Draco: {sigh} I am going to regret this. At least, I think I'm going to regret this. I certainly hope I'm going regret this.
Okay, so... around October of 2019, I got a GameCube and the Orre games (and a GBA and a couple other Gen III games for transfer; I talked more about that in Kingdoms Unknown). Shortly before, I got an an idea for an Orre fanfic, which has been pestering me since. Ever since the dawn of Generation VII, my policy for Pokémon fanfics is "write it deliberately outdated, so you don't frick something up because the turn of the Generation happened while you were writing".
The good news is, the idea I had adheres to that policy (and it adhered even in Generation VII), so I can write it safely. The bad news is that it makes me look like one of those frickers who thinks they're better than the Pokémon Company.
As of this writing, I am currently working my way up from Generation IV in order to set up transfers to take several teams from Generations III-VI all the way to the Bank (not sure I'm gonna bring them HOME until I know I can battle with them in Generation VIII). As a result of this Pokémon mood, and the earlier cancellation of one of my stories, I want to write a Pokémon fanfic, and ultimately, I've decided that this is one fanfic I'd rather regret writing than regret not writing.
What was my idea?
I concocted a Generation VI pseudo-remake of Colosseum/XD for the WiiU.
I wrote out the complete events of both games, and used them as a basis to create event progression for the remake.
I constructed a complete listing of Shadow Pokémon, wrote up new Ein Files, and planned out key items.
I thought about how Shadow Pokémon would interact with the Player Search System, Pokémon-Amie, Super Training (which I don't even use), and Mega Evolution.
I drew up several #AntiFrustrationFeatures to make the remake as comfortable to play through compared to Colo/XD as ORAS were compared to RSE.
I considered how it might influence Generation VI's handheld games, given the way that Pokémon games have made every Legendary Pokémon available in one Generation since FRLG.
I contemplated what the developers would do with amiibo functionality, how they would implement Bank connections, whether they would involve any sort of voice acting after Pokkén Tournament, and what the menus might be set up like to account for Off-TV Play.
I hypothesized what sort of event distributions they might involve for a Wii U game, or whether they'd have Mystery Gifts to send to the 3DS games like Battle Revolution.
I theorized what it would lead to in terms of anime developments, considering that all accounts point to the XYZ arc wrapping up around the time Generation VII was announced.
I even imagined how Twitch Plays Pokémon might handle it.
And now, I am going to write this fricker like the literation of a game that never happened.
Novelization, whatever.
THIS IS A POKÉMON FANFICTION BY DRACONAI AURACTO. DO NOT READ THIS FANFICTION UNDER THE ASSUMPTION THAT IT WILL BE SHORT. YOU WILL REGRET IT.
Welcome to Eternal Colosseum.
Pokémon and all related properties © Nintendo and the Pokémon Company.
Chapter 1: Endarkenment
Deep underground, in a laboratory in the Orre region, a terrible process was being undergone.
A large studio in the depths of the lab was divided into two distinct portions by a thick wall containing a single door and a ballistic glass window. A computer interface rested on one side, with enough room for several individuals to stand in witness around it; on the other was a great stage. Several rings formed layers upon the surface of that stage, from which cages of various sizes could be extended to contain its inhabitant (depending on said inhabitant's size); from the four corners of the roof extended four great prongs of black steel, with ominous green crystals glowing at their tips and with rings of silver surrounding their midpoints.
Two figures were standing at the computer interface. One was a man with dark hair - most of it combed back, but with a long braid that extended from the fore of his mane to hang over his shoulder, taking a route that rather resembled that of lightning. He was garbed in a consuming coat of light grey with a high collar; upon his eyes rested a pair of glasses with pointed frames, and a set of protective goggles hung around his neck. The other figure was a girl with bright pink hair, done in a pair of long tails that reached to her waist. She was wearing a labcoat over far more fashionable attire, and her own protective goggles rested atop her hair.
One other individual was standing nearby, with a Poké Ball in his hand - garbed in a white ensemble that visually resembled armor, though it served greater purposes in padding than it did any real protection. As the girl tapped at the keyboard, the door to the stage opened; the armoured individual stepped inside, throwing the Poké Ball towards the stage. As it connected with the surface, a flash of light emerged; when it faded, an Eevee stood in the center of the stage, looking around curiously as the Ball bounced back towards its thrower.
He stepped back through the door, and it closed behind him; in the next moment, a cage closed around the Eevee, startling the little Pokémon. The man quickly lifted his glasses to his brow and seized his goggles, setting them into place over his eyes; as the girl started to conclude her typing, he pushed the goggles from atop her head, causing him to bat his hand away. With a scoff, she grabbed the goggles and set them properly (less out of any respect for conduct and more because they had stopped where they obscured her vision) before resuming.
An image came up on the monitor - a silhouette of the Eevee, moving as it did, with a red heart shape resting next to it. Below the two was what looked like a progress bar, segmented into four, and below that was a text window; the girl quickly seized a lever at the side of the keyboard, and threw it forward.
A whirr of energy filled the stage, and a dark mist began to gather around the crystals at the four prongs above - but it was a darkness that was unseen to the naked eye, and so the viewers did not witness it. The Eevee looked around in concern before that darkness began to advance forward, converging on the little Pokémon within the cage. Dread was visible on the Pokémon's expression, and it moved to the edge of the cage closest to the window, setting its paws against the bars.
The progress bar began to gradually increase as the Eevee cried out in desperation; in a short while, the first segment was filled, and an automated voice echoed from the computer.
"Stage 1 endarkenment achieved."
The Pokémon turned away from the window, looking around the cage fearfully; after a moment, stars appeared in the air around it, and flew forward, trying to breach the cage. Most of them died ineffectively against the bars - which already bore a fair degree of nicks and scratches from previous occupants' attempts to flee - but one soared through the gap, approaching the viewing area. The armored individual started as the Swift slammed into the window; knowing one's protection will not fail them does not prevent one from being concerned by an approaching threat.
As he let his body relax, the second segment of the progress bar filled.
"Stage 2 endarkenment achieved."
The Eevee's panic was growing ever greater; it started to run in its cage, crying out desperately as though praying that there was someone who could hear it and would be willing to help it. The girl at the keyboard glanced at the armored individual, who was starting to shift uncomfortably, before rolling her eyes and turning her attention back to the display of the Eevee, whose eyes were becoming tearful at this point.
As the tears began to fall, the third segment of the progress bar filled.
"Stage 3 endarkenment achieved."
The cries of the Eevee shifted in tone; no longer fearful, they had grown angry, as though it were raging at them. It turned towards the window and dashed into the cage, striking the bars with its body and causing them to rattle - albeit with no greater effect than its Swift had caused. Then it turned round and dashed again, striking at a different angle with a second Quick Attack, and then a third in another direction, lashing out at its containment at random.
As the sixth strike connected, the fourth segment of the progress bar filled.
"Stage 4 endarkenment achieved."
The girl at the keyboard reached for the lever, drawing it back further than it had started. The darkness ceased to approach the Eevee as the rings circling the prongs started to withdraw - the shadows now gathered around the prongs until the crystals' glow was completely obscured. Then the lever was returned to its original position, and the rings lurched forward; the shadows burst forward, arcing through the air and slamming into the violent Eevee in simultaneity, such that one who could witness the darkness would not be able to witness the Eevee's rampage cease.
The red heart on the display turned dark purple; when the shadows faded, the Eevee stood upon the stage, glaring at the window with a ferocity as though it had never known kindness to give or receive.
"Heart locked."
A grin rose on the girl's face; then an input window appeared on the screen. Her hands found the keyboard, and she quickly typed in SP050 before hitting the confirmation; that designation appeared below the image of the Eevee, and the display faded out as the armoured individual approached the door. Once it opened, he stepped in; the Eevee turned to him, and cried at him angrily before he raised the Poké Ball it had come from. A beam of light struck the Eevee, and it vanished as the light then withdrew into the Ball; the cage vanished from the stage as he stepped back into the viewing area, setting the ball onto a nearby shelf slotted specifically for that purpose.
+x+x+x+
Any professional environment has cameras set up throughout the building, recording goings-on. In areas where unwelcome individuals may arrive uninvited, the feeds can be used to identify the intruders; in areas where procedures are undergone, they can be used as reference to ensure that the same events may or may not happen again, depending on the result.
But as a corollary, those very feeds may be used against those who want them there. The feed of the Eevee, made to undergo a terrible suffering and change, found itself sent to the personal device of an individual belonging to a different group - one who was not aware of those events until he received an anonymous message.
And when he received it, it led to actions that would change the face of Orre.
Draco: The destruction of the Snagem Base looks incredible even in GameCube graphics. I can't even imagine how good it would look in HD. I don't think I'm capable of doing it justice in text, I don't dare to try.
In gameplay terms, the above chapter would be the cutscene that plays between turning the game on and reaching the title screen (in the vein of N's coronation in Generation V). Maybe end it by panning off the screen of Wes' PDA and having him slam it shut. I think the title screen itself would be Wes' bike, with Espeon or Umbreon sitting in the sidecar. Based on the system clock when you turn the game on, it would depict that timeframe in Eclo Canyon, with Umbreon sleeping if it's daylight out or Espeon sleeping in the nightlight. And when you press your button to begin a new game when there's no save file pre-existing, the first explosion goes off with no transition, the Eeveelution at the bike lifts their head, and the other one comes out of the smoke ahead of Wes.
I know time of day was something they were kind of unsure about in Generation III, but they missed the chance for some beautiful landscapes by having Orre be a permanent daytime. A desert at sunset looks gorgeous. I still make sure it's sunset when I head for Arbiter's Grounds playing Twilight Princess.
Anyways, due to my experiences with Kingdoms Unknown, I have discovered that it feels absolutely amazing to write up a fanfic entirely in advance and submit it on a schedule, and have since made that my policy. If you're seeing this, I have this whole fricker written up and am gonna start submitting on a schedule I'll share on the next chapter. (Or I've discovered the hard limit on Docs and need to start submitting to make room, in which case I hope I'm close to the end.)