Pokémar Episode V, A Clone's Destiny

The Pokemon Tournament

"Hey Alex! The tournament's on! You wanna see?" Josh yells from across the hall.

"Yeah. I'll be right out." I reply, pulling myself away from the desk. It has been nearly a week since I arrived here. Much of my time was spent doing research and bringing Thunder up to speed on human behavior. In my studies I learned a lot.

This world, Terranor, is a lot like earth. Even geographically. The names of places are all different but the world maps share a striking resemblance to those on earth. With the exception of a few differences like the UK being upside down or New York City getting scaled up in size. It turns out that I'm currently in the Hoenn region which equates to the southern end of Japan. National borders appear to be roughly similar as well. But that's about where the similarities end.

Pokemon have been on this world nearly as long as humans it would appear. They led history down a different path when compared to ours. Dare I say less violent, even. Sure there were still wars but not as many as on earth. Generally Terranor seems significantly more peaceful than my home.

However, one thing stood out to me. The International Pokemon Tournament. By far the most popular sport on the planet. Teams of six pokemon pitted against each other in bouts of combat under the guidance of their "trainers." While it seems a little barbaric to force pokemon to beat each other senseless for the amusement of others I have the feeling there's a part of this I'm missing. From pictures I've seen and clips I've watched the pokemon in these fights treat it the same as their trainers, like a sport. Most legitimately enjoy the fight while others are fiercely competitive. And considering how battles are a common sport on Pokemar it might be that this sort of thing is beneficial to all involved. Though I'd like to see a full fight or two to really understand it.

The sounds of a roaring crowd on the TV fills the living room as I enter. The couch is full to near capacity with both Jackson and Josh as well as Shadow and two other pokemon I've since met during my stay, Tsunami the Mudkip and Salty the Wingull. Thunder, Growlithe and I squeeze into the remaining spots.

On the screen is a stadium about the scale of an American football stadium, the seats filled with boisterous, loud fans. Meanwhile the announcers talk about the upcoming fight.

"-has a lot to prove if he intends to make it into the big leagues. And going up against Stormblade? Whew. It won't be easy for him.

"Indeed. But we've seen bigger upsets before in this very place. So don't count him out yet. Olivel and his team may very well be up to the challenge."

"Looks like we won't be waiting for much longer as I can see the two of them making their way onto the field."

The camera cuts to one of the combatants. the text boxes below reading out information on the combatant.

KEEGAN STORMBLADE, GALAR REGION
-CHARIZARD
-RILLABOOM
-LAPRAS
-TOXTICITRY
-AEGISLASH
-FLYGON

The crowd roars out as he strolls confidently forward and steps Into the center ring of the arena The camera cuts yet again to reveal his opponent.

OLIVEL VICTOR, UNOVA REGION
-BISHARP
-GOLISOPOD
-ARIADOS
-DITTO
-ESPEON
-BEWEAR

"Woah! A Ditto?!" Tsunami exclaims. "You don't see those guys around very often."

"Same goes for Pokemar," Thunder replies. "I never actually met one in person." The two trainers meat face to face, exchanging words that are lost to the thunderous roar of the crowd, punctuating their exchange with a handshake before heading to opposite sides of the ring. The excitement is palpable, even through the screen of a TV. A referee starts counting down to the start of the bout. Both trainers stand ready, pokeballs in hand. I mentally tune out the commentators, only really interested in the fight itself.