Pokémon Nuzlocke Novels: Ancient Scarlet

Chapter 30: Wallflower

Several Years Ago…

Mototoke

Hannah Caballero sighed with relief as she flopped down on the couch, rubbing her temples. Diego glanced up from where he was lounging on the couch, drifting in and out of a doze after a long day. The kids were already fast asleep, and so the two adults had the house to themselves.

"What's wrong?" Diego asked as he shifted slightly, choosing to rest his head in his wife's lap. Hannah began playing with her husband's hair, trying to channel her annoyance with that.

"Just frustrated, love. I know it's an isolated incident here and there, but Florian continually getting bullied by those rotten kids at school just makes me wonder if I made a mistake insisting that we settle down here in Galar instead of Paldea." Hannah admitted, causing Diego to raise an eyebrow in confusion. "And with how hard things have been with Amy lately, I've been reconsidering some things."

Much to the chagrin of the Caballero adults, their son had continued to have sporadic issues with bullying at Trainer School. Florian had become even more reclusive as he had gotten older, with his self-esteem worryingly low. Hannah had debated getting her son looked at by a professional with her husband, but Diego was somewhat wary of that course of action.

Antidepressants and other medications that treated things like anxiety and depression often had substantial side-effects, and that was something Diego Caballero wanted to avoid. Indeed, the man hoped that his son would make a breakthrough of some kind with enough love and support from his family.

On top of that, Amy had been diagnosed with asthma and had been complaining about how hard it was to breathe sometimes outside as a result of the rampant pollution and how generally unhealthy the air quality was in several of the larger cities within Galar. After all, the pollution crisis in Galar had gotten to the point that several species of Pokémon had been permanently changed as a result.

"This is your home, darling. You grew up here and it's where you grew your fame as an artist." Diego pointed out, with Hannah shaking her head. "I agree that the bullying is frustrating, but there's only so much we can do without taking him out of Trainer's School. And our son wants to be a Pokémon Trainer like me more than anything else. And as for Amy, we can try and get a referral to a specialist. Medical science has come a long way these past few years."

"Even if you think psychology is for nerds." Hannah pointed out, causing Diego to sigh.

"I'm skeptical. I don't think drugging Florian until he's happy with himself is the solution." Diego said firmly, narrowing his eyes for a moment. "I remember taking those medications myself years ago when my Partner, Alejandro, died. Medications like that change you, and I won't have my son subjected to that."

Hannah sighed, but nodded in understanding. She then smiled tiredly at her husband. "Maybe so, but it makes me wonder if I made a mistake by being so inconsistent that we settle down here to raise our family. We could've settled down in Paldea instead, you know."

"We could've, but you wanted to be closer to your parents when your mother got sick. I couldn't deny you that." Diego said quietly, frowning as he let out a small sigh. "Moving to Paldea instead of here would be a huge undertaking and wouldn't solve the problems our children are having."

"No, but it would help. Besides, I've missed Paldea and think fondly about my time there as a foreign exchange student. And I know you're homesick, even if you hide it well." Hannah said with a smile, causing Diego to wince. As good as he was hiding his emotions and deception, he could hide nothing from his wife.

"Maybe so. A move to Paldea isn't too difficult. And Naranja Academy would be good for Florian and Amy. It's the best school in the world, and it's not just for Pokémon Trainers, unlike Blueberry Academy." Diego said the final words with some scorn, causing Hannah to snicker.

"You're just saying that because they're your school's rivals."

"Of course I am! I'm biased as hell!"

Hannah and Diego laughed for a few moments, but the silence returned soon after. Diego's thoughts were racing at what his wife was suggesting. He had come to enjoy the Galar region, but Paldea was his home.

"It's tempting." Diego muttered as he closed his eyes. "But it would be good for them. I know Florian and Amy love to hear about our school days. Even more from my battles I get into on my trips."

"You're a good storyteller, Diego. Don't be so harsh on yourself." Hannah gently scolded her husband.

"Nah. I'm not nearly as exciting a battler as my boy thinks I am." Diego muttered, with Hannah flicking him on the nose and getting a pained yelp in response.

"Please. Even if you're out of practice, you're just about the strongest Pokémon Trainer in this city. Only Kabu can beat you, and that's if he gets lucky and uses his full-power." Hannah remarked, with Diego frowning at that. He was someone who, despite his considerable talents, was humble to a fault. But his wife was correct.

"Yes, but I cannot always protect them, Hannah. Florian's bully issues are a big deal and I can't battle a bunch of kids into not being jerks anymore. The boy already has confidence issues and Juliana, bless her heart, cannot defend him forever. He will either have to deal with it or become strong enough to make his problems go away by himself, as much as it pains me to admit." Diego said to his wife, who leaned her head back against the couch.

"And that's why I think Galar might've been a mistake. I was thinking of myself and settling down somewhere centrally located with a large community for my own career, rather than a place where our children could grow up." Hannah explained, slowly running her hands through Diego's hair and earning a soft sigh of content from her husband as he relaxed. She smiled fondly at him for a moment, amused that Diego enjoyed having his incredibly soft and fluffy hair played with so much. Florian had inherited this quirk from his father, much to her delight.

"The Trainer School here in Motostoke is nothing special. Naranja Academy would let both of our children flourish in a way that they can't here." Hannah said quietly but firmly, relaxing on the couch as she continued to mindlessly play with Diego's hair.

"You think moving to Paldea would be the solution?" Diego asked, his eyes still closed as Hannah nodded.

"Why wouldn't it be? You're still a registered Champion with the Paldean Pokémon League and you're a diplomat on top of that. We both know how great Naranja Academy would be for Florian and Amy. Hassel's even talking about teaching there someday himself!" Hannah reminded Diego, who thought about it.

"You know, Naranja Academy's got a musician's scholarship. And Juliana's just about as good at the violin as our Florian is at the saxophone. If we want to move to Paldea, maybe we can convince the Andersons to come along. They talk about their old school days at Naranja Academy just as much as we do." Diego remarked, with Hannah's expression becoming thoughtful.

"Maybe we could coordinate with them. Juliana's practically a sister to Florian and Amy and it'd be terrible to split them apart." Hannah suggested, sitting up a little and causing Diego's eyes to open.

"I would be willing to move, but we leave it up to the kids. This is their future we're talking about." Diego finally said, with Hannah smiling at her husband.

"We can ask them about it tomorrow." Hannah said, surprising her husband with the sudden statement.

"So you mean it? Truly?" Diego asked, sitting up with an excited expression. Hannah cupped her husband's cheek and kissed him, pulling away after a moment before nodding.

"If Florian and Amy want to move to Paldea…we can make the move. Goodness knows Florian talks about wanting to visit the school more than enough." Hannah said to her husband, who looked delighted. "He'll be old enough to attend the Academy as a freshman in a few years. And Amy after that."

"Florian and Amy going to Naranja Academy…" Diego said with a grin, sitting up off of the couch and wrapping an arm around Hannah. The woman leaned into her husband, nuzzling his neck. "That'd be something special."

Present Day

Segin Squad's Base

Milo walked outside of the Team Star Base alone, with Clive electing to stay behind and talk more with Giacomo. He only made it a few steps outside of the base before a ringing sound surprised him.

"~Ro-to-to-to-to…~"

The Galarian teenager stopped in his tracks and blinked as his Rotom Phone flew out of his pocket, showing a rainbow-colored question mark on the screen. A few moments later, a call picked automatically and Cassiopeia spoke.

"Milo…It's me. It seems Giacomo no longer carries his Star Badge, the symbol of his status as a Boss…He gave it to you, didn't he?"

Milo nodded, pulling it out of his pocket and showing the badge to Cassiopeia. He wasn't ever sure if they had the camera on during these calls, but he wasn't about to ask that now. It'd be awkward.

"I see. With its Boss out of the picture, the Segin Squad is pretty much done for…You fought well. I'm surprised you managed to take down the Boss with just a single Pokémon."

"I can't take all the credit. Cocoa was a trooper and I got some great advice from my friend Nemona that came in clutch. Plus, Clive kept those other Grunts off my back during the Star Barrage. It was a team effort." Milo said with a shrug, earning nothing but silence in response. And then-

"Oh, Giacomo…" Milo caught the muttered words, as quiet as they were, and frowned at that. But before he could ask about it, Cassiopeia spoke louder to him and continued their conversation.

"Sorry. Got caught up in my thoughts for a second. Now, about your reward."

"Reward?" Milo repeated, confused as to what they were talking about.

"Yes, I did say I would compensate you for your help. Now, about your reward. I'll transfer some LP over to your phone, as promised."

Milo's phone then beeped loudly, and he saw a notification pop up showing that 5,000 League Points were just deposited into his account. Milo grinned at the surprise money transfer, since he had completely forgotten about after getting caught up in his quest to avenge Juliana.

"I took the liberty of adding some new entries to the range of TM's you can make at TM Machines. These new TM's should help you improve your Pokémon's battle capabilities even further."

Milo chuckled at that. "You know, I would've done all this without payment. But that'll definitely help out in the future. Thanks."

"I should be thanking you. In any case…you did some solid work out there. So much so that you deserve an extra reward."

"You don't have to do that-" Milo began to say, but Cassiopeia cut him off.

"Consider it an apology. You volunteered to help me with this, reward or not, and I haven't been the most accommodating when it comes to this partnership. I'll try and do better, Milo. I'm sorry for being difficult."

"Don't worry about it. All water under the bridge. But thanks for apologizing." Milo replied easily, crossing his arms as he spoke. His answer was several moments of silence from Cassiopeia.

"Very well. Someone from my supply unit will be there soon to give you some materials for making TM's. That'll be all for now, but I'll be in touch in a week or two. Take care, Milo."

Cassiopeia hung up the phone, and as it flew back into his pocket Milo frowned as he thought about the anonymous caller who had orchestrated Operation Starfall. They claimed to have history with Team Star, but that comment about Giacomo gave Milo pause.

"Maybe they knew Giacomo? It's not entirely outside the realm of possibilities. Giacomo was at school before this Team Star thing kicked off." Milo muttered, trying to ponder the issue. Before he got too far into his thoughts, a nervous voice suddenly spoke up.

"H-hello…" Milo looked up at the sound of a female voice, specifically with a Galarian accent, and saw a girl around his age walking towards him. She had multicolored red and blue hair and a dour depression, black eyes peering at him warily behind a pair of glasses. She wore a large black hoodie with Poké Ball on the front with a large fluffy backpack that resembled a Gigatamax Eevee. She had on a pair of gray shorts partially hidden by a transparent skirt and leggings with red and blue pluses and minuses on them. She looked vaguely familiar, but Milo couldn't place where he had seen her.

"I'm Penny…from the supply unit." The girl said timidly, looking at Milo almost warily. "You probably don't remember, but you got me out of a tight spot by the school stairs…"

Milo suddenly remembered exactly where he had met this girl before. She was the student that he had helped protect from Team Star on his very first day as a Pokémon Trainer in Mesagoza. He remembered that she had run off before Milo could get her name, so he was a bit surprised to see her here.

"I'm glad I could help! You ran off before we could chat, so I'm sorry it took me a minute to recognize you." Milo said with a sheepish smile, feeling a bit embarrassed.

Penny jerked back in visible shock. "Oh! So you do remember…"

"Yeah, it's kind of hard to forget that sort of thing. Plus I remember your awesome backpack. That's the limited-edition Gigantamax Eevee Surprise Backpack that came out a few years back, right?" Milo asked Penny, who let out a small gasp of surprise.

"You recognize it!?" Penny asked, once again caught off-guard. However this time she looked noticeably excited.

"Yeah, mainly because someone I knew really wanted one and it sold out before we could get her one." Milo remarked, remembering vividly how his little sister had cried when Diego Caballero had to explain to her that she wasn't able to get the rare backpack. "It's an awesome collector's item."

"Y-yeah it is! Um, I'm kinda surprised you think it's awesome." Penny remarked, frowning at Milo as she tilted her head.

"Eevee's are awesome. I'm a little jealous you've got such a cool backpack." Milo laughed, grinning at Penny. "Maybe if I'm lucky I can snag an Eevee for my team. Where do you even catch Eevee in Paldea?"

"They're super rare. I caught most of mine outside of Paldea-oops! We're getting sidetracked. But, um. I'm helping out with Operation Starfall as part of my independent study…You know, the Treasure Hunt." Penny explained, noticeably getting a bit more into the conversation now. "I'm good with machines and hacking and stuff, so I'll be working behind the scenes."

Milo raised an eyebrow at that particular bit of information, but then realized that he had no place to judge. "Well, I guess everyone needs a hobby. Is the hacking thing how you and Cassiopeia met?"

"Y-yes, actually. It's really weird not knowing who they are, but they like the work I do and they don't bug me about it. Thankfully dealing with them doesn't even require me to have to leave my room." Penny awkwardly explained, clearly looking uncomfortable. Milo stared at the girl for a moment, experiencing the strangest sensation of looking into a mirror.

"She's just as socially awkward as I am…or was." Milo realized, thinking about how much better he was at dealing with people these days compared to how he was back home in Galar.

"So…here you go. Your bonus reward from Cassiopeia." Penny reached into the pocket of her hoodie and handed a large bag of different Pokémon materials over to Milo. Milo stashed it away in his own pack, fully intending to organize it properly later. "You should be able to make a ton of TM's with those. And Cassiopeia said you'll get more rewards each time you take out one of Team Star's Bases. Also, um…"

Penny trailed off awkwardly before looking away shyly, and Milo waited patiently for her to speak again. "I heard all about how you had your Pokémon charge into battle. Seems you were pretty amazing."

"My Pokémon were amazing, but I appreciate the compliment." Milo said with a smile, causing Penny to look at him for a moment before speaking again.

"With a Trainer as strong as you on our side, I'm sure the operation will go just fine." Penny said as she looked back at him and nodded, putting a hand to her chest. She seemed to falter a bit though, having trouble meeting Milo's eyes. "There's four more Squad Bosses left, so, um…good luck…"

"Thanks Penny. I'll see you around." Milo said with a friendly smile. Penny gave a weak smile in return, adding in a little wave before walking away, leaving Milo to his thoughts.

You know the drill, kid. Three new Pokémon are available for you to catch. You're on a hot streak, but don't get cocky. All it takes is one mistake for you to lose your life!

"Yeah, yeah. I'm in a good mood and won't let your crap ruin it. Now then, let's call Mum." Milo said as he pulled out his Rotom Phone and called his mother.

After checking in on Hannah Caballero and asking for the address of his grandparents, Milo was dismayed to find out that his grandparents had actually just gone to the faraway town of Montenevera for a funeral and would be staying up there with some old friends for another two weeks.

Annoyed with himself, he decided to head the opposite direction from Cascarrafa and focus on catching his next batch of Pokémon. And so, he dove right into a bright green Tera Den and acquired the help of some of the 3XC that were inside. Thanks to them, Milo was able to acquire a Luvdisc and a Nacli of his own, similar to Arven's. However it was when he ventured to his third Tera Den that he ran into a friendly and familiar face.

"Heya Milo! Fancy meeting you here." Flynn Caddel said as he walked up to the Galarian teen, shaking his hand with a grin.

"I'm kinda surprised to see you out here, Flynn. Why is the President of the 3XC out here?" Milo asked, earning a shrug of the shoulders.

"I always enjoy hanging out with my fellow clubmates. Plus Tera Battles are fun. Now come on, let's get started." Flynn said as he led the group further into the Den. Within the massive chamber as a single Smoliv, wearing a globe-like Tera Crown.

"Get ready, folks! Chief, let's go!" Flynn called out a Crogunk, who instantly fell into a combat stance. The two other 3XC members sent out a Buizel and a Skiddo respectively while Milo sent out Reggie, and the battle was on.

Unfortunately for the Smoliv, it was just a Smoliv, so it went down pretty quickly. Milo spun around and chucked a Poké Ball, which quickly became engulfed with energy and struck the stunned Pokémon. Three shakes and a click later, Milo had another new teammate.

After collecting his rewards from the 3XC President himself, Milo climbed out of the hole and sat down on the grass, calling out his three new catches. The Luvdisc, Nacli and Smoliv all looked at him expectantly.

"Alright, let's learn a bit more about you three…" Milo muttered as he pointed his Rotom Phone at the floating Luvdisc to his left, scanning it. The appropriate Pokédex entry popped up a moment later.

"Luvdisc. The Rendezvous Pokémon. Its heart-shaped body makes it popular. In some places, you would give a Luvdisc to someone you love. This Luvdisc is Female and its Ability is Swift Swim. Its Tera Type is Rock." The Rotom Dex explained to Milo, who hummed for a moment as he considered that.

"So it's sort of like how you give an Applin to a person you like in Galar." The Galarian teen muttered, smiling to himself. He remembered how he had held one out to Nemona when he had caught Smith, his own Applin. The memory made Milo blush little, but he focused on the task at hand.

"I'll name you Lovely. Lovely the Luvdisc." Milo said with a smile as the Pokémon trilled softly, floating gently off of the ground. With that, Milo went to the next Pokémon, a small salty rock that simply stared at him, and scanned it with the Rotom Phone.

"Nacli. The Salt Pokémon. It was born in a layer of rock salt deep under the earth. This species was particularly treasured in the old days, as they would share precious salt. This Nacli is Female and its Ability is Purifying Salt. Its Tera Type is Bug." The Rotom Phone explained, with Milo humming thoughtfully as he tried to think of a name.

"Kosher." Milo finally decided, with Flynn giving the other student a confused look.

"Your names suck, dude." Flynn remarked, with Milo's face souring a little at hearing that. He then turned to his last Pokémon and scanned it with the Rotom Phone.

"Smoliv. The Olive Pokémon. It protects itself from enemies by emitting oil from the fruit on its head. This oil is bitter and astringent enough to make someone flinch. This Smoliv is Male and its Ability is Early Bird. Its Tera Type is Ground." The Rotom Phone explained as Milo grinned at the little Pokémon, who looked a bit confused as Milo debated what name he wanted to choose for it.

"Ozzy. Ozzy the Olive Pokémon. I'm so witty." Milo said with a chuckle as he input the name into the Rotom Phone, sitting down onto the ground. Ozzy chose that moment to hop into Milo's lap, letting out a cry. "I've seen you around a lot, little guy. I hope we get a chance to kick some butt together."

"You've got three totally different Pokémon there. Tera Dens are pretty amazing, right?" Flynn remarked, with Milo nodding as he returned his three newest catches and transferred them to PC Storage. He'd figure out team composition later.

"Yeah, but they're really weird." Milo said to the 3XC President, who nodded in agreement.

"Oh, definitely. They're supposedly unique to Paldea, but I've heard stories about Tera Dens showing up in Kitakami and even that fancy Terrarium at BB Academy. Now why that is, I have no idea. I'd love to find out though." Flynn said with an eager grin, crossing his arms. "I've actually asked Director Clavell about sponsoring a school trip to Kitakami for the students."

"Kitakami? I've never heard of it." Milo admitted, with Flynn shrugging his shoulders.

"It's a beautiful country. Lots of nature and culture in a small space. For history buffs and people who enjoy the great outdoors, like me, it sounds amazing." Flynn said to Milo, who thought about it.

"Since you mentioned it earlier, doesn't Blueberry Academy have some crazy high-tech bio-dome that has entire ecosystems inside of it? I think I've heard about that before." Milo said to the other student, vaguely remembering his father mentioning something about the subject before.

"Yep. The headmaster there spent a fortune on creating the Terrarium, but I've heard it uses some of the most advanced tech in the world to simulate tons of various ecosystems so that the Pokémon there can live peacefully." Flynn explained, putting a hand on his hip. "Devon Corporation, Silph Co. and even Aupuni Industries contributed to the construction of the Terrarium. I'd kill to see it myself."

The two Trainers talked for a short while longer before Milo said bye to Flynn and continued up the mountain on Koraidon. With three catches in the bag and with the sun setting, Milo decided to camp out on the grass and called out his team to relax in the grass alongside him. The teen was completely drained, but feeling pretty great about how the day had gone.

However, he was slightly alarmed by how much his phone was blowing up with texts from his friends, as well as notifications from his Festival Plaza account. A quick scroll through his feed revealed that his showdown against Giacomo was already trending and spreading fast with over a hundred thousand views in just a few hours.

"Um…I guess I didn't think this through all the way." Milo muttered to himself, leaning against Koraidon's side as Reggie growled in agreement. "I might've accidentally made myself more popular at school."

Sucks to suck.

"Don't you have better things to do than annoy me?" Milo asked as he set an alarm for early in the morning and crawled into his tent. Cocoa was more than happy to block the front entrance while the others crowded around their Trainer. Koraidon, of course, was coiled around the tent and kept alert for danger, even while dozing through the night.

Morning arrived all too soon and Milo decided to dive into a few more Tera Dens to get more battling experience for his team. Unfortunately, he realized that he was stalling and got annoyed with himself for that, so around mid-afternoon the teen called a Flying Taxi to transport him back to Naranja Academy. The teen managed to make it to the lobby before several students recognized him and hurried over to the teen, who yelped as multiple students tried to talk to him at once, with two roughly shaking his hand.

"You were awesome!"

"Hell yeah, man! Way to knock those jerks down a peg!"

"Starslayer in the house!"

"Too many people. Oh god…" Milo thought with a grimace as he was crowded on all sides but people congratulated him on his victory over Team Star. While he appreciated the support, his anxiety and discomfort were through the roof. Milo smiled despite himself and thanked them for their support, shaking their hands back and trying to appear appreciative. After all, it wasn't their fault he wasn't fond of crowds.

And then a loud, snide voice cut clearly through the chorus of students. "Not bad, Florian. You've got some balls."

Several heads turned and Milo's eyes went wide at the familiar voice. He then spotted Rafael Cezar walking through the crowd with a smirk. The teen wasn't wearing his Naranja Academy uniform, but instead some torn jeans and a black shirt.

"I thought you were suspended." Milo remarked quietly, with Rafael grinning in response as the crowd parted around him.

"I am, but Director Clavell is allowing me to appeal my suspension today. But what timing…the school's big hero coming back victorious." Rafael said with a chuckle, thumping Milo on the back. "You've got a lot more guts than I thought you did, Florian. Or is it Milo? I keep hearing two different names."

"Officially Florian, but I go by Milo these days. So what do you want?" Milo asked Rafael, who chuckled before clapping his hands together.

"I saw your battle with Giacomo and Segin Squad. That was some pretty great stuff. I was even wary of jumping right into that place, but you didn't give a damn. I respect that." The older student explained, crossing his arms with a satisfied smile. Not for the first time, Milo wondered what the history was between Rafael and Team Star. Giacomo had seemed pretty angry hearing Rafael's name, but Rafael had claimed that Team Star had driven his brother Hugo from the school.

"Thanks. But just because I dealt with one of the Team Star Admins, that doesn't mean that I'm finished with Team Star. I'm going after all of them." Milo responded, crossing his arms and refusing to let the upperclassman intimidate him. He remembered how the teen had nearly physically assaulted Nemona for daring to call him out.

Rafael's grin widened, an excited gleam leaping into his bright blue eyes. "Hell yeah, man. Good on you. Make those idiots pay for nearly killing your friend. Get revenge for all the people those assholes drove out of Naranja Academy."

"Also, me going after Team Star for what they did to Juliana doesn't make us friends, either. I'm not okay with what you tried to do to Nemona." Milo said pointedly to Rafael, who's expression darkened for a moment as his fists clenched. The crowd went silent for several long moments, and Rafael's eyes narrowed as he glared down at Milo, stepping closer to the younger student.

"Fair enough. But I do want a favor from you, if you wouldn't mind." Rafael said quietly, smiling once again at Milo.

"And what would that be?" Milo asked, raising an eyebrow at Rafael as the teen took a step back and jerked a thumb at his own chest.

"I want to test your skills myself. Battle me." Rafael said as he unclipped a Dusk Ball from his belt and primed it, grinning wolfishly at the Galarian teen. Milo's Poker Face went up as he considered with a perfectly neutral expression exactly why Rafael was challenging him. And if this would count as a battle that would trigger the Nuzlocke Curse.

It would. And he'd crush you at his skill-level. I'd recommend avoiding any battles with this joker for a while unless you have a death wish.

"So what's it going to be, Milo?" Rafael said to the freshmen, his smile twisting into something a little more dangerous " After all, it's just a friendly match. Nothing to lose for either of us. You were pretty damn brave standing up to Team Star. I want to see what you're really made of."

"No you don't." Milo thought to himself, thinking about what Rafael's game was. It was after several moments of staring at the older Trainer and seeing the crowd of students around them that he realized what the Vice President of the 3XC wanted.

"I did what he was too scared to do when I took on Segin Squad. I also pissed him off when I defended Nemona from him. So now he's trying to one-up me in front of everyone, even though he's a much stronger Trainer than me. He's got eight badges to my two badges, so there's no chance I would win." Milo mused as he put his hands on his hips, pretending that he was considering the proposal and not intending to reject Rafael outright.

"Excuse me! Coming through!"

Milo's heart soared as he heard Nemona's voice cut across the cacophony of shouts. The Champion made her way through the crowd, who saw the serious expression on the face of the Student Council President. Rafael's expression darkened at the arrival of Nemona and he quickly turned on his heel, retreating into the library as the Student Council President arrived.

"Milo's had a long day and will be happy to talk some other time. He appreciates your support, but I'll need to have a talk with him before he can answer any questions about what happened with Team Star. Please disperse, everyone, and have a great day!" Nemona said to the crowd as she stood next to Milo. The Champion then smiled cheerily at them and grabbed her friend by the hand, leading him further into the school.

Several cheers and even a wolf-whistle followed Milo and Nemona as they went into the school. Milo let out a big sigh of relief as he realized Nemona was leading him back to his room. As they entered his hallway, the Champion finally let go of her friend's hand and offered him a grin.

"What's wrong, hotshot? Are you having trouble with your fans?" Nemona said teasingly, with Milo sighing as he rubbed his temples.

"I didn't go after Team Star for the acclaim. I never even considered for a second that going after them would make me more popular." Milo lamented, shaking his head. "I have the poise and charisma of an unassembled shelving unit. What the hell do people like about me?"

Nemona giggled at the self-deprecating humor, with even the Remnant snickering at the remark. The other teen was beaming at her friend with open pride, and Milo felt himself smiling even if he didn't want to be. Nemona had that effect on him, after all.

"What isn't there to like about you?" Nemona countered, bumping into his side before dashing ahead of him. "Now come on, hurry up! ¡Apresúrate! You don't want your adoring public to know where you've gone off too, now do we?"

"You've been hanging out with Juliana too much." Milo grumbled as he used his key and opened the door, visibly relaxing as he walked into his room for the first time in several days. He promptly called out his team, plus Koraidon, and flopped into his desk chair while Nemona closed the door behind them and bounded forward.

"So, as you can tell, basically everyone in the school saw your big battle against Giacomo and you're even more famous at school. I was so pumped seeing you take on that Star Barrage thingy that I almost ran off to join you!" Nemona practically squealed as she neared her friend. "You looked so cool, Milo!"

Milo flushed with embarrassment at the compliment, especially since Nemona was looking at him with such a happy smile. "Y-you really think so?"

"Yeah! You were so confident and determined, and your team was perfectly in-sync! You looked like a total pro out there!" Nemona gushed, bouncing on the balls of her feet with a bright smile. "And against Giacomo himself? Sending out Koraidon to show that you weren't scared and then taking him down with just Cocoa? ¡Excelente trabajo, amigo mío!

"T-thanks Nemona. I wouldn't have managed as well without your help, though. And my team was awesome as always-" Milo tried to stammer out as he stood up out of his chair, only for Nemona to frown at him and walk forward.

"No." Nemona stated simply, marching up to her friend and putting her hands on his shoulders. "You're going to admit, right here and now, that you're awesome and you won because you're a great Trainer."

"...I'm awesome and I beat Giacomo because I'm a great Trainer." Milo mumbled, with Nemona beaming back at him and nodding with satisfaction.

"And don't you forget it." Nemona said brightly as Milo walked over to his bed, laying down on it and pulling out his Rotom Phone. He rolled his eyes as the screen lit up again, a small annoyed sigh escaping him as Nemona sat down in his desk chair and began to pet Koraidon.

"I could do without the nonstop Festival Plaza notifications. I might have to mute the app." Milo muttered as he scrolled the long list of follows, likes and comments he was getting on his social media account. Part of him did enjoy the attention, but it was pretty overwhelming.

Suddenly, Milo jolted slightly as a line of text caught his eye. The teen sat up in his bed and read the notification in absolute astonishment, a shocked smile coming to his lips.

"Holy shit!" Milo swore out loud, his eyes going wide in surprise. Nemona blinked at the sudden profanity, immediately concerned.

"Milo? Is everything okay? What is it?" Nemona asked worriedly, especially since Milo was staring down at his phone without responding to her. Instead, the teen continued to reread the same line of text that had popped up on his notifications feed again and again, as if trying to determine if what he was seeing was real or not.

Iono, the Supercharged Streamer, now follows you on Festival Plaza.

Milo's Current Party:

Reggie (Crocalor) M - Tera Fire

Watt (Shiny Pikachu) F - Tera Electric

Cocoa (Clodsire) F - Tera Ground

Fleur (Steenee) F - Tera Dark

Shelly (Shellder) F - Tera Fighting

Volt (Pawmo) F -Tera Steel

Benched/PC Storage:

Storm (Wattrel) F - Tera Flying

Floom (Shiny Drifloon) M - Tera Ghost

Fiona (Flittle) F - Tera Grass

Bronson (Barboach) M - Tera Fire

Smith (Applin) M - Tera Water

Momo (Skwovet) M - Tera Steel

Donut (Fidough) F - Tera Ice

Echo (Toxel) F - Tera Ice

Semsee (Shroodle) F - Tera Water

Dread (Chewtle) M - Tera Bug

Puffy (Igglybuff) F - Tera Electric

Lovely (Luvdisc) F - Tera Rock

Kosher (Nacli) F - Tera Bug

Ozzy (Smoliv) M - Tera Ground

Graveyard:

Pepper (Maschiff) F - Tera Poison

Sparky (Pawmi) M - Tera Electric

Victor (Venonat) M - Tera Electric

Dun dun dun!

And like that, we're on our way to Levincia! Should be pretty fun, eh?

Apologies for the delay on this chapter, folks. October and November both have been a rollercoaster for me.

From: GeneralC200

Quick follow up to my question on the rules: It's all good that there's no concrete ruleset just yet, and honestly it's probably kinda my fault for not saying anything sooner. Oh well; there's always next chapter.

On a similar note, 2 chapters of this before the end of the Mt. Lanakila climb? Just what do you have cooking back there!? And can I taste test!?

My muse has been all over the place, as you can see with the nearly month-long wait time for this chapter to go up. The most recent chapters for both of my fics have been really annoying to write for, so unfortunately that's resulted in some delays.

I'm shooting for bi-weekly uploads for AS and an upload every three weeks for RS, at least until the Elite Four is dealt with. Otherwise I'm going to burn myself out with everything I'm currently juggling.

From: Critical Sass

The plot thickens with this Team Star stuff. Cool backstory with how you tie directly into how Giacomo is kicked out of office and Nemona almost immediately becomes his replacement. He was her predecessor of the student council prez right?

Yep, Nemona was Giacomo's replacement. That's canon from the games as well, and I liked the idea of his peers manipulating Nemona into being the one who ousted Giacomo without her realizing it, but also showing why even as a freshman Nemona was an absolute force to be reckoned with.

On that note, I've gotten some requests to explain the rules of the Nuzlocke Run in-depth, so here's what I've got for you. These are the current rules Milo is forced to abide by. I'll read over it a few times and update this spot if I've forgotten something, but this is currently what he's working with.

Hardcore Nuzlocke Rules, Paldea Version

Standard Rules

- No swapping out Pokémon when prompted by the game. For all intents and purposes, the Battle Style is Set.

- If one of your Pokémon faints, it is considered dead and must be put in the PC or released.

- All Pokémon must be nicknamed.

Additional Rules and Paldea Alterations

- Hardcore Level Cap - Your Pokemon cannot be stronger than the Ace of the Objective you are attempting to clear. All Pokémon stronger than what is allowed must be either benched or not used in-battle against the Objective (hence why Milo fought Katy with an at-level Fuecoco instead of easily getting Crocalor and sweeping her.)

- Catches - You unlock 3 catches per Objective Clear and can only catch the first three Pokémon you encounter within the Tera Dens scattered throughout Paldea. This is the best way to randomize the Nuzlocke while making use of the open-world gameplay since you can't exactly get catches the normal way, but it does let you choose what Tera Type you want to go for.

- Once you get your Starter, the first Pokémon you encounter on your way to the Lighthouse and the first Pokémon you encounter on your way to Mesagoza will be your first two official catches (because you can't access Tera Dens that early). Basically, if you're careful, you can somewhat choose what your first two catches are in the starting areas of the game.

- After completing the Tutorial and leaving Mesagoza, you are allowed three more catches until you clear your first Objectives.

- Dupes Clause - If you run into a Pokémon you have already caught once before, you can choose to either catch it or move on to the next Tera Den and make that your catch instead. (This rule is up to your own discretion, but I made it because I kept running into Gastly again and again over the course of this run).

- Shiny Clause - If you encounter a Shiny Pokémon, you are automatically allowed to catch and use it like any other allotted Pokémon, even if you've already burned your three catches.

- Items in-battle are allowed, but heavily discouraged. However, to combat that, you can't buy healing items from the Pokémon Mart and other places and must use what you find o the ground in the overworld. Held items and supplement items (Calciums, Carbos, ect.) are allowed.

- No Mercy Clause or Checkpoint Clause - If a Pokémon goes down, it's gone for good and must be put in PC Storage or released until the end of the run. If you white-out, you receive an automatic game over and must restart the run. Some Nuzlocke runs allow you to bring back a Pokémon if you beat a Gym or get to a certain point in the game. Unfortunately, Milo has no such luxuries.

- Milo cannot speak of the deal made with the Remnant or the nature of the Nuzlocke Curse to anyone the Remnant allows him too. However, he is able to speak freely to others who have also made a deal with the Remnant and survived the Nuzlocke Challenge.

- The challenge ends when the fourth in-game storyline is completed.

Gonna give a massive shoutout to the lovely people who reviewed since the last chapter which includes SolanaLeonhart, GeneralC200, Critical Sass, Rare Joe Star, BraviaryScout, and a new reviewer known as CodyTBChkn! Thanks for your support!

Additional shoutout to the legends who favorited and follow the story, which includes cloudywillows, Naimare, and CodyTBChkn. Your support means the world to me and I sincerely appreciate it.

That's all for now, folks! Thanks for reading and supporting the story. Reviews, as always, are appreciated and encouraged and help the story itself grow. I also answer questions if you have any! I'd also recommend favoriting and/or following the story if you aren't already so you can stay updated with any chapter postings. I also upload on AO3 if that's your jam instead.

I have a Poll up on my profile now as well! What should be my next story after Radiant Sun is finished? Obviously nothing is set in stone, but who knows what the future will bring. Share your thoughts by voting on the Poll.

Take care and stay awesome!

Until next time, FlygonNick out!