A/N: How I managed to get this chapter done with Thanksgiving and Pokemon Scarlet both occupying so much of my mind this week is truly astonishing. Perfomance Issues aside, SV is my favorite Pokemon game in years and hopefully it won't keep me from missing my self-imposed deadlines for this! Enjoy the chapter.
The next morning, the entirety of Wyndon, no, the entirety of Galar, seemed to be positively electric. I could hear conversations in the lobby all the way from my room when I awoke, and as soon as I was out of my room door, I saw Victor coming back upstairs.
"Morning, Gloria," he yawned. "Probably coulda guessed from the hubbub downstairs, but they released the heats and regulations for the first half of the tournament."
"Are Hop and Marnie down there?" I asked.
"You really need me to answer that?" he replied, rolling his eyes. I made a face and scooted around him, slipping into the elevator as another trainer brushed past him rudely. "Enjoy the ride down," Victor said suddenly, before immediately rushing to his end of the hallway.
"What was that all abou-oh!" I said, stopping abruptly as I realized who I was sharing the elevator ride with. The woman next to me was a few years older than me, standing nearly half a foot taller, but that could have just been from her gigantic poof of luminescent pink hair or the massive white bow the shape of a Dustox sitting square on top of that. She looked at me curiously, under a heavy yet pristine application of pink eye shadow and thick black mascara before readjusting her position underneath a thick fur coat as white as the bow on her head. "H-hi," I said meekly as the doors closed and we made our way down to the lobby.
"Well good morning!" she said in a high-pitched voice. "Don't tell me. You know Victor? You don't mean…no, you're Gloria, aren't you? Pleasetameetcha, I'm Klara, as I'm sure you know."
"Y-yeah," I chuckled, extending a hand to shake hers. "This is a bit embarrassing, but I've listened to your music for a couple years now!"
Her eyes snapped down to my hand for a millisecond before she looked back at me, not accepting the handshake. "Ohmigosh, I just love to meet a fan. But my music career is a thing of the past, unfortunately. You see, I'm actually going to be the new Poison-type Gym Leader. It's so wild that we'll be competing in this tournament together! Victor talked about you all the time on the Isle."
"You trained with him on the Isle of Armor?" I asked, shocked.
"Did he not…did he not mention me?" she said. I noticed her eye twitch just the smallest bit. "Ugh, boys. What are you going to do?"
"I usually ignore them," I chuckled.
"So, I've heard," she replied, her voice a little too sweet to be genuine. As she did, the doors opened into the lobby, where about two-thirds of the trainers at the opening ceremony were gathered around a big screen with our faces plastered on them. Klara and I rushed over to the group, and as she started to push her way forcefully to the front, I spied Marnie off in the corner, patiently leaning against the wall with a mug of tea in her hand. She nodded as I approached.
"G'mornin'," she said, taking a sip. "I suppose you're eager to see this, ain't you?"
"It can wait, honestly," I grinned, leaning next to her and placing my hand against her free one.
"Was that that girl Klara you came down with?" Marnie asked.
"Yeah, you know her?"
"Ask my bro about her sometime," Marnie said with a small snicker. "Can't say I have much fonder words about her either."
"Not your genre?"
"I think that answer's obvious," Marnie said, her eyes narrowing as Klara finally made her way to the front. "Hope she's in my heat so I can take her out personally."
I nuzzled up against her. "You're so cute when you're bloodthirsty," I whispered in her ear as she took another sip. She coughed, beet red, and had to set her mug down on a nearby table to clear out her throat. As she did, Hop bounded up.
"Gloria! Where were you?" he asked. "I figured you'd have been here as early as me!"
"Some people know the list isn't going anywhere," I replied.
"Yeah, well, it doesn't make it any less exciting," he retorted. "Anyway, enjoy your heat. Should be a pretty easy one for you. Number four of eight."
"Which are you?"
"Number one, which is fitting for me," he replied, puffing his chest out.
"Because you'll be the first one of us out of the tournament?" Marnie jabbed.
"Who else is in mine?" I asked.
"Er, that you'd know? Bea and Allister," Hop said.
"Wicked," I grinned. "Who's in yours?"
"Raihan," Hop said, "but that's all that I know."
"So, an easy one for you," Marnie said. "He's nothin' but hot air. You look for mine too?"
"Yeah, of course!" Hop replied. "You're number two. Melody and her son are both in there, so enjoy that drama. A couple trainers I didn't recognize. John something or other, some girl named Penny, and someone named—"
"Marnie! Hi!" a high-pitched and far too friendly voice boomed as Klara walked over to us. "When Gloria left, I figured you wouldn't be too far away. So good to see you again, truly. How's your brother?"
"He's fine," Marnie sneered.
"I can see why you two get along," Klara said, shifting her gaze to me for a second. "Sweet and salty make for an excellent pairing. Anyway, Marnie, did you know that you and I are in the same heat together? I was really hoping I would be in Gloria or Hop's; I was hoping for a real challenge during these first rounds and who better to battle than the two trainers endorsed by Leon?" She smirked at Marnie, who narrowed her eyes to slits before turning her attention to Hop. "Speaking of which, you have to let me meet him. He's so cute, and I really would like to… pick his brain about battles."
"I know that was subtext, but I guarantee you that's all you'll be able to get out of him," Hop deflected with a laugh.
"And don't worry, Marnie'll give you all the challenge you'd ever need!" I said, gripping Marnie's hand tightly. Klara looked down to our hands and her lip twitched upward in the slightest sneer before resetting to its overly sweet standard.
"Right, of course, she is the highest-ranked gym trainer," she replied. "Though we all know how those rankings matter once the big tournament starts."
"You'll see," Marnie said, her voice sharp as a knife.
"Ta!" Klara said, waving to us and parting with a saccharine smile.
Before she had even left the lobby, Hop had already lost interest. "Right, well, my first battles are this afternoon. Gonna be a long week for all of us, even if we do keep winning! I know all that sparring paid off for us, Gloria!" And without any further thought, he sprinted out the lobby door and into the streets of Wyndon, no doubt making a Beedrill-line for the stadium.
"He said multiple battles. Did I hear that right? Do we have more than one a day?" I asked Marnie.
"Pretty sure we do," she said with a shrug. "I don't think you'll need to worry too much. Anyway, try not to lose too many. I wanna be the one responsible for takin' you out of the runnin'."
"You are cute when you're bloodthirsty," I snickered.
"You haven't even seen the worst of it," Marnie replied, pulling me in for a quick kiss. "Gonna grab a bite and head to the stadium myself. Probably won't see much of you once we get there, though."
"You're, er, always welcome in room 214 with me," I said, blushing. "Bewear is a bit of a bed hog though, fair warning."
Marnie blushed a bit as well. "I'm sure we can figure something out."
Later that afternoon, all of the buzz and excitement from the hotel lobby had expanded into Wyndon proper. There was a shuttle bus ferrying trainers to and from the stadium complex and on the ride over, every single LCD billboard, TV screen, sandwich board, and even previously blank walls were showing adverts and schedules for the tournament. I had never been in Wyndon during an official Pokémon League Tournament, but I remembered Mum telling me it was like nothing else she had ever experienced when she had gone. I had to agree.
We were let off the shuttle and were funneled into a gigantic network of underground tunnels, allowing us to walk freely between battle pitches without distraction or interruption from spectators. The big central area was a massive domed room dominated by a wall that had eight massive screens on it. I saw my name in bulky black letters, along with my matchups for the day and gulped. My first match was against Allister. Hop, Victor, and Marnie all had matches at the same time as me, all within the hour. We said good-byes and good lucks, and soon after, I was alone in the crowd of trainers who were far more excited about which battles they wanted to watch while they waited for their first match of the tourney.
"Gloria, it's…it's nice to see you again," Allister said in a quiet mumble.
"Bloody Hell!" I screeched, jumping nearly a foot in the air. "You been here this whole time, then?"
Allister shrunk back. "No, I saw you walking over. I…I just thought I'd say hello."
"Well, hello," I sighed. "I better not be this jumpy for our battle. You want to head over now?"
"M'kay," he nodded. Together, we made our way to pitch number 4, where we were scheduled to battle. Once we were out of the big gathering area and into a straight hallway leading to the pitch, things quieted down immediately. The hallway was well-lit in a cold fluorescent lighting, and though we could still hear the noise on either end of the long hallway, it sounded distorted and distant. As we walked together in silence, I couldn't help but notice that every ten feet, there was either a security camera or a League official watching us, but mostly me, like a Braviary. I tried not to let it psyche me out, and the walk was soon over. We came out of the hallway and saw the pitch before us.
Pitch number 4 seemed to be a ground or rock type's dream. Dirt covered the field, well-packed but just loose enough to dig into should the need arise and scattered about it were a multitude of large rocks sticking out. Hop would love this pitch, I thought to myself, as it would have been a perfect complement to his Pinball Dubwool strategy. I also noticed that most of the rocks were more than large enough to provide excellent cover for a small, speedy Pokémon. My hand hovered over Sneasel's Pokéball. I knew that she'd do well against Allister's ghosts, but I knew this was a great bit of luck for me.
There were four large rises of bleachers on each side of the square pitch, and above each was a large jumbo-screen, each with a different display on it. while it wasn't nearly as packed as say, Kabu, Bea, or Raihan's gyms, a respectable number of viewers were in each side.
"There's…there's a lot of people out there," Allister mumbled. "They must all want to see you."
I shrugged. "They could be here for you, too! What about that guy?" I asked, pointing to a man near the front who wore a black shirt with a crudely drawn red smile that looked a lot like Gengar's wicked grin. Allister chuckled and together we walked to the edge of the pitch.
"Hold up!" a man yelled. I turned to see the official, a stocky man in his mid-40s with feathered yellow hair and a stern expression. "Trainer Allister, this will be where you enter. Trainer Gloria, please use the other side when you are announced." He pointed to our right, where a long dugout led around the west end of the pitch leading to the other side. I nodded and went in the direction he pointed. As I did, I passed a long line of benches already being filled up by other league contestants, reporters, and whoever else managed to sneak in at a close range. Most gave me a cheery wave, but no one made to stop me in my tracks. They must have been told to wait on interviews until after the match was over. At the very end of the pitch, I saw Veronica Summers and Mac. Veronica gave me a wink as I passed. "I get your first interview after the match, right?" she asked pointedly.
"Since you asked so politely," I laughed, shooting a finger gun at her and rounding the last corner, where another league official waved me over.
"Wait here," he said simply. "Battle will start in ten minutes. Allow me to go over the rules for the fat Fletchling portion of this tournament."
"Okay."
"You are allowed to use any of the Pokémon you have registered for the League, but only three of them, so choose wisely. This will be a single battle. No time limits and no limits to switching between your Pokémon as long as it is one of those three. First to knock out all three of their opponent's Pokémon is the winner. Is that clear?"
"Yes."
"Brilliant," he said. He looked left and right before leaning in towards me. "And between you and me," he whispered, "I think you've got this heat wrapped already. Even if that Allister kid gives me the willies."
I smiled politely and took my place at the edge of the pitch and grabbed Sneasel's Pokéball, holding it gently in my hand. Inside, I could feel it twitch with excitement. She was ready, too. I stood there, taking deep breaths, and as I did, I could hear the energy rise up from all directions. I glanced to my left and saw a Rotom Camera whirring calmly. There was a bright red light blinking next to the shutter – I guess the live feed was already on. I smiled and waved, wondering who all was watching it right now. The roar of the crowd was all I needed to hear to answer that question. Suddenly, my wrist buzzed, sending a small jolt of Dynamax energy into my wrist. The match was about to start. Introductions were made over the loudspeaker, and then I heard it.
"Making her Pokémon League Debut, ranked #2 in the league, Miss GLORIA DIXON!" I took one last deep breath and walked out to loud cheers. I turned and waved at the nearby seats and as I did, I clocked Sam and Eddie right there in the front, holding up a handmade sign that said CinderACE of the Tournament in shaky red bubble letters, alongside a crude drawing of Cinderace's face.
I made my way to my position as Allister was called onto the pitch. His cheers seemed smaller but fiercer. I tried to find the man in the Gengar shirt, but he was too far away for me to make out. Instead, I gripped Sneasel's Pokéball and held it to the sky, before the referee had even taken his spot on the side of the pitch. I held my face stern and did not look away from Allister. I wasn't going to let him see me nervous.
Allister straightened up a bit and held a Pokéball up as well, and the referee looked at us both. Seeing we were both ready to battle, he didn't even bother to ask us – he simply threw his arm up in the air as well with a yell. "Begin!"
Allister and I launched our balls, and Sneasel appeared in a flash of white light. "Stay in cover and move when I tell you," I ordered. Sneasel nodded and ducked behind a rock as I glanced over to see what Allister had in store for us.
At first, I couldn't see anything at all, until one of the rocks lurched forward, with ghostly tendrils reaching out, animating other rocks near it, twisting and contorting them until they all were facing me. I could barely make out a strange red pattern that was etched into the rocks. As they paused, it looked as if a snake had been drawn across a single boulder before this ghost possessing them had restructured them to fit its body, and where the snake's eye had been etched was the ominous glowing eye of the Pokémon itself. A Runerigus, if I remembered correctly. This thing would take a while to wear down.
"Alright Sneasel. Ice Shard! And keep your cover!"
Sneasel leapt up from her rock, hurling an icicle with devastating speed at Runerigus and crashing directly into the eye hole. It reeled back in shock and pain.
"Rock tomb!" Allister cried, with sudden confidence and bravado. As Sneasel fell back behind the rocks, the purple glowing eye quickly looked over and with a surge of purple aura, caused the rocks around Sneasel to begin vibrating.
"Jump left!" I cried, and just as she did, the rocks crashed together where she had just been standing. A narrow escape.
"Rock tomb again!" Allister called, and the rocks closest to her new position began to shake as well.
"Brick Break, behind you!" I cried. Sneasel's fist turned white, and she unleashed a vicious punch behind her, smashing the rock to pieces, keeping her from being crushed fully. Some rocks still hit her, but she avoided the brunt of the attack. I sighed in relief. "Excellent. Now Ice Shard again, find cover!"
"Earthquake!" Allister yelled, just as another Icy Dagger flew and crashed into Runerigus's eye. Runerigus let out a debilitating moan and instead of a few rocks beginning to shake, the entire pitch began to quake, so much so that even I felt it twenty yards away. Sneasel lost her footing and crashed into a rock. She pulled herself up. She had been shaken but still had plenty of fight in her.
"Keep pelting it with Ice Shards!" I ordered. "Try and close the distance between you!"
Another crash of ice against rock. "Disable!" Allister cried. The purple aura surrounding the field turned bright red. Sneasel had just created another icicle in her hand but as she brought it up to throw, it immediately melted in her hand. Sneasel blinked in surprise and stopped, looking at her now damp claw. Allister quickly took advantage of the distraction. "Now Rock Tomb!" he cried.
"Sneasel!" I cried, but for once, she was too slow, and three large boulders crashed into her. She crumpled, and for a moment, I thought she was done for, but she pulled herself up wearily.
"Nothin' fancy anymore, lay into it with an ice punch!" I cried. Sneasel roared and rushed her opponent.
"Rock tomb!" Allister said, and the purple aura spread to the edges of the field, picking up every single loose rock and sending it on a collision course, not only with Sneasel but itself. I gasped – even if Sneasel landed the hit, she wouldn't be able to get out of the rock's way in time.
"Sneasel! Dive to the left!" I cried. Her ears perked up and she looked back at me. As she did, she clocked all the rocks headed to her. One smacked into her from the right, but she stayed low, sliding on her stomach just as the rocks collided onto Runerigus instead of her. She picked herself up quickly. She was shaky but still standing.
"Now punch it!" I cried. Sneasel needed no encouragement, and just as the last rock fell off Runerigus' body, Sneasel's icy fist was upon it, hitting with such force that Runerigus instantly dropped. As it did, the purple aura dissipated, and the audience gasped.
"Runerigus is unable to battle!" The referee shouted.
Allister withdrew his Pokémon without any comment. Sneasel looked rather worse for wear, but there was pride in her eyes that I felt as well as her. It was not an easy opponent, but she handled it with the grace I had come to expect from her.
"Go! Mimikyu!" Allister cried. "Shadow Sneak!"
"Ice Punch!" I yelled instinctively as the Pokémon popped out. I had seen plenty of Mimikyu before; their strange baggy Pikachu-esque costumes made them quite popular, but I had never battled one before. As Sneasel rushed Mimikyu, the Pokémon instantly flattened itself. A black shadow whisked across the pitch, climbing over discarded rocks before reaching Sneasel. I couldn't exactly place how it could have happened, but as soon as the shadow reached its target, Sneasel jerked suddenly, as if shoved from behind. She took a tumble but righted herself, and as the shadow returned to the Pikachu costume and started to rise up again, Sneasel landed her strike.
"Way to go!" I cried as the neck of the costume fell to the side. Sneasel also looked proud, but Allister only snickered.
"Slash!" He cried. As he did, a black ribbon-like tendril shot out and slashed Sneasel right across the chest, sending her stumbling backwards again. As she recoiled, Mimikyu scuttled away quickly, the head of her disguise hanging limp behind her. I growled – we hit the costume, not the actual Pokémon.
"Hone Claws!" Allister cried.
"Ice Shard!" I roared. Sneasel made to make another icicle with her paw, but nothing happened. Sneasel blankly looked at her hand. I blinked and then cursed. The move had still been disabled.
"Shadow Sneak again!"
"Go! Bewear!" I cried. As Mimikyu melted away from its costume again, I held up Sneasel's Pokéball, instantly switching her out with Bewear. Once Bewear had materialized, the shadow made its attack but as it passed over Bewear's giant paws, it seemed to have no effect at all. I grinned.
"Slash!" Allister called as Mimikyu's shadow reanimated its costume. Immediately as it was up again, it sent that ribbon-like tendril at Bewear.
My grin widened as I saw my opening. "Grab it and use Darkest Lariat!" As the tendril whipped Bewear, he managed to grasp it tightly in its paw and pull, yanking Mimikyu out from under whatever was in the place of its feet. Barely able to hold onto its costume, Mimikyu was dragged into the air and whirled about like a lasso before Bewear brought it back down to the ground with a deafening thud. Mimikyu never stood a chance.
"Mimikyu is unable to battle!" the referee yelled. The audience started hooting with excitement.
I allowed myself a quick cheer for myself and Bewear, pleased but not all that surprised that he managed to deliver such a powerful blow so quickly that I hadn't even returned Sneasel's Pokéball to my belt. "Thanks for everything, Sneasel," I said to her in her ball. "Bringin' the hurt on that Runerigus and setting up Bewear for a quick win? You've earned your rest for sure."
As I turned back to the battle, I was not even remotely surprised to see that Allister had already called out his final Pokémon. What was even less surprising was that it was Gengar he had called out. It stood, staring hungrily at Bewear and me. Bewear stared at it warily.
"Focus Blast!" Allister yelled. Gengar's fists began to glow orange as they summoned a ball of bright energy.
I grimaced. "Payback!" I yelled. Bewear braced himself, focused on what was going to come.
Gengar, grinning maliciously, heaved the ball of energy forward, sending it directly to Bewear, who crouched down in preparation. Just as the move was about to hit him, he launched himself forward and up, taking the attack head-on. As the energy rushed through his body, he let out a mighty roar, as if holding on with all his might. The light of the energy quickly diffused, but I could still see it rippling through Bewear's fur as he crashed back down on the ground. He landed on his right foot and sprung forward, running slowly but then quickly picking up speed, his right and left paws both surrounding themselves with a pitch-black aura before leaping at Gengar, who was too busy celebrating landing such a devastating blow it could not realize that retaliation was right there. Bewear crashed into Gengar and as he did, that black aura burst out from all sides, sending sand shooting up in every direction. When the dust cleared, Bewear was lying on the ground, unconscious, with Gengar next to him, also completely out.
"Gengar and Bewear are both unable to battle!" cried the referee. "With two Pokémon remaining, Gloria wins the match!"
The stadium lit up with shouts as Allister and I rushed to our Pokémon. Bewear opened his eyes meekly as I rushed over to him, raising his arms for a Bewear Hug, which I was more than happy to provide. His breathing was ragged but steady, and with a little extra help from Rapidash, who had popped out of her own accord to provide a couple Heal Pulses to both him and Gengar, Allister and I had both revived our Pokémon.
"Great battle," I said, sticking my hand out. "That Runerigus almost threw me off completely.
Allister meekly took my hand. "Thanks," he mumbled. "You're…you're just as good as they say you are." Gengar gave me a big hug as well. Its skin was cool to the touch and surprisingly soft, far from what I ever would have expected it to feel like.
"You're not so scary after all, are you?" I asked. Gengar snickered. "Allister, I think I understand why you like Ghost Pokémon so much."
"If you say so," he mumbled in reply. "An' good luck with the rest of the heat. I know you'll crush them."
"You too," I said with a smile. "Good luck." And with another shake of the hands and burst of cheers from the audience, we returned our Pokémon to their Pokéballs and walked off the pitch together.
A/N: Look, I love Gengar as much as the next guy, but that boi has the defenses of a sheet of loose-leaf. And also, let me tell you how much more fun I had with Bewear on a Shield Playthrough when I found out he can learn Darkest Lariat. Absolutely wild. 10/10 mon. Also Klara! I think Avery and Peony are the only major Sword and Shield characters that haven't gotten any scenes in this. Eagle-eyed readers will know that I mentioned them once or twice in earlier chapters, but it'll be harder to find a way to bring them in organically this late in the game. Avery definitely could have gone here, but Klara's background in music led to an interesting dynamic I thought of with Marnie. I don't think much will come of this because there's so much happening in this tournament and if I don't focus mostly on Gloria, this story is going to once again balloon into another 30 chapters and kill the pacing of the story entirely. Maybe my next fic should be a champions tourney or something. Who knows. Anyway, hope you enjoyed, and see you next week!
NEXT WEEK: THINNING THE HERD