Kenya didn't have a stake in the tournament. She had little interest in the prize.
An endorsement from Alder? What would she do with that? She knew Andrew wasn't interested in it either.
She'd be willing to bet a good few of the contestants weren't really interested. But Andrew was still determined to battle.
Kenya felt the same way. She had something to prove. She'd been training with her pokemon. She wanted everyone to see just how incredible she was.
The crowd was overwhelming. Kenya stood on the edge of the battlefield, staring up at the audience.
Alder was speaking.
Clay stood on the other side, his arms crossed. A scowl stained his face. Kenya smirked. He had an Excadrill, a Krokorok, and a Palpitoad.
"I don't feel like battling you."
Clay's words sent Kenya's blood boiling.
"Please send out your pokemon," Alder's voice suddenly reached Kenya. "The match needs to begin."
"Oh." Kenya sent out her pokemon. Druddigon, Darumaka, and Yamask. She'd caught Yamask under the Desert Resort. She adored it.
"Please begin." Excadrill immediately burrowed underground. Kenya had seen how much trouble it could be.
Between Andrew's battle with Clay back and Driftveil and Andrew's match just earlier, she knew it had to be dealt with. Krokorok and Palpitoad started to advance on Kenya's pokemon.
"Yamask! Protect Darumaka!" Kenya ordered. Darumaka grabbed onto Yamask's mask. The two of them floated up into the air. "Druddigon!"
Druddigon roared. The ground rumbled. The stadium rumbled. The world seemed to rumble.
Krokorok and Palpitoad fell over. Cracks spread across the damaged battlefield as the rumbling slowly stopped. Excadrill appeared, popping out of the ground. Darumaka let go of Yamask, landing beside Excadrill.
Darumaka pummeled Exacdrill with fire punches, knocking it out.
"Gym leader Clay has lost his first pokemon," Alder said. "This match is off to a great start."
"Palpitoad! Get up!" Clay shouted. "Both of you!" Palpitoad fired a hydro pump at Darumaka. Druddigon moved, taking the hit. It hardly did any damage.
A shadow ball hit Palpitoad, knocking it back. Druddigon charged. Krokorok intercepted it, tripping Druddigon with its tail.
"Druddigon, come on!" Kenya yelled. Palpitoad went after Darumaka again, launching mud bombs. Darumaka ran in circles, avoiding the attacks. Druddigon struggled, swinging at Krokorok.
Krokorok kept dodging, tripping Druddigon up with its tail. Yamask launched an energy ball. It whizzed past Palpitoad, hitting Krokorok in the face.
"Yes!" Kenya jumped for joy. Druddigon followed up, grabbing Krokorok and smashing it into the ground. Krokorok growled, whipping up a sandstorm.
"Palpitoad! Take that Darumaka down," Clay said. The sandstorm grew, covering the battlefield. Yamask floated higher, staying outside of the cloud of dust. Kenya wondered if there was a limit to how high Yamask could go before it was disqualified.
Alder didn't comment on it. She squinted, trying to see into the dust. Darumaka cried out.
"Druddigon! Protect Darumaka!"
"Keep going!" Clay ordered.
"Druddigon!" Darumaka flew out of the dust cloud, hitting the wall of the stadium. "No!" Kenya ran over to Darumaka. It was knocked out. She returned it.
"It seems Kenya has lost her first pokemon of the match," Alder said. Kenya scowled.
"Druddigon!" She yelled, returning to her spot. She could barely make out Druddigon's shape in the sandstorm. "Do it! Use outrage!" Druddigon's roar seemed to drown out the buzz of the audience.
"Is that Druddigon?" Alder asked. Kenya watched intently, her eyes burning. Druddigon's figure moved fast, crossing the battlefield.
The ground shook. Clay shouted orders, getting frustrated. The sandstorm weakened, the air started to clear.
"Palpitoad, mud bomb!" Palpitoad dodged Druddigon's claw and fired a mud projectile at it. It hit Druddigon's chest, no effect.
Druddigon grabbed Palpitoad and slammed it into the stadium wall. The wall cracked. Gasps spread across the audience. Druddigon roared.
"What the…" The tone shift in Alder's voice was obvious.
"Palpitoad!" Clay yelled. Krokorok ran towards the two of them.
"Yamask!" Kenya called out. "Energy Ball!" The energy ball knocked Krokorok off its feet. Yamask slowly descended towards the ground.
Druddigon held Palpitoad in the air, growling. Kenya bit her thumb. She could hear Andrew berating her.
Why would she have Druddigon use outrage? Druddigon, despite Kenya's efforts, hadn't actually learned the move. But she'd figured out an alternative. She'd trained Druddigon to essentially rampage.
By recalling all of its memories of her aunt and using them to fuel its anger. Andrew was immediately against the idea when he found out. Druddigon slammed Palpitoad against the wall again. The cracks deepened and grew. The audience was starting to panic. Palpitoad was knocked out. Clay locked eyes with Kenya.
"That Druddigon is out of control!" Alder shouted. Yamask fired another energy ball, knocking Krokorok out. It was floating a few feet away from Druddigon. Druddigon dropped Palpitoad, turning to Yamask.
"No!" Kenya sprinted onto the field, dodging rubble. Druddigon roared at Yamask, raising its claw. Kenya threw its Pokeball at it. The Pokeball hit Druddigin on the head, and it was returned. She took a deep breath. "That could've been worse." She felt thousands of eyes on her.
Yamask floated over to her, nudging her affectionately. Clay returned his pokemon and approached her. Kenya forced a smile as he got close.
"What is wrong with you?" Clay asked. Kenya blinked. Alder didn't say anything.
"Excuse me?"
"That Druddigon. It was suffering. Could you not see how much pain it was in?" Kenya tried to meet his intense gaze. "Are you that desperate to win?"
He made a disgusted sound and walked off of the destroyed battlefield. Kenya stood, feeling alone in the middle of the stadium.
When she pictured herself winning, she'd imagined herself laughing at Clay. She'd mockingly demand he give her a badge even though she didn't want one. Somehow. She felt like she'd lost the battle. She stared at Clay's back.
She wanted to shout at him. Tell him she didn't even want to win that much. Her lip quivered.
"Please leave the battlefield," Alder said. "The next match needs to begin." Kenya silently left the battlefield. She had her pokemon healed and returned to the waiting room.
She stood outside the door. The next match was called. The two trainers walked out. One of them glanced at her. It was the woman who was sitting next to her. The woman shook her head and walked away. Kenya sat down against the wall. Elesa's assistant crossed her arms.
"Ma'am, you're supposed to be in the waiting room." With a sigh, Kenya got up and walked into the room.
The glares she expected were nowhere to be seen. The room was alive with conversation as usual. No one looked up except Andrew and Bianca. They watched her walk over.
She got to her seat and collapsed into it. She waited for Andrew to question her. Even Cerea didn't say anything for once.
"How's Druddigon?" Andrew asked. Kenya hadn't even considered. She took out Druddigon's Pokeball.
"I'm sorry," she said. Andrew nudged her.
"That's pretty genius," Cheren said. "How did you get Druddigon to behave like that?" His sharp eyes turned on Kenya. It felt like the first time he'd ever noticed her.
"Leave her be," Bianca cut in. "I think she's upset." The next few matches were like a blur for Kenya.
The woman never returned to the seat next to her. Eventually, Alder was speaking again. The people in the room had dwindled to about half.
"Round two will be taking place tomorrow. The remaining contestants will be given a room at the pokemon center."
Images of all of the remaining contestants appeared on the screens. Sixteen people in total. The Elesa's assistant opened the door as Alder continued talking. Kenya was in a daze as they left. She followed Andrew outside and to the pokemon center. Cerea was chattering on about something. The group split up at the pokemon center. Kenya sat down in a chair, scratching her nose. Andrew sat down next to her.
"Well? You want to talk about it?"