"Your data is all in order," the woman in a suit said as she scanned Alexis's Trainer ID, her polite smile speaking of a trained professionalism. She quickly went over the rules of the tournament, which were quite simple. No items, only two Pokémon. "We hope you have a great time in the Lácar Cup."
Alexis stepped through the arch that lead into the Ibis Stadium, quickly being redirected by a League employee towards a backroom in which other Trainers were already waiting for the tournament to start. Looking around, Alexis saw the same expression on everyone. Tension. Anticipation. Excitement. Nerves. Everyone's faces were plagued by those emotions. But behind that, in their eyes, he could see nothing but the resolve to win.
Emboldened by the atmosphere, Alexis's previous doubts disappeared. He wanted to make good not just for himself and his Pokémon, but also for the competition. He desired to respond to the challenge in their eyes.
'If this is a Rookie Tournament...' Alexis thought after taking a seat of his own and leaning his head back against the wall, 'then what will Gym battles be like? And what about the Southern Aurora Conference?'
Unaware of the effect he was having on others, Alexis smiled in excitement. Around him, people's heads turned towards him, their instincts telling them danger was around. If anyone were to see his face, a wild grin had found its way to his lips. Competition was something Alexis thrived in. He longed for the palpable tension, the adrenaline of not knowing whether he would win or not, the challenge of proving his own worth against others.
"All participants have been confirmed!" A voice resounded throughout the Stadium, filling every corner with its bright timber. "Now we will reveal the brackets for the round of sixteen!"
On the big screen in the waiting room, a bracket going from the Round of 16 all the way to the Finals was revealed. Somehow, Alexis had ended up being sorted into the opening match.
"We invite Alexis Becker and Rodrigo Pérez to enter the arena!" The announcer's voice called out.
Standing up decisively, Alexis walked straight through the tunnel leading into the arena, taking the side that was marked as his on the big Jumbotron showing the competitors' Pokémon. Seeing his opponent ready on the other end, Alexis nodded courteously before grabbing Sewaddle's Pokéball.
"You can do this, little guy," Alexis encouraged his companion inside the round device.
"Ready?!" The announcer asked, hyping up the crowd. "Are you really ready?!"
As the crowd yelled in anticipation, their own excitement through the roof even for a Rookie Tournament, Alexis could feel himself feeding off of the energy directed towards them—his features, which he had barely managed to school before coming out, once again took a wild shape.
"Let the Lácar Cup begin!!" The announcer exclaimed, Alexis and his opponent, Rodrigo, jumping into action.
"Come out Sewaddle!" "Let's do this Deerling!" Both Trainers exclaimed at the same time, sending out their chosen Pokémon for their first clash.
"Quick Sewaddle, use String Shot on its legs!" Alexis commanded quickly, attempting to take away the Deerling's speed.
"Deerling dodge it!" Rodrigo reacted, much like Alexis had expected. What Rodrigo and Deerling were not expecting was that Sewaddle could use a ranged move while in movement himself.
A few people around the arena reacted in surprise, the more experienced ones in the nuances of Pokémon battles realising that Alexis and Sewaddle were employing tactics that usually took Trainers a few months to figure out. Their thoughts were interrupted, a gasp of shock taking their breath away as Sewaddle caught Deerling's hind legs with its String Shot.
"Now Sewaddle, Tackle!" Alexis quickly instructed, Sewaddle responding immediately, its trust in its Trainer evident to everyone watching.
As the small Bug type impacted on the slightly bigger Deerling, its attack seemed to be too much for it to take, its body flying out of the arena. If Alexis had been playing a game, he would see the message announcing a critical hit.
"What an intense match!" The announcer hyped. "What will Rodrigo do now?"
"Damnit!" Rodrigo cursed under his breath. "Come out, Pansear!"
"And Rodrigo sends out the Fire type Pansear!" The high timber voiced commented. "Now he has the type advantage, how will Alexis respond?"
"Sewaddle, go for a Tackle!" Alexis instructed, earning himself the surprise of everyone in the Ibis Stadium. After all, he was choosing to fight a Fire type with a Pokémon that was quad weak to it, being a Bug and Grass type.
As Sewaddle approached Pansear with a speed belied by its size and shape, Rodrigo smirked.
"Pansear, use Incinerate!" He commanded with confidence. In his mind, that was it, the Sewaddle would be gone without any effort.
"Sewaddle, use String Shot to avoid it," Alexis responded calmly, his mind cooling with each passing moment, becoming more analytical, adapting to the flow of the battle.
The small Bug type shot a string of its silk towards a side of the arena, pulling itself with it and narrowly avoiding the Fire type attack.
"Now Tackle!" Alexis reacted quickly, Sewaddle jumping to action and charging towards the High Temp. Pokémon.
"Quick Pansear, use Lick!" Barely on time, Rodrigo instructed.
"Dodge and get behind him," Alexis said with cold calculation behind his eyes. Sewaddle tried to stop itself dead on its tracks, but because he carried too much momentum it became vulnerable, which allowed Pansear to effectively hit with the Lick, disturbing Sewaddle's rhythm. "Don't let it get to you, Tackle once again!"
Barely avoiding the paralysing effect of Lick, Sewaddle charged with renewed vigour, not wanting to disappoint Alexis. As it made contact with the Pansear, it stumbled back a few paces, but it showed its readiness to continue fighting.
"String Shot, now!" "Incinerate!" The Trainers exclaimed.
Due to the small distance between the Pokémon, there was little time to move or avoid. As the moves clashed, the clearly stronger Incinerate consumed the String Shot and impacted against Sewaddle. Barely being able to continue fighting—and only because the Incinerate had lost some power when it burned the String Shot— Sewaddle tried its best to hang on.
"Synthesis and follow up with Tackle!" Alexis commanded, his eyes narrowed. He wanted to sub out Sewaddle, but he could feel it. The desire to continue, to fight to the end, that his Pokémon was expressing. And as a Trainer, he wanted to respect that wish. His job was not just to make his Pokémon win, but to also trust them.
One of the truths in the Pokémon world was quite simple. Trust your Pokémon, and they will answer.
A bright green light surrounded Sewaddle as it healed with Synthesis, revealing itself brand new and ready to continue fighting thanks to the open roof of Ibis Stadium. Then it dashed towards the Pansear, both Pokémon and Trainer too stunned to react, thinking they had already beat it. The High Temp. Pokémon flew out of the arena, bruised and unable to continue fighting.
The entire Stadium was in silence, some with their mouths open wide in shock, others staring at Alexis with admiration and scrutiny.
"And Alexis Becker takes the match using only his Sewaddle!" The announcer did his job, commenting as the best hype man. "What a way to start the Lácar Cup, and what promise this young Trainer shows!"
"With under a week of experience under his belt, Alexis Becker shows the cold experience of veteran Trainers!" He continued. "And let's not forget Rodrigo, what a valiant effort he put in!"
With those words, the Lácar Cup had officially started, and Alexis Becker became a name people started to talk about.
*
The matches continued on, until the Round of 16 was finally over by high noon, when all the Trainers were allowed a short break to eat lunch and rest their Pokémon.
Alexis stood to a side, eating a bowl of a store-bought Caesar salad for a light lunch, a few pieces of roasted chicken resting on top—his own addition to make the salad more filling. Besides his calm chewing, the waiting room was a silent trap, the atmosphere tense. Everyone stared at him, as if they had unanimously recognised him as the biggest threat in the Lácar Cup.
Leaning against a corner of the room, the punk guy from earlier clicked his tongue in frustration and left the waiting room. They had a full hour until the tournament continued, and he did not plan to spend it looking at everyone stare at the one guy he wanted to beat.
'I'm just as big of a threat,' his thoughts spiralled dangerously, 'and I will prove it to everyone.'