StylishDescent (SD): Hey everyone, StylishDescent here. And welcome to another new story.
Trip: Huh, you've invited me here. Is there a certain reason for that?
SD: Yep, you're an important character here, unlike a certain someone. *marks present next to Trip's name* Strange, my trainer OC hasn't turned up yet.
Trip: The fanfiction's starting, so it cannot be helped now, can it?
SD: Nope. I'm sure he'll make his entrance one way or another. Without further ado, let's us begin. Hope you'll all enjoy the first chapter of Reggie's Unova Madness.

Warning: This fanfiction is mostly canon up to the Unova League.

Chapter 1: Not My Kind Of Start

"You know how kids these days go on their journeys, saying it's cakewalk? Well I call BS," a slightly deep voice muttered, "Why I say that? Well, it's because of..." The voice was interrupted by some radio chatter in the background. For some reason, he could understand it. "Oh, I'm spoiling it? Whoops," he laughed nervously, "How should I go about it then?" More radio chatter was his answer. "Are you sure? It's a little, you know, overused." Chatter again. "Alright, alright. Let's get to the point where it all began..."

Residing on top of the tallest of Unova's plateaus was coliseum-like structure, the Unova Champion League, where the strongest of trainers compete to claim the prestigious title of Unova's Champion. A place where most can only dream of seeing, let alone entering, the Champion League houses the current Elite Four. The first of them is Shauntal the Ghost-type elite and famous authoress of horror and romance genres, almost constantly cooped up inside a library of famous works of literature. Next we have Marshal the Fighting-type elite and two-time winner of the Annual Unova Wrestling Championships. The self-proclaimed apprentice of Alder was certainly a guy one does not want to mess with unless he wants to have a broken nose or limb at the end of the day. The third member is Grimsley the eccentric Dark-type elite and gambler. Whatever you do, do not ask about his family. Last but not least, the final member is Caitlin, the Psychic elite who is also an actual psychic from Sinnoh. In addition to the four specialists, the strongest trainer of Unova sits on the throne. Well, metaphorically anyway.

Trip sighed as he paced the podium where the Champion's throne was positioned, making him appear like some sort of overseer from some video game he never cared about. About ten months before the next challenger arrives to attempt to claim the throne, what am I going to do until then? It wasn't that the dirty blonde disliked the title, he relished it after the intense battles against the Elite Four, but three to four months after overthrowing Alder, he was feeling the pains of being the Unova Champion. For starters, he had to worry about the paparazzi and crazy fangirls hounding him the moment he took down the fifty-plus old man. Maybe he was rather young, 15 to be exact, so the former thought they could stalk and find sully his reputation for a longer period of time, and the latter could chase him to proclaim their 'love'.

As an example, he headed to the Relic Castle in search of the elusive, yet powerful Volcanora, said to be the guardian of the Relic Castle itself, and almost as old. Not that Trip believed the myth about the Bug/Fire-type's age, a more realistic view was that the Sun Pokemon was the descendant of the original Castle Guardian. Time is never kind to anyone, even to Legendary Pokemon. No one could live long enough to document the time taken for a Legendary to die though. Regardless of whether it was an ancient Pokemon or its descendant, Trip was more than willing to hunt down the 'Zoroark-evasive' Pokemon (or as Alder once described the Bug/Fire dual type). So what if he already had a team, he was more than thrilled to have another additional member to train, so that he could mess with, and in some rarer cases, destroy whatever strategy the next challenger could come up with. Being a person who plans two steps ahead of others, he could feel the pain of losing his winning strategy at the finale.

Such as that one time during the World Tournament Junior Cup, where his strategy to have Serperior attack the blindspot of Alder's Bouffalant after trying to let down the former Champion's guard down by taking advantage of the Bash Buffalo Pokemon's Sap Sipper ability, only for it to backfire when not only was Bouffalant unaffected by the Dragon Tail his Serperior struck with after a Leer, the boosted Bouffalant's Head Charge was all Alder needed to knock out the Regal Pokemon. Then again, Trip thought grimly, even if I had not strengthened Bouffalant, Bouffalant's natural strength alone would have been all Alder needed to take out Serperior.

Anyway, Trip was searching for the castle's entrance when he found himself being chased by a crazy group of fangirls into an extremely convienent crack of the Relic Castle. The dirty blonde was glad that he was able to squeeze inside the ancient 'safe-house' to evade his stalkers momentarily, and annoyed he had absolutely no idea where he was, having prepared an original route beforehand. Hours of aimless wandering and fending off Yamask, Krokorok and the occasional Cofagrigus with his trusty Pokemon team later, the Unova Champion escaped the home of the former kings and queens of the Unova Region without the prize. Then the paparazzi came, seemingly attracted to the heap of a mess that he was in. Trip later had Conkeldurr, Chandelure and Unfezant to destroy the camera and film while Jellicent, Serperior and Vanilluxe were tasked to scare the paparazzi into submission once every equipment was damaged beyond repair. Ever since, he'd been on his guard outside of the League, making special arrangements to hide his identity with surprising success, considering the twisted tenacity of the bunch of maniacs.

Boredom was the next, and most obvious problem. The first three months were fine, but when the paperwork made their debut in the fourth and subsequent months, he had little time for leisure. Almost unlike a certain Sinnoh Champion, as far as he all knew. At times, the young Unovan wondered if Alder had intentionally lost to avoid the mountains of paperwork and equally bothersome conferences he and the other Champions must attend. With all this work, Trip barely had time to take care of his own Pokemon, he had his older Pokemon do that, let alone go to a party he was invited to a week ago. For some unknown reason, a law was passed one month after Team Plasma's defeat. For a Champion to apply for a leave, he or she needs to warn the League at least a month ahead of time unless it's an official invitation or anything serious in general. "For the safety of the Champion," the politicians had said. It goes without question that Trip would have to decline the offer. Even if he could, being a relatively distant person, it was less than likely that he would socialise with the crowd. The other rivals perhaps, but that was about it.

He wished he did not decline though, he had to get a break one of these days or he would be driven insane. A cool green serpentine body coiled around him, his Serperior's. Despite the calm and composed demeanour his starer Pokemon's species was known for, Trip knew Serperior well enough that he was becoming restless as well. Before his ascension to the throne, Trip had kept his Pokemon in tip-top condition by regularly challenging trainers, mostly in the Battle Clubs to test his strength against others of similar caliber. His Pokemon might have been so used to this that the life of a Champion's Pokemon might not have been one they would never accustomed to. Maybe we'll go for a sparring match against the Elite Four later, that'll help. He patted his close friend's head, settling on that idea. Speaking of close friends, he wondered how the boy from down the street was doing. The boy's sister, a former Champion and Trip's secret crush, had disappeared for a couple of years now, last seen with the Legendary Deep Black Pokemon, or so he heard, leaving Alder with the title once more until his defeat again by his hands.

The sister started her journey a little more than a day after he started, but by some miracle, she managed to keep up with him, even defeating him at the semi-finals of the League and taking the throne. As rivalry went, it was basic he would want to have a rematch against her, but with her vanishing from thin air like that, Trip never got the chance to do so.

BEEP BEEP

Hmm? Who could be calling me right now? Answering his Xtransceiver, the Champion raised his brow at the sight of the Striaton City Gym's Grass-type triplet and A-rank connoisseur, Cilan, on the screen. They weren't friends by any means, but not acquaintances either, with the Striaton triplet above the self-proclaimed Dragon Buster and Miss Wannabe Dragon Master in the social level. And they were found quite close to the bottom. Then again, due to his distant personality, he did not have much of a chance to know them any better. The normally optimistic greenette had worry written all over his face, and his voice carried panic and urgency. "Trip, have you seen Ash?"

It was basic that he would not know where the Kanto trainer was, his Champion duties had forced him to prioritise important matters over trivial stuff. Hell, he wanted nothing to do with the kid with the Pikachu, having defeated, no... crushed the 12-year-old in the Unova League a little more than a year and a half ago. Trip shook his head, "No, mind filling me with the news about him?" The cafe co-founder started to explain everything from the top, all the way to some random stranger who had overheard the dweeb telling his 'mon that they were going to the Unova region to prove something. Taking in the information bit by bit, Trip barely managed to restrain himself from face-palming for knowing Ash in the first place. "Because only unprofessionals do face-palms, it's basic stuff," the reason for his restraint in his own words. As mentioned before, he wanted nothing to do with the loser, but there was a high chance that Ash's friends would pester him until he did.

"Fine, I will try to find him," Trip relented with reluctance lacing his words, emphasising on the word 'try'. "I might not know where Ash is, or what he is doing at this hour," the Champion adding 'probably something stupid like failing to get the correct flight ticket' mentally before he continued, "but I'm sure someone I know back in Nuvema Town who could help. There's a fair chance that he might run into Ash on his journey which should be starting this afternoon, according to him at least." But what are the chances of that anyway? Trip silently added.

The World of Pokemon, teeming with amazing creatures wielding all sorts of elemental powers at their fingertips (or is it paw-tips or fin-tips?), creatures we know today as Pocket Monsters, or Pokemon for short. Inhabiting the land, sky and sea, even outer space, at least 600 Pokemon have been discovered, and countless more are possibly out there whose mysteries are not yet uncovered. Pokemon coexist with humans-

"I cannot believe I'd brought the wrong ticket!"

"Pika, pikachu!"

"We're not returning back! It's a good thing that I'd brought some extra... Uh, that would mean I'll be broke when I reach Unova."

"Pika, pika!"

"Okay, okay, I'm hurrying!"

*cough* As I, the narrator, was saying before the rude interruption, Pokemon coexist with humans. We play together, work together and battle together, forging unbreakable bonds that last until the end of time. Trainers and their Pokemon work as one to overcome their limits, to achieve their goals. Some of them become ace trainers and master coordinators, and a select few even obtaining legendary status, such as the mysterious, one and only (and currently missing-in-action) Pokemon Master-

"Did someone say there's already a-"

For Arceus' sake. Excuse me for a minute.

The shadowed narrator cracked his knuckles, leaving the 'narrator voice room' with brass knuckles equipped. A half-scream and the sound of a fist connecting with a face was heard, and finally the 'thud' sound of someone's body collapsing followed not long after. Returning, the narrator let out a sigh of satisfaction, removing the weapons. That's much better. We'll just move on to the good part before I go and beat up that idiot for his rudeness again. Man, maybe I should do it for a hobby! Never mind that last bit though, we zoom into the south-eastern corner of Unova, where the small, quaint Nuvema Town was located. The home to young aspiring trainers, such as this young man, taking his first step into trainer-hood.

A relatively worn haversack sat on a neatly done bed, unzipped to expose its contents to a pair of onyx blue eyes. Their owner, a 16-year-old teenage male wearing a long sleeved purple shirt, searched the insides of the bag, ticking a mental checklist. Two water bottles, check. Snacks and cans of Pokemon food, check. Extra clothing, waterproofs, first aid kit, cash... check, check, check and check. Initially appearing satisfied, the pale-skinned teenager suddenly frowned, his left hand scratching his long copper-coloured hair, one of his bangs partially covering his left eye. Something's missing, but I cannot put a finger on it. Surveying the contents for what felt like the umpteenth time for him, the brunette snapped his fingers in realization, slipping his right hand into a pocket of his faded green trousers and pulling out a packet. He grinned, opening the packet and popping one of the lozenges inside into his mouth, enjoying the minty taste. "Never leave without these," the teenager mumbled, keeping the packet as he zipped the haversack and slung it over his shoulders.

He could feel the weight of the haversack's contents against his shoulders, but he had to get used to it. When he adds more Pokemon into the team, there was no telling how much he would be carrying. Standing in front of the full body mirror, the pale soon-to-be trainer examined his appearance once more, a smile showing his satisfaction. Not a good first impression if you look like a hobo, he thought, turning to leave his bedroom. "Well Reggie, it's almost time," Reginald "Reggie" Evans told himself. Walking down the stairs and heading towards the door that leads to outside, he took a look at a framed photograph closest to the door, one that brought him nostalgia.

A younger version of him had an arm draped over the shoulder of a girl with long chocolate brown hair done in a pony-tail, her eyes a lighter shade than his, a cobalt blue. "White..." Reggie whispered, memories flashing to the time Hilda Whitlea Evans, or as most call her, White left on her journey on her thirteen birthday with a bespectacled boy and her rival named Cheren two years ago. The latter of whom, if Reggie remembered correctly, was now a teacher at Aspertia City, found at the opposite end of Unova. Reggie could care less about the teacher (how did a 15-year-old even become a teacher in the first place?), his younger sister by a year was by far more important. The only family he had disappeared a month after defeating Alder, leaving no trace of her existence except for her pictures framed at their home and in the Hall of Fame.

He could fondly remembered his sister's birthday that year, from having to bomb his pockets to get each of them a Xtransceiver for ease of communication to her bringing home her first Pokemon. Reggie could not remember which one starter she chose, but he knew whatever it was, it was perfect for her as far as he knew. For the first three months, they were in regular contact, then the time in between calls started to lengthen. A few months after conquering the Champion League, White dropped off radar, not once answering his call or even leaving him a message. "I swear, if I ever see my dear sister again, I'm going to..." Reggie began, but sighed in defeat, "But I'm sure she, or rather her Pokemon would kick my ass before I can do anything." Glancing at the picture one last time, Reggie made his exit.

Instantly greeting him was the warm glow of the sun, followed by the cool breeze caressing his face and songs of the bird Pokemon filling the air, a pleasant morning fitting of such an occasion. However, as a man of priorities, Reggie knew better than to waste time enjoying the morn. There are other days for the opportunity, he thought. Kicking off into a slow jog down the mostly empty streets of his hometown, Reggie's mind drifted off to the starter Pokemon, knowing that he would be the first of the newest batch meeting in five to ten minutes. I wonder which one I should pick? The Fire-type Tepig, Water-type Oshawott, or Grass-type Snivy? Each with their own strengths and weaknesses, it's going to one of the toughest choices- OOF!

Watching where you are going is the most basic thing every person knows, yet it had never been processed until the Unova native crashed into someone, stumbling backwards and falling onto his butt in his dazed state. Note to self, I've got to watch where I'm going or it'll be the death of me one of these days. Shaking his head to clear the haze, Reggie's eyes moved upwards, catching a person in his sights.

A tan-skinned boy with unkempt spiky blond hair stood in front of him, wearing a red shirt underneath his green hoodie, as well as dark blue jeans and red sneakers. His widened crimson eyes giving Reggie the evidence that the stranger was slightly taken aback by the crash. He makes me look like a midget, Reggie thought, facing the fact that he was only about 1.67 tall, maybe 10 to 15 centimetres shorter than the blonde. And possibly an older guy too. "Hey, are you okay?" The blonde asked.

"I'm fine, dandy," Reggie reassured, dusting himself as he got back up onto his feet. "Sorry about the crash, I am in a hurry," the brunette apologized, "I got to head to the professor's laboratory to get my Pokemon." He added the last part extremely softly, inaudible to all but himself.

"What a coincidence, I'm heading there as well." Wait, did this guy just hear that last part? "I'm new to Unova, can you please lead the way?"

Many possible consequences ran through the Unovan's head. If he led the way for the foreigner, there was always this slight chance he might not be able to get the partner he wanted for his journey. On the other hand, he would not want to sully the reputation of Unova. Not that it was a famous region due to its isolation from the others, but the Unovans naturally held their home in high regard like any patriot would. Reggie nodded his head in confirmation, giving the 'follow me' signal. Moving ahead of the older male, the native barely managed to make a move when he walked into someone and falling back onto his ass, again. This time though, he did not catch a glimpse of the person, and he felt himself hitting something small and furry extremely hard while he swung his arms wildly in a rather futile attempt to regain his balance. You can probably guess where this is going at this point.

A cacophany of cries was running through Reggie's head, just like the high voltage flowing through him. The poor, convulsing teenager thought he saw his bones through his skin during the whole ordeal. Still twitching after the surge of at least 100000 volts stopped flowing through his body, Reggie whimpered, "T-this... is... not... the... kind... of... start... I... pictured..." Numbness took over when his body finally relaxed against his will. In his eyes, all colour faded away from the environment, leaving the black and white of outlines that swirled around him like a whirlpool. Or rather, a black hole as the white was soon consumed by the dominating black. A screen of black was all that remained of the world around him.

Alone in the dark, he was floated about weightlessly. As though there was a bubble of air surrounding only him in a vacuum, no sound reached his ears save for his own breaths. Admist the emptiness of the void, Reggie could only associate the darkness with one word: death. Suspended in the vacuum, Reggie gulped at the possibility, "Yep, not my kind of start."

Trip: It seems a little deja vu.
SD: What you you mean?
Trip: I mean, I read your fanfics. You seem to love killing your OCs.
SD: Yeah, I might be a little cruel to my OCs, maybe go overboard with it at times. They get used to the routine of 'death and rebirth' after a while. *sees Reggie entering* The star of the show finally makes his appearance.
Reggie: You're a jerk, you know that? At least give me a Pokemon before you kill me.
SD: I wouldn't even think of doing something so heinous! That has already been reserved for someone else.
Reggie: For who?
SD: *dark look* Do you know what kind of fanfiction I detest the most?
Trip and Reggie: Nope.
SD: I leave you two to guess then. Ironic how I'm incorporating its kind with a trainer story, but unlike those types, I'm adding my own twist to it. I'll let the readers guess what type of fanfiction I hate too, we cannot forget them y'know. What do you like or dislike about the start of Reggie's Unova Madness? Be it constructive criticisms and/or flames, leave them in the review section. Until then, see you all next chapter.

PS: Does anyone know what the name of the shipping for Trip/Hilda is? Is there even that shipping? If there isn't, can someone come up with a name for it? I'll appreciate it.

[StylishDescent logging out]