Chapter 63: 244-247

Chapter 63: 244-247

The New Normal – 11-12 – Pokenet Interlude

[BIG ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SAFFRON GYM! NEW GIRAFARIG EVOLUTION ANNOUNCED – FARIGIRAF!] By Battlecast

[Pictures of Farigiraf, with Whitney and Sabrina standing proudly next to them]

We suppose that the chain of new discoveries hasn't quite ended yet, as the Saffron Gym's announcement of a completely new Normal/Psychic type took everyone by surprise. A new evolution for Girafarig, a Pokémon that has seen very little competitive use in the past, might be just the thing to bring this Normal/Psychic type into the spotlight.

And from the demonstrations provided by Gym Leader Samson, this new evolution has the potential to become an extremely versatile Psychic type that could fulfil a variety of different roles. Farigiraf has the support move pool of your typical Psychic type, but also the bulk that many of its counterparts lack. Plus, with its crucial immunity to Ghost type moves, our analysts believe that Farigiraf will be a serious contender to be one of the most sought after Psychic Pokémon for high level battles. It really has a lot going for it, and we wonder if trainers like Elite Will or Elite Lucian will be seen fielding a Farigiraf in the future.

Many comparisons were drawn between the newly discovered Farigiraf and Wyrdeer. Considering the latter's very much demonstrated power as a key staple of Elite John's team, it only reinforces our confidence that Farigiraf will be a strong choice for trainers in the future.

Of course, we would be remiss to skip out on those credited with the discovery. According to Samson's announcement, he places sole credit of this discovery on his daughter and heir, Sabrina, and her friend, Whitney, who is also John's younger sister. We don't know the specifics about how much each of them contributed to the discovery, but suffice it to say that these two young trainers must have a bright future ahead of them!

What do you all think about this new evolution? Are you planning on catching a Girafarig now? Let us know!

Comments

FutureAce

...Okay, what in Arceus are they feeding the Smith's?? First you have John with his double discoveries of Wyrdeer and Ursaluna early into his Trainer career, and now you have his younger sister pulling out her own discovery out of a hat like it was nothing!

FlyingHigh

I did a little more digging, and I just realised that Whitney, Sabrina, and Janine (Koga's daughter) had all managed to collect all 8 Badges in their first circuit. That's honestly super impressive, and I can't wait to see what else they have in store for us.

SlugmaBalls

I had a friend that was there at their new Moomoo milk store that was opening in Mauville! He got their signatures and everything! And their new drinks weren't bad either, though a little pricey!

WiggleThatTuff

Ah shame. When I saw the announcement of a new discovery, I thought it would be a new Fairy type. Shame that it wasn't!

FearTheRat

Anyone think that Sabrina probably did most of the work? I mean, looking at the evolution method that they described, it looks like it requires a lot of Psychic proficiency. While I'm not doubting Whitney's ability, perhaps she was just a tagalong and Sabrina deserves a majority of the credit.

ResearchMagnet

Really? Two young girls found this out? I don't believe it. Most likely one of their Gym Trainers made the discovery, and Samson gave the credit to his daughter and friend.

TangelaThoughts

Eh, I disagree. Looking at Sabrina and Whitney's past battles, they've used their Girafarig in the past. I think it's safe to say that they made this discovery with their own two hands and observation skills.

Coming from the daughter of a Gym Leader and a sister to a powerful Elite Four, I don't know why anyone should really have cause to doubt them.

PsychicWill (Verified POG)

Absolutely magnificent! It brings a joy to my eye to see new developments with the Psychic type. Whitney, Sabrina, thank you for your hard work. I look forward to seeing your potential develop even further into the future.

=================

?[Elite John spotted visiting Gyms?! What is he planning?!] By The Indigo Post

[Pictures of John shaking hands with various Gym Leaders, including Giovanni, Clair, and Pryce]

While it isn't unusual for members of our Elite Four to be visiting our famed Gym Leaders, it does start to get interesting when one of those members could be seen practically hopping from Gym to Gym and making an obvious display of shaking hands as he leaves.

What makes this especially suspicious is the fact that Elite John could be seen visiting the likes of Gym Leader Pryce. For those somehow unaware of their turbulent past relationship, it is an open secret that John was an instrumental supporter in Lance's ascension to Champion, and he had paved the way for Lance by helping to discredit Pryce and his policies.

We aren't presuming that someone as prestigious as our ex-Champion would be one to host grudges...but it wouldn't be surprising to this writer if there were some unpleasant feelings between the two.

So it was surprising, and relieving, to see that the two have apparently reconciled whatever differences that they may have had in the past, shaking hands with smiles on their faces as they agreed on whatever they had discussed behind closed doors.

This writer is supremely curious to know about what the two had discussed, especially as this was hardly his only visit. Tracing back John's movements over the past few days, it becomes immediately obvious that he intends to visit every Gym Leader to talk to them about this 'secret' topic, and indeed has already visited many already.

After having a thorough discussion with our analysts here at The Indigo Post, we are firmly of the belief that whatever is being discussed is going to be some large proposal by John that involves and affects all of the Gym Leaders in some way. With his tendency to promote internationalism and unity of Indigo, we believe that John's discussions must involve something that he hopes would bring our region closer together. Or perhaps this is some joint policy that he has with his girlfriend and Champion of Sinnoh?

Nevertheless, by the looks and gestures of support that he seems to be receiving, it appears that he has found support in many of the Gym Leaders that he has visited.

So what is John looking to accomplish? What is he planning to do by laying the foundation like this? This writer is extremely eager to see what John is about to announce next.

John has never failed to be ambitious with the kinds of policies that he proposes in the Committee, and we sincerely believe that this would be no different. In fact, considering the amount of preparation work that he seems to be putting in, this might turn out to be his ambitious proposal yet. It looks like we'll just have to wait and see!

Let us know what you think about this in the comments! What do you think our ambitious Elite Four is up to?!

Comments

FutureAce

Perhaps he's just visiting the Gyms to reaffirm his connections with them? It doesn't necessarily mean planning anything. But knowing him, he probably is.

Not that I would be able to know. I only care about battles.

TangelaThoughts

Well we can make several inferences from his actions. One, the fact that he's visiting all of the Gym Leaders implies he needs their consent for something. Something involving the Gyms. But I'm going to hold on the speculation for now until we hear more.

I'm more interested in the connections that John seems to have built. We all knew he was connected, but this is really showing just how much respect that he has garnered among the Gym Leaders. And if this policy is as successful as John likely hopes it would be, then he's likely gained another point of connection with many influential people.

FearTheRat

I'm not the only one who noticed the order that he visited the Gyms in right? Looks like he started with Giovanni, then went to Pryce, then Clair. So while I'm not too familiar with the dynamics of the Gyms, doesn't it look like he's going down in order of importance?

Is this an implied admission from John about which Gyms he deems to be more influential?

ILoveGoldenRod

Definitely seems like it. If that was true, then that's a little bit of insight to his thought process. I wonder why he thinks that those Gyms were more influential than the others?

KantoRepresent

It's obvious because Giovanni's Gym is the most influential Gym in Indigo, as befits the strongest Gym of Kanto.

ILoveGoldenRod

...Or because he's friends with Giovanni and wanted to visit him first. Not everything needs to fit into your image of Kanto superiority.

TangelaThoughts

I personally don't find it at all surprising that John believes that those 3 Gyms are the most important in Indigo. He might be personal friends with the likes of Blaine and the Waterflower sisters, but their influence can't be compared to the likes of Giovanni, Clair, and Pryce.

FutureAce

I'm stupid, can you explain why? Is it because they're strong?

TangelaThoughts

That's certainly a factor. Pryce's strength doesn't need to be emphasized – he was Champion until very recently. Next, Clair lives up to the name of Blackthorn, and has the strength to prove it.

That leaves Giovanni. His strength is less dominating than the other two, but he's one of the most politically connected Gym Leaders in Indigo. He's highly credited with the prosperity of Viridian City, transforming it from a middling city to the success that is today. And that's not even including his role as a director of Silph Co. The man is the Gym Leader of Kanto.

FlyingHigh

I think we've veered off topic a bit. I'm just excited to see what John comes up with. Maybe it'd involve something to do with Sinnoh.

Can't forget that he's dating their Champion. Still struggling to wrap my brain around that part.

===========

?[A HUGE NEW POLICY! GYM LEADERS MADE APPOINTABLE FROM ANYWHERE WITHIN INDIGO?! REMOVING THE REGIONAL RESTRICTION OF GYM LEADERS?!] by The Indigo Post

[Picture of Lance making the announcement, with John in the background smiling in approval]

[Pictures of Gym Leaders debating the topic, and pictures of the vote]

For those of you who have been following the political developments of Indigo, and our last post about the momentous announcement itself, then you would be equally as shocked as we were to find out how fast that this new proposal seemed to move through the League administration. Especially given how large of a scope that this proposal seemed to cover.

Yes, we here at The Indigo Post have still yet to recover from the shock of the initial announcement. We always knew that John was planning something ambitious, but who would have thought that he and Champion Lance would have worked together to propose something like this? Something that would radically change the way that Gyms are viewed?!

There were a lot of politics involved in this meeting, and we will be covering them in more detail in a later article, including our observations about the interpersonal relations between each Gym Leader and their respective levels of influence amongst their peers.

For now, to summarise all that has happened, Giovanni came up with a new proposal on top of John's current one to allow for Gym Leaders to be given voting rights to vote out one of their peers, should there be no reasonable veto from the Champion, if 5 out of 7 of them deemed them unworthy of the position.

This is a massive step forwards for Gym Leaders and their ability to police themselves, and it says a lot about Lance that he did not vote against it and was willing to share his power with them.

And of course, the big event of the day was the vote to determine whether the Gym Leaders were in approval of the proposal. Yet, to the visible happiness from John, the vote passed almost unanimously amongst the Gym Leaders, with only Surge, Morty, and Lewis voting against it. The proposal was then subsequently passed by the Committee with a comfortable majority.

With the passing of this new policy, the next question on everyone's mind must be this – who is going to be the first foreign Gym Leader that is going to be appointed? And how well will they do? Will they be able to meet the high hopes and expectations set out by John? Or will his naysayers be proven correct – that a foreign Gym Leader simply does not have the same attachment and sense of duty that a local Gym Leader would have?

Only time will tell on that front. But for now, we're keeping a close eye on the public's reaction to this huge policy. While it has not been received with universal acceptance, from the interviews that we have done, many have expressed their cautious approval towards such a policy, and are looking forward to seeing if future foreign Gym Leaders would be able to live up to their title.

Despite there being some pushback, what is undoubtedly true is that Indigo as a whole has never been more united. A proposal like this could never conceivably be passed if it was only a few years ago! It really goes to show just how much the new leadership of Indigo have worked to pave a road of change for the whole region. And we won't forget that a lot of that was spearheaded by the efforts of John and Lance.

What are your thoughts on this new change?! Do you like the direction that the leadership of Indigo seems to be taking? Do you have any concerns? This is an important matter, so we'll be excited to hear what you put down in the comments!

Comments

GeneralistGeneral

Definitely didn't see this coming – but I'm really happy that this happened! This is going to open the doors to more allow for a more diverse pool of Gym Leaders!

Wonder if they'll be allowing Hoenn or Sinnoh trainers to become Indigo Gym Leaders next or vice versa?

NotTooMuchWater

I'm not from Indigo, but I think that's probably taking it a step too far. As much as I'm pleased with our cooperation with Indigo, I'd be a little more than wary about having a complete foreigner be one of our Gym Leaders. I know Norman is the exception, but he naturalised a long time ago even before his marriage. He's basically from Hoenn, even if he might not have been birthed here.

That being said, I think it'll be a possibility in the future. But we're not ready for it now.

SlugmaBalls

Honestly I struggled to understand why you guys even had this policy in the first place. If you were united as 'Indigo' then why did you insist on keeping the Gym Leaders separate and split between Kanto and Johto?

Maybe because I'm not from there, but it's just confusing to me.

TangelaThoughts

Okay, this was within my expectations. I figured that John's politicking would bear fruit, and it really showed in the meeting. I was more surprised about Giovanni's sudden proposal for the Gym Leaders to have the right to vote out one of their own – judging by the facial expressions there, I think even John was surprised by it.

Goes to show that there's always more politicking going on behind the scenes.

KantoRepresent

I don't trust these Johtonian bastards to handle our Gyms. They're just going to be waiting for an opportunity to stab us in the back. Just you wait.

Absolutely disgusted with the path that the Indigo League has endorsed. And from our very own John no less. I thought he was one of us!

ILoveGoldenRod

Okay buddy, not like we were expecting any other response from you anyways. You really just need to accept that policies like these aren't aimed at harming Kanto, but looking to improve both regions together.

I know many of my friends support the League's direction to create a more unified Indigo. There's honestly little reason to be stubborn about keeping our regions separate. Their past actions have shown how useful working together as a singular region can be.

FearTheRat

Anyone surprised that Lance actually approved of giving away more of his power to the Gym Leaders? I know he did it before with the Elite Four, but I didn't expect him to continue that trend with the Gym Leaders as well.

I'm glad that he did so though – the Gym Leaders definitely deserve to hold some power over who their peers are. Honestly, I'd trust their judgment 9 times out of 10 over the League's. They actually know how to run a Gym effectively, so they'll be able to spot out an incompetent colleague much better than the League could.

FlyingHigh

Very true. I wonder if any Gym Leaders are suddenly very worried that they're about to get the boot? I personally don't think any of the Gym Leaders currently deserve it, but it's interesting to think about.

=======

?[The final battle of the Indigo Conference is fast approaching! Who do you think will be the winner!? An in-depth analysis of the remaining trainers in the Conference and their prospects!] By Battlecast

As always, the opinions stated here have been formed purely from the analysis and opinions of our analysts, and do not intend to demean, denounce, or to insult any trainer that we will be mentioning. Likewise, any support should not be taken as endorsement. This is purely done for educational and informative purposes only.

With that disclaimer out of the way, we can get onto the meat of the matter! We're sure many of our readers have been excitedly watching this year's Indigo Conference, eager as we are to see who will end up on top. However, we can safely say that unlike last year, there seems to be a clear candidate that looks to be in an excellent position to win it all.

Of course, we are talking about Karen – the apprentice to Agatha and known close friend of the incredibly strong Elite John. Considering those connections, it's no wonder that she seems to have had a dominating performance throughout the entire Conference. Or perhaps it is due to her very unique fighting style that seems extremely suited at taking down unprepared foes.

After her rampage through the ranks, taking down many hopefuls in the process, we're confident that there must be many a trainer that are now terrified by the shout of a 'Taunt!'. She really has proven that Dark type specialists aren't just an unusual niche. They are absolutely formidable in their own right, and we're certain that the public perception of Dark types are about to change thanks to her.

With her convincing string of successes, we here at Battlecast are convinced that Karen will be the most likely candidate to win the whole thing. So naturally, the next question our analysts were faced with was – who would she challenge should she win?

The most obvious choice would be for her to challenge Elite Will. Out of the current Elite Four roster, he is the only one who has not been tested in a real challenge yet. Furthermore, Karen holds an obvious and crucial Type advantage against him, boosting her chances even further. Perhaps this is why Elite Will could be seen training hard – is he wary of a potential challenge from Karen and is preparing accordingly?

However, a more interesting choice for her to choose would be for her to challenge Elite Agatha. Obviously, this is the battle that we here at Battlecast would much prefer to see. Not only would it be far more exciting, as it has been a LONG time since Elite Agatha has ever needed to fight a challenger, but it also makes for an interesting story.

Underdog battles are beloved by all for a reason. And everyone wants to root for a student to be able to surpass their teacher. Of course, Agatha would be a far more difficult battle for Karen – it would be a battle where both trainers are equally familiar with each other's tricks - but we're excited to see if she will be able to live up to the challenge.

So while we acknowledge the possibility that Karen may choose to challenge either Lorelei or John, our analysts believe that the chances of Karen challenging those two are not very high. Karen holds no distinct advantage against Lorelei, while their many training sessions together must have exposed most of her tricks to John, making him one of the worst opponents for her to fight.

Despite our focus on Karen, we must not fail to acknowledge and recognise the many powerful trainers that still remain within the Conference...[Click here to continue reading]

Comments

FearTheRat

Not surprised to see Karen doing so well. Anyone who still remembers her fight against Sidney should already know how formidable she is.

She's already proven she can beat an Elite Four 1v1. Her dominance comes at no surprise. Still hopes she wins though.

PunchingBag

Hope this Dark specialist idiot gets to make it into the Elite Four and that she ends up beating up Will. She'd be such fodder for the next true Fighting type specialist that comes around.

Bruno – you failed us once, but you can redeem your honour by flattening this shitty Dark type trainer in the next conference.

SlugmaBalls

Haven't you heard? Bruno's hanging about in Hoenn now. There's plenty of photos with him hanging around Steven Stone.

Gardevoir34

OMA OMA OMA THE SCANDAL REALLY WRITES ITSELF DOESN'T IT!? I WONDER WHAT A HANDSOME YOUNG MAN LIKE STEVEN IS DOING WITH THE HUNKY BRUNO?!?!?!

FlyingHigh

Please calm down. There CAN be more innocent explanations.

PunchingBag

BAH! Everyone knows that Bruno's in Hoenn to re-establish the dominance of the Fighting type there. He should have been in the Tournament. He would have pummelled all those worthless trainers.

TangelaThoughts

Tangent aside, I like the speculation that's around who Karen would choose if she did win. I'm honestly confident that her win is in the bag at this point, and I really hope she does end up challenging her mentor.

And Agatha v Karen fight would be very well received.

FutureAce

I really, really, really hope we see her fighting against Agatha. That would be amazing! She'd lose, though. Agatha ain't losing to anyone.

KantoRepresent

Completely disagree. We need more Kanto representatives in the Elite Four anyways. If Karen were to replace Agatha, we'd be changing one Kantonian for another. Not worth.

DragonPower

I don't know why you were all so excited about this year's Indigo Conference anyways when there weren't any Dragon specialists there. Waste of potential.

Of course you won't get exciting matches if you're not using the most powerful Pokémon available.

ILoveGoldenRod

Honestly, this might be the only way to get Agatha to step down. Everyone knows that she'd just haunt the position for eternity otherwise.

FlyingHigh

Agatha...it's been a very long time since she's battled publicly. But for those of us with longer memories, I still remember the dominance that she demonstrated as she stomped her opponents into the ground time and time again. If not for Oak, there was a very real possibility that she would have been Champion in his place.

I sincerely hope Karen chooses to fight her. I cannot wait to see Agatha in action again.

============

?[GALACTIC COMPANY'S FINANCIAL DISCREPANCIES? THE SINNOH LEAGUE LEVELS ACCUSATIONS AGAINST CYRUS!] By The Sinnoh Times

[Side-by-side pictures of Lucian accusing Cyrus and Cyrus defending himself]

What a turbulent week it has been for us in Sinnoh, but it appears like Galactic Company has found themselves in hot water as suspicions arose regarding their submitted financial statements!

Financial investigators from both Indigo and Sinnoh have agreed that the finances of Galactic Company are unreasonable, a statement that has received further support from other prominent businessmen such as Steven Stone and even Giovanni in his capacity as a director from Silph Co.

However, as of the writing of this article, no formal charges have been pressed, and their CEO Cyrus seems to be responding to the accusations with calmness and rationality. Yet he has also denounced Cynthia and her team, calling her sense of judgment into question as he claims that she has prioritised the word of foreigners over their own due to her relationship with John.

Our analysts here at the Sinnoh Times do not find that argument holds much water, as it is clear that this investigation was done jointly and supervised by Elite Lucian as well.

Right now, the situation has entered a stalemate, but we're interested to hear your thoughts on this ongoing matter. Do you agree with the Sinnoh League? Or do you think that this was an overreaction by them?

Comments

LoveIsEterna

I'm fully backing the League here, even though I've been a fan of Galactic Company for some time. If this many people say that there's something wrong, then there's something wrong.

Of course, having strange finances isn't the worst thing in the world, but I'd still like to hold them accountable if they're cheating the public out of some taxes, for example.

"I did." I confirmed, "I was just calling to check up on you. How are you feeling? Do you feel prepared?"

"Mostly still recovering from the shock." He admitted, no longer trying to uphold his usual confidence, "Koga really knows how to ruin a shopping trip. And I had just found such a nice hat to try out in Celadon."

"Oh wait, you're at Celadon? I'm actually nearby." I said, "I was just having lunch with my sister at Saffron. Do you want to meet up, maybe over a drink?"

"...Yeah, sure. I could use an ear." He said, "Thanks for this, John. I'll meet you at the café on the rooftop atrium."

It didn't make me long to get there, and it actually took me a little bit to spot Will in the crowd because he wasn't wearing his usual eye-catching outfit. He was also looking far less enthusiastic and bombastic than he usually was. Instead his posture was subdued and thoughtful.

As I sat down next to him, I decided to lighten the mood, "Of course out of all the places you could choose to meet up you'd choose the overpriced as shit café that everyone knows is a tourist trap."

That got a chuckle out of him, "What can I say? I'm a man of refined tastes."

"It's more like you're a shopaholic trying to pass yourself off as a cultured person." I shot back, getting another laugh from him. The Will that I had first met would have gotten offended by that.

"No, I really do like the drinks here." He said as I gave him a weird look, "Yes, they're pricey. But I think they're worth the price."

"...If you think so." I replied uncertainly, "Anyways, you looked deep in thought when I saw you. You worried about the battle?"

"I am." He admitted, "I knew a challenge was coming, but I was expecting your friend to be the one to challenge me." He said, "I thought that was the plan for Karen. She had the Type matchup against me and everything."

"I thought you were training hard in preparation for this?" I asked.

"Yes, but now I've realised I've been training for the wrong person." He told me with a frown, "Like I said, I thought I would be facing a Dark specialist. So I had spent most my time studying her moves and the way she fought. I threw myself into trying to work around her speed and disruptive tactics – though I admit I was struggling to find a solution around her larger threats."

"Yet now I find that most of my training, while not useless, is not going to be as effective as I hoped." He continued, "Koga is a very different kind of trainer compared to Karen. And he is no less strong."

"Well I see where you're coming from..." I nodded sympathetically, "But I'd thought you'd be happier fighting against Koga instead of Karen. You have the Type advantage of him."

"First of, there's every possibility that Koga AND Karen might challenge me back-to-back, which would be the worst case scenario for me." I purposely stilled my reaction. That likely wasn't about to happen, but I didn't want to give Will false hope in case Karen changed her plans, "Secondly, even without doing research, I'm certain that Koga would have thought up of countermeasures to deal with Psychic types. Even amongst the Gym Leaders, Koga stands out for his strength."

"Our battle won't be the same as Lorelei v Surge." He added, "As much as I don't want to lessen her achievement, Lorelei had it easy fighting against Surge. I may be stronger than her, but Koga will be tough."

"I can't disagree with that." I replied, overlooking his small slip of arrogance, "Surge is...not the greatest trainer. Not when compared to the likes of Koga." He had raw power, but little else. Koga was a much tougher opponent.

The two of us stayed silent like that for a moment, and Will took a few sips of his overpriced drink before he spoke up again.

"Say, John. Would you do me a favour?" He asked softly, but with genuine sincerity.

"Of course. What do you need help with? Do you want me to help you to train?" I asked.

He shook his head, "No, nothing like that. I will face my opponent with my own strength and determination, not with the borrowed strength of others. This will be my fight, and I have no intention of losing."

I smiled at his determination, "I like the sound of that. But if you don't need help with training, then what?"

"Even if I don't intend to simply give up my position, it would still be prudent for me to have contingency plans in case I slip up on the day." He said, "Backup plans are always necessary."

I stayed silent, listening intently as I allowed him to continue, "So...if I'm forced out by my unexpected defeat, I'm looking for a method to exit in a way that allows me to remain relevant. I know my strength and worth, and I'd hate for someone like me to fall into complete obscurity."

"You'd still have a chance to challenge someone when you lose." I pointed out, "You could challenge Lorelei for your position, for example."

"That's true, although I'm not sure I want to take the risk of having two back-to-back losses." He said slowly.

"...Yet perhaps something could also be negotiated with Lorelei..." He mumbled thoughtfully, his political brain running a mile a minute, "...Yes...that's definitely something I should bring up with her."

I guessed that he was probably thinking to himself about what kind of deal he could strike with Lorelei. Perhaps it would be a deal for Will to not challenge Lorelei, in the event of his defeat, in exchange for some kind of promise. Or perhaps I was just overthinking it and that he was going to challenge Lorelei directly and just wanted to make sure there were no hard feelings between them. I couldn't really guess at the moment.

"Well you can plan that through later." I said, breaking him from his thoughts, "What kind of favour did you want from me?"

"I think I once told you that I've always wanted to be a contest performer, right?" He said.

"...Yes, I remember that." I nodded, recalling the conversation, "But you said you ended up not pursuing it cause you thought it wasn't a sustainable career path."

"Mhm, but that was before. Thanks to recent developments, that's no longer the case." He responded, "I hope I'm not asking for too much, but I wish for you to assist me into helping me transition into a career in the arts, if I was to be kicked out of the Elite Four. I think they would welcome me with open arms."

"Consider it done." I waved my hand, "And I won't even consider this me doing you a favour. Had you asked, I would have done so anyways. You're a friend." And I meant that genuinely.

That made him smile, "I'm glad you consider me one. I know I rubbed you the wrong way when we first met." He scratched his head embarrassedly, "Actually, it wasn't just you. I think I pissed off all of the Elite Four with my pompous introduction."

"You certainly didn't win yourself any friends." I chuckled fondly, thinking back on his memorable introduction. Walker was practically the only one that treated him nicely.

"I guess I've matured since then." He chuckled with me, "You know, now that I realise this could possibly be my last few weeks in the Elite Four...I've really come to treasure and cherish my time here. Being in the Elite Four has taught me a lot. It's helped me mature not just as a trainer, but as a person too. I'd like to think I've become a better person since I joined."

"You have." I nodded, "You're a lot more relaxed now, in a good way. You used to flinch and take offense at every little joke against you. But now you let those slights bounce off against you, and you're willing to laugh at yourself. It's a good change, and it makes you a much better person to be around."

"I appreciate you saying so, John." He smiled again, "But I think we've gotten a little off topic. We're counting our Pokémon before they even hatch. I won't just roll over."

"Mhm, you haven't lost yet." I agreed, "So keep your head high, Will. Win or lose, I'll still support you."

"Thank you John." He extended a hand, one that I took and shook, "I feel a lot better about this now. I won't take up any of your time any longer; I have my own training to get to. Koga might be Intimidating, but I'll ensure that I remain Defiant to the end."

"I wish you luck." I shot back, "You can always come to me if you have any problems."

Because that's what friends do.

The New Normal – 11-14 – A New Cave

Koga's unexpected challenges sent ripples throughout Indigo, as any challenge to the Elite Four always did. However, I noticed that the reactions of the public lacked the surprise that I had expected, since they likely thought that it was about time that Will received an official challenge.

Lance put it best, "Every Elite Four member will eventually receive a challenge from someone. It was only a matter of when. Therefore, with Will being the only amongst you to not be challenged, I suppose everyone didn't find it surprising when one finally happened."

"Do Champions get challenged often?" I asked curiously.

He instinctively sat up straight, but relaxed when he realised I meant nothing by it, "No, quite the opposite. It's a sign of a poor Champion if they get challenged too often. Unlike the Elite Four, Champions are expected to hold their positions for quite some time. A region that swaps their Champions too often are mostly considered unstable."

I nodded, understanding the reasoning. A Champion dictated the overall policy of the region, so having Champions be frequently swapped out and replaced spelled bad news for the decision-making ability of that region's League.

Returning back to Will, the reporters were having a field day with the news, and they set out to try and secure whatever interviews and sound bites that they could as they asked everyone about their opinions on Koga's challenge against Will.

I, obviously, wasn't excluded from their sights.

"Many within the public have observed that you and Will dislike each other. Would you be happy to see him go?" One reporter asked me while I exited the Indigo League building.

I scowled, "I have no idea where people got the idea that Will and I disliked each other. We are friends. All of us in the Elite Four are. It's why we're able to get along so well."

"Then are you going to be rooting for your Elite Four member during the upcoming fight? Does that mean you think that Koga is unsuited for the position?" That same reporter quickly backpedalled and changed tracks, although he was still trying to dramatize my answers.

I rolled my eyes, "I'm friends with Koga as well. I'll root for the both of them. I don't have a preference on who I'd want to win or who I think should win. I'm just excited to see a good fight. I'll be happy with whatever outcome."

"Are you not afraid of the changes that Koga might bring to the Elite Four?" A different reporter asked as another microphone was shoved into my face, "It's been evident that you hold a dominant position in the current hierarchy of things. Are you not upset that this might change with Koga's inclusion?"

I raised an eyebrow, "I'm not a power hungry tyrant who's looking to stay in power no matter the cost. The power granted to me was coincidental – not something I actively searched for. I'm grateful to have it, make no mistake, but if Koga's inclusion means I lose some of that power then I wouldn't mind. In fact, I'm interested to see what kind of policies he would bring to the table, if he were to win."

That led to questions being asked about what I thought those policies would be, but I quickly put an end to the interview and left. I had given them enough; there was no need to fall down the Buneary hole of speculation.

Although all this talk about Will and Koga made me think about Janine. Should Koga win, then that meant Janine was about to become Gym Leader of Fuschia. Would she be ready for that? She was competent enough for her age, but she was still very young. However, I thought that Koga was someone who only acted after carefully thinking things through. He wouldn't make a play for Gym Leader if Janine wasn't ready or be adequately supported.

Maybe Whitney was about to swap over to Fuschia earlier than she expected?

I'd just have to wait to see the result of the fight between Koga and Will. There was too much uncertainty for now. And ultimately, it wasn't any of my business to interfere with that.

Either way, the main event that I had to attend to today actually had nothing to do with battling. Instead, mayor Henry had just informed me last night that the Cerulean Cave was ready for its grand opening, and that all relevant preparations had been made for the relatively safe exploration of its depths.

I had informed Cynthia of the same, and she was just as excited for me.

"You know it means a lot to us, and me, that you're willing to go this far as to bring the tradition of cave diving to Indigo." She had said to me last night during one of our scheduled phone calls.

"It was something that I wanted to do anyways, even without you guys naming me as a honorary member." I replied humbly, "Just a shame that you couldn't come for the grand opening."

"Sorry, John. As much as I'd like to, I can't afford to head to Indigo at the moment." She said sadly, "I have to be present in Sinnoh to monitor the efforts of the Indigo and Hoenn delegation. It wouldn't be a good look for me to be sneaking off to Indigo while there are still active foreign delegates in Sinnoh."

"I understand; I just wanted to see you." I admitted.

"And I do too." She smiled, "Trust me, I'm doing my best to find another moment for us. We'll make the most of it."

"I hope you can come to Indigo one day in the near future. I want to properly introduce you to the family – have you spend some time around the house and stuff." I said to her, "It'll be nice for them to get to know you better and vice versa."

"That's a good point. And I'd love to spend some time seeing your home region with my own eyes – I'm sure I'll find many beautiful things there. Plus, I'd love to spend more time with your cute sister too and get to know her better." She chuckled, "She seems like a joy to be with."

"She is." I nodded, as if what she said was obvious.

She laughed, "Of course that's what you say. Anyways, I'll let you know as soon as I plan out when I can come over."

We made some small talk after that, but she also mentioned that even though she herself couldn't be going, instead her grandmother would actually be going in her place. That was pretty interesting.

With that in mind, I had arrived early and found myself hanging around the Cerulean Cave, inspecting the renovations as I waited for the grand opening ceremony to begin.

The entrance to the cave had been completely overhauled with a shiny new look. Instead of the old and decrepit look that it had before, the boulders and rocks had been smoothed out. A proper arch of rocks framed the entrance, with the words 'Cerulean Cave' clearly etched onto the archway. It even had small streams of water flowing down on either side of it as a symbolic representation of Cerulean City.

Plus, I knew that they had renovated far more than the entrance; the interior had also been upgraded too. Though I couldn't see inside the cave for the time being as it was still closed.

"John!" A sudden cry broke me from my thoughts, and I turned to see all FOUR Waterflower sisters running up to me, "Congratulations again for getting the proposal passed!"

"Oh hello, sisters." I smiled, "And thank you, I'm really glad my proposal succeeded. I appreciate your vote of support as well. Still, I thought you'd be coming a bit later."

"Misty here wanted to take a few photos." Daisy grinned as she elbowed the youngest of the sisters, "So we came early to accompany her."

"Caves are cool!" Misty exclaimed excitedly, "Way better than forests. I never liked Bugs." She frowned cutely.

"Caves are more dangerous though, so don't go wandering in there now." I warned gently, "Not by yourself."

"I know, but they're still better than Bugs. I really, really don't like Bugs." She repeated with a shake of the head, getting a chuckle from her sisters.

"You planning on taking a dive into the caves sometime soon?" I asked them, "There are plenty of powerful Water types in there I'm sure. Maybe some could join your team?"

"Maybe in the future." Lily replied, "We just got a new Pokémon to take care of, and I'm not sure if we can afford to divide our attention between multiple Pokémon."

"Plus, catching another powerful Pokémon might not be the best idea right now." Daisy added, "We still haven't fully disciplined our Gyarados yet, even with Drake's help. We're afraid that catching another powerful yet wild Pokémon might make the discipline problem worse."

"That's a reasonable concern." I nodded, "I struggled a bit with getting my Munchlax to obey me at first too, though that was due to laziness and not rage. But even if you decide not to catch anything, I'm confident that it'd be a good place to train."

"Mhm. We felt the same after reading the reports as well." They agreed, "We're planning on training here on a rotational basis, so two of us stay at the Gym while one of us trains our Pokémon here."

"I want to train too!" Misty piped up.

"Maybe when you're older and more experienced." Daisy said softly, "It's a little too dangerous for you right now."

"And you remember what Drake told you? He had you run through a few training methods." Lily reminded, "You should stick to that for now as he said. You don't want him to be disappointed with your Staryu's progress once you call him next."

Misty pouted, but reluctantly agreed with her sisters. Daisy saw that and leaned in to whisper to me.

"She's a big fan of Drake – thinks he's really cool and strong." She chuckled quietly in my ear, "She always wants to talk to him. I think she's his biggest fan."

I smiled, "I'm sure Drake is happy about that." She giggled at my response.

"Oh, nice to see everyone gathered here already." A voice appeared from behind us, and I turned to see Professor Carolina approaching us with a group of explorers following behind her.

"Professor Carolina." I greeted, "It's been some time."

"And yet it feels like whatever I do I still I hear all about you, either from my granddaughter or from the news." She chuckled, "Speaking of my granddaughter, did you know how surprised I was when she told me you two had gotten together? When I asked her to be your tour guide, let me tell you that a relationship was the last thing I had in mind."

"That doesn't mean I disapprove." She quickly said, "Quite the opposite really. She talks about you a lot, and she's happier for it. That's all that matters to me."

I blushed, "Well thank you for saying that – I'm glad you're supportive. You know, and it's my fault for not doing this earlier, but maybe you can join my family and I for dinner as I'm sure they'd like to meet you—"

I was cut off before I could finish my sentence as I felt someone hurriedly tapping me on the shoulder, "Elite John, could you please make your way to the front now. Mayor Henry has arrived and is waiting for you to join him on stage."

"Ah, understood." I nodded, and with a quick apologetic nod to Carolina, I joined the Waterflower sisters as walked onstage with the mayor, who greeted us all with a quick nod.

It was time for the opening ceremony.

========

?(A Civilian's POV)

In all fairness, he admitted that he initially wasn't very interested in the opening of a new cave in Cerulean. He had lived in this city for all these years, and yet he never had any interest of exploring the Cerulean Cave, especially with how notoriously dangerous that it was.

And as someone who had given up on his trainer career shortly after it began, he was absolutely not fit to deal with any of the powerful wild Pokémon that many said were down there.

Still, he had an off day today, and he was attracted by the growing crowd of people that had gathered to watch the opening of the cave – which had been radically renovated so that it actually looked like something respectable rather than just some random hole in the wall. After all the renovations, the Cave actually looked like something that was artistically inviting, and it fit in with the general aesthetic of Cerulean City.

"Oh my. They've really made it look colourful and shiny." His wife said with a little amazement, "I feel like this would look really beautiful at a distance. I quite like it."

He nodded in agreement, but he held his tongue on giving out any compliments. It was a little too soon for that, and he still needed to see for himself if this whole thing was going to be a failed tourist attraction or not.

Then Mayor Henry took to the stage and began his speech.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Thank you all for coming to this grand opening of the new and improved Cerulean Cave! But it is not merely the opening of a new cave that will serve as excellent training grounds for already powerful trainers! This is also the start of an entirely new direction for our city, one where we demonstrate that our city has more than just the arts to offer!"

There was a quick round of applause at that, which Henry managed to savour before he continued, "But I know that you're not here to listen to my speech, so let's cut right to the chase! Everyone, follow after me! We're going straight into the new Cerulean Cave! It is now officially open to the public!"

That was a little surprising; he didn't expect that they would be given a guided tour of the place. The crowd's cheers had gotten considerably louder, so he tried to ignore them as he followed the Ace Trainers that were assigned to take the lead. They were told early on that they would only be hanging about on the upper levels near the entrance and would not be wandering further down for the sake of everyone's safety.

He did spot that Elite John and the Waterflower sisters were also accompanying them, with looks of wonder on the latter as well. Everyone knew that this idea to open up Cerulean Cave came from John, and he knew that many wondered if this would be another success under his belt.

Because make no mistake, even he admitted that John was the centrepiece to the many positive changes that have swept through their city. He didn't know it at the time, but John's ascension into the Elite Four was the beginning of Cerulean's rise from a forgettable city of the arts to growing to become one of the most prosperous cities in Kanto.

And with the changes to the Cave, it looks like they would be continuing on that trajectory of success.

The immediate area after you stepped in was meticulously built up, almost like a campsite. There were tents, beds, and supplies aplenty. There were also a heavy patrol of Ace trainers and Nurse Joys that secured the area, ensuring that no wild Pokémon were going to breach into the safe zone. Even as a person who didn't carry any Pokémon on him, he was fully confident that he would be safe here.

The Ace Trainers that were leading them then began to talk about what the Cave itself contained. They talked about how powerful the wild Pokémon inside were and how useful that would be for a potential trainer, and they talked about a lot of interesting geology and stuff that went completely over his head.

Though he did catch the fact that they would be barring any trainer below a certain level of strength from exploring this cave unattended, and that they would have to prove themselves before being allowed in by themselves.

"But what kind of Pokémon can we expect to find in there?" Someone asked.

"The more notable Pokémon that we've come across include a Gyarados, Snorlax, and Absol." The trainer answered, getting a shocked gasp from the audience. However, as the Ace Trainer continuing describing the many rare Pokémon that could be found within, he noticed that, just by coincidence, he found himself standing near to John as he stood listening to the Ace Trainers talking.

He always had a question that he meant to ask John, and now seemed to be the perfect opportunity for it. So he gathered his courage and approached the Elite Four member.

"...Excuse me." He began a little nervously, "I have a question for you, Elite John."

He smiled, "Shoot. I'm all ears."

"As a long-time resident of Cerulean, I know how much you've done for our city to bring it to the heights it currently enjoys." He said, and that was the unexaggerated truth. Everyone knew that it was mostly John's efforts that the city was able to grow as it did.

"However, a huge part of that success was due to you being able to make use of your influence as an Elite Four." He stated, "But what happens when to the city when you lose that? Do you have any plans for our city so that it doesn't fall back into stagnancy?"

That had always been his biggest fear, to see all their current success fall away because John was unavailable to continue lifting them up as he had been doing. Just like many other residents of Cerulean, they now had their taste of glory, and they didn't want to lose it.

"That's a good question, and I appreciate you asking that." John replied, seemingly unbothered by how direct he was, "But if your concerns are regarding whether Cerulean City will stagnate without my influence – then I truly do not believe that would be the case."

John gestured to the Waterflower sisters, "Even without me, I am confident and trust that the Waterflower sisters, and Mayor Henry, will look after the city in my place. Especially with the Cerulean Gym, you must have seen how much the sisters have grown in recent times to become a respectable pillar of our city. They will only continue to grow stronger and more influential, and they will ensure that the city never backslides or stagnates."

"Plus, with the Cerulean Cave opening up, diversifying our city so that isn't just known for the arts, I fully believe that the future of our city will continue to be bright. The Cerulean Cave will bring in many an Ace trainer, and I am certain that it will become a training hotspot in the future." John said with utter confidence, "Still, I'm not going anywhere anytime soon, so I will continue to fight to improve our city one step at a time. I hope that, before my time in the Elite Four comes to an end, Cerulean City will be a city you and I can be truly proud of. And will stay that way for the years to come."

...He felt the genuine conviction in John's voice, making it clear that the Elite Four member believed every single word that he had uttered. Was it this passion that allowed him to persuade the other Gym Leaders to agree to his ambitious proposal?

That proposal had been a shock to everyone, though he was personally indifferent and he didn't give it much thought. His wife, though, had been so happy to see Indigo starting to grow closer. She had always been enthusiastic about forming closer relations between Kanto and Johto, and had always been John's biggest supporter. Outside of his strength, he personally could never really see why, but now he was beginning to understand.

You could see the honest idealism in John's eyes and the drive to make things better, all while lacking the usual arrogance that you might expect from someone so strong. It was hard not to trust someone like that.

Not knowing what else to say, he simply thanked John for his answer before he refocused his attention onto the tour, ignoring the knowing looks that his wife was giving him. He had missed everything that the Ace trainers were saying thanks to being distracted with his conversation with John, but they were apparently done with showing everyone around and were now bringing them into the gift shop.

He held back the urge to roll his eyes at the obvious marketing, but at least everything in the gift shop looked unique. There were many kinds of unique rocks, gems, and even non-revivable fossil pieces that were being sold here. His wife seemed to be interested, which was probably because they would make for interesting souvenirs and gifts, so they would probably walk out of here with at least something to commemorate the Cave's opening.

While he waited for his wife to finish looking around, he turned his attention back to where John was, where he was busy conversing quietly with the Waterflower sisters. He couldn't exactly overhear what they were talking about, but what was unmistakable was the trust and bond that the Gym Leaders had with their Elite Four member.

It was obvious that the sisters looked up to John as a sort of mentor figure, and John clearly reciprocated. They felt more like a teacher-student rather than an Elite Four and Gym Leader, which bode well for their future cooperation. It was no wonder that John was so trusting in them if he was treating them like students.

Seeing this, he let out a small sigh of relief. Today, he finally saw for himself that John was indeed a good man, and that he had genuine and realistic goals for the continued prosperity of their city. Even though John had a lot of overarching and wide-reaching goals that he didn't really feel concerned him, the Elite Four member never forgot about his own city and continued to seek ways to improve it.

Therefore, from today onwards, John had another supporter in himself.

May John stay in the Elite Four for the years to come.

==============

?(John's POV)

With the tour done, the Waterflower sisters and I left the cave, only to be immediately approached by a very cheerful mayor Henry.

"John! Gym Leaders! What a marvellous day it is, right?" He greeted us happily, "I hope you were as impressed as the public seemed to be with the new caves – especially you, John. Since this was your idea."

"I'm happy it seems to be a success." I nodded, "I'm confident that we'll see a steady influx of strong trainers coming here."

"Hm, it definitely seems like there will be." He agreed, "Did you see how everyone's eyes lit up when we mentioned that you could find powerful Pokémon down there? It was all that I hoped for! I'm confident that we'll be able to recoup our investment and turn a profit in a comfortable amount of time once the news spreads to all those other trainers!"

"Please let me know if you have any ideas floating around in that brain of yours. All of you." He grinned at us, "Cerulean City grows ever more prosperous with you fine individuals at the helm."

"Laying it on a bit thick there aren't you?" I chuckled, "Someone's certainly happy."

"Well I admit I'm being a little too enthusiastic – Cerulean City currently doesn't have the spare funds to accommodate another large investment like this one." He confessed, "So, actually, give it some time before you present another idea. I'll give it all the consideration it deserves."

"Awww...we wanted to ask for more budget for our contests..." The sisters whined.

"Surely your contests are successful enough already." Henry deadpanned, "I've seen the numbers. You really don't need the additional funding."

"Yeahhh....but we'd be able to pull off cooler shows if we did!" They exclaimed excitedly, only to get another tired sigh from Henry.

But before they could hassle the mayor any longer, all of our phones suddenly rang. My eyes shot up as I heard the sound.

This wasn't the usual text message or phone call. This was a region wide alert – only to be used in emergency situations.

Dread immediately set in for me, and I saw the horrified expressions slowly forming on everyone's face. I barely had the time to read the message when my phone rang.

"John, get over to Cinnabar Island." He ordered.

"Yes, coming now." I quickly replied to our Champion as I immediately released Port and hurriedly climbed on top of him as he took off. The sisters followed right after me, visible concern and panic on their faces.

The Cinnabar Volcano had erupted. And we had to evacuate everyone.