Entry #1: Introduction

Hello, my name is Motteley Weißmasse. I am certain that none of you have heard of me so I will explain it for you: I am a former institutionalized professor who has studied pokémon to determine the best methods of drawing out the full extent of each species' potential through various methods. Manipulation of "individual values", applying "effort values", a multitude of different items one could give a pokémon, and so on so forth are all basic information topics for elite pokémon trainers who seek to maximize their partners' strengths when battling rivals, but as of late there exists a few more methods of attaining higher power for one's pokémon: drastic methods that cannot be reasonably replicated in the wild.

"Mega evolution", an ability-augmenting transformation achieved when a pokémon and their trainer's bond has reached a peak and when both parties involved are in possession of specific items: an appropriate mega stone for the pokémon and a key stone for the trainer. Some mega evolutions are ancient forms of what the individual species had originally looked like, others seem to be new transformations that could lead into a shift in the pokémon species' biology down the line in the future. However, according to new research rising from the region of Alola, all mega evolutions have one thing in common: increased aggression. For each individual specimen, the cause for the newfound aggression varies; for some it is due to the transformation bringing intense pain upon them throughout the entire sequence thanks to the massive amount of energy they acquire, and for others it is due to the transformation altering their mindset to where they obsess over victory and will use any means to attain it. In the case of the kangaskhan species, the mother does not transform but the child does, gaining an exponential increase in physical growth; this comes with the cost of stunted intelligence growth, causing the mother great distress over the child's future. It appears that most of this information does not seem readily available to most of the Kalos or the Hoenn regions' populations as evidenced by their various trainers' willingness to frequently utilize the transformation, and those who live in the Alola region are very much opposed to the ideal thanks to the extensive knowledge acquired by the region's cutting-edge Rotom Pokédex.

"Z-Moves", powerful combat techniques utilized by every known species of pokémon when a pokémon and their trainer's bond has reached a peak and when the trainer is in possession of two specific items: an appropriate Z-Crystal for the pokémon to draw power from and a Z-Ring to place a Z-Crystal inside of. According to several of the Alolan natives, a Kanto-native child had received a stone from one of their guardian deities—Tapu Koko—and Kahuna Hala of Melemele Island had turned the stone into a Z-Ring for said Kanto-native child to utilize one they had completed their first trial of the island challenge. Whether these stones are given to trainers by the Tapus themselves to be forged into Z-Rings or not requires further investigation on my part. Much like the mega evolutions of Kalos and Hoenn, the Z-Moves take their toll on the pokémon who utilizes one and the surrounding environment can suffer in the process alongside the victim of the attacks. Thanks to their relative newness I have yet to see Z-Moves become well-known outside of the Alola region by the time of this writing, but it has nonetheless caught the attention of several others within the scientific community, including the likes of Professor Tipsy who had gone to publish a highly informative and in-depth fact file of the nature of Z-Moves for Alolan pokémon trainers and other regions to make use of. Keep in mind that Mega Evolutions and Z-Moves are simply two out of the four unnatural and drastic methods of attaining higher power for one's pokémon, and the remaining two methods are also worrying for several other similar reasons.

"Bond phenomenon", a unique situation akin to mega evolution that requires a pokémon and their trainer's trust in one another to be deep and resolute, moreso than what mega evolution and Z-Moves would require. A transformation occurs and the specimen's external biology undergoes a change that makes them resemble their trainer to a noticeable degree. Natural abilities are augmented in the same way mega evolutions enhance the abilities of the pokémon specimen, but the difference between the two transformations is that the external change is not as drastic for the bond phenomenon compared to the mega evolution, there is no purported increase of aggression for the pokémon when the bond phenomenon occurs, and both pokémon and trainer can act as an extra set of senses for one another having linked their minds together. For those who are opposed to mega evolutions, bond phenomenon would appear to be a suitable alternative or replacement, but there are still serious negative side-effects to consider. Because of the lack of an external power outlet for the pokémon to constantly draw energy from, they increase the risk of strain and fatigue moreso than utilizing a mega evolution. In addition to this, their trainer shares in their experiences of pain and injury and vice-versa; if a pokémon were to suffer a leg injury or sudden decrease in heartrate, their trainer will also suffer from this. For this reason, mega evolution has continued to be the prevalent method between it and bond phenomenon among the few aware of the latter technique as to not risk too much for an even greater chance of victory. To date there are so few recorded instances of bond phenomenon occurring in ancient history and only one very recently; a male Kanto-native trainer by the name of Ash Ketchum had revealed this power with his greninja against Alain during the Kalos League Conference. I must remind myself to pull this trainer aside for an interview soon; all this information came from my former colleagues who had attended the conference to watch this "friend to legends"; the more I understand this phenomenon, the better my research will be.

Finally, there is the "primal reversion", yet another powerful transformation method in which the pokémon draws power from Planet Earth itself mostly or entirely without trainer input. Only two known cases of this phenomenon exist, that being Primal Kyogre and Primal Groudon—the legendary pokémon of Hoenn culture. The two legendary pokémon clashed in a cataclysmic bout of supremacy over the world during its early creation, absorbing the ambient energies of nature to maintain their struggle, and it was not until Mega Rayquaza descended from the ozone layer to soothe the two pokémon that the fighting had ended. With Mega Rayquaza sealing away much of the power Primal Kyogre and Primal Groudon possessed into the Blue Orb and Red Orb respectively and neutralizing much of the unearthed nature energies utilized by the two colossal pokémon to prevent other species from using it, it seemed that the world would never have to deal with another apocalyptic event. That was until two opposed criminal organizations dubbed "Team Magma" and "Team Aqua" attempted to reawaken the ancient pokémon to further their own goals, thus repeating history with the beasts' releasing. The fight never lasted too long thanks to the efforts of two pokémon trainers by the names of Brendan and May along with Mega Rayquaza's assistance, putting an end to the two organizations' schemes and restoring peace to the world once more. Moving on to the primal reversion itself, it is quite possibly the most powerful a pokémon can get, surpassing mega evolution, Z-Moves, and bond phenomenon by what is quite frankly a terrifying degree. A few other legendary pokémon and one noted mythical pokémon may be capable of mega evolution (which is worrisome in and of itself), but none can come close to the sheer force exuded by the primal reversion which is said to restore a pokémon to their true, ancient strength. If a simple boost in strength wasn't enough, during primal reversion the user unearths and revitalizes the nature energies stored in the earth which go on to saturate the atmosphere, resulting in extreme global events such as "desolate land" and "primordial sea".

And yet, despite all of this, I cannot help but find myself attracted to these powers. During my years of research, I have yet to call a pokémon my own unlike many others had done before me, including my former colleges and Professor Tipsy who has taken up many species of pokémon to call his own (particularly bonding with his krookodile named Gustav). My research was too valued to allow me any semblance of freedom where I had worked so long as I was there, limiting most of my days in the lab; eventually I decided that I would soon leave and journey out into the world and gather my own entourage of pokémon to witness these powers myself, visiting the regions most associated with them. To this end I have made many physical copies of the research detailing each of the many different enhancing methods for pokémon to keep for personal use and stored them within my custom-made pokédex. Most of my former colleges would have frowned upon my intentions had they learned of them, so I did them and myself a favor and resigned from institutionalized research lab without raising a fuss; as far as I was concerned I can be replaced no matter how important my job was. Despite my credible contributions to the world of researching pokémon, I am not known around any portion of the world outside of the scientific community, all thanks to never leaving the lab since my joining and maintaining anonymity when publishing data for others. For starters, I think I will begin in the Kalos region since the region is more mega evolution intensive than any other region; Hoenn comes a close second in that regard and gives me a chance to look more into primal reversion, and for Z-Moves Alola is as good a place as any to begin my experiments (I absolutely must track Ash Ketchum down to get to the bottom of bond phenomenon). Since I will not know how this will all turn out until after the fact, I should to maintain a low profile when conducting my experiments and gathering first-hand data, and even though I respect his contributions greatly I must avoid Professor Tipsy like the plague. Without further ado, let us get this path to power started. Prepare for the worst but hope for the best.

I had finally set out toward the Kalos region to begin my own "pokémon Journey", bringing a variety of tools to assist me to that end; pokémon repellents if I do not obtain a starter species immediately, a case full of potions to undo damage done to whatever or whomever I happen to come across, various berries and honey to attract wild pokémon of all sorts, several evolution-inducing items and incenses for breeding, and last but not least the no-brainer choice of bringing a completed pokédex and assorted poké balls with me to make capturing wild specimen much easier. Before I had reached Professor Sycamore's lab I was mentally deciding who out of the three starter pokémon to take with me; all three of them were worthy candidates, and regardless of what choice I had picked in the end I believed that I would have be able to groom them into an exceptional specimen of their kind. Unfortunately for me, it seemed that fate had deigned to set me back by a small margin, as when I had met Professor Sycamore I was not greeted with what was considered normal behavior to a giver of pokémon but rather the near opposite.

"I'm very sorry, sir," the man had said to me with an embarrassed smile. "The last able starter pokémon had already been claimed…" I remember my first reaction being a curious eyebrow cocked at the man, but my experience taught me that there was always a good reason for starter pokémon not being handed out to trainers.

"Is there anything particularly troublesome concerning the pokémon?" I asked him. "Perhaps we should take them to the Pokémon Center to alleviate whatever ails them."

"No, sir, that's not the problem," the professor countered. "The pokémon themselves are healthy for their age; it's just that they're too young to be gifted to a trainer right now; their bodies are not all that able to handle much of what their new trainers may put them through."

"Ah, I see now," I honestly had not expected that to be the reason, but it was understandable; knowing what lied ahead in the region of Kalos, it was for the best that the starter pokémon remained in captivity until fully mature. As disappointing as it was that I could not receive a pokémon to accompany me, I simply had to make do without one for the time being. "Apologies for troubling you Professor Sycamore. I suppose I will be on my way now."

"If you wish to wait until later I can perhaps have your number and call you so that—"

"That won't be necessary. I can make do just fine without a pokémon partner for a short while."

"Well, if you say so. Do be careful out there; child or adult, it can be dangerous to wander into the wilds without proper protection."

"Noted." Without another word I had left the professor's lab and headed straight for Hotel Richissime to plan out my next move. It was true that without a pokémon of my own I was at considerable risk of attack should I run into wild pokémon, but despite my lack of "proper" self-defense I had more than enough max repels to go through either Route 13 or 16 and loop back around to Lumiose City even if I had to walk the whole way, not to mention the wide variety of "bait" I had on me to distract my attackers. Once I had made it to my designated room and was sure no one was eavesdropping on me, I fired up my pokédex and inspected the routes of the region to determine which pokémon would be suitable enough for a pseudo-starter. All things considered, Routes 13 and 16 had reasonably strong pokémon for a human of my strength so they were the first to be nixed, Route 4's species were not too strong for me to handle so I was tempted to go through that route first, and Route 5 had similarly levelled pokémon to Route 4's and eventually lead to Cyllage City where I could purchase a bicycle (alternatively I could simply capture a skiddo to evolve into a gogoat). And further past Cyllage City was Route 10 where I could catch the rare eevee, a species perfect for genetic study and experimentation, and the species happens to be one of my favorites because of its highly variable genes. Unlike the starter pokémon, eevee are simply rare to encounter by any measure so it is incredibly difficult but worthwhile to obtain one. After bookmarking the routes I would be taking, I pack all my belongings away from where I think room service would inspect and tuck myself in for the night.

Morning had come and I was ready to break a leg, getting up from my bed and taking all my belongings with me. I thanked the receptionist of the hotel and left the building without further notice, barely managing to get through the unusually bustling crowd of people on my way to Route 5. Finally on the road, my priority was to capture a skiddo and raise them into a gogoat; despite having considered a bicycle purchase from Cyllage City, there were advantages that gogoat riding had over bicycling that I wished to experience. Since I did not have a pokémon of my own, I had to settle with luring different specimens out with various berries and honey. Using the honey as the first bait, I drew forth a wide variety of pokémon that were enticed to the smell, among them being a skiddo I was hoping to catch; I still do not understand why honey is such a liked flavor amongst the many pokémon out in this world, but I suppose that it makes it easier to attract them. After the honey lured in the different creatures, I pulled out an assortment of differently flavored berries to see who liked what flavor, I found that only the skiddo was attracted to the sweetness of the pecha berry I had on me; everyone else had liked the other flavors. With that in mind, I had tossed the other berries and a few spares a few feet away from myself to take the other creatures' attention away from me, leading the skiddo astray for a small talk.

"Ah, so you like sweet food," I said to the skiddo, making a mental note that it had a speed-developing nature. "Do not worry little guy, I have more where that came from." The skiddo had apparently understood me and bleated in excitement while running in quick circles. 'Seems like this one likes to run…' "Say, I have an idea," I said to the skiddo while pulling out a poké ball. "I want to make some pokémon friends and help them grow stronger with me. Would you like to come with me and help? I will be certain to keep you in excellent condition." I inwardly cursed the formal mannerisms conditioned into me; I do not believe that formality will help win over younger pokémon easily such as the skiddo in front of me. Regardless, it seemed that the skiddo didn't mind my manners. In a sign of good faith, I reached down and gently ran my fingers through the skiddo's grassy pelt as I fed it more pecha berries, keeping the poké ball where the skiddo could see it to establish openness of intentions. After eating its food, the pokémon stared intently between the poké ball I had and my smiling face for a while, breaking into a smile of its own and pushing the poké ball's button with its snout. I watched the device flash and wiggle back and forth for several seconds, sighing in relief when I heard the telltale clicking sound of a caught pokémon. Happy with my first captured pokémon, I knelt and cupped the poké ball in my hands, giving it a light peck as odd as that would seem. Memories of my childhood were flooding back to me, primarily the times where I would always tell my mother how badly I wanted to be a pokémon trainer and make friends with the many pokémon I would catch. One day a group of professors had come to my home asking if I was there; my academic scores had netted me a spot in one of the best institutes in another region, and though I was excited to go to an esteemed university at the time my mother was not so keen on it. Still, she had let me attend the university and further my education there, and after that I had found myself in the laboratories of pokémon research. From then on, I seemed to be up to my neck in paperwork and study constantly with little to do.

It had finally occurred to me just how little time I spent outside of the laboratories, physically or otherwise. Even though I had rarely sent any letters to my mother, she had mailed at least two letters to me a week with each one ranging from subjects such as fumbling her to-do lists while shopping to more depressing topics like her worsening health. After some time the letters had stopped coming, and I initially assumed that my superiors considered them too distracting for my work. Only when one of my coworkers had mustered enough courage to tell me did I hear of my mother's passing; why no one had notified me of when it had occurred or when there was a funeral service held for her I still cannot fathom entirely, but it became one of the deciding factors of me finally leaving the labs. Before I had gone to the university as a child, I had promised my mother that I would become a good pokémon trainer to make her proud of me before telling her that I loved her; even with the infrequent letters I had sent and their varying topics, the end message was the same for each one: I would come back to her as a trainer and show her how much I had grown. Now the only chance she would ever get was once death came for me too, and that was if I lived long enough to become decently accomplished before then. With the trip to memory lane finished, I stopped clutching my skiddo's poké ball so tightly and pressed its button, wordlessly pitching the object a fair distance away from myself. The device clicked open and poured forth a bright light that would soon take Skiddo's form; the grassy billy goat looked at its environments for a bit before its eyes rested on me. It was not long until the pokémon smiled at me.

"Skid-Skiddo!" the pokémon bleated as it rubbed its head against my leg. I returned the affectionate gesture with light scratches in the grassy pelt and motioned for it to follow me out of the immediate area. We had much to discuss with each other about our upcoming adventure.