Chapter 2: Heated Moments

Ambrosia Landlyn

Ambrosia sighed in relief when the spotlight stopped only a few feet away from her. The thought of having to battle so soon frightened her. Tournament rules say that a loss in a battle appointed by a tournament official means having to leave the tournament. Luckily, she thought, the camera chose a boy near her instead.

The boy had golden hair that looked as if wind had pushed it in every direction. He wore a bright blue hoodie, even though the weather was warm. Ambrosia thought he was clumsy, since minutes before he was chosen he had stood up too fast to get his pokemon off his lap. The poor thing landed on the table with a thud, nearly knocking down her drink. Plus, he had been staring at her…

When he was chosen, he seemed stunned. He rose, slowly this time, and made his way to the battlefield, where the tournament announcer, Uruvio Tornio, stood with the other chosen contestant.

"Welcome, trainers!" the announcer said. His gardevoir went up to the two battlers and held their hands. "Tell us your names, the type you've chosen and where you're from."

He put a microphone to the first chosen trainer's mouth. He seemed more menacing than the weird boy that sat in her table. He had hair that was strangely white, and a sharp nose that reminded Ambrosia of a beak. His eyes were a cold blue that turned red when the lights hit them. "Drakon Volans. Dragon-type. Opelucid City."

Short and to the point, Ambrosia thought. Uruvio welcomed him and gave the other boy his microphone. He held his magby in his arms. Ambrosia clenched her Cubone tighly, also.

"My name's Aiden. Aiden Flamel. I use Fire-types and I'm from Ecruteak City in Johto."

"Well, you're far from home, Aiden," Uruvio said. "We welcome you to Unova. Now, if you would, please, both of you follow these kirlias to your appointed side of the battlefield."

Two kirlias sprinted and twirled their way to the contestants gracefully. Gardevoir handed them the trainers and they took them to their respective sides. The music stopped, the dancing pokemon paused and the singing swablus and wingulls subsided. The battle was about to begin.

Fire-types aren't affective against Dragon-types, and Drakon looks like a stronger trainer than Aiden, Ambrosia thought. Let's see who wins.

Drakon took a pokeball out of his pocket and threw it. Out came, in a bright flash of red light, a small pokemon, clearly a Dragon-type, but Ambrosia didn't know what pokemon it was. It was blue, about the same height as Magby and appeared to have solid, white hair. Aiden's magby leaped out of his arms and took his place on the battlefield.

"Drakon has sent out Bagon as his pokemon," Uruvio said, taking the role of referee. "And Aiden has chosen his Magby. Before we begin, I'd like to announce the judges of this battle. You love them, you fear them, you've seen the strength of their pokemon, now please give them a round of applause. Cynthia and Iris!"

Ambrosia cheered with the crowd as the two champions acknowledged them. They both seated beneath the large screen, at the border of the battlefield in the middle. Ambrosia knew the battles were going to be judged by Gym Leaders from every region, but she never expected champions. She couldn't imagine how nervous the battlers must feel. Though, if Drakon was nervous, he hid it well.

"Now," Uruvio said. He waved a green flag with the cruise's symbol on it. "Begin!"

The effect was immediate. Drakon commanded his Bagon to use Headbutt, and the pokemon flew forward. The magby dodged the impact, but just barely. He commanded another Headbutt, and again magby dodged. This time Drakon commanded a Dragonbreath. The dragon released a green jet of air that hit Magby head on. The Fire-type fell a few feet back. The crowd roared for the dragon trainer.

"Magby!" Aiden shouted. Drakon ordered another Headbutt and the small dragon jolted forward. "Flame Burst, quick!"

Magby let loose a ball of fire that flew to Bagon. The hit surprised the dragon, and it stopped in its tracks, though hardly scratched. Flames burned around it.

"Good, now use Fire Spin!" Aiden commanded. Again Magby released fire, this time a whirlpool. The flames engulfed Bagon, trapping it. Aiden jumped happily, but Drakon didn't look worried. He was perfectly calm.

"Bagon, Bite."

The dragon ran out of the flames as easily as if they were rain on a sunny day. It clenched onto Magby with steel jaws. The fire pokemon whelped in pain. Ambrosia heard Cubone also give a shout. The screen zoomed on Aiden, who was baring his teeth.

"Magby, use Faint Attack, then Smokescreen."

Magby gave a sharp turn and hit Bagon with his body. The dragon fell a few feet away, head first. Then a cloud of black smoke covered the field and the two pokemon. It took a moment for the crowd to realize that the smoke was coming from Magby.

Ambrosia glanced at Drakon. He furrowed his brow, and his eyes turned red, making him look more menacing than before.

"Faint Attack! Like we've practiced, Magby." Aiden got his confidence back, Ambrosia noticed. He looked more determined, and the crowd realized it, too. They applauded and shouted for him.

Magby entered the cloud of smoke and disappeared from view. The sound of pokemon clashing filled the deck, but Ambrosia couldn't see what was really happening. No trainer gave any orders, but the pokemon could be heard grunting.

"Bagon, use Ember!" Drakon shouted, losing his temper. "Get out of there!"

A bright jet of fire illuminated the field, and for a second the two pokemon were visible, until Magby let out more smoke. Again Bagon used Ember and again Magby used Smokescreen. Then, as a flame cleared the field once more, Magby was visible and jolting quickly toward the smoke. Just before he reached it, Bagon flew out and the two pokemon clashed in a dual impact of Headbutt and Faint Attack.

The two pokemon fell out of the smoke and landed on the ground with a bone-cracking thud in front of their trainers. Bruises and scratches covered them. At first the two appeared to have fainted, but then they trembled. The pokemon tried to stand, but their own weight was too much.

"Come on, Magby! You can do it, I know you can!" Aiden said through gritted teeth.

"Get up, Bagon! Now! Surgere, draco!" Drakon shouted at his pokemon. Ambrosia didn't know what language he was speaking, but it sounded like a witch's curse to her. Bagon stirred on the ground, but he didn't rise. Ambrosia found herself cheering for the dragon, hoping it would get up. Cubone stood on the tip of his toes.

The crowd held their breath as the two pokemon tried to stand. Then Ambrosia heard cheers and the screen was covered before her by jumping and shouting guests. When Ambrosia stood to see who won, she found Magby panting and huffing, but standing over Bagon.

"We have a winner!" Uruvio announced, waving the flag toward Aiden's side. "Aiden Flamel!"

The crowd roared and Aiden beamed over them. Magby ran toward his trainer. Aiden sank to the ground to embrace him. Drakon simply returned Bagon to his pokeball and muttered in the witch language. Whether words of praise or scorn, Ambrosia did not know.

"Excellently fought!" Uruvio said, walking toward Aiden. "How about another round of applause for Aiden? And another for Drakon, who helped give us this heated battle! Come here, Drakon."

Drakon made his way through the battlefield, looking at no one but Aiden. When he reached the two, Uruvio held both their hands and lifted Aiden's. The crowd cheered. Cynthia and Iris stood and clapped.

"We congratulate you, Aiden. For winning the first battle, you will be moved to the Leader's Suite. It's on the top floor, has a beautiful view, and will be given to the trainer that holds first place overall during the tournament. And to you, Drakon, we also have a surprise. In the spirit of the Opening Ceremony and considering that the tournament doesn't officially begin until the ship leaves port, this loss won't count as a tournament loss. You're still in!"

That came as a surprise to everyone. Ambrosia was certain he was out.

"Now," Uruvio continued. "Let the Opening Ceremony begin!"

Music blasted again, pokemon returned to their dances and waiters brought food. The crowd flooded the field to reach Aiden, shoving Drakon aside. Ambrosia watched as he stormed out and disappeared from sight.

More pokemon and people filled the deck, and Ambrosia felt that it got too crowded. She took Cubone, who had been banging his bone on the table, in tune with the music, and went to the railings to have a final glimpse of Castelia City. The tall buildings reminded her of the Pokemon Tower, back at her home in Lavender Town, and her little sister. She was about to return to the ceremony when a black dog began to bark at her.

Ambrosia picked Cubone up and shushed the dog, but it wouldn't leave. It growled at them menacingly. Then a trainer called out to the pokemon. From the crowd, a tall, black-haired boy appeared. He had two duskull figures in his ears. When Ambrosia looked closer and saw wires coming out of them, she realized they were earphones.

"Poochyena!" he said, picking the dog up. "Got you! I'm so sorry. She must've liked your cubone's bone."

"Don't worry," Ambrosia said. He recognized the trainer as the boy who sat with Aiden. His name tag had Umbriel Nox written on it. "Um, Umbriel. No harm done." She put Cubone down. He began to wave his bone and Poochyena followed it intently.

"Call me Umber," he said. "Hey, you sat at my table, right?"

She nodded. "I saw your friend battle." She didn't know what else to say. "He did well. He's not with you, is he?"

Umber looked at the crowd and shook his head. "Nah, he's celebrating his victory."

They both stood there, looking at the crowd. Then the cruise horn blasted and it broke the silence. Ambrosia and Umber both moved to the railing and gazed at the buildings. Umber's hand touched Ambrosia's, and she moved it away quickly. They looked at each other.

"Looks like Poochyena really likes your cubone," Umber said, looking away. The two pokemon were laughing as they spinned the bone on the floor. Ambrosia smiled.

The horn blasted one more time.

"Hey," Umber looked into her eyes again. "I saw a restaurant earlier. I think it sells pokemon food. Would you like to go there, tonight? For Cubone's sake?"

Ambrosia's cheeks tingled and she knew she was blushing. She had never been asked out before. Lavender Town was too serious for that. She was thinking of refusing, when she saw Cubone and the fun he was having with Poochyena.

"I'd love to," she said, waving a brown lock of hair out of her face. "For Cubone's sake."

Umber smiled, said "Great, see you at eight," and returned to the crowd before she could say if she could even make it. Poochyena ran off behind him.

The cruise horn blasted again. This time the cruise trembled. Ambrosia glimpsed at the buildings once more, but they were moving away. Slowly, but surely, they were making their way out to sea. Now the tournament officially begins.

Author's note:

Now you've met four of the six main contestants! Already, drama is beginning to settle in. How will the other contestants react to Aiden's victory? What will happen with Ambrosia and Umber? Who is this Drakon character? Keep reading to find out! Next chapter, the last two characters will be introduced! We have a new viewpoint character also!

Again, I'm eager to better my writing, so please review with any comments, likes/dislikes, tips, etc. See you all next time!