head back. "I'll be back one of these days to finish you off."
Then she shouldered her way through the crowd and disappeared.
As the crowd dispersed, I turned to look for the kid, but he had disappeared. Instead, I turned to my battle partner. "Thanks for the assistance."
He grinned. "Just happy to help."
He eyes my Arcanine. "Though he looks strong enough to take them on himself. So cool."
I raised an eyebrow. Now he sounded a bit like a little kid.
His smile was wide as he went up to my Pokemon and rubbed his head. "Doesn't he remind you of Gary's Arcanine Pikachu?"
"Pika pika."
I just shook my head and smiled, walking over. "He and I have been travelling together for almost a year now. Definitely not as long as you and your Pikachu. You two are powerful."
He rubbed the back of his head. "You think so? Nah. We haven't even won a single league yet."
He looked at his Pikachu fondly. "But Kalos is the one. We're gonna compete in the Pokemon League and come out on top. Right Pikachu?"
"Chaaaa." Pikachu cried.
"Anyway," he said. "I haven't even introduced myself yet have I."
He stuck out his gloved hand. "Ash Ketchum is the name."
"Ash," I repeated, then I realized who he was. "The Ash Ketchum?"
"Uh," he looked confused. "Yeah?"
"I've heard stories of your battles," I said, a little in awe, but I mainly knew him from Jessie, James, and Meowth's stories. "You've fought in the League conferences all the way from Kanto to Unova."
He looked sheepish. "Well, I wouldn't say it's that impressive."
I shook my head, then shook his hand. "My name is Zeno."
He shook back. "Nice to meet you Zeno. You going to be participating in the Kalos League?"
I grinned, realizing that I could likely face Ash himself at some point. "You bet."
Shauna chose this moment to walk over. "Hey. Great battle."
Froakie jumped from her arms and onto my shoulder.
I grinned at him. "Hey there Froakie. You watched the battle?"
He nodded vigorously. "Froakie!"
"Good," I said. "Because one day you'll be able to do better than that."
"Froakie!"
Ash looked confused again. "I have a Froakie too, but yours looks different."
"Shiny," I said, not wanting to mention Froakie's eventual fate.
"Ah," Ash said, realization dawning on his face. "I have a shiny Noctowl back home actually."
Then he eyed Froakie. "Say Zeno, how about a battle?"
I raised an eyebrow. "A battle?"
He nodded. "How about a two on two? Arcanine vs Pikachu and then our Froakies."
I looked at Froakie and he nodded confidently.
I raised my right arm and smiled. "You're on."
Ash grinned and raised his right arm and hit it against mine. "Then let's get down to business."
So if it wasn't already clear in the Prologue, we have Ash Ketchum in the book. To those most definitely wondering, he'll only show up occasionally. He won't be a travelling companion. He'll be one of Zeno's rivals. So, next chapter is when their rivalry begins. Till then. Toodles
