Ch. 36: Country Bumpkin in the Big City

Lyrik Arc

Lyrik is fiddling with her Pokédex while she walks down the road. Back in Cerulean City Nurse Joy had explained to her how this little green device would act as her Personal ID. She even showed her how to point the screen at a Pokémon to look up its information, but what else could it do?

She tapped the screen, but it did nothing. The buttons made a cute little sound when she touched them and she could see all the Pokémon she's met and captured by scrolling. She kept fiddling with it as her feet carried her forward. She read something on the screen that said, "Meet Dextyn!" She cocked an eyebrow, "What's that mean?" Lyrik tapped the right button and a loud computerized male voice suddenly started speaking to her.

"I am Dextyn, a Pokédex programmed by Professor Oak for Pokémon Trainer Lyrik Aika of the town of Lavender." Lyrik stumbled, almost dropping the Pokédex, "My function is to provide Lyrik with information and advice regarding Pokémon and their Training. If lost or stolen, I cannot be replaced." On the screen was her Trainer Photo and counter for how many Pokémon she's seen so far since starting on her journey. More high-tech then she was used to.

Because Lyrik was so distracted with her Pokédex, Dexyn, she didn't even notice the sign before she rammed right into it. She fell a step back, her hand over her face. She was totally certain it was going to leave a bruise, "OOoooowww…!" As she rubbed the mark on her forehead Lyrik looked up to see what the sign said: Saffron City. Without realizing it, Lyrik had made it all the way to the big city.

Lyrik lived her whole life in a small town, so a place like this was a major culture shock. There were tall buildings everywhere she looked and hoards of people milling about the streets. People bumped into her in a hurry and they all seemed to have somewhere important to be. Lyrik had arrived just before sunset and lights were starting to come to life. Her eyes sparkled as she looked around at everything she passed, "The 'Shining Big City." Wow~!"

On her way to find the Pokémon Center to stay the night Lyrik passes several large homes and vendors trying to sell her various items. From Saffron City souvenirs to Pokémon goods like Potions and Pokéballs for extra cheap prices, Lyrik just can't say no. Someone starts laughing just behind her. Lyrik turns to see an young man watching her. He walks over, smiling sympathetically, "You're not from around here, are you?" Lyrik blushes a bit, "What makes you say that?" He laughs again, "Well, normally locals know how to avoid being hassled by all the salespeople here. They're pretty bad, huh..?" He offers his hand, "The name's Kiyo."

Kiyo offers to show her the way to the Pokémon Center. On the way he tells her about the place he runs called The Fighting Dojo. It used to be Saffron's only Gym, but after he lost in a challenge against Sabrina it was demoted.

"So now we just help Trainers prepare for their Official Gym Challenge." Lyrik had never heard of such a system. She thought back to the days she used to Train at the Battle Dome with Tucker. Perhaps it was similar. Kiyo stops in front of a building with a red roof. The Pokémon Center.

"Well, here you are." The moon was completely out by now but you couldn't tell with all the lights of the city. After a moment to consider the idea, Lyrik turned to Kiyo, "Could I try Training at your Dojo?" Kiyo is a bit surprised by her requests. He scratches the back of his head, thinking about it.

"Well… you see, the Dojo isn't just for anyone. There are a lot of really tough Trainers there." She jumps forward, "And that's why I want to do it!" He can see the fire burning in her eyes. Kiyo couldn't help but smile. He nods, "Alright then. You can stop by tomorrow. We'll see if you're good enough to take on the Saffron City Gym Leader."

That night while Lyrik lied in her bed she thought back to her Training. She had worked her Pokémon tirelessly in the past few weeks, past few years, in fact. She knew that they were ready to take on the Gym Leader Challenge. Her fingers wrapped themselves around the blanket. "We'll show them just how good we are…"

It took awhile for Lyrik to find her way to Kiyo's Dojo the next morning. She walked all around turning down street after street, but being from a small country town she wasn't exactly sure on how to navigate the big city. She turned her Grampa Fuji's map all around, hoping to get a better idea on where to go, but it seemed that the city had grown a lot since Grampa Fuji's time. Lyrik kept trying to ask people for directions, but they would just ignore her or push her aside, in a hurry to make their next appointment.

"Different from the country, huh?" She turned around to see Kiyo standing there. He had some groceries in his hands and was trying to hide a smile. She blushed, "Not really. More like 'difficult since it's my first time,' you know?" Kiyo chuckled, "Yeah, yeah, suuure." He poked her head, "Come along, country girl. The dojo's this way."

Though annoyed with his treating her like a little kid, Lyrik followed him. A couple blocks away they reached a large wooden entryway. Just past the grounds was a large traditional building with tatami mat floors. Grampa Fuji had been sure to teach Lyrik proper manners, so she knew to remove her shoes before following Kiyo inside.

Kiyo was greeted by men of different ages, some just older than Lyrik and some even older than Kiyo. They were all wearing a karate uniform but each wore different colored belts to represent their level of experience. Kiyo turned to the students, introducing Lyrik as their guest. Although they were polite and bowed to her, she could feel their awkward stares. They were all very curious about her.

A boy that seemed about her age stepped forward, "Master Kiyo, is she here to study with us, or is she some kind of challenger?" Kiyo smirked, "Well, Aaron, I thought we'd figure that out after some lunch." No one asked anymore questions.

While the students prepared the food Kiyo showed Lyrik around. She saw all different types of Pokémon Training, though most of them were Fighting-Types. Kiyo explained how he took on students that lived and worked at the Dojo along with him. Some of the boys stayed to master martial arts alongside their Pokémon Partner, while others remained to create a strong bond with their entire team. Each of them had come from all different walks of life, but they were all here with the same goal in mind: to become stronger. He looked down at Lyrik, "So what brought you here today?" Lyrik didn't know how to answer him. But before she could answer his question, the lunch bell rang.

She was a bit shocked at their manners. All the boys and men ate as if this was their last meal. And they talked with their mouths full, food and spit flying everywhere. And the Pokémon weren't any different. The boy from before, Aaron, was particularly loud, though Lyrik noticed how his eyes kept glancing over to where she was sitting beside Kiyo near the head of the table. She didn't like the way he glared at her at all…

Once lunch was over and the table was cleared, Kiyo clapped his hands together. They were to all gather in the dojo. There, Kiyo stood before his students and faced Lyrik, "Have you come to a decision?" She puffed out her chest with confidence as she responded, "I want to challenge your dojo, Kiyo. If you'd let me." He smiled, "Very well. Now allow me to explain how we do things here at the Fighting Dojo."

Lyrik's challenge was to fight against the top 4 students of the dojo and only after beating them would she be able to take on their number one, Kiyo himself. Each of her opponents would be allowed to use between 1 to 3 Pokémon to battle with while Lyrik could fight with up to 6; however, while she would be allowed to substitute in the middle of the battle, they could not. As he explained the rules Kiyo was rummaging through some drawers. He pulled out a small box with a lock. From out of the box he pulls out two Pokéballs, enlarging them and placing one on each of two stands behind him. "And if you somehow manage to defeat all of us during this challenge, I will give you a prized Fighting Pokémon."

Lyrik's eyes began to shine. If she won she'd get a new Pokémon..!? She smirked, "This just got a whole lot more interesting..!" Kiyo turned to face the open battle field. Lyrik had accepted the Fighting Dojo Challenge. He nodded and the first to battle her stood.

The older man introduced himself as Hideki. He had traveled on a journey of self discovery when he was just a boy, but never was strong enough to challenge the Pokémon League. It wasn't until he came here and began Training under Kiyo that he managed to become stronger. He bowed before his master, "I am grateful to Master Kiyo and I refuse to bring shame unto our dojo." And so the battle begun…

Hideki put up a good fight with his Machop and Machoke, but they just weren't fast enough to keep up with Lyrik's Squirtle. He slammed into Machoke with a powerful Rapid Spin, forcing his opponent to twirl off-balance and straight into the wall. None of them had expected this child to be this strong…!

Lyrik's next opponents were Hitoshi, a Trainer traveling from a distant land, and Mike who strived to be a great and powerful Fighting-Type Specialist just like Bruno of the Elite Four. One after the other they stood to face this young girl. A girl none of them believed would be much of a challenge, after all, she was just some country bumpkin who had stumbled into the city… But they were wrong.

Lyrik had spent several years Training up her Pokémon to go up against the toughest of Trainers and she was smart enough to pick the right type of moves in order to counter-act her opponent. Aaron's Primeape was already breathing hard as he stood facing Lyrik and her Charmander. Squirtle, Bulbasaur, and Meowth stood next to Lyrik cheering on their friend. Lyrik liked the passion Aaron had for this battle, though she wondered why he seemed so upset.

Aaron was born and raised in Saffron City. He had grown up hearing stories of how only the strongest of Trainers came through the Fighting Dojo, and ever since he first saw Kiyo battle when he was younger, he had admired his skills. He refused to let his Master and dear friend down, "Karate Chop- GO!" Primeape leapt forward. But Lyrik had seen this coming, "Get low, Charmander!" Timing the attack perfectly, he ducked. Primeape's attack flew right over his head. Primeape stumbled. This was their chance!

"Use Flamethrower!" The attack was in point-blank range. Primeape disappeared behind a plume of fire as the others covered their faces from the heatwave. Kiyo waited till the smoke cleared before making the call. Primeape was unable to battle!

Aaron was shocked at his loss, Kiyo could see it. He stepped forward and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, "Take this loss and use it to make yourself stronger." Aaron could only nod. He refused to allow himself to show any emotion.

A sudden bright light caught everyone's attention. Lyrik had gone to congratulate her Charmander on his victory when he began to shine a bright blue. Charmander was finally evolving! They all watched as his body grew several inches taller and the flame on his tail brightened. Chaarrrrr-meleon!

Charmander had evolved into Charmeleon! Lyrik and her Pokémon gathered around their friend. After all this time it had finally happened. Lyrik was so happy she felt like crying. But Kiyo approached her. He looked between her and her Pokémon, "I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say you surprised us today." She turned to face him straight on. Kiyo could see that both Lyrik and her newly evolved Charmeleon were reeling for another battle. He gave a nod of approval, "Now take that burning fire and tackle your next challenge… Me!"