The New Normal - A Pokémon Elite 4 SI by CartecFF

Chapter 18: 69-73

The New Normal – 4-12 – Interlude – Pokenet Reactions

[LANCE WINS! WE HAVE A NEW INDIGO CHAMPION!] By the Indigo Post

In a stunning match between now ex-Champion Pryce and Lance, Lance came out on top and secured his new title as Champion with a convincing 6-3 win against Pryce! An unbelievably exciting match between the two trainers at the pinnacle of skill, but Lance's Dragons managed to overcome Pryce's Ice types in the end.

Despite the final score, the match was not without its tense moments. Pryce really surprised all of us with his never-before-seen Abomasnow, which he cunningly used to knock out Lance's Gyarados. However, Lance was quick to adapt and caught it in the fiery grasps of his Charizard, preventing the Abomasnow from switching out and finishing it off with a devastating Flare Blitz.

The match remained close until Lance sent out his starter. The regal Dragonite lived up to its title as Lance's ace as it tore through the remains of Pryce's team. Pryce's Glaceon was quickly knocked out, failing to achieve much of anything, while Pryce's own starter and ace, Mamoswine, was able to put up more of a fight, but nonetheless fell when faced up against the overwhelming might of Lance's Dragonite.

And thus, Indigo is blessed with a new Champion. And with the necessary might to back up his title, this writer hopes that this is the beginning of an age of prosperity for Indigo.

Comments

IceColdSimp

WHAT THE FUCK?!!? HOW COULD AN ICE TYPE LOSE TO A BRAINDEAD DRAGON TRAINER?! Pryce really must have lost it in his old age. LORELEI would not have performed so badly! Let her have a shot!

DragonPower

@IceColdSimp HAHAHAHA! I don't know what you expected. Puny Ice types get crushed by their mighty Dragon masters. Dragons win, as is normal. All is right in the world.

ANormalFan

@DragonPower but what about John's victory over Drake?! He crushed those Dragons!

DragonPower

Don't even get me started on that Water trainer. He's a disgrace to the Dragon community for having field 3 Water types instead of just relying on Dragons. Only a fool would do that.

FlyingHigh

*cough* Lance has 6 Flying types *cough*

FearTheRat

Anyone else think that the match should have been a lot closer than this? I mean, considering Pryce's experience and type advantage, I was kinda expecting a closer match between the two.

GeneralistGeneral

Yeah...I mean Pryce even had a better variety of types and fighting styles compared to Lance, who mainly just relied on overwhelming force. I mean, it worked out for Lance, but...

SlugmaBalls

Now THAT was a match!! I haven't been so hyped for match since Drake's battle against John! We haven't had any recent challenges for the position of Champion and Elite Four in a while in Hoenn, which is kinda boring. Hope things get shaken up soon!

FutureAce

WOOO LANCE IS CHAMPION!! Now that we have a new Champion, do you think we'll be seeing more challenges towards the Elite Four?!?

TangelaThoughts

@FearTheRat Yeah, I thought the same too while I was watching the battle. Now, this is just some armchair analysis, but I feel like Pryce underutilised his Pokémon and failed to play to his strengths. His Pokémon were strong and well-trained, sure, but I felt that they should have been able to achieve a bit more.

@FutureAce Yep. Fully expect to see some turmoil within the Elite Four soon. It's very common to expect challenges after there is a change in Champion; it's just how our society is like.

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?[WHAT SHOULD WE EXPECT FROM LANCE AS THE NEW CHAMPION OF INDIGO? AN EDUCATED PREDICTION AND ANALYSIS OF HIS POTENTIAL FUTURE POLICIES!] by The Indigo Post

With Lance as our new Champion, he spoke in his winner's interview that he intends to diverge away from Pryce's politics. Most notably, he has explicitly invited the Elite Four to sit in on Committee meetings and add their opinion towards any discussed proposal.

He then refused to make any more comment about his potential future policies until he has discussed it with the Elite Four. Thus, what we expect is that the political role of the Elite Four may rise during Lance's reign as Champion, and we may see them play an increasingly large role in determining the policies of Indigo.

As for his other potential policies, we here predict that, in line with his stated comments about going against Pryce's politics, we think that...[Click here to continue reading].

Comments

KantoRepresent

Hmm...this is a very interesting period that we're going to be going through. I like the fact that the Elite Four are getting involved, especially with John and Agatha being able to Champion the Kanto cause. Hope Kanto doesn't get left behind again!

Good riddance that Pryce is finally out though.

ILoveGoldenRod

Arceus, is it always about Kanto with you? I just hope that Lance doesn't go too far with favouring Kanto that he forgets about Johto! He has to spread the love!

NotTooMuchWater

I will admit to being very intrigued about what's happening over there in Indigo with a new Champion. Pryce has done a lot of damage to the Indigo-Hoenn relations, so I hope Lance is ready and willing to address this and repair our friendship.

TangelaThoughts

Well...it's going to be very interesting to see what Lance does in the future. I agree that I like that he's going to be communicating more with the Elite Four. I think one of the bigger issues with Pryce's reign as Champion was that he didn't let anyone but himself make decisions, which proved detrimental to Indigo in the long run.

Here's hoping that, with advice from the Elite Four, Lance won't make the same mistake!

ANormalFan

OF COURSE!! Now that John is there being a proper advisor, things are going to be better than ever! You'll see!

AlluteNinja

At least with someone like Lance in charge I doubt that we'll be seeing a resurgence of Team Rocket any time soon. Lance doesn't strike me as someone who would allow these criminals a free hand.

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?[CHAMPION OAK SPEAKS TO AND CONGRATULATES OUR LATEST CHAMPION LANCE! WHAT DID THEY CONVERSE ABOUT?!] by The Indigo Post

Ex-Champion Oak graced us all with his presence today as he came by to congratulate Champion Lance for his victory against Ex-Champion Pryce. Unfortunately, our reporters were not able to overhear the discussions that took place between the group, but Ex-Champion Oak was seen conversing with both new and old Champions.

We here at The Indigo Post are very curious about what was discussed, although we understand that whatever wisdom that was passed on by Ex-Champion Oak was likely not meant for outsider's ears. We very much respect the privacy of the esteemed Oak and wish him all the best.

We believe that his blessings towards the new Champion Lance is a great omen for Indigo, and we have faith that Lance will deliver on Ex-Champion Oak's expectations. What do you all think about this encounter?

Comments

KantoRepresent

If Oak is willing to personally come down and give his blessing towards Lance, then I am willing to believe that we have good times ahead. Really hope that Lance lives up to this.

ILoveGoldenRod

Same. With Oak's blessing, Lance surely is the best Champion for us!

AreYouSlowBro

I don't get it. Why is Oak's blessing such a big deal? I mean, he gave one to Pryce too, but look how he turned out.

FearTheRat

@AreYouSlowBro It's because it's Samuel Oak. I can understand that, since you're not from Indigo, you are unable to comprehend the enormity that is Champion Oak. But Pryce is responsible for his own failings.

FutureAce

ALL HAIL OAK! My parents always say that he should be Champion again! Hey, if Lance doesn't work out, why not have Oak replace him?! That would be so cooool!!

The New Normal – 4-13 – A Lunch Date?

I arrived home after the match and found my parents were already eating dinner. Seeing that they had cooked a little extra, I joined them since I was still feeling a bit hungry. They had been watching the match on the TV, and they were appropriately excited about the whole thing and asked me a bunch of questions.

"The way that the match was recorded made Lance seem really strong." My dad said, "Was he as strong as he looked?"

"Yeah, he was." I replied, "His starter especially was incredible to see. Definitely the strongest Pokémon I've ever been in the presence of during my career as a trainer. And his other Pokémon were definitely no slouches either."

"Think you can match it with your Slaking, Tyrant?" My dad asked, and I had to take my time to think about it for a bit.

Tyrant had a slew of his own long-range options that I kept 'secret' just in case Lance tried to wear him down at a distance, though it wasn't his preferred way to fight. After a moment, I'd thought that Tyrant would have decent odds at coming out on top, even after seeing that spectacular performance against Pryce.

"Hmm...I'd probably have a 50/50 chance of winning, I'd say." I answered. "It would be very close though, much closer than I'd like to be honest."

"It's already very impressive that you're able to match up the CHAMPION's starter, John." My mom commented, "You don't need to push yourself further than that."

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I gave a non-committal hum but didn't voice my disagreement. I knew that in the world of Pokémon, there were always going to be more challenges that I would have to face with the strength of my team, so I couldn't just rest on my laurels. Still, I appreciated the vote of confidence regardless.

"Oh, and your sister is going to come visit for lunch tomorrow." My mom added after she had another bite of rice, and my eyes widened in surprise. My mom saw the question in my eyes as she continued, "Yes, Whitney's currently waiting in line for her turn at the Cerulean Gym, so she decided to come visit for lunch while she was waiting."

"Great! I'd love to see her again." I remarked and waited to swallow before continuing. "Did she say how she was doing? I haven't checked up on her ever since she got the Boulder Badge."

"Well, she did mention that she found a friend-" The sound of my phone ringing cut my mom off, and I gave her an apologetic look as I went to pick it up.

"Hello, John speaking."

"John, it's Giovanni. I hope I haven't caught you at a bad time." Giovanni's voice filtered through the speakers.

"Ah, hello Giovanni." I replied, causing my parents' heads to turn towards me as they realized who I was speaking to, "I was just having dinner with my parents, so I'm not too busy at the moment. Is there anything you need?"

"Oh, well, I apologize for interrupting your dinner. But I've called you just to ask if you have heard anything about what Lance plans to implement now that he's Champion." He explained, "As I mentioned before, the period after a new Champion is appointed are often filled with political strife and turmoil, so getting ahead of the competition is crucial during such times."

"Yes, I remember. Well, Lance did mention to us that he would be honouring the statements that he made in his interview about transparency and openness, so he does intend to invite the Elite Four into listening in and discussing his proposals in the committee meetings, at least during the early periods of his reign." I told Giovanni.

"I see. Well, that is a bit of good news." He replied, and I could tell that he was deep in thought as he processed what I had just told him. "Do you have any clues about what he might be thinking of?"

"No, unfortunately not." I said, thinking things through, "I haven't spoken to Lance enough to know much about his greater plans, besides his International Police idea...Although he did mention that the committee were going to be discussing who would be Lance's replacement in the Elite Four...and he mentioned something about how they wanted a Johtonian to replace him."

"Oh...that's interesting." Giovanni commented, "Well, I cannot say that I am not disappointed by the committee's stubbornness to appoint a Johtonian, but I can understand their reasoning..." He paused and I heard a few papers being shuffled, "...I'm sure I have notes on potential candidates somewhere. Why don't you come over tomorrow, and we can go through the best suggestions for who to recommend joining the Elite Four. I'm sure you have your own plans as well that we could discuss together."

"Sure, I could probably make my way over there tomorrow." I said, but then I was interrupted by a deliberate cough from my mom.

"John, did you forget that your sister is coming over for lunch tomorrow?" She reminded me, "And I'm sure that she would be very upset if you aren't here."

Oh, shit. "Right. Yes, I forgot about that." I apologized, then went back to speaking to Giovanni, "So, yeah, sorry Giovanni. But I can't make it there for tomorrow lunch, maybe we could meet at night?"

My mom answered before Giovanni did, "Or perhaps we can invite Gym Leader Giovanni over for lunch tomorrow?" My face must have warped into one of complete surprise as it caused my mom chuckled, "Why do you look so surprised, dear? We've heard of your accomplishments with him on the news, and you both seem to have political connections together at least. Why don't you invite him over? I'm sure Jack and I would love to meet him. Whitney too!"

I was made speechless by my mom's suggestion, and the silence from Giovanni probably suggested the same, though he recovered faster than I did. "...I would not decline such an invitation. Your mom does speak the truth, after all. If you would have me, then I would not mind coming down for lunch to meet with your family."

"That's great!" My dad cut in, evidently overhearing what Giovanni had said, "Your mother's right, son. I've seen the both of you on TV together a lot in support of each other, so I'd love to get to know the man who has decided to help out my son. A meal would be a great way of doing that."

I couldn't believe Giovanni was going along with this, and that my parents were so eager to meet him, but I forced the surprise off my face and answered, "Yes, that's fine. I suppose we can meet at my place for lunch. It's going to be simpler fare than you might be used to though, just warning you." I added at the end.

Giovanni chuckled, "It's fine. Believe it or not, I'm very much used to having simpler meals as well, despite my relative wealth. I'll survive."

"Well, if you're sure...then I'll see you tomorrow then." I said awkwardly, still feeling a bit confused about how this came about.

"Yes, see you then." Then he hung up.

I stared awkwardly at my phone as the call ended, still not fully able to process INVITING GIOVANNI OVER FOR LUNCH. I knew rationally that he was turning over a new leaf, but it was still very weird to think about.

"John, you okay there, son?" My dad asked, snapping me out of my confusion.

"Yes, just slightly weirded out about how all this came about." I replied truthfully.

"Hah! I understand. Sometimes it's weird when your professional and private lives intertwine. But it does happen. And sometimes you'll find yourself more able to deal with your partner professionally when you actually know each other on a personal level." He said sagely, and I nodded in agreement after thinking about it. Though if he knew what I knew about Giovanni, I bet he wouldn't have been so eager.

"Well, let's not think about it anymore and finish up on your dinner. You've barely touched your bowl of rice." My mom lectured, so I put away my phone and decided to finish up my dinner, discarding my thoughts for later.

At least this time I was inviting Giovanni over cordially to my house. Knowing of his mafia-esque background, him coming to my house could have a very different meaning.

========

?It was the next day, and my dad and I found ourselves standing outside the house waiting for our guests to arrive. Suddenly, a pink blur started running past the fence straight toward us.

"You're here, you're here!" My sister ran up to me and gave me a tight hug the moment she saw me at the front of the house.

"Hey, what about me?" My dad mock-complained, and my sister quickly released me and gave my dad a tight hug of his own.

The two of us were standing outside of our house waiting for our two guests, and one had just arrived. Whitney and my dad shared a few words for a moment before she went to take off her shoes and make her way inside.

However, seeing that we made no move to go in, she turned around and asked us.

"You're not coming in?" She said, and we both shook our heads.

"No, there's another guest coming. We're going to wait for him to arrive. Should be soon." My dad responded while checking his watch.

"Oh? Is it Karen?" Whitney asked excitedly, but I shook my head.

"No, it's not. It's actually Gym Leader Giovanni." I told her, and her face morphed into one of utter confusion. I could relate.

"Did you know Gym Leader Giovanni, bro?" She asked me.

"He's a friend." I replied simply, not wanting to go into the details of my complex relationship with Giovanni. It was technically the truth, though our friendship was currently walking on a thin tightrope, but at least for now it was going well.

"Oh, that's cool. I didn't know you knew any other Gym Leaders besides Norman, John." Whitney said, and I gave her an odd look.

"Since when did you call Gym Leader Norman, 'Norman'?" I said curiously.

Whitney simply shrugged, "He said to do so. And it was much easier than calling him Gym Leader all the time, so I did it."

Huh, I guess Whitney and Norman were on better terms than I expected. Well, I knew Norman to be a good guy, so that couldn't be a bad thing. I gave Whitney a small smile and a pat on the head before I told her to help out mom set up lunch. She eagerly complied and bolted to the kitchens.

"She misses you; you know. Probably more than us." My dad said as Whitney went to the kitchens. I scratched my head embarrassedly.

"I'm sure she misses you too." I replied awkwardly.

"Of course, but it's you that she looks up to." He remarked, and before I could say anything else a distinct flash of a Teleport appeared in front of us. Giovanni's figure emerged from the light alongside his Claydol. I noticed that he was rather underdressed compared to his usual attire of fancy suits and ties, wearing only a pressed shirt and pants with no tie, probably because he realized that this sort of thing probably required less formality. Giovanni quickly withdrew his Claydol and made his way to us.

"I apologize if I'm late, but it's good to meet you." He says smoothly as he extends a hand for my dad to shake, his other hand was occupied holding a briefcase.

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Gym Leader Giovanni." My dad said respectfully with a slight nod as they shook hands before gesturing to me, "And I'm sure you know my son, John."

"Of course, we've spoken plenty of times." Giovanni said, "Good to see you again, John. We have plenty to talk about."

"Yes, but let's have lunch first." I said, and he nodded easily enough as he followed us inside. As he entered our house, he displayed no sign of his usual arrogance and proceeded to respectfully take off his shoes and comment politely about how organized our house was.

It was mostly meaningless platitudes, but it was nice to for him to be accommodating to my parents.

My mom and sister were just finishing up the final touches of our lunch preparations just as we arrived in the dining room. The two noticed our entrance and shared their greetings with Giovanni, who responded in kind.

Then the five of us sat down for lunch. It was a simple fare, like I had told Giovanni to expect, consisting mainly of rice, some steamed Karp, some veggies, and some cheesy baked potatoes. I did glance over at Giovanni to see if he was unhappy with what he was served, but I saw no trace of dissatisfaction in his eyes. Perhaps he wasn't lying after all?

After we had all divvied up the food and began eating, my mom kicked off the conversation.

"I hope you enjoy the food." My mom began, "I know you said you were happy with a simple fare, but from our experience most rich people have more luxurious tastes."

Giovanni gave my mom a polite smile, "It's no matter, Mrs. Smith. And please, call me Giovanni. While I would not deny that my wealth has allowed me access to finer cuisine, I would never balk at the chance of eating a delicious home-cooked meal." He flattered.

"In fact, my assistants aren't great cooks, so I normally have to eat takeaway or have to make something myself. And I can guarantee you that your cooking is better than whatever I could whip up." He elaborated, and the mental image of the Team Rocket Executives failing to make a good dish made me want to laugh, but I held it in.

My mom smiled kindly at the compliment before continuing, "Do you have any family, Giovanni? Maybe a wife and kids?"

A flash of surprise flickered through Giovanni's face for a moment before it swiftly disappeared as Giovanni composed himself, "I do have a son, but the mother and I are currently...estranged."

"Oh...I'm sorry to hear that." My mom said apologetically, "Well, um, I wish you all the best at hopefully repairing your relationship with your family."

"Thank you, Mrs. Smith. Those are...very kind words." Giovanni hesitated a bit there, and his eyes adopted a faraway look for a moment. I wondered what that was about.

My mom coughed and switched topics, "So, how did a long and established Gym Leader like you start talking to my son?" My mom inquired kindly, "Not that we aren't appreciative of course, but it's not something you see every day. Oh, and please call me Angela."

Giovanni was brought back from his thoughts and nodded towards me, "Well, we met formally for the first time during his swearing in ceremony for the Elite Four. He was the youngest person ever to make it into the Elite Four, so that intrigued me, and I invited him to speak with me so that I could get to know him better. Then, after we got to know each other better, we found that we had similar goals politically, so we vowed to work together to achieve them. Our cooperation and friendship have only grown since, and I can reassure you that this is definitely an equal partnership." He emphasized the word 'equal' to reassure my parents that I wasn't being used.

"And what would those goals be?" My father asked as we continued to eat, "We have been following what's been going on from the news, and obviously we hear a bit from John, but what are your overarching goals, in your mind?"

Giovanni turned to me, and I gave him a subtle nod to tell him that I was comfortable disclosing my political objectives. He returned the nod before explaining, "John and I have been working hard together to reverse the damage caused by Pryce's poor leadership and to hopefully improve the welfare of Kanto so that we can reach parity with Johto. A lot of the work that you've seen on the news are steps towards achieving that goal."

Both my parents nodded at this, "It's a worthy goal." My dad remarked, "I'm glad you brought my son along with your plans. We were afraid that, with his young age, he might have been suckered into some nefarious criminal plots!" My dad chuckled.

Giovanni and I chuckled too, but it had a forced quality to it that I hoped went unnoticed. Oh, how right you are, dad!

"So, what are two of you working on now then, if you can tell us." My mom asked, "You both seemed pretty serious on that call."

I spoke up this time, "Well, with a new Champion, Giovanni and I expect a lot of changes will be occurring over the next few weeks. We want to be able to anticipate and be prepared for such changes and react advantageously."

I got a look from my mom asking for an elaboration, so I continued, "I think Giovanni and I are going to be discussing who we think is going to be the new Elite Four member to replace Lance, or rather, who we would PREFER to replace Lance. Lance has said that he's open to suggestions from the Elite Four, so we want to make the most out of this opportunity."

My dad's eyes went wide for a moment, "That's very important stuff. Are Gym Leaders normally so connected?" He asked Giovanni.

"No, but as you said, I've been in my position for a long while, and I have plenty of connections that I can make use of. But I'm still only a Gym Leader, so most of what I contribute to my partnership with John is that I give him access to the information that he normally couldn't find himself, and we form up a plan together so that he can use his influence in the Elite Four to further our shared goals."

"Don't worry dad, Giovanni's been extremely helpful for me." I cut in, backing up Giovanni's words. "Without his help, I wouldn't be able to properly manoeuvre through the Indigo political scene like I did." I made sure to praise Giovanni to stroke his ego, even if he seemed to be happy enough with answering my parent's questions.

"Thanks for helping my brother, Gym Leader Giovanni." My sister suddenly interrupted all of us, and all pairs of eyes turned to her. She looked shocked at the sudden attention, but she soldiered on with what she was going to say, "...John says that having friends are important because they help you when you need it...and you should also return that friendship...so thanks for helping John, and I hope he's helped you too!"

Giovanni was momentarily speechless and had completely lost his composure, but he shook himself out of his shock and responded with a kind smile, "Thank you, Whitney. Your words are very kind, and yes, I'm very glad to have a friend like John. We have helped each other a lot, and we hope to continue that into the future."

I heard him mutter something about "out of the mouths of babes" quietly, and I inwardly agreed with him. Whitney seemed surprised about something else, though.

"How did you know my name, Giovanni?" My sister asked, surprised.

Giovanni simply chuckled, "Your brother mentions you from the time to time. He's very fond of you, you know? Family is very important to him." That caused my sister to blush a bright red, and this time we all chuckled.

Still, Whitney's bit of wisdom would not go unrewarded, and my parents and I quickly rubbed her head affectionately for her comment. Lunch mostly continued the same way, keeping with the same friendly atmosphere that had been established until we were finally done.

Giovanni praised my mom once more for her cooking skills, and even offered to help tidy up afterwards, although that was utterly shot down by everyone, including me. After that, my parents dragged Whitney outside so that Giovanni and I could continue with our more serious discussions in the living room. I spoke up as he started to unpack his briefcase.

"Thanks for indulging my parents' questions." I said to him, but he easily waved me off.

"It's no bother. I understand that I can be prideful, but I'm not so far gone that I can't be polite to the nice people that invited me to their home." He replied pleasantly. "Besides, I wasn't lying when I said that was a good meal. Home-cooked meals are a rarity for me, and I very much enjoyed your mom's cooking. Brings me back." He said that last part wistfully, and there was a hint of something in his eye, but I didn't have any time to interpret that as he placed a slim folder onto the desk.

"Right, here are the most likely candidates that I've found that will probably be chosen to join the Elite Four to replace Lance." He started as he started taking out a few documents from his folder and passing them to me, but he seemed oddly distracted for some reason.

I ignored his slight distraction as I gazed quickly over the documents as he passed them to me, finding it slightly surprising that I actually recognized the people there were displayed.

"I'm sure you may recognize a few people here." Giovanni said, "But these are the more 'prominent' trainers that are likely to be selected. At least, that's what I heard. Take your time and go through them." And then he turned away to ponder something.

That was a bit unusual, but I chose to ignore it as I inspected the first document containing the eye-catching, mask-wearing, young man and read his name and details.

Will. A Psychic type trainer that had won last year's tournament before me, but instead of challenging into the Elite Four directly, chose to use his newfound fame to make buddies with some of Johto's more influential figures. He was likely a rich man, with plenty of resources to make use of, but Giovanni had him only marked down as 'marginally influential, with a few worthy connections and resources.'

Ouch. I guess when compared to Giovanni, those didn't really mean anything.

The next picture showed someone that was the peak of human athleticism and looked like he was someone who could wrestle against a Machamp and win.

Bruno. Another winner of the Indigo League tournament two years before me, but apparently, he was unsatisfied with his narrow win and withdrew to train up even more. This was the last year before he lost his chance to fight again due to the limitation period, so it was likely he would make a challenge. A singularly minded individual who sought to pursue strength and improvement above all else, which Giovanni also described as 'politically unambitious and single-minded'. Giovanni doubted he would even accept to be part of the Elite Four unless he earned it himself, which was good to know.

The next person was a familiar face, and someone not actually in canon. Shin, my final opponent from the Indigo Conference and a Steel-type specialist. Since anyone could technically be selected into the Elite Four, and his performance in this year's Indigo Conference was certainly outstanding, despite losing to me, Giovanni considered him a possible choice. He was a young man like me, with little influence beyond his strength as a trainer, which made him a perfect political puppet.

And when I got to the last person, I raised a singular eyebrow at Giovanni when I saw Professor Oak's smiling face staring back at me.

"Is this a joke? He's not even from Johto!" I asked him, and Giovanni stared at me blankly before he realized I was speaking to him.

"No. Though Champion Oak's chances of accepting such an invitation is minimal, one will always be sent regardless. But the chance is always there that he will accept, and I will guarantee you that he will be welcomed with open arms. They won't care where he's from."

Huh. I was impressed with Oak's influence when he was able to speak with Lance after he won, and from the deference he received from practically everyone. This only solidified his incredible influence even further.

That was interesting to think about, but now was not a suitable time. I put Champion Oak's picture to the side, as even Giovanni said that he was an extremely unlikely choice.

Thus, the most likely three candidates that Giovanni could find were Will, Bruno, and Shin. Though Bruno would likely be a future challenger and not someone who would accept an invitation.

That left Will and Shin as Giovanni's most likely candidates, and one of them had to be selected. It was a pick between a moderately influential rich person, with some corporate backing and political experience, or a complete newbie like I was who was only known for his strength as a trainer and was likely easily manipulated. The former would likely appeal to those within the committee with a financial background, while the latter to those who wanted a more pliable member to mould into becoming their creature.

Hard choices.

The New Normal – 4-14 – An Upgrade

Ultimately, after a back-and-forth discussion between myself and Giovanni, we both decided on a potential course of action. With my limited influence in the committee, we both understood that I would not be the deciding vote here. Instead, we would rely on our influence with Lance, and his likely desire to try to appeal to his new Elite Four members, to leverage our political position within the committee.

In other words, we would be looking to 'sell' our influence. Since neither of us cared who was chosen between Will or Shin, it mattered not what the final outcome was. They were both equally inoffensive to our plans. Thus, the most important thing was what we could gain out of leveraging our position from the other members of the committee.

Giovanni asked that I 'sell' a public endorsement to whoever was chosen, so that that person could gain an immediate boost in status and at least extend their duration within the Elite Four, but I hesitated to agree. I argued that my greatest asset right now was my pristine and heroic reputation, and that to squander that for something like this was a terrible idea and wholly short-sighted. Giovanni eventually came over to my way of thinking, and we limited our 'sellable' actions to just our influence with Lance.

For the same reason, I would not be making any agreements in exchange for boosting my family's business. I felt that would inch too close to corruption for my tastes and would risk destroying the reputation of my family's business. Furthermore, I did not want to gain a reputation amongst the political circles for being able to be bought; my deal with Lance was the singular exception since that deal was too important to pass up.

Therefore, Giovanni and I agreed that any kind of deals would likely be limited to gaining their political support for my policies. I brought up my desire to reduce the 4-badge policy, and Giovanni said that was a good one to barter with since it was inoffensive enough to not drive off any potential 'customers'. I had already gotten Lance on board with our previous agreement, so just getting a few extra votes should be able to ensure that it gets passed through.

These kinds of actions rubbed me the wrong way, but I understood the necessity of it. If I was unwilling to play politics like this, then any number of people could use that against me. I could not allow that, so I was forced to sink to their level since this kind of thing was what everyone did.

But I vowed to never sink any further than that.

On that note, Giovanni asked me if I had any further political ambitions that I wanted to pursue, or any other new policies that I wanted implemented. I knew the unasked question involved whether I wanted to push Kanto's supremacy even further and start implementing policies that would favour Kanto over Johto, such as tax cuts.

But I thought that would be going too far in the other direction, and it may lead to Kanto oppressing Johto in the future, something that I didn't want to happen. Some inequality between the two regions were inevitable, but I only wanted to bring balance, not the supremacy of Kanto. Unlike Giovanni, I advocated for the unity of Indigo. And I didn't want to make unnecessary enemies in Johto if I could avoid it.

Still, I did have a few more ideas.

"I did have a proposal to have Gym Leaders be able to be selected from both regions. I think that'll be a great way to promote unity between our two regions." I told Giovanni, and it says a lot of his respect for me that he didn't immediately lash out in anger at my proposal.

Gym Leaders were an important part of a region's defenses, and to employ a 'foreigner' in the position suggested a big deal of trust in that individual.

"...and what makes you want to implement such a suggestion?" Giovanni asked diplomatically, obviously restraining the comment at the tip of his tongue.

"I won't deny that it's an ambitious plan that won't likely be passed, certainly not right now, but I think that having such a policy in place would be an enormous step, a true rapprochement between the regions." I replied, "It'll show that Kantonians and Johtonians no longer hate each other, and that they can be trusted to aid in the defence of the region. Likewise, it'll be a big step in removing the regional identities of 'Kanto' and 'Johto', and just turning it into 'Indigo'."

"It's not going to be passed easily." Giovanni remarked, and I nodded in agreement. Such a thing was going to receive plenty of backlash from the nationalists, like Giovanni. Thus, I knew I had to bring Giovanni on board before I could hope to make such an announcement to the public.

"After the attacks at Olivine from Team Rocket in Indigo, the entire region rose up as one to fight back against the common enemy of Team Rocket. It shows that we are able to work together, and we could leverage this sense of unity into support for such a policy." I explained, "Besides, I'm sure that the increasing unity of these two regions will only be beneficial financially and economically, which many should appreciate."

Giovanni hummed thoughtfully at my explanation, and I waited patiently for his response. After some time, he spoke up. "Let's table this discussion for now. I'm not going to outright disagree with you, even though I'm wary of how successful such a policy would be, but I will say that it is too soon to announce something like this. If we were going to announce something of this scale, we would have to build up towards it first with smaller proposals that are more easily palatable to whet the public's appetite for unity."

I nodded in agreement. Pushing something like this would definitely be too soon, and I was at least pleased to see that Giovanni wasn't immediately disagreeing with me. I hoped to eventually be able to sway him into my way of thinking.

I truly believed that a united Indigo would be a great thing for everyone involved.

After that, we moved away from foreign politics to something more local. Giovanni brought up something I hadn't previously considered but, in hindsight, really should have. He asked me if I wanted to entrench the Smith family as a pillar of Cerulean City.

He pointed out that with the family business rapidly growing in success as it was, we were being a household name in it of itself. Eventually, the business would grow so profitable that it would actually make business sense to make donations for tax reasons. He explained that this was how he got started in investing and influencing Viridian City, and he advised me to do to the same with Cerulean.

Furthermore, he also explained that, with my massive political influence, I could start making connections with the movers and shakers of Cerulean and nudge them into the direction that I wanted. Coupled with the future economic power of the family business, Giovanni said that he foresaw us being able to be a huge part of the politics of Cerulean in the future.

It was a very interesting thought, and it brought me back to my memories of Cerulean city from canon. I thought back to how the Waterflower sisters, whether out of wilful negligence or not, mishandled and neglected the Cerulean Gym and plummeted its reputation. This led to Cerulean City being nothing more than just a cultural and tourist hotspot for their, admittedly popular, performances.

Cerulean City in canon was far from poor or unsuccessful, but I agreed with Giovanni that there was no reason why I couldn't use my influence to make it better. For example, if the Cerulean Gym would eventually be known for its performances, then why couldn't we turn the entire city into one big city for festivals and tourists, becoming THE tourist hotspot for Kanto? Furthermore, with things like the undeveloped and entirely unsafe Cerulean Cave; there was much that could be done with that, especially given the relative strength of the wild Pokémon within and how relatively unexplored it was.

Snapping out of my thoughts, I replied to Giovanni that I thought it was a great idea, and that I would get started on thinking up some plans for now. Giovanni nodded with a pleased smile, and advised me to speak to my parents, since they would likely be familiar with handling this kind of stuff, before doing anything. I easily accepted and thanked him for his advice.

At this point, it was already getting late into the evening, and I did want to spend a bit of time with Whitney before she had to leave again, so I apologized and told Giovanni I wanted to spend time with my sister. He was understanding and told me to thank my parents for the meal once again before he made his way out of the house, so I escorted him to the front yard.

"Before you head off, have you found out anything about Team Rocket in Hoenn?" I whispered to him.

He shook his head, "No, not a whisper. Unfortunately, we might have to rely on the Hoenn League to deal with Team Rocket or until Proton resurfaces with whatever idiotic scheme he has cooked up in that violent mind of his."

I grimaced but thanked Giovanni for the information anyways. Then with another spark of light, I watched as he Teleported out of our yard with his Claydol.

As soon as Giovanni left, I managed to eke out some time with Whitney before she had to leave again. I listened as she talked about a whole host of topics, including describing her first experiences with camping in the wild, how she failed to catch a Pidgey, her intentions to capture more Pokémon, her victory over Flint, and how she had made a new friend during her journey.

She spoke with such speed that I had a hard time actually listening to what she was saying, but I could tell that she was both excited and happy during her journey so far, which was all I really cared about, in the end. Still, I was happy to listen to Whitney talk about things, and she showed off how much her Whismur had improved since the start of her journey, having far more confidence that when she was first caught.

The time flew by as she spoke, and after dinner she told us that she had to make her way back to the Pokécenter to sleep.

My parents and I obviously invited her to stay the night, but she insisted that she had to be more independent and that she couldn't leave her friend alone. That shut us all up, but I could tell that we were all proud of her.

Before she left, I reminded Whitney that she could call me up anytime if she needed help. She said she would but said that she wanted to try to be independent, and then left.

Seeing my little sister grow up was a bittersweet thing, but I could tell that her journey was going to be remarkably rewarding for her. Just like it was for me.

=========

?The next day, I found myself at the Viridian Branch of Devon Corp once more. I had gotten a text from Shelly saying that she had exciting news and for me to come over as soon as possible. I was intrigued enough that I ended up cancelling the training session with Karen, saying that I had something urgent to do. Karen was more than understanding.

I also informed Karen to tell Agatha about my wishes to push through my proposed reduction of the 4-badge policy, and that I hoped for her support in the matter. Karen told me she would pass it through.

I was escorted to Shelly's office without much fuss and was promptly greeted by a very excited Shelly.

"John, it's good to see you again! It looks like we've both been busy the past few weeks!" She said with a wide smile. "Congratulations on your success with the egg and developing the PIT technique! It was very interesting to read about! I've read that scientists all over the world are trying to emulate your actions! Even this branch office is building a new facility so that my team and I can conduct our own experiments!"

"Oh, wow, thank you." I responded slightly embarrassedly, "I admit that I had gotten lucky with the egg. I didn't realize how much of a big deal this was going to be. Though, you do seem very excited today. What's that about?"

"We've finally discovered and tested the Porygon2 evolution!" The words came tumbling out of her mouth, and while I did suspect this, it was still a minor shock to have it confirmed. "We remembered what you said about making sure that there were no side-effects with the evolution, which delayed this announcement slightly so that we could do more testing, but now we're confident that it is a safe process!"

I clapped my hands impressively, "That's amazing, Shelly! Wow! Would you pass my congratulations over to your team in Hoenn as well?"

She waved me off, "I didn't do much, I was only responsible for getting some extra data from your Pixel and sending it over to them. The ones in the joint-research facility did the bulk of the work." She answered humbly, before she then turned around and started digging something out of her cupboard, eventually taking out a small rectangular disk.

I could feel Pixel's Premier Ball shake on my belt as she took it out, and I placed a hand on its ball to calm Pixel down.

"This is what we called an 'Up-Grade'. It's a box of specially crafted data that we use to evolve Porygon into their evolution, Porygon2. It's a terrible name, but apparently the people in Hoenn shared your terrible naming sense, so we're stuck with this name now." She mock-grumbled, eliciting a chuckle from me.

"Anyways, we followed your advice and tested this thoroughly, though we are obviously still unsure of any long-term effects. It's yours to use if you accept." I almost grabbed the Up-Grade out of excitement, but then my worries about inflicting Pixel with potential insanity held me back. Shelly read the hesitation on my face before she then clicked through her computer for and brought up a few video files. "Would you like to have a look at how the evolutions went, just so that you know things won't go wrong?"

I nodded, and then she played the video. It contained clips where a Porygon scanned the data in the Up-Grade, before starting to glow brightly as they evolved into a Porygon2. The scientist then commented a bunch of things that all basically pointed to the fact that the evolution was stable and that they could detect no other side effects.

They even had the Porygon2 execute a few moves from TMs, like Thunderbolt and Psychic, and saw no problems.

"We couldn't really run too many test evolutions because the supply of Porygon is still limited at the moment." Shelly admitted, "It's been a much bigger struggle finding ways of mass producing Porygon, unfortunately."

I waved her off, still focused on the video. "It's fine. I'm more concerned about the evolution at the moment, to be honest. Just want to make sure that nothing would go wrong after I evolve Pixel." I confessed.

Luckily, Shelly was not offended at my paranoia, and she just gave me a smile before passing me a highlighted document.

"If you want to look at something more detailed, you can read through this summary of the evolutions. The highlighted bits are the important parts if you can't make sense of the scientific terms." She told me, and I thanked her before inspecting the document.

If I trusted the document, then nothing seemed out of order and the process should be entirely safe. At this point, if I still demanded more proof, then that would be going too far in indulging my paranoia. So, I eventually relaxed and passed the document back before releasing Pixel.

Pixel emerged whirling excitedly as it almost leapt up to scan the Up-Grade, only holding itself back because of my ingrained training.

"Pixel, you know what that is, right?" I asked to confirm, and it nodded its head rapidly. "Then, it's up to you if you want to evolve or –"

I didn't even get to finish my sentence as Pixel leapt up onto the table and scanned the Up-Grade, immediately triggering a bright flash of light that engulfed Shelly's office, causing me to step backwards instinctively. After a moment, the white light receded and a newly evolved Porygon2 appeared in the room.

"Pory! Pory, Pory, Porygon!" Pixel whirled happily, spinning around as if to inspect its own new evolution. I shared its happiness, both because I was happy that Pixel was rewarded for all of its hard training, as well as because now Pixel was actually a viable Pokémon to use in high-level battles as a long-range special attacker with surprisingly good bulk.

And with Pixel's new evolution, it opened up many different training paths that I could go down with it. While it was still a Porygon, it was too weak to engage in any recovery tactics, but it was a whole different story as a Porygon2. I foresaw Pixel being able to take on a very similar role to Luna in my team in the future, which was excellent.

I turned to Shelly, "Thank you very much for this. You've made Pixel and I very happy." And there doesn't seem to be any trace of insanity, which was good.

Shelly waved me off, "Not a problem. Besides, you did help with making this discovery, since you were the reason why we could work together with Viridian in the first place and also because you contributed that data. We're more thankful than you know." She insisted, and I gave her another round of thanks in response.

Pixel in the meanwhile kept buzzing around the room looking like it wanted to test its newfound power, and it was slowly infecting me with its excitement. Shelly noticed the obvious excitement on my face and spoke up, "If you don't mind, John, would you like to throw around a couple of attacks to test out Pixel's new power? We want to monitor that data as well and compare it to the ones we already have from our own Porygon2's."

Pixel buzzed in agreement before I could respond, so I relayed that to Shelly and the three of us made our way to our usual testing room, though I noticed there were a few more additions since last time. Perhaps they had gotten some extra equipment since last time? I did notice the reception looked a lot fancier than before when I came in.

As soon as we arrived, Pixel was strapped into the machine once again before Shelly directed it to firing off some moves. Even without reading the data from the machine, I could tell with my bare eyes that Pixel's Thunderbolts were far stronger than they used to be and struck the ground with a far louder bang. This increase in power was maintained as Pixel cycled through its moves, and overall, I was very pleased with the increase in power from the evolution.

"...And we're done." Shelly remarked as she began detaching Pixel from the machine, and then looked down at her notes with mild surprise.

"Wow! The numbers here are really impressive. It's very different from the results that we got back in Hoenn with the untrained Porygon2's. The leap in power is far greater than we had anticipated." She commented fascinatingly.

"Is that a bad thing?" I asked with some concern, but she just shook her head.

"Nope. None of the tests revealed any instability in your Pixel, just as we hoped for. So, the fact that your Pixel got so much stronger is only going to be a good thing." She replied.

"That's good. You feel good as well, Pixel?" I asked it, and it quickly spun around and gave me a happy nod, causing me to relax and smile. I was glad that my paranoia about Pixel being inflicted with insanity was unfounded. Looking at my new Porygon2 though, I had a question.

"Have you published this discovery yet?" I asked.

"Not yet, we were waiting for more data to guarantee as much as possible that the data was as safe as it was going to be." She answered, "But, I think they're going to do a reveal with Gym Leader Giovanni soon. To show off our cooperation or something."

I didn't know that Giovanni would be heading over to Hoenn, but I supposed that he didn't feel the need to tell me. That was fine; it wasn't like this was some big secret.

Out of the corner of my eye, despite being able to fire off a few moves during the tests, I noticed that Pixel was still buzzing in excitement as he wanted to get into a proper spar to accurately test out his new strength. I realized that I was the same.

"Hey, Shelly, is there anything else you needed us for? I think Pixel here wants to spar with my team as soon as possible." I said with a chuckle, one that she shared.

"Not at the moment. Perhaps Mr. Stone might have a few new business deals for you, but not for now. As for me personally, I was very interested with your discovery of the PIT technique, and I'd love to work with you on a future project like that. As I mentioned before, we're looking into inventing new Pokémon ball designs, and you seem to be a font of new ideas."

"I just get lucky sometimes." I said humbly, "Though I'll let you know if I think of anything. But, considering we just got a new Champion, I might be a busy dealing with politics to handle the science stuff for the time being." I replied, though obviously I still had my meta-knowledge to dig into as a crutch if needed.

"That's fine." She said as Pixel continued to buzz impatiently, causing Shelly to smile, "Okay, it looks like your Pixel is getting impatient, so I won't keep you. Thanks for coming!"

"No, thank you for the Up-Grade. I'll certainly put it to good use." I thanked her in return, then we exchanged goodbyes before I left the building. I couldn't wait to start properly training up my new Porygon2.

But as I was flying home from Port, my phone pinged an alert. It was a message from Lance. Reading through it, my eyebrows shot up. Then he sent another text saying that the committee meeting to decide the next member of the Elite Four had been pushed up.

Lorelei had officially challenged Walker to take his place in the Elite Four.

The New Normal – 4-14 – Interlude – Giovanni

As he teleported away from John's house, Giovanni's mind was unable to focus on the politics that they discussed. John likely noticed that he had been fairly distracted during their talks on politics but was polite to not point it out, which Giovanni appreciated.

He settled down on his desk and poured himself another drink, just in time for Petrel to come into the room. Petrel saw the pensive expression on Giovanni's face and decided to ask a question.

"Is there something wrong, Boss? Did the lunch not go well?" Petrel inquired with a hint of concern, but Giovanni waved him off.

"...No, nothing to worry about. It's just that having lunch with John's family brought up some memories. Memories of family." He admitted after a short pause as he continued to swirl the whiskey in his glass. A hint of recognition flashed through Petrel's eyes.

"Oh." He said after a moment. "I understand, Boss...Would you like me to call Ariana?" He asked politely.

Did he? His relationship with Ariana was rocky at best, though she had certainly cheered up ever since she was sent to Hoenn. Her loyalty was unquestionable, but his decision to distance himself from her ever since he became responsible for a potential liability in Team Rocket had caused a strain in their personal relationship, and they kept themselves strictly professional since then.

It was one of Giovanni's regrets, but he knew he was making the best possible decision at the time. A necessary one to continue pursuing the greater good of Kanto.

But the situation was different now, wasn't it? He was no longer the newbie Gym Leader looking to make a mark on the world to save Kanto at any cost. He was now respected, loved, and had a great reputation within Indigo and Hoenn. He was a role-model for many, and he ran the most prestigious Gym in Kanto.

Most importantly, he had given up on his more overtly criminal actions. They were just no longer worth it when 'heroic' actions served him so well. So, what reason did he have to keep himself separated from Ariana anymore?

He took a sip of his drink to fortify his resolve, then went to dial Ariana's personal number before he second-guessed himself. Petrel left the room as he did so.

"Hello, this is Ariana. Something wrong, Boss?" Her voice filtered through the phone.

"No, nothing's wrong." He replied, and then hesitated slightly before deciding to just get it off his chest. "Listen, I'm going to visit the Petalburg research facility soon, just to show my face around there and congratulate a few scientists for your success at discovering Porygon2...While I'm there, would you like to grab a meal together?"

His question was met with a painful silence for a few moments, and Giovanni was about to withdraw his statement before Ariana spoke up again, a hint of surprise in her voice. "Yes, I heard about your visit...May I ask why you're offering?"

The lack of an instant acceptance hurt, but Giovanni could understand her wariness. They didn't end on good terms, after all. "Things have changed here in Indigo...and my position is less at risk than it was before. And I was just reminded of a few things. Things that I cared about." He replied carefully. "I thought that...perhaps...we could, rekindle somethings that we lost?"

A pause descended on the conversation once again, but Ariana eventually spoke up, "...Do you really think we could have what we had before?" Her voice came back with a mixture of hurt and hope.

"I don't know." He answered truthfully, "But I want to...to at least try." He said, exposing his vulnerabilities to her.

He was greeted with more silence, but eventually he heard her let out a big breath before she responded. "Do you want me to bring Silver along as well? Or are you afraid of a scandal?"

Ah, Giovanni winced at the reminder of his seven-year-old son. He admitted that he was not a good father figure, having spent most of life dedicated towards the improvement of Kanto. He simply didn't have time for handling a child and offloaded all those duties to Ariana.

He justified it by saying that his time could have been spent more efficiently to continue saving Kanto, as it was something that only he entrusted himself with. Even Ariana agreed, seemingly happy to take care of Silver so that Giovanni could focus on the more important tasks.

But seeing John's family spending time together so happily did bring up fond memories of his late mother, and how she devoted her entire being to ensure that he would have a future, despite the lack of a husband. He remembered wondering when he was a child how much better their lives would have been if his father hadn't died.

And now, with Silver, did his son have the same thoughts as he used to? Did he also want a father in his life?

"Hello, Giovanni, you still there?" Ariana asked, breaking him from his thoughts.

"Yes, I am. Sorry, I was just thinking about things." He admitted.

"...I see." She replied, likely guessing what he was thinking about. Giovanni let out a sigh, before finally deciding.

"Yes, you can bring Silver along. I'm not worried about a scandal at this point." He answered honestly, and he heard a sharp intake of breath from Ariana before she replied.

"...Then the two of us will meet you in Hoenn then. Book a nice restaurant, won't you Gio?" She said, using the nickname she had for him. And even through the phone he could tell she was noticeably more cheerful.

"Sure. I'll see you in a few days. Talk to you soon, Ari." He responded in kind, before hanging up the phone. Then he saw his reflection in the mirror hanging on the wall.

He was smiling.

The New Normal – 4-15 – Political Kindergarten

I awoke early the next morning as I quickly made my way to the Indigo Plateau on Port to attend the rushed committee meeting; I didn't even have time to test out my new Porygon2, which I apologized to Pixel profusely for. While Lorelei's announcement was not as momentous as Lance's declaration to challenge Pryce and replace him as Champion, it was still all over the news, and many were still caught flat-footed as her announcement seemingly came out of nowhere.

From the way the newscasters were speaking yesterday on the TV, it felt like the majority sentiment was that everyone thought that Lorelei was just Pryce's figurehead for the Mahogany Gym and didn't expect such ambition from her. I guessed they all expected her to fade into obscurity after Pryce's defeat.

I was no different, in all fairness. I knew that Lorelei was in the Elite Four in canon, but I thought that I might have upset that after winning the Indigo Conference instead of her. Either way, I didn't have any problems with her challenging for Walker's position in the Elite Four, but I WAS concerned about how she would lean politically.

I don't think anyone wanted a second Pryce.

I still remembered Giovanni's reaction when I informed him of the news last night; the man almost blew a gasket until I reminded him that Lorelei was unlikely to share Pryce's political ideas considering she almost got screwed over by her uncle. That managed to calm Giovanni down to his more reasonable self, but he warned me in no uncertain terms that Kanto could not afford to deal with a second Pryce and advised me to observe Lorelei carefully. I agreed, though I was more optimistic about Lorelei than Giovanni was.

And this is why I found myself arriving at the Indigo Plateau, where a patiently waiting Lance was there to greet us.

"John, it's good to see you again. You're first to arrive." He began, and we shook hands in greeting.

"Happy to be here." I replied, before I shifted to something more serious. "Hey, what are your thoughts on Lorelei's challenge? Especially after just defeating her uncle?" Perhaps that question might have been too blunt, but I saw Lance as someone who respected straight questions and answers.

"Hmph. Good of you to not dance around your point." He remarked, proving me right. "And admittedly, I never gave a thought to Lorelei before this. I only really used her as a means to attack Pryce. That being said, I would have petitioned to remove her as the Mahogany Gym Leader if the reports landed unfavourably against her leadership sometime in the near future."

"As for her challenge towards Walker in 2 weeks' time...I respect it." He declared firmly, "I have not tried to hide my dislike of Walker, and I can respect the ambition to push yourself even further. If Lorelei wins, then she will have earned her position in the Elite Four in my eyes."

I nodded, but before I could ask who he felt like was going to win, the two of us were covered by a large shadow as Walker arrived and descended next to us on his Fearow.

"Hope I'm not late." He greeted the two of us.

"You're not." I replied, "...How are you feeling?"

Walker scratched his head, "Honestly, a bit surprised that I am receiving a challenge already. It's a bit too soon, and I would have liked more time to prepare. Two weeks isn't a lot of time."

"Think you can win?" I asked, observing him carefully.

"Well, I'm not about to just roll over and give up if that's what you mean." He said with conviction, getting a respectful nod from Lance at his words. "I recognize that Lorelei has a type advantage against me, but I'm the more experienced trainer. That should mean something."

I couldn't tell if his words were one of confidence, or just self-reassurance to assuage his own doubts, but I nodded all the same and said nothing. The three of us just stood there in silence as we waited for Agatha to arrive.

Finally, I saw a large shadow extend out from one of the pillars as Agatha arrived via Teleportation.

"What are you three standing around for? Let's go." Agatha mocked the three of us and slowly made her way into the building, not even bothering to turn around. The three of us hardly reacted and followed her inside the building and to where the Committee meeting was being held.

We arrived at a huge circular room with an enormous meeting table in the center. As soon as Lance entered the room, everyone stood up for their new Champion.

"Right, thank you all for coming." Lance began, sweeping his gaze over the many committee members in the room. "As I stated before, I've invited the current Elite Four members to sit on and join in on today's discussions, but they will not get a vote. Does anyone have a problem with this?"

Unsurprisingly, no one spoke up, likely unwilling to gainsay the new Champion. Lance nodded before continuing,

"In light of the challenge against Walker, the appointment of a new member of the Elite Four has become even more urgent. I hope that we can finalize a member by the end of today's meeting." He got nods all around, "Then, from my understanding of the documents that I received before this meeting, I believe that your two main candidates are between Will, winner of the second last Indigo Conference, and Shin, last year's runner-up, both from Johto. Is that correct?"

Lance received murmurs of 'yes' and other affirmations.

"Good. Then I'll open the floor to the discussion. Let's start from those who want to support Will." Then Lance sat down as another member stood up, almost as if it was all rehearsed. A scribe stood waiting in the corner, ready to write down these speeches to be publicized in the news later.

"Thank you, Champion. We believe Will to be the most suitable candidate to join the next Elite Four because of his already proven leadership abilities and his connections to many prominent members of the Indigo League. He has shown his financial and political capabilities through his time working with many prominent businessmen in the area, and he is also a winner of the Indigo Conference. Something that Shin has not managed to achieve. In fact, that is a common theme for Shin in general. He has failed to achieve anything, possibly due to his inexperience, but Will is a proven and capable person that would make a great fit for the Elite Four."

The member received mild applause for his words, but Lance just stared blankly and nodded. "Thank you for your words, now, could we hear why we should appoint Shin into the Elite Four?"

Another member stood up, "Although Shin lacks the experience of Will, have we not already proven that inexperience is not something that must be a limiting factor in their success in the Elite Four?" The person gave me a pointed look at that, and while I didn't like being dragged into this, I couldn't disagree with the sentiment and nodded back.

He continued, "What we need right now in the Elite Four is stability. Here, Shin's lack of experience is actually a strength. He has no political leanings and no influential sponsor. He's a blank slate, which is perfect right now to avoid causing more turmoil after we have just gotten a new Champion. Besides, despite the fact that Shin failed to win the Indigo Conference, anyone who has watched his matches knows that it is not his strength that is lacking as a Steel type specialist, but simply because his opponent is too strong."

They once again turned to me, "John's victory against Drake is now so well-known that the public would find it more than understandable for Shin to have lost against John. Thus, Shin is most certainly not weak, and would definitely deserve to be on the Elite Four based on his strength alone."

I forced down a grin at the back-handed compliment. In fact, I felt suspicious about just how complimentary that speech was towards me, as if they were looking to flatter me. That raised my hackles, and I suddenly grew wary of their intentions.

"Thank you for your words. I assume that those statements were made as representations of both positions?" Lance stated, which got a round of nods from everyone. "Good. Now, I'll like to open the floor for open discussion. You are free to mingle amongst yourselves." He declared formally, causing everyone to disperse and start talking to each other.

I understood that this was when many backroom discussions would be held, and agreements and promises would be made between people. Obviously, this part of the meeting won't be shown to the public. A quick glance towards Lance saw him frowning, but I guessed that even he knew that such deals were the backbone of the Indigo League and could never be removed.

"Elite John, it's a pleasure to speak with you." My focus snapped to the person speaking in front of me, and I was faced with a group of committee members who had all made a beeline straight towards me. I recognized them as a mix of members who supported Will or Shin, and they were clearly here looking to seek out my support for their chosen Elite Four member.

I plastered on my signature false smile. Time to be a merchant.

"Hello, how may I help you?" I asked politely, pretending to not know what they were here for.

"We were just wondering which of our speeches resonated with you more, Elite John." A member simpered, and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. I was certain that the speeches were just a formality just so that they had something to show to the public.

I kept up my fake smile, "Well, they were both very good, so it's very hard to say." This told them that I had no preferences either way, "But I do hope that whoever joins the Elite Four will be amenable to my political goals as well." Meaning that I would support whoever would also support my future policies.

The members evidently caught on to my doublespeak, and they smiled, "Well, it's always good for an Elite Four members to have clear political goals, and I'm sure that we'll be willing to help, whatever they may be."

"That's good to hear." I replied, "Because I'm really looking to enact my previous proposal of reducing the 4-badge limit...I was thinking perhaps we could lower it to 2 for Indigo, and have the rest be determined on a case-by-case basis. Do you think that is something of interest to you all?" I laid down my terms. I would sell my support in exchange for their support for said reduction.

Of course, I couldn't support both members simultaneously, so if both groups decided to accept my proposal, then I would still have to pick one in the end. However, it looked like that wasn't going to be a problem.

"Well, I'm sure that Will would be very amenable to such policies, if he were to be selected." One of the members who supported Will replied quickly, giving an implicit promise of support towards my policy, and I could see other Will supporters nodding their heads in agreement. In the meanwhile, the supporters of Shin looked more uncomfortable with my proposal and were hesitating.

It makes sense, since most of Will's supporters were rich businessmen who would likely support such a change in policy even without giving anything in exchange, as making travelling easier would only benefit their businesses. On the other hand, Shin's supporters were more nationalists and traditionalists, some of whom were holdovers from Pryce's time as Champion and were more hesitant with breaking the status quo.

Well, that makes my choice easier then. "Thank you for your support. I'm sure that Will would make a great Elite Four member once he's selected." I replied, and I got big smiles from Will's supporters and frowns from the others.

After that, I shook the hands of the Will supporters as a symbol of our 'transaction', and then I left them be as I made my way to Agatha, who was mostly standing alone as she drove away everyone who came to talk to her. Time to extract her end of the bargain.

"Agatha, I would like to support Will to be the next member of the Elite Four." I told her without preamble. Agatha stared at me with a considering look for a couple of seconds before she nodded.

"That's a good choice, since Will as a Psychic specialist would be the better target for Karen to defeat over a Steel specialist like Shin. Smart decisions, John, even if you weren't thinking that." She remarked, before breaking out into a crafty smile, "And yes, you can calm down now; I'll support you in front of Lance. Let it not be said that I am unable to hold up my side of the agreement."

I thanked her anyways, and I decided to make use of the remaining time to speak to Lance, since he had just finished his conversation with a few other committee members. I got to him before anyone else could approach me.

"Lance, can we talk?" I asked as I approached, and he nodded and excused himself to the corner of the room. Many eyes followed the two of us, but we both ignored them.

"You've spoken to a few of the members here, am I to assume that you're here to persuade me of something?" Lance said with a wry grin, and I grinned back shamelessly.

"I detest doing this as much as you do, but that is the nature of politics." I replied, getting a nod of agreement from Lance. Then my expression turned serious. "I won't hide it, since I'm sure you would figure it out by yourself, but I have decided to support Will and hope that you will too. If you vote for Will, then his selection is secured."

"And what did they give you in exchange for your support?" Lance asked directly, giving me a scrutinising look.

"Nothing offensive, they just promised that they would vote with me in exchange for reducing the 4-badge trainer travel policy to 2 badges, at least within Indigo. I know that it was something that you supported before, but I just wanted to make sure it passed." I remarked openly, meeting his eyes.

"That is...surprisingly un-mercenary of you, John." Lance said truthfully, "I thought you would have aimed higher. Asked for more."

I shrugged, "Perhaps, but I do have a reputation to live up to. Did you hear that they're calling me the Hero at Olivine now? It's an embarrassing nickname." I saw Lance's lips twitch upwards slightly as he nodded. "Yeah, well, I felt that I should probably live up to that nickname now that I have it. I do truly want to improve Indigo, and if such deals are what's needed to obtain such improvements, then I'll do it to secure their political support. But I will do all I can to prevent government corruption from getting as bad as it did during Pryce's era; that would be a betrayal of everything I stand for." I said firmly to Lance.

Lance gave me a slow nod and a look of approval. "I respect that. I'm glad to see that someone in this cesspit that is the League is still striving to do the right thing. Now that I'm the Champion, and am responsible for the continued well-being of Indigo, I appreciate having people who are willing to be more than just a political toady."

I stayed silent and he continued to observe me for a bit longer before he nodded again, "Very well. I too have no preferences between Will and Shin, and they both definitely meet the strength requirement to be in the Elite Four. Likewise, I have not forgotten our agreement for my political support of your policies, but even without that I can agree with your reasonings to support Will, and since I can't abstain, I will vote in support of Will."

"Not only that, but you may also count on my support for the change towards the 4-badge policy as well." He added, "I promised before to support you on this proposal, and especially now, with our relations with Hoenn as damaged as they are, opening our borders further for Hoenn will be a good thing. Shows that we're trying to extend a hand of cooperation and repair the damage."

I gave a small bow to Lance and thanked him for his decision, silently pleased by the fact that he was honouring our previous agreement, but Lance waved it off and just told me to maintain that moral dignity of mine. I thanked him once again and left, finding the supporters of Will and giving them a nod, letting them know that I fulfilled my end of the bargain. They returned the acknowledgement.

Finally, after several more minutes of discussions, which Lance had spent mostly being mobbed by many different people seeking his vote, including Walker, Lance banged a gavel, and everyone fell quiet.

"Right, I hope that everyone has had their meaningful discussions." He said loudly, "Before we move on to the voting, I will pass the floor to our Elite Four members in case they wanted to say a few words." I saw a scribe getting themselves ready to record what we had to say.

I took the initiative and spoke up first, "Thank you all. After listening to points made by both sides, I would like to offer my support towards appointing Will as a member of the Elite Four. While I have the utmost respect for Shin's strength, as he was my final opponent during the Indigo Conference, I think that, after the recent exposure of Pryce's corruption, we should return to a more traditional selection. To that end, Will would be the more suitable candidate because he has actually won the Indigo Conference, and thus would actually fulfil the requirements of being a legitimate challenger for the Elite Four."

I paused to allow everyone to digest my words before I continued, "In addition, Will already has some leadership experience, something that would be very quickly put to use during his time in the Elite Four. While I will not disparage Shin for lacking that, since I lacked such experiences as well, I believe that Will is overall the safer option in such times of political turmoil. Hence, he has my support." I finished.

Agatha spoke up before anyone could applaud, "I agree with John. We got lucky that John had the brains and intelligence to learn on the spot and be the great Elite Four member that he is today, but we cannot guarantee the same for Shin. Will has the experience, and the qualifications, so he should be chosen."

That was an oddly flattering speech from Agatha, so much so that I questioned it. I sent a look towards her, but she gave me a wry grin but refused to elaborate before Walker began his speech.

"I am of the opposite opinion. Shin is exactly what is needed in such times. As my other two colleagues have acknowledged, Shin has the strength to belong here. But not only that, it is commonly known that it is adversity that breeds strong men. Such political turmoil would be a great opportunity to mould another great Elite Four member for the years to come. I believe that Shin has the willpower and ability to learn on the spot and transform himself into a great Elite Four and trainer."

All three of us got a round of applause before Lance silenced them. "Thank you all for your speeches. Now, I would like to begin the voting stage."

Everyone sat up straight as President Charles Goodshow spoke up. "Please raise your hands if you are in support of Will." Lance himself raised his own hands, to the quiet mutterings of many. A few non-committee League officials walked around to tally the vote. But I was fairly certain with Lance voting in favour, Will was going to win.

"Now, please raise your hand if you support Shin." Less hands rose up this time, and I heard many quiet grumblings.

The tally counters got together and compared their results for a few moments before announcing, "Then the committee has chosen. Will is your next member of the Elite Four."

There was just polite applause at the announcement. Unlike with press conferences or public speeches, these people were more than used to these kinds of things and had gotten accustomed it.

"Thank you all for being here. We will be reaching out to Will and let him know of his successful appointment. We will be hosting the swearing-in ceremony in a few days-time." He looked to the Elite Four members, "Please be there to welcome him." We all nodded.

"Then that wraps up today's Committee meeting. Thank you all for coming. You will be informed when the next one will be hosted." He announced and received many mutterings of thanks in return before everyone started to filter out of the room.

Before the Elite Four members could leave though, Lance held us back to discuss something with us. We waited patiently for everyone else to leave first before Lance spoke up.

"Thank you for your participation today. I think that went well, don't you?" He received nods from Walker and I, and a blank stare from Agatha as if to tell him to hurry up.

"I felt like we could make this the norm to invite the Elite Four to listen in on these meetings. It would certainly differentiate my time as Champion compared to Pryce, and I think the public would enjoy seeing the transcript of your speeches. It's a win-win."

"Hah! Didn't think a Blackthorn would be so willing to share power like this." Agatha mocked, but it wasn't as cutting as it could be. "Well, I can't deny that getting out of Pryce's shadow is a bad thing, so I'm all for being part of these meetings, boring as they usually are."

Walker and I nodded in agreement, though I doubt we would have put it as harshly. Lance gave us a small smile at our agreement.

"Good. Then in that case, we'll keep this as our usual policy moving forwards unless something terrible happens, which I doubt it will. I'll let the others know." He said before checking the time. "Right, I won't keep you any longer. I'll see you all at the swearing-in ceremony." Then he left the room.

"Finally." I heard Agatha mutter before she then poked me with her walking cane, "Come with me, John, I have something to tell you."

I gave her a curious look but followed after her anyways, waving goodbye to Walker. Agatha and I made our way outside one of the side entrances of the building before she turned to me.

"If Will can stay in the Elite Four until Karen can win the Indigo Conference, then that would be a great opportunity. He has as terrible type matchup against Karen."

Ah, I quickly realized what Agatha wanted. She wanted to have Will to keep Karen's seat warm before she eventually took him down from his spot. It was cunning, and rather underhanded, and exactly what I had expected from Agatha. I wasn't entirely comfortable with these kinds of schemes, but ultimately accepted it since we weren't actually doing anything illegal.

"So, would you like me to train Karen so that she could overcome Will?" I asked to confirm.

"Naturally, but don't tunnel vision on just him." She replied, "She still has to win the Indigo Conference after all, and I'll be damned if Shin and all those other competitors don't participate in next year's Indigo Conference against Karen. She has to beat them all." Then Agatha's gaze turned sharp.

"And you can't afford to get kicked out of the Elite Four as well. I'm sure you don't need this old lady to remind you, but as I'm sure you figured out by now, I need both you and Karen to stay in the Elite Four." She admitted, and that got me curious.

"Didn't think you valued me so highly." I joked but turned serious as I saw Agatha's lack of humour. "...And why do you want me to stay in the Elite Four? I thought all you cared about was Karen."

"That's true, but you're important to my plans as well. After all, I'm sure you will be sharing your influence with Karen in the future." She said with a wry grin, before she teleported out of the Plateau, leaving me standing there alone and flabbergasted.

For fuck's sake.