"Man, I think winter is finally almost here," Alex breathed into her hands as she, Robert, and I walked along with the other trainers competing in the Vertress Conference. We'd just stepped out onto the main stadium field, the crowd cheering from the stands as we made our appearance.
"The battles will warm us up in no time," Robert said, turning around as he waved enthusiastically to the crowd.
"There's quite a bit more people this time around watching," Alex noted. "You'd think after the Clarity incident that less people would have showed."
"It's the opposite, actually," Robert told her as we all began to line up on the field. "The general public got to hear how a train with Clarity and a bomb on it were taken out by the trainers aboard. Not to mention the rumors that several trainers helped out in Castelia. There's so many people because they want to see what these trainers are made of if they were able to help stop Clarity."
"Sounds about right," I shrugged as I took a quick one over of our competitors. "Oh hey, I can see Hilda and Hilbert."
"Where?" Robert poked his head out from the line to see them, then frowned. "Hugh's here."
"Hugh?" Alex looked. "But I thought he wasn't a trainer?"
"He wasn't..." Robert trailed off as a memory came back to him.
"That damn Team Plasma! I won't allow them to get away with this! I'll get my own Pokemon! I'll train them and train and train! Then I'll take them down. One! By! One!"
"Hugh..." Robert whispered softly.
"Alright then folks, now that the trainers have all gathered on the field, we can get on with this year's Vertress Conference!" A resounding cheer came from the crowd, the sound deafening. "And this year, I shall be doing the announcing!" The large televisions hanging over the stadium flickered on to reveal Alder in the announcer's booth, giving a toothful grin. "Your previous Champion!"
The crowd's erupting cheers quickly petered out as what he just said registered. Alder blinked, then boomed with laughter. "Oh right, I forget that wasn't made public yet. Well, better now then never I guess. As of a few days ago, I lost to a challenger who bravely made their way through the Elite 4 to face me. And so," Alder gestured behind him to the darkness, where a figure was already coming forwards. "I'd like to have you all welcome Unova's newest champion-!"
"N!"
"No," I stared, slack jawed as N strode into the light to take the seat next to Alder as the crowd quickly began cheering again.
"Literally how!?" Alex's hand was gripping my shoulder tightly while Robert simply stared intensely at the screen.
"Thank you for the introduction," N gave the former champion a nod. "While I myself cannot condone Pokemon battling for the sake of sport, I am willing to listen to their voices today to see if I can truly understand what a 'trainer' is."
The crowd didn't seem to know what to make of that as only a few scattered applauses could be heard.
"Ahem," Alder coughed into his fist, bringing attention back to him. "With the events and tragedy that have occurred recently, the fate of the conference was in question. However, due to an overwhelming amount of support from the people of Unova, we have decided to go ahead with the tournament! Not only that, but due to recent events, all eyes are on this league from around the world. So make sure to do your best out there trainers. Now!" The screen changed, this time showing the 128 trainer cards. "Let's get the match-ups started! For the Preliminary Round, this is who'll you'll be facing!"
The cards all zoomed towards the center of the screen, swirling in and out as they mixed before placing them back on the screen in a new order.
"Kendrick," I murmured, recognizing Grimsley's son from when we battled in Nimbasa City. "Looks like he and I are facing one another. Alex, how about-"
"Zeno." There was an note of urgency in her voice that made a note of fear rise in me. She was staring at the screen, eyes wide. I followed her gaze and felt my heart nearly stop. There, the first match-up for the Prelims, was Alex vs a very familiar white haired young woman.
Robert sucked in a breath. "Okay, how did she get in the tournament?"
"I look forward to battling you, Alex."
The three of us whirled around to face Spirit, who was dressed in her usual white kimono, her blades thankfully not at her side. However, I had an inkling that there was at least a few hidden daggers at least within this robes.
"What are you three planning?" I glared at her.
A small smile. "Oh, nothing what you're thinking of. In fact, we had a falling out of sorts. Needless to say, I'm going my own way from now on. I was hoping to fight you, Zeno, but I guess she'll do. Oh, and I promise to play nicely." She pushed past us. "So don't worry about your girlfriend's pretty head, Zeno."
"Zeno," Alex said a few seconds after she left. "I got questions."
"Yeah, so do I," I grumbled.
"Welcome to the first round match!" Alder's voice boomed across the stadium over the cheering crowd. "Coming out now is Alex, a fiery trainer hailing from Hoenn who's made a name for herself from participating in both the Alola and Kalos Leagues! And her opponent is Mary, a mysterious white haired trainer with dangerous looking red eyes! Is it just me or do I sense a particularly heated battle coming on!?"
"May the best trainer win," Mary bowed her head slightly to Alex.
"I plan on it," Alex unhooked a pokeball. Whatever this former Executioner was up to, it couldn't be good, so she'd make sure to beat her here before she has the chance to move onwards.
"All Preliminary Rounds will consist of one-on-one battles!" The field rep announced, raising her hand. "The Pokemon left standing will be the winner! Trainers, send out your Pokemon!"
"Absol!" Alex shouted, tossing out the Dark type. "Let's beat her!"
"Time to shine, my darling Ghost," Mary flicked her pokeball, her white Sceptile appearing.
"Oho, what's this? That's certainly a unique Sceptile! Is this one of those regional variants that are all the rage!?"
"Hm, it's hard to hear from up here, but... Huh, that is an interesting view on things. I must admit, I am interested to see what you are capable of, Ghost."
"...Who are you talking to, N?"
"Ghost."
"...Okay then, let's get this match underway!"
"BEGIN!" The ref swung her hand down.
"Absol!" Alex hooked a bracelet onto her left wrist, fingers grazing over the colorful orb as bands of light streaked outwards and connected with the orb situated on Absol's necklace. "We're going in full throttle! Mega Evolve!"
"Ghost, you know what to do." Ghost sharpened her gaze at her trainer's words before taking off towards the Mega Evolved Absol.
Absol lashed her head, dark winds tearing up the battlefield as they closed in on Ghost, who promptly disappeared into darkness. Glancing around nervously, Absol missed Ghost appearing from a portal of darkness from above as she slashed down with a glowing green blade. She spun about, a mass of leaves blasting Absol across the ground.
As Absol skidded along the ground, dozens of copies appeared around her as she dug in her claws, hauling herself back to her feet as she and all her copies dashed for Ghost. With a yell, Ghost slammed her claws on the ground, huge gnarled roots ripping up from the ground and obliterating every copy. The real Absol leaped and ran along the roots, appearing behind Ghost and slashing her back with shadowy claws.
Snarling in anger, Ghost's tail of leaves shot up, sharpening as she swung it around, Absol just barely dodging beneath it, but not quick enough to dodge the claws aimed at her face as Ghost spun around. Roaring, Absol barreled into her, both of them weaving in and out of each other's attacks as Absol slashed with her head and swiped up with her claws, and Ghost with the blades along her arms and sweeping with her glowing tail.
Absol managed to slam a paw down on the tail, causing Ghost to jerk, and give her time to bite down on back. Screeching in pain and fury, Ghost's tail suddenly buzzed with light as it shot out, flipping Absol up as the projectile burst into a storm of leaves. Absol managed to spin around midair and unleash a mighty wind made of darkness from her feathered wings. The wind clashed against Ghost before it knocked her away.
Ghost slid to a stop on all fours, raising her head as she prepared to jet forwards, only for the air above her to split open as a torrent of psychic energy barraged her. Crying out, Ghost was pinned for a few moments, which was all the time Absol needed as she brought down shadowy claws on Ghost's head. With one final cry, Ghost was silenced as she fainted.
"Sceptile is unable to battle, which means Absol and Alex are the winners!"
"That was a glorious bout of fierceness to start off the Unova League! What did you think, N?"
"I think my taste for forcing Pokemon to brutally fight one another in a pointless competition has yet to develop."
With a sigh, Alex returned Absol. "Glad that's over with. Now-" her eyes widened slightly. Mary and Ghost had already gone. Shrugging, Alex turned and walked back through the gate leading to under the stands. As she walked through the hallway to watch the upcoming bouts, she found herself face-to-face with Mary.
"Okay, creepy, but not totally surprising at this point," Alex said after a few seconds of silent staring. "You gonna kill me?"
A slight twitch towards a smile. "No, I'm not. In fact, I would very much like for you to keep living. I have two favors to ask of you."
"You, an Executioner-"
"Former."
"-Not the point. You want to ask me a favor? Really?" Alex stared at her in disbelief.
"I do," Mary nodded.
"Okay, first answer me this," Alex leaned against the nearest wall. "Should we be worried about the other Executioners at all?"
"For the time being, no," Mary fingered the hilt of her blade, which was back to being strapped to her waist. "Due to my betrayal, they now must focus all of their attention to tracking me down and silencing me."
"Isn't putting yourself on national television a bad idea then?"
"On the contrary." A smirk. "It's harder to kill me, one of their own, during a massive public event."
"Okay, whatever floats your boat," Alex pursed her lip. "What are these 'favors'?"
"The first is easy to do." Mary leaned against the wall next to her, forcing Alex to put a few feet between them. "Just relay what I've just told you to Zeno. Knowing I have the Executioners off your backs will do wonders to relieve him of that potential stress."
"Okay, can do since I was already planning on telling him about this little meetup of ours," Alex shook her head. "What's the second favor? Better not be to kill someone for you."
"No, but this second favor will be asking a lot of you." Mary turned her head ever so slightly so one of her crimson eyes gleamed as she looked at Alex. "I need you to promise me to never leave Zeno's side. No matter what happens, no matter what dangers you'll face, you must stick by his side. He cares for you, and you him. If he loses you, he may also lose himself."
"..." Alex was at loss for words before she finally spoke. "One, I never plan on leaving him, so that's a nonissue. Second, why are you telling me this? Who are you?!"
"Someone that has been doing what they could for years to fight the darkness in my own way," she responded as she pushed off the wall. "Actually, let Zeno know one last thing. He doesn't need to concern himself about the remains of Clarity that had escaped. I will deal with them myself."
"I hope you realize that we don't usually go looking for trouble. It finds us."
"So I've heard," Mary gave her a wry smile. "Just make sure he stays safe."
As she began to walk away, Alex called out, "Wait." When she turned her head, Alex asked, "Your name isn't Mary, right? 'Cause you do not look like a Mary at all."
"Heh," a small laugh escaped 'Mary's' lips. "It isn't." Then as she turned, her entire being phased out of existence, as if she was never there.
"...Oh I wish I could do that."
"I heard that you had something to do with the removal of the bomb on the train," I unhooked Arcaneis' pokeball as I took my spot at one end of the battlefield. At the other end Kendrick prepped his Great Ball, wearing the same dark suit and vest he'd been wearing the first time I'd seen him on the ship leaving Liberty Garden.
"Something like that," He shrugged. "Flygon did all the work. Might I ask how you found this out?"
I spared a quick glance towards the audience, where I knew a certain trio were selling snacks and drinks to the crowd. "Trade secret."
"Send out your Pokemon!"
"Arcaneis!" "Flygon!"
"OH! What a splendid Arcanine! My, I have never seen one like it before!"
"That would be Arcaneis, Zeno's oldest partner Pokemon. He's been at his side for the Alola and Kalos League prior to this."
"You did your research, N. What else do you know?"
"Ahem. According to research data published by Professor Juniper and her assistant, Mr. Aspen, this is a rare second evolution of Arcanine. Studies suggest that its incredible speed may be the contributing factor as to why Arcanine have been said to be able to run 6200 miles in just a single day and night. However, those are just tall tales, and not even Arcaneis can run that fast."
"So this 'Arcaneis' specializes in speed, huh?" Kendrick pulled his scarf around him tighter. "Guess we'll need to see who's faster when we're all powered up then." I noticed something gleam on his vest and my eyes widened a fraction.
"You may begin the match!"
"May the odds be in our favor," Kendrick said as he passed a finger over one of his vest's buttons, the orb glittering with brilliant light, connecting to an arm bracelet Flygon wore on his right arm. "Flygon, Mega Evolve!"
Arcaneis and I waited patiently for the light to fade to reveal the mega evolved Pokemon. Flygon's wings had split, two larger wings with two smaller ones just below them, each one outlined with red and looking incredibly sharp. Blood red talons grew from each clawed hand and foot as a third antenna hung from the back of his head. Overall, he looked bigger, meaner, and much more agile.
"If it's a speed battle you want, it's a speed battle you'll get!" I shouted. "Arcaneis, Extreme Speed!"
Electricity sparked along Arcaneis' fur as he dashed forwards, trailing energy behind him. He collided with Flygon, broke off, and slammed into him again several more times before the Dragon type managed to blast the ground with a sound wave that blasted the earth and sent Arcaneis flying. Flygon flew after him, slashing up and down with large draconic claws to keep him in the air. Arcaneis managed to kick off one of the claws with his back legs and spin into a wheel of fire that crashed back to the ground before zooming around the arena, building up speed. Flygon's wings flapped once, giving him a boost of speed. He sped up right next to Arcaneis' wheel, matching him. He flipped himself around, his blue glowing tail coming straight for the Fire/Electric type.
Spinning out of the Flame Wheel, Arcaneis deftly dodged the Dragon Tail and chomped down on Flygon, flames spreading from the contact. Screeching, Flygon began vibrating his wings intensely, a sharp buzzing sound reverberating throughout Arcaneis and forcing him to relinquish his hold on the Dragon type. Flygon flew back, putting distance between them.
I narrowed my eyes at the burn wound on Flygon's arm. That's did more damage than I was expecting. Could it be...
Flygon crashed his fists into the ground and the ground began erupting in waves. Arcaneis howled and took off running, leaping from one broken piece of ground to the next to avoid getting caught in the destruction. A burst of draconic energy blasted up around Flygon and formed the image of a dragon as he took off for his opponent. Flames appeared from Arcaneis' maw before spreading across the entirety of his body. He blasted off a chunk of the battlefield and the two collided midair in a fiery explosion.
Flygon burst from the smoke, arcing up into the sky as Arcaneis crashed to the ground, skidding as he found his footing. Flygon changed trajectory and zoomed back down, screeching horribly loud. The sound waves barraged the battlefield as Arcaneis took off running, just barely outrunning the bursts of sound before he hurled himself into another wheel of fire. The flames sharpened in intensity as he circled back around, picking up speed.
Flygon sharply turned so he was now flying in a straight line just above the ground, draconic energy once again forming itself into a fierce beast of legends. He roared as Arcaneis' flames crackled with electricity before suddenly turning hot blue and left scorched earth in his wake. The two zoomed past one another, missing each other by mere inches as the resulting sound wave shook the entire stadium. Both Pokemon reached the ends of the battlefield before sharply turning and heading for another collision.
At my end, I was ready and waiting for this exact moment. I crossed my hands and moved them out before jutting them out, following up with an upwards billowing motion. Red, fiery energy streamed from the crystal situated on my bracelet before turning a cobalt blue and forming a quiver and bow made of fire. I drew a flaming arrow and nocked it just as Arcaneis had reached my end of the field, already turning. "INCINERAZING-!" I roared, letting it fly. "ARROW!"
The fire arrow struck Arcaneis true, a blazing heat blasting around him, fueling his speed as the flames coalesced around him to form an arrow shape. With that increase in speed, Arcaneis quickly covered the remaining distance in less than a second, colliding with Flygon in an explosion that dwarfed the one before. My vision was tinted blue as waves of heat assaulted me, forcing me back a step as a huge column of fire blasted high into the sky.
It took close to a minute before the heat began dying down and the smoke to thin enough to allow anyone to see if either Pokemon had managed to stay standing in wake of that devastating attack. Arcaneis stood, one foot planted on Flygon, who had both fainted and reverted back to his normal form. The Fire/Electric type howled to the sky, the crowd taking that as their cue to give a giant round of applause.
"THAT WAS INTENSE! DID YOU SEE THAT, N!?"
"I did."
"THAT WAS A SPECTACULAR BATTLE OF SPEED AND STRENGTH! BOTH TRAINER AND POKEMON PUT ALL THEY HAD INTO THAT FIGHT! Honestly, it just makes you wonder if they're setting a precedent for the future matches."
"I don't think the stadium would be able to handle every battle being like that, Alder."
I fell to my knees, thoroughly exhausted. It was a little known fact, that as crazy as some of the more weird Z-moves may look to activate, it took a toll on the trainer. The more powerful, the heavier the toll. Ultra Necrozma's Z-move, Light That Burns the Sky, was the most extreme example, but this was definitely the second most powerful I've ever had to use.
I'm not going to lose, I thought with fierce determination as I forced myself to stand, glaring up towards the announcer's box at N. You became the Champion for a reason. Now it's harder for anyone to oppose you. So I'll just fight my way to you. First the League, then the Elite 4. I'm taking you down, King of Team Plasma. Count on that.
"Good match," Kendrick shook my hand as we met in the middle of the scorched battlefield to collect our respective Pokemon. "Didn't expect you to use a Z-move. Guess I should be glad you thought that highly of my skills to go all out."
"That I do," I gripped his hand. "Say, speaking of. About your father, he's-"
"In Alola, I know," Kendrick shrugged. "I'll go see him eventually. He's done some horrible stuff, but I don't hate him. Just the fact people won't stop comparing me to him." As our hands parted, he gave a quick glance up towards the announcer's box. "I don't know much, but I do know he's part of Team Plasma. Don't lose, y'hear?"
"Loud and clear."
The rest of the day was spent on the rest of the Preliminary matches, where Robert, Hilbert, Hilda, and Hugh made it through along with Iris, who seemed to come out of nowhere. It was during the some of the first qualifying rounds the next day where the siblings dueled it out only for Hilda to take the win, much to her brother's dismay.
The competition only got fiercer from there as we all went up against stronger and stronger trainers. Then finally-
"The Vertress Conference is really heating up now as the last of the Qualifying Rounds come to an end!" Alder announced as the sun streaked the sky orange. "Tomorrow the last of the battles will take place right here in the main stadium with full six-on-six battles! Prepare and rest well trainers as you get ready for your next opponent!"
Onscreen the trainer cards whirled around each other before settling back down to reveal the Quarterfinal match-ups.
Cameron vs. Virgil
Zeno vs. Alex
Iris vs. Hilda
Robert vs. Hugh
