There was a line of thought in a poké fic I came across a while back. It talked about how, by its very nature of always receiving new regions, you have to accept either dating your piece or to just exclude upcoming regions/content. For me, that meant messing around with the timeline a little, as well as trying to figure out how I wanted to handle things such as new regions becoming part of the international scene.
To be honest, I'm a little proud of the idea (even if it's not the most unique thing in the world) of Champions/regional representatives heading to international hopefuls and either participating in their inaugural circuit or an exhibitional one.
A bright, sunny day with nary a cloud in sight; Alex hummed to himself as he scrolled through news articles from Unova. Both the Gym Circuit and the Vertress Conference had ended not a few days prior, and some time next month the usual challenges for the highest positions as one of Unova's Thirteen Pillars were to be held.
What made this year so special was that Hilda Mendez, Unova's Reigning Champion (significantly different from her Ruling) was able to preside over the Conference, incidentally giving Iris the chance to take care of work in Opelucid ahead of time. The various news stations were quick to pick up on the appearance of the region's international Celebrity, and the woman had been in and out of interviews steadily, one of which had taken place a few days after the end of the Vertress Conference, where Hilda had proudly given the Vertress Champion Trophy to the respective victors of all three brackets.
"Miss Mendez, how was your time in Alola?"
Taking place in an isolated part of Pokemon Hills within New Tork City, Hilda was enjoying the day in her semi-casual clothes. Unlike the provocative clothing of her youth, Hilda had mellowed out into a mixture of cute and mature: the ripped denim shorts had been changed into practical cargo jeans, and her sleeveless vest had been extended into a pink zippered, black hoodie. She had more professional or relaxing outfits tucked away somewhere, but when visiting other regions or taking part in interviews, the whole 'role model for young women everywhere' was something she tried to tote.
Personally, he preferred her in her buttonless black blazer with the flared shoulders. He'd only seen her wear it once; a few weeks after she had to pay him a visit she had to deal with a challenger for the title of Unova's Champion. Her entire demeanor that battle was alluringly intimidating, yet still friendly enough that she could still be approachable, unlike Sinnoh's Cynthia whose refined clothing made her seem right at home with Kalos' upper echelon.
"Oh, it was wonderful! The islands are so beautiful, and everybody was so welcoming! The culture, especially!" Hilda was gushing. Normally in these sorts of things there would be some sort of reservation in her face, but this time she was absolutely unhindered with her expressions. "Even as a total stranger, everybody was willing to help me out if I ever needed it, and sometimes I'd see complete strangers band together to do something and two weeks later they were hanging out as if they were friends their whole lives! The pokemon, too. You have to watch out for some areas that have more territorial pokemon like usual, like bewear, but otherwise you could step into the wilds and the pokemon would happily greet you."
The interview continued asking a few more questions about the region, a handful of which had not been asked by other news groups. Eventually, the questions turned to whether or not Hilda would be able to speak on the upcoming challenges for the title of Champion.
"Prospective challengers this year should prepare themselves as much as possible. And I mean that in every sense of the word." She brought a single finger to her lips and winked directly at the camera. "Being Champion means more than just being an amazing battler, so I hope every hopeful's been making sure to expand their knowledge."
Celèste suddenly gave a short, breathy bark, cutting off the segment's closing remarks. Down the street, Anabel was looking around, wearing a straw sunhat with a fake blue flower attached to the black band around the crown. Her sundress this time around was a rather flattering piece that faded from pink to dark blue- reminiscent of a sylveon. When she finally noticed him he smiled and raised a hand in greeting.
"Did I keep you waiting long?"
"Not too long." Celèste and Caitlyn moved to his side as he rose, having posted up in the nearby area as lookouts. "My team and I were out on the seas the other day; we saw an isolated beach about a half hour up the shore. You mind if we head there?"
Anabel glanced at his pokémon, the two canting their heads slightly in response. "That sounds fine." With a smile, "We can let loose fully over there."
/ - /
The thrum of their singing flitted over the splash of the parting waves; ever ones to reminisce about their travels, Caitlyn and Celèste were joined in their Sinnohan folk song by Umbral, the misdreavus willing to put up with the irritance of the sun if it meant a chance to improve her incantations.
"I wasn't aware pokémon sung like that."
"It's only certain places that learn to harmonize, usually in places that chatot nest in. Alongside that you also need pokémon that were once owned by trainers- stories have to come from somewhere in the world. Those pokémon tell the stories to their young to calm them down in times of stress, and somewhere down the line a chatot will remember a familiar song and start singing it. A few generations later, the community might sing the song occasionally, changing bits and pieces of the story so that it's more relatable."
Alex closed his eyes and smiled. This particular song was about Shaymin, the caretaker of flower fields and plains. In some places, it was said that Shaymin was the progenitor of leafeon. When a field became destroyed by fire or battle, in time Shaymin would arrive and cleanse the air of toxins, and on its fur seeds from across the lands would fall off and propagate in their new homes. To see a Shaymin was to be blessed by the earth, and a wreath of gracidea flowers- flowers from their birthplace- was said to be an offering of protection and a memento of love.
"How far have you travelled, Alex?" Anabel asked in between songs.
"All six IPA recognized regions. Unova native, but I've been in the KanJoh region for about two years now."
"Business or pleasure?"
"Business, but most of the time its things that I can take care of on the side, so really it's more pleasure."
The woman frowned, pursing her lip as she stared at him. Alex stared back in amusement, waiting to see what conclusion she arrived at. "Somebody as old as you still travelling around the world, even if it's part of your job? You must have won quite a few tournaments to have that lifestyle."
"Or something." Alex waved up to Celèste, making sure to grab her attention before pointing two fingers at the rocky outcropping in the distance. "I've been employed since my late teens, and when you live on the road or rent out rooms from your friends you don't really have much in the way of expenses."
"That sounds like a bit of a painful life."
"It's not for everybody, but me and my team prefer a wooden jungle over an urban." Alex rose as the boat started slowing down. A rather deep bay, the beach was surrounded by decently sized cliffs, trees peeking over the edges. Mooring rope in hand, Alex leapt over the edge and splashed into the water, taking only a few steps onto the shore before Caitlyn appeared beside him and lent her psychic powers towards pulling the boat deeper ashore.
"Clear!" Alex shouted in response to a sharp bark from Celèste. The ship's anchor whumped down into the sand on the other side of the boat, Caitlyn psychokinetically lifting it up and burying it a few yards up.
"Um…" Anabel peered over the side, concern all over her face.
"You're fine with teleporting?" He asked, gesturing for Celèste to stay up for the time being. When she nodded, Alex nudged Caitlyn, the gardevoir's eyes glowing briefly. A moment later, Anabel was on the shore with them, Celèste jumping down shortly after.
"Is that normal for you?" She asked hesitantly.
"I have to take it a bit easier these days, but when you need to stay on the tail of a pokémon for whatever reason, free running's a skill you need to learn." Untainted by anything, they were probably the first people to visit this beach in years, if not decades. It was that note that birthed another realization. "Hey, somebody else knows you went out, right?"
"I stopped by the Pokémon Center and let the nurse on duty know." She gave a sly smile. "And in case you forgot, I do have a psychic pokémon whose juvenile form is known for teleporting."
"Hey, it's good to have your bases checked." He made a vaguely scary face, wriggling his fingers much like a haunter would. "Worse things have happened throughout the years."
Anabel laughed. "But with both a lucario and a gardevoir by your side? Unless they're indebted to you I doubt they would have stuck around if you were a bad person."
In the back of his mind, he felt an odd poke, one similar to how Caitlyn tried to get his attention whenever she was nervous about something. "Oh, but I am a bad person," he responded. "I brought a woman I just met to a deserted beach, away from town and only readily accessible by boat."
"And yet for some reason I truly doubt that."
Alex stared at her, narrowing his eyes teasingly. The presence made itself known again as they looked at each other. Teasing turned to judging. "You know it's not nice to pry into the mind of others."
"And it's definitely not nice to tease a woman when she's outnumbered," she countered. "A cruel man like you might force himself on a poor defenseless woman like myself, away from the eyes of anybody, and-"
"Okay, okay! It was a bad joke, I'm sorry." Even without focusing on either sense, he could feel the prodding jabs of Celèste and Caitlyn.
Anabel gave a satisfied smirk. "I have to ask though, are you an empath too?"
"No more than somebody might know a second language. It's a mostly one way street, though pedestrians are allowed to walk the other direction."
"That is- oh." Anabel's eyes widened slightly in understanding, doing so again with a repeat exclamation. "That is actually an apt comparison." So if I asked you if you could hear me…?
Alex shivered. "Please don't do that again. Full speech reacts poorly with me. Base emotions are the most I can handle without developing a headache." He began massaging his temples as he spoke. "Plus, if you're able to communicate mentally with others, I think you're more telepath than empath, skills notwithstanding."
"I'm sorry." Anabel tilted her head and bit her lip. "I suppose you're a high level trainer, then, if you're able to silently commune with your pokémon?"
"To an extent. I've never qualified to challenge the Elite 4 of any region, but I've earned the right." The phantom pain was still there; weak and nothing more than a memory of what had once happened, but there all the same.
"I really am sorry," she repeated.
"Don't worry about it. It'll pass." Alex sniffed. "So, about that battle."
"Right, um." She glanced at Caitlyn and Celèste once again, an unheard conversation taking place. "Three against three, singles, IPA format, no substitutions?" She said hesitantly.
"Sounds good, though if we ever meet again, you should try your hand with Wild rules." He grinned. "Aside from no maiming or permanent damage, anything goes. No move limit, substitutions can be freely made, you could even have two or more pokémon out on the field if you wanted."
"That sounds beyond my field of expertise," she admitted, moving to the far side of the beach. While they were talking, his two companions had taken it upon themselves to etch out the traditional field markers in the sand, the interior lines perfectly designed as if done with a giant's steady hand while the exteriors held the wavy patterns that could only result from stop and go movement.
"Basically only gym leaders or special forces have to learn how to play by Wild rules; sometimes people or pokémon will act up and you need to take them down immediately before a situation can escalate." Alex held two balls out, Caitlyn and Celèste tapping their hands to the buttons and letting themselves willingly be recalled. "By the way, low tide's in about two hours, but with all our psychic pokémon it shouldn't be a problem." He tapped the bulky X-gear on his left arm. "If you wanted to, we could make dinner here. I've all my supplies to whip something up."
"We'll see," she answered non-committedly. Taking a pokéball out from a pocket- one of the ultra tier- she brought it to her lips and whispered something. "By the way, just to confirm, we're going all out, right? No holding back?"
"As expected of two elite trainers trading notes," he confirmed.
"Okay, just making sure."
"Nervous?" He asked. With a quick flick of his fingers, the blue and white pokéball containing Morgan was plucked off his trainer's belt and enlarged, his hand catching it at the apex of an aerial toss.
"Just a little. It's been a while since I had a proper battle that really tested me like this."
"Yesterday doesn't count?" On the way here Alex had counted four bulges on her dress. Trainer outfits did what they could to make things easier to hide, but the way fabric gathered on items was very distinct- pokéballs especially.
"Not really. We were just normal trainers then, if highly skilled. This time…" She looked up from the ultra ball, a fierce glint in her eyes. "This time, we will take the advantage."
"You'll try." With a violent twist of his torso, Alex curved Morgan's ball with an underhand, the ball arcing through the air and forming the water eeveelution in the right forward half of the field, closest to Anabel. With a sharp series of whistles, Morgan cried out his understanding, ripples of water originating from his feet and shooting out over the sand.
A prod in his mind made him form a feral grin, repressed memories surfacing and shoving aside the intrusion. Both Anabel and Lily flinched in response, and three short whistles sent Morgan shooting towards the espeon in a jet of whirling water. Fangs coated in dark energy snapped on air. A spray of star shaped projectiles were deflected with a tail coated in dense water, the covering disappearing and drenching the ground when Morgan slammed his tail down.
Another short measure of notes. Morgan jetted back to their side of the field, creating a small wave barely ankle high that washed over the sands. Alex let out a sharp note, Morgan shooting to the left- just at the edge of the field, right as a pulse of almost invisible energy slammed into his previous position.
This is what a battle was. No verbal commands, no basic shouts. Trainers and their specialties facing off against one another. Suddenly aborting a spray of stars, Lily dashed towards where Morgan would land next, sparkles of electricity crackling around its head gem. Two notes, the second quickly sliding four notes higher. Morgan's face barely reformed before he collapsed to the ground as a shapeless mass of water.
An electric move while he was in this state- while not quite fatal- would likely take him fully out of battle range. Even if he did land the hit, depending on what move Anabel had ordered, he could still suffer residual damage.
From underneath Lily's belly, Morgan shot out of the ground, water propelling them both into the air.
The mass of electricity built up to critical levels.
Do it.
In a single instant, Morgan slipped from water to solid, reforming atop the espeon. Fangs glowing murky yellow, he Bit down into Lily's back, head shaking slightly to worsen the damage. The electricity from Lily's head disappeared as she screamed, the espeon spasming as she tried to stand back up. Another whistle. Morgan returned to stand in front of Alex, crouching down slightly on his front paws in anticipation of the next order.
Anabel stared wide eyed as she processed what happened. The prodding came again, anxious and stuttering. "I see…" The woman closed her eyes. When they reopened, the fierce look from before had returned, tempered by grim determination.
The next tune was a rushing glissando, Morgan bouncing on his front paws before disappearing into the ground. The pressure in the air from mass Future Sights became palpable, even to him. A useless assault. The water Morgan had been leaching into the ground all gathered at once, rising up as a dirtied wave that swelled forth. Lily dashed away, streaks of white light marking her path, only to be chased down by a foaming jet of water that ended with another Bite.
Future Sights were ignored with short spurts of water- some requiring double or even triple dashes to evade. Swifts were batted aside with Aqua Tail or bowled down with a reinforced Aqua Jet. Morning Suns that Lily tried to recover herself with did nothing more than buy a few extra hits. In the end, Lily slumped to the ground, unable to stand back up after a rapid series of grazing Aqua Jets.
"Your pokémon's rather ruthless," Anabel commented. "Is that a trait shared amongst all of them?"
"Only when needed." Alex whistled twice, Morgan shooting towards him and batting the button of his ball with a paw.
"You're forfeiting Morgan?" She asked incredulously, another ultra ball in hand.
"Something tells me that you'll be using the same three pokémon today. I figure we may as well let them see who's the stronger one from a clean slate." Alex tossed a pink ball into the air, its underside marked with a curving white x. "If that's alright with you?"
Anabel tightened her grip around the ball. "You're not looking down on me, are you?"
"Far from it. I know how my pokémon are, and for them a rematch is something they'd enjoy fully."
The ultra ball was lobbed through the air, his heal ball following shortly after. Alakazam faced off against gardevoir, Caitlyn folding her hands in front of her demurely as she stared down the younger psychic.
Amusement. Eagerness. Pride.
Alex sent forth a series of images, not caring if Anabel managed to pick up on them. "Go."
Unless specifically trained out, Teleport caused a specific sound when used. A warble of psychic energy that sounded very much like an emergency vehicle's sirens approaching and passing within a single second. This rang out twice, the first causing Gladio to whirl around with both spoons raised in response, the second followed by the meaty sound of flesh on flesh.
Gladio recovered admirably, his two spoons quickly floating back into his hands as he sprung back up from the attack. Results from training from a fighting type, though obviously enhanced with psychic powers.
Alex closed his eyes, diving deep into his link with Caitlyn. A hazy, half formed image of the beach appeared in his mind's eye, constantly changing point of view as Caitlyn teleported around the field, launching blades of psychic energy from afar and at close range.
The superior espers, Gladio and Anabel managed to force them to have to abort several attacks lest they suffer a Disable or migraine inducing Kinesis, but as with Lily, Gladio was defeated with a flurry of attacks, blades of iridescent energy cutting through the air before slamming into the alakazam as one singular mass.
Caitlyn gave a gentle curtsey, holding the pose even as she was recalled.
No words were spoken as they sent out their next pokémon. As Hyacin thudded into the ground, Alex took in the snorlax properly. Just a little thinner than most snorlax, the not-so sleeping pokémon looked much more active than its kin, even among trained ones. Alex flexed his aura, Anabel's eyes narrowing as he did so. As one, both trainer and lucario entered a weavile's stance, claws of ice forming from Celèste's paws.
The masses of solidified sand came quicker than they expected, though they were easily dispatched with hand based applications of Bulldoze. As Celèste approached Hyacin, each step sending tremors through the ground, a rapid shuffle destabilized the giant and allowed Celèste to rake him several times before a smooth dome of green energy formed around him and warded her away.
Celèste back stepped away as the snorlax kip upped to its feet, her body tensing slightly with a hidden Bulk Up.
Hyacin slid a foot forward.
Celèste's weavile claws turned into scyther blades.
Two hardened stones of Rock Tomb were sent flying her way, the projectiles knocked to the ground with the scythes of ice still in them as Celèste folded underneath the flying drop kick.
A conical flare of darkness exploded upward, Celèste following after Hyacin and landing two ice laced punches before clawing her way to the snorlax's belly and launching herself further into the air. The falling trail of shimmering ice shards slammed into another Protect, a flurry of blows raining down and shattering the shield. Once more Dark Pulse flared out, Celèste gracefully rotating through the air and landing on her feet as she was launched backwards.
"I've seen enough." Only three exchanges in, Hyacin was recalled as he stood up, Anabel staring at them with a tense expression. A silent conversation was held between her and Celèste, the lucario padding over to stand in front of him. "Alexander Collens, I have your pokémon's permission, do I have yours for a higher level battle?"
"If Celèste is willing, then so am I."
"Then so be it." Anabel took several steps away, kissing the ultra ball before releasing it. The red energy of her fourth pokémon coalesced slowly- an intentional result of the pokémon within.
Though Celèste by no means could communicate as readily as Caitlyn, that didn't stop the surge of fear and anxiety that flooded through their connection. For a moment, Alex almost instinctively allowed her to draw on his life energy, to elevate herself to the state of ancient myths and be able to dismantle the Legend before them. "And I suppose you'll still want us to behave according to IPA rules?"
"Perhaps next time you can show me what your pokémon are so eager to show me." Anabel folded her arms. "Surfinia?" Letting out a daring roar, rain clouds instantly gathered, the familiar swirl lazily turning.
Alex raised a warding finger, making sure Anabel and her newest 'mon saw it. "Celèste, release." With a quick exhale and uncrossing of her arms, aura shot off her body and dissipated into the air. Alex flexed his aura once more, Celèste entering a hitmonchan's stance. "We're ready."
The words barely left his mouth before Hyacin pounced towards Celeste, electricity crackling throughout its white mane. Celèste dashed back before it could land, her lead foot switching in place twice before she evaded a lance of electricity, rolling underneath the shrieking web of energy that threatened to disrupt her nervous system. For twelve seconds the dance continued, the rate of attacks from the Legendary Beast increasing to no avail.
Alex slid his right foot back, right hand raising towards his head, palm facing away. Were a weapon in his hand, its tip would be angled towards the ground, ready to dip down and block any horizontal strikes; rather than support an invisible blade with her free arm though, Celèste twisted her body, the refined, all too real broadsword cleaving a shadow ball in twain before she surged forward.
Surfinia leapt back, electricity now fully arcing across its body. Completely able to keep up with the Legend, Celèste chased after the Raikou, carving through Shadow Balls and deflecting Charge Beams into the sand-turned-glass around them. Without warning, Surfinia charged forward, electricity rushing forward off its body and dancing across Celèste's body. A purple coated paw met the assault in kind though, its essence seeping into the Raikou.
Alex pulled his aura in a specific pattern, Celèste letting the aura sword melt down into gauntlets. No longer needing to worry about the weight of the sword- minimal as it was, Celèste was able to freely abuse the adrenaline coursing through her body. Without much ground to work with, Surfinia could only bound around the beach, using thunder heralding roars to try and create an opening or counter with a full body discharge of electricity.
Here and there, the residual energy that the Legend had imparted into Celèste would force her to stumble, but the slowly spreading blight of Poison equaled just as much damage as the beams of electricity and explosive spheres of ghostly energy.
"The battle ends here, Anabel." Four minutes in, Celèste started to breathe heavily, but the ticking time bomb of the poison jab from earlier was taking effect. As befitting a Legend, Surfinia was still standing proudly, but the stumble from each landing was only growing more and more pronounced.
"I- yes, I suppose you're right." Anabel walked measuredly over to her Raikou, stroking its fur tenderly before recalling it. "Alex, if I might ask, how strong are your pokémon?"
"According to the last numerical evaluation we had to take- about two years ago, everybody was in their upper seventies."
"Upper seventies," she repeated breathlessly. Celèste moved to support her as she collapsed to the ground, an almost broken laugh escaping her mouth. "And I challenged you to a match?"
Alex gave a rueful smile. The numerical evaluation of a pokémon was a poor estimate of a pokémon's strength. Little more than 'what's the strongest strike you can do?' alongside various other tests, it was still a useful measuring stick. The members of any region's Elite Four were expected to be within the upper sixties; the Champions themselves, lower to middle seventies. It was only a Champion's pokémon who had been with them since the start that was expected to be upper seventies and beyond.
"If it helps, at least in the IPA format people would stand a chance. Celèste was running out of energy for her modified Bonerush, and Detect was starting to cause too much stress so we were forced to rely solely on Surfinia's habits and giveaways." He knelt down in front of her, knowing exactly how outclassed she was feeling. It was something his former comrade back in Unova liked to remind him of often.
/ - /
Alex delicately turned the apple in his hands around, the knife separating the skin neatly. With the slowly chilling air, a cinnamon-apple tea would go perfect with the deepening night. "Is it that surprising to see Lily playing like this?"
On the wooden carpeted floor, both Morgan and Lily were play fighting with each other, limiting their assault to only physical skills. Ever since dinner had ended, Anabel had been watching the two with great interest.
"She's acting like a little kit again," the woman murmured. Dressed in a rather loose fitting wool white dress that went past her knees, if it wasn't for him reminding her that he could help her figure out potential career paths on the boat ride back he would have thought this a date. "I haven't seen her like this since I was a teen."
"Not much time for play in that tower of yours?" he prodded, letting the perfect, unending apple skin strand fall into the container of hot water. With a few deft cuts, the rest of the apple was sliced into eight equal pieces, the hardened portions of the core carved away and placed on the side of the plate.
"It was always training. We had a day off every couple of days, but otherwise if I wasn't dealing with somebody's win streak or training my own pokémon, then it was training pokémon assigned to my facility."
Alex hummed ambiguously. Instinctively he wanted to comment on how he could see the years of experience in the way her pokémon fought, but considering her mental breakdown earlier he didn't want to risk a relapse. "Morgan has that effect on others. Old as he is he still manages to coax others into rough housing. Caitlyn tells me it's because at heart he's still that rambunctious little eevee his original trainer couldn't handle, but honestly I think it's because he finds acting like a house pet amusing."
Anabel stared at him directly for a moment before nodding. Were it not for constant telepathic communications with Caitlyn he wouldn't have noticed the mental prodding, but because of it every time Anabel tried to pick up on his surface thoughts and emotions he could easily give her what he wanted. On more than one occasion she looked away with a flushed face, the admiring, appreciative thoughts readily springing forth in order to protect his minor secret of telepathy.
"If you're really not sure about what field you want to go into next, you should take a journey." Morgan gave ground to Lily, 'falling' onto his side and letting the espeon wrap her mouth around his neck. Barely hidden by her body was his paws pressed up against her, ready to nudge or kick her if she became too aggressive. "It doesn't have to be trying to clear the Gym Circuit and enter the Silver Conference, it could just be wandering from town to town and helping folk out. Maybe volunteer at a few PokéCenters or training gyms. Travelling around the world, you come across quite a few situations. How you respond to them could give you a sense for what you want in life."
Alex set down their cups on their respective sides of the square table, taking measured motions before pouring the tea. He was no practitioner of the art, but having a sense of purpose while serving drinks was another form of active meditation. Another tentative prod. Alex brought forth the memory of a well toned female surfer he'd seen back in the Orange Islands, riding a large wave as its tube slowly chased after her.
"What do you want in life, Alex?" Anabel hid her face behind her cup, Alex smiling in amusement.
"To travel. To see the world. To help my pokémon become as strong as they possibly can, so that when or if we ever separate, they can pass on what they've learned so that those that come after can become even stronger." She gave him an odd look, one he couldn't quite tell what it meant. "What about you? As you are now, what do you want most?"
"I think I want to see how I stack up against the Gym Leaders. As a Frontier Brain, we were told our status and skill was the equivalent of a 7th or 8th Badge challenge but we never battled with our local Leaders, nor were any of us invited to the international tournaments."
"The blood of a battler still sings within you?"
She smiled slightly at that. "Maybe not the blood of a battler, but definitely curiosity. Plus, one day I'd like to battle you and it not be so one sided."
It was difficult to not reflexively give a placating platitude. "I look forward to seeing how you grow."
Credit (and thanks) to Author 'BANIX' for the title/concept of [Thirteen Pillars]. Go check out some of their stories. There's a collection of Pokémon fics that are interconnected ala MCU. My personal favorite is 'The Sun of Sunyshore'.