Chapter 13: The Train Line Mini-Tournament

Finishing their energy drinks, Harper and her friend returned to the Pokémon centre. The nurse was there, but she looked rather sleepy – most likely caused by all the excitement over the free energy drinks. Harper careful and gently woke her up so that it didn't come as a shock or a surprise. She shot up and looked around like an owl, moving her head from one side to another. She then stared blankly at the three trainers. She shook her head before speaking, which was in a soft voice, like what someone would have after a hangover, but this wasn't a hangover since you obviously cannot get drunk on energy drinks.

"Oh? Hey? What's it?" she said puzzlingly. "What time is it?"

"Time you got a watch," Pedro said sarcastically, before smiling at the nurse just to tell her that he was only joking. "Sorry about that. It's almost quarter to ten in the evening."

"Wow," she said slightly dazed and a tiny bit confused. "Is it that late? I better do my job, which I do well. I'm good at my job. When I drink energy drinks it boosts my confidence unless I'm asleep… dozy… tired… I suck at my job. I'm not a vampire though if that's what you're thinking."

"We weren't saying you were a vampire," Brandon said, he too was slightly confused about the situation due to her statement. What did she mean by being a vampire? Was she trying to hide something?

"Just don't go dozing on us, not yet that is," Harper urged the nurse. "We need you to heal our Pokémon. They are hurt so it would be nice if you could do your job."

"Yes, yes, yes… um…. Yes," she said. "Hand me your Pokéballs." So, they did. They waited around for a bit while the nurse looked after their Pokéballs. And then a bell rang telling them that their Pokéballs had been healed. They paid some extra as well to have their Pokéballs clean since they had been holding them for some time which made them very grubby. Their Pokéballs needed a good clean. "See here," the nurse. "Your Pokéballs are like new again!"

"Thank you," said Harper as she approached the nurse to take her balls back.

"You're welcome," the nurse said.

"I'm grateful as well," said Pedro.

"Cool," the nurse said while looking at Pedro. Harper could tell that the nurse had the hot for the guy, so Harper had to put her in her place.

"That's my guy," she scorned.

"Oh sorry," said the nurse. "That won't happen ever again."

The nurse handed back their Pokéballs, and they headed back to the sleeping areas where trainers could go to rest for the night. It was rather busy with a few trainers looming about, talking to each other, trading stories about battles they had been involved with. Harper was very interested in what they were talking about, so she got closer to hear what they were talking about.

"I wanted to challenge my Timburr to the fullest amount. Even though battling other trainers did help, I wanted more," said one of the trainers. He was spinning his Pokéball on his finger like a basketball player would do during a game. "I went to the outer part of the Pinwheel Forest where I found the Challenger Rock which I used my Timburr Pokémon to hit it. From it came a Star Piece which I was able to sell at the Pokémart for $4900. If I keep going back there it will make me rick."

"Wow," said Harper to them astonished. "I‘m too in need of money. Tell me how!"

"Well, you need a fighting-type Pokémon. There are plenty of Timburr which is a fighting-type Pokémon near the forest. Once you catch it, it will make things very easy. But the rules state that you have only one Star Piece a day."

"Cool," said Harper excited. "I will do that tomorrow, I'm sure of it." She couldn't wait for tomorrow. She knew she had a long journey ahead of her, so Harper knew to see needed cash. Getting a Star Piece would certainly help her in her travel.

The next day – after having breakfast at the café with Benjamin saying hello to them and giving them a discount for helping them the previous day - they journeyed westwards out of the town before travelling down a southern path – there was a westward path going into the inner forest, but they decided to ignore that for now. They decided to find a patch of wild grass and they tried to look for a Timburr. They soon found one.

"Tepig," said Harper as she took out her Pokéball, prepping to throw it out into the wild grass so that her Pokémon could battle the Timburr, "let's catch this thing!"

The Timburr used its enormous strength to toss the bar of steel at Tepig. The Tepig was able to move out of the way from the oncoming bar. The Timburr ran to retrieve the steel bar and used it as a golf stick, banging it here and there. Tepig was rapid enough to dodge it –they were really fast! Suddenly the Timburr performed a Low Kick on Tepig. The Tepig whimpered in pain.

"Use one of your potions," said Brandon. Harper nodded her head in agreement, throwing out a potion that healed her Pokémon.

With renewed strength, Tepig charged around the other Pokémon in loops, dodging the Timburr's attack. It sharply found an opening to attack the Timburr. It blasted out a ball of fire, hitting the right spot to knock the Timburr back into a nearby tree. This stunned the Timburr, which gave the Tepig the chance to take another swipe. The Timburr was low on health.

"Now is the chance to catch it!" she announced, taking one of her empty Pokéballs. Harper prepared herself to throw it at the wild Pokemon Timburr. She threw a Pokéball out and the Timburr was swallowed into the ball. "Yes! I catcher another Pokémon!"

"Well done," said Brandon.

"Now let's go find that Challenger Rock," said Pedro, scratching his head.

They quickly darted to the Challenger Rock. It was this massive grey rock that slightly glowed a light orange. It was clear the rock had taken a beating over the years from how many Pokémon had punched it. There were plenty of karate students there practising their karate. Their Pokémon were practising karate too, hitting their fists into trees and other hard objects. A few were even trying their karate out on the Challenger Rock by hitting it. Even a few trainers tried punching the rock even though they weren't as successful as their Pokémon.

"Timburr," said Harper. "I choose you!" Out his ball came the Timburr. "Hit the stone. I want a Star Piece. We need some cash for the journey ahead!" So, the Timburr hit the stone and from it came a Star Piece. She quickly picked it up before someone else could grab it.

Suddenly a trainer came up to them. "I’m called Zeke Smither, challenge you with my Infernape!" said a skinny kid. He looked a bit malnourished. "I will challenge the guy with the yellow packsack."

"You mean me," said Brandon. "I'm not even a good trainer."

"Never am I," laughed the boy. "Now are you going to face me or what?"

"Ok!" said Brandon very excitedly. Most people want to face Harper since she was one of the best trainers in the region, but rarely does anyone challenge Brandon. And it was usually Pedro who helped Harper out in taking down Team Rocket and Team Plasma. "Bulbasaur, I choose you!"

"Infernape, do your best!" said Zeke.

Infernape was some red monkey that had flames on its head instead of hair. It dazed around the Bulbasaur very quickly. The Bulbasaur tried to grab the Infernape with its vine attack, but it was too hot for it so the Bulbasaur quickly tried to do another tactic. It tried to throw a seed bomb at the Infernape but yet again this did nothing towards the Pokémon. Suddenly the Infernape started to burn up somehow becoming more alight with fire than ever before. It abruptly bursts its flames at the Bulbasaur, knocking it back. Brandon had lost… again.

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"You're an idiot," smacked Harper. "Even I know that you don't make a grass-type Pokémon take on fire-type Pokémon. That was a move of a beginner and that is why I am a much better trainer than you."

"You don't have to keep lecturing me," he complained, sounding very embarrassed at his loss. "Let's move on please."

"Hey," said Zeke, looking honest and helpful, "there's going to be a mini-tournament at the old train line on the town side. You should go there – it would help a lot!" Brandon nodded his head.

"I agree," said Harper. "I might even enter. You never know, I might come across a difficult trainer who’ll test my ability. Let's go, Brandon! Don't pull that face. You know a defeat is good for you. It helps you a lot – trust me I’ve lost before as well."

"Don't we all lose," said Pedro, "sometimes?"

"Yeah, Pedro has a point," said Zeke. "Just keep doing at it and you will succeed."

"I will do it," nodded Brandon. "I will prove everyone wrong by coming out on top of that mini-tournament. I am a good trainer and I will show it to everyone! I will win. Coming second just won't do!"

They quickly got back to the town, avoiding all the trainers trying to challenge them. Brandon nearly accepted one of them, but Harper warned him that they had other things to do. They had to get their Pokémon healed and have the chance to rest before the mini-tournament that evening. Brandon was pretty bouncy, which was expected since he was hyping up to take on other trainers and prove his worth.

After getting their Pokéballs healed by the hyperactive nurse, they went back to the café where they were able to go to the outside area of the café on the deck. Harper and Pedro order a big mug of coffee, while Brandon ordered a big can of Blue V. Benjamin came out to serve the drinks they had ordered. He walked up to Harper, blushingly and a little red checked-faced.

"How’re things going?" he said to her – he looked kind of embarrassed. She suspected he had a secret crush on her, but she decided not to mention it in case it made him even more embarrassed.

"I got that Star Piece," she said gleefully, with delight. "I’m planning to sell it to get some money. We need some money for where we’re planning to go. When we leave, I’ll let you know!"

"Of course," he said in agreement. "What’s up with Brandon - he seems pretty excited?"

"He's going to enter a mini-tournament near that old train line near Pinwheel Forest," Harper explained. "He’s going to prove that he’s a good trainer."

"That's good," Benjamin complimented Brandon's bravery. "I guess I wish you good luck."

"Thanks," said Brandon in a very confident manner. "I’ll do my best. One day I will become a Pokémon master!"

"I'm sure you will," the guy replied.

They drank their coffee and Brandon drank his V, giving him plenty of energy for the evening yet to come. They also ate dinner since it was getting pretty late, with the sun starting to set. They soon got back to the Pokemon centre to get their Pokéball healed. They got their gear before travelling to the train line. Although somewhat small, a group of trainers crowded around, ready to prove their worth.

"Come and sign up and take on other trainers,” the announcer declared. He seemed excited and ready to hold such a glorious event. "Once you’ve done that all you have to do is wait. When your name is called, come up and you’ll meet your challenger.”

So, Harper and Brandon signed up – Pedro decided to just watch.

"The first trainers up are Harper and Noah," the announcer said. Unbeknownst to everyone, Noah was secretly a member of Team Rocket. "Come up and take your places."

"Roggenrola," said Harper. "Teach this punk a lesson!"

"Raichu," said Noah, "let's cause some trouble!" He secretly was planning to steal Harper’s Pokémon. He wasn’t very good at hiding his attention. Everyone noticed the Team Rocket T-shirt he was wearing underneath his jumper.

The little ratty Raichu charged around the Roggenrola like a bolt of electricity thinking that it was clever. The Roggenrola stood its ground, making sure the Raichu didn't attack with a swipe attack or even a water-type move like Surf – some trainers were known to be sneaky like this and illegally train their Pikachu this move. Roggenrola knew well it had the advantage so all it had to do was wait. Raichu then tried to attack the Roggenrola with a bolt of electricity, but that didn't work since electric-type Pokémon cannot affect rock Pokémon. Roggenrola didn't waste any time, throwing a pile of rocks at the Raichu, knocking the Raichu out cold in one move. It showed that the trainer was an amateur, and with that, Noah quickly grabbed his Raichu and darted off before the police could arrest him.

"I will be back to steal your Pokemon!" he said as he was running off, most likely headed towards the forest, and then to the big city. Harper wouldn’t be surprised if she came across the kid again.

Suddenly the Roggenrola started to glow and then transformed into a bigger rock-type Pokémon. It had evolved into a Boldore. Harper felt so excited. It was the first Pokémon she had ever had that had evolved. Harper was given the chance to heal her Pokémon. So, while she was away, Pedro and Brandon watched some of the other battles before Brandon was called up. He put his massive yellow backpack down and stood up to face his opponent. Harper returned before the battle began, which she was glad about.

"The next trainers that are up," said the announcer, "Brandon and Cleo. Come up and face each other!"

"Bulbasaur," said Brandon as he took out his Pokéball, "I choose you!"

"Mudkip," said Cleo, "let's show them how we do it in Egypt!"

The water-type Pokémon leapt from its Pokéball. The amphibious Pokémon was known to swim around swampy areas like the everglades. It was even a starter Pokémon in Hoenn. The Mudkip spat out a stream of water towards the Bulbasaur. Because the Bulbasaur was water-type, it absorbed the water, making it stronger. Knowing it had the advantage, the Bulbasaur grabbed the Mudkip with its vines, and slammed it to the ground, knocking it out straight away. Brandon had won another battle, gaining his confidence back.

"And now for the next battle, which will be their second battle in this mini-tournament," the announcer declared, "Harper will be facing Youngster Zach.”

"Venipede," said Zach, who was wearing a cap backwards like it was the 90s. "Let's kick some butt!"

"Tepig," said Harper. "Let's show this kid not to take on a fire-type Pokémon!"

The Venipede was a red larva bug-like Pokémon with a distinct hump on its upper body with a black circle on its side. Tepig used the same strategy it had seen Brandon's Sandshrew do by charging around the Venipede in circles. Venipede suddenly shot a poisonous needle at Tepig, poisoning it. The Tepig felt a surge of pain as it felt its strength being sucked out by the poison, slowing the Pokémon down. The Tepig had to defeat the Venipede before it was knocked out from the poisoning. Suddenly with the last of its strength, it blasted a massive flame at the Venipede, knocking the enemy Pokemon out.

"Harper wins!" the announcer declared. Harper was again given the chance to heal her Pokémon. She rushed back to the Pokémon centre with her Tepig in hand. Because of the poison, it couldn’t return to its Pokéballs. She returned quickly for the next battle. "The next trainers - for their second battle - that will battle it out will be Brandon and…"

"I wonder who it will be?" wondered Brandon aloud.

"Me too," said Harper. "If you lose, I’ll be going up against the person you’re facing now. But I hope to go against you to see if you have improved."

"Yeah," said Brandon. "I'm pretty nervous about that."

"…Augusta Balmoral!" Out from the crowd came the girl that Harper had faced back at the Dreamyard, where Harper won her Pansage.

"I hope you are ready," Augusta said to Brandon. "You realize that I won't go easy on you."

"Of course, I understand," Brandon said innocently like.

"Come to your positions to battle each other!" said the announcer. Brandon and Augusta lined up to face each other. Both trainers took one of their Pokéballs.

"Nidoking," said Augusta, "let's give them a show to remember!"

"Sandshrew," said Brandon, "just do it your best. I won't ask you for anything else."

As usual, Sandshrew rolled around the Nidoking in circles, getting closer and closer to the Nikoking. But the Nidoking was aware of Sandshrew's strategy of rolling around its opponent before attacking it. The Nidoking stood its ground and as Sandshrew got closer, it shot a dart of poison at the Sandshrew, knocking it back. The Nidoking casually walked towards the Sandshrew and with one might swipe; it knocked the Sandshrew back, knocking it out.

"I cannot believe I've lost!" Brandon yelled in a shattered manner. "What am I going to do with myself? You can’t be serious!"

"Calm down," said Augusta. "Although I mightn’t be the best person to tell you this since I have defeated you in a Pokémon battle, all I can say is for you is to keep going at it. Maybe one day we’ll battle again, and you’ll be able to defeat me."

Brandon nodded his head. "Of course," he said. "I learned a lot from my defeats, just as Zeke said at the Challenger Rock. I will keep at it; I promise you all. Quitting just makes me look like a loser. Even if I lose a battle, carrying on means that I’m not a loser. Only cowards quit. Look at my friend Harper. She lost a battle, but because she was able to carry on, she managed to defeat the gym leader anyway. She was strong and determined!" Everyone cheered at his speech and congratulated him because of that.

"And for the final for this mini-tournament," said the announcer, "Harper and Augusta will go head-to-head to prove their worth." They gave them chance to heal their Pokémon.

"Pansage," said Harper, "Let's do this thing!"

"Nidoking," said Augusta, "I choose you!"

The Nidoking charged at the Pansage, using its massive horns to get the other Pokémon. The Pansage swiftly jumped onto the Nidoking's neck and moved down its body till it got to the other side and jumped off. The Pansage then blasted as many seed bombs as it could at the Nidoking. The Pansage started to vine-whip the Nidoking, before finishing it off with another seed bomb. Harper had won the mini-tournament.

"Harper is the winner!" said the announcer. "She has won a free master ball!"

"I’ll keep hold of this and will use it if I ever stumble upon a legendary Pokémon,” Harper said. “Using it on it a normal Pokémon would be a waste.”

They went back to the Warehouse Café where they celebrated Harper’s victory. Benjamin brought them all free drinks and they ate a massive meal. Harper and Pedro went somewhere else while Benjamin looked jealous. Augusta then gave Brandon another free V (this time a super Blue V) since she was impressed at Brandon's batting, before giving him some advice. Harper and Pedro returned.

"Tomorrow," she announced, "I’m going to take on the gym leader."