CHAPTER 7
As I made my way up the tower, I gained some experience by battling the old people. There weren't very many people here after all. I hadn't found a Gastly yet. I had had Faygo out with me now, as these Trainers all had Bellsprout.
By time I got to the top, I was exhausted. The tower was higher than I thought. I still hadn't found a single Gastly. But as I battled the last Trainer in the room, I noticed something.
There was something red floating behind the pillar. I wasn't sure what it was, but I knew it wasn't a Pokemon. I hadn't heard of any red Ghost-types before. Maybe it was the last Trainer. I wasn't sure. I finished up my battle with the Trainer I was fighting, then made my way around the pillar. There was an Escape Rope in the corner of the room. I put it in my bag and turned around - and I froze.
The floating red thing wasn't a Pokemon. It was Dirk, the kid I had run into back in Cherrygrove. What was he doing here? He sounded like he was yelling at the old man at the end of the room. I ran over and shoved him out of the way.
"What are you doing here?" His question stung, but I quickly regained myself.
"I came here to get a Gastly and train a little bit. You?" He was frowning at me, obviously mad that I knocked him over.
"I was teaching this guy that I doesn't matter how you train your Pokemon." He got up and brushed off; his pants had dust all over them now. "That is, until you knocked me over." The old man took his turn to speak, content with cutting Dirk's explanation off.
"This young man was telling himself lies. He was telling me what he just said." Now it was my turn to cut him off.
"But it does matter. A Pokemon will perform badly if it doesn't like its Trainer or how it's trained. Look at my Pokemon, for example." I sent out Cilantro and Popcorn to accompany Faygo. "They all look happy, no?" Dirk refused to answer me. "Don't they?" I repeated.
"It doesn't matter. I'm leaving." He turned around and left. Something in his expression told me he was sad. But I couldn't figure out why. The old man walked up to me.
"That was a great thing you just did, you know that?" I felt special for a few seconds after he said that. But then he continued. "So, how about a battle with me? I heard Falkner won't be back for a while. Battle me and maybe he'll come back."
"Wait... What? In order to battle Falkner, I have to beat you? How many Pokemon do you have? My Pokemon can't battle much more. They're all weak from climbing and battling." He handed me a few Potions.
"Use these." I pushed his hand away.
"No way. That would be breaking the rules. I can't." He sighed.
"You're one of those trainers, eh? Alright. I'll let you off this time. But remember, you have to beat me in order to get to Falkner."