We didn't dare pick a fight with one of the countless birds around us as we kept exploring north. These Pokémon were in flocks, and to pick a fight with one would surely antagonize a large group of them, which was a terrible idea. I did want Apollo to get some more battle experience, but I wasn't about to fight anything in the ocean or pick a fight with an entire flock.

We eventually came across the location the old man had mentioned. It was a shallow runoff ditch that fed into a murky pond sitting just on the edge near the ocean, and I could see the washed-out crevices where it would typically spill into the ocean when full enough.

Years of erosion from slowly feeding excess rainwater to the pond had made it a muddy miniature-sized reservoir, and I walked around its perimeter with interest. True enough to the man's word, I wasn't seeing any Marill; in fact I wasn't seeing any Pokémon at all, which struck me as strange. I was admittedly having difficulty seeing much in the cloudy waters, but it was a nice secluded pocket of nature that surely some Pokémon would find suitable as a home.

"Can you sense anything in the water?" I asked Apollo, who straightened himself on my shoulder and seemed to focus. After a moment, he nodded.

Dominance. Obstinance. Protectiveness.

I hummed, intrigued by the description and wondering what it could be, as well as how I could possibly lure it out. Although I might be picking a fight with something out of our league, I felt pretty sure that I'd be able to recall Apollo and run inland a bit if we got in over our heads. If it was protective of the location, it would probably stay defensive and wouldn't wander far from its home to give chase. I pulled out my Pokédex and attempted to scan whatever laid in the water, but was unable to get any response.

As I considered my options, I pocketed the Pokédex and looked around before finding a few small pebbles and collecting them.

"Apollo, we're going to try to lure it out. Be ready for a fight." I warned, and before I could help him down he teleported to the ground.

I grinned. "I like the spirit, but try to remember not to wear yourself down using moves just before a battle."

Apollo nodded, seeming a little bashful, and I pet his helmet soothingly.

"You'll do great, just do your best." I reassured him as I took a few steps back, grabbing one of the pebbles in my hand and tossing it into the center of the pond. I waited a moment to see if there was any reaction, and when nothing happened I threw a second one with a bit more force, hoping to get the Pokémon's attention.

It worked. Suddenly, a small orange and white crustacean scuttled out of the water snapping its claws and looking decidedly pissed. I instantly recognized it as a Corphish, which made sense; they were known to be extremely territorial and drive others away from their home, and that would explain why the Marill had vacated the area.

I adopted a feral smirk at the thought of having a Crawdaunt on the team. It wasn't likely to get big enough to ferry me long distances anytime soon, but over time it would likely get there. They were known to get quite large as they got stronger, and I could always find a flying type to cross water in the meantime. The species were hardy and more intelligent than their Krabby counterpart, also known to have a high ceiling of potential and being ruthless in battle. It would also be perfect for the upcoming gym, and was likely to be a great asset to the team for a long time to come. This was also likely to be the only water-type that did well on land that I'd find around here, so I wasn't going to pass up this opportunity.

"Apollo, Growl!" I commanded, which he promptly performed. The Corphish clicked in anger and charged forward, seemingly totally unbothered by the attempt at intimidation as it tried to drive us from the area.

"Teleport then Disarming Voice!"

The Corphish reached Apollo just as he teleported a short distance to the side, barely missing a powerful snap of the claws I knew must be a Vice Grip. It looked around in confusion, but just as it spotted Apollo it was struck by the Disarming Voice and visibly winced.

"Con-uh, Confusion!" I hesitated for a moment, momentarily questioning if Corphish was a dark-type like its evolved form. I decided to just follow through and see what happened, and to my relief Corphish stumbled and became visibly confused as the attack washed over it. The crustacean squirmed in place and began to snap its claws erratically all around it, seemingly expecting to be physically attacked.

It must not be used to fighting a ranged attacker like Apollo, which was good news for us.

"Finish it however you want," I prompted, wanting to see how Apollo might battle without direction. My pride couldn't be contained as I watched Apollo send waves of psychic energy at the disoriented Corphish, who stumbled about as it attempted to scuttle back to its pond. It was clearly dazed and confused, as it kept changing directions every time it would be hit with another barrage of psychic energy and didn't seem to be able to keep eyes on Apollo.

The Corphish quit scuttling about and opened its claws before spraying Bubbles wildly, a last-ditch effort to land an attack. I could tell that it was on its last legs, but it was extremely stubborn and persistent, refusing to go down.

"Confusion isn't enough! Switch it up!" I shouted, expecting Apollo to go back to using Disarming Voice.

He didn't. Apollo teleported back a bit to avoid being hit by any Bubbles, then concentrated as his horn glowed brighter and longer than I had ever seen. The Corphish grew sluggish and slowly began to slump, its claws falling to its side as its legs gave way and it collapsed to the ground unmoving.

I couldn't be positive, but I was pretty sure that Corphish had been put to sleep, not knocked out. I made a mental note to check later if Apollo had begun to learn Hypnosis, as it was the only thing I could think of that it might be.

At this point I was sure that I wanted to capture the Corphish. I grabbed the empty Pokéball at my belt and approached the fallen Pokémon, pressing the button against its shell and sucking it in with a vortex of light. The ball shook once before giving a beep confirming the successful capture, and I couldn't help but give a wide grin at the accomplishment of capturing my first Pokémon the traditional way.

"Great job Apollo! That move you did at the end was amazing, we'll have to practice it more later." I beamed proudly, bending down to rub his helmet as he panted from the effort.

Two out of six teammates down, and I hadn't even finished my first day of being a licensed trainer. We'd already come so far, yet still had so much further to go. I picked up Apollo and placed him on my shoulder before deciding to walk uphill a little ways away from the Corphish's home and the beach, not wanting to give it any water to run away in before we could get acquainted.

"Corphish is part of our team now, so be nice and welcoming. You can use telepathy with all team members, by the way." I informed him, remembering that I had told him to only use it with me.

I reached into the side pouch of my backpack and pulled out a potion before releasing my new teammate on the grass, bending down and misting the unconscious crustacean with the medicine. When done, I stood back and gave it space, waiting patiently as it slowly regained consciousness.

When it did, it groggily looked around and stood up shakily, seemingly confused that the battle had ended and wondering where its pond was.

"Hey Corphish, welcome to the team. My name is Daniel, and this is Apollo." I gestured to each of us in introduction as Apollo gave a friendly wave. Corphish gained a blank look for a moment before adopting a scowl and clicking its pincers in agitation.

"Cor-Corphish!"

Resentment. Disdain.

I sighed, realizing that capturing a Pokémon the 'traditional way' made things much more difficult than simply befriending and convincing them to come along with you. It wasn't something that couldn't be overcome, but it definitely added a bit of complexity.

"Look…" I started, eyeing Corphish as it widened its stance and seemed to prepare for a fight. I decided to try to appeal to its hubris and win it over with a promise to grow stronger. "I know you're proud of your home. It was a great spot, and you earned the right to call it yours, probably through lots of hard-fought battles. You're pretty strong, but you won't get much stronger out here. If you want to get really strong, you should train with us and challenge the gym circuit. We'll be taking on the top trainers in the region, and winning. You have the potential to be a big part of that team, and to become an apex among your species. But I can't help you if you aren't cooperative." I finished with a shrug, withholding the desire to grin as I saw Corphish visibly relax and consider the offer.

After a few seconds of the Corphish thinking and visibly hesitating, I decided this wasn't a bad place to end the conversation for now and chose to assert a bit of dominance while giving it time to adjust. I could tell that the gentle approach I had taken with Apollo wasn't going to be the best option here; I needed to get it to see me as a strong leader to be respected.

"Just think about it, and try out one of our training sessions tonight. You're still a bit beat up, so I'm going to let you rest for a bit in your Pokéball while Apollo and I find a place to set up camp for the night."I said, causing Corphish to tilt its head in confusion.

"Rest up; I'll see you soon to give you a taste of training." I said as I recalled Corphish, its eyes wide as it was sucked into the Pokéball suddenly. Apollo held his hands to his mouth and visibly chuckled, although there was no audible sound.

I looked at him and tilted my head, a bit confused by his reaction.

Confusion. Empathy. Amusement.

I snorted at just how much information those three emotions managed to relay. I was pretty certain Apollo was admitting to previously having been as befuddled about how the Pokeball worked, and found it funny to see somebody going through the same thing he had. Once again, Apollo's sense of humor was showing, and I highly approved.

We continued to walk north, looking for the point where a wall of trees marking the edge of Petalburg Woods met the coast. Now that I had my water Pokémon, I took my socks and shoes out of my backpack and put them back on before continuing up the gentle slope until I found myself back on the route's path.

Apollo had now been in two battles today, and along with the telepathic link he formed with me at ever-increasing rates, I had no doubt he was a bit worn out. I waited until I noticed him once again connect to my mind, and when he did I thought of my concern for Apollo; trying to purposely send it to him in the form of a mental question. He seemed to pick up on it, as I got an answer almost immediately.

Resolve. Commitment.

I rolled my eyes in fond exasperation; it seemed that Apollo wasn't one to call it quits until I did, so I would need to pay close attention to ensure he didn't push himself too hard. I decided to avoid battling if at all possible for the rest of the day; both of my Pokémon could be used if absolutely needed but were better off resting. If all went well they would be ready for some serious training tonight, and hopefully I could convince Corphish that staying with us was the best way to get stronger.

I really hoped that I would be able to win the crustacean over; I'd surely need its strength if I wanted to tackle the Rustboro gym.

As the sun began to touch the sea and a vibrant orange and purple sunset painted across the sky, I finally came across a wall of tall trees marking the beginnings of the Petalburg Woods. I would likely be in there for a few days, so I was going to enjoy one last night in the open. I wandered further inland away from the path until it was no longer in sight and found a good spot to camp for the night.

I set Apollo down and released Corphish, crouching down to address them both as Corphish looked around in confusion, seemingly feeling much better than earlier.

"We'll be camping here for the night, so relax and stay close. I won't take long, then we can do some training."

Apollo nodded, and although Corphish still looked highly cautious and suspicious, it seemed to be willing to play nice for now. I didn't feel any open hostility, just that it didn't trust me or fully understand what all had happened to it today. Corphish and Apollo gave each other curious looks, and after a moment of ensuring they weren't going to fight I decided to give them some space while opening up my backpack and beginning to set up camp. I wasn't terribly concerned that either would get hurt; Apollo was a walking emotion detector and could Teleport at the first sign of danger.

I decided to try one of the dehydrated meals, so after I got the fire going I set up the tripod and used one of the metal bowls to boil some water. After that, it was simply a matter of pouring it into the pouch of food and folding it closed, giving it a few minutes to absorb the water and 'cook'.

I noticed Corphish wandering the perimeter of the camp, picking through grass and weeds and occasionally bringing its claws to its mouth to nibble on things it found. I wasn't sure exactly what all it was eating, but I wasn't about to complain if my new team member was self-sufficient.

As my food cooked, I pulled out my Pokédex to fiddle with it. I first scanned both of my Pokémon; something I really should have done sooner, however I'd been so caught up in the excitement of my first day journeying that it had completely slipped my mind.

"Ralts, the Feeling Pokémon," The dex began speaking in a chipper female voice, causing both Apollo and Corphish to snap their attention to me curiously. "The horn on Ralts' head allows it to sense emotion, and they will often flee at the first sign of danger." I snorted, greatly amused how that portion didn't seem to apply very well to Apollo, but I still knew it to be true and had seen hints of that from Apollo before. "Ralts feed and grow off of positive emotions, and can become sickly when overexposed to negativity. This Ralts is a male and has the ability Synchronize, which allows it to share status conditions such as paralysis and poison with other Pokémon through the use of empathy."

My eyebrows raised in surprise; that last bit was news to me and seemed to be immensely useful. I had read that many Pokémon had peculiar abilities, with some different species even sharing similar attributes, but I hadn't looked into it much. For all the research I'd done over the past two years, it often felt like I had still only scratched the surface and that there was still so much more to learn.

"That's great Apollo! So if you ever feel yourself afflicted with something, try your best to make your opponent feel how you do." I said, not sure if the ability needed any training or was something that he could just naturally do without thinking.

Compassion. Empathy.

"That's right! Empathy. I know we talked about not using your telepathy on trainers or their Pokémon, but this is an exception." I said happily.

I turned the Pokédex towards Corphish, who seemed to be quite interested to learn more about itself if the excited bobbing and claw snipping was any indication.

"Corphish, the Ruffian Pokémon. This crustacean is highly adaptable, hardy and territorial; able to live in even the most polluted waters and eat almost anything. This Corphish is male and has the ability Hyper Cutter, preventing its attack from being weakened by its foes."

My eyes grew wide in realization as I remembered Apollo's battle with Corphish. When Apollo had started the battle with Growl, Corphish had seemingly completely disregarded it, which must have been due to this ability.

"Cool ability Corphish. It suits you, since I take it you'll be quite the brawler." I complimented as I pocketed my Pokédex, noticing that Corphish seemed quite pleased with himself.

I took about five minutes to eat my meal, during which time Apollo stared up at the rising Moon as his body slightly swayed in contentment. Corphish spent the time scavenging the area for more snacks, and as soon as I finished my meal I decided it was time to start training.

"Alright, training time!" I said happily as I clapped my hands together, getting their attention.

"Apollo, we need to work on your Double Team. Try maintaining it as long as you can, as well as trying to space them out as much as possible. Take breaks as needed, but try your best to keep improving." I finished explaining, and Apollo gave an eager nod.

Determination.

Nodding in approval, I turned towards Corphish, who was watching Apollo with extreme interest as he created a clone of himself.

"Unfortunately I don't think you can learn that move." I joked, and to my amusement Corphish visibly sagged. "You have all sorts of cool things Apollo can't do; Bubble for example. Mind showing me how far you can shoot it?"

The Corphish huffed, crossing its arms and looking away in defiance. I furrowed my brows, thinking of how best to get Corphish to cooperate.

"Don't know if you remember, but you used Bubble during your fight with Apollo. It couldn't even reach him, so I can understand if you're embarrassed to show it off. That's what training is for though, to make it better so it's something you can be proud of, just like your Vice Grip." I taunted with a nonchalant shrug.

I was taking a gamble here; he could have easily gotten mad and attacked me, but I thought that taking a little jab at his pride was the best way to get him motivated to show off the move.

Thankfully, it worked. Corphish adopted a scowl before facing away and opening a claw, spraying a Bubble from the opening that went about eight feet before dissipating. It was quite a bit further than what I had previously seen, which I attributed to him being rested and determined rather than dazed and battered like in the battle with Apollo. Although I was impressed, I decided against praising him and kept up with the strategy of challenging his strength.

"Not bad, but I bet you can't hold it for very long." I taunted with a grin. He grew a determined look and did it again, this time not going quite as far but holding the attack for about three seconds. It was clear to me that it wasn't exactly a great ranged attack, but considering what I knew of the species I highly suspected that Corphish would thrive in an up-close brawl.

"I'll admit, I'm pretty impressed. You proved me wrong, you're better than I thought." I nodded approvingly, causing Corphish to puff up in pride. I didn't want to be too cold; I wanted to slowly build up trust and respect, and now that he was cooperating I saw no reason not to give him some praise.

"Do you know any other ranged attacks? Bubblebeam or Water Gun maybe?"

Corphish scowled, looking down and shuffling its feet in what I took as a bit of frustration.

"I know you do best in a close-up brawl, but that won't always win fights. Take your battle with Apollo for example; we've been training less than a week and you couldn't even land a hit on him. With a bit of training and practice, you'll be able to win a fight against any opponent. But that begins with making sure you can actually hit your opponent."

I could tell my words annoyed Corphish a bit, but he huffed and nodded, seemingly accepting my words as the truth. I smiled and continued.

"It'll be easier to work on your fighting skills once we have a teammate who can brawl against you. Apollo is a ranged fighter, as I'm sure you've noticed. I think I have a good exercise to get you started tonight though, hang on for just a second." I began searching the ground of the surrounding area, and came back carrying a few rocks and branches I had scavenged.

I had strongly considered having Corphish just practice Bubble, but this session was meant to win him over. He clearly enjoyed using Vice Grip, so I needed to make sure to give him something to work on he would see as useful to his current style of battling.

"Let's see how strong you are. Try crushing each of these with your pincers."

I watched as Corphish began to clamp on the various items I had collected. He was able to crush the smallest rock and a couple of the smaller branches, but left two rocks and a thick branch with only superficial damage.

"Alright, what you're going to do is try to crush these items with one claw while shooting Bubble as far as you can with the other. Don't worry about how long you hold it, just focus on distance. Switch claws every so often so you can improve both, and don't be afraid to take a break if you get tired. This will not only strengthen your claws, but will also help improve your Bubble so you can hit opponents at a distance. You'll probably be tired and sore by the end of the night, but you'll be stronger than you were before we started." I explained, watching the Corphish for its reaction.

Corphish took a moment to let the instructions sink in before slowly nodding, accepting my words with cautious optimism at the prospect of getting stronger. Corphish took to its task and began clamping down on a fist-sized rock while spraying a Bubble from the other claw. I watched for a couple of minutes before deciding that the exercise was adequate and he was taking it seriously before turning back to check on my starter.

Apollo was visibly panting from exhaustion, but I was able to see that his Double Team was much closer to being a perfect clone, and I could tell he was indeed creating them a bit further away from him than normal. I rolled my eyes as I approached my starter.

"Apollo, I'm glad you take training seriously, but we aren't trying to see how many clones you can do before you pass out. Take a little rest, then try again when you're ready." I lightly chided as I gave Apollo a reassuring rub of his helmet, his head dipping slightly as he visibly sagged.

Impatience.

I snorted in amusement, wondering how I'd lucked out with a Ralts that had this kind of drive. He rarely got disheartened, and I was usually able to quickly cheer him up during his brief moments of doubt. I strongly suspected that Apollo often matched my emotions, which just made it all the more important to maintain complete faith in him and not allow my own doubts and insecurities to get the best of me, lest it affected him.

"You're getting better, I think you know that. Just be patient and keep at it, you'll get it in no time." I reassured him, which seemed to cheer him up a bit.

I continued monitoring both of them, occasionally reminding Apollo to take a break or challenging Corphish to demonstrate his strength and skills when I would notice him taking a break for too long. Although he seemed a bit bored with the drill I had given him, I pointed out that he was improving in this session alone, as he had crushed a couple of the items I had given him and his Bubble was going a bit further. After almost an hour of training, I decided to call an end to it when I noticed they were both exhausted. The sun had fully set and I felt like the day had been exceedingly productive.

I leaned back against my backpack and observed the scene. Apollo and Corphish were both lost in silent contemplation, with Apollo swaying back and forth happily while watching the moon as Corphish watched the campfire with suspicion and a bit of wonder, occasionally spraying a few bubbles at it before I'd tell him to stop. Corphish seemed a bit grouchy, but his exhaustion won out and he ended up relaxing without much complaint. Although he was a bit stubborn and hard-headed, I was exceedingly happy to have him with us. I could easily see him warming up to us more as he saw the benefits being trained could bring, and felt fortunate to have found him.

All things considered, I was perfectly happy with how things were going, and moments like this made the long and exhausting days worth it.

Peace. Satisfaction. Tranquility.

I grinned as Apollo once again demonstrated an understanding of what I was thinking. We sat for a few minutes, enjoying the fire and the sounds of the outdoors before I noticed Corphish go back to scavenging the surrounding area for things to eat, his early exhaustion seemingly gone.

I was once again reminded just how lucky I was. Somehow, I'd ended up with two Pokémon I didn't need to actually feed, and they were both impressive examples of their species that had plenty of room to grow and the desire to do so. They also had excellent personalities, they just each needed a bit of a unique approach.

Remembering the talk I had with Corphish after first capturing him, I decided now was a good time to bring up the subject again. Corphish had been initially reluctant, but was seemingly willing to cooperate and must surely be beginning to realize the benefits having a trainer could bring. I hadn't mentioned it to him, but if he was absolutely reluctant to travel with me I'd need to release him back at his pond in the morning. I wouldn't be able to do it in good conscience in Rustboro and might even get in trouble, as they were considered invasive and could upset the ecosystem.

I stood up and walked towards Corphish, leaving Apollo by the fire before he quickly shot me a message.

Inquisitive. Companionship. Support.

"Nah, stay here buddy. I need to have a private talk with Corphish." I requested, to which he thankfully seemed to understand. I walked over to Corphish and sat down beside him as he picked through some weeds.

"Hey Corphish, how did you like training? I'm sure you've noticed, but you ended it stronger than you started." I pointed out to Corphish, who paused his scavenging to face me.

After a moment of mulling over the question, he huffed and crossed his claws.

"Cor…", he muttered, which I took as reluctant acknowledgment that he had indeed benefitted from the session.

I grinned, knowing I was close to sealing the deal with Corphish.

"Here's the thing, you could be king of any water you choose to claim, but you'll hardly feel challenged by most of your opponents, and if you do lose someday you'll end up homeless or dead. We're planning on becoming as strong as we can, and being among the toughest in the region. If you think you're strong now, just wait until you are a Crawdaunt." I explained, suppressing a grin as he saw Corphish eating this up with wide eyes. Clearly evolution interested him, so I decided to promise it to him as a perk for coming with us.

"If you come with me though, there's no turning back. After this forest we're about to go through, you'll be too far from home for me to return you, and too strong to release anywhere in the wild. If you join our team, it's a promise that you'll work your hardest for me and that you'll treat your teammates with respect, and it's a promise we'll do the same for you. We'll watch out for one another, and help each other improve until we're an unstoppable force. You've seen the benefits having a trainer can provide, and I can personally guarantee lots of strong opponents and that you'll someday evolve into a Crawdaunt. So, do you want to go back to your pond, or do you want to find out what it means to be truly powerful?" I finished, impressing even myself with my knack for motivational speeches.

Corphish's eyes filled with resolve and I saw a fire ignite in him as he snapped his pincers and nodded, seemingly swayed by my words. I smiled and slowly reached down to rub the crustacean's shell as he froze a bit awkwardly but thankfully allowed. I committed the moment to memory, knowing I would someday look back on this moment with fondness.

"You'll have to practice your brawling with wild and trainer pokémon until I can find you a suitable sparring buddy, but remember that strength isn't always what decides a battle. Apollo and I win using strategy to slowly wear down our opponents, and although I'll remember your preferences for fighting up-close, sometimes we'll need to be strategic and create distance. You're already strong, and that will grow naturally over time, so for the time being we'll focus on improving your ranged fighting and utility moves. I assume you have some moves like that; Leer or Harden maybe?"

Corphish gave a proud nod and I grinned.

"Alright, so there's a difference between battling wild Pokémon and trained Pokémon…" I launched into explaining to Corphish what to expect when he found himself called out for a trainer battle; it seemed like a good idea to do sooner rather than later.

Soon enough, I returned to the campfire and sat down beside Apollo as Corphish resumed his scavenging. This seemed to be his default state, and I had no issue letting him scavenge his own food if it would save me money. When my finances improved, I'd definitely be sure to focus more on getting him and the rest of my future team better nutrients, but for now I saw no reason to break out the Pokémon kibble I had bought.

The rest of the night was quiet, with me skimming through Survive & Thrive as Apollo practiced reading my thoughts. For the most part he seemed to be content with observing and trying to understand, although I would occasionally explain things when I sensed he was confused. I was slowly getting used to having him constantly looking over my proverbial shoulder, and he seemed to be getting better at understanding my thoughts. I couldn't wait until we'd be able to have a more in-depth conversation someday, but I was happy with the progress we were making.

I soon smothered the fire with dirt using the shovel and we went to bed. I was able to coax Corphish into the tent, but he refused to sit anywhere other than at the entrance, which I took as a win. Apollo reassured me that Corphish had no ill intentions when I momentarily questioned if he was plotting on doing something to us at night, and although I felt a bit bad for even having the thought it felt like something I had to at least consider. Nonetheless, Apollo was confident we would be fine, so I took his word for it.

I laid in bed waiting for sleep to claim me, happy that the journey I had dreamed of for years was finally underway and that it was going better than I could have ever imagined.

I had all the necessary supplies, two fantastic Pokémon filled with potential and drive, and an entire world to explore and conquer.

I couldn't ask for more, and I slowly drifted off to sleep full of hope that tomorrow would be another great day.

TRAINER ID
Name: Daniel Ingram
Age: 16
Badges: 0
Account: 656 credits

POKÉMON
Ralts (Apollo) - Male
Corphish - Male

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