Hello again. Again sorry for the late. Couldnt decide to cut anything so here it is. Forewarning it is still crapy writing. Next chapter has alot more action. This is mostly a recovery chapter and a little character building. again the past chapters might make more since after this one but not by much. Also the format might be hard to read still trying to find the best way to upload it.
- River
3rd Person POV
*THUD*
Boots hit the dirt as the moon shone brightly in the sky.
"I am back. Fuck it still hurts"
Seth hit the ground and looked around at the utter destruction. Buildings were collapsed along with the streets. He could hear the sirens in the background coming closer.
Sighing out of relief his body seemed to loosen up.
"Crazy turn of events. Before that I need to get out of here."
Looking at the closing in lights coming in his direction he moved back into the alleyway and took off towards the bustling market.
Only stopping to rest a couple of times. He was still very injured, but he had noticed his body seemed to be recovering abnormally quickly. 'Still, I don't know what is causing this'.
He unconsciously rubbed the two Pokéballs attached to his belt along with the gourd that was found in his backpack.
Now he was sure someone physically went through his things before he had arrived at in that separate space.
Towards the end of his time with Winry he realized his Pokemon where only slightly injured. Yet he had no idea how.
It all came back to Loki. Loki this Loki that.
He shivered remembering what happened just before he left.
…
[Flashback]
Seth was fiddling with some cards by himself going through his inventory and Winry was on the other side of the field working with her newly evolved Wartortle and the rest of her group.
They had decided to work with their own groups before returning. As they exchanged contacts it was good enough for both of them.
Remembering Wartortle's Stats Seth shook his head "It's too much to compare the both of us. It's like night and day. She is like a non-perverted Alex with her luck."
[
Name: Wartortle(Female)
Level: 26
Stage: initial Intermediate Stage
Potential: Gold (78%)
Ability: Torrent
Moves: Aqua Ring (Egg), Tackle, Tail Whip, Water Gun, Withdraw, Rapid Spin, Bite, Water Pulse, Protect, Rain Dance, Aqua Tail, Iron Tail, Double Team, Scald, Icy Wind
Affinity: Water (40%)
Evolution: Unavailable
]
It really wanted to make him weep but even more what came next.
Loki apparently directly entered the Training ground and seemed to seethe in anger then psychotic laughter. He had Greeny grumbling beside him who looked beat up.
He didn't say anything about it except. "Seth Hale since it was your idea then you must face the repercussions. For not appreciating my kindness and gifts you will no longer be able to access my extras and perks for however long you live." He then sent a black beam at me that just entered my body.
"As a final goodbye. I will leave you this mark."
With that he disappeared.
The both of us didn't say anything and needed some time to separate things.
End Flashback
Remembering it brought shivers. I used the identification card on the now black tattoo that looks like a glyph on my chest.
Seth Hale – 0 Star Builder
Skills/Knowledge
[Builders Knowledge (lvl 3), Hatchet Proficiency (lvl 2), Tool Proficiency (level 1), Breeder Knowledge (lvl 3), Pokéball Creation Knowledge (lvl 4),Perception (lvl 0), Cartography (lvl 0) Drawing (lvl 0)]
[ Loki's Curse Mark: Every Month the bearer will face a summoned Shadow Pokémon one Stage above the user's strongest owned Pokémon. CAN NOT BE CAUGHT. Count Down: 5 Days]
Pokemon Team: Rookidee(Dee), Sandyghast(Casper)
He was freaking going to die from this mark!
"One thing at a time Seth One thing at a time."
Seth found an empty house and barricaded himself in the room. Before he left the space. He figured out how to use the band that he bought from Greeny by using the Identification card.
"Really those cards are too useful Now I am down to 140 of them but they are probably better to find a good next Pokémon."
The band was essentially a band that transforms to an inanimate object that has slightly lesser properties. You just must use 5 energies on it for it to take the form of the object. It is a one-time deal.
Before he came back, he used the first band with his spare computer parts and 3 metal energy and 2 electrics. Surprisingly, the band reformed into a less advanced MiniPC. Which is now on his wrist as a band.
The band looks like a black silicone band about a pinkie finger in width.
His second band was what he was going transform now. He pulled his backpack off and emptied all the contents to the side.
Placing the card on the backpack he fumbled through his deck to use metal and electric again. With that he dripped some blood and soon enough the card created a black band.
Seth put on the black band and willed it to appear. Almost instantly the band expanded and formed a slightly smaller backpack that looked even more tattered.
Seth's eyes smiled in relief. "No more items to connect me to Team Aqua. But I can still use it and give it to others maybe as payment for something"
When he started to put items into the backpack he was stunned as the items would shrink in the backpack. Creating more space. "Huh so folding tech instead of dimensional tech. Without a doubt the former is better as it keeps things fresh and has its own "dimension" like a Pokéball. This just makes things smaller.
"MAGIC! I don't know if Winry has seen one, but they are indeed magical."
Putting his old backpack aside he started to take inventory and place everything in their respective spots.
An hour later he was satisfied his Energy Deck had been the biggest steal. It had 450 basic energy cards of Grass, Fire, Water, Lightning, Psychic, Fighting, Darkness, Metal, and Fairy. He already used a couple of each but just a bit.
Carefully I sorted each of the cards by energy and set stacks of 10. "At least my foreknowledge was not forgotten. I will need it for us to survive this Curse Mark. Loki is taking one out of Orochimaru's book"
Dripping a drop of blood on each pile. The stacks got condensed down to one card each. [LARGE ENERGY]'s
Significantly more effective cost is 10 basic energies of the same kind, and the result is equivalent to 25 basic energies. The only drawback is that the Pokémon will have to survive excruciating pain if not used with specific ingredients. The other ingredients just numb the pain. The longer the Pokémon lasts the pain the more it can be transformed. 5 of each [Large energy] and 4 of Metal and Electric. Everything will last for a long time as there is a 3 month cool down time once one of the cards are used.
He had his basic survival supplies along with the main Pokémon items. He had used the TMs on Dee and Casper. Dee got Work Up and Protect while Casper got Protect.
Cards: [140 Identify, 43 Big Energy, 5 Electric, 5 Metal]
Bag: [3 Pseudo Staraptor Feathers (SEALED), Notebook(birch), Sage Manual, 9 Low Quality Hard Stones, 2 Flying Gems, 3 Bags of Medium Quality Soft Sand]
and my funds where still at 177,000 Poke.
Using two more identification cards I put them against the Pokéballs on my waist.
[
Name: Rookidee (Male)
Level: 18
Stage: High Rookie Stage
Potential: Shallow Silver (3%)
Ability: Keen Eye
Moves: Peck, Leer, Power Trip, Hone Claws, Fury Attack, Pluck, Protect, Work Up, Tailwind (Egg), Air Slash
Affinity: Flying (12%)
Gene: Alpha (Dormant) (Condition – Holder must eat hearts of 500 Flying Types personally killed in battle to awaken. Opponents must be the same Stage or higher than the holder)
Evolution: Available
]
[
Name: Sandyghast (Male)
Level: 14
Stage: Mid Rookie Stage
Potential: Shallow Silver (25%)
Ability: Sand Veil
Moves: Harden, Absorb, Astonish, Sand Tomb, Ancient Power (Egg), Mud Shot, Wide Guard, Protect
Affinity: Ghost (12%) Ground (19%)
Evolution: Unavailable
]
"Well F** that. Now I see why Dee has not shown signs of the Alpha Gene. It is Dormant and that conditions are terrible. I will have to break the new to him. Looks like he will need to evolve before getting the gene. If I remember right this gene will eventually be a great boon but it does consume potential of the Pokémon. It is the cost for awakening it. Something that I now regret putting into the leveling system now."
Looking around Seth puts the rest inside his backpack in the energy box that will now hold all his cards.
Deciding that now was not a good time to rest was difficult as his body resisted his every movement. He used bandages to wrap all up and down his arm. He didn't want for other to know he was related to what was happening in the Slums.
Getting up he brushed off the dust and moved the chair away from the door to go out into the night.
Seth POV
On my way to the group's house, I planned out some things. Like what I was going to do with the family I just helped, about my deal with Rachel's Boyfriend that I keep forgetting his name as well as Dee's evolution.
It took me an hour to find my way to the house due to my condition. I had a small limp but looked a lot worse than I felt. When I arrived it was a very big beach house that is near the coast. There is a cliff in the back yard and stairs to get down to the beach. The place seemed too exquisite for my tastes but who am I to say what people spend their money on.
I don't see any Pokémon outside resting so I go up to the door and knock.
After a few seconds nothing happened.
"Well, it is like 2 am. They are probably all asleep after tonight's event."
Raising my hand, I was going to knock a little louder when I saw something phase though the door. It was a pale white bone mask. Where the mask had opening for eyes, there was a mysterious singular red glowing eye.
It looked at me for a sec and was studying me then it disappeared behind the door again.
Seconds later the door was unlocked, and the Pokémon was hovering in the air motioning me with its wispy features to follow it.
"Well, that's not ominous at all."
Following the ghost Pokémon, I was lead through the house. The house was very nice. Nicer than anything I have ever lived in either my previous life or this one. That fact alone made me uncomfortable. I was not used to luxury. Simple the better. As long as it is decent enough for the basic necessities.
As I was thinking about all of this, I entered the kitchen then out back was a sliding glass door that led to a larger deck. There were four people sitting on the couches on the deck.
The Duskull floated through the door while I stopped and knocked on it. The four turned their heads and a couple of them smiled as I slid the glass door open.
I briefly wave my hand at the four girls. "Hey."
"Oh my gosh Seth! You're Ok! We haven't seen you since …"
"I waved her off. No big deal, Alice. I was just making my way here it just took me some extra time." She seemed to get the hidden message.
Turning to the blonde next to her "Claire, long time no see." The girl nodded looking at me trying to figure something out which I promptly ignored. On Clair's lap was a vulpine Pokémon with burnt orange fur and a cream-colored chest. It had six tails that were swaying with the sea breeze.
'Vulpix huh? I guess that is her starter. I couldn't remember what it was my attention to details are fading.'
Turning I greet the last two girls who are sitting on either side of Alice and Claire.
"Hello nice to meet you. My name is Seth Hale I was in the same class as Claire."
They both lightly smiled.
"Nice to meet you my name is Cindy while that there is Phoebe." Cindy was very blonde even more so than Claire. She wore a tank top that seemed to show off her swimsuit and stomach and wore way too short shorts which left little to imagination. She had a good-looking face, but just glancing at her I saw the forced pleasant emotions trying to cover up her obvious disdain.
I then turned to the last of the four and she was a small and very slender young girl with short spiky black hair, bare feet, tan skin, and blue eyes. She wore a Sweatshirt that went all the way down and covered her shorts. She wore a red Hawaiian Cornflower in her hair and on the sweatshirt that was colored white and blue.
"Pleasure to make your acquaintances."
All the girls smiled a bit and motioned for me to sit down.
Cindy took the initiative and started the conversation "Did you come for the party tonight? If you did you are quite late. Everyone already left." Her slurred words seemed to clue me into her current state.
Nodding slightly, I breathed out and replied "Yeah, I wanted to make it. But I got held up with some things. Speaking of which did a family of three make it here earlier?"
All four girls perked up at that "Oh yeah, they did. They looked like street rats. They came in a while ago during the dance off. Some of us helped them out with Rachel leading them. I was with my sisters and their boyfriends during the party. Alex also won the battle tonight though." Cindy happily chirped without recognizing the glare that came from the other three girls.
Phoebe spoke up for the first time. Her voice was soft yet pleasing to the ears. "What happened to them? They looked like…"
Cindy seemed to not be paying attention and got distracted by a new incoming message to her phone. She quickly got up a little unevenly not even acknowledging the rest with her eyes "I'll see you everyone later. I am going up to meet up with someone." The rest nodded and said goodbye.
Slightly confused at the abrupt exit and dismissal of the fake blonde girl. I turned back and asked with my eyes to the two girls I know the best.
After five minutes all the girls let out a collective sigh as if they were holding their breath.
Alice was the first to break the silence "Sorry you had to see that, Seth. It is that we just can't get along with her that well. She just uh ... How do I put it?"
Phoebe "She's a two-faced slut."
Claire snorted "That and Alex is a Pig. We all know she is going to his room again to 'help her sister'."
Alice looked like she wanted to defend Alex but with a sharp look from Claire, she held her words.
Phoebe shook her head and took a sip of her fruity drink.
Claire then turned to me "Now that the baggage is gone. Tell us what happened. I saw you earlier yesterday and you weren't hurt at all." She started at my bandaged arm. That functioned more like a sleeve now.
Looking at Phoebe I ask, "Can you make sure no one is listening?"
She looked a little startled eyes widened at being singled out and nodded hesitantly. Suddenly the Duskull appeared from her shadow and moved around our group.
"How did you know the ghost belonged to her?" asked Alice genuinely confused.
I gave Alice a dry look but still answered her question "You are a fighting specialist while Claire said this morning that her only Pokémon was her Vulpix, which is on her lap. Either she got it today or it was one of the two others.
Cindy struck me as a … spoiled gossip girl or rich daddy girl. As I don't think she would have a ghost. She would probably an expensive pet Pokémon that looks cute. SO that only left…Phoebe. That and I saw a red eye look at me from her shadow."
The two of the three girls looked impressed then deadpanned at my last statement.
Chuckling I then briefly briefed them in on what happened. How I met Rachel and Her boyfriend at the Pokémon Center. Then going to the trading market with them and splitting up. Going to the tent to buy items and how Caleb was tossed out of the tent. I left and met Caleb and how things proceeded from there. A little skirmish in the slums and them meeting Diane and Drew Ryder.
I mentioned how Drew was mute but was able to get along with my two ghost Pokémon which inherently drew the interest of Phoebe. I then told them how we were going to escape the slums because they were being targeted by one of the local gangs. How we met two wierdos in blue uniforms that both had advanced level Pokémon.
How I sent the Ryder family ahead to the house while I stayed back. I mentioned that the group was toying with me and that they accidently hit something that seemed to collapse part of the street. How I was hit with a Scald and how I was burned. When I woke up I was realitivly healed, I hid out and came here after.
There was utter silence from the three girls.
Alice smiled brightly but with a look of concern "That sounds incredible Seth! You are a hero!"
I shook my head and raised my hand "Alice please don't. A lot of people probably were hurt in that conflict, I am sure. I am … I just don't want to address it right now. I sent an anonymous tip to the police department so hopefully they would investigate it and find those guys.
Phoebe was looking at me and analyzing me while Claire was stroking her Vulpix.
"Where those wierdos really that strong?" asked Alice.
"Yes. I could barely hold on. I only have two Pokémon and right now I am really weak in the grand scheme of things. Although I can fight ok at those among my level it is too difficult to fight above my level."
She grimaced and reluctantly pulled out a Pokéball. "Here is Maki …"
I stopped her and looked her in her clear red eyes "Alice, the reason I told them to give you Maki was that he did not want to join my team. Maki wanted a specialized fighting trainer. Maki was stubborn about it, believe me, so I thought of you.
You saved my life a month or so ago just think that it is repayment. He would be a good acquisition. Although most trainers don't like single evolution mons, he will develop well with you."
Alice tried to say something but then just came over and gave me a hug while I was sitting down.
I froze up and felt pain on my shoulder where I was burned. Not enjoying the hug from the girl. It felt like minutes before she released me, Alice seemed to be very happy and had a determined smile.
"I needed a new team member to possibly compete in the tournament. My Machop wanted to be with Oscar's Machop when he was defeated apparently, and I had to trade him as he refused to work with me. I think it was because Machop was jealous of how much time that I gave the other team members. But I really gave them all the same amount. My ralts is too young to fight. SO, I was going to withdraw from the Rookie tournament since it needs minimum two 'mons…"
She sat down and leaned her had on Claire's shoulder as Claire started to pat her head.
Nodding "Yeah, I know what you mean. Having to trade a Pokémon that you have bonded to is difficult. I really wanted both the Sabeleye and Makuhita for my team. Both Sab, and Maki I was looking for good trainers for. It is tough to support so many partners right now without steady income. I am going to taking tasks from the guild to get some cash for the next couple of days."
Phoebe looked at me questioningly "You're not doing the rookie tournament. There are a lot of good prizes. They announced that the top three will get a Hoenn royal starter with gold potential."
I shook my head and looked at the smaller girls' blue eyes without much emotion. "Not interested. I don't plan on challenging the gym circuit but with how strong my team is right now I can't protect such a gem as a Royal Starter. That would paint a target on my back compared to my powerlevel. I need my resources to go to my current companions before start thinking about another one. The only way I would entertain the idea would be if I was given one as a gift.
Oh, by the way can I transfer the registration to you all for the two mons? I have them currently unregistered under my name."
The three girls looked and nodded at each other.
"I am giving Sab to Drew but he will need to get a PDA, Gear, or device and to the Center for trainer registration. But I really don't have time. That leads me to another thing."
I then pull my MiniPC out of my bag and initiate the local transaction function. Both Alice and Phoebe get notifications on their Pokédexs. I confirmed the local trade.
Both girls read the information on the Sab and Maki.
Alice made a childish squeal "He's a Silver! And He knows Thunder Punch!" Claire covered Alice's mouth from shouting. And shushed her.
Phoebe looked at me like I was crazy and to her I just shrugged.
She then showed Sab's profile to the others who looked at me like I was a lunatic.
Claire was the first one to break the silence "Seth that is like … a couple million dollars how can you give her away?"
Phoebe shook her head "No Sableyes are very rare and one with this type of talent and ability could be sold for 150 million at the minimum."
Collective gasps occurred from the girls who turned to me like I was crazy.
"Hey, don't look at me like that. I do not think of them like objects or money. It is just that Sab took a real liking to Drew..."
Phoebe nodded "It is strange so did my Duskull. Not many trainers have connections to ghost types. They are generally avoided due to their innate nature."
I nodded "On to the next thing. Later … Tonight, Tomorrow … no later today I have tasks to complete, and I can't take care of the Ryder family. If I give you all some money, can you all go and buy clothes and supplies for all of them. All of them luckily have their Pokémon novice licenses but they don't have much to their name. I want them to choose a starter Pokémon from the market as well.
That way, they can start to be independent. Sab will be Drew's Starter I guess but she is already at the intermediate level. So, Dianne and Caleb will also need something that they can work with. If you can try to get them a reasonable Silver or something that will be able to partner with for a long time."
The three girls went into thinking at the same time. Phoebe was typing something on her Pokédex while the other two browsed Alice's Pokédex looking for something.
Claire looked up and blatantly asked, "Why are you so invested in this family?"
I went silent and tried to recall my thoughts.
"Really, I do not know. Maybe I wanted to see what it would be like to have a little brother or sister. I don't really know it was just like a feeling that I should help him out at the market. I have been in those positions before or maybe to gather good Karma. As trainers we need to help each other our as there are many more dangerous things out there in the world…. I'll just leave it at that."
*Yawn*
"Sorry guys I am winding down. Its about time for me to sleep a bit."
I typed a couple things on my PC. "Claire you are good with budgeting right. I remember you saying something like that when you were with that green haired girl. What's her name?"
"Lisia?"
"Yeah her! If you need help with budget just let me know tomorrow morning."
*BEEP*
"A hundred Grand? That's like most of what you got this morning from selling your goods."
I shrugged her off. "You will need that much to get those both decent starters as well as other things."
Looking out at the ocean I sighed "Alright I'll be down on the beach till morning. You all have my number if you need me."
With that I left the three girls sitting on the couch.
[3rd Person POV]
[With the three girls]
…
Claire finally spoke up once Seth had left "Well that was a turn of events."
Alice smiled "He seems indifferent on the outside, but he seems like a softie on the inside."
Claire patted Vulpix on her lap who had woken up. "Well, he seems to be a nice guy but he don't let your guard down. He could turn out like Alex. However unlike Alex I can say that he hates attention.
Seth … He doesn't get along with Lisia, they are like oil and water. Did you know when he stopped contacting us, he was taken by his master to Dewford and dropped in the wilds? I know that you and Alex went into the outside the city for a day trip with the exploration group. You both got your Ralts there."
Alice nodded "It was weird. We only stayed on the designated routes and still it was more difficult than what we thought. Especially those nasty Gulpins." as she shivered.
Phoebe chimed in "For most new trainers the wilds are difficult, and they can easily be overwhelmed if they only have one or two 'mons on their team.
Even with the rangers and HDF constantly patrolling Hoenn's routes there are always accidents. That is why the league advises trainers to travel the routes only when they have a Pokémon on the intermediate level. Before that most novices and rookies use busses and other forms of public transportation provided on the main routes this helps to prevent mishaps. Unless you have a group of trainers with you or are starting somewhere that is quite weak like Littleroot or Petalburg then it is better to abide by the league's guidelines."
Claire and Alice nodded.
Phoebe continued "On another note. He pegged Cindy right out of the gate, didn't he?"
Claire smiled for once, but Alice grimaced.
Claire "Yes, he did, that two timer bitch. I bet she went stumbling into Alex's bed as soon as she could. Why does she even need to hide it? We can hear her moans from downstairs. At least Oscar and Mia have some dignity, and fuck when no one is around. Alex has just …"
Alice "NO no no !" clamping her palms over her ears.
She took off to her room in the basement.
Phoebe sighed "She is still naive. She is so infatuated with Alex she doesn't want to hear his obvious flaws."
Claire "She has always been like this though. For every crush she goes hard until they either break her heart or end up with someone else."
Phoebe "What do you think of Alex?"
Claire snorted "He is a lustful perv that tries to get in the pants of every female above a B Cup. He has made a pass at me after I broke up with my EX.
For all his faults he is quick to protect people he knows, but he gets into quite a bit of trouble because of that. He is also willing to spend money on anyone close to him.
Alex doesn't like people who have the same amount of ego as he does i.e., Johnathan or the boys hanging out with Lisia. But he is a very good trainer, better than most of us. Well, that was before his charmander evolved but now, he is struggling to control him.
Which in turn gets him frustrated, and then when someone strokes his ego such as Cindy or her sister, he latches on to them and other flirty girls. My ex he also developed that same ego and sense of entitlement that Alex has recently developed. He started to demand things from me which I was not ready for, and I dumped him when he tried to force me to do something. Luckily, you were there to prevent that."
Phoebe "Yeah well I hope your group can avoid infighting for now as everyone is kind of worked up from the party last night and the upcoming tournament."
Claire shrugged "I told them it was a bad idea anyway. Why host a party right before the tournament in four days? Focus on training. At least Seth knows what his priorities are. I mean he wants to stay focused on his construction jobs."
Phoebe widened her eyes and turned to the blonde in shock "Wait what? That kid is a part of the builder's guild?"
Claire looked at her "You didn't get that from the conversation? He showed me some of his small pictures that he had on his computer along with some of his blueprints earlier yesterday. Also, he is like two years younger than you. He's like 19 or 20."
Phoebe shook her head "When he said guild, I thought either the breeder's guild or something. Why a Non-Pokémon related guild thought?"
Claire shrugged "We consulted the builders guild to help construct the battlefield on the beach. They sent out a trainer with a Golem and built it in like 30 min made from stone. I cannot complain about their work but they seem to work along Pokémon. Using the guild was easier than hiring a construction company. But I heard that only people really go to the guild for their certifications."
Phoebe shook her head in disbelief. Claire seemed to tease Phoebe "So, are you interested in him, Phoebe? You have been asking a lot of questions about Seth?"
Phebe shook her hands adamantly "No way. I mean it is nice to see someone with the same skin here in Hoenn, but I am not looking for a relationship. I just found it interesting that he seemed to be a part of your group but have never seen him before. That and helping the Ryder family…"
Claire nodded in agreement "I always thought he seemed to keep his distance from us but the more I interact with him the more I think he is just anti – social in the way that he dislikes drama and menial things.
Rachel met with him today and said that he hates large crowds but when I saw his battle with Lisia last morning, he seemed to do fine not minding the people watching. He was pretty good battler. Most likely better than me especially with his ghost Pokémon. The way he interacted with Lisia made me think that he just tries to avoid anything he considers annoyances."
Phoebe "You gave that some thought."
Claire "No, not really that was what Rachel mentioned as well. He helped Adam quite a bit and he started his own bussiness, and apparently and Rachel took a liking to Diane from that family. Speaking of which what clothes and things should we buy for them tomorrow?"
From there the two trainers delved into different necessities and gossip topics.
Seth POV
When the light broke the horizon, I got up.
Looking around I was curled up on a small beach chair from the remnants of the party.
Looking around I could see a large circle made around me that was obviously Casper's doing.
Getting up and getting my blood flowing by doing a little stretch. I then take out some compressed biscuits and munch on that along with a little bit of dried fruit.
After which I take a small jog on the beach. During the jog I hear the whooshing of feathers only to see Dee flying above my head. After the jog and light workout, I get back to the sand and shade.
Both of my companions appeared before me. Dee landed on back of a chair while Casper just appeared just Below Dee.
"Alright guys here's the plan. We are going to get training for a bit this morning. After training I will give you some things to eat and such."
They both replied with their names.
"Casper for you I want you to work on WideGuard and Protect. For working with wideguard raise a small wall about three feet wide as high as you can for one second. Then use the new move that you received. After that destroy the wall with your mud shot and repeat. Do as many repetitions as you can. Wait here for a sec before you practice."
GHAST
The little ghost nodded in a human like expression. It looked around as if scouting out a good spot to practice.
"Dee have you made your decision about what I talked about last night?"
Dee chirped aggressively and batted its wings.
"Good that means you chose that method, correct?"
Dee nodded his body.
"Okay now we need you to get more powerful. You have already reached the strength Nurse Joy recommended in this body any more would be pushing it. Last fight was a tough one, wasn't it?"
"Rook I DEEE" the Pokémon chirped looking more irritated.
Taking a deep breath "So do you want to evolve now or wait for a while?"
Dee was startled but actually looked torn.
I sat down "Here is what I think. We have two options first is to hold off on evolution and try to complete that task to unlock your gene. Which would take a long time. Time that we might not have if we have to fight against others like last night.
Or you can evolve now with what we have prepared. The strengthening after evolution will help you become stronger to complete your task. The opponents you will face will be much stronger and it will be harder to increase your strength.
The choice is yours."
Dee without the second thought chirped twice. Indicating option 2.
"Alright just let me get the things we need for evolution from my bag."
I pull out a metal box along with a latch on it. Then I pulled out a similar box that was quite a bit smaller.
"Casper can you build a small Pillar for Dee?"
The Ghost who seemed to start to wonder off excitedly called out.
Then it disappeared into the sand and almost instantly appeared behind Dee in a small clearing.
I could see it concentrate and a pillar three feet in height that was about six inches by six inches came out of the ground.
Casper excitedly cried out as he enjoyed being helpful.
Dee flew and rested on the small pillar. Taking a brief moment to compose myself and using some of the breeder knowledge that I had bought from Greeny I was able to come up with a plan of action.
First, I pulled out two cards. They both where greater energy cards. One was for flying type and the other was for dark type. Setting them aside I pulled open one of the metal containers. In it was two small gems the size of my fingernail.
Dee's eyes followed them wherever I put them, but he did not make a move.
I brought them to the stand. I laid both cards three inches apart on the platform and set a gem on each one. Turning to Dee I said "Come here and grasp these with your talons. Like you are stepping on them."
The tiny bird Pokémon followed my orders and gently stepped onto the stone atop of the cards.
Then I put my hand on the next box and opened the latch. Inside was three feathers that briefly shown with light blue lights.
I gently picked two of them up and told Dee to open his beak. I let him gasp two of them in his beak and put the other one away much to the bird's disappointment.
"You will get this after your evolution."
It nodded but still looked ready to go. I close in on the platform and scrape my hand on the jagged stone.
A couple drops of blood were spilled to the cards which in turn turned to lights.
"Alright Dee try to remember that specific sensation of battle and the urge to get stronger. It all comes down to this."
I back away a couple feet.
When nothing happens, I feel flustered and frustrated. I know Dee felt the same way as that militant look in his eye confirmed it. Suddenly Dee's body erupts into a bright light. Immediately I send the energy cards into Dees body.
"He's evolving"
The light started off as soft kept growing harsher and harsher. I gritted my teeth I saw motes of black and light blue rage inside this light show.
When people talk about evolution, they always talk about the lights but what stressed me out was the noises. I could hear bones breaking and breaking again. Possibly tendons stretching like a rubber band along with a loud
Crunch which I do not know what it possibly was.
Dee's scream rang out and I covered my ears. It was a scream of agony yet defiance.
Popping resounded continuously for the next three minutes. When the area turned silent the light converged into its core and disappeared.
"Evolution is freakin crazy."
I look the new creature up in front of me standing on the platform closing its eyes seemingly resting yet from the tension of its muscled in its neck it could be said to be clenching its beak.
The Pokémon in front of me was no longer the 10 inches tiny bird now it was over two feet tall at least.
Its tail and dorsal feathers have a navy coloration, and its breast feathers are blue-gray. Matte black feathers accent its wingtips, ruff, and face, which is adorned with a mask-like crest. Its beak and three-toed feet are gray, and it has black talons.
The Pokémon opened its eyes and immediately locked on to mine. Dee's eyes where blood red and carried a hefty amount of depth and clarity. When we locked eyes for a while, no one moved.
Seemingly having enough Dee broke eye contact and spread its wings around testing its new body. I looked around the podium only to find faint dust everywhere.
Dees new claws where scraping through the stone like it was a piece of tofu. I could see the rigid muscles that where in his body that seemed to move with every motion. The color of its feathers contained a depth of color that made the blues and blacks seem very rich.
From my breeding knowledge if could discern that he was well taken care for and not malnourished. Sometimes during evolution Pokémon consume a lot of energy and if they do not have enough the pokemons body condition takes a sharp decline.
"Congrats Dee you look amazing!"
Dee seemed to preen in the praise then turned his attention to the mound of sand who was squeaking in disbelief.
"You two talk for a bit." Meanwhile I took out another identification card and used it on Dee.
[
Name: Corvisquire (Male)
Level: 20
Stage: Low Intermediate
Potential: Shallow Silver (63%)
Ability: Keen Eye
Moves: Peck, Leer, Power Trip, Hone Claws, Fury Attack, Pluck, Protect, Work Up, Tailwind (Egg), Air Slash, Thief, Roost
Affinity: Flying (25%)
Gene: Alpha (Dormant) (Condition – Holder has to eat hearts of 1000 Flying Types personally killed in battle to awaken. Opponents must be the same Stage or higher than the holder)(1/1000)
Evolution: Unavailable
]
"Boo Yeah! Upgraded to Low Intermediate along with a drastic increase in potential and affinity on top of two new moves."
'This means that he will have to get used to four new moves now. That might be a little much. But lets him try it out for a bit.'
"Alright new plan. Dee you will be in the Air. Try out the four new moves before we start exercises"
Dee took to the air in very quickly. His movements where at least four times faster than when he was a Rookidee. He only needed two or three beats of the wings to climb to a height where it was hard to see him.
Whistling I signaled for him to come back. He promptly returned.
"Alright Use Air Slash on the pillar. Just one"
The avian beat its wings two times and a single crescent descended to the pillar. When it made contact there seemed to be a large gash in it but it was still standing.
"Now Work UP and Air slash again."
Dee seemed to stall in the air as the air distorted around his body for a couple seconds.
I timed it and watched the Air Slash.
This one was a little larger and faster. It contacted the pillar a little higher than before and cut all the way through it.
"Nice. Probably increased a conservative 15%. That will depend on how long Work Up lasts. Now Protect"
A green energy bubble was created around Dee. It lasted for 4 seconds till it dissolved.
"Note: Work on stamina. Protect uses a lot of stamina"
"Dee! follow up with Thief we will leave roost for emergencies."
Dee then flew at high speeds. Dark energy surrounded his form like a tackle. He then suddenly disappeared and reappeared 15 or feet in front of his previous position.
"Interesting. Am I not able to follow it by eyesight or is it just suppressing the light making him invisible?"
"Okay guys come on in I think I have a plan."
The two Pokémon came back swiftly. Dee was obviously panting and worked. I took out some water and some crackers and he started chowing down.
Casper was looking at Dee with stary eyes then looked at me pleadingly.
"Alright Casper use this sand and start to absorb its power."
Taking out one of the three Soft Sands I gave it to Casper who looked like he got a cookie.
Using his little nubs of arms, he dumped the sand over his head and created a pit where he laid.
"Okay so for today's training regimen Dee Stamina. Tailwind as active as possible along with rotating with Air Slash, Thief, Pluck until Protect if off cooldown. Do you think you can do that?"
The raven nodded. I set up the last feather in the box on the side. "If you need to recover, take a break, and open the box and absorb the energy. No need to hold back."
"Casper. You will be Using Wide Guard, Protect and Mud shot. Create a wall first then practice moving in the sand. Preform a Protect. This will tire you out and them once you are tired preform Mud shot as many times as possible to break down the wall. Practice making them smaller or larger or form multiple whatever works. When you are tired take a break and absorb the soft sand. Come to me if you need more."
Getting both nods, I set the items around my backpack and then started my own workout. Set of stretches. Push Ups, Sit ups, Burpees. I practiced what my Sage Guide stated to do for development exercises and stretches. It seemed more like a hand-to-hand combat routine along with breathing intervals.
The manual said to rotate between this type of exercises and meditation for the best effect in sculping the body. Only when one reaches the peak can innately "Sense" the energy in the enviorment. I still have not been able to reach the first stage where one can sense energy I may have felt traces but nothing conclusive.
Taking a break and drinking some water I see that Dee is still struggling with his stamina but due to his stubborn nature he seems to be pushing himself but I am not going to baby sit him.
I take off my shirt and my bandages on my arm. Walking to the beach I start to swim for a bit. The cool water feels nice on my burnt arm. I stayed in the medium depth so that I would not encounter any wild Pokémon as they tend to stay away from populated areas. There are no aggressive Water Pokémon near Slateport this season. Mostly you have to worry about tentacool.
Spending a good twenty-minute swimming put fire in my lungs and now my whole body felt like it was burning in a good way. Deciding that it was enough for today I got out of the water to see my two partners by my bag. Dee was opening the metal latch with his beak and claws without a problem and getting another sack of soft sand for Casper. Astoundingly he closed the bag and opened his box and picked up the feather. And closed his eyes silently seemingly absorbing the energy stored in the feather.
Knowing that Dee is very intelligent and can-do tasks like these I was sort of relieved. Casper on the other hand was still young in terms of ghosts which sort of worries me due to his maturity.
Arriving at our makeshift voice camp I towel off and then put on a fresh shirt along with my swimsuit. Good thing too as I heard a couple voices coming down the stairs.
My Pokémon looked up and looked at who was approaching with vigilance. I petted both of my partners to calm them down which they seemed to but not by that much.
Looking up I almost had a nosebleed but held it in as I averted my eyes from the sight.
'Damn that was a sight. Legs for days. All of them are gorgeous'
Trying to recite my internal mantra I feel Dee pecking my hand as I slap the back of his head.
"Stop it Dee"
The bird gave me a throaty caw which seemed to gather the attention of the party.
"Ahh Seth! Hey over here!" said a voice that was undeniably Alice's.
Groaning I look up with a pleasant smile and wave at the group who are now coming towards me. Claire and Phoebe where eyeing me up and down while I was continuing to pack my things.
Turning to the incoming group "How are all of you doing? Get enough sleep?"
They all shook their head and giving different expressions.
Claire rolled her eyes which I noticed she did quite a bit. She followed with a brief question "Where are you headed Seth?"
Maintaining my neutral to happy tone "We just finished training a bit now I am going to grab some food and then head to the Guild. What are you all up to? It's like 9am?" I asked while looking at the Sun that had risen higher in the sky.
Alice responded chirpily "I convinced them to go for a morning run to get the blood flowing. I am pumped for the tournament! 4 Days until I can compete!"
I smiled "Don't lose the enthusiasm you will need it during the tournament."
The red headed girl blew me a raspberry.
I shook my head in fake exasperation. While I smiled at all of them in the group. There were four of them. All of them were wearing some type of sports bra and athletic shorts. Two of them had tank tops over their other sports wear.
I knew I based my characters looks on similar previous anime characters but still this was getting to me. Alice was based off Go Matusaka of Free which is a personal favorite of mine. Their personalities where totally different though.
Claire was very similar to Ai Hayasaka from Love is War. The third girl looked very similar Cindy from last night except did not have a large chest. Presumably, the girl that is in a relationship with Oscar. The last one was Phoebe who is an important character in Pokémon anime who is also relatively "flat".
A question broke me from the trance "What type of Pokémon are they?"
When I was about to answer the only girl whose name I did not know, it was Phoebe who spoke up who was inching closer to Casper every second.
"This one is a Sandyghast. A dual ghost and ground type. Pretty rare around here but not unheard of as they usually appear around beaches where shipwrecks have taken place in the past. This one is very young not even a couple months based on his size."
Phoebe started to tickle Casper who seemed to enjoy it and convulsed with as much laughter as he could muster.
"Yep, Phoebe is right. I found Casper at Dewford and he is relatively young and is at the Mid Rookie Stage alread. My other partner is Dee"
I motioned to the bird who eyed the girls with very cautious eyes. And ultimately flew on top of a nearby umbrella to get away from their gazes.
"He is wary of strangers and isn't the touchy-feely type. He was my starter and just hit Low Intermediate due to his evolution. He is a Corvisquire and his line is commonly classified very similar to Pidgey, Taillow, Starly and Pidove. He is a pure flying type and can commonly be found in the Galar Region."
The girls nodded but Phoebe turned to me "How did you get a starter from Galar? That's like a six-month journey from here on the Western Continent?"
I shrugged "It really was a lotto in school. Our class got all different starters. Alex got a Charmander, Claire got Vulpix and Alice got …"
Alice "My Riolu! Wait let me release everyone!" She rummaged somewhere in her sparce clothing and pulled out three minimized Pokéballs and released her team. All the girls followed by example except for Phoebe.
I smiled a bit with pride as I recognized almost all the girls' teams and various details of them from my former life.
Claire picked up her Vulpix who was not liking the sand getting in her fur. A pure fire type that was known to be very finicky with its trainers. Its evolution was referred to as spirits of the past since they live over a thousand years and have mystic properties commonly found in psychic and ghost Pokémon.
Alice's team consisted of a Riolu, a Ralts and lastly Maki. Riolu was the signature Pokémon of Aura Guardians as it's species has exceptional affinity with Aura. One of three main superpowers of this world. Ralts is a very rare Pokémon native to Hoenn that are well known for their emotion sensing and psychic powers. He seemed shy and it climbed into Alice's arms. Its line was a staple of most trainers who play Ruby, Sapphire or Emerald in my past life. I could tell Riolu and Ralts where well taken care of and very affectionate with Alice. My breeder knowledge had helped put more specifics in my head but I still needed probably months to process the knowledge.
I turned towards the last girl who I had already mentally confirmed that I didn't see last night.
She released a Skitty that seemed to be chasing its tail then promptly fell down a little confused in the sand.
Smiling I chuckle a bit.
"As I said before Dee kind is relatively rare here in Hoenn but much less so overall than either Alex's, Claire's, or Alice's starters." I responded to the girl.
*Oof*
I was slammed from the side by a figure that reached up to my waist. Smiling I got down on my knees and rubbed the figures head.
"Nice to meet you again Maki. I told you I found you a trainer, right?"
The makuhita nodded its head and faked punching the air in celebration.
"Yeah, I know you are excited. Just do your best alright! You will get to fight a lot soon."
The medium sized fighting type nodded and gave me a fist bump and returned to Alice's side where all the girls were smiling at my interaction.
Embarrassed I hesitantly scratched the back of my head "Sorry he is pretty great dude."
"Aww Seth is embarrassed" Claire teased me
Shrugging still try to avoid getting teased. "Yeah well, Sure" Brushing off the sand from my knees.
Alice looked even more ready and said to everyone "Alright everyone let's get ready for a jog. Probably to the pier and back."
They all nodded after a groaning at the very athletic Alice.
Phoebe looked conflicted "I'll catch up to you guys I want to scan Casper with my Pokédex."
The others paused but nodded "We are going the usual route. See you later both of you."
The group of girls and their Pokémon took off.
Watching them go the subtle tension left me. Looking at the young lady across from me I sighed.
"So, was this really about the Pokédex Phoebe? Or something else. Also, what should I be addressing you as Ghost Type Elite Four Member Phoebe?"
The girl froze in place, but her shoulders sagged "Can't get away with it huh. When did you figure it out?"
Leaning against a pop-up table I think about my answer "Not many trainers battle with the Duskull line much less can raise one so well. That and you are pretty poplar in magazines, tabloids, and such since you are the only Elite Four that seems more media friendly. You just seemed to change your clothing. That and Professor Birch left his chat function with Steven Stone open when he was talking to me."
Phoebe's face went through a mix of emotions and with those multiple existences floated out of her shadow but stayed in the shade underneath one of the umbrellas.
"Hey, don't get me wrong. I am just curious how I am the first to catch this?"
She looked confused a bit then a revelation came to her "Oh so you are the guy that Steven said helped him and Birch relocate a school of Mudkip from Dewford.
Gotcha!
Well to answer, not many people recognize me when I change to different clothes than what I wear in battle. It is crazy but I blend in very well with it especially here in Slateport due to the ocean themed clothing and a lot of the foreign trainers and merchants. Also, I am 21 but I look a lot younger, so no one expects me to be an Elite.
I initially came here to find another Reaper Cloth for Tiny over there." She said with pointing to the extremely large Dusclops that was now conversing with Casper. There were only three Pokémon with her.
All of them where from the Dusknoir line. A Duskull, Dusklops and Dusknoir.
I nod in affirmation. "So, figure out anything yet? About your league investigation?"
She slumped into a seat and looked sullen "Not a bit. Other than a few weird initial things your group is perfectly normal and clean. Just like horny teenagers for the guys and the girls are normal gossip bodies except for this group."
Sitting on the table I nodded. "Yeah, but don't lump me in with the others. I just do not fit in with them. I was just a transfer before the "accident" happened that got us all stranded here. That's the extent of what I can let you know."
There was a silence where no one talked.
"So, phoebe I won't blow your cover just take care of them will you. I have a feeling something is going to happen soon during the tournament. Not sure but it is always better to prepare for things so I think you should discreetly inform the upper circles of Slateport."
The attractive girl looked at me questioningly. Which I promptly ignored.
"Since you are here, I do have a couple questions. Mostly revolving ghost types. If you want to that is."
She perked up at that just like a child "Oh are you talking about Casper. Good name by the way, It takes me a while to come up with good names."
Nodding yes, I earned a stare from the elite. I talked to her about my thoughts and how I have been going about training.
She listened intensively and didn't stop me. When I ended, I was a little parched.
"I can see that you are different than the others just by how you think. Most trainers only when they hit advanced rank have these types of analytical thoughts and guides. If you were born into one of the higher noble families, you would have a training regimen given by your family. On my team I have 4 different lines of ghosts. Duskull line, Gengar Line, Sableye Line and Shuppet Line.
Casper leans towards being a more defensive battler like Duskull but is far more limited in movement. I do not know specific moves that they learn but I assume it's along the same lines. That is why I was interested in Casper earlier. I only have a portion of my team right now though.
On your development path I would say you are doing well with the ground energy focus but that might hurt his path in the future.
Sandyghast are primarily ghosts, so they need to maintain their sandy body by using their internal ghost energy. Like Bayenette possess Dolls he majority of his body is concentrated in the sand near his flag or schovel. This is just like how the Golurk line powers its clay body with ghost energy.
Being blunt is best as I always say. Casper in my opinion is too young to train. He should be focusing on accumulating ghost energy for the first three years in his life. His kind does not live in a environment where there are high concentrations of ghostly energy and are slower to develop safely. The best way to counter this would be from ghost materials he can consume slowly. I find those expensive and inferior in quality as I come from Mt. Pryor, where similar items are found in abundance.
I would like to get a second opinion on Casper as I have not delt with his species yet. My grandfather is a can more accurately determine his condition.
What I can say is when your Corvisquire seems to be a little hostile, I recognize stench of blood so yes, I know it kills unlike how most trainers prevent their Pokémon. A mistake made by others in my eyes."
Her eyes went form cheerful from serious in an instant for the first time emitting a presence not unsimilar to the King rank Pokémon.
"Another option you might have is, to give Casper the bodies to digest and process after Dee's kills. This will allow him to become more Intune to ghost energy allowing him to absorb it better."
Taking notes in my notebook I gratefully bow to her "Thank you, Phoebe. That is a big help. Now what do you need from what you were saying before?"
She smiled kindly "First when you get powerful enough slug both Alex and Nathan in the face. That is because they keep calling me flat and bringing it up purposefully. As an elite most would call me a bully if I did this."
I felt a chill run down my spine as a certain pressure was given off again.
Gulping I acknowledged and listened a bit more.
"Second, I want to keep Casper for a couple hours to study and interact with him to make sure my hypothesis is correct. I will call in a favor to get a second opinion. Since I am thinking to expand my second team, I need to decide what type of team members would mesh well so I want to understand Sandyghast. My grandpa is also in town so I will have to consult him."
Thinking for a moment 'Elite Four borrowing my Pokémon. Casper can probably pick up some new moves. But it also is important for his health.'
As if reading my mind, she followed up "My partners won't personally teach him moves but it is up to him if he actually learns them from our training. What is his evaluated potential?"
"Silver"
She nodded and I handed Casper's plain Pokéball to her.
Thinking about it a bit and sigh "Okay just for like a day, okay? After I might of need him for a project."
Phoebe smiles provokingly "That is if I find him healthy enough to give him back." Shuddering I take a step back.
'This girl is crazy. But also correct. I need for her to make sure Casper is OK. I am wondering why the Pokémon center didn't catch this.'
While thinking I quickly tell Casper what is going on and he agrees and looks very serious.
I turn to look at Phoebe who steps forward and pats me on the head while I am kneeling.
'Dammit what is this!'
I awkwardly stand up. She then teasingly smiles and gave me a brief hug which her head barely reaches my chest. When she releases the hug, she mutters "See you Hale" and then turned and her partners disappeared into the shadow who also dragged Casper along.
Phoebe turned around and jogged off from where the others left.
"What just happened?" I questioned myself.
...
Meanwhile a certain distance away Phoebe was now getting harassed by her friends who were secretly watching the whole time from afar.
Stopping by the different shops where pretty difficult as it seemed that a lot of people had flooded into the city. Most of them still had a little stock. Using 20,000 I buckled down and bought a medium end Pokéblock Kit that has the tools to make Pokéblocks along with simple ingredients. Once again relying on my Lowering my account to around 50,000.
Much more than the general Rookie Trainer. I heard a bunch of gossip about this and that. How all the contestants who participate only are allowed to have their license for 6 months and have Initial Intermediate or Rookie level Pokémon. How someone was caught with a forged date. Etc. all types of nonsense.
When I made it to the industrial part of town it was noon. Dee on my shoulder scared anybody away from coming too close. As I did see a couple pit pocketers in the crowd.
Coming to a large warehouse I entered the front door and was greeted with a small lobby.
Walking up to the desk receptionist "Hello my Name is Seth Hale. I am a new member of the Builders Guild Where can I go to take a couple of tasks?"
The older lady looked me up and down and nodded. Open the door to the warehouse and on your left is a room where you can select tasks on the computer. After which you can rent a open work area there as well that comes with the necessary tools. If you want materials, you can also pay for that there.
I nod "Thank you very much." With a slight bow I move to the inside computers which seem to have a large amount of dust on them. Dee was still on my shoulder but seemed to be snoozing.
Booting it up I look at the task window when I swipe my trainers License.
/
Seth Hale
0-Star Builder
Outstanding Tasks: 0
Completed Tasks:
Task Points 0 / 100
23 0-Star tasks available
[Help Build a Fence around the address xxxxxx. 2 TP]
[The wall of the Apartment Building at XXXXX needs repairing. 1 TP]
…
[Fix the wagon of Merchant XYZ so that he can transport goods. 1 TP]
/
Almost all the tasks where only 1-2 task points. Most of them specified helping repair things around town or building small things and delivering them to the address.
"So, what this means that at minimum I will need to complete 50 tasks before I advance to 1 star where there will be harder tasks."
Sifting through the different tasks allowed me to grasp what kind of tasks an unranked builder has to do.
Looking at the tasks I found two different repeatable tasks.
/
*Urgent*
[Build a bench to hold 4 people. Deliver to Oliver Stadium. 1 Task points per a bench. Maximum 20. Deliver to Slateport Stadium]
[Work at the Docks to repair the pier. 2 points per 6 hr. shift. Bonus depends on evaluation.]
/
I nodded these two would work good for me.
My next thing that I needed to do would be to think of my bench design. So, thinking back to my old world I remember benches are very simplistic, but they needed support in the right areas to be stable and relatively comfortable without the squeaking of the wood.
Taking out a pencil and a sheet of paper I start to sketch three distinct designs for the benches. The sketches where pretty rough at first. But the more I thought about the details the more that I was able to put in the details of my sketch. I had no doubt that my drawing skill was helping.
From this I started with the dimensions and then worked to calculate the number of materials for the design slightly adjusting the amount so that I would have a bit of extra.
With this I chose two of the designs that seemed to be the medium of the road with difficulty but where more sturdy than the fancier one.
I assumed if this task was given to ungraded then they can't expect fancy items.
I entered a form for the materials for 20 benches. I did not submit for the next task but saved it.
The workspace assignment allocated me a small workspace in the warehouse with all the basic tools at the station.
Opening the computer room, I was confronted with an extremely large warehouse. I could see that it was empty and how it was all sectioned off to workstations. Towards the rear was larger spaces that seemed to house have built boats and other projects.
What surprised me was that there were a bunch of Pokémon walking around with hard hats on. Most of them where of the Machop with one or two Machoke. There was a Poliwrath and Poliwhirl here and there.
I personally wore a construction suit made of hefty materials. It consisted of a set of long pants and a jacket along with a tank top underneath it.
Swiftly making it to my station. I realized I was on the perimeter of the warehouse where there was little to no activity.
Putting my plans on my bench I laid down my Backpack and allowed Dee to perch on the high steel cabinets that stored the tools. Swiping my card, the locker opened, and I could see all the tools I would need for the project.
Dee did not argue and continued to sleep with its head tucked inside of its wing.
Taking a few tools out I placed them all out on the work bench next to my plans.
Taking off my jacket I hung it up and went over the plans again. Using another sheet to draw the individual parts that I needed to put together before assembly.
Now the only thing I was waiting on was the materials.
It took around 10 minutes before a stocky older man followed my three Machop arrived at my workstation with a bunch of lumber and a box.
"Delivery for Seth Hale? Lumber and screws and such?"
"Yes Sir! You can set them down in the main area thank you. Can I inspect before I pay for them?"
The grey-haired man chuckled heartily "Sure lad. Others don't but you sure can. It is a good habit. Say you knew here?"
Nodding my head while I watch the Machop placing the wood on the floor along with the box. Checking it out I nodded then handed him my ID card which he scanned.
"Good, My names Stoner. Yeah, that's my name, don't laugh. I am the Logistics Coordinator here. I can get you supplies along with delivering your items if need be. You just need the fee. We also hire out a variety of hands including these Machop you see."
Following his statement, the three Machop started to flex like they were in a body building competition.
"I will keep that in mind though. By the way what type of Pokémon are for hire and who do they belong to? I was trying to find a Fighting type to help with my work along with a battler on my team."
Stoner smiled "Well we have only three major lines here in Slateport. Meditite line, Machop Line and lastly the Poliwrath Line. Machops are the most common and are happy to do all sorts of tasks. The other two are more specialized with using psychic and water energy. Meditites are more for assembly while Polis are for most ship fabrication and in water tests. Although they are all owned by the workers here some of them sell their offspring. I could bring you a list of availiabilties later if you want."
I nod in affirmation. "Okay sounds good. Ill contact you in a bit if I need help. I think I will try things on my own."
"Suit yourself!"
"Come on boys we have another order to fill." The three machop stopped their flex off and hurriedly followed the older man.
"Man, they seem like a bunch of fun. Well now that I have materials I can get started with my task."
Making my way over to the materials I nodded. Typical basic materials. It had cost me a couple hundred dollars, but I was not worried about that.
Picking up one of the pieces of lumber I moved over towards my main desk. Going off my drawing I would need around 3 pieces to create the main structure of the bench. Not including the slats that needed to be used to connect the bases to each other thereby creating the whole bench.
Getting to work was easy. I grabbed some safety goggles in the cabinet and one of the pencils. Using the measuring tape in no time I had made the correct marks on each of the pieces of wood.
I proceeded to cut them with the table saw. It didn't take that long the trickiest part was making the joints. Which I opted with a basic half lap joint. It was similar to two smaller pieces of wood on opposite sides forming the full object. Basically, it was a bunch of squares that will either be glued or screwed to each other.
After the wood was cut I cleaned up the shavings and moved the pieces to my workbench where I proceeded to feed them through the sander so that there where no sharp edges remaining on those pieces.
Following the sanding was the basic assembly. In about 10 minutes with around 3 restarts I was able to get the basic frame built although it did not hold together. Satisfied with this I proceeded to get the little higher cost wood which I aimed to use for the part where someone would actually touch and sit.
All of these pieces where uniform except for the two armrests. It was very repetitive but I was able to cut and plane and sand all the slotted segments within an hour. With this I could finally get a decent assembly. I used tape to briefly hold all the joints so that I could see how everything fit together.
There where plenty of minor imperfections in the wood along with some of the joints not being the right size that I had to fix. Right along that time Stoner came back over.
"Yo Hale, finally almost finished with one of the items?" as he scanned the bench. The three Machops where trailing him obviously dejected by something.
"Yeah, not totally done had a couple problems with the alignment of the slats due to the sanding. The grain on the wood made it a little tough with the knots. Slats are a little looser than I needed so I will have to adjust with that. I also want to two tone stain if you have some?"
Stoner moved over to the bench and started to touch it all over seeing about it.
"It is very well made for a rookie. You used the standard joints, but I would recommend sizing the slats up just a bit along with probably double bracing the frame. It would be fine for most humans and Pokémon but I assume this is for the Stadium. So, it would be better just in case."
"Okay thanks for the info. "Going over to my side I jostle some notes in my workbook. While Stoner came over
Whistling "Damn kid you sure can draw almost like those scientists in Devon's design team. Most of us here do things by feel. I see you are the planner."
"Well, I must be. It is more efficient that way. By the way why did you come on over here?"
"Ah kiddo I was going to make a proposal to have you learn a couple things with some of the other workers. But I think you have everything handled. Just some minor inconveniences. We had a couple people in the trade school who did the same task for benches. They couldn't even complete one in a day and they were not as well built as yours.
You see the arena upped their order of the benches and now are paying a premium. We couldn't send the other benches because of their quality didn't meet our standards. The event is going to be broadcasted so we want to put our best foot forward.
What I am trying to say that we need to get the order filled soon and none of the others are up to quality. The other workers look down on this task and refuse to do it. We have Pokémon that can build them on their own but those are all working on higher level projects.
I was going to see if you …
You three stop punching each other! For fuck's sake!"
The three machops who were currently in a scuffle paused then hurriedly lined up like a military instructor.
Dee took that time to swoop down from his perch and stare at the newcomer's face to face.
Even Stoner was startled "Damn that's one big bird what species is it?"
I laughed "His name is Dee his is my starter and he is a Corvisquire. He is like the Taillow but far off in the Galar region."
Stoner whistled in appreciation "Galar huh heard they have some cool technology over there. A lot of resources also. Hoenn is rich in Natural Resources, but we only have two sites for different metal ores. Iron Valley and a query just south of the Dessert.
Anyways he looks powerful and irritated."
Smiling a bit "We try to make it work. It is tough on the budget though."
Stoner smiled and boasted "Yeah, these three and their parents are gluttons. They are the offspring of my team."
Dee slowly walked with his feet on a table in front of the Machop seemingly glaring at them with his eyes. Two of them seemed a little scared but the last one glared right back. It was the smallest and obviously youngest of the bunch.
Stoner and I stared at them amusedly.
"So, from what you said earlier. You want me to make more of the benches to fill the order?"
Stoner nodded "Yes, the guild will provide the materials. We will need 60 benches total. We will also refund you the cost of renting the space as well as let these three help you. We would like them to be done by tonight if possible. So that we can deliver them on time.
Hesitating a bit "How well can they work? Can they use the power tools?"
Stoner shook his head "No but they can carry things for you and do simple tasks. We don't allow them to use power tools until they evolve. That way their skin is tough enough to withstand the tools."
Nodding my head "Alright well I accept. Where do you want me to place the completed product. Or do they need to be assembled there?"
Stoner thought for a moment "Go and leave them in the space over here. Pointing to a general space that had been taped on the floor. "It would be easiest for us as we generally have a delivery team that does their work."
Nodding "Alright well I better get to work."
Stoner nodded and slapped my back "That's the spirit rookies need. I'll send these hooligans back with the supplies in a couple minutes."
With that stoner left with the three Machops. Looking at Dee I say to him "You want to help? If you keep those three in line, I will get us out of here faster." Dee just rolled his eyes and glided to the workstation.
Dee's body gave off a slight bluish color of light then it quietly died down as fast as it came. There was now a breeze coming from behind Dee that seemed to clean my workstation. All of the woodchips were blown on the floor but so was a couple of the papers.
"Thanks Dee. Maybe you can practice control of you move but keep it going as long as possible. It would be part of your training." The bird chirped and focused with a demeaning scowl. The wind died down but there was a faint breeze.
His concentration increased as he realized that the breeze seemed to fade out. His temper heated up and he restarted the move again.
While this was happening the three Machop returned with a large pile of lumber as well as a box of materials.
Nodding to them "You three come over here I will assign jobs."
The three Pokémon scampered over and formed a line up Infront of me. I scrutinize the three of them. Getting a closer look at the three cleared up some of the misgivings that I had about Pokémon's games and reality.
This was because comparing these three Pokémon was like comparing three different people. At first, they look the same. A humanoid with blue-gray skin with three brown ridges on the top of its head. Its body was covered with muscle that rippled with every minor movement. Each of them had different heights and ratios of muscle masses and proportions of arms.
The Pokédex from the games and their sprites where very flat compared to what appeared before me. I could also tell that the three had different personalities. The tallest one was unruly and hyper while the medium height was prone to anger very quickly. The smallest one which was four inches shorter seemed to be overshadowed by the other two.
My silence unnerved the group but before they could move, I spoke. "Alright I cannot differentiate you all from each other. Going by height you are Al, Bo, and Cal. Al you will be carrying the wood over to my cutting station. Bo you will be separating the parts I make into piles. Cal you will use this stain to stain and seal the parts. We will switch positions every 30 minutes. Dee will use his moves to dry the stain.
After we finish, we can assemble all of them at the same time. When you all are done, I will treat you all to some good food."
The machops nodded their heads but I could see their eyes shining.
I quickly got the group to work. It went slow at first as they got used to their assigned tasks. We had a few mishaps mostly because Al and Bo did not focus enough, and Dee caught them. Dee seemed to become the self-appointed inspector.
The three Machops did not want to switch tasks every thirty minutes. Al and Bo switched jobs a couple of times and where very competitive with each other trying to outdo one another while Cal just proceeded to stain and keep focus.
My job was tiring not physically but mentally. Making sure all my cuts and sanding was correct did not allow me to zone out the whole time and go through the motions.
Eventually after 4 hours we took a break, and I bought sandwiches for the whole crew. Time seemed to fly bye as two hours later we were done with cutting and staining and sealing.
The three Pokémon where rearing with energy but mostly Al and Bo. Dee had to keep those two inline by occasionally pecking at them and screeching in their ear holes.
Assembly was easier than expected as we all just formed a line and used the piles of dried pieces and fit them together. Cal would use the glue and place the parts together while I used the screws to secure everything in place. Al and Bo where happy to be competitive in grabbing the specified parts.
It was about 10 pm before we finished with everything, and fifty benches were laid out on the now deserted warehouse. Apparently treated the guild as an 8-3 Job or something.
Stoner came over with his Machamp earlier to see how we were doing and was surprised I was able to keep the three of them in line. Apparently, these where the terrible trio who other don't have enough patience to work with.
He also stayed late and inspected my work giving me his approval of the completion of the task. Dee was so tired he could barely sit up straight from his constant usage of tailwind. I could see the visible improvement in the move and had already returned him before.
Stoner "You did a good job reeling in the lads. You should take a days break or so and watch the rookie competition happen here soon. It has the town up in the fuss about the league gym circuit this season. You should enjoy it while you are young."
"Thanks stoner but I already signed up for the dock repair task for the a couple times this week. One shifts a day at two points each. It should only take me 24 days to get enough contributions to advance to a 1 star."
Stoner laughed "Kid don't over work yourself you have time. The tasks get harder and more time consuming the higher your rank. As a 1 Star you have to take at least 4 different 1-star tasks a year. Whether that be helping here build basic boats or going up to Mauvile to work at the electric plant for a couple weeks. There are also tasks that could bring you to villages so that you can start building houses. Although those are usually done in teams, and you share the contributions.
What I am saying is that don't overwork now. You can also do your own projects and try to match a task to it. Say I built a sailboat for a couple of months and submit it to the guild for review. They will review its quality and if you pass it can either be auctioned off or fulfill a task at a higher tier based on its quality. A 2-Star can build a 3-star quality work and it fulfill a mission thereby waiving their guild requirements for the year."
I nod my head following the train of thought. "How many contributions are needed for ranking up? Also, what does contribution do exactly? They never really told me."
Stoner leaned on the wall outside and lit a cigarette. Looking back at the Machamp interacting with the Machop.
"First off kid. There is a reason why most of the workers in the guild stay are only at the 1 star and 2-star level. To get to a 1 star you need accumulate 100 CP to rank up to 2-Star you need 4,000 CP.
Mind you generally 0-star tasks give out 1 CP per task unless it is difficult. 1 star is around 10 CP, 2 star is at 100, 3 star is 1000. You get the trend.
For a worker to become a two star they have to accumulate 25,000 CP, three star is 100,000 and after that I don't know.
That is why only the workers who complete their tasks every day for years are still struggling. There are other ways as well. Most use the guild as a way of certification to their resumes. So for others working for companies, they have to take examinations along with certain tasks in there area of expertise.
Tasks take time as well like a 2 star might take a month to complete or even longer. It's a jacked-up system but only the geniuses can rise the ranks. Those who create something new or something in demand. There are riskier projects out there that require you to be a trainer as well. Many try to make the easy money, but they fail in the end due to their skills. Many just settle and have a family and use the guild as their main source of income. That or they are hired by other companies.
It is hard for us to become trainers as us Builders are always working long jobs and have no time to train. Unlike trainers as that training their team is their main occupation. Battle and travel the life of a Trainer as they say. Some say Builders have it easier as their profession there is less risk and is overall more stable than going outside the cities."
I thought about what Stoner had said. Sure, only about 15% of trainers ever made it to their first conference. Still there were numerous youths lining up to participate despite the semi – well known dangers. "Damn I never knew. So, what about contribution points? I assume the guild's currency, but can you change them into cash?"
Stoner smiled showing his two golden teeth. "You can do that, but it would be a waste. You can use them to fund materials for projects. They are worth more that way. You can also commission projects for points. You are right it is a currency system, but it is best you can see for yourself. There is an internal trade platform for builders along with opportunities. I got my starter Flex from contribution." He pointed at the Machamp in question.
"With enough contribution you can access breeding houses and potentially find another spot for your team. They all have good potential, so it is a good deal. It also depends on where you are at. There are two different areas in Hoenn where builders can do this.
Say Machop are common but in the breeding area many of them have egg moves and are bred from other Pokémon who have experience building. They are the crème de le crem for us builders. From my knowledge the Builders guild offers access the lower houses for 200 CP. That is for Machops in Hoenn.
If you want something outrageous as Lucario or something you can always talk to builders that breed their personal Pokémon to see if you can buy exotic breeds. There is only one here in Hoenn. Here is the list of the young ones that are up for purchase from our workers."
Nodding my head in thought while skimming the list "Just curious how much would your three be worth?"
Stoner smiled cheekily. "Machamp is their father and he is Advanced ranked Pokémon and my starter along with his gold talent I bred him with another one of my team. The ones you called Al and Bo are both Silver talents with 2 egg moves each and Cal is a silver talent with no moves although it sometimes seems to be lower than that.
I just sold Al and Bo to two trainers of in Rustburo for around 375k total. My daughter is getting Cal for her Starter as she just turned 16. As many resources I gave them I probably will profit around 100k which will be used to finance my daughters' travels. As you probably know that will only last for so long especially since she wants to participate in contests, and everything related to that is fucking expensive"
Looking at stoner getting emotional I smirk a bit "A good dad she should be happy. I can see Cal is very focuses and not as hard to train as the others."
*Pop*
*Pop*
*Pop*
The Machamp brought down three of his fists on all three of his children effectively calming them all down into a confusion like state.
Grinder looked like he was going to explode in disbelief. Until he let out a deep sigh. "Anything of interest?"
I nodded not taking my eyes off of the list. "These 5 I am interested in."
Machop (Low Rookie) (Bronze)(Female) 57K
Poliwag (Mid Rookie) (Silver) (Male) 110k
Machop (Mid Rookie) (Bronze) (Male) 85k
Machop (High Rookie) (Silver) (Male) 135k
Ryhorn (Low Rookie) (Bronze) (Male) 60k
Timburr (Mid Rookie) (Bronze) (Male) 45k
"Like whats the deal with the prices? They are high except for the last one. Which should be higher than the Machops."
Stoner grunted "Personal breeding is more expensive as you know the origins of them. Prices are negotiable. But its better than some places. The reason the last one is priced lower is that one is a trouble maker to its owner. Nothing special other than originating from Unova like its trainer. He is retiring and cant raise him. Id say not many trainer can with its personality. I recommend the others especially the Machop as they are just better overall in my opinion."
Taking a long look at the list.
'If Casper is unable to travel with me I will need a second 'mon at least for the raid. I only have enough cash for the last one if I don't trade points. I can handle personality. Dee was worse.'
"I think I will take the last one. Can you handle the transaction?"
Stoner looked surprised and reluctant at first and nodded
"Well, I won't hold you up. I will get these benches delivered tomorrow. I will also inform the member. Charge it to your main account. I can get it in five minutes if you wait. The guy lives in the hotel next door."
Nodding my head I pick up my backpack and walk out the guilds warehouse and sit outside .
Right when I stepped outside the warehouse. My bracelet vibrated.
Sticking by hand into my backpack I transform my bracelet into my PC and pull it out and sit on a bench.
**5 missed Messages**
ALICE_WONDER(Alice): BOB_DE_BUILDER HEY! :) just wanted to give you an update on how things went today. We brought the Ryder Family through the market and everything. We are going out to eat tonight if you want to come. It would be cool to have you. Maki did great on training as well just to update you. We won 5 consecutive victories at the training fields! We also came across the recruitment tents that are outside the stadium today. Most of them are for colleges and universities and I don't want to do that, but the others were interested. Thanks again! - Alice
Ryde_de_Flame: BOB_DE_BUILDER Hey Seth, Alice and Claire gave me your number. This is Caleb Ryder. Here are my brothers and sister's numbers in case you need to message us … Just wanted to see where you are at so that we can plan some things for the future. I wanted to say thank you for everything that happened today Claire and Phoebe made it obvious it was your doing. I can't wait to show you my starter. We will be staying with the group at their house again tonight
Lizard_Man(ALEX): BOB_DE_BUILDER Hey heard that you are in town. We are headed to the bar. I think that Phoebe is treating us all. We should catch up some time I have someone I want to introduce you too. If you don't get this message early. Our "class" is going to meet at [Location] due to an "event".
GHOST_PRINCESS(PHOEBE): BOB_DE_BUILDER Hey Hale, our group has finished everything we need to do today and will be relaxing at the Pearl Bar near the house until late. My grandfather is treating us tonight before the tournament.
Looking at the messages I had to just sigh I guess I know where I am now headed tonight
…
As I looked up at the blanket of stars that stretched to across the clear sky and couldn't help to lament how I was in the city. Although the view was clearly breathtaking compared to my previous world as it lacked pollution. Pokémon such as Grimer, Koffing and Gulpin take care of humans' natural waste.
As I walked down the cobble stone road to a small little pub. It had a picture of a clampearl on it with a beer mug. Before entering I placed my hand on over my two shrunken balls on my waist to make sure they are still there. Opening the door the smell of booze and the sound of loud cheers rang throughout the facility.
The dim lights added to the old fashion feel of the place. Stools lined the bar counter along with plenty of wooden tables and booths that provided a nice feel. Some music was being played in the background allowed the large crowd to converse and laugh to their life's content.
Scanning the bar I didn't see anyone in my party. Heading up to the bar I was going to flag a bartender to see if he knew where my party was. As soon as I made contact with the large bartender he nodded and seemed to recognize me.
He unhesitantly pointed to the stairs further into the pub. I gave him my thanks, but he had already turned to the next patron.
Using the directions, I went up the creaking stairs and ended up on a large deck with part of the deck covered. There was another large bar and even more tables along with some typical porch games. Here I saw my party, they were all spread out across the porch. Many of them where at a table while there were a couple of other groups around the bar and porch games mostly corn hole.
There were quite a few faces that I had not recognized, and I am pretty sure that I saw mint green hair bob in the crowd. Making sure that I didn't pick that direction.
Right when I was maneuvering, I felt a pull on my arm which caught me off guard looking to the side I saw a girl with short brown hair.
"Oh hey Phoebe."
She shushed me and then dragged me around to a room at the side of the bar.
When I entered it was a typical private room with a couple of couches. Inside where two men and one older gentleman with a cane.
Looking at phoebe questioningly she only smiled and motioned me to sit. "Grandpa this is Seth. The Sandyghast's trainer." With that she took a seat near him.
The old man shifted his eyes to me and smiled kindly. He also started to speak in a slightly raspy voice to the other two gentleman who were also glancing at me now.
I felt my heartbeat increase and my whole body tensed up. My mind tried to think straingt bu my thought seemed to warp.
Blood
Kill
Resist
My hand instinctually went back to my hidden knife that is strapped to my waist. The memory I gained from Dewford.
"OH so someone has decent reactions. But there will be no need for weapons here." With his saying the knife that I had firmly grasped in my hand disappeared to nothingness.
Scared out of my wits I try to calm my senses.
The elderly man who was addressed as Phoebe's grandfather motioned for me to sit and I complied.
"This here is Major Rhodes and the other is a friend. He runs a shop here in town." I nodded to the two men. Both of which I vaguely recognized but didn't say anything.
Both men nodded at me and proceeded to be in conversation with each other.
The elderly man just sighed and turned his attention towards me. "First off, I want to say Thank You. My granddaughter filled me in about some things about you. Seeing you in person is different than her stories."
He spoke slow and steady without mincing his words.
"You probably don't know why I am thanking you, but the main point of my visit was in regard to the Ryder family. To be more specific Drew Ryder. As you and Phoebe have observed and today, I have confirmed that he has a very high affinity with Ghost Pokémon. This makes him the most suitable to be my successor if he wills it. I gave him the option and he has already accepted and will be departing with me tomorrow."
My thoughts went into overdrive trying to think pulling on all my knowledge as the author. 'Drew must have an elemental affinity for ghosts making him become friendly with Sab and others. Ghost affinity is more common than aura users but rarer than psychics. If I remember correctly only 1% of the population are considered ability users.
Ability users encompass all Aura users, Psychics and humans who have affinity with one of the elements. Generally, this encompasses a broad range of traits ranging from being able to tolerate heat better or connect to fire types easier to able to manifest energy like some aura users.
In my novel this only came into factor halfway through when Alex found out when he attended a College that he was not the only Aura User in this world. The information is closely guarded by the PWL higher ups and is kept from the public.
Each region even sponsors a college where ability users go to train their abilities and develop. For Hoenn that is Star College. (Named after the legend of Jirachi). Probably some of the most well-known ability users are the Blackthorn Dragon Clan who are known to have very high affinity with Dragons.'
Coming out of my thoughts I nod at the older man indicating that he could continue.
"So, thank you again. As my successor it is mandatory for me as his master to make sure he has a suitable starting partner. One which you have already provided. I will give his choice of an additional partner once we return to Mt. Pryor. For that I am willing to compensate you with 125 million."
The room was silent and the two other men where now paying attention to our conversation.
Immediately I rejected "No. I have already given him the Sabeleye and I don't need repayment. What I really want to know is about my team member Casper. I am assuming you are the ghost expert that even an Elite 4 member respects, so I just want to know what you and Phoebe concluded about my SandyGhast."
The old man's eyes squinted and chuckled louder and louder. "Phoebe seemed right about your personality and bluntness. Alright now on to that topic. Yes, Phoebe's evaluation was mostly correct. Due to the Ghost's young age, he is suffering in his current development. Let me be clear. This is not something you could have known or prevented. It is only a matter of circumstances."
"What circumstances." I asked a little frustratedly.
The old man sighed. "Little is known how ghosts are born into this world as it is only rarely that you can find a ghost Pokémon's egg and those are only in places with large concentration of ghost energy. All ghosts survive by feeding on ghost energy it is essentially their life force.
So, if a ghost is born outside of a place where it can easily accumulate its energy, it will hinder its growth. The said ghost will expend its life energy whenever it uses moves containing said ghost energy. For a Pokémon like sandyghast who maintains its body through expending ghost type energy it is like a tank that is constantly leaking. You see where I am going with this."
I sat back in exacerbation "Then all the training, practice and even just sleeping had a detrimental effect? Because he uses ghost energy to keep his body together with that energy it is effectively using a limited resource and once that runs out, he will … Die?"
The man shook his head "Ghosts are already dead. Each Ghost Pokémon must reach a certain accumulation and mastery of energy before it is stable enough to develop like a normal Pokémon. SO, since your Pokémon was very young, born in a place without ghost energy and constantly trains the accumulation of everything brought about its condition. I have previously seen a Pallosand and Sandyghast and the youngest that I have seen was around 1 year old on our time scale. That is when these ghosts will emerge from the ground after staying underground and developing."
"Is it treatable. I still want him on my team, and we have a good bond."
The three men smiled at my unhesitant remark.
"Yes, the youngling will have to accumulate enough ghost energy to be stable. The higher its stage the harder this is due to its weak foundation. That is why it is done instinctually by young ghosts to not appear until older. As yours is an outlier and is already trained to such a level it will take more time to stabilize.
You can buy him dusk stones or other valuable objects that contain ghost energy. The second option is the preferred method which is for me to bring him back to Mt. Pryor for him to develop and stabilize his foundation. He will not be trained in moves, and his recovery will be up to his talent in energy manipulation."
Gritting my teeth, I spit out the one question that preoccupied my mind "How long would it take?"
Taking a deep breath Phoebe's grandfather sighed "around 1.5-2 years conservatively. If he is talented a year is the fastest time I can predict."
My heart shook and body shuddered. With my thoughts swirling I couldn't think straight. My body started to heat up.
However, I felt a cold hand rest on my shoulder. The old man had placed his hand on my shoulder.
"Don't you freak out boy. Most good trainers will have to come across obstacles like this occasionally. Where a Pokémon either gets hurt or has a condition. I had a Pokémon with this condition after he used a skill called Destiny bond on many opponents at the same time. He took a while to recover but he came back stronger than before. Now all you must do is decide what is best for you and your partner."
My brain told me to say no and keep Casper with me while my gut said that it was necessary in the long run. If it was as serious as I assume Casper is like a premature baby that needs special attention to be able to develop normally.
Before I could think too long, I agreed "Yes what will it cost me?"
The three guys in the room smiled. "You catch on quick. I will use materials and resources that are equal to Sabeleye you gifted my inheritor. I do have one item that will accelerate his healing and enhance his potential by one grade to Gold. But is worth quite a bit to me right now. It is worth more than what you provided"
"How much? And Why do you now feel like a pawnshop owner?"
The three listeners broke into chortles, but the gray headed old man stated "150 million after I deduct the price of the Sableye. It will accelerate his recovery by two times."
Thinking for a moment. Casper will still need minimum of 1.5 year to heal conservatively. If I go into debt than this item would make that around 8-12 months while improving his potential. The story's intro arc will end at that time with Alex in a University and the third arc opens this time next year when the Hoenn league starts. At that time, I will need a decently strong team as Team Aqua and Magma start to come out of the shadows.
But is it worth it? Casper can be an effective crowd controller and defensive wall. His strengths also complement my profession. Still 150 Mil is so much money and I don't think I will be able to pay it off anytime soon.
Maybe I … Thinking back to it I do know some good places in the story where some rare items and Pokémon can be found. I know the places but I would need a special team to get me there. The closest treasure would be near Dessert Ruins and Mauvile. But the most of them I only know the place where they would be further into the story. But it makes it feasible to consider this.
The tremendous downside is that my main team will only consist of Dee and the Timburr. Especially with this curse mark putting my life in danger every month by summoning a shadow Pokémon a level above my highest. I would need a team to overwhelm those obstacles along with the incoming Pokémon tide in like … four days. SO, either way I need to fill my team out with temp members to secure my safety.
Seeing no way out of it I confirm the acceptance of everything. Signing a contract with Phoebe's grandfather I am now 150 Million in debt but the first payment of 1.5 Million is in 6 months.
Saying my goodbyes to the older men I moved out of the room back to the porch with Phoebe staying behind with the older group.
Seth Hale – Rookie Trainer - 0 Star Builder
Skills/Knowledge:
[Builders Knowledge (level 3), Hatchet Proficiency (level 2), Tool Proficiency (level 1), Breeder Knowledge (level 3), Pokéball Creation Knowledge (level 4), Perception (level 1), Cartography (level 0) Drawing (level 1)]
Cards: [132 Identify, 43 Big Energy, 5 Electric, 5 Metal]
Bag: [Notebook(birch), Sage Manual, MiniPC(Band)
[ Loki's Curse Mark: Every Month the bearer will face a summoned Shadow Pokémon one Stage above the user's strongest owned Pokémon. CAN NOT BE CAUGHT. Count Down: 5 Days]
Current Pokémon Team: Rookidee (Dee) (Low Intermediate), Timburr (Mid Rookie)
Reserve: Sandyghast(Casper)
