Sun And Lillie Vs. The World (The Sequel to Heart of a Champion)

Chapter 14- A Difficult Road Ahead

The whole battling world was in a frenzy. The Alolan and World power rankings were updated. Of course I was #1 in Alola, but in the World I was at 3. Behind Silver and Serena, and followed by May, Dawn, Rosa, Gloria, Chase, the new Kantonian Champion, and then Lei. All people could talk about was Silver vs Sun. The general conversation was, Sun didn't have a realistic chance to win, quickly followed by a "we've been there before.". As for me. I was more focused than ever. Being the Champion again meant I had challengers to deal with. So I did. All the time. Kahili and Ryuki took their shots and fell short. Many others tried and failed. I was older and I was slower. But time can't take my heart. Before I had realized it, the meeting to decide the locations for the first 2 rounds and final had come. It was about 2 years after my match with Lei. It was voted that the first 2 rounds would be in Johto, and the last round would once again be in Galar. I had never been to Johto before. I was angered by it too. It seemed deliberate. They picked the one place where the entire crowd would be praying on my downfall. That's ok though, as I have said in the past, I don't mind being the villain sometimes.

It was then that I got back to work training for the tournament. This was a family effort. Every single person in my household was working together to help me and the team get ready for the big tournament in 2 years. Lillie motivated me and worked with me, kept me comfortable and even helped me make some adjustments to train more efficiently. Elio was focused hard on game planning for Silver. He worked at the Trainer's school. Game planning was his specialty. Stella and the retired pokemon spent extra hours with Eevee. Eevee had the heart of a lion, so if we could mix in some great skill, he could well be unstoppable. I was making sure to help them all out too, I made meals for my family and made sure to help them out whenever I could. We were in complete sync. I don't think there's a thing in this world that could tear us apart. The only loose thread was Garchomp, he was an amazing talent, but he was just still completely unmotivated. I was sad to see it, I called Cynthia and asked what I should do about it, she simply said that it would just take more time. I trust her, that's why I'm going to keep working with the Garchomp.

It came time now to finally draw the tournament. I brought my whole family with me to the meeting on the couch. This was different than before, before I felt like it was me against the world, now I know better. I have a family at my side who would do anything for me, and I would do anything for them. It was the year of the tournament. 15 years after my retirement, and 30 years after my first world championship. That meant that Lillie and I are 48 years old, Elio is 23, and Stella is 18. Lillie and I might be getting older, but with each other we were every bit as energetic and youthful as we had always been. Father Time never loses sure, but Father Time usually takes on people one at a time. Me and Lillie keep each other going.

The announcer connected to the meeting. "Ladies and gentlemen, it is time to announce the drawing for this year's World Championship!" First match of the tournament will be.... Unova's own Rosa! Going up against... Hoenn's Queen, May! The next match will include... Kanto's electric young Champion Chase! versus....The unbeatable force from Johto, the Reigning and Defending Champion Silver!" Welp. That meant I'd have to meet him in the finals if I am going to battle him. "...On the bottom side of the bracket we have.... The returning undefeated Champion Sun! His first test will be administered by...Galar's new Champion Gloria!" Gloria huh. She was certainly a tough match, I'll make sure to be ready. "That makes the last match a battle between former World Champion Serena and Perennial Contender Dawn."

The bracket was set. I had a difficult path to the final. I'd have to beat a robust prospect in Gloria, before facing a top caliber opponent in Serena or Dawn. Then finally, I don't see anything but Silver at the top. Elio looked to me immediately after, "Alright then! We know what we have to do. Let's get down to business!" I sat there silently for a bit. I was pondering something, "...guys...the first rounds are in Johto...that place is not going to be friendly at all. I- I might need to go there by myself. If you guys were to go you'd face harassment, jeers, and I'm worried someone might even try to hurt any of you. I don't want any of you getting hurt for this." Lillie seemed to be thinking of a response. "Sun. We're with you no matter what. I understand your concerns for us...but I told you I'd never leave you and I intend on making good on that. I understand your concerns though. I'm thinking I might just stay in the hotel during the match, being in the stadium could be dangerous like you said." Elio nodded, "Yeah I agree with that. We could have a security detail or something but that's not an enjoyable thing, we'll just try to get a space where we can see the match from the outside of the stadium." I nodded, "That sounds good."

After a month passed it was almost time to go. We were leaving for Johto tomorrow. Lillie wanted to see me about something first though. I walked in to our room with her standing there waiting for me. She reached out her hand and gave me a locket of some kind. "It's for you Sun. Wear this while you're out in Johto. It will keep us close to you, even with the whole world against you." Inside the locket was a picture of our family from about 7 years ago. It was a picture we had taken at the Hau'Oli City Marina. One of my favorites. "Lillie this is wonderful...thank you so much." We hugged. Being in Johto made this difficult for us, but we will make it through.

                   Author's Note
The World Championship is once again upon us. Sun has a lot of promises to deliver on. Thanks for reading!