FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Four days passed since Mark's battle with Lance, the Dragon Master and Champion of Kanto. Four days and nights since they had left the Indigo Plateau and sought out a suitable, secluded location where they could train, to unlock the secret power of Tanker's mega-evolved form, and learn the potential of Mark's new friend, Scyther, whom he still had yet to give a nickname to as he wanted to give him one suitable to his talents.

Though it had taken most of the first day to find the secluded location they wanted, eventually the two Hoenn trainers had settled for a large clearing in the forest south of Mt. Moon, halfway between the high ridge and the coast west of Vermilion City. No civilization for miles from that location; they would be able to train in solitude, and prepare Mark for his final challenge in Kanto.

And there they had stayed, camping in the woods, with Mark working as hard as he could to make his Pokémon as strong as possible. He wasn't going to rush into things this time like he had with Blue and Lance; he spent every night thinking of training regimes for the following day, and prior to their departure he bought several study books to help him learn how best to interact with Scyther, since he had no experience in training bug-type Pokémon whatsoever, and some about Steel and Ground-type Pokémon abilities, hoping they might help him find some clues to finding out what Tanker's special power was when he mega evolved.

That day was dedicated mostly to practicing attacks; the last few had been mostly exercise and strategizing. Mark had raced Scyther against the fastest runners on both his team and Randy's; first Coal, Vitesse, and then Cairo and Thorn. Much to the dismay of Randy who only used fast Pokémon, Scyther actually out-sped the Sceptile once he started flying over the ground, his gossamer wings carrying him at speeds even Skyclaw couldn't reach, although Scyther could not fly as high as her. Beyond that, Scyther displayed excellent control and technique with his movements, able to change direction and avoid obstacles with remarkable agility.

'Your former trainer raised you very well, Scyther,' Mark thought after watching Scyther in action, seeing the love and dedication the now departed ranger had put into raising his Pokémon. Mark could only hope that he'd be able to treat Scyther the same way.

Now, it was onto the real practice, and Mark was ready to drill Scyther to find out what his attacks were; he had a grasp of Scyther's potential, now he wanted to know how best to deploy it, with his study books on Bug-types in hand, and Scyther standing ready and waiting for his first instructions. It surprised Mark how cooperative that Scyther was being, despite Mark not being his actual trainer, which to him made it even more important to stay on Scyther's good side, else he start to view him as a lesser trainer than his former master.

“Alright Scyther,” Mark began as he found a page in the book that covered attacks Scyther could learn, from moves learned by experience all the way to ones he could learn from Pokémon tutors or technical machines. “It's time to find out just what you can do; you ready?”

Scyther nodded, and Mark instructed him to go over every attack his trainer had taught him. Scyther moved to a minimum safe distance, while Randy prepped himself to toss some suitable targets into the air -bundles of dry sticks tied together with twine. He threw the first one up, and Scyther sprang into action, slashing at the bundle repeatedly with his blades, each slash cutting through more easily than the neck until the dead sticks fell to pieces to the ground.

“That looked like Fury Cutter,” Randy commented.

Mark nodded in confirmation after finding its entry in the book. “That was it alright; a move that gets progressively stronger as it lands consecutive hits. Perfect with Scyther's speed.” He circled the attack in the book. “Next.”

Up went the next target; Scyther sprang up and swung his blades again -only twice this time, and performing the attack in only one motion, spinning himself in a full three-sixty to slash the bundle into three chunks, where it fell apart and dropped to the ground.

“Did he use Fury Cutter again?” Randy asked.

“No, actually, I think that was Double-Hit,” Mark replied. “It's a Normal-type move -good if we go up against a type that's resistant to bug-type moves like a Poison, Fighting or Flying-type, all of which are normally affected by Normal-type moves.” He nodded again after circling the entry. “Next!”

This time, when Scyther attacked the target, he struck it with his wing, snapping the bundle in half with the force of the hit, and both Mark and Randy simultaneously agreed “Wing Attack,” before moving onto the next, where Scyther motioned for Randy to throw the target low for him this time, and he moved as if about to strike it with a kick only to course correct and slash it with his blade. They had a bit more trouble determining what attack that was, and so they called out Cairo to test it, as Mark determined Scyther couldn't learn any attacks that were effective against Steel-types -except Vacuum Wave or Night Slash, neither of which he had shown so far, and so Cairo was the safest to test it.

Cairo brandished his bone rush as Scyther moved it, and was tricked into a defensive posture when Scyther moved in to strike, only to find out that the Scyther had faked him out, going for his unprotected side and smacking him in the hip with the flat of his blade, making the Lucario yelp and rub his side with one paw, holding his bone rush with his free one. Randy could not suppress a snicker, even when Cairo frowned at him.

“Ah, now I see,” Mark stated. “That was Feint; a Normal-type move meant for getting through defenses. Apparently goes right through attacks like Protect, King's Shield and even Mat Block. Quite a handy ability.” He looked over the four attacks, and seemed to spot a pattern. “Now this is interesting.”

“What's up?” Randy asked.

“All of the attacks Scyther has shown us so far are categorized as fairly low power moves,” he commented, and then looked at Scyther. “Do you know any other techniques?”

Scyther nodded, and motioned for Cairo to step away as the Scyther prepared to demonstrate his last remaining attacks. He elevated his blades, his expression turning stern, and suddenly duplicates of Scyther began to appear around him, forming like holographic projections before seeming to become solid, each of them even letting out Scyther's cry as he crossed his blades in front of him and began to spin in place as blue, sword-like lights appeared around each one of them, scattering as Scyther stopped spinning, holding its blades in a vertical form before resuming his original stance.

“And that would be?” Randy asked.

“I think it was Swords Dance,” Mark replied. “The second one I mean; he used Double-team first.”

“So, his offensive attacks are Feint, Double-Hit, Fury Cutter and Wing Attack, while his status-improving moves are Double Team and Swords Dance,” Randy analyzed. “But why are all of his offensive attacks so weak? I would think a Pokémon Ranger would employ more powerful moves for dealing with poachers or rogue Pokémon.”

“I may have a theory about that,” Mark began. “Scyther commonly learns one of two abilities; Swarm, or Technician. Swarm is basically just like Blaze, Overgrowth or Torrent -when the Pokémon is on its last legs, its main-typing attacks -in this case Bug-type moves- get a tremendous power boost.”

“But Scyther only showed one Bug-type move; Fury Cutter,” Randy pointed out.

“Exactly,” returned Mark. “I'm thinking Scyther's old trainer taught him fairly weak moves on purpose as a tactical choice, because he knows Technician and the moves would be made stronger, while taking advantage of the abilities of his chosen attacks.”

Randy perked up as Mark concluded his explanation, nodding in agreement. “That makes sense, actually,” he said. “Most weak attacks have secondary abilities, and while some strong attacks do too the weaker attacks will often be more likely to trigger the secondary ability, like Ember being more likely to cause a burn than, say, Flamethrower.”

“Precisely,” Mark replied. “Scyther was taught these weaker attacks for the boost they get from technician, and he was given attacks that would benefit most from it; Fury Cutter gains more power as it strikes, and the first strike is already powered up by type-boost and technician, so that first hit is going to hurt quite a bit -enough that the second or third hit might take them out right then and there.”

“Add on Swords Dance and boom! You've got a heavy-hitting speed demon,” Randy commented.

“There may be other attacks I can teach him that can take advantage of technician, but Fury Cutter, Double Hit and Feint benefit most from him having this ability so far,” Mark concluded, marking his place in his book via folded corner before closing it and setting it aside.

Randy watched as Mark pondered what to do next, and then a thought occurred to him, prompting him to speak out. “Hey, Mark?”

“Yeah?”

“Remember that convention I was telling you that I was coming out here for?”

“Sure; what about it?”

“Well it... starts tomorrow,” replied Randy. “You think we have time to go?”

Mark grimaced slightly, going over the suggestion in his mind. “Well we're not exactly on a schedule,” he said. “But I'm loathe to abandon training so soon.”

“Who said anything about abandoning? We can just wrap it up today, take a couple of days’ rest and then come right back to resume it,” suggested Randy. “It's not like you can't hang around in Kanto for too long; your journey doesn't have a time constraint.”

“True, it doesn't,” admitted Mark with a nod. “Okay, we'll go. I suppose a break is in order -we jumped right into training right after the battle with Lance, and Blue's wasn't long before that either. I imagine some of the others are pretty weary.”

“Then it's a deal! Let's work hard today, rest up, and then head to Celadon City first thing in the morning.”

Mark and Randy set out the following morning after rounding up their Pokémon to ensure they were fed and watered -at least those who required water- for the trip. They left their camp mostly intact as they did not feel concerned about anyone coming to rob the site while they were gone -not when they were so far from civilization. Although just the same they did not leave behind anything that might have been a tempting target for thieves; important things like Poké Balls and provisions.

Within hours of flying, the skylines of the jewel of Kanto were in sight; the famous metropolis known as Celadon City. Celadon was the most populated city in all of Kanto, even more so than its easterly neighbour of Saffron City, which although was larger in size, Celadon had the largest population. Likely due to how small the number of houses were -Celadon seemed to focus largely on apartments and condominiums instead of residential areas, and with such high-density homes they could use less space to house more people.

Celadon was a city with countless attractions, including its famous department store where any person, Pokémon trainer or otherwise, could find exactly what they required. It was visited daily by Pokémon Trainers looking to challenge the Grass-type Gym at the southwestern corner of the city, where a trainer could attempt to earn an official badge for the Pokémon League. Tourists looking for some enjoyment could visit the game corner at the center of the city, with slot machines, card tables and other addictive games where a person could lose their entire paycheck. In other words, a casino... one that allowed children as well.

Yeah... nothing wrong with that at all, thought Mark.

But, the city had a much darker secret to it from a not so distant past. Below the Game Corner was a former hideout belonging to Team Rocket -the notorious game of Pokémon thieves, thugs and criminals that once terrorized the entire continent until their disbandment seven -almost eight years prior. It was revealed that they had opened the game corner, and that the Pokémon and rare items being given as prizes in the Game Corner's adjacent prize store, were their ill-gotten gains -stolen Pokémon and items, pawned off to strangers.

Mark couldn't even imagine how traumatic that must have been for stolen Pokémon; to be taken from their trainer and then handed off to another one, after enduring who knew what kind of abuse under Team Rocket.

Mark shook his head to clear it; why was he thinking about such a thing right now? He was supposed to be here on a break, not thinking about the past. Red had defeated Team Rocket long ago; the international police had frozen all of Team Rocket's assets and worked to right the wrongs committed by the criminals. They were nothing more than a memory now.

Yeah, now there's the Syndicate instead, a depressing mini Mark from his subconscious said. Mark wanted to kick that mini him, but the act of doing so could have been quite painful... for himself.

Following Randy who rode on the back of Skyclaw, Mark and Palm Tree descended towards the city streets below. At first Mark expected they would be going directly to the place of the convention but it seemed Randy had other plans for the start of their visit to Celadon. He was heading for the western side of the city, towards an area that looked to be fairly new compared to the rest of the city; brand new houses and businesses erected along the western road leading out of Celadon. Their destination appeared to be a laundromat, and next door to it was a larger structure called 'Celadon Bath House'.

Finding a clearing in the streets, the two flying Pokémon touched down on the paved streets below, where their trainers could dismount and walk on their own feet again. Mark petted Palm Tree's neck gratefully as he looked up at the laundry and bath house respectively. “Randy, why'd you bring us here? I thought we were heading to the convention.”

“We've got about an hour before it starts,” explained Randy. “But we need to stop here first; we haven't showered in five days and we probably both stink like a Grimer right now. Plus, our clothes are filthy; we really can't go into a public place like a convention looking like this.”

Mark shrugged. “I suppose you do have a point,” he commented, looking at the clothes he was wearing; his green and blue flannel shirt was dirty and smelled rather foul, and his pants had dried mud caking the calves. Not to mention his black vest, still covered in mud from when Vitesse had hurtled him off his feet during their sparring match back at the league. “A shower and a wash probably would do us some good.”

“These buildings are connected on the inside too, so we can literally go right into the bath house after we drop off our clothes,” Randy explained.

Mark nodded in approval as he reached for Palm Tree’s Poké Ball and recalled the Tropius. “I'm impressed; you really thought out this whole visit.”

“Been planning this trip for months; I should hope I thought it through,” replied Randy as he recalled Skyclaw to her Poké Ball and approached the laundromat, with Mark following close behind, curious to see what the bath house would be like.

Once inside the laundromat, Randy showed Mark where to go, having been to this place before. He led the trainer to the back of the laundromat, through a side doorway that led to a pair of locker rooms where they could store their belongings, and offered complimentary bath robes to visitors. This place has all the conveniences, thought Mark with intrigue.

Stripping themselves of their clothes and gear, they stored their backpacks into the lockers, except for their Poké Balls; Mark detached the holster for his from the inside of his vest to keep with him as he retrieved a bath robe. Of course, they came in a variety of sizes, but even the tallest one didn't quite fit him, barely hanging past his knees. Still, it was enough, and it even had a pocket for his Poké Ball holster. With that he carried his dirty clothes out into the laundromat, loading them into a machine and adding soap from a dispenser next to the machine, setting it and leaving it as he headed for the bath house.

Randy was quick to follow him after loading up his own laundry, leading him to the front desk where they could check in. Mark was surprised to find out that visits to the bath house were complimentary for travelling Pokémon Trainers; he learned from Randy that this was part of the tourism policies for Celadon City, since so many trainers visited it every day, and so the mayor's office itself funded the bath house directly.

They headed towards the yard where the baths were located, letting their female Pokémon out into the female area to enjoy themselves, while taking the rest with them into the male's area. The bath was a large, in-ground jacuzzi, fed by high-powered jets and warmed through artificial means, but even if it was just a pale imitation of a hot spring, it would suffice.

Letting out their Pokémon first, Mark and Randy immersed themselves in the hot water, joined by several of their companions. Coal remained outside of the bath -for obvious reasons- instead taking to napping off to the side while the others soaked. But just as Mark was immersed down to his waist, he was suddenly splashed by Shadow who cannon-balled into the center of the pool and sent water everywhere.

“Shadow! This isn't a swimming pool you ditz!” Randy called out to his Zoroark, and then found himself laughing as Shadow emerged from the water rubbing his back; he'd hurt himself when he'd collided with the stone bottom of the bath, as it was only waist deep.

The Zoroark received an unimpressed look from Cairo that, to Mark, seemed like he was saying 'You deserved that'. Shadow only glared back at the Lucario in response before finding a spot to sit down.

Mark found a space to sit against the wall, using the hot water jets to massage the muscles in his back and the ones in the floor for his feet as he leaned back and exhaled deeply to relax himself, enjoying the hot water. “Nothing like the hot springs in Lavaridge, but, this is still pretty good,” he commented.

“Yeah; does the trick,” Randy replied. “Plus, it's free; hard to argue with that.”

“True enough,” Mark replied, watching as Fang swam past him through the shallow water to make room for Palm Tree and Scyther.

Mark observed the mantis-like Pokémon as he lowered himself into the water, recoiling a little from the heat but quickly adjusting to it and letting himself lower in up to his shoulders. Mark studied Scyther closely as he basked in the water; when they had first started training in the forests, Scyther was often shy around the other Pokémon, but as Palm Tree climbed into the water next to him he did not seem as bothered. It was true that Scyther appeared to have adjusted quite well to his new team, but Mark still wondered if maybe the mantis was just hiding his true feelings -Scyther were born warriors, body, mind and soul, and a warrior never showed their weakness.

“So, have you thought of a name?”

Mark glanced over at Randy after hearing the question. “Sorry?”

“For Scyther; have you thought of a name for him yet?”

“Oh yeah.” Honestly, he had forgotten up until Randy had mentioned it at that moment; Mark had been more focused on training than naming his new partner. He looked back at Scyther, who was now staring back at him, tilting his head curiously at Mark. “Let's see now...” Mark mumbled out loud as he put his hand to his chin in though. “Scyther, you're fast, agile, very multi-functional in battle with the attacks you've been taught, and although some of them seem rather weak, your ability compensates for them.”

He hummed a little bit, going over in his head what sort of things Scyther reminded him of. 'Sharp blade, swift in motion, seemingly weak but actually quite potent,' he repeated in his mind a few times, until finally a word came to mind. “Sabre,” he said.

“Sabre? Like, Sabre-toothed tiger?” Randy asked.

“No; sabre as in a type of sword,” Mark replied. “A sabre was a curved blade that was smaller than other swords like a katana or a broadsword, but it turned out to actually be quite effective; it delivered a deadly cut, it was fast and it was the weapon of choice for cavalry during the renaissance era -when used while the rider was in motion it was even more powerful.” He gestured to Scyther. “The perfect name for a swift and deadly Pokémon.”

“Why not call him katana? That was a plenty fast sword too,” Randy reminded.

“A samurai on foot isn't as fast as a rider on horseback,” Mark returned firmly. “And the katana was a two-handed sword; not ideal as a cavalry weapon.”

“I... suppose that makes sense,” Randy returned. “But didn't samurai ride on horseback too?”

“Some did, but they were mostly foot soldiers, and those on horseback would probably either be using a spear or a lighter sword for battle,” returned Mark, before he turned his attention to Scyther. “So, what do you think; does the name Sabre work for you?”

Scyther nodded his head, eliciting a shrill growl in reply to Mark. “Then Sabre it is,” the trainer returned, smiling at the Scyther.

A short while later, the two stepped out of the baths to go transfer their clothes to a drier, and then returned to the baths for a few more minutes before collecting their Pokémon and stepping out. They waited in the laundromat for the rest of their laundry to finish drying and cool off, before slipping into some clean clothes. With that, they were ready to head to the convention and see the sights.

Now, Vitesse was out of her ball, feeling refreshed after the visit to the baths and wanting to stretch her legs for a while, which Mark was happy to oblige, letting her walk with him as they headed through the city.

“So, Randy; where exactly is the convention being held?” Mark inquired from his travelling companion.

“Oh, in the basement of the department store,” replied Randy. “They cleared the whole place out just for this event; people can shop 'till they drop on the floors above and enjoy the convention below.”

“Mutually beneficial for both sides,” Mark commented.

“Yup. And there will be a lot of trainers in attendance; Gym Leaders from all over Kanto and Johto are coming here, and there are probably going to be lots of battles too.”

Randy nodded in agreement. “Speaking of battles, how do you plan to beat that Charizard Red has; the one that Blue was talking about?” Randy asked. “That Mega Charizard?”

“Still working on that,” replied Mark. “Without seeing it for myself I don't really have a lot to go on, and Red hasn't used it in any official battles. So far all we know is that Charizard is a Fire/Flying-type; going by typing a Rock-type would be devastating to such a combination.”

“Do any of your Pokémon besides Tanker know Rock-type moves?”

“Not a one,” returned Mark. “And even if they did, Charizard are known for being pretty quick in the air. Rock-type moves are powerful but very difficult to land on speedy opponents.” He rubbed his chin in thought, glancing at his Blaziken once more. “In the end, I think Vitesse may be the only one who can take him.”

“But she's a Fighting-type and Charizard's part Flying-type; she'd be at a disadvantage,” Randy reminded, and then glanced at the Blaziken. “No offense, girl; just stating facts.”

She shrugged her shoulders at Randy's comment, and went back to listening to her trainer.

“I know she's a Fighting-type, but she's also the only one I have who can use an Electric-type attack, which you saw how well worked against Dragonite,” Mark reminded. “Besides, with her running speed and jumping ability she's the only one who could even catch Charizard.”

Randy grimaced. “I suppose you have a point,” he admitted. “Geez man, why did you never catch an Electric-type Pokémon?”

Mark groaned. “This again? I've already explained it,” he returned.

“Right, sorry,” returned Randy, before turning his gaze forward again. “Ah, we're here.”

Mark followed his gaze, and saw that they were coming up to the front doors of the Celadon department store, where the convention was being held. Without another word, he followed Randy through the doors and into the store. They stepped into the lobby of the multi-floored shopping center, entering across from the information desk into a wide-open room that was utterly packed with visitors.

People of all ages were jammed into the front entrance and the room beyond, with the roar of conversation from hundreds of mouths filling the air. Many of the people attending were also accompanied by their Pokémon, only adding to the crowding factor and making it difficult to make their way through the crowds, trying to get to the basement access door.

“Geez, you never said that the entire country would be crammed in here,” Mark commented to Randy as he followed him, with Vitesse struggling to stay with her trainer as they weaved their way through the crowds like a sewing needle.

“Are you surprised? These conventions are big events, man.”

“What could be so interesting that it would bring the attention of thousands of people all at once?” Mark asked. “I mean, a tournament, I could understand, but this?”

“You'll see,” Randy returned, his voice brimming with confidence as they approached the front desk, which now Mark noticed had been turned into a ticket counter for the convention. They had to wait in a short lineup before receiving their tickets for the convention, and were given armbands that would show they were allowed in over the next three days of the convention.

With that, Randy led the way to the basement access stairs, but as they reached the stairwell, Randy stopped. “Looks like we'll have to wait up here.”

“Why?”

“That,” replied Randy, pointing to indicate a long line of people that were filling the stairwell ahead. “They're waiting for the convention to open.”

Mark gawked as he saw entire rows of people crammed in such a confined space, Vitesse sharing in his disbelief, and with that he shook his head. “No freaking way, man.”

“What's wrong?”

“You pulled me away from training; that's one thing, but standing all day in a huge line just to get downstairs? No way,” returned Mark. “Big waste of time.”

“Dude, don't you have any patience?”

“When it counts, yes,” returned Mark. “The convention's not even open yet and with a lineup this huge, we'll spend hours just trying to get down to it.”

Randy groaned. “Okay, then what do you want to do?”

“We go somewhere else until the line thins out, and then we get in,” replied Mark.

“And where do you propose we go until then?”

Mark frowned. “We are in Celadon City, Randy,” he reminded. “The biggest tourist trap in Kanto; the question is where go first.”

_ _ Randy rolled his eyes. “I suppose so,” he replied. “Okay... where would you suggest?”

“Well we can do some shopping here in the department store,” Mark suggested. “I'm thinking that I should stock up on some battle items for my Pokémon -give them a little more of an edge, and maybe a couple of Technical Machines.”

“Shopping? That's your idea?”

“If it's for something useful, yes. And the convention's right below so as soon as the line thins out, it's as simple as just going downstairs,” returned Mark.

“How about something a little more exciting?” Randy asked. “Maybe the Game Corner?”

“You really want to go to that casino?”

“I've always had pretty good luck at the slots.”

Mark shrugged. “I guess if you come to visit Celadon you should check out the Game Corner at least once,” he said. “Alright; let's go.”

Making their way back through the crowds again the two of them left the Celadon department store's crowded lobby, stepping back out into fresh air again. Taking once more to the streets, Mark once again followed Randy through the city as they made their way to their new, temporary, destination for the time being. Mark welcomed the clearer, quieter sidewalks, having never really been much for crowds, which was why he preferred to usually stay away from public events. He may have agreed to go with Randy to the convention but standing in line for hours on end was never part of that agreement, and he wasn't about to waste precious time just standing around doing nothing.

'If you're going to make me stand around at least give me a battle or something,' he thought.

Disgruntled, he realized he'd fallen behind a little bit when he felt Vitesse poking his shoulder, and he promptly caught up to Randy as he rounded a corner, walking alongside a house with its own pond instead of a front yard, inhabited by several Water-type Pokémon, from Poliwag to Goldeen and even a few Magikarp. 'Oh, gods help whoever lives in that house if one of those Magikarp becomes a Gyarados,' Mark thought, shuddering at the mental image of a Gyarados rising out of that little pond and falling into a rage at its poor accommodations, right in the middle of a highly-populated city.

'Damn it now I'll never get that out of my head!' He cursed himself.

Mark and Randy turned a left, passing in front of the house, and reached the Game Corner right next door. The brightly lit building was impossible to miss, with a bright yellow neon sign bearing its name proudly for all passers to be blinded by, mounted upon a highly decorative building with a variety of colours -it had clearly been repainted recently as it showed no signs of weathering, and the dominant colour that had chosen was white with purple trimming and a burgundy tiled roof, angled such to allow rain to flow off. Its neighbouring building -the Game Corner's prize center, was decorated in a nearly identical fashion with just slightly different shades to the colours.

“Alright; time for some slots,” said Randy, sprinting up to the door and entering the game corner.

Mark and Vitesse exchanged a blank stare before they shrugged and stepped into the game corner to join Randy. “What's the harm?” Mark asked aloud, shrugging.

He would come to regret asking that question...

“I officially hate slot machines,” Mark growled as he, Vitesse and Randy left the game corner after an hour of enjoying the attractions within.

“Oh, come on; it was fun! And you did pretty damn good at the Blackjack tables too; you won seventy coins and exchanged it for a pretty good cash prize,” Randy returned.

“Most of which I lost to a trio of spinning reels that I swear six times out of ten landed on Grimer,” returned Mark. “Seriously, are those things rigged or what?”

“Maybe,” returned Randy, shrugging. “Or just the one you were on was, perhaps. A good rule to follow; leave with what you entered with or leave with more; don't push your luck too far, which is just what you did.”

Mark scowled. “I can't believe you scored so high so many times,” he remarked.

“I guess the slots like me,” replied Randy. “Luck of a leprechaun I suppose.”

At that, Mark suddenly imagined a pint-sized Randy in a green outfit, standing next to a pot of gold, but he swiftly forced that from his mind, glancing back at his companion. “I suppose we should head over to the convention now.”

“Yep; line should be clear by now,” he replied. “Hopefully we didn't miss anything good.”

“We've only been gone ninety minutes; what could possibly have happened in that short of time?” Mark asked.

“You'd be surprised; at these conventions, all kinds of things could happen,” returned Randy.

Mark was skeptical, but he kept it to himself, not wanting to spoil Randy's mood. “As long as it doesn't involve the Syndicate, I reserve the right to be surprised.”

“Amen to that,” agreed Randy. “Encountering those guys once is enough for me.”

“Be glad you haven't had two run-ins with them,” Mark returned. “I hope someone takes them down sooner rather than later.”

Randy chuckled. “Why not you? After all, most of the Champions of the world today have beaten one of those crazed factions themselves.”

Mark scoffed. “Not interested,” he said. “I have no love for the Syndicate, and I'll thrash 'em if the opportunity presents itself, but I'm no hero -I'm not going to go chasing after a criminal faction just because I've survived two encounters with them.”

“You know I was joking, right?”

Mark flushed with embarrassment. “Oh...”

“Man, you have no sense for sarcasm, do you?”

“Apparently not...”

Mark heard Vitesse snarking, and looked back at his Blaziken to see her talon covering her mouth as she was trying to stifle a laugh. “Hey, traitor!”

And with his flustered reaction, Randy and Vitesse both exploded with laughter at his expense.

When the laughing fit was finally over, the three arrived at the department store and proceeded immediately down into the basement, flashing their wristbands at the greeters so they would let them through to the convention.

Mark didn't know what to expect as they entered the huge, open room beyond, but when he saw it, it took his breath away. The entire room was filled with stalls and counters where people had set up shops and attractions throughout the basement, featuring various figures of popular culture, famous celebrities and even some not related to that, but present, including gift and souvenir shops. Far at the other end of the countless stalls there was a wide-open area where Mark could see thousands of people had gathered, though from here he couldn't see what they were doing yet.

“Holy crap...” was all Mark could think of to say.

“What'd I tell you?” Randy asked. “Something else, ain't it?”

“Certainly not what I was expecting,” replied Mark. “I'm seeing a lot of stores here, yet earlier it sounded like you were averse to shopping.” He looked at Randy quizzically. “Care to explain that?”

“I like shopping when there's stuff of interest,” replied Randy. “And this place has all that and more!” He reached for a Poké Ball on his belt, and opened it to let out Cairo, who hummed slightly as he breathed in the air of the basement and looked up at his trainer curiously. “Come on boy; let's go!” He urged, breaking into a run to head into the gathering beyond, with Cairo hot on his heels.

“Randy, wait a...!” Mark started to call after him, but Randy was already too far away to hear him. “Wow. He sure can move when he really wants to.”

“Chik-ak,” agreed Vitesse.

“Well now what're we supposed to do? We don't even know what's around here,” Mark asked, looking at Vitesse as if she had an answer to give him. Of course, she didn't; she knew about as much as conventions as he did -which was to say, nothing.

He sighed. “Guess we'll just browse the shops until Randy gets back,” he decided, tucking his hands into the pockets of his vest. “Come on, girl.”

Vitesse nodded, and followed Mark as he made his way over to the stalls, checking the wares as he passed to see if anything caught his attention. Most of the items being sold were just collectibles and memorabilia -nothing he was really interested in; he liked video games and movies as much as anyone else, but collections were outside of his interest. 'Why bother buying something that just sits around collecting dust? Sure, it's supposed to become valuable like... twenty years later, but only if you take care of it.' He thought.

But he did spot one thing that caught his interest.

Halfway down the aisle, he saw a table covered in Pokémon accessories out of his peripheral vision. He turned to the stall that the table was part of, keeping his hands in his pockets and looking over the items with intrigue.

The clerk of the stall, a young man probably a few years older than himself, turned to him and walked up to the table. “See anything you like?” He asked.

“A few things catch my eye, yes,” admitted Mark. “These items; are any of them the kind with in-battle effects?”

“They certainly are; I have several items for each Pokémon type here before you,” the man explained. “And a few general items that all types can use, over here on this table, including muscle bands, choice scarves, and so on.”

Mark hummed in thought, bringing his hands out of his pockets and putting one to his chin as he considered his options, absently reaching into his vest and running his fingers over the Poké Balls holstered inside, stopping as his fingers fell upon Fang's. “What do you have for Dark-types?”

“I have these,” the man replied, gesturing to a pair of dark glasses on the table. “These are called Blackglasses; they look fashionable and they increase the power of Dark-type attacks.”

Mark looked at the glasses oddly, trying to imagine Fang wearing them, but he just couldn't quite picture it. Deciding it was better to test it, he pulled out Fang's Poké Ball. “Come out, boy,” he said, opening the ball and letting Fang out into the room. The Mightyena barked as he was released, looking up at Mark briefly before looking around the room, taking in the strange new surroundings all around him.

“May I?” Mark asked, holding out his hand over one of the Blackglasses.

“By all means,” replied the man.

Mark picked up the glasses, kneeling down and getting Fang's attention. “Here boy; try these on,” he said, prompting Fang to step up to him and place the glasses on Fang's snout, adjusting them to better suit his canine features until they rested comfortably on his face. When Mark saw them, he grimaced, seeing how they blocked out Fang's eyes completely -probably dimmed his vision too, and even adjusted didn't look comfortable. “Heh... really 'rockin' the look there, Fang.”

Even behind the glasses, Mark saw Fang frowning, letting out a whine and pawing at his face as if trying to take off the glasses. “Yeah, I don't like 'em either,” Mark agreed, reaching out to take the glasses from Fang’s face, who shook his head as they were removed and Mark passed them back to the stall owner. “Thanks, but I don't think these will work. What about the other items; what do those do?”

“Well let's see here,” the store clerk began, looking over the items on the other table. “What sort of attacks does your Pokémon know?”

“Fang? He knows Crunch, Ice Fang, Snarl, Shadow Ball, Embargo and Torment,” explained Mark.

“A balanced move pool but what would you say his specialty is; close range or long range?”

“Close,” replied Mark. “Most of his attacks are meant for weakening his opponent, but his strongest attacks are definitely his up-close ones.”

The clerk reached for an item on the table, picking up an orange piece of cloth with two red shapes on the front, resembling eyes, and handed it to Mark. “This is a Muscle Band; it's worn like a headband in most cases, and boosts the power of Physical moves.”

“There's no way this'll fit on Fang's head though; canines aren't exactly meant for wearing headbands,” Mark commented, looking at the band curiously. “This would be pretty handy on Scy-” He caught himself, still adjusting to his new friend's nickname. “Saber, though... but he's already got Swift Wings on him.”

“Wait, Wing items?” The man asked.

“Yeah?”

“You are aware those only last a little while, aren't you?” the man asked.

Mark arched an eyebrow. “Wait, what?”

“They're basically training items, like a Power Band or Macho Brace,” the man explained. “Swift Wings increase the speed of their wearer as they become stronger, adding to it, but they only last for a few months at most.”

Mark frowned. “Oh... Well then,” he said. “Maybe I could give one of these to my Scyther then. But for Fang...” He hummed in thought, looking at the Mightyena and studying him to see where the band might work. Then he had an idea. “Do you have one that's a little larger? Maybe to fit on a big Pokémon like Arcanine or Onix?”

“I should, yes,” the man replied, kneeling and disappearing beneath the table for a moment. Mark could hear him rummaging through boxes, until a triumph 'Aha!' preceded his reappearance, standing back up and showing Mark a large Muscle Band almost as long as his arm. “What about this one?”

“That'll do,” Mark replied, setting down the smaller one and taking the large one, showing it to Fang to prompt him to scoot closer, where Mark brought the wide side of the band to his neck and wrapped the two ends around the back, tying them together before leaving it as a sort of bandana. He didn't like the colour of it, but that could easily be changed -accessories were meant to be personalized after all.

“This'll work,” Mark stated, pulling back from Fang and standing up, turning to the stall clerk again. “I'll take it, and the small one too, for my Scyther.”

“That's a good look for him, maybe with a splash of red on the band or something,” the clerk commented.

“I agree,” replied Mark, petting Fang on the head as he adjusted to wearing the band, deciding that he didn't mind it, and looked at Vitesse, who chirped in approval at him.

“Very good; may I interest you in anything else?” The clerk inquired. “Maybe another Muscle Band or a Black Belt for your Blaziken here?”

“Thanks, but Vitesse's already got an item, and by law I can only have one at time on them for battle purposes,” Mark replied, pointing to Vitesse's Mega Stone. “My Tropius has a Miracle Seed and my Steelix also has a Mega Stone.”

“Two Pokémon with Mega Stones?” The man asked. “Despite only being able to use one at a time?”

“Well it's a tactical choice; I choose between them depending on the battle,” explained Mark.

“That's all well and good, but what if you use both of them in the same battle and you already Mega-evolved one of them?”

Mark's eyes narrowed at that as the man's words struck a chord of truth in his mind, and once again he was humming in thought at the idea. “You know, I never thought of that.”

“I'm no Pokémon Trainer, or at least not a very good one,” the man said. “But, I know a thing or two about preparing a Pokémon for battle; sometimes, having the right kind of item is the edge you need. Two Mega Stones sounds nice but it's impractical, for the fact you can only use one at a time, so even if you have more than one, better you keep the other one aside for a later time.”

Mark arched an eyebrow. “For someone who's not a Pokémon Trainer you know what you're talking about,” he said. “Who are you anyway?”

“My name is Clark,” the man replied. “I'm a former Pokémon trainer from the Sinnoh Region, but I was never very successful at it -could never get past my sixth badge.” He rubbed his head with embarrassment. “So, I'm pursuing a different lifestyle; I know all there is to know about items, and so I decided to market the ones I've collected during my travels.” He gestured to the table. “I hope to open my own store one day -I'm just starting with this stall for now.”

“Well Clark, I think you've got a good talent for this. I'll think about what you said, but for now...”

An idea suddenly flashed through his mind; Mark's head jerked up so sharply it jarred his neck, and made Vitesse look at her trainer with concern, wondering what he had remembered -or realized, in this case, and he smiled.

“What do you have for training items?” He asked.

Although he mentally kicked himself for spending so much, in the end Mark felt satisfied with his purchases. New items for his Pokémon, both for the battles ahead, and the training he would need to do to make them strong enough. He could hardly believe he hadn't thought of this before, but speaking with Clark had opened his mind to new possibilities for his Pokémon; a way to help expedite whipping them back into shape, bringing them back to their former strength, and to improve their performance in battle.

'It appears even after becoming a Champion there's always more to learn,' he thought as he wandered through the shops, looking for Randy.

Eventually, he found his travel companion at a memorabilia store relating for various pop culture icons, such as popular television and video game characters, some that Mark recognized, others he didn't, but Randy was going over every one of them like a fine-toothed comb, studying every detail of every item until he found one he liked.

“Really into this shit, isn't he?” Mark asked Vitesse and Fang, both of whom huffed in agreement, especially seeing that Cairo was in on it as well, having a rather shocking fondness for some Pokémon-based characters such as a Pikachu Libre 'What the hell is that even supposed to be?' was all Mark could ask when he saw the item. 'Pikachu cosplaying as a Luchador wrestler?'

_ _ Suddenly having an idea, he crept forward slowly, sneaking up behind the rather absorbed trainer. Mark waited until Randy's hands were free of any breakable objects before...

“Boo!”

“AH!” Randy shrieked, flailing his arms around as if under attack as he whipped around to face Mark, eyes wide with shock before contorting into a scowl. “Dude, that was uncalled for.”

“But it was so satisfying,” Mark returned, the Pokémon -including Cairo, all laughing at Randy's expense.

“...Payback for my earlier burn, eh?”

“Big time.”

“Okay then.” Randy eyed the bag in Mark's hand. “I see you did some shopping, and...” His eyes fell upon the Muscle Band Fang was now wearing around his neck. “And accessorizing?”

“I met a Sinnoh trainer who was selling some items,” Mark explained. “He had some useful stuff so I bought some training items, and a couple of Muscle Bands -one for Fang, the other for Saber.”

“But Saber's already got those Swift Wings, right?”

“Yeah, turns out the power granted by those is gradual, and not indefinite,” Mark explained. “They're basically a cheap training item; Saber's probably only still wearing them in memory of his trainer but truthfully, they're just things now.”

“Wait, so all that speed we saw with him...” Randy began, his face falling flat.

“Yep,” replied Mark. “It was his natural speed.”

Randy groaned. “And the guy was faster than Thorn for crying out loud,” he said. “I should catch me a Scyther.”

“If you can find one; they're apparently pretty rare,” Mark stated.

“In case you haven't noticed, Mark, I've got three rare Pokémon with me already,” Randy commented, gesturing to Cairo. “For example...”

“Point taken,” Mark admitted.

As the two continued to talk, they heard a few girls running past them, squealing in delight about something. “Hurry up; we're going to miss it!”

“I can't believe Brock's giving a presentation!”

“He's so cool!”

That was about all Mark could interpret from the giggling group that hustled by, watching them as they ran for the open part of the convention at the back. With a questioning look, he turned to Randy. “Who's Brock?”

“A gym leader, I think,” replied Randy. “Pewter city if I'm remembering correctly; specialty in Rock-type Pokémon. He apparently competed at the Pokémon World Tournament along with gym leaders from across the world; made quite an impression.”

“A famous Gym Leader, huh?” Mark asked, turning his gaze in the direction the girls had went. “Maybe we ought to check it out?”

“Sure, why not?” Randy replied with a shrug. “Might learn something. Just let me finish my purchase here.”

Randy went back to working out a price with the salesman for the collectibles he'd chosen, placing all of them into a bag after paying for them and slinging them over his shoulder. With that, he and Cairo rejoined Mark, Fang and Vitesse, and they made their way through the shops to the open area where this 'demonstration' was to take place.

Mark was already going over in his mind what kind of strategies Brock might have using Rock-types; they were a risky type to deploy on account of having many weaknesses. Grass, Water, Fighting, Steel and Ground were all super-effective against Rock-type Pokémon -without the inclusion of secondary typing- and none of those types were exactly rare. Having had an Onix himself -before it evolved- Mark knew well that Rock-types were hard to use in battle; he'd found that out when he pit Tanker against Brawly on Dewford Island, when he was still a novice and didn't know that Rock-types were weak to Fighting.

Still, any type could be effective if someone knew the right trick to using them. Even Mark had managed to overcome his Onix's glaring weaknesses as his journey progressed, once he'd learned how fast they could move underground, and that their severely lacking Special Defense could be remedied with Sandstorm, since it could interfere with Special Attacks due to the flying particles.

'Maybe Brock has some other tactic to inspire me,' thought Mark. 'Tanker's good but catching another Rock-type on this journey could come in handy.'

_ _ They stepped out into the open area where the presentation was due to be held, finding themselves standing on an unprotected concrete floor, ringed with visitors to the convention who were there to see whatever show Brock was planning. In the middle of the gathering, standing alone out on the floor, was a man with spiky brown hair and tan skin, standing atop a small dais with a microphone, watching as people gathered. But he wasn't alone; standing with him atop the dais was a younger man, wearing a red jacket and black undershirt, a white and red cap and blue jeans.

The second man brought a tinge of familiarity to Mark, and he suddenly found himself staring, wondering why this man appeared so familiar. He did not get long to ponder it, though, before Brock took position at the microphone, tapping it and listening to the feedback to make sure it worked before he held it up to his mouth.

“Visitors to the Celadon Convention, I welcome you all here today,” the man began, speaking in a semi-monotonous yet someone wise tone of voice; like a person of experience, Mark felt. “Be you local to Kanto or visitors from afar, I'm pleased that you all are taking the time to come here to witness this demonstration. I won't take too much of your time, though I do hope you are all coming to the Gym Leader panel later this afternoon to hear the leaders of Kanto and Johto share their experiences with you.

“What I'm about to show you today is mostly for newer trainers, wondering the way to properly employ Rock-type Pokémon. For the last three times I've come to this convention, I am always asked how I handle using types with 'so many glaring weaknesses',” he said, making Mark's eyes widen as though Brock had pulled a question from his head. “The answer is simple; the best way to overcome type advantages, is with discovering the advantage of your Pokémon, and using that knowledge to formulate a strategy of how to train your Pokémon. This what I'm here to show you today.”

He gestured to the person standing with him. “And today I have a special guest to help me give this demonstration; many of you will know who he is.” He stepped over to the stranger, clapping him on the shoulder before continuing. “Allow me to introduce Red, former Kanto Champion.”

“Hu-wha?!” Randy asked, barely containing his surprise. The rest of the audience shared in this shocking moment, many eliciting surprised gasps before going on to whispering to their friends, expressing their surprise and glee at having Kanto's greatest Pokémon trainer at their convention as if it was a historical moment.

Mark was just as surprised as the rest, his jaw falling open as the all too obvious question escaped his mouth in a low tone. “What the hell are the odds?” He asked, before he looked at his companion. “Randy, did you know about this?”

“I'm just as shocked as you are, buddy; I had no idea he was going to be here,” Randy returned.

“I never would've imagined these conventions would be his thing,” Mark returned.

Randy shrugged. “Well Brock did say he's here as a guest,” he reminded, to which Mark nodded in agreement. “But look on the bright side; now you don't have to run all over Kanto looking for him.”

Mark chuckled. “Yeah that's true,” he said. “I might be able to speak with him after this presentation.”

“I thought you said you weren't ready to challenge him yet?”

“I'm not, but that doesn't mean I can't set it for a later time. This as much depends on him as it does me -he's not obligated to accept my challenge,” replied Mark.

“What about that whole thing about 'when two trainer's eyes meet'?” Randy asked.

“Yeah... I don't buy that nonsense,” replied Mark. “How many trainers have we made eye contact with since arriving in Celadon alone? Let alone down here in this crowded place.” He shook his head. “Nah... a battle only happens when both trainers want it, and when their Pokémon want it too.”

“I suppose you raise a good point there.”

They turned their attention back to Brock and Red as they carried on with explaining the presentation. “Today I'm going to reveal to you all a favourite combination of mine, which takes advantage of a Rock-type Pokémon's high defense, against opponents with a high attack strength. And since we're in a large enough room,” he reached onto the back of his belt, bringing forth a Poké Ball. “My trusted partner will be the one to demonstrate.”

Red said nothing as he too selected a Poké Ball, with him and Brock both walking off the dais to take positions at either side of the floor, keeping a safe distance from the crowds as they faced each other. Meanwhile, a crew of convention staff rushed over to the dais, accompanied by a pair of Machoke who stood by, waiting as the workers used a power drill to remove a series of bolts securing the dais to the floor. With that, the two Machoke picked up the entire dais itself and carried it away, the crowd parting to give them room, and thus leaving the field open and clear.

Mark studied the floor, looking over the lines and colourations stretched between where Red and Brock stood, suddenly realizing what the floor looked like. “Randy, you notice that?”

“Sure did; this is a battlefield!” Randy replied, excited. “It's just like in a Pokémon Gym!”

They looked up again, and saw Brock was about to cast forth his Poké Ball, calling out to the Pokémon within as he let it fly. “Onix, you're up!”

The ball opened, and a massive form materialized from the energy that spill forth from the ball, taking shape and gaining solidity to reveal a long, serpentine body consisting entirely of stones that became progressively smaller towards the tail, ending with a small, fist-sized rock. Its head was long and rugged, with two big white eyes staring out from the sockets of its stone skull. A long horn jutted up from the top of its head, and its large mouth opened to elicit a rumbling roar as it was released.

“And we finally get to see Brock's famous Onix,” Randy commented. “His strongest Pokémon.”

“It certainly looks powerful,” Mark agreed. “Now let's see what Red is going with.”

Red, still silent, cast forth his Poké Ball as well, and the Pokémon that emerged from it was also big, but not quite so large as Onix. The Pokémon was big, with a plump blue body and cream-coloured undertones, with short legs and short, beefy arms. Two cat-like ears grew from its head, its eyes were narrow -practically shut, even, and it had a rather blank, tired expression on its face as it yawned and grunted, scratching its chest with the short, stubby claws on the end of its paw.

“A Snorlax,” Randy commented. “Those things pack one hell of a punch.”

“All part of the demonstration,” Mark said, nodding in agreement as he crossed his arms and watched.

“Now,” Brock began. “Onix, use Bide.”

Onix rumbled low, curling in on itself while keeping it eyes fixed upon Snorlax, waiting for it to make its move. Only now did Red finally speak as he gave orders to his Snorlax, his voice fairly high-pitched and yet commanding as he spoke. “Ice Punch.”

Snorlax's expression changed, shifting from the bored, sleepy look to a more determined expression as it charged forward with surprising speed for having such short legs, growling loudly and drawing back its fist as snow and ice particles swirled around it. It took aim directly at Onix's face, and swung its fist in a wide arc, striking Onix directly between the eyes, but it stood its ground, taking the punch without showing any sign of discomfort.

Mark suddenly remembered that Onix was also a ground-type, and would be vulnerable to an Ice Punch attack, yet this one was enduring it with minimal damage. 'Even Tanker wasn't that tough when he was an Onix; this one is really tough.' He thought, eyes narrowing with intrigue. 'And come to think of it, this is the same combo Lance used against me with his Goodra. Could it be he actually learned it from Brock?'

Snorlax struck again, and this time Onix retaliated, opening its large mouth and firing a stream of white energy directly into Snorlax's chest, which sent it flying backwards, rolling head over heels back in Red's direction until it fell flat onto its belly with a grunt. Much to the shock of the audience though, it stood up again, grunting once more and scratching where it was hit.

“As you can see,” Brock began. “Onix took the two hits with no problem even though he's weak against Ice-type attacks. While Onix's high defense was a factor in this, the tides of a battle can also be turned by the right item, and the right training, which was in Red's favour here. Bide allowed Onix to turn all the damage he took back at his opponent for twice the power; most Pokémon would be knocked out after such a hit. However, with Snorlax,” Brock gestured to the Normal-type. “Not so easy, because Snorlax has a high Special-Defense, and Bide is a Special Attack.

“This means it's also good to know when to use what attack,” Brock went on. “This is true with any and all Pokémon types, but with Rock-types, you have to take advantage of their defense to keep the battle in their favour.” He produced Onix's Poké Ball, turning to it and taking aim with the ball. “Thanks for your help, old friend,” he said before recalling Onix to its Poké Ball for a respite. “Now, are there any questions?” He asked.

As Red recalled Snorlax to its own ball, someone piped up from the audience. “Brock; how do you deal with a speedy Pokémon while using Rock-types? Or Special-Attackers since Rock-types don't have that much Special Defense?”

“Two very good questions,” Brock began. “Well I can't tell you guys all of my secrets, I can give you answers. When it comes to dealing with a speedy Pokémon like, say...” He looked around the audience until his eyes fell found their way to where Mark and Randy were standing, but he wasn't looking at them; he was looking past them, at Vitesse. “Excuse me; who's Blaziken is that?”

The Blaziken clucked, raising her head with some alarm. Mark looked back at her briefly as if to confirm she was the one Brock was looking at but, there clearly weren't any other Blaziken in the audience. With no other option, he stepped forward. “She's with me,” he replied.

“Do you mind coming out here for a moment, please?” Brock requested.

Mark stiffened, surprised that he'd be called upon to join the presentation when Brock didn't even have a clue who he was. But, the logical part of him told him this was his chance to meet with Red -his chance to speak with the Ex-Champion. Sharing a brief glance with Randy, Mark stepped forward, followed by Vitesse, and he motioned for Fang to stay. The Mightyena stepped over to stand next to Randy and Cairo, watching as his friends stepped out from the crowd.

Mark and Vitesse crossed the floor to join Brock at the center of the clearing. “I appreciate this,” Brock bade him, offering his hand to Mark, which the trainer shook respectfully. “Your name is?”

“Mark.”

Brock nodded to him. “Mark then,” he said, and then stepped back. “Now, Mark's partner here is a Blaziken. They are known for being both fast and hard-hitting physical-attackers. Although I have little to worry about from their physical strikes due to Onix's defense, their speed easily surpasses mine, and my attacks would be hard-pressed to land. The best way to gain an advantage would be to take away their speed advantage; there are a few attacks that could be used for this, including Trick Room, Rock Tomb and Scary Face.

“But those alone won't guarantee victory; it's up to all of you,” he pointed at the audience, “as the trainers, to determine how to give your Pokémon that advantage. To expect them to figure it out for themselves means we aren't doing our part for them. They battle for us, they win us the badge, but they don't do that without us to guide them -we determine the right attacks to use and when, along with the attacks they will learn, and we also must help them master them. Bear all this in mind when you go into battle; nothing is ever as simple as it seems.”

Brock turned to Mark. “Thank you,” he said.

“You're welcome,” Mark replied, turning and heading back to rejoin Randy.

Red was on his way back to the center to rejoin Brock as the Pewter Gym Leader went back to answering the second question he had been asked before. As he passed Mark, he looked over at him, raising his head enough that his eyes became fully visible beneath the rim of his hat, peering directly into Mark's blue eyes.

Time slowed to a crawl for them; Mark felt himself slowing as his gaze met Red's, peering deeply into those reddish-brown orbs as they sized him up, as if Red knew exactly why Mark was there. He could see intrigue in Red's eyes; a dormant curiosity, but that paled in comparison to the inner strength he could practically feel radiating from Red. Mark could feel his heart thundering in anticipation as the two continued to stare at each other, until both had stepped out of the other's peripheral vision, breaking their locked gaze.

Mark turned his gaze forward again, feeling his head slow back to a steady beat, and released a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. As he refilled his lungs with air, he felt Vitesse's eyes on him, looking at her to see her eyeing him with concern.

“Vitesse, my good friend” Mark said, his voice low and solemn. “There may be something to that whole 'eyes meeting' thing after all...”

In that short gaze between the two trainers, Red had challenged him...

Hours seemed like minutes as Mark and Randy explored more of the convention's attractions, doing a bit more shopping and even taking part in a few games, such as an archery challenge, shooting gallery -with pellet guns, of course- and a rope climb, which Randy won decisively as Mark had no experience climbing ropes. Halfway up, he had lost his grip on the rope and had to be caught by Vitesse, otherwise have the wind knocked out of him on the safety mat below.

Soon, though, their stomachs were growling and it was time to go find some lunch.

They left the convention center, heading back up to the ground floor and travelling next door to a cafe, where they treated themselves to some sandwiches and apple pie. Vitesse and Cairo sat at the table with them while Fang was eating out of a bowl on the floor. The rest of their Pokémon were outside, through the window where they could see them, eating their own meals outdoors. Occasionally they saw Coal and Thorn messing around as the Charmeleon kept trying to steal food from Thorn's bowl, but the Sceptile would always catch him, even when he attempted to sneak around him, leaving the Charmeleon flustered and huffing a puff of smoke from his nostrils in annoyance.

Later into their meal, Randy decided to spark up a conversation. “So,” he began after swallowing a mouthful of his sandwich. “How you liking the convention so far?”

Mark, who was in the middle of sipping his latte, set it down gently before replying. “Certainly not what I expected,” he said. “Most of what I envisioned is there -cosplaying, geeky conversations and so on, but I sure as hell didn't expect there to be shops with such amazing items and such fun activities to do.”

Randy chuckled. “I'd have thought meeting Red would've stood out most for you.”

“It did; I just figured that went without saying,” Mark clarified as he went back to eating his sandwich.

The bell for the door rang. Instinctively, Randy looked up from his meal to see who was entering, and his eyes widened at who he saw entering the cafe. “Speaking of which, Mark,” he commented, pointing towards the entrance with his pinky finger as the rest of his hand was occupied holding his sandwich.

Mark turned, peering over his and Vitesse's shoulders to look where Randy was pointing, and his jaw almost fell open when he saw none other than Red, along with Brock, entering the cafe. They were met by the waitress, who was leading them to a table when the two spotted Mark and Randy seated at the table, stopping to greet them.

“Mark! Hello again,” Brock started.

“Hello,” Mark returned. “Didn't expect to run into you a second time today.”

“Just taking a lunch break; same as you I imagine,” returned Brock. “Do you mind if we join you?”

“Not at all,” Randy replied, scooting further into the booth and prompting Cairo to follow his example, the Lucario sliding along the seat to make room for Red, who sat down next to him. Mark did the same, sliding further into the rounded booth until he was sitting next to Randy, and Brock sat down next to Vitesse.

A sharp yelp sounded from under the table; Brock jumped at least a foot into the air as he leapt out of his seat and peered under the table to see what had made the sound. “Oh! Sorry there, fella; I didn't see you!”

“What happened?” Mark asked.

“I think I stepped on his tail,” replied Brock. “Is this Mightyena yours?”

“He is, yeah,” Mark replied, leaning down to peer under at Fang, who was already back on his feet and glaring at Brock. “Hey, take it easy boy; it was just an accident,” he said.

Fang growled low, reaching down and picking up his food bowl in his teeth before he backed up to the counter at the front of the diner, sitting down between two stools before going back to his meal.

“Sorry about that,” Brock said.

“It's okay,” Mark returned. “I probably should've warned you he was under there.”

Brock turned to look at Fang, looking him over and nodding as though in approval. “A big fella, too,” he said. “He looks quite healthy.” He then looked at Vitesse. “The same with your Blaziken; I don't think I've ever seen a stronger looking one. Does he have a name?”

“She, actually,” Mark corrected. “Her name is Vitesse.”

Brock nodded, and looked at the Blaziken. “Pleasure to meet you, Vitesse.”

She cooed in reply, nodding her head.

Mark gestured to Randy and Cairo. “This is my friend Randy,” he said. “And that's Cairo.” He then gestured towards the counter. “And of course, you've met Fang.”

“Not the best first impression, unfortunately,” Brock commented, rubbing his head in embarrassment, before he sat straight up again. “In case either of you didn't know, I'm Brock, the Pewter City Gym Leader.”

“We know,” Randy replied. “Not my first trip to Kanto; good to meet you anyway.”

“And of course, at the convention, I already introduced you to Red,” Brock completed, gesturing to his companion.

Red reached up to his hat, lifting it slightly to show more of his face and smiling pleasantly. “Hello,” he said, finally speaking for the first time since the presentation he had done with Brock.

Randy chuckled. “You've been so silent I was starting to think you were mute,” he remarked.

“I'm not much of a talker,” Red replied with a light chuckle. “But I'm certainly not mute; it would be kind of difficult to lead my Pokémon if I couldn't talk.”

“Right...” returned Randy, nodding.

“Where are you guys from?” Brock asked.

“We're both from Hoenn,” replied Mark. “I live north of Mauville, Randy's from Mossdeep.”

“Both of you here for the convention, then?” Brock inquired further.

Mark gestured to Randy. “He is; I just tagged along,” he replied. “Actually, I'm here for something else entirely.” He glanced at Red as he said this.

“Mark here,” Red began. “Battled Blue and Lance about a week ago.”

Mark, who had been about to speak when Red piped up, felt his jaw fall wide open as Red completely gave him away. “How... did you know that?” He asked.

“I met them both on my way back to Kanto,” replied Red. “I was at the League, looking for Ethan, when I saw in Lance's battle room there were signs there had been a Pokémon battle there recently. When I asked him about it, he said a blond-haired trainer from Hoenn had challenged, and beaten him, just a few days before I got there. I stopped in Viridian as well, and sure enough Blue had faced a similar challenger.” He smiled at Mark. “There can't be too many trainers from Hoenn wandering Kanto that have a Blaziken,” he said, and pointed at the mega stone housed in Vitesse's shoulder harness and as if to confirm what Blue had told Mark back in Viridian city, he said, “with one of those.”

“And now,” Red continued. “I'm guessing you also want to challenge me?”

Mark chuckled. “I think you beat me to it when our eyes met back at the convention center,” returned the Hoenn trainer. “But yes... I need more time to train and prepare, but I came here to challenge you to a battle, Red.”

“And why, if I may ask, do you want to battle me?” Red asked, giving Mark a questioning look.

Mark glanced briefly at Randy, as if to ask him what he thought he should say, and then at Vitesse, who remained silent. Mark proceeded to explain his reasons. “I'm the former Champion of Hoenn,” he began. “I lost the title to Randy here,” he gestured to his companion.

“But then I lost the title to a trainer called Brendan,” Randy chimed in.

“I saw the battle on live television,” continued Mark. “And when I saw Randy lose... I don't know, it struck a negative chord with me. Made me wonder if I still had the capacity to call myself a Champion.”

Red looked at him oddly. “You think it was just a fluke?”

“I suppose, in a way, yes,” replied Mark.

Much to his surprise, Red scoffed. “Somehow, I doubt that,” he said.

“Excuse me?” Mark asked, confused.

“Reaching the Pokémon League and actually becoming the Champion are two very different things,” Red began. “Skilled trainers make it to the League but only the ones who are the most closely bonded with their Pokémon will achieve the Champion title. The Elite Four and the Champion are more than just trials to reach a title; they're a test, to see if you have what it takes to call yourself a Champion. Anyone who makes it there has that right; whether you keep it or for how long, those have nothing to do with what makes you a good trainer.”

Red paused as the waitress approached, offering to take orders for him and Brock. They told the waitress what they wanted, and waited until she was gone before Red continued. “I'm sure you know,” Red continued. “I never actually lost my Champion title; I simply gave it up. To me it really didn't mean anything, in the long run.”

“Why not?” Mark asked.

“When I first became a Pokémon trainer, my goal was to complete the PokéDex,” Red explained. “That was my only real goal. Along the way, I became the Champion because I was striving to become stronger -to complete the PokéDex I needed to be stronger, especially when it came to battling strong Pokémon and other trainers on the way. Soon, I started collecting Gym Badges, and then I challenged the league, and finally surpassed Blue -the one trainer I knew would always be one step ahead of me, and liked to remind me of it too -we were kids, of course, but Blue hasn't what you'd say... mellowed with age.”

He chuckled. “Anyway, I'm getting sidetracked. I held the Champion title for a while but, I began to realize that that's all it really was -just a title. It was a goal to strive for at one point, and an achievement to be proud of once you had it, but now that I had it, I needed a new outlet. So, I went back to my work to complete the PokéDex, which led me to some amazing discoveries, but I always needed to stay nearby in case a challenger came -travelling abroad became too complicated, so I surrendered the title, and the Elite Four decided amongst themselves who was suitable to take over.”

“So you gave up your title... because you felt it was irrelevant?” Mark asked.

“That would be the short of it, yes,” replied Red. “But there was more to it. After nearly losing a battle to a challenger, I realized... having the title had done something else to me,” continued Red. “My skills as a trainer had suffered because I had stopped training -I stopped travelling for too long. And as if to confirm this, I lost to Ethan atop Mt. Silver when I was up there to train again; he had just become the Johto Champion but he still managed to beat me, and that's when I realized what had happened.”

“What?” Mark asked.

Red looked at him. “I had become complacent,” he replied.

And with that one word, Mark felt his entire body become awash with a feeling that could he could not have put into words if anyone asked him. It was as though a stunning realization, like the discovery of a lifetime, had just fallen upon him. Several memories played through his mind, of his mother back home when she asked him if he had kept up his training. Of Blue and Lance calling him out on mistakes he should never have made, and now Red's words to him about why he had given up his champion title under the belief it had made him weaker.

It all made sense now. He was like Red; he had lost his Champion title because during the time that he had it, he had convinced himself that he was the best he could be. This, he'd already figured out recently, but Red had figured it out much sooner, and had given up his title before it could ruin him. Mark, on the other hand, had let his achievements go to his head, and it had all come crashing down on him for not realizing it.

In the end, he could have been like Red; he could have realized his imminent errors, but he hadn't... did he really know this all along, and just been in denial?

Well there was one way to find out.

“Yeah... I know how you feel,” said Mark, nodding to Red. “I think that's exactly what happened to me. I started this journey to prove something to myself, but it seems all it's turned out to be so far is a path of self-rediscovery.” He chuckled. “All I've proven to myself, really, is where I've been going wrong, letting myself and my Pokémon deteriorate from our previous strength, and all this journey has done was force me to accept it.”

He looked at Red again. “But that is also why I will continue it. I've come this far; I might as well see just how far I can go. The next step in that... is battling you.”

At that, Red smiled. “I don't know if your skill has diminished, having not seen you at your peak,” he said. “But you definitely have the spirit of a true trainer.” He nodded to Mark. “I accept your challenge, Mark.”

“Now that is a battle I want to see,” Brock commented, rubbing his chin and nodding.

“Same,” Randy agreed. “But where should they have it and when?”

“Why not the Pewter Gym? I'd be happy to host the battle for them,” Brock offered.

“Too confined,” Red replied. “We need somewhere more open. And probably a good idea to have it close to a Pokémon center; I have a hunch it's going to be quite the battle.”

“Up on the Indigo Plateau, maybe?” Randy offered.

“Possible,” replied Mark, nodding. “It's spacious enough, to be sure.”

“Another place I'd suggest is the big ravine outside the rock tunnel,” Brock offered. “There's a Pokémon center there, and it's plenty spacious. Not much traffic either if you're looking for privacy.”

“Either one is probably alright,” Red stated, looking at Mark. “Which would you prefer?”

Mark rolled his eyes as he considered the suggestions, finding himself a little keener on the idea of the Plateau since he already knew where it was. “I guess the Plateau, then,” he said.

“Then we'll have our battle outside of the Pokémon League,” Red stated, to which Mark nodded in agreement.

“Sounds like a good idea,” agreed Brock. “When should we schedule it for; tomorrow?”

“I'll need more time to prepare first,” Mark replied, shaking his head. “I should give Red the same, too.”

“Agreed,” replied Red. “One week from today, we'll meet at the Indigo Plateau and have our battle. But first...” He looked up as he saw the waitress bringing over his and Brock's orders. “Let's have lunch.”

Later, when the four trainers and their Pokémon were filled and satisfied, they left the cafe. Mark and Randy stopped to gather their other Pokémon who had patiently waited outside, returning them to their Poké Balls and getting ready to leave. Mark and Red bid goodbye to each other with a sportsmanlike handshake, their eyes meeting again for another few seconds as both could see the anticipation of their coming battle in the other's eyes, and knew that it would be one to remember...

With that, the two parted, with Red and Brock disappearing into town and leaving Mark and Randy outside the cafe, watching until they were gone.

“Well, Red's a friendly fella, eh?” Randy asked.

Mark nodded. “Seems so,” he said.

“So, what should we do next? Enjoy the next two days of the convention and then get back to training?” Randy asked.

“I'll stay one more day for it,” replied Mark. “But, midday tomorrow, I'm heading back to the camp to get back to training.”

“But there's two days left,” Randy reminded.

“You can stay for all of them,” replied Mark. “But my team and I can't afford to squander this time Red's given us. We'll take one more day of rest until midday tomorrow, five days of hard training, and then one more day to let them catch their breath, and then we'll be heading for the Indigo Plateau.” He shut his eyes, feeling his heart rate rising steadily again as he held back his excitement for what was to come. “Red's going to be the strongest trainer I've ever faced... I can't afford to waste time if I want to win.”

Randy sighed, but shrugged in defeat. “I hear you man,” he said. “Okay then; let's head to a motel and get some shut-eye, and then come back here tomorrow morning for more festivities.”

“Good idea; I was hoping to call my mom tonight anyway,” Mark stated. “Give her an update on how things are going.” He looked at Randy. “Where's the nearest motel?” He asked.

“Right this way,” Randy replied, gesturing up the street to the left, taking the lead and showing Mark the way to where they could stay...

Later that night, when the two of them had checked into their rooms, Mark used the video phone in his room to make a call to his mother's house. He hoped he wasn't calling her too late -she was and early riser to get all of the chores on the farm finished before the end of the day, a task she'd had to start doing all on her own ever since Mark had left home. She had a few hired hands to help her out but aside from them, it was just her -and her Pokémon of course.

Much to his relief, he received an answer. She was in her night clothes, but she was still awake and alert. “Hello?” Her voice asked through the speaker as the screen flashed to life, and she smiled brightly when she saw Mark. “Well hello there, sweetheart! How're you?”

“I'm doing good, mom,” returned Mark. “I'm off to a good start with my new journey.”

“Oh?” Diana asked, leaning forward on her hands as she listened. “Do tell.”

With that, Mark went on to explain what had happened since he'd left home, starting with the ride to Kanto aboard the S.S Julia. He told her about how he encountered Randy, and the rematch battle they had, where Randy's Zangoose had lost to Coal. He at first considered leaving out the details of the attempted heist, not wanting his mother to worry about him, but she beat him to it. “Hold on... the S.S Julia, you said?” She asked. “But wasn't that the ship that was attacked?”

_ _ “Yeah it... it was,” replied Mark. “The International Crime Syndicate attempted a heist while the ship was in international waters. But Randy and I stopped them.”

“You and Randy stopped them?” Diana repeated. “Mark, that was reckless of you; picking a fight with criminals? You could've been hurt!”

“I couldn't just let them take my Pokémon from me or from the other passengers,” returned Mark. “Don't tell me you wouldn't have done the same for any of yours if you'd been there.”

Diana let out a sigh. “I suppose I'd be lying if I said I wouldn't have,” she returned. “Okay, but still... they didn't hurt you, did they?”

“I got jabbed with a shock baton but otherwise I'm fine,” replied Mark.

Diana's face soured. “That's twice now you've run into the Syndicate,” she said. “First at Professor Sycamore's temp lab and now while in transit.”

Mark nodded. “I'm hoping twice is just a coincidence and that I don't run into them again,” he said. “I'm content on leaving criminals to the police.”

“Agreed,” stated Diana. “But you are in Kanto now, right?”

_ _ “I am. Sorry I didn't call sooner; I've been... distracted,” he admitted, chuckling. “I caught a new Pokémon, by the way.”

“Oh wonderful! What is it?”

“You're going to be surprised at this,” began Mark. “It's a bug-type.”

“A bu-what? But I thought you didn't like Bug-type Pokémon?”

“I... still really don't like Beedrill, but after encountering this guy, well... I guess they're not all bad,” he admitted. “And this poor fella had it rough when I found him. His trainer was a park ranger who passed away of fever while on duty; he was left alone for weeks, and we only found out about him because he was stealing food from the Pokémon League here in Kanto. We tracked him down and I captured him to calm him down.”

“Oh, how horrible,” Diana murmured, her gaze dropping. “The poor thing...” She looked back at Mark again. “What kind of Pokémon is it?”

Mark slid his chair back and reached into his vest, producing Saber's Poké Ball and expanding it. “Saber, come on out,” he bade, and the ball opened to release the Scyther, who materialized at Mark's side and beat his wings a little bit as he stretched, eliciting a buzzing sound before he looked up at Mark. “Here he is, mom.”

“Oh my, is that a Scyther?” She asked, leaning closer to the camera. Curiously, Saber stepped closer as well to peer at the image, but didn't move any closer than that. “It appears he's familiar with video phones,” she commented. “My, he looks strong! Well done, son.”

“I can hardly take any of the credit,” Mark replied, kneeling and petting Saber's shoulder. “I found him like this; all credit goes to the trainer who raised him before me.”

“Well then, they did a fine job,” said Diana, looking at the Scyther. “I'm so terribly sorry for your loss... Saber, was it? I hope you find happiness with my son and his team.”

Saber frowned somewhat, but he nodded gratuitously to Diana. Mark patted his shoulder again and told Saber he could stay out of his ball for a little while if he wanted. Saber nodded and stepped aside to let Mark resume his call with his mother, wandering over to the window to stare out at the night sky.

“So, have you battled those trainers yet?” Diana asked.

“Two of them, yes,” replied Mark. “Let me tell you mom, the trainers here in Kanto are some of the best I've ever seen; Blue Oak, the Viridian Gym leader, was as tough as Steven -strategic and damn tenacious to boot. I barely beat him. I next fought the current Kanto Champion, Lance the Dragon Master, and I'm not exaggerating when I say this guy lives up to both of his titles; he's way stronger than Drake.”

“And you managed to beat both of them?”

“By the skin of my teeth. And now I've met Red; I'm due to battle him in less than a week.” Mark's gaze lowered, resting his hand on the desk before him. “I can see it, mom; Red's going to be the strongest trainer I have ever faced. Stronger than Wallace, Steven, Randy -any of them. If I can be honest, I'm not entirely sure I can beat him...”

Much to his confusion though, Diana only smiled at him. “Maybe not, but that's not really the point, is it?” She asked.

“Wha?” Mark asked, confused by his mother's words.

“Mark, do you know why I wanted to test you before you left?” His mother asked. “Why I insisted on you battling me before I would let you go?”

“I assume it's because you knew I'd grown complacent,” he replied.

“That was part of it, yes. But there was more,” she explained. “When you and I last encountered each other at Ever Grande City, when I challenged you one final time before you would take Victory Road, there was a fire in you I had never seen any time before. I wanted to see just how strong you had become, to see the man that you had become. And when you finally defeated me, I was proud, and I knew then you would become the Champion.

“But after you did I saw that fire going out,” she went on. “You won every battle after, you stopped training -you came to believe that you were at the highest level of achievement any trainer could make, and as you said yourself, it made you complacent, and it weakened you.”

Mark grimaced. “Yeah... I think I've come to understand that now,” he stated. “Red told me the same thing happened to him while he was the Kanto Champion.”

“Did he?” Diana asked.

Mark nodded. “Yeah, but unlike me, he realized it before I did. Now here I am, out to challenge him, but have I regained my strength?” He leaned back in his chair. “Or am I just going to get my ass kicked next week?”

Diana chuckled lightly. “You will soon find out,” she said. “I see that fire awakening in you again; your journey has already reignited your passion. You're finding your strength again; I know it.” She smiled broadly. “You will find your way again, and you will see the world before you're through. I have little doubt that when you come back to Hoenn, you will be stronger than you've ever been.”

_ _ Mark felt a warmth rising in his chest at the confidence his mother expressed for him, feeling more at ease thanks to her kind words. He smiled broadly at her, and nodded his head slowly. “Thanks mom, I needed that.”

“Anytime; it's what a mother is for,” Diana stated. “Stay strong my boy; I'm sure you'll do great against Red. And don't forget, if you need anything, just call.”

_ _ “I will,” Mark promised his mother. “Thanks mom; I better let you go for now, and get myself some sleep. Got some busy days ahead of me.”

“Okay son; pleasant dreams. I love you.”

_ _ “Love you too mom; I'll call you again soon.”

Diana brought a hand to her lips, kissing her fingers before she waved to Mark for a few seconds before she ended the call, the screen going dark and allowing Mark to place the receiver back on the cradle.

Mark let out a sigh, leaning back in his seat and letting his conversation with his mother sink in, feeling rather humbled. His mother had known all along why he wasn't the trainer he once was, and he'd just been too dumb to notice it. But the question remained; was he back to his former strength so soon after making this discovery?

He heard a sigh in the room, and his eyes drifted over to Saber. The Scyther was still by the window, staring out at the skies above, as though counting the stars. He seemed sad; Mark could feel it, and so, standing up from his chair, Mark crossed the room, slowly approaching Scyther from the side to make his presence known to the mantis without startling him. Scyther glanced over at him out of the corner of his eye before turning his gaze back outside again. Mark knelt down, scooting over to stand next to him and joining him in the stargazing.

“Hey, Saber,” he bade. “You doing okay?”

The Scyther hummed in reply, lowering his head a little.

“Still thinking about your old trainer, aren't you?” He asked.

Saber nodded his reptilian-esque head, confirming Mark's question.

“I know it hurts, Saber,” Mark stated. “And it will for a while... but I'm certain he would be happy, knowing that you have found a new family, and are living out your life. He would want you to be happy; I know this for certain.” He rested his hand on the back of Saber's neck. “And I will do my best to do that for him, in honour of his memory.”

Saber looked at Mark, still wearing that sad frown, but he met Mark's gaze, expressing a silent thanks to his new trainer for his comforting words. Mark continued to pet the back of his head, doing his best to comfort the Scyther, until an idea passed through his mind.

“Hey Saber,” he began. “How would you like to battle with the rest of the team against Red next week?”

Mark knew he had intrigued the Scyther when his face lit up at the question...

As he planned to do so, Mark was set to leave Celadon city the following afternoon, spending the course of the night on his battle plan for taking on Red; now that he had seven Pokémon with him, he needed to make sure he picked the right ones.

Doing some last-minute research on Red, he uncovered as much information as he possibly could -but in truth there was little for him to find. There was no pattern to how Red entered battle; he changed his Pokémon choices quite frequently, the only exception being Charizard -that was the only Pokémon he had that literally appeared in every major battle Red had fought, from his eighth gym victory in Viridian to his appearance at the Pokémon World Tournament, it was his go-to Pokémon and without question would be his most powerful.

If Vitesse were to have a chance against Charizard, she and Mark would have to train harder than ever before. She was the only one who had any chance against it; ideally Siren could also challenge him but from what Mark had seen, Red's Charizard specialized in Physical attacks -if Mark sent her against that, she wouldn't last long. But, she could still be backup for Vitesse if she lost.

Ideally, he decided, he should take along his most experienced Pokémon. That meant Coal would have to be the one he'd need to put into storage for the battle, and train with the others.

Of course, it was easier to think that than actually do it...

When Randy arrived at the Pokémon center that morning looking for Mark, the moment he opened the door he was greeted with a sharp yell that could only have belonged to his comrade. He dashed into the Pokémon center to see what was wrong, and saw Mark struggling with a rather angry looking Charmeleon that was chomping on his arm.

“Coal, come on! Let go already!” Mark bellowed, eventually needing Vitesse to intervene and pull Coal off him, but he soon squirmed out of her grasp as well, dropping to all fours on the floor. “Boy, please don't make this more difficult; get back in your ball and go!”

Coal yowled in an almost cat-like manner at Mark, shaking his head briskly before he whipped around and slapped the Poké Ball from Mark's hand with his tail when he tried to recall him again. “Dammit, Coal!”

“What's going on over here?” Randy asked, stepping over.

Mark looked up at him. “Coal refuses to let me transfer him to the storage services,” he replied. “Soon as I tried to send him, he exploded out of his ball and started making a fuss.”

“Why were you trying to transfer him?”

“I wanted to keep my team with my most experienced Pokémon for my battle with Red,” explained Mark. “Coal's only fought in a few battles. But he's being stubborn,” he finished, leering at Coal, who was down on all fours glaring up at Mark.

Randy hummed in thought, frowning at Coal's manner. “Seems he really doesn't want to be separate from you,” he said.

“I understand that, and I wish I didn't have to put him away but if I'm going to have a chance against Red, I'm going to need Scyther along as well -we already know he's an excellent fighter. The next step is to balance out the typing I have available; with Vitesse I've got Fire-type covered and her Dual Chop gives me a Dragon-type attack.”

“So ideally you don't need Coal for the battle,” stated Randy.

“Right, but as you can see,” stated Mark, gesturing to the angry Charmeleon. “He won't take 'no' for an answer.”

“Grrrr,” the Charmeleon growled, still prone as he glared up at his trainer.

“Wow; never met a Pokémon so averse to being separated from their trainer even for a short while,” Randy replied. “You know that actually means Coal is really attached to you.”

“I know,” Mark returned, sighing. “Coal practically thinks of me as his father, just as he thinks of Vitesse as his mother -we were both there when his egg hatched and we both have played a part in raising him.” He looked at Coal. “I guess now I know just how attached he is...”

Coal growled again, but his expression had become more relaxed than before.

“So, what'll you do?” Randy asked.

“No choice; if he won't be stored, I'll have to keep him with me,” replied Mark, before he looked at Coal with a very serious look. “Just remember, boy, if you're going to stay with me during this week of training, there won't be one complaint about how hard it is, understood?”

Coal finally rose onto his hind legs again, standing upright once more and nodding. “Arrr,” he growled in reply.

“Good,” returned Mark, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall behind him as he hummed in thought. “So now the question is, who do I keep and who do I put away now?”

“Well let's go over who you've got now,” Randy began. “I know you're already keeping Vitesse, Fang and, of course Mr. Stubborn Scales here,” he looked at Coal with a cheeky grin, earning a dirty look from the Charmeleon in return. “So, the rest are Tanker, Palm Tree and Scyth- pardon me, Saber, right?”

“Right.”

“So you've got two close range speedsters, one close range tank, one all-range saboteur, a speedy ranged attacker and a flying bomber.”

“Right,” agreed Mark, nodding as he considered his options. “The way I see it, my ranged game is off, so I need Siren for this battle.”

“I would swap her with Palm Tree,” suggested Randy. “Palm's good, but Siren fills a gap he just can't. Plus, if Red has any Ice-types, poor Palmer wouldn't stand a chance.”

“Palmer?” Mark echoed.

“What, you never call him that?”

“Never crossed my mind. But you're right; I have to give up my only flier but hopefully Red doesn't bring any besides his Charizard as well,” stated Mark, reaching into his vest and taking out Palm Tree's Poké Ball. “There's one complication though.”

“What's that?”

“If I deposit Palm Tree now, I'll have to head back to the camp site on foot,” he replied.

“I could lend you Skyclaw if you want,” offered Randy.

Mark eyed him questioningly. “And how would she respond to that?” He asked. “I haven't forgotten about her biting you on the head when you ticked her off.” But, rather than wait for Randy to answer, Mark elicited a hum as an idea crossed his mind. “Actually... going on foot could work.”

“Eh?”

“The training gear I bought,” explained Mark. “One of the items is a Power Anklet; a weight worn on the legs to help develop leg strength. Maybe this is an opportunity to use that on the way back to the camp.”

Randy understood what Mark was implying quickly, giving his companion a skeptical look. “You intend to run back to the campsite?” He asked. “It was two hours’ flight to get here from there; on foot that'll take at least twice as long.”

“Well then our training starts now,” returned Mark, smiling as he looked at Vitesse. “What do you think girl?” He asked, before shifting to a more challenging tone. “Think you can handle it?”

She narrowed her eyes at Mark squawking at him and pumping her arms as if to say “Of course I can!” And kicked the air in a display of her readiness.

“Excellent,” returned Mark, turning to the PC again, this time with Palm Tree's Poké Ball in his hand, looking at it briefly. “Dammit this is always so hard to do...” He muttered before he reached out with his arm and placed the ball into the transporter. “See you again soon, Palm Tree.”

Once the ball was placed, Mark turned to the PC, and punched in the required information before requesting that Palm Tree be exchanged for Siren. With a flash of light, Palm Tree's Poké Ball vanished, and the screen displayed the progress of the transportation, showing the image of a Poké Ball travelling to its destination, it flashed a confirmation of its arrival. Seconds later, another image appeared from the end and began to make its way towards Mark's location.

When the image reached the end, the transporter flashed brightly again, and Siren's Poké Ball lay in lace where Palm Tree's had been only a moment before.

With that, Mark took the ball, returning it to his vest and patting it gently. “Welcome back, Siren,” he said. “Alright; I guess that's it. Time to get going.”

“Sure you won't stay for the rest of the convention? There are other events still coming,” Randy inquired.

But Mark shook his head. “I need every moment I can get if I'm going to battle Red,” he stated. “Every hour we can commit to training, the better our chances of winning. And even if we can't beat Red I want to give it my best shot either way.”

Randy nodded in understanding. “Alright. I'll join you in a couple of days then, and once your training is finished, we'll have a sparring match -Vitesse, against the Pokémon who beat her previously.” He smiled. “We'll pit her against Cairo.”

Mark smiled back. “Sounds like a plan,” he said. “We'll see you then.”

With a short handshake as their goodbye, Mark left the Pokémon center with Vitesse and Coal following close behind, slinging his backpack over his shoulder as they turned to make their way out of the city. Mark walked with a stride in his step, his determination welling up within his chest like a heat wave, eagerly anticipating the battle that awaited him in the coming week. He hadn't thought much about it before now, but he was really looking forward to it; after battling Blue and Lance, and seeing what amazing trainers they were, he longed to find out just how powerful the one trainer that surpassed both of them really was.

He was anxious, excited and afraid all at the same time. His opponent was one of the greatest trainers in the world, and it would take everything he and his Pokémon had to win...

Finally leaving the city limits, Mark turned to the Pokémon accompanying him. “Coal, Vitesse,” he began. “Our training starts now. We're going to head back to the camp site, and we're going to run the whole way there.” He unslung his backpack, bringing it around and lowering himself onto one knee as he placed it on the ground and opened it. “But it's not going to be any ordinary marathon; we're going to up the ante if we're going to be ready on time to battle Red.”

From inside his backpack he revealed four cylindrical items, blue in colour, with a ridged design held together with metal clasps that appeared to be adjustable for the varying sizes between wearers. He tossed one of them in his hands, testing its weight, before he stood up and approached the two. “There anklets are training items,” he explained, passing two of them to Vitesse for her to put on, though Coal would likely need help with his. “They're heavier than they look, but if we use these to help develop your leg muscles it'll make you two faster than a runaway Rapidash.”

Vitesse nodded, and knelt down to begin putting on her own anklets, while Mark had to sit Coal down in order to better reach his legs, adjusting the anklet to better suit his size before placing them on and shutting the clasps, letting Coal hop back to his feet only to jerk in place when he felt the added weight on his limbs; they were much heavier than they looked, and on his little body it felt like anchors on his feet.

He looked up at Mark, frowning and tilting his head with a rumble in his throat. “You wanted to stick with the group so you need to train hard just like everyone else,” he stated. Coal answered him with a guttural croaking, in a tone that suggested he was asking a question. Mark understood what he was trying to say, and narrowed his eyes at him. “Yes, it's too late to swap with Palm Tree.”

Coal groaned loudly, his tail flicking as he dropped his head. Vitesse reached over and patted him on the back in an encouraging manner. “Don't lose heart, buddy,” Mark said, in a gentler tone this time. “I'll be running with you the whole way. We're in this together after all.”

Mark felt a tickle on his chest, coming from the holster of Poké Balls on the right. He looked down at his vest, lifting open the flap and reaching in to find Fang’s Poké Ball was trembling. Expanding it to its unlocked mode, Mark opened the ball, letting the Mightyena out and waiting for the Mightyena to fully materialize before looking at him. “Something wrong boy?”

Fang shook his head in reply, barking twice and casting a glance at Vitesse and Coal before he dug at the ground with his forepaws, watching Mark as the trainer assessed what he was trying to say. “You want to... To run with us?” Mark asked.

Fang barked again, turning about in a circle and going to stand between Vitesse and Coal. Mark beamed at the show of support from the Mightyena, and nodded to him. “Alright then,” he said as he began to remove his vest and over shirt. “The four of us will run together all the way back to the camp.”

With his vest removed, and the button-down flannel shirt he wore under it soon to follow, Mark was left only in a white muscle shirt, putting the other two articles of clothing into his backpack and slinging it onto his back again. He had his own weight to carry; the other training items and his supplies all filled this rather large backpack he wore; he would share the burden of this training with his Pokémon all the way. Their exhaustion would be his exhaustion; their effort would be his effort, and in the end, they would all be stronger, as a team. This was how he used to train them -train with them, and this was how he would do it again.

“Okay team,” stated Mark as he stretched his legs, warming up for the run. “It's time to go!”

Fang barked and Vitesse crowed at Mark's enthusiasm, and began to jog ahead, taking point with the two following immediately, along with Coal bringing up the rear. They left the road, charging into the wilderness beyond with a spring in their steps; Fang eventually moved ahead to take the lead, acting as a guide for them while Mark stayed alongside Vitesse and Coal, holding the straps of his backpack to keep it from bouncing too much while keeping pace with the two fire-type Pokémon.

They ran. They dodged trees, leapt over pits, even strode across a fallen tree one at a time to use as a bridge over a stream before getting back to their sprint, treating the woodlands around them like an obstacle course. Mark felt the burn in his legs, and was certain his Pokémon felt it just as much, but he refused to back down.

Half an hour into the run, Mark looked to Vitesse, checking her condition; she was barely showing any signs of effort from weight of the anklets, but that came as little surprise -she went on runs every day back home, and her leg strength was already beyond measure, but he was confident this would help her train become stronger and faster still. Coal, however, showed a bit more of a struggle; though he was used to running he was lighter and not as strong as Vitesse, and the effort to keep up with his trainer and surrogate mother was visible on his face -grit teeth, clenched eyes, and panting heavily through his nose.

Mere moments passed before Coal started to lag, panting now through his mouth and losing speed. Mark slowed down a little run alongside him. He could see the little Charmeleon was struggling now, and how he was fighting the urge to stop and catch his breath.

“Come on Coal; don't give up!” Mark called out to him, trying to encourage him. “Red's most powerful Pokémon is a Charizard; one day, you'll become a Charizard as well. If we work hard enough...” He paused to take in a breath himself. “We'll make you an even stronger Pokémon -a stronger Charizard than even Red's! Now come on, buddy; you can do it!”

Coal's eyes narrowed as he listened to his trainer, feeling Mark's faith in him and his trainer's determined heart filling him with strength. His eyes widened again, his head lowered, and away he went, surging ahead of Mark and gaining ground on Vitesse and Fang. “That a boy, Coal! Feel that burn, like the very fire that powers you!” Mark cheered him on, increasing his own pace to catch up.

His encouragement was working; Coal was no longer struggling, forcing his way through the exercise with renewed vigour. Vitesse squawked her own encouraging words at him -in her own way, and Fang barked back at him, showing his own support as he continued to lead them through the woods, dodging around Pokémon nests and dens to avoid stirring the locals. It made their trip longer, but safer, and avoiding the interference of wild Pokémon. Some had even stopped just to watch them pass, but Mark ignored them, staying focused on the task at hand...

An undetermined number of hours passed -Mark had lost track of time over the course of their run, but by the time they emerged from the woods and into the clearing, he could see the blue rain cover of his tent straight ahead, and the end goal in sight gave him the last bit of strength he needed to reach it. It wasn't until the four of them passed the camp fire that finally they stopped, all four of them collapsing onto the grass and gasping for breath, hearts thundering in their chests and lungs crying for air.

It had been a long time since Mark had exerted himself in such a way, running for such a long period, but his exhaustion did not outweigh his satisfaction, knowing that in the end this would be for the better of his whole team.

This was only the beginning.