Chapter 14:
Race for a Ribbon
Burole Town Outskirts
"Let's do it again Braixen! Psybeam!" Serena ordered.
"Braaaai..." Braixen began, her eyes glowing with a multicolored light. "...XEN!"
Braixen fired a blue, pink and white beam of psychic energy towards the sky. The attack didn't hit anything, but it did scare a bunch of Birbie and Owten, which flew away from the attack.
"Very good, Braixen! You have Psybeam down!" Serena praised while clapping at her starter Pokemon.
Following Ash's victory over Davern, the group had remained on Burole Town, mostly helping Serena train for the upcoming contest. At first they used the battleground next to the Pokemon Center, but as the days passed and the Contest was closer and closer, more and more people arrived the town, and thus the battleground wasn't as readily available as it was before, so they were forced to move towards other zones to train. Fortunately, the greenery surrounding the town provided plenty of spots.
Serena had been focusing on training Braixen and Selkid, given that they were the Pokemon she had chosen for the Contest Battle Round. She was confident that Pancham and Minicorn would ace the Appeal Round with the performance she had come up for them. It was the dusk of the last day before the contest, and Serena's Pokemon were finalizing their training before their big day.
"Alright Selkid, now it's your turn!" Serena excitedly said. "Show me your Ice Beam!"
Selkid nodded, and took a deep breath. "Seeeeel..." Selkid opened her mouth, and a white glowing orb covered in light blue mist formed in front of her. A small beam of the same color fired from the orb, before it petered out and shattered as if it was made of thin glass, before Selkid starting to cough white mist from her mouth.
"Selkid!" Serena cried, as she and Braixen quickly went to see if the Sea Nymph Pokemon was okay.
Thankfully, Selkid stopped coughing after Serena patted her back twice. The Water and Fairy-type sighed, and slumped her head.
"Aw, don't get discouraged. You did much better this time around," Serena assured.
"Brai, brai!" Braixen added, nodding.
Serena had been training both Braixen and Selkid to learn new moves. However, while Braixen made noticeable progress with Psybeam, Selkid was having much more trouble trying to master Ice Beam.
"Braixen is a Pokemon with lots of experience and training on her back. Meanwhile, you only got Selkid for a few weeks now," Clemont explained. "Of course Braixen is going to have an easier time learning new moves than Selkid."
"Come on Greninja, Ice Beam!" Ash's voice said.
Serena turned in the direction of Ash's voice, who was standing next to Greninja, both of them looking towards a large rock.
Greninja cupped his webbed hands, forming the same chilly white orb of frigid energy, before thrusting both hands forward, firing a thick beam of white and light blue colors. The beam sailed through the air until it impacted the rock, covering it in a sheet of ice and frost in less than a second.
"Well done, Greninja!" Ash praised, offering his fist to the Kalosian starter, whom he bumped back. "Now you have another weapon in your arsenal."
"Gre!" Greninja said with a nod.
Selkid couldn't help but feel a little discouraged upon seeing Greninja mastering the same move she was struggling with so much.
"Don't feel bad, Selkid. I'm sure if you keep training, you'll get it down eventually," Bonnie said, patting the head of the small water type.
Unfortunately, Bonnie's encouragement didn't have the effect the young girl was hoping for. Her mouth making a rather adorable pout, Selkid decided to try Ice Beam one more time. She opened her mouth and formed the orb of cold, but in her impatience, the orb exploded in her face, knocking her on her back and covering her head and the upper half of her body in frost.
"Selkid!" Serena cried, as she quickly went to help her Pokemon get back on her feet. "Come on Selkid, don't be so forceful. It will get you nowhere."
"Braix," Braixen agreed with a nod. She ignited the tip of her wand, and started to wave it around Selkid, slowly melting the frost covering her.
"...kid," Selkid sighed sadly. She then saw Pikachu walking towards her.
"Pikapi, pi, pika pikachu pi!" Pikachu began, moving his arms emphatically as if he was trying to explain something to Selkid. Selkid intently listened to the Mouse Pokemon, nodding at times. It reminded the humans of how Pikachu helped Birbie master Gust when he had struggles with it. Did Pikachu also know the secret behind Ice Beam? Pikachu then looked at Greninja. "Pika?" he asked, almost as if looking for confirmation.
"Ninja," Greninja laconically said with a nod.
While Selkid looked ready to give it another try, her trainer had another plan. Serena stood up, and looked into the horizon. Only half the sun was visible, meaning that it would be night soon. "I think we trained enough for today. Let's go back to the Pokemon Center," she said, much to Selkid's disappointment.
"Yeah," Ash said, looking at Selkid. "You won't be able to put on a good show if you don't eat well and have a good night of sleep."
"Pikapi," Pikachu added, nodding.
"Sel..." Selkid reluctantly agreed.
…
The next day, the group got up early, went to the Center's cafeteria to have a good breakfast, and headed towards the Contest Hall. As expected, there was already a pretty long line for the ticket booth.
"It seems that no matter when we get up, there's always a line," Bonnie complained, crossing her arms. "Do these people camp in front of the Contest Hall or something?"
"Maybe we should start doing that," Ash joked, before chuckling a bit. "Thank goodness there are no lines for Gym Battles..."
"Pika..." Pikachu shook his head.
"I wish I could stay here and make you company so the wait is more bearable, but I better get going, so I can get my Pokemon ready," Serena said, as she began to walk away from the line and towards one of the hall's back entrances.
"See you inside!" Ash said, as he waved at her.
With Serena out of sight, the two teenagers and the lone girl looked at the line, who appeared to advance rather slowly. Clemont estimated it would take about half an hour until they got to the booth. Which, admitedly, was an improvement over the almost three quarter of an hour they had to wait for the previous contests.
"You know, maybe we should try to bring something to do while we wait in line," Bonnie suggested in an annoyed tone.
"I know, but there's not that much that can be done while we're in a queue," Clemont replied.
"Oh boy, I just forgot how long these lines used to be," a new voice said, one that sounded oddly familiar, which belonged to an adult man. "Hey guys, look who's here!"
Ash, Clemont and Bonnie turned around, and saw Richard, followed by the rest of the Dunsparce Gang bikers.
"Richard!" Ash said, happy to see the biker.
"Hey there, kids. Such a surprise meeting you here," Richard greeted them. "How's going?"
"It couldn't be better. A few days ago, I defeated the Burole Gym Leader," Ash proudly said.
"And now our friend Serena is going to take part in this contest, and we're going to cheer her," Bonnie explained.
"Nene," Dedenne added.
"Yes, no wonder I was missing a member of your group," a female blond biker, Amber, said as she shoot a glance at the trio. "The girl with the honey blonde hair and black beret, right?"
"That one, yeah," Ash said.
"And what are you guys doing here? Are you guys going to see the contest too?" Clemont asked, his question carrying an edge of incredulity. It was hard to picture a bunch of tough bikers being interested in something like Pokemon Contests.
"Why, of course we're here to watch the contest," Richard replied. "Just like you, one of our own takes part in it, so we're going to cheer for her as well!"
"HUH?"
…
Serena didn't even need to be told the location of the coordinator's dressing rooms. Most contest halls had more or less the same layout, and after being in quite a few, it was now imprinted on the Kalosian girl's mind.
When she reached the changing room, she saw quite a few people on it, some already in their contest costumes and with their Pokemon out, others still in their casual clothes. Of course, Serena knew that it was still relatively early, and the final number of contestans would be roughly twice what there was now before her eyes.
She scanned the small group of people, as if trying to look for a familiar face, either be Vitor or Sayaka, though the honey blonde was hoping to avoid facing the rude ninja girl. Then again, neither of them appeared to be present. Though, fate would arrange it so Serena would meet again with a familiar face.
"Hey there, Serena!" a feminine voice said behind her. "So cool to see you here!"
Surprised, Serena gasped and quickly turned around, and was face to face with a tall, smiling dark skinned girl dressed like a biker. A girl she had met some time ago in Kevlar Town. She looked at the Kalos native expectantly, as if waiting for Serena to make the connection.
"Wait a minute... Aisha?" Serena asked, recalling the name of the biker girl from memory. The two of them had fought together during the raid in the Team Omega Hideout at the outskirts of Kevlar Town.
"You remember me! Good!" she laughed.
"What are you doing here?" she dumbly asked, and the second those words left her mouth, she squaked in embarrassment, her face tinting pink. "Sorry, I mean-"
Aisha pretended to be in deep thought, placing her finger under her chin. "Now that's quite a good question. Here were are, inside a contest hall that's about to host a contest in less than an hour. What could I possibly be doing here...?"
"Sorry," Serena repeated, her eyes downcast. "It's just, well... I didn't expect somebody like you to be a coordinator..."
"Because I'm a biker, right?" Aisha asked, though thankfully she didn't sound offended. "Yeah, I know I'm not what most people would picture when they imagine a coordinator, but hey, I'm a multifaceted person!"
Serena chuckled in response, her embarrassment slowly disappearing as Aisha's positive demeanor eased her nerves. "Still, it was wrong of me to make such an assumption."
"Hey, relax, it's not that big of a deal," Aisha said, slapping Serena's back. "Besides, even if it was, I couldn't be angry, given that it's thanks to you that I can do contests again!"
"Huh? T-Thanks to me?" Serena repeated. "What do you mean?"
Aisha rolled her eyes, but smiled. "Well, contests have this little rule that bans you from taking part in one if there's an arrest order against you. Not that I could have taken part in one anyway, with the gang and I constantly on the run from the Rangers," she explained. "But now that you and your friends helped clear our names, I can finally return to the contest halls!"
"I'm glad to hear that I was able to help you that much," Serena said, smiling back.
"So, how are you doing? Did you win any Ribbon already?" Aisha asked.
"Of course! I won my first ribbon a few days ago," Serena said, as she proudly showed the taller girl her open ribbon case with her first ribbon on it.
"Cool. Check out mine!" Aisha said, showing Serena her case.
The Kalosian girl's eyes opened wide upon seeing three ribbons inside. She choked. "T-Three!? You have three ribbons already?"
"Relax. They're from last year's season. Didn't I tell you that I've been unable to compete for quite some time until now? I don't think anybody who started from zero could have three ribbons so early into the season," Aisha told her, a bit amused upon seeing Serena's reaction. "Thank goodness these things don't have an expiration date, or else all the effort I poured into winning them would have gone down the drain..."
"Still, if you manage to win those, you must be a rather skilled coordinator," Serena praised her.
"Thanks. I like to think I am, but given how long I've been without doing contests..." Aisha began, as she rubbed an arm. "I kept up with my training whenever I could, but it's not the same. Guess today we'll see if I'm that rusty or not."
As they talked, Serena noticed that more and more coordinators entered the dressing room. Looking at one of the clocks on the walls, Serena realized that the contest would start soon.
"Say, there's not much time until the contest begins. I think we should go and get changed," Serena suggested. "We can continue our talk in the waiting area."
"Sure thing. Let's go."
…
Sometime later, Ash, Clemont and Bonnie were on their seats, waiting for the contest to begin. They managed to get good seats in the middle area that provided a decent view of the stage. Sitting behind them were the entire Dunsparce Gang minus Aisha.
The murmurs and humming of the public turned into a loud cheer as Jillian walked into the stage. Once she was in position, a pair of spotlights cast their light upon her.
"Ladies and gentlemen! Welcome to the Burole Town Pokemon Contest! I'm your host, Jillian Meridian," she began, and the crowd exploded into loud cheers. "Thank you! Also give a warm welcome to the judges that will evaluate our wonderful coordinators: Kevlar Town's own Nurse Joy, the Venesi City Gym Leader Rosalind, and the S-Class connoisseur Ambrose Reigns!"
People applauded when Jillian mentioned the two women, but the clapping became noticeably more subdued when Ambrose was mentioned.
Jillian then went to explain the rules of the Pokemon Contests for those in the public not aware of them, and then showed the ribbon the contest winner would take with him or her, finishing off with introducing the very first contestant, beginning the Appeal Round.
And thus, the contest began. Coordinators walked in and out of the arena one after the other, showing both the public and the judges what their Pokemon were able to do. Some where good, others bad, and everything in between. Then again, most of them managed to get a positive reaction from the public.
…
In the waiting area, Serena and Aisha, already changed into their contest outfits, were looking at the performances from one of the monitors hanging from the ceiling. Something drew Aisha's attention, though.
"What's wrong with that Ambrose guy? Does he ever say anything nice?" Aisha asked.
"Don't you know him?" Serena asked, titling her head a little.
Aisha shook his head. "Last year, the third judge was this little old guy that only said 'remarkable' to absolutely everything. I later heard that the guy had a case of extreme senility and the poor sod wasn't aware of where he was or what was going on, so they sent him to an asylum," she explained, making Serena grimace a little. "And from what I'm seeing they took this guy with a colossal rod up his butt as a replacement."
"That reminds me, you should-"
Serena was interrupted when one of the monitors showed a picture of Aisha with the words "NEXT CONTESTANT" written under it.
"Well, it's my time to shine! Wish me luck!" Aisha said, more giddy than before, as she walked out of the coordinator box and into the stage.
"Wait! Ugh..." Serena sighed upon seeing the biker disappear behind the exit door. "I hope she doesn't take Ambrose's words too seriously..."
…
"And now, let's welcome with a big applause to our next coordinator! She's a veteran from the contest circuit that due to... unfortunate misunderstandings with our law enforcement," Jillian began, sounding a bit uncomfortable saying those words. "Has been unable to compete. But today, she makes her triumphant return to the contest scene! From Kevlar Town, Aisha of the Dunsparce Biker Gang!" Jillian said, and the spotlight fell onto Aisha as she made her way towards the stage.
"There's our Aisha!" Lou, Aisha's uncle, shouted. "Show them what you're made of!"
"Go Aisha! We're with you!" Amber cheered.
"Wipe the floor with all of them!" Richard hollered.
"Whoa, look at that outfit!" Bonnie gushed, leaning forward in order to see it better. "So cool!"
If Aisha's contest outfit reminded everybody that she was a biker, it was much more stylish than the deliberatedly torn clothes she normally wore: her outfit consisted on a long sleeved black leather jacket with a large pink pokeball symbol emblazoned on it, cut above her stomach, exposing her toned abs, a miniskirt of the same color and pink trim decorated with pink stars on its left side, and a pair of thigh high boots, also black, with a pink streak running vertically.
Aisha unclipped two pokeballs from her belt, and tossed them forward. "Alright, Dunsparce, Umbreon, gear up!"
Dunsparce's pokeball released a torrent of dark blue flames that formed a vortex, and the Land Snake Pokemon emerged from it, while Umbreon emerged from a flurry of golden stars.
"Dunsparce, fire a Water Pulse into the air! Umbreon, hold it in place with Psychic!" Aisha ordered.
"Dun!" Dunsparce cried, as it opened its mouth, forming an orb of water, which it launched it upwards.
Meanwhile, Umbreon's eyes glowed pink, and an aura of a similar color appeared around the watery sphere, keeping it floating into the air.
"More Water Pulses!" Aisha added.
Dunsparce fired three more Water Pulses, which Umbreon caught with Psychic. One of them was held still, with the other three spinning around it.
"Now, freeze them with Ice Beam!" Aisha said.
Dunsparce did so, firing a white beam of cold energy, freezing all four orbs into spheres of crysaline ice.
"And now, let's go for the big finish! Dunsparce, Thunderbolt on the three spinning ice orbs! Umbreon, Dark Pulse on the one in the middle, but don't drop the Psychic!" Aisha said, her order followed by several gasps from the public.
"And Aisha risks a rather complicated maneuver!" Jillian excitedly commented. "Will it pay off?"
"Aisha didn't win all her ribbons by playing it safe," Ash could hear Lou say behind him.
Dunsparce's body crackled with electricity, before firing three electric bolts towards the orbiting spheres of ice, linking them through chains of yellow lightning. Umbreon opened its mouth, and fired a stream of black and purple energy towards the central orb, which was split into three smaller beams, hitting the three outer electrified ice spheres.
The frozen orbs burst into explosions of crystalline ice, electric sparks and tendrils of dark energy. The audience was in awe upon seeing such a creative show of lights and shadows.
"And done!" Aisha announced, causing the public to break into a loud applause.
"That's our little girl! Whohooo!" Amber loudly cheered, causing Clemont to wince.
"Show them how we do it in the Dunsparce Gang!" Richard added just as loudly.
"And Aisha makes quite the powerful return with an amazingly complex performance involving multiple elements that has the public captivated!" Jillian commented. "Now let's see if the judges are just as impressed!"
The spotlight first fell on Burole Town's Nurse Joy, who looked rather pleased. "This performance has showed us that her time away from contests hasn't dulled Aisha's or her Pokemon's skills in the slightest."
The spotlight fell on the white and black haired Gym Leader next. "Proprio così! I do remember your performances from the last season, and they're just as impressive!" Rosalind kindly said.
The spotlight then moved towards Ambrose, which had many people hold their breath. Unlike Rosalind and Nurse Joy, Ambrose was a new addition to the judge panel, and thus Aisha wasn't familiar with him and his rather... peculiar style of assessing performances.
"You think you may have done pretty good since you got quite the warm reaction don't you? Well, just because you're able to impress simple minded people with low standards means crap in the world of contests," Ambrose began with his usual caustic flair. "Do you know why people taking part in contests are called 'coordinators'? Because that's what's required of them and their Pokemon, coordination. And your Pokemon lacked it. All they did was launch a bunch of attacks into a single point and produce a bunch of flashy explosions. But I imagine that you are unable to teach your Pokemon anything more refined or sophisticated. And your Pokemon are probably too dumb and boorish to learn it. After all, trainers tend to pick Pokemon who are similar to them."
Once Ambrose was done with his scathing review, a deafening silence reigned over the contest hall. The connoisseur leaned back on his chair, proud of his words, while Aisha just stayed there, her jaw clenched and eyes downcast.
Behind him, Ash could feel the temperature rapidly dropping, as well as hearing the sound of low growls and knuckles cracking.
"What are you still doing there? Come on, shoo, there are more sad attempts of coordinators that need to be evaluated," Ambrose said with a dismissive hand wave.
"What the fuck..." Aisha hissed, as she raised her eyes, fixing Ambrose with such a hateful stare, it made him flinch. "...did you call my Pokemon!?"
Then, much to everybody's shock, Aisha began to stomp her way towards Ambrose. The connoisseur's bravado disappeared, his face turned pale, and quickly stood up.
"Hey there, miss, what do you think you are doing...?" Ambrose fearfully began, raising his arms defensively.
"Uh, Ms. Aisha, you shouldn't-" Nurse Joy began, but Aisha didn't listen to her.
"COME HERE YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" Aisha yelled, as she ran towards Ambrose.
The man squeaked in terror, and quickly ran away from there, Aisha chasing after him. The public was confused: some people applauded and cheered Aisha for being the one to finally stand up to the detestable man, while others were distraught over the thought of what Aisha might do to him.
"Attacking a judge is a serious offense! I can get you banned from contests for life!" Ambrose shouted as he ran away.
"I'M NOT GOING TO HURT YOU, I ONLY WANT TO TALK!" Aisha unconvincingly yelled, as she continued the chase. "NOW STOP RUNNING YOU WALKING GARBAGE IN HUMAN SHAPE!"
…
Aisha and Ambrose ran three laps around the stage before the coordinator finally gave up the chase. Thankfully for Aisha, the Contest Hall security let her go with a warning, and was allowed to continue with the contest if she behaved, which she begrundingly agreed to.
"Hey," Serena greeted Aisha as she saw the biker walk back into the waiting area.
"Hey," she grumbled.
"Sorry, I wanted to warn you not to take whatever that man says seriously," Serena told her, as she patted her on the shoulder. "He's like that with pretty much everybody. I heard that caustic critics tend to cause some sort of fascination with the audience."
"I thought he was just a tough nut to crack," Aisha said, before visibly slumping. Now that the adrenaline fueled by her anger had worn off, the biker could realize what she just did. "I made a fool of myself out there, didn't I?"
Serena smiled at her. "I'm sure a lot of people thought that guy needed to be brought down a peg, and were rooting for you to do so."
"If you say so..."
"Well..." Serena said, rubbing the back of her head in a way that would have reminded her of Ash if she saw herself on a mirror. "...I certainly felt that way. I still remember the first time I was at the end of his scathing comments. He almost brought me to tears."
"Still, it was a bit embarrasing, letting myself lose control like that," Aisha insisted. "Though, I don't care what he or any other dumbass says about me, I'm thick skinned. But when somebody insults my Pokemon... now that's crossing a line."
"That's something I can agree with," Serena said.
Serena's name then appeared on the screen that signaled who was next on the Appeal Round.
"Well, my turn. Wish me luck!" Serena said, as she skidded towards the exit.
"You go, girl!"
…
"And our next coordinator is Serena from Vaniville Town in Kalos!" Jillian announced.
Serena entered the stage, waving at the public who welcomed her with a warm appaluse.
"There she is! Come on Serena, you can do it!" Ash cheered, pumping his fist.
Two pokeballs were already on her hand, and tossed them forward. "Pancham, Minicorn, go!"
The capture devices hit the ground and opened. Pancham appeared among a storm of pink and red hearts, while Minicorn emerged from a vortex of pink rose petals.
"Cham!"
"Corn!"
"Now Pancham, ride on top of Minicorn, and Minicorn, start running around the stage!" Serena commaned.
Pancham leaped into the air, gracefully landing on Minicorn's back, who reared back and let out a high pitched, cutesy neigh, before she started galloping, raising a small trail of dust behind.
"Now Pancham, show everybody your acrobatic skills!" Serena said.
"Cham-Pancham!" Pancham said, as he began to do handstands, both with two and one paws, while keeping perfect balance, all while Minicorn continued to gallop, though she slowed down when she reached one of the edges of the stage for the second time.
"Hey, not bad! Wonder how that Pancham would do with a motorbike instead of a foal," Ash heard Richard say.
"So that's what Serena had been practicing in secret!" Bonnie said, watching Pancham riding Minicorn with stars in her eyes.
"Makes sense. She'd need way more space for something like that than a mere battleground could provide," Clemont said in realization.
"Do you think Serena will let me ride Minicorn too?" Bonnie asked her older brother, though her question went unanswered.
"Excellent! Now Minicorn, throw Pancham into the air with Fairy Wind!" Serena ordered.
Minicorn stopped, and Pancham jumped high above him. Minicorn's horn started to glow pink, and waving it like a wand, it crated a powerful twister of pink wind with white sparkles that launched Pancham even higher. The Playful Pokemon curled into a ball and began to spin as he moved in an arc towards the opposite end of the stage.
"And contrary to her usual spiel, Serena delights the public with a skilled acrobatic number!" Jillian commented, as the public began to cheer.
This made Serena smile with even more confidence. "Pancham, use Stone Edge when you land! Do it the way we practiced!"
As expected, Pancham landed on his feet with no trouble. Both Pancham and Minicorn, at opposites sides of the arena, began to run towards each other. Pancham, however, stopped after a few meters, and slammed both paws into the ground, raising a row of stone pillars of blue shining rock. Each column was shorter than the one before, as if forming a slope.
It soon became obvious why of such odd Stone Edge when Minicorn jumped onto the top first and shortest pillar, and began to hop from one pillar to another, until she reached the highest one, and used it as a springboard to jump even higher.
"Charge Beam while you're in the air!" Serena shouted.
Minicorn's horn started to crackle with yellow electricity, and began to fire multiple lightning bolts in many directions while she soared through the air, much to the public's awe.
"Now Pancham, another Stone Edge to help Minicorn land!" Serena called.
"Cham!" Pancham said, repeating the same action as before. Except this time, the row of rising stone pillars was growing in height rather than decreasing.
Minicorn landed on the highest pillar, and hopped on the others until she finally got to ground level.
"And finish!" Serena said.
The public's ovation was deafening, much to Serena and her Pokemon's joy.
"Quite the delighful performance!" Jillian joyfully said. "Now let's see what the judges have to say about it!"
The spotlight fell on Nurse Joy, who looked satisfied with what she saw. "Teamwork is very important on performances involving two Pokemon, and Pancham and Minicorn worked so well together!"
Next, it was Rosalind's turn. "Not to mention, making sure one Pokemon don't overshadow the other, the two of them must be in perfect balance, and neither of them felt eclipsed by the other!"
And usual, they saved Ambrose for last. Ash wondered if, after what Aisha attempted to do, he'll try to restrain his usual caustic comments, or if, knowing Serena, he'd know that she wouldn't try something violent. "I don't know if you realized that this is a contest, not a rodeo, so save those embarrasing numbers for less refined spectacles. At the very least you didn't go half assed with it and also provided a rodeo clown to complete the picture."
Ash didn't know if Ambrose was calling either Serena or one of her Pokemon a clown. Serena didn't do anything, and ignoring Ambrose as best as she could, recalled her Pokemon and walked back towards the waiting area.
…
A smiling Aisha welcomed Serena back in the Contestant's Room.
"Good show out there! I loved how you had your Pancham ride your Minicorn!" Aisha said, slapping the Kalosian her on her back. "That was a very original trick."
"Thanks," Serena replied.
"Maybe for the next time, you could get Pancham a toy motorbike. I could teach him how to ride it and do some sick moves!" Aisha excitedly said.
"Uh, thanks, but I think I'll continue to have him ride Minicorn," Serena politely declined. "Though, why don't you use that idea? You're the biker."
"Oh yeah. Well, the case is, all my Pokemon either walk on four legs or... they don't have any legs at all," she said, chuckling a little. "So yeah, neither of them can ride a bike."
"It's a pity. I suddenly had this mental image of you riding your bike into the stage, followed by a Pokemon also riding a little bike," Serena said, giggling.
"Maybe I should keep that idea for future contests," Aisha replied.
The two girls continued to talk amicably as they watched the few remaining coordinators that had to perform in the Appeal Round. Time flew by, and before either girl realized, the Appeal Round finished.
"And thus the Appeal Round comes to a close!" Jillian announced. "While we had quite a lot of talented coordinators and Pokemon today, but sadly only eight can pass to the next phase! According to the judges, these eight are the coordinators that scored the highest!"
Everybody held their breath as their one by one, the faces of the eight finalists appeared on the screen. Serena managed to score second place, followed by Aisha's third. Once all eight finalists had been revealed, the rest of the contestants either sighed in defeat, or groaned loudly, lamenting having been eliminated already.
"Yes!" Aisha shouted, pumping her fist into the air. "Onto the next phase! I wasn't as rusty as I feared."
"And third position, no less! Of course, your display was amazing, so you didn't deserve any better than the top half," Serena added.
"Now, let's see which opponent our talented coordinators will have to battle against!" Jillian continued. The eight portraits began to shuffle for a few seconds, before they were paired up.
"Look at that," Serena said, eyeing the brackets. "It seems that the two of us will only fight if we both make it to the finals."
"In that case, make sure you reach the finals, you hear me?" Aisha said. "I want my grand return to the contest circuit to be something worth remembering, and a contest battle against you would be the icing on the cake."
"I'd love to fight you in the finals as well," Serena said, before she shoot the biker a look filled with resolve. "Though, don't think I'm going to be an easy opponent."
Aisha couldn't help but smile. "I'd hate if you were."
…
"Yes! Serena passed!" Bonnie cheered.
"Nene!" Dedenne cheered as well.
"It's not that surprising that she did," Ash said, his joy more subdued but still visible. "Serena is past the point of being eliminated in the Appeal Round."
"Still, the anticipation of wondering if Serena is going to pass or not is still there," Clemont pointed out. "Many of the other coordinators also put on amazing showcases, so the possibility that Serena might not make the cut is always there."
Needless to say, the Dunsparce bikers behind them began to cheer and holler loudly the moment Aisha's picture appeared among those who had passed to the second round.
"Yes! That's our Aisha!" Amber shouted.
"Come on girl! Show everybody who's the boss of this contest!" Lou tearfully added.
"Now, let's start the second phase of the contest, the Contest battles! Our first pair of coordinators are Aisha, from Kevlar Town, and Jonathan, from Hearthome City in Sinnoh!" Jillian annouced, as both coordinators made their way towards their spots in the battleground. Naturally, the moment Aisha stepped into the spotlight, the rest of the Dunsparce bikers cheered wildly.
Then, much to Clemont and Bonnie's surprise, the battleground began to shift, changing from the usual dirt terrain, to a large pool with a few islets on it. However, they didn't have to wait much for an answer..
"Coordinator Aisha has requested a water battleground, since she's going to use Pokemon that don't do well on dry land!" Jillian said. "Now, present your Pokemon!"
"Arbok, Tubjaw, gear up!" Aisha said, tossing two pokeballs forward.
Aisha's first Pokemon was her Arbok, which emerged among a bunch of loud red and yellow fireworks and landed on one of the islets. The other Pokemon, emerging from a vortex of ice crystals, was a blue fish-like Pokemon with a rhomboid main body, a long and narrow head just as big, black eyes with bright green irises, and a huge mouth full of sharp teeth of the same color. It had two small dark blue fins to the side and a tail of the same color.
"A new Pokemon," Ash said, as he pulled out his Pokedex to scan it.
"Tubjaw, the Jaw Pokemon. Water/Dark. They are able to unhinge their jaws in order to swallow prey larger than their head. Their teeth are sharper than razors."
"Boy, Aisha really has a thing for Pokemon with menacing appearance and sharp teeth," Clemont pointed out.
"Not all of them. She used an Umbreon and a Dunsparce during the Appeal Round," Ash countered.
Her opponent, Jonathan, was a boy with short dark blue hair, wearing a bright green tuxedo with a yellow tie and a light red shirt underneath. He sent his Pokemon, a Roselia and a Kirlia.
The battle began. Aisha's fighting style was pretty aggressive and quick, attacking relentlessly and never giving the opponent any chance to breathe. Arbok was pretty swift and sneaky, both on solid ground and on the water, and her Tubjaw was a great swimmer. She often used combos involving one of her Pokemon tossing a foe towards the other, which would greet it with a powerful blow. Such excellent teamwork was appreciated by the judges.
Such strategy took no time to net Aisha her first win, as her opponent's Pokemon quickly fainted after taking so many blows.
"Roselia and Kirlia can't fight anymore! The winners are Arbok and Tubjaw!" Jillian announced. "And thus, Aisha moves to the semifinals!"
The crowd erupted into wild cheers, and those coming from the Dunsparce Gang were the loudest among them. Ash, Clemont and Bonnie also rooted and cheered for the biker girl.
Serena's fight was third. It was against a girl with green hair tied in a ponytail, wearing a short red and white dress. The girl used a Cocaran and another Pokemon neither Ash or Serena had seen before. It was a small snail Pokemon with blue body and a brown shell. The shell had three bumps on it, making it look like a small castle.
"Cassnail, the Castle Pokemon. Ground/Water. It dissolves minerals in sand and uses them to form a hard carapace on its back. It lives in coastal regions." The Pokedex explained.
Serena's opponent was a tough cookie. Even if her Pokemon didn't appear to threatening, her strategy of using Sandstorm to hamper Serena's Pokemon, combined with her reliance on Ground, Water and Grass type moves, the former two supereffective against Braixen and Selkid being weak to the later, proved to be rather effective. Then again, Serena's Pokemon eventually prevailed, and like Aisha, she passed to the semifinals.
Aisha's next battle was against a girl who, oddly enough, was dressed like a shepherd, staff included. She used a Mareep, and another sheep Pokemon with black wool, gray skin, a blue muzzle, red eyes, and two stump-like horns growing at the sides of its head.
"Baashaun, the Hard Horn Pokemon. Dark/Fighting. Its wool is prized as fiber for extra-rugged clothing. However it is much harder to raise than its docile cousin Mareep." The Pokedex droned upon scanning the new Pokemon.
Nevertheless, the sheep duo fell before the might of Aisha's Pokemon.
Serena had to fight against a girl with a Cubblfly and a Kinetmunk in the second semifinal, who proved to be easier to beat than her first opponent.
That would mean that Serena and Aisha would fight each other in the finals for the Burole Ribbon. As per usual, there was a reprieve of ten minutes so both coordinators could rest a little. Some people took advantage of the pause to go to the bathroom or just stand and stretch their legs. Eventually, the ten minutes went up, and the two finalists walked towards the stage, whose battleground was shifting to accommodate Aisha's Pokemon.
"That friend of yours is pretty skilled, no point in denying it," Richard began. "But sadly, there is nothing she can do against Aisha."
"Aisha is indeed pretty good and her Pokemon are strong, but she's going to need much more than mere strength if she wants to beat Serena," Ash retorted back.
"Now, the moment you have been waiting for!" Jillian excitedly announced. "The Burole Town Contest final battle! On one side, we have Serena, from Vaniville Town, Kalos!"
The public cheered, Ash, Clemont and Bonnie being the loudest. Pikachu and Dedenne cheered as well.
"And on the other side, from Kevlar Town, Aisha!" Jillian continued.
The public cheered once again, the members of the Dunsparce Gang being even louder than Serena's friends had been just a moment before.
"Coordinators, present your Pokemon!"
"Braixen, Selkid, go!" Serena said, tossing her pokeballs forward.
Braixen emerged from a torrent of flames, while Selkid appeared among a vortex of clear water, the two of them landing on one of the battleground's platforms.
"Arbok, Tubjaw, gear up!" Aisha said, sending her Pokemon to battle, Arbok landing on another platform, while Tubjaw appearing on the water with a splash.
"Five minutes on the clock! Begin!" Jillian shouted.
~Serena (Braixen, Selkid) VS Aisha (Arbok, Tubjaw) ~
"Those who strike first, also strike twice, and that will be us!" Aisha energically said, throwing a hand forward. "Arbok, Sludge Wave!"
"Shaabak!" the Cobra Pokemon hissed, as it expelled a wave of black and purple sludge from its mouth.
"Braixen, counter that with Flamethrower! Selkid, get behind Braixen!" Serena ordered.
The two Pokemon did as commanded. Braixen aimed the tip of her ignited wand towards the wave of incoming sludge, casting a stream of fire towards it, setting it ablaze in a bright flash of red and orange, causing both Serena, Aisha and Jillian to shield their eyes. This action cost Aisha some of her points.
"Tubjaw, now! Aqua Jet!" Aisha ordered.
"Jaw!" the fish Pokemon said.
Before Serena could react, a missile of water rocketed out of the pool, striking Braixen right on her abdomen and pushing her aside, leaving Selkid in the open. Serena's points dropped to the same amount as Aisha's.
"Now Arbok, strike Selkid with Thunder Fang!" Aisha commanded.
Arbok quickly slithered towards the Sea Nymph Pokemon, as its fangs crackled with electricity, yellow sparks pouting from its mouth.
"Selkid, defend yourself with Hyper Voice!" Serena countered.
"Seeeeeeel-KIIIIIIID!" Selkid yelled, weaponizing her voice into a sound based attack.
"Cancel that and jump into the water, Arbok!" Aisha quickly countered.
Arbok's Thunder Fang was interrupted, as the Cobra Pokemon jumped into the pool, just in time to avoid a stream of destructive soundwaves. The dodged attack cost Serena more points.
"And Aisha keeps pressure with a relentless offensive, while also dodging all of Serena's attempts to counterattack!" Jillian excitedly commented. "What will Serena do now?"
"How about this, then?" Serena replied the announcer's rethorical question. "Selkid, freeze the water of the pool with Ice Beam!"
"Oh shit!" Aisha cursed.
"Kid!" Selkid said, opening her mouth and forming a white sphere of chilling energy in front o it. However, rather than a beam, it shot a cone of freezing energy that created a block of ice, before the attack petered out, leaving the Sea Nymph Pokemon with a coughing fit. Needless to say, this costed Serena even more points, whose score was now below three quarters. Tubjaw had jumped back into the pool, leaving Braixen free to rejoin Selkid.
"You gave me quite the scare there, you know that?" Aisha said, sounding mildly irritated. "I wasn't counting on your Pokemon having Ice-type moves, given that I didn't see you use any in the previous matches. Oh well, one less thing to worry about. Arbok, Thunder Fang! Tubjaw, Ice Fang!"
Both the Cobra Pokemon and the Jaw Pokemon jumped from opposite sides, the former Pokemon's jaws once again overflowing with electricity, and the latter's being covered in ice, with white mist coming out of it.
"Braixen, defend with Hidden Power!" Serena replied.
"Brai brai!" Braixen cried, as she waved her wand around her in circles, summoning a series of basketball-sized spheres of energy that constantly shifted color, forming a spinning shield around the two Pokemon. Arbok and Tubjaw slammed into the impromptu barrier, and were pushed back into the water.
"Oh shit!" Aisha said, grabbing her temples.
"And Serena manages to counter with a creative use of Hidden Power!" Jillian excitedly said.
"And that's not all! Selkid, jump into the water and use Hyper Voice!" Serena continued.
Selkid jumped into the pool making a little splash, and let herself sink. As she descended, she sensed a shift in the water, warning her that Arbok and Tubjaw had noticed her and were swimming towards her. Before they had any chance to attack, Selkid opened her mouth and released powerful soundwaves. The attack proved to be much stronger than it ever was on dry land, causing the water in the pool to stir so much, it almost looked like a sea storm, while Aisha's Pokemon were blasted away, with the former getting out of the water and jumping into one of the platforms.
Aisha's points dropped even further, being a little over half.
"Serena makes an intelligent use of the water battleground by using it to cast a very powerful Hyper Voice!" Jillian excitedly commented. "Allowing Serena not only to close the gap in points but switch it in her favor!"
Bonnie was a little confused at Jillian's explaination. She tugged her brother's sleeve. "Hey Clemont, why did that happen? How is that Hyper Voice is more powerful underwater? Is because Selkid is a Water type?"
"No, it has nothing to do with that. You see, soundwaves travel much faster through liquid than through air. That means that sound-based attacks like Hyper Voice will be much more effective underwater," Clemont explained.
"Really? I didn't know that," an amazed Ash said. "Science is so amazing!"
"Pi..." Pikachu said, patting his head.
"How could you not know that? It's basic physics!" Clemont replied, incredulous.
"Hey, I'm a grown man and I didn't know that either," Richard protested. He looked at Aisha. "And I don't think Aisha knew it either."
"Yeah, that Tubjaw has it tough. Unlike Arbok, it can't get out of the water," Clemont observed.
"Aisha is pretty smart, though. She'll figure a way to counter that move," Amber said, her confidence in her fellow biker unwavering.
Back on the battleground, Serena was planning to press on her advantage, now that she had finally turned the tides of the battle.
"Braixen, quickly, use Psybeam on Arbok!" Serena ordered.
"Brai-XEN!" Braixen said, her eyes glowing with a blue, pink and white light, before firing a beam of swirling energy of those very colors.
"Sha?" Arbok asked, who had just got out of the water, as it just noticed the super effective attack sailing towards it.
"Tubjaw, intercept that attack, now!" Aisha shouted.
Despite the damage taken from Selkid's underwater Hyper Voice, the Jaw Pokemon heard its trainer and was able enough to continue the fight. Tubjaw leaped out of the water, getting in the way between the Psychic attack and its partner, successfully blocking the former and saving the latter. Aisha's defense shaved off some points of Serena's score, but the girl from Kalos was still in the lead.
The biker girl looked at the time, and gritted her teeth. She had less than two minutes to turn around this before the buzzer rang.
"Alright, time to break out the big guns then! Tubjaw, get out of the water and hop onto Arbok's head!" Aisha commanded. The fish Pokemon did was it was told, using its fins to get a hold of Arbok's head. "Excellent! Now Arbok, use Seed Bomb! And Tubjaw, Dark Pulse!"
"Shaabak!"
"Tub!"
Arbok opened its jaws, releasing a barrage of melon-sized seeds, while Tubjaw exhaled a stream of black and purple energy. The two attacks combined, resulting in a salvo of darkness-coated seed missiles.
"Braixen stop that attack with Fire Blast!" Serena ordered.
The ignited tip on Braixen's wand burned with more intensity, as the Fox Pokemon aimed her weapon forward, releasing a giant wall of flames shaped like the kanji of fire. The two attacks clashed against each other, producing multiple explosions as the Seed Bombs detonated prematurely. However, much to Serena's shock, several of the projectiles managed to push past Braixen's fire attack, flying towards the two Pokemon.
"Braix!"
"Sel?"
Much to Selkid's surprise, Braixen pushed the smaller Water-type behind her, shielding the Sea Nymph Pokemon with her own body. The darkness-enhanced Seed Bombs smashed against Braixen, and the Fox Pokemon was engulfed in a multitude of small explosions of green and purple colors.
"Braixen!" Serena cried, as she watched her Pokemon drop to one knee. She didn't even notice that her points had dropped even further, now being less than half.
"Well, your Pokemon is pretty brave, and her sense of loyalty towards her partner is admirable, I'll give you that," Aisha said, the tone of her voice revealing she was genuinely impressed.
"Sel? Selkid!" Selkid said, watching the bruised and battered Braixen with eyes wide open. "Sel!?"
"B-Brai..." Braixed said, forcing to smile at the smaller Pokemon.
Selkid then put herself in front of Braixen, almost acting as a human shield.
"Man, look at that. You're making me feel like shit for what I'm going to do next," Aisha said, scratching her temple. "But I really want that ribbon, so sorry if I come as too rough. Tubjaw, Arbok, back into the water! Tubjaw, use Surf!"
"Tuuuub!" Tubjaw said, as it hopped from Arbok's head, and got into the water with a splash. From underwater, the Jaw Pokemon raised a huge wave in the middle of the battleground, just behind Arbok. The wave cast a large shadow over Braixen and Selkid.
Serena looked at the forming wave in horror. That attack would surely knock Braixen out, weakened as she was, and there's no way Selkid would be able to continue the fight alone. They needed to stop that attack, and right now, only one thing could do it.
"Selkid, use Ice Beam to freeze that wave!" Serena said, causing the Sea Nymph Pokemon to look at her, as if Serena was expecting for her to pull a miracle. "Come on Selkid, I know you can do it! You have a lot of power hidden inside you, and you trained a lot! A mere Ice Beam is nothing for you! Don't be afraid!"
Selkid looked at Serena, before looking at Braixen, who had took the brunt of a combined attack to protect the Sea Nymph Pokemon, still struggling to get back to her feet. She then looked at the incoming wave, and wiped expression of fear and uncertainity from her face, replaced by one of resolve.
"Seeeeeel...!" Selkid opened her mouth once again, forming an white orb of freezing energy in front of it. "KID!"
Focusing on the wave, Selkid released the energy stored inside the orb, this time being released in the form of a jagged and slightly wavering energy beam, but unlike the previous attempt, this time it didn't peter out or go out of control. The beam hit the wave, freezing it into a wall of ice.
"Now she can use Ice Beam!? This has to be a goddamn joke!" Aisha shouted, bringing her hands to her head.
"It seems second time's the charm, as Selkid's successful Ice Beam had stopped Aisha's attack on its tracks!" Jillian commented.
On the scoreboard, Aisha's points dropped, even if she was still on the lead. Meanwhile, Braixen had mustered the last of her strength, got back on her feet, and picked up her wand.
"Now, Braixen, use Psybeam on that wall of ice!" Serena ordered, thrusting a hand forward.
"Braiiiii!" Braixen cried, as her eyes once again glowed with a multitude of colors, before firing a beam of psychic energy from them.
The beam sailed towards the wall of ice unimpeded, shattering it into a thousand tiny shards, revealing a stupefied Arbok behind it.
"We're not giving up! Tubjaw, Arbok, use the Seed Bomb and Dark Pulse combo again!" Aisha shouted.
"Braixen, counter with Hidden Power! Selkid, freeze the orbs with Ice Beam!" Serena replied.
Once again, Tubjaw jumped on top of Arbok's head as the Coobra Pokemon fired a salvo of large explosive seeds, before Tubjaw exhaled an inky beam of dark energy, coating them in a cloak of shadows. Meanwhile, Braixen summoned a multitude of multicolored orbs and sent them to meet the incoming attack, while Selkid used Ice Beam to cover them in frost.
The two attacks clashed against each other, resulting in a beautiful explosion of green bits, tiny ice shards and dark purple sparks.
"Arbok, get close and-"
BZZZZZZZ!
"And time's up!" Jillian announced, giving both Serena and Aisha pause, the two coordinators completely engaged in the battle. After realizing what was going on, they both looked at the scoreboard, holding their breath. "And the winner of the match, and thus winner of the Burole Contest is..."
The two finalists weren't the only ones who directed their eyes towards the scoreboard, as the entire public did so as well.
Aisha retained a third of her points. Serena had a little over that.
"...Serena!" Jillian announced, as the scoreboard shifted to show Serena's picture, with pictures of her two Pokemon under it, and the word WINNER in bold, capital letters.
Serena let out a squeal of joy, as she quickly rushed towards her exhauted Pokemon.
"We did it! We won!" Serena said, scooping Braixen and Selkid into an effusive hug. "Thank you guys! You were truly amazing!"
"Brai..."
"Sel!"
Naturally, Aisha's mood had completely plummeted. She was this close to make her big comeback, and had her victory snatched away from her at the very last second. Needless to say, her Pokemon were just as upset.
"Hey, you did a great job, nothing to be ashamed of," Aisha said, sounding half chastising and half encouraging, as she rubbed their heads affectionately. "We'll continue training, so next time we'll do even better."
"Well said," Serena said as she walked towards her rival, startling the biker a little. The Kalosian girl extended her hand. "It was a good battle, Aisha."
Aisha smiled, if weakly, and gave Serena's hand a rather strong shake. "I thought I could come and take the ribbon, but guess we were rustier than I thought."
Serena shook her head. "Nonsense. You made me push my Pokemon to their very limits. And yours fought splendidly. Not to mention that you made it to the very finals despite how long you've been out of the contest circuit. I'm afraid to think how our battle would have ended if you weren't as rusty as you claim to be. Which I assume we'll learn the next time we meet again in a contest, right?"
Aisha's smile widened, becoming more genuine. "You can bet we will."
A few minutes later, Serena was standing on a small podium, Braixen and Selkid flanking her, with the three judges and Jillian next to her. This time, it was Rosalind who handed her the opened case with the ribbon.
"Congratulations for your victory, ragazza," the Gym Leader said, allowing Serena to grab the ribbon inside it. "Here's the Burole Ribbon."
Serena grabbed the ribbon. She looked at it for a moment, before rising it above her head. "Ta-da! I won the Burole Ribbon!" she cheered, and the public broke into a loud applause.
"And thus, the Burole Town Contest comes to an end! I hope you have a great time, and see you next time!" Jillian said, officially ending the contest.
…
Moments later, the group was outside the contest hall. Ash, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie were standing in front of the whole Dunsparce Gang, sitting on their bikes.
"Hey Serena, even if I lost..." Aisha began, averting her rival's gaze, before looking at her and smiling. "I really had a great time fighting you. It would have been better if I won, but oh well."
"Thank you. I also enjoyed our match as well, even if there were moments when you made me panic," Serena said, causing Aisha and all the bokers to chuckle.
"Hey, what's a competition without good rivals to keep each other sharp?" Ash rhetorically asked.
"Yes. You showed me that I still have a long way to go if I want to achieve my dreams. But the Dunsparce Gang isn't afraid of long ways," Aisha replied. "You better stay at the best of your game. It would be a shame if I defeated you just because you slacked off."
"I can assure you, that's something you won't have to worry about," Serena assured her.
Aisha smirked. "Good to hear that."
And with that, all the Dunsparce Gang bikers turned their bikes around and drove away, the noise their vehicles made growing fainter and fainter until they couldn't be heard anymore.
"Guess there's nothing left to do on this town anymore," Ash surmised. "Should we continue our journey to Bealbeach City?"
"Yeah. It will take us some time to get there, and I'd hate to make Lilia wait more than necessary," Clemont said. "What's the fastest route to reach there?"
Serena opened her tablet, and checked the map function. "According to the map, we should head east, take Route 4, cross the Comet Cave, then turn west towards Rochfale Town, and then move north."
"We're still pretty far away from it," Bonnie said, before perking up and looking at Clemont. "Oh well, the more time we get to spend with you before you have to go to the power plant!"
Clemont couldn't help but chuckle. "Heh, you always see the bright side of a situation, Bonnie."
"Rochfale Town holds contests, but I'm afraid that there are no Pokemon Gyms until we reach Bealbeach City," Serena said, looking at Ash. "At least, if we don't take a detour."
Ash shook his head and smiled. "The Gyms aren't going anywhere. I don't mind having to wait a little in order to get my hands on the next badge. Let's take that route."
The decision made and the path to their next destination chosen, the group left Burole Town behind, ready to continue their journey through Tandor and see what else the region had to offer.
Author's Note: And thus, Serena gets her second ribbon! yay!
So, you guys remember Aisha? She appeared in chapter 9, but I don't blame you if you forgot about her, given that her part there was pretty small. But yeah, she was meant to be another of Serena's rivals. I like her in that she's pretty different from the usual coordinator rival, being a rough biker and all that. Well, I hope you liked seeing her as much as I enjoyed writing her. While it will be a while, Aisha will be back in the future for more.
Check out the Ao3 version for a picture of Aisha in her regular and contest clothes.
We had two contests pretty close to each other (and both of them with Serena as the winner), but rest assured, I'm not going to rush Serena's contest arc. Plus, there's going to be a pretty big stretch before we get to the next contest (if you played the game, you'll know how long the distance between Burole and Rochfale is). Not to say that the following chapters are devoid of events. In fact, I'm sure you're going to love them.
Thanks a lot to Fox McCloud, Guest, Hirowriter and Viroro-kun for reviewing last chapter, and thanks to Viroro-kun for his help on this chapter, whose edits and suggestions made it so much better.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if you did, please leave a review saying what you thought about it (even a simple "good job" is enough for me). See you next time!