The New Normal - 16-3

The New Normal – 16-3 – The Tournament Begins

Just as I hoped, the public reception from my confrontation with PLASMA had been favourable. PLASMA had been made to look foolish, and better yet, they were made to be liars.

After our ‘debate’, whenever they were brought up in conversation over the Pokénet, it was no longer about whether their message was actually worth considering. Instead, everyone was laser-focused on PLASMA’s goal to have everyone release their Pokémon by force.

Absolutely no one wanted that – the idea was simply anathema to them. So even as PLASMA tried to do damage control, many had already been swayed away from their cause, and it was too late to salvage their reputation for some.

Furthermore, from the information we received from Looker, we had a very rough idea of the current overall manpower of PLASMA. The numbers showed that PLASMA were still far less of a threat than Cyrus, as they could not field anywhere near the number of grunts that Team Galactic could during the height of their power.

In other words, PLASMA’s numbers seemed to be more akin to the numbers fielded by the combined Team Aqua and Magma when they were still in Hoenn. Enough to be a threat, but not overly so. And if they failed to recruit many more members, that might be seriously stifle their growth and ability to project power.

That was a pretty big win, but that was only the first step. As Cyrus had shown, sometimes the ambition to enact great evil could be enough to cause utter catastrophe. And I knew that Zinzolin wouldn’t give up just like that. He would be back for more.

However, for the time being, there was little else we could do against the PLASMA members in Sinnoh as they hadn’t committed any crimes for us to act upon. So Cynthia just told me to focus my attention back on other matters.

For one, she had informed me that her inquiries regarding the plot of land in Route 221 had been returned, and it turned out that we had really lucked out there. Like I had hoped, the land could be bought for cheap as there wasn’t any future developments planned for the area. No one expected Route 221 to be popular, and we were offered an opportunity to purchase it for a very reasonable price.

Needless to say, the two of us took that offer practically on the spot. We didn’t need to be Steven Stone to know that it was a great deal.

For now, we both agreed that we didn’t need to start building any large houses or anything, since I wouldn’t really be able to live there for the time being anyways and Cynthia preferred to stay close to Celestic Town. Therefore, we just held onto the land for the time being – we would wait until my permanent move to Sinnoh was closer to becoming a reality before we began planning out what we wanted to do with the land.

I still wasn’t exactly sure if I wanted to use the space to build something similar to Pal Park, especially since I didn’t know how much such an undertaking would cost. I might be wealthy, but not to the point where I could be completely frivolous with my money.

Again, I was no heir to Devon Corp.

Aside from that, preparing for the Tournament had taken up the majority of my attention. Despite the distractions, Elesa and I had been training up very hard together to make sure that we would have a legitimate shot at winning the whole thing. And I was proud to say that we had made great strides towards that goal.

We worked really hard on fighting in the ‘Ornstein and Smough’ way, where we perfected having my Pokémon capitalise on Elesa’s incredibly quick attacks to deliver hugely powerful blows of our own. For example, we coordinated our attacks so that an occasional well-timed paralysis could allow my Pokémon to score a one-hit KO with their devastating follow-up attacks.

Furthermore, we started to work around each other’s buffing moves, making use of each other’s either incredible strength or speed respectively to buy time for the other to start setting up. Moreover, things became even better when I discovered that she was actually proficient with using Taunt to deny an opponent’s setup. Her Taunts weren’t anywhere as potent as Karen’s, but the speed with which she could deliver them more than made up for it.

Therefore, unless her opponents were just as fast as hers, she could shut down most Pokémon right as the battle starts, denying them an opportunity to disrupt our own team. And with other supporting moves like Encore and Helping Hand on her Emolgas and Zebstrika, she was really coming into her own as an excellent supporter for my own Pokémon.

On my end, I focused more on developing my Pokémon’s Electric moves and the speed which they could be fired off at. Not to do damage, but to make sure that I could help power up her Pokémon’s own Motor Drives when necessary. Additionally, I also took the time to make sure that even my bruisers, who did not usually take up a supportive position in a fight, also got some more practice in making use of moves like Yawn, Encore and Helping Hand. Smough and Tyrant could use all three moves, while Vordt could use the latter.

I might not end up using them much, but it might be a surprise factor to catch an enemy off-guard as they wouldn’t expect such moves to come up my bruisers – who were known for their overwhelming strength and little else.

Overall, I was very pleased with the progress that we had made, and now that we were in our final day of preparation before the Tournament began, I felt that we were ready.

Ready to win it all.

===================

The Fight Area was absolutely packed – way more so than when the Battle Frontier had its opening ceremony. It was like witnessing the crowds during the beginning of a Circuit, only even more intense.

Without any exaggeration, the entire Fight Area was just overflowing with people. The nearby hotels, villas, and other temporary accommodations were utterly filled to the brim with people, and there were still many people lining up outside trying to somehow get their own reservations. The ports had an endless stream of ships trying to dock and discharge their boatful of passengers, which only added more and more people into the already packed Fight Area.

It was truly, seriously, an insane amount of people. It goes to show just how excited people were for this tournament.

Everywhere I looked, Jennys were running around trying to maintain some semblance of order – doing their best to make sure that people were queuing up in orderly lines as they tried to make their way into the massive stadium.

And the stadium was truly the largest I had ever seen, with space inside to contain multiple battle arenas. Cynthia told me that it was purpose-built for the Battle Frontier, so that they would have a big space to use if they wanted to host any biannual special events.

As participants, we wouldn’t have to wait in line and could enter through one of the back doors. Which was a huge time save, as the line for the stadium was so long that it literally snaked around a good chunk of the Fight Area. It looked like it would take hours just to get everyone inside.

I thanked Arceus that I wasn’t in charge of dealing with the logistics for such an event. It wasn’t my problem to think about – but it probably explained why Cynthia had bags under her eyes recently.

Elesa and I had chosen to arrive a bit early, and we made our way to the waiting room as there was an opening ceremony that we needed to attend; which Cynthia had hinted was going to be a grand thing. Once that was over, the schedules for our battles would be released, and we would be getting right into the battles for the preliminary stage.

Because of the point system and the new format of this Tournament, it meant that there were many more battles that needed to take place. Fortunately, the massive size of the stadium meant that there was enough space for multiple battles to take place simultaneously.

As we entered into one of the waiting rooms, we were quick to discover that we were far from alone.

“Hey, glad for you to join us, you two.” Flint waved us over to where he was sitting next to Janine, Koga, and Flannery. “We were just talking about you, actually.”

“Oh really?” I asked as I sat, “What about us? And where’s Volkner? I thought he’d be with you.”

“Nah, Volkner hasn’t arrived yet. I guess he probably forgot to wake up as usual.” Flint chuckled, “But anyways, we were just chatting about who we’d want to face off in the group stages, where there isn’t technically a risk of getting eliminated. We all said that facing your team would be best.”

I nodded understandingly. I would probably say the same in his position.

Because you were technically able to lose ‘consequence-free’ while in the preliminary stage, it was the best time to lose if you wanted to learn from your losses since you only needed to have 3 wins out of 5 battles to make it to the next stage. Whereas a loss in the elimination stage meant you were out of the tournament entirely.

“And why us in particular?” Elesa asked, “Because you want to get a hold of our strategies?”

“Exactly.” Flint nodded, “Or to put it another way – we know that unless something completely unexpected happens, you both will likely one of the toughest pairs to beat in the entire tournament. So it’s best that we test ourselves against you while we still can afford to lose, rather than later when the stakes are much higher.”

“Makes sense.” I nodded, “But surely there are other teams more formidable than us? I mean, have you seen the progress that Karen and Iris have made from their posts on the Pokénet? They’re no slouches either.”

“That is true.” Skyla, who had been casually listening into our conversation, agreed as she walked up towards us, “I talk to Iris from time to time, just to make sure she’s okay. And she always likes to brag about how strong she’s getting and how ready she is for this Tournament. I know some of this might be just her usual enthusiasm, but my gut tells me that they’re going to be major contenders to come out on top.”

“Not only that, but they’re also likely to win the public vote too if they get eliminated early.” Candice, Skyla’s partner, added, “The public love seeing an underdog story. And while Iris is far from an underdog, her young age makes her look like an underdog. She’ll easily be one of the crowd favourites.”

Koga snorted, “Perhaps she has some competition in that respect. My daughter has been quite beloved ever since her ascension too.”

Janine blushed deeply; but was that Koga trying to show off his own daughter? Wow. That was definitely a rare sight. Though I approved, of course.

“My sister has nothing but praise for Janine too.” I added, “She’s been very happy to work under her.”

Speaking of her, Whitney was doing well. She was very much on her way to earning sufficient credentials to be a valid candidate to become a Gym Leader herself. She was angling to become a Head Gym Trainer within the next few years or so, though not necessarily at the Fuschia or Saffron Gym. She told me that if the opportunity came in another Gym, she would take it if that means she could  be closer to her final goal. Her friends more than understood.

“Wait, on a different topic, I know that the matches are going to be held simultaneously, but how is that going to work?” Flannery asked, “Aren’t large or powerful enough attacks going to inevitably affect the other matches?”

“Technically, they shouldn’t.” Candice replied, “I’ve heard repeatedly from Cynthia about how the psychic shields that have been set up to split up the fights are extra sturdy for the tournament. So you shouldn’t have to worry about that – outside of some really strong attacks, of course.” She gave me and Flint a pointed look as she said that, to which we both deliberately ignored.

We continued chatting for a bit longer, occasionally greeting the new arrivals as they came in as we caught up with everyone. Eventually, all of the participants had finally arrived, and there was an announcement for all of us to come to the main arena where the opening ceremony was hosted.

As I stepped into the arena, I saw that a massive stage fit for a contest had been set up right in the middle, tastefully decorated with bright and colourful banners, posters, and the like.

Though I hadn’t been informed of the details, Cynthia had told me that she spared no expense with this year’s Tournament, both because it was meant to show off Sinnoh’s prestige and grandiosity to Unova, and also because the other two regions were also partially helping to fund the Tournament.

That last part was probably the most important. No way would she be willing to fund all this extravagance otherwise.

So as we, the many Gym Leaders and Elite Four from all four regions, stood in the middle of the arena, we were bombarded with the screams and cheers from the many, many spectators that surrounded us from all sides. I looked around at the banners that they had brought, and was pleased to see that many of them were cheering for the Unova arrivals, even though they were on foreign soil.

After a solid minute or so of pure cheering, Cynthia finally took to the stage as she served as the announcer for the opening ceremony. “Hello everyone! Whether you are here in person, or are viewing this Tournament from your screens at home, it is my pleasure and honour to welcome you to the first ever Pokémon World Tournament! A Tournament that will encompass all four of our great regions!!”

The crowd’s cheers exploded once again in a thunderous roar of excitement, and Cynthia’s smile only grew as she took in their exhilaration, “That’s the kind of excitement I like to hear! So make sure you keep that energy as we introduce the partners for this Tournament! Partners, step forwards!”

We did as ordered, splitting up into groups of two as we stood next to our respective partners. Most, if not all, of the public would have already known and have analysed every detail of our partnerships by now, but this was all for show. We stood there in our groups, waving to the crowd as the cameras panned across all of us.

“There are a total of 28 different partnerships that will be participating in this Tournament. Only one of them will come out on top. Only one of them will be able to claim the grand prize. Only one of them will prove themselves worthy of being the ultimate victor in the Pokémon World Tournament! And to be the victor, this Tournament will be a test of teamwork. It will be a test of strength. It will be a test of strategy. Everything will be tested if they want to win it all! SO GIVE IT UP FOR YOUR GYM LEADERS AND ELITE FOUR!! SHOW THEM YOUR SUPPORT!!”

As the public continued to shout themselves hoarse, a curtain of fire suddenly erupted out from the pyrotechnics set up on the stage. Battle music started playing through the loudspeakers, and the contest trainers emerged onto the stage, taking up their positions as they began their performance.

Two Infernape appeared from within the flames, with two Sceptile appearing out of the ground right behind them. The Pokémon began to ‘fight’, with the Infernapes throwing out Fire Punch after Fire Punch while the Sceptile attempted to parry the blows with well-timed Leaf Blades.

And because this was not a real battle, but rather a show, the Pokémon moved as if they were performing a dance – elegant and mesmerising.  

The Infernape dodged a Leaf Blade by performing a backwards somersault as fire trailed after it, only for it to land on the shoulders of its other Infernape and spun off of it to deliver a flaming wheel kick at the opposing Sceptile – which formed a perfect ring of fire in the air.

That Sceptile fell back dramatically, but the other Sceptile stepped forwards with leaves circling around it that quickly transformed themselves into a spear of multi-coloured leaves that hurled itself towards Infernape. The spear struck true, exploding into burst of vibrant colour in the symbol of a Pokéball that lingered in the air for a brief moment before it was incinerated by Infernape’s flames.

The Pokémon continued to exchange blows for a little longer, until a ‘critical hit’ from Infernape managed to knock a Sceptile off of the stage. Now left alone, the remaining Sceptile let out a roar of determination as a sword of leaves appeared in its hand, and it stood down against the two Infernape like a knight preparing its last stand.

With a wordless charge, the Sceptile rushed towards its two opponents, parrying blow after blow as it twirled its sword around like a blade dancer. For a moment, the Infernape seemed to be pushed back, until suddenly the sword was incinerated by a Flamethrower, and the Sceptile soon fell afterwards.

Just as Sceptile fell, the curtain of flames that served as the background was abruptly extinguished by a huge torrent of water, as a massive waterfall now replaced the doused flames.

A pair of Swampert and Blastoise appeared, firing off pulsating rings of shining water that sparkled in the air, that sent both Infernape tumbling to the ground. The Fire types scrambled to come up with a counterattack, placing their palms together as flames in the shape of a shield formed above them. In response, the Blastoise carefully shaped their orb of water so that it transformed into a sparkling drop of water – where the image of a rainbow Pokéball was reflected upon it – before it crashed down into the fiery shield below.

The shield of fire failed to hold up against the flood of water, and both Infernape ‘fainted’ as a result.

Suddenly, a shadowy hand emerged from the ground as they dragged both of the fallen Infernape away. Then, an eerie screech echoed throughout the arena as a pair of Sableye and Mismagius floated out from the darkness and ambushed the two Water types from behind.

The two Blastoise stood side-by-side, with their backs facing each other as they did their best to fend off the two Ghost types with a barrage of Hydro Pumps. And yet, the two Ghosts repeatedly evaded the attacks as continuously disappeared and reappeared in random places around the stage, until they slowly but surely worn down the Water type pair.

This cycle repeated itself for some time, with each pair of Pokémon representing a partnership in this Tournament. Obviously, the performance was meant to demonstrate the battles to come, though wrapped in an artistic exhibition that showcased the beauty of such battles. Furthermore, as more pairs were revealed, the later pairs no longer shared the same typing, and almost always consisted of Pokémon originating from different regions – another nod to our own partnerships.

Sadly, there were no Unovan Pokémon on display, but that was certainly due to logistical and practical limitations rather than any malicious desire to exclude them.

In the end, the performance concluded with a grand spectacle of a battle. A Dragonite and Milotic faced off against a Garchomp and Metagross. They had brawled for a while, but as I saw the Dragonite and Garchomp suddenly start glowing with a blindingly blue aura, I knew that the finale had come.

The skies above suddenly darkened as huge orbs of concentrated draconic energies filled the skies. Both Garchomp and Dragonite were staring each other down as they readied their ‘Draco Meteors’. In the meantime, an ocean of rocks and steel began to levitate into the air around Metagross, while Milotic charged up an enormous torrent of water in its mouth.

Then the attacks all came down at the same time. The Draco Meteors that were all shaped like Pokéballs ‘exploded’ on the ground, causing a wave of draconic energy to harmlessly wash over us (as we had been covered by a psychic shield beforehand). Similarly, the Milotic and Metagross unleashed their attacks, burying the other in a torrent of water and steel respectively.

All four Pokémon collapsed to the ground as they failed to endure through the attack, and in the midst of all the rubble and smoke, a single Sceptile from the very beginning, which still wielded a half-burnt sword of leaves, limped out from within. It looked like it was moments away from collapsing. But with determination blazing in its eyes, it held firm, walking to the centre of the stage as a golden light shone down from above.

The Sceptile bathed in the light as its ‘injuries’ rapidly healed themselves – with its sword reforming itself to its former splendour. Then it stood upright and raised the sword triumphantly into the air – symbolising its victory.

Thus, the performance came to an end. Everyone, included us participants, cheered and applauded. It was completely unlike all of the other contest performances I had previously watched, as this was more like a battle dance rather than anything else, but it was incredibly fitting for the opening ceremony of the Pokémon World Tournament.

My colleagues around me clearly shared my opinion, and from the corner of my eye, I could see Will practically buzzing with excitement as he seemed like he had found his inspiration.

“I HOPE YOU ENJOYED THAT AMAZING PERFORMANCE FROM OUR CONTEST PERFORMERS!” Cynthia spoke up again, “BECAUSE WITH THAT, THE POKÉMON WORLD TOURNAMENT IS FINALLY UNDERWAY! THE BATTLES HAVE NOW BEGUN! BATTLERS AND SPECTATORS, LOOK TO THE SCREENS ABOVE TO FIND OUT YOUR FIRST MATCHES! MAY LUCK BE ON YOUR SIDE, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING SOME AMAZING BATTLES AHEAD!”

We all immediately did so, and I ended up chuckling as I found out who it was. Flint had gotten his wish after all, as our first match was against both him and Janine.

I turned to see Flint staring at me with a challenging smile on his face, which I met with one of my own.

A hand tapped on my shoulder, “Are you ready for our first battle, John?” Elesa asked me. Her expression was unreadable, but her eyes betrayed her excitement. She was ready.

I responded with a battle-hungry grin of my own, “I am. Let’s win this whole thing, partner.”

And so was I.

A.N. AND THE TOURNAMENT BEGINS! This was definitely a set up chapter, but there’s going to be tons of battles to come, so I hope you enjoyed! The first one’s against Flint and Janine!

As for the contest performance itself, I wanted to experiment writing a battle that wasn’t meant to be a battle – but rather, an artistic expression. So I tried my best to add sufficient descriptions so you could envision what it was like in your head. It wasn’t easy, so I really hope it worked!