Grey's POV
My next few days were spent strictly adhering to my regular training regimen. I had stopped training Axew for Dragon Claw; Researcher Cerise's advice had been spot on, and I didn't want to risk Axew's long-term growth for a move he wasn't biologically ready for yet and was taking time to gather energy. It was the same story with Exeggcute. After spending some time reading through a few of the theories from the scientists Cerise had mentioned, I realized that Nature Power is not a move we could get ready in a few days. It's a complex technique that forces a Pokémon to channel the ambient energy of its environment to replicate high-level special moves essentially giving them access to the best move of any given Type depending on where they are. Learning that kind of environmental attunement could take months.
With those projects on the back burner, both Pokémon shifted their focus back to their current movesets, working hard to refine and polish what they already knew. Shellder made the most visible progress; he seemed to have finally "gotten" Protect, manifesting the barrier with more consistency. Persian, meanwhile, had figured out how to adjust his Thunderbolt to a significant degree.
I actually started thinking about whether I should have my other Pokémon try adjusting their attacks into these "Strong" and "Agile" styles that Cerise had confirmed. However, I realized that would have to be a long-term plan. It takes a lot of time to teach a Pokémon to manipulate the output and speed of their energy like that, and more importantly, each of my Pokémon has a very unique combat identity. Axew is an up-close brawler, Shellder is a defensive wall that waits for a counter-offense, Exeggcute fights for total battlefield control and outstalling the opponent. Persian, however, thrives on hit-and-run tactics. That's why the Agile style is so perfect for him. By training him to reduce his output to launch more frequent attacks, we stumbled into the realization that we could do the opposite by increasing the power—and thus, the Strong and Agile styles were born.
As the S.S. Anne tournament approached, Vermilion City began to swell with people. The media presence was particularly intense. I actually ended up battling a member of the press who happened to be a trainer himself. He was surprisingly tough, wielding a Magneton and a Loudred. He told me he'd traveled all the way from the Hoenn region just to cover the scoop on this tournament. After our bout, he actually asked me for an interview. I didn't have much to say, but I left him with one quote: "I would win one of the prizes." He seemed to like my confidence, noting that such a blunt attitude was rare among trainers these days.
The Champions arrived shortly after, though I didn't get to meet them personally. Security was incredibly tight. I only found out they were in the city when the Pokénet practically exploded with the news. I missed their arrival while I was training in the woods, but I saw the clips later. Steven, Diantha, and Alder had arrived by ship in the afternoon, and Lance in a classic display of power reportedly teleported in with a League Psychic-type Pokémon to greet them personally.
To be honest, I really wanted to meet Lance. I wanted to show him my progress and how much I've grown as a trainer. Even though it was my own hard work that got me here, he was the one responsible for providing me with my starter in the first place. Beyond that, I wanted to show the region that I am a serious contender for the Indigo League. This S.S. Anne tournament might not have the strongest trainers in the world, but it undoubtedly has the best of my age group. That in itself is a problem; whether I like it or not, I'm part of a monster generation. Both Red and Blue are participating, and I know that if I draw either of them before the semi-finals, I'm going to have a hell of a time trying to secure one of the four prized Pokémon. Not that the others are slouched anyone who can beat Surge is a threat.
I decided to take the final evening off to relax. Tomorrow was the big day. Not only would I be competing, but I'd be riding on a luxury ship an opportunity I never would have had given my past circumstances. I gave my team a small pep talk before bed, but looking at them, I realized they didn't really need it. Somewhere along the way, I had gathered a truly battle-ready team. I went to sleep ready for whatever was coming.
The next day arrived in a blur of motion. A sea of media people was swarming the docks outside the ship, but the guards were strict; nobody got through without a pass and ID. I showed mine and was allowed inside. The interior of the S.S. Anne was staggering. It was massive full of gaming areas, elegant lounges, and butlers roaming the halls to cater to every whim.
My first stop was the battle arena, just to get the lay of the land. I saw quite a few trainers already gathered there. A lady butler approached me and asked if I was a tournament participant. When I nodded, she led me to the registration desk. I had to hand over my ticket to be scanned, officially entering me into the bracket. Interestingly, they also reviewed my badges and my actual gym battle records some kind of "approval rating" from the leaders I'd faced.
When I asked why that was necessary, the attendant explained that since there was an uneven number of candidates, the "stronger" candidates those who had faced tougher gym battles—would be granted a "bye" to skip the preliminary rounds. I realized right then that I was definitely skipping rounds. Between Koga, Erica and Surge, the gym leaders had all seemed to have it out for me for some weird reason, making my battles anything but easy. The attendant gave me an electronic watch that would alert me when my match was ready. Since it was only 10:00 AM and the ship wouldn't sail until noon, I had two hours to kill.
I decided to roam the ship and size up the competition. I checked out the arcades, which was actually a lot of fun. I never got to play much in this life, even though the Celadon Game Corner was nearby. You need to be a trainer to even enter that place, and the odds are so bad it's basically a scam not to mention it's a potential Team Rocket hideout if my game knowledge holds up. But I had no evidence for that, and for all I know, they don't even have a base there in this world. Here on the ship, though, the games were free and just for fun, which I appreciated.
While walking back from the arcade, I kept my eyes peeled for strong opponents. I spotted a girl surrounded by a crowd of guys asking her out. She was beautiful, but her attitude was ice-cold; she dismissed every single one of them as if they weren't worth her time. I recognized her immediately it was Aria, the girl who had taken first place in the trainers' exam and received the Swinub Lorelei had arranged.
I asked one of the rejected trainers about her. He told me to let it be, saying she would just crush my heart. I clarified that I was looking for intel on her Pokémon, not a date. "That's Aria Lestrade," he muttered, looking envious. "Heiress to the Lestrade noble house. She's probably got the best shot at winning this whole thing." He complained that she'd been handed everything the best tutors, the best education, and rare Pokémon that most trainers at our level could only dream of owning. He'd clearly been hoping to woo his way into that wealth, but she'd stomped on that dream pretty quickly.
It made me realize that a lot of my competition likely came from lavish backgrounds even at that trainer exam. Brook was the heir to the Saffron Dojo; Aria was a noble. Was any of this fair? I shook the thought away. It didn't matter what her background was. We both made it here, and I intended to win.
A few minutes later, I rounded a corner and crashed right into someone. We both hit the floor. I immediately apologized and helped him up. He looked young, though older than me. He apologized as well and then asked me who I was. I was a bit surprised by the direct question, but I introduced myself. He smiled and said, "I'm Bill."
I was shocked. The Bill? In the games, he was the genius who invented the PC storage system, but in this world, there is no PC system yet. He was the son of a Silph Co. board member and a genius in his own right, responsible for several TMs on the market. He wished me luck and went on his way. In the games, Bill is the one who gives the player the S.S. Anne ticket. Here, it seems he was attending as a high-profile spectator maybe using that same ticket as trainers were handed their ticket by Surge .
Eventually, my watch began to chime. It was time. I was summoned to the arena area as the ship prepared to sail. The tournament was finally beginning.
Author's Note: Busy so less chapters per week but will try to upload every week at least , also this is done at night so any grammar errors are there then just mention will correct it , Hopefully u enjoy the chapter . Also will try to experiment with the third POV to show more in battle by describing every move like for quick attack: it was shrouded in normal energy and accelerated in this way as a lot of comments were that to make battle more interesting , give suggestions for it if you guys want to will try to incorporate for this arc.Next chapter onwards going to try some different writing styles just check and tell me about it