xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Hau'oli Beachfront, Melemele Island, 11:59 a.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Come on out, Magmar!" Kiawe exclaimed as he threw his Pokéball and out came his Pokémon.
Emerging from the ball was a bipedal creature with a red body and yellow flame designs along the bottom half, a puckered tan beak and two large lumps on its forehead. With sharp claws on its hands and feet, it also sported two burning flames on its head and one on the end of its tail.
"Maaaag!" Magmar exclaimed as it landed its two feet on the sand.
"Huh?!" Keats exclaimed in surprise as Rotom and Oranguru looked at what was transpiring before them.
"Face me, Alola-hater!" Kiawe shouted angrily.
Upon hearing the scuffle happening on the beach, a small crowd of people and trainers started to form and circle around Keats, Oranguru, Rotom and Kiawe.
"Hey, a battle is happening!" A random stranger in the crowd said as people looked on.
"What's going on?" A different person asked.
"One of the Trial Captains challenged a trainer to a battle. Something about not liking Alola?" Someone said to the person who asked the question.
"And now a crowd is forming, Keatzzzz." Rotom said as it floated over to Keats, the husky framed trainer looking around at the people with a nervous expression on his face.
"Guru." Oranguru said as it rubbed its chin.
"Okay, look, maybe we got off on the wrong foot but- whoa!" Keats said until he was cut off.
"Magmar!" Magmar screamed as it pointed its beak upward and exhaled fire from its mouth in the air, startling Keats.
"I said it already, I won't let anyone insult the Alola region!" Kiawe said with an agitated tone.
"That guy insulted Alola?" A random person said in the crowd as some of the people begun to glare at Keats as he began to sweat with his eyes darting around.
'"Boooo!"' The crowd exclaimed in negative unison at Keats as Oranguru looked at him with a raised eyebrow.
"Hey! Shut up!" Keats screamed angrily back at everyone as someone threw a soda can at him from the crowd. "Ow!" He grunted in pain as he grabbed his forehead in frustration. "I hate this place, I hate this place, I hate this place, I hate this place!" Keats thought with a twitch in his eye.
Shifting his sight towards Oranguru, the hyperintelligent orangutan-like Pokémon continued to look at the adult trainer with the same disappointed and unimpressed expression that it has had since meeting him in the woods along Route 2.
"Did you have to join in the "anti-Keats" campaign, too?!" Keats complained towards Oranguru as the crowd was still booing at him.
"Keatzzzz, what are you going to do?" Rotom asked.
"I don't know!" Keats exclaimed as he put his hands over his ears and try to block out the jeering.
'"Bat-tle! Bat-tle! Bat-tle!"' The crowd chanted as Keats bit his lip and made a face of annoyance.
"Alright!" Keats screamed as the crowd stopped and Kiawe looked on with his Magmar. "We'll have your damn battle!" He said as he pointed at the dark-skinned teen.
"Ranguru..." Oranguru said with a wave of its fan as it got in the center of the space between Keats and Kiawe.
"What's it doing?" Keats said towards Rotom.
"It zzzzayzzzz it shall referee the battle." Rotom translated.
"The Pokémon wants to referee?... Oh, who am I kidding...? The damn thing probably would be able to take on the Elite Four with its own team better than I would with a Legendary Pokémon..." Keats thought, disgruntled.
"I'll allow the Oranguru to referee." Kiawe said. "They're known for their intellect so they would make good and impartial referees." He continued as the Oranguru nodded towards him, accepting the compliment.
"I'm half-expecting that thing to just say this guy will win, even if I won every fight..." Keats thought with an annoyed look in his eyes.
"Let's use two Pokémon. Winner is decided when both are down." Kiawe said.
"A double battle or a two-on-two?" Keats asked.
"Two-on-two." Kiawe replied.
"Oh, thank god... I don't have a good track record with doubles." Keats whispered towards Rotom as the phone Pokémon looked at him with a raised digitized eyebrow.
"You've only fought in one, zzzzt." Rotom said.
"Now take out your Pokémon!" Kiawe exclaimed as his Magmar was growing impatient and ready to fight.
"Let me scan it firzzzzt." Rotom said as it scanned Kiawe's Pokémon for its PokéDex entry. '"Magmar, the Spitfire Pokémon, a Fire type. In battle, Magmar blows out intensely hot flames from all over its body to intimidate its opponent. When it's tired, it leaps into the mouth of a volcano and soaks its body in magma to ease its weariness."' The phone Pokémon stated as Keats looked at the burning billed creature.
"Best way to fight fire is to use water. Shellder, you're on call!" Keats said loudly as he threw out his Water type Pokémon.
"Shellder!" Shellder exclaimed as she emerged from her ball.
"Oranguru." Oranguru said as it raised its fan to ref the battle. "Rangrang!" The Psychic and Normal type said as the battle began.
"Magmar! Use-" Kiawe said, about to give an order until suddenly cut off.
"Wait!" Keats shouted as he raised his hands as Magmar stopped moving.
"Huh?" Kiawe muttered.
"Hold on, I'm swapping out." Keats said as he walked up to Shellder and grabbed the small clam-like Pokémon.
"Already?!" Kiawe exclaimed in surprise. "What for?" He asked as Magmar scratched its head with its claw.
"I just realized something is all..." Keats said as he walked back over to his spot on the battlefield and placed Shellder on the ground next to him. "Hey." He said quietly towards Shellder.
"Shellder-shell?" Shellder said, confused.
"Sorry, it's nothing personal but I just realized you can't move very well so I need to use a different Pokémon. I'll recall you in a minute." Keats said as Oranguru looked on with a raised eyebrow. "I also haven't used you yet in a battle so it might not be wise to have you fight..." He thought as he looked at the Water type.
"...Shellder..." Shellder said with sad eyes as Keats turned around and reached into his pocket to grab a different Pokéball.
Looking at his next Pokéball he planned to use, Shellder looked on at her trainer before glancing over at his pocket. Staring at his side, Shellder locked eyes with the clear blue stone he had stored in there once more.
"Orangururu-rangruruang." Oranguru said towards Keats as he looked at the Pokémon with a raised eyebrow.
"Translation?" Keats said towards Rotom.
"It's saying that zzzzince you called out Shellder, you have to use it as one of your two Pokémon for this match." Rotom explained as Keats bit his lip.
"...So, my odds are either that I sweep with just the one Pokémon, or I lose..." Keats thought as he figured out who to use. "Timburr, you're on call!" He exclaimed as he called out his Fighting type.
"Timburr!" Timburr said as he held up his log over his right shoulder after landing on the beach.
"Alright!" Kiawe said. "Let's finally begin! Magmar, use "Flamethrower!"' He ordered as Magmar breathed in.
"Maaaaaagmar!" Magmar exhaled, shooting out a torrent of fire from its beak.
"Dodge!" Keats said as Timburr ducked the approaching fire. "Now use "Focus Energy!"' He ordered as Timburr proceeded to lift up his log overhead as a red aura appeared over his body.
"Magmar, use "Will-o-Wisp!"' Kiawe ordered as Magmar put its hands up and a series of four whitish-blue fireballs floated around its body.
Looking onward, Timburr was confused as the four whitish-blue fireballs suddenly disappeared from around Magmar and then appeared around the Fighting type. Shrinking and then phasing into Timburr's body, Timburr's body was suddenly lit aflame.
"Timbu!" Timburr exclaimed in sudden pain as his body spontaneously combusted into flames for a moment before taking a knee.
"What the heck was that?!" Keats exclaimed in surprise.
'"Will-o-Wizzzzp!"' Rotom said as Keats turned towards the phone Pokémon. "It's a Fire type move that causes the opponent Pokémon to be afflicted with a burn effect. Causing them to zzzzlowly gain fire damage until passing out." The phone Pokémon described while flashing an animation towards Keats of the move.
"That's so annoying... I should look into that actually..." Keats thought with moderate interest as he turned his attention back to the battle.
"Use this opportunity to use "Flamethrower!" One more time, Magmar!"' Kiawe said as he gave an order to his Fire type.
"Maaaaag." Magmar said, breathing in for another torrent of fire.
"Two can play the "slow damage" game! Timburr, use "Poison Jab!"' Keats said as Timburr put his log on the ground and rushed at Magmar.
"Maaaar!" Magmar exclaimed as it shot out another "Flamethrower."
"Tiiiiimburrr!" Timburr exclaimed as he ran at the oncoming fire.
Leaping into the flame torrent, Timburr was hit by the "Flamethrower" attack but pushed though the fire to make close eye contact with Magmar. His hand glowing purple and his body and eyes glowing red, Timburr managed to swing his palm and smacked Magmar in the face with a "Poison Jab."
"What was that?!" Keats thought as he noticed the glow on Timburr that suddenly disappeared.
"Magmar!" Magmar grunted as it fell over onto its side.
"Tim-timbu!" Timburr said as he stood on the sand until his body spontaneously caught fire once more.
"Timburr! Come on back!" Keats said in a concerned tone. "Whatever it was, it's the least of my worries right now. I have a battle to survive through!" He thought as Timburr rushed back to Keats' side of the battlefield.
"Magmar!" Kiawe said as Magmar started to get back to its feet.
"Maaag-magmar!" Magmar said with strain until it stood up once more.
"Tiiiim... Tiiiiim..." Timburr said with heavy breaths as he picked up his log.
"It didn't catch the poison effect..." Keats thought as he noticed that Kiawe's Magmar wasn't afflicted with a status condition.
"It'zzzz not always going to work, Keatzzzz." Rotom said as Oranguru continued to watch the battle unfold.
"Magmar, use "Confuse Ray!"' Kiawe ordered loudly as Magmar put its hands on its forehead and its eyes glowing slightly.
"I got to end this fast before the burning completely wrecks Timburr!" Keats thought with a worried expression forming on his face. "Timburr, use "Smack Down!"' He exclaimed as Timburr readied his log in a caber toss style.
Emitting a series of waves from its head, Magmar used "Confuse Ray" in an attempt to afflict Timburr with another problematic condition. As his log glowed orange, Timburr proceeded to fling it high into the air as Timburr was hit by the waves, making the Fighting type now sees stars and bird-like creatures in a circle over his head. With no chance to dodge from using "Confuse Ray," Magmar was suddenly struck in the skull by Timburr's log, hit by a super effective Rock type "Smack Down" attack.
"Magma!" Magmar exclaimed in pain as it fell to its knees as it held its head.
"Oh no!" Kiawe muttered in surprise.
"Alrigh- guh!" Keats said cheerfully until noticing Timburr was now stumbling around in the sand.
"Tiiiiiim... Tiii-timbur!" Timburr said in confusion until suddenly bursting into flames once again, falling onto his knees like Magmar.
"Not good!" Keats said to himself.
"Got to get this done fast before he does that again..." Kiawe said as Magmar started to get to its feet. "Use "Brick Break!"' He ordered as Magmar looked at Timburr stumbling and flailing around.
"Dodge it, Timburr!" Keats said as Magmar jumped into the air.
Raising its right arm overhead, Magmar attempted to karate chop the dazed Fighting type with a Fighting type maneuver in the skull. However, as the Fire type got closer, Timburr spun around in its dazed state and wound up dodging the move on accident as Magmar's hand went into the sand.
"Tiiiiimmm..." Timburr said, still confused.
"Now's your chance! Use "Poison Jab!"' Keats exclaimed as Timburr's hand glowed purple once more and his body and eyes glowing red.
Looking in surprise, Magmar was caught off guard as Timburr had managed to swing its poisonous hand into its neck, causing the Fire type to be knocked down to the ground once again, its claws around its neck from being struck in the windpipe. Timburr, after managing to land the strike and the different colored glow dissipating, then quickly grabbed his head with his hands to stop the spinning feeling he had been suffering from.
"What's with that glow?" Keats said, confused.
"That's Timburr's "Gutzzzz" ability." Rotom said as Keats looked at the floating phone. "When a Pokémon with "Guts" is given a status ailment like poisoning, paralysis or burn, it boosts the Pokémon's damage output of their physically attacking movezzzz." The phone Pokémon explained.
"Wait, does that mean it's unconscious?!" Keats said he looked forward at Magmar, who was struggling to get back to its feet. "Almost..." He thought at the surprising tenacity of his opponent's Pokémon.
"Good, you still have fight left in you." Kiawe said as his Magmar was standing up, albeit hunched over in pain.
"Tiiim... Tiiiim-burr!" Timburr grunted in pain as he burst into flames once more, taking damage.
'"This needs to end now!"' Keats and Kiawe thought simultaneously.
"Magmar! "Brick Break!"' Kiawe exclaimed as Magmar rushed at Timburr with a raised arm for a chop once again.
"Timburr, "Smack Down!" Keats shouted. "Hope this works!" He thought nervously. "Then grab Magmar's arm after you throw the log!" Keats screamed.
Throwing his glowing orange squared log into air once again, Timburr proceeded to stand his ground as the taller Magmar raised its arm overhead and swung it down. Lifting up his hands, the Fighting type grabbed the wrist of Magmar to block the "Brick Break." Caught in Timburr's hold, Magmar looked upward as it remembered that Timburr threw up the log again and watched helplessly as the Rock type empowered piece of wood landed on the Fire types skull a second time.
"Maaaaaag-mar..." Magmar said as the log impacted on its head once again as swirls formed in its eyes before falling down into a state of unconsciousness.
"No! Magmar!" Kiawe exclaimed in shock as the crowd around the battle was in shock and awe.
"Rangu!" Oranguru said, also surprised. "Orangururu-rangrang! Rangrang-ru!" The Psychic and Normal type said as it pointed its fan at Keats as Timburr spontaneously combusted once more.
"Tiiiim!" Timburr grunted in pain as his body caught fire.
"Aaaaahhh!" Keats screamed as his body shook in a panic. "No time to celebrate!" He screamed again as he pulled out Timburr's Pokéball, recalling the Fighting type before it could possibly faint. "Phew..." Keats muttered in relief as something fell out of his pocket.
"Huh, zzzzt?" Rotom mumbled as it noticed the shiny clear blue stone in Keats' pocket had fallen towards the ground and near Shellder's tongue, who was still out of her ball, as the Water type noticed.
"...Not bad." Kiawe said, showing signs of being impressed by Keats' Pokémon as he recalled his own. "Still not taking your comments lightly though!" He said with a still angry look in his eyes.
"I don't hate Alola!" Keats exclaimed as Kiawe and the crowd looked at him, screaming. "I just don't like the tropics! It's an opinion!" He ranted in his defense.
"...Still. Think before you speak out loud or write insults! You don't know who you might piss off!" Kiawe said in a critical but rational manner as Keats' Shellder used her tongue to grab the stone on the ground.
"How was I supposed to know someone would pick up that sign board I threw?!" Keats replied as the crowd looked at him with dumbfounded looks until they noticed a bright white glow next to Keats that he was failing to see.
"...By doing a better job erasing on a marker board on a public beach in the location you're insulting..." Kiawe said as Keats made an embarrassed expression. "Huh?" He mumbled as he noticed something unusual next to Keats.
"Timburr's not in good shape and I have to use Shellder now since I called her out earlier... Gotta go with what I got..." Keats thought as he failed to spot the now dimming bright light next to him. "Okay, Shellder. It's up to-" He said until he was cut off.
"Cloyster has been registered to your PokéDex!" Rotom exclaimed.
"Not now Rotom, I'm in the- waaaahhh!" Keats said towards the floating phone Pokémon before looking down and screaming in shock as a completely different Pokémon was now next to him.
Gone was the small purple clam shell-like Pokémon that he had caught the previous day and in its place was a massive and wide sideways bivalve mollusk-like creature. Purple in color on its outer shell and with a grey inner carapace with a horn on top with three spikes on each side, it had a black pearl-like face with a smile and sharp eyes.
"Cloy!" Cloyster exclaimed as she looked up at Keats.
"Who the heck are you?!" Keats exclaimed as he saw an unfamiliar Cloyster next to him.
"Your Zzzzhellder evolved into a Cloyster from the Water Stone you had in your pocket!" Rotom said as it moved over to scan Cloyster for the PokéDex entry. '"Cloyster, the Bivalve Pokémon and the evolved form of Shellder, a Water and Ice type. When attacked, it launches its spikes in quick volleys. Its innards have never been seen and it swims by swallowing water then jetting it out towards the rear."' The phone Pokémon said as it read off information.
"Well damn!" Keats said in surprised as he kneeled down to look at his newly evolved Cloyster. "Definitely can't carry you are in my hands anymore." He said, plainly obvious. "Wait, when did I have a Water Stone?" Keats questioned.
"That mysterious clear rock you put in your pocket, zzzzt!" Rotom said as Keats suddenly remembered as he patted himself down, searching for the stone.
"Wait, that was a Water Stone?" Keats said, confused. "Well, I had that and that one ultra-jaggy grey stone." He thought with a raised eyebrow.
"Yezzzz!" Rotom exclaimed as Keats scratched the back of his neck.
"...Huh. Who would've thought...?" Keats said with an embarrassed smile as Rotom's digitized eye twitched at him.
"What's going on?" Kiawe said as Oranguru just looked at Keats, unable to fully comprehend Keats' reaction.
"Cloyster!" Cloyster said with a smile towards her trainer. "Cloycloy-cloyster!" She continued as Keats looked up at Rotom.
"She said zzzzhe feels ready to fight now." Rotom translated.
"I don't have to worry about her ability to move anymore, she's practically a tank!" Keats thought as he stood back. "Alright Cloyster! Let's do this!" He exclaimed as Cloyster proceeded to turn towards Kiawe, using her new strength to hop forward, leaving an indent in the sand with each movement.
"Now it's time to really bring the heat..." Kiawe said as he reached into his pocket and pulled out a new Pokéball. "It's time you met my partner. Come on out, Marowak!" He said as he threw his ball.
As the ball opened and a beam of light escaped from it, out came an Alolan version of a Pokémon Keats recognized from Kanto and Johto. A bipedal reptilian-like creature holding a bone but instead of sporting light brown skin, a grey skull and a cream-colored underside, it was much darker and had a mark on its head and its bone it was carrying had green flames burning on both ends.
"Marowak." Marowak said as it raised its bone overhead with one hand.
"Let me zzzzcan it." Rotom said as it looked at the Alolan form of Marowak. '"Marowak - Alolan Form, the Bone Keeper Pokémon, a Fire and Ghost type. Its custom is to mourn its lost companions. When it beats opponents with its bone, the cursed flames spread to them."' The phone Pokémon said as it read off the Dex entry.
"Orangururu." Oranguru said as it raised its fan to officiate the next battle. "Rangrang!" The orangutan-like Pokémon exclaimed, signifying the battle to commence.
"Cloyster, use "Ice Shard!"' Keats ordered as whitish-blue energy appeared between Cloyster's two top horns, a large icicle forming above her head as she fired it like a projectile at Marowak.
"Use your bone!" Kiawe exclaimed as Marowak proceeded to spin its burning bone in its hands like a flag twirler, its tremendous speed causing the icy projectile to melt upon impact, doing very little damage to it.
"Uh!" Keats grunted. "Oh man, I forgot Marowaks aren't Ground types over here!" He exclaimed in surprise as Rotom looked at him with confusion.
"I just read the Dex entry, zzzzt!" Rotom shouted.
"Use "Shadow Bone!"' Kiawe ordered as Marowak ran at Cloyster with its burning bone pulled back for a swing.
"Use "Withdraw!"' Keats exclaimed as Cloyster proceeded to close her shell around her body, bolstering her defense.
Reaching Cloyster, the Alolan form Marowak proceeded to overhead slam its burning bone onto the top of Cloyster, still shielded by her shell. Making a disgruntled expression inside her shell, Cloyster felt a slight surge of pain from the impact.
'"Withdraw" just raises her defense, it doesn't just block all damage like "Protect" does for Pineco..." Keats thought as he watched on. "Cloyster, use "Tackle!"' He said as Cloyster opened up her shell to reveal herself to Marowak.
Jumping forward with all her might, Cloyster attempted to throw her weight against Alolan Marowak. Standing still, however, Marowak did nothing as Cloyster phased through its body, landing behind it with her face in the sand.
"Forgot it's a Ghost type too, huh? Normal type moves like "Tackle" can't touch Marowak!" Kiawe said with a confident tone as Keats looked on as Cloyster readjusted herself to face Marowaks backside.
"Oh, son of a-" Keats exclaimed until he turned his head to look at the referee Oranguru.
With a look of complete dissatisfaction on its face, the Psychic and Normal type Pokémon just looked at Keats with a headshake. With a twitching eyebrow, Keats glared violently at the unafraid Oranguru before turning his head back to the battle.
"Stupid judgmental Pokémon..." Keats thought as Kiawe's Marowak was preparing another move.
"Marowak, use "Flame Wheel!"' Kiawe said as Marowaks body began to burn with green fire as it turned around to face its opponent.
'"Withdraw!"' Keats shouted as Cloyster raised her defenses once again by closing her shell.
Running at Cloyster, Marowak proceeded to somersault tackle against Cloyster's closed body. The force of the tackle causing Cloyster to be pushed back slightly with its lower half scraping the sand.
"Cloy!" Cloyster grunted as she opened her shell with an expression of discomfort.
"Marowak!" Kiawe shouted. "Jump over her and use "Shadow Bone!"' He said as Marowak followed up its Fire type attack with a Ghost type move.
Jumping high into the air as Cloyster looked up, Marowak leaped over Cloyster as the Alolan variant took a swing with its bone against the backside of the bivalve mollusk-like Pokémon. Hit with hard enough force, Cloyster scraped against the ground in the direction of Keats, the husky framed trainer stepping back slightly as Cloyster got close from the strike propelling her heavy body.
"Cloy-cloyster!" Cloyster grunted as she looked at Keats before hopping to face against Marowak once again, a look of frustration forming.
"Da-darn it. This isn't going well." Keats thought as the crowd started to erupt with excitement.
"Woo!" A stranger in the crowd said.
"I haven't seen a battle this intense in some time!" Another crowd member said.
"Go Marowak! Go Cloyster!" A third stranger exclaimed.
"At least that person didn't pick a side..." Keats thought with annoyance. "Cloyster, we got to start fighting back." He said as Cloyster looked back at her trainer.
"Cloyster!" Cloyster said with a nod.
"Use your "Water Gun!"' Keats ordered as Cloyster breathed in.
"Marowak, use "Flamethrower!"' Kiawe ordered as Marowak also inhaled.
At the same time, the Alolan variant of Marowak and Cloyster proceeded to shoot a torrent of fire and water, respectively. Colliding into each other, the two elemental attacks pushed back and forth from the force of the two Pokémon's attacks until the stronger of the two, the water, beat back the flames and connected with Marowak.
"Marrrooo!" Marowak exclaimed in pain as the water hit its body and caused it to drop its bone on the ground.
"Oh no! Marowak!" Kiawe exclaimed in surprise.
"Water is still stronger against fire!" Keats shouted in an ecstatic tone.
"Grrrr!" Kiawe growled as his reptilian-like Fire and Ghost type got back up and picked up its flaming bone. "Marowak, use "Swords Dance!"' He ordered as Marowak proceeded to fire twirl its bone again as an orange aura appeared around its body.
'"Swords Dance" raises the damage of physically attacking movezzzz." Rotom explained next to Keats.
'"Use "Shadow Bone!"' Kiawe said as Marowak lunged at Cloyster once more.
"The defense boosts from "Withdraw" isn't going to protect her if that things strength is higher." Keats thought. "Gonna have to push it back. Cloyster, "Water Gun" again!" He exclaimed as Cloyster breathed in and shot another torrent of water at her opponent.
Using its burning bone, Marowak cut through the "Water Gun" attack, splitting the beam. As it cut through the attack, Marowak stopped short from continuing its attack as it noticed the green flames disappeared from its bone, prompting it to jump back to reignite it with its spiritual powers.
"At least that pushed it back..." Keats said quietly to himself. "...Only idea I have left..." He thought. "Cloyster, full power! One more "Water Gun!"' Keats shouted as Cloyster proceeded to breath in, heavier than the last two times.
"Marowak, get ready to block it, then use "Shadow Bone!"' Kiawe shouted as Marowak proceeded to fire twirl its bone once again.
Expelling water with immense pressure, Cloyster shot off "Water Gun" at Marowak as the torrent collided with Marowaks spinning bone. Using the twirling flamed weapon as a shield to try and parry the water, Marowak blocked the super effective move as it pushed against the Fire and Ghost type. However, losing its gripping from the force, Cloyster's "Water Gun" broke through the parry and managed to hit Marowak a second time.
"Maaaarrroooo!" Marowak exclaimed in pain as it was sent flying backwards.
"Ah!" Kiawe grunted in surprise as Marowak was sent in his direction, his arms outstretched to catch his Pokémon. "I gotcha!" He said as Marowak landed in his hands and its bone embedded in the sand, its flames dying out as Kiawe looked down to see his Pokémon's eyes swirling into unconsciousness.
Looking on with surprise, Keats, Rotom and the crowd watched on as Keats had beaten Kiawe's team and won the battle. Upon seeing this, Oranguru looked at Keats before sighing and smiling as it raised its fan in his direction.
"Orangurururu. Rangrangru!" Oranguru said as Keats turned to Rotom.
"Did it just disqualify me?" Keats asked with a serious tone.
"No! You won, zzzzt! It just declared you the winner!" Rotom exclaimed as Cloyster looked back at her trainer with a smile.
"We-we won!" Keats said loudly as the crowd cheered.
"...You did good, buddy." Kiawe said with a reserved tone as he stood up and approached Keats, the husky trainer stopping his celebration to notice him approach.
"...You're not gonna punch me for beating you like that one guy who kicked me in the shin for beating him in bar trivia, are you?" Keats questioned as he stepped back slightly, unsure of how the teenage trainer was going to respond.
"Good battle." Kiawe said with a smile as his hand was outstretched for a handshake.
"...Huh? Aren't you gonna kill me for what I said about this place?" Keats muttered in surprise of Kiawe's sportsmanship.
"That was actually a solid battle. Your Pokémon didn't want to disappoint." Kiawe said as he looked down at Keats' Cloyster.
"Th-thank you." Keats said, taken aback. "He looked like he wanted to kill me at first..." He thought with a raised eyebrow as Keats shook his hand.
"Sorry for getting angry earlier. I just care a lot about the region, but actually having a solid battle calmed me down quite a bit. Guess we could've talked things out but I jumped the gun." Kiawe said with a slightly embarrassed face as he rubbed the back of his neck.
"...You think?" Keats thought as he stopped shaking his hand and recalled his Cloyster into her ball.
"Rangu..." Oranguru said as it rubbed its chin as it looked to the side to see a small boy in swim trunks with a Pokéball in hand. "Rangururang?" The orangutan-like Pokémon muttered to grab the child's attention.
"Huh?" The boy said as Oranguru motioned for the child to come forward.
"Rangrang-ru?" Oranguru said with an interested smile towards the child as it pointed at his Pokéball.
"Ye-yeah, I'm a trainer?" The boy said as Oranguru pointed its hand at Keats.
"Oranguru." Oranguru said with an encouraging tone as the child smiled and walked over to Keats and Kiawe.
"Excuse me, can I battle you next?" The small boy said as he raised up his ball.
"...Whoa, what?" Keats said, confused.
"I saw the fight and wanted to test myself against your Pokémon! Since you beat one of the Trial Captains! My Rattata is raring to go!" The boy said.
"Hey! Me too! My Shroomish would like a shot." A female in the crowd said as Keats looked around.
"Wait, hold on-" Keats said in response until getting cut off again.
"As would my Passimian." An older man in the crowd muttered as Keats kept darting his head in different directions at the people now wanting to battle him.
"Who-whoa, wait a minute. I-I don't feel like battling anymore and-and... And I'm out of Pokémon." Keats said, obviously lying to try and avoid any more battling. "Crap, hope this works. If I keep facing people, Imani Snagem might catch wind of me in town and-" He thought until his train of thought was cut off by Oranguru speaking up.
"Orangururuang." Oranguru said with a smile towards Keats as Rotom looked at the Psychic and Normal type.
"What's it saying?" Keats asked.
"It zzzzaid it's not nice to forget about Pineco, Stunky and Druddigon in their balls." Rotom said, translating as Keats looked at the phone Pokémon.
"I didn't forget about them; I just didn't use them to fight-... Oh damn it..." Keats said until he suddenly revealed he had more Pokémon to battle as he realized Oranguru snitched him out.
"Come on!" The small boy said as he went over to where Kiawe originally was and released his Pokémon from its ball.
"Good luck man. I got to go see Nurse Joy." Kiawe said as he put his hands on his hips and walked away.
"Oh, come on, can I just say "no?!"' Keats questioned as one of his Pokéballs floated up to him with a blue aura around it.
"Oranguru." Oranguru said with a smile as its eyes glowed blue, using "Psychic" to hand Keats' Pokéball to him as the husky framed adult glared at the orangutan-like Pokémon.
"You jerk!" Keats thought with growing anger as he turned towards the kid and sighed in frustration.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx Hau'oli Beachfront, Melemele Island, 4:23 a.m. xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"Steenee, use "Stomp!"' A young girl in a summer dress exclaimed as she gave an order to her Pokémon.
"Dodge it, Stunky!" Keats shouted towards his Pokémon.
Chasing after the skunk-like Pokémon was a feminine-looking, plantlike humanoid creature with a dark purple torso and matching dark purple eyes and legs and a wide pair of white hips with a matching white face and arms. Jumping after Stunky, the Pokémon attempted to stomp him as he continued to dodge her strikes, while the opposing Steenee was also coughing purple bubbles out of her mouth, poisoned.
"Stunky! Stall her with "Smokescreen!"' Keats exclaimed.
"Stuuunk-yyyy!" Stunky shouted as he opened his mouth towards Steenee and breathed out a black smoke that was difficult to see through.
"Steeeee-neenee!" Steenee exclaimed as she covered her face as the smoke encompassed her while coughing out more poisonous bubbles.
"Steenee!" The young female trainer shouted as the smoke disappeared and Steenee was now on the ground with swirling eyes, unconscious.
"Orangururu-rangrang." Oranguru said as it pointed at Keats with its fan, declaring him the winner as he recalled Stunky.
"Six... Battles... In almost five hours..." Keats thought, exhausted.
"Thanks for the battle!" The girl in the summer dress said as she took out her Pokéball and recalled her knocked out Steenee before walking away as the crowd was finally gone, leaving only Keats, Rotom and Oranguru.
"That'zzzz five victories and one tie Keats." Rotom said as the phone Pokémon floated next to Keats as he slumped down and sat with his butt on the sand.
"Haaaaa..." Keats groaned from being physically and mentally drained from all the combat. "Timburr and Cloyster were out of commission after that first fight so I had to use Druddigon, Pineco and Stunky... At least letting Pineco explode in one battle helped get rid of a few challengers. I could care less if I got one tie..." He thought.
"Oranguru." Oranguru said as the orangutan-like Pokémon approached Keats and Rotom. "Rangrang." It continued.
"You're still here?... Fantastic." Keats said sarcastically. "What's it want?" He asked towards Rotom.
"It praised you for getting more wins than lozzzzzzzzezzzz in that gauntlet of trainers." Rotom translated.
"Orangu." Oranguru said with a nod, confirming Rotom.
"Oh, how lovely..." Keats said unenthusiastically as he stood up. "I really want to punch you in the eye, but I'd probably get arrested for breaking a Pokémon abuse law..." He thought as he glared at Oranguru.
"Orangurururu." Oranguru said.
"And that was?" Keats said with his arms folded.
"It wantzzzz me to check the conditions of your Pokémon." Rotom said as it floated into Keats' hand.
Pressing down on an icon for Keats' Pokémon, he saw the current health of his team, all low from heavy battling. Despite the rough states of everyone, Keats' eyes widened as a notification appeared over his entire team that stated that all of Keats' Pokémon were eligible to learn new moves.
"Hey, everyone got a whole lot stronger." Keats said with a surprised tone.
"And there you have it, zzzzt!" Rotom exclaimed as its face returned on the screen. "That's how you get zzzztronger! That's how your Pokémon can learn more moves! And evolve like Shellder did into Cloyster! Battling! Zzzzt!" The phone Pokémon screamed in an enthusiastic tone as it darted into Keats' face, dangerously close to his eyes.
"Ahhh! Get off my face! My eyes are burning!" Keats shouted as he grabbed Rotom and pushed the phone Pokémon away as he rubbed his eyes in pain. "Stop doing that!" He angrily proclaimed.
"We made a breakthrough! Of courzzzze I'm going to be happy about it!" Rotom replied. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" The phone Pokémon said as it floated down to meet Oranguru at eye level.
"Rangu." Oranguru said with a smile as it turned to start walking away.
Noticing the orangutan-like Pokémon attempting to leave, Keats reached into one of his bags and pulled out an empty regular Pokéball. Hoping for another opportunity to catch the powerful Pokémon that's been around him all day, he tossed the ball lightly in its direction, hoping to catch it while its defenses were down.
"Uru." Oranguru muttered with a glare as its body glowed blue once more.
Using its "Psychic" once again, Oranguru stopped the ball in mid-air and proceeded to change its direction, launching it over a mile into the nearby ocean. Sinking downward, the Pokéball was completely out of sight as Keats and Rotom watched it disappear into the sea.
"...Uggghhh..." Keats groaned. "It was worth a shot..." He thought.
"Oranguru. Rangrangru." Oranguru said towards Keats.
"Even after all that work, it still doesn't respect me..." Keats said as he hung his head in shame.
"Well... Don't take it so perzzzzonally. Not all Pokémon are going to." Rotom said, trying to verbally comfort Keats.
"Rangu." Oranguru said as Keats looked at it.
"What's it saying now?" Keats asked towards Rotom.
"It zzzzaid to try and become a better trainer and it "might" let you try and catch it in the future. But for now, goodbye and good luck with your journey." Rotom translated as Keats' eye twitched.
"First that dangerous Stunfisk wanted me to catch it just because I made it laugh and now an annoying Oranguru won't let me catch it because I'm too inexperienced. Is every "strong" Pokémon I'm going to encounter just going to be a weirdo!?" Keats thought in anger and bewilderment.
"Ruru." Oranguru said as it walked away, back towards the direction of its home on Route 2.
"...It still had my pot of soup... I hate the tropics..." Keats muttered as he and Rotom were all alone.
"Leazzzzt you got some training in." Rotom said. "Finally..." The phone Pokémon thought.
"Yeah... And now I've been verbally insulted by a wild genius, half this city knows who I am now because of all the battling so if Imani Snagem is here, she's probably deeper in the shadows... And I'm a Pokéball short!" Keats ranted as he pointed at the ocean.
"You zzzzhould probably go out there and grab it." Rotom suggested as it looked out at the water.
"Ugh, forget it, it's probably been eaten by one of those crazy Bruxish..." Keats said in an upset tone.
"It's zzzztill one of your Pokéballs, you should never- Dragalge has been registered to your PokeDex!" Rotom said until it stopped to make a declaration from the Dex.
"Ha-ha. Very funny." Keats said unenthusiastically as he rolled his eyes.
"Ke-Ke-Keatzzzz!" Rotom said with a stutter. "Tha-that ball!" The phone Pokémon said in a frantic tone.
"Yeah, yeah. I got your joke. "Something could have found the ball and went in, I'll register it!" Clever." Keats replied, brushing off the phone Pokémon's shock.
"No! No! That ball in the water! It did catch something, zzzzt!" Rotom said loudly as Keats looked at Rotom with a confused look.
"Wait... You serious?" Keats said, finally getting it.
"It caught a Dragalge, zzzzt!" Rotom said as it quickly flashed an image of the Pokémon that went inside the ball that Oranguru psychically pitched into the ocean.
On Rotom's screen was an aquatic looking creature whose tube-like body was curved in a way that resembled the number three. Its sides were light purple, and majority of its body was shaded a dull brown, it had a light purple patch on its face surrounding its red eyes with a red leaf-like crest and two brownish green antennae on its head. Also on its sides were its long brown fins and a tailfin resembling a large leaf as Keats stared at the image with wide eyes.
'"Dragalge, the Mock Kelp Pokémon, a Poison and Dragon type. Their poison is strong enough to eat through the hull of a tanker, and they spit it indiscriminately at anything that enters their territory."' Rotom said, reading off the PokéDex entry.
"...Uhhhhh..." Keats mumbled, unsure of how to respond. "Ho-how...?" He said, confused.
"Go-go! Get the ball, zzzzt!" Rotom exclaimed.
"I-I-I-" Keats continued to struggle to find the words.
"Now, zzzzt!" Rotom screamed as Keats frantically took off his fisherman's vest, shirt and bags before running towards the water until stopping, the water up to his waistline.
"Hold on, I just realized something..." Keats said before diving in.
"What, zzzzt?" Rotom said.
"Dragalge is a Dragon type right? This is the second time I've caught a Dragon type in the ocean and not a Water type Pokémon. Man, that is weird-" Keats said as he noticed a strange coincidence until getting cut off by Rotom.
"Juzzzzt grab the Pokémon!" Rotom screamed as Keats jumped into the ocean.
Keats ain't got nothing on me, I have plenty of Pokémon at my beck and call and all of them don't even match the same color! Hahaha! No trainer is a match for- oh wait, he won a battle? Wait, he won A FEW BATTLES? In a short amount of time?! What's going on here?! After insulting Alola and drawing the ire of a small crowd of beachgoers, Keats was challenged to a match by Kiawe, one of the notable Trial Captains of the Alola region. Armed with his Magmar and Alolan form Marowak, Keats put up a solid fight as he managed to defeat Kiawe with his team of Timburr and newly evolved Cloyster... Until Oranguru decided that wasn't enough and forced Keats to battle some more with some of the people in the crowd until his Pokémon were just horribly tired. But just as everything had ended, a new development has occurred; Keats' missing Pokéball meant for Oranguru had been chucked in the water and wound up catching an absurd find: a Dragalge! What the hell is going on?! Find out next time, on Wannabe!
Keats' Pokémon:
1. Pineco. Gender: Female. Ability: Sturdy. Moves: "Spikes," "Explosion," "Bide," "Protect."
2. Timburr. Gender: Male. Ability: Guts. Moves: "Poison Jab," "Smack Down," "Focus Energy," "Scary Face."
3. Druddigon. Gender: Male. Ability: Rough Skin. Moves: "Slash," "Dig," "Roar," "Dragon Tail."
4. Stunky. Gender: Male. Ability: Aftermath. Moves: "Fury Swipes," "Poison Gas," "Smokescreen," "Focus Energy."
5. Cloyster. Gender: Female. Ability: Shell Armor. Moves: "Tackle," "Water Gun," "Ice Shard," "Withdraw."
6. Dragalge. Gender: Male. Ability: Poison Point. Moves: "Poison Tail," "Toxic," "Double Team," "Water Pulse."
Authors Note: (Did you know in the Ultra Sun/Ultra Moon games that if you use the SOS system, where a weak Pokémon calls for backup when you're beating it, on a rare spawn Bagon on the first island in the game, there's a HUGELY SMALL possibility of an extremely low level Salamence spawning in? Look it up online, it's totally possible.)