To the victor went the spoils.
That was the old adage that I'd learned, which really didn't cover enough of what happened once you won anything.
Depending on the scale of the accomplishment, you often got a neat prize, a long round of applause, and then several other items or concerns that you hadn't had prior to victory.
With Xander's victory in the Magic event, he'd gained a responsibility with a soon-to-hatch Rhyhorn egg.
Phoebe had been surprised to have been announced as second place under the characteristics that the judging panel had been looking for. She'd been stunned when Sabrina had quietly taken her aside for a word, only to emerge later with a shellshocked look on her face.
To some, Phoebe would have come out ahead, but I liked to think that a rhyhorn, born of Titan and Bertha, there was a lot of potential there. I planned to give Xander every opportunity to harness said potential.
The other finalists I'd offered support with lessons, having been impressed with their character. Edith had been giddy at the prize while Baxter merely grunted and accepted the consolation.
With all the attention around the event people had noted those four down as important people to keep track of.
They were no doubt being marked because they had entered a rather select group of trainers who received my direct teaching and attention. People would be rather intrigued when they discovered Phoebe's role as Sabrina's choice.
I had several discussions lined up for them all, especially Xander, on how this pressure could apply itself along with methods of handling it, but for the first few hours I allowed them to work through their own emotions of victory.
Lessons and expectations could wait a day still.
"Rachel, I think that's enough photos for now," I said, catching her on the shoulder and drawing her back.
"Awwwww," she whined. "I wanted to get some shots of them holding the egg aloft from the plateau with the sun behind them…"
"Only with Selene present and that can again wait for tomorrow. Give them their moment," I ordered.
I glanced over to where the second-place contestant was being spoken to by Sabrina.
While they weren't going to win the right to hatch and have a Rhyhorn, they were still going to come out of this ahead with the choice of a Ralts, or Abra to have as their starter.
With the big give away finally over with, I sighed with relief. "Well this was nice and all, but we're not repeating this every time Bertha and Titan have an egg," I murmured.
Rachel and Alexa blinked in surprise.
"You're not?" Rachel gaped. "B-b-b-but this has been a huge success!"
"Moderation is key," I replied. "I might consider it for another pokemon in future. But for now, I'm good. We've still got some auctions and a few other things to work out like the Sponsored Trainer competition. We don't need to be constantly coming up with something new you know?"
"I suppose," Rachel grumbled at the floor.
I shook my head. "You just want amazing content for the pokenet, don't you?"
"Of course! Clicks and likes and interest are what drive conversation these days! Like for instance, did you see how much of a flame war you started with your response to Lance's joke photo of you?"
She flicked her transceiver and the image of me in a cape staring off into the distance hovered.
On one side was Lance's take while my own was next to it.
It wasn't the images that interested Rachel however, but the comments section. Her finger stabbed at the number on display.
"Huh, twenty thousand seems pretty nice," I murmured.
"We need more things like this! Let's play into you and Lance's banter! You're a natural foil for him at this point."
I shrugged. "I'll take it under consideration. If you want to play up that angle take some more photos of Tyrunt cause her and our Aerodactyl are going to be direct comparison points between Pewter Gym and Lance's stable."
That got her perking up but I raised a hand to stall her a moment longer. "But for now focus on the other announcements we have."
"I can do that!" vowed Rachel happily.
She skipped away and I watched her go. "I feel like she gets a bit too into some of these events."
"She feeds off the ambient events. Whenever you have a big battle with the crowd getting hyped up, she is jittery as anything after the match, even with how she is posting a bunch of photos or creating posts for the pokenet page."
I think she kind of lives for it," I replied before shaking my head. "Anything else I need to handle?" I asked to which Alexa shook her head.
"No, we'll have the construction groups back in here tomorrow to dismantle the maze and traps. I was able to source a trick house that will be purchasing everything for cheap."
"Trick house?" I asked.
"He's a gentleman that is going to run a dedicated house that switches their format and layout around every few weeks. It made them quite popular last season. They operate out of Lavender town these days but are only two years old."
"Ah, so they weren't there when I was doing my journey," I mused.
"They were actually in Goldenrod but moved after running afoul of local land codes," alexa stated.
"Hmmm interesting," I offered blandly. "Yolanda might enjoy it during her journey this year."
Alexa shot me a smirk. "I happen to know it isn't just for trainers and their pokemon but also young families. I believe Tommy wants to go there this year for his birthday."
"Does he now? And I assume Cindy wants something else?" I asked, digging around for information I could use to get the perfect gift.
Alexa smirked. "From what I discussed with her she's going to be looking for a set of boxing gloves with wrist wraps. She also wants to sign on with a dojo."
"Huh, that's going to make life interesting." It seemed Sabrina's idea of giving her a Meditie was going to be a reality at this point. She really was taking to the martial arts lessons Lola was providing like a fish to water.
"It's kind of cheating having me ask the kids these sorts of questions you know Brock," Alexa said with a wry smile.
"Is it though? I get to appear prescient to them while they lower their expectations when I show no interest," I said.
"The older ones all just thought Sabrina was picking it up from their thoughts," Alexa pointed out.
"She does, but thankfully, kids have a lot of wants. It makes it easier to not have clashing gifts."
"True," Alexa replied as she flicked a sheet over on her notepad. "Other than that it's normal training and maintenance work around Pewter for all the employees while you're off to the Battle Frontier next week."
"Anything to report with the patrols?" I asked. "Crime? Swarms of pokemon?"
"No, nothing like that, but there was a slight bounty placed by the Blackthorns on a group of Sneasel. They think that it wasn't a sole pokemon acting alone, but they haven't been able to see it for a few weeks now."
"Another group would consider the issue handled," I murmured, knowing that while it had started as a single Sneasel, it had now escalated into a bored Agatha.
"Not the Blackthorns," Alexa replied.
"Nope," I said as Yolanda skipped out to the reserve with Spot the Growlithe and Terra the Larvitar following after her.
I didn't give that issue any more thought, despite the smirk I gained as I made to follow her. I pointedly didn't give her second newest pokemon a thoughtful look as I walked past Yolanda's battle with Crystal.
She was giving Crystal a solid thrashing with Terra and it was only when she shifted to her Pidgey that Crystal was able to get back in the fight.
I suspected that Yolanda was the one that was going to get more from the fight however, with Pidgey getting an idea of how to fight and follow commands in a tense situation.
With them distracted I made my way to the back training area where I found Gible standing ready.
Off to the side, Tyrunt was being tossed around by Cranidos who was being closely monitored by Stephen and Bianca.
"Impressive development," Bianca murmured.
"I thought she would have been slower in picking up weight and technique," continued Stephen.
"She's being set up to lose, which is grating on her pride!" I called out to them.
The pair of researchers glanced up. "What was that?" Bianca asked, her arm still pointed to where the two ancient pokemon fought.
"She's both a dragon type and a dragon with her temperament. Her pride forces her to push herself," I stated as I gestured around the training area. "There are no lack of strong pokemon here, but there are also a lot of support for her with my pokemon stepping in and stopping her from going too far. They make sure she gets enough food, warmth, and doesn't overtrain."
Stephen tilted his head. "You make it sound like you're not training her."
"I am but I provide a lot of the overarching vision. Giving her direction. My pokemon do a lot of the day to day things that I can't while I'm running the Gym. It has become a bit of a system for them with younger pokemon working to join them."
With that said I whistled sharply and Cranidos leapt away from Tyrunt.
Tyrunt lurched at the sudden disengage and glanced about only to spot me.
"We're about to start training Gible with his Draco Meteor!" I called. "Need to keep your attention here so you don't miss a stray shot!" I called as I began setting out cones.
Stephen and Bianca gave a nod as they moved off to the side to get out of my way, their focus shifting to another of the ancient pokemon that were standing on the sidelines while I turned towards Gible.
"Alright, let's see if today is the day," I stated as I warmed up my hands.
Gible gained a determined glint in his eyes as he kicked up the snow and rocks.
Hmmm, bracing was he? That… wasn't a good habit to start slipping into and something that needed to be addressed. Time to throw a curveball into our training sessions.
"Hop to the side and DM!" I ordered.
Gible stiffened, having not expected that.
Clapping my hands I applied some pressure. "Come on! Chop chop! You're not always going to be allowed to brace and power up! Hop and fire!" I called.
Gible did so, unleashing a quick Draco Meteor.
It only had half the required plumes of energy erupting from the top.
That… was something I was going to have to address.
"Adds a challenge to it, doesn't it?" I said as Gible squinted up where his Draco Meteor had been.
"Giiiii," he growled, his little claws tightening.
Tilting my head I considered him. This was the first true setback we'd had in our training and it was interesting to see how he reacted.
He clenched his claws once more only to gnash his teeth.
Then he straightened up and barked. "Gible!" at me.
Grinning, I snapped my fingers. "Dig forwards five metres and shoot forward into a skid! Then DM read right!" I ordered, giving him a much more complicated sequence to follow.
He threw himself into the ground, and while he emerged at roughly seven metres rather than five, I had to give him props for spinning mid air to skid and fire off another Draco Meteor.
This time six plumes erupted.
Gible leered like a Sharpedo that was scenting blood in the water.
"Roll to the side and fire flat!" I ordered, scuttling to the side as he lined up a shot that saw the firework like plumes of Draco Meteor sailing around me.
With heat rippling through snow a sizzling mist began to rise.
I continued to dart to the side, treating it like dodging training.
"Draco Meteor above!" I called.
Gible snapped his head up and this time when he fired all ten plumes erupted like we'd practised for.
I didn't give him any time to celebrate. "Triplets! Rock Throw on Gible!" I ordered.
The triplets' heads shot out of the holes they'd been hiding in to observe Gible's training with matching grins.
Within seconds rocks were being pelted.
Without waiting for an order Gible began to leap from side to side, skidding and dodging.
"On the fly now Gible! Stone Edge left!" I called, stabbing my hand towards the far Larvitar who gasped as a much larger rock was sent flying in her direction.
Her sisters redoubled their efforts with Gible's attention shifting, but I was quick to have him rolling out of their lines of fire.
"DM! Coverage right quad!" I called in a slapdash manner to give him an idea of where I wanted his attack to land.
He understood as he channeled the orb into his maw and fired, only to take a pair of hits for his effort as two of the triplets nailed him.
Only five plumes erupted this time.
"Don't let them hit you like that! I know you have it in you to dodge! You're better than this!" I barked, slipping into a drillmaster-like routine with Gible.
His fighting spirit rose and he began to dip, dodge, and dive to evade.
I kept him in that space rather than ordering another attack to take pressure off.
"Sway and shift, now pivot!" I called.
He waltzed through the barrage and I grinned to myself. "Now DM above!" I called.
He continued to pivot while opening his maw and firing off a fast Draco Meteor.
Something in me sparked when I saw this one and I knew without even seeing the end result that we'd succeeded.
"Tyrunt?" squeaked a small voice as one of my newest pokemon came out of her Dig to look up at the Draco Meteor.
I didn't think as I darted forward and scooped her up, knowing she'd be too slow to react. Then I linked myself with Zephyr and Knight who were watching on from the side.
Through their own senses accompanying my own, I began to zigzag as balls of energy descended to blow up the ground around me.
I twirled, keeping Tyrunt away from the draconic energies while enforcing my body as far as it would go.
When two plumes were about to box me in, I flexed my will and launched across the ground to skid to a stop almost twenty metres away.
I felt the explosion go off behind me but I didn't turn to look, instead giving Tyrunt my attention.
"Hey there, Princess, you got into a rough spot coming up to see what was going on. Are you alright?"
She nodded slowly, her eyes dilated as far as they would go while staring right at me.
Ruffling her neck feathers I turned and gave the destroyed training field a considering look. In my hands Tyrunt began to softly purr. "Alright girls, I think we can cut it off there!"
From a trio of holes in the ground the triplets poked their heads up and blinked in a slightly stunned fashion. That got a chuckle from me.
"Gible?" asked Gible as he glanced around.
"Congratulations buddy, under fire you pulled it off," I told him with a smirk.
Gible perked up and grinned in delight as his tail began to wag back and forth. "Gib!" he cheered.
"Ready to evolve?" I asked him.
He went still, and the triplets who'd looked like they were about to start grumbling at his success stilled.
I knelt with Tyrunt still in my arms. "You ready?" I asked.
Gible nodded and leaned forward. I plucked the everstone from him. "Thought so," I said as the glow of evolution began to overtake him.
A hiss of sucked in breath let me know that Stephen and Bianca were still present and I was vaguely aware that they had their pokedexes out as Gible's form began to stretch and grow.
Where before there had been a short stumpy little land shark that was ridiculously cute, there was now a gangly menace.
"Gabite!" he barked with a much deeper voice. His yellow eyes shifted about, assessing the shift.
Then he grinned at me. "Gaaaa bite!" he cheered as he did a happy dance.
I laughed knowing that the fear of him 'growing out' of his jolly nature hadn't yet happened.
Zephyr and Knight both approached and offered their congratulations while the triplets and Tyrunt all stared in awe at what had been their playmate.
"Nice work," I complimented, hardening my hand as I gave him a light scratch on the head. He barked a laugh and I spotted several more teeth than he had had in his mouth than before.
He'd certainly grown.
"Tar!" barked one of the trio.
"Bite!" cheered Gabite.
The trio approached him only to scowl when they discovered that he was now much taller than them.
As one the trio whirled to me and barked out demands.
"Nah," I said, having anticipated this. "You're not on his level in strength, skill, or control. We've got some work to do. Your next evolutionary stage will cause you all to be much more restricted."
In a way allowing them to stay as a team of three was somewhat hindering them due to bad habits looping around. But some of their good traits also came through with their desire to grow stronger.
Which would become a big challenge when they were pupitar as I had no doubt that the propulsion method of blasting themselves around would lead to several embarrassing and outright annoying incidents for them.
They were in for a long period of frustration.
Interestingly, they were one of the only pokemon apart from bug pokemon to have such a phase.
Then again, you could hardly compare bug pokemon who might spend as little as a few days to a few weeks in their cocoon phase to Pupitar, which could spend years at a time if not their entire lives trapped with limited movement.
It was going to be quite humbling for them and something that would shape them going forward as Tyranitar.
I had a theory about Tyranitar temperaments and their Pupitar phases, with the level of difficulty they had resulting in a more aggressive, territorial Tyranitar.
Which, I could collect a case study on with Empress, now that I thought on it some more.
Definitely something to pencil in. I'd already seen her have tea time with another old pokemon, perhaps it was story time?
While I'd been musing on this, the trio and Tyrunt were still observing Gabite as he flexed and shifted about.
The trio curled their little fists and growled. Rather than stomp off however, they remained with Gabite and began inspecting the changes. Tyrunt wiggled out of my hands to stalk closer and sniff Gabite.
They all seemed to rather like the protrusions of bone that created wicked spikes on his knees. When his tail began to wag he ended up knocking one of them over, causing the others to laugh.
While he might be taller than them for the moment the trio would be taller at the end as Tyranitar.
Oh Arceus they were going to be such a pain in the ass if I didn't rein them in.
Note to self, dedicate most of the year to working on them.
No one wanted a trio of unruly Tyranitar stomping around Pewter, even if their mother and brother would pull their heads in for me, it was something best stopped in advance.
"Runt…" grumbled Tyrunt as she stared at the ground.
"Don't worry about it too much, you started well after any of them and are growing splendidly," I told her as I scratched her neck feathers. Leaning a bit closer I let my voice drop to a whisper. "Also? You're going to be far taller than all of them when you evolve."
That had her head snapping up and her tail wagging.
With a wink I nudged her towards Gabite. "Now, best to congratulate Gabite for his success. Good to create… loyalty in your subjects you know?"
Tyrunt perked up even more at that and happily stomped over to give what looked like regal praise to Gabite.
In my mind, it was like watching Suzie dressed up as a princess offer Lance congratulations.
In a word, adorable.
Which meant I had to record her.
When she glanced back at me with a slight smirk I replied with a small thumbs up and a wink, like I was in her corner.
I could only imagine that Cynthia would be cooing over this later when she saw. Even if she might be a little sad that Gabite was out of his cute 'puppy-shark' phase.
Sabrina teleported to my side and spotted the small pokemon interacting with each other. "Heh, adorable," she declared.
Kirlia popped out of her pokebelt and trilled with delight as she began to spin around Gabite. Then she smirked and patted him lightly on the shoulder.
He shuddered at the touch and she grinned.
"Is she establishing a pecking order?" I asked.
Sabrina nodded, causing me to sigh. Young pokemon could be such brats.
"Got all your gear ready for our patrol of the Battle Frontier? Sabrina asked.
"I'm always ready to travel, but I need to check with my pokemon for who is coming with me."
"It is supposed to be a wild area with only recent developments of roads," Sabrina pointed out.
"Yeah, true. I'm thinking Selene, Sanchez, Ursaring, Shrek, Hypnotoad, Knight, Empress, Don, Zephyr, and Titan."
"No Bertha?" Sabrina tilted her head and glanced around.
"After the recent reveal that one of her kids is a bit of a speed fiend she wants to spend some more time with them."
"Hmmm, fair." Sabrina's tone of respect got a twitch of a smile from me as I nodded.
"Yeah, I think it's a good idea for her." I glanced at my transceiver. "Ah, I promised to take Salvadore to the forge and get him fitted out for his 'squire's outfit'."
Sabrina blinked slowly. "He wants a suit of armour, doesn't he?"
"Yup, he's put this year's birthday and Christmas presents up as collateral for this one gift."
"He's going to outgrow it."
"I mentioned that. He pointed out that it would look great in his home later regardless and be an interesting talking point."
"Of all your brothers, I like Salvadore the most."
"Heh," that just cause he produces the least headaches and is the quietest," I pointed out.
"As I said, I like him the most," Sabrina replied, her lips twitching slightly.
"You want to come along? Look at armour?" I asked.
Sabrina made a face and I chuckled. "It could sort of be like dolls? Accessorising?" I teased.
She gave me a flat look. "It is nothing like that. I'll be waiting for you at home. Remember to be done by four as we'll need to Teleport to the check point and then stay at the halfway hotel.
"Larvitar!" barked a small voice from my ankles. Looking down showed all three of the triplets glaring up at me.
"Tar! Lar! Vit!" they barked in unison.
"You all want to come with me to the Battle Frontier?" I asked. "You realise if you want to train there you're going up against a lot of wild grass, normal and bug types."
They smirked and I shook my head. "These aren't like the pokemon in Viridian forest. These pokemon have to contest with others that are fully evolved. They're far stronger. You're all going to get knocked out multiple times and I'm going to have to bail you out."
"Taaaaaaar!' they roared.
"You don't want to be left behind?" I mused. "Hmmm alright, I guess I can free up some space on my team, but I'm keeping Don."
I mentally adjusted the list of pokemon I was going to be taking.
Selene, Ursaring, Shrek, Knight, Empress, Don, and Titan. That made seven. It was just a shame. Still for training purposes, it would help out a lot.
When Tyrunt turned to me with a glint in her eyes, I raised my hand. "You're not ready. It wouldn't be training for you as yet, so much as throwing you to the Houndoom," I stated firmly.
Tyrunt growled and stomped off.
With my team sorted I collected Salvadore who was doing some work with Titan.
"Hey little brother, still want to—"
"Yes!" he shouted, packing his things in a flurry of limbs before shooting to stand before me. "I want to go!" he called.
Titan chuckled and moved up to us. When I gave him a look he tossed his head, indicating he was interested in coming along, earning a shrug from me.
"Oh, by the way, your… sisters are coming with us to the Battle Frontier," I said to Titan, earning a roll of the eyes from him.
When I told him that Gible had evolved, Salvadore whined. "I missed that? You should have told me!"
"Don't worry Stephen and Bianca got it on camera."
He gained a thoughtful look, and for a moment, I wasn't sure if he was going to beg off for later so he could review the video, only to shake his head. "Let's go get my Squire's armour!" he declared.
"Wasn't it Page?" I asked, wondering where the sudden promotion had come from.
He chuckled and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I reviewed things and realised Squire was better than a page, and it also sounded better."
"Hmmm fair," I replied.
When we made it to the forge Salvadore was giddy with anticipation. Unlike the foundry which was down the road the forge was a more select establishment.
I entered the reception area and looked through the various stands of armour pieces and weapons that were on display while being under heavy lock and key. I suspected Meowth wouldn't make much of the security on display, but a professional thief like Meowth would know that 'hot' goods like weapons would result in far too much scrutiny.
"Brock!" called a built man by the name of Hiro. He squinted at me, nodded towards Titan who was bowed down so he didn't hit the roof and then gave Salvadore a quick up and down. "This is the kid that's going to serve as your Page eh?"
"He's decided he deserves to try for Squire," I replied with a smirk.
That got Trent straightening up. "That's gutsy kid!" he stalked over to a display case and tapped on the various pieces. "Name these and their function!" he barked.
"Helmet, gauntlet, greave, Pauldron, Vambrace, Couter, and… tasset?" he said pointing at the skirt of metal that hung down the side of the armour's hip.
"Hmpf! Not bad! You know your armour at least! Now what wea—"
I coughed, cutting through Trent's attempt to test Salvadore's worthiness. "I'll send him around to be tested later. I have a bit of a schedule to keep for today."
Trent clicked his tongue. "I'll do just that," he muttered. "Well for today we'll get the kid measured up and double check your own measurements for the final fitting, alright?"
Salvadore began to bounce again, and Trent put a hand on his shoulder. "Stay still," he ordered as a pair of measuring tapes hovered into the air.
I glanced around only to find a bored-looking Kirlia along with a Meditite sitting behind the reception desk.
"Didn't know you had psychic pokemon," I commented.
"Don't, they're my daughter's. She's on break after the recent circuit. Went over to Hoenn instead of sticking around here. Wanted to see what a foreign nation could offer. She's doing Johto next year before she settles down."
"Neat," I replied. "Shame I won't meet her for a Gym Challenge," I added after a moment's thought.
Trent just shrugged, making a note of the various points. "We'll keep a little room in the measures cause you're young. In a week or two you'll have grown a bit, not enough to not fit, but enough to hurt if you aren't careful."
Trent turned to me. "Now we need to see if you've gained any muscle or fat," he announced smugly.
I rolled my eyes only to pause. Urgh I had been sick for a bit there. But then again I did work out with Trixie enough that I shouldn't have to worry about it.
It turned out my fears were unfounded with my measures staying the same. Trent grinned. "Right, well I don't have to adjust anything then!" he whistled and a set of armour was wheeled out on a steel trolley with a happy looking Machoke in a blacksmith's apron.
"Maaaachoke!" he declared.
"Oh you're done already? I thought the foundry had issues with supp—"
"My brother made sure to get that resolved!" growled Trent. "Now let's get you armoured up. You! Young Page will need to know how to do this if you want to take part in fight knight!"
Salvadore grinned.
I shucked off my coat and trousers to don the arming vest and pants so the metal didn't pinch.
As the various pieces were donned, I had to admit it looked damn good with the gunmetal grey, brown and greens which let me pay homage to Titan.
Titan watched on with interest.
When we got close to the end, Salvadore struggled with a large collar-like piece.
"What is this?"
Trent grinned. "This is a collar piece, and it helps protect the neck and shoulders in a proper knight's fight! See, you can twist and stop attacks coming for the head or neck!"
He dropped the piece onto my shoulders and with a twist of his fingers he had it fastened.
The helmet that had some small bumps to make it look like a Tyranitar skull, but without too many protrusions was also fixed down and I grinned, feeling kind of badass.
Then Trent struck my helmet with a hammer. It rang like a bell and I shot him an annoyed look.
When I could hear again I found Trent was still lecturing Salvadore.
"— see what you want to do in these situations if you can, is to layer the protection. Knights can do that. So what Brock should do when he is going to take a hit is roll his shoulders and upper body and make the blow land somewhere that won't rattle him!"
He put his hands on me and while I could have resisted, he rather deftly began to push my body so that I was swaying and bobbing.
"Good now keep that up!" he said.
"Now if I try and strike him like I did," Trent announced as he telegraphed a blow only for it to catch and be twisted away thanks to the collar around my shoulders.
Titan made a noise of interest.
"Won't it stop him striking back?" Salvadore pointed out.
My hand was grabbed and lifted straight up. "Point of pride for me with how I made this collar! It has flexibility and protection. Brock has full range of motion!" he announced proudly.
I took my hand back and rolled my shoulders around, getting used to the feel. "Hmm shame it looks kind of awkward," I murmured, my eyes sliding to the edgelord set of armour sitting in the corner.
Trent noticed and then scowled.
"Don't you look at that! I did that under protest! I need to take those commissions sometimes!"
He pointed at the armour. "Those spikes all over the damn thing look great, but they get in the way of mobility! Instead of just being able to come out swinging with a few minor adjustments, the idiot who bought that is going to be hampered. They'll look 'cool'—" he practically spat the word, "—but they ain't going to win. I can assure you."
Trent knocked his knuckles on my chest piece. "Now this armour? This is something I can be proud of! I was able to get your brother in something that looks something like the Viridian knight of the forest!" he said with a grin.
Salvadore and I tilted our heads.
"The knight of Viridian Forest?" I asked. "I know there's a Samurai kid running—"
"Not that idiot! That kid doesn't know east from west and it shows! Samurai running around Viridian forest? Tch!"
Trent shook his head. 'No, I'm talking about an old Legend. There was a knight who dealt with a group of bandits that lived in the Viridian Forest, stopping any traffic from coming through. It was putting a bit of a pinch on the smaller villages but the Knight came along and fixed em!"
Trent grinned like a kid in a man's body. "Been a dream of mine to make something like what little written testimonial existed of the knight!"
Something about this was making my spine tingle.
"How old is this Legend?" I asked.
"Hmmm oh, something like fifty, sixty years?" Trent muttered. "Lot of records of them got…" Trent looked at Salvadore with his bright eyes and coughed. "Lost," he muttered.
Salvadore looked offended by that revelation. "Lost?" he gasped. "How… oh… this is the cause of the war, isn't it?"
Trent twitched. "We don't talk about it," he muttered, rubbing a hand over a burn on the back of his arm that could have been from working the forge, but I suspected otherwise.
I flexed my hand. The tingle in my spine hadn't abated and if anything, I was starting to suspect I was being set up for something.
"Got any stories written down?" I asked, cutting off any other comments. "About the knight?"
Trent hummed and marched behind the reception desk to grab a book from the shelf. "Here, take this and give it a read. Can't believe you young ones had never heard of it! It's local history!"
"Hmmm," I said, giving the book a thoughtful look. The title stated it was about 'Pewter Legends', and a glance at the index revealed the Knight's story was barely three pages.
That was nothing.
A rumble from behind me had us turning to find Titan sniffing at the 'edge lord's armour set.
"What was that bud?" I asked, having missed the question.
"Tarrr," he rumbled once more, claw flicking towards the armour set and then back to himself.
"Ah," I said, understanding his issue. I'd given him a vague idea of what his own Mega-evolution looked like, and it was quite similar to this armour with its spikes. "Don't let it worry you too much buddy, we'll work on it when we get to that stage," I announced.
Salvadore tilted his head, eyes flicking about. "What are you talking about?" he asked.
"Just something that is only theoretical at this point," I said, clanking as I moved over to Titan to pat him on the flank.
He glanced down at my armour and gave my collar a long look. "You'll look cooler than me," I offered, which got a chuckle from him.
With his mood slightly lifted, I took off the armour set and started storing it away. While I hadn't planned on it, it seemed training to move in a suit of armour was about to become a priority for me.
Salvadore thankfully didn't ask me about Titan's question, choosing instead to gush over how cool it would be when he had a suit of armour.
"'I'm so going to school in it! I'm going to be the coolest kid around!" he declared.
That got a laugh from Titan and I and we enjoyed the idea of Salvadore sitting around through school in a child sized suit of armour. I was going to have to get a lot of photos when he did it.
"Ahem," Sabrina said when we all walked through the door.
"Ah, sorry, we ran late," I offered, which merely got Sabrina rolling her eyes at me.
She rose and claimed my arm as Titan retreated into his Greatball. "See you all in a week!" I called to my family before we vanished in a Teleport.
We reappeared on the border of Kanto, north of Cerulean.
"Papers?" chimed a bored-sounding ranger from within a checkpoint kiosk.
Handing them over, I turned my eyes towards the road leading into the Battle Frontier.
It might not be the same as a different region or nation like Rota, but I had to admit I was looking forward to a small adventure.
If what I suspected was waiting for me when I got back, I knew this might be the quiet before the storm.
I was going to make the most of exploring the Battle Frontier!
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A.N. Thanks go to my patreons for your continued support!
Hope you're looking forward to the next arc, the Battle Frontier! For those curious, I have this logged as Arc 16 of Hard Enough.
Brock's genre senses are tingling!
How right he will be is up for interpretation!
Thanks also go to Twmmy for proofreading this chapter!