Gold- A Pokémon Story

Chapter Fourteen: Arriving at the City

Silver and I didn't have to walk far to reach the entrance to the city. As we approached I could already tell that the festival was a major event in this part of Johto.

Stalls were being set up along the streets of the city and people mulled about, exploring Ecruteak.

The city itself was very old fashioned. Grey brick paths ran between the many wooden homes and lanterns were positioned on street corners to provide light when the sun went down.

A largely destroyed tower sat at the top corner of the town. The burned remains of the building could still be visited to this day but it had been largely abandoned.

Farther back was the entrance to the Bell Tower. The Bell Tower proudly stood high in the air. It seemed to touch the clouds and its golden beauty reflected the sunlight off of it.

Only people with explicit permission were allowed to enter the tower as it was a shrine to Ho-Oh and the guardians sought to preserve its sanctity.

"Ecruteak City," I said as we walked into the town. "We made it."

"And with time to spare." Silver added.

We aimlessly wandered to the center of the town. "We should probably find Morty and let him know we're here," I suggested.

I and Silver made our way to the gym only to find the entrance locked. "I guess it must be closed," I said.

Silver folded his arms. "Maybe Morty is somewhere in the town then? Let's go look around!"

During our fruitless search, I noticed a familiar person standing by the Burned Tower. "Hey Silver, look over there!" I said as I pointed at the person. "It's Jess!"

Jess had let her hair out of its bun and it now fell all the way down to her upper back. She was now wearing a pink dress with a floral pattern that went down to her knees.

We ran up to where she was standing. Jess noticed us coming. "Well hello again! You guys got to Ecruteak fast."

"Mhm!" I said. "Morty wants me to battle for the Opening Ceremony so we didn't want to waste any time!"

"Speaking of Morty," Silver said. "Do you know where he is?"

Jess pointed at the tower entrance. "He's in there with Eusine. They're catching up and seeing if any of the Legendary Beasts are inside. I didn't want to go in because that place gives me the creeps. They'll be out soon though."

Jess leaned against the fence surrounding the tower. "So, I guess if you're the other person doing the Opening Ceremony Battle then you're going to battling Alex."

My jaw immediately dropped. "A-Alex? He's here?"

Jess nodded. "Yeah! He grew up here so there's no way he'd miss the festival. Morty and Alex are really good friends and Morty's planned the last few festivals."

"Wouldn't miss it for the world." An unfamiliar voice said. I turned around to see a man walked over to us with his hands stuffed in the pockets of his red jacket.

The man had golden hair that was combed over and cut short. He was wearing black cargo shorts and a jacket and was incredibly tall.

A smile formed on Jess's face and she strode over to him. "Alex! It's been a while!" She said.

Alex was mostly stone-faced but I could tell he was happy to see his friend. He had a distinct birthmark under his eye that was partially covered by the rimmed glasses he wore.

"Good to see you, Jess," Alex said to his friend. "Who's the kids?" He pointed his thumb at us.

"They're Gold and Silver!" Jess introduced. "They started their journey a little while ago and I met them over in Violet City." She explained. "Gold here is actually your opponent in the Opening Ceremony."