After peeking into Gerard's backstory, it's time to move onto the match between Gerard and Alden! This is quite an important match, and it should make for an excellent one! Which trainer will emerge the victor?

Just a Bad Writer for Fun: We'll be getting to see more of Gerard's backstory in bits and pieces as we get to know him better. There's more than what was just in that chapter.

KedharS: He's deserving of sympathy.

Rus0804: That may have been targeted a little bit.

Thunder Fire: Certainly not because of my own parent issues. But no, not everyone has parent issues, only a few people. Ayame, for instance, has a loving and wonderful family that we got to meet.

Aquahaze675: It's more of a symbolic thing. After all, Elaina went by Elly when she was in disguise with Blake.

JoshGamerV: Lots of terrible people start from tragic pasts, and Gerard is no exception to that rule.

Pokemon Academy: Beginning of Beginnings

Chapter 572

Gerard stared at the picture of his big sister Elly on his desk. Seeing her smiling face made the pain in his heart a little lighter. He lifted it up and held it before him, the light in his eyes as bright as he remembered.

"My match is beginning soon, sis," he told her. "I'll show everyone that they were wrong. I'll show mom she was wrong. What you did… it had meaning. I'm not worthless. Everyone will see just how amazing I am, just like you always did. If I can defeat the Commander… if I can defeat the Phantom… then finally, people will see me as the great trainer that I am."

By "people" he really meant his parents. All their love and attention was focused on Elly, but he knew that if he worked hard enough, then they would finally understand how great of a pokemon trainer he really was.

"I'll win. I promise. I'll win, because I have to win," he promised her, setting the picture back down on his desk and clutching the shiny pink pokeball belonging to Diana. He turned and walked out the door, headed towards Eon Stadium.

If the matches the night before had led to some significant anticipation that got the crowd pumped up, the semi-final match between the Commander and Gerard Alkwest had the entire campus buzzing. Without class to take up everyone's attention for the day, people had been discussing and taking bets all Saturday. So when people gathered around the Eon Stadium waiting for admittance saw Gerard walk into the large building early, the chorus of whispers died down before him and then roared back to life with renewed furor behind him.

Gerard entered the waiting room and sat down on the couch. He had told Elaina that she could watch the match today; she SHOULD watch the match today. After all, this would be where he would show her just how powerful he was. He could feel his hold on her starting to slip, and that was something that he couldn't allow.

He needed Elaina, he needed her allegiance, her loyalty. She was his trump card. If there were foes that he couldn't defeat with his own team of pokemon, as few as there might have been, then Elaina would be able to defeat them with her harmonia.

The problem was, she was getting harder and harder to read. The night before, when he had come to check up on her after the matches were over, she had seemed distant and off, even moreso than she usually was. And when he had asked her if there was anything wrong, she was abstruse in her replies, making things even more confusing for him.

Gerard shook his head, taking off his glasses and rubbing his forehead in frustration. He wasn't supposed to be thinking about this right now! Elaina was a complicated problem, and if she just listened to him things would be so much more simple, but no. She had to be confusing and unreasonable, all because of that damn Blake Harker.

He let out a long sigh, leaning back on his couch and staring up at the ceiling.

Blake Harker, it was always about Blake Harker. The boy was a nuisance of the highest caliber, a pebble in Gerard's shoe since the school year had started. He wished that Blake could just leave it all alone, leave Elaina alone and let Gerard conduct his business in peace.

Honestly? Gerard didn't hate Blake nearly as much as he made it seem. When he thought about the boy, he actually felt sympathy for Blake's position. He could relate quite well to feeling insecure about needing to live up to the expectations of an older sibling that everyone saw as amazing in comparison to yourself.

Both from rich families living in the shadow of older siblings that drew all the attention of their parents, he and Blake had more in common than either boy would care to admit. But even taking that into consideration, there was a line where his sympathy ended, and that was when it came in between his own goals and ambitions.

Maybe Blake would be the perfect person to make Elaina happy. But that would jeopardize everything he had worked for. Elaina was far more useful to him as a tool. He would make use of her far better than Blake ever could, and when it was all over, and everyone saw just how powerful he was, when he received the recognition that he deserved, maybe then he could let her be free. But until that moment came, he would keep as tight a grip on her as he did everything else that he had.

Until I get what's rightfully mine… I can't worry about the niceties of life, he reminded himself. I haven't done anything wrong. They're the ones who are wrong. I just need to try harder. Train harder, in order to become the best.

The pain in his heart was growing stronger, and he forced it down, shaking his head, clearing his heart of all this pain and unease as best as he could.

It's not my fault that everyone rejected me. I didn't do anything wrong. They just don't understand how great I am, because they're too incompetent and blind to see the truth. So I just need to try harder, achieve even greater heights. And when I do, they'll finally see me for the amazing man that I truly am, and then everything will be fine.

This is what you would have wanted, right, Elly? For them to see the real me…

Gerard sat up straight. It was all beginning with this. There had been some bumps along the way, but they hadn't been anything he'd been unable to overcome by setting his mind to it and working hard. Now was the time to seize the future and write a new chapter in his life, defeating two of the Daevas and becoming acknowledged as the strongest trainer at the pokemon academy. And it was just two victories away.

Lila Seelie's voice crackled over the loudspeaker, startling him. Had he spent all this time lost in his thoughts?

"Now, we shall begin the semi-final match! Gerard Alkwest vs. Alden Volt! Which one of these trainers will win? Whoever emerges the victor will enter the finals, and challenge the other finalist Richard Valon for the title of the Champion of the Phantom Cup!" Lila declared. "Gerard Alkwest! Alden Volt! Come on out!"

Gerard sighed, and rose to his feet. It was time for the match to begin. And now, he was going to receive the acclaim he deserved.

Up in the stands, things were getting more tense. Blake's eyes were focused intensely on the battlefield, so intensely that it made Ayame feel a little worried about him. She could understand why, of course. After all, this was Gerard Alkwest they were dealing with here, and she knew how sensitive of a topic he was for Blake, considering how much he cared for Elaina.

The others could feel the tension in the air, practically radiating off of Blake. They were sitting a clump as usual, Callie and Nick in the front row, along with Nikita and Reiner, with Sango, Cynthia, Ayame, and Blake behind them. And in the back row were Julia and Kitty, as well as, surprisingly, Ian, who had come and joined them to watch the match.

"I'm surprised you came," Sango said, glancing over her shoulder at Ian.

"I'm studying," Ian replied with a good-natured smile. He had a brighter look in his eye than he had the night before. "Like you said. I should start over from the beginning and keep doing my best, and that means I'm going to study Gerard and how he fights so that I can defeat him the next time I challenge him."

"Just remember that before you beat Gerard, you still have to beat my brother," Callie turned and called back. "And Rafe's a pretty… interesting opponent, to say the least." She smirked. "I'm sure you're not the kind of guy who's going to wait until he graduates to avoid that match, Ian."

Ian gave Callie a tight smile and she replied by narrowing her eyes, still not over the fact that Ian had beaten her earlier in the month.

"I think it's great," Sango smiled, her eyes twinkling.

Cynthia glanced at Sango, and then at Ian, and her mouth dropped open as her eyes widened, seeing the looks between them.

"No way, you two…?" She asked, realization dawning on her as her "O" of surprise twisted into a coy smirk. "For real? You guys are together?"

Ayame whirled her head, eyes wide at what she had just heard.

"Really, Sango?" Ayame asked, a big smile on her face. "That's so great! I'm so glad you moved on after…"

Ayame's voice trailed off as Sango shot her a warning look.

"…After all that stuff that went on with your new stepmother," Ayame quickly course-corrected, Sango's face softening for a second.

Then her look got stern again.

"You guys are totally wrong," she assured the two girls.

"Trust me, we aren't dating," Ian laughed. "I barely know her. We're both just sort of bonding over a mutual friend."

"…Well, sorry, but I'm already taken," Cynthia said, shrugging. She glanced past Ayame at Blake and gave him a flirtatious smirk, which he was too focused to notice. "Well, my heart is, anyway. So if you're barking up that tree…"

Cynthia waited patiently for a reaction from Blake as Ayame rolled her eyes, Sango doing the same, while Ian just looked confused.

"…Blake!" Cynthia said insistently, not exactly happy that her teasing was going unnoticed. "Hello? Earth to Blake?"

"…Huh? What?" Like snapping out of a delirium, Blake blinked and turned to Cynthia, confused. He'd been so focused on the upcoming match between Gerard and the Commander that he had no idea what was going on. He looked around, looking first to Ayame, then to Cynthia and Sango, and then everyone else. "What's going on? What'd I miss?"

"…Sango has a new boytoy!" Cynthia chirped, taking advantage of the confusion. "I guess all our thoughts that she had more interest in riding bikes and hiking mountains than kissing boys was completely misplaced!"

"I think that's great, Sango! I'm glad you've found a guy that you've got feelings for," Blake said, giving her a good-natured smile of genuine joy. Ayame gave a small burp of discomfort, knowing how awkward this was for her friend, even if Blake didn't have any idea how big of an ass he just made of himself with that statement.

Sango gave him a particularly loathsome look.

The cloud of tension in the air was dispersed as the murmuring of the crowd began to drown things out, signaling that Gerard and Alden had entered the stadium. That caused all eyes to turn in the direction of the battlefield, including those of Blake and his friends.

"Gerard Alkwest! Alden Volt!" Lila announced, rising to her feet, holding a hand out to Gerard first and then to Alden. "Time for the semi-final match to begin!"

Dakota was squirming in her seat, her eyes shining with expectancy as she clutched her camera to her chest, looking forward to the match to come. First, the Commander fought against Zeraora, which managed to take out five of his pokemon before losing, and now he was fighting against Gerard Alkwest and his Diancie! This was one scoop after another, she'd be pulling what felt like the fifth all-nighter in a row this week getting all this typed up for the next day's article!

Akira was more interested in seeing the match itself, as opposed to his tabloid-chasing girlfriend. Both Gerard and the Commander were known as some of the strongest fighters on campus, though they had never squared off against one another before. He was looking forward to seeing what tricks the two had up their sleeves, one of the best ways to grow as a trainer was to watch two excellent trainers fight against one another.

"Now then!" Lila declared. "The first half of their battle will be fought on…"

Lila turned to the large television screen, projecting the roulette wheel of all the potential battlefield options. The wheel began spinning, pulling to a stop on an image of a circle of sparkles. Lila's eyes widened and she gasped in excitement. This was one of her favorites!

"Fairy Stage 2! Cloudy Garden Field!" Lila cheered.

The battlefield began to rumble, the dirt ground sinking into the stadium to be replaced with another battlefield, which was rather… interesting. The entire battlefield was covered in a strange white fluffy substance, or maybe it was simply made out of it. It looked like a big cloud. Smaller clouds broke off and floated up into the air, drifting aimlessly around the center of the field.

"Whoa, nice field!" Cynthia said, brightening. "It looks so soft and fluffy!"

"I want to curl up and take a nap on it," Kitty sighed wistfully. "It looks just… aww…"

"This is one of my absolute favorite stages," Lila said. "Fairies just love the soft and fluffy nature of these synthetically generated clouds. Pokemon can stand on them and even fight on them! But be careful to watch your footing! The terrain isn't exactly even, and if you make a wrong step you might fall into a hole you didn't see!"

"Quite an interesting field," Alden grinned. He shot Gerard a look. "Careful though, Gerard, those bulky Rock types of yours might fall right through."

Alden reached onto his belt and threw his first pokeball up into the air. "I'll start things off! Eifa, let's go!"

"Espeon!" Eifa emerged from her pokeball in a flash of red light, landing on the soft cloudy field, reacting in surprise as the cushiony sensation she felt on her paws. She glanced back at Alden, who smiled assuredly at her.

"The Commander's first pokemon is his Espeon!" Lila said, sitting back down in her seat, turning to Gerard. "What will Gerard use in response?"

"Espeon is a good lead," Akira noted. "Gerard likes using stealth rock with his Rock types, and Espeon's magic bounce ability will be really useful in directing the rocks back towards the other side. It's a good counter."

"Hopefully it won't be one-sided, although Gerard still has his Diancie," Dakota reminded him. "So it's going to be a great fight!"

"Go, Archer," Gerard said, sending out his Archen. The small bird pokemon looked perfectly-suited, flying above the clouds and circling around the battlefield.

"Eifa, start with reflect," Alden ordered. Eifa's eyes flashed red and the ruby on her forehead began shining, a large crimson barrier appearing around her.

"As expected," Gerard said with a smirk. To take care of the Espeon, he would need to resort to speed. "Archer, tailwind. Then, follow with agility."

"Archen!" Archer squawked, flapping his wings and creating a massive forward draft that blew clouds into Eifa's face, Archer flying at an increased speed as Eifa braced herself against the wind, her speed not enough to keep up with the small bird as Archer's speed increased.

"Not a bad play," Alden admitted. "Eifa, use psych up!"

"Espeon!" Eifa's eyes flashed and she began to glow red, copying Archer's speed boost. Eifa turned on her paws and her ruby began to glow, preparing a psybeam to aim at the small pokemon.

"Archer, acrobatics," Gerard ordered. Archer flapped his wings and zigzagged through the air, dodging the beam of psychic energy with his skillful maneuvering. He drew in close to Eifa, raising his talons to strike, but they just scraped against the barrier instead.

"You're going to need a lot more power to get through that shield," Alden grinned. "Don't think Eifa's barriers are that weak to attacks!"

"Definitely," Lila agreed. "We've seen Espeon's reflect and light screen attacks form a very crucial role in protecting Alden's team from attacks. It's going to be difficult for Gerard to get a hit in without doing something to get rid of it."

"Not a problem," Gerard grinned. "Now Archer, knock off!"

Archer tucked in and swiped his tail, passing through the barrier and hitting Eifa in the throat, the Espeon letting out a painful cough. The strike was swift and target, hitting the necklace around Eifa's neck and knocking the satchel of clay off her, the small bag landing on the ground and quickly sinking into the clouds, gone for good.

"Oh, nice play," Akira applauded. "Using knock-off to get rid of Espeon's light clay, Gerard just reduced the effectiveness of Espeon's protective barriers."

"That was smart," Dakota agreed. "Though the damage from that attack should have been a lot more. The reflect is still doing its job, obviously."

"Eifa, psybeam," Alden ordered again. Eifa's eyes flashed and the ruby on her forehead began to shine again. But Archer wasn't about to let that happen. Eifa might be faster, but Archer was a lot better at maneuvering, turning past the psychic attack and lowering his head, head-butting the barrier with full-force. But he didn't break through, the barrier was only slightly dented and cracked. It would need more power than Archer was capable of generating to break through it.

"U-turn," Gerard ordered, the force of the blow reversing and Archer returning to his pokeball. "Burei, go!"

Archer was replaced with Gerard's Kabutops, the sleek pokemon raising his claws and dashing forward, boosted by the tailwind.

"Gerard replaced his Archen with his Kabutops," Lila announced. "It looks like he's trying to smash through that reflect with raw power!"

"Night slash," Gerard ordered.

"Kabutops!" Burei raised his claw, darkness surging through it and forming a wicked blade, a swing of his arm sending a cutting wave straight at Eifa. But that was something that the Commander was expecting, preparing for that the second he saw Burei come out.

"Baton pass!" Alden ordered. Eifa began glowing, returning to her pokeball, Alden swapping her out for another pokemon. And everyone knew what pokemon that was.

"Lucario!" Corin growled, emerging from her pokeball with a glare. The blade of darkness hit the barrier, bouncing off of it due to Corin's resistance to Dark type moves and barely doing a scratch of damage to her.

But it did come with an excellent benefit.

"Lucario!" Corin growled again, her eyes flashing as her aura flared to life.

"By taking the Dark type move, Lucario just triggered her justified!" Akira gasped. "That means that her attack stat will increase by a stage!"

"And it barely did any damage!" Dakota cackled. "That's what you get, Gerard! Take that!"

"Corin and I are champions of justice," Alden grinned. "With the speed Eifa passed on, and our newfound strength, we'll tear right through you and make it to the finals, Gerard! Now, send out that Diancie of yours! Let me see what your Sense can do!"

Gerard's expression darkened into a glare at Corin charged at Burei, raising her paws and preparing to strike.

This is difficult, but not a problem, Gerard told himself. Fighting the Commander was difficult. But he wasn't about to let the senior get the better of him.

Gerard was going to win. He had to.

And then everyone would finally acknowledge how great of a trainer he was.

The battle between Gerard and Alden is beginning! Who will come out the winner? We'll have to find out!