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Chapter 1 – Rise & Fall
‘Here we go, Bob. Everything comes down to this. You can hear the excitement in this crowd! Will Wynne and Bugsy down to one Pokémon each! You don’t often see matches this close!’
‘Close it may be, John, but Will is gonna show no mercy from here on out. Bugsy’s poisoning trick was way out of line!’
‘Well you know what they say, Bob, all’s fair in love and Gym challenges! Now, what do we think about this final showdown? Does Will have a chance of winning his fifth badge?’
‘You better believe he’s gonna win his fifth badge, John! Will’s got what it takes to win here, and take his League challenge all the way to the Indigo Plateau! He’s destined for greatness! Everyone here has got front row seats to the rise of Will Wynne!’
The crowd roared.
‘Woah, woah, woah, Bob. Calm down there a second! He’s gotta win here first!’
‘Come on, John! At only sixteen years old, this kid has already beaten four Johto Gym Leaders without needing a single rematch! We haven’t seen talent like this since Will’s own uncle, Terry Starr, defeated the dreaded Trusted Champion once and for all! Will’s gonna bring the Championship back to Johto – I can feel it in my bones!’
The crowd roared even louder.
‘Alright, Bob, settle down, settle down. Let’s stick to the present for now, shall we? What Pokémon do we think each trainer is gonna send out?’
‘Well, John, there’s been no official confirmation, but neither trainer has used their signature Pokémon, so my money is on this final showdown being between Bugsy’s Scyther and Will’s Poliwrath.’
The sound of a large buzzer filled the stadium. The crowd’s roaring became deafeningly loud.
‘Oh, it looks like we might be ready to go, Bob! The battle’s about to start! Don’t take your eyes off the screen for even a second, folks!’
A bead of sweat rolled down Will’s forehead as he gripped Poliwrath’s Poké Ball in his hand. The crowd surrounding the large asphalt battle arena was the biggest he’d ever battled in front of. There must have been two hundred people packed into the stalls around him, maybe three. How was he supposed to think about his strategy with all that noise? There were far too many people here. Usually he would look to his mum and brothers in the audience for support, but he just couldn’t spot them. They were there though. He could feel them. Even while unconscious, his Espeon sustained their family’s psychic link. That would have to do. Enormous TV screens were set up around the stadium, each one featuring his own face blown up to a size it was never meant to be seen at. How did trainers manage to think about anything but their own appearance while battling here? He checked himself. Short black hair, fair skin, white collared shirt, smart black trousers and shoes. He consciously adorned a smug smile and threw his final Poké Ball into the arena in front of him. Poliwrath burst out and flexed its muscles for the adoring crowd. Their response threatened to burst Will’s eardrums.
On the other side of the arena, his opponent, Gym Leader Bugsy, nodded. Bugsy looked ridiculous. Bowl cut purple hair, boy scout shorts and shirt, and a comically large bug catching net attached to his back. That look might have worked when he was a kid, but now he was a grown man it was just embarrassing. His battling skills, however, were anything but. Will had never had to work this hard before. It was the closest any of his Gym challenges had been. Relying on a Future Sight strategy against an opponent with Toxic had been a mistake, perhaps a terminal one: he’d have to make a note of that in his playbook back home, whatever the result of this battle. Bugsy threw out his own final Poké Ball. As the commentators had correctly predicted, a furious Scyther burst out opposite Poliwrath, scraping its blades against each other.
‘Run rings around it, Scyther!’ shouted Bugsy.
‘Impossible Hit Drill, Poliwrath!’ shouted Will.
Poliwrath closed both eyes and placed one knee on the floor. It rested one fist on its raised knee, and pressed the other fist against the asphalt floor. Scyther meanwhile ran large circles around the edge of the arena so fast that all that could be seen was a green blur.
In the crowd, Frankie Wynne, Will’s twelve year old brother, sat next to Max Wynne, Will’s fourteen year old brother, in the packed stalls. Frankie turned to Max in confusion.
‘What’s an Impossible Hit Drill? I’ve never heard of that move.’
‘Oh, jeez! Have you never seen Will battle before or are you just stupid?’
‘Max, be nice to your brother,’ snapped their mum, Lydia, who was sitting on the other side of Frankie.
Max sighed.
‘Will runs drills with his Pokémon, and then gives out his orders cryptically so he doesn’t give away his tactics to his opponent.’
‘Will really is great, huh?’
Max sighed again.
Poliwrath remained stationary as Scyther continued to circle it. There was almost perfect silence in the arena. Everyone there was thinking the same thing: what will happen? Bugsy’s face appeared on the screens. It betrayed uncertainty. His lips slowly parted as if he were about to give a command, but before he could a flash of blinding light and incredible noise covered the entire arena. The screens showed nothing but the sight of the explosion. The flash was replaced with smoke. As the sound died away, screaming and shouting took its place. The smoke slowly lifted to show Scyther laying unconscious on the asphalt nearby Poliwrath who was kneeling in the same position save for the fist that had been resting on the floor now pointing sideways towards Scyther. The commentators tried to speak, but they could not be heard over the sound of the crowd. The screens switched between pictures of jubilant spectators, Bugsy’s bemused face, and Will laughing while punching the air.
Amidst the noise and excitement, Lydia turned to her two younger sons, and shouted so they could hear her.
‘Let’s get moving so we can beat the crowds!’
‘But I wanna hear what happened!’ protested Frankie.
Max sighed.
‘You can hear from Will’s dressing room!’ snapped Lydia.
As the Wynnes shuffled out, the noise from the crowd started to die down, and the commentators could finally be heard again. Frankie trailed a few steps behind his mum and brother, lingering in the arena for just a few moments longer.
‘Alright, Bob, I’ve just heard from the Technical Expert. What we just saw was Will’s Poliwrath use Mind Reader to perfectly predict where Bugsy’s Scyther would be, then take it out with an extremely powerful but usually inaccurate Dynamic Punch! What a strategy!’
‘I told you there would be no mercy, John! I told you Will had what it takes! This boy is gonna be Johto’s saviour! We’re gonna be back on top!’
Max and Frankie sat next to each other on the sofa in Will’s small dressing room. Each of them looked exactly like Will except that Max only reached Will’s shoulder height, and Frankie only reached Max’s. Lydia stood near the door, looking between her watch and the TV mounted on the wall. Will should be here by now. Had he gone to his interviews already? He was supposed to meet her and the boys here before that. Where was he? Didn’t he know by now that she couldn’t keep Terry waiting? She turned to her younger sons.
‘If Will isn’t here in the next five minutes I’m going to have to take you home with me.’
‘We can get home by ourselves, Mum!’ protested Max, ‘I’ve got Wooper!’
Just as Lydia opened her mouth to respond, the door behind her opened. Will entered the room, grinning from ear to ear, arms open to greet his family. Lydia and Frankie immediately ran over to him, hugging him and showering him with congratulations and praise. Max stayed firmly planted on the sofa.
‘No “congrats” for your brother?’ Will asked Max as Lydia and Frankie released him from their hugs.
‘Congrats,’ said Max without moving or looking up.
‘Boys, I need to go,’ said Lydia, ‘Max, Frankie, are you two sure you want to head back with Will? I can take you back on Noctowl.’
‘Yes,’ answered Frankie.
‘I guess,’ said Max.
‘OK,’ said Lydia, ‘Make sure to ask Celebi to protect your futures when you go past the Shrine. I’ll see you at home, boys.’
Lydia quickly rushed round the room, gave each of her sons a quick kiss on the cheek, and then headed out the dressing room door, closing it behind her. There was a moment of silence after the three brothers were left alone. Soon, Will spoke.
‘I need to do my post-match interview. Can you guys put my Pokémon in the heal machine in the corner, and watch them while I’m gone? Shouldn’t be more than fifteen minutes.’
‘Of course!’ said Frankie.
‘Thanks guys,’ said Will with a smile.
Will took his Poké Balls from his belt, passed them to Frankie, and left. As he closed the door behind him, Max let out the heaviest sigh he was capable of.
***
Meanwhile, inside a van packed with computer equipment, two women in matching black jumpsuits watched Will’s post-match interview on a small computer screen. One sat on a chair directly in front of the screen. She was very small, dark skinned, and had long wispy black hair that stretched down her back. The other woman stood behind her, looking over her shoulder. She was very large and muscular, white skinned, and had blonde hair cut almost to her skull. The larger woman leaned over her partner, and pointed at the screen.
‘Is it him?’
The smaller woman batted her hand away.
‘Porygon hasn’t finished its analysis.’
They both turned to the Pokémon plugged into the computer as it made various indistinct beeps. Soon, it turned to the small woman, moving up and down excitedly.
‘Does that mean it’s him?’ asked the larger woman.
Ignoring her, the smaller woman typed a few things into the computer.
‘There’s a 92% match with our covert photographs. It’s him.’
The larger woman whooped.
‘Then let’s go!’
The smaller woman smiled and nodded.
‘Yes, let’s.’
***
The three Wynne brothers walked through Ilex Forest. It was pitch black save for the small lights that had been installed along the sides of the soil paths that led back to Goldenrod. The cries of wild Pokémon could be heard almost incessantly from among the thick trees.
‘That battle was so cool, Will. I kept thinking you were gonna lose, but you did it! You’re so amazing!’
Will chuckled.
‘To be honest I kept thinking I was gonna lose too. After Espeon fainted I thought it was all over.’
‘No you didn’t!’ said Max furiously, ‘You knew you were gonna win the whole time! Admit it! You only make it look close so the audience love you even more!’
‘That’s not true. It looked close because it was close. What do you think I am?’
‘I think you’re a show off. You can’t bear the idea that your battles might look easy – you play down your talent so that it looks more impressive!’
‘That doesn’t make sense,’ said Will.
‘Yeah, that doesn’t make sense!’ added Frankie.
‘Shut up, Frankie. This is nothing to do with you.’
‘Hey, be nice to Frankie. Why have you always gotta be mean to him?’ asked Will.
‘Oh, knock it off. I’m always nice to him. You sound like Mum.’
‘You’re just jealous because Will’s a better battler than you!’ teased Frankie.
‘No, I’m not! I don’t care!’
‘If you care so little,’ said Will, ‘Why are you always talking about how you’re the best battler in your class?’
‘It’s true! The kids in my class all suck! Anyway, I said that like one time.’
‘You say it all the time! You said it earlier today!’ exclaimed Will.
‘I did not!’
Max clenched his fists, and stormed off ahead of his brothers. Why did he think heading back with those two was a good idea? It always ended the same way: Will and Frankie ganging up on him. Behind him they laughed, but it didn’t matter. Within a couple of minutes, he reached the Ilex Shrine. His mum’s words echoed: make sure to ask Celebi to protect your future. Max wasn’t particularly religious, but perhaps if he took a moment by the Shrine, Celebi, or something like it, would help him and Wooper become as strong as Will in the future. Then he’d show his stupid brothers. He took a few more steps towards the Shrine, placed his right hand on it, and closed his eyes. For a second, he could feel something. Through the wood of the Shrine, something touched his hand from within. It was himself, but colder somehow, ghostly almost. What was this? This other him started to take shape, but at that moment, a voice came from behind him.
‘Ah, well if it isn’t the Wynne brothers! What a pleasure!’
Max opened his eyes with a start, and turned around. Whatever he had felt was gone. His brothers were standing on either side of him. Opposite them, a few feet back down the road they’d taken to reach the Shrine, the speaker stood. It was their school’s advanced Battle Tutor, Doctor Ratcliffe, known by most as ‘Doc’. He was a short, pale man in his early forties with glasses, meticulously combed hair, and a sharp black suit. He continued to speak.
‘Congratulations on your victory, Will! Looks like you’re… what was it those commentators said? Yes, that’s it, “destined for greatness”! You must have an excellent coach!’
Will took a few steps towards the man, gesturing for his brothers to stay back.
‘What do you want, Doc?’ asked Will.
Doc smiled, straightened his tie, and gave a friendly chuckle.
‘You know what I want. I’m here to collect my debt.’
Will turned to Max and Frankie.
‘Run home,’ he said, ‘I’ll deal with him.’
Before Max and Frankie could move, three teenagers about the same age as Will burst out from the trees surrounding the Shrine, and blocked the path forward. Max immediately recognised two of them. On the left stood a girl with long red hair, a black cape, and a blue leather jumpsuit. He’d seen her on TV. This was Petra, daughter of Dragon Master Lance. She’d been four Badges into a League challenge like Will’s when she had suddenly disappeared from public life. On the right stood a boy with a dyed red Mohican, a white vest, and blue jeans. Everyone called him ‘Spike’. If Max had ever heard his real name, he couldn’t remember it. He was in Will’s year at their school, another student of Doc’s Advanced Battling class. Between them stood a girl that Max did not recognise. She had olive skin and a long blue fringe with the sides of her head shaved, wore all black clothes that seemed to be made out of feathers, and had a single Murkrow on her right shoulder. All three of them stared at the brothers with furious eyes and small, sneering smiles. What was happening and why?
‘I wouldn’t run if I were you,’ said Spike, beginning to grin more widely.
He grabbed a Poké Ball from his belt, and threw it in front of him to reveal a Weavile. The black feline Pokémon stood poised to pounce with its unusually long, razor sharp claws extended in front of it.
‘Any of you move or try to send out a Pokémon, and Weavile here will slash each and every one of your throats,’ said Spike, a full grin breaking out on his face.
‘Thank you, Spike, though I don’t think that will be necessary,’ said Doc.
The Wynne brothers stood exactly where they were. Max and Frankie looked to Will. Surely he would be able to find a way out of this for them?
‘What do you want?’ asked Will.
Doc chuckled softly.
‘What do you think we want? You’re the amazing Will Wynne. We want your Gym Badges.’
‘Do you think I’m stupid? I don’t carry my Gym Badges.’
Spike suddenly let out a scream, and stomped a few steps closer to the brothers, gesticulating wildly.
‘Don’t fuck with us, okay? We’ll fuck you up! You’re gonna give us your fucking Badges, okay? You think we’re gonna put up with your shit now?’
Petra sighed and rolled her eyes, but her obvious exasperation with Spike did not make him any less scary. He took a deep breath, and stared at Will with a crazed look in his eyes.
‘Weavile, the face.’
Within a second, Spike’s Weavile was in front of Will with its claw pushed into his cheek. A small trickle of blood ran down his cheek. Will stood fiercely still as if he felt nothing whatsoever. Frankie burst into tears and began wailing.
‘Shut it or you’re next!’ shouted Spike.
‘That’s enough, Spike,’ said Doc.
Spike and Weavile both stayed frozen where they were.
‘So, you say you haven’t got your Gym Badges with you,’ continued Doc, ‘Fair enough. I suppose I wouldn’t carry my Badges if I had any.’
‘Oh, come on!’ yelled Spike.
He waved his arms around more and walked forward so he was directly next to Will and Weavile. Petra sighed and rolled her eyes again.
‘I said that’s enough, Spike. Go stand with Saf and Dragon like I told you to.’
Spike grumbled incoherently, but obeyed. Weavile did not move. Doc continued to speak.
‘Now, Will, we’ve got a problem. We’ve gone to all this trouble to get your Gym Badges, but you don’t have them with you. Of course, that’s not your fault, but it wouldn’t be fair for us to leave empty handed now, would it?’
Max wanted to say something clever, but his mouth wouldn’t open. Fortunately, Will did not suffer from the same ailment.
‘Life isn’t fair.’
A few seconds passed in which the only sound that could be heard was Frankie’s whimpering.
‘I’ve got it,’ said Doc eventually, ‘You’re going to give us your Pokémon. The amazing Will Wynne’s Pokémon should fetch a good price.’
‘No!’ screamed Max.
‘Shut it, short stuff!’ shouted Spike, ‘I’ll cut your brother’s throat if I hear from you again!’
Frankie wailed even louder. To Max’s surprise, Will said nothing.
‘Yes, that will work,’ said Doc, ‘I think you’d better hand them over. This is what’s going to happen. Spike here is gonna walk over and pull the Poké Balls off your belt. If you so much as move, Weavile cuts all three of your throats.’
‘Saf can do it,’ spat Spike.
‘I asked you to do it, Spike.’
Spike muttered objections, but walked towards Will as instructed. Will sighed, but made no effort to fight as Spike picked the Poké Balls off his belt and put them on his own. Tears streamed freely down Frankie’s face. Max was stunned silent. Why wasn’t Will fighting this? This would mean the end of his League challenge. He shouldn’t let these thugs push him around. Spike stopped an inch in front of Will’s face, and paused, patting him patronisingly on the shoulder.
‘You wouldn’t believe how long I’ve been waiting for this, buddy.’
Spike then proceeded to remove the three Poké Balls from Will’s belt.
At this point, the blue-haired girl with a Murkrow on her shoulder spoke up in a perfect monotone.
‘The middle brother has a Pokémon too.’
‘Worth fucking what?’ snapped Spike, ‘What do we want his piece of shit Pokémon for?’
‘Nice spot, Saf,’ said Doc, ignoring Spike, ‘Take it, Spike.’
At this point, Will leapt forward, and grabbed Spike by the shoulder. He seemed about to say something, but no sooner had he done this than Spike’s Weavile had slashed the side of his face. Will screamed out, and fell to the floor in pain. Max and Frankie both screamed and cried. Spike let out a short burst of laughter.
‘Now that’s the reaction I was hoping for!’
Spike stood over Will and leaned down.
We’re gonna take your little brother’s Pokémon, and there’s nothing you can do about it. Any more struggling, and Weavile ain’t gonna be so forgiving next time.’
Weavile stood above Will, its claw now pressed against his throat.
‘Good work, Spike,’ said Doc, ‘Now stand down. Saf, have Murkrow take Max’s Pokémon.’
Spike nodded, and took a few steps backwards. He looked directly into Max’s eyes, and smirked. Max wanted to do something, anything, but his body just wouldn’t move. The blue-haired girl lifted her arm, and her Murkrow flew the short distance to Max, wrestled Wooper’s Poké Ball from his belt, and returned to her shoulder.
‘Let’s get out of here,’ said Doc.
Spike walked back over to where Will was laying, and bent down so their faces were opposite each other.
‘I just want you to know what a privilege it is to have a front row seat to the fall of Will Wynne.’
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