Pokemon Rebirth
Chapter 1
Throughout the Orre region, stories are still told of a legendary hero who lived not so long ago, a former member of the notorious Team Snagem who uncovered a plot by the evil Cipher Syndicate to corrupt the hearts of Pokémon, transforming them into little more than living super weapons, for the purpose of total domination of the Orre region. Wielding the Snag Machine stolen from his former employers, a device capable of stealing away Pokémon from other trainers, the hero saved these corrupted "Shadow Pokémon" from Cipher's evil clutches, united the Orre region against Cipher's menace, and toppled their sinister plan, as well as their leader, the enigmatic mayor of Phenac, Es Cade. This, however, is not his story.
Stories also tell of a second hero who rose to fame not long after the first, a mere boy who stumbled upon the looming threat of a reborn Cipher Syndicate. Utilizing new technology such as a powerful Purification Chamber to heal Shadow Pokémon as well as a new and improved Snag Machine to catch them, the boy embarked on a quest to stop them, coming up against a stronger Cipher backed by the ultimate "unpurifyable" Shadow Pokémon, Shadow Lugia. Against all odds the boy defeated Cipher and their true leader Greevil and saved Lugia, and the entire Orre region to boot. However, this is not his story either.
No, this is my story, and I told you those stories so I could tell you this one. My name is Victor, and I live in the Orre region. These are the stories I grew up on, though my parents told me it all happened not long before I was born. I always idolized the heroes, looked up to them for their ability to stand against the odds with nothing but the Pokémon they befriended and come out on top all the same. But, despite this, I never really strove to be like them, to accomplish grand feats and win epic battles against the odds. You see, I've never really been much of a trainer... that is, until recently.
"It's eleven o' clock, go to bed young man!"
The boy grimaced and crossed his arms indignantly. "But Mom, they're in the finals!" he said in a pleading whimper. "I want to see who the colosseum champion is going to be! I wanna get their autograph on my first pokeball after we pick up my first Pokémon tomorrow!"
Across from where the boy sat on his bed sat a small television, on which flickered the image of an increasingly fierce battle between a Nidorino and a Gengar. At a word from his trainer the Gengar called up a ball of pulsating blue-black energy which it promptly hurled at the Nidorino, forcing it to nimbly dodge to the side, narrowly avoiding the ensuing detonation as the ball slammed into the ground where Nidorino had stood. The boy and his mother watched the short exchange, then the boy returned his attention to his mother, eyes wide and pleading.
"Oh... alright, fine," she said, giving in. "You can watch, but go to bed as soon as this show is over!" The boy cheered, and then returned his rapt attention to the television.
Meanwhile, in Pyrite Colosseum, Victor was in a pinch. He knew full well that Nidorino versus Gengar was a terrible match up: Nidorino was outclassed in speed and power, albeit not brute strength, but few of its moves are actually effective against the Ghost Pokémon, even if he could land a hit. And, unfortunately, these were both trainers' last Pokémon; he had no other options. He glanced at the smoking crater where the Shadow Ball had struck, then at Nidorino. He had to try to finish this quickly: Nidorino couldn't dodge forever.
Unfortunately, reality intervened on his train of thought as Gengar produced and hurled another Shadow Ball. Before Victor had time to react, Nidorino was already moving, leaping aside with agility surprising for such a bulky Pokémon, letting the Shadow Ball rocket past him and detonate against the far wall. Victor shook his head quickly, as though clearing his head. "Sorry Nidorino," he called. "I've got to keep my head in the game. Alright, let's close the distance! Charge in with Poison Jab!"
Nidorino nodded in confirmation, then turned and charged Gengar head-on at full speed, hissing purple liquid running down from the tip of his barbed horn. The poisoned horn never met its mark however, as Gengar leaped high into the air, a mean gleam in its eye. Its trainer called out, and a third Shadow Ball appeared in its palm. "Right where we want it!" Victor called with a grin. "He's got nowhere to go! Sucker Punch!" In the same moment Gengar hurled its Shadow ball, but it flew through thin air and struck nothing but ground, and Nidorino was lost from sight for a moment... until, in a split second, he appeared in the air above Gengar, even as Gengar himself fell back to the ground. The ghost only had a moment to glance above it before the bigger, heavier poison Pokémon fell on it from above, feet first... and hard. The two slammed into the ground, cracking the earth and sending up a cloud of dust that obscured the end result of the brief clash. A few tense seconds passed before Nidorino leaped out of the swirling dust, landing neatly before its trainer, facing its still-hidden opponent. Both trainer and Pokémon strained their vision, waiting and watching for any sign of movement, but to no avail. Finally the dust settled, to reveal that Gengar had vanished entirely.
Surprised, Victor frantically scanned the arena for any sign of the ghost. At least, until he noticed something rather wrong with Nidorino's shadow: it was off somehow, turned the wrong way for the lighting, and wavering slightly. "Nidorino!" Victor gasped, trying to warn his Pokémon, but in vain: in a moment Gengar rose up from the shadow before Nidorino. His eyes widened in stunned realization, just before Gengar slapped him aside with a powerful Payback, boosted by the strength of Nidorino's Sucker Punch, sending the Pokémon tumbling across the ground a few feet before his feet finally found purchase in the dirt and he slid to a halt. Gengar's trainer wasted no time, immediately barking orders to which Gengar immediately responded, closing the distance between itself and Nidorino in a full-tilt dash, and bringing a glowing purple fist to bear: a Shadow Punch. Still, Victor was now fully engaged and on the ball, and this time Gengar just wasn't fast enough. "Nidorino, Confusion!" Victor called, a sly smirk touching the corner of his lips. Both Gengar and its trainer paused and stared at first Victor, then Nidorino in wide-eyed disbelief, an instant before an invisible wave of psychic energy slammed into Gengar, hurling it bodily across the colosseum and into the far wall. "Alright, let's finish this!" Victor called, a wide grin spread across his face. "End it now! Head Smash!"
"That's impossible!" the opposing trainer shouted, his voice wavering, now in a bit of a panic as his Gengar stumbled forward in a daze, his bright red eyes rolling in their sockets. "A Nidorino can't be taught moves like Confusion and Head Smash! How can this be?"
"You're right, it can't be taught," Victor called back with a victorious smirk, watching as Nidorino charged forward at surprising speeds, a bright white aura surging before him as he approached ramming velocity. "Moves like that can only be passed on with heredity. They have to be bred for them." Nidorino picked up even more speed, the aura now surrounding him in a brilliant sheath of light, while Gengar still reeled before him, helpless. "And, as it happens, I am a Pokémon breeder. Nidorino was bred to be the best; no amount of training can overcome the strength in his genes. You never stood a chance." The other trainer cried out in fear one final time as Nidorino's charge met it's target, slamming Gengar against the wall once more with enough force to send cracks through the rock and rusting metal of the spectator stands behind it and causing an explosion that sent clouds of smoke and dust rolling out across the arena. When the dust finally died down, Nidorino stood tall, battered but victorious, and Gengar lay unconscious behind him.
"We have a winner!"