The sun had just set when the ship carrying us, the S.S. Northway, docked on Mandarin Island. The ramp dropped, and we exited, every one of us excited for the challenge ahead. I pulled out my Pokédex to confirm my reservations when a pair of familiar voices caught my attention. "Hey, Nikki!" The first one said as they approached. "You disappeared at dinner; where the hell did you go?" The second one asked. The voices belonged to my two best friends and fellow Kanto League finalists, Dane and Alex. "I wasn't feeling it. I hate being on the ocean," I said as my stomach finally began to settle. "Hey, you're the one who didn't want to fly," Dane said as he slung his bag over his shoulder. "I hate flying more than sailing. I prefer to keep my feet on the ground," I said as I did the same, followed by Alex. "You know, if you're going to be a pussy, you should probably just be outright with it," Alex said as we walked to the check-in station. "Ha-Ha, so you're a fucking comedian as well as a Trainer," I said, playfully punching him on the arm.
We went through the check-in process and boarded the light rail heading into the resort. "So, did you guys see any good competition on the ship?" Alex asked as we settled into our private cart. "Fuck yeah, I did. That one chick from The Orre Region had a monster of a Typhlosion. Damn things, mane was nearly a foot long," Dane said as he got comfortable and cracked open a can of Mountain Dew. "I saw a couple of Tyranitar that looked pretty well trained," I said as I sat on the cushioned seat and relaxed. "Well, we've got a challenge ahead of us. Did you guys read that list of rules they posted in the gally?" Alex asked as he slid his bag under his chair and sat. "No, I was too busy trying to keep dinner from becoming a new wall decor in my cabin," I said, laughing a bit. "Well, you definitely should have. The rules for the winner are ridiculous," He said as he opened a bottle of water and drank. "What rules?" Dane asked, cocking an eyebrow slightly. "Winning the league doesn't make you the champion. It just earns you the right to challenge the new Global Elite Four," He said. Dane sat back and chuckled while shaking his head. "So not only do we have to beat a shit load of the best trainers in the world, but then we have to beat the absolute four best on earth back to back?" Dane said, still shaking his head. "No, thankfully, you don't have to fight them all in one go. There are two days between each battle, assuming you get past the first one, that is," Alex replied as he looked through his Pokédex. Dane stood up and let the window down, then lit a cigarette.
The light rail made incredible time, taking only 10 minutes to reach the Mandarin Island resort district. The 3 of us, along with all the other trainers, departed the rail and began walking the short distance to our hotel. As we walked, we could see more of the Pokémon we would potentially be facing. None of them seemed like anything we couldn't handle, but a certain Ursaring did make me look twice. It was larger than any Ursaring I'd ever seen, including my own in Pallet. More curious, however, was the petite girl leading the giant bear Pokémon. She was a tiny thing, no taller than five feet, with beautiful shoulder-length strawberry blonde hair, bright blue eyes behind a pair of glasses that only added to her beauty rather than detracted, and a bright warm smile. "Alex, check out that girl," I said discretely as I motioned to her. He looked at her, then back at me, and cracked a slight smile. "Well, don't just stand there looking at her; go talk to her," He said as he lightly shoved me in her direction. I stumbled slightly but caught myself before I tripped over her or her Pokémon. When I looked up, I was met by a large pair of teeth and two enormous claws poised to attack me at the first hint of aggression. "Molly! Down!" I heard a soft voice say from behind the Ursaring. It looked back, then turned and got behind its master again.
"I'm so sorry about that. Molly's a little overprotective," she said as she lightly stroked Ursaring's paw from behind her. "Oh, it's ok. I'm not the most coordinated person on two legs," I said with a nervous laugh. "I'm Nikki; Nice to meet you," I said as I held out my hand. "Charity. It's nice to meet you, too," She said as she shook my hand. "Well, I have to go check in. Maybe I'll see you around?" she said, letting and walking towards the hotel again. "Uh yeah, that would be awesome. I'll catch you later," I said, waving at her like an idiot. As soon as she was out of earshot, I heard the voices of Dane and Alex behind me. "Dude, that was painfully pathetic," Dane said, exasperated. "It was not! She said she would see me around," I said slightly defensively. "No, dude, it was pretty painful," Alex said as he put a hand on my shoulder and laughed. We shared a laugh and started walking to the hotel.
We arrived at the hotel, which was more luxurious than any other I had ever seen, and checked into our respective rooms. As the only finalists from the Kanto region, we were given three adjoining suites on the 18th floor. I entered my room and looked around in awe. It had multiple bedrooms, a full kitchen, and a sitting area complete with a smart T.V, among other electronic devices. I entered what I assumed to be the main bedroom and was stunned yet again. The bed, a California king-size, was bigger than any I had ever laid eyes on. I smiled a bit, wondering how I would sleep on such an enormous bed, and walked into the bathroom, only to be shocked for the third time—a standing rain shower and an edgeless bathtub big enough for 6. I audibly laughed, wondering who would ever need such a large tub, and began to put my bathroom essentials away. As I finished, I walked out and saw the mandatory Pokéball carrying case from the ship poking out of my bag. I smiled a bit and thought, 'I think everyone has earned a good stretch' as I grabbed the box and my room key, put them in my backpack and put it on my shoulder as I headed out the door.
After about 10 minutes of walking, 6 of which were spent going in the wrong direction before I found a map and was pointed in the right one, I arrived at the PokéPal Resort, a specialized resort for both trainers and Pokémon alike. I walked through the entrance to the front desk, where a very cheery-looking woman met me. "Good afternoon, and welcome to the PokéPal Resort. How may I help you today?" She said with a bright smile on her face. "Hi, my Pokémon have been in their Pokéballs since the ship left Vermilion City, and they need some relaxation and probably a good meal. How much will all that cost?" I asked as I set the case on the counter. She looked down at it, then at me, and smiled again. "Oh, I see, you're one of the finalists. Well, we are funded by the league, so it will all be complementary," She said as she took out one of the special keys only league officials were allowed to have and unlocked the case, handing me all 6 Pokéballs. She led me through what seemed like a Pokéspa and out a set of enormous glass doors to an absolute Pokémon paradise. The grounds, which spanned 10 acres easily, were custom-built to accommodate any need for a Pokémon trainer and, by extension, Pokémon themselves. "You and your Pokémon are welcome to train, relax, play, battle, or do anything else you like. The only rule is, please try not to break anything as the Pokémon who live here work very hard on the grounds to make it a home," The woman said as she motioned for me to release my Pokémon to enjoy themselves.
I nodded to her as she turned, walked back in, and began releasing my Pokémon. Dragonite, Ampharos, Gengar, Alakazam, Charizard, and Gyarados all exited and started to stretch in various ways as they looked around at this paradise before them. Gyarados gazed lovingly at an enormous body of water called Lake Unity, the circumference of which engulfed nearly 1/6th of the grounds, which was filled with various water Pokémon and trainers all playing and relaxing. Dragonite and Charizard looked up and saw dozens and dozens of Pokémon that could fly, all socializing and training and playing various airborne games. Alakazam sat down and began meditating as it often did when it wasn't battling. At the same time, Gengar eagerly sat beside him and, as he always did, tried to disrupt Alakazam's meditation with his Dream Eater ability, though it seldom ever worked. Ampharos, however, had always been a very shy Pokémon since it was just a Mareep and looked slightly nervous at all the other Pokémon in the area. "Alright, guys, listen up," I said, getting their attention. "Everyone is free to enjoy this place. Just be nice to other Pokémon and if you want to battle, come find me first, and we will but don't just go off without me being there, ok?" I said calmly but sternly. The five of them nodded in unison, but Ampharos nodded as it looked around again. "Alright, go have fun. I'll come to get you guys when it's time to go," I said, smiling at them, causing them to all run and fly in different directions—all except for Ampharos.
As the dust settled, I could see it standing in the same place, looking nervous. I walked up and knelt to its level, lightly putting a hand on its back. "Hey buddy, it's ok. You can hang with me if you want," I said reassuringly. Ampharos cried happily and hugged my leg, keeping its tail away not to shock me. The two of us walked the grounds for an hour, taking in the scenery and the various unowned Pokémon that lived at the resort. It was very peaceful, only being interrupted by the occasional sound of a battle happening in the distance. We rounded Lake Unity for the 3rd time, watching Gyarados play with various Magikarp and Poliwags as we ran into Charity and her Ursaring in tow on the southern side. "Oh hey!" She said as she slowly ran up to me. I turned and immediately went slightly red as I saw it was her. "Hey Charity, nice to see you again," I said, somewhat awkward, making me even redder. Luckily she found it cute or something because she giggled a bit, though her Ursaring growled slightly. "Your Pokémon were getting tired, too, huh?" She asked casually. "Yeah, I slept through the stop on Shamouti. I don't do well on the ocean," I said, laughing nervously.
"You don't do land, you don't do sea, I hope you can fly, or your pretty screwed," She said jokingly, causing me to laugh. "So, where are all your Pokémon?" She asked casually. "Oh, here and there. The Alakazam by that tree is mine, along with the Gengar trying to annoy him, also the Ampharos currently using my legs as cover because it's a shy little guy," I said with a smile as I looked behind me and slightly petted Ampharos. "Hi, there, little fella. I'm Charity, and this is Molly," She said, motioning to Ursaring. An electrical head leaned out from behind me and saw Charity holding her hand out and Ursaring looking sternly at it. It looked Ursaring in the eyes and nodded slightly, giving Ampharos permission to approach. Ampharos nervously stepped forward a few feet, sniffed Charity's hand a bit, seeing she was friendly, and cried as it introduced itself to her and shook her hand happily. "It's nice to meet you too," She said as she stood up and stepped aside, allowing Ursaring to come forward. It bent down and sniffed Ampharos casually, with Ampharos sniffing him back, and for the first time since I'd met it, its expression went from stern and firm to a warm smile as the two Pokémon walked a bit away from us and began conversating.
As the Pokémon relaxed in their respective ways, Charity and I sat under a large cherry blossom tree and talked back and forth for hours. We spoke about battle strategies, our homes, hers being Jubilife City in Sinnoh and mine being Lavander Town in Kanto, and all manner of topics until the sun began to go down and a voice rang out over loudspeakers. "Attention all Pokémon and Trainers, PokéPal Resort is now closed. All caught Pokémon, please return to your trainers. Thank you for coming to PokéPal Resort," It said. Within 10 minutes, all of my and Charity's Pokémon had come back and been returned to their Pokéballs, and we were walking towards the entrance.