Adventures Beyond!

Chapter 70: Ionic Rivals

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Metro City, Sinnoh

The train slowly screeched to a halt at the Metro City train station in the morning of a new day. The first to disembark from the train was an enthusiastic Jacob, who jumped out of one of the windows and landed on the wooden platform of the train station. With the Ion Cup beginning in just a few hours, the excitable Electric-Type was having trouble hiding how amped he was becoming for the upcoming tournament.

"Metro City, we're back for round two!!" The Pikachu pumped his paws in the air, much to the confusion of various Pokémon that passed by.

Moments afterward, when the train's doors opened, Michael and Oliver soon joined the excited Mouse Pokémon, both sharing their fair bit of embarrassment from Jacob's actions.

The Samurott looked down at Jacob, "Do you know how to not make a spectacle for yourself wherever we go?"

"Sorry, sorry..." He chuckled, "I'm just so excited to see our friends and get this thing started!"

"You seem confident. Gunning to win this?" Michael began to walk into the city, quickly followed by Jacob.

"Of course I am! I'm gonna win it all!"

Oliver, meanwhile, lagged behind his father and best friend, lost in his thoughts. He had been training alongside Jacob and Michael for the past two months, improving on the skills that needed work and even learning new skills to implement in battle. Despite that, though, he wasn't feeling as confident in his chances to win the Ion Cup as Jacob seemed to be. It just didn't seem attainable to him.

Michael looked at Jacob before looking around, wondering where Oliver had gone off to. That was, until he looked back and noticed the Oshawott walking at a slight distance from them, his eyes focused on the ground in front of him. He stopped in his tracks, allowing Jacob to continue walking toward the Ionic Stadium without him.

He wasn't blind. He always knew that his son struggled with his confidence when it came to many things that weren't intellect related. It was one of the things that they had in common. For Michael, though, it was something he learned to get over in his adolescence. His gained confidence is what pushed him to evolve into a Dewott, after all.

Once the slow-walking Oshawott caught up with the stationary Samurott, he suddenly bumped into his father, snapping out of his trance. Confused, he looked up, instantly meeting the gaze of Michael.

"Not as confident about this, huh?" He asked, surprising his son.

Oliver smiled shakily, "How could you tell?"

"It was quite obvious. If you were confident about this, you'd be more concentrated rather than spaced out. It isn't like you at all."

"Guess so..." The Oshawott sighed.

"Now tell me," Michael stared deep into the eyes of his child, "Why is that?"

Oliver avoided his gaze by looking at the concrete below his feet, "I don't know."

"Don't give me that. You always know."

Groaning, he had to resign to the fact that the Formidable Pokémon was correct. He knew well what was troubling him, "I know we've been training for these past two months, and I'm a lot stronger for it, but I just can't shake the feeling that I'm not ready for this..."

"It's only natural," Michael closed his eyes, nodding, "You are quite a different battler than me, your mother, or even Jacob. Unlike us, you're an analyst above all. And an analyst with no idea what he's getting himself into is bound to feel a little anxious about what's to come."