With my victory declared, I walked out onto the arena towards Gary as he dropped to his knees in frustration, anger, shame, and a few other emotions that I could feel radiating from him.
"Good job." I told Regirock as I passed it, patting it's arm at the same time.
"Beep boop."
I recalled it to it's pokeball before continuing on towards Gary, who was still wallowing in his defeat.
"What am I doing wrong?" He asked as I approached him.
"WHY ARE YOU ALWAYS BETTER THAN I AM?!"
"..."
"Because..." I said slowly. "Like your father, you are a loser."
"!!!"
Gary looked up at me sharply with indignation and fury in his eyes as he lunged at me suddenly.
"Too slow." I said while easily sidestepping him, and sticking my foot out to trip him.
"Guh!" Gary groaned as he fell to the ground.
"We've battled three times now, and you've lost all three while the gap between us only grows larger. Why can't you just accept that?" I asked him.
"So you just want everyone to accept that you're better than them?!" Gary demanded irritably.
"Well I have proven it, THREE times, then yeah." I answered honestly.
"You-!"
"Do you want to know WHY Blue is such a loser?" I asked him suddenly, cutting off whatever Gary had been about to say next.
"Why?" He spat.
"Because, Blue is one of the STRONGEST trainers in the entire planet. Yet he has spent the majority of his life fixated on the one person he cannot seem to beat. Blue is a loser, because he focuses on the one thing he cannot have, and not everything he CAN do."
This time Gary didn't quite react as I spoke, and I was completely aware of all the eyes and ears on us as we 'talked'.
"So what you're saying-"
"Is that your father is a loser because he chooses to be. And if you decide to go down the same path, then you will be a loser as well. I don't mind battling, but there is a difference between friendly competition and obsession."
My piece said, I turned and walked away to leave Gary to think about everything I told him.
"Wasn't that a bit harsh?" Chloe asked as she joined me to go and finish our lunch.
"Maybe. But I really don't want to see Gary go down the same road as his father. Red may have been absent for the last seventeen years, but he had a genuine reason to leave and stay away. Blue on the other hand was more than likely just going to train to try and defeat Red, especially since all it took was Red becoming Champion for him to return.
"Growing up, Gary was basically arrogance and cockiness personified, even when I always outscored him on our exams. The biggest problem with those kinds of personality traits is that it becomes incredibly hard to acknowledge defeat, and they like to set out to 'prove' themselves by being 'better' than the one who defeated them. Gary has far too much potential to just spend his whole life trying to outdo me."
"..."
"Chloe was silent as I finished speaking, which was just as well since we just got back to the Pokemon Center. Thankfully the plate of sandwiches was still there. Unfortunately they were definitely cold by now.
Oh well. Beggers, choosers and all that.
I quickly scarfed down the sandwiches while Brock's siblings rejoined us to eat their lunch as well. And right as I put the last bite in my mouth, Red sat down beside me as well.
"That was harsh." He began, prompting me to cock a brow at him before he added, "But it was also necessary."
"Its like I just told Chloe." I said after swallowing the last bite. "Gary has too much potention to spend his life measuring himself against me."
Red nodded in agreement beside me as he said, "I was thinking something similar when I made Blue the captain of my Elite Four. With everything we've talked about before, it was too much of a waste to let him aimlessly wander in the pursuit of getting strong enough to face me. Thankfully after we explained what was going on, and the professor told him about how Gary was almost killed on the SS. Anne, he agreed to stay until everything was settled."
"I was wondering how you managed to pull that off." I said while recalling the announcement that came out the day after Red and Blue's battle, the one that stated that Blue was the new captain of the Elite Four. Now their members included Lorelei, Bruno, Agatha, and Blue.
"I think I actually feel sorry for anyone who challenges the Elite Four from now on." I commented while thinking of their collective power. Which truthfully consisted almost entirely of Blue and Red.
"Ha! Well, the Elite Four and Champion are supposed the ultimate test of strength for a trainer. Though I had felt like the standard for trainers and pokemon has fallen in recent years. Its probably why so many criminal groups have become so powerful in such a short amount of time. That's why one of my primary goals as Champion is to make typical trainers and League trainers stronger."
"Putting the Gym Leaders on probabtion." I said, recalling what Erika told me on the cycling road.
"Exactly. From what I've seen the Gym Leaders have become too lax not only in the management of their respective territories, but also in the trainers they give their Badges to. In today's world trainers are seen more as celebrities than the combatants and explorers they are supposed to be.
"A trainer should be someone willing to scale the tallest mountains, dive in the deepest seas, and unflinchingly take on any challenge presented before them. From what I've seen since returning, very few trainers embody what it means to to truly be a pokemon trainer. Even if my policies result in the mjaority of Kanto and Johto trainers quitting, then I would rather have those few elites than an army of cowards that would flee in the face of adversity."
"I can see that." I said while thinking back to the battle on the SS. Anne, where I had to use my aura to inspire the trainers on board just to join the conflict. If I hadn't done that, then they all probably would have tried to flee before being caught and dealt with by Team Rocket.
"Yeah... Even with Blue and I actually working together for once, we still have a LOT of work ahead of us." Red said tiredly.
"Yep. And with that said, you should probably get back to it." I told him, making my father groan as he stood and begrudgingly went back to work.
There was still plenty to do regarding the discovery of the prehistoric pokemon below us, especially since Red would need to draft numerous laws specifically to protect them, as well as the arrangements to create a whole new Safari Zone. And that was without all of the changes he was making to the League before even coming here.
After Red left I went to visit Lucario and spend some time with him, as he was still resting from his battle against Regirock. Even though his actual injuries had healed already under Joy, Chansey, and Gardevoir's care, he was still being forced to stay in bed by them for some proper rest.
I also brought him some specially made pokeblocks to help speed up his recovery, drizzled in chocolate syrup of course.
After taking our break for long enough, I brought Brock's siblings back to the arena for some after-lunch exercise. Namely by training our pokemon together.
Obviously I didn't push them too hard, as they and their pokemon were still young, and not all of them wanted to become trainers one day. But I did try to make a game out of our training to keep them occupied, right up until I felt several more auras rapidly approaching the campsite, along with Brock and the others returning from underground.
"Alright. Time to call it for the day, so go and greet your brother." I told them, and all of the kids took off to do just that.
While they went to greet Brock, I went to go greet Giana and others of Arceus Aegis as they flew in on the airship.
"Welcome." I called out to her after they had landed, and the cargo bay doors opened. Standing front and center was Giana of course, but with her was Leaf, Ariana, Domino, Sonia and Jessie.
"Hello Ace." Giana said while flashing a genuine feminine smile, which promptly faded as she adopted a serious expression.
"Shall we get right to business?"
The next few hours went by like a whirlwind to me, and I had a killer headache by the time it was all over as Giana poured over every single piece of information about the underground, as well as our plans regarding what was going to happen to it for the future.
Thankfully I wasn't Brock, who was getting grilled by her right after he returned from an expedition down there.
It was well after dinner time when she finally let us all go after we came a collective agreement regarding the management of the prehistoric world.
Basically, the League would be the primary managers of the Safari Zone we were going to build through Koga and Brock, while Arceus Aegis, as well as Ace Amenities as the public face of my business that Leaf was going to manage, was going to help fund the operation significantly for a controlling stake in the venture. Basically, I was going to be part owner alongside the League.
On top of that, until the facilities were built and proper security established, Arceus Aegis would also play a role in the protection of the prehistoric pokemon from any poachers and smugglers.
By the time everything was said and done, I was completely mentally exhausted and just ready to eat before crashing into bed with Joy, Chloe and Janine.
"ACE!"
"Huh?" I uttered while turning to look at who had called out to me, which was Misty as she, May and Dawn approached me.
"What are the thrree of you doing here already?" I asked, as I thought they were going to spend another day or two in the Safari Zone before meeting up.
"Obviously we cut our stay in the Safari Zone short and hurried out here once we each found a few more pokemon!" Misty stated irritably.
"How could you Ace?!" Demanded a teary-eyed May as she grabbed the front of my shirt, as if I betrayed her somehow.
"What did I do?" I asked her warily.
"You came out here and made a huge discovery! WITHOUT ME!" May wailed emotionally.
"Oh.... I get it." I said as realization dawned on me, that May was annoyed because footage of the discovery would have been amazing for May's Expeditions.
"If you want you all can go down there with me tomorrow. I'm sure that they won't mind you filming while we explore a little." I told her.
"Really?!" May asked, her attitude doing a complete flip as she looked up at me with sparkling eyes.
"Yeah. I need to make another trip anyways to catch a Relicanth. Brock told us he found a few more of them down there today, so the professor asked me to catch one for him to study after the others gave their permission." I told them while also explaining a bit more about the situation.
"Hmmmm.... I really wanna catch some prehistoric pokemon too..." Misty groaned, since several of them were water types as well, Relicanth, Omanyte and Kabuto.
"But you already caught so many pokemon from the Safari Zone." Dawn pointed out.
"Oh really? She told me about Whooper, Azurill and Wingull. Did you find the Slowpoke you were after as well?"
"Yeah. I also found a Lotad and Shellos, plus I plan to catch a couple Shellder when we go through the Seafoam Islands."
"Why a couple of them?" Chloe asked as she and Janine joined us.
"One to evolve my Slowpoke into Slowbro, and one to evolve into Cloyster." Misty said pointedly.
"Nice. What about you two? Find any more pokemon yourselves?"
"Yep!" May declared happily.
"I found myself both a Munchlax and Aipom along with a Skiddo! One from all the way in Kalos!" May declared excitedly, before calling the grass type goat out for us to see.
"Nice~!" I said while kneeling down to pet it.
Typically the Safari Zone only had pokemon from some of the surrounding regions, Johto, Hoenn and a few from Sinnoh. But they could also get pokemon from the regions that were even further out occasionally. If I recall right, there were even rumors of some Toedscool being brought all the way from Paldea a few years ago in the Safari Zone.
"If you like that, then check out the pokemon I got~!" Dawn declared as she tossed out a few pokeballs. If I recall, she said she got a Venonat, Swinub and Teddiursa yesterday. This time Dawn sent out three okemon she managed to find today, a Murkrow, Spoink and Purrloin.
"Nice ones." I said while looking over Dawn's new pokemon. Though I couldn't but to notice that her Purrloin seemed to have a similar attitude to her Glameow. I couldn't help but to wonder if the two would team up to bully Dawn from now on...
After that we all had a greeting party, where we introduced all of their new pokemon to some of my pokemon, both new and old. Only once that was done was it FINALLY time for dinner, and then bed after a quick bath. Or so I thought.
Apparently the girls decided to make me 'pay' for getting into the trouble after they let me out of their sight. Only it didn't go the way they hoped despite my mental exhaustion, and I was FINALLY able to go to sleep with six VERY satisfied women snuggled up against me in some way.