Journey Through the Dark

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Recent History - Background Story

All was normal in the Pokemon world. Pokemon Trainers would travel the world, collecting gym badges and participating in tournaments to become Pokemon Champion. Everything that you would expect in the Pokemon world. That is, until a little over a year ago.

In the spring of 2019, mysterious groups of people began to appear all over the world. These groups of people would steal Pokemon, kidnap children, and kill anyone and anything that did not comply with their demands. It was soon realized that all of these groups were connected, and their attacks were not completely random.

Soon after these groups appeared, The Association of Light was formed. The goal of The Association of Light was to eliminate these mysterious groups and return the Pokemon world to a state of peace and harmony. At first, The Association of Light only consisted of high-ranking trainers, such as Gym Leaders and the Elite Four of the regions. They soon realized that this was not enough, and so they started to enlist the help of any trainers that would be willing.

It turned out that many, many trainers were willing to join. They did not receive much recognition, but that did not matter to them. There were also other trainers whose talents were recognized and were personally invited to become a part of The Association of Light. These trainers ranked a bit higher than others, and so received special privilages.

It is The Association of Light's goal to eliminate the mysterious group, Team Dark, within the year. It all depends on the trainers within The Association to make that happen.


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You Can Help - The Plot

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You are a Pokemon Trainer that has been personally invited to become a part of The Association of Light. Since this is the case, you have probably been studying at a Pokemon School, and your skills have shown. As you have only been studying and using the schools' Pokemon, you have none of your own, so that is The Association's job to provide you with your first Pokemon.

Once you accept the invitation, you shall be escorted by limo or private jet to Professor Rowan's lab in Sandgem Town, Sinnoh. There, Professor Rowan will provide you with your first Pokemon and the essentials that every Pokemon Trainer should have. From then on out, it is your job to travel the regions and hone your skills, starting with Sinnoh. In Sinnoh, there are fifteen Pokemon Gyms alone.

Along your journey you may be assigned missions by The Association, and you're guaranteed a reward that will be worth your while. Of course, you can't turn down the missions anyways, unless you reach a really high status. If your lucky, you might meet some high ranking members of The Association, such as Red, Gold, or any of the others.


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The Darkness is Growing - Evil Teams

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Team Dusk: Team Dusk is the Kanto branch of Team Dark. It is headed by Lyle Gamon. It is obvious that they are after Mewtwo, and they are currently the most fragile branch of Team Dark. It is believed, and hoped, that they will be defeated soon.[/FONT]

Team Twilight: Team Twilight is the Johto branch of Team Dark. It is headed by Vladimir Tromus, an extremely rich and powerful man. It has been confirmed that they are seeking out Lugia.

Team Stardust: Team Stardust is the Hoenn branch of Team Dark. It is headed by Naomi Rose, a mysterious woman about whom little is known. It has been confirmed that they are in pursuit of Deoxys.

Team Crescenta: Team Crescenta is the Sinnoh branch of Team Dark. It is headed by a silver-haired woman whose identity is unknown. It is believed that they are pursuing Cresselia, but that has not been confirmed.

Team Vortex: Team Vortex is the Unova branch of Team Dark. The identity of its leader is unknown, no one has ever seen him. It is believed that they are after Victini, but that has not been confirmed.


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May the Light Guide You - The Association of Light

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And more...[/FONT]

The Association of Light is what was created in response to Team Dark. About a year ago, Pokemon Professors from all across the Pokemon world came together and formed a group of strong trainers to counter the evil that was attemping to take over the world. Since then, the Association grew and started to allow anyone in that would help defeat Team Dark. The Association of Light now includes all of the Pokemon Professors, Gym Leaders, Elite Four, and Champions from all regions. It also includes a legion of trainers, many of which just signed up, with others that were personally invited to join.

Team Dawn: Team Dawn is the Kanto branch of The Association of Light. It is headed by Blue, champion of the Indigo League. They are seeking out Mew.

Team Daylight: Team Daylight is the Johto branch of The Association of Light. It is headed by Lance, ex-champion of the Indigo League. They are seeking out Ho-oh.

Team Starfall: Team Starfall is the Hoenn branch of The Association of Light. It is headed by Wallace, champion of the Hoenn Region. They are seeking out Jirachi.

Team Reverse: Team Reverse is the Sinnoh branch of The Association of Light. It is headed by Cynthia, champion of the Sinnoh Region. They are seeking out Giratina.

Team Nova: Team Nova is the Unova branch of The Association of Light. It is headed by Alder, champion of the Unova Region. They are seeking out Keldeo.[/FONT]

Ciel realized something when the plane first took off: he would never take metal contraptions made by humans as transportation willingly again. Pokemon were a lot less... scary with it. They were supposed to fly. Plane wings stood still yet somehow they stayed in the air. It was flat out disturbing, to say the least. Not for the first time, he realized how out of it he was with the outside world. Lavender Town was more isolated than most people assumed it was. It had a bad habit of staying stationary in time, at the end, some paranormal lovers would describe it.

He was grateful the jet had almost nobody else on it, aside from who needed to be. Ciel was very sure he would have a panic attack if there were other passengers. Or worse, if they talked a lot. The boy shook his head, pulling the forms from the file he had been carrying around. The systems had gone down at the Center when he had tried to send them in to the professor in Sandgem, where he was headed now. Not sure if they had made it through, his mother, in all of her wisdom, had sent him with the forms in a file.

Ciel wasn't worried about that. Pokemon said humans somehow always found ways to fix things and they were mostly right about that. What he was worried about was this whole... journey... thing, whatever it was. It worried him because of Team Dark. There were whispers of them everywhere and new ghosts to prove something was going on. That was terrifying. Could he do anything? He guessed he would find out. The Association had summoned him: they must have thought he could.

The plane touched down on the railway, Ciel noticing another from the window. Someone probably came and left... Picking up his bag- he didn't want to bring too much really, by the end of this journey he'd likely lose half of it-, he exited the plane. He could see the Lab, one of the expansive and official buildings in the area. It was definitely a base of Team Reverse, a part of the Association of Light. Honestly, the name kind of annoyed him. Light and Dark always had to be good and evil didn't they? He shook it off. He had spent way too much time with that Marowak ghost. Contrary to popular belief, she was still in Lavender Town, watching her child. It was creepily adorable and sweetly depressing at the same time.

Ciel went down the ramp to see a white haired man in a lab coat observing him with fierce eyes, yet the ferocity was a general emotion that just seemed stuck there. Immediately Ciel's senses went into a calm sort of overdrive. This man is Professor Rowan, they began, stating the obvious. He is not an enemy but do not underestimate him. Also, information he could have gleaned on his own. What was the point here? You are alone. Ah, that was it. Someone else was supposed to be here but he wasn't right now. So the man had come himself. Don't feel proud, just be cautious. That could mean all sorts of things.

So he stepped forward, looking at him the best he could. Ciel wanted to curse the idea of eye contact. But he tried to and that should be enough. Silently, he held out the forms for the man to take, which he did. "My name is Professor Rowan," the man introduced. "Thank you for this Ciel, your forms came through rather garbled."

"The systems went down," the boy explained softly, figuring explanation was needed. Rowan nodded, that stern expression on his face.

"Someone should visit that area more often," the professor muttered to himself. "Anyway, please come along. It's time for you to begin this journey and for that, you will need a Pokemon and supplies." Ciel followed. He was torn between excitement and sadness. He had wanted his own Pokemon since he was a toddler climbing trees. But... he had a dislike of Pokeballs. He needed them; he wasn't so behind in the world as to not know that but... it seemed sort of rude to throw them in there without permission. He was used to just talking or sometimes fighting the Pokemon to get them to listen. In school he hadn't had to but still...

He didn't have a choice though. So the professor led him into a greenhouse area, full of Pokemon in smaller versions of their habitats. That finally elicited a happy reaction. Before Rowan could say a word, Ciel was gone, eager to explore. The man chuckled. He guessed it could wait.

The boy had wandered very far back into the greenhouse in only a few minutes. There were Pokemon everywhere! It was great. A fiery monkey landed on his head a moment before leaping off as Ciel got closer to a small lake area. What appeared to be an otter was swimming on its back in the water. It was an Oshawott. Her torso was a different shade of blue than they normally were. It opened its eyes to look at him. "Osha? Oshawott?" Hi? Who are you? She turned herself around and swam over to him, a mixture of shyness and curiosity on her features.

"Ciel," he replied softly. Carefully, he lifted her out of the pool to examine. She instantly moved to hug him. Weird. The affectionate type.

"It looks like you've found your starter." Ciel had heard him coming but still shrank back a little before turning around. Rowan held out some items for him to take; including what had to be her Pokeball. He took them carefully, along with the backpack. All of it was strange, obviously Unova imported. TV told you quite a lot about things, particularly products you couldn't afford on two middle-class salaries. The black bag held useful items for a beginning trainer and even a handy pocket for his odd black Pokedex. He smiled quietly in thanks and put the Pokeball away. Oshawott instantly went to go sit in his bag, looking happy as she poked her head out. He also was handed a whistle, one shaped like a teardrop and a shell. Ciel took it and carefully pocketed it, realizing what it meant.

Ciel managed out a soft thank you as they exited the building. Rowan merely nodded and pointed north, indicating it was a good starter route for him to take. He nodded quietly and walked off. This journey was already going to be different.

Motionless clouds, the beautiful sea and the blue skies slowly passed by as Karen watched from her small circular window next to her seat. She was riding in the private jet plane that carried her from New Bark Town just hours ago. The private jet plane was indeed private in that it was only her as it's VIP guest with the personal waiter on-board assisting to her needs. As he came by with another round of refreshments for her, Karen dismissed the waiter and continued watching the outside scenery from her chair in the sky. It was her first time in a plane and the take-off made Karen tightened her stomach to counter her nauseous feeling. It had cleared the moment they took to the skies and Karen was glad it wasn't there to stay.

Pushing her hair that had managed to make it's way in front of her face aside, the pilot of the aircraft muttered into his mic which projected to the plane's speakers.

"Sandgem Town. Now arriving in Sandgem Town. Prepare for disembarking." The pilot said before he closed the mic. Karen fixed herself upon her seat and fastened on her seat belt. With the contents of her stomach twisting about, Karen braced herself as the plane took it's decent down from the upper atmosphere. A loud screech followed by a loud rumble occurred as the plane touched ground and rolled it's way from the airstrip onto a nearby docking bay. Karen waited for someone to assure her she was safe to get up.

"Please, Miss. Make your way to the exit hatch." The waiter explained while he waited for Karen. Grabbing a small knapsack from the storage compartments, Karen followed the waiter. They reached the already opened hatch and the waiter bowed once to her.

"It was a pleasure to serve you, Miss." He spoke keeping his bow like a dignified waiter to his customer. Karen bowed back with thanks and exited the plane to find the bright sunlight too strong, forcing her to shield her eyes. A few steps from the metal ramp led her to the hard cement ground under her feet, and it reassured her with a feeling of balance unlike that of the airplane. Lucas, a renown trainer of the Sinnoh branch, was waiting patiently before he approached Karen.

"Welcome. No time for pleasantries. Follow me to the lab." Surprised at first, Karen followed Lucas as they made their way towards the Sandgem Lab. They walked a rather short distance before the lab could be seen in the distance. Lucas kept his pace and Karen followed along with equal strides and finally, they came upon the lab. Lucas stopped without entering into the lab.

"You are the third.... Hm... Professor Rowan is busy with other people but go inside and wait. I can't show you to him because I still have other important duties. Please go on inside." Lucas said to Karen before he walked in the same direction that they came from. Wanting to thank him but couldn't, Karen followed his instructions and enter the automatic double doors of the large structure.

Inside, the cool temperature wasn't too cold but just enough to be able to work in it. Karen glanced around expecting to see the Professor, however, no one was in sight. Knowing full well to not wander around too much, Karen decided to start her own tour of the Pokemon Lab of Professor Rowan. As she entered and exitted many corridors of the lab, she came upon an extremely large pokemon habitat within the lab. It held many pokemon that Karen had never seen before and she was more curious now than she had ever been before. She walked by habitats for Grass Pokemon shared with Bug Pokemon, and Fire Pokemon with Rock and Ground types, etc. A pond eventually came into view and Karen found a group of Water pokemon in a rather unhappy mood. Interested, Karen slowly walked towards the group and crouched down to their level.

"What's wrong?" Karen cheerfully asked and had frightened the poor group of Water pokemon who fell into the pond. They rushed out soaked and in a panic. A small laughing could be heard from beside Karen.

"Totototototototo! Totodile!" A small Totodile laughed loudly. He was quite amused with Karen and she had roused Totodile's interest in her. Many of the pokemon were angry at Karen and started chattering loudly at her. Karen calmed the group and tried to ask for an explanation which eventually turned into a form of charades. Little by little, Karen began to understand and that they thought she was a prankster. Totodile marched into the group's circle and showed off himself and all the others looked at him with annoyed faces.

"Ah... So HE'S the prankster." Karen deduced and the Water pokemon nodded. Totodile place his little arms to his hips and continued laughing proudly. He suddenly stopped laughing, grabbed a nearby small branch, and ran towards a group of bushes. Some rustling could be heard before Totodile appeared once more and ran towards Karen as he patiently stared at the bush he had come out of. More rustles could be heard further down before a voice shouted.

"Karen? Karen Valius? It's me Professor Rowan! Answer me if you can hear me!" Professor Rowan shouted and Karen replied, "I'm over here Professor! I'm by the pond with Water Pokemon!" As the professor followed Karen's voice, rustling could be heard from the bushes Totodile came from as the little blue pokemon started chuckling to himself. Professor Rowan's head popped up and he looked at Karen.

"Karen?" He had asked and Karen nodded to confirm it. Professor Rowan pushed through the bushes with a bag in hand before a loud CRACK! caused the professor to almost tumble over had he not balanced and caught himself. Totodile laughed before he cut it short at his failed attempt.

"Hoho... Looks like you've met the resident Prankster." Professor Rowan explained and chuckled. Many of the Water pokemon weren't happy with Totodile and Karen wondered what she could do to help. Professor Rowan handed Karen some items before she could think. In hand, she held an enlarged pokeball and 5 smaller ones, along with some supplies and money. "And not to mention the resident Prankster is also your starter pokemon." Karen looked at the professor blankly before looking at Totodile who was puffing out his chest. Karen had always wanted a Water pokemon but she wasn't so sure about this Totodile. Maybe she could do something about his attitude... like take the prankster to enjoy the world outside to erase him of his mischievousness. Karen didn't think too much at the moment but she tried to plan things for her new comrade. Totodile walked up to Karen and with a face full of confidence, he gestured to show that he was number one. Despite his small size, he did some rather awkward but cute things sometimes and Karen couldn't help but like the blue pokemon a little more each time. Recalling the Water pokemon with the pokeball she had received from Professor Rowan, Karen stared at it for a moment.

"I think I'll call you Dyle." Karen said before she clipped the pokeball to her belt along with the rest of the 5 pokeballs.

As Karen finished placing the rest of her items into her knapsack, Professor Rowan began talking off topic on how Professor Elm holds her in high esteem before explaining things pertaining to routes the Association's duties, etc. Karen tried to take in as much as she can before Professor Rowan commanded Karen to fall him as they made their way towards the other side of the pokemon habitats. He guided Karen through the corridors and they eventually came towards the entrance/exit of the lab.

"There are two main paths." Professor Rowan began. "You can choose north or east. Two new recruits have already left and I won't say which routes they have taken because I'm sure either one would do you good." Karen pondered to herself. North or East... She had remembered seeing a town to the East and decided on that route.

"I'll think about which path to take on the way there." Karen replied and Professor Rowan nodded.

"I will get Lucas to bring you to the crossroads. I hope you the best of your journey and make us proud." Karen nodded and made her way outside the lab. Lucas was waiting for Karen outside and asked Karen which path she will take.

"Show me to the northern path, Lucas." Karen asked and Lucas nodded and took to the lead. Karen glanced into the sky and then to her pokeball. Her journey was finally beginning and the excitement within herself bubbled. She was asked to fight against Team Dark but Karen was going to try and enjoy her pokemon journey to the fullest. After all, that was her true goal.

OOC: Ugh.... Everything is so bland... Must be because I'm tired. I'll try to smooth things out tomorrow morning or something.

(Sorry, but I've been busy for a bit; I'll post what I have now and get back to it asap)


After three hours of travel, Haru's limo finally made it to the gates of Professor Rowan's lab. Sandgem Town seemed so small compared to Eterna City, but from what he saw he liked it already. Too bad he was only going to be around for a few hours at best. Maybe when there was more time to laze about he'd come back to take in the sights more. But Haru knew that there was hardly time for that right at this point. Flint's words still echoed in his mind: Don't worry about being awed by the places you go to on this journey. Just about everyone gets that way. Even I honestly get fired up when I can travel down any random path and take in the feeling of the vast world we live in. But you can't forget your loyalties to Team Reverse. Get as strong as you can; it'll help you in the long-run.

Sighing to himself, the teenager collected his thoughts as the limo got progressively closer to the entrance to the lab. This was the only thing he had thought about for days. A lot of sleep was missed out on because of the excitement and anticipation. What kind of Pokemon was he about to receive? What others would he see on his journey? Any Pokemon would be fine with him; even a fire-type. Even if that fire-type was a Chimchar...

The limo came to a stop, and Haru took no time throwing the limo door open. He almost hit the chauffeur with it, but that mattered little to him. Right away, another boy (who Haru immediately identified to be Lucas) was waiting for him at the doors. "I'm not sure if I saw someone excited enough to open the door for themselves! Usually they want to make their grand entrance more.... well, grand. But I give you points for spirit, that's something that I like to see in new trainers," Lucas said, expecting some kind of self-confident remark or flattered response. When that didn't happen, the two were staring at each other for a good minute. Haru didn't seem likely to break his curious, expecting stare soon. "... OK, let's get on with it, then."

The two walked into the lab, Lucas leading Haru, but Haru was confused to find that Lucas was leading him back outside. He knew that not all the professors liked to stay inside while researching, but after the drive way did he have to be lead back outside? Oh well, Haru thought to himself as he saw the large greenhouse. Things were getting exciting again. Lucas held the door open for the teenager, whom gave him a respectful bow before entering the space. The greenhouse looked more like a forest than just a simple greenhouse. Numerous Pokemon were scattered around and conversing with each other while others ate, slept, played, or sparred. The livelihood of the place made it worth the long trip over. Haru looked from Pokemon to Pokemon, trying to guess which one he was going to get. A Ralts seemed cool, or maybe a Shuckle.

"Hey! Professor! Another trainer's here!" Lucas called out into the vastness of the greenhouse.

Chapter 1: Arrival by Helicopter, Now How About Some Walking?

Hiro's dreams slowly ended as the roar of the helicopter came to a stop. Opening his eyes to see the lab as well as the famous trainer, Lucas. An interesting surprise, Hiro thought as he unbuckled and got out of the open door. Oddly enough, Hiro had earlier been picked up by some military copter to head here. He knew the war like thing between the two teams was big but not that big.

"You must be Hiro," Lucas said to him. "You're the fifth new trainer to arrive. Anyways, Rowan is expecting you at the greenhouse. Let me show you the way." I simply nodded to him before following.

Traveling through the actual building was quite different from the usual. Prof. Oak's lab, if Hiro could recall, was rather smaller. This place was suited up like an outpost than the normal lab. Carrying one to the greenhouse, Hiro was surprised. It was more like a huge dome, with different habitats for each type of pokemon. There were prairie-like areas as well as rocky ones. Though the exhibit Lucas led him to was a rain forest.

"Hiro Mori," Hiro heard from behind, making him jump a bit. Behind him stood a wizened man with white hair. "I'm Professor Rowan, lead Pokemon Researcher for Team Reverse, the Sinnoh edition of Team Light."

Hiro nodded to the older man. "It's nice to meet you Professor," he said, holding his hand up. The man gripped the younger's hand, shaking it. He's quite formal, even for a professor.

"Hiro," Rowan said, "Though I wish we could talk longer, we must send you on you're journey. Both Brock and Blue say you are quite experienced and this helped me make a choice for your starter." Turning around, the man blew a whistle, silent to Hiro's ears. Within seconds a Pokemon, a monkey, was on his shoulder. "This is Hope, our resident warrior Chimchar."

The Chimchar jumped from his shoulder and walked to Hiro. Sniffing the teenager, she climbed up to his shoulders and onto his head. "I guess she likes me," Hiro said, "But what's up with her tail?"

"Her tail?" Spoke up Lucas, "Is the reason we're giving her to you. She had been experimented on by Team Crescenta to make her fire type moves stronger." Looking to Rowan for confirmation to continue, he carried on. "This gave her the hotter blue flame and we were giving her to you to train."

Hiro nodded before turning back to Rowan, whom than took the spotlight. "This bag hold not only the usual items, but Hope's Pokeball, the whistle I used to call her, and a specialized Pokedex as well as a Poketch."

Hiro thanked him just before Rowan left the habitat. "Not talkative is he?" He asked Lucas.

"Not really," He answered, "Anyways, I'm to escort you to either Route 202 or 231. The first is North and the other East."

North would be a good way to start, Hiro thought, the Majority of towns is that way anyways. "I'll head North," He decided,with a smile. "So just lead the way!"

(OOC: I'll have Chapter 2 part 1 up later. Right now it's work time!!)

(Sorry for the wait. I had to rewrite this long post. I gave the wrong route initially. My bad. Excuse me while I go pout in the corner)

Ciel was surprised. The path of Route 202 was pretty straightforward. It was full of fellow rookies, who didn't mind a few playful battles. Though, people called certain routes beginner's luck. Up ahead of him was Nadia, who was frolicking along carelessly. The boy couldn't help but laugh. His Oshawott was the best. Maybe she wouldn't be a good fighter but she would definitely be a close friend. He hoped that it would turn out better than with Miranda. He winced at the memory. That hadn't been a happy farewell. She had shouted at him, accusing him of things that he hadn't understood. Had she always been this petty and cruel or was it now that she was being left alone. It was good that she had stopped though, there had been a Chimecho nearby who didn't take well to that sort of thing.

Ciel looked up to see Oshawott staring at something in the grass. It was a Bidoof and it was sniffing around quietly at some fallen Berries. It looked up at them but didn't move otherwise, staring at Nadia with wide, slightly dopey eyes.Does it belong to a trainer? It appeared to, considering it didn't reflexively attack Oshawott or run from Ciel when he came out to watch. Figuring it was okay, Ciel held out a hand to the Bidoof and sat down. Eventually it went up and sniffed his hand, looking intrigued. Nadia went back to Ciel, jumping in his lap. She growled lightly, looking jealous. Ciel couldn't hold back his smile at this.

There was a sudden shout from mere feet away. The young teen got to his feet, utterly bewildered. Bidoof peered in the direction the shout had come from and a boy dressed in orange down to his turned around baseball cap went running past. He skidded to a halt, a Starly flapping her wings urgently and chirping near his head. It seemed to be saying hurry. That would get annoying really fast.

Apparently, the Pokemon wasn't the only one in a frenzy either. "Hey what are you doing just standing around man? You gotta run, run, run!" Bidoof was scooped up and the boy was gone. Ciel blinked in confusion and looked in the direction the boy had come from. There was a red puppy barking as it ran toward them. As it caught up to them, Ciel noticed a long red scratch running down his left foreleg. It barked and growled and this time Nadia moved to protect Nadia. Definitely a threat. The puppy barked and growled at Nadia, releasing small fireballs at the Oshawott. Confused, she shook it off, the attack doing little damage. She tackled it in a burst of anger, driving it back.

Ciel found himself frozen, not sure how to react. This Pokemon was strong, definitely stronger than Nadia. Type advantage was working in her favor though. Ciel took a deep breath and commanded. "Tail Whip!" Beginning Pokemon were plain terrible. She obeyed, whipping her tail and innocently and drawing the Growlithe off guard. Then she rammed him into the tree for a second time. She jumped back, thinking she had the upper hand. Then the puppy let out a roar, one too big for his body. Nadia squealed and ran back to Ciel. Ciel shuddered. That roar touched his bones, making him afraid for a moment. Yet at the same time, he realized the Pokemon was scared as well. He turned and left, leaving the pup to bark and growl. He ran farther down the route, passing trainers and Pokemon hurriedly. He calmed at the sight of nothing there, until the grass shuffled and there was a Starly. Nadia bounded over to say hello but it squawked at her and pecked her head. It kept pecking until Ciel's Pokemon dodged and tackled back. It was a simple battle, one that didn;t need much thought. Maybe he would capture the Starly. Suddenly there was a feral yowl behind him.

"Shi! Rawnx! Shin!" Hey you! Yes you, you stupid human! Turn around! Ciel reluctantly obeyed, turning to see the small kitten glaring up at him with feral yellow eyes. Instantly Ciel shied away, noticing the Starly he was fighting slip away. Nadia, however, did not like the wasy that Pokemon was talking. She jumped down and glared, looking quite menacing for such an adorable creature.

"Osha! Oshawott!" Don't talk about my human like that!

"Shin!" Make me! The two Pokemon growled at each other furiously and then attacked, tackling each other and blowing the other back. Shinx leered at Nadia, both intimidating her and dropping her defense, which the feline used and attacked, knocking the Oshawott and the little otter rolled back to Ciel's feet. She got up slowly, slightly dizzy, Then her gaze glinted and without waiting for a command, tackled again. None of them saw the small eyes watching them from nearby. The Growlithe growled softly and lay down.

Ciel waited, watching the fight. This was a little more complicated than the earlier battle, but still not as complicated as the ones at the school. He was analyzing the Shinx. It was faster than Nadia and naturally more agile. However, it (he) was more easily flustered than Nadia, and had trouble countering multiple attacks, like Nadia's makeshift doubleslap right now. He had good balance on her hind legs and okay balance, able to knock over his Pokemon with a single paw. Wait a minute...

He had it. "Nadia Tackle!" Somehow she got what he was saying instantly. Before the Shinx could knock her over, the Oshawott ducked her head and tackled her enemy's chest, this one knocking the kitten to the ground on his back. Shinx rolled over and spat out dirt, glaring defiantly at his opponents. But his eyes spoke of exhaustion. He's doesn't have good endurance and stamina either, he thought. But he's determined, I'll give him that. I think... we could work with this. Spinning his Pokeball between his fingers, Ciel tossed it and it engulfed the kitten. Hitting the ground, it began to shake...

(Did I just hint at a small subplot? You bet!)

(You've got a Buizel on your shoulder... LMAO xD)

Nam gazed out the window of Team Reverse's Helicopter; which was transporting him to Sandgem Town. They briefed him; he was going to meet a man named 'Lucas' who would escort him inside the Pokemon Research Lab, where he would meet Professor Rowan and receive his first pokemon.
"Professor Rowan is a major on Pokemon Evolution," Cynthia explained. She then noticed the boy was lost in his head again and decided to give him space.

"I really hurt her this time…" Images of Livvy would flash through his head; her sad blue eyes, staring at the black vehicle as it took away her 'best friend' without a simple farewell. This time, her hair did dance in the wind; but not the way he wanted. They didn't dance; they were reaching out to him, trying to take him back, so Nam wouldn't leave. He just couldn't bear to say goodbye –no, he didn't want to. "She's with him now…" he whispered to himself, "she's been with him for 6 years, why would she need me?" admitting those last words made his eyes water why would she need me?, his tears would travel down his face, moving slowly and sad…

"Nam? Nam, wake up!" the tanned boy slowly opened his brown eyes and woke to the sound of Cynthia's voice. "We're arriving to Sandgem Town." Nam wiped his face and grabbed his bag; looking out the window as they began to land. "This is where we say our farewells," Cynthia opened the hatch. "But don't worry we'll meet again someday". Nam exited the vehicle and held his headphones so they wouldn't fly off; his blue scarf was dancing all over the place. The winds of those propellers were actually quite powerful; he wondered if it was possible for someone to be literally lifted off the ground.

"Welcome, I am Lucas. I will escort you to the Professor." Nam seemed a bit impressed to see him, although; he then remembered Cynthia had briefed him about Lucas being here. Nam began to scan Lucas: he was wearing a red cap, red scarf and black shirt with a single white stripe across his chest; unlike in the games where he wears a white scarf and a red shirt under a blue jacket.

"Are you coming?" Nam flinched and realized he was on the move, "y-yeah!"

"You seem a bit troubled, something wrong?"

"No, I'm all right, thanks. " Nam assured. Lucas opened the door and hinted the boy to enter, "you're the sixth."
Inside a man was waiting for him, he appeared to be in his 40's or perhaps 50's. His hair was white and short; his face stern and collected. He radiated power and Nam tried not to cringe in his presence. Suddenly the man turned and began to walk, "I assume you're Vivaldi?"

"Yes, Nam Vivaldi."

Professor Rowan led Nam through a few corridors which took him to the greenhouse. Nam gasped at the vastness of the room. Pokemon were everywhere; jumping in and out of bushes, others were swimming, some flying. The room was covered by glass and the sun's rays spanned the room with its warmth. The room was so large Nam couldn't see the end. Then, Rowan took out a small whistle from his pocket; it was shaped like fire and blue like sapphire, emblazoned with what looked like a pig's pink nose. A few seconds after the professor blew onto the silent whistle; a small yellow pig spawned out of the bushes with a broad smile and crashed against the wall while trying to stop. Professor Rowan lowered his face into his palm, a gesture that expressed embarrassment in this type of situation.

Nam was still unsure, but he was smart enough to guess that was his pokemon. It surprised him to see it was a yellow Tepig; he might've referred to it as a 'Shiny' in the video games, but what surprised him the most were the blue headphones he was wearing, identical to his own.

"We showed Tepig a photo of his new trainer and he decided to surprise you by wearing those headphones." The professor explained. "Will you give it a nickname?"
Nam crouched and took a closer look of his new pokemon. Tepig stood still, waiting to hear his new name. Finally, it seemed as if Nam had made a decision and receded, "Nope." Tepig's mouth opened, he was so anxious to hear his new name. Nam noticed his new pokemon pouting, "Don't worry, maybe someday I'll think of a nice name for you."

"Uhrmmm, then let's get right to it then." The professor handed over some items for Nam's adventure: a blue poketch which Nam immediately strapped onto his right hand wrist just over his blue gloves, Tepig's Whistle and Pokeball along with 5 extra pokeballs for catching new pokemon, a black bag packed with a variety of items, and finally a Unova styled Pokedex; the pokeball on its design was red, like the one in his games. Professor Rowan reminded Nam of his duties as a new member of the Association of Light, but encouraged him to take the time to fill up the pokedex and have fun. Nam began to feel that Rowan wasn't as strict as his appearance said.

Nam took out his pokedex and scanned Tepig, "Tepig, the fire pig pokemon. It can deftly dodge its foe's attacks while shooting fireballs from its nose. When it catches a cold, the fire becomes pitch-black smoke instead. It also likes to roast berries before eating them." The boy called Tepig into his pokeball and exited the lab with a brief farewell.

"All done?" Lucas had been waiting for him all this time. "I'm supposed to escort you to your destination, this will be the last." He assured. "You may go north to Route 202, which leads to Jubilife City. Or if you wish you can go east, to Route 231, which takes you to Beach Rose Town, whichever is fine."

Nam gazed behind him, "What about route 201?"

"Route 201 leads to Twin Leaf Town, it is currently unavailable due to it being under the possession of Team Crescenta." Lucas explained. Nam was a bit surprised, he knew Team Crescenta was dangerous, but they were taking over towns as well. They were practically neighbors with Professor Rowan. He gazed at the pokemart; he was planning on buying some healballs, but it appeared to be closed.

"Hmmm… Route 231 is unknown to me, it might be fun… but I haven't expressed my gratitude to the school in Jubilife for sending a recommendation letter to the Association of light…"
"Route 202 it is," he finally responded. Lucas waved farewell as Nam walked away.

"Alright Nam, this is a brand new adventure. No more hold backs, no more self-pity; the past is behind you!"

Chapter 2 Part 1: The Flame of Justice

Standing before Route 202, Karen was overcome with a bubbling nervousness despite being excited just seconds ago. The route disappeared into the horizon and that alone was one of many things that caused her unease.

"M-Maybe everyone's start is like this..." Karen muttered to herself and patted her face in an attempt to relieve her anxiety. Taking in a few deep breaths, Karen tried to calm herself and within seconds, her anxiety dissipated leaving her with only a burning passion.

Taking a step onto the route, Karen finally started to walk on the path albeit slowly and eventually picked up her pace. She observed the path and the surrounding environment quickly and saw many different things. Rookie trainers was seen around battling their newly acquired pokemon against each other in attempts to showcase their abilities and pokemon, while off the beaten path, wild pokemon can be heard scurrying through the brush that hid them. Karen caught sight of a pair of Sentret observing her and others from behind the brush as they stood on their tails. Karen waved back but the two Sentret rushed away. Karen turned back and continued on. Some commotion was happening with a few trainers but Karen decided not to interfere for some unknown reason even she didn't know and passed by them. It seemed so very interesting too. Karen thought to herself.

Walking for a good hour from her starting position, Karen had noticed that there were less trainers as she progressed further on Route 202 with only wild pokemon, such as Starly and Bidoofs, hiding among the high grass. With the path fading and only grass before her, Karen readied herself for any pokemon encounters. As she reached for the pokeball containing Dyle, her Totodile, a flash of light came from the very same pokeball, revealing the small crocodile-like Water pokemon. Dyle stretched itself and Karen stared at it.

"You should really wait until I call out for you..." Karen said with a hint of worry but Dyle looked away defiantly and began scanning his surroundings. Karen had forgotten what Professor Elm had said before but now she remembered clearly. 'You should let one of your pokemon out to travel with you. I'm sure you will be able to bond with each other much more instead of carrying it in your pokeball.' Karen looked up at the blue sky and then back at her small pokemon. Dyle was looking around glancing at all the different things before him in awe and curiousness just like a child that a smile made its way onto Karen's face as she watched her new companion.

A sharp snap came from the right of where Karen and Dyle was and it had frightened them both. Recovering quickly from the sudden shock, Karen checked in that direction to find a pair of Sentret that seemed familiar. She realized that it was the same pair that was observing her earlier, and Karen noticed what seemed to be red patches of fur and that both of them were heavily injured by someone or something. Dyle suddenly ran after them causing both Sentrets to flee.

"No, wait Dyle!" Karen shouted at her Water pokemon and pursued him as Dyle continued chasing the Sentrets through the brush.

Running into the brush and entering the nearby forest, Karen found herself in a wild goose chase as she followed the small blue pokemon ahead of her as it ran pass trees and wild bushes. Karen could barely see past some areas as the thicket was too dense and she only followed the sight of her pokemon who was unwilling to give up it's chase. After a few minutes of running, Karen found Dyle in a small spring hidden away within the deep forest. The scene was breathtaking as Karen stared at the beauty of nature before her. A single spring ran across the forest as the sun rays that pierced the forest's thick branches glistened upon the surface of the clear running water with a fallen and dead hollow tree log nearby with new plants growing upon it. Karen finally noticed something within the log as 2 pairs of eyes peeked from it. The two heavily wounded Sentret had taken shelter within it as they trembled with fear from the human and her companion before them. Karen could now clearly see bloodied patches of fur on both of them and one of them was tending to the other's leg as if it was heavily injured. A strong anger boiled in Karen as she began thinking how anyone could do such a thing to those poor pokemon.

"Dyle... Stay here. You might frighten them." Karen demanded and while Dyle didn't want to listen, he decided just that time to obey and stood there with arms crossed. Karen began digging through her dark blue backpack in hopes of finding some kind of potion that might be able to help the two Sentret and with luck, she pulled out two potions. 'I need to thank Professor Rowan when I see him again.' Karen thought to herself and placed her pack by Dyle. She began slowly walking towards the Sentrets trying not to alarm them.

"I'm not going to hurt you, okay?" Karen ensured them with a soft tone. "I'm just going to spray you two with these to make you feel much better." As Karen finally reached both of them, and though they were frightened, they clearly eased up a bit seeing as Karen hasn't attacked them yet. Karen slowly brought up the potions to both pokemon and sprayed the medicine on them. A sharp and painful cry came from both pokemon as the potion began to sting on contact with their wounds. As Karen finished, she smiled and reached out a left hand to the two Sentrets, whom were recovering slowly with the aid of the potions, when a single flaming fireball burned her hand suddenly causing Karen to retract it and clutch it in pain.

"GROOOOWL!" A sharp growl came out of nowhere and Karen stumbled backwards to find a small Growlithe that had jumped out from a nearby bush and took a defensive stance in between Karen and the Sentrets. Dyle had decided to enter the fray as well and jumped in front of Karen as it glared at the Growlithe. Still in pain, Karen looked at the protective puppy who made worried glances at the Sentret.

"You... must be one of their friends..." Karen said aloud and the Growlithe growled once more before the Sentrets began to converse with it. A small chatter went on between the Growlithe and Sentrets as they seem to be explaining the situation. Karen sat there listening intently to the unrecognizable language they used between each other. Karen then looked at Dyle.

"Do you know what they are saying?" Karen asked Dyle.

"Toto Totodile." He grunted with a nod. Dyle looked at Karen and then began doing strange gestures in an attempt to explain what was happening. Despite a few seconds of charades, Karen still couldn't comprehend and Dyle face-palmed himself, muttering something to himself. As they finished, the others finished as well. Growlithe wasn't as defensive as it now approached Karen and bowed to her as if to thank her. Karen stood up still clutching her left hand and smiled at the Growlithe.

"It's alright. I was only trying to help." Karen explained. Growlithe looked at Karen and then back at the two Sentret, who gave a nod. Turning it's attention back to Karen, Growlithe took a readied stance as if ready to battle. Karen looked at it confused before Dyle began doing his charades again of two small fists hitting each other. Then it came to Karen.

"Oh... So... You want to test me... Okay!" Karen shouted with enthusiasm. "Ready Dyle!? Let's go! Time to get us a new friend!" Dyle grinned and nodded with confidence and took a battle stance in front of Growlithe. "This fight won't be easy... But let's try our best!" With a fire in it's eyes, Growlithe made the first advance with a jump and a downward Ember shot.

"Dodge it, Dyle and use Dragon Dance!" Dyle responded with a quick dodge as Growlithe's fire attack missed charring the ground where it hit and Dyle began doing a meditated dance as he jumped twice and then stomped the ground using his Dragon Dance skill powering the Water pokemon's attack and speed. As Growlithe fell from it's jump, it quickly reacted with a loud Roar.

"Quick! Jump behind that rock and cover your ears!" Dyle dove for the rock with his increased speed and muffled his ears(?) as he tried to withstand the screeching roar. Luckily, the rock managed to part most of the sound waves without forcing Dyle to retreat in fear. The Roar died out and Dyle stood up as he peeked from the rock.

"Above you, Dyle!" Dyle looked up to see the Growlithe pouncing from above and it used a powerful Bite on Dyle's shoulder causing him to cry out from the sharp pain. "Dyle! Counter with a Scratch attack!" Dyle returned Growlithe's attack with one of his own as Dyle drew out his sharpened and powered up claws and swiped once across Growlithe's face. Growlithe howled in pain as it retreated with a jump from it's attack. Growlithe decided to keep it's distance from Dyle and his increased power and decided to chip away Dyle's health with Ember shots at a distance. Growlithe began a barrage of jumping Ember shots, trying not to hit trees so they won't catch fire, causing Dyle to defensively dodge them. A few hit Dyle and though they weren't as effective, more damage from them would soon overcome him. Karen quickly caught on to Growlithe's distance attack pattern but what could she do? Karen knew Dyle hadn't learned any Water type attacks yet and so having a type advantage was quite pointless if only to reduce damage taken. Karen began to look around in an attempt to find something she could use. Sssssh~ The small and almost silent noise caught Karen's attention. It came from the running spring near the Sentrets.

"Spring.... ! The SPRING!" Karen shouted to herself as an idea came to her head. Dyle began to feel tired from the constant Ember dodging as he suffered from a few hits as well. "Dyle! Get it to the spring!" Karen called out to her pokemon. If Dyle couldn't use water attacks, maybe Karen can use the water from the spring to weaken Growlithe.

"Let's go! Dragon Dance once more!" Karen exclaimed and upon dodging another Ember barrage, Dyle once more began dancing and powered himself even more gaining more speed and power. With his increased abilities, Dyle closed in on Growlithe quickly.

"Alright! Scratch attack!" Dyle quickly swiped at Growlithe who dodged and took a Bite of Dyle's shoulder once more but with much more force this time. Dyle gritted his teeth to endure the pain and Karen saw the chance she was waiting for.

"Okay! Do it now! To the Spring!" Dyle used all his strength and pushed Growlithe towards the spring. With a powerful shove, Dyle pushed himself and Growlithe into the running water and the orange puppy cried out in pain as the water began to do it's job. Growlithe, however, still held on to Dyle with all of it's strength.

"Hang in there, Dyle! Finish it with another powered up Scratch!" Karen shouted once more. Dyle took a sweeping claw slash to Growlithe's underbelly taking the rest of it's sapping strength causing the puppy pokemon to fall weakly into the water. Dyle, at his limit as well, carried Growlithe from out of the spring and let it collapse to the floor as Dyle himself fell down and laid on his back, panting heavily. Growlithe weakly opened it's eyes and looked at Karen before it smiled in defeat. Karen, still keeping eye contact, nodded and brought out a small white and red pokeball. Enlargening it, Karen looked at the ball before she threw it at the almost weakened Growlithe. As the pokeball bounced off Growlithe's skin as if to register the pokemon, it opened and a bright light engulfed Growlithe before it sucked the orange puppy within.

Plop.... Rumble... Rumble... Rumble...

((OOC: Well.. I finally got it in. [Hell... It's so long...] I was quite busy with class projects and exams so I wasn't able to do much but there you go. Now back to homework. X.X
Oh and I totally got the routes wrong and so I changed it as I wanted to head to Jubilife. Didn't know I was heading to that one town. *facepalms* And Growlithe.... will be female if possible! XDDD I hope I did good enough to qualify... Honestly not the best of my battle scenes. XO))

Chapter 2: The Begin of the Journey and New Friends Part 1

Looking at Route 202, most wouldn't expect much of a surprise. At least, Hiro didn't. Hiro turned to wave good-bye to Lucas before leaving. Such a nice fellow, he thought absentmindedly. Most elite trainers tend to be cocky.

Finally looking to his new Pokemon, he smiled, kneeling down beside her. "How do ya do?" He asked her, holding out his pointer finger as if she would shake it. I wonder what her personalities like. The Chimchar simply smiled back, talking a bit to him. Now if only I could understand her, he smirked. "So Chimchar, do you have a nickname yet? Did Rowan or Lucas give you one?"

The Pokemon shook her head, pointing at him. It was almost as if she was telling him to make one. "Well, how does Genesis sound? Hope? Joy? All I hope is that you'll like one of them." Looking towards the Pokemon for an answer, they both lost focus.

"You better run!" A kid yelled as he ran past, his Starly close behind him. Why would we run? He thought, curious at the answer.

Standing, Hiro looked in the direction from where the boy came from. Oddly enough, the teen could see nothing but grass, trees, and... Wait, what is that? He thought as a flock of Starly flew towards him. Something definitely must be that way. "Come on," he said. "Let's talk about you're name later, first we need to check this out."

The Chimchar, jumped onto his back, nodding at the statement. Hiro started moving forward, opposite of the runners. In the distance he saw a something red with sparks of yellow, similar to a fire, but that's not necessarily what he was focusing on. Right in front of him flew a Starly, it's tail feather's burnt causing it to fly slowly and awkwardly. Barely able to move out of the way, the Pokemon landed at the spot he had been at seconds ago.

I hope it's alright, he thought. Well, it wasn't only okay, but it was actually rather irritated to say the least. It stood up to set it's eyes on the blue-flamed monkey. Hiro tried to speak and tell his Pokemon to move, only to see he came up short. The Starly had just ran as fast as it's legs could carry it and attacked the monkey. A Quick Attack, he thought to himself. He quickly shuffled through his mind at what attacks Chimchar's had at this level, finding his best stratefy within seconds.

"Use Leer," he yelled, "Followed by a quick Focus Energy." The Chimchar nodded to him, quick to comply with the orders. The Pokemon turned to the attacker, a glare forming in it's eyes. He watched as the Starly jumped back a bit, shock in it's eyes. Smiling, he turned to the fire Pokemon who sat there as it tried to focus on a certain spot on it's target.

Chimchar smiled before the Starly started forward once more. She must of got it, Hiro thought. "Chimchar, try to dodge with a quick Scratch right afterwards," he ordered quickly. The Pokemon did just that, dodging with barely a nick. Following up, she kicked off the ground, scratching the exact spot she focused on.

Hiro grabbed a Pokeball from his side, letting it grow for capture. Aiming at the near limp bird, he tossed the ball, watching as it was absorbed. Before seeing if it was captured, he heard his Pokemon screech. He turned in the direction she was pointing to see a flame fly towards him. Pulling his arms up to shield his face, he started to think.

Great! Perfect timing to get attacked again. Reaching to his pocket, he grabbed his Pokedex. "Growlithe," he heard it say, "the puppy Pokemon. Growlithe tend to have a loyal nature. It will remain motionless until it is given an order by it's Trainer." It sounded quite interesting in Hiro's opinion. He knew he wouldn't pass up a chance like this. He soon let his thought overcome him.

A Growlithe? They're pretty rare for this region. It'll be a perfect Pokemon to capture this quick. Feeling the heat subside, he saw that the two Pokemon were already sparring. Crap, he thought, she couldn't wait. "Hope," he said, not realizing he called her by a nickname. "Use Leer with a Scratch on top."

Hope glared at the puppy, nearly at the same exact time it used Roar. Both Pokemon tensed up, affected by the attack. "Snap out of it and Scratch," called Hiro eagerly. The blue-flamed Pokemon leaped forward, straight for Growlithe. The dog breathed in to form a fireball, sending it at Hope. Hiro stared in awe as Hope simply continued through the flame, coming out looking quite tired, and scratched the fire puppy across it's muzzle.

Growlithe shook it's head, showing the obvious pain yet threw another ball of fire from it's mouth. Hope tried to dodge but still felt the worst of the attack. Coming out panting, she turned to Hiro for more directions. Quickly pulling out a second ball, he called to his new friend. "Use Scratch and finish it off!!" Throwing the ball at the same time as the attack hit, the Pokemon was enveloped in a red light. Smiling, he called Hope over.

"Good job," he told her, handing her an Oran Berry. "And if you're wondering why I decided on Hope, it's because you give me the Hope that we'll get through this." Patting her on the head, he turned to the two Pokeballs, only too see the Starly ball unmoving and the latest ball shaking. Now all we can do is hope on these captures, he thought.

OOC: Looked alot better and more appealing on Google Docs. 0.0 I might just need to edit it and add stuff...

After a few minutes of walking, Nam was reasonably far from Sandgem Town and this unreal day that seemed like a dream began to appear more real with every step he took. He began to laugh at the thought that this might actually be one of his vivid dreams, but no, this was real indeed: the grass, the trees, the white clouds above him; each on the same sky, yet on their own individual journeys. Pokemon living peacefully in the wild, drinking, sleeping, playing, some even sparring; which encouraged him to take out his new pokemon.

"Come out, Tepig!" the small pokeball expanded with the click of a button and as he threw it in the air it opened and Tepig came out from a scarlet light. Nam began to observe the pokeball; forgetting he sent out his pokemon. He was scanning the device, wondering how it works. The outside seemed to have been crafted out of apricots and painted. But the inside was entirely mechanic. How could a pokemon fit inside such a small ball, a ball that expands and retracts? Maybe it had something to do with Physics; when something is heated, the object expands and when it's cold, it contracts. It was a mystery, although he did think of some theories. He then noticed his hyperactive Tepig running around him with excitement, somewhat like a new puppy.

"Alright, let's see what you can do." Nam searched the area for a good pokemon, he began to think game-wise. Tepig was a fire pokemon, meaning he was weak to water, ground, and rock type pokemon. So to cover up his weakness he needed either an electric or grass type pokemon; although, electric pokemon aren't very effective against rock types and useless against ground, so he thought it was ideal to start off with a grass type. After a few more moments looking for the pokemon in this area he came to the disappointed conclusion that, "There are no grass types in route 202!" everywhere he looked there were Starlys flying from tree to tree, Sentret standing on their long tails among tall grass, alert to sounds, then there were a few Zigzagoons and barely any Growlithes, some Kricketots and groups of Bidoof near a pond; he'd always use them as HM Slaves in his pokemon games, but he wouldn't dream of doing it in the real thing, after all it's a game and this is a real living being. "Not even Shinx…" Nam thought, it was always a nice pokemon to start out with in his games and at-least they'd cover up Tepig's weakness against water pokemon. Rock and Ground wouldn't be too threatening after Tepig evolves into his first stage, Pignite.

"Alright, we'll just have to make with what we've got, you ready Tepig?" the vigorous Tepig stood straight with his chest out and his chin high, without awaiting orders he charged at the nearest pokemon he could find and tackled it to the water. Poor Kricketot, Nam thought. He took out his pokedex and aimed it at Kricketot, "Kricketot, the Cricket Pokemon, it uses its long antennae to chat and makes a Xylophone-like sound, its abilities are Shed Skin and Run away, its attacks include Growl, Bide, and Struggle Bug." The soaked Kricketot got out of the water and growled at Tepig, a growl that no normal bug would make. That thing would frighten an Arcanine! Tepig snapped out of it and continued to attack the inflated Kricketot, tackle after tackle, but Kricketot was just standing there, taking Tepig's hits head on. It took a while, but Nam finally realized what it was doing. "NO, TEPIG, GET AWAY!" the Kricketot had used Bide, sending Tepig flying to a nearby tree. Tepig was dizzy and seeing stars.

"Damnit, Tepig, use Tail Whip!" Tepig snapped out of it and began wagging its tail at the Kricketot. It lowered its guard and stared confusingly at Tepig. "Alright, this is it! Finish it off with Ember!"
Tepig panicked and looked back at Nam, hoping he was hearing things. "What are you doing? Use ember!" Tepig shook his head refusing to shoot fire balls. "C'mon Tepig, we almost have him!"
Tepig turned to face his opponent and reluctantly abided with Nam's orders and nervously sucked up all the air he could through his nose and exhaled. Except, fire didn't come out, instead he filled the area with smoke. The confused Kricketot decided to use this chance and ran away.

Nam was confused himself, he began to wonder if Tepig had a cold, he remembered using the Pokedex back at the professors lab, "When it catches a cold, the fire becomes pitch-black smoke instead" but Tepig shook his head. "If that's not it, then let's consult the Pokedex again…" Nam took out the device and aimed it at Tepig, "Tepig, a fire type pokemon, level 5, Male, abilities are Blaze and Thick Fat, attacks: Curse, Tackle, and Tail Whip." Nam stared at the device for a few moments after realizing those were all of Tepig's moves. "Wait… you don't know fire type moves!?" Tepig shook his head in disgrace, followed by the pokedex's response, "No, I'm a pokedex; a portal encyclopedia, not a pokemon." Nam glared at the device and stored it away. He crouched and patted Tepig, "Don't worry, if you can't spit fire then we'll just have to use another alternative. You still got some pretty good moves." Tepig smiled and embraced Nam with a gentle tackle, "Teeeepiiig".

Nam opened the black bag professor Rowan had given him and displayed its contents on the ground. Tepig would sniff at some of them. "Let's see here, we have 5 Antidotes, Potions, Paralyze Heals, 10 Oran Berries, Camping Materials and 2 TMs." "This is pretty cool! And the camping materials are high quality." he thought to himself. The two TMs were Return and Hidden Power, after careful consideration he finally decided to save Hidden Power for later and teach the move Return to Tepig. They trained for about half an hour until Tepig finally got the hang of it, he'd practice on trees and rocks that Nam would toss. "Alright, I think we're ready!"

Nam began to search for that Kricketot again and Tepig would follow behind him with new found courage. After a few more minutes they finally spotted a Kricketot near the same pond, and it seemed to recognize them. "You ready, Tepig?" Tepig nodded and hopped to the front lines, this time awaiting his orders. "Alright, Tepig, use Curse!" Tepig glowed a bit and seemed to buff up a bit. The Kricketot growled, but Tepig stood his ground. Kricketot got angry and charged at Tepig, "Watch out, it's using Struggle Bug!" but due to curse, Tepig was too slow to move away and tumbled to the ground. Kricketot tried to repeat its attack but because of its small legs, it stumbled to the ground, its antennae clashing together and creating a Xylophone-like sound. "Tepig, that's your chance, use Tackle!" Tepig nodded and rammed into Kricketot. "Now, Return!" Tepig looked back at Nam confused, and began to walk towards him. "No! I meant use the MOVE Return!" Tepig remembered and re-entered the battle, embarrassed. Nam lowered his face into his hand, it was becoming a habit. Kricketot was back on its feet and began to inflate. Nam knew it was using Bide, and he was sure Tepig knew this too, but this time they were going to hit it so hard Kricketot wouldn't be able to return the attack. "Tepig, use curse once more and then use Return!" Tepig glowed again and buffed up, he began running towards Kricketot, his movements were quite slow, compared to his previous, but it was because 'Curse' sacrifices speed for attack and defence. Kricketot, confused, receded from using Bide and watched as Tepig slowly approached him. Finally he made contact and Kricketot was propelled and slammed into a tree.

Nam took out one of the five extra pokeballs professor Rowan had given him and tossed the empty pokeball at the feinted Kricketot. As the ball bounced off the pokemon's head it opened in mid-air and Kricketot shifted into a red light which had entered the pokeball. The ball dropped to the ground and began to shake, once, twice, three times… "Will I catch it?"