Day 228

[from Pokémon xTreme]

By the time the group landed outside the entrance to the Mt. Moon cave system, Emma's erratic flying had made Taylor extremely dizzy and she was close to vomiting. "That settles it," she said, as she staggered off of Charizard's back, trying not to topple over. "Next time we have to go anywhere, I'm taking a taxi."

"I'm sorry," said Emma, as she slid off of Charizard's back. "I didn't realize you had air sickness. I'll be more gentle next time."

"There won't be a next time…" Taylor placed her hands against a nearby tree to steady herself and bent over, holding back a retch.

Brandon shook his head with amusement. "Well, that at least oughta make our travel arrangements easier," he said as he withdrew his Charizard. "Emma and I can fly on Charizard while you take the cab, or whatever."

"Sounds good to me," said Emma, withdrawing Crobat and then latching onto Brandon's arm.

"Alright then," said Brandon. "As soon as Taylor's feeling better, we can get going. You'll be alright, won't you, Taylor?"

Taylor nodded, raising a hand. "Yeah, just… give me a minute…"

As Taylor continued to steady herself, Brandon watched on with mild concern. "Damn," he muttered to himself. "I've never met someone who hated flying so much."

"Don't take it personally, dear," Emma said. "Not everyone enjoys flying as much as you do. Some people just aren't cut out for it."

"Yeah, I guess not," said Brandon. "Don't take that personally either, Taylor."

"No offence taken," said Taylor, finally straightening herself and stepping away from the tree, albeit still a little shakily. "Let's go."

***

The caves within Mt. Moon had been illuminated by bright torches mounted on the walls, and so the trio were able to make their way through without any problem. "There should be other trainers in here," said Brandon. "Let me go ahead, see if I can smoke some of them out for you to battle."

Somehow, Taylor felt uneasy at the idea of being left alone with Emma. Maybe it was just the poor first impression she'd received, courtesy of the wild flight there. "No, that's okay," she said, "we'll find some eventually. Besides, there's plenty of Pokémon here to fight. Any worth catching?"

"Well, like I said earlier, we might be able to find a Paras in here," said Brandon. "Although now that I come to think about it, I don't think Paras learns any useful Grass-type moves for a while, so it wouldn't actually be of any use against Lisa."

"So… I shouldn't bother catching any of these Pokémon?" asked Taylor.

"Oh, you can if you want to," said Brandon. "Remember, the more, the merrier, and some of them might come in handy later on down the line. But yeah, none of them will be useful against Lisa, or the guy who comes after her."

"Why?" asked Taylor. "Who's the guy who comes after?"

Brandon grinned. "Trust me: if I tell you, you'll be shitting bricks from here to Vermillion," said Brandon. "I'll tell you when the time comes, but for now, let's just focus on preparing to face Lisa, alright?"

Before Taylor could answer, the group was suddenly waylaid by a man holding a tape recorder up to Brandon's face - apparently a journalist. "Mr. Wells!" he said. "Jonathan Oakes, Kanto Times. Care to comment on the rumours surrounding your relationship with Emma Williams? Is it true that you got her pregnant?"

Brandon pulled a pained expression and closed his eyes, as though trying to make the journalist actually disappear. "Fucking hell," he muttered under his breath. "Even in a cave, I can’t get rid of them."

Emma took advantage of Brandon's frustration to answer in his stead. "I can confirm that I am currently pregnant with Brandon's child," she said, smiling sweetly.

The barrage of questions was now directed at Emma instead. "Do you know how far along you currently are?" asked Jonathan. "And are you planning to bring the baby to term?"

"We most certainly are," said Emma. "And I'm about six weeks gone."

With her mentor and his girlfriend now occupied by the interview, Taylor sighed and slunk off to train by herself. It didn't take her long to spot a Zubat hovering nearby. She plucked Eevee's Poké Ball from her belt, but before she could send it out, the Zubat was suddenly felled by a bolt of lightning that shot from nowhere.

A familiar-sounding voice then called out. "Nice job, Elekid!" it said. "Come back!"

Taylor soon realized who the voice was. It was Kieran Anderson, the boy she had met and battled when she first got Eevee. Sensing that they would make better company than Brandon and Emma at the moment, not to mention the potential opportunity for a battle, Taylor quickly headed over to them.

Upon seeing Taylor, Seth waved genially to her. "Oh, hey, Taylor!" he said. "Guess I shouldn't be surprised to see you here. I heard you already took down Graham."

"That I did," said Taylor. She pointed to the Venom Badge pinned onto her lapel.

"Well, so did I," said Kieran proudly, showing off his own Venom Badge. "I reckon my Elekid's already strong enough to trash Lisa's Gym, but Seth's making me train already."

"I told you," said Seth. "Type advantages are great, but they ain't everything. A truly great trainer can actually overcome type advantages. Like Brandon does every time he beats me." Taylor couldn't tell whether he was praising Brandon, belittling himself, or simply embittered at having lost to Brandon during their last encounter. "Anyway," he continued, "speaking of Brandon, where is he?"

Taylor's expression soured a little. "Some journalist cornered him and his girlfriend," she said, "they're busy doing an interview."

"Damn, the paps are even following them around in here?" said Seth. "I'm glad I don't have his level of fame, I couldn't put up with that bullshit. So is it true then? That he knocked up Nicole's little sister?"

Taylor nodded. "Apparently," she said.

Seth was unable to suppress a grin. "Oh, man, he is so dead," he said. "Nicole is gonna fucking kill him. She already find out?"

Taylor nodded again. "Yeah," she said. "She wasn't very happy about it."

"Oh man!" Seth was holding back a chuckle at this point. "I bet she wasn't! Did she try to set him on fire?"

"Tried to set us both on fire," said Taylor.

Seth's stifled chuckling abruptly stopped and he winced a little. "Ouch," he said. "Sorry to hear that. But… oh, man, I am so teasing him about this. Actually, I'll be right back. He's right over there, isn't he?" Seth pointed down the way Brandon had come.

"Yeah, he and Emma are over that way," said Taylor. "I dunno if they're still doing that interview, or… oh, no, here they come." Brandon and Emma were indeed on their way over, happily talking to each other. As far as Taylor could tell, they hadn't even noticed she had gone.

"Watch this, watch this," said Seth. With his grin once more firmly plastered across his face, Seth walked towards the lovestruck couple and began to sing "Cat's In The Cradle" at the top of his lungs. [For reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KUwjNBjqR-c ]

Brandon facepalmed as he realized what was happening. "Oh, for fuck's sake," he said. "Could you… could you not, please, Seth-"

"Could you not swear in front of the baby, please?" joked Seth. "It shouldn't be hearing that kind of language at its age."

"It's a clump of cells at its age!" protested Brandon. "It can't hear shit!"

Seth did not relent with his jibes. "You're gonna name that clump of cells after me, right?" he asked. "'Seth Wells'… you gotta admit, it's got a ring to it-"

"Dude, just stop, please," said Brandon. "I'm not in the mood for your stupid jokes, alright? I'm still trying to get to grips with all this."

Seth, realizing he had pushed Brandon too far, raised his hands in surrender. "Alright, I'm sorry, man," he said. "It's just… damn! Of all the girls for you to knock up, it had to be Nicole's little sis, didn't it?"

"Tell me about it," said Brandon, shaking his head. "Oh, boy, was she ever pissed."

"I almost wish I coulda been there to see the look on her face," said Seth. "Probably looked something like this." Seth pulled a mock angry face which managed to elicit a laugh from his weary rival.

"Yeah, something like that," said Brandon. "Anyway, sorry about the disturbance there, Taylor," said Brandon, turning back to his protégé. "I tried to shake the guy off as quickly as I could, but Emma hasn't mastered the skill of ignoring journalists yet."

"But I want the world to know about us!" said Emma, looking cutely up at Brandon.

"Well, I don't want the world waiting outside my house at 5am to ask me the same questions a hundred times over," said Brandon. "Anyway, let's get back to what we came here for: training. Taylor, you ready to go?"

"Actually…" Taylor turned to Kieran, who had been staring expectantly at her for most of the time she had been there. "…you fancy a battle, Kieran?"

Kieran's expression immediately turned into an eager smile. "I thought you'd never ask," he said. "I've got a score to settle from last time!"

"We'll see about that," said Taylor. "Go, Eevee!"

Day 218

[from Pokémon xTreme]

The following morning, Brandon arrived at Taylor's house as usual to resume training, but this time he had Emma in tow. "She insisted on coming along with us," said Brandon. "I figured, if we're gonna end up getting married or whatever like Nicole wants us to, I'd better start getting to know her, right? So I hope you don't mind."

"No, not at all," said Taylor. "To be honest, I'm glad you're doing the right thing and supporting her."

"Well, it's not like I have a choice, is it?" said Brandon. "If I don't, Nicole will turn me into smoked Tepig."

"True," admitted Taylor. "So anyway, where are we headed today?"

"Next Gym Leader on the trail is Lisa Rivers," said Brandon. "She's the Cerulean City Gym Leader, and she uses Water-type Pokémon. She's a veteran like Graham, she's been a Gym Leader for years, but she's not as outspoken as he is. She'll prefer to just focus on the battle. You won't have a type advantage this time, unless we're lucky enough to run into a Paras in Mt. Moon, so things might get a little more difficult for you."

"I'm sure I can handle it," said Taylor. "If it comes to it, we can always look for a Grass-type Pokémon somewhere else, right?"

"If it really comes to it, I can just lend you one of mine," said Brandon, "or get Ellen to breed you one. But there'd be no challenge in it if I just gave you Pokémon all the time. I'd rather you tried to get through it with your own skill first. You get what I mean?"

"Yeah, I got it," said Taylor, nodding. "I'd rather get through it with my own skill as well."

"That's good," said Brandon. "Alright then, let's get going. I think Emma's starting to get a little bored."

Emma did indeed look a little bored as Brandon took out the Poké Ball containing Charizard. Perhaps it was Taylor's imagination, but she also seemed a tiny bit jealous as well. It was perhaps understandable: Brandon had ignoring his supposed fiancée up until now, having been talking to his protégé instead the whole time they had been here. But Taylor, somehow, didn't think it was entirely reasonable. They had already established that Brandon had no feelings for her, not to mention she was underage. Then again, Taylor got the feeling that Brandon didn't really love Emma all that much either. If it wasn't for Nicole calling him back to Viridian, he would most likely have forgotten all about her.

As Charizard emerged from its Poké Ball, a thought occurred to Taylor. "Are all three of us gonna fit on there?" she asked.

"Uhh… good point," said Brandon. "No, I don't think we will. You won't be able to fly by yourself, will you, Taylor?"

Taylor shook her head. "Nope," she said. "And I'm still a little rattled from the previous times I've flown with you."

"And I can't fly with you, because that would mean leaving Emma all by herself…" Brandon thought aloud. "Hmm… Emma, do you have any Flying-types?"

"I have a Crobat," said Emma, plucking a Poké Ball from her belt.

"Great," said Brandon. "I'll fly on that, and you can fly Taylor there on Charizard."

"But I wanna fly there with you!" protested Emma, pouting cutely.

"Sorry," said Brandon, "but Taylor can't fly on her own. She needs someone to go with her, and you'd only complain if I went with her." This seemed to confirm Taylor's suspicions: Emma was, to some degree, irrationally jealous of her.

Emma did not refute Brandon's statement, instead merely sighing in resignation. "I guess it can't be helped, then," she said. "I mean, it's not like we're not going to the same place…"

"Yeah, we'll only be apart for, like, twenty minutes, or however long it takes to get to Mt. Moon," said Brandon, gently patting her head. "No biggie."

"Alright then," said Emma. "I guess I'll see you in a bit." She leaned up and gave Brandon a goodbye kiss on the lips, then climbed onto the back of Charizard.

Taylor climbed on behind her, still a little uneasy about flying. "You sure you know what you're doing?" she asked Emma.

"This isn't the first time I've flown," she said. "Just relax, everything will be fine."

"Just… no racing, okay?" said Taylor. "I couldn't take another race."

"Don't worry, Taylor," said Brandon reassuringly, "no races today. We're just gonna fly to Mt. Moon at our own pace. Emma, make sure to take it easy, alright?"

Emma nodded. "Will do," she said.

Brandon took off first, and as he and Crobat lifted off into the sky, Taylor suddenly got the uneasy feeling that Emma was not going to take it easy at all. Sure enough, Charizard suddenly lifted off hard, soaring high into the sky as it raced to catch up to Crobat. Taylor clung tightly onto Emma, grimacing as the uncomfortable sensation of the cold wind whipping at her face returned once more. Even if the flight to Mt. Moon was only twenty minutes as Brandon had said, this was still going to be a long ride.

Day 198

[from Pokémon xTreme]

"You know, considering you said we have to be there as soon as possible, you're not flying very fast," Taylor pointed out, as she and Brandon flew back towards Viridian City.

"I guess there's a part of me that doesn't really wanna face what's waiting for me in Viridian," admitted Brandon. "A big part of me. Like, all of me."

"That bad, huh?" asked Taylor.

"Oh, definitely," said Brandon.

"Should I… head back home while you get things sorted out?" asked Taylor.

"I'm not sure it'll be sorted out that quickly," said Brandon. "And this might end up affecting you too, depending on, umm… how things turn out."

Taylor, feeling ever more confused, could do nothing but hold on tight and wait until they arrived back in Viridian City. When they did, Brandon turned and headed towards the east of the city. "If this might affect me," she said eventually, "shouldn't you tell me what it is before we get there?"

"Like I said, I don't really wanna talk about it," said Brandon. "But you'll probably find out when we get there."

"I'm… kinda starting to worry a bit," Taylor admitted.

"That's okay," said Brandon, "so am I. We're almost there, though."

A few minutes later, and the pair had arrived at a street filled with large detached houses, in one of the more affluent parts of town. The houses' gardens were equally big, and several had swimming pools. Brandon flew to one that did not, and began to circle it, clearly apprehensive about landing. Taylor could see two figures standing in the front yard of the house, and though she couldn't make out anything about them, she guessed that these were the people Brandon had come to see.

Brandon let out a resigned sigh. "I guess I might as well tell you," he said. "There was this girl, and, well… her sister thinks I may have gotten her pregnant."

Taylor opened her mouth, closed it, thought for a moment, then said, "I don't really know how to respond to that."

"Yeah… now you know why I didn't wanna talk about it," said Brandon. "But you were gonna find out one way or the other; I mean, that's her down there, sending out her Talonflame to- OH HOLY SHIT!"

Brandon suddenly banked hard as the Talonflame swopped right at them, causing Taylor to squeal. The Talonflame circled round and prepared to swoop down at them again, and Brandon found himself faced with no choice but to land. Taking Charizard into a steep dive, he descended rapidly to the ground and stopped just short of the two sisters. Taylor staggered off of Charizard's back, a little dizzied after the sudden evasive manoeuvres. "It was all going so well…" she muttered.

With a measure of reluctance, Brandon climbed off of Charizard's back and turned to face the two women. Both had long, flaming red hair, and piercing blue eyes. The younger of the two was named Emma Williams, and she was the one Brandon had supposedly gotten pregnant. She stood a little way behind her older sister, looking a little embarrassed at the scene her sister was causing. The older sister was named Nicole, and she was currently staring daggers at Brandon, Talonflame's Poké Ball clutched tightly in her outstretched hand. As the bird Pokémon swooped back into its ball, Nicole immediately began to advance on Brandon.

Brandon nervously began to step backwards. "Uhh, can I just say that I-" he began, before Nicole punched him dead in the face, knocking him down. "Okay, maybe not," he said.

As Taylor looked on in shock, Nicole seized Brandon by the collar and dragged him back to his feet. She could see now why Brandon had been so apprehensive about coming here: Nicole was clearly very protective of her younger sister, and had quite the temper to boot. "You fucking bastard!" Nicole yelled. "Banging my sister is bad enough, but knocking her up as well?!"

"I-I swear I used a condom!" Brandon stammers. "Honestly, I-"

"Well, obviously not!" barked Nicole. "So the question now is, now that the damage is done, are you gonna man up and do right by Emma? 'Coz I'm not gonna let you just walk away after you've knocked her up. You're gonna learn some goddamn responsibility for once in your life! Got it?"

"What exactly do you want me to do?" asked Brandon.

"You want me to spell it out for ya?" asked Nicole. She angrily jabbed a finger at Emma. "You and Emma are gonna raise that kid together! I'm not letting her become some penniless single mother, struggling to make ends meet, because you couldn't keep it in your Calvin fucking Kleins! That's your kid in there, and you are gonna raise it properly, or so help me, I will scorch that precious face of yours into charcoal! Got it?"

"Uhh…" Brandon was clearly conflicted for a moment between his training commitments, his desire not to get into a serious relationship, and his total, unabated fear of Nicole. Finally, fear won out, and he resigned himself to his fate. "Okay. Whatever you say."

Seemingly pacified, Nicole released Brandon, and he gratefully took a few steps back. "Good," said Nicole. "Make sure you take care of her. I'll be keeping an eye on you both, to make sure." She turned to face her younger sister who, like Taylor, seemed to have spent the whole time looking on in horror. "Emma? You sure you're okay with letting this creep into your life?"

Emma nodded, sweeping a strand of hair aside as she regained her composure a little. "Of course," she said. "I'm carrying his baby." She rubbed her stomach, which Taylor noticed was still rather flat. She had to be in the early stages of her pregnancy.

"Then it's settled," said Nicole. "Who knows: maybe if you clean up your act, you might actually be a half-decent father and husband."

"Wait, husband?" said Brandon. "Who said anything about-"

"Well, what did you think I meant when I said you'd be raising the kid together?" said Nicole indignantly. "Of course you're gonna fucking marry her! That's how this works!"

"Look, could I have some time to… think about all of this?" asked Brandon. "This is a lot to take in at once! Besides, I've got… stuff going on, I can't just… drop everything and get married and-"

"Why?" asked Nicole. "What's so important?"

Brandon gestured in Taylor's direction, and Nicole noticed the teenage girl standing at Charizard's side for the first time. Taylor meekly waved at Nicole. "Uhh… hi," she said.

Nicole, seemingly mistaking Taylor for a love interest, rolled her eyes. "Oh, you gotta be kidding me-"

"N-no, it's not like that," Brandon quickly stammered, "she's my student. That's all. I'm teaching her how to be a Pokémon Master, it's part of my community service. Besides, she's like-" Brandon paused, then turned to Taylor. "How old are you?"

"Fifteen," said Taylor.

"Exactly," said Brandon. "I'd say we're just friends, but… I dunno, are we friends? We've known each other, like, three days."

"I'd like us to be friends," said Taylor, "but nothing more."

"Three days is still longer than you knew Emma for," Nicole scowled. "But alright. I guess I'll trust you on this occasion. You taking her round the Pokémon Gym Challenge?"

Sensing an opportunity for a normal, relaxed conversation, Brandon nodded. "Yep," he said. "We're doing the traditional route, so she'll be facing you last."

"Wait… she's a Gym Leader?" said Taylor.

"I think some proper introductions are in order," said Brandon. "Taylor, this is Nicole Williams, Viridian City's Gym Leader… and my future sister-in-law, apparently. Nicole, this is Taylor Evans, my mentoring student."

"I look forward to seeing you in my Gym," said Nicole. "Brandon might be a total asshole, but I have to admit, he's an excellent trainer."

"Yeah, I kinda got that already," said Taylor.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that…" Gesturing at Emma, Brandon continued, "This is Emma Williams, Nicole's younger sister, one of several one-night-stands, and now apparently the mother of my child."

Emma stepped forward and wrapped an arm around Brandon's, looking up at him adoringly. "And your future wife," she said. "Don't forget that."

"Yeah, I guess that too," said Brandon, who was clearly still overwhelmed by all these sudden developments.

There was a moment of awkward silence, before Taylor asked, "So, uhh… what now?"

"Well, I'd like to go home and… deal with all this stuff," said Brandon. "I need some time to myself for this all to sink in."

Nicole nodded. "You've got a lot to think about," she said, "and a lot to start planning."

"I guess I have," said Brandon. "Taylor, I'll drop you off at your house first, and then we'll pick this up tomorrow, alright?"

"Okay, sure," said Taylor. "Let's get going."

Day 184

[from Pokémon xTreme]

As Brandon and Taylor exited the Pewter City Gym, Brandon noticed that Taylor didn't seem particularly happy, despite the Venom Badge now pinned to her lapel. "Something wrong?" he asked. "You look kinda upset."

Taylor decided to just come out and say it. "Graham told me how you got suspended," she said. "How mentoring me is part of your community service."

"He did?" said Brandon, his expression suddenly looking rather pained. "Shoulda seen that coming, shouldn't I?" he muttered to himself with a sigh. "Should have seen that coming."

"Why didn't you tell me?" asked Taylor.

"Well, to be honest, I figured you already knew about the incident," said Brandon. "It was pretty big news."

"I heard something about a trainer getting arrested and suspended, but I didn't know it was you!" said Taylor. "I mean, I could tell you were a bit of a renegade, but getting drunk and attacking someone-?"

"It was one time!" Brandon protested. "Well, the attacking part was one time - I'm not gonna pretend I didn't get wasted a lot before all this - but still-"

"If they banned you for a whole year, it must have been pretty serious, right?" said Taylor."I mean, how badly did you hurt her?"

"I can't remember, I was pissed!" said Brandon. "I think if I remember from the trial, I didn't-"

"Oh my God, she took you to court," said Taylor quietly.

"-I didn't actually hit her though," Brandon continued, "I think I just, like… grabbed her and pushed her around a bit, and then threw her outta the room. She mighta hurt herself when she landed, but… you know, like I said, I was drunk, I didn't know what I was doing. I'm not trying to justify myself, I know I fucked up badly, I'm just saying… it wasn't quite as bad as people might make it out to be.

"As for the year's suspension, they were just trying to make an example outta me. The people in charge were trying to send a message that stuff like that just wasn't acceptable. I'd ruffled enough feathers already, so they were just looking for an excuse, and I gave it to 'em on a silver platter. But still, I accepted the ruling, I know I did wrong, I apologized to the woman, and now I'm trying to straighten myself out, 'coz if I fuck up again, next time it might be a life ban, and I really don't want that. I had one last drink the night after the sentencing, and I haven't had a drink since."

Taylor nodded. She could clearly see that Brandon regretted his actions and was trying to clear up his act, and she appreciated it. She felt she could forgive him for his mistakes. However, there was one thing still bugging her. "So, what about me?" she asked. "Are you training me because you want to, or because you have to?"

Brandon pulled up and sat down at a nearby bench, motioning for Taylor to sit with him. Slipping his hands into his pockets, he let out a sigh. "I'll be honest with you," he said. "When they first told me that I'd have to do this program, I didn't really wanna do it. Having to drag some kid around and show 'em the ropes didn't really sound like my kinda fun. But then I remembered what it was like for me back when I first started out, when I was eleven.

"Back then, I didn't have all these websites full of Pokémon-raising guides, and the ones that did exist took forever to load because the Internet was shit back then. There was no Pokédex app to keep track of my captures, or tell me my Pokémon's movesets or abilities or anything like that. Almost everything I know about battling, I had to find out for myself, and it was a slow and difficult learning curve. By the time all these extra aids came around, I was already a top professional, and I didn't really need them as much as I had back when I first started.

"I think if I'd had a mentor when I started out, like you do now, I coulda reached pro status maybe two years earlier than I actually did. I coulda had two extra years at the top of the game by now. So I figured, well, if I'm gonna have to do this, I'm gonna do the best damn job that I can. I'm gonna help this person become the best damn trainer they can be. I'm still committed to that. I've seen that you've got potential, and you proved that by beating Graham. So I'm gonna help you reach that potential, not just because I have to, but because I want to."

Taylor nodded, and her smile returned. "That's all I wanted to know," she said. "Thank you, Brandon."

"No problem," said Brandon.

"So, what now?" asked Taylor. "The Cerulean City Gym is the next one up, right?"

"Yep," said Brandon. "The Gym Leader there uses Water-type Pokémon, but I think this time, with a little more training, you might be able to get through without even needing Pokémon with type advantages. You're not gonna be able to find many on the road up there, that's for sure."

"Well, I'll just have to do my best again, then, won't I?" said Taylor.

"That's the spirit," said Brandon. "Oh, hang on, just let me take this-" Brandon's phone had started to ring, and he fished it out of his pocket and answered the call. "Hello?"

Taylor couldn't make out what the person on the other end was saying, but they were clearly yelling, causing Brandon to flinch. "I don't know what you-" The person on the other end cut Brandon off, yelling at him once more, and before Brandon could get a word in edgeways, the caller hung up. "Hey, wait-" It was too late, and Brandon was left staring dumbfounded at his cellphone.

"What was that all about?" asked Taylor.

"Uhh… personal stuff," said Brandon, looking flustered. "Don't really wanna talk about it. But there's been a change of plans, we gotta head back down to Viridian for now."

"Really?" asked Taylor, as Brandon got to his feet. "You mean right now?"

"Yeah, as soon as possible," said Brandon.

"It must be serious, then," said Taylor, getting to her feet.

Brandon shook his head. "Oh, you have no idea," he said.

Day 180

[from Pokémon xTreme]

Plucking the first Poké Ball from her belt, she held it out in front of her. "Go, Hoothoot!" she declared, and the Poké Ball opened in a burst of light. Hoothoot jumped forward, fluttering gently down to the ground and resting on one foot before tilting its head and hooting gently at Graham.

"Go, Venonat!" said Graham, throwing the first of his two Poké Balls. The purple-furred Bug Pokémon burst forth from its Poké Ball and focused its radar-like eyes on Hoothoot. The display screen indicated that Venonat was the faster of the two Pokémon, and so it would go first. Graham knew that he had to deal with the Flying-type Pokémon quickly, or it would deal major damage to his Pokémon. "Venonat, use Supersonic!"

Venonat swiftly launched a series of sound waves at Hoothoot, hoping to confuse it. Hoothoot, however, simply hopped out of the way, and was unaffected, much to Taylor's relief. "Two can play at that game," she said. "Hoothoot, use Hypnosis!"

"Hoot!" cried Hoothoot. "Hoo…" Using its large eyes, it tried to hypnotize Venonat into falling asleep. However, this also had no effect, and Venonat remained wide awake. After the first round, nothing had happened whatsoever.

"An exciting Pokémon battle is unfolding here," Brandon remarked sarcastically.

"Let's try something different, then," said Graham. "Venonat, use Poison Powder!"

Venonat shook its furry body and purple spores floated across the arena, drifting towards Hoothoot. This time, the effect took hold, and Hoothoot was poisoned. However, the effect didn't last for long, as Hoothoot took out its held item: a Pecha Berry. "I came prepared for that," said Taylor, as Hoothoot munched happily on the poison-curing berry. Graham scowled. It looked like he was going to have to win this the old-fashioned way.

"Alright, Hoothoot," said Taylor, once the Pokémon had finished eating its Pecha Berry. "Attack him with Peck!" Hoothoot hooted in acknowledgement, then flew over and attacked Venonat with its beak. Despite the move's type advantage, it didn't seem to faze Venonat too much.

"Venonat, use Tackle!" said Graham. Venonat charged Hoothoot, knocking it backwards. Sensing that her Pokémon was less durable than Graham's, Taylor decided to change tactics once again.

"Hoothoot, try using Hypnosis again!" she said. Hoothoot made another attempt at sending Venonat to sleep, and this time it was successful: Venonat fell asleep almost immediately, its compound eyes drooping shut. Realizing she now had the upper hand, Taylor let out a sigh of relief and pumped her fist. "We got this," she said.

Venonat spent the next three turns asleep, allowing Hoothoot to gradually whittle down its health with Pecks. However, this also gave Graham ample time to plan his revenge, and when Venonat finally woke up, he was ready. "If Venonat's going down, then so's your Hoothoot," he said, "Venonat, use Poison Powder again!"

Venonat launched its poisonous spores at Hoothoot once more, and once more they connected, only this time Hoothoot did not have a Pecha Berry to recover itself with. Taylor scowled, realizing things had just gotten a little bit harder. However, she knew she was still winning. "Hoothoot, use Peck!"

Hoothoot swooped in and, by sheer luck, landed a critical hit on Venonat, knocking it out. The first of Graham's two Pokémon had fallen, and Taylor still had all four of her Pokémon left, albeit with one of them poisoned. At this point, she was feeling fairly confident. However, one look at Graham's equally-confident face was enough to rattle her slightly.

"Not bad so far," Graham admitted, as he pulled the fainted Venonat back into its ball. "You're definitely Brandon's student, I'll say that much. But let's see if you really have what it takes." He plucked his second Poké Ball from his belt and raised it in his hand. "Go, Ariados!"

Ariados emerged from the Poké Ball, and immediately Taylor's confidence slipped another notch. Ariados was a much stronger Pokémon than Venonat, in terms of both attack and defence. She instinctively looked to Brandon for guidance and support, and Brandon simply nodded at her. "You got this, Taylor," he said. "Don't worry."

Ariados was also faster than Hoothoot - though only just - so Graham went first again. "Ariados, use Bug Bite!" he said. Ariados rushed forwards and gnashed at Hoothoot with its sharp mandibles, and this time the owl Pokémon was on the receiving end of a critical hit. It hung on, but only by a few hit points. Taylor realized that she only had one more turn before Hoothoot fainted from Venonat's poison, and she had to make it count.

"You did well, Hoothoot," she said. "Now, just one last move, okay? Hypnosis!"

Opening its eyes wide, Hoothoot unleashed its hypnotic rays once more, and just as Venonat had done, Ariados promptly fell asleep. Its job done, Hoothoot then succumbed to its poison and fainted. It occurred to Taylor that none of her Pokémon had ever fainted before; Brandon had always had a multitude of Potions on hand during their training sessions, and none of her opponents to date had been this tough. Trying not to let it get to her, she recalled Hoothoot and sent out the next Pokémon in her arsenal. "Go, Beedrill!" she said.

"Fighting fire with fire, huh?" said Graham, as Beedrill emerged from its Poké Ball. "Interesting. Alright, let's see what that Beedrill of yours can do."

Beedrill was a lot faster than Ariados, and so Taylor now finally got to go first. "Beedrill, use Fury Attack!" she said. Beedrill complied, firing five hard jabs with its stingers, of which three connected. Ariados, still asleep, could not retaliate, though the attacks did not seem to have done much damage to it.

Beedrill managed to get two more Fury Attacks in before Ariados woke up. The first connected only twice, though one of the blows was a critical hit, and the second connected thrice. Ariados then finally woke up, though with half its health now gone, it seemed that the battle was a foregone conclusion. Taylor's confidence returned twofold, and she felt that the badge may finally be in her grasp.

Graham was not done yet, however. "Use Bug Bite again!" he called out. Ariados leapt at Beedrill, gnashing at it with its mandibles, and Beedrill reeled back from the powerful blow.

"Fury Attack again!" said Taylor. Beedrill complied, and this time it struck Ariados four times, even managing to strike yet another critical hit. Ariados had now taken some severe punishment, and was clearly wounded, but somehow it now seemed even more dangerous than before. Its mandibles glinted dangerously, and there was a menacing look in its eye. Taylor had unwittingly activated Ariados' ability, Swarm, which increased the power of its Bug-type attacks when its health was low. In taking so long to defeat it, she had made it even stronger.

"You should've finished it off more quickly," said Graham. "Ariados, use Bug Bite!" Ariados complied, tearing at Beedrill with its sharpened fangs, causing severe damage to its opponent's health. Taylor winced, but not only did Beedrill hang on, it seemed to get stronger, just as Ariados had. Its stingers looked sharper and brighter than they had before. Taylor then remembered that Beedrill had the same ability as Ariados: Swarm. It was now a question of which Pokémon could hit first, and since Beedrill was faster…

"Beedrill, finish him off with another Fury Attack!" said Taylor. Beedrill promptly unleashed another flurry of blows, but to Taylor's horror, the attack missed completely. Now the ball was in Graham's court.

"Ariados, use Leech Life!" said Graham. Ariados had no such bad luck, and in a flash it drained the last of Beedrill's life force. The Poison Bee Pokémon crumpled to the arena floor and fainted, while Ariados recovered a tiny portion of its health. Taylor still had two Pokémon left, but she knew she had to end things fast.

Recalling the fainted Beedrill, she plucked the third of her Poké Balls from its belt. "Go, Eevee!" she cried. "Finish him off for real this time!" Taylor's starter Pokémon burst forth, energized and eager for battle. It too was faster than Ariados, and it too went first. "Use Covet!"

Eevee obliged, approaching Ariados with its usual wide-eyed, pleading expression. With Beedrill's defences down, Eevee swiped hard with one of its paws, cuffing Ariados round the face. Still Ariados clung on. "How strong is this thing?" she exclaimed in disbelief.

"You're about to find out," said Graham. "Another Bug Bite, Ariados!" Ariados promptly lunged straight at Eevee, and Taylor winced as her beloved starter was severely hurt. Eevee staggered backwards, its legs trembling, and for a horrifying moment Taylor feared that that one blow had been enough to knock it out. However, Eevee clung on, gritting its teeth in determination as it steadied itself for the final assault.

"Good job, Eevee," said Taylor. "Now, one last Tackle! Give it everything you've got!" Eevee bravely charged forwards and struck Ariados hard, wiping out the last of the Pokémon's health. Ariados' legs finally crumpled beneath it and it fainted, falling to the floor with a thud. Taylor breathed a massive sigh of relief, then raised a fist in the air in triumph. She had done it. The first Gym Badge was hers.

"Nice win, Taylor!" Brandon shouted encouragingly from the sidelines. "Knew you could do it!"

Graham gave Brandon another sour look as he recalled his fainted Ariados, then nodded at Taylor and gave her a satisfied smile. "I have to say, I'm impressed," he said. "You handled yourself pretty well there, even when things started to turn against you. You've definitely earned your first Badge. Come with me and I'll get it for you."

Taylor nodded, following Graham over to the console from which he had activated the arena. He pressed a button, and the arena section in the middle of the floor flipped back over again, becoming an ordinary section of floor once more. The video screen turned itself off, the words "CHALLENGER WINS" slowly fading away. Another section of the console contained a built-in healing machine, which Graham placed the two Poké Balls into, letting his fainted Pokémon rest for a while.

Now that she had the opportunity, Taylor decided to ask the question that had been on her mind since before the fight. "So what's up with you and Brandon?" she asked. "How come you don't seem to like him that much?"

Graham sighed, his expression growing sour again. "I'll be honest with you," he said. "I can't stand him. He's cocky, arrogant, loudmouthed, a total attention-seeker… he's probably signing autographs right now, the little-" Graham let the sentence trail off as he turned round to see that Brandon was indeed signing autographs for the gym's various patrons. "His attitude's just not good for the sport's image. Not to mention the Kalos incident last year…"

"What Kalos incident?" asked Taylor.

Graham paused, his hand halfway to the handle of a storage drawer. "You don't know about it?" he asked. "Well, I'm not surprised he didn't tell you about it… idiot probably doesn’t even remember it. Last year after the Kalos Masters, he went on a massive bender, trashed his hotel room, and assaulted a female hotel assistant who tried to get him to calm down. The hotel sued, the PTA got pissed, and he was banned from Masters tournaments for a year and forced to do community service-- by which I mean, training you."

Day 168

[from Pokémon xTreme]

After only a day or two of training, Taylor decided that she was ready to take on the first Pokémon Gym. As well as her Eevee and Pidgey, Brandon had caught her a Hoothoot and Kakuna, the latter of which she had swiftly evolved into a Beedrill. As she and Brandon flew towards Pewter City aboard Charizard, she was still nervous, and her memories of her previous flight weren't exactly helping matters. Thankfully, the ride was a lot calmer and smoother this time, and after a few minutes she almost began to enjoy it.

It didn't take too long before the pair reached Pewter City. Nestled amongst the hills and mountains to the west of Mt. Moon, it was a lot smaller than Taylor's native Viridian City, but still a sizeable settlement. "The Gym's on the north side of town," said Brandon, "so we've got a little way to go yet. I'll try and land us as close to the Gym as I can."

Taylor nodded, her anxiety showing on her face. "This is it," she said. "Too late to back down now."

"You'll do fine," said Brandon reassuringly. "Just give it your all, and even if you lose, your Pokémon will still get plenty stronger from this."

"I hope I don't lose, though," said Taylor.

"Well, so do I," said Brandon, "but don't think it's the end of the world if you do lose. You can always just come back later and try again."

Taylor nodded, and offered Brandon a nervous smile. "Yeah, you're right," she said. "Thanks. I'll do my best."

"At the end of the day, that's all you can do," said Brandon. "Alright, there it is: Pewter City Gym."

Taylor could see it up ahead now, a large gray building with a purple roof. A Poké Ball logo was etched onto the building's façade, highlighting it as a Pokémon Gym. Brandon gently steered Charizard down towards the ground, and as the building grew larger and larger in her sights, butterflies started to fill Taylor's stomach. This was the point at which her Pokémon trainer career truly began, and from here on out there was no going back.

Charizard landed neatly on the sidewalk in front of the Gym, and Taylor and Brandon slid off its back and onto the ground. As Brandon recalled the Pokémon back into its Poké Ball, Taylor mentally steeled herself for the challenge ahead. There was a large sign in front of the Gym, which she swiftly read. "PEWTER CITY POKÉMON GYM. PART OF THE KANTO GYM CHALLENGE," it declared. "LEADER: GRAHAM JONES. SPECIALITY: BUG/POISON"

"You ready to go inside?" asked Brandon.

Taylor nodded. "I'm ready," she said.

"Alright then," said Brandon. "Let's do this."

Taylor took a deep breath, then headed into the Gym with Brandon just behind her. Inside was a large, sparsely-decorated room, with a purple honeycomb pattern printed onto the grey walls and floor. It felt somewhat minimalistic. Scattered around the Gym were various trainers, some of whom were training their Pokémon with practice bags or verbal instructions, while others were locked in fierce training battles with their fellow trainers.

To her left, Taylor spotted a Scyther trading blows with a dark-blue frog-like Pokémon that she did not recognize, presumably a Pokémon native to another region. While many Pokémon still remained confined to their original habitats, the increasing global movement of people and trainers meant that a number of Pokémon could now be found outside of their home regions, both in the possession of trainers and in the wild. Out of curiosity, Taylor opened her Pokédex app and consulted it. "Toxicroak, huh?" she muttered to herself. "Never heard of that one… looks kinda ugly."

"Hey, Graham!" Brandon's sudden shout took Taylor by surprise, and she almost dropped her smartphone. "Where are you? You got a challenger!"

The gym fell silent for a moment as everyone's attention focused on Brandon, then on his protégé. Slowly, the volume began to rise again, and this time Taylor could pick out snippets of the conversations around her: "Is that his mentee?" "She must be." "She looks pretty young." "She's pretty, that's for sure." "You reckon she's any good?" "Well, we'll find out in a minute."

A middle-aged man who had been busy coaching a teenage boy soon made his way over to Brandon and Taylor. Presumably, this was Graham. He had short black hair that looked like it was starting to thin out, and wore a grey T-shirt and blue jeans. It took Taylor a moment to realize that the man was looking at Brandon with something approaching contempt, as though he couldn't stand to see him in his Gym. As he reached them, however, he managed to put on a more neutral expression, turning his attention towards Taylor.

"You must be Brandon's student," he said. "Welcome to the Pewter City Gym. I'm Graham Jones, the leader here." He offered her his hand. Evidently, any animosity he felt towards Brandon did not affect her.

Taylor nervously shook Graham's hand. "Taylor Evans," she said. "It's, uhh… nice to meet you, I guess."

"You seem pretty nervous," Graham remarked. "I'm guessing this is your first time in a Gym?"

Taylor nodded. "Yeah," she said. "You'll go easy, right?"

Graham barely held back a chuckle. "Well, yes and no," he admitted. "I dunno what he told you-" He jabbed a thumb at Brandon. "-but to keep things fair, we pick different teams based on how many badges our opponent already has. That way, a guy starting off from Celadon isn't at an immediate disadvantage because his local Gym Leader uses Level 30s, and it also provides a smooth skill progression as you go through the Gyms. Of course, that doesn't mean to say I won't give it my all against you. I have my Gym's honour to uphold, after all."

"I see," said Taylor, who didn't feel very much encouraged by this.

"Well, if you're that nervous, why don't we get straight down to it?" asked Graham. "I'll go set things up and retrieve my Pokémon, wait here a minute." As he headed off, Graham began to wave his arms at the various patrons still training or watching on. "Alright, clear the centre of the room, people," he called out, "we got a Gym Battle about to take place. Make room, please, thank you."

Graham's destination seemed to be a large console at the back of the Gym. As he headed towards it, Taylor couldn't help leaning towards Brandon and whispering, "He doesn't seem to like you very much."

 "Yeah, I know," Brandon whispered back. "It's a long story."

As Graham reached the console, he flicked a switch and suddenly the whole Gym whirred into life. A large central section of the floor suddenly flipped right over, and on the other side were the markings for a standard Pokémon battle arena: a large white-bordered rectangle divided into two opposing sides by a white line, with a large Poké Ball symbol in the exact centre. This was where Graham and Taylor were to do battle.

On one of the walls, a large video screen flickered into life. Graham's name was displayed in the top-left corner, and Taylor's in the top-right. Beneath each name was a set of six circles; two of Graham's were filled in with Poké Balls while four of Taylor's were filled in, representing the number of Pokémon they each had. Two empty bars at the bottom of the screen would presumably show the health of their respective Pokémon once the battle had begun.

As Graham headed towards the arena, the mood in the Gym had changed once again, becoming more tense and subdued as the trainers-cum-spectators settled down to watch the impending match. Suddenly, Taylor longed for the earlier vibrant, buzzing atmosphere. It seemed far too quiet now, the silence broken only by Graham's footsteps echoing silently off the large walls as he took his place in the arena. Taylor, taking another deep breath, took her own place opposite him.

"May the best man win," said Graham.

Taylor swallowed nervously, then nodded. Her hand rested unconsciously on the Poké Ball containing Hoothoot. The moment of truth had finally arrived. In a few short minutes, she would know what her training had amounted to.

Graham turned towards one of the nearby trainers who was watching on. "Jason, would you mind doing the coin flip?" he asked.

"Sure," said Jason. Pulling out his wallet, he retrieved a ₽1 coin and prepared to flip it.

"You call it," said Graham, turning back to Taylor.

"Uhh… heads," said Taylor.

Jason promptly flipped the coin. "Heads," he called out.

"Alright, you get to send your Pokémon out first," said Graham. "Let's see what you've got."

Taylor glanced over at Brandon, who was watching on from the sidelines. Unlike her, he didn't seem even the slightest bit nervous. He coolly gave her a thumbs-up, and somehow, just knowing that at least one person was cheering her on made Taylor feel slightly more confident about her chances. As much as Brandon had insisted that the result didn't matter, and that she could always try again if she lost, she still felt that failing to win this battle would mean that she had let her mentor down.

Plucking the first Poké Ball from her belt, she held it out in front of her. "Go, Hoothoot!" she declared, and the Poké Ball opened in a burst of light.

Day 157

[from Pokémon xTreme]

Less than half an hour later, and Taylor had successfully found and captured her first-ever Pokémon. "Well, that didn't take long at all," she remarked, as she picked the Poké Ball back up off the ground.

"Yeah, but now's the important part," said Brandon. "Now you gotta train it. A freshly-caught Pidgey like that won't stand a chance against Graham's team. You'll have to train it up a bit before you can take him on."

"And how long will that take?" asked Taylor.

"I dunno," said Brandon, shrugging. "Until you think you're ready, I guess."

This didn't seem particularly helpful to Taylor. "Well, how will I know when I'm ready?" she asked.

"You can't," said Brandon. "You just gotta try and guess, as best you can."

"Right," said Taylor, who was still rather confused. "Would it help if I caught some more Pokémon? Will these two be enough, do you think?"

"Well, it can never hurt to have a few Pokémon in reserve, just in case," said Brandon. "Just remember, you're only allowed to carry six at a time, and in pro tournaments you can only use three per battle. That helps keep it fair."

"How many Pokémon will Graham use?" asked Taylor.

"Well, since this is your first Gym, he'll probably only use two," said Brandon. "But I'd say get a couple more, just to be on the safe side."

"Alright," said Taylor. "Good thing we brought plenty of Poké Balls."

Brandon nodded. "One more thing, though," he added. "Your Pokémon will get stronger from fighting other trainers' Pokémon than they will from fighting wild Pokémon. There should be plenty of other rookie trainers around, as this is a pretty popular training area, so it shouldn't be long before we run into-"

"OMIGOSH! IT'S BRANDON WELLS!"

Taylor jumped at the sudden shout from behind them, whereas Brandon, accustomed to the attention, smiled. "Excuse me for a moment," he said, turning his attention to the excited teen girl who was now rushing over to him.

"Brandon, I'm your biggest fan!" squealed the girl. "Can I have your autograph?"

"Sure thing," said Brandon, taking a notepad and pen out of his jacket. "And who do I make this out to?"

"Katie," said the girl, her eyes sparkling.

"'To Katie…'" As Brandon wrote out the autograph, Taylor was reminded of just who her mentor and companion actually was. Brandon Wells was not just some run-of-the-mill trainer: he was a world-class Pokémon Master and one of the sport's brightest talents. Not only that, but he was a former winner of both the Indigo Masters and the Johto Masters, two of the most prestigious Pokémon tournaments in the entire world. Why a trainer of his calibre had agreed to coach someone like her was completely beyond her, and so far Brandon had said nothing about it. At some point, she would simply have to ask him.

For now, Brandon was content to sign yet another autograph, the swift and fluid motions of his hand betraying the frequency with which he undertook this particular task. Tearing the page out of the notebook, he handed it to the girl. "There you go," he said.

The girl let out a little squeal of joy. "Thank you!" she said. "Oh! Can I get a selfie with you, as well?"

"Sure, why not," said Brandon.

Taylor sighed, starting to get a little impatient. As the excited fangirl pulled out her phone and lined up next to Brandon, Taylor leant back against a nearby tree and idly checked her phone's Pokédex app. As expected, her caught Pidgey's data had been automatically recorded into it, as well as that of her Eevee. Elekid was listed as well, thanks to her battle against Kieran, but because she had not actually caught one, its data had not been logged. I wonder how long it would take me to complete this thing, she thought to herself. Probably years…

Finally, having obtained her selfie and posted it on Instagram, the excited girl thanked Brandon one last time and ran off. Brandon smiled as he watched her go. "Been a while since I signed one of those," he mused. "Well, anyway, now that that's outta the way, how about we go find some trainers to battle?"

"Sure," said Taylor. "Oh, wait… if you're with me, won't people be a bit more nervous about fighting me? I mean, since they'd all be beginners as well…"

Brandon considered this for a moment. "Hmm… good point," he said. "Alright, then how about we split up for now? I'll go catch a couple more Pokémon for you, and you go get some battle experience under your belt. Sound like a plan?"

"Yeah, sounds good to me," said Taylor. "Oh, but we should probably swap numbers, just in case we can't find each other again, or something."

"I was just about to suggest that," said Brandon, taking out his smartphone. "Alright, lay 'em on me."

Taylor gave Brandon her phone number, and Brandon gave her his. "Alright, that's that entered in," said Taylor. "Well, I guess I'll see you later, then."

"See ya," said Brandon, and with that he headed off into the forest in search of more wild Pokémon. Taylor headed the other way in search of trainers, still pondering why such a stellar trainer had agreed to be her coach.

Day 140

[from Pokémon xTreme]

UNKNOWN LOCATION, SEAFOAM ISLANDS

TWO DAYS LATER

"It is ready."

The hooded girl glanced up at the man standing before her, taking note of the proud expression on his face. His name was Dr. Christmas, a geneticist who specialized in Pokémon. Though his experiments had made him an outcast in the scientific community, he had found himself a home here in this icy cave.

If the girl was pleased with Dr. Christmas' achievement, she did not show it. The face beneath the white hood remained as neutral and inexpressive as always. "May I see it?" she asked.

"Of course," said Dr. Christmas. He held out a strange Poké Ball, that was white all over with ice-blue snowflake markings on the top half. The hooded girl took hold of it, examined it blankly for a moment, then pressed the button on the top, releasing the Pokémon within.

From out of the strange Poké Ball burst a Pokémon that resembled a Pikachu, but was quite clearly not an ordinary one. Its normally golden-yellow fur was snow-white, and the brown and black markings on its body were instead a pale blue, matching the colour of the markings on the Poké Ball it had been summoned from. The electric sacs on its cheeks, usually red, were a vivid electric blue, and freezing to the touch. It looked up at Dr. Christmas curiously, then smiled in recognition and said, "Pika!"

Dr. Christmas knelt down and gently petted the Pikachu. It was freezing to the touch, but the geneticist did not seem to mind. "Cute, isn't it?" he said.

"Cuteness is not the issue," said the girl bluntly. "Will it do the job?"

"Oh, of course," said Dr. Christmas. "While I was splicing in the genes to change its typing, I was sure to give its power a nice healthy boost. Pikachill here will kick any normal Pikachu into the dust."

The hooded girl nodded, apparently satisfied. "Good work, Dr. Christmas," she said. "We'll take it from here."

"Of course," said Dr. Christmas. As he turned and started to leave, he started muttering to himself. "I wonder which Pokémon I should enhance next…"

"Something stronger would be nice," said the hooded girl, glancing down at Pikachill. It's definitely not much, she thought, but it's a start. Our plans are underway. It's only a matter of time now…

***

MEANWHILE

VIRIDIAN FOREST

An unexpected heavy downpour had put an end to Brandon and Taylor's plans to go hunting for Pokémon the previous day, but today the sun was shining, and so they headed into Viridian Forest. Taylor was eager to catch her first Pokémon, but there were other things on her mind as well.

"So, what am I aiming for?" she asked Brandon. "Like… at what point will you decide that I'm good enough?"

"Well, it depends how highly you wanna aim," said Brandon. "Ideally, you'll wanna head for the Masters Tournaments, but I'm not sure whether you'll be good enough to reach that level."

"Me neither, to be honest," admitted Taylor. The Masters Tournaments were the four biggest and most prestigious Pokémon tournaments in the world: the Indigo Masters, the Johto Masters, the Unova Masters, and the Kalos Masters. They attracted worldwide audiences of millions, and the winners took home cash prizes in excess of ₽100 million. Only the world's best Pokémon trainers were able to enter them, and only the best of the best were able to win them. Taylor felt certain that she could never reach that level. "So, what else is there for me to aim for?"

"Well, obviously, there's the regional Gym Challenge," said Brandon. "If you do wanna aim for the Masters, then you'll need to do that anyway, because collecting all eight of your region's Gym Badges is the requirement for Pokémon Master status. Only Pokémon Masters are allowed to take part in Masters Tournaments."

"So I'll wanna beat the Gyms, then," said Taylor. "Okay, that'll be my aim for now. There's a gym in Viridian City, isn't there?"

"There is," said Brandon, "but traditionally that's the last one you face. The first one most people take on is in Pewter City, which is on the other side of Viridian Forest."

"What kind of Pokémon does the Gym Leader there use?" asked Taylor.

Brandon smiled. "Man, you're already thinking like a proper trainer," he remarked. "The Gym Leader over at Pewter is Graham Jones. He uses Bug-types and Poison-types. Ideally, you'll want a Flying-type Pokémon to counter him. Luckily, you can find Pidgeys here in Viridian Forest."

Taylor nodded. "Okay," she said. "Sounds like a plan. Now then, Pidgeys, Pidgeys… where are they…?" 

Day 107

[from Pokémon xTreme]

It wasn't long before both Taylor and Keiran had selected their starter Pokémon. Taylor had chosen an Eevee, having seemingly been swayed by its cuteness, while Kieran had chosen an Elekid. Taylor was perfectly happy to leave Ellen's house and begin training right away, but Kieran had other ideas.

"Hey, you wanna battle?" he asked. "Let's check out our new Pokémon!"

Taylor shrugged. She'd been planning on training anyway, and it couldn't hurt to see exactly what her Eevee was like in battle. Ellen had told her it had perfect IVs and a strong egg move - whatever those meant - but until she saw it in battle, she had no idea how strong it actually was. "Sure," she said. "It'll be good to get some battle practice."

"You got this, Taylor," said Brandon encouragingly, patting her on the shoulder.

"In your dreams," retorted Seth. Kieran nodded in agreement, smirking.

Taylor was a little too nervous to partake in this pre-battle repartee. Instead, she merely plucked her single Poké Ball from her belt, holding it in one hand and her smartphone in the other. She opened the Pokédex app, which automatically tracked her party through wireless chips in the Poké Balls, and showed her real-time information on her Pokémon's moves and status during battle. It was an invaluable tool during battles, and one that Kieran also had open in preparation for the fight. "Okay, ready when you are," said Taylor.

"Alright, here goes nothing!" said Kieran. "Go, Elekid!" He threw his own Poké Ball and Elekid burst forth, spinning one of its arms round a few times to generate the electricity that stimulated its muscles. It was a fast Pokémon, and reasonably powerful; like Taylor's Eevee, it had perfect IVs, meaning it was as strong as it was possible for an Elekid to be. However, its Nature - which lowered its Attack bur raised its Special Defence - was not exactly ideal when all its moves were physical moves.

Taylor's Eevee had no such problems. "Go, Eevee!" said Taylor, sending out her own starter. She quickly consulted her Pokédex, but before she could check its moves properly, Kieran spoke up once more.

"My Elekid's faster, so it's my turn first!" he declared. "Elekid, use Fire Punch!" Elekid duly obliged, cloaking its fist in flames and whirling its arm around to build up power, before striking Eevee directly in the face. Taylor gasped as her Pokémon took the blow, but despite stumbling backwards slightly, Eevee stood firm.

"My turn now, then!" said Taylor. "Uhh…" She took the opportunity to properly consult the Pokédex, checking the moves she had available to use. Tackle was a fairly standard damage-dealing move. Charm would severely lower its Attack, something she wasn't sure was necessary since its first attack hadn't done much damage to start with. Instead, she decided to lower its defences, in order to finish it off quicker. "Okay… Eevee, use Tail Whip!"

Eevee turned round and wagged its bushy tail cutely in Elekid's direction. The cuteness was enough to cause Elekid to lower its guard slightly, reducing its Defence. However, at the end of this first turn, Elekid still held the advantage in terms of remaining health, and since it went fist again in the second time, it could stretch this advantage.

"Elekid, use Ice Punch this time!" said Kieran. This time, Elekid's fist was cloaked in ice crystals as it whirled its arm round in circles, before delivering another blow to Eevee. Eevee withstood this one as well, but its health was down to below half now, and it was starting to tire a little. Taylor knew she had to end this quickly if she was to avoid losing her first-ever battle.

Consulting her Pokédex once more, she realized her Eevee had another attack: Covet. This one dealt more damage than Tackle, and would also steal an opponent's held item, if it happened to have one. This must have been the "powerful egg move" that Ellen had been referring to. In any case, there was no reason for her to use Tackle when she had this move at her disposal. "Eevee," she declared, "use Covet!"

Shaking off its slight weariness, Eevee strode over to Elekid and began to beg cutely, its eyes opening wide in a pleading expression. Elekid was immediately caught off-guard, and a moment later, Eevee struck, swiping out at the Electric Pokémon with one of its front paws. Had Elekid been holding an item, it would have been snatched away from it, but instead all it did was deal a heavy amount of damage to the weakened Pokémon, sending it stumbling backwards, pinwheeling its arms to try and regain its balance. Taylor's choice to weaken Elekid before striking it had made all the difference, and now the match had swung dramatically in her own favour.

Kieran gritted his teeth, growing agitated. He hadn't expected Eevee's attacks to be so strong in comparison to Elekid's. But it wasn't over yet: he still had one slim chance of winning. Ice Punch, being an Ice-type move, had a 10% chance of freezing the opponent. If the next blow froze Eevee, it would be left incapable of moving, and Elekid would be able to easily finish it off.  It was a slim chance, but it was the only chance he had left to avoid defeat.

"Elekid," he called out, "use Ice Punch again! Freeze it solid!" Elekid pinwheeled its arm once more, charging up another frigid punch. Once more it landed squarely on Eevee, causing it to stumble backwards, and with its health now dangerously low, its front legs were starting to buckle and one eye was closed, panting a little against the pain. But it was not knocked out, and crucially, neither was it frozen. "Damn it," muttered Kieran, who knew in that instant that he had lost.

"Hang in there, Eevee!" cried out Taylor, growing concerned for her tired Pokemon. "You're doing great; just one more attack! Now, use Tackle!"

Eevee nodded, steadying itself, before charging at Elekid and tackling it head-on. The blow was more than enough to knock out the tired Elekid, sending it sprawling to the floor. The battle was over, and Taylor had won.

Suddenly, the rookie trainer found herself flooded with a powerful sense of joy and accomplishment. This may only have been a practice match against a fellow rookie, but it was a victory nonetheless, and a perfect start to her career. "We did it, Eevee!" exclaimed Taylor joyfully. "We won!"

Eevee staggered round to face Taylor, still limping a little, and gave her a weak smile. Already, perhaps, Eevee could sense that Taylor was going to be a good trainer. Taylor recalled her victorious Pokémon back to its Poké Ball, and Kieran followed suit, scowling as he returned his defeated Elekid to its ball.

"Don't feel too down, Kieran," said Seth encouragingly. "You still fought pretty well. Once you get some more practice under your belt, that Elekid of yours will get plenty stronger."

"I know," said Kieran, "but that doesn't make me feel any better about losing."

 "I guess not," conceded Seth. "Still, I have to admit, that's a pretty strong Eevee. I think it helped that it had STAB moves and your Elekid didn't."

"STAB moves?" repeated Taylor blankly.

"I think I have a lot of technical terms to teach her," said Brandon. "But for now, I think we should go heal these Pokémon back up again. Ellen's got a healing machine in her house, so let's head back inside for a bit."

"Alright," said Taylor. "We'll go training afterwards, right?"

"Actually, before we get onto that, I think I need to explain some stuff first," said Brandon. "It'll help if you know what you're doing and what you're aiming for right from the get-go."

"I know what I'm aiming for," said Kieran, as he followed Seth back towards the house. "I wanna be the strongest trainer in the world. That's the point, isn't it?"

"Kind of," admitted Brandon.

"Yeah, I think we'll head over to Viridian Forest after this," said Seth. "There's plenty of weak Flying and Bug-types there that this thing will make mincemeat out of. Easy practice."

"We'll probably go there tomorrow, yeah," said Brandon. "I need to teach you how to catch a Pokémon for yourself, that's a really important skill to learn."

Taylor nodded. "I'm looking forward to it," she said, as the four of them headed back inside Ellen's house in search of the healing machine.