(Author's Note) In case anyone was wondering, for this story, the generation of Pokémon leveling and such are the XY/ORAS generation. All Pokédex entries are from ORAS.
Route 46
In the rocky terrain of the uphill route, Jackson had just stopped to take a break, bringing out his Pokémon in the process. He was hidden behind a bush, as he looked out to see a group of what looked like living rocks with faces and two arms hopping along the ground in a straight line, going to a destination. Jackson pulled out the Pokédex, and examined the Pokémon from a distance.
"Geodude. The Rock Pokémon. The longer a Geodude lives, the more its edges are chipped and worn away, making it more rounded in appearance. However, this Pokémon's heart will remain hard, craggy, and rough always."
"Living rocks. Well, there's something I don't see in my home world." Jackson muttered, looking at them. He then continued to examine the dex as he noted, "Seems like they're a Rock and Ground-type Pokémon. From what I know, all my Pokémon have Normal-type moves, which are ineffective against Rock-types." He looked back at both Eevee and Ledyba, both of which had questionable expressions on them. "Best leave them alone." He finished, deciding to move to a different area.
In order for Jackson to rely on his Pokémon, as Kris instructed, he decided to go and search for opponents to fight against. He had planned to get more Pokémon as he did so, but decided to focus on the two he had on his person. He felt like he needed to at least get use to being an actual Pokémon trainer, so he should at least be use to the Pokémon he has on his person before getting more.
"Rock-types are out of the question." Jackson muttered, looking around, seeing the rocky environment, "Maybe something a little easier to take on. Let's see what we can find…"
He and his two Pokémon suddenly heard rustling nearby, and turned to see one of the bushes nearby shake about, before what looked like a small, blue elephant come out. "Now, who is this little guy?" Jackson asked, pulling out his dex.
"Phanpy. The Long Nose Pokémon. For its nest, Phanpy digs a vertical pit in the ground at the edge of a river. It marks the area around its nest with its trunk to let the others know that the area has been claimed."
"It's only a Ground-type, so it's a good matchup for us." Jackson stated, turning to his team, "Let's fight against it!"
"Vee!" "Ledie!" Eevee and Ledyba answered, determined to show their worth.
"Alright, Eevee, go in with a Quick Attack!" Jackson ordered, and Eevee shot in, striking Phanpy as it looked up, sending it backwards. "Nice!" Jackson responded.
Phanpy shook it off, and charged at Eevee with a Tackle attack. "Use Sand Attack!" Jackson shouted. She responded by kicking sand in Phanpy's face, who got blinded as it charged, giving Eevee the chance to avoid the attack. "We got him on the ropes, now!" Jackson stated, punching forward, "Let's keep it up!"
(Insert 'Never Give Up' By SONAR POCKET)
Instrumental Opening
(Jackson stands at the top of a cliff, looking out into the vast landscape of the Johto region. He turns to the camera with surprise, grins, then draws his sword and swipes it across the screen, transitioning to white with the logo appearing.)
What tough heart! Once I decided that I'd keep up the fight
My road has never stopped unraveling
(Camera circles around Jackson as he runs along an open-plain path with his Eevee, who after a couple seconds, leaps onto his shoulder as he activates his Extreme Gear and shoots even faster onto the path.)
Carrying a small bit of pride
With my fists clenched
(The screen shows a brief image of Professor Elm, dropping papers from his clipboard, and smiling as he rubbed the back of his head. It shifts to a visual of Kris, Ethan, and their starters, with Ethan punching his fist forward, while Kris spun around with her arms out wide.)
I aim for the goal again step by step
Racing towards it with all my might!
(The screen shifts to Sonic & Tails, the former giving a thumbs up, while the latter waved his hands above eagerly. The screen shifts to Cypher, who glared at the screen with a Pokéball held close to his face.)
Sometimes it'll be a bad day
Where nothing goes the way I want it to
But even if the sky blurs through my tears
(Jackson is sitting by a campfire, his expression full of emotional pain as shadows of his past with red eyes creeped all around him. He curled himself into a ball as the shadow of his father appeared over his head.)
I'm sure my smiles will come back tomorrow
So it's okay!
(Shadows started getting blown away one large piece at a time, until light broke out around Jackson, who looked up to see his Pokémon all standing there, protecting him from his trauma.)
There's nothing out there to fear
I'll keep believing that 'I'm strong'
And get going!
(Silhouettes of the Gym Leaders appeared as the screen scrolled upwards through a gold, silver, and crystal colors behind them. It shifts to the emblem of Team Rocket, with darkened faces of grunts, with the four admins in front, holding their Pokéballs. Jackson readies his blade, as he tosses a Pokéball forward, which opens up and blinds the screen in a white light.)
'With you around, there's nothing to worry about now'
I felt as if the sky was saying that to me with a laugh
(Eevee leapt forward, unleashing a Swift attack from her tail, with Ledyba flying next to her, using his own Swift to join her's. Oshawott and Sneasel shoot through the Swift attack, unleash double Night Slash, slicing the stars, before dismissing their blades, and Oshawott angrily looking at the calm and collected Sneasel.)
With the sweat and tears I build up
I'm sure I'll come out dazzling
(Cyndaquil turns to face the Team Rocket logo, before unleashing his Flamethrower. Cyndaquil sighed in relief as Scyther flew over him, before slashing with his mantis claws like a swordsman.)
Even if I end up feeling anxious after it all
As long as I believe I can do it
(An Aeroblast and Sacred Fire came from the sky, shooting down at Jackson's team, but Jackson stepped in and unleashed several sword beams, countering the attacks and making them explode. He and his team endured the shockwaves and smoke from the explosion, before looking up into the distance, and saw the silhouettes of the Tower Duo flying over the two towers that represented each.)
These footsteps have taught me to
Always
Never Give Up!
(Jackson's Pokémon come to his side as he looked to them, before grinning eagerly, and the group leapt up into the air, taking on the new threat and the new adventure. The screen goes white before showing Jackson standing with his sword stabbed into the ground, his Pokémon companions surrounding him.)
"Eevee, hit it with another Quick Attack!" Jackson called out. Eevee charged in with another fast attack towards Phanpy, who nose glowed as it sniffed about, before turning to Eevee's direction. 'It sniffed her out?!' Jackson questioned, before seeing it curl up into a ball, taking the hit from Eevee, and being pushed away. It uncurled itself, taking less damage than before.
"This Pokémon is pretty good." Jackson muttered, "Let's spice things up. Ledyba, go in and use Supersonic!" Ledyba charged in and unleashed a sonic wave that struck Phanpy, causing it to become confused. "Now, use Comet Punch!" Jackson's shouted, and Ledyba shot in with a quick barrage of punches from the dazed elephant, causing it to be pummeled, but not down just yet.
"This thing is pretty enduring." Jackson muttered, before thinking, "Wait, since physical attacks aren't gonna do the trick, then maybe a special one. Eevee, Swift!"
Ledyba backed off as Eevee shot in and with a swing of its tail, sent stars spewing out at Phanpy. This certainly did a lot of damage, and it was sent flying as a result. It skidded on its side, before getting spirals in its eyes, knocked out.
"Way to go, you two!" Jackson cheered, "You certainly knew how to take it down!"
"Sure, if you were just being unfair in a two against one fight." Called out a female voice. Jackson turned and saw a young lady step out onto the trail they were in. She had a red-orange cap and vest, over a black long-sleeve, black cargo pants, red boots, and gloves. She had a rope attached to the belt, and Pokéballs on her other side.
"Is there a rule saying that I should only use one Pokémon in wild battles?" Jackson asked, "If so, I don't remember reading about that. And what's more, I didn't attack both at once. I only used one at a time."
"True, but it doesn't seem like you are planning to capture that Pokémon." the woman stated, walking over to the Pokémon and crouching down while digging into her cargo pants pockets, pulling out a potion spray, and squirting it on the wounds dealt to it by Jackson's battle, "Are you a new Pokémon trainer?"
"Yeah, what of it?" Jackson asked.
"Usually, when a trainer fights a Pokémon, it's because they were defending themselves from aggressive Pokémon, or plan to capture it." She explained, seeing the Phanpy recover and open its eyes to her, "I saw from a distance that it didn't attack you, and you look like you weren't gonna capture it. It's not okay in my book if you are just fighting for the sake of it."
"Sorry, I was only training." Jackson explained, "Who are you, anyway?"
She stood up straight as she turned to him, answering, "The name's Madeline. I'm a Pokémon Ranger. I go around rescuing or taking care of wild Pokémon around here."
"Well, I'm Jackson. These are my two Pokémon." He waved a hand to both Eevee and Ledyba, "I was just trying to figure out a way to train them in order to rely on them."
"Rely on them? That's a weird way of stating that." Madeline replied, before looking to the sword on Jackson's back, "And what's with that weapon on you? You aren't planning to attack Pokémon with that, are you? That is extremely not okay in my book!"
"I'm just use to carrying a sword around with me!" Jackson argued, "I was sheltered and trained in swordsmanship. I've never even studied anything about Pokémon or being a trainer until recently." This was the story he came up with while racing towards the route before, deciding that, if he were to constantly explain he was from another world, things would get out of hand. Instead, he decided on this story when people ask about the sword, as well as his lack of knowledge on Pokémon.
"That sounds oddly suspicious." Madeline stated, narrowing her eyes at him, "But I shouldn't pressure you. Just be sure not to use your sword on Pokémon. Weapons, in general, are looked down upon by people when used against Pokémon."
"I understand." Jackson replied as he and the ranger watched Phanpy wander away from the scene.
"In any case, where are you heading to?" Madeline asked.
"Blackthorn City." Jackson answered, "I planned to take on the Gym there."
"That's a pretty gutsy move, if you are planning to take on Clair while you are still so new to being a trainer."
"Clair?" Jackson echoed.
"Yeah. She's the Gym Leader there." Madeline explained, "She is a very strong trainer, and one who's main goal is to become a Dragon Master, much like her cousin, Lance."
"Dragon Master?" Jackson echoed, surprised to hear the title, before remembering something. According to the books he read, there is a Dragon-type class of Pokémon out there, and are said to be quite rare.
"Well, I guess that means I'll just have to train my Pokémon hard in order to take her on." Jackson told himself.
"Then why don't you challenge your Pokémon against me?" Madeline asked, pulling out a Pokéball, and clicking it to expand it.
"Wait, you want to challenge me?" Jackson asked.
"Sure. Trainer battles are traditional." she explained, "Besides, it's customary for trainers to battle each other if they lock eyes with one another."
"That's a thing?" Jackson questioned, "Well, I'm all for it. Let's go!"
Moments later, the two found themselves away from each other, Eevee and Ledyba on Jackson's side, while the Pokémon Ranger readied herself. "Let's make this a two vs. two single battle." She suggested, "That's when each of us can use two Pokémon each for one on one battles. I'll go easy on you, since you're new, by using my two weaker Pokémon."
"I don't want to be looked down upon." Jackson stated, "Do however you wish!"
"Then I'll start with this Pokémon. Go, Sentret!" She tossed a ball, and out came the racoon-tailed creature Jackson encountered before, calling out as it readied to fight.
"In that case, I choose Ledyba!" Jackson called out, waving a hand forward as Ledyba flew in, ready to fight. "I always let the lady make the first move." Jackson told her, waving a hand to her, "It's traditional for me."
"That is both sweet and foolish, depending on how you look at it." Madeline noted, "Sentret, use Fury Swipes!" Sentret used its tail to push itself into the air, its tiny paws producing claws with them.
"Use Comet Punch to counter it!" Jackson called out, and his Ledyba flew in with glowing fists. The two engaged in a clash between fists and claws, each of them delivering a bit of damage to the other, before Sentret fell to the ground again.
"Impressive. Ledyba has some pretty good skills to combat my Sentret's claws." Madeline praised.
"Ledyba likes using its fists in battle." Jackson answered, "Now, go in for a Tackle!" His ladybug Pokémon flew at Sentret with a full body blow.
"Counter with Defense Curl!" Madeline responded. Sentret curled up into a ball, and took the attack, rolling backwards. It unveiled itself, revealing it to have endured.
"So that was the move Phanpy used? Defense Curl?" Jackson understood.
"Yep. It is a great way to build up your defenses against attacks." Madeline stated, "Now for a counterattack. Use Quick Attack!" Sentret shot forward at high speeds, like Eevee did.
"Fly up!" Jackson responded, and Ledyba flew up, only for Sentret to push itself up by the tail, and strike him head-on, forcing him to fall from the sky, hitting the ground. "Damn, I couldn't evade that fast attack!" Jackson grimaced.
"Now go into Fury Swipes!" Madeline shouted, and Sentret readied its claws at Ledyba.
"Use Supersonic!" Jackson called out. His Pokémon responded with a point-blank sonic wave that hit Sentret, and ended up going into a confused state. It ended up swiping wildly, but ended up scratching itself once, while only hitting Ledyba on the back once. "Send it back with Tackle!" Jackson called out, and his partner sent the Normal-type back hard with the attack. Sentret tumbled along the ground, until it collapsed on its back, with spirals in its eyes.
"Looks like my Sentret cannot battle any longer." Madeline stated, calling back her partner to its Pokéball, "Clever trick on using Supersonic. You're pretty good at this."
"Honestly, I was worried there." Jackson admitted, "But fortunately, Ledyba was able to respond quickly to my calls."
"True, you were pretty good there…" the ranger admitted, pulling out another Pokéball to replace her other, "…but what about dealing with this? Ponyta, go!" She called out a Pokémon that looked like a cream-colored horse with black eyes and hooves, and the mane on its back was red flames.
"What is that?!" Jackson questioned, digging out his dex and examining the Pokémon.
"Ponyta. The Fire Horse Pokémon. Ponyta is very weak at birth. It can barely stand up. This Pokémon becomes stronger by stumbling and falling to keep up with its parent."
"It's a Fire-type, which is bad for Ledyba, who is a Bug-type." Jackson noted, putting away the Pokédex.
"This Ponyta was one I actually rescued recently." Madeline explained, "She had become pretty attached to me, and has been wanting to help out with my Ranger business."
"Yet another way for Pokémon to help people out with their duties." Jackson noted, "It's pretty handy to have them around, huh?"
"Ledy-dee!" Jackson heard his partner called to him, and saw Ledyba turn to him, before producing what looked like a window out of thin air, with a slight rainbow sheen to it. "What the…?!" Jackson gasped, "What is that?!"
"Seems like the previous battle helped Ledyba learn Reflect." Madeline recognize, "Well done on your partner!"
"Reflect?" Jackson echoed, pulling out his dex again, and examining the move, "A move that creates a barrier to endure physical attacks for a period of time. There is even another move here that Ledyba learned called Light Screen, which does the same, but endures special attacks. But wait…" Jackson looked to the moves, and noticed, "Where did Tackle go?"
"Pokémon are only able to learn four moves at a time." Madeline explained, "So if Ledyba learned a fifth move, it replaced one of its old moves for another."
"Well, that's pretty bizarre." Jackson stated, "I mean, isn't Tackle just a body blow of sorts? How can that be forgotten?"
"Hey, that's just how Pokémon are. I don't know the logic." Madeline shrugged it off, "Let's get back to the battle, alright?"
"Sure thing!" Jackson answered, "Go in with a Supersonic!" At his call, Ledyba unleashed a sonic wave at Ponyta.
"Dodge it!" Madeline responded, and Ponyta galloped around the attack, charging at Ledyba. "Use Ember!" The flaming horse unleashed ember shots from her mouth at Ledyba.
"Dodge it!" Jackson called out, and Ledyba panicked as it avoided the attack, only to end up getting blasted out by a fireball.
"We got it now!" Madeline noted, "Use Flame Wheel!" Ponyta galloped forward, and with a swish of its mane, ended up turning into a flaming wheel coming at Ledyba.
This surprised Jackson at the crazy attack, but he had to act. Ledyba looked too injured to avoid it, so he had to rely on his newest attack. "Ledyba, set up Reflect!" Jackson called out. Ledyba's eyes glowed, summoning an invisible barrier before it. Ponyta made contact, and the there was a flaming explosion, before Ledyba was sent backwards, hitting the ground in front of Jackson, with spirals in its eyes.
"Looks like that's it for Ledyba." Madeline sated, as Jackson used his Pokéball to put Ledyba away.
"Guess that Reflect was pretty useless." Jackson sighed, putting away the ball.
"Don't be too sure of yourself." Madeline warned him, "It might've come in handy."
"What do you mean?" Jackson questioned her.
"You'll find out in our last battle." Madeline responded, "Now, call out your final Pokémon."
"Okay then…" Jackson responded, somewhat confused, "Eevee, let's go!"
"Vee, vee!" Eevee leapt forward, ready to fight.
"Let's not waste any time! Use Flame Wheel!" Ponyta charged forward, turning into another flaming wheel again.
"Use Sand Attack!" Jackson responded, and Eevee kicked up sand with its hind legs, reaching Ponyta from a distance, but the Fire-type was still charging in. Jackson and Eevee panicked as the attack made contact. However, they soon noticed something that surprised them more; the Reflect barrier had appeared again, reducing the attack's damage.
"The Reflect is there?!" Jackson gasped, "Did Eevee learn Reflect, as well?"
"Reflect can sustain itself for a while, even if you switch out Pokémon." Madeline explained.
"That's handy." Jackson stated, "Guess we should thank Ledyba for this if we win this fight." Eevee chirped in response to this, as Jackson called out, "Use Quick Attack!" Eevee shot quickly at Ponyta, striking it on the side. "Do it again!" Jackson called out, and Eevee pivoted around and went to attack again.
"Outpace her, Ponyta!" Madeline called out, and Ponyta ran fast to evade Eevee's attack. "Keep up with her!" Jackson called to Eevee, and she ran in pursuit of Ponyta. The area now became a race track, with Ponyta trying to outrun the small fox creature in a Quick Attack.
"You are my Pokémon, and I know you are speedy!" Jackson called out, "You can go so fast, that you will break the speed of sound! You got this, Eevee!"
Eevee heard her master's call, and felt the strength in his words, somehow going faster to catch up and be at the same pace as the long-legged Ponyta. Madeline was shocked and impressed by Eevee's speed, but didn't respond in time when she had just made a leap into Ponyta, and knocked her over.
"Way to go, Eevee!" Jackson cheered, while Eevee was panting from the running.
"We can't let up! Use Ember!" Madeline called out.
"Use Swift!" Jackson responded. Both Pokémon unleashed their long-ranged attacks at each other, but Eevee's stars overpowered Ember thanks to the Adaptablity, and pummeled Ponyta while it was down, creating a dust cloud. When the dust cleared, Ponyta was knocked out, unable to continue.
"Looks like we won!" Jackson cheered, "Nice going, Eevee!" He noticed the Evolution Pokémon was stumbling a bit, before collapsing from exhaustion. He went over to her, and picked her up, asking, "You okay? Guess I kinda pushed you too hard when you were running."
Madeline walked over to Ponyta, raising her head as she regained her consciousness, saying, "You did a great job, Ponyta. Rest up for now." Ponyta nodded, and was called back to her Pokéball.
She wandered over to Jackson and Eevee, saying, "Guess you bested me this time around. Well done, Jackson."
"Thanks. And thank you for the battle." Jackson replied, bowing to her in response.
Because the sun was setting, the two ended up pitching their camping supplies to rest up and feed their Pokémon, the four that fought each other now enjoying their meal together. Jackson got to cook up some food for himself and Madeline, the two sitting together as they ate.
"It'll be too dangerous to go out at night like this, so it's best to rest up for tonight." Madeline told Jackson, "Thanks you for the meal, by the way."
"Hey, I'm glad you enjoy it." Jackson answered, "Believe me, back home, I ended up doing a lot of cooking for my family, when I wasn't saving…I mean, when I was training like crazy with my swordsmanship."
"You are a rather interesting individual." The ranger stated, "I never saw a trainer carrying around a sword like you, before. You say you were sheltered, but you clearly have skills as a trainer most newcomers don't have."
"I…studied a lot." Jackson answered. This wasn't wrong, as he studied a lot of books on Pokémon, and he still was reading right now. He also took in all of his martial arts lessons in the world he learned such things.
"If you say so." Madeline replied, before gasping, "Oh, yeah! I should bring out my ace partner to join us." She dug into her pocket, and pulled out of Pokéball that was different from the red casing one. This one was black and yellow-striped, instead. She tossed it up, and out popped a Pokémon that took Jackson by surprise. It was large, rocky-looking two-legged Pokémon. It was mixtures of gray-brown with light brown boulders for what looked like armor, two horns on its head, a heavy-looking tail, blade-like protrusions from its arms, which had holes in the palm of its hands, and stubby feet.
"What the heck?! I've never seen any Pokémon this big!" Jackson exclaimed.
"This is my best partner, Rhyperior." Madeline introduce her partner, who roared in response. Jackson dug into his pocket to pull out the Pokédex, raising it to the monstrosity.
"Rhyperior. The Drill Pokémon, and the evolved form of Rhydon. It puts rocks in holes in its palms and uses its muscles to shoot them. Geodude are shot at rare times. Its carapace can withstand volcanic eruptions."
"Holy crap…" Jackson muttered, looking up at Rhyperior, as Madeline got some Pokémon food for it, giving the big bowl over to it, "That looks like one powerful Pokémon."
"In the rocky regions like this, Rhyperior has become my best friend and my best ally when it comes to doing my ranger duties." Madeline explained, patting the horn of its head as it ate, "It's thanks to him that I chose to become a Ranger, after he saved me from a rockslide when I was a child. Course, he was a Rhyhorn back then."
"So he is your hero?" Jackson asked.
"Yep, though there have been times where I came to his rescue." She explained, "The two of us had our fair share of ordeals, but that built our trust upon one another to help save Pokémon and people.
"You've developed a trust with one another, huh?" Jackson questioned, looking to Eevee and Ledyba.
"Do you trust your Pokémon?" Madeline asked.
"I want to, but…well, I am having difficulty trusting a lot of things nowadays." Jackson answered, looking down at his feet, "I went through a hell of a lot before I started this journey."
"Oh…I'm sorry I asked." The young woman apologized, seeing his expression, feeling bad for him, "But listen, there will come a time where you have to trust in your Pokémon, just like they will trust you. That way, you can overcome all sorts of obstacles."
"They will trust in me?" Jackson asked.
"Yeah. You are their trainer, and that means you have a responsibility to help them overcome ordeals together." She pat Jackson's shoulder, before finishing, "You are still new to this, but you will learn."
"Yeah, sure…" Jackson responded standing up, before walking over to his tent, "I'm calling it a night. Probably leave early in the morning to make my way to Blackthorn."
Madeline felt like she touched a subject that was hard for Jackson, and decided on to pursue it, so instead she said, "Yeah. Goodnight." Eevee and Ledyba had finished their meals, and saw Jackson enter the tent. They looked to each other, and decided to join him in the tent, leaving Madeline and her Pokémon alone.
The young lady heard the shuffling in his tent as he readied for bed, looking to Rhyperior, as Sentret and Ponyta joined them. "I really hope he creates a strong bond with his Pokémon, as much as I have with you guys." The three responded to her happily, as she smiled sweetly at them.
In the tent, Jackson was resting with his eyes open, as Ledyba was near his feet, while Eevee was right by his head, curled up and asleep. He couldn't help but think on Madeline's words, and about trusting his Pokémon, just like they would trust him. On both ends, he was struggling. It was due to the turmoil of his past that caused him to lose his trust. This was something he had to learn, and soon.
As he closed his eyes and fell asleep, he was once again greeted by nightmares of his past again. As he struggled, Eevee and Ledyba were woken by his grimaces, and the two looked to each other, worried, before looking at Jackson. They rested themselves close to Jackson's heart, trying to comfort him. He had no idea that the two were already trusting him enough to want to help him as he slept.
After that, Jackson could feel the warmth as he was able to sleep a little more peacefully than he had before, though not knowing the reason why…that is, until the next morning.