Another new addition to the suit were small foam-filled feet, mainly for cushioning as Pikachu ran and walked. In addition to the foam, though, his feet and front paws now also had springs built in. They were kept locked in a coiled up position, but upon release through Malcolm's remote, Pikachu got an initial burst of height; it was enough to jump clear over Malcolm's head if Pikachu jumped as the springs were released. Once the springs were released, Pikachu also gained an extra bounce to his movements, giving him even more of an edge in his agility. The final new addition in Pikachu's new suit was an upgrade to the TENS unit built into his costume. Besides being hooked up to Pikachu as a disciplinary device, the TENS unit now had hook-ups in his paws. Via controls on Malcolm's remote, Pikachu could now deliver anywhere from a mild to a very nasty shock to anything -- or anyone -- he was touching. With all these new abilities, in addition to their continued training to make the best of them, Pikachu was now a formidable battle opponent.
The remaining month before the tournament was spent doing extra-hard training to perfect Pikachu's battle reflexes and to perfect the use of his new abilities. To avoid exhaustion and burnout, Malcolm and Pikachu took the final week before the tournament to relax and rest to keep their strength and morale up. In that final week, Malcolm received many e-mail messages from trainers who had become fans of his and Pikachu's from all over, asking him if he and Pikachu planned to attend and compete in this year's tournament. Malcolm didn't want to seem rude, so he responded to all of the messages he received, assuring them he would. In addition to new trainers, Malcolm received e-mail from friends of his as well. One of the messages was from Paul and Charmander. They both wished Malcolm and Pikachu the best of luck in the tournament, but Paul made sure to add in a bit of friendly rivalry, teasing that Malcolm and Pikachu didn't stand a chance to beat them! Another message was from his friend who got him interested in the idea of training pokemon in the first place. He told Malcolm how impressed with his progress he was, and he hoped to see Malcolm bring back a victory from his first tournament. Malcolm even received a message from Scyther, who told Malcolm (in his usual long-winded fashion) that he would be at the tournament, and he was looking forward to seeing how far Malcolm and Pikachu had progressed. Scyther said he would also be at the tournament -- watching it, since he couldn't participate -- and said he had a present for Malcolm, which he would give to Malcolm when he saw him.
The first day of the tournament finally rolled around, and Malcolm and Pikachu flew out to the location where the tournament was being held. (Pikachu had to ride in the cargo hold in an animal carrier, to both his annoyance and pleasure.) During the flight, Malcolm looked over the brochure he had printed out for the tournament. It was being held at a league-owned complex, made up of a huge hotel with an attached convention center. Since they were privately owned by the league, heavily restricted attendance could be assured. Upon arriving at the airport, Malcolm and Pikachu took a taxi to the center. There was a huge commotion outside as many trainers and their pokemon and even more fans arrived, crowding into the reception area. Malcolm put Pikachu into his leash and harness, and after grabbing his luggage led Pikachu in through the bustling crowd outside.
As they walked in, Malcolm was dumbfounded. The entry lobby was gigantic, probably the size of a football stadium. Further entrance was barred by a large registration desk, and Malcolm and Pikachu went over to register. After paying the necessary fees and filling out the paperwork, Malcolm and Pikachu were not only officially registered for both the pokemon show and battle competitions, but were also given a room to stay in at the hotel. With their registration complete, they could walk further in and get a better look around. The lobby definitely had a convention feel to it, Malcolm thought to himself. League officials had set up booths, selling official DVD copies of past years' matches and providing order forms to pre-order copies of this year's. Trainers and fans alike had set up booths to sell posters, buttons, pins, and other assorted memorabilia to commemorate the event -- and make some extra money, of course. Some trainers were even selling "personal training" videos with their pokemon -- they were basically porn, of course, which reminded Malcolm why the restricted attendance was such a good thing.
After checking a schedule he picked up from the registration desk, Malcolm realized with a start that the pokemon show would be starting in about an hour. He decided that dropping off the luggage in the room first would be a good plan of action, so he and Pikachu headed over to the elevators leading to the hotel rooms. Malcolm checked his room key -- he and Pikachu were in room 2840 on the 28th floor -- and took the elevator up to their floor. Malcolm opened the door to their room, and his eyes widened at the sight. It wasn't just a hotel room, it was a three room palatial suite with all the amenities he could have ever hoped for. The suite consisted of a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchen -- all fully stocked -- plus a balcony overseeing the pool. Being in a bit of a rush for time, though, his enjoyment of the room would have to wait. After dropping the luggage off, Malcolm and Pikachu headed back down to the convention floor.
The pokemon show was being held in a large conference hall off the main lobby. As he and Pikachu entered, the doorman stopped him. He looked at them for a moment, then smiled.
"You must be Malcolm and Pikachu, right?" Malcolm nodded, holding up his admission badge so the doorman could see.
"That's right."
"Good, good. Here, take these." The doorman reached in a large box next to him, pulling out a small stack of index cards and a marker, handing them to Malcolm.
"Thank you, but... what are they for?" Malcolm asked, confused. The doorman just grinned.
"Trust me, you'll be needing them. Most trainers here do. See, they're for autographs. Say, uh... could you start out with one for me? I'm a huge fan of yours," he admitted. Malcolm laughed, happily signing one for the doorman. "Thank you so much. Oh! I guess you'll be wanting to know which booth you'll be in. Let's see," the doorman said as he picked up a clipboard next to him, looking it over. "Ah. You two will be in booth 46. Just head right down this row here, when you get to the cross-aisle just go right, and you'll see it. Good luck!" Malcolm nodded, and he and Pikachu set off down the aisles. It didn't take long, however, before the fans walking around the show realized who it was.
"Hey, aren't you Malcolm?" one fan asked. "You are! Hey, can I have an autograph?"
"Malcolm and Pikachu?" another fan echoed. "Oh, wow! Can I have one, too?" The other trainers around chuckled as they looked at the flabbergasted Malcolm -- they had all already gotten the same treatment earlier, and it was always amusing to them to watch another trainer get mobbed by rabid fans.
By the time Malcolm was done handing out autographs, he was down to about three cards left, and the judges had already started to walk around, observing the pokemon. Wasting no more time, he practically ran (which startled Pikachu slightly, as he ran to keep up) down the aisles, quickly finding their booth. Malcolm lifted Pikachu up onto the table, and he pulled two inflatable balls out of his pocket. He had specifically made sure to check the rules to make sure pokemon were allowed to interact with props. They were, and Malcolm had seen some other pokemon on the way playing with various things. Malcolm blew the balls up. They were brightly colored and they looked like beach balls, but they were much smaller -- about the size of a dodge ball. He put them on the table next to Pikachu.
"All right, Pikachu, do your stuff!" Once Pikachu had the balls set up where he wanted them, he climbed up onto one ball, beginning to bound back and forth between them with great agility. As luck would have it, the two judges -- one male, and one female -- happened to be walking by behind Malcolm at that very moment. Malcolm was busy watching Pikachu. "Great job, Pikachu, keep it up!"
"Yes, please do," the male judge said, startling Malcolm. He spun around to face the judges, startled.
"Ah! I'm sorry, I didn't even notice you walk up," Malcolm apologized.
"That's all right, really. Your Pikachu is quite the acrobat," the female judge commented with a grin. Malcolm just chuckled. The judges observed Pikachu a bit more closely, and after jotting some notes down on their clipboards, they walked off down the aisle to judge more pokemon. Malcolm grinned, leaning down to whisper to Pikachu.
"You know, buddy, I think we're going to do pretty well in this competition!"
About an hour and a half later, the two judges from earlier approached a microphone on a stage at the front of the hall. As they walked up, most of the noise in the hall quieted down.
"We now have a list of the winning pokemon!" the male judge announced. This was met with applause from the hall. As it quieted down, he resumed. "If you are called for an award, please come up to the stage with your pokemon to accept the award." A Japanese trainer and his Umbreon won four of the quadruped awards; the other awards for quadruped pokemon went to various other pokemon. Malcolm was only half paying attention until they got to the bipedal pokemon awards. Once they did, he started to listen a bit more closely. The female judge had by this point picked up the presentation.
"The best non-furred costume construction with the most accurate representation of a pokemon goes to... trainer Malcolm and his Pikachu!" The crowd applauded, and Malcolm was thrilled as he and Pikachu headed up to the stage to receive their award. As he and Pikachu walked up on stage, shaking the judges' hands, the female judge took the microphone again. "Malcolm and Pikachu have received the first place award for best display of agility in a bipedal pokemon as well. Give them a hand!" The audience continued applauding, and the male judge handed Malcolm an envelope with his prize in it. Malcolm thanked the judges, waved at the audience, and he and Pikachu went back to their booth. Once they got there, they were giddy with excitement. Malcolm peeked in the envelope, finding a small assortment of point and item cards within. "A pretty good prize," Malcolm thought!
Malcolm and Pikachu were too excited to really pay much attention to the remainder of the award ceremony. Once the final award had been given out, a good number of the trainers and their pokemon began to head for the doors.
"Don't forget," the judges announced over the noise, "that battles won't be starting until tomorrow! We suggest you trainers and your pokemon take your pokemon out into the main hall; there will be photo shoots, interviews, and other assorted events taking place, and it is a great chance for you and your pokemon to meet your fans!" Malcolm and Pikachu decided to wait by their booth for the crowd to disperse a bit before they thought about making their way out. It took about twenty minutes, but the crowd finally died down a bit, and Malcolm and Pikachu headed towards the door.
On their way out, a voice stopped Malcolm.
"Your name is Malcolm, is it?" Malcolm turned around to find a somewhat old man standing behind him. Malcolm nodded.
"That's right, sir. What can I do for you?"
"I don't know if you remember or not, but I sent you an e-mail some time ago. I was the one who recommended the foam feet for cushioning for your Pikachu." Malcolm thought for a moment, and did recall that message.
"Oh, right! I remember your mail; didn't you say that you used to be a trainer once, too?" The old man smiled.
"That I did. I'm surprised you actually remember my message. I'm sure you get more than enough fan mail to keep you busy." Malcolm laughed.
"I do get quite a few messages. But let me thank you first! As you can see, your suggestion was very helpful," Malcolm said as he pointed at Pikachu, whose new suit did indeed have the foam-filled feet the older trainer suggested.
"Good, good, I'm so glad I could be of help. You see, long ago when I was a trainer, I too had a Pikachu. We were never that good, but we enjoyed what we did. But about two years after I started training, my Pikachu wanted to quit. He couldn't handle the battles and tournaments and pressure anymore, so I was forced to cut my training career short." Malcolm nodded.
"I'm sorry to hear that," Malcolm said consolingly. The old trainer nodded.
"Oh, that's all far in the past now. I became a fan of yours and Pikachu's after I watched your very first battle. You two remind me of me and my Pikachu so much back when we first started battling. That's why I want you to have these, Malcolm." The trainer reached in his pocket, and pulled out a small stack of point, field, and item cards, handing them to Malcolm. Malcolm's eyes widened.
"Oh, I couldn't take these!"
"I insist," the man said, placing them in Malcolm's hand. "They'll do me no good collecting dust in my desk drawer, and I see great potential in you and Pikachu. You two have a wonderful bond, and a strong dedication to do well. Take them, and win this tournament not only for yourselves, but for me and your other fans!" Malcolm nodded; he had only to look at Pikachu to tell he, too, was as inspired as he was to do well now.
"I can't thank you enough!" Malcolm said. The man grinned.
"You can thank me by winning this tournament. Now run along, I'm sure you've other fans waiting for you." Malcolm nodded, and after thanking the man one last time, he and Pikachu headed out into the main hall.
By that time, the excitement and the crowds had simmered down slightly from what they were earlier. It was still crowded, but no longer chaotic. Malcolm now finally had a chance to relax. Thanks to the mobs of fans and his anticipation of the pokemon show, Malcolm didn't have much of a chance to get a good look at any of the other trainers or their pokemon earlier. Now, however, Malcolm could take the time to lean against a wall and observe some of the other trainers and their pokemon as they walked around the lobby as well. Pikachu stood next to him obediently, happy to get a little break from having to perform.
A trainer and his Zangoose were the first to walk by. Zangoose was a bipedal pokemon, much the same as Pikachu, and appeared to have mostly the same body structure. The biggest difference was that, unlike Pikachu's yellow rubber costume, Zangoose's was a furry costume. It was all pure white fur, except for patches of red fur on his front paws, a zigzag stripe which started in the middle of his chest and continued down around and ended on his right side, and his left ear, which continued down his face into another zigzag stripe which continued up and around his left eye. (The eyes of Zangoose's suit, like Pikachu's, were opaque. They were mainly there to keep the pokemon looking how they were supposed to look.) Zangoose's suit's fur looked somewhat stiff, though. Zangoose had large claws on all four of his paws, but they were made from soft foam, making them quite safe. The biggest thing Pikachu's suit had over Zangoose's, however, was the face. Pikachu's facial prosthetic allowed him to speak and convey emotion and facial expressions very well. Zangoose's face, however, seemed to be sculpted into the suit, giving him a permanent angry-looking scowl.
The next trainer to walk by led a Flareon on a leash behind him. Like Zangoose, Flareon's suit was also made of fur, but this trainer worked much harder on Flareon's suit than Zangoose's trainer did on his... and it showed. Flareon was a quadruped, and the first one Malcolm had really seen up close. As far as Malcolm could tell, Flareon's back legs were wrapped inside the suit much the same way Pikachu's were, forcing Flareon to walk on his knees as his feet. Malcolm guessed his arms were wrapped up in a similar manner, rendering Flareon's elbows as his front paws. The way the suit was padded, however, made both sets of limbs look like an animal's legs, and large soft looking furry feet padded Flareon's steps. The majority of the fur on Flareon's body was dark red and short; but Flareon's huge, fluffy tail, a large tuft of fur surrounding his neck, and a smaller tuft of fur on his head were made with long, cream colored fur. Malcolm was halfway tempted to run over and ask if he could give the Flareon a hug, but he decided against it as the trainer continued walking.
A Torkoal and his trainer were the next ones to pass by. Torkoal was another quadruped pokemon, but his suit looked like it was made out of rubber, like Pikachu's. Torkoal's body was mostly bright orange, with some grey rings around his long neck and in the middle of each of his four legs. Torkoal's most defining feature, though, was his shell. He looked like a giant turtle, his four legs and his head emerging from holes in the shell. The shell looked like dark grey solid rock, with small indentations which softly glowed with a dark red light. A tiny bit of steam shot out of Torkoal's nostrils as he walked, and a slightly larger amount erupted from small holes in the shell. Malcolm was momentarily impressed that Torkoal was able to carry such a heavy rock shell on his back, but as they approached Malcolm could see more clearly that it was made of foam. It was a very hard foam, though, and was meticulously sculpted and painted to resemble rock. Malcolm had to admit, it worked!
The next pokemon to walk by was none other than Scyther! Malcolm called him over.
"Hey, Scyther!" Scyther looked, and smiled upon seeing Malcolm. Scyther came over, standing next to Malcolm and Pikachu. "How are you doing?"
"Scytherrrrr..." Scyther answered. Malcolm sighed. It slipped his mind that Scyther wasn't allowed to talk in public.
"That's right, I forgot. Say, how would you like to come up to my room and talk for a while?" Scyther nodded happily.
"Scy!" Malcolm led Scyther and Pikachu to the elevators, and the three got in, now alone in the elevator. Once the doors closed, Scyther reached into his costume's front pocket, pulling out a small set of cards. "Here, Malcolm," Scyther said as he handed the cards to him. "Here's that present I promised you last week! I picked up your pending point cards from the league for you, and I also threw in a couple of cards of my own for you, too!" Malcolm smiled -- he was making out like a bandit today as far as cards and point cards were going!
"Thank you so much, Scyther! You shouldn't have, really!"
"No, no, it's my pleasure, really," Scyther said with a grin.
The elevator arrived on Malcolm's floor, and the three headed to Malcolm's room. As they walked in, Scyther stopped for a moment.
"Er, Malcolm... could I possibly ask you of a favor?"
"Of course, Scyther, anything! You've done so much for me, what can I give you in return?" Scyther hesitated a moment, then (had Malcolm been able to see his face under the suit) blushed.
"I haven't had the chance to go all day, and... well, could I use your bathroom?" he asked, a bit embarrassed. Malcolm just laughed.
"Of course, by all means! It's right in there," Malcolm said, nodding towards the bathroom. Before Scyther could go, however, Pikachu ran over to Scyther, latching onto his leg. Scyther stopped and looked down at Pikachu, looking back up at Malcolm, confused.
"What's this about, Pikachu?" Scyther asked. Malcolm chuckled.
"I think he wants to go with you," Malcolm guessed. A happy "Pika!" confirmed his guess. Pikachu had taken a liking to Scyther ever since their first battle. "If that's all right with you, of course," Malcolm added as an afterthought. Scyther shrugged.
"Sure, that would be fine. Besides, after seeing some of those suits today, I could use a bit more than just going to the bathroom," he said with a grin. Malcolm chuckled; with that, Scyther and Pikachu went into the bathroom to go about their business...
Scyther and Pikachu went into the bathroom, and Scyther closed the door behind them. Scyther giggled giddily.
"Let me just use the bathroom quickly, and then if you want, we can do some other things," he said to Pikachu. Pikachu shook his head, pulling on Scyther's leg. "What, what is it?" he asked. Pikachu responded by looking up at Scyther, holding his mouth open, using his paw to point at it. Scyther looked confused for a moment, then realized what Pikachu wanted him to do. Scyther grinned, pushing Pikachu over backwards onto his rump. Pikachu landed with a start, and Scyther quickly straddled Pikachu, kneeling down slightly to pin Pikachu to the floor. With that, Scyther took hold of his cock as best he could with his blades and aimed it at Pikachu's face, piss beginning to stream out. Scyther wasn't kidding -- he hadn't gone all day, and he really did have to go. Urine gushed out, into Pikachu's mouth and all over his face and head; Pikachu grinned happily, trying to swallow as much as he could, but the majority of it ended up dripping down his face and body and onto the floor. The stream finally began to slow, and Scyther sighed, relieved.
Pikachu, however, wasn't done there. He sat up as much as he could -- it was enough to allow him to get his muzzle onto Scyther's cock. Scyther was taken slightly by surprise, and Pikachu began to use his tongue, playing with it. It didn't take long for Scyther to get hard, and Pikachu closed his muzzle around Scyther's cock, sucking on it softly as he continued playing with it with his tongue. Scyther moaned softly, and moved closer to Pikachu's muzzle. Pikachu reached up, using his paws to fondle Scyther's exposed balls, and before long Scyther dripped pre into Pikachu's mouth, his body tensing as he erupted in an orgasm shortly thereafter. Pikachu swallowed it down obediently, then nuzzled Scyther's belly, grinning with a soft, happy "Pika!" Scyther just giggled, and knocked Pikachu over on his back. Scyther decided to return the favor -- since he didn't have any hands or paws to use, he used the tips of his blades to softly and carefully tickle Pikachu. Pikachu began to giggle, and Scyther grinned, leaning down to take Pikachu's own (already hard) cock into his own muzzle. Pikachu whined with a soft "pikaaa..." as Scyther returned the favor, licking and sucking on Pikachu's cock. Ordinarily, Pikachu would have to hold back as long as he could for battle training, but it felt good to him to be able to let go for once, exploding into Scyther's muzzle. Pikachu laid back, panting softly, and Scyther just grinned, Pika-seed still dripping from his muzzle.
"That was great, Pikachu! But I think maybe we should get cleaned up."
"Pika," Pikachu agreed as he sat up, and the two began to get cleaned up.
While Scyther and Pikachu were busy in the bathroom, Malcolm dug his laptop out from his luggage, turning it on and connecting to the wireless internet in the room. Malcolm had set his start page some time back to Pikachu's standings page; he was surprised to find as it loaded that the page had already been updated with the information on Pikachu's win in the pokemon show earlier. Malcolm idly began to look through some of the other standings pages to waste time, not really looking for anything in particular. He chuckled as he came across Charmander's page, and Malcolm was about to begin looking for Scyther's when Scyther and Pikachu, who were by now all finished and cleaned up, came out of the bathroom. Pikachu bounded around the room, exploring, and Scyther walked over to see what Malcolm was looking at.
"What's that, Malcolm?" Scyther asked.
"Hmm? Oh, the pokemon standings pages. I was just looking up a few things. I'm impressed how quickly they updated Pikachu's page after the pokemon show!" Malcolm said. Scyther nodded.
"Oh, the league is very good at updating the pokemon standings almost immediately after any kind of league-sanctioned event. The standings pages are one of the best ways you can get up-to-date, accurate information on other trainers and pokemon, you know."
"So I see," Malcolm said as he finished scrolling through the list. "Say, Scyther, I didn't see your page in here. Where is it?"
"Oh, I don't have a standings page," Scyther explained. "See, me and the other random operative pokemon only have a minor mention on the league page detailing random battles. About all of the information they give for us are our win and loss stats."
"Well, that's not very fair," Malcolm said sympathetically. Scyther just shrugged, nonchalantly.
"It's all right. Nobody at the league really gives me and the other random operatives much thought since we're not allowed to take part in official tournament competitions due to unfair advantages." Scyther noticed the saddened look on Malcolm's face, and smiled. "I don't mind, though, I really don't," Scyther added in an attempt to make Malcolm feel better about it. "It just makes me happy doing what I do! Although I do sometimes wish I had a trainer of my own. But that's just the way it is, I guess. Anyway, thanks for the use of your bathroom... and of Pikachu, too," he added with a chuckle. "I'm going to head back down to the lobby now. I've been getting lots of comments on my suit, and I just love the attention," he said with a grin.
"All right, Scyther, it was great seeing you." As Scyther walked to the door, Malcolm thought for a moment. Scyther was just about to open the door, when Malcolm called out to him. "Hey, Scyther!" Scyther turned around to look at Malcolm.
"Yes?"
"Listen... if you get lonely or just want somebody to talk to... if you need anything at all, Scyther, feel free to come up here with us." Scyther smiled in gratitude.
"Thank you, Malcolm. I really appreciate it." Malcolm nodded, and with that, Scyther was off.
Pikachu was still busy exploring the room, and Malcolm took the opportunity to take all the new cards he received today out of his pocket, spreading them out on his bed and sorting them. Once he was done inventorying them, he found he had a total of 31 points, a Playground 1 field card, some weather cards (Rain, Wind, Drought, and Sunshine), some item cards (a Fan and two Balls 1 cards), and an Oil Slick 3 hazard card. "Not a bad day's haul," Malcolm thought amusedly to himself. He squared up the stack and stuck it back in his pocket once more, looking forward to being able to use them tomorrow and battle with Pikachu for their very first tournament victory!