BUZZ

Drako leapt forward into the air towards magmar, furiously pumping his wings to build up speed. Drako didn’t want to play keep away with air slashes and I agreed that he could let loose. Magmar had begun sprinting towards Drako, but was met halfway there by a dragon claw to the head.

Magmar was still able to retaliate with a thunder punch that caused Drako to land, tearing up the ground with his claws. As Drako slid back, he released a dragon breath that caught magmar directly. Though magmar quickly dashed into melee range while charging up a thunderpunch. Drako cut off his dragon breath, expertly pivoting to slip by magmar’s punch and deliver a nasty whip with his tail. Magmar was looking injured, but fit to fight, as they recovered from their tumble.

“Char!” Drako spoke to the magmar, challenging them to a contest of flamethrowers.

“Magmar!” Came the spirited response and flames erupted from both of them.

The flames clashed beautifully in between them, holding steady for a couple of seconds. But then, magmar’s flames slowly decreased in strength while Drako kept up the pressure. As the seconds ticked by, Drako’s flame was getting closer and closer to the defiant magmar who fought back with all his strength.

Right when Drako’s flame truly overpowered magmar’s and was rushing towards them they were recalled. To my surprise, the opponent forfeit immediately after. Courtney quickly exited her box and left with a displeased expression on her face.

I wanted to race after her to see why she was angry, but decided it would be creepy and unwanted. She wanted to be left alone judging by her actions. Drako picked up on my misgivings and gave me an inquiring stare.

“Nothing, buddy. Why don’t we grab some food, we’ve been here a while.”

At that, he perked up and I returned him and retrieved Hellen before exiting from the matchmaking service. I went to the pokecenter nearby to have them checked out and after dropping them off, I noticed Courtney sitting in the waiting room.

She was clearly avoiding looking at me, so I sat down and kept to myself. Putting headphones on, I occupied my time with my phone watching some videos compiling some standout rookies. Any battles in the Battle Arena or other authorized arenas were broadcast and uploaded on the internet. You could have private battles in one of the enclosed arenas, but it cost extra to not upload the fight since the videos brought a lot of revenue. In this world, entertainment is almost synonymous with pokemon. With pokemon battling being the dominant form of entertainment.

I was able to find some compilations featuring a couple of interesting new trainers. They would be the people I compete with at the end of the upcoming season since they separated newcomers from veterans at the Indigo Plateau Conference. This allows people on their first circuit to stand out on the national stage instead of just being dominated by Ace trainers. It was different from most tournaments which were separated by trainer ranking, though to make it to the conference you would have to be a Class C - Seasoned Trainer at worst.

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The trainers I found were dominating their local battle scenes. Some of their aces were a burly monferno, a sturdy marshtomp and a ferocious gyarados. I didn’t bother remembering names yet as the season hadn't even started yet and no one had their full team.

“Orick Ortiz, your pokemon are available for pickup.” I heard over the speakers, causing me to approach the front desk.

I was told by the nurse that my charizard was fit for battle and that my bulbasaur would need to wait until tomorrow to battle. I thanked them and went to an expensive restaurant to treat my team for their hard work.

I let out Drako and Hellen, once seated at the restaurant. We had a private booth big enough to fit everyone.

“Char.” Drako said as soon as he was released.

“Yeah, I know. You want a humongous steak.”

“Zard!” He smiled at me.

I looked over to Hellen and found her hunched over.

“What’s the matter, Hellen?” I ask as a walk up to her with a concerned expression. The bond assured me she wasn’t hurt physically, but she was feeling a maelstrom of emotions. Mainly guilty, jealous and discouraged.

“...bulba…” She muttered without meeting my eye.

“Hey girl, why are you feeling down? You did great today at the arena.”

“Saur.” She says dismissively.

“I’m telling the truth. You took out three pokemon, one with a type disadvantage. You should be proud.”

She finally looks at me and lets me know what’s really going on through our bond. She feels overshadowed by Drako. Seeing him go through several matches and come out undefeated made her question her worth.

I lean in and hug her. “Hellen, you’re a part of this team no matter what. Even if you hadn’t beaten a single pokemon, we would be proud of you because we know you did your best.”

“Char! Char!” Drako reaffirms my point.

“And you don’t have to worry, once you’re a venusaur you’ll be an unstoppable monster like Drako. You’re already showing signs of being close to evolving to ivysaur.”

“Saur.” She says as she nuzzles against me.

Drako also comes over and gently pats her bulb. “Charizard! Zard.” He compliments her battling prowess.

“Alright, let’s get ready to order! I know something you’ll love, Hellen.”

----------------------------------------

Back in our room at the pokecenter, I called Mom. I had called a couple of times before, during my journey for some idle chat. She was practically gushing when she was introduced to Hellen, promising to learn and make some treats for her.

“Orick! How are you?” She says happily as soon as we connect.

“Great, Mom. How are you? How was your day?”

“Good, good. Especially since you called.” She replies and begins telling me about an ornery charmeleon she had to deal with. Sometimes I worry about Mom being lonely and am glad she took on some extra tasks to keep busy.

“How was your day?” She asks when finished with her recollection.

“It was great. We got to Saffron City today and had a bunch of battles in the Battle Arena. You could check them out. But before that, I had a pokemon appraised for the Pre-Season Auction. It was a variant onix I caught in the Orange Islands and they gave me a $4 million credit I can use at the auction!” I say excitedly.

She gapes at me but then breaks into a smile. “That’s my boy. You make sure the onix goes to a good trainer, alright?”

“Of course, Mom.”

We spend some time talking about what I would want to get at the auction before saying goodbye. I’m eager for these two weeks to pass.