I'd like to take this introduction to tell anyone reading this that I am so very grateful to you for taking a chance on my story. I absolutely love Pokémon and pretty much everything about it. This story came from the idea of a world of Pokémon where humans do not exist, and Legendary and Mythical Pokémon are revered as deities. This simple idea expanded into an incredibly intricate world that is now almost 5 years in the making. I really wanted to take my time to develop this world so as to give this idea and story a proper setting.
I am also using this intro to explain to you some key elements of this world. While I would love for you all to find out these things on your own through reading the story, I have found it difficult to find a way for characters to explain these kinds of things, as these concepts are so deeply rooted into the culture of the world in which this story takes place that they are common knowledge for all of these characters. So here is some terminology and other things that will not be explained within the story:
God- You will see the term "the gods" a lot throughout this story. And when it is used in this context, it is almost always used as an umbrella term for all the deities in the story, represented as Legendary and Mythical Pokémon. However, "God" is also a specific rank of deity. These are the most powerful of the deities and are closely associated with specific aspects of nature and the universe itself. (i.e. Dialga, God of Time or Rayquaza, God of the Sky).
Guardians- these are also very powerful deities and are also closely associated with specific aspects of nature and the universe. However, the elements they are associated with have stronger ties to other deities, which is why they are "guardians" rather than the "gods" who embody said aspect. For example, while Lugia is heavily associated with the sea, I believe Kyogre is a far better fit for "God of the Sea", and thus Lugia is instead the Sea Guardian. Instead of embodying their respective elements, guardians actually protect and serve a specific God. (i.e. Ho-Oh, Guardian of the Sky or Celebi, Guardian of Time).
Titan- These deities are not associated with elements of nature but rather actual Pokémon types. They tend to become more involved in the lives of mortal Pokémon than the Gods and Guardians do. (i.e. Suicune, a Water Titan or Registeel, a Steel Titan).
Worship- regardless of the rank of deity, most Pokémon respect and give their praises to the gods, some settlements even have patron gods. They pray to the gods, leave offerings in temples to them, and generally worship them. It is an undisputed fact in this universe that gods exist.
Mortal Pokémon- all of the non-Legendary/Mythical Pokémon in the story who live out normal lives. Unlike the games, evolution is a process tied to age, and Pokémon inevitably evolve as they get older, with some exceptions. The evolution process can be sped up greatly through gaining experience in battle. However, battling is an art form and is only practiced by about 10% of the population.
Breeding- Mortal Pokémon do indeed form romantic relationships with each other in this story, and as a result start families together. For Biology's sake, I am keeping the requirement that Pokémon must be in the same egg group to produce eggs (this will not stop some Pokémon from forming relationships with each other, however) but the offspring of two Pokémon can be the lowest evolutionary stage of EITHER parent Pokémon, not just the mother. Meaning any egg produced between, for example, a Raichu and a Rapidash has a 50% chance of hatching into a Pichu or a Ponyta.
Battler- the term used for Pokémon who practice battling. Similar to the anime, base stats do not really exist. Any Pokémon of any species, with enough training, can become a powerful battler. The closest thing to inherent skills a Pokémon may have is speed, but more from a biological standpoint. (i.e. A Tyrantiar, a huge tanky Pokémon, being much slower than a Pidgeot, a bird Pokémon known to fly at high speeds). Also, damaging moves are not classified as special or physical, and any moves in a Pokémon's moveset can be put to good use with enough training. Certain status moves will also function differently due to battles in this story being live skirmishes rather than turn-based combat.
Guilds- while not prominently featured in the story due to reasons you will find out by reading, this story does borrow the concept of guilds and the Guild Federation from Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time, Darkness and Sky. Guilds function almost identically to how they do in those games. Despite this, this story is NOT set in the PMD universe.
Nekob- the continent in which the story takes place. It is divided into six nations: Klarek, Saalm, Comina, Drelsper, Ta Lius, and Aigrene. The United Nekobian Nations, or UNN, is an alliance between the nations of Nekob that holds summits between appointed representatives of each nation. They discuss ways to support each other and maintain peace on the continent. Note: Nekob is not the only continent in this world.
That's it for the things that won't be explained in the story, sorry there was so much to cover. One last thing I'd like to say is that if you happen to share a lot of the same interests as I do, you'll notice that this story heavily draws inspiration from other fictional works. I would really appreciate it if readers refrained from writing reviews like "Oh you totally stole that from _!" When I see something in another fictional work that I like and think it could be finely integrated into the world I am trying to create, I borrow it and try to put a spin on it that makes it my own and more better fits into the story that I'm writing. It's something I won't apologize for, plain and simple.
Now without further ado, let's get started.