CHAPTER 9 — Where I Began

  “When I said you should think about what you really wanted to do, being a Gym Leader was definitely far from what I had in mind—not that I have anything against it, of course!”

  I snorted with laughter.

  “I know, dad. I know.”

  It was funny where life took you sometimes.

  My conversation with dad ended there, but I had someone else to talk to. Dad passed the phone to my overly excited half-sibling because he kept complaining that he wanted a turn to talk.

  “Bro, bro, bro!” Kale’s rushed, breathless voice immediately blurted into my ear. In the background, I heard a bunch of dull thuds and rattling sounds like stuff was being moved around. “Kayden, is it true that you’re gonna be a Gym Leader? Dad told us the news over breakfast—”

  “Hey, bud, I gotta check something first,” I interrupted in an all-knowing tone. “Don’t tell me you slept past your alarm again.”

  A moment of silence and then—

  “What?! No, no, uh, what gave you that idea?” Kale laughed nervously, but it was useless.

  I knew my little brother. Those telltale sounds I was hearing in the background? He was definitely dumping stuff into his backpack and stumbling around his room with all the frantic, chaotic energy a ten-year-old could have. It was all too easy to imagine the bed head he probably had right now, too.

  I shook my head fondly even though he couldn’t see. “Oh please,” I drawled. “Nothing escapes an older brother, Kale. We can chat another time. I don’t want you to be late.”

  “Whaaaat? But I just got on the phone—”

  “Besides, you don’t want to face mom’s wrath, do you?” I half-joked.

  Cue three seconds of Kricketot silence as Kale physically paused in place and shuddered.

  “Okay, you have a good point,” he agreed, but then he went right back to yelling into the phone. I had to pull it away from my ear lest I go deaf. “Wait! Bro, you gotta answer my question at least then! I’m gonna die of curiosity before I ever get to school if you don’t!”

  Wooden floorboards shook as he dashed downstairs.

  “Are you gonna be a Gym Leader? What’s Castelia like? Are there buildings half as tall as Mount Lanakila? Do they have tasty food? Are—”

  “I’m pretty sure that’s way more than ONE question,” I cut in, laughing. “I’ll only answer your very first one: yes.”

  “Whoa, really—”

  “Kale! No running down the stairs!”

  I heard a melodious voice admonish in the background, and Kale sucked in a deep breath.

  “SORRY, MOM!” he yelled.

  Just another day in the Sterling household, I thought as I smiled to myself.

  “Tell mom I said hi. Don’t trip on your way to school!”

  My little brother huffed dramatically in my ear. “I won’t! See ya, bro!”

  I was still smiling after the call disconnected. Not that I was down in the first place, but talking to family never failed to lift my spirits. I practically felt like I was on top of the world right now.

  I had the support of the people I loved, my new friend Burgh and the Unova League, outraged citizens across the nation, random strangers online…

  “Hmm, I think a toast is in order,” I decided, and I wandered over to the fridge.

  The hotel was high-end enough that they offered a free selection of quality drinks for those who stayed in the best suites. I took a random bottle of wine with me to the balcony and poured myself a glass. My lips were curled upwards in a perpetual smile as I took a sip, one hand still scrolling through articles on my phone about ongoing protests.

  Ah, such bliss.

  There was nothing like gazing out at the Castelia view while having a good drink and reading about terrible people reaping the consequences of their bigotry.

  The ‘terrible people reaping the consequences of their bigotry’ could not say the same as a certain Bug Specialist.

  Not even remotely close.

  Hours ago, most of them were in private offices located inside of various government buildings scattered across Union Peak. They worked diligently and without any knowledge of the storm coming their collective way.

  Imagine their surprise when they glanced at their monitors and saw an impromptu announcement from the Unova League.

  Imagine their surprise when the Champion suddenly nominated an Arceus damned Ability Holder for the next Gym Leader of Castelia City. It was already bad enough that they had a rude little gremlin as the co-Gym Leader over in Opelucid!

  They did not recognize that young man named Kayden Sterling. Not yet.

  Not until Alder helpfully told the candidate’s story on live television and revealed the truth. It was then and only then they remembered that particular incident from twenty years ago and the boy they had sent away among a sea of others. Fountain pens fell out of their hands. Mugs of coffee dropped and shattered to pieces on the floor. The whole time, a single uncouth word passed through minds that were rapidly shutting down from a mixture of fear, anger, and stress.

  Fuck.

  The storm arrived right on their doorsteps, and as they quickly learned…

  When people were driven by emotion, when they were given ample reason and ammo… they were to be feared.

  Phone lines rang off the hook. Letters of protest were express mailed straight to their offices. Email inboxes were inundated with complaints and demanding inquiries. People willingly paid big bucks just to be Teleported or flown all the way to Union Peak so they could shake their fists and make their voices heard—literally.

  “You should be ashamed of yourselves!”

  “[BEEP] [BEEP]! [BEEP]! Cowards!”

  And so on and so forth. The most vocal protestors were parents who had children of their own, those who could sympathize with and were most appalled by the story of a young boy being exiled.

  That was not the worst of it.

  True hell was disguised in the form known as the Pokenet.

  Chatter, Indeegram, Frillbook, Teddit, PokeTube, Duncord—heck, the news was even making its way onto regional servers on the other side of the world like Chimegram and Farbook. People posted memes, reaction videos, supportive posts, and every manner of digital know-how known to man.

  The most searched inquiry on Zoogle became the ‘Unovan Parliament Exiles,’ and someone even made a whole Caterpedia page dedicated to today’s incident.

  Most damning of all was the flood of blasted articles. Names were listed. Politicians had targets on their backs because of them. The Mandibuzz and Mightyena had been set loose. They preyed on weakness, and they jumped at the chance to tear into wounded beasts. Their specialty?

  That was digging for dirt, and when journalists already had an idea of what to look for, that meant they found buried secrets faster.

  They kindly publicized their findings for the sake of readership and the Unovan people, of course.

  Hours later, weary politicians gathered secretly in a spare meeting room on the grounds of Union Peak. They may have belonged to different parties, but they shared one common trait, and that was their negative views on Ability Holders. They only came together because this was an issue that threatened to pull all of them under.

  “Damn it!” someone swore. He was practically on the verge of tears. “Those cases were off the record—”

  “Doesn’t mean Bouffalant crap if they track down retired secretaries and bribe them—”

  “Then they should have held their tongues!”

  “You’re not the one whose name is floating around the Pokenet!”

  The room devolved into fits of yelling and hands being thrown up out of anger.

  “QUIET!” someone eventually shouted. One of the most well-known representatives in the room, Howard Moore of Driftveil, had to yell it two more times before people settled down. He swept glaring eyes across the room full of occupants. “This meeting is pointless, gentlemen. Instead of arguing, you should be thinking hard right now. Did you let information slip to anyone over drinks years ago? Did you discuss something you shouldn’t have within earshot of a former chauffeur? Only you might know. Go and silence people with money! Erase traces before they’re found! Do anything, but do it discreetly.”

  He gritted his teeth as people fled the room in haste and pulled out phones to make calls.

  Howard’s concern was reserved mostly for himself and his own party members, but if he wanted to oppose Alder and the League in the future, then he needed as many similar-minded folks to remain in office as possible.

  Thankfully, quite a few of the politicians behind the decades-old exiles were either dead, retired, or hadn’t been re-elected after their terms ended in later years. It didn’t matter if journalists were able to find evidence that linked them to Ability Holder cases. Those politicians didn’t hold any power right now. They could be thrown to the Lycanroc for all Howard cared.

  Still, he ordered a few of his subordinates to go make sure no one decided to drag others through the mud with them.

  To think all this madness was because of Kayden Sterling… Had he come back after twenty years to exact revenge?

  Howard had been one of the ringleaders back then for that boy’s case as well as many others, but he always subtly manipulated discussions behind the scenes and swayed votes the way he wanted. His party members didn’t call him Silver Tongued Moore for nothing.

  His involvement would never be found. The storm would eventually blow over.

  More importantly, what were they going to do about their newest problem called Kayden Sterling…

  “Sierra’s reputation took a hit, too, right?” he suddenly barked out to one of his subordinates. He thought he remembered reading such an article on his phone earlier.

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Ugh,” Howard muttered. He felt a migraine coming on much like a Psyduck. “We don’t have any other backup candidate. She’s the only strong trainer we can push for the role who’s willing to support future policies we want. Call her and get damage control going.”

  He sighed, dragging a hand down his face.

  This whole ordeal had made him age another ten years.

  Lacunosa Town, Unova — Sierra Brooks

  “—and you need to look genuinely guilty, Ms. Brooks,” Howard’s lackey told Sierra Brooks. “Don’t lay it on too thick, of course, but you must truly appeal to the people when you make your public apology. Should I repeat anything again?”

  “No, that won’t be necessary.”

  Legendaries, it was like they thought Sierra didn’t know how the world worked or how to conduct herself in front of cameras. Her blood boiled with repressed anger. She had been an Elite Four member for years. Of course she knew how to act.

  “Alright. Just leave the rest to us. Public opinion doesn’t look too good right now in our favor, but we’re going to do our best to bring the opponent’s qualifications into question at the very least.”

  Sierra didn’t bother responding. She ended the call and held her phone with a death grip, lips pressed into a thin line. Without her needing to say anything, her team of Pokemon filled dark tunnels with fresh flames and light. A dozen Fire types returned to independent sparring once more.

  They were in a cavern Sierra had frequented on and off over the last decade and a half, one on the outskirts of town that her team had long laid claim to as a decent training area. Ever since she lost the right to walk among the grounds of Union Peak, she had buried herself in training.

  Failing to win her Elite Four position back and suffering two consecutive defeats should have been more than enough motivation, but improvement remained slow after all these years—nonexistent, even.

  Sierra didn’t want to believe she and her team had hit their limits long ago, just as she didn’t want to believe that Kayden Sterling of all people had come back to challenge her for the position of Castelia Gym Leader.

  She could not remember every Ability Holder she had seen and subsequently voted into exile over the years — why bother? — but she easily remembered him, the boy involved with the Relic Castle incident. The boy who could understand Bugs and—

  The boy whose mind actually came into contact with the dormant Sun.

  A national disaster could have unfolded that day. They were lucky the Sun did not deign to stir from its slumber, but who could say it would never happen?

  What if that boy got the idea to try and control it one day when he grew up? What if he became powerful enough to do so?

  Not that Alder would have allowed it in the first place, but the boy was too young to have his memories tampered with at the time. Sierra would have opted for immediate exile either way. He was simply too dangerous to keep around. Sierra would never understand why people weren’t more wary of Ability Holders. One only had to look through the pages of Unovan history to see examples of what they could do with their powers if they felt like it. Inciting civil wars and creating man-made disasters were at the top of the list.

  It helped that she’d been influenced by her hometown growing up. Lacunosa was a place steeped in superstition, but it was that very prudence that had allowed their town to survive up to the modern era.

  Sierra had particularly vivid memories of her late grandmother.

  —

  “Listen to me, little one,” her grandmother croaked. Clouded and nearly blind eyes almost seemed to find her own without fail. “A wise woman once lived here in Lacunosa, and she always said we mustn’t trust Ability Holders. Some hold power far too great for a mortal. Before she passed away, she told us this: someday, a young man will tear Unova apart for the sake of Truth!”

  Spit flew through the air as her grandmother spoke with renewed intensity.

  “DO NOT TRUST THEM!” she urged. “THEY’RE DANGEROUS! EVERY SINGLE ONE!”

  “Mother! Stop scaring her,” her mother hissed, and then she herded her young daughter away from the living room. She looked down at her with a strained smile. “Don’t pay her any attention, Sierra. Grandmother is a bit confused these days.”

  Her mother always said the same thing, gently dismissing the ramblings of an old woman.

  —

  Now, Sierra was starting to wonder if her late grandmother’s words had some substance to them after all.

  ‘Someday, a young man will tear Unova apart for the sake of Truth.’

  Kayden Sterling sure as hell was doing that at the moment.

  All of this had to be his idea. Alder, she knew, was the type to tread cautiously because of his position at the top. He wouldn’t have resorted to opening the floodgates like this unless he had a compelling enough reason to do so, one born and manifested from years of guilt.

  The Relic Castle incident had caused a permanent rift between Alder and half of his Elite Four back then. Sierra still remembered the screaming match they all had in private after the boy was exiled, but she didn’t regret a thing.

  Even if she was to go back in time, she would make the same choices again and again.

  She always would for the sake of Unova.

  Dangerous factors with equally dangerous potential had to be removed altogether. Without any risks, peace and unity could be ensured.

  Alder thought otherwise. That was not true peace and unity to him. Through his efforts in the political scene, Kayden Sterling eventually came crawling back to Unova once more.

  With a few Zoogle searches, Sierra discovered Kayden had made a name for himself as a reputable trainer. He’d defeated a few Elite Fours and Champions in his teenage years — monumental feats that less than a handful could claim around the world, and those people usually became the reigning Champion of their respective countries — but he was more well-known in the professional side of the trainer scene.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  He was also a Bug Specialist of all things.

  She still couldn’t believe Alder had let him keep that Larvesta long ago. It was like giving wings to a tiger.

  Power needed to belong in the hands of those who could be responsible for it.

  As Sierra watched her Pokemon breathe flames, scarlet hues danced in her dark eyes. Like every element and type in the world, Fire was many things. One person would perhaps claim it was warmth and guiding light. Another might say it was anger and death. There were no right or wrong answers to be found.

  Fire, to Sierra Brooks at least, was transformation.

  It consumed, it destroyed, and it created without end in a glorious cycle. Ever burning and ever seeking. Obstacles merely became the fuel for her passions. Wielding flames, she burned away the old and unnecessary for the emergence of a future she desired.

  She would be forced to make a public apology in order to salvage what remained of her reputation, but it would not do much. Trust, once lost, was not so easily earned again. The politicians who claimed they would try to find faults with Kayden Sterling would not have much luck, either. The public sympathized too greatly with a young man and his distressing story. They followed the righteous Alder and his Unova League.

  All seemed lost, but Fire was defiant. Her pride would not allow things to end here.

  Her blood burned with the renewal of an old vow from her youth.

  With Fire, Sierra controlled her own destiny, and with Fire, she would change it again.

  Castelia City, Unova — Kayden Sterling

  It had only been hours since the announcement, but with the way public opinion swung so dramatically in my favor already, me becoming the next Castelia Gym Leader was pretty much guaranteed. The civilian side of the government was going to realize soon that if they wanted to get re-elected for another term, then their only choice was to vote for me and outwardly show they pandered to the public’s wishes.

  Due to a combination of lack of sleep and a packed morning, Burgh said he would start teaching me gym leader stuff the following day. He advised me to lay low in the meantime. Reporters prowled the streets.

  I wasn’t the type to listen to such suggestions, unfortunately. I got antsy if I was indoors for too long.

  So, after finishing my drink on the balcony, I decided to go house shopping.

  As nice as my hotel suite was, I didn’t want to live there forever. I wanted a place of my own. I looked up real estate agencies in the city, chose one of the better ones after sifting through reviews, and called to ask about same-day appointments. I had to call three different places before I found one that had time to see me right now.

  Ribombee accompanied me out of the hotel today. If I needed a quick getaway on the off chance that someone discovered my identity on the streets, then she was my ticket to sweet, sweet safety. For now, I made sure the hood of my jacket was tugged far over my head. This was probably the last time I’d get to wear one since the weather was getting too warm.

  Hardly a minute into my walk, I quickly discovered that Burgh had not been exaggerating.

  There were reporters everywhere on the streets of Castelia.

  Most news companies were focused on investigating politicians and old cases right now, but they didn’t neglect getting interviews from ordinary citizens or coverage on ongoing protests.

  In fact, I came across one happening near a park.

  “We won’t stand for injustice! Keep your voices loud!” a guy yelled energetically into a megaphone. He threw a fist into the air. “Make them confess and apologize! All exiled Ability Holders deserve that!”

  “YEAH!”

  What seemed like hundreds of voices answered him in a loud roar. People waved signs and posters in the air, and I realized most of those had ULC written somewhere on them. They were from the Unova Liberty Center. I wondered idly if Hayden was here—

  I did a double take when I realized that yes, he was. In fact, he was the person with the megaphone. We actually made eye contact as I passed by. He was surprised enough that he faltered mid-speech, but he quickly recovered. He flashed a smile before looking away.

  “FOR UNOVA!” he shouted.

  “YEAH!”

  “Mr. Jones, can we get an interview with you?” A reporter suddenly asked, fighting to be heard over all the noise. He had sneaked into the crowd, and he waved a notepad around to catch Hayden’s attention. “From our research, we learned that you were one of Kayden Sterling’s old classmates—”

  Jeez, I’d known this was going to happen, but they were snooping further into my own past, too.

  I didn’t worry, though. My old classmate didn’t have any intention of talking. Hayden grinned, took his megaphone, and then yelled in the nosy reporter’s face.

  “SORRY, DIDN’T HEAR YOU, we’re kind of in the middle of something right now!”

  “Mr. Jones—”

  “Alright, everyone, say it with me! We won’t stand for injustice!”

  “M-Mr. Jones—”

  “WE WON’T STAND FOR INJUSTICE!”

  Thus, the reporter was studiously ignored.

  I found myself smiling as the sounds of the protest faded into the distance behind me. Looked like Hayden was doing well for himself after getting back from his business trip.

  I didn’t run into any trouble on my way to the real estate agency, thankfully, but I did unintentionally cause a commotion inside. The startled secretary showed me to a waiting room occupied with her equally startled boss. He crushed a bottle of water in his hand out of shock. Water dribbled down his chin as he looked between me and the TV on the wall several times over.

  It played a news report on the morning’s announcement with a blown up picture of me in the background.

  Damn, even if I hated wearing suits, I looked pretty good in one.

  “Uh… Mr. Kayden Sterling?” the man finally asked, eyes the size of saucers. He still hadn’t stopped looking between me and the TV.

  I flipped my hood back, grinning.

  “That’s me.”

  The boss — Atticus as he insisted on being called by — ended up personally escorting me to different properties that were for sale. He drove us in his car right up until the afternoon rush hour began. It would have been maddening to go anywhere by vehicle or subway after that, so we opted for the most mundane and universal mode of transport: walking.

  He wouldn’t stop apologizing profusely as we strolled down sidewalks. I made it my silent goal to make sure I became an approachable Gym Leader in the future. Like come on, I was a normal guy with a non-intimidating appearance. Maybe I looked kind of crazy when I fought, but what was there to be afraid of outside of a match?

  “No sweat,” I reassured him over and over again. “I like the exercise.”

  The criteria I gave Atticus for potential housing I’d be interested in included the following: spacious enough to comfortably house over a dozen Pokemon, located within thirty minutes of walking from the Castelia Gym, the inclusion of a large garden or backyard area, and enough room for a dedicated training space.

  No budget limit at least. This was a significant investment for my future and worth depleting part of my savings over.

  All the criteria helped narrow our search down.

  There was a penthouse with a rooftop garden I knew my team would enjoy, and since it was a building mostly filled with trainer occupants, they had private training halls in the basement levels. Those were too small for my liking, though, so I crossed it off the list.

  Next was a luxury loft that definitely checked off the criteria for ample space. It even came with a huge training hall because a rich, wannabe trainer kid used to live there and had it made, but the place didn’t have a garden. I excluded it from the list, too.

  Over the next couple of hours, I trekked up and down Castelia looking at different properties. My decision was made well past dinnertime.

  I ultimately settled on a large, two-story house with warm beige walls. Residential houses weren’t too common in Castelia, but they definitely existed among the sea of apartment complexes and skyscrapers. The one I chose was in a secluded neighborhood about fifteen minutes from the Castelia Gym—very secluded and very private. They had apparently tried to make this area into a huge park before, but the plan fell through halfway into demolishing old houses, so they left the rest where they stood and planted a bunch of trees instead.

  Thus, there was basically only a single house on each street. I liked how empty it was personally. More space for my Pokemon to roam and do what they wanted. The abundant greenery was a plus, but the house’s other main selling point was its significantly large backyard. I already had plans to keep half as a garden and convert the other half into a training area.

  My good mood only soured on our way back to the office to sign documents.

  Reporters somehow managed to identify me even though I kept my head down. I supposed it was a wonder I hadn’t been caught until now given I hadn’t even bothered wearing a face mask.

  “Kayden Sterling! Wait, I’d like to interview you!” someone yelled, and suddenly everyone was running down the street toward me with cameras in hand.

  I remained calm and shoved my hands inside hoodie pockets.

  “Do you have any issues with Teleportation or the like?” I asked my broker.

  “Er, no—?”

  Ribombee didn’t wait for Atticus to finish. With a shake of her wings, she scattered sparkling dust around her and waved a hand. It was a seamless shift. One second we were on the streets of Castelia, and the next we were back in Atticus’s office at the real estate agency.

  Atticus blinked rapidly, mouth hanging open with shock. “I… You… Did we just Teleport?”

  It wasn’t exactly Teleport, but more like a neat trick I stole from a famous Fairy Specialist in Johto. It was a bit similar to the fairy rings you’d see sometimes in the deep wilds away from prying human eyes. I had Ribombee scatter fairy dust into the atmosphere and ‘mark’ locations, altering reality. Travel was possible between those points.

  I didn’t bother explaining all that to a civilian.

  “Something similar,” I grinned. “Now let’s get down to business.”

  I went home after signing documents, calling utility services up, and having ownership of the house transferred over to me.

  Tomorrow morning, I’d move into my new place.

  “Kayden Sterling is a Bug Specialist and member of the International Battle—”

  “—would be the second Ability Holder to be a Unova Gym Leader after Iris Shaga—”

  No matter which channel I went to on the news that night, my name was mentioned by all of them. One hand kept clicking the remote while the other browsed through messages on my phone. Alder was dutifully keeping me updated on how things were going back at League HQ.

  One more politician had resigned because of enough skeletons being unearthed from his closet. They were going to hold special elections in the near future to replace anyone else who quit, but two representatives had been elected to fill in until then: Ghetsis Harmonia Gropius and Annyra Huang. Where Sierra was concerned, apparently she had issued a public apology where she expressed ‘extreme remorse’ for her previous actions.

  Yeah. I didn’t buy that.

  Alder also let me know that the civilian side of the government had finally made their move. They’d brought my qualifications as a candidate into question during a meeting. The main thing they nitpicked at was my lack of public battling achievements. Sure, I’d conquered some League Circuits when I was a teenager, but that was a decade ago in their eyes. Who was to say my skills hadn’t degraded since then or so they challenged? They thought my prowess as a Champion-level trainer was exaggerated. They didn’t care about what I did in the professional trainer scene since most civilians only cared about regional League Circuits and Conference results.

  I snorted when I saw Alder’s text message—his response to everything.

  Alder [9:49 PM]: They’re just desperate and grasping at any straws they can right now. Don’t worry about them. It’s a moot point that won’t stick. Bouffalant shit.

  I fully agreed. I put my phone on the bedside table and flipped through a few more TV channels.

  “—protests at Union Peak are still ongoing—”

  “Former Gym Leader Burgh Arty was not available for comments—”

  “—mother of Kayden Sterling refused the interview—”

  I’d never shut the TV off so fast before. My heart didn’t pound in my chest, but my eyes did widen.

  Mother of Kayden Sterling.

  It couldn’t be.

  I set the remote aside and looked for news on my phone. My jaw clenched as I read a mere few lines of text. I didn’t want to learn too much.

  Nope, apparently it could be.

  Journalists had managed to track down the woman my dad used to be in love with, my… biological mother. As far as I knew, the Unova League and government had safeguarded the privacy of all people involved with the Relic Castle incident. They’d gone to great lengths to hide my biological mother from the public eye, too, because back then, the last thing they wanted was for traces of an Ability Holder to be found even where family was concerned.

  My jaw unclenched as I put my phone away, flopping back onto my bed with closed eyes.

  I only vaguely wondered how they’d found her. Divorce records weren’t public. Maybe they’d tracked down old neighbors and asked around? Whatever they did, it couldn’t have been easy.

  I also found I didn’t care. It had startled me a little at first, but that was it.

  I truly didn’t care about that woman anymore. Hadn’t for years. I had a mom, and it wasn’t her.

  Honest to dear Arceus and the Twin Dragons, I swore I didn’t care. I even let thoughts about that particular topic float away, but when the large body of a Volcarona landed next to me on the bed and a warm, comforting wing was draped over my stomach…

  I didn’t push Rune away.

  The rest of my Pokemon joined us by the bed, and we stayed up late into the night talking with each other and messing around with a pillow fight. I knew this was their way of showing they cared about me.

  I had all the family I needed right here, and I fell asleep dreaming of a bright and glorious future with them.

  Early morning came, and with it, moving day.

  I finally checked out of the hotel I’d stayed in for weeks and had Ribombee warp us over to our new home. After dumping my luggage in the bedroom, I went out for a morning jog around the neighborhood. Wireless earbuds filled my ears with upbeat, motivational music. I made it a point to stay in shape since I adventured a lot, but I didn’t want to slack off now that I would no longer be traveling. Thoughts about furniture I needed to buy drifted through my head the whole time I ran. Maybe I’d go after I finished exercising—

  “Kayden Sterling.”

  If I had a Pokedollar for every time someone had greeted me with my full name since coming back to Unova, I would have three—which wasn’t a lot, granted, but it was weird it happened so many times.

  Music faded as I ripped my earbuds out and jogged to a halt. Thinking that it was perhaps another IBC trainer who came to seek me out for a match or even an old classmate, I turned with a witty quip prepared but—

  It was neither.

  It was someone else I knew, though.

  A beautiful woman watched me from a distance. Strands of brown and white hair fell in waves across tanned skin, but it was her eyes that stood out to me. Dark, nearly soulless, and yet as fierce as I remembered, they stared at me without pause. I was no longer intimidated by them like I used to be. She was much, much older.

  So was I.

  “Sierra Brooks,” I drawled, arms crossing over my chest. “What do you want?”

  If she was surprised that I remembered her, she didn’t show it. “It took me longer to find you than I thought.”

  I raised a brow. “Like I said,” I repeated in a bored voice, “what do you want?”

  My body language made it very clear that I saw this whole thing as a waste of time. She’d interrupted my morning jog. Rather than feeling wary of this encounter, I simply felt annoyed.

  Out of everything I expected Sierra to say, I did not expect the following words from her.

  “Then let me be frank: you should have stayed out of Unova,” she declared.

  Excuse me?

  I scoffed. “You came all the way here to say that? I don’t know if I should feel insulted or flattered. Hate to break it to you, but Bugs are good at surviving.”

  “Apparently so,” Sierra replied softly in a mocking tone. Her eyes narrowed into thin slits. “We don’t need Ability Holders in Unova. We don’t need risks walking around with powers that can be abused for evil.”

  “People like you are the ones turning us into so-called risks,” I countered. “Most people accept Ability Holders in present-day Unova. There are plenty who work for the League, too. It’s peaceful.”

  “But there are still incidents,” she retorted, voice nearly a hiss. “Ability Holders who are tempted by what they can do and become criminals. What do you have to say for those?”

  “I don’t,” I said simply. I’d read about those incidents online when I did my research early on in my Unova trip. There were people who came back to the country and decided to do very bad things to say the least. “They’re criminals. They did wrong. But like I said at Union Peak…”

  My voice dropped as I repeated words from my nomination speech.

  “The collective should not be judged for the history or actions of a few. I’m going to do my damned best to show that.”

  Sierra stared at me with a challenging, venomous gaze.

  “Can you?”

  “I can.”

  “Well, I don’t want to give you the chance,” she hissed, and she began to step closer. I did not stray from where I stood with crossed arms.

  I did not stray even as Sierra halted in front of me. Eyes darker than coal then cast their stony glare upwards.

  “The one who seeks Truth, and the one who seeks Ideals,” she recited, each word as sharp as any thorn. “In the name of the White and Black Dragons, I challenge you.”

  Nothing physically changed with her words, and yet the entire world seemed to darken with that single proclamation.

  This was the first time I’d heard it in person, but I knew what she had just recited. I recognized it from stories and books I’d read in the past.

  It was an outdated and almost sacred way of challenging people to a battle in Unova. When two people were beyond reconciliation, they asked the Twin Heroes and Dragons to oversee their duels from on high. The side that emerged victorious proved their claims right.

  Nobody used it anymore.

  Nobody except Sierra, it seemed, who still paid respect to the old ways.

  That, and I was certain she had requested a battle in this way on purpose.

  To refuse a challenge like the one she issued was the same as saying ‘you were right’ and ‘I was wrong.’ That only mattered if you took any value in the challenge rite and old ways themselves, of course.

  The option to refuse was there. I had the option to decline, to walk away and leave her standing here like a fool, and to go on with my day because I didn’t owe her anything.

  I could have, but I didn’t.

  I remembered my answer to Alder’s question in his office.

  In a world where different truths and ideals will constantly clash, tell me: do you have what it takes to stay true to yourself and never fall?

  I was Kayden Sterling, and I never backed down from a challenge. I wasn’t going to lose.

  “I accept.”

  There on that sidewalk, two people smiled coldly at each other.

  Six-on-six, no switches, no Mega Evolution. Plain, simple, and brutal—just the way we both preferred it. I had no idea if this was Sierra’s way of trying to prove she was the better candidate or if she simply hated me enough to want to fight, but I didn’t care.

  A battle was a battle. You fought. Someone won, and someone lost.

  Sierra issued the challenge, so I picked the location.

  “You want to battle in this rotten dump?” she scoffed, glancing around our surroundings.

  “If you have a problem, you can leave now,” I shrugged. “I’ll pretend I never heard your challenge.”

  She glared at me but said nothing.

  I’d chosen a rundown outdoor battlefield near my childhood home in Lower Castelia, one near an underpass. Grated fencing circled the perimeter like the kind you’d see around basketball or tennis courts. Across benches and rickety stands that looked like they’d give you tetanus, colorful graffiti covered whatever surface it could find. Honestly, it was a rotten dump.

  When I was younger, I’d passed by this place many times with Berry and thought it’d be nice to battle here like the older kids did.

  I supposed this was an unconventional way of fulfilling a childhood dream.

  “You realize the two of us will cause mass destruction to the city without intervention, right?” Sierra questioned, huffing. “We need—”

  “—someone to be the referee and keep our fight contained, I know,” I drawled, rolling my eyes. “Please, I’m not stupid. Two elite trainers duking it out is a recipe for disaster. I already texted someone.”

  That someone arrived about half a minute after we stood around in tense silence. Sierra absolutely bristled when Burgh walked onto the field with his Orbeetle. He’d had to Teleport nearby first and walk the rest of the way.

  “You called Burgh Arty?” Sierra snarled.

  “Happy to see you, too, Sierra,” Burgh shot back dryly, and he shot me an indecipherable glance. “I would appreciate an explanation after this, Kayden.”

  “Thanks for coming.”

  We got ready fairly quickly. Once Burgh was made aware of the match rules, Sierra and I took our places on opposite ends of the ugly stretch of dirt mixed with weeds that we called our battlefield. Old, battered Pokeballs containing our first Pokemon were held firmly in our hands. From here, the sounds of cars zipping past could be heard above the underpass.

  I thought we would begin right away, but Sierra was more committed to the old ways than I thought.

  “Sierra Brooks,” she introduced, tightening the grip on her Pokeball. She raised her chin and stared coolly at me. “Of Lacunosa Town. Unova.”

  In my peripheral vision, I saw Burgh’s brow scrunch together because he didn’t understand the context behind everything. I didn’t say anything to him because my mind was already on the match.

  This was not simply a battle between Truth and Ideals or Fire and Bugs.

  No, this was a battle between passion and the will to survive.

  I opened my mouth to introduce myself. Kayden Sterling of Hau’oli City, Alola or so I thought—

  No… that wasn’t quite right.

  That wasn’t where I began. My roots were elsewhere.

  My beginnings were in a city that never slept, where dreams never truly died, and where people never stopped moving.

  My beginnings included a cramped bedroom in a small, rotting house that always leaked, a little Sewaddle that stayed by my side, and the ruins of a forgotten age I nearly died in.

  I was banished and expelled from here, but I clawed my way to the top of the world and survived to come back here again in glory. Bugs were hard to kill. They survived even when people thought it was impossible, and they went on to thrive.

  They lived.

  I could say it now, the place where I truly belonged and where I began.

  “Kayden Sterling,” I said, inhaling. I raised my Pokeball.

  Gold eyes glowed with all the intensity of the sun.

  “I’m from Castelia City of Unova.”

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