Route 35
"Come on, guys!" Jackson shouted, gliding backwards on his Air Shoes down the path, watching as Leafeon, Weavile, Dewott, and Cyndaquil were all out and running after their trainer. Jackson was in the midst of training their physical attributes, and had done a focus on their running speed as they made their way towards the Pokéathlon.
"I know you guys can run faster than that!" Jackson called out, "But remember, no Quick Attacks! The Pokéathlon doesn't allow moves like that!"
"Yeah, I know, I know." Leafeon understood, running just behind Weavile, who was in the lead.
"Damn it! I will not be left behind!" Dewott growled, trying to pursue the two with all he had. Cyndaquil was panting as he was trying to keep up with the group, despite the stubby legs and arms he had.
After about twenty minutes, the team decided to stop to catch their breath, with Cyndaquil breathing the hardest.
"Are you okay, Cyndaquil?" Jackson asked.
"Yeah...I think so." he replied.
"There is no need to push yourself too hard." Leafeon noted, "You need to take things at your pace. Then gradually get to where you want to be."
"I know, I know." Cyndaquil answered, "I just want to become more useful to the team."
"You don't have any say in the matter." Dewott argued, "You took out two of that last gym leader's Pokémon, while I did squat. If anyone has to improve, it's me! Otherwise, I will never surpass Weavile!"
"Trust me, I admire the two of you and your conviction. Just don't push yourselves too hard." Jackson told them, "I mean, we are close to the Pokéathlon. We need to regain our strength and get ready for it. Let's show 'em that we have what it takes to win the challenges!"
"Okay!" They replied together, with Cyndaquil taking a deep sigh afterwards.
(Insert 'Never Give Up' By Sonar Pocket)
Instrumental Opening
(Jackson stands at the top of a cliff, looking out into the vast landscape of the Johto region. He turns to the camera with surprise, grins, then draws his sword and swipes it across the screen, transitioning to white with the logo appearing.)
What tough heart! Once I decided that I'd keep up the fight
My road has never stopped unraveling
(Camera circles around Jackson as he runs along an open-plain path with his Leafeon, who after a couple seconds, leaps onto his shoulders as he activates his Extreme Gear and shoots even faster onto the path.)
Carrying a small bit of pride
With my fists clenched
(The screen shows a brief image of Professor Elm, dropping papers from his clipboard, and smiling as he rubbed the back of his head. It shifts to a visual of Kris, Ethan, and their starters, with Ethan punching his fist forward, while Kris spun around with her arms out wide.)
I aim for the goal again step by step
Racing towards it with all my might!
(The screen shifts to Sonic & Tails, the former giving a thumbs up, while the latter waved his hands above eagerly. The screen shifts to Cypher, who glared at the screen with a Pokéball held close to his face.)
Sometimes it'll be a bad day
Where nothing goes the way I want it to
But even if the sky blurs through my tears
(Jackson is sitting by a campfire, his expression full of emotional pain as shadows of his past with red eyes creeped all around him. He curled himself into a ball as the shadow of his father appeared over his head.)
I'm sure my smiles will come back tomorrow
So it's okay!
(Shadows started getting blown away one large piece at a time, until light broke out around Jackson, who looked up to see his Pokémon all standing there, protecting him from his trauma.)
There's nothing out there to fear
I'll keep believing that 'I'm strong'
And get going!
(Silhouettes of the Gym Leaders appeared as the screen scrolled upwards through a gold, silver, and crystal colors behind them. It shifts to the emblem of Team Rocket, with darkened faces of grunts, with the four admins in front, holding their Pokéballs. Jackson readies his blade, as he tosses a Pokéball forward, which opens up and blinds the screen in a white light.)
'With you around, there's nothing to worry about now'
I felt as if the sky was saying that to me with a laugh
(Leafeon leapt forward and swung her tail into a Razor Leaf, before her tail glowed as she charged up sunlight, before unleashing a Solarbeam. Dewott and Weavile shoot through the Solarbeam, unleashing double Night Slash, slicing the beam, before dismissing their blades, and Dewott angrily looking at the calm and collected Weavile.)
With the sweat and tears I build up
I'm sure I'll come out dazzling
(Cyndaquil turns to face the Team Rocket logo, before unleashing his Flamethrower. Cyndaquil sighed in relief as Scyther flew over him, before slashing with his mantis claws like a swordsman.)
Even if I end up feeling anxious after it all
As long as I believe I can do it
(An Aeroblast and Sacred Fire came from the sky, shooting down at Jackson's team, but Jackson stepped in and unleashed several sword beams, countering the attacks and making them explode. He and his team endured the shockwaves and smoke from the explosion, before looking up into the distance, and saw the silhouettes of the Tower Duo flying over the two towers that represented each.)
These footsteps have taught me to
Always
Never Give Up!
(Jackson's Pokémon come to his side as he looked to them, before grinning eagerly, and the group leapt up into the air, taking on the new threat and the new adventure. The screen goes white before showing Jackson standing with his sword stabbed into the ground, his Pokémon companions surrounding him.)
Pokéathlon Dome
After a bit of training and rest, Jackson carried Leafeon on his back as they went through the entrance, and found themselves at the very building the games would take place. It was massive, with stalls along the pathway towards the large dome that was mostly blue in color. It had segments going off to the sides like legs of a bug, three yellow towers that had flames on the tips, and the entrance had a golden symbol of a Pokéball with a rising fist above it.
"Alright! Here we are!" Jackson declared, punching the air.
"This place is very exciting." Leafeon noted, hopping off of Jackson's shoulders, and looking about.
"You okay to move around, right now?" Jackson asked, "You gained enough rest, right?"
"Trust me, Jackson. I am more than able to move." Leafeon assured him, "Besides, I must stretch my legs before we take off."
"Heeeeeee're's Whitney!" cheered a familiar voice from behind, and Jackson nearly ducked under a lariat swing from the Goldenrod Gym leader, Whitney, as she tried to wrap her arm around his neck. "Aw, you evaded that?!" she questioned Jackson.
"I'm aware of my surroundings, even in this environment." Jackson noted, mentally recalling sneak attacks done by his masters back in the Earth world.
"Boo." Whitney moped, puffing her cheeks, "Well, whatever. I'm glad I can get a chance to beat you in the Pokéathlon. And trust me when I say I don't take losing easily."
"Considering you bawled your eyes out after I beat you fair and square in your gym, I'd say that's an understatement." Jackson argued bluntly.
"I didn't cry! I was just frustrated, is all!" she retorted, "You are really not cute at all!"
"Sorry. I'm not really trying to be cute." he replied, "I'm just trying to let you know that my team and I are not planning to lose. So get ready, Whitney."
"You'll regret saying that." she replied competitively, "You'd better compete in the Speed Course! That's where my team and I will be at!" With that, she took off to the dome.
"The Speed Course." Jackson echoed, "There are five categories where a Pokémon's physical capabilities; Power, Speed, Stamina, Jump, and Skill. Of course, I plan to do the Speed Course with my team, as that's my natural love.
"And that's why the rest of us are training in running." Leafeon understood.
"Correct. Of all of them, I feel like you and Weavile qualify for speed, no doubt." Jackson told them, "However, considering Dewott does not play well with Weavile, I think I'll let Cyndaquil as the third choice."
"That's going to be tough, as he is fast, but his stamina is lacking." Leafeon argued.
"It's the only plan we have. Let's work with it." With that decision made, he marched towards the dome, with Leafeon at his side.
They entered into the dome, which was a black interior with neon lighting along the floor and walls. Jackson made his way to the register counter, and got his team all set up into the Speed Course, which included an appropriate title. Dewott definitely made a fuss when he learned he was not part of it, but Jackson made the promise to use him for the Bug-Catching Contest afterwards, and he decided he would be satisfied with that instead.
They made their way to the changing room, where Jackson had to put on a blue and white sports top and pants, while also wearing tennis shoes and a blue headband, and a speaker earpiece. As for his team, Leafeon, Weavile, and Cyndaquil all had their heads measured and had headbands for each of them, with a hidden speaker for them so they could hear their trainer's voice. From what they learned, there was a separate part of the dome where the Speed Course was gonna take place separate from the other courses. Once there was enough people signed up to the tournament, they entered onto the field.
They made their way out to the field where three other teams were there to compete in the Speed Course. Whitney was one of them, wearing a pink sports attire, with Miltank, Furret, and Clefairy among her team. There was another trainer who had a swimming cap and goggles on his head, who had a Wooper, a Poliwhirl, and a Marill. The fourth was a boy with a bug-catching headgear, with a Butterfree, a Ledyba, and a Venonat.
Jackson and his team made their way in a straight line towards their position, the three Pokémon standing on what Jackson analyzed as a warp panel. In front of them was a stage that was wide enough for all four trainers to stand on, and had an announcer in front of a screen that had four colored panels.
"Welcome, one and all, to the next Pokéathlon tournament!" the announcer called out through the microphone, with the crowd cheering in joy, "Now, let's meet our new competitors! Up first; Cute and fierce, not to be outrun, the Goldenrod Gym Leader, Whitney!" They gym leader's face appeared on the red panel, with the faces of her Pokémon underneath. A great roar from the crowd, showing their love for the gym leader.
"Next, Racing onto the field, going at supersonic speeds, competitor Jackson!" The said trainer and his Pokémon appeared on screen, getting cheers from the crowd.
"Showing that they are fast on land as they are at sea, competitor Kusto!" the swimmer's face appeared with his team, with a round of cheers for him.
"Catch them fast, catch them quick! Bugs shouldn't be slept on! Competitor Weevil!" the young boy's face appeared, getting more cheers from the crowd.
"Without further ado, we begin the Pokeathlon Speed Course with the first event; the Hurdle Dash!" the announcer called out, the screen showing off a picture of a Chikorita leaping over a hurdle, "The rules are simple; the Pokémon will be placed on a straight course, with a series of hurdles. They must leap over the hurdles and make their way to the finish line. Knocking into hurdles will slow down the Pokémon and their points will be reduced. It is a race to see how fast your team will be able to make their way through the obstacles to make it to the finish line, points depending on total placement! Now, let's send your team to the Track Dome!"
Suddenly, the twelve Pokemon that were behind the four trainers had their warp panels activated, and they were teleported to the Track Dome. They were each placed on a separate track, described by the announcer. Jackson and the other trainers could see their Pokémon on the screens, each separate from one another so they would watch their Pokémon individually. "Okay, Leafeon, Weavile, Cyndaquil. You heard the rules. You are not allowed to go underneath the hurdles. Jump over them, and make your way to the finish line as fast as possible."
"Understood!" Leafeon replied.
"Cool." Weavile answered.
"I-I'll do my best." Cyndaquil assured him.
"Give it all you got!" Jackson called to them, as there was a countdown, before their was a whistle, and the team raced.
Those who were able to fly had a bit of an advantage in this race, meaning Weevil's Butterfree and Ledyba, as they could get over the hurdles without too much trouble. This made the trainer very cynical, much to the other competitor's disgust. However, flying speed and running speed were still two different things. Weavile was clearly fast on his feet, with Leafeon and Whitney's Furret not too far behind. Cyndaquil was giving it all he had, but was more in the middle of the pack.
Then there was the hurdles they had to deal with. It was fortunate that the Pokémon were measured to be given proper hurdles for each of them, so they were able to hop over the hurdles with the effort they needed without being too easy. The only acceptation was the Flying-types, which had floating hurdles above the grounded hurdles, giving enough space for the Flying-types to go through. This annoyed Weevil, especially since Ledyba was apparently not that graceful, and was falling behind.
"Weavile, keep up the pace, and make sure you watch out for those double hurdles!" Jackson called through the speaker, "Cyndaquil, time your jumps right. Don't jump too soon when you reach the hurdles."
"I'm trying." Cyndaquil answered, even as he leapt over the hurdle too soon, and his feet caught the hurdle, and he tumbled along the ground, before quickly getting himself back up on his feet and continued to run.
Jackson watched the team, making sure to call out to when his Pokemon should change things up, or if they were making mistakes, or even telling them when to jump over obstacles. By the time they reached the end of the course, the placements were as followed; Weavile took first place. Leafeon took third place, just behind Whitney's Furret. Cyndaquil took sixth place, with Whitney's Miltank, Weevil's Butterfree, and Kusto's Marill placing ahead of him.
When they returned to the trainers, Cyndaquil looked ashamed as he said, "I am so sorry. I was trying to keep up with everyone, but..."
"We all did our best." Leafeon assured him, patting Cyndaquil on the head, "You will get better in due time. Just take it easy."
"I know, but I wanna be useful now." Cyndaquil retorted, "Otherwise, I'll hold back the team."
"You're not." Weavile argued, "Don't worry about us. Do your best yourself."
"Okay..." Cyndaquil answered half-heartedly. Jackson, Leafeon and Weavile looked to each other. Cyndaquil really wanted to prove he could do well for the team.
"Okay, here is the total score for each team based on their performance!" the announcer called out, getting the team's attention. They looked to the monitor, where the numbers were randomly shifting before stopping at their scores. Jackson's team got 105 points. Whitney was not far off, having 101 points. As for the other two, they were not even in the triple digits.
"Not bad, Jackson." Whitney noted, getting his attention, as she and her team looked to him, "But I am still on your tail! I will win this in the end!"
"Thing about me; I get a bit competitive about stuff like this." Jackson noted, "Don't think it'll be easy to beat me and my team!" Leafeon and Weavile nodded in agreement, while Cyndaquil was too nervous to respond.
"Alright folks, onto the next round!" the announcer called out, looking to the screen, "And the next round is known as... the Pennant Capture!" It showed off a picture of different Pokémon going after a flag in the ground. "The rules are simple; one Pokémon per team will go out and capture pennants that we place all about the field, and bring it back to the starting line. Once they do that, the pennants will be counted up, and the next Pokemon in the team will replace them to repeat the task. Tackling opponents to drop their pennants is allowed, but no attack moves allowed. If everything is all set, we shall send you to the Beach Dome!"
The twelve Pokémon got on their warp panels, and were sent away to the dome where they were going to compete. True to its name, the environment was a beach-like environment, sandy ground, and a walled-in environment for the group to partake in. There were obstacles like large umbrellas and stone water-breakers about, along with a series of flags scattered about the ground. Leafeon was in front, with Weavile and Cyndaquil right behind. Miltank, Wooper, and Butterfree were right next to her.
"Okay, guys. You heard the rules. Plus, this is a sand environment." Jackson told the team through the coms, "Watch your footing. Gather all you can, and get back to pass the baton!"
"Understood." Leafeon replied.
There was another countdown, and the whistle blew, and the four rushed onto the field, gathering flags as fast and efficiently as they could, going around obstacles and beating one another to flags. Leafeon grabbed her share of flags in her mouth, evading others from tackling her, and ran to the starting line again. She ended up grabbing seven flags.
Weavile replaced her, going out as other teams did the same. Weavile did grab flags for himself, but he also knocked other opponents, particularly Weevil's Venonat, in order to claim their flags. All in all, he was able to bring in seven more flags.
Finally, Cyndaquil went out to go grab more flags, but was struggling to do so. His stubby hands couldn't do much, so he had to rely in the same way Leafeon did, and by chomping on them. Unfortunately, Kusto's Poliwhirl barged into him, and made him drop a lot flags. He had to recapture more flags, and bring back all he could. By the time he got back, he only could scrounge up four flags, while everyone else already passed and moved onto the next Pokémon.
Leafeon and Weavile were able to go out again, gather up more flags, and come back with their fair share. However, Weavile wasn't able to cross the finish line before the whistle blew to end the match. They ended up gathering up twenty-five flags in total, two below Whitney, who got twenty-seven.
The Pokémon returned to their trainers side as they were announced what their score was. Jackson's team had 75 points, while Whitney had 81. Jackson did the calculations, and knew they were two points behind Whitney.
"And just like that, we are now entering our final round! Get your Pokémon ready!" the announcer called out.
"Ha! One more win for us, and we will win this entire Pokéathlon!" Whitney cheered, with Miltank, Clefairy, and Furret crying out in agreement."
"I'm sorry." Cyndaquil apologized, looking depressed, "I'm not cut out for these kind of tournaments. Maybe it would've been best if I didn't participate in the first place."
"Don't say it like that!" Leafeon argued, "You have been doing your best."
"But, I ended up tripping up in that last match, just like the last one." Cyndaquil noted sadly, "You shouldn't sugarcoat what is the obvious truth." Leafeon looked to Weavile, who shook his head, not sure what to say."
"If you have time to mope, you have time to push forward." Jackson told the fire mouse, who looked up in surprise, as did the others. "A master of mine once told me this; When you are in a battle, and you are being overwhelmed by your opponent's strength, the moment you plan on giving up is the moment you need to push beyond your limits."
"What?" Cyndaquil questioned.
"It means the moment the going gets tough, the tough get going. There are times where an opponent or a challenge might be too much for you, that's when you dig deep and find the strength you didn't know you had. And listen, win or lose, we are going to give it our all, and surpass what we thought we had, okay?"
Cyndaquil pondered on Jackson's words. He was so much in awe with what he said. Plus, the way he spoke, he had been in positions where he felt like giving up. After meeting him and his team, he always found it amazing how strong and courageous Jackson and his team was. He wanted to be as good as they were, and become a powerful teammate. That's why he took on Team Rocket back in Ilex Forest, and how he was able to fight so hard against Whitney's gym battle. Now may be a different style of challenge, and it was really tough, but what Jackson said inspired him.
"Now, we are entering into our final event!" the announcer called out, "And this event will be... the Relay Run!" The screen displayed Pokémon on a different running track from the hurdles. "The rules are simple; each Pokémon does a lap around our clay dome ring. They will do the ring twice before passing onto the next Pokémon! Keep making as many laps as you possibly can before time is up! There will be rough terrain in the road, as well as other competitors you must deal with, so best of luck!"
"A relay race! That's something we can easily do!" Jackson declared, looking to his team, "Let's show 'em all what we have the speed and stamina to win! And Cyndaquil..." His little partner looked hesitant, before looking up to him, seeing him smile as he finished, "I know you will succeed. I believe in you." Cyndaquil looked amazed that he would continue to think this way.
"Alright, trainers, have your Pokémon ready to go! Ready the final event!" the announcer called out. The four teams went to their warp points, and were teleported to the Clay Dome. Jackson watched on the monitor as they appeared together. two of each team went on the sidelines, while Leafeon, Miltank, Wooper, and Butterfree were taking their positions.
"Alright, Leafeon. Start off strong and push past everyone." Jackson told his partner, "Weavile, show them your speed and skill. After that, Cyndaquil, it's all up to you to keep that pace up and succeed in keeping everyone in the dust."
"Okay!" Leafeon and Weavile answered as one.
"I'll do my best!" Cyndaquil replied, hearing the confidence his trainer had in him.
There was a countdown, followed by the whistle. The four Pokémon took off into the course, Leafeon shot as fast as she could, breaking into speeds that almost anyone think she was using Quick Attack. Butterfree and Miltank were not far behind her, with Wooper bringing up the rear. There was stone areas in the path that were difficult to traverse on foot quickly, while there were large stone slabs that looked almost Pokémon-like that walled parts of the path, and caused them to dash around. Fortunately, Leafeon's footwork was top rate, thanks to her time running with Jackson.
She made her two laps, where she passed it onto Weavile, who shot off as everyone was catching up to them. Leafeon went to where Cyndaquil was at, panting in exhaustion.
"You okay, Leafeon?" Cyndaquil asked.
"I'm totally fine. No worries." she assured him, "I need to breathe, then I'll be back in action again. Right now, get yourself ready to make the dash."
"Okay." Cyndaquil replied, watching as Weavile made his first lap.
The fire mouse got in position once all other competitors got through their first lap. He got up as Weavile was making his way down to the lap line, and passed it onto Cyndaquil, who shot as fast as his feet could. He was fast as he could be, evading obstacles, both walls and bad roads. He was able to make one lap around, and keep pushing. However, he also noticed from behind that the other Pokémon were catching up to him, with Whitney's Clefairy in the front of the pack.
'No. I gotta make some distance between them and us, or our team will not win!' he told himself, running as fast as he could. Unfortunately, he ended up going straight into some rocky terrain, and stumbled through it. By the time he made it out, Clefairy had caught up and passed by him, with the others catching up to pass him. Cyndaquil felt really guilty he made a mistake, and felt like he let the team down.
"Keep running, Cyndaquil! It ain't over!" he heard Jackson's voice through the comm, causing him to push forward.
"Win this, kid!" Weavile shouted.
"Come on! You're almost here!" Leafeon shouted, already taking her position.
Cyndaquil dashed on, catching up with Clefairy as he did so. "I...have to...make it..." he panted as he ran, "I...gotta...dig deep...and find...the strength...to be...as strong...as my trainer!" Suddenly, Cyndaquil's body began glowing as he ran, startling everyone, including those watching.
"Cyndaquil?!" Jackson gasped.
"Is it...evolving?!" Whitney questioned.
She was right. Cyndaquil had truly dug deep and gained strength, and that took the form of evolution. His body lengthened to a sleeker form, his legs became longer. When the light vanished, he reappeared, now evolved into a Quilava.
"This is unprecedented!" the announcer called out, "Contestant Jackson's Cyndaquil has just evolved right in the middle of an event!"
Quilava's shot flames from his back and head, as he shot forward, causing Clefairy to be forced away from him, unable to take the heated winds blowing from him. He was able to get the strength to reach Leafeon, and switch out with her as she took off. "I'm proud of you, Quilava!" Leafeon called back to him as she took off, while Clefairy caught up and swapped out with Miltank, who took off after him.
Quilava looked ahead, before looking at his paw. "I had the power to evolve, and had no idea." he told himself, "Let's hope it will be enough to help win this fight!"
Jackson pulled out his Pokédex, examining his new partner. "Quilava. The Volcano Pokémon, and the evolved form of Cyndaquil. Quilava keeps its foes at bay with the intensity of its flames and gusts of superheated air. This Pokémon applies its outstanding nimbleness to dodge attacks even while scorching the foe with flames."
"Well done, Quilava." Jackson thanked his newly-evolved partner, "I'm glad you didn't give up when things were tough."
"I just needed to do what had to be done." Quilava replied through his comm, "I wanted so much to be like you, Jackson."
The swordsman trainer smiled as he thought about his words. "Hopefully only the good parts of me." he noted.
Despite the new evolution, the race continued on, and everyone was giving all they had. They were even more competitive than before, and saw Jackson as a real target. They tried running his Pokémon off the beaten path, but Jackson's team was able to evade while passing them. Sure enough, after Weavile's two laps, they were even overlapping the other teams.
Quilava was up to the task, and ran once Weavile passed the pace onto him. He was clearly faster and more nimble on his feet than before. What's more, he seemed to have a better focus on his path ahead, evading all situations that would trip him up before. He had surpassed what he was able to do before.
After some time, the whistle blew, signaling the end of the race. Jackson looked to the screen, and saw his team had done over sixteen laps around the field, while Whitney's team reached fourteen laps. The Pokemon came back to their trainers, with Jackson approaching Quilava, crouching down as he patted his head. "I'm proud of you, Quilava. You found the strength within." he told him.
"It's like I said; I wanted to be like you, Jackson." Quilava told him, "You must've had times where you almost gave up, but found the strength to surpass yourself, right?"
Jackson pondered on his words, before thinking about one thing; Was he still following the words taught to him? Taking from one perspective, coming to this world and leaving his old world behind because dealing with the anger of the masses was too much for him. It wasn't that he didn't try to confront the results of his rage head-on. He had tried to apologize, and he had shown guilt for his actions. However, no one outside of his dear friends cared about what he had to say, and just judged him for the actions he displayed after what happened between him and his father. He ran away and gave up. But what else could he do? There was no way of overcoming it when things were like that.
"Jackson?" Quilava called out, and Jackson realized he was spacing out. He looked to his team, before smiling as he said, "I admit, my track record for what I said isn't perfect. However, I will still be a trainer you can look up to. And I will surpass any defeat from now on." Leafeon, Weavile, and Quilava all smiled in agreement.
"Now, we will total up the points for the entire event, starting with the bonus points. Who had the strongest fighting spirit out there? Our panel will judge and give them the results. And here they are!" On screen were the four competitors and their teams, with numbers randomizing, before stopping with Jackson having thirty-five points, Whitney having forty points, Weevil having thirty-two points, and Kusto having thirty-seven points.
"Now, we move onto point leader. The one who got the most points out of everyone in the tournament was... Jackson's Weavile!" Jackson looked to Weavile, seeing him not get excited at this win, but looked almost smug at his win. As a result of this, Jackson earned more points.
"Now, for effort prizes!" the announcer continued, "The one who dashed the hardest was... Whitney's Furret!" Everyone looked to the Goldenrod Gym leader, who was jumping for joy as she went and hugged the excited Furret, cheering for the effort he pulled. As a result, she got bonus points, too. This left Jackson with fifty-five points, while Whitney had fifty. She was still close.
"Now, to total up the score from the events!" The announcer continued, "Here is the results. Event #1..." The numbers on each team had added on their scores from the Hurdle Dash, giving Jackson a small bit of breathing room from Whitney. "Here is the result of Event #2..." The numbers were added up again, with Whitney now nipping at Jackson's tail. "And finally, here is the result of Event #3..." The final amount was placed on top. The total for Whitney was 375 points. The total for Jackson was 401 points.
"And the winner of this Pokéathlon is... contestant Jackson!" The contestant called out, with confetti shot into the air. Jackson did a breakdance spin as his team jumped in joy, before Jackson pushing himself into the air, flipping around, and landing onto his feet, before giving a fist pump.
He then looked to Whitney, and saw her tear up, before bawling her eyes out again, shouting, "This isn't fair! Why do you have to be a meanie to me again! Waaah~!"
'Geez, she really is a crybaby.' Jackson noted mentally, 'I won it fair and square. True, Cyndaquil's evolution might be out of place, but it wasn't illegal.'
Jackson and his team went up on stage, while everyone watched. "Congrats on your win, Jackson. Here is your medal for winning the Speed Course." the announcer told Jackson, handing him a gold medal with the Pokéathlon emblem, which also had the symbol of the Speed Course. "And what's more, we will register your Pokémon so they will be known for winning the Speed Course."
"Thanks. That'll be awesome." Jackson replied.
The announcer turned to the remaining contestants and audience, "Thank you to all contestants in this incredible contest of speed. Thank you all for watching! This is Pokéathlon FOREVER!" Everyone cheered in response. This event was truly a fantastic time for everyone.
The twilight sun started to set as Jackson and Leafeon left the Pokéathlon Dome, meeting up with Whitney, who waited for him. "It really bugs me how you were able to beat me and my team." she sighed, "But trust me when I say that I will win the next time. My team and I will get stronger, and soon, we will be the strongest and cutest team out there! Bet on that!"
"I look forward to that day we have a good rematch." Jackson replied, raising a hand to her, "But don't think I will rest on my loins while you get stronger. My team and I still have more gyms to take on."
"I bet. You're heading back home, aren't you?" Whitney asked, getting a puzzled look from Jackson, "You do live in Ecruteak City, right?"
"Oh, yeah. Of course!" Jackson answered, trying to act like he knew what she was talking about, "I guess I can finally take on the next gym leader, once I take on the Bug-Catching contest tomorrow."
"Yep. I know Morty." Whitney acknowledge, "He is a really strong gym leader, especially with his Ghost-type team."
'Ghost-types. That'll be tough.' Jackson noted, 'I seem to remember hearing how they are some of the trickiest Pokémon there are. Better get ready.'
"Welp, gotta run!" Whitney told Jackson, dashing herself away from Jackson, "Remember, I will wanna fight you again!" Jackson waved goodbye to her.
"She certainly has her emotions all over the place." Leafeon acknowledged.
"Yep. Almost like Amy Rose." Jackson compared, "Still, she is a tough opponent. Now, we gotta ready ourselves for the upcoming battle against her in the future. Let's start with the next step; going to the Bug-Catching contest, and getting ourselves a new Pokémon to our team from there!"
"Of course. I look forward to you and Dewott competing in that together." Leafeon told him, "Remember, you promised him." Jackson nodded in acknowledgement. He had to keep his promise.