Chapter 12: Round One

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokémon or any of its associated properties, although I do have one pretty awesome Garbodor on my White Version team for what that's worth. Individual OC credits, as usual, will follow.

At last, the wait is over…!

Heracross, Nick Brooks mused, were friendly-looking Pokémon, with their warm yellow eyes and upturned, smiling mouths. Many Trainers he had met appreciated their power, to be sure—after all, the razor-sharp horn and muscular clawed arms the species possessed weren't just for show—but he couldn't think of anyone who would actually call them intimidating.

About ten minutes into his first tournament battle, Nick was quickly realizing that that opinion was totally wrong.

His Flygon, whom he'd chosen to begin the match, was as always an impressive sight, its massive, insectoid wings beating the air as it hovered several feet above the shiny, pastel-colored stadium floor. But Nick was quickly realizing that the real juggernaut on this field resided in a polished blue-grey shell, and was currently fluttering heavily over to his side of the field.

Nick gritted his teeth, determined not to look like a total idiot in front of so many people. He was sweating like crazy, both from the tense situation and the angry glare of the sun, and the roaring of the innumerable crowd blended with the pulse of blood through his temples in a twisted symphony. He surveyed the situation as quickly as he could, and called hastily out to his Pokémon.

"Mr. Nibbles! Looks like some sort of physical attack coming up, so get out of range and use your tail to block!"

Mimi Darius had, until then, been leaning forward intently, perpetually fixing Nick with that green-eyed stare that had "just watch me win this" stamped all over it, her beautiful silvery hair moving slightly in the breeze. But at this, she abruptly crumpled into helpless laughter. "Mr. Nibbles?"

"Yeah….well, trust me, it made a lot more sense when he was a Trapinch," Nick muttered in response, he face burning scarlet. So much for not embarrassing himself.

Mr. Nibbles himself didn't seem to have any problems with his name, and had remained fixated on Mia, Mimi's Heracross, during the whole conversation. The Ground-and-Dragon behemoth knew it had an advantage in the fact that a Heracross' translucent little insect wings could barely lift a 119-pound frame, and granted the Pokémon little aerial mobility. Still, like Nick, Nibbles was well aware that this would be no easy victory.

Showing off a bit, the Flygon climbed upwards several feet, its wings sending a powerful downgust towards Mia, and lashed out with its muscular tail.

Nick had been watching this process with a smirk, knowing that the move would batter the Heracross to the ground without fail, effectively cutting off anything from a Tackle to a Close Combat. As such, he was unpleasantly surprised to behold a sudden flash of purple light as Mia moved in, followed by a disturbing silence as Mr. Nibbles slumped to the ground, his wings breaking the fall and letting him glide somewhat.

Icy panic flooded Nick's veins, shattering the warmth of the balmy summer rays around him. A Vacuum Wave, of course. The move was basically a Fighting-type version of Quick Attack, with the significant exception of the fact that it required no physical contact. And of course, "physical contact" was exactly what you would typically expect from a Heracross. Nick had to admit, it was the perfect sucker punch.

A self-satisfied-looking Mia shambled back into place, awaiting Mimi's orders. Nick's mind was racing, but he realized quickly that it was running in circles. In desperation, he decided to fall back on one of the most time-honored Pokémon Trainer strategies of all time: bluffing.

"Okay, that was a pretty neat little trick there, Mimi. What else do you got?"

As brash as his voice had sounded, Nick Brooks couldn't really conceal the dire straits he was in for long, and even he didn't find his boast particularly convincing. He fully expected Mimi to laugh it off, but instead found that she was still staring at him intently.

It's almost like she knows something I don't, Nick realized, puzzled. Like there's something she's hoping I won't figure out…

In the space of a second it hit him, rushing into his mind in a dizzying instant that made him appreciate how the Vacuum Wave must have felt.

Utterly disgusted at himself for not having come sooner to what now seemed like a blazingly obvious conclusion, Nick's next act was to join the already substantial number of Trainers who had smacked themselves in the face on live television.

How did I MISS that? He asked himself incredulously. Heracross was a Bug-and-Fighting type Pokémon. And although up to a few seconds ago he'd been too focused on the conflict itself to realize it, that meant…that the key to an easy victory had been with him all along.

Nick's face was still burning. The first battle of an entire tournament, and he'd actually forgotten about a double type weakness? He wouldn't have been at all surprised had Professor Oak himself come marching down from the stands to demand that he surrender his Trainer's license. Well, at least I can make up for it now!...

"Mr. Nibbles, FLY!"

A dismayed expression fell over Mimi's countenance as the Flygon returned to the heated air, this time soaring steadily upward until it was on eye level with the upper decks of fans.

Feeling like a Snorlax had just fallen off his back, and his heart now soaring with the clouds, Nick pumped his fist in celebration. Had he not remembered that particular move, he realized, things could've turned very nasty, but now his victory was all but sealed.

The announcer seemed to agree. "And after taking a severe beating from Heracross in the first few rounds, it would seem that Nick has finally hit on a solution! If this attack connects, it will be super effective and deal quadruple its normal damage. But will Nick Brooks and Mr. Nibbles (the announcer intoned the Pokémon's name without missing a beat, apparently having heard stranger things) be able to pull this off?"

"You know it," Nick muttered, grinning as he watched Mia make futile swiping motions at the air, unable to do anything but squander a turn. In such an important battle, every move felt like life or death, and he was savoring the reversal of fortune more than almost any feeling he'd ever experienced.

Flygon, waiting no longer, sliced through the air on an expertly plotted collision course, its gliding wings tucked close to the body to aid acceleration. Nick was on tiptoes. Three seconds to impact … two …

The thud that followed seemed to shake the stadium floor. Nick froze, his mind outright refusing to accept what it saw: Mr. Nibbles lying on the floor in a battered heap, clearly unconscious, and a triumphant Mia raising a claw in victory.

"Taken down by an intense blow! The blue corner now has the lead when comparing the number of remaining Pokémon – 3 to 2."

Gasping, Nick turned to the screen that normally held the scoreboard, which was now showing a multi-angle replay of the fatal few seconds. As Mr. Nibbles approached, Mia had apparently dodged, grabbed the Pokémon, and slammed it into the ground, taking advantage of its already substantial momentum.

Nick gritted his teeth and numbly turned back to recall his Flygon, feeling like Mia had knocked the wind out of him as well. "All right, Poketopia," he mumbled. "Not even gonna let me off easy in the first round, huh? Then I'll just have to step up my game … "

Nick's mind flickered through the remaining members of his team, felling a stab of panic at every new weakness to Fighting – or Bug – type attacks. He'd had no idea just how threatening that combination could be until it was staring him in the face.

Looks like I've got only one option, he concluded. But this oughta be good.

"Let's go, Colonel!"

Nick's first Pokémon ever, now a sleek and formidable Blaziken, burst from the ball and hit the ground in a crunching susurration of red and gold feathers. Colonel stretched itself in an elaborate, dance-like motion, then planted its feet on the ground and flung its arms back defiantly, a screechy roar escaping its beak and volcanic flickers of fire dancing around its wrists.

Mimi nodded in acknowledgement, a grim bring-it-on smile on her face – but one that suddenly melted into a look of amused disbelief. "Colonel – as in KFC? Seriously, Nick?"

Oh great, Nick thought, first Mr. Nibbles and now this … "Hey, you gotta love Kanto Fried Chicken, right?" he called back weakly. "But you're the only one getting fried today!" Ouch, he admitted to himself with a wince, that was really pretty lame. His Blaziken, apparently reading his thoughts, turned to him and shook its head in exasperation.

"Flame Charge!" Nick yelled hurriedly, resolving to stop the banter before he humiliated himself on live television any further.

Instantly, he knew he'd made the right choice in sending out the Colonel. A serpentine, incandescent tornado of orange-white flames surrounded his Pokémon, and it launched itself at the opposing Heracross in a full-body tackle. Nick couldn't resist a muttered "yes!" as the attack connected in a scorching billow of fire.

Growling as Nick hadn't even known a Bug-type Pokémon could, Mia staggered back to its feet and immediately lashed out at the Colonel with a thorny fist. A billowing, blue-white streak of wind followed the motion and slashed Nick's Blaziken across the chest, knocking it to its knees.

An Aerial Ace, Nick realized grimly. This girl is really playing to win … but I think we've still got one up on her. "All right, Colonel, let's go!" he said aloud. "Start moving around, keep them on their toes … "

Ever the show-off, Colonel vaulted into the air and managed a complete somersault before crashing back down, powerful legs splayed, and scrambling away. Mia didn't hesitate to give chase, but it soon became clear that even with wings, the Bug-and-Fighting type was being hopelessly outrun.

Mimi's eyes narrowed as she watched the distance between the two Pokémon steadily increase. "All right, what gives?"

"Oh, didn't you know? Flame Charge increases a Pokémon's speed as well as doing damage," Nick retorted, grinning. He'd gotten the TM from a former girlfriend who'd once lived in Nimbasa City, and it had come in incredibly handy ever since.

Gazing happily at the battlefield and the packed stands beyond it, Nick allowed himself a satisfied chuckle. Things had been pretty tense for a while there, but it looked like he had things back under control. All of a sudden, he was in with a real chance to win this thing.

So what? Objected a darker part of Nick's mind. Maybe you'll win this battle, or even the whole tournament, but nobody you know is even going to be watching. What's the point of doing this over and over when you have no real reason for it?

As soon as he thought it, Nick ground his teeth, furious with himself. That kind of thinking wasn't going to help anything. He was here because he loved being a Trainer, and he wasn't about to let a few nagging doubts stand in this way. He'd promised himself that long ago.

"Blaze Kick!" he snapped, forcibly shaking off his introspective mood. Hearing him, Colonel stopped in its tracks. The Pokémon's right leg erupted into a column of flame, and Colonel took off after Mia with renewed vigor.

Nick's grin slowly reappeared as he watched the chase. He was certain that thanks to the speed boost that Flame Charge had given his Pokémon, it would be only a matter of moments before Colonel caught up to the bulkier Heracross. He grinned across the stadium at Mimi, who shot him a defiant look in return.

He never even heard the impact, for it was eclipsed immediately by the crowd's reaction – a storm of voices so loud that Nick had no idea whether the audience was cheering or screaming. But although he may have heard nothing, he saw everything.

He saw the attack make contact with surprising force – even for a Blaziken—striking Mia the Heracross squarely. He saw that Mia had been hovering a few feet off of the ground in an evasive maneuver when the Blaze Kick connected. And as a result of this, he saw the Heracross flipping end over end, sailing toward the edge of the stadium – and the nearly eighty-foot drop to Main Street below.

Mia never hit the ground. Main Street Colosseum was ringed by a fence of sorts of large, metallic arches painted pastel yellow, some standing alone, some crowned by another arch to form a rough triangle. In mid-flight, Mia snagged on to one of these arches and hung there, balanced about ten feet above the stadium floor and ninety feet above the street.

The crowd gasped as thousands of spectators took in the situation. "A fierce attack by Colonel leaves Mia hanging by a thread!" declared the announcer. "What will Mimi do to get her Pokémon out of this precarious situation?"

Mimi had gone suddenly pale, but she seemed to be thinking hard. Nick, having gotten over his surprise, was pondering strategy as well, wondering if there was any way to capitalize on his success without causing any permanent harm. At length, the trainer from Fallarbor Town whistled for his Blaziken, which jogged over to him expectantly.

Nick muttered a few choice instructions to Colonel, who nodded in appreciation and took off for Mia's part of the stadium. Upon arriving, the Blaze Pokémon looked thoughtfully up at the dangling Heracross, who was well out of its reach.

But Colonel didn't stop there. Without missing a beat, the Blaziken clambered onto the nearest arch, balancing with the skill of a professional gymnast. Within a few minutes, it was face-to-face with a very startled Mia.

Nick smirked. "Let's help you down, shall we? Sky Uppercut!"

Colonel slammed a fist, blurred with the speed of the motion, into Mia's armored shell, knocking the Heracross free of its purchase on the arch. Flinging itself into the air in pursuit, Nick's Blaziken followed up the initial attack with a backhand that hurled Mia back down to the stadium floor.

Colonel collapsed in a heap next to Mia, having had no way to control its descent, but its acrobatics had done their job. The opposing Pokémon was clearly unconscious.

"Slammed 'em! Heracross is down, and the score becomes two to two," the announcer roared. "What can we expect to see next?"

All that just to knock out one Pokémon, Nick reflected in disbelief. Hopefully this means that the rest of the battle will be easier … he glanced across the colosseum floor to Mimi, who was recalling her fallen Heracross with an expression that indicated no concern whatsoever … but probably not.

Still, he couldn't deny that even temporary victory in a tournament this illustrious was quite a rush. He gazed fondly at his Blaziken, memories of their journey together flowing through his mind – the day he'd first met Colonel, the Pokémon then a young Torchic, himself an upbeat eleven-year-old. The Pokemon's slightly perverse fondness for a certain blend of herbs and spices, that intense week of battling in the Pokémon League. And now here they both were, posing their opponents a severe challenge in the heart of Poketopia City. There were probably many trainers for whom this would be a lifelong dream, and here was Nick now.

Nick Brooks grinned, exhilarated. The doubts and depression of a while ago had vanished entirely, and now the battle felt like on incredible adventure again.

Now looking just as confident as his opponent, he stuck his hands in the pockets of his hoodie and leaned back nonchalantly. "All right, bring it on!"

Following each knockout in a tournament battle, Poketopia allows contestants about two minutes to review strategy and select their next Pokémon. At face value, that might seem like an extremely short time period. But a lot can happen in about two minutes…

Rhea Abucayan was still intently surveying the field, despite the lull in the actual battle. She had the breathlessly excited look of a Munchlax that had stumbled upon a warehouse full of honey, and was chattering nonstop about her predictions for the next round.

Next to her, Sebastian Carreon still had the feeling that he was in the middle of an impossibly happy dream. He'd hardly been able to believe it when Rhea had asked him to watch the tournament opener with her. The two of them had crossed paths fairly often before, and even battled a few times, but Bastian had always had the impression that to Rhea, he was just something of a general acquaintance.

But now here they were, laughing and talking and watching a Pokémon battle like old friends. And she'd been the one to suggest it! Bastian had had no idea that she'd at all reciprocated his admiration for her.

I guess things have a way of working out, the Trainer mused, happily kicking back in his chair. All of a sudden, perhaps because he was so used to it, the exasperated face of his Mamoswine drifted across his mind.

And you can just stay in your Pokeball and let me handle this for once, Bastian added silently, before turning back to Rhea to talk about Nick Brooks' dramatic turn of fortune, trying to keep a slight stammer out of his voice.

Lucianne Delaray and Celeste Skye had managed to secure excellent seats overlooking the battlefield, and hadn't missed a moment of the intense action thus far. But during the natural intermission that had followed the knockout, Celeste had struck up a conversation with her companion, while Luce, having nothing else to do, had reciprocated.

"It's been a long time since I've been to a tournament this size," Celeste admitted cheerfully. "It's really quite an experience, isn't it? Thousands of people cheering in the stands, and then most of them are probably trainers too and we'll all be watching them later … "

Luce, who against all of her own expectations had been swept up completely in the excitement, nodded eagerly, her eyes shining. "This is my fist really big tournament, actually. I've turned down a few invitations in the past, but now I'm thinking maybe I shouldn't have. This is really fun!"

"I usually have to travel pretty far for events like this, since I'm stuck way up north in Snowpoint City, but I don't mind that," Celeste confided. "By that time, I usually really need a change of scenery anyway! "

"Whereabouts are you from, Luce?" the trainer asked abruptly, as if suddenly struck by the question. "I don't think I know … "

Luce bit her tongue to stop herself from groaning. Oh, here it comes … "I'm from the Survival Area, north of the Battle Frontier," she informed Celeste in a completely flat tone. "I was raised by the Tatei, a nomadic tribe that wanders around there, but I'm not traveling with them anymore."

This entire time, she'd been shooting Celeste looks that probably could've induced paralysis as well as a Glare attack from any Pokémon, but apparently her companion had missed the hints altogether. "Why not?" she asked innocently.

There was, however, no possible way that anyone, no matter how oblivious, could've missed the implications of the venomous look that Lucianne directed at Celeste next. The Ice-type specialist seemed to freeze a bit herself, and mumbled, "Um, okay. Question retracted."

"Good," Luce growled, looking away at the thousands of fans surrounding them on all sides. She sighed mournfully, feeling the beginnings of a regret that was all too familiar to her. For years she'd been a resolute individualist, preferring to face the challenges of life on her own rather than risk too many close friendships. There were many times when she regretted this philosophy – now being one of them – but isolation was habit-forming and she usually ended up shutting out potential companions. Like now …

All this considered, Luce was shocked to see Celeste still smiling amicably at her, this time with that characteristic mischievous edge she'd exhibited before. "Dark secrets already, eh?" she said. "You're my type of person."
There were many people, Luce realized, from whom that would have come across as a jibe, but there was warmth behind Celeste's words. Maybe this wouldn't be so painful after all, she reflected, and smiled back at Celeste before she even realized it.

Mycroft Williamson, always an avid battle scholar, had been immensely enjoying the battle thus far, but in the brief intermission following the second knockout he was more than happy to shift gears to one of his other favorite activities: people-watching. The audience seating in a stadium of this scale was always a hive of activity, and he enjoyed seeing how far away from himself he could still discern individual faces in the crowd. Hawklike, Mycroft's violet eyes did not miss much.

Ever the social Butterfree, Mycroft had already taken note of several of his friends and acquaintances in the crowd: Varacei, whose short stature and dark hair made him stand out, Maecenas, Media, and Xavier perched high in the upper decks, Alessandra Cesarini, who was wearing a stylish wide-brimmed hat to combat the midsummer sun, and … and …

The trainer from Lilycove started, feeling an emotional jolt as he saw a familiar, yet highly unexpected, face seemingly leap out at him from the stands.

"It can't be…" he mumbled. Mycroft was well-known for being perpetually unflappable in battle, but now, he was well and truly shocked.

Ferk Ramalo started at his Pokètch in horror. He'd mistakenly assumed that he would have enough time to hit the concession stand before the battle resumed, but (somewhat characteristically) he'd wildly miscalculated—the thing was starting now!

"Come on," he growled at the portly Hiker in front of him, who seemed to be taking an agonizingly long time to pay for something as simple as a chili dog and a container of nachos. As the man ambled away, Ferk thought painfully of the thrilling competition that he was missing altogether, stuck outside the stadium in the company of a few stragglers and a few pretzels.

Making a snap decision, the Orange Islander released his Shuckle, grabbing the Pokémon and dumping it bodily onto the concession stand counter. Tossing the Bug-and-Rock-type his wallet, Ferk rapidly said something along the lines of "!" and disappeared instantly.

His Shuckle stared at the wallet in dismay, fully aware that its species boasted the lowest Speed of any Pokémon species currently known to science. By the time it finally returned to the stadium, Shuckle thought to itself, Ferk's pizza was going to be very cold indeed.

Heaving a little insectoid sigh, the Pokémon opened the wallet with some difficulty and began the difficult process of ordering.

Mimi Darius was in a good mood. Throughout all of Nick's moments of panic, she had remained steady, knowing that she was still only on her first Pokémon. And now that her opponent had rallied and managed to knock Mia out…well, now things can start getting really fun, she thought.

Although Maecenas Octavian himself probably wasn't aware of it, Mimi owed him a lot for her present composure. The two both hailed from the small and isolated Celestic Town, and had both shared a passionate ambition to be great Trainers someday. Whenever they had the chance, they would borrow Pokémon from friends or relatives and battle, practicing for the day when they'd have to do this in a far more competitive arena…and thanks to that early start, it was pretty difficult to get Mimi Darius to panic.

If you're in the stands, Maecenas, Mimi thought, you'd better watch this.

And in that moment, it was exactly two minutes after Colonel had triumphed against Mia.

Without hesitating for a moment, Mimi hurled her next Pokeball into the stadium, and stood there, drinking in the sunlight and the roar of the crowd. The battle began anew.

Hey everyone! It's been quite a while since the last Poketopia chapter (my other fanfiction, Jason Williams, has gotten three chapters since, so I haven't been totally absent!); hopefully I still have some readers left. I also hope you all enjoyed this chapter! Sorry to end on yet another cliffhanger, but on the other hand that means a more epic tournament opener!

I'd planned to introduce a few more OC's over the course of the interlude, but I didn't want things to get too crowded. However, starting next chapter, a substantial number of new characters will appear.

With the tournament starting and all, I'd like to take a second to describe where I see this story going. As you can tell, it's already rather lengthy, and the tournament's only just starting! Well, as a huge Pokémon fan I have a lot to say on the subject, and I plan for this to be a sort of epic of the tournament, featuring many characters, battles and situations, and going on for almost Odyssey-like levels. (Well, maybe not quite that extreme…)That said, I have a distinct plot in mind, and if all goes well you should see who wins the tournament sooner or later. Cheers!

Maecenas out; character credits below.

Nick Brooks—Supreme Kimchi (Thanks again for the updated moves)

Mimi Darius—PokemonJoe1

Rhea Abucayan—gamings-reminiscence

Sebastian Carreon—Friend X

Lucianne Delaray—Kyuuketsuki Fang (I'm happy to be VIII!)

Xavier Omnik (mentioned)-LastPrelude

Media (mentioned)-MediaMessiah

Celeste Skye—Nicole Vermillion

Mycroft Williamson and Maecenas Augustus Octavian—myself.

Ferk Ramalo-SilentlySnowing