Senlong, BJJPanda & Cannonjet: I'm glad to see that you are enjoying the story! Comments like these make writing this so much fun! Mirabelle Superiority!

RsRoar & LittleDemon: I have been toying with the idea of an Ursaluna since the start of the story, but if I had to say, I'm leaning away from going that route. The idea of somehow being able to resurrect an extinct evolution, just because you know a silly game method seems like a bit too much of an asspull to me.

Gilgamush: I spit on the idea of turning precious Goly into that hideous creature! Just kidding, but I really do hate Obstagoon. In all seriousness though, don't expect new evolutions or any weird asspulls that will give the OC some godsent luck here. The core premise of this story is to thrive and succeed in the Pokémon world without all the crazy luck and incredibly rare Pokémon that most SI characters somehow manage to acquire easily.

Rockfall, Shadow, & Redx: I'm loving the recommendations! I hadn't even considered many of the Pokémon you mentioned, but most of them sound very promising. You're giving me a lot to think about.

Sorry for the delayed release on this one! I just wrapped up my first year as a teacher, and I had to make sure that everything was in order for the end of the year. I'm proud to say that I managed to get each and every one of my seniors walking across the stage for graduation!

Anyways, here's another one.


Vibrant green seas of color. Untamed blades of grass, still moist from the morning's dew, brush against your legs all the way up to your knees. Blue skies paint the background and interspersed clouds take turns offering brief shade from the warm sunlight. A pleasant breeze caresses your exposed skin while the sounds of wildlife are abundant around you. Occasionally, a wild Pokémon approaches you, seeking to test its mettle against your partners.

Traveling out in the wild truly is an experience that I will never get tired of...

Let me amend that statement.

Traveling out in the wild with a Silph Company spacial storage bag filled with everything I could want or need, while also being accompanied by mystical creatures known as Pokémon, is an experience that I will never get tired of.

The memories of my time in the Border Woods with Goly are precious to me, but the constant walking and scavenging while stinking up my single set of clothes is not something I would like to go through again.

Anyways, all of this is just building up for me to say that my current situation is incredibly relaxing and soul-soothing. I don't remember this many trees and foliage on the path between Mauville and Slateport being there in either the games or the anime, but this is another reminder that what I am in now is a real world. The impact of humanity on the wilderness is minimal in this world, as compared to my old one. Personally, the wide expanses of untamed nature might be among my favorite parts of arriving in this world.

Two days after leaving Mauville City and saying goodbye to everyone I had grown close to there (mainly Nurse Joy, Mrs. Melda, the kids, and my boss, Mrs. Haily), and I'm currently well along the trail to Slateport City. With Dewford as my destination, my best bet is to take a ship from Slateport, so I'm traveling on Route 110 for now. If I rush at full speed, I could be at Dewford in a week, but I have no intention of doing so.

I'm already far ahead of the average pace for the Gym circuit, thanks to Goly winning us that badge on the opening day. I feel zero need to blitz for my second badge yet. I'd rather spend time enjoying my journey and building up Mirabelle. She's coming along nicely and is growing stronger at an incredible rate (much faster than Goly had, though I suspect base stats have a lot to do with that). However, she still has a long way to go before she can give the current Goliath even a half-decent sparring session.

After all, Goly is strong now. Very strong.

Speaking of the resident troublemaker, where has he gone off to now? Belle, the sweetheart that she is, has been walking sedately beside me. I have flipped my headphones out to speaker mode and turned on a Piers Nezu album for us to listen to as we walk. I must say, the Spikemouth Gym Leader sounds much better when you can actually hear the music he is playing. Seriously, what were the game devs thinking there? Regardless, Mirabelle and I are just enjoying our waltz down the path of life.

Goly, on the other hand, is physically incapable of enjoying a relaxing stroll. Doubly so after Nurse Joy told us that his evolution rapidly sped along his recovery. Apparently, the extra energy he saved up meant that he evolved to have a much stronger body than most Linoone. It's still not much compared to most so-called higher-spec Pokemon, but it means that he is recovering much quicker than projected. Long story short, he will be back to being fighting fit after one more week.

As for his current actions, I honestly don't know what he's up to. Ever since we left the city and stepped out onto the trail, his white and brown tail has been popping in and out of my vision as he scours the surrounding bushes and trees.

"Goly! Where are you now?" I call out for what must be the hundredth time.

"Linoone!" A black button-nose barely peeks out of the grass to my right, about ten yards away.

The flash of pink I catch sight of just below it before the nose disappears clues me in to the fact that he found his way to another berry tree at some point.

"Remember to share with Mirabelle!" I call after him.

I receive no verbal response, but a pink Pecha berry soon sails through the air toward us in a high arc.

"Pius!" Belle's eyes light up and her big head darts out to snap the berry up from the air.

"Thanks, Goly!"

This is what I love about being out here. It's just a good time. We are free to move at our own pace, unrestricted by anyone else. We have even trekked slightly off the official route to gain a bit more freedom and privacy from other new trainers. I've judged that neither Belle nor Goly is in any dire need of more Trainer battles. Rather, some dedicated training sessions, along with the well-deserved R and R that being out in nature will bring them are much more beneficial to both of my partners at the moment.

As such, we are moving at a very relaxed pace and making little progress toward Slateport. Even on top of our slow pace, we have three training sessions per day. Our morning session starts immediately upon waking up. This is a physical practice focused on pushing our bodies to their limits. Some equipment that I bought for the trip helps out here. What we are soon coming up on is our afternoon session, which focuses on moves and techniques. Our final session is a light cool-down workout before bed. It's nothing intense, but it gets the lungs going and the blood pumping.

"Alright Belle," I rub Mirabelle's shoulder as we walk. "It's almost time to set up camp for training and lunch. Can you go up and check if there are any good spots around?"

"Tropius!" She nods and waits for me to back away from her. This is something she learned from knocking me flat with her wings yesterday.

After I've backed off to a safe distance, she kicks off with her legs and gives a powerful push with her leafy wings. I still don't know how it's physically possible, but she soon lifts her body into the air, rising higher with every powerful flap. She does, however, struggle a bit. That struggle serves as an indicator of both her young age and the fact that she is still not capable of flying with a mounted rider.

Even so, she manages to elevate herself high into the sky now and search for a good training spot for our next camp. Soon enough, the massive plant-based dinosaur is gliding back to me. She hits the ground with a heavy thud, sending dirt and grass up into the air and slight tremors down into the ground.

"Did you find a good spot?"

"Tro!" She does a quick nod before she turns and trots away at a moderate pace.

Mirabelle has always gotten eager at any mention of training or battling. She even stops and looks behind herself after every few steps, just to make sure I'm still following along.

As for Goly, well, I'm sure he'll find his way.


With our camp set up in a nice little grove, I dig through my backpack for some items that will assist in our training. I must say, Tracy really pulled through for me, big time.

The day before I left Mauville was dedicated to a massive last-second shopping spree. You see, I received a message through my Poketch from Tracy right after my morning workout. The message simply said: "No need to thank me. I know."

I was wondering what that was about, all the way until I checked my email. There was a new email from the Hoenn Ranger Corps. It read as follows:

To Reid Redwood,

I am Ranger Tom Barks, Captain of the Hoenn Rangers' 11th division. I saw your battle at Mauville City's Dynamo Gym and I was really impressed by your incredible talent and potential for Pokémon battling. I, as a representative of the Hoenn Ranger Corps, would like to provide you with some support here at the start of your own Pokémon journey.

Here at the Hoenn Ranger Corps, we are always looking to help cultivate talented trainers and grow Hoenn's Pokémon training culture. In you, we see a chance to grow recognition and love for many Pokémon who are currently underappreciated or considered to be poor choices for serious Trainers. Your success could open the doorway to stepping into the next level of improved relationships between people and Pokémon in Hoenn.

As such, we would like to offer you a scholarship opportunity with us. We are willing to provide you with a ranch to care for your Pokémon that you can't carry along with you. We have also decided to grant you a start-up fund of 25,000 Poke to begin your journey in the most ideal circumstances possible.

Ordinarily, it would be customary to request that you commit to serving in the Ranger Corps for a designated amount of time to grant such a scholarship. However, in light of the brilliance you have shown yourself to be capable of and the potential impacts of your continued success, we simply wish to assist in your growth and hope that you will look at the Hoenn Ranger Corps favorably throughout your career.

The email continued on after that, but the rest was simply niceties and the usual. Call me materialistic, but the important part was the grant.

I took that 25,000, alongside the 4,000 that I still had from my job after buying my initial supplies, and splurged on training gear and dietary supplements for our journey.

The first things I bought were two Macho Braces of very different sizes. These have been used in our more physical training sessions in the mornings and nights. These things may not have been optimal in the games, but there is a reason they cost 1,500 Poke each in reality. It's hard to train up all the muscles that a Pokémon uses in battle, but wearing these does just that.

The next things I bought were a little more exciting. I bought some TMs to diversify our movesets. For now, Goly needs to focus on mastering Slash, which he had naturally learned upon evolving, but seeing how well he used it yesterday, that won't take long. He will need something new to occupy himself with to keep him from over-exerting and reopening his wounds. Mirabelle, on the other hand, has a couple moves she needs to really flesh out her ideal fighting style. There is one move, however, which is absolutely necessary for her to come into her own.

Finally, I used all the remaining money that I was willing to spend on dietary supplements. I bought loads of Zinc and Iron for Mirabelle (unfortunately, HP UP isn't actually a thing outside of the games), and more Protein and Carbos for Goly. I also snuck some Protein for myself, but that's beside the point. Anyway, the real issue is that these supplements are stupidly expensive, just like in the games. Their effectiveness speaks for itself, but just these had cost me as much as everything else I bought combined!

Regardless, it was all money well spent. Still, it is a bit painful to check my bank account with my Poketch and see a meager 2,000 Poke in it.

Snapping back to the present, I pull out a single silver case from the small stack in my bag. The label on the case reads TM11.

I could tell you exactly what they are from just the numbers, but what I couldn't have told you was just how expensive Sunny Day was. Apparently, it's pricey due to the fact that changing the weather has so many uses beyond just battling. As a result, it cost twice as much as most of the actual attacking moves I bought. That knowledge didn't make paying for it any less painful.

"Lin!" Goly peeks his head over my shoulder, curious about the new items.

"There you are Goly," I push his face back with my palm. "This is for Belle, so you can't have it. You already know what you should be doing this time. Slash still needs work."

My petulant partner whines and grumbles at this, but still turns to start his practice, nonetheless. He may be a brat, but his desire to become stronger is more powerful than anyone else's.

"Mirabelle," I call out to my favorite banana dinosaur. "Come here, please! I've got something to give you!"

"Pius!" I feel the vibrations on the ground through my feet as the massive Pokémon gallops toward me.

She comes to a halt just a mere few feet away from me. Her large head bobbing and her feet fidgeting from her excitement. Belle always has had a love for gifts, though she probably thinks I want her to try a new type of berry or something. When I raise my hands with a square case in one and her Pokeball in the other, her head tilts sideways in confusion.

"This is going to help you learn one of the most important moves you will ever know," That gets her attention. Her eyes snap into focus on the silver case in my hand. "This is called a Technical Machine, and it should help you learn the move that is stored in it. I need to return you first, but I haven't used one before, so we'll be figuring it out together."

"Tropius!" Belle smiles at me and lightly headbutts the button of her ball, returning herself.

At this point, I take the TM11 disk out of the case and place the ring in the center on the button of her Pokeball, as instructed on the back of the case.

As soon as I let go, the disk begins to spin rapidly. This motion continues until the disk begins to literally dissolve into a light energy. That energy is rapidly sucked in through the button of the Pokeball. Very quickly, I am left with just a Pokeball and an empty case.

"Alright, Mirabelle," I press the release button. "Come out now!"

My Tropius appears in front of me with an excited roar, but soon looks back at me with uncertain eyes when she doesn't notice anything different. I guess I may have given her some outlandish expectations with how much I talked it up.

"Don't worry, Belle, it worked just fine," I assure her. "That disk should have helped you learn to use Sunny Day. Sunny Day isn't any attacking move," her head drops in disappointment. "But it's going to be super important for you! It will make your Harvest work much faster, and it might even make you faster or stronger!"

"Tropius." She still doesn't look super enthusiastic about it, but she nods in determination.

"Great! Now, all that's left is to practice." I grin and pet her neck. "Now, according to the instructions on this thing, you probably won't be able to use it right away. However, you should be able to feel a burning hot red energy in you if you concentrate all your attention on the sun. That's the Fire-Type energy that you need to harness for this move."

"Pius!" Mirabelle adopts a resolute stance and stares intently at the sun.

"Careful!" I try to warn her, but it's too late.

"Tro." She whines pitifully and jerks her head back to look at me, tears fill her eyes and she blinks rapidly.

"I'm sorry, sweety!" I can't help but feel bad when looking at that adorable face. "I didn't mean for you to look at the sun, that will just hurt your eyes. You just need to sit under the sun and concentrate on its warmth. Close your eyes and think about what you feel."

Mirabelle blinks the tears out of her eyes and nods with confidence once again. I can't help but wonder if this is going to happen every time I try to teach her a new move. She's a bit clumsy, after all.

When she finds a spot directly under the sun and lays down, I decide to check up on Goly's progress with Slash.

Making my way over to where he had run off to earlier, I keep hearing a rhythmic scraping noise. It doesn't take long to reach its source. Goly repeatedly coats his foreleg with white energy, then swipes forwards at the tree in front of him. The result is that the large birch tree is lined with many furrows where the bark, as well as some of the tree's deep flesh, has been gouged out.

"Looking good Goly," I praise. "Soon enough, you'll be knocking down entire trees with every swipe!"

"Linoone!" He acknowledges my words without pausing his practice.

Seeing both of my Pokémon busy, I find a spot between them and get started on a light workout of my own. I cycle between push-ups, sit-ups, flutter kicks, Russian twists, burpees, and squat jumps.

Time passes quickly in this fashion, and soon an hour has passed.

I halt my set of squat jumps when I notice Mirabelle stand up from where she had been basking in the sun. Her eyes are screwed shut tight in concentration, and her head is raised to the sun. An incredibly bright orange light builds up in her mouth, growing bit by bit until it's larger than her entire head. Looking at it has white spots forming in my vision, just like looking at the sun, but I can't afford to shield my eyes and miss anything. As her Trainer, it's my job to see how well she performs the move and look for areas where she can improve.

After about 30 seconds of building the orb of Fire-Type energy, which is now about the size of a basketball, her chest swells with air and Belle attempts to spit the orb up into the sky. Only, she fails to do so. The mass of energy simply disperses into nothingness before her.

Her eyes finally open and a look of great disappointment appears on her face.

"That was great, Mirabelle!" I shout out encouragement, half to cheer her up and half out of being genuinely impressed. "You already made some Fire-Type energy! That's really great!"

"Tro." Belle's head raises a bit at my praise, but her dejected expression quickly returns and her tone is one of denial.

"I'm serious, Belle," And I truly am. Sunny Day may be the easiest Fire-Type move for Grass-Type Pokémon to learn, but it's still a move of the opposite type. "Learning a new move isn't easy, even with help from a Technical Machine. Nobody gets it right away, and that's doubly true for a Grass Pokémon learning a Fire-Type move."

*Crash*

The sound of something heavy falling behind me punctuates my sentence, prompting both Mirabelle and me to look to its source. The birch tree in front of Goly has finally fallen, unable to withstand the continuous Slash attacks.

"Nice work, Goly," I shout out at the dust cloud before the tree. "Looks like that tree's taken about all the punishment it could handle."

*Crash*

Without warning, a second tree falls, then a third. When the fourth tree toppled over, my brain finally connects what's happening to what I had told Goly about mastering Slash. Goly took my words literally and is trying to prove that he doesn't need to keep practicing Slash.

"Ok, ok! Stop, Goly! I get it!" I yell out before he continues his deforestation project. "We'll find a new move for you to learn tomorrow."

"Linoone!" An excited yell accompanies my young troublemaker as he emerges from the dust cloud, running to me.

Mirabelle stares intently at the side of my head. Both of us are deeply aware of the fact that Goly had only just started practicing Slash yesterday.

"Well, that's a bit different. Slash comes naturally to Linoones, so it isn't all that weird." I avert my eyes to the side as I try to explain myself to the Pokémon I had just been encouraging. "You should have seen him trying to learn Dig." I don't mention that he learned to move just fine, only his accuracy was a struggle.

Even so, just how much of a battle genius is Goliath? Even with Slash being an easy move to learn for his species, I've never heard of a Pokémon mastering a move to that degree in a single day.

"Alright, let's clean up and hit the road again." I decide not to dwell on it and just stay on the move.


Sitting on a low branch of a Pecha tree, I look down at Mirabelle and Goly as they practice together.

This session is dedicated to having Goly teach his big junior how to use Protect. As a certified stalling nightmare, this is a necessary move for my sweet girl.

Thus far, she has been picking it up very quickly; to the point where it's already nearly battle ready. She can successfully create the protective sphere around 90% of the time, though she's still a bit too slow with it.

*Tssssss*

I'm startled out of my calm reverie when a purple goo splatters in the center of the clearing and sizzles as it burns through the grass.

"Goly, Belle! Be alert!" I call out to my partners, ready to intercept any challengers.

"Linoone!" Goly is in place on my right the second I've hopped down from the tree.

"Tropius!" Mirabelle takes her place on my left.

The poison from earlier didn't land anywhere close to hitting us, so I don't think this is an attack. Instead, it seemed more like a warning shot, or a shot of challenge. Either way, it's likely that a fight is coming up, and, based on the strength of that attack, it should be a fight against something much stronger than the typical Electrikes or Lotads.

I'm soon proven right when a large purple form appears from the brush. It takes its place in front of us and cries out at our group, however, it doesn't move any further. Instead, it patiently waits before us.

A challenge then.

"Mirabelle, you're up." The massive-bodied sweetheart of battle steps between myself and our powerful challenger.

"Noon!" A complaint comes from my right, but it's easily disregarded.

"You've got one more day before Joy's recovery period is up. I know patience isn't your thing, but hold on just a bit longer." I turn back to our opponent after hearing Goly's dismissive scoff. "Belle, This is going to be a much tougher battle than you're used to, so be ready to go all out."

"Tropius!" A fierce bellow responds.

"Lot." Our opponent patiently waits for Mirabelle to get ready to fight.

It's actually somewhat amazing to see just how intelligent the wild Pokémon here are. I can't even tell you how many times we have been challenged in this past week. That is, challenged, not attacked. Unlike the Pokémon in the Border Woods, these Pokémon usually make it clear that they are coming and wait until we're ready to fight before they attack.

It's obvious what they want, they are challenging me in the hopes of impressing me enough to join my team. It's pretty much a normal thing for Pokémon to want to be captured, rather than being forced into it. From that perspective, Ash's captures aren't as unusual as I used to think.

Unfortunately, there still hasn't been a Pokémon who has impressed me enough that I wanted to capture it yet. Even though our current challenger is strong, I suspect that will still be true after this fight.

"Ok, Swalot," I address our opponent when Mirabelle gets in position. "Thanks for waiting. We're ready to start. You can have the first move."

"Swalot!" In response to my words, Swalot spits out a haze of Poison Gas at Belle.

"Blow it away with Gust, then use Sunny Day!"

A powerful push with all four wings sends a current of wind that scatters the Poison Gas attack. The wind continues on to hit Swalot, but it has little effect; barely moving the large Pokémon.

It does, however, keep Swalot locked in place, focused on standing its ground, rather than attacking again.

In that time, Mirabelle charges up an orange ball of light in her mouth. She manages to shorten the charging time down to about 10 seconds, which is still far too long. However, the real improvement is that she manages to shoot the ball of energy out of her mouth and into the sky… where it fizzles out of existence just about 10 feet above her.

She looks back at me with sad eyes when it fails once again. However, looking away in battle is a terrible mistake to make. She must have subconsciously grown overconfident after all her relatively easy wins in Trainer battles and wild encounters until now.

"Belle! Dodge to the side, now!" I yell out, knowing that she doesn't have time to turn back and then avoid it.

However, her instinct to look at what I'm worried about overtakes my command. She turns her head back in front of her instead of dodging.

"Pius!" The result is that she cries in pain after she is hit directly in the shoulder with a large glob of Sludge.

"Shape up and get serious, Belle! Growth and Gust!"

Mirabelle's body swells to an even greater size and her four wings rise behind her. Swalot actually leaps at her in what must be either Pound or Slam, but that was a bad choice. Belle's leafy wings surge forward and a much stronger windstorm takes Swalot right out of the air and launches it into a nearby birch tree. Swalot's boneless body wraps around the tree before flinging back into shape.

"Follow with Leech Seed, but don't even think about eating that seed!" Liquid Ooze means that eating the Leech Seed to heal would actually hurt her, but just attaching the seed to Swalot will still drain its energy.

Mirabelle spits a yellow seed, much bigger than it was just a couple weeks ago, directly into Swalot's side. The seed quickly turns dark, but Swalot visibly winces in pain.

"Swalot!" The blobby Pokemon yells out a war cry and begins building up a mass of poisonous sludge in its mouth.

"Growth again," I call for a stacked buff. A young Tropius, even with as gifted of a moveset as Mirabelle has, just doesn't have many options against a Poison-Type Pokémon. We can only buff and hit it with our strongest move.

"Lot!" A massive Sludge Bomb is launched toward Mirabelle in a high, slow arc.

"Stop it with another Gust!"

"Tro!" A powerful burst of wind pushes back against the mass of poison.

Unfortunately, the wind isn't quite strong enough to stop the heavy mass's momentum. A lot of the sludge scatters from the wind, but a decent amount still falls on Belle's back.

"Tropius!" Her cry rings out as the poison eats away at her plant-based body.

"Eat as many of your Oran berries as you've made." My voice is urgent. I know that one hurt. "Fire back with Razor Leaf!"

One leaf shoots up into the air after cutting three Oran berries off of Mirabelle's chin. There is a short pause where she snaps the healing berries out of the air, then a barrage of sickle-shaped leaves fire into Swalot's side, one after the other.

Swalot silently grits through the pain of the not-very-effective move, then builds another Sludge Bomb to follow its previous success.

"Finish it with a bang! Leaf Storm!" I yell for her strongest move as the finisher.

The next sequence happens all at once. Mirabelle's body, swollen from a double use of Growth, glows green and her muscles tense. Swalot shoots another massive Sludge Bomb into the air. Mirabelle lets loose a green hurricane of wind, filled with sharp leaves. The power of this windstorm is incomparable to the previous Gust attacks' and easily sweeps both the Sludge Bomb and Swalot into the air.

Swalot rapidly swirls in circles through the air, rising higher and higher before the storm dissipates and the Poison Bag Pokémon free falls back to the earth.

"Swalot!" Our foe shows impressive grit by charging up a third Sludge Bomb, even as it falls.

"Don't let up!" I shout out, unwilling to allow this battle to drag on any further. "Pepper it with Razor Leafs while it's still in the air!"

"Pius!" Mirabelle cries out and whips her head in a scythe motion, shooting several leaves at the Swalot.

Unfortunately, most pass over Swalot without making contact due to its rapid speed of descent. The few that do hit aren't enough to deter the Poison-Type from releasing another Sludge Bomb. Due to the awkward release point, this attack is much weaker than the previous two, but the super-effective move still hits its mark.

"Pius!" A cry escapes the baby of our team, and she sways on her feet. However, three heavy steps back are all she takes before her legs brace themselves and she plants her feet on the ground. "TROPIUS!" A fierce battle cry shakes the air.

"Belle!" I cry out in concern. This is, by far, the most damage Mirabelle has ever taken. Still, if she's willing to push through, I need to reciprocate. Swalot is now looking down and repeatedly releasing Sludge attacks, likely in the hopes of padding its landing. This is our chance. "One more Razor Leaf barrage! Focus on aiming below Swalot, not where it is now!"

"Tro!" Mirabelle stares intently at her falling foe. She does nothing else for a couple seconds, waiting all the way until Swalot is no higher than the surrounding tree tops.

At this point, I notice something strange. Usually, Belle needs to swing her head from side to side to throw her Razor Leaf attack at her opponent. The leaves don't just materialize in the air. However, that is exactly what is happening right now. About a dozen leaves are forming from nothing in the air around Mirabelle's head. Furthermore, these leaves are engulfed in an odd, pink energy that is similar to a Psychic-Type move. Is this what I think it is?

When Swalot is a mere few feet above the ground, it seemingly sucks its body in on itself as it braces to land in the large puddle of Sludge it had created. None of that matters when Mirabelle finally moves though.

She simply nods her head forward slightly and all the floating leaves around her shoot straight into Swalot's side. Not a single leaf misses its target. The result is that Swalot's body is pushed just outside of the Sludge pile it had created and connects with the hard forest floor.

*BOOM*

After hitting the ground, it doesn't get back up.

"TROPIUS!"

*THUD*

Before I can even react to her victory, Belle bellows out in pride. She then promptly collapses, unconscious.

I let out a sigh at the sight of the two unconscious Pokemon, and reach into my bag for the berry case I had been gifted by Mrs. Haily. I pull out a pair of Sitrus berries for the two fighters. These things are expensive, but I believe that Swalot had earned one with such a fierce showing.

"Linoone." Goly nudges my leg, and I look down to see that he has a Pecha Berry in his mouth. He gestures towards Mirabelle's fallen form, then drops the Pecha berry and rolls it to my feet. "Lin."

"Thanks, buddy," I reach down and pat his head a few times before picking up the berry. "Let's wake her up first," I wave the Sitrus berry in front of him. "Then she'll definitely be wanting that."

"Linoone?" As we walk towards our fallen team member, Goly points toward Swalot and questions me.

I stop in my tracks and spend a full minute thinking through my response. Finally, I answer with a shake of my head.

"I don't think so, Swalot was definitely strong, and fighting back even while falling showed an impressive obsession with winning, but I just don't know how to bring a Swalot to the top."

"Noone?" Goly's head tilts in confusion. "Linoone?" He then points to himself and questions me again.

I sigh and remain silent while I put my hand with the Sitrus berry in it in front of Mirabelle's mouth. Her nose twitches and her eyes flutter open slightly. She then leans forward and laps it up. As she slowly chews on it, I bring the second Sitrus berry over to Swalot and drop it next to the wild Pokémon's mouth. I would have directly fed it too, but I don't want to risk getting poisoned.

When I confirm that Swalot has also eaten the berry, I return to Mirabelle's side and sit on the ground so that I am leaning against her side. All this time, Goly patiently waits for me to answer his question. His uncharacteristic silence proves how important this matter is to him.

"You're wondering why I say that I can't train a Swalot to be a top-level battler when I said I would make you the best, even though people say that Linoones can't become strong, too. Is that right?"

"Lin." Goly's head nods sternly and his eyes stare intently at me.

"It's true that Linoones like you and even Tropius like Mirabelle are considered Pokémon with limited battle potential, just like Swalot over there." Goly's eyes narrow and I feel Belle's head droop a bit. "It's also completely true that I believe that is bullshit. There is never going to be a case where an entire species of Pokémon is incapable of becoming strong. With the right training, combined with a certain amount of innate talent, any Pokémon can become strong."

At this point, I've noticed that Swalot has also been listening in on our conversation.

"Goly," I turn back to my first partner. "You might be the most naturally talented Pokémon I've ever heard of." His chin raises and I can see the arrogance building in his eyes. "But if I didn't know a method to make a Linoone incredibly strong, I doubt we would be able to reach any higher than the Elite level." His eyes widen in shock.

"Noone!" He protests, convinced that he would become the best no matter what.

"Belle," I ignore him and feed Mirabelle the Pecha berry. "You were born with a great moveset for a very specific style of battling." She hums as she eats and snuggles her neck up to me. "If I'm being honest with you though, many people will probably consider your battle style to be cheap and dirty."

"Pius!" She looks at me in alarm and I can already see water droplets forming in the corner of her eyes. Being a glorious and valiant fighter means a lot to her.

"To me though," I continue. "Your battle style will turn you into a sturdy castle wall, protecting our team from harm. You will stand tall and proud as our opponents exhaust themselves, failing to bring you down. I believe that there will be nothing as glorious as watching you defeat entire teams on your own, simply due to the fact that none of them can take you out of the fight."

"Tropius!" She blinks away the tears and happily licks my cheek.

"If I didn't know about this fighting style though, you would face the same limitations that the rest of your species faces," I state the cruel truth. "Tropius' are a species that lack definitive offensive potential, while also having limited defenses and five type weaknesses. That means that a traditional, head-on battle style would put you at a certain disadvantage."

"Pius." Her head rests on my lap and her eyes look forward, deep in thought.

"Luckily for both of you," My tone lightens up. "I do know of a method to bring you to the top! That's why our team's goal has never been anything less than becoming the strongest Pokémon team of our time." I now turn to face the Swalot who had given us such a great battle. "Swalot, you are strong. There is no doubt in my mind that you are an incredibly gifted member of your species."

"Lot." The Poison Bag Pokémon grumbles a bit in protest.

"It's true!" I respond. "You may have lost, but Mirabelle is strong too. She also had the advantage of having a Trainer to help her strategize. If you had someone in your corner, who knows what would have happened."

"Swalot!" Swalot makes a frustrated noise. I may not be able to understand its language, but that was clearly saying 'I know that!'

"I can't become that Trainer for you, but I know you will find one eventually. A Pokémon as talented as you isn't destined to live out your life alone and unnoticed out here."

"Swal." Swalot grumbles again but seemingly accepts what I've said. It pulls itself up and turns to leave.

"Wait a moment before you leave," I call out to halt it. "If I knew of a good method to train you, I truly would like to be your Trainer. That's just how much potential I think you have. So, as thanks for giving me such a great battle, let me give you some advice."

"Swalot?" It tilts its head to the side, which actually results in its entire body tilting due to its gelatinous form.

"Learn as many new moves as you can," I suggest. "Swalots are known to be able to learn a very wide variety of move types, from Fire-Type moves to Water-Type moves, and just about everything in between. I don't know how to bring a Swalot to the Champion level, but if I was going to train you, I would start with becoming as versatile as possible."

The Swalot stays still for a long while, just staring at me. I can see a certain kind of deep longing in its eyes, and I'm genuinely tempted to catch it and just try my best. However, I know better than that. If I was just trying to win eight badges and the Ever Grande Conference, it would be okay to just catch what I feel like catching and train them up as best as I can. My goal isn't one that's so easily attained though.

To put together a team capable of beating Champions, I need to be deliberate with my captures. Each Pokémon needs to serve a clear role on my team, and I need to have a solid plan for what direction I will be training them in. I can't afford to say 'We'll just experiment and see what happens.' I need to harden my heart here. It's the type of decision that many sports coaches faced in my old world. If you are aiming to be the best, you can't afford to make any wrong decisions. Sometimes you need to cut someone you really like from the team to make room for someone who will help you reach the top.

After a short stare-down that felt like it lasted for hours, Swalot bows deeply and leaves the clearing.

When the ambitious wild Pokémon is completely gone, I let out an incredibly heavy sigh.

"That was way too hard," I exclaim.

"Tro."

"Linoone."

My partners both agree with solemn voices.

"Let this be a learning lesson for all of us," I say with a voice as heavy as my heart feels. "I'm not so great that I can make just any Pokémon into the best. I just know more than most Trainers, I don't know everything. Sacrifices will need to be made to reach a goal as lofty as ours. It's all good and well to have fun on our journey, but we need to remember that it can never be all fun and games. This won't be the last difficult choice we will be faced with."

The remainder of that day is spent walking in silence until we set up camp for our night training session. Even Goly remains silently by my side throughout the entire walk. We climb into bed that night with a lot on all of our minds.


Two days after that harsh moment of truth, something amazing happens during our afternoon practice session.

"Looking good, Mirabelle," I encourage my youngest Pokémon while she attempts to use Sunny Day once again. "Keep condensing it."

In the young Tropius's mouth is a ball of orange energy about the size of a softball. Even from a dozen feet away, I can feel the intense warmth that it gives off. It shrinks the tiniest bit more and I can see that Belle is barely keeping it together now.

"Ok, that's good enough! Go ahead and release it. Sunny Day!"

She lifts her head up and shoots the orange ball into the sky. It rockets up like a comet falling in reverse and is soon all the way up in the clouds. When it reaches that height, it explodes like a firework of pure light, and the clouds in a very wide radius around the sky above us disappear. The temperature immediately skyrockets, and the air begins to dry out. I'm thankful that I'm already in workout clothes, as they are quickly getting soaked through.

As this is her first time using it, I don't expect the move to last long, so I decide to act quickly. I can finally test Mirabelle for any other abilities beyond Harvest.

"Mirabelle, no time to celebrate yet, I need you to run to the end of the clearing and back at full Speed." I give out my order and open the timer app on my Poketch.

"Pius!" Belle immediately takes off sprinting, but I can't help but notice that she has a massive smile on her face the entire time.

Even as she runs, Oran berries begin to sprout on her neck. It's good to know that Harvest is still boosted in the sunlight.

"Time!" I say when she returns to me. The timer reads 16 seconds. I'll need to test her speed without the sun to know what that number means "Now, I need you to use Gust at full power for me."

"Tropius!" Belle doesn't hesitate to flex her wings and release a massive windstorm.

The power is greater than she had expected, and I end up flat on my rear end when I'm caught in the edges of the attack. That definitely had at least as much power as her Gust does after she's used Growth. I can't help but burst into joyous laughter, even as a lie on my back.

The sunlight then dies down and the temperature returns to normal.

I look over at Mirabelle just to confirm my thoughts, and I notice a very slight amount of redness beginning to build on her skin. That checks out, she has the ability Solar Power, which essentially acts like a special attack version of the Life Orb under heavy sunlight. The Sunny Day hadn't lasted long enough for her to actually feel any of the damage from it, but the redness that is now fading away certainly confirmed my suspicions.

This will be perfect! The combination of her two powerful abilities already opens my mind to countless possibilities. My big sweetheart is going to become an absolute nightmare to face!

"Great job, Mirabelle," I push myself back to my feet and glomp around her neck in a hug. "I knew you could do it!"

"Tropius!" My sweet girl is all smiles.

"Let's keep practicing, so we don't forget it," She nods seriously and turns back to the clearing. "But don't forget," I add. "Tonight's going to be a celebration feast!"

"Linoone!" Goly's voice chimes in. The glutton must have heard me talking about a feast.

The training session ends up going a little bit longer than scheduled due to our excitement. We find out that Belle doesn't have Chlorophyll, just Harvest and Solar Power. She successfully activates Sunny Day two more times.

As for Goly, He has already managed to harness the elusive energy needed to use the move contained in the TM65 which I had given him. The move is far from perfected, but the fact that he can even somewhat use it is nothing short of incredible.


A week after our battle with Swalot and Slateport City is in sight.

The city is still far in the distance, but we should be able to reach it by nightfall, even while stopping for our afternoon training session. After all, Mirabelle is at a crucial spot in her Training, so we can't afford to skip any practices.

With it being our main focus for the past week and a half, Belle has improved Sunny Day to the point where she can successfully use the move almost every time. The problem we are now facing is that it runs out very quickly, lasting barely over a single minute. However, with her being able to use it, we have begun to move on to another move for her, just to keep training interesting.

She's currently learning Whirlwind and is well on her way to mastering it. After all, it's essentially just a more powerful version of Gust. She already knows a much harder move with Leaf Storm. If I had to estimate her current strength in game terms, she would be around level 25 right now. For reference, Goly would be at about level 40.

Regardless, Slateport in front of us is a beautiful little city built on a cliff that borders the ocean. According to the logic of the underdeveloped Pokémon world, it's actually considered quite a large city. However, in my eyes, it barely even qualifies as a town. Mauville City was much more advanced and developed, and even Mauville was much smaller than most cities in the United States on Earth.

Even so, the beauty of Slateport can't be denied. Unfortunately, that beauty is not what's on my mind. Instead, seeing Slateport has me thinking of something decidedly not beautiful. That is to say, Slateport has reminded me of the criminal elements in the Pokémon world.

Arriving in Hoenn means that I landed in a region that has not one, not two, but three different criminal teams poking around. Slateport is one of the first areas that you confront either Team Aqua or Team Magma in the games. I don't believe that it is attacked in the anime, nor do I think I'll run into any trouble here, based on some recent news, but it is best that I begin thinking about how to deal with those clowns sooner, rather than later.

The fact that Team Rocket is also looking to establish a foothold in Hoenn is much more concerning to me since the real Team Rocket is much more competent than either of the gatherings of eco-terrorist fools. I'll just have to hope that Giovanni only sent Jesse and James, but I honestly can't remember if that's truly the case.

Either way, I'm not yet strong enough to comfortably face any of the three teams head-on. Reporting about them to the league would only invite undue suspicion and questions towards myself, so my best bet is to just silently grow stronger without regard for them until I can deal with them all. I just need to make sure that that time comes before the events of the movie.

My mind is occupied with thoughts about how to deal with the two crime teams of Hoenn, should I encounter them, for the entirety of the trek to the city. The distraction persists even during our training sessions. When I walk into Slateport City's limits with the night sky shining down on me, I realize that I had been in such a daze that I barely recognized the passage of time.

What snaps me back to attentiveness is when Goly makes a mad dash for a particularly lively part of the city, even this late at night. My quickdraw is more polished than a veteran Western cowboy as I snap his ball up and return him before he escapes.

I'm assuming that the lively area is the large outdoor marketplace, but I can check it out tomorrow. For now, I'm heading straight for the Pokémon Center to check in and find a bed for the night. At least Mirabelle seems to agree with me, as she chuckles softly to herself when Goly's escape attempt is thwarted.

It doesn't take long to find the large red-roofed Pokémon Center. They are usually placed in easy-to-find locations, in case there are any Trainers facing emergencies who urgently need to get there.

I return Mirabelle and walk through the doors at 9:00 P.M. sharp, and am unsurprised to see a beautiful pink-haired woman sitting serenely behind the counter.

"Oh, hello!" She stands up with a smile. "Welcome to the Slateport City Pokémon Center! How may I help you?"

"Hi Joy, I need a check-up for my Tropius and my Linoone," I respond with a smile of my own. "Tropius' name is Mirabelle, and she'll behave like an angel for you. The Linoone is Goly, and he will be a flight risk. He also has a note on his file from Mauville's Joy. He should be recovered now though."

"I see, you must be Reid then! I thought you looked familiar." Her eyes light up in recognition, but her words now leave me surprised.

"You know me?" I ask.

"Of course," She replies with a matter-of-fact tone as if I had just asked the obvious. "My cousin in Mauville let me know that you were coming of course, but I would have recognized you even without her message. In the Pokémon Centers, we don't just sit around doing nothing when there aren't any patients you know. Most of us Joys love keeping up with the battle scene, and you and Goliath certainly made an impression."

"Is that so?" I scratch the back of my neck, feeling slightly embarrassed for some reason.

"Definitely," Joy exclaims. "You may not know, since you were out on the trail, but you are one of the most talked about rookies in the Gym Circuit this year! People online are in a uproar over whether or not you will take a Linoone to the top of the Ever Grande Conference this year."

"I see," I reply as I set my partners' Pokeballs on the counter. "Well, we will definitely be surpassing those expectations, so just watch us."

"I do hope so," She replies and hands me a small key. "Well then, here is the key to your room, which will be A3. It's just down that hall and on the right. You can go ahead and shower up. I should be done with your Pokémon by the time you get out."

"Thank you."

With a room secured, the rest of the night passes in a blur as I can only think of sleeping on a real bed tonight. Goly seems to agree, as he no longer makes a jailbreak attempt after lying on the bed next to me. Mirabelle sprawls out on the floor next to us, taking up most of the room. With a quick 'goodnight,' I'm soon dead to the world.


Noon the following day finds me strolling through the open market streets of Slateport City with Mirabelle at my side. Goly had initially been with us but was returned after one too many instances of chasing after something random that had caught his eye.

"Incredible Technical Machines for sale! Want to start winning more battles? My Technical Machines are what you need!"

"Healing herbs and calming incense! Buy it before I run out!"

"Pokeball variants here! Straight from Johto's master craftsman himself!"

"I've got any evolutionary stones you could ask for here. Is your Pokémon ready to evolve? Buy from me to Spheal the deal!"

The open seaside market here is truly an incredible place. Everywhere I look is filled with interesting and novel items. Unfortunately, most of the items are priced at Trainer rates too, which means expensive, for those who don't know. I was tempted to buy a Net ball, in preparation for crossing the sea, but the 1,000 Poke price tag scared me off. I'll have to make do with what I won from the school tournament.

Despite being forced into window shopping, the day ends up being very pleasant. After spending a couple hours wandering the market streets, we head to the Contest Hall. Again, our luck is a bit off and there aren't any contests for a while. They apparently have a contest every two weeks, and the last was 6 days ago. I had talked to my Pokémon about Contests before, and neither Goly nor Mirabelle seemed to have any interest in them. I'll have to see if any of my future Pokémon are interested if I want to aim to conquer the Contest route too.

Our current goal is to find a boat that will take us to Dewford.

Walking down the docks with Mirabelle on my left and the recently released Goly on my right, I can't help but smile to myself at the harmony between people and Pokémon before me.

Machoke and Machop are all over the dock, walking alongside and assisting the sailors carrying cargo back and forth between the various ships. A Kingler stands guard at the edge of a boat, keeping a close eye on a small Tentacool colony in the water. In the air, a Pelipper flies around with a bag full of newspapers held by a strap in its beak.

Here at the harbor, people and Pokémon truly merge and work together in a constant state of activity. This place is a stark reminder of the blessing I have been granted by being here.

"Hey kid," A gruff voice interrupts my musing. "You just gonna stand there gawking, or are you planning on moving out of the way any time soon?"

"Sorry for that," I turn around to see a massive sailor with a mean look standing behind me. "I was just taken aback by all the activity here."

The sailor narrows his eyes for a moment before breaking into hearty laughter. His intimidating visage makes this quite the jarring contrast. He wears an eyepatch over his left eye and has a deep scar that crosses his entire face, from above his hairline to below his chin. He has a scruffy beard and a bald head, with just enough piercings on his face and ears to appear questionably punk. Rounding out the image is a stereotypical anchor tattoo on one muscular shoulder and a Sharpedo on the other.

"Sure is quite the sight, ain't it?" He agrees with a wistful voice. "So what're you here for anyways?"

"I need a ride to Dewford," I respond bluntly.

"Dewford, huh?" He strokes his beard and looks at me. "I suppose I could change my plans and head there today."

"Really? Thanks for that," I can't help but feel that I ran into some good luck. "How much do I owe you for the trip?"

"Now just hold your horses there," He puts up his hands and grins. "I said I could, not that I would. I think I recognize you and that Linoone of yours, and it just so happens that I've been looking for a good battle lately. How about this? Beat me in a two-on-two battle, and I'll give you a free ride to Dewford."

"I've also been itching for a real battle for a while now," I reply with a grin of my own, already feeling the adrenaline pumping. "You're on!"

"Don't you want to hear what you owe me if you lose?" He asks with a wide smile splitting his hardened face.

"No need," I state. "Let's get this started."

"Confident! I like it," He points to a large open space nearby with a circular battlefield painted onto the tar. "Let's go then."

As I walk behind him on the way to the battlefield, I try to glean any information I can. He's got to be in his late thirties to his early forties, so plenty of experience. There's a clip of Pokeballs of various types on his hip: one incredibly worn and scuffed Pokeball, three Lure balls, one Great ball, and one Ultra ball. He has a full team of six Pokémon, and all of their Pokeballs, except one polished Lure ball, are worn and old. His Pokémon definitely aren't beginners.

"Goly, you're going to be our anchor here," I whisper to my partner. "He's no slouch, so I'm going to need your best effort. We might even have to Belly Drum, so be ready."

"Lin!" Goly responds with excitement. He's ready for his return battle.

"Belle, you will be leading us off," I feed her an Oran berry quick. "We'll start with a quick Sunny Day, then your job is going to be to stall and learn as much as possible about them. I think that this might be a battle where you're outclassed in strength, so you just need to do your best to work around that."

"Tropius!" Her face screws tight in determination and she gives a quick nod.

Soon enough, we arrive and come to a stop at opposite sides of the battlefield.

"Alright, let's get this going!" The massive sailor grins and grabs the clean Lure ball and the Great ball off of his belt. "Since I know what you've got, I'll go ahead and release my two Pokémon to even things out."

He tosses up both balls and a red light emerges from each of them. From the Lure ball emerges a Corphish and a Jellicent, of all things, is released from the Great ball.

"It wasn't necessary, but thanks for that," I state flatly in response to his courtesy. I don't expect my opponents to do this just because I leave my Pokémon out. I am aware of the disadvantage, I just don't care about it.

"Haha! I like the attitude," He booms. "Now let's see if you can keep it! Corphish, get out there and win for me!"

"Mirabelle, take the stage." It looks like we are both starting with our newer team members.

"I'll toss this rock up," The burly sailor grabs a golf ball-sized stone off the ground. "The battle starts when it hits the ground." He lobs it up in the air.

We both lock our eyes on the stone and settle into a ready stance. Our Pokémon do the same. Sweat builds on my forehead as the tension builds. When the rock finally bounced off the tar, we both spring into action.

"Sunny Day!"

"Dragon Dance!"

What the hell did he just say? … Shit.


And thus we pass up on Swalot... Swalot was one of the very heavily considered Pokémon for his team, but I just couldn't think of a realistic way to turn a Swalot into a monsterous battler. I doubt that Yawn-switch stalling would work in reality, and Belle has stalling covered anyway. For everything else I could think of doing with it, there are other underused Pokémon who do that thing better.

Sorry, Swalot. You were a real one.


Reid Redwood

Badges: 1

Pokémon: 2

Goliath (Goly)

Linoone

Abilities:

Gluttony, Pick Up, Quick Feet

Moves:

Slash, ?, Headbutt, Take Down, Dig, Pin Missile, Iron Tail, Extreme Speed, Covet, Flail, Protect, Rest, Belly Drum, Double Team, Growl, Sand Attack, Tail Whip

Mirabelle (Belle)

Tropius

Abilities:

Harvest, Solar Power

Moves:

Magical Leaf, Sunny Day, Protect, Whirlwind, Razor Leaf, Gust, Leaf Storm, Leech Seed, Curse, Growth, Stomp, Sweet Scent