The twins were able to enjoy the day at the pokemon lodge. They spent much of their day outdoors by the lake, giving their pokemon the opportunity to train, play, or just relax. There were no sudden challenges to battle from their friendly rivals. It was a stress-free day through and through, as if all the troubles in the world just vanished for a moment. The short-lived feeling of refuge and serenity was all that was needed for Jason and Kristine to keep their minds in the right place moving forward.

The twins made the mandatory video call to their mother later that night. Veronica had safely made it back to Mountainspring, releasing Fearow from Swellow's former pokeball and keeping that ball secure within Jason's room, per his request. Fearow had decided to stay near the Kyar residence, finding himself a vacant tree to make his home within. After the call, the twins went straight to bed, preparing themselves for the next morning.

The rising sun was the indication that the challenges leading into the Junior Circuit would begin. Jason and Kristine woke up around the same time with a profound sense of determination. After getting cleaned up and ready for the day, the two headed out the door, double checking the room to make sure nothing was left behind. They walked down three flights of stairs to the lobby, where Liz and Amanada were the first ones to arrive. They both eyed the twins' approach, Liz displaying a competitive smirk, like she was ready to battle anyone and anything. Amanda simply smiled and waved. The sweat running down her forehead meant she likely just got back from her morning run. The twins both knew behind that innocent smile was a very motivated and talented trainer.

Bran emerged from the second floor a moment later, walking down the stairs to meet the group.

"Howdy," Bran greeted, wearing a light green shirt and brown cargo shorts.

"Hi!" Kristine was the first one to welcome Bran. Others joined in through waving and bidding good morning.

A few moments passed. There was no sign of Julian just yet.

Liz tapped her foot. "Someone's late."

"I guess there's time to eat," Jason said, heading over to the dining area to grab a quick bite.

A few more minutes went by. Julian stormed out of his third floor room in full trainer gear, wearing a gray shirt and black shorts.

"Took you long enough," Liz crossed her arms, eyes right on Julian as he came down the stairs.

"Yeah! Sorry!" Julian was nearly out of breath from running down the stairs. "I overslept."

"It happens," Bran laughed.

"I suppose," Liz shrugged and turned to the exit. "Shall we?"

"Let's do it!" Amanda moved forward. "And besides, Ash Ketchum overslept on his first day as a trainer and now he's winning tournaments all over the world."

"Fate brought him and Pikachu together that day," Jason added. "There's no other way to describe it. His mother didn't even wake him up."

"I don't think Mom would have for us, either," Kristine spoke up as the six trainers headed out the door.

"My sisters and folks helped me prepare to be a trainer," Liz said. "Timeliness, organization, responsibility. All that fun stuff you'd think adults only do."

"At least we don't pay mortgages," Bran mentioned.

"Well my parents taught me financial responsibility," Amanda said. "They throw an allowance my way every now and then."

"You're the only child, so anything you ask, they will give you," Liz turned to Amanda.

"I suppose there's some truth to it. But I use what I have sparingly."

"I'd go on long treks with my dad before becoming a trainer," Julian added. "Kept me physically fit all the way through."

"My older brothers took up training at some point and moved on shortly after," Bran said. "They are all pursuing careers, but they've taught me some things they thought they could've done better in hindsight."

Liz, walking ahead of the group, turned around to face the twins while walking backwards. "And you guys?"

"We watched a whole lot of battles," Jason replied.

"Our mom made sure we were at least knowledgeable of what we were getting into," Kristine added. "Not to mention we're practically transitioning into adults in the middle of all this."

"We kinda took everything with a grain of salt until our first day as trainers ," Jason said.

Julian chuckled. "Didn't we all?"

The six trainers rejoined the main path and continued south.

"Okay, so I propose a plan," Amanda spoke up a few minutes later. "No one loses until they go up against each other."

"Works for me," Liz replied. "Besides, I don't plan on losing. Ever."

"Question," Julian raised a hand. "Does Alex count?"

"Who?" Liz raised an eyebrow.

"I'm with Liz on this one," Bran added.

"Alex comes from the same town I'm from," Julian explained. "Jason and Kristine bumped into him before, as did Amanda."

"He's not very nice," Amanda warned.

"I want to fight him again," Jason clenched his left fist with resolve and revenge. "This time, it'll be on the big stage. And this time, we'll win."

"You need to have a clear mind if you go against him," Kristine advised. "None of this revenge nonsense. Please. Besides, you know what's going to happen if you don't beat him."

Please, oh please, defeat Alex. Or I will. Jason can remember Kristine's message months ago, following Jason's humiliating loss to Alex.

Julian knew exactly what Kristine meant. "Oh man, the sis is gonna lay down the hammer!"

"I'm guessing Jason and Alex fought," Liz added. "And it didn't go so well for Jason?"

"I let Alex get to me," Jason responded. "But Kristine's right. I can't let him get to me again."

"So do we even know where he's at?" Liz asked.

"We can only assume he's been ahead of us this entire time," Kristine replied.

"I haven't seen him in ages," Julian mentioned.

"All I know is he's got to be competing at the Junior Circuit," Jason said. "He thinks he's above a lot of things but for him, the tournament is an opportunity for him to show that."

"I'll give him a reality check," Liz smirked.

The six trainers continued down the road, passing farms, open fields, and lightly wooded areas under a partly cloudy sky. By noon, they all settled down for lunch across an open field with a nearby stream.

Having vaguely seen the other trainers yesterday up until the evening, this was the first chance the twins got a real good look at their rivals' teams since Pattersbaugh Falls. Amanda's team remained unchanged after she partnered with Tyrogue for the Rings of Valor competition. Tyrogue trained in the field alongside Flaaffy, Nidorina, Staravia, and Wartortle. Feebas, whom she caught in Lake Serenity, swam alongside Magikarp in the stream.

Liz's team all displayed a sense of seriousness and determination. Charmeleon and Liepard were considered to be the aces of Liz's team, with Donphan, Mankey, and Haunter being solid combatants as well. Horsea was in the stream, and while she was the latest addition to Liz's team, everyone knew of Horsea's final evolution and its full potential.

Bran's team were quiet and disciplined. They kept close together, observing all other pokemon during their training. Ivysaur may have been Bran's starting companion, but he had taken to a support role with Kadabra being the team's ace. Herdier, Noctowl, and Honedge backed up the team alongside Bran's newest addition, Heracross, was a surprise to Jason and Kristine, as Bran made no mention of him before. Kristine thought Heracross made a good fit for Bran's team, given its dual fighting and bug typing.

Julian's team reflected upon his upbeat and outgoing personality. They weren't highly composed and organized compared to the other teams, as they were spread throughout the large field. Onix was taken further out, given enough room to move around freely. Julian wanted to minimize the damage done to the earth from Onix's basic movements.

Grotle led Julian's team alongside Pancham, Pidegeotto, and Vulpix, who spent much of his time with Jason's growlithe. His sixth pokemon was Poliwhirl, who joined Julian just a week ago at a small lake.

The twins kept close to each other, though they both knew they didn't have to. Aside from Growlithe and Magikarp mingling with Vulpix and Feebas respectively, their teams mostly kept to themselves, focusing on their training and observing the very pokemon they may be going up against in the future.

The lunch break had all trainers more focused on preparing for the Junior Circuit than anything else. There wasn't much chatter amongst each other; while everyone was friendly towards one another, they all knew they were each other's rivals, standing in their way of victory and recognition across Inventum. They all knew they had to push themselves and their teams to do their best if they wanted any chance to win the Junior Circuit, let alone prevail against any other trainer.

An hour had passed. Everyone seemed to keep track of time, recalling their pokemon and packing up as their mutually agreed upon lunch break came to an end. They continued down south, encountering mile markers measuring the distance between their location and Viceport. They were roughly 300 miles away from Viceport, and putting some math together, Kristine figured they were about 120 miles from PokeWorld.

The group remained quiet for the most part. They kept an eye on one another, as they all assumed the responsibility of getting to PokeWorld together and in one piece. This would be the case all the way through, as Kristine had predicted. Her brother was especially quiet, even to her. She knew he had a lot going on in his mind. He was setting himself and his team up for success, and Kristine knew if he had to go against her, he would do everything to prevail this time around. Losing to her a third time in a documented battle would not be an option.

Jason felt the weight of the world press hard on his shoulders. His goal was to be the best trainer out there, and that included Julian, Bran, Amanda, Liz, and even Kristine. He put a lot of pressure on himself to be a good leader to his team and prepare for important battles ahead.


The days went by as the group trekked closer to PokeWorld. Palm trees came into the distance, something completely new to the trainers. Julian had initially mistook them for the alolan variant of exeggutor, which Liz debunked that claim by simply walking up to several of them and shaking them.

Such was Liz's personality. Calm and collective, she called out nonsense as she saw it unfold. She projected a tough girl image to everyone else, but even the twins noticed her exposing her softness on rare occasions. She was firm to her pokemon during training, but ultimately caring. She wanted her pokemon to be at their best form, and she pushed herself to be the best as well.

Julian was the outgoing guy of the group, his physical and positive energy sometimes matching Amanda's. He wasn't afraid to voice his observation of the surrounding environment, even if it made him look like an idiot at times. If anything, it would usually make Amanda giggle. He seemed to be the most relaxed during training, often letting his pokemon do their own thing. While appearing the least composed compared to the others, the twins couldn't help but wonder if this was a ploy to catch everyone off guard, or if Julian found a style of training he was truly content with.

"It would've been cool if there were alolan exeggutor here," Amanda seemed slightly bummed as Liz ran her point across Julian over and over. Amanda didn't just project a sense of positivity, she was that beacon of light, always going about with a smile on her face and always speaking with purpose and enthusiasm. If there was darkness, she was there to illuminate it. Her pokemon always seemed happy and well, and they displayed their enjoyment working alongside her. As Liz once said, Amanda was too pure for this world.

Bran simply rubbed his chin. He was the quiet one of the bunch. Like Liz, he was calm and collected, but in his own way. He drew energy from within rather than outwards. His polite, silent demeanor made him a formidable and unpredictable trainer. As Jason and Kristine observed in the past, Bran was more than capable of stepping into the limelight if necessary and taking control of a battle. His pokemon reflected his personality. They kept to themselves, but in the end, they knew what was needed of them to be the best out there.

Liz walked up to another palm tree with what appeared to be a low lying coconut and shook it. "See? No tall pokemon here."

"Liz, I think you proved your point," Kristine kindly spoke up.

Liz turned around. "See Julian?"

"Uh," Julian noticed that palm tree shifting, unveiling the head of it's tail. The face simply smiled as the pokemon turned around. The three main heads of the alolan exeggutor all smiled at the trainers.

"That's not good," Bran spoke up.

The alolan exeggutor then gave Liz a light budge with its body. All other trainers looked on with despair. They knew Liz had disturbed it, but they all felt a sense of responsibility disturbing the peace of a wild pokemon.

Jason pulled out his pokedex. "No way; an actual alolan pokemon that lives here!"

"Exeggutor, alolan variation," the pokedex described. "The Coconut Pokemon. The blazing sunlight of Alola was said to awaken its true potential, sacrificing most of its psychic capabilities to unlock the dragon within."

"How is this thing a dragon?" Julian wondered.

"I guess they all decided one day they wanted to be dragons," Kristine shrugged.

Liz had goosebumps shooting down her arms. Fighting through being uncomfortable with a giant pokemon behind her, she pulled out Charmeleon's pokeball.

"Let's see how well that grass and dragon type holds out against some fire!" Liz threatened.

"No! Wait!" Amanda pleaded. "Let's get out of here!"

"Exeggutor!" the middle face smiled, powering what appeared to be Hyper Beam.

"Yeah, let's not set Sol on fire today!" Kristine grabbed Jason by the hand and rushed further down the road.

"Yeah, let's run!" Amanda ran over to Liz, grabbing her free hand and taking off.

Julian and Bran simply nodded at each other and followed suit. The aggravated alolan exeggutor fired off Hyper Beam seconds later. Luckily for the trainers, its high arcing shot that landed and exploded in a nearby field indicated it was just a warning shot. The trainers heard the loud explosion, feeling the ground tremble as a gust of wind blew by them.

"Man, that was a powerful Hyper Beam!" Bran yelled.

"Keep going!" Kristine picked up speed, forcing Jason to keep up with her or risk getting dragged to the ground.

"I told you there could be an alolan exeggutor here!" Julian exclaimed to Liz.

"Yeah yeah," Liz snapped, nudging her hand loose from Amanda's grip so she could run independently. "You took a shot in the dark and got it right. You want a cookie for that?"

"How in the world is there a wild exeggutor here? From Alola?" Bran's curiosity got the best of him.

"I think we should get out okay first and ask questions later!" Amanda responded, making sure she came off polite through her high tone.

The alolan exeggutor decided not to pursue the trainers, and went back to parking itself among the palm trees.

"Kristine, can I have my hand back now?" Jason looked back to see if it was safe.

Kristine looked back to verify it was indeed safe, and let go.

"I wanted to battle it, too," Liz seemed disappointed.

Julian laughed. "Well, that was something!"

"One for the ages, right?" Amanda joined in on the laughter.

"I will probably tell my kids that someday," Jason added.

Bran chuckled. "Dang Jason, isn't it too soon to talk about kids with your wife?"

Jason's face beamed red from Bran's highly exaggerated implication of his relationship with Sydney. "She's not my wife!"

"Did I miss something again?" Liz asked.

"Oh, Jason met this girl from Galar and they really like each other," Amanda explained. "It's really cute."

"I see," Liz chuckled. "Good for you, Jason."

"Yeah, thanks," Jason was still embarrassed, tempted to retreat far away for just a little bit.

The group eventually slowed down, catching their breath before continuing onto PokeWorld.


After a few more days of traveling through the Sol Peninsula, the group came within reach of PokeWorld. Signs were posted on the side of the dirt path, showcasing the flagship pokemon stadium that is the trademark of PokeWorld. While the stadium itself was state of the art and could hold well more than 100,000 spectators, it was to the group's understanding that they would not be battling there, but rather inside smaller, adjacent stadiums.

The size of PokeWorld became more apparent the closer the group got. More signs displayed the number of hotels and theme parks the resort complex possessed. PokeWorld could easily host hundreds of thousands of people at any given time, making it a city of itself.

Emerging over a small hill, the group could see the towering hotels just a few miles away. The massive stadium itself was visible, right in the middle of PokeWorld. An automobile road ran adjacent to the dirt path, with occasional vehicles zipping by both directions.

"So this is where our fates will be decided one day," Liz looked on.

"And to think Inventum's best, no, the world's best, converge here," Jason added. "This will be us someday."

"Small steps," Bran spoke up.

"Gotta do the junior stuff first!" Amanda said. "Then we can move on to big kid things."

"Just look at that," Kristine seemed astonished. "This stadium easily beats the one in Richland Port."

"What do they even do when they're not hosting the Inventum Cup?" Julian asked. "That's a lot of money just sitting there."

"Oh I'm sure they have other uses for it," Liz replied. "Shall we continue?"

The six trainers continued onward, following the path right underneath a massive archway that welcomed them into PokeWorld. The word itself was in a playful, yellow font, with images of numerous pokemon surrounding it, from pikachu to clefairy to marill to eevee. The adjacent automobile road ran underneath a larger archway, with tourists stopping at the side of the road to take pictures.

One of the nearby tourists, an older woman, noticed the six trainers. It wasn't every day one would see that many trainers clustered together. She aimed her professional camera at them and started snapping pictures. The trainers all looked on, clearly weary from traveling a great distance the past week, but also relieved to have arrived at PokeWorld.

More tourists noticed the trainers, and began snapping pictures from their cameras, tablets, and other smart devices. Amanda was highly tempted to take out her tablet and snap pictures at them, but she stopped herself from doing just that. It was something the trainers had to get used to, especially if they wanted to get all twelve badges and compete in next year's Inventum Cup. The trainers all waved and moved on shortly after, continuing down the path decorated with shrubs and palm trees on both sides.

"So where do we go from here?" Jason asked.

"There's a pokemon center near the stadium," Amanda replied. "From my understanding, we check in there, and we get assigned to a hotel."

"We're just a few days shy of the beginning of the Junior Circuit," Kristine added. "Would they book us if we're a little early?"

"I don't see why not," Bran replied. "They have to reserve room for us at some point."

"Wonder what hotel they'll shove us in?" Liz spoke up.

"I wanna be high up," Julian preferred. "Hopefully one of those 25-story hotels."

The trainers made their way into a well-lit tunnel, while the automobile road went over them and split into three directions. Several minutes later, they emerged from the tunnel. They soon realized the dirt path was designed to provide trainers a straight shot to PokeWorld's main facility. The massive stadium was awe-inspiring, with its retractable dome closed for the time being. Even being half a mile out, the trainers got a clear view of the stadium itself, and already, there were massive banners displaying the upcoming trainers of the Inventum Cup.

Even more impressive to the trainers, the banners seemed digital, rotating through different trainers and color schemes every fifteen seconds. There was a woman with short pink hair by the name of Michaela, in pink and black gear covered neck to toe. Her joyous disposition was on full display with a pink and white backdrop. Her image soon gave way to Ken Jarrar, the self described Champion of Inventum. He sported sunglasses, wearing a white shirt, an open red vest, and blue jeans. Red, white, and blue stripes were in the background, giving a patriotic theme.

Various trainers from Inventum and around the world appeared on the banners. There were dozens upon dozens, and with the Inventum Cup just weeks away, it was obvious PokeWorld was hyping this up, getting the fans focused in anticipation of Inventum's premier pokemon competition. Kristine, Amanda, and Julian envisioned themselves being on these banners one day, while Jason, Liz, and Bran knew this could be a reality, and just had to accept and embrace it.

Another familiar trainer appeared on one of the banners. It was Phoebe, wearing a blue bikini top, a long skirt with a white flower pattern, and a red flower on top of her short dark hair. She smiled, one eye closed, and displayed the two finger peace sign. An hazy background of blue, purple, and white colors gave her banner a mysterious vibe. The group suspected that there was a seriously powerful trainer behind that playful pose. Phoebe, afterall, was considered to be one of Hoenn's best trainers.

Approaching closer to the stadium, the trainers made a right towards the nearby pokemon center. The three story white facility seemed slightly smaller than the others, but as the trainers quickly realized, this pokemon center had no rooms for trainers to take refuge in, but instead, utilized the entire building for the care of pokemon.

The group walked into the lobby, quickly spotting the resident Nurse Joy at the counter. There were a handful of trainers in the lobby, but no one was certain if they were just passing by or active participants of the Junior Circuit.

"Welcome!" Nurse Joy greeted. "How can I help you all?"

"Hi!" Kristine waved. "We're all checking into the Junior Circuit. We registered a while back."

"Certainly!" Nurse Joy nodded. "I just need to ask you to form a line and I'll get you situated in a timely manner."

Kristine was the first behind the counter, followed by Jason. Liz saw it as competition to be the next. She saw an opportunity to get in front of Jason, but seeing him and Kristine as a package deal, she settled behind him. Amanda followed, with Bran and Julian bringing up the rear.

"Kristine Marilla Kyar," Nurse Joy read Kristine's full name off her computer. "Great. You'll all be staying at the Canon Carmesi Resort not too far from here."

"Isn't Canon Carmesi a canyon west of Inventum?" Liz asked. "Like way west?"

"The real one? Yep!" Nurse Joy answered. "All hotels here are based on real world natural wonders."

"Also, this is my brother," Kristine pointed at Jason, stepping aside for him to approach the counter. "You can put us in the same room if you want."

"Yeah, I think I can do a two bedroom for you," Nurse Joy said, typing information into her computer. "Jason James Kyar, you're in. Now let me get key cards for you two."

"A two bedroom place?" Kristine seemed intrigued. "We're so used to studio twin beds."

"Oh, prepare to be blown away," Nurse Joy smiled. "Each one has its own bathroom."

Liz stepped up after Jason received the room cards.

"Elizabeth June Rose," Nurse Joy verified Liz's information. "And you're in! And don't worry, the one bedrooms are just as great."

"Cool," Liz nodded. "It's been a long time since I stayed at a real hotel."

It was soon Amanda's turn.

"Amanda Lauren Sanders," Nurse Joy typed away. "You're all set!"

"Thanks!" Amanda took her key card with excitement.

It was Bran's turn.

"Brandal Stephen Riken," Nurse Joy verified Bran's information. "You're good."

Bran simply gave a nod and took his key card. Julian hopped right up to the counter.

"Julian Martin Varrek," Nurse Joy went through the process one last time. "Here you go!"

"Let's do this!" Julian happily took his key card.

"Okay," Nurse Joy addressed the group, loud enough for everyone to hear. "To get to Canon Carmesi Resort, go back out on the path and make a right. It is the first resort on your left. You do not need to check in at the lobby there. I have taken care of all the information for you."

"Got it," Kristine acknowledged. "Thanks, Nurse Joy!"

"Don't mention it," Nurse Joy smiled. "As you guys are the last to confirm your registrations, the tournament bracket is all set. You will find information of who you will go against at the resort's lobby TVs, as well as inside your room. Good luck to all of you."

The trainers all expressed their gratitude and left the pokemon center, following Nurse Joy's instructions. They took the dirt path and made a right, continuing down with cacti and large red rocks coming into view as decor. They walked towards the security gate of Canon Carmesi, getting clearance from the guard there and continuing within. To Julian's disappointment, Canon Carmesi wasn't a 25-story building, but rather a widespread complex containing ten buildings, all no larger than four stories. It was themed after the red canyons in a region far from Inventum. While the group didn't even scratch the surface in this resort, they couldn't help but wonder what other hotels were in PokeWorld, and what natural wonders they were modeled after.

Passing the parking lot, the group made it inside the main lobby of the stone-built complex. The interior was largely dominated by wood and stone furnishings, and the lobby itself was much larger than the pokemon centers the trainers were used to. Lounging areas were scattered throughout, and the end of the lobby gave a glass overlook of the red walkways, resort pool and lazy river, and replicas of pathways through sections of Canon Carmesi itself. There were a lot of tourists inside the lobby, ranging from all ages, as the trainers observed.

A massive screen against a stone wall nearby displayed the finalized bracket of the Junior Circuit. The trainers all converged on the screen, seeing who they would go against. There were exactly 32 trainers, meaning there would be five rounds. None of them knew their first round opponent, only they had at least five badges.

Jason studied the left side of the bracket. He was facing a girl named Emily. Not knowing a thing about her, he was going to study up in the days prior to see what badges she had and what her team consisted of. Then he saw the adjacent matchup. Alex faced another trainer, and the winners from both battles would fight each other. He suspected Alex would be in this tournament. He tried to pay no further mind to that; he needed to focus on winning against Emily first.

Kristine found herself fighting a boy named Eric. She quickly noticed she wasn't too far from Jason in the bracket, let alone they were on the same side. Any chances of a final round matchup were diminished just like that. To top it off, Liz lurked on their side of the bracket.

Julian, Bran, and Amanda were on the right side of the bracket, all three fighting trainers they didn't know. They seemed evenly spread throughout, meaning it would be at least a couple rounds in before they could potentially go against each other, if they make it that far.

After examining the bracket, the trainers turned around, only to see a dozen nearby tourists suddenly shifting their eyes away from them. The tourists were giving them their peace for the most part, but no one could help but gaze at active participants for the upcoming Junior Circuit.

"Well," Liz began to depart from the group. "Good luck to you all. It's been a fun trip over here."

"Yep!" Amanda waved at everyone else. "Time to go unpack and relax!"

"Same," Julian added.

"Mmhmm," Bran stepped away.

Just like that, everyone but Jason and Kristine dispersed. The realization of friends becoming rivals sunk in, even if it was for the next week. The twins kept silent, glancing at each other once before walking over to a nearby display of the resort map. As Kristine began to plot a course to her and Jason's building, Jason turned around to see IPSN on a mounted TV screen at a nearby bar. It was displaying the bracket for the Junior Circuit.

"Well, that was quick," Jason mentioned.

Kristine turned around to see what Jason was talking about. "Oh wow. They wasted no time."

"The trainers of tomorrow will have a chance to make an impact in the Inventum League," Tom stated in the broadcast. "Among them are twins Jason and Kristine Kyar, as well as familiar faces such as Amanda Sanders, Liz Rose, Bran Riken, and Julian Varrek."

A picture of the six trainers posing in funny stances back in Pattersbaugh Falls appeared.

"Who will win the Circuit?" Tom opened the topic for speculation. "Coverage of the first four rounds will be on IPSN's website, with the final round featured on our flagship channel."

Just as Tom began to cover another segment of his broadcast, Kristine grabbed Jason's hand and quickly proceeded past the back doors to the outdoor walkways of the resort. "Everyone will be on top of us in a matter of seconds. Let's at least rest first before we handle that."

Kristine knew she was doing that for Jason more than herself. She could handle tourists and fans on a whim; Jason needed time to mentally prepare for that. They walked down a red path and through a tunnel solely there for decor. Jason shook his hand away a moment later.

Emerging from the tunnel, the twins spotted Alex from a distance. Jason picked up the pace to walk alongside his sister. They weren't going to say a word to him, but they knew Alex had a track record of instigating altercations.

Alex locked his eyes right on Jason's as he approached him. "You're still here?"

"I'm not going anywhere," Jason defiantly replied.

Kristine got in front of the two, hoping to de-escalate the situation.

"Why are you still encouraging him?" Alex asked Kristine.

"Because he's my brother and he's an amazing trainer," Kristine defended Jason.

Alex scoffed. "You're defending weakness, and that makes you weak. It's a shame, because I thought you were better than that."

"Hey!" Jason snapped. "Talk smack about me all you want, but don't you dare go after Kristine!"

"Fine," Alex refocused his efforts on Jason. "Pray we don't go against each other. I'll destroy you in front of all of Inventum. Quit now while you can."

Alex walked away right after. Jason clenched his fists, with Kristine using her left arm to bar him from following Alex. He noticed she also had both fists clenched, her glaring eyes right on Alex.

"Destroy this punk," Kristine said. "If you don't, I will. That's my promise."

Jason put his left hand on Kristine's shoulder. "I promise you I will beat Alex, if we go against each other. One round at a time, sis."

Kristine sighed, and put her hand over Jason's. "One round."

The twins continued along the path to their building.

"Building 9," Kristine read a nearby sign a moment later. The twins were on the first floor, saving them from having to navigate the stairs. They were able to access their room from the outside. They walked into a brown and red wooden interior, complete with a living area, a kitchen and dining table, and two bedrooms down the hallway on the far side. To them, it resembled a very nice and cozy house.

Jason noticed the massive TV screen in the living area. Kristine observed the kitchen, reminding her of the one at their home in Mountainspring. It was complete with an oven, a gas-powered stovetop, a coffee maker if they wanted to satisfy their curiosity, a dishwasher, a sink, and a microwave. There were even plates, glasses, and silverware. This gave Kristine the desire to cook while they stayed here, but she wondered how that would be possible; they were in a resort, afterall.

Jason walked over to the living area and turned on the TV. The default channel was nothing but information about the upcoming Junior Circuit, obviously pre-recorded and looped.

"The three stadiums trainers will be participating in reside in the west, north, and east of the main stadium," the female narrator explained.

Jason turned the volume up for Kristine to hear from the kitchen.

"They are named after legendary pokemon Raikou, Entei, and Suicune," the narrator continued. "Raikou, to the west, is given a yellow color scheme. Entei lies to the north and is given a red color scheme. Suicune lies to the east and is given a blue color scheme. Each stadium is architecturally identical and seats up to 40,000 people."

"Would make sense," Kristine said. "I got Suicune in the first round, so I wondered what that meant."

"I got Raikou," Jason mentioned. He turned to his sister. "Good luck, sis. We got this."

"Yeah," Kristine smiled. "You too. I'm gonna go unpack. If you wanna walk around in a bit, we can do that."

"Which room do you want?" Jason asked.

Kristine walked down the hallway. "The left one!" she exclaimed before making a sudden left.

"Weirdo," Jason muttered, but he appreciated Kristine's quirky moments and found humor in them.

As Kristine proceeded to her room, Jason finished the loop on the informational video before changing the channel. It was time to get serious and plan for the tournament. No one wanted to lose in the first round, which reinforced Jason's directive to take this one round at a time. This may be the toughest competition he and Kristine got themselves into, but this provided an opportunity to build momentum for the future and show Inventum beating the Donnovan Twins was no fluke.


Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Here's an updated list of all trainers and their pokemon:

Jason: Jolteon, Kirlia, Magikarp, Riolu, Growlithe, Dartrix

Kristine: Espeon, Fletchinder, Raichu, Machoke, Snorunt, Dratini

Liz: Charmeleon, Liepard, Donphan, Mankey, Haunter, Horsea

Amanda: Wartortle, Staravia, Nidorina, Flaaffy, Feebas, Tyrogue

Bran: Ivysaur, Noctowl, Kadabra, Honedge, Herdier, Heracross

Julian: Grotle, Pancham, Pidgeotto, Onix, Vulpix, Poliwhirl

Alex: Monferno, Sneasel, Rhyhorn, Kirlia, Luxio, Frillish