Episode 48: Vertress City

The road to Vertress City took Niko and his friends north of the Giant Chasm and through route 23. According to Charlotte, this would take a couple of days, which was fine with Niko in particular. He needed that time to think.

A lot happened during that day in the Giant Chasm, and he was still trying to process all of it, even days later. Who was this "N" person that saved their lives? Why was Ghetsis the sociopath that he was? How could Reshiram speak to humans telepathically? What will happen to Zekrom after being fused with Kyurem? Will Kyurem be alright? Will Ghetsis, Colress, Zinzolin, and the other sages face the punishment that they deserve? On top of all of these questions, the issue with Lampent and Team Plasma being responsible for her parent's deaths sat in Niko's mind more than anything else.

He couldn't believe it, and couldn't have imagined what Litwick had to go through to get to the place she was when she met Niko. How recent were their deaths relative to his fateful encounter with the Candle Pokémon at the Celestial Tower? Who buried her parents, and why? And, truly, why did Zinzolin go so far as to kill a Pokémon?

Niko considered all of these thoughts and questions in silence while he and his friends traversed the mountainous region in northern Unova. Cliffs surrounded them from all sides, reminding Niko of when he and his friends travelled over cliffs back in Sinnoh, on their way to Celestic Town. The views were outstanding, particularly the sunrise and sunset, where the orange color of the star would bake the mountains in its glow. Niko found it awe-inspiring, and it aided him by easing his thoughts a little.

He had to start seriously thinking about the Vertress Conference, particularly about a strategy to defeat his rivals, should he face them. And with his luck, Niko thought, this was a likely scenario. During their downtime, Niko spent more time with his Pokémon, focusing specifically on their movements, and less on attacking. In his mind, this was the strategy to go with. Hunter and Elliot both had fast Pokémon—he had to be able to keep up. And his Pokémon could hit hard anyway, but they were, on the whole, not as fast as Hunter's Toxicroak and Haxorus, or Elliot's Scizor.

During this time, Charlotte and Warren largely left Niko to his own devices. While he slept after the events of the Giant Chasm, they both agreed to let Niko do as he pleased, since they themselves couldn't grasp the importance of this moment for their friend and his team of Pokémon. This isn't to say that Niko ignored them, or vice versa—they just didn't interject themselves in his training like they might have previously. Plus, Warren spent much of those days on route 23 recording the events of the Giant Chasm in his booklet, which was close to running out of pages.

"Gonna have to get a new one when we get to Vertress City." Warren said one evening, noticing that he only had a few pages left.

"How detailed are you with those?" Charlotte wondered.

"Detailed enough that I might publish it one day." He said. "With both of your permission, of course."

"Yeah, why not?" Niko said, throwing a carrot to Serperior.

"Sure, I guess so." Charlotte said, putting down her book. "I finished."

"Wow. Well done!" Niko said with a smile. "That book has been incredibly helpful to us."

"It has…" She looked down at it. "This whole year has, actually."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I never in my life thought I'd be doing something like this, you know? Seeing the world, near-death experiences, meeting so many different kinds of Pokémon. I talked to Reshiram! Who gets to do that!? See what I mean?"

"Yeah, I do. It's crazy, isn't it?" He looked at the fire that Lampent had stoked for them. "You're not the only one who thought they'd be doing this."

"Oh, right. You didn't even want to."

"It seems like it was so long ago, too. But after winning gym battles, and being around Pokémon who wouldn't give up, plus you two, it made me feel better about myself and my situation in life. Not that it was bad or anything before…unless I made it bad."

"Well, whatever you do, don't look back on it with regret." Charlotte said. "We've all made them. And you've moved past yours, it seems."

"That's because I think I really have. I just want to make things right again with my friends and family…and my Pokémon."

"As I've said before, Niko—you will. They will forgive you. Brittany did, and you told me that she was one of your closest friends!" Charlotte said excitedly.

Niko couldn't argue with that. Charlotte was right—he didn't have anything to worry about. "I just wonder if they'll want to battle with me, though. I don't know if my team of seven can go all the way on their own."

"Your Pokémon will battle with you, I think." Charlotte said, patting Niko's shoulder.

"I hope you're right." Niko replied, looking over at his team sitting there, eating.

"Remember our first journey, Niko?" Warren asked, placing his booklet back into his bag. "You were so nervous about doing it, and I thought it was because you were new to traveling!"

"Yeah. You and Snivy seemed up for it. I didn't want to be tempted to travel again." He turned to Charlotte. "Remember the time we got stuck in Anville Town?"

"Of course. You were losing your mind that day. It's also when you told me about how you wound up in Unova." She said, looking fondly at Niko. "It was a good day."

"I felt lighter after opening up to you like that." Niko admitted. "It began to place things in perspective for me, I think."

"I was worried about you two that day!" Warren exclaimed. "You two didn't show up for the basketball game, and so I got concerned that something bad happened to you two on the Battle Subway."

"Luckily, nothing did. But believe Charlotte, I was worried, too."

"You two worry-warts…" Charlotte said teasingly.

"Oh, look who's talking." Niko replied. "You took forever to get over fighting gangs like Team Plasma."

"That's not the same thing, though!" Charlotte said defensively. "We could have died on each occasion. You and Warren were worried you wouldn't reunite on time." Niko flushed pale red from embarrassment. Charlotte was right. But she just laughed it off. "Oh boy…your face just got red!"

"It did not!" Niko said. Then he found himself laughing pathetically along with his friend. Soon enough, Warren began as well. And for the remainder of the night, they shared stories with one another of their adventures thus far.

The following morning, the trio saw Vertress City on the horizon, in a large valley situated around larger mountain ranges off in the distance. In the center of the city was an enormous circular stadium with four smaller stadiums built around it, each connecting through tunnels. Around the stadiums were buildings and small suburban neighborhoods in the outskirts. It was clear that this city, like Undella Town, had a singular purpose.

"It's amazing looking." Warren added as they proceeded into the valley.

"Looks like the other Pokémon leagues to me." Niko said with a shrug. "But you're right—it is pretty fantastic looking.

It didn't take long for them to arrive at the large stadium, where Niko assumed he would have to register. Niko walked through the lobby full of trainers and approached the front desk, where a young man in Pokémon League Official clothing—red polo shirt and black slacks—was seated in front of a computer.

"Hi, I would like to register for the Vertress Conference." He stated simply, albeit quietly.

"Oh, hello. Lucky you!" He said in a friendly voice. "We only had a few spots left, since it's the last day to register. All I need to see is your pokédex and badge case, please."

"Sure." Niko said, suddenly thinking of an important question. "Hey…what happens if I chose to use a Pokémon that wasn't recorded in my pokédex as one that I own?"

The man at the registration desk thought for a moment, trying to piece together the question in his head. Ultimately, he nodded. "They would be permitted. Just come here before a battle and register those Pokémon with us."

"Got it. Thanks."

"Alright, let's see here. Basic…Toxic…Insect…Bolt…Quake…Jet…Legend…Wave Badge. All set!" He handed the pokédex and badge case to Niko. "And also, here is your room key. Are your friends behind you staying with you?"

"Yes, they are." Niko replied.

"Great. Here are two keys for them as well." The registration official said. "And lastly, here's a pamphlet for you as well, detailing the rules and regulations of the Vertress Conference, as well as some of the restaurants and other attractions available to you during your stay. The tournament commences tomorrow evening, and will begin the day following."

"Thank you very much." Niko said, taking the pamphlet and turning to Warren and Charlotte. "Shall we?"

"We shall." Warren said, and Niko led the two of them off towards their suite, which was on the third floor of the stadium. The window had a view of the outside world. For their part, Warren and Charlotte were in awe at the suite, which was a two-bedroom, four bed suite with a small common room in the middle, just like every previous suite Niko had gotten during his Pokémon League stays. "You've stayed in these before?"

"Yup." Niko said, putting down his bags and sat on a bed, essentially claiming it. "They're nice, aren't they?"

"Oh, yes." Charlotte said, putting her bags in another room. "It's very spacious. But what do we do with all of this space?" She said, opening her hands out wide.

"No idea." Niko shrugged. "Maybe it's for larger groups than ours, or trainers that prefer to keep their Pokémon out of their balls more often than not?"

"Possibly." Charlotte said. "What do you want to do first?"

"Oh. Well…I was thinking of calling home first." Niko said.

"Good idea. Do you want us to come with you?" Charlotte asked.

"Yeah. I'd like you both to meet my family and Pokémon." Niko said, standing up and walking out of the suite with Warren and Charlotte. They made it to the lobby, en route to the Pokémon Center, when he noticed the most familiar face walking inside amongst the dozen of trainers walking around randomly. Pausing, he stared down the way. "How…?"

"How what…?" Warren asked, looking over at Niko.

"Mom…?" Niko asked loud enough for his mother to hear him. She turned, and her face lit up with pure satisfaction. As usual, she put her brunette hair down past her shoulders. She wore a flowery dress with black leggings. They both approached one another and embraced one another. "How did you—?"

"Brittany, honey." His mother said. "Niko…my boy…I'm…so glad to see you."

"Same here. I'm sorry, Mom." Niko said, looking down at the floor.

"For what?"

"For leaving. For not going to Dad's funeral. For putting you through endless worry. Brittany told me everything."

"Niko. All that I care about is you being safe and healthy. And a Pokémon Trainer again, nonetheless! Brittany told me that you'd be heading to Vertress City in Unova. And so, I came to watch you and your Pokémon." She looked behind Niko to see Warren and Charlotte. "And…who are these two?"

"Mom…these are my friends—Warren, and Charlotte. I met them in Castelia City, where I ended up after leaving Pallet Town. It was them that convinced me to be a Pokémon Trainer again."

"Hi. I'm Niko's mother." She shook their hands. "Thank you for looking after my boy."

"It was no problem, ma'am!" Warren said excitedly. "Niko is the best!"

"He's a great friend." Charlotte said quietly.

"So, you went to Castelia City, then?" Niko nodded. "And…what did you do in the meantime?"

"I worked, actually." Niko said. "And one day I found a Pokémon called Snivy in a dumpster." Niko then went on to recall to his mother the entire story of how he ended up going on another journey. "…and after meeting Brittany, I got my last gym badge, and now I'm here!" He finished, conveniently leaving out Team Plasma and the Giant Chasm. He would rather not worry his mother anymore. By now they were sitting on the couches in the lobby. "How's Jake doing?"

"Better. He was livid when you left. I actually had to calm him down more often than he would with me. He's off in Johto now. I think he's getting close to qualifying for the Silver Conference, and should be competing in that soon enough."

"Oh, wow…" Niko said, remembering his own attempt at the Silver Conference. It was the last time he progressed in a Pokémon League. "I hope he does well."

"So…do you think you can win this thing?" His mother asked him.

"I don't know. The Pokémon I've raised here are pretty strong, but…they might not be enough."

"Well, I asked because…" She opened up her bag to reveal nearly two dozen pokéballs and a fast ball. "There are some Pokémon that might want to see you."

Niko looked into the bag with a sinking feeling. Warren and Charlotte looked in as well, marveling at the number of Pokémon that Niko had collected in his travels.

"I—I couldn't ask them." Niko finally said.

"Niko!" Charlotte exclaimed. "They'll battle with you!"

"I think Charlotte's right." His mother said. "They weren't too excited to come along with me, if I'm being honest, but they did seem to miss you. They might need some convincing, but if you want to talk to them, they're right here."

Niko stared at the bag for a moment before picking it up. "Alright, I'll go outside." He said, leading the way out towards the front lawn of the stadium. He found a large, open, unoccupied area so that his Pokémon could have some space. He then threw the pokéballs out of the bag, all of them opening up and eventually revealing nearly two dozen Pokémon, all of whom stared at Niko with a mixture of responses.

He gulped before saying anything. Warren and Charlotte looked in wonder at the variety of Pokémon standing before them.

"Hi, everyone."

Author's Note (unrelated): Did everyone get Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon today?