Paul's [Shinji's] New Adventures [PG] rewrite

“Is there a Professor Jupiter up in this joint?” Miki asked in excitement as she forced her way into the building’s double doors.

The sound of the doors being forced open and slamming into the walls vibrated through the almost empty laboratory. Even though the front of the lab looked like a miniature hut from the outside, fitting into the scenery of the town, the inside of the lab was very spacious even with the various equipment that dotted certain areas. There were was a row of computers sitting on an elongated desk on each side of the room. Pokemon books have scattered both desks and papers flew in different directions due to the slight wind coming in from the outside.

“I think you might have scared her off,” a male voice said from behind. “I mean, I could hear you from far away…”

The group turned around to see a young man, who looked to be in his mid-teens, standing in the doorway. He had dark blonde hair, pale grey eyes and was wearing an orange jacket over a blue sweatshirt. He shook his head sideways as he chuckled at the group.

“Let me guess, another new trainer?” Paul asked in a sarcastic tone as he rolled his eyes.

“Tristan? No, he’s not new at all,” Miki said as she walked over to the blonde haired young man and put one hand on his shoulder. “He’s crazy strong. I know, I met him during my travels and we became friends.”

“As I told you many times before, the name’s Trip…” Trip replied hestentently. “But that’s ok. What are you guys doing in Professor Juniper’s lab anyway?”

Miki proceeded to walk towards the group, placing herself between Jen and Paul while putting her hand on both their shoulders. “These three trainers need a Pokedex right away. Is Professor Jupiter coming back soon?”

“....Professor Juniper is currently at Chargestone Cave…” Trip said with an edge. “Why don’t you give out the ‘dexes? They’re in the box on the grey moving cart behind you…”

Miki turned around and looked at the grey cart with a large box on the bottom shelf. With a smirk, she ran over to the cart, taking out the heavy box from underneath and setting it on the floor. She grabbed three separate boxes, each containing a medium-sized grey device and five poke balls.

“I guess Professor Jupiter won’t mind….” Miki said as she got up and began to pass the boxes out to the group of trainers. One by one, she passed out the boxes. “one for you, one for you... “

“...and one for you, Your Majesty. It’s a Pokedex,” the girl said in a sarcastic tone as she gave Paul his Pokedex.

“Yeah, whatever,” Paul said gruffly under his breath as he grabbed the pokeballs and Pokedex from the box and slowly started to walk towards the door. “I’m out of here.”

“Hey” Miki exclaimed as she jumped in front of Paul. “I got way more info to give y’all before you set off on your journey to becoming a top know-it-all trainer, y’know…”

Trip walked over to stand near his friend. “You see, this is why we don’t like people from the boonies...”

Paul stopped dead in his tracks as he crossed his arms. ‘Is that all he’s got?’ he thought to himself as a smirk appeared on his face. He was unbothered by the insults as he knew that even though he lived in a rural area, it had no effect on him as a trainer. All he wanted was to set off on his journey, however, he didn’t want to stick around and listen to a useless tutorial he’s heard many times before.

“Your point?” Paul asked in an annoyed tone.

“You’re not very smart, aren’t you?” Trip asked rhetorically as he gave a condescending smirk. “You don’t seem like a very experienced trainer, just someone who talks too much.”

“Oh really?” Paul said as he raised his voice. “I can say the same about you…”

“Typical,” Trip chucked. “But hey, instead of interjecting your own insecurities onto me, how about we have a Pokemon battle, one on one…. what do you say?”

Paul took a minute process everything as he uncrossed his arms. ‘Hm, if I battle this guy and I win, maybe I can show him just how serious I am. However, why do I need to prove myself to him? I’m past that. I’ll just battle him just to have him make a fool of himself!’ He chuckled as he turned around.

“Alright, if you want to make a fool out of yourself, then you can be my guest,” Paul said with confidence. “The faster we finish, the faster you all can get out of my face.”

“Then it’s off to the backyard, let’s go!” Miki exclaimed as she leads the group to the back of the small laboratory and out the back door.

.~~~~

The battle was about to begin as there was a strong sense of tension in the air. The two young men stared each other down, locked in battle mode. Trip smiled confidently while Paul scowled and clenched his fists tightly. Light chattering amongst the few onlookers can be heard as the battle was about to begin. The battlefield itself was a plain dirt field with a Pokeball symbol in the middle and a small set of bleachers on the right side.

“I’m going to be the referee!” Marnie said as she ran off the bleachers and on to the side of the field. “I’m on my journey to become an official Pokemon referee so I need practice.”

Upon standing on the referee podium, she pulled out a Pokeball from her white tote bag and proceeded to throw it in the air. A burst of light came from the Pokeball as the figure of a bipedal Pokemon emerged. By her side was a dark yellow mouse Pokemon with a white underbelly and a small lightning bolt tail. Marnie then knelt down to pick up her Pokemon and place it on her shoulder as it was waving a red flag.

Upon seeing the mouse Pokemon, Paul reached for his Pokedex that was located in the left pocket of his jacket and began to point it at Marnie’s Pokemon. A green screen then proceeded to pop with the pokemon’s picture while a male robotic voice began to explain the Pokemon’s info.

“Raichu, the mouse Pokemon and the evolved form of Pikachu,” the Pokedex explained. “Its tail discharges electricity into the ground, protecting it from getting shocked.”

“Now, Electivire, standby for battle!” Paul said with authority.

Paul threw his Pokeball high into the air with confidence. A burst of light came from the ball as Electivire emerged in a combative stance. The thunderbolt Pokemon let out a confident battle cry as he waved his fists.

“Go, Serperior!” Trip yelled as he also threw his pokeball in the air.

That same beam of light came bursting through the ball as the huge snake appeared from the light and coiled itself onto the battlefield. It was a pale green, serpentine Pokémon with narrow red eyes and grass like patterns on the sides. Paul quickly reached for his pokedex and pointed it at Trip’s Serperior.

“Serperior, the regal Pokemon and the evolved form of Servine,” the Pokedex explained. “It can stop its opponents' movements with just a glare. It takes in solar energy and boosts it internally.”

“Isn’t that nice?” Trip asked with a mocking tone. “You got your serperior lesson for today.”

“It has been determined that Paul gets the first move,” Marnie announced as her raichu waved the red flag, signaling Paul to make his move. “Now begin!”

“Electivire, use thunder on the battlefield,” Paul commanded in an authoritative voice.

Electivire proceeded to shove both of his long tails deep into the ground while mustering all the electrical energy he could. After being shrouded in electricity, he released a massive thunder attack into the ground. The ground began to rumble underneath the competitor's feet as large pieces of rock began to fly from up into the air and fell quickly onto the ground.

“Serperior, dodge those!” Trip commanded with confidence.

With style and speed, the regal Pokemon slithered left and right to dodge every rock that made contact with the ground. However, right as the serperior was on the right track, Trip spotted a huge rock that was almost inches above his Pokemon’s head. He then smirked at a perfect opportunity to turn this into a counter strike.

“Now Serperior, use dragon tail on that rock!” Trip commanded with a smirk.

Mustering all the energy he could, Serperior’s tail began to glow a light blue color. When the time was right, he swung his blue colored tail up above and made contact with the falling rock. The boulder was too tough to break, however, dragon tail’s force allowed the rock to fly straight into the opponent’s path. Paul quickly registered the attack as he began to scowl and clench his fists.

“Electivire, protect!” Paul demanded in desperation.

However, before Electivire can muster up his energy to make a shield to protect himself from the projectile object, the rock hit him in the middle. The force from the rock was so powerful, that it sent Electivire almost flying backward and smacked into his trainer. Paul’s reaction time was too slow as he could not run away and he and his Pokemon began to fall onto the ground, sliding a few feet. Luckily for him, it was only his left foot that was trapped under Electivire’s weight as he was able to wiggle himself out and stand up.

“Electivire, don’t blow this!” Paul said sternly. “Use brick break now!”

After shaking off the shock from the rock attack, Electivire quickly got on to his feet and began to charge toward his opponent. Narrowing his red eyes, he turned his right-hand sideways as if he was about to execute a swift chop.

“Grab it Serperior!” Trip commanded. “Use wrap!”

The regal Pokemon proceeded to quickly move his body away from the oncoming brick break that was about to happen. Using his tail, he proceeded to grab his opponent and held on tightly. The grip was so tight that Electivire could hardly breathe as his face began to turn purple from the suffocation. Though Paul was surprised, he remained calm as he tried to think of a way to get himself out of this situation.

“Use thunder punch!” he commanded.

Electivire tried his hardest to squeeze his arm from the snake’s grip, however it failed.

“Now, lets give it the old slam, back to back!” Trip exclaimed confidently as he pumped one fist in the air.

With the suffocated Electivire in his grasp, the grass snake began to raise his tail and then with speed and force, slammed his opponent into the hard ground. He did this repeatedly while the thunderbolt Pokemon was trying his best to break out of wrap’s grasp. However, with the repeated slams to the head, it was unsuccessful. Paul’s fists were clenched tightly as he was very shocked at what was going on. He kept calling out more attacks, however at this time, Electivire grew to be unconscious from the attacks.

“Alright, that’s enough!” Trip said with an edge. “I think we got the message through. Now throw it back!”

Serperior raised his tail and with all his might, he threw the unconscious Electivire against a tree with such force. The force was great enough to almost snap the tree in half. After hitting the tree, Electivire fell face first onto the ground. The silence was lingering as Marnie’s raichu went over to the unconscious Pokemon. Raichu tilted it’s head sideways while placing a hand on Electivire’s head.

“Electivire is unable to battle, Serperior wins,” Marnie said with a monotone. “Which means the match goes to Trip.

“Great job, Serperior!” Trip praised as he returned his Pokemon back to his Pokeball.

Nodding his head in defeat, Paul took out his Pokeball and returned his Pokemon back at once. After that, he then looked at the Pokeball itself and said “Great battle, Electivire. We just have to do better.”

“I guess your Electivire was ok,” Trip said sympathetically while crossing his arms. “However, his trainer was awful...”

“We just have to do better, that’s all…” Paul said as he put his Pokeball in his pocket.

As Trip began to walk back into the laboratory, he turned around at the group one more time and smiled.

“Miki, I’ll see you at the battle tower!” he said with determination as he waved and left.

“Sure thing!” Miki replied. “I look forward to seeing you there!”.

“Hmph”, Paul began to walk through the laboratory's back door and onto the road that starts Route One. His eyes were closed, not caring to open them as he kept on walking through the shortened route. ‘Now, I could finally set on my journey. That loss was only a minor setback’ he thought as he continued to be on his way until a familiar voice called out to him.

“Paul, wait up!” a familiar voice called out to him followed by the blabbering of what sounded like an electabuzz.

Paul stopped and turned his head slightly to the left, just enough to see who was coming after him. It was Miki and Ellie, the electabuzz, was clinging to her shoulder. However, this time, she has a dark blue boulder she was carrying with her left hand. She was trying her hardest to catch up with him. Paul stood there as he allowed the girl to catch up to him. He was not at all interested in conversing with her, however, he wanted to allow her to say what she wanted to say before he left.

“If you got something to say to me, say it!” he snapped.

“Paul, I just wanted to apologize,” she started to say. “I know that I can be a bit of a smart aleck but I didn’t mean to give you a hard time. I came here to give you this.”

She took the blue boulder and began to present it to Paul. He turned around and stared at the rock. This rock was different. It was roundly shaped but it also had a dark blue leaf on the top of it. He took the rock from her hands and further inspected it.

“That’s a fossil. A plume fossil to be exact,” Miki explained. “it was burning a hole in my bag and when I saw how determined you are, I figured that you could make use out of it.”

“So… what is so special about this fossil?” Paul asked as he began to put the fossil in his grey slingback.

“If you take it to this one guy in Accumula Town, he can resurrect it for you,” she happily explained. “There used to be someone who does this in Nacrene City, the gym leader’s assistant or whatnot? Yeah, but they have been gone for some time. They can resurrect your fossil into a Pokemon.”

‘So this turns into a Pokemon eh?’ Paul thought to himself as he turned his head and looked straight ahead. The warm wind started to pick up as he felt it blowing on his neck. He wiped a little bit of the sweat that was building up on his forehead while bringing the front of his purple hair back. ‘Even though she was very annoying and she isn’t really worth my time, I am in a new region and I don’t know where this Accumula Town is. I’ll just have her guide me there.’

“I hate having to ask for help, especially from someone like you,” Paul started to say. “However, I have no choice. Bring me to this Accumula Town.”

“Well… even though I have to get back to the black tower, I have time for a little side trip,” the trainer said with excitement. “First the Pokemon center, then the fossil.”

The boat ride to Aspertia City was long as Paul quickly got off the boat and proceeded to head towards the Pokémon Center at full speed. Dusk was starting to set in and he barely had any energy to train his new Pokémon. All he wanted to do was go to sleep for the night. After obtaining his room key from the nurse, he went down the short hallway and into the first room available. After shutting the door behind him, he quickly took the Xtransceiver from his pocket and threw it on the brown nightstand that was located next to a plain looking bed with white sheets.



‘I guess this is it. The real journey starts tomorrow’ he thought as he began to throw his slingback on to the floor along with his outer jacket and undershirt. He then got down on the ground in the plank position and proceeded to do push-ups. For Paul, it was a good way to not only keep him physically strong but to mentally prepare him for whatever came his way. ‘But then again, what am I getting so nervous about? I’ve traveled through Kanto, Johto, Hoenn and my home region and competed in all of their leagues! I already know the process. Just catch strong Pokémon and I will be fine!’.



However, after doing thirty five pushups, Paul stopped himself as he held himself in the plank position. Sweat was dripping down his forehead and onto the floor as his heart began to beat fast. ‘However, I know it won’t be easy. The lifestyle here is a lot different than back in Veilstone, that’s for sure. I wonder, how am I going to survive here?’ he thought as he resumed to do more pushups. While he was doing so, he looked up at the nightstand where he had threw his Xtransceiver. He grimaced at it for a few seconds before looking down at the floor. ‘I guess… every once in a while, I should call that annoying brat. She might be helpful to me when it comes to navigating the city life. However…’



After doing seventy five push ups, Paul quickly got up from the floor and looked up at the ceiling for a while, lost in thought. He thought about his unwanted tour guide and how she said that she worked at the battle tower. He also remember how even her clothes said “battle tower” on them as well. ‘What is this battle tower she speaks of and where can I find it? Maybe… I could grow stronger. However… what if she is a trainer there? She could be useful to me if that were the case. I could stomach her constant smiling and retorts for me being stronger, no doubt!’ Paul then proceeded to crawl into bed and closed his eyes for the night.



~:~



“Now, it’s give it the old slam, back to back!”



Paul panicked as he felt his throat closing up. Those words replayed in his mind as he saw his Electivire’s face become bright blue from the suffocation. The tighter Trip’s Serperior wrapped his foe, the more Paul’s throat closed up from the anxiousness.



“Alright, that’s enough! I think we got the message through. Now throw it back!”



Like a worn out basketball, the grass snake dropped Electivire’s limp body on the floor. Paul could see that his Pokémon wasn’t breathing. Breaking out into a cold sweat, Paul proceeded to run towards his unconscious Pokémon.



“Electivire was ok, but his trainer was awful. Just awful. Go back to the boonies and relearn the basics, will ya?”



Trip’s dark chucking could be heard as Paul grew paler and paler by the minute. He tried shaking Electivire to try to wake him up, however it was no use. His throat completely closed up as he was struggling to breathe himself. He started to black out…



~:~

Paul quickly woke up from his sleep and sat up on his bed. He was breathing quickly as he was trying to catch his breath. He quickly looked around the room, it was mostly dark with hints of light coming from the outside streetlights and everything was still the same. Except, it was two thirty in the morning. Shaking all thoughts of sleep from his mind, Paul got up from bed and proceeded to reach into his jacket pocket to grab a Pokéball. From there, he threw it up in the air and a burst of light came from the ball as Electivire emerged, looking confused and tired.



“I’m sorry Electivire,” Paul said apologetically. “I just couldn’t stop thinking about our battle with Trip.”



The young man walked over to the window and pulled the curtains back. Electivire followed behind him as they looked over Aspertia City. The city looked deserted as there were hardly any people walking around. The lights illuminated the streets and it’s many buildings. It was a small town, though Veilstone City was an even smaller town. In the horizon, sat a red building with a sign the read “trainer’s school and gym”. It was a small building with a school feeling hence the brick walls and pointy roof.



“Well, our challenge awaits us,” Paul almost whispered. “Hey, Electivire. I know I said I would “deal with you later” but I have been thinking… that battle was just as a shock to you as it was to me, am I correct?”



Electivire wanted to appear strong as he hated to be seen as weak, however mulling over his trainer’s words, he hung his head in sadness. Paul noticed it as he heard a depressed sigh coming from his Pokémon.



“Yeah, I understand,” Paul said. “You want to beat him, don’t you?”



Electivire nodded his head as he pumped his fists in confidence.



“Me to,” the young man said as he walked back to bed. “If you work harder, I will work harder. We can beat him. I promise you.”



>>><<<



The next morning, Paul stood outside the Pokémon Center, semi confident and ready to tackle on his next gym challenge. He walked a few blocks to get to the trainer’s school. Still nervous from last night, he tried his best to keep his best poker face, caring not to show any emotion. However, the closer the school was, the more Paul began to feel a cold sweat coming on. His heart began to beat faster and faster. ‘Man, I should have trained Archen when I could. However I think it will do okay. It’s got good moves. Electivire has break break and I could always count on him to perform the way I’d want him to…’ he thought as he finally reached the doorway of the school.



Paul took a deep breath as he proceeded to go in. It was a very small hallway filled with young trainers milling about. The classrooms themselves were full and kids were paying close attention to what was being said. Being an experienced trainer, Paul rolled his eyes as he gave a rough smile. He then looked up at the end of the hallway and saw what appeared to be the way to the battlefield. He ran, however, caring not to knock over some younger students on the way. However, Paul noticed someone coming towards him, not looking straight ahead. The two bumped into each other as they both fell to the floor.



“Hm, what a bother,” the other trainer, who looked to be around Paul’s age, said under his breath while getting up. “A trainer who can’t read the ‘don’t run’ signs.”



“You were the one not paying attention,” Paul scowled. “You’re so pathetic.”



This other trainer had long blue hair, a bit similar to Paul’s, and had his white shirt tucked into a pair of black slacks. He was taller than Paul and possibly might be a little bit older than him.



“Where’s the gym leader?” Paul demanded more than asked.



‘You are looking at him,” the gym leader replied. “I’m Cheren, nice to meet you. I’m the Aspertia City gym leader.”



“Well then, I’m Paul and I’m from Veilstone City, “ Paul proceeded to announce. “And I challenge you to a gym battle!”



“Veilstone City? In the Sinnoh region? Oh…,” Cheren started to say while letting out a light chuckle. “I’ve had three different trainers from Veilstone City battle me yesterday. The first challenger had an Empoleon and a Dewott, the second challenger brought only her Raichu and the third challenger used only his Infernape. They all won, of course.”



As soon as Cheren mentioned an infernape and that the trainer who used it was male, Paul started to feel nervous again. His heart began to beat faster as he had memories of his Sinnoh league defeat at the hands of a certain friendly trainer and his infernape. ‘Don’t tell me he is also in Unova as well. I do not want to deal with him. He’s not a bad trainer, I just want to put that part of my life behind me’ Paul thought as he shook his head to snap out of it. ‘Again, I’m here so that I could be stronger. Who cares about the other trainers?’



“...and I shall be number four then!” Paul said with confidence.



>>><<<



The gym battle was about to begin as the two opponents stood on opposite sides of the field. Like the battlefield at the laboratory, this battlefield was also a plain dirt field with a Pokéball symbol in the middle, however it had no bleachers for anyone to sit. The referee this time was a grown man with a white Pokéball sweater and green shorts.



“Welcome to the Aspertia City gym!” the battle judge began to announce. “The battle will be between Cheren the gym leader and Paul the challenger. The battle will be two-on-two and will end when one side is unable to continue. Furthermore only the challenger allowed to substitute their Pokémon. It has been determined that Paul gets the first move. Now begin!”



“Archen, standby for battle!” Paul said as he threw his Pokéball in the air.



A burst of light came from the Pokéball as Archen appeared from the shadow. With an ear shattering screech, the bird Pokémon assumed a fighting stance.



“Patrat, come on out!” Cheren said as he also threw his Pokéball in the air.



That same burst of light came from the gym leader’s Pokéball as the Pokemon’s figure emerged. When the light disappeared, there stood a brown meerkat like Pokémon with big red eyes. Paul grimaced at the meerkat as he pulled out his Pokedex to scan it.



“Patrat, the scout Pokémon,” the Pokedex explained. “Extremely cautious, one of them will always be on the lookout, but it won't notice a foe coming from behind.”



“Alright then,” Paul started to command as he put away his Pokedex. “Archen, use dragon pulse!”



Archen started by opening its mouth and breathing out a large blue wave of energy towards the opponent. It did so while letting out a very loud screech that startled the gym leader’s Patrat. Before Cheren could even command the scout Pokémon to even attack, the dragon pulse hit dead on, flinging the patrat and causing it to slide ten feet on the ground.



“Patrat, jump on archen!” Cheren commanded.



“Swerve, then counter with ancientpower!” Paul also commanded to Archen.



At breakneck speed, the patrat ran towards it’s opponent, ready to jump on its’ opponent’s back. Paul’s Archen tried its’ best to move away, however, the patrat jumped as it successfully landed on the bird’s back. The bird Pokemon panicked at it swerved left and right, desperate to shake the patrat off its back.



“Shake it off!” Paul commanded as his clenched his firsts in fustration.



“Use bite!” the gym leader commanded.



Using its claws to hold on, the patrat opened its mouth wide, bearing its’ razor sharp teeth. However, Archen readied its own attack by using its energy to create small rocks around it. Before the rodent Pokemon can bite, Paul’s Archen then used its wings to fling the rocks skyward successfully hitting Patrat off of it’s back as well as hitting the floor. As the dust cleared, the chipmunk Pokémon was lying there, trying it’s best to stand up.



“Jump on Archen once more!” Cheren commanded again.



‘I don’t think so Cheren!’ Paul thought as he watched his Pokemon fly side to side, trying to avoid the patrat landing on it’s back once more. However, not even Paul realized how fast that patrat was as it was doing good on its mission to keep up with archen’s flying. The rodent scurried along the battlefield until it used it’s hind paws to leap and grab on to it’s flying opponents’ tail with its teeth.



“Well, well this just got interesting,” the gym leader said as he smirked. “Use bite once more!”



Paul continued to clench his fists as he foresaw his defeat. His palms began to sweat. His archen was trying it’s best to shake off its opponent, however, the patrat wasn’t about to give up. However, he looked closely at the rodent holding on to the tail and remembered a move that it could use with its tail. ‘Aqua tail! I got you now!’ he thought as he smirked.



“Use aqua tail!” Paul commanded.



Even though it’s tail was in the opponent’s mouth, Paul’s Archen began to radiate water energy around it’s tail. It was glowing a light blue color as it began to slam the patrat down to the floor twice. The second time, the rodent let go of the tail as it just layed there, not moving at all.



“Patrat is unable to battle!” the referee announced. “Archen is the winner!”

.

Paul breathed a sigh of relief. “Not bad,” he said as he returned Archen back to its Pokéball. It felt as if a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders. The battle was finally finished and he finally won. ‘Hmph, one more Pokemon to go and I can win this badge!’ he thought as he took out his second Pokéball.



“Electivire, standby for battle!” Paul said with a smile, throwing his Pokéball in the air.



That same burst of light came as Electivire emerged, once again assuming a fighting stance.



“Lilipup, come on out!” the gym leader said as he also threw his second Pokéball.



After the bursting light simmered from the ball capsule, the figure of a puppy dog emerged. There appeared a very small dog Pokémon with shaggy fur, growing at Paul’s Electivire. Paul once again took out his Pokedex to scan the Pokémon in question.



“Lilipup, the puppy Pokémon,” the Pokedex explained. “Though it is a very brave Pokémon, it's also smart enough to check its foe's strength and avoid battle.”



“Lilipup, use bite!” Cheren also commanded.



“We aren’t doing THIS again,” Paul said with confidence. “Electivire, brick break!”







With style and speed, the puppy Pokémon opened its mouth as it ran towards Electivire with sharp fangs, ready to execute a bite attack. However, Electivire was not phased by the small Pokémon’s attempt to attack as it did not move, not one bit. However, the speed of the puppy Pokemon was not taken into account as the opponent , with its teeth, latched itself onto Electivire’s hand. Electivire screamed in pain as it tried to shake the other Pokemon off it’s hand.



“Keep focused,” Paul yelled. “Use brick break against the floor.”



As the lilipup remained stuck to the hand, Electivire proceeded to execute a swift chop against the floor. The force of the brick break was so great, that not only did it sent the smaller Pokémon to the ground, it also bounced a few times before stopping. Limp and unable to battle.



“Lilipup is unable to battle!” the referee announced. “Electivire is the winner! Which means the match goes to the challenger!”



“Wow, it must be a Veilstone thing I guess,” Cheren remarked as he walked toward Paul with a badge in hand. “Well, you earned it. I present to you the Basic Badge.”



It was a purple badge with the design that was similar to a spine of a book. Paul took the badge and proceeded to put it in his pocket.



“Thank you very much,” Paul said as he began to leave for his next challenge.

The sky darkened as dusk began to settle. After walking and training on Route 20, Paul eventually made it to the next town which was Floccesy Town. It was a very small town, like Veilstone City. There wasn’t even a gym in sight as well. ‘Well this city is useless’ he thought as he proceeded to head into the Pokémon Center. After getting his room key, he headed down the long hallway to the last room to the right.

Like his routine from last night, right after he shut the door behind him, he proceeded to throw his slingback and his Xtransceiver on the floor, along with his jacket and undershirt. Unlike last night, he got down on the floor on his back and proceeded to do sit-ups instead of push-ups. ‘So I wonder if there is a gym in the next town…’ he thought as he pushed himself through the workout routine. ‘Maybe, I should call that girl. Maybe she could help me, but I don’t really want to talk to anyone, not after what happened this afternoon!’.

While he was doing his sit-ups, Paul glanced over at the Xtransceiver lying next to the other items he threw on the ground. As he was approached his fiftieth rep, he sat up and allowed the sweat to drip from his forehead. ‘I guess… fine, I will call her. I do want to know where my next gym battle will be and she knows the way’ he thought as he snatched the Xtransceiver from the ground and sighed heavily. He scrolled through the list of names on the screen and waited for a response.

After a few rings, a clicking sound could be heard. “Paul is that you?” Miki said sarcastically on the other line. “What happened to ‘I’m certainly not going to be asking you for anything. So this device is pretty much useless to me’ huh?”

“You’re not funny,” Paul retorted as his anger started to rise. “Where were you? I wasted my time with a bunch of dumb trainers and their Pokémon. One was using a calculator instead of a Pokédex and you guys think I’m a low-class trainer? And Trip… he makes me so mad…”

“Yo Paul, you need to chill,” Miki said as she tried to calm him down. “I had a challenger-er-I meant a challenge at the tower so I was a bit late, no biggie. All I did was show the guys some of my Pokémon on my uncle's ranch. How about I show you my Pokémon tomorrow? It may give you some inspiration for your Pokémon team, y’know?”

“A challenger?” Paul asked as he stood up from the floor. “Are you some type of gym leader or something?”

“I said CHALLENGE Paul, not a challenger,” Miki retorted. “Man, you’re deaf…”

“Yeah, whatever,” he snapped. “Look, whatever you want to show me, show it.”

“I wish I could today but I am at Tristian’s place now,” she explained. “How about we meet up at the front of the Pokémon Center where you’re at… around 7:30?”

“Why so early?”

“I just wanted to do it early that’s all. The reason isn’t any of your business. So, I’ll see you in Floccesy Town, g’night.”

With that, she hung up the Xtransceiver for the night. Paul felt surprised as he just stared at the device. Normally, he would be the one to abruptly end a call however this wasn’t the case. ‘I know what I heard. I’m not stupid’ Paul thought as he crawled into bed. ‘Maybe she could be useful to me after all…’

~.~

The next morning, Paul waited outside the Pokémon Center for his unwanted companion. The sun was set to rise soon as the meet time was soon to approach. He waited impatiently, hoping that she would get there on time, as he paced back and forth. ‘Where is she? I know Nuvema Town isn’t that far away’ he thought as he sat down for a while. The wind was slowly starting to pick up and the temperature was on the chilly side.

As Paul was beginning to enjoy his moment of peace and quiet, he heard the low screeching of a flying creature up ahead. He looked up and saw a reddish orange moth-like Pokémon with a red bow on each horn on the side of its’ head, six wings that resembled the sun’s rays and a white furry head with blue eyes hovering over him. Paul immediately took out his Pokédex from his pocket and scanned the mysterious Pokémon.

“Volcarona, the Sun Pokémon, and the evolved form of Larvesta,” the Pokédex explained. “When volcanic ash darkened the atmosphere, it is said that Volcarona's fire provided a replacement for the sun.”

‘Hm, I think I am going to catch this one! I’ve caught other Pokemon without battling them before, this should be easy' Paul thought as he took out a Pokeball from his pocket. “Now go, Pokeball!” he said with confidence as he threw it towards the Sun Pokémon.

However, it proved to fail as a light red beam appear, signaling that this volcarona belonged to another trainer. The Pokémon proceeded to mock Paul as it used its voice to imitate a ‘nana’ sound while still circling around. As he was about to get out another Pokeball, a familiar voice could be heard from behind.

“Volcarona, over here!”

Paul turned around and saw Miki and her makuhita walking casually towards him, with her volcarona flying towards her. The moth perched itself on her shoulder as they both approached the young man.

“Y’know Paul, if you gonna catch a Pokémon, you gotta battle it with your own Pokémon,” Miki explained. “Basic stuff…”

“I've done this before you know. I know exactly what I am doing,” he hissed. “I’ll thank you and your volcarona to get out of my face.”

“Am I detecting some salt here?” she said sarcastically. “Don’t get snippy with me because you failed to catch a volcarona.”

“Stop!” Paul said as he raised his voice in an authoritative state.

The tone of Paul’s voice coupled with his demeanor slightly scared Miki as she proceeded to take a few steps back. Paul tilted his head in confusion as he watched the girl slightly shake in fear. ‘She was confident before, what happened?’

“Hey Paul, I was just messing with you. I sent Volcarona out to go look for you, I didn’t think you would try to catch her. I’m really sorry. Please forgive me. Ready to see my Pokémon?”

Paul turned to her as he loosened his anger towards her. He wasn’t used to the sarcastic resorts constantly but it would take some time for him to get used to if he were to hang around this girl. ‘She could be useful to me in my quest to become stronger, it is just that she can be so annoying…. however, I will see her stupid Pokémon. They probably are all weak’ he thought with a smile.

“It’s alright,” Paul said as he shrugged his shoulders. “I will go with you.”

“Well come on then!” Miki and Makuhita ran in front of Paul as he followed them the rest of the way. “We’re off to see my useless Pokémon!”

~.~

The pair finally arrived at Floccesy Ranch. It was a small farm with a few houses and a lot of different Pokémon. Paul looked around and saw a whole bunch of blue sheep Pokémon, hanging around different areas of the ranch. They were small but very fluffy sheep with cream colored wool and a flashing light shining on the end of their tails. Curious to see what Pokémon they were, Paul stopped to pull out his Pokédex and scan them.

“Mareep, the Wool Pokémon,” the Pokédex explained. “When cold weather increases static electricity, its wool doubles in size and the tip of its tail glows slightly.”

“Done scanning those mareep, Paul?” Miki asked playfully.

“Oh, come one, some of us do need to learn you know” Paul said in an almost playful tone as he continued to follow. “Are those mareep yours?”

“Naw man, most of these guys are wild,” she answered. “But wouldn’t it be cool they were mine, though? I’d have a whole army of mareep to take over Unova haha!”

‘What a weirdo..’ Paul thought as he gave a slight smirk. After passing by a few houses dotted with mareep, it seems as if they finally reached their destination. They stood in front of a large light brown house, with a side yard full of different Pokémon. The area around it was rather plain and grassy like the rest of the ranch, however, it didn’t have that country feeling. To Paul, it felt more like a mansion out on the field. While he glanced over at the Pokémon in the yard, Paul started to walk over to the area with his Pokédex in tow. Until he felt a tug on the right sleeve of his jacket.

“Hold on Paul,” Miki said as she nervously headed towards the door. “I’m not sure how my Pokémon would react to strangers. They don’t really hang out with anyone besides me or my family members so I don’t want them to get upset. So don’t go off without me.”

While Paul waited, Miki went up to the front door and proceeded to knock. He slowly approached the porch area as a few minutes went by. Then, the doorknob twisted and the door slowly opened. However, the one who answered the door wasn’t human but was a Pokémon. It was a humanoid Pokémon with pink cannons for arms. Its’ entire body was a mix of dark and light pinks and had light pink flames on not only the head but its’ tail as well.

“Hm, that’s a magmortar,” Paul quietly whispered. “She has one to, however it is all pink.”

“Yo Maggie, is Uncle Brent around?” Miki asked.

Maggie shook her head no as she shrugged her shoulders up.

“Ah, he probably went to work,” she said in an exasperated tone as she turned towards Paul. “No matter, I’ll show you my Pokémon anyway. Let’s go!”

While Maggie went back inside, Miki took Paul to the right side of the house, where there was a huge white fence that blocked the yard area. While she jumped over the fence to greet her Pokémon, Paul’s eyes widened when he saw all the different Pokémon that hung out in that area. They all ran to greet their trainer. There were three bipedal dinosaur-like Pokémon that piled on top of her. One was dark grey and mostly resembled a rhinoceros. It had a bow on one of its horns and a small drill like snout. The other was aquamarine with silver plates and a long tail and horns protruding from it’s plated armor on its head, which Paul knew was an aggron. Lastly, the third one resembled a pachycephalosaurus, as it was light red and black with a dome head that had spikes on the sides and stripes on its’ wrists and legs.

Paul took out his Pokédex to scan the other two Pokémon.


“Rhydon, the Drill Pokémon and the evolved form of Rhyhorn. Standing on its hind legs freed its forelegs and made it smarter. It is very forgetful, however.”

“Rampardos, the Head Butt Pokémon and the evolved form of Cranidos. If two were to smash their heads together, their foot-thick skulls would keep them from fainting.”

Paul slipped his Pokédex into his pocket as he stepped a little bit closer to the group. ‘Hm I remember some of these Pokémon but why are they different colors?’ he thought to himself. ‘I thought rampardos was blue, not red! Also, that aggron looks a lot different than the one I used to own. That one is green...’. Miki got herself off the floor as she signaled Paul to come closer. However, as he did just that, both her aggron and rhydon got behind their trainer, not sure what to expect.

“I’m sorry, like I said, they’re not used to strangers coming round here,” she explained while she pointed to her Pokémon. “I know you scanned them but… this is my rhydon, Ray and this is my aggron, Arynn. Of course, you also met my rampardos, Amy. I have two others here but they are asleep.”

The girl then walked up to Paul, getting out a handful of red spiked berries that looked similar to tomatoes from her pocket and put them in his hands.

“What are these?” Paul asked.

“They are tamato berries,” Miki answered. “They are very spicy but my Pokémon love them. Try feeding it to them. They may warm up to you.”

Paul shook his head as he proceeded to walk up to the gate with the berries in hand. He then moved his handful in front of him but enough for the Pokémon to grab the berries from his hand. Amy took an immediate interest as she took a bunch from his hand and ate them happily. Ray and Arynn proceeded to stare at the remaining berries that were in his hand. It seemed as if they were unsure if he was safe or not. ‘This is pretty lame…’ he thought as he tried his best to keep his poker face intact.

Just as they started to come closer, Paul could feel the sound of buzzing in his ear as he slightly turned his head. He then jumped back as Volcarona swooped down and took the rest of the berries from his hand.

“Oh come on now, Volcarona,” Miki said in an annoyed tone. “They weren’t for you, y’know…”

However, all was well as Arynn came up to Paul and proceeded to lick his hand as a sign of acceptance. He closed his eyes tight as he was trying his hardest not to cringe inside. He wasn’t used to Pokémon being very friendly towards him or showing him any affection. Not even Electivire was known to be friendly towards his trainer. As Paul pulled his hand back, he stared at the ground while he walked away from the gate.

“I’m sorry, my Pokémon can get friendly at times, especially when they get to know ya,” Miki explained as she stood beside Paul. “However…. I wonder, and you don’t have to answer me, but, you… haven’t had affection shown towards you that much, haven’t you?”

However, instead of snapping at her for asking such a question, Paul turned to her poker-faced. As if, he had an answer in mind but did not know how to frame it. Besides, he didn’t want to scare her again.

"I just… think it is a waste of time," Paul started to say calmly. "It makes people and Pokémon become slackers. Believe me, I've dealt with it."

"So what you're sayin' is that affection makes people and Pokémon...slackers?" Miki asked as she came closer to him.

Paul began to take two steps ahead and turn his back towards the girl while crossing his arms. "Yes…" he said coldly. "Have a problem with it?"

"No-no, you're not far from the truth," she started to say as her voice was shaking.

"Huh?" Paul quickly turned around as listened. 'Is she actually… agreeing with me?' he thought to himself as he tried to shake off the surprise.

"Paul, it's true that spoiling your Pokémon can make em feel entitled," Miki explained as she came closer to him. "Sometimes they can be a pain in the butt and you might get hurt. But, it can also bring you closer to your Pokémon as well. You can still be affectionate with your Pokémon but also inflict tough love as well…"

Paul mulled on those words as he looked up to the clear skies. Thoughts of his past training came back, of how he used to be very hard on his Pokémon in order to make them powerful. 'I wish she wouldn't make me bring up such memories…' he thought as he closed his eyes, letting the gentle wind brush against his face. 'I thought she was going to give me some lecture about how I should be more friendly, however, if you put it that way… what she said makes sense.'

He then turned to Miki and stared at her for a few minutes while putting his thoughts together. 'There are so many questions I have for her, but I need to frame them properly'. The girl turned her head as she was confused as to why Paul kept staring.

"Paul?"

"...I have some questions for you," Paul replied.

"Okay… ask away," Miki said as she signaled Paul to walk with her around the perimeter of the ranch.

The young man proceeded to follow closely as they began to walk towards the nearby woods near the house. "Okay, for starters, why are some of your Pokémon different colors?" he asked. "Like I thought magmortar was red, but yours was pink."

"Oh yes, I do own some 'shinies' as we call them," she explained. "If you look to your 'dex. you'll know that Pokémon also have a shiny version. They are extremely difficult to catch and they take forever to breed. I've had these Pokémon since I was ten and some, like Ellie, I've had when I was much younger. Pink was my favorite color, so the pink shinies I hunted them down like crazy. My drapion, I got from a shelter though."

"You own a drapion?!" Paul asked in shock. "I also owned one as well! In fact, when I saw your Pokémon, it reminded me of the ones I raised for the Sinnoh league."

"Yes, she should be around here somewhere," the girl answered. "I raised her from a skorupi. The original trainer didn't want her so they dumped her off at the Pokémon shelter, as the same with some of my others."

"Which Pokémon did you get from the shelter?"

"My drapion, aggron, rhydon, lairon and ursaring all came from the shelter. I raised them when they were their pre-evolved forms and we have been together ever since."

Paul nodded as he was processing the information he was getting. 'She seems to really love her Pokémon' he thought to himself. 'I guess I could be more patient with mine. I still want to catch the strongest ones I could and it looks like she had that similar mindset as well!' While walking, Paul looked to his left and noticed Makuhita playing alongside the other Pokémon.

"I wonder… does that makuhita belong to you or Trip?" he asked.

"She's mine," Miki answered with confidence. "However, Tristian does help me care for some of my Pokémon just as my aunt and uncle does at times."

He once again nodded, this time in disgust at the thought of his rival. 'He was a totally different person with that electabuzz…' he thought. 'It's so weird, however, I guess he is either weird or he and this girl are close'.

"You know, what is the deal with him and that electabuzz?" Paul asked with a hint of frustration in his voice. "I thought you said that she didn't like men…"

"She doesn't," Miki started to say. "But she's known Tristan for some time. He's helped my aunt and I care for her since she was an elekid. However, even then, it took time for her to warm up to him. But as she opened her heart to him, he began to open his heart to her. They have gotten closer ever since."

As Paul was about to ask another question, the pair saw the bushes in front of them rustle back and forth. He took a step forward as a yellow and black Pokémon scurried from the bushes and appeared in front. It was a small canine Pokémon that stood on two black feet, red eyes had a yellow tail and a blue collar. While the Pokémon waved its fists as a defensive stance, Paul took out his Pokedex from his pocket to scan the mysterious creature.

"Riolu, the Emanation Pokémon," the Pokedex explained. "It uses the shapes of auras, which change according to emotion, to communicate with others."

"Interesting Pokémon," Paul started to say. "Is it yours?"

"No," Miki answered. "There are wild Pokémon living in the area and a few of the riolu around here have made Floccesy Ranch their home. Most of the ones I've seen are very stubborn."

'I think I will catch it then!' Paul thought as he reached inside his slingback and pulled out a Pokéball. He also reached into his jacket pocket to grab another Pokéball and proceeded to throw it.

"Electivire, standby for battle!" Paul said confidently while he threw his Pokéball.

That same burst of light came as Electivire emerged, once again assuming a fighting stance proudly.

"I need you to help me catch that riolu!" Paul commanded as he pointed to the riolu by the bushes, while also holding the empty Pokéball. "You ready?"

“Good luck Paul!” Miki blurted out. “Go for it!”

Paul turned to her as he tilted his head to the side. “Thanks...I guess. Electivire, you ready?”

Electivire shook his head while he squinted his eyes at the opponent Pokemon assuming a battle stance.

"Alright then, use thunder punch!" Paul commanded.

However, Electivire did not listen as he was too consumed with what was going on around the riolu. The bushes started to shake back and forth as if something was inside. Paul put both hands far out on his sides as an impatient gesture towards his Pokémon.

"What are you waiting for?" he asked impatiently while trying to retrieve the empty Pokéball. "Let's go, Electivire!"

"Um… Paul," Miki started to say. "Look."

After the bushes were shaking, a horde of riolu began to jump out and join the solo Pokemon that Paul was about to catch. There were about ten of them, and they looked very angry as they clenched their fists at their opponents. All the while, Electivire slowly approached Paul, glaring at him. 'Oh no!' Paul realized that they were being ambushed. He took off his slingback to search for anything that can lore these angry riolu away. 'Where is it, where IS it?' he thought to himself as he grew more nervous and anxious. He didn't even hear Electivire grunting impatiently as he tried to locate the item. Eventually, he found what he was looking for as he held it up in the air. A white can with a poke ball symbol in the middle, a max repel, meant to keep weak Pokemon away with one spray.

However, as Paul was about to spray the repen towards the wild Pokémon. he looked up to saw that the all of Pokémon had already escaped. He took a few steps forward towards the bush to try to locate the riolu. He scanned the area and pulled back some of the branches on the bush, however no cigar. 'Drat!' he clenched his fists in frustration when he realized that he was too late and he once again failed at catching a Pokémon. 'You know, if Electivire wouldn’t have given me additude…' he thought as he turned around, fuming as well as his eyes were shut tight.

"Is that how you catch a Pokémon?" a familiar voice asked from behind. "How pathetic."

Paul growled in frustration as he opened his eyes and saw his rival Trip standing a few feet behind him, along with the same electabuzz from earlier in his arms. However, Ellie was laughing in a cutesy manner, causing Electivire to blush and cross his arms in embarrassment, all the while narrowing his eyes as he turned to his trainer.

"Wait, you saw that?" Miki asked in shock.

"Sure did," Trip answered as he approached his friend. "It was not a pretty sight. Someone needs to go over the basics… badly."

Paul narrowed his eyes at the pair as he shook his head in frustration. 'I really do not want to deal with these people. Not Trip and not that stupid electabuzz…' he thought as he attempted to leave, obviously disgusted.

"Whatever," Paul said coldly as he started to walk away. "I'm out of here. I can see this is going to be something I want no part in."

As Paul started to walk away, Electivire glanced over at Ellie, who gave him a smile and a slight chuckle. He uncrossed his arms as he gently patted the electabuzz on the head. Paul turned around and proceeded to get out a Pokéball from his pocket in an attempt to return his Pokémon back to his Pokéball.

"Paul wait!" Miki said as she approached the purple haired young man. "Aren't you going to apologize to Electivire?"

"Why should I?" he asked coldly. "It's his fault that we didn't catch any Pokémon, you know."

As soon as he heard that, Electivire slowly started to approach his trainer with his fists clenched and shrouded in electricity. He growled loudly as he towered over Paul, getting close to his face in an attempt to intimidate him. Paul's heart started to beat fast as he retained his best poker face. He wanted to show Electivire that he wasn't afraid as he stood there with a scowl, not backing down. He glanced over at his Pokémon's fists for a second, while still keeping his composure. 'If he attacks me, then we will have problems…' he thought as he just stood there.

As the staring match progressed, Ellie broke free from Trip's arms and proceeded to run towards the pair, putting both hands on Electivire's forearm. Paul stood there in shock as he watched the electabuzz who was once shy now suddenly appearing to try to calm his Pokémon. She rubbed on his forearm as the electricity that surrounded Electivire's fists started to disappear. Not only that but he started to unclench his fists as well.

"Thanks, Ellie!" Miki said as she picked up the small electabuzz. "Paul, I think you may want to hash it out with Electivire before you do any gym challenge. However, your next gym challenge is in Virbank City."

"Thank you," Paul said calmly as he returned Electivire back to his Pokéball. "Also, thank you for showing me your Pokémon. I greatly appreciate it."

"Well… you are welcome to come back and see them again," she suggested. "I'm sure they will be happy to see you again."

With that, Paul waved goodbye as he smiled and went on his way to his next gym challenge in Virbank City.