Episode 2: Let's See Brock Perform Live!


"How do I look?" Nikki asked as she came downstairs in a sparkling blue, silver, and white outfit with light blue trim and sapphires.

"You look beautiful, sweetheart." Nikki's father replied as Nikki modeled the sparkling costume. "But you'll always be beautiful to me, no matter what you physically look like."

Nikki just giggled. "Being a coordinator and vlogger has its perks--I got this from Starlight Harmony to review. It's part of their upcoming Prophecy collection."

"I see." Nikki's father smiled. "If that is the 'ice' of 'fire, ice and lightning', I can't wait to see what the other three coords look like."

Then, a thought occurred to him. "Did they already unveil the Lugia coord in the collection?"

"Not yet--the complete collection is twelve coords--three each for the three birds and Lugia." Nikki explained. "What I'm wearing is the first Articuno coord--Sapphire Quetzal."

She shepherded the Fennekin by her side. "Come on, Rena--it's time to go."

"Good luck, Nikki..." Nikki's father gave her one last hug. "Win or lose, you'll always be my superstar."

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"Hi everyone, this is Nikki." Nikki addressed her PokeNav camera. "Rena and I are on our way to the Contest Hall now. Even though the Contest is not technically till tomorrow, Brock has promised a private storytelling show to inspire us coordinators."

As she rounded the corner, she made a grand gesture to some of the shops nearby an elegant building in the distance. "If a coordinator needs a costume in a pinch, some of the brands have a shop nearby the Contest Hall itself, and all the brands have an outlet inside the Hall."

She zoomed in on one of the shops that stood across the street from her. "This one is Spring Clover, an Exotic and Rugged brand that draws on Celtic motifs. Not surprisingly, on the few times Brock did compete in a contest, he wore Spring Clover stuff."

Rena yipping snapped her to attention. "We're getting close to the Contest Hall, so I have to turn the camera off here--recording in the main hall is not allowed. I'll have another entry about the Contest proper and how I did next time."

With that, she turned off VideoNav. Good thing video is saved to the cloud--I can edit my footage in the Pokemon Center tech lounge or the Hall's computer lab later.

A familiar voice called "Nikki!" as she arrived.

"Karina!" Nikki hurried to meet her friend, who now wore a beautiful sparkling magenta costume with rose trim and deep pink pearls. "You look great!"

"As do you." Karina replied. "Brock's still getting ready, so if you haven't checked in, you have time to do that. I already have my ID number, so I'm gonna go relax in the lounge until we can go in the main hall."

"Once I check in, I have vlog footage to edit." Nikki replied as she started towards the front desk. "It shouldn't take long."

She dug out her trainer card and the Contest invitation. "Nikki Alexander, to compete in the Pewter Conference, please."

"All right..." The attendant swiped Nikki's trainer card, then gave Nikki a ribbon with an ID number on it. "Your ID number for the contest is P-72333343." she explained as she gave back Nikki's trainer card. "Feel free to use any facilities here while you wait for the main hall doors to open. Remember that recording video or taking pictures inside the main hall is not allowed without permission."

"I understand." Nikki replied. "Thank you!"

"Good luck in the Contest!" the attendant smiled back as Nikki started off towards the computer lab.

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Nikki smiled as she and Karina stepped into the glittering neon lights of the main hall. "No matter how many times I come in here, it's always exciting."

"Did you get your vlog posted?" Karina asked as she led Nikki over to two empty seats near the front of the auditorium.

"Yeah--posted it minutes before they let us in." Nikki replied as she led Rena to one of the empty seats. "You're gonna love this--any time Brock performs is an event not to be missed."

"I figure that if he's won some Lore Stages and Fantasy Stages, he has to be good at spinning a yarn or two." Karina smiled. "But this is the first time I've seen him do it live."

The excited chatter began to quiet as the stage lights flashed a five minute warning. "It's starting!" Nikki gasped as the other coordinators finished their conversations and quieted their Pokemon.

The evening star is shining bright... a familiar voice sang.
So make a wish and hold on tight...
There's magic in the air tonight...

The lights on the stage revealed Brock in a familiar black, green, and orange outfit, playing the song on a well loved black acoustic guitar. And anything can happen... he sang over an expectant C chord.

With that, he started his first planned tale of the night. "Long ago, there was an old man who had three sons. The two elder sons looked after the farm, and they liked dressing up in fancy clothes and fantasizing about being rich. But the youngest, whose name was Jack, liked to go off into the forest to collect mushrooms. When he was home, he spent most of his time sitting by the great kitchen stove..."

To Be Continued...