Ash's Story (Part 6: Unova)

Chapter 88: Dark Wager

Join Avenue was louder than I expected after the Royal Unova.

The ship had carried mystery under polished lights, but Join Avenue carried noise openly. Shopkeepers called out discounts, trainers compared purchases, and visitors moved between stands as if the whole street had been built from invitations.

Cilan looked delighted before we had taken ten steps. "A marketplace with ambition, chance, flavor, and human performance. Join Avenue has a lively taste."

Golly was less romantic about it. "It also has too many people moving through narrow buying lanes. Stay together."

Eve looked toward a row of shops with Dark-type accessories displayed in one window. "I can see why Gina likes this place."

I remembered what Gina had said about Join Avenue growing through connections. The place felt like people had brought pieces of their journeys here and turned them into stores, booths, services, and challenges.

"It is better than I expected," I admitted.

Alice glanced at me. "That means you are already thinking about coming back later."

"Maybe after the Champion path," I said. "There is too much here to understand in one stop."

Pikachu's meaning came cheerfully from my shoulder. "Shops now. Battles soon. You are bad at walking past either."

Join Avenue still looked like a place for fun at first glance, but after Cedric, Alder, Pledge Grove, and the Royal Unova mystery, I had learned not to trust a place by its first sound. A bright street could still hide a test.

Alice walked close beside me, not tense enough to alarm anyone, but close enough that I knew she was watching exits and faces. Even after the League, she had not stopped measuring danger before it reached me.

I did not tell her to relax. I was learning that protection was not always a cage when someone chose to stand beside you instead of in front of you.

Before I could answer, a man at a nearby stand waved me over.

"Mister, do you want to spin this roulette?" he asked, gesturing to a polished wheel marked with numbers, colors, and small prize symbols.

The stand looked harmless enough, but something about the man's posture made him feel less like an ordinary worker and more like someone waiting for a particular card to turn.

Golly narrowed her eyes. "Read the terms first."

The man smiled. "A wise companion. There is no fee for a League winner today."

"That makes me more suspicious," Golly said.

I still stepped forward because the wheel had already caught the crowd's attention. "One spin, right?"

"One spin," the man said. "Then chance speaks."

I spun the roulette wheel. It clicked around the circle, slowing while everyone watched. The pointer finally landed on one.

"Amazing!" the man declared. "You have earned a free ticket to the stores. Aren't you a lucky one?"

He handed me a small ticket with a black trim around the edge. Then his smile changed, becoming sharper, calmer, and more elegant.

"I am Grimsley of the Elite Four," he said. "I knew you would arrive here."

Eve's eyes lit up so quickly that even her Liepard looked over. "The Dark-type Elite Four member."

"It is nice to meet you, Grimsley," I said, holding the ticket carefully. "I came for the Elite Four battle."

"Of course you did," Grimsley said, stepping out from behind the stand. "Champions, challengers, and gamblers all eventually come to a table where something must be risked."