Castelia Arc: A Shot in The Dark
Hydreigon screeched and shot a bright beam into the air. It exploded, causing the sky above to glow, before hordes of meteors suddenly plummeted down, causing the ground beneath them to tremble. "Watch out!" Mari shouted, and Skarmory tried to dodge the falling meteors. "Careful!" Jacky tried to warn Luxio as well, but far too late. Luxio was hit by one of the meteors and went down... And it didn't get up again. Skarmory was not lucky either. The hail of meteors didn't let up and it managed to escape them for a while, but then, it was hit by one, staggered in the air, looked for its balance, and was hit again. It screamed and then was buried underneath several meteorites. "Oh Arceus! Skarmory!" Mari sprinted off, pushing the remains of the attack off her Pokémon with all her might. It was no longer moving. "Why...?" Mari withdrew Skarmory in resignation. "Our plans worked... why did we still lose...?",
"He's too strong..." Jacky sighed dejectedly. "We didn't stand a chance..."
Dino had destroyed all their hopes in just one blow. And he knew it, because he started laughing. "Hahahah... Hahahah... Looks like you guys lost." He put a hand to his forehead and kept laughing like crazy. "How you guys had hope for a moment... How adorable. Seeing that was really amusing! Hahahah!" Jacky withdrew Luxio wordlessly. Mari turned to him, wishing she could have punched him in the face to make him stop laughing at her. "I guess you don't care about your Pokémon's well-being at all, huh? Even if they're hurt, you let them keep fighting mercilessly. You're a selfish person! You don't care how they are doing, the main thing to you is that you have victory in your pocket!",
"Pah..." He waved it off and the stone on his bracelet flashed dangerously. "You insult me, you insult my Pokémon. We're the same, wannabe trainer." He grinned nastily. "Why would my Pokémon stay with me if I merely hurt them?",
"You fight without emotion." she growled. "And don't you dare compare me to you again! We're not alike in anything at all!",
"You have no idea." He smirked snidely, and only now did they notice the stone that was inserted into a metal ring around Pinsir's left horn. A stone similar to the one in Dino's bracelet. "What's our smart-aleck's take on this?" he grinned, looking to Jacky. "Didn't work out the way you thought it would, did it?" Jacky swallowed her anger and struggled to keep her composure. "We didn't stand a chance, and you beat us. I'll give you that." She looked him straight in the eye. "But that doesn't justify your disgusting behavior toward your partners. You fight without mercy and fairness, Mari is right! Today we fell for it, but when the time comes, we'll show you what a close bond between trainers and Pokémon really means. That goes for you as well as your Pokémon. With that attitude, you'll never be able to hold the title of champion. Come on, Mari." She turned and went into the Pokémon Center. Mari gave Dino one last venomous glare, and then followed her.
"What a show-off!" she hissed sourly as they dropped off their Pokémon. Jacky just sighed and sat down at one of the tables. She buried her face in her arms.
"Are you disappointed?" Mari asked, sitting down with her.
"Yes..." she mumbled a little indistinctly. "By myself. I should have known we couldn't win... No tactic in the world could have done anything against it.",
"No one blames you, especially me", Mari said. "Losing your shit sometimes makes you end up like this. Still, our Pokémon put up a good fight. And I'm telling you, I won't lose to that snot again, I swear.",
"I sure won't either." She smiled wanly. "But I do wonder about one thing... What were those stones Dino had in his possession?",
"I had a chance to take a closer look at them in the battle." Mari narrowed her eyes. "A stone that shimmers in the colors of the rainbow... and I saw a strange mark on it. It looked like those strange colored bits inside marbles. I seem to remember seeing something like that somewhere before... On Diantha, the champion of Kalos League. But it didn't look exactly the same..."
Jacky sighed. "Mh, doesn't matter now. Those stones can't be that important, can they? Maybe Dino and Diantha just have a thing for pretty stones.",
"Dino and a thing for pretty stones? I don't believe that. And besides... why would Dino's Pokémon have one of those, too?",
"Absol wears jewelry too.",
"Yeah, alright..." Mari sighed, "Oh, by the way... In three weeks, there will be a Junior Cup tournament at the PWT stadium south of Driftveil City. The event counts as one of the biggest in the junior trainers' circle. What about we take our chances and try our hands at it?",
"You're still asking that?" Jacky questioned, smiling again. "That would be my first official tournament. Of course I'm going to participate! Besides...", she stood up and stretched her back, "...my gym battle tomorrow is the perfect preparation for it!",
"If we want to go to Driftveil, then we have to go through Nimbasa. There's a gym there too. And then, there's a gym in Driftveil itself.",
"Do you think we can do that in three weeks?" Jacky wanted to know.
"Sure. I'm optimistic. So... you feel well enough again to take on the Castelia Gym?"
Jacky sneezed and nodded. "With a cup of Oran Berry tea, I'll be fine.",
"All right." Mari smiled widely and crossed her arms. "By the way, have you ever seen the Pokémon World Tournament's stadium? It's huge!",
"Really?",
"Yes. It's one of the biggest stadiums in all of Unova, almost bigger than the Pokémon League stadium. That one has two arenas, by the way, did you know that? An outdoor arena and an indoor arena.",
"Awesome... Are there any requirements for the tournament?",
"You have to have at least two Pokémon and four badges", Mari replied.
"Well, we're good to go then", Jacky commented. "I'm going to hit the hay. Good night!",
"Sleep well!" Mari waved at her with a smile and Jacky smiled back before walking up the stairs and disappearing into their room. Mari got up and walked outside, to the Castelia City harbor. She stopped at the Prime Pier and looked out at the sea reflecting the light of the full moon. A beautiful view...