Theme Song
The dark has lost and peace has won (Owen and Charizard look out at Lumiose City from the top of Prism Tower)
Push ahead, go on and run (Owen hops on Charizard's back and Charizard uses Flamethrower on the camera)
Your family's gone, you must stand tall (Ariel and Catherine look like ghosts and put their hands on Owen's shoulders, and he's smiling while tears come to his eyes)
The love's still there, so you won't fall (Brooklyn and the others stand by Owen's sides, and they start running towards the championship stadium at the Kalos League/Grand Festival)
Make them proud and don't look back (Owen hoists the Kalos League trophy over his head)
Stay strong, go ahead and attack! (Mega Fusion Charizard collides with a Pokemon covered in fire, and an explosion occurs)
When it's lost your bond grows strong (Gengar slowly gets off the ground and Mega Evolves)
Don't second-guess you aren't in wrong (Charizard, Sceptile, Zangoose, Garchomp, Heatmor, and Gengar appear next to Owen, smiling)
And when it's done, you'll move on... Pokemon! (Owen vanishes and a girl with gray eyes and brown hair replaces him)
Before I recap anything from last chapter, I just want to thank everyone that reviewed the championship! Sixteen reviews is absolutely incredible and the most reviews a chapter has had over the course of this series! Now getting to the recap thingy, Brooklyn and Daniel met Olivia and Larenz during the introduction to the Grand Festival, and Owen chose to battle Red! With the performance round of the Grand Festival starting, how will Brooklyn and Daniel do? (Here's a fun fact, incase you didn't know: Owen's team is listed in chronological order of capture)
Blaze Falcon: Hey, 4 of 6 is nothing to scoff at, especially if you consider how many (59, not counting the legendaries) Pokemon Owen has
Defender31415: I like the predictions, and the fact that you don't know what's coming. It's the perfect blend for an author XD
Elodus: NEITHER CAN I! And yay to improvement! Man, my old work really sucked, lol. Not knowing how to punctuate and following the battles that go on in games is an awful combination XD
Breana (guest): I'm pumped too! And there will be an explanation (in this chapter) for them not getting along
Guardianboy: Intersting predictions. I guess we'll just wait and see if they're right :3
SomeGuy (guest): Lol, "Grand." I do want to get it out of the way, but not because I hate the Grand Festival. In fact, I'm loving writing it right now, but given the whole story being based around Owen, and coordinating not being all that popular (if I didn't mention that in this story, I know I did in Unova at some point), I don't think it should get too much attention, though I understand where you're coming from. As for the new story, I'm loving that too, it's just weird having an entirely new set of characters that need to be made from scratch. I've actually been planning it for a while (it was going to be posted after Unova, but the people voted for Owen to return), and I like the outline I have. Gray's team is going to be really weird, her traveling companions will be different (in terms of personality), and there's another badass organization waiting to cause havoc
ShadowDragon9000: Haha, I like the little intro to every review :) And the Mega Showdown is going to be really intense, and a loooong individual battle (I'm aiming for 2,000-3,000 words for it)
Emboar-Man (guest): Assuming one of them doesn't die, probably
guest: Lol, that's what I figured (or spellcheck being weird). And you were very close with Owen's team, with the deciding factor being (like you said) Zangoose getting way more attention than Tyranitar got in Johto. If I could go back and redo Johto, Tyranitar would definitely be in the upcoming battle
MCMXCV: Ah! Someone (other than guest, who manages to get everything right) brought up Larenz' brother and that whole situation! That will definitely make the rest of this pretty unexpected
The 6th Spectral King: That could be a possibility, but there are a bunch of other things that could lead to that
Owen's team
Charizard, (m), level 73, Flamethrower, Dragon Claw, Seismic Toss, Blast Burn, Aerial Ace*, Thunder Punch*
Sceptile, (m), level 64, Leaf Blade, Quick Attack, Solarbeam, Aerial Ace, Leaf Storm*, Double Team*
Zangoose, (m), level 64, Quick Attack, Thunderbolt, Hyper Beam, Swords Dance, Crush Claw*, Giga Impact*
Garchomp, (m), level 68, Draco Meteor, Dig, Giga Impact, Dragon Rush, Earthquake*, Stone Edge*
Heatmor, (m), level 65, Inferno, Flamethrower, Hone Claws, Flame Wheel, Shadow Claw*, Fire Pledge*
Gengar, (f), level 62, Shadow Punch, Mean Look, Dark Pulse, Confuse Ray, Sucker Punch*, Shadow Ball*
"Damnit, this stupid dress isn't fitting!" Brooklyn screamed before letting go of the zipper that she was trying to pull up to the back of her neck. Sighing, the girl looked in the mirror at herself and smiled. She had stuck with the same performance outfit throughout her travels, and this would most likely be the last time she would wear the elegant dress.
"Brooklyn, are you okay?" Owen asked from outside the dressing room.
"I'm fine. Could you help me get my zipper?" the blonde asked. Owen opened the door and slowly attempted to pull the zipper up on Brooklyn's dress, but struggled to do so. He eventually got it, though, and his girlfriend turned before hugging him thankfully.
"You look beautiful," the powerful trainer complimented, making Brooklyn blush. "And you're going to do incredibly."
"I hope so," Brooklyn said as she and Owen walked out of the dressing room and towards their friends. Daniel had managed to slip into his outfit with little effort, and he sat with his performing Pokemon, Aerodactyl and Axew. Ever since their practice battle with Owen before the whole Prism Tower incident, Daniel and his rebellious Pokemon had gotten along swimmingly, and they looked like they were ready to give the performance of their lives.
"Who are you using, Brooklyn?" Fate quizzed, wanting to see her rival's Pokemon. The blonde quickly released her two Pokemon, Braixen and Gogoat, and they looked around anxiously before settling their sights on Brooklyn. Seeing how anxious the two Pokemon were about performing in front of such a large crowd, Greninja decided to take initiative and calm Brooklyn's Pokemon, which was a funny sight to see.
"Best of luck to the both of you," Blaziken said to Daniel and Brooklyn, who thanked Blaziken. "Charizard, we should probably go check on the idiots up in the box," the fire and fighting type said to his brother, who nodded in agreement as they walked out of the coordinator room. Hez and Leaf followed their friends, leaving just the teens.
"Now, let's see what the order of performances is going to be!" Courtney shouted as her face appeared on the screens all throughout the stadium. Suddenly, the TV displayed an empty scoreboard and the 37 coordinators' pictures appeared. "The first performer of the Grand Festival will be Daniel London! Daniel, please report to the stage!"
"Go get 'em, Daniel!" Cindy cheered as the coordinator rose from his seat and withdrew Aerodactyl and Axew to their Pokeballs.
"Yeah, you're going to be awesome!" Eddy added.
"Thanks, guys. Let's do this!" Daniel screamed as he began to walk down the hallway Owen had so many times during the Kalos League. As Daniel closed in on the battlefield, Owen and the others turned to Brooklyn.
"We're gonna head up to the box," CJ announced as he, Fate, Eddy, and Cindy walked out of the room, talking about their predictions for the semifinals. Owen, meanwhile, stayed with Brooklyn and sat down next to her, and they watched as Greninja continued to try and calm Braixen and Gogoat.
"Are you fine being by yourself, or do you want me to stay here?" Owen asked, not wanting to upset Brooklyn. The blonde waved her boyfriend off with a forced smile, and she tapped Greninja on the shoulder, grabbing the water frog's attention.
"Go, we'll be fine. Besides, I want you to have the best seat in the house when I perform," Brooklyn joked, making Owen laugh before he rose from his seat. As he did so, he put his hand on the girl's shoulder and gave her a nod of confidence before turning and walking away with Greninja by his side. The water and dark type turned around just before he walked out of the room, and Greninja waved at Braixen and Gogoat. The two Pokemon waved back and smiled as Greninja disappeared when the door closed, but they turned to Brooklyn and noticed her grimace and hold her stomach.
"Sorry, I need to go to the bathroom," the girl said rapidly before scurrying over to the bathroom, leaving Braixen and Gogoat by themselves.
000
"Please welcome Daniel London to the stage!" Courtney shouted as Daniel appeared. The crowd cheered for the sixteen year old, but stopped when he settled at the middle of the stage. "Begin when you'd like."
"Aerodactyl, Axew, let's give 'em a show!" Daniel shouted while throwing two Pokeballs in the air. The duo of Aerodactyl and Axew took the stage, with Axew resting on Aerodactyl's back, and the rock type screeched menacingly.
"Aerodactyl, fly in the air and use Rock Slide! Axew, hop off Aerodactyl's back right now!" Axew obeyed Daniel's instructions and jumped off Aerodactyl's back before the winged Pokemon zipped into the air. He then roared before flapping his wings, and dozens of rocks crashed towards Axew, who looked at Daniel fearfully.
"Hop from rock to rock and destroy them with Scratch, Axew!" The dragon type jumped into the air and landed on one of the rocks closest to the ground before he scaled the storm of rocks. The crowd watched in awe as Axew eventually reached Aerodactyl's altitude and the flying type snatched Axew with his feet before they circled the air.
"Place Axew on the ground and then use Ancient Power just like we practiced!" With no effort Aerodactyl gracefully swooped towards the ground and let go of Axew before five large boulders surrounded his body and began revolving around him. While that happened, the crowd whispered in confusion, which made Daniel laugh under his breath.
"Use the boulders as target practice for your Dragon Rage, Axew!" Without hesitation Axew shot five balls of orange energy that were covered in flames, and they struck each of the boulders revolving around Aerodactyl's body at the exact same time. With that, Aerodactyl swooped down and landed on the ground next to Axew, and both Pokemon bowed along with Daniel, and the crowd applauded loudly, making the teen and his Pokemon smile.
"Thank you, Daniel!" Courtney yelled into her microphone while the sixteen year old walked off the stage. The three judges, who usually gave feedback on the performances, had decided not to do that, and were present strictly for deciding who would advance to the semis.
"That was the perfect way to start the Grand Festival," Fate opined as she rose from her leather seat and clapped. Owen's five Pokemon, meanwhile, glared at each other - with the exception of Zangoose and Sceptile, who were close friends because of their time in Hoenn - much to their trainer's dismay.
"Oh come on, guys, we're all a team! We need to work together if we want a chance at beating Red!" Owen shouted at the Pokemon, who all shook their heads at Owen. "I don't get it. You all got along at Professor Oak's, what's the matter now?"
"Maybe it's because they're battling instincts are kicking in, as opposed to them being calm and relaxed. You said that they were your strongest Pokemon, so they all have an alpha dog mentality," CJ pointed out wisely, which everyone agreed with.
"On top of that, they're probably feeling more pressure than you are, Owen. Sure, you're their trainer and command them in battle, but they're going to have to execute those commands against one of the world's most powerful trainers."
"Actually, it's the most powerful trainer. I'm battling Red."
000
"You've got this. There's no need to be worried," Daniel said to Brooklyn, who continued to shake her head.
"I can't get too confident. That's never a good thing to do," the younger girl replied. "Braixen, Gogoat, we're just going to do our best and let everything else play out." The two Pokemon nodded at their trainer's words, but their attention was turned to Olivia as she strolled over.
"Nice performance, Daniel. Hopefully you can do just as well, Brooklyn," Olivia said, trying to be overly nice to her rival. The blonde simply stood up, grimacing as she did so, and she walked away from the older girl while grabbing her stomach.
"Brooklyn Moore, please report to the stage!" Courtney announced. Brooklyn sighed and looked over at her Pokemon, withdrawing them while Daniel nodded at her confidently. The fifteen year old then walked down the hallway her boyfriend had, and she walked onto the stage only to be met with a similar amount of applause that Daniel had experienced.
"Here we go! Come on, Brooklyn!" Owen cheered, no longer paying any attention to his Pokemon. Heatmor and Gengar quickly ran over to Owen's side and cheered along with their trainer due to their traveling with the coordinator.
"Please begin when you'd like."
"Braixen, Gogoat, take the stage!" Brooklyn shouted while hurling both Pokeballs in the air. In a flash of light, Brooklyn's starter landed alongside the always confident grass type, and they nodded at each other before Brooklyn began her performance.
"Gogoat, use Earthquake on the ground beneath you to create a podium! Then send a Razor Leaf down at Braixen!" Brooklyn commanded. Gogoat quickly lifted his front get off the ground before slamming them, causing the stadium to shake violently. Then, Gogoat was shot into the air as a large pillar of dirt rocketed out of the ground. The grass type followed up his set of commands by unleashing hundreds of razor sharp leaves at Braixen, and the fire fox braced herself for the incoming wave of pain.
"Use Countershield to burn the leaves, and then encapsulate Gogoat!" Braixen quickly fell on her back and began spinning while shooting a Flamethrower attack at the same time. The result was the flame acting like several whips, and they charred the leaves to a crisp before dancing around Gogoat, who was still standing on the enormous pilar of dirt.
"Now use Vine Whip and combat the flames, Gogoat!" Two vines suddenly shot out of Gogoat's neck and they began to smack the flames, which somehow made them change directions. The three judges looked on in awe at the strength of Gogoat, who was fighting the urge to cry out in pain, and he continued to smack the flames until Brooklyn decided to move onto her final moves.
"Braixen, use Psywave on the pillar and cut it up!" Braixen swiftly pulled the stick out of her tail and she pointed it at the pillar of dirt Gogoat was standing on. Blue rings of energy were fired from the stick and they crashed into the pillar, destroying large chunks of it. Surprisingly, each chunk was cleanly cut and even, making Gogoat's descent calm and slow. After he was at a height where he could jump off, Gogoat did so and landed in front of Braixen.
"Finish this with a Seed Bomb and Flamethrower combination!" The grass and fire types looked at each other before rearing their heads back and shooting their attacks at the ground. Before the Seed Bomb attacks could explode, Braixen's Flamethrower wrapped around them and they released a cloud of sparkling dust. Braixen and Brooklyn then curtsied while Gogoat bowed, and the three made their way off the stage.
"Thank you, Brooklyn!" Brooklyn waved to the crowd that was chanting her name, and Courtney clapped for the girl as she disappeared into the hallway, gripping her stomach in pain.
"That was so awesome!" Eddy screamed enthusiastically while Gengar and Heatmor high-fived. Garchomp, meanwhile, stood in the corner by himself, and Sceptile and Zangoose were conversing about something nobody knew about.
"You can say that again! She's definitely going to the semis!" Owen proclaimed. "What do you think, Fate?"
"I wouldn't be surprised at all. That was a great performance," the ex-coordinator opined as she laid her head on CJ's shoulder.
"I wonder who's up next?" CJ asked aloud while a random coordinator walked onto the stage. "Oh well. I doubt anyone can do as well as Brooklyn and Daniel."
000
"Thank you, Larenz!"
"Wow, that was the best performance I've ever seen," CJ muttered. "That kid's so talented it's stupid." Cindy and Eddy nodded in agreement while Owen grinned at the comment. Of course he knew it was true, but at least he could say he beat Larenz.
"I guess that leaves Olivia as the last performer we know," Eddy said while trying to think of all the coordinators the group had run into. "And considering we've gone through almost every coordinator, she should be up soon."
"Wonderful," Charizard muttered, showing his disdain for the annoying girl. "I really don't like that girl... even though she hasn't really done anything wrong," the winged lizard added, remembering the reason Brooklyn hated Olivia. It was all because Olivia stole Gogoat's Pokemon food as a joke. Charizard shook his head at Brooklyn's irrational thinking but opted to stay quiet.
Meanwhile, in the coordinator room, Brooklyn was sitting with Daniel.
"So Olivia's the last one, right?" Brooklyn quizzed. Daniel nodded in response and Brooklyn let out a sigh of relief. She had been waiting for the round to end for a few hours, but that was the downside of being the second performer.
"Olivia Davidson, report to the stage!" Courtney shouted into the camera. Brooklyn glared at her rival as she walked down the hallway and disappeared, but she stopped when a sharp pain occurred in her stomach for what seemed to be the millionth time. While that happened, Olivia appeared on the battlefield and waved to the cheering crowd.
"Start when you're ready."
"Goodra, Hydreigon, action!" Olivia shouted while throwing out two Pokeballs. Brooklyn and Daniel gasped in shock when the two pseudo legendaries appeared in front of Olivia, and they roared powerfully.
"Use Rain Dance, Goodra!" Olivia commanded while pointing to the sky. The slimy dragon type looked up into the night sky and roared powerfully, causing a storm cloud to appear over the stage. A steady downfall followed shortly, and Goodra began to dance in the rain happily, which made the audience laugh.
"Now use Thunder on the stage, Hydreigon! Goodra, shake the electricity with Earthquake!" Hydreigon bolted into the air before roaring and releasing a wicked bolt of electricity towards the ground. As soon as the attack was about to hit the stage, Goodra slammed his feet on the ground. The stadium then began to shake, and the electricity started to dance wildly along the ground, and it turned neon blue, which made the audience gasp.
"Both of you, use Dragon Dance to supercharge your attacks!" Olivia ordered as the neon blue electricity continued to dance along the stage. Both Goodra and Hydreigon smirked as blue spheres of energy spiraled around their bodies before disappearing into thin air.
"Finish this with a double Draco Meteor on the electricity!" Strangely, both dragons stood next to each other and unleashed Draco Meteor attacks at the exact same time. The enormous balls of orange energy both reached the same height before exploding at the same time. As each bit of draconic energy crashed against the ground, it was shot back into the air while covered in neon blue electricity. After they were all shot back in the air, the bits of energy exploded like fireworks, and they spelt out Olivia's name. With that, the girl curtsied while her two Pokemon bowed, and they walked off the stage gracefully.
"Thank you, Olivia! We will now take a break and determine who the semifinalists are, based on their performances," Courtney announced before walking off the stage with the judges.
000
Both Brooklyn and Daniel were now sitting in the luxury box that Owen had earned as a result of his league victory, and they waited for the results anxiously, refusing to talk to anyone. Every time there was even the slightest bit of sound, one of the two would glare at whoever disturbed the silence, which forced Owen into withdrawing all of his Pokemon.
"Do you think they're going to make it to the semis?" Eddy whispered loud enough for Brooklyn and Daniel to hear. The two coordinators rolled their eyes at Eddy's inability to whisper, and the others remained silent. Suddenly, the TV's in the room flickered on and everyone flocked to the largest one, which was in the back of the luxury box.
The male judge that always wore a red tuxedo was on the screen, and he stared at it for a few seconds before clearing his throat and speaking.
"After long consideration, we have decided these four coordinators will advance to the semifinals!" the man stated, looking into the camera. "Our number one coordinator is Larenz Esplain! Second is Olivia Davidson!"
"Okay, we expected that," Brooklyn said to Daniel, who nodded in response before looking back at the TV immediately.
"In third we have Brooklyn Moore! And our fourth coordinator is Daniel London!"
"Wahoo! We made it!" Daniel shrieked as he hopped out of his chair and ran around the room, displaying an uncharacteristically large amount of energy. Brooklyn, on the other hand, leaned back in her chair and pumped her fist victoriously.
"Congratulations, Brooklyn!" Fate cheered as she hugged her rival, who beamed at the fact that she was one step closer to winning the Grand Festival. The embrace was cut off, however, but Brooklyn recoiling and holding her stomach, letting out a pained grunt. "Are you okay? Did I hurt you?"
"No... I'm fine," the fifteen year old assured Fate before walking into the bathroom once again. Everyone looked at each other and shrugged at the strange moment except for Daniel, who had witnessed the same thing happen earlier.
"So are we going out to celebrate or what?" CJ asked aloud, which was met with a unanimous yes. "Okay! Let's go!" After Brooklyn got out of the bathroom, the group headed over to the trainer complex and their apartment. After walking into the apartment and getting changed, Brooklyn sat down on the couch in front of the TV and yawned.
"What's the matter, Brooklyn?" Eddy asked the older girl.
"I think I'm going to sit this one out. I'm too tired," the blonde informed Eddy, who shrugged and walked out of the apartment. Owen, on the other hand, decided to sit down on the couch next to his girlfriend, and he looked her in the eyes.
"Are you sure you're okay? You've been acting weird these past few days."
"I'm fine, I just need to get some-" Once again, Brooklyn gripped her stomach in pain. When she opened her eyes, she saw Owen giving her an all-knowing look, which made her sigh.
"Look, I'm taking you to the hospital tomorrow. I have a meeting at noon, so I'll stop by as soon as it's over," the Kantonian stated. Brooklyn nodded reluctantly before rising to her feet, and she walked back up to her bedroom with Owen's help. After Owen closed the door behind him, Brooklyn brought her hands up to her face and slowly started to cry. She knew what was wrong. Owen didn't.
Strange ending to the chapter, I know, but all will be explained soon, readers. So, Brooklyn and Daniel advanced to the semifinals along with Larenz, whose performance wasn't shown because he was just in a battle with Owen and I didn't want to give him even more screen time, and Olivia. Next chapter will be the semifinals and finals (I changed it again), so stay tuned. Till next time, peace out.
Next Chapter: "Added Incentive": The semifinals and finals have finally come, and the competition is only getting tougher. Brooklyn, on the other hand, struggles with continuous stomach pains. Will she be able to win despite feeling under the weather?
Final Competition Arc
Chapter 81: Molding a Winner
Chapter 82: Reaching for Dreams
Chapter 83: Pushed to the Limit
Chapter 84: Mega Fusion vs Mega X!
Epilogue Chapter 1: Fighting for a Title
Epilogue Chapter 2: A New Generation!
Epilogue Chapter 3: 15 Years Later