The beach near Spikemuth was quieter than usual. Not empty, just… spaced out. The waves rolled in unevenly, hitting the rocks with the occasional Pokemon sighting. I sat on one of the flatter stones near the shoreline, phone in hand, Grookey perched beside me with his shades tilted slightly crooked.
I was poking around the Pokédex app again.
It still felt weird that it was an app, though Serena in the anime did use it. The base layout was fine, with species, typing, ability, and moves, but the unique aspect was the add-ons tucked into a side menu that I hadn't really looked at before.
The first one that caught my eye was a level distribution overlay. Same branding as that Pokémon Tech article I'd read before. Clean interface. Simple tiers. I downloaded it without giving it much thought.Then weight. Height. Habitat notes. Regional behaviour flags.
Apparently, none of that was default.
"Feels kind of lazy," I muttered, flicking through the options and toggling a few more on. Grookey leaned over, peering at the screen upside down like it meant something to him.
The app also lists potential moves Grookey is able to learn. A sort of Pokémon database in itself. Moves such as Taunt, Knock Off, and Razor Leaf were there. Interestingly enough, the moves weren't shown to be learned at a level.
I scrolled back up, thinking about it.
Pokémon Tech was based in Kanto. That probably explained it. Galar Pokémon were still newer on the global scale. Less standardised data. Fewer confirmed benchmarks.
I locked my phone and slipped it into my jacket pocket just as Grookey tapped my leg. Then pointed.
Near the rocks to our right, a Binacle with its lower half camouflaged in the rocks. Seeing the two orange hands with eyes on them, it was definitely a weird looking Pokemon. Further down the shore, a few Shellos were half-submerged in the water, bumping into each other lazily as the tide pulled them back and forth.
I pulled my phone back out, opening the camera function on instinct.
The scanner kicked in almost immediately.
[East Sea Shellos. The Sea Slug Pokémon. Water type]
[Binacle. The Two-Handed Pokémon. Rock/Water type.]
As soon as the interface pinged, both species reacted. The Binacle, in a hurry, started to hop away, disappearing into a crevice. Two of the Shellos slid deeper into the water, vanishing beneath the surface.
This wasn't some untouched wild area. Spikemuth was right there. Most of the Pokémon around here were either used to humans or actively avoided them.
Thankfully, a single Shellos lingered near the edge of the water, body half turned toward us. It wasn't hostile. Just curiously looking.
I stared at it, my thoughts starting to go wild.
'Gastrodon was a good. Cynthia used one. Water/Ground typing only has one weakness, even though it's a quadruple weakness to grass. Storm Drain as a possible ability. Sort of resists Electric types? Anime logic. And resisted a bunch of types.' I thought, squinting my eyes.
One positive that Shellos did have was that it is a special attacker. With Grookey not being able to attack from afar right now, this would be a great addition.
I exhaled slowly.
The hesitation crept in right after.
Could I actually bond with it?
Grookey was different. He was my starter, a ride or die. I wanted to be a trainer in the middle-ground of Ash and Paul.
"Alright," I said quietly. "Are you ready, Grookey?"
Grookey straightened immediately.
"Grookey, [Leech Seed]" I order.
He nodded, already forming the seed between his hands. It was bigger than before to make it easier to throw. About half the size of a baseball. He drew his arm back and threw.
The Shellos just stood there all innocent-looking. The poor thing was caught off-guard unable to dodge. [Leech Seed] struck cleanly, vines erupting on contact, wrapping around its body. Shellos stiffened, eyes sharpening as the energy drain kicked in.
"Grookey Groo Key (Ooh~ I heard yo mama cheating)!" Grookey shouted out, which confused me. I instinctively felt something come from his voice.
There was no time to ponder as Shellos, now with a serious expression, fired back. Cocking its head back, it soon let out a blast of water.
"Dodge," I order.
Grookey already moved due to his weeks of training. But I stepped in too, eyes glowing. The water stream distorted slightly, pressure dropping as I forced it to lose cohesion. It still surged forward, but any power it had vanished.
"[Branch Poke]," He sprinted forward, stick glowing bright green. The Shellos tried to retaliate but flinched as the [Leech Seed] pulsed. Making it shout in pain.
*Smack*
The hit landed cleanly.
Shellos instantly collapsed, unconscious.
I didn't hesitate to take out an empty Poké Ball from my red jacket, and after tapping the button once to increase its size, threw it. Watching the ball swoosh through the air, the feeling of anticipation grew as it hit Shellos.
Opening up as it absorbed the Pokémon in a red beam.
One shake, two shake, click.
I let out a breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding. My eyes glowed once again, making the ball float back to me, guided loosely. Seeing the successful capture, a wide grin crept up my face. I immediately crouched and started to scratch Grookey under the chin.
"Great work, buddy..."
"Groo (Of course)!" he chirped, chest puffed out.
I opened the Pokédex app again.
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
Party
Grookey >
Shellos >
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
The party size was updated in real time, which was quite impressive. Taking a better look at my new member, I first checked on Grookey due to the new add-ons I downloaded.
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
Species: Grookey
Level: 11 (Novice)
Type: Grass
Height: 0.3m
Weight: 4.9kg
Ability: Overgrow
Attacking Moves: Growl, Scratch, Branch Poke, Taunt, Fake Out (Egg), Hammer Arm (Egg), Strength (Egg)
Auxiliary Moves: Growth (Egg), Leech Seed (Egg)
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
I blinked. "…Nice." Grookey was able to learn [Taunt], which prevented opponents from using any Auxiliary moves. Considering how intricate some strategies can get in battles, having a move like this on my ace, who has sweeping potential, is crucial.
'The Height and Weight add-ons feel a bit like clutter. The level add-on will stay for now.' I thought, soon after opening up Shellos' page after removing the unwanted things.
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
Species: East Sea Shellos
Level: 12 (Novice)
Type: Water
Ability: Storm Drain
Attacking Moves: Water Gun, Mud-Slap,
Auxiliary Moves: Harden, Recover, Yawn (Egg)
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
The move [Yawn] and ability [Storm Drain] made me clench my fist in victory. This was perfect. I couldn't really ask for more, not that I would remember any other egg moves this guy could potentially have.
I knew it was rare enough because Shellos was a wild Pokémon.
'Not bad, the only way Shellos could really threaten Grookey in a battle is if it used [Yawn]. Other than that, spamming [Harden] and [Recover] could have been annoying. Still, it didn't have a trainer.' I thought to myself.
After that capture, I lingered a bit longer. Got into a brief scrap with a Binacle that wandered too close. It only knew Water Gun, thankfully. Grookey handled it easily, but I didn't bother trying to catch it. Barbaracle wasn't bad, but it didn't fit what I needed right now.
This was my first real session battling wild Pokémon.
The ones near Spikemuth were weak, shy and scared. Which works out for me in the beginning. It made them perfect practice.
I released Shellos after that, crouching down so I was closer to its eye level. Grookey was beside me in case anything went wrong.
"Hello, little guy, I'm a trainer," I said gently. Watching the sea slug look up at me with wide eyes, he looked harmless. "I want to get stronger. We will be battling and training often to make you stronger."
Shellos slowly blinked once.
"Shellos shell (You beat me, so sure)," The little guy seemed pretty accepting of his situation, which I'm thankful for. I do wonder how a dragon-type Pokémon would react to me catching them after a battle.
'Maybe that's a thought for a later day.'
Still, Shellos, being a little hurt, did use [Recover] to patch up any injuries it had from Grookey, which was neat.
"Groo Grookey... (I'm sorry for my words)"
"Shell shell (Don't worry)."
The Shellos, after the short chat with Grookey, promptly yawned and fell asleep in the sand. Seeing this, I snorted, shaking my head as I returned it to its Poké Ball. What an interesting little guy.
After that, I had Grookey test his moves against the environment.
Branch Poke left a shallow dent in one of the boulders. Strength was able to get Grookey's hand indented into the boulder. While Hammer Arm straight up cracked the metre-tall and wide boulder.Damn.
Grookey fought a few more wild Pokémon. Won most. Ran like hell from a flock of Wingull that decided we looked like targets. By the time we headed toward the Pokémon Centre, Grookey was breathing hard but smiling.
...
---
Chilling in the Pokémon Centre lobby, I was just scrolling on my phone. Bored.
The noise of footsteps, voices, and the hum of machines really set me off a little. While I did want to stay home at all times. That wasn't really an option, considering I want to become a trainer.
Could I laze around? Sure.
But the looming threat of world-ending events did make me train even harder. Thankfully, Grookey saw my effort and matched it.
'A scary thought is that each world ending at each region is a year apart from each other.' Every time Ash went to a region, something wrong would most definitely go on. Even if he didn't exist, the evil teams definitely did.
I sat in one of the cushioned chairs near the wall, phone resting in my hands, staring at the screen without really reading anything.
Grookey was still in the back getting checked over. Shellos as well, because he is a new capture. Even then, wasn't it the norm to get all my Pokemon checked on if its free?
I opened my notes on my phone. The first thing at the top was blunt and underlined twice.
[How does one get an Endorsement?]
Right.
Minor division was fine. Freedom was good. I liked the idea of not being forced down a specific path. But endorsements were… money and resources. Basically a shortcut. The obvious route was the Ascension Cup.
But there had to be other ways.
I leaned back in the chair, letting my head rest against the wall. My eyes found an article with a certain person.
Leon.
[The Great Champion Leon Takes Out An Infamous Poacher Group!]
Leon's whole thing, at least from what I remembered in the games, was that he wanted Galarian trainers to stand at the top of the world and win internationally. Which was fair. What else is there to dream of in Leon's case?
He's the best in terms of actually doing Champion duties and is the strongest canonically, always doing his duties. On top of taking away all the tension by fixing any problem in the games. I mean, there aren't any evil teams in Galar, which I'd personally say is more because there is an active Champion in his prime.
Who doesn't have a hobby that distracts them?
'Cough, cough, Steven Stone. Cynthia.'
There was also Chairman Rose, on the other hand. The president of a huge ass business conglomerate, which basically owned Galar.
Macro Cosmos Rail, Air, Tech, Media, Television, Construction and Living. These bastards were practically everywhere and couldn't be avoided. Even my card was connected to Macro Cosmos Bank.
Rose was the best thing for me. Not ironically evil in any way, but someone who wants the best for Galar and could potentially help me. He's a bit coo coo though. I still remember the way he talked down there, near Eternatus in the games. The way he framed Leon like some storybook hero. Knight saving the kingdom. Saving him as if he were a princess.
It was creepy, but god was his battle music, dramatic and cool for no reason at all.
If I wanted Leon's attention, maybe I could be someone who wanted to travel. Compete globally, which honestly would be cool. To get a sponsor from Rose? Maybe be more Hero-like.
I wasn't a hero.
I wasn't selfless enough for that label, and pretending otherwise would just feel fake. Still… I wasn't heartless either. If a Pokémon went on a rampage near town, or someone needed help, and it wasn't a guaranteed death sentence, I can be the one on the front lines.
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
[Bea, The Rising Prodigy Begins Her Gym Challenge Next Season!]
[Nessa Returns for Second Gym Challenge Season.]
[Former Champion Opal Is Searching For A Successor?]
[Foreign Company Silph Co Setting Up A Branch In Galar?]
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
I opened a discussion thread about endorsements.
[How to Get Endorsements Without The Ascension Cup?]
The answers were… varied.
Some said performance mattered less than branding. Personality. Consistency. Something that made you memorable. Others talked about side talents. Running a specific type helped a lot. Interestingly enough, some companies held tournaments to earn an endorsement.
A must to look out for.
Ignoring that, did I have any talents that could help me?
"…Singing," I muttered. 'Maybe Macro Cosmos Media would endorse me.' I joke to myself.
The thought felt stupid for half a second before it didn't.
I can sing. I knew songs from my old world that didn't exist here. Other than that, uploading short form videos could work as well.
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
[Notes]
- Possibly become a musician on the side
- Upload to my PokeNet account?
- Song Ideas...
⊹ ࣪ ﹏𓊝﹏𓂁﹏⊹ ࣪ ˖
"Kenji Mitsusada?"
I looked up.
Nurse Joy stood at the counter, holding a metal tray with two Poké Balls on top. I stood quickly, almost tripping over my own foot.
"That's me."
She gave a kind smile while handing over my Pokémon. "Both Pokémon are doing well," she said. "Grookey was just a little fatigued, nothing unusual. Shellos needed a quick injection. Minor infection, likely from a cut near the rocks."
'Huh.'
My stomach dipped. "Is he okay?"
"Completely healthy now," she said immediately. "No charge, of course. Just keep an eye on hydration and avoid polluted shorelines for a bit."
"Thank you."
She nodded. "If you need anything else, let me know."
I clipped the Poké Balls back onto my belt and stepped outside. My next destination was the battlegrounds. Time to see if the training Grookey got over these few weeks actually worked in the end.
...
---
[A/N: Suggest some music that the MC could potentially sing and upload. Gotta make him famous! A little bit of a yap chapter yikes. All the Macro Cosmos companies are real. You can search up all the important Companies in Galar yourself. ]