Hey guys and gals, new chapter here. First thanks to everyone who favorited, followed or left a review. Normally I'd shout out each new supporter but there are far too many for that. Honestly I started writing this on and off last year just for fun so I'm glad for all the positivity so far. To answer some questions I got in the reviews, no Liko will not be in this story. I have only seen a bit of Horizons and am not really interested in it so no characters from there will be here. Ash's old Pokemon will be featured but not for a while.

CH 2 My Treasure Hunt

Ash woke up well before the required time the next morning, he was too anxious to sleep any longer. He was a bit nervous about what Director Clavell expected of him so he needed to try and clear his nerves first. With Sprigatito in his ball and Pikachu on his shoulder he made his way out into Mesagoza. The students were not due to arrive for another three hours so he had some free time.

He had explored much of Mesagoza and the immediate area around the previous day but he still had some new places to check of new, Clavell had given him a new outfit, one that was similar to the student outfit. He had on a purple jacket with a white shirt and red tie under it. Black pants with blue and white sneakers and a scarlet colored cap with the school logo on it. He had picked up a new backpack at the local store, a red and white one.

Headed towards the plaza he noticed a crowd gathered to watch a battle between two trainers. On one side was a dark skinned girl with a Fuecoco and on the other a boy with an Eevee. They both looked like students and it seemed like the girl was clearly winning.

"Fuecoco use Ember!" The little fire croc blasted Eevee with a burst if fire, knocking it out instantly.

"Ooh that's the student council president for you," Ash heard one girl whisper.

"Even with a brand new Pokemon you can tell she's a Champion rank trainer," a boy whispered back.

That really piqued Ash's interest. Perhaps she had the same idea as him, starting a new journey from scratch. Ash watched as they boy recalled his Eevee and the two shook hands.

"Alright I got time for one more battle, so who's next!" The girl declared rather loudly. Ash was surprised to not see anyone taking her up on her request. He remembered hearing she was the school Student Council President so perhaps people were too intimidated by her.

"I'll take you on!" Ash exclaimed as he made his way through the crowd. He couldn't help but hear people whispering as he made his way to the center of the plaza.

"No way isn't that the guy who beat Leon?" One boy asked his friend.

"Oh he's so handsome, think he'd go on a date with me?" Another girl asked her friend.

Nemona was surprised to say the least. The entire school had been watching the Masters Tournament as part of their Battle Skills class, she had not expected the winner to show up here. While Paldea had their own rankings, there was no denying he was strong, having taken down three of the most powerful regional champions. She had the sneaking suspicion that Director Clavell had something to do with this.

"Well now, didn't expect to see such a celebrity here," Nemona teased him.

"I'd be happy to battle you if you want," Ash responded. Sprigatito would be at a major disadvantage so he'd have to use Pikachu here.

"Absolutely, but I want to test my luck with your Pikachu. Let's see how Furcoco stacks up."

"You sure about that?"

"Of course, I bet everyone here wants to see your Pikachu in action anyway,"Nemona answered confidently.

"Well if you're sure then I guess I can't say no,"Ash answered,"Pikachu let's go!"

"Pika!" Pikachu called out as he took his place on the field.

"Fuecoco use Ember!" Nemona exclaimed.

Fuecoco fired a burst of fire at Pikachu,"Pikachu dodge and use Quick Attack!"

Pikachu easily dodged the attack and slammed into Fuecoco, knocking it out instantly. "Yes that is one tough Pikachu,"Nemona said recalling Fuecoco.

"Good job buddy," Ash thanked Pikachu as he hopped back onto his shoulder.

"Well that was to be expected," Nemona said recalling Fuecoco,"if I had my other Pokemon on hand I'd go again but I don't."

"You battle a lot I take it?"

Nemona nodded eagerly,"whenever I possibly can. Win or lose it's all good as long as I can battle."

"Same here, though admittedly I don't get many challengers as a champion."

"Is that why you came to Paldea?"

"Director Clavell invited me actually, but I will be doing the gym challenge too."

The crowd began to disperse, leaving Ash and Nemona to themselves. The pair headed over to a local cafe that Ash had been meaning to check out. Placing an order they took a seat at one of the outdoor tables.

"So what's it like being the World Champion?"

"It's fun, but I don't get many challenges. The last I had was when Lance challenged me."

"Well I guess that comes with the title," Nemona added as the waitress brought them their breakfast of waffles, eggs and coffee.

"Oh wow this food is good,"Ash marveled digging into the food.

"Yeah this is one of my favorite places in Mesagoza," Nemona said as she dug into the food as well.

Pikachu happily sipped from a bottle of ketchup Ash had bought him. It was a small one at the very least.

"Are you doing the gym challenge too?" Ash asked Nemona.

"I am, I did it last time around but I wanted to go again with a different team."

"You can do it a second time?"

"Most don't but I live for battles so I had to."

"Clavell mentioned something about a treasure hunt, what is it exactly?"

Nemona thought about it for a minute before answering,"that's kind of hard to answer. The hunt is all about discovering what your treasure is, it's different for each person."

"That is pretty vague, but I see what you mean that everyone would value it in a different way."

"Exactly, most people try something different with each hunt, but I know battling is my treasure so I stick with that."

"Since you've done the gym challenge before, mind telling me what the leaders are like?"

"They are all strong, especially when it comes to their Terastilized Pokemon."

"Tera-what?" Ash asked not knowing what that meant."

"It's a phenomenon unique to Paldea, I'm sure you'll witness it first hand real soon though."

The two continued to chat and eat for a while before it was time to get going. Ash was nervous about his first day, but nevertheless he was excited as well. He had been asked to report to the faculty room which was where he was headed for.

Stepping inside he was greeted by a blonde haired man in a green jacket.

"You must be Ash Ketchum," the man introduced," my name is Hassel. I'm the school art teacher as well as the leader of the Paldea Elite Four."

"Wait are all the faculty members league trainers?" Ash asked as they shook hands.

"No just me but it's a title I take pride in. I heard from Clavell you plan on challenging our regional gyms?"

"I am yes!" Ash answered eagerly.

"Excellent, given your reputation I am expecting much from you."

"Well I'll try and live up to those expectations."

"I am expecting th same of you champion."

Ash looked towards the door to see a tall dark skinned woman scanning him. The woman gave off a regal and powerful air, something akin to a true champion.

"Ash this is Geeta our regional champ, or you may have heard her being called La Primera."

"Wait do you teach here too?" Ash asked confused.

"No I simply like to come by and visit to see how the students are doing," Geeta answered,"however when I heard you were here I knew I had to drop by. That battle you had with Leon was quite the spectacle."

Ash chuckled as he sheepishly rubbed his head,"thanks I'm glad to hear you think so."

"However, please keep in mind that your title doesn't carry the same weight in 'll need to prove yourself against our league before you can challenge me."

"It's been a while since I started a journey from scratch so I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Excellent, well I wish you luck, rest assure I'll be watching your progress eagerly."

Later that Day

Ash was sitting in the cafeteria, a plate of food in front of him. It had been a long day of introductions for him and now he was keen to enjoy a quiet evening. Ash sat in quiet until he saw Arven sitting across from him. He had been keen on learning more about him.

"Mind if I ask for a favor?"

Ash nodded his head,"sure what is it?"

"There's something I'm looking for," Arven said pulling out a book,"the Herba Mystica."

"Is that some kind of plant?"

"Indeed it is, a rather special one," Arven explained showing Ash a picture in his book,"these plants are said to have mystical properties that can heal any kind of ailment. However, they are guarded by Titan Pokemon."

"Titan Pokemon?"

"Pokemon that are much larger and stronger than others of the same species," Arven continued,"I'm not much of a battler so I can't handle it on my own."

"These Titan Pokemon are scattered across Paldea?"

Arven nodded,"yeah there are five in total, each in a different province. Since you were planning on traveling across Paldea, I could tag along and help you with them. It would also let me keep an eye on Miraidon."

"Yeah that's good with me Arven, I'd be happy to help you out!"

"Excellent it'll be a lot easier with you helping out."

"What do you need the herbs for anyway?"

"They can help Miraidon heal," Arven said with a hint of hesitation.

Ash could tell that he wasn't telling the full story again but he wasn't going to press him. Hunting for these Titan Pokemon did seem interesting at least and he'd be happy to have a new travel buddy as well.

"Do you have any idea where we can find them?"

"Not yet,however I have a fellow student who is helping me with tracking down their locations."

"I bet they're probably scattered around all of Paldea."

"Yeah I'd imagine, but since you'll be traveling anyway it's not a big deal."

The two continued chatting for a bit before going their separate ways. Walking ut of the cafeteria, Ash crossed paths with Clavell.

"Ah perfect timing, I was just looking for you."

"Did you need something from me?"

Clavell nodded," yes I have a friend who wanted a word with you, a friend of Arven as well."

Ash followed Clavell back to his office, expecting to see someone else there. However, he found that there was nobody else there. He was now wondering who or where this friend was. Looking towards the large monitor he saw the screen turn on as a man appeared on it.

"You must be the one who befriended Miraidon, my name is Professor Turo," the man introduced.

"Miraidon, is it your Pokemon?"

"No I was merely caring for it, though it has never been keen on listening to me," Turo lamented.

"So you don't mind me looking after it?"
"I was hoping you would, Miraidon is too weak to battle in its current state but it's strong enough to let you ride on it."

"It'll make getting around easier, yes."

"Excellent, given your reputation I know I can trust you with this task. Take good care of Miraidon and it may be able to battle alongside you soon."

With that the live feed cut out. Ash realized he hadn't found out where Professor Turo was based, perhaps he'd get to visit later on.

A few Days Later

Ash was currently standing outside the Academy, backpack at the ready as he waited for Arven. Today was the day he would begin his journey through Paldea. He would be returning to the school every now and then to help with teaching but he had some free time for a while now.

His first stop would be the Bug gym in Cortando, so he'd need to catch a flying or fire type first. He was excited to see what new Pokemon he'd come across.

"You ready to go?" Arven asked as he approached Ash.

"Yeah, are we both hopping on Miraidon?"

"Two people might be too much for it right now. Once it recovers enough we should both be able to ride."

"Well I guess we're walking for now then," Ash concluded.

"So we're headed to Cotando first?"

Ash nodded,"yeah though I do want to catch some Pokemon first."

"A fire or flying type would serve you well."

"Do you have any idea where we should go first?" Ash asked as Arven looked over his map.

"We should head to Area Three of the Southern Province," Arven suggested,"there's a good fire type you can get there plus we may find a Titan Pokemon there."

"It seems a bit far but yeah that sounds good."

"Excellent we'll head out now."

The duo made their way out of Mesagoza and onwards to their new journey.

Elsewhere

"Hello my peeps, what's crackalaking!" Iono shouted into her microphone as people posted "F" in the chat for their now destroyed eardrums.

"Hehe sorry loves, I'm just in such a giddy mood today, my training for upcoming gym challengers is going swimmingly."

Iono checked her numbers to see twenty-five thousand people in the stream chat. Her numbers just kept going up and she hadn't even started the collaboration yet.

"FYI I'm going to be switching gears a bit soon,"Iono said with a forlorn expression,"I'm hitting the road to travel a bit. But don't worry I'll still be streaming when I can."

People in the chat seemed saddened by her news but excited for what was to come. Though they did wonder about her duties as a gym leader.

Iono continued as she read the chat,"don't worry I still have ideas on how to also run the gym."

"I'll be doing lots more vlogs as I tour Paldea, doing interviews with the locals, showing off all the sights and keeping you posted on my journey. I call it the… Iono Chronicles!"

The name "Iono Chronicles" appeared on the screen in big, bold and colorful letters. The stream chat went crazy as donations began to roll in.

"Remember this is a charity stream, all proceeds go to the Paldea Nature Conservation Group so let's blow this platform wide open with moolah!"

The moolah continued to pour in, "yeah boys donate harder!" Iono began to make obscene gestures with her hand before remembering to try and keep it PG.

Looking at the total she saw they had raised over eighty thousand Pokedollars so far. It was on track to being a new record for her charity streams. Iono moved her chair back a bit, grabbing an energy drink from her cooler.

"Yeah we're going late into the night boys and girls, grab some coffee, energy drinks, or maybe even both!" Iono chugged her energy drink before slamming the can down onto her desk.

"Now then I will be doing a series of big giveaways throughout this new vlog series. All you gotta do is leave a like and comment on each new video and you'll be entered into a weekly giveaway. What the prizes are is a surprise of course, you could even win a date with me!"

The chat went crazy before Iono started laughing,"psyche, sorry that was a joke!" Everyone in the chat spammed sad faces. "Sorry couldn't help but mess with y'all a bit there. Nah it takes a lot more than a giveaway to win my heart, but I promise I'll make up with some almost as good prizes."

Iono resumed reading the chat, looking for more questions to answer,"oh my progress on the collaboration? Nothing new on that front fam but I'm sure I'll run into him at one of the gyms soon enough. Maybe you fans can help me with that, don't approach him though I wanna keep this a surprise for him, unless he's in the stream chat."

"So now for the next hour we'll be playing some games, I know let's play some Fortnite, with a special guest!"

The chat went crazy, excited to see who it was,"welcome to the stream Larry!"

"Why am I here again?" Larry seemed as unmotivated as ever, as if he was being forced to be there.

"Aww come on, I built you that rad gaming computer for a reason, you said you wanted to try using games to unwind after all your league business."

"This just seems like more work," Larry sighed in his monotone voice," what are we playing anyway?"

"Fortnite Battle Royale!"

"Oh," was all Larry said as Iono booted up the game.

"You don't seem very excited,"Iono groaned,"come on it'll be fun, we'll play duos and work together. Maybe you focus on building and I'll do the shooting."

"It sounds like a lot of work if you ask me."

"I'll walk you through it. I'm an expert at this game after all."

Larry sighed," fine but you owe me one."