If you nitpick, you could say that the Sprout Tower hasn’t escaped modernization.

  The tower itself was fine. It has maintained the same appearance as when it was built. Johto took seriously the preservation of historic documents and spaces after all. The same dark wood, same purple tiles, same stone base. And although it’s been renovated many times, the same materials and methods were utilized to recreate the parts used. The only jarring exception for me were the outside lights.

  They still used torches in the interior—no one wanted to put cables inside the tower—but the outside? Full of streetlights, on the stones, on the bridges, even on the trees around the tower. In the darkness of the night, they bathed the tower with white lights in a way that wasn’t there five hundred years ago when it was built. Now, I’m not complaining, some might, I didn’t. For me, this image represented modern Johto. A pillar of tradition surrounded by modernity, the modernity inside the Region and outside of it. Tradition is not all that good after all. Centuries ago I couldn’t be here now, they would’ve closed the area at night. Decades ago there wouldn’t have been any stone bench for me and Professor Oak to sit and talk.

  “Congratulations on winning the tournament, Scott,” Samuel Oak said, crossing one leg over the other as he found a comfortable position on his side of the bench. “I’ll be honest, I didn’t think you could do it. Three months ago you had but a single pokemon. Now you already have five and won a very difficult tournament. How the times have changed from when I was active.”

  “Thank you, professor,” I said, with a smile that I couldn’t take off my face. “You know that you’re the one responsible for that change right?” The public were not worried about having too many weak starting pokemon after the public healthcare system that was implemented in his regime. The idea’d been floating around for a century and it was only with his ‘extreme’ push that it was implemented, along with his other various inventions.

  “Yeah, yeah, I hear that fairly often,” the Professor said. “Cape and Mesa in particular are very powerful, and even the little Valley, newest and greenest, that Minccino was dominating in the group stage. You’ve trained them well.”

  My eyes widened at that. I wasn’t expecting him to watch the tournament at all, never mind the group stage, “Thank you Professor… If I may, why are you here? Weren’t you supposed to be in Alola?”

  He laughed at that, but then it peppered out in a depressive fashion, “To be honest I wasn’t coming back until the Conference. I suspected something was wrong when I was suddenly called to participate in an ‘important’ meeting in Olivine. I now see that Agatha arranged for us to come back and see the match between you, my sponsored trainer, and hers.”

  “I suspected that might be the case. How did she know that we would match?”

  “The Indigo Government has their ways, that’s all I’m going to say.”

  I hummed, “This happens very often?”

  “Agatha always roped me into watching new trainers with potential,” He said, looking up as if thinking, “but not in the last few years. I’d had a vain hope that she was getting ready for her retirement, but no. She was just preparing a new apprentice.” He must’ve seen the look on my face. “Yes, she has had apprentices before but never one so openly participating in the circuit, you could say that one third of all ghost type trainers that participated in the circuit in the last twenty years were her apprentices.”

  “So it was a coincidence that this George Reed was thinking he’s my rival even before we met?”

  “Erm… no, she totally set him on you,” Professor Oak said, and then raised a finger. “That is a very common thing to do to new trainers however. We, the sponsors, want you to be the strongest trainer you can be, and one of the best and most reliable ways to go about it is to create and promote rivalries, that’s why Indigo exempts tournaments and things like that. Heck, I did that with Blue and Red.”

  I nodded, accepting the logic. It wasn’t like I was even mad about it, “So what did you think about the last few matches? Is there something I could be doing better? Any advice?”

  He stopped for a moment to look at the lake, “Alakazam tells me you’ve changed.”

  “I think I did. At least I think I’m more motivated, but I don’t know how long this is going to last.” It was easy to say you’re going to try to be the best in whatever you want to do and to never lose, but maintaining it for a long time must be difficult.

  The Professor hummed, “Alakazam has a doctorate in psychology, he knows his stuff. I don’t but I do know a few things. Firstly, change never happens from one moment to another, it’s a gradual process. One day you might wake up and notice the one you are now isn’t the one you were exactly one year ago, or a decade ago. And you’ve been changing for a good while now; the Coalossal in Azalea, the encounter with the Seviper, the fight between Brian and the Rocket Admin. All of those things that ended up happening so early in your journey accelerated your change. Alakazam did predict that someday your personality might go in this direction.”

  “What direction?”

  “The direction of Agatha, Lance, Cynthia, Blue, Red. The arrogance and the eagerness to know you can be the best.” He said. “Of course, all those things must be supported by talent and the will to work hard.”

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Being compared to those great pokemon trainers by Professor Oak left me reeling back and speechless.

  The Professor laughed at me, “Now, I’m saying that you’ve entered the beginning of their path, not that you’ll get where they got. You still need to work hard. Really hard if what Alakazam showed me was real.”

  “Of course, sir. I will not disappoint you.”

  “Don't disappoint yourself, young Scott,” he said, shaking his head. “Now, you asked me what you could be doing better, you couldn’t be doing any better than you just did. Advice though, I have three; If you want this change of attitude to stick, you can always just ask your team for help. It’s that simple. If you tell them that you want to be the best, they will support you and remind you of this on every single occasion.

  “I see that.” I nodded with a smile. My team never complained about training and, at times, didn’t stop training even when I asked. They would be more than happy to push me as well as they do themselves.

  “Next, be a student and a teacher, but I don’t need to explain to you the benefits of those occupations. You’ve already seen for yourself the benefits of both.”

  I nodded again, remembering that the level of mastery that Mesa achieved with Rock Tomb would not have been possible without Quake. Similarly, Cape would not have been so motivated if not for finding a student in Chopper. Of course, I wouldn’t have won the tournament without Brian.

  Then Professor Oak's smile diminished, taking on a tired expression, “The last advice I have for you is to know when to let go. Someday, you’ll have to leave behind those who can’t keep up. There will be those who, for many reasons, will not get where you want to go, and that’s fine. They’ll still be your friends, if they’re really your friends. Remember that”

  “Of course Professor, I think that I knew that already too.” I remember Jeremy, Alice, and Clarisse. They were probably still in Azalea, and I was here.

  “I see. I’m not accustomed to working with older trainers. However, listening to someone say it out loud hardens the mind. You will remember what I said when the time comes right?.”

  “I will.” I said, and then there was a pause in the conversation as I gathered my thoughts. We watched the wooden tower, the night sky, and the dark lake. Sometimes, a curious water pokemon, a Poliwag or a Wooper, came to the surface to watch us for a moment before diving back.

  “Professor, can you tell me why’d you choose to sponsor me? I feel that if I knew why I would be able to… I don’t know. I probably would have more motivation to keep going knowing where I’m supposed to end.”

  “That’s a good point Scott, but—and I say this with the best of intentions—why I chose you doesn’t matter right now. We’re here talking about you and your journey and as humans we can only focus on so much. We’ll first get up to where you want to be at the end of your journey, as it is supposed to be. But if you need motivation I will say this; after your journey ends, I’ll tell you why I chose you. Deal?”

  I thought about it for a moment and realized that the Professor was right as always, “Deal.” I laughed, “It's not like we’re running out of time anyways.”

  “Exactly," he said, gesturing with his hand. We spent some more time looking out at the calm lake and the sleeping tower for a couple of minutes. I really couldn’t believe my life right now. Champion of a tournament and having a conversation with Professor Oak.

  “Now tell me,” he said, and then waited for me to look at him. “Do you still want to win the Conference?”

  “Yes.” I said immediately, my head snapping to the side.

  “See,” Professor Oak laughed, “you’ve changed. Unlike in our first meeting, now you don’t hesitated to say yes. ”

  “I also may be just more comfortable talking about it with you.”

  Professor Oak looked stumped, “Ok, it can also be that. But anyways, I believe you can do it.”

  “Really?” Belief in yourself can only take you so much. When you get to the top sixty-four, you’re basically fighting the best of the best, people who spent years of their life training. The battles there make the ones fought in this tournament look like children’s play. Very rarely a newcomer wins.

  “I see you still doubt, but that can be solved before the Conference. You still have six months to train those doubts away... I guess I will be going now but since I will see you again only in the Conference, it’s best that I give you this gift right now.” Professor Oak raised a hand and a small mahogany box appeared on it in a flash of pink. He extended the box towards me and I collected it with extreme care. It was, after all, a gift from Professor Oak.

  I opened the box and inside it, nested in sheets of velvet, was a transparent and shining stone with a yellow light coming from its visible core, a Shiny Stone.

  “Alakazam tells me that if you continue on this level, you should be able to use it on Valley after your fifth badge.”

  “Thank you Professor.”

  “No need to thank me Scott, it's what a sponsor should do. Also, think of it as a reward for winning the tournament. The prize was shockingly low for the matches exhibited." He huffed at that. "I will also leave you with a request from me personally; be proactive in the best way possible, if you see a pokemon you really want, catch it, if you see a trainer you want to fight, fight him, if you want to train to exhaustion, do it, but also, if you see someone in need of help or in danger, it’s my hope that you, with all the power you’ve accumulated as of right now, will extend a hand. It’s the duty of a pokemon trainer after all”

  “I swear that I will, Professor.”

  “Great, then I’ll see you at the Conference, Scott.”

  I nodded and that was it. He was sitting there and then he wasn’t.

  I rose from the stone bench, cast a last look towards the Sprout Tower, one day I might come back to do the challenge, and walked towards the bridge. Thankfully most people were already sleeping in their homes, and while some people looked at me when I entered the Pokemon Center, nobody moved to ask for anything or made a scene. Trainers normally knew how exhausting it was to fight, nevermind fight all day in a tournament.

  I entered my room, took my bath and lied on my bed. Only then did the weight of that conversation hit me, when I was lying in my bed and suddenly couldn’t sleep.

  I stood up from my bed and walked towards my desk. Sitting down, I opened my computer and transcribed everything that was said on that bench into a new document. It might be arrogance but for some reason, I thought that this conversation should be recorded for the future.

  Sorry for the delay.

  Scott Wood:

  Cape/ Heracross: Tackle, Harden, Leer, Fury Attack, Endure, Arm Thrust, Aerial Ace, Horn Attack, Counter, Brick Break, Pin Missile, Rock Tomb,

  Jungle/ Bulbasaur: Growl, Tackle, Vine Whip, Razor Leaf, Bullet Seed, Leech Seed, Power Whip, Poison Powder, Sleep Powder, Sunny Day, Seed Bomb, Acid Spray

  Mesa/ Baltoy: Harden, Mud-Slap, Rapid Spin, Sand Attack, Confusion, Sand Tomb, Dig, Psybeam, Rock Tomb, Rock Slide, Double Team.

  Valley/ Minccino: Pound, Baby-Doll Eyes, Echoed Voice, Charm, Sing, Play Rough, Swift, Mud-Slap, Dig, Bullet Seed,

  Mountain/ Cryogonal: Bind, Ice Shard, Rapid Spin, Icy Wind, Mist, Slash, Body Slam. Take Down, Substitute, Night Slash.

  -

  Dendra Navarro:

  Chopper/ Hariyama: Tackle, Feint, Arm Thrust, Fake Out, Whirlwind, Detect, Force Palm, Focus Energy, Sand Attack, Bulk Up, Mud-Slap, Mud Shot, Swift.

  Cross/ Hawlucha: Tackle, Hone Claws, Wing Attack, Detect, Aerial Ace, Feather Dance, Encore, False Swipe, Swift,

  Ress/ Krokorok: Power Trip, Leer, Sand Attack, Hone Claws, Sand Tomb, Scary Face, Bite, Torment, Dig, Swagger, Sandstorm, Mud Shot, Mud-Slap, Rock Tomb

  Twirl/ Tyrogue: Rapid Spin, Tackle, Fake Out, Swift, Feint, Detect.

  Teddiursa:

  -

  Jess Brin:

  Quake/ Hippopotas: Tackle, Sand Attack, Bite, Yawn, Sand Tomb, Dig, Crunch. Sandstorm, Take Down, Rock Smash, Mud-Slap, Rock Tomb, Bulldoze, Rock Slide,

  Velocity/ Starly: Tackle, Growl, Quick Attack, Wing Attack, Swift, Aerial Ace, Whirlwind, Acrobatics, Air Cutter, Swift, Agility

  Blade/ Zangoose: Scratch, Leer, Fury Swipes, Quick Attack, Metal Claw, Hone Claw, Slash, Power Trip, Agility, Rock Tomb, Icy Wind

  Wave/ Mantyke:

  Soot/ Torkoal:

  -

  Katy Anderson:

  Tylla/ Palpitoad: Tackle, Pound, Echoed Voice, Growl, Acid, Supersonic, Mud Shot, Bubble Beam, Flail, Screech, Bulldoze, Bounce.

  Blaine/ Wimpod: Aqua jet, Rollout, Sand Attack, Defense Curl.

  Asha/ Ducklett: Water Gun, Defog, Wing Attack, Water Pulse, Aerial Ace, Bubble Beam, Feather Dance, Gust, Icy Wind.

  Nico/ Sealeo: Fissure, Defense Curl, Rollout, Growl, Water Gun, Powder Snow, Ice Beam.

  Otto/ Biddof:

  Emma/ Chinchou:

  Eevee:

  -

  Aiden Hagashi:

  Gyarados: Splash, Tackle, Bite, Ice Fang, Crunch.

  Gyarados: Tackle, Twister, Whirlpool, Ice Fang, Brine, Scary Face, Waterfall, Crunch.

  Swablu: Peck, Growl, Fury Attack, Round, Take Down, Protect, Aerial Ace, Dragon Breath, Dragon Pulse, Agility.

  Horsea: Water Gun, Smokescreen, Focus Energy, Water Pulse, Twister, Agility, Dragon Breath, Agility.

  -

  George Reed

  Misdreavus: Confusion, Astonish, Shadow Sneak, Confuse Ray, Hex, Mean Look, Psybeam, Shadow Ball, Stored Power, Charge Beam, Protect, Swift, Will-O-Wisp.

  Lampent: Ember, Will-O-Wisp, Minimize, Smog, Fire Spin, Astonish, Confuse Ray, Flame Charge, Facade.

  Kirlia: Confusion, Double Team, Disarming Voice, Growl, Hypnosis, Draining Kiss, Teleport, Psybeam, Shadow Sneak, Stored Power, Charge Beam, Icy Wind, Swift, Magical Leaf, Knock Off.

  Alolan Marowak: Mud-Slap, Tail Whip, False Swipe, Headbutt, Rock Smash, Rock Tomb, Bulldoze, Aerial Ace, Ember, Fire Spin, Shadow Bone.

  ?

  ?

  There were some questions about some aspects of the match against George:

  Some people asked about the fact that Lampent was hit by Body Slam. At the time, when I was writing that part I had three possible explanations in my mind, and I left to decide which one I was going to use/put in the story when I came back to revise the chapter. Turns out I forgot to put the explanation on the chapter when I revised it. I thought about changing the chapter but I found a way to put it in the story in a more organic way, so in the next few chapters there’s going to be an explanation about that.

  The second thing is that abilities don't exist in the story at all. But they can serve as information about a pokemon, for example Levitate.

  The last thing was about the Knock Off. I have a distaste for moves that are very specifically made around the game mechanics (when making a realistic story about pokemon), so I’ll always try to adapt them in a way. Most of the time I’ll find a way to warn about those changes before using it in battle (Chekhov's Gun them in if you will), but sometimes it's just not possible.

  Items are still a thing, but they’re more high level and expensive, and are also adapted since I wouldn’t want a pokemon holding something while battling.