DPA: Rivals

Chapter 28: The Lady By The Lake

"Be glad it wasn't a total failure," Giovanni said, taking a sip of coffee. "Even if we didn't obtain the schematics, we obtained the only functional Master Ball, which means we still have a Pokéball capable of containing Project Genetic."

"We could've gotten the schematics, produced countless Master Balls, if it wasn't for that unknown assailant," Ariana sighed. She delicately touched her bandaged nose before wincing. "Not even mentioning that stupid grunt who ruined everything. When I get my hands on her-"

"Stop, Ariana!" Giovanni slammed the mug down on the table. "We've already spent a massive amount of resources on the Silph Co. takeover, and until we retrieve Project Genetic, we don't have the funding for you to go hunting down one lone grunt that went AWOL. Let it go, and focus on the task at hand."

"But-" Ariana began.

"That is an order, Ariana!" Giovanni roared, standing over Ariana, glaring down. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes, boss," Ariana replied through her teeth. "Understood."

"It's just...an Oddish," Cameron said, surprised. He looked around, looking for anything else. Shards of rock were scattered throughout the area, probably part of a boulder that exploded, if he had to guess. It would be strange for a single Oddish to be able to destroy a rock with enough force to create such a loud sound.

A few feet away from this Oddish stood a young girl, older than Daryon, but younger than Ero, maybe 14. She was dressed from head to toe in a black jumpsuit, with red stripes, an outfit eerily similar to Logan's, although it was probably just a coincidence.

"Oh, hiya," Rachel said, only just noticing the group. "Sorry for the noise, Oddish and I were just working out a new combo, we didn't realize how brittle the rock was around here."

"No problem!" Skye replied, kneeling down next to the Oddish. "Your Pokémon here is just adorable."

"Thanks a mil," Rachel smiled. "Although we were aiming for a tougher, edgier look."

Skye chuckled. "With these round cheeks?" Both of the girls laughed.

"I'm Skye," Skye introduced herself. "This is my little brother, Max. That's Ero, he's doing research on our Pokémon. And Daryon and Cameron are competing in the Pokémon League. We all travel together."

"I'm Rachel," Rachel said. "It's nice ta meet ya."

"So, Rachel," Daryon interjected. "That's gotta be a pretty powerful Oddish to destroy that boulder like that. I'd like to battle you, ready up for the Cerulean Gym."

Rachel's smile disappeared for a moment, replaced with a grimace, before quickly shifting back to a smile. "I uh, I don't do battles. Imma coordinator."

"What's that?" Daryon asked.

"Daryon, a coordinator is the term for someone who competes in contests," Ero explained. "Contests are less about battle and more about theatrics. Pokémon use their moves to create stunning visual moments in an attempt to win over the judges."

"Winner winner Torchic dinner!" Rachel laughed. "Oddish and I are entering the Ocean Cup's Toughness Division. Even got ourselves a pirate theme goin' on." She removed a small eye patch from her pocket, clipping it onto Oddish's head.

"Oh...my...Arceus!!!" Skye squealed, using every ounce of strength to stop herself from scooping up Oddish and hugging it tightly. "That is the most adorable thing I've ever seen!!!"

Rachel laughed. "I guess we're going to have a difficult time tomorrow, if the only thing anything sees is an adorable lump of Oddish."

"Can anyone be a coordinator?" Skye asked, absolutely enthralled.

"Yeah, but you won't be able to compete tomorrow, you missed sign-ups," Rachel replied. Seeing Skye's face sadden, she continued. "However, the Ocean Cup's Cuteness Division will be up in a couple of months. But you'll have to compete in the Spooky Cup, the Arcade Cup, and the Safari Cup first. The Spooky Cup will be happening in Lavender Town in about a month."

Skye turned to Daryon and the others. "I know there isn't a Gym in Lavender Town, but we NEED to be there in time for the Spooky Cup!"

"Why?" Daryon shrugged. "It sounds boring."

Skye punched Daryon in the shoulder, eliciting an "ouch."

"Max and I follow you to all your Gym battles, the least you could do is let me do this!"

"Okay, okay!" Daryon said, rubbing his shoulder. "We'll go to your little talent show thingy. That really hurt."

"Thanks!" Skye said, turning back to Rachel. "Will we ever compete against each other?"

"If you can get a high enough score in the Spooky, Arcade, Safari and Ocean Cups, we'll go up against each other in the Victory Cup, at the Indigo Plateau."

"Challenge accepted," Skye said, shaking Rachel's hand. "I'm excited to see you then."

"Good luck," Rachel said.

The sun nearly set, the group made their return to Cerulean City to check in for the night.