The Legend of Mysterious Mattie
Author's Note: So I wanted a Pokemon master. Which isn't really surprising; I imagine that 95% of the people in the Pokemon fandom have wanted to create an OC that also happened to be the most powerful trainer of all time. But I didn't want it to be some stereotypical trainer or Mary Sue. No, I wanted her to be unique. So unique that she seemed otherworldly. So otherworldly that people didn't even believe that she existed.
If this is received positively, then I might continue, if I can scrape up some sort of plot or something. It would be with the Pokemon Adventures characters, though, so keep that in mind.
Yes, this is in the format of a paper by a college student. I've actually thought of her background too, oddly enough. This is a dissertation paper, or a paper that is written and presented to a committee in order to obtain your doctorate. I don't know if this is how they are actually written or presented, and I'm sure they're much longer, but heck, this is Pokemon, who cares about education anyway?
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokemon, but I happen to really like this character and her story so I claim that.
{Submitted electronically at 5:32:12 p.m. by Skye Prendergast [Doctorate Candidate], to be presented for dissertation on April 23th}
Pokemon training has been presented as many things: a sport, an art, a hobby. But no matter what, you can always present it in one simple way: anyone can do it, and anyone can be a master.
But one does not simply master the delicacies of Pokemon battling. Veteran battlers who have been doing so for many years no doubt dot the street corners of any town you happen to visit, and they are more than willing to tell you of their adventures from times when they were younger and stronger and aiming to be champions. However, even these elders of our's seem incapable of obtaining the elusive title of "master". And yet generations upon generations follow in their well-tread footsteps, never reaching that level and mournfully acknowledging that no one ever will.
So why is it that we all yearn to see someone rise to the top of the battling world, yet when we finally see someone do so we go so far as to denying the fact that they're living?
The legend of Mysterious Mattie has been around for a long time, before the boy Red, who is believed to be her second, won his first Pokemon League at the Indigo Plateau(History of Pokemon League Champions, Volume IX page 1011). Though every region lays claim to the elusive trainer, it is popular belief that she originated in Hoenn. This is not only because the island is the venue of her first recorded sighting, but it is also due to the fact that nearly all her Pokemon hail from the region (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 74).
Sometime in Hoenn's cool autumn eight years ago, a sailor had a couple drinks after a long day near the docks. His tongue thoroughly loosened, he belted out a tale that would soon send every trainer in the region either into their safe homes or into the line of fire. He described a girl, not a day older than eleven, who sat down on the ground and drew while her Pokemon beat his into next week. It was literally no problem for her; none of his Pokemon even scratched her's, a Blaziken, and she never spoke a word and only looked up twice. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 75)
The story spread like wildfire, and soon similar stories began popping up all over Hoenn. They described a small girl with long, wavy black hair and small amber eyes, who would release a Pokemon and draw in a sketch book almost a third the size of her. She would never shout an order or even look as her team demolished anyone in their way; rather, she would glance up occasionally and politely take her prize money from her shocked opponent, disappearing before they could ask any questions. Eventually, this phantom trainer got a name: one of her opponents snapped out of their amazed stupor long enough to see a bronze nametag with the name "Mattie" engraved on it pinned to her bag. And since everyone likes a good illiteration, she was christened Mysterious Mattie. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 77)
Eventually, a list was put together and it was discovered that her team consisted of the following Pokemon:
An Electivire, male, bigger than normal. Could defy logic by attacking Ground-types.
A Blaziken, male, a little small. Could kill you with his blazing fire or his lightning fast Fighting attacks.
A Roserade, female, normal size and demeanor. Could put out fires with her leaves and powders.
A Metagross, male, much bigger than normal. Was so powerful that it is estimated it could mentally crush an entire city.
A Salamence, female. Graceful in the sky, vicious on the ground.
A Walrein, male, bigger than normal. Had perfect accuracy and therefore all his powerful Ice attacks hit. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality pages 82-88)
After acquiring her unforeseen fame, records show that Mattie left Hoenn and moved down into Johto. Her fights became less frequent, and it appears that she only battled when some unfortunate trainer made the mistake of challenging her to a battle. At this point, people were still puzzling over the key to the girl's power, and only when it appeared that she'd crossed almost all of Johto did someone come up with an explanation. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 77-78)
Haunted houses were on the rise. After discoveries of eerie locations such as Old Chateau in Sinnoh and the Strange House in Unova, the existence of ghosts didn't seem like such a preposterous idea anymore. (Not a Pokemon: Supernatural Encounters Throughout the World pages 99, 234) And why not transfer such belief to this new legend? She never talked; her Pokemon were otherworldly. So it was unofficially decided: Mysterious Mattie was a ghost, and there was no chance she could ever be defeated. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 90)
After this, sightings of Mysterious Mattie deteriorated. There were a few in Kanto after one in Johto, but after that she dropped even more off the globe than she already was. The popular opinion was that, after being discovered for her true paranormal self, Mattie moved on to a greater part of the afterlife. Still, people kept their eyes peeled for her, an older girl now with long black hair and, most notably, knee-high and velcroed Converse. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 91-93)
But no one ever saw anything. After a year of no Mattie, everyone came to their different conclusions. Some stuck to their former conclusion, that she'd moved on to a fuller afterlife. Others said she went into hiding. One of the lesser accepted conclusions (lesser accepted but widely spread) was that she had never been real at all, and she was nothing more than a figment of a drunk man's and consequently hopeful trainers' imaginations. (Urban Legends: Just Beyond the Grasp of Reality page 94)
There have been no recorded Mattie sightings in four years. No matter what conclusion you have come to about the first Pokemon master's disappearance, it seems obvious that she's gone and plans on staying that way. The only thing she leaves behind is the memories of the few trainers unlucky (or lucky, depending on how you look at it) enough to battle her, and the legend of Mysterious Mattie.
{End of report}
