27 Chapter 27: The Best Generation
Xander and Cynthia stayed in the room after getting dinner, taking the opportunity to fully rest their bodies for the first time in over a week. During the past week, they had worked harder than they had ever done before.
Awakening their hidden potential, dealing with Wild Pokemon acting crazy, and stopping a poacher from disrupting the local ecosystem. Each of those would be draining on their own but all 3 happening right after the other was even more exhausting.
This was also true for their Pokemon who had taken the brunt of the work, fighting off the numerous Pokemon that charged toward them. All 7 had to spend the night under the care of the nurses at the Pokemon Center so they could get back to their full strength.
The next morning, Xander woke up later than usual, it already being 7 am. When he turned to see if the other bed was occupied, he saw the messy posture that Cynthia was laid out in.
"Hehe," Xander laughed when he saw her posture before walking over and putting the blanket over her body. "I'm going to go train for a bit. Get some rest."
Cynthia mumbled something but didn't try to move from the spot. Xander figured that she would probably forget so he wrote down a note and put it over her Pokech so she couldn't miss it.
When he got downstairs, he went to the front counter to speak with one of the nurses on duty. It wasn't Nurse Joy but one of the many other trainers who wanted to get into the medical field and assist at the Pokemon Centers.
"Good morning," the young man greeted Xander with a smile. "You must be one of the two trainers that came in last night and want your Pokemon, right?" the nurse asked politely
"Yep. How'd you know?" Xander asked. Pokemon Centers usually got a lot of attention from trainers going in and out of the place.
"We keep track of younger trainers in Sunyshore. This city isn't exactly the safest place so we do our best to watch over younger trainers in case they go missing for long periods," the nurse explained patiently. He then went on to tell Xander the grittier details when pressed for more information.
Unlike in the game, Sunyshore City before Vulkner took over as Gym Leader was one of Sinnoh's worst cities. Dozens of gangs and poachers ruled the city, taking advantage of young or weak trainers.
Although the Pokemon League wanted to intervene, they couldn't. Gym Leaders were responsible for the city they occupied and the current Gym Leader was in league with several gangs. He allowed them to do as they pleased while paying him a handsome cut. He could not be disposed from his position since he was one of the strongest trainers in Sinnoh, considered to be just below the Elite 4 in strength.
"Does he trouble new trainers trying to get their badges then?" Xander asked, wondering if they would have to deal with some a difficult person.
"Not at all. That is the one thing that the Pokemon League would interfere with if they heard about him doing that," the nurse assured him. "He is pretty lineant. He will only send out a weak Pokemon that some of the poachers find in the wild. Most of them are even newly hatched ones that only know tackle."
Xander frowned when he heard that answer. It was one thing if a Gym Leader was simply lazy. This was plain abuse of Pokemon.
"And the League still doesn't do anything? How can they let him get away with that?" Xander asked in frustration. He was angry at the Gym Leader for doing it and the League for letting it slide.
"That man has serious connections. His brother is the current Champion of Sinnoh while both of his parents have high positions in the League. Anyone who has tried to investigate him has ended up with their Pokemon dead," the nurse shook his head, frustrated with the current situation but there was nothing he could do.
Xander understood that the nurse was in a bad position and didn't try to press him about it. It was not like he was allowing the Gym Leader to do as he pleased. He was a simple nurse who was probably only an Intermediate Trainer.
Xander took his Pokemon and thanked the nurse before heading to the cafeteria where he saw several kids around his age with their Pokemon.
There was an orange-haired girl with a Roselia on her lap, a blonde boy with a black and blue cat-like Pokemon sitting on his lap, a purple-haired girl that had a dark bluish-green, ghost-like Pokémon sleeping on her head, and a red-haired young man that had a Chimchar sitting in a chair next to him. The rest of their Pokemon were around the table and eating their food.
The squad was all laughing and giggling amongst themselves while Xander watched them as he gathered his food. Even though they all looked very different from their appearance in the game and anime since they were much younger, their hair color and the Pokemon next to them let Xander know who each of the group was.
3 of them were future Gym Leaders with one who was so strong that he could be compared to the Elite 4 while the last person was an actual member of the Elite 4.
'So those 4 were friends when they were younger. I heard about Flint and Volkner being friends but didn't expect them to be close with Fantina and Gardenia,' Xander thought while picking up fresh food for his Pokemon and bringing it to a different table. Although he admired them as trainers, only Vulkner was his cup of tea. Gardenia, Flint, and Fantina were very enthusiastic to the point that it seemed draining. Especially, the latter two.
Even though he wasn't planning on talking to them, they did not share the same idea. When the trio saw Xander summon several Pokemon that all looked very different and with most being rare, Fantina couldn't help but walk over.
"That Ninetales is so belle! Where did you find her?" Fantina rushed over to ask about the Pokemon that looked very pretty
"This is Tamamo and I found her in the woods when I was younger," Xander smiled as he explained. "She's is certainly a beauty," Xander complimented his Pokemon while stroking the hair on her head.
"So magnifique! If only she had a Ghost-Type variation," Fantina exclaimed before sighing. Fantina loved beautiful Pokemon even though she specialized in Ghost Pokemon which were not known for their beauty.
Fantina invited herself to sit down and continued to talk with Xander for several minutes. Seeing their friend had ditched them, the trio at the table walked over to try and drag her away. By this time, Cynthia had also walked into the cafeteria to get some breakfast for herself and her Pokemon.
This was the first meeting for most members of Sinnoh's Best Generation, as this was the generation of trainers that would take over half of the Gyms in the Region as well as a position in the Elite 4, the region champion, and 2 members of the Frontier Brains.
Although 3 of those members were missing, the duo had already met Dahlia and would meet the last two members in the future. But all except for Dahlia would battle at least one other member at the Junior Cup in 6 months.
