Pokémon: Dark Armor

Chapter 5

The crowd cheered as Leon walked onto the field, waving around. He stopped in the middle of the stadium, still waving to the crowd, and started his speech.

"Aren't they changing the lineup this year?" Hop asked me.

I glanced over at him. "The lineup isn't arbitrary, Hop. Technically it can change any year. It's based on a tournament or something, Leon wasn't very clear about it."

"So the gym leaders have a tournament to determine their order before the season starts?" Sonia asked from across Hop.

"Something like that. The lineup has been consistent the past few years, but with Opal and Piers retiring, the tournament turned out very differently."

Leon finished up his short speech, gesturing to the stadium entrance. "And now, let us welcome Galar's gym leaders! Give them a hand, everybody!"

The cheering got even louder as the group walked through the stadium, waving to the audience. I was happy to see Marnie wearing her jacket over her gym uniform - something I had suggested to give her a little more flare. There were a couple of new faces among the group, just like we had heard.

The first was tall, and on the heavier side. I couldn't quite make out his eye color under is flashy blue tinted shades, but his hair was white, dyed yellow at the tips. Over his gray gym uniform, he wore a half black, half tan jacket. He was the forth to be introduced. "Gordie, the boulder breaker!"

"'Cause that's not generic at all," I said under my breath. Hop stifled a laugh.

The second was a girl that looked to be about the same height as me. She had gray hair, tied up with a headband, and similar gray eyes. Her skin was a bit on the dark side, and she looked to be very fit, even muscular. Her uniform was a bit odd, with mainly white short shorts, white knee pads, and a white cut off shirt over some sort of black bodysuit. She also wasn't wearing shoes, which seemed unnecessarily uncomfortable to me. She was introduced shortly after Gordie, following Bede. "Bea, master of the ring!"

I shook my head in disappointment. "Leon really isn't good at coming up with nicknames."

"Eh, it's his first time, cut him some slack," Hop said.

I snorted. "You know that's not my style," I said, leaning back. "In reality though, I'm more interested in the challengers."

Just as I said that, Leon called the challengers to the field, and the wave of white uniforms started flooding in. As Leon once again started to speak, I surveyed the new faces. One in particular caught my eye, probably due to her bright pink hair. She looked surprisingly young for a gym challenger, maybe 13 or 14. She was short, easily the shortest one there, but she carried a bright smile, her hands clasped behind her back.

My lips curled into a smile. This season would be fun.

*****

I knocked on the open door to Leon's office, announcing my presence. Leon looked up from his desk, setting some papers aside and smiling. "Come on in!"

I closed the door behind me, walking over to the sofa against the wall. "You know, I never thought of you as the type to deal with paperwork."

Leon laughed, keeping his contagious grin on his face. "You'd be right there. No, I was actually just looking through the new challengers' profiles."

I sat down, leaning back and resting my arms along the head of the sofa. "You suck at nicknames, by the way," I said. "Master of the Ring, really?"

Leon rolled his eyes. "You try coming up with nicknames for eight gym leaders, two of which are making their debut."

I snickered, pausing for a second before speaking again. "What's the deal with Bea and Gordie anyways? Did Piers' and Opal's retirements shake things up that much?"

Leon leaned back in his chair, absentmindedly cracking his knuckles. "You forget that Piers was the number two gym leader. Taking him out of the picture changes everything."

"Marnie is the seventh gym leader this season, though. Wouldn't that make her number two?" I asked, taking off my hat and dropping it in my lap.

Leon nodded. "She is, which was a big surprise to the other gym leaders. She swept through most of their teams like it was nothing."

I narrowed my eyes in confusion. "Then... I don't see how switching one dark-type leader for another would change anything."

"The gym leader tournament is double elimination. Marnie actually lost her first match, but crushed every other one up until her match with Raihan. Meanwhile, Piers just would not lose to anyone except Raihan," Leon explained.

I ran his words through my head for a minute before giving up. "Y'know, I'm just going to act like I understand what you're saying." 

Leon laughed. "It's not very important to you, anyways."

I looked over to the papers on Leon's desk. "Could I take a look at those?"

"Sure," Leon says, handing them to me. "We've quite the selection of trainers this year."

I flipped through the papers, looking for that girl I had seen during the ceremony. Finally, I found her, near the back. "Orchid, huh? Interesting name," I said under my breath.

"Did somebody stand out to you?" He asked, leaning over to look at the papers. "Ah, that girl. I can see why."

"Who endorsed her?" I asked, reading over her information. She was 14, like I had thought, making her the youngest challenger this season. Her number was 356, and she was as short as I thought.

"Raihan did," Leon replied.

"Really?" I asked, looking up. "That's a surprise."

"She's from Hammerlocke. A real ray of sunshine. And from what I hear, she is quite a big fan of yours."

"I suppose I'll just have to see for myself," I said, standing up and setting the papers back on Leon's desk, replacing my hat on my head. "I'm gonna go check out how Hulbury is fairing with all the challengers bunched up. Nessa's probably working her arse off."

"I'll see you," Leon said as I left the room.

*****

I landed in Hulbury to find it surprisingly empty. Quickly walking over to the gym, I heard no battles happening in the stadium, though there was some talking inside.

The doors opened, and I saw Nessa talking to a couple of gym trainers. She glanced over at me upon my entrance, and quickly finished what she was saying, the trainers walking off.

"This is a bit less exciting than what I had imagined," I said, looking around the mostly empty room.

"The challengers still had some things to finish in Motostoke. I suspect they've just left the city," Nessa said, putting her hand on her hip. "What brings you here, Shield?"

I shrugged. "Just wanted to see the challengers up close. Mind if I use the changing room?" I asked nodding my head toward the door.

"Not at all."

I stepped into the changing room, locking the door behind me, dropping my bag, and stripping. Quickly pulling on my uniform shirt, I stopped for a second to gaze at the number on my pants: 619. I thought back to Orchid's number, 356, and wondered why she had chosen. After a second, though, I brushed it off, pulling my pants on and clasping my cape around my neck. I glanced at myself in the mirror, running my hand down my hair, and thinking back to my own gym challenge, when it was much shorter. With a smile, I grabbed my bag and walked back into the lobby, tying my hair up along the way.

*****

Alright alright, we got another one down. And hopefully I can get more out later, but I have some business to attend to right now.

I realize that my Author's notes are getting shorter. I may just stop writing them eventually, we'll see.

Peace.