What the Wind Carries [Pokémon Black and White 2 fanfiction]

49| Champion's Approach

Before the gates closed, I took one last look behind me. I saw Rosa and Hugh waving at me, and I raised my hand to wave back. Before I could, the gates swung closed, closing with a soft click. I heard a latch fall into place, meaning that the door had been locked. It dawned on me that the guard was actually serious when he said I couldn't leave until I had won or lost. There was no going back now. I turned around and got a good look at where I was.

   I was standing in an open, circular room. The tall stone fences encircled the room's circumference, and the last few rays of sunlight spilled over the fence's top, painting the room with warms shades of orange and yellow. Deep shadows were cast wherever the light couldn't reach. I technically wasn't indoors, I was still outside. Even so, I heard no sound other than the soft howl of the wind. I felt utterly alone in this place.

   On the room's far side were four short flights of stairs that led up into darkened archways built into the mountain behind the League building. Each archway was a different color. From left to right they were purple, black, pink, and orange. I figured that the colors had something to do with the type that each Elite specialized in. In the center of the room was a huge granite statue of a hooded figure, a Pokémon of some sort next to it. The statue was so weathered that I couldn't tell what the carved Pokémon was supposed to be. There was an old plaque mounted upon the statue's base, and I saw that there were words on it.

   "In order to enter the Champion's Approach, four trials of great power must be faced. To the west lies the one who has studied the tactics of the Ghost-type. To the northwest lies the one who dares to dabble in the activities of the Dark-type. To the northeast lies the one who basks in the knowledge of the Psychic-type. And to the east lies the one who learns the styles of the Fighting-type. All four must be defeated to reach the fifth. All four must be defeated to enter the Champion's Approach."

   "Champion's Approach, huh? If that isn't a fancy-sounding title, I don't know what is..." I said to myself. It'd only make sense that I would have to defeat all of them before I could battle the Champion, I was sure they didn't need a sign explaining that. That led to my first decision.

   Who to battle first..? Every one of the Elite types had a pretty common weakness, and I had a Pokémon for almost all of them. Soul could handle Fighting and Ghost, and Lilith could take care of Ghost as well along with Psychic if I played my cards right. The only one I could have trouble with was Dark since I didn't have any Fighting moves of my own. I would have to settle for pure power and stab moves to get past that particular Elite. I decided to go with my gut on this one and chose Ghost. It was the first type mentioned.

   The hall past the purple archway was pitch black. It was so dark that I had to keep one hand on the wall to make sure I wouldn't get turned around or something. This blackness continued far a lot longer than I expected and I began to wonder how deep into the mountain the Elite's arena was. I became so used to the dark that I thought I was imagining things when the hall gradually lightened. The light's source soon became evident.