You know, I’ve found myself in a lot of precarious situations considering I’ve only been in this world for…three days?

I have to share an insane story with a lovely stranger working in the middle of the woods, and she’s the nicest person I feel like I’ve ever met. Maybe up until the next person I met in the middle of the woods, but they’re both swell regardless.

Then I convinced myself to avoid conflict in the first city I arrived in after a misunderstanding, and I ran away. Mind you, I very narrowly avoided jail time and maybe a prison sentence… but I still ran away.

I then met the aforementioned woodland angel that is Mark, and he gave me what feels like millions of dollars of equipment just for having met Tabitha.

And then I’m finally given my first…job. Save the baby. I mean child. Dammit, Buddy. This later leads to me electing to murder two people that… probably deserved it, and managing to catch my second Pokemon while avoiding charges being pressed for second degree murder. Or maybe third. I’m not really sure what that’d be.

Yeah, that’s a mess. It’s some good mixed in with some real bad. And now that I’ve finally made it to Ecruteak, I have the peace of mind to actually sit down and clearly reflect on everything I’ve gone through with a hot meal in front of me and my two friends at my side.

This is bullshit, and I need to be very wary so I don’t keep falling into these pits of stress. The problem is that hardly any of these problems could be predicted well enough ahead of time to avoid, let alone properly plan. Ugh… Let’s table that for now.

Ecruteak was a hell of a sight when the trees thinned and I could make out the city from Route 42. Old, but sturdy Japanese-style homes littered the landscape. I could see multiple rice paddies scattered across the horizon, with moderately large homesteads next to each one. Off to my right is a large tower, reminiscent of Japanese pagodas from my old life. I’d never seen one in person before, and… I wasn’t sure they were that big back home either. One, two, three… ten tiers to that. It’s a hell of a sight. That’s clearly the Tin Tower… or the Bell Tower? I feel like both are right. Either way… Knowing what I know about Ecruteak from the games, though… If there’s only one tower visible, then the Brass Tower has already burned down. I’m not sure how long before canon events it was said to burn down, but, well, what with all the Nurse Joys around, and Pryce being an elderly gym leader, I felt safe assuming I was sitting pretty in some sort of timeline at least loosely corresponding with video game canon.

Not that I think I can trust that. I still don’t really know what the hell a Charcadet is or what it’s capable of. They certainly weren’t available in Johto to my knowledge. All I can guess is fire. Suicune called his dad a ghost, so maybe he’s a ghost type too? Or… no, if the game lore is correct, then Pokemon are the same species as their mother, huh? So Kid is whatever the one with the golden armor was. Amarouge, I think it was. I should have written those names down. They did look a little similar in build, what with the whole armor around their thin bodies, so maybe it’s a split evolutionary line, like Eevee? It feels rude to ask, so hopefully I can get an opportunity to do some research. I can ask him about any moves he might know later, though. I need to do some research regarding Buddy too, for that matter. I’d hate to buy a Fire Stone down the line (how much even will those be?? I’m still broke!) and see that it doesn’t work. They’ve both gotten looks and stray comments, though, so I hope that there’s actually information at least somewhat attainable for me. Hell, I’m in Johto, maybe I can try to introduce myself to Professor Elm when I pass through New Bark to ask about Taylor. It’s possible Professor Oak has that whole radio show thing and I could get in contact with him through Goldenrod… That might be asking a lot, though. Enough of that though, I’ve been spending my time in silence with my…buddies… since we got to the Center in the southern part of town a little bit after sunset.

I haven’t really talked to anybody since we got here besides Nurse Joy number four, who took Buddy and Kid for a quick checkup. Kid was apparently a little malnourished and I was advised to keep him on a strict diet of something or other, which I wrote down and will check later when I have money to actually buy it. Mentioned I need to keep an eye out for his pupils shining with the faintest bit of blue before moving him over to the fire food Buddy eats after referencing something on her computer (I’m gonna need that source, ma’am, I’ll be making a request later). What she recommended wasn’t something I have on me, sadly. Buddy is the picture of health, though, and can keep on keepin’ on. Nurse recommended getting protein and carbos supplements for him to have along with his meals. Guess they do similar things as the games, which is neat. She went on about how she hasn’t seen a Charcadet in all of her time as a nurse, and she…was no spring chicken, respectfully, so that told me a lot about Kid. Given his apparent rarity and the fact that I’ve dealt with poachers on a two per six day ratio so far, perhaps I should recall him to his ball while we walk around town? I don’t really recall either of them to their balls very frequently, for that matter. I can’t help but feel that recalling them is like putting them in time out, and they’re…well, they’re good boys. I don’t really want to do that. I’ll think about it.

We all wrap up our supper and I essentially ignore the rest of the trainers around us. There’s been quite a few in the center, none of which I’ve really observed. They’re a bunch of kids, younger than Taylor even. Reminds me of her quinceañera, but without the guest of honor. Channeling my inner grumpy old man, I’m pretty irritated at sharing the space with loud, smelly teenagers, but I try to keep it internalized since it’s literally nobodys fault here. They’re just on their journeys, and I’m on my own.

On that note, Buddy met a local Growlithe. She was wandering around the cafeteria as we ate, and charged as soon as she caught Buddy sitting with us. They spoke for a bit, mainly her asking how he managed to grow that much hair, and it garnered a bit of attention. I…probably gave off an air of being unapproachable, considering I assume seeing an uncommon Pokemon would be a conversation starter. Yet, nobody walked up and spoke to me.

I’m fine with that. For now, anyway. I’d rather get some sleep.

It was still a little early, maybe 7:30 or so, but I did talk to Buddy and Kid and we decided to hit the hay early. We spoke of walking around town, learning about the area, and finding the gym. We also wanted to find a nice place to train, so there’s that too. Kid is excited about that, and I’m… I admit, I’m a little excited about seeing what he’s capable of.

We reach our room (third floor and stairs, ugh, give me a ground level room please), and they’re out like a friggin’ light. There’s a small communal washer and dryer on each floor, so I decide to bathe and wash my clothes before I go to bed and I leave them to their own devices in the room. I… think I’ll see if either of them want a bath before we leave tomorrow. Maybe I can ask one of the nurses about soap, shampoo for them? I definitely want to get some grooming kits for them so I don’t have to rely on other people to help take care of them, but I’m still standing very heavily in the realm of I’ll take what I can get.

The bath was heavenly, and my clothes are washed quickly enough. There’s a teenage boy who’s running his clothes at the same time as me, and he did not hide his disgust at having to share, but I wasn’t going to wait. He threw his in after me, and I managed to easily convince him that they’ll all end up clean in the end, anyway. Not like old men are the ones known for being dirty… that’s teenage boys. I kept that to myself though.

We did talk a little about the gym, though. He started in Cianwood, apparently, and he just got into town. He mentioned Chuck and Jasmine by name when he talked about his past gym victories, showing off both the Storm and Mineral badges, and was here to face Morty for his third. I congratulated him, and wished him luck.

He didn’t ask about me, what I was doing here, or my circuit. I don’t know what he assumed, but I’m guessing he didn’t think I was here on a circuit of my own. Ah, being old.

I know I look younger, but I guess looking fifteen years younger when you’re 37 is still old to a teenager.

Brats.

After separating our clothes and bidding farewell, I went back to my room to find Buddy and Kid knocked out. Smiling, I strip down from my still-clean clothes into my skivvies, and lay down on the bed, closing my eyes. Falling asleep quickly, I whited out.

And woke up promptly to both Kid and Buddy staring at me, with light shining through the window.

Buddy, good morning!

Buddy Silas, good morning! Training today??

“Good morning,” I grumble. “And yes, training today. But this afternoon. I want to see if I can face a gym trainer for some money first so I can actually get the food the nurse told me to get and a phone.”

Will… will I be fighting today, Buddy Silas?

No, ruff. Kid, I will be fighting. Right Buddy?

“Both of you chill,” I say, standing up and putting my clothes on. “Buddy will fight, since I have no idea what you can do yet, Kid. We’ll get you set up as soon as we can though, I promise.” He grunts and kicks the pillow I was laying on to the floor in a show of frustration.

Okay, fiiiine….

… Why do kids have to act like that? Whatever.

The buddies and I trek downstairs for breakfast, noting that there aren’t nearly as many trainers up at this hour. It’s maybe, what, six in the morning? Good, I think. Kids are the same in all realities. Sleep in, I’ll go about my business. There’s one teenage girl sitting on a couch with a Bayleef napping on her lap, watching what seems to be the news, and another teenager on the opposite side of the lobby flipping idly through his phone. I meander past towards the cafeteria, where there’s a couple more teenagers lazily inhaling their food with some of their Pokemon out. More typical starters than I would have anticipated…. Two Totodile and a Charmander catch my eye, all sitting and eating next to different trainers. Maybe I’m the odd one out.

We snag our grub, take a seat, and make short order of our food. Kid is grumbling a bit, and I’m picking up notes of complaint about not being able to battle in the gym today. Buddy told him about gyms and battling on our walk to Ecruteak after leaving Mark yesterday, acting as if he has the end-all of all knowledge. Maybe to Kid, but.. Come on, Buddy. We’ve had a single gym battle, and it was atypical at that. Not only that, but we lost.

I let him maintain his pride as he regaled his heroics against Pryce’s Sneasel, only narrowly losing the fight after it being neck and neck the entire time.

Sure thing, Buddy. Sure.

Breakfast is finished, and we quickly shuffle out to see the sights. The gym isn’t that far from the center. We actually walked by it on the way to the center yesterday evening, and I spared it a glance. It only takes us a few minutes to reach the building in question, and it’s as I saw yesterday.

In the same style as the homes that flood the sleepy city of Ecruteak is the gym. Dark, slanted roof in that typical Japanese style with sliding doors and a few errant tinted windows. A signboard in front signifies it as the Official Ecruteak City Gym under management of Gym Leader Morty. There’s no hours of operation on the sign, nor are there any sorts of signage on the building itself, so… Well, let’s just see. It’s not quite 7 yet, but there are other folk walking around, certainly busier than midday in Mahogany Town. The gym might be open. We approach the entrance, and as I raise my fist to knock, the door slides open.

“Gooooooooooooooooooooooood morning, challenger!” A young woman, maybe about Taylors age, with black hair up in a twist, wearing a…kimono?... greets me with a huge, confident smile on her face. “Welcome to the Ecruteak gym! Come in, come in! Aha!”

She spins 270 degrees in place and sidesteps the entrance, bowing slightly and gestures both of her arms inward. I roll with it and step inside, as she slides the door closed behind me.

The lobby isn’t that big, but it’s larger than the one in Mahogany. Maybe 20 by 30 feet with a receptionist's desk in the center, and multiple, closed sliding doors leading to who knows where. The woman skips past me silently on the wooden floors in her socks, and steps behind the desk, sitting down with a triumphant “aha!” and smiling at me again. “Come, come! I’m Alisha, official Pokemon League Gym Trainer, operating here in the Ecruteak City gym!” She gives me a peace sign and grins toothily with her eyes closed.

I can’t not see the anime girl in her actions.

But her friendliness is contagious nonetheless, and I approach the desk with a smile on my face, pulling my prepared trainer card out of my pocket. “Hello, Alisha,” I say. “Pleasure to meet you. Love the energy. My name is Silas and I’m hoping to get a gym battle or two done today in preparation for a badge challenge?” I hold up my trainer card within reach of her above the desk, and she nods and takes it in hand.

“You got it, Silas!” She quickly slides my card in a machine, and puts it in some sort of scanner to..photocopy it, maybe? It’s soon pulled out and handed back to me, and though the smile doesn’t leave Alisha’s face, her expression turns serious as she types into the computer. “So… Silas of.. Mahogany. Ooh, registered just four days ago? Late start in the season… I don’t see a win registered in Mahogany though. Gonna tackle it later?”

“Yeah, that’s the plan,” I say. “Had an attempt against Pryce himself, didn’t go so hot. Heh, pun. Anyway. We’ve got some training under our belt now though, and we made a new friend though after going through Route 42, so... Yeah. Here we are.”

“Excellent, my man! We can work you in, no prob, no prob,” she says, aggressively nodding at everything she says. She folds her arms and closes her eyes, resting her chin in one of her hands and hums, then opens up her eyes and points a finger up, signifying she has an idea.

More anime girl actions. Why is this so entertaining? As long as I don’t see an uwu, I won’t complain.

“Aight, Silas,” she says, giving a cocky grin. “You want some gym battles to qualify for Morty? Well.” She stands up and puts her hands on her hips, giving me the fakest evil glare she can spare. “You’ll have to go through me to get to Morty, mister!”

“Oh no, what ever will I do?” I playfully mock.

“...what? Wait, I mean, AH HA HAAA!” as she abruptly breaks, and goes back into character. “Let’s take this to the battlefield, Silas! Show me what you can do!”

She maintains a playfully cocky air and steps out from behind the desk, going through one of the doors on the wall behind the desk, and I follow with a smile on my face, letting out a chuckle. Buddy and Kid are hot on my tail, silently observing the entire situation. Buddy’s had a perpetual head tilt since we came in, but I did catch Kid playfully copying some of her actions. He’s even walking behind me with his nose turned up, full of confidence. Go get ‘em, boy.

Stepping inside, I’m reminded of the Mahogany gym quickly. A more well-maintained battlefield with some bleachers off to the side. Contrary to the cool tile that was in Pryce’s gym, the floor here is a finished wood, much like in the entryway. It’s very pretty, and I wish I could see everything clearly, but.. I can see them leaning into the whole Ghost-type theme, as some of the overhead lights are left (presumably intentionally) off. There are a few individuals in the stands sitting next to each other, dressed similarly to Alisha. Two male, one female, with mugs of coffee or tea in their hands. They turn to us as we walk in, and give Alisha a wave. One of the girls gives a hoot when I walk in, and shouts “Yeah, early battle! Get ‘em, guy! Kick her butt!”

I give a wave and a chuckle. All three of them wave in return, and Alisha confidently struts across the battlefield as I stop in what I feel safe assuming is my spot. I’m proven correct as she steps into her square, promptly and smoothly spins to face me, and points a finger at me.

“Silas! Let me welcome you again to the gym!” she shouts, grinning maniacally. “Our leader, the all mighty Morty, will not deign to face you until you can prove your worth! You must get through the four heavenly kings, first of which being me, the strongest of the four! Alisha!”

…Chuuni. Heh. Okay.

“That’s not true, you only have to fight three of us,” the other woman in the stands yells out. “She’s just being extra.”

“Charissa! Shut up, I’m working here!” Alisha gets red and turns to her coworker in embarrassment.

… I woke up in a good mood. I got you, Alisha.

“Heavenly king!” I shout, folding my arms. “Accept my challenge! Tell me the rules of this bout, so we may begin our combat! This will be a tale for the ages! Ho ho!”

I see the three gym trainers in the stands cringe. Alisha, though…

“Challenger! It shall be a one on one contest between your champion, and my own!” she responds in kind, putting a hand in front of her right eye. No, don’t go that far. “Maryanne! Raise yourself from your rest and come observe our timeless combat! It is your sworn duty to officiate! And you, Silas! You shall never overcome the darkness that is my guardian! Welcome, the prince of shadows and lord of the dark. Shuppet, let’s go!”

Shaking her head and setting down her morning drink, Maryanne (the one that whooped for me when I first entered the arena) approaches the side of the arena, equidistant between Alisha and I. Alisha throws a ball to nearly the center of the field, and after a red light flashes and the ball rebounds back to her hand, which she catches with a flourish, I’m left to see a spherical, levitating…something… covered by a gray cloth. I’ve seen pictures of Shuppets in the game, but it’s kinda creepy. Cute at the same time though. It grins at me, bright yellow eyes sparkling, and shouts its name… clearly yelling For the princess! Hi-yah!

You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version.

These two are a match made in heaven.

Maryanne sighs, and picks up some flags that were sitting on the ground. One red in her right hand on Alisha’s side, and blue on mine. “This will be a one-on-one, official contest between the challenger, Silas, and gym trainer Alisha,” she announces clearly, and over speakers that must be set up around the large room. Neat, wasn’t expecting that. Makes sense though. “If the challenger is victorious, they will hereby be deemed and noted of sufficient skill to face a tier two gym trainer, ultimately culminating in a challenge for the Fog badge at difficulty level…” she stops, pulls the mic I didn’t notice before down, and looks at me. “How many badges do you have?”

I slightly jump at the acknowledgement, not expecting to be spoken to. “None, sorry.”

She nods, and continues, “..at difficulty level one! Challenger, please release your Pokemon!”

I nod. “Buddy, let’s do this,” I say clearly. I then lower my voice and mutter to him “Focus howl and bite when she says start. Ghosts are weak to dark energy. Buddy bounds into the ring,stopping about ten feet from the center, and stands at the ready with a few barks..

Right, Buddy! I will win this time, ruff!

Kid moves forward a little to stand in front of my feet, ooh’ing in wonder as the battle is about to begin. “Challenger Silas, gym trainer Alisha! You may…..begin!”

Buddy immediately howls as I instructed, and I can see an aura surround his body, presumably signifying his physical prowess being increased by some sort of energy. I’ve noticed it plenty before, but I haven’t spared it thought until now. What is that, really? I wonder if I can touch it, giving the intrusive thoughts voice in my psyche.

“Shuppet, charge and astonish!” Alisha yells.

“Buddy, it’s gonna be loud, don’t get startled! Finish your howl and bite!”

The Shuppet charges in and when it’s a few feet away, begins absolutely screaming as it tackles Buddy with its cloak-covered body. Buddy holds firm at my instruction, and lowers his head after his howl, bracing himself against the contact. As Shuppet begins to pull away, a dark aura surrounds Buddy’s mouth as he opens up his mouth and chomps down right on the side of it’s head, Shuppets eyes subsumed entirely by Buddy’s mouth. Buddy then growls as he shakes his head back and forth in typical dog motion, and Shuppet flies out of his mouth after a few seconds, its cloak shredded and falls limply to the floor.

It doesn’t move.

“Shuppet is no longer able to battle!” Maryanne shouts, raising the blue flag. “Silas is the winner!”

Alisha returns her Shuppet, and approaches us as Buddy gallops back to my side and runs circles around Kid and I, constantly barking, saying that I won, I won, I won, Buddy! I smile at his enthusiasm and meet Alisha in the middle of the ring. She gives a slight bow with a genuine smile on her face and extends a hand, and I shake it in turn.

“Congratulations,” she says. “Very good battling, both you and your… Buddy? I’m not sure what he is. But yeah, good job. Up for the next one?” She grins, and faces the stands, looking either at the man who hasn’t spoken up yet or…Charissa, I think she said.

“Thank you, he’s trained hard for this,” I smile. “Uh… yeah, sure, right? Buddy, you good to go for another?”

YAAAASSSSSSSSSSS.

Buddy runs circles around both of us with seemingly endless energy, howling. Alisha laughs, and says “I take that as a yes?”

“Yeah, for sure, thanks,” I say. I then lean in and not-whisper to her not-quietly, “I have proven my strength, Heavenly King. Give me the next foe.”

“Josh, you’re up, get your ass over here!” Alisha blushes and turns away from me, yelling. “Thanks, Silas. Good luck.” She keeps her head down and quickly walks away from me in a stiff walk, going to sit down in the stands next to Charissa. Josh, Maryanne, and Charissa all chuckle at her behavior and my comment, but remain silent otherwise, choosing not to tease her further.

Josh then approaches me, meeting me in the center of the ring, and offers to shake my hand. I do so, and he speaks. “Greetings, challenger Silas. A pleasure to meet you,” he says, bowing. He’s taller than the rest, and a few inches shorter than me. Fairly thin, and has a kind face. He’s probably a little older than Alisha, maybe early 20’s? “My name is Joshua, gym trainer of Ecruteak. Good luck.”

“Thank you, likewise,” I say, releasing his hand. He smiles and nods, then turns around to go to his side of the battlefield. I do the same, telling Buddy to come on and wait by me first. Buddy follows and we’re all soon in position.

“The following will be a one-on-one, official contest between the challenger, Silas, and gym trainer Joshua,” Maryanne announces over the loudspeaker, giving us a nod as we take our positions. “If the challenger is victorious, they will hereby be deemed and noted of sufficient skill to face the tier three Gym trainer, ultimately culminating in a challenge for the Fog badge at difficulty level one! Gym trainer Joshua, please release your Pokemon! Challenger Silas, follow suit!”

Joshua nods and lobs a ball he had prepared out onto the field, throwing it just a few feet in front of him. After a flash of light and rebound, a… What the fuck is that? It’s really small from this far away. It’s literally like, the height of his shoe and half as wide. Is that a…cup? Like a little black and white ceramic bottle maybe, with little green somethings floating around it. Fuck. Well, it’s a ghost gym, so… same strat.

“Buddy, same strategy,” I say. “I have no idea what that is though, so be on guard.”

Right, Buddy!

Buddy charges to nearly the center of the arena, staying just barely on his half, standing at attention. Maryanne speaks over the loudspeaker. “Challenger Silas and gym trainer Joshua, you may… begin!”

Buddy starts the match same as the last, instantly howling and embracing the swirling energy into his body. I’m watching Joshua in my peripheral, and I can tell he’s talking, but he’s staying quiet enough that I can’t make out what he’s saying over Buddy’s Howl. Buddy charges in after his attack buff with a snarl, as the bottle…man, this is hard to make out, but it looks like it picks up the lid off of its head with the little green floaties, and…shit.

“Buddy, to your right, turn and run! It’s some type of spore attack!”

Buddy turns on a dime and loops around, running back to me and dodging the little flakes of powdery light that came flying out of the cup bottle thing. He returns back to his starting position with a growl.

“Burn it with fire!” I shout, as Buddy opens his mouth and shoots a veritable shotgun of tiny fireballs in the direction of the… ghost. Let’s just call it a ghost. It’s probably a ghost.

Joshua raises his voice with an “Endure, then Night Shade!” as the…ghost…puts it’s lid back on and places it’s green floaties in front of it’s body, shining with a faint light. The fireballs hit, and something about the interaction tells me something about its type.

“That was definitely effective, Buddy!” I yell out, observing the ghosts reaction. “Don’t stand still! Move around, keep your eyes on it, and Ember again when you can!” I shout. Buddy performs admirably as a blot of darkness floats out of the lid of the ghost and starts…auto-tracking Buddy. Shit. “Change of plans. Aim and fire now, Buddy, you can tank the hit! It’s gonna make you see things! Just keep firing straight after it hits you!”

Buddy spins on a dime and lines up with the ghost, and shoots his shotgun of fireballs. The blot of darkness falls upon Buddy’s face, and fireballs continue to be fired from where his mouth was. The ghost is hit with a few errant fireballs, and collapses, while the darkness fades into the ether. Buddy…does not stop firing. “Buddy, you’re good! You’re not seeing things anymore! It’s knocked out!”

Buddy promptly stops his Ember, but not before the fainted ghost takes another hit and Joshua returns it before the still-flying balls can hit it. I can see an amused grin on his face, as Maryanne calls the match with the blue flag in the air.

Joshua and I meet in the middle and I grimace, apologizing before he can speak. “Sorry about that, I didn’t mean for Buddy to kee..” he raises a hand and stops me.

“It’s fine, Silas,” he says with a smile. “Very impressive, knowing what an attack is capable of doing. You stopped us in our tracks. Poltchageist will be fine, he’s a tough cookie. You needn’t worry about him.”

I smile, noting the unfamiliar name of the ghost Pokemon, and give Buddy a pat as he’s standing on two legs, pushing his front two against my waist with his tongue lolled out. “Thanks, and I’m glad,” I say, reaching out to shake his hand. Upon letting go, he gives me a nod and walks back to the bench, and I bend down to tell Buddy that he’s a damn good boy for fighting that night shade and he preens in delight.

“You up for another one?”

I hear a voice from where I was standing during the battle, and I turn around, not knowing anyone was there. Buddy and I see Kid nervously side-stepping away from a man standing in our trainers box. Taller than Joshua and almost as tall as me is a fair-skinned man with blonde hair and… whoa. Blood-red eyes. I didn’t know that about him. The man in front of me is clearly Morty, wearing a black pullover and white slacks, a lazy look on his face with a confident smirk.

“Against you?” I ask, straightening up and approaching him.

“Yeah, I think we can skip the last gym trainer,” he says, smirking a little wider. “You have good battle sense. No need wasting time.”

I reach the battle box, a couple feet from Morty, looking into his eyes. I think for a moment, and let out a sigh. “Sorry, not quite. I had a plan and I’d like to stick to it,” I say, smiling with a disappointed look on my face. “Two on two was the plan, right?”

Morty’s smirk disappears at my refusal and responds. “Yeah.”

“Only Buddy’s battle ready, and I promised Kid to train after we were done.”

Kid. Oh Kid. I noticed how he was reacting to the two battles Buddy partook in, and he was enthralled. I could see the literal fire in his eyes increase in size as Buddy made every chess move leading to the eventual checkmate. After his enthusiasm earlier today and the way he watched the first two battles, I had quickly made the decision that… “I’d also like Kid to face the third gym trainer before facing you officially. Gym Leader Morty, yes?”

Morty lets out a sigh and gives me a neutral expression, nodding. “Yeah, I’m Morty. Seriously though? Come on… I heard this was a level one challenge. You can do it with the… uh… What is your Pokemon, by the way? I don’t wanna be rude and assume.”

“Growlithe, regional variant. His name is Buddy. And yes, seriously. Kid,” I gesture to Kid, who’s since approached me and is standing by my side, looking up at Morty with a firm (and excited) expression. “Kid is totally stoked to battle, period, and giving him a gym trainer battle and a fight against you will be just what the doctor ordered. But… I’m not going to throw him in unprepared. So no, not today. But I appreciate the offer.”

Morty looks at me with a touch of surprise on his face, and he regains his smirk. “Okay. I respect that. Fresh catch, then? Makes sense. Good luck. I’ll catch you around then,” Morty says with a turn and a wave over his shoulder, going through the front door and turning left to go through..well, I don’t know where he’s going. Somewhere in the building.

I feel a tap on my shoulder and I jump. Turning, I see it’s Charissa. “Sorry!” She says, taking a half step back from me. “Uh, so did you want to schedule a battle? If you come in early on any morning we’re probably free like we were today. But if you want to book a challenge with me, and maybe a tentative appointment for Morty right afterwards, we can guarantee we’ll be available.”

I nod in agreement. “That sounds good, and you’re fine. Was just a little…focused. I wasn’t expecting the gym leader to challenge me today,” I say with a laugh. “So yeah, appointment? Uh… tomorrow afternoon should be enough time.”

Charissa smiles and says “sure, if you’ll follow me, we’ll get that set up,” and walks out the door to the lobby.

I turn and give a wave to Joshua and Maryanne, and they wave in return. Alisha is watching and starts to raise a hand as I put my hands on my hips and give her a loud “Ho ho! Until we meet again!” I spin in place and confidently walk towards the lobby, but not before seeing Alisha’s face turn beet red and she buries her face in her hands. I grin in satisfaction as Buddy and Kid follow me.

Setting up the appointment is simple enough, as I select a 2:50pm start time for my challenge against Charissa and a 3:00pm challenge against Morty, pending my victory. She also requests my trainer card, which I give her, and she slides it in the computer and hands it back to me, with a “there ya go, three thousand for each victory for a total of six thousand.”

I’m confused. “A what?”

She tilts her head in confusion. “Your..payment? For winning two battles?”

“It’s on the card? And six thousand what?”

“What? Yes, it’s on the card. What do you mean six thousand what?”

“I’m sorry, uh,” I say, trying to gather my thoughts. “I’m not actually from Johto. I’m new here. I knew you could receive money for winning gym trainer and leader battles, but I didn’t even think about what to expect. I also…have not seen any money since I got here, so… I don’t know…what the denomination is even called…” I reluctantly say, embarrassed at the admission.

“Oh! Really? Cool! Well, not cool that you don’t know, cool that you’re foreign, I couldn’t tell,” she says, speaking quickly with a friendly smile on her face. “Uh, dollars? So, you’re only eligible for the prize money the first time you defeat a gym trainer and leader. So like, if you came back in say, five years, and you challenged us again, you wouldn’t be able to earn any money from winning. One time thing. The reason is because the rewards are…pretty high,” she explains to me, pulling out a piece of paper.

She continues, writing things down as she goes. “So, like, say you want to get a phone. A nice phone might cost you a thousand out the door, and you have monthly payments for about…fifty bucks? Depends on your provider,” she says, writing the numbers down. “The thing is, lets say you’re in Goldenrod, and you grab a coffee at stArboks. That’s like, five dollars, and the baristas working might make around fifteen an hour?”

I’m stunned in interest at her in-depth explanation, and she goes on for a few more minutes, explaining the value of the dollar here and finishes up with why this is so much money that gym trainers win.

“So there’s a lot of unmarked areas around Johto, not to mention any other place, yeah?” she says. “The Pokemon League authorizes particular amounts to be rewarded to incentivize trainers to actually train their Pokemon. Even if someone goes on a journey and gets maybe four badges, then gets stuck at their fifth gym, they’ve still made a good bit of money, something they can use to pay for an education or put in their savings to prepare to buy or rent a place. They also now have trained Pokemon, which are suuuuuuuuuper necessary to help protect smaller villages. Big cities like Ecruteak are fine. Ecruteak in particular is like, the domain of Morty and his family, and their Pokemon have been protecting the area for literal centuries. So wild Pokemon that could hurt someone aren’t an issue. But further out? No clue what sort of danger could be lurking right outside of a domain, so… Having more trained, combat-ready Pokemon help keep everyone in the country safe.”

I nod at her explanation, understanding the necessity. “Sure, I get you. Makes a lot of sense now that I think about it. So even though it seems like the end goal for all serious trainers is the Conference and the League, everyone participating in the circuit indirectly contributes to Johto’s well-being at some point, so the expense is justified.” She furiously nods. “And of course, all gyms have a one-time only rewards system so it can’t be abused.”

“Yep! Is it not like that where you’re from?” she asks.

“No, “ I honestly say. “Everything is basically settled, so no big money rewards for going to the gym. If anything, you gotta pay the gym to go and work out.”

“Wow! Crazy. I can’t even imagine,” she says.

“Yeah, crazy,” I say. “Anyway. Thank you for the explanation, I appreciate it. Hard to be aware of things you’re not aware of, yknow?”

She chuckles in response. “Yeah, no problem. Okay, well, Silas, you’re all set. I’ll see you tomorrow at 2:50!”

I nod and give her a wave as I walk away. “For sure, I’ll see you then. And if Alisha is bothered, please pass on my apologies. It was fun.”

“No way!” she laughs. “Now she knows how the rest of us feel!”

I laugh, and exit the gym with Buddy and Kid, satisfied with my morning so far. Now, to find a place to train with Kid and buy his recommended food. Oh, and…maybe a cell phone, huh? I wonder how Tabitha’s doing. Hopefully well.

I didn’t white out.