The gang panted as they dashed up the huge staircase which introduced newcomers into the town.

"Do you think your father will grab us?" asked Loneliness, voice laced with concern.

"Nah," replied Clay casually. "It's one of the unwritten rules of Pokemon society – never attack humans directly."

Kevin was confused.

"But what about Pokemon battles. Don't you attack us there…"

"Yeah, but one of the other unwritten rules is that if we think a human person is worthy of training us, we battle them."

This confused Kevin even more, but he decided to leave them for now. He suspected that he was not long away from simply falling unconscious right then and there, after all. Indeed, the sun had set and the moon was rising like a Braviary taking to the sky.

The trio walked down the long street which would take them to the designated rest spot for challengers, (also known as the Budew Drop Inn), their only companions being the darkness that enveloped the town, the human residents of the tow having packed it in for the night, to the point that Kevin began to fret whether the inn would even be open.

The silence was soon broken however by the sad and mournful howling that permeated the air.

"What was that?" asked Loneliness, inching closer to Kevin in fear.

"Sounds like a Yamask…" replied Kevin. For a moment, he pondered following the sound. He was exhausted after all.

…now who was he kidding?

He couldn't ignore those sorrowful melodies.

"Wait there."

Kevin left the other two behind and wandered further and further into the paths and lanes of the town. It was difficult to see more than 2 or 3 metres and Kevin had to swing rapidly away from one or two houses. Soon, however, he had come to the source of the crying.

As expected, it was a Yamask. The poor creature was curled up in the corner of one alleyway, sobbing its little heart out as it hugged tightly the rune on the tip of its tail.

Simply put, it was heart-breaking.

Kevin moved closer to the Yamask, trying not to scare it as he did.

"What's wrong?"

Immediately, the Yamask stopped crying. It looked up at him with its purple eyes. Then, it screamed.

"It's okay. It's okay. I'm not here to hurt you…" he said soothingly, hoping that this would get through to the Yamask. For a moment, he considered rubbing its body but figured that it would be too intrusive.

For a moment, it didn't seem to work, the Yamask continuing to scream as if there had been no attempt at all. Soon, however, the screaming grew quieter and quieter before ceasing altogether. The Yamask panted for a couple of seconds before guiltily looking at Kevin.

"Sorry…I…I…thought you were going to…" they blubbered at Kevin in a feminine voice.

"No, no. It's okay. I just heard your sobbing and was wondering what's wrong?"

"What's wrong? Let's just say a lot of things are wrong with me. For starters, I've been having these voices in my head telling me to hurt myself, so I can "unlock my true potential" or some dohickey. I've been trying to resist but it's been getting harder and harder each day…"

Kevin had heard about this predicament in one of his books - in Galar, Yamasks were compelled by the runes on their tails to hurt themselves in preparation for a ceremony that would evolve them into Runerigus. The trouble was that the original Yamask's personality was erased in the process, replacing it with a malicious entity that simply wanted to consume, embodying the worst stereotypes of Ghost-Types in the process. It was this unfortunate fact about Yamask that meant that trainers, already a bit creeped out on the idea of using Ghost-types, tended to stray far from there.

For a moment, Kevin was tempted to tell the Yamask that there was nothing that he could do to help and go back to his search for the Budew Drop Inn.

…on the other hand, maybe someone's found a solution to the issue. Besides, he could not leave the poor thing behind to face her demons alone.

He sighed.

Alright brain, but if she loses it on us, you owe me one.

He held his hand out to the Yamask.

"Listen, it's okay. We're on a journey. I could find a solution to your issue."

The Yamask's eyes widened.

"Really? I…I...I didn't expect you to…"

"No, it's OK. You'll fit in right away with my team. What's your name, anyway?"

"I…it's Jessica. See, one of my other issues is that I have these vague memories of another life. I can't remember much out of vague blobs but one thing I remember crystal clear is that I was called Jessica so the name kinda stuck for me."

Kevin sympathized with Jessica. He suspected that like him, she was a former human. Still, not much to be done about it now.

"Right. Now that that's settled, let me just…"

The Yamask's eyes widened even further upon seeing the Ghost-type brandishing a Pokeball.

"Wait a minute…you have Pokeballs."

"Of course. I'm a Pokemon trainer, after all."

"Wow…it's just… I've never seen a Pokemon try to become a trainer before. I mean, I've heard the legends but seeing someone actually try, it's just, I…I think that sounds pretty cool. You could inspire others to pursue the Dream, after all!"

"Really?"

"Oh, yeah!"

Kevin sighed in relief, having expected his dreams to be laughed off, then did the usual song and dance of throwing a Pokeball at the Yamask.

Naturally, the other two wanted to have a look at the Yamask upon Kevin's return. However, Kevin was in no mood to speak right now.

"I'll send her out in a minute once we get into the inn. I do want to see the warmth of a blanket after all," mumbled Kevin as he once again continued his journey to the inn. At the corner of his eye, Kevin could see Clay put up their hand, then put it down, presumably agreeing with Kevin on this one.

Thankfully, the inn was not far ahead. Even better, the lights were still on, indicating that they could still get a room.

Happily, he entered the inn, waltzed up to the receptionist, and asked for a room. In Pokemon.

After hearing the screams, Kevin considered that, maybe in hindsight, that it was an idea out of bad idea city. Still, he was tired.

On one hand, it gave them a discount from the person, who had quickly realized her error.

On the other hand, it woke him enough to realize that he hadn't called his mother since he left earlier in the day.

Thankfully, Kevin was able to reassure her that he was okay, although judging by the policeman in the room and the copious amounts of ghost-hunting equipment, he figured that he got her just in the nick of time.

….Also in retrospect, turning on silence was also not the best way to go about things.

The suite was luxurious. A giant bed, an en-suite bathroom, and dirt-free floors. Before hitting the hay, Kevin took the opportunity to introduce Jessica to his team members. Loneliness was a bit shyer than Clay, weakly shaking Jessica's hand, whilst Clay's was more firm. However, no one had the energy for proper introductions before they crashed out on the spot. Kevin followed quickly. That bed was quite fluffy after all.

Kevin knew the moment he had found himself in that forest that his dreams weren't going to be as peaceful as expected. The fog which enveloped the place and the general eerieness of it highlighted one thing, after all.

He was going to be tortured.

A soul-stabbingly familiar voice called out to him.

Lizzie…

Gulping in fear, Kevin turned to find his former best friend, levitating in mid-air with all the grace of a girl forever cursed to be that of a ten-year-old.

He closed his eyes and braced for the worst, aware that this would just give her leverage to use as she ripped him apart with her accusations of him abandoning her and not caring about her.

The words never came.

Instead, she said something…more cryptic.

"Kevin, you may think me gone, but this is an incorrect assumption. Continue your journey. Seek out the Ghost-types. You'll find your answer there sooner than you think."

Kevin opened his mouth in a bid to press for more information. Too late. The Dream World had already faded into nothingness.

Kevin bolted awake from his dream. Panting, he took a look around the room in fear of any potential danger. As expected, everyone was sound asleep.

All except for Jessica.

"Jessica?" Kevin said, keeping his voice at a minimum in a bid to not disturb anyone.

She flinched back in surprise at the voice.

"…you okay?"

"Do I look okay to you?" She whispered a tone of bitterness in her voice. "I haven't had a good night's sleep at all. Every time I try, the rune just gets into my Dream and tells me to hurt myself. I try to ignore it, but…" Jessica's voice cut off as she broke into more sobbing.

This just broke Kevin's heart even more.

"…do you want to cuddle up with me. Not in a romantic way but..just to have companionship?" he said, beckoning her to the bed.

Jessica nodded, then quietly went into Kevin's bed, snuggling up in bed with him. Kevin sighed as the Yamask's breathing slowed and she went into a deep sleep.

We'll find you a cure for your problems soon, Jessica. Hopefully sooner than I fear.

"So what's the plan?" asked Clay as Kevin got his teeth brushed.

"Well, the plan is to get ourselves registered as Motostoke Stadium. Then there's the ceremony where they highlight this year's challengers. After that, we buy some supplies and leave this city."

The other three nodded and followed Kevin as he departed their room and onto the reception area of the building.

Just then, they heard a loud commotion as they were able to enter.

"What now?" complained Kevin.

There, at the desk was a young punk-ish looking girl who looked to be in her teens. She was being accosted by two men which were wearing very similar outfits to her. Unlike the girl, however, they seemed…more obnoxious.

"Marnie. Please let us give you support for the ceremony. We promise we will be helpful!"

"For the last time boys, I don't need the support."

This didn't go through to them however and they continued pestering her.

For a moment, Kevin considered ignoring it. He had a ceremony to get to, after all. Then, he sighed in resignation.

This is going to bite me in the ass one day…

Instead, he put himself in front of the boy punks and glared at them.

The punks looked at him for a few seconds, then laughed.

"Awww, look at the cute little Pokemon! Well, it won't stop us from getting to our number one person in the world!" said the skinnier-looking one, giving Kevin a menacing look.

Kevin growled.

No one calls me cute!

"Clay! Loneliness! You're up." He commanded his team members as they went into the fray.

Realization dawned on the punks that whatever this Phantump is, it meant business.

"Zigzagoon! Nikit! Tear these spooks to peace!" they shouted as they let out their own Pokemon. The duo stared down the duo of spooks.

"Yo, mate! Are you going to attack us or not? Because we're going to win for Marnie!" said the Nikit, taunting Jessica in a faux-Castelian accent.

Clay slammed mud down on their head, whilst Loneliness blew strong winds onto their face. As Nickit collapsed from the attack, the Zigzagoon taunted them as well.

"Oooh, you two are so DUMB that you believe a Pokemon can be an actual trainer."

These proved to be fatal words for the Zigzagoon as Loneliness and Clay slammed their combined forces down on them.

The punks groaned as they recalled their Pokemon.

"Ah, man! The air in here put me off my game. It put me off my cool!" said the fatter-looking one.

Marnie just sighed.

"Listen...I know you want to help but you gotta show a bit of restraint. I don't need your support for the ceremony today. Maybe soon, but could you please leave for now "

For once the punks complied, muttering some apologetic sorries and apologies in their hasty departure. Marnie sighed as she turned to face the Phantump.

"Sorry about them. They're my fans, that's all. They call themselves Team Yell and follow me around. Trouble is I think it went into their heads. Sorry if they caused you any trouble."

Kevin just nodded, his mind had not figured out a card to respond to the situation yet.

"Oh sorry. My mistake, you must be that mute Phantump who wants to become a Pokemon trainer! Listen, it's fine. I will let you head on then. You must have a busy morning ahead of you."

Kevin nodded again, then departed the inn. She was certainly an interesting character, to the fact that he suspected that she would be a potential rival. It was just the energy that was coming out of her. That said, if his theories were correct, he suspected that he would be seeing more of Team Yell in the future.

And he really wasn't looking forward to it.

The reception area was bustling with people as the quartet entered the stadium. For the most part, they seemed to be ignoring the group, being too busy talking amongst themselves to heed any attention...

One contestant wasn't ignoring the group, however.

"Yeesh, what took you so long?" Hop asked as Kevin walked up to him.

"Let's just say others were holding us back," replied Kevin, rolling his eyes as he thought back to the events of the morning and the previous night.

"Well, anyway…have you looked around the place, Kevin. This place is just filled to the brims with gym challengers. Just the more rivals for me!"

As they went up to the desk, Kevin nearly did a spit take.

It was a Ralts, apparently deep in some discussion with the man. This lasted for a few minutes before the Ralts hopped past the desk, heeding them no attention as it swept an imaginary strand of hair past its forehead and walked past them out of the building.

Kevin took to disliking them very quickly. He didn't know why, but there was something…arrogant about them. Hop felt the same, judging from the way he crossed his arms.

"What a piece of work.." he said with a tutt-tutt before putting his attention towards getting registered.

Despite these feelings, however, it raised some questions for the Phantump.

Who are that Ralts? Is he a trainer's Ralts or is he like me – on a journey to become a Pokemon trainer?

Before he could hope to answer his questions, however, Kevin and Hop were interrupted by the man at the desk.

"If you're here to register for the Gym Challenge, I need to see your endorsement please."

The actual signing-up for the Gym Leader Challenge came quickly. The man was surprisingly not surprised at the fact that he was talking to a Phantump who wanted to be a Pokemon trainer. Kevin figured that any surprise he had was used up in his previous conversation with that mysterious Ralts.

Still, he got the numbered t-shirt. Which were 20 times too big for him but what did it matter? #708 would be his number, now and forever in the gym challenge.

Whilst the man was giving out the uniforms, he got a glimpse at Hop's uniform number.

#570. Not bad for a number as well.

He also got a Challenge Band which kept falling off of him but that didn't matter. As long as he had it. Would have been nice to have it the correct size like his Dynamax band though.

Afterward came the opening ceremony. He was of course made to return his Pokemon into his Pokeballs. He had tried to argue otherwise but they were quite insistent that if you weren't a trainer, then they had to return to their balls. Stadium safety you see. Kevin obeyed, although he decided that when he became Champion, one of his first changes was to remove that ruling.

Despite this, however, the actual ceremony was class. Well for a while at least. He watched as Rose introduced himself and opened this year's Gym Challenge, then invited the Gym Leaders to show themselves. He watched as they introduced themselves.

The tough farmer. Milo.

The raging wave. Nessa.

The ever-burning man of fire. Kabu.

The silent boy of mystery. Allister.

The theater master. Opal.

The ice-cold professional. Melony.

And the tamer of Dragons. Raihan.

As Kevin watched the gym leaders enter the stadium, Kevin could have sworn he saw Allister give him a glance in his direction before he got distracted by the ceremony.

There was one missing, however.

Piers, the famous rock musician whose music Kevin had jammed to at times. It was a, but…what could Kevin do?

Then came time to introduce the challengers.

Kevin, in his too-big shirt, came out and showed himself off to the people.

At first, there was cheering.

Then everyone realized that one of the competitors was a Pokemon. And not just a Pokemon, a Ghost-type Pokemon.

Cue the screams.

Thankfully, no one was hurt in the ensuing rampage to get out of the stadium. Still a massive blow to Kevin though.

"Don't feel too bad…" Loneliness tried to reassure Kevin as they left the stadium.

"I know, but…it would have been nice if they had accepted me, you know…."

"Yeah, but on the bright side, people will fear you now and it will be much easier to steamroll them all," said Clay, slamming her fists together menacingly as she spoke.

"Yeah, but still…"

"On the bright side, they haven't decided to revoke your trainer license. At least for now." Said Jessica.

Kevin sighed.

"You're right. Let's be honest, there's nothing I can do at the minute."

right?