After lunch was finished, the three of us continued southward. We were already relatively close to our destination when we had come across Zoroark, so the rest of the trip didn't take much longer. It's entirely likely that Zoroark's presence had worked to ward off potential ambushers, because we didn't encounter any trouble of the sort on the way.
With the new source of information that is Zoroark, I'm feeling far more confident about entering the human civilization in this world - theoretically, he will be able to inform me about any sort of faux pas that would out me as someone not from this world. I don't think that being fingered as a dimensional foreigner is likely by any stretch of the imagination, but I prefer not to risk bringing suspicion down on me if I can avoid it.
It's late afternoon by the time I spot it - a chain link fence, past the trees. Beyond that is an asphalt road. It's not wide - maybe enough for a single car. I creep closer, staying hidden in the underbrush.
Suddenly, there's a yell from a person nearby, cutting through the quiet of the forest - down the road to the right. I motion for Zoroark and Vespiquen to stay silent and begin moving towards the source. It hadn't sounded panicked, more excited than anything - on the younger side, if I have to guess.
I catch sight of the people responsible. A pair of trainers, I suspect. Both male. One looks about fourteen, the other closer to twenty. They're dressed in travelling clothes and have Pokeballs attached to their belts.
They're facing each other, both fiddling with some sort of device strapped to their wrists. Phones, maybe? They're too bulky to be a simple watch. Are they exchanging numbers? The older one starts speaking. "Right, fourteen-hundred-p wager, two Pokemon each. We good to go?"
The younger nods. "Yep. Get ready for my team to open up a can of whoop-ass, gramps."
"Ha! You wish, kid!"
They move away from each other until a good distance separated the two. They both grab a Pokeball from their belt, palming it. Is this a battle?
They point the balls to the road. "Go, Wings!" shouts the kid.
The older one responds "Come on out, Hector!" The balls open with a burst of light, materializing the Pokemon inside onto the road.
I look on, paying attention to everything - this is a great opportunity to scope out what I'm up against. Zoroark has followed me, and is peering over the same bush I'm hidden behind. Vespiquen is further back, but is still watching the two of them intently.
Wings is a bird - about the height of my knee. It's grey feathered with a black pattern on its wings and neck and a red crest above its eyes. It takes off, soaring into the sky immediately.
Hector is a mammal. It sort of looks like a squirrel crossed with a meerkat, but has a strange yellow pattern around its torso.
The older one calls out "Hector, we can take this chump! Thunderwave!"
The kid's eyes widen "Dodge it, Wings! Then follow through into a Quick Attack!"
Wings jukes out of the way, diving into an erratic roll. Hector's pattern glows, crackling with yellow energy. The energy shoots out, looking not unlike smoke rings made from a neon yellow plasma. The bird's dodge is for nothing - the Blaster power clips its wing, and it's sent crashing into the ground. Sparks of yellow electricity cover the bird, and its movement becomes jerky.
Nerve disruption, maybe? I can't tell.
"Great shot, Hector! Go for a Super Fang!"
"Get out of there, Wings!"
Hector jumps forward, its large front teeth lengthening and glowing with a white energy. Wings tries to get back into the air, but it doesn't have the time before Hector is upon it.
It's jaws slam down around the bird's wing. Wings starts to writhe, finally seeming to be coordinated enough to move.
The energy fades from Hector's teeth and Wings is let free. It takes off into the sky, finally getting some distance again.
"This is our chance - air cutter!"
The bird starts beating its wings furiously and blades of sharpened air are launched at Hector. Another power like Stormtiger's? Just how common is wind manipulation in this world? He dodges to the side, evading most of the attack.
"Confuse Ray! Get that thing out of the sky!"
Hector's patterned fur glows once more, but this time he fires a strobing orb at the bird. Hector's aim is true and the orb seems to latch on to the other Pokemon. It spins around the bird's head, flashing in a dazzling show of lights. The orb fades, and the bird is left clearly confused by the experience.
Wings' flight grows erratic, the beats of his wings stuttering. Once more, it crashes to the ground, unable to stay in the air. Some sort of Master power? Or just a regular strobe light produced by powers?
"Move in! Finish this with Crunch!"
Hectors teeth glow again, this time staying their original length.
"No! Get up, Wings! Avoid it with Detect!"
Wings is unable to muster the coordination to do anything more than flail about. Hector closes the distance, leaping at the bird. Its glowing teeth bite hard, and the bird stops flailing, falling limp. Is it dead? That didn't seem like a fatal hit, but you never know with powers.
I turn my gaze to the kid. He's annoyed - not grief stricken. It must still be alive, then. Hector releases the bird and the kid raises his Pokeball again. Wings dissolves in a flash, energy streaming back into the ball.
"You want to just give up now, kid? I don't think you can win this."
The kid snorts. "You wish, old man!" Not counting the one for Wings, the kid has two other Pokeballs. Despite his bravado, the kid's face is conflicted. I guess he must be worrying that his other two Pokemon won't shape up, especially after the poor showing by his first.
The kid nods to himself, grabbing one of the Pokeballs on his belt. "Alright, let's go! Hardhat!" He points the ball to the field and his next Pokemon materializes. It's a small orange crab-looking thing with a rocky shell on its back. Some sort of Pokemon hermit crab?
A beat passes. Both trainers shout their commands at once.
"Rock Polish!"
"Super Fang!"
The crab's shell glows a dull white, a shimmering aura surrounding its body - I've seen that before! It's the same thing that surrounds Vespiquen when she uses Defend Order. Hector charges forward, it's fangs lengthening and glowing with energy in the same way as before. Hardhat doesn't even try to dodge, instead trusting its shell and aura to protect it.
"Amateur mistake, kid! Super Fang ignores all defenses and always brings the target down to half of their strength! It's over! Finish it with Crunch, Hector!"
Ignores defenses? Was it something like Crusader or more like Foil? My gut tells me that it's the former - I doubt there'd be much of either of Pokemon left if it's like Foil's power. What does he mean by 'half of their strength', though? Some sort of weakening power?
"No! Hit it with a Bug Bite, Hardhat!"
Both Pokemon charge at each other, Hardhat moving surprisingly fast for a crab. The teeth of both Pokemon glow white with energy. They collide, sinking their teeth into each other. The lock lasts only a second, before Hardhat falls limp.
Hector promptly releases the crab, stepping backward. Both trainers raise their Pokeballs, sending their Pokemon back inside. The kid looks disheartened by the loss, and the older trainer looks satisfied.
Seeing that the battle is over, Zoroark leaves, moving further back into the forest.
They walk over to each other, meeting in the middle of where they had battled. The older trainer sticks out his hand. "Good match."
The kid takes the handshake, grumbling something.
Whatever the kid said amuses the older trainer, because his face breaks into an easy smile. The pair holds out the devices they had used earlier once more. They fiddle with them for a few moments before they part ways, heading in different directions.
"Good luck, kid!" The older one shouts over his shoulder soon after they had passed each other.
Seeing that there is no more to learn, I wait in silence. Zoroark and Vespiquen were further away from the road, quietly speaking with each other. Once a few minutes have passed, I approach the road, keeping an eye out for more people. Seeing nobody around, I mount the fence, landing on the other side. The road stretches off in both directions.
To the right - the direction the kid went, it slopes downwards into a turn, the forest hiding the bend. In the distance, I can see buildings peaking above the treeline - a handful of what look like office buildings, a domed ballpark and a ferris wheel. That must be Nimbasa City. From where I'm standing, the buildings don't look any different to the ones in my world.
In the other direction, the forest gives way to the ridge, which has become an almost sheer cliff this far south. Far to the north, it had been little more than a gentle slope. At the peak of the ridge, I can see a squat building with the arch of a bridge visible over the top. Leading down from the building is a large tube - an elevator shaft built into the cliff?
I mount back over the fence. Where do I want to go from here?
Passing myself off as a trainer sounds to me like it's the best option - I've already made a solid start to those ends, and Zoroark's information appears to be most thorough when to do with things about training.
I'll have to learn more, certainly, but Zoroark has put me in a far more favourable position than before. I need time to get my bearings in the society of this dimension, and blending in is the best bet to ensure that I get that time.
What else do I need, then?
Pokeballs. Whatever counts for normal trainer clothing in this world, too - I'm certain people don't go about wearing costumes, anyway. Loose, long pants and a rugged shirt and jacket seem like the best bet to me. I'll need shoes, too - I can't wear my costume's ones.
I give the problem some more thought. Identification. Or some sort of paper trail, anyway. I may be a ghost in this world, but all that's going to do for me is make me look suspicious. Maybe a Gym badge or two just so that I can prove I'm actually a trainer if anyone asks.
For the first two, I'll need money - at least, if Pokeballs are sold in stores, anyway. For the ID, I'll need criminal contacts and a whole lot more money. For the fourth I need more information before I can say.
I don't like it, but at least the criminal element will theoretically have a degree of predictability - it's a better option than putting myself at the mercy of some unknown government bureaucrat, anyway. I don't know how much a well-done fake identity will run me in this world, but they weren't cheap in mine - I can likely expect it to be a similar situation in this one.
I head back towards where Zoroark and Vespiquen are. They're sitting across from each other, Zoroark against a tree and Vespiquen on a rock. Their conversation dies as they see me approach and they both look up at me expectantly.
"Alright, team. Here's the plan. I don't know enough about this world, and I don't have a paper trail to lay low in a city without attracting suspicion. So, I'm planning on playing the part of a trainer, at least until I've got my bearings. Who knows - maybe I'll decide that training is the place I want to be in this world, and I'll stick with it, but that's a conversation for then. But first, there's a few things I want to know."
I turn to Zoroark. "Pokeballs - they're sold in stores, right? Are they expensive or cheap?"
He nods. "Yeah. I don't know much about human money, but it's pretty obvious even to me that everybody can afford the basic models. My trainer went for the more expensive ones, but most people just stick with the normal Pokeball."
Something about the devices that the trainers had used sticks in my mind. "What were those devices that the trainers used? Are they phones?"
"Phones? I don't know what that is. I didn't see the devices you're talking about, either - were they red and rectangular or were they attached to their arms?"
"On their arms - tell me about the other thing you're thinking of too, though."
"I think it's a cross-transceiver, then. People use them to talk to each other from a long distance. There's a load of other functions, though - my trainer used his to handle battle wagers so he wouldn't have to carry around much money."
Something like a phone, then. I'll have to be sure to call it a cross-transceiver if phone isn't a word in this dimension. Being able to use it for wagers, though? It must be able to do bank transfers. I've heard that some newer Earth-Aleph phones can do that - it must be a similar situation.
"That seems reasonable, from what I saw. What about the other option?"
"A Pokedex. My old trainer had one. It's pretty uncommon to see one, though - they're pretty expensive, I think, so only researchers and really serious trainers have them. It's got a scanner and is loaded with everything there is to know about Pokemon. Point it at a Pokemon, and it'll tell you all about it. "
Interesting. That sounds very useful - I'll have to see if I can spare the money for one.
What else do I want to know?
How heavy the surveillance in the cities is. "That sounds handy. How common are security cameras? Are there many around the cities?"
"Yeah, I suppose. I don't think there's many in the smaller towns but you see them here and there in the city. Why? You aren't planning on trying to steal a Pokedex, are you?"
"No - I'm not planning on it. In this world I'm a ghost - I've got no documentation, no papers and no past. I want to know if my face is going to trip some computer system and send immigration enforcement officials after me."
He snorts. "What, do you think this is some sort of bad Sci-fi flick? No - that doesn't happen. If it did, foriegn trainers would be getting pinged left and right."
At this point, I almost do. This dimension is certainly strange enough to qualify as one, anyway. "There isn't some database with the faces of everybody in the country in it? They might be able to tell I'm not one of them." Vespiquen is looking back and forth between us, completely lost by the conversation.
"If there are, I've never heard of them. Admittedly, that isn't saying much, but I think you're being overly paranoid here. Look, if you're that worried about your face, I've got a solution for you."
He closes his eyes, seeming to concentrate. He opens them, flourishing his arms and producing a mirror made from his illusions. Staring back at me is an unfamiliar person dressed in jeans and a baggy coat. I look down at myself and see that the change isn't just in the mirror.
A disguise? I've yet to ask Zoroark about the particulars of his ability, so the thought hadn't crossed my mind. I poke my coat. I can feel my fingers pass right through as if there was nothing there, but it looks like my fingers are poking the coat normally.
Just how versatile are these illusions?
"Is something like this difficult to do?"
"If you want me to make it react to stuff like it is now, a little bit. More static illusions are a lot easier. The illusion will disappear if I get hurt, though."
That's a little bit of a strange restriction - is his ability concentration based? Either way, I'll definitely have to be careful about that. But, this is a far better plan than what I had before - which was essentially to be very sneaky. Not one of my greatest plans, admittedly.
"I like it. Good thinking." He glows with pride, a happy grin breaking out onto his face. The illusions pop out of existence. "Now, the next thing on the list is names. Have either of you got a preference for one?"
Vespiquen shakes her head, and Zoroark bolts up straight, clearly having had an idea. Vespiquen speaks first, cutting Zoroark off. "I do not particularly care. You can decide for me."
I nod - if that's what she wants, I don't mind. I turn to Zoroark. He's practically quivering with excitement. "Oh! Oh! Can I have a Superhero name too? That would be so cool!"
A part of me can't help but smile at his pure enthusiasm. I consider his request - a Cape name? That… isn't a bad idea, actually. The pair of them are certainly powerful enough to deserve one. Even besides that, if I used the same names for my team both while costumed and in civvies I might give myself away. Granted, even having the same species of Pokemon on both teams might do that, but this is a nice level of obfuscation that will be very easy to implement.