A/N: I will be changing how Lana's trial goes because honestly it just doesn't flow when writing out what happens in the game. I will likely be doing it for most of the trials if not all of them. Hopefully, it won't upset anybody.
This chapter will be significantly longer than past chapters.
Lana's trial seemed simplistic. There was nothing that hard to it. Caleb quickly traversed the waters with the raft and found the colored rocks needed in the time limit Lana gave him.
I was left back so I can only see from afar. There were 3 levels to the trial. In each level Lana through a bunch of rocks. Caleb wasn't allowed to look.
I was able to spot the Totem Pokemon but barely. The trees and landscape blocked most of my view.
Looking over everything, standing on my tippie-toes became too painful on my, still, injured foot so I gave up and just sat down on the dirt below.
I'm slightly annoyed I will have to wait until tomorrow to complete my trial. I just want to get it over with so I can move on. Maybe that's the wrong attitude to have but I'm pretty impatient if I'm being honest.
Caleb has all the patience in the world. He believe that things happen for a reason and if you have no influence over something it is pointless to get all worked up. He is so carefree that it makes me feel like I care too much about things.
Carl used to tell me that I care too much about how other people view me. He was right, but I'm used to people judging me. Back in Hoenn people were always comparing me to my brother and father.
"Oh you must be such a bright young man. Aaron was such an intelligent young man when I taught him," my teacher when I was 11 once said. When I did poorly on the Advanced Battle Typing tests he told me he was disappointed because he expected so much more from an Alistar.
I hated being compared to my brother. Sometimes my dad too. I think I hated being compared to my brother more because he succeeded in being positively compared to dad. Also, he knew that I was just not up to snuff.
It's funny cause even I compare myself to them. Carl used to tell me it's a self-fulfilling prophecy. I hate being compared to them so I steer clear of it, yet I wind up doing it anyways and makes me hate it, and myself, more.
Oh well.
Caleb and Lana eventually come up the hill. The grin on Caleb's face indicated he succeeded. Of course. This trial was simply a formality. The result was already known.
"Lost?" I jokingly asked.
He tilted his head and raised a brow. "Destroyed," he said sarcastically.
"He performed exceptionally," Lana said. She tidied up her shirt, exposing the Pokeball by her waist. Hmm. Gave me an idea for later.
"As if there was any doubt," I said looking at Caleb. He smiled as he rubbed his elbow.
Lana looked at me and said, "I assume I'll be seeing you here tomorrow morning. In the mean time, why don't you two go down Route 6 and head towards Royal Avenue."
Caleb's face lit up. "I've heard of that place. It's home to the Battle Royal."
Lana nodded here head. I looked at both of them confused and asked them what the Battle Royal was.
"It's special to Alola. 4 people battle, 1 Pokemon each, no teams. The trainer whose Pokemon is last standing wins. It's great fun to see how trainers adapt and react to battling 3 different trainers and Pokemon." I grew excited as Lana described it. I looked over to Caleb and told him that we have to do it.
So that's what we were going to do this evening. It's been a long day so why not end it on a good and fun note? Lana said that Route 6 leads back to Heahea City so we can go back to the hotel that way.
On the way to Royal Avenue Caleb and I captured a few Pokemon. The area was awfully filled with a large variety of Pokemon like Pikipek, Eevee, Lillipup and even Igglybuff. I got an Igglybuff for my mom. Figured Igglybuff would go well together with Happiny.
Caleb and I were talking for a bit when I decided to ask him if he knew someone named Gladion. For some reason Gladion seemed like important person in Alola. He's sorta been on my mind since meeting him this morning.
"You met Gladion?" Caleb asked.
I nodded.
"He's runs the Aether Foundation. He took over for his mother. Apparently she got ill and is unfit to run the company. I don't know for sure though."
Caleb went onto explaining the Aether Foundation to me. Apparently they created a large artificial island in the ocean. It acts as home or shelter for injured or sick Pokemon. They also help with Alola technological advances.
Gladion had to be 17 or 18 years old. So for him to run a company, seemingly as large as the Aether Foundation, is pretty cool and interesting.
"Do you know anything about him?" I ask.
"Hmm. Why you ask?"
"I don't know. There was something about him. He looked and sounded like he was trapped. I don't know, Caleb."
Caleb stared at me for a bit before responding. "Um well it's rumored that he and his mom had a falling out before she was sick. I don't know, but maybe he felt bad about it and is running her company out of guilt."
Makes sense I guess. I decide to message Carl asking him to look Gladion up. He was confused as to why but he said he'd do it anyway.
We finally arrived at Battle Avenue. There were a couple homes but the town was mostly scenery. There was a large stadium towards the north, which I guess is where the Battle Royals are. Then down the road was a Malasada Restaurant and a Minimart.
There was a group of people walking into the Stadium so we followed them and did the same. There was a counter up ahead with a couple women. We talked to them and registered for a battle. The lady told us that we could be in the next battle.
The arena was pretty big. Numerous lights lit up the arena with a symphony of cheering from the crowd. I was shocked at how many people were here. It was practically sold out.
"This is cool," Caleb said to me with a giddy smile.
"Yeah," I agreed.
We both took our spots, me in the red corner and he in the blue. A woman named Catherine took the Yellow corner. A young man in a blue mask got the last spot. His name was simply E. Clearly he is hiding his identity. He stared at me and smiled for a bit before tossing his Pokeball.
I sent out Mudbray while Caleb sent out Litten. Catherine called on her Fomantis while the masked boy sent out a Stufful.
Everybody looked at each other. I know Caleb won't go easy on me. This isn't a team battle. This is every man(and woman) for themselves.
"Let the battle begin!" the announce bellowed into the mic. The crowd let out an enormous.
"Mudbray, Tackle Litten!" I yell.
Caleb looks after me and smirks.
"Litten dodge. Flamethrower on Fomantis."
I got caught watching when Stufful headbutts Mudbray. I tell Mudbray to use tackle on Stufful.
This may not be a team battle but it very much feels like one in the early going. That is until Litten used Fire Spin. Everyone was hit by the Fire Spin. Meanwhile, Caleb had Litten walk to the middle of the ring. I looked over to him and he had a smirk on his face.
What was he doing?
Nobody did anything at first. We spent a few moments looking at each other stunned. The crowd went silent.
"Hammer Arm!" the woman yells. Stufful charges towards Litten and prepares to hit him.
Before Stufful connects Litten I yell, "High Horsepower!"
Litten hops in the air dodging Stufful's attack. As Stufful stumbles my Mudbray connects with Stufful sending it flying. The announcer declares Stufful unable to continue.
Before I can attack again, Litten hits Mudbray hard. Mudbray is left reeling as E tells his Fomantis to use razor leaf on Mudbray.
"Mudbray, dodge!" Mudbray successfully dodged the attack but I can tell it is really hurting.
I'm not going to win.
Caleb looked over to me and then back at the ring. "Litten, Flamethrower on Fomantis!"
"Dodge and use Fury Cutter!" The Flamethrower hit Fomantis but barely. Fomantis has been burned by the attack and is stunned in it's place as a result.
"Mudbray, Headbutt!" Mudbray quickly moves and hit an already injured Fomantis and knocks her out of the battle. The masked young man looks towards me and nods.
That's when I hear Caleb yell but before I can react Mudbray is declared unable to battle. Dammit!
The announcer declared Caleb and his Litten the winner and the crowd yelled in excitement and congratulations for Caleb. I walked over to Caleb and shook his hand.
"You made me do all of the dirty work."
He smirked and me and said nothing. I knocked out Fomantis and Snufful and he let me. Man, he's miles ahead of me when it comes to be a trainer. The other two opponents approached us and congratulated Caleb.
E turned towards me and said, "You did well too, Cameron Alistar."
Wait. He just called me by my full name. He should only know me as Cameron. Before I could ask him how he knows my full name, he walks away into the back. I run to catch him but when I get there, he is gone. There is just an empty hallway.
How strange.
Caleb got a small money prize along with a few berries. He shared one of the berries with me because he is such a swell guy.
Did I really just say swell? Erm. I won't do that again.
Anyways, uh. We decided that we weren't going to go to the Minimart today. It was getting late and we figured we would tackle Wela Volcano Park tomorrow after I take on Lana. Yeah it's going to be a very long day but I'm ready for it. I need to get better at being a trainer and the best way to do it is to tackle this Island Challenge seriously.
On the way down Route 6 we saw the sign that pointed in the direction of Heahea City. The sun had completely set so as we got closer to the city the night sky actually become lighter. Being outside of the city the only thing that brings light to the route are the few lamp-posts and the people walking around. Both Caleb and I have a pokedex and the dex comes with a built in flash light.
As we approach the sign we hear a whimpering sound come from a place nearby. We are unsure what the source of it is. We shine our dex in every location but can't see anything. Skitty then walks over to a bush. Caleb is first to follow him and peeks over the bush. Whatever he sees causes him to freak out and yell for me to come over.
When I arrive I look over the bush and see my Skitty sitting near a Jangmo-o. The Jangmo-o looks severely injured. It has bruising to the face and a laceration to it's leg. We try to approach it but it jumps to it's feet and screeches. Skitty moves towards it and almost seems like he's talk to the injured Pokemon.
I looked at Caleb and I can see he is shaking. Their is immense pain in his face as he watches the Jangmo-o struggle to stand.
That's when I remember what he told me back on Melemele Island at the cemetery. His younger brother's favorite Pokemon was a Jangmo-o. He'd always wanted one.
Caleb again attempted to approach the Jangmo-o but this time he had a berry in his hand. He placed the berry near the feet of the Pokemon and stepped back. Jangmo-o looked at it and whimpered. It hesitated as it picked it up and took a bite. After the bite it looked up at Caleb who seemed like he was about to cry. It finished the berry before falling to the ground. As it fell Skitty slid under it giving it a soft landing.
Caleb picked the whimpering Jangmo-o up and looked over to me, "We have to get it to a Pokemon Center immediately." His voice was hurried. I nodded and picked up Skitty.
We made it to the Pokemon Center just past 10. We were both pretty tired after a long day. The nurse at the center looked at us with a concerned look after she looked at the Jangmo-o. She disappeared into the back with an assistant and a Chansey.
Caleb and I were 2 of maybe 5 people in the Pokemon Center and that includes the woman at the cafe. There was another woman near the cafe simply reading a book. A man by the door of the center was sleeping. I presume he was waiting for an update on his Pokemon.
When the nurse got back she looked very concerned. She looked at us but said nothing. Instead she picked up the phone and dialed a number.
"Hi, yes. This is Nurse Joy in Heahea City. We have a Article 2 situation here. Can you please get here as soon as possible?" After a few seconds she said, "Thank you."
She placed the phone down and then cleared her throat.
"Is this your Pokemon?" she asked us.
We both shook our head. "We heard whimpering on Route 6 and found this Jangmo-o behind some bushes," Caleb said. He was still nervously shaking. He was rubbing the palm of his hand as if he was trying to peel away the skin. The nurse looked at me and then back at Caleb.
"What's an Article 2 situation?" I asked.
She took a deep breath.
"That Pokemon was attacked. Not by another Pokemon but a human. Perhaps a trainer. The bruising to the face contained a small mark in the middle as if the Pokemon was hit by a ring. The laceration was done by some sharp object. Pokemon don't attack to severely injure like this. That Pokemon was left to die."
Caleb froze. He looked away from both me and the Nurse and took a deep breath. I knew the memories of his brother were bubbling up at the surface.
"Is Jangmo-o going to be okay?"
"Hmm, yes. Jangmo-o's are fast healers with regards to physical injuries. However, we are still worried."
The nurse didn't elaborate even after Caleb asked. There was no way in knowing what she meant. A few minutes later a police officer walked in. The nurse told the officer everything. The Officer walked towards us and sat down at our table. She asked the lady at the cafe to make her a Tapu Cocoa.
"So you two found that poor Pokemon beaten up like that?"
"Yes. I fed it a berry," Caleb said.
The officer brushed aside her blonde hair and munched on a biscuit. Then the employee walked over with the officer's drink and handed it to her.
"So you don't know who did that?"
We shook our head.
"Well, the nurse believes the Jangmo-o already has a trainer. Or, um, had one. No way of knowing right now."
"Wait, she thinks a trainer did this?" I asked incredulous by what I just heard.
She nodded.
"I bet it was Team Skull," I said without thinking. The cop shook her head.
"This isn't Team Skull. I mean they steal Pokemon and may sell a slowpoke tail here and there but his isn't them. This is someone with a serious problem.
I don't know, Team Skull seem to have a serious problem.
"Team Skull was responsible for killing a Pokemon on Melemele Island," Caleb said frustratingly.
"Ah yes. I had heard of that. Yes, they burned down the house that contained the Rockruff, but I don't think they knew the Pokemon was inside. I'd be shocked if they did and still did what they did to begin with."
"But you don't know that," Caleb said. His voice slightly rose with each word that exited his mouth. The officer noticed.
"No I don't. I'm not ruling them out, I just don't believe it was them. Plus, if it were it'd be hard to arrest the one who did it. They all look similar with the outfits, the hair and those damn masks."
The officer was sure of herself. I guess she had a point. Caleb calmed down for a minute and didn't say another word. Eventually the cop left us and the Center completely.
After about an hour of sitting in the Center, Caleb looked over to me. He was no longer shaking are looking pained like he did earlier. He just looked tired. So did Skitty, but he was sleeping on top of Caleb's lap.
I think that's why Caleb is more relaxed. It was almost like Skitty saw how upset Caleb was and he wanted to help Caleb relax. That Pokemon is so strange, but I adore him so much.
"You can go back to the hotel. Who knows how long until Jangmo-o is cleared."
I shook my head. "I'm not going anywhere. I'm going to stay right here."
And so I did. We were there until 2:37 AM. The nurses finally came out with Jangmo-o and said he was 100% physically healthy. The nurse set the Pokemon on the counter in front of Caleb and I. Caleb looked back at me and then at Jangmo-o. He reach into the side pocket of his bag and held a Pokeball.
I knew he wanted this Jangmo-o. Can't blame him.
He didn't throw the Pokeball. He held it out in front of Jangmo-o face. The Pokemon just looked at it and that was it. Caleb didn't do anything to try and capture the Pokemon. He slightly smiled and place the ball next to the Pokemon.
Then he turned around and looked at me. I was confused as to what he was doing. Then when he walked by me I wanted to yell out at him. He was just letting this Jangmo-o go. Just like that.
That's when I heard a click. I turned around and Jangmo-o was no longer on the counter. Caleb turned around but didn't walk towards the counter. I grabbed the ball and tossed it to him. He smiled down at the ball and whispered something, but I couldn't hear him or read his lips. He put the ball on his belt and walked out.
I turned and wished the nurse goodnight and followed Caleb out of the Pokemon Center.
It was so late and I was so exhausted that I was just glad to head back to the hotel. I mean I was happy Jangmo-o was okay too, but I guess the best part was that now the Pokemon has a trainer that'll love it.
Tomorrow was another day. A big day. Especially for me. If I have it my way I will complete two trials tomorrow. Hopefully my plan works.