The Dark Type Master, Marnie appears!
"Scorbun bun!" Scorbunny cheerfully cried out as she hopped excitedly in front of a food cart.
"Seriously? I just bought you a ton of sweets on the trip over here!" Zach sweated before letting out a defeated sigh as his own stomach rumbled. "Ah what the heck, I could use a snack too!"
"Rio..." Riolu muttered out before blushing as his stomach also rumbled, causing him to go quiet.
Ash and Zach had recently arrived in Galar and were currently in the large industrial city known as Motostoke where the Galar League's opening ceremony would be taking place in a few days, though since they had plenty of time Zach was wanting to make a quick stop in Wedgehurst so he could check up on an old friend. However at that moment he was allowing Ash some time to locate any nearby Championship opponents before they'd venture off to the Wild Area so they could check some Pokemon as they made their way to Wedgehurst.
Ash was currently staring at his Rotom Phone with a disappointed expression.
"There doesn't appear to be anyone remotely close participating!" He did notice a blip in the middle of one of Galar's many Wild Areas but the region seemed pretty lacking in competitors right then or at least in the general vicinity.
"Well the new season of the Galar League is starting up, most Galar trainers are primarily concerned with participating in that. We've got some of the strongest gym leaders in the world and if somebody can't beat Kabu then they're most certainly not participating in the World Championship until they know they can handle that kind of power!" Zach remarked as he paid for three Casteliacones for him and his Pokemon.
Scorbunny leaped for joy as she was handed the cone, the rabbit closing her eyes as she prepared to take a bite only for a black and white blur to go racing by, the cone disappearing with the blur as Scorbunny winded up biting her paw.
"Scor!" The rabbit Pokemon cried out in pain, shaking her paw while Riolu stood on alert trying to locate the thief.
"What the-? Here you can have mine." Zach bent over to hand his cone to Scorbunny only for the same blur to return, leaping up and snatching the Casteliacone right out of his grasp before landing on the ground where a black and white colored Zigzagoon began greedily munching it down.
"Goon goon!"
"A Zigzagoon!" Zach gasped before quickly reaching for a empty ball. "That'll be a perfect partner for my team!"
"Zigzagoon?" Ash asked, tilting his head before quickly coming to the realization that it was a Galarian Zigzagoon much like how Meowth and Raichu had different forms in the Alola region.
"Goon?" Zigzagoon paused as it swallowed the last bit of dessert, making eye contact with Zach for a brief moment before sticking out it's tongue and quickly turning around to make an escape.
"Oh no you don't!" Zach grabbed a hold of a Fast Ball, chucking it after the Zigzagoon as it attempted an escape. The ball proved true to it's name however and nailed Zigzagoon's back, the raccoon Pokemon disappearing in a beam of red light as the ball hit the ground and began steadily shaking.
"I know it's probably going to break out, Riolu prepare to lash out with Force Palm when it does." Riolu nodded and rushed towards the ball, preparing to strike while Scorbunny had calmed down upon Riolu handing her his own treat. The act proved unnecessary however as Zigzagoon didn't have much fight in him, the ball chiming to announce the capture while his data registered in Zach's Pokedex.
"Zigzagoon, the raccoon Pokemon. Thought to be the oldest form of Zigzagoon, it moves in zigzags and wreaks havoc upon its surroundings!"
"Huh, went differently than how I pictured but I'm satisfied with the results regardless!" Zach grinned while Riolu handed him the ball. "Our team is now one Pokemon larger, pretty soon we'll need a place for the others to reside. That was going to be the dojo grounds but that's not an option anymore, hopefully our friend can watch them for us."
Riolu nodded. Scorbunny tilted her head with a concerned look upon hearing that her trainer planned to own more than six Pokemon, she had grown to become attached to him while also forming a bond with Riolu despite them not getting along at times, she didn't want to go stay at some stinking lab with a stranger!
"Scor!" Scorbunny crossed her arms and turned away.
An explosion sounded off from a nearby practice field causing the two trainers to quickly jerk their heads to see a much younger trainer rushing by with an unconscious Grookey in his arms, the Pokemon having just taken a severe beating from the look of things.
"Huh, wonder what happened there..." Zach pondered.
"Don't you know?! Marnie is taking on any chump foolish enough to face off against her greatest!" A man wearing a black biker jacket with a strange purple emblem across the shirt beneath stopped in front of them, his face covered in a similar coloring of face paint to match the strange emblem while a group of similarly dressed men and women stood behind him carrying a massive banner that showcased a girl that appeared to be Ash and Zach's age, wearing a black jacket much like her fan club while beneath the jacket appeared to be a pink blouse. The girl's hair long and pitch black, currently in a pig tail style along with piercing green eyes. She could definitely be deemed attractive by some!
"Marnie, eh? Is she competing again this year?" Zach questioned them.
"Nah, she's done with that. She has no interest in the champion title or the responsibility that comes with it, she now seeks out her true destiny as a Dark type Master!"
"Dark type master...?" It reminded Ash of his previous companions Misty and Iris who had dreamed of becoming Water and Dragon masters. Ash's gaze turned towards the battlefield where another battle could currently be heard taking place. "Maybe I should challenge this Marnie myself, she sounds quite strong and will no doubt make for an exciting opponent!"
"I figured this was coming," Zach smirked lightly as they started their way towards the battlefield where another trainer was currently facing off against her, a light gray colored Eevee quickly darting across the field as it unleashed a Quick Attack on a small purple and black rodent Pokemon, the attack proved to do little damage however.
"Morpeko, Aura Wheel!" The girl known as Marnie shouted at, a light blue ball of energy formed around Morpeko as he charged at his opponent, striking Eevee head on and sending the normal type flying!
"Eeveee!" The Normal type cried out before landing in a defeated slump before his trainer who had a very disappointed look upon his face as he returned it.
"A living disappointment, how am I ever going to make Rose proud with a weakling like you holding me back?!" The trainer angrily shouted at his ball before turning around and storming off.
"...was that Bede?" Zach looked after the other trainer as he walked away, magenta colored jacket and platinum blonde hair should have made things clear as to the trainer's identity.
"Who?" Ash tilted his head in response.
"Oh that's right, you weren't around yet. Before you came along he was my dojo partner, we didn't get along that well and he questioned every single task Mustard gave him while easily growing frustrated at lack of results. Needless to say he didn't last there very long... I think he was there even shorter than you were, no offense!" Zach stated before glancing off in the direction Bede had gone off in. "I hope Eevee's okay, Marnie is way out of our league I have no idea what he was even thinking challenging her like that."
Ash bit his lip as flashbacks of Chimchar and Paul played through his head, it seemed like similar events were at play here. He hoped he was wrong as he didn't approve of people abandoning their Pokemon.
"Oi, anyone else feel like challenging me?!" Marnie shouted out the question while looking around at the crowd with a challenging stare. Ash seemed deep in thought so Zach gave his friend a light shove to push Ash out of the crowd and into view as Marnie's eyes looked upon the trainer while his mind began to clear.
"Ya look familiar... have we met before?"
"Unlikely, I haven't faced many opponents from this region so I'd certainly have remembered you." Ash spoke with a light smile as Pikachu flicked his tail upon hopping onto his shoulder.
"Pika!"
Marnie eyed Pikachu for a brief moment before shrugging. "The name's Marnie, pleasure to meet ya!"
"Name's Ash Ketchum, and right back at ya!" Ash grinned as the excitement of battle began quickly flowing through him once more. "So what are we doing, a three on three? Two versus two...?"
"I think one on one will do," Marnie's gaze lingered on Pikachu once more before pointing at him. "So long as you use him!"
"Pika!" Pikachu cried out while pumping his fists, showing that he accepted Marnie's challenge.
Ash let out a light laugh as he nodded his head, accepting Marnie's challenge. "You're on, so am I facing... Morpeko?" Ash blinked for a moment before withdrawing his Rotom Phone as he never saw the species before.
"Morpeko, the two-sided Pokemon. It carries electrically roasted seeds with it as if they're precious treasures. No matter how much it eats, it always gets hungry again in short order!"
"Two-sided? What does that mean...?" Ash looked at Morpeko and realized that it looked quite different than it had moments ago while facing Bede, it's coloring had completely changed while it's eyes had a more cute and calm look rather than the scary red eyes.
Marnie shook her head while emitting a light laugh. "Morpeko? Nah, I want my strongest Pokemon to test ya skills as a trainer. Grimmsnarl, let's rock his world!"
"Snarl!" A large menacing looking green demon-like Pokemon stood across the field from Pikachu, a snarl emitting from his throat as he towered over the electrical mouse.
"Pika-?!"
"Grimmsnarl, the Bulk Up Pokemon. With the hair wrapped around its body helping to enhance its muscles, this Pokemon can overwhelm even Machamp!"
"Dark Pulse!" Marnie was quick on the attack as Grimmsnarl began firing a beam of black and purple circles from his mouth.
"Dodge with Quick Attack!"
"Pi!" Pikachu swiftly evaded the attack as it exploded right next to him, the Electric type sweated from relief before quickly darting across the field and slamming his body up against Grimmsnarl's leg.
"Hammer arm, quickly!" Marnie shouted.
Grimmsnarl moved quite fast, his hand glowing red as he slammed his arm into his opponent resulting in Pikachu crying out from the pain as he didn't have enough time to escape.
"Now Play Rough!"
"Thunderbolt!" Thick white smoke appeared around the two as loud slaps and hits could be heard within as Grimmsnarl roughly played around with Pikachu however lightning could be seen sparking through the smoke cloud before a giant burst of electricity came blasting down from the sky and zapping Grimmsnarl! The Dark/Fairy type roared out in pain as the electricity flowed through him, quickly dropping to his knees as Marnie raised her eyebrow with a light smirk across her face.
"I had a feeling that Pikachu was strong... break their spirit with Spirit Break!" Grimmsnarl roared as it charged across the field with a bright pink glow before tackling Pikachu with immense force. Pikachu cried out in pain as he was flattened but a smirk soon crossed both Ash's and his own face as his cheeks began to spark once more before another lightning bolt came crashing down, Grimmsnarl roaring out in pain as he hopped off Pikachu in an attempt to stop the pain however it was too late as Grimmsnarl soon went stumbling backwards, crashing down hard on his back as swirls appeared in his eyes.
Marnie's fan club let out a gasp as their beloved trainer had been defeated!
"Impossible!"
"Hacks!"
"You cheat, there's no way you could have beaten Marnie!"
"Geez and I thought I had it bad for Cynthia..." Zach muttered to Riolu as the jackal nodded, both of them giving Team Yell weird looks before slowly stepping away.
"Give it a rest, he beat me fair and square." Marnie narrowed her eyes at her fan club as she returned Grimmsnarl to his ball before approaching Ash with an extended arm. "I thought you looked familiar, you're the Ash Ketchum! I heard about your Battle Frontier accomplishment, quite an impressive feat not many have pulled off."
"Heh, that was years ago I'm surprised anyone even remembers that." Ash rubbed the back of his neck with a nervous smile. "That was a great battle though, Grimmsnarl was quite powerful and no doubt he'd have won had we been a year or two's worth of experience short."
Marnie's gaze soon darted towards Zach. "That's your companion, ain't he? Are ya traveling by any chance?" Marnie knew from what she heard that Ash had a knack for finding strong and powerful trainers wherever he met, perhaps if she traveled with them then she could get a step closer to challenging the Dark type masters Karen, Sydney, Grimsley and Nanu!
"Yep, we're traveling the world while I compete in the Pokemon World Championship!"
"Well you won't find many competitors here," Marnie spoke.
"Oh I know, we're here so Zach can collect his first Galar League badge!"
Zach nodded his head in agreement before giving Marnie a light wave as he approached. "Hey, I'm a fan. Although not like that." Zach's eyes flicked in the direction of Team Yell to which Marnie couldn't help but lightly giggled.
"They mean well but they can be annoying," She sighed with a shake of her head. "Hopefully I can get away from them when I start traveling here in a bit."
"Would you like to travel with us? It's more fun traveling in a group than on your own!" Ash offered with a smile.
"I suppose another companion wouldn't be too bad," Zach added on, showing that he had no problem with it.
Marnie thought for a moment before shrugging with a light grin. "Eh, why not? I was gonna ask ya two anyways!"
"Well well well, I thought that lightning bolt looked familiar!" Meowth stared through a pair of binoculars before handing them to Jessie, their other companion was currently squealing out as he attempted to break free of a strange blue bird Pokemon with a large break and a long neck, James' body was halfway down the Pokemon as it affectionately greeted him.
A large blue snapping turtle Pokemon stood behind Jessie as she looked through the binoculars, a grin crossing her face. "At last, our operation of setting up a Team Rocket base here may not have proved very fruitful but no doubt catching that Pikachu will get us back in Giovanni's good books!"
"Right!" James' face was drenched as he finally pulled away from his Pokemon.
"We'll be living large and like kings!" Meowth cried out before his eyes got starry. "And I can finally claim my rightful place on his lap!"
"Wobbuffet!"
The Rocket trio excitedly huddled together as they planned their next move on the twerp, the time and setting was absolutely perfect as they hadn't met in well over a year now, he'd never see them coming. Pikachu would soon be theirs!
Night time was fast approaching as a young woman with long orange hair began finishing up her research for the day, neatly placing her papers in a stack before moving them into a cabinet as she retrieved some Pokemon food to feed the starter Pokemon that she and her grandmother were still watching. The woman humming a catchy tune before jumping lightly as her Rotom Phone began ringing which startled Sobble as he turned invisible and scurried off, which was quite unusual as only three people had her number. Her gran who was upstairs so no reason for her to call and one of her close friends Nessa who was currently on a business trip for her modeling career, meaning that it had to be... but could it? She quickly reached for her phone and a squeal came out as she saw the text she got. Her other best friend was finally coming home, for a short visit mind you but he was coming nonetheless!
"Yamp?!" Yamper looked up from his nap as he heard his trainer cry out.
"Zach's coming home, Yamper!" Sonia had a dreamy expression across her face as she imagined her friend, she'd always dreamed of the two of them settling down together. Him as a powerful champion and her as the region's Pokemon professor, they'd be quite the pair. "This is so perfect, I can finally-Oh my gosh, I need to prepare!" Sonia's look quickly turned to panic as she rushed out the door to go buy some makeup, Yamper gazed after her with a light sweat drop before laying down and falling back asleep.
And Marnie's here! I always felt like the Dark type was extremely underrepresented in the series, Nanu was the only Dark specialist to even show up! And only then it was probably cause he was necessary for the plot! -_-
So Marnie is a way of fixing that problem while also further developing her and Ash's friendship more, plus I just like Marnie! haha
Bede will remain a rival for Zach but Marnie's changed from her in-game role
The TRio are back but will they succeed? Haha, right. I originally hated the idea of Jessie having Drednaw but I grew to love it as the series progressed, just a shame it's extremely underutilized, stupid Gacha machine..
And James has Cramorant cause I've always been a big fan of the idea, it may be a popular opinion but I can't really picture the bird with anyone else! They will have other Pokemon but for now I'm focusing on giving those two characterization so they don't come off as mindless drones like their Unova Pokemon did.